Kayano: Are you and Karma definitely coming to the meet up this year?

Nagisa: I am. You'll have to ask Karma himself.

Kayano: Did something happen?

Nagisa has no desire to respond to his friend's message. Honestly, it'll feel worse if he tries to unpack it himself. The only reason he's even going to the meet up at this point is he's literally going stir crazy at home at this point. Wallowing in his own misery, perhaps? Whatever the case, he needs a distraction. And it'll be good to see his friends!

As for Karma, he doesn't even know anymore.

Admittedly, now he's less upset about his audacity in the situation, Nagisa really wants to know why Karma showed up at his place. It's clear he changed his mind, about what he originally wanted to say. What even was that? Despite his text, Nagisa hasn't asked him yet. He hasn't actually said anything.

Maybe he's just frightened.

He wishes it was simple, that he could just be happy. Tsukasa's a super nice guy, for example! He's sure Sugino would specifically be over the moon about it. But… Nagisa's had more than enough time to think about it in near isolation. He's super nice, and sweet, and good in every way… but Nagisa doesn't like him like that. Maybe he could learn to, but that's not exactly right, is it?

Their old class group chat has seen a lot of activity recently, at least, as everyone shares their travel plans. Some people are meeting up first, to spend more time together. Nagisa will be coming alone, though, just like every other year. And he's okay with that, really! It doesn't matter when he has to see everyone in the end.

When he wakes up on the day, though, he does admittedly feel a bit sick.

Everyone gets nerves before entering a social situation, right? There's nothing weird about his minor panic. It's been a while since he's seen most of them, anyway! And a while since he's been back to the building. Not that he has many particularly negative associations with the place. He's looking forward to taking it all in again, actually.

Eventually he finds himself on the train, staring out of the window. There's actually a few free seats for once, but he doesn't take any of them. Weirdly enough, he's happy to just stand there. It's weirdly hypnotic, as he watches the buildings go by, which eventually thin out as they pass the outskirts of Kunugigaoka, which is more mountainous. It's just a brief change onto the train he used to take to school, and then he's there.

Even after all this time, it still feels fresh.

They also haven't made traversing the mountain much easier. Then again, considering everyone owns the mountain, that's kind of their own fault. It would feel weird to add a ropeway anyway, after getting so used to the effort of climbing it. Besides, after a year, everyone managed to learn a few short cuts. Even if it does make Nagisa realise he's a little out of shape…

He still makes it early, though, if Kayano's dark head is anything to go by.

"Hey," she looks over her shoulder, from where she was facing the building. "Oh, Nagisa."

Oh no.

"I-I got distracted!"

"Hmph," she folds her arms. "Don't think you're getting out of it. And you can't just leave me on read!"

He looks down, genuine guilt rushing through him. "I'm sorry."

"Do we hate him?"

"Huh?"

Kayano just leans closer, a slightly wild look in her eyes. "I'd like to say I don't pick sides, but the truth is I definitely do and I'm definitely on yours – if you want me to be."

In a weird way, it makes him feel just a little bit better. "He didn't really do anything wrong."

She nods. "I can still punch him."

"Please don't."

"But-"

Nakamura slings an arm over his shoulder, having apparently arrived. "Who are we punching?"

"Nobody."

She pouts. "Aw, that's no fun."

His personal issues aren't their entertainment! Or, he would have complained, but he'd much rather just change the subject entirely. Thankfully, Nakamura and Kayano find it easy enough to fall into a conversation around him, and Nagisa's more than happy to just disappear. Karma might not even show up, anyway.

The rest of them appear, a few at a time. Soon enough, everyone's mostly gathered around the front in a few small groups, catching up with each other. It's a nice energy, to all be in the same place. Besides, Nagisa can't help but feel a little bit impressed with Nakamura's commitment to this, since she took a flight half way across the world and all.

When Karma shows himself, Nagisa tries his best not to look.

Of course, he can't help it, and glimpses him talking to Itona and Terasaka. Well, that's fine. He works…. vaguely with Terasaka anyway. To Nagisa's knowledge, they're not super close, but he comes up in Karma's anecdotes from time to time. Not that he cares about Karma's anecdotes or indeed any part of his life anymore.

