Author's note: Yay, some time off! Well, I don't know how much I'll be able to speed up the pace, since I still got work to do, but I know that I'll blow off some steam by writing as much as possible.

Taking some freedom here, I'll do my best to respect the BNHA universe though, but it is thrilling and frightening to not have a story line to follow. You'll see how it goes with the few characters I added in this chapter ^^""

It is the longest one I've written so far, since I couldn't stop until I reached a specific scene. I'm making amends for the shorter chapter I published last week.

Anyway, enjoy and see you soon!

She had never felt so pissed off in her life.

Really, she just felt like bursting from anger and screeching like a harpy with each breath she was taking.

And what made everything worse was that she knew that this anger wouldn't solve a thing.

Usually, she converted angry or sad feelings in songs, or in fuel to fight and improve herself.

But this anger? It just made her hurt.

Like she never did in her life.

She was furious at him, at her, at the whole world.

And she didn't have a fucking clue about how to cope and overcome it.

Since yesterday, she had been closed off in her own music bubble, blasting heavy metal in her ears, avoiding everyone in order to not snap at her friends. She had to calm down, to transform this mess in something constructive, like she always did.

But for now, she just felt like crying and screaming her heart out. She just got over the feeling that she wanted to rip it out and throw this useless thing away, so there was progress, right?

Why couldn't she deal with this like she always did?

Why was she understanding him to an extent after all the crap he said?

Why was she that angry when she had already forgiven him?

Tears began to roll on her cheeks, while System of a Down blared in her ears: she curled around herself on her bed, wincing in pain at her still healing broken ribs, finally breaking down.

"Idiot..."

...

Her purple hair shone in the soft sunset light, a small smile on her face. He reached for her hand, pressing his lips inside her palm, his golden eyes never leaving her face. The gentle warmth of the end of this summer day embraced them, a sense of peace invading him.

Suddenly, the darkness engulfed them, siphoning every light and warmth in the air. Her dark eyes dulled in an instant, her peaceful face contorted in pain.

"You failed me, Denki…"

He got up, a dry sob etched in his throat, his skin covered with a sheen of cold sweat. Gasping for air, he took in his surrounding, anguish surging at the unfamiliar room and the recent nightmare.

As he desperately tried to even his breathing, recollection of the previous days surfaced in his mind.

He was in his room, at his parent's house, thus the unfamiliar feeling as UA clearly had became his home over the few months he had lived here.

It's been two days since his return after asking for a temporary leave on Recovery Girl's advice. His mental state had grown dire after their last battle, and staying there had been a constant source of pain.

So here he was in his old room, trying to collect his broken self, to put things in their right place to be able to get back up.

But he knew he couldn't do it by himself.

He remembered the first words his parents told him when he came back home.

You have to forgive yourself to be able to move forward.

How was he supposed to forgive himself for nearly killing the most important person in his whole fucking life?

Her unconscious and bloodied face flashed behind his closed eyelids, making his stomach churn, the bile rising in his throat.

Inhale, exhale, inhale…

Every thing since that day seemed unnatural, his mind on auto-pilot to do the simplest thing. He had managed to visit her during her hospital stay, but the guilt was eating him from inside more and more, as he was maintaining his usual cheerful persona.

He had succeeded to fool some of his classmates to an extent, but Eijirou, Momo and Izuku often cast him worried glances, patting his back whispering that it wasn't his fault, making him join group activities and outings to make sure he wasn't left alone with his thoughts.

Even Bakugou made him hamburgers on the first night, telling him to stop moping around because he did great and stop the villain afterward.

Gradually, his mind became immune to their words, letting the darkness fill the void, as he began to seclude himself a little bit more. Recovery Girl immediately saw the extent of his downfall and intercepted him one afternoon as he returned from his daily visit to Kyoka.

"Kaminari-kun? Can I have a word please?"

"Sure, what can I do for you?"

"Take some time off UA to take care of yourself."

He froze, his mouth agape from surprise for a second, as he composed himself the fastest he could.

"Why? I'm doing quite fine, and Kyoka is going to be discharged soon, so there is no need to worry."

"That's exactly why I worry… You're in denial about your own mental state, and I don't see things evolving well in the future if you're not dealing with your problem."

