Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Nothing ever goes the way you expect.

This was a lesson Genos had learned fairly early on in life. He had come to use it as a reminder, a model phrase to live by. Usually, in his mind, it applied to the unwanted things in his life. Like losing his home, his family, and almost his life at age 13. That had been really unexpected. Or maybe like being one of the world's first cyborgs to have 40% of his body be cybernetic. He would have never expected, in his earlier years, for this reality to become his own. He was supposed to be a normal 19 year old boy, with his parents sending him off to college to live on his own for the first time. There was supposed to be smiling faces hiding apprehensive feelings and tears of joy. There was supposed to be the normal antics of fathers mocking sons for holding on to things from their childhood, promises from mothers to allow their sons to stop by any time for a free meal and washing machine. There was supposed to be that swell of pride in your chest that you were becoming an adult, not only in the eyes of the world, but in the eyes of your parents.

But Genos didn't have parents anymore.

Nothing ever goes the way you expect.

Instead, Genos had smoke blowing in his face.

The smoke belonged to the cigarette of one Kisaki Kabashira, or “Ka” for short. Genos didn't know her, not really. He had seen her light up after what looked like an intense make out session with what he assumed was her boyfriend outside the long, winding path that led to Heero Academy. A once prestigious Private Science University, it was now a small, secluded private University that was good for two types of students: Rich, troubled kids with equally rich parents that wanted their brats to be whipped into shape by someone other than them, and scholarship kids that were lured by the shreds that remained of the school's old reputation. Ka was the former, Genos was the latter. While Ka shoved her tongue down her boyfriend's throat, not caring about their five cronies that stood nearby (or anyone else for that matter), Genos sat in the back of a taxi he couldn't afford, while his case worker tried to talk the driver into dropping them off up the hill at the school he also couldn't afford. While Ka squeezed her boyfriend's ass playfully and sent him and her cronies on up the hill, Genos only half listened as his case worker handed him paperwork and explanations of what to do once he got up to the school. As Ka lit up her cigarette next to the `No Smoking` sign outside the gate of the school she wore the uniform for, Genos was handed his uniform and other meager possessions unceremoniously by the taxi driver, and, with a not-so-reassuring pat on his back from his case worker, he was suddenly alone with Ka.

Nothing ever goes the way you expect.

Genos wasn’t sure what his future dreams had been before the accident, if he had had any. ‘Accident’. Such an innocent sounding word. One that removes blame from the offender, or implies no fault to anyone. An act of God, or something equally beyond the control of mere mortals. But what had happened to him, to his family. No, that hadn't been an accident. But, that's what the adults in his life had always called it. The police, the lawyers, his case workers. It was always an accident. But Genos knew better. He had seen someone go by his window. He had heard the noise, that awful metal scraping. He had seen how the lawyers had quickly taken the deals passed down to them. Even at age 13, he knew. And he intended to prove that he was right. Ever since the explosion that killed his family was deemed `an accident`, he vowed to do whatever it took to prove it wasn`t.

Nothing ever goes the way you expect.

After the explosion, all he remembered for a long time was pain. The explosion had claimed his right arm and leg, had burned out his eyeballs and left terrible burns on most of his body. For a long time he saw nothing. All he did was hear, smell, and feel. He heard the world moving around him, the sounds of the hospital, the doubt in everyone`s voices around him. He smelled the awful smell of burnt flesh, the stark contrast of the sterilized hospital, the overpowering bad breath of the different doctors leaning over him to get a better look at him. He felt disgusting, he felt like a spectacle, he felt like a freak. He also felt sadness, confusion, and finally, loneliness. An overwhelming loneliness that invaded his every thought. His only consolation was the pain in his heart distracted him from the pain of his injuries, if you could call that much of a consolation. For what seemed like an eternity his life was feeling nothing but these sensations. Then, a momentarily calm breeze blew through his existence in the form of Dr. Kuseno.

Nothing ever goes the way you expect.

One day, Dr. Kuseno was at his bed side. Everything else subsided. All he could hear, his whole existence, was focused on the doctor’s words as he explained to Genos what was to happen next. That he could save him, give him his life back, at least in the sense of his motor functions and sight. He talked and talked in a very calm, exact tone that made Genos cling to his every word, burning it into his brain. And then, something else unexpected.

“Is this what you want?”

Genos had never been asked that by any of the doctors or nurses. They were all so busy trying to keep him alive, no one even asked if he wanted to live. If he wanted to live in this reality where he was broken and alone. The decision had never been his, so his question gave Genos pause. Dr. Kuseno sensed his hesitation and continued,

“I can perform this operation. It’s true that this would be the most cybernetics a human has been equipped with before, but I can promise you my team will succeed. I have no doubt in that regard. I ask you if this is what you want because your road ahead will not be easy. You will have to fight to give my team a fighting chance. I won’t throw them into the fire if you’re just going to give up on us.”

He paused, carefully considering what he was going to say next.

“I can fix your body, I can make you see again, but I can’t fix your life. This is your life now. If that’s something you can accept, and if you’re willing, I can at least try to make sure it’s not your body that’s holding you back from trying to make the most of what’s left of your life. So, I’ll ask you again, is this what you want?”

Genos knew his answer.

“None of this is what I want, what I expected my life to be. So no, Doctor, this isn’t what I want. This is what I need. I can’t give up on my family, I have to find out what really happened to them. To do that… I can’t have this broken body… If that’s enough for you, then my answer is yes.”

“I read your files extensively before taking on your case. It seems you think what happened to your family wasn’t the accident the police seem to think it is… And that they believe what you saw and the noises you heard are made up delusions of some fever or pain dream, that you’re not a viable witness…”

Genos heard the Doctor shift uncomfortably in the stiff chair beside his bed.

“I can’t speak to what happened to them, and what is happening to you… All I can say is nothing ever goes the way you expect, but that just mean we have to be strong learn to deal with the unexpected. So if you say this is what you need to be strong, then that, at least, I can give to you.”

Dr. Kuseno was right about his team. They expertly repaired his body, and within a year he had completed all of his operations and had completed physical therapy. The burns on his body had been treated and his skin replaced in the places that would never heal. His blonde hair had already begun to grow back. He had new robot limbs equipped with an artificial skin, and new eyes. Genos had insisted that his new eyes not be made to look real. He didn’t want to pretend he had a normal life now. Instead, his eyes were cold and black, with glowing golden artificial irises. He looked more demon than cyborg, but looks did not matter to him. These eyes would remind him every day of what he needed to do: Get justice for his family.

Nothing ever goes the way you expect.

Genos gathered his simple belongings, tucked his uniform and papers under his arm, and headed towards the gate. As he passed in front of Ka, much to his annoyance, she stepped in his path, a sinister look on her face. She studied him up and down as Genos tried to avoid eye contact and move around her. She took one last drag of her cigarette, blew some smoke in his face, and said “Hey, what’s wrong with your eyes?”
Genos was taken aback by the bluntness of her question. Not wanting to explain himself to this girl of little consequence to him he ignored her question and tried to get around her again. She grabbed his arm and spun him towards her as he started to walk away. “I said, what’s wrong with your eyes? You deaf or something?”

Genos glared down at her hand grabbing his arm and retorted, “The sign says ‘No Smoking’. What’s wrong with your eyes?”

Genos was used to getting slapped by girls in school. His unusual looks had attracted many girls to him, but he had no time to be distracted by them. He was laser focused on his goal of becoming a CSI to get justice for his family. Besides, he didn’t understand why they wanted to date him so. He understood them being attracted to something unusual, and was vaguely aware that he was not unattractive in a physical sense. But these girls knew nothing about him other than what they saw, and he did not believe that merited proper attraction. This was all information that he relayed to them upon their confession, which they returned, almost every time, with tears and a slap to the face. But never had he been punched by a girl.

Until he crossed paths with Ka.

Before he could fully recover from the shock of her reaction and the pain on his left cheek, he was surrounded by Ka’s cronies. Apparently they hadn’t gone very far before they heard Ka’s raised voice cutting through the brisk April air. Genos knew he could easily take the men surrounding him, he was in top physical condition and a cyborg besides, but he didn’t like fighting regular people without good reason. So, he just defended against the onslaught of kicks and punches and the shrill laughter of Ka.

Nothing ever goes the way you expect.

He might have been 40% robot, but that didn’t stop him from feeling pain. It only took one punch and one kick to the right side of his body for them to figure out he was a cyborg, but that didn’t stop them beating on his very human right side. That was when the insults started. Cyborgs were fairly common nowadays, with more and more people wanting cybernetics to replace their ailing or missing body parts. But they were still something new, something different, something foreign. Genos was even more so than most. It didn’t help that he had chosen to wear his difference on his sleeve like a badge of honor. Or, on his eyes, so to say. So while he was used to all the name-calling and discrimination, that didn’t make it feel any better when he encountered it.

It didn’t make kicks to the ribs hurt any less.

He was down on the ground now, Ka blowing smoke in his face and chastising him about speaking to women nicely. He didn’t care. He was just annoyed. He just wanted this to end so he could forget about it and move on with his miserable life. Like he always did. He closed his eyes and waiting for it to end.

Nothing ever goes the way you expect.

Suddenly, a voice cut through Ka’s cackling. The kicking stopped. Genos opened his eyes to see a young man holding up two of the cronies by their collars, their feet not touching the ground. Genos knew Ka was defending herself to this person, could sense the nervous tension in the air. But all of his senses were drawn in that moment to the young man that had saved him. Like a breeze blowing through the cherry blossom trees, the young man with dark hair and striking features swept his offenders away. He frowned as his gaze followed Ka and her cronies until the rounded the corner out of sight. Then he turned to Genos with a smile and extended his hand down to help him up. A wonderfully warm wind blew just then, swirling loose petals all around the mystery man. He felt his heart skip a beat as the world around them slowed. It was the most beautiful sight Genos had ever seen in his life, and he instantly burned it into his memory so he could never, ever forget it. This man… this stranger had stepped in to defend him even though he was outnumbered. Why… why would someone do that for him?

He was suddenly aware of the expression of shock that must have been on his face. He accepted the outstretched hand, stood, and dusted himself off before reaching down to gather his things.

“I guess you weren’t expecting a welcome like THAT when you got here,” the young man said, flashing Genos a brilliant smile.

Genos just kept looking at him with the shocked expression he couldn’t quite shake from his face.

“No…” he finally managed to say as they headed up the hill.

Nothing ever goes the way you expect.

Chapter Text

Genos had been described in many ways throughout his life, but the word he heard most was intense. He never did anything half-assed, he always gave it 100%. He vaguely remembered people saying this about him before the ‘accident’ that killed him family and left him a cyborg, but that intensity was nothing compared to the raging flame that grew inside him after he lost everything. It fueled everything in his life, from him surviving an excruciating series of operations, to him flying through his physical therapy at a break-neck pace. That flame manifested itself in white-hot determination as he quickly caught up on his studies in school and even surpassed his classmates, getting him ever closer to his goal of becoming a CSI and getting justice for his parents. This same goal and determination is what brought him to Heero Academy, looking straight into the goofy, smiling face of Saitama as he extended his hand towards Genos, cherry blossoms swirling in the wind and getting stuck in his messy black hair.

The fire that burned inside Genos in that moment with an intensity he could not explain.

“I’m Saitama, by the way,” the young man that had saved him offered as they made their way up the hill.

Genos gave Saitama a quick look over. His savior was dressed in nice enough clothes, but they were a bit wrinkled like he had just woken up from a nap. His black hair gave off the same vibe, not the stylish vibe of one trying to look like they had bed head, but the messy tussles of someone that had been sleeping and not looked in a mirror yet. He wasn’t wearing a uniform, but he looked to be a little bit older than Genos... Maybe he was a returning student? He needed to know more about this man. He quickly replied, hoping Saitama hadn’t noticed him looking.

“I’m Genos. Thanks for saving me back there. Is this your first day, too?”

Saitama rubbed the back of his head in a nervous manner. ‘Wow, that’s really cute…’ Genos found himself thinking absentmindedly, but quickly shoved the thought to the back of his mind. He didn’t need to be having thoughts like that about people he had just met.

“Ah, no, I’m actually a teacher here,” Saitama replied, bashfully showing his teacher’s badge. “I also help out with the soccer team. Welcome to Heero Academy, Genos. It’s nice to meet you!”

The smile that Saitama gave Genos almost made his heart stop.

“T-thank you, Saitama-sensei,” Genos said, trying to hide his flushed face by bowing, “And thank you again for stepping in. Your strength is very impressive for one of your age and size and height and weight. It was very brave of you to step in against so many of them, you were surely outnumbered and off of school grounds so the possibility of retaliation on their part was quite high, it was probably a move that some people would consider stupid but one that I am deeply grateful for and will not mock you for making…”

Genos trailed off, suddenly very embarrassed. He didn’t get to express his opinion very often, not having very many people to converse with over the years, and all the words had just sort of come pouring out of him. He forced himself to stop, however, when he saw his new teacher’s face staring dazed at him.

“You sure are chatty, aren’t cha?” Saitama responded in a tone that sounded more bored than annoyed, turning back to look at the path ahead of them.

Genos was again shocked by the demeanor of this man. He talked so casually to Genos, like he had known him for years and was chastising him about a bad habit. The relaxed, casual, and care-free aura that surrounded this man was something Genos had not experienced since he became a cyborg. Usually people were very… uncomfortable around him, whether because he was part robot, or because they didn’t know how to react about his entire life situation. This strange young teacher was a welcome breath of fresh air for Genos.

“Yes, erm, sorry… You were just… really amazing back there.”

Genos kept his face focused on the path ahead. He had become quite shy since his parents died, or had he always been shy? He wasn’t sure, but he was pretty sure that not interacting with people much over the last few years couldn’t have helped much. He wasn’t sure if he was being overly flattering, and hoped his words didn’t drive the young teacher away. He needed to breathe his fresh air in just a little longer.

“Oh, really? Well, thanks I guess, um, no problem.” Saitama scratched the back of his head again. Genos made a note of the nervous tick. Saitama continued, “It happens all the time here. Don’t count on the other teachers to save you, though. A lot of them like to turn a blind eye.” He pursed his lips like he had thought of a particularly offending instance just then, but then shrugged it off, turning to Genos. “Not that I’m not glad you weren’t fighting, but I am kind of surprised that YOU were the one getting beat on. You look like you could handle yourself in a fight.” He playfully punched Genos’s right arm, then pulled his hand back, a shocked look on his face.

“Are you a cyborg?”

Genos couldn’t help but wince at the question. Had he really not noticed?

“Errr, yeah, I am…” he responded, visibly uncomfortable by the question. He braced himself for the usual barrage of questions, and the usual uncomfortable feelings that took over people around his once they knew. Why couldn’t being a cyborg just be normal already? He silently cursed society, technology, and anything else he could think of. Every second that passed was excruciating to Genos, as he waited for yet another person to alienate themselves from his life… And this person was such a refreshing breeze blowing through his existence… oh well…

“Oh, cool.”

This day was turning out to be a day full of surprises for Genos. He almost wanted to respond angrily to Saitama’s cool, almost bored tone. The cool way he disregarded THE defining feature about Genos in his life up to this point, unwittingly it made a fair flair up inside Genos. He couldn’t help it, his emotions were so intense, they threaten to burst out of him.

“I guess that explains the eyes.”

And in the next instant, they were gone. Saitama’s calm and lazy demeanor cooled him instantly, leaving Genos feeling flushed and embarrassed. He felt, for once in his life, all at once… relieved.

Genos didn’t know how to react, so he said nothing. A silence passed between the two men, but it wasn’t an uncomfortable one. Genos felt a flame spark up in him anew, like the one he had felt when Saitama had first extended his hand to Genos. This new, intense feeling could be called by some ‘obsession’. Genos, however, decided on a different word for it.

‘Admiration’.

“Ah, here we are, Heero Academy,” Saitama said as they came to a clearing in the trees. The campus was old, had visible repairs being done, and was relatively small, having only a handful of buildings scattered on the hilltop, but Genos couldn’t help but smile.

He had come here to help gain the skills he felt he needed to be able to finally avenge his family, to become a CSI and prove that it wasn’t just an ‘accident’. But what he had found here already was someone who didn’t seem to think twice about him being a cyborg, a man who stood for justice even in situation that most people would baulk at, either writing it off as none of their business or thinking there would be no way for them to help. If a man like this could exist in this environment, then Genos felt himself wanting to be here too, for more reasons than just wanting to learn about being a CSI.

He wanted to learn more about Saitama-sensei.

Chapter Text

The campus was alive with students milling about. Contrary to Genos’s first encounter with the students of Heero Academy, most of the students looked fairly normal. Sure, their uniforms weren’t all nicely pressed, many of the boys wore their ties loosely (if at all) and many of the girls’s skirts seemed much too short. But Genos was pleasantly surprised to see that even the bored-but-rich sometimes just wanted to go about their daily lives in peace. He let out a small sigh of relief.

A sigh that was quickly replaced by a sharp intake of breath as a dark shape went flying past Saitama’s head. That dark shape turned out to be a soccer ball, one that surely would have hit Saitama square in the face had it not been for his quick reaction time. Instead, the ball only seemed to brush against the young teacher’s messy hair before whizzing past.

“Oi, Sonic, watch the hair!” Saitama yelled in the direction of a nearby tree as he gingerly touched the ends of his hair that had been accosted by the speedy ball.

“Tch” replied the tree. Or rather, the young man that stepped from behind the tree, arms crossed and frowning. He was slender in stature with long, raven black hair that would probably hit his mid back if he didn’t have it tied up. He had striking pale green eyes, and might be considered attractive were it not for the ugly scowl that had planted itself on his face. He looked younger than Genos, but, considering Saitama had called him by name, he was guessing that wasn’t the case. He was wearing a soccer uniform, so maybe he was one of sensei’s players?

“Go pick up my ball ‘coach’, since your lazy ass yawned and leaned to the side at the last minute. Now it’s all the way over there! Hurry up.”

Genos was pretty sure that was not the way it had happened, but he was too struck by the raven haired man’s sharp words to say anything. Maybe he was actually older than Saitama, the way he talked down to him. But wait, he had just called him ‘coach’, hadn’t he? He looked to Saitama for answers, but found nothing but sensei looking like he was going to retort, shrugging it off, and then jogging over to where the ball had landed.

“And just who are you?” the raven-haired man snapped at Genos, causing him to jump a little as he turned back to face Sonic.

“Oh, um, I’m Genos. I’m a new student here, it is ni-“

“Yeah, ok, I got it.” Sonic said dismissively, not bothering to formally introduce himself back. He was looking, well, more like glaring, at Saitama as he jogged back over, soccer ball in hand.

“Whew, oh, Genos, this is Sonic. He’s a second year on the soccer team,” Saitama said when he returned, handing the raven-haired man his ball back.

“That’s ‘the star of the soccer team’ to you, lazy-sensei,” Sonic retorted as he snatch the ball from Saitama’s hands. Saitama didn’t seem to even notice the harsh tone Sonic used with him. He just yawned and looked at his watch.

“Ah, geeze, I need to get back down to the gate. Genos, the main office is in the building right in front of you, they should take care of you. Later!”

And with that, he turned and jogged off back down the hill. Sonic’s eyes followed him until he was out of sight. Then, he turned his glare back to Genos. He looked Genos up and down one more time before abruptly about-facing, nose in the air. Genos decided if Saitama was like a cool, refreshing breeze, Sonic was like a gale force wind, and not one that Genos wanted to find himself in the path of.

“Watch your back, newbie.” Sonic shot the words like a cobra spitting venom at Genos before stalking off. Genos watched him go, an uncomfortable expression on his face. Seriously, what was wrong with this guy? A group of girls giggled nervously as Sonic passed them, one girl looking like she was nearly going to faint when Sonic briefly turned towards them. ‘I guess he must be popular…’ Genos thought before readjusting his meager belongings and heading towards the main office.

********************************************************************************************************************************

It took Genos the rest of the day to get checked in, his class schedule and room assignment, and finally get his ID badge. I was dark and he was exhausted by the time he was able to look for his room. The campus was small, but all the dorms were on the outer part of the hilltop. As he made his way, following the map he had been given with his room assignment, he shivered a little in the night air. It was still fairly early on in spring, and the nights were still cold as the air tried to hang on to the remnants of winter. Genos felt goosebumps form on his left arm, but not on his right… No, never on his right side. He could feel the cold air on his right side against his artificial skin, but it would never react the same way real skin did. Genos had come to accept this long ago, but all the same it made him frown a bit to be reminded of it.

As he approached what he thought was his dorm building, Genos wondered if there had been some sort of mistake. The building in front of him was modestly sized, but looked like it was the last on the list to receive repairs, and thus was a little run-down looking. It gave off the feel of being abandoned, were it not for a warm light spilling out of the windows to the common room. Genos apprehensively approached the door and pushed it open with a loud ‘creeeeaaaaakkkkk’. He sighed and entered the common room.

The common room was as modestly decorated as its exterior suggested. There was an abandoned front desk with what looked like mail slots behind it, two couches facing each other that looked past their prime, a low table between the two couches?, and about 3 tables with 4 chairs around them apiece. A small space heater was on, pointed towards a familiar figure lounging on one of the couches, reading a manga.

“Saitama-sensei?!”

“Oi! Hey Genos!” Saitama said with a smile, looking up surprised from his manga, “I didn’t know you were going to be living here!”

“Is this where you live, sensei?” Genos asked, setting his stuff down and sitting on the couch opposite Saitama. Saitama’s relaxed nature made Genos want to sit more casually, but instead he sat straight up with perfect posture, hands stiffly resting on his knees. He knew he must look ridiculous, but it was all he could manage around this man. He wasn’t used to being alone with people, and was feeling nervous about the prospect of having to make small talk with this person he had just met.

“Yeah,” was Saitama’s simple reply.

“Are you the only one who lives here? I didn’t observe any other lights on from the outside.”

“Yeah, well, I guess you do now, too.” Saitama smiled. It wasn’t a very big smile, but it was warm.

“Oh, I see.” Genos smiled kind of nervously back. It seemed his teacher wasn’t much for elaborating. “Where is everyone else?” Genos prodded further.

“Hmmmm, I guess they all live in the new dorm, or their homes? I’m not really sure, I’ve never bothered to ask.” Saitama glanced back down at his manga like he was itching to return to reading it, but then seemed to remember he was having a conversation and that reading manga while talking to someone was rude, so he returned his gaze to Genos.

“Oh, I see, that makes perfect sense. Although, one has to wonder why only the two of us were placed here.”

Saitama just shrugged, then glanced down at his manga again.

“Well, I’m going to go and find my room, then. Thank you, sensei.”

“Holler if you need any help.” Saitama replied, returning to his reclined position and flipping back open his book.

Genos gathered his things and left Saitama to his reading. The building wasn’t very big- it was only 5 stories tall and a few rooms deep, so he easily found his room. It turned out he was on the 2nd floor, and as he passed through the hallway to his room, he noticed a larger room with its door open. ‘Must be Saitama-sensei’s…’ Genos thought to himself as he passed. A few doors down and on the other side of the hall Genos came upon his door. He put in the key and, thankfully, it opened. The room was a decent size, with a small bed and a low desk on tatami mats, and a small closet near the door. It looked like it needed a good dusting, but not too bad considering the condition of the building. Genos set about unpacking what little he had and putting it all neatly into their new places. When he was satisfied, he laid down on his bed, more exhausted than he had initially thought. He felt his eyes getting heavy and, before he knew it, he drifted off to sleep.

Chapter Text

Genos awoke with a start to a small rapping sound. It was completely dark now Genos observed as his eyes flicked open. His robotic eyes adjusted immediately, displaying to no one but him that it was nearing midnight. He quickly scanned the room but couldn’t find the source of the noise. He was about to lay back down when he heard the noise again, coming from his door.

Cautiously, he approached the door. He could sense the heat signature of a human on the other side of it, holding something warm but unidentifiable in their hand. Given his roller coaster of a day thus far, he was apprehensive about who was on the other side of the door and the strange object they held in their hands. He opened the wooden door just a crack, peering out into the dimly lit hallway, and saw Saitama holding a tray with two cup noodles steaming on it.

“Oi,” Saitama said when he saw Genos, “I didn’t know if you had eaten yet, and you hadn’t come down in a while, so I figured I would bring you some dinner.”

Genos was deeply touched in that moment. No one had ever so selflessly thought of him, at least, not in recent memory. He could have cried just then, but fought hard to keep the tears at bay and instead invited him in. He turned on the light and pulled the low desk into the middle of the room. Saitama set the tray down, carefully considering for a moment which cup of noodles should be facing towards him, then plopped down on the tatami opposite Genos. Genos stiffly sat down seiza-style. The anxious feeling of having to make small talk quickly rushed over him again. He made a mental note to brush up on his social interactions, and that further research was needed if he was to continue to be around other people like this.

Saitama handed him a pair of chopsticks and went about attacking his own noodles. Genos was once again stunned by the casual nature of this older man, but he shook his head and looked down at the noodle gift that steamed before him. The packaging told him it was chicken and egg flavor, a cute, egg-headed chick adorning the lid. He didn’t often eat easy-to-make food like this, so it was a welcome treat for Genos. He broke apart his chopsticks and set to eating his cup, trying his best not to slurp too loudly. Saitama seemed to notice his slow eating and said, “Sorry, I didn’t know what kind you liked, I hope that’s ok.”

Genos looked up at him, biting off a noodle and letting it fall into the cup. He hoped desperately the steam would cover up or excuse the warmth he felt rushing to his face.

“Errr, no, the flavor is satisfactory. Delightful, even, I was just, um, trying not to slurp too loudly.” Genos quickly shoveled more noodles into his mouth to prevent him from word-vomiting his whole life story to express how truly grateful he was in that moment. ‘Not yet, you’ll scare him off’ reminded the voice in his head.

“Oh, are you a foreigner or something?” Saitama knit his eyebrows together in confusion, then laughed, “Slurp away, mah boy, let the chef know he’s done a good job!” He raised his cup in the air triumphantly, then set about devouring it again. Genos was just shocked there was anything left in his.

Genos looked at the older man with an uncomfortable look, and then looked down at his own meal. He thought it over for a second. ‘If it was really ok with him…’ Genos took a larger chunk of noodles than he would usually dare, and sucked it in rapidly.

Genos realized too quickly his fatal flaw. He had grabbed too many noodles, and had sucked in too fast. Noodles, broth, and chucks of egg, chicken, and green onion filled his mouth almost immediately, like a giant slug that had decided to make his mouth its new home. Broth flew all over his face and onto the desk below as the loose ends of the noodles flew up towards the black hole of his mouth, slapping against his cheeks. Not sure what to do with the mass in his mouth, he began to slowly chew, and then finally swallowed, gasping for breath when the mass had cleared his throat.

Genos looked across the table and saw Saitama staring at him, a stunned expression on his face. A moment later, the older man burst into laughter. Genos couldn’t hide the blush plastered across his face like red paint. He quickly searched his new room for something to clean the mess up with, doing anything to distract him from his utter humiliation.

“You… hahaha… have something… bahahaha… on your face!!” Saitama was now pounding on the table he was laughing so hard. Genos reach up and picked the piece of scrambled egg off his face, not believing that his face could get any redder than it was at this moment. He finally located the box of tissues he had set on the window ledge near his bed, and quickly cleaned up the mess he had made, staring very intently at what he was doing while Saitama continued to hoot and holler.

Genos threw the tissues in the trash and grabbed a few more to clean off his face. Saitama’s laughter had mostly subsided by now, as he clutched his stomach and tried to get his breathing back to normal.

“You are one weird dude, hahaha,” Saitama said, wiping a tear from his eye.

Genos looked away and started rubbing his cheek with a tissue. Some of the broth had dried a little and was becoming sticky on his face. He rubbed a little harder, hoping getting it off of his face would help him move past this embarrassment. He noticed something move across the table in the corner of his eye.

“Here, let me get that for you, you’re missing some of it.”

Saitama was leaning across the table, hand casually extended, a kind smile on his face. Genos’s cheeks, which had just started to cool down, became slightly warm again. He handed the tissues to Saitama, looking away embarrassed. He felt like a little kid, suddenly. A feeling he had not felt in a long time.

“Here, face me, I can’t get it all when you’re looking away like that,” Saitama said, grabbing the bottom of Genos’s chin like a mother would their child when they have chocolate all over their face. Genos complied with the movement, but couldn’t bring himself to meet Saitama’s eyes while he cleaned his face. Saitama’s touch was firm but gentle, rubbing just hard enough to get the dried liquid off of Genos’s face. Genos was definitely not used to something as intimate as this. He chanced to steal a glance at the other man and was suddenly very aware of how close Saitama’s face was to his, the feel of his fingers on his chin, the determined look on his face as he looked for more spots of broth and rubbed them off, the way he stuck his tongue out a little as he concentrated on a particularly sticky spot…

Saitama had been rubbing at one such particularly stubborn spot when suddenly he licked his thumb and rubbed Genos’s cheek with his saliva. Genos instinctively tried to move away, but Saitama’s grip on his chin was firm, firmer than he would have guessed, and instead he just kind of awkwardly fell sideways in his seiza-stance so that now his legs were off to his side, only half tucked beneath him. His face was now facing straight up towards Saitama, his neck now craning to make up for the height difference. He felt his teacher’s saliva hit his face, warm and slimy as Saitama rubbed it under his thumb on the offending spot. Genos was definitely not used to this level of intimacy with another human being. He was silently grateful his brain wasn’t completely made of mechanics, thinking it would surely be overheating right now if it were.

