Squalo still misses him, the way flames danced under his fingertips, but he's not broken up by it anymore. He did get it out of his system rather violently, though, and that was something that may yet come back to haunt him. It had set Aiden's sights on him, at the very least.

What Héctor says sounds reasonable. He could be alone and bitter, or he can try to be happy in the moment. It's not going to make him stop missing Xanxus, nor forget him, but he's not here, not since Hell's latest cruel game. And yet...

"And how do you manage to let yourself?" He hears his voice asking, though still carefully avoiding the word love. It doesn't suit him, never has, at the same time, what he tends to feel is deeper than that. "It's like splitting your life in two. Somebody's getting short-changed, and you're letting them both down."

Oh no. He's actually catching feelings for somebody who isn't Xanxus, isn't he.