"Make sure to get some rest," Kosuke said. "You look like you've had a pretty rough night."

"Sure, I'll try."

You offered him a weak smile as you stepped out the car and waved goodbye. Now that you were back home, you had to rack your brain and come up with some sort of excuse. Your face wasn't exactly in prime condition right now. Anyone who took a look at you would be able to tell that something had happened. Naturally, with how much Ryu paid attention to you, he would realize it in no time.

Should you come clean about what Ekaterina had done to you? But... you were afraid to find out what would happen to her if you did. Ryu didn't seem to know how to handle his anger. You couldn't say for sure, but you got the sense he would be far from happy.

A part of you was upset with her and wanted her to pay for what she'd done, but you still didn't think she deserved whatever punishment Ryu would put her through. She was already being abused by Hayate. It wasn't an excuse for her to hurt you the way she had, but you still couldn't help but feel sympathetic on account of her situation.

Unfortunately, you didn't have much time to come up with anything believable. You were already being escorted towards the front of the house, and before you could even swallow, the door began to slide open.

"[Name]?" Masahi blinked. "What the... are you alright?"

You were relieved, but you were sure it would only last a moment. Any second now, Ryu would be turning the corner and coming to greet you himself. You needed to think, and fast.

Heart pounding relentlessly, you tried to get your thoughts straight. But perhaps the universe had finally decided to spare you, because for whatever reason, Ryu didn't show up.

"W-Where is he?" you couldn't help but ask.

"Ryu had a busy day, and he's fallen asleep," Masahi said. He gave you another concerned look. "But more importantly, what happened? Why is your face so red and swollen? You're home earlier than you're supposed to be, too."

Oh, thank god.

That was the first real piece of good news you'd gotten all night. But you needed to hurry and make it into bed, in case he woke up and got a look at you.

"I-I'm really sleepy," you stammered. "Sorry, I'm heading to bed now."

"Wait," Masahi sighed, grabbing you by the wrist. "I can tell you're hiding something. Whatever it is, you can confide in me. I promise I won't tell Ryu."

As kindly as Masahi had treated you so far, nowadays it was hard to tell if you could really trust in anyone, especially after Ekaterina's treatment of you had done a full one-eighty. You didn't want to deceive him, but it was just so hard. Not knowing what you should or shouldn't say so that you wouldn't get in trouble.

It was exhausting, and you weren't sure how much longer you could hold out.

"Please," you breathed. "I just want to go to sleep..."

Masahi's brows drooped. It was a sympathetic expression, but somehow, it felt like he was hurting on your behalf.

"I understand that it must be difficult to always trust in what I'm saying, but I swear on my life that whatever this is, Ryu will not hear of it. I just want to make sure that your safety isn't at risk. If something were to happen to you, I'm not sure how Ryu would cope."

You sniffled, trying to hold back your tears. "I'm not in danger. Some things just ended up happening... and that's why my shift ended earlier than usual."

"Did one of the customers get violent with you?"

"No."

"Did one of the other hostesses get violent with you?"

"...no."

Your response was just a second too slow, or maybe you were delusional if you really thought you could sneak something past Masahi. He didn't say anything at first. Didn't look angry, or annoyed, or even exasperated. He just slowly crossed his arms and nodded.

"Okay," he said. "For whatever reason, you seem to be protecting whoever was behind this incident. And you're right in doing so, because if Ryu were to find out, I'm afraid he wouldn't handle it well. But remember what I said before? Your safety is always the priority. I'll let it slide this time because you don't seem concerned about it being too serious, but if it happens again, I'm afraid you'll have to tell me the truth. You never know how a situation may escalate. The next time, you could end up getting hurt far worse."

You exhaled shakily, relieved that at least Masahi was still on your side. Before you could get another word out, he gently smoothed your hair down and smiled.

"Alright, then," he said. "Go ahead and get some rest. Ryu is sleeping quite soundly, so I don't think he'll realize you got home earlier than usual anyways. Keep me updated on the situation. If it gets worse and you still want to keep that person safe, there may be a way for me resolve the situation without her getting hurt. I'll figure out something to tell Ryu in order to have her removed from the workplace."

