Archive of Our Own

“Great news children! We’re more than halfway to the camp, which means we have just under an hour left of travel upon us,” Koro-sensei said. He stood at the front of the bus their class was on as Karasuma drove, his ever present smile near blinding in the early morning sun.

A few of Nagisa’s classmates grumbled, mumbling something about how they wish they had just stayed home. Others excitedly chatted with one another, discussing their plans for the trip. Honestly, Nagisa thought calling where they were going to be staying a ‘camp’ was a bit generous. Sure they were going out into the mountains, but they wouldn't exactly be ‘roughing it’ as Koro-sensei put it. At least not really. They were going to be staying in an old nature observatory turned military base, supposedly with enough rooms to fit double their class and more anti-sensei supplies then they ever could’ve dreamed of. On paper, this trip was meant to assist their class in learning survival skills, taking advantage of their scenery in emergency situations, but they all knew the real goal in this would be to finally assassinate Koro-sensei. Or, do their best trying at least.

With a sigh, Nagisa turned his phone off. He’d already exhausted his list of offline games in the two hours they’d been traveling. At least it’s almost over. He shut his eyes, breathing in as he listened to the drone of the bus engine, the sound of his classmates dialogue becoming simple background noise. Nagisa rested his head in his hand, leaning back into his seat, tiredly. He hadn’t been sleeping well lately, waking up every few hours, and, in the worst cases being unable to get back to sleep at all.

A small snore broke Nagisa from his reverie. Cracking his eye open, Nagisa glanced to his left. Karma was asleep, head resting against the bus window, his arms crossed loosely. It was easy to forget Karma wasn’t much of a morning person when there were so many more… exciting things to know about his friend. He smiled softly as he recalled their first sleepover together, how Karma had refused to get up until we’ll past ten in the morning.

A chorus of laughter came from his right, causing Nagisa to open his other eye and look over. Kayano and Nakamura sat in the two seats adjacent to his and Karma's, giggling to each other and looking over, past him Nagisa realized, and at Karma.

“I can’t believe he’s snoring,” Kayano laughed, a small hand covering her mouth.

“I have half a mind to go over there and wake him up,” Nakamura said with a smirk, leaning forward to catch a glimpse of the sleeping boy. “It’d do us all good.”

“Can’t you wake him up, Nagisa?” Kayano asked, looking at him with her regular friendly smile.

Nagisa blinked slowly at the two girls, before he shook his head. No, that wouldn’t work. It was simply an impossible task. “If Karma doesn’t want to get up himself he won’t get up at all.”

He watched Nakamura roll her eyes, a huff of laughter escaping her lips. “Yeah, whatever,” she said, an unreadable expression on her face as she looked at him. “Just tell him to be a little quieter will you? We’re working on important business over here.”

Nagisa mumbled out a ‘sure’, glancing back at his redheaded friend, poking him in the side. That'd have to do, it’s not like he could just transport into Karma's dreams and tell him to shut up. Miraculously though, it seemed to work. Karma’s head shifted, the angle seemingly making him quieter.

Satisfied, Nagisa leaned back once more into his seat, closing his eyes. A little nap would probably do him some good.

Karma shifted, his neck aching. He breathed in deeply, a minty scent tickling the inside of his nose. There was a nice pressure resting against his side, warming him to his core. Whispers and hushed voices spoke from around him, but he was unable to make out what was being said. Slowly, Karma opened his eyes, momentarily blinded by the early morning sun.

“Shit, he’s awake!” Maehara exclaimed, quickly ducking down into the seat ahead of him. Karma lifted his head, finding that half the class was leaned over staring at him, all with stupid grins. A few of the known suspects even had their phones out, intently aimed at him.

“What’s your guys’ deal?” Karma’s voice was groggy as he spoke. He yawned, moving to stretch but instead finding himself somewhat restrained. Confused, he looked down. Nagisa was asleep, leaning against Karma’s side. His blue hair up in his signature pigtails, but splayed messily across Karma’s shoulder, static making it cling to the others seat.

He watched Nakamura furiously tap something on her phone. “You were snoring so I was going to shut you up, but you guys were so cute, I couldn’t not get a pic!” Karma must not have looked enthusiastic enough for her, as she was quick to shove her phone into his face. “Just look!” Nakamura had pulled up a candid photo of Karma and Nagisa. Objectively, it could be considered cute. Nagisa was buried in Karma’s shoulder, curled up like a cat while Karma himself rested his head on Nagisa’s, body turned slightly seeking out the other’s warmth. Despite this though, Karma couldn’t help but feel like the photo needed to be destroyed. Who knows what could happen with it in the wrong person’s hands. Cough cough Nakamura cough.

“And just what are you planning on doing with that?”

“Wouldn’t you like to know,” the blonde girl said with a smirk, leaning back in her seat and crossing her legs contently. He sent her a wicked glare as a few of their classmates snickered.

The bus came to an abrupt stop before he could reply, sending Nagisa flying into the seat ahead of them, waking him up in the process. His eyes were wide, clearly confused as he rubbed his now slightly red nose.

“Ah, we’re here! Everyone please grab your things and follow me.” Koro-sensei unboarded the bus, quickly followed by Bitch-sensei as she complained about never wanting Karasuma to drive again. Their classmates all got up, hurrying to grab their things and get off the bus but Karma stayed where he was, partially because he had a window seat, but also to make sure his friend was okay

He saw Nagisa mumble something to himself, running a hand through his hair before standing to streatch with a yawn. The other boy seemed to be completely unaware of the glances and smirks their classmates were sending their way.

“You look like Rudolph,” Karma said bluntly as he picked up his school bag. “Does it hurt?”

Nagisa sent him a confused look like he didn’t immediately get what Karma was talking about before a thought seemed to cross his mind. “O-oh yeah, I think it’ll be fine,” Nagisa said, before sending him a sly smile. “Besides, you know it’s nothing I can’t handle.”

“Whatever you say,” Karma said with a chuckle, following Nagisa off the bus. Everyone was already outside, and Karma saw Karasuma’s eyes flick over to him as the two joined the rest of the class, most likely taking mental stock to make sure everyone was there.

“Does everyone remember who they’ll be rooming with?” A resounding ‘yes’ came from the crowd of students. “Wonderful, in we go then!” Koro-sensei started off walking towards the building, chipper as ever.

The rest of the day was filled with a brief meeting on how the trip will go, then they were split into two groups. Karma had shot down a pang of disappointment at the time, realizing he and Nagisa weren’t in the same group, and that he’d have to socialize with the rest of his class. Not that he hated them of course, him and Nakamura being partners in crime after all, but despite being friends for multiple years at that point he simply found Nagisa endlessly entertaining to talk to.

His group had taken part in a mixed bag of activities: rock climbing, animal tracking, (unsuccessful) assassination attempts on Koro-sensei, etc. All essential bonding activities for assassins-in-training, per their teacher’s wishes.

Currently Karma was laid down on his bed, arms resting behind his head as he watched Nagisa drift back and forth through their shared room. “I swear there’s a draft in here...” he heard Nagisa mutter as he came out of their shared bathroom, now sporting a grey long sleeve in comparison to the simple t-shirt he had being wearing the rest of the day. Karma’s eyes trailed him as Nagisa walked back to his bed, arms wrapped around himself subconsciously.

With a frown, Karma sat up. “I think you just run cold blooded, like some sort of lizard or something.” He heard Nagisa huff as he got up, walking over to their closet, rummaging around for a few moments. Finally, he found what he was looking for, throwing it lazily at Nagisa, he turned in time to see it land square on the other boy’s head.

Nagisa yanked the article of clothing off his head almost immediately, looking down at it. “What’s this,” he asked, looking at Karma with a slightly piqued expression.

“It’s a hoodie, did you even look at it?” Karma snorted, ignoring the funny feeling in his gut at the way Nagisa’s face turned red in frustration. He walked back over to his bed, collapsing down on it.

“Well obviously Karma,” Nagisa said, rolling his eyes. “I mean why are you giving it to me?”

Karma glanced over, before closing his eyes and shrugging. “You’re cold. I’m not using it. I’d like to not wake up to a roommate who died of hypothermia in the morning.”

