Chapter Text
“Haah, we’re finally out of there…,”
Reigen sighs out as the hardwood doors slam shut behind the trio exiting the mansion's foyer. The fresh air nips at Shigeo's exposed skin, a stark contrast to the heavy, basement draft that had encased him and Reigen for the past number of hours. A stark contrast to the freezing breeze that flowed around him as he choked out his classmate - after said classmate slammed a concrete brick on the back of his head.
Reigen walks forward, passing by the younger male, and stretches his arms above his head. A loud pop sounds and his master drops his hands to his sides with an exaggerated sigh. Shigeo senses the pressure of Dimple's aura coming close to the side of his head; but he doesn't turn to meet the spirit's gaze. Reigen glances back at him with a look of sympathetic exhaustion.
"I'm beat, kid. What about you?" He asks, giving Shigeo a slight smile. "How about we get some grub and head back to the office to call it a day?" Shigeo looks past Reigen, down the massive stairs laid out in front of the Asagiri home, past the stone landing, and over the woods where the Seasoning city skyline rests above the leaves. He nods, unblinking, before realizing that Reigen is no longer looking at him and is beginning to walk down the stairs.
"Yes," he replies. "That was… exhausting."
Dimple floats to Reigen, glancing at him as he passes and Shigeo immediately knows that he's going to have to catch the spirit up on everything later. "Yeah, I'm with you both," he grumbles, circling Reigen's head to face the man. "Let's get some grub and knock out for hibernation. You'll be set for a while so who cares about work!"
Shigeo looks away from the two and focuses on the stairs as he follows behind. He hears his teacher sigh deeply.
"Actually, no…" he admits, a bit reluctantly. "I didn't accept any cash from them. Had to do a lot of convincing but I just wouldn't feel okay taking that much money after causing so much damage." Dimple's face falls further and further with each word that passes through the conman's mouth. Reigen shrugs dismissively. "Minori went through Hell and her father got stabbed," He shakes his head slowly. " Not to mention a lot of psychics got injured… that money could be used for better, I guess."
Dimples scoffed, bewildered. "Yeah fuckin' right! That guy's rich, dude," the spirit exclaimed. "Payin' everyone's hospital bills is like getting a glass of water from the ocean. Anyone woulda taken that paycheck!" Reigen argued back, reminding the spirit to watch his language with a kid around - but Shigeo stopped hearing after Reigen mentioned Minori's father.
The esper stuttered in his pace, nearly tripping forward. Glancing up, neither of the men seemed to hear it - caught up in an argument about morals. Shigeo took in a deep breath to steady himself, but when he closed his eyes all he could see was Minori’s hand thrusting deep into her father's stomach. Her upper sleeve staining a dark red.
Shigeo's eyes snapped open, nearly expecting to see the same arm aimed towards his hip and brandished with a box cutter. Taking a moment to collect himself, he quickly caught up to pace with the older man and spirit. Reigen looks down at him with an eye-brow raised.
"Dimple's an evil spirit alright," he elbowed his student light-heartedly. "He has absolutely no heart. You agree with me right, Mob?"
Shigeo nodded, "Of course, Master."
He didn't get paid much anyways, it wasn't like anything changed for him. Dimple rolled his eyes. "Well - whatever," he muttered, drifting to sit on Shigeo's shoulder. "I'm just surprised we all made it out in the end. We deserve to take it easy after that." Reigen yawned loudly.
"I don't disagree with you."
The next hour and a half flashed by for Shigeo. One moment, he was stuttering through his usual order of Mobber King to Reigen so he could go to the cashier, earning him a look of slight concern as he struggled - a look that he kept seeing from the corner of his eye as he stared at the pavement while walking back to the office. And then the next, he was sitting in one of the office chairs with a greasy, burger take-out bag slouched on the table in front of him.
"Food is always better after a job well done, y'know Mob?" Reigen said, pointing a fry at him from across the table. "Always hits the spot, I could sleep for a million years after this."
"If you thought it was a job well done, you would've taken the money," Dimple grumbled from his spot on Shigeo's shoulder. The spirit looked up at him, "Hey, can I have a fry?"
Shigeo blinked.
"Can you even eat, Dimple?"
