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chackyxyooj · 6 months

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You Believed You Weren't Enough

No Manga Spoilers Present! - High School AU

Potential TW: Verbal Suggestive Harassment (Stupid High School delinquent type stuff (Not from any of the named characters) - please be weary if you get extremely uncomfortable with stuff like that)

WC ~ 13,000

“If you knew something bad was going to happen to someone, wouldn’t you try to stop it from happening?”

Admiration and jealousy - two emotions that are awfully different yet a little too similar. To admire someone is to regard another as worthy of respect due to their achievements and advantages. Jealousy is to envy someone for the very same achievements and advantages we admire. Hence is the reason why admiration and jealousy can so easily be mistaken for one another; especially in regard to someone we deem better than ourselves.

What is the turning point in which admiration turns to jealousy?

If someone could change themselves to be more akin to the person they admire, wouldn’t they?

Is it, after all, such a horrible thing to want to be like the person we admire? If jealousy is just a single misstep away from adoration, how can we be certain about which emotion we truly feel?

Sunlight streamed into the room, making it perfectly clear that ‘tomorrow’ had become ‘today.’

While you were never particularly fond of waking up, your body felt awfully different this morning. It wasn’t the groggy or heavy feeling someone feels when they’re sick, nor was it a reluctance to get out of bed. There was just something off about today. When you peeked open your eyes to search for your phone, you suddenly found yourself somewhere equally unfamiliar as it was familiar.

Instead of waking up in your apartment in the city, you found yourself waking up in your childhood home. Although the answer of ‘where’ was rather obvious, there were a lot of questions that currently raced through your mind.

Why were you back home? How did you get here? Did someone bring you here, or did you bring yourself here? Why did you need to pee so badly?

You rushed out of your room and to the bathroom. Between all of the strange questions that still played in your mind, you could at least find solace in the fact that you had woken up somewhere somewhat familiar instead of somewhere completely unknown. A strange silver lining to be sure, but a silver lining nonetheless.

As you finished with your business, old habits began kicking in and you quickly found yourself twisting across the bathroom the way you had when you were younger. Perhaps it was just being in the house that made you feel younger, but you couldn’t deny that you kind of… felt younger.

The water you washed your hands with was just as cold as the realisation that you didn’t just feel younger, you were younger.

You must have looked ridiculous - dashing from the bathroom to your bedroom while wiping your damp hands along the front of your shirt. Before you knew it, you found yourself staring at your phone in disbelief.

Today was ‘today,’ but the ‘today’ three years in the past.

•─────⋅☾ ☽⋅─────•

If you were to describe your life so far using a single word, you’d likely use the word adequate. It wasn’t as if you disliked the life you lived, neither did you think that your life was significantly better than the average person. You of course had your fair share of highs and lows, but you’ve always believed that things could have been far worse. Hence is the reason why you simply describe your life as adequate .

You never really considered yourself as someone who looks back at their highschool years with fondness, however, you never really disliked them either. To be honest, you found that you could only deem your highschool experience as adequate. That wasn’t to say that you were looking forward to reliving your entire highschool experience.

A part of you hoped that you would wake up and realise that you were dreaming this whole time. Still, there was a part of you that knew that wouldn’t happen - the part of you that vaguely knew why this was happening in the first place.

In any case, waking up three years in the past isn't necessarily the worst thing that could have happened. You considered yourself lucky for waking up at the start of your first year of highschool. The path you had chosen post graduation wasn’t really something you were passionate about, so you would take this strange phenomenon as a blessing in disguise.

As the bell rang for the final time today, you collected your pencils and notebooks into your bag. You may have said goodbye to these familiar walls and seats once before, but now you were back. Nothing about the school was unfamiliar. Even if you hadn’t travelled three years back, it had only been a few weeks since graduation. You doubted that you could easily forget the place you spent so much time in.

You quickly fell back into old habits - weaving through crowds and getting to your locker as quickly as possible

Despite how you’ve seen everything here before, it was just… different. It was strange to recall such vivid memories of the future for things you would usually consider mundane. It was as though you were constantly filled with a feeling of deja vu.

The front entrance of the school was nostalgic.

The meticulous cracks that ran across your path home were as endearing as ever.

You even found the cherry blossom petals that were scattered across the road oddly charming.

You felt inclined to retract your earlier opinions about your highschool experience. Perhaps highschool wasn’t nearly as adequate as you’d made it out to be. Perhaps all it took was walking through these familiar sights that made you remember why you never really minded walking to and from school by yourself.

Though, to say you were walking by yourself right now would’ve been a generous statement.

As you made your way home, you couldn’t stop checking over your shoulder. You weren’t sure why, but someone had been following you for about three blocks now.

Despite your follower’s intimidating frame (and frankly, their overall delinquent-esque aura), they were also wearing a middle schooler's uniform. You couldn’t recall someone of your “follower’s” stature living in your area, but it wasn’t as if you usually noticed these kinds of things anyway.

Your curiosity suddenly turned to panic when the footsteps of your ‘follower’ sped up.

It would’ve been easy to assume that they were just trying to pass you, but the way their pace frequently slowed and sped up again didn’t give you too much hope. You did your best to keep a steady pace, hoping that the boy would back off or make up their mind to pass you. Weren’t these ‘delinquent’ types supposed to be cold and rude? This boy just seemed indecisive.

Despite your better judgement, you turned on your heel and faced your ‘follower.’

“Do you need something?” You questioned. You were surprised to see such a young boy suddenly standing across from you (though perhaps not entirely since he was wearing a middle school uniform). The moment you made eye contact, the younger boy redirected his gaze to the floor.

“I… umm… is this…?” the boy muttered.

“I’m sorry, I can’t hear what you’re saying.” You stepped closer to try and make out what he was saying, only for the boy to step back.

“Ah… it’s just that… I…”

“Sorry, I still can’t seem to understand you.”

The boy suddenly took a deep breath and reached into his pocket. Before you could properly react, the boy took your hand, placed something in it and then ran off.

Bewildered, you watched the boy run down the street until he was out of sight.

Everything about that interaction was certainly weird, but there was never a point where you genuinely felt threatened. As you looked at what the boy had handed you, you quickly realised two things.

First, the boy had returned your student card. Obviously, you must have dropped it without realising that you had dropped it in the first place. It was nice of him to bring it to you, even if he was rather sketchy while doing so. You almost felt bad for thinking he might’ve been some sort of delinquent, but only almost.

Secondly, when the boy had handed you your student card, he accidentally handed you his student card as well.

A strange feeling suddenly sprouted in the pit of your stomach as you read the boy’s name.

It’s not as though you knew who this person was. You couldn’t even recall having many friends younger than yourself back in highschool, let alone friends that could easily be mistaken for delinquents or something. Still, you needed to do something about the young boy’s student card. He’d gone the extra mile to return your student card to you, after all.

Against your better judgement, you began running in the direction you had watched the young boy disappear. You had to stop a few times to ask passersby if they had seen the boy in question. Your concern over having the boy’s student card led you farther and farther away from your own home. Just as you were losing hope, you spotted a familiar silhouette walking up a driveway a few houses down.

Seeing as you’d already come this far, you ran after the boy.

“Excuse me!” You tried to call out to the boy, but his movements only seemed to quicken. You scrambled after him in the most non threatening manner you could manage and stopped at the edge of the driveway. Out of breath from running, you huffed between each word. “Hold on… I have something for you!”

The young boy looked toward you but never met your gaze.

You held up your pointer finger, buying yourself some time to catch your breath. Just as you were about to pull the young boy’s student card out of your pocket, a hand roughly latched onto your wrist. Your eyes immediately shot up to meet with a new, unfamiliar pair.

“The hell do you think you’re doing?” The newcomer, a boy with white hair, scowled. You gently tried to pull your hand away from him but his grip was awfully strong. “Well?”

If you thought the young boy before looked like a delinquent with his mohawk, then the person who stood in front of you now was almost undeniably a delinquent. Even if it wasn’t for the older boy’s white hair, the glare in his eyes certainly made you feel uneasy. Needless to say, if looks could kill, you would’ve died.

“I have his student card…” The words you wanted to say got caught in your throat as the boy continued to stare down at you.

“Why? You steal it or something?”

“Of course not! I came to return it to him!” You blurted, earning another stern glare.

“So you followed him all the way back to our house? Creep.”

“I- okay yes, that was definitely not my brightest moment but-” You paused. Why had you followed the boy all the way back. Returning his card is fair enough, but why not just bring it to his school? Surely that would’ve been a safer and a marginally more effective way than following the young boy all the way out here, so why put in so much effort?

Was it because you wanted to do something nice? Ensuring that the boy’s student card somehow got back to him was essentially the bare minimum, but why go this far at all?

You suddenly found your gaze trailing toward the white haired male in front of you.

Was it because of him? You hadn’t realised it before, but the older boy was wearing the uniform of the same school that you currently attended. Staring at him now, there was definitely an air of familiarity around him.

The heavy feeling in the pit of your stomach returned as your eyes jumped between the pair of boys.

It is often said that memories are one of the most precious things in the world. Humans can do so much in a single day, yet not every single moment can be recalled at will. Generally, it’s only certain experiences, moments which elicit strong emotions, that can be recalled vividly. Past traumas, fleeting moments of joy and long periods of grief are many of the first things to come to mind when one brings up strong memories. It’s these kinds of memories that tend to shape people into who they are.

However, to say that people can only recall memories linked with strong emotion would also be incorrect. Sometimes, things we once perceived as unimportant can suddenly rush back when faced with some kind of trigger.

In this case, a trigger had gone off in your brain due to the name on the boy’s student card.

Genya Shinazugawa.

Shinazugawa.

While Genya wasn’t a name that immediately rang any bells, his last name, Shinazugawa, certainly did. Back when you were in highschool (the first time), you recalled the name Shinazugawa circulating around your school. Apparently he was a well known delinquent type who was rumoured to frequently get into fights. You never had the chance to confirm for yourself whether or not the rumours about your upperclassman was true - early on in your first year, news of Shinazugawa’s death spread like wildfire around your school.

You could feel a wave of adrenaline beginning to take over your senses, providing you with enough strength to pull your hand, along with the young boy’s student card, out of your pocket. “He accidently handed me his student card earlier and ran off before I could return it to him. I shouldn’t have followed him all the way here, that’s my mistake, but since I’ve already come all this way I might as well return it.”

There was a curious glint in the older boy’s eyes for a moment, but he turned away from you before you could confirm if what you saw was real.

“Genya! Get your ass over here!” The young boy, Genya, sheepishly made his way to the older boy’s side. “You better thank her for coming all this way.”

Genya turned his body toward you but kept his eyes on the ground. “T-thank you...”

“When you thank someone, look them in the eye for crying out loud.” The older boy berated, causing Genya to stiffen. “And speak up. What good is saying thanks if no one can hear you?

The young boy slowly lifted his gaze to meet yours, but no words came from him.

The silence between the three of you was awfully stiff, so you quickly filled it with words of your own. “Umm… don’t worry about it. I was simply returning the favour. How about you take your student card and call it even?” You put on your best smile, but it only made Genya turn his gaze away from you again.

Having had enough of the young boy’s attitude, the white haired male took the student card from your hand and slapped it into Genya’s hand. “The next time you do something nice for someone, make sure you don’t inconvenience them, dumbass!”

Not wanting to cause any more of a scene, you stepped away from the two boys. “I’m glad everything has worked out. I’ll be taking my leave now.” You turned away from the boys and began walking the way you had come, only to stop dead in your tracks when you met eyes with a small group of boys across the street.

They were wearing highschool uniforms, but not ones that you immediately recognized. Then again, it would be hard to recognize any school’s uniform when worn as improperly as what you were seeing right now.

The group of boys stood staring at you and the two Shinazugawas as they muttered something amusing to each other.

“What’s so funny? I got something on my face?” The white haired boy scowled.

You could feel your heart beginning to race and not in the cute kind of way. You felt like a cornered animal, ready to bolt at any sudden movement. You nearly jumped out of your skin when the white haired boy was suddenly standing right beside you, let alone when he pulled you back so you were standing beside Genya.

You weren’t really sure what to make of the situation. The whole time the older boy was staring down the other group of boys, you could only think about how you ended up getting yourself caught up in something like this in the first place.

All you wanted to do was one nice thing. Why did stuff like this always have to happen?

Just as you felt the last of your self restraint slip away, the group of boys began walking down the street. As the group turned the bend, you finally felt your body relax. You barely had a moment to relax though, since the moment the group was gone the older boy was back to scowling at you and the younger boy.

“Alright, it’s great that you went out of your way for my dumbass little brother, but you shouldn’t be seen around the likes of us.”

“Why?” You asked, your own curiosity getting the better of you.

“Why? Cause those shitheads are bad news, that’s why.” The older boy groaned. “Look, it’s better that you don’t get swept up in the wrong crowd. Just cut your losses and be on with your life already. We don’t need your pity.”

Pity, huh?

You abruptly turned away from the two boys. “You’re right. Pity is for the pathetic, and you certainly aren’t, so you don’t need it.”

“That’s great, are you done now?”

You could feel words bubbling up inside of your chest, but you ultimately held your tongue. To argue with a fool would simply make you a fool yourself.

You could hear Genya addressing the older boy as his brother as you walked away, but you didn’t bother turning back. You didn’t want to hear anything that the white haired boy might’ve had to say. Even if you did hear what he had to say, you were sure that it would only irritate you even more. What was so important about these two anyway? They were just strangers to you.

