Archive of Our Own

Reigen is a generally well-put together person.  

Yeah, he was a cheap salesman. Yeah, he knowingly goes out of his way to scam people to make money. It was with good intention — they should be thankful for that. Does it bother him sometimes? Yeah.  

Better than the alternative. He had enough of the corporate slow-march to death. Years of wasted time, grueling hours, lost weekends, and insufferable managers. Now he's his own boss and gets to make his own rules. That counts as a great achievement in his mind. Something to offset the lies and schemes he runs to get by. The ends always justify the means, right?  

When Mob came into his life, he'd say it was for the better. He's learned a lot from the kid and vice-versa. Shigeo was a good-mannered, upstanding person that wouldn't harm a fly unless that fly threatened to harm the life of someone close to the him. He was polite to a fault. A person that should be admired and would likely go far in life based on his good will alone.  

This is why Reigen is so baffled.  

Ritsu was nothing like that.  

The younger, for the lack of a better term, feistier brother.  

He was polite, but not for the same reasons. He was good mannered, but it was calculated. He too will probably go far in life based on those traits alone. However, Reigen suspects it will be for entirely different reasons.  

See, despite all his outward charm and good-kid antics, Ritsu has a dark underpinning. Reigen can feel it, has seen it, and can't comprehend how this could be the case — Shigeo doesn't have a bad bone in his body. The older Kageyama sibling sets good examples to follow. The parents of the kids seemed harmless. Oblivious yes, but present and caring. Nothing about the family situation appears to provide any insight for where this black spot comes from.  

Reigen wouldn't care either. He only has to because on days like today, he has the unfortunate blessing of getting to work with the snarkier brother. The more distrustful, hateful, scheming brother. What a gift.  

"Hey." Reigen hears the snippy remark trying to grab his attention.  

The two were currently investigating a reported haunting in an old run-down motel in the middle of nowhere. They had already spoken to the innkeeper, a creepy old man that was at least 100 years old. The whole building was wooden, very traditional, dusty and smelled like age. There was a mix of electricity and vintage lighting methods — candles were placed in random spots that didn't make much sense. The floor was chipped at and creaked anytime you stepped on it. The wind and rain could be heard outside.  

Charming establishment.  

Serizawa, Hanazawa and Mob were unavailable for this job. Something about Katsuya needing a day off for a dentist trip he'd been putting off for years, Hanazawa, like Mob, had tests coming up that were grueling and needed more time to study. Even if that kid denied it, he still had a lot of work to do. Mob wanted to tag along, but Reigen himself advised against it. Shigeo's future was just as important as his current work.   

He regrets that advice at the present. He looks down to his stand-in partner.  

"What?" Is Reigen's simple response.  

Ritsu narrows his eyes at him. For all it's worth, the look is threatening, but his young face doesn't help much with intimidation. It's almost funny, cute or whatever.  

"What kind of a business man are you? Do you ever listen when others speak?"  

Scratch cute.  

"Always at attention. Now c'mon do you sense an actual spirit anywhere around here or not?" Reigen doesn't have time to entertain a teenager's edgy jabs. He's a mature adult. He's above that sort of petty thing.  

"Dunno. You're the master esper here."  

"Hey! You watch that mouth of yours. You should be thankful I'm even giving you the opportunity to work for me."  

"Thrilled. Truly."  

"Look, we need to help this client out so I can get back to civilization and higher-priority things. All I'm asking is for you to tell me whether or not there is any real threat and I can take it from there!"  

"Sure. Thought you would have picked up on it yourself by now since you're so powerful."  

"Such a mood killer. No wonder Mob avoided playing with you when you were kids—"  

At that, Ritsu's psychic energy swarms around them. Reigen gulps with fear, realizing he's crossed the ever-dreaded 'Mob' line when it comes to Ritsu. He would kill everything and then himself if anything ever happened to his older sibling. That hyper protectiveness was a terrifying thing to come face to face with.  

"Go ahead and say that again." Ritsu dares, stepping towards Reigen with the intent to make mincemeat out of him if necessary.  

Reigen sighs. It was a cold rainy October evening; even with his coat and scarf he was freezing. The heating system at this establishment was less than desired. He is hungry, irritable, and annoyed by his assistant's attitude.  

So, he does what he does best and does something totally unexpected.  

He pats Ritsu on the head and then slaps his shoulder.  

"Aw, now now, let's not be immature about this," Reigen laments smoothly. "You and I both know I was just messing with you. Besides, I know you've got a lot of potential Ritsu. I see the way Mob looks at you."  

Ritsu surprisingly falls for it and calms down. He goes out of his way to quip back though.  

"The only thing you see in me and my brother most of the time are walking yen banks." He steps around the older man to press forward into the creepy hallway. His dark black coat helps him blend in with the shadows as he slips through them.  

