Chapter Text
The heat was scorching, even worse packed between what felt like hundreds of children. Megumi could feel his skin practically sticking to the hot, leather seats of the bus that had been driving them for almost an hour now.
He leaned his head against the cool panes of the window, watching as the landscape rushed by, what felt like endless desert and sand. It was a change from the countryside he was used to being surrounded by, which made the view slightly more interesting and gave him something to do. After an hour, though, of looking at the exact same scene, Megumi grew a little bored of staring out the window and tuned back into his other surrounding.
Immediately, he was overwhelmed by the sound from all the other kids, the chattering, laughing and yelling. He’d tried to keep himself out of it, wanting a quiet journey on the bus before he arrived at the likely even more overwhelming camp. However, a far too energetic pink haired boy had chosen to sit down on the seat right next to him at the beginning of the bus ride before he even had the chance to put his bag down in it, who was now showing Megumi all the pokemon cards he had brought with him.
Megumi had hoped the boy would leave him alone if he feigned disinterest, but the kid (Yuji, Megumi found out) was very determined to make friends with him. He eventually stopped trying to ignore the kid, mostly because he didn’t actually know anyone there and his Dad had gently encouraged him to make friends when he had dropped him off at the airport. Geto was always far too worried about that, Megumi could have plenty of friends if he wanted… he just didn’t particularly see the need for it.
He finally turned his head away from the window and looked down at the cards Yuji was showing him. Megumi found himself wincing a little as he saw how sticky the cards were. He kept his own as well, but they were all organised very neatly. His Dad had helped him arrange them and place them carefully into plastic wallets.
Megumi didn’t comment on it though, and just nodded, showing a vague enthusiasm. It likely didn’t matter to Yuji anyway, since he had continued to ramble on even when Megumi was very obviously ignoring him and looking out of the window. He didn’t know why Yuji had actually sat next to him, maybe it was because he was the only other Japanese kid on the bus. Probably not for that reason, though, as Yuji was speaking English to him. It was a little broken but Megumi understood it nonetheless.
His Dad would’ve been a little disappointed if he found out he’d sent Megumi all the way to an American camp to make friends and practice his English, only to find out that he had spent the whole time talking in Japanese to the one other kid from Japan, so it was probably for the best.
Before Megumi could question it any further, and decode why on earth Yuji had decided to sit next to the probably least approachable kid, the bus slowly rolled to a stop and a voice immediately sounded on the speakers. Megumi hadn’t even realised they were at the camp yet, he’d been so caught up in his own thoughts. He turned back to the window and immediately caught site of all the large, yellow buses rolling up alongside the one they were in. The kids around him were swarming, all scrambling to get off the bus. Megumi was trying to listen to the instructions on the speaker, but the voice was so distorted he could barely hear it, and the kids around him didn’t help.
Megumi jumped when he felt a warm hand tug at his arm. His gaze snapped to the side to see Yuji pulling at him. “Come on Megumi, we need to go and see if we’re in the same cabin!”
Megumi quickly followed him, his hand holding Yuji’s sticky one so he didn’t get lost in the crowd of kids. He found they were both kind of in the middle height, some of the kids looked about 13 or 14, whereas some looked even younger than Megumi, maybe 8 or 9. He got shoved quite a few times between getting out of his seat and out of the coach. His shoes scuffed against the gravel and he was quickly tugged again to the mountain of bags that had been dumped onto the ground.
“Which one’s yours?” Yuji asked him, practically shouting above the sound of the kids around them. Megumi stood up as tall as he could, trying to see where his bag was among the massive pile of colours.
“It’s just a plain black one, there’s a wolf keychain on it, though.” Megumi was beginning to think his Dad’s insistence on bringing a more distinct backpack had been a good idea. There was no way Megumi could find his one now.
He was yanked forward by Yuji who pulled out two bags of the pile. Megumi’s eyes widened at the action. How had Yuji been able to see those and pull them out from under the rest. He must have had a crazy amount of strength or something.
“Here they are! Mine’s covered in dinosaurs!” Yuji announced proudly, holding up the red and blue bag covered in little cartoon dinosaurs.
Megumi’s eyes were still wide as he was passed his black duffle with the small, grey wolf key chain on the side of it. “Thanks.” He muttered and pulled the bag over his shoulder.
“Let’s go and check our cabins. Maybe we’re in the same one!”.
Megumi doubted they were, but he couldn’t deny a small part of him did hope they would be staying together. He actually liked Yuji a little, and maybe it would be comforting staying with somebody he already knew.
***
Yuta stared out of the tinted windows as the desert landscape passed. Music fed quietly into his ears from the airbuds he brought with him. He was captivated by the sight of the American desert, seeing as what he was used to was the bustling city life of new york, Paris and occasionally Tokyo, depending on wherever his Dad was working.
He didn’t mind it, and he knew he was lucky to grow up in more cities than most kids would visit in a lifetime, but he couldn’t deny he was excited to be spending weeks away in a camp, away from all the noise, lights and towering buildings. He and his Dad had gone camping once, when he was about 9, and he really enjoyed it up until Gojo had got an emergency call from work and they had to leave early. Maybe he had sent him here to make up for it, seeing as it came rather out of the blue. Yuta had just come to the penthouse kitchen for breakfast when his Dad had grinned at him and excitedly announced he was shipping him to military camp. After Gojo had cracked himself up completely at the sight of Yuta’s horrified expression, he then told him, while still laughing, that he was really being sent to an American camp to make friends and explore the world a bit more.