That’s right, nothing more than strangers.

•─────⋅☾ ☽⋅─────•

As night came and went, and tomorrow became today, you found yourself stuck in the past. At this point you just had to accept that this was reality. You went through the motions of life just as you had before - wake up, breakfast, go to school, learn. It was the very same way you’ve always lived, but today something felt off.

This wouldn’t be the first time you’ve had an ‘off’ day, but something in particular was lingering at the back of your mind.

Had you been too harsh to the white haired boy yesterday? It wasn’t as though you said anything particularly insulting, but it wasn’t like you had been that great of a person either. There was no reason that you were obligated to apologise. You didn’t know them and they didn’t know you. What should it matter to you?

Still, there was little doubt in your mind that the boys you had met, the older one in particular, were the Shinazugawas. It wasn’t like they were the most unruly people you’d ever met. To be honest, the boys didn’t come off as bad people. A bit quick to jump to conclusions at times, sure, but that didn’t necessarily make them bad people.

Now that you really thought about it, hadn’t the older boy protected you? As rude as he may have been, he hadn’t left you to fend for yourself. That was worth something, right?

Thoughts from the ‘past’ nagged at you from the back of your mind.

…found dead… Shinazugawa… tragedy…

Could you really call yourself a good person if you knew someone was going to get hurt and didn’t do anything to stop it? That wasn’t the kind of person your parents raised you to be. It wasn’t the kind of person you wanted to be.

If only your parents weren’t abroad right now. Your mother has always known how to address these sorts of things. Life was always so much better when they were around, but unfortunately for you they weren’t around often. Still, this wouldn’t be the first time you’ve had to solve your own problems and it certainly wouldn’t be the last.

Perhaps the next time you saw one of the two boys, you would try to befriend them.

The school bell rang and informed all that it was time for lunch. Just as you were about to pull out your lunch, a familiar figure walked past one of the windows of your classroom. Before you knew it, you were slipping through the crowds of people as you made your way outside. It seemed like doing things despite your better judgement was becoming something of a trend.

You weren’t sure what the older Shinazugawa was doing outside, but due to the way your classroom was positioned it seemed like he was heading toward the main gate. Was he cutting class? It would certainly fit the delinquent-esque persona he had accumulated.

As you scanned the courtyard for the older boy, you couldn’t help but curse the sun for being unreasonably bright today. This was making things unnecessarily difficult. Should you just give up and look again later? It wasn’t like you didn’t know where they lived - not to sound creepy of course! On second thought, perhaps it would be better to approach the older boy at school so as to not arouse any suspicion.

So caught up in trying to find the white haired boy, you didn’t even realise that you had neglected to change your shoes. By the time you realised it, you were already falling.

You braced for impact but instead of hitting the ground, someone had caught you.

“Umm… are you alright?”

For some reason, you expected to meet a golden gaze when you opened your eyes. Instead, you were met with a pale shade of purple.

“It’s you!” The words accidentally slipped from your lips. You pulled away quickly when you realised you were clinging to the very person you were trying to find. The moment it seemed that the older boy recognised you, he turned and started walking away. A bit panicked, you grabbed the boy’s sleeve. “Wait, I need to speak with you!”

The older boy stopped walking, but neither did he turn to look at you.

“I umm… I want to apologise for the way I acted yesterday. It was rather immature of me to do and say the things I did, so I sincerely hope that you don’t harbour any ill will towards me.”

“Oh… it’s fine.”

“You’re certain about that?”

“Uhh…”

“What’s going on?” A newcomer suddenly asked.

You and the older boy turned towards the newcomer - none other than the young boy, Genya. He had an oddly tense expression on his face as he looked at the two of you in what you could only describe as irritation.

“Oh, Shinazugawa-kun! It’s you!” You pulled away from the older boy and turned your attention to the newcomer. “I apologise for the inconvenience I caused you yesterday. I hope you don’t-”

“I really don’t care.”

You were taken aback by the young boy’s sudden quip, reduced to having a blank stare on your face. It’s not like you really knew the kid, but you’d be lying if you said that his response hadn’t come from left field.

To be honest, something about this entire interaction has rubbed you the wrong way. Both of the boys were acting so different from how they had yesterday, but their actions weren’t entirely foreign. It was like… almost like they had adopted each other’s mannerisms and habits overnight. But things like that don’t happen normally.

As if you could describe what you’d gone through as normal.

You’ve heard rumours about strange things happening to people for reasons that couldn’t be explained - you had become especially curious about it back when you attended high school the ‘first’ time; back when one of your childhood friends had… passed away. From all of your research and questioning, you’d managed to find something that seemed to fit: Adolescence Syndrome - a mysterious syndrome that only affects those who enter puberty. Then perhaps…

By the time you returned to your current situation, the two boys were walking away from you. Panicked, and not entirely without ulterior motives, you called out to them.

“Genya-kun!” Where most people would’ve expected the younger boy to turn first, it was actually the white haired boy who turned to face you. It wasn’t a big difference in timing, likely just a second or two, but the look on his face told you more than enough.

“What?” The younger boy was glaring at you now.

“I wanted to ask why you decided to return my student card to me yesterday. You could’ve left it alone - or just given it to Shinazugawa-senpai to give to me for that matter, but you didn’t. I think it was very nice of you to do something like that. You’re a good person.”

The two boys exchanged a look between each other, making you feel oddly self conscious. Finally, the younger boy broke the silence. “Is that all you came here to say?”

“Well no, but-”

“Then we’re leaving.”

As Genya turned around to leave, the older boy quickly grabbed hold of his brother’s sleeve. “Sanemi, you’re being too harsh.” The moment the words left his mouth, the older boy had slapped a hand overtop of his own mouth.

“The two of you…” You started, the two boys turning to face you. “You’re experiencing Adolescence Syndrome, aren’t you?”

A look of confusion formed on the face of both boys, but the younger boy’s expression quickly shifted. “The hell are you talking about?” The young boy suddenly spouted, causing you to reel back in surprise. His expression was complicated. Even so, there was an underlying softness that reminded you of someone else.

You quickly shook the notion away and returned to the issue at hand. “Adolescence Syndrome isn’t really something that you can explain with logic. It’s not even something I understand myself, but can what happened really be explained away by logic? Whatever happened to you two isn’t normal.”

“Is that right?” The younger boy asked sarcastically but you quickly cut him off.

“But I think I know how to help you.”

“Wait, really?” The older boy suddenly piped, “You can make us go back to normal?”

“I can’t guarantee anything, but I want to try to help in any way I can.”

“Why?”

You paused for a moment. Once again, you were brought back to the ever looming question of why. Why help these people when you barely knew them? Why put in so much effort for people who you’ll likely never see again after this day? You turned your eyes to meet the older boy’s gaze. You admired the softness on his face. It was such a stark contrast to what you’d seen yesterday. To be frank, it was different from what either of the boys had shown you yesterday. It was so familiar though. You couldn’t even begin to imagine how you’d feel if someone with such a genuine look ended up dead.

Wouldn’t it make you a bad person if you knew someone was going to die, and let them?

“I guess… if you knew something bad was going to happen to someone, wouldn’t you try to stop it from happening?” A sad smile unconsciously pulled at your lips as you turned your gaze toward the younger boy. “That’s the very reason why you intervened the way you did yesterday, isn’t it, Shinazugawa-senpai? ”

The younger boy opened his mouth to spit a snarky reply, but stopped as he met your gaze. “Whatever…” The boy eventually mumbled. “Just don’t go causing us trouble or anything.”

A tight feeling suddenly enveloped your chest, but you smiled regardless. “Of course! I look forward to helping the two of you!”

•─────⋅☾ ☽⋅─────•

Back when you attended high school the ‘first’ time, you were a volunteer at an animal shelter. You had found that aside from studying, it was the best way to bide your time as exams came and went. With that in mind, you understood why Shinazugawa-senpai was mildly familiar. You hadn’t realised it a few days ago, but the older boy had a part time job working for the very same animal shelter you used to (and currently) volunteered for. Then again, you couldn’t really expect yourself to recognize him since… well, he and your time at the shelter didn’t coincide for very long.

In any case, you were going to change that. Not with any ulterior motives obviously! You didn’t think you could handle more people in your life at the moment. Not when their presence in your life would be so uncertain, and especially not people who’re also-

“Umm… (Y/n)-san, would you mind helping me?”

You turned your head towards the newer, meeker version of Sanemi Shinazugawa. As far as the three of you understood, Sanemi and Genya had swapped bodies. There was no obvious rhyme or reason for the swap, but you hoped that by spending time with them you could narrow down the cause of their Adolescence Syndrome, let alone return them to normal.

“Of course, Shinazugawa-senpai.” You replied, glancing at the bags of kibble that still had to be put away. “Just give me a minute.”

The first hour of conversation between the three of you had certainly proven to be the most confusing. There wasn’t an obvious way for you to address one brother or the other. Eventually, having had enough of all the confusion, the three of you agreed on two things: First was that in private, you would address Sanemi and Genya by their first names relative to who they were, and not whose body you were addressing. Neither boy preferred the respect of honorifics over convenience, so that was that. In turn, the boys could call you whatever they deemed fit so long as it wasn’t insulting.

Secondly, out in public you would refer to Genya as Shinazugawa-senpai, and Sanemi as Shinazugawa-kun. While the two boys might not have minded, you thought it best if you referred to the boys how you would on any other day. This way if you saw them again after this whole ordeal, assuming that the switch back would eventually happen, it wouldn’t be weird for you to refer to them as if they were acquaintances.

Despite everything, they would likely remain nothing but acquaintances. For your own safety, it would be better if you didn’t become too familiar with them. You were here to help them, not to make friends.

“(Y/n)-san, please hurry…”

“I’ll be right there!” You called back, tucking the last bag of kibble into the cupboard. You quickly made your way over to Genya. “Okay, what seems to be the-'' The moment you turned the corner, you couldn’t help but grin. Genya, in Sanemi’s body, was being overrun with more animals than he could hold.

“(Y/n)-san, please help me!” Genya pleaded with you, a desperate look in his eyes. You wasted no time in helping the poor boy. The animals seemed a bit sad to be pulled away from the older boy’s form, but Genya seemed heavily relieved. As soon as all of the animals were placed back into their respective pens, Genya wasted no time in letting out a deep sigh.

“It seems that you’re quite popular with the animals in this shelter, Shinazugawa-senpai.”

“No, not me. Animals don’t really like me, they like Sanemi. I just happen to be the one in his body.”

You shook your head. “No, I can tell they like you. They seem more gentle than usual. It must be because they can sense your gentle heart, Shinazugawa-senpai.”

“You really think so?”

“Yes, I do!” You insisted. “You should come back to the shelter when you’re back in your own body. I’m sure the animals would love it.”

“I don’t know. I don’t really think I should.”

“Why not?”

“I umm… I’m not very useful around here. I’m sure I’d only get in the way.”

“Who knows? You just might…” You admitted, poking a finger into a nearby cage. The animal inside approached you slowly before rubbing the top of its head against your finger, making you chuckle. After a moment, you turned your eyes toward the boy. “Even so, I wouldn’t mind helping you out. After all, I really do think that you’re a good person, Genya.”

Genya looked at you and you instinctively smiled. Though the boy initially averted his gaze, he eventually returned your gaze with a soft smile of his own. It looked kind of strange to see Sanemi’s face with such a soft expression, but you were slowly getting used to it.

Unconsciously, the smile on your lips finally reached your eyes.

“You have a really pretty smile, (Y/n)-san.” The boy across from you blurted, taking both of you by surprise. The moment Genya fully processed what he’d said, he began stuttering and panicking in an attempt to relieve himself of his own embarrassment. You were certain that the look on the older boy’s face wasn’t one he’d make on his own, but you could easily imagine Genya’s own face making this kind of expression. At that, you couldn’t help but want to laugh.

“Thank you, Shinazugawa-senpai. I’m certain that smiles don’t look half bad on you either.” You replied, watching as your companion slowly began recomposing himself.

By the time either of you realised it, it was time to head back. It wasn’t much, but you felt like you were beginning to better understand the younger of the Shinazugawa brothers. Talking with Genya had become significantly easier. Admittedly, the fact that Genya wasn’t afraid to talk to you anymore was a big help. You only hoped that things would go this smoothly with the older of the two brothers.

As the two of you continued on your way back to where you’d meet Sanemi (in Genya’s body), you couldn’t shake the feeling of dread that had begun building inside you. Regardless, you did your best to suppress the feeling.

“Are you okay, (Y/n)-san?” Genya suddenly asked.

“Of course.” You quickly replied, hoping that the smile on your face would put him at ease. “I think helping out at the shelter has drained away a significant portion of my energy, but I’m certain that I’ll be fine as soon as I get home and sleep.”

“Oh, okay then…” the boy shrugged, “just make sure you don’t forget to eat something before you head to bed, okay?”

“I didn’t think I’d get a lecture from you so soon, Shinazugawa-senpai.” You teased, causing the older boy’s face to erupt in bright pink.

“I’m so sorry! I didn’t mean to offend you, (Y/n)-san! It’s just that-” Genya’s apology was quickly cut short by a group of boys who now stood in front of you.

One of the newcomers clicked his tongue in an amused fashion. “Well well, what do we have here?”

“Funny seeing you here, Shinazugawa.” Another of the boys voiced.

