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When Yuuta finally returns home from Africa, he is greeted with a burst of confetti to his face and a large, booming chorus of voices, "Welcome home!"
He is on approximately two hours of sleep and is exhausted from his flight, so it's to no one's surprise that Yuuta nearly jumps three feet in the air in shock. He recovers soon after, though, and when he hears Maki's laughter ringing in his ears or spots Inumaki struggling to release his own party popper, he bursts into a relieved smile.
"Eh, Yuuta? What did Miguel do to you?" Panda teases. "Your eyebags are so bad!"
"You look like Panda," Maki helpfully supplies, snickering when Panda sends her an affronted glare.
Yuuta waves the questions away, stepping into the place. He was informed earlier by Gojo to head down to the basement when he arrives at school. Yuuta has never been here himself before. He looks around, taking note of the area.
It looks like an in-built home theatre, with a large TV screen against the brick wall, a few couches stretching across the room, and a table of food near the back, filled to the brim with traditional dishes. Yuuta's stomach grumbles at the sight, his mouth watering at the idea of tasting home again.
He had lots of fun in Africa and learned much more than he could have ever anticipated, but nothing will beat being here: Surrounded by his friends and blanketed by their comforting warmth.
Yuuta sets his things down, looking to the other side of the room. He sees Megumi on some bean bags, talking to two other people he doesn't recognise. He has gotten a few updates here and there from Maki about their new juniors when they call on occasion to catch up, but he has never seen them in person before.
Before Yuuta can say anything, the girl with a short bob looks up, her eyes zeroing in on him like a hawk. She gasps, rising to her feet and pointing a sharp finger at him. "You're the reason I didn't get my trip to Kyoto!"
The other boy with hair as pink as cotton candy leaps up alongside her, wrapping an excited hand around her arm. "Oh, oh! That's Okkotsu-senpai, right? Wow, he's so tall. He's a special-grade sorcerer, right?"
"Stop asking so many questions right in front of his face," Megumi sighs, tugging the boy down, who goes tumbling with an 'oof'.
"Um," Yuuta begins, wondering how he has already made enemies. It's barely been five minutes. "It's nice to meet you..? Hi, Megumi."
Megumi nods at him. "Welcome back."
Before any further conversation can take place, a familiar, overwhelming wave of cursed energy overtakes the area. Yuuta turns before he even sees him, just in time to prepare himself as Gojo drags him into a headlock, ruffling his hair.
"Yuuta!" he croons. Shoko comes up beside him, her hands in her pockets and an eye roll at the ready. "My favourite student! Did you have fun on your trip?"
Yuuta makes a weak affirmative noise.
"Really? Miguel didn't rough you up enough?"
"He actually spent most of it talking about how much he doesn't like you," Yuuta replies, finally wrestling himself out of Gojo's hold.
"Wow. Is that really what you should say to me after a year?"
Their banter continues as Yuuta settles in, dropping onto an offered seat to give his aching legs a rest. He is properly introduced to Yuuji and Nobara, who regard him with impressively high levels of energy, and by the time Megumi drags them away, he is stunned to silence.
"They're a lot, huh?" Maki says as she invites herself onto the seat next to him. "That's our juniors."
"Yeah, um, wow," Yuuta laughs.
Inumaki comes up from behind them, resting his arms on the back of the couch. He pushes Yuuta's head for fun, then taps Maki's shoulder and points to the food, a question in his eyes. Maki nods. "Yeah, Toge. Shall we start eating? The food will get cold."
"Oh, sure!" Yuuta jumps up, heading over to the food table and marvelling over the selection. Panda is already grabbing a plate for him, which he takes with a muttered thanks.
"Yuuji and Toge made most of it," Panda tells him. "But Maki contributed to making the soup!"
At that, Inumaki snorts, making some quick gesture that Yuuta doesn't catch. Maki, on the other hand, gives him a glare, punching his shoulder. "Shut up!"
"Toge banned her from the kitchen after she burned three gyozas in a row," Panda explains. He cowers away when Maki turns that sharp glare towards him.
