Archive of Our Own

   Disaster. That was the only word Zenitsu could use to describe the chain of events he found himself shackled to. Disaster. 

   Really, what had Nezuko been thinking, requesting this of him? She knew his shoddy luck. She knew Genya’s disdain for him. She even knew of just how stubbornly oblivious her brother was. So why did she ask Zenitsu to do this?! All he wanted was a nice spring break camping trip. It was tradition for his family. Was it really too much to ask to be allowed to enjoy it?! Apparently so, because he had been tasked by (his beloved) Nezuko to spend that time focused on their two friends: more specifically, he had been charged with the duty of getting Tanjiro and Genya to talk again. 

   It wasn’t like it was his fault they weren’t talking to begin with! Both of them had been weird since The Incident—ie, Winter Formal, where they failed to kiss and confess their feelings. The fallout didn’t even make sense to Zenitsu. They were so close before; why should one little fuck up push them so far apart again?! To be fair to Tanjiro, it seemed to be mostly Genya’s fault: he had gone radio silent over winter break, ghosting everyone in their friend group until school restarted, and only ever texting Tanjiro after that, but even that was as far as he went. According to the Kamados, Genya had not spent the night once since before the holidays, nor had he and Tanjiro continued their little movie dates. It was clearly breaking Tanjiro’s heart, and even stressing Genya out from the sound of his pulse, yet neither one of them did anything to fix it. Which was absolute bullshit, because now Zenitsu had to pick up the pieces. 

   He thought of this as he lounged in the river, leaning against a sun-baked rock and watching the utter lack of conversation between the two. While Genya had refused to get into the water—despite being dressed in black pants and long sleeves—Tanjiro hadn’t hesitated even a moment before tugging off his shirt and jumping in. His little brother Takeo (joining for the first time that year) leapt in quickly behind him, immediately followed by Inosuke, who tugged the at-the-time-unwilling Zenitsu in too. 

   Honestly, the whole getting-yanked-into-the-river-by-Inosuke thing wasn’t even much of an issue. No, Zenitsu’s problem was that this had been his decided first step of phase one. See, he had a phase for each day they were to spend out in the woods (three total) and a couple steps per phase to push Genya and Tanjiro back together. He’d gotten the idea from Nezuko’s usual planning style, and figured he could probably manage to stick with it. The first part had been to get them in the river together, because what better way is there to bond with your friend-crush than in an icy cold river? It was brilliant, if Zenitsu did say so himself, and only soiled by the ever grumpy Genya, who was still acting all stoic and immune to the heat of the day on the river bank. Zenitsu couldn’t help but resent him a little for that—not that Genya knew his plan, of course, but come on! He was watching Tanjiro like a hawk anyway, clearly checking him out, so why was the bastard being so stubborn and refusing to join?! 

   In some sort of defense for Genya, he’d been acting weird since The Incident and his whole period of ghosting literally everyone. Zenitsu figured something must have happened at home during that time, and he further figured that unknown something was the source of Genya’s problems. He had hoped that removing the kid from their usual lives and carting him up north with the rest of the group would at least somewhat fix him, but he had apparently been wrong. Outside of his extra obvious attention on Tanjiro, he was the same weird, reclusive giant who would rather cook in black clothing than get in a river. Not that Zenitsu didn’t understand the urge to cover oneself, mind you; he just had better tact than Genya, and was far less obvious about the skin he hid. 

   Whatever. He slunk further in the water, sighing as it lapped against the underside of his chin. He still had part two of phase one, he could still do something today, even if that something was not a thing he particularly enjoyed. He could tough it out, for Tanjiro, and the stupid feelings he held for their—

   “Why are you being weird?” Inosuke asked, nearly scaring Zenitsu into a heart attack, as he had apparently been too engrossed in his own frustration to notice his approach. Inosuke snorted when he startled, but shut up quickly when Zenitsu fixed him with a glare. 

   “I’m not being weird,” he hissed. “You’re weird. Go away.”

   Inosuke raised an eyebrow. “You’re staring at Yenka,” he said flatly. “It’s weird. Why are you staring at him?”

   “I am not—”

   “Do you want him to get in the water?” Inosuke kept prodding. He sloshed closer to Zenitsu with a wild glint in his eye, a grin stretching to accompany it and setting Zenitsu’s nerves on edge. “I can get him in the water. Just watch.”

   “I don’t—!”

   But Zenitsu had no real time to talk him down. Before he got even those two meager words out, Inosuke had charged across the river, carving a deliberate path towards Genya, who was slowly turning to see him, looking more and more anxious the closer he got. Zenitsu lurched forward, desperately splashing through the water to catch up. He saw Takeo and Tanjiro turn too from where they were occupied with a lingering school of fish, twisting to face the almost-commotion with confusedly worried looks. Even Gramps, Kaigaku, and Gramps’ totally-platonic-military-friend, Captain Urokodaki, looked over, providing a complete audience of spectators to watch as Inosuke reached the bank, lunged out of the water, seized hold of Genya’s wrist, and yanked him in. 

   There was a split second of utter silence where Zenitsu stood, gaping and horrified, before Genya erupted from the water like a bullet. He rounded on the still grinning Inosuke within an instant, eyes blown wide and heart erratic with what sounded like fury and terror alike. 

   “ARE YOU INSANE?!” He hollered, hounding down on Inosuke, who continued to simply cackle and back away to safer waters. “WHAT THE FUCK IS WRONG WITH YOU?!”

   He shot out one hand to grab Inosuke’s hair—maybe planning to dunk him underwater, maybe just planning to plain murder him (Zenitsu definitely couldn’t blame him for that)—but Tanjiro and all his heroics had arrived, dodging between them and preventing any physical altercation. 

   “That was incredibly dangerous, Inosuke,” he chided, and Inosuke finally lost his manic spark, deflating like a punctured balloon beneath Tanjiro’s anger. “You could have seriously injured Genya, or yourself.”

   “I was just—” He started to defend, pointing an accusatory finger at Zenitsu, who began to seethe at the implication of blame, but Tanjiro cut the thought short with a firm shake of his head. 

   “Apologize to him, now,” he demanded, and stepped aside to clear the air. Inosuke sighed and looked up at Genya, who was still breathing heavily, heart still a mess and expression still twisted. 

   “Sorry,” he grumbled, clearly not actually remorseful. Genya scoffed. 

   “Whatever,” he clipped in reply, then turned and began to wade back towards the bank, tugging his now sodden collar away from his throat. Tanjiro immediately took off after him, which almost made Zenitsu relax, until he heard the short conversation that followed. 

   “Are you going back to camp?” Tanjiro asked. 

   “Yeah,” Genya said, flat and irritated. 

   “Do you want company?”

   “No.”

   “Are you sure? You—”

   “I’m sure.” Genya pulled himself from the water. Tanjiro stayed within. Genya glanced down at him. “I’ll be fine,” he added, with just a little more softness than before, the soft tick of regret joining alongside his lingering anger and upset. “Really, Tani. I’ll see you back there.”

   Tanjiro took a deep breath, then said, “Okay,” and left the conversation at that, watching in silence as Genya indeed turned and left on his lonesome. Zenitsu groaned. Because just naturally they couldn’t do any better than that. 