You glanced to see what Genya might do in response, only to realise he was in just as much fear as you were - and unfortunately for you two, it wouldn’t take a genius to realise that the ‘Sanemi’ beside you wasn’t a fighter. Genya didn’t know how to exude any of his older brother’s mannerisms, and goodness knows the three of you tried. Not like any of that really mattered since you were outnumbered 4 to 2.

You didn’t want to force Genya’s hand, so you decided to put your big girl pants on.

“It must not be that funny if nobody’s laughing.” You explained bluntly. “Come on, Shinazugawa-senpai. Let’s go.”

“Hold on, leaving so fast?” Another of the boys said, blocking your way past. “You his girlfriend or something?”

You ignored the remarks from the boy, grabbing hold of Genya and pulling him along. You could feel the piercing gaze of all the boys as you pushed your way through the small group, leaving you to comfort yourself with the fact that the sooner you faced them, the faster the two of you could get away.

“You’re gonna walk away just like that, huh?”

“I told you he was all bark and no bite!”

“What a loser.”

All of a sudden, Genya stopped in his tracks. From the look on his face, you could tell something unsavoury would happen if you didn’t intervene.

“Don’t listen to them, Shinazugawa-senpai. They’re just trying to get under your skin.”

“On the contrary.” One of the boys jeered, grabbing your wrist and pulling you away from Genya. “Why would I wanna get under this loser’s skin when I would much rather… get on top of someone else?” The boy leaned down to whisper. His breath sent all kinds of alarms off in your head, making you reel back and shove the creep away.

He ended up stumbling backwards and landing on his back, making two of the other boys laugh. Now irritated, the creep stood up and raised his hand to strike you.

You shut your eyes, but the blow never came.

Any relief you felt quickly disappeared when you opened your eyes. Though you had hoped that Genya would be the one standing in front of you, he wasn’t. No, the one who stood in front of you was another of the delinquents. The air around him was significantly different from the other three. It made the terror you’d felt before pale in comparison.

“Were you really just gonna stand there and do nothing?” This fourth boy, someone you could only assume was the leader of this little delinquent squad, quipped. The way his eyes looked straight through you sent chills throughout your entire body.

You opened your mouth to reply but no words formed. Everything you might’ve wanted to say was caught in the deepest part of your chest.

“It’s pitiful to simply watch, Shinazugawa.” The boy continued, his cold eyes now trained on who he thought was Sanemi Shinazugawa. “Cowards like you piss me off the most. You and this harlot aren’t even worth our time.”

As the group of boys began walking away, you could sense unrest stirring inside of Genya.

You grabbed onto the boy’s sleeve and tugged lightly. “Come on, Shinazugawa-senpai. I don’t want to get into deeper trouble.” You could still hear the group of boys making fun of yourself and Sanemi as they walked away, and you were certain Genya could hear them too.

“Take it back.” Genya muttered.

One of the boys, the creep in particular, turned around with a smug grin. “What was that, shitty-gawa?”

“I said to take it back!” Genya huffed. “All that shit you said about (Y/n)-san and Sa- me. Take it back.”

“And what’re you gonna do if we don’t? Cry about it?”

“You-!”

“What? You tryna say that you’re more than a useless coward?” The leader of the boys laughed. “Fine by me. If you wanna prove you’re not all bark so badly, you can meet us by that shitty bar tonight. You know the one. I’m sure you and your baby of a brother have been there on more than one occasion.”

The small group of boys walked somewhere further into the city and out of sight. To be honest, you felt a great weight fall off your chest the moment the boys were out of sight. When you turned back to face Genya, you couldn’t help but notice the look in his eyes.

A pang of sadness etched at your heart, but you shook it away. “Shinazugawa-senpai? Hey, are you okay? Can you hear me?” You spoke gently, trying to call the boy back to reality. “Genya?”

The boy finally directed his gaze towards you, but kept his mouth shut.

It really was such a sad expression.

Finally, you breathed a sigh. “Come on then, let’s go.”

•─────⋅☾ ☽⋅─────•

The walk to your designated meeting spot was, for the most part, a quiet one. You’d tried to strike up a few small conversations, but it seemed that all of the ease of conversation had disappeared without a trace. You never liked forcing conversation, but you kept trying regardless. If you didn’t it would be as if you were admitting that some part of you didn’t mind the distance. Admitting something like that probably made you a bad person, right?

“Navigation complete. You are now at your destination.”

You breathed a sigh of relief and closed your navigation app. When you looked up from your phone, you were surprised to be standing in front of a Kendo studio. You hadn’t taken Genya as someone who partook in many physical activities, but you also wouldn’t take Sanemi to be the kind of person who worked part time at an animal shelter. In other words, you would have to keep more of an open mind for these kinds of things.

“Should we wait outside for Sanemi or should we go inside?” You asked.

Genya shrugged. “They’ll probably be a little while longer, so we should head inside.”

You nodded and the two of you promptly went inside.

The studio was nothing too large. There was a reception desk to the left of the door that served as the main barrier between the lobby and the main area. Looking past the desk, you could make out about a dozen or so people in the room. Of the people there, the only one you could recognize was Genya - well, Sanemi in Genya’s body, anyway.

You weren’t particularly familiar with kendo, but you could tell that Sanemi was good. Each of his actions appeared to naturally flow into the next. There was barely any wasted motion or any missed beats. Above all else, there was passion.

You’ve always been aware that being good or talented at something can only bring a person so far. It was clear that Sanemi was skilled, talented even, but there was also passion. It sparked a sort of effort that not every person has the chance of experiencing in their life, and it was something you suddenly found yourself admiring about the older boy.

As you turned to face your companion, you couldn’t ignore the look on his face. You thought it looked familiar, but why?

Suddenly, Genya turned and looked straight at you. “(Y/n)-san, I’m going to use the bathroom. I’ll be right back.” Before you could ask if he was okay the boy quickly scurried off in some unknown direction of the studio.

You felt a little sheepish by the fact that you had been caught staring, but you didn’t think that Genya would hold it against you. He was such a kind boy, after all.

A deep fear suddenly pulled at your stomach as the thoughts of the Shinazugawa death taunted you. Now that you really thought about it, you wondered if the boy’s death was related to the body swap that had occurred. Could it have been Genya’s consciousness that died in Sanemi’s body that night? Would getting them to swap back be the only way to prevent Sanemi, no, Genya’s death? But how would you even go about doing something like that? And how would you even know for sure if-

“Hey.”

You yelped as the newcomer tapped your shoulder. You could feel your face beginning to warm when you turned around and came face to face with Sanemi (in Genya’s body). “Oh, sorry Shinazugawa-kun. I wasn’t expecting you to approach me so suddenly.”

“I thought it was pretty obvious that I was heading your way.”

“Was it really that obvious though?”

Sanemi gave you a skepitical look but didn’t question you about it further. “Whatever weirdo.”

“I thought we agreed that you wouldn’t call me by any insulting names.” You frowned.

“Being weird ain’t an insult.”

“Well I don’t particularly see it as a compliment. Especially when it’s from someone I hardly know.” You watched as Sanemi shrugged off your comment. You weren’t sure whether you should be insulted or not.

As you were thinking of something witty to reply in response to Sanemi’s indifference, one of the boys who’d been training alongside Sanemi walked over to the two of you. “Wow Genya-kun!” The newcomer smiled. “You were really good today! Have you started doing something new between this class and the previous one?”

Sanemi, in the younger boy’s body of course, shrugged. “Nope.”

“Really? It almost felt like you were an entirely new person today! Are you sure nothing’s changed?”

“Yup.”

“Oh, I see…” The newcomer looked between you and your companion. His gaze was rather curious but the boy kept any questions he might have had to himself as he walked away.

“He’s not wrong, you know.” You stated.

“About being a different person? Yeah, no shit.”

“Well yes, there’s that, but I was thinking more along the lines of ‘you were really good today’ and whatnot.”

Sanemi scoffed. “You don’t gotta patronize me.”

“I’m serious. I don’t know very much about kendo, but even I can tell at a glance that you’re good.” You smiled. For the first time, Sanemi let the young boy’s face shift from his usual scowl to something softer. “Forgive me if I’m overstepping my bounds, but it seems like you’re passionate about kendo. Why haven’t you joined the club at our school?”

An irritated look suddenly spread across the younger boy’s face. “Cause I have a job, obviously. Unlike you and my brother, I don’t have that kind of time.”

“I’m sure that the boss would let your schedule be a bit more flexible since-”

“I already told you, I can’t. Just leave it at that.”

“Oh…” You mumbled awkwardly. “Apologies for prying.”

The two of you stood absorbed in a tense atmosphere for a moment. You questioned your resolve to help these two boys for a moment, but questioning your resolve immediately made you feel worse than the atmosphere did. How could you even be so selfish with someone else’s life on the line?

You could feel the words in your throat beginning to stop in their tracks. There wasn’t even a reason why you should be feeling this way! You really hated this feeling. You really wished that you were stronger, like him.

Something about your expression must’ve given your true feelings away because as soon as Sanemi saw your face, there was a change in his demeanour. “Look, I didn’t mean it to sound like I was telling you to shut it or anything, so don’t look so sad. My situation’s just… fucked up.”

“Sorry…”

“And stop apologizing so much. You’re starting to sound like my brother.”

“Sorry.” You replied. Sanemi gave you a look, but it wasn’t nearly as menacing as before. “Hey, anytime anyone tells someone else to stop apologizing, they immediately apologize. Besides, is a genuine apology such a bad thing?”

“Course not, but apologies don’t stop people from getting hurt.”

You gave Sanemi a curious look. “Is that supposed to comfort me?”

“Well I’m not trying to threaten you or nothing but speaking from experience, apologies don’t mean shit if the other person is just looking for a fight.”

“Are you speaking from experience, Sanemi?” You asked, genuinely concerned. The young boy’s face became tinted as though he’d said more than he meant to. Or perhaps he reacted that way because of something else? You weren’t sure because the boy quickly started steering the conversation in a different direction.

“Look, this isn’t the kind of place I wanna say that kinda stuff. Let’s just get out of here. Where’s Genya?”

“Oh, Shinazugawa-senpai is…”

“Sorry I took so long, but I’m ready to go if you two are.” Announced Genya as he reappeared.

“What the hell took you so long?”

Genya winced at his brother’s sudden tone. You’d be lying if you said you weren’t surprised by his sudden shift in tone as well. “Sorry… I just wasn’t feeling that well.”

“You’ve been in my body for less than a day and you’re already getting sick? You’re hopeless.” Genya opened his mouth to reply but Sanemi cut him off. “Whatever. Let’s just go home already.”

•─────⋅☾ ☽⋅─────•

Sanemi had basically marched out of the kendo studio which left you and Genya to chase after him. A few short exchanges later, you were walking in stride with Genya while Sanemi walked ahead of you both. You did your best to spark some idle chit-chat between the two brothers, but nothing was really working. Most topics ended with Genya giving a curt reply or with Sanemi saying something a bit sharp to Genya. Either way, it wasn’t going well.

You let out a sigh. It’s not like you were an expert with this ‘Adolescent Syndrome’ thing. To be honest, you hadn’t even believed such a thing really existed until recently. No matter how much you wanted to help these boys, that didn’t mean that you could.

You examined the features of the boy who walked beside you - Genya in Sanemi’s body. His gaze was trained on the ground as the two of you advanced. Deep in thought, perhaps? It seemed like Genya did that quite often. Actually, it wasn’t all that different from how you were; perhaps how you still are, even.

“How much further till we reach your house?” Sanemi suddenly asked.

You looked at him inquisitively. “Why? Trying to stalk me or something?”

“Course not.” The boy snapped. “I’m just tryna make sure you get home safely.”

“You don’t have to worry about me too much, Sanemi. I’m a big girl. I can get home on my own.”

“This area of town ain’t what I’d call safe for a girl like you. If you’re really that scared about us knowing where you live then we’ll walk you to the school. At least the people over there give a shit if there’s a ruckus.”

“Well, it is starting to get dark outside. I suppose I wouldn’t mind the company.” You admitted, smiling. “Still, won’t your parents worry about you two if you aren’t home at a reasonable time?”

“Probably not.” Sanemi shrugged. “The only one who gets on our case is Sumi.”

“Sumi?”

“Our younger sister.” Replied Genya.

You turned your gaze to the boy walking beside you. “There’s more than just the two of you?”

“There’s seven in total including the two of us here, actually.”

“Woah. That sounds… really nice.” You stood staring at Sanemi’s face with wide eyes. Although the boy’s expression was initially one of confusion, unsure of how to interpret your reaction, it shifted to something softer upon hearing your words.

“It probably sounds nicer than it actually is.” Genya replied, now averting his gaze. You couldn’t help but admire the soft look in his (though technically Sanemi’s) eyes. “There’s barely ever a peaceful moment in the house! At least one of our siblings will be screaming for me or Sanemi at any moment of the day. It gets pretty tiring, but I wouldn’t trade them for the world.”

“Quite a family boy, huh Genya?” You teased, earning a flushed look from the boy. “It’s admirable how much you care about them - how much you both care about them.”

“You think so?”

“Of course!”

“Less talking, more walking.” Muttered Sanemi from in front of you. “We’re never gonna make it back at this rate.”

“Please, you’re as much of a family boy as your brother, Sanemi. You just don’t like showing it.”

Sanemi turned around and shot you a stern look. “What would you know about me?”

