This is the first flashback. I was worried I didn't make it clear in the way I wrote this. This story is also on my Wattpad. You can read it there if you want. Please review, if that's alright. I love getting feedback.

Trigger warning: suicidal thoughts

Karamatsu was tired. He was incredibly tired of trying to handle his life. Why did his brothers ignore him all the time? Why did they call him things like "painful" everytime he tried to get their attention? Why did they surround Ichimatsu after being reunited with that cat, while he himself was covered in bandages and trailed behind them on crutches? Why didn't they care about him?

All Karamatsu wanted was sleep, but for some reason, his body just wouldn't let him. He hadn't had a good night's sleep in weeks. That night, he'd been lying in the futon, hoping and that he would get some sleep tonight. He had been there for hours, and he was still wide awake. He had to do something about it.

Carefully, Karamatsu slipped out from between his brothers. He quietly walked out of the bedroom and made his way towards the bathroom. Karamatsu had bought a bottle of sleeping pills the other day. He had secretly been hoping he wouldn't need to use them, but now, he felt he had no choice.

When he bought the pills, he was scared of using them. He had a feeling something bad would happen if he tried. As to not risk his brothers finding them and asking questions, he hid the pills in the bathroom.

After he entered the bathroom, Karamatsu opened the cupboard underneath the sink. He began to move things out of the way. He tried to shove his hand towards the back. He reached around blindly, his hand grasping for the hidden object.

Karamatsu's fingers finally closed around the pill bottle. He pulled it out as well as a cup to fill with water. He sat himself on the floor. He opened the bottle and poured a few pills into his hand. Karamatsu stared at them.

It won't be enough. he thought to himself. Karamatsu poured more pills into he hand. Still won't be enough. He poured more. He kept pouring until the entire bottle was empty. In the back of his mind, Karamatsu knew this was dangerous. He could die. But he found he didn't really care.

Why should he care? Living his life was hell. Sleep held an escape. Sweet dreams that were far more enjoyable than life was bearable. To go to sleep forever...To slip into sweet dreams and never have to return to harsh reality...

Karamatsu stood up, careful not to drop any pills. He turned on the faucet. He put the cup under the flow of water and watched it fill up. He pulled it out when it was three fourths full.

"Karamatsu nii-san.." Karamatsu jumped, almost dropping some of the pills in the process. He looked towards the door. There stood one of his brothers. When did he open the door? Crap, had he even remembered to close it? The brother pointed towards the pills in his hand. "That's a lot."

Karamatsu looked down at his hand and the pills. "Y-yeah."

The brother stepped towards him. "Why so many?" he questioned. With how child like this brother was acting, this brother must have been Jyushimatsu.

"I uh," Karamatsu carefully mulled over his words. "W-worry not, my brother! I-I just need help to sleep!" Suddenly, Jyushimatsu began to brush the pills out of his hand and into the sink. "W-what are you doing!? Stop!"

Karamatsu clenched his hand into a fist to proctect what pills were left. He tried to push the brother away, spilling the cup of water in the process. Jyushimatsu had a strong grip on his arm, and wasn't gonna let it go any time soon.

He laughed lightly. "Silly Karamatsu nii-san!" Jyushimatsu said, forcing his usual smile to stay on his face, "You don't need that many sleeping pills! I can help you fall asleep!"

Karamatsu stared at him. He shook his head, tears pricking his eyes. "No. No! I need to sleep, Jyushimatsu! I need to sleep!"

Jyushimatsu didn't drop his smile or loosen his grip. "I know!" He began pulling Karamatsu out of the bathroom. "That's why I'm gonna help you!"

Karamatsu struggled against his brother's grip. "N-no p-pl-please," he begged and pleaded. Jyushimatsu's grip only got tighter, if anything. Karamatsu wailed out, "Life's a NIGHTMARE!" He looked down at his feet and sobbed. Jyushimatsu stopped pulling. "PLEASE...please...I...I just..." Tears were streaming down his face, and he didn't know how to stop them.

Jyushimatsu turned around and hugged his brother tightly. "It's alright, Nii-san," he whispered, "It'll be ok." Karamatsu sobbed into Jyushimatsu's shoulder. He unclenched his fist and the pills fell to the floor.

They stayed like that for what felt like an hour. Karamatsu's legs were getting weak. As his sobs became sniffles, the only thing keeping him upright was Jyushimatsu. Karamatsu's eyes were getting heavy. It was becoming difficult to keep them open.

"Jyushimatsu?.." he said sleepily.

"Hmm?"

"Can you...not tell the others...about this..."

"...yeah. I promise."

Karamatsu barely managed to whisper out "thanks" before falling into a blissful sleep.

The following mourning, Karamatsu awoke to an empty futon. Jyushimatsu was in the room, already dressed for the day. "Hey, Karamatsu nii-san!" he said, smiling, "You spilled stuff in the bathroom last night! Don't worry! I cleaned it up, so no one else noticed!"

Karamatsu stared at him a moment, then smiled. "Thank you, my little Jyushimatsu."

"Hey! Hey! Let's sing together today!"

"Ok."