When he heard Sen start feeling sad too, he had to mentally berate himself. He was supposed to be strong and help others, not dump his problems on them. But Sen was being nice and listening and once in a while, that was okay too. He nodded, smile beginning to return.

"Mm, I hope so," he agreed, offering a slightly more enthusiastic smile. "Thank you Sen-nee. Don't worry, we'll all get home, I'm sure we will." It would take longer than he'd hoped, but he wasn't going to give up.

"I'm eighteen," he answered, tilting his head up at her curiously. He sure got asked that question a lot. "The nurses tried to tell me I'm not, but I know I remember that much right." From the corner of his eye, he caught sight of his cousin, who'd been polite enough to let him have a few moments with Sen. He turned his head and smiled, an open invitation, cheeks pinked slightly at having shown such weakness, but this was Takashi, not his father. He didn't mind.