Chapter Text
It was hard to keep roommates, which wasn’t good when you were a sophomore in college and already have gotten kicked out of four rooms within the first semester. The RA’s on all seven floors of the residence hall knew him from his antics as a freshman. That year he was switched out of six rooms before they just gave him a single room. Usually they were more expensive, but the school decided they had enough of changing out his keys and information in the database.
Still, when he entered sophomore year, his grandpa refused to shell out money for a single, so currently Zenitsu was just waiting until the school board had enough and he was thrown into a single again.
His new room was on the second floor. On the door was a blank name card for him to fill in and one other that said “Tanjiro Kamado”. Upon entering the room with his new set of keys, he immediately looked over the room to figure out the set up and who his new roommate was.
The room was clean, which was a relief. He didn’t want to move his stuff from the fourth floor into his new room, then have to dance around dirty underwear and moldy food.
The desks and dressers were on opposite sides of the room right when he entered. There was the door to their shared bathroom nearby an entertainment system and bookshelf. Across the room from that was a bunk bed set up. There was a card on the bottom bunk with big, black letters across it. If Zenitsu hadn’t turned on the light, he might not have been able to see it, as the window near the heads of the beds was drawn tightly shut to leave out any light.
‘I’ll be back by 12:30 to help you move in. Are you cool with taking the top bunk? Let’s grab food together later. - Tanjiro.’
“That’s the first time I ever got a note,” Zenitsu hummed before tucking it away. He glanced up at the top bunk with disinterest, but wasn’t in the mood to argue for a bed his roommate had been sleeping in. Plus he didn’t know Tanjiro yet, he didn’t want to make a bad impression before he spilled the beans as to why he keeps moving rooms.
Zenitsu had only one class that day, but he skipped it so he could move boxes into the new room. He stocked up his desk with all his study tools and spent a good chunk of time sorting his clothes out before Tanjiro arrived.
The room did… very little to inform him on who Tanjiro was. There were photos on his desk of a large family along with two dogs. Every picture looked so happy. Alongside those was one fidget toy, a stress ball and a hand grip for exercise. Below his bed, poking out under his dark green blanket, was a few dumbbells. By the TV was a small stack of DVD’s that were a mix of several different genres. There was a few books, but most of them were textbooks.
All in all, Tanjiro was either painfully bland or cared a lot for a clean, uncluttered space. Well, beggers can’t be choosers.
At 12:40, as Zenitsu was throwing his blankets onto the top bunk, the door was pushed open. He turned to greet his roommate, eyes nervously trailing up. He’s been yelled at before for ‘messing things up when moving’, so he wouldn’t put it past Tanjiro to also start blowing a fuse.
“Hey!”
Tanjiro looked like he did in the desk photos. Zenitsu didn’t really need to assume who was who, as the boys in the photos either looked alike or way too young for the picture quality. He had brown slicked back hair and a red scar on his forehead. His eyes were big and warm, like his smile as he closed the door behind him and set his backpack on the floor.
As the boy approached, Zenitsu had one thought running through his mind. “Tall…”
Tanjiro was taller than he looked like in the pictures. Was his family composed of giants? Or maybe Zenitsu really was only 5’4, which was a stark difference when compared to Tanjiro, who could was about five inches taller. Why did he have the lower bunk again?
“It’s nice to meet you! I’m Tanjiro Kamado. Do you still have things in your car to move up here?” The boy asked, looking around the room with a pleasant expression.
“Uh, I think I got it all from the fourth floor,” Zenitsu mumbled as he pulled away from his messy pile of blankets.
“Fourth floor?” Tanjiro hummed. “Oh, I was told you were a transfer!”
“No, I’ve been going here for a year now,” Zenitsu sighed. Had the RA lied to cover up his failings as a roommate to so many?
Tanjiro nodded slowly, shaking his head. “Well, shoot. I had a whole speech planned to show you around campus and show you the places to get food.”
“I don’t think I’ll need it,” Zenitsu agreed with a quirked, forced smile. He eyed Tanjiro’s muscular arms peeking from the sleeves of his shirt as he stretched.
“We can still eat together if you are hungry. I was unlucky and didn’t get a roommate right away this year, so we have some catching up to do compared to the others on our floor.” Why was this guy happy to have a roommate? Zenitsu has been praying to end up in a room without a roommate! Well, he wanted a single person dorm room. Tanjiro simply ended up in a double alone because there wasn’t anyone to fill the other half until Zenitsu came along. He supposed it could be easy to become lonely since Tanjiro was from a bigger family. Maybe he shared a room with a problematic sibling before this. Maybe Zenitsu’s little problem wasn’t a big deal.
Zenitsu went with Tanjiro to get food. Tanjiro ordered a teriyaki bowl along with Zenitsu, then began rambling about the classes he was in and his major. He was a criminal justice major. He worked out three days a week and ran often so he could pass the physical exam when he finished university. His father was an officer, which inspired him to become one. He talked about his family, but immediately changed the subject to hobbies upon Zenitsu telling him he had only a grandpa who wasn’t even blood related.
