Aww. Poor Edo. I'm sure their bond did grow while they were alone with one another. Very good.

OMG, just thinking about RYO not being there made me sad for Edo, and then JUDAI, TOO! -sobs- that made me hysterical... yeah :P good job.

This part was really good too:

"Judai's little charmed circle is staring at him as if he's sprouted a few extra body parts, but Edo keeps smiling until his face hurts, if only because it's easier to keep his jaw clenched tight that way. Knowing that the instant he relaxes the screaming in the back of his head will manage to explode outward as it always does and knowing that he wants to be alone when that happens."

And the last line... how depressing... this was so good! I love your stories, I can't stop reading them. I swear I've read one of them seven times :P LOL. Yep, thanks for writing this :D