   As if to rub salt in the wound, Inosuke appeared at his side, combing an unconcerned hand over his sopping hair. 

   “I don’t see the big deal,” he said plainly. Zenitsu grit his teeth until they hurt. “I was just helping. Maybe, if Tenma didn’t want to get in, he should have—”

   Zenitsu didn’t wait to hear the rest of his drivel; he grabbed Inosuke’s hair, and shoved his head under the water, trudging away with a grumble of, “Fucking maniac,” under his breath. 

   ~~~

   Part two of phase one of Zenitsu’s plan was not actually his idea. Rather, it had been Gramps who suggested the activity, an activity he always suggested and which Zenitsu usually soundly denied. This time, however, he relented for the sake of Tanjiro and—yeah, fine, he had to admit it—Genya. The said activity was, most regrettably, scary stories around the campfire. 

   Zenitsu hated scary stories—a ridiculous conjecture, or so Nezuko said, as he enjoyed watching horror movies. But, in his defense, they were entirely different things, and the way Gramps told the stories…well, Zenitsu just hated them. They were terrifying, and uncomfortable, and all around not a good time, so you can imagine just how reluctantly he settled into his seat that night. 

   On a slightly good note, Tanjiro and Genya had chosen to sit next to each other, ‘accidentally’ deciding to plop on the same log, and blushingly agreeing to just share it. That left Takeo on his lonesome, but he didn’t seem to mind, and took the space next to Zenitsu. Inosuke, unfortunately, took the other spot. Zenitsu had half a mind to kick him away as revenge for earlier, especially when he leaned in to whisper in his ear.

   “I’ve got something new to help,” he said coyly, winking once before sitting back and pretending he hadn’t spoken. Zenitsu scowled at him, then his clasped hands—hands that usually wandered endlessly and drove Zenitsu mad—but he didn’t say or do anything else, rather taking the brief moment to curl further into himself as preparation.   

   As expected, Gramps’ stories were awful, and terrifying, and never-fucking-ending. Inosuke seemed to enjoy them, and even Takeo looked slightly intrigued when he didn’t sound sick with horror, (Kaigaku wasn’t even paying attention, huddled in some secluded spot and texting on his phone that somehow still got reception), but Zenitsu wasn’t suffering for their sakes—no, oh no, he was enduring horrific and mutilating torture for the other two sitting on their isolated log—and, praise Miku above, it looked like it was working. 

   Genya kept a cool face during each story, though Zenitsu could hear the uptick of his heart as the suspense and terror built. Tanjiro, on the other hand, was both visibly and audibly engrossed, jumping in place with each leap of his heart. Zenitsu watched, relieved, as Tanjiro took his twitchiness as an opportunity, slowly scooting across the log until he and Genya were squished together, their arms constantly bumping and knees knocking. If he hadn’t been so damn desperate for them to reach this point, he might have enjoyed the awkward sight more, filing it away for their inevitable wedding to tell as some embarrassing tale; if he hadn’t been so desperate, he might have even noticed Inosuke slipping away during the edging climax of Gramps’ current story, but he was so desperate, and he didn’t notice until too late—until Inosuke had snuck behind the two of them, holding his still clamped hands over their heads. Zenitsu’s heart plummeted into his stomach, as did Genya’s by the sound of it, the both of them turning to shoot wide stares up at Inosuke, just in time to see him open his hands, and watch the apparently trapped spider tumble onto their laps. 

   Casting all suave illusions aside, Genya screeched and scrambled away in a blur of panic, accidentally knocking Inosuke backwards and Tanjiro sideways in his hustle to get away. Gramps shouted something about being interrupted, Takeo screamed at the surprise, Kaigaku chuckled meanly to himself, Captain Urokodaki sighed almost wistfully, but Zenitsu just stared. There was no way that idiot had thought this would help—had he?! Surely he wasn’t that dense! Zenitsu couldn’t believe it!

   And yet, the evidence spoke for itself. Zenitsu was the evidence, having watched the whole ordeal himself! He kept watching as Inosuke recovered from the shock of falling and began to cackle, ignoring the red-faced Genya who finally managed to get to his feet, and the disoriented Tanjiro who slowly picked himself up and found the spider. It was him who scooped the creature into his hands and carefully deposited it aside on the grass, watching as it scurried away, and it was him who first addressed Genya, frowning in that gentle way that always made everyone spill their secrets, whether they wanted to or not. 

   “Genya,” he said softly, “are you okay?”

   Genya huffed, the sound petulant and aggressive despite the fact he was clearly just trying to calm down and catch his breath. He looked at Tanjiro, then the rest of the group, turning redder and redder before he scoffed and shook his head. 

   “This is such bullshit,” he muttered to himself, then spun on his heel and stormed off into the woods. 

   “Oi!” Gramps shouted, leaping to his feet. “Don’t go out there alone! What’re you doin’ boy?!”

   But Tanjiro was three steps ahead, already sprinting after Genya and shouting, “I’ve got him!” over his shoulder. Upon his departure—and aside from Inosuke’s continued chuckling—the camp fell into a hush. 

   “Did you see that?” Zenitsu heard Kaigaku murmur, probably on an impossible video call with his middle-aged boyfriend. He heard Gramps grumble too, scowling about his unfinished story, and the Captain’s following placating shushes. Next to him, he caught Takeo’s own hissing voice, wondering (appropriately), “What the heck is going on?” under his breath, but Zenitsu didn’t pay any attention to them. Instead, once he got the strength to stand up again, he marched over to the still supine Inosuke and stood above him, glaring daggers at his grinning, red-cheeked face. 

   “See?” He giggled when he noticed Zenitsu. “I helped.”

   “You probably just scarred him for life,” Zenitsu scoffed, to which Inosuke waved him away. 

   “He’s big enough to handle a little spider,” he said, rolling his eyes. “Besides, it worked! They’re alone together. That’s what you wanted, right?”

   Zenitsu did not confirm his suspicions—he didn’t even know how he figured it out in the first place—but that was mostly out of petty spite, as he was, unfortunately, correct. He did get the two of them together, as undesirable as those circumstances were. Maybe, if Zenitsu could just keep good enough control over him, he might be able to help…

   “Get up,” he said, kicking Inosuke’s leg. “You’re coming with me.”

   Inosuke raised an eyebrow. “Uh, no, I’m not—”

   “I’ll take you to dinner wherever you want if you do,” Zenitsu said. 

   Inosuke was on his feet instantly, though Zenitsu didn’t even give him enough time to verbally agree before he grabbed his hand and hauled him off in the opposite direction as Genya and Tanjiro. 

   ~~~

   Zenitsu’s updated plan had one new and very important addendum: keep Inosuke away from Genya. 

   As he figured it, the boy could prove profoundly useful, but only if he kept his insane behavior away from their equally temperamental friend. This idea already validated itself that morning as everyone gathered for a hike (part one of phase two, in other words). 

   Genya and Tanjiro hadn’t returned until late the night before, when everyone else was settling in for bed, and neither of them seemed to be in great spirits—an attitude that obviously dragged into the next day, as the both of them remained quiet and subdued. Inosuke’s role, as Zenitsu had well-dictated to him, was to keep their four other companions distracted and entertained while Zenitsu worked his (hopeful) magic in mending the worsening rift between those two stubborn motherfuckers, and by god was he glad he had ordered that. Everyone else had grown interested in the soap opera that was their relationship after the insanity of the previous day, and the last thing he needed was a whole extra slew of unhelpful helpers; for his part, Inosuke seemed to realize this too, and set happily to his new task, providing Zenitsu with the space he needed to talk to Tanjiro as they made their way up the mountain. 

