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It is approximately three-forty-five in the afternoon when Hanazawa Teruki uncovers the absolutely horrid fact that Kageyama Shigeo has no clue about ballroom dances, and even more monstrous is the indisputable fact that both of their school dances are only a short blip away. 

“How have you survived ?!” Teru gapes at Mob, the usually calm and collected mask Teru wears slipping and cracking on the pavement immediately. 

Mob shuffles awkwardly, shrugging. “Um, I've always just faked it?”

Teru cannot believe this. This is— this is a travesty! And Kageyama , no less?! Nobody ever thought to teach his unbelievably talented, best friend, the basics of partner dances?! Some people just take the best things in the world for granted, and—

And Teru pauses. Mulls a growing opportunity over. And grins to himself.

“Kageyama,” Teru starts, and Mob visibly suppresses a groan. Unperturbed at Mob's blatant display of emotion, Teru presses on. “You do realize that the school dance is just two weeks away?”

Mob's face twists further into 'disgusted' territory. Teru stifles a laugh. “I've been thinking of faking sick, actually,” Mob confesses. 

Teru lets out an outraged gasp, the fox’s mask he was planning on wearing failing immediately, and shakes Mob by the shoulders. “Kageyama! You can't just pass up a once in a lifetime experience! We can only have this event once ! Once in our life, and then never again!”

“Can't — I — just — pass — up — on — it — ?” Mob stutters while Teru shakes him.

“No!” Teru shouts, flailing his hands. “It's an important experience for the average teenager! Passing up on this could skew our developments!”

“I just don't see the point,” Mob says, stumbling as Teru finally releases him. “Can't I just dance with friends anytime I can?”

“It's more than just dancing with friends .” Teru pouts, crossing his arms. “It's—”

Teru fails to continue his train of thought then, because Ritsu runs into them. A bit literally.

“Ah, sorry Hanazawa-kun,” Ritsu greets, sounding not that sorry at all while Teru sputters.

“Have some class, why don't you,” Teru grumbles, but straightens himself with a fixed neutral expression. “Hello to you too, little brother.”

Mob made a sound halfway to being a chuckle but too much to sound like a huff. "Hello Ritsu.”

“What’s this I hear about big brother missing out?” Ritsu asks as he folds his arms. “Is it that important that you resort to placing bodily harm on him?”

Teru physically recoils from that statement. “I’ll have you know nothing will be enough to push me to do that,” Teru replies shortly at the same time Mob frantically scrambles to reassure his brother, “Oh, Ritsu, you shouldn’t worry, Hanazawa was just telling me that prom—”

“Oh.” Ritsu groans, pressing a hand to his face. The other half that wasn’t covered was shooting a grimace towards Teru. “ Prom? Seriously, Hanazawa?”

“What is it with you Kageyamas and the idea that prom can be fun?” Teru despairs, draping himself over Mob lightly. Mob murmurs an “oof” good-naturedly, just the dawn of a smile on his face. 

“Big brother doesn’t need to go to prom if he doesn't want to.” Ritsu frowns at Teru. At this, Teru props himself up on Mob’s shoulder to give him a deadpan stare.

“And little brother should let his older brother be,” Teru heckles him, waggling his fingers. Then, he gently turns his focus to Mob. “That is, if he does want to choose to go to prom voluntarily even just a little bit on the inside?”

Mob looks back and forth between Ritsu and Teru and shrugs, displacing Teru from his perch on his shoulder. “If Hanazawa says that prom is worth going to, then I think I should try.”

Teru silently cheered while Ritsu threw his brother a concerned look. “Nii-san—”

“But.” Mob raised one finger. “I won’t be dancing other than for the graded dance.”

“What!?” Teru cried out. “What’s the point of going if—!”

“Why are you even so interested, Hanazawa?” Ritsu counters exasperatedly. “It’s not like you’re going to the same school we are.”

Ah. That was— that was right. Well, Teru is nothing if not a good friend, the best for Mob, so— he wants to make sure—

Teru tries to splutter out the words, but Mob saves him some face by nonchalantly saying, “They’re allowing plus ones from outside the school, for our school, Ritsu. Hanazawa probably wanted to invite me to his school dance.”

Oh. Wait. Mob and Ritsu’s school—

Ritsu’s face melted into an expression of displeasure. Mob was oblivious to it.

“Well.” Teru rubbed the back of his head, a crooked smile creeping its way onto his face. “Ah, my school doesn’t allow outsiders.”

“Oh.” Mob squinted at him. “Why are you so invested, Hanazawa?”

Teru is reduced to a blubbering mess at that, something Ritsu seems to take great amusement in and Mob to frown at. And then suddenly, Mob’s face lights up, like he’s come to a brilliant conclusion. 

“Why don’t you come to my school dance, Hanazawa?”

