Abc's

C – is for comfort.

✧

Manjiro isn't a comforting person by nature, he doesn't feel like he has enough empathy inside him to feel compassion for others. He leaves such things messy things as emotions or sentiments to the other members of Toman.

Draken deals with it pretty well, he's known 'Mikey' since they were kids and knows the right words to say, the right gestures to make to appease and comfort someone. He knows Mikey is more of a protective force of nature, all fierce action instead of sweet words.

Manjiro just doesn't see himself hugging someone or offering pats on the head, shoulder, or – anywhere really.

However, it slowly changes when he sees Takemichi cry. It's not at all uncommon to see the younger teenager cry, Chifuyu once joked 'Takemitchy has the biggest tear ducts in the history of humanity. A comment he agrees with, and every time Manjiro sees Takemichi bloody and bruises and crying those huge tears of his over his friends, something inside of him twinges.

A small twinge in his chest, somewhere near his heart and he clutches uselessly at it every time. The unfamiliar urge to wrap his arms around the young blonde building, and he doesn't know what to do with himself.

Every time Takemichi gets hurt, the ridiculous need to whisk the younger teen away and wrap him in blankets, pillows, fuck – bubble wrap – never fades. It's absurd, he's never felt like this before and as he watches Takemichi smile through blood cracked lips, he realizes he never wants the feeling to fade.

D is for Denial.

✧

Despite what her dear brother thinks, Emma isn't entirely clueless. She has eyes for goodness' sake, she can see how her idiotic brother looks at his young Captain, and she can see in turn the lingering looks the other gives her brother in return.

Cheeks flushed and fingers fidgeting, she knows, because she does the same around Draken.

They're both oblivious and incredibly dumb, two peas in a pod.

Finally, she asks her brother how he feels about Takemichi, and while he adamantly claims that he doesn't feel anything special for him, nothing but close friendship, the small quiver in his voice gives him away.

E is for Empty.

✧

Takemichi was used to finding things empty, his home, his life, everything around him was empty, void of anything valuable, himself included.

And with nothing in his life, he felt meaningless, and sometimes he thought it was better if he didn't exist in the first place.

A life-changing incident and suddenly he found himself in the past surrounded by people he abandoned, and he swore this time he'd change his future.

No longer would he live such and meaningless and empty life.

F – is for Façade.

✧

Takemichi always knew that his personality was a front. No one could be that naïve and simple-minded all the time, so cheerful and carefree, despite the world they lived in.

No, he wasn't completely unaware of the darkness that hid inside him, although for a long while he had managed to hide his true self from him and everyone else. He was adept at playing the happy-go-lucky leader of the great Toman biker gang, he was so dependable and trustworthy. But often enough, Takemichi saw a lightning-quick glimpse of the man hiding underneath the guise of a boy, and suddenly, he realized that Mikey was playing a part.