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Dabi was a careful person by nature. He always chose his words and actions to best suit whatever his intentions were. However, tonight had ended up being a bit different. It hadn’t been his intention to get beat to hell and back, he just wanted to enjoy a night of drinking somewhere other than Kurogiri’s bar. Some stupid punks were picking fights in the third bar he visited, and who was he to deny a challenge.
The fire quirk user’d had every intention of breaking a few chairs over the poor bastard’s heads and calling it a night, but apparently he’d had a bit more to drink than he’d realized. In the end, he returned to the hideout bloodied and bruised and on the verge of passing out though later he would argue that it was because of the alcohol. Kurogiri chastised him on his recklessness while patching him up, the other villains that were there chiming in with their opinions at one point or another.
However, there was one person who remained silent throughout the whole ordeal. Shigaraki Tomura sat across the room drinking at the bar, not moving to look over at the noise or even acknowledging Dabi’s presence at all. Had he not known better, Dabi would have just assumed that the blue haired man didn’t give a damn that he was injured. But the heavily scarred man could see the truth in the tenseness of the other’s shoulders. In the way he was gripping his whiskey glass just a little too tightly. In the way the fingers of his free hand twitched with the desire to scratch at his throat.
Finally, the now empty glass was set on the counter with a harsh clack and Shigaraki stood. “I’m going to my room.” He grumbled, not bothering to wait for a response as he shambled out of the room. Dabi’s eyes followed him as he left, gaze lingering a little on the door when it was closed with a bit more force than necessary.
No one paid it any mind, still poking fun at the fire quirk user for losing a fight to some punks. Again, he attributed it to the alcohol. When the mist man was finished patching him up around twenty minutes later, Dabi proclaimed that he was tired and just wanted to sleep for a few days. The statement got a few laughs before everyone wished him goodnight. Kurogiri told him to be careful and not reopen his wounds, and he just gave a small wave of understanding.
The scarred man walked down the hall of temporary bedrooms that were only used in case of emergency, not even bothering to stop at the one he’d claimed as his. Instead, he came to a halt outside of Shigaraki’s room, knocking firmly a few times. “Hey, mop-head. Can I come in?” He asked through the door.
The only response was the sound of the door’s lock sliding out of place, giving Dabi wordless permission to enter. And he did, quickly stepping into the mostly dark room and closing the door behind him. Sliding the lock back into place, he was once again treated with a view of the blue haired man’s retreating back. The black haired man assumed that the other was going back to whatever game he’d been playing, but quickly decided that he’d had enough of this silent treatment bullshit.
Moving quickly, Dabi grabbed the other’s wrist in a way that most would see as harsh. He opened his mouth to say something, but was cut off by the smaller man shoving him against the wall. For someone so frail looking, Dabi was often surprised by Shigaraki’s physical strength. He felt the other’s hand wrap around his throat, middle finger raised as to not accidentally kill him, but he could feel the threat hanging there as well. Turquoise eyes met red ones with defiance and the finger twitched. The feeling of a teasing brush of that oh so dangerous finger on his neck made Dabi shiver despite himself.
“You’re an idiot.” He heard the other growl, though the voice was no more than a whisper. “What the hell made you decide to do something as stupid as get into a meaningless fight? What if heroes had been called, or you got yourself killed? Where would you be then?”
The fingers encircling his neck tightened, and Dabi could feel his heart thumping against them. Letting out a shaky breath and closing his eyes, he tilted his head up to reveal more of his ruined neck to the man. “You’re right. I’m sorry, boss. It won’t happen again.” He murmured in surrender, voice just loud enough for Shigaraki to hear. Part of him wanted to open his eyes, to look at the other and see what he was thinking about, but he didn’t. This was their chess game, and it was the blue haired man’s move.
What happened next, the scarred man couldn’t have predicted. The hand on his throat loosened, middle finger swapping positions with his index as he let his hand slide down to press against Dabi’s chest. Dabi felt Shigaraki’s head fall onto his shoulder and his eyes opened despite himself, looking down at the smaller male with curiosity. “Tomura…? What’s wrong?” He asked quietly, not wanting to startle the other. All he got was the blue haired man shifting further into him, mumbling something that sounded like an apology without answering his question. Dabi didn’t say anything else, letting the surprisingly comfortable silence wash over them again.
