TWENTY-FIVE - ONE MORE DAY

The last day of summer break was always a somber one but for Shigaraki this one was especially melancholic. For him, and all the other third year students at UA High, it was the last summer holiday he would have before graduation - free from the burdens of adulthood and all the responsibilities that came along with it.

The thought of it was frightening. It was the ever-present awareness that this was, probably, one of the last times he would - and could - feel so carefree just hanging out with his friends in his room and the heaviness in the air was palpable. It was quiet, too quiet. Nobody wanted to say anything. Shigaraki could hear the soft yet steady pitter-patter of rain beating against the windows and the occasional wisp of a page from a book being turned over.

He exhaled a barely audible sigh and returned his focus to the rent listing in front of him, scrolling listlessly down the page. He was trying to find an affordable apartment to live in after graduation and was struggling to find anything in his price range. Well, anything that didn't look like it hadn't been cleaned in a decade or that he might get murdered in while he slept. He thought he had done a decent job at saving up for the next chapter in his life, but boy had he severely under-calculated his resources. He hadn't worked hard enough, and he was going to pay for it.

A flash of lighting followed a crack of thunder and the lights flickered, the power almost cutting out. All three boys lifted their heads to look out the window. It had been an exceptionally hot day for the tail end of the summer months and the afternoon had come with rolling storms that were becoming more boisterous as they progressed.

Shigaraki frowned, reaching for his phone.

"He's probably stuck in this bad weather, trying to get back." Kurogiri commented when he saw Shigaraki checking his smartphone for the hundredth time, to see if he had any messages from his boyfriend. There was nothing.

"Hm?" Shigaraki absently mumbled.

"Dabi." Kurogiri said, "He was supposed to be back this morning, right?"

"Oh. Yeah." Shigaraki shrugged, "He said he would be a bit later."

"So, don't worry."

"I'm not worried." Shigaraki scowled. Kurogiri scoffed and then returned to his book. He obviously didn't believe his friend.

On the other end of the bed, Kai was watching and listening closely. He closed the comic book he was reading and carefully set it aside before scooting closer to Shigaraki. He shifted onto his knees and peeked over the edge of Shigaraki's laptop. "How's the search going?"

"Oh, just great. This one looks good. If you ignore the police tape." He joked.

Kai snorted a laugh and then squeezed into the small space between the wall and his friend. "Let me see."

Shigaraki grumbled at the crowding and moved over a little to give him space but he allowed Kai to take his laptop – and he pulled it onto his crossed legs.

Kai's brow furrowed as he looked over the apartment rent ad, but he didn't say anything. Almost immediately he clicked back a page, to the master listings, and scrolled actively downwards, scrutinizing them.

"Why do you want to live alone?" He asked, pausing his search for a moment and shifting his golden gaze up to Shigaraki.

"I think it's self-explanatory." Shigaraki answered, drawing his legs up and wrapping his arms around them.

"Well, you could find something a lot better if you looked for a roommate." Kai commented, changing the search filter from apartment-to-rent to room-to-rent. "You can always move out on your own when you are ready."

"That sounds awful." Shigaraki mumbled, scratching at his neck.

Kai chuckled low.

Shigaraki huffed and closed his eyes as the back of his head hit the wall behind him. Immediately his mind drifted to the small bag of edibles on his bedside table. The colourful gummy bears looked like regular candy, but they were laced with high levels of THC. They were supposed to help him sleep. Kai had given them to him a few days earlier, but he still hadn't caved in and tested their potency. His anxiety told him that passing out cold after so many days awake was a terrible idea, who knows what damage he could cause. But he was extremely tempted to eat a few now. The apartment search was making him restless, yet at the same time, the sound of the rain - combined with the low-light in the room - was making him feel drowsy.

Thankfully, the loud, shrill ring of his phone agitated him away from his abjection and his antsy gloom. His eyes shot open and he reached for the smartphone, turning it over to see who was calling.

Dabi would like to FaceTime…

Shigaraki sat up a bit and hit the little green phone icon, accepting the call. Immediately, Dabi's face appeared on the screen, grinning.

"Hey, baby."

"Hi." Shigaraki replied, his face warming at the pet name Dabi had adopted for him. He shifted, uncomfortable, and angled the phone a tad - away from Kai. "You're not driving." Shigaraki observed, noticing the closed room Dabi was in - probably his bedroom at the vacation house. He frowned. They meant they hadn't left yet. He tried to not look too disappointed.

"No." Dabi sighed and brushed his hand over the top of his head, sweeping his mane of dark hair back. "There was a big accident on the freeway."

"Oh."

"And dad didn't really want to drive in the storms." Dabi scowled and whispered under his breath. "Asshole."

"I don't blame him for that." Shigaraki said, "When are you leaving?"

"We're staying another night apparently."

"You're going to miss the first day back at school?"

"Nah." Dabi shook his head, "Dad wants us all up bright and early, so we can make it in time."

"Sounds great." Shigaraki said sarcastically.

"Yeah." Dabi shifted, the screen blurring as he moved around. He finally settled and then his face came back into view. "What are you doing?"

"Not much. Just hanging out with Kai and Kurogiri." Shigaraki explained, and hearing his name, Kai tipped his head into view, giving Dabi a curt wave.

