Chapter Text
Senku left the living room first, leaving Gen feeling lost.
Gen had searched for his cigarette pack as he went to the backyard, on their patio. Leaning on the fence. He wanted to smoke all the uncertainty away.
He became restless as he had to deal with his own emotions. The Mentalist was great at reading people, knowing what they want, knowing what makes them ick. But he never considered himself.
The autumn wind grazed his face with coldness. He heard heavy steps stop beside him. The click sound of a lighter could be heard, meaning it’s Stanley. The guest probably took advantage of the host who was going to smoke as a permission.
Gen opened the flattened pack—because he put it in the back pocket to avoid a certain scientist. That’s when Gen realized that there was something written on it. Gen checked one by one.
‘If this is gone, no Senku cola for a year’
‘If this is gone, no sleep in the house’
‘If this is gone, no ice cream in the fridge’
‘If this is gone, no taking money unless from me’
‘If this is gone, no lavender oil’
‘If this is gone, confiscated card’
“He did this again,” Gen groaned, not even trying to hide the frustration. “Fuck, did he write it all?!” He continuously, rather harshly, took one out and put it back as it was written.
The thing is, it’s not because of the consequences written, but the aftermath—when Senku knows it’s gone, he would give a cold stare every time he does the consequences. Gen hated it.
“When the fuck did Senku have time to write all this, I just brought it from America yesterday.” He found one and immediately put it between his lips. He searched for a lighter but didn’t find any in his pocket. Stanley nudged him before throwing his lighter.
Gen almost lit it, but he stopped before the fire touched it, as he saw one of the cigarettes had smudges on it. It was clearly written in a hurry to the point it couldn’t be read at the end. Gen let out a defeated sigh.
If Senku intended to write it all, Gen would act like one. Gen gave the lighter back without lighting it up and threw the unwritten cigarette into the bin beside him. Then he put the smudged cigarette between his lips, pretending it was lit.
“Ah, I just bought it and I can't even taste it!”
“Sure, you can’t,” Stanley puffed the smoke as he snickered.
There was silence between them, only occasionally Stanley’s exhale and the night wind. Gen thought back about what Yuzuriha had asked.
“Are you seeing it too?” Gen asked. Stanley had been his talking partner anyway, weirdly enough.
“Clear as fuck. Since I brought news that I successfully eliminated Senku, your spy mask fell off. Though I would say, you being the spy could be a clue.”
“That’s just me doing whatever I can for KoS.” Stanley gave a look toward Gen.
“Ugh, I get it, I did that for him, but he was a chief, of course I would maintain his well-being more than the others. I do have a fondness for him, but so do I toward others, and others toward him.” Gen started rambling as he tried to untangle his thoughts.
“Yes, it's more intense than others, resulting in me caring for him a bit too much.” Gen remembered their moment. The observatory. The break he made sure Senku had.
“But that’s only logical because of how important he is. Quite literally, I can die if he dies. It’s survival instinct, resulting in suspension bridge effect.” Gen frowned.
“A mistaken romance or sexual feeling in a high-stakes, stressful situation. Am I wrong?” He stared at Stanley, demanding a similar thought.
Stanley huff out the smoke. “That effect sure lasts long.” Stanley lifted his brow.
“It’s been what, four years since the moon mission? The time that we always associate as the door to modern life, where we didn't think about survival that much anymore. Am I right?” He taunted Gen back.
“So tell me, does the effect usually last that long? Or are you just searching for excuses?” Stanley inhaled the smoke again. “You even put up with his way of talking, ‘only logical’? Heh, since when does Gen talk about logic?”
Gen pouted as he was defeated. “It still needs logic, y'know.”
“Yeah, but you would say ‘eriously-say’ instead.” Stanley smirked.
—
Overwhelmed with embarrassment and frustration, Senku made an excuse to go to the kitchen.
Wanting to have a drink, he didn’t realize his mug was in the living room, and there was only Gen's mug as a clean cup, while his cup was dirty because of Gen’s hot chocolate.
Dammit. Everything became clear—how they’d been living together that close. The after-bath routine, the grocery shopping, the– the date. It was so natural for him. And he was happy with how their life went.
To be honest, he was too happy Gen was back.
The house felt lively if Gen was in it. Whether they were back home together or Gen was waiting for him at home. Whether it was the current house or only a hut.
In the modern age, a daily routine without Gen felt like a limbo. He would go to work, doing all the stuff, having fun with science. Then when it was time to go, and the lab became quieter, was when he realized that he didn’t want to go home.
The house was too quiet.
That’s why he stayed at the lab till dawn. Distracting himself with work and science. Or just embracing the remains of human activities. And if there was no work to do, or it had passed dawn, he would roam around the building area, just watching people with their respective activities.
