Kumo stared at the outstretched hand, frozen in hesitance. He had no reason to trust Yuu, yet the sea of clouded loneliness reflected in his eyes made it difficult to decline. "Okay," he finally uttered while standing, "let's get going, then."

Yuu's moonlit eyes glanced over Kumo's face, taking in his disheveled appearance. The once mischevious smile etched into his features replaced by a deep, sullen frown paired with downcast eyes glued to the hourglass in his grip tugged at Yuu's curiosity. He gulped, unsure if he should ask, but decided to do so anyways. "What happened to her? Your sandman, I mean."

Kumo first gave a shaky sigh while they walked around the forest. "She has returned to the earth until Lady Tsuki wakes her again." His eyes wandered from Suna's hourglass to Yuu's back, narrowing between his shoulder blades when he gritted his teeth. "Why do you care? You never liked her."

The ghostly boy ran a hand through his hair. "I just... don't like seeing you sad is all."

Somewhat reluctant to believe him, Kumo didn't say a word. Instead taking an interest in kicking pebbles out his way. He squeezed Suna a little tighter, trudging behind Yuu. They traveled past the abundance of trees, heading towards a run down house abandoned by time. Vines climbed up its tiled roofs, clinging to the layer of dirt on top of it. On the front porch, broken glass shards mingled with cigarette buds and empty alcohol bottles as Yuu and Kumo approached the door.

"What is this place?" Kumo questioned, squinching his nose at the dust tickling his nose. "It's dirty."

Yuu placed his hand on the door that was cool to the touch, smiling a little. "Funny, I thought you'd remember if we came here of all places."

The floor creaking beneath his feet made Kumo cringe. Abandoned places never interested him; they're better off burned down for all he cared. "It's just an old house. I've never been here before." Nor would I ever want to be.

At that, Yuu shook his head. He clenched his fists and dropped them to his sides. Turning back to Kumo, he uttered, "That's not true―you have. We have."

Confused once more, the baku knitted his eyebrows together while tilting his head at Yuu. "I don't understand." When Yuu just smiled at him, Kumo huffed in frustration. "As usual. I wanted you to tell me why we're so connected, but you're just like Suna! Stop giving me riddles and spit it out."

Yuu smirked, lifting a hand to his lips as he chuckled. "Relax, baku. We have all the time in the world. Not my fault you can't take a hint."

Kumo ignored his last statement. "My name isn't 'baku', it's Kumo."

"No, it isn't," he snarled, glaring at Kumo before lunging for him. They tossled in the dirt, Kumo gripping his hourglass for dear life when Yuu pinned him down. "Don't you dare utter that wretched name in front of me!"

Shoulders held by Yuu's hands, Kumo attempted to kick him off. However, the boy only took his attack as a chance to trap his legs between his own.

"Why're you doing this?" Kumo yelled between ragged breaths. Struggling out of Yuu's grip seemed impossible at the moment, so he opted to talk himself out of whatever mess he'd gotten into. "You haven't explained anything yet."

Yuu remained silent. His mop of hair concealed his expression from Kumo, making him unsure of what the ghost was thinking. He was about to speak up when a droplet fell on his cheek. Yuu's trembling hands gave away what he wanted to hide. "You... You're crying?" Kumo asked in a hushed voice.

Despite the obvious, he denied it by shaking his head again. "They keep taking you away from me. That slimy goddess, your sandman, Sachiko... no one wants us to meet. Not even you."

More tears sunk into Kumo's skin. After listening to the boy's broken sobs and sniffles, he sighed. Kumo wasn't good at comforting crying humans, much less ghosts. He set his hourglass to the side, freeing his arms before bringing Yuu into his embrace. "I never said that. You're just really confusing, to say the least. Once you finish crying, tell me what's going on."

Yuu nodded, then nuzzled into Kumo's neck. Their bodies were pressed together in a tangled mess, legs intertwined as Yuu quivered in his hold. "I can't wait any longer. It's been so long since we've separated―just let me stay like this for a while longer."

"Sure." A defeated sigh left the baku's lips while Yuu's hands slid up and down his back. "Just... no biting, okay?" he added at the memory of the other Yuus nipping Nanase's ears.

He chuckled, sending vibrations up Kumo's neck. "I wouldn't do that unless you wanted me to. Nanase seemed to like it."

Kumo couldn't help smiling. "I think you should reevaluate what 'enjoyment' looks like, because that wasn't it. And I'll pass on that offer."

Yuu wiped his tears and stood before helping him up. He turned to the house and sighed, all teasing gone. "This was our home. We hated it here. The people who created us didn't give us the love we deserved."

"What do you―"

Yuu smiled, but it didn't reflect in his eyes. They were glaring at the home. "Those kids you saw; Sachiko, Nanase, Taka and Souta? They were horrible, disgusting, vile pieces of trash just like Mother." He dug his foot in the ground, wide eyed. "All of them deserve to be shouldered with guilt for the rest of their filthy lives. Although Mother's lucky, I guess. She died before I could haunt her more."

Being the slow person he was, Kumo still had difficulty grasping this information. He cupped his head in one hand. "But, why? Parents love their children, right? Lady Tsuki said―"

"Forget about that bitch," he interrupted, spinning back to face Kumo. "She's the one who stole your memories! Don't you get it? She wanted you to forget all about the bad things. And you went along with it, leaving me here alone."

When he spotted the baku's concerned expression, he sighed, plopped to the ground and brought his knees to his chest. "If we hadn't commited sin, this wouldn't have happened. We could've faded together. But now I'm stuck here with the same cunts who pushed us off the edge."

Kumo held his hands up in a 'pause' motion. "Wait, wait, they murdered you?"

A silence hung in the air. Yuu hesitated to say the words aching to get out his throat. He didn't want to break his other half. Yet he couldn't wait any longer. It'd been over twenty years, after all. So he turned away and muttered, "No, we committed suicide."