Yuuta eyes the three gyozas at the very corner of the plate, looking like they're about to fall off the edge. They are poorly covered on one side with a piece of lettuce. He smiles. "I see."
Maki is still grouching as she comes over, snatching an empty plate for herself. She visibly hesitates, as if fighting an internal battle, before grabbing some of the sashimi sushi and placing them neatly on the plate. She then reaches for an onigiri, some spicy tuna rolls—
Yuuta pauses. Maki isn't a picky eater, but the one thing she refuses to eat because of the texture and smell is tuna. Did she somehow develop a change in taste buds in just a year? He supposes that's not too implausible, but…
All his queries come crashing down when Maki turns around, handing the plate over to Inumaki. Inumaki grins, visible even beneath the collar of his jacket, the edges of his curse mark peeking out. Yuuta watches, confused, as Maki ducks her head, silently taking another plate.
Wait a minute…
He blinks rapidly, chancing a glance at Panda. But Panda is moving around, not paying a single bit of attention to their other two friends.
Yuuta wracks his brain for a reasonable explanation. It's not that his friends aren't affectionate with each other or anything, but something about that interaction seems a lot more… subdued?
Now that he thinks about it, even Inumaki's mischievous grin was softer than usual, and Maki didn't punch his shoulder as hard as she normally would.
Yuuta continues debating about this internally, thinking so hard that he almost drops a piece of karaage chicken. He brings his full plate over to the floor where Megumi and Yuuji are sitting, crossing his legs and balancing his plate over his knee.
"Yuuta-senpai!" Yuuji cheers. "Maki-san said we can watch a movie together later. I think—"
"Do not let him choose," Megumi interrupts. "He has the worst taste in movies."
"I second that!" Nobara yells.
"What the hell!" Yuuji whines. "Anyway, last month's movie for movie night was Inumaki-san's pick, so he can't pick this time. Everyone else can suggest something."
"Maki-san will probably let Inumaki-san pick anyway," Megumi mutters. It's so quick that Yuuta almost doesn't catch it. Almost.
Yuuji laughs, his voice ringing out loudly. "Yeah!"
Before Yuuta can say anything, Inumaki comes by, flopping onto the floor. He's already halfway through his onigiri. He knocks his knees against Yuuta's in greeting, who smiles back despite the messy thoughts swirling around his head.
They continue chatting the night away. Yuuta spends most of it catching up with his friends on his adventures in Africa and overall just savouring their presence. It's been so long since he's felt this warm glow in his chest, the kind that only comes from a place like this—surrounded by joy and laughter.
Still, one thought plagues his mind throughout the whole night. When it's time to watch a movie, it ends up being Nobara's pick. She chooses something she calls a 'dramatic classic' and they all crowd around the small couch, some of them on the floor. They bid Gojo and Shoko goodnight, who remind them not to stay up too late before taking their leave.
As the movie plays, Yuuta sneaks a glance at Inumaki and Maki. He is huddled up on the right side of the couch, with Inumaki in the middle and Maki on the left. His friends are bathed in the currently reddish lighting from the screen, some momentous death scene playing out right now. Inumaki's eyes are glued to the screen, but Maki's are trained downwards.
Yuuta leans forward a little bit to get a better view of what she's doing. He freezes.
Okay, it's nothing that incredulous. Maki has Inumaki's hand in hers, fiddling with his fingers and tracing mindless shapes into his palm. Inumaki doesn't move or acknowledge it at all, simply letting it happen.
Yuuta frowns. It's a level of closeness he didn't know they were at. He supposes he cannot say anything, though, considering how he was separated from them for a year, but he's also beginning to wonder how long he can use that as an excuse.
He doesn't think that they're acting particularly different, but something between them has definitely changed.
Inumaki's shoulders shake as he laughs at something on the screen that Yuuta missed. At that, Maki looks up. They make eye contact and her eyes crinkle in amusement, sharing his joy. Something quiet but intense swirls in her eyes.
