Chapter Text
Serizawa, who had lived in solitude for all of his formative years, found living with others to be a breath of fresh air.
Hiding away in his room had been safe, but also very constricting. He couldn’t help but feel confined by the walls, a bear trap of his own making which dug into his leg. He had been caught; there was nothing he could do. When Suzuki Touichirou came across him, Serizawa had thought he was helping him. It took him far too long to realize the man had simply pulled out a saw and started to cut off his trapped foot, working to save Serizawa from himself, but leave him unable to move forward on his own. And when that kid - Mob - opened Serizawa’s eyes and showed Serizawa his experiences, both good and bad, it was like he was prying the trap off of Serizawa, as easy as bending a spoon.
Serizawa could never forget being saved like that. He could never forget what came after: running to face his boss, the battle that ensued between Mob and Suzuki that nearly destroyed downtown. He could never forget the look of hesitance Shou gave him as they fled the building, and then the surrounding area. He could never forget opening up to Shou, apologizing so emotionally Shou grimaced and patted the older man’s back as Serizawa blew his nose into his sleeve. He could never forget being offered a job by a man whose life he saved, a man who happened to be Mob’s boss, protective and caring and someone Serizawa trusted almost immediately.
Serizawa was free, a little scarred, but eager to move forward. Things just happened to fall into place to lead him to where he is now.
First, it was working with Reigen, Mob, and Tome, when she came around. He and Shou talked, and talked, and talked, and when Shou came into town he’d stay at Serizawa’s, and he just kept coming to town more and more, until he had his own room and own futon at Serizawa’s apartment.
Two bedroom apartments, however, could be rather expensive. Reigen was talking about it one day when it was just the two of them in the office.
“I don’t regret taking Teru in, not one bit, but... Damn, does it make me less liquid than I’d like to be.”
“Liquid?” Serizawa had asked, not having heard the term before.
“That’s a lesson on economics I don’t have the degree to be teaching,” Reigen replied easily, sighing and leaning back in his office chair, arms crossed. “Maybe I should try finding a wife, eh, Serizawa?”
“How would having a wife help?” Serizawa asked, trying not to look embarrassed by the topic.
“The extra money would be a lifesaver; our combined salaries would easily be enough to get a bigger place, even.”
“What if we moved in together?” Serizawa found his mouth saying. Reigen inhaled so quickly that he started coughing, putting up a hand to keep Serizawa from walking over to pat his back.
“A-as in-”
“Like roommates. Not like…” Serizawa trailed off, feeling his face turn a little red. “It’d make things easier, it’d be cheaper, and it’s not like Shou and Teru don’t get along, though they aren’t… Great friends…” Serizawa recalled the last time he had seen them interact, which turned into a fight-slash-training session that required a few stitches.
Serizawa could see how hard Reigen was thinking about what he had proposed, and thought maybe he had overstepped his boundaries, before Reigen shrugged and nodded.
“Y’know what? Not a bad idea, if I say so myself.”
They started looking at places, roping Shou and Teru in on the hunt, and eventually found a moderately priced townhouse for rent near both the office and the school. It had four bedrooms, one for each of them, and had a small backyard, and it was next to a bus line. It was perfect.
Moving in was easy. Setting up a chart for chores, and changing addresses, and meeting their neighbors had all been easy. Living with the three of them was so easy; it was the most at-home Serizawa had ever felt in his life.
But, even though they said they’d just be roommates, Serizawa and Reigen’s relationship became a little… domestic. Very domestic, actually.
Last month, when they went to a street fair with the boys, they ended up holding hands, just to keep from losing each other in the frantic, overpowering crowd. And sure, they did the same with Teru and Shou, but it was different between Reigen’s clammy, slender hand, and Serizawa’s thick, calloused one. They didn’t even intertwine their fingers, but it sent wave upon wave of electricity up Serizawa’s arm. Even when the crowd thinned, and Teru and Shou let go, Reigen and Serizawa held hands for a little longer. When they got home, Serizawa couldn’t shake the phantom feeling of Reigen’s hand in his own, as normal as anything.
A few days ago, it was movie night, and they put on some classic action film. The boys seemed to enjoy it, but halfway through Serizawa felt a pressure on his shoulder and glanced over to see Reigen leaning against him, eyes about to flutter shut. Serizawa didn’t say anything, and ended up settling against the other man, putting an arm behind him on the couch. When the movie ended, Serizawa gently shook Reigen awake, saying that the movie was over and that the kids had headed up to bed. Reigen had yawned, sighed, and patted Serizawa’s shoulder opposite to the one he was leaning on. The hand rested there for a moment, before moving up to where Serizawa’s shoulder became his neck, and stilled. The small area where Reigen’s pointer finger rested against an inch of Serizawa’s skin felt like fire and ice, all at once. Like Icy Hot.
“R-Reigen?” Serizawa had murmured, trying to remain calm at the development. Reigen’s eyes opened, and his hand dropped from Serizawa as he stood up, stretching. Serizawa worked very hard to ignore the strip of skin that showed as Reigen’s t-shirt rode up.
