Italics are Kusuo "speaking" aka telepathy.

In which the reader and friends are on a camping trip, but they convince themself that their feelings will not be reciprocated.

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You and your friend group had decided that going camping together would be a great idea this summer. That's how you, 3 girls (being Teruhashi, Yumehara, and Mikoto) and 4 boys (being Nendou, Kaidou, Saiki, and Kuboyasu) ended up here, sitting around this campfire. Generally, you'd been having a wonderful time. All of you were somewhere that was free from regular day to day responsibilities and overbearing adult figures. It was rather nice, except for one small thing.

Saiki Kusuo. One of your closest friends and incidentally also your crush. There had been many times you'd considered telling Saiki about how you felt but stopping yourself every time out of pure respect for his clear boundaries. Over the past couple of weeks, you started to realize maybe you weren't as close as you thought you were. You had begun to convince yourself you were nothing more than a bother for Saiki and had contemplated distancing yourself from him. Would it be better for him? Would it make him happy for you to give him the space you felt he desired so badly?

Ultimately, you decided it would be better to leave him alone. The very last thing you wanted was to cause any further trouble for Saiki and you knew that more than anything he didn't want to draw attention to himself. It wouldn't be easy, considering how close you thought you had become but you knew you'd be able to manage. You had all your other wonderful friends with you and this may be a great chance to get even closer with some of them. What's a better way to bond than being stuck in the wilderness for a week?

You had been zoned out for a while now and were surprised to see Teruhashi's hand waving in front of your face.

"Y/N? Are you alright?" Teruhashi asked you, a rather clear worried expression on her face.

"Yeah! I'm fine." You managed to get out unphased. Thankfully, the worried expression was wiped off of her face and was replaced with a gorgeous, glowing smile.

"I'm glad, Y/N! Anyways, we were talking about heading back to our tents for the night, but some of the boys are staying out. Are you coming?"

Thinking for a moment about her question, you glanced over at where Saiki was sitting, trying to deduce if he'd be heading in for the night too. Seeing that he was getting ready to pack up, you decided you were in the clear to stay out longer.

"I think I'll be staying out a little longer. I'd like to chat!" You said eagerly in reply.

"Alright, Y/N. Just don't stay out too late, okay? Good night!"

"Goodnight, Teruhashi!"

Moving your gaze towards whoever had chosen to stay outside, you see only Kuboyasu and Kaidou. They would be fun to talk to. The three of you talked about nothing and everything until the sun had fully set and countless stars painted the deep night sky. You decided to ask about Saiki. They were rather close to him, and you trusted them enough not to tattle.

"I have a weird question. It's about Saiki." You tested the waters with that. If they didn't react too well, you'd just ask something unimportant like his favourite sweets, or manga series.

"What's up Y/N?" Kuboyasu was quick to reply, obviously curious as to what you wanted to know. Kaidou also tilted his head out of curiosity.

"Well... do you know if Saiki likes anyone?"

Kaidou was even faster to jump in.

"I can't say for sure, as he doesn't express... much emotion. I'm not sure."

The small look of victory on your face gave everything you felt towards Saiki away to the two boys in front of you. Maybe you did have some chance. Kuboyasu smirked at you, promising that he and Kaidou would keep quiet about your little crush.

Finally getting tired, and rather satisfied with what you had learned tonight, you said your goodnights to Kuboyasu and Kaidou who promptly did the same. You quietly made your way into your shared tent with Teruhashi, seeing her already fast asleep. Settling in for the night, it wasn't long before you fell asleep too.

The next morning you were one of the first awake. Climbing out of the tent, you were greeted by none other than Nendou and Yumehara. The two of them were busy cooking breakfast for the group, something you were extremely thankful for.

Once everyone was awake and had eaten, you all left for a hike up the trail that was near your campsite. The walk was nice, and it was a good time being with your friends. You were lucky enough to end up walking next to Mikoto and Yumehara at some points, actually having a nice time with her. You had forgotten how well the three of you got along. Nevertheless, you still managed to avoid Saiki.

Meanwhile, during all of this, your thoughts were becoming unbearable to Saiki. He knew why you weren't talking to him, but it didn't mean a little part of him didn't miss your company. Saiki was surprised to realize he couldn't stand knowing you thought he disliked you or was picking someone else over you. It wasn't the case, at all. It had taken his all not to telepathically tell you you're wrong and he wanted you to come to talk to him. He knew he had to do something about it himself.

Walking up to you, he said he knew you'd been dodging him and asked you to meet him by the lake that evening when most of the group had turned in for the night.

Surprised by Saiki's sudden looming presence over your shoulder, you hesitantly agreed to meet him there tonight. A part of you was excited, not knowing what caused him to suddenly ask you that. Another part of you was filled with doubt. You had no idea what he wanted you for. Was it possible he was mad at you? For a split second, you considered not going. Then the rational part of you took over, this is Saiki we're talking about, and suddenly you were nearly certain he wouldn't pull you aside to yell at you. You made up your mind, you were going to meet Saiki by the lake tonight.

Once night arrived, you quietly headed out towards the nearby river. As soon as you found it, you spotted Saiki, sitting on a picnic blanket, with a basket beside him. It was quite the sight to behold, Saiki was rather pretty, seemingly shining from the moonlight that wrapped around his shape.

And so was the scenery. The lake was serene, peaceful in every sense of the word. The moon and glowing stars reflected perfectly in the still water, with nothing daring to disturb the perfect atmosphere. It was stunning, and in any case, you were mesmerized by the seemingly glowing lake in front of you.

Silently, you sat down beside Saiki, only for him to start talking right away.

"Y/N. Listen. I know this is going to be a lot, but there's something I need to tell you."

This was worrying. Was he okay? You looked at him with a worried expression painted on your face,

"What is it, Saiki?"

He took in air, clearly nervous. This was out of character for him.

"I'm a psychic. I have many abilities, ones I won't get into right now as there is one I need to tell you about. I can read minds... I constantly hear thoughts telepathically, including yours."

Oh. Oh no. This wasn't good. So he knew? Is that what this was about? Feeling the panic rush over you, you closed your eyes and hid your face as you started tearing up. You had no idea how to react. You'd never been more certain Saiki hates you.

"I like you too."

Your head shot up immediately. Saiki.. felt the same way? Despite everything, he didn't dislike you? He wasn't annoyed by you? Even though he knew what you were thinking that whole time?

"Far from it. I do like you." Saiki said, reaching to rub your back and help calm you down.

"I can't believe this..." You were practically shaking from shock. You were happy, despite knowing he could read your thoughts this whole time. If it couldn't be helped then you supposed you'd have to accept it. Though, both you and Saiki were surprised at how easily you accepted his powers. He was still Saiki, after all. Nothing had changed that, nor would it ever.

"I should ask to be official, Y/N, will you go out with me?"

"I think you already know the answer to that. Yes, of course, I will." You were surprised by how calm and steady your voice was.

"I apologize I never said anything sooner. I didn't want to give myself away."

"Oh, Saiki, I understand. You don't need to be sorry."

"I know it was only a few days, I missed you."

You smiled at him, "I missed you too."

Saiki slid over towards you, adjusting his body so you could place your head on his shoulder. Which you did, and he placed his head on yours. Opening the picnic basket that had been long forgotten, you and Saiki enjoyed a nighttime snack sitting out by the gorgeous lake.

"So... you're a psychic? Will you show me what you can do?"

Saiki couldn't believe what he was about to say. Good grief, you brought out the best in him. Not that he minded. He was glad you accepted him, and he trusted you enough to keep his secret. He looked over at you and gave a small smile.

"Gladly."

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