At the entrance to Jun's hideout, Miwa sighed, leaning against the cool, brick walls that lined the alleyway. Even with his boyfriend currently the head of the gang that owned the surrounding territory, he still felt a bit uneasy. It reminded him of how he'd felt the first time he'd traversed these narrow, urban walkways. The first time he'd met the dark haired delinquent.

No one confronted him as he entered the horribly cluttered, urban sanctuary. As he slowly made his way to the back of the lot toward Jun's throne, he watched as several young-looking guys played a very aggressive game of basketball. Changing his view to the opposite side, he noticed a group of high school students playing cards in a corner of the alley, with two people at the table betting a pretty decent amount of money. Not too far from them, a group of scantily-clad women were smoking cigarettes and gossiping. One of them winked knowingly as he passed by. He sighed, feeling somewhat nostalgic. This place hasn't changed at all, he thought. It made him wonder why Jun had decided to stay here all this time. Didn't he ever want a change of pace?

Miwa had questioned him about it before, both over the phone and in-person before leaving for college. But he had never gotten a straight answer. Jun would always change the subject or start asking bizarre questions.

He wondered what connection Jun had to this place; these people. It had to be personal. Only now had it occurred to Miwa that he didn't really know his boyfriend at all.

"Taishi?"

Upon hearing his name, the blonde tensed and jerked his head back toward where he had been walking and was surprised to see Jun sprinting toward him. He froze.

And before he could utter any sort of greeting, Jun's arms were around him in a strong embrace.

"I'm so glad you're here." Jun closed his eyes and took in a deep breath, burying his face in Miwa's shoulder as he attempted to pull him in even closer.

"Ah, yeah, it feels good to be back." Miwa replied, awkwardly wrapping his arms gently around Jun as best he could. He was sure his ribcage would give out under any more pressure.

Sometimes Jun would forget just how strong he'd become over the years.

"C-Could you...?" Miwa struggled to breathe.

"Oh, sorry," Jun released Miwa and placed his hands in his coat pockets out of embarrassment. He had honestly just missed Miwa so much that he couldn't control himself.

No one in the underground jungle paid any mind to their interactions. Most of them had probably been around back when the two of them had first starting going out.

Miwa smiled anxiously. Even if no one minded that the two of them were together, the fact that other people were there at all made him feel pretty uneasy. This was supposed to be a reunion after all. He wished he could be alone with Jun, but didn't want to cause any problems by asking Jun to chase everyone out of the hideout. Besides, this was their home too. Talk about rude.

"It feels like it's been forever." Jun said suddenly. "How's college life?" He asked, cutting to the chase. He kicked a couple small, wooden crates over so they could both sit down while waiting for a reply.

Miwa carefully took a seat across from Jun before answering the question.

"It's actually pretty nice," he smiled. "It feels refreshing being out on my own, y'know? No nagging parents, no expectations. I know Kai's used to living on his own, so he adapted faster than I did, but I think we're both having a lot of fun so far."

"That's good," Jun replied, flatly.

Miwa's smile faded slightly. He couldn't place it exactly, but something about Jun seemed...off. They hadn't seen each other in close to half a year. He wasn't sure what he had expected from Jun when they met again exactly, but it sure wasn't this.

"Hey," he asked. "Why do you look so down in the dumps? Did something happen?"

Jun didn't say anything right away as he avoided any eye contact for a moment. He seemed to be deep in thought and for the first time in a while, Miwa started to feel deeply concerned. Jun rarely ever had these kinds of serious moments around him before. He wondered if something had changed while they had been apart. A lot could change in six months.

"Taishi, I...I think we need to talk about things. I mean...about the future."

Miwa felt his heart drop when the words finally registered. Jun's tone alone was enough to tell him that whatever was on his mind was serious.

"Oh, okay." Miwa paused, trying not to let his worry show. "Well, if there's something on your mind, I'm here for you."

"That's just it though," Jun said, his voice sounding unnatural. "You shouldn't be here with someone like me."

Miwa tried to lock eyes with Jun, but Jun was still looking down. He acted as though he was trying to hide something.

Miwa realized he was probably the only person in the world Jun ever lowered his stature in front of. All the time he'd known him, Jun had carried himself so proudly. Had that all been just a facade? No, Miwa told himself. Jun had no reason to be looking down on himself. Whether he lived on the streets with a bad reputation or not, Miwa knew that deep down he was a good person.

"Hey, don't think like that. I'm here because I want to be. Because I care about you."

Miwa offered a hand on Jun's shoulder, squeezing it slightly to let him know he was there for him.

