"Alright… I can't just throw everything at you at once. I should take it slow, one small piece at a time. But, it's hard to figure out which one to do first." Akihiko was saying, more so to himself than Minato since Minato wasn't really paying attention. It was the next day, and Akihiko had decided to leave Minato alone the day before so Minato could have some time alone. They were back in Minato's room, Akihiko trying to think of a plan for recovering Minato.
"It was… sad being… alone…" Minato said, tearing up. Since yesterday, the only emotion Minato could express was sorrow, even if the situation was not necessarily sad at all.
"I-I'm really sorry, but I just figured that you'd want some alone time to try to feel better." Akihiko sighed. He always tried to make Minato feel better, but with sadness being his only emotion at the moment, it was actually pretty exhausting of having to deal with. Akihiko caressed Minato's head, calming him down.
"Are you okay now?" Akihiko asked. Minato nodded a bit. Akihiko reached to pull Minato closer into a hug, but Minato shifted himself away to avoid it.
"H-hey, what's the matter, Minato?" Akihiko was becoming bewildered.
"Physical contact… not good." Minato quietly answered.
"But… Minato always liked it when I held onto him." Akihiko thought to himself. This caught Akihiko off guard, causing him to lose his train of thought he had previously. He glanced around the room, attempting to find something to help Minato return to his original self. It bothered him that he would constantly become distracted when thinking of ideas.
He stopped looking around when he noticed Minato's music player. Akihiko slapped his hand over his face, feeling imbecilic for not thinking of attempting that the first time. He knew how passionate Minato was when it came to music, remembering how he would always have his headphones on at all times of the day before the two of them were in a relationship. Akihiko picked it up and decided that maybe the best course of action was to play Minato's favorite song. He handed Minato the headphones and he just looked at them.
"Here, they go over your ears like this." Akihiko explained, placing the headphones in the intended orientation. Minato put his hands on them, not recalling the purpose of these trinkets.
"These let you listen to music. You should know this song. You told me about it a while ago, and even played it a lot, too." Akihiko explained, searching through the player's song library until he got to the song he was searching for. The song begins with a serene piano playing, until soon after the tempo quickly picks up with electric guitars and such playing. Minato flinched a bit at this sudden change, not expecting it whatsoever. Minato gripped at the headphones wanting to take them off, yet he didn't, feeling a hint of familiarity well within him.
"Song… is Heartful Cry. It is… my favorite one…" Minato quietly said.
"That's right, Minato! Remember how much you felt about music?" Akihiko was saying, feeling delighted to see that Minato recognized his own favorite piece of music. He felt like he heard a piece of the old Minato in his voice.
"Music… always helped… when alone… in dark…" Minato muttered, squeezing his hands into tight fists. "Only thing… that gave me… feelings…"
"It was, that is until…" Akihiko stopped himself. He didn't want to overwhelm the damaged boy.
"I… forgot how… significant… music was… I… remember now…" Minato said, taking hold of the headphones around his ears. Akihiko tried to hold onto Minato's hand, but Minato moved it away from him.
"… T-Then, here. You really loved all this songs. They'll help you remember your feelings." Akihiko said as he handed over the music player. Minato took it and looked at it, scrolling through the library, recalling more and more.
"It probably isn't enough to bring the old Minato back, right? Akihiko said. Minato paid no mind to the older boy. Akihiko sighed. "At least he seemed to have gotten his passion for things again."
October, it was a Thursday. Minato and Akihiko were sitting together on the roof of the school during their lunch break. They were talking to each other as they each had one of Minato's headphones on.
"Check this song out, Aki. It's my favorite one. I must've already listened to it over a hundred times." Minato said in excitement, switching to the song Heartful Cry. Akihiko merely had his eyes bug out in surprise when the tempo of the song took an erratic change.
"That's pretty much how I was when I first heard it, too!" Minato laughed.
"It's pretty cool and catchy, actually. It seems really different than all the rest of your songs, though." Akihiko said.
"It's because it's so different it's my favorite. It starts off in a calm, serene kind of way, then completely changes into something unexpected. And that unexpectedness is the real song." Minato explained.
"Since things aren't always what they seem to be at first. Just like people aren't always what you think them to be when you first look at them, right?" Akihiko said, Minato looking at him after saying that.
