i'm so dumb i spelled forty as 'fourty' and ew,, single brain cell gang where you @

also lol i realise 40 chapters into the book that i never actually named the psycho dad because lol wtf is planning ahead? idk her ✨

n e ways i might randomly name the dad later on or maybe just go a whole book without naming the antagonist idkidk, guess we'll see ❤️

~•~

ushijima came by as promised with dinner, and you got used to spending your evening with him.

a week passed, you were back to work, and everything appeared to be normal. even though your father had escaped jail, he had made no move to come after you or tendo's mom.

she was shaken up when she found out about it just like you were, but after she got to see you again she felt more at ease. she did start checking in on your more often after that though, just to make sure you were okay.

you understood her concern, of course. it was reassuring for you too, when you received her calls. it felt good knowing she was also okay.

"(l/n), are you ready to assist the surgery? we're starting soon." a nurse called.

"yep, coming!" you answered, standing up and following her.

~•~

that night, you got home late because of complications during the surgery. ushijima wasn't there like he usually was, so you reached for your phone to contact him but saw that he'd already left a message.

FarmBoi: i'm staying a little late for work
FarmBoi: i can't come by for dinner today
FarmBoi: sorry (f/n)

you smiled at the text, glad he'd informed you. the dinner dates every night wasn't an official deal, it just became a routine. but the fact that ushijima made it a point to apologise when he couldn't make it, made your heart flutter a little.

"stupid farm boy, making me feel all soft." you huffed, but you couldn't wipe the smile off your face.

Sleepyhead: no worries, toshi
Sleepyhead: stay safe
Sleepyhead: love you <3

you plugged your phone in for charging, and took a long bath. it had been weeks since you'd spent your own sweet time in the bath.

ever since ushijima started coming over every night to eat with you, you didn't have the time to spend an hour playing with bubbles in the bath and always stuck to a quick shower. today, you forgot the time and only got out of the bathroom when you couldn't bear to stay any longer.

the day had been exhausting, and you weren't bothered to dry your hair properly. you yawned and forced your eyes to stay open until you managed to drag your feet to the bed. even before you managed to pull the covers over you, you fell asleep.

that didn't exactly mean you slept peacefully, though.
you tossed and turned in your sleep, partially from feeling cold since you hadn't climbed into the blankets, but also stress from both work and your father's escape was making you feel uneasy.

you managed to climb into the warmth of the bedsheets in your half asleep state and finally relaxed a little more, but without realising, somewhere along the way, your watch hit against your bedside table and sent an alert to ushijima.

your watch vibrated for a second when your location was sent to ushijima, but you were too tired to understand what was going on and closed your eyes once again, drifting back to sleep.

you'd barely managed to get 10 minutes of sleep after that, when you heard the door to your dorm being pushed open.

is it morning already?

"hiyori, 5 more minutes." you mumbled.

"(f/n)! are you okay? did something happen?"

your eyes shot open when you heard the familiar voice, which sounded way too deep to belong to hiyori.

"wakatoshi? what are you doing here?" you sat up in the bed and rubbed your eyes before glancing at the digital clock. "it's 2 a.m."

"you-" he paused to catch his breath. "you activated your watch."

"what?" you looked at your wrist, and sure enough, it said 'location successfully sent'.

"was it by accident?" he asked.

you nodded your head sheepishly. "i'm so sorry, you must've been busy."

he shook his head. "i was just starting the car to head home when i got your alert. i'm glad you're okay." he said softly. "you can go back to sleep."

"no, really. i'm so sorry. i should've been more careful." you insisted.

"(f/n), it's okay. i got to see you, so i'm not complaining." ushijima assured you.

"you smooth little-" you didn't bother finishing your sentence, but cracked a grin instead. "that was really smooth. where'd you learn that line?

"from a shoujo manga one of my co-workers reads." he responded and you chuckled.

"you read shoujo manga?"

"when my phone dies at work when i'm on break and i have nothing else to do, yes."

"i have a whole stash. i'll lend you some if you want." you laughed.

"i might take you up on that offer." ushijima smiled. "i should get going now."

"already?" you frowned.

"i have work tomorrow."

"so do i. your station is closer to my dorm than your apartment right? you can stay over." you suggested. "we can have breakfast tomorrow morning to make up for not having dinner tonight."

ushijima thought about his for a moment before he shrugged and agreed. it wasn't the first time he stayed over, so he even had clothes to change into.

he climbed into your bed, and pulled your body close to his and snuggled against your for warmth.

you couldn't help but smile. "i wasn't actually under any threats, but thank you for running over for me anyway." you whispered.

you'd thought that ushijima was asleep since his breathing was slow and steady and he had his eyes shut, but he was still half awake. "how could i not come when i thought you could be in danger?"

"you're too good for me, wakatoshi."

"no, (f/n). you're too good for this world. and i'm going to protect you. properly this time."

you pressed your lips to his cheek quickly before pulling away. "you're already doing more than enough, toshi."

he responded with a soft snore, and you bit back a laugh at how quickly he fell asleep although the was speaking only moments ago. you buried your face into his shirt and hugged him tight.

"good night, toshi." you said softly. "and thank you."

~•~

i don't really have anything to say other than the next chapter is angst lolllll

n e ways sorry if these seem like filler chapters i just wanted to do some fluff 🥺👉🏼👈🏼