#And I do love the Megumi and Shoko scene! I do love it! But come on!!!
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While I loved that interaction, that is all we got about something that could be taken as two of the most important (alive) people in Gojo's life mentioning him, thinking of him with fondness, or coming anywhere close to mourning him.
Then we got two pages of resolution of whatever emotional turmoil these two have going on
#And I do love the Megumi and Shoko scene! I do love it! But come on!!!#When I say Gege Akutami is introducing a lot of whatever characters to give them an ending#and then doing nothing in comparison with the main cast I mean this kind of stuff#I get there's five episodes left and a lot of things and characters he wants to give closure to but precisely#There's just five chapters left. When Nanami died there was that short yet heavy scene between Ijichiâ Shoko and Gojo#in which they mused there was only the three of them left anymore. There's nothing of the sort for Shoko or Ijichi now at the very end#The closest thing we've gotten is that one moment between Megumi and Shoko I just posted#And these dynamics are heavy and they imply very important characters pertaining to the main cast#Yet there's two pages of these two. Not to talk about the rushing of arcs that's been happening in these two last chapters#But if there's going to be truly a second part I think not entirely closed narrative arcs is not as terrible#But not closing 'emotional' arcs? That feels more clumsy to me. I don't think carrying 'emotional' arcs to a second part is as easy#The emotiveness and weight of the dynamics belong to this story. The author could extend on the second part more on idk#Megumi dealing with the loss of Tsumiki or Shoko with loneliness or whatever. For instance#But the very moment of grieving over Tsumiki or Gojo with everything they've been right after their loss with everything their loss means?#It belongs to this story alone. Just like the moment of dealing with Nanami's recent decease belonged to that moment/this story#And I feel the author is not giving at all the main characters almost any time to breath that for now. And idk. It's sad#And it's awkward writing I think. The absence so noticeable#And I feel it's something that can't be as easily done or added or developed later or on another story/part#So the numerous panels of much more secondary characters rushing narrative and emotional arcs for and with them feels to me a weird choice#All while Yuuji just made an offhand comment about Choso. All while Shoko had barely nothing at all. Ijichi and Todo had nothing#The Kamo boy had one panel. Nor Yuta nor Megumi nor Yuuji made any comment about Gojo#Perhaps we could admit those letters and that faint smile of Megumi as closure enough. But it's so weird#The panel proportion between main characters and very secondary characters and what they're being used for. It's weirdly distributed I think#It feels awkward and anticlimactic in a bad way#And it's very much a very clear example of what I meant every time I said JJK had the potential to be amazing and it's just mid haha#*sigh* it is what it is I guess#I don't want a second part at all tbh I hope they're not going with that#I talk too much#JJK spoilers
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UNSCRIPTED â toji fushiguro x female reader [chapter 1/5]
summary: youâre a faceless author of scandalous smut â great at writing steamy scenes but totally clueless about real-life romance (and with no one to match your freak). enter toji fushiguro, a hot stranger you (accidentally) throw up on during a drunken night out. surprise! heâs also the future voice actor for your smutty novelâs main character. can you survive the awkwardness of your disastrous meet-cute while keeping your identity (and dignity) a secret? welcome to the chaos of your own erotic fantasy romcom!
content warning & tags:Â (erotic) voice artist! toji, (smut) writer! reader, smutty content!! [will be added over the course of the series], sort of workplace romance, secret/anon identity, slight social media au, meet-cute, virgin!reader, single dad dilf! toji, kid! megumi, strangers to lovers (?), she fell first but he fell harder, mentions of other characters (satoru gojo, suguru geto, megumi fushiguro, shoko eiri, brief mentions of ryomen sukuna)
notes: hi friends !! wow, been a hot min since i wrote something of this caliber. feels good to be back in biz ;D did you all miss persephone! suguru? because there's a LOT of him here >_< i really wanted to publish this as a oneshot but....tumblr hates me so now it's gonna be a chaptered series! oh , joy! ps @nappingmoon i got u bae, this one is for you.
read on ao3! â series masterlist
⤠related au: persephone [business tycoon! sukuna x reader]
you never really set out to be the face of smut-lit.Â
in fact, you werenât even really a face at all â just a âfacelessâ author penning scandalous stories for fans who devoured them, and haters who, well⌠tried to eat you alive.
youâd started out innocently enough, scribbling down your little fantasies and tropes that no self-respecting romance book would touch. then one day, a friend dared you to post one on booktok.Â
you thought, "fuck it" and uploaded a snippet of your latest brainchild: a steamy billionaire x star-crossed chef fic called hunger games: not that kind of hungerer. it was, admittedly, extra spicy.Â
and oh, did the internet have thoughts.
soon, your comments section and dmâs became a battleground for all opinions on âwhat qualifies as literature.â gems included:
who even writes this crap? did a middle schooler steal her momâs laptop? i can feel my brain cells self-destructing as i read this đ girl hasnât even been within a mile radius of a dick and it SHOWS
you'd had to admit⌠the last comment was right. but hey, they only added to the fuel.Â
like moths to a flame, they kept coming back, and the trolling just made your followers skyrocket. a lot of people secretly liked the outrageousness, the drama, and the absolute audacity of it all. before long, your books were trending, and you were raking in numbers (and dollars) most âseriousâ authors could only dream of.
soon, you found yourself the subject of headlines you never thought youâd see:
the faceless queen of spice: how one unknown author is reshaping romance. trolled online, loved in secretâauthor sells millions in ebook downloads. social media says she has no idea what sheâs talking about, but her bank account says otherwise.
and the kicker?
youâd never had sex with anyone, let aloneâŚwell, rocked worlds like your characters.Â
here you were, a smut writer with zero real-life experience, whoâd single-handedly created booktokâs, bookstagram and hell, even the people down at twitter's guilty pleasure.
but the day big publishers started knocking on your door, it was surreal, to say the least.Â
youâd been fully prepared for the anonymous online fame â hell, youâd leaned into it, posting âfaceless author lifeâ videos and doing question and answer sessions where you dropped zero identifying details, save for some vague hand gestures and blurred-out backgrounds. but now, major publishing houses wanted in on the action.
âwe think your stories have broad market appeal,â one exec had said on a zoom call, trying to make âbillionaire mafia love quadrangleâ sound dignified. âif we could get them on shelves, weâd reach an audience beyond booktok. international appeal is the goal here!â
suddenly, your filthy, albeit occasionally cringey, tales were going global. they got translated into french (where your enemies-to-lovers series got a fancy new title: lâamour et la haine). your spicy chef saga was reborn in italian as sapore di te, which roughly translated to taste of you (and made you blush, honestly).Â
and when your personal favorite, the billionaireâs forbidden touch, hit the japanese market, they titled it çŚćăŽĺ¤ (which⌠you didnât even want to know the translation of, because you knew it was even worse than the original).
you had to admit, though, seeing these books spread worldwide made your head spin. what started as a joke online was now somehow sitting next to classics in international bookstores, becoming a hot commodity for fans everywhere.
but the cherry on top?Â
oh, that came when you opened an email from none other than gojo-sonic, the world-renowned audio company best known for its highly specialized audiobook recordings. theyâd taken smut literature to the next level, hiring voice actors who sounded like they were in the room with you, all breathy whispers and seductive baritones. people had raved that these audiobooks were âtoo realâ â like theyâd been recorded in a closed room with dim lights and a whole lot of⌠commitment.
they offered you a multi-million dollar deal to turn your books into experiences.
one of your friends, absolutely losing it, texted you as soon as they heard the news:
homegirl [5:21 pm]: âOMG OMG so youâre gonna do it right?? u realize this means ppl will be hearing ur lil virgin brainâs fantasies out loud in their headphones rightâ you [5:21 pm]: âno kidding. iâm freaking out. this feels illegal.â homegirl [5:22 pm]: âbut u gotta!! pls this is ICONIC.â you [5:24 pm]: âtheyâre giving me millions. you think iâm saying no? lmao.â
it still felt surreal that soon, the whole world would hear your books come to life with professional voice actors â ones who knew exactly how to tease and breathe and make listeners feel like they were right there.
âbring my fantasies to life, huh?â you muttered to yourself, flipping through the contract that would secure your financial future, all because of your fictional men and their, uh, moves.Â
who the hell were you to say no to that?
it was surreal enough to get an email from gojo-sonic, but now, sitting across from the ceo himself, gojo satoru, you were starting to wonder if this whole experience was some fever dream.
the man was stunning in an obnoxious, immaculate way. snowy hair, piercing blue eyes, and sunglasses balanced on his head like a headband. and, okay, you had to admit: it was a little weird that heâd named his company after himself â though, frankly, it just fit.
you tried not to laugh when he introduced himself. gojo satoru, ceo of gojo-sonic. the narcissism was off the charts, but so was his charm. as a quick google search before the meeting had revealed, gojo sonic had an impeccable reputation, and there was apparently not a single scandal tied to its name.
ânice to meet you,â you said, shaking his hand and trying to keep your cool. âkinda surprised a guy is running a⌠company like this. no offense.â
ânone taken!â he replied, leaning back in his chair with an easy grin. âif iâm honest, iâm probably the last guy anyone would expect here. but,â he shrugged, âit works. my employees say iâm a âgirlâs girl,â whatever that means.â
the way he said it so nonchalantly made you smirk. apparently, the term wasnât a throwaway nickname, either; the gojo-sonic gossip mill painted him as the absolute dream boss. rumor had it heâd given his whole office a free day off because his assistant had been dumped, and when a writer complained about unisex bathrooms making her uncomfortable, heâd personally had a âfeminine touchâ added to every single stall, complete with pink hand soap and luxurious lotions. he was kind, considerate, a man who just got it.
âpeople say iâm probably gay,â he added, laughing as if that was the most absurd thing heâd ever heard. âand you know what? let âem think what they want.â he gave you a wink. âas long as they keep buying the goods, i couldnât care less.â
honestly? the guy made a point. did it matter who he was taking home at the end of the day? not at all, as long as your bank account kept racking up zeros.
âspeaking of,â he continued, âweâve got the full studio ready for tomorrow. youâll meet the voice actors, go over a few sections, and give input as needed. think of it like a live theater production, except itâs your book.â
âoh, i get to⌠watch them record?â you asked, wondering how mortifying it might be to sit there, watching actors give their all to lines like, âyouâre mine tonight, darling.âÂ
yeah, youâd written it, but watching someone breathe life into it was a different level of⌠embarrassment.
âeven better,â gojo grinned, looking far too amused by your nervousness, âyouâll get to guide them. theyâll take direction from you â however you want the line delivered, thatâs how theyâll say it.â
âyou mean i can⌠like⌠make suggestions? on delivery?â
âexactly!â he said with a small clap. âwe want it to be perfect. iâve already arranged for our top voice actor, toji fushiguro, to voice your main character.â
toji fushiguro?
if gojo-sonic was the industryâs top company, toji was the crown jewel of voice acting. the guy was a legend.Â
he had that smoky, velvet tone that could turn a mundane grocery list into a full-on romance scene. he was also notoriously elusive; some people waited months to get him to even consider their projects. and you â the virgin author whoâd stumbled into fame thanks to trolls and booktok â had him voicing your main character?
âwait, toji fushiguro is doing this?â you asked, jaw practically on the floor.
gojo chuckled, looking far too pleased with your reaction. âyep! i think you two are going to work great together. heâs intense but flexible; really good at taking feedback.â
you tried to imagine giving feedback to toji fushiguro of all people.Â
âum, maybe say âyouâre mineâ with more⌠conviction?âÂ
âcan you sound a bit more possessive on that line?â
âi, uhâŚâ you managed, trying to swallow your nerves. âokay. yeah. sounds⌠good.â
âgreat! i think youâll be amazed. tojiâs professionalism is unmatched, and heâll bring exactly the level ofâŚâ Gojo paused, grinning, âintensity you need to really make your character come to life.â
âgood luck tomorrow! iâll make sure everythingâs set up perfectly,â gojo had assured you with a big grin as you left the office. âdonât stress about a thing. our identities are always kept top secret here. tojiâs included! heâs never done a face reveal, and your privacy is just as ironclad.â
oh god. tomorrow, you were really going to sit there while toji fushiguro acted out lines youâd written on a whim in your pajamas.
sure, not stressing sounded like a logical plan. but after that surreal conversation â and the realization that tomorrow morning, youâd be face-to-face with the one and only toji fushiguro, hearing him breathe life into your raunchiest fantasies â you did what any responsible, mature adult would do.
you headed straight to the nearest bar and got sloshed.
by the time you were three cocktails deep, the reality of tomorrowâs âfirstsâ hit you like a ton of bricks. first real direction on an audiobook, first time meeting a voice actor, first time dealing with your own steaminess out loud, and â oh god â the cherry on top, it was toji fushiguro himself.
sure, you thought, sipping from your fourth drink and trying not to scream as lana del rey sings âitâs you, itâs you, itâs all for you,â i might be slightly freaking out.
another cocktail slid your way. you squinted, unsure if you'd ordered it or if the bartender was just reading your general mood, because yeah, you did look like someone who needed another round.
âtough night?â
âtough tomorrow.â you swirled your drink, laughing to yourself. âi mean⌠you ever written a, uh, totally inappropriate novel and had to watch a famous guy turn it into audio?â
ââŚcanât say that i have.â
you shrugged, downing a bit more of the drink, when the song on the speakers switched to avril lavigneâs complicated. fitting, given that your life had just become exactly that.
âwhyâd you have to go and make things so complicated?â avril sang, like she knew.
the bartender, apparently used to the types who showed up for existential crises alone, leaned against the counter. âsounds like big stuff tomorrow, then. what kind of work do you do, anyway?â
âoh, just⌠smutty novels,â you said, letting it slip before you could stop yourself. âjust⌠page after page of absolutely shameless, absurd filth. and now iâm, yâknow, supposed to direct the guy. to make it sound like heâs really, um, in the moment.â
the bartender chuckled, raising a brow. âsounds intense.â
âyou have no idea.â you sighed, rubbing a hand over your face. âheâs this insanely talented voice actor. i mean, theyâve got toji fushiguro in there, which is like⌠god. if he knew who i actually was, heâd probably laugh.â
whyâd you have to go and make things so complicated? avril continued wailing, her words your accidental anthem.
âwell, whatever happens,â the bartender said, passing you a glass of water with a grin, âsounds like youâre about to have a pretty interesting morning.â
âiâll drink to that,â you muttered, clinking your cocktail glass against the water. you downed it, hoping that somehow, it might chase the nerves away.
and as everytime we touch, i get this feeling started blasting on the speakers, you couldnât help but shake your head with a groan. if there was a playlist made for romantic embarrassment, it was definitely playing tonight.
in your half-sloshed state, it seemed like a good idea to turn to the stranger whoâd just sauntered up to the bar â a ridiculously hot stranger, tall with dark hair, and a scar slashing right across his lip. it was the kind of look that wouldâve inspired an entire chapter in one of your books, but as of right now? it was just inspiring some truly regrettable choices.
âgoodness gracious, great balls of fire,â you muttered to yourself, just loud enough to catch his attention, which felt smooth, in your totally buzzed opinion. so, of course, you swung around on your stool, plastering on what you hoped was an alluring smile.
oh god, here we go. âhey there, handsomeâŚâ you paused, hiccuping â⌠you come here often?â
the stranger raised an eyebrow, clearly amused, leaning an elbow against the bar with a smirk that could kill. âdepends,â he said, voice low and rough. âyou, uh, always this friendly after a few drinks?â
oh god.Â
oh god.Â
but you couldnât stop now.Â
you were committed.Â
you were bold.Â
with all the poise of a drunk giraffe, you propped your elbow on the bar and leaned in closer, pointing a finger at his chest â totally unintentionally, because your depth perception was off by, oh, about a mile. âwell, what can i say,â you replied, attempting a sultry grin. âgood-lookinâ guys like you⌠donât come around often enough, mister.â
âitâs like iâm drunk off your love,â played from the speakers, not helping your case at all.Â
oh god, this was actually happening.Â
he actually laughed, a warm, deep chuckle, as he watched you struggle through whatever pickup line was about to escape your lips.
he tilted his head, that smirk turning up a notch. âshould i be flattered?â
âyou should!â you exclaimed, with a bit too much enthusiasm. âyouâre like⌠i dunno, like one of my⌠you look like a⌠a fictional character.âÂ
smooth, real smooth.
âoh yeah?â his smirk widened. âso, what am i, a prince?â
âmore likeâŚâ you bit your lip, trying to focus, âan antihero with a⌠tragic past and just enough softness in his heart to make him dangerous in all the right ways.â
he looked you up and down, bemusement clear in his eyes. âdangerous in the right ways? is that your type?â
you gave a shaky wink, nearly missing because the world was swimming a bit. âmaybe.â
he chuckled, his voice all rich and velvety, and leaned in closer. âso⌠youâre here alone? i mean, besides all the fictional men youâre envisioning.â
âfor now,â you replied, trying to sound mysterious, but it just came out as a bit⌠wobbly.
the bartender set the strangerâs drink down with a raised eyebrow, and he took a sip, watching you with amused interest. âyou know, maybe you should slow down before you scare all the good guys away.â
âoh, trust me,â you replied, hiccuping again. âi donât scare easy.â
he shook his head, clearly entertained, and you felt yourself glowing under his gaze. you were about to continue â just as soon as the world stopped spinning â when you felt the slightest bit queasy, your stomach reminding you that youâd had one cocktail too many.
the strangerâs amused smirk softened. âyou alright there?â
âiâmâŚâ you swallowed. âperfectly fine. just, you know⌠making sure youâre⌠getting the full effect of myâŚâ you barely managed the word ââŚrizz.â
he laughed outright this time, low and warm, like he genuinely couldnât believe you were real. âis that so? lucky me.â
it was all going so well â okay, not well, but you were holding your own, kind of. you had him laughing, after all, which for someone with approximately zero charisma was an accomplishment! but then the first chords of firework by katy perry blared through the speakers, and as if on cue, your stomach decided to join in the grand finale.
âdo you ever feel like a plastic bag,â katy crooned, but for you, it was more like a âdo you ever feel like youâre about to ruin your night by barfing on a hot stranger?â
before you could process what was happening, the tequila-fueled fireworks decided to erupt all over this guyâs very expensive-looking shoes.
oh god. oh god.
you looked up, mortified, to find him staring down at his shoes, eyebrows raised. wow, would you look at the time?Â
run.
âoh⌠oh no. i⌠iâm so sorry, i swear this never happens.â
he raised a brow, still looking somewhere between amused and horrified. âwell, thatâs⌠comforting?â
you grabbed a napkin, fumbling, still buzzing enough to not know if you should laugh, cry, or just make a run for it.
âguess thatâs, uh, one way to make an impression,â he murmured, lips twitching in a smirk even as he assessed the disaster on his shoes.
âoh god. really, iâm⌠iâm so sorry.â you dabbed helplessly at his shoes with a cocktail napkin, somehow making things worse. âif it helps, i⌠i normally only vomit on hot guys.â
he chuckled, though you were sure it was mostly at you, and shook his head. âwell, itâs one hell of an icebreaker.â
âbaby, youâre a firework,â katy sang passionately in the background, but you were already ready to crawl under the bar and disappear forever.
you were surprised â actually, you were shocked â that the stranger hadnât ditched you after the whole public-vomiting-on-his-shoes fiasco. instead, somehow, he was still right there, leaned in close and casually sipping his drink, just as much a mess as you were. hours had passed, and youâd been rambling about anything and everything, lost in an alcohol-fueled bubble that had turned the night into something youâd never have dreamed of.
maybe it was the booze, or maybe it was the guyâs ridiculously calm attitude, but youâd opened up about your career, the absurdity of writing spicy novels as a faceless author, and even your terror about tomorrow. heâd listened with a smirk, offering the occasional snarky remark or grunt of approval. in return, heâd told you a bit about himself too â well, at least, you thought he did. at some point, the details got hazy.
âso, what do you do?â you asked, squinting at him like it was going to make his face stop swimming in your vision.
he shrugged, swirling his drink and giving a lopsided grin. âsomething kinda like⌠acting. you know, nothing glamorous.â there was a hint of amusement there, like he was in on a joke you werenât.
you squinted harder, your mind pulling up images of random professions. âoh, so like⌠theater? or like, movies? or wait â commercials? are you one of those guys that has to pretend heâs in love with a bowl of soup?â
he let out a deep laugh, and the sound sent an unexpected shiver down your spine. âsure, something like that. though iâd like to think iâm a bit more convincing than a soup guy.â
you grinned, leaning in closer, your curiosity fully piqued despite your state. âconvincing, huh? so youâre a good actor, then?â
âi do my best,â he said, voice low, that amused glint in his eye again.
âyou have to be really good to make people believe in, like, totally unrealistic things, yâknow?â you babbled, waving your hand. âlike, imagine trying to voice ââ you cut yourself off, feeling a hint of embarrassment as you remembered why youâd gotten so sloshed in the first place. the irony of tomorrow, and how this entire conversation felt like it was straight out of one of your own stories.
but before you could get too in your head about it, he tilted his head, looking genuinely interested. âvoice what? iâm curious, princess.â
princess. the nickname sent a bolt of something dangerously warm straight through you, and you bit your lip to keep from smiling too wide. âoh, nothingâŚâ you said, waving him off. âjust, you know⌠the usual. people who⌠um, make people fall in love with their voice.â
âand what if i told you,â he leaned in even closer, smirking as if heâd just had the best idea ever, âthat i could probably do that?â
you rolled your eyes, not believing him one bit. âoh really? think you could pull it off?â
âdepends,â he said with a shrug. âwhat kinda character am i playing?â
you didnât realize it, but youâd inched even closer, like you were hanging on his every word. âsomeone⌠someone rough around the edges,â you started, your voice dropping, completely lost in the moment, âbut with a softness underneath. someone who could make the world stop with just a whisperâŚâ
he smirked, eyes never leaving yours, and for a second, you felt like he was taking every word way too seriously. âi think i could manage that.â
you blinked, feeling a blush rise.Â
this stranger had charisma â like, the kind of charisma youâd thought only existed in your characters.Â
oh god, maybe you should write him into your next story. you shook yourself, blinking the daydreams away just as he started talking again.
â... and thatâs why,â he was saying, âthereâs a bit of an art to saying things just right. people think itâs all about the words, but itâs the way you say them that makes it real, yâknow?â
you nodded, trying to focus on his words as the room spun just a bit. âso youâre telling me, itâs all in the delivery?â
âexactly.â his gaze dropped to your lips, and he smirked, like he knew exactly what he was doing. âeven the⌠dirtiest lines sound good if you say âem the right way.â
oh no. that dangerous warmth was back.
somewhere between his intense gaze and that slow, lopsided smirk, dancing queen by abba blared through the bar speakers, jarring you out of your tipsy trance. the upbeat, disco-infused rhythm filled the room, all but laughing at the âmomentâ you thought you were having with this too-hot-for-reality stranger.
was this a moment? or were you just ridiculously drunk? did he even have a name? or were you just too far gone to have bothered asking?
âyou can dance, you can jive,â abba sang, practically mocking you as you stared, wide-eyed, at the man across from you, his scarred lip twisted in a little grin as he watched you piece it all together. he mustâve seen the dawning realization on your face, because he chuckled, reaching for his drink again.
âsomething wrong, princess?â he asked, leaning forward with a glint of amusement.
oh, great. iâve already been promoted to âprincessâ by a guy i might not know the name of. you were seconds away from facepalming.
âuh, nothing,â you said, waving a hand as casually as you could manage. âjust, uh, thinking how ironic it is that dancing queen is playing while⌠weâre, you knowâŚâ
â... having a moment?â he teased, clearly enjoying himself.