Nagisa scoffed, sitting upright as he started to slip the hoodie on. “Whatever, thanks,” his friend said with a wry smile. Karma watched as Nagisa wandered back into the bathroom, looking over the piece of clothing.

It had been a gift from his parents, something they had brought back from one of their trips to America. He didn’t wear it too often, finding the maroon color to clash too much with his hair. However it was very warm, with a nice fleece texture on the inside, perfect for Nagisa.

There was a ‘flick’ as Nagisa flipped the bathroom switch off, seemingly satisfied as he crawled into his bed, pulling up his covers. “Night Karma,” he said, eyes already closed.

“Don’t let the bed bugs bite,” Karma responded as he rolled over, laughing smugly as he felt a pillow hit his back.

A screeching alarm blared through the building, immediately startling both boys awake.

“What the hell is going on?” Karma had to yell over the noise, already out of bed and grabbing his shoes.

“I swear, this better not turn out like the last trip,” Nagisa replied from Karma’s side, barely any traces of sleep left in the other’s alert eyes.

Karma snorted as he opened the door. “I think I’d be alright with that if I got to see you in that outfit again.”

“Shut it,” Nagisa pushed him out the door, a little more forceful than necessary.

They hurried down the halls, eventually coming to the lobby, finding Karasuma holding the doors open, ushering some of their classmates outside. Bitch-sensei approached from the other end of the room, followed by Hara and Fuwa.

“Everyone outside, now,” the woman commanded, catching sight of the two boys. Karma glanced at Nagisa, the other seemingly already having noticed the edge to Bitch-sensei's tone.

Hushed conversations could be heard as the two boys headed outside.

“What’s happening?”

“Do you think someone tried to break in or something?”

“Man, I don’t want a repeat of the last class trip, that blew.”

Karma did his best to ignore the antsiness he felt just standing there outside with the rest of his class. If something really was wrong then they were just sitting ducks here, waiting outside. He didn’t notice he had been tapping his foot impatiently until he felt a hand rest on his forearm. Nagisa sent him a reassuring look when he finally looked down. With a sigh he stopped his foot. At least he had Nagisa. If anything, Karma knew the other was feeling similarly.

At some point the screeching stopped, the dark forest becoming quiet once more. Karasuma and Bitch-sensei walked out and Karma watched as the blonde woman slipped a discreet knife back into her black silk robe.

“I-is everything okay?” Okuda asked, her hands clasped together worriedly. Karma watched as her black hair blew in the wind, she had released them from her twin braids. In the back of his mind,he thought it made her look sort of like a grim reaper.

“Everything’s fine from the looks of it, just a faulty alarm. Irina and I searched the entire building and your Koro-sensei surveyed the surroundings.” Karasuma looked over each of them as he spoke.

A wave of relief washed over the students, a few of them audibly breathing out. Sure most of them could handle themselves if need be but honestly it was the middle of the night, Karma was pretty sure they all had better things to be doing.

“You're sure it’s nothing?” Kayano asked, biting her lip.

“Positive. We’ve taken extra precautions since last time, and since this is a military base there are plenty of surveillance cameras with agents watching us at any given time. We’d be notified immediately if anything were to go awry.” His tone was a little softer as he spoke to the green haired girl, watching her nod along apprehensively.

“You brats are all safe,” Bitch-sensei said, pulling her robe closer around her body. “Go back to your rooms and get some sleep.” With that she turned, striding back into the large building, causing Karasuma to make a noise between a sigh and a scoff.

There were murmurs as the class looked to each other, a few of them yawning. Then Isogai whistled lowly. “He must be pretty tired, huh?”

Karma looked over to the class representative, who, in turn, was looking at him. Or actually his arm. Confused, Karma looked down only to see Nagisa dead on his feet, his hand still wrapped around Karma’s arm, albeit with a bit less pressure than before. His head hung low, eyes closed and his lips slightly parted.

“Is that your hoodie Karma?” Kurahashi was looking at them with a kind smile. “It definitely looks way too big to be Nagisa’s.”

“Hm, yeah it is,” Karma responded as casually as he could while ignoring the slight heat he felt on his face. “Turns out he really does run cold blooded.” He poked his friend in the side and Nagisa didn’t move an inch.

Maehara laughed. “At least you guys look good together.”

“Yeah, I mean definition of power couple!” Nakamura joined in, a ruthless grin on her face.

“Eh, what’s that supposed to mean?” Karma said, eyeing the two blondes. Nobody noticed as Karasuma slipped back inside, it being much too late to deal with class 3-E’s antics.

“Well,” Sugaya cocked his head, looking up thoughtfully. “You can't deny you both work well together.”

“And? We’re all supposed to work well together, or did you forget?”

“Well yeah, but it’s like you guys take it to a whole other level,” Kanzaki giggled. “It's like you’re connected at the hip!”

“Yeah, and it's not like we haven’t all seen the way you guys look at each other,” Okano said with a hand on her hip, smirking. A murmur of agreement came from the rest of the class, and Karma was growing increasingly unappreciative of the way the class was seemingly ganging up on him.

His eyes narrowed. “And how is it that we look at each other?” He saw a few of them glance at each other before laughing, most of them already turning to head back in to their cozy beds.

Nakamura walked up to him, clapping him on the back. “Ah, you’ll figure it out Karma, good luck!” She sent him a wink before marching back to the main building.

Soon it was just him and Nagisa left outside. Karma looked down once more at his shorter friend. Nagisa hadn’t so much as moved through that whole conversation, in fact it barely looked liked he was breathing beneath the hoodie that engulfed him. The other boy took a larger breath in then, breathing out with a light sound. Karma narrowed his eyes. We don’t look at each other weird, he resolved, despite the way his heart beat a little faster as he watched the sleeping boy. Ultimately though, he decided it was much too late to be questioning his entire relationship with his best friend and decided it was time to go back inside.

“Hey, Nagisa,” Karma said, shaking the boy lightly, causing the other to blink wearily after a moment. “We gotta get back to the room, you can’t just sleep standing all night.”

Nagisa seemed to register where he was then, eyes widening as he let go of Karma's arm. Why does he miss that warmth?

“S-sorry! I don’t know why I've been so—” He punctuated his sentence with a wide yawn, “Tired lately.”

Karma sighed with a smirk. “Yeah, whatever. Let’s just get back to the room already. If I thought you were gonna get hypothermia before, then you’ll definitely get it now.” He heard Nagisa mutter something that sounded particularly colorful under his breath and chuckled to himself, already walking back inside with his hands in his pajama pockets.

Clouds started rolling in the next night, thankfully after all the lessons and training had completed for the day, right before dinner. Nagisa’s knee throbbed dully as he picked at his food. He had scraped it on a hike his group had taken earlier. Koro-sensei had wanted to show their group how beautiful the mountain range was and arranged for them to eat their lunch their before headed back down.

Kayano was sat next to him at the dining table, talking Sugino and Kanzaki’s ears off about something she had seen on the hike earlier. Her hands flew about dramatically as she talked, a stray one hitting Nagisa’s shoulder.

“Whoops! I’m sorry Nagisa, are you okay?” Kayano looked to him apologetically. “How’s your knee by the way, is it feeling any better? First your nose and now this, you must be hitting a stroke of bad luck.”

Nagisa blushed as she brought up his less than impressive injury from yesterday. “O-oh, uh, yeah it’s doing fine. Doesn’t even hurt anymore!” He smiled, gaze flicking to his friends briefly before returning to his plate.

Kayano gave him a strange look. “I’m glad it feels better, are you sure you’re okay though? You keep staring off into space.”

“Yeah, and you’re picking at your food, what’s up? Talk to us man,” Sugino piped up, shoving a bite into his mouth as he eyed Nagisa worriedly.

Truthfully, Nagisa wasn’t doing okay, though it had nothing to do with either of his injuries. He knew how to handle a little pain. No, this all had to do with his best friend, the red-haired sadist who was sat just a few seats down the table. He was talking to Nakamura currently, clearly tormenting Okajima over something the other boy had said.

With sleep coming to him in such short bursts lately, it wasn’t surprising that he had fallen asleep standing last night. It just probably wasn’t the smartest thing for him to hold onto Karma as he did so, considering his longtime crush on the taller boy.

