"Nanase-san, did you pull an all-nighter again?"

When Iori opened his bedroom door in the morning to find Riku sitting on the sofa in the same position as last night, he gave Riku a disapproving look. No, he was not happy at all. The usually pretty redhead now looked awful with bags under his eyes.

"Oh, I fell asleep in front of my laptop for, um, two hours?" Rubbing his eyes, Riku replied with a hoarse voice.

"You need to rest." The thought of walking over to the sofa to shut Riku's laptop down sounded most brilliant right now.

"I'm fine, Iori." Riku forced a smile on his face. "I really need to figure this out."

The youngest thought he could hear soft gasps coming from Riku. He hoped it was only his imagination as he really needed to get ready and rush to his exam. Worried, he decided to throw plain cereal into two bowls, pour warm milk on top of them, and add a teaspoon of honey to each. He walked over and placed one on the low table for the tired student. "At least don't forget your breakfast."

As Iori was quickly shoving food down his mouth, Riku smiled, setting his laptop aside and showing his friend his phone screen. "Look, Iori. This was on the news last night."

Leaning forward slightly, Iori read the bold headline. "The Crescent Wolf is back in the game...?" Below it was a picture of Yaotome Gaku with his boxing guard up, facing forward with a fierce stare.

Riku beamed, pulling his phone back and proceeding to explain even before Iori could ask. "Yaotome-san is going to fight in BLACK or WHITE! We've got to get tickets, Iori!"

"'We?'" Iori snickered, setting aside his empty cereal bowl. "I have no interest in seeing brutes." He much preferred the cute type, like the guy sitting in front of him. Thank you very much.

"I don't want to go alone, though." Riku pouted.

In the end, the younger man had to let Riku have his way. "All right. If it makes you happy." He stood up, about to walk back to the kitchen when Riku got up, throwing his arms around Iori's body.

"Yayyyy! Iori is the best!"

"Are you truly happy?" Catching how strained Riku's supposedly happy voice was, Iori placed his free hand on Riku's shoulder, lightly pushing it backwards so he could see Riku's face. "Tell me the truth, Nanase-san." He hated it whenever Riku got sad, but he hated it even more when Riku put up a tough front. "You came home crying the other night. I heard it."

"Ah..." Riku's eyes widened. Iori must be talking about the night he met Gaku at the soba shop. When he returned to the quiet apartment then, he felt cold. Childhood memories washed over his brain with warmth. When reality hit him in the face, he was reminded that the warmth of the Nanase family disappeared the very day Tenn walked away. Involuntarily, he sobbed, probably much louder than he thought he had been. "I-I ended up mentioning my family to Yaotome-san. Just a little bit, but it got me emotional."

Iori sighed. He had expected something like this. "I'm surprised you haven't told him already. About your past and why you're training to fight." He continued when Riku gave him a confused look. "Remember the session I went to watch? Yaotome-san was asking me about you."

Surprised, Riku asked, "He did? What did you say to him?"

Iori shook his head. "Only that it isn't my place to tell."

"Yaotome-san said I could trust him..." The redhead seemed conflicted. "I feel bad. He must have noticed by now that I lied to him."

"Hah? Who would be stupid enough to fall for your lies?" Iori knew for a fact that Riku was a terrible actor who could not hide anything he felt.

"Hey, that's mean!" Riku pouted a bit before confessing his crime to Iori. "Once, when I was Rabbichatting Yaotome-san, I told him I was an only child."

Iori rested his forehead on his palm. "Which isn't exactly a lie. But not the whole truth either."

"Iori, do you think I should-"

Iori had to cut Riku off since he was in a hurry. "I can't tell you what to do or what not to do, Nanase-san, but if it were me, I'd tell him." With that, he walked to the kitchen, leaving Riku to ponder by himself.

The guy knew Riku was strong and that he wanted to push through the haunting past himself, but it couldn't hurt to have another person support him.

~~++~~++~~

A few days later...

"Where the hell is he?"

It was half an hour past the private coaching session and Riku was nowhere to be seen. Gaku grew restless. He found himself pacing around the gym room, checking his phone for notifications every five minutes, and looking at the wall clock way too often to be healthy. Riku had never, ever skipped training. And despite how clumsy he could be, Gaku knew Riku would text him beforehand to cancel or postpone the session. Yes, he had already tried giving Riku a call a couple of times. No one picked up.