âwell,â you cleared your throat, cheeks blazing, âif you can call me drunkenly staring at you while abba serenades us a âmoment.ââ
âhey, itâs a solid soundtrack choice,â he replied, looking like he was suppressing a laugh. âbesides, donât pretend this isnât kinda perfect.â
âyou think dancing queen is perfect for this?â
he shrugged, sipping his drink. âcome on, youâre hammered, iâm here keeping you company, and weâre both, what⌠living in the moment?â he quirked a brow, his smirk widening as he eyed you, like he was daring you to argue.
and then, maybe out of pure liquid courage, or maybe because the absurdity was too much, you laughed. âyeah, living the moment⌠with some guy whose name i donât even know.â
âtoji,â he said, offering his hand with a lazy grin, like heâd just handed you a secret.
âtoji,â you echoed, shaking his hand. he held on for a second longer than necessary, his gaze never leaving yours.
 oh, this guy was trouble, and you were in so deep.
âand you?â he asked, still holding your hand.
you barely managed to whisper your name, but it came out like a sigh, and he repeated it back like it was something precious. âwell then,â he said, smirking, âguess that makes two dancing queens tonight.â
âtojiâŚâ you muttered, the name slipping off your tongue again as you tried to place it. there was something familiar about it, like youâd heard it before, but in your tequila-drenched state, nothing was sticking.Â
toji, toji⌠where had you heard that name?
he cocked an eyebrow, clearly amused as you stared at him like he was the worldâs most frustrating puzzle. âsomething on your mind?â
ân-no,â you stammered, then immediately backpedaled. âwait, actually, yes. toji, right?â
he nodded, a playful gleam in his eye. âthatâs the one.â
âtoji⌠tojiâŚâ you repeated, squinting at him as if a clearer view would magically connect the dots. and then, it hit you â toji fushiguro.Â
the voice actor who would be bringing your spicy, shamelessly dramatic main character to life.Â
the same guy you were supposed to meet tomorrow, the guy who was probably used to making everyoneâs knees buckle with just a whisper.
âno wayâŚâ you whispered, clutching your head, and you could practically feel the blush creeping up your cheeks. âyou â youâre⌠that toji?â
he gave a slight tilt of his head, his eyes twinkling with mischief. âwhat, surprised that i could be both hot and talented?â
you sputtered, trying to backtrack and failing miserably. âno! i mean, yes, but i just â tomorrow â youâre⌠youâre the guy whoâs voicing my main character?â
he leaned back with a smirk, clearly enjoying the whirlwind of emotions he was putting you through. âdidnât think the universe would give you a sneak preview tonight, huh?â
your fuzzy brain struggled to compute this twist of fate. you were drunk, mortified, and beyond flustered, sitting in a bar with the man whoâd soon be giving voice to all your filthy, shameless words. this was almost too much.
âoh my god,â you muttered, sinking back in your seat. âi literally threw up on my main characterâs shoes.â
toji let out a hearty laugh, patting your shoulder. âhey, if anything, iâd say itâs on-brand for the kind of night youâd write.â
just as you were processing the sheer, ridiculous insanity of the situation, a fresh wave of nausea hit you like a freight train. before you could even react, you leaned forward and⌠splattered the floor with a decidedly not-dignified stream of bile. this time, it was almost cinematic, complete with a dramatic gagging sound that had you doubling over.
you watched in horror as you once again spewed your insides onto the floor, narrowly missing tojiâs shoes but definitely adding a new layer to the already mortifying scene.Â
youâd probably just hit rock bottom.
âoh, god,â you groaned, covering your mouth with your hand as the bile burned your throat. âi swear⌠iâm not normally like this.â
toji chuckled, rubbing a hand over the back of his neck as he handed you a stack of napkins the bartender had generously supplied. âiâm starting to think iâm just a little too overwhelming for you, princess.â
you shot him a sheepish look as you wiped your mouth. overwhelming was an understatement.Â
âyeah, maybe we can leave that out of tomorrowâs team introductions,â you mumbled, trying desperately to pull yourself together.
toji chuckled, tossing a few more napkins your way. âno judgment here. itâs a rough night for a first âmeet-cute,â but hey, youâre nothing if not memorable.â
you gripped the napkin, willing yourself to hold it together, at least until you could make a semi-dignified exit. âi donât even want to know what story youâll tell people about this.â
toji just laughed, completely unbothered, as if getting vomited on was a regular night for him. âdonât worry, iâll keep it discreet.â his voice dipped, lowering to a murmur. âfor a girl with secrets, i figure youâd appreciate that.â
he lifted his drink and gave you a small toast. âto first meetings â and unforgettable nights. and hey, maybe tomorrow, youâll surprise me and keep it down.â
oh, god, you thought, as you attempted to bury yourself in your napkin. if only i could crawl under the bar and hide forever.
normally, you wouldnât wake up with âdancing queenâ stuck in your head, but as you nursed the remnants of a truly terrible hangover, it felt almost... pleasant? the upbeat melody cut through the fog of your brain, and you couldnât help but hum along, even if the lyrics felt like a cruel reminder of your embarrassing escapades from the night before.
âyou can dance, you can jive, having the time of your life...â
wait, why dancing queen of all songs? you squinted at your alarm clock, your heart racing as the memories started flooding back like a poorly written rom-com. oh.
OH.
your eyes widened as you bolted out of bed with a speed that could make an olympic runner blush, frantically throwing on whatever clothes you could find â did you seriously still have a piece of glitter from last night stuck in your hair? gross! but no time for a shower; you had a meeting to get to at gojo-sonic, and you were about to meet â erm, remeet â toji fushiguro.
âooh, see that girl, watch that scene, digging the dancing queen...â
as the lyrics blared in your head like an incessant movie soundtrack, you dashed out the door, praying youâd catch a cab in time. the universe couldnât possibly let you walk into this meeting looking like a hot mess â especially when your main character's voice was waiting on the other side.
âyouâre a tease you turn âem onâŚleave âem burning and then youâre goneâŚâ
you rolled your eyes at your own ridiculousness. who cared if youâd practically thrown up on the guy? all you had to do was survive your own personal dance-off with fate and hope toji didnât remember the lovely little details from last night.
you took a deep breath, determined to channel all the confidence you could muster. today was going to be great. right?
as you walked into the meeting room, gojo practically huffed an air of relief. you couldnât help but think it was a little dramatic â like, itâs just a meeting. you took a deep breath, trying to shake off the last remnants of your hangover and the lingering embarrassment of last nightâs vomit-venture.
the room was brightly lit, filled with a few familiar faces, including toji, who was leaning casually against a table with that annoyingly charming grin plastered on his face.Â
great. youâd somehow forgotten just how hot he was in the light of day.Â
tojiâs presence made your stomach flutter and flip, but you shoved that feeling down â this was business, after all.
you scanned the room and spotted gojo-sonicâs most valued investor suguru geto on a screen in the corner, his hair tied back and eyes sharp as he joined the meeting online. wow, great first impression! with a sudden wave of panic, you could almost hear the dancing queen lyrics mocking you in the back of your mind. whatâs next, bursting into song?
âhey, look who finally made it!â toji said, amusement dancing in his eyes. perfect. if he was going to make light of your grand entrance, you had to think fast to steer the conversation away from the disaster that was last night.
âsorry for keeping you all waiting,â you replied, forcing a smile that hopefully didnât look too forced. âi had... a crazy night.â
toji raised an eyebrow, an amused smirk tugging at his lips. âcrazy night, huh? did you bring us any stories?â
you shot him a warning glance, your heart racing as you internally pleaded with him not to say anything that could ruin your career. thankfully, he just chuckled, crossing his arms and leaning back, letting the moment hang in the air without any revealing comments.
âi think weâd all like to hear that,â suguru said, his tone teasing as he adjusted the camera. âbut letâs save the fun stuff for later, right? weâve got work to do.â
you nodded, grateful for suguruâs timely intervention. âyes, absolutely! so, uh, about the voice work ââ
the atmosphere shifted as the others exchanged knowing glances, and you knew youâd have to tread carefully. this meeting was crucial, and you couldnât let last nightâs incident derail everything youâd worked for. with any luck, maybe you could just keep your foot out of your mouth for the rest of the meeting.
toji always knew he was hot.
i mean, how could he not?Â
with a jawline that could slice bread and a smirk that could charm the pants off anyone, confidence practically dripped off him like a cologne commercial. but the real question was: how to channel this hotness and turn it into something lucrative? great question!Â
being a single dad to wasnât easy, and running from odd job to odd job just to scrape enough money for the bratâs school was proving to be tiresome. until one day, a certain gojo satoru decided to drop a bombshell on him.
âtoji, you ever think about using that voice of yours for something... more creative?â gojo asked, leaning back in his office chair, a devilish grin spreading across his face.
âcreative? what, like narrating my life as a sad single dad?â toji replied dryly, rolling his eyes. âbecause let me tell you, itâs not exactly a page-turner.â
âno, no, hear me out!â gojo insisted, practically bouncing in his seat. âiâm talking about voice acting â specifically, erotic audiobooks. itâs the next big thing!â
toji blinked, momentarily stunned. âyou mean to tell me that the former bouncer at an elite club would be voicing erotic audiobooks? saying those weird, cringey lines that women seem to love? youâre insane.â
âthink about it! you have the looks, the voice, and the whole mysterious vibe down pat,â gojo urged, waving his hands dramatically. âbesides, you need the cash, and i need someone to bring a little... heat to my company.â
âyou really think people want to hear me read lines like, âtake me, you wild beast?ââ toji quipped, snorting.
fast forward to his first recording session, where everything seemed to be going smoothly until disaster struck. toji was deep in character, delivering his best sexy voice when â bam! â the bathroom pipe exploded in his tiny flat.
âoh god, yes, just like that ââ he started, voice dripping with sultry charm, when suddenly, a muffled splash! interrupted him, followed by megumiâs wail from the other room.
âdad! thereâs water everywhere!â
toji cursed under his breath, trying to maintain his composure. âiâm coming! just... give me a second, iâm â ah, itâs getting so hot in here!â he struggled to continue, desperately trying to block out the chaos around him while the sounds of the pipe gushing water filled the audio.
but it turned out hormones took over the technical difficulties, because when the snippet was finally released, women and men of all ages were devouring it like it was the last slice of pizza at a party. it even went viral on tiktok, with cringe-worthy wannabes trying to recreate his sultry lines, failing miserably while toji sat back, amused.
âreally? you think you can pull this off?â he chuckled to himself, watching one kid awkwardly mimic him. ânice try, kid. but good luck sounding this good while your momâs screaming at you for hogging the bathroom.â
because toji wasnât just a househusband â house father â anymore. he was a household name, and everyone knew him. his rise to fame was a wild ride, but hey, at least now he could afford to get the bathroom fixed â one line at a time.
he could hardly wrap his head around how heâd managed to move out of his tiny, crumbling apartment and into a much better place for him and megumi. it was like waking up one day and realizing heâd accidentally won the lottery. âwait, how did i end up here?â heâd mutter to himself, staring at the pristine walls and polished floors. âand how the hell can i pay megumiâs school fees on time without dodging dirty glares from the accounts office?â
heâd walk into the school, head held high, while megumi proudly puffed out his eight-year-old chest. âmy daddyâs an actor!â heâd announce to anyone who would listen. toji couldnât help but feel a swell of pride. i mean, the kid wasnât wrong. he was acting â acting like he had his life together, at least!
but did his new job stop toji from being a little hoe? oh, hell no.Â
if anything, the fame went straight to his head â both up and down there, mind you. toji was like a kid in a candy store, and he was using his newfound charm to siphon money from literally every sugar mommy he could find.Â
and daddies, too, if he was feeling daring.Â
because people would die to be known as someone âcloseâ to the toji fushiguro.
âoh my god, is that him?â a passerby would whisper, nudging her friend as they walked past toji at a private event.
âi think it is! i heard heâs dating someone famous,â her friend would respond, leaning in as if they were sharing a juicy secret. âiâve seen him at that new club downtown. heâs just so... magnetic.â
âtotally! i mean, if i could get him to call me âsweetheartâ just once, iâd die a happy woman,â the first friend would say, fluttering her eyelashes dramatically.
toji would smirk to himself, sipping his drink while casually overhearing their chatter. âyep, youâre right. iâm as available as a 24/7 convenience store,â heâd think, reveling in the attention. "i could probably charm the pants off a rock if i tried."
another group of giggling fans would walk by, whispering amongst themselves, âi met him at that charity event last week! he was so sweet! like, did you see the way he talked to everyone? heâs definitely a heartthrob.â
âsweet? you mean hot, right?â one of them would tease, and theyâd all burst into laughter.
âplease, if he looked at me, iâd die!â another would declare, all starry-eyed.
tojiâs smirk widened. âkeep it coming, ladies. iâm just here for the show.â he couldnât deny it; being the center of attention was intoxicating, and he was loving every second of it.
with a wink and a little wave, heâd keep strutting through life like a runway model, knowing full well he had the power to turn heads and keep wallets open. âwho knew being a hot voice actor could be this fun?â
great that youâd ask what toji did with all that sweet, sweet cash! save it all for his brat of a son, of course, even if he wouldnât admit it. beneath that rugged exterior and playful swagger, he had a soft spot for the little sucker.
just the other week, megumi had been rambling on about wanting a really cool new video game console. âbut daddy, alllll my friends have one! itâs so unfair!â heâd whined, big blue eyes practically shimmering with hope. toji had rolled his eyes, trying to act tough, but the moment he saw the kid's face, his heart melted like butter on a hot skillet. âfine, but only if you promise to finish your homework first.â
the next day, megumi had unwrapped a brand-new console, complete with all the latest games, and toji had basked in the sheer delight radiating from his son. âthis is the best day ever!â megumi had screamed, wrapping his arms around tojiâs waist. âthank you, daddy!â
toji grinned like an idiot, pretending to be unimpressed. âyeah, yeah, donât go losing it on the first day, alright? and remember, no playing after eight!â he was basically a walking contradiction: a grumpy dad who secretly loved being the cool parent.
then there was that time megumi had been obsessed with this rare action figure from his favorite show. toji had seen the way his sonâs eyes lit up every time he spotted it in a store, but it was always sold out. so, naturally, when toji found one online at a steep price, he didnât hesitate. âiâll just skip my overpriced rum for a week. totally worth it.â
when megumi had opened the package, heâd literally jumped in the air, screeching like a siren. âno way! you got it for me!?â and toji had played it cool, shrugging his shoulders. âwhat can i say? your dadâs a generous guy.â
of course, this indulgence didnât go unnoticed by gojo satoru. the six eyes â er, eyes! â of the man always seemed to be on toji, especially when he noticed his friend was splurging just a little too much on himself â like that new leather jacket that looked ridiculously good on him.Â
âi need a jacket like that,â gojo had muttered to himself, glancing at his own wardrobe with disappointment.
whenever toji treated himself, gojo would quietly slide a check over to him, nonchalantly muttering, âjust a little something for megumiâs school expenses.â
some people would have viewed it as offensive or patronizing, but not toji. heâd always laughed it off, feeling grateful instead. in his mind, gojo was like a guardian angel â âif guardian angels wore sunglasses and had a taste for expensive sweets.â he saw it as gojo looking out for megumi, which made tojiâs heart swell with warmth. âwho else would want to help raise my kid? might as well accept it.â
âjust donât make a habit of it, alright?â toji would say with a teasing grin. âi donât need you spoiling him more than i do.â
âtoo late,â gojo would quip, already plotting ways to sneak more gifts into megumiâs life. âitâs my new hobby.â
so, when gojo casually dropped the bomb that toji would be voicing one of the hottest, trending smut book â âmating with the demon kingâ or something equally ridiculous â toji shrugged it off. âsimple enough job,â he thought. âand it must be good if they came to me for it.â
but when gojo suggested he read the book to get an idea of the material â âjust a little prep work,â heâd said with that infuriatingly charming grin â things took a wild turn.
big mistake, toji would later reflect as he flipped through the pages, his eyebrows shooting up higher than a roller coaster. âwho writes this stuff?â he muttered, half-laughing at the sheer absurdity of it all.
the content was downright depraved. there were scenes that had him questioning his entire existence.Â
ââhe thrust into her like a man possessed, each stroke igniting a fire within herâ â what even is that?â he read aloud, only to burst out laughing at the ridiculousness. megumi, playing quietly in the other room, wondered why his daddy was cackling like a madman.
âuh, daddy? why are you reading that out loud?â megumi had peeked in, eyes wide with curiosity. toji quickly scrambled to shut the book. âuh, just⌠learning about, uh, cooking techniques!â he stammered, trying to play it cool. âyou wouldnât get it, buddy.â
but the laughter continued to bubble out of him, and he couldnât help but read some of the more ludicrous lines. ââhis lips found her collarbone, trailing heat like a wildfireâ â who even talks like that?â he shook his head, utterly bemused.
by the end of the chapter, he was howling. ââshe gasped as he swept her off her feet and into a world of ecstasyâ â oh please!â toji chortled, clutching his stomach, imagining how this would all sound through a microphone. âmy kid is gonna think iâve lost my goddamn mind.â
but hey, if this job was going to pay the bills, he figured he could endure a little humiliation. âitâs all in a dayâs work, right?â he muttered to himself, finally accepting that he was now the voice of âmating with the demon king.â
all that reading really took its toll on toji â physically, mentally, spiritually even. after hours spent tripping over lines like âpressed against the throbbing heat of his desireâ (yeah, that one took five tries to get through without laughing), he needed to clear his head. so, he found himself at a bar, halfway through a drink, hoping to numb the embarrassment heâd just endured in the name of rent money.
then stumbles this stranger â a cute, very tipsy stranger who quickly parked herself right next to him and started chatting him up, wide-eyed and slightly unsteady. great, drunk people, he thought, resisting an eyeroll as she grinned at him, looking ready to either start a fight or profess her love.Â
maybe both.
of course, what are the odds sheâd go ahead and throw up on his shoes? yes, his brand-new shoes, because, apparently, the universe had decided that tonight, toji fushiguro would be the worldâs personal punching bag. âcanât even get through one drink without some shit happening,â he muttered to himself as she looked up at him with a horrified expression. âweâre off to a great start here, huh?â
after some water and some awkward apologies (mostly her apologizing, mostly him trying not to laugh), they fell into surprisingly decent conversation. she was rambling about her job, the stress, the weird demands â stuff he could sympathize with, honestly.Â
and thatâs when he dropped it, just for fun: âiâm a voice actor.â
her eyes sparkled with recognition â a little too much recognition, actually, which made him narrow his eyes. âwait, whatâs your name?â she asked, suddenly all ears.
âtoji. toji fushiguro.â
the second he said it, her face went from curious to horrified to... oh yeah, she knew exactly who he was. âwait,â she gasped, putting her hand over her mouth. âyouâre... youâre the voice actor for my book.â
toji raised an eyebrow, deadpan.Â
so this was the writer, the one who wrote all that nonsense heâd been struggling through for days. well, wasnât that just the cherry on top. not only was this his boss but also the very person responsible for phrases like âpulsing needâ and âmoans spilling like honey.â and sheâd just puked on him.Â
talk about a power move.
âsmall world,â he said, his tone dry as desert sand. wonderful, he thought. my boss threw up on me. but, hey, the night was still young.Â
he took a long sip from his drink, hoping she wouldnât take this as an excuse to unleash some kind of creative critique.
âi... i didnât know youâd be here,â she stammered, a shade redder than before, probably realizing what this made her look like â her, the lady behind the âthrobbing heat of desireâ shtick.
âdonât worry,â he said, giving her a smirk. âi wonât tell anyone the literary mastermind responsible for all that... romance has a weak stomach.â
you probably donât remember much after you composed yourself following that second round of projectile embarrassment â but donât worry, toji remembers. the manâs got a steel trap for the kinds of memories youâd prefer stayed buried. once heâd figured out that you werenât exactly in shape to be left wandering around, he made the executive decision to get you home. yeah, heâd just met you a couple hours ago, but somehow, through the boozy haze and questionable life choices, heâd managed to catch your address.Â
impressive detective work, really⌠or, well, you may have blurted it out mid-ramble about how âthe streetlight outside is the only thing lighting up your lonely hallway.âÂ
a touch dramatic, but, hey, it worked.
so he got you back to your place (no thanks to the cab driverâs judgmental side-eye), got you up the stairs without you faceplanting, and, after propping you up long enough to unlock your door, he even went the extra mile and tucked you under the covers. you, meanwhile, mumbled something about âtequila being the devil,â blissfully oblivious to the poor guy whoâd just witnessed more of your personal life than your closest friends. toji took one last look before heading out, chuckling to himself as you drifted off, probably already dreaming of whatever literary nonsense youâd be writing next.
but what really stuck with him? the damn âdancing queenâ chorus ringing in his ears from the bar. maybe it was still playing somewhere out there in the night, or maybe youâd just cursed him with it. because as he walked home, hands shoved in his pockets, there it was, looping over and over in his head.Â
âyou can dance⌠you can jiveâŚâÂ
great, now heâd be humming it for days.
both you and toji were snapped back into the fluorescent-lit reality of the conference room, where gojo was still going on about⌠royalties? percentages? to be honest, the entire spiel sounded more like corporate white noise to you.Â
toji, on the other hand, was leaning back in his chair, looking as disinterested as humanly possible without actually falling asleep. across the screen, suguru appeared in one of those stiff, all-business modes, nodding along to gojoâs speech. his eyes had that telltale sparkle that only appeared when money was the topic â âstakeholder perks,â as gojo would call it, though it just meant suguru got to rake in extra cash on the side.
âand once the audiobookâs live, the split from the sales will be recalculated quarterly, yadda yadda, yadaaa ââ gojoâs voice broke into a sing-song, clearly amusing only himself. âanyway, you guys will see some real sweet checks from this.â
âroyaltiesâŚâ suguru interjected, a bit too smoothly, âremind me what those projected percentages were again, satoru?â
toji suppressed a snort. here they were, with the man himself who could barely be bothered to read a weather report straight, much less your raunchy magnum opus. good luck explaining earnings, gojo.
âoh yeah, royalties!â gojo cleared his throat, launching into a number-laden monologue that seemed to somehow both explain everything and nothing at once. toji barely listened, glancing at the digital clock on the wall. it was only when gojo pivoted, with a suddenly very pointed look, that toji actually tuned back in.
âso, did everyone do their, ah, homework?â gojo grinned as his gaze swept across the room, his eyes landing on you with a bit too much knowing amusement. âread the⌠material?â
you shuffled uncomfortably in your seat, and every other voice actor in the room suddenly found the table, the wall, or their own shoes very interesting.
all except toji, of course, who stretched back with the most obnoxious smirk youâd seen yet.
âhomework?â he drawled, deadpan as always. âyeah, got right into it. wouldnât want to miss a single word of that⌠fine literature.â
a few of the others exchanged awkward looks, clearly unsure how to respond to the dead-serious way toji said fine literature without a shred of irony. meanwhile, you shrank a little in your seat, not exactly loving the fact that the guy you threw up on was apparently the one voice actor who actually read your work cover-to-cover. not to mention, this was toji fushiguro, the voice actor whoâd taken the world by storm with a single, leaked snippet. you'd heard your fans say that he was some kind of god-tier talent â practically a household name. and now?Â
he was casually staring you down like he'd just read your diary.