It was on one condition that Teru could go with Mob to the boy’s school dance, and it was that Teru could teach him how to properly dance at least the waltz. 

Ritsu protested all the way through the agreement, until he gave in and set his own (could you believe him?) condition, that he could “supervise” the dance lessons for as long as they go on. Teru caved, eventually, and now he tutors the Kageyama brothers every afternoon they’re all free. 

Of course, the barely-there peace does not last long, as Suzuki Shou manages to barge in unannounced on their very first lesson. 

“Why are you here?! ” Teru wails, just barely catching his aura from exploding. 

“I was nearby!” Shou answered brightly, which could either mean I felt Ritsu’s presence from a couple hundred city blocks away or I got bored in Shou-speak. Teru could only handle so many children on his rooftop. 

“Do you want dancing lessons as well, Suzuki-kun?” Mob asks patiently while both Teru and Ritsu scrunch up their faces in protest. “Our school dance is a few weeks away, so we’re preparing for it.”

Shou cocks his head to one side.

“What do you mean, ‘school dance’?”

No. Teru was not about to include one more person into his dance lessons. It was just supposed to be him and Mob . He really should’ve known that with Ritsu, comes Shou, really .

In the end, Teru cracks. He just can’t let these youths live their entire lives without knowing the value of social dance, okay?

And so the first lesson continues on… horribly.

Teru pairs himself up with Mob and instructs Ritsu and Shou to do the same, Ritsu shouting out his complaints as he usually does and Shou, having no fucking clue on what was going on, shrugged and wrapped an arm around Ritsu’s waist like what Teru was showing Mob. 

Ritsu jumped at the contact and yelled at Shou for it— Why am I the lady?! —to which Shou protested that he was only doing what he was told, and at this point Teru figured he should stop minding their business and start actually teaching Mob how to dance. 

“Since the first dance of the night will be graded by the teachers,” Teru explains as Mob stutters from placing his hand around Teru’s waist. “It'd be better to show you how to lead, rather than guiding you through the lady’s part of the dance.”

“I don't like this,” Teru heard Mob mutter under his breath as Teru guided his hand once again to his waist. “Really don't like this.”

Teru snorts. “You're gonna have to, for the grade.”

“Screw the grade,” Mob whines, and finally places his hand where it should be. 

Teru feels his lips quirk up. “Wow, I didn't know you had such a pottymouth .”

“That was barely a swear, Hanazawa.” Mob deadpans, stiffly taking Teru’s hand in his. “Um.”

Teru quickly saves him. “Lead with your right.”

Mob nods and slowly puts his foot forward. Teru follows his lead by moving his left foot back. “Remember to move like you're gliding. Finesse, Kageyama.”

Mob responds with “mhm”, and follows the rest of Teru’s orders, right, left, right, left, remember to glide, right, watch your feet, left, right, eyes up—

Eventually, Teru lets him collapse onto the ground, crouching beside Mob and grinning at him. “We've only been practicing for ten minutes.”

“Ten…?” Mob breathes. Teru notices how his face flushes. “How… am I… going… to last another hour…?”

“How are you tired?” Teru chuckles. “It's just stepping.”

“I'm leading .” Mob retorts.

“It's just steps .” Teru shoots back, just barely restraining himself from breaking out into a giggling fit.

A shout from above them catches both the boys’ attention, and a quick glance up reveals Shou and Ritsu floating a few feet in the air. “ Shou put me down! ” Ritsu yelps as Shou laughs and says, “Dancing is more fun this way!”

Teru hears a low chitter beside him and his gaze snaps to Mob giggling lightly at the sight of his brother flailing mid-air. Teru can't help the smile that crawls onto his face then. “What's so funny? Don't tell me you enjoy this, you sicko.”

Mob only rolls his eyes at him. Teru lets loose a little titter, thinking that's the end of it, when suddenly, Teru feels himself being lifted a few inches. Teru glances at Mob and sees a warm grin directed solely at him. He feels like melting, actually.

“Boy, am I finding new things about you today, Shigeo,” Teru teases, flicking his own hand to levitate the other boy. Mob doesn't protest at the use of his power — if he did, Teru would just call him out on it — and continues to smile at Teru, if just a smidge smug. 

Now both of them are encased in their respective bubbles, Teru in a swirl of blues and purples, and Mob in an electric cloud of yellow and teal. It was then that Mob took Teru’s hands, guided one to his waist, and simply responded with, “I'm pretty sure I should be the one learning new things today, Teruki .”

Teru resists the pull in his stomach that usually warns him that he was about to send a little zap of power Mob’s way, not that Mob would feel the slightest bit of pain from it. He doesn't, though, fight back the half-smirk half-giddy grin that splits onto his face, and twirls Mob around. Mob doesn't show any hint of surprise at the move, only huffing and saying, “Teru, the dance is barely two weeks away.”