When Yuuta finally places a name on it, he has to physically hold himself back from gasping.
Arriving at his answer, it all begins to make sense: Inumaki and Maki have ridiculous, adorable puppy crushes on each other, and they're in the mutual pining stage where neither of them are going to make a move, and instead keep up this little dance around each other that toys the line between platonic and romantic, and it’s going to be a pain in the ass for everyone else.
Truly, Yuuta has been separated from them for so long that he didn't realise, but it all makes sense to him now. And so, he needs to intervene. As both of their best friends, it is his duty.
Right, okay. He'll think about this after the movie when everyone's gone to sleep. He is going to be the best wingman ever and help his best friends get together.
Yuuta seeks out Megumi's help first.
Normally, he'd go for Panda, who knows the other two almost as well as he does, but Panda just… doesn't understand the word 'subtle'. It'll be too much. Yuuta needs someone quieter, someone who can keep a secret. Naturally, Megumi is his first option.
He manages to catch Megumi alone in his room, right after classes. Yuuta had very sneakily waited for the other first years to leave him alone, going off to play video games with Inumaki, before knocking on his door. When Megumi opens it, he raises an eyebrow in surprise, but lets Yuuta in anyway.
"What is it?" he asks. There's a book lying on his bed and a bowl of apples on his bedside table.
"Uh…" Now that Yuuta is here, he realises that he did not think this through. How can he even bring this up without sounding like a weirdo? Does Megumi even realise that Maki and Inumaki are crushing on each other, or is this information only he is privy to? "So, I haven't been around in a long time. I was noticing things that are a little… different, with everyone. And I was wondering if, you know, you knew anything?"
Megumi blinks. Yuuta admits that he's not giving him much to work with here, but he appreciates that he's trying anyway, judging by the deep frown on his face.
"...I guess Kugisaki's roots are showing, but I won't tell her that because she'll kill me. And I don't think that's what you're asking."
"Ah, no! Just… with Maki and Inumaki-kun."
Megumi tilts his head. "They're no different from how they've always been."
Right, okay. This means Yuuta is the only one who knows they have a crush on each other, then. He opens his mouth to explain himself, but he's stopped when a quiet voice in the back of his mind tells him not to. For some reason, it feels wrong to 'expose' their feelings, even if they didn't directly tell him.
This means he must figure out a way to get them together without revealing his true intentions, and somehow gain the help of his allies.
His first thought is that he should set them up on a conveniently placed hangout that may or may not turn into a date. Back in Africa, Yuuta was often dragged to group hangouts, and because he knew nobody else there, he'd attach himself to Miguel. That is, until Miguel explained that he was trying to slip away for some alone time with a girl he was eyeing, which made him stop following him everywhere.
If he can somehow pull off the opposite—slip away so Maki and Inumaki can be alone together, then everything will be perfect.
"We're having dinner together later, right?" he asks.
Megumi nods. "Itadori is cooking again. He said he wants to impress you."
At that, Yuuta is momentarily distracted, a bit of embarrassment blooming in his chest. "Oh… really? He doesn't have to. I like him already."
Megumi snorts, shaking his head. "Tell him that yourself. He's going to become a five star chef overnight for you."
"I'm flattered, I think." Yuuta laughs, taking a step back towards the door. Right before he leaves, he pauses, the cogs in his mind turning. "...Actually, I, um, wanted to spend time with just the other second years today. I hate to ask this, but—"
"I'll drag Kugisaki and Itadori somewhere else," Megumi finishes for him.
Yuuta internally pumps a fist. He knew he could count on Megumi. "Awesome, thanks! I'll go now, I think Gojo-sensei is calling me, haha, bye!"
He disappears out of the door before he can catch Megumi's reply, heart pounding after telling such a bold-faced lie. The guilt will gnaw on his heart for at least another five minutes, especially because he's now on the way to tell another lie.