When Saitama seemed satisfied with his work, he gave Genos one last inspection, turning Genos’s head by his chin to make sure he had gotten it all off. Then, he booped Genos on the nose with the tissue and sat back, releasing his charge from his grip. Genos slumped back fully onto his butt, feeling the embarrassment creep into every fiber of his being. Saitama leaned back on one hand, like nothing out of the ordinary had just happened. He absentmindedly scratched his inner ear with his other pinky and said playfully “When I said you should slurp, I didn’t mean kill yourself, heh.”

Genos would have preferred dying to having to deal with this level of humiliation.

Saitama looked down at the remnants that remained in his own noodle cup, and frowned a little. “Dangit… Empty...” he muttered to himself, using his chopsticks to fish out the little scraps of noodles that remained. Genos looked down at his own cup, a good half of it still remaining, although much of the broth and toppings had been sucked up into the noodle vortex that had engulfed his mouth moments before. Genos glanced back up to see Saitama looking back at him, or rather, looking longingly at Genos’s cup.

“You can have the rest of mine if you want, sensei.” Genos said, holding his cup out towards the other man.
Saitama looked down at the remaining contents of the cup, and then up at Genos, and then his eyebrows furrowed. “Are you sure, man? There’s still like, half a cup in there!”

Genos nodded vigorously, trying to push back the thoughts of trying to eat in front of Saitama again. He didn’t think he could handle any more embarrassment that night. “Yes, I’m quite full now, thank you.”

Saitama shrugged and accepted the cup. “Suit yourself.” He began sucking noodles into his mouth with the finesse of a speed eater, slurping up the remaining broth as he ate. He finished with an audible “Ahhhh” and sat back, patting his tummy satisfactorily. Genos couldn’t help but smile slightly at his senior. He sure was a curious person.

Saitama sucked the broth at the end of his chopsticks a bit as he sat back, looking up at the ceiling, lost in thought. Genos suddenly noticed he had been staring at Saitama silently for several minutes and quickly made himself busy cleaning up their dinner.

“So, do you have like, a robot stomach or something? Is that why you don’t eat much?” Saitama asked nonchalantly, still sucking at the end of his chopsticks as Genos wiped up a few more spots he had missed off the table earlier. Genos felt a little uncomfortable talking about his mechanics. He knew that was what he signed up for when he became a cyborg, especially after opting to keep his very robot looking eyes, and was used to people asking questions. That didn’t make it any easier for him to answer them, though.

“Err, no, I do have a cybernetic kidney, though.” Genos answered carefully, trying to make his tone sound light despite him feeling vastly uncomfortable.

“Ah, cool.” Saitama replied, laying down completely. Genos looked at him curiously as he wiped up Saitama’s side of the table. Maybe he was just trying to make conversation? Genos couldn’t be sure if Saitama was just trying to absorb the information or if he asked the question more out of boredom than curiousity. Genos was slowly beginning to discover that Saitama was an enigma.

“So, your arm and your kidney, or, at least part of your arm, anything else?” Saitama asked, discarding his chopsticks at last on the tray. He put his arms behind his head and faced Genos a bit. Genos hadn’t noticed it before outside because Saitama had been wearing a long sleeved shirt, but here, wearing a t-shirt and arms behind his head, Genos noticed that his teacher was actually fairly muscular. Not to the point where he looked like he hit the gym every day, but enough that it was noticeable. Genos looked back to the task at hand, hoping Saitama hadn’t noticed him looking.

“Um, well, let’s see, my whole right arm and shoulder, my whole right leg up into my hip, various functional parts along my right side… And, of course, my eyes.” Genos replied, trying to sound more like he was repeating a grocery list than talking about his body.

“So you’re almost half a cyborg then!” Saitama exclaimed, eyes widening a bit. Genos noticed the muscles in his arms tense a bit.

“More like, 40%, but yes, you are approximately correct, sensei.” Genos stuffed the dirtied tissues into the empty noodle cups and turned to toss them in the trash, trying to avoid his teacher’s gaze. He knew that look of astonishment, and the recognition that would surely come with it.

Saitama suddenly sat up. “Oh, so you’re like that kid from six years ago! The one that was all over the news after he survived that accident! ‘Cybernetic Miracle Child’! ‘Little Cyborg Prince’! I didn’t know anyone else had gone through that much…” Saitama trailed off as realization came over his face, “Oh…” Saitama suddenly scratched the back of his head nervously and looked away. “Sorry man…”

Genos only shook his head and did a sad, half smile. This was why he hated talking about his cybernetics. Sooner or later, everyone always realized who he was, and every time it pushed people away from Genos. Like intense burden he bore of the death of his family would rub off on them. Genos knew the conversation, knew the pattern, and knew it was only a matter of time. ‘Dammit…’ he thought, somberly picking up the tissue box and moving to return it to the sill.

“I feel like I really killed the mood, and now my noodles are going to digest all weird…” Saitama said, looking down at his stomach and rubbing it.

Genos wanted to smile at Saitama’s attempt to change the subject, to cheer Genos up. But Genos knew what would happen, he had been through it so many times before. Next, he would excuse himself. Then, Genos would never see him again, or worse, Saitama would find ways to try to avoid him if he did run into Genos. It had happened with everyone since his surgery. Everyone, save Dr. Kuseno, but his interest in Genos was purely scientific. Genos was his greatest accomplishment, not his friend. Scientific advancements didn’t have friends.

“It’s ok sensei… You don’t have to try to make me feel better… I’ve been through this enough times. Just go ahead and leave. You don’t have to make any excuses. I know my past is too tragic, you’ll feel like you’re walking on eggshells around me, whether you recognize it or not, you will. They all do eventually, and when you do, I’ll never see you again, so just save me the time, save me the hope that this time will be different. You seem like a nice enough guy, so just leave now while you have the chance, and I promise I won’t hold it against you, I won’t try to talk to you or bother you…”

“Hey, woah, woah, woah, slow down man, what are you even saying right now?”

Saitama’s words were lost on Genos as the dark thoughts enveloped all his senses. Genos could feel the tears, unbidden, coming to his eyes, and was powerless to stop them. Why couldn’t he just be normal? Why couldn’t he just have friends? Why was it so much to ask for him to have just one stable thing in his life? What had he done to piss off the universe so badly?

Genos’s thoughts were suddenly very abruptly interrupted by a strange, ungodly noise that came from Saitama’s stomach, like an alien was trapped inside him. Both of the men looked at Saitama’s stomach in disbelief of what they had just heard. Then, without warning, Saitama opened his mouth and let out the largest belch both men had ever heard. It seemed to go on forever, shaking the whole room and rattling the windows. When it dissipated, the two young men looked at each other in disbelief. There was a brief silence where they both just stared, trying to process what had just happened.

And then, the next moment, both of them were keeled over laughing.

Genos had never heard something so ridiculous in his life. He laughed so hard he had to sit down on the bed. Saitama fell against the end of the bed, using it to keep him from falling over completely. As their laughter eventually died off, Saitama leaned back and sighed what Genos thought sounded like a happy sigh. Or maybe that was just his hope. He was allowing himself to hope, just a little, just for a brief moment. He leaned forward and rested his eblows on his knees, trying to regain his breath. Then, to his surprise, he felt a hand reach up and rub the top of his head. Genos’s eyes flew open wide in shock, but he didn’t move an inch.

“Listen, I dunno what all that was you were talking about, but obviously you’ve been through some shit…” Saitama retracted his hand, and leaned back against the bed, “But I don’t really care about all that. What I do care about is all that dramatic chatter. You should really try to keep it to 20 words or less, kay? People get lost or stop paying attention after 20 words. You were saying so much so fast! So, at least with me, 20 words or less in the future, please.”

Genos felt tears welling up in his eyes again as he looked at the back of the head of this amazing man. Instead, he smiled the first true smile he had in a while.

‘With me… in the future…’

“I’ll try to do that from now on, sensei.”

Chapter Text

The next day Genos had a hard time waking up. Saitama’s midnight raid on his dorm and his emotions had kept him up until almost 2 am. Eventually, he managed to drag himself out of bed and into his uniform. He felt more awake as he stepped out into the crisp, early spring air and made his way across campus. He had not heard Saitama down in his room this morning, and wondered if his sensei was already in his classroom.

His classroom…

Genos suddenly realized he had never asked what subject Saitama taught. Did he teach his level? Was there a chance he had a class with Saitama-sensei? He silently cursed himself for not being better at social interactions, for not even being polite enough to ask. He quickened his pace across the campus as his thoughts raced. He had only been teaching there for two years, right? So the possibility of him teaching lower level classes was high. But what could he teach? Genos pulled out his schedule and looked over his classes, trying to think of which one would be the most likely for him to teach. Mathematics? Chemistry? Most likely not, Saitama didn’t seem necessarily dumb per say, but the level required at this school combined with Saitama’s relaxed attitude made Genos assume not. Genos shuddered to think of Saitama in charge of a chemistry lab…

His first class of the day was Chemistry, which he soon found out was taught by ‘Amai-sensei’, a tall, handsome looking man who would made the chemistry lab feel more like his own photoshoot. During class he talked cool and confidently, but after class Genos was surprised to see many students approach him in the hallway to chat and say hello. He flashed them a model-esque smile and talked lightly with them, a stark contrast to how he was in the classroom. ‘He must be popular…’ Genos thought, his suspicions confirmed not moments later when a group of squealing girls ran up to him to welcome him back this year. He shrugged it off, guessing he just took the chemistry lab very seriously and headed in the direction of his next class.

His next class was computer forensics down in the computer lab, which was supposed to be taught by Dr. M. Knight, but he was absent that day due to being pulled away by the FBI on a case. He had, however, recorded his first few weeks of lectures in the instance that he should be absent. Which was fine with Genos, as long as he got the information he needed. Still no sign of Saitama.

After Computer Forensics Genos had about an hour and a half break, so he grabbed some lunch from the cafeteria and took it to the library, to see if he could find any research on social interactions. He found a few short volumes, mostly self-help books for those with social anxiety, and promptly checked them out. He found a quiet corner to read and eat in, and set about reading each book carefully, making sure to take notes when he found a particularly good tidbit of information.

His hour and a half passed quickly, making Genos almost late to his next class. ‘History of Crimes and Criminology’. Luckily, the classroom wasn’t too far from the library, but he was still forced to take a seat in the front of the room. Right as the class was about to start, a familiar figure burst through the door.

It was none other than Saitama-sensei.

Genos thought about waving, but stopped himself as he realized how weird that might seem. Instead, he met Saitama’s gaze and nodded in his direction. Ah, yes, just a manly nod to recognize each other’s presence, but not enough to draw too much attention to either person in the full classroom. Yes, surely this was a sign that his research on social interactions was already paying off.

Genos’s proud thoughts were all at once dashed when Saitama’s eyes suddenly widened. Like a child waking from a day dream he did a double-take, blinked, then waved frantically. Then, he made his way to his desk, set down his briefcase… wait a second, had he just woken up? No, maybe he had just had classes in another classroom that morning. Yeah, that had to be it, right?

Despite Saitama’s usual lazy and carefree nature, he actually turned out to be a very competent teacher. Even though it was just the first day, and they were mostly just being told the schedule of the class and other important information, Genos found Saitama’s explanations to be clear and concise. He did yawn a few times, but overall Genos really enjoyed the class. When time was up for the day, Genos approached Saitama’s desk.

“Oi, Genos, how’s it going?” Saitama said casually, as if they had known each other for years.

“Good afternoon sensei. I trust your other classes this morning went just as well as this one. I am pleased to see I am indeed in one of your classes. I wanted to inquire as to what your plans were for the rest of the day?” Genos replied nervously, trying to remember his notes from earlier.

Saitama furrowed his brow a bit. “Haha, why are you talking all funny? And I thought we talked about this, 20 words or less, man.”

Most of the students had filed out of the classroom by now, and Genos tried to relax a bit.

“I was just trying to treat you with the respect befitting one that is my senior in both age and job ranking.”

“Well, err, stop it then. You sound like a robot, err, well, more of one than you already are.”

Genos felt his muscles tense, but luckily Saitama continued on.

“Calm down, it was a joke, haha. Anyway, to answer your question, I’m actually about to head over to the soccer field to prep the guys for try-outs tomorrow.”

“Ah, I see…”

Saitama looked up at the other man, a look of sympathy on his face. Genos was equal parts relieved and disappointed. Relieved because he wasn’t sure he could ‘hang out’ with anyone just yet, even Saitama. Disappointed because he did enjoy being around Saitama.

“But…” Saitama began, “If you wanted to eat dinner together tonight, bring your dinner down to the common room at 7.”

“I’d love to!” Genos replied with so much enthusiasm he was glad the classroom had emptied out.

“Haha, alright then! 7 it is. See you then!”

Genos did a small bow and then left the classroom. He had a few hours to kill before 7, so he decided he should do some more research on social interactions before putting it to the test that evening at dinner.

Genos found his quiet little corner in the library again and cracked open ‘How to be a Better You: Navigating today’s Social World’. The book was a good 10 years old, but Genos felt it still provided useful information. So far, it seemed to be one of the newest tomes, written by a mousey housewife who had suddenly become a social butterfly and envy of her husband’s office. There was one passage he found particularly interesting:

‘Find a role model, someone you wish you could be like. Someone who seems to naturally talk to people, and who you feel at ease with talking to. Observe them, learn from them. They are the catalyst for you becoming your own social butterfly.

Genos slammed the book shut with realization, causing the few people nearby to turn and glare at him, ‘shh’-ing him with their eyes. He mouthed an ‘I’m sorry’ and threw his things quickly into his bag, going as quickly as he could towards the soccer fields. ********************************************************************************************************************************
When Genos arrived at the soccer fields, he looked around for a place to make his hideout. He needed a place where he could see Saitama, but Saitama couldn’t see him. It was difficult- the area was a rather large expanse of the clearing on the top of the hill. It seemed that soccer was the sport of choice at this University, so a good deal of open space had been dedicated to it. Luckily, however, there was a tall announcer’s tower surrounded by bleachers. Unluckily, it was on the far side of the field. Genos decided that was going to be his best vantage point, and quietly snuck to the other side of the field, giving it a wide berth so hopefully no one would notice him.

He took his place under the bleachers, fairly confident that he had made it there undetected. He pulled out a small notebook and a pen, and began his observations of Saitama-sensei. He was on the far side of the field, standing in a light, jogging type track suit that looked like it had been forced upon him by the school. He had a clipboard in his hand, and he was giving his team a talk about the tryouts the next day.

‘Maybe I should try out for the team…’ he thought, as he jotted down notes in his notebook. Genos had never really had much of an interest in sports, but he was athletic, spending much of his time in the gym at the Cybernetics Research Compound- his new ‘home’ after his old one was destroyed. Dr. Kuseno had insisted Genos stay at the compound for observation, but Genos knew that wasn’t the only reason. His only living relatives lived far away in H city, where his father had grown up. Besides that, those relatives were apprehensive about taking the troubled boy in, never having children of their own. Genos didn’t particularly care to go and live with them either, having only met them a handful of times and not really looking forward to the comparisons to his dead parents his relatives would undoubtedly remind him constantly.

At the compound, other cyborgs, mostly people in their late 30’s or 40’s who had lost a limb somehow, came and went. They were nice for the time that they were there, but then Genos would never hear from them again. Occasionally another child would come to live there for a while, but many of them were scared by his eyes and didn’t dare talk to him. There was no time for Genos to participate in team sports, only long hours in the gym alone, studying and watching the news while he tried to chase away the one constant in his life.

Loneliness.

Genos shook his head, shaking away the dark cloud that was forming in his mind. He had no more time for team sports now than he had back then. He still needed to study hard to become a CSI. He still needed to prove that what happened to his family wasn’t just an ‘accident’. None of that had changed.

And yet, Genos felt himself longing for something more, something that had always felt so far out of his reach…

…something normal…

It was a strange feeling for one to yearn for while crouched under bleachers, observing a man he had just met the day before and taking notes on his behavior.

Genos groaned silently in his head. Nothing he ever did was normal.

“So it’s you.”

Genos about hit his head on the bleacher he was hidden under. He quickly turned around and was met by the cold, pale green eyes of the raven-haired boy from the day before… what was his name again…

“Are you stalking someone?”

Genos’s eyes flew open. He wouldn’t exactly call it stalking…

“Well, are you going to answer me or just sit there with your stupid mouth hanging open?” The boy had his arms crossed and was tapping his foot impatiently, waiting for Genos to answer. Genos knew he didn’t have long to think of an explanation, but how was he going to explain this?

The boy’s pale green eyes narrowed.

“Don’t tell me that the scholarship scum is actually stupid. That would be ironic. Speak!”

He was almost to the point of yelling now, and Genos was afraid that Saitama would hear them. That could NOT happen.

“Saitama-sensei asked me to observe all of you, y-you know, f-for the tryouts tomorrow! He didn’t want anyone to k-know. S-s-sorry… erm…”

“It’s Sonic. Make sure you remember that, cyborg. And why would coach want you to observe us?” Sonic seemed even angrier at Genos’s response, which in turn lit a spark in Genos. As nervous as he was about Saitama hearing them, he was even angrier about the way this guy was talking to him. He tried to compose himself a bit and retorted,

“I don’t know, he just asked me to last night during dinner.”

Sonic’s eyes widened for just a second at the word ‘dinner’. Then, his face turned back to its state of constant annoyance.

“That idiot, what is he planning…” Sonic’s eyes narrowed in the direction of Saitama. Then, they snapped back on Genos. “Finish your task and leave. I don’t want to see you around here again, got it? Unless you want to challenge me on the soccer field, cyborg.”

Genos could feel the fire swelling inside him, the red hot intensity that wanted snap right back at this man, to teach him to talk to him that way. But the fear of Saitama finding him like this outdid his white-hot anger, and so he simply nodded, meeting Sonic’s glare with his own.

“Tch.” Was Sonic’s only reply, and with that, he abruptly turned about and stalked off in the direction of the soccer field.

Genos about collapsed when Sonic was out of sight. That was a close one! He would have been utterly humiliated if Saitama had found them. And what was Sonic’s deal, anyway? Was he always like that? Surely Genos hadn’t done something to piss him off that badly. What an awful way to go through life…

He looked down at the small notebook, then out to Saitama, who was now running the team through some short drills. Genos pondered for a second ripping up the pages, forgetting this stupid attempt at some normalcy in his life. Who did he think he was kidding, anyway? He was never going to be normal, not even when he avenged his family. That was all burned away in the fire that day.

A soft wind picked up just then, whistling its sweet melody through the bleachers. Off in the distance, Saitama clutched his clip board a little tighter as the papers on it rustled. Genos watched Saitama standing there, a look of satisfaction on his face, and it made Genos smile.

He clicked back open his pen.

Chapter Text

Genos only had two classes in the morning, so he was done by lunch time. He had designed his schedule to allow himself ample time to dedicate to his studies, not overloading his schedule to try to finish early. As much as he would like to, he knew it was not smart to try to rush learning. He had waited 6 years to get to this point, he could wait a little longer to acquire the skills he needed correctly.

Genos grabbed some lunch and began his trek across campus to the library. He pulled out his little notebook, looking at the schedule he had jotted down the night before. He smiled, thinking back to how clever he had felt inquiring about Saitama’s teaching schedule over dinner last night. It seemed he didn’t teach much, being a new teacher and the coach of the soccer team, but the majority of his classes were today. As much as Genos wanted to look in on his classes from the window, he decided that might be crossing some sort of line into stalker territory and that was a line he wasn’t ready to cross.

So, instead, he found his usual place in the library and went over his notes from the day before. He munched on some curry bread as he read, soaking up the warmth of the sunlight coming through the window. He felt his eyelids beginning to grow heavy, and quickly set an alarm on his phone-just in case. The soccer team try-outs would be a wonderful observation time, one he couldn’t afford to miss.
********************************************************************************************************************************
Genos checked his laces for the 50th time before opening the gate to the metal link fence that separated the soccer field from the rest of the school. He didn’t have any cleats or shin guards, but he did have ample exercising attire, so he hoped that would suffice. Some of the other hopeful boys were standing on the near side of the field, some chatting with each other, some stretching nervously. Genos saw the team on the other side of the field, most of them sprawled out lazily on the grass. Sonic stood nearby them, leaning against the fence, arms and legs cross. A couple of the soccer team boys were talking to him, but he barely acknowledged them. His pale green eyes were staring straight at Genos. When he was sure that Genos had met his gaze, Sonic mouthed something.

‘Go Away’

Genos had to stop himself from visibly shuddering. Instead, he looked around for Saitama.

At that moment, Saitama emerged from the small equipment shed near the edge of the clearing carrying various items necessary for the tryouts. He had his hands full and was struggling with the door, so Genos took the opportunity to go and help him.

“Hello, Saitama-sensei, can I assist you with those?” Genos called out as he approached.

“Oi, Genos! I didn’t know you were coming today! And yeah, here, take these.” Saitama said, handing over almost all of the equipment he had formerly been caring. Genos didn’t mind, he was just glad to be helping.

“You’re the one who invited me, sensei.”

“Ah, I did?” Saitama replied, rubbing the back of his neck, “Well, cool.” Genos was slightly hurt Saitama didn’t remember, but he let it roll off his back. It had been a busy day that day, and it wasn’t something that might stick out in a normal person’s mind. Especially after Saitama said, “Well, I’m glad you’re here!”

Genos wasn’t sure what to do with all the feelings that welled up inside him at that very moment. Pride, happiness, and just a little more hope that maybe, just maybe, this person was becoming his friend. He just nodded numbly back at the other man.

When they got back over to the field, Saitama told Genos to set the stuff down and then he blew his whistle to call everyone over.

“Ok everyone, so first off-“

“What is he doing here?” Sonic cut in almost immediately, nodding in Genos’s direction. He had been the first one to jog over, but had waited until everyone was around and Saitama had begun to speak. Genos felt his blood beginning to boil. ‘Seriously, what is this guy’s deal?’ Genos thought, feeling his eyebrow twitch a little as he sent a confused look towards Sonic who was standing there, arms crossed, looking smug as ever.

Saitama also looked confused by the question, and scratched the back of his head. “Who, Genos? Well, I suppose he’s here to try out, aren’t ya Genos?”

“You dolt, cyborgs can’t be on our team.” Sonic snapped back before Genos could even open his mouth, as if he had been waiting for just that answer.

“You could tell Genos is a cyborg? Did you touch his arm, too? And, also, so what if he is?”

Genos thought he saw a flash of blush run across Sonic’s face. Uh, oh, he must be maaaaaddd…

Sonic stepped forward until he was directly in front of Saitama. “Listen, coach, I’ll say it loud and clear so you’ll be sure to pay attention. Anyone could tell he’s a cyborg from a million miles away! Just look at his eyes, you idiot! And ‘so what if he is’?! Using a cyborg is cheating! If we’re lucky enough not to get banned from the league, the other teams will say every game we win is because we had an unfair advantage! As team captain, I can’t allow my teammates to go through that just because this scholarship kid wants to show off!”

Sonic’s face had gotten progressively closer, so he was practically yelling in Saitama’s ear by the end of his speech. Saitama looked dazed by the barrage of words. Genos held his breath, waiting for Saitama’s response.

“Oh.”

Not…exactly what Genos had been hoping for. A feeling of dread washed over Genos. He wasn’t necessarily super interested in playing soccer itself, but he WAS interested in spending more time with Saitama-sensei, and this seemed like a much better option than hiding out beneath the bleachers all day. He wasn’t aware of any rules preventing cyborgs from playing but, then again cyborgs were a relatively new concept, and he could see where some people might consider his presence on the team a cheat, especially when they found out he had a cybernetic leg. He was just about to succumb to the dark clouds forming in his mind again, when suddenly, a light broke through and he got an idea.

“Sensei, please allow me to be your team’s manager! I’ll train under you and assist you!”

Genos’s only regret was that he didn’t think of it earlier. Team manager was much better for spending time with Saitama. AND it wouldn’t look weird if he were to take out his notebook and take notes. He held his breath and silently prayed that Saitama would agree to it.

“Are you sure you want to do that? We’ve never really had a team manager before, so I don’t really know what you would be doing…” Saitama rubbed the back of his neck nervously.

Genos gathered all of his courage and determination in that moment and replied, “If you’ll let me, sensei, I would love to. I won’t disappoint you. I promise.” He held his breath as he waited for a response.

Saitama looked into Genos’s eyes and studied them for a second. Seemingly satisfied he finally replied, “Well, then, welcome to the team, Genos!” Saitama said, patting Genos on the shoulder. Genos exhaled, his heart racing. A few of the boys clapped or let out a small cheer, suddenly reminding Genos that he had said all of that in front of almost 20 men he didn’t know. He felt his face and ears go red, and he fiddled with one of his stud earrings nervously.

“What, we don’t get a say in this?” Sonic snapped at Saitama, but Saitama just shook his head.

“Sorry, I’ve already decided.” Saitama said, an apologetic look on his face. “Now let’s get this tryout started! Line up boys!”

Sonic looked stunned by Saitama’s answer for a second, like his brain couldn’t quite process someone telling him he wasn’t going to get his way. Then, with a ‘hmph’, he turned and dutifully got in line, glowering at Genos as he stood there. But Genos wasn’t paying attention to him.

Genos watched Saitama for a moment as he lined everyone up and started taking role, sighing inwardly at the man that was helping him so much more than he would ever know.

“Hey Genos, can you grab some cones?”

Genos snapped out of his trance, and replied with a smile,

“Yes, sensei!”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Later that night, Genos and Saitama were sitting around in the common room, having just finished eating their respective dinners. Saitama was reading a manga as Genos was absentmindedly cleaning up their trash, feeling content in what seemed to be their new routine. Saitama didn’t seem to have too many friends here, or maybe he simply preferred to be alone. If that was the case, he didn’t seem too disturbed by Genos joining him, and that made Genos smile inside. Maybe Saitama didn’t necessarily want Genos there, but as long as he didn’t mind Genos being there, that was more than Genos could have ever hoped for.

Saitama giggled to himself over something in his manga, causing Genos to instinctively look at him. He took advantage of Saitama’s distraction to look over his sensei. He was in very good shape for his age, which he had learned in a previous dinner conversation was 25. Unfortunately, he often wore clothing that didn’t show off his figure, such as the large pull-over ‘Oppai’ sweatshirt and baggy shorts he was currently sporting. He kept his legs shaved, which Genos thought was strange for a man of his level of laze. Or maybe he just didn’t grow much hair on his legs? Genos pulled out his notebook and made a quick notation to ask Saitama about this at a time when it wouldn’t be very apparent that Genos had been staring at him moments before.

Saitama giggled again as he turned the page, reaching up unconsciously to fiddle with a stray lock of hair. Genos had noticed his sensei often did that, like he needed to remind himself his hair was still there. Genos became absorbed in watching the movement of his fingers, dancing and twirling so gently around that one lock of fine, black hair…

Genos followed that hand down as it went to turn the next page, stopping at Saitama’s face. His face was soft and gentle, a slight smile always at the edge of his lips. He knew that face also had its intense side; He had seen it looking up at Saitama when he first saved him. Genos considered himself lucky to have never been on the receiving end of that glare, the one that stole all the warmth from Saitama’s dark brown eyes. Genos involuntarily shuddered, and clicked his pen again to write ‘NEVER MAKE SENSEI ANGRY’ nice and big.

Saitama glanced over at the sound of the pen click. “Oi, do you have homework already?”

Genos started a little at the sound of Saitama’s voice. “Oh, um, er, no, haha, not exactly.”

“Whatcha writing then, clicky?”

Genos suddenly noticed he was nervously clicking the end of his pen, but he couldn’t seem to get it to stop. He felt the heat rising from the back of his neck into his face. It took the force of both of his hands to set the pen down, pressing it hard against the now closed notebook in his lap. Not quite sure what to do with his hands anymore, one started fidgeting with his stud earing. Should he just tell him? No, that might be too weird.

“I was just writing down some observations from today.”

“Observations? Like a dairy?”

Genos was quite certain the heat had risen into his face by now, even if he couldn’t feel it. He was using all his brain power to try to come up with an answer for the suddenly curious Saitama.

“Um, kind of I guess you could put it that way maybe…” He began nervously. “You see, I want to become a CSI one day, and part of being a CSI is being very observant and being able to draw conclusions based on the things around you. So I decided to start keeping a journal of these little observations, in the hopes of it increasing my future abilities.”

“Ah, that makes sense.” Saitama said. He paused for a moment, looking up as if he was trying to think of something more to say. Genos held his breath…

...and then Saitama went back to reading.