The fighter was too anxious to focus. He'd tried to get himself to do some shadow boxing, throwing punches, kicks, knees, and combos in the air, but seeing only himself in the mirror felt wrong.

He leapt for his phone the instant the ringtone went off. An unfamiliar number—not a good sign. If it turned out to be a scam, he'd growl at it for sure. "Hello?"

"Hello, Yaotome-san. This is Nanase-san's flatmate, Izumi Iori." Without waiting for Gaku to reply, he asked, "Is Nanase-san with you?"

"No, I've been waiting. Should I be worried?" As if Gaku wasn't already.

Iori frowned. That did not sound good. Oh boy, that did not sound good at all. "He's been pushing himself trying to complete a uni assignment."

Gaku's expression turned grim. "Any idea where he could be?"

"He worked late, but he did come home last night. I'll check if he attended his afternoon class today."

~~++~~++~~

Gaku found himself rushing into the same hospital where he'd learned of Riku's health condition. Damn it, he didn't want to be back here again like this or ever. How the hell could this happen? He took the elevator to the top floor and bolted out as soon as it opened. There, Iori was standing in the corridor, in front of the room number he'd received in RabbiChat earlier.

"Izumi, how is he?" Gaku couldn't possibly ask or say any other things before this. Worry was painted all over his face. His hair was a mess. At least a part of his calm self had managed to tell him to take a quick shower and change into proper clothing before leaving the gym.

"His attack has calmed down. He's asleep, but you can go in." Iori spoke with a straight face. He had, unfortunately, gotten used to this kind of scenario.

Unlike Iori, Gaku was not and did not want to get used to unexpected hospital summons. "What triggered it?" He remembered that Riku didn't look well the other day.

"Stress combined with overwork, most likely." The youngest sighed. "90% of the time, he ends up here because of it. Tch." Iori clicked his tongue, his tone showing more than hints of annoyance. "That guy is stupid, always saying 'I'm fine' even when he's on the verge of an attack." His fist tightened. He hated the fact that he couldn't do anything to stop this foreseen circumstance. He hated that factors beyond his control caused Riku to collapse.

"All this for a uni assignment?" Gaku couldn't quite understand why someone would put in this much effort for grades.

"It's not just any assignment. It's his pride." That bit, Iori could totally relate to. If anything were to be under his name, it had to be perfect. "He has to be able to proudly say that he makes that music himself."

"Make music?" Gaku touched his temples as though they were hurting. Yet another new piece of information. He hated not knowing anything about that guy.

Glancing at his watch, Iori realised he had to be on his way. "Sorry, I must leave now. The doctor wants him to stay overnight, mainly as a precaution."

"All right. I'll drive him back tomorrow." Gaku nodded.

With that, the busy student excused himself, leaving his best friend in Gaku's capable hands. No, he never wanted to leave. His footsteps even came to a stop briefly as he was walking away. Entrusting his best friend with another man felt strange, if not wrong. He forced himself to storm further away, knowing, or at least hoping, that this particular man could bring about a change for the better.

The fighter invited himself into the room. There, his trainee was out like a light. The closer Gaku got to him, the more he felt pain in his heart. Riku looked much worse than he seemed at the soba place. He was pale, thin, and had bags under his eyes. His hair was all over the place. The long bang he grew in the middle dropped to the side, revealing a deep, cutting scar on Riku's forehead.

"This must have hurt a lot." Gaku very carefully traced the scars with his finger as he sat down on the chair right next to Riku's bed. He refrained from fixing the hair to avoid waking the guy up unnecessarily. Then, Gaku remembered seeing similar but more shallow scars on other parts of Riku's body. "How could anyone do this to someone so nice?"

Hopelessly, he looked past Riku to the machines monitoring him. Why can't I do anything?

As Gaku waited for Riku to wake up, exhaustion caught up to him, sending him into a deep slumber with his head and arms on Riku's bed. At midnight, a nurse came in, probably for the usual checkup. None of them moved, so she dimmed the lights, leaving them in their dreamland.

Later, at 3AM, Riku's consciousness came back to him. His whole body ached so he tried to sit up first. With the white blanket covering his lower half, he knew right away where he was. "Right. I had a flare-up after class..." Searching for some water, he looked to his left and "Eek!" shrieked in surprise. "Yaotome-san?!"

