Archive of Our Own ^beta

Shigeo Kageyama knew he'd never be a normal kid. Sometimes he's okay with that, like when he's with his friends, or when he's at work with Master Reigen. However, there's no time where he desires more than to just be a normal middle school student than when he's at home, sitting across from his mother at the dinner table.

His mom was the one who wanted to be normal, he just wanted to be popular. He didn't even know what she was always so upset about. Really, he was just a normal kid who happened to be not so normal, but isn't everyone? Even Master Reigen agrees, it's pretty much impossible to find a completely normal person anywhere. And yet, his mom was insistent that he should be. Every night as he walked by and make comments in passing like, "You know, Ritsu doesn't need to be so quiet all the time, and do all that stuff with his hands." "If you just went back to wearing girl clothes you probably wouldn't be so upset all the time about bad fabrics or whatever." "Those psychic powers of yours are pretty darn inconvenient, you know?" It was just a constant session of shame every direction he turned.

He was lucky enough to have Ritsu on his side 100% of the way. Whenever he needed advice on "guy clothes" Ritsu was willing to tell him everything he knew, and they were still young enough to be able to share clothes. His mom wasn't too thrilled when it turned out that not only did she have two sons on the spectrum, but they had also both been psychics. To her this was the end of the world, until she realized just how much of himself Ritsu was able to put on a shelf for the approval of others, something Shigeo struggled with. Did that mean she wanted to help either of her sons? No, it simply meant that now she could compare Shigeo's "bad" behavior to Ritsu's "good" behavior. 

She had very little regard for how her behavior was making one son feel pressured to perfection and left the other feeling like he'll never be worth much. It was her way of coping afterwards.

Shigeo couldn't help but notice that she had a very different attitude to his identity than the rest of her family. Ritsu had obviously been very supportive, and his dad appeared supportive, at least, he used Shigeo's name and pronouns, and corrected anyone who got it wrong, but his mom was different. She would obviously use his name around his brother and father, otherwise they'd force her to correct herself, but alone she would always seem to forget on purpose.

"Hey Shimeko!" She'd call from down the hallway, "Come here! I need your help with something!"

In the past Shigeo would have stood up right away and pretended it didn't bother him, but the one time Ritsu had caught this behavior in action he stopped him and told him not to respond until she got it right. So he stayed sitting, trying to ignore the fact that she perfectly enunciated every syllable.

"Shimeko! Come here!" She'd shout again, "I need your help and your father isn't here!"

He stayed sitting, his instincts telling him that he should go anyways if she really needs help, but his logic overriding and reminding him that if it's really that important, it wouldn't be too much of a pain to use his real name.

"Shimeko! Where is that girl?" The way she would huff would feel like a hundred daggers straight to Shigeo's heart. He knew, no matter how performative she was around Ritsu and dad, no matter how many times she said she'd love him no matter who he was, no matter what made him happiest, it would always be the same. She would only ever see him as Shimeko, her little girl, "Shimeko!"

He stood up and walked to the door, but froze when presented with the knob. It would be easier to just get it over with and not have to listen to her, but then she wins. Then she'd start making comments about how she always knew his little "rebellious act" was over, along with some spiel about how "mother knows what's best for her little girl." He didn't want to hear it. She could do it herself if it really wasn't worth saying his name. Then again, she was also his mother. Shouldn't he love her as unconditionally as she was supposed to be loving him?

Thoughts swirled in his mind that left him trapped staring at the knob. He was frozen, waiting for a right decision. Was he really too young? After all, fourteen years-olds are prone to making stupid decisions and saying stupid thing, was he really too young? Maybe she was right, maybe this was all just a phase. Maybe one day he'd realize all of this was stupid and he'll regret telling everyone he wants to be a boy and wants to be called Shigeo.

Then again, it was his life. So what if it was a phase? Phases are good, at least, that's what Master Reigen says. Reigen made a point to tell him that as long as he wasn't hurting anyone else or himself, having a phase was a sign of growing as a person. Phases meant that he was trying to find himself and what makes him happy, and it's okay if it doesn't last forever. And if it isn't a phase, even better, because it means he found something that makes him feel comfortable in his own skin. Whether it be a new hobby, a new style, or even a new name and set of pronouns. 

"Oh for the love of- Shigeo!" She finally gave in, crossing her arms waiting for him to respond. Once he hears his real name, he never hesitates to help. Ritsu's right. If it really is as important as she makes it out to be, then she can take the extra second to say his name. 

But it doesn't change the fact that it hurts. It hurts that every time she calls his name, he has to think about how she might be right. Maybe he is confused. Maybe he's just looking for attention now and later will regret taking resources from other trans people. Well...not that he had any resources, none that couldn't be bought off of Amobzon. (Even though Reigen warned him to never touch binders if they came in an Amobzon box and to buy from trans owned businesses instead.) Every time his mom called that old name, he felt a blow straight to his heart. She'd never see him as him, only who she wants him to be. He'll never get to be much else in her eyes, no matter how many layers or binders he wore, he'd still just be her little girl. 

The first time she did it, he had to sit in his room and force himself to not cry. Crying was for girls, and if he kept crying, he'd keep being a girl. Being a boy was supposed to be easy, so why did he keep having to break off and hide pieces of himself for wasted efforts? Why did he have to pretend nothing bothered him? Why was it that if he asked for basic respect he was seen as a snowflake who was too easy to offend? Why was everything so awful? He sees how Reigen gets to live his life, how all those other trans guys on the internet get to live their lives, so why did his have to be so sucky? Would he just be conforming to these stupid roles until people decided he did it well enough to deserve the right to be himself?

He would get into really distressed states, to the point he couldn't help but cry. He would beat himself up for thinking he was faking it. He would curse himself out for the fact that he simply just couldn't be a real man, he had to be faking it for attention. He had to be making it all up. He was so stupid.

But then, something would stop him, something that validated it all in his head. A simple memory from Master Reigen's office. The first day he walked into work wearing the binder Reigen had helped him pick out and pay for (he could have taken it out of Mob's paycheck, but then he'd be doing unpaid labor for a year.) The pride in Reigen's eyes made him feel like he was being looked at by a dad seeing his son walk out on the graduation stand as valedictorian. 

"Is it doing okay? I can't tell," Shigeo said, "It's working right? I don't know. I heard it's supposed to be hard to breathe in, but I'm breathing very well right now. Does that mean something's wrong?"

"No no, it's working alright," Reigen said, standing up and moving to stand in front of him, "It's just...you look happier, more like you, y'know?"

Mob felt his face shift as he looked up at Reigen, in that instant, he wasn't Shimeko, he didn't even know who she was. He was Shigeo. It was him. He was standing in his own body with his own name, a boy. It felt good. It felt real. 

"Y'know, it's funny," Reigen said, a small smile forming on his lips, "I don't think I've seen you smile like that in a while."