It had started in junior high, though back then he thought it was simple admiration. Karma was so…much. So cocky, so cool, so violent, So handsome (though he wasn’t about to go and tell him that, lest his ego grow even larger). As they’d gotten older and they’d rekindled their friendship though, the feelings had returned tenfold and a tension had started to grow between them. Nothing bad per se, but… different.

Karma had always been a very physical person, picking fights and whatnot, however this also spread to his friendships. It was always a hand on your arm, him ruffling your hair, an arm slung over you shoulder, et cetera. And Nagisa had certainly noticed how much more physical Karma had been with him recently.

It made his chest ache and his heart beat like he was running a mile. Nagisa knew he was crushing. Bad. But he couldn’t find it within himself to do anything about it. Something, or rather, everything, about Karma just drove him crazy. He wasn’t about to go and admit that to him though, and ruin his longest standing friendship. He’s simply resigned himself to staring at Karma from afar and sharing timid smiles with him.

“I’m alright guys, really,” Nagisa said finally. “My head is just somewhere else right now.” He watched as the three shared a look before looking back to him.

It was Kanzaki who spoke next. “Nagisa,” her eyes were kind as she smiled at him. “Just… Remember we’re always here to talk when you need it, okay?”

Nagisa knew his face had started to turn pink. It was always strange being reminded that the people in his life right now, his class, genuinely cared for him. He felt a little guilty keeping this secret from his friends, wishing he could tell them. Someday, maybe.

“Of course,” he replied, averting his gaze as he scooped up a small bite of rice and ate it. He felt their eyes on him for a few more moments before Sugino mercifully brought up another topic, a band he had been listening to lately. Nagisa was incredibly grateful for the distraction as he chewed his food, occasionally finding himself glancing back at Karma. Butterflies forming in his stomach as he watched the other laugh and wreak havoc on those he sat next to.

Nagisa screwed his eyes shut after a while, a single thought coursing through his head: you’re so fucked.

Moonlight illuminated the small boarding room, creating deep shadows in the corners. Nagisa had been tossing and turning all night, but this time he didn’t think he’d be able to get back to sleep again. Call it a hunch. With a small huff, he rolled over, reaching out for his phone to check the time.

3:07 A.M.

With a deep sigh Nagisa sat up, smiling to himself as he vaguely recalled Hazama calling the time the witching hour in his mind. He swung his legs over the side of his bed, casting a quick glance over to his roommate as he did so. Karma was lying on his side, facing away from Nagisa, but he could still tell the other was asleep from the shallow slow breaths he was taking. Good. While Nagisa didn’t particularly like getting awoken after only a few hours of sleep each night, he did appreciate the quiet alone time that came with it, especially considering how hectic his life was at some points.

Nagisa stood, brushing a hand through his hair as he did so. He had taken it down before he went to bed. It always surprised him how long his hair had gotten, despite the fact he literally saw it everyday. Even at seventeen his mother still wouldn’t let him cut it, which, unfortunately, was to be expected. It would never stop him from hoping for the exact opposite though.

The moon seemed to welcome him in as Nagisa shuffled over to the window. With his arms crossed he rested them against the windowsill, watching the trees sway in the light wind. Full moon… Makes sense why it’s so bright.

Nagisa wasn’t sure how much time had passed when he finally heard groaning come from his right.

“Mnng, Nagisa?” Nagisa turned to see Karma rolled over, rubbing a hand down his face. “What’re you doing? What time is it?”

With a yawn Karma reached down for his phone, presumably to check the time. Nagisa just watched as he groaned again, seemingly unsatisfied with the answer his phone gave him as he threw it back down and sat up.

“Ah, sorry, did I wake you?” Nagisa worried a loose thread on the hoodie he was wearing. It was Karma's, he decided to sleep in it again tonight since it was still freezing in their room ( and definitely not because it was Karma's, of course).

Karma hummed as he looked back over to him. “Nah, don’t worry about it.” Nagisa looked away as the other stretched, doing his best to ignore the way his lean muscles shifted under the shirt he was wearing. “I just have a hard time staying asleep sometimes, been that way since I was a kid.” He had shifted his body so that he faced Nagisa as he spoke.

A chuckle escaped Nagisa’s lips before he could stop it. “I know how that feels,” he said, leaning against the windowsill. Karma raised an eyebrow at him, and they stared at each other for longer what felt really necessary.

“Oh?” Karma finally said, leaning back on his bed as his arms supported him. “And tell me dearest Nagisa, what are you doing awake at this hour?”

Nagisa chose to ignore the heat of the blush that was slowly rising onto his cheeks and instead cleared his throat, glancing to the side. “I-I’ve just been having trouble sleeping recently… Is all…” He looked back to Karma sheepishly, just in time to see the others face twitch incongruously, almost too fast for Nagisa to catch, before his face shifted into that of a smirk.

“‘S that why you fell asleep on me during the bus ride?”

Nagisa nearly choked. “What?” He swore he could feel his eyes about to bug out of his head.

Karma laughed, flinging his head back. “Yeah, you were all over my shoulder, it was pretty c—” he stopped himself. Karma's smile never fell but Nagisa noticed as the corner of his mouth tightened. “It was just so unexpected from a goody goody like you, y’know?”

Nagisa’s mind ran. He had fallen asleep on Karma?! Since when? He knew he had fallen asleep on the bus but… Damn it. All he remembered was waking up with his nose slammed into the seat in front of him.

“Well… Even so, I could say the same about you, Karma!” Nagisa said with what he could only assume to be a horrified face. He knew it was a lie, Karma had fallen asleep, but not on him, but it was all he had in that moment.

Karma froze. “What do you mean?”

“Y-you fell asleep on me first, idiot!” Nagisa took a few steps towards the other boy indignantly. He knew the gears were turning in the other boy’s head, most likely already picking up on his lie.

Then Karma smirked, looking much too pleased.

“Says the guy wearing my hoodie.”

It was Nagisa’s turn to freeze. He was wearing Karma’s hoodie, huh? Nagisa knew he was absolutely blushing.

“Y-you’re the one who let me wear it!” Nagisa hissed, suddenly all too aware of what time it was , trying his best not to wake his other classmates.

“Well you didn’t have to wear it,” Karma replied, waving Nagisa’s accusation off dismissively.

He grit his teeth, hands in fists at his side. “God you’re so annoying,” he said with a sigh, closing his eyes. With a turn he started walking towards his bed.

“What are you gonna do about it?” He stopped, turning his head back to see Karma sitting up fully, cockiness embodied.

Nagisa narrowed his eyes. “Excuse me?”

“You heard me,” the other boy said with a chuckle, leaning forward. “What are you gonna do about it?”

Something in Nagisa snapped as he turned and launched himself at Karma, slamming into him. They both fell backwards on the bed, arms and legs flailing as they began wrestling. Nagisa had the upper hand at first, getting on top of Karma, however the other boy was physically much stronger than him. After a bit of struggling Karma had flipped them, pinning Nagisa to the bed. He tried to wriggle out but with Karma’s strong arms holding his wrists down and sitting on his legs there wasn’t much he could do, except for give up with a frustrated sigh.

It was then he realized his next predicament: he was being pinned down by Karma on his bed, the others face mere inches from his own. A small bead of sweat dripped down Karma’s face, he watched it carve a path down his cheekbones before it fell off his chin. Karma’s hair was a mess and he knew his wasn’t much better.

They stared at each other, both breathing hard, before Karma started laughing. It wasn’t like his usual boisterous one. This was quiet and earnest and incredibly fond in a way that made Nagisa’s heart race. His head fell into the hoodie Nagisa was wearing, hands loosening as he did so. He found himself simultaneously glad Karma wasn’t looking at him anymore, lest he see the incredibly red face he was currently no doubt sporting, and also disappointed he was unable to see the others genuine face. Hesitantly, Nagisa lifted his hands, draping them over Karma’s back as he began tracing lines into the boy’s back.

They stayed like that for a few moments, Karma's laughter eventually dying out but not making any moves to get up. It was… Nice. Definitely not their usual normal. But it could be… Nagisa immediately sniped that thought.

