Chapter Text
“Oh darn…” Serizawa murmured, digging in his bag in search of his wallet. He stood outside a tteokbokki stand and had already gone through the trouble of ordering some rose tteokbokki before he realized he had forgotten his wallet at the office. With his arm shoved deep into his bag he profusely apologized to the stand owners turning around and heading back towards the office. The sun had already set, leaving the sky a pitch-black emptiness, no stars being able to shine because of the amount of light the city gave off. For a brief moment, Serizawa thought about Touchiro, who spoke of seeing the stars again once the city was destroyed, but he quickly put out those thoughts, not wanting to think about that time in his life again. He had a new life now, with his wonderful boss and amazing employees. Reigen was so charismatic, brave, and gorg-a good businessman. Tome was funny, an amazing leader, and a girl who had a bright future ahead of her. And Mob, who didn’t work there anymore but would still come to help if it was needed. Despite Serizawa being a powerful esper, there were still cases that he could not handle. Teru and Ritsu would also come to help if Serizawa couldn’t show up, which was comforting to know. Despite his confidence, Reigen was weak. Even if his punches were strong, his kicks could unpossess a body, and his salt splashes could convince anyone that he was a real esper, he still couldn’t stand a chance against real, threatening spirits. Serizawa thought of his brave boss, almost careless in his actions, as he stepped up to the shop's door. Instead of seeing the darkened room and locked door that he had expected, the door had the golden glow of light through the window, and the door was unlocked for anyone to come in. Putting his spare key away, Serizawa knocked and stepped in carefully, hoping not to walk in on anything. There had been moments where Teru stayed after closing to talk to Reigen about personal stuff, or where Mob would stay to check that Reigen was doing alright without him. Once he even had seen Dimple in there, talking to him about how Mob was doing in high school. Serizawa was almost jealous, everyone else was so close to Reigen, he hadn’t even gotten close enough to hear about Reigen’s family or friends. He hoped to get there one day. Instead of seeing a conversation or a phone call, he saw Reigen sleeping at his desk, his head on the keyboard of his laptop with a long line of lllll’s being drafted on his email.
A light chuckle escaped Serizawa’s lips at the sight. Stepping closer to the man he realized he had never seen the overzealous man so at peace and relaxed. His hair was messy, not in the usual professional ‘do’ that he had most of the time, his face was pressed against his arm, squishing his cheek and lips. Serizawa never guessed that Reigen’s face was squishable, it was hard to imagine his face in your hands, being able to squish his cheeks together to make him pucker his pink lips. His blazer had been taken off and put on the chair, his white shirt all wrinkled from his workday and position sleeping. His pink tie was also removed and placed on the couch, the first few buttons of his white shirt unbuttoned to make it easier to breathe as he lay his head down. Serizawa was enamored by seeing the man he looked up to in a different light. He looked so soft and vulnerable, nothing like the unbreakable man he had known before.
“Hey, stalker, whatcha doin'?” A green spirit poked its head through Reigen’s face, looking at Serizawa with a suspicious face. Serizawa slapped his hand over his mouth, covering the scream that attempted to erupt from his throat. His heart pounded in his chest and he jumped back.
“You-You scared the crap out of me!” he whispered, holding his tie and feeling the way his heart pounded against it.
“I scared you? You’re the one watching a grown man sleep, imagine how scared I felt walking in.” Dimple crossed his little arms, raising his brow suspiciously at Serizawa.
“I wasn’t watching him, I-I just forgot my wallet and came back to get it.” Serizawa avoided the spirits burning gaze, turning instead to his desk where his wallet had been dropped and fallen underneath.
“Were you expecting it to be in Reigen’s mouth or something? With the way you were starin’ at his lips, I wouldn’t be surprised.” “No, I just got distracted, I’ve never seen him sleeping before.” Serizawa blushed feverishly, shoving his wallet into his bag. “I wasn’t being weird.”
“Uh-huh, okay. I won’t judge you if you were, a man has needs and desires, it’s normal.” Dimple puts his hands up, floating over and onto Serizawa’s desk, sitting down. “You should probably pick better candidates, however, a fraud probably isn’t going to be the most loyal person you could be into.”
“Ugh! I’m not into him, you’re taking things out of context. Why are you here, anyways, don’t you usually hang out with Mob?” He pulled his bag to the couch, avoiding the gaze of the fart cloud bullying him.
“Yeah but watching a hormonal teenager study while overthinking a text from his crush isn’t exactly my definition of fun, I find it much more fun to bully a middle-aged man.”
“He’s not middle-aged.”
“Who are you lying to?”