Yuta found himself smiling at the memory. Gojo could be a little odd sometimes, but Yuta loved his Dad more than anything and could never find it in himself to be more than playfully annoyed at him. Just as he was beginning to feel the ache of longing in his stomach, his car rolled to a halt. Ijichi opened the door, jolting Yuta from his thoughts, and he gave the older man a polite smile. He always remembered to be overly polite to their assistant, seeing as Gojo practically traumatised the poor man.
Yuta stepped out of the car, making sure his trainers weren’t scuffed, and brushing down his jacket to make sure he was presentable. The camp looked exciting from what he could already see, full of other kids running around, most about his age and some a little younger. Yuta was thirteen, so he was a bit older than the average, but he didn’t mind that.
“I’ll tell Gojo you’ve arrived safely, Yuta.” Ijichi told him while handing him his suitcase. He opened his mouth to run through the checklist before Yuta cut him off.
“It’s alright Ijichi, I’m sure I’ve got everything. I checked about five times before I left”
Ijichi just nodded and gave him a polite bow which Yuta never felt was necessary. “Of course, I hope you have a good time here, Yuta. Gojo hopes that as well.”
Yuta smiled and clutched his suitcase handle, “Thank you, Ijichi.”
Ijichi hesitated a moment, like he wanted to say something else. He obviously decided against it, and just smiled at Yuta before getting back in the car.
Yuta took a deep breath and turned to face the campsite. Gojo would’ve laughed and teased him for how hesitant he was to go over there. It was Gojo’s fault in a way though, private school education and tutors and moving city to city every three months meant he didn’t have much experience interacting with other kids. Gojo also refused to ever adopt him another sibling no matter how many times Yuta questioned him about it. For some reason, it made his Dad oddly uncomfortable whenever Yuta brought it up, which wasn’t very often.
Yuta was also hoping that he didn’t come across as posh and standoffish to the other kids here. He wore his least expensive jacket and made his Dad buy him some regular clothes to take, and he made sure to leave his designer sun hat at home.
Yuta took a deep breath and headed to his cabin, number 2.
***
It turned out Megumi and Yuji were in the same cabin, number 11. He plopped his duffle bag down onto the bed and Yuji chose the one right next to him. Megumi didn’t have it in him at all to complain. He was very relieved that he did have a person he knew in the same cabin as him, otherwise he might have ended up feeling a little homesick, just a little.
He began to unpack his things, getting out the wolf plushie that was carefully placed in the bottom of his bag by Geto. Megumi smiled just faintly and squeezed it close to him once, quickly, when no one was looking. After that, he tucked it safe under the covers of his new bed where no one could get to him. The rest of his belongings were unpacked too, his clothes, toothbrush, his diary which not even his Dad knew he kept, and a photo of him and Geto, that was torn at the edge. It was of Geto holding him when he was a baby, apparently it almost got burnt by a candle kept next to it, which was why it was frayed. Megumi placed that between the pages of his diary and in the bedside drawer. He didn’t even really know why he brought it, maybe just to have something of his Dad here, as this would be the longest time they had ever been apart.
Megumi glanced over to Yuji and saw the boy unpacking his own bag, placing a little tiger plush on his pillow. Megumi was about to tell him about his own plushie, but quickly shut his mouth. He didn’t want some random kid knowing about his most valuable possession.
After they unpacked, Yuji and Megumi ran together down to the food hall, which already had kids swarming around it. They joined the back of the queue, which was stretching out past the doors. Yuji began excitedly chattering to the girl in front of them who looked about their age. She had dark brown, almost red hair in a bob shape and spoke exactly as loudly as Yuji did. Megumi overheard them talking about the food they hoped was there.
The girl spoke up, now looking at Megumi instead of Yuji, which made him freeze up a little. “What’s your name then?” She asked, blunt but not rude.
“Megumi, and you are?” He asked back, forcing himself to be polite, even though one energetic kid trying to be his friend was already too much for him.
“Nobara, Nobara Kugisaki.” The girl announced, grinning proudly at him like she had just shared a clever fact.
Megumi nodded and shook the hand she extended, muttering a small “Nice to meet you.”
He let her and Yuji talk away while he stood behind them in the queue, occasionally nodding to what they were saying, content to let the two of them chat. He reached the front after about twenty minutes where all the food finally was. Megumi hadn’t realised he was so hungry until the scent of it finally hit him. Geto would give him a lecture about the dangers of sugar if he saw what Megumi was piling onto his plate. He put on three slices of pizza, little balls of what looked like chicken, some mash potatoes and 3 chocolate cupcakes, and one apple for something healthy. It wasn’t his fault, Geto fed him plenty but it was all quite bland, boring, but apparently very healthy food. Megumi didn’t seem to get as sick as most kids did and the doctors were always praising his vitamin levels, but still, it didn’t always seem worth the awful meals.
Yuji and Nobara were helping themselves to the banana split deserts in front of him. Yuji looked to him curiously as Megumi stepped back with his tray, “You aren’t having any?”
As delicious as it looked, Megumi shook his head. “Can’t, I’m allergic to banana.”
Yuji shrugged and he, Nobara and Megumi made their way to sit down at one of the tables, between some other kids who looked about 11, like they were.
***
Yuta made his way to the food hall after he had settled in at his cabin. He’d made quick friends with a girl named Maki and another boy called Inumaki. His worries about being a little ostracized obviously were for nothing, seeing as the kids here were all pretty nice. Yuta had to stop his hands shaking from nerves when he was around them, trying not to say anything weird that would drive them away.
