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Dopant cases had seen a significant decrease ever since the collapse of Museum, which was why it had been difficult for Shoutarou to notice it. But once he did, he knew this wasn't the first time.
Philip was reluctant to become W.
There was a lot of signs, now that he thought about it. At first, he attributed it to Philip's awkward attempts in readjusting to his life as a human again. Then, he attributed it to the shock of his family's death. But when he found Philip's Memories scattered on the ground in the garage base the other day, that's how Shoutarou became certain that Philip was, more than anything, actually reluctant to use those Memories to become W.
He wasn't mad at Philip. Not really. After all that had happened, he knew it would be hard for Philip to accept everything. One thing kept occurring after another, too fast and unrelenting for anyone to slow down and take it in, and Philip was, at the end of the day, despite his vast brilliance, just a human being. Shoutarou couldn't begin to imagine how he must have felt during all those times.
The pain, the burden... He couldn't even imagine how much they had accumulated over the weeks and months, and how heavy they would've weighed on Philip's heart and consciousness now.
So, no. He wasn't particularly mad at Philip for throwing away the Memories. Or hating them even.
On the contrary, what Shoutarou was mad at Philip for was his silence. And his fake “normal” exterior. And his flippant way of responding to Shoutarou's “Are you okay?” questions. He hadn't even touched his blank book. Hadn't even been obsessing over something weird or mainstream at all! This Philip in front of him was not the one he knew or remembered. This Philip before him was just a shell of a human being!
These were why Shoutarou was mad at Philip for the most.
It pained him to see Philip act like everything was fine when nothing was. It hurt him a lot each time he saw Philip fake a smile just to get people off of him. He thought they were partners, forever partners, and yet here he was, feeling so far away from Philip now than ever before.
And his heart ached, and it ached intensely, even more than ever before.
Which was why Shoutarou was decided. He couldn't stay quiet and watch Philip destroy himself any further. He would not and simply refused to let that happen on his watch.
Grabbing Philip's Memories, Shoutarou barged into the garage. Philip's laughter rang across the place, accompanied by a faint noise from the DVD player.
“Oh, Shoutarou,” Philip said, eyes fixed on the player screen. “What's the matter? Would you like to watch this movie, too?”
Ignoring him, Shoutarou looked around the room instead. The whiteboards were bare. There was no scribbling at all, not even a little doodle. Just an empty white space with no trace of it being used. Even the Memory Gadgets — Frog and Denden — looked like they hadn't seen outside in forever. His heart ached, jaw clenched.
“Oi, Philip.”
“Mm?” Philip replied nonchalantly, still focused on the movie.
“These. Did you drop these?” Shoutarou raised the three Memories for him to see.
But Philip simply glanced in his direction before going back to the movie. “Oh, where did you found those, Shoutarou? I haven't seen them in a while.”
Shoutarou took a deep breath, tried to control his temper. “Did you lost them?” he asked as calmly as he could manage.
“I think so. But it's fine. It's not like you need me as W that often these days, right? I heard you've been doing well as Kamen Rider Joker. Aki-chan told me.”
“Is that what you think?”
“Mm.”
Anger began to flare up in his chest. “Really?”
“Yes.”
Shoutarou's expression shifted. His hand lowered, his grip on the Memories tightened. He stared at Philip for another moment, then said, “Look at me, Philip.”
“Hm?”
“Look at me when I'm talking to you.” The words escaped harsher than he had intended, but at this point, Shoutarou no longer had any confidence in his ability to control his emotions.
Philip sighed, then reluctantly looked at him. “What is it, Shoutarou?” The movie was still playing on the screen, its noise grating Shoutarou's ears.
“That thing. Turn it off,” he said next, nodding at the DVD player.
Philip frowned at that, obviously annoyed. “What's the matter? Don't like me watching a movie?”
“I don't like seeing you wasting around doing nothing.”
Philip quirked an eyebrow. “What do you mean by that?”
“Is this what you want, Philip? Is this how you want to live your life now?!”
“What are you talking about? I've been living my life the same as before.”
“Stop bullshitting me!” Before Shoutarou knew it, he snapped. “This isn't how you've lived your life before! Look! There's nothing on these whiteboards at all! How long has it been since you entered Gaia Library, huh? And those Memory Gadgets, they all just sit there collecting dust. How long has it been since you tinkered with them?”
“So what?” Shutting close the DVD player, Philip stood up. His frown deepened, face red with anger. “Why do you care about how I live my life? What is it to you if I enter the Library or not? If you care so much about the Gadgets, then go ahead and take them all. Nobody is stopping you.”
