When the sound of the school bus stopping out the front of the Varia House caught Fran's attention, he slowly clambered off the couch in the living room so that he could greet Mukuro and Chrome. He was glad that, though the twins and Ryohei went to different schools, they were able to catch the same bus because it made it easier for him to know who was home rather than having to learn the schedule of two different buses.

The boy was feeling sluggish as he moved, exhausted from the day's earlier events. The front door opened before he could get there, and the first words he heard from the new arrivals was Ryohei shouting for Bel.

"Bel, come and get your extremely stupid frog!" The grey-haired teenager shouted as he threw his school bag down onto the ground by the front door. "It's on the extreme stairs again!"

"Bel-senpai's not here…" Fran said quietly, gathering the attention of the three.

"W-where is he…?" Chrome asked shyly. She pressed against her brother, almost as if she was anxious to hear the answer. Part of her was worried; she knew how unstable Bel was, and that it wasn't unlikely for him to have tried to commit suicide again; he had a bad habit of seeming to be okay and then, out of the blue, trying to kill himself.

"Did they finally get rid of him?" Ryohei asked. Fran couldn't help but note his tone sounded hopeful. "Or maybe Squid-Head beat him up to the extreme again?"

The teal-haired child nodded before he explained. "Bel-senpai had a fight with Gokudera and Lussuria and Tsuna took them to the doctor's. They haven't been home since."

"Who cares about Bel." Ryohei shrugged. "I mean – everyone extremely hates him anyway. He's only tolerated because no one else will take him from Varia's hands."

Fran blinked; was that really true…? "But…"

"Kid, don't get the wrong idea." Ryohei put his hand on Fran's shoulder, as if he was explaining something delicate to a small child. "The only reason Sawada and the others look after him when he freaks out is because it's their job to do so. They don't want him here. They regretted to the extreme bringing him here after the first few days. We all hate him – all of us."

"…I thought… Mukuro and Chrome…"

Mukuro stayed oddly quiet throughout Ryohei's lecture, but Chrome spoke up in a small voice that was barely audible, almost as if she didn't want to get involved in the conversation.

"…W-we don't hate him…" Chrome whispered. "…W-we just… don't know how to h-handle him…"

"Look, it doesn't matter," Ryohei said. "At the end of the day, he's still the most extremely disliked person in this house."

What a horrible existence he's leading in this place… Fran thought to himself. He watched as Ryohei turned to the right and headed to the kitchen, probably to find himself food. His emerald eyes than wandered over to Mammon who was sitting peacefully on the bottom stair, croaking every now and then. He walked over to the frog and picked it up, not wanting it to get stood on. I mean, he's here, but… The fact that he knows how much he is disliked… I bet it hurts knowing he's here where he's taken care of, but still unwanted… That would hurt me…

Mammon croaked in the little boy's hands before he propelled himself into Fran's teal hair and nested amongst the messy strands. Chrome and Mukuro were still standing by the door, watching Fran. Neither of them moved nor spoke when emerald eyes fixed on them next.

"Do you really dislike Bel-senpai?" the child questioned in a manner so innocent, it made the older two feel ill.

Mukuro and Chrome shook their heads. It was the blue-haired boy who explained. "It is not that we dislike him as much as we feel uncomfortable around him. The first time we so much as laid eyes on him, he pulled a knife he had hidden in his jacket on us. He would have cut us if Xanxus had not grabbed his wrists and pulled the knife from him."

"Why does Ryohei and Gokudera hate him? What did Bel-senpai do to them?"

"We are not sure why Ryohei hates him. But Gokudera? You cannot really be asking me that, little one. Gokudera hates everyone. His mother died in a car crash on his birthday coming to deliver his present, and he blames himself for that. His self-hatred bounces off on everyone else."

Fran didn't quite understand that; if Gokudera hates everyone, why does he always follow Tsuna around like a puppy? He absentmindedly ran a finger down Mammon's back when the frog croaked again as he tried to understand how someone could possibly hate everyone with the exception of just one person.

The child wasn't feeling right the more he thought about it, and all of a sudden socialising felt like a tremendous effort. He turned his attention back to the twins and, with the air of someone who was used to having to ask for permission before doing anything, excused himself. "I want to go to my room now."

"Don't let us keep you, little one."

"P-please, do so, F-fran." Chrome offered a shy smile.

Fran, so unused to his wishes being granted happily, frowned as he turned and walked up the stairs with the frog still on his head. He was still trying to work out Gokudera's infatuation with Tsuna, convinced that it was impossible for someone with a bad background to so easily accept someone – but then, hadn't Mukuro and Chrome accepted him without hesitation? And Tsuna, too?

I just don't understand… Fran closed the bedroom door behind him before he moved to sit on his bed with his back resting against the wall. If Gokudera accepts Tsuna to the point where he follows him everywhere… am I doing the same thing with Mukuro…? Does that mean… I'm like Gokudera, even if I don't know it…? Do I actually like someone…?"

