“Get the f- out of my Pub! Or else I’ll chop your whole hand!” Younri threatened, followed by a horrified, fading howl filled the corridors when he closed the office's door.

When he turned to check on the two boys, he was met with a bit of a mess he wasn't expecting. Mine coughed while Addai lightly patted his back, and even though he didn't have much in his stomach, it was enough to get dirty and dirty the carpet.

Shame and embarrassment mixed with tears of fear, which he didn't even have the strength to wipe away.

Oh, my rug... and Younri waved his fan, making the rug absorb everything staining it and curl aside with a spell’s aid. “Mine, it’s ok sweetie… you don’t need to cry…”

The last straw.

Mine couldn't hold the tsunami inside him anymore.

All the emotions converged, and they got tired of letting it drip.

Everything once trapped wanted to be released.

He didn't wipe away the tears and saliva that ran down the corner of his mouth as he let his heart scream.

Still, his utmost discomfort over the debt couldn't be vented since Addai was there by his side, and he couldn't bear seeing him discover everything he had meticulously hidden.

Younri looked at the stunned boy beside the weeping one and decided to distract at least one of them and try talking to Mine when they were alone. He had a plan for it, a good one.

“Addai, can you prepare the tea from a blue box in my kitchen? It’s… a specific tea to deal with Mine’s emotions,” Younri asked, patting Mine’s back.

A specific herb to handle Mine's emotions solely? Addai chewed on his words a couple of times before hesitating to act.

"I…" he looked at Mine.

He couldn't leave Mine that way, but Younri's plan needed to progress.

“He’ll be fine with me, don’t worry,” Younri smiled.

Addai hesitated again but nodded and gave a last check on Mine, trapped in his own blue world as the tears almost silently rolled down and eventual sobbing took his throat and burnt it. When he finally gathered the courage to get up, Mine grabbed one of his hands and looked at him with despair.

“W-why are y-you leaving?” Mine stammered, his reddish eyes telling he was so tired but so tired of crying that they would soon swell.

Addai took a napkin from his pockets and wiped Mine’s mouth before speaking, “I’ll prepare tea for you,” and brushed his soft cheeks. “I’ll be back, don't worry."

Mine still stared at him for a few seconds and nodded, albeit slowly. Younri took off Addai's coat that was covering Mine's shoulders and examined it to see whether or not it had traces of what was on the carpet and Mine's blouse, and... it was clean! By the gods, how fortunate!

The elf helped Mine take off his coat and shirt, which were very dirty, and asked Mine to accompany him to the bathroom – with Addai observing, from afar, their path. He cleaned and removed the acidic smell from the affected area with a towel, soap, and wet wipes. Mine was still a bit nauseous, and when he smelt the bathroom sanitizer's smell... he quickly reached for the toilet and bent forward.

Younri's nose frowned, and he patted Mine's back again.

"Is everything ok?" Addai called from the kitchen.

"Y-yes, he's just a little nauseous," Younri answered, frowning his nose again. "Mine, sweetie, do you want a bath? I have towels-"

"No," Mine replied, resting his head on the toilet's borders when the elf turned his back. "I don't want to burden you that much," he muttered, feeling his body weak.

"Ah! No resting the head on the toilet!" Younri gasped, placing the fresh towel he had just got on the sink. "Ah... you and your... ok sweetie, then... let's just clean you without a bath," he cleaned the toilet with a spell while Mine waited.

Mine's legs were weak, and he couldn't bear standing for too long.

"Ok, now sit here," Younri closed the toilet's lid and placed Mine on it.

Younri washed Mine's face, who obeyed whatever the elf told him to do. Once his clothes were smelly and dirty, the elf dressed Mine in Addai's coat, although it was a few sizes too big for him - but it would have to do.

With a clean and almost fresh Mine holding his hand, Younri helped his messy performer go to the living room.

Mine felt encapsulated by the aroma of Ylang Ylang and Musk. He watched Addai from afar, who was fighting with Younri's bewitched kettle – it only obeyed its owner, but a persuasion exercise might make it cooperate.

Still disoriented, Mine heard Younri call his name and turned to him.

“It’s ok, Mine,” Younri started and held Mine’s hands. “I sent that scumbag a warning, and he might leave you alone until you pay your debt after the Masquerade Ball the day after tomorrow.”

Mine, although visibly tired, turned attentive, and his eyes regained the earlier shade of hues. There were loose ends he needed to confirm.

"D-Does… does Addai k-know anything?” he asked, and his eyes couldn't water anymore, so they only stayed reddish and swollen.

Younri offered a warming smile and brushed Mine’s bangs, “No, dear. He doesn’t.”

“Did the minion see him?”

“No, dear.”

"Am I…" he fiddled with the coat's sleeves. "... am I still worthy of his friendship…?"

“…” Younri’s smile faded. "This... is something only he'd be able to answer…" and Mine felt another chilly wave taking his exhausted body, “but I think this is the least of your concerns,” he smiled again.

"… why?" Mine looked at the elf, his eyes meek and changing hues to a colder palette.

“Because…” Younri brushed Mine's cheek, "… because he likes you, doesn't it?"

Mine blinked a couple of times, but this time he wasn't about to cry, much the contrary, his cheeks turned the missing peach color again. The elf let out a faint, soft chuckle as he witnessed the boy in front of him become reddish and messy.

It was a good sign, even if it was small.

"…" Mine then yawned. "I'm tired…"

“I know… but you need to drink the tea before going home with your cute friend,” Younri caressed Mine’s cheek.

It didn't take long, and Addai came with the cup of freshly brewed tea, which Mine picked up the hot mug and rested the saucer on his lap.

A sippy sip.

His colors still hadn't returned to their original colors, even though he was way calmer.

A better sip.

The taste was good, sweet, and bitter at the same time, perhaps due to the addition of sugar - which he knew Addai loved when drinking tea, and he did too. The slightly amber liquid was mixed with a bluish liquid, which he had seen somewhere he didn't remember at all.

Anyway, he liked it and had a brief nostalgic taste.

Those leaves... he knew the golden, faint shade among the amber liquid. Yes… they were given to Younri… his uncle gave them to Younri… As the tea’s delicate smell sweetened his nostrils, a piece of memory started playing… and-

"Mine?" a voice called him, and Mine snapped out of his traveling.

"Hm?" he looked at the sound's source.

"Drink the tea, sweetie,” Younri brushed Mine's hair, and he nodded meekly. "So... think of my proposal very thoroughly, Mr. Addai," he chuckled when Addai's cheeks turned red. “You’d be a perfect model, and I’ll make sure you’ll be famous and hot!” he opened his fan, making a funny noise.

“I-I’ll call a cab for Mine and me," he stood up and took his cell phone out of his pocket.

Younri watched the man walk towards the kitchen – maybe hiding, maybe really calling the cab after a few seconds processing the embarrassment – then, he looked at Mine, who sipped the tea in small, continuous sips.

"Younri…" Mine called after pausing the sips.

“Say it,” Younri smiled.

“Do you think… Addai would hate me if I told him about Star?” he fiddled with the cup, his cheeks a little bit peach-colored from embarrassment.

Younri looked at him, and his chest throbbed at the sight of a lost child looking for an impossible answer from the wrong person.

“Oh dear… Don’t worry about that. He seems to like you enough,” Younri smiled, and Mine dazed. “Actually, I think he’s too adorable for that,” he chuckled when Addai tripped on the dirty rug and made an ugly, disgusted face when his foot touched the (hopefully clean) tip.