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Teru lounges across Reigen’s couch, curled up in a fuzzy blanket while some popular kid cartoon plays on the tv in the background. He's not really watching the show. The sun is shining through a nearby window, sliding its rays through the blinds and illuminating select parts of the floor. Teru is glad that it's Sunday. After everything that has gone down over the past few months -- the fighting, the scheming, the interrogating -- he isn't quite ready to slide right back into a normal everyday routine of going to school and such.
The last time he'd been on the school grounds of Salt Vinger, he'd been arrested in front of a large portion of his schoolmates. How can he just walk back in there as if nothing had happened? Maybe Reigen will let him transfer schools...?
It's mid-day, but Reigen is still asleep. Teru hopes he keeps that up. He isn't quite ready to have a conversation about all this yet.
His phone is lying on the ground just out of reach of his right arm, which is hanging off the side of the couch. He doesn't need to look at it to know that his mother's email is lurking behind the blackened screen from one of his many rereads. Her harsh accusations and abandonment have burned themselves into his mind, reminding him again and again that he really is truly and completely without a family now. He had wanted to respond despite her blatant order for him not to, but he didn't have the courage or the energy.
He has so much he wants to say. He wants to tell her exactly where to shove her passive-aggressive words. He wants to tell her he doesn't care what her opinion of him is because his entire city considers him a hero now.
He wants to tell her he doesn't need her, he has a new family now. One that's a hundred times better and that accepts him for who he is. Encourages him, in fact.
...and that brings him back to the inevitable conversation Reigen will be bringing up at some point. Teru doesn't want to have it, he just wants to stay in this state of limbo forever, never discussing where he stands in the household, or that he's going to have to go back to school tomorrow.
At the same time, however, he very much craves the comfort that the end of that conversation will bring. He's already caught on to how Reigen views him, despite all the teasing. But hearing it out loud… He can't handle the crushing fear of finding out he's been wrong this whole time. What if Reigen really has just been making jokes? Is Teru’s time here really as temporary as he's feared?
He picks up his phone, scrolling through his mother's email again. If he really is going to be on the streets, he'll have to get a job so he can keep the apartment. He's a hero now, surely someone will hire him. Maybe he can pick up some night shifts that won't interfere with his school schedule--
“Morning, kiddo,” Reigen’s voice slurs from the door. He's still in his pajamas -- Ugh, all of Reigen's pj's are so ugly -- his hair sticking up all over and his eyes dropping from the desire to still be asleep. He lumbers closer, motioning for Teru to move his legs, before plopping down on the couch, arms coming up to stretch across the back.
Reigen’s head rolls to the side so he can look lazily over at Teru’s bundled form. “What are you doing up so early?” He checks his watch. “It’s like... almost noon. Huh. Anyway.”
“Just watching cartoons,” Teru says quietly. He has no idea what the cartoon is, but he’s not going to admit that to Reigen.
Reigen squints at the tv screen. “Those sure are some cool looking ladies. I'm here for it.” He turns back to Teru. “Anyway, I wanted to talk to you about something.”
Immediately, Teru tenses, his entire body freezing up. He doesn't answer, he can’t. He’s afraid if he opens his mouth, everything will fall apart and he’ll find himself on the streets. It's okay, that flower shop down the road seems nice, Minegishi works there, I'm sure they will vouch for me, maybe, I can have a small paycheck by the end of the week, get my apartment back--
“I noticed that you told the reporters I was your dad on national television,” Reigen cuts into Teru's thoughts, his tone teasing. He’s grinning.
“Only because you called me your son first!” Teru snaps before he can stop himself. He tries to reel his anger back, but it’s bubbling in his gut and is hard to contain. If Reigen wants a fight, he’s going to get one. “I had no choice with you flaunting around as my dad to the whole world! If I contradicted, they'd just be suspicious. I'm sure they were suspicious anyway though since you calling me your son is the damn most unbelievable thing ever!”
Reigen is smiling all crooked. “Maybe it’s because I see you as one?”
Teru stills. “You… What?”
You knew this, you dumbass! Don't act surprised just because you're pretending to be in denial.
“Teru, I cleared out an entire room to make you a bedroom,” Reigen says with a raised brow. “You have your own bed and everything. What part of that doesn't imply that I've basically been slowly adopting you?”