âitâs⌠itâs not that bad,â you muttered defensively, feeling a prickling heat rise up your neck.
toji raised an eyebrow, clearly enjoying himself. âoh, didnât say it was bad. just, uh⌠thorough.â
you felt the blush intensify, but before you could reply, gojo jumped back in, undeterred. âgreat! since everyoneâs read it now, weâll dive into scene breakdowns tomorrow, with input from our illustrious author here.â he winked at you in that annoyingly playful way of his, as if heâd just orchestrated the whole thing for kicks. âitâs all about bringing your vision to life, yeah?â
âlooking forward to it.â tojiâs tone was smooth, with just enough emphasis to hint at the mischief lying behind his calm expression. you could swear there was a glimmer of challenge in his eyes, and the fact that heâd actually read the book â a book that you wrote in a creative haze, no less â was beginning to feel less like a weird coincidence and more like some cosmic joke at your expense.
suguruâs voice broke through, âand letâs hope that translates to success, right, gojo? my dividends would certainly appreciate it.â
âoh, donât you worry, sugu bear.â gojo leaned in with that shark-like grin of his. âwith toji voicing this masterpiece, and the author right here to guide us? weâre printing money already.â
with a dramatic flourish, gojo clapped his hands together, instantly breaking the tension. âalright, dismissed! snacks are out front â help yourselves, or not! more for me, after all,â he added, a mischievous glint in his eye as he clearly envisioned his sugary hoard.
suguru took this moment as his graceful exit cue, giving a short nod before the screen blinked off. gojo sighed theatrically, clasping his chest. âoh, suguru, leaving so soon? you wound me! whoâs going to discuss âdividendsâ and âroyaltiesâ with me now?â
nobody had the heart â or possibly the patience â to answer that question, which suited gojo just fine as he spun on his heel, making his way toward the snack table.Â
you, meanwhile, considered vanishing altogether, at least until the next segment of the day when youâd actually need to make yourself useful. judging by the energy in the room, none of the other voice actors were in a rush to strike up a conversation with you.Â
ouch. apparently, being the creator of their next project wasnât that much of a social asset.
you edged toward the door, already halfway to freedom when, like clockwork, a deep, familiar voice stopped you in your tracks. âleaving so soon?â
you didnât even have to turn around to know who it was. obnoxious didnât even cover half of it. âjust⌠thought iâd give you guys a break from me,â you muttered, gripping the strap of your bag tighter, hoping it looked casual instead of like an attempt to bolt.
tojiâs laugh was low, almost teasing. âa break? i donât mind the company. in fact, i think the others are just shy.â his words were smooth, but there was a mischievous lilt to them, like he was very aware of just how uncomfortable you probably were.
âright,â you deadpanned, summoning every ounce of sarcasm you had left. âtheyâre all just shy.â
he chuckled, falling into step beside you as you made your way to the snack table. gojo was already there, unabashedly sampling a tray of tiny cupcakes. he shot you both a grin that was, in all honesty, more threatening than friendly.Â
oh god, why is he looking at us like that?
âso!â gojo swiped another cupcake, leaning back against the table as he took in you and toji with an almost too-pleased expression. âgetting along, are we? i mean, itâs not every day you get to work so closely with the voice behind your book, right?â he wiggled his eyebrows suggestively, as if trying to ignite some sort of spark just to make things interesting.
toji, unbothered as ever, shrugged. âshe already threw up on me. might as well be friends after that, huh?â
oh my god.Â
you felt the flush rise to your face instantly, a mix of embarrassment and horror. he did not just bring that up in front of gojo, of all people.
âaww, how cute!â gojo crooned, looking absolutely delighted as he clapped his hands in that overly-enthusiastic, not-at-all sincere way. âbonding over bodily fluids. you guys are practically soulmates!â
âplease, kill me now,â you muttered under your breath, glaring at the snack table like it might provide an escape hatch.
toji leaned in, voice dropping to a near whisper, and you could practically hear the smirk in his tone. âdonât worry, author. iâve seen worse.â
âgreat, thatâs⌠comforting,â you muttered, resisting the urge to roll your eyes as you grabbed a snack at random. at this point, you were ready to make a quick exit, potentially before the dayâs work even started if it meant escaping this scene.
ânow, donât run off too fast,â gojo added, wagging a finger at you with a sly grin. âiâm expecting all of us back here in an hour, nice and energized. donât want any excuses!â
toji shot you one last look, equal parts teasing and unreadable, before he turned to grab a coffee. âguess youâre stuck with me for a little longer,â he murmured, a faint glimmer of humor in his eyes.
wonderful. absolutely wonderful. well, at least thereâs cupcakes.
itâs only five minutes into the recording session, and youâre already wondering if thereâs a job market for earth-burrowing positions. if there is, youâd gladly take it. anything would be better than thisâŚcircus.
the sound booth is packed with voice actors delivering line after line of your bookâs carefully crafted (painfully cheesy) smutty dialogue. you bite your lip, both cringing and resisting the urge to laugh out loud as one of the actors, a slender guy with an unfortunate tendency to over-dramatize every vowel, reads his line with a tragic sigh.
âi canât help it⌠i just want to devour you.â
devour you? you want to throw yourself into the nearest trash can. before you can stop yourself, you lean forward into the mic, managing a half-apologetic, half-pleading tone. âuh, could you maybe⌠ease up on the âdevourâ part? like, less dramatic, more⌠suave?â
he nods seriously, doing a quick vocal warm-up before trying again. âi canât help it⌠i just want to devoooourââ
ânope! nope, nope, nope!â you blurt, a little louder than you intended, the cringe spiraling out of control. you quickly clear your throat, trying to sound as professional as possible. âletâs, uh, maybe just skip to the next line.â
from the corner of the room, you catch sight of gojo, whoâs grinning so widely youâre genuinely concerned his face might stay that way forever. heâs watching you with an infectious enthusiasm thatâs bordering on manic, his eyes practically sparkling with amusement. youâre half-expecting him to yell, âsurprise! this is an snl skit!â
you rub at your temple, wishing the earth would do you a solid and open up beneath you, while the next actor â a petite, sweet-looking woman whoâs visibly uncomfortable â takes her turn. she clears her throat, looking down at her script, and delivers the line in a barely-there whisper, âi⌠i want you to take me⌠take me as ifâŚâ
âumâŚâ you grimace, instantly feeling the heat rise to your face. âmaybe a bit louder? but, you know, sensual.â
she blushes, muttering something under her breath before raising her voice, though itâs still trembling. âi⌠i want you to⌠take me⌠as ifâŚâ
toji, whoâs been watching the whole scene from his seat, chuckles lowly, and his smirk sends a jolt of embarrassment through you. âjeez, author, why donât you just hop in there and show âem how itâs done?â he mutters, voice dripping with sarcasm, though itâs not unkind.
you throw him a flat look, biting back an eye roll. not like i wanted to be here, you think to yourself. itâs just that somehow, the universe decided that today youâd be responsible for turning lines youâd never want to say out loud into something even remotely palatable.
and it only gets worse.Â
another actor â a deep-voiced, well-meaning guy in his mid-40s â leans into his mic and reads out, in a gruff voice you can only describe as a rejected batman impersonation: âyouâre driving me⌠wild.â his tone is so intense itâs like heâs threatening to fight the listener in a parking lot.
âokay⌠we might want to dial it back a little,â you say carefully, hoping to mask your horror with politeness. âjust⌠a little less âsupervillain,â more⌠warm?â
you hear toji chuckle behind you, low and rumbling, clearly reveling in your suffering. and as you glance over your shoulder, you find gojo, once again, looking like this is the best entertainment heâs had in years.Â
at this point, he might actually cry from laughing.
just when you think it canât get any worse, toji stands, giving you a wink as he heads into the booth for his turn. he takes the mic, his face blank and unreadable as he starts reading the next line.
âi need you⌠right now,â he purrs, his voice oozing that lazy, sensual charm youâd envisioned for this character. itâs⌠almost unfair, really.Â
thereâs not an ounce of irony or overacting.Â
tojiâs delivery is so smooth, so confident, that it catches you off guard, a flush rising to your cheeks.
gojo lets out a low whistle, giving you a teasing look as if to say, see? was that so hard?
âfinally,â you mutter under your breath, swallowing the lump in your throat. gojo raises a brow, clearly enjoying every second of your awkwardness.
you sigh, mentally bracing yourself for the rest of the recording. if nothing else, at least one actor seems to have nailed the tone â much to your embarrassment and gojoâs endless delight.
you clear your throat, attempting to regain some semblance of control over the recording session, which is proving to be harder than herding a pack of caffeinated cats. âright, everyone, letâs, uh, keep moving and go ahead with recording the dragon kingâs lines. toji, if youâre ready?â
but you barely finish your sentence before gojo claps toji on the shoulder with that all-too-annoying bromance energy, grinning from ear to ear. âour star is ready, arenât ya, toji? i mean, look at this guy! look at him! canât believe i found this gem for gojo-sonic!â gojoâs voice carries that infuriatingly proud tone that practically drips with smug satisfaction.
you stifle an eye roll, and even the other actors exchange glances, half-annoyed, half-amused at gojoâs over-the-top fawning. but before you can jump in to cut gojo off, toji just smirks, sliding comfortably into the mic like he was born to deliver cheesy lines.
âalright, alright,â you murmur, mostly to yourself. âletâs see what youâve got, mr. dragon king.â
toji adjusts the headphones, his lazy smirk already primed.Â
and then he begins, voice low and sultry, hitting each cringe-worthy word with the same ridiculous gravitas that has the whole room mesmerized.
âi have waited eons for a beauty like yours to grace my realm. come⌠be mine, and together we shall rule the heavens.â
you can practically feel everyone holding their breath, transfixed by the sheer sincerity in his tone, despite the lineâs absurdity. you, too, canât help but feel a blush creeping up your neck, which is just unfair given you wrote these lines.Â
you knew what they were meant to sound like, but this?Â
heâs delivering them like theyâre damn poetry.
toji doesnât stop there, though, his deep voice carrying each line as though heâs serenading the mic. âmy heart burns with a fire only you can soothe. take my hand, and i swear to guard your heart with my very life.â
gojo is practically fawning, batting his eyelashes like a proud parent in the corner. âsee, people, this is how itâs done! let the dragon king here show you amateurs how itâs really supposed to sound!â
you resist the urge to chuck something at gojo as the other actorsâ eyes widen, watching in awe.
one of them mutters under their breath, âno way weâre topping that.â
and then, tojiâs voice dips even lower, the next line coming out in a growl that somehow manages to be both dramatic and, disturbingly, kind of⌠enchanting.
âyou are the breath in my lungs, the flame in my veins. without you, i am but a shadow⌠a beast in the dark.â
the room is dead silent.Â
youâre all fawning, gushing messes, and youâre not even sure how it happened. itâs like tojiâs somehow turned this trial recording into an absurdly hot moment. you can barely believe youâre hearing the same lines you once labeled âridiculously cringeyâ in the draft.
finally, he leans back, looking pleased with himself, as if he hadnât just left everyone a little breathless. gojo practically beams with pride, nudging you.Â
âso⌠i think youâve found your dragon king, wouldnât you say?â
you nod, still stunned, half in disbelief, half in begrudging admiration. if this was just the trial recording, you could only imagine how many blushing, starry-eyed listeners this final audiobook was going to leave in its wake.
the moment the trial recording session wraps up, gojo is the first one on his feet, clapping his hands like he's just watched the performance of a lifetime. âbrilliant!â he practically shouts, pulling out his phone faster than you can blink. âsuguru needs to hear this,â he mutters, already dialing his business partner like a kid who canât wait to brag about his latest toy.
sometimes you really do forget that gojo is the ceo of a multi-million dollar company â an erotic audiobook company, no less.Â
is he this passionate about the art, or is it just the money? either way, watching him fanboy over his own employee leaves you a mix of amused and exhausted.
thereâs a charm to it, though, even if itâs a little baffling to witness in real time.
as the energy in the studio starts to mellow, you find yourself actually breathing a bit easier. for once, things seem to be going smoothly.Â
maybe this whole collaboration wouldnât be a disaster after all.Â
you let yourself relax, even if a small part of your brain chides you with a quick reminder: next time, skip the cheap caffeine fix when youâre pulling an all-nighter writing smut.Â
or⌠cheap anything, really.Â
yeah, you donât actually smoke, you remind yourself â except, well, that one time in college, but hey, that was a whole different you. one that should stay buried in the relics of questionable decisions, right next to your spiral-bound notes of embarrassingly bad poetry.
just as youâre praying to the universe that this is all going to wrap up without any extra drama, you hear it. the sound thatâs become both your nightmare and⌠okay, maybe, a little less than that.
âwell, princess,â tojiâs voice rumbles, his tone as amused as it is teasing, âgot anything else you want from your dragon king?â
you close your eyes and will the ground to open up beneath you, but nope, nothing.Â
nothing but the sound of your heartbeat doing an awkward little tango in your chest.
of course heâd pick now to resurrect that ridiculous moniker from last night. like it wasnât humiliating enough when he threw it out there while you were a couple drinks deep and all but glued to your seat at the bar.Â
oh, youâre practically begging the universe to put you out of your misery â well, actually, now that you think about it, maybe being wrapped up in those beefy arms wouldnât be the worst fateâŚ
wow. get a grip, girl. this is the caffeine deprivation talking.Â
definitely that.
but then toji smirks at you, an eyebrow raised, as if heâs just dared you to respond. and all you can think is⌠oh, lord, this man is trouble.
"câmon, just a drink,â toji insists, flashing that devil-may-care grin that both ruins and improves your day within a matter of seconds. heâs leaning back like heâs got all the time in the world, casually ignoring how you definitely donât.Â
âtrust me, princess, itâll settle your nerves.â
itâs not like you need a reminder of the mess that was last night. every foggy memory swirls in your head, like lifeâs own cruel version of a mocktail â one garnished with shame, regret, and a generous helping of last nightâs tequila.Â
if anything, adding more drinks to this equation feels about as smart as walking blindfolded into traffic.
but tojiâs already up, stretching like heâs completely unaware of the chaotic memories this whole âoutingâ is summoning. âjust a quick look around gojo-sonic, yeah?â he says, nodding toward the maze of hallways beyond the studio door, his face the perfect picture of innocence.
âyouâre new here, and itâs⌠important to know the lay of the land. work reasons.â
you can practically hear the quotation marks around that âwork reasons.â
âyou know,â he adds with a wink, ânever hurts to see where the magic happens.â
yeah, right. you have a feeling the only magic here is him somehow dragging you deeper into your personal nightmare.
you donât even get the chance to respond with a yes, no, or a âmaybe next centuryâ when tojiâs phone lights up and his whole expression darkens. not exactly the look you expect from the guy whose voice practically ruined half the internet last month with that infamous line about... well, yeah, better not go there right now.
âsatoru, the brat got into a fight,â he growls into the phone, and suddenly, satoruâs jaw hits the floor with such force you can practically hear it from across the studio. toji doesnât stick around for a reply, though â heâs already striding toward the door like a man with a purpose, ignoring satoruâs spluttered, âthe what did who?â
and somehow â god knows how â you find yourself tagging along like itâs the most natural thing in the world. maybe itâs curiosity, maybe itâs the thrill of seeing toji in full boss mode, or maybe itâs just because, oh, yâknow, âresponsible adult and responsibilitiesâ instincts or whatever.Â
but the further you walk, the more you realize that toji doesnât mind you following one bit. in fact, heâs practically matching his pace to yours, as if youâre part of some unofficial escort mission to... whoever this âbratâ is.
which, speaking of, who the hell is megumi?
youâre still trying to wrap your head around how this was supposed to be a âquick tourâ of the office and not, somehow, an impromptu escort mission to the worldâs sleekest car, a porsche 911 turbo â yep, thatâs right, the kind of car youâve only ever seen in movies where the bad guyâs got a mysterious, sexy side. all you can manage is, âyou own this?â
toji shrugs, slipping his keys into the ignition with an air of pure, unbothered cool. âyou donât?â
oh. okay.Â
you barely have time to process this response before heâs peeling out of the parking lot, narrowly avoiding a stray cat, a snail-paced truck, and an old lady whoâs almost sacrificed her wig to his driving style. but hey, all part of the thrill, right?
definitely not questioning life choices here.
by the time you pull up to a cutesy primary school â you know, the kind with pastel-colored gates and cartoon murals of bears and rabbits â youâre genuinely confused.Â
toji seems like the last guy whoâd be here unless it was some undercover op. and âmegumi,â whoever he is, sounds like he could be the schoolâs playground menace.
âwait, this is where weâre headed?â you ask, eyeing the building like it might suddenly make sense.
but tojiâs out of the car, moving so fast you practically have to jog to keep up. the school secretary gives you both a wary glance, likely sensing the storm of exasperation radiating off toji, as he strides straight into the principalâs office. there, sitting on a chair with his arms crossed and an unimpressed scowl that screams âmini-toji,â is a little boy with spiky hair and an air of quiet defiance.
without missing a beat, toji asks, âmegs! did you win?â
the principal, a kindly-looking woman whose expression is rapidly shifting from âcalm mediatorâ to âi donât get paid enough for this,â clears her throat.Â
âmr. fushiguro, your son wasnât... in the wrong, per se. it appears he was, um, defending his honor.â
defending his honor? you blink. what kind of second grader even knows what that means?
âthat true, âgumi?â toji says, arms crossed, looking every bit the unbothered, proud dad of the year.
âhe said my dad was a... weird voice actor,â megumi mutters, then shrugs. âso i said at least my dad works.â
you nearly choke, partly from stifled laughter, partly from the sheer absurdity of all this. here you were, thinking âhonorâ meant, like, taking down a playground empire or something.Â
but no, megumiâs just a kid with a sharp tongue and a little too much of tojiâs attitude.
âdamn right, kid,â toji says, patting megumiâs head, then looking over at you with that familiar, annoyingly smug grin. âraised him right, yeah?â
â...sure,â you say, because what else can you even say at this point? itâs like youâve stumbled into the weirdest sitcom ever, and the laugh track is somehow missing.
the principalâs expression morphs into something almost painfully polite as she addresses you, tiptoeing around the word wife with an impressive mix of caution and curiosity.Â
âare you, ah... megumiâs guardian?â
and then, in perfect, unplanned harmony, you, toji, and megumi all blurt out, âno.â
the unity, the instinctual synchronization â itâs like youâre all on the same wavelength, for better or worse. soul-level understanding, or something.Â
what the hell is happening right now?
with a polite smile and a âletâs never speak of this againâ nod, you three finally leave the principalâs office. megumi, looking more bored than reprimanded, flicks at a speck of lint on his uniform, while you and toji attempt to navigate the hallway swarming with concerned teachers and worried front-desk ladies. and by âconcernedâ and âworried,â itâs more like theyâre curious about tojiâs parenting style and, letâs be honest, probably toji himself.
âoh, mr. fushiguro!â one particularly invested teacher coos, âwe heard about the incident. is everything all right?â
toji, of course, laps up the attention, chuckling low and throwing in a wink here and there like heâs starring in some kind of action-movie dad role. the ladies are practically falling over themselves to get a response from him, their questions barely veiled as they assess you with raised brows and sideways glances, a classic âwhoâs she?â written all over their faces.
âand you are...?â one of the front-desk ladies finally asks, voice all sugar-coated and sharp.
toji slides in smoothly, cutting off whatever half-formed, awkward introduction you were about to stammer out. âoh, sheâs a colleague,â he says, his tone effortlessly suave, like introducing a perfectly respectable coworker and totally not the author of his last, extremely explicit audiobook project.
youâre almost grateful until it hits you â this is the same guy who made a whole production of calling you âprincessâ in the recording booth just yesterday.Â
as if he hasnât played one of your absurdly corny dragon kings in all his full-throttle intensity.Â
and now heâs here, all casual and cool, giving you a proper, respectable title like he hasnât spent hours voicing content these people probably keep hidden under their pillows at night.
but at least he didnât out you as the actual author of those⌠creative pieces.Â
thatâs something.
toji is out here, doing his social service to society. and no, itâs not about lending his voice to steamy audiobooks, thank you very much.Â
today, heâs serving the community by providing these teachers with a generous five minutes of his attention, which theyâll probably be replaying in their heads until the next parent-teacher meeting. and â oh, what a surprise! â thatâs exactly what theyâre talking about now, circling back to how he must come to the next one for a âserious discussionâ about megumi.
tojiâs stance? why bother? if the kidâs acing his tests, staying out of trouble (mostly), and keeping a lid on the whole âhonorâ thing, why does he need to sit through hours of polite lecturing from the pta?
while heâs busy justifying his lack of parental enthusiasm, you feel a pair of eyes on you. glancing down, you meet megumiâs steady, curious stare.Â
itâs oddly intense for a kid his age, but youâre not one to back down from a challenge. you narrow your eyes, feigning a critical, assessing look, and he visibly falters, going slightly pink around the ears.
ah, kids.
as you three make your way out of the building â toji still being all socialite with the staff and probably postponing that pta date indefinitely â you suddenly find yourself in a mini interview with megumi. itâs as if this eight-year-old has appointed himself the gatekeeper of his dadâs life and has decided youâre the latest applicant.
âso⌠whatâs your favorite color?â he asks, with an unblinking, serious stare.
âuhâŚâ you pause, realizing the weight of your answer here. âblue. like, uh, light blue.â
he nods, considering. âgood answer.â
a pause. âfavorite superhero?â
âbatman?â you try, glancing at him for a sign of approval.
âhmm. fine. but iron man wouldâve been better.â
noted, you think, as he then moves to cereal brand, favorite animal, and even your preferred subject in school. you navigate each question as best as you can, almost feeling the burn of a final exam.
then, in a moment of quiet, just as you think the quiz is over, megumi looks down and asks, voice barely a whisper, âdid i⌠do the right thing? defending my⌠my hone-er?â
âyour⌠oh, honor?â you say, a smile twitching at the corner of your mouth as you catch his wide-eyed, earnest gaze.
he nods, cheeks tinting a bit as he scuffs his sneaker on the ground.
âmegumi,â you say, kneeling a little to get on his level, âdefending your honor is important. just⌠maybe donât go for all the punches next time? sometimes words work too.â you give him a playful nudge.
he nods, seeming satisfied with that answer, then glances over his shoulder. âand donât tell daddy i asked.â
âyour secretâs safe with me,â you whisper back, giving him a conspiratorial wink.
tojiâs arms were crossed, an unreadable expression on his face as he watched the little interaction between you and megumi.Â
he was always careful about the people around his kid, fiercely protective to the point that very few in his line of work even knew megumi existed. the only ones who had ever met him were gojo and geto â and that was already a stretch.
but something about how you handled the kidâs questions, actually entertained them with the same patience heâd usually summon up himself, caught him off guard. the way you knelt down to answer him, even kept a straight face through the hard-hitting topics of favorite superheroes and cereal brands... it was surprisingly nice.Â
almost⌠reassuring?
ugh, what was he even thinking? you were still the same girl whoâd written, and he mentally cringed as he remembered the line,Â
âdragons may have claws, but theyâre nothing compared to the grip i have on yourâŚâÂ
yeah, yeah, he really didnât need to finish that thought. the memory alone had him chuckling under his breath, shaking his head.
of course, that earned him a suspicious glance from both you and megumi.
âwhatâs so funny?â you asked, brow raised.
âyeah, daddy, whyâre you laughing?â megumi chimed in, clearly puzzled.
toji waved a hand dismissively, realizing heâd just blown his cool for no reason.Â
ânothinâ, donât worry about it. just thinkinâ,â he mumbled, aware heâd probably looked a little unhinged just then.Â
maybe he really needed to work on his awareness â or maybe he just needed to get a grip, period.
tojiâs mind was doing somersaults, genuinely debating if he could manage both you and megumi tagging along for the afternoon. megumiâs insistence didnât help; kid was determined that toji should keep you both company for the rest of the day, despite having school hours left.Â
âyouâve got work, right?â you ask, half-joking, half-serious. âarenât you supposed to be off doing big, important actor things?â
toji only smirked, whipping out his phone with the sort of confidence that made it clear he had a workaround for everything. he tapped open a message to gojo, fingers moving fast.
you [11:31 am]: hey. kidâs dragging me to the arcade. need a few hours off. gojo s. [11:33 am]: need or WANT, toji? ;)) you [11:31 am]: like i said, KID is dragging me. gojo s. [11:33 am]: oh sure, blame megumi. what, does he have you wrapped around his little finger or something? you [11:31 am]: think whatever you want, but youâre handling my schedule for the rest of the day. gojo s. [11:33 am]: wait, are you with...the AUTHOR? ;)) you [11:31 am]: quit smiling through text, itâs creepy. gojo s. [11:33 am]: iâll allow it. but only cause iâm such a good friend. gojo s. [11:33 am]: tell megumi uncle gojo says hi gojo s. [11:34 am]: and he owes me 20 bucks. you [11:35 am]: he doesnât owe you anything. gojo s. [11:35 am]: fine, but bring me something from the prize counter.
satisfied, toji pocketed his phone and shrugged.Â
âall right, kid. weâll hang out for a bit. but i swear if you drag me into any embarrassing games ââ
âarcade!â megumi interrupted, not even giving him a chance to finish. âi can show you both that iâm the best at every game! daddy taught me how to play, so you better watch out!â
you couldnât help but chuckle at the kidâs enthusiasm.
