To say that Bel was glad to have changed schools so quickly was an understatement; he had never felt as lonely as he did now, not even after when he had just lost his family and the first eight years of his life. He would have loved to have transferred to Fran's school so they could spend more time together, but the younger's school was too far out of the way and he would most definitely have had no other choice but to take several buses if he wanted to get there and back - but even if he couldn't join Fran in school, at least Bel was still able to see Dino and the younger trio who always seemed to find ways to get him to join them in social activities.

"Dino…" Having finally found his once-guardian's office, Bel stepped into the room with a glum look on his face. He didn't hesitate to approach the older blond, despite the other seemingly busy with writing reports on his laptop. "Dino, I'm… really lonely…"

Dino looked up from his laptop and smiled sadly; he was glad to have heard Bel would be coming to join him at school, but he was still disappointed he wouldn't have the younger in his classes; he was just as fond of the boy as Squalo was, having treated Bel as his and Squalo's very own child together. "I'm sure you would be; it's a huge change, isn't it?"

Bel nodded. "Fumie's nice, but… It isn't the same…"

"Of course not, Bel. And it's not helping that you're feeling so down because… Well…" Rubbing the back of his neck, Dino's eyes darted to the side; did he want to continue on and upset Bel further…?

"It's okay… You can say it…" Bel dropped his head and frowned. He felt tears pricking at his eyes, but he was able to contain them; it was just another year passing by, after all…

"…Because it's almost the anniversary of your accident…"

Bel shrugged and looked away. "It was a long time ago… I should have gotten over by it now… I can't miss… people I don't know…"

"Don't tell yourself that, Bel; it's different because that was your family. You can miss them as much as you want, even if you can't remember them."

Bel sighed as he looked back at Dino. He changed the subject, not wanting to continue; the last thing he needed was to depress himself on his first day here. "Where do those little brats usually hang out at school?"

"They go straight to their homeroom before school." Knowing what Bel wanted, Dino smiled. "Want to go see them?"

Bel shrugged again as he stood up, not wanting Dino to see how much he wanted to say yes; he wanted to be nonchalant about it because he was honestly a little embarrassed to admit that he actually had friends. "What about at breaks? Where do they go then?"

Dino also got to his feet so that he could lead Bel from the office. "They do spend a bit of time up on the roof, but they move around sometimes. They'll let you know where to meet them after classes."

Bel nodded. He didn't say another word until a few minutes later when they had stepped into a classroom. There was hushed chatter around the room as the students found themselves confused by Dino's early arrival, and the unfamiliar student by his side.

"You." Pointing out the three kids who often tended to find themselves in his bedroom, Bel approached them as he tried his hardest to think about anything but the crippling loneliness he was feeling. "Entertain me."

The younger three looked confused by Bel's presence; they certainly hadn't expected for the blond to show up in their classroom, after all.

Tsuna was the first one to speak. "Belphegor? What are you doing here?"

Bel leant back against Hayato's desk and crossed his arms against his chest. He felt uncomfortable telling them what had happened, but he wasn't one for lying – not about serious things like this. "…I… don't live with Squ anymore…"

Tsuna frowned at this, and while Hayato tried not to show any emotion, Takeshi's caramel eyes melted as he asked, "You were adopted?"

Bel nodded. "Had to change schools… Fran's school was too far away so I came here instead."

None of the younger three knew what to say about this, but they didn't have to speak; someone else from the class did it for them.

"Hey, you're the Ripper Prince, aren't you?"

Bel turned around as he heard the name of his YouTube channel and came face-to-face with a younger raven-haired teen, the other looking extremely excited at the sight of Bel. "Yes…?"

"Oh, my god! Really?!" The smaller teen clapped his hands at this and the smile on his face brightened. "That's so cool! I didn't know you went to our school!"

