{ Present Day }
"Akira. Can we talk?"
Nothing. No reply.
Hinasuke exhaled sharply through his nose, "Hey, you in there?"
His tone was soft, softer than it had ever been, but...the silence he received from her made his chest tighten.
"Look, I...I know these past few months have been rough. I mean, you're barely eating, barely leaving the house...you—" his voice cracked for a moment.
That never happened with him.
"... you're not even sleeping anymore. You don't talk to us. Yoshida's stopped going anywhere except college and then straight back to our place, Yano's been worried sick about you and..." He leaned his head against the door, his fist bawled up as he rose his hand to strike the door, only to hesitate and let his hand slump.
"We miss you, Aki. We miss the Akira that'd smile over the dumbest things. The Akira that always loved playing a few decks of cards. The...Akira that was always trying, always strong."
Still, his words weren't being reciprocated.
"I miss him too, y'know? I miss Akashi too. We all do." His voice wobbled a little, "...but he wouldn't want us to just give up on living. He wouldn't want us to just...forget everything we've been through just to be here."
The silence was unbearable. All he could hear was the very faint breathing behind the door, her shadow clearly unmoving from the crack underneath the door.
This hurt. The feeling of hopelessness, the feeling of not being capable of doing a single damn thing for her.
This wasn't fair. Why? Why did Akashi just have to—
"I...wish I could die."
Hina's breath hitched as he looked up. He pressed his ear against the door, his heart pounding. He could practically taste the fear in his tounge.
He heard footsteps.
Chair being dragged. Drawer opening. The switch on the wall being turned off.
"Akira?"
The chair stopped. He heard the faint creak of the meta bending.
"Akira!?" He said, his hands trying to push the door open, but it wouldn't budge, "Akira, open the door!"
He could hear fibres being pulled around, the faint tightening sound of friction.
His ears started ringing, heart beating louder with each passing second, his hands gripping the doorknob with intense force before the residue within him made his hands glow green and melt the doorknob.
"Akira!" He burst through the door, it's hinges flinging open as he caught her body just before the chair supporting her broke apart.
"Dammit, Akira, what the hell are you doing?!" He barked as he ripped the rope off her neck, grounding her as he hugged her close.
"Just let me die. There's no point to living anymore—"
"—Bullshit! You don't get to say that after all the hell Akashi went through just so you could have a better future!"
That one hit her like a freight train. Her eyes, swollen, puffy, red-rimmed from crying her mind and soul out, softened slightly.
"Akashi worked his ass off day and night, never making time for himself just so he could feed you! That's what you told me remember?!" He yelled, his chest rising with each squeeze he gave her, "He's the one who taught you about energy dispositions! He's the one who taught you how Essentials use energy throughout their bodies, right?! That we're part of the majority that can use energy, right?! He's the one that taught you better than every damn teacher we've ever had, Akira. You told me that!"
She bit her lip hard enough to taste blood, her eyes glistening as the memories came back, hot and unwanted.
He cradled her as he lowered his tone, "Akashi's the one who took you to that one Sushi restaurant by Shibuya last year when you were suspended. You remember what he said? Remember the trouble he got into with the staff?" He whispered.
Akira's lip trembled, her throat tighter than a vice as she tried—and failed—to say, "Stop"
Her voice broke apart as she clung onto Hinasuke's forearm, her breathing quivering.
"Akashi gave everything for you. He even pleaded with the teacher to not let anyone in school know that you're a Hybrid, Akira..."
"S-Stop...please..."
"He gave you his life when you were just 6. He had no one to ask for help. He was alone in grooming you. He had to learn how read, just so you could learn how to write. You told me this, Akira..." Hinasuke muttered in her ear, soft, gently.
"... He's gone." She said, her eyes squeezing shut as she allowed Hina to bring her closer, his chin atop her head as she let small pathetic sobs slip.
"Maybe so, but even then, Akira...Akashi did all that for you. He wanted you to live a better life than the one he had, don't let all his sacrifices be in vain...please."
She buried herself in his shoulder as she cried, "I can't even breathe without him anymore. He's gone, Hina. My brother's gone."
Hina's brows knitted together as he tried to fight back the emotion that threatened to burst from him, "I know, Akira, but we need to keep going. For him. It's what he would've wanted."
But then her voice came out heartbreakingly fragile, "If he wanted me to keep going...he...he would've kept himself alive for me."
At that, despite always being the one to keep a quiet calm, even Hina couldn't stop the tears that snuck out his eyes. He held her tight. Held her close as the quiet ironclad held the girl who's world had been ripped away from her...again.