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[My name is Saiki Kusuo, and I am a psychic.]
‘The Daily Life of a Psychic - Saiki K. No Psi Nan OST’ begins to play.
[My morning, of course, has to begin with disaster.] Kusuo got out of bed and stretched. [I had a precognition last night, which I'll have to deal with. What a pain.]
A flashback to the overhead of a mountain, exploding with bubbles of magma and lava spilling out from the top. [This is Owari-yama, which is at the edge of Oshimai, a city in Japan. It is set to explode today- my first day of spring break, no less. What a pain, what a pain.]
Kusuo apported his pyjamas with normal clothes; putting on his glasses. [Guess I can deal with this, and then have a coffee jelly in front of the television.]
"Ku-chan, are you still sleeping?" His mother called through the bedroom door. 'It's almost noon! Is my baby okay?' After a second, the door faded from view and Kusuo was able to see her, standing there with a basket of laundry.
[Can you take my pyjamas too?] Kusuo opened the door with telekinesis and levitated his pyjamas, lying on his desk chair, towards her.
"Of course!" She smiled. "Are you going out today? Have those boys invited you out again?"
[She's talking about Kaidou and Nendou, two classmates who have taken to bothering me every day. No matter; Year Two has finished and I can only pray that we aren't put into the same class for my last year of high school so I can be more normal without them bothering me.] Kusuo shook his head. [Psychic business. Stopping a volcano.]
"Good luck!" She waved, and walked off with the laundry.
Kusuo sighed. [A volcano is hardly anything. I've gone against diseases, aliens, stock market crashes, zombie apocalypses, possible dictatorships, you name it. I used to be pretty worried about those things, but as my powers continue to grow and I keep fixing these despite my doubts, they've become little worry to me. I'm sixteen; anyone with my abilities could handle a volcano.]
Kusuo headed downstairs. Might as well try to get a quick breakfast before going out.
"Kusuomon!" His dad called out the familiar nickname, a nickname Kusuo hated. He wasn't just some Doraemon who could pull anything out of his pocket; he was his dad's child. "Are you still being mean and not teleporting your dear old dad to his office?!"
[I'm sure 'dear old dad' can do things by himself,] Kusuo commented, [you have legs. Walk.]
"Kusuo, you're so cruel!" His father whined. "It's not like you want to do anything else. You just sit around all day, every spring break!"
[Surprisingly, I have to do something today.] Kusuo monotoned, pushing past his dad and towards the door.
"Huh? You're going out? What's going on? Is the world ending?!" [Not if I handle it.]
Kusuo put on his shoes, hitting the toe onto the ground to push them on more comfortably. His dad watched curiiously. "What's going on?"
[Just something I have to do. I'll be back in ten minutes.] Kusuo responded.
"Can you get some milk on the way home?" His mom called out from upstairs.
[Okay.] And then Kusuo was gone.
"Wait! My ride to work!" Kuniharu moaned.
[Good grief. I've been waning him off for so long, and he still doesn't learn.] Kusuo grumbled. [Anyways, back to the task at hand. Be prepared for a short oneshot, readers. This will end easily. If you were reading a much more pre-canon fanfic, then you would see me struggling or being nervous, but I'm sixteen and seventeen in four months.]
Kusuo wandered through the forest, managing onto the clearing where the huge volcano sat. To the regular human, it would look inactive and like a big hill, but to Kusuo, his x-ray vision cut through all the volcanic rock and to the magma bubbling up from within. Yes, Owari-yama was close to eruption. How to solve it, how to solve it... Kusuo had stopped a Hawaiian volcano from erupting a few weeks back, a minor one but one that would disrupt some of Hawaii's trades and therefore the global economy. He had a bit of practice. He'd be fine; volcanoes were some of the easier things that Kusuo had to deal with as a psychic.
Hm. He'd probably have to try and hold it back, use telekinesis to push the magma back into the centre of the earth so that it wouldn't spill out, and then close off the entire Owari-yama so that it would become just a dried out volcano instead of an active one.
Kusuo lifted off from the ground, letting himself float higher and higher. No telepathy; that meant nobody was around to see him flying. As he went up to cloud level, the amount of lava stewing inside the volcano was almost concerningly clear, as were the small vents where smoke was exiting dotted around the mountain. How didn't any volcanologists spot such a huge problem?