Being trans was only the tip of the iceberg, don't even get him started on how his diagnosis is treated.

Being psychic and being autistic have always been intertwined experiences for Shigeo. It's not like he could separate them. Having psychic powers made it hard to relate to people without them. Being autistic made it hard to relate to his allistic peers. There were things he couldn't do with psychic powers that people without them could. There were things he couldn't do as a result of being autistic that his allistic peers easily could. It was pretty much the same, except one made him able to lift a bus with his mind and the other made him sensitive to loud noise. Not that those don't also intertwine (in a way.)

He never saw a big issue with it. He was diagnosed young, but was never really high support needs. He was just a regular kid who was also autistic. Ritsu got his diagnosis a little before realizing he had psychic powers, but Shigeo couldn't really speak on Ritsu's experience. From what he knew, it wasn't a big deal to him either. If anything, it answered some questions he had about himself and made living his life a little easier. But as for Shigeo. it really did not matter. He was happy to know how to accommodate himself, but otherwise it's not like he lived any different from other kids (if you don't take the fact that he goes through a gallon of milk in three days since he rarely drinks anything else) as ordinary as ordinary comes, if ordinary is even a real thing.

And yet, from the moment his mom heard the diagnosis, she treated it like her kid had been diagnosed with cancer and she had two weeks to say goodbye. 

"Doctor! Please tell me it's not true!" She lashed out at the psychiatrist. Shigeo had been lining up the stuffed animals on the floor that the psychiatrist kept on the couch, promising the stuffed animals he'd put them back on the couch as soon as he strategically figured out the best way to give all of them a hug at once, "There has to be a cure!"

"There isn't," the psychiatrist looked bored, exhausted even. Mrs. Kageyama was not the first parent to lash out about their kid being autistic, unfortunately, she wouldn't be the last either, "But you can start looking into 504 plans and accommodations. Looks like little Shime is doing alright for her age, so I'd recommend-"

"There has to be something!" She shouted again, standing and shaking her head. The psychiatrist just stared ahead, not knowing if it would even be worth giving her the physical documents since she'd probably just rip them up in her fit, "Look at my little girl! Does she look stupid to you?!"

"I never said that," the psychiatrist's expression never changed, "A lot of autistic people tend to excel in academics. Shimeko looks like she's at an average standing in school, though I'd love to get an evaluation done on your boy too. I know the doctor only recommended Shime get tested, but siblings share a lot of genes, and he seems-"

"No! No! I won't accept this!" She shouted. Shigeo would have covered her ears, but he felt too bad for the stuffed animals that couldn't. So he captured them in a hug so their ears would all be pressed together and they couldn't hear the loud noise. The psychiatrist made a mental note of this behavior, it could help with establishing the poor kid's 504 with his dad, who had yet to drop the stupid smile on his face, "My little girl's life is not going to end here! She'll make something of herself! Just you wait! She's not autistic! She's not going to be reduced to this...this...disease!" 

"Ma'am please," the psychiatrist's eyebrows were knit, still trying to keep that composed expression, "Don't forget that part of the diagnosis is sensory issues. You might be hurting Shimeko's ears by shouting." She was, the psychiatrist could tell by the way Shigeo had buried his head in the pile of stuffed animals, working together with them to avoid the deafening sounds of his mother's screeching. 

"It's not hurting her because she's not autistic!" She shouted. The psychiatrist was starting to wonder if her husband was a mannequin with the way he just watched. Maybe if the psychiatrist watched long enough the man wouldn't even blink, "How could you do this to a child! You're sick! You know that?! Trying to reduce a child capable of so many things to nothing! She's not autistic! She's smart and talented! She can do things! She's not a difficult kid! She can grow out of this! She's just-"

"Ma'am, I'm going to have to stop you right there," the psychiatrist no longer had that even expression on their face, their eyebrows furrowed deeply and a type of rage in their eyes, "I myself am autistic and I don't appreciate the things you have to say about people like me. Now, would you like to talk about establishing a 504 plan so Shimeko can continue going to school safely? Or would you rather leave with nothing and let poor Shimeko fall behind?"

Realizing her colossal mistake by trying to throw herself a pity party in a doctor's office, Mrs. Kageyama finally sat down and spoke in an even tone, her husband still having absolutely nothing of value to say, or anything to say. 

After that was said and done, the psychiatrist could only hope they didn't have to be the doctor that evaluated Ritsu later down the line.

His mother never let go of the dramatics around his autism diagnosis. Constantly taking to local forums on Mobbook to whine about how hard Shigeo's diagnosis made her life, making posts about how she'd try anything to cure his autism (which she did start with essential oils, until Shigeo had a meltdown and exploded every essential oil bottle over her dresser drawers,) and talking to other mothers on community forums, all trying to compete for each other's attention, using their children who don't want the attention as a crutch. 

But in Shigeo's opinion, the worst had to be the support groups.

When he was little, he'd get excited about going to these support groups because it meant a bunch of sweet women doting on him offering him cookies and getting to play with toys he didn't have at home. Once he was old enough to at least process where he was, they became a new circle of hell just for him. He had to sit next to his mom in an outfit he hated and listen to her and a bunch of old ladies talk about how he and their kids were plights on their life, all while his mom made sure everyone deadnamed and misgendered him. Even after Ritsu was diagnosed, she still took him once a month to these stupid support groups because, "Ritsu may be autistic, but he's not as troublesome as you."

And now, approaching the twenty-sixth of the month, yet another one of these stupid support groups is coming up. Support for who? He feels absolutely no support when people look at him like a monster trying to ruin his mother's life. He loved his mom, but he really couldn't handle her treating him like a dog that chews up pillows.

He sat at his tiny desk at Spirit's and Such, bouncing his leg nervously. He knew it was coming, he knew he'd have to deal with it this month, just like every month. But he also always held onto a small sliver of hope that something terrible would happen that gets this month's support group canceled. Nothing tragic like a death or someone getting hurt. More like the building that it's always held in being picked up by a tornado, or every single toilet in the building simultaneously exploding and flooding everything. 

"Hey Mob," Reigen stood from his computer, "Think you'll be able to make it to work tomorrow? There's this really nasty spirit that I think you- holy crap!" Reigen looked at Mob and his face instantly fell, quickly dropping to his knees to meet eye to eye with Shigeo, putting the back of his hand to his forehead. The usual vacant expression on Mob's face was replaced by a drain in color, noticeable chattering teeth, dilated pupils, and trembling so fast you could mistake the poor boy for a Chihuahua, "Are you okay?! Have you been wearing your binder too long again? I should have and old sports bra in my drawer if you need it, don't overdo it!"

"No, it's not that, but thank you," Shigeo said, his teeth loudly clacking together as he shook.

"Good," Reigen sighed in relief, his hand still on the boy's forehead. He pulled away humming, "No fever, are you feeling alright? You look like a corpse."