"True. It's no secret I make money and I in turn pay you. Kinda like that's how the real-world works. You provide a service and get paid based on how good a job you do." Reigen decides the only way he's going to get anywhere with Ritsu is to treat him like an equal. He doesn't see the student in that way, but he suspects it will work on loosening him up.  

"What are you trying to say? That I don't know what I'm doing?"  

"The opposite actually. I'd argue there's things you do a lot better than Mob."  

Ritsu stops walking, but doesn't turn to face Reigen. The salesman pauses himself and waits for another snide answer to his pseudo praise.  

"...Like what?"  

Interesting. Reigen is now positive that he's tapped into what one would call a 'weak spot' for Ritsu. He can work with this. He needs to be careful and not lay it on too thick though.  

"Well, for one I'd say you're a lot more aware of your environment. You're less trusting of the situation at hand, and to me that means you're more thoughtful of how things could turn out. I mean, don't take it from me, Mob says all kinds of good things about you."  

Ritsu turns. His eyes are shining a little brighter. "Really? What does my brother say?"  

Reigen might regret this later if he isn't careful.  

"I'm sure you've heard it from him before. You're talented, popular, the works. He thinks you could be stronger than him someday."  

"Really?" The tone to the young esper's voice sounds vulnerable. That's a first.  

"You bet. I see it too Ritsu. Trust me I get that you don't really like me, which is fine, but we're here to do a job, okay? Let's just work together and wrap this up and I'll buy dinner. What do you say? Maybe I'll even through a little extra into your cut huh?"  

Ritsu seems to think for a beat. It's hard to tell what's going on in his head. What is obvious, is that his entire mood has shifted. Reigen always suspected there was some sort of admiration/jealousy thing going on with Ritsu. Despite all his feelings for Mob, deep down that dark spot of negative energy pulsates. It festers and feels bitter — maybe even hateful. One needn't be an esper to pick up on that.  

"Is that how you really feel? You think I'm the same as Shigeo?" Ritsu says with a stiff posture. "You think I can be stronger than him? That's ridiculous. Have you seen what he can do? Don't mess with me. It won't change how I feel about you or him."  

Reigen deflates watching his young employee continue his patrol. He begins opening and closing doors, evidently looking for spirits.  

He might not be on his good side, but hey, Reigen's got him doing the work now. Still, he feels genuinely bad for hurting Ritsu's feelings. He wonders how he can make up for it. He already offered free food and a bonus — what more could one want? That's a banging deal! Then Reigen thinks a little harder. Maybe what Ritsu was looking for wasn't what someone could give him per se. Maybe it was more about what someone feels for him — as an outsider; a marker of valuation that wasn't biased.  

That makes more sense. Really, all the kid was looking for was acceptance.  

"Do you have a girlfriend Ritsu?" Reigen asks bluntly. He needs to figure out if Ritsu has anyone else on the outside he can confide in or get approval from.  

The psychic seems startled at the question and blushes a little. "What kind of question is that?" he asks angrily. "That's none of your business!"  

"Hey, I'm trying to be nice here. Why don't you try setting aside your preconceived ideas about me and listen?"  

Reverse psychology. It works, as Reigen's learned by conning people over the years.  

Ritsu hesitates.  

"No, I don't. Happy?"  

"Neutral. It's called casual talk. You should be good at that considering how popular you are at school. Usually that carries over into adult life seamlessly. I've seen it falter before though. Some people let their bad emotions get the better of them and it takes over their life. It's an easy thing to fall into. Almost did myself a few times over the years." Now Reigen's legitimately curious.  

Why does Ritsu dislike him?  

"What about you? I never see you hanging out with anyone else apart from my brother and Serizawa — and Teru. Don't you think that's kinda weird?" Ritsu's fists are tightly clenched. He's getting mad again. Sparks of psychic energy distort the area.  

"I never said you not having a girlfriend was weird. That's entirely your perception," Reigen casually responds. "And for the record, I've dated plenty of people over the years. You'll get to experience it someday. If Mob can shoot his shot, the worlds in your hands." He withers inside at his bold-faced lie, but brushes the feeling aside quickly.  

Feeling emboldened, totally not frustrated with himself, Reigen pinches Ritsu's face — right on his left cheek. His skin is very soft and squishy. The word 'cute' pops up in Reigen's subconscious again. Ritsu really does look like Mob's brother; a little taller, a bit sharper, but the similarities are undeniable.  

Before Ritsu can react Reigen withdraws his hand back into one of his pockets.  

"Let's check this room next."  

Reigen doesn't pause his momentum to turn around and study Ritsu's red tinted face.  

They enter through a sliding door. It snaps against the wall loudly, sending a jolt up Reigen's spine. The room wasn't as eerie as the hall. It was cleaner, not perfect by any means, and had a dash of colour — unlike everywhere else. He reaches for the ceiling light switch and flicks it. Nothing. With a sigh Reigen marches over to a standing lamp and tries it — amazingly this one works.  

