Your Warmth (Persona 4, Yosuke)

[Blooming]

 Sooo I wrote a Persona 4 fanfic. This takes place 1-2 years after the events of Persona 4, so the characters are around 18-19 years old. Yu is going to college in the big city while Yosuke is still working at Junes. They're an established couple here, and are basically discussing their relationship after a year without seeing each other. It doesn't contain spoilers of the actual game aside from it being set in the future, but still beware if you really care about that.

...

Running. Panting. Cold. Snow. Those were the only thoughts in Yu's mind as he, alongside his brown-haired friend, ran through the mostly desolate, dark Inaba, trying to find the way to Dojima's house through the cold fog. It didn't help that it was roughly 11 p.m now, and all the police officers had gone to their houses already.

Yu sighed, hearing Yosuke muffle some coughs behind him. When he arrived in the morning, everything seemed to be the same as he remembered; except for his friends, of course. They had all grown a lot since last year, and were already starting their college careers. This included Yosuke. He and Yosuke started a relationship some months before high school ended, so, when he had to leave, it left a lot of questions unanswered. They tried to communicate through messages and calls, but it wasn't the same. After a couple months, they were barely talking to each other. It wasn't strange that, when Yu arrived at Junes for a reunion with old friends, both Yosuke and him didn't exactly know how to treat each other.

Yosuke coughed again, and Yu turned to eye him. Turns out, they started to warm up to each other again after the reunion ended. All of their friends decided to eat some ramen bowls to end the night, but only Yosuke and Yu stayed there to have some words, and, before they knew it, snow had started to fall and it was already pretty late. Hence why they were now running to Dojima's house, as Yosuke couldn't go to his own house in that snow. They didn't communicate to each other that Yosuke would be staying the night, they just assumed it and end of the story.

Yu came out of his thoughts when, in-between all the fog, he could recognize the shape of the Dojima house. After some minutes of running and shivering, they were finally in front of the door. Yu knocked as Yosuke panted, out of breath. He tried to say something to him, maybe a funny remark, anything that could break the silence, but the door creaked before he had the chance to. The young Nanako Dojima looked at him with round, sleepy eyes, his now long hair messy and tangled.

"Big bro, hello," she smiled through her drowsiness, opening the door fully for him to enter. She wasn't expecting the other visitor though, so she opened her eyes wide. "Yosuke? H-Hello."

"Hi, Nanako-chan. Sorry for barging in like this, it's just..."

"We got caught in the snow, and it's now getting worse," Yu closed the door for Nanako, sighing. "Were you asleep? Sorry for waking you up."

"No, I wasn't, don't worry," she said, though she looked like she could fall asleep while standing up. "You should get comfy before you both get sick. I'll go get some towels."

"Thank you, Nanako, but I'll go look for them. You should go to your room so Dojima doesn't kill me for making you stay up so late," Yu smiled at her, as Yosuke muffled some coughs yet again.

"Yeah, Nanako-chan," he said, his voice raspy. "Just let us take care of everything, yeah?"

"Mmkay... Let me know if you need something."

"We will. Good night, Nanako."

"G'night..."

She hugged Yu and waved at Yosuke, who shakily returned the gesture, then went up the stairs. Once the room was quiet, Yu took off his coat.

"Here, lemme have your coat."

"Mmhmm..." Yosuke gave it to him, which revealed he had been shivering. "Is Dojima not here tonight?"

"Nanako told me he would work until late. Apparently his vacations will start tomorrow, so he's taking care of everything."

"Right, he's always working," the guy crossed his arms to keep himself warm, looking away from Yu. "So, uh..."

"Right. The towels," Yu remembered. "Let's go to my room, I think there's some."

Yosuke raised an eyebrow, but refrained from saying anything; Yu wasn't exactly the type to start getting all lovey-dovey in his room, at least that's what he remembered. They went up the stairs in complete silence, unsure of what to say, despite having dozens of questions to ask. Once they reached his room and turned on the lights, they could start having mindless conversation again. The room had less life compared to their high school period, and even the bed seemed to have been abandoned, as the blanket was full of dust. It didn't help that there were a lot of boxes scattered around the area.

"Woah, this room looks so much more, uh... empty?" Yosuke pointed out, sniffling.

"Yeah, I guess Dojima wasn't expecting me to come back for Christmas," Yu said.