They talked a little bit about where they were from, and their families, as they queued up. He learnt that Maki had a twin sister and that Inumaki was an only child. He was also mute, but luckily Yuta knew sign language so he could communicate with him well anyway. It was one of the more obscure things he had been tutored in. Sometimes it seemed like Gojo just wanted to know as much as possible, like he did. Yuta had tried to explain that he didn’t have a photographic memory like his Dad did so this was all much harder for him and taking attention away from his studies. Gojo had just taken that as Yuta wanting to practice a different language, or a different musical instrument, or another sport instead of whichever one he was on now. It was currently baseball, so Gojo told him to practice that while he was here.
When he got to the front of the queue, he piled his food up with anything green and healthy in sight. He got a few odd looks from Maki and Inumaki, which he expected. Yuta was just sick of the sugar Gojo piled him with everyday, and the greasy food he ordered for take out. Maki passed him one of the banana splits, which Yuta quickly shook his head at.
She looked at him quizically. “You aren’t even gonna eat this. Are you on some weird diet or something?”
Yuta shook his head and gave a slightly meek smile, “No diet, just allergic to banana.”
Maki rolled her eyes and led them both over to one of the tables that wasn’t completely full.
***
Megumi took a while to admit it to himself, that he was grateful that Geto sent him here. He had sulked about it in his room for the first two days after his Dad had sat him down and told him he was slightly concerned about how unsociable Megumi was, so he was sending him to an American camp. Megumi knew the part Geto added about how it would help his English was a lie, he was just saying it so Megumi had less reason to complain. At first, he had been pretty determined to be miserable and not talk to any one, that plan had worked all of 10 minutes until Yuji sat next to him on the bus that took them from the airport.
Megumi did begin to enjoy it, especially after the first night where he and Yuji snuck out to meet Nobara and they ran down to the lake to go swimming. He’d been freezing and his pajamas were soaked through, but it was the first time he could remember genuinely laughing with other kids his age in years. They spent every minute at the camp together after that, playing baseball, cards, going hiking, and sitting next to each other around the campfire when they toasted marshmallows. Yuji and Nobara were naturally energetic and always got him involved whenever they would bicker. It was usually about such stupid things like who had the bigger marshmallow, or that Yuji was apparently being too embarrassing. Megumi had to side with Nobara on that, especially when Yuji wore some ridiculous T-shirt with the American flag in the centre of it. Other than that, the three of them got along perfectly well.
The only issue Megumi had at the campsite, well it wasn’t an issue really just a repeated annoyance for him, was this one boy. The first time Megumi had seen him around, he instantly hadn’t liked him. There was no reason in particular, the other boy hadn’t looked at him funny, or even spoken to Megumi. There was just something about the way he carried himself, looking uptight and as if he was above the rest of them, the expensive looking clothes he wore to a campsite for goodness sakes. What made it worse was that he kept seeing him everywhere now, despite there being almost five hundred other kids here.
He saw him every night when they gathered in the mess hall for dinner, always two tables opposite him. Megumi saw him every time he went to play tennis or baseball or football with Nobara and Yuji, always there before he was and doing annoyingly well at every game he played. Megumi saw him winning every tennis match, his team winning every baseball game due to apparently how well this boy managed to hit. It only fuelled his irritation more, even though the boy (Yuta, Megumi found out his name was when someone shouted it while playing football) likely had no idea he had an 11 year old nemesis.
Megumi’s irritation came to a head when he saw the other boy playing cards. Yuta had a pile of toys, cash, plastic jewelry and sweets in front of him, looking absolutely infuriatingly humble as he won every single round with every kid that played against him. That was another thing Megumi couldn’t stand, how nice and liked Yuta was. If the kid had been arrogant and rude and bragging about his talent or money all the time then it would’ve calmed Megumi down in a way, because he at least would have a reason to hate him, likely everyone else would have hated him too. However, Yuta seemed kind and popular and humble which only made Megumi dislike him more.
When Yuta sat back, having just won another game of Poker and what looked like an entire collection of water guns from the kid opposite him, Megumi saw him chatting to his friends with wide eyes as if he couldn’t believe how good he was. It was a momentous burst of courage and adrenaline that allowed Megumi to step forward from the crowd that had gathered around Yuta.
Megumi narrowed his gaze and spoke up, “I’ll play you next.”
Yuta looked up at him, reminding Megumi of a confused puppy. Likely he’d never had someone look at him with such a glare before while just offering to play a game of cards. Still, the boy across from him shrugged and gave Megumi a casual, albeit sheepish, smile.
“Sure, what have you got?”
Megumi took the seat opposite him, aware of Yuji and Nobara following after and standing amongst the crowd now settling in behind him. He hadn’t actually brought anything to bet with him, dang it, he couldn’t go back now. He was racking his brain until he felt someone nudge him from behind.
Megumi looked back and saw Yuji handing him some crumpled up notes, “Here, take these.” Yuji whispered.
Megumi hesitated before taking the notes, he shouldn’t take someone else’s money for betting. Geto was going to be so disappointed with him. Before Megumi could tell him no, Yuji tossed the money onto the table before Yuta.
Megumi only muttered a simple “Thanks, Yuji”, before he turned back to Yuta. He was still surprised Yuji did that for him, but he was relieved he wouldn’t have to back out. He’d have to give him something in return at some point.
