Archive of Our Own

Shuuichi isn’t sure when it started.

He knows when he started trusting Shigaraki as a leader, for sure, but when it went from just respect and admiration for his boss to romantic feelings? He has no idea when that shift happened.

Maybe he always felt that way towards Shigaraki, and just never realized. Either way, he’s been agonizing over this… crush, for lack of a better word, for weeks. Ever since it hit him that he can’t see himself anywhere other than at Shigaraki’s side for the rest of his life. He’s devoted himself to following Shigaraki wherever he goes, whatever he does, and he has no regrets about it. 

It’s also that fact that’s kept him from saying anything. He’ll willingly be a follower to Shigaraki, the greatest villain of them all, but who is he? Just Spinner. No one important. He’s not good enough for Shigaraki. He deserves someone better, someone… equal.

And maybe, if Shigaraki does ever find that someone, by that point Shuuichi will have already gotten over this little thing.

Maybe.

“You like him,” Dabi says to Shuuichi one day when they’re seated on the couch mindlessly watching TV.

He stiffens, grateful that with his scales his sudden blush isn’t visible. “What—what are you talking about?” he manages, disguising his awkwardness with a cough.

Dabi looks at him, unamused. His arms are wrapped around his raised knee, the other leg resting underneath it. “You like the boss. It’s obvious. You’re always following him around like a lost puppy.”

“He’s my boss,” Shuuichi tries.

“Are you going to confess?” Dabi asks, completely ignoring him. Why is he even here? Normally Dabi sticks to himself.

Shuuichi sighs, deciding there’s no way he can hide this. Not from Dabi, at least. He’s annoyingly perceptive, for all that he claims he doesn’t care about the League. “No. Why should I? And why the hell do you even care?”

“I don’t,” Dabi says immediately. “I just think your crush on him is disgusting. Stop slobbering all over him.”

“Wow, someone didn’t grow up past elementary school,” Shuuichi mutters to himself. 

Dabi once again ignores him. “Why aren’t you gonna tell him?”

What the hell is with Dabi today? He’s not normally this chatty. Or invasive. Shuuichi grits his teeth, glaring at Dabi. “What’s it matter to you? Jealous or something?” he snaps.

There’s a pause.

“No,” Dabi says. He frowns at Shuuichi. “Why would I like him?” He glances down, cheeks puffing out just the slightest bit. “He’s annoying. And gross. And he’s always bossing me around, even though I told him I’m not going to listen. And—and who the fuck wears hands all over their body? It’s so weird. And sometimes he looks at me so weirdly, like a fucking creep. I hate him.”

Shuuichi has to take a second to digest Dabi’s rant, wondering why he even entertained this conversation because he really does not care about whatever Dabi’s problem with Shigaraki is. Then he catches sight of the pink flooding Dabi’s cheeks. 

“Oh my god,” Shuuichi says, ecstatic at the idea that he finally has something to hold over Dabi. “I can’t believe this.”

Dabi looks up at him sharply. “What?”

“You like him, too,” Shuuichi says, and moments later a burning hot hand is pressed against his mouth.

“Shut up,” Dabi hisses into his face, cheeks even redder. His blue eyes are flinty. “I don’t. I don’t like him. He sucks.” 

Shuuichi pulls down his hand. “Man, you really are like a kid with your crush. Have you ever even been in a relationship before?”

“Have you?” Dabi retorts.

“This isn’t about me,” Shuuichi says.

Dabi looks at him. “Yes it is.”

“No it isn’t.”

“Yes it is.”

“No it isn’t.” Shuuichi sticks his tongue out at Dabi, who proceeds to tackle him onto his back. 

This is what Shigaraki walks in on. He says, “Uh. Sorry for interrupting,” before instantly turning back around and leaving the room.

Dabi jolts up, throwing himself off of Shuuichi as if burnt, except since they’re on a couch he easily loses his balance and falls on his face.

Shuuichi watches all this in amazement. Within the span of five minutes, Dabi went from some vaguely threatening, mysterious guy to the dumbest person on the planet in his eyes. He sits up, looking down at Dabi who’s pushing himself up onto his knees. “Please always be this stupid,” he says.

Dabi bares his teeth at him, standing up and dusting himself off. “None of this fucking happened. And I don’t like the boss! So fuck off.” Without another word, he whirls around and stalks off, his stupid coat billowing behind him dramatically.

Man, how did Shuuichi ever think this man was enigmatic? He’s just a dumb edgelord.

“So, you and Dabi,” Shigaraki starts while they play Animal Crossing later, and Shuuichi closes his eyes in pain.

“No. We’re not a thing. We were fighting.” He pauses. “Dabi was,” he corrects. “I think he was about to strangle me.”

Shigaraki stares at him. “Do I need to talk to him about this?”

“Nah.” Shuuichi waves it off. Nothing Dabi can do will bother him anymore, not when he knows Dabi, feared villain and murderer, has a schoolboy crush on Shigaraki. It’s so ridiculously hilarious that he will never be able to take him seriously again.

“You sure?” Shigaraki asks. “I know Dabi is. Difficult to get along with, but I can’t have him physically attacking members of the League.”

Shuuichi feels something in his chest flutter at the fact that Shigaraki is concerned about his well being, but he harshly pushes it down into the emptiness. “Yeah, I’m sure. I was kind of asking for it.”

There’s another pause. “Like, as a kink or…”

Shuuichi blinks. “What?” He ignores the way his face heats up. Why would Shigaraki even… “No. No! I mean I was bothering him. Dude, we’re not together. I would never like Dabi.”

Shigaraki laughs breathily. “Yeah, same,” he agrees quickly, and Shuuichi frowns. Now that he knows Dabi likes Shigaraki… well, he personally was never going to act on it, as much as it pained him to do so. He wouldn’t have cared if Dabi would, though, for that reason (and the more he tells himself that, the more it will come true).

But if Shigaraki doesn’t like Dabi either, well… it’s not his problem, really, but he hopes Dabi won’t be too hurt. If he’s the kind to get hurt by it. Nothing ever seems to bother him, taunts and insults sliding off his skin like oil on water. 

Then again, he’s apparently capable of feelings, something Spinner never would have believed just a few days ago. As… immature as he is about them.

There’s a sound coming from the doorway, and Shuuichi instinctively looks over. He doesn’t see anything, though, and figures someone was just passing by. 

They don’t say anything more on the subject, instead focusing on the island they’re building together.

Dabi corners him after dinner that same day. “You said you weren’t going to act on your feelings, right?” he asks. He gazes at Shuuichi coldly, icy eyes at odds with the raging hot flames he produces.

“I did, yeah,” Shuuichi says, pushing past him. “Go ahead if you want. I’m not going to stop you.”

“I don’t like Shigaraki,” Dabi growls out. “Why won’t you tell him?”

“None of your business,” Shuuichi says, still walking away from Dabi. “Unless—you suddenly care because, as it turns out, you like Shigaraki too?”

A hot hand wraps itself around his bicep, turning him around. Dabi leans in close, the tip of his nose nearly touching Shuuichi’s. “If I said yes, even if it’s not true, would you tell me?”

Shuuichi thinks about it. Apparently he really wants to know, for whatever reason. “Sure.”

“Fine,” Dabi grits out. “I like. Shigaraki. Not for real though. There. Now tell me.”

An awful confession, but he didn’t really expect anything else from Dabi. “I just figured he has better options than me,” Shuuichi says, shrugging. “I mean, why would I be anyone’s first choice?”

Dabi blinks slowly. It’s the closest he’s looked to dumbfounded. “Oh,” he says.

