**April 28th, 2018 — One Day Before Golden Week Begins**

Ryuji Sakamoto breathed a sigh of relief as he glanced towards the clock and saw that his shift at the Protein Lovers gym was nearly over. Despite Ryuji now being in college, he managed to keep working part-time as an assistant trainer like he had over the past year. The downside was that college was a lot more demanding than high school. He had less classtime overall, but still had just as much, if not more, schoolwork than before. Thanks to Makoto's help, and just generally being afraid to piss her off, his studies improved. He had barely scraped by most of his exams during his final year of high school, and Makoto would be damned if Ryuji didn't graduate on time… or he would. He was able to find a healthy balance of work and school. His grades still weren't the best, but they were serviceable, and to Ryuji, that meant they were perfect.

"All right, Ryuji-kun. Good work today! I'll see you Friday," his superior said to him.

"Thanks, Aoki-san. Have a good one!" Ryuji respectfully bowed. He went to the employee locker room, showered, and changed. As he was walking out, he covered his face and attempted to power-walk out of the building in order to avoid the female secretary.

"Hey, Ryuji!" she tried to flag him down as Ryuji tried to ignore her. "Ryuji!? Hello!? I know you can hear me."

"Damn it. The door was right there," he thought. Ryuji sighed, turned around, and walked towards the front desk. "Hey, Mina. How's it goin'?" he asked, feigning interest. Mina, who worked the front desk of the gym, had a massive crush on Ryuji. The two of them had gone out for a friendly lunch once before he and Ann started dating, but nothing happened between them. While Ryuji admitted she was pretty hot, she was also a bit nuts. Ryuji thought her flirting would end once he and Ann started dating. He was sadly mistaken. Despite telling her repeatedly that he was in a relationship with someone, she wouldn't take the hint.

"Oh, ya know, not much, heehee. So, uh, I was wondering, um… would you like to go out for drinks again sometime?"

"I don't think my girlfriend would be okay with that, y'know?" Ryuji said as rubbed the back of his head.

"She doesn't have to know. Hell, bring her along!" Mina practically shouted. Ryuji went wide-eyed.

"Definitely not happening!" he firmly stated; Mina started pouting. Ryuji sighed. "… Look, I gotta go. She's waiting for me."

"I don't believe you even have a real girlfriend! I mean, you look like such a slob anyway," she bitterly said.

"Hey, where'd that come from?" Ryuji raised an eyebrow, taking offense at her remark.

"Sorry, sorry! Please forgive me!" Her mood shifted from bitter to apologetic without skipping a beat. Ryuji sighed once again and facepalmed.

"Look, Mina. For the last time, I have a girlfriend, and she's real, which means that you and me? Never. Gonna. Happen."

"Boo, I still don't buy it. Your girlfriend's probably-"

"Probably what?" Ryuji was startled by the familiar voice that appeared behind him. Mina was like a deer in the headlights in front of a blond bombshell (other than Ryuji). "Hi, there. I'm Ann, Ann Takamaki, Ryuji's very real girlfriend." Ann stuck her hand out to Mina while sporting a very fake smile under an annoyed look in her eye.

"O-Oh… U-Uh… um…" Mina was at a loss for words. Ann's face was one of displeasure.

"Now, I'm only going to ask this once, will you please leave my boyfriend alone?" Mina silently nodded, practically paralyzed by fear. "Thank you. Shall we, Ryuji?"

"Y-Yeah, let's get outta here." The two exited the gym and began walking out to Central Street. Ryuji was still shocked that Ann was able to come up behind him without him noticing. "How'd you manage to sneak up on us like that?"

"You do know I used to be a Phantom Thief, right? Sneaking around was what we did," Ann grinned. To Ryuji, that felt like a hand-wave explanation. He wasn't convinced Ann wasn't secretly undergoing ninja training. It wasn't completely implausible. She did say she wanted to star in action movies someday. "So, she's still got the hots for you, huh?" Ann smiled and poked him in his side.

"Yeah, sorry 'bout that. The good news is, you prolly scared her enough that she'll leave me alone now. I owe you a crêpe for that."

"I'm holding you to that!" Ann was deadly serious when it came to crêpes. They both laughed, walking hand in hand.

"I'll buy you one after lunch-"

"Two!"

Ryuji huffed. "Fine… speakin' of, where d'ya want to go for lunch?"

"How about we just eat at Bikkuri Boy?"

"Oh, come on, we ate there last time," Ryuji complained.

"I don't wanna go too far from the underground mall."

"Right. Shopping trip…" Ryuji sounded unenthused.

"Oh, come on, chin up," Ann smiled. "Plus, Bikkuri Boy's right next to the crêpe stand!"

"Okay, fine, Bikkuri Boy it is. What d'ya need to go shopping for, anyway?"

"I wanna pick out a wedding gift for Akira's cousin."

"Ann, you do realize we're not going to the wedding, right?" Ryuji reminded her. "As much as I'd like to…" he muttered under his breath.

"I know that, but I just think it'd be polite, you know? It doesn't have to be a big gift, like a waffle iron or something, just a nice 'congratulations on getting married' present."

"If you say so…" Ryuji was trying his best to keep his cool, but inside he was jumping off walls, knowing that in a few hours, he was going to meet the singer/actress/idol, Risette. Someone he'd had a crush on for as long as he could remember. Ann noticed his unusually calm demeanor.