Ritsu approaches the sole window of the space and pulls back a worn curtain. It's almost completely dark outside, rain still thundering down. The esper seems more cautious now. Maybe he is picking up on a spirit in here.  

"What do you think Ritsu? Anything pinging your radar?"  

"No. It's oddly calm energy in here. I haven't picked up on a single thing yet."  

"Maybe the old man needs to consider all his misfortunes are stemming from the fact this dump is falling apart. I mean just look at this place. One wrong move and you'd probably fall through the floor." Reigen stomps a foot down a few times for emphasis, only to actually have his foot go through the wood. He screams in terror.  

"The spirit's got me!"  

Then he hears a brief laugh. It doesn't sound malicious. He pauses and looks at Ritsu, who is covering his mouth to try and hide his amusement. That was a rare sight — the younger Kageyama genuinely laughing.  

"I'd say it's the floor that got you, but whatever you choose to believe."  

Punk.  

Reigen composes himself quickly. "Ah, you're right. Lack of sleep and the desire to go home and go to bed can make one jumpy y'know?" He removes his foot from the hole. "We have another level of this joint to explore. Let's move on." As Reigen makes his way for the door, Ritsu stays behind.  

The businessman stops and looks at Ritsu. "Hm? You good? Let's go we don't have a lot of time to waste-"  

As he's speaking, the door to the room slams shut. Reigen nearly jumps out of his skin this time. "Holy—! What the hell!?" He shrieks.  

Ritsu looks startled himself. "There might be something here after all...I can't pin where it's located though!"  

Reigen tries opening the door to no avail. "Hey! If this is some kinda prank it isn't funny! Let us out of here!" His request is met with the sound of pouring rain.  

"Ritsu, use your psychic powers to get us out of here." Reigen asks. The student nods and approaches the door, raising his hands to try and pull it back — or tear it off — whatever works. Psychic energy surrounds him and when he tries to tug it back, he is met with an energy barrier.  

"Someone's got us trapped in here." Ritsu laments.  

"Great observation. Now, how do we get out?" Reigen can feel the panic in his body. He has to try and remain calm though — he doesn't want to make himself look like more of a fool than he already has. Not that he cares, he simply doesn't feel like dealing with cocky statements about what kind of coward he is.  

Ritsu pulls out his phone. "Dead signal too. We aren't getting any backup."  

The two psychic professionals listen. Nothing — more rain and creaking of wood.  

Reigen sighs and sits down on the bed. "Well, this must be one bored spirit. It trapped us in here and hasn't revealed itself. Are you sure you aren't picking up on anything?"  

Ritsu shakes his head. "Nothing. My only guess is that this is some kind of residual energy that we stirred up by entering this place. It might dissipate if we give it a little time."  

"Sooo, you're telling me we sit here and wait?"  

Ritsu looks at Reigen. A brief flash of doubt skimmers past his eyes. "Yes."  

Wonderful. Fantastic. Amazing. Fate sure does have a way of testing Reigen. What the hell is he supposed to do with this brat for who knows how long?  

He pinches his temple. "Well, I might try to catch some shut eye while we wait. How long do you think it could be?"  

"Hard to say. Based on the strength of this barrier, I'd guess anywhere from an hour or two."  

"Really? That'll be easy to wait out. Alright, nap time it is then. I'll leave you on guard for the first hour." Reigen flops down and flinches. The bed isn't all that comfortable. Who is he kidding — what maniac could sleep in this situation?  

Ritsu doesn't respond. Reigen gets confused at this and sits up. No snarky comeback? He looks right at Ritsu who is positioned near the blocked exit. The esper appears bothered and is staring at the floor. The room's energy is unfamiliar. Reigen doesn't like it.  

"Are you okay?" the older man asks. "Want me to keep watch first?"  

When Ritsu finally looks at him, Reigen isn't sure he's seeing what he thinks he is.  

The psychic has a small flush on his face and immediately looks back down when they make eye contact. He appears conflicted. Maybe the spirit got to him? Reigen motions to stand up.  

"Hey maybe you should lay down-"  

He's cut off by Ritsu walking up to him and pushing him back down onto the mattress. Reigen is so taken aback by the action he can't speak. He lifts himself up onto his elbows to scrutinise Ritsu entirely.  

The younger Kageyama brother is biting his lip and looking down, almost as if he were holding back tears. What on earth is this? He swallows and raises his head to glare at Reigen, this time, with vicious intent.  

"Why do you and everyone lie to my face constantly?" Ritsu spits out. His tone is scathing. "Why can't anyone be straight with me? All I ask is for others to stop looking at me like I'm some kind of invincible, amazing person. I'm not — I have problems too!"  

Reigen is only partly surprised now. He's starting to think the supportive approach wasn't the best idea. At least he now knows Ritsu wasn't possessed by some evil demon. He pushes himself up to sit again and his partner takes a step back.  

