Dia sat on his dorm room's bed, feet hanging off the side and just barely being able to touch the floor. He sighed heavily as he clasped his hands together on his lap, looking down at them with his usual tired gaze.

This month felt odd for him in multiple ways. He's only been at this school for only a few months and he already wanted to go back home to Sinnoh. As much as he'll miss his new found friends here… Diamond honestly just wanted to hang out with Pearl and Platina in the comfort of his own home. Not in the bustling judgmental world of a boarding school.

He wanted to hear his mom's voice rather than receive it in letters. To listen to her "Dinner's ready!" followed by her usual homemade meals.
The comfort of his bed would be nice, too. The bed here felt a little too foreign for his liking and didn't give him the rest he exactly wanted.

Don't get him wrong, Lilycove Academy is a swell place! But Dia really felt it wasn't for him.
He wasn't used to be around so many people at once and having to walk around so much each day. It seemed like every day after classes when he'd come back he felt more and more worn out.

Maybe what he was feeling wasn't homesick, but lazy. He's been prone to confuse the two a lot.

Diamond frowned at this realization he's chalked it up to. He really was a lazy slob most of the time, wasn't he? Never bothering to button his blazer up or tuck in his shirt, his tie was never put on right, and his hair didn't ever know the meaning of 'brushed'.
Not to mention the subtle and not so subtle hints he's been getting about his obvious weight issues.

It's not like he could exactly have a solid excuse for it, there wasn't one.

"I just really love to eat" wouldn't cut it, nor would "It's not my fault my mom fed me so much." Yeah, that last one was just plain rude. It really wasn't his mom's fault, he's pretty sure of that.

He groaned and laid back on his bed; closing his eyes and thinking over the event of the past two weeks and frowning discontentedly.

This whole experience started to go sour when he met that Roxie chick, didn't it? It was all because he tripped her in the lunch room.

But for what reason?

He got the answer at the theater field trip when she outright pointed out his weight in a demeaning manner in front of most of his friends… That really screwed him up for a while. He honestly wasn't expecting such a blunt and outright response from her.

But… she did apologize to him a couple of days after! That cheered him up quite a bit, actually! He can feel the smile creeping up on his face a bit as he remembered it. Sadly, just as quickly as the smile crawled on, it scampered off when he briefly remembered this week's Drama lesson.

Sighing heavily, Dia rolled onto his stomach and dug under his pillow, taking out the fortune from the cookie he oh so hated after reading its contents the first time:

If someone says something about your weight, don't get angry. Just turn the other chin!

His face turned into a pout instantaneously, as if the fortune cookie said it out loud for the umpteenth time in a crowded coffee shop. It was such an obvious joke, and it mocked him by saying 'don't get angry'. How couldn't he be with such a rude statement like that?!

Diamond wasn't normally one to express his frustration, but with his teenage hormones kicking in more and more every year; it was hard for him not to get annoyed by things like this nowadays. It just felt completely uncalled for.

His thoughts were interrupted when there was a knock at his dorm door. With his mind forcefully switched from deep thought into panic, Diamond spooked himself into rolling off of his bed. This action resulted in a loud thud as soon as whoever was entering had the door open all the way.

"Hey! I'm back from my classes and I—Dia? Just what were you doing?"

Dia looked over toward the door, sprawled on his back. It was just Ash, one of his two roommates at the Academy. They had become close after the first few days while exchanging interests and hobbies.

He rolled upright and stood up while trying to explain himself, "I was… napping! I was just about to get up when you walked in and it startled me. Heh." the perfect excuse.

His roommate just raised a brow with a small nod before smiling, getting back to what he wanted to say, "Anyways! Dia, I just finished my classes and I was coming back and guess what I got from the campus' Café~?" Dia just tilted his head as Ash raised a box near his own face.

"I was able to bring back some pastries! I thought we could have them around since we finished off those berry tarts your mom gave you when you came here." His expression turned into one of slight embarrassment when finishing the sentence off.

He gave the box to Diamond and smiled once more, "Plus you seemed to be a bit more sluggish than usual this week, so I figured buying you some sweets would cheer you up, y'know?"

All Diamond could do is stare at the box, trying to keep himself from drooling. He didn't particularly mention it, but he had a very large sweet tooth. Normally he'd avoid sweets and savor them for last, tending to get more than he should in pure excitement.

Yet, here he was with a box full of pastries that his roommate bought for him just because he was mopey. He felt a bit bad for complaining to himself earlier, too. He started to tear up a little bit and set the box on his bed. Reaching over for ash and wrapping his arms around his waist for a classic Diamond Bear Hug.

"Wh—I-I figured you'd like them…!" was all Ash could utter out whilst Dia continued to hug him.

"Thank you so much, Ash~! I-It's means a lot to me that you pay attention like that!"

He tried to resist crying but once he let go, he already had. With his face flooded with tears and snot dribbling from his nose, he tried to wipe some of it with his sleeve. Diamond was the definition of a gross crier and he did it so easily, too. There wasn't even a sniffle or warning, absolutely no in between stages from sobbing and not.

Ash cracked his back and pat Diamond's shoulder reassuringly, "Anytime buddy! You're one of my best friends here and seeing you upset makes me wanna help you out. You're usually a bundle of joy most of the time, too! Just keep your chin up for the rest of the time you're here. We've got a long way to go, being freshman and all."

Dia just responded with a small nod and snort as he continued to dry his tears. Ash laughed and reached into his desk, taking out a tissue box, "Wipe your face off and let's eat some of those snacks, eh? We can even go to the lounge and watch your Anime on the BIG TV out there if you want~"

Grinning at the sound of that, Diamond responded with a small chuckle and blew his nose into the tissue, "Okay~ That sounds like a plan..."

"Mmn! Let's go then. I've got the box, we can head out right now." Ash dangled the box by its handle with three fingers and his other hand on the knob, waiting for his friend.

"Ahh! Alright, just a minute~" Dia frantically threw the tissue in the trash and made his way to tail right behind Ash as they left. They proceeded to have one of the best Taurina Omega marathon runs in history.

At least, in Diamond's mind.