Well, not exactly a lie. He's just manipulating the situation based on what knowledge he has on hand. He is still going to feel bad about it, though, especially because Itadori Yuuji is one of the sweetest, most genuine people he's ever met, and—
"Oh, jeez!" Yuuta jumps as Inumaki bumps straight into him, sending him stumbling back. The other boy mutters a curse under his breath, giving him an apologetic look, holding up a chicken nugget before slipping past him and continuing his dash. Few seconds later, Yuuta hears a loud, affronted yell from the other end of the corridor. He barely gets a second to step aside before Maki is racing past, her hair flying behind her.
"Give that back, Toge, you little shit!"
Inumaki's laughter rings down the hallway. Yuuta watches them go, something fond tugging at his heartstrings as all his other worries fade away into white noise.
He wants them to be happy. He's going to set this plan in stone.
Yuuta finds Yuuji in the kitchen, and surprisingly not alone.
He's flipping through a cookbook, wearing a comically small apron that reads KISS THE SORCERER in bright yellow letters. Nobara stands a little to his side, chopping up some vegetables. Neither of them notice him yet, so he leans against the doorway, watching.
Yuuji glances over at Nobara and snorts, which causes her to look up with a glare. She picks up a carrot slice and tosses it at his face, and he yelps. She picks up another one, but before it can delve into a full on war, Yuuta steps in, making his presence known.
They both freeze. "Yuuta-san!" Yuuji greets, waving his hands around. "Uh, what are you doing here? We were just—"
"It's fine. Megumi told me," Yuuta interrupts, walking closer. He sees a bowl of meat filling and a pot filled with water on the stove, but nothing is cooking yet. "I was just wondering if I could make a request."
"Oh, sure! Nanamin and I went grocery shopping the other day, so we have plenty of ingredients, but it depends on what you want..?"
Yuuta braces himself. To make this a good night for his friends, he needs a food that they both like. Inumaki isn't that difficult to please, and judging by the cans of tuna stacked at the edge of the table, they're making something with tuna, so that's settled. For Maki, though…
"I'd like something with a lot of frosting," he lies. "Like, a lot. Until it's sickening to look at."
Nobara gives him an odd look. "I knew Maki-san was into that, but you too?"
Yuuta laughs, hoping his voice doesn't shake. He remembers when they were in their first year, and it was eight in the morning when he watched Maki pull out a can of frosting from the cupboard, ripping it over and lathering it over her toast before chowing it down. He nearly exploded at the sight. It's worse than seeing her eat frosting straight out of the can at night.
"Haha, yeah! We're so similar like that and all."
"We do have frosting," Yuuji says, simply accepting the request and moving on. God bless his soul, truly. "I think cake would be good for sharing, but we don't have time to make one."
"Can you even bake?" Nobara asks.
"I might! You never know unless you try."
"We are not going to 'trial-and-error' this dinner today."
"Fine! What do you suggest, then?"
Nobara glares. Yuuji glares back.
"I take it back," she says, crossing her arms. "Let's bake. Yuuta-san! Can you finish chopping these, mix it with that, and shape the meatballs?"
"W-what?" he stutters out, but he doesn't get much say in the matter before the other two are dashing towards the pantry, shoving at each other to get there first. He looks at the board of half-chopped carrots and wonders what the hell he just set off.
As he gets to work, because Nobara kind of scares him and he doesn't want to get on her bad side any more than he apparently already is, the other two return, armed with flour, sugar, eggs, and other ingredients they need. They dump it all on another table and begin their adventure.
Yuuta spends most of his time watching them out of the corner of his eye, hoping they don't accidentally start a fire or something. He finishes mixing the carrots into the meat and is shaping them into round balls when Nobara lets out a victory cry.
He looks over and sees two small bowls of batter. They bounce up to him, holding their bowls out and chanting over each other, asking him to taste test. With a bit of hesitance, Yuuta does, humming thoughtfully.
"Mine's better, isn't it?" Nobara boasts.
Yuuji makes a wounded noise. "I put a lot of effort into mine! Ours look the same, anyway!"
"No. Mine has a dash of glam in it."
"What does that even mean?!"
"I think they're both delicious," he says placatingly. "Maybe we should put them in the oven."
