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Aki opened the door as she cleaned her hand on her apron, the flour she'd been using sticking to her fingers.
"Hello! You must be Tsurugi, correct? Tenma and Aoi are in his room. It's the first one to the right of the stairs."
"Yes, that's me. Thank you for letting me stay the night at your home."
Aki smiled at the first year forward, making a gesture with her hand to dismiss the gratitude.
"No need to thank me for anything. It's always nice seeing Tenma hanging out his friends and bringing them over. It would be wrong for me to deny you a sleepover, specially after what you recently went through with the team."
Tsurugi gave a small nod and began walking to Arion's room. He didn't like the fresh reminder of their adventure in God Eden, even if it ended in a good note and he was able to somewhat fix his relationship with Hakuryuu it didn't change how scary it had been before Coach Evans and his friends came to their rescue and became their anchor in that horrid place, even then it wasn't nice being back there.
He opened the door and went inside, closing it behind him and looking around. Tenma's bedroom was more normal than he expected. He'd think the other would have the walls top to bottom with football related posters and other similar trinquets and items but there wasn't much aside from the club's uniform and an old ball with a little lighting drawn on it.
"Tsurugi, you are here!"
"Welcome Tsurugi."
The forward finally turned to the two other teens in the room. Arion seemed to be making a little braid on the side of Skye's hair while they both sat on the floor infront of the TV which was showing some cartoon Tsurugi only recognised from seeing it in passing while flipping through channels.
"Hi."
"Leave your bag wherever you'd like. You can sit on the bed if you want or join us here on the floor. Do you want to watch some movies? We had been thinking about which ones we could watch and have a couple we like prepared if you are okay with them too."
He set his bag besides what he assumed was Aoi's own due to the blue color of it before walking over and sitting on the edge of the bed, close but behind were Tenma and Aoi were.
"I don't mind putting some movies on and you can pick whichever one you two like most, I don't have any preferences."
Tenma gave him a nod before turning his attention back to Aoi's hair, tying the end of the braid he'd made before crawling across his rug towards a shelf and laying down infront of it as he looked for an specific title, like the idea of remaining somewhat upright was too much effort.
Tsurugi frowned a bit in surprise more than anything else. He'd never really seen Tenma outside of school and the football club so the sight of the other appearing so lazy, not wanting to get up and walk and then not wanting to even stay sitting, it felt so unnatural with the image he had of the other boy. Well, he hoped it was just that, a side of the other he'd never seen. He hoped it wasn't that the other was injured, that the soreness of their time at God Eden wasn't so severe that Tenma had no energy to even remain upright.
Before he could dwell on that possibility any longer, he was pulled away from looking at Tenma and out of his thoughts by Aoi's palm tapping on his leg to get his attention.
"Don't worry. As someone whose been his friend for a while, I can tell you he is okay. He just gets like this when he is actually getting sleepy. I think he got it from spending so much time with his dog Sasuke because they do the same things."
"They do?"
"Yeah. I remember one time when Sasuke's meal time was coming up he wanted to stay relaxed so badly that he whined until Tenma put the bowl right under his mouth so he could eat it like that and then he fell asleep almost as soon as he was done."
Tsurugi hummed in response, imagining the story Aoi was telling him. It was admittedly a funny image, even more so if he imagined Tenma doing that same thing at dinner.
"Got it!"
Tenma raised one of the films victoriously in his hand before rolling over to be infront of the TV, putting the disk in as Aoi switched the TV to the correct channel to watch the movie on. The midfielder then moved back to his spot next to Aoi again.
"... We've seen this movie so many times already."
"It is a good movie."
"I don't disagree but it gets a bit boring."
"Yeah."
Tsurugi was a bit confused.
"Then why did you two choose this movie if you've seen it so many times?"
Tenma turned his head up to look at Tsurugi, leaning back into the bed, his hair brushing Tsurugi's knee and making it tickle a bit.
"I only have so many movies here and it's our favorite. We've watched all the movies many times too, it's not just this one."
Aoi nodded in agreement as she stretched her arm out to grab her bag, opening it up and taking out a bag of sour cream flavored chips. She opened it and grabbed a couple.
"You guys want some?"
"Yes please!"
"Sure."
Tenma reached for the bag eagerly, shoving a handful of chips into his mouth and letting a couple crumps drop on the rug in the process before he handed the bag over to Tsurugi. Aoi then spoke up again.
"By the way Tenma, I've been meaning to ask, where did you get that bracelet?"
Tenma hummed in confusion before looking at his own wrist where the gift Tezcat had given the midfielder was tied around.
"Oh, this? It's a gift from Shuu. The boy with black hair that had that cool spirit fusion with Hakuryuu to make King Arthur."
"I remember him, yeah. So it's a friendship bracelet?"
"Yeah! I take it like that at least."