"Why can't anyone be honest with me? I'm not a good person. I'm not stronger than Shigeo. I'm weak. I don't have all this potential everyone is constantly telling me I have. The little I do possess — well..." Ritsu pauses and looks at his hand. "I once thought I could use this power for something greater than my brother. I thought I could make some kind of difference on my own. Without it being molded by what others think I should do."  

Reigen silently allows him to continue.  

"Then I realised that I can be true to myself without having to prove myself. As a matter of fact, I don't have to oblige the expectations others have of me at all."  

Now Reigen's getting nervous. "What are you saying? I'm sorry if I said something wrong-"  

"That's exactly what I'm talking about! Why doesn't anyone get mad at me when I act like this? It's stupid! Everyone is always so patronising, asking me what's wrong, how they can help. Even Shigeo wouldn't ever hit me back!"  

When he says it initially Reigen almost responds. Then he replays the sentence in his head again and realises that what Ritsu here has been looking for, is some discipline. Some structure. Someone to rebuke him and tell him he's in the wrong. Someone to maybe even give him beating. Not a bad one — more of a gesture putting him in his place. Reigen gets a crazy idea he hopes might help. If his intuition is anything to go by.  

He gestures for Ritsu to approach him by waving his hand to come forward. Ritsu looks confused, but predictably, does just that. When he's standing in front of Reigen, the older man raises his hand slowly, almost as if he was going to comfort the boy, and then shifts that energy faster than Ritsu could catch and slaps him in the face. Hard.  

Ritsu's head spirals to the side and he stumbles back from the blow. Reigen stands up from the bed and remains still before his technical employee. He's playing with fire, but it hurts his heart to see this young guy so distraught with himself. Reigen managed to help Mob out with his problems, maybe he could break through to Ritsu too.  

When the younger Kageyama looks at Reigen again, he almost looks ecstatic. He has a small smirk and despite holding the throbbing spot on his face — has a sparkle in his eye that indicates that he might have...enjoyed that hit. Way, way more than he should have. The sight sends a shiver down to the tips of Reigen's fingers. Not quite the reaction he was expecting that's for sure.  

"Do you hit Shigeo like that?" Ritsu chides — his words roll of his tongue like needles pressed into skin. He looks thrilled and infuriated at the same time.  

Reigen is starting to think this is how he dies and that he has the worst intuition on earth.  

"Hey! hey hey, look. Sorry, I thought...I wasn't...you were-!" he stumbles over his words, a rare thing for him to do. Reigen feels his heartrate picking up. Maybe Ritsu is actually unhinged — maybe that dark spot that circles his mind is breaking through. This brings Reigen back to that fundamental question he wonders from time to time: are some people simply born bad?  

No. That was a stupid conclusion.  

Ritsu is a moody teenager. He's all over the place with what he says and does. In fairness, Mob had the same issue, albeit at a far lower rate. He overcame it eventually and Reigen is sure that the younger brother can do the same. Now that he's gotten himself into such a touchy situation though — he wonders how to come out of it with his life.  

In this moment he experiences a second of true, life-threatening fear when looking at Ritsu.  

And as usual, Reigen decides to do something totally off the wall to get out of it.  

He acts without thinking too much and grabs Ritsu's arm, which seems to catch the esper off guard. He then yanks him back and throws him down onto the mattress.  

"What are you-!" Before Ritsu can protest, Reigen scrambles to grab his wrists and trap him on the surface. He does it with no ill-intent — the bed just seems like a lesser hassle than wrestling the brat on the floor.  

"Shut up." Reigen orders. Ritsu falls silent without a struggle. His expression appears shocked, and that red blush starts creeping onto his face again.  

Interesting.  

"I'm giving you ten seconds to calm down before we both get jumped by the spirit," Reigen instructs. "You acting like an inconsiderate, juvenile idiot is going to get us killed. Grow up and quit thinking the world revolves around you and your feelings. Guess what? It doesn't!" Reigen is genuinely angry now. Maybe because Ritsu is hitting a little too close to how he used to feel years ago before his current apathy buried any semblance of existential dread.  

He sees some of himself in Ritsu. Maybe Ritsu sees some of himself in Reigen.  

Maybe that's why they don't get along.  

"You didn't answer my question," Ritsu asks with as much bite as he had earlier. "Do you treat brother like this too?"  

"Why would you care anyway? You have so much envy for what he has that it surprises me you'd find something like that so important." Reigen intentionally uses a cold tone of voice, one he reserves for those that truly need put in their place. Ritsu seems to falter at that. "Now calm down so we can focus on getting out of here alive-"  

He's cut off again when Ritsu knees him in the stomach. Reigen wheezes, but catches himself quick enough. He grabs the student by the hair with a vice grip, yanking him back down and fighting against him until he succeeds in flipping him around. He pins him to prevent any more of a struggle. While he's man-handling Ritsu, Reigen hears something far more terrifying than anything he's encountered in his life — spirits, demons and all.  