"Thank you, Masahi," you breathed. It was taking all your strength not to cry. You needed to stay strong. There were still good people left in this world.

"It's no problem. Have a good night."

"You too. Thank you again..."

Perhaps it was a result of Masahi's much-needed kindness, but that night you dreamt Rintaro was found, and that you were finally granted your freedom.

...

The next day, you reached out to Momoka again, but it seemed like she still had yet to return to campus. You kept on sending her messages, if only just to check in and see how she was doing, but it was clear to see that she was really struggling with the whole situation. You hoped that her family was at least watching over her and making sure she was eating properly.

She almost never responded, and if she did, the answers were very brief and inexpressive. But sometime during one of your classes, your phone began to go off. She was calling you instead of just texting you, which meant that it had to be something important. You even rushed out of class to take the call.

"Hello?" you breathed. "Momoka, is everything okay?"

"N-No," the voice on the other line croaked. Her throat sounded raw, as if she'd been she'd been sobbing with all her might. "What am I going to do, [Name]? T-They found his car... parked somewhere near campus. He didn't take it with him. Where could he have gone without taking his car? What if... something r-really bad happened...?"

You felt sick all over again. You didn't even know what to say to console her, because you'd been having the same fears yourself. From the very start, you didn't buy into the idea that Rintaro had just abandoned his friends and family without saying a word. It wasn't like him to do that. Which could only mean that he was unable to contact the authorities. He was either in a position where he was afraid to try, or worse yet... physically incapable of doing so.

Momoka's voice began to grow heavier, more ragged. "The p-police are already telling his family they should probably give up. Isn't that f-fucked up? They say they haven't heard of any criminals appearing in the area, but the fact that he left without taking any personal belongings is telling enough... [Name], t-they want us to stop looking for him. They say it's pointless. What am I supposed to do now...? What are his parents supposed to do? How could something so horrible have happened...?"

No. Please, anything but that.

You needed to believe. Kosuke was working tirelessly to solve this case, even if the other officers in his department had already washed their hands of it. Perhaps he really was being held captive, but that was all the more reason to keep looking. You refused to give up and assume that he was already gone. Even if no one else did, you would keep believing until the very end.

"I don't understand what's going on," you swallowed. "But I think trying to wrap your head around crazy situations like these will only make you lose your mind. We need to keep hoping, Momoka. For Rintaro's sake. He might be thinking about you right now... thinking of his other friends, and his parents. Don't give up on him yet. Please."

"I-I'll try," she whimpered. "But it's just so hard..."

"Yeah. I know it is. We have to stay strong, though. Okay?"

"Okay... yeah. I'm sorry for being a wimp. I wish I could be more like you."

Trust me, that's the last thing you want.

"Make sure you don't skip any more meals, alright? I'll talk to you again later. Let me know if you find anything else out. Try distracting yourself a bit. Play a silly game, watch some TV... I know it sounds stupid, but it's important to keep from burning out. Bye, Momoka."

You ended the call and keeled over, feeling weak and lightheaded. You'd gone ahead and made that whole speech, but it was easier said than done. It was almost like you were trying to give yourself a pep talk, especially after your performance at the hostess club last night. You cared for Rintaro, but you couldn't allow this grief and fear to consume you. Not if you wanted to stay alive.

But you weren't some robot that could be programmed to act or think a certain way. It still hurt. Your bottom lip was trembling furiously, and you had to bite down on it hard to keep from crying aloud. Hot tears began to fill your eyes, and they slowly trickled down your cheeks as you sobbed, silently.

Letting your emotions out was cathartic, but it only lasted about ten seconds. After that, you wiped a hand across your face and told yourself to get a grip.

You reached for your bag and sat up, but at the last second, you caught a glimpse of something-or rather, someone-out of the corner of your eye. Try as they might, their appearance was too distinct for them to safely blend in with the crowd, at least not from this distance.

