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Slight Risk of Injury

Summary:

An unfortunate lab accident puts Senku out of commission for a few days.
Gen is decidedly not ok.

Notes:

Hi. I Lied.
I have found that being motivated and driven to write for the first time in a long time feels.... very nice.
So I apparently decided to use that drive to write something WILDLY outside my usual writing style.
Heh.... I......... am aware I'm better suited for crack than angst but I had to do it.
Feel free to call out my wildly inaccurate medical BS in the comments. (I am. Aware. That it's wrong.)
Enjoy!

(See the end of the work for more notes.)

Work Text:

Gen had never been used to much physical labor before living in the stone world. Before, he was far too famous to be bothered with such things. Even now in the stone world, he mostly helped when it came to negotiations and schemes, managing to sweet talk his way out of most labor.

But every now and then, Senku would notice that Gen spent more time hovering over his shoulder in the lab than helping out in the village, and would send him on some mission or other with an over bright smile and a cheery ‘you need to pull your weight sometimes! Or else everyone’ll think I’m giving my boyfriend preferential treatment.’

So there Gen was, wandering through the forest with Ukyo looking for some plant that Senku needed in order to make some more advanced painkillers. Gen wasn’t sure how Ukyo had gotten roped into this too, but he appreciated having a little company, and protection, as he wandered through the forest, even if the other wasn’t exactly the most talkative member of the kingdom of science.

The comfortable silence they had been sharing for the past half hour or so was shattered by the not too far off, but far too familiar sound of an explosion coming from their village. The two of them turned to look back towards the village, but didn’t hear any other sounds or see smoke rising. Ukyo shook his head with a small smile and Gen started chuckling.

“Who do you think did it was this time?” Gen asked through his laughter.

“My money is on Chrome.”

“I do feel like he’s leading Senku in number of explosions caused this month.”

“You can’t blame him though. There is quite the difference in experience levels between the two of them,” Ukyo defended. Gen hummed and turned back to the path to resume their mission.

“You’re right. How many explosions does that make between the two of them this month?”

“Are we counting small fires or just explosions?”

“Just explosions. We don’t have time to count the number of things Senku set on fire, whether he did it intentionally or not.” Gen smiled to himself at the thought of his somewhat accident prone boyfriend, silently thanking god that neither Senku nor Chrome had ever been seriously injured during their multitude of lab mishaps.

Gen and Ukyo continued on their way, finding the plant a few feet off the beaten path an hour later thanks to Ukyo’s sharp eyes. They harvested as much as they could find in the area, marking down the location where they had found it on their map for future reference, and headed back for the village.

The sun was just beginning to set when they returned, casting a warm golden light across the village. Gen and Ukyo were both in high spirits as they approached the village, the relaxing walk in the fresh spring air doing both of them some good. But as they arrived at the village, they were met at the entrance by Kinrou, whose normally calm and serious expression was marred by what almost looked like nervous panic to Gen. He spotted them as they made their way up the path and jogged up to them, meeting them halfway. He was clearly trying to act like nothing serious was wrong, but Gen could see his white knuckled grip on his spear and the slight tremble in his hand.

“Gen, I’m glad you’re back. Chrome’s been looking for you,” he said, voice serious and steady. Gen looked at Ukyo at his side and saw his own confusion reflected in Ukyo’s expression. He could feel the beginnings of worry start to knot in his stomach.

“What’s going on?” Gen asked, but Kinrou just pressed his lips into a thin line and glanced over his shoulder back at the village.

“I don’t know for sure. Just… Chrome’s over at the storeroom I think you should talk to him.” Gen wanted to ask again, but felt Ukyo grab his arm and start pulling him further into the village.

“C’mon Gen. Everything’s okay. Let’s just find Chrome and see what’s happening.” Gen trailed behind the other man silently, a million questions and scenarios running through his mind.

Why the hell hadn’t he mentioned Senku’s name?

The moment they were within sight of the storeroom, a figure stood up from a small cluster of people and started making their way towards the two of them, despite the shouts coming from the rest of the group. Gen quickly realized it was Chrome, a little unsteady on his feet, stumbling towards them. Ukyo let go of Gen’s arm to rush forward to Chrome’s side, wrapping an arm around his waist to support him when it looked like he was about to fall over. Chrome didn’t seem to notice the other’s presence though, instead staring at Gen with wide, panicked eyes. Gen tried to remain calm, but could feel the worry in the pit of his stomach bubbling into panic in his chest at the state of the sciencer.

