#switch!teru

His movements were still sluggish, painted and shaded by a sleepiness that insisted on getting attached to his very bones, but Shigeo got up and walked to the window, opening it.

It was windy outside and cold too, the breeze almost freezing enough to cover the warm feeling on his chest when Teru smiled at him with a hint of mischief on the slight tilt of his lips. His hair would be even messier than the normal by morning.

"Sorry. The wind slammed the window when I stepped out and I got stuck." The glint on his eyes didn't show an ounce of tiredness. Each breath seemed to invigorate him. Somehow he didn't seem very sorry at all. "Come here, I want to show you something!"

"No, thank you, I don't want to." And Shigeo turned away, already heading back to the comfort and warmth of his bed.

He managed to successfully get to the middle of the way before an arm sneaked under his knees, holding them together while the other one rested on his back, tipping the one with black hair sideways and lifting him up as he lost his balance with half protesting grumble, the only reaction he had to suddenly and unexpectedly finding himself being carried bridal style by the other.

He stared at Teru and his playful grin with his usual neutral face, not a tad or two more alarmed than the normal with his current situation. The Body Improvement Club prepared him to being carried and picked up out of the blue.

“What are you doing?”  Teru only adjusted his arms so he could be in a comfortable position. There was something hilarious (or maybe it was just the tiredness) on the way Mob only blinked in his direction and simply nothing more, totally unimpressed and one hundred percent done with everything already as he began walking back to the outside, liking very much the sensation of having him in his arms. “I want to go back to sleep.”

Who would say that the most powerful esper to ever exist would come in a pickable size.

“This will be real quick, don’t worry.” The one with blond hair summoned his telekinesis, testing it for a bit before feeling satisfied with the result and activating it fully and joggling in zigzag in the air until both of them were safely situated on the rooftop of the Kageyama’s house.

He opened his mouth, ready to present his surprise when something pressed on his shoulder. Teru looked down only to see Shigeo grumble a little more and hold tightly his pajama’s shirt, face still locked on the same place, firmly shoved on the space between his shoulder and chest.

For a moment all Teru could do was stare at him with slightly wide eyes, instinctively pulling Shigeo closer. 

Then it hit him.

“Telekinesis gives you motion sickness, right? Sorry, I kind of forgot about that.” He winced at his own words. ‘Kind of forgot about that’. God, his charm never seemed to help him when he really needed it to.

“It’s fine.” The voice was muffled because of the fabric, but for what Teru could perceive there wasn’t any signal strong distress on his friend’s tune, only a light discomfort. His face also didn’t look any paler than normal and there wasn’t any drop of sweat on his neck. 

The blond felt his posture relax, not ever realizing that he was that tense in the first place.

Well, better focus on the reason he did all that work then, right?

“I woke up because of an explosion nearby.” The night was quiet, so it felt only natural to accompany it with calm whispers. Tonight the wind was cold and insistent, just enough to leave a couple or more of shivers running on his spine and making the leaves shake with a slight hissing sound. It felt like a storm was slowly creeping closer. “It made the power go away and it seems to have affected the whole neighborhood and maybe the next block as well, so it probably won’t take too long before it comes back.”

Shigeo began to slowly detach his face from its hiding spot, the light nausea that hinted to appear already going away and giving space to the curiosity gradually filling his mind with each one of Hanazawa’s words. 

He didn’t even realize that the streetlamps weren’t working, but now it was clear that they couldn’t be. He could still see and there was still light surrounding them, but it felt less… sharp and flaring than the normal.

“That is why I woke you up.” A whisper, a murmur. Teruki always felt energetic, shiny and colorful, as if it was only natural for all the attention to be focused on him and his words (even if sometimes he looked at Shigeo as if his attention could be everything he could ever want). It was very different to hear him talking so low and reverently. It was very… nice. Comfortable. Warm. He really liked it. “I didn’t know how long we would have, but… Look.”

So he did. Mob looked up and found Teruki’s eyes before he tipped them upwards, making the shorter one follow his gaze to the sky.

The sky full of stars.

“Ah.”

“Yeah.”

The farthest points in the street were bathed in darkness, as far as his eyes could reach there was only a deep black greeting him back, which only highlighted the illumination coming from the sky. Stars twinkled in and out their shine as heavy dark clouds slowly navigated around them, moving forward with the wind and dipping their surroundings in shows of light and darkness dancing in harmony.

It was infinite, stretching and taking over absolutely everywhere, being present on the light, on the wind, on every ounce of their surroundings, filling him with an unspeakable sensation. 

The feeling that something so big and beautiful was so just right there, too far and too close at the very same time. And they had the chance to see it.