“I just thought…” Deep down, he'd known this, of course. He'd just made himself believe it wasn't true out of sheer spite and pride. “Don’t you have your own stuff to deal with? I mean, you just woke up and it’s almost twelve. What part of that says you’re ready to be a father? You’re barely functioning as an adult.” Why am I still going on like this, shut up, Teru! Do you want to be homeless or something?!
Maybe Ritsu isn't the only one obsessed with self-sabotage.
Reigen lightly smacks him upside the head. “Hey, a lot of crazy stuff went down yesterday, plus everything that’s been happening these past few months,” he says defensively. “A sleep-in day has been well overdue.” He then ruffles Teru’s hair. “You overthink things too much, kid.”
Teru looks away. “You’re just....” He buries his head under the blanket, groaning with frustration. “Why are you so goddamn nice to me?! There’s no way you’re really like this. Especially not to someone like me! If you knew what I’ve done...”
“You think I don’t?”
His voice is flat, devoid of his prior teasing tone. Teru peeks up from above the blanket. Reigen is staring down at him neutrally.
“You…”
“Mob filled me in a while back,” Reigen continues. “The bruises on his neck were a dead giveaway, there’s no way in hell I was going to miss that.”
Teru can’t look. He knows what’s coming.
“But, you know who the one was who taught Mob the morals he stands by today?” The hand is back on his head. “Mob is constantly going on about how much you’ve changed, about how hard you work every day to be better, to be a good person. Anyone who puts forth such a dedicated effort to turn around who they were and make up for what they’ve done deserves a second chance.”
He’s not going to cry this time. He’s not. Teru looks back at Reigen, catching a glimpse of the man's firm gaze. Teru's eyes start burning.
“You’re not going to be perfect,” Reigen goes on, “but your intentions are good.” His hand falls down onto Teru’s shoulder, squeezing it warmly. “And no matter what, I’ll be there to support you. As your dad.”
Reigen is holding his arms out open. Teru stares at him blankly for too long, and Reigen looks away with embarrassed annoyance, muttering, “I’m not usually a hugger, but I’ll make an exception this time.”
Teru definitely isn’t crying as he lunges forward, burying himself into Reigen. He clutches the back of Reigen’s ugly nightshirt as tight as he can, fingers pulling at the fabric. His tears are soaking into the front of Reigen's shirt, but this is the first hug he’s had from a parental figure in god knows how long and he’s going to take advantage of every second. Reigen holds him awkwardly, patting Teru’s back like he’s also not used to physical shows of affection. It doesn’t matter to Teru, though, he’s never felt so much warmth.
Teru wants to prolong the hug as much as he can, and he gets the sense that Reigen will let him, but he knows it has to end at some point. Better to rip off the bandaid now than to wait. He pulls away, wiping his eyes on his sleeve.
“So I guess... this means I have to change my last name?” Teru asks, his chuckle watery.
Reigen lets out a loud, loud laugh.
--
“You really didn’t have to come with me,” Teru says, rubbing his arm. He’s sitting in the backseat of Serizawa’s car, Reigen in the passenger seat while Serizawa drives. Serizawa is in the middle of pulling into a parking spot at the back of Salt Middle School.
“Not debatable,” Reigen says firmly. “I may not be your legal parent yet, but that doesn’t mean I’m going to let you handle talking to your advisors alone. You’ve missed a lot of school and I want to make sure you are given enough time to make it all up.”
"Why here, though?" Teru asks. "Shouldn't I be catching up at my own school?"
He knows why, of course. He knew the moment Reigen had held up the gakuran that Teru is currently wearing this morning, grinning from behind the black fabric. He knows what Reigen is up to, but he wants to hear him say it.
Reigen turns around, leaning his elbow against the back of his seat. "Teru, we know how those kids were treating you before you got arrested. You think we didn't see how mopey you'd be after school?" Teru cringes. "Eventually, I had to pry answers out of Mob, since you weren't sharing. They treated you pretty damn badly, kid. How do you think they're going to be after last seeing you get shoved into the back of a cruiser?"
"Kids can be very cruel, Hanazawa," Serizawa adds with a nod. "Reigen and I have been talking about this for a while, even before we knew how to fix everything, and we both think this is the safest option."
"We want you to catch up on what you've missed, but we don't want you to have to deal with bullying or being ostracized at the same time," Reigen says. "Being behind everyone else is stressful enough. We want you to at least catch up in a safe environment."
He's not going to cry. He's not.
Teru nods, eyes stinging. "Okay," he manages.