“Can you blame me for having a bit of fun?” Teru complains, but obliges Mob and starts to lead. “Fun is a part of learning.”

“Well I'm not learning much and I'm not having that much fun,” Mob laments, but he pays close attention to Teru’s movements nonetheless. 

It's a little more difficult to waltz in the sky, Teru finds, so he lightly pressurizes the energy and air beneath them into something semi-solid, so his feet and Mob’s find something to stand on. Mob is rapt with attention, and at some point, Teru switches their roles so Mob could try. 

Shou and Ritsu eventually see the ease at which Teru and Mob dance, so Shou hollers over to them, “Copycats!” and Ritsu miserably yells out, “Big brother, help me!”

Teru and Mob cackle at their antics and they drift over, Mob taking Ritsu and Teru reprimanding Shou for disrupting the lesson, to which Ritsu exasperatedly replies “I'm not supposed to be part of the lesson!” and Shou argues, “You're the one who's supposed to teach us!”

Teru glances at the sky. The sun is still reasonably above the horizon.

Mob does not see Teru’s obvious, desperate search for an excuse to end the lesson early, and tells Ritsu and Shou, “We can show you two now, I know a little more about waltzing.”

Teru loves Mob with all his heart, he really does.

The next afternoon that has the four of them in Teru’s “dance class” — because at this point nobody is learning anything except Mob — Mob springs a question on Teru as they're all snacking on orange slices.

“If you're teaching us partner dances for the school dance, does that mean the teachers will be grading that?” Teru almost chokes on a seed as Mob hesitantly separates two slices. Ritsu seems to have overheard and is currently looking like his soul has left him and this plane of existence altogether, while Shou barks out laughter and slaps Teru on the back in doing so. This causes Teru to actually spit out the seed and hack his throat out.

Mob’s face falls. “So that's why Tome was talking about partners earlier today,” he mumbles despairingly, popping the orange slice into his mouth. 

“This is why I don't go to school!” Shou guffaws. Teru would fear for the younger boy’s life if he wasn't an esper, as Shou was currently halfway to falling down the building as he was laughing. 

“Brother, there's no way you didn't know that,” Ritsu asks, desperately optimistic. Mob shrugs, not looking at either of them in the eye.

“Oh my god, don't even TELL me you don't know the proper dance etiquette!” Teru shouts, hands flying to his hair. Mob’s head snaps up at that.

“There's a what.”

“It's fine,” Teru rushes to assure, mostly for his own sanity than Mob’s because he cannot squeeze in extra lessons for that . “There's only one main rule and that's to always keep eye contact with your partner, it's fine!”

Mob makes a face. “But why do I need to do that?”

“It— it shows respect to your partner and to the art of dance!”

“But I need to keep track of our feet. How do I keep track of our feet if I'm looking at my partner?”

“That’s why you have to memorize the steps!”

“What if I get distracted? Surely the teachers won’t—”

As Mob grasps for straws and Teru sinks deeper into the realization he was way out of his depth when he proposed to help Mob dance, Shou and Ritsu exchange amicable and irritable words respectively with each other.

“Hey, Ritsu, good thing I'm not going to a school dance, huh?”

“Why are you even here.”

“You're absolutely certain I have to keep this… here , with a girl ?” Mob’s face twists this way and that as Teru guides him along the dance steps again. 

“You're taking this seriously.” Teru snorts, swaying with Mob’s lead. “Yes, you have to keep it there even with a girl partner.”

“Couldn't I just hold her… hand?”

Mob’s face was telling Teru that even that option was one he didn't want to take.

“You'll get used to it,” Teru sighs, and yelps when Mob pushes them apart lightly and draws the both of them back in. Teru stares at Mob for a second before accusing, “You did that on purpose!”

“Of course I did.” Mob tilted his head at him. Teru was getting the feeling that he wasn't joking this time around.

“Of course you did,” Teru repeats instead, expression softening into something warmer. “Just so you know, that's a highly informal move for a formal dance. Twirls are more acceptable.”

So Mob did just that, and to his credit, Teru was only tripping over his own shoes for a bit of it.

“It needs work,” Teru tells Mob, but congratulates him on keeping the momentum of the waltz. It's only their third lesson, after all, but Teru expected nothing less of Mob. He knew the other was a fast learner when he put his mind to it, especially when Mob deems it something worth learning and when he thinks it's something he can actually do. 

Teru is proud of his friend nonetheless.

“Hanazawa, get your ass over here! I found out how to twirl Ritsu mid-air!”

“Hanazawa, tell him off!”

Their schools’ respective dances were officially only a week away, with Teru’s dance being earlier than Mob’s — which Teru is thankful for. It gives him more to look forward to, even if it meant giving up his usual Saturday schedule for Mob’s prom (and even then, Teru finds he's not all that regretful to do).