“What? What did you say? Why do I care? You asked me why do I care? Because you are my partner! Because you are my partner, that's why I care! Isn't it obvious? You have changed, Philip. You've changed a lot and it worries me. Ever since you came back, you never talk about your family or yourself. You no longer want to use your Memories and become W. Nothing ever piques your interest like it used to. All you do now is hide in this damn place all day and watch stupid movies and series! Tell me, are you even sleeping properly? Are you eating properly?”
“Ugh, so annoying. Nobody ask you to worry about me.” Philip began to move, a clear attempt to get out of the room and the situation.
Immediately Shoutarou grabbed Philip's arm. Philip grunted as he tried to shake him off, but Shoutarou tightened his grip instead, not intending to let him go anytime sooner.
“Hands off me!” Philip shouted.
“No! I'm not letting you go unless you tell me what's going on with you!”
Philip gave him an incredulous look, then huffed. “Huh? What's going on with me? What does that even mean? There's nothing wrong with me!”
“Really? Is that really the case, Philip? Then, you're actually fine with everything that has happened? You're actually fine with what had happened to you? Your father used you for Gaia Memory. Your mother used everyone around her for revenge. Your older sister just saw you as an object. And Wakana-san... Are you seriously telling me that you're actually fine with all these? Don't tell me, you're also okay with the fact that everyone in your family, everyone, died except—”
“Shut up!”
A hard punch struck Shoutarou's face and he fell hard on the floor. Akiko entered the garage just in time to witness the scene. Panicked, she screamed and rushed over in an attempt to stop the fight from worsening.
But Shoutarou could see it, the anger swirling in Philip's eyes, the pain and remorse, and the grief and the intense yearning for whom he had lost. It was clear and it was painful. Therefore, he let Philip punch him again, and again and again, hopefully until it soothed his suffering heart, even if it was just a little bit.
“Philip-kun! Stop it already! Can't you see? It's Shoutarou-kun you're hitting right now!” Akiko pleaded, trying to pull Philip away from him. But Philip, too consumed by his own emotions, let out a groan and pushed her off. Akiko screamed. Fortunately, Terui Ryuu was there to catch her before she fell.
“Hidari! Philip! What are you two doing?” he asked and hurriedly grabbed Philip's shoulders with all his strength. For a while, the fight came to a pause. There were, however, shock and concern written all over Terui's face. Sure enough, this was probably the biggest fight between the two halves of W he had ever witnessed.
“Stay away!” Shoutarou told Terui off. “This is between me and Philip. It's none of your business!”
“None of your business? What are you saying, Shoutarou-kun?” Akiko interjected. It was clear that she was angry, but Shoutarou was also able to catch the glint of tears in her eyes. As much as it broke his heart to see Akiko like that, he had to do this. For Philip's own good as well.
“Whatever it is going on with you two, can't you talk it out properly? There's no need to fight like this, is there?” Terui said.
There was truth in Terui's words. And for any other occasion, that was definitely the way to go. But right now, with the way Philip was being, it wouldn't work.
So, Shoutarou huffed instead. “I doubt it's going to work, especially with someone as heartless as this guy!” Pointing his finger at Philip, he baited him again.
Sure enough, Philip took it. He roared, broke free from Terui's grip, then immediately lunged toward Shoutarou to grab his collar. “Shut up! Shut up shut up shut up! What do you know? Just what do you understand about me?! You don't even know anything, so shut your mouth and disappear from my sight!”
This state Philip was in at the moment, it almost resembled W Fang-Joker when they'd first transformed into it. He'd lost all control of his own self and his rational thinking was malfunctioning. There was no longer logic behind his actions. All they were were merely a result of his emotions breaking free from the bottle. Knowing this, Shoutarou let himself feel them as Philip continued to punch him.
Both Terui and Akiko tried to pull Philip away again, but failed even with both of their strengths combined.
“Philip-kun! Philip-kun, stop it!” Akiko was already crying at this point. “Shoutarou-kun, what are you talking about? Why did you have to say that to him?”
“Oi, Hidari, what were you thinking?!” Terui chided him, all while struggling to stop Philip.
It went on for what felt like eternity before Terui eventually managed to break them off and pinned Philip down on the floor.
Shoutarou winced, felt some spots on his face twinge and burn, tasted the blood in his mouth. Propping himself up on his elbow, he shot a look at Philip. The boy was still fuming, still shaking with inextinguishable anger. Shoutarou could see it in the intense gaze directed at him and the curled fists with cuts and blood, both his own and Shoutarou's.