Eventually, Karma lifted his head, resting his chin on Nagisa’s chest. He could tell even in the dark that the others cheeks held a pinky hue to them, making Nagisa smile. Karma watched him for a moment, before getting up with a huff, scooting off him until he was rested against the backboard of the bed. Almost immediately he felt coldness wash over him, wishing they were still touching. Instead of moping though, he simply decided to sit up, criss-crossing his legs.

It felt like forever until one of them spoke again, then: “I haven’t seen you with your hair down in a while.”

Nagisa looked to the floor, his hands fidgeting in his lap. “Ah, yeah I don’t let it down much anymore…”

Karma hummed in response, he could hear him tapping his fingers against the backboard’s wood absent mindedly. After a moment he looked back up, coming to find the redhead already looking at him, making him look back down in embarrassment.

Being friends with Karma was… Difficult. They got along like a house on fire; similar interests, similar less-than-impressive home lives, similar humor, and yet they were so different. They knew each other well enough that they could finish each others sentences if they wanted, but, as with all friendships, there were those moments when one of them was unreadable. This was one of them. Nagisa wouldn’t trade their relationship for anything, but he really wished he could read his friend’s mind in times like this. Especially when Karma was looking at him like that, so scrutinizingly.

Suddenly Karma's voice broke Nagisa out of his thoughts. “Can I brush it?”

Nagisa whipped his head up, searching Karma's face intently. “Uh, you’re hair I mean…” He said, looking a little shocked himself, his face turning a shade of red similar to his hair.

The only response Nagisa provided was a few owlish blinks with furrowed brows, worrying his lip as he thought. The only person who'd ever brushed his hair was his mother and she… well, those were never happy occasions. But this was Karma. Karma wouldn’t treat him like his mother does. He doesn’t. Plain and simple.

“Sorry, that’s weird. Actually just ignore what I s—”

“No it’s okay,” He interrupted Karma, watching the other boy rub his neck, clearly embarrassed. “I’ll go grab my brush.” Nagisa’s response surprised both of them, as they stared at each other for a few moments before he got up, slowly walking to the bathroom.

When he returned to the main room he saw Karma sitting where Nagisa once was. “It’ll be better this way, with the light from outside and all…” He trailed off, glancing to the side. Nagisa nodded, looking outside. The moon was nearly down but there was still plenty of pervading light. He walked back to the bed, handing Karma the brush and situating himself in front of the taller boy.

He held in a flinch as Karma started on his hair, closing his eyes and taking a deep breath. Nagisa knew his hair was bad, tangled from sleep and from their wrestling, but he found himself surprised at the gentleness being employed. Whenever his mother did his hair it was nothing like this. He knew she always tried to be gentle with her ‘little girl’, but he would always end up getting reprimanded for how tangled his hair got while she pulled the brush almost sadistically through his hair as he would struggle to hold in his winces.

This was different though. Karma sectioned out his hair, starting from the bottom, working the tangles out skillfully. Softly. Occasionally a warm finger would brush against his neck, causing him to shiver, to which Karma would utter a quiet apology. Never in his life did Nagisa think that something like this could be so relaxing for him. He was so relaxed in fact he almost missed it when his friend spoke next.

“Do you mind if I do something with your hair?” Karma asked, running a hand through Nagisa's now smooth hair.

For a moment Nagisa hesitated, ultimately deciding though that he’s already made it this far, he might as well let Karma do what he wants. He muttered a small ‘sure’, handing over the two hairbands he kept on his wrist when they weren’t holding up his hair.

“Just nothing too girly, alright?” Nagisa moved his head a little to the side, trying to catch his friend’s eye.

“Don’t worry, I know the drill,” Karma laughed, soft again. He felt as Karma separated his hair into two parts, like when Nagisa did when putting up his pigtails, and watched the morning sunlight spill into their room.

“So, uh,” Nagisa started, feeling as Karma started to braid down his scalp. “How do you know how to do this? Like, hair and stuff…”

He thought his friend didn’t hear him at first, or was ignoring him until he spoke up, tying off the first braid at the atlas of his neck, leaving plenty of hair left unbraided in a sort of pigtail. “Technically, you can thank my parents, though personally I wouldn’t go that far.” Karma started on the second braid.

“Care to elaborate?” Nagisa asked.

“And you say I’m annoying,” Karma replied with a huff, and he could practically hear the eye roll in his voice. “They put me in this center as a kid, back when they were still around. I’m pretty sure it was meant for ‘troubled’ kids.” Nagisa saw Karma put up quotations from his peripherals. “I remember one of the girls tried to set her parents house on fire,” Karma snorted. “Good for her.”

“That doesn’t really explain your hair fetish,” Nagisa said dryly. He knew Karma's relationship with his parents was strained, so it was honestly surprising to hear that they had cared enough at some point to get him help for his ‘tendencies’.

“Not. A fetish.” Karma defended, making Nagisa chuckle. “It was more of a daycare than anything, and I didn’t really have friends there. There were these girls though, I think they were a little older than me, I think they pitied me.” He tied off the second braid, lightly brushing through the remaining hair with his fingers. “They always wanted to drag me with them to hang out.”

Nagisa turned to face Karma now that the other had finished on his hair, bringing his knees up to his chest to rest his head on them. “They would do these braiding train things, and would always get frustrated since one of them would have to be left out.” Karma's face stayed neutral as they spoke, but Nagisa could see the subtle way his lip quirked up as he spoke. “They basically forced me to learn how to braid so none of them would get left out,” he finished, running a hand through his hair. “Pretty embarrassing, huh?”

Nagisa smiled. “Nah, it’s pretty cute actually.”

He watched Karma sputter with a laugh. “Cute? Nagisa, buddy, you must be out of your mind. Nothing about me is cute.”

I beg to differ. Well. He wasn’t about to go and boost Karma's ego that easy. “You’re right,” he said with an easy smile. “You’re as cute as one of those beetles Kurahashi is always talking about.”

Karma scoffed, kicking out at him while Nagisa laughed. “I’m not that ugly either!” They made playful half-hearted attacks at each other until they were both giggling. Nagisa came to his senses as he heard birds singing outside, morning light filtering gently into their room.

“Hey what time is it?” Nagisa asked, feeling his brows furrow.

He watched as Karma reached down for the phone he had discarded earlier before swearing. “Shit it’s only a quarter until breakfast,” Karma said as he immediately sat up straight.

“We should get ready then,” Nagisa replied, already up and walking to the bathroom; he hated being late to things. He heard Karma agree from behind him.

“You can redo your hair if you want, by the way,” he heard Karma say from the other room. “I’ll try not to take it personally.”

Nagisa rolled his eyes with a smile as he looked in the mirror, examining his new hairstyle. Two braids trailed down either side of his scalp ending in pigtails. It definitely wasn’t his usual style but…

“I think I’ll keep it for now,” he said, bringing a hand to the ends of one of the pigtails, playing with it. His bangs framed his face nicely with this new look, so he’d keep it, just for today.

They both got ready quickly, sharing the sink to brush their teeth, changing into their daytime clothes. It was a minute after seven when Nagisa started to lace up his shoes, according to the clock on his phone.

“Ready?” Karma asked, finishing buttoning up his shirt and smoothing it out.

“Ready,” Nagisa smiled at him as he stood back up. They left the room together, quickly walking down the halls to the dining room. A majority of their classmates were already there when they arrived, talking to each other sleepily.

“Whoa Nagisa, nice hair!” Kayano exclaimed with her usual excitement as Nagisa sat down next to her.

“Ah, thanks!” He smiled at her, finding himself momentarily surprised as Karma sat in the seat next to him. He glanced to the other boy only to find him already speaking with Nakamura.

“It looks great,” Kanzaki said from her spot on Kayano’s other side. “What’s the occasion though?”

Nagisa knew some of his other classmates were also curious, as they watched him carefully. “Just wanted to try something new,” he replied with a shrug.

“And what better time to try something new than on a school trip, good morning boys and girls!” Koro-sensei’s voice boomed as he zoomed past the students to the front of the room.

“Good morning Koro-sensei,” they all replied with varying levels of enthusiasm. He took them all through their morning announcements as breakfast was brought out. Nagisa munched his food happily afterwards, listening to the chatter of his friends. Occasionally, Karma's fingers would brush against his, causing his heart to do backflips in his chest.