"It's okay for you to freak out, too. Come on, admit it. You're just as excited about meeting her as I am, aren't you?" she grinned; Ryuji couldn't take it anymore.

"HOLYSHITHOLYSHITHOLYSHITHOLYSHIT! I'M GONNA MEET RISETTE!" he shouted in the middle of Central Street with the biggest and dumbest smile on his face.

"O-Okay… that's enough. Calm down, Ryuji." Ann tried to calm him down. Even going as far as covering his mouth with her hand. "Last time I tell you to let loose outside the bedroom," she thought to herself.

"S-Sorry, I've just been holdin' that in all day." Ryuji was breathing heavily. The two made their way into the diner and got a booth. Ann yawned as she took her seat. She looked sleepy. "Hey, you okay?" Ryuji asked, grabbing her hand from across the table.

"Yeah, I'm just tired. I had a lot of homework to do last night. One of my professors is a real dick. He gives us like four or five different assignments to do every week, and it's exhausting."

"What class?"

"It's an audio science class. I thought it'd be easy; guess I was wrong," Ann shrugged. "I just wish he wouldn't give us so much homework…" she trailed off before resting her face on the table.

"Uh, I wouldn't do that if I were you. Lookin' at the table, it looks like they didn't clean it properly." Ryuji noticed some stains that weren't cleaned up. Ann shot straight back up and made a grossed-out face before grabbing some napkins and cleaning the table herself.

"What about you? How're your classes going?" she asked.

"Eh, they're fine. I'm gettin' by."

"I still can't believe you're able to handle both college and work at the gym without failing in either."

"You really think so little of me?" Ryuji grinned.

"You know what I mean," Ann replied, Ryuji chuckled.

"Like I said, I'm gettin' by. Didn't say it was easy, though, or that I was doing great in both. The gym is fine, but school sucks. U-Uh… don't tell Makoto."

"Pfft, not like she doesn't already know," Ann chuckled.

"Yeah, hehe," Ryuji awkwardly chuckled. Their conversation was temporarily halted when a waitress came by to take their orders. They chit-chatted about stuff until their meals arrived. They both got pretty big plates of food. Ryuji decided to be cheeky and stole one of Ann's fried calamari rings off her plate.

"HEY! What the hell!? That's my food!" she exclaimed.

"Whaddaya mean 'your food?' I'm the one who's buyin' it," Ryuji chuckled

"You could at least ask, y'know?"

"Meh," Ryuji shrugged before shaking his head in disbelief. "I still don't get you."

"What?" Ann glared.

"How can you eat so much and not gain any weight? You barely exercise."

"I don't know, I just don't, and I DO exercise for your information."

"Walking to school every morning shouldn't be enough, though."

"Oh, grow up!" There was a brief pause before they both looked at each other and started laughing. "We should go running together sometime!" Ann suggested.

"Hell yeah, that sounds great! Hey, if you ever wanna start a workout routine, you know where I work, hehe."

"Uh, no. Not with 'her' being there."

"Oh, yeah, right…" Ryuji bit his lip. "Still, though, running sounds good. I miss havin' a running partner," he said, looking slightly deflated.

"You don't run with Akira anymore?"

"Nah," Ryuji said, shaking his head. "I've asked him plenty of times in the last couple of weeks, but he says he's busy with school stuff, most of the time…" Ryuji trailed off and sighed.

"Through text?

"Nah, whenever I swing by Leblanc or during our lunch breaks. I haven't called or texted him much. It keeps slipping my mind since we have the group chat. The… y'know… P.T. one." Ryuji whispered.

"Right. I haven't either. I feel like I'm not used to calling anymore, unless it's you, Shiho, or an old relative. My grandmother still chews me out because I don't call more often, haha." Ann chuckled. It added a bit of levity to their conversation, but both still felt a twinge of guilt.

"Same. It's weird, but it's not really a new thing. Two years ago, I would text him to hang out and, sometimes, he wouldn't answer me at all. Other times, he would come find me in the hallway at Shujin or at the arcade and ask to hang out. Unless I really needed his help, I stopped texting him to hang out since he was the one who'd come find me, you know?"

"That's exactly how it was for me too! I would be at the underground mall, shopping around, then Akira would suddenly show up and ask me if I wanted to go get ramen or shop with me." Ann tapped her nails on the table. "Maybe, after a while, since we had the group chat, I didn't feel like I had to text him directly. Even after he went back home."

"For real. Plus, I need a good study partner and the guy's got a big brain."

"Hahaha, definitely." Both laughed. "He somehow always knew the answer to whatever question the teachers threw at him."

"Akira missed weeks of school, yet still aced his final exams after only one group study session."

"Oh, yeah… when you 'proposed' to him, hahaha," Ann chuckled but Ryuji was confused.

"Huh?"

"Remember? You asked him if he wanted to get married and he said, 'are you proposing to me, Ryuji?' Hahaha…"

"Oh, right, hehehe. Whatever. Anyway, my point is, now that he's back for good, I wanna hang out with him more often."

"I get what you mean. I've barely seen him, either, aside from our lunch breaks on Tuesdays. I don't even know how he's doing with his seizures."

"Well, Sumi hasn't mentioned anything, so…" Ryuji shrugged.

"That's not the point, and it's not just the seizures. He and Morgana are taking a break from each other, so he's probably feeling lonely. I mean, he doesn't respond to the group chat at all anymore…" Ann trailed off.

"Yeah…" Ryuji scratched his head. "I get what you mean, but I'm sure he's doing okay."