Shigeo has no idea of how much time passed with them just… standing there. Enjoying the simple, cozy moment in between the silence and their quiet breaths.

“It’s beautiful.”

“Yes.” Teruki agreed easily, and, as if the words had broken the spell, turned back at him with a slight smirk playing on his lips. “So, wasn’t this worth waking up to? I didn't know you were such a grumpy pants when you’re sleepy.”

“I wasn’t being grumpy.” Replied Shigeo, in a tune that definitely wasn’t a grump one, of course. Just a bit displeased. And rational. Very calm and rational, just exactly as he had been the entire time as he was awake in the middle of the night because he wasn’t a grumpy pants.

Teruki tried to not snicker at the clear hint of a pout in the other’s face, his cheeks beginning to puff out with his pokes of friendly fun. “You were. Just like a disheveled kitten meowing in betrayal because someone took you out of your warm bed.”

A lovely shade of red began to paint Mob’s cheeks, which, as consequence, got even more puffed out in protest, words disappearing from his mind before he could reply such teasing.

“A disheveled kitten?”

“Hmm…” The Hanazawa made a thoughtful face, slightly adjusting Shigeo on his arms as he pulled him closer. “Actually, no, wait. Forget that. If you really were an animal I know exactly which one you would be.”

There was something dangerous with the way the blonde stared at him, a twinkling shine on his eyes, a certain quirk in the corner of his mouth, the way fingers twitched…He was planning something.

A shiver ran across Mob’s spine.

He knew that gaze very well.

“Which… one?”

Teru’s grin only grew, making butterflies shake their wings in excitement on his stomach. His own lips began forming a wobbly smile before he could even think in stopping them.

“A giggle bug.”

Then he took a big, exaggerated breath and Shigeo’s eyes widened, hands coming to his chest in a pacifying motion, caught in between the idea of trying to push the other away and try to defend himself and wrap them around his vulnerable, sensitive, ticklish midsection, but ending up not doing any of the two things. 

“Teru!” But the other was still distracted with the way-too-over-the-top and unnecessary deep breath, which was quite good because Mob didn’t even know what he wanted to say or how he could end that phrase. Words never came easily to him and now that his thoughts felt like they were scrambling all around his head, sentences simple were mixing themselves with giggles and the danger signals his nerves were sending non stop, making his entire torso feel like a gigantic tickle spot with plenty of feathers spreading a madly tingling sensations on absolutely everywhere.

He tried to pull his legs upwards and curl in a defensive ball, but the hand carrying him kept them nice and cozy right where they were.

How can Teru still-

With a swift, quick move, Teru finally (finally) lowered his head.

For a second, Shigeo was frozen by the raspberry, brain halting to a stop and the entire time and space freezing in a single blink.

Until it all came crashing down.

There were ticklish shocks running across every single ounce of skin, the vibrations spreading from the single point where the blond’s lips connected to his belly to dance and torment all the nerves nearby, pulling a wheezed snort from his mouth before his silent laughter and hiccups took over, whole body shaking and bouncing with every single one.

As quick as it came, the raspberry was over and Mob could only lay there and let his giggles dance freely on the sudden silence for the few seconds it lasted, using the break to take gulps of oxygen and try to not let the rest of his features disappear under the giant smile stretched across his face.

He opened his eyes. His vision was slightly blurry, but he could perfectly see the joyful, adoring blue eyes watching him in a soft expression. Then the dangerous light was back and a smirk took over  Teru’s mouth before it opened once again and he began taking another deep breath.

Shigeo, now knowing exactly what was about to happen, shoved his face on the other’s shoulder  once more, the tips of his ears getting completely red as his own shoulders bounced non stop with a giddy delight, the butterflies once again flying and panicking on his stomach, titters and quiet squeaks rolling in flocks by his throat.

Another raspberry. Another roll of laughter. And another. And another. And another. And another. And-

Let’s just say that Mob was left in a much better mood when they got inside the house than when he had to go out.

(...)

Mob was staring at him.

It was something he did sometimes. Stopped everything he was doing and just… looked at Teruki. Eyes following him through whatever he was doing, gaze clued on his gestures, all the attention directed at his words as the teen fell in another of his dramatic rambles about a senseless whatever.

Teruki couldn’t really say that he minded when it happened. It was actually very cute. It reminded him of a cat and more than a few times he would turn around to stare at the one with black hair back and slowly blink at him, only to chuckle when Mob replied to him in the same way.

(He never discovered if Mob realized the joke and got in on it to amuse him or if he just was mirroring him because he didn’t want to leave Teru hanging. Or maybe Mob was really just part cat. Either way, it was still very adorable and it made his heart want to melt inside his chest when he thought too much about it.)

