I look up at him, confused, and also a little disgusted that he touched me after saying something awful.

"Don't be too worried about Matsu, alright? I'm sure he'll be fine. He'll get through it," he smiles kindly. I feel conflicted... But then he takes his hand off of me and walks out the door.

Kentaro stops in front of me next. "That perverted bastard is right about that at least... Matsu will be alright. Yuuma is taking care of him, right?" He then gives me an awkward pat on my shoulder before exiting the cabin, leaving me even more confused.

Gin stops after him. What is happening right now...? He hesitates and fiddles with his coat. "They're right... Don't worry..." He hesitates more. "And... um... if... if you need comfort... we can... um... hug... again... if... that's alright..." He can't seem to look me in the eye.

I take a moment to process his words. Are they all worried about me because I was so worried about Matsu...? But they should be more worried about him than me... I don't understand this... But the cute Gin is offering another hug. I can't turn this down, can I? It might be nice to have a hug... Although, Matsu might need one more...

"...alright..." I say.

Gin looks up, surprised.

I give him a small smile. "I'll take that hug right now then."

He becomes even more nervous and fiddles with his coat some more. I spread my arms. He hesitates. Then he embraces me and I embrace him. Cute... He's too cute... I want to keep him trapped in my arms forever... But I let him go after a moment.

"I hope...that helped..." he said, keeping his eyes to the ground. He hesitates a bit more before leaving. I want to grab him again... But I shake off that feeling. I have to talk to Yuuma.

I step over to him. I get a closer look at Matsu. He better get well fast... Then I look at Yuuma.

"Counselor Yuuma... I told Ana about what happened with Matsu," I say.

"Thank you. We'll get Matsu help, don't worry," he replies. Everyone is telling me not to worry...

"About that..." I start. I rub the back of my neck, awkward. "Ana told me about the financial situation... About how you can't pay for Matsu's treatment right now..."

"She told you that?" he looks at me.

"Yes... And maybe it's not my place... But I feel like I have a solution for you... If you're willing..."

He pauses. "...what is it?"

He bit! Now I need to convince him completely. "Well... The thing is... Remember that lotion you got for me?"

He nods.

I take a deep breath to ready myself for my big performance. "That lotion is actually... A precious gift from my mom... It's quite expensive since it's been passed down in the family. I tried to refuse it at first, but she said she wanted me to have it to show how much she loves me. She thought I deserved it because I'm her precious son. So I had to take it and have held onto it until now. I wanted it back so I could be reminded of her since I can't see her until a year goes by. But now I want to pass the lotion onto you. I want this delicate bottle of lotion to make others as happy as it's made me. And if it can do that by being sold for Matsu's treatment, then I'd be more than happy to give it away. I wish Matsu happiness and to get the treatment he deserves. Won't you take the lotion and sell it for the money you need?"

Yuuma listens to my made-up story. There's a glimmer of sympathy in his eyes. He looks away and thinks about it. I try not to smirk at my great acting. Should I try to be an actor once I'm out of this camp? Nah, too much work. Plus a thief doesn't want to be out in the spotlight. That'd get me into trouble again.

"...is it really alright to take it?" he asks after a moment.

"Of course. It's because I care so much for Matsu, and it pains me to think he may not be able to get treatment if you can't pay..." Why doesn't this part seem like a lie though...?

"Very well... If it's really alright, I'll take it," he says.

"Then I'll go get it now," I say. I quickly leave.

I try to contain my laughter. I hide my smile with my hand. At least Matsu really will get the help he needs. I succeeded. A precious gift from my mom? No way. That's just a fantasy. She'd never give me anything like that. The only thing she's given me is life. Sometimes I wish she didn't even give me that though.

I retrieve the lotion from my cabin. No one else is here. I guess they all went to the cafeteria. There's nowhere else to go. I eye the small bottle in my hand. It really does look like something ancient and beautiful passed down in one's family. It has what looks like an intricate gold cage around the milky-looking glass bottle. It shines in the sunlight that is now breaking through the dark clouds. The lotion inside is soft and makes your hands smell like lavender. It actually helps a lot with severe dry skin too. I was lucky to be able to steal it. I had hoped to sell it for my own benefit one day. But I guess... I want to use it for someone else's benefit... Wasn't I supposed to be selfish...?

I close my hand around the bottle. I said earlier that I wanted to prevent myself from being useless. I still only think of myself, right? I still believe I'm not a good person. Even if I'm supposedly doing this for someone else's benefit, I also find it'd be an annoyance for Matsu to be sick all this time and suffering. It's exhausting worrying about him. I don't want to worry anymore. So he has to get the professional treatment he needs and get better already...

