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"Oi, Reigen."
The coarse manner with which Serizawa addressed him should have clued Reigen in from the start. As it was, Reigen was at his desk, busy doing his taxes. He’d been reviewing his payroll expenses from the last two months, and was also maybe trying to figure out if there was a plausible way of claiming Mob as a dependent even though he wasn’t biologically or legally related to him. At the moment, it didn't seem likely; he might have a better chance with Serizawa if Reigen took his high school registration and tweaked it a bit...the guy could pass for 18, right? Sure, he was two years older than Reigen, but that was sweating details—
Anyway, point was, he was distracted, which should absolve him of all blame forever and ever.
"Hmm?" Reigen said absently, as he tallied how much money he spent on laundry. All these recent scrapes and tangles with the supernatural were wreaking hell on his dry-cleaning.
A hand came into his field of vision and pulled the reading glasses off his face. Reigen blinked, but didn't have time to do much else before Serizawa grabbed his face with both hands and kissed him.
"Mmmphff," he protested forcefully, though it was rather undercut by the way his mouth opened automatically to let in Serizawa's warm, probing tongue. He closed his eyes, pliant as Serizawa pulled him by his lapels to his feet and onto the desk, exploring Reigen's mouth with aggressive enthusiasm all the while. Serizawa's hands deftly set about unknotting Reigen's tie, wasted no time undoing the top buttons of his shirt—
Wait, Serizawa and aggressive in the same sentence? Reigen's eyes shot open, flattening his hands against Serizawa's broad chest as he pulled back and broke away from the kiss.
"Hold on just a minute, Seriza—" Reigen started a little breathlessly, before he saw the two bright red circles high on Serizawa's cheeks.
"Come on," came Ekubo's voice out of Serizawa's mouth, "it was just getting interesting."
"Ekubo?" Reigen said. “What the fuck?”
"That was the idea." Serizawa—Ekubo—this was going to get confusing real fast—Ekubo/Serizawa leaned back, still standing between Reigen's legs, his hands on Reigen's thighs.
"What the fuck!” Reigen repeated for emphasis, confusion shuffling to make room for some genuine anger. Ekubo had always been an evil little shit, but it was one thing for him to fuck with Reigen and another—if he had hurt Serizawa somehow—
”What the hell are you doing?" asked Reigen, glaring. "What have you done with Serizawa?”
"Calm down," EkuSeri said, "I haven't done anything to him."
Reigen stared at him, letting the absurdity of that statement speak for itself.
"Well, obviously I've done something to him, but I'm just helping Seri-chan out!" Ekubo said defensively.
Reigen closed his eyes, frowning and clutching at his temple. Though he wasn't opposed to having the life kissed out of him by his possessed employee on principle, he'd been expecting a quiet night at the office catching up on paperwork, maybe slide in some casual tax evasion. Serizawa would be diligently doing his homework on the sofa, bringing Reigen some fresh tea now and then. Ekubo would be doing his evil ghost thing, probably making some unwarranted comment about how much money Reigen spends on scented massage oil.
"Alright, alright, let's start from the top, because you skipped a couple of important steps here," Reigen said. "What does Serizawa need help with that he came to you and how does making out with me come into it?"
"He wants to confess to you," Ekubo replied.
Reigen blinked. "Ha?"
"You know, Valentine's Day?" he said, as if Reigen was being unbelievably thick. "Haven't you ever had anyone confess to you before? Wait." Ekubo paused, his expression suddenly thoughtful. "Oh, my bad."
"Of course I have, asshole," Reigen said, flushing red enough to give Ekubo's cheeks a run for their money. "Come on, be serious."
"I am. D'you think Seri-chan would be going along with it if this was a prank?" Ekubo said exasperatedly.
Reigen was forced to admit that Ekubo had a point there. Serizawa was an absurdly powerful psychic, after all. If he wanted to he could crush Ekubo's puny existence into non-existence. Ekubo wouldn't be able to possess him unless Serizawa let him—unless Serizawa wanted him to?
