A big thank you to my Beta Reader, Hamilton Howard!

...

Special Delivery

Zenitsu felt his heart give an unsteady thud; his eyes focused on the ground instead of the face of the guy that he had been crushing on for the past year. He had done it- he had finally confessed his true feelings. He felt lighter, like a weight had been lifted from his shoulde-

"Sorry, uh- I actually only came out with you 'cause I was wondering if you could get me the number of that red-headed guy you work with."

Zenitsu looked up- not sure he heard correctly, yet at the same time he fully believed it. It was just the sort of luck he always had since he was a child. That earlier bubbliness deflated, sinking somewhere to the bottom of his stomach.

"...Tanjiro?"

Inosuke snapped his fingers, "Ya, ya- that guy. He seems pretty cool."

Inosuke doesn't like Zenitsu; he was smitten with Zenitsu's best friend Tanjiro! "Oh, so… you wouldn't consider…-"

"Honestly, you're not really my type. You just seem a little…" Inosuke scratched at the back of his neck, pursing his lips. "-eh… High maintenance."

That sinking feeling suddenly turned into a lead weight, falling into the soles of his feet. If he had anticipated that it would have ended up like this, he would never have bothered going through the humiliation of asking this gorgeous man out only to have him crush his heart.

…

It started out so innocently, and Tanjiro had noticed it right away. "Delivery guy," Tanjiro would whisper over his cubicle wall, causing Zenitsu to jump, scrambling for a small desk mirror to check his hair. He casually leaned back in his chair, catching a small glimpse of the new guy working in mailing at the office. Green eyes… dark hair- and shoulders to die for. Zenitsu could not help but sigh at the beautiful perfection that he got to see on these rare occasions.

Not even the guy's gruff way of conversing with the other employees was enough to put Zenitsu off. He would eavesdrop on the conversations between Tanjiro and Inosuke, both of them into kendo fighting as a pass time. Zenitsu had even gone so far as to enroll in a few classes just so he could casually slip into their conversations; even though he hated confrontation of any kind.

"Would you like to go out for drinks with me?" He asked, finally finding the courage to say something after a few more months had gone by.

Inosuke looked him over as though just now seeing him. "You're buying?"

"Uh- sure."

"Alright."

"Really?"

"Just said I would didn't I?" Inosuke asked, genuinely confused as Zenitsu had tried to get his emotions under control.

…

Tanjiro blinked, "He asked you for my number?"

"Yeeesss," Zenitsu whined, cheek resting on the sticky counter of the bar they were drinking at.

"In which case, you told him I'm straight… right?" Tanjiro asked hopefully.

"No." Zenitsu mumbled, looking at a little peanut that had fallen out of the snack bowl. He suddenly felt a sort of kinship to the discarded peanut. Both of them were unwanted- forgotten. "Who am I to stand in the way of true love for my best friend?"

"I'm in a relationship, Zenitsu."

"I hope you and Inosuke will be very happy together…"

Tanjiro sighed, knowing there was no reaching Zenitsu when he was like this, "How about we get you some water?"

Zenitsu kept his head down as he saw Tanjiro get up and walk away, presumably to ask the bartender for a glass of water. Several moments passed when suddenly, a very un-Tanjiro-like shape occupied the place beside him.

Zenitsu lifted his head, eyes traveling up none other than the form of Inosuke, a short glass in hand with some kind of liquor over ice.

"Oh." Zenitsu said, feeling deflated. After thinking for a bit, his mind came to one conclusion. "If you're here to talk to Tanjiro, he just went to get some water. He should be back in a bit."

"Nah, I already talked to him. He left." Inosuke said, shoving a glass of water over to Zenitsu that the blonde hadn't noticed before.

That traitor! How could Tanjiro leave him alone like this in his time of need? "You did?"

"Ya, Monjiro set me straight."

'Who the hell is Monjiro?' Zenitsu frowned after realizing what Inosuke meant. "You mean Tanjiro?" Inosuke liked Tanjiro, didn't he? How could he not know how to pronounce his name? Although, Tanjiro had just recently rejected Inosuke's feelings. Perhaps Inosuke was feeling bitter about the whole exchange?

Inosuke shrugged like it wasn't important. "Should have known you'd go bitch and moan about how I turned you down to him. Pathetic."

Zenitsu sat up straight with indignation. "I bitch and moan the right amount, thank you very much, considering you broke my heart." Inosuke snorted in disbelief, turning to the side with indifference. Zenitsu frowned, "...What's your deal with me anyway? You don't even know me."