"I hope so…" she sighed.

"Hey, I know how you feel, I miss him too. But Sumi says he's still goin' to see Maruki every Saturday, that's something," Ryuji pointed out.

"Maybe, we're just a bit too impatient, you know? Maybe, we need to give him a little more time," Ann pondered.

"Yeah, you're prolly right. I just wish he'd talk to us, ya know?" Ann nodded in agreement. "At least we're gonna see him later, though."

"True, plus it's not like it's just Akira. I haven't seen Futaba, Yusuke or Sumire in a while either."

"Everyone's just busy with their own stuff, I guess. I mean, who knows what it'll be like after we all graduate?"

"Ugh, stop. I don't even wanna think that far ahead right now."

"Sorry. I hope the group never grows apart. I want all of us to be together all the time, ya know? Birthdays, weddings, anniversaries, and all that crap."

"Awww, look at you being all sappy and mushy!" Ann giggled.

"Aw shuddup!"

"I hope you and I never grow apart," Ann smiled and grabbed his hand.

"I can't imagine that happening. You're gonna have to try pretty hard to get rid of me," Ryuji smirked.

"I like a challenge," Ann deadpanned.

"WHAT!?" Ryuji went wide-eyed; Ann laughed.

"Relax, I'm just teasing you!"

"So, you wanna get married?" Ryuji asked. Ann's brain broke.

"WHAT!? Wh-Uh-Uh-I-"

"Relax, I'm teasing you too, haha," Ryuji chuckled as Ann tried to recover from the stroke he had given her. "Can you imagine it, though?"

"I don't want to, right now!"

"Well, yeah, obviously. But, you know, someday? We'll go the distance, fifteen-twenty years."

"Uh, Ryuji, in marriage, the distance isn't twenty years, it's death."

"It is?"

"Yeah, you know, they don't say, 'Till death do us part' for nothing."

"Huh, well then if we're still married after twenty years, kill me," Ryuji smirked. Ann rolled her eyes.

"God, you're insufferable sometimes…but I miss seeing you," she said, staring deep into Ryuji's eyes.

"Me too. There's only so much texting and phone calls can do. It's just not the same."

"I love you, Ryuji," she smiled.

"I love you too, Ann," Ryuji smiled back before leaning in to kiss her.

"Hopefully, we'll have some time to ourselves during Golden Week," she said after breaking the kiss.

"Oh? To do what exactly?" Ryuji shot her a naughty look; Ann grinned as she shook her head.

"Tch. Boys…" she chuckled. "Buy me that crêpe that you promised me, and you'll find out~."

"I thought I was buyin' ya two?" Ryuji smirked.

"If you insist. You said it, not me~!" Ann winked at him before merrily skipping out of the dinner. Ryuji sighed, paid the bill, and went to join her outside.

There was a knock on Yusuke's door. He got up from his desk chair and went to answer it. It was Futaba along with a bag of curry courtesy of Sojiro.

"Yo!" She greeted him.

"Please, come on in!" Yusuke said, welcoming her into his now fully furnished yet still small, lobster-colored studio apartment. Futaba took the containers out of the bag and set them down on the small dining table. She then turned around and was pulled into a very lovely French kiss by Yusuke. She did not resist. Surprisingly, despite his awkwardness, he had quite a nice move-set when it came to showing affection—a real Romeo, albeit an odd one.

"Woah," Futaba began after Yusuke broke the kiss, "I thought Haru was the only one in the group who knew French. I gotta bring you food more often, Yusuke," Futaba giggled.

"I'm sorry. I'm just happy to see you is all," Yusuke gently smiled.

"So, why'd you want me to come over? Not that I'm complaining, heehee," she giggled, "but aren't you coming by Leblanc later to meet Akira's cousin?"

"Of course, but I asked you to come by because I wanted to show you something. I hope I didn't disturb you by asking you here."

"Nah, It's cool. I could use a break from Mona anyway."

"Is everything all right?"

"Yeah, I'm just sick of him getting fur all over my stuff. I swear, it feels like I have to use the vacuum four or five times a day. Shedding was never a problem before. Why is it one now?" Futaba whined.

"Perhaps, it is because he's actually living with you full-time rather than simply staying for a couple of hours?"

"Rhetorical question, Inari. Didn't need or want an answer," Futaba sounded annoyed.

"Futaba, have you considered using a lint brush? Or perhaps even duct tape? It may be more effective than the vacuum." Yusuke suggested.

"Oh right, you're a fox! Of course, you would know how to get rid of shed fur, heehee." Yusuke rolled his eyes at her. "Oh, come one, I'm just messing with you, Yusuke," she playfully nudged him and hugged his side. Yusuke hugged back.

"I know you are. I wouldn't have it any other way."

"Anyway, what'd you wanna show me?" she asked as she went to put the curry away in his still mostly empty fridge.

"Ah! Wait there for just a moment," Yusuke asked of Futaba as he let her go and walked over to his canvas that was facing away from her. "Do you remember when I told you about how I was struggling to find a new subject to paint?" Futaba nodded. "Well, after your first visit a few weeks ago, inspiration struck. I haven't had much time to work on it due to the new term starting, but I wanted to show you what I've done so far."

"Okay, show me!" Futaba was keenly interested. Yusuke motioned her over to him to see the painting.

"Well? What do you think?" he asked.

"Uh…" Futaba was confused. "… Is that me?"

