Tristan had lost track of how much time had passed since he’s been non-stop. He was tired of dealing with impatient and irate customers who were in a long line, but he kept his composure to serve them with a fake polite smile.

His body had also taken a big swing of fatigue as he's been juggling everything by once, and quick. He almost dropped a mug of coffee from his much his arms and legs ached.

But he persevered. It was a sacrifice worth taking for.

Later on, Tristan continued to be busy. So busy in fact, that he didn't notice Fidel came back to the counter, sporting a faint smile. "Hey. I'm ok now, thanks for that." He said in a tone that Tristan felt sounded a little off.

Tristan's heart ached once again, almost dropping another mug. Before he could say anything, the bell chime rang. Fidel turned towards the counter and greeted the customer with a smile.

He noticed the fatigue in Fidel's eyes and the slight strain on his lips. He wanted to help Fidel feel better in any way he could, but he doesn’t know what to say or do. And any tiny paltry attempts of talk were met by short, generic answers, spiraling Tristan down to panic even further.

Tristan continued his attempts to make Fidel feel better up until the afternoon shift baristas arrived. They were about to greet them, but stopped themselves when they noticed Fidel's odd behavior.

They glanced at Tristan, their expression asking for any context. Tristan simply shook his head off with a slight frown.

Later on, while Tristan and Fidel were removing their work uniform, neither of them spoke. Only the shuffling sounds of fabric and footsteps occupied the space.

Once they were done, they left the storage room together without uttering a single word. Fidel simply waved to the afternoon shift baristas with a faint smile before he went straight to the cafe doors. Tristan gave them an apologetic look before following Fidel.

"Uh Fidel?"

Fidel glanced at Tristan. "Yes?"

Tristan cringed a little at hearing Fidel’s dull tone, but continued. "Uh… do you want to go inside Light Mall? Eat lunch, walked around and maybe play inside the arcade?"

Fidel’s eyes widen a little. He looked like he considered the offer, but after a few painful seconds of silence, he shook his head instead. "Sorry… I have to do something back at home… maybe next time." He waved faintly before walking away.

Tristan returned a faint hand wave. Fidel’s defeated tone and his slouched, slow walk made his heart ache.

Tristan stared at Fidel until he was out of sight, and only them he started where he last saw him before he turned around and began to walk back home.

While walking, he began to recall everything that had just happen, particularly the part where the woman slammed the mug and walked out of the cafe.

Tristan wishes he knew the answer.

The next few days at work were tense.

Fidel acted the way Tristan had gotten used to. Taking customer orders with a bright smile, swiftly making batches of orders, and making small talks to make the customer's days better.

But at the same time, Fidel had been tight-lipped, never even mentioned nor acknowledged the incident, like it never happened.

Tristan understood that it's for the sake of professionalism. However, he couldn’t ignore the fact that Fidel's mental state was spiraling down, no matter how hard he tried to hide it.

He wanted to help Fidel get better and be genuinely happy again, but he still doesn't know how to approach the situation.

While at work, during minor breaks they could sneak off, Tristan noticed Fidel always takes his phone out and type what he thought were long messages.

Every time Tristan hears Fidel's phone vibrate, his expression lights up a little as he reads the messages, only for his smile to face, and then type a reply.

The same pattern kept repeating throughout the entire shift. Tristan couldn’t help himself but to get curious, but he kept himself in check by not prying.

Later on, the afternoon baristas arrived. After some silent nod to Tristan and looks of concern to Fidel, they went to the storage room. At the same time, Fidel's phone rang. He grabbed his phone and walked to the edge of the counter as he answered the call. Tristan tried his best not to eavesdrop, but his traitorous ears listened anyway.

"Yo Robert! You wanna drink with the boys later?" He asked with a cheerful tone. But after a few seconds, his face slowly dropped, replaced by somber.

"Oh… really?… I see… No worries! I'll be alright… Yeah… Sure… Maybe next time… Thanks man…" He said before dropping the call.

Fidel clicked his tongue, ran his fingers through his hair and let out a frustrated sigh. "Goddamit…" he whispered, but loud enough that Tristan heard it.

His eyes bulged when he heard Fidel swear, completely surprised. He never heard him swear before!