Overall, Tanjiro seemed like one of the nicest roommates he’s had, but he knew that he’d crack eventually after their first night together.
“Want to get dinner together later?” Tanjiro asked as he sat down in his desk in the room. He flipped open his textbook and began reading through the latest chapter he was assigned.
“Sure,” Zenitsu replied as he glanced around the room to see if there was anything else he could do to make himself feel a bit more at home. How pointless.
He studied silently across from Tanjiro. It was mostly flashcards with headphones to drown out the clicks of Tanjiro’s pen and the AC humming.
When dinner came, they left together and resumed talking about boring things. Zenitsu could barely focus on what he was saying, dreading nightfall. Not even the delicious food he got was enough to fill the empty ball of anxiety bouncing in his ribcage.
“So you are considering switching to CJ too?” Tanjiro grinned as he took a bite if his noodles. “If you ever need a work out buddy, I’d be happy to help! I can help make a training schedule for you and everything!”
“That’d be great.” You’ll take that back by tomorrow morning. “I can’t wait.”
When it was finally 10PM, Tanjiro stretched out in his desk chair and yawned. “Sorry, I’m not too much of a night owl. I’m going to hit the hay.”
“Do you want me to turn off my desk light?” Zenitsu asked, though he was also about to go to bed too. It was good to know what his roommate preferred to keep their bickering at bay when Tanjiro realised the school sent Zenitsu to ruin his next few weeks.
“It’s all good. I’d just ask if you didn’t make too much noise, I wake up in an instant if I hear something loud.”
Oh shit.
“Understood. Night.”
“Night, Zen!”
Zen.
Zenitsu waited eight minutes before climbing up to his bed. He wriggled around for a few minutes before he was finally comfy enough to close his eyes. With a sigh, he nuzzled against his pillow.
Tanjiro woke to his bed shaking. He sat up suddenly, still dizzy from the shock as he saw Zenitsu in his large bed shirt and sweatpants climbing down the ladder. He wheezed out a sigh of relief as Zenitsu reached the ground.
“You scared me,” Tanjiro whispered, laughing at his jitteriness.
Zenitsu didn’t answer. He probably didn’t hear his low mumble. Tanjiro laid back down as he watched Zenitsu turn. He expected Zenitsu to go to the bathroom nearby, but instead the boy passed the door and his own charging phone and opened the door to the dorm. The hallway light flooded in as Zenitsu walked out and closed the door behind him.
Tanjiro sat up again to look at the clock on the TV stand. It was 1:24 AM. Creeping out of bed, Tanjiro began to walk to the door when he noticed Zenitsu’s keys sitting beside his phone.
“Oh no,” He muttered, snatched them as well as his own keys. He slipped on his slippers, then bolted out the door. By then, Zenitsu was already out of the hallway. Tanjiro rushed down the hall and the stairs only to find Zenitsu as he was leaving the residence hall.
“Zen!” He yelled, running over. He sure moved fast for seeming so relaxed. Tanjiro reached forward and snagged Zenitsu’s sleeve. “Hey! You forgot your phone and key.”
He whipped Zenitsu around and paused when he was met with his new friend’s relaxed face, eyes closed. “Are you alright? Do your eyes hurt?”
No response still. Puzzled, Tanjiro put the keys in his pocket and held onto his friends shoulders, giving him a shake. Nothing. His eyelids didn’t even twitch.
Was he… sleepwalking?
Slowly, Zenitsu raised his head as if to look Tanjiro in the eyes, but they remained shut. Taking a robotic step forward, Zenitsu collided into his chest with a huff, moving so his cheek was pressed against the cotton of his shirt, the top of his head slotting a little into the curve of Tanjiro’s neck. A blush dotted the taller boys cheeks as he stared at Zenitsu, who then let out a loud snore.
Tanjiro stared, but then let out a little laugh as his new friend slumped against him more with each breath. “C’mon, let’s get you back to bed.”
Using his arm to support Zenitsu around his waist, he helped the blond up the stairs and to their room. It took him a moment to use his key to open the door, but it was easier closing the door. He glanced to the ladder leading up to Zenitsu’s bed, then simply guided Zenitsu to his unmade bed. He pushed his shoulders to guide him down, but the moment Zenitsu was sitting, he tried to stand again. When Tanjiro managed to wrestle him to lie down, he tried harder to get up.
“Zen, throw me a bone here,” He muttered, trying to drape the blankets around Zenitsu in order to tuck him in like he did with a few of his siblings when they were all living under the same roof. Except this time his tried and true method appeared to be failing him. Frowning, Tanjiro pulled Zenitsu into a tight hug and fell down with him onto the bed.
Zenitsu made another huff noise. He struggled for a moment, but then the hands pushing him away started clutching his shirt and dragging him closer. Tanjiro sighed tiredly down at Zenitsu as he snored once more. He’d remain there until he was certain Zenitsu wouldn’t move, then he’d just go sleep in Zenitsu’s bed.
He later woke up in the morning to Zenitsu clinging to him, a pool of drool on his chest and a phone alarm ringing from Zenitsu’s desk.