He hadn't really intended to go to his Grannys after their fight, but somehow he'd ended up there, glad when all the lights were off and sneaking inside only to find the house empty and cold, her shoes missing and her bag too. So he went for a bath that trailed on too long and left him cold, took some leftovers from the fridge that still smelled good, and sat cross legged on the empty living room floor, staring at the blank TV screen and feeling emptiness fill the space in his chest where rage had been.

He'd fallen into a restless slumber a couple of hours later, waking with aching bones to see sunlight beginning to peek through the living room window and realising he'd fallen asleep on the hard wood floor, dragging himself up the stairs with leaden bones.

His sheets didn't smell familiar and it took him a long time after to get comfortable.


If she was surprised to see him there the next morning it wasn't evident, watery eyes watching him remove more leftovers from the fridge without asking, chopsticks in his hand and hair hanging in damp tendrils around his cheeks where he'd had another bath purely because he could. "Where've you been?"

"Hospital."

"All night?" She didn't respond to that, just quietly undid her coat and placed it over the back of her usual chair, sinking into the wood tiredly and with a wince of pain he didn't miss, toeing her shoes off under the table, wide fitting loafers to hold her swollen feet. "How is he?"

"Unlike you to ask."

"Yeah, I get it, I'm a piece of shit. I was just asking."

She didn't reprimand him, didn't calmly mention that she hadn't said that, because it was heavily implied in the look she shot him as he lit up a cigarette, she just averted her gaze as his remained on her, waiting for an answer to his earlier question. "Not good."

He nodded, slowly now, with the weight of bad news falling heavy on his shoulders, not sure if he should feel devastated instead of this strange nothingness that surrounded him, asking the only question he could think of, seeing her mouth folding into a frown for a second, "how long?"

"Maybe two weeks."

"Mm. Call me, if anything happens."

"Call you?" Now her bewilderment was clear, scanning him until her eyes landed on the bracelet-style coil on his slim wrist, clanking on the table as he scooped noodles into his mouth with one hand and tapped his cigarette free of ash with the other. Her fingers lingered on the saucer he was dirtying with tar, expression almost softening as she recognised the design she'd always hated.

"I got a coil. A… friend gave me it."

She just nodded, that slow nod he could never work out, unsure if it meant she believed him or not, wondering what she thought, that he'd stolen it, or been given it as payment for something, or gotten it in some other unsavoury manner she didn't care to think of let alone ask about. He wanted to know what she'd say if he told her the truth; the friend is the leader of Dry Juice, he owns a bar and is a tattooist, he's nice but doesn't let me get away with shit. People speak to him with respect.

He wondered what she'd say if he told her Mizuki was in love with him. But he wouldn't tell her and she wouldn't ask.

"I'll write down the number."

She'd eased herself up by the time he finished, bending down painfully slowly to retrieve her shoes, holding her back and groaning quietly as she shuffled away, sound of her footfalls on the stairs a moment later the only clue he got as to her intention. Sly left there with the strange, sudden feeling of repulsion in his chest, the short glimpse he'd gotten of her feet and ankles so disgusting to him he felt almost ashamed. Her swollen, oversized feet and ankles stuffed into flesh coloured tights that were short like socks, hiding the bulging blue veins and discoloured, bruised flesh of her legs, so harsh it was like a slap to the face, another reminder of her age and her increasing fragility.

They were hardly a family as it was, but it seemed like none of them were normal, either too old to function, to do anything but tut and disapprove and silently judge, or coughing up a lung with blobs of bloody phlegm and looking constantly on the verge of death. He found suddenly that he'd rather lost his appetite.


"Kin, can I talk to you?" He'd been ignoring him and they both knew it, he hadn't even been subtle about it, he hadn't spoken to him all shift and the only reason he was now was because he had no choice. He couldn't escape now, things still needed doing and he valued his job, to flee would be a new level of pettiness Tio didn't think Kin was capable of.

"What about?"

"Tuesday."

"There's nothing to talk about."

"Well… there is." A hint of an uncomfortable laugh had seeped into his voice but Kin's expression hadn't changed one bit and his smile faded to nothing, dropping from his face and leaving him feeling strangely exposed.

"Okay, then I'd rather not talk about it."

"I- I just wanted to say sorry. I shouldn't have done what I did. It wasn't fair."

His face was crinkled in confusion but he looked offended more than anything and Tio felt the odd prickling of fear build in his throat, choking him as he realised how little he wanted to say this. "Fair? How wasn't it fair."

"Well, you, I mean, I know you-"

"You know what? What exactly do you know about me?" He'd turned on him then, actually and figuratively, height intimidating for the first time and voice barbed, accusatory, saying implicitly that he didn't know anything, that he shouldn't talk such crap about somebody he barely knew.

