Work Text:
It had been two years since Gon had lost Killua, his soulmate, and he was more obsessive now than ever.
He had just graduated high school, which meant Killua had just graduated high school. Gon would never forget his best friend, and, coincidentally, his soulmate. He had been looking on social media for Killua, researching for entire days trying to find any trace of the Zoldyck family since he left. He kept the note on the wall intended for the movers, ‘Kukuroo Mountain Industries’ written as where the furniture had been relocated a couple years ago, feeling more like decades.
But a year after Killua had left, exactly one year, he got a message from an unknown number. It read: “Summer of 2018, I’ll be in the courthouse nearest your house. I don’t know when exactly, but I’m planning after my birthday since I’ll be 18. If I arrive when the courthouse is closed, I’ll run to your house instead. Make sure you don’t move no matter what or this’ll complicate things even more. Explain it to everyone you have to. Can’t send more than one message. I’ll see you then, Gon.”
Gon knew it was Killua. He believed it was Killua. From the diction to the fact it was talking about how Killua would be 18 that summer, the small details lined up. Finally, there was Killua’s goal: the courthouse. Gon knew Killua’s plan instantly, he was going to have them register as soulmates so they couldn’t be separated again. Gon had never had the chance to take Killua to the courthouse so they could register, Killua moved too quickly after they figured it out, but Killua was coming for that express purpose. But what about Alluka? Gon supposed he could ask when Killua got here.
He eventually thought that something may’ve happened to her.
Did she die of her illness? Was Killua tired of being apart from Gon? Had Killua found a way of them all staying together? Gon had no idea.
That was a year ago. It was now the summer Killua had told him about and Gon had no intention of letting Killua get away again. If they could stay together, Gon would do anything.
—)0(—
It was hard. He never had left a friend before, and a best friend even less so, and a soulmate the least. But it happened and Killua felt much worse for it. Days of wishing he was still neighbors with Gon. Weeks wondering what could’ve been. Mornings crying after his dreams of being with Gon from a lifetime ago. They became so frequent and so engraved within him that Illumi’s hypnotizing stopped working all together. Killua was free from that at least. Free to think for hours on his burning desires.
Hours of thinking how to run away to Gon and still keep Alluka in his life. Every. Fucking. Day.
But then a day came when he didn’t have to think about it anymore. Alluka’s condition had gotten so bad she had to be admitted into a hospital. Something that he initially wasn’t happy about. She wouldn’t move anywhere anymore. Ever. And with that knowledge, Killua had realized something. With that realization, he decided to make a plan.
Registering as soulmates would have to be the result of his plan. That’s how he and Gon could stay together, but how to get that to happen?
His family would never let him go back. That was a given. But when he’s 18, assuming he was in majority of the world countries where that was the age of a legal adult, he’d be able to go anywhere he wanted without them knowing. He’d be able to go to Gon, he just needed to plan it.
First, he needed money for the plane, food, maybe clothing (depending on how light he needed to travel clothing may be left out), and any unforeseen expenses. Money wasn’t a problem, he withdrew 100 dollars a week for weeks, saying he wanted to buy things. Instead he stacked it all in his room. After 2 years, he had about 4,600 dollars stashed away for today.
Second, passport. Again, not a problem. They travel often outside of countries, so his passport is always good to go.
Finally, he had to let Gon know the plan. That was the hardest part, but Killua got creative.
He realized he couldn’t do it from his home nor from his phone. Or any device he owned for that matter. He was thankful he wrote down Gon’s number, but even without it he could’ve just messaged him on social media. Gon wasn’t very creative in his naming — he was Jajanken on every social media account he had, so Killua remembered Gon’s account names.
During school, about a year after he left Gon, he had asked a group mate on a school project if he could use their phone. He said he needed to text his parents to come and get him and his phone had died.
He lied about both, he walked home and his phone was still at 73%. When he got the phone, he punched in Gon’s number and messaged him quickly, he’d typed it and sent it as quickly as he could. Gon would know, he had to trust that fact if he was going to do this. He couldn’t fret.
Now, it was the moment of truth. He’d figured out what flights to go on. He’d figured out when to leave. And it was 4 days after his birthday. He was 18 and nothing was going to stop him. Not his family, and not the law. He was an adult, and, because of that, he could leave. Now he just had to wait for the day he planned to leave to arrive.
—)0(—
Gon went every day to the courthouse since July 7th. He knew it was Killua’s birthday, so he probably wouldn’t be there because leaving then would cause suspicion and his family would be focused on him. But just in case, Gon arrived.
During the second week, his friends began to question him on what he was doing.
“Gon, what’re you doing at the courthouse?” Zushi had asked him on the second Thursday. Gon always ran to the courthouse, so it wasn’t all that hard to get his attention.
“I’m waiting for Killua!” Zushi had raised an eyebrow at that, so Gon continued. “Killua sent me a message a year ago that he’s gonna be at the courthouse this summer. He’s planning to get us registered as soulmates, so we won’t be separated again!” Gon was starting to get scared, what if Killua was there right now?
“Gon, are you sure it was him? And are you sure you aren’t being lied to?” Gon was more than furious at hearing that. Killua had messaged him. He had to have. And since Killua messaged, it means the message was true. Killua wouldn’t lie to him. Not about this, and Gon knew it. He was more confident in that belief than in death. He’d stake his life on it. He ran past Zushi right then.