Nakamura looks over at him more obviously, shooting him an obvious wave. She looks a little confused, about why he's not immediately coming over. Nagisa doesn't even know how to feel, whether Karma's simply giving him space or just avoiding him for his own sake at this point. It's like they're about to wrestle in the woods all over again.

"What's wrong with him?" She looks around their small circle, which has also been joined by Sugino.

Kayano swallows, averting her eyes.

Sugino catches on. "Something happened?"

Nagisa stares at the ground as hard as he can.

"Maybe we should change the subject," Kayano offers. She's a good friend.

"Hell no," Nakamura looks at Nagisa fiercely. "Go tell him to come over."

This is awkward. "I don't think that'll help."

Her focus returns to their small group. "What do you guys know?"

"Nothing," Sugino and Kayano say at the same time.

"Well fine," she gets up, stretching her legs. "I'll go bully him myself."

Nagisa can practically feel the eyes on him. It's not his fault! He doesn't like this, though. They can at least be civil, right? They're adults. Maybe… maybe they can learn to be cordial in a group situation like this. Nagisa hates being involved in things that constitute 'drama', though. Especially because it's hardly a life or death situation.

"He told you too?" Sugino questions.

Kayano hums for a minute. "Yeah, but he won't tell me what happened."

"Does it really matter?" Nagisa finally gets out, the words practically spilling from him. "It's over now, anyway."

Kayano touches his arm, which he thinks is meant to be sympathetic.

Thankfully, that's when Isogai clears his throat. "It looks like everyone's here, so I'll unlock the doors!"

There's no fun until they've done the hard work, after all. It's not like they just leave the building to fall to ruin for a whole year each time, but this is the day where most things get done annually. As a result, it's quite a long list of tasks. Thankfully, it's not so bad when it's split between almost thirty people. Usually, it's actually pretty fun.

The cleaning takes Nagisa's mind off things, at least, but he can't bring himself to join in with any of the fun surrounding him. It seems like Okajima got a hose pipe from somewhere? It's nothing to do with him, though, as he keeps his eyes focused on the dusting he has to do. That's his main target for now, and he's not stopping until it's wiped out.

What an assassin he is, huh? Next hit: cobwebs.

He wonders what Korosensei would say, at a time like this. Well, actually, he knows exactly what would happen. He'd listen, but he'd definitely be writing notes for his 'gossip'. Then… well, maybe he'd lament, because he always got sappy with this kind of thing, before possibly forcing him and Karma into another battle royale. Maybe that really is the most effective way for them to address things.

Nagisa knows there's a few pages of… love advice? in the graduation book Korosensei left for him. Nagisa still hasn't finished the whole book. He knows he could cram it, but that doesn't feel right to him, and it's probably not what Korosensei would have wanted. He leafed through, a little while after he died, and stuck post its in it to mark some specific sections that would be important later in life. During that, he'd glanced at the dating advice sections, but at the time he'd definitely felt too embarrassed to read any of it.

"Pst, Nagisa kun," a voice comes from his pocket, scaring him just a little. "Can you take me outside?"

He's not sure how advanced Ritsu truly is, at this point. Nagisa's never been particularly in tune with tech stuff. He knows how to operate a smartphone, and work with the essential programmes on a computer, but the science of it all is a little lost on him. Though, he's pretty sure Ritsu could work her way onto any device connected to the internet if she really wants, so it's a little unclear why she needs him to take her out specifically.

"Did something happen?" He asks, when they're outside of the classroom.

"I wanted to talk," Ritsu's avatar replies to him. "I digitised all of Korosensei's advice books, you know!"

He almost drops his phone. "You can't read minds."

"No," she laughs like it's nothing. "But, I'm pretty much always here, you know!" He doesn't even want to think about the implications of that. "And… my analysis says that Korosensei had some advice that could be beneficial – I want everyone to get along today! Don't tell the others, but I'm working on an app. You can be my beta tester!"

