Mob was "having an off day", as his mother would put it.
He'd been so nervous about his math test that he'd barely slept, and the anxiety made him too nauseous to eat much of his breakfast.
16%
He'd fallen asleep in biology and missed the entirety of the lesson, and nearly forgot that Ritsu had agreed to help him study during lunch. He grabbed a carton of milk from the cafeteria and chugged it on the way to the library, telling himself he'd just have a big dinner to make up for it.
22%
"Are you feeling all right, Nii-san?" Ritsu asked.
"I'm okay," Mob answered. "Just didn't sleep well last night."
It wasn't convincing at all, but Ritsu let it slide.
When his math test was placed in front of him, his eyes refused to focus.
The numbers blurred together on the page, smudged with ink where Mob had written something down, second guessed himself, written something else, and second guessed himself again. He kept chewing on his lips, which he knew he shouldn't do, but they were chapped and he was nervous and hungry and so tired.
His stomach growled loudly in the silent classroom, and the students seated adjacent to him snickered.
35%
Needless to say, he did not feel good about the test. The crisp air on the walk to work was refreshing, at least. It was easy to zone out and let muscle memory carry him to the door of Spirits & Such. He couldn't wait to sit at his desk and pretend to be busy while his Shishou handled the customers.
As if the entire universe was against him, he'd barely stepped through the entryway before Reigen loudly proclaimed that they were going to a client's house to exorcise a spirit.
Mob could feel a headache coming on.
51%
It was far enough that they needed to take the train, which was a blissful relief. Mob's legs felt like lead, and despite all the running he did with the body improvement club, he didn't think he could handle walking much more that day.
He nodded off partway through the ride, and Reigen managed to catch him with one hand before he fell forward out of his seat.
"You're lucky I have such quick reflexes," Reigen said. "Lean this way, if you're gonna fall asleep. Don't want you drooling on some random stranger."
He flashed a smile, and Mob responded with a smaller, more tired version, before resting his head on Reigen's shoulder.
He wasn't asleep long enough to get anything out of it, and the slight pressure in the back of his head had turned into a full-blown headache after keeping his head at an angle for too long. The walk from the train station wasn't far, but Mob felt himself struggling to keep up with Reigen's casual saunter.
74%
"How do you feel about ramen?"
"Hm?" Mob asked, blinking.
"For dinner. Does ramen sound good?"
Anything sounded good at this point. He opened his mouth to speak, but his empty stomach answered for him.
Reigen laughed, and Mob's steps felt just a little bit lighter.
The spirit wasn't very destructive. It was more akin to a poltergeist - throwing things around the room enough to be distracting, but not particularly dangerous.
It should've been easier to deal with. At this point, Mob was beginning to wonder if maybe he'd been cursed and somehow didn't notice.
He and Reigen were sitting with their backs against a sofa, trying to avoid the swirling tornado of books and household appliances in the center of the room. The sound of glass shattering sent a spike of pain through Mob's skull.
"Mob!" Reigen shouted over the noise. "What's the holdup?"
"It's fast," Mob said. "I can't focus on it." A partial truth. He also couldn't focus because he was tired, and hungry, and his head was spinning, but those were unimportant details.
86%
Reigen scowled for a second, resting his chin on the crook of his hand. He locked eyes with Mob.
"Cover me," he said, and before Mob could process what he meant, he rolled out from behind the sofa and sprang to his feet.
"EAT SALT, SPIRIT!" he shouted, circling around the room as he flung salt in the direction of the whirlwind. This, of course, did nothing, aside from sending the salt flying around the room. Mob realized this was his cue to do something.
He stood up in one quick motion, and instantly felt all the blood rush from his head.
90%
He put a barrier up around Reigen, even though he doubted he would get seriously injured. At least it would keep the salt from flying back in his face. Mob's vision went fuzzy, and he shook his head to clear it away.
92%
He faintly realized that Reigen's plan actually had some effect - the spirit wasn't paying any attention to Mob - and he focused all his energy into singling out its aura and destroying it.
There was an explosion of light within the tornado, and then everything fell to the ground.
94%
"Excellent work, Mob!" Reigen called from the opposite side of the room. "All thanks to my genius plan, of course, but, you know. It's a team effort."
Mob's stomach churned, and he felt himself sway. In the back of his mind, something told him this was a familiar feeling. He placed a hand on the back of the sofa for support.
"Mob?"
96%
That's right, he was supposed to sit down when this happened. Mob pressed his back against the sofa and slid down, pulling his knees up to his chest. It didn't provide the instant relief he hoped it would.
98%
He felt Reigen's footsteps more than he heard them, pounding on the hardwood floor.
"Mob, hey, talk to me," Reigen said, patting Mob's cheek a few times. It sounded like he was talking underwater.
"Shishou," Mob managed to say, "don't freak out."
99%
"What? Mob, what's wr-"
Exhaustion: 100%
----------
The first things Mob felt when he came to were the cold hardwood floor underneath him, and a warm, sweaty hand on his forehead. His hands and feet felt tingly, like they'd fallen asleep, and he could hear his heartbeat thudding in his head.
