The rain crashed loudly against the thin windows of the small room the squad had found comfort in. Storms were not uncommon in the city as they had been before the virus spread, it seemed that even nature itself had given up on them.

Yuu shifted against the spread of pillows he was lying on, at a lost as how the others were able to sleep through this. Yoichi and Mitsuba had decided to share the bed whereas Shiho took post on the plush armchair closer to the door. Yuu liked his team but loved his space so he opted for taking the spot by the floor. The floor was not nearly as comfortable as he remembered it being all the times in his childhood when they had built pillow forts. Shinoa was nowhere to be found as she was still debriefing Guren on their latest mission. Staring up at the ceiling Yuu was reminded of the real reason why he was so restless.

"Abandon everything and runaway with me!"

He wanted to, oh god did he want to but this wasn't the same as it was four years ago, there are a lot more factors to consider. Things were a lot more complicated.

How could Mika be so cruel to ask that of him, like he wouldn't have abandoned everything for the other boy if he could. He had grown up in those four years, trained to get his revenge for four years but the second he saw him none of that had mattered, it was like they were children again racing each other down the halls during playtime.

And nothing had scared him more.

Yuu's inner turmoil was interrupted by a soft thud next to his side. Yuu turned over at sat up, lazily glaring at the figure struggling with her boots.

"Shinoa what are you doing?" Yuu rolled his eyes only to have her military jacket thrown in his face.

"Shh" She gestures to the others before she moves lying down next to Yuu, disrupting his makeshift bed even further.

Yuu barely managed to stifle a grown as she made herself comfortable stretching out, taking up a lot of room for someone so small before she curled up on her side facing away from him. Yuu narrowed his eyes at her and only just relaxed when her breathing slowed.

It had been weeks since he was reunited with Mika only to have been quickly separated again, but the boy had never strayed far from Yuu's mind. His heart twisted painfully as he was flooded with memories of the other boy, accepting that sleep would not come easy on this night.

"When you run away with Mikaela, promise me that you'll say goodbye first?"

Yuu's eyes widened and for the second time that night his attention was stolen by the small sergeant. "I don't know what you're talking about"

"Oh please" Shinoa sighed before turning over to face him in the dark room. "Just because I'm insanely cute doesn't mean I'm stupid. He's important to you. If anything I'm surprised you've stayed with us this long"

Yuu tried to tell himself that the reason he was blushing was because of how close the girls face was to his and not because of the person she spoke of. "He's my family"

"He's your vampire knight in shining armour"

"Shinoa!"

The pair froze at the sound of fabric rustling, both of them filled with relief as the steady rhythm of their teammates snores continued.

Shinoa paused before she spoke again more mindful of the volume in her voice. "I told you once before, that we've all lost someone" Yuu opened his mouth to protest sensing a lecture on the rise.

"Wait let me finish. Yoichi lost his family and his sister, Mitsuba lost her family and her squad, Shiho lost his parents and has been on the brink of losing his sister for years. Even Guren lost someone. I lost my sister. That's just the surface of all we've endured and we've come out stronger, because of each other."

Yuu felt a strong pull on his heart as her words sunk in.

"We have this family, it's patched together and not all pieces fit perfectly but it's what keeps us going. Mika doesn't have that, all he has is you"

Her lips move up into a soft smile, a very rare smile. One sincere and not her usual smirk that's biting back taunts at his expense.

"If you want to go to him I won't stop you"

Yuu stared into her eyes disbelievingly for a second. "Guren would never let me go"

"Then don't tell him" Her smile broke into a smirk "You could always fake your death, it'd be really romantic"

Yuu clenches his teeth contemplating pushing her over but decides the bed is too close to her and would not like to risk a head injury. "I thought you said you wanted me to get a girlfriend and populate the world with lots of mini Yuu's"

"Come back in a few years and I'll find you a surrogate"

Quiet laughter breaks through the silence as Yuu shakes his head before he makes an attempt at changing the topic. "You never talk about your sister"

"There's not much to talk about, we weren't really close" Although the softness in her voice seems to tell otherwise Yuu doesn't call her out on it.

She nuzzles into the pillow and closes her eyes but doesn't discourage the conversation. "My family are the definition of greed and corruption, when they weren't plotting on how to expand their empire they were overseeing dangerous experiments. They didn't have time for a little frail child."

In that moment everything became a bit clearer to Yuu, Shinoa had a lot more in common with him than she let on. "Must have been hard growing up in her shadow"

Shinoa shook her head as best she could against the pillow, "She was kind" her voice gentle and child-like "She used to braid my hair"

Yuu smiled a little at her, memories of his own sister Akane doing the same for their other siblings filled his mind. He glanced at the window "It's stopped raining"

Shinoa blinks back sleep as she stares at him determination strong in her eyes. "When you leave you have to be safe, don't go picking a fight with every vampire you see and be wary around Mika, I know you don't want to hear it but a lot can change in four years, he may not be the same person you left behind."

Yuu narrows his eyes meeting hers with the same emotion "He came back for me"

"That doesn't mean anything. Instead of loving you he could be obsessing over you and that's a very toxic relationship to be in"

"I'm not leaving him behind again Shinoa."

"Good" The tense atmosphere in the room evaporates as she relaxes. "But like I said before cherry boy, at least say goodbye to your squad before you run off into the sunset"

Yuu leaned into the pillows before reaching out towards her "Hold out your hand"

"I'm not going to hold your hand so you won't get nightmares"

Yuu sighed loudly pressing the fingers on his right hand down but keeping his pinky finger extended. "Copy me"

"Wait what"

"Just do it Shinoa"

The purple haired teen hesitantly copied the movement watching him with her eyebrows raised before Yuu impatiently links their fingers together.

Yuu tipped his forehead to hers as he whispered quietly "I promise I won't leave without saying goodbye"

Shinoa's eyes widened before her face broke out into a bright grin. "I will hold you to that"

"Go to sleep Shinoa"

"I will if you share the blanket and at least give me a pillow"

A loud thud filled the room.

"Shinoa!"