Mammon croaked, distracting Fran from his thoughts. The child tried to look up almost instinctively at the frog in his hair, but he couldn't see anything other than his teal strands falling into his eyes. He forgot about Gokudera as his mind travelled to Bel and why the blond seemed so attached to the creature; was it normal for someone to like their pet but hate absolutely everyone around them? He wasn't sure, but that was how Bel was.

"Why does Bel always seem to have you out of your tank?" Fran questioned, not really knowing why he expected an answer; even he knew frogs didn't talk. "It's like Gokudera… He only smiles around you… Are you his only friend, Mammon?"

Croak.

"After what Ryohei was saying, I guess I can understand why he likes you. You must be the only one who doesn't make him feel disliked."

"What would you know about it?"

Fran blinked at the voice. He looked to the doorway, surprised to see Bel standing there; he had been so caught up in talking to Mammon he hadn't even heard the door open.

"Bel-senpai, I –" Fran started to explain himself but he quickly stopped when the blond stomped towards him with a grim look plastered on his face.

"Why have you got Mammon?!" Bel roared. He snatched the frog from Fran and held it close to his chest as if he were afraid of the boy hurting it – in actually, he was terrified of someone taking his only friend from him, which was why he never had been able to handle anyone near his frog.

Fran heard the panic in Bel's voice, and at that moment it hit him; he had been right in assuming Mammon was Bel's only friend and said teenager was scared to lose him. He spoke as calmly as he could manage despite being nervous about being alone with Bel; what if the blond tried to hurt him again? "Mammon was on the stairs when everyone got off the bus. I-I thought someone might step on him so I brought him back up here…"

The blond relaxed at this; he had thought that Fran was only going to hurt his little friend, but to hear that the other had looked out for Mammon… Well, Bel truly didn't know how to react. "…Oh… He's… been known to wander the house…"

Fran watched as hands that had been used to hurt so many people gently caressed the frog as if it were a fragile heirloom. He could see how important the animal was to the blond, and it honestly warmed his heart; he felt better knowing Bel wasn't completely alone.

"…The prince appreciates you looking after Mammon…" Bel mumbled. He turned away from Fran's general direction, almost as if he didn't want the other to see him looking so vulnerable.

When silence fell between them, Fran was the one to break it.

"Bel-senpai, can we…" Fran fidgeted in discomfort before he continued speaking, "…can we be friends…?"

Bel froze as panic surged through him; he had never had a friend before apart from Mammon and a mink he had found back when he was still in the clutches of that monster - the entire concept of befriending a fellow human was alien to him, and it horrified him to even consider letting someone be so close to him.

People are bad… Bel's mind was racing as fast as his heart, and his eyes darted unseeingly around the room behind blond bangs as he searched for the slightest hint of danger. He needed to be prepared; he couldn't trust anyone – he wouldn't trust anyone. They only cause pain… Monsters… Monsters… Hurt… They hurt… Don't want to be hurt again… Leave me alone…

"Bel-senpai?" Fran knew he had upset the other when tears started flowing down pale cheeks and Bel trembled as if he were locked out in the cold. He stood up and slowly approached the other, wanting to be able to help, but not sure if he could. "Bel-senpai, I didn't mean to upset you."

Bel let go of Mammon so that he could slip his hands into the opposite sleeves of his clothing and scratch at the scars that marred his pale wrists. He didn't know how else to handle his stress; he wanted – no, he needed – to cut himself, to slice open his wrists and bleed all over the floorboards like he had done so many times before. He needed to feel sick and weak from the blood loss so that he couldn't think about anything other than how dead he already felt just from losing too much blood – but he didn't have his knives, and no one else in the house would give him someone to hurt himself with if he were to ask. D-don't want… Don't want to be touched anymore… Don't want to be hurt…

Fran tilted his head as he caught sight of ugly scars lined side-by-side against a tiny wrist. He was too young to understand their significance, assuming them only to be dark reminders left behind by Bel's tormenters. However, he could understand that – the left-overs of a past too horrid to want to remember.

"Bel-senpai?" Fran could tell the other was lost inside his mind. He could understand that, but he wasn't sure about how he should grab Bel's attention. Should he reach out to touch the other? Or just keep talking until the blond zoned in? Hearing the frightened whimpers that now accompanied the crying was enough for Fran to understand what he had to do; he took a deep breath and climbed up onto the bed beside Bel, careful not to touch but close enough for Bel to sense his presence. Once the other looked at him, he spoke in a voice full of his own bottled up pain. "It hurts, doesn't it?"

"…" Bel stopped scratching at wounds that were now reopening as he heard a tone of voice he had never heard before; the tone of recognition – of true understanding.