"-ou hear me? Mob?" Reigen's voice still sounded a bit muffled, covered by a layer of white noise, but it was becoming clearer. Mob really didn't feel like opening his eyes, he was almost comfortable now and it would be so easy to just fall back asleep, but he didn't want to worry Reigen more than he already had. He cracked his eyes open.
"Hey," Reigen said, smiling despite the beads of sweat visible on his forehead. His face was upside down, and Mob realized his head was resting in his lap.
"You with me?" Reigen asked. It took considerable effort, his body still felt heavy, but Mob nodded. Reigen's shoulders visibly relaxed.
"Good," he said. "You're not hurt, are you?"
Mob thought for a second, and decided that no, he wasn't hurt aside from the headache he'd had earlier, which was actually beginning to subside now. He shook his head, and this time it wasn't as heavy.
"Think you can sit up?" Reigen asked.
"Mhm," Mob said.
He was going to say "yes", but apparently he wasn't quite awake enough for that yet. It was good enough for Reigen, though, and he helped Mob sit up and lean against the sofa again. Mob rubbed at his eyes with both hands, steadily becoming more aware of himself.
"I'm gonna grab you some water, don't try to move, okay?" Reigen asked.
"Okay," Mob replied, finding his voice again.
As Reigen attempted to find a glass that hadn't been thrown across the room and shattered, Mob had time to sit and think. And the more he did, the more embarrassed he felt.
Reigen had witnessed him exorcise all manner of spirits and fight off powerful espers, but here he was, sitting on the floor of a client's house because a poltergeist had gotten the better of him. Not before he'd exorcised it, of course, but that didn't make him feel any better.
If it had been something really dangerous, they could both be dead. Or Reigen would be dead, and he would be... whatever he becomes when things get really, really bad. Which, Mob thinks, is almost worse. No, it's definitely worse. He should know better, it's not like this is the first time this has happened, and it certainly won't be the last.
He's snapped out of his thoughts when something tall and gray steps into his field of view.
"Here ya go," Reigen said, as casual as ever. Like there was nothing to worry about. "Don't drink it all at once."
Mob nearly does, anyways. He hadn't realized how thirsty he was, and Reigen had to place his hand on the glass to get him to slow down.
"Better?" he asked.
"Yes," Mob responded. "Sorry."
"Don't be sorry," Reigen said, waving him off. "These things happen."
Mob wanted to argue, but he was too tired. He felt like he could sleep for twelve hours straight. Instead, he took another sip of water, and felt the coldness of it snake down his chest.
Reigen sat against the sofa next to him, uncharacteristically silent as he leaned his head back and stared at the ceiling.
"Was this because of the spirit, or because you haven't been feeling well all day?"
Mob turned his head and stared at him.
"Did you think I wouldn't notice?" Reigen asked, countering Mob's shocked expression with a grin. "You're forgetting who your Shishou is."
Mob looked down at his lap, cradling the glass of water in both hands. He took another sip.
When a minute had passed with no response, Reigen nudged him with his elbow.
"So?" he prompted.
"You're right," Mob conceded. "I wasn't feeling good today. I didn't think it was this bad, though..."
He stared at his reflection in the water, and... alright, even he could admit he looked exhausted.
"Listen, Mob," Reigen said, putting a hand on his shoulder. He waited for Mob to turn to him before continuing on.
"No matter how powerful your abilities become, you can't let yourself think they make you invincible. Even psychics need plenty of water, sleep, and a balanced diet." He made a list on his fingers as he spoke.
"Remember how I told you even a stuffy nose can make it more difficult for me to sense spirits? That's why it's important to stay in peak physical condition."
"Like you?" Mob asked.
His sarcasm went entirely over Reigen's head.
"Exactly," he said. "I know I probably don't need to tell you all this, you're almost in high school, but..."
He gave Mob's shoulder a squeeze.
"Take care of yourself, got it?"
Mob nodded, hoping Reigen could see the gratitude on his face despite how exhausted he looked.
"Good. And if you ever think this might happen again, just tell me. We can always reschedule."
"But the clients-"
"The clients can handle an extra day," he said with a wave of his hand. "I'll just tell them we need more time to prepare, or something."
Reigen was probably right, and Mob was still too tired to argue anyway, so he just nodded. The tingling in his hands and feet had stopped, and the white noise had almost completely faded away. He was feeling more himself now.
"What do you say," Reigen said, rising to his feet and holding a hand out for him. "Are you still down for ramen?"
"Ramen sounds amazing," Mob said, taking Reigen's hand and - slowly - rising to his feet. He stood still for a few seconds, waiting to see if all of his blood dropped to his feet again, but to his relief, nothing happened.
Reigen raised an eyebrow at him.
"Ready?"
"Mm," Mob nodded.
As they left the house, Reigen went back to chattering like normal, and Mob felt a tension he hadn't known he was holding release.
Mob was certain that the ramen they ate that day was the best he'd ever had.