Lance's eyes picked up small details on the boy in front of him. Hunk had certainly changed over the break. His skin had darkened from hours spent outside his summer home. The Garrett family had a close relationship with their neighbors there which resulted in numerous outdoor barbecues. Hunk would often send Lance pictures from them, most photographs consisting of the food made. Those photos would be accompanied by Hunk expressing his joy in the form of a text. Each message brought a smile to Lance's face without fail. Seeing his close friend excited like he was always spread the positive emotion to himself. Lance noticed how Hunk's typical orange headband had been replaced. The ribbon was more vibrant, and the ends had swirling designs stitched into them with gold thread. The bangs pulled away from his face by said headband were noticeably shorter. At the beginning of the summer, Hunk's bangs barely brushed his lower eyelashes. Lance used to play with said bangs all of the time. He often spent lunches weaving tiny braids in the other's hair. The short strands now reached slightly past the center of the ribbon crossing his forehead.

Lance spotted a few additional changes as the two separated from their hug, the most significant being his shift in height. Despite being too early for most males, Hunk was beginning to hit his growth spurt. Judging by Hunk's constant tall height, Lance naturally assumed that Hunk was going to be giant. What he didn't expect was the growth spurt kicking in so soon. Hunk definitely grew several inches over the break while Lance only grew a few. Any day other than that day, Lance would crack numerous tall jokes. However, the young male was in absolutely no mood to do so.

Grabbing Lance's arm, Hunk gently tugged the boy inside and away from the entryway. He didn't wish to be an annoyance to fellow students passing through.

"How've you been, man? You weren't responding to my texts yesterday."

Lance noticed some things that didn't change. Hunk's smile was just as radiant as it was back when they were kids. Although Lance viewed it as impossible, his friend's smile surpassed Allura's. Hunk's smile was beyond contagious, spreading to anyone who so much as glanced at him. He reminded Lance of the sun, bright, warm, and blinding anyone of a majority of their negative feelings while it was present. Unfortunately, the grin lost its magic that day, increasing the ache in Lance's chest instead of diminishing it.

Hunk's body language didn't change either. He appeared relaxed around his close friend, just as he always had.

"I've been fine. I was just busy yesterday." Lance inwardly cringed at his dull choice of words.

There was no way he could tell him what he was truly doing yesterday. It was disgusting, messy, and would never be deemed acceptable.

Hunk's smile faltered at his friend's words. Lance never acted like this. He was always confident and louder than most people. On bad days, he got louder, forcing smiles and jokes often. Throughout the six years that he knew Lance, the only time he would ever get quiet, and space out was on a horrific day. A day where things were unbearable, feelings were overwhelming, and help seemed out of reach. Lance had reached that point only a few times during the end of fifth grade, the upcoming transition to the middle school being the primary cause.

Hunk placed a hand on Lance's shoulder, rubbing it with his thumb supportively. He was awful when it came to confrontations, but this was necessary.

"Be honest with me," Hunk forced his voice to be as soothing as he could manage, "How are you feeling?"

The panic in Lance's chest shot up to his eyes, blurring his vision with newly formed tears. His response to the other boy's question coming out as a choked sob.

Hunk's eyes widened as he cursed under his breath. Wrapping an arm around the smaller boy, he dragged him into the nearby bathroom. He quickly closed the door behind them. Lance was fully crying now, warm tears staining his cheeks for the second time that day. After throwing his bag by the door, Hunk yanked Lance's off of him and dropped it in the somewhat same location. He had the upset male sit on the floor once he realized how terribly his legs were shaking. Hunk flung his arms around his friend as he pulled him into a tight, but not suffocating hug.

Lance buried his face in the other's chest. His mind was screaming at him to stop, to back away and rebuild his walls, yet he couldn't. Hunk had always been the person Lance went to for comfort. If he closed himself off completely, where would he go?

Hunk's fingers found their way into Lance's hair. He stroked the brown strands slowly. He desperately wished to learn about what happened, what caused his closest friend to break down like he was doing. However, he couldn't ask. It was clear to him that the other male was in no state to explain, sobs increasing in volume. Hunk released the hug once Lance's distraught cries turned into frantic breaths. The smaller male's hands instantly shot up to cover his ears, the sound of his own breathing worsening his anxiety. Hunk shoved his own worries back down, opting to place his hands gently on Lance's arms instead of panicking himself. He attempted to make his voice as soft, yet firm and soothing as possible, as he instructed his upset friend to breathe with him.

