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“Ahhh finally home!” Genya exclaimed, plopping his giant form across the couch. He, Tanjiro, and Inosuke had just returned from a long day at university, to their shared apartment. Friday night meant movie night, and they'd even taken to making sure they all get home at the same time, walking together after class.
“Hey, move over!” Inosuke puffed, shoving Genya's legs aside any way to claim his spot on the end of the couch. “Stop hogging the place!” Genya groaned and sat up fully in the middle spot, Tanjiro giving them warm smiles as he popped the newly released Promare Blu-Ray into the PS4 that that doubled as their movie player.
“Wait. Popcorn.” Genya stood up and headed to the kitchen, quickly tailed by Inosuke. Tanjiro hoped he wouldn’t have to tell them how to use the microwave *again*, but a quick “Fuck, where's the instructions?” from Genya told him otherwise.
Tanjiro walked in to see Genya staring intensely at the box, keeping the package of unpopped kernels high above Inosuke’s head so he wouldn’t steal and potentially eat it the way it was. “Here, let me.” Tanjiro offered, and Genya handed it to him. “Guys, theres a popcorn button, that’s all you need.” Genya and Inosuke watched in silence as they were proven idiots once again, being taken care of by the much more sensible brunette.
Except, the popcorn burned. They were all failures. Genya said it was fine, and he took all the charred bits and put into his own bowl, letting Inosuke and Tanjiro salvage the rest. Secretly, Genya actually liked burnt popcorn, but he was already mocked for his “gremlin” eating habits. Look, he ate a hot dog with caramel drizzle ONE TIME and no one would let him live it down.
They settled down onto the couch, and Tanjiro pressed play. The big bowl of popcorn rested in Genya's lap as either of his roommates leaned against him. Leaning became cuddling. Even when they all jumped up in hype at Promare's amazing action sequences and pumped up music, their near-popcorn-spilling disasters settled back down into the warm position. Tanjiro couldn’t help but think that this is how he wanted things to stay. His two best friends, getting to enjoy a fun night after a good day, laughing and eating together. When the movie was over, he looked over at the two quietly.
Inosuke noticed it first, but had no clue what thoughts were swimming behind Tanjiro's maroon eyes. “That was great, Monjiro! You picked a good one this time!” He then headbutted Genya's arm, only lightly in an affectionate gesture. “Right, Benya?”
Genya chuckled at him, rustling the feral boy's hair with an arm that had been draped around his shoulders. His other arm was around Tanjiro, and he brought them all together for a hug. “It was. It was very nice.” His voice had a tinge of seriousness to it. Definitely holding something more.
Tanjiro took his chance, the romance in the last battle of Promare making him feel bold. Hard not to be fired up after such a movie, and Tanjiro was always kindling warmth of some kind inside him. “Guys, what are we?” He only allowed a beat of silence to carry, before continuing, “I'm not sure we're only friends. The three of us. Laughing together, crying together, yeah we started living together out of financial need, but I… I want this to last. I want both of you to know that.”
Genya blinked at him, thinking hard about his words and how he would respond, his face starting to rush with heat. Before he could get over the feelings paralysis, Inosuke spoke up, “I think that’s right! We’re a family now, and since I never had one before, I'm proud to call you my family.” Genya was still shocked quiet, his heart beat threatening to drown his thoughts out.
Tanjiro sighed at Inosuke's nearly understanding response, and tried again, “Yeah but… I like you both… like, really like you both. What if I said that I wanted to date both of you? At the same time? And if you dated each other as well? We could all be boyfriends.”
That seemed to be the nail in the coffin for Genya, and his head fell back. His grip completely slackened on the both of them as he fainted. Inosuke cackled, “I think Panta agrees. You know what, Gonpachiro? I accept your challenge. I'll date you both and you'll both be swooned by me!” He was, however, unprepared for Tanjiro to move forward and give Inosuke a kiss on the nose, the former sputtering incredulously.
Genya regained consciousness then, mumbling out something weakly. Tanjiro helped him sit forward normally, and Genya repeated himself with an indignant tone, embarassed about his initial reaction, “Yeah, sounds good, you lovely dorks, when’s our first date?”