“Yeah,” Shuuichi agrees. He clears his throat, nodding at Dabi’s hand still wrapped around his arm. “Can I go now?” He doesn’t particularly want to think about all this. It’s not as though he’s fully come to terms with it himself.

Dabi lets go quickly, still quiet. His eyes are narrowed as Shuuichi turns around and heads off to his room.

“Even if I liked him, Shigaraki wouldn’t like me back,” Dabi says one day, and Shuuichi wonders what he did to deserve this. 

“Well, guess that’s something we have in common,” Shuuichi tells him. “Not that it matters, since you don’t like Shigaraki, right?” There’s a heavy layer of sarcasm to the words.

“Right,” Dabi agrees with utmost seriousness. 

He’s so dumb, Shuuichi thinks. It’s kind of endearing, though, for some reason. And then he very quickly banishes that thought because he is not going to think of Dabi in positive terms.

Dabi has gotten in the habit of seeking out Shuuichi over everyone else. If it were literally any other League member, Shuuichi would have welcomed it.

But Dabi… he grimaces. Dabi’s a pain in the ass. Rude. Insensitive. He can talk normally, from time to time, but most of what comes out of his mouth is insults, barbed remarks. He’s just an unpleasant person in general. Shuuichi has no idea what Twice sees him in, but Twice is too kind and forgiving for his own good.

Not to mention, he has no idea what brought this on. Sure, they both like Shigaraki, but is that really the only reason he’s decided to speak to Shuuichi now?

For some odd reason, that thought stings. Just a little.

Still, he supposes it’s nice that he’s not alone in… pining for Shigaraki? Is that really what he’s doing? 

Shuuichi thinks it’s a little pathetic, but unfortunately he’s a pathetic guy. And, as he’s learning, Dabi is, too.

Pathetic guys in love with Shigaraki alliance, Shuuichi thinks one day just as he’s about to fall asleep. He manages to wake himself up from how hard he laughs.

…God, he really is lame.

“I need to become cooler,” he says to Dabi while they’re lounging around in the common room, Dabi sitting on the floor with his back against a couch. Shuuichi is seated on a loveseat as he plays Mario Kart. He has no idea why Dabi is here. He just walked in and sat down without saying anything, which is strange for him. Normally he’d just make fun of Shuuichi for playing video games.

Dabi snorts. “Stop with the Stain cosplay, for one.”

Shuuichi runs a hand through his hair. “Stain’s cool,” he says defensively. But Shigaraki’s cooler, he thinks. There’s no way he’s cosplaying as his boss, though, that’s creepy.

…Maybe he sees Dabi’s point.

“Stain’s ideals are cool,” Dabi says. “Cosplaying as him isn’t cool.”

“So what, just dress normally?”

Dabi gives him a slash of a grin, teeth sharp and predatory. It’s easy to imagine him covered in blood in that moment. “How about I give you a makeover?” he asks.

Shuuichi is starting to regret speaking to Dabi.

“Why do you only have goth stuff?” Shuuichi asks, tugging at the torn black leather jacket Dabi forced him into. And then at the ridiculously tight skinny jeans which are cutting off his blood flow. “And why’d you even get all this shit? You don’t wear it.” Literally, he’s only ever seen Dabi in that long coat and white shirt.

“How do you know I don’t?” Dabi asks, pulling something out of his dresser. Shuuichi stares at him when he realizes it’s eyeliner.

“No,” he says. It won’t even look as good on him as it does on Dabi.

“Yes,” Dabi says with a wide grin. “You look like you came straight out of Harajuku, especially with your hair. It’s just the finishing touch.” 

Shuuichi had no idea Dabi was so into fashion. He has heard a lot about Harajuku. He sighs. “Fine. Just this once.”

Dabi has to get pretty close to put the eyeliner on Shuuichi. He has his eyes closed, but he’s distinctly aware of Dabi’s presence mere centimeters in front of him. His breaths are soft on Shuuichi’s face. Had someone told him this would happen even a week ago, he never would have believed them.

“Dabi…” Shuuichi starts when Dabi finally pulls away. His eyes flutter open. “Why are you doing all this?”

“Doing what?” Dabi gives him a hand held mirror. 

Shuuichi doesn’t look into it just yet, instead focusing his attention on Dabi. “Hanging out with me and stuff.”

“I’m not hanging out with you,” Dabi says. “I don’t even like you.”

“You literally are right now.”

“This isn’t hanging out. I’m just trying to make you less pathetic.”

Ouch. But Shuuichi isn’t going to give up just yet. Something is going on with Dabi, and he’s going to figure it out. If Dabi’s going to pry into him, then he has all the right to return the favor. “Okay, and why are you helping me with that?” He crosses his arms over his chest. Or. Well, tries to. The jacket is too tight around his biceps for him to move his arms much.

Dabi narrows his eyes at him. “Because it’s annoying to see how lame you are.”

The entire League is well accustomed to Dabi’s barbed words by this point, so none of them even pay him any mind when he’s in one of his bratty moods (which is like, ninety-percent of the time. The remaining ten-percent is when he’s asleep). So Shuuichi easily ignores his insult. But clearly asking him up front isn’t going to work; he’ll have to figure something else out.

“Would you look in the mirror already?” Dabi demands when Shuuichi doesn’t respond. 

He sighs and finally takes a look at himself in the mirror. His hair is the same as it always is, spiky and violently pink. The eyeliner, which he was unsure about with his scales, doesn’t look awful. It’s subtler than he thought it would be, the darkness adding more contrast to his eyes. “Huh,” he says. “Not bad. It’s close to my usual style, I guess.” But somehow, the outfit comes across as more artful than his own would look. 

He looks at Dabi, whose eyes are shining in something close to satisfaction. “Can I take the clothes off though? They’re a little too tight on me.”

“Hey, can I talk to you?” Shuuichi asks Shigaraki.

“Sure—what happened to your eyes?” Shigaraki says, blinking at him.

Shuuichi reaches up instinctively, confused for a moment, before putting his hand back down. “Dabi.”

Shigaraki stares at him.

“He was actually who I wanted to talk to you about.” Shuuichi explains everything that’s been happening over the past week, avoiding the topic of their mutual admiration for their leader. “Do you know anything going on with him? Why is he doing this?”

“Uh,” Shigaraki says. “Look, I’m not good with relationship advice—”

“We’re not dating!” Shuuichi shouts. “What about what I said makes it sound like we are?”

“Relationships in general. Including platonic ones,” Shigaraki clarifies slowly. “I don’t know, Spinner, maybe he just wants to be your friend and is doing it in his own weird, Dabi-ish way. We all know he’s lying whenever he says he doesn’t care about us anyway. Like, why else would he put up with Toga? Insane behavior if he doesn’t secretly like her.”

Oh. That’s probably actually accurate. But… why him? Is it really because they both like Shigaraki?

Shuuichi is the one to corner Dabi this time. “Are you trying to be my friend?” he demands.

Dabi sneers at him. “Why would I want to be your friend?” he says pointedly.

Shuuichi bristles. “What does that mean? Is it because I’m a mutant?” Lizard, Dabi had called him that one time. He never apologized for it. Never even seemed to realize what he said was wrong. Shuuichi had eventually forgotten about it, distracted with more important things, but right now he’s suddenly reminded of it. And the shame and anger washes over him all over again.

Dabi frowns. “What? No. I don’t care about that.”

“You called me lizard,” Shuuichi snaps. “I’m not a lizard. I’m a human being. Just because you got lucky with your quirk—”

“Lucky?” Dabi says quietly.