—)0(—
Killua left at night. His whole family knew he was more of a night owl and hated getting up in the morning, so they wouldn’t check on him. And if they did for some reason, it wouldn’t be til 1-2pm. Leaving at midnight gave him plenty of time. He had already planned the route, even made sure the flights matched up well so he could do as much on foot as he could as quickly as he could. He could afford some miscalculation, but preferred to not have any.
So, on July 29th at midnight, 7 blocks from where his family currently lived, he ordered an Uber. And asked if he could pay in cash instead.
At 2am, he was on his first of 2 flights.
At 6am, he was on the second. Too nervous to eat.
At 7am, he made it to the town where he lived more than 2 years ago. Where he found someone more important to him than he’d ever realized. Then he ran. Ran to Whale Street.
At 1pm, he got a message from his family. One he ignored, they were too late now.
—)0(—
Gon had gotten up to a nice day. Birds were singing outside and the sky was showing clear and blue.
The blue reminded Gon of Killua.
He’d been going to the courthouse for over 3 weeks now. He was starting to waver, but refused to give up. Killua said this summer, that means until the end of August. Though Gon would wait for the rest of his life if need be.
Gon was up at 6am, making breakfast for himself at 6:30am. He made some eggs for himself since everyone else was asleep, and then was chilling in the living room waiting for it to be 9am, when the courthouse opened. What he hadn’t expected was the loud banging at the door at 8:17am, but then Gon’s heart raced. Killua said if the courthouse wasn’t open, he’d come here.
Racing to the door and prying it open, he was met with white hair he’d seen for the first time two years ago, blue eyes he’d missed every time he saw the color, and a pale teen he’d been thinking about every day.
“Hi Go—” he didn’t let Killua finish before slamming into him with a hug, crushing him to himself without a second thought. Hopefully he didn’t break any of Killua’s bones
“You’re here! You’re actually here!” Killua was slightly taller (still taller than Gon by an inch), slightly older, and a little scruffy with his facial hair, but so clearly the same teen Gon had been missing for so long. If nothing else, his soulmark shocking him made that clear.
Standing in the doorway, embracing, Gon held Killua tight, placing his forehead on Killua’s shoulder, and when Gon felt Killua rest his head on his shoulder and hold him just as tight, Gon couldn’t stop the tears.
“I’m sorry, Gon. Really. I should’ve fought back.”
“You did!” Lifting his head as Killua lifted his own and pulled away from Killua just enough to see his face, which was against the left side of his neck. Cupping Killua’s jaw, he continued, “You did fight. That’s how you got here in the first place. And now we’ll be together. You can stay here, and we can go to college together, and we can hang out, and...” Gon’s voice trailed off as a slight blush crept up, “... this may not be the right time, but, I wanna take you out somewhere, if that’s ok with you.”
Killua lifted his arms to hold onto Gon’s wrist. The grip was tight, but not painful in the slightest. It also wasn’t close to as tight as Killua wanted to hold them, and Gon could tell just by looking at Killua himself. They looked each other straight in the eyes. “After we get everything done at the courthouse, we can go out as many times as we want.” Killua’s scarlet red face as he said that betrayed his steady voice and wide grin. He was clearly embarrassed, but something kept that from showing in his voice. Gon, seeing the happiness on Killua’s face, the happiness so dense within Killua’s eyes, couldn’t help but steal a kiss despite that boundary having never been crossed.
“Ok, after.” Gon agreed. Killua had been more than caught off guard and his red neck and collarbone was proof of that.
“You— moron.” He accented with a smack on Gon’s right shoulder “Maybe you should wait before doing that!” And Gon couldn’t help but laugh, breathless and happy and finally whole. The first big laugh he’d had since two years ago. But that didn’t matter now. Gon went inside, dragging Killua in by interlocking their hands. Killua wasn't walking very fast though, too slow for Gon, he was probably tired, so Gon responded with quickly walking closer to Killua and picking him up then tossing him onto the couch.
—)0(—
Killua was tired, and getting thrown on furniture wasn’t helping that. “Maybe I should’ve stayed home. I don’t get thrown on the couch there.” Killua joked tiredly. The horror on Gon’s face wiped the forming smirk off in an instant.
“DON'T GO!” Gon yelled, and Killua couldn’t help but laugh, go?
“I’m not going anywhere, stupid. I was joking.”
“Well, we have a bit of time, you want breakfast? The courthouse opens at nine, so we have a while before we need to go. I can make you some eggs or something.” Gon was smiling bigger than he could remember now. He was happier than he ever thought he would be again, and it was all Killua’s fault.
“Sure, I’ll take some scrambled eggs. And I’ll help.” Killua got up from the couch and approached Gon, who was in the kitchen grabbing the egg carton, and he couldn’t help but smile.
Alluka was in the hospital. Killua had left a note detailing to his sister to call him when she woke up a week before he left. Killua was Alluka’s emergency contact in the hospital system too, so he’d know if anything happened. Killua wanted to make sure he was always taking care of his sister, so he’d go see her as often as he could, which he decided to be every weekend, he was gonna transfer his bank account from his current one to a new one he could use as he pleased. But he had another soulmate too. One who needed him, and one he realized he needed almost as much as he needed his sister. It became painful, not being with Gon. The same sort of pain he expected if he ever lost Alluka for good. He wouldn’t abandon Alluka. He decided that a long time ago.
And he decided to never abandon Gon, too.