No matter how she tried, Levi couldn't help but wonder what had become of the injured boy that she'd encountered on the beach that night. It was hard for her to sleep, and her mother repeatedly tried to assure her that it wasn't her fault, that she couldn't have known that he would just disappear like that… but it really didn't ease her worry. It was difficult not to let it bother her even while she was working, especially since business was rather slow the following day, and she hadn't gotten nearly as much rest as she normally would have. It went without saying that she got good use out of the coffee machine.

Nevertheless, she still somewhat looked forward to her usual walk on the beach, even if she anticipated that it would still be laced with a hint of concern. After a delicious dinner of curried chicken over rice, and mangos for dessert, Levi decided to shower off and wash away the day's stresses before she changed into some more casual clothes… even though she was just going to get sand all over her feet once she hit the shore.

"Mom! I'm going for my walk!"

"Alright, let me know when you're back!"

"Kay, mom! Love you!"

She closed and locked the door behind her, and hooked her carabiner key chain on her belt loop, which jingled softly in time with her steps. The air was as warm and salty as ever, though it was darker out than when she normally ventured due to her late start; not to mention, the moon had waned further to nearly a quarter. Levi gazed out to the open sea, still puzzling over that peculiar conversation she'd had with Azusa.

'Where are you from, if you don't mind me asking?'

'...the ocean.'

The ocean… what did he really mean by that? Surely he couldn't have meant that literally? Nah, that's just silly. With a shake of her head, she turned her usual direction, and began to walk at the water line, where the waves lapped at her bare feet. Without paying attention to where she was going, Levi paced for about five, ten minutes, before she spotted a figure in the distance… one that seemed rather oddly familiar. Wispy hair, willowy frame, over-sized clothes…

"Azusa!" she called out.

He immediately looked up in response, his eyes as glassy and ethereal as the first time she'd seen them; she ran over to him as fast as her legs would carry her, "Oh my god, Azusa, I was so worried… wh- where did you… ugh…"

"Worried…?" he cocked his head to the side in slight confusion.

"Yes! I…" Levi let out a sigh, and lowered her voice, "You ran off the other night and I was worried that your wound would get infected. I didn't want you to get sick…"

He seemed to stare through her, "...sick? No… I'm fine…"

She found herself, once again, a bit lost for how to interact with Azusa. He still seemed to hold his left arm close to his body, however. The 19 year old spoke up again, "Azusa… you do remember me, right? Where did you go when you ran away...?"

"...you were… worried about me…"

"...huh?" Levi raised an eyebrow, then answered, "Well, yeah, you need to-"

He cut her off, "You're… the first h-" a pause, as if he was correcting himself, "...you're the first person… who's said that…"

Man, was this kid ever cryptic… did no one really ever concern themselves with his whereabouts and well-being? It would certainly explain why they let an apparent special needs teenager wander around injured and alone.

"Azusa…" she reached out toward him, getting him to look back up at her, "Azusa, where did you go last night? May I please just see your injury?"

He pulled away, his voice at that soft, tremulous whisper, "...why do you… want to know…? Are you… going… to make fun of me?"

Levi drew a sharp inhale, and suddenly felt a shock of sadness run through her; not only was he apparently neglected and skittish, he also seemed to be bullied… what on Earth was happening in his life?

"No… why would you think I'd make fun of you?"

"...everyone else does."

"That… that's awful…" she could barely get her voice above a whisper, matching Azusa's in volume, "No, I… I just want to know so that I can help you. You were bleeding everywhere and…"

"...do you... promise?"

She gave him a puzzled look, "Promise? Promise what?"

"...that you… won't make fun…"

"Hey… look at me…" Levi had to keep trying to get Azusa to look her in the eye, he continually would let his gaze drift or drop down to watch the tide (so it seemed), "I promise, I won't make fun of you, okay? Just… tell me what's wrong."

The boy turned away again for a moment, then looked down toward his arm, tucked behind him, before silently presenting it to her, palm out. There on his forearm was the same gash she'd observed, though now, it was crusted with dark, dried blood, as if he'd never bothered to wash it off. It looked as though it was already beginning to scab and heal… but there was no way he should have been healing this quickly, right? Not that healing quickly was necessarily a bad thing, though, it did seem a bit unusually linear…

"I did it…"

"Did… you did this? Why?"

It seemed like his answer was riddled with sadness, the way his voice dropped was unmistakable, "...the scars… they're my friends… besides my brothers…"

Levi winced a bit at the thought, "They're… they're your friends…?"

Azusa continued, "...and when… I open them up… they talk to me…"

"They talk to you, Azusa?"

A faint smile seemed to cross his lips as he made eye contact with her, his fingertips lightly fidgeting with a flake of the coagulated blood, "The pain… that's how they speak…"

How lonely of an existence did this poor soul live? His scars are his friends? What about his brothers? Were they, maybe, the ones neglecting and abusing him...? Levi could feel her heart sinking for Azusa… but, perhaps she could alleviate that loneliness, even a little?

"Azusa…"

When his expression fell, it seemed as if he was bracing for something awful, yet… an awfulness that he was used to. However, she gave him a sincere smile and finished in a way that appeared to catch him off-guard, "How would you like if I became your friend? We could meet up out here at night, go on walks maybe? I mean, I come out here almost all the time…"

"You… want to be… my friend?"

"Sure! It'd be nice to have someone to talk to sometimes! And I'd love to get to know you! C'mon, let's go for a walk together~"