âall right, letâs go. but you better not make me look bad, kid,â toji said, smirking down at his son, who was now practically vibrating with eagerness.
âarcade!â megumi yelled again, nearly bouncing as he grabbed your hand and began to lead the way.
megumi barely lets you settle into the leather of the passenger seat before heâs bouncing in the back, practically vibrating with energy as he plugs tojiâs phone into the aux. youâre trying to wrap your head around being in toji fushiguroâs car, the man who not only voices the romantic lead in your steamiest, most dramatic book but also owns a luxury car that could probably pay off your loans twice over.
"so, uh... passenger princess, huh?" toji smirks, catching you in mid-thought.
"i⌠what?" you stammer, feeling the heat creep up as he settles a hand on the wheel with all the nonchalance in the world. âi, uh ââ but youâre cut off by megumi excitedly blasting his choice of artist: korn.
"your son listens to korn?" you blurt out, giving toji a mix of awe and disbelief.
toji just raises an eyebrow, deadpanning, âyours doesnât?â
ouch. okay, fair point.Â
because no, you do not have a kid, or a husband, or even a boyfriendâŚor any romantic prospects, really.Â
tojiâs question leaves you fidgeting as you try to muster a dignified response.
meanwhile, megumi is full-on screaming to the lyrics of "freak on a leash," and you catch snippets like âsomething takes a part of me!â which, yeah, relatable â korn is honestly hitting the mood. but of course, toji catches you staring out the window, attempting to look casual as he throws you a side-eye.
"so, whatâs got you without a boyfriend?â he asks, way too casually, as if this was a natural segue from whatever korn-fueled karaoke session is happening in the backseat.
you practically choke on air. "what, me? no, iâm...," you laugh awkwardly, shifting in the passenger seat. âbesides, i donât meet many guys. i'm just⌠you know⌠doing my thing.â
megumi, pausing his headbanging just for a moment, turns and looks at you with an exaggerated âyikesâ face, as if being single was the worst possible fate in his young, eight-year-old eyes.Â
but then he shrugs, clearly uninterested in this adult drama and goes back to screaming, âfeeling like a freak on a leash!â
toji, still watching you, smirks, âso, doing your âthingâ includes no boyfriend, no husband... what, are you just swearing off men?â
"uh, no!â you say quickly, too quickly, and feel your face heat up. âjust havenât... yâknow, met anyone worth dating. been busy.â
toji gives a low chuckle, clearly entertained. âbusy doing what, writing your âtorrid love storiesâ?â
you make a face, biting your lip.Â
âtheyâre not that torrid.â but even as you say it, you hear the echo of a particularly cheesy line youâd written for his character in your novel, which, mortifyingly enough, involved the phrase âmy darling flame, you set my very soul alight.â
toji chuckles, as if reading your thoughts. âmaybe iâll get to hear one of those lines in real life someday, princess.â
âcan we not call me that while megumiâs in the car?â you mutter, glancing back, only to find megumi fully engrossed in his self-proclaimed vocal talents.
ânoted.â toji snickers, shooting you another mischievous look as korn plays on, megumi happily singing about âbreaking downâ in the back.
âbut hey,â toji says smoothly, hand resting on the gearshift, âjust so you know, even my son knows a good band when he hears one.â
you roll your eyes at him, managing to mumble, âat least one of you is a bit mature.â
the porsche pulls up to the arcade with enough fanfare that heads start turning even before the engine purrs to a stop. not that the onlookers were ready for what steps out next: a towering, chiseled man looking like heâs on his way to a modeling photoshoot, a cute kid in full confidence mode, and, well⌠you.
still feeling a little dizzy from the korn concert that just took place, you barely register megumi bolting out of the car with a grin, leaving you and toji to get your bearings. his energyâs practically crackling by the time toji pays for the play card, and youâre pretty sure if he has to wait even one more minute, heâs about to combust.
âokay, okay, slow down, megumi,â you say, trying to keep up as he yanks you to the nearest neon-lit game.Â
but the kid isnât hearing it. heâs already dragging you to one machine, and then the next, moving faster than you can process where you even are. each one is seemingly more intense and blinding than the last, and youâre hit with a sensory overload of neon lights, retro game sounds, and the feel of the arcade carpet sticking just a little too much to your shoes.
tojiâs watching the whole ordeal with a bemused smirk. you and his kid are like a whirlwind of neon and laughter, barely stopping to catch your breaths between games. the sight is somehow⌠comforting. like a scene from a life he hadnât planned but couldnât help finding strangely compelling.
but then he catches himself. seriously?Â
he shakes his head. this is not the time to get all sentimental over his kidâs new âplaydateâ or whatever.Â
heâs just here because megumi insisted, and maybe he thought itâd be amusing to watch you get dragged around by an eight-year-old with zero restraint. thatâs it.Â
nothing more.
yeah, right. his internal grumbling comes to an abrupt stop as he watches megumi take your hand and pull you over to a classic claw machine. the kidâs looking up at you with the widest eyes youâve ever seen, all excitement and pure innocence, like winning one of those knockoff plush toys is the pinnacle of existence.
âyou got this?â you ask, grinning at him as he lines up the claw with intense concentration.
âof course! my dad showed me,â he declares, like heâs about to go pro in the claw game league.
toji, watching from a distance, feels a twinge in his chest.Â
yeah, heâd shown megumi how to play this game ages ago, more to give him an edge over the other kids than anything else. it was a dad-and-son thing, just the two of them. but seeing megumi look up at you with the same pride and excitement makes him feel⌠something.Â
and he doesnât know if he likes it.
youâre so focused on megumiâs moves that you donât notice tojiâs slight frown, nor do you hear his quiet mutter of, âthis is ridiculous.âÂ
but when he sees the way your eyes light up as megumi successfully nabs a cheap stuffed animal â a lopsided dinosaur, of all things â and the way you celebrate like heâs won an olympic medal, he feels himself relax, just a little.
he chuckles, shaking his head and crossing his arms as you high-five megumi, both of you beaming over a prize that probably cost less than the game itself. but toji doesnât move.Â
he stands there, rooted, as you two bounce from game to game, his thoughts too jumbled to focus on anything else.
but maybe⌠maybe thatâs okay for now.
tojiâs phone buzzes just as heâs leaning against the side of a vintage racing game, watching you and megumi practically lighting up the whole arcade with your laughter. he glances down to see satoruâs name pop up on the screen, already feeling a headache brewing.
gojo s. [12:20 pm]: so, arcade? đ you [12:20 pm]: yeah, i just told you. gojo s. [12:20 pm]: nah, i mean WHY the arcade? what are we celebrating here, toji? ;)) you [12:21 pm]: why does it matter gojo s. [12:21 pm]: CUZZZZ gojo s. [12:21 pm]: lemme guess, megumi's there with her now, right? gojo s. [12:22 pm]: bet theyâre having the time of their lives, while YOU gojo s. [12:22 pm]: youâre just there all moody on the sidelinesđ
toji glances up at you and megumi, whoâve now moved on to a skee-ball machine, both cheering as you score a perfect 50-point throw.
you [12:23 pm]: like i said, work stuff. gojo s. [12:24 pm]: HAHA. work stuff, right. gojo s. [12:24 pm]: work stuff that has megumi running around grinning like that. gojo s. [12:25 pm]: bro gojo s. [12:25 pm]: youâre terrible at lying. gojo s. [12:26 pm]: sheâs a keeper if she can deal with YOU you [12:26 pm]: keep dreaming.
he slips his phone back into his pocket, unable to shake off the grin creeping onto his face as he watches you high-five megumi. the kidâs happier than heâs seen in ages, and heâŚ
well, he canât remember the last time he felt this relaxed watching anyone just being with his kid.
toji stands back, taking in the moment â megumiâs laughter echoing through the arcade, your smile as you lift him up with an ease that has the kid giggling uncontrollably â and for some reason, his mind has turned the whole scene into a rom-com montage.
you are the dancing queenâŚ
itâs absurd, really.Â
he doesnât even like abba. but there it is, the stupid song playing in his head, all set to the image of you holding his son, twirling him like he weighs nothing, both of you in fits of laughter.
young and sweet, only seventeenâŚ
and for a split second, his heart does this awkward little stutter.Â
he chalks it up to the neon lights.Â
or maybe the greasy smell of the arcade food messing with his senses. but as he watches you hold megumi up, almost as if heâs flying, he canât ignore that ridiculous, cheesy pull in his chest.
feel the beat from the tambourine, oh yeah...
oh god.Â
is he seriously catching himself grinning at the way youâre both trying to get him to join in? megumiâs little hand reaches out, beckoning him over, and youâre giving him that smile, that âcome on, get over here, big guyâ look.
you can dance, you can jiveâŚ
the song hits that soaring note in his head just as he finally gives in and starts to walk over, and his pulse actually picks up, as if heâs not just at some run-down arcade but in the middle of some ridiculously sappy rom-com finale.
having the time of your lifeâŚ
and then megumi is shrieking again, calling, âdad, hurry up!â like itâs life or death, and youâre beaming at him with that mischievous, encouraging look.
toji sighs, shaking his head at himself.Â
just great.Â
the two of you have officially dragged him into your world, soundtrack and all.
toji's trying his best to lock in.Â
but as he walks out of the arcade â juggling not one, but four oversized plushies, two fancy new lego sets, a slinky, a bouncy ball, some glow-in-the-dark slime, and a rainbow slap bracelet â he canât help but snort at the sheer ridiculousness of it.Â
between his loaded arms and megumi curled up fast asleep in yours, itâs a scene straight out of one of those cheesy family movies.
he shakes his head, trying to push down that weirdly warm feeling creeping up on him.Â
stay focused, toji.Â
he doesn't need any sappy feelings right now. he's a single dad with a kid and a job, not some washed-up rom-com character, damn it.Â
but watching you gently adjust megumi as he drools onto your shoulder, snuggling deeper into the crook of your arm as you carefully slide into the backseat, itâs hard not to feel that tug again.
ugh, he thinks, climbing into the driverâs seat as you buckle up up front, giving him a soft, tired smile.Â
ânever held a kid before, huh?â he teases, eyes glancing from the road to the rearview mirror, where megumiâs still dozing, soft breaths muffling against your arm.
ânope,â you shrug, but thereâs a softness to your voice as you gently rub megumiâs back, âfirst time for everything, i guess.â
tojiâs heart does that weird skip thing again.Â
oh god, he thinks, gripping the wheel a little tighter as he tries to ignore the sappy old man vibe overtaking him.
the air in the car feels... charged, but itâs not like either of you are exactly leaning into the tension. instead, you both sit in this weird, awkward silence, save for the quiet hum of the radio, like youâre suddenly too aware of just being there with each other.
and then, as if the universe wanted to toy with you, iris by the goo goo dolls starts playing.Â
oh, god. you immediately wish you could just evaporate into the passenger seat.
â...and iâd give up forever to touch youâŚâ the lyrics croon, filling the silence, and you can practically feel the heat crawling up your cheeks.
toji clears his throat, obviously catching it too. âradioâs on a roll, huh?â
âyep,â you say, managing a weak laugh. âi mean, this is classic⌠everyone listens to goo goo dolls in, uh, total silence in the car with their coworker, right?â
he glances at you, a rare, subtle smile ghosting on his lips. âtotally normal.â
âand i donât want the world to see me⌠âcause i donât think that theyâd understandâŚâ
you glance out the window, eyes focused anywhere but on him, biting back a laugh at how the song somehow keeps getting more dramatic. like, whoâs writing this scene, seriously?
âjust tell me where to turn,â toji says, breaking through your internal monologue, and you do, mentioning a landmark close to home, hoping heâll take the hint.
but toji only raises an eyebrow. ânear it? nah. iâm dropping you at the door.â
âoh, no, thatâs really fine ââ you start, but heâs already shaking his head.
âdonât worry about it,â he insists, a smirk in his voice. âbesides, i remember where you live. from, you know⌠last time.â
wait. last time? as in⌠when you were embarrassingly, unapologetically wasted that night?
you want to crawl under the seat as the lyrics continue, âwhen everythingâs made to be brokenâŚâ
so when toji pulls up in front of your apartment, thereâs this odd feeling hanging in the air. you catch yourself wanting to... linger, just a little longer, even if youâre home.Â
and lowkey?Â
so does toji.Â
itâs like the two of you have hit this weird teenage crush level of awkward â just leaning, leaning, like thereâs some invisible string pulling you closer.
heâs looking at you, and youâre looking at him, and youâre both just⌠stuck there. you canât even bring yourself to reach for the door handle, and itâs the same for him.
but right as the moment peaks, a tiny, innocent voice cuts through from the backseat. âare you two going to kiss?â
megumiâs question hangs there, blunt and childlike, breaking whatever spell had you both frozen. you both jolt back, blinking as if you just woke up.
âwhat? no!â you blurt, practically tripping over your own denial.Â
your face feels like itâs about to catch fire.
toji coughs, rubbing the back of his neck, just barely suppressing a chuckle.
âkidâs got a helluva imagination,â he mutters, eyes anywhere but on you.
as you finally reach for the door handle, ready to slip out and say your goodbyes, you hear a little sniffle from the backseat.
âwaitâŚâ megumiâs voice is tiny, almost shaky. you turn around, and to your surprise, his face is scrunched up, his eyes glistening with tears that heâs trying so hard to hold back.
âhey, hey, whatâs wrong?â you ask, twisting around in your seat to face him. âiâll see you again, kiddo.â
but his lower lip wobbles, and suddenly he bursts into full-on tears, clutching the giant plushie he won at the arcade. âb-but i donât want you to leave!â he sobs, voice cracking. âcanât you stay just a little longer?â
tojiâs eyes widen; he looks genuinely shocked.Â
âmegumi, youâre fine, sheâs not going anywhere forever. whatâs gotten into you?â he tries to keep his tone steady, but thereâs an undercurrent of surprise.Â
megumi doesnât cry.Â
ever.Â
this is new territory.
megumi just shakes his head, burying his face into the plushie. âbut sheâs nice,â he mumbles, muffled but insistent. âand she plays games with me and ââ he peeks out from the plushie with red, teary eyes. âand she talks to me like you do.â
you feel something stir in your chest at his words, this overwhelming urge to hug him even though youâd sworn up and down just an hour ago you didnât know how to handle kids.
âaw, megumi,â you say softly, reaching over and giving his little hand a squeeze. âiâll still see you, i promise. maybe we can even play again sometime, okay?â
âbut youâre leaving now,â he says, his voice quivering, clutching your hand with a desperation that tugs at your heart.Â
âand daddy didnât even kiss you.â
the absolute silence that follows is deafening.Â
you feel your face go redder than itâs ever been, and a glance at toji shows heâs equally flustered, mouth opening and closing as if heâs trying to find some way to steer this conversation back to normal.
âwhoa, hey now,â toji says, forcing a laugh as he clears his throat. âthatâs, uh â thatâs not how it works, kid.â he ruffles megumiâs hair a little too hard, clearly floundering. âand hey, donât go crying over someone just leaving for the night, youâre stronger than that.â
âi donât care,â megumi sniffles, clutching your hand tighter. âi like her. and she makes you smile.â
toji freezes, the color draining from his face for just a split second.Â
makes him smile.Â
he doesnât even realize heâs been smiling, maybe more in one day than he has in months. he glances at you, brow furrowed like heâs trying to make sense of it himself.
âwellâŚâ tojiâs voice is softer now, almost cautious, like heâs testing out words he hasnât said in a long time. â
maybe⌠maybe she could come around again. if she wants to, that is.â
âi do.â you answer without thinking, your gaze drifting to megumiâs tear-streaked face, which immediately lights up.
âreally?â megumiâs eyes shine, practically bouncing in his seat. âyou promise?â
âi promise,â you say with a smile, giving him a reassuring nod. âas long as itâs okay with you and your dad, of course.â
ââs fine,â toji grumbles, running a hand over his face to hide his slight grin. âbesides, someoneâs gotta teach you a lesson or two at the arcade next time.â
âis that a challenge, toji?â you quip, smirking. âbecause if i remember right, megumi here got more tickets than both of us combined.â
âthatâs because i taught him everything he knows,â toji scoffs, rolling his eyes as if he canât believe heâs even entertaining this.
megumi sniffles one last time, his eyes practically glowing with happiness. âthen⌠youâll come over soon, right?â
âabsolutely,â you say, warmth bubbling up in your chest as you meet his hopeful gaze. âbut only if you promise to keep practicing at the arcade. gotta keep that winning streak going, right?â
megumi grins, finally letting go of your hand as he settles back with a contented sigh. âdeal.â
toji just shakes his head, muttering something about the âdramaâ gene clearly skipping a generation, though the smile tugging at his lips says otherwise.
as you unbuckle your seatbelt, ready to say goodbye, you feel the car click with the unmistakable sound of the child lock. you glance back at megumi, whoâs nodding off against his plushie pile, and back at toji, whoâs already climbing out to walk you up to your door.Â
gentlemanly of him, sure.Â
though, the way his eyes linger on you⌠thereâs more to it than that.
âi couldâve walked myself, you know,â you say, falling into step beside him as you head up to your building. âitâs not that far.â
âmaybe i just felt like making sure you didnât trip and embarrass yourself,â he shoots back, smirking as he nudges your shoulder.
âvery chivalrous, fushiguro,â you reply, rolling your eyes but grinning anyway. âhonestly, youâre like a walking textbook definition of âgentleman.ââ
âyeah, well,â he clears his throat, looking just a bit smug. âmaybe i was raised right. or maybe,â his voice drops a little lower, âi just wanted an excuse to stick around a little longer.â
you blink, caught off guard by the soft rasp in his voice, the way his eyes are just a bit darker under the porch light.
âoh,â is all you manage, though your heartbeatâs doing a little somersault. âwell⌠uh. hereâs my door.â
âguess it is,â he murmurs, eyes glinting as he takes a step closer, leaning against the doorframe like heâs meant to be there, like heâs settled in the idea of being right here, with you.Â
âyâknow⌠not a bad place to end the night.â
âyeah,â you say, feeling the words catch in your throat as you gaze up at him, taking in every detail, every shadow. âdefinitely not bad.â
the two of you are just standing there, a little too close, the space between you narrowing with every unspoken word. he glances down at your lips, and your pulse spikes â heâs thinking it too, right? but just as the moment seems to reach its tipping point, toji smirks, a flash of mischief in his eyes.
âyou know,â he says, raising an eyebrow. âstill canât believe youâre the same girl who wrote that⌠what was it again?â he chuckles, clearly remembering. âoh, right â âher legs wrapped around him like a vice, his name spilling from her lips like honeyâ.â
your face goes nuclear.Â
that line.Â
of all the lines, that one?
âyou⌠you remember that?â you manage, mortified.
ââcourse i remember,â he says, that smug smirk firmly in place. âyou think i just skimmed through your stuff?â
âwell â i â â your words are a mess, barely coherent. âi mean, i just thought ââ
ânah, iâve been reading it all.â his voice is low, almost a whisper as he leans just a little closer, his fingers lightly brushing your arm. âyouâve got quite the imagination.â
âs-shut up,â you stammer, unable to meet his gaze. âi was just⌠doing my job.â
âi know,â he says, voice soft but unyielding. âyouâve got talent.â
thereâs a beat, silence stretching between you, the weight of his words settling over the both of you.
â...and youâve got this whole heartthrob thing going for you,â you blurt out, finally meeting his eyes with a nervous laugh. âkind of makes it hard to believe youâre my colleague.â
âheartthrob, huh?â he smirks, voice dipping lower as his fingers drift to your chin, tilting your face up.Â
âso thatâs what you think of me?â
âi â i meanâŚâ you stammer, your heart racing as you look into his eyes, feeling your cheeks burn. âmaybe a little. just⌠a tiny bit.â
âtiny?â he murmurs, his lips barely an inch away. âcouldâve sworn you looked a little more than just âtinyâ interested.â
âoh yeah?â your voice is a whisper now, almost breathless as you feel his breath on your skin, his gaze never wavering. âwhat if i was?â
âthen iâd probably do this,â he mutters, his hand sliding up to cradle your face, and before you know it, his lips are on yours, soft and warm and impossibly gentle.
your breath catches, and instinctively, you lean into him, letting his kiss deepen, his hand tracing slow, lazy patterns against your cheek. itâs everything youâd imagined and somehow even better, his presence grounding and electric all at once.
when he finally pulls back, his forehead rests against yours, his eyes soft but searching. âso⌠do i still get to be a heartthrob?â
âonly if i still get to be the girl with the cringe smut,â you murmur back, grinning like an idiot.
âdeal,â he says, chuckling as he pulls you in for another kiss, his lips brushing yours like a promise.
ah, shit.
as toji slips back into the car, he barely manages to close the door before megumiâs voice hits him like a lightning bolt.
âdaddy kissed the pretty lady!â megumi shrieks, pointing an accusatory finger from the backseat. âi saw it! you have that weird face on!â
tojiâs eyebrows shoot up. âweird face? what weird face?â he tries to play it cool, adjusting the rearview mirror, but the ghost of that kiss is still painted on his lips, his pulse betraying him with every beat.
âthat smile,â megumi says, wrinkling his nose in a perfect mirror of his dadâs usual expression of disdain. âyou look like a⌠like aâŚâ he pauses, searching for the right words. â...like a love puppy!â
toji chokes, stifling a laugh. âa love puppy? where the hell did you get that from?â
âitâs a thing, daddy,â megumi huffs, crossing his arms. âyou have that goofy look, and your face is all soft. you only look like that when youâre being weird.â
âme? weird?â toji glances in the mirror, catching megumiâs glare. âkid, i think youâve got this all wrong.â
âno, i donât!â megumi insists, practically bouncing in his seat. âyou were all âgoo-goo eyesâ and âsmoochy-smoochyâ and âmwah mwah mwah!ââ he makes exaggerated kissing sounds, complete with squished-up lips and hand gestures, utterly scandalized by his dadâs sudden transformation.
âalright, alright, enough with the âmwah mwah.ââ toji tries to suppress a laugh, rubbing the back of his neck. âyouâve been watching too many cartoons.â
megumi shakes his head, his expression serious. ânope. i knew it. i knew you liked her.â he narrows his eyes, as if seeing through tojiâs very soul. âso⌠are you gonna marry her?â
tojiâs eyes go wide.Â
âwhoa, whoa, hold on. nobody said anything about marriage.â
âbut if you kiss someone, that means you wanna be with them forever, right?â megumi asks earnestly, looking way too wise for his age.
toji stares ahead, caught off-guard by the kidâs earnestness.Â
that kiss⌠he didnât plan it. he didnât even know he was going to do it until heâd leaned in, felt the spark pull him closer. but now?Â
yeah, the idea of just walking away feels⌠wrong. he tightens his grip on the steering wheel, his mind racing.