"I- Kin," he had no right to be hurt but he was, he'd never heard him like this, voice offended and almost exasperated because he was trying to fix this and the irony of another voice saying those exact words rang in his head for a second, just feeling his eyes crinkle as he took an unconscious step back.

"Just leave it, okay? It's not like it meant anything."

He hadn't expected that to hurt either, but it did, because it had meant something, it had meant he was grateful, and cared about him. It meant that he was trying.


"Kin's not talking to me." Conversation had been a little lax on the journey there, but with almost half an hour of walking to do it was beginning to get suffocating and Tio figured he may as well break the silence. Mizuki wasn't talking because he was nervous and scared, he had no real reason not to so he figured he would, besides, he wanted to say it aloud so it would seem more real. Some strange part of his brain was telling him it was too ridiculous to be anything but an invented scenario in his head.

"Really? How come?"

He was aware he maybe should have hesitated, or been embarrassed or whatever, but he wasn't and it slipped out easily and this was how talking to Mizuki should always be, feeling relief as he just nodded slowly, considering this. "I kissed him, after we got Beni-Shigure."

"So… Why would that mean he's not talking to you?"

"Because I shouldn't have."

"But, doesn't he like you?"

"It's not that simple, Mizuki. You don't just kiss the person who likes you and immediately fall in love or something." His voice softened then, accepting the cigarette he was offered and smiling faintly as his words escaped and the bartender let out a quiet noise of understanding. "Surely you know that."


It smelt too clean. That same, horrible stench of cleanliness that you knew was just covering up some other awful thing, blood or dying bodies or the scent of sickness that penetrated the hallways they squeezed down. The general ward where Beni-Shigure had been put was the source of the attention, friends and family, all sorts of well-wishers come to see them if not only to ogle and be nosy, hospital staff giving up on asking for ID and just letting them do as they pleased. But they bypassed this and the crowd of people holding flowers and chocolates and all sorts of other gifts for the suffering team.

Their journey took them further along that floor of the hospital, to the single room where they knew Koujaku lay, worker on the door recognising Mizuki immediately and just nodding at him as he opened the door for them.

It was like entering a bubble, the air was suddenly too thick and too thin, hard to suck in to rasping lungs but not supplying enough oxygen to their brains, feeling fuzzy headed and the light streaming through the blinds not helping. The sound from outside suddenly died and all there was were mechanical noises, the circular concertina that puffed up with air and deflated, supplying the mask that lay across a pale face, the beep of the heart monitor machine, the steady plop of the drips winding into his arms.

Mizuki approached first while Tio lingered behind, feeling out of place, seeing a tattoo on Koujaku's face he'd always hidden before and thinking that perhaps neither of them should be here. But then they shouldn't have seen his meltdown either, shouldn't have witnessed a strong, brave man crumble to nothing, suddenly remembering his mouth frothing and his eyes rolling back into his skull and feeling sick.

"It's fine, Tio, come on," he hadn't realised how terrified he must have looked, weirdly, nonsensically so, Mizuki just smiling over at him and gesturing to the seat on the opposite side of his bed. When he lowered himself down he felt like they were flanking him, one on each side but strangely it was him who felt trapped, staring at his unmoving face, at the wide tube helping him breathe.

It was hard, knowing what exactly to do, what to say, because could he even hear anything?, But Mizuki took that concern out of his mind, smile not believable but words coming out warm enough, "hey, Koujaku. You should see how many people have come to see your team, the hallways are packed. Man, you've never been more popular!"

Despite the heaviness of this, the fact that the other leader couldn't even smile in response, Mizuki's calm, reassuring trickle of words made something in Tio's shoulders droop and he relaxed back into the chair, letting Mizuki's words wash over him as much as they were Koujaku.


He saved the heaviness until they'd left the room, door closing behind them and actually sighing, like he'd been saving up oxygen in there only to let it all spill out of parted lips now, eyes closed as he eased himself back into the present. "God. That could have been me, Tio. So easily, they even came to me first."

"I know, I know, but it wasn't you. The Doctors said he should wake up really soon, then they can assess him and get him into rehab or whatever he needs. He'll recover, Mizuki."

"Yeah. He'll recover, but will he be the same?"

"I- I don't know," he didn't know the answer, the doctors and specialists didn't know the answer, it seemed nobody did, maybe even the ones who had done this to him weren't entirely sure of what the long-term effects would be. It was like his mind had shattered immediately, remembering with the taste of bile in his mouth the strong leader, crouched on the ground with his head in his hands, eyes either watering or overflowing with tears, mouth foaming and screaming. "Come on, let's go see Kou and the others."