When that gave him no response, he tried something else.

"You don't care about me anymore, is that what's going on here? C'mon, what is it? Did you meet someone else?"

Jun finally lifted his gaze, his eyes full of fierce conviction as if he had made up his mind about something long ago and had only just now decided to act on it.

"Of course not! You're the only one I care about! That's why I'm telling you. I'm not someone you need to be involved with. You don't need me distracting you or holding you back from your future. You still have one. I don't."

Miwa was at a loss for words. He couldn't believe what he was hearing. Was Jun...breaking up with him?After everything that they had been through together? After all of the plans they had made to attend college together after the summer?

He couldn't find the words right away, but he had to find out.

"Are you..giving up on us?" He asked, his voice and expression both filled with pain.

Jun sighed and got to his feet, taking a few steps away from where he had been sitting. He really loved Miwa. He didn't want this to happen. He just couldn't see them moving onto a better life together, no matter how much he may have wanted it. He had made his decision long ago to pay for his crimes by living out the rest of his life here. He didn't deserve to be with Miwa. He told himself. He didn't deserve to be happy.

And besides, Miwa was so much better than him and still full of life. He was several years younger and still had hopes and dreams. Jun was just bad news.

This is for the best, he told himself.

"I know what I said before," Jun suddenly said, walking back toward Miwa. He stopped in front of him as Miwa got to his feet.

"But I can't leave this place." He added. "This is where I belong. I'm sorry, Miwa. We should just end this now. Before one of us gets hurt."

Miwa couldn't believe what was happening as Jun patted him on the head, ignoring the tears starting to well up in his eyes.

"Things will be better this way. You deserve better."

Jun's words stung as he smiled the most fake smile Miwa had ever seen and then turned his back to him, walking toward where he came from.

"Jun!" Miwa wasn't sure what he wanted to do or say, but he wasn't about to let it all end this way.

"What the hell happened to you?!" He asked. He choked back a cry as the rest of the crowd in the underground started staring at the two of them.

When Jun didn't stop walking, Miwa charged after him.

Jun didn't resist at all as Miwa grabbed a hold of his jacket collar and spun him around.

"You can't just walk away! I won't let you!" He argued.

"Miwa, lower your voice." Jun whispered. "I think you've forgotten where you are and who you're talking to."

The darkness in Jun's voice took Miwa aback. He'd never heard Jun sound like that before. Something malevolent shone in his eyes and he wondered if Jun had only been playing him for a fool all this time.

"Stop this! Just stop it already!" Miwa pleaded, tugging on Jun's jacket.

Jun's harsh expression didn't change and it scared Miwa. It was as if he was looking at a whole different person.

"This isn't you!" Miwa continued. "I don't know what happened while I was gone, but we can talk about it! I'll listen to everything you say and won't make any jokes, I swear!" He laughed hysterically, truly hoping this was all just some kind of nightmare and that he had fallen asleep in the car while Kai had been driving.

"You don't know me! You don't know what I've done!" Jun suddenly shouted. "You have no idea who I am, so stop pretending that you're in love with me!"

"Jun..." Miwa's eyes widened. This wasn't a nightmare. This was real.

Miwa clenched his right fist. If words weren't going to get through to him then there was only one other choice. Without holding back, he swung at Jun, but gasped when the dark-haired young man caught him by the arm and spun him around so that his arm was in a lock. It had happened so quickly, Miwa was stunned. Jun really was an experienced fighter.

"Whoa, did he really just take a swing at the King?" Someone snickered.

"That guy's got guts." A woman whispered.

"Listen, Miwa." Jun whispered, his temperament softening just a bit.

The blonde blushed as he felt Jun's breath brush against his ear.

"I'm not going to say it again. What we had was fun, but it's over now. We both need to move on. Now just do what I say and get out of here."

Miwa let out a pathetic whimper as he felt Jun release his arm and push him full-force toward the entrance to the hideout.

Miwa had to keep himself from crying as he looked back at the young man he no longer recognized. Everything he had been excited about and looking forward to doing with Jun this summer came crashing down in an instant. He suddenly didn't know what to do with himself. He winced as if he'd just been slapped and turned away, dashing out of sight.

Upon seeing Miwa leave, Jun stopped staring daggers and turned back toward his throne. It took everything he had in him not to to turn around and run after Miwa. After everything he ever wanted.

When he finally got to his throne, he took his seat and told everyone to clear out. Within minutes, the lot was completely abandoned, with a couple poker games still left unfinished. With no one left around to see, he buried his face in his fists and cried.