It sounds like a very small moan, but not one of pain.  

Ritsu is enjoying this.  

Why else wouldn't he be using his psychic powers to throw Reigen out the other end of the building to his doom? He's not as strong as Mob, but he could still kill the older man if he truly wanted to.  

Reigen pauses. He feels a cold block of ice resting against his heart. He then wonders if there are any spirits here at all. Ritsu could lie, unlike his brother. Ritsu was in a far, far darker headspace than Reigen had initially determined.  

While he's reeling from the thought, Ritsu moves again, using some of his power to flip and put Reigen underneath him.  

"Hey, stop this right now!" Reigen demands. "Ritsu, I'm telling you to stop!"  

Ritsu is now on his knees hovering over Reigen. His face looks conflicted. He falls forward onto his hands to stare down at the older man, who is at a total loss at what to do at this point. Does this brat have some sort of crush on him? Sure has odds ways of expressing it. If that's what it is, Reigen needs to shut it down immediately.  

"Why do you spend so much time with people half your age? Are you some kind of sicko?" Ritsu speaks evenly. "I should tell Shigeo about what kind of person you really are."  

"What, tell him you've got an inappropriate crush and decided to molest me while filling in for him?" He shouldn't have. Reigen should've know better, but he couldn't keep it to himself. This whole argument is getting on his nerves, and now he's in big trouble dealing with an underage crazy that may have an infatuation with him. He shuts his eyes in fear.  

He expects pain, a retort, or something. When nothing comes, he opens his eyes. Ritsu is blushing a dark red and looks utterly torn. His sight is downcast and refuses to meet Reigen's. The psychic releases his hold on him and gets off the older man. Reigen sits up quickly and scoots himself back. He's shaken. A rare thing for him.  

He feels his heart pounding in his chest too. That's to be expected though — between the threat to his life and shock of being semi-confessed to by an underage boy, what else would happen? It has nothing to do with any illegal feelings for Ritsu. If anything, the thought freaked Reigen out.  

"H-hey," Reigen tries. "We...we can pretend none of this happened. Why don't you let us out Ritsu? I'm sorry if I ever said or did anything to you to make you think I have...weird feelings. I would never — I am truly sorry." The whole mood is awkward. Reigen wants to die. He knows Ritsu is keeping them locked in here. It's a sinister revelation.  

The psychic in training bites his bottom lip again. "Do you have feelings for Shigeo?"  

Reigen blinks several times. "N-no! God no! Other than as an apprentice and working friend, absolutely not in a million years no."  

Ritsu stiffens, not looking at Reigen. What feels like an eternity passes. When Reigen tries to speak once more, he's halted by Ritsu approaching him.   

"Say something else and I'll kill you." It's a serious threat from the dark eyed teenager.  

With that, Ritsu breaks into Reigen's personal space and kisses him.  

It's close-mouthed. Reigen refuses to react to it. Ritsu keeps gently kissing him and shifts to sit in Reigen's lap. The kid's hands are noticeably smaller than his own, and wander to Reigen's neck, gliding their way to his nape and just — innocently explore. It's like a very illegal and wrong tickle.  

Ritsu's hot breath fans over Reigen's face and neck before he feels the psychic start kissing there. It feels hesitant, but when a wet, hot tongue slips out to slide against the salesman's jugular, he winces and snares Ritsu's hands and pushes him back. Reigen's heart is beating out of his ribcage now. He's shaking and feels goosebumps all over his arms. He feels sick.  

He won't speak — because per Ritsu, that would mean death. So instead, he glares with the most disgusted, disappointed look he can manage, praying that it sends the signal to Ritsu that this is wrong and he needs to stop.  

Ritsu seems shameful, Reigen will give him that. That flush is one of excitement, but guilt-ridden. He wants to have the older man, but knows what he's doing is bad. That's good — at least he's not totally insane.  

"Please," Ritsu asks with a voice so quiet Reigen almost doesn't recognise it. "Let me-"  

"Ritsu," Reigen cautiously tries. "We can't. You know we can't."  

"Why? I want to, so it's not wrong," Ritsu weakly challenges. "Just this one time. I won't ask ever again."  

Reigen is baffled, so naturally his response again is simply "Why?"  

Ritsu squirms. "Does it matter? I want to have se-" he studders. "Have..."  

"Sex? With me?" Reigen asks in disbelief simply to confirm he isn't hallucinating.  

Ritsu blushes even darker if that were possible, and gently nods. Reigen has a suspicion Ritsu will never tell him why. He's not ugly by any means, but he also isn't the hottest guy around. Reigen's best guess is it has something to do with being a figure of authority that stands to put up a fight against Ritsu's antics. Not in a physical way, but Ritsu seems to have this little domination complex going on. He wants to take it out on someone he can get away with — on someone that can give him a release. It's actually cute.  