“—doesn’t give you the right to act all superior to those with quirks like me.” Shuuichi holds a hand against his chest, clenching it tight. 

“I’m not Geten,” Dabi says, looking at him coolly. “You don’t know anything about me or my quirk.”

Shuuichi glares at him. “Oh, poor you with your powerful, flashy fire quirk that gets you all the attention.”

“Shut the hell up about my quirk!” Dabi explodes suddenly, enough that Shuuichi has to take a step back in surprise as flames burst into existence on his arms. He pants heavily, snapping, “I never called you that again because I knew it bothered you. Why are you bringing it up now?”

There’s silence. Shuuichi blinks, looks down at his feet for a second. Then back up at Dabi. “I… why didn’t you just apologize for it then? I thought you didn’t care or notice.”

“I wasn’t sorry, and I don’t care,” Dabi says to him, back in ice cold control, but it’s a weak retort right after the admission that he noticed Shuuichi was upset enough to stop calling him that right away.

It’s… well, Shuuichi isn’t going to say it’s magically okay. Because it’s not. But at least Dabi made an effort, he supposes. From him, even the bare minimum is meaningful. 

Man, why do they put up with this asshole again? 

“Mutants are discriminated against,” he explains eventually. “Particularly the ones that have undesirable looking quirks. You know, the opposite of Miruko. Although people like her are super fetishized. And calling me stuff like lizard is dehumanizing. There are even entire hate groups dedicated to killing us.”

Dabi is quiet for a long time. His brow is furrowed, and he’s clearly deep in thought. “I see,” he says eventually. Then, “This society needs to be taken down.”

It’s the closest he’ll probably get to an acknowledgement. Shuuichi has started to learn with Dabi, reading between the lines is important. He almost always means more than what he says. Hell, sometimes he means the opposite of what he says. 

He nods and turns away, having forgotten about why he even confronted Dabi in the first place

“Spinner?” Dabi says when Shuuichi’s almost left the room. “I’m not trying to befriend you.”

Which is as good of an admission that he is.

Something comfortable settles between them afterwards.

Since they’ve talked things through the best they can, it’s easier to… Shuuichi isn’t really sure. Spend time with Dabi, he supposes? Not that Dabi would ever call it that, and Shuuichi isn’t too far behind.

Exist in the same room together, he decides. 

“No, you’re supposed to press ZL to shield, not L!” Shigaraki is exclaiming when Shuuichi walks into the room for their weekly gaming session (only weekly because apparently, leading an entire army takes too much time and Shigaraki is stuck in his office doing paperwork of all things for most of his week).

Shuuichi pauses, spotting Dabi and Shigaraki seated next to each other, which is not a very common sight. Dabi is clumsily attempting to play Smash Ultimate, but he’s clearly not doing a very good job because his Incineroar is abruptly launched across the screen by the CPU. Another very uncommon sight, which is what keeps Shuuichi from announcing his presence just yet.

A furrow forms between Dabi’s brow. “That’s what I did,” he says, staring at the screen.

Shigaraki clicks his tongue. “Get up.” He nudges Dabi off the sofa, and then scoots onto the spot he just vacated. “Now sit down.” When Dabi looks over his shoulder in confusion, Shigaraki rolls his eyes and pulls him down by the waist onto his lap. 

Dabi yelps, face instantly going cherry red. “Wh—what—you—”

Shigaraki takes hold of his hands, still clutching onto the controllers, as he hooks his chin over Dabi’s shoulder. “I’ll teach you this way since you’re so useless,” he says calmly, as though forcing his subordinate to sit on his lap while teaching him how to play video games is a normal thing to do.

Meanwhile, Dabi’s mind seems to have completely broken, because he can only stutter while stiffly sitting in Shigaraki’s lap. And Shuuichi takes pity on him. Just a little. Mostly because he would have done the same in Dabi’s position ( can he be in that position no what is he saying shut up brain).

He clears his throat, drawing their attention. “Dabi’s gonna be joining us?” 

“Oh, hey, Spinner,” Shigaraki says. Dabi.exe continues to malfunction. “Yeah, I thought we could teach him a little bit since he’s always bothering me about what I’m playing.”

“Not—not true,” Dabi chokes out. Is that smoke coming from him? 

Shigaraki frowns. “Dabi, you’re really hot. Like, more than normal.”

Dabi makes a wounded noise. 

“Maybe you should go wash your face,” Shuuichi suggests, unable to keep watching this trainwreck, “you’re looking a little… red there, man.”

Dabi instantly gets off of Shigaraki’s lap and runs out of the room, blushing face buried in his hands. Doesn’t have a crush on Shigaraki, sure. And Shuuichi doesn’t look like a lizard. 

“And there he goes,” Shigaraki says, looking frustrated, “I’m gonna have to force him to play some other day.” He looks at Shuuichi brightly. “You’re still here, though, so it’s okay.”

“And I don’t have to sit on your lap to play,” Shuuichi says, meaning for it to come across as casual and collected but just sounding stilted.

“Unless you want to,” Shigaraki says completely seriously. It doesn’t even sound like he’s flirting. If he’s flirting and not just being weird and oblivious.

Shuuichi sputters a little, feeling his own cheeks flush. Unlike Dabi, though, his blush is hidden under his scales. “N—no, I think I’m good,” he says in a strangled voice, shoulders tensing.

Shigaraki shrugs, unbothered. “Suit yourself.”

It’s a little concerning that Shuuichi doesn’t even react when Dabi boxes him against the wall. This is happening far too much. “What you saw yesterday,” Dabi hisses into his face, “forget that happened.”

“Your quirk was acting up?” Shuuichi suggests.

Dabi narrows his eyes at him. “Yeah, it was just my quirk. I don’t have a crush on Shigaraki. I don’t like him. I—I hope he dies.”

Talking to Dabi is more painful than pulling out teeth, Shuuichi imagines. Why is everyone he knows so dumb? “No one brought up having a crush besides you,” he says.

Dabi blinks, his single brain cell clearly working overtime to process what Shuuichi said. “Well,” he says, cheeks pink, “you’re the one who keeps insisting I do! But I don’t.”

“You’re blushing right now. Just like yesterday, when Shigaraki made you sit on his la—”

Hands come up to slap across his mouth, burning hot against his scales. Another thing he’s unfortunately too used to by this point. He’s just a little too used to Dabi manhandling him around, apparently. Shuuichi is choosing to not read anything into that. 

“Shut up!” Dabi says, face reddening even more. “ You’re the one who likes him.”

That’s true, but at least Shuuichi can be normal about it. Or maybe he’s just not enough of a person for it to be noticeable. Dabi only figured it out because he has a crush on Shigaraki himself. But no one else seems to have noticed.

Shuuichi sighs and pulls Dabi’s hands off of his mouth. “Why are you so insistent on the fact that you don’t have a crush on him? Or that you don’t want to be my friend, or that you hate the League?”

“Because it’s true, dumbass,” Dabi growls.

“But it’s not,” Shuuichi says, rolling his eyes. “We all know it’s not true. You’re really bad at lying.”

Dabi grits his teeth, hands clenching into fists by his sides. “I don’t. Care. I’m incapable of loving.”

“Okay.”

Dabi blinks at him. “Huh?”

Shuuichi shrugs. “I said, okay. I’m not going to argue anymore. If that’s what you want us to believe, I’ll believe it. That you’re a cold, heartless monster using us all for your own gain. Can I go now?”

Dabi is quiet as Shuuichi walks past him. He’s staring at the ground, face obscured by his hair. 

Dabi doesn’t bother him again after that, and Shuuichi almost kind of misses how annoying he was. Almost being the keyword.