Okay, okay, so it seems there was more to this than just Ekubo being a dick, which Reigen realised wasn't all that surprising now that he's had a chance to think about it. Ekubo was a dick, but he and Reigen were friends, maybe even best friends, though to be fair, that didn't necessarily mean they had to like each other. But there was trust and camaraderie and even mutual respect between them, even if it was a grudging professional respect, one grifter recognizing another.
Also, okay, so sometimes Reigen let Ekubo possess him while he jacked off, but Reigen would argue that that fell under the umbrella of mutual respect.
Reigen shook his head, trying to unscramble his brain. There were too many trains of thought here and they were all careening off the rails, piling up into a trainwreck of pure bewilderment.
"That was a hell of a lot more than confessing just now," Reigen said, hoping he didn't sound as flustered as he felt. "Also, if that was true, where the hell do you come in?"
Hot, Evil Serizawa shrugged his shoulders. "He asked me for help,” Ekubo said, scratching at a bit of stubble.
The way Ekubo moved Serizawa's body around was entirely different from how its usual occupant did: confident, swaggering, holding his large frame with arrogant grace. Reigen couldn't help but notice how much taller and bigger Serizawa looked when he wasn't actively trying to make himself small and unobtrusive.
"Asked you?"
"Yeah," Ekubo replied impatiently. "He didn't know how to confess to you for Valentine's Day and came to me for help, so I offered to possess him and do the hard part."
As if to demonstrate exactly what the hard part entailed, Ekubo leaned forward and took Reigen's mouth in a kiss once again, hands gripping his waist tightly before he could voice a protest. Reigen couldn't decide if he was more annoyed by Ekubo trying to obviously and unsubtly steamroll him, or by the fact that it wasn't a completely ineffective game plan. Fuck, but he was unfairly good at kissing—what kind of use did a shitty evil spirit have for that particular life skill? And Serizawa's mouth was really warm and soft...
No, no, no. Reigen pulled away, determined to put his foot down. Ekubo made a growling noise, a frustrated expression twisting Serizawa's face.
"Ekubo," Reigen said, using his most authoritative voice, "let me talk to Serizawa."
"What for?" Ekubo asked, his voice sounding perilously close to a whine. "Come on, Reigen, it's Valentine's Day!"
"You are terrible at explaining things." Reigen kept his hands on Serizawa's chest, firmly keeping him at a distance. "Let me talk to him."
Ekubo sighed. "The guy's nervous," he said finally. "He doesn't want to come out."
"Well, you broke the ice. Hard part done."
Ekubo's eyes scanned him up and down, looking like he was reconsidering his strategy of kissing Reigen into not asking questions. Something in Reigen's expression must have told him that wasn't going to work a third time.
Ekubo sighed again, before the red spots on Serizawa's cheeks slowly faded. The cocky glint in Serizawa's eyes disappeared beneath furrowed brows, the confident set of his shoulders turning into a slump. The green cloud of Ekubo's form appeared over his head, and rested on top of his hair like a weird, ugly hat.
Serizawa surfaced, and immediately looked as if he regretted it.
*
Serizawa's original plan had been to make some chocolate.
Right now, he couldn't help but think about the multiple batches he still had left at home, the first few the ones he'd made for practice, and then the half dozen batches after that, because he wasn't sure what kind of chocolate Reigen liked. Did he like sweet milk chocolate? Dark? With almonds? What about creme truffles? Maybe he should just save up and buy some expensive ones? What if Reigen felt uncomfortable receiving romantic chocolate from an employee? Serizawa had been paralyzed by all the countless ways it could go wrong, and that was having disassociated it from the fact that he'd be confessing his feelings to his boss.
So when Ekubo had told him to ditch the chocolate altogether ("I'm telling you, Seri-chan, Reigen doesn't have a romantic bone in his body!"), a part of him had felt relieved, in spite of all the work he'd put in up until that point. The solution that Ekubo subsequently proposed was even better, despite that he had only originally come to Ekubo to ask about the nature of their relationship. The idea of someone else confessing for him was a startling concept, incredible, genius...
...easy.
