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The whistle screamed through the dojo as the boy with grey hair winced and groaned in pain.
“This is not fair! Rematch! Now!” he yelled, moving to his knees, trying to get back up from being beaten to the carpeted floor.
Though Garou always overtook the throne almost every duel you two had, this time, you won.
You sneered and bowed respectfully to coach, shooting a glare towards Garou.
“Match’s over, freak. I win.” You smirked and tightened your ponytail with stride. You walked closer and crouched to him who was currently kneeling with his head down in anger and disappointment.
“This is our last match. That means you lost to me, forever.” You smiled, your head tilting mockingly.
It was the 6th grade, and girls always bloomed earlier than boys at this age. It gave you a great advantage as you were taller, sharper and stronger than him from this point on.
Garou lifted his head, his teeth gritting and jaw clenched as he looked up, eyes burning with pride and unshed tears.
“I’m gonna get you one day.” He replied with a low tone, his eyes tearing up.
“I really.. Really, just can’t, wait.” you replied with a teasing frown, standing up to your feet as you walked away to your group of girlfriends, high-fiving them and chuckling.
Garou watched you stomp away with pride and he swore to himself to never lose, to anyone, ever again.
Present day
You took a deep breath in as you stepped outside the hospital. It was around 6AM, and birds were already slowly chirping. The outside was still dark.
‘Ahh, finally. Another day of patching up oozes and cleaning up puke completed.’
All you thought about doing later was to slump down on your bed, air conditioner blasted to 16°C, and a really really long bath.
You had been a nurse for a while now, after completing your intern with a well-known hospital.
You walked nearby the park to do your daily after shift ritual- finish your sandwich leftover while staring at a tree blankly, until your brain rebooted. It was peaceful, in your own strange way. As you made your way to the bench, sounds of someone wincing in pain screeched your ear in the worst way possible, meaning that you had to attend to it- as per your job.
As badly as you wanted to ignore those dreaded moanings..
“I took an oath.” you whispered.
With a short sigh, you quickly jogged to find the location of the man in pain.
The man squinted through the haze of pain and dim streetlight, his single good eye blinking up at her. His chest was scratched in a bright red color and he heaved heavily. Through his gritted teeth, he wheezed,
“….no way,” his voice rough but still somehow the same one that used to bark out challenges after every sparring match.
“you’ve gotta be kidding me.”
“Oh my gosh. What a small world,” you said, your eyebrows raised. the exhaustion in your voice softened into disbelief.
“of all people on this god’s earth to find bleeding on a park bench, it just had to be you.”
You crouched to his level, kneeling down as you searched through your bag for an emergency kit.
He gave a crooked half-smile, wincing when it pulled on the cut at his lip. He never usually smiled at the sight of old friends.
But seeing you, was like a breath of fresh air in this morning. “Damn. You still recognize me, huh? I thought i’d aged out of your memory.”
“With your crazy hair? Anyone would’ve known.” you said, crouching down beside him, professional instinct taking over even as nostalgia flooded in.
“Stop moving. you’re bleeding way too much.”
“just a scratch,” he muttered, but the way his arm trembled said otherwise.
“sure,” you replied dryly. “and i’m the queen of england.”
Your tone was clipped, efficient- the voice of someone who’s done this a thousand times. you ripped open a small first aid kit you always carried in your bag, cleaning the worst of the gashes. garou hissed quietly as the antiseptic stung.
“Surprise surprise, the little boy still flinches like a kid,” you teased.
Your eyes trailed along his body, that was obviously more ripped and stronger than the last time you saw him.
“Eyes up here, perv,” Garou shot, but there was no denying that he wasn’t enjoying the sight of you cleaning him up. Just like the old days, and oh, how beautiful of a woman you’ve turned into.
“Please, im a nurse. This is my job. Dont think i even want anything to do with you, Garou. The last thing i would even think about is-“
“God, you still talk too much,” he added, but there was no real bite to it.
You pressed your lips into a line and rolled your eyes, refusing to respond to that comment.
the silence that followed was strangely comfortable. just the faint hum of streetlights and your quiet breathing as you worked. his eyes followed your movements; precise, practiced, gentle.
“so,” you said, wrapping his arm in gauze,
“still picking fights, Garou? some things just never change.” you added, now pressing a wet cotton ball dipped in antiseptic onto his scratched chest. your delicate fingers pressed against his chest, cleaning up the wound.
“yeah, well,” he said, leaning back against the bench, “some things do. A nurse, eh? never saw that coming. I just never saw you as the type to take care of people,” he said, stifling a chuckle.