But without him around to constantly remind him of his crush on Shigaraki, Shuuichi can continue to push it down until it’s near nonexistent which is what he’s been hoping for all this time.

Still, it’s weird not having Dabi be a constant thorn in his side. 

Shuuichi accidentally falls asleep on the couch one day. And wakes up to Dabi straddling his stomach as he watches him sleep. Shuuichi startles with a shout, body jolting in instant fight or flight. Then he recognizes that it’s just Dabi being fucking weird and relaxes. “What the fuck? Dabi, get off me.”

“I think you were right about my crush on Shigaraki,” Dabi says.

“Oh my god,” Shuuichi says, groaning and rubbing his face. “Can you act like a normal person for once in your life? Who raised you? You’re worse than Toga.”

“Huh? That’s rude,” Dabi says, frowning.

“Well, you’re the one sitting on me watching me sleep.”

“I was waiting for you to wake up,” Dabi says, completely missing the point.

Shuuichi sighs and lays his head back, looking up at the ceiling and wondering why everyone in his life is so damn insane. He was just some guy, and then he decided to join the League and now he’s surrounded by a bunch of superpowered young adults in desperate need of therapy. “Whatever. Just—continue.”

“You were right that I have a crush on Shigaraki,” Dabi continues. “But he doesn’t like me back.”

“...How are you so sure?” Shuuichi says.

“I heard you two talking. You said you would never like me, and he agreed.” Dabi doesn’t necessarily sound hurt, but there’s a note to his voice that isn’t normally there.

Oh. Oops. 

“I don’t care if people like me,” Dabi says, and it just sounds like he’s trying to convince himself of that. “I’m used to not being liked. Or cared about.”

Why did Dabi choose him of all people to finally open up to, Shuuichi panics. He wasn’t prepared for this.

Dabi leans a little bit closer, apparently not bothered by Shuuichi’s silence. “But why don’t people like me?” he asks, sounding more earnest than Shuuichi has ever heard him, and oh god if he fucks this up he’s never going to forgive himself. If it weren’t for the fact that Dabi genuinely seems curious, Shuuichi would have gone for the instinctive, “You’re a massive asshole who acts superior to everyone else,” which. Well. Is probably the biggest reason people don’t like him. 

But the way Dabi’s acting right now, it’s deeper than that. There’s… more to the question than at first glance.

“I like you,” he says finally, and realizes he’s not even lying. “I think you’re pretty cool.”

“You said you would never like me, though.”

“Ah, I meant romantically,” Shuuichi says, closing his eyes. And then he thinks, but I don’t think that’s impossible either, and instantly tosses that aside.

“Oh,” Dabi says, brow furrowing. “So you… like me?”

“As a friend,” Shuuichi confirms. 

Dabi is quiet, fingers twisting in his lap as he thinks. “I know I’m a dick.”

“Yeah, you are.”

“I’m trying to kill myself.”

“Ye—wait, you’re what?” Shuuichi sits up straight, putting his hands straight on Dabi’s shoulders and gripping them tightly. “What the fuck are you talking about? Please, please do not do that.”

Dabi licks his lips, pink flickering from his mouth. “That’s my grand plan.”

Shuuichi buries his face in his hands. He doesn’t even want to know why the plan he’s been touting all this time as something that will destroy hero society involves his suicide. “Why are you telling me all this?”

“I don’t know,” Dabi says honestly. 

Shuuichi is silent for a moment. He can’t react badly unless he wants to scare Dabi away after the first time he’s shown vulnerability to anyone—that he knows of, anyway. Dabi and Twice have always been pretty close. “I mean, I get it.” He takes a deep breath. “I’ve been there myself. Well, thinking about it. But it’s… please don’t do that. We’d all miss you.”

“You’ve… thought about it before?” Dabi sounds concerned.

Shuuichi shrugs. “I’m a mutant born in a tiny, rural town where everyone knows everyone. They didn’t exactly like me. It got to be a bit much. Before I heard about Stain, I was completely empty and I felt like my life was meaningless. But eventually I found the League. I found Shigaraki.”

“Meaningless…” Dabi says quietly. “Spinner, I. I think we’re. That we have a lot in common.”

Shuuichi blinks at him. He hadn’t expected Dabi to say that, and it makes him realize just how little they all know about Dabi. They don’t know his backstory, where he came from. All of them have an idea of each other’s issues, for lack of a better word. But Dabi… he acts as though he popped into existence fully formed, that he’s never experienced life the way they have. Obviously, they know that’s not true, but he refuses to let anything slip. Ever.

And now here Dabi is, sharing the slightest bit of his mental state with Shuuichi. Which, apparently, is similar to Shuuichi’s, which is just. Well. It’s concerning, is all he’ll say.

“I’m not going to pry,” Shuuichi starts slowly, “but I appreciate that you’ve shared this with me.” He bites his lip, hoping what he’s saying will work well. He has no idea what to do in a situation like this. “And I know that… it’s hard to get out of that place. But telling others is the first step, I think.” What does it say, that he’s still never told anyone else about his problems?

Dabi looks away, corners of his mouth tilted up. Despite that, there’s a melancholy tinge to his expression. “I’m not a good person. You should let me go.”

“I can’t. The League would be devastated. I would be—” Shuuichi pauses, then adds, “You told me this for a reason.”

Dabi shrugs. “...Don’t tell the others.”

Shuuichi still wonders why Dabi came to him first about this, but maybe he… subconsciously picked up on their similarities? He’s been coming to Shuuichi since they both like Shigaraki, and now because they both struggle with similar things?

Maybe Shuuichi isn’t actively planning suicide right now, but he’s—well, he tries not to think about the emptiness inside of him, fills it up instead by focusing on Shigaraki and his desires. Which is probably not healthy, but it’s worked for him thus far.

“I won’t,” he promises.

Shuuichi isn’t going to betray Dabi’s trust now that he has it, of course. But he also thinks he should at least let the League know that Dabi’s feeling a bit down. Which is an understatement, of course.

Dabi’s been planning on killing himself all this time. That’s why he never tried to get close or form bonds with them, always stayed distant. Because what would be the point if he’d just be dead after everything?

But now he loves Shigaraki, and he’s showing vulnerability to Shuuichi. Which means something has changed inside of Dabi, even if he doesn’t realize. It’ll probably be harder for him to go through with his plan in the end. Maybe. Hopefully. Shuuichi doesn’t actually know anything about psychology.

“Hey, Twice?” Shuuichi says. “Can I talk to you?”

Twice bounds up from where he had been sitting on the couch with Toga. “Of course, Spinner! No, never! What’s up?”

Shuuichi glances over his shoulder at Toga, then shakes his head. “Let’s go somewhere private. It’s… kind of personal.” For Dabi, anyway.

“Oh, yeah. Of course.” Twice follows him as they head to Shuuichi’s room, and once they’re inside with the door closed Shuuichi turns to him. 

“It’s actually about Dabi. You guys are friends, right?” Relatively speaking, since it’s… Dabi. 

“Yeah, we’re best friends,” Twice says proudly. “Nah, hate the guy.” Then he pauses. “I’ve noticed you guys are getting pretty close. It’s nice to know someone else is watching out for him!”

Shuuichi nods. “And has he… told you personal things? I’m not asking because I want you to tell me what he’s said, but he kind of… opened up to me a bit yesterday. So I’m just wondering.”

Twice tilts his head, thinking for a moment. “He hasn’t said anything directly to me, but sometimes he hints at things. Mostly…” His jaw clenches through the fabric of his costume. “Things that make me want to hurt people.”