“Chrome, what the hell is going on?”

“Gen, I’m so sorry,” Chrome whispered, his voice wavering with emotion. Gen tried to take a deep breath, but his chest felt too tight.

“Chrome, I need to you tell me what the fuck is going on in the next 10 seconds or I’m going to lose my shit. Where the fuck is Senku?” Chrome shrunk into himself fractionally, breaking eye contact with Gen for the first time since they had arrived.

“I’m sorry,” he repeated, voice barely above a whisper, “I was heating something, but something went wrong, I’m not sure. Senku realized what was happening before me and pushed me out of the way right before it all exploded. He,” Chrome paused, sucking in a shaking breath before continuing, “the glass kind of went everywhere when it shattered, but some of it hit Senku pretty hard. The liquid inside too.”

Gen brought his hands together in front of himself, clasping them together tightly in an attempt to stop their shaking. He could feel that his breaths were coming faster and faster, but it almost felt like someone else’s breaths and not his own. He swallowed hard around the lump in his throat, trying to calm down long enough to speak.

“Is… Did Senku…” He trailed off, his panicked breathing not allowing him to finish the sentence. He stared unwaveringly at Chrome, his vision quickly becoming fuzzier with the threat of tears gathering.

“He’s still alive,” Chrome assured him, finally looking up from the ground to look him in the eye. “He’s still alive, just unconscious from the blow. Yuzuriha removed the glass and stitched up his cuts and Kohaku treated the burns, but he’s still unconscious.”

“Where…”

“They’re in the lab,” Chrome cut him off before the question was fully formed. Gen was moving the moment the word lab left Chrome’s mouth, barely aware that he had given his feet the command to move. As he hurried away, he distantly heard Chrome reassuring Ukyo that he was okay. Gen felt a distant pang of regret for not checking that the boy was okay. But he was sure Chrome would understand.

He just really needed to see Senku. To know he was actually alive and breathing.

His pace slowed as he approached the lab, fear and panic once again creeping in. He walked up to the doorway on shaking legs that felt like they might give out on him at any second. He took a deep breath before he stepped out of the sun and fully into the lab.

The only thing Gen could see at first was Senku. Distantly, he was aware that other things were happening in the room, but all he could do was stare at Senku lying on the lab table. It was faint, but he could make out the shallow rise and fall of the man’s bare chest.

The next thing he noticed after Senku’s breathing was the blood smeared across his stomach and chest. It looked like someone had tried to wipe it off, but hadn’t done a good job and had instead smeared red across the scientist’s pale skin. The red mixed with red and purple burn marks higher on his chest and neck.

Next, he noticed Senku’s clothes lying on the floor next to the table. If the red stains on Senku’s skin had made his stomach turn, the deep red soaked outfit made his vision blur around the edges. The usually white fabric was splotched with dark red turning a rusty brown as it dried.

Fourth, he noticed strong arms wrap around his shoulder and his vision being obscured as Taiju pulled him into a tight hug. The sudden interruption in Gen’s train of thought forced him to finally take note of everyone else in the room besides Senku. Yuzuriha was standing next to the table on one side, her hands also stained red with Senku’s blood. She offered Gen a tired, sympathetic smile when they made eye contact. On the other side of the table was Kohaku. She was still holding the jar of homemade burn cream, also looking exhausted and scared.

Taiju released Gen from the hug but left one arm wrapped around his shoulder as he guided Gen toward the table, only releasing him once he was standing next to Yuzuriha up by Senku’s head. Senku’s eyes were closed, but his mouth was parted slightly with his shallow breaths. Yuzuriha reached out and rubbed up and down Gen’s back reassuringly.

“I know I’m no doctor, but I did everything I could, I swear. Now all we can do is wait.” She paused for a minute, trying to figure out what she should say. “He’s going to be ok. He always is.”

“No matter what happens, Senku always pulls through,” Taiju added from behind the pair. Gen nodded absently, hearing their words but not really understanding them. They all fell silent for a moment, Gen lost in his whirlwind of thoughts until he felt something bump against the back of his legs.

“Sit,” Kohaku commanded gently, “You look like your legs are about to give out.” Gen did as he was told, falling heavily into the chair Kohaku had placed behind him. He reached out and twisted the chunk of hair that fell in front of Senku’s face around his fingers. He couldn’t look away from Senku’s face or chest, afraid that if he looked away Senku would stop breathing suddenly.

