doreimi | IC Inbox | prismatica

[ There's a soft feeling of Chroma when she kisses his cheek. He's jealous of how easy it is for her to just do this. Talk like this. It's not because no one ever tried to help him do it, he just never really wanted to.

Still, he logically knows that he is not at fault for how things went with her. But that doesn't help how he feels about everything. And, for him, that means that if he can do something to change the way her future here goes? He's going to try.

He'll do what he can. She deserves that much, doesn't she? ]

Yes.

[ Maybe. He turns his head, leaning a little to, again, rest his forehead against hers. ]

I know. [ But what he knows means little. ] But I can do things now.

[ I'm not four anymore. ]

[He couldn't have said it louder if he'd actually voiced the words. I'm not a little kid anymore, and it makes her wonder, all of a sudden, if that's something he worries about and never lets on that he does. She struggles herself with who she'd been in Morioh — craving the opportunity to be seen just as Reimi the average girl, instead of as the ghost girl who stayed behind to protect her town until her killer was found.

Somehow, it never really sank in that Rohan might struggle with how she sees him. That he might worry that he'll always be four years old in her eyes, and not seen for himself. Maybe that worries him a lot, and she's never caught sight of it; she doesn't know.

But at least he's opening up to her. He's still gravitating to her, keeping contact, and it's starting to seem like it's as much for his own sake now as it is to keep her rich with chroma.]

I know. You do so much for me.

[Lightly, her fingertips run down his cheek, a soft touch just to add to the contact between them.]

You keep me safe. I know you do.

[ It was what he needed to hear. He needed to know that she felt that effort. An effort he gave no one else because he didn't think anyone else needed it. He feels weirdly earnest for him. Maybe he's spent too much time around the likes of Koichi at home and others here? Or maybe he's just always been pretty honest with no outlet. It's hard for him to say.

Every touch of her fingers on his cheeks helps. Just a little. That unease never vanishes, but it is helping him to at least push it down. Deal with what's going on in his own way.
If he knows she's safe, everything else is easier to keep away.

He'd have to understand it all to begin with, anyway. ]

I try to.

[ But, well, not well enough, he guesses. There's a moment of silence, his hand reaching up over hers. ]

You could have died. [ Again! Okay, enough of this, he decides, and he just shifts, tugging her into a hug, holding her tight and close. Hey, it generates Chroma, too. He's starting to realize in part that that he's imitating physical contact because he likes it, not because he needs Chroma (though he always does). What a convenient excuse. ]

You're not allowed to do that, you know? Die, I mean.

I'm not allowed, huh...?

[It's almost funny, hearing it framed that way. Rohan, imposing his will on the universe, laying down absolute rules like he's writing them into being with his Heaven's Door. She's not allowed to die, and so that's simply how it is. He won't permit anything different, and it warms her with the way she can't help but hide a smile.

If it were someone else — if it were Abbacchio, or Josuke, or really anyone else, she might've joked, I won't die, once was enough for me, thanks. But Rohan won't find it funny, dark humor or not. It's not funny when he's the one she died saving.]

I'll be in pretty big trouble if I do, you mean. You'd probably never forgive me, right?

[ It helps. Her words help him because even though he thinks she's teasing - at least a little, that's how he is. He would be upset, he'd be angry, and he'd blame himself because he'd have no one else to blame for this. And then it'd just spiral. So, she's right. ]

I'd be pretty mad. You'd have to work pretty hard to be forgiven, I think.

[ Implying it'd be here. And that she would return from it when here. Yeah, he'd still be pretty mad about it. ]

So, that won't happen. Besides, Reimi-chan, I wouldn't be the only one upset.

I would hate it, if I did something unforgivable like that.

[Reimi-chan. She can feel a touch of a blush heat her cheeks at the sound of her name; he always does that when he's trying to get a reaction out of her, and it always works, and this is no exception. It's always when he's teasing but not quite, trying to set her off-balance like she always manages to knock him off-balance in return.

A sliver of her lower lip catches behind her teeth; shifting closer, she tucks her head underneath his chin to try to get him to hold her more closely.]

Because you'd be mad at me. I hate it when you're mad at me, it's the worst.

