[Scott can't even laugh at the flustered surprise that suddenly grips the other boy. Oh, he normally would've teased Yu by now, especially since he's often teased himself when it comes to Kotone. Not to mention that Yu normally has a good poker face, able to shove back things behind that cool demeanor, but look at him now. Honestly though, he gets it, between wanting to rebuild something with Mikey and if it was Kotone that hurt him, he'd forgive her. Like immediately.
...
Okay, maybe not the best comparison, but he understands the feeling of not being able to stop loving someone no matter what. Feelings are just stupid sometimes, aren't they? Things were so much fucking easier when he was an outcast and was mad at everyone, only really focused on himself and not worrying about anything. ...He wouldn't trade to go back to that angry, lonely teenager though.]
I understand, man.
[Is what he settles with, some sort of understanding shining behind those glasses as he pushes his half drained milkshake away for a bit.] Not a feeling that's easy to get rid of.
[He had hoped that Scott would understand...or rather, maybe he suspected as much. Whatever the case, he's still grateful for those words, and he nods to show that appreciation.]
Thanks, [he says softly, but it's the rest of it that's sitting with him. He's never once regretted the way that Inaba has changed him, wholly, fundamentally. But it's true that this feeling is part of why he built up those walls in the first place. Saying goodbye, being hurt, missing people...it all seemed too painful to keep going through, and not worth the effort.]
No, it's not. [He sighs a bit, fiddling with his straw.] ... I used to avoid it. Getting to know people. It hurt to say goodbye, to think about being forgotten...so I just never got close to people. Loneliness felt easier.
[Was it worth it, in the end? Usually, his answer is yes, an absolute. That certainty is a little shaken, in this moment.]
... But it hurts either way, in the end. I guess you can't avoid it.
[Scott doesn't really bother to hide his surprise hearing that. Yu used to avoid being close to people? Avoid making friends? It's honestly kind of hard imagining the teen in front of him being a loner of sorts. He's just... always seemed like someone that easily drew people in. A guy that was popular back home, especially with the stuff Naoto mentioned about him.]
Never pictured you as the loner type. That's my schtick.
[How much self-awareness does Scott have? None. Okay, he knows he has more friends and stuff now, but...] Except I never thought too much about being forgotten and crap. Everyone just sort of pissed me off back home. [...] But yeah, we can't avoid getting hurt.
[There's a slight teasing edge in his voice, a hint of smile in the corner of his mouth, and while it doesn't last, at least it's there to begin with. He can picture it, for Scott; annoyance, irritation. When you shoot lasers out of your eyes whether you want to or not, maybe it makes sense to be that angry. People have their reasons.
Either way, he nods, stirring his straw around in its cup.]
I moved around a lot. After a while, starting over again and again felt too hard...so I stopped. [Come to think of it, Inaba had been the longest he'd stayed in one place for a while, huh? And that had changed everything.] I don't think that way anymore. Usually, it feels worth it.
[He exhales quietly.] Maybe someday in the future, we'll look back on this the same way.
[Scott smiles briefly at the tease. Yeah yeah, big surprise. Although, honestly, he is glad to see that small upward twitch on Yu's mouth, even if it doesn't last long. It's something? Better than nothing. Crap like this is going to take time, he just hopes that Aldrip will give that to them.
But what Yu says about moving around a lot... it makes sense.]
It'll be worth it, Yu. [There's a certain determination to Scott, a conviction that he holds that he won't budge on.] Even if we have to work extra hard for it.
[And look, their hamburgers and fries finally arrive!]
[It'll be worth it. Yu is quiet as he processes those words. In truth, it's something that he already believes -- these days he does, at least. The bonds he's made and the people he's met have proved that to be true time and time again. More than just worth it; worth fighting for, worth every cut and bruise and lashing along the way. There's nothing in the world that is more worthwhile than that.
Nothing else that is so deeply deserving of that work.]
You're right. [And he has to tamp down a quiet surge of...it's hard to say what: awe, pride, some mix of the two, maybe. Scott says that like a leader, and it inspires just the same.]
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...
Okay, maybe not the best comparison, but he understands the feeling of not being able to stop loving someone no matter what. Feelings are just stupid sometimes, aren't they? Things were so much fucking easier when he was an outcast and was mad at everyone, only really focused on himself and not worrying about anything. ...He wouldn't trade to go back to that angry, lonely teenager though.]
I understand, man.
[Is what he settles with, some sort of understanding shining behind those glasses as he pushes his half drained milkshake away for a bit.] Not a feeling that's easy to get rid of.
no subject
Thanks, [he says softly, but it's the rest of it that's sitting with him. He's never once regretted the way that Inaba has changed him, wholly, fundamentally. But it's true that this feeling is part of why he built up those walls in the first place. Saying goodbye, being hurt, missing people...it all seemed too painful to keep going through, and not worth the effort.]
No, it's not. [He sighs a bit, fiddling with his straw.] ... I used to avoid it. Getting to know people. It hurt to say goodbye, to think about being forgotten...so I just never got close to people. Loneliness felt easier.
[Was it worth it, in the end? Usually, his answer is yes, an absolute. That certainty is a little shaken, in this moment.]
... But it hurts either way, in the end. I guess you can't avoid it.
no subject
[Scott doesn't really bother to hide his surprise hearing that. Yu used to avoid being close to people? Avoid making friends? It's honestly kind of hard imagining the teen in front of him being a loner of sorts. He's just... always seemed like someone that easily drew people in. A guy that was popular back home, especially with the stuff Naoto mentioned about him.]
Never pictured you as the loner type. That's my schtick.
[How much self-awareness does Scott have? None. Okay, he knows he has more friends and stuff now, but...] Except I never thought too much about being forgotten and crap. Everyone just sort of pissed me off back home. [...] But yeah, we can't avoid getting hurt.
no subject
[There's a slight teasing edge in his voice, a hint of smile in the corner of his mouth, and while it doesn't last, at least it's there to begin with. He can picture it, for Scott; annoyance, irritation. When you shoot lasers out of your eyes whether you want to or not, maybe it makes sense to be that angry. People have their reasons.
Either way, he nods, stirring his straw around in its cup.]
I moved around a lot. After a while, starting over again and again felt too hard...so I stopped. [Come to think of it, Inaba had been the longest he'd stayed in one place for a while, huh? And that had changed everything.] I don't think that way anymore. Usually, it feels worth it.
[He exhales quietly.] Maybe someday in the future, we'll look back on this the same way.
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But what Yu says about moving around a lot... it makes sense.]
It'll be worth it, Yu. [There's a certain determination to Scott, a conviction that he holds that he won't budge on.] Even if we have to work extra hard for it.
[And look, their hamburgers and fries finally arrive!]
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Nothing else that is so deeply deserving of that work.]
You're right. [And he has to tamp down a quiet surge of...it's hard to say what: awe, pride, some mix of the two, maybe. Scott says that like a leader, and it inspires just the same.]
Scott...thank you. I mean it.