The rest of the morning passed rather quietly. After their argument, the three troubled women decided to stay out of each other's way. Nagatoro and Gamo went about storing the grocery purchases together, while Hana began sketching quietly on a notepad she had brought with her.

As Gamo had placed a jug of milk into the highest shelf of the fridge, a sigh escaped her lips. The morning had been chaotic, destructive and overall, the opposite of productive. Despite the physical, intimate steps she had taken with Naoto - no rather, because of those steps - everything felt worse than it had the night before. Gamo knew she had messed up badly, and there was essentially nothing she could do now to take it all back and make up for it.

Besides her, Nagatoro shot her a glance of annoyance. The sigh Gamo let out irked the tanned woman beyond reason. It was as if the redhead believed she alone was suffering the consequences, as if only her life had been negatively affected by the betrayal and blunder, she had committed.

Whether or not that was truly the way Gamo saw things didn't matter. Nagatoro was fuming, her fury directed at her best friend, confidant, sister in crime, who she had felt absolutely abandoned by, not just once, but twice now, regarding the same man.

Gamo, of course, noticed her friends glare, but chose not to acknowledge it. It seemed only fair that Nagatoro would be upset with her after their breach of friendship. It was honestly something they would have to come to terms with eventually. Their friendship had suffered quite a handful of heavy blows over time, all of them relating to the same guy. It was almost depressing to think about, that the strong bond they had cultivated over time could be strained so heavily by one individual. But it wasn't as if their connection wearing so thin wasn't something they had inflicted upon themselves.

Whether it was Nagatoro's loss of human decency for one afternoon, or Gamo's inability to keep her own emotions in check, allowing herself to fall in love with the same person as her best friend, then preying upon him herself in a moment of weakness, they both had to work hard to arrive at such an uncomfortable and unsustainable impasse within their relationship.

Gamo closed the fridge and stretched her back, a loud yawn escaping her.

"You just keep making noise," Nagatoro remarked with an edge to her voice.

Gamo quickly lowered her arms and turned her head to face Hayacchi, who was refusing to meet her gaze.

"Sorry," Gamo responded quickly, stepping out of the kitchen to get away from her.

Hana couldn't help but quickly glance up from her drawing, if only to see how close the two hyenas were to clamping down on each other's jugulars. The younger woman was more than a little surprised to see Gamo's hurt expression, as she walked past her toward the entrance of the house. It would appear that the demoness rather casual remark had stung regardless.

How peculiar.

Hana didn't bother turning to continue her observation, instead opting to focus back on her work. Eventually, the opening and closing of the front door let her know that Gamo most likely chose to get some fresh air by herself.

Left alone now with the monster she hated the most, Hana attempted her utmost to focus all of her mental energy on nothing but the sketch in front of her. Unfortunately, to her own dismay, the sketch was of a very similar scene that had played out only a handful of hours prior.

Hana let out a heavy sigh as she dropped the notepad onto the couch beside her and began to rub her temples.

"Everyone's sighing now," Nagatoro noted from across the room. "You guys might want to get that checked out."

Hana's emotionless gaze lifted to meet Nagatoro's. She was leaning against the kitchen counter, her face twisted into somewhat of a mocking grin, yet something about it seemed inauthentic. It was as if she was using her cocky attitude as a means to cover up her deep seated anger and sadness. Which, knowing her, was most likely exactly what was happening.

"I am more concerned about the fact that you aren't showing any obvious sign of distress," Hana stated, little to no emotion in her voice. "Just a short while ago, you were close to imploding. Anger, sadness, fear, jealousy, these feelings don't simply fade like this. You're either bottling it up, or you need to see a therapist."

Hana actually smiled at that. "No. You should definitely see a therapist."

"Funny," Nagatoro barked back, venom dripping from her.

Hana ran a hand through her hair as she looked over her shoulder to where Gamo had vanished. "You're going to lose your only friend and confidant at this point, if you keep it up."

"Hard to see her as such," Nagatoro admitted plainly. "After all, she's the reason today fell apart in the first place."

Hana put a finger to her lips pensively. "You do have a point. Shocking."

"You act better than us," Nagatoro retorted with a smirk. "Yet you are just as unbearable. Did you see the way Naoto fell for me and thought you'd be able to copy that?"

Hana could feel her mouth twitch in response, but kept her cool regardless.

