Lunch had not gone well at all, resulting in Teshigawara going back to see his counsellor, having accidentally cut his finger on his knife and falling into a panic attack at the mere sight of the red liquid. Mochizuki had remained at the house with Kagome and Satoshi, sitting quietly in the living room.

Teshigawara sat in the high-back chair, his hands clasped neatly in his lap as he surveyed his feet in interest. He was quiet as he relived events of the Calamity in his mind, the blood having set off his Post-traumatic stress disorder.

"Here." Momotani leant forward, handing a lollipop to the boy. She smiled softly, hoping to bring Teshigawara out of his thoughts. She wasn't surprised when the sweet remained in her hand, no effort having been made to take it. She pulled her hand back to her body and changed the subject, hoping to get a response from the usually silent boy. "Teshigawara-kun, what happened?"

The brown-haired boy's body trembled, silent for several minutes, leading Momotani to believe he wasn't going to speak. However, just as she opened her mouth to say something else, a wavering, frightened voice murmured to her, full of despair.

"How do I help him...?" Tears slipped down Teshigawara's pale cheeks, small whimpers filling the air.

Momotani frowned and moved to sit closer to the teen. When she spoke, her voice was full of compassion. "Did something happen?"

Teshigawara was silent again for a few seconds, almost as if he were rolling his words over in his mind, before he spoke again. "...Mochizuki... His sister had a car accident and passed away... I... I-I want to help him... He's always helped me..."

"Have you talked to him?" Momotani understood that this was a breakthrough; the trauma Teshigawara had gone through had damaged him severely, but the fact that he was still able to recognise his love for his friends was amazing and she honestly had not expected such a thing so soon after going through what he had.

Teshigawara shook his head. "...He's... pushing me away. It's like he's... angry or something at me... I don't understand..."

"He's just grieving," Momotani explained. "He must have been very close to his sister and after everything that's happened, it will be very hard for him. I'm sure it's nothing you've done; after all, you yourself are grieving. You and Mochizuki-kun just have different ways of showing it."

"...I..." Teshigawara's shoulders heaved as he choked on a sob. He shook his head, a small whimper escaping his lips. "...He... He was angry at me before she died... He... He yelled at me... Told me he had had enough... And he punched the wall... I was scared... So scared... He's so kind... I've never seen him like that..."

"Don't forget that Mochizuki-kun himself suffers from his own wounds." Momotani smiled softly, attempting to give the lollipop back to the boy. She felt a weight lift from her shoulders as the sweet was taken warily, almost as if the brown-haired boy was afraid of it. "He may not have been receiving the love and support he needed and, trying to keep you together, just needed to get his emotions out into the open. I'm sure it's nothing you did, Teshigawara-kun; rather, what he couldn't do – look after himself."

"...What if he won't let me take care of him?" Teshigawara whispered. Tears dripped down his cheeks as he tried to organise his many thoughts. "...What if... he won't let me...? I... I can't lose anyone else... Not like Kazami..."

"You need to talk to him," Momotani explained. "It will be hard to do, but you both are very close. Even if you only talk to come to a compromise. Just let him know you appreciate what he's done for you, that you recognize it must have been difficult, and that now it's his turn to be supported."

"..." Teshigawara nodded. Mochizuki was an understanding person, always there for his loved ones, wanting to help in whatever way he could. Surely he would be willing to listen, right...? "...T-thank you, Momotani-san... I'll talk to him..."

Momotani nodded, writing a note in her book. "Thank you, Teshigawara-kun. Is there anything else you'd like to talk about?"

The brown-haired boy shook his head. "No. I'm... I'm okay... Can I leave, please?"

As much as Momotani wanted him to stay and continue talking, she knew not to force the damaged teen. She mustered her brightest smile, trying to reassure him, before she nodded. "Of course. Is your mother coming to get you?"

"Yes..." With that said, the brown-haired boy got to his feet and trudged to the door, uttering a soft goodbye before he left. He felt rude – truly – but he was afraid if he stayed in there any longer, he'd have an emotional breakdown; he wanted to be strong and keep his emotions to himself, even if that meant having to keep his tears inside.

As the teenager waited for his mother, his thoughts wandered over to Mochizuki. His friend had been clinging to his mum, having been informed that his own parent no longer wanted him. He didn't mind Mochizuki being a part of his family – it was already like he was – but he felt uneasy about sharing his mother. But... Mochizuki deserved the love Kagome would give him, so perhaps it was something he'd have to get used to.

