Revitalized | Rui Kamishiro x F!Reader

Apology

"Hey."

That was you. Y/n. That was your gentle voice, your soft and apologetic eyes looking into his. Admittedly, you weren't what he expected to see as soon as he'd left his house. Still, and even despite what had happened between the two of you, seeing you excited him the way it always used to. He smiled, though not as much as before, for lack of strength.

"Hi."

"I'm... I'm really sorry about everything. I'll admit, I overreacted. Majorly," you laughed awkwardly. "Um... do you wanna go back to walking together?"

"Of course!" He scolded himself for sounding so eager. He was just glad you were back. You were here, talking to him, finally giving him the confrontation he'd been dreading. It wasn't as terrible as he had been expecting. In fact, his malnourishment, his dehydration, his sleep deprivation... it all melted away. In a way, it burned. It felt bittersweet. He was so emotionally drained it was hard to breathe.

"Y/n?"

Oh, right, Nene was going to walk with him.

"Oh, hi Nene. How're you?"

"Alright." She was cold, the way you'd half expected Rui to act towards you. "You're all ready, Rui?"

"Hm, yeah. And you... don't mind if Y/n comes too, do you?" You were doing a decent job hiding it, but every time his weak voice left his throat you crumbled a little more.

"She can if she wants," she answered after a pause. She beckoned for him to hurry up and started making for the school. As they went, Rui could tell Nene hadn't forgiven you the way he had. Still, he held his hand out to you warmly. You knew at that, things were okay. They'd get better.

You walked with the two of them to school, and Tsukasa perked up as soon as he saw you.

"Y/n-san! You're back! And Rui, you're looking a bit more cheery."

Tsukasa wrapped you in a bear hug that you awkwardly returned. Too close, Rui thought, but then he remembered he didn't have the right to think that anymore. Not now that he knew you didn't love him back.

"Come now, we can't miss role call!"

"We're here at normal time, though."

You walked at Tsukasa's side, occasionally glancing back at Rui and Nene. You'd been hoping to sneak away for a little bit and explain yourself, or at least apologize again, but you couldn't if he was with Nene.

"Are you alright? The couch didn't make you sore, did it?"

"No, it was fine."

"Then what's wrong?"

He watched her stare daggers at the back of your head and started to understand. He didn't know what to say. 'Hey, it's okay, she apologized,' wouldn't convince Nene, he knew that much.

"It's not her fault, y'know."

"Rui, you're not putting the blame on yourself."

"I pushed her too far. I'm not surprised she-"

"Just stop it already!"

You and Tsukasa paused at Nene's sudden outburst, along with Rui. She looked amongst your stares, and her face grew red in embarrassment. Frustrated, she stormed off to her first class.

"What was that about?" You asked Rui gently. He sighed.

"Nothing. Let's just get to class."

"Ah... alright," Tsukasa spoke awkwardly. He made for his class, but stopped when he felt a sudden loneliness. He turned around to find you and Rui going the opposite direction to your class. He stood for a moment, watching you both leave, then continued to his class.

"Hey, so..." you spoke quietly, now that you were alone with Rui as you had hoped.

"If you're going to apologize again, I forgive you. You didn't do anything wrong."

"N-neither did you, if that's what you're thinking!"

"Yeah..." but he found even you couldn't convince him. It was his fault. He was wrong to think you'd ever love him anyway. "Do you think you'll make it to practice tonight?"

"I should. You?"

"Hm," he nodded.

"Good... I've missed you."

Stop talking like that. Please.

"Same here."

You didn't know what to say after that. Silence between the two of you was no longer comfortable, and you couldn't negate it by slipping your hand into his anymore. What a grave you had dug yourself.

Meanwhile, Rui was almost collapsing in on himself with how strong the urge to pull you to his chest and never let go was growing. With it grew how easily he could convince himself you'd be fine with it. By the time you'd reached your class, he'd lost the will to keep smiling. He wished he wasn't standing next to you. This you. He wished he could still sit at the desk next to the girl that returned his affections, and had him over every night. Not the real you, who had realized things couldn't continue like that.

"Y/n."

You stopped just outside the door to your first class and turned to Rui. He stared at the ground between the two of you, eyes dead.

"I know things have to end, but..." he looked away, "can I just... hug you? One last time. As if nothing... changed..."

"Rui, I'd love to, but that really seems like the last thing we should do."

"I thought you'd say that... Consider it no more, then." He gave you the weakest smile you'd ever seen and made for the classroom. But a sudden fear tinged at your heart.

No. There was a reason you went the opposite way when you left your house. There was a reason you showed up on his doorstep this morning. Because maybe there was still hope. Maybe you didn't have to lose him like all the others.

So, you felt your hands reach out, and your face soon met the warm back of his sweater. He froze, hands instinctively reaching for where yours gripped onto the front of his clothes. At the feeling of your skin, he span around and returned your embrace, exhaling shakily against the top of your head.

"I'm sorry," you whispered out.