"It hurts when all you can do is remember things you don't want to." Fran looked down at his lap as ghosts of previous touches sent shivers down his spine. "You can't stop the thoughts and all you want to is forget and move on with your life, but it's so hard… The worst is when people look at you, and tell you it's okay when it's not, and that they know it hurts – but how can they know when they haven't suffered it themselves? I know what it's like to lay awake in bed at night and cry because you're too scared to sleep – because you know that if you do, you'll dream and see it all over again as if it were really happening and you couldn't escape it after all; you just thought you had. I know it feels like there's no future, no hope of forgetting – that the fear will forever rule your life. And Bel-senpai? …I don't know if you know this pain, too, but… I know what it's like to want to die. Being dead… It seems so much easier… I wish I could die, and then I wouldn't have to hurt. I want everything to stop but no one seems to care enough to see that, or want to help. I wish… I honestly wish I had a friend, Bel-senpai. You might think you've only got Mammon – and maybe that's true, I don't know. But I don't have anyone. I'm all alone in this world, senpai… I just… I wish I had someone like you have Mammon… A frog is better than having to suffer alone and in silence…"

Fran wanted to say more; he had tried to relate to Bel as much as he could but now his feelings were just getting in the way and he couldn't cope with expressing so much of himself after so long of keeping it all locked away for no one to see. He shut his mouth and squeezed his eyes shut as he closed his eyes, trying to pretend his couldn't feel his own tears dripping down onto his black pants.

"…You don't…" Fran whimpered. He fisted his hands into his clothing as his shoulders started to shake from the stress that was quickly overwhelming even him, "…you don't see how lucky you are to have a friend, Bel-senpai… You're so selfish for that…"

Sel…fish…? Bel blinked at these words; he was selfish…? He lifted his hand to wipe at his tears. …Fr…iend…? He… He knows the same pain I do… It hurts him the same… He's been nice to me, unlike the others here… I've just… pushed him away all this time… But why does it hurt so much when I try and accept him…? I know why… I'm scared… I'm too proud to admit that, but it's the truth – that mink I had when I was little? I'm afraid of losing a… a friend, just like how I lost that mink…

Bel, despite his own heartbreak, could see how strong Fran was trying to be; the younger was trying to choke back his emotions – just like Bel always did because he was too afraid of being taken advantage of if people knew just how weak and pathetic he truly was beneath all that anger and violence he constantly presented to everyone. He wanted to reach out and touch the kid, perhaps put an arm around his shoulders, but after so many years of the trauma he had never been able to leave behind, he was… too scared…

"…F-froggy…?" Bel winced at how tragic he sounded, so drained of energy – so vulnerable.

Fran looked up at Bel, and his lips quivered as he hiccupped. "S-senpai…?"

"..." Bel sighed. Is the reason I'm starting to care about him crying… because I do just the same when I'm alone…? No one knows how I curl up in my bed and cry for hours when no one else is home… I know… how agonising it is… "…You don't have to cry anymore, Froggy…"

Fran rubbed at his eyes before he whispered, "W-why…?"

"…" Here goes nothing… "…B-because… we… We can be lonely together…"

Fran couldn't stop himself, despite knowing how badly hurt it could get him in doing so; he reached out and wrapped his thin arms around Bel's own scarred limb before he buried his face into the boy's striped shirt and cried.

Bel was frightened by the contact, but he was able to overcome it; he could remember being around the kid's age, locked away in that dark closet that still haunted his nightmares as he cried to himself, wishing with all his being that he could have someone to hold him tight and tell him that it would be okay – but he hadn't had that kind of reassurance in his life, and over time he had just given up, believing it would never happen, that it was all a fairy tale and that people weren't really comforting like he had wanted to pretend for so many years after all.

The blond cleared his throat in discomfort before he awkwardly patted the younger's shoulder and bit his lip; he was trying his best to allow this kind of physical contact after so many years of refusing it, but it was just too much for him to allow for more than a few seconds. "…F-froggy…? Can you let go of me now…?"

Fran didn't hear the teenger's request; his second emotional outburst for the day had really taken its toll on him, and slowly, thanks to the comfort of Bel's warm body, his awareness of reality drifted away from him as sleep overwhelmed his hazy mind.

When Bel realised Fran was no longer awake and merely hiccupping on him in his sleep, he shuddered as he thought of letting the boy remain on him; he was terrified of physical contact and he just wasn't ready to let Fran use him as a pillow.

The boy carefully lifted Fran's head so that he could slip a pillow underneath the teal hair instead so that he could get back to his feet. He glanced down at Fran, and his heart melted at how frightened the boy looked, even in his sleep.

Kneeling by the bed, Bel ran a shaking hand through Fran's hair for a few seconds before he pulled the blankets over the tiny body and shook his head as he decided he wouldn't go back on his word – Fran was fragile, so young and with a life ahead of him. If Bel could just help the younger have a better life than he did… maybe it could help heal both of their hearts.