“Yeah. Same,” Shuuichi says, thinking of the life Dabi must have led to end up the way he has—emotionally stunted, afraid to let in kindness, detached. “I’m just confused, because I didn’t expect it, and I didn’t even think we were that close, so—”

“You don’t want to accidentally hurt him now?” Twice guesses, and Shuuichi nods. “Well, if he’s opened up to you, that means you’re probably doing the right thing! So just keep doing that. Dabi’s kind of like a cat. Don’t worry if he gets all angry and hissy at you, he’s just like that.”

Shuuichi stifles a laugh at the imagery. But Twice is right, that’s exactly how he is. 

With something to focus on other than his crush on Shigaraki, Shuuichi can almost pretend he’s over it. Almost.

(And then Shigaraki looks at him with those intense, blazing eyes of his, and Shuuichi finds himself crashing into a wall or forgetting the rest of his sentence.

He’s no Dabi, but he’s still a disaster.)

“I never told Shigaraki because I’m not good enough for him either. And he likes you, anyway,” Dabi admits, arms wrapped around his knees so that he’s curled into a little ball.

Shuuichi blinks at him. “That’s not true. He doesn’t.”

“He does,” Dabi insists. “I’ve seen the way he looks at you.”

Shuuichi doesn’t respond to that, too focused on Dark Souls (and not Dabi’s words, definitely not). “That’s creepy,” he says eventually. He’s not going to think about what Dabi said, not after he’s spent so long trying to forget about this whole thing. “Stop staring at people, you freak.”

He can just imagine the pout on Dabi’s face without even looking at him. “That’s why I talked to you about it. Because you and I feel the same way.”

“You’re different from what I thought,” Shuuichi says instead.

“Huh?”

Shuuichi sighs and pauses the game, turning to Dabi. He’s still huddled into a ball. “You’re opening up more. What changed?”

Dabi glances down, eyes half-lidded. “Dunno. Maybe I just got tired of pretending to be someone I’m not.”

“Who’s that?”

There’s a pause where Dabi seems to be gathering up the courage to speak. Finally, he says, “Someone without a family.”

Shuuichi is grabbing some lunch from the kitchen when Dabi pulls him aside. He sighs, just going along with it by this point. 

“Spinner. Since you refuse to tell Shigaraki, and we have a lot in common…” 

Shuuichi takes a bite of his tonkatsu sandwich, waiting for him to finish. “Yes?” he finally prompts, when Dabi doesn’t continue.

“I. I.” Dabi frowns, avoiding eye contact with Shuuichi. 

“Don’t tell him,” Shuuichi warns, “I swear to god, Dabi, if that’s what this is about—”

“What? No. I’m not going to do that.” Dabi finally locks gazes with Shuuichi. “Spinner. Is it still true you would never like me?”

Shuuichi stares at him.

“Romantically,” Dabi clarifies.

“Uh.” Shuuichi’s mind blanks, unprepared for the question.

Dabi’s watching him carefully, but as more time passes without a response, something shutters in his eyes. And Shuuichi panics. “Wait, just give me a few more minutes! You sprung that on me out of nowhere, and I. I have a sandwich,” he finishes lamely, holding it up.

Dabi relaxes at that. Very minutely, but Shuuichi apparently knows his tells now. 

Shuuichi takes in a deep breath. “What brought this on?”

“Just answer the question,” Dabi snaps.

“I… Are you asking for a reason? I mean, of course you are. But what is that reason?”

“Spinner. I’m going to set you on fire.”

Shuuichi takes another bite of his sandwich just to stall, waiting to speak until he’s swallowed. “Dabi, I’m not going to lie to you.” He literally feels the way Dabi tenses at that, a tiny shift in the air as his muscles flex. “Yes, I think I could like you romantically. Not saying I do. But I could.”

“Oh,” Dabi breathes, and does he sound relieved?

“Wait, did you want me to…”

Dabi grabs him by the shoulders, leans forward until their noses are nearly touching. Shuuichi’s eyes cross as he attempts to keep eye contact with Dabi. “I just think we get along very well,” he says.

Shuuichi is silent, waiting for Dabi to continue.

“Also. Don’t read too much into this,” Dabi says, and presses a kiss to his cheek. Warmth instantly floods into Shuuichi’s face, a furious blush forming as Dabi turns and leaves without another word.

Fuck.

Despite what Dabi said, Shuuichi does in fact read too much into it. And he gets the feeling Dabi has a crush on him. 

Which is… Shuuichi never would have believed it, if it weren’t for the fact that Dabi seemed happy over the possibility of Shuuichi developing romantic feelings for him. 

And. Well. He won’t deny the fact that he can see himself liking Dabi romantically in the future. He’s cool. He’s also incredibly stupid but in a sort of endearing way, and he’s nicer than he lets on. Sort of. Sometimes. He did let Shuuichi have his sushi even though that was probably more because he hates fish. Okay, one out of one hundred times he won’t be an absolute jackass.

Point is, Dabi’s not really a bad guy (ignoring his current career choice). But Shuuichi’s not really sure what to do about Dabi’s possible crush on him, of all people. Like, what is there to like about him? He’s a nobody. Dabi could do so much better. 

Shuuichi falls asleep with those thoughts swirling around in his head.

Shuuichi expected Dabi to avoid him after that, but he doesn’t. Sure, he doesn’t really bring it up and acts like he never kissed Shuuichi on the cheek or harassed him into admitting that he could like Dabi, but he doesn’t seem to have a problem with being in the same room as Shuuichi. Which, for Dabi, is pretty notable.

Shuuichi doesn’t talk about it either, but now he can’t stop… thinking about Dabi. He finds himself watching Dabi whenever he’s not paying attention. Not in a creepy way. He’s just… figuring things out. And that involves staring at Dabi, and his bright blue eyes, his gold piercings, the distinction between healthy skin and leathery scars. He’s actually quite attractive. Not that Shuuichi ever found him ugly, but.

But.

Unfortunately, he recognizes the warning signs. This is how his feelings for Shigaraki started, too.

Fucking Dabi. Always unexpectedly throwing a wrench in things.

Okay, so now what does he do? If he likes Dabi, and Dabi likes him back, should he just go for it? It’s not as though Shigaraki will ever reciprocate (and he determinedly ignores what Dabi told him, that Shigaraki does, because that’s impossible).

But Dabi shouldn’t have to settle for him, he thinks morosely. It’s the same thing with Shigaraki. He’s always falling for people out of his league.

They’re sitting through a PLF meeting and Shuuichi is wondering why he’s even here. It doesn’t really seem like anyone besides Tomura was really needed for this specific meeting, but here they are. Dabi’s sitting next to him (not Shuuichi’s choice. Apparently Dabi is taking this attachment thing seriously) and halfway through he nudges Shuuichi’s leg with his own. When Shuuichi looks over Dabi gives him a small, barely there smile and turns the laptop he’s supposed to be taking notes on enough that Shuuichi can see the screen.

even shigarakis falling asleep, the note reads.

Shuuichi chances a glance over. Sure enough, Shigaraki looks as though he’s struggling to focus as one of the PLF members proposes something. He turns to his own laptop and types a response, letting Dabi see it once he’s done.

i could never take his job. imagine dealing with redestro all day

Dabi nods in agreement once he’s done reading, giving Shuuichi a conspitatory smirk. Then he focuses back on his own laptop, Shuuichi trying to look as though he’s still paying attention to the meeting while actually watching what Dabi’s doing.

