Some say distance makes the heart grow fonder.

Sawada Tsunayoshi begged to differ.

If distance truly makes the heart grow fonder then he would hug the rough-looking man before him like his life depended on it, blubbering like a desperate tearful fool and declaring his undying love and unparalleled joy at their apparently long-desired reunion. His heart would burst in happiness and a thousand butterflies would be flying in dizzying death-defying loops in his belly. Vast meadows of sweet-smelling colorful flowers would open up and bees would buzz busily around while a beautiful rainbow spanned through the clear blue sky.

Or not.

Really not.

Using this very moment as a precedent-setting example, and taking the staggering temporal distance of ten years of continued avoidance and slowly developing apathy into context, Tsuna concluded dispassionately that at least his heart did most certainly not grow fonder the longer it was neglected by deliberate distance and perpetually insulted by low-grade lies.

He slowly dipped his head a bit forward, looking at the older beaming man over the edge of his lowered glasses and, with a decidedly disinterested look, and turned around dismissing the other.

What a pathetic creature.

He didn't have need of that man in nearly a decade, not since he was a small helpless seven-year-old laying in a too big hospital bed and crying for this man to hold him, a man who never came. But where his paternal parent seemed to expect the enthusiasm of a young child, Tsuna could only shake his head at the pure audacity of that man. It was simply a mystery to him where the other came from. For nearly a decade, Tsuna hadn't needed him. He had been bullied and hated and learned to pick his fights and fight them with wit and cleverness. He had learned through trial and error how to pick his friends and managed to succeed in school despite his attention deficit syndrome and the overwhelming odds his fellow students, teachers and own parents throw liberally in his way. That presumptuous man wasn't there when he learned to do right, and he wasn't there when Tsuna learned to get most satisfactorily even.

Everything that defined the young man he had and still was becoming had been accomplished without this stranger his distant parent had eventually become.

Protection, Safety, Comfort, Praise, Love and Family were things he sought out from only a few scarce people, and he was completely at ease with that – against all the sticks and stones that loved to suddenly grow in his way, he had managed to rise above his apparent fate and the abhorrent expectations of his tormentors. To be honest, closure would be nice, but he did not even have the smallest flutter of desire for a final confrontation with that man, because where apathy reigned anger yielded.

This was a bridge to burned to be rebuilt standing over a raging river to fast and deep to cross.

And Tsuna just … didn't care.

A strong big hand closed tightly around his own slender wrist. The bruising grip near violently spun him around and he was forced to face once again the man who had no understanding of just how little he actually meant to his own flesh and blood. Clenching his free hand for a moment Tsuna took a deep breath and reeled himself in. Now was not the time to become bitchy, no matter how formidable he was in that kind of mood. No. Now, he knew with serenity settling within his heart, was the time to once and for all draw the lines into the burned earth and make sure that his pitiful sperm donor understood just what his own actions, or inactivity as the case was, cost him.

Personally, Tsuna would have not been able to cope with the consequences if their roles were reversed.

But that's just how he himself was wired.

He saw the others apparent intentions for what they were, and the drive to even muster the tiniest grain of outrage was an effort so useless in the end he found himself severely lacking it. To each their own, he supposed, no matter how much it fucked with the life of others, or how much he hurt those he once vowed to protect. Some people ...

Giving a small sigh before letting a serene smile grace his delicate features, he gently brushed the tips of his fingers over the knuckles of his father's hand and enjoyed how the older man let his wrist go as if he had been burned. A fleeting glance to his reddened skin showed that a bruise was inevitable and in fact already forming. He sighed again. Sadly, he had always been prone to fast bruising, something that thankfully could be concealed with the right kind of make-up. A lot more aggravating was the fact that the overprotective prat who insisted of protecting him would take exception to that act of violence Tsuna had been subjected to and would act with utmost prejudice, especially once he was privy to exactly who the aggressor was. And knowing that wicked and creepy man as well as he did, he just knew that within a few hours their friends in Japan would already be informed and the complete annihilation of Sawada Iemitsu would be a foregone conclusion.

