The two boys sat right next to each other on a bench, it was a warm day in spring. Unfortunately, they had to stay in the schoolyard instead of visiting the parks or meeting friends. It would be a perfect day to do so.

The two had never talked to each other yet, even though they were classmates. That was probably the case because Riku never talked to anyone as long as he wasn't asked to do so. He was rather tiny for a boy his age. He seemed to be pretty shy and you could get the expression that he's way younger than he actually is. A brown streak covered his left eye, his hair was a bit longer than it should be. His eyes had the same color as his hair and he was really thin. The boy looked on the ground, he didn't want to look around, didn't want to look at the other one sitting next to him on the bench.

Izumi had a strong charisma. He seemed strong and self-confident, and that's just what he was. His black hair was a little blown by the wind, he was smiling. He looked around, his eyes had an unusual color: They were grey. They were beautiful, they were probably the detail that the people around him liked the most about his appearance, the first thing they noticed about him when they came near him. If you looked closely, you could see the six-pack underneath his white shirt. He was pretty tall, probably the tallest person in the class. Most of his classmates liked him, he was a really friendly and kind person that tried to help in any possible way. He seemingly never stopped smiling, he was such a positive and pure person.

Izumi had noticed Riku's loneliness in class for quite a while already, but he has never got the chance to talk to him about it before. He thought that he might be afraid to talk to people, so he wanted to help him. He looked at him and called him by his name.

"Akimine-kun?", he asked. He had a really nice and charming voice, it seemed warm and soft but it was still kind of deep.

Riku twitched when he heard his name. It was unusual for him that someone actually talked to him, it kind of confused him that Izumi has started speaking to him.

"Y-Yeah?", he replied. He hadn't talked for quite a while and the situation made him feel very uncomfortable. He still looked down on the ground, knowing that Izumi was looking at him with his beautiful grey eyes.

"I'm a little worried about you. You don't talk to the others, not even to our teachers, and you seemingly don't have friends in class, so I kept asking myself why that's the case."

Riku was even more confused. Why did that popular boy suddenly start to care about him? What was the point in doing so? Or was it just a joke to tease him? He decided to keep quiet, he didn't say a word. If this was just some kind of joke, he would not respond to this.

Izumi continued speaking: "I think, that it has to do something with some kind of fear. Are you afraid of talking to others, Akimine-kun?"

Riku shook his head a little.

"I-I am not... afraid... of them..."

He didn't know why he was stuttering. Sure, he was a little nervous but that didn't seem to be the reason.

Izumi leaned his head to the side.

"Is it something else you fear? Are you afraid that they'll laugh at you?"

Riku shook his head again.

"I d-don't... fear..."

"Huh?", the other one asked in confusion. "What do you mean by that?"

Izumi was kind of interested in him. He seemed to be a mysterious person and he liked those a lot, even though he hasn't met any of these kinds of persons, he just read about them in books. They are usually hiding something and keep it a secret until they start trusting someone.

"W-Why should I... be afraid... of something?", the brown-haired asked.

"Well", the taller one answered, "everyone is afraid of something, right? You know, some are afraid of being bullied or of insects or syringes, many people are afraid of losing someone."

His voice somehow calmed the shy one down, he enjoyed listening to this voice.

"I am... not afraid..."

Izumi was a bit irritated by that. Not afraid of anything? How? There must be something.

"Why aren't you afraid of losing someone?", he questioned him curiously.

"There's... no one..."

That somehow shocked the black-haired, he didn't expect to get that answer.

"Family? Friends?"

"No one...", he repeated himself.

The two kept quiet for a while and Izumi started to think for a while what to do next. He guessed that Riku was an orphan or simply didn't like his family, that isn't uncommon nowadays. But how come he didn't have friends? There must have been someone at least in middle school who tried to talk to him and make friends with him. It was really strange to him and he couldn't explain it.

"Hey, Akimine-kun."

No answer.

"Look at me, Akimine-kun."

The boy didn't react.

He got closer to him, grabbed his chin carefully and turned it to him so Riku had to look at him. A slight blush appeared on his cheek. The boy with the grey eyes smiled a bit more and he chuckled a little.

"Akimine-kun", he whispered, "let me be the one you'll be afraid of losing."