theme: sweet things
[like a bridge over troubled waters]
When Xigbar walks in on Axel's drinking binge, he hesitates under a load of crashing notes and the soft sound of the sea. He can see that Axel's fire is dimming – even his hair seems to be drooping as he stares into a tumbler of something golden – and is wise enough to know that he, too, is tired.
"Hey dude." Xigbar seizes a glass from a nearby cupboard and sinks into a chair opposite Axel. "Top me off."
Axel stares blankly at the cup for a little longer and then raises his eyes to meet Xigbar's. He gets a good long look at those eyes and can tell that they are searching for something they've never had to worry about before. Xigbar decides to give him a gentle shove. "Gonna leave me hanging, man?"
Axel's face seems to crumple and crease a little, buckling under a familiar weight, and picks up a bottle at random, filling Xigbar's cup to the brim.
"Cheers," he says. Before Xigbar can down it, Axel adds, "To Demyx." Xigbar nods and raises his glass. "To Roxas."
The passage of time is marked by the flow of alcohol and then Axel puts down his tumbler. "Feelings," mumbles Axel, slouching so his chin rests on his forearm. "Sight. Sound. 'N… feeling." He wiggles a hand. "Ya know?"
"Yeah." "And taste." "Yeah." He nods and returns to nursing the drink. "It never tasted bitter before," he says suddenly mid-sip, slopping the liquid over his cloak. "It was always… sour, or salty and sweet, kinda nice." Xigbar grunts an affirmative. "Some people…"
"When they left," interrupts Xigbar, feeling the weight of the ocean between his shoulders, "they just left the bitterness."
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