Voiceless (Persona 4, Yosuke)

[Sparkling]

I was in the mood for some fluff with Yosuke and Yu, so here's a fic where Yosuke loses his voice. It takes place after the Golden epilogue, so everyone is 18+! There's so little Persona in this forum, so I hope some fans can enjoy ❤️

--

Yu Narukami strolled through the chilly late afternoon streets of Inaba, the cold breeze brushing against his face. He and the former Investigation Team were set to gather at Junes for a night party, but Yu was already behind schedule. As he neared the Junes food court, the faint voices of his friends echoed through the otherwise quiet streets.

“Yosuke, I've known you for what, your whole life? This is the first time I've ever heard you like this!” Came what sounded like Chie’s voice.

“Hey, what do you mean my whole life?!”

Yu's brow furrowed. Did that raspy voice belong to Yosuke?

“Um, hey,” Yu spoke up once he arrived at the food court. The scene he was expecting certainly wasn't the one he was withholding right now. Everyone was standing and looking at Yosuke, who probably had just come out of work. “What's going on here?”

“Hello, Sensei!” Teddie's energetic voice came first.

“Hello, Yu,” greeted Yukiko with her usual sweetness. “We're just talking to Yosuke because, um…”

“He sounds like he ate a frog,” Kanji finished for Yukiko, who exploded in chuckles at the comparison.

“Sheesh, it's not that bad,” Yosuke rasped out, and Yu could tell that it was that bad. His voice was deeper and fractured, as if he'd been shouting at the top of his lungs for an hour straight. The situation was worsened by his nose, tinged red and looking irritated, likely from excessive rubbing. “It's just a tiny cold.”

“It might not be as tiny,” Naoto said, her arms crossed. “Your throat could be inflamed.”

“Yeah. I've gotten sore throats before from several concerts, but this sounds different,” Rise said, her brow furrowed. Yu studied his boyfriend closely. They had spoken earlier during his work break, but reflecting on it now, Yu realized Yosuke had deliberately avoided any video calls. Was he trying to hide this?

“I hope you're not thinking of going to the party like this!” Said Chie. Yosuke gave a painful cough and he rubbed his nose.

“I'm telling you, it sounds worse than it is,” Yosuke argued back, then he looked at Yu for support. Yu faltered as all eyes fell on him.

“Maybe it's not a good idea to go anywhere when you're sick,” Yosuke shot him a pleading stare, but it was too late.

“See? Even your boyfriend thinks so,” Chie looked back at Yosuke.

“Okay, whoever agrees to go to the party without Yosuke, raise their hand!” Teddie suddenly said. In less than a second, everyone was raising a hand. Yosuke looked at Teddie.

“Hey, you asshole—” His voice broke and a series of raspy coughs were muffled into his fist, making everyone wince. If Yosuke's intention was to convince everyone that he was fine, it wasn't working.

“Sorry, Yosuke, but you should be resting,” Yukiko said as Yosuke recovered from the fit.

“Oh, maybe Yu can get you some tea?”

“No, he doesn't have to be dragged into this…” Yosuke rubbed his hair, part of his exhaustion starting to show. Yu looked at him attentively. “Fine, I'll go home. But I'm not going to be left out of the next party!”

“Maybe you should improve your immune system next time!” Chie told him, and Yosuke huffed.

As everyone began to part ways, Yu fixed his gaze on Yosuke. The rest of the group hastily walked ahead to allow the couple some privacy. Yosuke's cheeks flushed softly upon making eye contact, and he cleared his throat, fully aware of Yu's thoughts.

“You can go, Yu. It's really not that bad,” Yosuke assured, though his words lost strength as he brought his elbow up to muffle more irritated coughs. Yu tried his best not to wince again.

“I know you might not admit it, but you sound terrible,” Yu said bluntly, gaining a half-chuckle from Yosuke.

“Gee, thanks. But you really don't have to come with me, you might catch this and then I'll feel guilty about it,” he sniffled, rubbing his irritated nose with a knuckle.

“Well, I'm feeling guilty just thinking about going to the party and leaving you like this when I could take care of you,” Yu knew Yosuke was going to retort with that stubbornness of his, so he got closer and kissed him on the cheek, knowing the action would catch him off-guard. “Also, I never get sick. I have an immune system of steel.”

“That's totally a lie,” Yosuke muttered, his cheeks red.

“Well, have you ever seen me sick before?” Yu gave a side smile, knowing he was winning the argument. Finally, Yosuke let out a stuffy sigh and cleared his throat again.

“Okay, you win, but only because I'm too tired to object!” Yosuke exclaimed. “I'd understand if you leave early, though. I might not be the best company right now.”

