Eight

"I don’t need to baby you like this. I shouldn’t fucking have to. You can do better, so do better. Fight for yourself for once and stop acting like a goddamned child."

### Doctor

Mom
Lilah Valentine (former)
Yosuke Chisaka (former)

### Nicknames

Eight (Number)
Precious Boy (Mom)

## Physical description

### First Mentioned

Chapter 5: Rest Two - Throws

Eight is a prisoner in Ten's group at the Facility.

## Appearance

His looks have been said to be somewhat similar to Yosuke's - down to the jawline and nose, similar green eye color, hair style and thick rimmed glasses, but this comparison is much to Eight's annoyance.

Like all the prisoners, he is seen wearing a uniform colored set of shirt and pants - grey in Eight's case.

## Story

### Past

When Eight was first brought to the facility and interviewed after his first dose of Mnemosyne, he suspects that he was brought into a government facility (reportedly correct according to The Overseer, given that the facility was once used for secret government experiments), and knows that Gale was lying during questioning. However, he is forced to comply with their questions upon being threatened by Lucius' gun. Eight eventually obeys and admits says he remembers his father's voice and hating the sound of it.
Before he was under the care of his doctor Lilah Valentine for majority of the story, Eight was formally under Yosuke Chisaka's. Little is known of his relationship to either doctor beyond him having a difficult time with both of them, for very different reasons.
### The Facility

At first, Eight wanted nothing to do with the other Numbers - finding them weak for not fighting against the Doctors. When he first interacts with Ten in Chapter 5 after overhearing her confusion of her feelings towards Yosuke, Eight is very blunt and tells her not to fall for his tricks. Early in the story, the Numbers tended to distance themselves from Eight and tried to respect his space, while Eight tried to find solace in the other rooms in an effort to be alone.
Ten sees Eight beaten and bruised after a visit from Lilah, and later sees him resting in the rec rooms and tries to tend to him. Although he was mean to her initially, Ten sympathizes with Eight, considering him as much of a victim as her. She remains persistent in being supportive of Eight, even pushing him to try interacting with the other Numbers. Eight eventually concedes and starts attempting to be more social, and more open minded about how the other Numbers deal with their troubled imprisonment.
Eight is in Ten's close circle (despite the latter's attempt of denying being friends with her), being privy to Ten's recurring troubles alongside Cyrus and Lav.
As of Chapter 85, Eight's current doctor is Mom after Lilah received a new number, Twelve.
## Personality

Eight serves as a foil for both Cyrus and Ten, acting more resilient and bitter toward his treatment at the facility, and not being reactive to any of his visiting doctor's advances. Due to his tendency to not be reactive during sex, it can be said that many doctors don't visit him as much, and he is one of the more "unpopular" Numbers.

At first, Eight wanted nothing to do with the other Numbers, finding them weak for not fighting against the Doctors. He usually spoke of them bluntly, being stubborn in his convictions. His personality often put others off, and he was deemed unapproachable by many. Eight also often avoided staying in the same room as the rest of the group, opting to be alone during his rest days.

Despite his rugged personality, Eight is capable of being softer for certain things or people. He is especially protective of his hobbies. He has an affinity for the violin, knowing how to play music instinctively, and having stated that the music just came to him. Additionally, he spends time reading informational textbooks on a variety of topics, namely philosophy. In Chapter 17, Eight explains to Ten that playing the violin kept him from drowning.

While Eight is blunt, cynical, and focused on logic over emotion, Eight does care about others to some degree and shows some moments of vulnerability. In Chapter 33, Eight first instance of vulnerability is shown when he talks to Ten about having nothing to live for and is tired of being frustrated in dealing with Lilah who is violent. When Cyrus joins in on the conversation, both Eight and Cyrus clash on their approaches towards the facility. Cyrus is criticized as being too defeatist (despite him not seeing it that way), while Eight preaches resilience. Eight does stop to ponder on Cyrus' words, but ultimately leaves the conversation annoyed.