A symbol shows up on Nagisa's phone, and he does feel compelled to click it. And, wow, it's actually a Korosensei 101 app? With thematic organisation? Considering the length of those books, that must have taken a while. Are these personalised too?

"It can't replace the real thing of course," Ritsu says, "but I thought it would help people. In a pinch?"

What does he have to lose?

'When I knew you, you were all at an age where you first started to blossom into the world of love-'

Nagisa already regrets this. He can practically hear Korosensei's voice, already. The hallway doesn't seem right for this. Maybe it's bad of him, but he finds his feet carrying him to the staff room, sitting himself at Korosensei's old desk. There's an inherent sense that he shouldn't be in a place like this, even now. Nagisa's literally a teacher, though. Surely that gives him some kind of right?

'-And that will continue for a lot of you, as you become adults. I can't get over the weddings I'm going to miss! For my planning advice, skip ahead a few pages, by the way! But that's beside the point. You should remember that there's no right or wrong time for something like that. I'd already become The Reaper, by the time I finally understood love. Maybe you'll see your friends surrounding you, progressing in ways you haven't yet. But you shouldn't worry. You'll know when it feels right for you.'

All of a sudden, Nagisa's throat feels heavy.

'So that you have a decent chance, if it comes to it, I've pulled together some advice! Let's explore how your communication could be improved!

Situation A: You're in a nightclub and another boy mistakes your gender!'

Perhaps Nagisa should be a little ashamed that Korosensei has managed to compile enough examples of his 'lacking communication' skills to account for not only the entire hiragana alphabet, but a repeat of katakana as well. Considering this was only within the space of a year… He has to scroll a little frantically, looking for something specific.

'Situation Chi: You want to save my life but Karma kun takes it personally and now you're in a fight!

Admittedly, this wasn't entirely your fault. But! This is an important lesson on how two people always need to be on the same page. Even if you have the best intentions, it doesn't matter if the other party doesn't understand you. You should approach conversations openly like this, without assuming what they think, feel, or even know already. That way, the true meaning of your words won't get lost as easily.'

Admittedly, Nagisa feels attacked. He also knows it's right, though. It's everything they didn't do. Unfortunately, though, reading a list of his communication failures doesn't seem like it'll help him right now. What he needs is even more practical advice. Maybe it's not even here, though. Korosensei probably wouldn't just give him the answer.

A helpful pop up appears at the bottom of his screen, suggesting a related page. Nagisa feels like he should select it.

'Notes on your potential future relationships!'

Oh no.

There's notes for pretty much everyone in their class, along with a section dedicated to the potential of Nagisa dating someone else. It's just Korosensei trying to cover all possible bases with tailored advice… in way too much detail in some cases. Most people's are pretty short, with Sugino taking up a decent amount of room (unsurprising considering they're close, but disturbing to think about). Kayano's is definitely the next longest, though he scrolls past most of it out of weirdness.

Karma's section appears to be endless.

Considering how obvious Korosensei was with all of that, it's kind of surprising to him. It's not like he ever tried to pair them together before. Although… Well… he did take them to Hawaii that one time? But that wasn't a date! They just wanted to see Sonic Ninja. Aside from that, though, it could just be because they'd be the most complicated?

Pretty much everything on the page seems to point to a relationship between he and Karma being a terrible idea, anyway. Korosensei didn't openly write it, but there's just so much that could go wrong. That has gone wrong. Even though there's some good stuff written here too… What's that worth if they can't even see eye to eye?

'Sometimes one of the most amazing feelings is working well together as a team' should make him happy, but then it's paired with 'you need to take care so that you don't self destruct'.

Nagisa doesn't want to live a life like he's trying to defuse a bomb.

'How to have a fulfilling life when you're single!' seems like a great page, anyway.

"Hey, Sensei~"

Nagisa almost drops his phone. "N-nakamura!"

She grins at him. "So lazy of you, to be skipping out on cleaning. We're basically done already."

"I didn't mean to," he says, guilt rising within him. "I didn't realise how long it had been, sorry."

