Chapter Text
The first time Ren ruffles her hair unprompted comes as a surprise to Futaba.
Their group had just returned from a particularly grueling Mementos run, tired and weary from exploring the depths, fighting shadows, and fulfilling requests all day long.
As the two stand exhausted in front of Leblanc, about to part ways for the night, he puts a hand on her head. Confused, she freezes up.
Then, he just sleepily ruffles her hair.
“Night,” he yawns, turning to enter the store. “Don’t stay up too late.”
“… Goodnight,” she waves weakly.
That was… unexpected.
Unexpected, but certainly not unpleasant.
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Then, he begins doing it more frequently.
She had been lounging on her laptop in the far corner of Leblanc until evening, and as the bell jingles, she sits up straight. She spots a mop of black hair by the entrance.
“Welcome home!” She tugs down her headphones. “Sojiro went out. Said something about going to bed early tonight.”
“Hey, Futaba,” he replies. “Just got back from the gym.”
Suddenly, Morgana pushes his head out of Ren’s bag. “You should’ve seen this guy! He totally wiped out on the treadmill.”
The guy in question groans at her snicker. “Don’t remind me... My legs are going to kill in the morning.”
Futaba relaxes back into her seat. She returns her attention to her laptop, busily typing away at her keyboard.
As he arrives in her peripheral vision, he pauses for a moment.
Suddenly there’s a gentle hand ruffling her hair, and it stops her fingers in their tracks.
“I’m going to go clean up, then I’ll come down and make some curry. Sound good?”
The warmth of his hand is gone before she can say anything, and a moment later, so is he.
…
She thinks she could get used to that warmth.
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Eventually, she does get used to it, and begins looking forward to it too.
When she exits Untouchable, having successfully held another conversation with the gruff-looking but surprisingly nice owner (she totally, definitely didn’t obsessively research cool gun models the night before).
When she attempts the Big Bang Challenge and drops her head on the restaurant table, throwing in the towel after stomaching barely a quarter of the burger (she comments that Ren must be inhuman, witnessing him consume the entire thing. She later retracts that statement when they return home, somberly patting his back as he barfs up his insides).
When she hands him a figurine as a gift on one of their trips to Akihabara (she’s pretty sure he doesn’t understand the reference, but seeing the smile on his face, and later, the figure on display in his room, makes her glad she made the decision to give it to him anyways).
When she’s excitedly raving about the episode of Neo Featherman that they just watched, and he suddenly gets a strange, content look on his face, as if just realizing something, and decides to convey her some affection (she doesn’t really know why he decided to do it that time, but hey, she’s not complaining).
When he returns home at night and she welcomes him outside of Leblanc, standing by the door expectantly (he comments that she’s begun to lower her head before he’s even moved his hand. She’s embarrassed to have had it pointed out, but he lets the topic go and obliges her anyways).
One day, she wonders if he’s going out of his way for her sake, and it makes her heart drop. That must be why he made that comment – she must have been expecting it far too often! He probably doesn’t actually want to pat her head all the time, but he just doesn’t want to be mean! She can totally imagine that she might make herself do something, if not doing it would make Ren upset.
So once, when he ruffles her hair again before retiring for the night, she attempts to find out.
“Hey, Ren. Uhm… If you don’t really want to, you don’t have to pat my head all the time… I would totally understand. Really.”
He just gets a confused look on his face, then laughs. She feels heat crawling up her cheeks. “What, you think I’d give up a prime opportunity to mess up my little sister’s hair?”
As if to prove his point, he latches an arm around her and begins attacking her with a mean noogie. She laughs in surprise and delight, trying to break free, but he’s got an iron grip. As he continues his savage onslaught, she resigns herself to her fate, and she can’t help but think that maybe it was a little bit dumb to have worried so much.
After all, her lovable dork of a big brother seems to enjoy it as much as she does, if not more so.