As the three of them walk up to the school, Teru has to resist the childish urge to take Reigen’s hand. He’s fifteen years old for crying out loud, he can handle the advisors of a new school on his own. Reigen ends up placing a comforting hand on his back anyway, though, and Teru struggles to hide a relieved smile.
Once inside, Reigen predictably takes the lead, sauntering up to the front desk with the confidence of a middle-aged white woman about to ask for your manager. “Hi, I have a student from Black Vinegar here who I'd like to have transferred here due to extreme circumstances,” he starts off for the lady at the counter. “Is there someone I can speak to about making sure he can catch up to the other students as easily as possible?”
The lady looks at Reigen and then at Teru. “You can speak with me, I can help you with that,” she says kindly. “I've got a couple forms for you both to fill out." She digs through a drawer for a moment and then pulls out a thin stack of papers. She attaches the papers to a clipboard and then hands them to Reigen.
"Thank you," Reigen says.
“Of course, and what were the extreme circumstances, exactly?” she asks. “Did you bring any paperwork with you?”
“I think a quick google search on recent events should be enough,” Reigen says coolly. “But yeah, I’ve got--” he slaps down a stack of papers, “--all of this. Harassment papers towards the government agents who intimidated my kid and tried to prosecute him for a crime he didn’t commit, which is also talked about in detail in this news report I printed out. And also here are the documents we were given verifying the expungement of all records regarding Teru’s arrest. I hope this is enough to satisfy your system.”
Teru is covering his face with embarrassment. So this is what it feels like to have an overprotective father...
He likes it more than he cares to admit.
The woman is nodding, looking over all the documents. “Yes, of course, this will do just fine.” She types some more into her computer. “What we’re going to do is allow him to pick up on the same lesson that the other students are on, and then on any tests for material that he wasn’t present for, he will not be graded.” She turns back to them, her hands linked together professionally. “After school for an hour each day, we’ll have a tutor come help catch you up on what you missed this past month.”
Reigen leans back, satisfied. “Sounds good to me.” He brings up a hand to tousle Teru’s hair affectionately. "I was also wondering, is there any way I can request him to be in a specific class?"
Teru's head whips around, eyes wide as he stares at Reigen.
"Oh, does he know one of our students?" the lady asks.
"Shigeo Kageyama, year three," Reigen says without missing a beat. "I'm sure Teru would appreciate being in the same class as someone he is comfortable around."
"I can certainly arrange that for him," she says. "If you two can get those forms filled out quickly, he can make it in time for that class."
They do as she says. Teru's blood parents had allowed him to keep his personal documents when they'd left him, so filling out the more crucial sections on the form was easy enough. Once they were finished, the lady scanned them into the computer. She then spent a few minutes typing, made a call to who Teru assumed was his new teacher, and then printed out a small student ID for him.
"You're all set to go, dear, and with ten minutes to spare," the lady says, handing him the ID. She calls over her shoulder to a man a few desks down, "Ito, will you take Teru to his class, please, so he doesn't get lost?" The man nods, getting up and walking over to stand beside them.
"Well, you better get moving if you want to make it on time," Reigen says with a half smile.
Teru nods. He stands still for a quick moment, trying to figure out whether the urge in his gut is worth going through with. He decides it is, leaning forward and hugging Reigen tight around the middle. Before Reigen has time to respond, he jumps back and nods at the man named Ito. Teru and the man begin walking out of the room towards the office's exit.
“Bye, dad!” Teru calls, pointedly not looking at Reigen. “See you tonight!”
Reigen grins from ear to ear, watching him go. Once he's sure Teru is gone and out of hearing range, he turns back to the lady.
“Now, how do I go about becoming his emergency contact?”
--
Teru waves goodbye to Ito in thanks for the directions. He's standing outside the classroom. The Salt Middle School classroom. Shigeo's classroom.
Peeking through the windows on the sliding doors, he can see that there are a lot of students sitting inside. Papers with text written on them are lined across the walls, and there are a few bulletin boards with notes and reminders listed. The teacher is writing something on the chalkboard, getting ready for the start of class.
Teru scans the students. He spots Shigeo almost right away, despite his talent of blending into the background. He's sitting with his ankles crossed, hands tapping against his legs as he stares out the window, clearly lost in thought. Teru wonders what he's thinking about.
He needs to go inside. The clock on the wall inside the room is telling him that he has two minutes before he will be considered late. He's never been late for a class before, not even when he was back at Black Vinegar. Not even when he was a gang boss. Being punctual has always been extremely important to him.
