Archive of Our Own ^beta

The school Hawaii trip has been weird so far. Ryuji hasn’t done much more than hang out with Akira and Yusuke. The latter was quite the surprise in and of itself. How the hell does the universe align in such a way that their schools end up going to the same damn place and even get the same hotel?! He’ll never know.

As if it wasn’t bad enough that they hadn’t done anything memorable yet (after all, aren’t you supposed to get into hijinks on a school trip?!) his roommate left him alone, probably to go see his girlfriend or something. Ugh.

That brings Ryuji to his other problem. He still hasn’t managed to score a girl yet! And that ain’t changing anytime tonight, considering he’s currently laying on one of two twin sized beds, mindlessly scrolling his phone. He’s practically given up on the prospect of both of those things happening, as it’s getting late and he doesn’t really entirely feel like breaking curfew.

He’s dozing off when a soft, unsure knock at the door jolts him out of his sleepy haze. Who would it be at this hour, anyways? Definitely not his roommate, he should still have his key on him.

Ryuji hesitates, torn between not answering it (somewhere, deep in the recesses of his brain, he worries it's an assassin, here to kill him, being a Phantom Thief is finally catching up to him-) or giving in and dragging himself out of his blanket burrito.

Another slightly surer knock convinces him it's worth it. The chance of something fun happening lights up his chest and settles heavily there, completely displacing the tiredness he was feeling.

Unlocking the door with a kethwunk, he pulls it open, revealing… one of the last people he would ever expect to see at 11pm on a school trip. Especially considering this person technically doesn’t even go to his school…

“Yusuke?!” Before Ryuji can even get another word out, Yusuke is in the middle of his room, having barged in without so much as a ‘hello’.

“Dude?! What’re you-” There are a billion thoughts running through his head right now, ranging from ‘this is a bad idea we could both get in trouble’, to ‘why is Yusuke here’ and more importantly, ‘why did he come to me ?’.

As the door shuts softly behind them, Yusuke turns around and Ryuji finally has the chance to see his expression. Yusuke looks very… shaken. Which isn’t typical for him, to say the least.

“Shit, dude, you…. you okay? Here, sit, sit.” Ryuji ushers him towards the bed, where he sits, unsurely, on the edge.

Yusuke heaves in a breath before letting it all out. His fists are clenched on his thighs, and he won’t meet Ryuji’s gaze. He stares, no, glares, down at his feet.

Ryuji sits down next to him, the bed dipping under his weight. They sit in silence, Ryuji wracking his brain for what to say. He doesn’t even know what’s wrong-

“Ryuji? Why are you friends with me?” Yusuke blurts. The way he says it, without looking up, like he’s afraid of the answer or something, makes something twist in Ryuji’s chest.

“What?!” Ryuji can’t help squawking. “What the fuck are you on about-”

“Other people do not tend to like me. Everyone at school avoids me. I cannot make friends, I-” he heaves in a shuddering breath. Ryuji notices how his mouth is set in a firm line, but he finally looks up and meets Ryuji’s gaze. There’s this intense sadness, going beyond the glossiness he sees in his eyes. “I was locked out of my room. I’m not entirely sure if I’m correct in my assumptions, but I cannot help but think my roommate did it on purpose….”

“Oh…” is all that falls from Ryuji’s lips as his brain grinds to a screeching halt. “Shit, ‘m sorry, that’s real shitty. Uh…” Ryuji wishes his brain would cooperate with him right now. He can’t think of a damn thing to say! Come on! Think! “W-well, I’m fine with you uh. Stayin’ with me.” He coughs out, despite the more rational part of him knowing that’s not exactly the best plan. They could both get into trouble with their respective schools. Yusuke probably moreso.

As Yusuke looks away, Ryuji can’t help continuing on. “And for what it’s worth, I like bein’ your friend. I don’t know what assholes go to your school, but they don’t know what they’re missin!” He feels a strong urge to clap Yusuke on the back, but he decides against it. It’d probably knock the poor boy over.

“Thank you, Ryuji…” Yusuke mumbles. “It truly means a lot.”

Yusuke still doesn’t seem to be himself. He’s still avoiding Ryuji’s gaze, and more importantly, his hands are still balled into fists by his sides. Like they’re the only things keeping him tethered to this moment. Something still isn’t right.

Ryuji swallows the lump in his throat. He’s not very good with emotional stuff, that’s Ann’s (and even Akira’s) forte. But he has to try, dammit!

He clears his throat before awkwardly starting. “Hey, so… um…” The words get caught in his throat when Yusuke turns to look at him. His eyes are so…. sad. He can’t help the next words that come out. “ Fuck, dude.” He instantly opens his arms in an invitation.

Yusuke eyes him, unsure, suspicious, like a wild animal that isn’t sure if this is a trap or not.

Ryuji gestures, trying to convince him to accept the offer of a hug. “C’mere, you look like you could use one.”

A few, tense seconds pass as Yusuke continues to scrutinize him. The wary look in his eye passes, replaced with… something entirely different. Something soft and yearning. He tentatively scoots closer. Ryuji takes the opportunity to sling an arm around his shoulder, pulling him close.