Sometimes he got lucky and had a chat with his friends, or it was the time they made gatherings. At least he didn’t feel too lonely. Then he went back to the quiet home just to take a bath and sleep. And the day repeated. Nothing was more interesting—besides the project, of course.
He would be asked to go home and have a rest.
He would be asked in the evening why he was still in the building.
He would be asked who he was waiting for, sitting on the bench alone.
He would be asked to stop eating meal jelly for lunch.
He would be asked frequently what menu he wanted to take back home.
And every time he had to lie or dodge. It’s not like he cared about what other people thought about him. But because the fact that such simple questions led to the same heavy answer— that there was no Gen.
He still functioned properly. He wasn’t depressed or anything, as he still loved science. But damn, it was so much better with Gen. It was much easier.
He failed to see Gen’s kindness. He didn’t realize how important Gen was to him until he wasn’t beside him. It’s not like he was gone. It’s not like his duty was pointless. But Senku didn’t realize physical presence mattered to him.
That man deserved everything after the support he gave. And Senku wanted to give back.
He wanted to make him happy like when they joked around in the ramen stall. He wanted to care for him like when he calmed him down in the ferris wheel. He wanted to worry about him like when he put effort into stopping Gen from smoking. It’s not good for his health anyway.
It has proved that it made the man lessen his usage. At least he had written on his last pack. Ha!
Except one.
It’s not like Gen continuously smoked. Senku knew it was only occasionally, like when he couldn’t handle his mental or emotional turmoil.
Like right now.
It’s not like it was certain that he brought his pack.
There was the sound of the backyard glass door opening and closing.
At the moment, he was still too flustered to face Gen right away. He still needed to sort whatever this feeling was. It was going to be embarrassing if he didn’t know what to do.
Stanley was here too. So it’s gonna be ten billion percent sure, he’s gonna have some.
Argh, fine! His concern overwrote the embarrassment. Senku groaned, ruffling his hair in frustration, then rubbing his face to calm himself.
—
The calmness was gone the moment he turned and spotted Gen with Stanley outside. “That motherfucker,” Senku whispered, making sure the husband wouldn’t hear. Senku strode toward the balcony. He didn’t care if he became the center of attention.
Senku slid the door open harshly. “Get the fuck out, Stanley.” He was getting furious when he saw a cig in Gen’s mouth, immediately crushing it with his bare hand—which was stupid. He could get burned.
But he couldn’t feel anything in his hand. “Oh, you didn’t light it, I thought you found—ah.” His frown disappeared. He looked down at his hand, finding a flat cig with smudged ink on it, while he saw an unwritten cig in the bin. Senku’s anger died down. He found it, but didn’t light it.
“Well, I can’t lose the chance to have whatever it is you want to write there.” Gen snickered as he pointed at Senku’s hand.
Senku snorted, leaning on the fence beside him. Both of them watched their backyard. He could hear the door close behind them. They went silent. Both didn’t know how to start, but it didn’t mean it was awkward.
Senku’s restless hands dissected the cigarette. He tore the paper, revealing the dried tobacco inside. It was clear that it had other herbs too. Damiana. Cloves. And of course, cinnamon.
Senku let out a short laugh. “Yet again, the diplomat’s victory, I assume.”
“What is it?” Gen took a glance toward Senku, knowing that he had ruined his cig.
Senku threw the dry herbs onto the grass, leaving the cloves behind. “Corn City and Rubber City’s relationship seems good if our diplomat got this specific cigarette after an agenda in the US.”
Senku smirked, giving the Mentalist one piece of clove. “Cloves are Indonesia’s endemic plants. That’s literally the reason they got occupied in the first place. And they were pretty famous for their cigs.”
“As expected, Senku-chan. This is a present from the Indonesian representative. It was made in the US.” Gen smirked. “But honestly, they are a pain in the ass! Not our representative, but their political situation.”
Gen groaned, remembering the meeting they had. “Because they are the first countries that revived, they have more power than they used to—especially Indonesia, India, and South America. And it leads to one thing and another.”
“Kukuku, seems like an ‘eany-may’ job.” Senku teased him, using his language sarcastically.
“That doesn’t suit you at all, Senku-chan.” Gen giggled.
“Aa. Good work, Mentalist.” Senku reached out to stroke Gen’s head.
“Tha– thank you.” Gen stuttered as he blushed. Realizing what he did, Senku retreated his hand to his own nape, feeling awkward. They both got embarrassed, refusing to look each other in the eyes. It felt like they were back to zero again.
“I still can't believe I didn’t realize at all,” Gen sighed, finally opening the conversation.
“Me too. I can’t believe YOU didn’t realize and address me,” Senku laughed.