As Reigen pored over a bunch of paperwork at his desk, Serizawa had spent the entire time fidgeting nervously. He had to make Reigen's tea twice, since the first cup had slipped in his sweaty palms. But Reigen didn't notice, and before long Ekubo had siddled up to him, and then things just happened very, very fast. Which brought them to:
"M—Mr. Reigen," Serizawa said.
He immediately turned his face down, unable to meet Reigen's eyes. God, all that and he still botched it up. How did he ever think it was ever going to turn out otherwise? Now Reigen was going to hate him, but Ekubo had told him to leave it up to him, which seemed like a great idea at the time, because then Serizawa wouldn't have a chance to mess it up—and then kissing Reigen had felt really nice—
"Serizawa," said Reigen, making Serizawa jump a little. "What's all this about?"
"I—" Serizawa swallowed, and twiddled his thumbs nervously. He tried again. "Since it was Valentine's Day, I just wanted to tell Mr. Reigen that muttermuttermutter."
"What?"
That didn't come out right. Serizawa took a deep breath. "I wanted to tell you that I mumblemumblemumble."
Reigen leaned back, crossing his arms across his chest. His hair was mussed up, his tie and shirt askew, and his mouth was red and kiss-bitten—oh god, Serizawa did that. He could feel his cheeks burn as he buried his face in his hands.
It wasn't like Serizawa had any shortage of important things that he wanted to tell Reigen, like how much Serizawa loved his kindness and compassion, patience without condescension; how he helped Serizawa find a place in the world, and was helping him even now; how attractive he was—not the bombastic showmanship he used with clients, but those quiet, unguarded moments when he thought no one was paying attention, chewing the tip of his pen while he did the crossword, or ruffling Shigeo-senpai's hair affectionately; the gentleness of his voice when he asked after Serizawa's day.
But for some reason, instead of any of that, what came out of his mouth was pathetic, incomprehensible croaking. The words died on his tongue, as if Serizawa was under some kind of curse that forbid him from saying any of it aloud.
Seriously, Ekubo said, mentally projecting his thoughts, I don't even know where to start with all that. You sure we're talking about the same guy?
"Oi, oi, Serizawa, calm down!" Reigen said, suddenly clutching at the front of Serizawa's shirt, his legs hooking around Serizawa's waist. Serizawa looked up to see Reigen floating off the desk, holding onto Serizawa to keep from going up to the ceiling with some office supplies.
"I'm so sorry, Mr. Reigen!" he yelled frantically. Serizawa waved a hand, gently setting down the levitated objects back to their respective places.
"See?" Ekubo said aloud from where he was still perched on top of Serizawa's head. "If everyone had just listened to me, we'd all be doing something a lot more fun right now aside from watching Seri-chan have a nervous breakdown."
"You shut your face," Reigen said, gingerly setting himself back onto the desk and off of Serizawa. "Serizawa, just take it easy. I'm not mad. Is—" Reigen cleared his throat. "Is Ekubo right? Did you go to him because you wanted to confess to me?"
Wordlessly, Serizawa nodded.
"You like me?"
Serizawa closed his eyes and nodded some more.
Reigen still sounded confused. "Like, like me, like me?"
"If I wasn't already dead, right now I'd be begging one of you to kill me," Ekubo interjected. "Look, Reigen, Seri-chan wants in your pants but was too shy to tell you, so he asked me for help. Where's the confusion here?"
Reigen changed track, looking up at Ekubo. "Why the hell did he go to you?" he asked.
"Because I'm in your pants all the time?"
"Ekubo!" Serizawa yelled, mortified. This wasn't at all how he wanted this to go. He wanted the ground to open and swallow him up, but last time he felt like that, the ground actually did disappear, so he pulled back, putting a cap on his emotions. That could only make a bad situation worse.
He felt a nudging sensation in the back of his mind, like someone knocking on a door. Seri-chan, let me in. I can help.
You haven't been much help at all, Ekubo, Serizawa replied, not a little resentfully.
Truuust me.
Serizawa hesitated, before he sighed and did as he was asked. It wasn't like he had much in the way of options. He felt Ekubo return into his body, a sensation not unlike sinking into a lukewarm bath, though he was careful not to hand over total control to the spirit as he did before. He felt his cheeks grow hot, over where Ekubo's circles must have appeared.