I go back to Yuuma. He stands up when he notices me. I forgot how tall he was for a second. I give him the lotion. He looks at it in his hands. He holds it very gently. I almost feel bad that I was lying... He believed everything I said... I thought maybe he would know what my family life is like. I guess not.

"Thank you, Akiara. I promise to put it to good use," he says.

I smile. "Good." Then I pause, my smile dropping. "I actually have a question..."

He looks up from the lotion. "What is it?"

I clench my fist at my side. "When Matsu didn't come on time to the cafeteria... And you knew he could go into withdrawal any day now... Why didn't you immediately go to check on him?"

He hesitates. He holds the lotion a little tighter. "I'm sorry. This is no excuse, but you have to understand that I'm in charge of this entire camp. I'm in charge of every single one of you. I can get distracted and accidentally neglect one of you. I wanted to be good to all of you and make sure you got the best service at this camp. I didn't want it to be the same as prison in any sense at all. But by neglecting one of you, by neglecting Matsu, I worry that that's the same as what happens in prison... I know I've made a mistake but I believe we can learn and improve from our mistakes. So that's what I'll do. I won't forget this and I'll instead learn from it. I won't neglect one of you again if I can help it. I promise Matsu will get the proper treatment as he should. That can happen now especially thanks to your donation. Thank you again."

I knew already... Yuuma is a good, sincere man... But I had to ask. Now I feel bad for putting him on the spot. I'm still glad I got to hear his answer.

"I see... I understand now..." I turn away. "And... Thanks... If you're in charge... Then this camp really will be great, huh?" I quickly leave before he can say anything. I just said something embarrassing, didn't I... Ugh...

I take a breather on my way to the cafeteria. The air is fresh and the clouds are clearing up quickly. I guess there won't be a storm after all. I'm a little over the scene with Matsu now. I'm relieved knowing he'll be alright. I wonder if maybe... I can help more... And speed up his recovery...? Or not... I don't know why I'm thinking that... And despite what I just said to Yuuma, I just want this camp to be over. A year is too long to be stuck here. Also I'm still not sure how close I should get with the others. I'm especially wary about Hisashi who said that crazy thing earlier... I should definitely steer clear of him...

Yeah, I'll still keep some kind of distance from the others. I'll put up a bit of a wall. I know I've hugged Gin a couple of times, but I'll stop that now. I'll fight back my desires and everything will be alright. With that, I open the doors to the cafeteria and walk in.

"No way in hell, pervert!! I won't let you into my cabin!!" Kentaro is suddenly yelling.

"You'd rather leave me out in the cold~? So heartless..." Hisashi replies, faking sadness.

"It's summer!! The nights are perfectly warm!! You'll be fine!! And isn't this a camp?? There's gotta be a tent around here somewhere if you're that worried!!"

I see Gin standing next to the others, hesitating to step into the fight. Then he notices me. He hurries over to me.

"Akiara...! You have to help...!" he says. It's harder to hear him when Kentaro and Hisashi are arguing.

"Huh? What's happening??" I ask. What did I walk into...?

He explains. "Well... Hisashi said he probably has to stay in our cabin... Since Matsu will need treatment, there won't be room for him during it... But Kentaro really doesn't want him to stay in our cabin... Can you say something to Kentaro...? I think we should allow him to stay with us... Even if... we have certain opinions about him..."

I really just walked into something bothersome... If I knew, I would have taken a walk around the camp or something... But the cute Gin is asking for help. I said I would fight back my desires, but it's not like I can say no to him.

"I guess I can try to say something..." I say.

He brightens. He grabs my arm and drags me over to Kentaro and Hisashi. Kentaro is red with anger and I worry if I'll be able to do anything at all. How do I calm a beast? I mean, I don't know if I'm very fond of Hisashi staying with us, but it seems like we don't have a choice. Making him sleep outside for real seems cruel... Even if it is summer and he can sleep in a tent...

Hisashi notices me. He smiles at me. "We'll be sharing a cabin now~ Isn't that exciting?"

"I said I wouldn't allow you to stay in our cabin!!" Kentaro spared me a glance before yelling at Hisashi again.

I don't want to try and stop this argument. If I say Hisashi can stay, won't Kentaro's anger be directed at me next? I'm scared... But I look at Gin next to me. He's practically giving me puppy eyes. He's been able to make eye contact with me more... And now I wish he was still too shy to look at me like this... I take a deep breath and hope that if Kentaro kills me out of anger, it's quick and painless.