He had awkwardly ruffled his hair, wincing at her bluntness. He should have known he couldn't hide it from her of all the people. But it didn't change the fact that he wasn't allowed to take care of this, because he had no right to be taken care of after all that happened.
His focus was on Kyoka and Kyoka alone.

He bitterly replayed the warning words of the UA nurse as he was struggling to get up from his bed, his alarm clock blaring 6:00 in the darkness of his room.

No use to try and go back to sleep.

No use to cry over spilled milk too… I have to deal with the fact that I have ignored every single warning…

He dragged his body toward the bathroom, dizziness still heavy in his limbs, the nausea lingering in his throat.

The warm water alleviated his physical discomfort a little, but his mind kept turning around the same thoughts and memories.

"You never care about how I feel in the first place, don't you?"

His fist balled and landed on the tiled wall at the recollection of her words and the angry hurt lighting her eyes.

It wasn't like that, I didn't mean any harm, I swear… I did what I thought was right…

But all he could utter had been a "You can't understand how I feel" in a voice he didn't even recognized as his, the harsh coldness foreign in his own ears.

"Hard to understand when someone is not even willing to talk about it!", she had spat out of exasperation, a fierce glare piercing him.

"You weren't the one trying to kill the most important person in your life, for fuck's sake!"

"It wasn't your fault, get over it Denki! You were under control!"

"I just fucking can't!" He had screamed at her, frustration and anguish lacing every if his words."Don't you think I've tried? But right now, I just can't and it is eating me alive to the point I have thought that it would have been best if I had died in the process instead of risking your life!", he had added bitterly as he watched with a morbid fascination her face falling, her teeth gritting in rage, her eyes watering.

That's when he just knew he had screwed up, bad. That the hurt he had done would take some time to be forgiven, if it was even forgiven at all.

And even so, he had kept going on, as she silently cried in front of the door of his room, the light fading slowly as the sun continued to set.

"I swore to protect the most precious person in my life to Midnight, and my worst fear just came true when some fucking villain could make me tase you at high voltage two times in a row… So I'm sorry for not being as quick as you would like to recover..."

He had not meant the venomous tone that was dripping from his words.

He had not meant to lash out his bottled feelings like that.

He had not meant to hurt anyone other than himself, and especially not her.

But his intentions didn't mattered anymore when she had grabbed the door handle, shaking.

"I'm sorry… I'm just not good enough to..."

Her grip on the handle had tightened, and she had began to laugh darkly.

"You are the one who doesn't get anything right."

She then had turned around and grabbed him by the collar of his uniform, her eyes a whirlpool of mixed emotions.

He couldn't avert his eyes anymore, and her gaze had been the core of all of his recent nightmares, the words she harshly whispered the soundtrack of them.

"I just want you to be free, Denki. But you keep creating new shackles, and I'm even one of them now. And I refuse to be the one to cage you, because I just fucking love you so much that it hurts to hear and see you as you are now. How dare you saying bullshit like wishing to die to protect me, without thinking about what I could feel!"

She had let go of him to get to the door.

"I'll be waiting for you to get some common sense back …"

The sound of the loud bang of his door slamming still woke him at night. It was at this moment that he decided to ask for a leave: the filled form had been waiting for him to make his mind for several days on his desk anyway. If she hadn't barged in his dorm room to confront him, he would still be lying to himself and to her in the process.

Reliving this event made him tear up, as he kneeled in the shower, his blonde mane falling from dampness in front of his eyes. He never felt so frustrated with himself in his whole life, so torn between his bad habits and his aspirations.

He couldn't stay like this, he was very much aware of how bad of a decision it would be. But he had no clue on how to go forward.

He had managed so far, thanks to her presence in his life, thanks to his friends. But how was he supposed to do now that he was even twisting what was good in his life?

His helplessness broke the dam he had been building for days, even since he had used his Quirk on Kyoka. He had sworn himself that he wouldn't cry, that he had no right to.

"But in the end, it is just another promise I'm unable to keep", he whispered in a broken voice as his tears mixed themselves with the lukewarm water.

...

"It's healing nicely, Jirou-chan. You'll be able to return to the field in a few days."

Kyoka silently nodded at Recovery Girl. Truth was that she wasn't in a rush to resume patrolling, her mind still not at ease after the last week.

Yeah, they had dealt quite a blow with this operation, dividing their forces to let Deku deal with Tomura at ease, along with Todoroki, Bakugou and Ochaco.

