How long has it been? Years, yes. But how many? Time feels like something of a shackle nowadays; always running, always dragging everything along. Things happen sooner rather than later, every time all the time. The day always starts too early, and it's easy to miss breakfast because there's just not enough time to prepare something filling most of the time. Her mom helps, if she has time, but that just proves the point further.

Even on days where mostly nothing happens, and it feels like minutes drag into hours, life still feels like it escapes her grasp. Like it rushes onwards and leaves nothing for the slowpokes that just noticed that the next break is due. And then, sometimes, you remember you packed nothing for lunch. And you'll have to go back to work like that.

How much time, then? How many years? Well, how old is she now? Uh… Sometimes even that escapes her mind. Work has a way to grind away personal traits like that. Likes, dislikes, experience, hopes, dreams… There's always something to do. Always someone to attend to. And when you least expect it, you already missed dinner time. So you have to go to sleep on an empty stomach, hoping to get enough hours of sleep in between studying and worrying just to start the next day on time.

There's always something to do, something to worry about. It's work, work, work, study, work, eat, pay, cook, clean, work, work, work…

How long has it been? Is it payday already? Who paid for the internet last time? Did they eat the leftovers from the last take out or was the broth making the fridge smell bad already? Did she get her work uniform in the washing machine last night? What time is it? She's not getting late, is she?

Sable is barking. Someone is knocking at the door.

"Bueh…?" Yuigahama Yui's goosebump startles her awake. Making her lift up her face, left eye only barely open, while her senses try to perform as well as they can instead of the physical and mental exhaustion. She realizes, although not immediately, that she fell asleep directly on the floor and not her futon. That happens sometimes, although the chilly weather will make it so it's easier to catch a cold. She has to be careful, or she'll get in trouble. "Sable?"

Cold… She fell asleep in a pair of red hotpants and a white t-shirt, the kind that usually go below the uniform. No logos, no nothing. Just a plain white piece that covered her up completely. Not something for the cold, mind you. But that's what a t-shirt meant to be used under a blouse looks like…

The dog keeps barking, the fact confuses Yui a little.

What was it? Oh, right the door. She has to go get the door…

"Whu… What time is it?" She slowly pushes herself off the floor, feeling her muscles ache a bit as she pats her surroundings for her phone. She fell asleep in front of a small table, one that the two Yuigahama women will cover with a thick blanket for the really chilly days eventually. But which only had her notes and a plate with crumbs of a bread on top.

She fell asleep trying to study again, huh.

She looks at her phone. It's still noon, on her free day. But she still fell victim to the exertion of the week. She never fully recharges her battery, but it's better to be only somewhat tired than completely exhausted. So she doesn't blame herself.

Her eyes sharpen while looking at the missed calls. She silenced the phone so she could rest, but now the messages and the calls made her snap into alertness. She looks around, snapping her attention back to the door. The knocking comes back, and Yui scrambles to her feet and almost trips on her way to answer.

"Y-Yes…?" She doesn't want to look through the small hole in it, fearing what she might see. But she can't let the person on the other side keep bothering everyone that might be resting. Where's her mom? Still at work? Likely, they don't share a free day.

"…Yui-san?" The voice that answers her is dry, hesitant. Yui flinches upon hearing it, and her heart races so much that her pains and aches seem to vanish in the brink of an eye. The slight puncture-like pain behind her left eye ceases, her muscles are no longer cramped by the position she fell asleep in. And Yuigahama Yui feels fully awake for the first time in…

Who knows? How long has it been? Did she even have lunch?

Yui opens the door, letting the sunlight in and hurting her eyes a little. Flinching at the outside world greeting her when she has been locked inside for the whole day. The dog runs out, but Yui hears a girl catching him.

A young man greets her vision when her eyes adjust to the brightness. It's a face she only thinks she recognizes.

"Y-Yui-san…" His eyes are sunken a little. They make him look older, tired. He hasn't kept himself in optimal shape, but he doesn't look bad per se. Just… Unattended. His hair is a bit longer, but that might be because he hasn't cut it yet. His features are sharper now, more mature. Even though his expression shows nothing but shock and pain.

It takes Yui a moment to put things together, realizing that she rushed to the door without fully comprehending her own thoughts. And the fact that she's very much not wearing something decent to meet someone in.

"H-Hikki…?" Yui looks around, Hina and Yumi are there. Hina holds Sable, giving a wide grin to Yui. Yumi looks shocked, then Hina's expression starts falling too.

Oh. Her clothes. She's not even wearing a…

"Wuah?!" Yui slams the door shut as she retreats back inside.


When Yui didn't answer, Ebina took matters more seriously. She knew her friend well, had stayed when Hachiman had been too weak to do the same. And this fact became more and more evident by the time they arrived at Yui's current neighborhood. A place with those very small apartments that only have one or two rooms besides the living room-slash-kitchen. With space for, like, a tatami mat and little else.