“You're always the best company.”

This made Yosuke's face turn red, and Yu gave a triumphant smile. Yosuke was so cute sometimes, he couldn't possibly miss this for some party.

“You're so sappy,” he smiled, unable to hide his embarrassment. Yu was going to continue their usual tete-a-tete when suddenly, Yosuke coughed again, this time more harshly. Yu tried his best not to wince.

“Seriously, how did you catch this? I don't think I've ever heard you sound so…”

“Don't even say it…” Yosuke sighed, starting to walk beside Yu so they could get to his place quickly. “I don't even know. It started this morning when I was attending to some customers as usual, and—” he coughed into his fist, making his brow furrow from the pain. “And I might've caught it from one of them.”

“Hmm, that sounds bad,” Yu patted his back sympathetically as he felt the breeze lower in temperature. He wished it didn't worsen Yosuke's cold.

“It seriously sucks. Am I really going to spend my break coughing up a lung in my room while everyone else is having a good time?”

“Well, I'll be with you. I could get you bundled up, make you some soup, give you some tissues…”

“Stoooop, man, it's embarrassing,” Yosuke looked away to hide that blush that just wouldn't go away, sniffling thickly. “It makes me feel like a baby.”

“I wouldn't call it that. You're just sick and I'm a concerned boyfriend who wants to hug you.”

“No hugging! I'm telling you, I won't let you catch this,” Yosuke warned, wiping his nose with his arm. “I know how clingy you can get.”

“Guilty as charged,” Yu smiled. When a particularly cold breeze hit them in the face and made Yosuke shiver, he brought him closer to him. “Do you want my jacket?”

His only answers were a series of hitchy, raspy breaths. Yosuke's brow furrowed as his eyes closed unwittingly with the need to sneeze, his nostrils flaring in response to the cold. He cupped both hands around his mouth and nose as a needy intake of breath signaled that the tickle had reached its peak.

“Hh’iZSHHhUh!!” A harsh, broken sneeze echoed in the dim street. Yu was well aware of how loud Yosuke's sneezes could be, and found it intriguing that his voice seemed to return just enough to match its usual volume. Yosuke didn't take his palms off his face as a few breaths controlled him. “Hh-hehh… hhh…”

Yu waited a few seconds, but no sneeze seemed to be coming yet. “Bless you…?”

“Hh- I think it's gone,” he said, his voice muffled by his palms. When he confirmed the sneeze wouldn't come, he sighed tiredly. “I've been like this all day. Sometimes I sneeze, and sometimes they leave me looking like an idiot.”

Yu chuckled. “This sounds like one hell of a cold.”

“Tell me about it,” he rasped, coughing afterwards. After a few harsher coughs, he was forced to hunch over as the irritation tormented his throat, while Yu gently patted his back to calm it down.

“Here,” Yu took off his jacket and placed it on Yosuke's shoulders as he started to calm down from the fit. “This cold isn't going to do you any good.”

“Thanks,” Yosuke said sheepishly, wrapping himself up with the jacket. Another shiver overtook him. “My throat is just killing me, I can't even get a word out without…”

Yu raised an eyebrow at the sudden trail-off. “Without…?”

“Hehh’iSZHhHhuh!!” Yosuke sneezed harshly into his hands again, which triggered even more coughs. “Shit, I'm—”

His voice was raspier than before, and Yu's brow furrowed as he listened to the last word fade away in Yosuke's throat.

“I think I…” came a set of barely intelligible croaks that made Yu's concern increase.

“Yosuke, just… stop talking,” he said, then placed a hand on Yosuke's forehead. “Hmm, this is a very bad cold. I think you just lost your voice, too.”

Yosuke's eyes widened in disbelief. He tried to say something, but what came out barely qualified as a sentence and only served to make him grimace in pain. His voice sounded so broken that he couldn't believe it was his own.

“Shh, what did I just say?” Yu placed a finger on top of his lips, and Yosuke closed his mouth for a change. “It’s because you sneeze so loudly. You might've used the last reserve of voice you had left.”

Yosuke mouthed a ‘what?’, but there was no way to deny it. His voice was completely shot now. Yu could hear him whisper a curse that he preferred to ignore.

“Let's just go home. You need to drink something warm, okay?”

His boyfriend nodded, defeated. He wiped his tickly nose with his wrist and Yu could note the change in expression that followed the action. It didn't take long to recognize what was coming.

“Can you try to be more quiet when you sneeze?”

Yosuke shook his head, his eyes closed in concentration as he felt the itch develop. Yu knew he couldn't help the natural volume of his sneezes, after all, Yosuke wasn't the type of person that could do anything quietly. He feared that another sneeze might worsen the state of his voice further.