For now, though, his main concern was winning against Yuta. He sharpened his thoughts and paid attention as he looked at his cards. Yuta spoke him through the rules they’d be playing by briefly while Megumi remembered the few games he had played with his Dad. Geto loved board games, and card games, so he would always be forced to play them after dinner. Poker was one they played quite frequently, and Megumi eventually began to win at it. It was only because Geto was so obvious with his expressions. Geto never thought that he was, but he always gave away when he was upset or disappointed or happy so easily it was almost comical. Megumi was now finding the same with Yuta.
To the average person, Geto wasn’t that obvious with what he was thinking and neither was Yuta. It was why every other opponent had lost against him. It was one of Megumi’s skills though, read emotion easily in others and never express it himself. He would only really show when he was mad, not when he was happy or disappointed. Geto had been so concerned over it when he was younger, apparently worrying that Megumi was some kind of psychopath in the making for not showing much emotion. That had been one long therapy appointment. Megumi remembered sitting by his Dad’s side when the therapist he’d been speaking to for three hours told them that Megumi was a very empathetic, feeling and clever kid, just had a lot of trouble expressing it.
He very clearly remembered Geto wincing when it was brought up that it could be a learned trait from a parent, which was odd considering he absolutely couldn’t have learned it from Geto. They were quite the opposite in that sense. He also remembered an apology dinner from Geto, who was obviously feeling guilty for jumping to those conclusions. Megumi always assumed he got in from whoever his real parents were. Geto hated when he used the term “real parents”, always pointing out to him that family was whatever you make it, and the people he biologically came from didn’t matter at all.
That was why Megumi was winning, he had no expression on his face, transforming Yuta’s previous game of skill, and reading his opponent, to one of mostly luck. They both knew the game very well, so Yuta couldn’t beat him on his confusion or order of the sets either. Yuta seemed to make the exact expression Geto made too when he was disappointed in his cards, just the slightest turn down of his lips and a very small crease in his eyebrow.
The game had gone on for around 2 hours now, only attracting a bigger crowd. The piles of toys and sweets were gradually being slid over to Megumi’s side of the table, while he only occasionally had to slide over a few of the bills Yuji lent him.
Yuta had 20 dollars left and Megumi was sat with an entire side of the table full of goods that he’d split with Yuji and Nobara. Megumi had never felt more satisfied. He knew he shouldn’t be feeling this way, and there was still no reason to hate Yuta, but winning against him felt amazing, showing this rich, spoiled kid that he couldn’t be good at everything.
Megumi could tell Yuta was stressed, and he could also tell that he had good cards. Yuta was tensed up and had shifted closer to the edge of his seat, meaning he wanted to put the cards down, he wanted the game to be over because he could show Megumi that he had better cards. Megumi’s were better though, and he knew that. The last card flipped and Megumi watched the way Yuta’s expression calmed, now that the game was almost over. They went around and neither of them rose, considering that Yuta only had twenty left, which Megumi had made him bet the entirety of by raising earlier.
Yuta went first, sighing in relief when he could finally show Megumi the four of a kind he had in his hand. Megumi looked up, giving Yuta a shrug and splaying his cards on the table. Yuta’s expression slipped from relieved to immediate shock when he looked at the straight flush in front of him. Megumi pulled the last 20 dollars from the other side of the table while cheers erupted around him. Probably from kids glad the game had finally come to a close, and someone finally beating Yuta. He felt Yuji and Nobara jostling him while Yuta groaned and slumped back in his chair.
***
Megumi walked out into the cold night air with Yuji and Nobara laughing and helping him carry all the stuff back to their cabin. Megumi had to hide a smile as he walked with them.
“I cant believe you actually beat him, you should’ve said you knew poker!” Yuji jabbed him lightly while sucking on one of the lollipops and using a fidget spinner that Megumi won.
“I’m glad someone beat him, that kid has been winning for days. Of course, I’d rather it was a girl that won, but I guess I’m glad you did too.” Nobara added, while she pulled a chocolate bar from the pile Yuji was carrying since she refused to carry anything herself apart from the jewellery and some of the water guns Megumi won, as she wanted those for herself.
Megumi took the compliments and dumped everything on the bed, letting his two friends take as much as they wanted. He sat on the edge and turned his stuffed wolf over in his hands, finally comfortable enough to have it in front of people.
“I didn’t know I was going to win, I just wanted to challenge him a little. Everyone else was losing so quickly” Megumi explained as he swung his legs back and forth, still holding his stuffy.
His friends were too busy eating all the sweets and rummaging through the pile to respond, so Megumi just basked in the satisfaction of winning for a while.
***
Yuta couldn’t believe it. No one had ever beaten him at poker apart from his Dad. Even when Gojo’s older friends were over, he still wouldn’t lose against them. He never thought he would lose to a kid, especially one a few years younger than him. He’d lost badly too. Gojo would definitely make fun of him once he realised that half the money he had sent him here with had been lost to another kid in a game of poker.
He ran a hand through the dark spikes of his hair and turned on his side. He hadn’t been able to sleep ever since, the feeling of shame burning in his chest. It was the same feeling whenever he came home with a bad grade, and Gojo would give him that look. It wasn’t anger or disappointment, just a kind of knowing glance directed at him that said ‘I know you can do better’.
