Junpei’s hands clutch yours with a desperate intensity, his fingers trembling as if letting go would mean losing the last bit of stability he has left. His grip is tight, almost painful, but you don’t pull away. His head hangs low, shoulders slumped, as you both kneel in front of each other. The dim light casts shadows on his tear-streaked face, highlighting the raw anguish etched into his features.

Tears spill freely down his cheeks, his breath hitching with each ragged sob. He’s just bared everything to you—Mahito’s manipulation, the unsettling discovery of his own cursed energy, and the moment he found his mother’s lifeless body. Every word had been soaked in pain, cracking his voice until it was barely above a whisper. And now, with Yuji off facing Mahito alongside Nanami, it’s up to you to keep him safe.

“I’m sorry… I’m so sorry…” he chokes out, his whole body trembling under the weight of his grief. His hands tighten around yours, as if apologizing could somehow rewrite the past, as if saying it enough times could bring his mother back or erase the horrors he's endured. But all it does is break him further, his sobs coming harder, rawer, until he’s completely unraveling in front of you.