A voice in the back of Nagisa's head spoke up, for probably the millionth time since he’d realized his feeling for his best friend: You’re sooooo fucked.

“Hey Karma, wait up!”

Karma looked back to see Nakamura running after him, waving. He watched as she carefully tread the rocks on the side of the river they were on. Koro-sensei had set up their group for canoeing today, and they had just finished, their classmates hauling the small boats onto their storage racks in the boathouse.

He stood, waiting for Nakamura to catch up, not inviting her per se, but they were partners in crime, he wasn’t about to just ignore her. “What’s up?” He asked as she approached. “Come up with another stunt you need help with?”

“No, nothing like that,” Nakamura laughed, a wide grin plastered on her face. She seemed uneasy, though she was doing well to hide it. “I just had something I wanted to talk with you about.”

Paired with her disposition, the question raised a red flag in Karma’s mind, but his curiosity won out. “Shoot,” he said, eyeing her wearily.

She bit her lip, glancing back at their classmates, who were a good twenty feet away. Whatever she wanted to say she didn’t want anyone else to hear. Odd. “Come on Nakamura, spit it out.”

The blonde girl seemed to steel herself, straightening her back as she looked him in the eye.

“Have you told Nagisa you like him yet?”

…

“What?” Was all he could think to say, as he narrowed his eyes. Nakamura was long used to his short temper, so she didn’t seem all too fazed by his short tone.

Well,” she started, kicking at a rock beneath her foot. “It’s clear you have a crush on him. I’m curious if you ever plan on telling him, you know, as your wing woman.” She smirked at the last part, seemingly attempting to lighten the conversation.

Karma's mind raced. Crush? On Nagisa? No, that didn’t make any sense. Sure they’d grown closer since rekindling their friendship, but it was normal for friends to be affectionate with each other right? It’s not exactly like he had a lot of experiences with friendships but... Their closeness was normal.

He knew he was blushing as he responded. “I don’t have a crush on Nagisa,” he hissed quietly, leaning forward.

“Suuure you don’t,” Nakamura said, rolling her eyes. “And I’m secretly a werewolf. Come on Karma, I know you’re not dumb.”

Something snapped in him. “Nakamura,” Karma growled, taking a step towards her. “I don’t know where you got this idea, but you need to drop it.” Perhaps he was getting a little too defensive, but Karma simply couldn’t stand it when people assumed things about him. Especially when it had to do with the company he kept.

Bless Nakamura’s brave heart, she didn’t back down, instead glaring at him with crossed arms. They stared at each other for a few moments, both getting increasingly frustrated, before she spoke, sighing. “He likes you too, you know.”

Now that was just a plain lie. Nagisa? Having a crush on him? No chance. He was much too smart and intuitive to have a crush on Karma, of all people in his life. Karma was a time bomb, everyone knew it. He knew it for fucks sake. He had violent outbursts and actively enjoyed causing trouble. This wasn’t something people found attractive. (And yet he couldn't help but think about how Nagisa had stuck with him almost the whole time. It was Karma who created the distance.)

“Listen, we can plan something out,” Nakamura said, interrupting his thoughts. Her eyes looked uncharacteristically sincere. “We can set something up, I can help y—”

“I don’t need your help!” Karma shouted, cutting her off. His teeth were bared, similar to that of a wolf. Or a cornered animal.

Birds chirped and sang in the distance, creating a soundtrack to their epic stare down. Karma could hear the gentle lapping of water against the shore, and decided to use it to his advantage to help calm him down.

“Whatever,” Nakamura scoffed, turning to leave. “Don’t say I never did anything for you.”

He glared after her as she stormed off back to their classmates. Where the hell had she gotten that idea from? He made a noise between a growl and a yell, beginning to walk down the riverbank; he needed to clear his head. Occasionally, Karma would kick a rock as he mulled over Nakamura’s words.

Ever since he could remember he’d had this incredible craving to be close to Nagisa, only wavering that fateful day in junior high when he had felt Nagisa's unbridled bloodlust. If Nagisa so wished it, he could kill Karma in an instant. At the time that fact had scared him but now… it was sort of exciting. Everything about Nagisa excited him, intrigued him. He had tried distancing himself from the other and couldn’t do it, it was simply impossible to stop himself from wanting to get closer to him. Nagisa was so kind, so genuine, so unlike Karma in nearly every way, and yet there was still a pull he felt towards him. It almost felt intoxicating.

Slowly, Karma started walking further into the forest, away from the river. He thought of that morning, of wrestling and play fighting with Nagisa, and of brushing his hair in the soft glow of the morning light. He thought of the incredibly warm feeling it had invoked inside him. It was so strong, almost like there was some sort of animal inside of him, writhing and trying to claw its way out of his chest. At times it was almost ticklish. Maybe something was wrong with him. Maybe he should see a doctor.

“Karma?”

Karma nearly jumped out of his skin, whipping around to find the source of the voice calling out to him, though he already knew who it was. Just his luck.

“What’re you doing out here? Isn’t you group canoeing today?” Nagisa asked, cocking his head to the side. His wide blue eyes seared holes into Karma’s skin, it felt like he was seeing right through him. Nagisa’s hair was still in the braids from this morning, and Karma tried to ignore the way it felt like his chest was constricting.

“Uh, yeah. We finished early,” Karma replied, crossing his arms and looking away from the other boy. “Just wanted to get away for a bit.”

“Is everything okay?” Nagisa took a step forward, a concerned look on his face. “You look a little sick, should I grab someone?”

This caused Karma to let out a dry laugh. “Don’t worry about it,” he replied, turning to leave. “I’ll see you later, alright?”

He began to walk away when a hand suddenly gripped his shoulder. “Wait!” Karma paused, looking over his shoulder at the shorter boy. His face looked way too caring right now, too concerned. The gnawing feeling in his stomach returned, and he did his best to push it down as Nakamura's words rang in his head: Have you told Nagisa you like him yet?

“What do you want?” Karma spoke, harsher than intended and he held back a cringe. His mind raced, barely any coherent thoughts floating through his mind.

Nagisa let go of Karma's arm, hurt flashing through his eyes, though he was quick to regain himself. “What happened?” Nagisa prodded. “Talk to me, Karma.”

Karma couldn’t tell if his face was growing hot from anger or from the gentle tone of Nagisa’s voice. He really wasn’t in the mood for this after his conversation with Nakamura, or at least, he wasn’t prepared for this. “Fuck off, Nagisa.” Karma said coldly, shrugging his friend’s hand off his shoulder.

He was about to walk away when Nagisa jumped in front of him. “What’s your deal, Karma?” He asked, clearly frustrated, hands bunched into fists at his sides. “Why’re you acting so cold all of a sudden?” Karma watched as Nagisa bit his lip, looking to the ground. “…We were fine this morning weren’t we?”

If Karma really listened, he was sure he could hear Nagisa’s heartbeat, fast and thrumming through his chest. They were fine this morning. In fact, they were perfect. Karma wouldn’t mind it if for the rest of his life his days started the same way it had that morning. “Just,” Karma spoke, closing his eyes so he wouldn’t have to see the other’s crestfallen face. “Leave me alone.” And with that he pushed past Nagisa, his heart tight in his chest. He knew he was being mean, but… something in him was telling him it was time to distance himself again, the scared, insecure, easily agitated and violent junior high kid he used to be rising to the surface of his brain.

Then a rock hit Karma’s back. With a sigh, he turned, facing the blue haired boy, closer than he thought. “Are you seriously doing this again?” Nagisa asked, voice wobbly but unwilling to back down. He stared Karma down, his blue eyes sharp.

“Doing what,” Karma asked, narrowing his eyes, and before he could blink Nagisa rushed him. He shoved Karma, not hard enough for him to fall, but enough to knock him off balance.

“If you’re sick of me you know you can just,” Nagisa paused, then scoffed, jaw tight. “Fucking tell me, instead of, you know, ignoring me all over again.”

“I never s—”

“Just get it over with and say it already!” Nagisa yelled, approaching Karma again, causing him to take a few steps back. “Just tell me, okay? I can handle it,” a choked laugh escaped Nagisa’s throat. “J-just go on and reject me so I can move on and—” Nagisa pushed into Karma again, jabbing a finger into his chest, pushing him until they both slipped.