“We’ll give you a moment,” Yuzuhira said gently. Taiju squeezed Gen’s shoulder and he distantly heard the three of them shuffle out of the lab, leaving him alone with an unconscious Senku. As soon as their footsteps faded away completely, Gen felt the tears that had been gathering at the corner of his eyes finally fall.

He collapsed forward, leaning his forehead against Senku’s bare shoulder and letting his tears fall freely.

“Senku,” he whispered into the empty room, knowing he wouldn’t receive a response, “what did you do?” He huffed a laugh, but there was no humor in it. “Who’s supposed to save you when you’re the scientist here? You have to wake up. We don’t know what we’re doing without you.” He sucked in a deep breath and exhaled slowly.

“Please. Senku, please.”

He sat like that, unmoving, with his head rested against Senku’s shoulder, for what felt like a few minutes. But when he heard the sound of someone knocking on the lab’s doorframe and looked up to see Chrome standing in the doorway holding a lamp, he realized hours had passed and the sun had fully set. He stared at Chrome, but didn’t say a word. Chrome took his silence as permission to enter and walked in quietly, trailed by Ukyo who was holding what looked like a sack full of liquid.

“Hey, Gen,” Chrome said softly, as if afraid of breaking the delicate atmosphere and Gen’s delicate hold on his composure. “We were talking and Yuzuriha mentioned that Senku would need some way to stay hydrated. So we all worked together to make this,” he said as he gestured at the thing Ukyo was holding.

“It’s supposed to be an IV,” Ukyo explained. “It’s not perfect, by any means, but we’re pretty confident it’ll do the job.” Gen nodded numbly, just barely understanding what the two were saying to him. He hadn’t even thought about that, hadn’t thought past anything that wasn’t trying to will Senku awake with the force of his thoughts.

“Yeah, you’re- you’re right. Thank you guys. I- I hadn’t even thought about that.” He ground the heel of his hands into his eyes, trying to clear out his unshed tears and the exhaustion he was beginning to feel.

Ukyo and Chrome entered slowly, Chrome secured the IV on the table as Ukyo carefully inserted the needle into Senku’s arm with expert precision. Distantly, Gen thought he would have to ask Ukyo where he learned to do that some other day. Once he was done, Ukyo looked across the table, over Senku, at Gen.

“You should go home and get some sleep. He’ll still be here in the morning. You need rest.” Gen shook his head and looked back down at Senku’s unmoving body.

“You don’t know that. You can’t promise that he’ll still be ok in the morning. I want to stay. I have to stay. To make sure he’s ok.” He rolled his shoulders and stretched his arms above his head for a moment. “Plus I don’t want to go home. I can’t be there right now without him.” Ukyo nodded understandingly, but Gen could still see his concern clearly in his expression. Chrome cleared his throat and took a tentative step toward Gen, as if he was approaching a frightened animal.

“Gen, I’m so sorry. This was all-” Gen held up a hand and shook his head to silence him.

“It’s not you’re fault, Chrome.”

“But I-”

“No, stop. I don’t blame you. I could never blame you.” Chrome looked like he wanted to say more, but Ukyo’s hand on his shoulder stopped him before the words came out. Ukyo looked at Gen over Chrome’s shoulder.

“If you insist, we’ll leave you here for the night. Try and get some rest. He’ll be okay.” Gen nodded in thanks and the two of them left without another word, Ukyo guiding Chrome out with a hand on his shoulder.

Once they were gone, Gen turned his attention back to Senku, resuming his position with his head pillowed on Senku’s shoulder. He felt his body grow heavy with exhaustion. His eyes slid shut, despite his best efforts to stay awake and keep watch over Senku.

-X-X-X-

He must have fallen asleep at some point, because next thing Gen knew, he was waking up in the same position he had fallen asleep in, but had a blanket around his shoulders and a bowl of cold food sitting nearby that he knew weren’t there the night before.

As the events of the previous day came flooding back to him, he looked back at Senku and gently placed one hand on his chest and the other against his pulse on his neck, waiting for any sign of a pulse or breath. After a second of panic-inducing searching, Gen felt a faint beat under his fingers on Senku’s neck. He let out a long sigh that he hadn’t realized he’d been holding in.

Senku had survived the night. He was still breathing. Maybe he would be ok like everyone was saying. Maybe everything was going to be okay.

Someone cleared their throat from the doorway, startling Gen enough to make him jump in his seat. He whipped around to see Kohaku standing in the doorway holding two steaming bowls of food.

