#yes this is zeus in rehab. this has overtaken my brain i need to get it out Somewhere

[ryuusei-boi]

Hera had been the first to get back to playing soccer.

Everyone else was sat in the common room, half listening to the Christian shopping channel Afuro had turned the TV on to. He didn't really care for the novelty holy water keychains or the framed portraits of Jesus, but the background noise was welcome as he did his crossword puzzle.

Posei was next to him on the couch, reading a book. Arute and Deio were playing chess at the table. Aporo was off somewhere, surely destroying another patient at ping-pong. Demete walked past the window on his way back from a yoga class and peered outside.

"Look at that," he spoke to no one in particular. "He's back to it."

Hepai joined him at the window, watching as Hera passed a soccer ball to another patient and encouraged him take a shot at the goal. They both watched him in silence.

"I don't understand." Demete turned his head towards his teammate with a questioning look. "How he does it, I mean. If someone put a ball at my feet now... I'd freeze up for sure," Hepai explained.

He nodded. "Me too."

"I'm just happy for him," Deio said as the two took a seat at the table to watch the chess game. "If it's making him feel better, if he's ready for it..."

Arute raised an eyebrow at him. "What about you?" he asked as he took out a pawn. Deio frowned a little and shrugged.

"But isn't it a bit weird? It almost feels like he's way ahead of us when it comes to this stuff..." Hepai mused.

"What do you mean?" Demete grabbed a discarded rook and started fidgeting with it. "Like he's done this before?"

"Maybe, yeah."

They looked up at the sound of someone tsking them. "It's unbecoming to talk about someone behind their back, you know," Afuro put his finished crossword puzzle down on the table and gave a wry smile. "Besides, we're all in this together, wherever we may be in our personal healing journeys."

Demete scoffed. "You're starting to sound like our therapist," he chided as their captain looked through the stack of newspapers for an unfinished crossword.

Afuro hit him over the head with one. "That was the point, idiot."

"But there is something he's not telling us," Arute spoke up as he moved his bishop. "It's like he's more upset than reluctant to be here... Like he thought this was behind him."

"When did you get so good at reading people, Saneki?" Hepai teased him, but then gave his words some thought. "I agree, though. He does seem upset."

"Maybe we should talk to him?" Deio took Arute's bishop out with his knight and grinned when it earned him some muttered curse words. "Let him know we stand behind him no matter what."

Demete rubbed his shoulder. "You're a sweetie pie, but I don't think that's going to help."

"It'd likely just isolate him further. He already seems on edge."

"Then what do we do?"

Arute tapped his fingers on the table. "Let's just wait and see what happens. You don't rush things with Hera." They all nodded. "In the meantime, at least he's having fun."

Deio and Afuro looked out the window to see it for themselves.

Hera's face was indeed sporting a smile, even if it was a tired one. Like playing soccer again was draining him emotionally more than physically.