During Lance's previous attacks, Hunk learned that giving Lance something to breathe with tended to improve things. He remembered the boy explaining that it was tough to start breathing deeply by himself. He mentioned how he'd get distracted by his quickened breathing while trying to slow himself down, causing him to feel worse. He additionally explained how in certain situations, he forgot how to breathe for brief moments. Lance's explanation included a detailed retelling of a moment where he experienced that. That story resulted in Hunk's desire to keep Lance as happy as he could to grow. He hated for Lance to be in that much pain.

Lance's breathing seemed to be slowing until Hunk noticed something. A pink splotch was peeking out from the other's white hood. The unusual color and signs of old scratches rose a flag in Hunk's mind. The blotchy area of skin was something he had never seen Lance have before. He had to be hurt. No other explanation would appear in his head. His hands flew to the other's hood. His heart nearly stopped once he moved the article of clothing. He unconsciously let out a strangled gasp.

"Oh, buddy..." Tears formed in his eyes as he gingerly ran his fingers over the flower marking.

Everything in his mind clicked at once, pieces connecting like a finished jigsaw puzzle. He knew that mark all too well.

Lance's wails got worse along with his shaking. He dug his fingers into his jacket sleeves in an attempt to ground himself. It was happening, the moment he had feared since the previous day. It was the day everyone would see how disgusting he was, the day he'd lose everything.

Hunk was frozen, fingers still resting on the crush mark. His brain was on lockdown. He was unsure how to react, how to fix this situation, and how this would affect the future. He never imagined or even thought about that happening. The boy hoped he'd be able to contain his emotions until Lance was calm, but he couldn't help himself. His feelings felt as if they were a whirlpool. Varying feelings swirled inside of him, bringing a sick feeling to his stomach. Just like confrontations, Hunk was absolutely terrible in situations such as the one he was in. No amount of internet searching could prepare him for that. Sure, he had heard about that type of scenario before. It was quite popular in romance novels and films. However, none of them could properly capture how it honestly felt. They couldn't explain the atmosphere and how it suffocated you. They couldn't explain the feelings, the crushing mix of negative that combined as a searing pain in your chest and fog in your brain. They couldn't explain the proper course of action. In a majority of movies, the protagonist either shoved their friend away or confessed. There usually wasn't a 'Plan C', causing Hunk to panic further.

He could hear Lance beginning to hyperventilate over his own soft crying. He had to do something. He was already enraged with himself for not keeping his composure during such a sensitive moment, but he couldn't allow Lance to worsen because of that.

Wiping his eyes with his hands, he breathed for a moment, hastily shoving himself back together.

He tried calming the boy again once he was stable enough to look at him without tearing up. That attempt wasn't nearly as smooth as the first time, taking nearly twice as much time. It didn't fully work, given how both boys were still shaken by the discovery.

Lance quaked with each uneasy breath. His eyes were teary, but he didn't allow them to slip. He'd done enough crying that morning to last him several months. As much as he was dreading that moment, he couldn't escape the conversation by breaking down.

Hunk awkwardly cleared his throat as he stared at his chubby fingers. His brain continued to lack a consistent feeling for the situation he was in.

"So," He barely spoke a word before Lance interrupted him.

"I can explain." The smaller male choked out.

He lifted a hand to adjust his hood, but as quickly as it rose to his neck, it fell back to his side. There was no point in hiding anything now, especially not when both of them already knew.

Hunk reached for one of Lance's hands and picked it up. He began to gently rub the back of the hand with his thumb, summoning butterflies to the other's stomach. Lance despised how fluttery he felt from the soft touch. It deeply disgusted him. The feelings he harbored were wrong. They shouldn't have existed, but they did and extinguishing them would be challenging.

"Lance..?" Hunk's voice tore Lance from his thoughts.

"Sorry..." He apologized.

The growing concern softened the other male's features, "Are you sure you're ready to talk? I don't want you to feel like you have to."

Lance shook his head, "I'm not ready, but if we don't have this conversation, I won't be able to make it through today."

Hunk nodded. While he didn't think a forced conversation was the best idea, it was certainly better than having his best friend suffer from multiple breakdowns over the course of the day.

"Okay," The smaller boy took a deep breath, pausing for a moment after, "God, I don't know where to start..."