But they had to run into a team of villains including a brainwashing Quirk that they weren't aware of, data and information unfortunately lacking, along with time.

And this guy had taken Denki as his target, claiming that his greatest pleasure was to break gentle souls. His Quirk had several conditions to activate, that Kaminari unconsciously triggered: a minimal distance from the villain and a specific word, something that held a real meaning to the target he had chosen.

Unfortunately, the villains seemed to have gathered their own data on the heroes in training, and one of them named Spirit Breaker had been hiding the whole time, watching his prey from afar as the other members of his team were distracting them.

And when Denki passed by the enemy in hiding as he was about to split with Kyoka and Momo and asking them to take care, his mind suddenly went blank, as if his soul had left his body to let someone take control.

She could feel the crack of electricity in the air again, see the darker light in his sunny gaze, watch the corner of his lips turning up in a devious smirk.

A shiver ran down her spine at the memory, as she was buttoning her uniform's jacket back.

She had learned after that the villain couldn't hold his Quirk for long, but he had the time to make Denki launch pointers on Momo and her, and to unleash a first electric shot to stun both of them, followed by his Indiscriminate Shock 1.3 Million Volts just a moment after.

Momo had barely the time to recover from the first hit to create an insulating cover for her and Kyoka, and the impact send them flying, breaking Kyoka's ribs, her head hitting the rocky wall.

She remembered seeing him falling on his knees, screaming and trying to reach her, as the villain appeared behind him, laughing loudly.

She had lost consciousness, but Eijirou and Sero told her that Denki had shouted at them to get her and Momo to safety and to let him settle the score with this "asshole". He apparently pulled a new move, an electrified area around him that shocked Spirit Breaker's, stunning and holding him in place as the young hero knocked him unconscious. Eijirou apparently had to stop Kaminari from pummeling him into a pulp, his friend brimming with anger.

She should have known that something was wrong, as he never bragged about his newfound move, as he never talked about what happened that day, always driving the conversation to music or the latest movie they watched at the dorm.

She had failed to see how hurt he really was, their classmates reporting nothing strange about his behavior at school. But she knew now that she had chosen not to see, because she knew every side of him, and it was so obvious that he would hate himself. She relied on their friends to support him in her place, because she was scared and scarred.

This smirk was engraved in her mind, even if she knew it wasn't her Denki.

But the possibility of him adorning such a cruel expression shook her deeply, and she had been scared to see it again, scared of losing him, scared of how he would react to the guilt and the fear, scared she couldn't help him to handle it.

So she took the time at the hospital and in recovery to collect herself, to ease the fear and the pain: she had made progress, until that day when she just couldn't ignore how weird he was acting, how bad he was secluding himself again. It was the day after her discharge, and the damage was just plain to see, in her eyes at least. That's why she barged in his room, where he was spending most of his time, and tried to reason him.

And that's also why he left.

A gentle hand rested on her shoulder, the UA nurse smiling at her softly.

"I was the one who encouraged him to go home, so stop blaming yourself. He had to take some time to deal with his own trauma, and you have exactly the same thing to do if you want to be able to pursue your relationship in a good way."

"You told him to leave UA? With the villains still on the run?"

"You saw how his mental state was. I warned him since the beginning of your stay at the hospital, but he refused to see what was going on."

Recovery Girl sighed at the recollection of his forced smile and hollow eyes, the same she could see to an extent on the girl standing in front of her. She couldn't do a thing for him in the end, but she could help her. "Believe it or not, you did him a favor by confronting him: you are the only one who can really reach him after all, be it for a good or a bad reason."

Kyoka played absentmindedly with one of her jack: she didn't see their fight in this way, well aware of how she hadn't been fully honest with her own feelings, in fear that he shut himself more. She knew she had her own work on herself to do, to avoid this traumatic event holding her back, and maybe this time apart could help both of them to grow out of this mess.

But even with this new way of thinking, something was bugging her.

"Do… do you think I can contact him by text? I mean, to remind him that I'm really waiting for him to figure it out? I'm sure he's fretting over meaningless thoughts that are dragging him down in the gutter…."

The nurse playfully rolled her eyes.

"He is not in hiding or something. He even left you a note, didn't he? So stop fretting over meaningless things yourself and follow what this tells you," she added while pointing her index toward the heroine's heart.