Which is, apparently, pulling up MS Paint. Dabi proceeds to scribble an awful Redestro kissing Shigaraki’s ass with his mousepad. Shuuichi slaps a hand over his mouth, trying to stifle his giggles. 

omg no dont do that to shigaraki!!!!

but thats how he acts, Dabi returns. u cant deny it

shigaraki deserves better though.

u want to kiss his ass instead?

Shuuichi pauses, thinks about his response. ill do anything to save him from redestro, he types eventually, ignoring the way his face heats up. It’s true, though. He’d do anything for Shigaraki. Would follow him anywhere. 

…Fuck, he’s doing a really bad job of forgetting about all this.

Dabi tilts his head as he reads the words. kiss him already.

you first!!

Dabi pouts at him. Shuuichi gets the feeling they’re acting like a pair of kids trapped in a boring class, passing notes back and forth. at least i gave him a fat ass. you should thank me for that

Shuuichi flushes, remembering all the times he’s spent staring at Shigaraki and his… Shuuichi can’t even admit it. dude that was unnecessary, He ends up saying, at a loss for anything else.

they hated him because he spoke the truth, Dabi types. 

Why is Dabi like, actually funny? What the hell? What universe did he fall into? you admitting you stare at shigarakis ass?

Dabi freezes, a blush creeping through his cheeks. no

When Shuuichi looks at him dubiously, Dabi starts typing furiously. not like on purpose!!! there was this one time he stood in front of me and i was sitting and he wouldnt move and i had nowhere else to look i didnt stare at it though just looked a little bit

By the end of it Shuuichi is so close to bursting into laughter that he just ends up collapsing onto the floor. Of course, this prompts everyone into moving and trying to help him. Shigaraki is the first to get to him and he kneels at Shuuichi’s side, desperately repeating his name. “Are you okay? Spinner!”

Shuuichi covers his face in sheer embarrassment, unable to hold back his laughter anymore, and Shigaraki apparently takes that as him crying. “Everyone, meeting dismissed! Get out of here, right now!” Shigaraki holds Shuuichi up, body resting against his shoulder, and still laughing, he just goes along with it. He’ll never be able to show his face again, but at least he dragged Dabi down with him beforehand. “What’s wrong? What happened?”

Shuuichi shakes his head, finally removing his hands from his face and throwing his head back as he bursts into laughter. “N—nothing, oh my god! I just—I—is Dabi here? Did he leave?”

“No, we’re all here,” Dabi says, and Shuuichi blinks up, realizing the League is standing around them while the rest of the PLF members have left. There’s a residual rosiness to his cheeks, looking like he just walked outside in the freezing winter weather. Shuuichi knows better, though. He’s never going to let this go.

“Spinner, what happened?” Shigaraki demands. “What’s going on?”

“It’s Dabi’s fault,” Shuuichi says, taking a deep breath and pointing a clawed finger at him. He tries his best to stifle his giggles as he speaks. “I’m fine. I just… okay, he said something really stupid—” 

“Hey!”

“—and I couldn’t stop myself from losing it because he’s an idiot.” And then Shuuichi realizes that Shigaraki’s holding onto him tightly, their bodies touching, and he freezes up. This is the closest they’ve been and he has no idea what to do what does he do oh god—

“So you’re… okay?” Shigaraki asks quietly, and Shuuichi nods despite the building panic, unsure if he’s even breathing at this point. And, he notes, Shigaraki still hasn’t let go of him despite knowing there’s nothing wrong now. “Okay. I’m glad it was nothing.” He gives Dabi a weird look, who shrugs, looking as innocent as possible (which is not much, because everyone knows Dabi is never innocent). “What did you say?”

Dabi closes his laptop as smoothly as he can manage (which, again, is not much, considering how furiously he blushes and looks away). “I hope you die,” he says instead of something normal. Shuuichi has to hold back a groan.

Shigaraki actually sounds offended. “Huh? What did I do—”

“You three are so funny,” Toga says, putting her hands on her hips. “I can’t wait for the moment you all realize that you—”

And Compress slaps a hand over Toga’s mouth. “Let’s leave them to it, Toga, dear.”

Twice nods. “Yeah! Toga, let’s go since Spinner’s okay and these three are… that.” He takes her hand and leads her out of the room, Compress following.

Shigaraki finally stands up, but not before helping Shuuichi up as well. His gloved hand is gripping onto Shuuichi’s tightly still, and Shuuichi might just pass out for real. “No, for real, what is going on, Dabi?”

“I just hate you,” Dabi tells him. Shigaraki blinks. “Also, Spinner’s about to faint.”

“B—boss,” Shuuichi manages, and Shigaraki’s eyes widen. 

“Spin! You sure you’re okay?” He takes Shuuichi’s other hand, and—

Shuuichi wakes up in the infirmary. Wow, so he actually did pass out because Shigaraki held his hands. He needs to leave the League immediately and never show his face in public again, especially because—

Someone bursts into laughter at his side, and he looks over sharply. Shigaraki is looking at him, concerned, and Dabi’s just… hysterically laughing.

“You’re so lame!” Dabi gets out in between peals of laughter, clutching onto his stomach as he struggles to breathe. Despite that, there’s a massive smile on his face. “You actually passed out because Shigaraki—”

“Dabi,” Shuuichi hisses, “shut the fuck up.”

“Yeah, Dabi,” Shigaraki says. “Now’s not the time to bully Spinner. Why are you even here?”

“No, it’s fine.” Shuuichi sits up. Shigaraki… Shigaraki actually defended him, though, and he falls in love just a little more. There’s no one else he’s met who’s just as dependable. “He can stay. He’s, um… he grew on me, I guess. Like a weed.”

Dabi’s jaw drops open, an offended expression on his face. “What the fuck! You—”

“Spinner, are you okay?” Shigaraki interrupts quickly before Dabi can get started. “I can get the doctor.”

Shuuichi holds a hand up to his head. “Yeah, I’m fine. I guess I just got light-headed, or something.”

“Because of Shi—”

“Say anything and I’ll tell Shigaraki about the ass thing,” Shuuichi threatens, and that’s enough to shut Dabi up for good.

“The… ass thing?” Shigaraki asks, looking between the two of them.

“Don’t worry about it,” Dabi says loudly and unconvincingly. “Also, I’m going to leave because you both suck. Spinner, you say anything and I’ll kill you.” Shuuichi rolls his eyes in response, and Dabi sticks his tongue out at him before walking towards the door.

Shigaraki watches him as leaves, and then instantly turns to Shuuichi. “What the hell is up with Dabi? He’s all different.”

“Different how?”

“He was, uh, showing emotion. You know how he normally is,” Shigaraki says, waving a hand as though it explains everything. “Also, you two are close.”

“Oh. Yeah,” Shuuichi agrees noncommittally. “We’re just friends.”

“I… didn’t say otherwise,” Shigaraki says, giving him a weird look.

“Well,” Shuuichi says, and finds he has no rebuttal. “It’s. It’s true. We’re just friends. We’re bros.”

Just friends, Shuuichi thinks, which, of course, is the reason Dabi decided to seat himself in his lap just days later. Because they’re just friends. He realizes his hands are lightly resting on Dabi’s narrow waist. And he doesn’t pull them away, for some reason.

“Wh—why are you…”

“I got tired of waiting,” Dabi says, and his hands fist themselves in Shuuichi’s shirt. “Spinner, it’s okay if you don’t feel for me the way I feel for you. I’m… used to it. But I thought I would at least try.”

Shuuichi’s mind blanks. 

“Spinner?” Dabi says when there’s no response. “Do you want me to get off? I won’t do anything without your permission.”

Slowly, he shakes his head. “No, I’m fine.” He glances down and flushes, choosing instead to focus entirely on Dabi’s face. “Um.” He clears his throat. “So you… like…”

“You. Yes.”

