[𝙇𝙚𝙤𝙧𝙞𝙤 𝙭 𝙍𝙚𝙖𝙙𝙚𝙧]

🌃ᶜʰᵃᵖᵗᵉʳ ² ⁻ ᴹᵉᵐᵒʳⁱᵉˢ ᵒᶠ ᵃ ˢᵗᵘᵈᵉⁿᵗ 🌃

"Where is she?" Leorio shouted at his friends. Hot tears made their way up his throat and tried to seep out of his eyes. He couldn't let everyone see him cry. It was too embarrassing to cry during the exam. 

"I'm assuming that if she isn't here, she didn't make it through the tower. It seems that our journey as hunters will have to go on without her." Kurapika stated calmly. His lanky friend went to respond, but he knew that as soon as he opened his mouth, he would start to sob. Instead, Leorio shook his head quickly. Gon stepped over to Leorio, "So [y/n] didn't make it through trick tower?" The boy asked.

"I guess she wasn't as lucky as we were. Maybe if we had her on our team instead of Tonpa she could've made it out." Killua mumbled, glaring at Tonpa. "It's not my fault. Maybe the hunter exam just wasn't for someone like her-" The round man began to speak but was cut off by Leorio.

"You shut your mouth! The only reason you're here is to inconvenience others, you slimy bastard!" He shouted, voice cracking with the threat of tears. The aspiring doctor tried to stop himself from weeping but it was too late. His eyes watered up and got all puffy. Pain surged throughout his cold and miserable skin with the thought of [y/n] not achieving her goal. This wasn't fair.

How could someone like Leorio make it through but not [y/n]?

"Slimy bastard?" Tonpa repeated with confusion. "Just shut up! Be quiet! I-I'll..." Leorio scolded the rookie crusher but his tears made their way through. Collapsing on the concrete floor, he wept. "It's not fair to her! I don't deserve this! Damn it." He screamed between sobs.

The other boys stood around Leorio, unsure of what to say to comfort him. Gon bent down and patted the back of his white dress shirt, "It's gonna be okay, Leorio! I'm sure she's fine. Next year [y/n] will be a hunter for sure!" He chirped empathetically. "That's not it. I'm sure she's alive, but I'll never see her again. We're moving on without her and I never got to say goodbye. I never got to tell her my dreams of being a doctor, or how she makes me feel, or ask her what her dreams are. I never got to...to..." Talking only got him so far before he began to cry again.

Gon pulled his hand back, awkwardly. Kurapika patted the young boy on his shoulder so he knew Leorio's breakdown wasn't because of him. "I hate to say this Leorio, but the crowd is moving away from trick tower and I assume we need to get to the fourth phase soon. You best get up before we miss them, we're probably gonna be going back on the zeppelin." Kurapika tapped on his friend's shoulder in attempt to have him get up and follow them. 

Reluctantly, the sobbing pre-med stood up and wiped his face with his sleeve. He still couldn't believe that after being separated from the group, [y/n] wasn't able to pass the third phase of the hunter exam. Leorio couldn't help but feel responsible even though he didn't do anything. Maybe if he had just stayed right by her side when they were looking for trap doors, she would've dropped down with them instead of Tonpa. Maybe if he had given her his number before she could still contact him. 

It was over now. This girl that had sparked such fascination inside him was gone.

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"Mr. Paladiknight? Are you awake back there?" A woman's voice sounded from infront of the lecture hall. A snicker came from the boy next to him. "You know, Mr. Paladiknight, I'm not responsible for your performance on the next assignment if you're not listening to the lecture." The professor spoke, adjusting her black rimmed glasses. Leorio lifted his head up slowly and blinked as his eyes as they adjusted to the light.

"Oh uh, yes. My apologies Professor Wippelle." He quickly wiped the drool of of his chin and looked around nervously. A few students stared at him, but most were just happy for the quick intermission to copy down notes from the lecture. The woman just shook her head in distaste and continued talking, "Now, with this artery, the tissue and matter surrounding it could rupture the pathway with just a slight touch. In this situation, the scalpel...."