Genos exhaled heavily, trying not to make any noise as he did. He was beginning to figure out he could use his anxious word vomit as a distraction tactic. As long as he didn’t go too far over the 20 word limit, Saitama would become dazed without chastising him. Genos felt a very small pang of guilt in his chest over taking advantage of Saitama’s lack of an attention span, wishing he could just tell Saitama he was observing him, that he was his role model. But he was too afraid of pushing this person away. ‘Not yet…’ He told himself, ‘Not while we still have a little hope…’

Saitama reached out to the coffee table between them and began patting around, like he was searching for something but was too engrossed in his manga to actually look up. “Chips…” He muttered, his hand not giving up the search despite the lack of chips on the table. Genos was pretty sure they didn't even have chips in the building.

“Saitama-sensei, i’m going to go grab some snacks from the campus store, do you want anything?”

Saitama's only reply was to wave him away absentmindedly. Genos smiled and made a quick notation in his notebook. ‘Sensei doesn't like asking for things from other people, even if he really wants them.’ He tucked the notebook away into his back pocket, grabbed his bag, and set off towards the campus store.

The air was crisp and cool compared to the warmth of the common room; it felt refreshing on Genos’s face. He looked up as he breathed in, noticing the moon was almost full. Out here in the country you could see so many stars. Genos took a second to soak them all in, wanting to remember this sight. He thought for a moment of going back inside and asking Saitama to go with him so they could look at the stars together, but he decided not to. Saitama was thoroughly absorbed in his reading, and, as much as he would have enjoyed his teacher’s company, Genos didn't want to disturb him over something so silly. ‘I'm sure the stars always look this beautiful up here…’ He thought to himself, zipping up his jacket before walking into the night.

As Genos walked towards the store, he silently thanked the moon for lighting his way. He still wasn't 100% familiar with the campus yet and hadn't even thought to bring a flashlight with him.True, he had night vision thanks to his cybernetic eyes, but to be honest he hated seeing in night vision. Technology had done many things to improve his quality of life, but night vision technology was shoddy in his opinion. He much preferred his moonlit path or the light of a lamppost. The campus did have some lighting on the paths, but out by the old dorm many of the light bulbs needed replacing. Genos wondered if the school even realized there were people living in the old dorm. A part of him thought probably not.

Genos came across some other students as he got closer to the main part of campus- mostly delinquent couples walking with arms wrapped around each other, probably trying to find some place to hide away together for a while. One such couple came staggering down the path towards Genos, giggling and whispering to each other. The man’s tie hung loosely around his neck, and the woman kept hanging on it and playing with it as she talked. Genos didn't need the scanners in his eyes to see they were both drunk. ‘Really, on a Wednesday?’ Genos thought to himself, furrowing his eyebrows. He tried to tear his eyes away as they passed, but was apparently unsuccessful.

“What about him, honey, he's cute. Look at those eyes. Mmmmm…” the woman breathed more than said into the man’s ear, playing with the tie around his neck. The man seemed to like the movement, Genos observed, as he watched the man’s face soak up the feeling before he turned lazily to Genos, obstructing his path.

“Hey, you there, my girl wants you to join us.” He barely slurred out, his breath reeking of alcohol. He was clearly the more drunk of the two. He placed a hand on Genos’s abdomen. Genos wondered if that was to stop Genos from going past him, or because the man needed to steady himself. Genos tensed at the touch, and could feel the heat rising on the back of his neck. He was definitely not used to being touched by strangers, and had definitely never been touched by one propositioning what he suspected this man was. Before his brain could chug out a response, the woman was on his left arm pressing herself against him and rubbing his biceps. Genos looked down and noticed for the first time how low her shirt was unbuttoned. He could see the very top of her black lace bra as she pushed her breasts against him. The new sensation of them pressing against him combined with him seeing his first set of intimate wear on a real pair of boobs sent all the blood rushing to his face. Well… Most of it went to his face anyway.

“I’m afraid I must respectfully decline the two of you. I know neither of you, but I suspect once you were out of this drunken state you would regret what you are proposing, if I were even remotely interested in accepting your offer. Which I am not.” Genos tried to sound firm, but it was hard to keep his voice from shaking from all this new… Stimuli.

“Someone seems to disagree with you…” the woman said as if she were half asleep, looking down towards the zipper of his pants and reaching a hand over to play with the top of his jeans. “Why won't you come play with us? Here, let me show you how much fun we can have…”

She removed her hand from the top of his pants and grabbed the man’s tie forcefully, pulling him into a long, sloppy kiss. The man finally took his hand off of Genos's stomach and instead grabbed the woman's breast and ass, pulling her into him. Taking advantage of the distraction, Genos slipped away, hoping that in their drunken state they would forget all about pursuing him. Genos quickened his step and rushed towards the campus store, reminding himself to take a different route back to the dorms.

When Genos arrived back at the dorm, Saitama was right where he had left him, as if time had stood still while he was gone. His teacher looked up at him as he came back in.

“Oi, Genos, where have you been?” he asked, closing his manga but keeping his thumb on the page he had been on.

“I went out to grab some snacks, don't you remember? I asked if you wanted anything before I left.” Genos replied, only slightly surprised Saitama had forgotten.

“Oh, heh, sorry, I must have forgotten.” Saitama said bashfully, rubbing the back of his neck.

“It's ok, sensei, you were very wrapped up in your manga, and I left very quietly.”

Genos walked around the couch and set his bag of snacks down on the table between them. Saitama's eyes immediately went to the bag, but then Genos saw them go past the bag and land on Genos's pants. Why was everyone looking down there tonight?

“Um, Genos, why are your pants all wet on the side?”

Genos could have died of embarrassment right there on the spot.

He followed Saitama's eyes to his pants on the left side and, sure enough, there it was.

“There was a woman…” Genos began, his brain trying to deal with the shock and horror of the stain on his pants.

“Oh yeah?” Saitama said, sitting up a little bit, his eyebrows cocked curiously.

“And a man…”

“Oh?” Saitama’s eyebrow rose even harder.

“And they… Drunk…”

“Yeah, it smells like you are, too! You reek of booze.”

Genos’s eyes widened and he sniffed himself. He did reek.

“No, sensei! I would never! They were… Touching me…” Genos felt his face going red at the thought of the man touching his stomach, of the woman rubbing his arm, the fingers on the top of his pants, her body pressed against him…

“That must be what this is! She must have been wet somewhere and when she pressed against me, my jeans must have absorbed it!” Genos exclaimed, maybe a little too loudly, his mind finally catching back up with his mouth.

Saitama's eyes opened wide in shock. Genos noticed his teacher's neck and ears get very red.

“Damn, Genos, you dog! I thought you were all awkward and a virgin for sure, who knew you were so kinky!”

Genos thought he would surely pass out in that moment so much blood rushed to his face.

“I-no! S-Sensei, you have it all wrong!!”

“You just got here and already a threesome? You sure move fast Genos, maybe you should be MY teacher!”

“I can assure you that would be most disappointing for you as a student seeing as I have nothing to teach! You are very mistaken by this, Sensei!”

Genos was panicking now, his face completely flushed and spinning. Saitama was DEFINITELY mistaken. Genos didn't know the first thing about anything so intimate as THAT. He felt tears well up in his eyes, partially from humiliation, but mostly from him not wanting to have his teacher think he was secretly sneaking off in the middle of the night to have threesomes with strangers.

Saitama clutched his stomach as he burst out laughing.

“Genos, I’m just teasing you! Calm down!”

If his face could get any redder, Genos was sure it did in that moment.

“Oh.”

Genos was secretly elated by the fact that Saitama felt close enough with him to joke around like this with him. He would have been much happier if he wasn't so busy dying from being the target of Saitama's teasing.

Saitama tried to speak between fits of laughter, “Sorry, man, but the look on your face was just too good!”

“You're so cruel, Sensei!” Genos retorted, but then he smiled. “This is so gross! I need to go clean my jeans!” He allowed himself to join in Saitama's laughter.

“Whew! That's hilarious! You should be more careful walking around at night, apparently!” Saitama chuckled a few more times and added, “Go change your pants before you get an infection or something.”

Genos got a look of horror on his face again before he realized his teacher was just teasing him again…

Hopefully.

“I will be back in a moment, sensei.” Genos said, standing and making his way towards the stairs. Saitama was already cracking back open his manga, a lingering smile on his face.

“Hey, can I have some of these chips?” Saitama called after him as Genos reached the stairs.

Genos smiled.

“But of course, sensei, have as many as you like.”

Chapter Text

It was finally Friday and Genos’s last class of the day was Saitama’s. ‘The perfect end to my week’ Genos thought as he closed his book with satisfaction. There was no soccer practice on Fridays, a mutual decision between Saitama and the team, and Genos had finally worked up the courage to see if Saitama would be interested in “hanging out” that evening. Although he was pretty sure their normal dinner routine constituted as “hanging out”, it felt like an important milestone to Genos not only in their budding friendship, but also with him becoming more sociable. Now, he just had to hope Saitama would say yes.

However, before Genos could walk up to Saitama, Mr. Amai appeared in the doorway, calling Saitama over. Genos stalled for a few minutes, slowly picking up his things, making sure they were arranged in his bag just right, all in-between glances at his two teachers talking. Mr. Amai’s demeanor seemed cold towards Saitama, like he was talking down to a child. When the conversation didn’t seem to be ending anytime soon, and all of his other classmates had cleared out, Genos decided to adapt a new strategy. He remembered there was a bench nearby that he often saw students sitting on, waiting for their classes to start. He figured he could keep an eye on the door while not looking too overly eager to wait for Saitama.

Unfortunately, the bench was all filled up with a group of girls laughing and giggling. Genos tried not to show his annoyance while looking around for a new solution. With a quick scan of the area he saw a water fountain just past the benches. He went over and got a drink, taking a little bit longer than was probably normal while the thought of what to do next. He didn’t want to stand awkwardly outside and make himself seem desperate, but…

“Um… excuse me…”

Genos had been so intent on finding a way to unassumingly wait for Saitama that he hadn’t noticed the girl’s giggling had reduced to fierce whispers as he went past. He also was thinking so loudly in his head he didn’t even register the small voice as one of those girls tried to get his attention after she was pushed forward by the other girls. When Genos, oblivious to the events around him, ignored her attempt to get his attention, she looked nervously back at her friends who only nudged her closer to him.

“Um, er, excuse me? G-G-Genos-san?”

Genos almost ran into the girl as he stopped drinking from the fountain at the sound of his name. Her eyes widened as he stopped himself just in time not to knock her over. He looked down at her, surprised to see someone knew his name and was trying to talk to him. Had he dropped something? Surely there was some mistake. He studied the girl for a moment as she fidgeted, her face getting increasingly redder. She looked vaguely familiar, and he thought perhaps he had seen her in one of his classes, but honestly he didn’t pay much attention to the people around him during classes, except for the teacher. Was this how Saitama felt all the time?

“Um, y-y-your name is G-G-Genos, right?” Genos slowly nodded his head, unsure of what to make of the situation. The girl looked physically uncomfortable, like the only thing keeping her there was the whispers of encouragement from the girls behind her. He wished she would state her purpose, and he was also curious as to how she knew his name. He almost blurted out these thoughts, but figured that would only illicit a shier reaction.

As Genos studied her face, trying to think of where he had seen her before, a movement from the doorway somewhere behind her caught his eye, and he looked up to see Saitama sullenly following Mr. Amai down the hallway. Saitama looked lazily over his way, assessed the situation quickly, and gave Genos a huge smile, pointing at the girl in front of Genos and giving him a big thumbs up. Genos looked down at the girl, then back at Saitama, and suddenly felt the heat rising on the back of his neck. What was going on here? And how did Saitama seem to know from all the way over there? And more importantly, was this girl going to take all afternoon? He needed to catch up with Saitama!

“Just do it!!” came the voice of a girl from the group of girls. The sound snapped Genos’s attention back to the girl in front of him, and that’s when he noticed a very floral envelope in the trembling girl’s hands.

“This is from your fan club! Please accept this, Genos-sama!” the girl suddenly blurted out, shoving the envelope against his chest, her face pointed towards the floor so he couldn’t see it. Genos was so shocked he barely caught the envelope as she let it go and ran off with the group of girls, all of them squealing with excitement as they ran off. A few of them stole glances back at him before they rounded the corner. Genos just stood there and watched them go, envelope in hand, not quite sure what had just happened.

It took Genos a few moments to recover from the shock. He looked down at the envelope in his hand, feeling the sweat of the previous owner’s hands against his palm as he turned it over. He had a fan club? Since when? And why? And why had Saitama-sensei given him that cheeky grin and a thumbs up?

Oh, no! Saitama!

Genos quickly tucked the envelope into his bag and walked quickly over to the classroom door. He peered inside and couldn’t see Saitama’s bag anywhere. ‘He must have taken it with him…’ Genos thought, a clear indication he did not intend to return to this location. His next thought was to go to the chemistry lab, thinking maybe Amai-sensei had something to ask him there. He walked as quickly as he could without drawing any unnecessary attention- he didn’t need any more delays in trying to find Saitama.

Unfortunately, it was time for more classes to start in the classrooms between Saitama’s room and the chemistry lab. The halls weren’t overly crowded, but it did make it hard to move quickly through them without bumping into people. Genos had to slow his pace, using his robotic eyes to scan for openings when he would run into a slow moving block of people. He got stuck behind 2 couples walking at a snail’s pace, but saw an opening to get around them at the next corridor. He made his move, quickening his pace as they passed the corner, but as he did he didn’t noticed someone coming around the corner…

…and he ran straight into Sonic.

They bumped together roughly, both having to stop and take a step back. Sonic’s face quickly changed from surprise to anger as he realized who had bumped into him. He eyes narrowed as he spat, “Watch where you’re going, cyborg.”

The way Sonic said cyborg, like it was some sort of curse, made the fire in Genos’s belly boil up. He didn’t have time to deal with Sonic, he needed to find Saitama.

“Sorry, I didn’t see you, Sonic. I’m trying to find Saitama-sensei. Have you seen him?” the question just sort of escaped his lips, and he wished he could take it back as soon as he asked it.

Sonic got that shocked expression he usually did when someone mentioned Saitama, but it quickly returned to its normal glare.

“Yeah, I did, follow me.”

Sonic quickly turned around and started walking back down the hallway he had just come from, not looking back to see if Genos was following. Genos hesitated for a second. He didn’t really trust Sonic, and he especially didn’t trust that Sonic would help him, and the way he was heading was away from the Chemistry lab. But, he couldn’t really see why Sonic would lie, either. He had nothing to gain in this, and Genos took Sonic as the type of person who usually only did things for their own benefit. So finally, he quickened his pace and followed.

The hallway Sonic led him down was a small side hallway that connected to another larger corridor with more classrooms. Genos wondered if this was still part of the science part of the building, and thought maybe Amai-sensei had brought Saitama to meet with another teacher down this way. However, as they passed a small alcove that housed the entrance to a janitor’s closest, Sonic pulled Genos into the alcove and pushed him toughly against the wall, pinning his left shoulder with his hand. Sonic was surprisingly strong for his lean stature, Genos noticed.

“Are you stalking Saitama?” Sonic asked, almost a little too loudly for the now empty hallways. Genos winced a little at his question.

“No, we live together.” Sonic’s eyes widened a bit at the declaration, and Genos though he saw Sonic’s face get a little red. Then his eyes narrowed as he retorted.

“That’s impossible. Saitama lives out in the old dorm. Alone.”

“Yeah, I was confused about that too, so I went to the office and asked if there had been some sort of mistake in my housing placement. The secretary assured me it was correct, and that scholarship students were often placed there when there was no more room in the new dorms, since our housing is all paid for. I also suspected that my being a cyborg had something to do with it, although she did not outright say that. Many people feel uncomfortable around cyborgs still, or maybe they thought I would be bullied because of it.” Genos stared straight into Sonic’s eyes, adding a little emphasis to the last part of his speech.

To Genos’s dread, his long rants didn’t seem to have the same phasing effect they did on Saitama.

“That still doesn’t explain why you’re always with him. Or looking at him. Don’t you think it’s kind of weird for you to be hanging around a teacher all the time?”

A pang resounded in Genos’s chest. If Sonic had meant to hit a soft spot, he had found the softest. Genos always forgot that Saitama was a teacher when he was around him. He was so accepting, so casual, so relaxed, it made his anxiety calmed. Of course, he viewed him as someone to look up to at all times, but the student-teacher relationship seemed to melt away when Saitama talked to him. He just treated him like a human… or even like… a friend…

“It’s not weird. Or maybe it is. I don’t know, but I’m not the best judge of what’s weird and not. My whole life isn’t normal. But, I do know, Saitama is my friend.”

Sonic’s face became red as he soaked in Genos’s words. He got up close to Genos’s face, studying it, as if he was trying to see a lie somewhere on it. Then, he started laughing a maniacal laugh.

“Why would he be friends with you? He just feels bad for you. Don’t believe for a second he’s actually your friend. He’s that way to everyone, especially the charity cases like you.”

Genos felt his heart sink. Logically, his brain was telling him that Sonic was just lying to make Genos upset. But his heart was too hurt. It wailed out over his head, believing every word Sonic had just said. He looked away from Sonic, feeling defeated. Sonic leaned up against the opposite wall, arms crossed.

“Psh, how pathetic. You honestly thought you guys were becoming friends. Teachers don’t hang out with students. They’re teachers. Saitama has a life and friends his age, who have jobs. He doesn’t need to be bothered by some whiney little cyborg all the time. It’s better you realize that now, cyborg.”

And with that, Sonic whipped around and was gone.

Genos stood there, feeling like a hollow cicada shell that was stuck against the brick wall. He had allowed himself to hope… to hope he had finally found someone to be his friend. Now, that hope was slowly seeping out of him onto the cold, lacquered floor below. His whole body felt heavy with loss. He slowly pushed himself off the wall and started the long walk back to his dorm, abandoning his quest to find Saitama.

Chapter Text

When Genos awoke, he had to remember to turn on his sight. The dark clouds that always hovered at the edge of his mind had completely taken over, the once small voice that had told him this was all just Sonic trying to mess with him now drowned by them, and in their wake Genos had rebelled against everything that made him different, made him a 'charity case'. He had turned off all of his robotic functions and laid there in bed, blind, unmoving, unbidden tears slowly rolling down his face. He wanted to feel as physically broken as his feelings felt. And so he lay there, thinking, frozen in a state of sadness.

Eventually his body had worn down and he had fallen asleep.

It was hard for Genos to say how long he had laid there before he fell asleep, or how long he had slept, or how long it took him to realize he was awake again. His thoughts, his body, his heart- everything felt like it was made of lead. He had tried for so many years to protect himself from feeling like this. Back when he first became a cyborg, he would try to make friends with the other children his age that came through the medical compound. He did, at first, but then their families would always come pick them up. They promised to try and keep in touch, to come and visit some time, but they never did. Even the few that had to return for tune-ups did their best to avoid him. They had been picked up by their families that loved them and had been returned to their lives, free from the lonely boy with the scary eyes.

Genos allowed his eyes to boot back up. They opened up to darkness. There was a faint light coming from the hallway lights from the crack under the door. Genos rolled his head to the side to look at it. He cursed that light, wishing it would go away and leave him to the darkness. He didn’t want any light in his life anymore. He would live to avenge his parents and that’s it. He didn’t need anything else. As long as he could find out what really happened to them, he could die knowing he had lived a great life. He didn’t need friends or anyone else for that. He was about to shut off his eyes again when two dark shapes blocked out some of the light under his door, like two feet standing outside. They stood there, still, listening…

“Genos, are you in there?”

The sound of Saitama’s voice through the door made Genos’s heart race. He didn’t want Saitama to see his like this. He had decided, before he had fallen asleep, to slowly phase Saitama out of his life. It was for the best, for both of them. He didn’t want to be anyone’s burden, and if Saitama saw him, laying here in the darkness like this, he would surely just continue to pity him and hang around him out of guilt. He didn’t want to do that to Saitama. He was too nice, too kind to ever admit the only reason he kept Genos around is because he felt bad for him. So Genos had to make the decision himself.

Genos laid perfectly still, trying not to breathe for fear that Saitama would hear him. There was a long pause, and he could see the feet shift uncomfortably. Then, a knock came on the door.

“Oi, Genos! Wake up!”

Everything in Genos wanted to get up, to go open the door, to fling his arms around the man he had let himself get closer to in a week than he had let himself get with anyone over the last 6 years, to cry his eyes out and tell him what Sonic had said, to ask him if it was all true. The fire to do so made his muscles twitch as he laid there, like his body was fighting with him. But still, he laid there, unmoving, watching the feet under the door.

He couldn’t let himself be a burden to Saitama.

“Oi, I’m coming in!”

Genos’s eyes widened in panic as he tried to move to get up. He had to keep Saitama from opening the door. He couldn’t let that man see him like this. But as he moved, he realized he hadn’t turned his arm and leg back on yet. He flailed awkwardly and fell off the bed with a resounding ‘thud’ has his robotic limbs were pulled by his body down on top of him.

“Genos!”

He heard the door fly open behind him as Saitama rushed into the room, flicking on the lights. Genos couldn’t even look his way he was so embarrassed. He must look so stupid, lying there in a crumpled heap on the ground. He had taken his shirt off at some point, probably in a throe of frustration as his heart battled with his mind, but he was still wearing his uniform pants. He felt exposed and stupid, and wished more than anything that Saitama would just turn off the lights and leave him to wallow in his embarrassment.

“Genos, what happened to you? Are you ok?”

Genos didn’t turn to look at him. He knew he was being childish. He knew he should just laugh it off and act like he was just embarrassed because he had been sleeping and clumsily gotten out of bed. Saitama would probably at least act like he bought the excuse if for no other reason than to help Genos feel like he was saving face. But that was exactly the problem. That was exactly what he didn’t want.

“I’m fine…” He finally muttered, still not turning to face Saitama. He could feel his eyes on his back, looking him over. Genos didn’t have any scars from the burns that had claimed the right side of his body, but he did have some scars from his cybernetics surgeries. He suddenly felt very exposed, and tried to reach for a blanket to cover himself. His arm was still rebooting, though, and it just sort of flopped at his side.

“Here, let me help you.” Saitama said softly, crossing the room and grabbing the blanket from off the bed. As he draped it around Genos’s shoulders, he leaned down and put himself right in Genos’s line of sight. Genos noticed his face was red, probably because he was uncomfortable seeing one of his students like this.

“Now what happened? Last time I saw you it looked like that girl was asking you out… now it’s almost 2 am and I haven’t heard a thing from you all night.” Saitama rubbed the back of his neck nervously and continued, “You didn’t seem the type to spend the night at a girl’s place on the first night, so I was worried. And from the looks of it, I was right to be.”

Saitama reached out and put his hand sturdily on Genos’s shoulder. He felt his face go red at the touch. No, it wasn’t just any touch, it was his touch, one that he did not feel that he hadn’t earned yet. Why, Saitama? Why did you have to be so nice?

“Did she reject you?” Saitama asked earnestly.

Genos sighed. The world wouldn’t even allow him to phase this man out of his life slowly. There was no turning back now.

“No.” Genos began quietly, unable to look into Saitama’s eyes. His mind kept getting distracted by the feel of his hand on his shoulder. His heart was pounding loudly in his ears. “This isn’t about her.”

Saitama furrowed his eyebrows, a confused look on his face. Before he could say anything more, Genos muttered “It’s about… you…”

“Me??”

“Sonic pulled me aside while I was looking for you after class… he said it was weird that I hung around you all the time… since you’re a teacher…”

Saitama frowned a bit, thinking. He silently sat back and leaned against the bed, removing his hand from Genos’s shoulder. Genos silently mourned the loss.

“That guy… you can’t let him get to you… he’s just some rich brat with nothing better to do than to make everyone around him miserable…”

Genos knew that, he knew he shouldn’t let Sonic get in his head, but he couldn’t help it. He couldn’t help but feel like Saitama just took pity on him. He didn’t want to be pitied. He wanted a real friend.

Genos lowered his head, trying his best to hide his face. His voice felt shaky and he felt tears welling up in his eyes again. He was too tired to be strong.

“He also said you were only pretending to be my fr…” he couldn’t bring himself to say the word, “that you’re only being nice to me because that’s the way you are with everyone, and that you think I’m just some charity case because I’m the ‘Cyborg Prince’.”

Saitama pinched the bridge of his nose, scrunching up his whole face.

“I’m going to have to make Sonic run extra laps next practice.”

Genos’s heart sank. So it was true.

“Do you believe him, Genos?”

Genos froze. He didn’t want to believe it, and part of him didn’t. Part of him believed Saitama seemed to be a genuine person, one that would just tell him to fuck off if he were being annoying, one that he had been given the opportunity to leave him alone forever, and didn’t take it. But, a large part of him was filled with doubt, not because of who Saitama was or anything he had done, but because of what the world had done to Genos a thousand times before.

“You know what? Don’t answer that. Obviously you at least somewhat believe that or you wouldn’t look like such a mess right now.”

Genos turned to face him. His words stung. Genos’s body hurt from being so tense. But the pain he felt in his heart… that was worse. He expected to watch Saitama get up, disappointed in Genos, and walk out of his life forever.

Instead, Saitama stared blankly ahead of him, like he was thinking of something far away. Genos held on to every second, fearing the next one would be the last, getting lost looking at his teacher. Then, Saitama turned to him and extended his hand. Genos froze, and for a moment he was back at the first time he had ever seen Saitama, the cherry blossoms blowing in the breeze behind him…

…that brilliant smile that made his heart stop…

“Come on, follow me.”

Nothing ever goes the way you expect.

Chapter Text

They were walking in the dark.

Saitama walked silently in front of him, hunched over, his hands tucked away in his front hoodie pocket. He kept his pace brisk and didn’t say anything or look back to see if Genos was even following him. He seemed lost in his own world, and Genos was afraid of what would happen if he pulled him out of it.

So Genos silently followed, looking around as they made their way across campus. He thought they were heading in the direction of the soccer field, but it was so dark it was hard to tell. The moon was being covered by clouds, but there was no threat of rain. The air was eerily still, the part of campus they traveled through deadly quiet. It was like time had stopped around them.

They cut through a small patch of woods and emerged at the end of the soccer fields. Saitama silently pulled out a set of keys and undid the padlock on the gate. He held it open for Genos, who moved forward nervously and stepped inside the fence, waiting to see what Saitama would do next. Saitama shut the gate and redid the padlock, flipping through his keys to find a new one and walking towards the shed. Genos waited a few moments, wondering if he should turn back, wondering if he should ask Saitama what they were doing out here in the middle of the night, but instead he just followed silently. That seemed to be the best course of action after he had made such a fool of himself in front of Saitama.

When they arrived at the shed, Saitama finally spoke.

“Wait here.” He said, more like a suggestion than a command. Genos did as he said, shoving his hands into his pockets nervously. Was he going to make him do drills? Saitama had allowed him enough time to slip on a quick t-shirt and a light jacket before they left, but he was still wearing his uniform pants. He hoped he hadn’t drug him all the way out here in the middle of the night as a punishment, even if Genos felt like that’s exactly what he deserved.

When Saitama reemerged, he had a soccer ball tucked beneath one of his arms. A feeling of dread came over Genos. Well, time to get this over with…

“Let’s kick the ball around and talk. Physical activity helps my brain, I think.” Saitama dropped the ball to the ground and passed it over to Genos. Genos awkwardly stopped it with his foot, trying desperately to emulate what he had seen in practice.

“Sensei, I don’t think this is the best idea…”

“Just humor your teacher, will ya?” Saitama said with a small, half smile.

Genos felt a pang of guilt in his chest. He kicked the ball clumsily towards Saitama who had jogged a few steps away, not looking at him.

“You need to look where you’re kicking, you can’t just recklessly aim.” Saitama said, jogging over to where the ball had stopped. He quickly spun it around with a fluid movement and the bottom of his foot. Genos was a little surprised at how effortless the movement looked to Saitama. When he was facing Genos again, he rubbed the back of his neck nervously and looked away. “Sorry to coach you, bad habit.” He tapped the ball back to Genos.

Genos still wasn’t quite sure what Saitama had brought him all the way out here to talk about, but he looked just as nervous as Genos felt. “No, it’s ok…” he said softly, letting the ball hit against his foot and watching it bounce a few steps in front of him. He was glad he didn’t actually try out for the team- it turns out he was actually pretty terrible at soccer. He jogged forward and tapped the ball back.

Genos looked at Saitama and passed the ball back. This time it almost found its target, making Saitama sidestep only a little to catch it with his foot. He still had a hand on the back of his neck, and he seemed deep in thought, like he was having some epic battle with the thoughts in his head.

“I… I want to tell you something about myself… but to be honest I’m really uncomfortable talking about myself… or, talking overly much in general…”

He kicked the ball back to Genos, barely able to look his way. Genos listened intently. He needed to hear every word of what Saitama had to say, even if it was him getting mad at Genos.

“Ah geeze… how to start… sorry, please suffer through this, it’s hard for me but I think this is something you need to hear…”

Genos kicked the ball back to Saitama, only nodding in response.