Sometimes life was just too troublesome.

He needed his migraine pills.

Closing his eyes for just a second he collected himself and turned his attention to his paternal parent. The man had been intently taking him in, his eyes roaming freely over Tsuna, taking in his appearance and if the small wrinkle on his forehead was anything to go by, not being impressed. Well, it could be a problem, if Tsuna actually felt any kind of desire to appease or even please Iemitsu. Thankfully, he didn't.

And really, what did the man expect? Did he think Tsuna would have remained the same cute ball of fluff he was the last time they had seen each other? Or that he had taken on a keen likeness to his sperm donor? Tried to dress and behave like him in a comical attempt of fruitless bonding? That ship sailed years ago before it could even throw out the anchor.

He wasn't the most masculine man, he knew that, and as strange as it was for some to understand, he reveled in it. Tsuna never had been one for stereotypical thinking, discrimination or bending backwards to accommodate the socially-accredited intolerable norms of an often ignorant and prejudiced society. And after being all but adopted as a little brother by Kyoko and Hana early in life, he had developed a certain taste for fashion and discovered just how freeing and satisfying it was to expressive himself through clothing and accessories. For someone who had been disappointed by society, showing them who he was while never actually sinking down to their level was cathartic. He enjoyed playing with different styles, fabrics and combinations. Reinventing himself. Creating possibilities. What he enjoyed the most was fucking with peoples head – he had lost count of how many poor fools had mistaken him for a girl just because he dressed gender-fluidly and was generally feminine-looking.

It tickled him something fierce that his sperm donor seemed disapproving of his fashion choices. Really, and here he was dressed relatively harmlessly in a loose burgundy-and-creme-stripped three quarter shirt that reached to the middle of his thighs and was cinched in the waist with a long, thin, brown, braided belt, gray skinny jeans and black low-heeled lace-up sandals. Maybe he could acknowledge the look he received as somewhat deserved if one shoulder was provocatively naked or if his skinny jeans were so tight that you could see the very outline of his private areas.

'Maybe' is such a nice word. As it was, he had no reason to have second thoughts about his clothes. He was beautiful, and he knew it.

Taking the chance to give his sperm donor a slight once-over, Tsuna couldn't help the displeased thinning of his lips. Oh, the man wasn't dressed badly, not at all. That was not one of the many flaws Tsuna could see right off the hook. In fact, the obviously superbly tailored, Italian black suit complimented the others broad and strong frame and gave his rough face a hard and serious look. His short blond hair and perfect tan made it actually impossible to tell that he was of Japanese descent with Italian roots.

A perfectly fitting Italian business man.

Not working traffic in Construction sites.

Not stationed in Antarctica with the penguins.

There is a saying: Never Bullshit a Bullshiter. His father didn't seem to get the memo.

Pathetic.

Forcing his still thinly pressed lips into a chilly smile, Tsuna lowered his lids and picked up at his sperm donor through long black lashes.

His … sperm donor, paternal parent, worthless excuse of a father … oh, so many nice epitaphs flying through his head … so many – well, his father still looked at him and in disapproval and disappointment seemed the prominent emotions featured.

Tsuna couldn't care less.

" Tsunayoshi ..."

He remembered that voice.

He had once longed for that voice, hurt believing he wasn't deserving of hearing it.

No more.

" Father."

A broad grin stretched over the man's lips, but Tsuna could see the calculating and guarded gaze in his brown eyes.

Disgust curled in his stomach.

That pig should feel regret, pain and humiliation. That he didn't said quiet a lot about him – as man and as father. But he kept his mouth shut and merely returned the look disinterested.

" I didn't know that you were in Italy", the blonde idiot finally said.

A cold smirk curled around Tsuna's lips.

" Obviously", he answered sweetly, slightly tilting his head to the right. " I didn't know that you were still alive."

Tsuna smirk turned sharper at the twitch at that man's vein. He delicately swiped his long bangs out of his face and brushed them behind his ears.