"Yes!" he confidently said; she raised an eyebrow.

"Uh…and I'm eating instant yakisoba?"

"That is correct. What do you think?"

"I uh…" Futaba wasn't sure what to say. It was her in her regular winter outfit. Her hair was looser and freer flowing than usual, and her glasses were off. She sat on Yusuke's uncomfortable air mattress (which was now thankfully replaced by a futon in the real world), eating a cup of instant yakisoba, as the pale moonlight sky shone brightly around her. Yusuke was still awaiting her reaction. "I think it's kinda weird, but I really like it," she said, smiling.

"You do?" Yusuke was excited. She nodded. "You see, when you came over that night and you and I almost… umm…"

"Yeah, yeah, I know. Keep going."

"Well, I had a sudden realization after you left. I feel as though other males of my age group who have significant others are more interested in the carnal desires and more physical aspects of romance. I, meanwhile, am less so, as you are surely aware."

"Yeah, I know, and it's fine."

"Nevertheless, I still felt like I had to express my love for you using more than just words. I thought long and hard about when it was that I began experiencing feelings for you, Futaba. It was the day after you saved us from the false Medjed. While we were all talking in Akira's bedroom, you sat on his bed, eating instant yakisoba."

"Really!?" Futaba snickered. "That's when you developed a crush on me? You sure it wasn't the smell of the noodles? I remember it caught your attention, mweheehee."

"It… may have been partially responsible," Yusuke admitted. "However, looking back, deep in the depths of my mind, that was truly the moment for me."

"But it wasn't dark outside, and the moon definitely wasn't out. Although, you got the crappy mattress down, at least," Futaba chuckled.

"I took inspiration from several memories of you in order to create this."

"Well, I think it's great," she kissed his cheek. "I'm just glad I'm not naked in it."

"Would you like to model for me in the nude?" Yusuke casually asked her.

"W-Wh-Wh-Wha… What!? Are you serious? N-No! Definitely not!" Futaba was caught off guard, though, in retrospect, she kind of set herself up for it.

"All right, I'm sorry for asking," Yusuke said as casually as he asked.

"Stupid Inari…" Futaba muttered under her breath.

"What was that?" Yusuke asked.

"Nothing, forget it. Anyways, what do you wanna do now? Akira and Sumire aren't picking up his cousin at the train station for another hour or two, so we've got some time to kill, and like I said, I need to get away from Mona for a bit anyway," Futaba said, taking a seat on Yusuke's futon.

"How is the situation between him and Akira?" Yusuke asked, taking a seat next to her.

"Eh, still not great. They don't see or talk to each other often, but when they do, they keep it friendly."

"Is Morgana still upset at Akira?"

"I dunno, maybe? He says he isn't, but also that he's still not ready to forgive him. I swear, watching them feels like they're going through a divorce."

"Well, Morgana and Akira have spent the longest amount of time together out of all of us. How did his ear heal?"

"It's fine, the scratch is still there, but it'll go away after another week or so."

"I'm sure they will be all right. After everything they've been through together, I highly doubt a singular argument would put an end to their friendship."

"Uh, it was more than just an argument, but I get what you're saying. I hope so too…" Futaba sounded concerned. "Akira seems to be doing better, though."

"That's good. I haven't received much word from him."

"Yeah, same. Even Sumire says it's hard to get ahold of him sometimes. He says he's just focusing a lot on college."

"Perhaps to keep himself occupied or distracted?"

"I dunno," Futaba shrugged. "I've noticed he's a lot quieter. Sojiro said the same. When he helps out at Leblanc, he mostly keeps to himself. Maybe, he's afraid to talk about anything that might stress him out and make another bomb go off in his head."

"Well, today will be a good opportunity to reconnect with him."

"You say that like we haven't seen him since high school," Futaba chuckled. "Anyway, back to my original question, what do you want to do?"

"I'm not sure. Although, I am quite famished."

"Of course, you are," Futaba chuckled. "Why don't we head out and grab a bite? And yes, I'll buy…" she sighed.

"You needn't. I submitted another award-winning piece. I received my winnings in the mail yesterday," Yusuke proudly proclaimed.

"Wait, didn't you say you were having artist's block or something?" Futaba crossed her arms.

"I found out about an art competition a couple of weeks ago. It was almost past the deadline for submission, but I managed to submit a piece. I preferred not to rush your painting, so I created something new in a matter of days."

"Wow, look at you, speed painter," Futaba nudged him, impressed.

"Starvation is a powerful motivator," Yusuke chuckled.

"Welp, as long as you're buying. Let's make like hedgehogs and roll out!" Futaba said as she grabbed her jacket, and they exited Yusuke's apartment.

Later in the day, Akira and Sumire arrived at Tokyo Station in order to greet Akira's cousin, Rise Kujikawa, and her fiancé, Yu Narukami. They arrived early and sat side by side on a nearby bench, talking for a bit while they waited for Yu and Rise's train number to appear on the information board. Sumire was a bit nervous. After all, she was about to meet another member of Akira's family, who was a celebrity no less.

"You okay?" Akira asked, smiling.

"I'm fine, just a few jitters, haha. I've ever met an idol before."

"Don't worry, she doesn't bite. I have a feeling you two will get along great…" Akira said before yawning.

"What about you? You look exhausted," Sumire asked.

"Eh, I'm all right. Wednesdays are just long and exhausting for me."

"I see. I'm just glad to see you. I feel like I haven't gotten to see you as much, lately."