[The eruption should be coming soon.] Kusuo gave exposition. [According to the little I saw in my precognition, I was dealing with this volcano. The shape let me know which volcano, and I was wearing the clothes that I had laid out yesterday night. The sun's position lets me know that it's coming soon, but even without my dream I can tell that it's about to explode.]
Just then, the trees below began to shiver, being tossed around as another earthquake hit them. The earth vibrated below, Kusuo remaining unaffected as the lava jiggled and threatened to spill. He clenched his hand, and took a deep breath. [Calm down. It's just one volcano. I've dealt with these types of things all my life, and emotions only make things worse. I need to have a clear head or else my powers become unpredictable.]
As he finished exhaling, Kusuo dove downwards, eyes trained on the magma sparking up and the lava bubbling over the edges, trickling down the sides of Owari-yama, the world still shaking as Kusuo dove in.
[I got this,] Kusuo reminded himself, [I'll be fine. I'm a psychic. I've done this before. Just push it back. Keep it inside.]
He braced himself, feeling power flowing through his mind as he telekinetically grabbed at large amounts of lava, sending it back into the core. Kusuo tried to grab at more and more, felt his body throbbing against the magma surrounding him, felt it all crushing him and sweat forming at his forehead and magma spilling out faster than he could shove it away. It was too much- it was overtaking him.
No, Saiki Kusuo was a psychic. He was a damn powerful one, too, on-par with god itself. There was no way something like a volcano was going to be his biggest threat. He'd already gone through so many things, and a volcano? He couldn't accept it. Kusuo had to keep trying.
Trying against a losing battle.
The heat was slowly getting more and more noticeable. His breathing was becoming more and more sloppy. His mind was slipping, the gnawing feeling of dread was taking over.
Kusuo couldn't do it.
He'd failed.
The most powerful being in the world, someone who could do practically anything, who was always successful, who had faced off against so many threats, suffered so much at powers that he was born with, had just failed. All his hard work keeping the world safe, training his powers, keeping his emotions under control, was all for nothing.
His heart dropped.
Redo. He had to redo it.
That was the only thing left for him. The only comfort that Kusuo could cling to, cling to harder than he ever could. He couldn't cling to his mom or else he could break her. He couldn't cling to the idea of being normal or else people would get hurt. He couldn't cling to his classmates or else they would find out. There was only one thing to do: restoration.
Kusuo squeezed his eyes shut, lifting himself out of the volcano and feeling the spring air again as he rewound time, three-hundred and sixty-five days. Spring break; from his First Year to Second Year. Mind control. 'It was normal. Of course he was about to start his Second Year of high school; it was spring break. There was no need to ask questions. What kinds of questions were meant to be asked? Nothing was suspicious.' Kusuo had just been useless.
Lying was second nature to Saiki Kusuo, something that dominated his life far more than psychic abilities.
Kusuo returned to the ground silently, next to the volcano. His hands were bubbling with burns, which stitched themselves back together as he watched. The trembles remained; why were his hands still trembling, still tingling? Kusuo's heart beat slowly against his ribcage, the rest of his insides feeling hollow as he slowly breathed stale air. It felt like he was carrying the weight of the world on his shoulders, weighing him down until he was completely and utterly crushed by the humiliation. How had he failed? Him? Saiki Kusuo? The psychic?
His head revolved around so many outcomes; Kusuo returning home to eat coffee jelly, going home to plan out how to live Year Three normally, finding Kaidou or Nendou waiting outside. So many situations that would not happen because Kusuo had failed. He was a failure.
But who else could do it? Who else could be powerful enough to do it? There was nobody better for the job, there was nobody else who could do the job, and the entire world was relying on Kusuo without even knowing. There was nobody but him who could do it, and he'd just failed. Kusuo had put all his abilities, all his pain into that and it didn't work. It didn't work. He failed.
There was no backup, no help. It was just Kusuo who could do it. Nobody else.
He was the only person who had the ability to stop a volcano. And yet he couldn't.
No psychics could come to help him. Saiki Kusuo was alone at the top of the world.
He had so much power, so much abilities, but it all meant nothing. He was useless.
He was alone. Nobody could ever be in his exact position, have his power.
Kusuo stood a moment, feeling the cold winds wash over his bare skin and ruffle through his hair. He deserved it. He shouldn't be heating up his body using pyrokinesis if he couldn't stop a volcano, of all things.