"If you think I feel this level of disgust for anybody else, you are sorely mistaken," Hana replied, an unflinching stare directed at her conversation partner. "I was willing to try my best and overlook the flaws I perceived in you, even try and be on friendly terms with you, if it meant my Senpai would find true happiness. I was naive. I should have never let you near him."

"Not like it was your call to make," Nagatoro bit back, a scowl on her face.

Hana's brows furrowed as she refused to break the eye contact. "It should have been."

"What do you even think you can offer him!?" Nagatoro asked angrily, realizing how the reasonability of her arguments kept slipping away. She was desperately trying to hold onto her position in Naoto's life.

"What I can offer?" Hana repeated mockingly. "Everything. Love. Stability. Peace!"

Nagatoro pursed her lips at the last word, which was fired at her like a bullet destined to strike at her heart.

"He will NEVER be able to relax, to be at ease, around the likes of you!"

Hana's voice tore through the otherwise silent room like a sharp blade. Nagatoro had to admit, time and time again, that having to face Hana in a verbal standoff was quite the terrifying prospect. Gamo and Nagatoro were far more comfortable in taking on opponents in a physical confrontation, rather than one of words. This made the younger of the rabbit cousins quite a threat.

Hana seemed satisfied with her own side of the argument, allowing her to simply relax back into the cushion of the sofa and close her eyes. Naoto had spent too much time to better himself, to overcome the hurdles in his mind, fight back the dark that had nested in his mentality, for it to all be destroyed by these pests. Hana would never allow it.

Despite this conviction, Hana had to admit that the reality of the situation was tearing at her. No matter how much she wanted to deny the truth, the demon by her side had struck some sort of truth, hinting at how her beloved Senpai had never even considered her a potential partner in his life. To him, she had never been anything but an underclassman who he would coddle and tend to whenever she required his aid, but never an equal that he would let into his life the way he had let her.

Hana clenched her teeth in displeasure, trying her best not to let her annoyance show in front of her enemy.

At that thought, part of her couldn't help but laugh internally. Despite how mature she'd like to consider herself, she still had to label people with such petty monikers, because it allowed her mind to neatly categorize them into groups. This helped her immensely, as otherwise, the process of dealing with people without a proper way of differentiating their stance to her from one another, caused her great distress.

It was one of the many reasons she had such trouble separating the title of Senpai from Naoto. To her, he was more than just the man with his name. He was her eternal Senpai, her unending inspiration, the muse of a life time. Referring to him solely by his given name felt insufficient. He was so much more than just his name.

Hana opened her eyes again. Immediately, she realized something was off. She sat up straight and whipped her head around, only to find zero traces of Nagatoro in the vicinity. There was no way she had left through the front door, she would have heard that.

Panic set in as her eyes fell onto the staircase, leading up to Naoto's room.

Oh no, she didn't!

Hana leaped off the couch and rushed over to the stairs. At the top of it, the door was wide open, revealing the back of a head of raven black hair. Taking two steps at a time, Hana quickly arrived at her side, with an expression of deep disapproval.

"What do you think yo-"

Hana halted as she looked into the room. Her eyes widened in shock and surprise, at the lack of the most given aspect, that either one of them had expected to find within.

"Where is he?" Nagatoro quietly asked.

The afternoon sun was seemingly planning to cook Gamo alive beneath it, but the redhead was not truly bothered by it. The sweat pouring from her entire body only fueled her determination. The moment the traffic light gave her the go ahead, she practically sprinted across the road, wanting to recapture her momentum from just before the red light had stopped her.

Gamo wasn't sure for how long she had been running, but it was the easiest way for her to suppress all the thoughts and emotions that were eating her up inside. Without being able to talk to Naoto directly and Nagatoro pressuring her with the constant glares and airing of grievances, Gamo could think of no other way than to survive the day. Pushing her body to her limits had always done her well in one form or another.

Today, it felt like the only way to atone for her slip up. Never before had Gamo felt so ashamed and upset with herself. Despite what she considered true, genuine love and appreciation, she had to admit that they way she had acted this morning was unacceptable, given the mental state Naoto was in. It wasn't as vile and evil of an action as Nagatoro's, but it was still debatably wrong.