The hospital was still busier than they'd expected after a couple of hours spent with Koujaku, but with all of Beni-Shigure there it made sense the amount of visitors would be heavier than usual, and they were bustled and shoved at all the way back down the hallway. Tio didn't mind much, most people apologised or at least looked sorry if they managed to make eye contact, but then somebody brushed past him he recognised, not in sight though, too busy being squashed between Mizuki and an irritated looking nurse. He recognised his smell first, which was bizarre as it was, unable to pin it to a person but knowing it was infinitely familiar, then the voice murmured a low 'sorry', and he knew who it was instantly even with their voice reluctant and deliberately lowered to be unfamiliar.

"Kin?" The form next to him stiffened and he knew he'd been right, twisting to face the opposite direction and Mizuki managing to worm his way free of the crowd, frowning as he realised he was alone, trying to pick out Tio in the crowd of similar-heighted people, eyes finding Kin and realising his lips were moving to speak to somebody.

He just nodded slowly, not sure if he felt abandoned or not, and ducked into the ward where Beni-Shigure were anyway, figuring it would be good to show his face and Kou's tired expression lighting up when he saw him making him sure of his decision.

It wasn't hard to worm his way out of the blockage, he just stood behind Kin and they almost parted for him, taller man actually waiting for him in silence once he was free, Tio only noticing then the bunch of flowers in his hand, forehead furrowing because there was no way he'd be visiting Beni-Shigure with flowers.

"Kin?" He meant to ask who he was going to visit, what he was doing there, to ask why his posture was slumped today, why he looked like he had the weight of the universe on his broad shoulders, but he just offered over a small smile and gestured for him to follow along.

They ended up in an elevator, heading up a couple of floors, away from the Rib team and proving his theory right, that he knew another person there, about to ask again when he started talking and he abruptly shut up.

"There was a fire at my house when I was little. My father came home drunk and fell asleep with a cigarette in his hand, dropped it, caught the rug on fire. My mother was all about cushions and… nice curtains, blankets to put over the couch, stupid flammable things, it went up really fast. She woke up first, she smelled smoke, managed to wake up my father and drag him out." He paused then, staring at himself in one mirrored wall, flowers held carefully in his hand and Tio realising with increasing concern who they might be for, who they might be travelling towards. "She came back for me, the fire was pretty big by then but I was okay, burnt my hand on the doorknob, but that was it, bit of smoke in my lungs, completely fine. She fell, getting out, her legs were really badly burnt, tripped down the stairs at the front, whacked her head. Got, um, brain damage, I guess you'd call it, the smoke damaged her eyes too, they tried surgery but she's blind now. So."

Silence descended again but somehow it wasn't that heavy, it felt almost familiar, comfortable, and Tio just hummed lightly, considering this new information, realising that Kin had lied to him about his family but not feeling even a little angry, understanding why.

There'd been something in the way he said the words that implied he wasn't distressed by this anymore, that yes it had happened, and yes it was horrible, but he was over it now and it was just an unfortunate event. So he didn't soften his voice or say he was sorry or anything else useless like that, he just continued speaking in the matter of fact way Kin had, sensing his relief when sympathy didn't flow from him pityingly. "You never mentioned your mother to me."

"Mm, I don't really talk about her much. My father remarried pretty soon after, divorced her when she had no idea what was going on, asked if I wanted to go with them to the mainland or stay with her. So I stayed and I haven't heard from him or my stepmother since."

"Do you miss him?" Rather a blunt question he supposed, but he guessed it would be hard to not miss a parent who had up and left so abruptly, though based on his brief description of his father, the lack of emotion when he said he'd been drunk, he wondered if maybe he was glad he'd gone.

"No. I think if I saw him now I'd punch him for leaving us like he did."

"That's understandable." The silence wasn't so bad now, it was almost nice, sharing a secret like this, and Tio felt like he'd been forgiven already, because why would he have told him this if he didn't want to continue their friendship? But then things started clicking together, Kin's occasional refusal to go out anywhere that was a little expensive, the dirt cheap clothing stores he knew he shopped at, the tiny apartment he lived in even though his wages should have funded much more. "So, hang on wait, do you have two jobs to pay for the hospital bills?"

"Yeah, my rents dirt cheap cause I live in such a shit place, it all just pays for her treatment. If we had care homes I'd have put her in one ages ago, but all we have is the hospital and I can't care for her at home so… She has to stay here." He shrugged, smiling even though it was a shitty situation to be in and it must be pretty distressing, "my father paid for a while, but contact with the mainland got cut off and I realised I didn't want him to do anything for us anymore, so it was good timing I suppose. I don't know how much of it she knows, she's… Well, she's better some days than others."

"Must be hard."

"It's not all bad, at least I still have her, I guess," the lift doors opened then and Tio paused, not sure if he was intruding if he continued, Kin just inclining his head at him with a smile that said he understood the hesitation. "You can come meet her, if you want?"

