visit (KNY, GenTan)
All of his companions from his generation are busy dealing with various commissions. There was no one around at the headquarters, he was even put on quarantine at the infirmary just in case. To be honest, he rarely ever gets sick, so you can understand that right now things aren’t looking particularly bright for him.
His fever just hasn’t gone down at all. This is not particularly new for him, as he often comes back feverish from every commission, but right now you can tell it’s a really bad flu what got him feeling like this. It started mild, just like every cold would, but by the second day, he was already bedridden.
A dry cough pains him and cramps his whole body.
He also feels very lonely.
His closest friends were suggested to not get near him in fear that the flu spreads more and the corps lose even more important members on these hard days. As a result of this decision, he’s all alone inside this solitary dorm. It’s quiet, cold, dark, and very, very depressing. Sure, you have a TV where you can watch some old shows from before the demon outbreak, but it doesn’t make him feel any less abandoned by every person he loves.
Tanjirou really held back his negative feelings for as long as he could. However, it’s been a week and a half since his flu started, and he just hasn’t gotten any better. It was just a matter of time it affected him this bad emotionally. The tears grow bigger and bigger in the corners of his eyes as he lies down on the bed, rolling down the sides of his face. A short sob escapes his mouth.
The door suddenly opens.
“Ah—”
He turns his head towards the source of this voice he knows far too well, despite having spoken with him so little. The shock is clear in his face, mouth wide open. He seemed unable to process the imagery in front of him. He holds a tray with a bowl of soup, as well as other side dishes he can’t tell apart from his distance.
“I’ll come back later—”
“No!” he yells, slapping his mouth shut with his hand. That was loud.
“…”
He clears his throat. It still hurts, but he speaks anyway, “sorry about that…”
The guy now hesitant to walk in is someone he knows from his first days in the corps. Back then, he was really abrasive and ill-mannered, and to this day he still behaves that way towards the people he doesn’t know. Up until their last commission together, they didn’t really talk with each other, let alone spend time together. He doesn’t know when, or where, but somehow they created a connection, and their conversations aren’t as awkward anymore.
Until now.
Because unfortunately, Genya walked in right when Tanjirou was crying like a baby.
“Um…” he tries to break the silence, walking a short step forward. “I brought you something to eat. It’s miso soup. Aoi told me you haven’t been eating lately.”
“Is that so…” he hasn’t, that’s true. His appetite is nowhere to be found after his health worsened. Tanjirou knows the only way he can recover is by properly eating, but he feels like throwing up at the contact of food, so what can he do? “You can leave the tray there; I don’t want you to catch the flu as well.”
“I can’t, though?”
“Huh? Ah—” he always forgets. He always forgets about it.
It was a shocker back then, to find someone who is in a similar situation to Nezuko. Except he was just… born like that. In a world where demons and humans fight so viciously against each other, it would only be normal that eventually hybrids would be born out of it. Let it be created in labs for further experiments or born out of a rather complex family. They exist here, and Genya is one of those cases.
It seemed the higher ups at the corps knew about his situation, everyone except Tanjirou. Sure, there was a rare feeling whenever you spent time with Genya. You could absolutely tell that he wasn’t a human, but neither a demon. Only during battle, he noticed he was neither. The weakness to the sunlight stays, as well as those of the humans around him. It seems like a great disadvantage had it not been for his high regenerative power and strength.
He can coexist without issue around humans, and he chose that path as well.
Genya doesn’t really talk about it, though, so many of these things are just wild guesses. All he knows is that there’s some sort of switch inside him, unlike Nezuko, who is a full demon. Somewhere through battles, he can fight as a human, or a demon. He rarely sees him fighting on his second form, though.
Closing the door behind him, he walks closer towards Tanjirou’s bed. “I wondered if you were doing fine since visits aren’t allowed, but I didn’t count on seeing you doing so poorly.” He’s as harsh and honest as ever. “Can you sit up?”
Embarrassed at being caught crying, he simply sits in silence on his bed. He feels his face burning, and he doesn’t know if that’s due to his fever anymore. Neither he knows if the flustered feeling born in his body shows up in his face.
Genya snorts.
“Huh?” he looks at him, who seems to be doing the most to simply not laugh at his face. “Why are you laughing, Genya?”