Later on, Eight attempts to cheer up Ten by playing her a song on the violin after he overheard her uncomfortable visit with Mom in the hallway. After the insistence of Ten another time, Eight eventually agrees to try to interacting with the other Numbers under the guise that he's willing to sympathize with her because they both have being tormented by Yosuke in common. After Cyrus' and Violet's falling out, Eight is elected to speak to Cyrus afterwards. Even though he was annoyed, it turns out he lead most of the talking as he tried to get Cyrus to see what he did wrong in the situation.

After arguments and some tense conversations with the other Numbers, Eight slowly starts opening up socially. He still avoids talking too much about his own feelings, but tends to chime in conversations when warranted and gives his opinions where he finds they would be of use. He becomes slightly more open (but still quite subtle) in showing his worry over Ten with Yosuke's heightened obsession over her, noting that he was never that level of awful when Eight was under him.

There are a couple of instances where Eight finds himself teaching others what he knows despite his attempts to hide it. At some point, he agrees to teach Five and Six how to read music, and showed dedication in instructing them by spending time in the crafts room working on notation. In Chapter 82, Eight is fired up when he realizes the Numbers can't treat minor injuries for themselves, and he drags all the Numbers into the cafeteria to give an introductory lesson on the topic.

## Sexuality

Eight is asexual, as he has displayed no interest in romantic or sexual relations. He tends to have adverse reactions to affection, but does have a big heart that he tries not to make known, or downplays. He cares little for sex or love, but is capable of being connected with people nonetheless and may care for them if he has to.

## Relationships

### **Ten**

When he first interacts with Ten in Chapter 5 after overhearing her confusion of her feelings towards Yosuke, Eight is very blunt and tells her not to fall for his tricks. Eight is displeased at Ten for seeing his resemblance to Yosuke (a sentiment shared by the other doctors as well), and often must make it clear to the girl that he and Yosuke are different people (Ten struggles with the image problem early on, but this eventually lessens as she becomes friendlier toward him). Ten eventually dreams of getting married off to Yosuke, and Eight makes an appearance in the dream as a ring bearer who criticizes her for being attached to Yosuke. This is a sentiment he tends to carry toward Ten for a while in the beginning.
In Chapter 17, Ten catches Eight playing the violin in the music room, and he begrudgingly explains that the songs are random and unknown by name, but important to him somehow. He says he can't see himself without music as it keeps him afloat in such an abusive environment. In Chapter 33, Ten catches Eight being emotionally vulnerable while venting about his doctor. After a bit of back and forth, Ten insists that she will continue to fight for him to understand that he isn't alone and that he can lean on the other Numbers for support. At the end of the conversation, Eight criticizes Ten for being pushy, but admits he needed the pep talk. He offers to do her a favor sometime later, as his way of saying "thanks."
The next time they interact is in Chapter 39 after Mom had used Ten in the gate areas. Eight offers to play a song to her liking in an act of sympathy since he over heard the interaction through the walls. Shortly after, Eight gets pulled into playing basketball with the rest of the Numbers at the gym since Ten ends up using her "favor" for this request, seeing this as an opportunity to get Eight to socialize. After his tiff with Cyrus that results in his agreeing to teach Five and Six how to play music, Eight considers his debt repaid.
Eight becomes Ten's voice of reason when it comes to her recent developments in later chapters. He starts to be more mindful of what he says and slowly improves how he gives advice to others. He is also a part of Ten's "inner circle" (along with Lav and Cyrus) when she opens up about additional details of the facility, Red Valentine, and her abuse from Yosuke, among other things.
Eight's despicable experience with Ten's doctor has only brought him closer to her. Initially, it's all he had to go off of, as he would regularly berate Ten for falling for Yosuke's charms (when she used to be more vulnerable to them). He had even once stated his only reason for talking to Ten was because of that shared ground, and he regularly gave her criticisms of the doctor and made her aware of his tactics and fascinations. Later on as the two's relationship grew more friendly, Eight found himself sympathizing with Ten for all the abuse she had to put up with that he never did because he wasn't an object of affection for the doctor. He doesn't quite hover over Ten, but does try to take care of her, sometimes stepping up to comfort or care for her in subtle ways after some nasty or degrading instances of abuse.
In Chapter 91, Eight openly admits for the first time around Ten that he cherishes her and the rest of the group, as a means to make Tanner see the value in opening himself up to others.
### **Lilah Valentine**