"Well- it's kind of a red flag when someone you don't even know confesses their love for you, don't you think?"

"Oh." Zenitsu hadn't thought of it in that way. It must seem suspicious, considering they had only spoken with each other a handful of times.

Feeling uncomfortable in the sudden silence, Inosuke grunted. "Stop looking like a sap, it's weird. You fall in love all the time, so I'd figure you would just get over it."

Zenitsu choked on his drink, sputtering a strained, "Why would you think that!?"

Inosuke shrugged. "One of the gals from financing mentioned it."

'Who?' Zenitsu wanted to demand, but he had a good idea who it was. Shinobu and Aoi always gave him a hard time. Though- Zenitsu couldn't help but frown at the thought. 'What kind of conversation would lead to them mentioning that I fall in love easily? Did Inosuke talk about me?'

Inosuke finished his drink, standing up- unbothered. "Come on, I'll walk you home." He walked towards the door, forcing Zenitsu to follow him out.

It was quiet between them- the cool air of the night brisk as the stars started to appear in the sky.

Inosuke shrugged, not looking at him with his hands stuffed in his coat pockets. "I figured it was just an attraction thing." He said, picking up where they had left off on their conversation.

"That's not it at all," Zenitsu breathed, looking at him.

Inosuke scuffed at a pebble on the ground as they walked. "It usually is."

With a sour look, Zenitsu sighed, knowing he needed to say something. "...I think it's really nice that you like tempura, and that you work two jobs so you can help your mom."

"The fuck," Inosuke growled, bristling. "You spying on me or something?"

"No, I…I just listen." Zenitsu reassured. "I also know you don't like the attention you get based on how you look. I'll admit- I was drawn to that part of you at first, but it also made me want to know about you more because it- it seemed…"

"What?" They stopped beneath a street lamp, Inosuke turning to look at the blonde as a tense silence hung between them.

"...That even though you're gorgeous, you don't use that to take advantage of people. You don't care about how other people look, or what people think of you. You're confident in who you are, and I admire that so much." He looked up at Inosuke, the others' green eyes unreadable pools of jade. "That's why I want to go out with you, because I think you're amazing."

Inosuke looked uncomfortable, his hand rubbing the back of his neck as he swallowed nervously. And all at once, Zenitsu felt the sting of those words this man had said to him before. His vision blurred, eyes smarting.

"But I get it. You think I'm high maintenance," Zenitsu sniffled, wiping his wet nose on his sleeve.

"Ya, well- it's a cute kind of high maintenance though. Didn't really expect that." Inosuke admitted quietly.

Zenitsu felt his heart tap against his ribs. "W-what?"

"Shut up. Is this the house?" Zenitsu looked up, noting that Tanjiro had left the porch light on.

Zenitsu nodded, climbing up a couple steps before his feet rooted to the ground. He turned, looking down at Inosuke. "Y-you think I'm cute?"

"Shut up, you're still annoying." Inosuke grumbled, but there was no real venom in his words.

"But…um, I mean- Do you want to come up?" Zenitsu felt his face flush, really not meaning to say such a thing, "For tea or something?"

Inozuke gave him an odd look, "Tea?"

"I mean, I've got all different kinds: Jasmine, Earl Grey, some Rhubarb… Chamomile?" Zenitsu mumbled uncertainly; his voice trailing off into the night.

A little smile tugged at Inosuke's lips. "Tsk- and here I was thinking you were the shy type," He stepped up onto the step below Zenitsu, looking up in a rather smug manner, "Guess I was wrong about a lot of things when it comes to you."

Zenitsu really had no idea what Inosuke was getting at. "I'm not high maintenance?" Zenitsu asked hopefully.

Inosuke snorted, "Oh no, you definitely are; a royal pain in the ass."

"What!?" Zenitus cried, shoving the other away.

Inosuke gave a boisterous laugh as he stumbled, making Zenitsus' heart flutter in his chest, "I like that, idiot."

"That doesn't make any sense!" Zenitsu felt tears gather in his eyes again, but this time he didn't want Inosuke to see how frustrated he was with this whole conversation. Frustrated and confused. "Screw you." Zenitsu muttered, getting his keys out and jamming them into the lock.

"You're not going to invite me up?" Zenitsu looked over his shoulder, shooting a glare that would kill a lesser man. But in this case, Inosuke grinned. "Get all cute and flustered like you did before?" Inosuke said with a wink.

Zenitsu felt his face flush with heat, "Absolutely not! You can walk home for all I care!"