"Woah! Are… are you ok?" Tristan took soft steps as slowly approached him.

Fidel stared at Tristan with a fake smile for a few seconds before he shook his head. "Nothing… I was just…" He looked troubled, like he was trying to muster up his next words, but couldn’t.

Suddenly, his expression morphed to surprise, like he just realized something. "Hey, are you free later seven?"

That surprised Tristan a bit.

"Yep." Tristan nods.

Fidel's expression brightened a little. "Great, do you want to hang out later at Forest Food Park?"

Tristan was about to accept with no hesitation when he noticed Fidel was gazing at him, pleading with his eyes, as if he was begging him to say yes.

He instinctively walked closer and smiled softly. "Sure, I rarely go to food parks so it would be a good hang out."

Fidel flashed him a bright, genuine smile, the first he'd seen for the past few days. "Thank you." He whispered.

Tristan blushed at his earnest look, but he didn't care if Fidel could see it. He cares more that he could make Fidel happy again.

Tristan had just arrived at Forest Food Park. The amount of people in the park, the chatter and clacking, and the smell of roasted meat astonished him.

Tristan entered the food park and looked around for Fidel instead of messaging him. He wanted to surprise him by his arrival instead. After a minute, Tristan found Fidel alone in the far corner, looking at his phone with a neutral expression.

He tiptoed towards Fidel, then occupied the seat in front of him. "Hey." He whispered.

Fidel glanced up, and when he realized that Tristan had arrived, his expression brightened up. "Hey! You're finally here!" He exclaimed while turning off his phone screen at the same time.

Tristan scratched the back of his head. "Sorry for being late. Traffic got too long.”

Fidel chuckled faintly, then stood up from his chair. "That’s okay. At least you're here now. And just stay right there while I get our food, okay? Anything you fancy?".

"Uh… I haven't seen any of the food around, so surprise me, I guess?" Tristan awkwardly shrugged.

"You betcha!" Fidel laughed loud before he pocketed his phone, then went to a stall to buy food. Tristan felt awe seeing him cheerful again. His heart warmed up.

While waiting, Tristan reflected deeply on his own thoughts, drumming his fingers on the table.

He clicked his tongue in annoyance.

He lightly slammed his forehead on the table.

Six minutes later. Tristan heard a sound of a tray being placed on the table. He raised his head and was about to welcome Fidel back when his eyes bulged out at the bottles of alcohol in his sight. "I got you some pork barbecue, grilled squid for myself, and sisig for the both of us!" He exclaimed as he placed the tray on the table.

"Uh…" Tristan slowly lifted his finger, then pointed at the bottles of alcohol.

"Oh! You don’t drink?"

Tristan shook his heads, still dumbstruck. He never pegged Fidel as the type of person who drinks. He never looked like the type of guy to consume something unhealthy at all.

"Whoops! Sorry about that. Should have asked first." He scratched the back of his ear. "Well, I already paid for them, so might as well drink it all!" He chuckled.

Fidel lifted Tristan's meals out of the tray and placed it in front of him. Then he grabbed a bottle of alcohol and took a big gulp. "Ahh! That's refreshing! Let's dig in! I swear you'll love their food here!" He exclaimed, followed by a loud chuckle.

The two began to eat their meal. Fidel talked animatedly about various topics all relating to vtubers, while Tristan ate his food in silence, nodding along.

However, Tristan could not focus on his food or the topic. He was too worried about Fidel again.

Fidel took big gulps of beer every time he takes a sip. And after a while, Tristan realized that Fidel talked and drank more than he ate. His food got little attention.

Tristan was getting concerned at how much alcohol he consumed already, but he didn’t have the guts to stop him. He was getting worried as each sip of the alcohol makes him visibly more intoxicated.

Later on, Fidel had drank eight bottles of alcohol in total. His face got woozy, words slurred, and a childish big grin on his face. At this point, Tristan had stopped eating. He couldn’t focus on anything except Fidel’s uncharacteristic behavior.

He tried to think of any ideas on how to make Fidel feel better.

Something.

Anything.

When all of a sudden, Fidel let out a bark of laughter, louder than usual, interrupting Tristan's internal freak out.

Then, in a complete one eighty, his joyful expression morphed into somber. His eyes were cloudy, staring at the half eaten food like he's contemplating something deep.