Look, Ekubo said, I don't really know what you see in the guy, but you really like him, right?
Serizawa responded with the mental equivalent of enthusiastic nodding. Mr. Reigen has a point though, he said. Why are you so set on helping me, Ekubo?
Seri-chan, you ever heard of not looking a gift horse in the mouth?
Having led a largely sheltered experience reading books, Serizawa had encountered the saying, but never first-hand. Maybe that said enough, in terms of how often he'd met people willing to help without ulterior motive. Which just made it all the more unlikely that Ekubo was doing it out of some innate benevolence.
It wasn't like the thought hadn't occurred to Serizawa, that Ekubo was an evil spirit out of take advantage of him in some manner. If there was one thing he was confidently familiar with, it was psychic stuff. He had exorcised enough evil spirits, had lived with ghosts all his life to know that they could be just as complex and duplicitous as normal human beings. He wasn't as naive as he knew other people thought he was.
In actuality, what other people took for naivety was something far worse. No, Serizawa Katsuya's greatest flaw was not wide-eyed obliviousness, but rather his capacity for willful blindness. It was the same impulse that would compel a man to ignore a house burning down around him because he did not believe he could put out the fire, and opted to focus instead on how it kept him warm.
So, in this case, he had to ask himself, was he seeing only what he wanted to see yet again? Did he believe that Ekubo harbored no ill-intentions toward him because he wanted to?
I really like—love Reigen, he gave as answer to Ekubo. For all he's done for me. For all that he does. For being the kind of person that he is.
It was difficult enough just to voice it in his head. He had no idea how he would ever manage saying it aloud.
Ekubo's presence inside him was still, uncharacteristically quiet. He couldn't say he knew what Ekubo's motive's are, or even how the spirit felt about Reigen, but he got the impression that Ekubo wasn't entirely candid about it, vehement denials aside.
Whatever it was, something in the spirit's pensive silence convinced Serizawa that he could trust Ekubo.
So...maybe...Serizawa could help Ekubo too?
Okay, Ekubo said, surprisingly kind. Go ahead and tell Reigen then, just like we practiced.
Serizawa clenched and unclenched his fists, and took another deep breath. He understood now, somewhat, why Ekubo went with the approach he did, because it left Serizawa with no other choice but to plow on. He was going to say it this time, in a volume audible to human beings, and not just select species of bats with particularly good hearing.
"I like you, Reigen," Serizawa said. "Would—would you like to go out with me?"
*
Oh. Oh.
Reigen was starting to get the picture now. Serizawa—sweet, impressionable Serizawa—went to Ekubo for some advice, and Ekubo, who had all the charm and sensitivity of a brick, opted for the romantic equivalent of throwing said brick through a window with a note attached that said: do you like me, Y/N?
"You do?"
"Yes," Serizawa said.
Reigen held his own head between his hands.
"But," he started after a pause, choosing his words carefully, "that still doesn't explain why you thought to go to Ekubo for help. Or why Ekubo's helping. Or how he's even helping."
Serizawa blinked. Ekubo was possessing him, but he was apparently in full control of his faculties, judging by his mannerisms. "Well, I wanted to talk to Ekubo first since I thought he and Mr. Reigen were dating—"
Reigen waved his hands wildly. "We are not dating," he said forcefully, before, "Ekubo, you bastard! Did you tell him we were dating?"
A change came over Serizawa as Ekubo took control, the lines of his face suddenly growing harsher, his back and shoulders straightening. "We're not dating! I already told you that, Serizawa!" he yelled.
It was a bit odd, watching a grown man argue with himself out loud. Serizawa apparently said something in response, because Ekubo said, "Just 'cause me and Reigen fuck doesn't mean we're dating—"
Reigen clamped a hand over Serizawa's mouth, because he could feel his eyes bugging out. If he wasn’t careful they were going to propel themselves out of his skull under their own power.