He shrugged, "Guess we won't know if you don't give me one."
The young esper looked down at his food, still sealed in its white bag.
"He hasn't even touched it and you're already hounding him on it," Reigen tutted. "Mob, seriously, dig in. You're lookin' pale kid, you need to get something in you so you don't pass out on the way home."
Shigeo knew he meant it out of care, but the reference to his habit of fainting stung slightly. Even with a decent meal, he can't last long in a marathon. Slowly, he reaches forward and unpacks the bag's contents. Pulling out the fries, he offers one up to the spirit while Reigen shakes his head in disbelief. The esper takes a deep breath and unwraps the burger.
It'd been 6 months since he'd truly had a warm meal.
It takes everything to keep his eyes from glassing up. He'd missed Dimple and his master. He’d missed their bickering and attempts to cheer him up. He couldn't remember either of them but he knows that he missed them, along with his family and friends. He missed them every night in that world.
Shigeo hears a small thunk and an 'aw, damn' come from his side - his master laughing faintly in the background.
He missed his mother's warm dinners after school. The smell of his father, coming back inside after smoking a cigarette while he and Ritsu help her wash dishes. He missed Ritsu helping him with his homework at the kitchen table when his parents would leave to watch a game-show in the living room.
Shigeo grips the burger with a bit more force than necessary and raises it to take a bite. Reigen continues eating and begins to yap about something Shigeo can't follow. All he can focus on is the greasy burger he's been given and the sugary soda to wash it down.
His family. He'll be seeing them soon. After this meal, he'll walk home, go into his house, greet them and everything will be back to how it used to be. None of the broken floorboards will creek and the windows won't be shattered. He'll have working electricity and running water. Life will continue with those six months far behind him. He doesn't have to think about it ever again.
"Mob."
Shigeo blinks, startling back slightly as he looks up to Reigen. The older man stares at him, frowning. "You okay? I called your name like three times kid," Reigen pressed on, "Are you just not hungry or something? You look like you're forcing yourself to eat that." He motioned to hand with a tilt of his head.
Shigeo shook his head,"I'm fine, Master. I just have a lot on my mind." He felt his teacher's gaze searing his scalp as he kept his head bowed. Leaning forward, he took another bite and tried to force his muscles to uncoil themselves. Reigen kept staring at him for a couple more seconds before sighing through his nose.
"Kid, you're taking some time off."
Shigeo's heart sank.
"Don't take it personally," Reigen said while raising one palm to him. "I should take some time too. My back's killing me and I'm serious about getting sleep. But… you honestly look like you could topple over any second. Was it really rough fighting Mogami?"
Shigeo could feel Dimple's eyes on him without even looking, deciding to finally meet Reigen's instead. He nodded, despite the sick, horrid sound of the man's name making Shigeo's skin want to shudder.
"It was… a long thirty minutes," he admitted carefully. Now that the esper was looking at his boss face-to-face, he could see that the man was telling the truth - he did look exhausted. And Shigeo did not want to be the one to add onto that.
Reigen smiled, eyes wrinkling in sympathy. "Yeah, believe me, I've been there." He states, before his eyes widen and he starts backtracking, "But of course, I am the best of the best so I always come out on top. Seems like you're following in my footsteps well, my student!"
Shigeo revels in the familiarity and praise. After nothing but cruelty for so long, even the hint of a compliment makes him want to rush into the man's arms and sob. However, that's not what the old Shigeo would ever do - especially not out of nowhere and he'd never break down like that in front of his teacher.
He gulps the feeling down with a swig of his drink.
Shigeo is able to get through most of his meal in the end - packing up the left overs to take home with him.
"Alright, Mob," Reigen said as he closed the blinds. "I'll see you in a week. Get some rest and take it easy, time off doesn't come often, y'know." He turns to his desk and gathers up his belongings. Bending over to open the drawer, he snags the office keys and rises to look at his student. Shigeo hardly needed to pack, he hadn't brought much with him in the first place.
They exit the office together, Reigen turning back to lock the door behind them. Shigeo's vision blurs on the way to the bus stop, he waves to Reigen as he boards the vehicle. Sitting down and watching as the man disappears further and further behind him, Shigeo slowly lets the mask slip.