"I know, and I'm sorry about that. College is a bit more intense than I expected. I'll make it up to you. We'll spend more time together during Golden Week. Another reason why I'm tired is that I tried wrapping up my assignments, last night. The good news is, Golden Week is completely free of homework for me."

"Don't push yourself," Sumire worriedly said. "You need to rest, as well."

"You worry too much, haha. Though I have to admit, my sleep schedule has been worse since Morgana left," Akira let out a slight chuckle.

"Is everything all right between the two of you?" Akira didn't respond right away.

"We're… doing fine." Though Sumire asked, she had an idea of what was going on. Futaba was keeping the "Akira" group chat updated with info about things between Akira and Morgana.

"I hope he can forgive you soon. I know you didn't mean to hurt him," Sumire said, leaning against Akira.

"We'll be okay. Don't worry." Akira gave her a reassuring smile as she held on to his arm. She glanced down and noticed something.

"I hate to ask this, but…" Sumire paused.

"But what?"

"I noticed you don't have your medical bracelet on. Did you not tell your cousin about your seizures?" Akira sighed before answering.

"No… I didn't tell her. I didn't want her to find out over the phone, but I'll tell her once I get a moment alone with her, I promise." Sumire nodded in understanding. She wanted to ask if his mother knew, but at this point, she knew bringing her up would stress him out. Besides, she probably already knew the answer. Akira checked the time and saw that the train would be arriving soon. They walked up to the information boards to try and see what platform Yu and Rise's train would be stopping at.

"There!" Akira said, pointing at the board. "Platform D. Ooh, and it's pulling in right now, it looks like!"

"Let's hurry then!" Sumire exclaimed. Akira and Sumire power-walked through the train station and reached the platform. People were getting out, and Akira had no clue what train car Yu and Rise were in. "What should we do? Shall we wait here or go and look for them?" Sumire asked.

"Let's wait here for now. Rise knows to wait for us on the platform, so they won't head back down inside the station. As soon as more people clear out, we'll spot them."

"Sounds good."

There were quite a lot of people getting off. Then again, Tokyo Station was a big hub for trains in Japan. Travelers that weren't staying were likely going to, immediately, hop on another train to somewhere else. After a few minutes, the platform was more or less empty. With still no sign of Yu or Rise, Akira and Sumire decided to walk along the platform. After reaching the other end of it, the two were left confused. Had Yu and Rise gotten on the wrong train? Did they forget to get off at all? Akira decided to pull out his phone and send her a text. Before he could finish typing the message, however, he felt someone sneak up behind him. Suddenly, his vision went dark. He quickly realized that someone had covered his eyes from behind.

"Oh…" Akira smirked and sighed.

"Guess who~?" he heard an overly chipper female voice giggling behind him.

"I'm not five anymore, Rise…"

"Oh, c'mon! Play along! For me?" Akira could hear Sumire suppressing laughter at the cute situation her boyfriend found himself in. Sumire also saw a gray-haired man beside Rise, facepalming but still smiling.

"…fine. Is it Amagi-san?" Akira was feigning interest.

"Nope~."

"Satonaka-san?"

"*Ehnt* Wrong again~."

Akira sighed again. "… Sumire, help me out here, please?"

"Sorry, my love, but you're on your own, heehee," Sumire chuckled; Akira shook his head.

"Rise, will you please stop embarrassing me in front of my girlfriend?" Suddenly, Akira's vision was freed.

He turned around to see his cousin, Rise Kujikawa, and her fiancé, Yu Narukami. Her copper-colored hair was up in a bun, though, like Ann, she often favored twin pigtails when she was younger. Her eyes matched her hair, while her skin was pale. She had on a white see-through halter top, with a pink, light blue and orange shirt underneath it, tan pants, and black open-toed shoes. Yu, meanwhile, had on a simple white short-sleeved shirt and dark-blue jeans. Rise had been every teenage boy's celebrity crush for about nine years by this point. She had spent a long time trying to get Yu's affection, always flirting with him and explicitly stating on several occasions that she had a crush on him. Ironically, the only boy who didn't drool at the sight of her (aside from Akira, of course) was the one she was engaged to. Go figure.

"You're no fun!" Rise said, playfully pouting and crossing her arms. She immediately stopped pretending to be hurt and smiled as she embraced her kin. "Oh! I missed you, kiddo!"

"I missed you too, cuz!" They broke the hug.

"How are you doing, and oooh, nice beard! You look so grown up!"

"Haha, thanks. It's getting there," Akira said, rubbing his chin. Akira turned to Yu. "Yu-san, good to see you again." Akira said, shaking his hand.

"Haha. Akira-kun, I told you, you don't have to be so formal with me," Yu chuckled.

"Okay, but then the same goes for you. Deal?" Yu agreed, and the two shook on it.

"Akira says the same thing to me," Sumire pointed out, "he hates it when I call him 'Senpai,'" she chuckled. Akira felt slightly embarrassed as Yu chuckled along with Sumire.

"And who might this be~?" Rise excitedly asked as she smirked towards Sumire.

"Sumire, I'd like you to meet my cousin, Rise Kujikawa," The two ladies smiled and bowed to each other. "And this is her fiancé, Yu Narukami. Rise, Yu, this is my girlfriend, Sumire Yoshizawa." Sumire and Yu bowed to each other as well.

"It's a pleasure to meet you, Yoshizawa-san," Yu said.