So of course, Teru decides to switch up the partners for the time being. 

“It's just to make sure I don't waste valuable time letting you two goof off while me and Mob practice.” Teru pinches the bridge of his nose, because while he really really doesn't want to switch out Mob with Ritsu or, god forbid, Shou , he also wants to prove to Ritsu that dancing can be something fun. Oh, and also, he can't just leave them on their own in the big wide world without proper dancing education. Yeah, that too.

So off goes Mob with Shou — Teru trusts that Mob can handle him, but he wouldn't blame him if the both of them got distracted with something else — and Teru pairs himself with Ritsu to prove his point.

Ritsu scowls at him before Teru even does anything .

“I’m not dancing.”

“That wasn't what we agreed on.” Teru sighs, placing a hand on his hip. “I agreed to tutor you both . Doesn't the student council need to participate as well? Something about saving face?”

Ritsu’s face sours further. “Don't phrase it like that.”

Teru raises his hands to placate the other boy. “I don't mean to offend.”

Teru watches with fascination as Ritsu’s face flits through a variety of emotions. He wonders what that would look like on Mob’s face, for a moment, before shaking it off. He sticks out a hand, deciding that the best option would be to let Ritsu choose, and says, “Well?”

Ritsu folds his arms for a second, averting his gaze from Teru’s. In doing so, he seems to have caught a glimpse of the shenanigans Mob found himself in with Shou. Teru doesn't look, fearing he wouldn't be able to stop himself from breaking away from the plan, but from Ritsu’s expression Teru could hazard the guess that they were doing somewhat decent. It sparked a small competitive flare in Ritsu’s aura, pushing the younger boy to steel himself and grasp Teru’s outstretched hand. 

Teru doesn't miss the way Ritsu tenses, as if readying his barrier for a shock of energy, and winces himself. “I’m past that now,” Teru reassures him, “You don't need to be so stiff.”

“Yeah, yeah,” Ritsu grumbles, and forces himself to relax. Teru knows there’s something more to be said, but he leaves it be. Nothing good can come from forcing a teenager’s hand, after all. 

Ritsu is rigid, Teru finds. He’s mechanical in the way he transitions from step to step, compared to Mob, who comfortably slides along after a bit of practice. Teru can tell Ritsu isn’t taking any of this seriously, so Teru decides to push him a bit away to spin himself, saying, “C’mon, little brother, live a little!”

Ritsu yelps and grabs Teru by the arm when he thinks Teru was about to fall over, which really only makes Teru outbalance, so they both fall to the ground in a clumsy heap. Ritsu rolls to the side and sits up with a groan. “I don’t like anything about this.”

“Open up a bit, would you?” Teru raised an eyebrow. “It’s not like it’ll kill you.”

Ritsu rolls his eyes. “What’ll kill me is seeing you garishly dressed up at my brother’s prom.”

“Why must you wound me so?” Teru places his hand against his forehead, feigning distress.

“You’re easily wounded.” Ritsu deadpans.

Teru huffs. “Shut your mouth and start taking this seriously.”

“Over my dead body.”

Teru manages not to fulfill that promise by accidentally glancing towards Mob and Shou, who are… doing exceptionally better than he thought they would. Teru doesn’t mean to get irritated, but—

Ritsu follows his gaze and his face contorts into a scowl. “Get up,” he barks, springing to his feet. “I’m not losing to Shou .”

Teru nods solemnly, finally, some common ground. Sorry Mob, Teru isn’t about to be shown up by a smug bastard like Shou. 

So they try again, and with Ritsu actually trying , they make progress. Teru is almost delighted at how fast Ritsu takes to learn things that he forgets about the competition, until Ritsu starts tripping up again because of how much he scowls at Shou. 

“Okay, what’s your deal?” Teru asks right after Ritsu almost topples the both of them over. “Like, just in general. Sometimes I think you’re more confusing than your brother .”

Ritsu shakes his head, glaring. “You don’t get to know why.”

Teru keeps to the silence for a bit, before speaking up again. “What are you trying to make up for?”

Ritsu pauses, and Teru follows suit. He lets the younger boy marinate on his answer, before Ritsu says, “Don’t try to analyze me, Hanazawa. Don’t think I don’t see through your schemes.”

“Contrary to your belief,” Teru starts, trying to sound indifferent. “I only offered to teach you and your brother how to dance because nobody should go about their lives not knowing the joy of dancing with a partner.”

“You wanted to teach my brother ,” Ritsu hisses, letting go of Teru with a small shove. Mob wouldn’t see it, Ritsu made sure. “I don’t get why you’re obsessed with him, why you feel like you’re entitled to being his “right hand man”—”

“Woah.” Teru steps back, hand flying to his chest in dramatics. “That’s a lot of accusations—”

“I know what happened in Black Vinegar.” Ritsu spat. 