“To be fair, it felt too natural. Everything felt right. It’s not like ‘omg Senku-chan hold my hand!’ or ‘I just had a date with Senku-chan!’ It was like ‘oh, Senku-chan must be worried,’ or ‘it’s a nice hangout with Senku-chan.’” Gen explained with his occasional high-pitched interpretation.
“Literally what I thought in the kitchen.” Senku huffed in amusement.
“What’s with us and synchronization?” Gen laughed.
“Other than that, I was thinking about what Yuzuriha said.” Senku whispered, frowning at the grass, remembering things.
“At the ramen store, I was thinking about Byakuya. Especially our time eating ramen together. And yesterday, you reminded me so much of him. And then the rest of our… outing, I couldn’t stop thinking about you in a different way than I used to.”
“It’s the unnecessary things that somehow catch my eyes.” Heat rose on his face and neck, making him feel hot in the chilly night. Remembering how pretty Gen actually is or how soothing his voice is.
“And I touched you a lot yesterday– and today. And I put in more effort than I usually would for other people.” Senku buried his face in his crossed arms, wanting to hide his emotions. “I think… I think it’s because I missed you a lot.” Senku sighed.
Knowing there was only silence, Senku decided to take a peek at Gen. He looked perplexed, with redness reaching his neck. Senku got redder, if that was even possible. “You're a Mentalist, why are you reacting like this?!” Senku yelled, then covered his face, avoiding Gen’s. “Argh, this is embarrassing.”
“I’m sorry! I didn’t expect this conversation with you!” Gen whined.
He peeked out from his hand. “You don’t want to say anything?” Senku frowned.
“I want to,” Gen said with determination. “I don’t want to retire because of you—not until you’re retired.” Gen explained smoothly. “I just realized all I did till now is probably 90% because of you. Probably more.”
“It’s not because you revived civilization or because you were the chief. I think it started with admiration, that’s true, but it grew into more than that.” Gen blushed at the last statement but still maintained his composure by avoiding Senku’s eyes. This time, Gen took advantage of his bangs.
“I said I am selfish. I still am. I want to be beside you, I want to see your eyes go all sparkly, I want to be someone you trust.” Gen had never talked about his feelings this openly. It was always about what people think. He played with his sleeves as he became restless.
“By that, I become selfless for you. I will do everything, even if I have to set aside my feelings, so I can see your dream come true at the end– if it even has an end.” Gen chuckled softly as their eyes met.
“What did I do to deserve that?” Senku whispered, frowning.
“You already gave everything. You deserve people loyal to you, Senku-chan.” Gen reassured him softly.
“It’s not fair. You did so much for me too.” Senku clearly pouted, like the child he was. Well, he was still younger than Gen.
“I’ve said it. I do that because I want to.” Gen insisted as he grinned, amused by the other’s cuteness. “I want to be with you, Senku-chan.” Gen smiled, letting his genuine happiness show.
“I want to be with you too.” Senku smiled, infected by Gen. “It’s ten billion percent more fun with you.”
The atmosphere returned as light as before the whole confrontation happened. It felt like their relationship never changed because they conveyed their feelings. There’s no sudden hatred or sudden affection. It just the same. Like they just having another conversation.
But it still gave them additional clarity and relief. It gave a whole new meaning to every action they did for each other.
“So what are we going to address our relationship as?” Gen rested his head on his crossed arms on the fence, watching Senku with adoration.
“Well, I think it’s obvious that we want just what we have right now.” Senku supported his head with his hand. “I don’t really want a lot of change. We don’t have to put a label on it. We can just do whatever we want like always.” Senku suggested. “If you want it too.”
Gen straightened his body, getting Senku’s attention. “I want to be your boyfriend,” Gen stated. His determined eyes changed into worry as Senku didn’t respond.
“I– I want to freely have permission to touch you romantically or– even sexually.” Gen stuttered. Senku was probably making a face, because Gen frantically explained.
“It’s perfectly fine if you don’t want to. We can still be boyfriends even if we don’t have to touch that way. Or maybe no label if that makes you comfortable. I don’t want to force you at all. I understand you’re not fond of touch like that. You only realized you were doing it now too. So we don’t have to rush anything.”
Gen looked anxious with the whole thing, like he was trying to convince himself even if he didn’t like the idea. Senku hated that expression so much. So he did what he thought could wipe that face away and shut him up.
He brushed Gen’s cheek so he faced him, then finally kissed Gen. He saw Gen’s eyes widen as they kissed. It was only a soft meeting of lips. And yet there were muffled gasps and cheers from the other side of the glass door. When he parted from the kiss, Gen looked at him with hopeful eyes.
Senku wanted his smile to come back. He understood that apparently he had been touching Gen unconsciously, and Gen had too. Based on that, Senku didn’t mind at all. He didn’t know about the sexual side yet, but he was willing to try. Science is about trial and error, right?