Eight puts up with Lilah's violent tendencies (as he is her number) and can sometimes manage it fine. However, he sometimes gives in and let's her have her way with him, being treated as a punching bag for the woman who abuses him. At first, Lilah liked having Eight as a number since he had a tendency to fight back but over time, Eight has slowly been boring her.
While Lilah neglects caring for him most of the time and leaves him in his room often due to being too busy or refusing to ask another doctor to care for him in her stead, she does seem to pick up on Eight's interests in books. Even when she left Eight locked in his room, she left some books for him to pass time.
Eight despises Lilah as he does all doctors, but he has expressed an inability to fight back against her. He often brushes off difficult subjects surrounding her as if they were casual, but other Numbers have expressed concerns over his behavior that often is influenced because of Lilah's abuse of him.
### **Lav**

Lav at some point stumbles upon Eight playing the violin in Chapter 39, and she pushes him to perform for her as she wants to learn about the other Number's interests and wants Eight to drop his stubborn persona enough to let others in. Eight is at first furious at the idea of another Number getting close with him, as he had a hard enough time letting his walls down for Ten.
Despite his initial biting reaction to Lav, they do slowly form a friendship, with Eight's walls starting to drop when he finds common ground with her. Lav expresses interest in the viola, and Eight, while not knowing how to play it, still encourages her for it.
Eight also eventually humors the Numbers by joining them for a round of basketball (Lav's favorite pastime), even sitting in on the more serious/grim conversations about the doctors and the facility along with Cyrus and Ten. Although estranged prior, he and Lav now have a fairly grounded and stable friendship. Lav is a bit pushier with Eight, something he dislikes but also responds to given his stubborn nature.
### **Cyrus**

At first, he and Cyrus didn't get along due to their different ethical approaches and modes of thinking, with Eight being more resilient while Cyrus was more "defeatist".
Eight becomes intrigued with Cyrus during their first argument in Chapter 34, when Cyrus calls out that while Eight read a lot of books, he could still form biases by reading only what interested him. Eight describes Cyrus as interesting and annoying at the same time, at least early on.
In Chapter 39, they have another tense argument when Eight upsets Cyrus with his cynicism and insensitivity to other people's pain. Cyrus attempts to leave the room, but Eight calls after him and apologizes, admitting that he's not good at emotionally understanding others. Cyrus eventually accepts his apology.
After Cyrus's falling out with Violet in Chapter 41, Eight is elected along with Two to talk out the situation with Cyrus. Eight is reluctant at first but eventually gives in, dragging Two along. It turns out later that Eight was the one leading most of the conversation.
Along with Lav and Cyrus, Eight is also a part of Ten's "inner circle" when she opens up about additional details of the facility, Red Valentine, and her abuse from Yosuke, among other things.
Eight is often reluctant to admit he has feelings about other people, but Cyrus is someone he does enjoy having discussions with. He doesn't quite like being teased by the young man, but still finds value in his friendship. He speaks respectfully of Cyrus for the most part.
### Violet

Eight and Violet were seen as the most difficult to deal with amongst the Numbers due to being angry at their situation and often taking their frustrations out on others by being crude, or shutting everyone out (with Violet only making an exception for Cyrus).
During the aftermath of Cyrus' and Violet's falling out, Eight sticks up for Violet when the other Numbers discuss amongst themselves on what happened. While initially Eight was indifferent to Violet, he admitted that hey had some shared similarities, if different reactions and methods. He seems much more sympathetic and understanding of Violet now, in his own way. The two have grown closer together, forming a friendship. Eight will regularly watch over Violet, even to a point of subtly being protective of her and advising her against anything that might negatively affect her.
### **Yosuke Chisaka**