Reigen mentally chokes himself for that sudden thought. No, it's not cute. It's bad.  

"What if I say no?" Reigen asks hesitantly.  

Ritsu begins struggling again, some power simmering into the grip Reigen has him locked with. "Then we don't leave." Ritsu answers. "You're not virtuous by any means by the way. I know what you do to people. Don't act like you're taking the moral high ground by not doing this."  

Reigen is getting irate now. It's starting to test his patience — and furthermore his restraint.  

He flips them again so Ritsu is back underneath him. The esper shivers and the vibration crawls up into Reigen's own form. This kid is whipped. All lies aside, it makes Reigen feel proud. It gives him a strange gut feeling of power that he very rarely takes joy in. His body is now starting that wretched fight against his mind. Should he give in and call it a day? Or fight tooth and nail to commit to 'no'?  

Ritsu swallows hard and looks into the conman's eyes. "Reigen—"  

Oh god. That tone of voice. It's so sexual. Maybe if he wasn't so pent up from no action for...how many years has it been now? Then he would be firmer with his rejection. Reigen feels himself being dragged down, literally and metaphorically.  

The student pulls his hands free and takes off Reigen's scarf. Then he begins unbuttoning his jacket. It's still too cold for Reigen's liking, but it's starting to get hotter in the room very quickly. It's happening too fast — he's struggling to think.  

As Ritsu is dragging his coat off, Reigen stops him in a burst of clarity. "You tell no one of this." He orders. That's it — he's caving in. So what? Maybe they both want this and will never speak of it again and all is fine and dandy. He gets off good enough, maybe it'll scare Ritsu into never ever coming near him ever again and he can go dig a ditch behind this motel and bury himself alive in it. Yeah, there's an idea.  

"I won't." Ritsu affirms. "Please."  

Reigen didn't realise his ethical barrier was so weak. Then again, he does a lot of lying and bad things in general, so what does it matter if the recipient is willing? Something that chirps in the back of his mind tells him he's supposed to be the adult in the situation. So much for that.  

Reigen begins kissing Ritsu openly. He sticks his tongue down his throat and shivers at the sound the boy makes. He completely removes his coat and chucks it to the floor. Then he starts working at his tie. Ritsu is shakily moving to take off his coat as well — for how eager he is, he seems scared as hell. Reigen's stomach drops to his feet at the thought of being Ritsu's first.  

"Here, let me." Reigen tries to soothe the situation by finishing the last buttons on the black coat and sliding it off Ritsu's shoulders. Ritsu then grabs his sweater and tugs it up over his head. When his small torso is exposed, Reigen almost retreats. These conflicting emotions fade however when Ritsu kisses him again.  

With a tremble, Reigen moves his hands to settle on Ritsu's bare skin. It's like an electric shock — whether it's from the heat or psychic powers. He slides his hands up on the student's body, flinching with a pang of arousal when Ritsu gasps and arches into the touch.  

Fuck.  

Reigen decides he wants to get this over with as fast as possible.  

"Alright let's do this." he says flatly while simultaneously removing his tie. He kisses Ritsu on the mouth again. The boy is a horrible kisser, big shocker. His enthusiasm is there — every lick and bite he receives he tries his best to return. Small hands attempt plucking the buttons on Reigen's shirt. He allows it to happen while shifting to kiss Ritsu's neck.  

"Ah~" comes a soft release from the student. He cranes his neck back and the headiness dials into overdrive. Reigen is utterly, and absolutely screwed; perhaps for life.  

"You know, I'm disappointed Ritsu." Reigen whispers into the psychic's ear. "You're supposed to be the ideal picture of a top student. A good little brother for Mob. What would he do if he knew you were such a perverted degenerate?"  

"Ahh — b-brother would hate me-" Ritsu ends his confession with a squeak as Reigen begins licking his chest. "He thinks I'm such a good person but I'm not! I mess up too — it's not fair-"  

"Don't worry, you're the only winner in this department as far I know." Reigen derides. Ritsu looks at him with a hurt expression. He's justified in that conclusion. Reigen didn't intend for that to come out in a nice context. Ritsu needs to learn a lesson from this after all.  

The conman takes off his shirt and tosses it. Then he tugs off the indoor shoes Ritsu has on and begins working on his jeans. Once unbuttoned and unzipped, he makes quick work of pulling them down off of slender legs. Ritsu's whole body was still so...small. He was so young. The impact of the situation claws at Reigen's heart again — the bit of arousal he is getting is from all the physical movements of Ritsu rubbing against him.  

All that was left were Ritsu's calf-high socks and his grey undershorts. Reigen forgets to breath when he notices the wet spot. Ritsu spreads his legs wider and slides his hands down his naval. He begins rubbing himself through the fabric, teasing Reigen whether he knew it or not. Probably just instinct from being a young horny teenager.  