   The further they went, however, the more Zenitsu realized he was less talking to Tanjiro and more so talking at him. Though his friend was usually the bubbliest of their group, always seen with a smile on his face and a compliment on his tongue, that typical demeanor had disappeared as of the tumultuous night. His smile hung low, clearly exhausted, and his comments came seldom, spaced few and far between, only occurring often enough to assure Zenitsu that he was, at least, somewhat paying attention—somewhat being the key word. 

   He offered his small words and agreements, yes, but every single one of them were distracted, focused elsewhere. And by elsewhere…yeah, Zenitsu meant Genya. He wasn’t even being subtle about it. His eyes stayed obviously locked on their gargantuan friend, tracing every detail of his figure like he would disappear if that shape wasn’t committed to memory. Maybe that was what Tanjiro thought would happen. In all fairness to him, it had almost happened only a couple months ago, and though Tanjiro never made a big fuss about the whole ordeal, it had clearly scarred him deeply. Zenitsu hated to watch it happen, on both accounts. He and Genya hadn’t exactly gotten close in their couple months of knowing each other, but Zenitsu didn’t want him gone. You’d never catch him saying it out loud, but he had actually rather grown to care about the big guy. Oh, woe was he; too big hearted to not give a shit. 

   He nudged Tanjiro’s shoulder as they made it to a small plateau of the mountain, boring his own eyes into his profile until Tanjiro deigned him with a small glance back. Zenitsu grinned. Tanjiro’s false smile barely stretched. 

   “You should talk to him, you know,” he said. He had considered more covert ways of suggesting it the day before, but…well…Tanjiro wasn’t the best adept at picking up on second-meanings and social cues. Too literal thinking. It would be more endearing if it wasn’t so frustrating, particularly at times like this. “I’m sure he’d love it if you tried. He’d probably even, like, grunt back.”

   Tanjiro certainly grunted back at Zenitsu then—well, more like hummed, but the irony stuck. His gaze drifted once again to—who’d’ve guessed it!—Genya, watching as he bent to study some wildflowers with Takeo. Those two had branched off from the bigger group some time before, wandering along the edges of the path to study different plants and reference Takeo’s massive encyclopedia he had brought along (for some fucking reason). Honestly, it was adorable to watch. Zenitsu had never really gotten over how gentle Genya was with the Kamado kids, and Tanjiro clearly hadn’t either, if that heavy, yearning beat of his heart was anything to go off of. Considering that sound and the strain in his expression, Zenitsu expected his next words to be about the pair and their cuteness. Maybe Genya’s future capability as a father. He was wrong. 

   “Can I tell you a secret?” Tanjiro murmured. Zenitsu told him yes. Tanjiro took a breath. “I…have a crush on Genya. Like, a big crush.”

   Yeah, duh, Zenitsu wanted to say, exasperated, though he bit his tongue, and nodded his understanding instead. “I kinda guessed,” he replied softly, which still turned Tanjiro’s expression horrified, though probably not as badly as his first comment would have. 

   “Was I that obvious?” He moaned, his fingers locking together and brow twisting, his pulse embarrassed. Zenitsu quickly stopped him, grabbing those hands and smiling as gently as he could manage (considering how badly he wanted to laugh. Which was just rude of him. But, to be fair, Tanjiro’s plight was a little hilarious. Like, come on, dude! Everyone knows. Except for Genya, because he’s also too dense). 

   “No, no, you’re okay,” he promised (lied) and squeezed Tanjiro’s hands. “I just know you really well. And I can hear your heartbeat. It gets really loud around him.”

   Tanjiro looked down at his chest, like he only then remembered he had a heart (a very big one), and frowned. “Oh, right,” he mumbled, then sighed heavily, and looked back at Genya (to no one’s surprise). He sighed a second time. 

   “The problem is,” he continued, even softer and more doleful than before, “I don’t think he likes me back. I think…I think he likes Nezuko, and I think she likes him too.”

   Zenitsu couldn’t do it anymore. He laughed, loud and sudden and maybe a little mean. Tanjiro jumped in place at the sound, finally devoting all of his now-startled attention to Zenitsu. Zenitsu tried to catch his breath and stop laughing but…oh, come on! Surely he wasn’t that oblivious, was he?! Even Zenitsu had never once dallied with that idea—there was no reason to! Yeah, sure, Genya seemed to trust Nezuko a lot and Nezuko clearly cared for him in return, but that was just…them. Everyone trusted in Nezuko and Nezuko cared for everyone. And yet, poor and loving and so, so oblivious Tanjiro had read way into a situation that didn’t exist and sewn himself a heartbreak. 

   “Tanjiro,” Zenitsu said as soon as he was able, reaching out and clasping his hands over both his shoulders, “they very much so do not have a crush on each other.”

   Tanjiro frowned, his lips pursing and brow furrowing. “Are you sure?” He asked quietly. “I mean—if you look at how they interact, you’ll see—”

   “That Nezuko treats everyone that way and Genya is an awkward little shit?” Zenitsu nodded solemnly. “Yeah, I’ve seen it.”

   Tanjiro’s expression worsened. “That’s not a nice thing to say,” he clipped, in that uncharacteristically sharp tone he gave to Inosuke the day before, at the river. The sound of it sobered up Zenitsu immediately, dispelling his remaining giggles and twinging in his chest. 

   “Well, the point stands,” he hurriedly said, swallowing down the guilt at Tanjiro’s chastisement. “They don’t like each other, not like that. Honestly, I’m not even sure Nezuko likes boys at all—except for me, of course.”

   “Of course,” Tanjiro echoed, still solemn. 

   “Besides,” Zenitsu added, jostling his shoulders a little and winking, “Genya likes someone else.”

   Only when he said it out loud did Zenitsu realize his mistake. Tanjiro’s already fallen expression tightened with a sudden, accepting sorrow, just in time for Zenitsu to remember: he doesn’t understand social cues. But surely he—he had winked, that’s, like, a universal sign for ‘read into my words’! Surely he’d get that, right?!

   He didn’t even have time to rectify the issue. Apparently, Inosuke had let a stray loose to wander behind the group, so like a plaguing phantom come to ruin yet another of Zenitsu’s days, Kaigaku sauntered over to them, offering his best bored expression and shoving his hands in his pockets. 

   “Hey,” he said blandly to announce his unwanted arrival. Zenitsu grit his teeth, but Tanjiro glanced at him, too polite to ignore even his aggravating presence. “What’re you idiots talking about?”

   “Nothing that concerns you,” Zenitsu snapped. 

   Kaigaku scowled at him. “What, you don’t want my help?”

   “I’d rather swallow knives.” Zenitsu rolled his eyes. “Don’t you have, like, a controversially older boyfriend to sext, or something?”

   “Didn’t want to hear that,” Tanjiro murmured glumly. 

   Kaigaku ignored him. “Don’t you have a noose to tie around your neck?” He clipped. 

