Tamaki Amajiki had no idea what time it was, and no motivation to roll over and look at the alarm clock perched upon his bedside table to find out. The hero in training had been staring up at the ceiling for what felt to him like the majority of the night, unable to find sleep or solace of any kind. Occasional sideways glances told him over and over again that minutes were passing in a way that made them feel more like hours. As many sleepless hours of the night ran their course, they started to feel more like days.

While Tamaki usually slept with his sheets and blankets tucked just so, they were instead haphazardly strewn across his body without any rhyme or reason on account of just how many times he had gotten out of bed to try to find something to occupy himself with until he finally felt tired. Eventually, Tamaki gave up the fight and resigned himself to just laying atop the mattress, his chest uncovered and one leg sticking out from beneath the sheets. No matter how many times he tried to find a boring topic or read to tire himself out, his brain kept circling back to one single fact.

It had been two whole days since Nejire had been home.

Ever since Endeavor's visit to Sir Nighteye's agency, Nejire had been temporarily living with Kaoroku Awata. Though she had sent the occasional text, living without her affected Tamaki in a way he hadn't expected. While he had been more than happy to pick up the slack with maintaining the shared suite, he was far less enthusiastic about the constant silence within the shared dorm. For years, Tamaki thought that all he really wanted was to be left alone for most of the day. He thought he wanted to be allowed to fade into the background most times and step forward only when he felt the urge to do so. As it turned out, if no one was there to occasionally grab his hand and drag him forward against his will, he would do no such thing on his own.

The utter listlessness that had crept back in from his childhood tendencies was almost physically painful. A weighty sense of depression was setting in in a way that Tamaki had never experienced before, even before he had found his two close friends. There was a hopeless feeling in the air, which was exacerbated by the fact that Mirio had barely spoken since the incident. That fact combined with Tamaki's inability to start a conversation meant that the days without Nejire had turned into doing hero work for Fat Gum and then just sitting on the couch in silence. What should have been a restful reprieve in Tamaki's mind had become anything but.

It wasn't supposed to go as it had. Nejire was supposed to spend the night on the first day, and then come home for at least a day before heading back. Something had to have happened to keep her away, and with every passing second, Tamaki was feeling more and more lost. He knew he wasn't good enough to steer Mirio back on track, and with both of his supports out of the picture, he was beginning to feel as though he didn't belong at U.A. at all. Tamaki was desperate for any sort of change to the way that things were going.

Luckily for him, change came with the sound the door to the dormitory opening at six in the morning.

A sudden burst of energy spurred Tamaki to rocket out of bed and take long strides across the floor of the room. He moved through the door with purpose, naturally dodging around the furniture in his way as he walked out into the main room. Tamaki made it all the way around the couch and within three feet of Nejire before he realized that he was wearing only his tartan-patterned boxers. There was a pause in which Tamaki processed Nejire's wide eyes and hot blush, and he knew that his own facial expression likely matched hers. He considered turning around or simply hiding behind the couch to save his dignity, but his body and brain couldn't agree upon what to do. In his metal deadlock of panic, he ended up simply moving his hands over his crotch as he looked his friend over, feeling incredibly stupid.

Nejire stood only a few steps into the dorm, looking incredibly tired and lacking her usual enthusiastic smile. Her hair was straight and damp, there were bags under her eyes, and she carried a bulky plastic file folder with an elastic band around the top. She only managed to get "Tama-" out before she found herself trapped within a tight hug. Nejire returned the gesture without hesitation, her chest and cheeks flushing with warmth inside of her friend's embrace.

"…missed you," Tamaki said softly as he intensified the squeeze. The feeling of Nejire's body against his bare chest caused him to panic, and so, he broke the contact between them as quickly as he could and held the girl at arm's length. "S-sorry…"

Nejire couldn't help but crack a weary smile as she watched Tamaki drop his grip upon her shoulders, turn around, and start shivering. Ever so carefully, she closed the distance once again and wrapped her arms around his trembling torso from behind.

"You don't have to be sorry," Nejire said softly. "I missed you, too. It's been… a tough few days. I can't complain, though. Not when I'm seeing what Awata is going through firsthand."

Tamaki took several deep breaths and closed his eyes. His brain was screaming at him to break free and run back to his room. Everything else in his body was demanding that he stay still and let Nejire hold him. Cutting off his vision and pretending that nothing else was real beyond the intimate sensation of her touch made the choice to remain still much easier.

"…i-is she going to be okay?"

"I think so," Nejire said as she rested cheek on the back of Tamaki's shoulder. "But… it's going to take time. A lot of time. She doesn't sound so monotone anymore, and she seems more focused. That weird haze she was in while telling us about Shigaraki is gone, and she's got some actual emotions again. Still… I only felt comfortable leaving her alone as of this morning. I would've come home earlier, but some things set her off on the first night, and again yesterday morning. It's awful to see…"

Tamaki swallowed hard and closed his eyes more tightly.

"…set her off…?"

It was Nejire's turn to shiver.