"Is that a bad thing?" Shigeo asked, feeling like his brain was filled with fog.

"What do you mean is that a bad thing? You nearly scared me to death!" Reigen shouted. As soon as he heard the volume of his own voice his cleared his throat, lowering his tone before speaking again, "As much as I appreciate your dedication, I'd rather you just stay home if you're not feeling good."

"No, I'm fine," Shigeo's voice was quiet, he began to wring his hands together as he spoke, trying to focus on the motions rather than the dread of the upcoming hell he'd be dragged to, "It's just...I'm gonna be kinda busy tomorrow."

"Oh?" Reigen said, resting his head against Shigeo's desk to listen to him talk, "Anything exciting?"

"No, not at all," Shigeo said, "Actually, I kinda wish I didn't have to go at all."

"Hmm?" Reigen sat up, resting his head against his hand, still leaning into the desk, "Why not blow it off to come here? Or...go out with friends I suppose, but it'd be beneficial to come here too!" Serizawa had plans, so he needed to rely on Mob before he could confirm the date of the consultation with the client.

"Well, I can't," Mob said, gripping his hoodie sleeve to rub his thumb against the ribbed fabric until he gave himself rug burn and had to stop, "It's something I have to do with my mom."

"Ah, her," Reigen didn't get to have very many meetings with the Kageyamas. If anything, Ritsu was the only other member of the Kageyama family he got to meet. But from what he hears, his mom is a real piece of work. The kind of lady who will make any of her kids achievements about her, and whose doting usually was just a ploy to get what she wanted. Yeah, that sounded all too familiar to Reigen. 

As for Shigeo's reasoning, he really did not want to have his Master meet his parents. Reigen was probably the only person in the world other than Ritsu who he really felt like he could completely be himself around. He didn't need to worry about Reigen misgendering him or trying to ask how being trans worked, he didn't need to worry about him thinking he was weird for stimming or struggling to pick up on social cues, and he especially didn't need to worry about him being freaked out or disgusted by his psychic powers. He feared that if he mixed his two worlds, it would only be for the worst. His greatest fear was the day he walked into the office and Reigen called him that name. 

"Yeah," Shigeo tried to avoid sounding too dejected as he talked about the support group, stupid support group, "Once a month she takes me to this...thing."

Reigen tilted his head, resting both arms on the surface of the desk, "Thing?"

"This group meeting," Shigeo said, "Every month we go and she says it's so I can meet people like me and she can talk about her feelings, but I only ever end up getting made fun of by a bunch of old ladies."

"Ah, autism support groups huh?" Reigen crossed his arms and leaned backwards, still sitting on his knees to be eye level with Mob, "Yeah, I'm familiar."

"You are?" Mob looked up at him, not sure what he was hoping to hear, just that he was hoping for something.

"My mom used to go to them when I was little," Reigen admitted, "She had to stop because I threw a fit about it, but I know how you feel."

Reigen felt that the fact that he bit the fingers of ever person who approached him at the support groups and started insulting every woman who tried to make fun of him. Insults like, "If you think my boy clothes look bad, wait until you look at your girl clothes in a mirror lady!" Or "At least my behavioral problems don't lead me to a second divorce!" After that his mom decided going back would just be a wonderful way to waste an hour and fifty dollars a month.

"It's awful, I don't want to go back," Shigeo pouted slightly, gripping the hem of his sleeves and rubbing the fabric between his fingers, "I'd rather be here."

"Aw, don't say that like it's the worst thing in the world," Reigen stood, patting him on the top of the head, "Tell you what, you have the day off tomorrow, go to that support group."

"Oh," Shigeo dropped his sleeves, tapping his fingers against his thighs.

"But, don't get too worried about it," Reigen bent over to meet his eyes, a confident smile on his lips. Shigeo got the feeling based on the way he tapped his forehead that this master of his head a plan, a plan that his mom definitely wouldn't be happy about, "I have a feeling something's about to change."

Shigeo met his eyes and shrugged, "If you say so."

"I do," Reigen said, ruffling the hair on the top of Mob's head before walking back to his desk, "By the way, did you need anything? Your binder still fitting okay? I knew I grew out of mine in my last year of middle school, but it shouldn't be too pricey to get another one a size up if you need it." 

"No, it fits fine," Shigeo said, pulling at the front of his sweatshirt so that the curve under his binder was evened out. The first time he did this Reigen chuckled and patted him on the head saying things like "aw, baby's first dysphoria hoodie" to which Dimple would tell him to just shut up, "Do you have any cough drops though?"

Reigen chuckled, handing him a honey flavored cough drop wrapped in white paper, "I never hear you forcing your voice around here, and I doubt you do at home, someone at school you're trying to impress?"

Shigeo blushed slightly, thinking about Tsubomi tended to do that to him. He knew knowing him since he was little, before he realized he was a boy, would put him at a disadvantage when it came to asking her out, but he had some hope. For one, Tsubomi never failed to use his name or pronouns. Even when she thought he couldn't hear him, she still always called him Shigeo, and corrected anyone who tried to play stupid games. Having her, Onigawara's goons, and the body improvement club on his side made getting gendered at school properly pretty easy. 

Reigen smirked when he saw his cheeks light up, "Trying to impress a girl?"

"N...no!" Shigeo said all too fast, "There's no one!"

"Hmm," Reigen felt like a dad watching his son get all flustered at the dinner table after being asked if he had a crush on anyone in his grade. In a sense, he was proud of Mob. He was growing up so fast, and he got to be there to watch him improve every step of the way. Even if it was something as simple as having a crush on a girl at school, it was still an improvement from the mopey old Mob who seemed to just carry himself from room to room without purpose, "If you say so. You're free to go, I don't have any important clients coming until Serizawa gets back."

"Are you sure?" Shigeo asked.

"Yep, you should only worry yourself with the support group meeting tomorrow," Reigen said, "Or...well...don't, you know what I mean, right?"

"No not really," Shigeo answered honestly. 

"Ah, right," Reigen scratched the side of his head, "Just, go home and relax. This thing is clearly getting to you, I don't want my super star employee getting all anxious about something like this. Get some rest and try to take your mind off of it."

"Oh okay," Shigeo said, standing up, "Well...bye then."

"Have a goodnight Mob," Reigen smiled, waving him off. As soon as he left, he grinned, a master plan forming in his head. After a minute of plotting in his head, he lowered his grin and sighed, looking towards the ceiling of the room, "Hey Dimple, you got a sec."

"You know, I try to avoid having to talk to you when I can," Dimple appeared out of the corner of the room, already annoyed, "What'd'ya want?"

"Did you know about this?" Reigen asked, crossing his arms and leaning his hips against his desk.

"You want an honest answer?" Dimple asked. Reigen rose an eyebrow, "The kid would have more fun watching paint dry, and he'd probably be less tortured getting hit by lightening a hundred times once every minute. Those old hags are ruthless, don't even get me started on that mother of his. The things I could say about that old-"

"It's not polite to insult a woman," Reigen warned.