Without meaning to, Teru’s face froze over into a mask. Ritsu took one look at it and knew he was winning. “Shige may trust you, but I don’t. Why do you want to spend every waking moment of your life with him?”

Teru’s mask melts at that, without much of a fight. Well. The truth might as well come out, and now’s a good time as any. Or so Teru figures. Ritsu was always the first step.

“Your brother changed my life,” Teru answers honestly, shoulders slumping. Ritsu stiffens; he wasn’t expecting that answer, the honesty. 

“He made me see.” Teru gestures this way and that; Reigen would’ve been proud to see how much of his habits rubbed off on him. “I get it’s kind of creepy for me to act all apostle-y to him, but. I’m pretty sure he’s the only person who sees me for me. I don’t even see me for me.”

“That’s not the entire truth,” Ritsu speculates. Teru sighs uncomfortably. 

“Probably.”

“But why would you trust me with half of it?” Ritsu crosses his arms, subtly switching stances. “What’s in it for you?”

Teru cracks a smile at that. “Nothing.”

“I don’t trust you.” Ritsu said that for the second time today.

“That’s fine,” Teru agrees easily, shaking off the admission as if it didn’t take months of work on himself for him to get there. “I don’t do it for his trust anymore. I may have at the start, but not anymore.”

Ritsu narrows his eyes. Teru just shrugs in response.

“Believe me or not, the one thing I do know is that I cannot let you and your brother embarrass yourselves at the school dance with me being your resource. So, on with the lesson?”

“Don’t—” Ritsu starts to accuse, but Teru holds a hand up. 

“I didn’t dodge the question, you did. I’d rather get back to dancing if you won’t answer.”

Ritsu’s face scrunches up in the way a child’s might if denied their demands, but he concedes. Teru doesn’t forget to remind him, “Stop focusing on Shou and your brother, and focus on not embarrassing yourself in front of your peers for god’s sake.”

To his credit, Ritsu seems to take the peers comment to heart. Teru makes a satisfied sound after seeing Ritsu’s improvement, and announces a break for all of them. Teru brought crackers along with fruits this time around, at which Ritsu complained, “Are you going to bring a whole charcuterie board next time?” 

He’s lucky Teru doesn’t take back his praise, and that Mob bought snacks for themselves as well.

“I’m practically a master at this point.” Shou smiles brazenly at Ritsu. “Next time we’re partners, I’ll show you, eh?”

Ritsu scoffs, not one bit of his smile slipping at Shou’s claims. Teru feels a spike of— something warm , observing them. The feeling grows when Mob nudges him and whispers, “I think I taught Shou well.”

“That’s because you’re a great learner,” Teru whispers back, the ghost of a grin on his face. And it was true. 

Mob merely shrugs, something content in the way his shoulders relax. “Shou’s a great student when he wants to learn too.”

Teru snorts. “Your brother’s the same. You’re the same.”

There’s a little discreteness behind Mob’s smile, then. “We’re not that impossible students, are we?”

Teru flips on his back, hand on his forehead. “If you could only know my pain,” Teru exaggerates, moving his hand from his forehead to clutch the fabric on his chest. Mob shakes his head amusedly at him. 

Teru hums as the chatter of the others drone in the background. The sky’s starting to turn pretty colors, which signals the end of their session for today. Teru finds he’s a bit more disappointed at that than usual. 

He smoothes over the concern by reassuring himself that there are still five more days until their school dances. 

The Kageyama brothers didn't show up for their session that afternoon. Shou does. 

Teru tries not to wilt as the implication becomes clearer every minute he doesn’t see Mob’s bowl cut or hear Ritsu’s groan on the rooftop. Just. Shou and him. For today. Just for today. 

Teru suppresses a wince as Shou drawls, “Soo, are we doing this or not?”

“Shigeo and Ritsu might still show up,” Teru says shortly, squaring his shoulders. “They’ll— they'll be here. They're just running late.”

Shou snorts like it's the funniest thing he's heard all day. Teru watches from the corner of his vision as Shou leans back onto his hands. “Well. You’re set on wasting the day away and I’m bored, so I want to know a few things.”

Teru ignores him. Or tries to. He really does.

“You’re pretty tight-lipped about your life before Ritsu’s older bro. You think you could tell me the story while we wait?”

“Ahh, you learn techniques from other espers, right? Normally, we only get one special skill set or finishing move. You gotta show me how you do it!”

“Hey, why are you so obsessed with Kageyama? I mean, I get it, he's life-changing for all of us, but it's not like anyone else is as devoted as you—”

“You know, I can honestly ask the same for you with Ritsu,” Teru snaps, unable to endure the incessant questioning from Shou. “I’m not all, ‘just call me and I'll be there’ . Do you even have a phone ?”