He remembered the first time it happened, when he’d flunked the chemistry test one day in 4th grade. He’d tried to keep it from his Dad, but unfortunately Gojo was home early that day, talking on the phone in the kitchen area of the apartment, the one in Paris they were staying in for two months. Gojo had hung up the phone as soon as Yuta came in, which instantly killed any hope of hiding the test from his Dad.
Yuta was never able to lie to Gojo, and if he told him there was no test that day he wouldn’t be able to sleep all night with guilt. He remembered the way Gojo’s lips twitched down when he saw the bright red C on the top of the paper. It killed Yuta, having Gojo disappointed in him. He knew it was partly Gojo’s fault too, he’d only been at this school for a week and moving from place to place every few months ended up affecting his learning quite a bit. Always following different curriculums in different languages wasn’t at all easy, even if he did have a lot of private tutors.
Despite his complaints, Yuta did miss his Dad right now. He loved him and knew Gojo was trying the best he could as a single parent, even if Yuta did sometimes wish he had a counterpart that balanced his Dad out a little.
***
After that night of loss, Yuta noticed that kid around much more. He often felt a stare of the back of his head just to turn around and see Megumi glaring at him. Yuta very rarely disliked anyone, but this kid was coming pretty close. He seemed to have it out for him for some reason, and after that they took any single opportunity they had to compete against each other.
Yuta found himself across from Megumi almost every single game he played, tennis, fencing, chess, even the team sports like baseball or football. Megumi was always playing him, and Yuta almost always won. It didn’t seem to help the animosity between them, Megumi even more determined to win against him and Yuta even more desperate to prove that he could beat this kid.
Megumi was good at baseball he had to admit. Yuta played it quite frequently whenever Gojo met up with his friends at the country club, and Yuta would go and play with the other kids. He usually won, having a strong hit and being a quick runner.
Megumi was strong too, hitting far and leaving Yuta breathless when he had to chase the ball. He never let it show, not wanting to give the other kid satisfaction for challenging him. At one point Yuta actually tripped over himself while he sprinted to catch the ball, leaving him to plummet into the ground. The hard surface rushed up to meet his head and his vision swam as he got back up to search for the ball. Of course by that point, Megumi had passed the fourth base and was watching him victoriously, shooting him a very annoying look, one that Yuta knew was full of underlying condescension.
Yuta wasn’t proud of it, but when Megumi came around to bat again, Yuta deliberately positioned himself on the third base. He let someone else catch the ball so that when Megumi came sprinting up to his base, Yuta put his foot out just slightly, enough to catch the end of Megumi’s trainer and send him sprawling into the dust like Yuta had just a moment ago.
Inumaki threw the ball to fourth base before Megumi could reach it, leaving him red faced and huffing in annoyance. The kid looked like he was about to have a tantrum honestly, and it only made Yuta laugh harder. Before he could stifle himself, Megumi had pounced on him, grabbing his jacket and sending them both to the ground, rolling and grappling with each other. By the time one of the adults came to pull them apart, their previous white camp uniform was covered in dust, Megumi glaring at him like he wanted to kill him.
Yuta brushed himself off and stood up, smoothing his hair into its usual black spikes, similar to Megumi’s. They were forced to awkwardly apologise to each other and shake hands, but Megumi still shot him a look that could kill. Yuta wasn’t going to lie, it did make him a little nervous, but the kid was like two or three years younger than him. What was he going to do?
***
It had been Yuji’s plan actually, and the only reason Megumi went along with it was because of how excited both he and Nobara had been. They had been sat on Yuji’s bed, passing sweets around when they started talking about Yuta, and Yuji had inevitably come up with the genius idea to play a prank on him. Before Megumi knew it, Yuji and Nobara had egged the idea on so much that it turned into sneaking all across camp and into Yuta’s cabin.
Megumi knew it was a bad idea, but he couldn’t deny the rush of adrenaline he was getting as he tiptoed along the ground. It was completely silent, almost pitch black other than the glow from the torches he, Yuji and Nobara held. Megumi padded through the foliage, clutching the torch as it shone on the few feet in front of him.
He had the can of foam in his other hand, Nobara carrying the sack of water balloons, while Yuji held the syrup and the hair dye. Megumi had never actually pulled a prank before, this felt like a pretty extreme one to start with. The closest he’d ever come was when he switched out one of his Dad’s conditioners for toothpaste on the 1st of April. Well Geto apparently didn’t play about his hair products because Megumi was forced to sit on the stairs for an hour and ‘think about what he had done’. After that he never risked it again.
Yuji reached the cabin first, the one at the opposite end of the campsite to them. It had taken over twenty minutes to walk there, since they were trying to be as silent as possible. They would have absolutely no explanation for themselves if someone did catch them with all this right by Yuta’s cabin.
Megumi winced as Nobara pushed past Yuji, using her hairpin to carefully unlock the door. Megumi carefully stepped around them and looked through the window, keeping his face away so that no one saw them. He nodded to Nobara once he confirmed they were all asleep. There were four of them in that cabin, Yuta, Inumaki and two other boys that Megumi didn’t know. Nobara slowly pushed the door open so that it didn’t squeak. Megumi made sure to keep a careful eye on Yuji, knowing that if anyone did make noise, it would definitely be him.
The door was slowly pushed shut behind them and they split off into their respective tasks, barely even breathing so that no one woke up. Nobara carefully placed the water balloons on the shelves above the beds, attaching them to an intricate system of strings that she pulled taught around the room, meaning that when they inevitably tripped over them, the balloons would fall right down.