“Ok, well, I’ll just dive in… I used to be a professional soccer player.”

He kicked the ball back to Genos, still rubbing the back of his neck.

Genos received the ball and looked up at his teacher, confused. ‘Used to be?’ Saitama was only 25, if he was a professional player, why was he here?

He didn’t say anything, afraid to spook Saitama if he asked any questions. Instead, he simply passed the ball back.

“I know that probably sounds strange… but when I was 23, I went pro. I was a Goal Keeper for the Z-City Capes.”

Now Genos really was shocked. The Z-City Capes were a really good team, surely someone would recognize their Goal Keeper here at Heero Academy, seeing at they were the team for this city. How was he not swarmed with fans?

Also, Genos thought Saitama had said he was a teacher here for the last 2 years. Had he lied to him?

Saitama must have seen the pained look on Genos’s face. “I’m sorry I lied to you, but just listen and you’ll understand why…” He passed the ball back to Genos.

“I’ve always watched soccer, since I was a little kid. I read soccer manga, I would read up on the players, I lived soccer. I played in the neighborhood with other kids, but I never joined a team. We were really poor, and I didn’t want to burden my parents with the expenses.”

Saitama rubbed the back of his neck again. Genos passed the ball back, hanging on every word.

“To be honest, I never really wanted to be a pro soccer player. That life is too flashy for me. I always dreamed of being a cop… or a detective. So when it came time for me to choose a career, I chose to enter the police academy.”

Saitama paused, passing the ball back to Genos.

“I far excelled in the physical training, but I’m not the most observant guy in the world. So I trained and trained and trained to become stronger, figuring if I could do the physical stuff, the other stuff would come later. You know, on the job. While in the police academy, I joined the academy soccer team as the goal keeper. No one usually likes to play that role, because you hang back in the back and don’t get to score, but that’s the perfect role for me. I’ve always really admired goal keepers.”

More neck rubbing. His neck must be raw by now. Genos passed the ball back.

“Anyway, that was where he found me. He was a large, rich son of a bitch who had come to show his son, who had a huge cleft chin even at age 10, around the academy. Apparently he was an investor or something. To be honest, he always reminded me of a crab, large and fat with beady black eyes.”

Saitama was staring down at the ground, his fists clenched like he wanted to punch something. ‘Never make sensei angry’ Genos remembered. Saitama remembered the ball and passed it back. 'Maybe it was too late for that.'

“Anyway, he saw us playing on our tour, and I made a pretty significant save that changed the course of the game. Plus, with my new found strength from all the training I had been doing, I could launch the ball farther than any other keeper in the league, maybe even the world, on a punt. It caught the eye of Mr. Crab. He asked if I wanted to join the soccer team he owned- the Z-City Capes.”

Genos thought for a second that it was kind of silly for them to be passing the ball around like this instead of just sitting down and talking, but that was only for a second. This was obviously the only way Saitama could handle talking about his past, and like he had told himself earlier, Genos needed to hear this. Genos passed the ball back.

“I accepted the offer and quit the academy. My scores weren’t improving in the written portions, even though my strength was far exceeding that of my peers. I figured it was better to give up then and have a job lined up than fail later and have nothing. And so I became the goal keeper of the Z-City Capes.”

Saitama passed the ball back. He chuckled to himself a bit, but it was a sad chuckle.

“You wouldn’t even recognize me back then. I had shaved my head for the academy, and I kept that look into my career. I kept doing intense physical training, far beyond what anyone probably should do. I think it was probably a way for me to deal with giving up on my dream…”

Saitama smiled sadly. Genos passed the ball back.

“Anyway, the first year went great. We won the championship, and although the fans didn’t give me any recognition for it, it was the team’s opinion that it was because of me. They hadn’t done very well the year before, their keeper had let by a few easy saves and couldn’t return the ball into play very well, so I guess I was a welcome change. It was nice to win, but it all started to seem so… empty…”

Genos’s eyes widened a bit, but he still didn’t say anything. Saitama passed the ball back to him.

“It wasn’t because the fans weren’t giving me recognition or anything like that. I hate being the center of attention anyway. It was just… too easy to launch the ball all the way down the field, to stand there and save the ball from going in. It was beginning to become boring it was so easy. It just… I just… I don’t know…”

Genos looked his teacher up and down. He felt the urge to run over to him, to hug him, to try to make that sad look he had on his face go away. He quickly suppressed the urge but felt his face go red regardless. Why was he thinking something like that at a time like this? He passed the ball back to Saitama.

“So… yeah. I went to Mr. Crab to tell him I wanted to quit. I didn’t know if I was going to go back to the Academy or what I was going to do, but I knew I didn’t want to play anymore. When I got to his office, I could hear an argument going on. It sounded like Mr. Crab was fighting with his son. I was about to turn around and just hand in my resignation later when I heard a loud smack and a sickening thudding sound.”

Genos’s glowing yellow eyes burned a little brighter as he opened them wide in shock. But still, he said nothing as Saitama passed him back the ball.

“I rushed in there, and Mr. Crab was standing over his son, who he had knocked unconscious. I threw my letter of resignation at him, told him I quit, and then everything went blank as I just started wailing on him. I never even found out why he hit his kid. It didn’t matter. You just don’t do that…”

Genos nodded numbly. Saitama really did have a strong moral compass, to defend someone like that. He passed the ball back to Saitama.

“I didn’t kill him, if you’re worried about that. I just gave him the beating that rich son of a bitch deserved. I picked the kid up and brought him home to his mother, then I went back to the Academy and told my captain what I had done. It was there he informed me Mr. Crab has a lot of crime lord connections, and that they probably weren’t going to take too kindly to me beating the shit out of him. So he devised a plan for me to come and be a teacher here at Heero Academy. He knows the administrators here, so it was pretty easy to install me here. After I grew my hair out no one recognized me anyway. To all the other teachers here, I’m some cousin of someone on the board who’s lazy and doesn’t give a shit about being a teacher. I’m just doing this job for fun.”

Saitama didn’t pass the ball back for a minute. Instead, he kept it under one foot and looked at Genos.

“So now you know my baggage and my deal. You can choose to believe it or not. I don’t have news stories to back it up like you ‘Cyborg Prince’, so you’re just going to have to trust me.”

He rubbed the back of his neck again. Genos barely allowed himself to breath, so much of himself was concentrated on Saitama in that moment.

“I guess my point in telling you all this is it’s hard to let people into your life when you’ve been shit on by the world like you have. Especially for a guy like you that wears his heart on his sleeve. I get that. All I’m saying is other people might have a lot of shit in their past, too, and they might be a lot more accepting of you than you may think. And not just because they have to because they’re your teacher or you live with them or they feel sorry for you, but because, even though you just met them a week ago, they can see that heart on your sleeve and they think it’s a pretty great one.”

Saitama leaned down to pick up the ball, then stood up and smiled that brilliant warm smile of his at Genos. Genos’s head spun as he stared in wonder at this man… this man that, in this moment, meant more to him than anyone else in the world. He at once felt so relieved and like the biggest idiot in the world. He wanted to run to Saitama and hug him, thanking him for everything. Instead, he just stood there and cried.

“I’m s-s-so s-s-sorry, sensei…”

Saitama just chuckled to himself and closed the distance between them. He put a hand on Genos’s head and ruffled his hair a bit.

“There, there, let it all out.” He said gently, “The world is a fucked up place, but at least you have me as a friend to help you through it, if you want.”

This just made Genos blubber harder, tears and snot both streaming down his face. All he could manage was a nod to let Saitama know yes. That’s the only thing Genos wanted in that moment, the only thing that had ever rivaled his want to avenge his parents.

All he wanted was a friend.

The two of them stood there for a bit, Genos crying, Saitama rubbing his head to try and comfort the sobbing cyborg.

“Man, my mouth is sore from talking so much, don’t ever make me do that again.” Saitama joked as Genos’s tears finally started to subside. Saitama tossed a handkerchief to him, then jogged over and put the ball away. Genos cleaned himself up, pausing for a moment when he was cleaning off his nose. The smell of Saitama filled his nose, and without thinking he breathed it deeply in. It was a comforting scent, one that put his mind at ease. He quickly moved to his eyes as Saitama locked up the shed and jogged over to him, smiling.

“Ready to go to bed?”

Genos only nodded and said “Thank you, sensei. You don’t know how much this all means to me-“

Saitama held up a finger and said “Uh, uh, stop, I see that look in your eye. You’re about to go on some tangent. I know, Genos. Let’s go back.”

Genos smiled a small smile and nodded.

As the first rays of light started to touch the top of the trees, the two men heading for home.

Chapter Text

Genos was woken up on Sunday morning by a bird chirping outside his window.

Slowly opening his eyes, he glared at the bird for disturbing his sleep. Friday night had been so emotionally taxing that he had spent most of yesterday sleeping, waking for only a little to eat dinner with Saitama. Then, it was back to back for both of them.

Genos’s stomach growled as his body awakened. He grumbled in response to it. He didn’t want to get out of bed yet. The sun was shining in a sleepy way, filling his bed with its sunny warmth. He pulled on the covers and settled back down, attempting to go back to sleep. Suddenly, there was a movement in the bed beside him as someone turned over.

“Lay back down…” came Saitama’s soft voice, heavy with sleep. He reached over lazily and grabbed Genos around the waist, pulling him into his arms. His hair was even more messy than usual, his black hair twisting and turning, telling the story of his sleep. Genos felt the urge to reach up and run his hands through it, and so he did, gently caressing Saitama’s hair. Saitama smiled in response, eyes only half open.

Saitama pulled Genos closer as he ran his hands through his hair. Genos was so close now he could feel Saitama’s heart pumping against his bare chest. His own heart was beating so loudly in his ears he was sure Saitama could hear it, too, much less feel it. Genos suddenly wondered if the other man was wearing anything at all. His thought was interrupted by Saitama asking sweetly, “Did you have a bad dream?”

Before Genos could answer, Saitama leaned in and kissed him.

Genos was woken up on Sunday morning by a bird chirping outside his window.

He sat up abruptly in bed, sweat coating his body, heart still beating loudly in his ears. He looked to his left, but the bed next to him was empty. He laid back and pushed back his golden hair, matted with sweat, off of his forehead. What was that dream? He tried not to think about it, trying to let his body cool down. It was no use. He couldn’t get it out of his head. And every time he thought of it, his muscles went tense and he could feel his face getting warm. He shook his head and got up, grabbing his towel.

He let the cold water splash against his face until it warmed up, then Genos braced himself against the wall, letting the water caress his back. No matter what he did he couldn’t get the thought out of his head. Did he… like Saitama like that? Genos had never really given much thought to romantic relationships since his parents had died, which wasn’t really a problem given no one stuck around in his life for long. It was hard to imagine having a girlfriend or a boyfriend for that matter when you could barely imagine yourself having a friend. Now that he had a friend…

…man, how fucked up am I thinking of my first friend like that…

Genos splashed his face with water again, running his hands through his hair. At the end of the day, he had to remind himself it was just a dream. That didn’t mean he liked Saitama that way. I mean sure, he deeply admired him, and wanted to spend as much time as possible with him, recognized his physical attributes were handsome, and was forever grateful that Saitama was so patient and accepting of him. But that didn’t mean…

Genos grabbed the soap and started busying his hands, washing the sweat off his body, trying to ignore the warmth that kept creeping across his cheeks. Sure, Saitama was probably the most important person in the world to Genos, and sure, he was his role model. But he couldn’t just rush into thinking that way over some silly dream.

By the time Genos had finished washing off he had reached a resolution. He needed to concentrate on being Saitama’s friend and improving his social issues before deciding if he was even interested in having a relationship, not letting a dream he had no control over make him question his relationship with the man who had already done so much for him. He smiled a little in satisfaction over his conclusion, feeling suddenly very mature. He toweled off, excited to explore this new side of himself that was coming out, thanks to Saitama.

He went back to his room and got dressed, a rumble from his stomach reminding him of how little he had eaten the day before. He grabbed his bag and walked down to Saitama’s room, pausing in front of it. He hadn’t heard Saitama all day, and he wondered if he had gotten up and was hanging out downstairs. Or maybe he was in his classroom, preparing for his next lesson. Or maybe he was even out at the soccer fields, making sure the grass got cut or something. Genos’s mind was racing with possibilities as he stood there, posed to knock. He was so wrapped up in his own head, he jumped when the door in front of him opened.

“Oi, Genos, what are you doing outside my door?” Asked a very sleepy looking Saitama.

Saitama stood there with one eye still closed, his futon cover hanging over his shoulders loosely. Genos’s eyes involuntarily looked his teacher over, quickly scanning him. He wasn’t wearing a shirt, but he was wearing pajama pants, loose-fitting ones with blue and white stripes. His black hair was a mess on top of his head, and Genos found his eyes getting lost in the twisting locks, reminding him of his dream and the feel of them between his fingers…

The blood rising to his face snapped him back to reality. He quickly tried to recover from the awkward pause, letting all of the words in his head just sort of bumble out of his mouth.

“I was wondering if maybe you were hungry. I am very hungry. I did not eat very much yesterday, and I believe I might have skipped dinner the night before that. So if you like I could run to the cafeteria for us and grab us something if you would like us to eat together all I would need is for you to say yes and tell me what you would like to ea-“

Saitama reached up and put his finger on Genos’s mouth, signaling him to stop talking. He pinched the bridge of his nose before responding to Genos.

“It is too early for this shit, man. Yeah, I’ll eat with you if you stop all this nervous talking.”

Genos just nodded in agreement, Saitama’s hand following his mouth with the movement, as to ensure Genos didn’t start up again.

“Ok, let me go get my money, hold on…”

“That won’t be necessary, I would be glad to pay for you, sensei.”

“No, no. Hold on a second.”

Genos peered inside Saitama’s room as he waited. It was bigger than Genos’s, but similarly decorated. His room was set up more of like a small, one bedroom apartment. He even had a small kitchen area, although it appeared that Saitama still had to use the floor’s public showers and toilets. It seemed his living room and his bedroom were one in the same, which might explain why he spent so much time downstairs. An old TV and a somewhat messy pile of manga was stacked in the corner, but beyond that, it was fairly tidy for Saitama’s relaxed nature. Saitama reemerged with a few bills and shoved them into Genos’s hand.

“If I’m not down there when you get back, come back up and get me.” He turned and headed back towards his futon on the floor.

“Yes, sensei!” Genos said excitedly, clutching the bills in his hand. Saitama only waved him off in response, and Genos took that as his cue to leave.

Chapter Text

Genos waited after class for Saitama to finish talking to a student. They were going to walk to practice together, and Genos was giddy with excitement. They were gearing up for their first game in a couple of weeks and Genos couldn’t wait to see the team in action. It was fun to feel like he was a part of something, and it was especially fun to be part of that thing with Saitama.

He patted his back pocket to make sure his small notebook was still there. He had come to the realization in this past week that he had been putting off a lot of life in pursuit of avenging his parents. Saitama had made him realize those parts of life were not something to be given up on, that he could have some semblance of normalcy in his life, even if some of that normalcy wasn’t exactly conventional.

But he had a lot to learn, and even more to think about as realizations about his new lease on life came to be, such as considering the possibility of becoming romantically involved with someone. He noticed himself paying more attention to the people around him, both their physical attributes and their personalities. He felt like he was becoming a whole new person, and it was all thanks to Saitama.

Saitama was his teacher in more ways than he would ever know.

Saitama finally finished up, and then nodded towards Genos to follow him. Genos clumsily got up and followed, patting his bag one more time for reassurance to feel his workout clothes in there. He didn’t necessarily need them as the team manager, but he felt more like he was a part of the team wearing them. They stopped in a nearby bathroom to change, not bothering to use stalls since they wanted to make it a quick change. As Saitama undressed Genos couldn’t but sneak a peek at Saitama stripped down to his underwear. ‘So he’s a boxers man…’ Genos mentally noted, looking away as quickly as he had looked. He had put most of the dream from the other morning behind him, but that didn’t stop his natural curiosity towards his teacher.

He felt the heat rise on the back of his neck and quickly slipped on his gym shorts. He was partially embarrassed by his inability to control himself when it came to being curious about Saitama, partially embarrassed to be so exposed so near to Saitama. Genos had never been very confident about his new body, seeing it as just another thing that set him apart from everyone else. And while he was used to being nearly naked around other men, that nakedness was mostly for medical purposes. And although Saitama had seen him shirtless the other night, he suddenly found himself feeling very self-conscious. He quickly slipped on his shirt, hoping Saitama wouldn’t notice.

If he did, he was kind enough not to say anything.

They made it out to the soccer fields before the other boys and made sure all the balls were aired up and ready to go. Genos actually really liked being the manager. He had a highly organized mind, so keeping everything in order was perfect for him. Plus, it didn’t look strange when he would slip a small, discreet notebook out of his pocket to write down some observation about Saitama. They finished with the balls and set up some drills, then chatted lightly while they waited for the rest of the team to show up.

Sonic was the first to show, but he barely even looked their way before setting his stuff down and stretching silently. The other boys started to trickle in, and Genos noticed that some of the new boys had already begun making friends with some of the older players. Even Sonic joined in some of the conversations while the boys all stretched together, although Genos noticed he still mostly talked to the older boys.

Saitama looked at his watch and called all the boys over. Genos took his place beside him, readying his clipboard to write down anything important. Saitama briefed the team over what they were going to be working on the next few weeks leading up to their big game. Genos took diligent notes, hanging onto every word Saitama said.

“Ok, let’s get started on the first drill. We’re going to do some relay drills, so I need 4 team captains.”

Sonic stepped forward immediately, as was expected of the team captain. He smugly took his place next to Saitama, crossing his arms to show off his red captain’s band resting proudly on his right bicep. 3 of the other older boys stepped forward and took their places next to Sonic.

“Genos, write down who’s on each team. We have Ianian, Mumen, Badd, and… what was your name again?” Saitama turned to the man on his right, a genuinely confused look on his face.

It took Sonic a second to realize Saitama was talking to him. When he did, the look on his face could kill.

“You know my name, coach. It’s Sonic. Did you hit your head or something?” His question was posed with venom, not concern.

“Oh, right, of course, haha. Ok, Sanis, choose your first team member.”

Sonic looked beyond unamused. A few of the younger boys sniggered at Saitama’s bizarre behavior. Just what was he doing? He knew Sonic’s name, why was he pretending not to?

Saitama turned towards Genos and winked. Genos felt the back of his neck go red immediately. He was obviously doing this on purpose, but why?

“It’s Sonic.” Sonic said through grit teeth, casting equal glares at Saitama and the few snickering boys.

“Oh, right, sorry. Slip of the tongue. Pick your team member.”

Sonic called the name of one of the older boys, still glaring sideways at Saitama. Saitama didn’t seem to notice, and kept calling him by the wrong name every time he got the chance.

“Ok, your turn Sanic.”

“It’s Sonic, you idiot.”

“Right, right, sorry.”

Genos caught himself staring at Saitama in amazement. He had no idea what Saitama was thinking, but it was pissing Sonic off royally, which brought more joy to Genos than he would like to admit.

The rest of practice continued much the same way, with Saitama calling Sonic the wrong name and Sonic getting progressively angrier. Eventually, even some of the older boys could be seen laughing to themselves as they watched Sonic squirm. Genos wasn’t sure why Saitama was doing it, but it made for a very entertaining and very satisfying practice.

When it was over, Sonic stormed off without saying a word, slamming the chain-link gate behind him. The rest of the boys ignored him and went about their business as if nothing had happened, packing up and leaving. Genos jogged around and gathered some cones, taking advantage of being a distance away from Saitama to take some notes on his behavior. He reached down into the pocket of his shorts, but didn’t feel the small notebook in there.

That was weird, he swore he put it in his pocket before they left the bathroom…

Genos almost hit his own head in realization. Of course, he had been so distracted with being embarrassed he had left it in his back pocket of his uniform pants. No matter, he could make the notes later, maybe even after he had asked Saitama about his strange behavior.

Saitama locked the shed door and they headed towards their dorm. When they had gotten a bit of a distance away from the field and Genos was sure they were relatively alone, he questioned Saitama.

“What was that with Sonic today? Did you two have a fight?”

Saitama turned to him, a slight smile on his face.

“What, me forgetting his name? Honest mistake, could happen to anyone.”

Saitama laughed a bit, like he had just told a joke only he understood.

“C’mon, sensei, I could tell you were doing it on purpose.”

“What, did it bother you?”

Saitama had a mischievous glint in his eye as his gaze met Genos’s. What was with him today?

“No, not particularly…” Genos began slowly, trying to process his thoughts. It had actually been extremely satisfying, especially after all the drama Sonic had caused both of them on Friday. A part of him did feel a little bad for Sonic, just a little, but mostly he was just confused by Saitama’s unwavering boldness and behavior towards Sonic that seemed to come out of nowhere. Usually, Saitama was extremely passive with the raven-haired menace.

“I’m just very confused as to why you were doing that to Sonic.”

Saitama rubbed the back of his neck. He kept his eyes as trained on Genos as he could while still walking.

“I just figured the kid could use a lesson in humility. He’s getting too big for his britches, telling people who they should and should not be spending their time with. I thought I could gently knock him down a peg without bruising his pride too much. Do you think it was too much?”

Genos felt a surge of warmth rush to his face, hoping the light of the sunset was enough to hide it. Had Saitama… had Saitama done that… no, it couldn’t be…

Had Saitama done that for him?

The image of Saitama winking at him at the beginning of practice. He felt the tips of his ears follow suit with his face. He could no longer meet the other man’s gaze.

“N-no, I think that was very just of you, sensei.”

Out of the corner of his eye, Genos saw Saitama smile warmly before he faced forward once again.

“Alright, what do you want for dinner?”

**************************************************************************************************************************

After dinner, Genos went back to his room and dumped out his clothes from his backpack, patting down his pants pocket in search of his notebook. He was sure it was in there, but all the same he felt his muscles tense up as he checked his pockets.

He flipped his pants over to check the back pocket. Nothing.

Icy panic started settling in, and he grabbed his backpack, searching it almost frantically. Maybe it had fallen out in there? He cleared its contents on the ground and searched through everything.

It was nowhere to be found.

He sat back, mind racing as he tried to think of what could have happened to it. Maybe it dropped out of his pocket while he was changing? He hadn’t heard anything, but he had also been pretty distracted at the time.

He quickly slipped on a zip-up hoodie on and ran downstairs. Saitama was still reading his manga in the common room. Genos had intended to bring his homework down and keep him company, but that would have to wait. He ran out the door before Saitama could ask him where he was going.

The air was still a little too cold for shorts at night, but Genos paid it no mind. He was just hoping that part of the building was still open, and that no one had stolen his notebook, much less read its contents. There wasn’t anything overly incriminating in there, and he had every intention of telling Saitama one day that he had been observing him because he looked up to him as a role model, but in the wrong hands it might appear sort of… stalker-ish? Genos and Saitama’s friendship had been through enough drama in the past week, it didn’t need another test. Genos quickened his steps.

When he arrived at the building, the classroom lights had all been turned off, but it looked like the hallway lights were still on. It wasn’t overly late, so hopefully the janitors would still be there. Genos burst through the door and ran down the hallways to the bathroom.

Luckily, that bathroom hadn’t been cleaned yet, confirmed by the Janitor’s cart parked at the next bathroom down. Genos slipped in there and turned on the lights.

He looked on the ground where they had changed earlier.

Nothing.

He checked by the sinks.

Nothing.

He checked all the stalls, just in case.

Nothing.

He checked the trash can.

Nothing.

A feeling of utter dread came over Genos. His heart sank further and further with each area searched.

Maybe someone had brought it to the main office for the lost and found? It was a long shot, but since it wasn’t in the trash it was better than assuming someone had kept it.

He knew the main office would be closed by now, so he headed back towards home. He pulled out his phone and changed his alarm to a little earlier, so he would be able to run there first thing in the morning. He stuffed his phone in his pocket and jogged the rest of the way back, hoping some exercise would take his mind off of his missing notebook.

When he returned, Saitama looked up at him. “Where did you go all the sudden?”

Genos was so in his own head, mind still racing with possibilities of where his notebook could be, that he barely responded as he walked in and headed towards the stairs to go grab his homework (and check the contents of his backpack again).

“I thought I forgot something back at school…”

“Oh, you mean this?”

Genos felt like he was in a haze as he turned his head. There, in Saitama’s hand, was Genos’s notebook.

Genos felt every muscle in his body, artificial ones included, clench instantly. He stopped dead in his tracks, brain barely able to process what was happening.

“Y-yeah. Where did you get that? I thought it was in my back pocket!” Genos laughed nervously, shakily making his way towards Saitama. Had he read it? Oh god, please say he didn’t.

“You dropped it in the bathroom while we were changing earlier. I know it’s your observation notebook, so I grabbed it for you. Sorry I didn’t give it back earlier, I sort of forgot.” Saitama said sheepishly, holding out the notebook as Genos approached.

“Did you… did you read it?” Genos asked, taking the notebook. He felt a little better now that it was in his hands again. He knew his question probably made the contents sound suspicious, but he didn’t care. He had to know if Saitama had seen it.

“Well…” Saitama rubbed the back of his neck and looked away. Genos could have died right there.

“I wouldn’t say I exactly ‘read’ it. It fell open to a page, so I’m sorry, I saw a little bit on accident.”

Genos breathed a small sigh of relief. Of course, Saitama wouldn’t read someone’s personal notebook.

Genos sat down and tucked the notebook in his pocket. Saitama still looked uncomfortable, however, and a long silence hung in the air between them. Genos started to feel nervous again. Finally, Saitama spoke up.

“I saw my name in there a few times… I didn’t read it, but when I glanced at it while picking it up I noticed my name…”

Genos froze, considering his options for a moment. He had an easy out- he had already told Saitama that this was his observation notebook, technically not a lie, and since he spent so much time around Saitama, naturally his name would come up in such a notebook. He would feel bad, though, lying to his only friend. Well, he had intended to tell him one day anyway…

“I wasn’t lying when I said this was an observational notebook.” Genos began, sitting up very straight, fists clenched on his knees. “However, the subject of my observations I have not been forthcoming about. I made it seem like these were just general observations, for which I am sorry, but that is not the case. The truth is…” He took a deep breath and closed his eyes, gathering all of his courage. When he opened them again, he looked straight into his teacher’s soft, brown eyes with his own robotic, glowing, yellow ones.

“The truth is I’ve been observing you. After meeting you, I began doing research about ways to improve my social interactions. One book from my research suggested I find a role model to observe and model myself after. My chosen role model was you.”

Genos’s gaze was unwavering as he stared at Saitama, waiting for a response from the other man. He had learned to never try to predict a reaction from Saitama, because it was never as you expected. However, he dared himself to hope that his teacher wouldn’t find this whole situation to be too weird.

Saitama looked like he was thinking very hard for a moment before replying, “Oh, ok. I guess that makes sense… Why me, though? I’m a terrible role model, especially for social interactions. I don’t even pay attention half of the time.” He said it matter-of-factually, like it was something everyone knew.

Genos was so relieved he allowed himself to sink back into the couch just a little bit. He pushed his bangs back from his forehead, allowing the small amount of sweat that had built up from running (and probably a bit from fear) to keep his bangs back. He thought he saw the back of Saitama’s neck go red, but figured it was probably from being suddenly declared Genos’s role model.

“Sensei, you’re so accepting and amazing, and extremely humble. You have no idea how much you have taught me already about being a better person and interacting with people. I am sorry for not being upfront about my study of you, but I hope you understand why I had these apprehensions. I hope you will allow me to continue my observations, as I feel that it will help me blossom more as a person, as well as the benefits that you will gain from it being my…” Genos felt his heart starting to race a little faster.

“Being my friend.” He concluded, mustering all his courage to say the words out loud.

Saitama sat back and folded his arms, looking almost smug for a moment, were it not for the look on his face. He had it screwed up as he attempted to process the weird cyborg sitting across from him.

Finally, he consented.

“Fine, I sort of doubt I could stop you anyway. And I really do think you should pick someone else. But, as long as you aren’t obnoxious about it, I’ll try to continue to not notice.”

The glow in Genos’s eyes brightened along with his expression. He wanted to fling his arms around the other man as a show of gratitude, but thought better of it before he could act on those urges. Instead, he bowed.

“Thank you, sensei. I will do my best not to disturb you as I try to make myself a better person.”

Saitama just waved him off, indicating that it was nothing as he stretched out on the couch, picking up his manga again. Genos took that as a cue to run upstairs and grab his homework, the biggest smile in the world plastered across his face.

Chapter Text

As the fist coming towards his face connected with his nose, Genos wondered what he had done to deserve 2 beatings in his first month of being at school.