It didn’t last long though before Shigaraki finally answered him properly. “I was worried… When you walked into the bar looking like you’d been hit by a bus…” He said tentatively, voice just barely above a whisper. “I was pissed too… I wanted to turn the bastards that did it to you into dust beneath my fingers as slowly and painfully as I could. Make sure they suffered for what they did to you… And that…” His voice dropped so low that Dabi almost didn’t catch what was said. “That scared me…”
The black haired man didn’t say a word, just stared at the mess of blue hair with a bit of shock. Shigaraki Tomura wasn’t one to be scared of anything. Sure, he could be a bit temperamental, and even childish at times, but never scared. It was then that the thin frame leaning against him began shaking, Shigaraki scratching at his neck as he started to ramble.
“I was just so afraid at that moment… So afraid that I might have lost you, might have never seen you again… You walked in and I wanted to kiss you and make you forget about the pain, but I just sat at the bar like a fucking coward while Kurogiri patched you up.” The younger man was starting to talk faster now, nails digging into the skin of his neck as Dabi just stood there and listened without a word. “I just sat there while everyone acted like it was normal and okay, when it wasn’t okay at all, and I was pissed that everyone was acting like it was a joke when it wasn’t even remotely funny. You could have gotten captured or killed, and I wouldn’t have been able to do anything. I was afraid and weak and a coward, and if I wasn’t so fucking in love with you then I could be strong and not care about your dumb-”
“What did you say?” Dabi interrupted, and the scratching stopped for a moment. He could almost hear the gears turning in the other’s head as he thought back over what he’d just said. Then things seemed to click, and Shigaraki shoved himself away from the taller man. Or, he tried to at least. The pyro had grabbed the other and flipped their positions in an instant, forcing red eyes to meet blue with a firm hand holding his chin. He was vaguely aware of the wetness of the other’s lashes, but he ignored it for now. “What did you say, Tomura?” He asked again, saying the other’s given name like a request.
Those ruby red eyes that could hold Dabi captive with a glance were trying to look anywhere but his face, looking for some kind of escape from this from him. Finally, letting out a breath as though he had been holding it for ages, he stopped trying to get away and settled for staring at the place above Dabi’s left ear. “I… I said… I love you…” He sounded so unsure, so timid, so vulnerable, so unlike his usual self, and the fire quirk user had never wished that he could go back in time and alter the past so much before.
Instead, he settled for leaning in and softly pressing their lips together. Shigaraki stilled beneath him, but Dabi didn’t move away. He just slid his lips against the other’s, tongue flicking out for a moment to lick over the scar out of habit. It did the trick though, and suddenly there were arms wrapping around his shoulders that were pulling him impossibly closer. Their lips moved together in a slow dance, one that was so much different from their usual rough teeth and tongue kisses that usually came from these meetings in one of their rooms.
Suddenly feeling the smaller male start to shake against him, Dabi shifted their faces away from one another and just let the other cling to him as he sobbed. He ran his fingers through blue locks of hair and whispered soft words into the crying man’s ear. “You’re okay. I’m here. It’s okay, Tomura. I won’t let go of you. It’s okay.” Shigaraki just sobbed harder, reminding Dabi of how much the other had been through. How strong he always had to be in order to be their leader, almost never getting a moment of reprieve from his duty.
Finally, after what seemed like hours, the shaking began to slow and the sobs dissolved into soft sniffles. Dabi gave a small smile, pleased that the other had finally calmed. “Feel better?” He asked softly, getting a nod against his shoulder in response. They just stood there for a while, neither wanting this to end in fear of it ruining the moment.
The pyro was suddenly very aware of how tired he was, almost positive that Shigaraki was feeling just as bad after that whirlwind of emotions. Picking the other up wasn’t difficult, considering how small he was and how readily he leaned into the embrace. Dabi walked them over to the bed and laid Shigaraki down, joining him swiftly and pulling him against his chest. They shifted around for a bit until they found a position that was comfortable for both of them.
“Dabi…?” Shigaraki said softly, not moving from the warmth of Dabi’s side. Said man hummed in acknowledgment, letting his arm fall fully over the other’s waist now that they had settled. “Please, be more careful… Okay…?” The fire quirk user smiled to himself, kissing the top of that head of messy blue curls.
“I can do that…”