âkid, sometimes people just⌠feel things, okay?â he says, his voice softer, more introspective. âeven if they donât really know why.â
megumi tilts his head, watching his dad closely. âso you do like her, then?â
toji snorts, pulling the car out onto the road. âalright, detective, settle down back there. no more snooping.â
they drive in a comfortable silence for a moment, but the radio has other plans.Â
as if on cue, the familiar, aching chords of iris by the goo goo dolls come through the speakers, and toji swears he could feel the universe laughing at him.
âand i donât want the world to see me, âcause i donât think that theyâd understandâŚâ
toji clenches his jaw, feeling the lyrics press into him, each line stirring something restless and warm in his chest. heâs always been a guy with his walls up, always knew the stakes were too high to let anyone in.Â
but tonight⌠tonight, he let his guard down. just for a second.Â
he kissed you, tasted the softness of your lips, and the spark left him reeling.
âwhen everythingâs meant to be broken, i just want you to know who i amâŚâ
âdaddy?â megumiâs voice breaks through his thoughts. âdo you think⌠maybe you could see her again? so she could come play with us?â
toji blinks, glancing at megumi in the rearview mirror. âyou really like her, huh?â
megumi nods vigorously. âyeah! sheâs⌠nice. and fun.â his face softens. âand⌠she made you look happy.â
tojiâs heart gives a strange, unfamiliar twist at that.Â
happy, huh?Â
heâs been around the block long enough to know that happiness isnât exactly his best friend. but sitting here, listening to megumi, feeling that residual warmth from your kiss⌠it makes him wonder.Â
wonder what life could look like with you in it.
but he pushes the thought away, focusing on the road. doesnât change the fact that youâre just his colleague. right?
âand iâd give up forever to touch youâŚâ
ugh.
he shifts uncomfortably, hoping megumi doesnât notice his knuckles going white on the steering wheel.Â
that kiss wasnât just some fleeting thing â heâd known it the second he felt the warmth of you linger even after pulling away. the idea of letting you go now feels⌠impossible. somethingâs tugging him back, making him want more.
âhey, daddy,â megumi pipes up again, breaking tojiâs brooding. âyou got that look again.â
âwhat look?â toji mutters, trying to focus on anything but the goofy grin creeping back onto his face.
megumi smirks, mimicking tojiâs soft expression. âthat âi kissed a pretty ladyâ look!â
toji laughs, shaking his head as he glances at megumi in the rearview mirror. âalright, alright. i guess you caught me.â
and as he drives home, the final notes of iris playing softly through the car, he canât shake the feeling that this⌠whatever this is⌠isnât something heâs ready to let go of.
ah, shit.
as soon as toji sets megumi down on his bed, tucking him in amongst the mountain of ridiculous plushies heâd somehow won at the arcade, he heads back to his room. sliding his phone out, he finds himself doing something he never thought heâd do: texting gojo. of all people.
with a reluctant sigh, he taps out a message, feeling a pang of embarrassment he canât shake.
you [8:47 pm]: how longâs her contract with gojo sonic?
a moment later, he watches the screen, regretting even reaching out. but, of course, gojo wastes no time with a reply.
gojo s. [8:50 pm]: ohohohohooooo her contract??? gojo s. [8:50 pm]: i knew it. youâre smitten. you [8:51 pm]: donât start. gojo s. [8:51 pm]: too late! câmon, dish it out, big guy. gojo s. [8:51 pm]: you guys had a moment, huh? the chemistry finally snapped? whatâd ya do, kiss her?
toji clenches his jaw, hesitating before typing back. his thumb hovers, wondering how much grief heâd get for saying yes. finally, he mutters a curse under his breath and just goes for it.
you [8:53 pm]: ...yeah, i kissed her. happy?
he can practically feel gojoâs cackle vibrating through the phone.
gojo s. [8:53 pm]: WHAT??? gojo s. [8:53 pm]: WAIT. gojo s. [8:53 pm]: oh, i need details. gojo s. [8:53 pm]: full play-by-play. gojo s. [8:53 pm]: like was it one of those slow, cinematic moments? gojo s. [8:54 pm]: or was it a grab and smooch kinda deal??
toji rolls his eyes, fighting off a grin he refuses to admit is there. of all the reactions, heâd been prepared for gojoâs nosiness, but itâs still as annoying as ever.
you [8:55 pm]: shut it. i already said too much. gojo s. [8:55 pm]: pfffff as if iâm letting you get away with that tidbit and no context. gojo s. [8:55 pm]: did she look at you all wide-eyed? gojo s. [8:55 pm]: did you do that thing with your voice?? gojo s. [8:56 pm]: or was it just an accidental, âoh no, we tripped into each otherâs facesâ sorta thing?
toji rubs his temples, trying to block out how much his stupid heart rate picks up just remembering the way you looked up at him, the softness of your lips, the way it all felt so natural. he shakes his head, forcing the memory aside.
you [8:57 pm]: none of your business, and itâs private. you [8:57 pm]: donât you dare send any of this to suguru. gojo s. [8:57 pm]: oh relax! suguruâs not that nosy. gojo s. [8:57 pm]: okay maybe he is. gojo s. [8:58 pm]: but heâs a romantic. gojo s. [8:58 pm]: think of it as getting free relationship coaching!! you [9:00 pm]: i swear to god satoru iâll leave the company if you spill this.
thereâs a pause, and for a second toji hopes that maybe heâs scared gojo off.Â
but, predictably, the next message makes his blood pressure spike.
gojo s. [9:05 pm]: ohhhhh no no youâre not getting off that easy. gojo s. [9:05 pm]: iâm calling dibs on being the flower girl at your wedding. suguru can be the maid of honor. gojo s. [9:06 pm]: no nvm heâd wanna be the best man gojo s. [9:06 pm]: IâLL GET MEGUMI TO CARRY THE RINGS gojo s. [9:06 pm]: genius.
toji practically growls at his phone, already regretting every second of this conversation.
you [9:07 pm]: iâll delete this whole damn thread. this never happened, got it? gojo s. [9:09 pm]: aww, toji bear, donât be like that. iâll take care of your little love story for you, promise. consider me your personal wingman. gojo s. [9:10 pm]: now tell me this â whenâs round two of smooch central happening? you [9:11 pm]: goodnight, satoru.
and with that, he shoves his phone onto his nightstand, rubbing his face with a hand. he can still feel the lingering warmth of that kiss, the way his heart skipped, the unexpected tenderness thatâs lodged itself in his mind.Â
stupid.
he shouldnât have even told gojo.
but as much as he regrets letting it slip, he doesnât regret the kiss itself.Â
not even a bit.
as soon as you slam your door shut, you just⌠stand there for a minute, heart racing, and press your fingers to your lips like itâll somehow reverse what just happened.Â
you kissed toji fushiguro.Â
the toji fushiguro.
colleague extraordinaire, with biceps that could probably benchpress your entire lifeâs savings, and that smirk⌠oh god, that smirk that had you in a daze.
but the problem?Â
there was a mini him there.Â
a little him with matching black hair and a sharp gaze.Â
you thought he was, like, the cool uncle? but⌠heâs a dad?Â
and if heâs a dad⌠does that mean heâs married? are you the other woman?!
you pace around, practically stomping into the carpet.Â
âokay, okay, letâs think this through,â you mutter, putting your hands on your hips.Â
âhe⌠he could be a single dad, right? itâs 2024, itâs not that weird for people to have kids without, like, commitment commitments. but then again, he does look like the type whoâd⌠i donât know, maybe be exclusive? probably?â
your brain is racing, and youâre spinning yourself into circles.Â
âi mean, i havenât seen a ring on his finger⌠but maybe he just doesnât wear it?â you plop down on your couch, practically sinking into it as you cover your face with both hands.
ugh.
âdid i just kiss a married man? or worse⌠what if heâs, like, engaged? or has a live-in girlfriend? or â oh my god, what if heâs in some high-profile relationship and i just stepped into the middle of it? ââ
you groan, flopping back. âbut he⌠he definitely leaned in first. iâm not hallucinating. he did! but then, if heâs that willing to kiss me, does that mean heâs⌠a cheater?â
you sit up and shake your head, wide-eyed. âokay, no, i refuse to believe that toji fushiguro, mr. brooding and brooding-er with a kid who listens to korn, is a cheater. thereâs no way⌠right?â
your own voice is almost pleading as you try to convince yourself, pacing again.Â
âi mean, maybe heâs just⌠really, really committed to⌠being mysterious. yeah, that makes sense. heâs keeping everything a secret, so that just leaves me spiraling about him⌠perfect. just perfect.â
you smack a hand against your forehead. âwhy couldnât i have asked literally any of this earlier?â you shake your head. âright, because i was too busy kissing him.â
you throw yourself back onto the couch and stare at the ceiling, the whole thing replaying in your head.Â
that look he gave you, the warmth of his hand on your backâŚ
stop.
but itâs too late. your brain keeps running with it.
âwhat if⌠what if he has no idea iâm freaking out?â you frown. âoh, he probably doesnât. and here i am, making a whole drama out of one kiss.â you let out a deep sigh.
you flop onto your bed, heart still pounding, and stare up at the ceiling, fingers absently grazing your lips.Â
burning loins, they said. melting from one kiss, they said.Â
well, no one exactly said that â except every steamy novel youâve ever read or written, but thatâs beside the point.
you groan, kicking your feet up in frustration. this isnât one of your own novels! itâs supposed to be real life! but now here you are, in the aftermath of what was arguably the best kiss youâve ever had, practically combusting at the memory of it.
âif one kiss with toji â no, any man â can get me this hot and bothered, how am i supposed to handle it if i ever⌠you knowâŚâ your voice trails off, and you turn over, burying your face into the pillow as if itâll smother the absurd train of thought.Â
but then, just as you start to get your mind off it, his face pops back up in your head.
âoh god,â you mumble, pulling the pillow over your face. âthis is pathetic.â you roll over again, laughing helplessly to yourself.Â
if this is what one or two kisses do to me⌠whatâll happen if we actually have sex?
your eyes snap open. âokay, no. no! i didnât mean toji, i meant, like⌠any guy! any guy at all! but, oh god, why is it always him?!â
you stare at the ceiling, huffing as your brain keeps looping back to him.Â
his stupidly attractive smirk, the way his hand was firm but gentle on your back, how he looked at you as if you were his next breath.Â
girl, get a grip.
âthis is ridiculous,â you mutter, swatting at your face like itâll erase his image from your mind. but it doesnât work; heâs right there, all hot and smug in your imagination. ugh, this isnât fair!
itâs like all those countless hours you spent spinning erotic fantasies are coming back to haunt you â and in the most inconvenient, infuriating way possible. you scrunch up your face, realizing with mild horror that maybe⌠just maybe⌠you wrote this scenario into existence for yourself.
âoh no⌠is this karma?â you groan, curling up and swatting the air in helpless embarrassment. âgirl, this is not supposed to happen in real life. or with toji.â
but there it is: his face, and your wildly racing heart, and the undeniable, excruciating heat pooling in your belly that refuses to quit.
but even with the spiraling, thereâs one thing you canât deny: as much as itâs driving you crazy, as much as youâre practically scaring yourself into thinking youâve just made the worst mistake of your lifeâŚ
you kinda donât regret it. and thatâs the scariest part.
ah, shit.
you step into gojo-sonic, clutching your bag with a little more intensity than usual, and itâs as if youâve entered an alternate dimension.Â
the energy is somehow⌠different. you expect to be greeted with the usual casual nods and waves, but instead, gojo is practically skipping toward you, arms spread wide like heâs welcoming the new queen of the recording studio.
âthere she is! our star of the show, our resident heart-throb wrangler!â he coos, louder than necessary. his grin is blinding, and youâre caught between the urge to backpedal out of the building or dive under the nearest desk.
âuh⌠good morning?â you reply, more like a question than a statement, glancing around to see if anyone else is picking up on his hyperness. itâs like heâs had twelve cups of coffee or ten bags of skittles. âgojo, youâre⌠kind of extra today.â
âextra? extra?â he throws a hand over his heart, eyes gleaming. âhoney, iâm never just âextra.â i am exactly the right amount of gojo for the occasion.â
âand what occasion is that, exactly?â
âoh, nothing much, just a certain someone having an⌠enlightening encounter last night,â he says with a wink so exaggerated it looks like heâs trying to shoo a bug off his face.
you stiffen. âwait, how do youâŚ?â
âoh, come on,â he waves it off, laughing. âyou think you can keep something like that from me? i mean, i might be blessed with an enormous amount of talent, looks, and charisma, but i also happen to have eyes and ears everywhere.â he taps his temple, looking ridiculously pleased with himself.
âseriously?â you glance around, your stomach sinking a little, looking for any sign of smirking coworkers or curious eyes, but everyoneâs just⌠normal? going about their business, not sparing you a second glance. relief washes over you, only to be swept away by gojoâs piercing stare.
âoh, donât worry. i havenât shared your scandalous rendezvous with the world. only i am privy to this delightful information â for now,â he adds, wagging a finger. âand donât look so shocked! nothing juicy stays hidden from me for long. i know all the company secrets.â
you feel heat rise to your cheeks, equal parts exasperated and embarrassed. âgojo, it wasnât even that big of a deal. itâs not likeâŚâ you trail off, realizing heâs hanging on to your every word, eyes sparkling with mischief.
âuh-huh,â he drawls, drawing the word out. ânot a big deal, you say? then why do you look like youâre about to start sweating bullets?â
âiâm not sweating bullets,â you say through clenched teeth, then give in and sigh. âlook, we just⌠it was just a⌠i mean, weâre colleagues, and things got a little⌠friendly. it doesnât have to mean anything!â
gojo gasps, mock-horrified. âoh, but darling, this is precisely why itâs so interesting! you, of all people, getting caught up with toji fushiguro? and here i thought youâd sworn off office romances.â
âitâs not an office romance,â you insist, voice practically a whisper. âwe just⌠kissed. once. or twice. maybe. but it doesnât mean anything!â
gojo leans in, conspiratorially. âand yet you look ready to combust from the inside out just talking about it.â
you huff, throwing him a half-hearted glare. âmaybe itâs because someone is making this into a bigger deal than it actually is.â
âyou wound me!â he presses a hand dramatically to his chest, giving you an exaggerated pout. âbut donât worry, your little secret is safe with me. i only told you so youâd know that i know. and, you know, to make things extra awkward in case mr. heart-throb walks in.â
âoh, so youâre really just out to make my life difficult?â
he grins, all teeth. âprecisely.â
just then, as if summoned by some cruel twist of fate, toji strolls in. heâs the absolute picture of normalcy, no hint whatsoever of last nightâs⌠moment.Â
in fact, he gives you a polite nod, a polite nod, as if he hadnât had you pressed against your own door just hours ago.
âmorning,â he says casually, voice smooth, tone nonchalant. he doesnât even so much as smirk.
you nearly choke. polite nod? normal greeting? did he forget the entire thing?Â
âoh, morning,â you manage, clearing your throat, feeling like youâre about to combust again.
gojo, however, is having the time of his life. heâs practically vibrating next to you, watching the exchange with glee.
âmorninggg, fushiguro,â he greets toji, voice syrupy with unrestrained glee. âany exciting news today?â
toji raises an eyebrow, shooting him a confused look. âuh, no? everythingâs pretty normal.â his eyes flick over to you, calm, almost neutral, as if he hadnât kissed you senseless just last night.
you clench your jaw. is he really going to act like this? you nearly feel like gaslighting yourself into thinking last night never happened. maybe you just dreamed it, right?
tojiâs gaze flicks away from you, unperturbed, as he moves over to get his things ready for the dayâs recording. and thatâs when gojo leans over and mutters under his breath, âyou sure you donât want to just⌠remind him?â
âi hate you,â you mutter back, trying not to smile, knowing that heâs secretly rooting for you to fall flat on your face with this whole ordeal.
âi live for your misery, my friend,â he replies with a wink.
meanwhile, toji was absolutely in another dimension of romcom chaos himself, feeling like some kind of high school kid who just had his first crush. he woke up grinning, actually giggling as he got dressed.Â
giggling. when was the last time he did that?Â
he nearly skipped out the door, and on his drive to work, he found himself humming, humming, to his car stereo like some lovestruck fool. and he didnât stop there. oh no.Â
by the time he reached gojo-sonic, heâd already run through a few extra vocal warm-ups in the car â something he never did this early. he cleared his throat and ran through his usual lines twice, even testing his pitch a bit. no, not because he wanted to be extra smooth today, of course not. he was doing it for the⌠for the paycheck.Â
definitely.
but as soon as he walked into the studio, and he saw you standing there beside gojo, looking all kinds of pretty and polished⌠he practically heard violins. except no, it wasnât violins.Â
it was, somehow, worse.
his mind cued up dancing queen.
âno. nope. nope.â he muttered under his breath, trying to swat the ridiculous soundtrack out of his mind. but it wouldnât stop.Â
âdancing queen, feel the beat from the tambourine, oh, yeahâŚ.â
why, in the name of all things sacred, was his brain doing this to him? he was toji fushiguro, not some idiot falling over his own feet for a girl at work. he gave himself a good shake, squared his shoulders, and tried to keep his composure. yet every time he caught your eye, his chest did a little flip â and dammit if he didnât want to just pick you up and give you another kiss right then and there.
âmorning,â he forced out, nodding as casually as he could.
and there you were, gaping back with that hint of nervousness, looking like you might combust from just a regular âgood morning.âÂ
god, it was almost cute enough to make him actually laugh out loud.
âsheâs just a colleague,â he reminded himself, over and over again, as he worked to keep the grin off his face. âa colleague. not some romcom lead you just made out with in front of her apartment.â
yet the way dancing queen kept droning in his head, as if mocking his every move? toji was seriously questioning whether heâd woken up in some kind of alternate reality.
and he just knew gojo was watching the whole thing with a smug look, likely dying to crack a joke, or worse, belt out dancing queen if he somehow figured out what was in tojiâs head.Â
and knowing gojo? he probably already had.
the studio door clicked shut as gojo swept out with an exaggerated bow, holding up his finger in a silent âone minuteâ before he launched into his call with suguru in a voice loud enough to be heard two floors down. gojo was probably already going on about the âincredible chemistryâ between his favorite team members, or whatever nonsense heâd decided on for today.Â
and with him out of the room, it was just you and toji.Â
alone.Â
in silence.
you shifted on your feet, eyes darting everywhere except directly at him, yet somehow landing right back on him. it was like your brain had a toji magnet switched on, and no matter how hard you tried to look elsewhere, you found yourself glancing back at him.
finally, the quiet got so charged that you both ended up blurting out at the exact same time â
âare you single?â
you both froze, then looked at each other, wide-eyed, like you couldnât believe youâd just asked that out loud.
âuh,â toji coughed, scratching the back of his neck. âwell. yeah, i am. single, that is.
âoh.â you tried to act cool, but it came out as a slightly breathless squeak. âgood to know.â
âand you?â he asked, voice low, almost cautious, as if bracing himself for an answer he wasnât sure he wanted to hear.
âalso single,â you admitted, feeling your cheeks warm under his gaze. âwhich⌠is also good to know.â
there was a beat of quiet where you both just kind of looked at each other, a half-smile creeping onto his face as you kept shifting on your feet, practically melting under the intensity of his gaze.
âsoâŚâ you cleared your throat, your hands fidgeting a little as you gathered the nerve to ask the next thing. âdidnât know you had a kid.â
âoh, yeah.â toji chuckled, a hint of fondness lighting up his expression as he thought of his son. âheâs my kid, alright. handful and a half, that one.â
âheâs adorable.â you smiled, thinking back to the mini toji who had totally stolen your heart. âhow old is he?â
âeight.â tojiâs voice softened, a rare warmth in his tone that youâd never heard before. âhe, uh⌠he means a lot to me. not that iâd ever tell him that, though. donât want him thinking heâs got me wrapped around his little finger or anything.â
you laughed, picturing the little boy with his big grin and fearless energy. âsomething tells me he already knows.â
âyeah, probably.â toji laughed too, and for a moment, there was an ease between you, a shared warmth that made the whole moment feel so⌠natural.
âso⌠um, are you, like⌠a single dad?â you asked, careful with your words, not wanting to pry too deeply.
âyeah.â his answer was simple, but there was a weight to it. âjust me and the kid. been that way for a while.â
âthatâsâŚâ you bit your lip, not sure what to say without sounding weirdly sentimental. âthatâs admirable. megumiâs lucky to have you.
âi donât know about all that,â he muttered, clearly uncomfortable with the praise but unable to hide a small smile. âjust doing what i can, you know?â
âstill,â you said, feeling a swell of admiration you hadnât expected. âitâs impressive. and honestly⌠seeing you with him yesterday? it was⌠kinda heartwarming.â
toji looked at you, eyes softening in a way that made your heart stutter.Â
âthanks,â he murmured, his voice almost a whisper. âmeans a lot, hearing that.â
the two of you stood there, closer than you realized, in this weird bubble where everything felt warm and intense and perfect. just as you felt that strange magnetic pull drawing you closer, like maybe youâd just close the gap and â
the studio door banged open.
âdonât stop on my account!â gojo sing-songed, practically sashaying back into the room, a smirk plastered across his face.
you both leaped back, clearing your throats and suddenly finding the walls, the floor, anything else in the room utterly fascinating.
âalright, lovebirds, letâs get this recording started, shall we?â gojo grinned, his eyes sparkling with mischief as he looked between the two of you, not even pretending he hadnât just caught a whole moment.
toji settled into the recording booth, leaning back in the chair with the script in hand, his voice dipping to that low, gravelly tone that made every line sound like an invitation.
âso,â he began, speaking as the dragon king to the main character in the script, his words practically dripping with intensity, âyou think you can resist me? i see right through you⌠even the bravest warriors have trembled at my touch.â
your breath caught as he delivered the line, eyes wide as you watched him through the glass.Â
you couldnât help it â his character was practically staring into your soul, voice thick and slow, practically wrapping around each word.
âdo you know what happens to those who challenge me?â toji continued, his eyes narrowing as he held the script in one hand, his gaze piercing. âthey are forced to surrender⌠one way or another.â
outside the booth, you practically felt yourself melting, feeling a flush creep up your cheeks as you fidgeted with the edge of your shirt.Â
tojiâs voice, his delivery â it was all too much. how was it possible for him to sound that⌠that intense? it was like he was actually speaking to you.
âah, beautiful.â gojo, standing beside you, broke in with a theatrical sigh. âour dragon king sounds magnificent, doesnât he? i could practically faint!â
you shot him a quick glare, barely masking a smirk. âkeep it down, gojo. heâs in the middle of it.â
âoh, iâm just here to appreciate the artistry,â gojo whispered back, feigning innocence as he leaned in to watch, hands clasped together dramatically.
âthe choice is yours,â toji went on, his voice softer now, laced with something tender that made it impossible to look away. âjoin me⌠or keep pretending this ââ he emphasized the word, letting it linger â â isnât exactly what youâve been wanting.â
you swallowed hard, feeling the weight of his gaze even through the glass.Â
was he delivering that line as the dragon king or as⌠well, toji?
but then â
âohhhh!â gojo chimed in loudly, clutching his chest as if heâd been struck by an arrow. âthe passion! the romance! our heroâs heart is pounding!â
toji paused, rolling his eyes as he looked at gojo through the glass. âyou really gonna keep interrupting, gojo?â
âoh, donât mind me,â gojo said, waving a hand. âiâm simply enjoying the magic in the air! please, carry on. do go on.â he pretended to dab at his eyes. âso moving.â
toji gave a small sigh but threw you a barely-there smile before settling back into character.
âand when you finally stop runningâŚâ his voice softened, a quiet urgency threading through it.Â
âiâll be here, waiting⌠because you belong to me, whether you admit it or not.â
your heart skipped a beat, and you found yourself leaning in, hanging onto every word, caught up in the sheer pull of his voice.Â
you didnât know if it was his talent as a voice actor, the lines he was reading, or him, but every word was drawing you in deeper, bit by bit.