Kyoka nodded again silently, and bowed respectfully to the elderly woman before grabbing her school bag. As her office door drew close, an affectionate smile made its way on the nurse's lips, as she muttered in mock exasperation "Ah… Youth…."

...

He ended taking a walk in his neighborhood, in an attempt to clear his head after his parents left for work. If he had a choice, he would have found some remote place to be alone to stay during his leave, but Recovery Girl made a clear point on this being the shittiest idea ever.

And she had been right, once again: he was far too inclined to drown in his own thoughts to be left alone.

He was definitely lucky to be surrounded by caring people who only wanted the best for him, at home as well as in UA or in the pro hero world. His parents had been supportive ever since the rise of his struggles in middle school, guiding him through every ordeal by being compassionate and firm at the same time, impersonating every value they had taught him since his birth.

He now had another chaotic family of heroes, that stuck together through every storm, that stumbled but never stopped learning: he finally had the place he had yearned for so long, but it was like he couldn't accept it fully.

His eyes drifted to the small park he used to play as a kid, the place devoid of the usual laughs and screams in this hour of the morning. His legs advanced on themselves toward it, a melancholic smile on his lips. Things were so much easier at that time…

"Denki?"

He jumped slightly at the familiar voice, and his smile grew wider at the sight of the now grown-up male.

"Takuto? Ah man, it's good to see you!"

"Same here, can't believe it's already been a year since you left for UA!"

Denki took in the appearance of his friend: he was a head taller and had bulked up a bit, the roundness of his face replaced by sharper features. His dark hair were longer and cut rather stylishly, a long strand of hair falling in front of his right eye. His high-school uniform fitted him well too, and Denki whistled in appreciation, patting his friend's back.

"My my! You've become such a handsome man, I'm so jealous."

"Gimme a break, you're still more good-looking than me. And don't get me started on your newfound fame, Mr Chargebolt!"

The high-school student was grinning from ear to ear as he forcefully hugged Denki by his shoulder.

"Anyway, I'm happy to see you alive and kicking, since you hardly call at all."

"Well, the last few months had been hectic… Kind of a lame excuse, I know", the blonde haired male replied sheepishly.

"For how long are you around? We have a lot of catching up to do"

"Don't know, I.. took some time out of school due to some problems."

Takuto paused and wondered for a few seconds before dragging his friend by the shoulder.

"Well, if you're okay with tagging with me to take care of some club duties, we could hang out at my favorite coffee shop after."

"You still have the title of the sweetest tooth of all Saitama?"

"You bet! I'm the Sweets hero who has to catch them all!"

"Sorry, but the name's taken by one of my classmates."

"Huh? How is he like?"

And without him noticing, Denki began to tell every details of his life in UA as they headed to Takuto's high-school, like they had last seen each other yesterday.

...

Kaminari put down the last hurdle in the track-and-field club's storage, wiping the sweat from his forehead. Tidying up the storage room had been fruitful and fun, his occupied hand freeing his mind. Besides, Takuto always seemed to find the right thing to say or do to calm him down, ever since they bonded around the bullying affair.

"Well, that was quicker than I expected..."

"Maybe it is because you had another pair of arms to deal with it... "

Takuto chuckled and extended a fist for him to bump.

"Thanks, Denks! It reminds me of the good old times."

"You're talking like we're grandpas at barely seventeen years old... Ara ara, in my time people were more polite and respectful, don't you agree Tak-chan?", Denki said with a mock old man's voice.

"There are no values anymore, my old friend…"

The muffled giggles evolved in a full burst of laughter, as they exited the storage, Takuto signaling to his upperclassmen that they were finished with a thumb up. They replied by one of their own, shouting a "Thank you!" and waving enthusiastically.

"You seem to have fun with your club mates."

"Yeah, they all are very cool and fun to be around. We all want to do our best and overcome our limits, but we are not crazy competitive either. You know, just the right amount of pressure!"

Denki nodded and crossed his arms behind his head as they headed to the school's portal.

"Yep, kinda got the same vibe at UA. Striving toward the same goal and all that…"

"You really love it there, don't you?"

Denki stopped and looked at the sky. Truth was that he missed his school, his friends, and obviously, her. His voice came out a bit choked as he answered positively to his friend, his gaze forlorn.