"Don't hold back," Ritsu gains some composure, eyes wide with hunger. His hair is tussled and his heavy breathing accentuates his ribs. A light sheen of sweat glistens on his forehead.  

"I won't." Reigen answers tersely. He'd be lying if he said the laid-out body beneath him wasn't erotic. He studies the flawless skin and thin frame. He hates that he's starting to get turned on the further they go.  

Reigen removes Ritsu's hands and moves to suck on the boy's neck while sliding a hand down his body and under the fabric. The foreign skin-on-skin has Ritsu jerking with pleasure. He thrusts his hips into the touch with abortive movements.  

"R-Reigan-ahh-there—ah-ahh!"  

Reigen's hand is rubbing on Ritsu's erection and switches to grasp it. It's noticeably smaller than his own. Sinister guilt stabs his gut once more, but he pushes it away.  

He does this for a minute, feeling semen start to leak out of Ritsu's dick. It makes his hand all sticky and slimy — and makes his own erection much harder.  

The older man switches to suck on Ritsu's collarbone. He pauses the masturbation and removes his hand to pull off the esper's shorts. The sight of Ritsu bare-naked below him with his little socks and dick all angry was a sight Reigen never would have dreamed he would see, but is finding himself more and more enthralled that he has.  

He sits up and kisses down one of Ritsu's legs, nipping on occasion and licking the mark. Ritsu covers his face with his hands, just enough to peak his eyes through and watch himself be touched by Reigen.  

When that mouth comes dangerously close to Ritsu's hard-on the student starts pushing his hips up to try and connect them with it. Reigen chuckles under his breath. He remembers what it was like at that age — well, mostly. He wasn't doing this with an old man in a rundown hotel in the middle of nowhere far away from all his friends and family.  

He doesn't put his mouth on it, since he feels overwhelmed at the idea. Instead, Reigen leans back again and unfastens his slacks. He can't stick his dick in Ritsu — not without tearing his ass apart. He can use his fingers and the boy's thighs. It's the only realistic trade-off he can think off. No lube, no condoms, no traditional penetration.  

Once he pulls out his own erection, Ritsu gawks at it with embarrassment. It's beyond obvious he's inexperienced.  

"I'm not going to stick it in you," Reigen explains. "You would tear and then we'd be taking a trip to the hospital. I can use my fingers, or just...rub them together..." Great, now he's the one getting worked up. In his defense this is a new type of encounter of this nature. He has every reason to be flustered.  

Ritsu swallows hard — panting and eager to move forward. "Can you stick your fingers in?" he asks so nicely Reigen doesn't have much choice in the matter.  

The businessman places his fingers in his mouth to coat them with saliva. This would still hurt Ritsu a lot. He decides to take it slow until he gets the young man to orgasm. It shouldn't take long at all with the state he's in.  

Reigen finishes slicking up his fingers and softly rubs the pads against Ritsu's twitching pink hole. He uses his other hand to pull the flesh of his rear further away to inspect his work. He's not one to get riled up often, but Reigen feels heat beating in his face. His heart is also racing as he fingers his youngest apprentice.  

"Oh—Reigen!-ah-there-there-" Ritsu begins fucking himself against the fingers, coaxing them to breach his body. The friction starts to fall away as he relaxes his muscles to try and allow the tips to slip inside.  

Reigen inhales and grits his teeth as he finally pushes a digit in. It's searing hot with a tight grip. It's beyond salacious. It's all-consuming lust for Reigen now as he leans into Ritsu and pushes his finger deeper inside.  

"Reigen!" Ritsu gasps, his eyes going wide and brow furrowed. His breath comes out in short, hot pants. This was likely a brand-new sensation for the esper, so his reaction is understandable. Reigen doesn't pause and begins wiggling the digit back and forth, massaging the internal muscle. He begins to press a second inside and Ritsu flinches.  

"Are you okay?" Reigen asks, genuinely concerned. He won't go beyond anything Ritsu can handle — he isn't the one that wanted to do this.  

"It feels weird," Ritsu chokes out. "It's a weird pressure."  

"Don't worry, it'll get better." Reigen begins his search for Ritsu's prostate, and with luck finds it pretty quickly. His two fingers feel the little bud and start to rub it back and forth with a steady push.  

When they make contact with it, Ritsu jolts again from the sheer pleasure. He releases a delectable moan and begins fucking himself harder against the penetration. It's a sight that will stain Reigen's mind for the rest of his days.  

"There—there-" he pants as he rocks up and down. "Ahh-!"  

Reigen tries for a third finger, and with some grunting and groaning from Ritsu, does actually succeed in getting it in. The older man is worked up himself. The hot air, the wet noises, the audible click of Ritsu's throat as he swallows down the desire in his body. The squeaking of the bed frame, the sporadic spasm in the small body he was fucking — everything was spinning a little for Reigen.  