Though you opened your mouth to reply, the words refused to leave your chest. As much as you wished you hadn’t noticed, and you really wished you hadn’t noticed, a certain group of boys happened to be loitering in the alley that you’d just passed. You could tell by the way the older boy’s body tensed that Genya had noticed them too. You just had to hope that they hadn’t noticed you.

But of course, fate wasn’t that kind.

“Yo! Chicken boy! Where do you think you’re going?”

All three of you stopped in your tracks. For a moment, the world stood still. Should you run? That would be the safest option, right? Someone like you probably wouldn’t stand a chance in a street fight, but what about the other two? Would they stay? If that was the case, shouldn’t you stay too? You already knew the ending to this story, so wouldn’t it be foolish of you to run at such a moment?

Footsteps approached your little trio. You had to fight the urge to flee. Survival is a natural human instinct, after all.

“Look what we have here!” A newcomer, the creep from earlier, turned the corner and examined you all. “It’s Mister Talentless and his coward of a brother. And you even brought your girlfriend along… perfect!”

“She’s not my- his girlfriend!” Sanemi snapped. “Why don’t you fuck off before something bad happens to you?”

The creep turned his gaze over to Genya (in Sanemi’s body). “First you let your girlfriend talk for you and now your younger brother? How you’ve fallen, Sanemi. I bet you weren’t even planning on defending your honour. How pathetic.”

Sanemi suddenly turned to you and Genya. “The hell’s he talking about?”

A fierce silence suddenly enveloped the air. Your chest became stiff and you felt like you were going to suffocate under the young boy’s gaze. You looked to Genya for an explanation but he looked just as nervous as you were.

“We umm…” You took a deep breath but it didn’t calm your nerves. “We ran into a bit of trouble on our way to the studio.” You finally admitted.

“A bit of trouble? I thought we were just having fun!” The creep jeered. “You see, Mister Talentless, your cowardly older brother wouldn’t even protect his own girlfriend. He was just going to watch her get hurt. Then again, I guess that’s better than hurting her himself, ya know?”

The look on both of the boy’s faces left you in confusion. It was obviously an insult, but even you could tell that you were missing some context here. The creep on the other hand, grinned. He’d managed to strike quite the chord. Seemingly satisfied with the amount of misery he’d caused, the creep turned and began heading in the direction he’d come from. Just before he turned the corner though, he spat one final remark. “It’s no wonder you two are brothers - you both share your father’s nasty blood.”

The wordless look on the younger boy’s face abruptly shifted. Sanemi started marching after the creep but you quickly stopped him.

“Don’t touch me!” Sanemi snapped as he pulled away from your grasp. “There’s no way I’m letting an asshole like him get away with saying shit like that to me. He needs to learn his fucking place already.”

“What about Genya? And the rest of your siblings! They’d be devastated if Genya-”

“This body ain’t gonna die from a few measly punches.”

“That’s not what I was implying, but…” You trailed off. There was no way you were going to be able to talk him out of this. You’ve only really spent about a day’s worth of time with the boys, but that was more than enough time to realise just how serious Sanemi was about this. You could feel your stomach turning as you watched Sanemi march after the creep. You couldn’t get the thought of the Shinazugawa death out of your head.

Because of confidentiality, the true identity of the body hadn’t been released to the public. You never saw Sanemi at school after the death, but you also never went to their funeral. Why would you? You didn’t know them back then. Still, who was to say that Sanemi was the one that died? Could it have been Genya’s body (and Sanemi’s consciousness) that had been lost during your previous ‘today?’

Was Sanemi fated to die tonight?

Why did it matter whose body and whose mind died? If someone was going to get hurt - if someone was going to die - you should do your best to make sure that it doesn’t happen! That’s the kind of thing that’s expected from good people, right?

“Genya, please help me talk Sanemi out of this!” You looked at Genya with expecting eyes only to be met with nothing. You couldn’t make out a single thought Genya might’ve had because the older boy’s face hid everything. It’s not like Genya was a super expressive boy, but his current lack of clear emotion made you feel uneasy.

Genya muttered something that you couldn’t understand. He took a step toward you, but his eyes weren’t looking at you at all. “Please go home, (Y/n)-san.”

“What?” You stammered. “But what about you and Sanemi?”

“I don’t think Sanemi would be happy with me if I let you chase after him here, but I’d never be able to live with myself if I made Sanemi deal with any more of my problems. He doesn’t deserve a brother like that.”

“But even so I-”

“Please (Y/n)-san.”

“No.” You said firmly. “Why would I ever leave someone to get hurt if I know something bad will happen to them? People like us don’t do that kind of thing. You know that already, don’t you Genya? If you’re worried about me getting hurt then… well, don’t. I promise I’ll stay out of harm’s way, but I’m staying.”

Metal clanging came from the alley you’d seen Sanemi and the creep disappear into. Despite all of his hesitancy, Genya let you follow after him as he dashed toward the noise.

As you ran deeper into the alley, you saw that two of the four boys from earlier were already laying on the ground. They were extremely roughed up. Sanemi had managed to do all this in that short amount of time? Where even was Sanemi?

A little bit away from them, you noticed Genya’s body on the floor. The creep from earlier was standing over the young boy’s body and was kicking him in the gut. He was laughing and mocking the boy, clearly unaware that the one he was mocking wasn’t who he thought it was. Although you had stopped in your tracks at the sight, Genya had kept running toward the boy. Just when the creep realised Genya was running toward him, Genya struck him across his face and sent him tumbling onto the ground.

“That was a real cheap shot, you fucking coward.” The creep spat.

Genya ignored the creep as he pulled his brother up to his feet. Sanemi didn’t look pleased in the slightest to be seeing his brother, but you also thought he didn’t look mad.

“I’m surprised you showed up, Sanemi.” The leader taunted from behind the creep. The very sound of the leader’s voice made your body stiffen. “I thought you were just gonna high tail it outta here like the coward you are, but you didn’t. I’d say that you’re almost worth respecting. Almost. Your face still pisses me off.”

As the creep moved to stand up, the leader of the little delinquent gang stood in front of him. Your eyes locked with the leader’s own for a brief moment. In that brief moment alone, it felt like his entire presence was suffocating you.

“Those are some strong words from someone with such an ugly face.” Sanemi spat.

“Not everyone gets to be blessed with a strong figure like you, Mister Talentless. Still, my hideous face is also a blessing.”

“Nothing about you is a blessing. You’re nothing but a fucking curse.”

“You might be right about that!” The leader’s laugh was a sickening sound. Still, he held himself with pride and grinned at the two boys. “But at least I’m not a coward. Not like your ‘dear older brother’, or like your drunkard father. Better hope you don’t turn into him someday.”

Genya clenched his fists and muttered something.

“What was that, you coward?”

“I told you to get lost already!” Genya finally exploded, lunging toward the leader with clenched fists.

The leader quickly dodged under the boy’s fist and landed a blow directly in the boy’s gut. Genya paused for a moment, but he very quickly turned around and attempted to hit the leader again. The leader managed to move just around the boy’s fist only to get clocked by Sanemi. Where you thought you’d see frustration, the leader of the delinquents only grinned.

“Weak. Did those kicks really sap that much strength outta you?” The leader then struck a blow across Sanemi’s (in Genya’s body) face. “That’s what you call a punch.”

“I was just holding back for your sake, dumbass.” Provoked, Sanemi cracked his fingers. “But if that’s how you wanna be, I’ll gladly beat your skull in.”

“Don’t!” Genya suddenly shouted. “This isn’t your fight, Genya.”

“Looks like the coward is finally gaining some courage.” The leader snarked. “Well then, let’s see what you’ve got.”

Anything Sanemi might’ve wanted to say to Genya, he didn’t. Instead, he was left to watch the fight without interfering. It’s not like he didn’t believe in Genya, but this was his brother. If anyone knew his brother’s limitations, it was Sanemi. Still, Sanemi couldn’t deny that his entire body was heavy. That bastard was right; his punches had gotten pathetic.

The older boy, stuck in his younger brother’s body, was reduced to a spectator.

Every part of his, well, Genya’s body, wanted him to step in. He wasn’t the type to let others fight his battles! But he had to remind himself that this was his battle. This was Genya’s fight as much as it was his own, and he should respect that.

Still, with every passing moment and every blow exchanged, Sanemi was becoming more and more restless. If this went on any longer, someone would surely-

“Sanemi!”

A hand, your hand, pushed the boy and caused him to stumble forward. As Sanemi turned around to tell you off, he saw that you were trembling. All of the information came flooding to him at once.

The troublemaker from earlier standing in front of you with a small shiv in his hand.

The police sirens approaching from the distance.

The rapid scrambling of the four other boys.

His own voice ringing in his ears.

The blood that dripped from your hand that held onto his own.

Everything was such a blur, but one fact rang clearly in his mind: just then, he’d almost died.

•─────⋅☾ ☽⋅─────•

Three years ago, before ‘yesterday’ suddenly became ‘tomorrow,’ you read the headline of an article depicting a tragic death.

Young Boy Found Dead Due To Stab Wound: Another Shinazugawa! Tragedy Or Fate?

The recollection of that article that you’d read the ‘first time’ around made you feel sick. It was clear to you now that the boy who’d died back then wasn’t just Genya, but Sanemi who was inside of Genya’s body. Still, how could they have posted such a tasteless article back then? You were glad this wouldn’t be the case this time around, but still, after everything that happened, you began to recall what the article detailed.

The reason why the article was passed for publishing was because no information aside from Genya’s death was revealed. In fact, the article mostly detailed the death of their father: someone the article called a perpetually drunken scumbag. It wasn’t much, but it started to shed some light about why and how this case of Adolescence Syndrome came to be - but knowing how it happened and fixing it were two very different things.

Adolescence Syndrome only causes strange and abnormal things to happen, but that doesn’t mean that it stops bad things from happening. If anything, it made situations go from bad to worse.

You turned off the stove and grabbed three bowls from the cabinet. You subconsciously placed your hand onto the counter as you placed the bowls down, causing you to jerk away from the countertop. You were glad that you stopped the knife with your non-dominant hand, but that didn’t make the pain any better. If only you’d been a bit faster, you could’ve grabbed the attacker’s wrist and not the knife itself.

You made a mental note to get the wound checked out as soon as possible, but you’d have to let your parents know so that they could fill out the paperwork. You really hated inconveniencing them, but this was probably just the consequence of your own actions.

You sighed deeply, pushing all of your current worries aside and focusing on the task at hand.

While you’d initially tried to grab all three bowls of congee at once, your wound quickly made it obvious that you wouldn’t be able to do that. Instead, you took one bowl and headed off in the direction where Genya had decided to tend to his wounds.

You knocked on the door lightly before letting yourself in.

“You haven’t fallen asleep, have you?” You asked as you entered the room. Genya was holding an ice pack against the side of his face (technically Sanemi’s face) to prevent swelling, but seemed okay otherwise. You slowly approached the boy and set the bowl of food down beside him. “I made some congee, so please eat it. I’d be sad if all my hard work went to waste.”

Genya gave you a small nod but didn’t make any attempts to say anything. In fact, he hasn’t said a word since coming to this room.

The first thing either of the boys did when you arrived was help tend to your wound. As luck would have it, you and Genya were both properly educated about first aid. Sanemi wasn’t completely unaware of what to do either, but his first aid was something you’d describe as street knowledge versus something you’d learn from a class.

After the wound was addressed, you had changed and washed your clothes in the sink in an attempt to prevent any blood from staining, but you lamented the loss of one of your favourite shirts regardless. Apparently while that was happening, Sanemi and Genya ended up having a pretty major argument. About what, you weren’t sure.

“You’re not hiding any major injuries, right Genya?” Again, no response. This time, you took a seat beside the boy and placed a hand on his shoulder. “Genya?”

You felt the young boy jump underneath your touch for a moment, but he quickly composed himself again. “S-sorry (Y/n)-san… I promise I’m not mad at you or ignoring you. I just think that right now… I think I need to be alone for a little bit. I won’t take too long though, if that’s what you’re worried about.”

You shook your head. “Not at all! I just wanted to make sure you’re alright.”

“Why?”

“Why?” You repeated. “Because you’re a good person, Genya. Considering everything that could’ve happened and comparing it to what did happen, I’d say you’re doing just fine.”

“But you got hurt!”

“So did you.”

“But it’s my fault that you-”

“I don’t think that anyone in this house is completely at fault for what happened today. There will always be ifs and what ifs about situations like this, but what’s important is that we learn from the things that have happened and keep moving on with our lives.”

Genya smiled softly for a moment, but the smile dropped from his lips just as quickly. “Do you think that Sanemi hates me now?”

This time it was your turn to flash the boy a smile. “I don’t think Sanemi could ever hate you.”

Just as quickly as you entered, you left Genya to his own devices. You paused as you reached for the door, but it was only for a moment.

As you once again entered the kitchen, you noticed that Sanemi had moved from his place in the living room and was now leaning against one of the kitchen counters. You wanted to laugh at how not slick he was, but decided to keep it to yourself.

“Feel free to have some congee. I’m not the greatest cook in the world, but I’ve been told that my congee could revive the dead.” You laughed to yourself as you took a bowl. “Well, it was either that or that my congee could kill a small rodent. Depends if you ask my mother or my father.”

“Where are your mom and dad?”

“They’re overseas.” You replied, keeping your eyes trained on your bowl of food. “My mom and dad are trying to expand their business together, but they felt that in order to make significant progress they’d have to work abroad. I could have went with them, of course, but I’m not a big fan of change.”