Right now though, the thought of entering this classroom so that all the student's eyes turn to him, including Shigeo's, is frightening. The thought of introducing himself in front of the class, and then taking a seat probably in the back, and then having to live with being the transfer student no one knows.
Shigeo knows him, though.
He can do this. He just has to put on his most charismatic mask. Be charming, be witty. Steal their friendship from his first impression. He'll have these classmates begging to be his friend. No one will bully him here. They'll be too busy kissing up to him.
No, no, no, what are you thinking, Teru? He's not like that anymore! He doesn't want the classmates to treat him like he's superior anymore. He's not superior! He's the same as them. A good person.
Besides, he does have friends. He has Shigeo and Tome and her weird club and the awakening lab kids and Shigeo's dumbass little brother, and maybe even the little brother's boyfriend. Teru doesn't need a big crowd to fawn over him. Not when he has the best friend group to ever exist.
The bell rings. Teru snaps out of his thoughts to realize he was so distracted that he'd forgotten to pay attention to the time. The teacher is turning to address the class, mouth moving. Shigeo is still staring out the window. Teru bursts through the doors.
All eyes are on him, Shigeo's included. Teru stands stiffly in the doorway. So much for a charismatic first impression...
"Ah, you must be the transfer student I was told of," the teacher says, breaking the tension. "Why don't you come over and introduce yourself to the class?"
Teru determinedly slides over next to the teacher, keeping his eyes away from Shigeo's seat. Did he scare him? Is he surprised? Did he know? Is he embarrassed by him? Teru doesn't want to know.
"Hi, my name is Teruki Hanazawa," Teru says as smoothly as he is physically capable of, "but you all can call me--" Does he want to be called Teru by these kids? That was the name everyone at Black Vinegar had called him, but since then, his friends have adopted it. It feels more intimate of a name, now. More personal.
He slowly lets his eyes slide over to meet Shigeo's. His lips are turned up in a small smile. Teru smiles back.
"--Teruki," he says confidently, bowing down low. This is a fresh start. He can be whoever he wants here. "It's nice to meet all of you."
--
Ritsu isn’t angry about Shou going off the grid for several months on end without so much as a goodbye; he isn’t angry that while he was gone, he would take several days, sometimes weeks to respond to messages, and even then he’d only give joking, short answers; and he’s definitely not angry that Shou scolded him for not reaching out about their big plan.
Maybe if he keeps telling himself this, he'll believe it.
This little Johnny Test looking-ass kid thinks it’s okay to just show up whenever he feels like after being a cryptid for months and then blame Ritsu for not keeping him up to date? His reasoning for his disappearance was understandable, but still. Ritsu is incredibly (not) angry over it.
Ritsu lounges on the living-room couch, his feet up on the cushions and his arms crossed. There’s a book lying on his lap but he doesn’t have the energy to pick it up and read it. His cell phone is in his hand but he doesn’t feel like using it. The television remote is on the coffee table two feet away but he doesn’t want to reach over and pick it up. Therefore, he sits with his arms crossed in a pout, unmoving.
In the kitchen, he can hear his mom cooking dinner. His father is in the next room, probably reading the newspaper or a book. Shige is in his room, likely doing homework. The familiar sounds of clanking pans and pages turning are familiar to him, and he can feel himself almost calming down.
His phone buzzes in his hand. Ritsu doesn’t move. It buzzes again, two minutes later, and still he ignores it. Thirty seconds pass and then his ringtone is blaring. The song that Shou saved as his specific ringtone starts playing.
“Two to the one from the one to the three, I like good pu--”
Ritsu answers the phone in a hurry.
“What do you want, Shou?!” he hisses into the receiver.
“Ritsu, I need help.”
Ritsu sits up straight. This is unusual, Shou hasn’t asked for his help in a while, something must seriously be wrong. But then he remembers that he is(n’t) mad at Shou and lies back down, smirking a little.
“Tough break,” he says casually. “I hope you figure it out.” His finger hovers over the red button 'end call' button..
“I swear to hell, Ritsu, if you hang up on me I will break into your house.” Shou sounds serious, no signs of a joking tone in his voice. “And we both know you won’t like what’ll happen if your parents meet me.”
Ritsu lets out a long groan. “Alright, alright, what’s your big issue.”
“I need you to introduce me to your brother’s old master,” Shou says. “I could use some advice.”