Unfortunately, that might not have been the best move. Ekubo held Reigen's hand in place, trailing wet, open-mouthed kisses on his palm, teeth grazing over his wrist. Reigen blushed to the tips of his ears and pulled his hand back as Ekubo laughed.
He stopped mid-laugh, his face twitching. This must be what it was like to talk to someone with multiple personalities, Reigen thought, as Serizawa surfaced again, blinking.
"Stop being so mean to Mr. Reigen," Serizawa said to Ekubo, pouting. He paused, and began nodding at intervals, in some conversation that Reigen could only hear half of.
Serizawa nodded one final time, before facing Reigen. "I was the one to ask Ekubo to stay, Mr. Reigen. Ekubo says he'll answer all your questions if I let him out, and he promised to behave this time," he said, a stern note in his voice.
For lack of a better answer, Reigen could only say, "Okay?"
The transition between the two of them was smoother this time, as control was freely and willingly transferred. Serizawa closed his eyes, and when he opened them, it was Ekubo looking out at Reigen, a sharper, more calculating gaze.
"Alright," he said, and sat down on Reigen's chair, lounging back lazily like a cat. "Shoot. We're now taking questions from the audience."
Reigen had about a dozen of them, most of them just some variation of why???, complete with accompanying hand gestures, but he eventually managed to narrow it down to two.
"So, A, and this is for both of you, let's say I say yes to Serizawa: what happens next?" he asked. "And B—why are you helping him in the first place?" he asked pointedly at Ekubo. Even though they were most definitely not dating, Ekubo didn't really strike him as the sharing type. He needed to know what his play was here. And Reigen liked Serizawa—maybe even liked him liked him—but he couldn't just say yes, could he? At least, he didn't think he did. Not that he and Ekubo were official or anything, since they weren't—they're not dating—
Ekubo scratched his neck. "Training wheels," he said simply.
"Are you not making sense on purpose or does it just come naturally to you?” Reigen asked.
"I'm answering your questions," Ekubo said, gritting his teeth against whatever snide comment he would've made in return, if Serizawa wouldn't have punted him out. "We're not dating, but I wasn't just about to give up my toys out of the simple goodness of my heart either," he continued, stoically ignoring Reigen launching into a short but violent coughing fit.
"So me and Serizawa came to an agreement," Ekubo said with a snap of his fingers. "He really likes you, god help his soul, and I'm gonna stick around and help him. Everyone wins, thanks to yours truly."
It was amazing, the way Ekubo strung his words together so confidently, as if they made the slightest bit of sense. Reigen rubbed his face tiredly. "So—you two are a package deal?" he asked, before he laughed, sounding a little hysterical to his own ears. "This is a limited time offer, so act now? Call the number on the bottom of your screen and we'll throw in another evil spirit at no extra cost—"
"Serizawa's too nice to say it out loud," Ekubo interrupted, sounding bored, "but we can both tell when you're stalling."
Reigen glared, floundering a little. "Just—the logistics alone—"
"My, my, Reigen, jumping straight to that, are we? Well, Serizawa would never admit this too, but he's on the same page," said Ekubo, before looking contemplative. "A couple of pages ahead actually."
Reigen blushed hard, again. Since when did he become such a prude? Probably the work of evil spirits; he could think of one likely culprit in particular. "I thought this was just about a confession," he said peevishly.
Ekubo shrugged. "I like to plan ahead."
"S—so, Serizawa really likes me? Like that?"
Ekubo raised an eyebrow and leered. "Like that and a whole lot more. Seri-chan wants to make you feel good, but isn't sure how," he said, pressing a hand to his own chest. "I, on the other hand, am very sure how."
Reigen rolled his eyes.
"If it helps," Ekubo continued, "think of it like a car: I'm in the driver's seat, Serizawa's riding shotgun. He's a passenger, he's riding the car, we're both in the car, we both feel it when we're speeding, we're both in it when the car crashes."
"You're comparing sex to a car crash?" Reigen said skeptically. "That's hardly promising."
Ekubo grinned, or rather Serizawa's face grinned, a wide unnerving smile that looked completely out of place on that normally kind face. "I don't make promises I don't keep."