"Oh, good idea. You're so clever, Yuuta-san!" Yuuji chirps.
Vaguely, Yuuta recalls Maki calling them a handful, and he really, really gets it. Still, he finds himself smiling, unable to help it. There is something about Yuuji and Nobara that is so fresh. Yuuta doesn't think aging backwards is possible, but he feels that being around them grants him a bit of his youth back.
Once the cakes are baking, Yuuji starts up the fire and gestures for Yuuta to dump all the meatballs in the pot. Yuuta wipes the table and Nobara hops onto it, kicking her legs as she talks about some new actress she's been following. Yuuji responds in enthusiasm while he watches the food and Yuuta feels himself relaxing, almost forgetting about his plan. Almost.
When the cakes are done, Yuuji takes out some massive cans of frosting, and his good mood comes crashing down. He also pulls out food dye and pushes them towards Yuuta, asking him to pick.
Maybe a bit cheesily, Yuuta picks out the green and purple dyes, handing one each to his juniors. From there, he watches them go crazy. There isn't even any other decoration on the cake, just heaps and heaps of frosting—it's more frosting than cake at this point. But his juniors are grinning and cheering each other on, and Maki is going to fucking love this, so he sighs and lets it happen.
Glancing at the clock, Yuuta realises that he only has one final step to his plan. "Hey, I have to do one more thing before dinner. I'll see you guys there?"
"Okay!" they cry in sync. Yuuta smiles, waving them goodbye before he's darting out of the kitchen in search of yet another friend.
"I have a weird request," he says in lieu of a greeting as he barges into the classroom, where Panda is sitting at the corner, reading some manga he's been trying to get Maki into but to no avail.
"You always do," Panda quips back, setting the book down.
Yuuta ignores him, slamming his hands down on the table, his lips set in a grim line. He's decided that he's going to let Panda in on his plan, but that also means getting Panda away from the dinner table later, because he cannot act to save his life. "I need you to convince Inumaki-kun to wear something nicer later. Something that isn't his uniform."
Panda stares at him. Tilts his head. Scratches his chin a little bit. "...Why on Earth would I do that?"
Yuuta clasps his hands together. "Please! It's for a good cause!"
"I'm not following. Did you hit your head?"
"Ugh," Yuuta groans. He drops himself on the chair in front of Panda, resting his elbows on the backrest. He hopes he looks as pitiful as he feels. He's been told his eyes do wonders for favours. "Fine, okay. I think Inumaki-kun really likes Maki and vice-versa. I want to give them some alone time."
"Oh," Panda says. "You're setting up date night for them? That's nice of you. I always knew you were a romantic!"
Yuuta rolls his eyes at the old joke. "It's not a date. Yet, at least. It's supposed to be, like, an intervention. To kickstart the moment, you know?"
"Sure, sure." Panda nods along.
"Wait, you're not shocked?"
"Why would I be?" Panda asks. "I think even Ijichi-san can see that they like each other. It's old news. Oh, did they not tell you yet?"
Yuuta gapes. Have Maki and Inumaki been confiding about their feelings to Panda without him? Ouch. He feels a little left out. Wait, does this mean Megumi and the others know? That's impossible—it's only been a day and he already feels the incessant need to do something about their pining before he explodes.
"I… No, they didn't. But that doesn't matter. So, will you help me?"
"What's in it for me?" Panda asks, laughing when Yuuta gives him the most betrayed look possible. "Yeah, I'll help. I'll magically not show up for dinner because of a magic errand that Yaga asked me to run. What's your excuse?"
Yuuta breathes out a sigh of relief. He knew he could count on Panda, his most ride-or-die friend. "I'll think of something. I already asked the first years for help, and Megumi will be dragging the other two away, so everything should be smooth sailing."
And really, it will be. Maki and Inumaki will enjoy a lovely dinner filled with their favourite foods for the evening, the air will be thick with tension that either one of them will break because Inuamki doesn't like beating around the bush and Maki acts before she speaks sometimes, and then boom! They realise they like each other and spend the rest of the night together. And then they'll announce their relationship in the morning and Yuuta will cry tears of happiness.
