Open Sky Yet Not [KHR Fanfic]

Target 7: Impressions

"Tsuna-nii."

"Hm?" Tsuna looked towards his swing partner. Fuuta had taken to calling him that a week or two after he arrived, seeing how he had spent quite a lot of time playing and reading with him and I-pin.... There wasn't much he could do anyways. ( Walking took too much effort and he had to stop every few minutes. He needed Fuuta and I-pin to support him most of the time too so... yeah, there was plenty of bonding time there.)

"Is there something wrong?"

"What do you mean?" Tsuna frowned, his shoulders suddenly tensing out of habit.

"You were staring off into space again," Fuuta pointed out with concern. "You do that a lot."

"I do?"

The blonde nodded.

"... I guess I do," Tsuna chuckled wryly, then allow himself a few swings before finally responding  with another question. "Ne, what do you think of Ienari-kun?"

"Nari-nii?" Fuuta frowned in thought and pushed his swing like Tsuna did; the metal chains causing a few squeaks here and there. "He... could be nice. I mean, he cares enough to protect us..."

"But?" The brunet prompted what was unspoken, swinging higher and higher.

"He's too..." Fuuta scrunched up his face to find the right word in his eleven-years-old mind. "Far away."

"... So it's not just me then."

"Huh?"

Tsuna came to a screeching stop, furrowing slighly on the ground, and watched I-pin and Lambo play tag in the distance. "There's a wall around him, even towards Kaa-san."

"A wall?"

"A metaphor," Tsuna explained patiently. "It means he is isolating himself from others, he doesn't want them to get closer to him."

"Oh..." Fuuta stopped swinging as well and contemplated it for a moment before looking up at the brunet. "Is that bad?"

"Depends." Tsuna hummed and looked up at the darkening sky. "The sky's kind of lonely, don't you think?"

"What?" Fuuta blinked, not quite sure if he understood the older male's words normally. But... if he was speaking in terms of - no, Tsuna shouldn't even know about the mafia so there was no way he would know about flames - or guardians for that matter.

... A coincidence maybe?

He merely watched his brother - figure keep his gaze towards the sky. A look of sadness that Fuuta found on him occasionally but it disappeared as quick as it came. This one, though,  lingered, and there was more to it. 

Regret, guilt, anger all mixed together in those misty eyes.

His brother - figure looks so close to collapsing despite whatever weight he's carrying.

Fuuta didn't understand Tsuna because the latter kept his distance too. They were close, but he felt a certain length Tsuna would put in between them no matter how close they are... just like Ienari.

However, unlike Ienari, Tsuna was filled with a certain determination. An undecipherable one, but a strong determination nonetheless. So no matter how much weight he is carrying, Tsuna will not break under the pressure.

Tsuna pulled Fuuta in more than Ienari did. And he wondered if it was because of those gentle sunset-orange eyes or those warm, yet strained smiles - or maybe it was when he looked like he was about to break when he thought no one notice.

Tsuna is strong, and Fuuta admired that.

So whatever secret his surrogate brother was hiding, he could wait. Wait until Tsuna is comfortable to share it. That was what family is for right? Be there for each other at the right place and time.