“You? Need advice? From a fraud like that?” Ritsu can’t hold in his laughter. “What could someone like Reigen possibly do for you? Give you an over-priced massage?”
“Maybe! I don't know!” Ritsu is thriving off of Shou’s exasperation. “Can you do it? If not I'll just go to your brother.”
“Yeah, I guess so,” Ritsu says with a snicker. “I'll text you the address for his office. We can meet up there now, he should be in.”
“Ok, bye.” The line goes dead immediately. Ritsu rolls his eyes, wondering for the umpteenth time why he picked his one friend to be... him.
Ritsu texts the address and then rolls off the couch to his feet. “Mom, I'm going out for a bit!” he calls, striding over to the door to put his shoes on.
“Okay, but be back in time for dinner, alright?” she calls back, poking her head out of the kitchen. “I'm making takoyaki.”
“Sounds good, I'm sure Shige will be thrilled to hear that,” Ritsu says, smiling back at her. “I'll see you all then.”
He throws on a light jacket and then slips out of the house.
Shou is already waiting outside by the time he gets there. He’s standing outside the door, his hands shoved in his jeans and open his jacket blowing in the fall breeze. He spots Ritsu right away, raising a hand and grinning.
“Hey, Ritchan,” Shou greets as Ritsu comes up closer.
Ritsu scowls. "I told you to stop calling me that."
"I'm gonna let you take the lead here," Shou continues, ignoring Ritsu's comment. "Just go on in and put in a good word for me, yeah?”
“I guess,” Ritsu says, grimacing. “Reigen and I aren't on the best terms, so this should be fun.”
“Wait, you two don't even like each other?!” Shou looks startlingly angry over this. “Why didn't you say anything!? I would have gone to your brother!”
Ritsu scoffs, opening the door. “Yeah, that probably would have been the better option, but I wanted to enjoy you finally coming to me for help after disappearing for several months without a word.” He shoots Shou an innocent smile and then walks inside.
Reigen is sitting at his desk, hunched over a laptop and typing furiously. The office phone is pressed between his ear and his shoulder, and there's a fast food burger half eaten on his desk. Serizawa is sitting on a nearby chair, his foot crossed over his knee and a notebook balanced against his leg. He looks like he's doing schoolwork. The smell of cigarettes is strangely absent, Ritsu notices, albeit he can faintly smell the lingerings of old smoke clinging to the walls. Ritsu distantly wonders how long it's been since he's smelled smoke on Reigen.
“Okay, well, if you could please get ahold of them,” Reigen is saying. “I've gone through all of the processes, I've gathered all of the papers I could get my hands on. If I can just get them to call me back, for the love of god, I can get this whole mess cleared up…”
Ritsu doesn't greet Reigen as he enters, a little because Reigen is on the phone, but mostly because he doesn't want to. Instead, he drags a chair up to the desk, taking a seat right in front of Reigen. He leans both elbows casually on the desk in front of him, staring Reigen down with a fixed, dead-eyed look.
Reigen spares a glance at Ritsu over the top of his laptop, raises an eyebrow, and then goes back to whatever he's doing.
“Yes, yes, I understand.” Reigen stops typing to put his head in his hands. “I just… All I need is their permission. I don't want to take this to court.” There's a pause. “Yes, thank you. Alright, I'll do everything I can. Thank you, yes. Goodbye.”
He hangs up the phone, and then lets out a long groan, leaning back in his chair with his hands covering his face.
“Sounds pretty serious,” Ritsu says casually. “Did you get a ticket or something? I bet it was your terrible driving.”
Reigen snaps back forward, shooting a frustrated glare Ritsu’s way. “Getting a ticket is the last thing I need right now,” he says. “I'm trying to wrap up this whole adoption process, and Teru’s parents are being annoyingly elusive.”
“That's rough, dude,” Ritsu says, putting on his best ‘I don't care’ face. “Anyway, I've got a friend here who wants to talk to you. Don't worry, though. Despite the fact that we're friends, he doesn't harbor the same hostility towards you as I do.”
Reigen looks skeptical. “I’m sure.” He sighs, sounding well beyond world-weary. “Well, send him in, I guess.”
Ritsu gets up, stepping back out of the office. He slaps Shou’s shoulder as they trade places. “I got him all warmed up for you,” he says encouragingly. “Good luck.”