   “You tie the noose before putting it on, idiot.”

   “Whatever, idiot.”

   “Asshole.”

   “Bitch.”

   Tanjiro sighed. “Did you need something, Kaigaku?”

   “Uh, don’t you?” Kaigaku stepped closer. Tanjiro wrinkled his nose, probably picking up on that cigarette scent he’d always hated. Zenitsu, thankfully, had grown used to it ages ago, but he also didn’t have as keen a nose. “I’m assuming this idiot hasn’t been helpful.”

   “Uh, fuck you,” Zenitsu said. 

   “He’s always helpful,” Tanjiro quickly defended, which was sweet, if a bit untrue. “What are you getting at?”

   “You’re trying to get with that guy, right?” Kaigaku prodded, jerking his head towards where Genya had found another apparently interesting plant. Tanjiro’s entire face flushed red immediately. “I’m sure Zenitsu here has given you terrible advice so far, so I figured I’d be generous and help out.”

   Tanjiro peeked at Zenitsu sideways. Zenitsu just bit his tongue and awkwardly shrugged. So much for pretending he wasn’t obvious in his desires; Tanjiro would never let him live that fib down now. 

   Kaigaku didn’t wait for approval either way. He took another step closer and leaned down, grinning in a way he likely thought was charming but came across more like a threat. Tanjiro drew back from him. Zenitsu considered kicking him in the shins. 

   “Look, you’re overthinking this whole thing,” he said, smooth and low and probably cool in his mind. “Other men don’t want some grand gesture or heartfelt confession, that’s all female shit. All you need to do is go over there, yank him down, and kiss him. Trust me, it works like a charm.”

   “Is that how you got your sixty-year-old boyfriend?” Zenitsu grumbled. 

   “Forty,” Kaigaku corrected with a snap. “He’s forty, and yes. You know, maybe if you listened to me, you wouldn’t be a sad fucking loser too.” 

   “Who’s the too in this situation?”

   Kaigaku scoffed, then gestured to Zenitsu and Tanjiro alike. “You guys, you fucking wimps! God, teenagers these days!” 

   “Aren’t you eighteen?” Tanjiro tried to ask, again too literal and too sweet to do anything else, but Kaigaku was walking away again anyway, so it didn’t matter. In the end, he just sighed. Zenitsu still considered throwing a rock at Kaigaku’s departing head, but he didn’t. 

   “That…” Tanjiro heaved in a breath, and finished on the exhale: “…was awful advice.”

   “That’s Kaigaku,” Zenitsu said dryly, then turned to Tanjiro again, casting his cousin from his mind and refocusing his efforts. “Look, don’t listen to him, okay? Just talk to Genya. I’m sure he misses you too.” 

   Tanjiro’s placating smile looked a little stronger than before, a little more natural, but his heart sounded worse, sadder. Fuck. 

   “Thanks, Zen,” he said gently, before reaching up and grabbing Zenitsu’s hands, removing them from his shoulders and humming. “Really, I appreciate it, but—it’s like you said, y’know? Genya likes someone else.”

   F-u-c-k. “Tanjiro, that’s not—” But, damn him, he was already stepping away, still smiling sadly and shaking his head. Fuck. Fuck! “Look, before you go, Tanjiro—!” 

   And he was gone, striding up the length of the mountain as quickly as possible, like he couldn’t wait to get away from Zenitsu. Zenitsu related. He also wished he could just speed-walk away from himself, from the absolute mess that was his luck and socializing skills. Disaster. So much for phase two. 

    Zenitsu sighed, and followed after his forlorn friend. 

   ~~~

   As Gramps had planned—and as Zenitsu had banked on—the peak of the mountain was to become their temporary campsite, just for the next couple hours. Once they made it there, Gramps announced to their worn group that someone ought to gather some wood for a fire to cook lunch and stay warm against the chilled winds. He pointed to Genya first, sacrificing his height and strength to haul lots of wood, and moved to point at Inosuke next—probably valuing his manic competitiveness over his lackluster height—but, though Zenitsu had royally fucked up part one of phase two, he couldn’t yet abandon part two, so he dodged in front, seizing the opportunity he had started to consider would soon become a regret. 

   “I’ll help!” He exclaimed, grinning as casually as he could. Gramps raised both his bushy eyebrows, unused to hearing those strange and damning words from Zenitsu, but he didn’t put up an argument. He just shrugged and waved them away. 

    “Don’t dally!” He warned before they left. “Get plenty wood and hurry on back, alright?!”

   “Yes, sir!” Zenitsu agreed. Genya just grunted. 

   And—surprise, surprise!—that singular grunt was all Genya desired to contribute conversation-wise. Like, at all. Zenitsu tried getting him to say something, literally anything, but all his comments were responded to the same. The weather is nice, he said. Grunt. Did you see that rabbit just now? he asked. Fucking grunt. He carried the wood, at least, picking up the bigger pieces that Zenitsu couldn’t quite manage, but he refused to engage. And still, Zenitsu tried. He had already ruined the conversation with Tanjiro; if this went badly too, he and his plans were totally done for. 

   “You know, you’re really strong, Genya,” he said at one point, when Genya shifted all his wood to one arm just to grab another piece. Sure enough, the compliment only earned that signature grunt. They kept walking. Zenitsu kept talking. 

   “I honestly didn’t expect it,” he rambled. “I thought all that height was for show. It’s impressive. No wonder Tanjiro likes to watch you so much.”

   Genya froze in his tracks. Zenitsu turned, convinced he’d succeeded, and that he’d find Genya with a bright red face and a stuttering pulse. 

   He did not. 

   Instead, stalling Zenitsu’s heart with the sheer ferocity of it, Genya glared at him, eyes sharp and narrow and mouth pulled into a thin line. His heart rate was skipping, some indicator of the feelings he was no doubt suppressing, but that was the only confirmation Zenitsu had that his words hadn’t just destroyed their already strained relationship. He swallowed thickly; Genya stared harder. 

   “Yeah,” he responded flatly, finally speaking, “and you like to watch him.”

   Yeahhh, he fucked this up. 

   “What do you mean—?” Zenitsu started to say, fumbling through all the different fibs he could string together to dissuade whatever this was—but Genya didn’t allow him the time. He stepped closer, his grip tightening on his pile of wood and expression only growing more bitter. 

   “I’m not stupid, Agatsuma,” he practically growled, bared teeth flashing between his chewed-up lips. “You think I don’t see the way you look at him? And the way you look at me? You act like I’m some criminal, like I’m in your way.”

   “I don’t think you’re—”

   “So, what then?” Genya took another step. Zenitsu stumbled backwards. “It’s just for fun? Is that why you and Inosuke are teaming up? Some petty fucking prank game? Just for the shits of it?”

   Zenitsu shook his head rapidly. He should’ve known Inosuke’s wild behavior would reflect on him too, but surely Genya didn’t think that lowly of him! Granted, he hadn’t had the nicest feelings about Genya for a while either…

   “Look, Ino is just kinda like that,” he said, hurrying to placate Genya, who was steadily sounding angrier and angrier. “I never told him to do any of that shit—hell, I was trying to stop him! It’s not like that!”

   “Then what is it like?!” Genya snapped. Every time he spoke, he moved closer to Zenitsu, practically bearing down over him now. It was intimidating, honestly; frightening, just like his freak-ass math-teacher brother. “Why do you stare at me like that? What exactly do you think I’m going to do?!”

   “Well, I thought you were going to hit him!” Zenitsu blurted, probably without thinking—no, definitely without thinking. Oh, that was a stupid thing to say, wasn’t it? Genya’s vicious expression faltered, falling slowly with a twitch in his heart that sounded like panic. And like the walking disaster he was, Zenitsu kept talking. 

   “I mean, you grabbed Nezuko and I that one time,” he explained quickly, and Genya’s look fell further, “so for a while, I just thought—and I mean, you’re a lot like your brother—” Genya’s heart skipped several beats then, and he finally took a step away, “—I don’t know, I just—but I don’t think that now! I mean, I’ve seen you with the Kamado kids, I-I don’t think you’ll—I get you’re not that kind of person, I just—!”

   “Stop,” Genya commanded, and Zenitsu stopped. 

   He didn’t say anything for a couple minutes after (Zenitsu also wasn’t quite stupid enough to start speaking again), so their little area fell silent, save for the erratic sound of his heartbeat. Zenitsu wasn’t unused to hearing the rapid, uneven pulse—Genya wasn’t exactly great at controlling his excitement around Tanjiro—but he had never heard it so…afraid. It wasn’t like Zenitsu called him a monster or anything—he even said he didn’t believe Genya would ever hit anyone now!—so, why was he so panicked? Just because of that comment about his brother? Which, actually…the more Zenitsu thought about it, the more it made sense. He certainly would never want to be told he was exactly like Kaigaku. 

   “You’re probably right,” Genya eventually grumbled. Zenitsu jerked to look up at him again. His harsh expression had completely faded in the silence, which was some relief, though it had now been replaced with a tense sort of sorrow. He refused to look at Zenitsu. 

   “I mean,” Zenitsu said slowly, “I’m probably not—”

   Genya shook his head. “It’s not like I like being mean,” he continued softly. “It’s just…I don’t know. But whatever you’ve thought before, I’m not like that now. I’m not going to hurt him.”

   “I know,” Zenitsu said. 

   “Well, can you tell Inosuke that too?” Genya asked, his tone twisting into something a little hysterical. “I’m fucking exhausted of dealing with him being so…so…”

   “Insane?”

   “Yes.”

   “I’m afraid it can’t be helped.”

   Genya scoffed. That earlier sound of irritation and anger spiked in his pulse, twisting his mouth into a new scowl. Dammit. 

   “Well, do something,” he demanded, then apparently decided it was time they head on, shoving past Zenitsu to do just that. “I’m tired of this fucking shit, from both of you.”

   Zenitsu spluttered, hurrying after him. “What did I do?!” He called out, earning a sharp glower over Genya’s shoulder. 

   “You look at me like I’m some wild animal!” He snapped. “If you’re really so fucking scared I’ll hurt Tanjiro, then I’ll back the fuck off! You can have him to yourself!”

   Ah, shit. “That’s not what I want though—!”

   “He’s all yours, Agatsuma!” Genya hollered, now taking strides twice as long, just to leave Zenitsu in the dirt. “Fucking enjoy him!”

   “But, I—!”

   The protest was no use. Genya was already several paces ahead, soon enough out of earshot and definitely unwilling to engage either way. Zenitsu groaned and swore and kicked a rock and swore again when his toe throbbed on impact. Stupid rock, stupid Zenitsu…What did Nezuko think would happen out here to begin with?! Didn’t she know Zenitsu would muck it all up like this? Didn’t she know him well enough to know he could never actually succeed, try as he might? He wished he could talk to her, to demand why she chose him, why she didn’t just tag along with the boys and handle this herself; but he wouldn’t be able to talk to her until the next day, not unless he somehow managed to steal Kaigaku’s magically in-service phone and make a desperate call. He had to hold out on his own, and that meant, unfortunately, following Genya back to their temporary camp. 

   How he wished he could just lose himself in the forest instead…

   ~~~

   Takeo stared at Zenitsu when he rejoined their group—like, properly stared, wide eyes and everything. When Zenitsu met his bigass bug eyes, Takeo raised his brow and hands imploringly, as if asking some unheard question. Zenitsu mimicked the action, unsure what the kid was trying to say. Takeo just rolled his eyes and walked away. Deserved, probably. 

   No one else made a stink about his arrival, at least. Well, Gramps loudly admonished him for taking a solid half-hour longer than Genya to return, but that was all, and soon enough he was sat under a tree, watching as Gramps and Captain Urokodaki stoked the small fire and prepped food in a pan they’d apparently carried all the way up. Inosuke joined him under the shade once he’d settled, assumingly considering his appointed task complete with the group relaxing as they were. He grinned toothily at Zenitsu and grabbed his hand as he sat, forcing his fingers open and shoving a handful of acorns inside. 

   “There you go,” he said firmly, closing Zenitsu’s fingers over his new prize and patting them. “You can keep those for the winter.”

   “Winter just finished, dolt,” Zenitsu said flatly, though he accepted the acorns anyway, tucking them safely into one of his pockets. 

   “You’re welcome, by the way,” Inosuke continued, jostling his shoulder into Zenitsu’s. “I kept them all busy for you. You owe me dinner now!”

   “Uh huh,” Zenitsu said. “Thanks.”

   Inosuke stewed in that response for approximately two and a half seconds before he huffed and pinched Zenitsu’s ear. Zenitsu, effectively startled and in pain, yelped and swatted at his hand, but Inosuke wouldn’t relent, tugging his head around until Zenitsu fixed a glare on him. 

   “Why are you acting weird?!” He demanded when their eyes met. “You talked to Yenna and Monjiro, right?!”

   “Yes!” Zenitsu hissed. “But lower your fucking voice!”

   Inosuke, gratefully, obeyed, taking the instruction literally and lowering his head along. “Then why are you acting weird?”

   “Because I fucked up,” Zenitsu growled. “I ruined it! Now they’ll never talk to each other!”

   “Liar,” Inosuke grumbled, then pointed behind himself. “Just watch! You missed the first part because you got lost!”

   “I didn’t get lost—!”

   “Watch!” 

   Zenitsu didn’t want to listen to Inosuke, but it was rather hard to argue with those fingers still clamped around his ear, so he sighed noisily and followed his finger. 

   Sure enough, a decent ways across the clearing, he saw Tanjiro crouching near a log, holding a hand out for a bug or something to crawl over his fingers. Takeo stood on the other side, his encyclopedia open to reference, but Zenitsu didn’t bother with him; he bothered with Genya, who was delicately plucking some small flowers and bundling them in his hand, all before meandering to Tanjiro and crouching at his side. 

   “Hey,” Zenitsu heard him say, taking Tanjiro’s attention from his new bug friend. He held out the flowers. Tanjiro took them gently. “These are called baby blue eyes. I thought you’d like them.”

   “I do,” Tanjiro whispered. He held them to his chest before smiling at Genya. Genya went red in the ears. “Thank you, Gen.”

   Genya turned slightly away, grinning shyly at the dirt and scratching that scar across his face. “Yeah, ‘course,” he murmured, then cleared his throat and pointed at the log. “Who’s your new friend?”