“I’m glad to see you’re awake. I thought I’d bring you some breakfast.” Gen raised an eyebrow at the second bowl in her hands.

“He’s still not awake, you know.”

“Yeah, I know. One of these is for me. I thought you could also use some company.” She handed one bowl to Gen, who accepted it but simply stared at the bowl in his lap instead of eating it. Meanwhile, Kohaku sat down on the floor, halfway between facing Gen and facing Senku. She dug into the food, looking up at Gen when she realized he wasn’t eating.

“Gen, you’ve got to eat eventually.” Gen sighed and poked at the food a little. “You’re not doing him any good if you waste away.”

Gen shoveled a spoonful of food into his mouth, more to make Kohaku happy than because he actually wanted to eat. It tasted blander than usual and felt like mush in his mouth. Everything was off. He set his spoon back in the bowl and glared at it as if it had offended him personally.

“One taste is not enough, Gen,” Kohaku nagged from below. She had already finished half her food and was watching Gen closely to make sure he continued to eat. Gen glared down at her and spitefully shoved another scoop into his mouth. Kohaku nodded firmly, looking pleased with both Gen and herself.

They fell silent, Kohaku quickly finishing her food while Gen continued to poke at it and slowly take bites whenever Kohaku glared at him. But each bite made his stomach turn and he grew more and more uncomfortable with each passing second.

Kohaku seemed to recognize that it was becoming too much and grabbed the bowl out of his lap, turning to leave without another word. However, when she reached the door, she paused and looked back over her shoulder at Gen.

“I know everyone has said this already, but it’s going to be ok. And we’re all here for you. We all want to see him get better, too. And we all want you to be ok. If you need anything, tell us. We want to help.” She waited for a second, as if waiting for a response. When Gen just offered a small, thankful smile and a nod instead of a real response, she nodded back at him and left the lab.

Gen leaned back over to rest his head on Senku’s shoulder again and fell into a restless sleep.

-X-X-X-

The next few days passed much the same way.

At least, Gen thought it had been a few days. He hadn’t really moved from his chair in the lab more than absolutely necessary the whole time, barely eating or speaking when people would come by with food or to keep him company.

He knew he should be thankful to have such caring friends, and that he was being a bit of a nightmare despite their attempts to help him. But nothing tasted right, nothing felt right, nothing was right. He couldn’t even think straight.

It was impossible for him to know how much time had actually passed, but Yuzuriha told him that it had been 5 days when she and Taiju came to visit him on what was apparently the 5th day. He could see the pitying looks they were both giving him, and he could only imagine what he looked like. If she was right, he had barely eaten in 5 days and hadn’t washed, slept well, or changed clothes in just as long. He must have looked like a mess.

“Gen,” Yuzuriha asked gently after a few failed attempts at engaging Gen in small talk, “wouldn’t you rather be at home?” Gen just shook his head.

“I don’t want to leave him. I can’t.”

“No, I’m not saying you have to. I think his wounds have healed enough it wouldn’t be too dangerous to move him. So if you preferred, we could move him back to your guys’ place and you could watch over him there. At least that way you don’t have to hunch over the table all the time.”

Gen glanced between her and Senku’s unmoving form a few times before nodding slightly.

“Yeah. Yeah, that sounds good. What should I-”

“Don’t worry. Kinrou, Ukyo and I are going to carry him back. You don’t have to do anything besides meet us there,” Taiju cut him off, offering him a warm, reassuring smile.

“Now?”

“Yeah if you want. Let me go grab the guys.” Taiju turned and walked out quickly to find Kinrou and Ukyo. Gen pressed his hands flat against the lab table and attempted to stand up for the first time in what had to be hours. He felt shaky, unsure whether his legs would take him all the way home. In the blink of an eye, Yuzuriha was at his side, grasping his elbow lightly to help him stay upright.

“Are you okay to walk?” She inquired gently.

“I think so,” he whispered, voice still a little rough from disuse. He stepped away from the table, Yuzuriha sticking by his side as he moved.

Soon enough, Tiaju, Kinrou, and Ukyo entered the room with Chrome trailing close behind them. Taiju and Kinrou set about figuring out how to pick Senku up without disturbing his wounds while Ukyo grabbed the IV and made sure it remained securely in Senku’s arm. Chrome came over to where Gen and Yuzuriha were watching and stood on Gen’s other side.

