"I see. So that's what happened." Asakura spoke in a whisper, staring down at his own hands.

To his surprise, he noticed that his fingers were clutching the glass so tightly, they ran the risk of breaking it. An abrupt surge of anger rose in his chest, blocking his airways. Like a soaring dragon aiming for the sky, that feeling went all the way up to his head, instantly making him dizzy. 

This sudden and powerful emotion took Asakura completely by surprise, so much that he almost cursed aloud. 

In the end, though, Asakura forced himself to calm down slightly. He squeezed the next words through his teeth, managing to sound less affected than he really was.

"It must have been tough for Sato-san."

Kyosuke nodded listlessly.

"It was. He stayed in the hospital for a week and during all that time he wouldn't speak a word about what happened. When we returned home, he simply smiled and said that he had chased Touma along a high pedestrian crossing and, in a moment of inattention, he fell down the stairs. It was clearly a stupid lie and I called him out on it, saying it was bullshit. But in turn, he just shook his head slowly, still smiling and refusing to say more."

"What about that guy? What happened to him afterwards?"

Hearing this, Kyosuke clicked his tongue and downed the entire glass, before placing it back down with a loud bang. When he spoke again, his voice was dripping with resentment.

"Touma never returned home after that. The next day, I found out that he had been cast for the role. I even saw a picture of him smiling happily with the rest of the crew. Later, I discovered that people had been told lies about Sato. Things like him going to a gay club and getting into a fight, hence the reason why he missed the interview.

After this mess exploded in the media, everyone’s opinion, from the actors to the Director, took a sudden turn. Before, they all liked Sato and considered him a prodigy. Now, they all felt very strongly against him, chastising him for being reckless and unreliable. This entire situation painted Sato into an unprofessional figure and, together with the sudden outing of being gay, it became increasingly difficult for him to get a part, even a small one. Yet, despite all this, whenever he got turned down, he simply smiled and said it couldn’t be helped."

While Kyosuke spoke, Asakura took the time to finally calm down after the previous internal emotional outburst. Now, he could speak without sounding murderous. 

"To continue smiling and be able to act calmly in this kind of situation is proof of Sato-san’s good character. After all, not giving up and holding it together is always harder than breaking into pieces." 

As he finished, a knowing smile appeared on his lips.

Oblivious of the subtle change in Asakura’s countenance, Kyosuke continued to gush over Sato’s character.

"En, Sato has always been like this. He always tried to do things himself and whenever he encountered an obstacle, he never backed down from challenging it. Also, I've rarely seen him truly hating or resenting someone. Don't get me wrong…" 

Kyosuke hurried to wave his hands in denial. 

"I’m not saying he is an innocent cupcake who gets bullied around. No, Sato can stand his own ground if he must. But he never does it out of spite or hatred. Instead, he tries to communicate with the other party and reach a peaceful settlement. Compared to me, he always stops his temper before the situation gets out of hand. If he and Touma had really gotten into a fight that night, then that would be the first one in Sato's entire life."

Asakura stared thoughtfully at the last bit of whiskey on the bottom of his glass. There was a thought at the back of his mind, but he couldn’t quite grasp it. 

Feeling frustrated, he ultimately sensed the need to change the course of the conversation.

That’s when Asakura suddenly realized a very important aspect. 

All this time, Kyosuke had given him quite a lot of private details regarding Sato’s character and personal life. Since he never believed in people sharing information without having an ulterior motive, Asakura couldn’t help but be suspicious. After all, he was still a businessman at heart, so he was acutely aware that in this world there was no such thing as a free lunch. 

So, why would Kyosuke be so willing to talk to him so openly?

After a few moments of remaining silent, Asakura eventually turned his head slightly and cast a sideways glance at the young man.

"Kyosuke-kun, I want to ask you something.” He began in a serious tone. “Why did you tell me all this? Outing your good friend just like that in front of a stranger… Aren't you afraid Sato-san might be upset if he knew that?"

To Asakura’s surprise,  instead of looking worried, Kyosuke shook his head and smiled.

"You offered your help to Sato when he was a stranger to you. And, based on what I’ve seen so far, you don’t seem to harbor any ill will towards him. That makes you a good person in my eyes." Kyosuke replied simply while staring straight into Asakura's eyes.

‘Is this person purely naive or simply an idiot?’  Asakura wondered silently. 

But Kyosuke’s next words startled him into almost dropping his glass.

“Besides, aren’t you the same as him, Asakura-san? If we are to be friends, there is no need to hide it, right?”

The two men stared into each other’s eyes for several seconds. Neither moved a muscle and time seemed to remain still. 

Eventually, it was Asakura who broke the heavy silence first.

“How did you know?” He asked in a low voice.

“You have a certain air about you. In addition, I also noticed the way you looked at Sato when he left earlier.” Kyosuke shrugged, then flashed Asakura a sheepish smile. “I’ve spent enough time around Sato and Touma, so I’m able to detect certain things.”