Kusuo teleported back home. Standing in the genkan, his stomach churned as his mom popped out from the kitchen.
"Ku-chan, what happened?" She asked. "You fixed the volcano, right?"
Could he talk about it? How would she react? Would she push him away, scoff, be in disbelief that her son could fail? [I failed.]
Her jaw dropped open. Kusuo filled his head with all the other thoughts, let hers blend in with the rest so he wouldn't have to hear. He didn't want to hear. Kusuo didn't bother fixing his shoes before he walked past her and up the stairs and to his room. He had to train. He had to continue growing his powers, he had to make himself better so that he could stop it. So that life could go on; he could graduate and live his life in peace- normally.
Telepathy. Clairvoyance. Telekinesis. Levitation. Restoration. Psychokinesis. Shapeshifting. Hypnosis. Invisibility. Mind control. Teleportation. Precognition. Super strength.
And none of those abilities helped. He still failed. He'd gone through so much, prepared so much, and it didn't amount to anything.
"Mama, tadaima!" His dad called out from below. Kusuo had heard him using telepathy, listened as he greeted his wife downstairs. Kusuo couldn't stop himself from listening in on them. There was no off button, he didn't want to hear them, hear her talking about his failure. He didn't have a choice. He never had a choice.
"Ku-chan couldn't stop a volcano from erupting today..." his mom said, "I don't know what happened but he's Ku-chan so it'll all work out!"
"Huh? Kusuo failed?" His dad scoffed, before chuckling. "Looks like he's just human like the rest of us! Working hard and practicing will fix it!"
Kusuo felt dread pooling inside him as his dad walked upstairs. "Kusuo, you know that neither me nor your mom can really help you out with anything. You have to take charge of your own problems."
He knew. Kusuo knew. And he had- he'd tried so hard, done so much, and it didn't work.
"No response? This is why you're mean, Kusuo!" His father complained before walking off.
And then Kusuo burst out into tears, like a child. How pathetic. How weak. Useless, uselles.
They threatened to leave his eyes, making his vision glossy and unbearable. As he blinked, they rolled down his cheeks, dripping slowly. A lump grew in the back of his throat as he quickly wiped them away with his handkerchief, watching as the tears blossomed on the cloth like flowers only for more tears to continue forming. He couldn't do it. He couldn't od it. He'd failed. Kusuo had failed. The cloth continued soaking up his cries, muffling sniffles to his mother making dinner and father dusting his figures. His stomach twisted and mouth turned acidic, heart beating erratically. Was that how it felt to die? Was he dying? Was that how it felt to be human?
Maybe it would be better if he wasn't around at all.
'I bet Saiki's gonna be so happy when we come over!' A voice crammed itself into Kusuo's already-stuffed mind, ringing and bouncing through his brain. [Damn it... Kaidou. Given the fact he said 'we', Nendou is probably with him. Damn it. Damn it. Damn it.]
he couldn't do it. Saiki Kusuo could handle a lot of things. A stupid father. A cautious mother. Failing at the one thing that his pain was good for. Feeling exhausted. Feeling useless. Feeling nothing. Feeling everything.
But at that moment, Kusuo couldn't handle the thought of meeting those two. Kusuo took a deep breath, rising from where he sat at his desk, and glanced at himself in the mirror.
A mess. An actual mess. His eyes were red, but the green glasses covered it. His face was glossy from wiping away tears, there were lines from how twisted his face was. He wasn't presentable. he didn't look normal.
Two-hundred metres. They were within two-hundred metres. He had to look normal by then.
Kusuo quickly ducked through the hall to wash his face, the cool water a smooth transition from the mess he previously was. Calm. Calm. That was what they knew him as. There was no need to change that perception. He had to stick with it, to seem normal.
As he looked in the mirror again, and blinked, and blinked, he seemed normal. He seemed calm.
And then another round of tears came on.
[No, come on, really? I just washed my face.] Kusuo complained mutely, quiclkly swiping them away. [They're coming soon. They're going to ask. I have to tell them something. I need an excuse. What kind of excuse? What excuse seems normal? What if they push?]
The doorbell rang. Too late. Kusuo cleared his face, taking deep inhales and slow exhales. He wiped his eyes, pressed his cool hands into his burning cheeks, and adjusted his glasses. [I need to appear normal. I can't turn them down or else my idiot dad will be right.]