Apathy was nice, and good intentions too … but he was, inherently, a brilliant bitch.

So so bad.

" It seems you lost the invitation to your own grave. Such a sad happening, not knowing when ones time to simply and gracefully die is."

Oh, he truly enjoyed seeing the fool twitch even stronger and couldn't help but smile. A sickly sweet smile.

The smile his best friend always described as delicious poison; the smile worth dying by.

There was a reason he worked under the alias Belladonna. The poisonous flower looked just as beautiful and harmless as he did, and was also just as deadly.

Suddenly the fool laughed and reached out, patting his shoulder so strongly his knees threatened to give out under him. Gritting his teeth, he righted himself once released and very obviously brushed off the place his sperm donors hand had touched.

" Good Joke, tuna-fishy", the tall man laughed boisterously, but his eyes had zeroed in on Tsuna's movement, much to his enjoyment, and there was a certain hurt in those brown orbs. " I didn't know you were that funny. Ha Ha, that's my boy! Coming just after his old man, heh?"

Sunset-colored eyes gazed blankly at the blonde idiot.

Petal-like rose-colored lips opened.

" Please die."

" Now, Tuna-fishy -"

Bile climbed up Tsuna's throat.

For years, he hadn't wasted any thoughts on that man. For years, he had pretty much been forced to fight and raise himself. He had dragged himself up from the lowest pits, conquered circumstances beyond his control which were so sat against him ever succeeding that it had nearly destroyed everything he was and strived for.

He had friends who were like family to him, but those who were supposed to be his family turned out to be perfect strangers, even the maternal parent he had mostly lived with.

There was no way in heaven, hell, everything between, below or above that he would give that up now.

Tsuna hadn't really expected his bitch to come out and play, he had expected his apathy to remain, but … no matter how apathetic he considered his parental problems, somewhere deep within it hurt.

Perfect strangers indeed.

" I don't like you."

The oaf shut up.

" I don't know if I ever liked you, but I know that I don't do it now and that there is no possibility that I ever will."

A grim line settled on his father's lips, his features hardening.

Actually, he didn't feel any gratification or satisfaction in his anger or humiliation. It was the simple fact of being able to counter his undeserving conclusion, assumptions and attempts with nothing but the truth that brought pleasure to him.

He shook his head and looked at the unfamiliar brown eyes.

" You threw me away. One day, you just threw me away."

And he remembered that day. He remembered being five and climbing up a tree to get his pink ball down. He remembered falling and then suddenly landing softly. He remembered the kind old man soothing his cries and those soft concerned eyes.

And he remembered betrayal.

He remembered how he fell asleep and woke up to a different, a colder world. A world where everyone looked down on him and where his parents abandoned or neglected him.

A world in which he always was searching, always strangled, suffocating, screaming and scratching until blood filled his mouth and he drowned in the glistening red liquid. A world so cold and lonely, sometimes … sometimes he could barely keep breathing, barely keep his heart beating. And always, always he was forced to ask himself why?

Why am I alive?

No child should ever be forced to ask himself such a question. Tsuna believed with every fiber of his being that no child should ever be forced to feel or think like that. And he knew that no matter his parent's motivations for their treatment of him, he was better. He was better than that. Better than them.

He would not give in to them. He would not allow them that kind of satisfaction.

From one day to the next his life lay in shambles, and he knew who was responsible, but even more importantly, he knew that he couldn't allow them to win. Wouldn't allow them to win.

Tsuna blinked as he felt a pain in his hands and looked down to see them clenched tightly into fist. Taking a deep breath, he loosened them and reached up to brush away a few of the more determined strands falling back into his face.

Red crescents marred the palms of his hands.

" Why did you even stop me?"

" You are my son."

A bitter laugh escaped rose-colored petals as Tsuna threw his head lightly back, no amusement to be found in his voice.

His son?

" So hurting and abandoning your own flesh and blood is a thing for you?"

Brown eyes gazed back seriously, no trace of the obvious fool to be found.