It happened so suddenly Karma barely registered what was happening, one moment in a fight with Nagisa, the next he was rolling downhill, twigs and rocks colliding into their bodies.

Finally, they came to a stop at the base of the hill they were apparently on. Karma groaned as Nagisa landed on top of him, shaking. This sent alarm bells ringing in Karma’s head. “Hey, hey, are you hurt?” He asked, shaking the smaller boy slightly.

Nagisa made a small noise then looked up at him, tears rolling down his face. There were a few bloody scratches littering his face, and his lip was bleeding. Karma tried to sit up, wincing a bit as his back pinched in pain, but eventually he succeeded, reaching out to rub his friend’s back soothingly as Nagisa fell into his chest, small cries turning into sobs.

“Please,” Nagisa gasped out between cries, voice shaking. “Please, don't leave again.”

Oh.

That made a lot of sense.

God, Karma felt like such an asshole. He was an asshole. What kind of friend pushed away the closest person to them when they got scared.

Nagisa's cries softened after a while, Karma's hands never leaving Nagisa’s back, but he knew the other was still crying judging by the wetness pervading his shirt and the shakes coming from the other boy. He felt his heart break a little as he held his friend. He had caused this. He did this to Nagisa. This was all his fault.

“Nagisa,” Karma spoke breathily, bringing his head down closer to his friend’s. “I’m here, okay?” In his mind Karma cursed himself, he was never good at comforting people, but damn it if he wasn’t going to try. For Nagisa. He continued to talk to the other boy reassuringly, bringing Nagisa into a tight hug cautiously.

“I won’t leave you again,” Karma said, surprising himself with the sincerity in his tone as he rocked them back and forth. He found himself not just saying that, and instead genuinely wanting to stay by Nagisa’s side. He doesn't want to leave again. He doesn’t want to make Nagisa cry like this again.

He wanted to make Nagisa smile and laugh and spoil him rotten with all the love he could muster and…hm. Uh oh. Perhaps Nakamura was onto something after all. Her words rang in Karma's head, it’s clear you have a crush on him. Clear to everyone except himself. How ironic.

Karma blushed, thankful Nagisa’s face was still buried in his shoulder. How many times had he been so obvious? Playing with Nagisa’s hair, falling asleep on him, always keeping him close, if not within arms reach than in eyesight whenever he could help it. Shit.

After a few minutes of pondering his life choices, Karma regained his senses. There was still a distraught boy in his arms, and he needed to do everything in his power to fix that. “Hey, Nagisa?” There was a shift as Nagisa moved, so Karma took that to mean he was listening. “Let’s get back to the room, okay? You’re bleeding, you know.”

Nagisa nodded against Karma’s shoulder with a sniffle. He seemed smaller than usual as he sat up, back slumped and eyes still puffy. Karma grabbed his friends arms gently, pulling them both to their feet.

The walk back to the room was quiet, but quick. Thankfully, where they had fallen was only a couple minutes walk back to the main building. As they entered the room, Karma sat Nagisa down on the desk chair. “I’m going to grab the first aid kit, don’t move alright?” He didn’t leave until Nagisa nodded despondently, gaze fixed on the carpet. Karma made a point to hurry back to the main room after retrieving the kit from the bathroom, kneeling in front of Nagisa to assess the damage. Luckily it was mostly scrapes and bruises, though there were a few puncture marks, likely from some rogue sticks.

Quietly, Karma got to work, warning Nagisa of the sting of the hydrogen peroxide before settling it against the wounds. Nagisa didn’t so much as flinch, but Karma knew he was being watched through the whole ordeal.

“How do your legs feel?” Karma asked as he wiped Nagisa’s lip down. Despite the amount of blood present on the others face and now on the cloth, it was only slightly busted. “You didn’t sprain anything did you?”

It took a moment but slowly Nagisa shook his head, not meeting Karma’s gaze as he spoke quietly. “I think I might’ve rolled my ankle, but it’s not bad.”

“Do you want me to grab some ice for it?” With a frown he poked at the hem of Nagisa’s pants. Again, his friend only shook his head, quickly denying any aid.

Karma had started putting away the supplies when Nagisa finally spoke.

“Did you mean it?” When Karma looked up he saw Nagisa’s hands fidgeting in his lap. “What you said back there… about not leaving again.”

Karma watched him fidget for a moment, before taking Nagisa's hands in his own, surprising them both at his boldness. Nagisa whipped his head up, looking Karma in the eyes for the first time since their tumble, shocked.

“Nagisa…” Their eyes met and Karma could feel his heart beat a mile a minute as he fell into those irises, sky blue and beautiful. “I’m never, ever, going to leave you again. I mean it.”

There was a pause as Karma’s words hung in the air, then Nagisa smiled sadly. “Don’t make promises you can’t keep.”

Suddenly, a strong wave of determination came over him, and Karma lifted one of Nagisa’s hands to his lips. He closed his eyes as he pressed his lips to the soft surface, relishing in the quiet gasp that came from his friend.

After a few moments Karma leaned back up, in time to catch Nagisa blushing like he’d never seen it before, mouth agape. Karma quirked a smile. “Does that reassure you?”

Nagisa’s mouth opened and closed a few times, clearly at a loss for words. The blue haired boy then cleared his throat, looking down again, this time out of embarrassment. He paused as he saw Karma’s arms. “You’re injured too,” Nagisa said finally, frowning. “Let me return the favor?”

Karma only hummed, scooting back on the floor to make room for Nagisa as he crawled out of the desk chair, settling himself on the ground next to Karma and reaching for the first aid supplies. They sat in a comfortable silence as Nagisa bandaged his arms, then afterwards, his hands. Karma watched him all the while, admiring his handiwork.

“I’m sorry,” Karma said, making Nagisa jump. “For being such a dick.”

Nagisa only stared for a moment, then he rolled his eyes and laughed, softly. “Don’t worry, I'm pretty used to it by now.” He hesitated, “Just, promise me you’ll try not to be such a huge asshole from now on?”

Karma grinned, crossing a bandaged hand over his heart. “Scouts honor, Nagi.” Nagisa rolled his eyes again, playfully punching Karma in the shoulder with a smirk, but he saw the way his friend's face turned pink.

They talked as Nagisa continued working on his bandages, but through it all Karma couldn't help but dwell on one thought.

What now?

The bonfire crackled as the wind blew gently, blowing stray flames towards Karma's classmates.

“Thank you for being so accommodating children,” Koro-sensei said, a few of his tentacles waggling around. “Our plan was to do this bonfire tomorrow to celebrate our last night here, but since a storm will be rolling in we’ve decided to host it tonight instead!”

It was easy to tune his teacher out as Karma walked, approaching the rest of his class, most of them already sitting around the pit. Isogai and Kataoka were standing near Koro-sensei, holding small logs, sticks, and dry leaves, most likely for kindling he assumed.

“Mind if I sit,” Karma asked as he approached Nakamura, who was chatting with Hazama. Both girls looked to him, equally unimpressed.

Nakamura looked him up and down, taking in the bandages on his arms before speaking. “Do what you want,” she flipped her hair over her shoulder, returning to her conversation with Hazama, something about an author they both liked.

His eyes roamed the small crowd, catching on the shock of blue hair belonging to his best friend. Currently Nagisa was chatting with Sugino, laughing at something the black haired boy said. After Nagisa had finished bandaging Karma up earlier Kayano knocked on their door. Apparently she had gotten worried when she couldn’t find Nagisa and went to look for him. Karma hadn’t seen him since, but it looked like he was doing better than earlier, smiling and laughing with his friends.

Honestly, it was for the best Nagisa left when he did, Karma needed time to think. Growing up he’d never been the best with feelings, least of all understanding his own, instead chasing adrenaline highs and finding distractions in his favorite comics and movies. It was easier that way, up until Nagisa came along, toppling his whole system down with it. And now here he was, with a crush on his best friend and another friend he needed to apologize to.

At some point Hazama bid Nakamura farewell, heading over to talk to Terasaka and their group. Nakamura shuffled beside him as the other girl left, crossing her legs. Koro-sensei had placed supplies to make s’mores at the foot of each of the logs, Karma watched as she reached for a marshmallow to roast.

