"Yamamoto…?" Gokudera was very worried; it was almost frightening to see his boyfriend sitting so still on Squalo's bed looking expressionless. He could tell that the older male was in a huge amount of pain, but knowing Yamamoto, the silver-haired male wondered if the other knew how to cope with what he was feeling; the baseball addict was usually so happy and positive, and Gokudera didn't know if his boyfriend was equipped to deal with this amount of pain. "Yamamoto, are you…?"

Yamamoto slowly turned his head to look at the smaller male. His eyes were void of life, and his lips were set in a straight line, but the way his eyes were red and puffy gave away the fact that, just hours before, he had been crying.

Tsuna sat on the other side of Yamamoto with his arm wrapped around the taller male's shoulders. He had no idea what he was supposed to say; he had never been in this situation before, and he had never thought he would be. Just like Gokudera, he was worried; was there anything he could do? Or would he be helpless to look after his friend?

Mukuro, who was over in the kitchen making himself a cup of tea, glanced back at the younger trio. "Would you like a hot chocolate, Takeshi? I will make you one if you want."

Yamamoto shook his head. He couldn't speak anymore; all he could do was replay over and over what had he had seen in his mind. He couldn't stop remembering how he had stood there for what had felt like an eternity and watched as the ruins of his home came crumbling down to earth. He couldn't shake the memory of his father's lifeless body being carried out of the wreckage on a stretcher, covered by that white blanket he knew meant his father was gone. The deafening whispers that was the firefighters trying to revive his dog felt like they were going to drive him insane, and finally the whimpers of pain and fear Jiro had made were enough for him to let out a whimper of his own. He hoped his dog was going to be okay, having been rushed to the vet by Squalo, but he couldn't feel much hope inside of him; after what had just happened…

"What happened to my dad…?" Yamamoto didn't know who he was asking; was he asking his friends? His boyfriend? …Himself…? He didn't know; all he knew was that the tone he had used to speak in was not his usual tone, and he hated how much heartbreak was in it.

Gokudera and Tsuna shared looks with each other. It was Mukuro who came over and stood next to the trio so he could say, "It is best not to dwell on these things. Your father is gone, but no amount of stressing will ever bring him back."

Yamamoto knew it was true, but even so… He lifted his head and whispered, "…What about Jiro…? I can't… I don't want to lose him, too…"

Gokudera threaded his fingers through his boyfriend's spiky hair. "He's at the vet's, Yamamoto; I think he's going to be okay."

"What if… What if he's gone, too…?"

"Don't think like that, Yamamoto; there's nothing you can do so you'll only feel more stressed if you keep worrying." Tsuna patted the older male's arm.

Yamamoto knew the others were right, but even so, all he could do was continue to worry; why did this have to happen to him? What was he going to do now? Everything was gone; he had no family left, no home… Not even any of his possessions save those he had taken to the resort with him… It hurt so much, but even so, he didn't think he could cry anymore; he must have used up all of his energy for that earlier.

Almost as if he had read the other's mind, Gokudera said, "It's okay; you can come live with me, Yamamoto…"

Yamamoto couldn't do anything but nod. No matter how he knew he should be happy from those words, he still couldn't find it in him to at least smile in graciousness. No; all he could do was sit there and continue staring at his lap as the numbness ate away at him.

No one said another word, not until an undeterminable amount of time later they heard a car pulling up outside of the hotel room and two doors closing. They waited until the hotel door had been opened and Squalo and Bel walked in before the silence was broken.

"How's Jiro…?" Tsuna's voice was meek, as concerned for the dog as his friend was.

Squalo offered a small smile as he squeezed his charge's hand. "He'll be okay. I paid for his vet fees so don't worry about that shit; it's dealt with. He can come home tomorrow."

A soft sob was the next sound to fill the room. Yamamoto's voice quivered as he said, "W-where am I-I supposed to k-k-keep him now…? I-I… I'm homeless, too…"

"You can stay here with us if you want to," the long-haired man offered. "And we'll look after the dog for you; don't worry about that."

Yamamoto shook his head. "G-gokudera… Gokudera said I… c-could stay with him… But Jiro…"

"I'll take the dog, Takeshi. It's not a problem." It was clear that Squalo felt bad for the teenager; the others knew he didn't like animals, and yet… "Just focus on looking after yourself."

The dark-haired male nodded. He knew he couldn't argue; he didn't even have the energy for opening his mouth anyway.

"Yamamoto?" Gokudera wished he knew what to do; he hated seeing his boyfriend like this, but he had no idea how to help. "Yamamoto, want to go back to mine?"

The older male nodded. Truth be told, he would much rather stay where he was as he couldn't seem to find the motivation to move, but he knew everyone was worried about him and he didn't want to stress them any further.

"Come on…" Gokudera reached out to help the other to his feet. "Walking is good when you're sad. You might feel better…"

Yamamoto didn't think so, but who was he to argue when all he wanted was to curl up somewhere and sleep the pain away?

~~XX~~

Time had felt like it was frozen for Yamamoto; all he knew was that, eventually, the sky outside had gone from light to dark and Gokudera had said it was time for sleep. He didn't know how long he had been asleep for, or even how long it had taken for him to fall into oblivion, but soon enough he had awoken once more in a panting, sweaty mess as images played over and over again in his mind.

Gokudera had awoken, too, and as tired as he was, he still sat up and switched the bedside lamp on so he could get a better look at his boyfriend. "Yamamoto…? Are you okay…?"

Yamamoto nodded, but not to reassure the younger that he was okay; he was desperate to convince himself that it was the case. "…I-I… Yeah…"

"No, you're not…" The silver-haired male moved closer so he could drop his head onto his boyfriend's chest. He pushed them both back down onto the mattress so they were laying together before he whispered, "I'm here, Yamamoto… I love you…"

"…" Yamamoto closed his eyes, and for the first time in what felt like an eternity, he felt the motivation to wrap his arms around his boyfriend and hold Gokudera close. "…I love you, too…"

With that said, the two shared a kiss, and for the first time that night, Yamamoto was able to sleep peacefully.