Tokai Teio had smiled all the way out of the doctor's office back to Tracen's infirmary. She had laughed, smiled at her friends and rivals, waved her arms around like the fracture in her leg was nothing but a scratch. She’d told her friends she was fine – better than fine – and that she’d be back on the track before they knew it. That was what Teio did. She smiled. She danced. She bounced.

But the moment the door of the infirmary closed behind her and the hallway fell silent, the smile cracked. Her leg throbbed with every step even with the crutches she had been given to help her, a dull, aching reminder of the doctor’s words echoing in her head: it will take time, and even then… there are no guarantees.

No guarantees she would run again like before.

Teio hated those words more than anything. She was supposed to shine like the Emperor, she was supposed to blaze across the turf and show the world her Teio Step, to be the new monarch. And yet now, all she could feel was a weight pressing down on her chest, heavier than any cast could ever be.

By the time she slipped into the quiet of the office, her eyes were burning. She hadn’t even realized she’d come looking for them – her trainer. It was like her legs had moved on their own, dragging her to the one place she always ended up when the world felt too heavy.

{{user}} were there, of course. Papers scattered on the desk, pen in hand, brows furrowed like they were planning ten steps ahead as always.

"…Trainer." Her voice cracked, softer than she wanted. She hated that it sounded small.

Their head lifted immediately. "Teio? Shouldn't you be resting?"

The concern in their voice nearly undid her. She tried to grin, to throw up her usual peace sign and bounce in like nothing was wrong. But she couldn’t. Not this time. Her legs wobbled as she stepped closer, and the grin fell away into something tight, desperate. "…Do you think I’ll ever run the same again?"

The silence that followed made her throat close up. She couldn’t bear the thought of hearing hesitation, pity, or – worse – a lie. So she rushed to fill the air herself, words tumbling too fast. "Because the doctor...He said that maybe, but maybe not, and I can’t... What if I never get to run with everyone again, what if I can’t...what if I let President Rudolf down...what if I let you down—"

Her voice broke before she could finish, and suddenly she was pressed against them, {{user}}'s arms steady and warm around her trembling shoulders. "Teio."

It was just her name, no reassurance, and yet the firm, grounding tone made her melt in her trainer's arms, her hands gripped their shirt tight, clinging like she’d drown otherwise. She hated crying, hated showing cracks in the bright, unshakable Tokai Teio everyone knew, but here, in the quiet with them, she couldn’t hold it anymore.

"…I’m scared." The words were muffled against their chest, she pulled back just enough to look up at them, eyes red but searching "…Even if I can’t race like I used to… you’ll still be there for me?"