"She has to be human before you can call her a woman," Dimple sighed.

"Hmm," Reigen said, "How do you feel about possessing someone and wearing a dress?"

"Oh no! Whatever stupid idea you have this time you better leave me out of it!" Dimple yelled, "You're on your own for this!"

Reigen shrugged, "Suit yourself." He smirked, a stupid idea filling his head. A stupidly wonderful idea, "I think it's about time I gave Mob a helping hand."

Shigeo spent the entire rest of the night not following Reigen's instructions. As soon as he got home he started shaking again, hoping with every passing hour that the stupid support group would get cancelled for some reason or another. Maybe he could beg one of his teachers for after school detention so he didn't have to go. Then again, Ritsu would never allow such a thing and his mom would just barge into the school and demand they push the detention back so she could take him. 

If only she could have just brought Ritsu. He wouldn't sit around and let them say bad things about him. They wouldn't have any bad things to say about him. It must be nice to be the perfect child. Then again, being the perfect child nearly got Ritsu involved in gang violence and resulted in him getting kidnapped. What a cruel existence, to have to choose between feeling lower or feeling lonely.

He remembered when Dimple tried to speak up and yell at all the old ladies for what they were saying about him. He was especially furious about the things his own mother had to say, wanting to possess her and make her take it all back, but Shigeo forbade it.

"Just let me get rid of them all! It'll be so quick you won't even notice," Dimple said, floating in front of him, "This is basically slander! It's a crime to let them go on like this!"

"No way, you'd just want to hurt them," Shigeo said.

"So what if a senile old bat breaks her legs? Maybe she shouldn't have been talking smack about a psychic!" Dimple grit his teeth, floating around irritably, "Seriously, I don't get why you don't just deal with them all right here right now! Your psychic powers would leave them all wishing they never even thought to create this so called support group."

"I can't use psychic powers on other people, remember?" Shigeo said, "Not to mention my mom said no using psychic powers at group. Everyone else would freak out and I'd get in trouble."

"That mother of yours needs her head examined," Dimple grumbled, "My mother's reaction to me becoming an evil spirit was way less dramatic than hers!"

"You have a mother?" Shigeo asked.

"That's neither here nor there," Dimple sighed, "If I could I-"

"Who are you talking to Shime?" One of the assistants running the group, who always made a point to bend over at the waist before talking to him no matter how big he got, "Is it one of your imaginary friends?"

"Who the hell are you calling imaginary ya little punk!" Dimple shouted, despite knowing she wouldn't hear a word he said, "I'll run you into the street with your pants on your head and clucking like a chicken!"

"No, I'm just thinking about school," Shigeo said, looking away, "And I told you, it's Shigeo."

"Well, your mother put you down as Shimeko, so I think I'm going to keep calling you that, okay?" The assistant spoke to him the way one would speak to a dog. It got on Shigeo's last nerve, but he never showed it. His mom would get upset if he freaked out and exploded in the middle of the support group, "Do you wanna sit in the play area? I'm sure we have-"

"Don't patronize me," Shigeo said coldly, on the brink of a breakdown.

"Atta boy Shige! Give it to her! Rip her a new one!" Dimple encouraged, hoping that he'd blow up the building in the midst of a breakdown so he would be able to go and do anything else.

"Oh! Well..." The assistant was used to nonverbal autistic kids, kids who were leaning on their parents for advocacy. Had this been a real support group to help newly diagnosed autistic kids learn how to accommodate themselves and work with their 504, maybe they would have had one. But Shigeo was not one of those kids. He was able to be his own advocate, and that freaked out the assistant more than anything, "I just thought-"

"You thought wrong," Shigeo warned, "Leave me alone...please."

"But I just-"

"Shime! There you are!" His mother harrumphed, approaching the two, "You better be behaving yourself!"

The assistant smirked, "Hello Mrs. Kageyama! I was simply talking to little Shime over here. She was telling me all about school! Might I say, she is a rather eloquent speaker!"

"Of course she is," his mother grinned proudly, "I taught her everything she knows."

"But...I could always talk," Shigeo said, feeling hollow, he couldn't even rely on his own mother to be there for him, "I never had a speech delay, remember?"

"She doesn't know what she's talking about," his mother hissed.

"Well children often never do," the assistant chuckled, giving a look to Shigeo, he didn't know what it meant, but he knew she wasn't being nice, "Refreshments are always here if you need them."

"Thank you, come on Shimeko, it's almost our turn," she said, leading Shigeo back to the group.

"Let me at her!" Dimple shouted, floating towards both women, squaring up his tiny fists. Shigeo quickly grabbed him by the spirit flame and hid him behind his back.

His mother hummed and looked backwards in confusion, "Is something wrong?"

"No, I'm fine, lets go," he said, while Dimple yelled muffled curses and insults into his hand.

It was the same every month. He showed up, he experienced hell, trying to pretend nothing was wrong, he went home and spent the night trying not to cry. He just wanted it to stop. Who knows, maybe tomorrow the building would be swallowed by a sinkhole. 

The next day, everything was all too convenient for his mother, all too inconvenient for Shigeo. His teachers had nothing to say to him after class, the body improvement club decided not to meet that day since Musashi was visiting his grandmother and Jun and Hideki were doing community service work, none of his friends in the telepathy club could make up a good enough excuse to keep him at school to hang out, and Reigen had already told him he didn't need to show up at the office that day. He was stuck shaking all day, worrying about the stupid support group.

After school, no one could save him. Ritsu was at the student council meeting, Dimple was missing, Hanazawa was too busy to answer his calls, and his dad was already aware of the support group and encouraged it. Though, it's not like it'd be any better if his dad took him. If anything it would be a worse experience, only he'd be referred to by his proper name and pronouns. His dad always had something to say about his grades and social life.

"Shige c'mon!" His mom shouted, his dad sitting on the couch with a beer bottle in one had, an unlit cigarette in the other, "We're gonna be late!"

Shigeo wanted to be late, he wanted to be a hundred years late, but if they ran late then he had to wait for Ritsu's cold leftovers for dinner instead of whatever fast food his mom bought them beforehand. Unfortunately for his moral, the stomach speaks louder than the heart. 

"I'm coming!" Shigeo said, running down the stairs. He wore a pair of cargo shorts and his green hoodie with a dog's face on it. It was his favorite hoodie, which meant it usually didn't get to see the inside of a washing machine very frequently.

"Oh for crying out loud, what are you wearing?" His mother groaned.

"Clothes," Shigeo said, looking down at himself, was his binder not doing a good enough job? Were his shorts too short? They shouldn't be, they went down to his knees. 

"Oh whatever, don't come crying to me when people have something to say," She waved it off. Shigeo was confused. He was wearing clothes he liked, how was that any different from her sweater and mom jeans? It didn't make sense, "Come on, let's go."

