Work Text:
Inumaki Toge had no clue how he was going to survive university.
He was alone, which was something he was used to. The difference this time was that he did actually have to interact with people. More specifically, his roommate. He had filled out the school’s form for the “ideal roommate”, and as a (technically) disabled student, he got priority. However, that didn’t mean that his roommate would be fantastic.
He sighed as he fished the key to his room out of the envelope, and unlocked the door. Hope for the best, prepare for the worst. Pushing the door open, he braced himself for… nothing?
The room was perfectly neat, with the right side of the room being empty sans an unmade bed and a desk. The left side of the room, clearly his roommate’s side, held a desk with a computer and a dark blue notebook on it. The bed was made with a dark blue cover and white linen pillows. The nightstand sported three photos, one of a boy with girl who had an arm wrapped around him. The second one was a trio: a boy with spiky black hair, a boy with pink hair and an arm around the other boy’s waist, and a girl with short brown hair giving the pink haired boy bunny ears. The third photo had just the boy with spiky hair and the boy with pink hair, with the pink haired boy— kissing the other on the cheek??
Inumaki leaned in closer to make sure he was seeing it correctly. Yep, the pink haired boy was indeed giving the other a kiss. Yaoi, hell yeah! He thought, before he heard something behind him.
“You looking for something?” a gruff voice sounded behind him.
Inumaki jumped and spun around, frantically signing no I was just looking I don’t mean any harm I support you, before remembering that the other guy probably didn’t understand JSL. He stopped mid-sign, wondering how he could explain this. Before he could get very far, the other guy started signing.
I understand JSL, he signed slowly, but not when it’s erratic. Could you please repeat it?
Inumaki nodded, and signed slowly: I mean no harm. I support, and I was just looking to try and see who my roommate was.
Oh, so you’re my roommate, the other boy signed back. My name is Fushiguro Megumi. The people in the photos are my sister Tsumiki, my friend Kugisaki, and my boyfriend, Itadori, he pointed out in turn.
Fantastic, Inumaki replied, I’m Inumaki Toge, and I’m mute. And gay, but that’s irrelevant.
“Wait,” Fushiguro asked hesitantly, “you can hear me, correct?” Inumaki nodded. “Good,” he continued, “because my JSL fluidity isn’t amazing. I can understand it just fine, but I suck at signing quickly.”
I think you did fine, Inumaki signed to him, a small smile on his face.
“Thank you,” Fushiguro acquiesced. “Now, are you going to unpack and find your classes for tomorrow, or find your classes for tomorrow and then unpack?”
I hadn’t even thought of finding my classes for tomorrow, Inumaki answered ashamedly. I suppose I’ll unpack and then go find my classes, then.
“Great,” Fushiguro announced, grabbing a bag that was draped over his bedpost. “I’ll go find my classes now, to give you some time to unpack and make yourself at home. Don’t touch my stuff,” he added.
Wouldn’t dream of it, Inumaki signed at Fushiguro’s retreating figure, before throwing his stuff down on his own bed and unzipping the largest bag.
•••
Thirty minutes later, Inumaki was finished unpacking his side of the room. It was rather sparse, with only a green blanket cover on the bed, his notebooks and computer on his desk, and a small potted plant and a clock on his nightstand. His clothes were packed away neatly into his closet, shirts and pants folded and his sweatshirts hung. Finally, he took his throat medication and mask and put them in the drawer in his nightstand.
He wasn’t wearing a mask when he met Fushiguro earlier, but that’s only because he was in his room, and he probably couldn’t hide the markings on his face from someone he was living with. The snake-like markings on his face displayed the physical aftereffects of his family’s disease, cursing generations upon generations to be mute. Thankfully, Fushiguro didn’t seem too disturbed by anything, and probably wouldn’t be snapping photos of him in his sleep.
Inumaki stood up, and briefly wondered what to do with the rest of his afternoon before remembering Fushiguro’s advice. He grabbed his mask from the drawer and went to head out. On his way to the door, he caught his reflection in the mirror and grimaced. His hair was disheveled and his clothes were extremely wrinkled and dirty from travelling all day to get to the university. He realized that he might’ve made a horrible first impression on Fushiguro, but hoped that he would be forgiven in due time.
Needing to solve this appearance crisis before he left, he decided to take a quick shower in the adjoining bathroom. Grabbing clothes from the closet, he prayed that Fushiguro wouldn’t be back anytime soon and headed into the bathroom.
After he finished showering, he got dressed in a grey tank top, black pants, and a black zip-up hoodie to top off the look. He dried and brushed his hair, and then put in his silver stud ear piercings before slipping on socks. After brushing his teeth, he unlocked the bathroom door and went to grab shoes from the closet. He chose a pair of black lace-up boots with silver aglets to finish his look. He picked up the black mask from where he had placed it down on his bed, grabbed his headphones from his desk, and pocketed his phone. He also made sure to grab the little black notebook and silver pen that he typically used to communicate with people, and put them in his pants pocket.
With everything he needed ready, Inumaki grabbed the keys from the hook on the door, slid them into his pocket, and stepped into the outside world.
•••
By the time Inumaki had reached the center of campus, he was completely lost. He stared at the map posted on the side of a building nearby to no avail. As Inumaki went to check his phone again in a last attempt for directions, he felt a tap on his shoulder. He jumped slightly, and removed his headphones just as the person began to speak.