Suddenly, a high-pitched voice echoed loudly. "Nishimiya-san! "

Takuto waved at the chestnut-haired girl that was literally running toward them, followed in the distance by two other girls.

"Hey Asahina! You've got club activities too?"

She nodded in confirmation as she caught her breath.

"Yeah, we're training for the next swimming competition in two weeks. What about you?"

"We've just finished cleaning the storage and I was about to catch up with my friend."

Kaminari waved with a small smile, and bowed in front of the girl. "I'm Kaminari, nice to meet you! And thank you for taking care of that idiot!"

The girl quickly bowed in return, obviously flustered. "Nice to meet you, I'm Asahina Miwa, and Nishimiya-san is the one taking care of me, really!"

"You heard that, Denki, hehe!" Takuto was grinning proudly, as Kaminari rolled his eyes mockingly.

The girl named Miwa looked at the both of them with a confused look on her face, as the other two girls reached them.

"Miwa, you could have waited for us… Hello Nishimiya-san and…"

"He is one of my friend from middle school, Kaminari Denki."

Denki bowed again politely, saying another "Nice to meet you" while the girls were obviously eyeing him, making him feel a bit uneasy.

"Are you perhaps transferring here?", asked one of them, her hands joined enthusiastically in front of her.

"I'm afraid not, I'm just visiting home for the weekend", he replied with a forced smile

"And that's why we have to get going, ladies, we have a whole year of catch up to do, and I'm feeling quite hungry.", interrupted Takuto, as the girls were clearly opening their mouths to ask more questions.

"Oh, that's a shame… Well, see you hopefully around!", the two girls resumed their walk, as Miwa stayed behind, bowing again.

"Have a good afternoon you two, and don't overdo it with the sweets, Nishimiya-san!"

"I'll keep an eye on him, Asahina-san, I promise," said Denki while putting an arm around the shoulder of a pouting Takuto, "It was really nice to meet you!"

This time, his smile felt more sincere and reached his eyes, and he waved at her while dodging Takuto's attempt at a headlock.

...

"So, where is the flirty Kaminari? You wouldn't have felt that uncomfortable around that type of girl before.."

Takuto was munching on his second dorayaki with delight, as Denki was sipping on his iced-tea.

"Would you believe me if I told you it never really existed? Beside, I'm immune to that kind of attention now that I'm with someone..."

The dark-haired teenager's jaw dropped as well as his piece of food, making Kaminari laugh out loud.

"Really?"

"Yeah, it's been 2 months now, but I've been kinda head over heels for her since my enrollment at UA."

Takuto took in the soft look on his friend's face, but couldn't help but feel that there was more to this story. Ever since he saw him this morning, he had this gut-feeling that something was wrong with Kaminari, like something was weighting him. Sure they soon found their old antics back, but the hint of sadness he caught sometimes made him curious.

"So.. I'll stop beating around the bush, because I really need to understand why you are here. Not that I'm not happy to spend some time with you, but you don't seem glad to be here in the first place."

"I miss UA and everyone there, but I can't really go back until I… fix myself, I guess?"

Takuto drank the remaining of his soda, and leaned back on the booth they occupied.

"Are you sure you are not being oversensitive and putting the guilt on you too much?"

Denki sighed loudly and pinched the bridge of his nose.

"It… seems to be the case, but I can bring myself to say I'm oversensitive about what happened. We've been under a lot of pressure with the League of Villains on our toes. Me and several of my classmates ended in a comatose state after the whole Gigantomachia mess."

Takuto did his best to maintain a neutral face, listening to every word and reading every expression. But hearing him saying this in such a casual tone made it clear how their daily lives differed. He followed every news about it, knowing full well that his friend was exposed to danger… but hearing it that bluntly was another thing.

"And during our last operation against them, I… "

Denki shivered at the memory that he had kept hidden as much as possible. He hadn't even been the one who told his own parents about it, Recovery Girl having contacted them beforehand to explain the situation. He inhaled and exhaled twice, his voice low and broken.

"I used my Quirk on Kyoka twice, because one of the villain had a brainwash-like Quirk. She… She was not that heavily injured, and I took care of him as soon as I regained a hold on my body, but I hurt her anyway, even though I had sworn to protect her."

You won't cry, you won't cry… You have no right to…

"Man, I'm sorry for assuming you were oversensitive about it," said Takuto as he split his third dorayaki in two, offering a half to Denki," it makes sense now, but I persist to think that you're on a wrong guilty trip, like you had been with me years ago."