That was all he needed, nodding and bracing himself for whatever state she might be in, hoping it wouldn't be as bad as he anticipated because Kin's disposition made so much more sense now, because how could you not be empathetic to a fault living in a situation like his?

The ward was quieter and less clinical than the room Koujaku had been in, it was obviously a place people stayed long term, beds covered in colourful blankets and possessions littering the cabinets beside the large armchairs for guests. A few other people had guests, sat around laughing and talking, maybe holding hands with whoever lay in the bed, one pair playing scrabble in the corner, nothing odd about it until the patient tried to eat the letters and the other grew alarmed.

But they headed for a bed in the middle of the room where a middle aged lady lay, propped up on bright cushions and with a pink shawl wrapped around her shoulders, mouth moving as if muttering to herself, not quite stopping as they arrived.

"Hi, mum, I brought a friend to see you today," Tio felt so suddenly uncomfortable he couldn't even put it into words, regarding the woman sat up in bed with nervousness he felt terrible for feeling, unable to stop staring at the cloudy white of both her eyes, knowing she couldn't see a thing and not sure if he felt unnerved or sorry for her. "This is Tio, he works with me at the bar."

She moved then, as if she'd understood, holding out a hand blindly into the air, lingering there and Kin explaining rapidly what she wanted, "oh, she um, wants to feel your hand, she always does it with new people."

He just nodded in understanding, offering his hand out with little reluctance and leaving it in place even as she felt it rather intensely, both hands coming to envelop it and trace across his palm and each fingertip, across his still lightly grazed knuckles. She seemed bored of it soon though, lingering for a second on his wrist before dropping his hand abruptly and turning to face in the wrong direction, "did you bring the dominoes, Ushio?"

He stopped moving suddenly, faltering where he'd gotten closer to presumably kiss or hug her in greeting, expression flickering as he gave up and moved away, stammering only the tiniest amount. "I- It's Kin, mum. Ushio isn't here."

"Kin?"

"Yeah, Kin." Her expression showed no recognition, in fact it showed almost nothing and Kin's hands tightened as he continued, trying to gently remind her of who he was, because sightless or not, she shouldn't have forgotten that. "Your son."

"Oh," she nodded then, but went back to staring out of the window, or not staring, ignoring them both and Kin avoiding Tio's concerned gaze to step around the bed and put the flowers into a vase, arranging them neatly and with skilled fingers, like he'd done it a million times before.

She didn't talk much at first, but then a nurse showed up asking to talk with Kin and he stepped aside, behind the curtain that surrounded her bed, shooting Tio an apologetic look and leaving him to think, with severe guilt, that he was glad she was blind only so she couldn't see him fidgeting.

But then she spoke, a sudden, random, nonsensical comment about how lovely the hydrangeas were, and from then she didn't shut up, babbling on about so many different, unrelated things that Tio gave up trying to even follow. Nor did he speak in return, she seemed content enough that there was somebody there to listen, often stopping abruptly in the middle of a manic thought to look in his direction.

He couldn't tell if he felt sorry for her or not, because she didn't seem unhappy in any way but then he supposed that maybe she just had no idea what was going on, stuck in her own head. He wondered if it was nice, to be free like that.

"Could you pass me my bag, dear?"

This though, was a normal sentence and made sense, blinking in confusion because he'd just gotten used to her rambling when suddenly she snapped back almost to normality, smiling in his direction and lines on her face suddenly soft and motherly.

"Oh, yeah, of course," he wasn't sure if this was even a genuine request, she could begin talking about elephants again any moment, or a paving slab made of cheese, but she just held out her hand and he lifted the small black bag from the floor into her grasp. But of course she opened the bag and all sense that she might not be completely mad faded, material crammed with what looked like dozens of scraps of paper, or maybe wrappers from something.

Her hands felt over them carefully as if searching for something, then slim, scarred fingers plucked out a single brown circle of thin, crinkling plastic and proffered it to him, waving it insistently until he took it with a quiet, confused thanks. Her expression remained neutral, normal, but then she giggled and it was almost endearing, Tio smiling even as she resumed her one-way conversation.

"Of course the toilet brush was never a canary…"

Kin returned moments later and Tio was almost sad he hadn't seen the moment of sheer lucidity on her face, realising then he didn't know her name and feeling a little guilty even as he asked. He was told with a smile, too narrow and pained as she couldn't respond for herself and they only stayed for about ten minutes longer, every attempt at making actual conversation with her dying and Kin standing with a shake of his head, saying it was pointless to stay on days like this.

"It was nice to meet you, Kino-san." She paused as if she'd heard him, seen his respectful bow and registered fully what he'd said, silencing long enough for Kin to kiss her on the cheek and receive an absent pat on the arm before she spoke and his momentary relaxation died.

"No use crying over boiled frogs."