Almost as if no time has passed, she sits herself on the side of the desk, swinging her legs like she's restless. "So, why'd you dump Karma?"

"I didn't dump him."

"That's what it sounded like."

Nagisa goes red. "He… told you that?"

Is Karma gossiping now? Admittedly, Nagisa doesn't have much of a right to be mad about it, considering he told both Sugino and Kayano. But… still! At least keep it accurate! Nagisa didn't dump him! They weren't even dating to begin with!

She shrugs. "I have my ways. Karma can think he's as tough as he wants, but he's easy to get information out of. You should know that better than anyone."

"I wish."

She sighs. "Congrats, by the way. How does it feel to finally be a man?"

"N-nakamura!"

The laugh that comes out of her is pure evil. "What? You're just as obvious as he is."

Great.

She flips her hair, though. "He barely said a word about this one, though. I'm almost impressed, Nagisa kun. You have him whipped."

"…Do I want to know what you mean by that?"

A pained smile appears across her face. "Look, whatever happened, it's your business. I get that. But you're both bringing the mood down here. He's pining over you. Have you seen Karma pining? It's depressing. And you!" Nakamura pokes him in the chest. "You're no better! So why don't you just talk to him and get it over with already?"

"Why should I?!"

Her glare remains. "Don't give me that. For fucks sake, Nagisa," she curses in English, "he didn't try to talk to you even once?"

"I guess… he showed up. It was weird, like he'd run through the rain or something. But then he didn't even say anything, except get mad at me when I said I had plans."

She nods. "So?"

"I told him to leave… And he texted me 'sorry' after. But, I don't know what that even means!"

"Right, so, you dumped him. He tries to talk it out with you or something, and you turned him down. Look, I'm not taking sides, really. But if there's one thing I know about Karma," she says, "he doesn't go out of his way for just anyone. Just saying. It's probably your turn, if you want to do anything about it. That's all."

She taps him on the shoulder, before sauntering off, sliding the door closed behind her.

Nagisa feels like he wants to crash down on him and end it right about there. Nakamura has a way of getting under his skin. He knows that all too well. It's partially why she ended up being such good friends with Karma in the first place – they were hardly sitting outside and crafting daisy chains together! But… infuriatingly, underneath her surface, he thinks she might actually be right.

It's definitely his turn.

He's just not sure if he wants to take it.

Rationally, what good would it even do? What would he want to come from this? Nagisa already knew what he was doing, when he ended things. He'd been aware of the consequence that yeah, Karma wouldn't want to talk to him after. Somehow, that still feels better than just ignoring it and dragging things out.

Nagisa can't say his feelings have changed too much. That's been the worst part of this. He was so sure, about loving him, and admittedly Karma's insistence that no feelings were involved on his end had cast some doubt over that. But… it couldn't actually change things for him. Maybe Nagisa wanted it to, deep down… loving someone who doesn't love you back is a horrible thought after all.

Sometimes the things we love also hurt us the most.

Is it even worth it?

Noise from the other room takes him out of it, and he goes to investigate. Since the cleaning appears to be done, it's back to reminiscing time, he supposes. It feels weird to be doing that with so much weighing on his chest, though. Maybe Nagisa should just go home. Even if that is 'chickening out', so to speak…

It looks like everyone's going outside, though. Nagisa sees why, when he follows. Honestly, he'd forgotten that Karasuma and Bitch Sensei were even coming this year – they don't always. He always enjoys it when they do, though. Unlike the rest of his ex-classmates, it's not super easy to keep in touch with them.

"Long time no see, brats," Bitch Sensei says.

"Hello!" A young voice says, leaping out from behind her.

Bitch Sensei does nothing about it. "Yeah yeah, go get 'em."

It's weird to think of Bitch Sensei of all people as a mother. She's hardly mellowed out, in all the years since 3E. But the announcement came not too long after the wedding, and before anyone knew it, their ex-teachers had become parents. Again, they don't seem to have changed much, though they both look significantly more tired nowadays.

"Naochan!" Kurahashi says cheerfully. "Come give me a hug!"

