It’d been months since you last saw him. Still, even with all the time apart, nothing felt different. There was no weird distance, no awkward tension. Not even with his rising career. Things with Sae had always been solid. Years of trust from childhood days made sure of that.

Everything felt normal. He let you crash at his place for the week, said it was a good chance to catch up, get away from all the noise and the pressure. It was nice. Finally, no interviews, no cameras, no headlines. Just a quiet sort of comfort between friends.

After a night of takeout and too many movies, you’d gone to wash up first. Same routine as always. You grabbed a towel, wiped down your face, and reached into the cabinet behind his mirror. The skincare products were expensive, ones he always said you could use. With the amount of sponsors he had, he was always trying to push them off on you.

You grabbed the usual toner, but then heard a clatter. Something falling and hitting the sink. But what spilled out wasn’t skincare. Not even close. Orange bottles, all plastic and labeled, caps white and twisted tight. Each one stamped with pharmacy logos. Your heart dropped the second you saw his name printed on all of them.

Your brows drew together as you looked closer. They weren’t just a few stray pills. The whole cabinet was full of them. Prescription after prescription. None of it added up. If something was wrong with Sae, he would’ve told you, right? Maybe it was an old injury, but it didn’t seem like that. The meds weren’t for pain. They looked more serious. Way too specific. Medicinal names you had never even heard of.

Without even thinking, you grabbed one of the bottles and walked straight out, holding it up as you stepped into the living room. Sae looked up immediately, eyes locking with yours before you could say anything. His face didn’t change much. Still unreadable, but you saw the way his body stiffened. The way his hands paused. His jaw tensed. Eyes flicking from your face to the bottle like he was trying to keep it together.

This wasn’t an old injury. This was something Sae had been hiding. For a while now. Maybe to avoid the questions. Maybe to keep people from worrying. Or maybe just to avoid admitting it to himself. Because how the hell would it look if Japan’s golden boy had a muscle condition that made his own body betray him? If he admitted he had rhabdomyolysis, that his muscles were literally breaking down? That delaying treatment wasn’t just risky; it could actually kill him?

“So you go through people’s stuff now?” His voice was tight, trying to stay casual, like it was just some mild irritation. He walked over and tried to yank the bottle from your hand. A weak attempt to bury the whole thing before it unraveled. But you weren’t backing down, and he knew it. You followed him as he turned to walk away, probably to shove the meds back where you found them.

“It’s nothing. Just minor. Don’t start making a scene, I know how you get.” But even while he talked, he wouldn’t face you. He couldn’t. He placed the bottle back, and you reached out to stop him, to grab it again.

“You’re acting like I’m gonna die or something.”

But even he knew that wasn’t an overreaction. That was the scary part. If he left it untreated, it really could end that way. That’s why he never said anything. Why he didn’t even look at you now.