Yuji carefully drizzled the syrup across the floorboards and between the beds, and Megumi shot him a sharp glare as he heard Yuji snickering. Megumi took the hair dye from him and the shaving foam, heading over to Yuta’s bed.
***
Yuta woke up to the sound of his alarm clock beeping by his bed. He groaned and refused to open his eyes for a moment, chasing the last remnants of his dream. He was almost about to reach over and hit the top of his clock when the sensation around his head became apparent. Something felt sticky. His hand automatically flew up to touch it when he bumped it against something. Before he could even register that it was a string, cold enveloped him, freezing cold.
Water crashed down over his head, sending Yuta flying straight up in bed. He coughed and choked, desperate to get the water out of his mouth and his lungs. Yuta opened his eyes, desperately wiping the them as he sputtered.
He heard shouting around him, from the two other boys in the cabin, and Inumaki was no doubt panicking as well. The sound of more balloons popping followed.
Yuta pulled himself blindly out of the bed, blinking rapidly to clear the water from his eyes. The first thing he registered was the feeling beneath his socks, sticky and thick. The sight of syrup was the first thing his blurry eyes made out, and then the sight of hundreds of strings, sending the other three boys in his cabin tripping and falling right into the syrup as more water balloons fell on them. Yuta winced as he saw Inamuki face plant in it.
He could finally breathe now his lungs were free of water. Yuta’s eyes widened as he remembered what caused him to wake up in the first place, whatever his hair was covered in was now dripping down his forehead.
Yuta tentatively touched the liquid and pulled his hand away to see the unmistakable colour of bleach dye. He scrambled through the strings, ignoring the commotion of everyone else, and ran straight for the bathroom.
He screamed, loud and shrill, as he saw his reflection looking back at him in the mirror. His hair was orange, the top of it only, completely orange. Shaving cream was piled on top of the rest and his clothes were stained completely from the mix of water and bleach.
He was going to kill Megumi.
Yuta rushed out of the bathroom, making direct eye contact with the three sets of eyes peeking through the window.
***
Megumi didn’t laugh often, he was usually a very reserved kid. This, however, the sight of the guy who had been infuriating him all week, with the worst dye job in history, soaked with water and scrambling through syrup and ropes nearly made his stomach cramp.
He was doubled over in laughter, Yuji and Nobara alongside him.
Yuji could barely breath, gasping words out between fits of giggling, “I...I told you it would be funny Megumi.”
Megumi had to agree, and so did Nobara, who was crying in hysterics. “I wish we had a camera or something, this is priceless.”
Megumi couldn’t stop laughing, occasionally looking back through the window to still see Yuta glaring death at him.
That was until the voice of one of the camp councillors rang out, the sound of it immediately snapping Megumi out of his laughing fit, making him freeze. Yuji and Nobara did too, all of them looking pale as the words “Surprise inspection” rang out across the campsite.
Before they had the chance to bolt away, the man in charge of the campsite was already coming over to the boy’s cabin. Megumi’s gaze shot up as he remembered what else they left last night, an entire bucket of lake water, filled with sludge and mud and insects, on top of the doorway for whoever opened it.
He looked to Yuji and Nobara, each one of them having caught the same sight he did. They jumped forward at the same time, trying to stop the man from opening the door.
Megumi had been a little scared of him anyway, he was always stern and looked beyond stressed from dealing with children all day. He definitely didn’t want to see him when he was going to be at the other end of their prank.
Yuji yelled before Megumi had the chance, his voice panicked in a way that Megumi hadn’t heard before right now, when they were at risk of probably being kicked out of the campsite. “Nanamin! Don’t go in there!”
Megumi couldn’t even watch as the man stepped through the door, ignoring or not paying attention to Yuji’s yelling, when the bucket of water came down on him completely. Megumi screwed his eyes tight shut, the silence around them, except for the sound of rushing water, felt deafening.
If Megumi thought he’d seen the man annoyed before, it was nothing compared to this. Nanami looked downright livid as he turned his attention to Megumi, then to Yuta standing before the door. The boy’s previous glare at Megumi had now turned into one of terror when he looked at Nanami.
Nanami looked between them, soaked in water and every feature of his face lined with infuriation. His voice was loud and gathered the attention of every single person around them as he shouted to Megumi and Yuta, “Both of you! Pack your bags!”
***
The cabin was about a kilometres walk away from the rest of the campsite. Megumi and Yuta had been banished to it after what they had done, both of them blaming each other entirely for the whole situation. The walk had been long and humiliating. Megumi struggling with his heavy bag as they made their way their in complete silence, the rest of the camp gathering to watch them.
There was only two rooms in the whole place, the bathroom and then a wide, spacious area that housed their two beds.
They of course stayed on opposite ends of the room, spending the majority of their time glaring at each other from their own beds.
Megumi was sat on his bed, turning his wolf over in his hands like he did when he was stressed. He wondered if the camp had called Geto, told his Dad about all that had happened. If he did, Megumi would never hear the end of it. Geto was mostly a forgiving parent, he just brought things up a lot. Once, Megumi hadn’t worn his coat to school after Geto told him to, and he had caught a cold, which may well have happened even if he had worn one. Every single day in the winter, without fail, Geto said to him ‘Bring a coat, you don’t want to catch a cold like last time.’
Megumi was positive that if Geto found out about this, every time Megumi went to a birthday party, or one of the few occasions when he was invited to someone’s house, he would have to hear ‘Just don’t start any fights this time’, or something of the sort.
