Fashion is a Form of Ugliness so Intolerable that We Have to Alter it Every Six Months
Teru didn't have a couch, despite the rest of his furniture being Western in style, so when Shigeo came over they had to sit on the bed. They were lying side by side on their stomachs, reading the latest issue Shonen Jump, and relaxing after a busy day at the shopping arcade. The silence between them was almost comfortable.
They hadn't hung out much since what happened in February. Most of their time together was predicated upon Teru accidentally bumping into Shigeo, but that hadn't happened in a while. Not even when Shigeo made detours past his apartment, and Black Vinegar, and the Awakening Lab.
He was worried that Teru didn't want to spend time with him anymore, but Shigeo had finally screwed up his courage and texted first.
Teru had agreed immediately, and enthusiastically if the number of kaomojis was anything to go by.
They met at Takenoko-Dori, Teru's favorite shopping arcade. It was full of stalls selling spiked collars, bondage pants with legs wider than their waist, and T-shirts printed with esoteric designs.
Shigeo had bought a sweater that Teru picked out for him. It was an abstract black and white design, less interesting than the Hagemon shirt, but very soft.
Teru hadn't bought anything.
"Can I ask you a question?" Shigeo broke the almost-comfortable silence.
Teru looked up from the magazine. "Of course, Kageyama-kun! You can ask me anything."
"I'm not always very good at reading people, but the first time we went shopping together, you seemed excited. You were, right?"
Teru didn't stop smiling, but it tightened in a way that meant he didn't mean it. Shigeo was getting a little bit better at reading Teru's facial expressions, but it wasn't easy because most of them were smiles.
Teru sat up and crossed his legs. "Is this about the Hagemon shirt? I swear I was telling you the truth when I said it looked good on you. I wouldn't lie about something like that."
Shigeo blushed. "It's not that."
There was a pause before Teru's smile softened again. "Sorry if I sounded defensive. I've run into a couple of classmates outside of school that had some… creative things to say about my clothes. I guess it bothered me more than I would care to admit. Especially the idea that I… convinced you to buy something you didn't really want."
That made sense. Shigeo knew Teru used to be popular, but the last vestiges of that popularity had probably been shattered when Shigeo stripped, shaved, and beat him half to death. The first time.
"I like the Hagemon shirt. I like to see what you're wearing whenever we hang out. I look forward to it. I know it's not for my sake," he hurried to add, which made Teru's smile strain again for some reason. "I just… I admire your style. So I noticed…. You've been wearing the same shirt the last few times I've seen you out of uniform. Not that there's anything wrong with that! It's a nice shirt. It just… It doesn't seem like your usual style either. I was wondering if something was wrong?"
The question seemed to stump Teru, which was something that usually happened to Shigeo. He decided to give Teru a moment. He checked his phone.
"Shishou wants you to come by the office again. He said he wants your input on his new website design."
"I've seen it," Teru said distractedly. "It needs more flashing."
"I thought it needed an epilepsy warning," said Shigeo.
He was serious, but Teru laughed. There was even that little snort he usually tried to hide, although Shigeo didn't know why. It was a nice sound.
"I don't know who told you that you're bad at reading people." Teru plucked at the red shirt he was wearing yet again. "I thought this would be a basic staple piece when I got it, but to be honest, I'm sick of looking at it. I've actually been grateful for my school uniform. Not that it's a bad design. Just a little plain for my taste."
Shigeo didn't think purple plaid was plain, but that was what made Teru's fashion sense so fantastic. Even if his classmates said 'creative' things about it, they couldn't be as creative as Teru was.
"When Claw attacked that last time, they took out a good portion of my apartment." Teru rubbed the back of his head like this was somehow embarrassing. "Including my wardrobe. A bunch of my clothes were ruined. Well, not really ruined. I took them to my usual consignment store, and they didn't seem to notice anything wrong, even though they're really particular. I washed them first of course! I used vinegar, hydrogen peroxide…. No matter what I tried, I could still smell the smoke."
"Oh," said Shigeo. After his house burned down, it had been rebuilt from the ground up, but sometimes he still thought he could smell the smoke.
Teru laughed, but it wasn't the kind with the snort. "It was all in my head. Just like my fevers. It's so stupid. I guess I don't have enough problems if I have to keep making them for myself."
"I think you have enough problems," Shigeo said solemnly. At least he knew what to get Teru for his birthday next month.
Teru shrugged. "The fire wasn't even that big. Everything was fixed in a couple of weeks."
Shigeo hadn't seen Teru for a few weeks after their last confrontation with Claw either. "Where did you stay until-" he started to ask, but Teru was already waving him off.
"I still had plenty of boltholes around the city."
"Bolt… holes?" Shigeo didn't understand.
"You know, places to lay low. Places only a psychic could get to easily. Abandoned high-rise projects, stuff like that. When the housing bubble burst, it was great for boltholes."
Shigeo understood even less, but it sounded like Teru had spent several weeks essentially homeless. The guilt that was always crawling just beneath his skin nowadays rose up again to give him gooseflesh.
"Anyway," Teru was still talking, "I wanted to replace my clothes right away, but there were other expenses that took priority. Like walls."
Shigeo frowned. "Your parents didn't take care of that?"
"They can be hard to get ahold of sometimes." Teru leaned back against his pillows. "You know I was kidding about the walls, right? That was the building manager's problem."
"I knew that," Shigeo lied. He didn't know much about rental laws, and for once, he was pretty sure that was normal.
"I've started putting aside some extra savings, just in case something like that happens again. That's why I haven't been able to replenish my wardrobe just yet. Don't worry, Kageyama-kun. I'll be back to my fashionable self in no time."
Shigeo hesitated a moment, but only to make sure he got the words right. "If something like that happens again, you should come stay with me."
Teru flushed suddenly, and Shigeo started to worry about his fevers. He knew Teru had a hard time accepting help, but surely that wasn't enough to make him sick.
"Accepting help isn't a failure," he reminded Teru, just in case.
"Oh! Of course, but um… Are you sure your parents wouldn't mind?"
That was an easy one. "Of course not. They love you. You're the first friend I've brought home that isn't a thirty-year old man."
Teru laughed again, and it was the kind with the snort. "Thank you, Kageyama-kun. I'll keep that in mind."
He lay back down next to Shigeo, and when they returned to their comics, the silence was definitely comfortable.