He hunched over, burying his face in his hands and gripping his hair. The lights in the bus flicker, making Shigeo bite down on his bottom lip in frustration. His powers were back. He'd gotten so used to the privilege of breaking down alone, without any consequences, that he forgot that wasn't a luxury reality gave him.
"Not gonna tell him about it, huh?"
Shigeo chokes on his breath, snapping his head up to look at Dimple.
The spirit questioned further, "Wanna tell me about it then? I'm curious about what the Hell I walked into." He floated down to the seat next to Shigeo, manifesting legs to sit down with and looked up at the esper.
Shigeo lowered his arms and sat straighter, his hands clenching into fists. "I don't know if I want to talk about it, Dimple," he answers. "I think I just want to move on." Dimple shook his head.
"That doesn't work for any human I've seen, so good luck with that. That pressure's going to build till' one day you can't take it anymore," Dimple explains, looking at the sky out the window. "I won't force ya to talk, but Reigen and I are here if you ever change your mind."
Shigeo looked down at the spirit, with a small smile.
"Thank you, Dimple."
The green blob waved him off. "Yeah, yeah. I can't have you wallowing in depression, it'd put my plans to rule as God on hold, ya know?"
Shigeo nodded, feeling ever so slightly lighter.
Walking up to his front door felt as if he was standing before a looming final boss lair to a video game. His heart thudded loudly in his chest and he swallowed dryly. Opening the front door and stepping into the entranceway, he hesitantly called out, "Hello, I'm home…"
His mother glances up from the kitchen counter, before turning and smiling widely at him. "Oh, hello dear," she greeted warmly. "I'm cleaning up now, did Mr. Reigen pick you up something or do you need me to heat your leftovers up?"
Shigeo's breath stuttered as he stood there stunned, "Uhm, yes he got me food. Thank you, though…" His mother nodded, refocusing on her task. He heard a loud snore from his father in the living room. Seeing movement in his periphery, he turned to the stairs in time to see his little brother stepping down, brushing his teeth. Ritsu held his toothbrush to the side so he could speak clearer.
"You're home late, Shige. Did a job run long? We were supposed to study tonight…"
Shigeo's heart lurched, he couldn't even remember when he and his brother talked last. His memory flashes to being beaten to the ground, the fake world's Ritsu towering over him as he walks by without a glance. He pinches and rubs the trim along his shirt, "Sorry Ritsu, it was kind of a tough spirit today."
Ritsu narrows his eyes in concern, "You're not hurt at all, right?"
Shigeo shook his head. He felt his mother’s stare on the back of his head.
"No, not really. It was just…" Shigeo paused to think of the word. "…draining, I guess. Master Reigen's the one who actually got hurt, so we're taking the week off."
Ritsu took this into consideration for a moment.
"…So you'll have the entire week off? Does that mean you'll have time to hang out other than studying together?" He asked. Shigeo almost crumbles on the spot. Out of all the possible scenarios he could've been born with, he was lucky enough to be around people who love him. Despite everything.
"Of course, that sounds fun."
Ritsu smiles before turning back to head upstairs. The pressure behind his eyes builds and spreads to his temples.
"You should get ready for bed too, if you've already eaten, Shigeo," The older brother jumped as his mother called out to him. "You've got school in the morning, I don't want you to oversleep because you're too tired from work."
"Yes ma'am," he responds and follows his brother upstairs.
Settled into his PJs and in his warm bed, Shigeo stares at the ceiling. No cracks in the wood leaked water onto him and he has a thick duvet to cover himself with instead of a thin blanket. Everything is back to normal. He's home with his family. Shigeo grips the edge of his covers as the pressure in his temples increases. But if everything's back to normal, then why does it feel so different?
Gritting his teeth, he wills himself to calm down and retracts his aura from spreading to Ritsu's bedroom. Outside the bedroom window, the street lamps flicker and pulsate with his rapid heartbeat.
Turning over on his futon, he squeezes his eyes closed and wills himself to forget that that world ever existed to begin with. And then weeks later, when his house is burnt to the ground and his family missing - their decoys melting in front of his eyes - he realizes that it was only the beginning of a long year.