*
Humans were really stupid sometimes. How many times did Serizawa and Ekubo have to tell Reigen that Serizawa liked him before he got with the program? Ekubo thought Reigen was many things, most of them immensely unflattering, but he didn't think that the guy was this dumb. If he had, he might have revised his initial approach, and told Serizawa to just get a blinking marquee and have it say "REIGEN I LIKE YOU AND WE SHOULD BANG", for all the detours they've had to take with this pointless conversation.
Ekubo was a ghost of action, and also, all this talk about feelings was making his ectoplasm break out in hives.
"Basically, I'm just gonna hang around and steer a bit," Ekubo said to Reigen. "I'll lead, show Seri-chan the ropes, and then maybe next time he can fuck you stupid all by himself—"
Ekubo felt a sudden tugging sensation in the core of his essence, before he was unceremoniously evicted. Serizawa held Ekubo in hand by the top trailing wisp of his cloud form, and pulled him up to his face.
"What's the big idea?!" he yelled.
"I told you not to talk to Mr. Reigen like that," Serizawa berated.
Ekubo wrenched himself out of Serizawa's grip, and floated away out of his reach. "What're you talking about? He's totally into that shit."
Reigen scowled.
"Am I wrong?"
Reigen pointedly didn't look at him. Instead, he turned to face Serizawa, addressing him directly. At this rate, Ekubo was going to move on to the next life before they got anywhere.
"Serizawa, I know you meant well—" Reigen started, and wasn't that an auspicious set of opening words? Wait, shit. Ekubo hadn't actually considered the possibility that Reigen would shoot Serizawa down—
"—but I just want to ask, without Ekubo's...interlocution—"
Okay, maybe this wasn't a rejection. Ekubo shot a worried glance at Serizawa, in case the same idea had occured to him. But Serizawa only stared at Reigen with wide eyes, hanging on his every word.
Reigen paused for a moment. He stood up from where he was still sitting on the desk, and held Serizawa's hands in his.
"I just want to make sure that you're completely on-board with all this, and that this isn't just Ekubo smooth-talking you, because he does that," Reigen said. Ekubo considered being offended for a second, but really didn't find anything he could reasonably disagree with.
Serizawa looked down at their clasped hands, before he nodded. "I really, really like Mr. Reigen."
Reigen's brows furrowed in stubborn confusion. "Thank you. But I still don't really get...why?"
"By the infinite compassion of Buddha," Ekubo said, throwing his hands up in frustration. "The guy's head over heels for you and you still gotta ask why?! How many times are you gonna make Seri-chan say it?"
"W—what?" Reigen asked, taken aback by Ekubo's outburst. "You're the last person who would say it isn't a valid question!"
"It isn't," Serizawa said suddenly, a quiet intensity in his voice. "Mr. Reigen is a good person, even if he doesn't think so."
Serizawa seemed to have finally found his words, meeting Reigen's eyes with unwavering certainty. "Mr. Reigen likes to pretend otherwise, but I have never known you to be anything but kind and gentle with me. In the past, I've mistaken dependence on someone to be the same thing as caring about them, but I know the difference now."
He stood up, clasping Reigen's hands in his. "I really want to be with you, Mr. Reigen! And if you could like me back, nothing would make me happier. I know you're da—I mean, I know you and Ekubo already have a relationship, but I really don't mind!"
"I—" Reigen said, at a rare loss for words. "Serizawa..."
"In fact, I'm grateful to Ekubo! If he hadn't helped me, I would never have mustered up the courage to confess," Serizawa continued, unable to stop the words from coming at this point. "I—I would actually like him to stay, because I know nothing about romance, or, or s-sex," he said, with a blush that looked physically painful, "and I really do want to make Mr. Reigen feel good—"
"Serizawa!" Reigen interrupted, stopping him in his tracks. He put his hands on Serizawa's shoulders, and said, "Just because you like me, doesn't mean you have to force yourself into doing anything you're not comfortable with. We'll move at your pace, okay?"
"I'm sorry," said Serizawa.
"What for?"
"I—I'm not sure," he answered, frowning.