Tristan's heart started beating in nervousness at the whiplash of his sudden change in behavior. "Um… are you alright?"

He was about to shake Fidel, to snap him out of his thought. But Fidel rose his head up and stared at him, his eyes watery, catching Tristan by surprise. "Did you- did you know I… used to be this big, big school bully?"

Tristan stiffened.

"Surprised, right?" Fidel chuckled bitterly. "I was… not proud of it… I was the school bully back in elementary…" he let out a hiccup.

His mind tried to comprehend what Fidel had just said, but somehow it wouldn’t, as if it's trying to reject his words.

"Eliana… Eliana… do you… remember this customer on… Tuesday? Long straight blond hair… straight bangs… white coat?" He slurred out.

Tristan mindlessly nod his head, still speechless by the revelation.

"She… was this quiet, nerdy kid… always by herself… studying all the time… she was also my biggest victim… always cowering in fear every time she sees my presence…"

Fidel’s slurred, pained voice was enough to snap Tristan out of his shock.

Tristan stood up and lightly shook Fidel's shoulder. He couldn't handle the drunken revelations anymore. "I think that's enough…" he whispered.

"NO!" Fidel slapped Tristan's hand away. Tristan physically recoiled and stepped back, more shocked by Fidel’s violent outburst than the throbbing pain he felt.

"I need to… I need to get THIS OUT OF MY CHEST!" Fidel screamed, drumming his chest angrily few times. Each strike caused a loud impact that sounded painful.

His pained words looped in Tristan’s mind. Flashbacks of the way Fidel acted the whole week. His sadness, his fake smile, how the small hopes in his eyes faded when his friends weren't able to come.

And how he himself handled the situation.

That's when it hit Tristan.

Tristan felt like the biggest idiot in the world for not realizing it sooner. A little angry at himself for being selfish.

He took another look at Fidel, and his heart broke when he fully realized just how broken he looked despite his drunken state.

This time, he knows what to do, knows how to handle the situation properly.

He wished he should have realized it soon.

“Go on…” Tristan slowly sat next to Fidel. Ears and mind more attentive to what Fidel has to say.

Fidel let out a pained chuckled before he continued. "One day… during sixth grade… I said something to her… I don't even remember what it was… Part of me wishes I do… but I remembered her face…"

He let out a whimper of regret. "She looked terrified… So dead terrified… Enough that she fainted… In the middle of the classroom…"

Fidel leaned back in his chair and looked above the dark sky. "That's when I realized… what I've done…"

"All of my classmates shouted at me… Pushed me… Glared at me… Teachers and parents were called… I brought shame to my parents… Their only child… A school bully…"

He let out a choked sob. "I was almost kicked out of my old school… But there were only two months of class left… So they let me stay…”

“Those last few months of school were hell… A hell that I deserved… I apologized to everyone that I bullied.….. especially Eliana… But she never accepted it…”

Fidel paused a bit, as if the next memories were too painful for him to speak. “In fact, she swore she will hate me for the rest of her life…"

He let out a long, painful chuckle. "I guess she kept her promise… Can't blame her though…"

Tristan took his time to digest all the information. The more Fidel told his story, the more his heart ached.

But his heart cracked when Fidel described the utter pain he felt when Eliana kept her word of hating him forever.

A silence passed between them. Tristan still comprehending Fidel’s revelation, while Fidel drunkenly tried to remember his memories.

"I remember my parents' faces… Pa gave me a stern talk and whooped my butt… But my Ma…"

A tear fell down in his eye. "I could never forget her face… That face of disappointment… Even as a kid… It horrified me…"

Tristan put his hand on Fidel’s shoulder and gave it a comforting squeeze as assurance. Fidel stiffened at the touch, but he unconsciously leaned closer to welcome it.

"When I… Saw her again after all these years… My past haunted me back… I tried to make things right…:

"But the way she glared at me with such hatred… And how she walked out without saying a word… It was… it was too much!" Fidel snatched a bottle and drank all of its contents straight.

Tristan didn’t bother to stop him, letting him vent out his frustrations by drinking. Every bit of the puzzle that appeared this week slowly began to fit together until they formed the complete image.