“Enough with it already, you two!” Terui snapped. “At this point, both of you are just hurting yourselves!”
“Just stop fighting already, Shoutarou-kun, Philip-kun,” Akiko croaked out as she knelt down next to Shoutarou, sobbing profusely. “Just stop it already, please.”
Shoutarou swallowed back the tears already swelling up in his eyes. Taking a deep breath, he sat up with Akiko's help and sighed heavily. Silence swept over the four of them for what felt like hours until Shoutarou broke it.
“Philip,” he began, gazing thoughtfully at the blank whiteboards, “you said that I don't understand you. That I don't understand anything about you, or even know anything about you...” Inhaling deeply, he braced himself to look at Philip again. “If that's the case, then tell me! Don't keep it to yourself, tell me! How am I supposed to know, let alone understand anything, if you just stay quiet and never tell me? Aren't we partners? Am I not your partner?”
Philip's gaze wavered a bit. He looked away as if trying to bury his face. Terui, perhaps sensing a change in Philip's demeanor, slowly eased his grip on him.
Shoutarou continued. “When I told you that I worry about you, I really mean it. And I'm not the only one. Akiko, even Terui as well, they both worry about you. That's why, it's okay if you don't want to tell me how you feel. You still have Akiko and Terui who would listen.” He took a deep breath. “Look around you, Philip. All of us here have lost our family members. Even if we don't — can't — fully understand you, those feelings, that pain of having lost someone very dear to you, we still could understand them.”
“That's right, Philip-kun,” Akiko said, sobbing softly. “It's like what Shoutarou-kun said. You are not alone.”
“Chief is right. So is Hidari,” Terui agreed, expression softened. This time, he let go of Philip and shifted aside to give him some personal space. “You're not alone, Philip. All we want to do is save you, in any way we could.”
Shoutarou watched with heavy heart as Philip brought his arms over his head and fully buried his face. His fists were still curled, still trembling, but he didn't say anything. Shoutarou exhaled heavily. “Even if,” he spoke again. “Even if me, or Akiko, or even Terui... Even if you don't see us as your family, at the very least, we are still friends to you, right, Philip?”
When his question was met with silence, Shoutarou stood up. He retrieved his fallen hat, put it back on, and left the garage, staggering a little. Akiko, confused, followed him regardless, leaving Philip with Terui. Shoutarou walked out of the office, went down the stairs, and then fell on the floor once he found himself in the dark, grungy billiard room. Akiko sat down right next to him soon afterward, and held his arm.
Shoutarou looked at her, who looked back at him with teary eyes. His expression shifted, then softened, as guilt gnawed at him. “Sorry, Akiko. It seems like I've made you cry.”
Instead of giving him a snark reply or a taste of her slipper, Akiko broke down into tears again. No longer able to hold back his own tears, Shoutarou cried as well, though quietly. He let Akiko's head rest on his chest, and gently patted her back, a weak attempt to console her.
Shoutarou heard footfalls behind them a few moments later, undeniably Terui's. As much as he wanted to ask him about Philip's condition, he couldn't find the words for it nor could he find the courage to face him. In this current state of his, Shoutarou was nothing but a sobbing mess, not at all the image of the hard-boiled man he had always striven to be.
But Terui didn't say a word. The man remained quiet, standing still and silently watching over them from a distance.
It had been a week after that incident. Philip barely left the room. Even if he did, Shoutarou never saw him, never heard him. It was as if he was living alone in that office.
Akiko took it upon herself to take Mick back to her house. Shoutarou said nothing about her decision. He believed it was the best for the cat considering the current situation between him and Philip. Akiko had tried to check on Philip once, but the door to the garage was locked. Disheartened and mad, she was about to bang on it when Shoutarou stopped her and shook his head. Shoulders slumped, Akiko gave a soft knock instead and let Philip know that she had bought him some mochi, then left it at the door for Philip to take it in.
He didn't touch it. In the end, Shoutarou ate the mochi instead, in order to protect Akiko's feelings.
Terui didn't say anything on the matter when they met for a case later on. Didn't ask him questions even when Shoutarou kept transforming into Kamen Rider Joker for a few days after that. Akiko probably had filled it in for him, or he simply didn't want to intrude any more than he's allowed to. Whatever the reason might be, Shoutarou had to admit, he was grateful for that.