"Ku-chan, look who's here!" His mom called out.
Kusuo quickly went down the stairs. [Please, god, don't let me cry in front of them. They'll never forget it and I'll have to try explaining what's wrong.]
"Hey, Saiki!" Kaidou said excitedly. "How's it going?"
[Fine.] Kusuo responded.
"chibi got a new game for us to try," Nendou explained, "and you're the one with the best TV."
[Ah, of course.] Somehow, Kusuo felt himself lightening up. The weight on his shoulders, the tears clawing their way to his eyes, it was all lifting. He took a deep breath. [Okay.]
'Wait, really?'
"Wait, really?"
[At least Kaidou had the tact to not say anything out loud.]
"You boys can stay for dinner- I'm making gyoza!" His mom squealed. 'Ku-chan?'
[I'm fine, mom.] Kusuo said, only in her head, as he led his classmates upstairs.
A time skip commenced. Kusuo made little jazz hands as it happened for the readers. [Welcome. I'm struggling not to kill these two.]
"Give it back!" Kaidou screamed, wrestling at Nendou, who only cackled in reply. "Saiki, help me!"
[Good grief,] Kusuo couldn't help but project into their minds as he pulled the two apart, [just share the supplies.]
"Wow, I can't believe it." His dad was standing in the doorway. "Kusuo's actually spending time with other kids!"
Kusuo rolled his eyes, which helped to both non-telepathically communicate with his dad while also keeping tears away. [Another comment? Really?]
"Yeah, Saiki's a fun guy to be around!" Kaidou said. 'Did Saiki's dad really say that? At least my mom only says those kinds of things about my grades!'
[That's not much better.]
"Aibou's not understanding the game!" Nendou complained.
[Because it's open-ended.]
"Kusuo, not being good at something? Hah!" His dad barked a laugh. "Seems like a common trait for today."
[Thanks for the support, man who is supposed to be raising me.]
'What the frick? Saiki's plenty smart!' Kaidou quickly reacted. "I mean, I guess it's a bit of a confusing game."
[It's a knock-off called Animal Intersection.]
"Anyways, mama said that dinner's ready soon." His dad finally said before leaving.
'Should I say something? Saiki doesn't look... right...' Kaidou gripped the controller tighter. "You hungry, Saiki?"
'Ku-chan, dinner's ready!' His mom called out in her mind.
Kusuo nodded and stood. [Yes, let's go with that.]
"Ku-chan, just in time!" His mom gestured at the steaming dumplings. "You boys eat up; I know how much you can eat at your age!"
They looked delicious, all right, but Kusuo didn't feel hungry but he also didn't feel like hurting his mother's feelings. He was already a failure, after all. Kusuo sat down as Nendou shovelled gyoza onto his plate while Kaidou had the politeness to only take a couple at a time. Kusuo made the illusion of taking a couple more than Kaidou when he only actually had one on his plate to at least be able to taste heaven he didn't deserve.
"That's more than usual." His dad commented, watching Kusuo's plate. [Deep breath. Deep breath.] "What? Just saying..."
[I can't do this. I can't do this.] Kusuo said as he exited. He only said it in his parent's minds.
There were many things that Saiki Kusuo could do. Levitation, telepathy, psychometry. Dealing with those comments in front of classmates was not on that list.
It wasn't a big deal. It was just talking about the food. That delicious looking food that his amazing mom made. But it was a comment. Did he always have to comment?
'Wonder what's up with Saiki...' Kaidou wondered as he watched Ksuuo leave.
"Ah, don't worry about him." His dad said, tense. "Just angsty, like usual. You're used ot it, right?"
Comments. Comments. Comments. Again and again.
The table went silent audibly, but Kusuo's mind could hear much more than just the awkward clatter of utensils as his eyes welled up again, annoyingly. At least nobody saw because his back was turned, but there was no doubt that his mom knew something was up as he listened to their inner thoughts.
'Is Ku-chan alright? Is he still feeling bad about that volcano?'
'What's that kid's problem? I was just saying he's taking more than usual...'
'Saiki doesnt' seem okay... is something happening between him and his dad?'
"Saiki's mom, this stuff is amazing!" Nendou said. At least he was breaking the tension. "Can I bring some home?"
Kusuo quickly reentered and sat down, beginning to bring chopsticks to his mouth with the illusion of dumplings there with it.
