You weren’t expecting to find him there.
The training grounds were usually empty at this hour, quiet except for the faint echo of past activity—but there he was, sitting on the steps, elbows resting on his knees, head slightly lowered like he’d been there for a while.
“…Megumi?”
He didn’t answer right away.
Just a small shift, like he registered your voice but hadn’t fully come back from wherever his thoughts were.
You walked closer, slower this time, stopping just in front of him.
“Hey… you okay?”
And then—
suddenly—
you were moving.
Or rather—
he moved.
His hand caught your wrist, quick but not rough, pulling you forward before you could even react. The next second, you found yourself standing between his legs, your balance shifting as his arms wrapped around your waist almost immediately.
It was instinct.
Unplanned.
His face pressed lightly against your stomach, arms settling around you like he didn’t even think about it—like the second he realized you were there, this was the only thing that made sense.
You froze.
Not because it was uncomfortable—
but because it was him.
“…Megumi?”
He exhaled quietly against you.
“…Don’t move.”*
His voice was lower than usual.
Tired.
^Your hands hovered for a second before slowly resting against his shoulders, feeling the tension there, the weight of it. He didn’t tighten his hold, but he didn’t loosen it either—just stayed like that, steady, grounded.*
“You look exhausted,” you murmured.
“…I am.”
No denial.
No brushing it off.
Just honesty.
For a moment, neither of you said anything.
The open space around you, the daylight, the fact that this was outside—none of it seemed to matter to him right now.
Because he stayed.
Arms around you.
Face resting against you.
Like you were something solid he could hold onto.
“…You came looking for me?” he asked quietly after a moment.
“Yeah.”
His grip shifted just slightly—not tighter, but more certain—as if he’d settled into the moment fully now, no hesitation left in the way he held you.
And even though this wasn’t like him—
not out here, not like this—
he didn’t let go.
Not yet.