Like the last time, Genos only defended himself, feeling it an unfair and unjust decision to fight back. As he recovered from the blow to his face, blinking a few times from the pain, he did a quick scan of the other man. He was strong, there was no doubt about that, but he would still be easy prey for the athletic cyborg were he to choose to fight back. Genos also noticed several signs of scars on his hands and arms, suggesting this wasn’t his first fight. He was also a good head taller than Genos, which was saying something because Genos was fairly tall himself. The other man’s uniform was sloppily tucked in, tie completely missing, but his hair was perfectly styled. All the telltale signs of the rich-but-troubled youth that made up most of the occupants of Heero Academy. Genos sighed as he watched the other man wind up for a punch aimed straight at his gut.

What he had done to piss off this assailant was unclear. At least the last time he could at least put part of the blame on his big mouth. This time he didn’t even know who this guy was, much less why he would want to choose Genos to be his punching bag. And yet, there he had been, waiting around the corner for Genos as he went from the library, where he took his lunch most days, to his favorite class, Saitama’s class. Genos silently cursed himself for becoming a creature of habit here. He would have to make note to change up his routine if aggressive strangers were going to keep hiding in wait for him.

Genos took the punch to the stomach well, tensing up his abs to absorb most of the blow. All the same he doubled over a bit. Maybe if he seemed more in pain than he was the beating would stop sooner. Genos looked around as he stood back up straight. A small crowd had gathered around them. The rich and bored always loved a show, and one of their own beating up a scholarship kid and known cyborg was the perfect entertainment. Genos wasn’t looking at any of them, however. He was searching the crowd for his mop headed savior, Saitama-sensei. Genos only hoped he would show before this guy laid into him too much.

Instead, he found the piercing green eyes of Sonic off in the back of the crowd. He was leaned against a column, arms crossed, staring at Genos. Genos could swear he saw the hint of a smug smile on Sonic’s face before he took another punch to the stomach. Did Sonic have something to do with this guy?

Genos had tensed his muscles again, his robotic eyes warning him of the coming blow, but all the same he played up the pain, doubling over again. When he rose he saw a hand reach from the crowd and grab his assailant, throwing him off balance from behind and pinning him to the ground.

“Alright, break it up, everyone get to class or whatever you’re supposed to be doing!”

His savior had come. Like Genos knew he would.

As the crowd started to disperse, Genos walked over to Saitama. The man below his teacher grunted and growled, but Saitama was clearly overpowering him. As Genos approached, Saitama smiled up at him.

“What’s with you and getting beat up?” Saitama teased, pulling out a pair of zip-tie handcuffs. Genos only shrugged in response, feeling his face get hot from that amazing smile, and from the teasing. The man below Saitama muttered something, but with his face in the ground it was impossible to make out.

“What was that?” asked Saitama, jerking the man up roughly to a standing position when he had the cuffs on.

“I said, that’s a bunch of bullshit. He knows what he did!” The man turned to glare at Genos.

Before Genos could respond, the sound of a woman’s voice came from behind Genos.

“Oh, baby, are you ok? What are these jerks doing to you?!”

A vaguely familiar looking girl came running up to them, throwing her arms around Genos’s assailant. It took Genos only a moment before he recognized her as one of the girls who had been encouraging that girl to give him that flowery envelope a few weeks back. The same flowery envelope that he just realized he hadn’t opened. He felt a slight pang of guilt at the thought.

His attacker turned to the woman, a surprisingly soft look in his eyes. “Babe, I came to beat up this pretty boy cyborg that seduced you and forced you to join his fan club!”

Genos and Saitama both stared at the entwined couple dumbfounded.

‘Pretty boy?!’ Genos blushed at the thought. He had never really evaluated his own attractiveness, and figured the comment probably stemmed from the fact that he had medically been given perfect skin or something.

Saitama burst out laughing.

“Genos, seduce someone? That’s the best joke I’ve heard in ages. C’mon, I’m taking you down to the office, I have a class to get to.”

Saitama roughly turned the attacker, knocking the girl loose from around his neck. She pouted, but didn’t chase after them. Instead, she shouted, “I’ll wait for you, baby!”

Ugh, how annoying… Genos went to pick up his bag, trying to avoid calling attention to himself. Were all girls this dramatic? His interaction with females thus far had been limited, and most of those interactions were either of an informative nature, such as talking with the staff at the medical compound or asking a classmate a question, or had ended in some sort of drama. Genos got a feeling of dread in the pit of his stomach. Maybe it was best to avoid females in the future…
********************************************************************************************************************************
Before meeting Saitama downstairs for their usual dinner routine Genos dropped his stuff off in his room, pausing in the middle of his bedroom. Where had he put that letter? That had been such a crazy day, and he had been in such a pit of despair, there was no telling where it had ended up.

It was easy for Genos to search his room- he kept the thing pretty immaculate- but that made the mystery of the missing letter even more curious. He checked in all the places he would usually put something of that nature, but turned up nothing. He had a small panic attack when he thought he might have thrown it away on accident, feeling extremely guilty at the thought. This incited him to start frantically searching his room. It had to be in here somewhere, right?

“Oi, Genos, whatcha looking for?”

Genos whipped his head around and found himself face to face with his smiling teacher. Genos thought he spotted an evil twinkle in his eye. Just how long had he been in the doorway?

Genos felt his cheeks get warm. “I’m looking for a letter… but it’s not where I usually would have put it…”

“Have you tried looking under the bed?” Saitama said simply, smiling a little bit like it were a personal joke of his.

Genos could have smacked himself. He reached down and lifted up the edge of his comforter, peering underneath. Sure enough, along with a few unwanted dust bunnies, the floral printed letter sat waiting for him. He crouched down on his hands and knees to grab it.

“You-“ Saitama coughed, like he had something stuck in his throat, “You find it?”

Genos stood up and produced the letter, showing it to his teacher. He thought Saitama's face looked slightly pinker than before. Maybe it was just a trick of the light.

Saitama let out a low whistle. “You got a letter from a girl and you lost it?”

Genos felt that pang of guilt again as he looked down at the letter. How much more socially awkward could he get?

Realization came over Saitama’s face. “Wait, that’s not from that one time, is it? That girl that was waiting for you outside my class that one day?”

Genos looked up at his teacher horrified, not wanting to remember the events of that day.

“Damn dude, you’re cold! She gave it to you way back then and you lost it?”

Genos’s face must have been bright red. “I got a little busy afterwards, if you do remember…” He played with one of his stud earings nervously.

“Yeah, true, but it’s been like, 3 weeks.”

Genos put his hand on his face to try and hide his embarrassment. “I knoooowwwww…” he groaned.

“Well, take it downstairs and we’ll read it over dinner! This should be interesting!”

Genos’s eyes flew open. “Sensei! That’s a bit cruel, isn’t it? That girl poured her heart into this letter, I must treat it with the respect it deserves!”

Saitama rolled his eyes. “You just found it under your bed after it’s been lost and forgotten for 3 weeks.”

“Point taken.”

Genos didn’t think he could defy his teacher, anyway.

They went downstairs and poured hot water into their respective noodle cups, settling down on opposite couches. Saitama looked up expectantly at Genos as he held the letter in front of him. Genos desperately wished he had incinerators built into his arms so he could just burn the damned thing and be done with it.

“Smile, Genos, this is your first love letter!” Saitama said encouragingly, playfully patting Genos on the shoulder from across the low table. “Uh, this is your first love letter, right?”

Genos nodded nervously, staring at the front of the letter. Written in delicate handwriting that could only belong to the masterful hand of a girl were the words ‘From Your Fan Club’. A strange knot formed in the pit of his stomach as he thought back to the fist connecting with his nose earlier. If all the girls in this alleged ‘fan club’ of his were as crazy as the girl earlier, he wanted nothing to do with them.

He flipped the envelope over, carefully tearing open the flap. Saitama looked intently at the letter in his hands, looking like he might pee his pants in excitement. Genos extracted the paper inside from the envelope, tossing said envelope aside on the table without a second thought.

The two men leaned over the letter and read it simultaneously, Genos’s face getting warmer as Saitama’s smile grew. By the end of it, Genos had his hands covering his face in embarrassment while Saitama burst out into the loudest fit of laughter Genos had seen him fall into in a long time.

“Woooo! Dang, Genos, they got it for you bad!”

Genos looked at his teacher through his fingers, wishing he were dead.

“I don’t even know any of them! How can they think these things about me? How do they know the things they do about me?!” Genos ran his hands through his hair in distress.

“I dunno, I didn’t a good glance at them but the one you were talking to at least looked cute!” Saitama’s comment incited more blushing from Genos, which only made Saitama laugh more.

“Some of them sounded so forward. I’m definitely not ready for that. I don’t even know what I’m into, if I’m into anything!”

Genos’s eyes flew up to meet his teacher’s and he clamped a hand over his mouth, realizing what he just said out loud.

“Sensei, please disregard that last statement.”

“What was that?” Saitama said playfully, a cruel glint in his eye.

Genos looked at him, wishing for death. Yes, death would be much better than dealing with this.

“Chill man, I get it! You’ve never had a girlfriend before!”

Genos had never had an anything before.

A sudden question formed on the tip of Genos’s tongue. It slipped out before Genos could stop it.

“Have you ever had a girlfriend before, sensei?”

Genos felt the twitch in his arm. He wanted to grab for his notebook, to record every word Saitama was about to say. While it was true that Genos hadn’t given his new awareness of his intimate being much thought since discovering it, beyond making more of an effort to notice more things about the people around him, this seemed like the perfect opportunity to further that exploration through a lesson from his role model.

“I’ll tell you, but don’t you dare pull out that notebook.” Damn, could Saitama read minds? Genos nodded, trying to not look too eager as he prepared to memorize every word his teacher was about to say.

Saitama sighed, a hint of pink finding its way into his cheeks. “Yeah, I have, only a couple, though, and it was mostly just pubescent fooling around. I’m pretty sure with all of them we broke up after no more than a month.” He rubbed the back of his neck in the way he always did when he was nervous. Genos felt his heart pitter a little faster, but ignored it, hazarding an even more dangerous question, but one he felt was absolutely necessary to ask. For research, of course.

“Have you ever had any boyfriends?”

Genos was almost shocked at how confidently he had asked the question. Well, it was just for research.

Saitama seemed shocked by his confidence too, either that or by the question itself. His face and neck grew a dark shade of red, and he seemed to no longer be able to make eye contact with his cheeky student.

“Er, not exactly? Unless drunkenly making out and getting handsy with a guy counts as him being your boyfriend…”

“Sensei!” Genos’s heart was definitely beating faster at how honestly the other man had answered his question. He wasn't sure why, but something in him had desperately needed to hear that answer. He felt the warmth on his face intensify as he watch Saitama squirm uncomfortably.

“I hadn’t had a girlfriend since I was 16, and it was my 21st birthday. A couple of the guys from the academy took me out to the bar, this one guy was giving me looks and buying me drinks, one thing led to another…” Saitama’s face got redder as Genos assumed he remembered some of those ‘one things’. “Well, let’s just say I get more than a bit… forward when I’m drunk, heh. Ok, that’s an understatement. I’m like a horny teenager when I’m drunk.”

Genos giggled a bit at his teacher’s embarrassment. It felt oddly reassuring that even Saitama, a man who seemed to have had a fairly normal life, up until a few years ago, was too still exploring his intimate being. A sudden thought occurred to Genos.

“I’m not sure yet, having tried neither option, but I think my attraction would have less to do with gender and more with the qualities of the person, both physical and physiological attributes.”

“Leave it to the cyborg to make a statement about sexual orientation sound robotic.” Saitama chuckled and pushed Genos playfully as a slightly hurt expression crossed Genos’s face. “I’m just fucking with you, man.”

Genos knew his face must be bright red by now. “I know that!”

Saitama sat back, laughing to himself. “I never thought about it that way, but I think you’re right. I suppose it does matter less about what a person is, it matters who they are.”

Genos smiled, his heart swelling with pride that maybe, just maybe, he had given his teacher a little peace of mind.

Saitama looked down at the forgotten noodles down on the table.

“Oh no! Our dinner!”

Chapter Text

The loud ‘tweet’ of a whistle signaled the end of the game, its sound soon being swallowed up by an eruption of cheering. Genos felt real tears well up in his artificial eyes as the team ran towards Saitama and himself, faces bright with victory. Genos’s tears were wiped away by the pile of male bodies all gathered in a big group hug.

They had won the spring tournament! Of course, Genos thought they had been shoe-ins from the beginning, but it had been a hard fought battle against the Sea Kings- the favorite to win this tournament mostly because this was the first year their team had qualified for this division, so they were a Cinderalla story of sorts. Genos had to admit, the game had been very close, especially in the second half when Mumen, a second year boy who made up in spirit what he lacked in skill, was tripped and sprained his ankle. He was one of their best defensive players and so Genos had been worried that Puri, Heero Academy’s very large and very flamboyant goal keeper, would suffer an onslaught of kicks on goal without Mumen. Luckily, however, Sonic showed why he was Team Captain and rallied the team in the name of Mumen (which deeply touched the brown-haired first year) and led them to victory!

Mumen, who Genos felt he had formed a small friendship with after chatting with him for the last half of the game, grabbed Genos and Puri and had them help him lift the team’s water jug over Saitama’s head. Saitama was a good sport about it, laughing more than complaining about the rush of ice water that dumped on his head. Immediately the team called for a victory party, so Saitama invited the team back to the old dorm to celebrate with a pizza party.

********************************************************************************************************************************

“KONPAI!”

The cheer was quickly followed by the muffled clinking of plastic meeting plastic. Their usually empty dorm lobby was filled with the warm glow of happy faces and good pizzas. As the slices disappeared, the boys gravitated into small social circles, everyone chatting merrily and enjoying themselves. Saitama ate a few slices of pizza before excusing himself upstairs to change out of his still-wet clothes.

Genos felt a small tightening in his chest, a feeling of panic settling in as Saitama got up to walk away. He considered following him, even though he knew it was silly and would draw more attention than it was probably worth. He tried to calm himself down, silently counting his breathing and reminding himself he was a part of this team. These people accepted him, at least on some level. He wasn’t sure if he could count them all as friends quite yet, but Genos hoped their bond as team mates would be enough to calm his apprehension at being left on his own in a social situation.

He had never been to a party before.

Try as he might, with every step that Saitama took away from him Genos’s breath became more and more shallow. It was like Saitama was his life preserver in an ocean dark with a storm, slowly floating away as Genos swallowed the inky water, filling up all the air in his lungs slowly, painfully, excruciatingly, until-

“What do you think, Genos?”

A voice snapped his attention away from the dark storm of panic that had been swallowing his mind. His eyes left the retreating form of his friend and turned to face Mumen, whose eyebrows were scrunched in concern for some reason Genos had not heard. Mumen had replaced his sports goggles with round glasses sometime between the end of the game and now, and Genos thought they made him look much older than he knew he was.

“W-what?” Genos stuttered, unsure of what one was supposed to say in a situation where they had been asked a question they hadn’t be listening to.

“I said, don’t you think some of the older boys are acting a bit funny? I think they’ve been slipping alcohol into their drinks.” Mumen pouted, studying Genos's face. Genos swallowed the mass of saliva that had formed in his throat upon suddenly being asked to speak, the sound of it so loud he was sure Mumen must have noticed.

“Oh, I haven’t seen anything…”

“Look at them! Their cheeks are definitely flush.”

Genos looked around at the older boys. Was a flushed face a sign of being drunk? Genos was unsure. His only experience thus far with drunk people had been that strange couple he had encountered on the sidewalk his first week at Heero Academy. He had just assumed their faces had been red from their lewd behavior, not necessarily an effect of imbibing. The thought of that night formed an embarrassing pit in the bottom of his stomach. He’d rather not thing about that night ever.

“I don’t know, I guess they look a little warm.”

“Geesh, Coach steps out for 2 minutes and already they can’t help themselves.”

“Relaaaaax, darling, it’s not like they’re hurting anyone!” Came the unmistakable voice of Puri as he leaned over the couch between Genos and Mumen, a little too far into both of their personal spaces. Mumen just screwed up his face and became silent, like he was having an internal battle between calling out his seniors and respecting them as older students. Puri turned and winked at Genos before changing the subject back to the game from earlier, launching into a dramatic retelling of a particularly noble save on his part. Genos was glad to take a back seat and just listen without the pressures of having to respond to small talk. Mumen even seemed to relax near the end of the story, refuting a few points that Puri had elaborated on.

Saitama’s absence still hung in the back of Genos’s mind, and he found his mind drifting again. What was taking him so long? By Genos’s calculations he should have been back by now…

“I have to go to the bathroom…” The words found their way out of his mouth without him realizing it as a sudden feeling of concern washed over him. He wasn't sure what, he had no logic to go off of, but something in his gut told him something was wrong. He excused himself politely, Mumen shooting him a quick look of ‘Don’t leave me here with him!!’ which went ignored. His legs were moving on their own, taking him into the dark hallway he had walked down more times than he could count.

About halfway down the hallway, he saw Sonic coming down the stairs. The feeling in his gut turned icy cold, goosebumps forming on his real skin. When had he left the party? Did he get lost looking for the bathroom? It was just down the hall from the common room, but Genos could see where maybe someone could have missed it. As an especially angry looking Sonic approached, Genos noticed a red stain splashed across Sonic’s normally pale skin. Had he been drinking, too?

Sonic’s shoulder bumped against Genos’s roughly as he passed, half like he hadn’t noticed Genos, half like he hadn’t wanted to notice Genos. Genos felt a sudden fire rage inside him, explainable and instinctual, like a mother bear protecting her cubs. Something about right now suddenly made it all too much, he was tired of Sonic treating him this way. Just what was this guy’s problem?

“Hey, that hurt!”

Genos immediately regretted the words as they left his mouth. Had they come from him? They sounded strange, too loud in his ears. Like someone else had spoken through him.

Sonic turned to face him, pale green eyes ablaze in the dark of the hallway.

“Sucks, doesn’t it?”

Anger dripped from his voice, but there was more than that. There was a pain in his voice, too, like he could burst into hot, angry tears at any minute.

“What have I ever done to you, Sonic? I don’t get it… I don’t get why you’re always so angry…”

Damn his lips. Damn his young, human brain that controlled them. Damn his need to speak honestly, from the heart. Why couldn’t he just brush it off and leave Sonic alone? Why couldn’t he just accept that maybe Sonic was a jerk and move on?

Sonic’s eyes opened wide in shock for a second, then narrowed into the saddest glare Genos had ever seen. Why did Sonic always look so sad when he looked at Genos?

“What have you done?” The words came out in a harsh whisper, almost like the hiss of a snake. “What have you done?!” He words became louder as he got closer to Genos. Genos backed up. Sonic was close- too close. He could almost feel the heat coming off of his face, could see the fire burning in his eyes. How could eyes of such a pale color burn so brightly?

Genos felt the wall behind him, but still Sonic got closer, studying Genos’s eyes, like he was looking for something that wasn’t there.

“You’ve done everything, everything I wish I could do…”

What did he mean by that? Genos felt his heart pounding in his chest. And why was he so close? Genos was vaguely aware of Sonic’s hand pressed against the wall next to his head, the closeness of the two men’s bodies, the lack of empty air between their faces. But in that moment, it was Sonic’s eyes that filled all of his senses. Those sad, deep pools of pale green, like a strange, forgotten, moonlit pond in some mystical land.

“Sonic, leave him alone!”

Both of the young men turned to see Saitama standing at the bottom of the stairs, a fierce look on his reddened face. Was it panic? Or anger? Genos noticed Saitama’s fists were balled, ready to strike at a moment’s notice, knuckles white with anticipation.

“Tch, I was just leaving anyway, this party’s getting lame…” Sonic pulled away from Genos, a cooling sensation rushing over Genos to replace the body heat that was once there. A chill ran up his spine, and Genos shivered.

“Sonic, you don’t have to do that, stay, celebrate with the team…” Saitama’s voice sounded small, like he was trying to convince himself this was the right thing to say, despite what he was really feeling.

“No, I think its best that I leave now. Don’t worry about me, I’ll be fine. I always am.” And with that, he turned and left, some of the older boys following after him.

Saitama stood there, stunned, in the hallway for what felt like an eternity. Genos's thoughts felt paralyzed, not fully able to comprehend what had just transpired. He looked at Saitama as he seemingly snapped out of whatever trance held him in that spot, concern flooding his every feature as his eyes met Genos's.

“Are you ok? Did he say anything weird to you?”

Saitama crossed the distance between them, looking like he wanted to say something more, but the words got lost before they found his voice. Genos was suddenly very aware he was still frozen against the wall. He stood up straight. Saitama was close-not as close as Sonic had been, but close enough that, with anyone else, Genos would feel uncomfortable. But he didn’t with Saitama. If anything, Saitama being this close was comforting, even if it did involuntarily make Genos’s chest tighten. He thought he sensed a want twitch at the end of Saitama’s fingers, but in the next moment Saitama shoved his hands in his pockets.

“Not… particularly, sensei…” He wasn’t necessarily lying, but for some reason he felt very embarrassed by the previous interaction. Or maybe he felt embarrassed that Saitama had walked in on whatever that was. Regardless, he didn’t feel like talking about it.

“Oh, ok, sorry.” Saitama looked down the hallway, pulling a hand out of his pocket to push his black hair off of his forehead. The way he did it, his biceps flexing, the far-off look in his eye as he stared down the hallway, something about it stirred something in Genos...

It was probably just all the oxygen returning to his lungs...

“Well, we should probably get back to the party, then..." Saitama trailed off, still looking like he was caught in a dream. He shook his head, driving whatever thoughts that haunted him away for the moment. "If you’re ok that is.” Saitama turned to face Genos, his usual easy smile replaced by a half-one. Something about that made Genos feel inexplicably sad.

All Genos could do was nod in agreement, and so the two men went towards the warm glow together, uneasy smiles trying their hardest to hide the tension that filled the air.

Chapter Text

The next day was a stormy Saturday. Genos and Saitama settled into their normal routine of quiet activities in the common room- Saitama reading his manga, Genos doing his homework. Somewhere off in the distance thunder rumbled across the sky.

Before Genos knew it, it was too dark in the room to read properly. He got up to flick on the light, and noticed Saitama’s phone glowing on the table between them.

“Uh, sensei, I think you have a message on your phone.”

Saitama nonchalantly picked up the phone, looking thoroughly uninterested in whoever was trying to get in contact with him. Saitama had told Genos once that he only had a cell phone because the school required him to and that he hated using it. He had given Genos his number anyway, though, strictly for emergency contact purposes, of course.

Saitama suddenly sat bolt upright, glaring at the phone in his hand.

“What’s this guy’s deal?! Sending me 100 text messages?! And 20 missed calls?! Fuck!”

He angrily jabbed at a few buttons on the flip phone and held it up to his ear. Genos could faintly hear the ringing against his teacher’s ear, and after about two rings a familiar dry voice came through the speakers.

“I see you finally got my messages. Make sure you’re dressed appropriately and at the restaurant by 6:00. You have a little over an hour and a half. Oh, and don’t forget an umbrella. Showing up soaking wet is unacceptable, as is not showing up at all. This is to celebrate your win after all.”

“Amai-!”

But it was too late. Mr. Amai had already hung up. Saitama glared down at his phone again.

“Fuuuuuuccccckkkkkk, sorry Genos, I know we had planned to watch a movie together after dinner but apparently I have a work party I have to go to…”

Genos felt his eyes widen a bit, but he tried to keep his expression nonchalant.

“Oh, that’s ok, sensei, I have a lot of homework to get done anyway.” Genos was pretty disappointed, but part of him was just happy that Saitama had even thought to apologize for it.

“We’ll watch it tomorrow if you’re done with all of your homework then.” Saitama scratched the back of his head nervously. “Ah, sorry, did that sound too teacher-y?”

Genos cocked an eyebrow. “No… but then again, you are my teacher, so it’s not like that would be unacceptable behavior.” Genos replied honestly.

“Right, right…” Saitama looked troubled by Genos’s response. “But I mean, we’re like, friends too, right? So that’s like, weird for a friend to say to another friend…”

Genos considered this for a moment. “I suppose… but, as you know, I haven’t had any friends before, so it’s hard for me to say exactly. I suppose another factor to consider is our separation in ages. It seems natural, to me anyway, that as the older male friend you would naturally fall into the ‘older brother’ role, of which such a statement would not be uncommon for you to make. Add to this my social inadequacies and your having saved me from bullying at least twice now and I think you can easily see where it would not be such a strange statement.”

Saitama looked dazed by the barrage of words, but just nodded wordlessly after taking a moment to process the speech.

When Saitama remained seated, like he was having some internal battle with himself over Genos’s words, Genos became concerned. It wasn’t like Saitama to sit and think this long about anything, much less something that Genos had said. Genos narrowed his eyes as he observed the other man quietly. Was he trying to procrastinate?

“Sensei, if you don’t hurry up and get ready, you’re going to be late.”

“Huh?” Saitama looked at him like he was coming out of a dream. Upon locking eyes with Genos he seemed to snap out of it. “Oh right! The party! Stupid Amai…” He continued grumbling as he got up and headed towards the stairs.

Genos smiled to himself and went back to his homework. Whatever was making Saitama act so strangely would have to wait until after he got back from the party. Amai-sensei didn’t seem like someone who took disappointment well. Genos shuddered at the thought of his icy glare. Yeah, best to be on his good side.

Saitama came back downstairs looking a bit disheveled, but overall nicer dressed that usual. He was messing with his hair as he walked, a stain of red gracing his cheeks. Genos secretly burned the image into his memory, blushing slightly at the thought of it. It was cute to see his role model, the man he admired, trying to look so nice in such a hurry. He smiled and crossed the room to help his teacher.

“Sensei, here, let me help.” Genos gently held Saitama’s shoulders indicating him to stop. Saitama thankfully took the hint, and stood still while Genos brushed off his suit jacket fixed his lapel. When Genos moved to fix his tie, Saitama looked away, revealing his red hot ears to Genos. Genos smiled softly. It was no secret Genos was far more fashionable than Saitama, but maybe it was embarrassing for Saitama to have someone younger than him fix his tie for him. Well, better Saitama be a little embarrassed now than humiliated when Amai-sensei chewed him out.

“There, much better, do you want me to fix your hair for you?”

Saitama turned abruptly to face him, a fierce look on his face. He looked like an angry cherry his face was so red. Genos had to stop himself from giggling at the sight of it.

“Yeah, sure, if you want…” Saitama relented, suddenly becoming very interested in his shoes.

“I need you to face me then, Sensei.” Genos said, pulling Saitama’s face up gently by the bottom of the older man’s chin. Genos was suddenly aware of how close their faces were. He felt like time stood still as the two men stared into each other’s eyes.

“S-s-sorry, sensei!” Genos said, probably too loud, removing his hand from the other man’s chin. The heat from both of their faces mixed in the air as Genos sucked in a breath he hadn’t realized he had been holding. He quickly examined the state of Saitama’s hair and set about fixing it.

As he ran his fingers through his teacher’s hair, a memory of a dream came back to him, unbidden. This feeling… So this is what it really feels like… He shook his head, trying to stamp down the exhilaration that had unexpectedly rushed through him at the touch. Ok, Genos, probably best not remember weird dreams you’ve had about your friend when you’re this close to him. And probably REALLY not best to get that much of a rush out of touching his hair.

“There, perfect!” Genos exclaimed, stepping back to admire his work (and take another mental snapshot). Saitama went to rub the back of his neck nervously. “No, don’t! You’ll mess it up!”

Saitama shoved his hands in his pocket instead. “Thanks Genos.”

Genos smiled, his heart swelling with pride. “No problem, sensei, now you’d better run off!”

Saitama glanced at the clock on the wall. “Ah… yeah, I probably should. Don’t wait up for me, I don’t know how much Amai is going to make me stay out...” He did a little half smile and made his way to the door.

“Have fun, sensei!” Genos called after him. Saitama only waved in response as he walked out the door.

********************************************************************************************************************************

Genos woke, still half in a dream, to a soft touch on his forehead. Keeping his eyes closed, he smiled a bit at the soothing touch, a strange noise of pleasure escaping from his mouth as his brain slowly turned on. When had he fallen asleep? He remembered doing homework until it was very late, slightly concerned when Saitama didn’t return but trying to be mindful of the warning the other man had imparted on him before he left. He must have fallen asleep in the common room while doing his homework. Yes, doing his homework, totally not secretly waiting up for Saitama.

Wait, if he was in the common room, then who was stroking his hair? Genos’s eyes flew open, brain awaking in panic to find two familiar dark, endless pools of brown staring back at him lazily. The moonlight shown in through the window, reflecting in the whites of his eyes, but other than that the room was dark. Still, Genos recognized the face of Saitama. He would recognize that face anywhere.

“S-s-sensei?” Genos stuttered out in surprise. Why was Saitama stroking his hair? Why was his face so close? Oh god, was this another weird dream? Genos secretly pinched his leg. Nope, definitely not a dream. Both real and artificial muscles stiffened at the closeness of his teacher. Saitama was sitting on the couch next to where Genos had laid, leaning sideways over Genos’s chest and resting one arm against the back of the couch, his other hand continuing to stroke Genos’s hair.