“How long have you been going at it alone?”

“Ever since I was about… ten? I guess that means it’s been a pretty long time, but it’s not like I never see them. They visit home at least once every two months.” You admitted. “Now what about you? What’s your parental situation at home like?”

You could hear Sanemi scoff, but when you looked up you were surprised to see him smiling. “You’re clever, I’ll give you that, but you’re also pretty stupid.”

“That’s not a very nice thing to say to a girl.”

“Look, it’s not that different from what that asshold said back in the alley. My dad’s a deadbeat and my mom works real damn hard to make sure food gets on the table every day. What more is there?”

“What more are you willing to tell me?”

Sanemi took a deep breath, letting the muscles in the young boy’s face relax. “To be honest, my old man’s a real shit show. About two years ago he went out to a bar and got into some deep shit. He ended up pissing off some real shady people and got himself killed. The dumbass couldn’t even go without making trouble for us, cause not even two days later those douchebags came round tellin us that we owed them money. Apparently our dad owed them a steep amount of cash. We were able to pay em back, but it took everything that our mom had saved up.”

“So you took a job to help make ends meet?” You inquired.

“Well yeah, obviously. I don’t give a shit about what happens to me, but the rest of my family? All of them have a bright future ahead, as long as I keep helping to support them. I don’t want my mom or my siblings worrying about me - especially not Genya. I feel like if they knew the kind of shit I got into, I’d only be making trouble for ‘em.”

“Who’s to say for sure? I mean, it’s pretty obvious that Genya looks up to you.”

“Yeah, and that’s the issue.” Sanemi admitted. “I see way too much of my old man in me to be a good role model. If push comes to shove and I end up the kind of scumbag he was, I don’t want my family to feel bad about telling me off.”

“No offence Sanemi, but you’re seriously delusional.”

Sanemi looked at you with wide eyes. Your tone was pretty harsh, but the look on your face was kind. It was such a stark contrast that the boy was left speechless.

“You talk as if turning into your father is inevitable. Personally, I disagree with that notion wholeheartedly since reality is not always cut and dry. Sure, you’re stubborn and hot headed, but that doesn’t make you a bad person - and certainly nothing like what you’ve told me your father is like. Without a shadow of a doubt, Sanemi, I believe that you’re a good person. Better yet, I believe that you are someone worth admiring. It’s not even my word you have to take for it, right Genya?”

You turned your head toward the hall and Sanemi’s gaze naturally followed. A moment later, Genya turned the corner.

“Is that true, Sanemi? Are you really that scared of turning out like dad?”

“Course I am! Our old man was nothing but a drunkard. I sure as hell don’t wanna end up like that piece of shit.”

“For what it’s worth, I don’t think you’re anything like dad was.” Genya admitted. “You’re strong, smart, naturally gifted at kendo and really good with animals! Nothing about you makes me think you’re like dad at all! If anything, you’re so amazing that I constantly wish that I could be more like you…”

“Don’t lie to me, Genya.”

“I would never lie about something like that!” The young boy reassured. “I wished to be like you so much that I literally became you. Shouldn’t that be enough proof for you?”

Wordlessly, Sanemi walked over to Genya. There was a moment in which Genya looked unsure of what was about to happen, but you didn’t worry. In fact, you weren’t even surprised when Sanemi leaned over and pulled Genya into an embrace.

“You really wanted to be like me that badly?” Sanemi scoffed. “You’re so fucking stupid sometimes.”

“I know.”

“But I love you anyway.”

“I know. I love you too.”

══════════════════

Epilogue

What is the turning point in which admiration turns to jealousy?

If someone could change themselves to be more akin to the person they admire, wouldn’t they?

Is it, after all, such a horrible thing to want to be like the person we admire? If jealousy is just a single misstep away from adoration, how can we be certain about which emotion we truly feel?

“Shinazugawa-senpai! I didn’t expect to see you here.”

“Don’t give me that crap, (Y/n). You know damn well I was invited to be here before you were.”

“Are you sure about that? Sometimes I think that Genya is becoming more fond of me than he is of you. Before either of us knows it, he might swap bodies with me.”

“Ugh. Don’t even joke about that shit. It was so…”

“Stressful?” You smiled teasingly. “Yes, I agree. Adolescence Syndrome is certainly something to be reckoned with.” Both you and Sanemi turned toward the center stage. The kendo exhibition would likely be starting soon. Still, a little small talk never hurt anyone.

“How have you been spending your time now that you’re no longer volunteering at the shelter?” Wondered Sanemi.

“Don’t tell me… does my senpai actually miss seeing me at work?”

“Shut up! And stop calling me your senpai! Just call me by my name.”

“You want me to keep calling you Shinazugawa-senpai?”

“You know what I mean.”

“Do I though?” The boy gave you a certain look and you laughed. “Okay, okay. Are you happy now, Sanemi?”

At your response, Sanemi rolled his eyes. The older boy could feel warmth beginning to gather in his cheeks, and he also noticed you staring at him. He knew if he teased you about staring you’d tease him right back, so he didn’t. In fact, those kinds of remarks weren’t usually his thing at all, but he always ends up saying way more than he means to when you’re around.

“In other news, I’m surprised that none of your other siblings came along today.”

“No way. Sumi begged me to bring her along, but she also keeps asking me when you’ll become her sister-in-law and I can only handle that kind of harassment for so long.”

“I think she’s charming.”

“That makes one of us…” Both you and Sanemi shared a short laugh. It wasn’t much, but Sanemi decided that he liked the way you laughed. “By the way, (Y/n)... are you free today?”

“I’m here now, aren’t I?”

“Just answer my question.”

You stifled a laugh before replying to the older boy. “Sorry, but unfortunately I’m not. I have a few errands to run and it looks like the weather might not hold out for too much longer. Apparently a pretty hefty storm is headed this way. There’s no way I wouldn’t want to be prepared for something like that, you know?”

“Oh right… of course.”

“Is something the matter, Sanemi?”

“No, course not! It’s nothing that you need to worry your pretty little head about.”

“Oh, so you think I’m pretty now?”

When Sanemi opened his mouth to reply, he couldn’t bring himself to tell the truth or to lie. Instead, he scoffed and let you have the satisfaction of catching him off guard.

As you and Sanemi continued to make small talk, the male couldn’t help but smile. He enjoyed watching the way you would talk with your hands when you fell deep into the conversation, and the way your eyes expressed your emotions so honestly. Even if the honesty in your eyes gave away your true feelings, Sanemi still loved talking to you. Hell, he enjoyed being around you in general, but he doubted that he’d ever tell you something as embarrassing as that.

Besides, he believed it’d be best that a guy like him admire a girl like you from afar.

#sanemi shinazugawa #kny sanemi #genya shinazugawa #kny genya #sanemi x reader #sanemi shinazugawa x reader #fluff #body swapping #body swap #alternate universe #high school au #modern au #adolescence syndrome #that one syndrome from Rascal Does Not Dream of Bunny Girl Senpai #Japanese honorifics #honorifics are used in this story #oneshot #connected oneshot #Memories of the Future

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two-gays-in-a-trenchcoat · 2 years

Text

turtle boy || gyutaro x pretty! reader

Gender neutral reader, 9.4k, modern high school au, slow burn, angst with a happy ending, tooth-rotting fluff, reader is described as pretty/attractive, gyutaro is a nerdy delinquent, daki is a Mean Girl™, enemies to friends (daki), strangers to best friend’s brother to lovers (gyutaro)

Warnings: excessive cursing because teenagers, mentions of abuse and neglect, self-hatred on gyutaro’s part, sibling fights, VERY brief mention of suicide, daki is a bitch at the beginning but she gets better i swear

Notes: I took inspiration both from the Kimetsu Academy Tales’ take on modern high schoolers Gyutaro and Daki and from my own ideas and headcanons. I took a lot of liberties, especially with some of the other demon characters (like the fact that I made Douma the pretty popular boy that everyone simps over) and their personal interests (daki is a cheerleader and gyutaro had a wild kratts phase. I will die on this hill). I also switch between using Daki/Ume throughout the fic depending on whose POV is mainly in the scene, but mostly I refer to her as Daki.

Daki had been more than a little vocal about her not wanting to go to her junior orientation, but Gyutaro, being the responsible older brother that he is, hauled her there at 9 am anyways. Whenever she’d begin whining and hitting his back from where she sat on the motorcycle behind him, complaining about how badly she didn’t want to go, he’d just twist the throttle and drown out her voice.

She was still complaining by the time he pulled into the school’s parking lot, groaning and moaning in an efort to be as annoying as possible as he undid the straps to her helmet and stuck it into the back compartment of his bike.

“I don’t want to gooooo,” she said, and he wouldn’t put it past her to throw a temper tantrum.

“You’re going,” he said. “I missed my junior orientation, and I was totally lost when school started.”

She furrowed her brows. “Yeah, but you dropped out, so why would that matter?”

He grit his teeth. Dropout. He never liked calling himself that, the words leaving a bitter taste on his tongue, but to be fair, that’s what he was. A high school dropout.

“It matters because you’re not going to drop out,” he said, giving her a stern glare. She stuck her tongue out at him. Childish. “Watch me.”

“If you do, I’ll kick your ass.”

“And I’ll call child protective services.”

He groaned. “Jesus, just go to the orientation, will you?”

“Fiiiine,” she drawled, beginning to prattle on about how it’s totally useless anyways. But Gyutaro tuned her out when he spotted what had to be the most gorgeous person he’d ever seen from across the campus.

You walked calmly, holding an air of confidence that Gyutaro could never have had himself. You were hypnotizing; he couldn’t bring himself to look away. You glanced over your shoulder, and briely, your eyes met. Gyutaro’s heart skipped a beat.

“Oi, brother, stop staring.” Daki snapped him out of his stupor with a smack to the back of his head. “You look like a perv.”

“Do not,” he grumbled. “They’re just... attractive, y’know? S’not weird.”

“Who are you even looking at?” She asked, and Gyutaro nodded his head in your direction. Her eyes widened for a split second upon taking in your appearance, before pulling her face into a scowl. “They’re okay, I guess. I’m still prettier.”

Gyutaro looked between you and Daki. “I dunno, they’re giving you a run for your money.”

She smacked him on his head again, and he snickered. “Who even is that kid, anyways?” he asked, glancing in your direction once more.

“I don’t know. Never seen ‘em before.” Daki shrugged. “By the looks of it, they’re probably in my year.”

Gyutaro’s interest notably piqued at this, and Daki glared at him. “Fucking perv.”

“Am not,” he argued, buckling back on his helmet and lipping of the kickstand ater Daki had dismounted. “Now go. Be good. You’d better not get into trouble before school even starts.”

He twisted the throttle and zoomed out of the parking lot. Over his shoulder, he could see the vague outline of Daki giving him the finger as he rode of.

As he rode back to his apartment, he couldn’t keep his thoughts from wandering to you. You, with your pretty face and confident walk and... No, he was getting ahead of himself. You’re miles out of his league, and the quicker he can get that in his head, the happier everyone will end up being.

Still, a little voice in his head told him, a guy can dream, right?

“Turtles, turtles, turtles.... where’s the part about turtles...,” you muttered to yourself, lipping through the pages of the hety encyclopedia you’d pulled from the library shelf. You sat down at one of the lone tables in the public library, pulling your notebook and pencils from your bag. All for a biology presentation you totally hadn’t waited to do until the last minute.

Unbeknownst to you, Gyutaro was watching you from across the room. He was wide-eyed and staring, like a deer caught in the headlights and unable to blink or move away.

It was you. at stupidly pretty person he’d spotted from across the courtyard when he want to drop of Daki two weeks ago. The one he couldn’t stop thinking about (in a totally-not-weird-way), the one who he really didn’t expect to run into when he was going to return the books he’d borrowed the previous week. In the back of his mind, he’d hoped he might run into you again, and that next time he did, maybe he would be able to stop himself from staring at you like a creep

Yeah, that didn’t work out well.

Without thinking, his feet began to carry himself over to you. Not close enough to be weird, just.... to get a better view, that’s all. Yeah. Totally not creepy.

You gave a little “Aha!” sound as you lipped to a page of a large photograph of a green, stubby shelled animal. “Finally, I was starting to think this book didn’t even have turtles,”

“That’s not a turtle.” the words slipped out of Gyutaro’s mouth before he could stop them, and at once he slapped his hands over his mouth in horror.

You looked up at him, and he wanted to do nothing more than run away and hide in some dark, dank corner where he belongs. He hadn’t meant for you to see him—he was used to people cringing away at his monstrous appearance, and he knew it’d hurt even more if you did it.

Your eyes widened for a split second, and then... You cocked your head. No cringing, no grimace, you were almost looking at him like he was normal.

“What do you mean it’s not a turtle?” You asked.

God, he wanted to run away so bad. But he steeled himself in place and grit his teeth; he dug this hole for himself, and now he has to follow through. In for a penny, in for a pound, as they say.

“That’s Testudo kleinmanni,” he said, trying with all his might to keep his voice from cracking. “Or, more commonly called the Egyptian tortoise. I-it’s technically a turtle, since it’s in the order Testudines, but for sake of specificity, it’d be better described as a tortoise.” He couldn’t stop himself, now; the words came tumbling out of his mouth before he could stop them. Awkwardly, he leaned down to point at the picture. “See how its shell is more concave and juts upwards? at’s a tortoise’s distinction, since turtle shells are more flat and smooth. Also, tortoises are exclusively terrestrial animals, while turtles are semi-aquatic.”

