What Makes A Genius (Reader x Senku Ishigami)

Universal Law of Gravitation

(Author Note: thank you all for reading, I've made this fanfic more gender-inclusive so that anyone can read!)

You got off at a strange spot, you would've missed the stop altogether if the rough ride on the older tracks didn't wake you up first. Still groggy and half-awake from the four-hour trip, you realized that you were the only one who got off on the old rickety wooden platform, warmly illuminated by a honey-colored streetlamp. The air was muggy, enough to make you feel like you were melting. The wind began to pick up as distant thunder sent dull shivers down your spine. There were no tall trees or houses to shield you from the wind, but even if there were, you wouldn't be able to make any of them out as it was pitch black. "Senku? You still there-" You were met with your dark reflection as your phone was dead for hours. Suddenly realizing the state of your situation your head sharply turned towards the train as it started to puff into the distance. "Wait! WAIT!" You jumped off the platform, straight onto the wet muddy ground. Going as fast as your aching legs could take you, you tried to wave it down to somehow stop. As it chugged off, its source of light went with it. Damp, sweaty, and lost you firmly planted your luggage into the mud to sit down. The dark always freaked you out, thunder was just as terrifying, but in this moment it almost felt comforting. Your brain was still fuzzy, all of this felt fuzzy. As if your brain was tricking you into an elaborate joke, it tricked you to come all the way out to the middle of nowhere just to feel the same as you did in the comfort of your room.

 Nobody but you and the stars, there wasn't much you could do now except wait or of course venture out into a thick patch of field to try and find a road. Still, you've never seen stars like this before, so you soaked up the view right before the storm clouds rolled in. 'What am I doing here?' droplets began to bounce against your skin as you were deep in thought. The rain felt relieving, washing away the sticky feeling you felt before. In fact, it almost seemed to wash away that fog your head has been trapped in for years. That fog that's kept you from enjoying things for a very long time. This was your baptism, a fresh start, a new place, new people. It was off to a rough start but what else was there to do but let your clothes get soaked to your skin. The rain flattened your hair as you let out a relieved laugh, "Why aren't I freaking out? Am I crazy?" You slid your hands on top of your hair and let out a snort of a laugh. Abruptly, the sound of shoes against the wooden platform in the distance hollowly echoed. As it got closer, the pidder of rain against an umbrella became more apparent. "You got off at the wrong stop." Slowly turning around, there he was. Senku Ishigami once again, covering the two of you under his midsized umbrella, barely fitting him let alone you. His breath was a bit labored, even though the walk from the platform to you wasn't that far. He wore a stained lab coat with a button-up shirt, it wasn't buttoned all the way. He had a pair of goggles squarely sitting on top of his head that he hadn't bothered to take off. He wasn't smiling as much as he was when the two of you first met but still seemed as indifferent as ever. 

You tiredly blinked towards him, "But...but I thought the last stop was Jena like you said." "The last stop for customers... they still bring workers to Hainspitz afterward. We're in Hainspitz. About half an hour away." You felt your face start to heat up from embarrassment as you looked to the floor to process what he just said. A sleep-deprived laugh you couldn't hold in escaped from your lips, "That explains a lot actually." A silence fell between you two as Senku gave you the look a mother would give to a child in disappointment. He paused, "I was on call with you for the whole ride, like you asked. At some point you 'hung up' but I assumed your phone died because it wouldn't let me call you back. I wasn't going to pick you up at the train station because I thought 'oh Y/n is able to get here by themselves.' As I had a bit of a chemical spill problem I needed to deal with. But when you didn't show up I assumed you were either dead, kidnapped, or in Hainspitz." He smiled but something about his words and the way his eyebrow twitched made you feel like this night was a long night for him too. You stood up, picking up your luggage as the rain continued to pour, "I'm so sorry, I'll pay for any of the damages." Senku just began walking back, taking the umbrella with him. Following behind, you watched your trunk of luggage drip with mud as you kept it close to your chest. Your arms couldn't bear holding them by your waist any longer.

 "I got here by taking a bus in town and following a path here that a worker on the railroad showed me. We'll wait in town for the next bus to Jena. Should be about half an hour if we're lucky." He said digging into his ear with his free pinkie, which rather disgusted you but you were tired to care. He guided the two of you through to the city, you flinched at every lightning strike but he had little to no reaction. Senku's eyes quickly glanced at your soaked clothes and the sleepy expression on your face and stared forward, "Where we are now, aside from Hainspitz, is the district of Saale-Holzland-Kreis. There's a lot of folklore about it, famous examples even. They say in this very town a man named Faust made a deal with the devil, or that there were green dragons here once that their warriors conquered. But that's all just for tourism, what's really interesting about Hainspitz, are the ancient ruins." He peaked your attention as the two of you talked all the way into town, stopping for tea at a local tea shop. You couldn't make out the letters on the old wooden sign, but at this point, you could eat your own muddy suitcase. When the two of you arrived he spoke German with the lady behind the counter, they seemed to vaguely know each other. He had a cloth coin purse that was old and worn, which struck you a bit odd. "Danke." He thanked her and brought two cups of tea for the two of you, sliding yours across to you. The storekeep shortly came around the counter and brought the two of you a towel and put two bowls of soup with what looked to be pieces of bread floating on top. Senku seemed to keep refusing her hospitality but you mindlessly started to eat it, not realizing he was trying to give it back. The tea was a specialty blend with made in-house lavender-infused honey, and it instantly warmed you up. Your senses all opened up as the steam billowed up in sweet-scented clouds. As you ate in silence, savoring the flavors, Senku kept going on and on. He talked about the climate, the scientists who lived in the area, what they did for science. Stuff you'd normally find boring but for some reason, the way he told it to you, made it seem like the most exciting story ever told. He didn't seem like the talkative type, so it surprised you that he had so much to say. He managed to make you feel less guilty about the whole mixup by distracting you with his tantalizing way of speaking. You didn't always understand what he was talking about but it piqued your interest nonetheless.  The rain softly pressed on the window as he went on, if it weren't for the bus arriving you could've listened for eternity.