Chapter edited December 11th.

"You look exhausted, Belphegor." Mukuro's heterochromatic eyes held a soft expression as they searched for bel's obscured ones. "Why don't you go have a rest?"

Bel sighed as he shook his head and sat on the chair opposite the couch the other was occupying. "I'm fine, Mukuro… I don't need to sleep. …It's all I've been doing lately, anyway…"

Mukuro had come out to see Fran as soon as he had had time, and the second he had stepped into the house, it was clear that the teal-haired boy wasn't the only one suffering if the tears Bel had been crying before letting the taller male into the house were anything to go by.

"Belphegor…" Mukuro shook his head before he made his way over to the couch. Fran was spread across it, resting on his side as he stared blankly ahead. He was dressed in warm pyjamas, light green fabric that matched his hair, and a black blanket was resting on the floorboards next to the couch. He reached out to touch a teal head as gently as he could while he offered the boy his warmest smile; no matter how old they had gotten, he had always been very close with Fran, and it hurt greatly to see the younger like this. "Hello, little one. How's your head?"

As expected, Fran didn't even notice he was being touched, let alone spoken to; he just continued to stare at the wall opposite them with shallow breathing.

"He won't speak to you…" Bel spoke in a bitter tone. He pulled his knees up to his chest as he sighed, turning to look at the TV instead. It had been turned down to a low hum, nothing of interest showing at the current hour, but anything was better than watching Fran stare blankly at nothing for hours on end. "He just… lays there most of the time…"

"Well, of course he is not going to be up and walking around so soon," the younger male said as he sat on the couch. He lifted Fran's head carefully so that it rested on his lap, and he stroked the boy's hair in a soothing manner. "He cannot get that message around his body properly. You have to be patient with him, Belphegor; he needs love and support."

"I know that… I'm trying, Mukuro; I really am… I'm just…" Bel sighed as he shook his head. "…It's been weeks since I've brought him home, and it feels like he hasn't made any progress at all…"

"I am sure he will. He is very strong, Belphegor." Mukuro looked around the living room. The curtains were drawn, letting the light soak into the room, and the sliding glass door to the side porch was halfway open to let he chilly breeze into the house. "Shouldn't you be keeping that door closed? Tsunayoshi told me you could still be in danger."

"The dog's out the back; it's open so it can come in and out." The blond rested his chin in his hand as he continued on. "The cop's out the front so he'd see if anyone snuck over the fence anyway."

"Still…" Mukuro didn't like the idea of Bel being so careless, especially now that Fran relied solely on him to care for him – if someone broke in, and Bel wasn't around… "…"

It was quiet between them as Bel swayed slightly while he watched the TV, and Mukuro whispered down to Fran, playing with dirty teal locks. Their attention was soon grabbed by the soft clicking of Mamoru's nails on the floorboards as he came inside with his squeaky ball in his mouth. When the animal approached Mukuro in the hopes of having someone to play with him, the blue-haired man's eyes widened in horror.

"Belphegor!"

The blond jumped at the younger's outburst. He frowned at Mukuro. "What?"

"Why have you not been feeding it?" Mukuro reached out and grabbed the dog collar in order to get a better look at the skinny animal; while it wasn't to the point of emaciation, the dog would definitely be hungry; the last time he had seen Mamoru, there had been much more fat to it.

"…I'm tired, Mukuro…" It had been a long time since Bel had sounded so defeated. Mukuro understood; his friend was depressed, but still… If he couldn't feed the dog, who knew how quick he would slip with Fran's care. "I'm just… so tired…"

While Bel himself seemed to have lost weight, Mukuro couldn't find it in himself to care for the other's wellbeing right now; Bel could feed himself when he wanted to, but that dog was as reliant on him as Fran was.

"Mamoru." Mukuro carefully moved Fran so that he could get off the couch. He made his way into the dining room so he could get to the small cabinet by the sliding glass door they stored all of the dog's belongings in. Mamoru followed behind obediently with the squeaky toy still in his mouth. "I am sure Belphegor doesn't mean to be so neglectful, Mamoru… He is just going through a hard time."

Mamoru's tail wagged eagerly as he watched Mukuro pour dry food into his bowl. He waited for it to be put down in its usual spot by the couch in the living room before he bounded happily to the couch and ate in a ravenous manner.

"It is really hungry, Belphegor." Mukuro felt sad as he watched Mamoru devour the dry food within seconds; just how long had the poor thing gone without food...? He returned Fran's head to his lap before he said, "I am sure you are tired, but you are still responsible for it. How would Fran feel if he knew you were letting his dog go hungry?"