“It’s probably true that I'm not particularly excited about touching, but I want to make you happy. And if you’re going to be happy with it, I would be happy nonetheless.” Senku couldn’t help but smile as one formed on Gen’s face.
Senku brushed back Gen’s white bangs, watching as the light from inside reflected beautifully, giving Senku a clear picture of Gen.
“Look at us, just thinking about each other’s happiness without knowing it, like idiots.” Gen smiled, pleased, as his hand cupped Senku’s, making it stay on his cheek. Senku was reminded yet again how beautiful Gen was.
Senku let out one tone of laughter. “Brains in love tend to be illogical.”
Senku leaned in to peck Gen's lips. It received a blinded smile. Curious about the result, Senku kissed him again—on the lips, then the cheek, then the forehead, then the nose. The smile only got bigger with each kiss, along with giggles, making Senku pleased.
Gen circled his arms around Senku’s neck, shortening the distance. On intuition, Senku wrapped his arms around Gen’s waist. Gen leaned in, closing his eyes. This time, Gen was the one who started kissing him,It was a deeper kiss. Senku immediately complied, closing his eyes to deepen it.
Senku thought kissing wasn’t that bad as Gen’s arms moved down to his chest, and Senku’s hands brushed Gen's cheek to move them to a better angle. Without Senku realizing it, his arm had rested under Gen’s sweater, wanting him more.
Senku felt a gentle push on his chest, making them part. “Wa– wait, Senku-chan.” Gen was red and breathy. Senku didn’t know he could make that face and that voice. It looked like Gen was loving it. And it was beautiful.
Senku wanted to see more. So he ignored Gen and went back to kissing him again, hoping for the same result. This time, Senku tried to use his tongue, as he knew it was considered a highly sensitive erogenous zone. They teased each other’s tongues, but of course, the curious Senku got excited by the new feeling.
They got breathy and let out soft moans in between. Senku took a liking to the taste and feeling, resulting in him chasing Gen’s lips more while his hands explored Gen’s skin. Circling Gen’s waist with his thumb.
The kiss ended when Gen parted their lips. Unfortunately, Senku failed to see Gen’s expression as Gen melted onto Senku’s shoulder, gripping his T-shirt at the chest.
Seeing the reaction, Senku nuzzled into Gen’s hair. “Hmm?” Senku questioned why Gen wanted to stop as it’s clear Gen’s wanting it too.
“Senku-chan, seriously, we’re still on the patio,” Gen said breathily with a slight moan. Senku decided he liked that voice.
“Ah, I forgot.” When he turned his head, there were smirking faces, phones up, some cheers, some disgusted faces.
“Alright guys, do you want to join the party or continue it in your room?” Ukyo asked after he opened the door, knowing they had stopped making out.
“What do you want?” Senku whispered to Gen.
“We’ll be back, Ukyo-chan. Give me a minute,” Gen mumbled.
“Okay, just don’t do it in public.” Ukyo left them and went back inside.
Gen lifted his head, facing Senku. “Ugh, this is embarrassing.”
“What? You horny?” Senku smirked.
“Oh shut up!” Gen shoved Senku’s face away.
“You have the best response. I got carried away.” Senku laughed.
“Oh no, now I’ll become your experiment.” Gen groaned.
“Kukuku. I want to see you more and more in pleasure.” Senku’s smirk grew more smug.
“Okaay, stop right there.” Gen pushed Senku away while suppressing his embarrassment. “You’re not allowed to say anything about that tonight.”
“Alright, alright.” Senku chuckled.
“I still can’t believe that Senku-chan finally has a boyfriend.” Gen sighed.
“What? You don’t believe I can pull a guy? There’s a line, you know.” Senku smirked, while Gen let Senku’s arms down and picked one to loop his own arm through.
“Oho, you’re bragging about people crushing on you in front of your boyfriend? You insensitive bastard.” Gen playfully and dramatically punched his chest.
“Heh, you’re always in the first row anyway, roaming around me like a freaking watermark.” Senku neatened Gen’s hair that was slightly messy.
“I have to assert my dominance.” Gen puffed, opening the door so they went inside.
“What are you, an animal?”
“Well, my boyfriend is a popular guy.”
“Uh-huh. You need a mirror, Mentalist.”
“Sounds like nothing changed?” Ukyo commented.
“Yeah, we’re gonna act like usual.”
“Except we’re boyfriends now.” Gen sang, bragging about their intertwined hands.
“Noisy.” Senku pinched Gen’s cheek. At first Gen enjoyed the attention, but the longer it went, the more irritated he became. Senku didn’t stop even when Gen complained. Instead, Senku smirked. He only released him when Gen got angry, which led to Gen chasing Senku around the house.
Yup, nothing changed. The people in the house sighed in relief.