Calculated nosiness is a strength of Axel's--he's curious about everyone's everything, honestly, but he knows when to get out the crowbar and when to just sit back and look at a locked door, and he can tell Keith is the sort where you have to do a lot of the latter. That's fine. He's patient.

He gives a soft laugh then, and it's genuine enough.

"I have," he assures him, "just... not since I was about fifteen." He waves a hand. "I wasn't makin' fun," he says. "It was just a memorable way to meet somebody."

Folding his hands together and resting his chin against them, Axel ponders the question for half a second, recognizing it for what it is, and gives a hint of a nod.

"A little while," he says. "I managed to track down most of the people I give a damn about, and since I know they're still all in one piece, I just needed to sit down for a bit, I guess." He sighs, closing his eyes for a moment, and then glances back up at Keith. "Not knowing can be really exhausting, you know?"