Megumi wasn’t so stubborn that he couldn’t acknowledge he took things a bit far with Yuta. He was stubborn enough, however, to not apologise to the other boy. Yuta was still furious at him, the front of his hair still orange from the bleach. It seemed they were in a stalemate for now at least.
***
It had been three days. Three whole days of glaring across the room at each other and only talking to blame each other for the argument.
Yuta couldn’t take it eventually. Usually they could do their own separate activities, he could go on a walk while Megumi read and they would switch. They occupied themselves until the night time, trying not to be in the cabin together unless it was necessary.
Neither of them had expected the storm that hit. It was pouring outside, Yuta could see water flowing down the hill to where their cabin was. Luckily it was so high above ground, with what felt like thousands of stairs, that they didn’t need to worry about it seeping in.
It did mean they were stuck together for the day, and honestly, Yuta was tired of the silence.
It was around 2pm when he spoke first, his voice a little tentative when he asked, “You wanna play Poker?”
He had been fully expecting Megumi to snap at him, maybe even throw one of his books at his head. However, Megumi just nodded and cleared space on the bed for Yuta to join him.
It seemed Megumi too was getting fed up of this.
Yuta sat opposite him and dealt out their cards. They got through a few rounds of amicable silence before Yuta once again broke it.
“So...you’re Japanese too, huh?” He asked, figuring it might be worth talking about the one thing they seemed to have in common.
Megumi nodded as he studied his cards. His expression was still impassive, it almost reminded Yuta of how Gojo looked sometimes, when he decided to act more serious.
“Yeah, I grew up in the countryside with my Dad” Megumi said quietly before folding.
Yuta took his winnings, a few bills, and he was surprised Megumi answered at all. Maybe he could actually get somewhere with this. He wasn’t expecting them to be friends, but if they were stuck together in a cabin he hoped they could at least try to get along.
“I’m kind of the opposite, me and my Dad travel around all the different cities. We never really go to the countryside.”
Megumi nodded again, listening to Yuta’s words as the new cards were dealt.
“So you don’t speak Japanese?” Megumi sounded almost disappointed if Yuta could tell.
“I do, I speak it with my Dad at home, just not with friends.” Yuta explained, realising that may have sounded a bit rude as he said it. Megumi didn’t seem to care that much, though.
“What about your mum?” Megumi asked, quiet, as he slid a one dollar note in to play.
“I don’t have one, my Dad adopted me. Said that he didn’t want to settle down, but he wanted a kid.” Yuta shrugged, used to explaining it for people. He wasn’t expecting the glare Megumi gave him.
“Are you mocking me?” Megumi asked, and Yuta could tell he’d obviously made the kid go into defensive mode. He really had no idea what he said this time.
Yuta shook his head quickly, “No, of course I’m not. Why would you think that?” He asked, either Megumi was very anti adoption or there was some other issue.
“No reason...sorry.” Megumi looked obviously a bit sheepish, and Yuta was about to ask him why he got so offended when the other boy spoke up again.
“That’s my situation as well. My Dad adopted me on his own because he never found someone he wanted to raise a family with.”
Yuta’s eyes widened in realisation, understanding why Megumi had come to the conclusion that Yuta somehow found that out and was using it to make fun of him. It was a pretty big coincidence that the same thing happened to both of them.
“Guess we’re more alike than we thought.” Yuta chuckled, a little awkwardly, just to make the moment lighter.
“Yeah...guess so.” Megumi muttered.
They played a few rounds in silence, no noise apart from the rain pelting the window panes. It wasn’t until Yuta caught sight of Megumi’s stuffed wolf that he spoke up.
“Hey, what’s that?”
Megumi looked up and followed Yuta’s eyeline, if Yuta wasn’t mistaken he could have sworn that he saw a blush on Megumi’s cheeks.
“What? It’s just a wolf. You don’t have stuffed animals?” Megumi’s voice was sharp with defensiveness and Yuta almost sighed.
“No, not that. The label, what does it say?” Yuta asked, a small mark of urgency in his voice that made Megumi’s brow furrow.
“It says my name. Megumi Geto.” Megumi stated like Yuta was stupid.
“Your last name is Geto?” Yuta asked, unable to control the waver in his voice.
Megumi just looked even more exasperated, placing his cards down and looking at Yuta. “Yes, what is so strange about that to you?”
Yuta was just looking blankly for a few minutes, piecing everything together as best he could. He got up and searched through his things, leaving Megumi confused on the bed. He found what he was looking for, proof to make sure Megumi didn’t think he was making fun of him again. He came back over and pushed a bottle of his allergy medication into Megumi’s hand.
Megumi looked confused at it until his eyes focused in on the black writing across the front. It had the clear label on it of “Yuta Gojo-Geto”.
Megumi stared for a few minutes, and Yuta could see the thoughts swimming around his head. Unable to stay silent, he spoke quickly, getting everything out.
“Megumi, we’re both Japanese, and we were both adopted, and now we have the same last name...kind of. That can’t be a coincidence.”
Yuta asked, hoping he didn’t sound completely insane. It was all way too coincidental, and some things were definitely aligning in his head.
“My Dad never liked to talk about his past, like at all. I always asked him about where the other half of my name came from and he never answered, just shut it down with some stupid joke. He never showed me any pictures of before I was like 2. At first I was sure he just lost them but… I’m almost positive your Dad is the reason, or at least has something to do with this.”
Megumi finally looked up, and he didn’t look as sceptical as Yuta was assuming he would. He was silent a few moments before he eventually spoke up.
