Chapter Text
Yuujin didn’t think he could have asked for anything better.
He was sitting in the basement of Kashinoki Books alongside Offmon and Bootmon. Yuujin was smiling down at his phone as he read the group chat containing the other App Drivers. New messages appeared every few seconds, and Yuujin’s eyes were glued to the screen so he was able to take in the words as soon as they were shared with him.
The App Drivers were planning on going out for a group trip that day. It had been ages since all five of them were last able to bond as a full team. Yuujin’s death and subsequent resurrection had thrown a wrench in all of their plans, but everything was finally going to get back on track now. They were going to have fun together, and nothing was going to be able to get in their way of having a nice day.
Yuujin had been looking forward to it ever since the plans were first made. He hadn’t realized just how much he missed hanging out with all of his friends in one place until after Haru suggested they go out for a day together. Yuujin felt an ache in his chest from that moment on, a desperation to spend as much time with his friends as he could stand. He wanted to let them all know just how much he cared, and Yuujin was going to make sure today was the perfect opportunity for him to communicate it.
Each second that Yuujin spent waiting for someone to send a message, his impatience grew stronger. He knew he was getting too excited about this and was just going to make himself feel restless if he thought about it too much more… But emotion defied all reason, and Yuujin’s excitement refused to be quelled by anything, logic or otherwise. He wanted to be there with his friends, and he didn’t know how he would be able to wait long enough for them to arrive.
“You’re excited, aren’t you?”
Yuujin looked down at Offmon where the Appmon was sitting on the couch beside him. Offmon was swinging his feet back and forth off the edge of the cushion, not that he could do it much because of his lack of height. Yuujin found the sight charming though, and he nodded with a smile. “I am. I don’t think I’ve been this excited for something in a long time.”
“I know it’s going to be fun!” Offmon agreed with a smile. “Everyone has been really looking forward to it. I know they have. It’s going to be great to get out and just have fun for a while.”
Yuujin nodded once more. He had been practically bursting at the seams of thinking about how much fun this was going to be, and that hadn’t changed just because the day had arrived. Yuujin wasn’t going to be the only one having fun that day though. The Appmon would be joining them, and that meant Offmon was going to have fun just like him. Yuujin couldn’t wait to see his partner smile brightly too. It would really make the world feel lighter to see Offmon that excited.
Offmon had given Yuujin much more than he could ever hope to put to words. Everyone seemed to think Yuujin was the one who led their dynamic, but Yuujin knew they both contributed to it an equal amount. Offmon needed friendship, and Yuujin needed someone who could reflect the depths of his soul. They understood one another just as perfectly as they could have, and Yuujin couldn’t have asked for anything better. Offmon had helped him to snap out of his self-loathing by giving him awareness and consciousness of what it all meant. Offmon had said that Yuujin deserved to relieve that pressure from his conscience, and he had been right. Yuujin couldn’t believe it had taken him so long to see it, but he was glad Offmon had been there to guide him down the right path.
“I hope the fun hasn’t already started!”
Astora’s voice cut through the air, and Yuujin looked up to see the AppTuber coming down the stairs with a smile on his face. Musimon was hot on his heels, and they both darted over to the couches before sitting down across from Yuujin and Offmon. “Hanging out with your friends for a day out on the town! Is it groovy? Not groovy?” Astora curled his fingers to mimic his signature phrase, and Musimon chimed in for the end of the quote. “So groovy!”
Yuujin laughed at their antics, weight lifting from his chest all at once. Astora had given him a lot too. Yuujin hadn’t known what he was going to do with his life after he returned to it. Leviathan had taken a lot from him, and Yuujin was glad he had been given a new opportunity to see what the world had in store for him… But Astora was the one who had shown him there was more to his life than what he had been made for. Yuujin had been created to interfere with Minerva’s plans, but that didn’t have to be his purpose forever.
Thanks to Astora, Yuujin had found something else for him to spend his time on. Astora had shown Yuujin all sorts of things he never would have experienced otherwise, and he couldn’t have said enough how grateful he was for that light. Astora brought joy everywhere he went, and Yuujin was happy to be caught up in the tide of groove. To Yuujin, Astora was the embodiment of creativity, and Yuujin was glad he had been given the chance to learn from Astora in even a small way.