With a sigh, Teshigawara mumbled his friend's name, wishing he could go back in time and stop the Calamity from ever happening.

~~One hour later~~

When Teshigawara arrived back home, he was surprised to find Mochizuki asleep in his bed. He didn't wake the smaller boy, wanting to let him rest in hopes of the other being more sociable when he woke up.

Instead, the brown-eyed boy moved to his closet and pulled a small box out of the corner. He sat down and opened the lid, pulling out several photographs. He looked at the first one, a very old photo from his childhood. He and Kazami were sitting side-by-side with bright smiles on their faces. It had been taken during Teshigawara's seventh birthday, the two almost like brothers.

Feeling the tears spring to his eyes, Teshigawara carefully placed the photo back into its box, not wanting to damage one of the only reminders he had left of his friend. The next one wasn't as old, taken about three or so years ago, four boys gathered together.

Teshigawara was sitting at the end of a bench, his trademark wide grin emphasising the hand he held in the air while the other arm was wrapped around Kazami's shoulders, pulling the bespectacled boy against him. Next to them was both Mochizuki and Takabayashi, the deceased boy sitting on the other end of the bench, a gentle expression on his face. Mochizuki was looking down at his lap, a shy smile on his face.

Teshigawara remembered that photo; it had been taken just a week after meeting Mochizuki. The boy had been very shy back then, very uneasy about his surroundings. It had taken Teshigawara days of prying to try and get the dull-haired boy to come over to his house, and Mochizuki had only agreed if he could bring a friend.

The brown-haired boy couldn't help but smile fondly at the memories. Mochizuki was and still is – even more so now – an anxious person, but back then he was always looking down at the ground, too nervous to so much as look at whom he was speaking with, much less willingly get his photo taken.

The next photo was another one of Teshigawara and Kazami at another birthday. The two were eating cake, unaware of the camera pointing at them. Cake was all over Teshigawara's face, Kazami much more dignified to use cutlery as he ate.

The second last photo was of him and Mochizuki along with Tomoka, a kitten in the dull-haired boy's arms. They had found it on the streets and taken it in for a short while before they had re-homed it, a stinging reminder of how they all had once been.

And the last photo was the one they had taken at Yomiyama Shrine. Teshigawara's eyes scanned the students in the photo, unable to hold back the tears any longer. His gaze fixed on Kazami for a while before it moved over to Mochizuki, the bright smile on the boy's face killing him inside; he would probably never see that smile again.

The brown-haired boy shoved the photos back into the box, putting it back into the corner of the closet, before he left the room in a hurry, running to find his mother. Tears streamed down his cheeks, unable to ignore the screams for help in his head any longer. He needed someone he loved – now.

Kagome was in the kitchen, and she was alarmed when her son's arms wrapped around her, accompanied by loud sobs. She turned around, placing the knife she had been holding on the counter before she embraced her child.

"Naoya, what happened?" Kagome's hand smoothed light brown hair as the other rubbed the boy's back. "Please, talk to me, sweetie. What happened?"

"...It's..." Teshigawara could barely get his words out; his voice was choked by sobs. "...It's... I... M-mochi... We... We'll never be... happy again... Will we...?"

Kagome held her son tighter to her, shaking her head. "That is not true. I know you'll both be okay. It will just take some time. It's alright. Shh..."

Teshigawara cried harder. "I... miss... Kazami...!"

"Oh, honey..." The woman kissed the small forehead before her, wishing she could be of more help. "My love, it's okay. I know you miss Kazami-kun, but I'm sure he'll be happy wherever he is."

"...M... Mochizuki... Mochizuki must... hate me..."

"No, he doesn't," Kagome promised. "He's in pain, just like you are."

"...I'm sorry..."

"For what? You didn't do anything wrong."

"Yes, I did... I... I was... so... I was so bad... I... I wouldn't... talk... I... must have... scared you..."

"Shh... Naoya... Naoya, it's okay. What's important is that you're talking to us again. That's all that matters. Please. It's okay. Naoya... Naoya, it's okay..."

Naoya couldn't cry harder than he was right now. His mother's words did nothing to help him, and all he could do was cry himself to sleep in Kagome's hold.

"Naoya..." Kagome whispered, sitting with the sleeping boy. "...Naoya... I'm sorry... I don't know how to help you... Please... Please, be okay... Naoya..."