Even if Akaya knows that he’s playing right into Yukimura’s design (and he probably does), it doesn’t matter. He’d still sink his teeth in, because this isn’t about proving anything. Whether he’s over him or not; whether he’s serious about Omi or not. What he feels about Omi, it still exists, unchanged. And despite what Yukimura might think, it is pure, unadulterated. It’s his feelings about Yukimura that have never really been easy to define. It’s not a label he can slap on and point to, because it’s taken root so deep inside that it’s impossible to know where to look. Nowhere, everywhere.

So he puts his mark where he can see, a blemish on his perfect skin.