Out of nowhere, he gets a quiet inkling that he’s missing something, but the clock is ticking, so he ignores it. He bids Panda goodbye before rushing off to make his final step in this grand plan.
Maki is, in Yuuta’s opinion, the definition of a double-edged sword.
She’s stubborn as a rock and thus she’ll defend you with her life. She’s straightforward and has good intentions, so her words always pack a brutal punch with a kind undertone. She’s a fantastic training partner with lots of good pointers, and she is the reason for half the bruises Yuuta gets on a daily basis.
Yuuta doesn’t usually know which side of the sword he’ll get, but he can pray it’ll be the favourable one. As he strolls through the corridor to Maki’s room, he reminisces about the first time he was let in, back when they were still budding friends: They were bored out of their minds and she begrudgingly invited them over to hang out. Inumaki had brought a deck of cards he stole from Gojo’s drawer and taught them how to play poker, which they did well into the night, and it delved into a bonding moment full of laughter and lighthearted ribbing.
Yuuta stops in front of Maki’s room, raising his fist, but freezes when the door swings open, revealing Inumaki.
He blinks. “Hi..?”
Inumaki’s eyes widen, clearly not expecting him either. They stare at each other awkwardly before Inumaki side steps, gesturing into the room. Yuuta pokes his head in and sees Maki on her bed, flipping through the manga that Panda is obsessed with—no way, she actually gave in—her glasses sitting on the top of her head.
“Oh, by the way,” Yuuta calls as Inumaki moves away, “Panda is looking for you. He’s in our classroom.”
Inumaki nods, lifting his hand up into an ‘okay’ gesture before going off. Maki looks up at the sound of his voice, raising an eyebrow when he shuts the door. “Most people knock before coming in, you know.”
“Inumaki-kun let me in,” Yuuta defends, crossing the room in quick strides. “Why was he here, anyway?”
He doesn’t know what scandalous response he’s expecting, but Maki simply shrugs, eyes scanning her book. “He took one of my hoodies ‘cause he was cold.”
Yuuta feels the gears turn in his head. They come up with nothing. “Uh… Does he not have his own jackets?”
“Dunno. I don’t really care.” She sounds so nonchalant about it that Yuuta is inclined to believe her, but her finger twitches and she swallows after she speaks, as if forcing down a lump in her throat. A lie?
Okay, whatever. Not the time.
Yuuta drops onto her bed, clasping his hands together. “Maki, you know how we’re having dinner later?”
“Uh huh.”
“Do you think you could wear one of your nicer shirts?”
Maki looks down at the green shirt she’s wearing. It’s not bad, but there’s a stain on her left sleeve from when Panda spilled coffee on her last year, and the hems are fraying from use.
“What’s wrong with what I’m wearing?” she asks slowly, like she’s struck by disbelief.
“Nothing!” Yuuta rushes to say. “Just— I thought it’d be fun. I want an excuse to wear a sweater I got from Africa, so…”
“You leave for a year and come back a fashionista?” Maki asks. Her voice is sharp, but her eyes are filled with amusement. “You never stop being a weirdo.”
“I’m not a weirdo,” he protests, watching her go over to her closet and tug the doors open.
“I don’t know what qualifies as nicer in your eyes, by the way,” she calls over her shoulder as she digs through the mess.
Yuuta wracks his brain for what he remembers she owns. “Do you still have the purple one? With the buttons?”
“Nah, outgrew that one last month.”
“Damn. The pink one with the cut-off sleeves?”
Maki snorts. “I gave that one to Megumi’s dog. It looked so cute, I think Yuuji has pictures on his phone. I’ll show you later.”
Yuuta smiles at the idea. “Fine. Just show me what you have.”
He didn’t mean for it to happen, but somehow, in the final half an hour before dinner, he becomes Maki’s fashion advisor. She pulls out random articles of clothing for him to pick from. He crosses his legs, shifting to the edge of her bed and eagerly waiting to give his opinion.