Shuuichi blinks. “Why?”

Dabi tilts his head. “Why wouldn’t I?”

“I’m not…” Shuuichi huffs and looks away, “you know. Good enough. For you. For Shigaraki. So I don’t see why…”

“Spinner, don’t say stuff like that. That’s not—” Dabi cuts himself off and sighs. “I don’t. Know how to be nice, but. You are worth something. And I’m not… better than you. So stop it and let me kiss you.”

“Oh,” Shuuichi says weakly. He pushes aside what Dabi said about him, because there’s no way it’s true. Not after a lifetime of having that reinforced in him. “Okay.”

Dabi’s gotten really close, actually. Enough that all Shuuichi can focus on are his mismatched, two-toned lips. He wonders if the scarred bottom lip feels a bit like what it must be like to kiss Shuuichi, all rough on the lips. And suddenly he really wants to find out. “Call—call me Shuuichi,” he breathes, heart pounding, and Dabi pauses.

“Because you’re calling me Spinner,” Shuuichi clarifies slowly, tongue heavy in his mouth, “but if we’re about to… do this. You should. You should—”

“Okay,” Dabi says, “Shuuichi.” And he kisses him.

They’re still bros, after that. 

Shuuichi doesn’t feel the whole… boyfriend word, and neither does Dabi. So they’re bros who kiss sometimes.

“What is that?” Dabi asks the first time Shuuichi brings it up.

“Wh—how do you not know—” And then Shuuichi looks at Dabi, at all his scars, visual proof of what he’s been through, and thinks, maybe he shouldn’t make fun of him for not knowing. Not when his life has been so…

“I mean. I know what a bro is,” Dabi says, furrowing his brow. “A brother. I have—but we’re not brothers. That’s gross. So… what are you talking about?”

Out of his mouth the word just sounds so strange because of how serious he is all the time. “People just use it for anyone they’re close with now. They don’t have to be related, just friends. And sometimes more, I guess.” Granted, most people wouldn’t be calling their significant other “bro,” but… Shuuichi isn’t sure about all this yet. He’s never had a relationship before, and Dabi is—Dabi. He’s. Yeah.

“Oh, okay,” Dabi says, accepting that answer easily. “Can we kiss? …Bro.” 

There’s no way this is real life.

Of course, now that Dabi’s learned the word, it seems he can’t stop using it. On one hand, it’s hilarious to watch. On the other, it’s freaking everyone else out. Although technically, that’s still hilarious.

“Something’s wrong with Dabi,” Shigaraki says, looking shaken.

”Um, yeah?” Toga says, placing her hands on her hips. “We’ve known that forever! Why did you call a meeting for this?”

“He just called me bro,” Shigaraki insists, frazzled. “That’s not normal, even for him. He’s been possessed or mind controlled or something. That’s not my Dabi.”

Shuuichi covers his mouth, trying hard not to laugh.

Twice shrugs. “I don’t know, he called me bro too! What’s wrong with that? I liked it. Hold up, what do you mean your Dabi?”

“Um.” And then Shigaraki flushes a bright, violent red. “Not—not the point, Twice!” he says loudly, clearly flustered.

Shuuichi blinks in surprise. And realizes something very, very important.

He’s reminded, all over again, of Dabi’s insistence that Shigaraki likes Shuuichi.

Well, Dabi is sort of (read: very) oblivious. Of course he would take Shigaraki’s interest in him as an interest in Shuuichi.

Kind of stings, honestly. But it’s fine. He’s with Dabi, or something. He’s not really sure. They do kiss a lot, and Shuuichi has found he loves the feeling of Dabi’s lips pressed against his, simultaneously soft and rough in a dizzyingly mercurial contrast—quite like his personality. 

Shuuichi doesn’t want to go too far yet, but he can’t deny that he feels… something strongly for Dabi.

But is it fair to not help him and Shigaraki, either?

“So I think Shigaraki likes you back,” Shuuichi blurts out one day, while they’re sitting on the couch watching some sci-fi movie. 

Dabi grunts. “Not funny.”

“‘S not a joke. You think I’d do that to you?” Shuuichi pauses the movie and turns to him. “I’m serious. He has feelings for you.” He explains what happened, figuring he might as well go for it since he went and revealed it anyway.

Dabi avoids eye contact, fidgeting. “I’m with you, though. So it doesn’t matter anymore. You said we’re… bros.”

“Well,” Shuuichi says, and doesn’t really have a response to that.

Dabi lifts his gaze, finally focusing on Shuuichi. “He said he doesn’t like me.”

“He was probably lying.”

“Why to you, though? He didn’t even know I overheard.” Dabi rolls his eyes. “And you won’t believe me when I say he likes you, but he does. He’s… nice to you.”

“It’s concerning that that’s your threshold for a crush,” Shuuichi says. “That’s like, the bare minimum. People should treat you better.”

“Stop.” Dabi squirms uncomfortably, once again looking away and refusing to make eye contact. “He was also worried about you that one time you fell,” he says instead.

Shuuichi blinks. “Because he’s the team leader and he would have acted the same way with anyone? Again, that’s really concerning.”

Dabi sneers at him. “You’re so dumb.”

“Maybe he lied because he was ashamed of liking you,” Shuuichi continues, ignoring him because Dabi’s bitchy moments are mostly endearing by this point, like some sort of pathetic, soaking wet kitten. Then he realizes what he just said when shock flickers in Dabi’s eyes and quickly backtracks. “I meant of having a crush in general!” He groans and buries his face in his hands. “Oh my god, not because of you specifically. I swear, I would never say something like that about you.”

Dabi seems to calm down at that. “I get it, I believe you. Not about the crush though. Dumbass.”

Shuuichi keeps his face hidden for a few more moments before proceeding to give Dabi an apology kiss. And maybe a few more, just for good measure.

“Why did you keep telling me you and Dabi aren’t together?” Shigaraki complains suddenly.

Shuuichi blinks, and puts down the udon noodles he just picked up with his chopsticks. “Um, because… we weren’t?”

“I saw you guys making out yesterday.”

And Shuuichi freezes, cheeks heating up furiously at the thought of someone witnessing that. He hadn’t realized Shigaraki walked in on them, probably because he was too engrossed in—well. 

They weren’t necessarily keeping it a secret, but they figured they’d just stay quiet about their relationship until they had a better idea of what all this was. “Um. It’s—it’s new. Really new. We weren’t together then, but we are now.”

“Oh,” Shigaraki says faintly. “Well, I’m happy for you two, if you’re happy as well. But I won’t lie, I wasn’t… expecting you and Dabi to start dating, of all people.”

There’s a tinge of hurt to his tone, and Shuuichi knows he must be heartbroken. Which is what drives him to blurt out, “I know you like Dabi. I… it doesn’t bother me. Okay? So if you want to tell him, you can.”

Shigaraki blinks at him, but doesn’t deny it. “How do you…”

“It was kind of obvious, man.” Shuuichi rolls his eyes.

“Do you, um,” Shigaraki clears his throat, looking uncharacteristically uncertain, “do you think the same about anyone else…?”

“What,” Shuuichi says.

“If—if you think I like someone else other than Dabi.” Shigaraki pauses, then adds, “Hypothetically.” 

Shuuichi tilts his head. “No? I mean, is there…”

“N—no, of course not!” Shigaraki shouts, turning red. He pushes his bowl of noodles towards Shuuichi. “Here, finish this. I just realized I have to go, um… stop Geten from antagonizing Dabi again.”