Gamo bit her lip as she took a right and tried to shake the feeling of disgust with herself. It was never meant to be that way. All she ever wanted to do was show him how serious she was, how much she adored him. Was this the way Nagatoro had felt? Had she considered herself pushed to the limit, considering how close they had all been to graduating? Naoto was so slow and unsure of himself when it came to pressing his clear advantage he had with women. Whether he liked it or not, there was something about him that drew others in. And the fact he refused to accept it and refused to act on it, caused more trouble than it did good.

Gamo wanted to punch herself again, just to clear her mind, but she knew that wasn't a rational, nor a healthy alternative, to simply increasing the speed at which she was racing across the pavement.

The redhead kept pushing herself harder and harder, never stopping once to take a breath, or let her aching body recover from the pain it was in. The more her lungs begged for relief, the more time she had without the need to think about the stupidity of her life.

Part of her wanted to give up and walk away from all this nonsense, to just simply let Naoto be, return to her family's gym and do her best to pursue her own goals, without the need to worry about him or their unrealistic future together. But every time she truly considered this option, her heart felt like it would split in two and her head began throbbing painfully, as if her body was warning her that it would simply cease to function for her, if she ever accepted the easy route.

Truthfully, Gamo couldn't see herself with anyone else at this point. It was an odd statement for her mind to make, but there it was. Naoto had become someone who she felt like she could rely on, as well as someone she wanted to rely on her. When she fell asleep, most of the nights, she imagined him by her side, pulling him into a tight embrace as she dozed off. When she needed motivation during one of her many tough fights in the ring, she always imagined Naoto in the crowd, cheering her own, waiting to treat her bruises the moment she was done.

Gamo took a sharp breath of air as she realized she had starting crying. With some shame on her face, she quickly wiped the tears away and took deep breaths as she continued running straight ahead, without a goal in mind.

Before she knew it, however, it would seem her mind had chosen a destination for her. Unaware on how she had managed to make it there, Gamo ended up at the graveyard that they had just been at yesterday, to bury Naoto's mother. It felt so foreign, somewhat disturbing even, to have wandered here without being aware of it.

Even so, now that she was here, she might as well make the most of it. With far more gentle steps, Gamo made her way over to where the Miss Hachiouji had been buried.

It shocked her to find that she wasn't the only one there.

"N-Naoto?"

Startled by her voice, the man kneeling in front of the gravestone flinched briefly, before turning to face Gamo with a solemn expression.

"H-Hi Gamo," Naoto weakly greeted her. "A surprise to see you here."

Gamo chewed on her lips as she slowly, cautiously, approached Naoto. Something about his eyes seemed cold and distant and it pained her to see him so.

"What are you doing here?" she asked, even though it was quite obvious and she immediately wanted to kick herself for it. "I thought you were still at home. How did you pass me?"

Naoto let out a chuckle as he returned his attention to the grave before him. "I snuck out through the window, after Hana tried to scold me."

Gamo couldn't help but smile a little at that.

"Oh, you're in trouble now mister," she joked, trying to lighten the mood.

"Maybe I am," Naoto admitted, not caring either way. "I just didn't want to be in that house anymore. Surrounded by people that were hurting cause of me."

Gamo's eye twitched at that remark. "That's not the case man. It wasn't your fault. I messed up."

"You didn't Maki."

The way Naoto said her name, so gently, so full of love and appreciation, tore at the womans heartstrings. She wanted to fall to her knees and wrap her arms around him.

"After what Nagatoro did," he started, taking a deep breath before continuing. "Do you really think I'd let something like that happen again?"

"That's not the point," Gamo remarked, her voice quiet and contemplative. "I shouldn't have initiated anything. You are hurt. You aren't-"

"What?" Naoto asked, now with a dangerous edge to his voice. "How long are we going to play that card? How many times do I have to hear that excuse? Not in the right mindset? When have I ever been!"

Naoto slowly stood from his kneeling position and looked directly into Gamo's eyes. His own were red, swollen, puffy, as if he had been crying here for quite some time.

"If you want to wait for me to have figured it all out, you might as well quit now," he stated. "I will never be all there. I will never be fully 'right' in the head. Like I said, stop trying to fix me. Stop waiting for me to wake up. You want something from me? This is the best I got. And it shouldn't be enough. You should never settle for less than you are worth. And you are all worth so much more than me."

Gamo took an instinctive step forward, wanting to stop him from speaking ill of himself, no matter what.

