A glint of sunlight reached Ryuji's face. Slowly he opened his eyes and felt... tired. He would likely find it hard to get up, especially from the lap pillow he was enjoying or at least should have been. But as he inspected his surroundings, he found that the catgirl was nowhere to be seen, and the only pillow he had received was the cold hard ground.

"What a ripoff. I do all that hard work, and all I get is to cop a feel and some brick up my ass?" He let out a sigh. "And here I was trying to have a major attitude adjustment. All it did was give me broken bones and momentary happiness!"

"Is this some sort of ritual you have? You wake up and then complain your heart out? Fascinating."

To his side, he realized that a beat-up beauty was sitting near. Rhea was worse for wear, and her armor had seen better days, but the most notable thing was the bloodstains under her eyes. They were bloodshot as well, but he couldn't tell if that was because of injury or because she was crying. Ryuji slowly rose; his body cracked with every movement, which made Ryuji begin to regret taking so many hits. That was when he noticed.

"What the fuck happened to the city!?" Everywhere he turned was rubble. Even the canal was plugged up by it. The once beautiful city could now be the set of an apocalypse movie. As he turned in a circle inspecting the damage, he noticed something else. "...What happened to Jong?"

In the middle of his question, Ryuji noticed yet another person near him. To his side was Jong, laying on a bed of glowing flowers. He was beat all over, and Ryuji could barely see his chest rise.

"Hey, Ryu!"

Without warning, a voice that he was intimately familiar with filled his ears. Then, before he could look in her direction, he was tackled to the ground by the little gremlin.

"Dot! Can't you see that I'm injured here!" Ryuji's rage flared, but upon seeing her unblemished smile, he caved. "Man, am I glad to see you. Hey, wait! Aren't you supposed to be looking after the citizens? What the hell are you doing here!"

"Is that any way to speak to someone that was worried about you!? Have some common decency, jeez!" Dot contrived a fake pout before getting off of him and helping Ryuji back to his feet.

"So you were worried about me, huh? Does that include you, Queen?"

With a smug grin, Ryuji looked past Dot and at the green-eyed girl standing behind her. Red crept onto her face, and she wouldn't even glance in his direction. After basking in her embarrassment, Ryuji inspected the damage of their group as a whole. Jong was in what looked to be critical condition. Rhea appeared as if she was hit by an explosion, which, as far as he knew, could have been what happened. And he himself was sporting quite a few broken bones.

"Dot, Marie, I need you to go back to the stadium and get a few of the best healers there. Bring them back here as fast as possible." Dot looked as if she wanted to protest, but Ryuji shut it down with a single word and pleading look. "Please?"

Marie nodded before sprinting off. Dot turned around and reluctantly began half jogging. After a few moments, they were gone. Ryuji remembered his question and was about to pose it again.

"Jong? Jong!?"

Before he could, a shrill voice came from behind him. A severely damaged Rosey was being hoisted and kept up by an exhausted Jessy. Tears were beginning to form in the corners of her eyes as she stared at Jong. Seemingly finding the strength to stand on her own, she rushed over to his side and continued to call his name. But no matter how many times she said it, he wouldn't open his eyes.

"JONG!"

Ryuji's and Jessy's eyes met. She looked like she wanted to say something, to do something, but all she could do was watch on. Ryuji sighed and slowly walked over to them. He liked Jong, and seeing that every fighter, excluding one, was present here meant that he could use his heal without regrets.

Wordlessly Ryuji grasped Rosey's shoulder. She jumped and immediately turned. The anguish in her eyes made his heart ache. Even though she was normally a pain in the ass, he didn't think she deserved to be this upset.

Seeming to understand the situation, Rosey backed up a little and watched on as he lowered his hand onto Jong's head.

"Sacred High Heal." A green glow passed through Jong's body, and for a second, his eyes opened.

"Jong!?"

Rosey pushed Ryuji out of the way and put her arms around him, but by the time she had embraced him, he had already passed out again. Rosey looked ready to have another mental breakdown.

"He's fine." Rhea's voice cut through before Rosey had a chance to freakout. With confidence, she continued to speak. "Ryuji's miracle completely heals a person."

"Then why!?"

"He's experiencing mana drain. He must have used every last ounce within his body. Mana drain isn't enough to kill a healthy person, so you shouldn't worry. But he will be knocked out for a bit." Rhea answered with a soft smile that made Rosey's face scrunch up as if she was going to start crying because of the good news.

But that expression fell as Rosey cleared her throat and asked another question. "What about the Commander? You can tell, can't you? I know you can, so tell me!"