Shou saunters into the room, plopping down right on top of Reigen’s desk. Reigen looks like any other day he would have flipped his lid but is too tired to even open his mouth in reaction at this particular moment.
“So, you and Hanazawa huh?”
Reigen raises an eyebrow. “Excuse me?”
Shou pushes Reigen’s laptop out of the way so he can swing his feet over Reigen’s side of the desk. “You're Hanazawa's new dad, right? Does that mean you can help me out?”
“Help you out with what, specifically?” Reigen’s left eye is twitching a little.
“From what I’ve gathered, Hanazawa's parents are shitty, so you decided to take him in,” Shou says, matter-of-fact. “Well, my shitty pops is in jail and my mom thinks I'm an abomination, so I was thinking you could do the same thing for me.”
“You want me,” Reigen says slowly, “to adopt you?”
“Yeah,” Shou says with a nod. “Can you do it?”
Reigen stares at Shou for a full minute, and then lets his head fall, hitting the desk with a loud thunk. He doesn’t move.
“Kid...,” he mumbles into the wood. “Are you messing with me?”
Shou jumps off the desk like he’s been burned, eyes widening and fists clenching. “What? No! What?” he stammers. “I’m being serious!”
He hadn’t expected this. Why isn’t Reigen just saying yes? He did that for Hanazawa!
Reigen turns his head to the side to look up at Shou. His eyes are weary. “Look… Suzuki, right? As much as I’d love to give every kid without good parents a home, I’m just one guy. I’m not making enough at this job to support two teenagers.”
“You don’t need to take care of me!” Shou bursts out, hands flying around. “I can handle myself fine. I just want what -- what Hanazawa has--”
At this point, Serizawa stands up, placing his notebook on his chair, and moving to stand behind Reigen’s hunched form. He places a hand on Reigen’s shoulder.
“Arataka, you’re not alone.”
Reigen closes his eyes, groaning. “Katsuya, I know you mean well but… it’s more complicated than that.” He sits up, staring Serizawa down firmly. “I can’t be legally responsible for both of these boys all by myself, I could ruin their lives. I hear you when you say that you’re here too, but it’s not the same. I don’t have the finances or the time management to handle it by myself. This is a job for someone who isn’t a brand-new single parent.”
"Lets just get married then?"
The whole room stills.
Reigen doesn’t blink, staring with his mouth half open. Serizawa begins to sweat.
“I-I mean, I’m sorry, I--”
“Sure, okay,” Reigen interrupts, cracking a smile.
Serizawa freezes. "...really?"
"Yeah." Reigen takes his hand. “I think that'd be fine. More than fine." He grins. "I have to say, though I didn’t expect you to be the one to ask before me."
Shou whips his head back and forth between Serizawa and Reigen. “Wait, what’s happening. Are you going to be my new dad or not?”
Reigen twists back around, linking his hands together on the desk in front of him. "Alright, kid, here's the deal. You can crash at my place whenever you want to and I’ll give you dad advice or whatever. Then once I finally have all this stuff I’m currently handling sorted out we can talk it over again. Just let me decrease my current stress levels by at least fifty percent." He raises an eyebrow. “How does that sound?"
"Yeah! Yes!” Shou exclaims, hopping up in the air. “You’re the best!” He then whips around, racing out of the room while waving over his shoulder. “Thanks, old man! See ya!"
"I’m twenty-nine!" Reigen yells after him.
Ritsu is still standing outside, leaning against the wall opposite to the door, when Shou bursts out. "How did it go?" he asks casually. He already knows, of course, judging by Shou's overjoyed expression, but he figures it’s polite to at least ask.
“About as well as I was hoping,” Shou says cheerfully. “Now I can rub my cool new dad in my shitty pops' face! He’s gonna be so mad.”
“Is that the whole reason you did this?” Ritsu asks.
Shou's gaze slides to the side. "Nah. It’s actually just..." he says, calming down. "...after that dumb plan came together, and Hanazawa was standing next to your brother's master, he looked happy. Like really happy." He shuffles his feet. "And I mean, my pops is awful and I’m glad he’s in jail, so I mean. It’s just…”
"Yeah?"
Shou brings his hands up behind his head. "I think... having a pops that could make me happy too, wouldn’t be so bad."
Grinning, Ritsu throws an arm around Shou’s shoulder, shaking him playfully. "I hope it works out,” he says with more sincerity than he’s ever heard himself use with anyone other than Shige. “You have to keep me updated though, or else I will literally track you down and kill you with my own bare hands."