"No, I suppose there isn't, mum. I'll come back next week, alright?" She didn't reply at all, unseeing eyes staring at the window down the room from her, maybe able to sense the light and not much else, not shifting as they left without looking back.


"You'd have to spot me the day she can't remember me, huh?" He spoke around his can of energy drink, having stopped at a vending machine on the way out, enquiring if Tio was thirsty and accepting the shake of his head easily even if it was a lie.

"Mm, sorry. Are you okay?"

His sigh was worryingly shaky and when he looked up Tio could still see pain in his expression as he nodded, waving a hand as if to say it was no big deal, "yeah, I'm fine. It happens sometimes, she thinks I'm my father pretty often. They changed her medication last week, it messed her up a bit. Anyway, it's not important, did she give you something?"

He'd nodded at his hand then, where the small circle of cellophane still sat, remembering only then and opening his fingers carefully so he could see, finally reading what must have been the top of a pot. "Yeah, some wrapper thing. Oh, chocolate pudding apparently."

"Hm, that means she likes you. When she meets somebody she likes, she always gives them something, usually just a wrapper. But chocolate, huh? That means she really likes you, she almost never gives those away, she keeps them stashed in that bag of hers."

It made him momentarily sad to hear Kin talking about such bizarre behaviour as if it was normal, but something in him didn't want to apologise then, removing his wallet and carefully tucking the wrapper into it instead. "I'll look after it then."

"So," they'd ended up walking back together, they both had a shift that night after all and with barely an hour until it started it made sense to have a leisurely journey there and chill until they had to work. "Now you know something about me that nobody else does."

That was heavy, and words were escaping him too fast to realise how dumb they were, how minuscule and pointless in comparison, "once I was so drunk I knew I'd never be able to get up and into my apartment in time to pee, so I stood outside my block, pissed myself, then went upstairs, got undressed and went to bed as if I wasn't covered in urine."

Kin's steady pace faltered for a second and his voice was amused and confused in equal measure, laughing a little as he spoke and smiling now, losing the worn look of a second ago, "okay. You told me that story, why?"

"I don't really have any big secrets to tell, most people know everything about me. That's the worst it gets. Oh, except once I was really ill and shit myself."

"Well it doesn't count if you were ill," he didn't mention that he didn't need to respond to his big secret with one of his own, but he supposed he appreciated that he'd tried, that he'd felt bad for never really sharing. Plus it was hilarious that both his stories involved badly timed bodily functions, toilet humour having not been something he'd anticipated Tio would find amusing. "Good blackmail material though, thanks."

"You wouldn't dare."

"Sure about that?" He deserved the jab he got in the side for that, but even as it knocked the wind out of him he laughed. After all, there was no use crying over boiled frogs, whatever the fuck that had meant.


Mizuki had taken a detour after the hospital and he wasn't quite sure why, after almost two hours of speaking to people stuck in hospital beds, and endless words of thanks and admiration, he felt too exhausted to do anything but walk around aimlessly. He ended up near Noiz's building and was half tempted to go thank him for his help, but he knew he wasn't the type to need thanks and he'd paid him what he'd asked already.

He paused to light a cigarette and glance around, aware he only vaguely knew where he was and turning to see a small street child frozen in front of him, looking panicked and tatty where he lingered in front of a pleasant looking bakery.

"I ain't stealin'!" Mizuki paused then, raising his hands up as if to say he meant no harm, the kid just clutching the slightly burnt loaf of bread closer to his chest as if fearing it would be torn away, bartender realising then that he was barefoot and breath softening on its way out.

"You can't read the sign?" He nodded over to it, attached to the chair the bread had been sitting on, in a plastic tray with another few with issues, ones that hadn't quite risen properly or were too brown, a couple were funny shapes. The boy's eyes darted to it for the tiniest fragment of a second before his distrusting gaze was back on Mizuki again, shaking his head fast and dirty hair whipping about, too long and trailing lankly down to his jaw. "Do you wanna know what it says?"

"Alright."

"It says 'free to those who need it.'" He'd only noticed the sign after he'd registered that no child would be stupid enough to steal inside a shop then hover outside it, eyes finding the tray of bread his load was presumably from and wanting to laugh at how unnecessary the child's defence had been.

"What's that mean?"

He felt suddenly very sad, shoulders falling a little and wondering why this child was here, why he wasn't in a home being fed by a loving family, why he was wearing dirty clothes that didn't fit and why his eyes were so large in his sunken face. His voice was so much softer when he spoke and his chest ached, "it means whoever owns this bakery wants you to have it."

"Why?"

"They can't sell it." He'd wanted to say it was because they were kind, because a lot of businesses must have things they couldn't sell, but surely they must just be thrown away, but whoever owned this place had a kind soul and Mizuki liked them already.

"Oh. So I ain't stealing?"

