[It's not that he hadn't anticipated the tears. If anything, he's surprised it took this long, really. Even Amada had cried a little when he'd first seen him, which had been--uncomfortable, but easily brushed past. What he hadn't been prepared for was to see Akihiko sobbing like his heart's breaking, unable to stop or speak or anything. It's difficult to watch, all the more so because he has no manner of comfort to offer. He isn't worth anyone's grief nor their tears, not like this.]
...Ah, shit.
[He doesn't have the right to comfort his friend nor the first clue how, but he at least shifts to try to block the view of the other teen from any potential bystanders who might be happening to walk down this street today.
His hand hovers uncomfortably over Aki's shoulder a few times, but he keeps thinking better of it at the last moment, and his hand eventually disappears back in his pocket like it had never left. All he can truly do for his friend now is wait it out, and for what little it's worth, he does do that. He finds a spot on the pavement that's particularly interesting to direct his gaze to, and listens for Aki's breathing to settle back down to normal. Even once it's over, he still struggles with what to say. This is why he hadn't wanted to get into the topic earlier, had hoped to put it off until he could've at least communicated the basic information about how the town operated, but there's no going back now.
no subject
...Ah, shit.
[He doesn't have the right to comfort his friend nor the first clue how, but he at least shifts to try to block the view of the other teen from any potential bystanders who might be happening to walk down this street today.
His hand hovers uncomfortably over Aki's shoulder a few times, but he keeps thinking better of it at the last moment, and his hand eventually disappears back in his pocket like it had never left. All he can truly do for his friend now is wait it out, and for what little it's worth, he does do that. He finds a spot on the pavement that's particularly interesting to direct his gaze to, and listens for Aki's breathing to settle back down to normal. Even once it's over, he still struggles with what to say. This is why he hadn't wanted to get into the topic earlier, had hoped to put it off until he could've at least communicated the basic information about how the town operated, but there's no going back now.
At length:]
Hit me. [. . .] C'mon. We both know I deserve it.