Shou laughs. "Deal."
--
Mob’s palm is sweaty, pressed against Teru’s hand. They’re sitting at a table just outside of a small shop for bubble tea, the sun beating down around them. Mob is staring up at the brightly colored umbrella above their heads, which is mercilessly sparing them from its rays, letting the sensory details wash over him. Anything to distract his wildly racing mind.
It’s their first date, and he’s more than excited. But they’re not going to be alone. Tome and Tsubomi are going to be joining them very soon.
He’s not sure how to feel about seeing Tsubomi again for the first time after confessing. His feelings for Teru are real and strong, and he never thinks romantically about anyone else, but there’s a nagging fear in the back of his mind that he’s going to see her and... still like her.
He knows he doesn’t. The warm fingers laced between his own are enough to remind him of that. But what if he does…?
Teru nudges Mob gently with his shoulder. “You doing okay?” he asks. He’s radiating happiness, Mob sees. His entire form is glowing with excitement and his eyes are bright and sparkling in the sunlight. If Mob didn’t know better, he could have mistaken Teru for the sun itself.
He’s nodding, near automatically, and then stops and shakes his head a little sheepishly. “No,” he admits, “I’m very nervous. To see Tsubomi again.”
“I expected you to be,” Teru says understandingly. “Don’t worry, I trust you. And if you end up feeling uncomfortable, we can just leave.”
Mob nods again, sincerely this time. “I know,” he says.
They’re quiet again for a few moments, but not for too long because an enthusiastic shout from across the street catches their attention.
Tome is jogging over the crosswalk, dragging a laughing Tsubomi along by the hand. The eccentric girl is waving her free arm ardently. Teru waves back while Mob lifts a tentative hand.
“Yo, nerds!” Tome greets, coming to a skidding stop a foot away from their table. “Are you two ready for some of the best tea in the history of the literal entire world?”
“I don’t know if it’s the best ,” Teru says with a raised eyebrow. “I mean, have you ever had--”
Tome shushes him, a finger against his mouth. “No. It’s the best. Discussion over.” She stands up straight. “Come on, let’s go in! There are so many flavors I need to introduce you to.”
The boys stand up, following Tome inside the shop. It’s very calming inside, Mob notices, pleased. It has a lots of warm colors spread across the walls, and there aren’t a lot of people dining in, which is relieving. Tome hurries to get in line to order, motioning for the rest of the group to follow.
Mob is lingering close to Teru, pointedly not looking at Tsubomi straight on. He can’t help but peek at her out of the corner of his eyes, though. She’s wearing a colorful dress tied around the waist with a bedazzled belt, a light jacket that has a rainbow on one side, and bold leggings. There’s a ribbon tying up her long black hair, keeping it out of her face. Her makeup is very natural in tone, but it’s clear she still put a lot of time into it. Overall, she’s very pretty, as always. And yet, Mob doesn’t feel nervous about it.
He looks over at Teru then, studying his boyfriend unabashedly. Teru is also dressed up pretty nicely with his favorite button-down tucked into his dress pants, and colorful suspenders holding together the snappy ensemble. He’s also wearing a little bit of makeup, but no concealer so Mob can see his freckles clearly. Adoration warms Mob’s heart and even though they’re holding hands, Mob has the urge to wrap himself around Teru's middle, just to be as close as possible.
The difference between the two in his mind is enormous and Mob is incredibly relieved.
“So, how have you been, Mob?” Tsubomi suddenly asks, her tone polite.
Mob jumps a little in surprise. “Ah, good,” he says, a little too quick in response. “I’m feeling very good. Happier? Yeah, yes. Uh, what about you?” Small talk has never been his strong-suit.
Tsubomi smiles. “I’ve been well, thank you,” she says. “Transferring to a new school district has been rather difficult, but it’s nice to be able to start over where no one knows me. I can finally drop this popular girl persona I built up at Salt Mid.”
Mob nods. “You didn’t seem to like it very much.”
“No, it wasn’t what I thought it would be,” she agrees. “My friends could turn on me at any moment, and everyone idolized me. No one really knew me as a person. Which is why I always valued you as a friend, Mob.” She smiles gratefully at him, if a little somber. “I’m sorry we stopped talking. You always treated me like an equal, and I very much respect you for that.”
“He’s good at that,” Teru comments with a half-grin.