"Of course!" Kurumi squealed as she began crying. At least hers were of joy. "Such an honour, can you believe it, papa?"
"Your dumplings are amazing, mama!" He responded. "No doubt that people are begging to take it home!"
"They're very good, Saiki-san." Kaidou added after he swallowed. And then it was quiet again.
[Well, that was fun while it lasted.] Kusuo hummed. [Unfortunately, not even someone like Nendou can break this.]
His dad was staring at him. 'Kusuo, seriously, what's your problem? Can't you at least try and be friendly while you bring over guests? Start a conversation! You didn't stop the volcano but we aren't dead so just try and get over it while there are people here! You should practice more in your free time; not when others are expecting you to interact!'
[As if it was that easy.] Kusuo didn't look up. [This is worse than just knowing that I failed. This is other people knowing that I failed.]
And what for? Kusuo did his best- he was the only one who could do it. He tried. He got more time, he got a redo button and pressed it. But that wasn't enough for his dad or his mom. And so Kaidou and Nendou were caught in the crossfire. Unaware of what was going on other than the fact that there was tension. And Kusuo couldn't explain or else they could ridicule him, laugh at him, pity him.
Nobody said a word. The tension was thick on them, weighing down on Kusuo like the magma above him just hours before. His neck felt as hot as he did in the centre of the volcano. Quickly, his cryokinesis activated and he started cooling down to an uncomfortably sudden cold. Kusuo quickly 'ate' his remaining dumplings, Kaidou finishing soon after as Nendou licked the soy sauce from his plate.
"Wanna play a little more, Saiki?" Kaidou said, his voice slightly scratchy from the disuse. Kusuo nodded and stood, quietly leaving the dining table with Kaidou and Nendou following. As he softly headed upstairs, Kusuo tried to block out his telepathy as their voices rang around his insides.
'That dinner was so weird... his parents seemed energetic, but it was crushing at the table! I made sure to eat without making a sound or else it was like all three of them would kill me!'
'Ku-chan seems really down... papa also seemed like it while they were eating. Was it the food? Or the volcano? We're still here, so it can't be the volcano, right? It could be my food!'
'Ugh, Kusuo really made that such a bad dinner! Of course, mama's food was delicious as always! But he just made the vibes all off... was it his powers acting up and making it all terrible?'
Kusuo quickly sat down at his television, grabbing at the controllers. Just play. Playing the video game was a distraction. He wouldn't think about the volcano, or his powers, or his dad while playing.
"Aibou, what's up?" Nendou asked, voice suddenly serious and deep.
[Huh?] Kusuo gave him a look.
"Aibou, you're off. You have a cold, or something?" Nendou said, his tone shockingly caring compared to what Kusuo was used tpo.
[...I'm fine, Nendou.] Kusuo lied.
God, he wished he could talk to them about it. Vent, cry, complain, retell, Kusuo knew that Kaidou and Nendou would listen. But he couldn't. It would show that he was useless. It would make him another burden on them. It would show vulnerability. It would show that he cared.
'I wish I could make him feel better, whatever it is. He just sort of... cowers when his dad says something. Like me. But he also has a mom while I don't have a dad- but she doesn't say anything about how her husband treats their kid. Is that what my dad would be like if he wasn't always on business trips?' Kaidou thought as he watched them. "Wanna keep playing?"
"My ma wants me back soon," Nendou said, "but I'll play a little longer."
They turned to Kusuo. Like he mattered. "What about you, Saiki?"
[Okay.] Kusuo said. Because he was okay with that.
The time passed frighteningly quick. Whenever he glanced at the clock it would always shift thirty minutes. And then it was time for them to leave. Kaidou's mom didn't like him sleeping over, and Nendou's mom was expecting him back soon.
"I had fun today, Saiki." Kaidou said with a smile. "Should we do it another time?"
[Okay.] And once again, Kusuo found that he meant it. No sort of divine intervention could cause unbearable chaos if they were playing a calm game in Kusuo's room. They would have ages to do it. They were starting Year Two again, after all. Kusuo had to make time out of his training to keep their feelings from being hurt. What a disastrous life. His body felt hollow as they slipped on their shoes and opened the door.
Kusuo felt his heart squeezing tighter and tighter as they walked away. And the dread filled him up as the door shut, and he was only left with his dad.