   “Oh, this is Buggy the Third,” Tanjiro answered. “I lost his two predecessors, but he’s sweet too…”

   “See?” Inosuke mumbled, pulling Zenitsu from the far off conversation to rejoin this one with an actual tug on his ear. “Told you. They’re talking fine. So you didn’t fuck up. Don’t act stupid.”

   “It’s something, I guess,” Zenitsu relented. Inosuke sighed and finally released his ear—though it was just to swat him upside the head, so it wasn’t particularly appreciated. Zenitsu rubbed the assaulted spot and hissed through his teeth, glowering at Inosuke. 

   “Stop—being—stupid,” Inosuke repeated, facing his glare with twice the intensity. “You’re not stupid. I don’t teach my minions to be stupid.”

   “You didn’t teach me anything,” Zenitsu countered, elbowing Inosuke in the side, but he couldn’t help a small grin. Inosuke always made him smile, some way or another, no matter how hard he tried to hide it. He seemed to catch it too and chuckled, self-satisfied. 

   “I taught you everything you know!” He declared, then leapt to his feet, pointing a strong finger down at Zenitsu. “Now, stay here, minion! You’ll need more acorns to survive the winter. You’re too scrawny!”

   “I’m bigger than you!” Zenitsu clipped, though Inosuke had already taken off, sprinting along the edge of their clearing in search for more sustenance. Zenitsu rolled his eyes at the antics, still smiling, but he didn’t bother much further with it; he settled into place and watched the continuing conversation between Genya and Tanjiro, wishing he couldn’t hear how sad and slow their heartbeats remained. 