It's safe to say most of their class adore Karasuma Nao, and have done since the first day they met her. Nagisa can't say he isn't partial to a cute kid. She looks so big now, though. What is she, five by now? She seems to take a lot after her mother, though she has Karasuma's dark hair. She also seems to feed off attention and fuss.

"Hayami!" Bitch Sensei cuts through the reunions. "What's that on your finger!?"

Everyone turns to look at her, and Chiba as well. "Well…"

"Guys really?!"

"Congratulations!"

"You're really getting married?!" Maehara in particular starts legitimately sobbing.

"Are you crying?!"

"Probably over the idea of monogamy." Okano says sharply.

It really looks like they're all growing up. Babies, marriage apparently… It's crazy when he thinks about it. Sometimes it feels like no time has passed at all, but it definitely has. Even looking up at the moon can tell him that. A part of Nagisa wonders if they'll keep these meet ups going forever. They're not kids anymore.

Of course, he offers his congratulations too. He is genuinely happy for them.

"So," Bitch Sensei says, "you guys having your death match or what?"

"Mummy," little Nao looks at her curiously. "What's a death match?"

"Well, it's-"

"Irina," Karasuma cuts her off. He clears his throat. "I heard you wanted me to referee."

Isogai nods, standing in front of their group. "We thought that was fairest. Besides, it brings back old memories. A big game of capture the flag, for old times' sake? The rules are simple: each team has a flag to hide, either side of the boundaries. The aim is to steal the other team's flag and carry it over the boundary. Our old PE uniforms don't fit us anymore, so it's light contact only… Any questions?"

The split into teams is pretty natural, and doesn't take much finessing. There's some minor differences, but it reminds him of their paintball match. Perhaps because he and Karma are overtly on separate teams. It should just be a fun game, for nostalgia's sake, but Nagisa starts to feel oddly competitive. He wants to beat him.

"Okay," Isogai looks between them, putting himself in the leadership position. "Let's talk strategy. Who wants to be defence?"

The strategy isn't anything revolutionary, but it's hard when both teams have pretty even skills. Everywhere they think of hiding it will be considered by the other team, too. It's more a match of who can outsmart the others the best. And, as mad as Nagisa is at him at the moment, he knows Karma's more than in his element here.

"What if we just give the flag to someone?" Kayano suggests. "Keep it moving. Are there rules against that?"

"I guess not," Isogai says. "Then, who do we give it to?"

Everyone turns to look at Nagisa.

"I-I don't mind," he says. "But… if they figure out a person has the flag…"

"They'll all go for you," Isogai nods. "It'll be a good decoy, though."

In the end, they give it to Kurahashi. She regularly takes kids on nature walks around the mountain, so she has the most up to date knowledge. She's fast and athletic, too, so she won't be the easiest to catch. With nothing to defend so directly, most of their team are delegated to attackers. It's only Nagisa that hangs back in the forest, with the assumption that he'll be targeted the most.

"Begin!" He hears from afar, called out by Karasuma on his megaphone.

Admittedly, there's not so much to do with the rest of his team rushed off, but Nagisa can appreciate the importance of his role. He knows how to play a good waiting game, anyway. Even if he can't exactly just go and hide behind Karasuma this time. He's not sure where his stun clap would fall, in the realm of 'low contact only', but it's probably a bit much for some light hearted fun. So, there's not much assassination for him to truly participate in.

It's not like he just stands around, though. He has to act like he's guarding something. Though, it seems to take longer than he expected to come across anyone. He can hear things, of course, but nobody directly for him. Maybe the other team are playing a similar game?

"Sitting out?"

Nagisa turns immediately, catching sight of Karma, sitting pretty casually in the tree above him.

"No," he forces out.

"Hm," Karma swings down from the branch. "Your flag's nowhere around here, right? You definitely don't have it. Guess I keep looking. Nice trick, though."

Somehow, his eyes are burning. "Karma."

He tilts his head. "What, you have something to say to me?"

Nagisa's fist clenches. "What did you say sorry for?"