"Kaito," you said simply. It wasn't a question, wasn't even a statement. You weren't sure why, but seeing him here made you less angry than you thought it would. Maybe, deep down, you still wished he could be your friend.

"I'm sorry," he flinched. "I know you said to stay away from you. I just passed by and saw you crying, so... ugh. Never mind. I shouldn't have stuck around. Sorry, and... I really hope you feel better."

He turned to walk away, but he was moving slowly, and still looking back at you over his shoulder. It was clear that he didn't want to leave. You could sort of understand where he was coming from. Your friendship had ended on a sour note. Anyone with a conscience would want to patch things up.

"Aren't you going to ask why I'm crying?" you chuckled bitterly.

Kaito furiously shook his head. "No. I know your life isn't any of my business. I'm not going to overstep again."

"But Ryu still expects you to spy on me, doesn't he?"

"Yes... he does."

At least he was being honest for a change. You still had no intention of trusting him all of a sudden, but you wanted to know how much he was willing to reveal.

"What sort of things does he want you to tell him?"

"I don't know. A summary of things, I guess," Kaito shrugged. "I keep the details vague enough, just to give him an overall idea of what I saw you get up to during the day. Unless something major happens, I don't tell him all that much. Uh, I... keep a notebook, if you wanna take a look and see for yourself."

"Sure, why not."

Kaito nodded rigidly, then proceeded to pull out a small notebook from his backpack. As he'd said, it was packed with little bullet points and other observations of your typical campus life. A stalker's notebook, so to speak. Except he wasn't technically the real stalker.

"All of this stuff is so boring," you remarked tiredly. "Why does Ryu even bother with this shit? I thought he just wanted to make sure I wasn't trying to run away or alert the police behind his back."

"Well, that would be something to look out for, yeah. I'm required to report any suspicious behavior back to him. And he wasn't really asking for any of these details at the start, but... the longer it went on, the longer he expected my entries to be, for some reason..."

What a fucking creep.

Kaito scratched his head. "I guess it's not that fun to know that you're being watched so much... I'm sorry about that."

"Do you have no choice but to do as he says? Even though you're not technically part of the yakuza?"

"Pretty much," he swallowed.

"Or else, what happens?"

"Nothing bad has really happened yet, because it's so hard for me to oppose him, but he threatens all sorts of shit. He especially likes to blackmail me by saying he's going to get my parents involved, even though all my mom has ever wanted was to get away from that life."

"Your mom?"

"Yeah," he nodded. "She's Ryu's father's sister. I heard she used to be on pretty good terms with my uncle back when they were young, but she was never all that crazy about the type of business he ran. She was heartbroken when he died, but I think she was even more heartbroken once Ryu took over and got me involved with the yakuza. My dad doesn't seem to mind it too much, though. I guess he likes having the extra cash to throw around."

"I see."

While you still weren't ready to forgive Kaito for having made the decision to put on an act and deceive you, it sort of made sense that even he couldn't oppose Ryu. It was by no means the same as your situation, but he was somewhat of a prisoner to a certain degree as well.

Kaito pressed his lips together, looking all sorts of guilty. "Um... for what it's worth, I really am sorry. For everything that happened between us, I mean. I know you probably have no reason to forgive me, but I'm sorry things turned out that way."

It was strange. Your friendship had certainly ended on a rough note, but he almost looked too guilty. Was it really worth being that upset over? It wasn't like you'd even been friends for that long.

"Whatever," you shrugged. "It doesn't make a difference what I think about all this. Ryu's going to keep making you spy on me. Are you even supposed to be talking to me right now? I thought he didn't want you doing that anymore."

"He doesn't. But I don't really care what that asshole wants. I mean... you're not going to tell him, are you?"

His expression was panicked, and you scrunched up your nose at him, a bit offended that he really thought you would go out of your way to get him in trouble.

"I won't," you sighed. "Why would I?"

"I don't know. Thought you might've really hated me by this point," he said sadly.