Bel was very uncomfortable with the other so close to him, and he panicked and pushed himself backwards as the stranger grabbed his hand to shake it zealously. He was tense, his breathing unsteady; he wasn't used to people acting like this around him, and it made him anxious. "…"

Tsuna got in between the two, knowing how his friend liked his own space. "Ah, Kazota-san, please leave Belphegor be; he wants to –"

"-No way; you know No-Good Tsuna?" The teen – Kazota, Bel had worked out – frowned at the little brunet with a look of disapproval in his eyes. "Why would you want to be friends with a wimp like him?"

"You bastard!" Hayato had stood up like this, getting into Kazota's face. Bel watched as Takeshi joined the fray in an attempt to calm everyone down, and Dino simply watched with a puzzled expression from the front of the room; he certainly hadn't expected for something like this to happen when he had brought Bel here.

"You make YouTube videos?"

Bel gulped as he heard another unfamiliar voice from behind him, this time a female's. He had never really interacted with girls before, having only ever been around Mammon and not caring enough for the students at his old school to attempt to get to know anyone; he had never noticed until now that he was quite shy around the opposite gender. "…"

Dino, who had come over to the others by now, wrapped his arm around Bel's shoulders as he smiled at his student, noticing that a crowd was soon forming around them. Bel, despite being praised as a genius, couldn't work out for the life of him why this was; no one else at his old school had ever taken interest in him, so why was it different here? Was it because he hadn't been recognised as a YouTuber until now?

"Yes, he does." Dino tugged Bel closer to him, happy to see so much attention around Bel for once; the boy had always been distant from most people around him, locked away in his room with only his videogames for company. It wasn't any way for the younger to live, but if Squalo had allowed it, then he would never voice his opinions; Bel was Squalo's foster child, after all. "He makes game ones."

"Oh, what kind of gaming videos?" Another female had approached Bel at this. She had long black hair held up in a bun as she batted her eyes at the newcomer in a flirtatious manner. Bel's cheeks turned scarlet as his eyes wandered down to her breasts, and his pants quickly became too tight for him. He made a strangled noise before he turned away and hid behind Dino as he felt his face burn up from his apparent shyness.

Dino couldn't help but laugh at this; Bel was so adorable when he embraced his inner child. "I've never seen you like this before, Bel. I honestly never thought you'd be so shy. Everyone, please try and give him a bit of space; he's not used to so much attention."

"Do you know him, sensei?"

Dino nodded at the question. He was glad that all attention had fixed on him now; it would give Bel a break and allow him to try and relax. "Yes; my partner was fostering him for years; he was only recently adopted."

Bel thumped his fist against Dino's chest. His face was still red as he mumbled, "Don't tell them that!" The boy tried to block out the conversation going on around him, but he stopped when he felt Tsuna tug at his sleeve. "…"

"Want to come into town with us after school?" The brunet was as shy as ever, but he seemed a little more comfortable around Bel today; he mustn't be feeling so out of place as he did whenever he was at Bel's home. "We were going to stay at Yamamoto's for a bit."

Bel opened his mouth to respond, but then he remembered; he would need to ask Fumie before he went anywhere since otherwise he may not be able to get home at night. "…I… need to ask Fumie…"

Tsuna nodded in understanding. He stepped back to make Bel feel more at ease. "That's okay. We'll be on the roof for lunch today. Come and meet us at our classroom and you can follow us."

Bel nodded. He tried to ignore the attention that was still fixed on him and swallowed thickly before getting Dino's notice, asking, "How are Fran and Squ?"

"Squalo's good. He really misses you, though." Dino threaded his fingers through Bel's hair. "We've almost finished disassembling the last of your stuff and we'll have it out to you soon. Fran misses you more than he'll let on, too; he's been spending more time with Mukuro now since he doesn't have you to annoy."

Bel sighed before a brilliant idea struck his mind; if Fumie would let him go out with the younger three today, then maybe he could ask them if Fran could come, and maybe if he could, then Fran could even come back to Fumie's with him for the night. "If I go to Takeshi's, can I ask Fran to come with and maybe bring him home with me?"