There's commotion not too far from them, by the sounds of it, but he manages to tune it out.

Karma's eyes look heavy too. "Don't get the wrong idea. I get that I shouldn't have just shown up, that's all. I stand by what I said though."

He has to know. "Are you ever going to tell me what you wanted to say?"

"No."

"So that's it, then," he folds his arms. "That's how you want to leave things."

Karma looks away too. "You're the one who wanted to end it."

"I didn't want to," Nagisa gets out. "I had to. There's a difference."

"Had to?" He hisses, and then yanks him forward by the arm, forcing him to look at him properly. "Really? Because from where I was standing, that was all you."

Nagisa pulls himself free. "You made it very clear. All you wanted was just sex. A-and I can't say I blame you for that. Those were the original terms, after all. But I can't do that anymore."

"Nagisa."

"I never said it was your fault," Nagisa says. "It's mine, but-"

"Why didn't you just say that?" He looks mad.

"Because it was just sex for you!" He decides. "It's me who… who changed. I would have put you in an uncomfortable position."

"It stopped being just sex a while ago."

He nods. "So you get it, then. So it's not right to pretend like it is. A-and I did mean it. I'm thankful, for everything that you helped me with. But I can't… I don't think it can be just that, for me."

"It's not like this, okay?!" Karma shouts. "Listen to me. Sex isn't supposed to feel like that. Not usually."

"O-oh."

He swallows. "It's never felt like this before. Don't you know how much that freaks me out?! Whatever the hell we were doing, it was never just sex."

He felt… something?

"Then," Nagisa tries to find his strength. "Then… Then what, Karma?! You kept saying that you don't do relationships. And I understand why. But… what else could it be? This is why I- I didn't want to force you into something you didn't want."

There's an odd look on Karma's face. "You-"

"What?"

Nagisa's not expecting to be kissed, not really. Karma doesn't give him much of a chance to react. Only suddenly he's feeling lips, and heat, and the scratch of hard bark against his back. It feels like the hit he's been craving, like a warmth spreading down from his head to his toes. This is what a kiss should feel like. A part of him knows it's not a good idea, maybe they're undoing what small progress they seem to have made, but… only the need for oxygen could make him stop.

"I don't know anything about this," Karma motions, his forehead clinking gently against Nagisa's when they finally separate.

"I don't either."

Karma blinks. "Don't worry about me. What do you want?"

Is he worth it?

Right there, Nagisa sees it. The choice is almost entirely in his own hands, or at least that's what he thinks Karma's saying. He can see it flash in front of his eyes, everything that's bound to go wrong. How much he knows, if he lets himself have this, it might end up hurting him five times as hard. Is it better to risk that? Is it okay to walk directly into a burning building?

"I want to go out with you."

He barely even whispers it. But it feels like the truth, when they escape him. People invented extinguishers for a reason, anyway.

"Okay."

"Huh?"

Karma tilts his head slightly. "I guess I have to accept."

"You mean…"

"Yeah."

Nagisa looks down. "We're d-dating now?"

There's a pause between them.

"Looks like it?"

"Oh."

They look between each other.

"Look," Karma says, "I said I wasn't good at this."

"Neither am I!"

He shrugs, finally giving him some space.

Well… this is kind of awkward now? Nagisa's not sure if it's meant to feel like this. Admittedly, he's never been in a relationship. Definitely hasn't had a boyfriend. So, he has no idea how to approach said… boyfriend… now that feels weird. Technically speaking… that's what Karma is to him now, right? His boyfriend? He almost feels like giggling for some reason.

Maybe Nagisa should have thought this through. He didn't actually think about what to do next here. Maybe it should be Karma's move, though. Nagisa's the one who asked him out, after all! Though, maybe he got too comfortable with Karma knowing what to do in situations… Maybe they need to learn something together for once.

He looks at him for a moment, before darting out, swinging his leg around in the best way he can, to trip someone of Karma's stature over. He looks shocked, admittedly, but what else could Nagisa do here? He follows through, of course, so that he's essentially sitting on top of him. It's a lot easier for their faces to be level like this.