"Don't worry, Sumi-chan. Yu here also hated it when I called him 'Senpai' back in high school, heehee," Rise giggled, Sumire joined in. The two of them immediately clicked.

"Well then, shall we get going?" Akira suggested. Everyone nodded as they began to make their way to the underground train.

"So, what's the plan for tonight?" Rise asked.

"Well, after you guys get checked in at the hotel, we're gonna bring you back to Leblanc, the café where I'm staying, you'll meet the rest of the gang, get some food in, and we'll catch up," Akira said.

"Sounds good! How about you, honey?" Rise asked her fiancé.

"Good plan to me," Yu replied.

They rode the subway to Yu and Rise's hotel for the week. Rise made sure to hide her appearance to avoid being hounded by people asking for autographs. While she typically didn't mind signing autographs or taking selfies with fans, she wanted this time to herself. Upon arriving, Yu decided to take care of everything at the front desk as Rise was exhausted from standing and walking for so long. Even though it was only about a fifteen-minute walk from the station to the hotel. While Yu took their bags up to their room, Rise sat with Akira and Sumire in the lobby and Akira caught up with his cousin.

"So, how's showbiz?" he asked Rise.

"It's fine. We've been working on new music, but it won't be ready until after the wedding. I also got offered a part in an upcoming movie!"

"Oh? Which one?"

"Haha, can't tell you unfortunately, but here's a hint: if I get the part, you'll be seeing me in a superhero costume," Rise winked and snickered.

"Wow, that's amazing!" Sumire beamed.

"Eh, big deal," Akira feigned. "I've seen you in a superhero costume for Halloween, haha." Rise playfully smacked his shoulder.

"You must be very busy, between your idol work and planning the wedding," Sumire interjected.

"It's a lot of busy work, yeah, but Yu helps out a lot, and our other friends do as well. There's still a lot to do, but I have my wedding dress picked out, we have the venue set, food, and wedding crystal all prepped!" Rise beamed. She was clearly very excited.

"I'm sure it's going to be a lovely ceremony!"

"Count on it! But enough about me," Rise excitedly began, "I'm dying to know more about you two! How'd you meet?"

"We met shortly after Akira arrived in Tokyo, we became fast friends, and then we developed feelings for each other."

"That's it?" Rise raised an eyebrow.

"What were you expecting? Me saving her from a deep slumber with a kiss?" Akira joked.

"Remind me, Akira, how long have you two been together again?"

"Almost two years now."

"Wow! You've been keeping her a secret for two years!?" Rise nudged her cousin. Akira smirked and blushed.

"Not really, you knew I was dating someone."

"Yeah, but I'm only meeting her now!?" Akira and Rise laughed with one another. "Looks like something good came out of that year for ya, huh?"

"Yeah, I got really lucky," Akira admitted. "It's not just her, though. Like I told you before, I met a lot of really great people and made some amazing friends. You'll meet them later on."

"Yay! Can't wait!" Rise exclaimed. "So, tell me more about yourself, Sumi-chan."

"Well, for starters, I'm a gymnast."

"Ooooooo, a gymnast?"

"Yes, rhythmic gymnastics."

"Oh, sweet! I would love to watch you perform sometime!"

"Remember her name, Rise," Akira interjected, "'cause she's gonna be at the top of the gymnastics world in the future."

"Is she now?" Rise smiled and raised an eyebrow with keen interest.

"Yep, who knows, she'll probably be more famous than you someday, hehe," Akira chuckled.

"Akira!" Sumire scoffed.

"Haha, ignore him, Sumi-chan. I wish you good luck and all the best for the future."

"Well, thank you, Kujikawa-san. That means a lot."

"Oh please, call me 'Rise,' 'Rise-san' if you really wanna be formal. No need to call me by my last name."

"Will do."

"I feel like you and I are like sisters right now, Sumi-chan!" Rise giddily exclaimed in her usual chipper voice. Sumire expression shifted from jovial to gloomy as she looked away momentarily. Rise looked confused and worried.

"Ooooh…" Akira softly exhaled.

"What? D-Did I say something wrong?" Rise wondered as she looked at her cousin. Akira leaned in and whispered in Rise's ear that Sumire's twin sister had passed away. Rise gasped at her slip up. "Oh God…" She covered her mouth. "Sumi-chan, I am so sorry. I-I didn't know-" Sumire cut her off.

"No, no. It's fine. I've done my grieving," Sumire quietly said.

"Sorry, I-uh kinda killed the mood, huh?" Rise awkwardly said as she rubbed the back of her neck.

"Don't worry at all, Rise-san," Sumire smiled at her; Rise felt relieved. "Akira and I met not long after she passed away, and he really helped me through that rough time."

"Aw, hearing that makes me happy. I'm proud of you, kiddo!" Rise rubbed Akira's head.

"Well, it was a rough time for the both of us. I guess misery really does love company," Akira shrugged.

"Again, I'm really sorry, Sumi-chan. I've been told I tend to put my foot in my mouth," Rise said, still feeling awkward.

"Don't worry about it, Rise. I got a friend who does the same thing," Akira assured her, chuckling. It was at that moment that Yu came back.

"All right, bags are up, and I got our room keys. Shall we go?" Yu asked. Everyone agreed, and they headed to Leblanc. Akira pulled out his phone and texted the Phantom Thieves group chat, making sure that neither Yu nor Rise saw his phone.