“I like it when you push your hair back like this, it looks really cute…” Saitama slurred more than said, the smell of alcohol pouring out of his mouth with every word. Genos would have cringed at the strong smell had he not been in such shock at his teacher’s words. He knew it was just the alcohol talking, but he couldn’t help how fast his heart was beating, the adrenaline rush through his body, the warmth radiating from his cheeks at the words. For the second time that night, a past dream flashed in his memory.

“Sensei, we need to get you to bed… you’re very drunk…” Genos had never seen Saitama touch a drop of alcohol, but he was fairly sure the other man was far gone. Man, it would be so awesome to be able to tease Saitama about this tomorrow, but for right now the most important thing was to get him in bed.

Genos made to sit up, trying to move his arms but Saitama just laid on him more, trapping Genos’s arms at his side. A mischievous smile danced across his lips.

“Were you waiting up for me? I told you not to…” Saitama continued to stroke Genos’s hair, acting as if the other man had not tried to get up a moment ago.

“I-erm… I fell asleep doing my homework…” Genos was finding it harder and harder by the minute to match his friend's gaze. He tried to look around but the other man filled most of his field of view. Genos followed the line of the other man’s neck down to where their chests met. Saitama must have gotten hot at some point in the night- his tie hung lazily around his neck and his dress shirt was unbuttoned as far as Genos could see. It was going to be summer soon and they had not yet turned on the aircon in this room, and Genos noticed a few drips of sweat make their journey down perfectly sculpted pectorals. Well, he couldn’t not look down there…

“Mhmmmm…” Saitama hummed, his eyes closing a little more. Genos could feel the low mumble where their chests met, the feeling sending an odd sensation up his spine.

“Ok, Saitama-sensei, up you go. Time for bed!” Genos used all his strength to push the other man off of him. Instead, he drunkenly rolled into Genos’s arms as he sat up.

“Will you carry me?” Saitama said innocently, looking up at Genos with drunken puppy-dog eyes.

Genos couldn’t help but smile. “Sure, sensei.”

He lifted the other man wedding style and started down the hallway, abandoning his forgotten homework. He made it up the stairs and to the other man's room without much fuss, which Genos was grateful for. His encounters with drunk people thus far had been limited and had both ended with awkward situations for him. He was glad to make it out of this one with only some slightly awkward hair-petting and comments. Not too bad when compared to having to dodge a drunken three-some or being slammed against a wall and yelled at.

At Saitama’s door Genos paused, setting his teacher down on his feet. Saitama swayed a bit then leaned on Genos’s arm. “Can you help me to bed, Genos? Sorry… I don’t think I can on my own…”

Genos noticed the mischievous smile dance across his friend's lips again, but ignored it with a sigh and a smile of his own. “Of course, sensei, here, let me get the door.”

Once inside, Saitama instructed Genos where his pajamas were as he clumsily pulled off his clothes. Genos was treated to an almost full view of the other man, grateful that even in his drunken state his teacher was mindful enough to keep his boxers on. He wasn’t sure if his body could handle much more stimulation that evening.

Saitama swiped the blue striped pajamas from Genos, tossing the shirt on the floor but slipping on the pants. He sat down on the edge of the bed and patted a spot next to him.

“Can you stay with me a while? We don’t have to talk or anything, just…” Saitama looked away, rubbing the back of his neck. Genos couldn’t help but notice the muscles in his arms and chest flex as they worked together to complete the nervous tick. The action was just as cute as the day he had first seen it.

“I’m just afraid of throwing up and dying or something.” Saitama completed, snapping Genos out of his muscle-induced trance.

“R-right! O-of course!” Genos managed, taking the place Saitama had patted before. The two sat in a comfortable silence for a few minutes before Saitama laid his head down on the cyborg’s shoulder.

“Thank you Genos… I can always count on you to be here for me… I’m lucky that way, I guess…”

Genos’s eyes flew open and the light of them mingled with the moonlight pouring in through the window. Genos silently cursed himself for not turning on the light and hoped Saitama wouldn’t notice.

“Saitama-sensei, it is I who is the lucky one! You’re my first real friend, you put up with all my social awkwardness and weird outbursts and misunderstandings of things that most people know to be normal! I haven’t done anything for you, especially compared to all you’ve done for me…”

Suddenly filled with emotion, Genos tried to push down the well of tears forming in his artificial eyes. Saitama had given him so much in the short few months he had known him, how could this great man who had saved him from his isolated world of sadness sit here and thank him?

“Genos… you really have no idea… maybe… maybe one day I will have the courage to tell you…” Saitama leaned more into Genos. Genos could feel Saitama's hot breath hit against his neck with every word, sending the odd sensation down his spine again. All his muscles tensed as he tried very hard not to move. It would have been easy if Saitama had decided to lay his head against his right shoulder- the mechanics in his right arm made it easy for him to keep still. Unfortunately, Saitama had nestled into the crook of his left side. Genos didn’t know why, but he found himself dreading the moment when he would need to adjust his arm under the weight of his drunken role model.

“S-so… how was the party?” Genos wasn’t sure what Saitama was talking about, but he had a sad, faraway look on his face that Genos hoped to stamp out by changing the subject.

“Psh, boring, and awful. Just an excuse for Amai to show off, as usual…” Saitama muttered into Genos’s collarbone. “I was left alone in a corner, as usual. Which is fine, I don’t like talking at those work things anyway, but it was supposed to be celebrating our win! Pah!” He lazily threw his hands up in the air in an exasperated manner. “I think the wait staff felt bad for me, so they kept bringing me drinks… that was the best part of the whole night… I needed a good drink after last night …”

Genos crinkled his forehead. After last night?

“Why would you need a drink after last night?”

The older man buried his face in the cyborg’s collarbone, pushing hard against him and rubbing his head against Genos’s neck, trying to hide from the question. Genos was finding it harder and harder to stay sitting as the other man pressed against him.

“Nooooooooo…” Saitama moaned into the base of Genos’s neck, pushing harder against him. Genos had to use all the mechanics in his right arm to keep himself from falling back onto the bed.

“Saitama-sensei, as your friend you should be able to rely on me if something is bothering you enough to try and drown yourself in alcohol to deal with it.” He tried to keep his voice soft but firm. Saitama rarely got upset about anything and Genos found himself wanting desperately for the older man to confide in him.

“I knooooooowwww but I don’t want to think about Sonic right now…” Genos could practically feel Saitama’s pout through his thin t-shirt.

“What-?! Sonic? What happened with Sonic last night?” Genos gently sat the other man up, grabbing his shoulders to he could look him in the eyes. Anymore hiding in Genos’s neck and Saitama would have pushed him down onto the bed for sure.

Saitama looked away from Genos’s glowing stare. “Nothing. You’re killing my buzz.”

“As regretful as I am to disappoint you by ‘killing your buzz’, sensei, I’m afraid I must inquire again. What happened with Sonic last night?” Genos furrowed his eyebrows with concern as he tried to look into Saitama’s eyes.

“Argh, fine!” Saitama relented after a few moments of consideration. Genos released his friend's shoulders and turned to face him on the bed more, waiting patiently for Saitama to begin.

“He… he tried to make another pass at me…” Genos raised an eyebrow at ‘another’, but didn’t say anything. He didn’t want to embarrass Saitama too much, fearing he wouldn’t tell him the whole story if he interrupted.

“I was upstairs changing… he’s so damn quick and quiet, no wonder his ancestors were a famous ninja clan…” This was followed by more raised eyebrows. It was true, Sonic was unnaturally fast out on the soccer field, but Genos didn’t know he was a descendant of ninja.

“Anyway, I think some of the older boys had been slipping themselves some drinks of liquid courage downstairs- he seemed really red in the face… He cornered me, right over there…” Saitama turned a bit and pointed at the wall near his closet.

“The look in his eye… it was so intense… he studied me up and down for several minutes… it felt like he was peering into my soul with his sickly green eyes…” The memory of Sonic giving him a similar look bubbled to the front of Genos’s thoughts. He shook it off and continued to listen intently to Saitama.

“He asked me… no, it was more like he told me he was so direct, ‘Why don’t you look at me the way I want you to?’ There was such a sadness in his eyes when he said it… Why was he so sad? What did he mean?” He ran his hand through his hair. “No, I know why, but I try to ignore it… to pretend like I don’t know…” Genos wasn’t really sure what Saitama was talking about now, but he waited silently for the other man to work out this battle in his head, just happy that Saitama was telling him this much.

“When I didn’t say anything to him he said ‘No, you look at him that way, though. I see it, every day you torture me with it, parade it in front of my face. I want to hate you for it, but you can’t help it, can you?’” Saitama put his head in his hands. “He looked so damn sad… I didn’t know what to say… I just stood there and let him say what he needed to… but then…”

Saitama turned his body more towards Genos, but looked out the window on the other side of the bed rather than at Genos. His voice became soft, and Genos had to lean in closer to hear everything.

“Then he backed off of me… it was so sudden I looked up at him in surprise… his expression… it was colder than ice itself…” A small, sad smile crept onto the corners of Saitama’s mouth. “I know, that probably sounds like normal Sonic behavior to you, but this look was different somehow…” Genos let his own sad smile cross his face. With all the time that Saitama and Genos spent together now it was hard to remember than Sonic had had a whole year before Genos to get to know Saitama. A pang of jealousy, or maybe it was guilt, rang true in his chest. Sonic always came off as so harsh towards their coach, but, thinking back on it, he paid more attention to and harped on Saitama more than anyone else. Maybe… could that be Sonic’s weird way of showing his affection?

Saitama continued after a moment. “Then he said, ‘It doesn’t matter anymore. I came up here to officially declare to you I’m over you. I just thought you should know. So, you won’t be bothered by me anymore.’ And then he quickly made for the door, but he turned before he left and got this weird, haunting smile on his face…”

Saitama turned to Genos, forehead crinkled with concern. “He said ‘Besides, I’ve got my sights set on someone else now.’ And then he just left!” Saitama studied Genos’s face, like he was looking for something that wasn’t there. “The next thing I know, I come downstairs and see him pressing you against the wall… and I…”

Genos followed the other man’s eyes down to see his strong, powerful hands clenching the bed sheets in front of him.

Suddenly, Saitama jerked his head up. Genos looked up as well, startled by the sudden movement. The look on Saitama’s face was… oddly determined. What did Sonic talking to him have anything to do with this?

“What did Sonic say to you?”

Saitama’s voice was oddly still, determined as the look on his face.

Genos felt his face grow hot again at the question. He played with one of his stud earrings, barely able to match the other man’s gaze. “N-nothing! What does that have to do with anything anyway?”

Saitama leaned in closer. His face was still flush, his breath still stunk of alcohol, but there was a clarity in his eyes as he stared into the cyborg’s mechanical ones. It sent a shiver down Genos’s spine.

“Everything.” He said cooly, continuing to lean in closer. Sonic’s words from the previous night rang in Genos’s ears. ‘Everything.’ Genos leaned back a bit, placing his hand behind him to steady himself as Saitama inched closer and closer.

Saitama was so close, his staring so deep, Genos fell backwards on to the bed, Saitama looming above him. Still Saitama leaned closer, placing his hands on the bed on either side of Genos’s head.

“Tell me, Genos.”

There was nowhere to hide from Saitama’s eyes. The feel of Saitama’s body pressed against his own sent that strange sensation through him again. Saitama’s bare chest brought back memories of that dream long ago, the feel of their heat mingling as he pulled him into… No, this wasn’t the time to be thinking of weird, hormone induced dreams! Why was Saitama so concerned with what Sonic had said?

And why was a part of Genos so reluctant to tell him?

He closed his eyes as tight as he could. “It was my fault, ok? I asked him why he was so angry with me all the time, what I had done to piss him off. I just… I just don’t understand how someone can be so mad all the time…”

When Saitama didn’t move above him, Genos continued, opening his eyes a little.

“He said it was my fault, that I’ve done every he wishes he could do… but I still don’t get what he means…”

Genos chanced a look up into the other man’s eyes, which looked like they were about to burst into tears any second. Genos had never seen him even come close to crying. The sight took his breath away.

Saitama buried his head in Genos’s chest. Genos thought he felt hot, wet tears on his chest, but his body was in too much shock to tell for sure.

“I’m so glad… I’m so glad, Genos…”

“Sensei…” Genos didn’t know what else to do, so he slipped his arms around the older man and held him. All his anxiety and social awkwardness melted away in that moment, all the tension slipping out of his muscles.

All that mattered in that moment was Saitama.

“Oh.” Genos whispered, only half understanding why.

“I’m sorry… I’m so sorry Genos…” Saitama’s words were muffled by Genos’s t-shirt. “One day I’ll have the courage to tell you everything… but not tonight… it wouldn’t be right… I doubt you would believe me in my… current state…”

There was a hint of regret in the other man's voice, but Genos just kept silent and waited for Saitama to finish.

“Just please… for now wait for me… and tonight…”

Saitama lifted his head to look into Genos’s eyes. The dark brown pools reflected the golden rings of Genos’s own eyes back at him. Genos felt hypnotized, like Saitama had cast some sort of spell over him. He would do anything, anything Saitama asked in that moment. Somewhere at the edge of his consciousness he was vaguely aware of his heartbeat increasing- louder and louder until Genos had to strain to hear Saitama over the sound of it.

“For tonight, can you just… can you just hold me?”

As Genos’s heart burst, spilling forth a new emotion throughout all of his senses, all he could muster was a wordless nod. His whole body tingled, all the way down to each fingertip and toe. Saitama folded into the cyborg, filling all of Genos’s senses with the feel, the smell of the man he admired.

Genos wrapped his arms around Saitama, one robotic, one real. Both of them wanting to never let go.

Chapter Text

Genos was going to get up without disturbing the sleeping Saitama using his chest for a pillow.

Yup, he was totally going to do it.

Any minute now.

Just going to get up and walk out that door, pretending like nothing ever happened.

Spare the wonderful sleeping angel pressed against him the embarrassment of waking up to this.

His drunken mistake.

Yes, that was the right thing to do.

Which is why he was for sure going to do it.

You know, just as soon as he figured out how to without ruining that soft, ethereal look on Saitama’s face.

He just had to slip out from under the strong, beautiful hands resting on his chest, rising and falling with each nervous breath.

It was so simple, surely if he could figure out, using logic and science, how to catch a killer this simple extraction should be no problem.

Yup, just got to move his head very carefully, completely not getting hung up on the wonderful shampoo smell emanating from the top of it…

Genos groaned internally at his own inability to move.

It was totally not going to happen.

Whatever had happened last night, whatever this was, it wasn’t just going to go away by pretending nothing had happened. He was in too deep now, if there was in fact anything to be deep into. Was there anything?

Genos glanced down at the man sleeping on his chest again.

Oh yeah. There was definitely something.

He needed more than a moment to think about this.

Ok, so last night, Saitama had definitely indicated that Sonic had, at one time had feelings for Saitama? That had to be it, right? Otherwise, what else would he have had to ‘get over’?

Alright, so that much was clear. Genos felt a pang of guilt in his stomach. Of course Sonic had feelings for Saitama. That made so much sense. He had feelings for him the same way a 5 year old boy does-picking on the person they like most for their attention. Any attention was good attention. How had Genos not realized it earlier?

No, it was obvious that Sonic had tried hard to hide it. It was only now that he knew that it was so obvious.

‘He tried to make a pass at me again.’

Genos remembered the words falling from a very somber Saitama’s mouth. Again. So, that meant Sonic had tried to confess to Saitama before. That much Genos understood. But what about the rest of what Saitama said? Saitama had been talking so cryptically last night. It was like there was a secret Sonic and Saitama shared but neither of them wanted to say the words out loud.

Genos screwed up his face, the only part of him he could move without disturbing the other man. This was all way beyond his understanding.

Another question loomed in his mind: What did this all have to do with him?

It was more than likely he had just found himself in the middle of all of this as a byproduct of being close with Saitama. Sonic was most likely lashing out at Saitama through him, and Saitama was angry at Sonic for being mean to his friend. Yup, that made total sense, but then...

‘One day I’ll have the courage to tell you everything…’ Saitama's words rattled around his head, haunting him like a ghost.

Courage to tell him what? Genos already knew about the other man’s mysterious past, what more was there to tell him?

Saitama shifted slightly in his sleep, causing Genos’s heart to race suddenly. He held his breath, watching the other man carefully.

And why had he asked Genos to hold him?!

Genos felt his face warm up and let out his breath slowly. Genos shifted his sight up to the ceiling in relief.

Another question hung in the air before him: How did he feel about Saitama?

If Genos was really honest with himself, he hadn’t thought much about potential romantic partners since Saitama introduced him to the notion that he, Genos, could potentially have one. It was true, he had tried in earnest to try to figure out what he was attracted to. He tried to think back to if he had had any playground crushes, but none came to mind. He tried to take an interest in the people around him, but he was always so busy with studying to be a CSI, doing things for the soccer team, or hanging out with Saitama. Besides, if he did acquire a significant other, wouldn’t that take time away from those other things? He would definitely need someone that could fit into his current lifestyle.

He was also still pretty tragic from a social standpoint. While he had improved to the point of being able to be friendly in a controlled atmosphere like around the soccer team, he didn’t really interact much with his fellow classmates. And many of those random interactions had ended in awkward situations or confrontations. He REALLY didn’t want to be involved in any more confrontations. He would need to find someone who understood his social deficiencies, someone who wanted to help him with them and was patient with him. And he would more than likely have to ask Saitama for dating advice, seeing as he had absolutely no clue how to ask someone on a date, or what to do once on said date.

As far as physical attraction, pretty much anything and everything was ok. Of course, if Genos was being honest with himself, he did have to recognize his body’s instinctive reaction to certain attractive physical attributes. The way certain collarbones laid, the lean musculature on both men and women, big, strong hands and tiny, delicate ones alike brushing his own, the feel of certain types of hair and how they released the soft scent of bargain-sale shampoo when you ran your hands through them…

An image of a dream bubbled to the surface again. Of bare chests pressed together, feeling each other’s hearts beating. Of hands being wrapped around waists and others hands running through hair. This memory melded away into a more recent one, of real chocolate brown eyes looking at him with such affection, the body attached to them pressed warmly against his own, of strong hands running through his hair...

Genos felt his muscles tense and the warmth return to his face. He looked down cautiously at Saitama, somehow still asleep on his chest.

Did he have feelings for Saitama?

Nooooo, no no no no no. Woah, hold the phone there. There was no way, right?

Although, Saitama already fit into his schedule.

And cared about helping him become more sociable, on top of being very patient with Genos when he wasn’t.

And fit every description of what he found physically attractive.

And made his heart race, his face red, just with the thought of him.

And made him think about him constantly, wanting to know everything about him.

And just made him want to spend every waking minute with him.

Genos covered his eyes with his free hand.

Yeah, he definitely had a crush on Saitama.

Definitely at least a crush.

“Mmmm, Genos…?”

Genos uncovered his eyes and looked down at the other man staring up at him, sleep still clearly dominating his existence. His whole body tensed. Oh god, please don’t let this be weird, please let him remember why Genos was holding him, please don’t let him figure out Genos definitely had at least a crush on him.

“Y-yes Saitama-sensei?”

“Never let me drink again.”

“Of course, sensei.”

And with that, Saitama calmly got up and went out the door in the direction of the bathroom, leaving Genos feeling very confused… and very cold on the side of his body his crush had just been laying on.

___________________________

In the end, Genos chickened out.

All this new information was just much too much for him to process, especially with a clearly hung over Saitama. He reluctantly left the bed they had shared the previous night, leaving the air hanging with the static tension and confusion that had built up over the last 10 hours.

He needed to clear his head.

Genos quickly changed into some exercising clothes and headed out the door, actively trying to not pay attention to what his teacher was doing.

___________________________

The air was much warmer now that it was June, and with the warmth came moisture that clung to everything, threatening to form into rain at any moment. The atmosphere seemed to reflect Genos’s thoughts, like as he ran he was running through them. It was stifling.

So much for fresh air.

He paused to take a drink of water, noticing a worn dirt trail that ran through the woods he had never noticed before. He took off down it, hoping the shade of the trees would give him some sort of reprieve.

Genos was just about to actually relax on his run when he heard footsteps behind him. Quick, precise footsteps gaining on him at a very rapid pace. Genos could barely hear them, even when they were almost behind him. Genos made to move to the right to allow the other runner to pass, but instead he noticed they slowed their pace.

“I didn’t expect to see you out here.”

Genos turned at the familiar voice, his muscles tightening instinctively.

It was perhaps the last voice he wanted to hear at that moment.

“Oh, hey S-Sonic…”

He tried to keep his voice steady, but the memory of the anger in the other man’s eyes rose to the forefront of his mind, cancelling out any sense of confidence he had had.

“Relax, I’m not going to bite your head off…”

Sonic easily matched his pace, jogging almost lazily beside him.

“I… I actually think I owe you an apology.”

Genos couldn’t help but raise an eyebrow. That was the last thing he expected, especially from Sonic.

“I think I’ve given you the wrong impression of me. I’m not the bad guy you think I am.”

Sonic kept his eyes trained on the trail in front of him, not waiting for any acknowledgment from Genos.

“I know I come off as harsh. Maybe that makes it worse that I’m aware of it, but I can’t help the way I am. Especially… Especially with Saitama. But you have to understand, I’m only that way with him because I know what he’s really like.”

Genos felt his heart tighten. He tried his hardest to keep his expression neutral as he nodded. And he was definitely going to ignore the surge of jealousy he felt.

“When I first came here, I thought Saitama looked very familiar, but I couldn’t place from where. It bothered me, nagged at me constantly. I became obsessed with trying to figure out why I felt like I knew him from somewhere. Then, one day, I asked him to stay after practice and help me with my penalty shots. That’s when I figured it out…”

Genos had to concentrate on his breathing now. Yes, just concentrate on his breathing. Not on the many other thoughts running through his head.

“He’s a goal keeper, probably the best I’ve ever seen. Most people don’t pay attention to the keeper in a game. Especially on a team that scores a lot. That’s when I knew where I’d seen him before. You may think it sounds crazy, but he used to play for the Z-City Capes. I knew his face because I had looked at it so many times before, on a poster on my wall.”

If Genos could have held his breath and kept running, he would have.

“I don’t know why he keeps in a secret, maybe he’s embarrassed because he was only on the team for a short period of time, but even without his shaved head I’m certain it’s him. That’s why I’m so hard on him…”

Sonic’s voice sounded almost… sad.

“I remember watching him on TV. He got the same look in his eye that day that he used to in his days with the Capes. That intensity, that passion. That look…”

He paused.

“When I saw that look, when I realized who he was, it made me so mad that he doesn’t take coaching seriously. He says he’s just a coach because they needed him, and that he’s just a teacher for fun. Something to pass the time. But I don’t believe that, and it makes me furious when I see him acting so… so… Lazy.”

Genos couldn’t help but allow the corners of his mouth to curl a little.

“I can’t help but be disappointed in him… but I also find myself oddly protective of him. Because I feel like I understand him in a way that no one else does.”

‘Well, maybe not no one…’ Genos wanted to say, but held his tongue.

“So, anyway, I guess the point of all this is, if I seem to come off harsh towards you, it’s only because I’m protective of him. I see you becoming friends, and I know nothing about you. I hope you can understand. And maybe… maybe if I came to understand you better, maybe I wouldn’t feel the need to be so protective.”

Genos full-on smiled this time. On the path ahead of them, the trees broke on a familiar clearing.

“Thank you, Sonic. I think I’d like to try that.”

Genos thought he detected Sonic’s flush face from running get just a shade darker.

“Well, no promises, but yeah… Thanks Genos.”

The two jogged in silence for a bit as they entered the clearing behind the old dorm Saitama and Genos shared. When they came around to the front, Genos stopped. Sonic wordlessly jogged a little past him.

“Hey Sonic!” Genos called after him, “By the way, I don’t think you’re a bad guy!”

Sonic only waved in response, picking up his speed until he was out of sight.

Chapter Text

Maybe it was naïve of Genos to think that things would just go back to normal after that weekend.

In the days that followed, Saitama did his best to act like nothing had happened. He had apologized, saying he didn’t remember what had happened, but thanked Genos for taking care of him. Things had settled back in between them with general ease, except for every once in a while there was a quiet that would fall that didn’t feel as comfortable as before. Genos knew it was because whatever it was that happened that night, it remained unresolved, but he knew he didn’t have the capacity to deal with it alone, and Saitama seemed content for now to not know what had happened.

It didn’t bother Genos, not really, it just made him feel a little emptier than before. Maybe it’s because he felt like he wanted to be closer to Saitama, to try and figure out these feelings that kept rising at the surface. Maybe he was disappointed because Saitama seemed to be keeping him at the same distance.

Just out of reach.

Whatever it was, Genos wasn’t sure how much longer they could go without talking about it.

Genos had also had another noticeable change after that weekend in the form of an icy green stare, ever prickling the back of his neck, making the hairs there stand on end. At first it made him lament his attempts to make peace with his raven-haired plague. Slowly, after about a week or so, the stare became kind words in short conversations with Sonic in passing. Well, about as kind as Sonic could muster. Genos couldn’t count him as a friend, but he didn’t quiet think he qualified as an enemy anymore, either. It was a welcome change, if not an overly strange one.

On this day this last change had cultivated itself in the form of a question Genos was unsure of how to answer.

“Do you want to grab some lunch together?”

His brain could comprehend the question, but somehow the words sounded all wrong coming from Sonic’s lips.

Genos could think of no reason to decline, however. He usually ate his lunch alone in the library, which couldn’t really be counted as ‘plans’, but something about the idea of saying yes to Sonic didn’t quite sit well in his stomach. Like he was agreeing to something he knew he was going to regret.

Sonic had him trapped. Big surprise there.

“Um, I usually eat lunch alone in the library. Alone.”

He wasn’t quite sure why he had said it twice.

“Excellent, follow me then.”

His mind screamed out not to follow, not to fall for the obvious trap.

Unfortunately, his muscles were too kind, too polite, and he followed anyway.

_______________________________

Sonic led him to a small clearing between some buildings where a few tables had been set up, umbrellas in Heero Academy colors covering them. Sonic sat down and motioned for Genos to do the same. He cautiously grabbed the back of a chair on the other side of the table.

“Um, I actually didn’t bring a lunch, I usually buy mine at the-“

Sonic glanced up at him from digging in his bag. “I’m well aware of your situation. Sit down, my butler always makes too much for me to finish, and today he was particularly… overzealous.”

“You have a butler, here on campus?” Genos knew he was staring in wonder, but he couldn’t help himself.

“You really are clueless, aren’t you?” Sonic replaced the exasperated look on his face with a sigh. “Sit down. No, at my house, I don’t live on campus.”

“Oh.” Genos quietly sat down as Sonic produced a very large lunchbox from his bag. Overzealous indeed.

Sonic continued in what Genos guessed was supposed to be a neutral tone. “My family line goes back a long way, and we’ve had the fortune of being very… prosperous for about as long.” He pulled the lid off of the lunch box, revealing colorful pieces of sushi all expertly sliced and resting on delicate beds of rice.

Genos hadn’t had sushi since he was a kid. It definitely had never been of this quality.

“In short, my family owns about half of this University, if not more. I do have a dorm room on campus, in case I need it for any reason, but the majority of the time I live in my family’s house not far from here. And there, yes, I have a butler.”

“Oh.” Was all Genos could say in response. Something about Sonic always made him feel very stupid.

“Anyway, please, dig in.” Sonic handed him a pair of chopsticks, a faraway look in his eye. Genos accepted the chopsticks, trying his best not to appear clumsy handling the artfully crafted nigiri.

The salmon melted in his mouth, filling it with a burst of flavor. Genos felt like he could cry. Sonic got to eat like this all the time? Genos couldn’t help but feel a little uncomfortable, like a societal rift stood between them, bridged precariously by a lunchbox full of sushi that threatened to fall at any time.

“Sonic, this is delicious!” Genos grabbed for another piece. He felt like a clumsy caveman. He looked up at Sonic whose only reply was a twitch at the side of his mouth.

It was a few (delicious) pieces later before Genos spoke up again.

“So, where are all of your friends? Or that fan club of yours? You seem really popular here. Not that I’m complaining, but it seems odd that you would choose me to eat lunch with.”

Sonic’s eyes widened a bit, a trace of pink making its way onto his face, like Genos had seen him react to things about Saitama before.

“Well, lucky for you most of my friends have classes right now…” Sonic looked down, studying the array in front of him. “And I wouldn’t be caught dead hanging out with those girls. Their behavior is disturbing at best.”

“Oh, come on, you’re telling me it’s not a little flattering?” Genos said, lifting an eyebrow. He remembered his own encounter with his own fan club. He had been distracted, and slightly annoyed because of that, but thinking about it now made him embarrassed in ways he could only guess was considered flattery.

“They’re more of… an annoying reminder…”

Sonic didn’t elaborate. Genos didn’t ask.

“Besides, I told you I wanted to get to know you better.” Sonic looked very interested in the tuna in front of him, the stain of pink adorning his face becoming slightly more red.

“Well, thank you.” Genos popped another piece in his mouth, savoring every bite.