"What was that for?"

Nagisa swallows. "I…"

"Is this what I have to look out for now?" Karma rubs the back of his head. "Random attacks?"

"I don't know anything about dating either," he says. "Probably less than you do-"

"Yeah, usually this isn't part of it."

"- I want to be happy, with you, whatever that means."

Karma smiles, and it almost makes his heart stop. "We're going to need some ground rules."

"Of course," Nagisa nods. "We're soundproofing your apartment."

"Only if you let me make you breakfast sometime."

"If you give me the jumper back."

There's challenge in his eyes. "Sure, if you let me show you movies."

"I like watching movies with you anyway," he admits.

"Well," Karma leans back a little, "then it sounds easy enough, doesn't it?" He exhales, then. "I want to make you happy, too."

"I already am."

The corner of his lips quirks up. "Then, so am I."

"Karma…" Nagisa swallows, suddenly feeling a weight on him that doesn't exactly feel bad. "This feels… way too easy."

"Yeah," he seems to think. "It's weird."

He thinks about it, before leaning forward, and kissing him gently. It feels like everything, this time. He has Karma's face cupped with his hands, and he can practically feel his cheeks heat up underneath his palms. Even when his hand eventually slides back into his hair… he's so warm. There's no urgency anymore. And Nagisa's allowed to feel like this, isn't he? Just… him.

He's not sure how long they stay together like that. It's not like they're doing anything, except kissing. Somehow he doesn't feel like he needs to. He also doesn't feel like stopping, either. It's like a sensation he's never going to get tired of. Just… kissing. Feeling Karma's arms around him. It's like everything he thought he couldn't have, and his heart's doing months of catch up.

There's a snap of a twig, eventually.

"Man," Maehara clears his throat awkwardly, admittedly scaring the both of them. He might have even bitten Karma's lip by mistake. "Look, I don't want to interrupt… your moment, but we finished the game ages ago and everyone's getting ready to leave."

Nagisa swallows. "W-we're coming!" He attempts.

Karma looks up at him. "We could just stay here-"

"I-it's bad enough we disappeared as it is! We can't just- No," he shakes his head. "We can do this later.

"Later, huh?"

Nagisa decides to ignore the implication, sorting himself out as best he can for a moment before taking off. They're not holding hands or anything – though he does think about doing it – but instead walking shoulder to shoulder. It must be pretty obvious… what they were doing. At least they don't have to go through some sort of announcement?

Everyone looks at them, all the same, when they return.

Nakamura wolf whistles, Sugino sighs, Kayano smiles widely at them, and… for some reason Okuda shoots them a thumbs up. But that's all, nobody even says a word about it. It's just like it's completely normal. It's not like they can possibly know already… that they're official now or whatever. But somehow, it's like they do anyway.

"Well," Bitch Sensei says, a now sleepy child in her arms. "We're taking off. To another year."

"It was good to see you all," Karasuma says.

Isogai looks over everyone. "Guess I'm locking up."

As everyone eventually splits up, saying their goodbyes, Nagisa can't help but feel a certain mellowness creeping in. Another year… and so much and so little has changed. It never feels old to meet up with everyone like this, though. Like it or not, they're pretty much linked by life. He wonder how Korosensei would feel, looking at them all now…

"Nakamura, Sugino, and I are going to get ramen now," Kayano says cheerfully. "I think a few of us are, actually. After Muramatsu took over his parent's shop, it's pretty heavenly."

The implication that he and Karma aren't invited is pretty clear. In fact, they end up as the last two people there, neither of them finding much of an urgency to leave.

"I miss him sometimes," Karma says eventually. "There's times where I know he'd have the right thing to say, even when I don't want to hear it."

"I think," Nagisa says, "he'd say that his work is done, if you're even admitting that."

"You think?" He raises an eyebrow.

"We grew up," Nagisa says. "I think for the better, because of everything. Korosensei might not be here to be proud of us… but I think we can be."

Karma looks down at him for a moment, and takes his hand. "C'mon, let's go."