The Sword Saint looked at the ground.

.............................

"He's... gone."

Her sobs were loud as everyone there sat in silence. Ryuji couldn't believe what he had heard. He could tell Rory had won since they weren't all currently dead, so Ryuji had just figured he was still alive. Rosey's wails brought him out his thoughts.

"Father! Daddy! ...Rory..."

The amount of despair he could hear in her voice as it cracked was heart-wrenching. Ryuji turned around and grabbed Jessy by the shoulder. She seemed to understand and started to walk with him. When they could no longer hear her cries, Ryuji stopped and sat down on a nearby piece of rubble. He began admiring the sun that signaled a new day with a melancholic smile on his face.

"It feels weird to say this given that I only knew the guy for an hour or two, but I'll miss him."

Jessy looked at him with soft eyes and nodded. "I know what you mean. I just got the feeling that he was a funny guy."

Enjoying this book? Seek out the original to ensure the author gets credit.

The wind blew, and Ryuji sighed as he remembered conversations that technically never happened. He figured that right now would be the perfect time to bring it up. 'If only I wasn't awkward. Well, here goes nothing!' Ryuji cleared his throat.

"Jessy, I just want you to know that if you feel like you owe me something, you don't."

Ryuji expected an immediate response but was met by an ungodly quiet. To say he could have heard a pin drop would not have been an exaggeration. Then finally, after what seemed like lifetimes to him, Jessy spoke. Her voice was quiet, which Ryuji marked as a sign something was wrong.

"Of course I still owe you, you idiot. What could I have possibly paid you back with?"

Ryuji leaned back and sighed. 'Man, insecurities are a giant pain in the ass!' He thought this despite knowing that out of the group, he had the most.

"Jessy, how many times have you smiled at me?"

He asked the question as if he was asking about the weather.

"I don't know."

Jessy sounded as if she failed to see what the point of his question was.

"How many times have you giggled in that cute way that makes my heart soar?"

"I don't know..."

"How many times have you lightened up my day with a joke or just by being yourself?"

"I don't..."

"How many times have you saved me?"

"I..."

"Then I'll tell how many! More times than I can possibly count. So if anyone owes anybody anything, it would be me owing you, you got that?!"

Ryuji attempted to cover his own embarrassment by yelling, but that only made him feel more awkward. Meanwhile, Jessy's eyes were widening.

"So... you mean that..."

"Yep! You don't owe me a damn thing! Which means you don't have to feel obligated about being in my party anymore. You can go on and try to find gun spells like you were doing before."

Silence covered them once again as the gunslinger's hands clenched tight.

"I see."

Ryuji could tell she was upset, but he was sure this was the only way to get that stupid idea out of her head once and for all.

"I'm glad you do! Now that you're free of that self-induced contract, you can do whatever you want." With a sly grin, Ryuji continued. "So now that you're unemployed, I can tell you all about this position I need to be filled. You see, I need someone who'll save my hide when I get into trouble. She needs to be kind, gentle, cute, and funny. Preferably someone that'll get along with my other party members. And above all else, she needs to be willing to be my friend. Think you'd be up for it? Cause I believe, young lady, you're the perfect fit."

Ryuji silently hoped that his point had gotten across and that she wasn't too upset.

"Can I ask what the pay is?"

Her voice was low, but he could hear the faint traces of humor building up in her voice.

"Hmmm, let me see. You get free food, board, equipment, and a cut of the rewards. Other than that, the only thing I can offer you is affection!"

He pointed at her and then spread his arms, acting like he was ready to receive a hug. To his dismay, she just stuck her tongue out.

"I'm good, but I'll still accept the job."

'She must be feeling pretty mad that I tricked her there for a second.' Ryuji put his arms back to their normal position.

"Can I ask you something?" Jessy posed a question with a serious tone.

Ryuji raised his eyebrows and answered. "Shoot."

"Why did you offer me this job exactly?"

Ryuji sighed and scratched the back of his neck. "Are you really gonna make me say it?" When he looked at her, she just stared back at him with concern. "Fine, I'll come out and say it. You're one of my best friends, Jessy. Wait, screw that! You're my bestest friend!"

Jessy's face relaxed, and she managed to smile before lightly chuckling. Ryuji welcomed the sight as it made his heart feel lighter. He truly believed that this moment was worth all the pain he went through. "Bestest friend? Then what about Dot?"

"What? A guy can't have more than one bestest friend!?"

"I guess there's no rule preventing it."

"Exactly, so why can't I have two? Besides, you both fill different roles. Dot's more like a little sister, and you're more like... a brother!"