In actuality, nobody was expecting him to suddenly show up in Inaba before he announced it through message a day before. Not even Yosuke, whom he hadn't messaged in around a month. He sulked, rubbing his arms to stop the constant shivering. Why was communication so difficult? He could just ask right now and-

"Found them," Yu suddenly spoke up, taking two blue towels from a box. He patted them to clean up the dust, then gave one to Yosuke. "Here, dry yourself thoroughly. You're shivering."

"Y-Yeah, it's just so cold in here. I hate winter," he said, rubbing the towel on his arms and neck. It helped a little, as his shivers lost strength. "Uh- thanks. For letting me stay here, I mean."

"No problem. Dojima won't mind, either," Yu looked out the window, trying to relax a bit. A lot more snow was falling now, and the wind was so strong it managed to creep through the border of the window. "I would've let you stay here, anyways."

Yosuke gazed upon the window, as the cold breeze made him shiver again. He covered himself with the towel.

"G-God, it's so cold..." He sniffled again, then rubbed his nose. Yu turned to face him, raising an eyebrow.

"Are you okay? Let me clean this dusty blanket for you," he said, not waiting for an answer as he went to the bed. Yu wasn't very easy to read, but keeping himself occupied was his way to avoid falling into an awkward silence. And Yosuke knew that.

"T-Thanks, dude. I can't b-believe you're not freezing right now, too."

"I have my methods."

Yosuke sat down on the couch in front of the window. He covered his neck with the towel to keep the cold breeze from controlling him more, as he watched the gray-haired guy grab the blanket to pat it in a corner so the dust wouldn't get to Yosuke. He muffled another set of coughs into his fist, his eyes locked onto Yu's back, deep in thought. This whole situation felt so... weird. Usually, Yu would have spoken up and put an end to this whole unspoken awkwardness, but now, he didn't even try to touch the subject. Yosuke thought maybe even he didn't know what to say, or he was being mindful of Yosuke's feelings. In any case, this wasn't pretty.

Yu finished with the blanket, then offered it to Yosuke, who wrapped himself up in it and mumbled a 'thanks'. It was freezing, though it started getting warm after a couple of seconds; it was a very thick blanket, after all. Yu, not wasting any second, started putting the boxes aside so the room looked a bit less muffled. There he was, keeping himself occupied again. Yosuke frowned; sometimes, he had to be the one to speak up for Yu.

"I believe we're both thinking the same thing, Yu."

The guy stopped in his place, a box on his hands. He didn't turn around this time.

"You-we... We haven't spoken in so long, I-I can't even remember the last conversation we had through m-messages," his voice came out unsure, shaky, even; this was mostly due to his constant shivers, but still. "And suddenly you're here again. I-I just don't know how to feel, and..."

Yu left the box on the floor, resting both hands on his hips. He stared at Yosuke, his expression denoting sadness. This made Yosuke look at his own socks; he wanted Yu to say something, but the guy preferred the silent route. He had always been that way, a habit that just made important conversations like this more difficult to get out.

"I guess w-what I'm trying to say is that I don't know what we are anymore. I mean, w-we promised each other that we would talk every day, b-but --hihh!-- but... t-then..."

Yu's eyes widened. Yosuke had suddenly trailed off in the middle of an emotional speech, and just before making his point, too. The guy thought he might have started sobbing right there, and he was more than ready to sit next to him to explain his thoughts. But, when he looked up, Yosuke was raising both hands towards his face, a doubtful expression on his face. Before Yu had time to process, Yosuke took in a deep breath.

"Hiiih! Hh'iSZHHhuH!" He harshly sneezed into cupped hands, his cheeks flushing in mild embarrassment. Yosuke really had a curse for bad timing; or perhaps a blessing, Yu thought.

"Bless you."

Yosuke looked at him, deadpan. The only thing he had to say after all he heard was just a simple 'bless you'?!

"Dude--snff!--don't change the subject."

"I only blessed you."

"I think there are more important things right now," Yosuke said, though he couldn't keep a smile from appearing on his face. Yu followed. If there was something he really liked about him, it was his ability to suddenly say stuff that contrasted the current mood. "So, uh. I was trying to s-say that we stopped talking to each other, so..."

"Yeah, I guess we did..." Yu finally spoke up about the matter, a hand rubbing the back of his neck. "University has been hell, and I admit I forgot to answer some messages a couple of times. I'm sorry."

"No- it's alright, I've also forgotten. Between studying and working on Junes, I... barely have free time," his voice had stopped shaking, at least. Seemed like the blanket was doing its job well. "It's just... Yu, our relationship is..."

"Falling apart?" Yu spoke up. Yosuke wasn't able to hide his rising tension. "I wouldn't say that."

"Then what...? I think this is the first time I hear your voice in months now," Yosuke hugged himself with the blanket, unable to keep visual contact.

"We didn't plan this thoroughly when I left..."

He was right. Their relationship just kind of... started after Yosuke confessed his feelings in a very emotional moment for him. The guys both remembered the true happiness they felt when their feelings were reciprocated, and started dating. The problem started when the day for Yu to leave was getting closer and closer. They had a talk in the same room they were at now, promising that they could keep messaging each other until Yu came back. They refrained from discussing it even further.

A part of Yosuke wished he didn't come back. It only made hidden feelings resurface again, feelings that he tried so hard to hide after not talking to him for weeks. But still, seeing Yu in front of him, barely changed and as Yu as ever, couldn't make Yosuke keep on pretending he had gotten over him. He still liked him, both romantically and platonically.

Yu looked at him. His face said more than a million words ever could. He felt the same way, even after spending so much time away from his boyfriend, if he could still call him that. That was another question left unanswered.

"Yu, are we still something? A-A couple, I mean."

The guy took in a breath before looking at the ceiling, deep in thought.

"Would you prefer it if we weren't anymore?"

"No!" The sudden way he raided his voice surprised both of the guys. Yosuke had to pause to cough into his fist, which made Yu frown; those coughs sounded like they came deep from his chest. "Ugh, we used to fight shadows on a TV, why is this so difficult in comparison?!"

Despite the whole situation, Yu snorted.

"I still like you, Yosuke. I really don't want our relationship to end," there it was, he said it. Yu didn't talk much, but he was way better at articulating his thoughts than Yosuke.

"I-I... Yeah..." Was all he managed to say. He rubbed his nose with his fist, a tickle starting to form. He frowned, but preferred to ignore it.

"I know we can work this out someway."

"That's very easy to say, bro..."

"Yeah, but... We're adults now, right? We were just high school kids when we started dating, so I guess that lead to this," Yu, after he seemingly forgot about the boxes, went back to pile them to a corner. Yosuke sniffled wetly. "Unless you want to start a relationship with someone else."

His tone wasn't accusatory. If anything, it was very understanding. The brown-haired rubbed his itchy nose again.

"Not really... Hhh-hehh--" his breath hitched suddenly, and Yu turned around to see Yosuke cupping both hands around his suspiciously red nose. Since when did it get that color, anyway? "Ineedto-- Hihh'aSZHHhUh!"

"Ble-"

"--sZCHHhiUh!" A visible shiver ran down his spine, and Yosuke hugged himself even more with the blanket, sniffling wetly.

"Bless you," Yu didn't need to add anything more, his tone alone was enough for Yosuke to understand he was starting to get worried.

"S-Sorry --snff--, must be the dust you were cleaning up a moment ago," despite his vocals sounding normal, his voice was getting hints of congestion to it.

Yu stared at him a beat longer before going back to the boxes. He didn't remember Yosuke being allergic to dust, or even sneezing more than once, but he wasn't going to press him about it. Yet.

"So, Yu... Are we okay with still being a couple?" Yosuke asked while Yu finished with putting the last box aside. Now the room looked way better.

"I think we are."

"Though... we still have to do something about the whole being apart thing," he mumbled. Maybe it wasn't the best time to discuss that, but he couldn't just leave it at that.

Yu scratched his neck. "... I'm really not sure. I do plan on coming to Inaba more often, though."

"Isn't the trip way too long?"

"It isn't when you get used to it," he smiled, although Yosuke just looked at him, uncertain. "I've... also been thinking of moving to Inaba for a while."

"What?! But you... Don't you prefer to be in the city rather than here?"

"I do have a university there, but I haven't been a big fan of the place since I lived here for a year. I could drop college and..."

"You're crazy."

"You could also move with me, hm? Chie told me you've been working rather than going to college," he said, still analyzing every option in his head. Yosuke sighed.

"That Chie... It's true, I haven't even decided what to study yet," he said, lowering his head. "Going to the city with you actually sounds kinda promising."

And it would help solve all the relationship problems they had, Yosuke thought.

Yu smiled warmly. "We have a full month to decide, though. Just remember, my apartment is big enough for both of us."

"I'll tell my parents tomorrow, then we'll make plans through all of December," he said, kind of excited. That idea sent a spark to his eyes, despite it being sudden and crazy. But, after all, crazy decisions are sometimes the best decisions.

Yu nodded. It was decided, then.

Yosuke was going to say something, but Yu suddenly got close to him. He let himself fall on the couch, right next to Yosuke, with a heavy sigh; he sounded exhausted, even more than he let out. The brown-haired shivered, smelling Yu's cologne, which was starting to wear out after a long day of reuniting with his friends. When he made contact with those deep, gray eyes of his, he felt as if he had gone back to the day he confessed.

"Can I...?" Yu asked softly, gesturing at Yosuke's face. He nodded, a flush appearing on his cheeks, almost as red as the one on his nose.

Then, they kissed. It wasn't the most passionate, deep kiss they'd ever had, but it was more than enough for now. The instant their lips touched, they noticed how much they had missed that type of contact. Those feelings hadn't gotten away, they were just hidden for a while. Yosuke couldn't remember the day he started falling for Yu, but he was certain it was the best thing that had happened to him.

Unfortunately, the deep itch at the back of Yosuke's sinuses came back in the middle of the kiss. Yosuke really had the curse of bad timing. He broke the kiss and fully turned away from his partner, who could only see the back of his neck, but still heard the trembling hitches taking control of him.

"Hhh'aSZHHHuH!" Forceful and desperate, a combo that screamed 'I've caught a cold'. He gasped as he geared up for more. "Hiih'SZHHHUh! Huhh-hehhh-- for God's sahh-sake..."

"Yosuke, you've been doing that a lot."

"Hiih'iSZHhHUHh! Whad, breakigg off kisses?" He asked in an attempt to be humorous, despite his congested, stuffy voice.

"Sneezing. It sounds like you're coming down with something, did you dry yourself properly?"

"C'bod, dod't get fussy od mbe," he sniffled thickly. "'s probably just a sball, raddob fit."

"Right, and that's why I can barely understand what you're saying?"

"Yu-"

"Also, your red nose?"

"That's-"

"And your raspy voice? Your constant sniffles? Your coughing? Your shivering-"

"Okay, okay, stop!" Yosuke spoke up. "Yes, I've beed feeligg off. But dod't you say adythi'g to Chie about this."

"Why so?" Yu, after winning the argument, took a pack of tissues from the bag he left when he arrived in the morning and offered it to Yosuke.

The guy blew his nose wetly, sighing with relief afterwards. "She told me I should've stayed home before you arrived, but I went to work at Junes until late, and..."

"You caught something."

"Geez, can you stop figuring me out?" he asked between breathy laughs. "It's nothing serious, though."

"Wait, I think I have some cold pills in my bag too..."

"What? You came that prepared?"

"But of course. I'll be staying until january, after all."

Right, he was celebrating the new year with his friends again. A warm feeling rose up in Yosuke's chest at the memory of them hugging and wishing to have a great new year together. This was interrupted by harsh coughs, muffled into his fist, which made Yu look at him with concern.

"Why are you looking at me like that? I'm fine, really," he assured. "See? I'm no longer shivering."

"The fact that you were shivering so much is worrying to begin with," Yu found the pills, then offered one to Yosuke, who gulped it at once.

"Ugh, bitter. Do you have any water?"

"Yeah, here."

He tossed a bottle of fresh water from his magic bag, then Yosuke drank it until it reached the middle.

"They will make you sleep better," he sat down next to Yosuke again, eyeing the clock on the wall. His brow furrowed. "Speaking of sleep, we should go to bed now."

"What? What time is it?" When Yosuke turned to see the clock, its pointy arrows signaled it was 1:05 a.m. "Crap, where did the time fly to?"

"Let's just rest for the night, we don't want you getting worse," Yosuke just rolled his eyes. Yu was still concerned, it seemed. "Now... You take the bed."

"Say what?"

"I'll sleep on the couch, so you can rest well."

Yosuke sniffled wetly. "Dude, you just came from an exhausting trip and you think I'll let you sleep on the couch? Also, the host of the room is supposed to be more comfy."

"A host also wants the guest to feel at home," he asserted, confident in his words. His face couldn't lie, though; he truly looked exhausted, his eyelids heavy and marked dark circles under his eyes.

"I'm not taking your bed, Yu."

"Unless you want us to share it?" Yu purred at him. Yosuke was surprised he still had energy left for dumb jokes.

"No. Even if I wanted to, you'll catch my cold," after these words left his mouth, his eyes widened in sudden realization. "Shit, wait. We just kissed."

"Mmhmm, and it was awesome."

"Shush, this is bad! I should've said no to that kiss, dammit. Now I'm going to ruin your vacations..."

"Yosuke, it isn't your fault. If anything, we'll have more time to spend together and catch up," he said, as positive as ever. "Also, don't tell me you would've preferred to not kiss?"

"I- you're evil, you know thahh..."

"Bless you."

"Hihh'ASZHHhUh! Huhh-- iZSHhHUh!" Yosuke pitched forward into a fresh tissue, his irritated nose twitching with each sneeze and his cheeks going red. "Ugh, thanks. Don't bless me before I actually sneehhh-- sneeze...!"

"Bless you," Yu snickered as Yosuke shot him a glare before giving a last, tickly breath.

"Hhh'iSZHHhUH! Huhh'aZSSHHuH!"

"You okay?"

Yosuke raised a finger and shook his head. "Hihh'SZHHHhUH!!"

"Whoa, bless you. Just how many sneezes do you have in stock?" Yu asked.

Despite his words being humorous, he was worried. That last sneeze had sounded desperate, and even a little painful. Yosuke huffed, his head throbbing after that fit that came out of nowhere, then blew his nose into the abused tissue.

"Sorry, I always get like this --snff!-- when I'm sick," he said, his voice tired, congested and weak.

Suddenly, a warm hand put his bangs aside and was placed on his forehead, an action that sent shivers through his whole body. Yu looked at him with care, then his brow furrowed. Yosuke couldn't help the blush that spread across his whole face.

"You're definitely not sleeping on the couch tonight."

"Don't tell me I have a fever..."

"Not yet, but it's starting to show up," Yu sighed, standing up. "Come on, I think we're both in need of some rest."

Yosuke obediently followed him, blanket still over his shoulders, then he let himself fall onto the bed. His body relaxed the instant it touched the soft surface, and drowsiness overtook him. When Yu, after turning off the lights, also laid down, Yosuke's brow furrowed.

"Are we really...?" He let Yu fill in the blank.

"I'm going to catch your cold anyway. We might as well enjoy while we can."

"I'm glad you haven't changed one bit, you know?" Yosuke sighed, giving Yu a piece of the blanket so he could cover himself. "But what will we do tomorrow?"

"Tomorrow's problems will be dealt with tomorrow."

Yu closed his eyes, relaxing next to Yosuke. He put his arm over his partner in a loving manner, as if to warm him up. Yosuke's cheeks felt warm all of a sudden, but he didn't resist; he might have secretly been wishing to do this with Yu for a long, long time now. Then, he closed his eyes. Some minutes had passed, and it seemed like he would start dreaming, until Yu moved his arm to hover a hand over his face. The movement was so strange, Yosuke couldn't keep himself from looking at him.

"Hh--kxxt!" A stifle. Of course.

"Dude," was all he could say. Yu put his hand over Yosuke again, not opening his eyes.

"Tomorrow's problems will be dealt with tomorrow..."

"Uh-huh. Just make sure you cover yourself fully, okay?"

His only answer was a soft, unintelligible murmur. It seemed like he had fallen asleep in less than a second, almost like a computer shuting down. Yosuke smiled fondly; their relationship wasn't something that could be broken so easily, and this exchange was proof of that. He finally closed his eyes, warming up to his boyfriend's hug. This was going to be a fun December.

[Reader]

Lovely hurt/comfort writing. I enjoyed the innocence in the story and the sneeze spellings were yummy! 

[Dye]

Oh my gosh, I love this so much!! Yosuke and Yu is such a cute pairing and the awkwardness and working through relationship stuff while also dealing with budding colds is just so fun 💖 I can't wait to see if you plan on doing more with this!!

[Blooming]

3 hours ago, Readinator said:

Lovely hurt/comfort writing. I enjoyed the innocence in the story and the sneeze spellings were yummy! 

Aaa thank you so much! 😊 yess, I really love hurt/comfort lol

3 hours ago, Dye said:

Oh my gosh, I love this so much!! Yosuke and Yu is such a cute pairing and the awkwardness and working through relationship stuff while also dealing with budding colds is just so fun 💖 I can't wait to see if you plan on doing more with this!!

Yess! I was sad to see the lack of snz content for that pairing, which is my favorite in Persona 4, so writing for them was so fun! I do plan on making a small drabble for the aftermath of this fic just for funsies 💕

[SterlingSilver]

Aw this is so sweet!! I love the persona series ❤️ and I love the premise of this story, the conversation about their future intertwined with a sickfic. Really well done, and so cute!! Thanks for writing and sharing!  

[Mochi]

You did a great job! I love how he didn't start sneezing immediately, unlike most stories I write