“Ah… it’s just…” he places the tray on his lap, the bottom feels warm on his legs. “I guess I always arrive at the wrong time. I found that funny.”
Tanjirou reassures him, “if anything, it’s nice that you arrived now.”
“Do you think so?” Genya grabbed one of the chairs that were more of a decoration given the lack of visitants. After placing it near to the bed, he sat. “I shouldn’t have waited so long, then. How is your fever? Has it gone down?”
“I haven’t checked—”
Genya’s hands are warm, maybe because he had been holding the tray with hot food for a while now. He’s gentle in his touch, despite his big frame and intimidating long, black nails. He doesn’t hesitate in his action, instead, he’s very direct and assertive. The feeling of Genya’s hand on his forehead is such a mundane gesture, but it still makes his heart skip a beat. This is a total opposite to his usual avoidance and shyness, and he cannot deny it took him by surprise.
“It really hasn’t gone down huh…” He sighs. “I didn’t really know you could get sick. You’re always so healthy,” he releases, sitting back on his place.
“Yeah… it also took me by surprise,” though that’s not the only thing in my mind now, he thinks.
“Does your body hurt?”
“I feel sore from time to time.”
“I know you haven’t been eating, so I’ll skip that question,” he scratches his scar out of an impulse. “Hmmm… headaches?”
He’s really worried about me, huh… “Sometimes I get them.”
“Have you been drinking water, at least?”
“…” Tanjirou stares at him.
Genya straightens his back given the sudden stare of his counterpart. “I’m asking too many things, aren’t I…” he caught up rather quickly. “Sorry about that.”
He shakes his head to reassure him. “No, no. It’s not that. It’s just…” he decides to grab the utensils on the tray. “It’s strange hearing you talk this much.”
“Ah… is that so?” he chuckles. Everything in today’s interaction is a new for Tanjirou. “The guys are dead worried about you, so I offered to pay a visit, since I can’t get sick. I’m mostly just trying to gather all the information to tell them later.”
Tanjirou doesn’t buy it. “You know I can smell when you lie,” he jokes.
Genya tenses up, frowning. To be honest, Tanjirou’s sense of smell is pretty weak due to the flu he contracted, so he can’t really smell anything out of his friend. Still, there’s something that’s easy to read, and those are Shinazugawa’s real intentions, which are always clear through his face and his mannerisms.
He releases. “Alright, fine. You caught me.” He mutters, “I was worried as well.”
“Hm? I didn’t hear you, Genya!” he smiles, he did hear him.
“Just eat your food already!” his foul mouth gets the better out of him. “I’m not leaving until you eat everything, alright?!”
Tanjirou can’t let go of the smile growing bigger in his face. He was feeling absolutely lonely, and the sadness that came with it kept creeping up on his bed, burying him further and further into the mattress. He was getting caught in his loneliness, feeling abandoned by everyone he loved the most.
He absolutely did not expect that, the first person to break the quarantine he was imposed, would be Genya. Out of all of them, all of his friends, he was almost completely sure Genya wouldn’t come. Seeing him here, though, makes him incredibly happy from the bottom of his heart.
He knew, to some extent, how nice Shinazugawa truly was. You could feel it, deep inside you could feel how his heart was kind and caring, even though it seemed shielded by thick outside layers. He didn’t expect to show up when he needed it the most, and he deeply appreciates him for taking the initiative.
“Will you come next time?” he asks him lost in his own thoughts.
Genya stares at him in shock, he blinks once, twice, and shuts his jaw which had fallen at the sudden question. He hesitates for a second, and Tanjirou can tell. Deep inside, the engine of Genya’s brain was working extra hard, trying to process what had just happened.
“Me?” is all he says.
“I… to be honest, I’m really happy you came to see me,” he admits, avoiding eye contact. “So… I wish I could see you again during the time I’m bedridden…”
“Ah…” his throat is dry, a tint of red showing on his ears. “Well, I guess I could come here and make you eat, since you refuse to do so.”
Tanjirou was ready for rejection, more than ever this time. However, what he receives in response exceeds far beyond his expectations. Is this the start of something he is still unaware of? He’s so excited for what’s to come, it makes him giggle involuntarily. It tickles in his stomach, and the giddy feelings make way to his heart.
This version of Genya, he thinks, I really like it.