“Hi,” the stranger greeted, almost too cheerfully, “Are you lost?”
Inumaki nodded.
“My friend and I can help you find your classes if you want,” the stranger smiled, almost familiar. “What’s your name?”
Inumaki fished out his notebook from his pocket and held up the first page, already prewritten. It read, in neat handwriting: My name is Inumaki Toge. I am mute. I can hear you. I use JSL or this notebook to communicate.
“Oh, that’s so cool!” the stranger grinned. “My name’s Itadori, and this is my friend Kugisaki!” He snatched a girl from what appeared to be thin air, pulling her to stand at his side.
Inumaki’s eyes lit up. He held out his hand, gesturing for the duo to wait while he scribbled something down in his notebook. When he raised his head again, he showed them a page that said: Fushiguro is my roommate. I recognize you two from the photos on his nightstand. He mentioned you two.
“OOOH!” Kugisaki squealed, her excitement apparent. “I’m so happy that we met you!” In a volume closer to a whisper, she continued, “Did he mention how gay he is for Itadori?”
This question prompted Itadori to blush bright red, and bury his face in his hands. Inumaki nodded eagerly in response, and then wrote: He has a photo of Itadori-kun kissing him on the cheek put up. It’s very cute.
Kugisaki jumped a little bit in excitement, then slung her arm around Itadori’s shoulder and ruffled his hair, teasing him.
“That’s not the point of any of this…” Itadori grumbled into his hands. Straightening up and fixing his hair, he continued. “It’s very nice to meet you though, Inumaki-san.”
Inumaki nodded in thanks.
“Now,” Kugisaki announced, “knowing that you’re my second-best-friend’s roommate, we’re obligated to help you!”
“Oh, and before we go,” Itadori added, “I wanted to mention that I know a little bit of JSL. I can get by with basic conversations, but can’t really do advanced stuff.”
Great, Inumaki signed, relieved that he wouldn’t have to fully rely on the notebook.
“What did he sign, Itadori?” Kugisaki asked, curious.
She cannot understand JSL, Itadori signed shakily, but it got the point across.
Inumaki’s eyes crinkled in laughter behind the mask, and Kugisaki shrieked “What did he say about me, Inumaki-san???”
Itadori told Kugisaki that he’ll tell her later, and then the three of them consulted Inumaki’s schedule to try and find his first class.
•••
Two hours later, Inumaki, Itadori, and Kugisaki flopped down on the lush green grass at the center of campus, having found all of Inumaki’s classes.
“Holy shit,” Kugisaki complained, “that took forever!”
“We didn’t mind though,” Itadori reassured him. “You’re our friend now, plus my boyfriend-slash-Kugisaki’s second-best-friend’s-roommate, so it's only right that we help you. Plus, it was fun!”
Thank you, Inumaki signed at the two. Kugisaki squinted at him, attempting to figure out what he said. Itadori and himself had been teaching her the utmost basics of JSL as they went from place to place this afternoon, but he wasn’t sure how much she remembered.
“He said thank you, correct?” Kugisaki asked, which Itadori confirmed, smiling.
Before Inumaki knew what was going on, the two looked at each other slyly, gave a quick three second countdown, and yelled “YOU’RE WELCOME,” drawing the attention of a few other people relaxing in the center.
Suddenly, Kugisaki’s head perked up as she spotted a green haired girl make her way across the campus center. “Itadori,” she ordered, “you gotta come meet my roommate, she’s super cool!” She paused. “Inumaki-san, you’re welcome to come or stay here, whichever you’d like.”
Inumaki waved the two of them off, opting to stay relaxing in the grass. He pulled his headphones back on, and switched on his music, craving peace and relaxation.
The calmness lasted for about five minutes. Halfway through the second song, someone he didn’t recognize flopped down in the grass beside him. Inumaki politely paused his music and slid off his headphones.
“How’s university going for you so far?” the stranger asked. “Get a good roommate?”
Inumaki nodded.
“Lucky. I mean like my roommate is good too,” he hesitated, “just a little loud and messy. You know?”
Inumaki nodded again. He was starting to feel like this was a very one sided conversation.
“Anyways, what’s your—” The stranger was cut off by a shriek.
“Yuuta! Where are you?” A girl came running into the center of campus, looking like she was about to cry.
“And I was just getting peace and quiet…” the stranger grumbled, before raising his voice to address the girl. “Rika-chan, I’m coming. Please relax!”
Insane switch up, Inumaki thought as the stranger got up and walked towards the girl. Are they siblings, or dating or…? He was at a loss.
As the stranger reached the girl, he turned back to Inumaki and waved at him, smiling. Inumaki thought it was cute.
•••
Later, when he arrived at the dorm, Fushiguro was sitting on his bunk, FaceTiming with Itadori. Inumaki waved hi at both of them, and then flopped down on his bunk, absolutely exhausted. He wanted nothing more than to fall asleep on the spot, but he had to shower and brush his teeth again. He had already eaten dinner, courtesy of Kugisaki and Itadori, who had picked an amazing place to eat.
Satisfied by the day's events, Inumaki got up, showered, brushed his teeth, pulled on an old T-shirt and sweatpants as pajamas. He dried and brushed his hair, took his throat medicine, and slid under the covers. Popping on his headphones, he set an alarm for 8:00a (his class started at 9:30a), and pressed play on his music. He plugged his phone in, and fell asleep, thinking of the mystery cute boy from the campus center.