Well, shit. Whatever sliver of a chance he thought he might’ve had with you just disappeared into thin air, all because he couldn’t keep his nerdy, know-it-all mouth shut. He fucked up, and he knew it—if it wasn’t for the fact that he wanted to maintain a shred of dignity, he definitely would have hightailed it out of the library in a second.

“Huh,” you said, looking at the picture. He was waiting for you to slap him, curse him out—any number of things that he probably deserved for not being able to keep his smartass thoughts to himself. “That’s really interesting, actually. I didn’t know that.”

...What.

“Do you think you could find the section on turtles?” You continued, offering him the encyclopedia. “The aquatic ones, I mean. I swear, I’ve been going through this for half an hour, but still, nothing.”

“Um.” You can’t be serious. Not only are you not upset, but you’re asking him to talk more? “Yeah. Sure.”

Against his better judgment, he took the seat next to you, scooting as close to the opposite edge as possible so as to not accidentally touch you. He couldn’t imagine what he’d do then.

“You checked the index, right?” He asked, taking the book from your hands and lipping to the back.

“...I did not.” You rubbed the back of your head sheepishly. “Wow, and here I thought I couldn’t look any more stupid, huh?”

Gyutaro cracked a smile. What gods took favor in you and gited you good looks and a sense of humor? It felt unreal.

He got to the T section of the index and pointed. “Here. Testudine, order. at’s the order that all turtles are in. It looks like you were looking at family Testudinidae, so if we backtrack and look at family Cheloniidae instead...” He flipped back to the section you were in, then a little further before. He stopped at a picture of a green sea turtle. “Voila. Sea turtles. These were more on the lines of what you were looking for, yeah?”

You were staring at him, wide eyed, and he swallowed. Had he fucked up again?

“Wow. I didn’t understand half of what you were saying, but either way, thanks.” You smiled at him then, and he felt his face heat up like a copper pan on a gas stove. “This is exactly what I was trying to find.”

“N-no problem,” he replied, internally cursing himself for his awkwardness. Every bit of his instinct told him to run away before he could ruin whatever the hell this was.

You cocked your head at him. “I feel like I’ve seen you before... What was your name, again?”

This time his instincts won out. He shot up from his chair and bolted out of the library, not slowing down until he was a block away to where he’d parked his motorcycle. He held his head in his hands and groaned, cursing himself.

Hopefully, you’d forget him easily enough, and if all goes well, you’ll never see each other again.

That was what he wanted to hope for, anyways. There was still this ache in his gut that urged him to go back, apologize for being so weird and awkward, and introduce himself.

Yeah. Like hell he will.

When Daki came home ater school, she slammed the door so hard that the whole house shook from its force. Gyutaro jumped and looked over from where he was perched on the couch, watching anime. When he saw her, he realized she was nothing short of fuming.

“That bitch!” She shrieked, kicking of her shoes and stomping over to him. She braced her hands on the edge of the couch, looking down at him. “That boy-stealing, cock-sucking bitch!”

“Those are some, uh, interesting choice words you got there,” he said. “What happened?

She huffed, and hopped over the side of the couch to plop down next to him. “This bitch is trying to steal Douma!”

Gyutaro blinked. “Douma as in pretty-boy-Douma? And what do you mean, steal him?”

“From me!” She said, pointing to her chest. “is was finally gonna be my year to get with him, and that bitch fucking ruined it!”

He blinked. “Since when do you have a thing for Douma?” He asked, thoroughly confused.

“Since, like, forever,” she said. “Don’t you remember?”

Gyutaro definitely didn’t remember, but for the sake of pleasing his sister, he nodded along like he knew what she was talking about. Daki groaned, and yanked the pillow out from behind her so she could bury her face into it. Gyutaro sighed. Sure, his sister was always prone to the dramatics, but she was still upset, so it was his duty to help her out.

“Alright, who is it?” He asked. “Do you need me to beat ‘em up?”

She sniffed, looking up from behind the pillow. “Please?”

“Sure thing,” he smiled sotly. “Now, who is it?”

“The new kid,” she said. “The one you were staring at the other day, remember?”

Gyutaro freezed. “...You’re sure it’s them?”

She nodded frantically, eyes burning. “Positive. I saw them flirting with Douma with my own eyes!”

His gut clenched. He wasn’t sure what he hated more; the fact that his sister now apparently hated you, or the fact that you were most-likely taken. Either way, it made his chest hurt, and he didn’t like it.

“Maybe it’s just a misunderstanding,” Gyutaro reasoned, trying to hide the nervousness in his voice so as not to give himself away. “They looked, uh, nice, I thought.”

“Nice?” She scoffed. “Gyu, don’t give me that shit. They’re just a wolf in sheep’s clothing, and you know it.”

No. He didn’t know it. And he really, really didn’t want to believe her. You’d seemed so sweet when he met you at the library, this just doesn’t make any sense.

Gyutaro was at a crossroads. He had to choose between believing in the goodness of a person he’s met, or take his sister’s word that they’re nothing like they seem. They both seemed wrong and right at the same time.

In the end, like he always had, he chose his sister.

“That sounds horrible,” Gyu said.

Daki cocked her head. “Well, are you gonna beat them up or what?”

He hesitated. “I didn’t mean that literally, Ume. My delinquent days are behind me. I’ve had enough scrapes with the law as it is.”

She groaned, tossing her head back and getting up. “Fine. Be that way. Don’t help me,” she retorted as she stormed upstairs to her room.

Gyutaro massaged the bridge of his nose. He was bound to be in the wrong either way, huh?

For the next two weeks, all he heard from Daki was the sins of this ‘new kid’ that she’d grown to hate even more with every passing day. Did he like listening to it? Not really, but he had to be a supportive older brother.

When Daki came home that aternoon, she burst through the door, making Gyutaro glance up from the instant ramen he was eating. She had a wild grin on her face.

“Brother!” She exclaimed. “You’ll never guess what happened!”

He finished slurping up a bite of noodles and swallowed. “Did it have to do with the new kid?”

“Well, duh, it had to do with the new kid,” she said, tossing her book bag on the table and sitting down across from him. “But this time was different.”

Gyutaro leaned forward and set his chin on his hand, vaguely bored as Daki started her story.

“Okay, so it all started at lunch, right?” She said. “I was shit talking the new kid to all my friends-“

“As per usual.”

Daki shot him a glare. “Let me finish. I was shit talking the new kid and they overheard me, right as I was talking about how they were a boy-stealing, bitch-faced slut. And, like, if I was them, I totally would’ve squared up, right there. But they didn’t say shit! They just kinda looked at me with this hurt expression-“

“Well yeah, you were literally shit talking them.”

She huffed. “As I was saying, they looked all hurt and stuf, and walked away like some hurt puppy or some shit. But I totally didn’t feel bad. I mean, I’m the victim here!” Gyutaro wordlessly nodded his head and hummed, trying not to roll his eyes.

“But. But!” She leaned forward, grinning with her eyes alight. “Later, I was walking through the halls and overheard them talking with Douma. Not just talking, oh no—they were straight up rejecting him!”

This made Gyutaro’s ears perk up. “Oh?”

“Right?!” She exclaimed. “They said something about, like, him not being their type or whatever, so they should just stay friends. A stone-cold-bitch move, if you ask me.”

Gyutaro didn’t know if he should be relieved or disappointed by this information. On one hand, he was relieved that you didn’t have feelings for Douma, or anyone as far as he knew. But on the other hand, if a guy as good-looking as Douma wasn’t good enough for you, there was no way he had even a sliver of chance.

Daki noticed Gyutaro’s focus had started to wander, and she snapped her fingers to get his attention. “Hey! I haven’t even gotten to the best part yet.”

Gyutaro reclined back in his chair, cocking his head with interest even though the pang in his heart was nearly unbearable. “Which would be...?”

“After they totally let him in the dust all sad and heartbroken,” the pang in Gyutaro’s heart twisted, “Guess who gave him a shoulder to cry on?”

“Hm... Let me think...” He tapped his chin. “Was it you?”

“It was me!” She all but shrieked, and proceeded to run and throw herself onto the couch, stufing a pillow in her face and screaming with her legs kicking back and forth in the air. “Oh my god, it was me! It was so romantic, too! Like, right out of a movie kind of romantic! And oh my god, Gyu, you will not believe how good he smells-“

Gyutaro tuned out his sister’s rambling about how perfect Douma was, setting out to finish his now-cold ramen and try his best to look apathetic.

When Daki’s screams had died down enough for her to talk, she poked her head up, and looked at her brother, still grinning. “Oh, also, the new kid? They’re coming over tomorrow.”

Gyutaro nearly choked on his noodles.

“They’re what?” He coughed, wiping at the noodle splatters on his mouth.

“Coming over tomorrow.” Daki got up and skipped over to where he sat. “Since it’s a Friday, they might stay the night, too.”

“Stay the night?!”

She nodded eagerly. “Yup! Ater that whole thing in the hallway, I went up to them to apologize for all the shit-talking I did. I mean, they totally did me a solid with that little stunt! And then we kept talking, and it turns out we have, like, a ton in common. So now we’re besties!”

Gyutaro’s heart was pounding as he tried to wrap his head around all of this. She’d hated your guts just the day before. Was she really able to change her tune this quickly? And you were okay with that, enough so to come over to their apartment after being friends for a day?

Oh, shit, he thought, dread washing over him at this realization. You were going to come to their apartment. His apartment, technically, as he paid the rent, but that only makes it worse. You’ll see how broken his family is, the shithole of a house they live in, just how useless of a parent figure he is. All of the things that he’d tried so hard to bury away since he got to high school. He looked around, and the dread only mounted more; this place was ugly, falling apart, filthy-

He stood up suddenly. Filthy. He couldn’t help how poorly-made the apartment was, but he could control how clean it was.

“Brother?” Daki asked as he began to walk away. “Where are you going?”

“I’m gonna clean,” he replied. “If your friend’s coming over, I at least don’t want our place to look like a shithole.”

Daki frowned. “But it is a shithole.”

“Not for long,” he answered, beginning to pull various cleaning supplies out of the closet. “Not if I can help it.”

Gyutaro bounced his leg. He twiddled with his fingers, anxiously glancing at the clock every few seconds. He was sweaty. His heart kept pounding like he was running a marathon, no matter how hard he tried to calm it down.

His manager had let him leave early (thank god she pitied his poor little life) so he’d be home before you got there. He wanted to make sure nothing was out of place—first impressions were everything

4:56 PM. Four minutes until you arrived.

Daki took a crunching bite out of her apple, looking at her brother quizzically from where she stood in the kitchen. “You good, brother? I know you’re not good around people, but it’s just one person. They’ll only see you for a second, anyway.”

“I’m fine,” he said, sounding harsher than he meant to. He took a deep breath, and tried again with a softer tone. “I’m fine. Really.”

She shrugged. “Whatever you say, bro.”

He checked the clock. 4:57. Three minutes until you arrived.

The doorbell rang.

Fuck, you were here early!

Daki took one last bite out of her apple, quickly chewing and swallowing before skipping over to the door and opening it with a cheery “Hi!”

He heard you greet her and come inside, closing the door behind you. He didn’t look up. He didn’t know if he could. Maybe if he sat still long enough, you wouldn’t notice him. Or at least not try to talk to him.

“Wow,” he heard you say. “Your place is... really clean. Like, super clean.” Gyutaro’s heart swelled a bit. His hours of work weren’t for nothing ater all.

“Yup!” Daki nodded. “That’s all my older brother’s doing. He was nervous about having a guest, so he power-washed this place from top to bottom.”

Dammit Ume! is This not the time! He thought furiously to himself, heart beating even faster. As much as he adored her having pride in him, he wanted nothing more than to disappear. As long as they don’t notice me, he thought, I should be fine-

“He’s right here!” Daki chirped, louncing over to the couch and tapping his shoulder. “Oi, brother, say hi!”

God fucking dammit, Ume.

Begrudgingly, he turned his head around, ofering a smile that he hoped didn’t look too much like a grimace. Maybe you don’t remember him...?

Upon seeing him, your eyes lit up with recognition. “Oh my god, Daki, you didn’t tell me your brother was Turtle Boy!”

Fuck.

Daki raised a brow. “Huh? Turtle Boy?”

You nodded, now excited. “Yeah! We ran into each other last week at the library, and he helped me research for a biology project, because apparently I know nothing about turtles.”

This is just getting worse by the minute, Gyutaro thought.

Daki barked out a laugh and covered her mouth. “Oh my god, do not get me started on this one and turtles. Throughout all of middle school the only thing he wanted was a pet turtle. Like, he was obsessed with them. He had posters, books, bedsheets...” she turned to him. “You probably still have all your Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle DVDs, right?”

At that moment, it occurred to Gyutaro that curling up in a hole and passing away sounded like a wonderful idea.

You giggled. It was music to Gyutaro’s ears. “Yeah, that definitely explains a lot,” you said. You turned to him. “Are you looking to study them in college? Turtles, I mean. I think you’d make a great biologist.”

Daki burst out laughing. “College?” She wheezed. “Dude, my brother’s a high school dropout. It’d be a miracle and a half if he went to college.”

Gyutaro’s ears burned and he felt himself shrinking in on himself. Daki just couldn’t keep her big mouth shut, could she? He fixed his eyes on the ground, not daring to look up and see what kind of horribly pitiful expression you were looking at him with.

