Gen Asagiri - GENSEN/SENGEN

Gen Asagiri had always been good at reading people. It was practically his specialty.

So when Senku Ishigami started acting strange, Gen noticed immediately. At first, it was little things. Senku stopped barging into meetings with some ridiculous declaration about humanity's next great breakthrough. His usual smug grin appeared less often. He still worked—of course he did—but there was something missing from the way he moved.

The time machine project was progressing steadily, and for once, there were no life-or-death emergencies demanding everyone's attention.

No petrification. No enemies. No desperate race against time.

Just equations, machinery, failed experiments, and the endless hum of computers. Everyone else seemed relieved by the peace. Gen wasn't. Because Senku looked like he didn't know what to do with it.*

For years, Senku had survived by moving from one crisis to the next. Every problem had been something to solve, every obstacle another challenge to overcome. Adrenaline had kept him sharp, focused, almost impossible to slow down.

Now there was time to stop. And with that time came thoughts he'd never had the luxury to process. Weeks passed. Senku became quieter. He'd sit at his desk long after everyone else had left, staring at calculations without writing anything. Sometimes Gen would catch him simply staring through the window, expression completely blank.

"You're looking pretty gloomy there, Senku-chan," Gen teased one evening.

Senku barely glanced at him. "Just tired."

That answer bothered Gen more than it should have. Senku didn't usually admit to being tired.

A few more weeks passed.

Then, one afternoon, Gen was walking past Senku's office when he heard something fall. A sharp metallic clatter. "Senku?"

No answer. Gen opened the door. Senku was on the floor beside his desk. For once, there was no smug expression, no sarcastic remark waiting for him. Just silence.

Gen's smile disappeared. "…Senku-chan?"

He calls everyone by their first name then -chan. e.g. Senku-Chan