"We get to decide who is and isn't good enough for us!" Gamo corrected him, her eyes full of compassion. "Naoto, why can't you just see how much you mean to us? Why can't you see how important you are?"

"Oh, I see it," Naoto replied with a mocking scowl on his face. "But I don't accept it. It's stupid. Billions of people. Why me?"

"Who gives a shit!?" Gamo shouted now, her mind eroding from the constant bickering, arguing and need to validate her feelings. "I ain't going through billions of people to find the perfect dude. He can wait all he wants; I am not out here looking for him. I am looking for you! I fell in love with you! And that's all I want! You!"

Naoto scoffed, looking away in shame. "Stupid."

"So, what if I am!" Gamo continued to yell, taking another step forward. "Do you not love me? Did you not write an entire song about it? Did you not willingly give into me this morning!?"

"Of course, I did!" Naoto shouted back, his face contorting into a grimace of pain. "But that's because I-"

"You, what!?" Gamo dared him to finish the thought.

"I am not worth the love anyway," Naoto said calmly now. "I can pine for someone out of my league. It's expected. That's how it should go. I love you, you overlook me, move past me, find someone better. You aren't supposed to love me back."

"Who is stupid now, dipshit!?" Gamo yelled, staring at him incredolously. "Newsflash! You goofed! We all love you! Not just the three of us. You got so many people that want nothing but the best for you! They all love and care for you in their own way. Why is it so hard for you to just roll with that!"

Gamo ran her hands through her hair in frustration, the sweat on her forehead causing it to stick to her skin.

"You think your mother would want you to look at yourself like this?" she asked, trying to find a way to get through to him. "No parent would want their son to think so lowly of himself and throw aside all of the love given to him!"

"My father sure as shit doesn't care!" Naoto spat out without hesitation. "And my mother died! She left me! So she doesn't have to deal with my shit anymore."

Gamo's eyes narrowed as she felt her pulse shoot up. How could Naoto's view of reality be so warped!? It wasn't one thing, one instant, one screw up from another person, this was an entire life's worth of baggage, all crushing him beneath its weight at once. How was she meant to lift him up from beneath all of that?

"Naoto, that's not the case," she said softly as she now stood only inches away from him. "You know that. Your mother loved you. She would have never left you if it was up to her. I am sure of that."

"How could you be!?" he asked, a fearsome fire in his eyes. "You never met her! And now you never will!"

Gamo carefully lifted her hand and placed it gingerly onto Naoto's face. The man flinched slightly beneath her gentle touch, but otherwise remained still and honed in on his own frustrations.

"I didn't need to meet her," Gamo softly spoke, a sad smile playing on her lips. "I see the person she was within you, within the things she taught you, the way you treat those around you. The way you always care and always try your best."

Naoto gritted his teeth together in an attempt to keep himself composed, but he could feel the hot tears shoot into his eyes.

"I've done nothing good," he replied, absolutely in denial of everything decent in his life.

"That's not true!" Gamo replied with urgency in her voice. He needed to understand! "Despite the stuff we pulled, you always stuck by our sides, were always willing to listen to us, always helped us out when we asked. I don't want to hear this self deprecating nonsense from you!"

Gamo's body shook with frustration, but she managed to calm herself enough to carefully wrap her arms around Naoto. There was no pushback, no struggle to get away from her. Naoto allowed himself to comforted by the redhead, as she leaned her chin on his shoulder.

"Stop it Naoto," she begged with a soft whisper. "Please, just let us love you. Let others appreciate the person that you are. That's all we ask for."

Naoto's breathing became uneven and rough, and judging by the additional quaking of his body, Gamo assumed he had given into his need to cry.

"Shh, it's okay Naoto," Gamo cooed reassuringly as she ran her hand over his back. "Let it out. I'll be here for you. Always."

Naoto couldn't help but let out a laugh, cut short by his hyperventilating.

"W-W-Whatever hap-pened to the girl that p-p-put a collar around me? Called me a pet? A-A slave?"

Gamo's face grew a shade of crimson as she recalled all of those events. Part of her wanted to tease him back, tell him that she'd do it again, for different reasons now, but she bit her tongue and kept herself contained.

"That one mellowed out," she whispered, suppressing her desire to be swallowed by the ground. "She realized she failed her friends. She fell in love. She wants to be better. Don't get me wrong, that's still all there. I am still that same person beneath it all. If that's the girl you want, that's the one you gonna get."