"I never hated you," you clarified. "But you did a lot of things that upset me. Don't you remember when you punched my best friend in the face for no reason? That was super uncalled for. But even after all that, I still didn't hate you."

Rintaro.

If Rintaro was still here right now, he would've surely forgiven Kaito, even though he had no reason to. He was just that kind. So kind, so considerate. He was the one person that this sort of thing should have never happened to.

Tears welled up in your eyes again, and you barely managed to stifle a sob. Kaito was staring at you with a wildly concerned look on his face. It seemed like he was furiously debating whether he should comfort you, or if you would just get more upset with him for butting in again.

"Sorry," you sniffled, wiping your eyes before he could get a word in. "My friend, Rintaro... he went missing a few days ago. It's just been... really hard..."

Kaito's face turned pale. He looked absolutely horrified. Perhaps he felt extra guilty because the last time he'd interacted with Rintaro, it had ended in an ugly fight.

But somehow, you were glad he was able to make such an expression. It showed that he wasn't a bad guy, despite your misgivings about him. At least he cared.

"I-I don't know what to say," he stammered, looking more distraught by the second.

"Don't worry," you chuckled softly. "I wasn't trying to make you feel guilty or anything. But I figured you were probably curious why I keep on crying. I just feel extra bad for his other friends and family. Ryu found out about what happened, since I wasn't able to keep my cool, and he hired Kosuke to start a private investigation. I know it might be a long shot, but I don't want to give up hope just yet."

Kaito swallowed. "Ryu did that?"

"Yeah. I was surprised too. But he let me get in contact with Kosuke myself and tell him all the details. I'm not sure how much he's paying him, and whether that'll be added to my debt or not, but I don't care at this point. If it helps find Rintaro, that's all that matters."

"Right. That sounds... really hard. I'm sorry."

"You don't have to keep saying sorry. I'm not blaming you for this."

"No, but I really am sorry," he insisted, and there was a strange desperation to his voice. "It might not mean much coming from me, but I'm so, so sorry you have to deal with this shit, on top of everything else. It's super fucked up."

Every time he said sorry, you could tell that he really meant it.

You forced a smile. "Enough with that. Rintaro will be found eventually. I just need to stay positive. Anyways, I have another class in a bit, so I should probably get going."

"Okay. I won't keep you." He paused for a moment, brows pulled up in concern. "Uh, [Name]?"

"Yeah?"

"Will we be able to talk like this again? Just every now and then? I realize I'm probably asking for a lot, but..."

You actually had to think about it for a moment. You'd been so angry at him before, but at the end of the day, he was just another unfortunate victim of Ryu's, unable to be truly free. And it was probably the fact that you were missing Rintaro, but you were craving any sort of companionship, unreliable as it may be.

"I'll think about it," you said.

His eyes lit up, relief bursting out of him in the form of a breathless smile. "Okay," he nodded frantically. "I'll prove to you that you can trust me. This time... this time, you'll see."

You didn't say anything to that, but as it turned out, the opportunity came earlier than expected.

Just as you were about to leave, someone walked up to you. From afar, you weren't quite able to recognize her in time, but as she got closer, realization set in.

"[Name]," Kaede greeted. "Hello. Do you have a moment?"

"What are you doing here?" you blinked. If she was here, then did that mean... "Is Tatsumi-?"

"It's just me," she quickly reassured. "My brother knew he couldn't speak to you directly anymore, after what happened at the club. Ryu threatened to get violent if he tried it again, so I came to deliver a letter in his place, in hopes that the two of you could keep up your correspondence."

She then pulled out an envelope and offered it to you. But after how angry Ryu had gotten last time, there was no way you were going to make the same mistake again.

You shook your head. "No. Ryu will lose his mind if he finds out I'm going behind his back. Last time he found out about the hostess club, he got incredibly angry with me. I can't keep in contact with Tatsumi. I hope he understands."

"[Name], who is this?" Kaito frowned. "What is she talking about?"

"She's Tatsumi's sister. Kaede, this is Kaito.