âah, what is it like to be so passionately claimed by a dragon king? how riveting!â gojo murmured dramatically, as if providing a play-by-play to an audience. âsheâs helpless, entranced! they both know sheâs falling!â
toji cast a pointed look at gojo, barely concealing a smirk. âyou done yet, gojo?â
gojo merely grinned, shrugging. âhey, iâm just here to make sure the romance shines through. and oh, donât worry â itâs definitely shining.â
toji rolled his eyes but kept going, lowering his voice to a rumbling murmur. âif you donât know where your heart lies, then iâll show you.âÂ
he paused, his words lingering in the air like a promise, like he was speaking directly to you.
by now, the studio felt suffused with tension, thick enough to cut with a knife. it didnât help that every time gojo piped in with another comment, it only made you feel more painfully aware of every detail: the way tojiâs gaze kept flickering your way, the way your own pulse raced faster with each line he spoke.
âthe truth is right in front of you,â toji continued, his voice dropping low, rough, something smoldering behind each word. âall you have to do is reach out⌠and claim it.â
âgorgeous! breathtaking!â gojo burst out, clapping his hands loudly. âi can practically see the sparks flying! ah, young love!â
toji finally broke character, raising a brow at gojo with a look of pure exasperation. âyou gonna let me finish or not?â
gojo waved a hand. âfine, fine. but for real â if you two donât kiss after this, i might have to stage a re-shoot.â
both you and toji threw your hands up simultaneously, voices raised in exasperation.Â
âgojo, would you please stop interrupting!â
âyeah, seriously, man,â toji added, shaking his head as he glanced over at you with a shared look of pure frustration.
âokay, okay! sheesh!â gojo shrieked, actually shrieked, as he staggered back in mock terror, clutching his chest like heâd been mortally wounded. âall i wanted was to witness some workplace romance! is that so wrong?â
âyes, gojo, very wrong,â you shot back, rubbing your temples. âthis is literally supposed to be professional â you should know that.â
toji snorted, crossing his arms as he smirked at gojo. âfor once, i agree. youâve got all the dramatic flair of a middle-schooler.â
âexcuse me,â gojo replied, flipping an imaginary hair strand over his shoulder. âiâll have you know my artistic eye is very advanced.â he let out a huff, but from the grin on his face, you could tell he was thoroughly enjoying himself.
you shook your head, exasperated. âlook, can we just get this recording done without any more ââ
âinterruptions,â toji finished for you, raising a brow as he glanced over at gojo.
âfine, fine!â gojo finally backed off, dramatically sliding into a chair in the corner, arms folded in mock offense. âiâll be silent as a stone. a beautiful, thoughtful stone.â
you exchanged another look with toji, both of you sighing in unison.Â
something told you both that it was going to be a very long day, especially with gojoâs creative directionâŚ
toji, after finishing a solid block of recording, had ended up chatting with the sound techs, leaving you flipping through your phone while you waited.Â
gojo, in his usual meddling fashion, suddenly brightened up and declared, âoh! why donât you have a little chat with suguru? i told him you were here. he insisted on saying hello!â
you raised an eyebrow. âuh, sure?â
gojo sent you a link to join the video call, and soon suguruâs face popped up on the screen. his calm expression softened slightly when he saw you. âwell, hello there. gojo wasnât exaggerating when he said he had a new âstarâ at the studio.â
you laughed, feeling a bit flustered. âthanks, geto! i hear youâre a partner at a... famous wine company?â
suguru gave a modest shrug. âyeah, itâs called persephone. itâs a small project that grew bigger than i expected. i handle a lot of the sourcing and marketing â keeps me away from here most of the time.â
âpersephone? iâve heard great things about it!â you said, genuinely impressed. âthe way gojo talks about it, it sounds like a pretty big deal.â
he chuckled, glancing to the side as if recalling memories. âi started it with a... friend, actually. she was passionate about wine and had a vision that i couldnât help but support. i guess i have a soft spot for her, and i... well, care about her a lot.â
you felt your heart warm a little at his sincerity, and the slight hesitation when he spoke of his partner. âit sounds like you two have something special going on,â you said, offering a supportive smile. âiâm sure she appreciates everything you do, especially with how involved you are. and honestly? best of luck. that kind of partnership sounds really meaningful.â
suguru gave a small nod, a faint, appreciative smile on his face.Â
âthank you. i think sheâd like you. maybe one day, if you ever make it out here for one of gojoâs wild wine-tasting parties, we can all meet up.â
âiâd love that!â you replied, already imagining how intriguing that partnership might be. and as you finished up the conversation, it struck you that youâd gotten a glimpse of a different side of suguru â one he clearly didnât reveal often.
toji hadnât meant to get distracted, but the second he saw you on a video call with suguru, laughing over whatever he was saying, he couldnât help it. heâd been halfway listening to the sound tech drone on about waveform patterns, but all of that faded when he caught sight of you smiling on-screen.Â
who exactly were you talking to like that? why did you look so happy?
the tech was still talking beside him, but tojiâs focus was elsewhere.Â
suguru.Â
that damn calm, collected face of his.Â
the same suguru who heâd seen only sparingly around the company, mostly through gojoâs random updates, but who was still one of the few people gojo actually respected.
toji squinted, his jaw tightening as he took a few steps toward you and pretended it was a casual stroll.
why was he doing this? it wasnât like he had any claim on you, right?Â
sure, there was that one kiss â or, well, those two kisses, actually.Â
but still.Â
he was a grown man, not some jealous kid. yet here he was, feeling like he had to size up suguru over a damn screen.
before he even realized it, toji had closed the distance. without asking, he leaned over your shoulder, practically shoving his face into the camera view as he met suguruâs face.
âhey, suguru,â he drawled, and the way his voice came out a little gruff didnât escape him. âdidnât know you were interrupting a busy studio day here.â
you blinked, wide-eyed at his sudden closeness, but toji kept his eyes on suguru, ignoring your flustered reaction. suguru looked almost amused, raising an eyebrow at tojiâs unannounced intrusion.
âtoji. iâm just saying hi to the new talent here,â suguru replied with a smooth smile, clearly unfazed. âiâm sure you wouldnât mind me meeting one of satoruâs top finds.â
âtop find?â toji scoffed, feeling a weird pang at the words. âiâm the one doing all the work here.â
you shot him a look, somewhere between surprised and amused. âtoji ââ
but he just grunted and kept going, ignoring your attempt to intervene. âso, suguru, been busy with all that wine business, huh?â he went on, as if suguruâs whole life story had suddenly become his priority.
âpretty much,â suguru replied, a slight smirk in his tone. âitâs been keeping me busy, and i have aâŚclose partner who keeps me grounded. speaking of which,â he turned his gaze to you with an amused smile, âshe was the one who started persephone. iâm really just there to support her vision.â
âsounds convenient,â toji muttered, but suguru just chuckled.
you nudged him with your elbow, giving him a warning look. âtoji, come on,â you whispered, as if he was the one being out of line here.
he let out a low sigh, then pulled back slightly, looking at you as if heâd just remembered himself. âwhat? âm just makinâ sure youâre not getting dragged into any fancy wine scams or whatever.â
you rolled your eyes but couldnât hide a smile. âgetoâs company is doing fine, toji. itâs called persephone.â
toji folded his arms and gave a dismissive shrug. âwell, just saying. i know people.âÂ
the whole room seemed to go a bit quieter, and toji cleared his throat, looking away from suguru's patient amusement.
ânice meeting you, toji,â suguru added, with a slight tilt of his head. âtake care of our new âtop findâ there, alright?â
toji clenched his jaw a little at the words, then nodded, pretending he wasnât glaring at the camera. âyeah, yeah. weâre all set here.â
as the call ended, you turned to him, eyebrows raised, clearly wanting an explanation. âwhat was that about?â
toji scratched the back of his neck, trying to look casual. âjust, yâknowâŚmaking sure you werenât getting yourself in with shady people.â
âoh? like, you?â
he let out a bark of laughter, realizing heâd backed himself into a corner. âhey, iâm not shady â iâm just thorough.â
you raised an eyebrow. âthorough? right, thatâs the word youâre going with?â
âyeah. and what â you mad at me for caring?â
at that, you went quiet, a faint blush touching your cheeks.Â
and toji? well, he could only think of those two kisses again, and how stupidly close heâd just gotten to the camera just to⌠what? size up suguru?Â
he mentally groaned. what was wrong with him?
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âËâšăso this is what it means to be in love | gojo satoru
wc:Â 8.9k
summary:Â gojo finds out what it really means to be in love.Â
contains: f!reader in mind, friends to lovers (prev. slowburn), suggestive scenes, might be mature/mildly explicit? (i only mention âbuttâ once thoughâŚ), âbeing in loveâ as a journey, almost like a falls in love first (you) vs. falls in love harder (gojo), they fight, they swear, character death/s mentioned, shibuya onwards spoilers, lots and lots and lots of love
a/n: this is better read after the other parts in the collection but can work as a stand alone too!, thereâs a jump between this and tell me about love (show me how) so gojo would have developed a lot in the relationship since then!Â
collection masterlist: conversations on love +02 (extra). look my way, you're what i crave <- you are here + (extended scene) too good to be mine -> 3.5a. this feeling inside of meâ
MINORS PLEASE DO NOT INTERACT.
this is a re-upload! (because i accidentally deleted the original one!)
Gojo catches onto love slowly.
He takes the hand you leave open just for him, and closes the space between your palms, reducing infinity.Â
Maybe heâs felt it all this time without knowing; after all, love looks a lot less profound as friends in your early 20âs.Â
But being in itâbeing in love? Thatâs uncharted territory.Â
Gojoâs been to a lot of places, has travelled back and forth from point-to-point endlessly. Heâs survived battles, a war, near-death, and cursed spirits reincarnate; heâs got eyesâtwo bright blue and an extra four hidden, ones that see beyond human comprehension. Unearthing this simple truth shouldnât shake him, shouldnât even faze him. If anything, he should have seen it comingâ
Except, he doesnât.Â
It sneaks up on him, bit by bit, until he finds that being in love means getting to experience you all over again, just differently.
.
.
.
It starts with the little things.Â
Gojo has known you for so long (a decade and a few years more), but has only recently begun to notice everything: how your baby hairs stick out in the humidity of summer, the way you purse your lips in thought before finally deciding on a drink to order. You play with your fingernails subconsciously, out of habit, the soft taps on your nail beds an accompaniment of anxious conversations youâve had since you were 23.Â
He knows you always blink twice before focusing on him, and itâs a mystery whether this is a recent development or something heâs just never noticed, but if youâre trying to enchant him by the flutter of your eyelashes, he wants to let you know that itâs workingâexcept, he knows that you arenât, because youâre just like that: a daydream without even trying.Â
These arenât new things; heâs sure heâs probably encountered them all before, but lately theyâve evolved into cute things, and thereâs no hiding the slight curve of his lips every time he spots them.Â
.
The sun is beaming brighter this summer, the ocean a faraway blur from the beach towel you set up under the shade. Going to the beach is never your go-to when you think of an extremely hot afternoon, but Yuujiâs been eyeing a weekend getaway since sorcerer workâs lessened significantly.Â
âItâs a good effort,â Gojo convinces you, âto get everyone together again.â
And it isâyou see it now: Yuuji and Megumi preparing to fling Yuuta into the water while Nobara and Maki race along the shoreline. Toge stays close to Panda but he watches fondly, eyes crinkling every now and then, happy.Â
When you blink, the image of them softensâa captured memory in the heat haze.Â
The only older ones here are you and Gojo; Shokoâs always disliked the stickiness of sunblock on her skin, and Ijichiâs new position has made him constantly busy. Somewhere in the distance, you can maybe envision Nanami. He wouldnât come if you or Gojo asked, but if it were Yuujiâ
You rub at your eye, resting your chin on your hand as you will your tear ducts to please, donât cry.Â
Yuuji's been smiling a lot more lately, an observation you note from the way his ears are perked up every time you look his way. Itâll never be the same as it used to be but itâs relieving to know that he can exist living as himself now. Just Yuuji.Â
You hug your knees tighter to your chest, wrapping your arms around it. Your place under the coconut tree provides ample enough shade but your back still burns from Gojo haphazardly slathering sunscreen on it after hearing an ice cream stand from miles away.Â
The mind is a weird place to be at times like thisâsplit into bittersweet reminiscing and telling yourself to just take this moment and breathe, to live in it. You think about Megumi, and how you hurt for him, always will, for all that heâs lost despite every attempt to avoid it.
You should have been there for Tsumiki, you could have been there for both of them.Â
Your guilt never leaves you even on days that shine as vividly as this, but perhaps thatâs the silver liningâthat theyâre still with you, always. You can carry pieces of them to these places, and scatter them to the wind, to the sand, to the sea, and maybe to the ice cream stand Gojoâs waiting in line of, surrounded entirely by kids. They all rise to half his size, but if you squint, you think the bounce in his step makes him blend right in.Â
A chuckle escapes you.Â
You could sort through your memories and land on one where he looks just like thisâfreakishly large limbs towering over a tiny, excited Tsumiki. Back then, an ice cream stop after school consisted of your pseudo-family of four, with Megumi on your hand and Tsumiki on his leg, both gripping tightly to combat a chilly 10°C.
Things are different now, evidently. Megumiâs outgrown it, and Tsumiki is no longer here. But Gojo has stayed the same, and itâs comforting to know that he will continue to be this Satoru, your Satoru, even when some things are gone.Â
You donât realize youâve spaced out until he waves the ice cream cone while walking towards you. Â
Gojo is a sight in trunks the color of his eyes, with seahorses and starfishes in an alternating pattern of peachy-pink against cerulean blue.Â
You could have sworn you asked for your own cone, but he plops down beside you holding only one. For the both of you. The side-eye you give him is almost criminal, if not deadly, but your lips twitch from the smile youâre hiding (terribly).Â
He raises an eyebrow and you break character, shaking your head while laughing.Â
âDid you eat the other one on the way here?â you tease, craning your neck to lick at the bottom scoop (vanilla-strawberry-vanilla, Gojoâs signature order).Â
Your tongue lands dangerously close to his fingers, and he feels it, but his eyes only land on youâyour lips, how they part for your tongue to glide smoothly on hisâboth of yourâdessert. You look every bit of an angel in the soft, pale hues of your bikini, but Gojoâs thoughts are anything but saintly.Â
He blushes furiously, the tips of his ears and nose bright red as he turns away from you quickly.Â
âIâm fulfilling your dream of sharing an ice cream cone with me.â he tilts his chin up, proud, smirking slightly. He jokes about it knowing full well that this is his dream come true, just by the look of you.Â
You stay quiet, rolling your eyes but never meanly, no. You only ever do it fondlyâhe knows, being on the receiving end of it one too many times.Â
The beach towel scrunches when you scoot closer, looping your arm around his as you both rest your elbows on your knees. Gojo holds the cone between you two, tipping it towards you when itâs your turn to lick.Â
He shouldnât stare, shouldnât hyperfixate, but itâs so cute how you get the tiniest bit of ice cream on the tip of your noseâas if it belongs there, soft and sweet just like the rest of you.Â
You look up to find Gojo gazing at you, eyes glimmering like sunlight on the ocean, and a tiny smile that only widens when he realizes youâve caught him red-handed. Your eyes narrow suspiciously, scrunching your nose in an effort to stop yourself from grinning.Â
When Gojo looks at you this way, as if you are his favorite place rediscovered, your heart thumps furiously against your ribcage.Â
âWhatâŚâ you drawl, your smile impossible to hide in the lilt of your voice.Â
Gojo thinks he can count every eyelash, every speck of sand dotting your face, and stil not be bored of you. He canât stop beaming.Â
Is this what it means to be in love with you?Â
âNothing.â he replies, almost giggling, a little bashful but with every inch of sincerity. You know that smile, the only one that holds every ounce of Satoru. Gojo smiles big and wide to everyone else, but this small one you know, is reserved just for you.Â
He leans in, lips coming closer to brush against the tip of your nose. Your eyes fall shut, instinctively, and the pink dot is wiped clean, a hint of strawberry dancing on his palate. Heâs done this more times than he can count, has gotten this near to know that close will never be close enough, but you still jolt a bitâPDA has never been your thing.Â
When he pulls away, you continue to stare at each other, locked in a gaze until the ice cream begins to drip down his fingers and onto the beach towel. It misses his trunks by a hair and you both laugh at how he belatedly tries to escape it even though itâs already there.Â
Itâs indescribable, this moment, seeing you in slow motion, laughing as bright as the sunâthe sweetest sound heâs ever heard. It takes every bit of him to look away so he can wipe his hands clean from the dripping dessert.
You hand him a packet of wipes and beckon him to sit in front of you after. Squeezed onto the palm of your hand is a copious amount of sunscreen you plan to slather all over him. A touch-up, if you will.Â
Gojo has sensitive skin, pale as bond paper and burns just as quickly. The high points of his face are already reddening, warm to the touch when you dab at them with sunscreen.Â
Youâre so near, so close, sitting cross-legged in front of him with your knees touching his. The tip of your tongue sticks out just slightly as you focus on his skin.Â
Even though he knows, he still wonders what your lips would taste like, SPF chapstick and crumbly bits from the wafer cone. He wonders what your eyelashes would feel like, fluttering over his own.Â
The light casts a halo around you and he thinks itâs fitting for all that you do. You pamper him like this, slather love all over his chest and back, massage it in so it dissolves into himâand he feels it so deep that he tastes it.
How can your love be so sweet? He thinks, sighing as your fingers work sunscreen up his neck from his collarbone. You always apply his skincare like this: upwards, gentlyââno tugging, please!ââsomething about keeping his baby face even when heâs old.Â
âYou should join them,â you mumble, rubbing more product onto the nape of his neck. Youâre leaning over his shoulder, neck brushed against his cheek.Â
Gojo hums, watching everyone from a distance. Itâs been a while since heâs had a day like this.Â
âBut maybe after 30 minutes, so the sunblock doesnât wash off. Youâre already burning.â you note, coming back to sit.Â
Of course, heâs already burning. How can he not when the sun is right in front of him?Â
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You join everyone for a game of beach volleyball in the sunset of the afternoon. Youâre transported back to high school, the last time you did thisâyou and Satoru against Shoko and Suguru, with Haibara keeping score.Â
From the way Gojoâs eyes are glossed over, you can tell heâs thinking about it too, the memory having seared itself into your brains forever, it seems.Â
Being paired together should feel familiarâthe same, but it doesnâtâisnât, because Gojo canât concentrate, sneaking glances to notice all the little things about you that he never used to. Your skin shines from the combination of sweat and sunscreen, and when you crash into him itâs both sticky and slippery. He should really ask for a time-out before you blind him completely.Â
You look unfairly good in your bikini, too good he can barely hear you calling for him; between the ocean and his blood rushing, any other sound is drowned out into nothing.Â
Maki and Yuuji absolutely demolish the both of you, reaching 15 first in the final set. Gojo blames the loss on you of course, even though heâs missed every pass youâve sent his way and netted 60% of his spikes.Â
And maybe it technically is your faultâyou and your (very distracting) little things. But itâs entirely on him that heâs fallen for it, fallen for you as much as this.Â
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Gojo thinks of love differently when he sees a picture of himself and all it does is remind him of you.
Thereâs a photo tucked safely in his wallet (saved and set as his homescreen too). Shoko snorts when she walks in on him printing it, all six-foot-three of him hunched over the small inkjet printer in the faculty room.Â
âItâs all digital now, Satoru,â she scoffs, taking a puff on her cigarette.Â
Gojo doesnât say anything even though he knows itâs true, too focused on watching the printer push out the two-by-three inch image heâs about to cut into.Â
Print photos arenât as important anymore when cloud storage spaces are just asâif not moreâaccessible, but Gojo is admittedly sentimental despite every front he puts up to hide it.Â
Heâs kept every single gift youâve given him and camouflaged it as decoration in his office, and the family drawing 10-year-old Tsumiki made is still folded between the pages of a self-help book Yaga had given him when he first decided to teach.Â
When every moment is experienced so vividly, seen through a muddle of infinite energies, there are those he wishes could stay stillâones that take up space to remind him: âthis is real, it happened, and here is proof that it didâ.Â
He already has one of all of you, fresh-faced and barely pushing the peaks of youth at 16. A tangle of arms wrapped around each otherâone of his gripping tightly on Suguru, and the other hanging loosely over you. Utahime is crouched in front, holding the hand youâve placed on her shoulder while pulling Shoko into a semi-squish-semi-hug (because out of the four of you, Shoko is her favoriteâcompletely valid; if given the choice, sheâd be your favorite too). Nanami and Haibara stay close to Suguru, squatting low to balance the photo, and Haibara is smiling, the ever cheery grin Suguru loves to dote on, while Nanami is Nanamiâsharp features and a serious gaze that you all know heâll grow into someday, handsome with age.Â
For the longest time, Gojo has kept that photo hidden, locked away in the drawer of his bedside table as if keeping it there means the memory will stay guarded foreverâuntouched, unspoiled, unruined.Â
It would have stayed there if you didnât stumble upon it while looking for his painkillers during another one of his skull-crushing migraines.Â
You approach him with the image hesitantly, eyes damp and glossy. Years have faded the colors ever so slightly, but the corners remain crisp from being stowed away neatly. You say sorry, that you shouldnât have looked through his things, but you remember the moment it was taken so fondly: a visit to the Kyoto campus on a one-day break to train with other students.Â
Gojo has many theories about time and the multitude of spaces it takesâlike how a person can exist at different points in time, disparate at each instance, and still take up the same big chunk of space. The opposite can be true too, that someone can live finitely (just once) and occupy spaces in every place you look: the face of a passerby down the road, a sign at the corner of the street, or even a photograph that immortalizes people you once knew.Â
He only shares when you ask, aware that he tends to be a bit of a nerd about it whenever itâs brought up, but you don't mind. You like listening to it all, no matter how insightful or confusing they are for you to make senseâa version of him not many get to witness. His explanations are comprehensible for the most part, exceptâ
When Gojo tells you that heâs kept the image in his drawer, hidden, because exposing it to the space-time that exists now will erase every reminder that it ever happened, you hug him tightly.Â
Your sniffles are heard from the way his head is tucked into the crook of your neck, your fingers gripping strands of his hair in empathy.Â
He considers your near-tears as a sign that the memory is long gone, decayed into the brittling tragedy of reality. But you smile, the corners of your lips bittersweet as you express disbelief that heâs kept it all this time.Â
You tell him delicately that some precious things are meant to be celebrated, put out to be rememberedâto be experienced.Â
And it becomes clearer to him then, by the look in your eyes and remembrance soft-spoken, that what good is a photo unseen?Â
What good is a love unwitnessed?
When you gift him a frame a year after finding the photo, he hangs it by the wall next to his office door. The image is painful to look at, always has been (even when it was hidden in his drawer)âduring Suguruâs defection, and death anniversaries especially.Â
The recent one for Nanami was heavy; the first time heâs ever been able to process grief fully.Â
Gojo can argue that it grows more difficult every time he catches a glimpse of it from his desk, but you have a way of honoring pain that doesnât make it sting as badâthat turns it into a reminder of a love that was once there, of feelings that hurt as evidence that someone cared.Â
Now, he wants another photo printed, one of just the two of you. Not because it hurts, but because he wants this precious thing to be remembered and seenâfor this love to be witnessed too.Â
Itâs self-timered, snapped under the shade of a cherry blossom tree in full bloom. The picture is far from perfect: your eyes bright and mouth open mid-fear of his phone falling off the bridge railing.Â
You may look a teensy bit funny, but Gojo will always find it cute. Anyone can see it, at how he looks at you in that momentâlike you are every bit worthy of the distance travelled and seasons waited. He gazes at you fondly, eyes holding clear skies and pink lips curling into a small smile.Â
Itâs cheesy, but if you ask him what he thinks about this yearâs flowers, heâll tell you none of them (not even any of them combined) could compare to you. The cherry blossoms could be gone and heâd still see them everywhere (in the softness of your lips, the fullness of your cheeks, the radiance you emit when you are truly, solely content and happy).Â
He remembers that afternoon well: the spring breeze that jolts his phone sideways, his hand resting on your lower back, unseen in the image. Thereâs no real reason for visiting the blossoms on this day of all days, but Gojo doesnât believe in coincidences, and heâs counted down exactly to a year since you both had your first kiss.