"Yo."

"Oh. Hi, Chisaki."

Shigaraki bit back a grin, Dabi did not look pleased at how close Kai was sitting with him. "Is… Takami still there?"

"He is." Dabi said drably. "Probably kissing Endeavour's ass somewhere. I dunno."

Shigaraki snorted.

"So, that means I finally got a minute alone." Dabi divulged, a slow grin curling the edge of his mouth. "And I was thinking about you..."

"Dabi." Shigaraki warned, knowing exactly where his boyfriend's mind was drifting.

"What? It's been awhile you know."

There were some muffled noises that sounded like shuffling. Shigaraki's cheeks heated and he turned discreetly to look at Kai and Kurogiri - with his eyes only. They weren't really paying attention, but still, the conversation was moving in an awkward direction.

"Wanna see?" Dabi asked, but before Shigaraki had a chance to reply, Dabi was panning the camera downwards. He was fully clothed thankfully but as the view moved lower Shigaraki saw that his shirt had been tugged up, exposing his belly. And then lower, his pants were unbuckled, the zipper down. And...

"Shit." Shigaraki slammed his phone against his chest, blocking the view. Kai arched a brow, having briefly seen the FaceTime footage.

"Was that Dabi's dick?" He asked, his voice low with amusement.

"What?" Kurogiri chimed in with, suddenly very interested. He turned around.

"Ah, nope. No." Shigaraki replied, his cheeks flooding with heat. Kai laughed hard, nudging his friend's shoulder. Kurogiri was chuckling from the floor.

"Ugh."

Dabi called back almost immediately but Shigaraki declined FaceTime opting for a regular call instead.

"You hung up on me."

"Kai has seen your dick now. Happy?"

"I'm not unhappy. I mean, he's seen a penis before, we have the same equipment after all, so..." Dabi was chuckling, "What did he think?"

"You can ask him yourself when you see him next."

"Nah."

"No more FaceTime."

"Shame. Could've been hot."

"Tch."

"I guess I can hold out another day. For you."

"How romantic." Shigaraki sneered.

"Mmm. Hold a sec." The speaker went quiet suddenly. Shigaraki could hear some muffled words being exchanged on the other end of the line but couldn't make out what exactly was being said. Dabi did not sound happy and Shigaraki managed to pick up on a few key phrases - "knock next time" and "go away" and "fine" before Dabi returned to him.

"Sorry."

"It's okay."

"I gotta go. Fuck." Dabi sighed, and Shigaraki could hear him buckling his belt back up. "Send me a message before you go to bed, kay?"

"Sure."

"With naked photo evidence, so I know you are for reals going to bed."

"I don't sleep naked."

"Just indulge me, please? I need good dreams tonight."

Shigaraki rolled his eyes. "Bye, Dabi. I'll see you tomorrow."

"Hey, wait."

"Yes?"

"I-" There was a brief pause before Dabi spoke again. "I um… I can't wait to see you."

"Me too."

"So, tomorrow."

"Yeah. Bye." Shigaraki hung up and slowly lowered his phone, setting it aside on the nightstand - feeling a little disgruntled.

He had been looking forward to reuniting with his boyfriend but now he would have to wait another night. It wasn't a significant amount of time but Shigaraki had been feeling so lousy, Dabi was the only person that could improve his overall mood - he was smitten enough to admit that. And he needed Dabi and his actual physical presence, which sounded ridiculous even to his own ears, but it was true.

He scratched at his neck and then aggressively pulled the hood of his sweatshirt over his head. There was no use pouting when there was absolutely nothing he could do about it.

"Find anything?" He asked Kai, who was still scrolling through the apartment listings beside him. Though the search seemed to be a lot less thorough now - more browsing than anything. And he was in pricing territory that did not match Shigaraki's criteria.

"Not if you're still set on living on your own."

"I am."

Shigaraki supposed he should take over again and motioned for the laptop to be returned to him. Kai passed it over and Shigaraki crossed his legs, his thigh brushing Kai's as he settled the PC in his lap.

"You hungry?" Kai asked, clearing his throat.

He was surprised that he even managed to get those words out considering all he could focus on was the way Shigaraki was sitting against him. It wasn't much, just a knee resting on his thigh but the fact that Shigaraki was comfortable enough to remain so close - that their legs touched - made him extremely happy.

"Kurogiri? Wanna order something in?"

Both boys responded in unison, "Yes."

Kai tugged his mask down, grinning. "What do you want?"

"I kinda feel like sushi." Kurogiri suggested.

"Something… cheaper." Shigaraki said, clicking over yet another apartment that he could not afford.

Kai smiled soberly and he tentatively patted Shigaraki's bent knee before leaving his hand to rest right there. "I'm paying."

"Okay. Sushi then." Shigaraki concluded, shutting the lid of his laptop.

That was it. He wasn't going to spend the rest of the evening or night worrying about apartments or missing Dabi – even though both of those things he knew would be lingering constantly in the back of his mind. He would see Dabi in the morning and the apartment search would continue – he would find something eventually. The next few hours were for them – he was lucky to have friends that cared enough to stay. In just a few months, it wouldn't be this easy.