It’s not like either of them are particularly big on clothes—from what he’s gathered, that’s more of Nobara’s thing, who would probably be a better help than he is—but it’s less about that and more about getting to spend time together. Hundreds of phone calls when you’re miles apart simply don’t compare to physically being in the same space, seeing and hearing someone right in front of you.
A quiet, relieved ache fills Yuuta’s lungs as Maki tosses another pair of pants back into the closet, an easy grin on her lips. It’s true that distance made his heart grow fonder, after all, and maybe a little more afraid of losing his friends, but much more grateful for their presence.
They eventually settle on a dark green sweater with gold accents—it’s meant to be a Christmas sweater, but it’s nearing December anyway, so it’s fine—and comfortable black sweats. Chic but cosy, and in Maki’s words, festive as shit.
“I should’ve asked Yuuji to bake gingerbread cookies,” Yuuta jokes after Maki has changed and does a mocking spin to display the full outfit. “Then we can have a Christmas party.”
“I think Panda and Gojo-sensei are already planning one,” Maki says, grabbing a clip to put her hair up. Yuuta sends her a thumbs-up.
“You look nice,” he tells her, genuine and quietly.
She rolls her eyes. “Thanks. Though, I’m still not sure why you’re suddenly so insistent about this. I’m only playing along because I feel bad for you.”
“Wow. And here I thought it was because we’re best friends.”
“No way.” She grins. “My best friends don’t lose to me at sparring.”
Yuuta gapes. “You’re so mean!”
She bursts out laughing and Yuuta can’t suppress his smile even if he tries.
Taking a deep breath, Yuuta enters the dining room to find the rest of the second years already there.
It seems both Megumi and Panda made good on their promises—the first years are nowhere to be found and Inumaki is dressed in a deep purple turtleneck that brings out the colour of his eyes. He looks so nice that even Yuuta struggles to tear his gaze away from him for a bit, clearing his throat and getting ready for his plan.
He had thought it'd be suspicious if he straight up didn't show up for dinner, so he had made sure to polish up a bit, and he drags a chair out for himself, plopping onto it. Maki 'explains' why the first years aren't there to him and he nods, going along with it, all while his heart pounds in his chest.
This is it, right? Everything's set and in motion. The sun is beginning to set, beckoning nightfall, and its golden rays seep in through the wide glass windows of the room, bathing them in a warm glow. There's a large, steaming bowl of meatballs in the centre of the table, some other delicacies, and the two cakes sliced and ready for the taking at each edge of the table.
It feels a bit empty with just the four of them there, but he ran into Megumi on the way here, who had assured him that he and the other first years already ate some of their share and wouldn't go hungry. Yuuta would hate for them to sacrifice something as essential as dinner just for him to carry out his master plan.
They begin to eat, exchanging light chatter here and there. Halfway through, Panda excuses himself and disappears, sending a meaningful wink over to Yuuta. Maki frowns when he leaves but she doesn’t question it, which makes Yuuta let out a sigh of relief.
As Yuuta begins planning his own escape, he watches Inumaki refill Maki’s glass of tea for her. Maki ruffles his hair in response and he swats her away, even though the edges of his lips are tilted up in a pleased grin.
“I’m gonna go to the bathroom,” Yuuta blurts out. He sets his chopsticks down, one leg already out of the room before Maki calls him back.
“Hold on,” she says. “Stay.”
“H-hah?”
“Stay,” she repeats, pointing sharply to his seat.
Damn. This is the worst possible time for this. Couldn’t she have asked him to stay some other time or something?
Yuuta’s eyes dart towards Inumaki’s, who’s watching him with a raised eyebrow but an otherwise impassive expression. With a swallowed sigh, he plops back down on the chair.
“You’re acting weird today,” Maki says, heading straight for the point. “None of the first years are here, you were insistent on dressing up, and there’s so much food, yet you want to leave. And I know you don’t need to take a shit. You make a face when you do.”