Shuuichi can only stare as Shigaraki shoots up like his seat is on fire and leaves—no, runs out of the room. And is left there wondering why the hell Shigaraki would even bother using that as a fake excuse. There’s literally no way he could know Geten and Dabi are fighting again.

…Fuck, he’s in love with two idiots.

“So Shigaraki definitely loves you,” Shuuichi says, and Dabi frowns at him.

“Shuuichi, just drop it. I don’t care. Really. I have you. You’re not a replacement for Shigaraki, despite what you think.”

Shuuichi ducks his head, ignoring how warm he feels at Dabi using his name. How he gets butterflies in his stomach every time he hears those syllables out of Dabi’s mouth. “It’s just that… I think Shigaraki is upset about us, um. You know.”

Dabi glares at him, crossing his arms over his chest defensively. “You sure it’s not because he likes you?”

“Dabi, I wouldn’t lie to you,” Shuuichi says slowly. “Seriously. And I wouldn’t be telling you this if I had the slightest doubt. Maybe… we should all talk this out.” He takes Dabi’s hand in his own, gently rubbing his thumb over the knuckles.

Dabi snorts. Still, he doesn’t pull his hand away. “You think you can get me and Shigaraki  to have a conversation about our feelings?”

“I want to try,” Shuuichi insists. “I—I—whatever happens, whatever we decide on, I’ll be fine with as long as you two are happy.”

There’s a pause. Dabi looks away, a deep furrow between his brows. “You’re included in that. No arguing with me. Stop… stop selling yourself short. Always. You always do it, and, and it’s—not true. So stop it.” And before Shuuichi can respond, can even begin to think about what to say, he kisses him, pulling away and whispering, “Fine, Shuuichi. I’ll do it for you.”

Shuuichi doesn’t actually tell Shigaraki what he’s calling him in for. He has a feeling he’d have way more trouble convincing him than Dabi if Shigaraki knew what this was really for. 

“Alright,” Shigaraki says, poking his head into the common room. “What’s going on, Spin? You wanna play video games, or something?”

“Yeah,” Shuuichi says, deciding to wait to spring it on him until he’s no longer in the entrance and liable to run away. “Dabi’s gonna be joining us. You’ve been wanting him to play, haven’t you?”

Dabi looks between the two of them. “Wait, I’m going to be wha—” And then Shuuichi stomps on his foot, and he shouts, “Hey!”

Shigaraki blinks. “Is this… an intervention?” He still hasn’t moved from the entrance, oh fuck.

“Intervention? The hell are you talking about?” Shuuichi says, trying very hard not to sound guilty. Is this an intervention? He mostly considered it a “let’s figure out what the fuck is going on.”

Shigaraki groans and leans his head against the doorframe. “Spinner, please just leave it alone. And why is Dabi here?”

And then Dabi says, to Shuuichi’s shock, “I like you back. If Shuuichi wasn’t lying about it.”

Shigaraki is quiet, his face unreadable. “Spinner told you?”

Shuuichi stands up quickly, realizing he may have just fucked things up entirely. “I didn’t—I wasn’t—technically I told him before you even confirmed it.” He wrings his hands. “I didn’t mean to betray your—”

“It’s fine, Spinner. Really.” Shigaraki closes his eyes and finally steps into the room. “I guess if we all know now we should talk about it. It’s just. You’re dating. I don’t want to intrude.”

“You wouldn’t be intruding,” Dabi says quietly. “Especially because Shuuichi likes you, too.”

Shuuichi whirls around. “Dabi!”

“I told you,” Dabi grits out between clenched teeth. “I wasn’t gonna let you be all sacrificial here. You like him, and he likes you. I know.”

Shigaraki looks between the two of them. “You… for real, dude?”

Shuuichi hangs his head. “Yes. I—I know, I don’t deserve you, you’re too good for—”

“Spinner, I don’t want to hear that shit ever again or I’ll dust you,” Shigaraki says fiercely, cutting him off. He moves to gently grab Shuuichi’s arm. “Hey, guess what? None of that’s true. I’m not better than you. And I choose both of you.” He looks over Shuuichi’s shoulder at Dabi, still seated on the couch. “Dabi, get over here.”

There’s a pause, then rustling as Dabi moves to stand by Shuuichi. Shigaraki takes a deep breath. “We’re so stupid. Do we seriously all like each other?”

Shuuichi can’t believe this is actually happening. After convincing himself Shigaraki could never, would never love him, here he is.

“So you… really like me?” Dabi asks in a small voice, sounding so unlike himself. That really had bothered him, huh.

“Yeah, man!” Shigaraki exclaims, looking oh so earnest. He’s grown so much from the man Shuuichi first met all those months ago, the one who didn’t know the first thing about being a leader. “I—I mean, I liked you both, and I noticed you getting closer and closer, so… I never said anything.” He rubs the back of his neck awkwardly. “I was bullshitting so hard that one time I was talking with you, Spin.”

“Oh,” Dabi says, still with that tiny voice. “I overheard that. And I thought that—”

Shigaraki blanches. “Fuck, you did? No, I was lying. I was trying to hide it because I thought you didn’t like me. I mean, you always tell me to die.”

Dabi is suspiciously quiet. Shuuichi rolls his eyes and says, “That’s just because he’s dumb and doesn’t know how to deal with positive emotions.”

Shigaraki looks at Dabi. “What the hell is your problem?” He shakes his head, fighting back a fond grin. “You know what, fuck it.” He takes both their hands in his own, careful to keep one finger curled away on both hands. “Are we… do you want to do this?”

Shuuichi chances a glance at Dabi, then nods and unsticks his tongue from the roof of his dry mouth. “I—I—I still don’t really. Know why you would choose me, but I want to—if you’re both okay with it, I want to try dating both of you.”

Shigaraki frowns at him, then leans forward, and before Shuuichi can even react, places a light kiss on his mouth. Shuuichi stiffens and tries to pull away, but Shigaraki tightens his grip. “Well, I’ll just have to remind you everyday, then.”

“Shigaraki, you…” Shuuichi can’t find the words to express how he feels. “You’re so—you’re incredible.”

Shigaraki flushes slightly, averting his gaze and saying, “Well, I don’t know about that.” Before Shuuichi can respond, he continues. “Dabi. You up for it, too?”

There’s silence, then Dabi says, in a wobbly tone, “...Yes.”

Shuuichi looks over sharply at him. “Are you crying?”

Dabi sniffs and wipes his face. “No,” he says, which is blatantly untrue. “I would never cry.”

Shigaraki and Shuuichi look at each other, and both roll their eyes before bursting out laughing.

“Wait, so you guys started dating each other because you both had a crush on me?” Shigaraki asks incredulously once they’re done recounting everything.

“It wasn’t because of that, we just sort of…” Shuuichi runs a hand through his hair, shaking his head. “Y’know what, never mind. We’re a pair of idiots, aren’t we?”

Shigaraki smiles, a soft, small thing, just a slight quirk of his lips. “Pretty sure I should be included in that.” 

“Well, I’m not,” Dabi says loudly. “I’m the smartest one here. I figured everything out. And I only thought Shigaraki hated me because he said so.”

Shuuichi glowers at him. “You spent weeks insisting you hated Shigaraki because you were too embarrassed to admit you liked him.”

“Shut up, Shuuichi!” Dabi snaps, blue embers popping from his mouth. His fierce glare isn’t enough to detract from his furiously red face, stark against the purple of his scars.

As they devolve into yet another useless argument, Shuuichi notices Shigaraki laughing as he watches them in his peripheral vision. And he thinks, for the first time, maybe he does fit in somewhere.