[Not that he ever has been, really. But Rohan getting angry with her would feel like a severing of the tether that ties her to her own identity, and she knows what little progress she's made toward carving one out for herself wouldn't hold up on its own if she were to lose Rohan, now. She won't, she knows that, but it's still a sobering thought.]

Oh? You're keeping track of the people who'd be upset, now?

[ There's a moment, where he feels better about everything, and he lets himself hold onto that feeling for now. He can feel bad and confused and strange later. For now, he'll just let Reimi tuck herself against him and make sure she knows that dying here is not an option.

Although, he does often see who she is interacting with. It's good for him to know who he has to hunt down if she gets hurt.

That's all.

That's a totally healthy way to interact with someone, right? A great way to learn about the things they like and enjoy. He grins, a typical, confident smile. ]

I wonder if I could actually get mad at you.

[ Hmmm. ]

I am. Just a bit. [ Often. ] I have to leave time to draw after all.

Oh, I get it. Your two favorite pastimes, drawing and keeping track of everybody I ever talk to.

[It's funny because she's being ironic and he's absolutely not kidding.]

...Do you want me to stay here tonight? I can. If you want, I mean.

[What she means is, if it would make you feel better. It's not often that Rohan admits to being scared of anything, much less something having to do with someone else and not himself. He's perking up now, and some of the anxious panic seems to be subsiding; she doesn't want to do anything to jeopardize that, not now.]

[ Haha, yeah he's 100% not kidding about this. O o p s. He doesn't really even think of how it sounds or seems. Besides, it's not like he's stalking entire conversations, right.

But at her offer, he accepts it easily. ]

Yes. You can. You can use the room if you want.

[ Well, one of the rooms. But, he doesn't want her to spend the whole night sleeping on the couch if it's uncomfortable. ]

...That's not what I asked, Rohan.

[She draws back a little, only just far enough that she can look him in the eyes — and still close enough that he has to look at her, too, because there's no room to look away.]

I know I can. I know you'd never turn me away. But what I asked is, do you want me to stay.

Yes.

[ Actually it was really easy. Why did -- he didn't want it to seem like he was being too needy or desperate for attention, even though he is. Or desperate for attention. Yeah. He'd have Reimi stay here all the time, but he also hadn't suggested it quite yet. ]

Stay here, Reimi. That's what I want.

[ Don't be difficult, Rohan. ]

Then I will.

[That wasn't so hard, was it?, she almost adds, but holds back. There's a limit to how far she's willing to push, especially on a night like this, and that feels like too much. She glances away instead, a brisk flick and lowering of her eyes, before slowly looking back at him.]

You can watch out for me tonight. As much as you want. I'll feel better, knowing that you're close by.

[ He doesn't know that he'd be able to sleep tonight if he wanted to. He was drained, but not tired. It was an odd alertness that was lingering over him. He didn't say it, though. He didn't want her to worry about the total lack of sleep he'd inevitably get. Besides, it's not like he slept regularly before coming here. ]

I'll watch out for you.

[ He doesn't think he has anything to worry about here, in his apartment. But it will still help him feel better. ]

Tonight. You'll stay safe.

[ Not just tonight, either. At the very least, there's no need to explain how easy it is for him to do it. ]

No one, and nothing, can get you in here.

[ And there's that confidence. ]

[She nods, silent, and as she ducks her head a few stray locks of hair fall over her eyes, halfway obscuring her features; lost in thought, she makes no move to brush them away. It'll be easier to relax knowing that Rohan will be close by. She'll be able to let down her guard a little, and release some of the vigilant tension she might otherwise have had to keep up if she'd gone home alone. And if something happens again, he'll be there. It's for the best that she stays, of course it is.

He thought she died again tonight. He thought she died, and it scared him.]

...Thanks for finding me, Rohan.

[She whispers, and doesn't know if she means tonight, or back in Morioh, or always.]

[ Yeah. It's really lucky, and he knows it. Both hands move, reaching to grip either of her cheeks and he leans in, resting his forehead against hers. He'll feel so much better knowing she's safe and close and that he can protect her. He can do what he has to in order to protect her. There's no one else he would do this for. There's no one he values like her.

He told her -- Well, since he has her here. ]

It's good I did.

[ If he used those words to other people, it might sound like he was scolding them, but it didn't worth her. There's a deep breath. ]

There's no one more important to me than you are. Of course I'll find you.

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