Shou rolls his eyes, frowning. “You're one to talk. My entire life isn't Ritsu this, Ritsu that. You , my ignorant fellow, are!”

“You're dodging the question, Suzuki.”

“Don't call me that, that's my pop’s name.” Shou waves his hand dismissively. His face relaxes slightly, though the furrowed brow never leaves. Like he was genuinely reflecting on it. God, Teru didn't know if that would make Shou ruminate for the rest of the day or if it would make Teru’s worse.

“I guess it's because Ritsu gets me.” Shou finally settles on answering, tapping a curled finger against his chin. “Nobody ever really got me before, like he did. It's good to have a friend.”

“Then assume the same for me,” Teru said, trying to sound flippant but only succeeding in sounding terse. 

Shou picks up on it — of course he does — and grins. “Nah, otherwise you wouldn't be so interested in teaching the brothers all week. You scared or something, Hanazawa?”

“I’m not scared of anything!” Teru bursts out, shifting his sitting position to glare daggers at Shou. Distantly, the conversation with Ritsu comes to mind — why why why do you want to get involved with everything Kageyama Shigeo, Teruki? — Teru stamps it down. It doesn’t matter , does it? The only thing that does is Teru being a better person than he was before Mob, and that— well, Teru needs to learn from Mob in order to do that. Right? 

Damn it. Teru wanted to wait until he was much older and wiser to answer that question. Because Teru isn’t scared. He isn’t .

( Mob’s voice echoes in the back of his mind, sounding kind as he usually is. Don’t try to fool yourself, Hanazawa-kun , he says, sounding very much like the real Mob. )

Shou makes an amused humming sound. “It's more than just connecting with him. Goes deeper than that. A debt, maybe? But you aren't hasty to fulfill anything for him, as far as I can tell.”

Don't try to analyze me, Hanazawa , Ritsu had said. God, if only Teru knew how hard it would bite him in the ass. 

“No,” Teru says quietly, because he's done enough running away. “It's much more.”

Shou shares with him a knowing smile, more genuine than anything Teru has seen from him so far. “I can guess.”

Teru returns the smile with just a hint of wryness. “You too then.”

Shou just shrugs, and the rooftop is quiet at last. Now that Teru got what he wanted, he finds, with a little bitter irony, he doesn't quite want it anymore. It seems to be the running theme for his own life, so, at least there's one thing that doesn't change.

Shou beats him to it, jumping to his feet with a yawn and a stretch. “We've wasted half a session just talking, Hanazawa. C’mon, teach me how to dance so I can beat Ritsu's ass at it.”

“Always the competitive streak with you,” Teru jokes, getting on his feet as well. “You and Ritsu are the same in that regard.”

“Don’t even try to lump yourself in with Kageyama’s kind,” Shou replies bluntly. It’s good-natured all the same. “If you truly claim yourself better now, you know then not to delude yourself.”

Teru only gives Shou an exasperated sigh. “You can stop taking a jab at me now.”

“And miss out on a life of making your life a living hell?” Shou grins at him in victory. “Don’t think so.”

“You want to beat Ritsu’s ass, don’t you?” Teru deadpans, finally outstretching a hand to Shou. “You’ll do well to stop making fun of your teacher, then.”

“Okay, Hanazawa-sensei ,” Shou mocks him, accepting the hand. 

“Clearly, this was a mistake,” Teru says miserably, as he reluctantly allows Shou to take the lead.

“You just realized it now?” Shou snorts, easily falling into rhythm. It should’ve made Teru suspicious if he didn’t know Mob taught Shou the day before, and was confident in Shou’s ability to be halfway decent at the dance. 

Teru tries his best to let the comment slide, but if he “accidentally” steps on Shou’s feet, and the boy throws some complaints and accusations his way — well, he’s certainly not going to say anything.

Teru only started panicking (a lie, Teru knows) when Mob remarks that the dance his teacher wants them to learn was not, in fact, the waltz like Teru’s teacher gave them.

“She said that the graded dance is supposed to be a casual style partner dance,” Mob explains, twisting and pulling at his fingers, not meeting Teru’s eyes. “There’s not really an… expected dance? We’re supposed to choose which dance we want to try from the choices they gave but—”

“ Mob. ” Teru places his hands on Mob’s shoulders, stopping Mob’s ramble. Mob’s gaze snaps up to Teru, panic swirling, thrumming under his aura as if Mob tried to cover it up before approaching Teru. It’s only on instinct that Teru manages to school his own panic, taking a deep breath before continuing on. “What are the dances your teachers gave you?”

“Um,” Mob mumbles, gripping Teru’s wrists, “Foxtrot, swing, cha-cha.”

