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Hitoya prided himself on his ability to tell when something was wrong with someone. Having worked with kids for so long, he could pick up on small changes in behavior pretty well, if he said so himself. Though this ability was better suited towards dealing with children instead of adults, (namely, one long, gray-haired doctor) Children and teenagers with underlying trauma, which certainly included one Jyushi Aimono.
So, when Hitoya met up with Jyushi and Kuko for one of Kuko’s “family bonding exercises” (which usually included Hitoya buying everyone lunch), he was quick to notice Jyushi clutching Amanda slightly tighter than usual. He opted not to say anything right away, if the kid was anxious about something, there was no need to bring it up in public. If anything got worse, he’d ask him later. It must be weighing on him heavily, as he wasn’t switching into his usual visual-kei personality.
Hitoya kept an eye on Jyushi as the group followed Kuko to some new ramen joint he found, catching the way Jyushi kept his eyes trained on the ground while Kuko rambled on about strength training. By the time the group arrived at the restaurant, Kuko seemed to have also caught on to Jyushi’s odd behavior.
Before Kuko could open his loud mouth and say something without thinking it through, Hitoya grabbed his arm and tugged him over to a table further away from others in the restaurant. Jyushi didn’t even seem to notice, following along quietly. They took their seats and the waiter poured them some water, leaving them be to look over the menus. Hitoya sat across from the two teenagers as he sighed and rubbed his temples, finally breaking the silence.
“Hey, Jyushi..”
Jyushi seemed to startle, like his mind wasn’t entirely there.
“Ah-? Y- yes Hitoya-san?”
Hitoya sighed again, “There’s two things I hate, one, over-brewed coffee, two, kids who won’t tell adults when somethings wrong.”
Jyushi glanced at him nervously in response, opening and then closing his mouth. Before he could come up with an excuse, Kuko spoke.
“Yeah, you’ve been actin’ all spacey and junk.” Kuko gestured with his hand, leaning toward Jyushi, causing the taller boy to lean back into the wall behind him.
Kuko, ever the way with words. Though, Hitoya couldn’t bring himself to reprimand the boy, he knew Kuko’s words were rooted in worry, however… boorish his manner of speaking was.
“N-nothing is wrong, Kuko-san, Hitoya-san.” Jyushi chuckled nervously, wholly unconvincing.
Hitoya raised an eyebrow as he ran through any reason Jyushi could be upset. Trouble with his previous show? No, Hitoya and Kuko watched it themselves and there were no hiccups. Something else? Was Hitoya forgetting an important date? He’d known Jyushi for about a year now, and he couldn’t think of any date he was forgetting.
About a… year…
Oh.
Today marked a year since Jyushi’s bullies had been arrested. Of course he seemed anxious. There were probably some… less than savory memories bubbling up.
“Jyushi. Kuko. After we eat, lets go to the arcade. My treat.”
Kuko leaned forward over the table, excitedly.
“Really old man?! Lucky-!”
Hitoya was watching Jyushi, though. He seemed to ease up his hold on Amanda ever so slightly, which was better than nothing. If spoiling Jyushi (and by correlation, Kuko) was what it took for him to cheer up, even slightly, then thats what Hitoya would do.
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Hitoya was quick to pull Kuko aside after they exited the restaurant, Jyushi having a touch more bounce in his step at the concept of a chance to win a few more plushies as friends for Amanda.
Hitoya was sure to keep an eye on Jyushi as he leaned down and spoke quietly to Kuko.
“Kuko. Keep an eye on Jyushi today, it’s the year anniversary of the conclusion of the case around his grandmother.”
He saw something spark in Kuko’s eyes for a brief moment before he was back to his feral, dog-like self. He pointed a thumb at his chest and grinned at Hitoya.
“Course! Leave it to me! I’ll make sure Jyushi forgets all his problems today!”
As loud and crude as Kuko was, Hitoya knew he could count on him. The group came to a stop in front of one of Nagoya’s larger arcades. He watched Kuko walk up and pull Jyushi in by the arm, gesturing for Hitoya to follow and buy them some coins to play with. Hitoya complied without his usual complaints, content to spend as much money as needed to get Jyushi back to his regular self.
He watched as Kuko pulled Jyushi around the arcade proudly declaring that “as the unit leader, he’d win Jyushi as many prizes as he could imagine.” Jyushi seemed to slowly forget his earlier nervousness as Kuko pulled him around, the duo looking like an owner being dragged by a dog on a walk.
When the group finally left the arcade, Jyushi’s arms were full of more plushies than he could handle. Hitoya took pity on him and took a few bags from him as he contemplated how to finish out the day. Jyushi seemed almost normal, but something was still off, maybe the way his steps still faltered slightly, though he seemed to have loosened his deathgrip on Amanda.
Well, no better way to cheer the kid up than some dessert. He feigned checking the time on his watch while he stretched his arms above his head, yawning. Jyushi glanced over, nervously.
“Ah? Hitoya? A- are you tired..? S- sorry for making you run around all day with me…”
Darn kid and his awful self-esteem-
“I was just thinking about how I could go for some dessert.” Hitoya answered smoothly.
“R- really-? Like what?” Jyushi glanced down, Hitoya could tell he had something in mind, but was too nervous to say it.
Hitoya cast a glance at Kuko, sending him a silent message to propose whatever dessert Jyushi would like the most.
Kuko- as dull-brained as he could be sometimes- caught on instantly.
“Lets get crepes! Theres a new truck that opened up over here!” Kuko grabbed Jyushi by the arm yet again, pulling him along quickly, as he marched toward wherever this truck was. Hitoya followed leisurely behind them, noticing a few glances toward the louder member of their group. He opted to ignore them, might as well let Kuko go wild if it meant Jyushi felt better.
When he made it to the crepe truck, Kuko must've already ordered half the menu himself, if the total on the screen next to him was anything to go by. He cringed slightly, this would definitely hurt his wallet…
As the trio set and ate their respective crepe flavors (or multiple flavors, in Kukos case) Hitoya watched Jyushi yet again. His usual smile was back on his face and he was chatting with Kuko like usual. As he listened to Kuko loudly proclaim that they should have a sleepover as yet another bonding exercise, Hitoya knew that Jyushi would be just fine.