____________________________

Their conversation was light, although without all the ease of a conversation with Saitama. Sonic made Genos feel uncomfortable, on edge, and pretty much was in every way the opposite of Saitama. But, despite all that, Genos didn’t really think it was bad.

Without Genos noticing it, Sonic ended up walking him to class. Genos, who was usually beyond punctual, hadn’t even realized how close he had actually been cutting it to being on time. Saitama was already in the classroom, and Genos thought he saw a worried look turn into a relieved one as he entered the classroom. If he did, his teacher’s face turned cold when it saw Sonic in the doorway behind him.

“Thanks for lunch, Genos.” Sonic said before turning and walking away, not even waiting for a reply.

Genos found his seat in the front of the classroom. Saitama’s eyes didn’t leave the door frame until Sonic was out of sight.

The feeling of dread that had filled Genos, that feeling like he was doing something wrong, returned the moment Saitama turned back to face the class. He looked lost, like a child whose favorite toy had fallen out of sight.

And then, as quickly as it had come, his expression changed and was replaced with his usual, casual expression. He began class with relative ease. Genos tried to shake the feeling looming in his gut. In light of recent discoveries of Sonic’s past feelings for Saitama, he had hoped becoming friendlier with Sonic would ease the tension between the three of them.

And that he’d stop getting slammed against walls by Sonic. That would be a definite plus.

However, Genos hadn’t expected much from their talk in the woods the other day, so he hadn’t mentioned anything about it to Saitama.

So then it was only natural for Saitama to look leery after seeing Sonic with Genos, right? Their past interactions most likely made this most current one appear like bullying, something Saitama was vehemently opposed to, especially when it came to Genos. Yeah, that was probably why Saitama had gotten that look on his face. He was just in shock, just trying to be protective. He didn’t know Sonic was just trying to be friendly. Yeah, that had to be the reason… except…

…except it looked sad, not angry.

Well, it wouldn’t be the first time Genos read a social cue incorrectly.

Genos tried hard to put it out of his mind, knowing that no matter how much he did, he couldn’t avoid the conversation about it that waited for him after class.

________________________________

Much to his surprise, Saitama was very nonchalant about the whole thing.

“So, Sonic walked you to class?” he asked on their way back to their dorm together.

“Uh, yeah, we had lunch together and got to talking.” Genos felt his chest tighten. Hearing the words out loud felt like admitting to murder.

“Oh.” Saitama’s reactions weren’t helping.

“Is he… is he blackmailing you or anything? You can tell me if he is, you know. Even if he says you can’t…” Saitama looked uncomfortable, but not in the cute way he did when he rubbed his neck.

“No, it’s nothing like that. He says he just wants to get to know me better, he says he’s only mean towards me because he’s overly protective of you, sensei. That he doesn’t know me and doesn’t trust me around you.”

Genos felt himself staring at Saitama who didn’t look any more comfortable by his comments.

“Why would he need to be protective of me? I’m his coach. That just sounds like an excuse to be rude.”

Saitama pouted and Genos felt the tightness in his chest loosen a bit. He knew why, and knew from their conversation that drunken night that Saitama knew, too. But something in Saitama just couldn’t seem to accept it. Genos felt a little bad for Sonic just then, suddenly understanding him so much more.

“I think people do irrational things when they like someone.”

Genos wasn’t sure if he was entirely talking about Sonic.

“Ah geeze, did I say something about that when I was drunk?”

Saitama rubbed the back of his neck and Genos allowed himself to smile, just a little. That was the Saitama he knew.

“Maybe Sonic’s not the one you need to worry about blackmailing people.” He turned his smile into a sly one, pouring all the pent up feelings he had built up since that night into what was meant to be a joke.

Saitama shoved him playfully in response. “You know when you say it like that it sounds a little scary. Don't tell me Sonic is already rubbing off on you.” He ruffled Genos’s hair. “One of these days you’ll have to embarrass me by telling me all the stupid stuff I said that night.”

Genos tried to slow the beating of his heart, savoring the feeling of Saitama's hand on his head.

“Maybe one day, sensei.”

Chapter Text

Sonic started to become a more constant part of Genos’s life.

It seemed that every moment that wasn’t spent with Saitama or in class was spent in the presence of Sonic.

He found Genos everywhere. He always knew when his classes were and weren’t, he knew about his secluded part of the library, and he even seemed to know the paths Genos regularly took to get to classes.

Not that Genos had made it hard. He was a creature of habit if nothing else. But all the same, it was starting to get a little creepy.

Genos had had to remind himself several times over the last week that this was just how Sonic was. This was just how he displayed his friendship. Everyone was different, and this was just Sonic’s brand of different.

Somehow though it didn’t make Genos feel any more comfortable around him.

He also noticed Sonic’s uncanny ability to find something else he needed to be doing any time Saitama tried to insert himself into the situation. Genos guessed it was still because Sonic had unrequited feelings for Saitama that he just wasn’t quite able to push down.

Genos could sympathize with that.

Since recognizing his crush on his closest and possibly only friend (and trying very hard to move past the drunken conversation that had made him realize those feelings) he had found it very hard not to notice every little thing about him. And how he found every single little thing Saitama did attractive.

The way he would giggle to himself while he read his manga.

The way he sometimes got droplets of broth on his chin when he ate cup noodles.

The way he would scratch his perfectly exposed stomach when he would yawn.

He was becoming utterly hopeless when it came to Saitama.

Genos found himself thinking about him constantly. It was especially bad at night, lying there trying desperately to go to sleep with the man on his mind only a few doors down. It was in those moments he remembered the feel of him nestled into his collarbone, how his hands had felt pushing his hair back as he woke up, the look in his eyes as he stared at Genos in a way that made his whole body feel numb.

Possibly the worse part of it all is he had no one to talk to about all of these feelings raging inside of him. Genos silently cursed his poor foresight in having the person he was closest to being the object of his affection, and the only other person actively in his life having feelings for the same person he did.

It was making for a very confusing week.

“Genos!”

A far-off voice cut through the fog of thoughts in his head. Genos turned to see Mumen running across the small courtyard, waving like an idiot.

Genos gave him a small smile and an even smaller wave back. He liked Mumen, but the thought of one on one interaction with anyone not Saitama still made him feel like running away and throwing up simultaneously. Well, Sonic was getting a little less that way by force, but Mumen was still neither of those men.

When Mumen caught up, he was breathing heavily, his rather large glasses slipping down his face.

“Phew! Sorry, my bag is really heavy, heh. Guess I should have thought about that before I called out!”

“Err, what’s up?” Genos said awkwardly, thinking too late that he probably should have offered to hold the other man’s bag while he caught his breath. Mumen was a great athlete on the soccer field, but his bag looked irrationally heavy even for Mumen’s well toned body.

“It’s been a while, I was hoping we could hang out! You know, beyond the soccer field. Oh, you don’t have any classes, do you?”

Mumen smiled a cheeky grin that helped to put the thought of vomiting out of his head just a little bit.

Well, he had caught Genos on a rare occasion where he was accompanied by neither Sonic nor Saitama, and one of his classes had just cancelled…

“You know what? Sure. My last class for the day just cancelled, so I’m free for a bit.”

“Awesome! Want to grab some snacks?”

Genos nodded, and Mumen started leading the way.

“Oh, um, Mumen, do you want me to carry your bag? It does look really heavy.”

Mumen turned to him and smiled in a way that reminded him of Saitama, only, maybe not as brilliant. Or as cute.

“Thanks for the offer but I’m the one who packed it so full, I should be the one to carry it.”

Genos couldn’t help but smile. Yeah, Mumen really was a lot like Saitama.

____________________________

After grabbing some snacks Mumen led him to one of the many clearings that made up the campus, this one Genos knew was a popular hang-out area, mostly because he tried his best to avoid it after he had an embarrassing encounter with a drunk couple passing through here one night. He shuddered at the memory, but followed Mumen to a nice shaded spot under a tree. It was going to be July soon and the shade was a welcome reprieve from the threatening sun.

“Sorry if this seems rather sudden, but I really enjoyed talking with you when I got injured that one time. I thought to myself ‘that guy’s alright! We should be friends!’ Turns out you’re a hard guy to find outside of soccer practice, though.”

Genos felt his face get slightly warm at the word ‘friends’. Mumen might be like Saitama, but he was way more forward and expressive than their coach was.

“Oh, yeah, I don’t really get out much…” Mumen made him feel uncomfortable, but in a different way than Sonic. He made him feel like he wished he had something better to say.

“Well, it’s not like there’s much to get out and do here anyway. Not unless you like drinking and partying your parent’s money way.” That last part sounded a bit resentful, like it was aimed at someone not there.

“Oh, heh, yeah. I guess that’s true. Or unless you want to go around beating up on people.”

“Oh, you too?” Mumen flashed him a big smile, pointing to a band aid on his cheek. “I got this quick clock on the cheek for riding my bike past the wrong guy, I guess. At least he didn’t rough up my bike, though!”

“Are you ok?!” Mumen seemed to be a guy who easily made a lot of friends, or at least he always seemed to get along with everyone on the team. It was hard for Genos to imagine anyone would beat up that smiling face.

“Oh, no need to worry! It actually happens a lot. Well, sometimes that happens, sometimes I step in where I probably shouldn’t. I just hate seeing people pick on us scholarship kids just because we’re smarter or poorer or because they need a punching bag.” Mumen’s tone was still casual, but his hands were balled into fists in his lap.

The increasing resemblance to Saitama made Genos wonder if they were somehow related.

“That’s… really noble of you Mumen.”

“Stupid, but yeah I guess ‘noble’ is a word for it.”

A familiar sharp voice came from behind Genos. He didn’t even have to turn to know it was Sonic. All the comfort that Mumen had been building up immediately melted away as Sonic plopped down in the grass next to Genos.

“Oh, hi Sonic!” Mumen said cheerfully, deflecting Sonic’s comments with a smile. This guy could really be friends with anyone, couldn’t he?

“So, you’re the one that was hiding Genos here from me. I was wondering where he had gotten off to.”

Sonic’s tone sounded almost playful, like Genos was in a game of cat and mouse with him and Mumen was just another mouse for another day. The thought of it made him notice how close Sonic was sitting to him in the shady grass.

“Oh, did you have plans? I thought you guys didn’t get along very well.” Mumen asked, oblivious to the secret dance going on around him.

“You haven’t heard? Genos and I made a truce. We’re friends now.”

Sonic almost smiled at Genos. Genos almost started to deny it. Mumen cut in excitedly.

“That’s wonderful! That will make practice so much less… tense…” Mumen looked embarrassed for a moment. “No offense, Genos. Trust me, I get it. Sonic has a habit of coming off the wrong way before you get to know him.”

Genos was surprised at how well Mumen did seem to know Sonic. He was even more surprised at what Sonic said next.

“Well, it’s even harder when you both like the same person.”

Genos felt his heart stop. This time, he did turn to look at Sonic. How did he know?! Genos was barely able to admit it to himself, how had Sonic figured it out?

“Ah, that makes a lot of sense, actually.” Mumen said bashfully, blush finding its way to his face. It did?! Did Mumen know, too?!

“Actually, I-!”

“So who is it?!” Mumen interrupted before Genos could say anything more. He really was hopeless in these types of situations. Well, at least Mumen didn’t really know, he just seemed to find the idea of Sonic and Genos liking the same person realistic.

“You’ll never guess.” Sonic’s tone was sly, the look on his face teasingly playful. He was enjoying every moment of this. Genos couldn’t believe the scene unfolding before him.

“Tell me, please?” Mumen whined. That gossipy little…

“Hmmm, fine. But what’s in it for me?” Yup, that sounded a lot more like Sonic.

Mumen looked around, practically salivating for anything that would get him the information.

“Sonic, you know I don’t have anything to offer you…”

Sonic got a look on his face that Genos knew well. He had Mumen right where he wanted him.

“Fine, I’ll tell you, but in exchange for your silence on the matter.”

“Of course! My lips are sealed!” Mumen sat forward eagerly, a little too eagerly, maybe. Who knew that sweet little Mumen loved hearing secrets?

Sonic sighed, fakely Genos thought.

“It’s Coach. Saitama.”

Genos cringed internally, whether from hearing Sonic address him so informally or from hearing his secret out loud, he wasn’t sure.

“Isn’t that right, Genos?”

It would be hard for anyone to say no to the look Sonic gave him. He had to admit defeat.

“Er, yeah, I guess so…” All the blood rushed to his face. He felt himself playing with his earrings nervously.

“No way! Coach?! But he’s so goofy! I could see it for Genos maybe, but you Sonic?”

“Yeah, well, the heart wants what the heart wants, right Genos?” Genos was almost too frazzled to notice the subtle sadness in Sonic’s eyes. Those clear green eyes had seen in Genos was he was afraid to admit to anyone.

“But anyway, that doesn’t matter anymore. I’m over him.”

Genos and Mumen both looked at Sonic, sharing the same shocked expression.

“Aw, what happened?” Mumen was enjoying this conversation way too much.

“I confessed to him and got rejected. Simple as that.” Genos knew it wasn’t that simple, but he would let Sonic have this one.

Mumen pouted, looking like he wanted to reach over and comfort Sonic, but seeming to think better of it. They might have been closer than Genos originally thought, but it seemed there was still a good amount of distance between the two men.

“Uh uh, don’t you go feeling sorry for me, though. I told you, I’m over him.” Sonic regained the sly look on his face. Well, at least he seemed to somewhat believe his own lie. “Besides, I’ve got my sights set on someone new now.”

“Oooo! Tell me, tell me!”

“Nah, I think I’ll keep this one a secret for right now.”

Mumen continued to protest, but his words fell soundless on Genos’s ears. He couldn’t be sure because he hadn’t been looking, but he couldn’t shake the feeling that, when he said he liked someone new, Sonic had been looking at him.

Chapter Text

The sun started to descend more rapidly in the sky, and eventually some of Sonic’s other friends found him and collected him for dinner. When he departed, Genos and Mumen stood and started walking together, still chatting. That was one thing that Genos guessed he had to thank Sonic for: Sonic had really broken the ice between Genos and Mumen.

When they got to the point where the paths split to the different dorms, Mumen suddenly turned to him and held his hands. The sudden intimacy of the gesture made Genos sputter for a moment, not sure how to react. He froze, but luckily Mumen spoke up quickly.

“Thanks for accepting my invitation today, Genos. I hope from now on you can count me as one of your friends and,” he gave Genos’s hands a squeeze, “if you ever need to talk to someone, especially about that crush of yours, I’m here.”

Genos smiled at the other man, sincerity shining behind his glasses in his bright green eyes. “Thanks, Mumen. That means a lot.”

Mumen released his hands and pulled out his phone. They exchanged numbers and parted ways, with Genos letting out a huge sigh of relief. He was glad to be able to count the smiling brunette as a new friend, sudden platonic hand-holding (that gave him only a bit of a heart attack) and all.

The walk back was peaceful, the setting sun casting long dark shadows under a red and orange sky. It made the sky look as hot as the day had felt. Genos enjoyed the cooling air, listening to a bird sing somewhere off in the distance.

When he returned to the dorm, the lights in the common room were off. Genos knew that Saitama had later classes that day, but had expected him to arrive before him. He went in and changed into some more casual clothes, returning to the common room ready to work on some homework. When he got back down there, however, he found Saitama waiting for him, a metal cooking pot and a paper bag of ingredients filling his hands.

“I hope you don’t mind curry, Amai took me into town today on a business trip and we stopped at a super market and they were having a sale on the ingredients…” He blushed, and Genos suspected if his hands weren’t full he would be rubbing the back of his neck. Genos felt his heart surge towards the man in front of him.

“Of course, sensei. I would love some curry, do you need any help?”

“Nah I think I can handle it. You sit down and do your homework.”

With a “Yes, sensei” and a smile, Genos settled into his usual spot on his usual couch. As the smell of curry filled the air, Genos was reminded of an article he had read in his research on romance he had conducted what felt like a lifetime ago. It was a silly little article about the top 5 most romantic foods from Z City. Curiosity struck Genos, so he pulled out his phone and did a quick search for the article.

‘Curry falls into our number two spot on this list due to it being easy to prepare and its long cook time. Couples will often prepare the pot together and then pass the long stew time doing… other activities, if you catch our drift!’

The drift was indeed caught. Genos felt like steam was releasing from his head his body got so warm thinking about the ‘other activities’ Saitama and he could get into waiting for the curry to finish. They definitely didn’t involve reading and doing homework from opposite couches.

“Oi, Genos, you feeling ok?”

Saitama settled down on the couch opposite Genos, a concerned look on his face as he pulled a new manga out of his bag.

“Oh, yes, perfectly fine, sensei!” his reply came out a little louder than he intended. Saitama didn’t look convinced, and leaned forward to put the back of his hand on Genos’s forehead. Genos couldn’t help but be reminded of that night not too long ago, waking up to a similar sensation. If only Saitama knew his actions were really not going to make his temperature go down.

“You feel a bit warm…” Saitama said softly, almost teasingly. He had no idea just how warm Genos really was.

Genos laughed nervously “Yeah, I guess it is a bit warm in here. Plus I was just reading one of those embarrassing top whatever lists online.”

Saitama smiled, removing his hand and sitting back on his respective couch. Genos silently cursed the school for putting two couches in here.

“You would fall for those click bait sites, wouldn’t you…” He cracked open his manga, ignoring the look of defiance on Genos’s face.

“Hey, what’s that supposed to mean?! They’re very, informative sometimes!”

“Whatever helps you sleep at night.” Saitama said with a sly smile, not looking up from his manga.

Genos pouted, but continued to read the rest of the article over again, only slightly in protest. The highest ranking dish was omurice, with many couples claiming it was the most romantic food because the cook could write cute love messages in ketchup on top. A faint memory of his mother drawing cute characters on perfectly fluffy eggs on a sunny afternoon popped into his head. Genos smiled to himself, a sweet, sad smile.

“Hey, sensei.”

Saitama looked up from his manga briefly.

“Do you like omurice?”

“Yeah, I love it, why?”

“I’d like to make it for you sometime. It’s my specialty.” That was a lie, sort of, he hadn’t honestly cooked enough to know if he had a specialty, but it was better than telling the other man the truth.

Saitama smiled warmly. “I’ll pick up some eggs sometime then.”

They both went back to doing their activities, a comfortable silence filling the air that felt like home and smelled of curry.

_____________________________

Sunday afternoon would usually find Saitama and Genos in their normal routine of activities in the common room. This Sunday, however, Saitama had proposed they play video games in his room, instead of him having to move everything downstairs and back again. Genos, of course, happily accepted the invitation, running out to get some snacks before they started.

On his way back to the dorm, he felt his phone buzz. He didn’t look at it until he was back and in Saitama’s room.

“Oh, I got a text from Mumen. He wants to hang out. Mind if I invite him over?”

Saitama barely looked up from hooking up the game system. “Sure, no problem! You didn’t tell me you guys talked outside of practice!”

“Oh, well, we really only started talking recently. He’s really nice.” Genos felt slightly embarrassed. He hadn’t mentioned Mumen because he hadn’t told Saitama about their conversation with Sonic the other night.

“Yeah, sometimes I wish he’d step up be Team Captain. That guy can make friends with anyone.”

“I thought the same thing!” Genos smiled as he clicked back a response to Mumen.

After Saitama got everything set up to his satisfaction and was showing Genos his collection of games, Mumen knocked on the open door and entered, immediately mouthing profuse apologies. Without turning to look Genos felt like he could sense Saitama tensing behind him. A dark, raven-haired figure stood behind Mumen in the hallway.

“Hey guys, I ran into Sonic on the way over, I hope it’s ok if I invited him.”

Genos felt all the air leave the room. Mumen, you sweet idiot.

Much to his surprise, Saitama’s reply was light and casual. “Not a problem, grab a seat. I only have two controllers, though, so we’ll have to switch out.”

Genos felt momentarily relieved. He really couldn’t blame Mumen, as far as he knew the situation was no more complicated than Sonic had confessed to Saitama, got rejected, and moved on. Why would it be awkward for him to be here if Sonic was ok being around Saitama?

Unfortunately, Genos had the feeling there were many, many reasons why.

“So, what are we playing first?” Mumen said cheerfully, plopping down on a seat cushion near the TV.

“I was thinking of playing some fighting games, if that’s ok with you guys.”

“Oh! I love those!”

As Mumen and Saitama launched into a conversation about different fighting games, Sonic silently crossed the room, stopping in front of Genos and sitting down next to him. “Can I take a look?”

Genos carefully closed the large CD case of games and handed it to Sonic. He felt Sonic’s hand brush against his as he handed it over, lingering probably longer than it needed to. Genos tried his best to ignore it, turning to Saitama and Mumen who were already setting up the first game. Genos tried his best to subtly lean closer to Saitama, who was on the opposite side of him from Sonic.

Saitama was better than Mumen, but that wasn’t saying much. Even to Genos’s untrained eye he could tell they were both barely doing more than button-mashing. He tried a few rounds against both of them, but after a few complaints of beginner’s luck he resigned to sitting back and watching the two of them fumble around. Sonic didn’t pick up a controller once, but he didn’t try to make any more passes at Genos, either, so Genos resigned to brush off the linger as just a coincidence.

Afternoon melted into night and with it came the rumble of Saitama’s stomach.

“Ah geeze, how long have we been playing?”

“If you would like, I can heat up the leftover curry for everyone. We have more than enough, sensei.”

“Curry sounds delicious!” chimed in Mumen. Sonic, who had retreated into his phone and was too busy looking at something on the screen, just nodded.

“I’ll be right back, then. You two keep playing!”

Saitama turned to look at Genos before going back to the game. “Thanks Genos, you’re the best.”

The smile Saitama gave him fluttered him all the way into the dorm kitchen.

Genos hummed to himself as he measured out the rice and water and set the rice cooker. Once that was squared away, he reached into the refrigerator and pulled out the large Tupperware bowl of leftover curry. As he turned to set it on the counter, he thought he heard, or maybe felt, someone else enter the kitchen.

“I came to see if you needed any help.” came Sonic’s voice from the doorway.

Genos froze, his palms instantly becoming clammy. “Ah, no, that’s ok, thank you though. It’s just heating up leftovers and making rice.” That familiar uncomfortable feeling of being alone with Sonic was starting to settle in the air between them, lingering like a stale stench.

“Ok.” Sonic made no gesture to leave. In fact, he got closer, leaning with his arms crossed against the counter, watching Genos work.

“You can go back if you want, it won’t take long.” Genos felt his heart pick up speed. He didn’t like the idea of being in such a tight space, alone, with Sonic.

“Mmmm, nah. I’m good here.” The tone in Sonic's voice made it clear there would be no arguing with him. All Genos could do was try his best to ignore him as he popped the curry in the microwave. But it was hard to ignore those ice green eyes, watching him, studying his every movement.

An awkward silence hung in the small kitchen, filled only by the hum of the microwave and the small bubbling sound coming from the rice cooker.

“So, this is where you guys live, huh?” Sonic glanced around, looking only half interested.

“Yes, it is. It’s no fancy mansion, but I like it here.”

“Yeah, it’s not bad for abandoned…”

The microwave dinged and Genos jumped forward, eager to end the awkward conversation. He grabbed four shallow bowls from the cabinet and began spooning out the reheated curry.

He had just gotten his heart to stop racing when he heard a shifting coming from Sonic’s direction followed by the feeling of someone behind him. Someone that was now reaching their arms around Genos, placing their hands over his.

“Let me help you.”

His words came on a breath to his ear, Genos’s body no longer able to function from the shock of the sudden intimacy. But it wasn’t the same chest tightening feeling that he got from Saitama, no. This was like being dropped in a pool of ice, so cold it was suffocating.

“Sonic, what are you doing?” Genos’s words sounded small in his ears, and he tried to keep them firm, to keep his teeth from chattering.

“I’m just trying to help you…” His normal playful tone had a hint of sadness to it, but just a hint. Sonic moved his body closer, pressing himself firmly against Genos’s back.

“Sonic… no, you aren’t. Why are you doing this?”

Sonic froze behind him, then laid his head in the crook of Genos’s shoulder.

“Please…” All the playfulness in his voice was gone, replaced instead by a heart wrenching sadness. “Please… just let me help you…”

“I… I can’t do that Sonic.” Genos felt guilty for saying it, the desperation in Sonic’s voice was so pure. But it was the truth. He might have accepted Sonic more as a person, but he couldn’t lie and allow Sonic to think it was anything more than that. Even as tempting as it was to try to console the sad man who at the very least showed an interest in liking him like that.

“I don’t understand… why does nobody want me?” His words stung, like an icy blast of winter air against bare cheeks, promising a lasting burn.

“Sonic…” How was he supposed to reply to that? He didn't want to hurt Sonic more than he already was, but at the same time...

“You know I really do like you, right? This isn’t some joke, some game…”

Genos did know, somehow. Something in the honesty in Sonic’s voice told him. It didn’t change anything.

“Yeah, I know…”

His heart felt like it was sinking fast, guilt settling in the space it left in it's wake.

“I’ll admit it, at first I was just trying to make him jealous. I see the way he looks at you, just like now, in his bedroom, looking up at you, tell you 'you're the best'. You see it, don't you? It made me furious… so I thought maybe, just maybe I could make him a little furious, too. But then, then I got to talking to you, then I got to know you…”

Genos felt him push his face harder against his neck. Sonic wrapped his arms around Genos, like he was holding on for dear life.

“I’ve been so cruel to you in the past… I know I don’t deserve it, but you give me kindness anyway. I’ve become drunk on it… I know you don’t feel the same way for me, but I can’t stop myself from wanting you anyway… from dreaming of the way you just accept me, even after everything I’ve done…”

Genos thought he felt tears on his back, but still he was frozen in place, afraid to move or say the wrong thing. His mouth was dry, unable to form any words in it.

“I would treat you well, you know? I could give you anything you wanted, everything you ever wanted. For you, I would do it for just one kind word, one soft smile… that’s all I would need in return. I know you don’t like me that way, the way I do, but you could come to like me… maybe even to…”

His words trailed off, swallowed up by the stifling air.

Genos felt tired, like the world around him was wavering, caught in a dream. Or a nightmare, it was hard to tell which. It would be easier, he knew, to accept his offer. To give into Sonic's affections. Easier than dealing with the pain, the worrying, the wondering that came with having feelings for Saitama. But was easier really what he wanted?

No, it was because he had to work for it that he knew, no matter what, even if Saitama never returned his affections, it was all worth it.

“Sonic, you don’t want that. You deserve so much more than that.” Genos tried to keep his voice soft and calm, but it incited Sonic anyway. He held Genos tighter, his thin fingers pulling at his shirt, threatening to tear it apart.

“Yes, I do! And I know that’s what you want too! We both just want someone to want us!”

Genos could feel his tears now, hot with fury, burning a hole in his back.

“He’ll never love you back the way I can… you know that, right?”

Genos smiled a sad smile, hanging his head.

“You may be right, but that still doesn’t change the way I feel." He paused, fearing the words he needed to say next. "I think you know that feeling, too.”

Sonic’s tears stopped, but his voice was still shaking.

“I don’t know what I feel anymore… I thought there was only him, only his light in the world, but then you came along and made my world even brighter than before…” Genos felt the shadow of a smile against the back of his neck. “But even you couldn’t stamp out his light, not completely… But I guess it doesn’t matter…”

Sonic pulled away, and made to leave. Genos turned and caught him by the wrist, his heart pounding so loudly he thought it would burst.

“Sonic, I’m sorry. I really am. I wish I could care for you the way you do, the way you deserve to be. I really do. But I can’t give up on him… I think you better than anyone else knows that.” Sonic still didn’t turn to look at him. “But… if you ever need a friend, a real friend, you know I’m always here for you. I want you to be my friend, Sonic.”

Sonic looked this time, his eyes red from his tears. “Thanks Genos.”

Genos let his wrist go, and Sonic turned and left.

Chapter Text

Genos returned to Saitama’s room, curry past forgotten, passing a flustered looking Mumen in the doorframe.

“Sorry, I’m going after Sonic. I’ll see you later.” And then he was gone, racing down the stairwell. Genos barely heard the words anyway, listlessly walking into the room, his head a jumble of thoughts, his body aching, though he didn’t know the reason why.

Only Saitama remained, standing awkwardly in the middle of the room, like he had been in the middle of doing something but he wasn’t sure what it was anymore. When he saw Genos, he ran over to him, holding his shoulders at an arm’s length.

“Are you ok, Genos? Sonic just stormed in here looking like he was about to cry, grabbed his stuff and left. And you look like you’re in shell shock…” Genos suddenly felt very heavy, the world around him muffled as his brain tried to process the past few minutes.

“Genos, tell me what happened.” The intensity in his eyes made Genos wither before them, snapping him out the fog of his mind. They trapped him, but not in the icy way that Sonic’s did. They were like a warm breeze wrapping him in sunshine, melting all the ice around him. He had to tell him, but how could he when… when Saitama looked so panicked?

“Sonic… confessed to me... just now… in the kitchen…”

Saitama studied his eyes, like he was searching for something more in Genos’s cold circuitry.

“And, well, I rejected him…” Genos felt a pang of guilt saying it out loud.