Teru gently withdraws one of his hands to snap. “Swing, that’s one I know. It’s a lot less intimate too, not enough to allow casual conversation like foxtrot because of how high-energy it needs to be, but it’s— fun, fun I promise.”

The last bit, Teru rushes to add in, once he sees Mob start to blue screen at the information overload. “You know how to waltz already, so the steps should be easier this time. You’ve got the timing down, so momentum shouldn’t be a problem when it comes to bringing in twirls and spins—”

“You’re overwhelming him, Hanazawa,” Ritsu says exasperatedly, butting in with Shou, who nods along. “Nii-san, you still have three days, you’ll be okay.”

“It just seems like so much to remember…” Mob falters, looking between the three of them rapidly. 

“Not too much,” Teru reassures, mind already running a plan. “As your dance teacher, trust me on this.”

When Mob looks to Ritsu for confirmation, Ritsu gives his brother a sure smile. Teru is even more grateful when Shou claps Mob’s back and announces, “Don’t worry, Kageyama, I can vouch for Hanazawa here! You’re in good hands, even if those hands did harm you that one time.”

Teru hisses Shou! with a wince as Ritsu punches him a little in the shoulder, at which Shou returns both with a surprised what? Mob doesn’t latch onto the terribly timed callback, instead murmuring something under all the chaos.

“What was that, Shige?” Ritsu asks, effectively quelling whatever argument was about to stir up between Teru and Shou. 

“Ah.” Mob fumbles his words for a moment before clearing his throat. “Uh, I’m not worried that Teru wouldn’t be able to help, I’m— um— worried I won’t… be able to learn.”

Mob looked at them all confusedly when Shou snickered. Ritsu’s shoulders relaxed into something sympathetic while Teru gave Mob a kind smile. “Why?”

“Big brother,” Ritsu starts first, leveling Mob with the most genuine tone he can manage, “you, out of all of us, are the most receptive person when it comes to learning things.”

“Ritsu’s right.” Shou picks at his teeth as he says this, flicking the stuff away. Teru hides a recoil to keep the encouragement clear on his own face. “Hanazawa here may adapt to different esper fighting styles and Ritsu takes to learning quickly, but you don’t have the trouble of actually getting to learning. Both of these idiots have mental blocks that stunt their growth and I, myself, am a one-trick pony, admittedly. But you have a wealth of power, and you’re determined to boot.”

Teru watches as Ritsu does a double take at all that Shou’s said, but he doesn’t let that stop him from pitching in his own truth. “Shigeo, the only thing so far that I can see that’s holding you back is you doubting yourself. It’s a lesson you taught all of us, remember? To not be afraid of confronting what’s really our real selves?”

Mob makes a little sound, and oh, Teru can bear all the self-doubt and blood and fear in the world, but nothing will ever prepare him for every single time Kageyema Shigeo cries. Teru can see how Ritsu and Shou stop their back and forth almost like they were about to hand over a safety net to Mob — except they remember that Shigeo isn’t someone to be afraid of, not anymore. 

Mob swipes at his eyes, renewed and determined. “Okay,” he says, with all the fire he can muster, “Let’s do this.”

Ritsu breaks out into a proud grin as Shou yells appreciatively, “That’s the spirit!”. Teru himself can’t help but allow a little excitement into his aura, but he makes sure to not to aggravate Mob’s just in case. 

“Let’s do this!”

Teru gets through his own school dance easily. Still though, the party afterward is a drab since not the entire school of Black Vinegar hasn’t gotten the memo that Teruki was not the same as before. 

It’s Mob’s school dance that Teru really gets himself prepared for, his best suit — and his favorite — donned along with a matching boa. He would’ve put on the “silly hat”, as Mob calls it, but he feels like he’s pushing it with the boa. Teru doesn’t want to be in the spotlight, after all. 

Teru makes a point to pick Mob up before the boy’s usual departure, which also meant walking to school with Ritsu as well, and , because all of this information was disclosed to Shou the day before, they run into Shou on the way to Salt Mid.

“Might as well go.” Shou smirks at Ritsu, who releases a long-suffering groan. “Hey, Ritsu, hey, I can be your plus one, right?”

Mob muffles a laugh as Shou wiggles his eyebrows and Ritsu raises a fist to punch the red haired boy, only to abandon the motion and sigh. Teru feels a warmth bleed into the atmosphere, probably an effect of their concentrated auras. It feels electric; it feels like comfort. 

Teru is there to watch Mob as he clears his nerves, his partner watching him concernedly at his side. “Are you usually like this?” she asks, and it would make Teru irritated by how blatantly she shows that she didn’t bother to spend enough time practicing with his best friend if Mob didn’t need that kind of attitude right now. 

“How are you not nervous?” Teru answers for him, crossing his arms smugly. Mob’s partner rolls her eyes at him, sharply replying, “Who even are you?”

