To say his hands were clammy would be an understatement.
It was a wonder how the umbrella handle remained so steady and firm in his grip when, in spite of his own wishes, the palms of his hands were coated so thick with sweat, slick and slippery, hot and sticky, that he dreaded the worst as he strolled through the torrential downpour of Seasoning City, the wind in tow and the puddles splashing beneath the soles of his shoes.
It wasn't anything he hadn't dealt with before, really; he'd more than earned his fair share of stray observations from random passersby, had stolen fleeting glimpses of silent judgement sinking into a stranger's assessment of his person but never having heard anyone voice these thoughts aloud. There was no shame in admitting that his salesmen persona, hell, his regular self even, came with a hitch all its own- clear skin forever riddled with gleaming sweat. Not that that made eyeing and acknowledging other's scrutiny any easier, but he digressed.
Nevertheless, he'd soon discovered that these sweaty mishaps only seemed to get worse in the presence of others. Or, more specifically-
"Ah, Serizawa! I didn't think you'd make it out of there so soon. Things going okay?"
Scrambling to a haphazard stop, Serizawa briskly nodded and readjusted the schoolbag now swinging precariously around the crook of his elbow, the raised suit jacket shrouding his head pinned down by the heavy droplets pouring from the skies above. "Yeah. Everything's fine," he replied between breathless pants, smiling. "Just an early dismissal."
Reigen chuckled. "Well, it's a good thing you came out as fast as you did then. I don't think I'd have it in me to hold this thing any longer if you stayed in late."
With a flourish, Reigen brandished the umbrella in the direction of his companion, motioning for the man to step under.
It didn't take long before Serizawa humbly accepted his offer, ducking beneath the shelter of the umbrella before relinquishing the soaked fabric of his suit jacket from its duties.
As they strolled along side by side through the streets of the city, throwing about playful banter and wordy conversations, Reigen couldn't help but draw his gaze back to the two opposing hands now mutually interwoven around the umbrella handle, taking in every minimal detail, every curvature, every line and indent, of Serizawa's much larger hand in comparison to his own.
The pigmentation of Serizawa's skin was slightly darker than his. Even with the dark clouds that soared overhead, blocking out any strand of sunlight that dared seep its way through the dreary atmosphere, Reigen could tell that Serizawa's skin would not change tints in different lighting. The faint hairs coursing along the surface of his skin were nothing in stark contrast to the darker, finer hairs twisting and curling over the back of Serizawa's hand, and for the first time Reigen became intrigued by their differences. How he hadn't noticed these subtle contrasts before was beyond him.
You think you'd notice those kinds of things by now.
But he didn't.
The warmth emanating from the other's hand also became an object of intrigue.
Reigen hadn't even considered the fact that this particular warmth was something he was all too familiar with. The welcoming tendrils weaving loosely around his wrist, the cautious lapping before the final plunge blanketing his skin- it was ethereal and chaotic all at once, gentle and rough, soothing and powerful.
It possessed the ability to bend and break the energy around it at will, it relished in its strength and feared no one in its wake, yet refused to act on the abilities harnessed in spite of the surge of power that lay ignited and waiting at the end of its very fingertips.
Power meeting serenity.
Reigen was fully aware of its capabilities. He knew the feeling all too well, knew the kinds of blessings and curses that came along with it, knew how peaceful it could be before the bitter reality sat in and reared its ugly head, leaving destruction and chaos in its wake.
Yet, somehow, the warmth coming from Serizawa always managed to feel different than the type of warmth he'd been accustomed to from Mob.
Reigen almost forgot he was staring until Serizawa's voice broke through the haze and reminded him to walk with his own two feet.
"-looks pretty nice, even though it's raining."
"What?"
"The clouds. They always look nice, even when it's raining, don't you think?"
A moment or two passed before Reigen's mind caught up to the question at hand. "Oh…! Yeah. I guess they do still look pretty interesting when the weather's shit."
If his observation gauged a reaction from Serizawa, Reigen didn't wait long to see. Nervously, almost shyly, he rubbed the nape of his neck before flapping his free hand in the space beside him. "Uh, so, hey! Here's a crazy idea: how about we hold hands?"
Serizawa's eyes stretched wide as saucers. "Hold hands?"
Reigen immediately regretted his decision. "N- not like that! I- I mean-!"
Shitshitshit! He could practically feel Serizawa's eyes burning into his skull.
"Y- y'know, to keep the umbrella steady! You've been making it sway around like crazy this whole time."
Serizawa's steps seemed to falter at that, as if taking a moment to consider the truthfulness of Reigen's words, before realizing that the umbrella was indeed swaying, just as Reigen had said, and grew sheepish. "O- oh! Oh! I'm sorry! I didn't even notice-"
Fuck, that was close.
Reigen suppressed his amusement at Serizawa's awkward fumbling and pat his shoulder reassuringly. "It's fine; really, it's okay. I was just messing around, that's all."
"O- oh…"
A pause.
The tips of Reigen's ears began growing hot, and he coughed and spluttered in his hand as a means of distraction from the overwhelming feeling inching its way into his chest. He prayed Serizawa hadn't noticed.
"A- anyways… It's easier to carry the umbrella if we have our hands around each others, so if you want to, we can do that to keep it steady. Don't pressure yourself to do it if you don't want to, though."
"O- okay."
The immediate contact of skin on skin sent shivers down his spine. Within seconds, Serizawa's hand engulfed his own, and Reigen was suddenly reminded of the sweat coating his palms and squeezed his fingers tighter around the handle in an effort to stave off the moisture threatening to leak through the crevices of his fingers.
If Serizawa could feel the sweat through their clasped hands, he certainly didn't acknowledge it aloud as he guided Reigen's attention back to the road that lay ahead with a slight tug on the handle.
Despite the bone-chilling atmosphere surrounding them, Reigen felt a wave of heat ghost over his being, and without a second thought allowed for the warmth to swallow him, his worries gradually dripping away with each patter of droplets connecting to concrete as his iron grip loosened.
Notes: Sorry if this turned out really wonky. It's late and I've been trying to figure out how to approach the prompts for the fluff bomb ( bisexualwinry . tumblr post / 159306626275 / mp100 - fluff - bomb - prompts - as - im - sure - many - of - you) all week because I want to help in flooding the tag on ao3 with really sweet and fluffy things. Feel free to request things if you'd like!