To be honest, he didn't know if he and Philip could come back from this. He wasn't sure if they would reconcile after what had gone down between them a week ago. Shoutarou kept telling himself that he would accept the consequences of his action wholeheartedly, yet he found himself feeling anxious about the possibilities.
The end of W.
The end of his partnership with Philip.
The end of their relationship.
Truthfully, he didn't know if he could actually accept any of these.
If he wanted to accept any of these.
Shoutarou stared long and hard at the Joker Memory in his hand, and decided.
It was nine p.m. when he returned to the detective agency. Glancing around, there had been no signs of Philip ever coming out of the garage. No signs of the food or coffee ever being touched. His heart broke.
Taking a few steps closer to the garage base, Shoutarou stood still before the door, hesitated, lifted his hand up, then hesitated again. Biting his cheek, Shoutarou took a deep breath, and before he could change his mind, he knocked the door softly. “Philip,” he called, “it's me.”
As expected, no response.
Shoutarou sighed. “I... I want to apologize, for what I said to you the other day. For saying those mean things like that to you. I know it hurts your feelings, and yet... I'm sorry.”
Silence.
“But... Apart from things regarding your family, I really meant it when I said I care about you. I wanted you to tell me how you truly feel, but I couldn't find a way. Which was why... I did what I did.” A short pause, then, “It's okay if you hate me, Philip. I said those hurtful words to you, after all. I've crossed the limit. I made you angry. If you can't find it in you to forgive me anymore, then you don't have to. I... I will accept it, your hatred.”
Still, no response from the other side of the door.
So this is it, huh? Shoutarou thought to himself, dejected. With another sigh, he slowly turned away, at last ready to give up. But a click sounded from the door and Shoutarou instantly stopped and looked back.
The door was opened.
It was opened.
Shoutarou's eyes widened, heart soared. Philip, he opened the door. He opened it! For a split second, Shoutarou wondered if this was a dream, if he was imagining it. But the creak widened when he gave the door a gentle push, and immediately, he could see the inside of the garage base.
It wasn't a dream. He didn't imagine it.
Shoutarou stopped and thought a bit. Once he went inside, how should he react when he finally saw him? Should he just act like his usual self? With the pose and all that? But that would be inappropriate. After all the things he'd said earlier, it'd be too awkward.
Then again... Philip opened it, the door. Whether he forgave Shoutarou or not, whether he hated him or not, he still opened it for him. The least Shoutarou could do was find him.
So, he did just that.
It took him a while, but he managed to find Philip at the hangar, in Revolgarry, all curled up in a corner with his back to him. He looked so small, and vulnerable. Fragile. Shoutarou was about to jump down to the hangar when he spotted Philip's hair clips on the metal flooring. He picked them up, kept them in his pocket.
“Philip,” Shoutarou called, softly as he approached him. He stopped at a distance and sat down, taking the time to gaze fondly at the Revolgarry's interior. “How nostalgic. It's been quite some time since I've been in here,” Shoutarou found himself saying. He stole a glance at Philip, then continued on when Philip remained quiet. “I still remember when it used to be Oyasan's. Skullgarry, was it? The design was so cool. Then, after Oyasan passed away, we decided to upgrade it to become Revolgarry, right? Well, it was mostly thanks to your hard work, though.”
“Aren't you mad at me?” It came out quietly like a whisper. If Shoutarou hadn't heard it, he's afraid he might never be able to again.
“Eh? Mad at you? W-Why?”
“I punched you in your face,” Philip mumbled.
“Ah... It's fine. I have lots of experiences getting punched in the face.” He laughed, although it came out a bit forced than he wished to. Shoutarou harrumphed. “It's fine, Philip. The wounds are already healing. If anything, I would say I deserved it after saying all those hurtful words about your family the other day.”
“No,” Philip said. “What you said about them, they are nothing but truth.”
Shoutarou fell quiet for a while, fumbling for words. “But I assumed your feelings about them. Remember? I said that you're fine with their deaths and-and I called you heartless, too...”
There was a moment of silence before Philip spoke again. “I... I'm scared, Shoutarou. This is the first time I have ever felt something like this, something this intense. I don't know what to do with these feelings. I don't even know what they are. I'm scared, Shoutarou. I'm so scared and confused.”
Shoutarou's expression shifted. He turned his body toward Philip and quietly, compassionately, listened as the boy slowly began to open up to him.
“At first, I was fine. I really was. Of course, I felt sad about what happened. Of course, I missed my family a lot. I regretted not being able to save them. I regretted it so much. But I was fine. I was doing fine. I really believed I was able to cope with everything, that I had accepted it for what it was. But... Why? Why do I feel this way? Why now? I don't understand.
“This... This darkness, it's different from anything I have ever felt. It almost feels... It almost feels like the toxin from Gaia Memory. Like a Dopant. That's why... That's why I tried everything I could to fight it. But nothing works. Nothing! So I changed strategies. I tried to avoid it, I tried to bury it, somewhere in my mind I couldn't reach. But the more I try to hide these feelings, the more they grow, and before I knew it, I began to find everything and everyone despicable. Fuuto, the people, Earth... Even my family! All I could think of is why. Why? Why did it have to be me? Why did it have to be my family? Why did Gaia Memory has to exist? Why?” Philip turned his head at Shoutarou. Fear, confusion, helplessness, all flashed across his face and swirled in his eyes; it pained Shoutarou. “Say, Shoutarou, these feelings, just what are they?”
Shoutarou was quiet for a moment before saying, “I... don't exactly know the name of these feelings, but I think it's probably the wounds of our hearts.”
“The heart's wounds?”
“Mm. You see, the heart is also part of our body. It can get hurt and it can also be healed. But some wounds cut too deep that they leave a scar and that scar, it stays with you and haunts your mind, and then it becomes something of a Dopant of its own. Everyone has one, whether they realize it or not. I do, too.” Shoutarou gave him a small, commiserating smile.
Philip looked away briefly before he lowered his knees and turned his whole body in Shoutarou's direction. He looked up at him. “How did you do it? How did you overcome it?”
Shoutarou sighed. “Beats me... I don't really know how I do it. Like you, I also tried everything I could to get rid of these feelings. I try being the hard-boiled man I've always admired. I try to find meaning in protecting Fuuto and its people. I use W and the Dopants to distract myself from my own pain. Some days it works, some days it doesn't. Every now and then, I still dream of Oyasan, of that night when he died before my eyes. And it still hurts like it did the first time, even though it's been so long now.
“Then, one day, I remembered one of Oyasan's words. You knew this too, Philip. ‘Living by supporting each other is the game called life.’ That's when I realized, I'm a human. And humans are not a solitary creature. Even back in time, humans have been supporting each other in every aspect of their lives. It's how we've made it this far. And it's how I have made it this far. Because I have friends. Friends who support me in every way they could—Watcherman and Santa-chan, Queen and Elizabeth, Jin-san and Makki, Terui and Akiko, and also you, Philip.” He shot Philip a meaningful look. He considered his next words carefully, tried to find ways to string them together properly, and then took a deep breath.
“You might not want to hear this, but I think there's no definite way to fight and get rid of this Dopant permanently. From my own personal experience, fighting or avoiding it is not the solution. All you can do is face it, accept it, and then live with it.”
“Accept it... and live with it?”
Shoutarou gave him a solemn nod. “It's hard. It's very hard. I'm not going to lie about that. It might take months, years even. They won't truly disappear, this pain you're feeling now and those ugly emotions. They will come and go and come back as they like. But it can get better. It will get better. It's just that you have to learn to face and accept them first, so that the next time they return, you won't find them overwhelming and scary anymore.”
“But I don't like it!” Philip exclaimed, shaking his head and grabbing at his chest. “These feelings... I don't want to feel them. I don't want to!”
“Philip!” Shoutarou grabbed his shoulders and desperately looked him full in the face. Philip's eyes once he looked back at him shone with tears he didn't shed, tears he didn't cry. “Philip... Listen, I understand your fear. I really do. It's natural for you to feel this way. It's completely okay. Why do you think it hurts so much when your family's gone? Why do you think you're in so much suffering right now? It's because you love them, that's why! You love them, you care about them, that's why you are hurting! You wanted to save them from Gaia Memories, remember? But then all this happened and before you knew it, they were gone. Gone! Of course it's natural for you to feel this way, Philip. It's natural...
“But this anguish, this darkness, you shouldn't hate it. You shouldn't even try to kill it! When someone you love is no longer in this world, that emotion, that love, it doesn't have anywhere else to go. So it becomes all these scary feelings. It becomes this grief, this pain, and this darkness you're feeling right now. That's why... you shouldn't hate it, Philip. They're what your love for your family has turned into now that you've lost them forever. And... And that's why it's fine for you to cry, Philip. It doesn't mean you are weak or anything. It just means you're human, and that you love your family, genuinely and deeply.”