“I know it can’t help right now,” he said quietly, just loud enough for Gen to hear him, “but Senku explained how to make the medication he wanted to make with the plant you and Ukyo were out collecting that day to me, so I can start making it. I know it won’t wake him up, but I thought it might be nice to have once he woke up.” Gen smiled appreciatively and reached up to ruffle Chrome’s hair a little.

“Thank you, Chrome. That’s sweet of you.” He raised his voice a little so the others could hear him too. “Thank you guys for everything. I know I’ve been difficult, but you guys have been so amazing. Thank you. So much. It really means a lot.” Everyone in the room paused and looked over at Gen as he spoke. Taiju eventually broke the silence.

“Of course, Gen. No one blames you for what’s going on. We all care about Senku and want him to get better as soon as possible, and we want you to be okay too.” Gen swallowed around the lump in his throat that always formed when faced with Taiju’s innocent sincerity. He smiled and shook his head.

“Still. Thank you.”

Taiju gave him a curt nod and a smile before turning back, motioning to Kinrou and Ukyo to pick Senku up and move out. Gen trailed behind them, flanked by Yuzuriha and Chrome. He couldn’t help but feel a bit like they were part of a funeral procession, but quickly tried to push that thought from his mind.

The walk to Senku and Gen’s little home didn’t take long, only lasting a few minutes even with their slow, careful pace. Senku had intentionally built it on the very edge of the village nearest the science buildings. Whether that was unintentional, because he wanted to be close enough to check the buildings if he heard something in the night, or because it gave him a little peace of mind, Gen wasn’t sure. He suspected it was some combination of the three.

The three men laid Senku down gently on the bed, which was actually just two thin sleeping mats rolled out next to each other. Ukyo carefully found a spot to hang the IV while Yuzuriha and Taiju checked Senku’s wounds to make sure nothing had been reopened during the short trip.

Once everyone was satisfied that Senku was safely settled at home, they slowly started heading out. Kinrou, Ukyo, and Chrome left first with a few parting words of support. Before leaving, Taiju gave Gen another tight hug, much like he had on the day of the accident, and once again told him that everything would be ok. Yuzuriha also gave him a quick hug and a few words of reassurance.

After those two left, Gen was once again alone with Senku. He kneeled down by the edge of the bed, nervous to get too close to the other man and disturb him. Eventually, his exhaustion and desire to be near his boyfriend won out and he laid down on the bed next to Senku, carefully pulling the blanket up over both of them.

He scooted closer to Senku, but paused before getting too close. He didn’t want to get too close and chance reopening any of Senku’s wounds or hurting him more, but at the same time he was sick of not being close to Senku. After a moment of hesitation, he moved closer and grabbed Senku’s arm, the one near him without the IV in it. He intertwined his fingers with Senku’s limp ones, finding a small amount of comfort in the touch.

“Anytime now, Senku,” he whispered into the silent room.

He checked Senku’s pulse, a habit he had developed over the past few days, before settling down and falling into a slightly more comfortable and restful sleep than he had gotten the past few days.

-X-X-X-

Gen woke up in the middle of the night on the third night after moving Senku back to their home. When he woke up, the room was completely dark and silent. He glanced around despite the overwhelming darkness, trying to figure out what it was that woke him up. But after a few minutes of waiting and listening, nothing made a sound and nothing moved. He shrugged and rolled back over to face Senku, tightening his grip on the other's hand.

As he was about to fall back asleep, he felt his arm jerk. Or, more accurately, he felt Senku's arm jerk and pull his along with it.

Gen sat up straight, staring in the darkness at where he knew Senku was lying. Had he just imagined It? Was it all getting to be so much he had started hallucinating?

"Senku?" He whispered tentatively into the darkness, trying to not get his hopes up too much. The room remained silent, and Gen started to wonder if he had in fact just hallucinate the movement. He laid back down at Senku's side, screwing his eyes shut tight in an attempt to keep his building tears from falling.

"I need you to wake up soon, Senku. I'm losing my mind," he whispered, giving Senku's limp hand a tight squeeze. To his surprise, it squeezed back.

He sat up again in shock, letting go of the other's hand to instead cup Senku's cheek in the darkness.

"Senku?" He asked a little louder, unable to keep the desperate hope out of his voice. He heard a small groan in response and it was the sweetest sound he'd heard in his life.

"Gen?" Senku's voice cracked over his name, sounding rough with sleep as if Gen had just accidently awoken him from a nap and he hadn't just woken up from over a week of unconsciousness.