“Hh-hhh…” his intakes of breath were now voiceless. Yosuke kept his palms hovering around his nose as he waited for the sneeze. After a few seconds of torture, though, he let out a congested sigh and shook his head, the sneeze leaving him yet again.

“Hmm, I don't think this warrants a ‘bless you’,” Yu smiled as Yosuke sniffled, clearly annoyed with his nose. “I can't believe you were planning to go to the party like this.”

Yosuke looked at him, a stare that clearly said that his cold wasn't this bad earlier. He cleared his irritated throat as another cold breeze hit them. Yu didn't want to waste any more time.

“Let's go. If you feel cold, just tell me and I'll hug you,” Yosuke shot him an embarrassed stare. “Right, you can't really tell me. Uh, you could do a sign?”

The brown-haired shot a thumbs-up and started to walk again, too tired to argue. Yu followed him, making sure to keep a close eye on his boyfriend so he didn't pass out on the streets or something of the sort.

—

By the time they arrived at Yosuke's house, he looked even worse. Dark circles had formed under his eyes, his nose was red and congested, and he was unable to speak at all. Yu realized how much Yosuke usually filled the silence with his chatter on a normal day. He and Chie could entertain a whole day with their light-hearted conversations. Yet, with Yosuke now silent, Yu found the atmosphere noticeably emptier.

As they entered, Yosuke led the way to his room. Once there, he collapsed onto the bed with a stuffy, exhausted sigh. Yu glanced around the room, which looked as it always did—posters adorned the walls, a pair of shoes lay on the floor, and his small TV was unplugged. Finally, Yu turned his attention to his boyfriend. He had to admit, Yosuke looked quite cute with his reddish nose and all. Having never seen Yosuke sick before, Yu felt a bit eager to take care of him.

“Okay, you should change your clothes first while I make you some tea. What type do you have?”

“I don't—” his voice broke again and he coughed into his fist.

“Right, um… how can we communicate?”

Yosuke raised a finger to catch Yu's attention. He took out his phone from his pocket and tapped the screen a few times. Seconds later, Yu's phone buzzed and he saw a new message had just come.

“I'll text u”

Yu couldn't hold back a chuckle as he replied out loud. “Sure, it works. So, what tea do you have?”

The text didn't take long to arrive. “I don't remember, maybe some chamomile?”

“Remind me to get you some tea, you can't survive with chamomile only.”

“😦”

Yu huffed a laugh and he could see Yosuke starting to smile. At least he looked less moody now. This way of communicating was strange, yet it brought a sense of amusement to make Yosuke forget about how awful he was feeling.

“I'll be back.”

And with that, he made his way towards the kitchen as he heard some smothered coughs coming from Yosuke's room. Once he was there, he checked the cabinets until he found the aforementioned chamomile tea. He made a quick google search that confirmed chamomile tea could soothe and reduce inflammation on the throat, so he started to bowl the water, then made his way back to Yosuke's room. He peeked inside and noticed Yosuke was putting on a pair of baggy pants as he shivered slightly. He knocked softly.

“Would you like something to eat?”

Yosuke shook his head with an uncomfy expression. Yu raised an eyebrow.

“I'm guessing you're not hungry, but you should eat something.”

He saw Yosuke grab his phone again. “I had a burger at Junes earlier”

“I don't think that qualifies as sick people food. I'll let it pass for now, though.”

Yosuke sniffled thickly before grabbing a pack of tissues from the nightstand. He took one out and blew his nose with a gurgling sound. Yu noted how irritated his sinuses looked.

“Have you been rubbing your nose?”

His boyfriend nodded from behind the tissue, blowing again. This time he managed to clear most of the junk and he could breath a bit better. Yu got closer to him and placed a hand on his forehead again, surprising Yosuke, who looked away in mild embarrassment.

“You have a bit of a fever. I wonder who you caught this awful cold from.”

Yosuke closed his eyes, enjoying the contact of Yu's hand against his warm forehead. Then, he grabbed his phone and texted him again.

“I don't think I've ever been this sick before 😔”

“Good thing you have me around, right?” Yu smiled, enjoying how flustered Yosuke would always get whenever he pampered him.

“Lemme get you the tea.”

Yosuke nodded and cleared his throat. Yu noticed the subtle shiver that ran through his torso before heading back to the kitchen. The water had reached a pleasant warmth, so he turned off the kettle and poured it into Yosuke's signature mug, which was decorated with random, orange patterns. He placed the teabag inside and stirred the water with a spoon. It wasn't long before he returned to the room, this time with the mug in hand.