“Hello!”
Eri’s voice was the next to reach Yuujin’s ears, and he glanced up to see her coming down the stairs. She didn’t launch herself forward the way Astora had when he realized he wasn’t the first one there. Instead, Eri walked down the steps carefully, Dokamon following in her path dutifully. “Are you excited?” Eri asked when she arrived at the bottom of the stairs. She approached the sitting area and flopped down into her seat beside Astora. Dokamon gladly shared the middle cushion with Musimon. It was a close squeeze, but none of the four on the couch seemed to mind it.
“I am,” Yuujin confirmed. “It’s practically all I’ve been able to think about.”
“Good,” Eri said. She didn’t elaborate beyond that, but Yuujin knew exactly why she had said it was so good. After all, if Yuujin was thinking only about the day of excitement waiting for all of them, then that meant he wasn’t beating himself up for things out of his control. Eri hadn’t followed up on her threat to give him a Big Bang Punch if he continued his self-deprecation, but Yuujin knew that promise would hang in the air between them for as long as it needed to. Eri was there to make sure he stayed on the right path, and that included not losing himself to his hatred of himself regardless of how intense it grew to be.
Yuujin was grateful Eri had given him the push in the right direction he needed. He couldn’t say he liked the idea of being threatened under most circumstances, but with Eri… It felt right somehow. Perhaps that was strange to say, but it was true. Eri was going to guide him back to the light if he began to slip. Yuujin hadn’t fallen too far since speaking with her, but recovery was never linear. There could come a day when he lost grip of his self-loathing, and if he did, Eri would be there to make sure he stopped it for his own sake and that of the rest of the team. As odd as it was to discuss, Yuujin was consoled by the idea that Eri would be there to punch him out of his trance if need be. He couldn’t fall out of the light if she was there to guide him true.
Eri’s words were a reassurance in one other way too: she was offering him empathy he couldn’t seem to find for himself. While Yuujin wrestled with his lack of confidence and everything it could have meant for him, Eri was there with a smile on her face to assure him that he would be alright. Eri would have faith in him even when Yuujin didn’t think he would be able to have it for himself. Eri had taught Yuujin to be kinder to himself, and whether that came with the threat of a Big Bang Punch or not, Yuujin appreciated it.
The door opened once more, and Yuujin looked up to see Rei coming down the stairs with Hajime and Hackmon in tow. Rei didn’t say anything, instead offering the group a wordless nod. He had never been one for pleasantries, not that Yuujin had come to expect any from him. If Rei had something to say, then he would say it, but Yuujin wasn’t going to push him for it prematurely.
Yuujin was glad to have both Rei and Hajime in his corner too. He didn’t know if he would have been able to make peace with his circumstances without the two of them there to guide his path. Yuujin hadn’t thought to talk much about his history with his mother and everything related to his time as a robot until Rei brought it up. The conversation had pulled a weight off Yuujin’s chest, and he felt he could breathe easier now. He hadn’t realized he was struggling to carry the burdens of all he had once known until after he was given the chance to see what his life could be like without it.
Rei had taught Yuujin that he could survive anything. Yuujin had made it this far, and he was resilient for continuing to fight for something better. Rei had struggled with that, but he had been there for Yuujin to help him through the pain of losing so much and nearly falling apart in a million tiny ways. Yuujin knew his relationship with Rei was still in its opening stages, but he knew it was going to blossom and grow into something splendid with time. They would make sure they were there for one another from then on, and Yuujin couldn’t wait to see where it all took them.
As Rei settled down in the common area with Hajime and Hackmon, Yuujin felt his smile growing wide enough to make his cheeks burn. Even so, Yuujin couldn’t bring himself to mind it at all. In fact, he was glad he had been given the chance to sit there with his friends and just enjoy their company. They were all incredible people, and Yuujin found himself wanting to be better as long as they were around. They could be there for one another, and no one ever had to face their demons alone as long as the others were present.