"No."

He looked baffled for a moment, having denied he was stealing only to discover he actually wasn't, smiling so sunnily between missing front teeth that for a second he could have been any other kid, so cute and carefree for that split second where he was happy. "Alright, thanks mister!"

"Sure," Mizuki just watched him run off, bread tucked under his arm and feeling his throat grow rather thick as his eyes traced his footsteps, seeing how dirty the soles of his feet were as he legged it to somewhere he could safely eat his spoils. Ironic, that he'd stayed out so he wouldn't have to think about painful things only for them to find him anyway, leaning against a wall heavily to finish his cigarette because for some stupid reason that kid had made him want to cry.

But he was never left alone for long and the tinkling of a bell was rapidly followed by the sound of his name, glancing up and aware he looked significantly troubled even as Yuu's chirpy face met his gaze. "Mizuki? Hey, I thought it was you."

"Oh, this is your mother's bakery, I knew the name sounded familiar."

"Mm," he ignored the stilted, sad tone to his voice, stepping outside in an apron smeared with flour, standing beside him and not questioning how drawn and tired he seemed, sensitive enough to know to leave it well alone. "You talking to that kid?"

"Yeah, he thought I was gunna bust him for stealing."

"He took some bread then?" Mizuki nodded and both their eyes turned to the tray where the bartender now noticed there were gaps, presuming it had been full to begin with, "that's good. We might have to start putting out more, it's always gone within a couple hours."

"Your idea or your mothers?"

"Mum's, some kid came in couple weeks back begging for food, it really upset her." He shrugged like it wasn't a big deal but Mizuki knew he'd tamped down his usual enthusiasm to not overwhelm him, appreciating it as he was almost calm and reassuring. "So she puts out the loaves we can't sell or have gone stale and they can just take them."

"It's a nice idea."

"Yeah, she likes to try and help."

"Does it always get taken? The bread?"

"Oh yeah, most days we put out a couple of pallets and they always go really fast. Sometimes we get people taking them who we don't think need to, but we can't do much about that, most people think it's a nice idea. We've got a tub inside for people to put change in to pay towards more to put out, or sometimes people just buy an extra to put outside. In fact, the other day some little old lady came in and bought twelve cream cakes to put there, really made some kids days." He was beaming then and even Mizuki had to smile, the kindness of others making the darkness of his day seem a little brighter, his own problems fading into insignificance because at least he could eat without relying on the kindness of people like Yuu and his mother.

"The, the kid that came in begging, what did you do?"

"Hm," his exhale was a laugh and he was grinning that happy go lucky smile he always had, a softness in his eyes to go along with his enthusiasm. "She made him a sandwich to eat in the shop and a mug of soup, told me to watch him, then she came back with a whole bag of stuff for him."

"She sounds like an amazing woman."

"Sure is. You can come in and meet her, if you want?"

He didn't really think it through, just nodding because he had nothing better to do, stubbing out his cigarette and shrugging, "yeah, alright."

So he spent the rest of his afternoon with Yuu and his mother, learning more about a team member who he'd never been all that close with, finding that aside from being the most positive person he knew, he was very hardworking too, and remarkably good with numbers and calculations, being the one in charge of the stock and counting their profits.

He left, several hours later, stuffed with pastries that had been forced upon him and washed down with sweet tea, with a smile on his face and the reassuring knowledge that even on dark days like these, when terrible things had been happening, that good people still existed and the idea to try and become a little more like one of them.


This was a terrible idea and he knew it, either he'd end up spilling Kin's deepest secret to Mizuki, or Kin would find out he'd pitied him enough to grovel to their boss. But he wasn't doing this out of pity and he had the feeling that if it worked it would take a load off Kin's shoulders, noticing he'd been put down on the rota to work almost every night for the next two weeks. That, combined with the growing bags under his eyes and the copious amounts of energy drinks he consumed made him certain he was doing the right thing, waiting for a couple of weeks before he approached Mizuki and hoping for the best.

"Mizuki, this is going to be the cheekiest thing, but do you think you could do me a favour?"

He didn't even hesitate, because this was an area where he'd been a let-down in the past, shrugging as if it was no big deal because he knew a favour for a friend shouldn't be a big deal. "Sure, depends what it is though."

"It's um, well it's less a one-time thing and more a… permanent thing."

He paused to consider this, frowning minutely and wondering what on earth kind of favour was permanent, lowering his pencil and figuring this sketch could wait a little longer, rather glad of it if anything because it wasn't the most original design and flowers got dull after a while. "Well now you've made me curious, do tell."

"Could you possibly, give Kin a raise."

"A raise? As in, pay him more wages?"

"Basically."

"Right. Um, don't get me wrong, I love paying people more money for no reason. But what is the reason? You wouldn't normally ask for something like this."