" I did it for you. You don't understand, Tsunayoshi, and I don't expect you to understand. Hopefully, you will never have to understand. But all I ever did was for you and your mom."

Being abandoned …

Being neglected …

Being discarded …

… lonely, broken, despaired …

No Hope.

And an orange flame of destruction flickering so beautifully while just masquerading its terrible nature.

Understanding?

Tsuna stepped closer to his father and leaned up into the man's space, hands tightly gripping the fool's tie and tugging him downwards.

Understanding?

He felt the furious despair of a childhood spent in feelings no child should now rear its ugly head, breaking through an apathy that should have burned out any anger long ago, gripping his heart in an iron grip. A terrific smile bloomed on his lips as his eyes took on a chilling quality.

Understanding?

… what an arrogant fool ...

" I don't know what exactly happened that day, but I know that you and your boss did something to me", Tsuna whispered coldly, his lips nearly touching the shell of Iemitsus ear as his father shivered. " You did something and it nearly destroyed me. From that day on I was suddenly clumsy and unable to concentrate, a hazard to everyone and everything. It was so bad that I not only nearly got held back a grade but I was also bullied so much and so violently that the hospital staff congratulated me when I managed to stay away from their tender mercies for more than a week. And it was your fault."

Tsuna took a deep breath and eased back down, his hands still gripping in the expensive material of his father's silky black tie.

" You crippled me", he continued in a deathly quiet voice, uninterestedly taking in the flinch of the other man. " You crippled me, and walked away. Tell me, Tou-san, tell me what kind of man, what kind of god-forsaken father does that make you?"

Silence.

Tsuna shook his head in disgust and released his father, stepping away from the man.

Disappointingly unsurprising.

He had expected no better, but was disappointed nevertheless.

Serious brown eyes gazed calculatingly at him. Their first meeting in years, and he didn't have the decency to even look ashamed. Instead, he observed him like an insect, trying to dissect him.

Tsuna was truly thankful for being an only child. To imagine another child being subjected to that kind of parenting … merciful kami.

His father shook out his suit and fixed Tsuna with an unrelenting stare.

" Why are you here, Tsuna?", he demanded.

Sperm donor.

Definitely.

The title father really is too much honor in connection with that man.

" Here? As in Italy? Sicily? This plaza? Or do you mean here as in, why am I existing in this form in this place at this moment in time?", Tsuna smirked slightly, enjoying the annoyed expression on Iemitsu's face. " The last one would be at least halfway your own fault. I do hope you actually remember knocking up my dearest mother."

Because really, what kind of asinine question was that?

He threw in a look that questioned Iemitsu's worth as a human being and the general usefulness of his existence for good measure, always a slight smirk on his lips, so saccharine-sweet it was sick.

His sperm donor gritted his teeth. It was a deeply satisfying sound. Really, why should Tsuna be the only aggravated one in this little talk when it was the other who made insufferable demands and frayed his normally formidable patience. Tsuna was always a fair player, and in his opinion, equality for all should be a fact not a myth.

" Why. Are. You. Here?", the older man asked roughly, pressing every word out like they physically hurt him.

Tsuna lifted a hand to hid the little smile tugging at his lips accompanying the giggle threatening to escape his throat.

" Summer job", he answered lightly.

Brown eyes stared at him disbelievingly. A sneer firmed on the others thin lips.

" Summer job? You?", came the expected demand for clarification, infused with just enough disbelief and derision to be insulting.

Nicely done.

He could do better.

" Do you need a diagram?", Tsuna asked sweetly, his smile turning innocent and sweet.

They both knew it was completely fake.

… but honestly, how idiotic could the other be? He had left Tsuna's life nearly a decade ago and now demanded not only answers he should have known and had no right to demand anymore, but he had the impertinence to make assumptions on another person based on what? Outdated information? His own opinion? Assumptions he nourished and groomed in an attempt to excuse his own failings and now got angry once they were disapproved?

What a pitiful man.

This was reason enough to be thankful for his abandonment.

He didn't need someone like that in his life.