Itâs so silly, because heâs never thought of things like this before. He knows you probably donât think much of it either considering that neither of you have made anything official yet since.Â
And he feels a little stupid for that, honestly.Â
You have a drawer of his clothes for the nights he stays over (more often than not), and even though you go on these little trips that are so obviously dates, you both still just tell everyone youâre âhanging outâ.
Heâs not fooling anyone here, not when he looks at you then with the feeling of his chest expanding, stretching to accommodate the overflows of his affection since learning the ways to love youâtenderness caught in little pixels of eternity. Â
When Gojo goes through all 179 photos from that afternoon, he filters out the ones to delete and picks this one out especiallyâfavorites and resizes it to fit his home screen and his wallet too.Â
Thereâs something about the look on his face that reminds him of every time heâs caught the same one on you.Â
He slides the photo into the little sleeve behind his credit card, catching himself smilingâthis must be because of you, he thinks, and the bits and pieces of yourself that have somehow become part of him slowly, sneaking into him unknowingly.
If this is what it means to be in love, with you, then heâs fucked.Â
Donât you know that heâs insatiable? These traces of you will only make him want the whole of you.Â
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You find the photo while he rushes to the restaurant restroom. On âhang outâs like this, you insist on splitting the bill, but Gojo has always been stubborn and youâve learned that you can never argue.Â
He hands you his wallet to pay with his card, and when you slide it out, the photo falls. Itâs face down on the floor when you pick it up, fully expecting it to be a photocard of some idol you know Gojo follows.Â
But it isnât, and your smile widens.Â
When Gojo comes back, youâre looking up at him affectionately, biting your lips as if to stop yourself from speakingâthe same way he always does.Â
Itâs funny because, slotted between your two fingers is the photo heâs kind of flustered you found, but he has no time to be embarrassed when he sees a little bit of himself in the way youâre staring at him right now.
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âSo, Yuuji asked if we were together.âÂ
You quirk an eyebrow, looking up at Gojo from the pile of laundry youâve begun folding on your bed. He emerges from the bathroom, ruffling his hair with a towel.Â
Over the past year, Gojo has spent his weekends off with you, sleeping over and traipsing around your room in his pajama set as if heâs lived here just as long as you.Â
You snort as you fold, amused that this is even a question to begin with. Yuujiâs always been known for being exceptionally dense, but you didnât think it was this bad. Gojo was especially touchy with you during that beach trip, and youâre sure Megumi and Nobara have caught up to let him know by now, somehow.Â
âWhat made him ask?âÂ
âI think he wants to take you away.â Gojo teases, wiggling his eyebrows as he throws the towel on the chair across your vanity.Â
You roll your eyes, still sweetly, indulging him, âSure.âÂ
Itâs now a running joke that Gojoâs threatened about Yuuji stealing you; youâve always had a soft spot for bright eyes and even brighter souls and Yuuji is as close to that as anyone can get.
Itâs not like that though, it could never be; Yuuji is just like your Megumiâthe two boys you want to protect and care for in hopes of treating them better than their lives have ever.Â
Gojo feels the same, you know, otherwise he wouldnât have guided them as much as he has (despite his... questionable ways). Still, your hands have always been gentler, kinderâand though shorter, have always outstretched much farther than his.Â
You have a way of inching yourself into peopleâs lives that just fits. Heâs experienced it first-hand, canât even dare to imagine what his life would be like if you didnât.Â
He walks across the room to you, bed dipping as he steadies a knee before draping his entire body over your shoulders.Â
Now that you think about it, it makes sense that Yuujiâs confused, because Gojo has always been extremely touchy to everyone, just never when the feelings mattered, with you. Kiss him once, though, and it snowballs into an avalanche of firsts. And what heâs about to do right now, he thinks, might just trigger another one to form all together.Â
âAs if Iâd let him.â he mumbles right by your ear, chin tucked by the crook of your neck. It tickles when he speaks, his nose poking at your cheeks.Â
âWho put you in charge?â you scoff jokingly, unfazed.Â
He moves away from you in disbelief, mouth open as he stares at you mindlessly folding.
To be fair, he canât fault you. You arenât technically official even though you have kind-of-been for a little over a year. Thereâs no particular reason, just that you havenât talked about itâpart because you wanted him to approach it whenever he was ready, and also, because it just never seemed like a priority.
You laugh as he stares at you, stunned into silence, the pout on his face borrowed from all the versions of yours.Â
Thereâs no point of contention because youâve only ever loved Gojo since you were 17.Â
âKidding,â you kiss his cheek as an apology.Â
âDonât even joke about that.â he huffs, youâre starting to take after him a little too much.
âYouâre mine.â he murmurs after, arms wrapped around your waist and legs stretched out wide to encase you.Â
He says it as if it is the simplest truth.Â
Your heartbeat quickens, too loud and pounding; this is the first time youâve ever heard this from him, and a part of you thinks this is just another one of those flirty side-comments he makes on a whim.
âYou tell him that?â you hope he canât hear your voice shake as he nuzzles your neck, your fingers trembling on the pair of socks you have yet to roll.Â
He hums, hugging you tighter. He waits for you to finish folding before letting you lean against him, offering his fingers for you to fiddle with. Theyâre cold, long and slender, veiny just by a bit, and he always gives them to you like theyâre yours, you like to think.Â
Thereâs an inhale, a breath of hesitation, before he exhales. Â
âSomething like it.âÂ
You donât say anything, only nod, and itâs nerve-wracking. Heâs so nervous even though he knows he doesnât have to be because itâs just you. And thereâs no need to doubt what youâre feeling. Butâ
âYou are though,â he pauses, âright?âÂ
He has to be sure. This is a testament to you more than himself that heâs learned to ask instead of bulldozing you like he does with everyone else. Who else will he pick that up from but you?Â
Thereâs hesitation you hear that you think shouldnât be there anymore; the fact that youâve given so much of yourself to this man and he still thinks youâre unsureâ
ââCause Iâm yours.â he speaks, clearly, definitively, before you can even answer. And you knowâyouâve known ever since that party years ago. A simple admittance: âIâm takenâ.Â
You turn around to face him, eyes shimmering.Â
Can he see? Youâre meant for him only.Â
All youâve ever wanted was to love him; everything else heâs done up until this point is already more than you could ever imagine. The labels can only do so much to capture the gravity of what you are to one another: years of history unpacked into a mishmash of feelings overlappingâitâs a lot.
You sit cross legged in front of him, your knees touching his. Heâs biting his lips again, an anxious habit you want to kiss away.Â
Gojo has proven far too much of himself already that heâs serious with youâyour kind-of-confession, that confrontation, and the days after, all the ways youâve both learned to love each other.Â
You cup his cheeks.Â
A single word cannot possibly define what he is to you.
âI mean, o-only if you want me to be.â he adds on, blue eyes darting back and forth.
Gojo runs his mouth almost all the time and youâve never heard him stutter once in his life. Except now.Â
Heâs endearing like thisâa version of him you are slowly discovering.Â
âWouldnât be here if I didnât.â you finally say, and itâs a relief.Â
He feels good, releasing a breath he didnât know he was holding. His arms pull you closer, hugging you tighter as you both smile.Â
He kisses you once, twice, maybe a million times all over, travelling across your eyelids, the center of your forehead, down to the corners of your mouth before landing a real one right on your lips.Â
Gojo always looks pretty but he looks prettiest like this, worry-free, with love in his eyes and nothing but pure happiness in the way he holds you.Â
He wonât tell you that Yuuji asked about your anniversary, not if you were together.Â
At least now he has an answer.
Gojo stares at you like he wants to say something, a thank you maybe, but he bites his lips instead. No words will ever amount to this feeling, he thinks, of his chest expanding and heart hammering. So he kisses you with all of it, trailing soft smacks of his lips down your neck, tickling. The tips of his hair are still wet from his shower, leaving droplets on your skin as he nips.Â
You laughâsprinkled in love.Â
âS-stop!â you push him away, âSatoru,â giggling, âtickles!âÂ
âWe have to consummate it now.â he whispers, grabbing you by the waist to place you on his lap, squeezing your sides while nibbling at your neck playfully.Â
You roll your eyes at his antics, âItâs notââ you laugh out loud when he pinches your hips, ââmarriage, Satoru.âÂ
Oh, if only you knew, he thinks.Â
The image youâve planted in his head is dangerous when heâs this drunk on love right now.Â
More decades, more years spent with you? In another life, or maybe even in this one, if time permits, he wouldnât mind making that come true.Â
.
Itâs crazy how much things can changeâfor all his life, heâs ruled out the possibility of love ever taking root in his ribcage.Â
Youâve managed to make it feel so easy, so good, even when he was shit-terrified not knowing how to love you like he should.Â
Now, he thinks, how could he ever miss out on love this way? A love this good, with you?Â
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For all of Gojoâs life, heâs never had to be anyone elseâalways the strongest, the only one. Heâs never had to change anything about himself, because whatâs there to improve when youâre already the best?
In a way, this is why it works with you. Youâve taken him as he is, all the good and ugly and never asked for anything more than what he can give.Â
But being this in love with youâitâs foreign. There are pieces within him shifting, all on their own without him knowing.Â
How he wants to be better, for you. To be good enough to deserve all of it, and give back more of it too.Â
Gojo doesnât realize how much love has changed him until he feels it uprooting every insecurity he never even knew existed, pulling it all up to the surface.Â
When things are going great, itâs hard to imagine them ever going the other way.Â
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âYou donât mean that.â you mumble, voice trembling.
Gojo stares at you, at your lips quivering and the fists clenched to your sides. There are tears collecting in pools by your eyes, and if thereâs anything else he hates in this world, itâs seeing you cry.Â
So why?
Why couldnât he just shut up?Â
âPlease tell me you donât mean that,â you take a step closer, gripping the edge of his jacket, âSatoru.â your voice cracks, begging.Â
Itâs an out-of-body experience when Gojo registers that heâs fucked up, and he sees himself now, birdâs-eye-view, and thinks this is the worst thing he could do to you after all youâve been through.Â
âI need some time to think,â he says, finally, the only words coming out of his mouthâbut he canât hear himself speaking.Â
He should have said sorry, taken it all back, he thinks, not make it worse by leaving.Â
He heads for the door, heart crunching under each footstep away from you.Â
Is this what being in loveâs supposed to do? Break his heart while yours is bleeding?
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Youâre too good for Gojo, in every sense of the wordâand he knows it.
You are far too kind, far too generous, far too patient with him. You give him more love than he deserves, definitely, and admittedly enough, with how he is, you have been settling for the bare minimum but thatâs on him, not on you.Â
He had no right speaking to you the way he did, hurting you with accusations born from insecurities heâs never before had to deal with.Â
He knows it.Â
Who accuses you of âmeddlingâ as if everything out of you doesnât come from the goodness of your heart? Of provoking you with âchasing the bare minimumâ as if he isnât aware that thatâs all heâs given you to work with?Â
Utahime was right in telling you to be careful with him, and he doesnât blame her for it. He would have done the same.Â
He should have told you there was something brewing inside of him alreadyâshould have talked to you instead of bursting from all the things people have been saying lately.
Gojo hasnât spoken to you in three days and the feeling this compares to is worse than anything else heâs ever had to face.Â
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He knocks on your door at night, a little past dinner and too early for bedtime. They echo loudly within the walls of your apartment, and you drag yourself up despite your obvious look of heartbreak.Â
Gojo hears your footsteps and everything moves entirely too slowly; the lock, taking far too long to turn, the gap between the door and the door frame widening incrementally. Even your face comes into view as if in stop motion, frame-by-frame, gradually.
His hands are in his pockets, lips bitten to bleed. Heâs pretty sure he isnât breathing when he takes you inâpuffy eyes and a sweater that belongs to him.Â
(Is it sick of him to say that he still finds you beautiful this way? Even when you look every bit the part of heartache?)Â
Gojo didnât have a plan coming here, didnât have a list of things to say, just the feeling that he needed to talk to you, see you, even just be around you today.Â
When your eyes meet, itâs quiet. You stare into him for oneâtwoâthreeâ (Can you tell that theyâre watery? Can you see theyâre puffed up too?) and then open the door wider to let him in. You head straight to the kitchen, never once looking back while dragging your feet.Â
He stands outside a few seconds more, waiting for you to take it backâbut you donât, so he walks in and closes the door.
Heâs been in your apartment plenty of times before, has practically lived in it by how often he stays over. But this is the first time heâs felt wholly out of place, not knowing where to put himself, just standing in the space between your kitchen counter and the living room awkwardly.
You push a glass of water towards him and he canât stop staring at itâat you, at your fingers that he wants nothing more now but to hold.Â
Even with all his faults, all his wrongs, you open your arms for him to walk into, allow him in as if he didnât just hurt you.Â
And he wants to cry, at the fact that this place still feels like home, at how itâll always feel that way wherever you go.Â
How are you still treating him so kindly? Still taking care of him? A glass of water is one too many for someone like him.Â
You turn away from him to pour yourself your own then he speaksâ
âYou should be angry with me.â Gojo says softly, but you hear it.Â
You pause, tilting the pitcher back upright.Â
âWhy arenât you angry at me?â he says, a little louder this time, more desperate, more pleading.
Why are you never angry at me? he wants to ask.Â
You turn around to face him, putting the pitcher down.
Under your kitchen lights, his eyes shine like sunlight on the ocean, waves lapping on the shore. You think it might be a trick of the light, but his lips tremble when he closes them, as if he canât speak any more.Â
Itâs just as youâve said, thereâs no point being angry with him when your heart can never take it.Â
You always give Gojo the benefit of the doubt, and though heâs hurt youâthough this might be the most painful thing heâs told you yet, you know that heâs been under immense pressure lately. Stressed beyond belief from negotiating with the government on policies for jujutsu society.Â
Itâs not an excuse, you know, but Gojo always has his reasons. He'll tell you eventually, you believe that much.Â
You give him a sad smile, struggling to stop your tears from spilling. His fists are clenched too tightly, nails digging in hard enough to bleed. He hasnât moved since coming in, so you push yourself off the kitchen sink towards him.Â
You take his hands first, unfurl each finger pressed upon his palm and rub gently. He cries quietly for a love so pure that only you would attempt to ease his hurt despite the pain heâs dealt you.Â
You tiptoe second, pulling the sleeves of your (his) sweater before reaching up to wipe his eyesâbeautiful and blue just like youâve always known, droplets of the ocean at your fingertips.Â
âBe mad,â he whispers, âplease.â squeezing his eyes tightly.Â
It hurts more when you arenât, he thinks.Â
His hand comes up to grip your wrist, bringing it down to cup his cheek. You stroke your thumb across his skin, soothing, loving, and thatâs all it takes for him to pull you in. He hugs you tight, arms wrapped around you, clutching.Â
He wouldnât deserve you. In any life.
Gojoâs never cried this much before, head pressed to your neck as you rub circles along his back, shushing him softly. You start sniffling too, small at first until it turns into soft hiccups when you finally cry.Â
Your grip on him tightens.Â
ââM sorry.â he mumbles, lips moving against your neck.Â
ââSââ you hiccup, ââokay.âÂ
âStop saying that when itâs not,â he presses against you, nuzzling your neck, âI hurt you.â
âThen donâtââ another hiccup, ââcall yourselfââ hic, ââbare minimum.â you cry harder.Â
Gojo knows your heart and the tears that leak out of your eyes; he knows they hold pain for more than just yourself but every single person in your life. You, crying now, is evidence of that truthâshedding tears for him not just because of him when he thinks heâs the bare minimum.Â
This must be what it means to be truly, deeply loved, he thinks, to have someone know what you mean without even having to speak itâto know your heart, and all the good and bad parts of it.Â
âI donât think Iâm good enough to you,â he admits, pulling himself away from you.
When he sees your face, wet, with your nose and eyes puffed up from crying, he decides that he hates it more than anything else. Makes it sick to his stomach, even.Â
He cradles your cheeks, thumbs wiping away your tears. A whole hand of his could cover your face entirely, but he always, without fail, holds you delicately.Â
âThatâs notââ hic, ââtrue.â you gather your breathing, holding him by the wrists as he presses his forehead against yours. âOnly I get to decide that. Not anyone, not you.âÂ
You kiss his lips, a small peck before nudging his nose with yours. You soothe each other this wayâin the quiet, swaying to your own tune.Â
âYouâre good to me plenty, Satoru.â you whisper, once both of you have settled.Â
He opens his eyes to look at you, smiling sadly as he cradles your face, âI didnât mean it.âÂ
Whatever he told you that day, taking it all out on you.
âI know.â you mumble, nodding.Â
You always do.Â
.
.
.
Gojo has always loved you, in some type of wayâas friends, colleagues, a-little-bit-more-but-less-than what you are today.Â
But how he feels right now? Itâs kind of ridiculous, borderline out-of-hand, and itâs driving him insane.Â
Itâs such a simple, ordinary thing for you to do: you rush up to him, phone in hand and scroll to some video you found online. Youâre so excited, a bounce in your step as if heâs the first and only person you want to show this to. Your eyes shine bright with a megawatt smile to match, and youâre talking so, so fast, completely lit up like fireworks in the making.Â
He knows you think that heâs listening but, he couldnât care less about it honestly. Sorry. Not when the words go in one ear and out the other, because all that registers is how adorable you are, giddy and everything.Â
He makes a jokeâcompletely unrelated, but you find it so funny. Then youâre laughing, full on smacking his arm, doubled over, arms hugging your stomach, guffawing. Your feet are kicking the air as you sink deeper into your couch. Gojoâs standing in front of you, post-enactment of some impression he made, and heâs frozen in place but warm all over.Â
Seeing you laugh like this, smile like this, being so pretty when youâre happy, the pounding in his chest goes crazy.Â
This isnât the first time heâs made you laugh; he does it all the time. You almost always roll your eyes and chuckle, sometimes giggle with your eyes squinting and laugh lines creasing. But it might be the first time itâs like this: with you so bright, more than the sun and every other star in the sky.Â
And he thinks, this is all he could ever wantâto make you happy for the rest of his life.Â
Thereâs too much of this feeling inside of him, clawing at his throat, itching to get out. Heâs filled with it, has been filled with it for so long that itâs starting to overflow and if he doesnât say this now he might justâ
âIâm so in love with you.âÂ
Gojo breathes it out, as if finally releasing it after all this time. You donât think he processes it because he just stands there, in the middle of your living room, staring at you.Â
Your laughter dies with maybe a little part of you too (in a good way).Â
He looks so sweet, so sincere, and you see his heart, so big, so honest and pure. You get flashbacks of every Satoru you have ever known, at 15, 17, 23, to now.Â
Itâs not like either of you donât know; itâs plain as day, how you feel about each otherâand you would have been fine going on without ever having to hear him speak of love this way.
But hearing it now, itâs far better than anything you could have imagined.Â
You stare at him. He stares at you.Â
Heâs shocked too.Â
You donât want to embarrass him, especially if he didnât mean to say it, so you chuckle, moving on to break the quiet.
âI can unhear it if you want,â you offer shyly, genuinely.Â
Gojo looks at you, confused, before a pout makes its way onto his face. You sit up on your couch, playing with your fingers as you look up at him.
Sure, he practically blurted it out, maybe in the heat of the moment, or something, but it doesnât make it any less true. And heâs realizing that the only thing he really wants from thisâ
âThoughâŚâ you continue, biting your lips, âI think Iâm pretty in love with you too.âÂ
The little laugh you make has him, completely.Â
The grin that breaks on his face is infectious. Gojo, who is normally so pale, is now pink all overâred by his ears and down his neck. Thereâs a sparkle in his eyes that can be found in yours too.Â
This moment right here feels like first lovesâteens first saying âI love youâ.Â
âYou think?â he asks incredulously, joking, âSo youâre not sure?â he walks closer to you.Â
You laugh, candy for his cravings, and take his hand to kiss each knuckle before guiding it to your cheek. He runs a thumb across your skin, affection on his fingertips. His index finger hooks itself under your chin, tilting it to rest on his stomach as you look up at him.Â
A kiss to your forehead, tenderly, gently.Â
The best part about being in love?Â
He gets to be in it with you.Â
.
.
.
Gojo canât sleep.Â
Itâs not anything newâ4 hours on average, maybe 6 on a good night. He doesnât remember a time when sleep ever came easily.
Sleeping with you, beside you, has helped, but itâs never solved the problem. Youâve gotten him to a full 8 hours before, but never consecutively, and heâs starting to think that if you canât do it, nothing ever will.Â
Your sleeping positions change every night, but they always come out as some variation of hugging. Gojo firmly believes that he might as well sleep alone if you arenât touching.Â
Tonight, youâre spooning, arm slung over his waist and palm right on his chest, fingers interlaced with his. Your legs stay tangled together with soft puffs of air blowing at the back of his neck.Â
He opens his eyes and checks the clock by his bedside. 3:24 a.m.Â
He sighs deeply, carefully maneuvering his body to slip away from you. You used to wake up the first few times this happened, worried about an emergency or some kind of accident. Being a sorcerer trains you for things like that.Â
Youâve always known Gojo had bad sleep, just not the severity of it.Â
You donât wake up to it as much as you used to, having grown accustomed to it after more nights together, but on the off-chance that you do, Gojo always kisses your forehead gently as if to tell you that itâs okay, you can go back to sleep.
You donât wake up now, thankfully, so he grabs his phone and heads for the kitchen. Thereâs a sinking feeling in his chest tonight, far heavier than others heâs woken up from. He pours himself a glass of water before hopping on the kitchen counter, ready to sort through the bowl of candy sitting on the island.Â
The date today is October 31. Halloween. Itâs been a few years since Shibuya but he still feels like heâs suffocating.Â
In the train station. In the box.
In front of Suguruâor Kenjaku, both, whatever.Â
Heâs gone to therapy, just like you wanted, for the both of you, and grieving has been an interesting concept to wrap his head around since.