Slowly, Gaku lifted his head up. When he saw the silhouette of the redhead sitting up, his eyes went wide. "Nanase!" Right away, he got up and hugged Riku tightly, putting his chin on Riku's shoulder and his hand on the back of Riku's head. The boy's body was light—frail even—as if he did not exist in Gaku's hold. As if he were slowly turning into sand, disappearing from the fighter's memory.

"Uwah?!" Though surprised at first, Riku welcomed that tight embrace. It had been years since he had received a hug from anyone. He let himself flop into Gaku's arms, hoping he could be there a while longer. He wished to be seen, despite how little his presence mattered. He wished to be cared for mentally, not just for the illness that defined him. But in the end, "I'm nothing but trouble for everyone," he gave in to the demonic thoughts inside his head.

Gaku pushed Riku away but kept a tight hold on his shoulders. "Hey, don't say that." He didn't like that line at all, and he didn't want to hear it again.

Riku's mouth curled into a smile, but his eyes were curving in the opposite direction. "You don't understand. My whole life I've destroyed everyone around me: my parents, my brother, Iori, and now you-"

"Then make me, Nanase!" The coach shouted, hoping his voice would reach the hurting boy. He stopped himself from shaking Riku's body. Instead, he stared directly into Riku's soul. "You said I can't help you but how do I know that's true when you've never given me a chance to know you. There must be a reason why you're fighting, and I want to know it."

Gently, the pro fighter moved his hands up to cup Riku's cheek. All the body language to show he was sincere. "Trust me. Let me be your friend."

Gaku would not allow such an important person to come into his life just to disappear.

It was tough shouldering everything. With his body weak, Riku couldn't bear it anymore. He would have to talk now, or the world of pain would consume him. He lightly touched one of Gaku's wrists.

Gaku let go as Riku shifted his body. Both his legs hung from the side of the bed, fully facing the fighter. Bowing his head deeply, Riku apologised. "Um... I'm sorry I lied to you, Yaotome-san." Breathing in, he set himself ready for the long night to come. "I'm not an only child. Well, I mean, I wasn't, but now I am."

Gaku sat up, blinking twice. "Which is it??"

Riku elaborated. "We were a family of four. My parents, my twin brother, and I. My parents owned a show club, but business wasn't going well. With me always in and out of the hospital, we struggled financially." His fist clenched during the next part. "When my brother and I were 13, a man showed up, saying he'd take care of our debt and all that."

"Why would he do that?" No one could be that generous, Gaku thought while handing Riku a glass of water.

"He wanted my brother, saying he was a rare talent, a star that was bestowed by the heavens. Our parents refused, of course." Riku chuckled. It was a given that they would do anything to keep their perfect son. "But my brother went with him."

"...what?" Gaku's eyes widened.

"He didn't have a choice." Tears welled up in Riku's eyes as he remembered the moment as if it were yesterday.

Young Tenn shook himself free from their parents' hold, walked past Riku, only turning his head briefly to flash a parting smile, and took the man's arm. The whitish shade of pink soon turned completely white, leaving everyone blind.

"He did it to save me. Dad was never the same after that. For years, I watched my mum cry every day. The future of the family was done for, Dad said. My parents really wished my brother would take over the family show club someday, you see. I took away their hopes and dreams." Riku had to put a glass of water back as he couldn't bear to see his face in the reflection.

Gaku was starting to see the picture. For some reason he did not want to know, Riku's parents preferred his brother. Even if they had not blamed Riku for his brother's disappearance, a young boy like Riku would be blaming himself growing up in a gloomy, loveless environment.

"Even so, they took care of me well. They hired a tutor for me and fed me good food. When the doctor said I should be well enough to attend high school, I was overjoyed. I was looking forward to making friends and going on after school outings. Simple things like that." Riku continued.

"But it was too good to be true." His smile disappeared so suddenly that it spooked Gaku. "Most of the people there had already been friends since elementary school. They'd sit in groups. I'd just be left out in class. Even worse, the bullies saw me as an easy target."

Upon hearing the word 'bullies', Gaku grimaced.