" Guard your tongue! What kind summer job are you talking about? I can't think of any that would take you all the way to Italy."

Tsuna rolled his eyes.

" The kind that brings in money?", he suggested innocently. " And that you don't have the mental capacity to imagine what kind of job I'm talking about is only too obvious."

There were only a handful summer jobs for underage children that could mean gainful employment overseas.

Besides, it wasn't the first time Tsuna had made his opinion about his sperm donor's intellect known, but hopefully it would be the last time. To never see that obnoxious man again … such a beautiful wishful dream.

The angrily reddening face truly did not go with the older man's blond hair. How … plebeian.

Tsuna wrinkled his nose.

" Tsuna, I will not ask again! Where are you working? And a straight answer this time, boy!"

… impudent.

" … for such a worthless excuse of a human being, you are sure quiet demanding, no?"

Iemitsu's hand moved lightning-fast.

Tsuna's head snapped violently to the side, the sound of flesh hitting flesh ringing in his eyes. His left cheek stood aflame, burning painfully. Brown strands hid his eyes as he slowly lifted up a hand to touch the bruising cheek.

His father had neglected and abandoned him.

His mother had verbally and emotionally abused him.

But neither of them had ever hit him. Until now. It actually didn't come as a surprise.

He had always known that of the two, his sperm donor was more prone to violence.

It was strange. Even though he should be angry or furious, all he felt was cold. A chilling cold and numbness. He felt … apathic.

Why bother? That waste of flesh wasn't worth the effort. Never had been, never would be. It didn't even matter that his own father had hit him. Tsuna … Sawada Tsunayoshi had outgrown his own father years before, and he would not be dragged down to that pathetic man's level of worthlessness. No. He was better than that.

Taking a deep breath, Tsuna slowly released it and turned his head forwards, starring that man squarely in the face. He would not hide, neither in shame nor fear, and he would not allow the fool to hide before the evidence of his mistakes – mistakes that screamed into his face, in rapidly blooming deep colors.

Tsuna smiled a deathly little smile.

Sweet kind Belladonna.

" Go to hell."

His sperm donor looked slightly pained.

Oh well.

" Tsunayoshi."

But it seemed that he wouldn't be detracted from his interrogation.

… whatever. Tsuna's job was not exactly a secret.

He … just didn't think that this waste of perfectly good air was in any way deserving of an answer. But before he got hit again, and the angry color in that masculine face linked with the undiluted aggression in that deep voice was a pretty evidentiary indication to unreasonable pain just waiting to be unleashed, he chose to answer.

He would not make himself a target for one arrogant bully. Being petty wasn't worth the drawback.

" Modeling", he finally answered coolly.

His sperm donor choked on air before staring at him.

"Modeling?", Iemitsu asked incredulous.

… that was actually really insulting.

Iemitsu prior actions and reactions had already told Tsuna more than he had desired to know, but there was no reason to project that man's own views on how a male should look onto the rest of the world. Being a pretty gender-set face was not the only way to go.

Tsuna hadn't even sought out his agency; he had been head-hunted.

And he was very successful.

" Fashion", eloberated Tsuna icily. " I have my dearest mother's permission to do it. "

That woman was more than happy to have him out of the way. He could just hear her grating voice, normally so sickly sweet and fake-kind, screeching inebriated at him, he sharp nails clawing at his thin arms, leaving bloody scratches.

'Who needs a useless son like you? You are a loser, and you will always be a loser. If you hadn't been born, your father would have never left. I wish you would have never been born to begin with!'

Personally, Tsuna liked being alive. He liked the life he had managed to build for himself, and he knew, that once officially of age, he would be able to leave that witch forever and nobody could force him to ever interact with either of his parents again. He only needed to survive two more years with her, and then he would be free. He didn't need or want her; or him. Tsuna was independent and he would never give up this independence, not for anyone.

His mother could lament over her mistake of giving birth to him as much as she liked, he knew her rants by heart, and after all this time, he couldn't care less. As a child, yes, it hurt, but as a maturing teenager, he was informed, and he had done his research to form his own opinion.

