Chapter I: Sorrows

BAM!

Junpei Iori winced as he withdrew his fist from the wall, his rapidly dissipating anger replaced by pain.

"Why do I suck at everything I do?"

His pent-up frustration left him and he crumpled to the ground.

"Why am I so fucking useless?"

It was that familiar feeling of inadequacy, of never being good enough. That feeling of being an utter failure in life.

In the past, he might have shrugged it off, or even hang his head and shut up. But no more.

Since when did exams matter so much?

Junpei knew the answer.

There was his old man. His old man was a good-for-nothing and a drunkard through and through, a living exemplification of the word failure. How apt then, that he had said it best.

"It's in your blood, Junpei," his old man had said one night. Junpei had returned home to find the old man (unsurprisingly) hung over after one of drinking binges. Yet the old man has been sober enough to remember about his finals. Talking about fate had been his idea of encouragement.

"You're destined for failure."

Junpei was one of those happy-go-lucky people who were usually content to accept whatever life threw at them. He preferred to live in the moment, and hell we was proud of it. He never thought once about what the future may hold.

But there was one thing Junpei Iori was sure of. It was that he didn't want to end up like his old man. He was going to do his damndest to avoid the same fate. He swore he was going to succeed in gaining some sort of respect in life, or die trying.

Then there was Minato.

Good looks, an aura of charm, brains enough to top the level every damn time, and a badass leader with an ability equaled by none. He was the apple of every girl's eye. He was Mr. Prefect.

And now he was gone.

Junpei promised that if he could ever see Minato again, he would apologize for what a bitch of a best friend he had been.

"Why is it that we only treasure what we have after it is gone?"

Yeah, he had treated Minato no better than shit.

At first, he had been jealous and insecure. Minato beat him hands down in everything; you name it, even in the one thing he was actually good in – fighting. It seemed like he hogged the limelight in everything he ever did.

But Minato never once boasted about how awesome he actually was and Junpei soon came to realize what an asshole he had been. The guy liked him for who he really was, faults and all, and Junpei never had a truer friend. Minato was always there when needed, Junpei dragging him through all his personal crap without him ever asking for anything in return.

At the funeral, Junpei had cried uncontrollably after everyone else had left. He had slammed his fist down onto the altar, sending the candles and incense flying, and yelled at his smiling picture.

"Why were you always the one who had to risk his ass?"

The tears were flowing unstoppably by then.

"Why couldn't we ever do anything to help you?"

After March 31st, Junpei had resolved along with the rest of SEES to honor his sacrifice by living the lives to the fullest. But he was all-too-predictably failing at that.

That was why he had actually tried studying for the first time in his entire life. That was why he had been so fucking angry when he had hit rock bottom again.

At least he still had Chidori, and he had Minato to thank for that too. Every time he returned dejected from the hospital, Minato had pulled him back to his feet and encouraged him to "Go get her." And he did.

He could not ask for more. Chidori was the only other person who ever appreciated him as an individual, a real, living, breathing person. She was a daily reminder that he was special. Every time he saw her face, he had newfound enthusiasm and courage to do anything. He felt he could take on the world.

"When the going gets tough, the tough get going."

Junpei sighed and got back up to his feet. He used to say that back in the days Tartarus was still standing. With new determination, he swaggered away from the exam boards with a look normally reserved for Shadows. Then he smiled.

"Better watch it, bitches. I'll be back."