"Hey, Naoto. I've been meaning to ask you something for a while now..."
"Hm?"
"It's personal, though. So if you don't want to answer, you don't have to."
"... I cannot assure you will receive answers you're expecting, but go on."
"Well... Your shadow-"
Naoto's shoulders tense, but she continues tapping the screen to a steady rhythm. Tap, tap, tap.
"It's something other than the... well, the bigger of shocks that it revealed. One of the things that stuck out to me was that it was crying out about how you were lonely."
Tap, taka, tap. Click.
"Yes."
He taps his feet, she taps the screen. They seemed to share a lot of silences.
"Well... do you still feel that way? Now that you have met everyone?"
"Not as much."
"Not as much?"
Naoto nods.
"Meaning, you still feel that way from time to time?"
"..."
She finishes the level, then sets the 3DS down. Closes it. Sighs. She seems to be thinking.
"Sometimes, I do. It's..."
She rakes her fingers down her hair, which wasn't in its usual state of being concealed by her hat.
"...It's a loneliness that can't quite be filled by friends. A void in my heart, if you will. As if a piece of it were missing..." her voice fades out, and she pauses. Yosuke expects her to stop there, but she continues.
"I hadn't any siblings, nor cousins, or any other people I could turn to for socialization. Other than my parents, of course. As an only child, the loneliness sort of lingered around me from the very beginning. When I got to school, it only got worse. I didn't know how to interact with others. I only knew how to solve puzzles, and I was quite good at reading... but in terms of finding a voice for myself, and using it to reach out to others... I didn't have that capability."
She frowns.
"You can only imagine how I felt once my parents died. I..."
Her face is coloured with a mural of emotions. He'd almost say that her eyes looked a little red, but her vulnerability is visible for but a fleeting moment. She's back to a neutral expression again- and Yosuke somehow feels like he's failed her. Why did she have to hide? Why couldn't he be better at comforting? Why couldn't he be a good person whom she could be comfortable around? If only Souji were here, he'd-
"...How did you do it, senpai? Making friends, working your job and having to please people all the time...I'm sure it wasn't easy to start anew since you came from the city. Even if you are clumsy with it from time to time, you have an undeniable ability to gravitate towards others and socialize. If anything, I think it's brave that you continue to interact with others- even when you have moments when you say or do things that you aren't too proud of."
Ouch, he thinks. But he's not sure how to feel, because it is true. And in her own Naoto-like way, the detective was complimenting him.
"That's the thing, Naoto. I don't really have a way of doing things. I just do them- without thinking, for the most part," he's laughing as he comments, "I suppose that's the biggest difference between you and I. I run on impulse, and you run on careful preparation."
"It is intriguing how we are friends then, is it not? Usually people need to have a lot in common to get along."
Yosuke laughs again.
"Definitely. I don't think it's a bad thing, though."
A nod.
"I don't think it's a bad thing either. It's...nice, what we have. I am thankful for your company."
"Aha! Well, besides games and bein' lonely bros, that's three things we have in common. Looks like we have a lot more in common than you think, Naoto-kun! Not bad grounds for having a friendship, hm?"
Naoto looks so pretty when smiles. If he makes her laugh hard enough, he gets glimpses of a smile pulling far enough to bare teeth. She's doing that now, but he can't see because she's covering her mouth with her hand.
One day I'll take that hand and put my lips there in its place, he thinks.
...
Wait.
What?
A/N: Ahem- thank you for your kindness, everyone! I am pleasantly surprised to have people reading, following, favoriting, and even reviewing this work. Your support motivates me to write and post more. I haven't forgotten about your requests, by the way! Please be patient with me.