Once we were a good deal from the stadium, retreating into the crowd of families we had rescued, I pulled Kyoya's jacket away from my mouth.

The air hung with the touch of ash, the scent of something burning laced through the air.

My throat cooled at the touch of clean air, and I brought the jacket to my side, spinning around and looking at the painting on fire that the stadium had been fashioned into.

People hustled by me, clad in thick and armored clothing, each carrying a tube, probably connected to a water source. As sounds of water spraying hissed through the air, I watched each fire be put out, one by one.

"Dammit..."

Next to me, Kyoya ground his teeth, and I could see droplets of red well up on his bottom lip. He held his arm, one hand cupped over his upper forearm, fingers just barely quivering.

"K-Kyoya," I coughed out, my words bristling in the air. "Are you okay?"

"Fine," he snarled.

I took a step towards him- instinctively, he stepped back, lips peeling back to reveal the sharpened teeth of his mouth.

"Don't come near me."

"You're hurt," I retorted.

Kyoya let out a laugh, letting his head fall back a bit and cold laughter brushed through him.

"Hurt? This is nothing."

His eye twitched slightly, but I ground my teeth.

"Stop being an asshole, asshole. Good god, take your hand off your arm."

"No."

"Kyoya."

"No."

"Tategami."

"No."

I bite my lip, my eyes straying to where he had his hand wrapped around his arm.

"I will wrestle your goddamn hand from your arm if I need to."

He didn't reply, taking a few steps away from me and the families in a different direction. Jogging with him, I lashed out, taking hold of his arm.

With a hiss, Kyoya tried to jerk away from me, the noise slicing through the area. In the sudden, single moment that I saw what he had been covering, my stomach flip-flopped.

"Is this some goddamn burn?!" I exclaimed, reaching out again.

"Get away from me!"

"Kyoya, you might not recognize me as a friend, but that needs to be treated!" I barked, my fingers curling into a fist. 

Gritting his teeth, the Leone user covered up the burns again, but I didn't miss the goddamn wince that rippled through his body. 

"Now."

He curled his lip, staring down at me with a wall in his eyes, but it was only when Kyoya fully turned towards me and tilted his head in questioning did I offer him my hand. 

"Do you trust me?"

"No, not really," Kyoya grumbled, but he clasped my hand, a heater held in my palm.

"Wow, y'know I could've shocked you right then and there. I'm flattered, honestly-"

"Shut up!"

I allowed a smile to scurry across my lips, but once I looked at the way he was holding his arm, more gingerly than what I had ever seen him, it faded. 

"Do you know where the nearest hospital is?" I asked the nearest family. The father looked me straight in the eye, then pointed to our left. "Thanks."

"I can get there on my own," Kyoya snarled out, but I glanced at him with a raised eyebrow. "Ugh. You're unbelievable."

I let out a bark of laughter, leading him in the direction of where the father had pointed. "And I'm your friend. Ish. More like the weird aunt that's in the corner rocking back and forth due to the cringe of the family and social interactions."

"Wonderful."

I pressed his jacket into his hands, jerking my chin to the burn.

We walked in silence, and it was only two or three minutes into walking that I realized that I was still latched onto his wrist, making sure that he was still present, that he was still beside me, that he was going to get treated.

"Sorry," I said quietly. 

No response. 

After about fifteen minutes of walking, Kyoya had slowed and was clutching his arm again, gritting his teeth. 

My breath caught with worry, shoulder tensing.

"I'm fine. I'm good. No worries. 'm fine."

"Yes, fine, while you grit your teeth. Hurry up," I hesitated. "Please. I... I don't want to see you like this."

Eyes the color of melted glass met mine, and I started to jog, as if to coax him on. I could see the hospital now. 

"A little more. For me."

He pulled himself to match my pace, and I slammed my elbow against the hospital door, knocking it open. "Excuse me! My friend's burnt from the stadium a distance away!"

Three pairs of eyes pulled from the screen that was cast in fire- showing the very stadium that we had just gotten out of. The screen changed to show a picture of- 

Kyoya and I.

I inhaled sharply, eyes trained on the screen as the fire lit up behind me, making the frizz on my hair light up in a golden hue. Kyoya was behind me, glancing towards me with his lip curled and hands clenched at his sides. 

"C... Can you help my friend?"

The word 'friend' tasted vile on my tongue, but I forced it through my teeth anyway. With a hand, I gestured to Kyoya next to me. The person at the desk hustled up next to me, taking Kyoya into a bleached room. 

I took a seat at one of the couches, trying to ignore the looks that bore into me. Knotting my fingers together, I stared at a spot on the wall, mind swaying. 

"Tess," someone said quietly, and I glanced up into bright blue eyes. Madoka pried my fingers from where they gripped my wrists so tightly that the bone might snap. "He'll be fine. If anyone can go through a burn without flinching, it's Kyoya."

"It wasn't just a burn, though. Who... Who even knows what else he has on him? Injuries, burns? What if that burn is a third-degree burn?"

Madoka touched my shoulder comfortingly, and it was only under the crisp rustle of burnt fabric did I realize that one of the sleeves of my shirt had burned off. 

"Like I said, he'll be fine. Kyoya's gone through a lot, y'know? And when I say a lot, I mean a lot! I wouldn't doubt the guy if he said that he defeated a pack of lions!"

"More like befriended them," I commented.

Madoka giggled, pressing one hand to her mouth. "Yeah, probably!"

My eyes crinkled in a smile, at the verge of fading as I looked towards the hospital rooms again. She nudged me in the arm with a fist, knocking my attention away from where Kyoya was being held.

"He's not the only thing in your world, you know. You're acting like Kyoya with Gingka, minus the whole "I'm gonna beat ya' thing", you get me?"

I set my elbow on the armrest of the couch curiously, cocking my head. I hadn't seen Kyoya's interactions with Gingka's interactions before (unless my memory's being crap, which is likely. Wouldn't put it past it), only had rumors touch my ear. 

"I'd like to see Kyoya and Gingka battle some time," I murmured. 

"It's great!" The air around the girl lit up as she brought her hands to her chest. "Like, it's super wild and crazy, seeing Kyoya, but Gingka's so determined to give Kyoya a battle he'll enjoy, despite his motives. He has a heart, you know. Both of them."

The wall seemed to become interesting as I didn't respond, glancing towards the discolored spots. 

"Kyoya's is just buried."

Tracing a symbol onto the couch, I nodded.

"I know."