Work Text:
The loud sound of the waves crashing on the rocks beneath where Gen sat, above on a cliff looking out at the endless sea, was making Gen feel a bit more sentimental. It was getting dark out but Gen didn’t want to pack it in yet. The sun was setting and hiding behind the water’s edge. The once pure blue sea was now painted in a brilliant mix of purple and orange, with some other colors in the middle. Gen reached his hand out to the sun. There was no reason to. Not like he could hold it, or even touch it. If Senkuu was there it might have called it irrational, but the way the sun’s lights lit Gen's pale hand made him smile. It was full of color like the sea was. So warm too.
Warm…
Without much thought, Gen pulled his hand back and put it over his heart.
Thump-thump.
Gen felt his heartbeat even though his yukata. It was a steady pace if not a little fast. Gen had a blanket wrapped around himself and hugged it closer to himself. It was one of the blankets he and Senkuu shared when they went to sleep. Part of it still smelled of Senkuu’s normal chemical smell Gen had come to love so dearly. Senkuu’s scent, his warmth, his kindness, how cute he was when Gen teased him, how he was always honest, how Gen would sometimes catch Senkuu looking at him, hell even his creepy laugh, Gen loved all of it. The blanket was no good substitute but while his husband was working in the lab with chrome, Gen found it adequate. Gen hugged his knees in closer to his body to try and save his body heat. The wind passed him, causing his hair to flow with it. With the wind came a sudden shiver down Gen’s back.
“One a few more minutes,” Gen told himself.
The sense playing out before was like from a cheesy movie and some crappy lovey-dovey music video from back in the modern world and there was Gen just taking it all in. It was beautiful. When Gen first wore up in the new world and learned of what was going on he wondered if the world could ever feel beautiful again. Waking up after a 3700-year nap only to wake by a once crazed Tsukasa telling him he had a mission for him. One once-powerful celebrity had that taken from him and just became a pawn. The world didn’t seem as pretty or as colorful. Gen of course had questions.
“How did Tsukasa break free? How did he know it was a mix of nitric acid and alcohol that freed people? And why murder so many people?”
But Gen didn’t dare to ask, but that didn’t stop him from being curious about it. Until he got his answer once while he was listening in on one of Tsukasa’s and Hyoga’s conversations.
“I know I killed him but there is something off about the way he so willingly accepted death. If he were to survive he could bring back society and all the corrupt people in it,” Tsukasa explained to Hyoga.
As if Tsukasa wasn’t already scary enough, Hyoga and he were on a whole different level of crazy strong. Hyoga wore a mask to hide his face but Gen could tell that he had the same murderous look in his eyes as Tsukasa. Gen did his best to hide his worry and fear around those two. His skills as a mentalist were nothing to laugh at after all but the one time he dropped the act is when he saw the date carved into a tree. Whoever this Senku was he really was amazing. Doing all that counting for years without stopping. It filled him with a bit of hope. The world seemed colorful for a second as Gen ran his fingers over the carvings on the tree. Making sure to feel every groove of the marking. Gen didn’t even know who this “Senkuu” was but already he….
“He’s dead,”
Gen hadn’t even noticed Tsukasa was behind him.
“Wha-” Gen almost let his act slip “Ohhhh so this was Senkuu chan’s work?” Gen sang.
Gen waited for Tsukasa to respond but he said nothing. Instead, Tsukasa just clicked his tongue and walked back to the miracle cave. Gen took a deep breath.
Senkuu huh..?
The next day Gen was sent on his mission. The mission was simple enough. There was a small village on the outskirts of the island. Make sure Senkuu wasn’t somehow alive.
“Of course Tsukasa chan,” Gen gleefully put it.
Gen tucked his hands in his robe and walked out of the cave. He could feel the distrusting stares of the Hyoga, and couldn’t blame him. Gen was a sallow man who valued his safety over others so his loyalties were easily changed. Tsukasa definitely didn’t trust him but he knew if Gen did try to run away he wasn’t safe anywhere on this island. Who would trust a lying mentalist anyway? Tsukasa called it freedom but Gen knew damn well he wasn’t free. Gen took about a day to get to the small village. He could see it up ahead with a small clearing of trees and a tiny shack hosted up in the air with some wooden polls. He made his way down a hill to the clearing to see why people were circling around. That’s when the smell hit his nose.
Ramen..? In the stone world?
Gen’s mouth instantly started to water. He looked down to see a small girl with what looked to be a watermelon with cutouts for the eyes handing him a bowl. He thanked the child and took the bowl from her. Noodles, broth, chicken, and fish. It looked like the ramen back in the modern world besides the green-colored noodles. Gen gave it a try despite a strange look.
This ‘Senkuu’ is a genius. Surely he can make some good ramen.
The moment the noodles touched his tongue though, he had the reaction to spit it out. It was gross and wasn’t like the modern world’s ramen at all. Did he find the right person? Honestly, the taste of the soup and the meat were fine but the noodles were so bitter. Gen turned his body to face the ‘mastermind’ behind his bitter ramen. A scrawny man, no longer than 19, with white fade up to green-colored tips at the end with two chunks of hair in his face plus a strange-looking tunic with E=Mc2 written on it. Gen instantly found him kind of attractive. In a weird scientist way. This was definitely the Senkuu he was looking for but just to make sure,
“Ahhh,” Gen gave out an exaggerated sigh “This ramen is making me wickedly thirsty. A cola would be great~,”
If Gen was going to make an entrance why not make a memorable one right? Senku froze for a second at the sound of the familiar word. Though he was the only one who seemed to recognize the word.
Before Gen knew what happened he was surrounded by spears caging him in.