Daki’s laughter died down, and she gestured for you to follow her. “C’mon, let me show you around.” For once, Gyutaro was grateful his sister couldn’t stay on one topic for the life of her. You nodded, and followed as Daki led you down the hall to her room.

As soon as you were out of earshot, Gyutaro let out a breath he didn’t know he was holding, and slumped into the couch.

So much for first impressions.

The evening went by quickly, and soon it was dark. After you and Daki had finished watching your movie, she pranced out to the kitchen with you in tow. Gyutaro hadn’t moved from where he sat on the couch, aimlessly scrolling through Netflix shows that looked interesting but he knew he was never going to watch.

“So,” Daki munched on a chip from the bag in her hand. “D’you wanna start getting ready for bed soon?”

You gave her an apologetic smile. “Sorry, I can’t stay the night. I have to get up early for work tomorrow.” You checked the time on your phone. “My ride’s gonna come by soon, actually.”

Gyutaro couldn’t tell if he was relieved or disappointed. Sure, if you stayed over he probably wouldn’t be able to get a wink of sleep, but in a way, he was kind of looking forward to it.

Daki huffed, pufing her cheeks out and pouting. “Aw, man! That’s no fun.”

“I know, sorry,” you said sheepishly. “We could do this again sometime, though.”

At once her expression shited into one of excitement. “Yes! And we’ll actually have a sleepover this time.”

Daki’s phone rang. She set her chips on the counter and pulled the buzzing device out of her pocket, confused, but her eyes widened as she saw who was calling her.

“Eep! It’s Douma! I’ve gotta take it, I’ll be just a few minutes!”

You nodded in understanding, and she all but ran into the other room. Vaguely, you could hear her cheery ‘Hey, Douma! What’s up?’ from down the hall as she answered.

It was quiet. Almost uncomfortably so. With the way the room was laid out, the back of the couch faced the kitchen, so Gyutaro knew the most you could see of him was the back of his head. It put him a little bit at ease, and half of him hoped you’d ignore him until Daki got off the phone. He didn’t know how much more he could take of the intense heat of your gaze.

He jumped when you sat down on the couch next to him.

“Sorry,” you said, giving him another one of those apologetic smiles. “I didn’t mean to scare you.”

“S’fine,” he said, unable to meet your eye. He continued scrolling through Netflix, going up to his ‘recently watched.’

You pointed at the screen. “You watch the Blue Planet?” You chuckled to yourself. “Well, I suppose I’m not exactly surprised.”

“Yeah,” he said. “I’ve, uh, finished it, actually...”

You giggled and Gyutaro internally kicked himself. Did he want you to see him as an even bigger loser than you already did?

You seemed to notice his lushed cheeks, and tilted your head. “Hey, it’s nothing to be embarrassed about. It’s a good show.”

“Yeah,” he said, and that was all he could say. He didn’t want to open his mouth and make a fool of himself again.

It was silent for a while. And then; “Why’d you drop out?”

The sudden question made Gyutaro freeze up, and he slowly turned to look at you. Upon seeing his expression, you offered a sheepish smile and looked down.

“Sorry, that was pretty intrusive,” you said, scratching the back of your head. “You can forget I asked.”

“It’s fine,” Gyutaro answered almost too quickly, desperate to stay in conversation with you to avoid the awkward silence from before. “It’s not a big deal. A part-time job just wasn’t making enough to take care of my sister and I. That’s all there is to it.”

“Oh.” You were quiet for a moment, chewing the inside of your mouth. “...So you two have been on your own for a while now, huh?”

He shrugged. “More or less. I got emancipated as soon as I turned 16, and took Ume with me, so it’s been about... two years now?”

“That’s... a long time,” you said. Gyutaro grit his teeth; he could feel it, you were starting to pity him. “So for the past two years, you’ve done... all of this?” you gestured around you.

Gyutaro chuckled halfheartedly. “Yeah. Pretty sad, right?”

“No,” you replied immediately, which made him raise his brows. “I think it’s amazing.”

His heart leapt to his throat and for a moment, Gyutaro forgot how to breathe. He was about to say something when Daki came prancing back into the room.

“Sorry to keep you so long,” she said, pocketing her phone. She looked at you. “Is your ride here, yet?

You shook your head and pulled out your phone, opening your messages. “No, not yet. I haven’t... Oh, well shit.”

“What’s wrong?” she asked, going up to you and peering over your shoulder.

“My ride home,” you grumbled, “can’t make it. Car trouble, or something like that.”

Daki’s brow furrowed. “Shit, what are you gonna do? Should we call you an Uber, or something?”

“Nah, too expensive,” you said. “I can probably just walk. It’s only a mile or so.”

“No way!” Daki exclaimed. “I am not letting you walk home alone in the dark.”

You waved her of. “I’ll be fine.”

“Absolutely not,” she stated. Her eyes then suddenly lit up with a new idea. “Wait, why don’t we just have Gyutaro take you home?”

Gyutaro tensed at the sound of his name, a jolt of sudden fear shooting up his spine. You continued to wave her of. “No, I couldn’t. I’ll be fine, really.”

She huffed, crossing her arms and turning to her brother. “C’mon, Gyu, you’ll take them home, right?”

“Sure,” he said, hoping his face wasn’t too obviously red. “You can, uh, borrow Ume’s helmet, I guess.”

“Brother only has a motorcycle,” Daki explained as you nodded along. “He’s a really good driver, though, so don’t be worried!”

You smiled sotly. “I’m not.”

Gyutaro’s heart swelled. Awkwardly, he stood up, and gestured to the door. “Are we gonna head out now, or...?”

You nodded, and the two siblings made quick work of getting you set up. Soon enough, you were strapping on Daki’s bright pink helmet and straddling the back seat of the rumbling motorcycle.

Gyutaro looked back at you, the visor to his full-face helmet lipped up and voice slightly muted. “You ready?”

You gave him a thumbs up, and he flipped his visor back down before launching the bike forward.

“Bye-bye!” Daki shouted from the porch as you sped of.

Your arms had been at your side, but after the sudden movement, you instinctively pressed forward to wrap your arms around Gyutaro’s waist and hold tight. His waist was incredibly small, you noted—even with your arms around him you could grab onto each of your elbows if you so desire. You could also clearly feel the back of his spine and ribs as they pressed into your chest.

Gyutaro, as self-conscious as he was, was hyper-aware of how close you were, how there was no hiding his scrawny little body beneath clothes from you anymore. His neck heated up with embarrassment, and he sped up a bit in an effort to distract himself.

Clueless to his distressed inner being, you decided to be bold and experiment a little, and pulled in closer. This had gone beyond simply holding onto him for support—you wanted to know what it felt like to really hold him.

And to your surprise, it felt good.

The drive must have only lasted a few minutes, but it felt even shorter than that to you with how quickly you found yourself having to pull yourself of of Gyutaro and hop of the motorcycle. He shut the bike of, and nodded his head towards the house.

“This you?” He asked, to which you nodded. He put up the kickstand and hopped of, holding out his hand. You took of your helmet and passed it to him, and he tucked it into the bike’s back compartment.

“Thanks,” you said. “I really appreciate it.” He shrugged. “It’s not a problem.”

“Well... goodnight,” you said, turning on your heel to head to your door. Ater a few steps, you stopped, whipping back around. “Wait, before I forget!”

He cocked his head. You rushed back up to him, holding out the glowing screen of your phone. He was still confused.

“Y’know, just to keep in contact,” you said, and then it clicked. You wanted his number.

Why the fuck would you want his number?

“Uh,” he wasn’t sure what to do; this had never happened before. “Sure.”

Hesitantly, as if you were about to yank it away any second, he took your phone and typed in his number. Gyutaro was incredibly glad that the visor to his full-face helmet was down—otherwise you’d surely see his sweaty, beet-red face.

“What should I put my contact as?” he asked.

“How about... Turtle Boy?” You grinned. The heat in Gyutaro’s face rose even further.

He handed you back your phone, and you bid each other goodnight. During his ride home, he couldn’t stop thinking about how you weren’t repulsed by his appearance, or judgemental of his financial situation, or pitying his home life. For Gyutaro, this very well might have been a first.

You just treated him normally. It was one of the best feelings he’s ever had.

Gyutaro was on break at work, scrolling through his phone, when it suddenly buzzed with a message alert. He tapped on it, and his heart sped up just the tiniest bit when he saw it was from you.

New Kid: hey hey gyu

New Kid: are you free tonight?

He was confused. at was the kind of question you ask someone if you want to spend time with them. Surely that couldn’t be what you’d meant. He switly texted back.

Turtle Boy: Yeah, why?

New Kid: well i was gonna see that new psychological horror movie with daki, but she ditched me for douma >:(

Gyutaro’s brow furrowed.

Turtle Boy: And what does this have to do with me?

New Kid: i’m asking if you wanna come see it with me instead, stupid

New Kid: i really wanna see it but i’ll look like a total loser if i go alone

Gyutaro’s heart pounded. You were asking him out. Well, no, not ‘asking him out’ in the allusion sense of the phrase, but you were asking if he wanted to go out somewhere. With you. It wasn’t a date. But, well, it wasn’t quite not a date, either.

He shook his head. He couldn’t get himself too caught up in overthinking it, so he went ahead and texted back.

Turtle Boy: Sure, that sounds fun

Shit, did that sound casual enough?

Turtle Boy: How much are the tickets?

New Kid: oh don’t worry about that, i’ll cover you!!

New Kid: you’re basically saving me soooo

His eyes widened. You were... paying for him? Why are you paying for him? That’s the kind of thing you’d do if you were, well... taking someone on a date.

He shook his head, remembering the last time you’d been at his apartment. You’d heard his financial situation loud and clear; you were just pitying him. You probably offered to pay because you didn’t think he could himself.

An ugly knot twisted in his stomach at the thought, and without thinking it through, typed out a reply.

Turtle Boy: Actually, I think I might stay in tonight. I want to make sure my sister’s home in time.

New Kid: oh okay!! we can always do it sometime else

Gyutaro felt like throwing his phone across the room. Had he seriously just lied to reject an invitation to the movies—something he had quite literally never received before—from you, the only person he’d actually ever want to see a movie with. He smacked his hand on his face. He felt like the biggest idiot in the world.

‘Sometime else...,’ you had said. So maybe Gyutaro didn’t totally sink the ship. Maybe there really would be another time when you’d want to go to the movies with him. Alone.

He stuffed his phone in his pocket, knowing damn well that if an opportunity like this ever did arise again, he’d just fuck it up, like he always seemed to do.

“I can’t fucking believe you!” Daki shouted, seething with rage. “It’s Friday night, why can’t I go to Enmu’s party?!”

“Because Enmu’s a perverted douchebag, that’s why,” Gyutaro spat. “You’re not going, end of discussion.”

“You’re not the boss of me!”

Gyutaro’s eyes narrowed. “Actually, I am. I’m your legal guardian, actually, so yeah, I am the boss of you.”

She groaned in exasperation, clutching her face. “You’re not being fair!”

“How is it unfair that I don’t want you out at night when a bunch of good-for-nothing teenagers are out on the streets, drowning themselves in cheap tequila?”

“‘Good-for-nothing?’ Hah! You’re one to talk,” She said. “Just because you’re jealous that you never get invited to anywhere because you’re such a weird fucking freak doesn’t mean you get to take it out on me!”

Gyutaro stood up. “Watch it, Ume.”

“My name is Daki!” She screeched. “Can’t you get that through your thick fucking skull?! It’s not my fault that you’re so socially inept you can hardly handle any kind of interaction. Hell, even watching you say hi to (Name) is painful!”

“Don’t bring them into this,” he growled.

“What? Upset that I found out about your little crush?” She taunted. “God, you’re so obvious it hurts. Like you’ll ever have a chance with them. And you know what?” She suddenly got this evil little glint in her eye that made Gyutaro’s gut fill with dread. “I’m gonna do you a favor and tell them right now.”

She shot up the stairs to her room, and Gyutaro stared, shellshocked, before tripping over himself to race after her.

“Ume, don’t you fucking dare!” He shouted up the stairs as he chased her. “Ume! I’m serious!”

“And I’m Daki!”

He was out of breath, ravaged from his sudden burst of energy by the time he stopped at her door, watching and gasping in horror as she dangled her phone in her hands, grinning mockingly.

“Ume,” Gyutaro said, voice low and even. “Put the phone down.”

“Hm... How about... no?” She chirped, before pressing a button on the screen, the action followed by the telltale sound of a text message being delivered.

“You bitch!” Gyutaro had all but lost it at this point, seeing nothing but red. He snatched the phone from her hands and sent it clattering down the hall, screen shattering instantly. Daki let out a little yelp in surprise. “Why would you do this? Why the fuck would you do this to me?! I gave you everything. I dropped out of school so I could take care of you. I work overtime every other week to pay for your meals and your stupid fancy fucking clothes that you’re so hellbent on getting. I don’t have friends. I don’t have a fucking life because of you. And you’re still set on ruining the one thing that I actually had a chance with? The one time I get to be a normal fucking teenager and not a surrogate parent?”

Daki’s face was pale and her eyes were wide with fear, and quickly welling with tears. “Brother, I-”

“Don’t you think I know?” He shouted. “Don’t you think I know I don’t have a chance with them? That I never did? I know I’m ugly. I know I’m a fucking loser. But they never-” his voice broke suddenly, and he fell to his knees with a heavy thud. “...they never made me feel that way.”