"I know. But there is a reason, a really good one. But I kinda can't tell you that."

"Okay, so you're expecting me to blindly shell out more cash because, and I quote, you want me to?" His tone was a little too insistent and he mentally told himself to calm down, because he definitely wouldn't do this unless he was serious about it and really wanted, or needed it to happen. It wasn't like he couldn't afford to pay him extra.

"Basically. But come on, Mizuki, it's not for no reason, he's probably the best bartender you've got. Except me, obviously."

"Modest."

"Very. But seriously, he covers any shift you ask, he did every single night last week without a single complaint, he's always on time, he works really hard, he offers to stay and clean up. He at least deserves a little teeny one."

He sighed through his nose then, long and contemplative, regarding Tio with some curiosity, because it wasn't like him to almost beg for something like this and he knew that if anything he'd be asking for a pay rise himself, he was a little overdue one if he was honest. He also knew that he and Kin had fallen out recently, so it was unlikely he was asking for it solely because they were friends, "there's a decent reason?"

"Yeah."

"He's, what, struggling for money?" That was what seemed logical, but then he suddenly remembered another point and Kin being low on money rapidly made no sense again, frowning as he remembered seeing him arrive at work in an unfamiliar apron. "Doesn't he have another job?"

"Er, yeah, he waits tables at a café. But he has to pay for something… Something expensive, something he can't not pay." It was remarkably hard to express how much he had to pay for his mother's treatment without making it obvious what he was talking about, Mizuki's eyes narrowed a little suspiciously but seeing to appreciate that it wasn't his business to know.

"So, personal reasons, say?" Tio just nodded, shrugging one shoulder and looking guilty for asking, Mizuki pausing to consider it again, reasoning that Kin was an exceptionally good worker so he could easily give him a pay rise for purely genuine reasons, plus the concern Tio obviously felt for his situation made him figure it must be pretty bad. "I'll think about it, alright? I assume if I did you wouldn't want him to know you asked me?"

"No, you can't tell him. Just, make it seem like a real thing, if you do."

"Okay. Now you need to do me a favour, empty the till, count it, bag it up," it was Tio's least favourite activity, much preferring when people paid electronically and there was no awkward messing around with coins he always dropped or lost count of halfway through a huge stack. But he'd asked Mizuki something very rude so he could hardly complain, just nodding reluctantly and the bartender grinning at him as he knew exactly what he'd done, heading back to his sketch of roses 'because my boyfriend always buys me them', and listening to the gentle clink of coins that began moments later, already visualising his budget in his head.


He deliberately put it off for a month, noticing himself how run down Kin seemed to be and even having to send him home early one night as he seemed so tired he was unable to function properly, looking significantly bothered until Mizuki told him he'd still be paid and he relaxed a little. He had absolutely no idea what was going on, but he'd always considered himself to be a good boss, or a considerate one if nothing else, and if Kin had something serious going on at home he should be understanding even though nobody was willing to tell him.

His employees private lives were exactly that, they remained none of his business until they began effecting the way his bar ran, only then would he step in to enquire if things were okay or if there was anything to do to help. If all Kin needed was a little extra cash then he'd be more than willing to help. He couldn't deny that he owed Tio several favours already.

"Ah, Kin, just the man I've been wanting to see," he pretended he hadn't felt him jump as he placed an arm on his shoulder, tall form jerking as he was torn away from the rota he was examining, looking utterly shattered and more than a little out of it. He figured then there was no time to waste, having noticed a couple of shifts ago that the only pair of trainers he ever wore were full of holes and knowing he had to be doing badly financially to not be able to get a new pair. "How would you like a promotion?"

He blinked then, in a fairly confused manner, as if he didn't quite understand the words, only managing to look confused as he stammered, "A- A promotion? I mean, I'm not sure what I've done to deserve one."

"You've done plenty, believe me. But I've been needing an assistant cocktail mixer for a while now, so, think you can do it?"

"I- Yeah, I'm sure I could."

"Alright. You're probably want to know if it's more cash too, no need to be shy," he smiled at him warmly and he just about managed a shell shocked twitch of his mouth back, news having not sunk in yet and too baffled to be grateful or anything else. "So it's an extra night a week and a shift around of your hours, you just tell me what you can do and I'll write up a new rota. You'll get a bonus of course, and a wage increase too, I haven't quite worked out how much but I'll let you know. You'd be working with Tio during cocktail night, doing the routine and all that, you get to keep all your tips and with how well you two get on I know you'll be very popular. So, you want it?"

"I- Yeah, I mean, that sounds amazing. Thank you." It had finally sunk in and he looked alive again, managing to smile even if it was a little reluctant, as if he didn't quite believe it, running a hand through his hair and almost laughing in disbelief.

