Leorio wondered if he was going crazy.

They were sitting for almost half an hour on the park bench. Silently. The dark haired man eyed the empty circular paper plate he was holding then turned to his blond companion beside him. Kurapika did not even attempt to break the silence. But then again, he was loud enough for the both of them.

Leorio didn't know if he was furious or not. Kurapika had been such an ass lately. He made him worry. Worry enough to search for him during his stay at the city. He missed him, actually. But why give him the satisfaction by telling him that?

That was one nice move, calling Kurapika on his mobile phone. Really cool. But after the relief washed through him in those words that he spoke, Leorio didn't know how to justify himself.

"I didn't think silence could become you." Kurapika finally commented.

Leorio glared at the teenager. "It's just so like you to kill the mood."

"And gloom isn't like you at all." the other countered.

"No, that's you."

One fine eyebrow started to twitch. "You really know what buttons to push."

Heh. Leorio gave Kurapika a friendly pat on the back. "Hey, at least we now know that I still annoy you." He chuckled. "How you've been? It's been half a year, isn't it?"

Half a year. Half a year was quite a long time.

"Fine." Kurapika smiled. "It's good to be back."

"Yeah." Leorio smiled back. But are you really here? They fell silent again. "You never answered my question back there," he said after the long pause.

"I already did."

"One word cannot sum up everything that has happened in half a year of absence." When Kurapika did not answer right away, he continued "I have this friend who went away for quite a while. I'm just wondering why he isn't like he used to be now that he has returned."

A dark shadow clouded Kurapika's emerald eyes. Then those eyes turned to the plate Leorio was holding.

"You said you didn't want some 'wrinkled moth balls'." Leorio said, amused by his friend's description of siomai.

Kurapika did not reply immediately but continued to stare at the plate. Moments later, he spoke. "Did you know that the centroid of a quarter of a circle is approximately 0.424 of its radius? That even if you place stress on it, it will remain in equilibrium so long as the stress is applied along the line of action of this point? All by itself, it can withstand all the forces acting on it. All by itself."

Leorio did not know how to reply to that. All he'd understood were the words "quarter" and "circle". But out of curiosity, he asked. "What about the remaining three-fourths?"

The blond blinked.

Leorio inwardly smirked. It seemed that Kurapika had never expected something of that sort from him. He was probably anticipating retorts like, "Ohoho…a walking encyclopedia, eh?". But then again, he was rather in a weird mood.

Kurapika answered the question, nevertheless. "There is a method in which you can use the individual areas of each of quarter and their centroids with respect to the reference axis, of course."

Again, the doctor did not understand a speck of information that was given to him. It didn't matter, he supposed. "So they can stand on their own, too. Without the help of the quarter." He stared at the paper plate. "But don't you see? The quarter of a circle will always be a quarter and the three-fourths of a circle will always be three-fourths. You can never call a quarter of a circle a circle nor consider three-fourths of a circle complete. They're just parts of a circle but they're never one."

"Making it a full circle would only mean more spaces to apply stress." The feeling behind those words must be intense that Leorio could almost see a spark of red in Kurapika's eyes.

"At least it's a full circle."

Kurapika was frowning.

"Thanks for your concern but it seems that Gon and Killua already decided to help you out." Me, too. Smiling, Leorio turned away from the plate. "Whether you like it or not." When his friend did not acknowledged his statement, he added "But seriously, do think about it, ok?"

Kurapika sighed. "I've killed one of them." It was said softly, as if he didn't want his friend to hear it. And maybe he did it on purpose. It felt like eating him inside. But Leorio heard it.

"How do you feel then?"

A pause. "I don't know. I feel dirty, I think."

"Do you intend to stop?"

"No." was the ready answer.

Why won't you just stop? Why do you keep this to yourself? "You and your stupid sense of honor." Leorio said sarcastically. I...I...

"Do you now see why sometimes the quarter of a circle must remain just a quarter?"

But I...I want you back...

"Will the quarter's being different destroy its balance? Will it not have a centroid? Do you think that if you joined the altered quarter with the three-fourths, the circle will lose its sense of equilibrium." Why won't you be here? I just want you to be here...is that too much to ask for?

"No, I suppose. The centroid will be located at a different position and the circle will remain in equilibrium." Kurapika answered reluctantly. "Thank you." And with that simple statement, he smiled.

It was a smile that tells Leorio that Kurapika had returned.

Finally...

"You're late, did you know that? It's too bad. You should've seen what the two have been up to. Would you believe? They want to join the auction because of a game. They…" Leorio continued to recount the events that had passed, already feeling better.

Gon arm wrestling to earn money...

You would've ranted something about honor and justice.

The great cellphone bargain...

I tried calling you...why won't you answer?

Those times when the two burned themselves in front of the computer, trying to find anything worthwhile to buy and then later on sell…

While I was out trying to look for you.

"Gon even went to that point that he-"

"And what about you, Leorio?" Kurapika cut him off. "You never mentioned how you've been doing."

"Fine." That was pretty much the entirety of it, wasn't it?

"One word cannot sum up everything that has happened in half a year of absence"

So now Kurapika was throwing his words right back him, eh? But the doctor answered, anyway. He told him everything, told him about the exam, told him stories about people Kurapika did not know, told him about the places he had been, even told him stories that people told him during his trip.

Meaningless babble.

Leorio began to wonder how the hell did he pass exam.

And then, Kurapika laughed.

The doctor glowered at him. However, the glare melted when he felt a hand atop of his own, squeezing gently. He could feel his sunglasses sliding down his nose and there was a faint color on his cheeks.

"You talk about everything without really saying anything." Kurapika said softly, gently tracing his cheek with the fingers of his free hand.

"What...what is this?" Leorio wanted to kick himself for finally voicing out his thoughts.

The blond leaned closer. And before their lips met he whispered, "This is my way of saying that despite the silence, I can hear you."

end