“Here you go.”

Yosuke, who was now wrapped up in his duvet, mouthed a ‘thanks’ as he grabbed the mug. His eyes closed and he felt the steam soothe his sinuses and throat. Yu ruffled his hair slightly and he received a huff from Yosuke as a response.

“Hmm, maybe we could watch TV after I change out of these clothes, sounds good?”

His boyfriend nodded, a watery sniffle making itself known. At least his sniffles didn't sound so thick now, Yu thought. He turned his back to Yosuke and crouched down to grab the cable of the TV. Suddenly, his phone buzzed with a new message and he thought Yosuke might have texted him again, but when he looked at the contact info, he noticed it was Chie. There was a selfie that showed Yukiko and Chie together, both posing with a peace sign. Then, Yu read the text.

“Heyyy how're you doing?? Honestly you guys aren't missing much, this party sucks, were only having fun bc some guys are insulting each other outside”

Yu's eyes widened and he didn't take long to text back.

“Wdym? Is there some gossip you want to share? 👀”

“Not much, but apparently one the guy's gf was cheating on him with the other guy. Heavy stuff!! anyway how's Yosuke”

“He lost his voice”

“what???? Like completely gone?”

“Yeah, he can't talk now. I gave some tea to see if it helps his throat”

“I knew he had to go home! I'll dfntly have to visit him soon so I can see a silent Yosuke with my own eyes”

Yu smiled. He was about to respond when all of a sudden, a strange sound caught his attention.

“’tszHhh!”

It sounded like a sharp expulsion of air, or maybe a whiff of air instead. Yu turned around to look at his boyfriend, confusion plaguing him. Had that been what he thought it was?

“Yosuke, was that…?”

He trailed off when he detailed his boyfriend cupping both hands around his nose. His eyes were closed in expectation, and he'd left the mug on the nightstand next to the bed. Small breaths filled the silence as he seemed to be battling a tickle, and then, a sharper intake of breath reached Yu's ears as he saw Yosuke pitch forward with a sudden–

“Hh’tsZhhh!”

Yu blinked in realization. So it was a sneeze. Since the day they met, Yosuke's sneezes had always been loud, a consistent trait. Now, they were voiceless and small. He never thought one day he'd describe his sneeze as small. The stark contrast between his earlier sneezes and these ones sent a hint of amusement to Yu's chest. From the corner of the bed, Yosuke grabbed a tissue to blow his abused nose into it. He looked a bit weirded out by his voiceless sneezes, too.

“Bless you,” Yu said, unable to hide his smirk. Yosuke shot him a stare before his breath hitched yet again.

“Hh’tzshHh!” Another soft sneeze escaped him, and this time, Yu muffled a chuckle with the back of his hand.

Yosuke's cheeks turned bright red as he hurriedly grabbed his phone.

“Stop laughing you jerk 😠”

“I'm not laughing,” Yu said between laughs, making Yosuke stare at him. “Sorry, sorry. It's just… you sound so cute.”

“Ur lucky I can't talk right now, or I'd be giving you a piece of my mind”

“I think you're already doing that,” Yu finally plugged in the TV as he tried to calm down his amusement. “Who would've thought you'd ever sneeze so quietly? Maybe this cold isn't as bad as we thought.”

Yosuke rolled his eyes, which didn't stop Yu from smiling but it did make his temples pound. He cleared his throat painfully as Yu went to the closet to grab a few clothes.

“Okay, now what should I wear? Oh, is this shirt new?” He asked as he grabbed a black, stylish shirt from the hanger. Yosuke nodded, grabbing the tea from the nightstand. He rasped some type of answer, but Yu couldn't pick it up. “Remember, no talking. You can tell me later.”

Yosuke's brow furrowed and he sighed. Yu could tell he wasn't used to being this silent. Finally, the guy settled for a simple, white shirt and a pair of comfy pants. He turned around to let Yosuke look at him.

“Very handsome, right?”

The brown-haired haired flashed him a thumbs up with a smile. He always seemed to enjoy when Yu wore his clothes. Then, Yu sat down beside to him on the bed, picking up the TV remote. Knowing Yosuke needed it the most, he refrained from covering himself with the duvet.

“Is the tea helping your throat?” Yu asked, his voice soft, yet sympathetic. Yosuke's stomach fluttered before nodding as he took in the last sip of tea, sighing afterwards. “Good, you might even get a word out by tomorrow.”

Yosuke mouthed a ‘yeah’ and sniffled, covering himself further with the soft duvet. He grabbed his phone and texted Yu again.