His heart didn't know whether to pound violently or drop altogether as he saw the passage of time reflected on the railing, stairs, and even some of the walls. He knew she'd kept struggling with money. Logic dictated it. But seeing it firsthand? It made Hachiman feel even worse, it made him want to turn around and run away. Because he couldn't bear to understand how much Yui might've needed him, and how much he failed her by not showing up.

Miura kept him in place, kept him moving. She only released him when they got to Yui's door, but she had one girl on each side. So it wasn't like he could escape anyway.

The girl that greeted him, aside from the way she was dressed, could only be described as part of the Yuigahama Yui that Hachiman knew.

Her hair remained short, perhaps a little shorter now. And she clearly didn't sleep enough, or eat well enough. She didn't look sickly thin, but rather like she didn't eat things that were nutritious enough. But that thought didn't hold for long.

"W-Wait there! I'll change! I'll…!" The door made her hasty retreat harder to hear, with only the sound of her feet hitting the floor as the only indication of someone being behind the door. Hachiman blinked a couple of times, unable to say or even think about anything at all.

Still, even through the door and walls, that voice was unmistakably Yuigahama Yui's.

"She's… Ummm…" Ebina still held Sable, with the dog showing his tongue at Hachiman while waging his tail. Seemingly unaware of the fact that he'd been left out of his own house. He looked older, but still very lively. So Hachiman did the first thing that came to mind and placed a hand on his head. "She's very healthy, huh."

"I'm going to punch you." Miura glared at the girl with glasses.

"It's been a while since I saw her that scantily dressed…" Ebina insisted.

Hachiman thought about nothing, just letting himself feel glad.

Honestly? This is fine. He had braced himself for the worst. For a girl clearly in need of food, more hurt by time, maybe… Who knows? His mind played tricks and he heeded them. So seeing Yui there, panicking over her clothes, capable of running and showing emotions… It warmed his heart.

The hurried steps came back, and the sound of someone bumping into something made the three young adults turn back to stare at the door at the same time as Yui's pained groan reached their ears.

Hachiman put his hand over his mouth, pretending to scratch his lips while trying to control the shakes of his shoulders.

"Pffft…" Miura wasn't so considerate however. Her laughter added to Hachiman's light-headedness. It made his brain feel funny, like it tingled a bit.

All of his worries, all of his fears and doubts, vanished in an instant. And what was left could only be described as… Euphoria. Momentary, fragile, but an emotion so pure and concentrated that it actually scared Hachiman a bit.

He licked his lips, almost expecting to feel someone else's tongue there. The sensation of exhilaration was more emotional than physical here, but there's only so many different emotions that the brain can experience before they start getting mixed up. At the very least, that's what Hachiman wanted to believe when he noticed where his mind was wandering to.

He closed his eyes, letting his twisted smirk linger, but trying to get those start-struck eyes out of his head by reminding himself what he was doing… What he was trying to do. These many mixed emotions… Yes. They were overwhelming, but not to the point that he couldn't do anything. He'd worked through them when Hoshino unraveled in front of him, and before that he'd had time to work his own emotions after Yui and Yukino left his life.

Right now? Right now, it felt manageable.

"You think she had lunch yet?" Ebina spoke up after a moment of letting Miura compose herself. It might've felt like he took more time to reign in his own emotions, but Yui couldn't have retreated into her home for more than a minute.

"I hope so." Miura scowled like she hadn't broken into laughter moments prior. "You got any cash? If needed, I can go fetch something to prepare while these two talk."

"Eh?" Hachiman turned to the blonde, who crossed her arms in response.

"What? You expect her to let us in and invite us something to eat? C'mon, Hikio. Look at this place."

"No, I mean… There's no need, right? Let's just order something out." Hachiman felt like he was missing something, but he couldn't quite form the proper thoughts just yet. So he went with the first thing that came to mind, trying to explain the surprise that he himself didn't understand.

"Don't be ridiculous. She probably won't let us pay for her food." Miura's mood got a bit darker. "Besides, this way we can leave stuff for her to eat for later."

Hachiman's good mood dropped immediately.

"That bad?"

"Not really." The blonde shrugged, arms still crossed. "But it's the best we can do right now."

"Eh, I mean." Ebina shook Sable from side to side, seeing if the tiny guy looked uncomfortable. "We could totally buy some food for—"

"I'm here!" Yui rushed out, slamming the door open with so much force that the three people outside flinched. With Hachiman almost jumping back in fear that it'd slam on his face. "This is…!"

She wore some jeans and a sweater, better for the cold and more appropriate in general. Although Hachiman didn't fully register her clothing, and instead had his gaze looked into the pink haired girl's own.

The girl grew shy all of a sudden.