When they arrived, Shigeo was about to blast off with how much he had been shaking. He couldn't do this. No part of him could do this. He wanted to go home already. And when he walked up to the desk with his mom, the assistant's smile made him want to curl up in a ball and blow away with the wind.

"Ah! The Kageyamas!" The assistant said cheerfully, "How are you doing today?"

"Wonderful, thank you," Mrs. Kageyama said, keeping a hand on Shigeo's shoulder, "So glad I could be here today!"

"Aw, that's great," the assistant said, "And how's little Shime doing today?"

Shigeo just stared right through the assistant, already dreading being here.

"She's fine, right Shimeko?" His mom tapped his shoulder lightly as a warning. Shigeo looked away from the assistant, the dejection in his eyes evident.

"I'm fine," Shigeo said, "Just a little-"

"Sorry I'm late!" The voice behind him made him spin around faster than he could process the words he heard, "Had to find something nice to wear."

"Master Reigen?" Shigeo said, looking up at his teacher in both admiration and confusion, "What the heck are you doing here?"

Reigen waved his hand around in a couple circles before giving Mob a thumbs up, "Isn't it obvious? I'm registering for the support group with my son."

Shigeo looked back and forth a few times, expecting to see Dimple in a last minute disguise, only for Reigen to put a hand on his shoulder and wink. It took him a second, but Shigeo realized what this meant. Reigen had come to save him from this awful support group, and he was going to start by pretending that he was Shigeo's dad.

If Dimple were here, he'd be in Shigeo's ear telling him what an idiot Reigen is for trying to come up with something as idiotic as this.

But Dimple wasn't here, and right now, Shigeo would take any excuse he had to get out of this stupid event. 

Though, he didn't understand why Reigen thought he'd need a new suit.

"Well, now that I'm here, I'd like to sign up for today's class," Reigen said.

"Ah, wouldn't you rather have your wife bring your child?" The assistant asked nervously, intimidated by Reigen's command for presence just by walking into the room.

"Hmm?" Reigen tilted his head slightly before leaning against the table, "Why would I do that? Even if I had a wife, isn't this class supposed to be all inclusive? I don't see any signs saying mothers only."

"Well...usually we find the mother of the child deals with these issues..." the assistant said, "It's a lot to put on a father after all..."

"Well, that's just plain wrong, a father should be just as qualified to take care of his kid as a mother," Reigen argued, "And I'm a father who actually cares for my...son." Shigeo didn't have a shred of doubt in his mind. He's watched Reigen talk his way out of psychic terrorist organization rise ups, he could definitely handle one assistant trying to doubt everything about him. 

"Well...alright," the assistant said, "And where is your son?"

"Right here of course!" He pulled Mob in for a hug before quickly letting go, "Oh, sorry, forgot you don't like those."

"It's okay," Shigeo was being honest. If Reigen really had a plan, then anything he tried was okay, "Just warn me next time."

"Right," Reigen nodded. He waved his hand around a few times before pointing at Mob, "This is my son! My name is Reigen Arataka and this is my son-" He suddenly stopped and looked down at Shigeo, "Hey, Mob, would you rather they call you Shigeo or Mob?"

"Oh, Shigeo's fine," Shigeo said.

"Right then, this is my son, Shigeo Kageyama!" Reigen announced like he was announcing a celebrity.

"Uh, you mean little Shime?" The assistant asked. Shigeo's mom was looking at Reigen with disgust, stunned silent from shock. Sure she'd seen him around with Shigeo warning him about traffic and helping him with things, but he never expected the man to go as far as claiming her Shimeko was his son. Hell, she didn't even know what Shigeo was doing with him, she always just assumed he was his after school tutor or something. 

"Who's Shime? The only kid here is Mob," Reigen said. Shigeo was looking at the ground in regret, he shouldn't have let Reigen come here.

See, for all his time with Reigen, he never actually told him his deadname. In the eyes of the law, Shigeo couldn't be a real employee, so he wasn't marked as one. Technically his acts were those of charity and Reigen even paying him in the first place was a sign that Reigen was not heartless. From the beginning Reigen had always called him Mob. In fact, the first name he knew for Mob was when Shigeo told him his chosen name. Now he'd have to worry about even Reigen calling him that.

"Shimeko Kageyama," Mrs. Kageyama spoke up, "My daughter!"

"I wouldn't be so sure," Reigen said, waving his hand around before pointing at Mob's mom, "A mother who can't even remember her own son's name doesn't get to call herself the mother of that child. They say blood runs thicker than water, but if there is no sugar in blood then it stops running completely."

"What are you trying to say you con man?!" Shigeo's mom was fuming, her eye twitched as Reigen dared to suggest she wasn't a real mother.

"I'm saying you're being unkind to your son," Reigen said, "If you're really going to be such a pain about using his name, then it's unquestioningly obvious who cares about Mob more." Seeing the rage painted on her face only made him even more satisfied. This was nothing like arguing with mad men drunk with power, Mob's mom was human, and therefore, she could be spoken to like one, which meant Reigen could pick her apart just a easily as anyone else, "The family one chooses is often stronger than the family one is born with. Whether it's the same people or not is not up to me. So how about we let Mob himself decide?"

She was still fuming, but something about what he said made her stop reeling, "What?"

Shigeo looked up at his teacher in confusion, "Go on Mob, it's up to you. Is it Shigeo or...that name? You don't have to go with me if you don't want. Not that it matters, we're going to the same place anyways."

Shigeo looked over at his mom who looked desperate, pleading with her eyes to make the right decision. Who couldn't pick their own mother? She spent his entire life caring about him and trying to raise him to be a good person. Obviously she loved him.

But then there's Master Reigen. He never had to worry about being called the wrong name or getting misgendered. He never had to hear quips about how inconvenient his psychic powers were or how they only made a mess. If anything, he was always complimented on how he used his psychic powers. He never had to worry about being compared to Ritsu at Reigen's office, Reigen was more focused on praising him for getting better grades and paying more attention in class. He had friends at Spirits and Such, at home he only had Ritsu.

"It's Shigeo," he said, "I'm gonna go get some snacks."

"Oh! They have snacks here! Where?" Reigen said, getting distracted already.

"Over here, they're in the same place every time," Shigeo pointed in the direction of the refreshments stand, which was conveniently far away enough from Shigeo's mom to avoid having her hear the conversation.

"Oh cookies," Reigen picked one up and bit into it, only for the crunch to stop him in his tracks, "Ah! Come on! If you're gonna bring cookies at least don't bring stale ones!"

"Master Reigen, why are you here?" Shigeo asked, "Did you bring Dimple?"

"Hmm? Why would I bring him?" Reigen asked. Shigeo looked right through him, but Reigen just brushed it off, "You need someone who knows a thing or two about these kids of things to get you out of it. An expert in communications and picking people apart psychologically!"