**PT Group Chat**

AK: Just a heads up, we're on our way back to Leblanc. Also, this should go without saying, but they don't know about our lives as thieves, and I want to keep it that way. Sound good?

FS: You don't gotta tell us twice… except maybe Ryuji, mwehehe.

RS: Hey!

Akira got a few "okays," "kks," and "no worries" from everyone before putting his phone away. The train arrived at Yongen-Jaya, and the quartet made their way through the backstreets. Yu and Rise looked around, but there was much to see; a few small buildings, some batting cages, a mini grocery store, a closed-down movie theater.

"This looks like a mini version of the Central Shopping District back home," Rise commented.

"Yeah, I can kind of see it that way," Yu agreed. They entered Leblanc, and it was surprisingly empty save for two people. He expected at least Futaba to be here, but the only two people inside were Sojiro and, to Akira's surprise, Doctor Kimura, who was sitting in the booth at the other end of the shop. As they walked inside, Yu and Rise took in the sights and breathed in the aroma of coffee.

"Wow! So, this is where you lived for a year?" Rise asked.

"Yep, I lived upstairs in the attic," Akira replied.

"The attic?" Yu asked.

"Haha, don't worry, it wasn't as bad as it sounds," Akira said before waving to Hiromi, who waved back, before he introduced Yu and Rise to Sojiro. "Sojiro, this is my cousin, Rise, and her fiancé, Yu. Guys, this is Sojiro Sakura, the man who was my guardian while I was on probation, and who now just lets me crash here rent-free," Akira joked. Everyone chuckled.

"Well, not entirely rent-free. I still have him help out around the store," Sojiro clarified.

"Pleasure to meet you, Sakura-san," Yu said, bowing to him.

"Thank you so much for looking after my cousin!" Rise said, rubbing Akira's back, which made him cringe in embarrassment.

"Heh, it was nothing. The kid helped me out a lot too," Sojiro smiled and winked at Akira.

"I'm happy to hear that!" Rise beamed; Akira turned his attention to Hiromi.

"Kimura-san, how are you doing?" Akira asked.

"Oh, just fine. I was actually hoping to talk to you, if that's all right, Akira-kun."

"Uh, well, as you can tell, now's not exactly a good time. My cousin and her fiancé just got into town and-" Akira was cut off by Rise.

"Oh, it's fine, go on. We're not going anywhere," Rise said before addressing Hiromi. "Oh, I'm sorry, I'm Rise Kujikawa, and you are?"

"Doctor Hiromi Kimura, I'm a neurologist," Hiromi smiled.

"Yu Narukami," Yu introduced himself. Both he and Rise had a look of slight confusion.

"A pleasure to meet you both. Is now a bad time, Akira-kun?" Hiromi asked.

"I guess not. Why don't we talk outside?" Akira suggested, Hiromi agreed, and the two of them exited Leblanc. "We'll be right back," he announced before closing the door.

"Huh, I wonder why Akira is talking to a neurologist?" Yu wondered aloud.

"I dunno," Rise shrugged; Sojiro cleared his throat.

"Uh-um, why don't you two sit down? I'll get you some coffee," he offered. "Sumire-chan, would you mind helping me with something?" Sumire nodded. As Yu and Rise sat in one of the booths, Sumire went over to Sojiro, and the two spoke out of earshot. "Did Akira not mention his seizures to her?" he murmured.

"No, he says he'll tell her later. It might be best before everyone else shows up. Remember, though, don't bring up his mother," Sumire reminded him, to which Sojiro gave a head nod.

Outside Leblanc, Akira and Hiromi started talking.

"So, what I wanted to-" Hiromi began before Akira cut her off.

"Actually, can you hold on one moment?" Akira asked before going into the laundromat next door, checking to see if any of the machines were in use. One of them was, and he signaled to Hiromi to follow him in. She was understandably confused. "Sorry, it's just that I haven't told my cousin about my seizures yet, and I didn't want her to overhear our conversation and have her find out that way. Leblanc's walls are surprisingly thin, hehe," Akira let out a nervous chuckle.

"I see… have you told anyone in your immediate family?" Akira didn't respond; Hiromi took the silence as a no and sighed. The look on her face was part disapproval, part understanding. Nevertheless, she decided not to dwell on it and continued to talk. "Well, anyway, I'm sorry it took me so long to get back to you. I was going to call, but I was in the mood for some coffee and curry," she smiled. "Though I realize now, calling would've been better."

"It's fine. You didn't know I had family coming in. So, what's up?"

"Well, I wanted to follow up about what you said in the message you left for me the other day. You said you've been experiencing blackouts?"

"Yeah…" Akira sighed.

"For how long?"

"I want to say a few weeks or so? Definitely, after I came back to Tokyo."

"Around the time you started experiencing seizures?" Akira nodded. "I see. I'm sure you haven't, but just to be safe I want to ask, you haven't been drinking alcohol lately, have you?"

"No, not at all." But he was itching to do so. He had spent some more time with Riku over the past couple of weeks. The two would get together at Riku's house, jam, shoot the shit, and drink beers, and not the light crap anymore, either. Akira knew his limit. He never drank so much to the degree of getting drunk, let alone blackout drunk, but he wanted to keep drinking. Two days earlier, he caved and asked Riku to forge him a fake ID. Riku said it was as good as done and that it'd be ready by Thursday. Akira was just twenty-four hours away from hopefully being able to get booze whenever he wanted.

"How long have the blackouts lasted?" Hiromi asked.