   ~~~

   In all honesty, Zenitsu considered his task done at that point. He took his sweet time to wake up the next morning, figuring there was no need to rush, not since the two dumbasses had finally figured out how to converse again. It was nice too, being able to wake up slowly to the sound of Gramps and Captain Urokodaki breaking down camp. He even found comfort in the sound of Kaigaku’s slumber, and Inosuke’s semi-distant cackling as he battled a slug or some other nonsense. It was almost peaceful. 

   Up until Takeo crashed back into the tent and threw himself over Zenitsu. 

    “Wake up!” He shouted, grabbing Zenitsu through his sleeping bag and shaking him violently. If Zenitsu had already removed his arms from the thing, he may have chucked Takeo across the tent, but he had not in fact removed his arms, and so he could do naught but glare at him. 

   “Go away!” He snapped, then tried to roll over and steal more sleep. 

   Takeo didn’t let him. “Get up!” He continued to demand, forcing Zenitsu on his back and pinning his shoulders. Zenitsu hated that. He wriggled free from the grip as quickly as he could, scrambling away and unfortunately leaving the warmth of his sleeping bag behind. Fucking kid. “Come on, don’t you want to see what they’ll talk about?! What if it’s bad?! Or really, really good!”

   “What are you talking about?!” Zenitsu argued. “I think this is bad!”

   “Shut the fuck up!” Kaigaku added unhelpfully from his sleeping bag, clearly pissed off. Zenitsu wanted to kick him, if just to make himself feel better about his own interrupted sleep. 

   Takeo just rolled his eyes at the shout and huffed. “Tanjiro and Genya,” he said, with all the air of an exhausted teacher coaching a stupid kid. “Genya went to the river a bit ago, and Tanjiro just followed after him! Don’t you want to hear what they’ll talk about?!”

   “Seriously?” Zenitsu grumbled. “You woke me up for this?!”

   “Yes!” Takeo clipped. “This is what you’ve been trying to do since we got up here, right?!”

   Had Zenitsu really been so obvious? The boys were, sure, but Zenitsu thought himself relatively stealthy in his endeavors. 

    Apparently not. 

   “Well, sure,” he begrudgingly conceded, “but I’m pretty sure I accomplished that yesterday, or weren’t you watching?”

   “Ha,” Takeo scoffed, “you mean what I accomplished? Who do you think convinced Tanjiro to talk to Genya while you were off moping in the woods! It’s thanks to me they ever gave each other flowers!”

   “What happened to just kissing him?” Kaigaku drawled, rolling his head back to sneer at the conversation. Zenitsu shot him a look that hopefully conveyed his irritation at the unnecessary addition. 

   “You give, like, dogshit advice,” he responded, just to be mean. “That was literally never going to happen.”

   “Oh, my bad,” Kaigaku deadpanned, rolling his eyes and curling back up, “I thought you wanted those weebs to get together.”

   “What is he talking about?” Takeo mumbled, pointing at Kaigaku’s back. Zenitsu just shook his head and grabbed that pointing hand. 

   “Don’t worry about it,” he said, then relented to his request and dragged them both from the tent. “Let’s go do your thing, or whatever.”

   It was easy work to convince Gramps to let them go, and even easier work to track down the river and boys again. Zenitsu was rather familiar with these woods, and also rather proud of that fact. Also, Tanjiro’s anxious heart was really loud—like, really loud. They made it there directly behind him, ducking behind some down-wind bushes and peeking through the leaves before they could be noticed by him, or by the river-bound Genya. Takeo jostled awkwardly against Zenitsu’s side when they crouched, needing to lean higher up than him to see properly, but he stayed blessedly silent. 

   “Hey,” Tanjiro called out, stepping to the edge of the bank and startling Genya. Genya spun in place, water splashing messily around his rolled-up pant legs and nearly compromising his balance. Tanjiro leaned forward and Zenitsu held his breath as he stumbled, but he caught himself easily enough, holding his clamped hands to his chest and smiling awkwardly under red cheeks. 

   “Uh, hey,” he responded, voice just as shaky as his stuttering heartbeat. “What’re you doing?”

   “Just, uh, checking on you,” Tanjiro said. He wrung his hands together and glanced around the area—Zenitsu and Takeo immediately hunkered down to avoid his notice—then fixed his own strained grin on Genya. “What are you doing? Is that a crawfish?”

   “A crawdad, yeah,” Genya answered weakly, then held out his hands to show the creature within: a, indeed, mildly disgruntled crawdad. “I was just…chatting with it.”

   “Chatting?” Tanjiro echoed. 

   “Yop.” 

   “About what?”

   “Oh, you know…” Genya shrugged and twisted his arms around, raising the crawdad to his eye level. “Just random things. Stuff I'd like to talk about with a dad, you know? Since it’s…a crawdad…”

   “Sounds fun!” Tanjiro immediately chirped, although Zenitsu thought it sounded a little crazy. That didn’t matter to Tanjiro, though. He was already rolling up his own pants, removing his shoes and shuffling to the water’s edge. “Can I join?” 

   Genya’s red face flushed darker, but his smile didn’t fade, nor did he shrink away; he nodded and actually waded closer, moving the crawdad to one hand and offering the other to aid Tanjiro’s descent. 

   Zenitsu really did have to give it to them: they were perfect for each other, in the most ridiculous and oddly romantic way. Genya passed Tanjiro his already captured crawdad and showed him how to cradle it, then set immediately to work finding a replacement. Tanjiro watched him for a moment, ears pink, pulse adoring, before he decided the poor crustacean deserved some attention too, and fixed it with a gentle smile. 

   “Hello, Mr. Crawdad,” he said, in that sweet tone that always made Zenitsu smile. “It’s very nice to meet you. I’m Tanjiro.”

   The crawdad didn’t answer. Beside him, Genya found his replacement, and straightened from the river with a triumphant grin. Tanjiro looked at him and giggled. Genya chuckled shyly along. 

   “What else do I say?” Tanjiro asked, and Genya shrugged. 

   “I dunno,” he said. “Whatever you want, really. Like, uh…” he cleared his throat and faced his new crawdad. It was a little more wriggly than the one he gave to Tanjiro, but his hands were big enough to keep it contained. “Crawdad, sir, my mom made a joke about me needing to start shaving soon, and I don’t know how to do that, so I’d appreciate some advice.”

   Tanjiro giggled more, louder and warmer than before, his pulse speeding to match the sun-like sound. “That’s a good one,” he laughed, then met his crawdad’s beady eyes again. “Let’s see…Mr. Crawdad, I’m going to be turning sixteen in a couple months, and I’m pretty nervous about my driver’s test. Do you think I’ll pass?”

   “You’ll do great,” Genya supplied, which made the pink in Tanjiro’s ears melt into his cheeks, but Genya wasn’t watching; he stared down his crawdad intensely and exhaled through his nose, his pulse picking up in unexplained speed. Takeo grabbed Zenitsu’s wrist like a clamp, seemingly aware of something Zenitsu couldn’t quite sense. He was talented like that, just like his older sister. 

   “Crawdad, sir,” Genya continued, and Takeo squeezed tighter, “there’s this guy I know, and he means a lot to me, but I think I really fucked up our relationship at Winter Formal. How do I tell him I didn’t mean it, and that I’m sorry?”

   Zenitsu half thought he died when he heard those words. Never in a million years did he think Genya would ever talk about that night. His hope had been to get him to move past it, forgive and forget. ‘Address the issue’ wasn’t something he ever expected from him, not Genya Shinazugawa. It was appalling, less believable than a nonexistent Christmas Miracle. 

   Considering Tanjiro’s own stock-still stature and sudden silence, he also hadn’t expected it. He stared at Genya for a moment, his breaths heavy and loud, before he blinked himself back to attention and readdressed his crawdad. 

   “Mr. Crawdad,” he said firmly, “how do I tell Genya he doesn’t need to apologize, because he didn’t do anything wrong?”

   Genya dropped the ruse then—literally. He plopped his crawdad back into the river, letting it slink away to seclusion before turning to Tanjiro with a creased brow. Tanjiro noticed, and mimicked, releasing his crawdad before mirroring his stance. 

   “I didn’t mean to act so, like, intense,” Genya explained, rushing his words like he was afraid Tanjiro would leave otherwise. “I was just startled and I—look, I just do a lot of stupid shit around you, I don’t really think before I act, but I really didn’t mean for it to hurt you, really.”

   “It’s okay,” Tanjiro whispered, “I do a lot of stupid shit around you too.”

   Genya paused. Tanjiro gulped. Takeo snorted. Zenitsu smacked his arm. 

   “Did you…” Genya started to grin, and Tanjiro groaned, dropping his face into his hands. “Did you just say shit?” 

   “Noticed as soon as I said it,” Tanjiro grumbled, though his own matching grin was evident in his tone. He sighed and picked up his now fully red face and waved off the accident. “It’s fine, you can continue.”

   “Okay, well, uh…” Genya laughed lightly, then took a step forward, scratching at that scar again and fixing his eyes on the river. “The point is, I didn’t mean to hurt you. And I’m so sorry for disappearing afterwards. Christmas isn’t really a great time with my dad, and then it had been a whole year since I—” he caught himself with a tick of his pulse, fingers locking onto his sleeves to tug them down from his elbows again. Zenitsu’s stomach twisted, all too familiar with the action himself, but Genya kept talking before he could dwell on it long. “The point is, I’m sorry. That was asshole behavior of me, just ghosting you like that, and I know I haven’t been the best person since then, so I just wanted to say I’m sorry. Really sorry.”

   “You don’t need to be sorry,” Tanjiro said, almost the exact moment Genya stopped speaking. He waded through the river until they were barely half a pace away from one another, craning his head back to smile up at Genya. It was kinda cute. “I appreciate the apology all the same, but you don’t need to explain yourself. It’s okay, I…I’ve just missed you, that’s all.”

   “Yeah,” Genya mumbled, “me too.”

   Tanjiro opened his mouth, hesitated, inhaled deeply, then exhaled it through his nose. “Are we…are we still friends?”

   Yeah, of course,” Genya immediately replied, speaking softer than Zenitsu had ever heard from him. He closed the miniature gap between them and—surprisingly—grabbed Tanjiro’s hands, rubbing his thumbs over his knuckles. “I’d even go so far as to say we’re good friends.”

   Tanjiro giggled, like that was some inside joke. “We graduated from okay friends?” He teased, though there was no genuine teasing in his tone, just relief. 

   “Honestly, I think we’re pretty close to a great friends promotion,” Genya played along, despite his own voice sharing that utter lack of jest, filled with sincerity and nothing else. It was good to hear. Maybe Takeo had been right to follow and see. 

   “See?” Takeo whispered, grinning coyly at Zenitsu when he looked away from the sappy scene and making him sorely regret acknowledging his cleverness, even just in his mind. “I told you we should come.”

   “We technically didn’t have to,” Zenitsu pointed out. They didn’t, after all. It wasn’t like they contributed anything to the conversation, they just watched like a couple of stalkers. 

   Speaking of, they should probably head back. Gramps was no doubt in a hurry to get them on the road, and the pair of lovebirds were sure to soon leave their little nest and return under that same knowledge. Now would be their best bet to book it before they were caught. If Genya could just turn slightly away—

   “Time to go, twerps!” Kaigaku shouted, emerging from the brush behind Zenitsu and Takeo and nearly scaring them shitless. When had he gotten so close?! Zenitsu had been so absorbed with Genya and Tanjiro he hadn’t even thought to listen for someone else—but now Kaigaku was staring down at him, an eyebrow raised and his smirk cruel. “What the fuck are you two doing?”

   “Just coming to get them!” Zenitsu lied, leaping to his feet and praying the fib worked. It definitely didn’t for Kaigaku, but turning around it looked like Tanjiro was too surprised by the initial shout to care. Genya, on the other hand, had once again pulled on that narrow glare and thin mouth, fixing the stare directly on Zenitsu like a scope. Maybe Takeo noticed this, because he too stood and played along. 

   “Yeah, we just came to get them,” he said, nodding fervently, “but then I got distracted by this bush—it’s called a red osier dogwood, if you were curious—”

   “I wasn’t,” Kaigaku said. 

   “—and so Zenitsu stopped with me to admire it!” Takeo finished up, clearly proud of his lying ability. Zenitsu was too, to be fair. The Kamados weren’t particularly known for their ability to lie. 

   And it seemed to stick well enough. Kaigaku rolled his eyes but let it be, instead looking over their shoulders to gesture Tanjiro and Genya forwards. 

   “Come on, nerds!” He hollered. “Hurry up or we’ll leave you here!”

   “We’re coming!” Tanjiro called back, immediately followed by the sound of him splashing through the water. That satisfied Kaigaku apparently; he turned around and left, leaving Zenitsu and Takeo to awkwardly wait for their sopping companions. 

   Tanjiro was first to arrive, rolling down his pants in a hurry and slipping on his shoes. He smiled at Takeo and Zenitsu, his cheeks still pink, then back at Genya, who had barely made it on shore with his glare stuck on Zenitsu. 

   “Are you all packed?” Tanjiro asked Takeo, and he nodded. “Perfect! Let’s go then.” He glanced behind him again, to where Genya had set to tying his boots, and his smile grew. “You ready to go too?”

   “Right behind you,” Genya said as he stood straight. 

   “Awesome!” Tanjiro cheered, then took Takeo’s hand and began leading them off. Zenitsu scurried to follow, praying their departure meant his safety from Genya’s wrath—but Genya stopped him, proving his prayers worthless as he grabbed his wrist and yanked him back. Zenitsu met his eye only after he tried to free himself and failed, swallowing nervously and putting on his best innocent expression. Genya met it with that earlier narrowed glare. 

   “‘Just coming to get us’, huh?” He asked lowly. Zenitsu nodded. “And how long, exactly, were you ‘just coming to get us’?”

   “Uh…” If he twisted his arm enough, could he wriggle himself free? Maybe if he kicked Genya in the shin, it would be enough to take him down, at least for a moment, just long enough to sprint away. Maybe knock out his knee for extra time…

   But Tanjiro saved the day (and Genya’s knee) with another shout. “Genya! Zenitsu!” He hollered. “Come on! They’ll leave without us!”

   They really won’t, Zenitsu wanted to yell in return, but he was too occupied watching Genya’s reaction—watching as he exhaled and shook away his annoyance and released Zenitsu, dropping the subject and his arm without a word. He slunk around him and jogged to catch up with the Kamados, leaving Zenitsu to catch his breath and follow along. 

   “You’re welcome,” he grumbled to himself as he did, just to feel slightly appreciated in his endeavors. He would repeat the words to Nezuko as soon as possible, and maybe drape his head in her lap for some hair-pets too. Yeah, that sounded nice. He’d earned it. He got the idiots talking, after all (with admittedly a little help from his little helpers). He deserved a nice treat. 

   ~~~