“He’s only 28”
“Can you two shut the hell up?” Reigen sat up, rubbing his face, his cheek red from resting against his arm. His eyes were half-lidded and his hair stuck up on one side, Serizawa couldn’t help but think he looked cute like that. “What are you two even talking about? I thought you went home, Serizawa, and why the hell are you here, Dimple?”
“He was star-” Dimple started, a shit-eating grin spread on his face before Serizawa smacked him, sending him flying against the wall. “I forgot my wallet, sir, so I returned. Dimple came to bother you because he got bored but instead decided to bother me. I apologize for the inconvenience.” Serizawa bowed apologetically, instead, getting waved off by Reigen. “But, sir, why are you here so late?”
“Work, duh. I had to finish some emails and write down the appointments, I’m a busy man, Serizawa, you wouldn’t understand. I’ll just finish these next few emails and head home.”
“You’re staying later? It’s past 11 now, are you sure? There have been sightings of a burglar lately and they said to be careful walking around at night and I doubt it would be easy to get a cab-”
“I’ll be fine, Serizawa, you head home, you must be tired.” his eyes had already gotten refocused on the screen in front of him, his hands moving quickly on the keyboard, typing away. He had no intention of listening to Serizawa’s concerns. Serizawa sighed, looking over at Dimple who floated back over to Reigen, resting atop his pile of golden hair.
“I’ll just wait till you’re done, I want to make sure you get home safely.” Reigen pulled his gaze away from the screen and up to meet Serizawa’s eyes. He felt himself shrink under the burning gaze, he could help the feeling of jealousy return. How come Dimple could be that close to him but Serizawa couldn’t even wait for him to get off work to make sure he’s safe? “Please? To ease my own nerves.” The man’s gaze softened, sighing in defeat.
“Fine, if you insist. But don’t fall asleep waiting for me to finish.” He looked back down to his computer and returned to writing the emails. The light of the computer illuminated Reigen’s features, reflecting on his eyes. Serizawa sat on the couch, feeling himself sink into the cushions. He closed his eyes for a moment, simply to take in the sounds of the room. Reigen typed fast, often stopping to reorganize his thoughts and often grumbling when Dimple corrected his spelling or grammar. The clock on the wall ticked endlessly, when stressed, Serizawa found himself hating the damn thing, but in moments like these, it was comforting. A gentle sound. It was hard not to be dragged into the depths of sleep but he fought against the urges, eventually being rewarded for his efforts as Reigen stood up, putting his blazer back on and fixing his hair. He grabbed his keys, catching Serizawa’s attention and he looked over, seeing Reigen standing at the door, waiting for him. “Come on, Serizawa, I’m done.” Much like a dog, he hopped off the couch, following Reigen obediently and enthusiastically. Reigen was quiet most of the walk home, tired from the long night’s work. Serizawa, however, just observed him--seeing the way he walked when he was tired, the way he would greet people he knew vaguely, like regular customers. It was something he had never seen before. A small smile spread on his face, knowing that he gained just a little bit more of Reigen’s trust. Dimple, who had remained on top of Reigen’s head, had turned around and stared at Serizawa. It only took a moment for the man to notice, looking up at the green fart and blushing, embarrassed and ashamed. Dimple pointed down, pulling Serizawa’s gaze to Reigen’s ass as he walked. A blush spread across Serizawa’s face as he shot a glare up at Dimple. His only response was a laugh as he turned back around to face forward.
Reigen’s apartment was further away than he expected, and a part of him wondered if he walked every day or took a cab home, his own home about 25 minutes from Reigen’s. “You didn’t have to follow me all the way home, I’m sure you live far away from here.” Was Reigen able to read minds?
“No, I’m glad I did, I would’ve felt bad leaving you to walk alone, especially because of the crimes happening.”
“Do you think the crimes are related to anything supernatural?” Reigen suggests absentmindedly, unlocking the door to his apartment with a gentle click.
“Unlikely, a spirit has no use for physical possessions like money. These petty crimes are probably just dumb humans being dumb humans.” Dimple interjected, hopping off Reigen’s head and floating in. A dog bed was on the floor, and before Serizawa could even question if Reigen had a dog, Dimple floated on the bed, lying down and getting comfortable. “Goodnight, Serizawa, I’ll see you on Monday.” Reigen waved, going inside. Serizawa was a tad disappointed that he didn’t talk to him more but recognized that Reigen needed his rest. Saying his goodbyes, Serizawa headed home, not even minding the long walk, thoughts of Reigen’s squished face, tired voice, and messy hair floating in his head. Even as he showered and brushed his teeth he found Reigen’s image remaining in his head until eventually, as he lay in his large bed, he closed his eyes and fell asleep. His deep sleep remained uninterrupted even as a text popped up on his phone.
>Mob: 7:00 am Dimple told me you’re interested in Master Reigen, is that true?