Saitama let out a big breath, and Genos just noticed he had been holding it in.

“Ah, geeze Sonic…” Saitama rubbed the back of his neck, and Genos noticed the tips of his ears were unusually red against the black locks surrounding them. Well, at least the other man seemed more relaxed now. Genos wished he could feel the same, but something was still nagging at him and wouldn’t let go.

“It felt awful, sensei. He kept crying, kept trying to say anything to make me say yes. The sad thing is, I do believe he’s a good guy and he deserves to be loved by someone…” Genos looked down. He felt like crying, himself. “But even as he held me I couldn’t bring myself to feel the same for him…”

“Wait, he did what?” The hand remaining on Genos’s shoulder twitched. The sudden pressure hurt, just a little. Genos felt unable to meet the other man’s gaze, feeling like a child admitting to hitting a baseball through a window.

“I-I think he just needed to hold something, you know?” The words sounded weak coming out of his mouth, like he didn’t entirely believe them, either.

“Genos, tell me everything that happened in there.” Genos looked up as Saitama’s eyes became sharp, that intensity that made Genos shudder shining in them.

“He just… I was spooning out the curry and he came up behind me and held me around the waist and confessed…”

“I’m going to kill him.”

“Sensei, I think Sonic’s just really lonely… I think he was just trying to express his feelings. It’s not like he hurt me or anything.”

“No, he did something worse…”

Genos suddenly noticed the hand on his shoulder was trembling. Saitama’s other hand was balled in a fist.

“How is that worse, sensei?” What was Saitama saying?

“It’s nothing, fuck!” He turned around, running his hands through his black hair, visibly stressed.

“What’s going on, sensei? Why are you so upset?” Genos was getting genuinely worried now. Words written in his notebook long ago rang in his mind. ‘Never make Saitama-sensei angry.’ Genos shuddered involuntarily. Regardless, it was Genos that had been put in the awkward situation, not Saitama. Why was he reacting so harshly?

“Bah, I can’t believe he did that! He knows… Did he do anything else? Did he kiss you?” Saitama’s voice was becoming shaky, almost desperate. Genos’s whole body tingled with the dread that he had done something terribly wrong this time. He wished Saitama would stop pacing around the room. He felt the pressure in the room was building with each step the other man took.

“No, that was it, but why does that matter? What’s going on?”

“Promise me, Genos. Promise me he didn’t do anything else.” He finally stopped pacing, standing just inside Genos’s bubble, but feeling still so far away. The way Saitama looked at him, Genos thought he was going to cry.

“I promise, ok?” Genos’s voice felt too high, cracking under the pressure built up in the room. Why was Saitama acting this way? What was going on today? Everything had started off so nice and normal, and now he felt like he was about to lose Saitama. Over what? Something he couldn’t control? Over Sonic holding him? What was Genos supposed to do, push the guy away when he was laying his heart bare for Genos? And what did all this have to do with Saitama anyway? Why did he care so much? It’s not like he… it’s not like he actually… but then why?

Why?

“I don’t understand Saitama-“

Nothing ever goes the way you expect.

The honorific never left his lips as Saitama smothered it with his own.

The kiss was messy. It was timid and trembling, but hard and desperate. Genos barely noticed how Saitama had grabbed the sides of his face, holding his head in place. The world around them stopped, and Genos never wanted it to start again. He wanted time itself to freeze forever so he never had to leave this moment.

It was Saitama that broke the kiss, but he didn’t go far, whispering words against his lips. Each brush against them, each puff of air against skin filled Genos with exhilaration.

“I’m sorry, Genos. Fuck, I’m so sorry.”

Genos reached up and gently ran his fingers across the cheek he had longed to touch longer than he had known he wanted to. The thoughts in his head were jumbled, in another language that didn’t matter anymore.

“Sensei…”

Saitama looked at him with those eyes he had admired for so long, with a look that sent his heart skipping, rolling, tumbling out of his chest. Any words he had hoped of forming before fell dead in the air before him.

“I just couldn’t stand the thought of anyone else touching you. Of someone else stealing your first kiss from me…”

He kissed Genos again, the force of it almost knocking the wind out of him. Genos felt his body move somewhere far off, pressing itself closer to Saitama, like it was reaching for something it missed. The smell of him filled his senses, a new experience in the form of a reward for being so close to him. No dream could emulate this. This was real. This was Saitama.

“Saitama, I…”

The other man’s eyes filled with worry at Genos’s hesitation. If only he knew it was because all the breath had left his body, the need to tell Saitama how he felt filling his lungs in the pause.

“I wouldn’t have it any other way…. I… I really like you, sensei.”

Saitama smiled that smile that Genos now realized had first stolen his heart so long ago, back on a sunny day when Saitama had cherry blossom petals stuck in his hair. Genos melted, leaning in to the next kiss that came to him as a response to his confession with vigor.

“Thank you Genos… Just, thank you...I think I know… I think I’ve known for a long time but was afraid… now, being here, I can’t imagine why…”

It was Genos’s turn to pull him into a kiss, putting all the feelings he wished he could convey with words into it.

Well, for now, this would have to do.

Chapter Text

They spent the rest of the night wrapped in each other’s arms, both of them afraid to leave the room they had laid their feelings bare in for fear that it would all fall apart, that the spell that had been cast over them would be broken if either one of them left. So instead they moved to Saitama’s bed where the older man held Genos with those strong arms Genos had only ever admired from afar, dreaming of their embrace.

“Please don’t let this be a dream…” Genos said in a soft voice during a lapse in kisses. Saitama was leaned against the wall, Genos laid back against his chest. Saitama was holding his hands up to Genos’s, comparing their sizes, feeling the difference between his artificial hand and his real one first with his fingers, then with his lips.

“Mmmmm…” he hummed against Genos’s real fingers, sending a tingling sensation through all of Genos’s nerves. Everything with Saitama was new, but for some reason with him it also felt so familiar. Like this was the way things were supposed to be all along.

Saitama nuzzled into Genos’s neck, his nose brushing along the edge of his earlobe. “You know eventually we have to leave...”

Genos gave Saitama’s hands a squeeze. “I don’t want to think about that right now… I’ve waited too long for this…”

Saitama removed his face from Genos’s neck, Genos turning slightly so he could see the face of the other man, curious expression written on it. “How long?”

Genos felt nervous, being suddenly put on the spot, feeling like he could burst into a sweat at any moment. He chose his words carefully, beginning slowly, stuttering, “I-I suppose if I’m really honest, probably since the day we met…” Saitama held his gaze steady, unflinching, the wheels turning in his head only slightly betrayed by the whispers of red creeping into his cheeks. Genos continued quickly, “But I only realized it a couple of weeks ago, the morning after you got really drunk.”

Saitama reached up and rubbed the back of his neck, Genos’s heart beating faster as he got to observe the cute nervous tick up close. He could feel Saitama’s muscles moving against his back as he completed the motion. Genos felt like he had just been privilege to something extraordinary.

“Why didn’t you tell me earlier?! I was going crazy thinking there was no way…” Saitama’s face was fully flushed, looking away under Genos’s gaze. To think, all this time he was afraid to tell this wonderful man his feelings he could have spent here, where he’d wanted to be all along. Here, in Saitama’s arms.

Genos fidgeted with his stud earrings, watching Saitama’s reaction to his own nervous tick. The older man peered at him out of the corner of his eye, his face becoming redder when he saw Genos looking back at him.

“Ok, yeah, never mind. Duh. Socially awkward. Sorry, I always forget. You talk so easily with me!” Saitama buried his face in Genos’s shoulder. “I’m sorry, Genos. I’m sorry I took so long.”

Genos smiled sweetly, his heart practically fluttering out of his chest. How could he be so lucky? After everything that had happened in his life- his parents being murdered, having to become a cyborg, dealing with the social stigma of being what he was, who he was, never really feeling like he belonged anywhere- and now, with two strong arms, two soft lips, and one bright smile all of that melted away.

Suddenly he was the luckiest man on earth.

Genos shifted more towards the man he adored so dearly, the man who took all his pain away. He placed a soft kiss on the top of his head, breathing in the sweet scent of strawberries cooked up in a lab that screamed cheap shampoo that graced those wonderful black locks.

“Sensei, I would have waited forever just to experience this one moment with you.”

Saitama looked up, his chocolate brown eyes locking with Genos’s own glowing yellow ones. Genos thought he saw the hint of a tear in the other man’s eyes, or was that his own feelings reflecting in them? His heart was tight, waiting for a response, waiting for Saitama to say anything to his declaration. Oh no, had he said too much too fast?

Saitama reached forward, his eyelids becoming suddenly heavy, his strong hand becoming soft the instant it touched the skin of Genos’s cheek, slowly caressing it. His lips were impossibly close, practically brushing against Genos’s own.

“Shit, who knew you were such a romantic, Genos…”

His whispered words melted him into the kiss that followed, his whole body surrendering to a feeling of numb bliss under Saitama’s voice, his touch exhilarating at the edge of his conscious. It was like the feeling of panic he got when he had to make small talk or was forced to interact with someone he didn’t know, only instead of feeling like he was sinking into an unbearable darkness, he felt like he was soaring high through the sky of a sunny day. Genos felt like he could power a city off the energy one compliment from Saitama created within him.

The sensation almost rivaled that of his kisses.

Almost.

______________________

Eventually they both became too hungry to ignore any longer, abandoning hopes of reviving their leftover curry and opting for pizza instead. They spent the rest of the evening in the happiness created that afternoon in Saitama’s room, curling up on the floor over their pizza and watching some corny movie on TV. It felt as natural as them sitting on their respective couches downstairs, only this time with many, many more kisses being exchanged.

The room was dark and warm, made even warmer cuddled up next to Saitama, a cute heart-print blanket wrapped loosely around their shoulders. Soon Genos felt his eyes start to droop, the roller coaster of emotions from the day’s events starting to take its toll on his mind. He tried desperately to stay awake, fearing that if he fell asleep this would all fade away, that he would have to wake up and live another day not in Saitama’s arms. As his mind started to drift off to the inevitable sleep that awaited him, he resolved that even if this was all a fantasy created by his desperate mind that he would confess to Saitama when he awoke. He didn’t want to live another day hiding his feelings from the man he cared about most in this world.

______________________

When Genos awoke, the room was still dark. Maybe even darker now, he thought, as his artificial eyes quickly adjusted to the light in the room. The images on the screen in front of him had changed, the movie they had been watching long forgotten. They…wait, where was Saitama?

Genos glanced around the room and found the other man just outside the open doorway, the light from the TV just barely catching on his shoulder. Genos could hear him talking in a low voice, but to whom? The feeling of panic that always seemed to linger on the edge of his nerves started its creep back into his senses. Had Mumen come back?

Or worse, had Sonic?

Giving in to curiosity, Genos quietly got up, sneaking closer to the door. Almost there, just a little bit further… but he still couldn’t hear another voice coming from the hallway. Saitama was definitely talking to someone… who was it? And why were they here so late?

Suddenly Saitama turned around in the doorway, looking first to the spot where Genos had been sleeping, his eyes flying open wide when he found the cyborg but a few inches away from him. Genos’s eyes widen, too, realization washing over him in the form of a phone in the other man’s hand.

“Yeah, I’ll ask him tomorrow. Talk to you then, Bang.” Those chocolate brown eyes remained locked with Genos’s, a small smile in them despite his flat tone. He hung up the phone, the smile in his eyes finally gracing his lips.

“Did I wake you up?”

Genos felt himself blush in the darkness of the room, his heart thudding to the thought that Saitama’s first thoughts were of him, of if he had somehow disturbed him. This was going to take some getting used to.

“No, no, never mind that! Was that Bang as in headmaster Bang on the phone? With you?!”

“Uh, yeah, why?”

The panic fully settled into Genos’s chest, not helped by Saitama’s non-chalant tone. What did the headmaster want with him? Oh no, had he found out about them? Was this against the rules? Would Saitama lose his job? Would he lose his scholarship? How did the headmaster know? Had Sonic said something in his fit of sadness? He had never thought about it before, but now it was all he could think about, the endless horrible possibilities running over and over in his head.

And then, as suddenly as the fear induced thoughts had formed in his mind, they were washed away by Saitama’s arms wrapping him in their warmth. Genos almost shuddered, the sudden change in emotional climate surging through his body.

“Hey, chill out, ok?” Saitama’s words were soft on his ear, the deepness in his voice humming through his chest against Genos’s, slowly calming the raging seas in his heart. “It was nothing bad or anything. He just wants to send me to a soccer coaching conference is all.” Saitama slowly and gently rubbed Genos’s back, relaxing him enough that he collapsed into the embrace.

“Thanks… Sorry….” Genos mumbled into the older man’s collarbone, ignoring the heat gathering on his cheeks.

Saitama removed one hand from Genos’s back, rubbing the back of his neck. Genos looked up at the sudden movement. “He actually wanted me to ask you if you want to come with me.”

“M-Me? B-b-but why?” A mixture of excitement and nervousness began building in his stomach, like it was filled with vinegar and baking soda.

“Well, I mean, you ARE the team manager…” Saitama’s chestnut eyes met his in the dark, his smile shining through them. “And it would be overnight… in a hotel room… with me… alone…”

His words came out smooth as butter to Genos’s ears, but they did nothing to keep the bubbling in his stomach from making its way to his heart. He was thankful for the dark of the room, sure his face was glowing red thinking of all the possibilities… all the implications of that statement. Oh yes, he very much wanted that. Not that it was much different than their current living arrangements, but something about the prospect felt new, felt special.

Genos pulled Saitama into a tight hug, half to hide his face, half to expel the nervous energy built up inside of him.

“I’d love to go, sensei!”

Saitama just chuckled, and Genos enjoyed every moment of feeling his joy against his cheek.

“Alright, I’ll call old Silver Fang in the morning.”

Chapter Text

Genos looked up at the blue glass exterior of an expensive-looking hotel, the late summer sun making him instinctively squint as he peered up at the roof, long past loosing count of the number of floors. Around him the indiscernible hum produced from the many voices of fellow convention goers drifted towards the looming building in front of him, like little worker bees all going about their business. Genos felt his chest tighten unexpectedly, having to actively think about his breathing patterns as he tried to slow his racing heartbeat. This was it: his weekend, alone (mostly), with Saitama, miles and miles away from the drama and watching eyes of Heero Academy.

The past few weeks had left little time for them to actually establish what exactly they were. After the late night call from the headmaster inviting Saitama and himself to this soccer convention, Saitama had suddenly become more busy than ever with work. Mr. Amai had taken to stealing Saitama away in the evenings, drilling him on proper etiquette and helping him write and then practice a speech Saitama was set to give at the convention about his techniques in coaching that lead the team to victory last year. On top of that, making travel arrangements, as well as his normal class load, Saitama often came back to the dorms exhausted, especially being unused to this heavy of a workload. As if that wasn’t enough, Mumen had torn his ALC the other day during practice, causing Amai to freak out and scold him like it was somehow Saitama’s fault.

Genos had tried to be there for him, making sure dinner was always ready and waiting for the man that made his heart pitter, helping him keep his room clean and his clothes washed, and providing him with an adequate amount of kisses. But when it came to establishing what they were to each other, what their feelings meant, if they even were or wanted to be anything more than people who cared for each other and kissed sometimes, that all was still up in the air.

In a way, Genos felt he had to commend himself for being so understanding, for trying his hardest not to bring anything up, not to add to the stress of Saitama’s days, to just go with the flow and see where that led. After all, he was in very unfamiliar territory. Maybe they didn’t need to talk about anything? What was the standard protocol for situations like this?

Genos had clearly had way too much time to think inside his own head the past few weeks.

Genos sighed, probably a little too loudly, closing his eyes to try to relieve some of the stress he had built up in himself thinking about it all again.

“Oi, calm down, it’s not that many people.”

As familiar as the voice was, it still made Genos start at the sound of it, two gold on black eyes flying open as he spun around to face the owner of the deep, usually very soothing voice.

“Sensei! You scared me!”

Saitama burst out laughing mercilessly.

“You say that like that’s a hard thing to do.”

Genos pouted at Saitama, noticing the slight blush that crept across the older man’s face as he did so. Saitama maintained his cheeky grin none-the-less.

“I’m just messing with you, cheer up! We’re on vacation!”

Genos couldn’t help but giggle at the childish nature of Saitama.

“We’re not on vacation, sensei. We’re here to represent our school and to learn so that we can-“

Saitama laid a finger on Genos’s lips in a hushing manner. To everyone else, the action would look innocent. To Genos’s heart it was an invitation to try it’s best to beat out of his chest.

“Shhhhhh, no nervous ramblings. 20 words or less!”

Saitama winked at him, Genos barely able to handle the other man’s cute behavior.

“Alright, let’s go check out the room!”

Saitama marched off into the crowd with a determined look on his face. Genos took a moment to gather himself before jogging after him on shaky legs.
_________________________________________

“Woah.”

Genos and Saitama stood in the doorway together, both of their jaws metaphorically dropping to the floor. The room they had been set up in was beyond luxurious, way more so than Genos had ever seen, that was for sure. By Saitama’s reaction, this was out of the ordinary for him, also.

The suite was large and elegantly decorated with a modernist flair; dark wood furniture with accents of gold, a large, flat screen TV, marble flecked with gold covering the roomy bathroom, a small kitchenette that looked so clean Genos wondered if it had ever even been used, and last of all a large, king sized bed with sheets that looked like liquid gold tucked pristinely in.

Wait, was there only one bed?

They closed the door after bringing their stuff in, both of them nervously exploring the expansive suite. It was Saitama that finally broke the uncomfortable silence, but only after several long, agonizing minutes.

“So, uh, looks like there’s only one bed.” He began, nervously rubbing the back of his neck which was quickly turning red.

“I-I can sleep on the floor! Or maybe we can call up for a cot, i-if you’re not, you know, comfortable sleeping in the same bed, that is, um...”

Saitama looked shocked by Genos’s sudden outburst, the red on his neck spreading to his face. Genos barely noticed, the pounding of his heart blocking out all of his senses.

“No, no! I’m ok with it! Erm, that is, I was going to offer the same thing, you know, if you’re not okay with sleeping in the same bed, heh…”

Was this something Genos was ok with? He had dreamed about it, sure, but never the circumstances leading up to it. Was this appropriate at this point in their relationship? What was he comfortable with? Was this going too fast? Having no experience to draw off of made Genos feel awkward, like he had just been dropped into a foreign country where he didn’t know the language and the customs were all strange and new.

He had to make a decision, for better or for worse.

“I-I’m ok with it!” he burst out, much too loudly given their close proximity in the large, empty space of their shared suite. Saitama looked shocked, a bead of sweat falling out from under his hair and tracing down his jaw line. It seemed that Saitama was just as nervous as he was.

Genos felt almost immediately like crawling inside himself. Saitama stared him down, looking for any crack in Genos’s nervous armor.

If Saitama found one, he didn’t say anything.

He just smiled that smile that would calm Genos if it didn’t make him feel like he was flying.

“Ok then! It’s settled! What should we do first?”
_________________________________________________

Since the first day of the conference was for setting up and people arriving, there wasn’t much to do yet. Genos and Saitama settled into their room, and began preparing for the 3 days of conferences and workshops ahead. Saitama practiced his speech, pacing around the room making various wild hand gestures before shaking his head. Genos kept himself busy mapping out the different activities Amai wanted them to attend, highlighting their locations on a map and making little notes here and there.

After a while, they went and got dinner provided by the convention downstairs. It was buffet fare, but good. They found a private table in the corner, neither of them really wanting to converse with the other convention-goers, and chatted lightly as they ate. Despite it being just a normal meal, Genos couldn’t quite shake the feeling that something just felt… off. Not as comfortable as the dinners they had shared so many times before. It wasn’t uncomfortable, per say…

It just felt like them weren’t talking about what they really wanted to be talking about.

It felt strange, like they were actors in a play rather than having a real conversation.

Did Saitama sense something was off, too? His calm, complacent expression was hard to read when things weren’t in a confusing state. Now, sitting across from him, staring at all the perfections and imperfections of the man seated there, it was impossible to tell.

Genos tried to shake the feeling, trying to tell himself it was just him, that things would work out, that he was just freaking himself out.

But a small, dark, sad, afraid part of him in the back of his mind began to wonder:

Was it too late?

_________________________________________________

When they got back to the room Saitama went back to practicing, this time muttering to himself as he paced. Genos was glad Saitama’s presentation was tomorrow morning so Saitama would be able to relax the rest of the weekend. It was odd to see Saitama so high-strung, and Genos wondered what Amai had over him that had him taking this presentation so seriously. It’s not like Saitama was particularly interested in giving this presentation, nor was he ever very concerned with embarrassing himself in front of others.

Genos laid down on his stomach on the bed, unsure of what to do. He felt at a loss with a mixture of unused to having time to relax and all the unsure feelings ping-ponging around in his head. He wished Saitama would just slam down his papers, say ‘Fuck it!’ like he usually would in this sort of situation, and scoop Genos up in his big strong arms, putting to rest any doubts growing in his mind.

Genos sighed out loud and shook his head, knowing that was unfair to expect of Saitama. He shouldn’t put all the pressure on him, just because he had more experience with relationships than Genos shouldn’t mean that Saitama had to take all the first steps. They had to take them together. The question was, how?

Genos looked up and noticed Saitama had stopped pacing and was staring at him, a curious expression written all over his face.

“You okay, Genos?”

Genos’s heart stopped. This was it. This was his opportunity, his way in if he could take it. But Genos found the words unable to form on his tongue. He didn’t want to burden Saitama with this now, not right before his speech tomorrow, but it was getting harder and harder to stamp down the small voice of unreason in the back of his head.

Before he could decide on an answer, Saitama set his papers down on a nearby side table and crossed the distance between them, sitting beside him on the bed. In an instant Genos went from being unable to form words to all the words in his head threatening to spill out like some sort of insane waterfall. He buried his head in the silky smooth sheets and pillow-y mattress, hoping to stay some of the flow, or at least slow it down.

“No.” he replied simply, groaning internally.

Saitama didn’t say anything, didn’t move, he just waited for Genos to continue.

Genos took a deep breath, gathering any scrap of courage he might ever have possessed, wishing that his heart had been replaced with an artificial one so it wouldn’t be beating so damn loud in his ears right now.

“I-I’m sorry, Saitama-sensei, it’s just everything was going so well and then the moment I feel like I got everything I ever wanted, it’s like you were ripped away from me and I don’t blame you at all but it’s just I don’t know what I’m doing and I don’t know what this is, I feel so, I don’t even know what to feel because we never… we never, you know, got to talk about… about, well, um…”

“Us?” Saitama offered, causing Genos to look up at him. He could feel tears welling up in his eyes, not from sadness, but from a sort of relief at the sudden release of the pressure that had been building up inside of him. To further his relief, Saitama’s expression was that of concern, mixed with just the hint of an apologetic look. It was all Genos could do to keep from burying himself in the crook of the other man’s neck, telling him to forget everything he just said, that it didn’t matter now because now, now they were together.

Instead, he replied “Yeah”, followed by a sad smile, subtly, maybe even subconsciously shifting his hand closer to where Saitama’s sat on the bed, so they were only a breath apart. He wished with all of his might that Saitama would close the gap between their fingers.

A tingling sensation burst forth from Genos’s fingertips and numbed him all over as his wish was granted, Saitama shyly brushing his hand against Genos’s and looking away, like there were other people in the room and the action was accidental. It was so weird how a little time put such distance between them. How strange it was to think that naught but a few weeks ago they were wrapped in each other’s arms, forgetting there was a world outside Saitama’s room. Now the world had come to invade even this moment alone, in a private space just for them, so that they acted like all eyes were on them.

The saddest part was knowing that even if he could do it all over again, he would do the same thing. This breath, at least, could be closed. Putting pressure on Saitama, possibly pushing him away forever, that was a chasm one couldn’t even hope to seal.

Now, it was time to work on closing this gap, together. It wasn’t too late if they both didn’t let it be.

Genos’s heart stopped as strong arms suddenly wrapped themselves around him in a motion he had been too caught up in his own thoughts to notice. When had Saitama gone from sitting next to him to laying next to him on the bed? How had he moved without making a sound?

All of these questions swirled in his head but the answers didn’t matter now. Genos was where he always wanted to be, and all the rest could wait.

“I’m so sorry, Genos.”

Genos shook his head vigorously, unable to hold back the tears that had threatened to spill forth before.

“No, Saitam-“ Genos began the words but never finished them, or maybe he did and they were just swallowed up by Saitama’s lips. Genos lost any semblance of hope of being able to speak again.

“No Genos, I’m sorry. Everything started happening so fast and before I knew it Amai was taking up all my time with this stupid speech! Argh!”

Saitama buried his face in the mattress in front of him, much in the same way Genos had himself earlier. After a few moments he set his chin on the edge of the bed dejectedly, and Genos couldn’t help but think of how cute he was right now, despite the nervous bubbles of emotions swirling around in his stomach.

“No, it’s not just that. You’ve been so kind and supportive, not even saying a word when I started disappearing for long hours… I feel like I’ve taken advantage of your kindness and your understanding, and left you with nothing but disappointment and questions…” Saitama pouted slightly as he finished, which really only added to his cuteness factor, especially when he looked up and over at Genos.

The way Genos saw it, they could go back and forth all day long about why there was this distance between them, trying to figure out who was to blame. Or, Genos could take a leap, try to meet Saitama in the middle, and bridge this gap between them.

Maybe it was only a small step, but to Genos, it felt like he was jumping out into open air, and had to just trust that Saitama would be there to catch him. Ignoring the building beating of his heart, he leaned against Saitama, holding him tight.

“I’ve never been in this situation before, and I have no idea what I’m doing. What I do know is I care about you, Saitama-sensei, and that’s all that really matters to me. Being with you.” Genos kissed Saitama’s shoulder, half to emphasize his point, half to hide from Saitama turning around to look at him. “I’m confused, I’m nervous, and I have no clue what to do next, but what I know is I want to move forward, with you at my side.”

Their eyes met for what seemed like an eternity, just staring at each other, all the words they needed to say having been said. Genos wasn’t sure how much time passed, nor did he really care. He would wait forever if he had to for Saitama’s reply.

“Ah, damn it, Genos! You’re too fucking good for me.” Saitama leaned forward, their foreheads meeting in the middle as the pout returned on his lips. Genos thought he saw the hint of a tear on the edge of the other man’s eyes, but he said nothing. “Geeze… what am I going to do with you? You’re going to leave me at the drop of a hat for some young, smooth-talking romantic like yourself, aren’t you? Shit…” Saitama flopped backwards on the bed dramatically, running his hands through his dark hair. Genos couldn’t help but smile. Every time he was with Saitama he learned something new about him. Today’s lesson: Saitama likes to diffuse situations with humor.

All Genos could do was play into it, right?

Genos scooted over until he was in the crook of one of Saitama’s outstretched arms, finding the sweet spot to rest his head somewhere between the muscles of his arms and chest, in the spot that felt made just for him. He blushed slightly at his own forwardness, trying to ignore the sweat he could feel building in the palm of his real hand.

“I don’t need a smooth-talker when I have your smile, sensei. One flash of that smile, and I’m yours.”

He tried to add a breathiness to his voice, to play it off like he was joking, but he felt like Saitama could see right through his act, looking down at him with a stunned expression on his face, a stain of red gracing his high cheekbones.

“Yup, you’re definitely going to break my heart. Suck me dry and leave me a withered corpse!” Saitama exclaimed as he wrapped his arms around Genos, rolling them around in the bed playfully. Genos erupted into laughter, all at once relieving all the anxious pressure that had been building inside of him.

Saitama rolled to a stop on top of Genos, propping himself up so he was on one elbow looking down at him. Genos stopped laughing all at once, breath being taken away as his body tingled and went numb at the sight of Saitama leaned over him, their bodies pressed together from the waist down. Genos’s mouth went dry, holding his breath as he waited to see what happened next.

“I guess I’ll just have to make you my boyfriend so you can’t just up and leave me.”

“Wha-what?!” Was all Genos could reply. His mind had gone blank at ‘boyfriend’.

Saitama smiled, the blush on his cheeks growing a deeper shade of red.

“Yeah, I mean, you’re not the type of guy that would up and just leave someone they were dating, right? So, that means I’ve just got to make you my boyfriend. Then you can never leave me.”

Genos felt like his whole face was on fire. It wasn’t enough that the current… position they were in was enough to overload his systems, but Saitama was being impossibly cute right now. ‘Please, please don’t let this all be a dream..’ Genos thought to himself as his eyes remained wide as lanterns looking up at the other man.

“What are you saying, Saitama-sensei?”

Saitama smiled an impossible smile down at Genos.

“I’m saying, will you be my boyfriend, Genos?”

Genos wasn’t sure how he found his voice to be able to reply. He didn’t even think. He just answered with his heart.

“Yes, Saitama-sensei. Yes. Yes.”

He smiled back, unable to contain his joy. He added another “Yes.” Just to make sure Saitama heard him. He would say it as many times as he needed to, always and forever.