A biting cold pried its way inside the warm interior of the train the very moment the doors slid open. The chill clawed at any exposed skin, but the discomfort managed to shake Tristan awake after the long journey. Nearly there… He longed for somewhere warm and soft – anywhere, as long as it was not a cheap, shared dorm hall like the one he’d stayed in all weekend during the tournament.

He stepped outside, onto the platform of Oxford station. The muscles in his core tensed up immediately to keep the cold out. The air was heavy with water, a low fog drifting over the train tracks in either direction. Behind him, he heard the rest stumble out of the train: not just his own team, but four sets of the less dedicated debaters as well whom he didn’t know as closely.

In his very last effort of being responsible that weekend, he straightened out his back to not look exhausted, and lead everyone towards the parking lot. Luckily for him, most of them had bicycles – and hadn’t quite managed to damage their brains enough to forget how to ride one. A few sparse others had cars waiting for them; in Sam’s case her own, and for Liz her father had come to pick her up.

Sam was the first to go, not wasting any time on frivolous goodbyes. A single wave and a ‘bye’ was all they got.

“I will see you on Monday.” Liz followed up as she gave both Tristan and Killian a tight hug.

“Ta.” Tristan responded, managing to raise his hand in some form of a goodbye – Killian didn’t even bother, simply grunting as a sign that he was still a living organism.

They both watched as Liz darted up to her father, hugged him and then entered the car, as there was little else to see in the parking lot. A buzz from Tristan's phone in his pocket drew his attention away, and he quickly took it out to check the message.

I'll be at the station soon

I want to pick up a winner (｡•̀ᴗ-)✧

The corners of his mouth won against the weight of exhaustion bearing down on them, a slight smile breaking through. But then he realised Killian was still beside him.

"Er… Hibiki is picking me up," he admitted quietly. "He could get you home?"

Much to his surprise, Killian scoffed at the idea, shaking his head before answering.

"Nah, I'll be fine on me own."

"Oh, sure…" Tristan stammered back, even if he wasn't sure at all why Killian had responded so intensely.

"I think I'll be heading back, it's too cold to be standing about." A few hops up and down to get some blood flowing to his hands and feet proved that, and Tristan nodded in agreement.

"See you then?"

"Yeah, see ye." Killian nodded, before hoisting his sports bag higher on his shoulder and taking his leave as well.

After this exodus of the group he had been with for nearly three days, Tristan found himself alone with nothing but the frigid gusts speaking to him. He put his arms around his waist while listening how the branches of the surrounding trees hit one another and the wood creaked whenever the winds picked up. It was just him – and his own mind didn't make for good company.

Several worries filled his head; why Killian had responded so negatively, and whether or not it was something he had said or done; he was concerned about the upcoming exams, especially for economics; even Christmas made him anxious, and he didn't look forward to having to bear with his mother's religious fervour.

But then he saw a black BMW turning onto the lot, and the prospect of seeing Hibiki put him at ease. At least for tonight he wouldn't have to deal with those things.

The car stopped right in front of him. He saw Hibiki smile at him from the backseat, and he answered in kind. With the car still idling, Kazuo stepped out and towards him.

"Should I put your bag away?" The man asked, and Tristan quickly obliged. In all fairness he'd forgotten how formal Hibiki's entourage really was – especially since he himself was so casual about everything.

Before he could pay it any mind Hibiki had pushed the door open for him to get in. Immediately he got inside, quick to shut the door so the cold couldn't sneak in after him.

The warmth washed over him, and with a deep sigh he laid his head back. He closed his eyes and felt the sleep tug at his mind, but the feeling of Hibiki's hand on his own prevented him from drifting too far. While his still gloved fingers tingled from the blood rushing back to them, he clasped them around Hibiki's.

Now the cold wasn't there to keep him awake, it took all his willpower to open his eyes again and look up. It seemed Hibiki had a lot more energy to spare, grinning enthusiastically about him being back. A few rapid taps later, he was looking at a phone screen instead. Although dimmed, the light still gave him a slight headache. He had to narrow his eyes, reading the sentence twice because the first time he somehow mistook it for french and couldn't make sense of it.

How was it?

"Good." He responded while pushing himself up with both hands, committing to being awake. "I didn't get to see much though. Just drunk students."

A soft chuckle left Hibiki, as he'd been told all about the drunken acts Tristan had to bear witness to over the weekend. Before Tristan could continue to talk about it, Kazuo entered the car.

The tiredness caused him to slip back into his more timid nature, especially with a third person there. A little anxious about saying or revealing something embarrassing, he fell quiet. Hibiki noticed as well, and instead of questioning him, quietly put an arm around his shoulders.

Tristan didn't resist being held, and laid his head on Hibiki's shoulder since it was clearly offered to him. Or maybe that was just the excuse he needed to finally lay down. The very moment he did he felt heavy. His heart pounded in his chest. The cold vanished from him, even if his clothes were still damp.

He knew that if he closed his eyes he would fall asleep, the exhaustion circling the edges of his thoughts like predators waiting for him to stray. The silence didn't help him, as the only sounds were the thrumming of the car engine and Hibiki's breathing. At some point his thoughts must've fallen prey to sleep, but he was too tired to notice.