“What do you want, Karma?” Nakamura side eyed him brutally as she stuck a marshmallow onto a metal rod, thrusting it into the flames. Absently, he thought that’s probably what she wanted to do to him right now.

After a few moments Karma sighed. Apologies weren’t his forte either. “Look,” he started, turning away scratching the back of his head to keep him distracted. “I’m… Sorry… About earlier.” Glancing over he saw Nakamura glaring into the fire. “I shouldn’t have snapped at you.”

They sat in silence, letting his apology simmer in the air, the chatter of their class creating a casual soundtrack. “Yeah, well,” Nakamura spoke finally, squishing her roasted marshmallow between two graham crackers and some chocolate. “I should’ve know better too, confronting the most volatile person in class like that probably wasn’t the most tactful idea.” She crunched her s’more, making a pleased sound as she chewed.

Karma smirked, pushing her gently with his shoulder. “Don’t worry about it,” he spoke, then glanced to past the fire. “You were right, anyway.”

Nakamura turned to him, raising a blonde eyebrow. “Oh yeah?”

Karma huffed out a laugh, digging his feet into the grass. “Yeah…” Leaning back he saw Nagisa was looking at him as he spoke to Sugino. Clearly embarrassed at being caught, the other waved nervously and averted his gaze.

Nakamura seemed to have also seen this, looking between the two of them. “What happened to you guys?” She gently pushed the bag of marshmallows towards him as she spoke. When Karma glanced to her she gestured to his arms.

“We went for a little tumble in the forest earlier,” Karma replied with a shrug, taking a marshmallow from the bag and chucking it into his mouth. He saw Nakamura snort out a laugh and roll her eyes from his peripherals.

“You gonna tell him?” She asked after a bit, causing him to wince as he recalled his fight with Nagisa from earlier. He had apologized immediately after, but it didn’t feel right to drop such big information on his friend after that, even if he was all Karma could think about. Talk about emotional whiplash.

“I don’t know if I should,” Karma said with a sigh, resting his head in his hand as he bounced his leg. Looking into the fire he half-heartedly contemplated jumping in to save himself all this trouble.

“And why’s that?”

Why shouldn’t he again? Oh, yeah. “Well, to start, I’m sure he doesn’t like me back.” An indescribable emotion passed of Nakamura’s face as she stared at him. Karma watched as she brought her thumb and forefinger to the bridge of her nose, pinching it and mumbling something to herself quietly.

“Karma,” Nakamura said, staring in down with a tired expression. “I’m only going to tell you this once, so listen up okay?” He watched her with unblinking eyes, causing her to sigh. “Just tell him.” She leaned close, like she was about to share some secret with him. “I can promise you that you won’t regret it.” Karma must not have looked very convinced because she added with a sly grin, “As your wing woman, I would never lead you astray.”

There was no reason for Nakamura to lie to him, at least not about this. Karma nodded slowly as he digested her words. He knew she was right. The truth was going to come out at some point, it’d be best to admit to it as soon as he was able to. If Karma's confessing ended up in his and Nagisa’s friendship ending then… No. Actually, that wasn’t an option. They’d been friends for way too long for both of them to just end it because Karma had developed a silly crush. The thought put his mind at ease, at least a little.

“Listen man,” Nakamura interrupted his thoughts, grabbing another marshmallow from the bag. “Take a walk or something. Just think it through.” She then shot him a grin, winking playfully. “I’m rooting for you champ.”

“Whatever,” Karma laughed, rolling his eyes. He stood to stretch, grabbing one last marshmallow before turning to walk away. “See ya later, Nakamura, and uh, thanks.”

“Good luck,” she replied in a sing-songy voice, assembling her second s’more and munching on it happily.

The wind bit into his skin as he walked away, Karma hadn’t realized how cold it had gotten while he was by the fire. He kept walking towards the main building, only stopping as he picked up on footsteps behind him.

“Hey Karma, wait up!”

Karma turned, coming face to face with Nagisa just a few feet away. It felt like he was having deja vu.

“What’s up, Nagisa?” He said as casually as he could, sliding his hands into his pockets. Nagisa had taken his hair out of the braids they were in, needing to brush out stray leaves and dirt. Now it was down, slightly wavy and blowing in the wind.

“Are you headed back to the room?” Nagisa asked, a curious smile resting on his face. A welcome expression compared to the hurt from earlier. He seemed to be in better spirits after their conversation and from talking with his friends.

Karma nodded, “It’s been a long day, I think I need to sleep.” It was true, it’d be good for him to sleep before making any drastic decisions regarding his and Nagisa’s relationship.

A thought seemed to occur to Nagisa and he saw the others face turn pink. Well, pinker, the chilly wind was making both their cheeks turn a bit red. “Ah, yeah, we were up pretty early, huh?” Nagisa looked away, picking at one of his bandages. “Mind if I follow you back?”

“It’s your room too, you dork,” Karma laughed after regarding Nagisa for a moment. “It’d be weird if I said you couldn’t.” He walked closer to his friend, quickly wrapping an arm around Nagisa’s shoulder as he led them back to their room, purposefully ignoring the way his heart beat faster (and the way Nagisa’s pulse quickened under his touch).

They got ready for bed in comfortable silence, each going through the motions of brushing their teeth, taking a shower, getting on pajamas etc. Karma noted Nagisa slipping on the hoodie he had given him, for the third night in a row. “You really get that cold at night, huh?”

Nagisa blushed, looking away. “It’s just this stupid room,” he grumbled. “And it doesn’t help that it’s so windy outside.”

Karma watched as Nagisa got situated, fixing up his bed until he was satisfied with it. Right as he was about to crawl into bed Karma spoke up. “Come here,” his voice was soft, almost a whisper.

With furrowed brows, Nagisa turned to him, frowning. Ultimately he walked over though, sitting on an open spot on Karma’s bed. “Yeah?” He asked, pulling his legs up onto Karma's bed with a soft smile.

“You should sleep in my bed tonight,” Karma said, eyes immediately growing wide as he realized his mistake. He did his best to play it off with a cough but it didn’t escape him how Nagisa’s face grew red. “y’know since it’s so cold tonight, I don't want you to freeze to death,” his laugh was strained, and he hoped Nagisa didn’t pick up on it. “And uh… maybe it’ll help us both sleep better…”

Nagisa had simply watched Karma through his rambling, mouth agape. They sat in silence for a moment, before Nagisa started giggling. “You’re so stupid,” he said with a sigh, adjusting himself to sidle up beside Karma.

“Is that a yes?” Karma was shell shocked, eyes trained on his friend.

“Just lay down already, will you? I’m tired,” Nagisa said with a yawn, resting his head on one of Karma's pillows. And so he did. The bed wasn’t very big, so even if Karma tried to put as much space between them as he could they would still be touching, so he didn’t try too much. Instead he pulled the blankets up over them, basking in the warmth and calmness of the moment.

Already he felt tired as they breathed together. Karma didn’t know how much time had passed when he finally opened his eyes again, looking at Nagisa. The other boy was breathing gently, having definitely slowed from earlier. He looked almost heavenly, light blue hair adorned in small waves splayed out on Karma’s pillow. It made him smile.

Slowly, Karma leaned forward, doing his best not to jostle the bed. He pressed a soft kiss to Nagisa’s temple, letting it linger for a moment, before pulling back and returning to his side of the bed. As he closed his eyes, ready for proper sleep, he found himself hoping he’d come up for a way to confess to Nagisa in his dreams.

Holy shit.

Karma had just kissed his forehead, and there was no doubt about that. Nagisa waited until he felt Karma's breathing slow to open his eyes.

He watched Karma’s chest rise and fall with his breaths as his mind raced. Nagisa had ended up telling Kayano, Kanzaki, and Sugino about his crush on Karma during the bonfire. They had asked about his slew of bandages and busted lip and after the fight he’d had with Karma frankly he didn’t have it in him to hide it anymore.

To be honest, and to Nagisa’s slight horror, they didn’t seem all too surprised. Both Sugino and Kayano were apprehensive, wondering what it was he even saw in Karma, but Kanzaki just smiled and said she was happy for him. She had asked when he planned on telling Karma and when Nagisa didn’t quite have an answer the three of his friends jumped at him, asking him where his hesitation was coming from.