"Leave me alone…" Bel tucked his feet in beneath his striped pyjama pants, wanting to curl up and sleep, but he knew he had to feed Fran soon; he hated the fact that his boyfriend had to be fed through a tube, but what else could he do? Try and force something down his throat and choke him? "I don't need this shit… I'm trying my best, Mukuro…"

Mukuro again fell silent. He was thinking about Fran, hoping with all his being the younger would be alright. He looked down when he felt the dog pawing at him, and he smiled softly as he was met by the sight of Mamoru with his ball in his mouth, begging to be played with. He took the squeaky ball and tossed it to the far side of the room, watching the dog run after it in order to bring it back.

"Have you been playing with it?" the blue-haired man asked as he took the toy when it was dropped onto his lap.

"No…"

"You cannot throw a ball for five minutes?" Mukuro was upset when the other shook his head. "…Why do you not give him to Takeshi for the time being, then? I am sure he would not mind another dog and at least Mamoru will not be lonely with Jiro to play with."

"It's Froggy's dog," the blond growled, almost possessively. "It's not leaving because I'm sure Froggy wouldn't want it to."

"Alright." Mukuro raised his hands in defence. "I am sorry, Belphegor. I was just putting it out there because you do not want to look after it."

"…"

Mukuro wished there was something he could do to help, but what? Belphegor seemed bent on running himself exhausted for Fran, but… at the same time, the blond was too tired.

"Belphegor, I – Belphegor!" Mukuro stood up once again as the older male's pyjama sleeves slide up his arm as he shifted and revealed a wrist marred with fresh cuts. He stormed across the room and grabbed the frail limb, finding that these injuries were no accident; they were deep, and had been made with careful precision. "Belphegor, why would you do this to yourself now of all times?! What if you slipped?! What if something happened and no one found out until it's too late?! Did you even think about what would become of Fran?!"

Bel pulled his wrist back to his person and scowled. He got off the chair and left to head to his bedroom. The door slammed shut behind him, and Mukuro could only imagine what the blond was going through.

Fran seemed undisturbed by the commotion, having not moved an inch since Mukuro's arrival. The man went to sit back down beside him, only to stop as he noticed the rapidly-spreading wet stain that had originated on the front of the boy's pants.

Mukuro sighed as he reached out and carefully slid the wet material from the younger's body. "He cannot even put a nappy on you to save you some embarrassment… What is he doing…?"

Keeping it in mind to tell Squalo everything that had happened today, Mukuro went about caring for Fran, knowing someone had to.

~~XX~~

Bel's sleep had been disturbed by the sound of his phone ringing. He blinked as he pulled it from his pocket, finding the caller ID read 'Squalo'. Yawning, the blond answered the call and put the phone to his ear.

"Hello…?" Bel flinched as he was greeted with shouting.

"Voi! What the fuck do you think you're doing?!" Squalo sounded very angry, and the sound of breaking glass in the background proved this. "You're not feeding yourself or the fucking dog, you're going against the nurse's advice on keeping him in nappies, and now you're fucking cutting yourself again! If this is too fucking much for you, why the fuck didn't you say anything to us?!"

"Squalo…" Bel sighed. "…Squalo, I… I'm just… I'm not very hungry anymore, and… I'm just too tired for the dog… And I'm not putting Froggy in nappies, Squalo… Anything but that…"

"I get that this isn't an easy thing for you to be doing, but why the fuck haven't you come to us for help?! That Takeshi trash is on his way out now to get the dog so someone's looking after it, and if we need to, we'll take Fran ourselves!"

"No…" Bel groaned loudly. "You're not… taking the dog… I'm sure Froggy would want it here… And you're not taking Froggy, either…"

"The dog needs to be looked after just as much as Fran does, you dumbass! The dog's going until you can actually care for it! I'll be out later to check up on you two, and if you haven't put him back in a nappy, I am not going to be happy, Belphegor!"

"Why should it matter to you whether he's in a nappy or not? You're not the one cleaning up his messes!"

"I'm thinking of the poor brat's feelings, fool! Would you want to piss and shit everywhere?! You're keeping him in a nappy, and that's that!"

Bel couldn't help but let a sob escape his throat. He closed his eyes as he bowed his head, just too tired for this. "…Squalo… I'm so… exhausted…"

Squalo was silent for a few seconds before he said in a much softer tone, "Then get some sleep, shithead. I'm coming out now to come and get him. You need a few days to yourself. No arguing over this either."

Nodding, Bel hummed in agreement, knowing he couldn't go on like this for much longer – he needed a rest, and he needed one now. "Thank you, Squalo…" he whispered, letting tears slide down his cheeks.

"It's okay, brat… See you soon…" With that said, Squalo was gone.