[ Yu is arrested from the moment Minato raises his voice, and he stays completely silent until Minato is done talking. He doesn't think he's ever heard Minato raise his voice like that. For most people it would be quiet, not even a shout, but Yu knows Minato well enough to know that he never does this kind of thing. It's as visceral as a slap to the face and shuts him up about as effectively.

I knew you liked me more than as a friend...and I did too.

Yu's eyes go wide.

That's ... the first time he's ever heard Minato actually admit to having feelings for him.

In some ways it feels like too much, and in others it feels like too little, too late. To hear this truth now, only after Yu called him out on lying, only after Minato left the colony and then returned...

All that happens is his heart breaks worse. A soft sound escapes him as he tears his gaze away from Minato's face and stares at the ground, one of his hands curling into a fist so tight his hand shakes. It takes him a few seconds to master his temper enough to uncurl his fingers again, a short, sharp sigh escaping him. When he looks up again he isn't frowning, but his expression is pinched with pain and the things he isn't saying. ]

You always held yourself away... if you hadn't gone back, or I hadn't learned the truth, would that have always been how things were? Minato-san...

[ Yu ducks his head to pinch the bridge of his nose, briefly shutting his eyes before dropping his hand and opening them again, his gaze finding Minato's. ]

... I know you need my support, [ he says, more gently. ] And you'll have it. But I... I need some time.