"Y-yeah. Exactly. I didn't think anyone else would understand…" Minato was a little befuddled.
"Well, I am your boyfriend. I've made sure to pick up as to how you think. That way I can be sure to make you feel better, even if you're unwilling to say anything." Akihiko said as he nuzzled his forehead against Minato's. "I always want to be there for my little Blue Puppy." Minato moved up and kissed the boxer.
"I'll always be able to trust you to solve any problem I have. I'm sure you could solve any of them."
"I promise. If anything is ever wrong, I'll be sure to make it all better." Akihiko whispered.
Akihiko was about to exit Minato's room. He looked back to see Minato, who was still sitting there like nothing had happened. This reminded Akihiko as to how Minato would always look when he was alone at school.
"I had promised that I'd solve anything that bothered you. So why do I feel like I'm breaking that promise?" Akihiko muttered to himself. Akihiko left his room and decided to try getting his mind off things by going on a run. He was about to head out the door until he was stopped by Fuuka.
"Akihiko-senpai? Are you okay? You seem upset." The small girl asked. Akihiko looked back at her, his hand still on the front door's handle.
"I just… need a break." Akihiko answered.
"How's Minato-kun, though?" Fuuka asked. Akihiko sighed out in exhaustion.
"I need to take my mind off things." Akihiko said as he started to exit.
"But, what's wro…" Fuuka was saying but was cut off when Akihiko shut the door behind him. Akihiko walked off and started to jog, wanting to stay away from things physically and mentally.
Akihiko was close to the shrine when he took a moment to catch his breath. He hunched down a bit, putting his hands on his knees and had his head down as he panted. He had been trying to force himself to ignore things, but the more he tried, the harder it was to do so. Akihiko looked up and then punched the wall in front of him.
"Damn it! Why can't I drop it?" Akihiko grunted to himself.
"Sanada-san? Is that you?" A voice above Akihiko said. Akihiko looked up and saw Ken looking down from the upper level.
"Ken? What're you doing here?" Akihiko asked.
"I was paying respects to my mother. I heard something hit the wall… but, what's upsetting you so much, Sanada-san?" Ken responded. Akihiko sighed again, taking a seat on a step on the stairs.
"I'm trying to get Minato back to normal, but I don't even know if I've actually been helping at all."
"Oh. I figured that the problem would be along those lines."
"It… feels like my little sister all over again. I couldn't do anything to protect her. But, this feels worse. Minato is technically still alive, but seems like he's lifeless. Basically he's like a zombie or something."
"But he's still here." Ken said back.
"Huh?" Akihiko was confused.
"Arisato-san is still here. Still alive. As long as he's alive, there's always going to be a chance that he gets back to normal. Nothing I'll ever do will bring my mother or Shinjiro-san back to life, and I have accepted it, but Arisato-san can still be helped. And the road ahead is going to be extremely difficult for him to recover, but you're right there next to him. Since he has no family, you know Arisato-san the best, meaning if anyone can help him, it's you. And you also don't have to worry about going at it alone. We're all here to help back you up, as well. Did you forget what you said before, Sanada-san?"
"Forget what?"
"Months back when I didn't know what to do after Shinjiro-san's death. You said that it was my decision to stop right then and there, or not to dwell on the past and make my own future. You're not giving up, right, Sanada-san?" Akihiko stood up after what Ken said.
"Hell no. Hell! No! There's no way I'll ever give up on anything. Especially Minato! I can't believe that I was acting so stupid! Thanks for the waker upper, Amada. I didn't think you'd be the one to ever be telling me this."
"That's what friends are for. Slapping the sense back into each other if we ever lose our ways."
"Yeah, thanks. Well, as long as I'm here." Akihiko walked over to the offering box and put in an offering after making a wish at the shrine.
"What were you wishing for?" Ken asked.
"Wasn't really a wish. I was thanking your mother for raising a great friend." Akihiko said as he walked past Ken and gave him a pat on the back. Akihiko quickly started running again to go back to the dorm. He had regained his confidence. He knew that Ken was right. As long as Minato was still here, Akihiko could save Minato once again.
"I'm gonna do it. I'll get you back from the dark and get that smile back on your face. I have to. You said I was your guardian angel and damn it, I'm gonna live up to that even if it kills me!" Akihiko said to himself as he ran.