Tsubomi looks up at Teru. “Teruki Hanazawa, right?” she asks, dipping her head slightly. “I’ve heard many things about you.”
“For now... yeah, that’s my name,” Teru says. He looks a bit nervous. “But, uh, good or bad things?”
“A little bit of both,” she says mischievously. “Oh, but, before I forget… I must formally congratulate you.” She backs up and bows to the both of them. “I knew Mob would find someone who would be right for him. I’m glad it was the boy who saved our city.” Her eyes are twinkling with mystery as she says this, and Mob can’t help but wonder how much she knows.
"Honestly, I feel like I'm the one who really lucked out here," Teru says, a little defensively. "I wish I had met him sooner because having him in my life is the biggest blessing I could ever receive."
Mob can feel himself getting red with fluster. “Oh, but--!” he stammers. “You are very good, too, also… and I am happier with you! And -- and, I…”
“You don’t need to be embarrassed, Mob,” Tsubomi says with a smile. “We’re all gay and love our dates, here.”
“Damn right!” Tome calls, finally joining the conversation. “Now are you all done talking? We’re next in line and I’m ready to order.” She waves a 2000-yen note in the air. “I’m covering all of you, so get your asses over here.”
“Oh, but, I can pay…” Mob tries to say, digging his wallet out of his back pocket. “I have enough from work, I was going to cover--”
“Absolutely the hell not,” Tome says seriously. “Now move it, you nerds are holding up the line.”
Reluctantly, they join Tome at the counter. After a quick viewing of the menu, the group orders the drinks they want and then step to the side to wait for them to be ready.
“So,” Tome says, the first to speak. “Do you think that somewhere far away, aliens are already celebrating having destroyed our planet with a long-distance laser-gun?”
“Well, according to the science that we’ve gathered,” Tsubomi says, “everything that we see in space is the past. This is why when a star explodes, we don’t see the explosion until many many years later. This would mean that if aliens really have fired a laser to obliterate us, they wouldn’t see the actual destruction of our planet until long after we’re gone.”
“There’s also that fact that they would have to be deadly accurate in their aim,” Teru adds. “Our planet is in constant rotation, and these aliens would have to have a very large brain capacity in order to know the exact position our planet would be in at the exact moment the laser reaches it.”
“Well, we can’t forget that we as a race only use 2% of our brain, so the likelihood that aliens have access to all of the information possible is not something to rule out,” Tsubomi counters. “It is highly likely, in fact, that they have a much higher brain capacity than we ever have or ever will.”
Tome is grinning, looking back and forth between them. “Maybe since what we see is in the past, then it would be the opposite for the aliens? What if they’re seeing our future?”
Tsubomi shakes her head. “That’s impossible. Space works the same for everyone, regardless of their position in the universe,” she says matter-of-factly.
“Tome Kurata!” an employee calls. There are a few drinks on the counter, ready to be served.
“Oh, that’s us!” Tome cheers, racing over to swipe up her drink and then immediately taking a large gulp. “Ah… bliss. I’ve ascended, guys, goodbye forever…”
“Oh no you don’t,” Tsubomi says with a half smile, a glint in her eyes. “Not without me anyway.” She takes her drink too, slipping her free hand under Tome’s arm.
Mob tries his as well. He’d ordered a milk-based one, and it is sweet and creamy to the taste. Even though the tea is cold, he feels warm drinking it.
“It is very good,” he says with a smile.
“It is good,” Teru agrees, also sipping his drink. “Thanks for paying, Tome.”
Tome waves her hand at him. “Sure, yeah, no problem,” she says. “You owe me now, though. I expect all of you to get me something nice in return.”
Teru rolls his eyes and Tsubomi does as well. Mob knows, though, that they’re going to end up getting her something anyway.
They begin to make their way across the shop to find a table. “So," Tome asks as they walk, "do any of you watch anime."
They sit down, continuing to indulge in Tome’s arbitrary topics. Mob doesn’t find himself very interested in contributing, but he listens intently, nodding along and making the occasional comment. The atmosphere is calm, the tea is sweet, and his friend’s voices are familiar. He ends up leaning against Teru, who wraps an arm around his shoulders.
Mob looks out the window of the shop. The light of the setting sun is streaming through the trees, keeping the world around them lit with its warm rays. He holds his tea to his chest. His heart is beating a gentle rhythm.
Teru is laughing, shoulders shaking and tears streaming down his face. Mob closes his eyes and smiles.
They're never going to be alone again.