“Better answer truthfully,” The blonde woman says “Or I will slit your throat before you know what hit you. Are you one the long-haired man’s underlinings?”
So this village knew of the Tsukasa empire huh? Well, he guessed there was no reason to act like he wasn’t but he wanted to mess with the cute girl a bit.
“Well, I don’t admittedly don’t mind the attention of a cute thing like you. I believe you must have mistaken me for someone else,” Gen lied through a twisted grin “I have not yet met any long hair man. I have been wondering all my lonesome since breaking out of the stone,” Gen lifted his head to get a better look at this amazing science, Senkuu, that Tsukasa swears he killed.
He didn’t seem too happy to see another person from the modern era. Senkuu got a closer look at his face and it looked like something snapped in his brain.
“I’d thought I’d seen your face somewhere before Asagiri Gen,” Senkuu proclaimed calmly.
“I’d thought I’d seen your face somewhere before Asagiri Gen,” Gen muttered to himself.
He swears he could still hear Senkuu saying it to him. It definitely left an impression on Gen. Even after Senkuu called the book Gen worked on “sooo hard on” trash Gen couldn’t help but to know more about the scientist. More and more, without even Gen noticing too, his act as the “most shallow man in the world” started to fade the more he stayed in the kingdom of science. When Gen saw the Cola had made him, that’s when Gen knew some kind of feelings were developing in his heart. He didn’t really think Senkuu would make him the cola he asked for but there it was. The shiny glass shimmed in the sunlight. Gen wasted no time gulping it down. The cola, like the ramen, tasted nothing like the original but Gen drank it anyway. It wasn’t like him to let a gift go to waste. Gen swore he could still slightly taste the flavor on his tongue. Gen could only guess his expression that moment, but he knew for sure his face was red.
It was now fully dark out. With the only sign of light being the village. Gen pulled the blanket close to himself. As close as he could. The sound of the crashing waves still sounded below him. The wind still blew past him, but something was different.
“Heh, My time here really has made me soft huh?” Gen asked. “Huh, Senkuu chan?”
“Nah, you're still the same mentalist I know,”
“And fell in love with,” Gen added on.
“Adding words in my mouth,” Senkuu sat next to Gen. Their hands brushed together.
“And yet you’re still wearing your ring,” Gen pointed out.
“Shut up mentalist,” Senkuu playfully hit Gen’s side.
“Awwww come on Senkuu chan,” Gen whined. “Say you love me,”
“I love you, Gen,” Senkuu didn’t waste another second to say.
When Senkuu really meant it, he wouldn’t hesitate to tell Gen how much he loved him. Gen leaned his head on Senkuu’s shoulder. How much he wanted to bury himself in Senkuu’s warmth.
“Is that our blanket?” Senkuu mused.
“Maybe,” Gen hummed.
“And it’s dirty, great..,” Senkuu half heartily complained.
Gen let his eyelids rest over his eyes. The two of them sat like that for a minute. Being completely silent and just enjoying the other being there.
How did I get so lucky?
All the things that had to happen for the two of them to meet. Being turned to stone, Tsukasa waking him up, Senkuu counting for so long. Some days it didn’t feel real that everything in the universe lined up so perfectly for them to meet and then get married.
“Almost hard to believe it has been five years,” Senkuu pointed out
“Ha stop making me feel older than I already am,” Gen groaned. “All the kids already are making me feel like an old man,”
“Oh really? Geez, I married an old man, gross,” Senkuu teased.
“Oh laugh it up Senkuu chan. Give it a few years and you too will be an old man with me, “
“You know, mentalist?” Senkuu asked.
“Hmh?”
Senkuu’s hand cupped one of Gen’s cheeks and guided it up to look at him. Senkuu slowly started to lean in. Gen closed his eyes in anticipation. After a second or two Gen opened his eyes slightly.
“One of these days I’m going to figure out how your hair changed color while you were petrified,”
“You’re the worst Senku- chan,” Gen pouted.
Gen placed his hand on Senku’s and intertwined their fingers and placed their hands on the grass next to them. Senkuu placed a small kiss on the corner of Gen’s mouth.
“Better?”
“Better,”
“So what were you thinking about up here Mentalist?” Senkuu asked.
“Oh nothing much. Just about how you called my book trashy,” Gen teased.
“Ha? It was. Like something I'd find in a convenience store,” Senkuu played along.
“Oh, what’s good literature then?” Gen raised an eyebrow. “College textbooks?”
“Ya,” Senkuu deadpans.
Gen let his head fall on Senkuu’s shoulder and shook his head. “How did I know you were going to say that,” Gen laughed. “It’s such a Senkuu thing to say too,”
“Ya ya,” Senkuu shook his shoulder. “I’d rather not freeze out here,”
“But the hut so farrrr and it’s cold,”
“Fine, stay out in the cold, but don’t expect me to join you to cuddle,” Senkuu smirked.
“Vil- eaye,” Gen protested but stood up.
“Ya yes, I’m so evil for not wanting you to freeze to death,” Senkuu snickered, as he stood up.
“No, your evil for not wanting to freeze with me,” Gen corrected.
Thanks to the warmth coming from the heater Gen felt much warmer. With Senkuu hugging him from behind as they two lay down in their bed, Gen felt peaceful. In his home in his husband’s arms on a cool autumn’s day. Gen felt a warm bubbly feeling raise up in his chest. Their home, their bed, his Senkuu. Gen’s eyelids covered his eyes and his breathing started to level out. Gen rested his hand over Senkuu’s arm wrapped around him.
The world seems so full of color right now. A vivid orange, The cool dark blue outside. A green-haired man. And the dark purple of the shadows.
It's beautiful.