"I've had a few shorter ones that lasted fifteen-maybe-twenty minutes? But no more than an hour, I think."

"Did you have a seizure shortly before or after a blackout?"

"I blacked out once where I thought I felt a seizure coming, but it didn't happen. My most recent blackout happened at the gym, where we last met. Remember how my hands were messed up?" Hiromi nodded. "I was hitting the punching bag, in my mind, for only a few minutes, but when the trainer stopped me, he told me I'd been at it for an hour."

"Gosh…" Hiromi covered her mouth in disbelief. "But you didn't have a seizure?"

"I had one the day before before, but I don't think it had anything to do with it."

"I see…"

"So? What are you thinking?"

Hiromi sighed. "Well, there're a few reasons why you might be experiencing blackouts. One is syncope, where there's a problem with regulating your blood pressure. Two is epilepsy, but we already know that's not it from your last visit. Three is psychogenic, which means your blackouts are due to stress and anxiety." Akira thought back over the last few weeks. They were undoubtedly stressful and had moments that made him anxious.

"Well, I have been feeling stressed out and anxious lately," Akira said.

"Oh? How come? Pressure from school? Work?"

"No, nothing like that."

"Trouble with your friends? With Sumire-chan? Family?"

"A few bumps but nothing major…" That was putting it a bit lightly.

"Well, do you have any idea what might be stressing you out?" Akira could point to a number of things that were stressing him out, but the fact was, it didn't matter. He was always stressed out, he was always anxious, and he had been for the past six months or so, maybe even longer.

"…no," he simply replied.

"Well, I'm not sure what to say then. I know tons of stressed-out and anxious people, hell, I'm one of them, haha, but neither I nor they experience full-on blackouts." Hiromi rubbed her chin and thought for a moment. "Akira-kun, may I ask you something?"

"What is it?"

"It's…a bit personal. You don't have to answer if it makes you uncomfortable."

Just hearing that made Akira uncomfortable. "Okay…?"

Hiromi took a deep breath. "Akira-kun… were you ever… abused… as a child?" There it was. Akira couldn't help it. Memories started coming back—painful memories of a vile, despicable man and what he did to him and to his mother. Though he was gone from their lives, thanks to Kairi, it didn't erase the two months of suffering he endured. Akira knew he had to get it off his chest. He promised he would open up more, but not to Hiromi.

"…no. Never." Hiromi wasn't convinced, however.

"Are you sure?" she asked again. "Akira-kun, I realize that we don't know each other very well, but you can trust me with something like this. I promise you." Hiromi meant what she said. She was a genuinely good person, and Akira knew it, but this was something he wanted to avoid talking about, not just to anyone, but entirely. She was right, they didn't know each other very well, but unlike with Riku, or Taiji and Kenta, he didn't feel comfortable sharing with her. Perhaps it was the lack of alcohol, or maybe it was that he just didn't want to talk about it. Either way, he stood firm.

"I'm sure. I promise you." Hiromi still didn't fully believe him but decided against pressing him further.

"All right. If you want, we can schedule another appointment to run another test on your brain, just in case."

"I'll let you know. Thanks again, Kimura-san."

"Of course, Akira-kun." She bowed and was about to leave the laundromat before turning back. "You really should tell your family about your seizures, you know?"

"I know. I plan on doing it soon. Maybe even, right now," Akira assured her.

"Well? Aren't you coming?" Hiromi asked when she noticed that Akira hadn't budged from his position by the driers.

"You go on ahead. I'll be there in a second. I just want to take a minute to think about a few things…" That served as confirmation that Hiromi's gut was right. Akira had been abused, and she felt bad for him. But, seeing as how it clearly made him uncomfortable to even think about it, she decided to not press further. Hiromi gave one final nod and left. Akira decided to stay in the laundromat for another few minutes. Catching his breath, trying to clear his mind of bad memories before going back inside Leblanc. He was suddenly interrupted by Rise, who came looking for him.

"Hey, there you are! What's going on? Are you doing laundry?" Rise chuckled.

"Uh-no. I was just talking with Doctor Kimura in here. She just left."

"She just left?" Rise looked confused. "She left a little while ago, kiddo."

"What?" Akira looked at Rise with wide eyes.

"Yeah, she came back in, paid for her coffee, and left. That was like twenty minutes ago. What, did you lose track of time or something?" she joked. But to Akira, it was no joke. In his mind, he had been talking to Hiromi not thirty seconds ago, but to others, he stood in the laundromat for twenty minutes. He realized he had blacked out again.

"Fuck…" Akira muttered under his breath.

"What was that?"

"Nothing, nothing…"

"Well, come back in. Everyone's waiting for you."

"Everyone?"

"All your friends, silly! They're all so nice! That Ryuji-kun is having me take tons of selfies with him, but I don't think his girlfriend is too thrilled about it," Rise rambled on. "Also, that Yusuke-kun is a bit of an odd one. He asked me if I would ever consider modeling nude for a painting of his. Yu wasn't too happy, but he and I shook it off, heehee," she laughed. "Well? Come on!"

No, not yet. They were alone. It had to be now.

"Rise, wait!" Akira called out to her. She stopped in her tracks and turned around. Akira was looking down. He was nervous, but Rise loved him like a little brother. He knew he had nothing to fear from her, but opening up to others was still one of his major weaknesses. Rise could tell, whatever it was, it was serious. She walked over to him and stood before him. He raised his head and looked her in the eye. "I have to tell you something…"