"Woah," Shigeo looked up at him, "So where am I going to find someone like that?"

"Don't play dumb! I was talking about me!" Reigen yelled, but he quickly caught himself, clearing his throat, "I was able to manage to get myself out of one of these forever when I was a kid, I can get us both out of here now."

"Really? How?" Shigeo's cold eyes were looking through him, but he was genuinely filled with hope.

"The organization that runs these support groups is pretty shady," Reigen said.

"Like the espers of Claw?" Shigeo said.

"Sorta, but without the psychic powers or world domination," Reigen said, "They have a lot of buzz words and tend to make a big deal out of the little things. They control most of the public information about people like us, so they get really upset when someone dares to discredit them or try to speak up against them."

"So our plan is to go against them?" Shigeo asked.

"Quite the contrary my boy," Reigen smirked, "We're going to play their game by their rules and make them regret setting up the pieces."

"Huh?" Shigeo was really confused, but he still trusted Reigen. If Dimple were here, he'd have probably groaned about it by now.

"There's nothing you need to be worried about for this process, simply follow my lead and do what you always do," Reigen assured him.

Shigeo was confident in Reigen's abilities, but he had his doubts about his Master's plan to get them out of here. Still, he went along with it. It's not really like he had a choice in the matter. His options were either let Reigen do his thing and get them out of here, or sit around and listen to his mom make fun of him. He definitely had a preference. 

In the support group itself, Shigeo was stuck between his mom and Reigen, both of whom were staring each other down. His mother's expression was scornful, trying to pick apart Reigen with her eyes. Meanwhile Reigen, ever the man of confidence, was able to pick up every cue in her posture, and expression, but still being autistic himself couldn't pick up on the expression and posture he held. To any onlookers, it appeared that a middle aged woman with aged definitions was glaring at a good looking blondie dressed to the nines for an event that could hardly be considered a two, grinning ear to ear. The sight would seem out of place, but it was an autism support network (or as Shigeo liked to put it, half-hour hate. Reigen taught him the reference and Ritsu had to explain it) it wasn't the weirdest thing people have seen.

"I told that idiot not to get involved," the sound of Dimples voice caused Shigeo to look up. Seeing the green spirit grimacing at the sight, he realized there just might be hope for things to get better today.

"Dimple! You came!" Despite being excited, Shigeo kept his voice below a mutter. 

"I had too, that moron's original plan would have gotten him arrested again," Dimple said.

"Ah good, you're here!" Reigen smiled, looking away from Mob's mom to look at the spirit, "Thinking about taking up my offer?"

"The day I pretend to be your wife is the day I let Shigeo exorcise me!" Dimple hissed, threatening to go up Reigen's nose and out through his chest.

"Dimple please!" Shigeo stood, "I told you before! You can't get hostile here!"

"Who are you talking to Shime?" He recognized that voice. Maybe there was one workplace related injury he would have been a-okay with, but then Reigen would scold him for thinking about harm coming to others, "Are you talking to your imaginary friend again?"

"That's it! I'll possess her and twist her bones in circles!" Dimple yelled, racing towards her.

"Dimple no!" He grabbed the spirit by the flame before he could try and possess her.

"Shimeko please, this is getting embarrassing," his mom scolded behind him, "Yes, it's an imaginary friend. She talks to this 'Dimple' character all the time, I can't get rid of this habit of hers, it's starting to get annoying!"

Shigeo loosened his grip on Dimple's flame, averting his gaze to the linoleum tiles. Maybe his mom was right, maybe it was just stupid and annoying. Maybe everything he did was just stupid and annoying. He was stupid and annoying.

"Now what are you talking about?" Reigen gave them all a look, raising his eyebrow. The two women didn't know how to react, this was the first time anyone had dared to suggest that the they might be the crazy ones, especially in their own building. Reigen spun his hand around a few times before pointing at Dimple, "Of course he's not talking to an 'imaginary friend' or something dumb like that. He's talking to something much more powerful." He smirked at the assistant, "In fact," he spun his hand around a few more times before pointing at her, "You should probably be thanking Shigeo here."

"Eh?" The assistant didn't know how to react, "What are you talking about?"

"You- wait," Shigeo's mom was about to protest, but the she realized, being autistic wasn't the only thing about her son that annoyed her, "Y-you don't mean-?"

"Actually I do," Reigen spun his hand around before sticking it out in front of Mob's mom to shake, "Reigen Arataka, aka, the psychic superstar of the twenty-first century, at your service."

"Ah! A psychic!" The assistant tried to reclaim control, talking down to Reigen, who was glaring right through her, "Can you read my fortune?"

"Unfortunately ma'am, my powers are in the field of spirits," Reigen said, "But you could ask Mob if he's willing to do it."

"Mob?" The assistant tilted her head, "Oh, you mean little Shime?"

"You mean Shigeo," Reigen corrected, "There is no one named Shime here. If you're looking for her, then I suggest you look elsewhere."

"Start looking at the top of a building! Look really close to the edge while you're-" Shigeo stopped Dimple from shouting by grabbing him around the mouth and pulling him away from the assistant.

"A-ah, Shigeo!" The assistant said, not used to being talked back to by someone she couldn't beat, "How about it?"

"Oh no, I can't do something like that either," Shigeo said, "Master Reigen always says that people who offer fortune readings are all scam artists since the future is undetermined, and we can learn more from the past by using the present to make the best future."

"I've taught you so well," Reigen acted tearfully as he listened to Mob's deadpan explanation.

"Shut up," Dimple said, being released from Shigeo's grip.

"Good evening everyone," one of the organizers spoke up. Shigeo always thought her face was a little too old for her voice, and her voice was too sharp to be worth listening to, "I hope the cookies I brought this week were satisfactory."

"They were lovely as always," Shigeo's mom spoke up, smiling sweetly. Murmurs of agreement followed.

"Actually, I thought they could have used more butter," Reigen said, grabbing the attention of everyone in the group, "They were tastelessly dry. Maybe an egg or two if that doesn't work."

"Well," the organizers had become slightly flustered when he spoke up, not used to receiving criticism. Usually anyone who didn't like her cookies had brought their own pathetic almond mom excuses for snacks, "Well, we find that butter can actually have a negative effect on children with autism, and we wouldn't want to worsen their condition, so I bake my cookies with a non-fat substitute."

"I see," Reigen wasn't buying it, "Well, if that's the case, I'd like to inquire about your sources on this information, I mean, I wouldn't want to end up feeding my poor Shigeo poison!"

"Oh! Of course," the organizer smiled, feeling she was still in control of the conversation. Reigen wouldn't let that last very long, "Well, if you would like to join the Mobbook group we created for this event you'll find plenty of articles sourcing the dangers that certain foods can have in worsening autism."

"Perfect!" Reigen smiled, "Ah! Actually, there is a small issue, I don't have a Mobbook account!" He chuckled lightly, moving around in his seat as he spoke, "But I will look them up afterwards. Tell me, what are the names of the doctors and researchers putting these studies together?"