Reigen yawned again, turning sleepy eyes to Serizawa, and said, “Goodnight, Katsuya,” leaving Serizawa to realize Reigen had used his first name, and then contemplate what exactly he was feeling for his boss-turned-friend-turned-roommate.
Today, somehow, everyone in the house woke up late. Shou and Teru argued over the bathroom, and Serizawa quickly put together lunches for the two of them while Reigen brushed his teeth in the kitchen sink. Teru hustled down the stairs, his tie undone.
“Reigen, can I have my phone back?” He asked, taking his lunch when it was offered to him with a nod in gratitude.
“Next time you get caught with it in class, I’ll take it for a whole week. Understood?” Reigen grabbed it from on top of the fridge. Teru rolled his eyes.
“Understood, Reigen.” With a nod and a wave he slipped on his shoes and was out the door. Reigen turned to go upstairs, passing Shou on his way up.
Shou’s buzzed hair was still damp from his hasty shower. He hadn’t even bothered with the tie that was a part of his school attire. “What’s on the menu today?”
“The usual,” Serizawa answered, giving a grin as Shou grabbed his lunch. He heard Reigen turn on the shower, then give a small yelp in surprise that made Serizawa chuckle. “You and Teru used all the hot water, huh?”
“We’re growing boys, Serizawa, can’t help it,” Shou gave a smile. “I have a test today in science, how do you think I’m gonna do?”
“You’re a smart kid, I’m sure you’ll do fine. I’ll even bet money on it.” Serizawa answered. “You have… ash on your face? Did you light a fire?”
“Just a few flames at Teru is all, no collateral damage,” Serizawa gave a stern glare but didn’t deal out a punishment. Sometimes he felt he could be too easy on Shou, but he didn’t want to be too hard on him, either.
“Be careful,” Serizawa called out to Shou as the boy started to leave, “And no fighting!”
A slam of the front door was all he got in response, and he sighed. Reigen then entered the room, hastily tying his tie. Though Serizawa and Reigen worked together, a lot of the time Reigen went in first to open up the office and assess how busy they’d be.
“Got your phone? Keys? Wallet?” Serizawa listed off as he followed Reigen to the door, watching him slip on his shoes.
“Yes on all accounts. You’ll be there in thirty?” Reigen stood up, facing Serizawa.
“As always. Don’t have too much fun ‘til I get there,” Serizawa said, and then did something mindless. It had to have been because of the position the two of them were in, both physically and emotionally, and the way their relationship had changed upon moving in together. The domesticity melding together with his feelings had become too confusing for Serizawa, it seemed, because he leaned down and gave Reigen a kiss on the cheek as if it was a part of their daily routine. Like he was a housewife saying farewell to her husband as he left for work.
And the funny thing was, he thought Reigen leaned into it, mindlessly expecting it just as much as Serizawa was mindlessly giving it.
Serizawa realized what he did only a few milliseconds later, mirroring Reigen’s shocked and confused expression. His body felt like lead. He just stared down at Reigen, brows furrowed, feeling like he just made the biggest mistake of his life.
But suddenly it was okay, because Reigen put his hands onto Serizawa’s chest, grabbed the fabric of Serizawa’s sleep shirt, and pulled him down, giving him an actual kiss.
Serizawa made a small snort of sound in surprise, feeling his body get all tingly all over before he kissed back. He didn’t even know he wanted to kiss Reigen until now, but it felt like if he stopped kissing Reigen he’d float away. He didn’t notice that his eyes had closed until the kiss ended, and he blinked down at Reigen from a height he wasn’t usually at. Reigen was still holding him by his shirt, and Serizawa found himself floating a foot off the ground.
A hundred, thousand, million things were swirling through Serizawa’s head. They just stared at each other. Serizawa had so many things that he wanted to say, but what ended up coming out was, “I haven’t brushed my teeth yet.”
Silence.
Then, Reigen gave an incredulous smirk, letting out a small huff of laughter.
“It wasn’t too bad, don’t worry.” Serizawa felt himself lower back to the ground, and Reigen released the vice grip on his shirt, smoothing the fabric out with ease. They just stood there for a second; Reigen fully dressed, Serizawa still in his pajamas.
“I, uh-” For the first time in his life, Serizawa saw Reigen at a loss for words. “I gotta get going. We can, uh, talk at work?”
“Yeah,” Serizawa said breathlessly, “Yeah.”
They paused again, and then met in the middle, kissing a second time. This kiss was shorter, a novella compared to the multi-book series they just co-wrote.
“Alright, I’ll see you in a bit.” Reigen gave a small wave, and Serizawa nodded wordlessly, feeling so warm he thought he might melt.
Then Reigen was out the door, Serizawa locking it behind him.
He turned around, leaning against the door, putting a hand to his mouth. He needed to go upstairs, shower, shave- but for a few more moments he stood there, replaying what had happened over and over in his head, grinning like an idiot.