Botan carried a tray of freshly brewed green tea, fried rice, and dumplings. She knocked on the door, calling out, "Jin? I have some food for you. Open the door please."
Jin opened the door and took the tray, setting it down on one of the few pieces of furniture in the sparse room. "Thank ye', Botan. Anythin' I can do?" he asked, his voice hollow and dead.
Botan couldn't help but pity Jin. To have known him before, so lively and vivacious, and see him now, dejected and depressed, more so with each passing day, was depressing in itself. "No, not at the moment. But I'd been hoping to talk to you. Would you mind if I stayed and talked while you eat?"
Jin shrugged, "Ev'n if I did, it don' ma'er." He moved out of the doorway, taking a seat at the desk he'd placed the food. Botan walked in and sat on the bare futon.
Botan sighed before starting. "We know what happened, with you and Touya that night after the concert." Jin's eyes widened, and he sat up with a jerk. "Just me and Koenma-sama!" Botan added hastily. Jin calmed down slightly. "Anyhow, we wanted to apologize for what happened."
"No need. Ye both warned me ta' leave him alone. I didn' an' see wha' I got." Jin shrugged.
"But… we could have told you… We knew before. About… what you did… but we didn't want to…" Jin jolted again and stood and ran across the room and fell to his knees before Botan.
"Ye' knew? And ye didn'… didn' tell me?" Jin cried, letting tears run down his eyes for the first time in perhaps weeks.
Botan took his hands in hers. "We didn't expect that to happen. If we'd known, we would have told you, we wouldn't have wanted, and still don't want, to break it to you that way. But it's too late now. I came to tell you, though, that now… If you want, we can arrange for you to talk to Touya again, this time let him have a warning, so he doesn't just explode at you again. You could have another chance, a chance where he could listen to you."
Jin slowly shook his head. "No. I swore ta him, swore I wouldn' bother him again. I won' break tha'. Please, don' ev'n let him know I'm here. It'd on'ly pain him. He migh' think… think tha' I came here jus' ta bother him. Don' let any of 'em know I'm here. Not one. I won' in'erfere with 'em and their lives again." Jin said, shaking his head even still.
Botan sighed. "Are you sure?" A nod followed this. "Very well, I'll make sure no one tells them. And Jin? I'm very sorry. So is Koenma. Now get up and eat." Botan said, standing slowly as Jin withdrew. As she was closing the door, she noticed Jin only poked at his food. She shook her head in regret. But who could change the past?