So, back to the matter, Shigeo just came back from the kitchen with a bowl of popcorn and was now looking at him rather intently. Teruki finished sending a few more messages to the class’ group before turning off his phone, an amused air on his expression as he also focused his attention on the other one.

Shigeo lighty tilted his head to the right and left the bowl on the coffee table, giving Teru another searching glance before deciding to fixate his gaze on his own hands. Teru wondered what was going on inside his mind.

Today they were reunited in the Hanazawa’s apartment in celebration of the fact that, after months of training, Mob was able to finish his first entire week of doing his sets of exercises, complete with weight lifting and running through the Body Improvement Club’s usual track.

Without passing out a single time!

Everyone was very proud of the shorter boy.

Shigeo nodded to himself, getting a determined look on his face (with his eyebrows lightly furrowed and the corner of his mouth just slightly tipped upwards) and basically throwing himself on the blonde.

Teru let out a quite embarrassing squawk at this, body throwing itself from its sitting position in face of the eminent attack by reflex, the hands that wobbly wormed their way under his knees and shoulders making him try to squirm out of the hold before realizing that it was just Shigeo trying to carry him.

Wait.

His body was lifted, no longer laying on the couch and being completely supported by the other’s pure physical strength.

Shigeo was carrying him!!

He hastily turned his attention to Mob, who let out a happy soft noise, a few shades of red being painted on his cheeks when Teruki laughed joyfully and locked his arms behind his neck, letting his fingers skitter a bit on the ticklish skin just to see his proud smile expand and the shorter to try to scrunch his neck in a ineffective illusion of a protection.

The arms under him began trembling uncontrollably, the strain starting to get into his muscles as his legs seemed to be transitioning from bones and muscles to the state of unstable wet noodles. 

Ops. Bad idea, that was a bad idea. Note for future Teru when they fall ungracefully on the floor: don’t tease Mob when he is holding him.

Before he could possibly summon his powers and prevent them both to have a promptly date with the floor, with a quick and well thought maneuver Mob spun and let himself fall in a sitting position on the couch, small gasps for oxygen and a few droplets of sweat showing on his forehead at the physical exertion.

And yet he kept Teru firmly on a bridal style hold the entire time.

The Hanazawa snorted. Shigeo was an incorrigible softie.

Teru turned to look at the other, a taunting poke of fun already getting ready on the tip of his tongue when Shigeo’s own voice filled the room.

“Do you remember what you did to me when you held me like that?" 

Teru froze in the same place. Wide eyes staring at the tiny, but horribly teasy smile on Mob’s face as the words brought memories of laughter, of giggles and, especially, of an attack you couldn’t simply run away.

Shigeo was a monster. Shigeo was a cold, calculist human who unfairly attacked defenseless and awfully ticklish people that have never, never ever done anything wrong in their entire life to deserve such a harsh, merciless and unforgiving treatment.

“Nonono, wait, Mob, wait!” His tune already had a hint of hysteria in it, voice getting increasingly more and more higher and less coherent as the words spilled in waves from his lips, even if Shigeo didn’t move a single finger in his direction. “We can come to an agreement, Shig, you really don’t need to- NO!”

A single blink and in less than a second Mob’s head was being shoved on his belly, sealing Teruki’s defeat with a series of raspberries that somehow were laid exactly on his most ticklish spots, vibrating and vibrating and vibrating and tickling all over his sides, ribs, hips and even the patch of skin right above his bellybutton that never failed to summon a crackling squeal from him.

The maddening sensation completely took over all his senses and mind, erasing any and every kind of thought that wasn’t just incoherent babbling and uncontrollable laughter twirling in the air in harmony.

It felt like forever - but probably didn’t last more than a couple of minutes -, the ghost sensation of buzzing and tiny tickly shocks swimming across every nerve, giving each one some attention before immediately going to torment another, when Mob relented his attack.

His teasy grin seemed even more teasy and happy than normal, the light in his eye burning bright and soft at the image of Teru giggling and blushing in his embrace, tears on the corner of his eyes and an enormous smile going from one ear to another, one of two snorts tumbling clumsily in between the remanent laughter and titters.

Shigeo felt like he could spend the entire day looking at him.

Their eyes locked. Teru wiped the few tears that ran across his cheeks, the smile on his face slowly transforming into something a tad more cheeky and much more like the smirk he always had before saying something that would never fail to pull a more playful side of the other.

“That is what you call a revenge? I barely even felt anything.”

Ah, there it was.

Shigeo took a deep breath, fingers twitching in preparation.

Teruki Hanazawa realized that maybe that wasn't the smartest choice of words on his part. His eyes, once again, became wide and more desperate, excited giggles began falling from his lips.