Present day - August 1
2nd, break of dawn

Chris leaned harder on the paint ridden wall behind him.

The memories were coming back as his pain started to accumulate.

Tears flooded down his face, proof of his weakness. Then he heard footsteps with the sound of panting.

He immediately moved and picked up a piece of a metal rod nearby due to reflexes.

"B-B-Brother? Cri- Nii?" He heard Amane's sweet voice.

He immediately wiped the tears off his face and tried to put on a brave grin but to no avail. She came rushing into the hallway and when she saw his face, she squealed in delight and tackled him in a hug, almost smacking the stiff wall.

"What business do you have here, in this AMAZING place?" Chris tried to choke back more tears.

"When you said you were at the old place, I rushed to the school and didn't find you there. Then I saw this behemoth in the corner of my eye and rushed as fast as I could" She didn't loosen her hug on him as she fired her words like a machine gun.

And he understood part of it.

She knew he was crazy, from past events.

"And, how did you run up all these stairs? You little devil? It's not even an hour late!"

Chris forced his tone to Japanese to go on her speed. He knew that extreme emmotional factors force you to use your natural language. He couldn't afford to show that to Amane.

He had to stay strong. For her. For his adopted sister of sorts.

He had to......

As he stroked her hair and feeling the warmth of a hug after many days, he noticed that the sun was rising.

Grrrrrrrrrrr.... went his upset stomach. Only then did he remember that he hadn't eaten since he got out.

Or drunk anything, for that case.

"It was yesterday.... You were missing for 24 hours! Isn't that reason enough to search for you?!"

A pause as Chris realised what happened.

But Ichine Amane had other ideas.

"What were you thinking? Accepting that it was you?! You had me so worried!!" She broke down in his arms, pounding her fists at his chest until her hands became numb, remembering the acts on the juvenile court.

She looked up at his face, expecting some sort of disappointed emotion. But he has the look of someone who had lost a soul had.

He did.

The expression of guilt, hatred, loneliness and fear all into one.

She wasn't there for him......

He learned down and gently tightened his grip on her and kissed her forehead, and placing his forehead on top of her head and passed out from an empty stomach.

"Stupid Cri - Nii. Always worrying others. Stupid" Amane sighed and carried him down all those stairs. And boy was he heavy for her......

It took her about an hour to do that.....

All those in mind, "Why did he come here of all places?" She knew that the memories of this place shattered his heart. More than others. He loved everyone he knew.

But he loved Haruka Matoka much more.

He loved her too much.

Too much......

And it broke him.

*****

By the time Chris woke up, he was back at his home. After realising he wasn't at Kibō anymore.

And it pained him just thinking about that place.

It had both the moments that had decimated his heart and one that made him smile from one side of his face to the other.

And both involved her.

Then he noticed that Amane was tucked under his arms, drooling on his biceps.

That also made him smile and feel disgusted at the same time.

"I'm sorry." He stroked her hair and gave her another kiss to the forehead, careful not to wake her up.

"I can't forget her. It's the only way"

"Aaigh... Chrish. Fooood" Mumbled little Amane.

Tears streamed down his face again. He couldn't take it any more.

He couldn't sacrifice one for the other.

"Alright. One more week" He made a deal with sleeping Amane.

*****