That last sentence was spoken almost as if it was a threat, with a mischievous smirk on her face.

"But I know that's not sustainable," she continued softly. "I too have to grow up."

Gamo gently separated from Naoto and longingly gazed into his eyes.

"I know, this is an unfair question, and it's selfish of me to even ask, but-"

The redhead bit her lip and her eyes went everywhere, trying to find the correct words to voice her feelings.

"At any point in time, in high school... Was there ever any chance you looked at me, the way you did with Hayacchi?"

Naoto's face froze for a second, as if he hadn't ever expected to hear that question in his life. Nothing could have prepared him for it.

"I am sorry!" Gamo immediately blurted out, as she realized just how silly and uncalled for the question was. "Can't believe I asked this, right here, right now. You just make my brain melt- Not it's not right to blame you for it. I should be better than that. I-"

"I always thought you were gorgeous," Naoto interrupted her suddenly.

Gamo lips parted in shock as she perceived his message.

"Of course, I quickly, emotionally, gravitated toward Hayase. And I would be lying if I said you didn't scare me somewhat at the start. But- I always thought you were incredibly pretty. Not to mention when we went to the beach..."

Gamo smirked with a heavy blush on her cheeks. "Oh, is that so?"

The young woman leaned forward, raising one of her brows and allowed her tank top to show a little more than Naoto was used to, just to tease him a little.

"I wonder what could have caught your eye that day?" she joked with a playfully oblivious voice.

"N-No idea," Naoto retorted as he quickly averted his eyes.

A soft, gentle smile spread on Gamo's face as she observed Naoto's bashful face, his huge blush and the way he was at once uncomfortable, as well as clearly needy for more stimulation by her.

"You're just so cute," Gamo said bluntly. "Naoto, you are always allowed to look at me, you know?"

The amazon suppressed a giggle as she watched Naoto go stiff as a board.

"I like when you look at me. I like that I turn you on. You think only guys have dirty thoughts? Please. The way Hayacchi and I behave around you all the time should have taught you otherwise by now."

Naoto couldn't help but let out an awkward laugh as he looked back into Gamo's eyes.

"That may be true," he said with a little smirk that made Gamo's heart skip a beat. "But that doesn't mean I intend to be lewd in front of my mother."

Gamo quickly shot a glance back at the grave behind them, before shutting her eyes in disbelief and absolutely amazement at her own stupidity.

"I am such an idiot," she groaned as she pinched the bridge of her nose. "Why do you put up with me?"

"I mean, I do love you," Naoto said so nonchalantly that Gamo actually almost missed it.

The redhead clenched her jaw in response to those words, opening her eyes again to gaze into Naoto's.

"Well, your mom is witness to that too then," she said with a forced smile. "I wonder if she'd approve of me. Or this strange arrangement going on in her house right now."

"Yes and no," Naoto responded, almost immediately, as if he had spent some time thinking about this already. "I think, once she'd have gotten to know you, she'd have loved you. I don't know how she would react to how my life is going right now. I never.. I never had the heart to tell her everything that happened to me. I never wanted to burden her. She'd probably be lecturing me right now, telling me how horrible it was of me to leave you all in suspense about my decision and choices."

Gamo lowered her head slowly. Naoto had definitely thought this over before. The redhead wrung her hands as she tried to steer the conversation into a lighter direction.

"Naoto, you can take your time," she said, with less conviction than she had hoped for. "It hurts, don't get me wrong, but you shouldn't make a decision that you'll regret."

"I wouldn't have to make one at all, if both of you could just stop fighting," Naoto retorted, with a tired expression.

Gamo shook her head sadly. "That's not gonna happen. We both want you to ourselves. No sharing allowed. You have to choose."

Naoto looked around, as if searching for an answer to all his worries.

"What would you do if I chose her?" he asked, frustrated beyond measure that one of them would have to be hurt.

Feeling a painful pang of jealousy flare up inside of her, she smiled sullenly.

"I'd be devastated," Gamo admitted. "I'd cry and scream and I wouldn't want to accept it. God, that's so pathetic, thinking about it."

The redhead couldn't help but let out a sad chuckle as she tried to calm her emotions.

"But it's your decision to make. Eventually, I'd move on. I'd have to. What else is there to do?"