   Zenitsu slept through most of the ride home. It was far less tense than going up had been, with Genya and Tanjiro chatting over the seats and Inosuke entertaining himself with Takeo’s collected plants. The noise should’ve been a bother, but Zenitsu was too relieved to hear it in the first place to actually care. 

   He only really woke up when they pulled to a stop at the Kamado house. Captain Urokodaki stepped from the front to help with the bags as Genya and Takeo hurried out to release Tanjiro from the back seat. He seemed all ready to leap back into the car, bound for his own apartment, but Tanjiro grabbed his hand and held him in place, piquing Zenitsu’s attention. And Inosuke’s. And Takeo’s. And even Gramps’ and Kaigaku’s, though they were a little more subtle about their interest. 

   “Why don’t you spend the night?” Tanjiro asked, staring up at Genya with a pleading look in his eye and a yearning beat to his heart, too enraptured to thank the Captain as he placed his bags down next to him. 

   Same with Genya, apparently, as he just swallowed and started to shake his head. “I don’t know,” he said slowly, souring Tanjiro’s pulse. “I don’t—”

   “Oh, please?!” Takeo quickly interrupted. He grabbed Genya’s other hand and tugged imploringly, his own doe eyes blinking up at him. “Hanako says she misses you all the time, and that you still owe her a painting. Besides, we really need to plant the hydrangea, we’ll run out of time soon! And Shigeru and Rokuta want to see you again, and our mom worries about you!”

   “And I’d really appreciate it if you could,” Tanjiro added as a soft finale. “I miss you.”

   Thank Miku, those words were enough. Zenitsu actually heaved a sigh of relief as Genya started to nod, a grin twitching at his scarred cheek. 

   “Yeah, okay,” he said, still not noticing Captain Urokodaki, who had already removed Genya’s bags as well. “I’ll text my mom and let her know.”

   Takeo began cheering immediately, releasing Genya to jump around and shout his excitement, but Tanjiro didn’t bother with such a grand gesture: he lurched forwards, and wrapped Genya in a hug. 

   “I’m so glad,” he murmured into his chest, probably only heard by Zenitsu and Genya himself, which was likely for the best. Kaigaku lost care then, rolling his eyes and looking away and muttering something about how no one listens to him. Gramps just grew annoyed as the hug persisted, obviously noticing the now closed trunk and the Captain’s patience beside their group’s bags. 

   “Hurry it on up out there, will ya?” He shouted behind himself, startling Genya and Tanjiro into separating. Takeo laughed, and Zenitsu could even hear Captain Urokodaki share a chuckle beneath his mask. “It’s dangerous to loiter in the street like that!”

   “Sorry, Mr. Kuwajima!” Tanjiro said, and bowed his head. Then he sent a smile through the still open door, grinning blindingly at Inosuke and Zenitsu. “I’ll see you guys later! Get home safe, okay?”

   “You too!” Inosuke hollered back. “I’ll be watching you!”

   “I’m sure you will,” Tanjiro giggled. 

   “Tell Nezuko I said ‘you’re welcome’,” Zenitsu added on his part, deciding that his own rendition of the words and events could be left for a later time. Tanjiro’s smile faltered at his request though, accompanied by a curious tilt of his head. 

   “What for?” He asked innocently, though Takeo stuck out his tongue and Genya narrowed another glare on him. Zenitsu ignored them both. 

   “She’ll know,” he assured. “Have a good rest of your day, kids!”

   Tanjiro blinked. “Uh, okay—”

   “Don’t worry, I’ll tell her!” Takeo chirped, and stepped forwards to close the door. He leaned in at the last second though, narrowing his eyes like Genya. “And I’ll tell her how much I did too,” he whispered connivingly, then slid the door closed. Gramps drove off almost the moment it locked, giving Inosuke barely any time to crane over the seat and watch them disappear through the window. 

   “I told you,” he said when they made it out of the neighborhood, relaxing on his seat again and elbowing Zenitsu with a wide grin. 

   “Told me what?” Zenitsu quipped back. 

   “That you’re not stupid!” He elbowed him again, which was just plain rude. “They’re together again, and I helped! Which means you owe me dinner now!”

   Zenitsu laughed despite himself. “Yeah, guess I do,” he conceded. He could’ve argued for fun, messing with Inosuke’s head just to see him get angry, but he couldn’t stop the satisfaction for himself landing first. He was just glad the trip was over, and his task was complete, and that school wouldn’t be so awkward around the two of them anymore. 

   Okay, sure, he was pretty glad they were talking again too. It hurt to hear Tanjiro hurt, and—damn his bitchy attitude and all that other bullshit he has going on—it sucked to see Genya suffer too. Maybe Nezuko was right to ask him to help. Maybe his blundering words and shitty luck were exactly the ungracious catalyst they needed to figure out their apologies and pleas. Yeah, that made sense! Zenitsu gave himself a small shoulder pat, settling in his seat and ignoring Inosuke’s inquisitive stare at both actions. 

   Yeah. He’d done pretty alright. And the rest of it…well, that was their relationship to navigate. Zenitsu could only sit back and watch now as they tried it all again. Hopefully, this time, it would stick.