Tsuna was pro-adoption and pro-choice. He stood behind his opinion that no matter the circumstance, every child was born innocent and any blame the birth of a child could produce in the aftermath, had to be laid completely on the parents shoulders.

No child decided to be conceived – but parents always decided to have a child or to keep it.

He loved his life, no matter how often he questioned why exactly he was born. But sometimes he wished he had been born to different parents.

It would have been nice to know a parents love.

" I don't like you tone, young man", Iemitsu growled.

Tsuna blinked and concentrated on the furious man before him.

Typical. Taking notice and offence of the fact that Tsuna spoke lightly sarcastically about his mother but ignoring everything else he had said.

Masterfully ignoring the real issues at hand.

No matter ...

" And I don't like the fact that the sperm donor and carrier who copulated for my conception are an oblivious air-head and an arrogant bastard who excel in negligence, abuse and abandonment", Tsuna whispered, his tone chilly enough to temperate snowballs in hell; in for a penny, in for a pound. " But if your failure as a parent taught me anything, than it is that life doesn't smell like roses without the accompanying load of shit hidden within and we don't always get what we want."

Tsuna shook his head and stared at the calculating brown eyes of his vis-á-vis.

Time to be blunt with the idiot.

" I don't like you."

Tsuna smiled.

Like Saccharine.

" I sure as hell don't love you."

His smile turned even sweeter.

A touch Belladonna.

" And I'm quite certain that I don't care about you in the least", Tsuna practically cooed.

His smile edged with chilled satisfaction.

He enjoyed the furious and distraught look. The obvious desperation and self-righteousness. That conscience-driven sliver of doubt and anxiety, fighting valiantly against all the darling platitudes and presumptions his sperm donor had formerly used to justify himself against an opponent that had no voice.

Delicious.

" Tsunayoshi -"

Tsuna took one step back.

" You never acted like a father. You never were there when I was hurt, when I needed advice. You didn't help or comfort me. The one thing you shined with were generous checks that calmed the pitiful remains of your conscience and dedicated absence. Let's continue the status quo and ignore that we ever met here. I don't know you, you don't know me. Perfect."

He took another step, and another.

Iemitsu seemed stricken and angry at the same time.

Tsuna took another step back.

"You don't matter to me, and I obviously don't matter to you."

One, two, three steps.

"You are my son, naturally you matter! How can you say that?!", exploded his sperm donor, deep red flooding his tanned skin as he scowled angrily.

What an ugly color. Personally, he preferred burgundy as his favorite shade of red, it had such a sophisticated touch.

Tsuna was incapable of even achieving that shade of red. The most he was able of providing was a delicate, slightly pink shade that offset his pale skin color and pale pink lips perfectly.

"I do not matter to you, I know that for a fact, and honestly? I don't want to", Tsuna delivered in a dead-pan. " I will ignore the fact that we met in Italy when you should be frolicking with the penguins at improbable construction sites and the quiet obvious lie about your occupation, and you will keep yourself out of my life."

He smiled coldly.

" Win win."

Indeed.

Hopefully the fool agreed – but then again, his sperm donor was a fool.

" Tsunayoshi, I am your father -"

" Sperm donor."

" I. Am. Your. Father."

Oh, Tsuna really liked the gritted teeth.

" You really are not."

He stepped further back, letting the distance between them grow physically just as they had long ago been divided by a canyon emotionally.

" There was a time I needed you", he acknowledged, his voice raw for the first time, before he caught himself. " That time has gone."

He looked one last time at the man who contributed half of the allele to create Tsuna's DNA, before he finally turned away, his cheek and wrist bruised and his mind and heart clear.

He had never wanted to meet that man again, but it had happened. He had never wanted to talk to his father again, but the man had forced him to. He had never entertained the idea of a confrontation, but the bruises blooming on his pale skin were more than convincing evidence that this would be their last meeting.

Sadly, the man had been everything Tsuna thought he would be. And wasn't that disappointing?