“I—” Yuuta begins before wrinkling his nose. “I don’t make a face when I need to shit!”
“Salmon roe,” Inumaki mutters, which vaguely translates to yeah you do.
“Exactly, Toge. So, what’s up with you? It’s almost like you’re trying to avoid us, although I can’t fathom why, considering how well-dressed you are.”
Yuuta wants to bang his head into the nearest wall. Why are his best friends so sharp? It makes things infinitely harder.
“I’m not trying to avoid you guys. I just… I thought you might need some alone time.”
Inumaki blinks. Maki’s face twists like she just ate a particularly sour lemon.
“Yuuta,” she begins, slowly, like she’s speaking with a child. “You’re the one who just came back after a year. You’re the one we want to spend time with so we can catch up.”
“But that’s the issue, isn’t it?” Yuuta replies, a little frantic. “I missed so much after being gone for a year!”
Inumaki makes a gesture at him, as if asking, like what?
Yuuta doesn’t mean to, but he spills, dropping the bomb. He buries his head in his hands, groaning. “You guys like each other and didn’t tell me, but I’m trying to set you guys up anyway because I want you to be happy!”
Immediately, he regrets it. The whole point of this is to let Maki and Inumaki come to terms with their feelings naturally, isn’t it? Now that the cat is out of the bag, what’s going to happen? Shit, will they even want to look at him, much less each other—
“Oh my God,” Maki mutters, and Inumaki bursts into impish laughter, hiding his face behind his turtleneck.
“What?” Yuuta bemoans. “Is it lame? I’m doing my best, okay!”
Maki’s lips twitch and she fails to cover her own laugh with a cough. Inumaki’s shoulders shake as he grabs a tissue to wipe at his eyes—wow, tears already, Yuuta should just sink into a hole.
“I’m actually impressed that you could tell,” Maki says. Inumaki nods in agreement.
“Wait,” Yuuta says, feeling increasingly lost. “So, you do like each other? And you know about it, too?”
“That’s something we were going to tell you today after dinner.” Maki shares a look with Inumaki, who shrugs before sending her a sunny grin. “We’re already dating. We started a week before you came back.”
Yuuta stares. A beat of silence passes, and then another, and the cogs in his head whir as he tries to process what he just heard.
“I don’t…” he says, frowning. “What?”
With a sigh, Inumaki tugs the collar of his sweater down before leaning over, pressing a kiss to Maki’s cheeks. She rolls her eyes, though the tips of her ears turn red as she places her hand over his. “We wanted to tell you in real life rather than over the phone, but it seems you beat us to it, somebow.”
Maybe a little dramatically, Yuuta feels tears spring to his eyes. “S-so you like each other?”
“Yep.”
“And you’re dating?”
“Salmon,” Inumaki confirms with a cheeky grin.
The tears escape. Maki’s eyes widen in brief panic while Inumaki gives him an unfairly fond look, reaching over to pat his shoulders.
“I’m so happy for you guys!” he blubbers. Relief floods his veins as his entire body sags.
“Oh, you big baby,” Maki grumbles, but she and Inumaki stand up, joining him by his side in an awkward attempt at a group hug that Yuuta joyfully accepts.
“No wonder those cakes are there. I was wondering why Yuuji and Nobara made not one, but two, both with so much frosting.”
“It was for you,” Yuuta huffs.
Maki laughs, bumping her shoulders with his. “You’re ridiculous. Let’s get them all back here. There’s way too much food for just us three to finish.”
And they do. The rest of their friends are dragged back by an insistent Inumaki and the situation is explained. Yuuta feels a bit embarrassed, but Yuuji says that he didn’t mind it at all and he’s glad that Yuuta is such a good friend, which makes him blush. Panda laughs boisterously, saying he knew all along what was actually going on on both sides, and Maki kicks him from under the table.
All in all, it worked out well in the end, and as Yuuta watches Inumaki’s failed attempts at feeding Maki a tuna roll to tease her, he finds himself smiling easily, a glowing ball of light in his chest.