His throat hurt as he tried to speak, tears spilling over when he screwed his eyes shut. “I don’t care if they’d never even think about dating me. Being their friend was enough. They made me happy. And now it’s gone, there’s no way they’ll ever look at me the same. People like me aren’t meant to find love, but-” he bit back a sob, choking. “...But I think I got pretty damn close.”

He wiped at the tears and snot his face, not caring that he was crying like a newborn baby. Hesitantly, Daki crouched down, her own mascara-tinted tears dripping down her chin. At once, she threw herself onto him and squeezed, almost knocking him over in the process.

“Brother, I’m sorry!” She sobbed. “I-I didn’t know you felt that way. I didn’t mean anything I said, I was just upset. I didn’t think... I didn’t think telling them would actually matter...” She buried her face in his chest. “I’m sorry. I’m sorry I make your life so dificult. I’ll stop buying clothes! I can stay in at night! Please, brother... please don’t hate me...”

The white-hot anger in Gyutaro’s chest had long fizzled out, and now he just felt cold, hollow, and so, so vulnerable. He put his hand up to the back of her head with a sad smile. “I don’t hate you, U- Daki. I don’t hate you. I was upset, too. I didn’t mean any of it. You’re not a burden. You can keep buying your clothes and going to your parties. You’re my pride and joy, my little sister. And this doesn’t change that.”

He gently petted her hair as she wept, clutching his shirt in her fist so tightly like it was a lifeline.

“I’m sorry,” she cried, voice weak. “I’m so sorry.”

“I know, little one,” he cooed, pressing a kiss to her head. “I know.” .

Daki wasn’t at school today.

That was the first thing you’d realized that morning when you’d gotten to school. Usually, Gyutaro took extra care to drop her of early, so she’d never even be a second late for her first class. Most of the time, she’d end up being late of her own volition, though. Oh, well. There’s only so much her older brother could do, you suppose.

Her older brother... Last night, you’d received an especially strange text from Daki. ‘fun fact, Gyutaro has a huge crush on you,’ she’d said, words that made your heart clench with giddiness.

Sure, you had an inkling that her brother harbored feelings for you; he was hardly subtle. Though his awkward demeanor and lack of subtlety only added to his charm, in your opinion. But still, it was nice to have confirmation before you made any real moves on him.

But when you’d replied to her, she didn’t respond. You’d assumed that she was busy snapchatting Douma, so you waited and checked again ater a half an hour. Still, nothing. So then you’d decided that you’d just confront her at school tomorrow morning and get the whole thing straightened out—and then she wasn’t there.

After your second period had ended and Daki still didn’t show up, you were getting a little worried, and decided to text her brother. Sure, there was a lot to be talked about between you and him, but right now, Daki was both of your priorities.

‘Hey, is Daki sick or smth?? She’s not at school and she hasn’t responded to me,’ you finished typing out the message and hit send.

Only to be greeted with a red exclamation mark and the words ‘not delivered.’

...Okay, weird. You didn’t have the best service in the classroom, but usually your texts still go through. You tried to send it again, and still, not delivered.

He wouldn’t block me, right? You thought nervously to yourself. Of course he wouldn’t; something as petty and cowardly as that was much too beneath him.

To test this theory, you sent a quick ‘hello’ text to Douma. You hadn’t texted in a while, but he and Daki were pretty much official now, so there’s really no harm.

You hit send, and the text immediately went through.

That motherfucker actually blocked me.

At this point, you were more than a little pissed. Daki wasn’t responding, Gyutaro fucking blocked you, all the while you were itching to profess your love once and for all. You really couldn’t catch a break, huh?

Ater school ended, you got in your car and made a beeline for the Shabanas’ apartment. is was getting settled one way or another, and if you had to break down their door to do it, then so be it.

You rang the doorbell and stepped back, crossing your arms as you stared intently at the door, waiting for it to open. It didn’t matter which of the siblings ended up answering—they were both gonna end up getting a piece of your mind either way.

It was Daki who answered. She cracked open the door, and her eyes widened when she saw you.

“H-hey-”

“Daki, what the hell?” You forced open the door to let yourself inside, and she stepped back, not trying to stop you. “Why aren’t you answering my texts? And what the actual fuck is up with Gyutaro?”

“My phone broke,” she answered, opting to leave out the part where it was Gyutaro who broke it. “My brother’s out getting me a new one.”

...Okay, that was valid. Your temper simmered down a little bit, but that still didn’t explain the other half of the problem.

“And what about Gyutaro? I haven’t heard a word from you guys all day, and-”

She cut you of mid-sentence with a cry of “Please don’t hurt my brother!”

You paused, your words dying on your tongue. “Daki, what-”

“He’s hurt enough already, and it’s all my fault,” she said, beginning to cry. “I don’t want him to hurt more.”

“Daki, what are you-”

“We had a fight, and I sent that text to get back at him, but I didn’t know how upset it’d make him!” She was rambling now, hiccuping on her explanation.

“Daki, please-”

“I don’t know if he could take it if you rejected him, he might actually kill himself, and I can’t live on my own,” she continued her mindless babbling. “So please, can we just pretend like none of this ever happened-”

“Daki, I’m in love with your brother.”

“-and go back to normal and my brother will be fine and,” she stopped suddenly, finally registering your words. She looked up at you, almost unbelieving. “You... You’re what?”

As heated as the moment was, you couldn’t suppress the giddy smile that split across your face at the confession. “I’m in love with your brother, Daki. I like him, too.”

She was silent for a moment, as if processing your words. en all at once, she pulled you into a tight, excited embrace, tears gone and replaced by pure elation.

“Why didn’t you say so?” She squealed. “Oh my god, brother’s gonna be so happy! He’s never dated anyone, did you know that? He hasn’t even had his first kiss yet. Oh my god, I can’t believe you actually like him.” She suddenly pulled away, hands still on your shoulders, staring at you intensely. “You’re not joking, right? No take-backsies?”

“I’m not joking,” you assured her, still grinning. “And I won’t be taking anything back.”

She squealed once more, clapping her hands together in delight. “Yay, you guys are gonna be so cute! When are you going to tell him?”

“Now, if I can help it,” you said. “Where is he?”

“At that electronics store downtown,” she replied, almost tripping over her words with how fast she was trying to get them out. “He left not too long ago, so if you hurry, you might be able to catch him.”

That was all the encouragement you needed to go running out the door and back to your car, Daki cheering you on as you sped out of her driveway, leaving skid marks in the asphalt.

The drive went by in a flash. All of a sudden, you found yourself outside of the electronics store. You pulled into the parking lot, and just then, you spotted Gyutaro walking out of the doors.

You put your car in park right there and jumped out. You didn’t care that you were halfway pulled in and taking up two parking spots; this was more important.

“Turtle boy!” You shouted from across the lot. He whipped his head around to look at you, stunned. You grinned, and bolted in his direction.

“Oh... Uh... it’s you...,” he mumbled as you skidded to a stop in front of him, out of breath and probably looking more than a little crazy.

“Why the fuck did you block me?” Okay, those definitely weren’t the words you’d meant to come out of your mouth, but it was a conversation starter nonetheless!

He stepped back a little, wide-eyed like some terrified cornered animal. “Uh, I-I-”

“More to the point, why didn’t you tell me?” You pushed forward, getting in his face as he tried to stumble away from you. At this point, you practically had him pinned against the wall. “I mean, I was gonna bring it up myself sooner or later, but did I really have to find out through Daki of all people?”

He opened and closed his mouth like a fish out of water. He looked like he was about to burst into tears.

“...I’m sorry,” he croaked, voice raspy and just above a whisper. “I-it’s okay, though—I’ll leave you alone from now on. You’ll never have to see me again. I’m sorry.”

You blinked at him. Did he seriously think you were there to reject him? Had he not noticed the painfully obvious signs that you had a thing for him that you’d been giving since day one?

Ater you didn’t move or speak at his words, he shrunk and turned his face away, screwing his eyes shut. “...Please... I know already, just... You can leave now...”

“Gyutaro.” He visibly flinched at his name, and in that moment, you snapped.

You grabbed his jaw and wrenched his face forward, not waiting another moment before crashing your lips onto his. It was ugly, it was messy, and it kinda hurt a little bit, but still you pressed into the kiss, determined. You heard a sound of surprise escape from his throat.

When you pulled away with a quiet smack, he was looking at you as if you’d sprouted another head. Ater that burst of bravado, you ended up feeling a bit embarrassed.

“...Sorry,” you said, awkwardly patting his cheek. “I, uh, definitely should’ve asked first.”

“It’s fine,” he said quickly. “I didn’t... I didn’t mind it.”

“Oh. Good.”

It was silent. Uncomfortably so. You were both on the verge of saying something, but neither of you wanted to make the first move.

It ended up being Gyutaro who broke the silence. “Why did you...” He trailed of, couldn’t finish his words, but you knew what he was asking.

“I’m in love with you.” Welp, there it was. No coming back from this now. You’ve come this far making a fool out of yourself—parking like a drunkard, cornering him like some predator, giving him what you were sure was the worst possible first kiss he could’ve had—you might as well see it to the end.

You sucked in a breath. “I’m in love with you. And I wish I could say I’m embarrassed by putting it so bluntly, but I’m not. Honestly, I’ve run out of fucks to give.”

He cracked a smile at your last few words, albeit a hesitant one, but it disappeared just as quick. He still sort of looked like he was ready to cry.

“You’re lying” He whispered, eyes glassy and on the verge of actually crying. “You’ve gotta be.”

“Oh my god, Gyu, I’m not fucking lying!” You slumped your head forward in frustration, and he jumped. “I like you! I want to kiss your stupid little face and talk about turtles and- and do whatever else it is that makes you happy because I’m in love with you.”

Silence. And then, “...You’re being serious?”

“Yes, oh my god, I’m being serious,” you said, exasperated. “Why else would I do all this? I don’t go running across parking lots for just anyone.”

Silence again. He sniffed. You looked up, and saw that his tears had finally spilled over. But this time, he looked... happy. Genuinely happy.

He realized you were seeing him cry like a loser, and he turned away rubbing his eyes. “S-sorry, I just... this... this has never happened to me before. I didn’t think...”

“It’s okay,” you whispered, bringing your hand up to brush away some of his tears. It only made more spill out.

He gulped, and chewed on his bottom lip. “Can I...?”

You assumed he was asking if he could kiss you again, so you nodded, closing your eyes and tilting your head for his access. You were surprised to feel the solid weight of his head plop onto your shoulder, burying his face in the crook of your neck and inhaling shakily. When he breathed out, he tried hard to suppress his shudder.

You wrapped your arms around his waist, pulling him closer in and clutching his head. You could feel him smile against your shoulder.

“I’ve wanted to do this for so long,” he murmured. “I never thought it would actually happen.”

“Well, you thought wrong.” He gave a weak chuckle at your words.

“I guess I did,” he said. He pulled away. “Can I ask you something?”

“Anything.”

He looked down, suddenly shy. “Why... why me? I’m so ugly and weird a-and gross...”

“Hey,” you cut him of with a stern look. “None of that while I’m here. I like you for you. You’re smart and funny and so awkward in this cute way and... I could list things forever, really.”

“But,” he pressed, “I’m so ugly and you’re so—so not.”

“I mean, I won’t lie to you and tell you you’re conventionally attractive.”

Okay, ouch. at stung a little bit. But he supposed that your harsh bluntness was better than sugarcoating it or beating around the bush. You’ve been nothing if not honest all this time, and he truly appreciated it.

“But,” you continued, once again bringing your hand up to cup his cheek. “While that may be true, for some reason I can’t help thinking you might be the prettiest thing I’ve ever seen.”

Heat rushed up his neck and for a second, he felt as if he might faint. Were you trying to kill him? You were trying to kill him, weren’t you?

“So...,” he started, painfully awkward yet again. “Are we dating now or...?”

You snorted. “I’d fucking hope so.”

“Just checking...” he leaned down to nestle his head against your shoulder once more, taking a deep inhale.

The two of you stayed like that for a while. Standing in silence, holding each other like it was the last thing you’ll ever do. After a good while, though, you spoke up.

“You should probably get Daki her phone,” you said softly. “Knowing her, she’s probably having withdrawal symptoms by now.”

He snorted, but reluctantly pulled his head from the crook of your neck. “Probably. I should get going.” The look on his face told you that he wanted to do anything but.

“I can meet you there,” you said quickly. “At your apartment. You can take your bike and take my car. Is that okay?”

“Yes,” he answered just as quickly, then paused. “...You’re gonna be there?”

He sounded as if he didn’t believe you, like maybe this was some elaborate prank you were playing on him and you were going to stand him up just like he thought you should.

“I’ll be there. Promise. In fact,” you reached down to take the plastic bag that held Daki’s new phone from his hand. “I’ll take this. at way you know I’ll be there, at least to give it to Daki.”

“Okay.” He still looked doubtful, but your words made his face soten, just a little. “Okay.”

so i binged the new season of kny and was possessed to write this for gyutaro because he is the only boy ever

might make a lil epilogue if it’s well received enough

comments and reblogs are very much appreciated!!

#osapost #kny #demon slayer #kimetsu academy #kimetsu no yaiba #gyutaro #gyuutarou #kny gyutaro #kny gyuutaro #kny daki #fluff #angst with a happy ending #modern au #high school au #x reader #reader insert #gender neutral reader

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