"Screaming. Crying. Flashbacks to what happened in that museum. It's… not pretty," Nejire explained. "I kept telling her she could wait to write the report on what happened for all of us, but… she insisted on doing it as soon as possible, while everything was fresh in her mind. We tackled it together the first night I was there, against my advice. Some of the things Shigaraki did to her…"

"Don't think about them," Tamaki suggested. "You look… tired."

"I am," Nejire admitted as she let her free hand trail downward and interlocked her fingers with Tamaki's. "And I'm glad to be home. We'll have to think about those things soon, once you and Mirio read the report. I've got your copies with me, and All Might swung by yesterday to pick up and deliver the others to Bakugo and Midoriya. I guess we'll wait for Mirio to get up, so you can go through it together. How is he?"

Tamaki shivered much more intensely. The movement was enough for Nejire to lift her chin from his shoulder, and her tone became immediately worried.

"Tama, what's wrong…?"

Tamaki swallowed hard. He considered telling her everything about how he was feeling. How he had realized that without her there and with Mirio being essentially unreachable, he had fallen back into a void of his own making. Somehow, the thought of letting Nejire know just how much she meant to him was even scarier than facing the feelings that he absence left him with again.

"N-nothing. It's just… you hair is… your hair is cold."

"…my hair is cold," Nejire repeated flatly.

"You… you showered, before coming over?" Tamaki tried, biting his lip as he tried not to think about Nejire in the shower.

It didn't work.

"I did, yeah," Nejire confirmed. "Sorry. Do you want me to let you go…?"

"N-no!" Tamaki said before he could stop himself. "No, I… I'm okay. It's just… I don't know how to answer that question. About Mirio, I mean. I don't know what's going on with him. He's been acting strangely…"

Nejire raised a brow as she slowly and gently placed her cheek against Tamaki's shoulder once again, taking care to brush her hair out of the way first.

"Well… overall, is he doing well, or badly…?"

"Not… good…" Tamaki said slowly as closed his fingers around Nejire's. "He barely eats, he hasn't spoken much… the two of us went to Fat Gum's agency yesterday to figure out a plan to get me involved with the Shie Hassaikai. I did most of the talking, between us…"

"That really isn't good," Nejire said sullenly. "But… I'm proud of you, Tama. You're doing so well, lately…"

"I don't think you should be," Tamaki said as he shook his head. "The plan I came up with is… I don't think anyone likes it, but no one else had a better one."

"Then yours is the best by default," Nejire offered. "We can't all be brilliant all of the time."

A sudden clattering noise caused Tamaki to open his eyes. Nejire's folder had been thrown onto the couch, the papers rattling inside. Just as the package came to rest, another began to stir while Nejire's fingertips slid up Tamaki's arm. Her touch was light, and the digits elicited an unfamiliar sensation within his skin that was almost electric.

"H-hado…?" Tamaki asked, his eyes widening as his breathing quickened.

"Relax," Nejire commanded. "What's the plan?"

Tamaki was unable to control his shivering as Nejire's hand worked up to his shoulder. He could tell that she was trying to spin him around to face her, but he refused to let it happen on account of the noticeable and unwilling reaction his lower body had to her touch.

"It's… c-can we not talk about it right now?" Tamaki begged as he closed his eyes again. "Awata's case is enough for one day…"

Nejire let out a weary sigh, holding her position pressed against her trembling friend.

"…alright. Honestly, I don't know if I could deal with it today, if it's really as bad as it sounds. I vote that we all just try to relax today…"

"We can't do that, either," Tamaki warned. "It's… the first year students move in today. I feel obligated to help them, especially since Mirio is going out."

"He's going out?" Nejire asked flatly. "Don't tell me he's hanging out with the Yakuza so soon after the Sir Nighteye situation."

"He is," Tamaki confirmed. "He wants to work, as soon as possible. He said he needs the distraction."

"He needs us," Nejire insisted. "But… he also doesn't need frustration, if he isn't going to listen. I say we let him go, but then this weekend… the three of us need to stabilize ourselves. Together."

"Together…" Tamaki echoed, squeezing Nejire's hand a little tighter. "Okay. Right now, I need to… I need to go and shower."

"Oh?" Nejire asked, her hands finally leaving her friend. "I guess I did wake you up, didn't I?"

Tamaki knew that Nejire was being literal, and yet, he couldn't help interpret her words in a myriad of ways. The moment her fingers left his body, he began to feel empty once again. He fought against the urge to turn around and make sure that Nejire was still there, knowing how stupid the fear that she had disappeared again was. Even so, the momentary panic was no less real.

"…you did. I think I'm starting to wake up," Tamaki replied as he walked toward his room. He did his best to hide the front of his boxers from Nejire, knowing that both of them would be embarrassed if he didn't. "Thank you…"

Nejire raised a brow as her friend disappeared back into his room, but said nothing more as she headed for her own door.

Author's Note:

Next time… the big move in to U.A.!

For real, this time…

-RD