"Hikki…"

Hachiman's expression contorted. Several thoughts rushed through his head, messing even more with it. Obstructed by the girl that had been occupying that spot as of late. But he still pushed onward, gave Yui his best smile. Which is to say, he gave her an awkward sidewise grin that twitched slightly because of how uncomfortable it felt.

"H-Hey…" Their eyes hadn't lost their connection, and Hachiman saw her own start watering. Which, for all his denseness and short-sightedness, gave him enough of a clue to take a breath and continue. "Sorry to make you wait."

"Hikki!" Yui threw her body at him, making his lower half hit the railing as she coiled her arms around him. Pressing herself against Hachiman's chest while shaking her head and messing a little with his own clothes, while the panic of feeling his back touch nothing as he tipped back made him flail like a wish out of water. "Hikki, Hikki, Hikki…!"

Miura caught his arm and pulled him, probably saving him from falling off the first floor with Yui on him. Hachiman needed a moment to catch his breath and look around to make absolutely sure that he still had his feet on the ground and wasn't seeing his life flash in front of his eyes.

The only thing waiting for him, was the teary expression that Yui showed him when she lifted her face a bit.

Hachiman returned the hug, feeling Yui shift a bit to stand to her full height. Hiding her face again on his shoulder.

"I'm sorry." Hachiman whispered. He'd tried to avoid having his voice crack, but even like this he failed at it. "I'm sorry for taking this long."

"It's… No. I'm sorry." Yui buried her face on his clothes again. "Because of me, Yukinon is…"

Her words felt like nails being struck in his heart, leaving him breathless for every syllable that reached his ears. Grating, twisting existing wounds that had been ready to bleed ever since he'd mentalized himself to come to this place.

He hated himself so much right now, embracing this girl that felt like she'd done something wrong. He knew better now, knew that things had simply gone wrong. That life had been unfair to her, and she'd reacted in the most human way she could have. Chance and circumstances stacked against her, driving her further down…

It's a way of life Hachiman knew very well, one that made him care so much for her. Because she'd been there when he'd learned to leave such a dark place. Back in that room where only three high school students passed their days.

He could no longer see, something wet and blurry covered his eyes now.

"I'm sorry… I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry…" He hugged her more tightly, fearing that she would disappear if he stopped. Like he would die if he couldn't convey the thing he needed to say.

"You didn't do anything though."

But that's the problem.

"I shouldn't have left you." When she needed him the most.

"You had your own problems to deal with."

Which he himself caused.

"It's not fair." His insistence was more for his own sake than hers, to be honest. He'd spent days and nights thinking, rehearsing the events that led to Yukino leaving. Turning in bed, wonder what he could've done different. How he could've done better. "I'm sorry… I…"

Sable's bark took him out of the moment, startling him into paying attention to his surroundings again.

Ebina looked elated, still holding the dog but paying little attention to it. Whereas Miura had tried to slip past them and enter the house, freezing in place as Hachiman locked eyes with her. Clearly uncomfortable with what was going on.

"Sorry, I didn't know the corridor was private property too." The blonde stretched her back, getting Yui to separate from Hachiman and start cleaning her face. "I'll leave you two alone."

"Ah, Yumi-chan! Sorry…!" Yui tried to laugh it off, but her voice broke enough times that it felt as though she had become a teenager again. Still growing into her final form. "Hi, hey. I'm… Ummm…"

"You were sleeping, right?" Ebina interrupted, taking the opportunity to move closer to Miura. Into the house. "Did you eat something yet?"

"Hina-chan! I…" Yui furrowed her brows, like she was trying to see something that her eyes couldn't quite catch. That expression broke Hachiman's heart a bit. "I don't remember? I don't think so, no."

"Well, good thing Hikigaya here will go to the convenience store, right?" Ebina gave him a very unsubtle wink. "Why don't you tag along? Don't let us bother you."

"Eh? Don't worry about it! I can eat something when…"

"No, no! I insist!" Ebina took a step back when Yui tried to approach her, slotting herself to Miura's side. Blocking Yui out of her own house with their combined bodies. "It's a special occasion, after all~"

Yui turned to Hachiman, looking more helpless than she had when she first opened the door.

He knew he should say something sarcastic, funny in his own way.

He didn't, because the only thing that he could think about was either running away or silently thanking Ebina for the opportunity.

"It's better to eat with people, right?" Hachiman looked away, scratching the back of his head to hold back the awkwardness.

Yui's eyes fell to the ground, moving around like she was looking for something while her fingers intertwined in front of her.

The more the silence stretched, the more Hachiman wanted to just straight up be swallowed by the ground. Have lightning strike him down.

"…I guess I do need to buy stuff anyway." Yui tilted her head slowly. Not really conceding, but rather thinking about something else entirely.

Hachiman pursed his lips.

Was this the price to pay for denying Hoshino her wish?