Naoto let out a heavy sigh as he eyed Gamo's wavering form.

"I'd never see you again, would I?" Naoto asked hesitantly.

Gamo smirked with a downcast look. "Probably not. I don't think I could be around the two of you. Man. Why does this suck so much?"

"You see now what I am saying!?" Naoto urged her. "How could I do that!? How could I tear you all apart!? That's not right! It's not fair!"

A frustrated growl escaped Gamo's throat as she shook her head.

"Sometimes friendships just can't last forever!" she convinced herself aloud.

Naoto didn't want to hear it. "You're going to throw years of friendship away cause of a guy!?"

"It's not just a guy!" Gamo shouted, as if he wasn't the one she was talking about. "He's the guy!"

Naoto shook his head. "You're being silly again."

"Naoto, so help me god, I am about to jump you again if you don't shut up," Gamo threatened, her expression changing between frustrated and mischievous.

"Is that so?" Naoto said, this time with a smirk on his face. "That sounds far less frightening than you make it out to be."

Gamo couldn't help but grin now, her playful side taking a hold of her. She could feel herself itching to do as she suggested and pin him down, to continue on from where they left of, but then her gaze fell back on the grave behind him and she quickly buried those thoughts.

"Come on," she said instead, reaching her hand out to take Naoto's. "Let's go back. The other two most likely caught on by now and are worried about you."

Sure enough, by the time they got back, Hana was standing by the front door, a shockingly haunting grimace on her face.

"We were worried sick about you!" Hana shouted, having fully lost her stoic persona. "And now I find out you were just hanging out with her!?"

"Yo, it's not like that," Gamo quickly tried to defend Naoto, but a quick upheld hand by Hana cut her off.

"Be quiet!" Hana ordered, a harrowing glint in her eyes. "You've done enough damage."

"Stop it, Hana!" Naoto insisted, with a far calmer demeanor than either of them had anticipated. "I left on my own. I went to the cemetery to speak to my mother. Gamo just happened to find me there."

Hana's lips curled inward, as if she had just bit into a lemon. She simply didn't want to accept that Naoto decided to sneak out and worry them all unnecessarily.

"You could have told us if you wanted to go there," Hana reminded him, far more collected now. "That's what we're here for. To support you."

"Well, good job on that so far," Naoto suddenly hissed, much to his own surprise. "I-I am sorry..."

Hana looked at the ground, hiding her undeniably hurt expression. "No. You're right. We messed up. We put our own feelings, our own needs, in front of yours and caused you more suffering."

"Hana- You know I didn't mean it like that.."

"Sure you did," Hana stated, now looking back up at him, her face having returned to its stoic nature. "And I am glad you said it. It shows your ability to push back against something you aren't willing to tolerate. It's exactly what you need."

With empathy filling her eyes, Gamo walked a few steps toward Hana.

"He's just really stressed out," Gamo tried to reassure the youngest of the bunch. "There's nothing about you to 'tolerate'. He's happy you're here."

Hana glanced at Gamo, tilting her head while doing so, as if to weigh the authenticity of her statement.

"Didn't you just ask me how I could be so cruel and unkind?" Hana reminded her.

Gamo shook her head, not needing to be reminded of that situation.

"That was different," she tried to explain. "We were all tense and angry at each other."

Naoto nodded, but he knew that this tension wasn't really gone. It was simply hiding beneath the surface, waiting to unveil itself at the worst possible time.

Their kohai simply stared at both at them in turn, then cleared her throat, and fully turned her attention to Naoto.

"Naoto-senpai, I have to ask you something," she quickly and concisely said.

Naoto raised a brow at this formal address. "Sure? What's up?"

Hana put her hands on her hips and leaned forward, as if she was about to chew him out.

"Have you ever loved me?"

Naoto's eyes widened in shock, while Gamo shut hers as in self defense.

"You're all so confused, I swear," Naoto chuckled grimly, staring directly into Hana's eyes.

"Answer the question," the purple haired woman demanded. "Is it true that you never even looked at me in such a light? Not once?"

Naoto lowered his head in defeat, knowing that he would have to come clean with her.

"Hana, listen," he began, but he could tell immediately, just by the way her lips twitched, that this wasn't a good start. "I honestly- I never thought you cared that much for me."

Beyond a shadow of a doubt, that was the last thing that Hana, or Gamo for that matter, had expected.