"Of course you can." Dino frowned as he glanced down at his wristwatch. "You'd better head to your classroom, Bel; classes will start soon."

Bel pouted, but he knew he had to leave, no matter how much he wanted to stay here. Wrapping his arms around Dino's middle, he then leant up on his tiptoes to kiss his once-guardian's cheek in farewell. He turned around to leave, but he quickly stopped with a gasp and tensed badly when someone grabbed his arm. He held himself tight as he turned around to see who had startled him.

"Want to spend breaks with us?" It was the same girl with the nice chest who had really grabbed Bel's attention, and if he were more experienced in females and sexual situations, he would have understood that he was being flirted with – but instead, all he could focus on was the way his softening arousal suddenly came back to life with a vengeance, straining against his boxers desperately as Bel's mind went straight to the gutter.

Bel stammered something incomprehensible as he slid his bag off his shoulder and held it to his chest, holding it low enough to hide the large bulge in his pants as he ran off. He wondered if he would have time for a quick session in the bathrooms before he would have to be in class, but he decided against it; the last thing he needed was to give himself a reputation on his first day of school.

~~XX~~

Bel had no idea how he had gotten through his classes with a raging hard-on that prevented him from focusing on anything else – but somehow, he had managed to keep his hands out of his pants and remain in his seat until the bell rang before he made his way to Tsuna's classroom where they led him out to the roof. It hadn't taken them long at all to notice that something was wrong with Bel, and upon hearing of their friend's problem, they shyly allowed him to go the bathroom and return later.

And now, as Bel walked to Takeshi's family restaurant with the younger three, he eagerly awaited for the moment Fran would come to join them. He had been happy that Fumie was allowing him to continue doing what he had back when he had been in Squalo's care, knowing that at least he wasn't going to have to change his routines too drastically; he might not be able to go places as much as he used to, but his freedom hadn't been stripped completely from him.

Bel hadn't said much during the walk, and after arriving at Takeshi's, he had picked at the sushi the younger's father had given them all; he was deep in thought, just wanting to see Fran again.

"Senpai, is it possible that you've gotten fatter since the last time I saw you?"

Bel froze at the voice and narrowed his eyes; so much for a happy reunion where they would run into each other's arms and kiss… "Fuck you, frog."

The boy couldn't stay mad for long; he could only move over to make room for his boyfriend. Leaning across, he placed a kiss on Fran's lips before taking another bite of his sushi and sliding the plate between them so that the younger could also eat.

It wasn't exactly unusual for Bel to stay so quiet for long periods of time and instead listen to the conversation around him; he usually did this when he was fighting the urge to masturbate. He had been doing so well all day, having only done so twice during school, but now that Fran was back by his side...

Bel pushed his plate away and jumped to his feet, holding one hand against the tent in his pants. He started running towards the living quarters as he called over his shoulder, "I need to use the bathroom!"

Four sets of eyes watched the blond leave before Fran let out a dramatic sigh, as emotionless as ever as he said, "At least stupid-senpai will never have to worry about needing to use Viagra."

There was shy laughter around the teal-haired male, but Fran knew he was right; Bel had enough excess hormones to supply him with sexual energy until the day he died.

~~XX~~

Fumie had picked the two up later that night from Takeshi's, and the woman was just glad that Bel was seeming happier now that he had Fran with him. The two were seated on the couch in the living room together, the blond holding Fran's hand tightly as they watched a horror movie. While Fran was as emotionless as ever, Bel looked to be in his glee; he was giggling continuously and jumping around like an overexcited child every ten minutes.

Fumie didn't mind this; it instead made her joyful to see her adoptive son finally happy within her home.

"Ne, Froggy?" Bel turned to his boyfriend and shoved the empty bowl of popcorn at the younger. "The prince requires more popcorn for his movie."

"Get it yourself, fake prince." Sighing when he was jabbed harder with the bowl, Fran took it and stood up. "Fine, I'm going. You can stop having an orgasm now."