"Senku," Gen breathed out in disbelief. "Oh my God, Senku. Shit you- You're- I- What- Wait, just- Just hold on a second. Don't move." He stood up on his knees, reaching blindly for the lamp they kept by the bed.

"I don't think I could move if I wanted to," he heard Senku grumble behind him. "What happened? Last I remember, I was in the lab with Chrome." Gen managed to light the lamp despite his shaking hands and turned back to look at Senku lying on his side of the bed, awake, with his eyes open. Gen hadn’t realized how much he missed seeing Senku’s eyes. Senku blinked against the sudden light and glanced around the room quickly, assessing his surroundings. "And I am decidedly no longer in the lab with Chrome." Gen let out a weak laugh and shuffled back to kneel next to Senku's hip, reaching out to touch Senku's arm in an attempt to ground himself.

"There, uh, there was an explosion in the lab. Something shattered, I don't know. You jumped in to protect Chrome and got- there was a lot of glass and hot liquid and you-" Gen shut his eyes and took a deep breath, recalling the day it had happened. He felt Senku's arm shift and then Senku's fingers slowly intertwine with his, giving his hand a gentle, reassuring squeeze. Gen took another deep breath and pushed on.

"Yuzuriha removed the glass and stitched you up, but you didn't wake up. You weren't- you weren't waking up."

"How long was I out?"

"About 8 days." He heard Senku inhale deeply and the grip on his hand tightened.

"Gen, I'm so sorry."

"Don't be stupid you have nothing to be sorry for."

"Still. You must have been-"

"Terrified. Yeah. I was. I still kind of think this is a dream." He heard the sheets rustle for a moment, but the noise stopped shortly after it started. He finally opened his eyes to see Senku staring at the makeshift IV in confusions.

"Is this an IV?"

"Yeah. We needed something to keep you alive." Senku chuckled tiredly and poked at the bag gently.

"Not bad. Not bad at all." He released Gen's hand and carefully started pulling the needle out of his arm.

"Senku, Wait, no! Are you sure that's ok?"

"It's fine. Trust me. Science and all that," he mumbled as he finished removing it. "Besides, I need my arm."

"For what? You're still recovering."

"Because I need to do this." Senku reached up with his newly freed arm and grabbed Gen's shoulder, catching the mentalist off guard and pulling him down against his chest. He wrapped his arms around Gen's waist tightly, turning his head to press his face into Gen's hair.

"Everything's ok. I'm ok," he whispered soothingly against Gen's hair, massaging gentle circles at the small of his back where his hands met. Gen squeezed his eyes shut, but could already feel the tears slipping past onto Senku's skin.

"When I got back to the village and saw you on the lab table and you weren't waking up, I thought-" Senku shushed him, cutting him off before he could complete his thought.

"Don't. Whatever you thought, it didn't happen. I'm ok. You're ok. I've been through worse."

"You've been through worse in a world with hospitals and modern medicine where you weren't our most qualified doctor! It's not the same!" Gen felt Senku's arms tighten around him, pressing him closer.

"I know. But I promise, 10 billion percent, I'll be ok. I won't leave you like that." Gen felt him press a kiss against the top of his head, lingering for a few seconds. The mentalist sighed and pushed himself up, breaking free of Senku's hold. Senku watched him in confusion, but Gen just pointed at the lamp still burning by the side of their bed.

"I should put that out. Don't want to waste fuel or anything." Senku smiled up at him softly, reaching his hand up to grab Gen's. He didn't let go as Gen moved away and blew out the lamp.

As soon as it was dark again, Gen felt Senku tugging on his hand, urging him back to lay against his chest again. He quickly obliged, letting his ear press against the comforting sound of Senku's heart beating.

Senku once again wrapped his arms around the other's waist, pulling him in even closer.

"Get some rest, Gen. Everything's ok." Gen hummed and draped his arm across Senku's middle, reveling in the warmth and closeness he had been so desperately missing the past few days.

“I missed you, Senku,” Gen murmured against Senku’s skin, “and I love you.”

“I love you too, Gen.”

Gen fell asleep faster than he expected to, the reassuring sound of Senku's heartbeat in his ear and Senku’s steady breaths against his hair lulling him easily into the first real sleep he had gotten since the accident.

Senku was ok. Everything was ok.

Notes:

Well. That's certainly.... a thing.
Anyway, I'm always over on Tumblr @icyhot-alchemist if you wanna say hello
Thank you for reading!