It was a safety net, something there to catch any one of them when they fell. Yuujin hadn’t realized just how desperately he needed it until after he was given the chance to enjoy it. Now, Yuujin didn’t think he would ever be able to go back to the way he had been before. This was his home, and it went far beyond just spending time with people he knew to be Haru’s other friends. Every person in that room was Yuujin’s friend too, and they would be there to help him no matter what came next. Maybe they had hurt each other in the past, but that didn’t matter when placed beside what they were going to do in the future. Even if they had hurt and struggled previously, they were fighting for something greater. They would be there to make sure the path ahead was a bright one, and they wouldn’t let anyone lose track of that beauty no matter how dark their days became.
“Sorry I’m late!”
And then came the voice of the person who Yuujin had to thank the most.
Haru came down the stairs quickly, fighting to not trip as Gatchmon and Ai trailed after him. Haru was clearly out of breath, but he didn’t seem to mind it as he slid to a stop just in front of the rest of the group. His stamina had been getting better ever since the battles against Leviathan began, and Haru could hold his own now in a way he had never thought possible before all of this started. In every way Yuujin could ever imagine, Haru had changed and evolved.
Out of all the App Drivers, Yuujin could say he was the proudest of Haru. Once upon a time, Haru hadn’t thought he would be able to so much as stand up in the face of injustice. Haru had believed it was the power of protagonists, something he would never possess and therefore did not try to. Yuujin was glad he had been there to give Haru the nudge in the right direction he needed.
Though if Yuujin was being honest, he didn’t think Haru needed that push anywhere near as much as he made it sound. Haru would have found his way to the path that was meant to be his all on his own. Yuujin hadn’t done all that much. Haru had been the one who made up his mind and chose this path to be his. Yuujin was more than happy to be there to make sure Haru had someone to back him up, but he knew Haru was the one who had really sparked all of this.
Every person in the basement of Kashinoki Books was there now because of Haru. At some point or another, Haru had started to believe in them, and after that, he had never stopped. Everything about Haru was infectious, and his enthusiasm caught and then spread like wildfire whenever he gave someone a chance. Yuujin never would have thought he could reach out the way he had without Haru, and he was glad he had been given this chance. He never could have asked for a better gift than the guiding light of a true protagonist.
Haru took a few seconds to catch his breath, pressing one hand to his chest to try and stabilize his breathing. “Alright… Are you all ready for us to go?” Haru asked. “We’ve got a lot we want to do today, right?”
“I think we’re ready,” Yuujin smiled. Around him, the rest of the App Drivers nodded, and they all pushed themselves to their feet. Yuujin gestured to the couch once he was standing at his full height again. “But if you need to take a few minutes to rest before we go, then–”
“I’m alright,” Haru assured him, and he offered a smile in Yuujin’s direction that melted the redhead’s heart. Haru was getting stronger in more ways than one, and his increased stamina was just part of it. With each passing day, Haru was improving and learning how to fight against injustice in new ways. It was hard to believe this was the same boy who had once confessed that he doubted he would ever be able to be a protagonist. When Yuujin looked at him now, all he could see was the very picture of a hero.
Yuujin nodded, and his smile deepened. “Then let’s go.”
The rest of the App Drivers, Appmon, Hajime, and Ai all started toward the doorway leading up out of Kashinoki Books’ basement and onto the ground level. Haru and Yuujin, however, stayed behind for a few seconds more. Haru reached out to take Yuujin’s hand in his own, rubbing his thumb across the back of Yuujin’s knuckles. The gesture was tender and sweet in more ways than Yuujin could ever hope to put to words, and his heart melted at the thought of Haru caring for him this deeply.
When Haru looked up into Yuujin’s eyes, there was a love unlike any other shining in his irises. Everything about Haru was the sun, and Yuujin knew he had to be the moon. He reflected that glow of Haru’s right back at him. One day, Yuujin knew he would become the protagonist Haru had always known him to be. One day, Yuujin would be able to shine every bit as bright as Haru… But until then, he knew who his guiding light would always be.
“Welcome back, Yuujin,” Haru whispered, squeezing Yuujin’s hand tightly. He raised himself onto his toes and pressed a kiss to the taller boy’s cheek.
Yuujin tilted Haru’s head up so they met eyes once more. “It’s good to be back.”
The two boys shared one more kiss, this time on the lips, and then ran off to join their friends.
And Yuujin knew without a shadow of a doubt that if this was what it meant to be human, then he would never dream of anything else ever again.