Kaminari took the treat wordlessly, pondering about what his friend had just said.

"See? I can see the gears grinding in your head: you are someone who cares, but sometimes you care too much to the point of becoming deaf to what people are telling you."

Denki's mouth kept opening and closing like a goldfish as he was trying to say something.

"Does anyone put the blame on you?" asked Takuto with an admonishing tone.

"No… On the contrary…"

"So why are you dead set on blaming yourself?"

"Because I was not supposed to hurt anyone, especially not her. She is the most important person in my life right now, and I can't live with myself after doing that."

"You are the most important in your life, Denks. Do you realize how you are talking about yourself? I'm sure that your girlfriend wouldn't be happy to hear you right now."

"She made it clear that she wasn't last time we talked…," he whispered, a sulky pout on his face, "but is it that strange that I'm feeling guilty? It's like everyone blaming me for feeling like this."

His friend sighed and flicked his forehead.

"I've never said that. Given your circumstances and all the hero stuff, of course you are bound to face difficult events and to feel guilty about it. You just haven't learn how to put this guilt in its right place."

The electric hero raised a doubtful eyebrow, as he interrupted his friend's new order of dorayaki, asking for water instead. Takuto glared at him, and pointed a knowing index at Kaminari.

"If you feel guilty just to pity yourself and drag you in the mud, it is useless. You really need to let go of this perfection crap, because NOBODY asks you to be perfect: we love you as you are, the sensitive, dorky, loud, empathetic, teasing, idiotic Denki."

A surge of emotion warmed Kaminari's chest, as his mind felt a little clearer.

"And please, quit thinking you don't have any right to be sad, weak, angry or whatever. I know you're feeling like crying since we got out of the school."

"You should pursue a career as a psychologist, you know," chuckled Denki as he wiped a single tear in the corner of his eyes.

Rolling his eyes, Takuto stuck his tongue out before gulping the remnant of his water. "With you, I won't need a lot of patients to make a living…"

"Anyway, this lesson is worth a reward", said Denki as he got up to head to to the counter.

The dark-haired teen fetched the abandoned phone on their table and typed something at the speed of light, and took a silly selfie with a grimacing face.

Denki came back just to witness his friend put down his own phone, a shit-eating grin on his face.

"I'm fetching your favorite dessert as a thanks, and you're betraying me by using my phone behind my back…." His dramatic tone didn't match his own smile as he laid the plate with a slice of cheesecake in front of his friend.

"You'll thank me later! Thank you for the treat!"

He sat down to asses the extent of the damage, and gasped as he read the text he had sent to Kyoka.

Nice to meet you Kyoka-chan! I'm Takuto, Denki's best friend, and I'll keep an eye on him until his return at UA.
Thank you for taking care of him until now, he is an adorable idiot who thinks too much, and I'm sure he gave you a hard time. But please, wait for him. He misses you a great deal. I hope we'll be able to hang out one day!

His phone suddenly buzzed and his worried eyes landed on her response.

Nice to meet you Takuto, Denki is always talking about you! Thank you for taking care of him, he is sure a handful, but I wouldn't have him another way... I miss him a lot too, but like I said to him, I'll wait for as long as necessary. I hope to meet you one day too!

She still was typing something, and his heart soared.

I know that you are reading this. I love you, idiot. Don't you dare forget that.

Takuto hummed in contentment at his dessert and the sunny smile on his friend's lips.

"Told ya!"

"Come here, you dumbass!" Kaminari laughed as he pulled his friend in a bone-crushing hug, readying his phone to take another photo.

That night, Kyoka received two photos of Denki, the one he took with Takuto, with his million volt smile that made her heart race, and the other with his parents, where his eyes were a bit red, probably from crying. He had his mother's eyes, so bright and easy to read, and his father's unruly hair. He was hugging them both, his arms on their shoulders, the phone obviously held by his father in a weird angle.

I'm getting there, Kyo, I'm doing my best.
I love you more than anything, and I'm so grateful for being able to have you by my side.
Take care, and see you soon 3

"You all right Kyoka?," asked Mina who was doing Tsu's hair on her bed, "you kinda spaced out for a bit."

"Yeah, I'm fine… and everything is going to be fine..."