A Partner Like That (Mob Psycho 100 Fanfiction)

A Partner Like That

Title: A Partner Like That

Rating: General Audiences

Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply

Categories: M/M

Relationships: Reigen Arataka/Serizawa Katsuya

Characters: Serizawa Katsuya, Reigen Arataka

Additional Tags: Missing Scene, Canon Compliant, Episode: s03e09, Character Study-ish, Pre-Relationship, Mutual Pining, Fix-It Fic, adapting Reigen's "a partner like that" manga line for all the animeonlys who missed it, (and for us manga readers who are disappointed that it was left out of the anime *cries*)

Summary: After Mob leaves, Reigen and Serizawa talk a little bit more about relationships.

Or, how Reigen's "a partner like that" line from the manga could be placed within anime canon.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Reigen stood at the window with his back to Katsuya, hands placed casually in his pockets and one hip cocked slightly to the side. Their conversation had reached a natural lull, so Katsuya took the chance to observe his boss when he wasn't putting on a show.

The afternoon sunlight made Reigen's silhouette soft around the edges as he looked out upon the street below, keeping an eye out for Shigeo as he left the office. It was heartwarming how much Reigen clearly cared about Shigeo, even if he'd also clearly stumbled when Shigeo had asked him for relationship advice. Reigen didn't possess his usual confidence when it came to dating, at least if the way that he'd surreptitiously checked Mobgle on his phone for answers or his pessimistic comments to Katsuya after Shigeo had left were any indication.

It was a strange and unexpected revelation. Katsuya had expected dating to be just another topic that Reigen would spin into something easily manageable for the troubled party while showing off his experience and expertise. Instead, Reigen had tried to fake his way through it before he'd given up and told Shigeo to just be honest. Then he had admitted to Katsuya that he thought that he would get rejected on the spot if he showed his true self...

Katsuya was learning many things about Reigen these days, especially now that Dimple was gone and Shigeo was spending less and less time at the office. He now knew that Reigen's favorite color was pink, that he could get drunk off a single lemon sour, and that he loved dogs. But he also knew that Reigen wasn't in touch with his family, that he had an older sister who was his parents' favorite, and that he wasn't always the most truthful person, which included not showing people his true self. It had bothered Katsuya a little at first, but he was coming to terms with it. Reigen was a showman at heart, which by nature required him to be familiar with dishonesty. He was a walking contradiction, spinning enough truth into his statements that people believed and followed him, but never actually opening up enough to actually be seen.

Except for with Katsuya. Every once in a while, Katsuya got a glimpse behind the curtain, and rather than making him recoil as Reigen seemed to think that it would, every imperfect piece he saw made him want more. To think that a person as outwardly self-confident, charismatic, and talented as Reigen Arataka experienced bouts of self-loathing, just like Katsuya, had been hard to fathom at first. It still was, sometimes. Reigen was flawed, of course. That was a given. But he had still made something of himself. He had his own business, he was kind and generous at heart (another contradiction, Katsuya knew, but it was still true), and he made his living helping others.... Simply put, Reigen was successful, and people liked him. People in need drew to him like a moth to a flame. Katsuya had been one of those people, once upon a time. Months later, though, he was still here, standing by Reigen's side.