Jessy looked less than thrilled about his comment. "There had to be a better way to phrase that, pardner."

"By the way, can you stop calling me pardner?"

Jessy's cheeks turned rosy. Her eyes screamed something along the lines of, 'I want to die!' "D-Do you not like it or something?"

"No, it's not that. It's just, that's what you called me when we were friends. Now that we're bestest friends, you need a new nickname." Ryuji waved his hand around as he explained. Jessy let out a calm breath speaking.

"What is with you today? You keep leading me into misunderstanding after misunderstanding. Did you hit your head real hard in your fight? Or is this your new way of teasing me?" Jessy paused to sigh. "Well, either way, I guess I'll try and come up with something."

Ryuji watched his friend enter a thinker-like pose and began thinking himself. Almost instantly, he rose with an excited look. "I got it! What do you think of compadre?" After letting the word leave his mouth, Ryuji instantly regretted his idea. 'That was super cringy.' But after seeing the stars in Jessy's eyes, he knew she adored it.

"That's amazing! Compadre! I love it!"

He smiled, knowing that she meant it. He sat back down and leaned against what used to be a wall. Silence covered them once more as Ryuji stared into the morning sky. Jessy sat down next to him and started humming. 'This might be the first time I've felt at peace in a while.' Ryuji sat on this thought, and as he did, paranoia started to sink its teeth into him. Every time he had even come close to his happy ending, something else had shown up. First, it was Wrath and Sloth; then it was Lust. Finally, there was Pride. Now that all obstacles had been dealt with, would something else show up and send him back into that hell?

"Compadre?"

Ryuji felt a tug at his torn sleeve and looked down to see Jessy's concerned aqua eyes. He raised his hand to grab her and loosen her grip when he noticed how bad he was shaking. Then he took notice of how loud his heartbeat was, how fast it was going. He took his hands and instead opted to put his head in them.

"Hey... Jessy? We won, right?" He hated how his voice shook. "We did it, right?" Warm tears started to flow as he struggled to talk. "Nothings going to take this away...right?" By now he could no longer control his sobs. His hands caught the droplets falling from his eyes.

Wordlessly, Jessy took his head and placed it against her chest. He could feel her heat and the comfort that came with it. Without thinking, he latched his arms around her and continued to cry. His hands gripped the back of her leather vest. Meanwhile, her gentle hands flowed through his hair. It was messy from the caked blood and dirt, but even still, she combed through it with a tender smile.

"It hasn't been five minutes since we agreed to that new contract, and you're already breaking it. I'm the one who's supposed to get free affection, not you." A giggle escaped her lips as she continued to pet the blabbering man in her arms. "That means you owe me now compadre."

Ryuji managed to stifle his sobs for a moment and responded. "I'll do whatever you want."

"Then look at me." Ryuji removed himself from her chest while still holding on to her; he raised his eyes to meet hers. She could see the disgusting snot and tears lining his face and used the cuff of her shirt to wipe some of it off. She looked at him with something akin to a sister looking at her younger brother. "Now I want you to smile and say, 'Everything is going to be alright!'"

Ryuji put the weakest excuse for a smile onto his face, and Jessy just continued looking at him with her soft expression. "Everything... is going to be alright."

Her hands cupped his face, and she leaned in so close that their breaths collided. He could see a faint blush of embarrassment on her cheeks, but it was nowhere near how red his were. Her smile grew, and with teeth showing, she asked. "One more time."

This time the smile that graced his face was as real as could be, and the words he spoke sounded confident. "Everything is going to be alright."

Jessy backed her face away from his and let go. Her hand grasped her chin like she was thinking. "You know what compadre? I think you're right! Everything is going to be alright, so how about we head on back?"

Reluctantly Ryuji let go of her and ended his embrace, but unconsciously his hand gravitated towards hers and held it firmly. By the time he realized what he had done, he figured it would be more embarrassing to let go, so he acted as if nothing was wrong. Jessy just continued to smile in the same way she had been. Without bringing up their hand situation, they sauntered off towards the others while Jessy talked about her experience.

"And then my gun got so hot it melted into slag! I swear Rosey owes me a new one!"

"Are you really going to make someone in mourning pay for that!?"

"Hmmm, you're right. She gets a mourners discount, but I'm still expecting some compensation!"

Ryuji laughed, and when he did, he felt her hand squeeze his. In this moment, Ryuji truly felt that everything would be alright. At least for now, he had suffered enough. He would see tomorrow, and the next day, and the next day, all with his friends by his side. He had earned it.

With a smile that felt more authentic than ever before, he squeezed back.