The organizer froze, Reigen had to make sure his grin wasn't turning into a smirk. This was his first "gotcha" of the night. And it was only going to get better, "W-well, we find that our studies are actually put together by mothers in the group."

"I see, and are any of these mothers qualified experts in the study of treatments and medicines for autism?" Reigen asked.

"They're mothers of children suffering from autism," the organizer said, "Doesn't that make them qualified enough?"

"Unfortunately not," Reigen shook his head, "Without a degree is psychiatry and psychology focused on autism spectrum disorder, then I'm afraid their theories and snake oils aren't going to be enough to compare to science. But I appreciate the attempts at helping."

The members of the group whispered among themselves as Reigen made his point, but the organizer just hummed. Shigeo didn't know much about Reigen's ability to always win arguments, but he understood that Reigen was winning some battle, and winning was going to get him out of here, "I see mom was too busy to join us today. Tell me, which one is your kid?"

Reigen spun his hand around before pointing at Mob, "This one. Shigeo Kageyama." He smiled and pinched Mob's cheek, causing the middle schooler to lean away slightly and look at the ceiling, "Isn't he just a little lady killer?"

"Being around you is a disgrace to life and death," Dimple said, floating away as he grimaced.

"Master, you're smothering me," Shigeo said.

"Oh! Right, my bad," Reigen said, letting go and giving Mob his personal space, "But, he's my boy, and my pride and joy."

"That is not your son! That's my daughter Shimeko!" Mrs. Kageyama barked at him.

"I still have no idea who that is, you'll have to look somewhere else for her," Reigen shrugged, "My son is the only kid I need to be worried about."

Shigeo heard his mother grumbling behind him while Reigen shot him a small smile. It was working, well sort of. Things were finally starting to see a change. For one, he didn't have to hear that name and feel like a fool, or a poser, or an annoyance. If anything, hearing his mom say his old name while Reigen said his real name made her sound like the crazy one. It was a nice change of pace for once.

The group members didn't know what to think of the sight, so they didn't. The Kageyama kid had two parents, and two names, one of 'em had to be correct. Come to think of it, he looked a lot more like a boy than a girl. Dressed like a boy too. After all, what mother would let her daughter get a bowl cut like that? Unless she was going through a rebellious phase? Nah, not with a hair style like that. 

"I believe we should start this meeting properly," the organizer said, "Mrs. Kageyama, since you've been here the longest, perhaps you'd like to start things of?"

"Oh, it's been a rough couple of weeks," lies, all lies. She wasn't even involved in his life in the past couple of weeks. Shigeo would have argued, but he knew he'd only get in trouble. So he just had to sit there and let it happen, it's not like he expected her to have nice things to say anyways, "Shime's been eating a hole in my pocket with his habits, always wanting seconds at dinner and snacks. Not to mention he's never around the house anymore, so I'm constantly worried about where he is, and-"

"Oh the humility!" Reigen dramatically threw himself up, moving around as he faked tears and wails, raising his hand to his forehead then moving to wave a hand around in the air, "The absolute horrors!"

"Dude," Shigeo could hear Dimple cringing from across the room.

"Woe is me! I have to actually take care of my child like a normal human being!" A couple members raised their brows, meanwhile Shigeo's mom could only furrow hers, sputtering in confusion, "Are we done with the dramatics? Because that's how you sound." He turned to the rest of the group, "That's how all of you sound."

"Look buster! You don't know how hard it is to raise a kid!" Mrs. Kageyama stamped her foot, glaring through Reigen.

"Actually I do, I've had the fortune of accidentally taking on around eleven, not including the fully grown adults who act like children," he said. Mob started counting them out on his fingers, realizing he should probably subtract one since Ritsu would never admit to the fact that Reigen was there to help save him at two of the lowest points in his life, "What you described is perfectly normal for a preteen. If your kid needs to eat more after dinner, maybe you need to start making more dinners."

"Well, I'm too busy to make more than what I put on the table!" She argued.

"Then why don't you get your husband to do it?" He suggested.

"Well, he's the man, he works for the family...he couldn't," she argued.

"Sounds like a total bum," Reigen said.

"You're one to talk!" Dimple shouted at him from the corner, but Reigen hardly reacted.

"That's not true! He works hard!" She argued, "He could ever take time off work for such a menial task!"

"Then it sounds like one of you needs to be more flexible with your scheduling," Reigen said, "Or perhaps you and your husband could work together."

"Well, what if we can't afford more food!? Are you telling me to let him keep doing this even if it puts our bank account in the negative?" Shigeo's mom kept arguing. 

"Even if it were true, that's not what I'm saying at all, that's a logical fallacy and you can't make a proper argument by using one," Reigen said, "I'm not shaming you for struggling with money management, but you shouldn't be taking out your inability to handle your money on your kid." Reigen whipped his hand around again before putting it on his hip, "Not to mention it's actually incredibly healthy for a preteen to start eating more. Their bodies are growing faster than their brains, and they can't do it with nothing. Not to mention that more athletic kids are going to to need more to eat since they burn calories faster than they do their homework."

"Oh please, she's anemic, there's no way she could be considered athletic," Mrs. Kageyama said. 

"Which is all the more reason he should be eating more," Reigen said, "Also, that's not true. He's incredibly athletic, surely you noticed his progress?"

"Progress?" She tilted her head, her confused expression mixing with pure annoyance.

Reigen turned back to the rest of the group, doting on Mob once again, but this time giving him his personal space, "Isn't he just so strong? He works so hard every day! He used to struggle getting up the stairs of the building, but now he can even outrun me! I'm so proud of him!"

"What are you talking about? I never see the dang kid around anymore!" She huffed.

"Yeah, because he's been at school with friends working to get better," Reigen said, "I'm sure that this is all news to you, everyone here actually, but sometimes people decided to work harder and get better rather than complain about their lives to people who couldn't care less. And that's why Shigeo is stronger than all of us." He looked over at Mob and gave him a proud smile, "Even me."

"You don't know what you're talking about!" Mrs. Kageyama shouted.

"Mr. Reigen, as much as your input is appreciated, the point of this support group is for parents of children with autism to vent about their struggles with raising their children," the organizer said, "No one was attacking your child's character."

"You want me to vent? Fine! I'm sick of doing my best to help an autistic child just to listen to other people act like he can't do anything," Reigen said, "And I'm sick of listening to grown adults bully him under the pretense that they're 'venting their struggles.' Mob isn't a helpless child, he's a smart kid who's doing his best to be his best self. Every day I take immense amounts of pride in him and all he's managed to do both with my help and on his own, and yet there are still people like you who demand that people like him need to be cured! He's not a blight, he's autistic, but more than that, he's a person, and you all treat him like an object." He leaned back, putting his hands in his pockets, "There, that's my vent."