You smiled faintly. “Shut up. Someone’s gotta clean up after idiots like you.”
He laughed lowly, a sound you hadn’t realized you had missed. The vibration from his laugh sent a blush to your face, just ever so slightly.
Your hands froze for a moment because he was right. back then, even after their endless competitions, you would still be the one to shove a band-aid into his hand when he scraped his knuckles.
“i took an oath,” you murmured again, quieter this time.
garou tilted his head. “you and that oath, huh. what would’ve happened if you didn’t?”
“you’d probably bleed out on a public bench and die, idiot.”
“nah,” he said, voice softening, “you’d still help me.”
the sincerity caught you off guard. for the first time that night, you really looked at him, through his deep amber eyes. not the infamous hero hunter, not your cocky childhood rival, just garou. tired, stubborn, still somehow managing that half-smirk that used to drive you crazy.
“you really haven’t changed,” you said, shaking her head.
“well, you have,” he said.
she looked away, cheeks warming into a soft pink color.
“you should rest. the hospital’s just down the street.” you said, gesturing your head towards the left side of the road.
“No way in hell, y/n. i hate hospitals.”
“Garou, just please. at least let me walk you somewhere safe.”
he wheezed again. “you gonna tuck me in and kiss me goodnight too, nurse?”
you rolled your eyes. “You wish I’d ever kiss you.” your heart suddenly skipped a beat after even mentioning the word “kiss”.
“sure you won’t,” he teased, pushing himself up with a wince. with instinct, you reached out an arm to help him get up.
they walked under the dim glow of the streetlights, their steps fell into sync;
just like when they used to walk home from the dojo after class, arguing over who’d won more matches.
“C’mon, big guy. lets get you a place to rest.” you said, hugging his muscular back, taking his inability to walk into account as he staggered.
He then looked at you silently, all puppy-eyed.
“No. What, are you homeless or something?” You asked, your eyebrows raising in disbelief.
He kept quiet.
“Hey. Im not homeless.
fuck, well.. kind of….” He shrugged.
You sighed and looked toward the path in front of you, your head tilting up, thinking of what to do with the huge injured guy youre hugging.
“Is my place fine then?” You asked, turning to meet his eyes.
”That- that would be great. If you’re okay with it.. then okay.” He nodded. Garou was visibly nervous, sweat slowly forming beads on his forehead. Though being the infamous hero hunter, he’s never much so been this close contact with a girl before.
———
Over at your place, you set him on the couch and prepared something for him to drink. You were just treating him like any other patient; with care.
He was on your couch, manspreading and looked absolutely rough. The walk here already took him out, as his chest heaved.
You faintly chuckled at the sight of him looking so rugged and tired.
You settled a glass of cold wateron the table, handling him a clean towel as you plopped down next to him.
”here. dont bleed out on my coach. all good, mister? You look rough.” You asked, head tilting in attempt to meet his eyes.
You were already holding a whole bottle of wine in your hand, already opened as you took in multiple gulps down your throat.
”Yeah. just tired.” He replied, nodding as he adjusted to sit properly and took the glass in his hand.
He examined you, with a clearly amused look.
”Wine, huh?”
”Leave me be.” You wiped your mouth abruptly, as it stained your lips a nice maroon color. “I do this after long shifts. A celebration, perhaps,” You replied, standing up to smooth your shirt. You put the tv remote next to his thigh and nudged,
“Here. im gonna go get cleaned up.”
Until he deliberately pulled you by the wrist. “Wait.”
You looked at him with surprise, your wrist now completely covered with his grip. Your head was already practically spinning.
“Let me join you.” He said, glancing into your eyes.
Your heart raced and your face flushed red at his sudden request.
You swallowed hardly, blinking as to process his words.
”o-okay.” was all you could make out of your lips.
With no words spoken, you tugged his hand and he quickly spun your back against the wall.
”whats this?” you teasingly ask, your voice low, looking up into his eyes.
his lips then moved to the crook of your neck, kissing it, slowly and intimately while he inhaled your scent.
”i’ll stop if you want me to,” he said, his voice vibrating against your body.
You didnt want him to. After sleepless nights and shifts, you yourself barely had any contact with the opposite gender to satisfy you even a little.
he trailed kisses down your neck to your collarbone and then your jaw, as he breathed before going after your lips.
he took in your lips, as you kissed him back. the kiss was sloppy, teeths clashing against each other as you pulled and tangled his gray hair in between your fingers hungrily.
and maybe, just maybe, something in the air felt like the start of a rematch only this time, neither of them had any intention of winning.