Yusuke is slow to return the gesture, but does so anyway, even going as far as to lean his head on Ryuji’s shoulder. “I’m sorry to have barged into your room unannounced.” His voice is muffled, due to being buried in Ryuji’s shirt.

Ryuji can’t entirely think straight, too busy focusing on how close they are. If he just moved his head ever so slightly, he could probably smell Yusuke’s shampoo…

“‘S no prob, dude. I…” He hesitates, suddenly doubting the words he was about to say. “I know we haven’t known each other long, but I’m always happy, well, not happy-” he sighs. “You know what I mean. Don’t worry about it, ‘kay? We’re teammates. Maybe friends, I don’t really know with you, to be honest-”

This gets Yusuke to immediately loosen his grip, moving away to face Ryuji once more. His face is concerned. “What do you mean? Are we not friends?”

Shit. This is where Ryuji knew he should’ve thought that through more. He was distracted, okay?! “Hey now, don’t get the wrong idea! I think we’re friends, I just… don’t know you very well. I don’t know what you consider to be a friend, I guess…?” Great. Just dug the hole a lot deeper, didn’t he?

The worry disappears from Yusuke’s face as he turns contemplative. “Hm… friends. I’m not quite sure I’ve ever had a friend, if I'm to be honest.”

Ryuji groans. “Okay, nevermind. You’re thinkin’ too hard! We’re friends and that’s that, okay?”

Yusuke brightens. “Friends.” He agrees.

“Uh-huh. Friends.” Ryuji reiterates, a little too flat for his own liking. It’s kind of depressing that Yusuke hasn’t had friends before this. He can’t dwell on it too much, it’s not really his business.

He clears his throat. “Hey, so uh. I guess we’re both out of roommates for the night. You probably can’t really get back in your room, which explains the whole coming over here thing. You wanna, like, I dunno, stay?” He scratches the back of his neck, a nervous habit.

Yusuke tilts his head in thought. “I do suppose I have no other options.”

That’s not necessarily true, but Ryuji doesn’t feel like getting into it. Besides, it may be the wisest decision. Or at the very least, some part of him really, really wants the company.

The two sit there, staring at each other, not sure what to do next or how to move on from this moment.

Ryuji takes this time to get a really good look at Yusuke. His hands are no longer balled up in emotional fists, instead sitting gently in his lap. He’s alarmed to notice Yusuke staring just as intently back at him. He can’t make out what’s going through his head and it makes him squirmy.

“So… Phantom Thieves, huh?” Ryuij blurts out, feeling an intense need to get Yusuke’s attention off of him.

“Hm, I do suppose we’re getting rather popular, yes.” Yusuke blinks owlishly at him, expression not changing ever so slightly. “I never imagined I’d join a group of vagabonds such as yourselves.”

“Yeah, it’s kinda crazy if I think about it for too long… Changing hearts of bad people ‘n shit.”

Yusuke is quiet at this, and when Ryuji looks back at him, he looks introspective. His hands have tightened into fists again. There’s that mouth thing he does, too, going on.

Fuck. What did he do wrong? “Hey man, did I say something to upset ya? If so, I’m sorry-”

Yusuke interrupts him with a firm shake of his head. “No, don’t worry.”  His eyebrows are creased and he avoids Ryuji’s worried gaze. He closes his eyes and takes in a deep breath before letting it all out. “I’m fine, really. No need to worry about me. I think I just need to get some rest.”

Every ounce of Ryuji’s being screams at him, knowing that Yusuke is lying and he should press. However, another part of him doesn’t want to wound his pride or whatever. So, in the end, he leaves it. “Yeah, okay, fair enough. It’s been a long day of excitement for everyone.”  He stands up, stretching and letting out a yawn. “Shit man, guess I’m pretty tired, too.” He takes a few steps towards the bathroom to start to get ready for bed before remembering the whole… Yusuke being his new roommate situation. “Hey-”

The words die in his mouth when he sees Yusuke is already laid back on his bed and is curled up to boot. He did not plan this far. At all. Sleeping arrangements…

Instead of saying anything to address the situation, he just stares, mouth agape, brain trying to figure something out. His actual roommate may or may not be back tonight, so he doesn’t want to kick Yusuke to the other bed. He doesn’t want to sleep in the other one, either, for the same first reason.

But then that means sharing.

And what if his roommate does come back?

“So uh, it’s totally cool with me an’ stuff if you sleep in my bed. But, I’m-I’m gonna sleep on the floor. Leave you to your devices, y’know.”

Yusuke turns to face him. “That’s absolutely silly.” He says immediately. “Why? The bed is big enough for two.”

Ugh, he didn’t think this far! Of course Yusuke is gonna be difficult about it! “Want you to get your beauty rest and stuff. Like.” He huffs. “I dunno! I just feel like you deserve a good night’s sleep after all you’ve been through.”

Yusuke stares at him, and Ryuji really, really wishes he could know what he was thinking. “If you do not sleep in the bed, then I will take the floor.”

Ryuji slams both of his hands against his face in defeat, a double facepalm. “Ugh. Fine. If you’re that adamant, we can share.” Every fiber of his being doesn’t want to, but he knows better than to fight Yusuke on it. He can be extremely stubborn when he wants to be.

The rest of the night passes without a hitch, besides Ryuji being totally and utterly unable to sleep with Yusuke’s back pressed up against his own.