"It wasn't that bad at first. They tricked me, hid my textbook, or laughed hysterically when I messed up. But eventually, things got more physical, more violent, especially after they found out I had asthma." Riku grabbed his shirt around the chest area. "They'd hit me, punch me, hide my inhaler, or threaten to throw me off the balcony, and I couldn't do anything to fight back. Most of the time, Iori came to save me. He usually got hurt in the process." His hands shook slightly.

Seeing how the hand on the knee began to tense, Gaku touched it, rubbing it with his thumb to remind Riku he was no longer living in a nightmare. "What about the teachers? Your parents? Surely they could have done something."

Riku shook his head. "The teachers scolded the bullies and even punished them a few times. They never learned. And I didn't want my parents to know. Not when I was already a burden to them."

"Nanase..." That again. It hurt Gaku. Parents should provide for their children. It was their job.

"In the end, the bullies were expelled and my parents found out about it because I ended up at the hospital."

Riku described the horrible event that took place in detail: how he was kicked, cut, and hurt until his asthma acted up, shaking even the toughest fighter like Yaotome Gaku. The traumatised boy ended up crying in the process. He remembered every detail of what had happened. Gaku had to sit beside Riku and wrap his arm around his shoulders, calming him down. The last thing he wanted was for the bitter memory to trigger another attack.

To stop himself from sinking deeper into the bitter memories, the student tried to remember the part that wasn't as horrible. "Iori told me my parents were shocked to see the cuts. It was the first time I ever saw him blow up."

"What kind of parents are you?! Don't you ask your son about school life at all? Saying you have no idea how long Nanase-san has been enduring this bullshit." Young Iori shouted at the Nanase parents inside the hospital room.

"Nanase-san, you idiot. You stupid, idiotic airhead! You could have died!" Young Iori also shouted at Riku that day. "I wouldn't be able to take it if you ended up dying." Riku could never forget how his hospital clothes turned wet from the constant drops of tears belonging to his best friend.

"I'm drowning in regret, Yaotome-san." After a short while, Riku wiped the last bit of his tears. He'd cried enough. He didn't want to cry anymore. "If only I were stronger, my brother would still be living happily with our parents. If only I could fight back then, Iori wouldn't get hurt or upset. As long as I keep living, people around me will get hurt, so I can't be happy. Sometimes I think I should have—"

The fighter cut Riku off immediately. "Don't you dare."

"R-right, sorry." Riku rubbed his face before shaking his head to snap out of the escalating thoughts. He looked into Gaku's eyes. His coach deserved to hear his reason for fighting loud and clear. "You see, once I get these thoughts, I try to do something else, like making music or singing. They grant me escape. Only temporarily, unfortunately. As soon as I stop, these thoughts come right back."

"...that's why you came to me, huh?" Gaku came to this realisation then. "You want to make peace with your past."

Riku nodded. "I want to be able to move on. And to fight to remind myself to keep fighting." His expression wasn't that of a person who'd given in.

Finally, Gaku felt he could understand his trainee much better. Riku wasn't there to hurt himself, nor was he there for vengeful reasons. He was simply trying to find a way to live his life better. To Gaku, it was a very valid reason. The Crescent Wolf had always fought for himself. He would never let anyone tell him he was wrong. Now he could see that the fighting flame inside Riku's body burned just like his passionate self.

Rather than a fighter, Nanase Riku was a warrior.

"You're strong, Nanase, having come this far." Letting out a sigh of relief, Gaku gave Riku a warm smile. "But there are times when we all need a little push. It doesn't mean you're a burden."

With a touch of his finger, Gaku lifted Riku's chin up. Eyes on the young man, he held both Riku's hands in his, giving them a firm grip. He said, drilling his voice into Riku's head, "Whenever you get those demonic thoughts, remember this: You're precious just the way you are. You have every right to be happy. If those thoughts ever get too loud, you can always come to me. I'll be there for you, just like you were for me."

Riku blushed. For the first time in forever, he was told nice things. Simple but nice things he never knew he needed to hear. At least for this moment, he felt he was loved, and he felt he could accept it. Melty, his head flopped onto Gaku's chest. Letting go of the noises and welcoming the warmth of calmness, he closed his eyes.

The rest of the night, no matter how short it was, Riku fell into a deep and peaceful slumber, uninterrupted by nightmares.

~~++~~++~~

The next morning...

As