"What on earth do you mean!?" Hana wanted to know, her eyes doubling their usual size.

Naoto sighed and rubbed the back of his neck. "At first, I wasn't quite used to your personality. I assumed your distant behavior was you keeping me at arms length, as if you didn't want more from me than a crash course on art. And then, before I got to learn too much about you, I graduated. I didn't get to hear much from you. Most I knew was from Sana. She kept me updated on your progress. When you joined the art club, I was surprised, honestly. And, as you said yourself, you quickly shifted to be in Hayase and my corner, pushing me to be bolder about our relationship. So, at no point did I ever get the idea that you were interested in me beyond friendship. It wasn't until after I moved to Tokyo and you ended up visiting me more that I got to really understand everything there was to know about you..."

Hana's gaze softened as she listened to his explanation and she suddenly felt as if both of them had very different view of their friendship up to this point.

"You're truly the most oblivious man I know," Hana said with a sad smile. "I know that I struggle to let my feelings show normally, but to think that you never saw any of it..."

Gamo couldn't help but feel for the woman, absolutely devastated that her feelings had never even been noticed, let alone reciprocated.

"See?" Naoto said with a downcast look himself. "You are all lying to yourself, if you think I am anything special."

Hana shook her head, a couple of tears flying through the air. "You're wrong. You said you thought I was keeping you at arms length, that I didn't really care that much for our friendship, and yet you still did everything in your power to provide me with a wonderful experience, each and every time you had the chance to. T-That only makes me love you more."

"Stop that!" Naoto warned her, as if it was something he had any say over. "What do I have to do to get this into your guys' heads! Screw it, I'll date Tadano. Komi will have to deal."

"Oh no you don't!" Gamo howled as she put an arm around Naoto. "You're stuck with us."

"Speaking of," Naoto continued with a quizzical look. "Where's Hayase?"

Hana shut her eyes and pinched the bridge of her nose. "In your room. Waiting. She's quite peeved."

Course she would be.

Naoto chuckled and walked past Hana into the house and quickly ascended the staircase to his room. At the top, he could spot Nagatoro, sitting on his bed, staring through the window he had climbed out of.

"It's not that great of a view, honestly," he joked, startling Nagatoro.

The tanned woman spun around and jumped off the bed, landing in front of him.

"You!" she shouted in his face, her finger boring into his chest. "Do you have ANY idea how worried I was!?"

"Shouldn't you be out and about looking for me then?" Naoto teased with a smirk.

"I was!" Hayase growled back, her eyes narrowing into dangerous slits. "But then I was worried you'd come back, in need of help, so I came rushing back!"

Naoto's face softened as he saw a tear escape Nagatoro's eyes.

"I am sorry, Hayase," he apologized, as she blinked the embarrassing display away.

"You better be!" she crowed as she threw herself into him, wrapping her arms around his body. "I was- God! I can't stand you sometimes!"

Naoto chuckled awkwardly as he hugged her back and began lovingly stroking her hair. "What would you even be worried about? I know this town like the back of my hand."

Hayase clutched onto the hem of his shirt as she lifted her head to stare at him in disbelief.

"Getting hit by a car for example!?" she hissed. "And- If you tried something like at the train station again..."

Naoto's face fell as he was reminded that, of all the people in his life that cared for him, Hayase was the only one physically present at that moment in his life. Not only that, she saved him from himself. If she hadn't been there, he would be dead now.

Feeling a sense of overwhelming guilt crushing him, he quickly tightened the embrace and pushed Hayase's face into his chest.

"I am sorry..." he whispered regretfully. "I didn't mean to- I would never. I promise Hayase. I would talk to you first, before considered such drastic measures."

Hayase let herself sob softly into his chest, staining his shirt with her hot tears. This had been an absolute clusterfuck of twenty four hours, and Naoto would have been grateful for it all to just stop. He wanted to find a means to provide everyone with some form of happiness, some sense of closure and a future in which no one would have to hurt. But he knew that was naive. He knew it would never work. Now it was up to him to decide who'd be left behind, broken and alone.

"The others are waiting downstairs," Naoto tried to get Hayase's attention. "Are you okay to join them?"

But Hayase simply clung to him even tighter, her fingers clutching onto his shirt, as if she never intended to let go of him again.

"Just a little more.." she softly requested and Naoto nodded silently, as he continued caressing her hair.