"It's just a reflex," Ekubo supplied.
Reigen sighed, before slowly breaking out into a laugh, a loud, full-bodied one instead of the panicked agitation of before.
"I like you back, Serizawa," Reigen said finally, wiping a tear from his eye, with a smile that had none of its usual guile. "I'm just saying that we don't have to move so fast."
Serizawa blinked, and looked up at Ekubo.
"Don't look at me," Ekubo said with a shrug. His normal approach was useless here.
Reigen put a hand on Serizawa's chin and gently made him face him. "Look," he said, "why don't we just take it slow? Can we start from the beginning and just make out a little?"
Serizawa scratched the back of his neck. "I don't know..."
"Do you want Ekubo to help you out?" Reigen asked.
"Y—yes."
Reigen glanced up at Ekubo, who crossed his arms and turned his nose up. "Now you guys want my help?"
"I'm confident in my teaching skills. You're free to sit this out if you want," Reigen said with an answering leer.
Ekubo scoffed, but had to concede the point.
Slowly, he descended from the ceiling and entered Serizawa's consciousness, which offered no resistance, though the man's tangible nervousness made it nearly impossible to think. The cliché about butterflies in one's chest and/or stomach came to mind, although few could testify being inside someone else at the time, with all those disgusting insects flapping in your face. Ugh, feelings.
"You know," Reigen said, as he leaned in close to Serizawa's face, "other people just give each other chocolate."
Ekubo gave that a moment's consideration. "Well, I got a packet of lube in my back pocket."
Reigen stared at him. "Have you ever actually confessed to anyone ever?"
"No."
"You unbelievable dick."
"D'you hear that, Serizawa?" Ekubo said, smirking against Reigen's mouth. "Reigen complimented your dick."
"Oh, shut up."
He didn't know whether it was him or Serizawa who closed the distance, but it didn't really matter.
Reigen sat back on the edge of the desk, pulling Serizawa's face down to meet his, hands on the nape of Serizawa's neck. He kissed them both, deep and languid, comfortable, without any sense of urgency. A part of Ekubo was still frustrated that he didn't have Reigen bent over the desk and crying by now, but another part of him had to admit, grudgingly, that this was kinda nice too.
Ekubo, Serizawa said, after a few minutes, do you mind if I—hold on a sec—
Ekubo felt a familiar tugging sensation, but it was more a gentle shove than the forceful expulsion of before. After a moment, he realised what it was that Serizawa meant to do, and let the current take him.
Reigen pulled away from the kiss, red spots appearing on his face. Ekubo?
What's up? Seri-chan wanted to try eating your face on his own, Ekubo said. So I'm gonna hang out here.
Reigen put a hand up to his cheek, while Serizawa looked on, a hint of uncertainty on his face.
"Is that alright with you, Reigen?" Serizawa asked nervously.
Reigen pursed his mouth thoughtfully, before he smirked, and pulled their lips together in lieu of an answer.
See, Ekubo said, this was a good idea, wasn't it?
This wasn't exactly what he had in mind at the start of the evening, but just because he couldn't fuck Reigen like this, doesn't mean he couldn't fuck with him at some point. Nerve sensitivity was some fun shit.
You could at least try to mask your thoughts, Reigen said, a bit exasperatedly.
What for? It's something to look forward to, isn't it?
Reigen did the mental equivalent of rolling his eyes. Your benevolence is overwhelming.
You're welcome, Ekubo replied. Just promise me I'll be the best man at the wedding for when you marry him for tax benefits.
(Ekubo would maintain, to the very end, that he'd done it all out of purely selfish reasons. He was a bona fide evil spirit, the genuine article, and being an evil spirit meant wanting everything, right? It was greed and jealousy and self-preservation, and definitely not because he'd been a little worried that with Serizawa in the picture, Reigen wouldn't want to not date him anymore. That it never at any point occurred to him to manipulate Serizawa's sincere feelings for Reigen, or to use his fearsome psychic powers for his own ends until Reigen brought it up later was just a temporary oversight on his part.)
They kissed—just kissed—for a long, long time.