He uses his other hand to grab Ritsu's erection and begins using his thumb to rub the slit while shifting to pant right into the younger's ear. The symphony of stimulation appears to be edging Ritsu to completion — he shudders violently and begins thrusting his hips erratically, pushing himself harder against Reigen's body. His hands are buried in the sheets, knuckles white and his voice goes up a pitch.  

When it happens, it's like a wire snapping. Ritsu startles one final time and he releases a long breathy gasp. Semen spurts out from his sex, splattering across his naval. Reigen clenches his jaw — it was so hot.  

Angry with himself, Reigen pulls his fingers out and doesn't give Ritsu time to adjust. He flips the boy over onto all fours.  

"Clench your thighs together," Reigen orders. The need in his voice out in the open.  

Ritsu shakily complies, hurriedly trying to accommodate the request.  

Reigen pushes his erection through the flesh and melts. They were so tiny — his thighs and body were so light and delicate compared to his own. He fucks the crevice steadily, hoping to end this session quickly now that Ritsu was satisfied.  

Each slap of his hips against Ritsu's rear has the boy squealing and gasping. He bows his back and glances over his shoulder to give Reigen a look he deems far too erotic for his age.  

With a few more angry slaps, Reigen gasps and releases his seed all over the sheets — some of it spattering on Ritsu's chest and neck.  

Then the world starts to blur.  

Reigen rolls over and flops onto his back. He's breathing heavy and runs a hand through his hair trying to steady himself. He can hear the psychic struggling to compose his own air intake as well, pausing every now and then swallow hard or lick his lips.  

Time passes. Reigen's not sure how much, but once he feels steady, he rises up and dares to peak over at Ritsu.  

The boy is laying there, eyes hazy and body used. He too slowly sits us and pulls his legs together, hiding his nudity. He tries once and fails, and then again to make eye contact with his boss. When he succeeds, Reigen sees a distant, happy gaze. It's got a strange disconnect to it though — he wonders if maybe Ritsu is starting to have regret for what they just did.  

"Okay," Reigen tries. "Happy now?"  

A stressed look washes over Ritsu's face. He then stares off into the room silently. It looks like he's thinking hard about what to say. When he shifts his gaze back to Reigen, it's calmer, and simmering with that odd buzz that Reigen can't place.  

"Yeah," Ritsu replies. "I'm good. Thank you." He can't quite muster the confidence to fully embrace what they did, but it's obvious he liked it.  

"That was a onetime thing. I hope you got whatever you were looking for out of it." Reigen tucks himself away in his trousers and gets off the bed to start gathering his clothing. His movements are strung up and angry. "Release the barrier Ritsu. We're leaving."  

Reigen doesn't see it, but Ritsu looks distressed. The boy rubs a hand over his face and eyes before forcing himself to stand up and start to get dressed as well. He keeps sparing glances in Reigen's direction, guilt and fear swelling in his features.  

As each one of them redress in silence, Ritsu's voice, smaller than ever, pipes up.  

"D-did you enjoy it?" He asks.  

Reigen doesn't look at the psychic.  

"Yeah. Sure."  

As the two descend down the stairs, the 100-year-old man, still sitting in the same spot they found him originally, gleefully claps his hands.  

"Ah, there you are! I was wondering why it was taking so long. Tell me, did you exorcise the spirit?"  

Reigen smiles as if he didn't just do inappropriate things to the kid standing next to him. "All clear sir. You shouldn't have any issues moving forward. I would recommend getting the place patched up though. We determined some of the complaints from guests were caused by the infrastructure itself."  

"I see."  

Reigen then looks over to Ritsu. "What do you think Ritsu? Detecting anything else before we go?"  

Ritsu almost jumps when he's addressed. He keeps his head low as he peers around the lobby. "All is clear. No more spirits will be bothering you sir."  

The old man nods. "Thank you son. Thank you both. I wish you safe travels back home!"  

As they exit the building, Reigen sighs with relief that the rain stopped. "Thank god it's dry outside now. The last thing I would want to deal with is riding back home drenched."  

Ritsu doesn't respond to the attempt at light hearted conversation.  

Reigen realises that he made a mistake. A huge mistake.  

"Ritsu, look," he tries, rubbing the back of his head. "I'm sorry for not being stricter with you. I shouldn't have gone that far." No answer.  

Reigen starts to panic. He was going to jail. 100%. This was the end of the line.  

Then he feels a tug at his coat and realises Ritsu is pulling him down to his level. The student places a kiss on his lips and then lets go. "I'm not sorry," he retorts. "We should do it again sometime."  

With that, he starts walking towards the road where their ride would be waiting. Reigen is cold — colder than he's ever been in his life. He turns to look back at the motel.  

"I wonder how shallow my grave will be..." is his final thought before turning to follow Ritsu.