Aoi seemed to think for a moment as she grabbed a few more chips, eating them before speaking again as she looked between Tenma and Tsurugi too.
"We need friendship bracelets too."
"... Yes!!"
Tsurugi flinched back slightly at the enthusiastic response Tenma gave as he leaned closer to Aoi with excitement, putting his hand on Tsurugi's thigh in the process. Tsurugi didn't feel the need to get the other to drop that hand, it felt warm on his skin.
"Maybe we could go shopping for some tomorrow morning."
"Yes! Yes! What do you think Tsurugi?"
Tsurugi raised his gaze to meet Tenma's own. He swore that smile and those eyes were a danger to society.
"If we don't take too long... I wanted to visit my brother a bit after his lunch time."
"Don't worry. We'll be quick, I promise!"
Aoi nodded along to the words, giving a sympathetic smile before she stood up, making Tenma inmediatly turn back to look at her.
"I'm going to the bathroom. I'll be right back."
Tsurugi watched as Tenma's gaze followed Aoi all the way until the girl was out of the door. Then, as soon as it was just the two of them, his knee began bouncing nervously and he leaned his head against Victor's leg as he whined impatiently. That was another odd behaviour Tsurugi had never seen.
"Are you okay?"
"Yeah, I'm fine... I'm just being stupid. And selfish."
Tsurugi frowned, he didn't like the way Tenma sounded. So anxious and tired.
"Why do you think you are being stupid and selfish? What's going on in your head?"
Tenma burrowed even closer to Tsurugi's skin. One of his eyes was just barely peaking over the pale skin and between his bangs.
"... I'm selfish for asking you two to stay over the night. And I am stupid for worrying so much as if Aoi is going to be kidnapped and put in a cage again even though we are no longer in that place."
Ah, Tsurugi suspected something like that. Even though they had actually been friends for a bit now, it had surprised him to get a sudden invitation to spend the night over at Windsor Manor. But he wondered why still. With Aoi it was because she had been in danger but nothing major had happened to Tsurugi himself. Maybe it was just because he used to be a SEED and Tenma was scared of what effects it might have had on him to be back in God Eden. If that was the case, that was very caring of him, specially because it was true that he did feel a bit wrong being back there.
"I don't think that's selfish. If anything, it is selfless for you to be so worried for your childhood friend so much. And it's not stupid to be worried... I myself sometimes worry my brother will somehow get hurt when I'm not looking."
Tenma rose his head a bit, now resting his chin on Tsurugi's knee. He reached out to grab his hand, Tsurugi let him. They looked at each other for a moment, the forward didn't like how sad and worried the other looked.
"It feels different though. Nothing really happened to Aoi in the end, when compared to your brother. And it doesn't really justify me calling you over too."
"Why did you want me to sleep over too?"
Tenma looked down at his hand then back up at his face as as he leaned his head onto his inner thigh and nuzzled like a kitten or a puppy against it.
"... Because you make me feel safe, Tsurugi. And I was scared that, even with Aoi being here, maybe I wouldn't be able to protect her alone."
Tsurugi's heart skipped a beat at that. His eyes felt suddenly and surprisingly watery at the words. Tenma's voice sounded so sure and genuine in that statement too, it felt surprisingly nice yet painful at the same time to know how much trust the other was willing to give him.
"You help me feel a bit safer too Tenma. Make it easier to forget about the bad memories from God Eden."
They were silent for a few moments after that. Tsurugi knew he was probably blushing by how warm his cheeks felt. And Tenma looked happier too now, even if there was still sadness and worry mixed into his irises.
"Akane is gonna love this one..."
Both of the boys turned to look at Aoi who had returned at some point of their conversation and was currently holding her phone like she had just taken a picture. His face was even redder now, and Tenma made a weird squawking noise as he went to clean his face with his sleeve even though no real tears had ever dropped from his eyes.
Aoi didn't seem to care much as, this time, they actively watch her take another picture of their faces before she walked over and threw herself against Tsurugi's side as she used her free hand to ruffle Tenma's hair playfully.
"I appreaciate the protection you two, and the show you just gave as well... I promise to help you in whatever way I can too."
"I don't need protection though Aoi. You two are the ones who had it bad back in that place."
Tsurugi frowned again at that, forgetting about his indignation with being photographed by the other blue haired teen. He didn't like the way Tenma was pushing his own possible discomfort and pain in that place to the side. So, in a bold move that Aoi was clearly intune to, they grabbed Tenma from the floor together and rolled him up so the younger boy was resting across both of their laps and being kept there even as he struggled to get away.
"You are getting protected too wheter you like it or not, mister!"
Tenma whined and huffed as he tried to get away but Aoi and Tsurugi grabbed onto him tight to force him to stay put. They were all laughing by now. It feel good to have friends that felt so safe around Tsurugi and that he himself felt so safe with too.
"Aoi, stop! It tickles!"
"Never!"