Zenitsu got through the door and slammed it shut, Insouke's laughter still ringing in his ears like a song that was left on repeat. A song Zenitsu didn't necessarily want to stop listening to….

…

"Inviting someone up for coffee or tea always means you want to have sex with them," Tanjiro said sagely.

"That's not what I meant though!" Zenitsu exclaimed, having recounted the entirety of his evening with Inosuke to Tanjiro.

Tanjiro frowned, "Don't you want to have tea with him?"

"I want to have so much tea with him…" Zenitsu groaned, laying his head on his desk in abject misery, "I want tea with him all the time. Many times, and at all hours of the day."

He heard his friend suppress a chuckle. Zenitsu turned towards him, his gaze whipping up to glare at his horrible friend, "It's not funny! The guy says the most bizarre things and I can't make heads or tails of it."

…

"Special delivery."

Zenitsu felt something light land on his head. He took off the offending letter, glaring indignantly at the messenger who was looking at him over his cubicle wall; his arms folded over the top casually. Zenitsu wasn't quite sure what he should be indignant for, but he had his pride to think about here.

"You still mad at me for teasing you?" Inosuke said, reaching out and tugging on one of the gold locks on Zenitsu's head.

Zenitsu batted his hand away, focusing back on his screen, clicking at nothing even as he felt a little giddy over Inosuke touching him.

Inosuke gave a heavy sigh. "You are."

"What do you want? I'm really busy." He really wasn't. What the hell was wrong with him? Inosuke was talking to him, and every part of him cried out to just look at the man. But last night's interaction had him on uneasy footing with where they stood, and what he meant to Inosuke.

"Look, you wanna go out with me or what?"

Zenitsu slowly turned to look up at the other man, "You-you can't just ask me out!" He cried, standing up.

"Heh? Why not? You already said you love me, so I figured you'd be ok with it."

"You're making fun of me." This was so unfair. "And I asked you out first!"

"Why does that matter?"

"Because there's no risk for you!"

"Sure there is- you could say no."

Zenitsu paused at this, not having thought of that as an option. "That's not fair!" Was Inosuke testing him somehow? Making fun of him? Trying to see how far he could push his buttons before his love withered into dust? 'I can't believe I confessed to this animal…' He lowered his head, feeling embarrassed as he spoke quietly. "You have the advantage here. You already know how I feel."

"Hey." Inosuke said, his fist bopping to rest on Zenitsu's head. Zenitsu looked up, the other looking a little uncomfortable, "No one has ever told me they love me before. Kind of out of my element here too."

Zenitsu swallowed. "...H-How can you lie like that!?"

Inosuke rolled his eyes, taking his hand away, but Zenitsu could tell that he was blushing. "Other than my mom, you're the only one who's said it to me." He gestured to himself, "I don't exactly have good people skills when talking about shit like this."

'Oh.' Somehow that statement made Zenitsu feel warm all over. "I think you're amazing."

"Calm down," Inosuke said, waving a stack of manila envelopes; a half-smile resting on his lips, "I just deliver mail."

"I think everything you do is amazing."

"Shit, man…" Inosuke covered his face with his hand, halfheartedly pushing Zenitsu's face away with the other, "Shut up with that crap. How can you just say it like that?"

Zenitsu smiled so hard that his cheeks hurt. "Go out with me."

Inosuke rolled his eyes, a slight tinge of pink still on his cheeks. "You're such a pain in the ass."

'And that's not a no,' Zentisu thought, biting the words back. "Go out with me."

"Yaaa, ok." Inosuke grunted, leaning away from the cubicle. "Meet up with you at 7 or whatever."

Zenitsu couldn't stop grinning as Inosuke continued to do his rounds. Tanjiro peaked over the cubicle wall, a mirrored grin spreading out beneath his shining eyes. "He likes you."

"Shut up." Zenitsu breathed, feeling warm all over.

"He really likes you."

"Shut up! You can't smell something like that!"

"Yeah. Did you open the letter he gave you?"

"What?"

"The letter. Open it."

Zenitsu picked up the envelope, noting how thick it was. There wasn't any return address on it, just a scribbled smiley face in blue marker. Zenitsu opened the envelope; several small squares plunked out onto his desk. For a second, he was mortified- he thought the little packets were prophylactics, but then he picked one up, only to find a little package labeled as "Jasmine Tea".

He had never been so caught between amusement and endearment before in all his life. "How-"

"My nose is never wrong." Tanjiro said smugly, quietly sinking back behind the separating wall between their desks.