His eyes were locked on the bar's window, right behind the couch. He had his arms wrapped around his legs and his head was resting on his knees. God knew what happened for him to have these horrible flashbacks at such a moment. He sighed, disappointed in himself; after all, he should move on and not think about it anymore. But how long has it been? A week, since he joined Homra?

Eric twitched on the couch, still looking at the window. It was raining and most of Homra were out on some mission to stop a drug dealer. Behind the bar, Kusanagi was cleaning his glasses carefully, humming a song. There was Anna, too, who was drinking milk, and Kamamoto. But he wasn't close enough with them so he could comfortably get a conversation started. He was still a Homra newbie, and didn't know how to control his powers properly- last time he tried, he burnt himself. So he wasn't ready enough to go on a mission yet. That's why he was waiting at the bar, looking outside the window. Sighing from time to time.

His stomach was growling loudly, but he still refused when Kusanagi offered him something to eat. He wasn't used to that yet. After all, it's only been a week since his whole life changed. From having a tiny piece of food once a week to three meals a day... Quite a shock. However, no one forced him to eat. Kusanagi simply sighed and nodded as he walked away; he wished Eric would at least eat something, even if it was just a handful of candies. It would at least reassure him a little. It wasn't like Eric wasn't hungry, because that, he was- it was more like being offered food was too much for him to accept right now.

His eyes widened as he noticed a few people walking towards the bar, recognizing them automatically. He turned around, glancing at the floor in a fail attempt to seem casual, but as soon as they entered the bar, he glanced at the door.

He didn't say anything. His expression didn't even show any kind of emotion, he just stared blankly at the group. Then, Kosuke walked towards him. He felt his heart skip a beat- not because of some sort of weird emotions, but only because Kosuke was to him somewhat his new owner. Even though the man wouldn't say such a thing, or act as such.

"Hey, Eric." He said in his normal calm tone, his eyes locking on Eric's own for a second.

The blond didn't answer right away. He looked away and waited a few seconds. "Hi." He muttered lightly.

"How are you? Did you eat today?" He just seemed to know everything. How could one be so caring about another human being?

"..." He glanced at Kosuke, then glanced away. "I ate... Crackers this morning..."

The older man didn't flinch. His expression remained the exact same. "That's not enough. C'mon."

Eric blinked as he felt Kosuke grab his arm and pull him up. It wasn't a harsh move, though. It was just kind of gentle, actually.

"I'm going out, Kusanagi-san." The ginger said as he left, pulling Eric with him. The bartender simply nodded, keeping up with a conversation.

For a moment, Eric didn't try to move away. Kosuke wasn't being harsh, but the feeling of the other's hand on his wrist made him flush a little. After a few moments, he finally let go of him. Probably because he knew that the blond would follow him anyway. It was hot outside, and his hoodie made him feel uncomfortable. But there was simply no way he was taking it off. Simply no way he would show his scars so openly.

"Did you practice your flames today?" Kosuke asked in a soft tone.

Eric nodded. "I didn't burn myself this time."

"That's good." The man smiled warmly at him. Eric looked away and nodded. That was it, at least.

"Um… Where are we going?" The blond asked, not sure how to react.

"At my place. My parents are not home, and I feel like making curry." He smiled at Eric. "Do you love curry?"

He thought about it. Last time he had curry, he was around eight years old. He didn't remember the taste, but… He knew that he loved his. As an answer, his stomach growled loudly and he nodded. Kosuke chuckled.

"Good. We're making curry then."

They arrived at his house a little bit later, after walking for a few more minutes. It was welcoming, really. Not a big house, but not small either. As soon as they got in the house, a dog barked loudly at them. Ah, obviously, Kosuke would have animals. Based on what he heard, he always kept stray animals with him. So like him.

As Eric got his shoes off, a small dog walked towards him. The fur was long and messy. He wasn't that cute, to be honest. He looked like a homeless dog. Maybe it was a new stray, maybe not. Kosuke gently pet the animal with a smile.

"I found this dog a few days ago. He's blind, I believe."

The dog walked towards Eric and pawed on him, wagging his tail. Confused, the blond casually tried to pet him. After sniffing his hand a little, the small animal barked happily.

"It likes you." The taller man smiled.

"Does he have a name?" He asked as he looked up at Kosuke.

"Not yet. I didn't think of one."

"You should find one." He didn't like the idea of that cute thing not having a name.

Kosuke smiled gently yet again and glanced at Eric for a moment. The blond didn't flinch, blinking and waiting for an answer. After a bit, the ginger gave a small nod.

"You're right. Is Happy a nice name?"

He was surprised for a moment, because the name was in English. He never hear Kosuke speak any words in English before. He glanced at the doggy, who was pawing on his leg, still happy about everything… And smiled gently. Eric gave a nod.

Kosuke smiled and walked towards the kitchen. "Happy it is, then. C'mere."

Eric stood up and followed him, the dog following him close behind. The kitchen wasn't that big, but it was still big to Eric. He sat on a chair as he watched the older man get the needed ingredients out.

"Can you cut the vegetables, Eric?"

"Er…"

He nodded. "I'll show you, then. It's easy."

And with that, a small step forward was made. Of course, Eric was clumsy with the cooking and seemed to always cut everything wrongly, but the result was delicious. The following week, Eric was more comfortable with eating what the others gave him. He was always looking forward to help when Totsuka made something to eat, even when Misaki made fun of him for not holding the knife right.

-xxxxx-

[[ Soooooorry I didn't update this sooner. But here it is now. I'll be more active from now on, I have been kept busy with stupid projects. Leave reviews and fav if you liked it 3 ]]