"Sure thing, hard work gets rewarded here and you've been working exceptionally hard lately. So just write on the rota what nights you can do and I'll get you scheduled in for some paid training with Tio next week." He was about to continue, to really stress how pleased he was with him, to maybe give him a bit of encouragement, but then Kin checked his watch, announced with mild alarm that he had a shift to get to, thanked him again and left even as Mizuki reassured him that really, it was no big deal.


"Did you have something to do with this?"

"With… what?" It was rather an odd thing to be assaulted with as he entered the bar, having been told he was training somebody up but knowing little else, not who it was or what he was training them in, pausing as the rather accusatory tone reached him.

"Mizuki promoted me to assistant cocktail maker."

"He did? Whoa, Kin that's awesome!" His enthusiasm wasn't faked, because he had barely been expecting Mizuki to do it, let alone to give him a promotion as well as the pay rise he assumed would come with it, beaming with delight at how pleased he seemed when he realised, albeit falsely, that Tio hadn't encouraged their boss in this.

"So you'll be doing cocktail nights with me?"

"Guess so, God, and I already have to see your ugly face all the time."

"Oh Kin, you flatter me," he kept his voice toneless and dull, as flat as the unimpressed expression on his face, just rolling his eyes when he was promptly ignored, returning to a pleased smile at how relieved he looked, knowing he'd done the right thing even if it had been a little intrusive.

"I try. But, the job came with a nice bonus," Tio's expression had definitely softened too much then, so incredibly grateful to Mizuki that he felt all mushy and gross, pushing that away as Kin continued and knowing he had to get back to normality so as not to let his secret involvement slip. "So I was thinking… I might get you to pierce something else for me."

"Oh yeah? I'm not sure I like the sound of that. If this is an excuse to make me touch your dick I won't be impressed."

"I- No, god no, believe me, it's fine as it is," he ignored Tio's light hearted mumble that that was too much information and probably a lie, grinning as he continued. "But I don't know what, I mean we both know my face is perfect already, so maybe like the back of my neck or something?"

"Hm, I guess, what about your nipples?" He hadn't really thought that through and he realised only as Kin raised an eyebrow just how damn awkward that would be, supposing if he decided he wanted it he'd have no choice.

"Excuse me? And here I thought you didn't want to feel me up."

"Nah, I just want to stab needles through you. Besides, surface piercings like the neck reject, it'd last two weeks to six months, it's kinda a waste of money. Anyway, I'll give you one for free, a celebration of your promotion."

"Oh, you'll give me one, will you?" Tio just rolled his eyes, having known he'd take that the wrong way and unable to be anything but distantly amused at how predictable he was.

"You're meant to be getting trained, Kin, not flirting." Mizuki had wandered in behind them, new recruit following behind him and offering a cheery wave as he didn't even bother looking around, having been a regular for so long he was basically a member already, just going through the motions to make it seem more official, seemingly on the way to get his tattoo.

"With this loser? Never."

"Oh fuck off, Treebeard."

"What?"

"It's a lord of the rings reference," Kin just shook his head, looking baffled as Mizuki snorted in amusement at the both offended and horrified expression on Tio's face, leading Kaoru into the back while they bickered, flirted, whatever they were calling it. "It's a series of books."

"Do I look like I read?"

"Now you mention it, you don't look like you do anything with your brain." Kin didn't even have time to be offended by that because Tio was continuing anyway, so incredibly offended that he hadn't even heard of them that he spoke rather too fast. "But anyway, no, it's a really famous series of books. Well, I haven't read them, but the movies are really good how have you not seen them?"

"I dunno, I had other things to do."

"Okay, when are you next free for twenty four hours?"

"I don't like the sound of this."

"Come on, we can watch them all, there's three films, and we're gunna watch the extended ones, obviously, it's pointless watching the normal version, you'll miss all the good bits."

"You're so cute when you talk about things you like." There was no real feeling behind this, just spoken to annoy him even though they both knew he thought it was true, Tio just half-heartedly flipping him off then continuing.

"Oh get bent, okay, so it's like… four hours per film I think? So that's twelve hours, we'd need breaks for snacks and stuff, so call it like fourteen hours. You up for it? Epic movie marathon."

"They're four hours long, each?" He looked significantly horrified and that dimmed only a little when Tio shrugged, having never really seen it as that big a deal when they were so good.

"Roughly."

"They better be good." That was as close to an agreement as he'd get and he was excited already, trying to pretend he wasn't even as he almost bounced over to the cocktail preparation stuff Mizuki had laid out for them. He really hoped Kin would like them, because he'd once spent a really long time talking Mizuki into watching them, hoping he would like them too so one day they could marathon them. But he hadn't been a fan and he'd let that dream die along with so many others, feeling weird affection build in his chest even as Kin eyed his clear exhilaration with amusement. "Nerd."