“...You may be right. My Dad never really spoke about his past either, I don’t have any photos before I was 6 months old.” Megumi said quietly, obviously coming to the same conclusion Yuta was.
“Gojo moved away from Japan with me when I was 2 years and 8 months old. He only told me that we used to live in Tokyo, but he didn’t say anything else.” Yuta explained
“My Dad moved with me when I was 6 months. We used to live in Tokyo as well before we moved to the countryside.” Yuta noticed Megumi squeezing his wolf harder as he said it.
“How old are you then?” Yuta whispered, wishing he had his own security blanket like Megumi did at that moment.
“11 years old, 7 months” Megumi told him.
“And I’m 13… and 9 months.”
Megumi worried at his bottom lip, refusing to look Yuta in the eye as he spoke, “That would make us 2 years and 2 months apart. And if your Dad left with you when you were 2 years and 8 months old...and mine left with me when I was 6 months…”
“Then our Dads left Tokyo at the exact same time.” Yuta finished for him, his gaze dropping to the floor.
Megumi got up after a while of uncomfortable silence, looking through his own items. It looked to Yuta like he was pulling out a photograph.
“I have one picture, it’s of me and my Dad when I was a baby. It’s torn right down the middle. I always wondered where the other half went.” Megumi held it tight in his hand and Yuta felt like he couldn’t breathe as he went to get his own photograph, the one which was also torn right down the middle.
Yuta came back over, stepping slowly as if longing to delay this inevitable moment. They held the two halves of it out at the same time, no one speaking as they met exactly in the middle.
The photo fit perfectly, and Yuta looked at the side he had never seen before. A man who was leaning into his Dad’s side, both of them looking so happy as they held two children on their laps. Gojo held Yuta, who had just turned 2 and the other man...Geto he presumed, held Megumi.
“I can’t believe this” Yuta breathed out, still staring at the other man. The one who he was guessing had been Dad until he was almost three yet he had no memory of at all.
“Me neither.” Megumi muttered back, his gaze also fixated on the other half of his family he never met.
Megumi slowly withdrew his half of the photograph and sat back down on the bed. Yuta had been wanting to stare at it for a little longer, but didn’t say so.
“So, does this make us like...brothers?” Yuta asked, and sat slowly down on the bed beside Megumi. He was unsure if they were biologically related in any way, but they had been raised together for 6 months and Geto was his Dad...right. Was this man his Dad? Did he even think about Yuta? Were he and Gojo even together or were they just like...co parenting for a while? It was all so confusing.
“I really don’t think we’re brothers. I guess my Dad is also...kind of your Dad though, considering you probably lived with him for almost three years.” Megumi explained, his brow furrowed like Yuta’s was.
“So we’re half brothers? I mean...isn’t Gojo your Dad? They obviously adopted us together.”
Megumi shook his head again, “No, they wouldn’t have been allowed to.”
Of course, that explained why Yuta couldn’t see any wedding rings or sign of marriage either. He’d forgot about that, living all over the world made him forget about Japan’s conservative laws regarding same sex marriage and adoption.
“I know my Dad had a partner before I was born. He told me that, after I kept asking him why he never dated anyone.” Megumi went on to explain.
“So, I guess we were a family for a little while.”
“I guess. We aren’t any more, though. They obviously don’t care about us or they wouldn’t have split us up and never bothered to see us.” Megumi’s tone turned bitter and Yuta knew he had to turn this situation around somehow. He’d always wanted a family, and this was his only chance to get it.
“They probably just couldn’t manage to see each other. I know my Dad, he wouldn’t not care about his own kid.”
Megumi huffed and spoke a little sharper, “I’m obviously not his kid. We don’t even know what really went on between them.”
Yuta was pretty dejected by that. Megumi had a point, Gojo would have only raised Megumi for 6 months, and they still didn’t really know what actually happened between the two of them.
“Plus, I’m not even a Gojo. I didn’t get his last name. I think that’s a pretty clear message.” Megumi continued.
Yuta really wasn’t proud of what he was about to do. Lie to Megumi. He took a deep breath and sat down by Megumi, their shoulders almost brushing.
“Look, I know that Gojo cared about you. I wasn’t going to say this, because I wasn’t completely sure before but now I am.” Yuta felt so terrible for doing this, but it was his one chance to have a real family, and he needed Megumi on board.
“When I was a kid, I walked in on my Dad looking at a picture in this locket he had. It was the first time I’ve ever seen him crying. As soon as he saw me he quickly put it away and I never saw him doing it again.” Yuta took a deep breath and continued.
“When he left one day for work, I was desperate to see what had him crying. So I went through all his belongings and found the locket he was looking at. At first I thought it was a picture of me as a baby, and it was cute that my Dad was so emotional over me, but now I know about you, I’m almost sure that was who the picture was of. It made sense, why he kept it secret and why he was so upset. I know he loves you, Megumi, and I know he regrets leaving you.”
Yuta was usually a terrible liar, unless he really, really wanted something. And he really wanted a family.
Megumi looked up at him, the scepticism lining his features softening into something warmer, hopeful that it made Yuta’s heart ache.
“Really?”
“Yeah, really.” Yuta promised, and he prayed he was right, that Gojo wanted them to be a family too.
“Alright then.” Megumi agreed after a moment, sitting up straight and showing Yuta his determination, “Have you got a plan?”
Yuta grinned. He definitely had a plan.