Eight was Yosuke’s number before Ten. It’s not explicitly stated how long he had Eight for, but after Yosuke grew tired of Eight’s stubbornness and resistance, he had lost all interest in him and pined for another Number, which he was given later. It's argued that Yosuke never really cared for Eight anyway, as he has stated preferring to have a young woman under his thumb rather than a young man, but also that he didn't much have a choice initially. Now that Yosuke has Ten, he has zero attachments to Eight and only discusses him when Ten brings him up.
Despite the lack of "sexual chemistry", Yosuke and Eight both have similar fascinations with the arts. Both he and Eight appreciate music, and exhume intelligence in learned subjects and musical expertise. It's something even Yosuke seemed to express fondness of in his previous Number, when he talked about it briefly with Ten in Chapter 48.
Eight has been mistaken as a child or relative of Yosuke's due to their similar messy hair style, green eye color, square rimmed glasses, and otherwise serious personality. This, however, was debunked by the doctor early on. It's possible the similarity is just coincidence, or that Eight was chosen for him on purpose for that reason (some fans even joke that Lucius gave Eight to him as a joke). Regardless, it's highly likely that Eight was not Yosuke's first choice.
Eight despises Yosuke, and his experience with the man has only brought him closer with Ten. There have been very few glimpses into Eight's former relationship with his first doctor, although the few times they have interacted, Yosuke has remained especially formal, while Eight begrudges speaking with him.
### **Mom**

In general, Mom tends to gravitate towards the male prisoners. At one point she was hovering and obsessive over Eight, back when he was Yosuke's Number, likely due to his connection to her previous partner. However, she had eased up on her obsession of him once Yosuke moved on to Ten. She still tends to treat Eight somewhat like Cyrus, having been seen early on teasing him.
Eight has a scorning hatred for all doctors, and Mom is no exception. He dislikes her tendency to demean him with babytalk, and although he can put up a show for her in order to avoid rough consequences, he becomes irate when left alone at having had to do so. When Ten sees him acting this way for her, she's taken aback by it, and in his frustration, Eight threatens her (probably not legitimately) and bids her not to tell anyone about what she saw.
Eight silently sympathizes with Cyrus because of Mom being his doctor.
### **Five and Six**

Both of the peachy girls kept a respectable distance from Eight at first due to him not wanting to associate with the other Numbers in general. The girls were both curious about how to play music but never knew that Eight could read music until Lav tells everyone during one day at the gym.
Though reluctant to allow them into his safe space in the music room, Eight eventually agrees to both girls how to play and read music. Eight takes this responsibility seriously, sometimes found in the music room writing up notation for the next eventual music lesson when he can catch both peachy girlfriends together.
Eight is hardly fond of their giggly, lovey-dovey nature, but he does find them respectable and admires their willingness to learn from him. He also considers both girls quite capable, affirming that they know how to care for one another and be alert in certain situations.]]
### **Tanner**

Eight despises Tanner, especially so after his outburst that led to Eight's violin being destroyed. He does not hide his hatred and refuses to forgive his actions. However, because the group largely still wants to keep Tanner safe, Eight puts up with it. In chapter 91, Eight expresses his bitterness to Tanner and talks down to him, underlying every observation he's had about him from day one, even while laying out his own misgivings at the same time.
Tanner proves to bring out the worst in the otherwise calm and reserved Eight, continually pushing his buttons and barking back at him which, in turn, causes Eight to snap too. The two young men butt heads quickly and often, yet at the same time, Eight is likely the only person aside from Ten who can handle and get through to Tanner. While Eight despises him, he also admits knowing what it feels like to be i his position because of his experiences in the facility. He is also the only one to consider why Tanner might be acting out the way he is, as he had with Violet when she had her own issues.
## Trivia

*Most of these are pulled from asks featured on the author’s tumblr*

* **Fashion Aesthetic:** *Eight might dress kind of geek chic-ish, definitely wear a lot of comfy but semi-casual clothing, or else dress a tad formally depending on the situation. I see him in things like vests or sweaters.*
* Eight's Meyer Briggs type is ISTJ
* When Eight is first seen in the music room, he is holding his violin in his left hand, meaning he is a right-handed player.

## Gallery

Main hairPonytailLonger hair downWithout glassesEight in random clothes (with Violet), for funEight in more random clothesDoctor!Eight drawn for funEight and CyrusEight under the table with Lav and Cyrus in Chapter 45