Shoutarou watched in pained silence as the words slowly sank in the boy's mind. Then he noticed the tears forming in Philip's eyes, glistening for a brief second before they eventually fell down his cheeks like a river. He heard it afterward, the cry of Philip's heart, resonating across the room and with Shoutarou's own heart. It hurt him having to listen to his partner cry, and yet at the same time, it relieved him.
Philip was crying. At last.
Carefully and gently, Shoutarou held Philip close and gathered him in his arms. Philip clung onto him almost instantly, as if afraid that he would crumble even more. Without a word, Shoutarou slowly rubbed small, soothing circles on his back. He wished, through this gesture, that he would be able to let Philip know that he wasn't crumbling down. That he had Shoutarou here to hold him close. That there were people who still loved and cared deeply about him. People who would support him in every way they could. People whom he could rely on and believe in when things got hard.
It went on for hours. Philip cried and cried until he tired himself out and fell asleep. After making sure Philip was lying in a more comfortable position, Shoutarou went on to grab a pillow and a blanket, and then placed them carefully under Philip's head and over his body. He grabbed his own pillow and blanket as well, turned off one of the lights, and proceeded to lie down next to Philip.
A heavy sigh escaped Shoutarou's mouth. He took a look at Philip's sleeping face, seemingly at ease after all the crying.
“Take care of that boy.”
Shoutarou remembered it still, vividly, Narumi Soukichi's last request. He had asked him to take care of Philip, because it was what his last client, Shroud, Philip's biological mother, had wished. And since he could no longer fulfill his duty, he had entrusted Shoutarou the task for him to fulfill in his place instead.
Oyasan... If only he had listened to him and stayed still...
Shoutarou shook his head, tried to shake off the thought — and the feelings he knew full well would also come along — from taking over his mind. Breathing slowly, he brought his attention back to Philip's sleeping features and focused on his soft snoring as he tried to sleep.
Oyasan , don't worry. I'll take good care of Philip for you, and for his family, too.
When Shoutarou woke up the next morning, he found Philip already awake, sitting with his knees drawn up to his chest, staring at him.
He sat up with a grunt and rubbed the sleepiness off of his eyes. “Philip...”
“Shoutarou,” Philip said. His voice sounded a little hoarse, and his eyes were red and swollen from last night's crying.
“How are you feeling?”
Philip was quiet for a moment before he smiled weakly and said, “A bit better.”
His gaze softened. “Is that so? That's good, then.”
“Thank you, Shoutarou.”
“What for? I'm just doing what I should do as your partner. That's all.” He flinched slightly when Philip's cold fingers touched his face.
“It's my fault,” Philip muttered as he stared at the scab, voice dripping with guilt. “I hurt you even though you were trying to help me.”
Pulling Philip's hand away from his face, he lightly ran his thumb across Philip's knuckles, felt the scabs already forming over his wounds. “Philip, I told you before, didn't I? It's fine. Look, they're already scabbing. A few more days and I'd be as good as new.”
Head hung low, Philip soon lowered his knees. “I don't know what I was thinking at that time. I really don't know. After all that we've gone through, I've already known I could trust you with everything, even my own life, and yet I...”
“It's fine, Philip. It's fine.” Shoutarou fished out the hair clips he'd picked up last night out of his pocket. Shifting closer, he carefully added the clips at the right side of Philip's hair, and smiled warmly. “You just don't want to burden me with your problem, right? You know better now, that's all that matters. Just remember, you're not alone. You have me, as well as Akiko and Terui. We're always here for you.”
Philip looked at him, eyes full of emotions he couldn't tell apart.
“Even if you forget it again in the future, I'll be there to remind it for you. So, don't worry, partner.”
“Shoutarou... Thank you.” A small yet genuine smile graced Philip's features.
Gladly, Shoutarou returned it.
When Akiko arrived at the office a few hours later alongside Terui, she had cried happy tears at the sight of Philip. Philip had, however, seemed abashed the instant he saw her again after a long while. Even more so when she gave him a big hug afterward. Either he was embarrassed about his red, swollen eyes, or he remembered how he'd treated Akiko during their fight last week.
Either way Shoutarou was relieved the two of them managed to reconcile easily. Well, it's Akiko, after all.
Reclining in his chair, he watched in silence as Terui and Philip exchanged looks with each other and smiled. Shoutarou easily returned Terui's gesture when the superintendent turned to nod at him next, and then they both continued to watch Philip and Akiko, who was still clinging onto the boy and crying with relief.
He sighed contentedly. He would like to believe that he had managed to save Philip's heart, even if it's a little bit.