“My plus one,” Mob responds, apparently having gotten through the battle with his nerves. His partner spooks a little, then frowns. 

“I always get the weirdos,” Teru hears her mutter. Oh, if only Mob didn’t need him to be calm right now. 

Teru is there to watch Mob as he begins his graded dance, a proud smile creeping along his face the more he sees Mob start to care less about the grade and more about having fun. He sees Ritsu and Shou watching with him, and he can tell they’re just as delighted as he is. Ritsu is currently holding Shou back from shouting encouragement, but Teru isn’t much better, consoling himself by reminding that Mob needs to focus for the grade. 

When it’s done, Teru shoves away the ugly spike in his aura when Mob’s partner practically shoves him away with annoyance, beelining for her clique, but Mob doesn’t seem to notice, heading straight for where Teru is. 

“Do you think I did good?” Mob asks timidly, and Teru has to hold himself back from shouting, you need to stop bringing yourself down!  

Instead, Teru exclaims, “You were flying across the floor! Of course I think you did good!”

“You could ease off the teacher’s praise, Hanazawa,” Shou teases, jabbing a finger at him. Then, he turns to Mob with a rarely seen genuinity. “But really, Kageyama, you’re surely the best partner on the dance floor.”

“They already said it, but you did great, Shige.” Ritsu nods, clasping his older brother’s shoulder. “You can rest easy, knowing that.”

All the tension leaves Mob then, an easy smile finding its home on his face. “I’m glad. I was really hoping I could enjoy the rest of the party without worrying about that.”

“Speaking of,” Teru begins to drag Mob back on the dance floor, the beginnings of a fox smile flitting across his face. Mob realizes what he’s doing the second he starts doing it, and fakes a groan. 

“Hanazawa, I just stopped dancing.”

“Well, as your plus one, I want my turn, Kageyama ,” Teru declared, spinning the both of them slowly. 

Mob shakes his head, mirroring Teru’s smile with just a hint of his own kindness to it. “Alright then, Teruki .”

“Alright then, Shigeo ,” Teru echoes, just barely catching onto an ugly snort. Mob still hears it, still laughs at him with every gentle thing in his entire being and then some. It’s contagious, is what it is, so Teru sends a spark of reciprocation, appreciation, and then something that transcends the general meaning of friendship . 

Mob isn’t startled, by any means, but he fumbles with reflecting that same signal back to Teru, maybe because he’s unused to reciprocating it. 

Teru chuckles, and he sways with Mob to the music. In the distance, Teru hears Shou complain about Ritsu not offering him a dance, and judging by the yelp that follows, Ritsu pulled him along somewhere, maybe a more private area. The teachers may have not batted an eye at Shou before, but with Shou’s tendency to expletives, they would’ve grown suspicious at the red haired “student” that they’ve never seen before. 

“I don’t think I’ve complimented your suit before, Teru,” Mob muses, “It’s very striking.”

“You know me.” Teru swung himself this way and that to admire the way it would flare out. 

“Of course.” Mob merely nods along, smile having grown to something serene. “You always have a flair for the dramatics.”

“You mean that affectionately, right?” Teru can’t help but ask. “Just making sure.”

Mob shakes his head, just slightly exasperated. “There’s nothing I can ever say that will not ever be at least a little bit affectionate towards you, Teru.”

Teru doesn’t quite know how to respond to that yet, so he settles on making a pleased hum. Once he does, though, he remarks, “I hope you know it’s the same with me, for you, you know?”

Mob quirks his lip, like a grin that’s conflicted between being miffed and amused. “I’ve always known, Teru.”

And it’s not exactly confirmation — it could be the furthest thing from it, and Teru thinks he would be fine — but it floods him with relief and hope all the same. Teru is hyper aware of the way his face melts to clearly show his emotions, and Mob seems to find this concerning. He opens his mouth to ask a question, except he can feel himself floating just a bit, and realizes the wash of aura over the both of them isn’t upset; Mob beams upon the recognition. 

Nobody comments when Teru and Mob are slightly taller, and seem to be gliding across the dance floor. Nobody seems to notice, either too hammered or perhaps swept in something similar, when the lights seem to glow brighter, or when vines start sneaking through the cracks in the windows and start to bloom. 

When Mob snickers and it starts to become a laugh, Teru finally sets the both of them down. He has to backtrack when only one pair of shoes click against the floor. 

“Are you wearing your sneakers ?” Teru gapes at him. Mob flushes. 

“Is– am I not supposed to—?”

Teru sighs, converting his exasperation into something fond. “No, but, next time, just bring dancing shoes, okay? It’ll be more satisfying that way.”

Mob hums. “No, I think I like my sneakers.”

Teru exhales through his nose. “Yeah, I figured.”