“Srry if I've been a bit grumpy”

Yu looked at the text, then at Yosuke. Before he could say anything, another text arrived.

“No one's really taken care of me since young, it's a bit embarrassing”

“Is that so?” Yu smiled, getting closer to Yosuke to bring him closer. “Guess you now have boyfriend privileges.”

He couldn't see Yosuke's face right now, but he knew what type of expression he was making. He saw him raise his phone to text something else, but he gave up. Maybe he didn't know how to hide his embarrassment, which only made Yu want to kiss him more.

“I guess I can't kiss you right now?”

Yosuke hurriedly shook his head. “You'll catch this 😤”

“Then maybe you could take care of me next.”

“I won't”

Yu chuckled. He didn't know why he was having such a good time taking care of Yosuke. Seeing this side of him seemed to be doing something to him, maybe it was how vulnerable he looked compared to his usual self. It was a bit endearing. Yosuke, on the other hand, wiped his nose with his wrist and cleared his throat.

“Let's see what movie we can find, then I'll think of what I can whip up for dinner.”

Yosuke nodded, making himself comfortable by resting his head on Yu's shoulder. Despite how embarrassed he often felt when it came to Yu's affection, a habit he carried from high school before he discovered his sexuality, he couldn't deny that he was enjoying this too. Yu heard a few sniffles as he navigated the channels, trying to find something mildly enjoyable. He finally settled for an action movie that didn't look too deep.

Suddenly, Yosuke received a text from Chie. Yu knew what was coming as soon as he looked at the screen, then at his boyfriend.

“Oh yeah, Chie says the party sucked. She also knows you lost your voice.”

Yosuke sighed before replying to Chie with one of their usual quips. He barely finished sending the message before his nose tickled and he pressed it with a knuckle to stop it, but of course, his attempts fell futile. He took in a breath and turned away from Yu.

“Hh’tzshHh! Hh’szhHh!” He let out two of these new voiceless sneezes into his elbow and sniffled wetly.

“Bless you,” Yu said, enjoying this way too much. Yosuke was going back to his position on Yu’s shoulder before he felt his breath hitch again. He clicked his tongue and dropped his phone on the bed to cup both hands on his mouth and nose.

“Hh’tszhh!”

“And again.”

“Hh’szHh!”

“And again,” Yu smiled, patting Yosuke's back. “You’re sneezy today, aren't you?”

Yosuke hit him with his elbow, though there was no heat to it. He still felt his nose tickle relentlessly. These small sneezes were itchy, yet they seemed to do nothing to alleviate the irritation in his sinuses. He covered his nose yet again, his cheeks flushed.

“Hh’szhHh!” He let out a stuffy sigh and a sniffle. “Ghh, this sucks…”

Their eyes widened when Yosuke managed to get a sentence out without busting a lung. Yosuke cleared his throat and coughed softly, testing the waters.

“I think the tea is doing its job well,” Yu said. “But don't force it yet. You have to rest your throat properly.”

Yosuke hummed, grabbing a fresh tissue to blow his nose into it. This triggered the tickle yet again, and he was forced to bury his nose into the paper with a tired groan.

“Hh’tszHuh!” This sneeze had more voice to it. Yu took it as a good sign as he brought his boyfriend closer to him.

“Bless you,” Yu repeated before placing a kiss on Yosuke's forehead, then at his cheek, then his nose. When Yosuke looked at him, completely caught off-guard, Yu feigned innocence. “It's a good health charm so you get better soon.”

Yosuke raised his phone, the tip of his ears red.

“u shouldn’t do that, you’ll get sick”

“Hmm, I never get sick, remember?”

Yu chuckled as Yosuke sighed and accepted his fate, rubbing his nose. He rested his head on his boyfriend’s shoulder again, this time with more certainty. Yu smiled to himself, triumphant. For now, he won.

[justlogan]

Okay perfect and sweet and adorable and lovely and thank you so much for sharing this! I'm a huge fan of persona, especially four and five and this was just so well in tune with everyone's personalities. Literally couldn't stop smiling at a few points, imagining Yosuke like this. I also feel bad for him of course but still 😅 Very very well done! Can't wait to see more if you ever decide to update this 😷

[Sparkling]

12 hours ago, justlogan said:

Okay perfect and sweet and adorable and lovely and thank you so much for sharing this! I'm a huge fan of persona, especially four and five and this was just so well in tune with everyone's personalities. Literally couldn't stop smiling at a few points, imagining Yosuke like this. I also feel bad for him of course but still 😅 Very very well done! Can't wait to see more if you ever decide to update this 😷

Thank you!! I do have another smaller fic I wrote a while ago with Yosuke, I might post it soon 👀