"Mr. Reigen! Do not attack the livelihood of my support group!" The organizer yelled, "And we use terms like children with autism! It's not polite to call someone autistic!"

"No, what's not polite is gathering autistic children trying their best to grow up with their peers, but not being able to because their parents couldn't either," Reigen said, "In fact, anything you have to say about Mob you can say to me. But unlike him, I don't have someone breathing down my neck telling me to sit still and shut up, so don't get mad when I have something to say back."

"Mr. Reigen, children with autism tend to have violent outbursts," Mrs. Kageyama argued, "Shimeko hurt her little brother in an outburst because she didn't know her own strength when they were younger, and poor Ritsu had to be hospitalized and is terrified to be around his sister! You have no idea what it's like!"

"Really? That's the hill you want to die on?" Reigen huffed, "You really want to-"

"Easy Reigen," Dimple warned from the corner, "You got this, if you get angry, she wins."

"Master Reigen..." Shigeo said softly. He really did feel bad about that day he hurt Ritsu, he felt bad about it a lot. But, it wasn't something that plagued him. And it's not just because Ritsu forgave and forgot long ago.

Reigen looked at Mob and sighed, taking a breath before speaking again, "Do you know where he ended up after that incident? My office. I don't specialize in kids, in fact I used to hate them. The thought of having a child one day made my skin crawl, thinking about how much of my life I'd have to give up for one, but still he showed up. And he told me in confidence everything plaguing him. This little boy with no one to go to, no friends to lean on, and no family to listen to him, came to me with something as serious as fearing a part of himself he couldn't get rid of. I easily could have just told him to go away, but I saw something in him. Something not even his own mother could see in him apparently. Something to be proud of. And sure enough, I saw him the next day, and the day after that. I kept seeing him more and more and got to watch him grow up before my eyes. Half of my day was taken up by him, and so was half of my joy." Reigen turned to Mrs. Kageyama, "He may be your kid sure. You may be the reason he lives and breathes, but if you continue to treat him like this, he won't be family." He turned to Mob, "Do you consider me family? Be honest, I won't be mad if you say no."

"What kind of question is that?" Shigeo's deadpan stare was expected, but it seemed different. This time, it was filled with hope, "Of course I consider you family. You, Serizawa, Dimple, Ritsu, Hanazawa, Kurata, everyone."

Reigen smiled, "You can try to argue that blood runs thicker than water, but that also directly contradicts the notion of catching more flies with honey. You can't call someone family if you don't really love them. And I love Mob, he's like the son I didn't know I needed."

"Mr. Reigen please," the organizer said, "It's true, children with autism are prone to lashing out and hurting people. This is supposed to be a safe space where parents can share their struggles with this behavior."

"So? My niece out in the countryside used to bite me every time I came to visit because she got super excited, so you know what my sister did?" He began, "I'll give you a hint, it wasn't complain to a group of bullies calling themselves a support group." He waited a minute before answering his own question, "She taught her how that when she gets too excited she can stomp her feet or spin in circles before grabbing onto me. The only excuse for poorly behaved children is poor parenting. If you can't teach your child alternative ways to express their emotions, you don't have a right to complain about them. Autistic or not, kids are not animals, and autistic kids need to be raised with their allistic peers, not like babies."

"Mr. Reigen, I'm sorry, but you're going too far," the organizer said, "Children with autism are mentally delayed. They'll always be trapped behind their peers. We're here for the parents who are struggling to cope with the fact that their children may be dependent on them forever, the parents who dread the fact that their children will never go into the work field, or make a name for themselves."

Reigen held up a hand, "Yeah, I'm gonna have to stop you there." Reigen gave a bored look to the organizer, "I'm a business owner and autistic, so every word of what you said isn't true."

The organizer's jaw dropped, as if it was some shocking revelation that autistic people are capable of achieving anything, "W-well, that's only because you're high functioning! But a low functioning person could never-"

"Actually, I'm going to have to stop you there too," Reigen said, "My cousin in the country side had higher support needs than me, lives with his parents, and can't communicate without an AAC tablet, and he's more accomplished than me, he's a published author. Don't try to tell me autistic people can't be anything."

"And how do we know you aren't lying!" Mrs. Kageyama stood, "How do we know you're not just infiltrating a place for mothers trying to cope!"

"Mom please!" Shigeo stood as well, "He's making good points and you're getting mad at him."

"Sit back down Shimeko! I won't have my daughter embarrassing me!" She yelled, "I can't believe you're letting this crazy man pollute your brain with bad ideas! A girl like you shouldn't be around men like him!"

Shigeo was trying so hard to keep his cool, to hold back everything he was thinking, that's what worked in the past, but that's only because he's been alone. Ritsu has been there, helping is home actually feel like home, Dimple has been there, lambasting every nasty thing his mom has had to say about him, and now, Reigen is right by his side, ready to take over and fight with him no matter what obstacle he faced. And in that moment, he was compelled, compelled to finally fight back against everything.

100% Family

"My name is Shigeo, and I'm not going to let you insult me anymore," Shigeo said, his eyes surging with emotion, his body overflowing with power.

"Shime! What's gotten-"

"Shigeo," he corrected, his voice cold. Behind him, Reigen was beaming with pride.

"Whatever, just sit back down and-"

"No mom!" He insisted, "I'm tired of this. I'm tired of being brought here to be treated like I'm helpless. I want to be able to go to my club, or my job, not listen to you whine like my life is just an inconvenience for you. You have no idea how hard it is to live my life, yet you act like you have it worse than me."

"Atta boy Shige!" Dimple encouraged him, "Give it to her!"

Reigen glared at Dimple before turning back to Mob, "You're a strong kid Mob, and a real good one at that. You make everyone around you proud. Don't let her get to you."

"I won't," he said, "Because this ends today. I don't want to listen to you make fun of me to old hags anymore."

"Old hags? Now that's just rude!" His mother still kept insisting, "Shime you-" She fell backwards into her seat when he took a step towards her.

"Shigeo," he corrected again, "Now-" He was cut off, the power flowing through him abruptly coming to a halt at the feeling of someone's arm around his. It wasn't Reigen's.

"Hey! Get your paws off of me! This suit was expensive!" Judging by those words, Reigen was probably caught too.

Without a word, security dragged the two men to the front of the building, pushing them onto the road and slamming the door. Dimple followed behind shortly after.

"Well that blows," the ghost sighed, "And just as we were getting to the good part too."

"Yeah," Reigen said. He turned to Mob and smiled, "Welp, wanna get some soba."

"I already ate," Shigeo said softly.

"Yeah, me too," Reigen said, "How about some kakigori?"

"Okay, sounds good," Shigeo said. But it was better than good, everything was great. Sure he'd probably end up in some trouble by the time he got home, but right now, he only had one thing on his mind.

His mom was definitely not going to try and drag him to one of those stupid support groups ever again.