Truthfully Nagisa didn’t know himself, especially after the events from earlier that day… First with Karma asking to brush his hair, being so sincere with him, and then after their fight pressing his lips to Nagisa’s hand and now… This.

Maybe… maybe he did have a chance with Karma. Or maybe he had simply caught on to Nagisa’s slip up from earlier. Nagisa cringed as he recalled what he said earlier, about telling Karma to just reject him already. Perhaps he had overreacted a little, but in that moment it had felt like there was a scab on his heart that had been picked so much it started bleeding all over again. Nagisa couldn’t deal with Karma leaving him again, call him codependent but he’d already lost his best friend once, and he wasn’t keen and going through that again, even if he had a better support system now.

Given all that… Maybe it’d be best to get it over with and confess already. Tomorrow maybe? It was supposed to storm all day, so there probably wasn’t going to be much going on. It wasn’t the most romantic, but perhaps that was for the best. If it went wrong and Karma rejected him then Nagisa wouldn’t have to deal with the crushing irony of getting rejected in the most romantic setting possible.

Nagisa buried his face in Karma’s pillow with a huff. He needed to stop, to sleep. If he kept thinking then he was just going to start spiraling and he wouldn’t be able to get himself out. Tomorrow. He’d figure everything out tomorrow.

Small taps came from the window of Nagisa and Karma's room, almost rhythmic. With a groan, Nagisa opened his eyes, cringing at the dull daytime brightness pervading their room. He attempted to reach for his phone, only to find he was being somewhat restrained. Upon further inspection (i.e. looking down) Nagisa saw that there was an arm draped over his midsection. Then the events of last night came crashing into his mind, how he had agreed to sleep in Karma's bed, and the kiss…

A burst of rain hit their window, interrupting his thoughts. Wait… Nagisa’s eyes widened. He had slept the whole night. It was surely morning by now, and he hadn’t woken up once. Nagisa reached down to grab his phone, doing his best not to disturb the body next to him, and realized they still had an hour before breakfast.

Holy shit. That’s the first time in weeks. Maybe Karma was onto something when he suggested sleeping in the same bed. Just as the thought crossed his mind, the arm around his waist tightened, pulling him closer.

It was then Nagisa realized fully what was happening, his face heating in the process. Karma was literally spooning him. It felt… Nice. So warm and safe, if he had the option he honestly didn’t think he’d ever want to leave. Unfortunately though, breakfast was bearing and Nagisa knew they’d have to get up soon, but… surely that could wait just a little longer?

With a sigh, Nagisa turned over, facing Karma now. They had time to spare, not much but some, and he was going to savor every moment of it.

Nagisa hadn’t realized he had started to doze off until he heard a breathy laugh from beside him. His eyes snapped open in surprise, finding Karma's tawny ones closer than he thought. He also found, with just a little disappointment, that Karma's arm no longer rested against his waist.

“Morning sleepyhead,” Karma said, voice rough from sleep. Nagisa blushed at the nickname, glaring at his friend, and he noted with a bit of satisfaction that Karma's face also burned a slight shade of pink. His mind slipped again as he thought back to Karma kissing his forehead last night, and he had half a mind to tell him right then and there that he had a crush on him.

“Good morning, Karma,” He said instead, sitting up with a stretch. The rain outside had picked up from earlier, causing Nagisa to look over his shoulder towards their window as the wind rattled against it.

“What time is it?”

Karma’s voice jumped him out of his thoughts. He reached down for his phone, a small gasp escaping him as he saw the time. “It’s six thirty,” had he really been laying there with Karma for another half hour?

“More time than yesterday at least,” Karma hummed as he got up, slipping past Nagisa into their shared bathroom. Nagisa only stared at the carpet, recalling yesterday’s rollercoaster of events and what in the world his next move would be.

“Aren’t you going to get ready?” Nagisa jumped, turning to find Karma in the middle of brushing his teeth, peeking back into the main room.

“Ah, r-right,” he said, watching Karma slip back into the bathroom. Suddenly it hit him just how… Domestic this all was. Of course, inherently it’ll feel that way when you share a room with someone. You get to see the way that person acts in their living spaces, it’s vulnerable. Nagisa watched as Karma finished brushing his teeth and instead started to comb through his mussed up hair, and he found himself wanting to stay this way. He wanted this domesticity so badly, he didn’t want to leave it behind after this trip. Now or never I suppose.

“Hey Karma?” Nagisa stood, all too aware of the fact he was still in the sweater Karma had given him what felt like forever ago. He heard Karma hum in acknowledgment from the bathroom. He took a deep breath, swallowing his nerves before speaking. “Can I uh, can I talk to you about something?”

Footsteps padded into the main room and Nagisa knew he wasn’t alone anymore. He didn’t turn around, afraid he’d lose his nerve by doing so and facing his hopefully-soon-to-be-more-than-friend. “Sure,” Karma spoke, his tone casual, though there was an edge to it that Nagisa couldn’t quite pinpoint.“What's eating at you, Nagi?” He asked when Nagisa didn’t answer, his voice soft.

“You…” he started, squeezing his eyes shut. “You’ve been so… Affectionate lately.” Nagisa swore he heard Karma suck in a quick breath. “You've gave me your hoodie, you offered to brush my hair, you let me sleep in your bed, you kissed my hand.” He knew he was starting to ramble, but he needed to get this out.

Nagisa turned abruptly, a sense of determination flowing through him. Karma seemed to be feeling the opposite by the looks of it, a grim expression on his face. “Nagisa, I—” Karma began, but Nagisa shook his head, silencing him.

“Karma,” he tried to sound as serious as possible, hoping he wasn’t about to choke on his words. “I need to tell you something.” He saw Karma nod slowly. This was it.

“I like you. A lot.” There it was. Out in the open. Karma’s eyes widened and his mouth fell open, but Nagisa couldn’t go back now. He had to finish what he started.

“I have for a long time now, more than I probably should honestly.” Nagisa looked down, hands at his sides as he spoke. “I’m sick of keeping it a secret.”

“Karma—” Then there were lips against his. Passionate, but not too forceful and Nagisa found himself falling into it. As soon as they had appeared though, they were gone.

“Sorry,” Karma spoke, quietly, like he was winded. Nagisa felt Karma’s hands on his waist. Karma had just kissed him. Genuinely. He felt blood rush to his face as he gaped at the taller boy. “I shouldn’t have done that, I—” Nagisa leaned up, pressing his lips once more to Karma's, wrapping his arms around the other’s neck to deepen it. It was heavenly, and his lip only hurt slightly from where he had busted it yesterday but he couldn’t care less about that right now.

Eventually they pulled away from each other for air, staring into each others eyes raptly. “I like you a lot too, Nagi,” Karma said eventually. Nagisa stared at him for a moment, before laughing, nearly hysterical. He rested his forehead against the redheads chest, feeling like he wouldn’t be able to stop grinning even if he tried.

“Well,” he pulled back, looking back up at Karma. “What now?”

“If you’re up for it,” Karma spoke, leaning back and grabbing Nagisa’s hands from around his neck, holding them in his own. “A date once we get back to town?”

Nagisa hummed happily, his nerves nearly evaporated. “Then what does that make us?”

Leaning down, Karma rested his forehead against Nagisa’s. “Whatever you want us to be.”

“And what if I said I want to be your boyfriend?”

“I’d say you’re asking a lot of questions today,” Karma chuckled, his breath tickling Nagisa’s face. “But that I’d want that too.”

Nagisa felt like he was on cloud nine. He didn't know it was even possible to feel so elated and giddy but here he was. “Cool,” he whispered breathlessly, causing karma to laugh again. He wasn't sure he’d ever feel this way again, happy and relieved like a weight had been lifted off his shoulders. It was perfect. And then he remembered, breaking away from Karma abruptly, much to the other’s displeasure. “Oh my god, we’re going to be so late for breakfast.”

Karma stared at him for a moment, before pulling him close again, stepping back and making them both topple onto the bed. “Breakfast can wait, don’t you think?” He asked, nuzzling into Nagisa, holding him so tight he wouldn’t be able to leave if he wanted to.

Nagisa hummed with a small smile, cuddling close to his new boyfriend. “I suppose so.”