At times, Tanuma finds himself really wishing that Natsume would bother him more.
Given, they aren't in the same grade or live in the same area, so frankly the chances of them crossing paths are usually pretty abysmal. Even when he does see him, he's usually in over his head in some way or another, still not taking proper care of himself, and still adamantly refusing help, regardless of the fact that there's rarely anything Tanuma can do for him anyways.
Natsume is easily one of the strongest, most destructively selfless people he knows, and also the one person he can honestly say he worries about. Sure he has his own life and his own friends, but there's always a small corner of his mind that's constantly wondering if Natsume's managed to kill himself yet.
An even smaller, cynical corner of his mind thinks that might be the point, so as to relieve the burden he seems to think he places on the world by so much as existing.
But no, that's not right, because as morose as the boy can sometimes be, there's no way he hasn't figured out yet that dying would at the very least bother the Fujiwaras, his friends, and hell, Tanuma himself. Ideally, he would have figured out that it's not so much as being bothered as out right grief, but he's not holding his breath on that one.
It's kind of painful to think that he might one day be the only one with any sense for youkai again. That little fox boy would be heartbroken, NyanNyan-sensei would probably run off, and he'd have no one to watch the reflection of the pond with anymore.
As if on cue, the first shimmers of light begin seeping through the open door and the silhouette of a carp skirts along the edge in a burst of movement.
No more Natsume…
Tanuma exhales deeply, rising from his spot against the wall and heads to the phone.
"……Good Evening Fujiwara-san— …Oh that's right, pardon me, Touko-san— is Natsume there? ……Yes please…"
Tanuma shifts his weight, glancing back at the pond's reflection wistfully.
"…Ah, hey Natsume…No no, nothing's wrong, I was just wondering if you were free to hang out today……Oh, no reason…"
AN: Yeah WAFF-y and totally pointless I know, especially when there are quite a few other things I could/should/need to work on, but it's been sitting on my flash drive for months, so I figured I might as well put it up. It was actually supposed to be my first stab at a Tanuma/Natsume but it turned out painfully gen. Hopefully someone will sort of enjoy it nonetheless? D:
