#my working title for this in my docs was “the brothers brainrot” which i think is appropriate

[tanjir0se]

The Ghost of You pt. II is UP NOW ON AO3!!!

Love Me Mercilessly-- Sanegiyuu Angst and Hurt/Comfort Shinazugawa brothers Angst and Hurt/Comfort Words: 3.5k (so far), Chapter 1/?

After their mission together and breaking the careful seal on their emotions for one another, Giyuu and Sanemi are called to their next task, teamed up with Genya and Tanjiro. Between trying to deal with and define his newfound and poorly defined feelings for Giyuu, the bitterness that has iced over he and Genya's relationship, and memories of their past he'd rather forget, Sanemi finds himself struggling to keep his emotions in check. When the mission goes south, he's forced to confront the well of grief that's been rotting within him since he was a child. Can he let himself love and be loved? Or, by the time he realizes he deserves to, will it be too late?

Sneak peek below the cut, read the full first chapter NOW on AO3!!

Sanemi was certain he’d never sleep again. Even with his head buried beneath the pillow of his bedroll, the high-pitched wails still made it through to his ears. After what felt  like hours in the dark of his room, squeezing his eyes shut and trying to force himself to sleep, he sat up hotly, yanked the blanket off of himself, and crawled to the door of his room, pulling it open with more quiet restraint than he felt. 

In the front room, his mother was sitting beside their table, illuminated only by a small paper lamp, the bundle of blankets guilty for Sanemi’s insomnia secure in her arms. She was humming softly, bouncing him gently up and down, her own eyes rimmed with heavy bags in her exhaustion. She still smiled when she saw Sanemi in the doorway. 

“What’s wrong with him?” Sanemi asked, unable to keep the whine from his voice as he rubbed at his face tiredly. Or the twinge of jealousy from twisting his stomach. She used to sing that song for him, too. “Is he hungry?” That at least he could relate to. He was hungry, too, after their father had failed to return with his wages for the week, leaving his mother to make due with some stale rice and the broth from a jar of preserved vegetables. 

“Nothing’s wrong with him, my love.” She responded gently. “He’s just small, and the world is so big.” As she spoke, she looked down at the little bundle, who had briefly quieted. Sanemi looked too. 

He remembered being surprised, and a little disappointed, when he saw Genya for the first time and found that he didn’t share his snow-white hair, but rather sported a goofy-looking poof of coffee-black. Now, his little face was red and tear-streaked, no doubt flushed with effort from screaming his head off. Sanemi frowned and looked back up at his mother. 

“Dad still not home?” 

She didn’t answer, but motioned Sanemi forward. “Come here, I want to show you something.”