Tsuna was sixteen, but he had been forced to grow up earlier. And this maturity he had gained, through no desire of his own but the will of others, was what gave him a certain apathy to deal with the shit life throw at him, like meeting his paternal parent again. He had not anticipated participating in the confrontation, but … it was cathartic.

He had said everything he wanted to say. And it was okay.

He had, once and for all, washed that man and his sins of his own hands.

Sawada Tsunayoshi was finally at peace with that part of his childhood.

He didn't turn around, didn't acknowledge the others presence anymore.

Instead, one last word left his lips, leaving with such a final note that Tsuna nearly giggled in glee, a weight he didn't know he was burdened with finally burst into ashes.

" Arrivederci."

Tsuna nearly sung his goodbye.

He slipped into the crowd bustling around them, his steps to fast for the bruising grip to capture him again.

A smile captured his lips as he heard the shout calling him back.

" Tsunayoshi!"

He continued on.

Tsuna looked up at the beautiful Syracuse Cathedral, also known as Temple of Athena.

Italy was beautiful, and he truly enjoyed Sicily.

Not even meeting his way-ward sperm donor could take the inherent beauty from this place, make the Cathedral Plaza less breathtaking or awe-inspiring. He loved spending time at the Plaza and had even taken to making a few sketches of his favorite corners, gathering them in the sketch book he accumulated to choose his submissions for college from. At the moment they were only pencil sketches, but once at home he planned to bring them life with water and oil colors, coal and acryl. He wanted to recreate a little piece of the Syracuse he had come to know and love for his life in Japan.

At the moment, he was waiting for his best friend. The encounter with his sperm donor had actually shaken him enough to call that lovable marshmallow-freak, and all Tsuna needed at the moment was a really good hug.

He just wanted a bit normalcy.

A reminder that he was wanted.

Sighing, Tsuna looked down at his wrist. He knew that with the ample use of a good concealer no one would see the difference and it won't hinder the photo shoots he still had to do … nevertheless, it was annoying.

He really could have done without that particular reminder of his past, no matter how cathartic it turned out to be.

Suddenly, strong pale arms embraced him from behind.

The air smelled like marshmallows and chocolate.

Like home.

Tsuna leaned trustingly back into the familiar hold, resting his head against the strong lean chest of the older man. He didn't need to turn around, didn't need to assure himself of the other. The older male had always been there for him, and he trusted him more than anyone else.

One strong hand reached out and touched his bruised wrist like a fragile piece of invaluable porcelain. The touch was cool and hot at the same time and a pleasant tingle went up Tsuna's spin as he felt the hot breath of his friend ghost over his ear.

" Who hurt you?", came the forcibly calm voice of his best friend.

" Byakuran ...", Tsuna whispered soothingly.

But he was already gently spun around and came face to face with the pale features of Gesso Byakuran, his best friend. It was so … it was so wonderful to see his face. So comforting and safe, that Tsuna simply crept back into the warm familiar embrace and buried his face into the others white shirt, soaking up the feeling of family and love.

" … Tsuna ..."

" I ...", Tsuna slightly choked, but continued to appease his friends need of answers. " I ran into Iemitsu, and he wouldn't let me go. So he grabbed me. And … and we argued? Or something like that. He didn't like what I said and made … he made it known. Don't be angry, please?"

For a moment silence reigned between them, but then the trusted arms encompassed him once again, and even more tightly than before, as if to protect him from every evil the world had to over.

" I'm angry at your sperm donor, not you", Byakuran finally said.

The white-haired male burrowed his face into Tsuna's hair and took a deep breath.

" I'm not going to let you go anywhere without me again for the entire time we are in Italy, understood?"

Tsuna giggled and nodded.

" Promise?"

" Promise", Tsuna repeated, still giggling.

Whoever needs parents if they had friends as great as Byakuran? Tsuna only laughed and snuggled deeper into their huge. He was safe, loved and wanted.

He was home.

" Marshmallow?"

~ The End ~