Bel rolled his eyes before he turned back to the movie and absentmindedly gave his awakened crotch a few good strokes. He snatched the bowl back when Fran returned a few minutes later, shovelling popcorn into his mouth like there was no tomorrow. Fran was much more dignified; he took small handfuls and only ate a few kernels at a time.

The two were enjoying their movie immensely, but Bel's attention was soon grabbed when large headlights started shining through the sliding glass door next to the TV. He frowned, knowing that Fumie was in the kitchen and he hadn't been told she was expecting anyone; who did those headlights belong to?

And then, when the headlights got closer, Bel's breath caught in his throat; it was a huge truck, one that looked just like the one that had put him in this situation. He started trembling, unable to move from the couch no matter how much he wanted to get up and run in case the vehicle was out of control and about to plow right through the house. Tears started sliding down his cheeks as he sobbed like a baby, memories flashing through his mind at an uncontrollable rate; there was a reason he always stayed as far away from the roads as he could, because even a truck on TV would send him back to the nightmare he had only just survived.

"Bel-senpai?" Putting his hand on Bel's shoulder, Fran guessed it was the truck outside that had caused this. He turned back to the door, watching as the truck parked off to the side of the house, the engine and headlights turning off. He didn't know who it could be, but he already didn't like them; they had upset his senpai.

Fumie must have heard them as she came back into the living room and knelt by Bel's side. "It's alright, honey; it's just my husband. You're safe."

In this moment, Bel was too blinded by his trauma to take notice of who was around him; he couldn't help but lean into Fumie's arms and cry as his anxiety skyrocketed. All he could remember was the crash, playing it over and over and over again in his mind uncontrollably.

It broke Fran's heart to see his senpai like this, but he had to understand; he had no idea of the impact that crash had left behind on Bel, and even if the blond were to explain everything to him, he might still never understand – he had quite simply never been through something so horrible, after all.

~~XX~~

Bel had eventually calmed down, and after meeting Fumie's husband for the first time and being taken out to see the truck so that he could understand he was safe around it, he had been able to stop crying. He was still very anxious, and he couldn't stop trembling, despite him and Fran getting ready for bed. It was getting late, and while neither of them had school in the morning, Bel was exhausted from before and needed to get some rest.

While Fran was already laying on Bel's bed, the blond soon finished buttoning up his pyjama shirt and came to lay with his boyfriend. He pulled Fran into his arms as he kissed the younger's chin, trying to focus on his breathing until he calmed down a little more.

Fran didn't say a word as he closed his eyes and started drifting off to sleep, but Bel couldn't fall asleep so easily; now that his anxiety was starting to dwindle, arousal was taking its place. He sighed as he shifted his position, inadvertently rubbing himself against his boyfriend's backside.

"Senpai, haven't you been horny enough today?" Not bothering to open his eyes, Fran remained still as he spoke. "Go to sleep."

Licking his lips now that he knew Fran was still awake, Bel reached out to press his palm against the younger's crotch. "Froggy can tire himself out with the prince if he likes."

Fran shook his head. "No." But then, to Bel's honest surprise, the boy rolled over and grabbed the blond's clothed shaft. He lowered the fabric before saying, "If I give senpai a handjob, will he go to sleep after?"

Bel could only nod breathlessly as his breath stuck in his throat. He let out a loud groan as he felt the small hand moving along him, and he reached out to pull Fran tight against his body. Burying his face in against teal locks, he made small noises of pleasure as he rocked his hips into the touch.

It didn't take long at all for Bel to come, coming to realise that he was going to need to find a way to calm himself down whenever he was intimate with Fran because his excitement was simply too much and was pushing him over the edge far quicker than he wanted. Cupping Fran's face and giving the smaller male a passionate kiss, Bel then settled back down, softly panting as he did so.

Smiling as he rested his nose in teal locks, Bel whispered, "Goodnight, Froggy~"

"Night…"

With that said, the two drifted into sleep, their dreams untroubled now that they were back together again.