But no matter how much he trains his mind to deal with it, his body will always remember the feeling.Â
He snaps out of it when he hears your footsteps padding on the floorboards. Your figure emerges from the hallway, bed hair and eyes still sleepy, squinting.Â
âSatoru?â you rub at your eyes, his sleep shirt entirely too long as the sleeves extend past your fingertips. The extra fabric swings in the air. âYou okay?â you whisper, approaching him.Â
Waking you up is the last thing he could ever want right now, but itâs hard when youâre also the only one he can talk about this with. When you know what itâs like to grieve everyone too. Â
He has every intention of brushing it off, of telling you to go to sleep, but one look at youâone look at him and itâs like you just know. He doesnât even need to explain.Â
It isnât hard to piece together, knowing what today is and seeing him choked up the way he is. You tell Gojo itâs your intuition, but he has a tell, and maybe youâre the only one who knows it.Â
His eyesâtheyâve always given him away. Thereâs the Satoru you know, then a Satoru thatâs far removed, gone away. You can spot it though, the moment it loses its sparkle, the moment it turns from blue to gray.Â
He feels a little selfish sharing this with you; heâs not the only one whoâs lost people. You have too.Â
You stand in front of him and offer a sad smile, outstretching your arms as an invite, as if to tell him: you can stay here for as long as youâd like.Â
He moves into your space slowly, hopping off the kitchen island to slump against you.Â
He doesnât hug you yet, not immediately, hands still shaky at the memory. You rub his back, hooking your chin on his shoulder as he bends down to rest his head by your cheek.Â
You take his hand delicately, bringing them to your lips so you can kiss every fingertip gently. When you finish, he wraps his arms around you, squeezing tightly.Â
âDo you want to talk about it?â you whisper, like a hushed secret.Â
And he wants to, but also, there isnât anything else to say that you donât know already. You were there the first few times he had therapy, and when he felt comfortable enough to go alone, he told you all about it anyway right after.Â
If thereâs a secret to fighting the Gojo Satoru with guaranteed victory, theyâd only have to get to youâheâd be gone, entirely. You know too much of him, own too many parts of him already.Â
He chuckles dryly, vibrating by your neck. A step back and heâs leaning against the counter, bringing you closer by the hip, thumb stroking. He tucks away strands of your hair behind your ear, flattening down the birdâs nest that it is from your sleep.Â
âNothing you havenât heard before, pretty.â
Gojoâs been more tender lately, especially in the night when his piercing eyes turn soft, gazing.Â
You pout, the same one since you were 16. You donât know if youâll ever get used to it, the way he calls you such sweet, honeyed things; youâve only recently begun to call him âbabyâ and that alone has been enough to make your head spin.Â
Still, he wouldnât be your Satoru if he didnât surprise you. With how he is now, itâs hard to imagine a time when this was all so difficult for him, when even the slightest bit of your hands touching was challenging.Â
Itâs hard to imagine that both of you are here now, living in the same space, by the kitchen at night, with the contents of your hearts memorizedâthe sorrow, the pain, the joy, all the love, every single one.Â
He kisses your nose, and thatâs comfort alone.Â
This is his reality now, with you, and itâs safe.
Itâs good.Â
âDo you want to make waffles?â he hears you mumble, running your hands over his chest, soothing. Â
The clock reads 3:56 a.m. Early breakfast doesnât sound so bad, could also be a midnight snack.
(But he knows what youâre doing).Â
You donât tell him to try to go back to sleep, never forcing anything you know he canât do. Instead, you offer yourself to stay up with him, keep him company. Whatever he needs.Â
(And he loves that about you).Â
.
.
.
Gojo will forever argue that you might have fallen first, but heâs definitely fallen harder.Â
He could map out every single location heâs laid his love onâyour eyes, the flutter of your eyelashes, the curve of your nose, and your lips, the same ones heâs kissed and nipped, bitten until he gets his fill.Â
Your neck and chestâa canvas for his desires. He glides a finger across your collarbone before lightly tapping on it thrice.Â
Thereâs the little dip at the base of your spine, and your thighsâ
Oh, he could get lost in them.Â
He knows.Â
He has. Many times.
Thereâs an animal inside of him that only answers to you.Â
When you kiss his neck and grip his back, soft moans by his earâshort and sweet. Heâs a gone man, wholly devoted to you, and you only.Â
You breathe his name out, âSatoru,â raspily, and he sinks into youâeverything, all that he has spilling in the depths of you.Â
How can he possibly contain all this love?
Itâs scary how so much of him already belongs to you, all these yearsâhow youâve been carrying pieces of him, all versions of him throughout every birthday, every moment youâve touched his life and have it irrevocably changed.Â
.
âAre you happy?â he mumbles by your ear, voice deep and lazy.Â
Itâs the morning, sunlight barely peeking through your curtains. Gojo hugs you from behind, arms caging you as he traces little hearts on your sides.Â
âRight now?â you whisper back, chuckling, âThatâs not fair.âÂ
He nips at your ear, a small bite, before you turn to face him.
He supposes youâre right, it isnât fair to ask that now; both your bodies are sore, well-exhausted, and littered with conversations on love.Â
Gojo is pretty in the mornings just like he is all the time, his hair lending well to sunlight as much as it does to the moonlight. And his eyesâthey shine a different shade during the day compared to the night.Â
You though, youâre an entirely different creature of your own: a goddess in bedsheets and pillows, wrapped in immaculate white. Â
You giggle when you face him, nose-to-nose, and he pulls you in tighter, grips you by the butt to slot you in right where you belong.Â
Are you happy with me?Â
He wonders, and you can read itâhis eyes his greatest tell. You kiss him tenderly, lips moving gently against his. Then you smile, sincerely, before whisperingâ
âWouldnât be here if I wasnât.â
this is a re-upload! (because i accidentally deleted the original one!) thank you notes: to @stellamancer for being there since the very start!! col wouldnât even exist without you!! youâre every much part of the creation of this as i am :'), to @crysugu for being so ever supportive, cheering me on all the time!! and for loving col reader as much as i do!! and to you reading this and everyone else who has loved this collection so far!! of course!! a credit to all the writers whose works have inspired the way i view and write gojo: to @seravphs for teen dad!gojo and cruel summer influences, i draw so much of the way i understand these characters and their dynamics from you and your beautiful way of writing them and i hope my interpretation gives justice to that!!, to @augustinewrites for keeping up with the fushigojos, this series and the way you write them, with so much love, has always pushed for me to view gojo that way!! youâve inspired so much of my understanding that gojo does believe in love and that when he falls in it, he falls in it hard!!
comments, tags, and reblogs are greatly appreciated âĄ
#gojo x reader#gojo satoru x reader#satoru x reader#satoru gojo x reader#gojo fluff#gojo angst#jjk x reader#jujutsu kaisen x reader#jjk#satoru#shotorus.writes#col#algorithm pls love me
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"IT'S A BLUE WORLD WITHOUT YOU" -- GOJO. S
c.w: heavy manga spoilers, heavy content mentioned towards the end (su!cide), wrote this with fem! reader on mind.
word count: 2k.
note: this is how I cope.
You are fifteen and you think Satoru is annoying.
You like rainy days. You like the feeling of comfort that comes with hearing the sound of rain hit the ground, the smell of soil and winter approaching and everyone pulling out their colored umbrellas to shield themselves from getting what. You love the rain, but you learn that someone doesnât.
The door to the classroom slides open and you see a new figure standing by the door, looking extremely pissed. You share a look with your classmate, Shoko before Yaga steps from behind the new student and clears his throat.
âGirls, we have a new student-â
âI hate the rain.â The white haired boy interrupts your teacher and you furrow your eyebrows. Did he not know anything about respecting his elders? But before you could even think of possibly pointing it out to Shoko, Yagaâs hand collides with the back of the boyâs head and a loud smack echoes in the classroom. You watch the scene unfold with wide eyes.
âI was talking,â Yaga presses and the white haired male rubs the back of his head with a whine.
âThat hurt!â
âGood. Anyway, this piece of shit is Gojo Satoru. He will be a student here with you. Thatâs Shoko,â Yaga points at the girl before moving his pointer towards you.
âAnd thatâs (Name). Sit between them or next to one of them, itâs up to you.â
Gojoâs eyes flicker between you and Shoko for a good second before deciding to put his desk next to you and you raise your eyebrow.
âWhat?â He asks and you finally notice that he has sunglasses on during cold weather.
âI like to sit next to the window.â
âWell, he told me to choose.â He says before looking outside of the window, turning his back towards you.
âYou donât like the rain,â you add. âBut I do, and I wanna sit next to the window when it rains.â
âYou like the rain?â He sounds offended but you donât falter and simply nod.
âVery much.â You hear him sigh before moving his seat back a little, swaying back and forth.
âOkay, letâs change seats.â
âThat easily?â You raise an eyebrow and you can tell that heâs glaring at you behind his glasses.
âJust take the seat.â
Shoko watches the interaction with careful eyes but doesnât say anything. When she turns to face the board, she notices Yaga staring at the two of you with something she couldnât quite understand at the time, but she remains quiet nonetheless.
But then you turn seventeen, and you still think Gojo is just as annoyingâidiotic, even.
You know you shouldnât make him feel worse than he already feels, but Suguru was a dear friend of yours and the fact that Satoru couldnât make him stayâdespite it not being his responsibility made you feel like shit. So you storm to his room, you bang at the door and open it before he can even get out of his bed.
âYouâre an idiot.â Satoruâs never seen you this heartbroken, but his eyes are puffy too and you shouldâve stoppedâyou shouldâve just left his room, but you didnât. âYouâre an idiot, youâre a horrible person!â And the louder you got, the closer Gojo stepped towards you.
âYou think I donât know that?!â Your heart stills at the loudness of his voice. âYou think I am not aware of how badly I fucked up? You think I donât know what was expected of me? I do! But I fucked up, and thereâs nothing me-the strongest can do about it!â
And by the time tears are falling down his cheeks, you are holding his face and bringing him closer to youâhugging him the same way heâs been craving for years. You hold Gojo Satoru like the most fragile worn out cup in your pantry, you stroke his hair and let him cry on your shoulder as you wet his shirt too. For the first time in a while, you both feel like kids and you donât realize the weight of what you both went through with Suguru leaving the school.
By the time you turn 26, Megumi has gotten used to your presence around the house. He doesnât know whether or not you and Satoru are a thing, you never call each other âbabeâ or endearing terms, and he knows just how shameless the white haired male can be, so embarrassment wasnât something that could ever hold him back from referring to you as his partner. But he doesnât, and neither do you.
You sleep in the same room, on the same bed. There have been nights where you and Satoru would simply cuddle on the couch and not exchange a single word, the comfortable silence engulfing the both of you when Megumi walks downstairs to the scene makes him raise an eyebrow before blurting out a single sentence.
âWhat are you two?â You look up from your book and Satoru groans a little because he was far behind in the page you were reading compared to you, but he looks at the boy you both took in after the tragedy that happened with Megumiâs father and gives him a look.
âAnd how does it matter to you?â
âItâs just⌠weird.â Megumi confesses and you give him an apologetic smile.
âDoes it make you uncomfortable?â The softness of your voice with him has always been the boyâs favorite thing, a reminder that a motherly figure that cares deeply for him does exist.
âNo, but I just wish you made it official.â
His words hit you hard, and you try to pretend like it didnât distract you from the book you were reading. Megumi goes back to his room and you are left with Satoru who seems to be adamant on getting you to notice him, or tell him off as he breathed hard against the back of your neck.
âAnything on your mind, Satoru?â you finally broke the silence and you shudder when you feel him press his lips against your nape.
âDonât you wanna think about what he just said?â
And as honest as you can get, you simply reply. âNo. I like it this way. Donât you?â
Satoru is quiet. He presses a kiss to your skin and whispers against it. âWould love to call you mine one day.â
âIâm already yours.â
âThen let me say it,â Satoru makes you sit up and leave the warmth of his embrace. He turns your face around to look at him and speaks more firmly. âLet me call you mine.â
Youâve known Satoru for so long, but never has he made you feel so small and so intimidated. You are barely able to look him in the eye, flushed cheeks and trembling lips giving away the swirl of emotions inside you.
âSatoruâŚâ
âAre you mine?â He whispers and his hand grabs your face in a way that has your breath catching in your throat.
âI am yours.â You whisper back, voice so small and body leaning towards his.
âYeah,â he breathes out and his eyes trail down to your wet lips. âYouâre mine.â
The night is long after that and you remember having to skip work the next day, with Gojo giving the kids a lame excuse as to why you didnât wake up early to make them breakfast like you usually do.
âShe caught a cold,â Satoru makes his way out of the house when he makes sure both Tsumiki and Megumi are in the car and the latter gives him a look.
âShe was fine yesterday.â
âYeah, I was surprised too.â The grin that Gojo flashes his spiky haired son is too cocky for the boyâs liking. You wake up an hour later with pain killers, breakfast and a note on your nightstand.
--Iâll be back after I drop the kids. I miss you already. I really enjoy calling you mine<3
You both are twenty seven when Satoru has to fight Suguru one last time. You hold your breath as your approach the duo having what you supposed was their last conversation, and with teary eyes, you step from behind the strongest to glance at the almost lifeless body of your once very close friend.
âSuguru,â you try not to let it show on your face, but you are broken. You donât feel betrayed by him, you never did and it was something that Satoru chose to ignore since he felt all sorts of emotions when it came to his best friendâs abrupt decision a decade ago.
âOh, youâre here,â the relief in Suguruâs voice makes your shoulders shake and your lip trembles in a sad attempt not to cry.
âWhen I asked to meet up all those years ago,â Suguru continues with half a smile. âYou didnât show up.â
âI refused to believe anything being said about you.â You confess. âWhich is a bit insulting to you because you took it so seriously butâŚâ You trail off, eyes lingering on the bruised body of your friend. âIt just hurt. Knowing that I was there, but didnât do anything about it.â
Suguru tells you that he doesnât regret anything, how he simply couldnât be happy in such a cruel world. Satoru tells you not to take a step closer, but you see his teary eyes and you hold the cold body of Suguru as tight as you can. The empty and quiet alleyway is filled with pathetic sobs and hushed comforting words.
You never heal from the incident that happened on December 24th, 2017.
You are now twenty eight and being brought up to the room where Gojo was. After being let out of Kenjakuâs prisom realm, you rush to your boyfriendâs side and slam the door open. There he was, sitting on the bed looking a bit too relaxed.
âSatoru,â you breathe out, tears brimming the corner of your eyes and said man opens his arms in an attempt to catch you when you throw yourself at him.
âEasy there,â he whispers against your hair but you tighten your hold around him and cry on his shoulder. âYou really had no faith in me?â He tries to lighten up the mood, but when you pull away and have such a serious look on your face, he almost deflates and lets himself be vulnerable with you.
Almost.
âYou were distracted,â you say and grip his shoulders.
âWonât happen again.â He reassures you and leans in, pressing a kiss to your forehead.
âNothing can happen to me,â he continues. âI am the strongest after all.â
The sentence has a bitter taste to it now as you sit front row, watching the last few moments of his fight with Sukuna unfold.
Your seat is pushed back as you stand up abruptly. You wanna cheer when it is announced that Gojo has won, finally wonâbut you canât. Your voice is lost, youâre not sure how, but your tongue feels numb and your heartbeat is loud. You feel your stomach churning at the sight.
Satoru spits out blood, and Sukuna has a smug look on his face as he watches the upper half of his opponentâs body detach and fall to the ground with a loud thud. And then itâs quiet.
No one dares to say a word, no one dares to move.
It was over, and Gojo broke the one promise he kept to both you and the students.
âIâll win.â His lifeless body said otherwise. You canât find it in you to think of anythingâanyone but Shoko.
âDo something!â You scream out to her and the woman flinches at the loudness of your voice. Never has she seen you in so much distress. âDo something, make yourself usefulâsave him, heâs right there!â
â(Name)-â
âI donât want to hear it⌠I donât-â you glance towards his body once again and your hands are tangled in your own hair.
âYou canât leave me Satoru,â you wish no one could hear you, but you see Yuujiâs body flinch from the corner of your eyes. âYou know I wonât stay if you leave.â
2023 ; all works belong to @ slttygeto. do not repost my works on any other platofrm.
#moon's works#jujutsu kaisen#jjk x reader#gojo x reader#gojo satoru#jjk gojo#gojo satoru x reader#gojo satoru headcanons#jujutsu kaisen gojo#jujutsu kaisen x reader
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i can see where people are coming from when they talk about how gojo was treated in jjk, but i also think the narrative makes such a beautiful work to humanize him and show how he truly changed people's life by caring about them.
i love every panel that puts him in the opposite side from suguro. first, it was to show that he disagrees with him, but the reason was because he couldnât bother to do something about it. then, it was because he understood suguru's struggle and still couldnât agree because his heart knew it wasn't the right thing to do.
i love how he is to blame, because then megumi isn't. a kid that went through so much, that feels the responsability of all the lives lost in this stupid battle, can have an adult saying "satoru was your teacher, the choice was his, the responsability was his". and not out of anger and hatred, but because that's what satoru would want megumi to hear. it wasnât megumi that allowed yuji to live: it was gojo. put the blame on him. he can take it.
i love how he cares. how he is devastated when meeting kenjaku. when he learns about nobara. the whole scene about using nanami's weapon. teaching yuta. making fun of utahime. learning from shoko.
so yes, i can undertand why some of his fans are mad, but i canât be. not when every moment of him is filled with empathy. not when satoru died believing his students would be safe. knowing that.
because the narrator said his death was a casuality. but sukuna respected him as a opponent.
#ok i got really emotional give me a sec#jjk satoru#gojo satoru#jujutsu satoru#jjk gojo#jujutsu gojo#nobara kugisaki#yuji itadori#itadori yuuji#yuta okkotsu#nanami kento#kento nanami#satosugu#geto suguru#jjk suguru#sukuna#ryomen sukuna#jjk#jjk leaks#jjk spoilers#jujutsu kaisen leaks#gege akutami#gege when i catch you gege#megumi fushiguro#jujutsu kaisen
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heart to heart âŁď¸
âŁď¸ â Masterlist here!
âŁď¸ â Tags:having a heart to heart with megumi fushiguro fluff and light angst mentions of blood and fighting
âŁď¸ â A/n:hi guyss! as you can see this is a jjk fic its my first time writing for this anime so sorry if he seems ooc ďźââ¸âďźanyways this is based off that one scene in the anime i thought of this and i had to write something up because ya girl be thinking them thoughts (ŕš>á´<ŕš) anyway ignore any grammar/spelling mistakes requests open as always enjoy â˝ËÂłËâž
When you first starting dating megumi you knew he wasnt the pda type in fact the most he could do was lock pinkies,or maybe through an arm around your waist when someone was staring at you for to long.That was all okay beacause when alone he was the most clingy,cuddlebug there was.
Everytime you guys cuddled he would lay on your chest ear to your heart,sometimes he just lays a hand on your heart,you never questioned it because it was so cute!You wouldnât ask because it something much deeper than cuddling.It was him making sure you were never leaving,him or this planet.Ever since that day he saw sukuna rip out yujiâs heart he always wanted to make sure you were really there.
Well being a jujutsu sorcerer wasnt always spending time with megumi there was training, and of course exercising curses.He always worried for you when you went on missons he knew you could hold your own ,youâve never messed up on a mission,never had to call back up and you always won but when winning these battles you lost a little bit of your body everytime,a new scar appering some deep some shallow,it made his heart clench in his chest.
It was supposed to be a calm afternoon with him and some friends until gojo had called you on a last minute mission to deal with some low grade curses.
âhey megumi i know we were supposed to have lunch with everyone but i have to rain check..gojo sent me on a last minute missonâ
âokay please be safeâ he sighed
âof course i will when am i not! anyways im almost there call you when im done bye love youâ
âbye love youâ
You arrived to the sight and when you got there you knew something was off,the presence of the curses being stronger than gojo had said probably another carefree mix up on the paper.
âIâm seriously going to kill himâ you thought
While you were exercising the curse another one appeared behind you giving you a big slash on the back.You quickly ripped up some of your uniform and wrapped the gash the best you could to prevent blood loss.After about an hour of fighting all the curses you had finally defeated them,but your body was so sore you had cuts all on your back and some on your stomch none fatal though you quickly called gojo.
âwhats up my favorite sorcerer! hows taking down those curses going?â
âi just got done..tell ijichi to come get me..and tell shoko to get ready for meâit was so hard to talk when your throat was suffocated with blood
âyeah you got it heâll be there soonâ
gojo hanged up the phone,you barely had to wait considering the fact that you asked for shoko so gojo knew something was up and told ijichi to get there as fast as he could.you had gotten in the car and passed out lack of blood probably.
All you remember was waking up in shokos office on the table,the bright lights of the room blinding you.You tried to get up but she quickly pushed you down.
âLay down kid you have a few small stitches and you need some rest but other than that you will be good in no timeâshe informed you
You were laying down on the table when all of a sudden the doors busted open you quickly peek your head up to see who it was,and to your surprise it was megumi he normally didnt visit he hated seeing you like this so this was odd.You sat up fully legs hanging off of the table you patted the spot next to you telling him to sit with you.He sat down and you could tell he was about to tell you off.
âwhats wrong with you? you should of called somone for backup,something could have happened to youâHe said concern taking over his face
âbut nothing did happen to meâ
âbut something could of..i mean look at youâ
âokay ouchâ
ânot like that idiot..i mean..i could have lost youâhis face turned into pout
âbut you didnt so dont dwell on the negative stuffâyou said.you took his hand and placed it on top of your beating heart âsee im right here megumi,ill always be right hereâyou pressed your forehead to his.
âYour such an idiot you know that? i think gojo is rubbing off on you.â
âoh please dont say thatâ you scoffed
Ever since that day you stopped being so reckless on missions so you could stay true to word and you did.
you were always right there with him heart still proudly beating in your chest.
#jujutsu kaisen#megumi fushiguro#jjk megumi#megumi x reader#megumi x you#megumi fluff#jujutsu kaisen megumi#jujustsu kaisen x reader#jujutsu megumi#jjk x reader#jjk#jjk x you#jjk fanfic#jjk fluff#angst#jjk fushiguro#fushiguro x reader#fluff#angst?#jujutsu sorcerer#writes âŁď¸
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Thoughts on JJK chapter 270 (spoilers)
Before I write my thoughts down, I have to confess that they've been tainted by a post I read I after reading the chapter. I decided to write the first part of my review as I had initially wanted to but the second part will discuss the things I read afterwards.
We start the chapter with a beautiful scene of a grave belonging to Tsumiki but my first thought was... what about Tsumiki's soul that had prevented Megumi from killing a girl?
If this is what Tsumiki's end and Megumi's final reaction to that would be, why did Gege bother including her soul as an active character into the story?
I also tried to find the raws to see what exactly was written on her grave. Only her surname? And was it also in English?
After that we get to Tengen and what happened to her and it was exactly here where my thoughts of this chapter went a big đ¤¨đľđ§đ¤Źđ¤Ş
So Yuji just punched her out? And nothing more happened to her? The Culling Games are over? How did that happen? And through which remains would she stay stable? There was nothing left of Sukuna, at least nothing that had gone through Kenjaku's ritual. The only place she would be stable would still be inside Megumi. Her barriers are magically stable as well.
What a... neat ending to all those plot threads...
Then we come to Maki finding her past helpers and telling them that all the reincarnated sorcerers would be separated from their hosts by Yuji soon and...
That's against established canon. We already had the discussion that the souls of the host's can't be saved because they've been pushed down to complete darkness. Choso couldn't feel the soul of his host anymore and that was how the narrative absolved him from any wrongdoing because now he didn't have to give his body back for ethical reasons and he hadn't made an unethical deal to be reincarnated either.
Only Megumi was said to have a chance of being saved and no one else.
So now I'm here and scretching my head thinking... was Gege so desperate or time constipated to end the manga that he threw that point out? Or is sth else going on here...
We get Takaba back and he has a suspicious looking partner now, with whom he can do more comedy.
Now I don't think that's the real Kenjaku there. It's more likely that Takaba simply imposed that hairstyle on his new partner because he's missing his short time best friend.
For an actual Kenjaku comeback, he wouldn't have Geto's body anymore. Imo, Kenjaku did have spare bodies lying around he could've fled to at the last second though.
We get more loose ends being tied up and for Higuruma it's clemency. This is another point in the "everything turns out perfectly good for the good guys" part we have been bombarded with in this chapter.
I'm like, Gege, isn't this too much? Wasn't JJK darker than this? Even Shoko gave up her smokes. The military plot is just "we'll deal with them" and there's no mention of JJ societal instability with the clans falling apart.
Either he really wanted to wrap every loose end up... or
Gege forgets Megumi's scar on a pretty big panel and we get an anime love complication with one chapter remaining. It was funny though.
Then we come to the end where we're set up to believe that life of the first year trio will go on as it should've been without those major Shibuya/Shinjuku complications.
Just going on missions and living life like that.
Now, one could accept that kind of ending (why isn't that in chapter 271 though?) But it comes off as so... lackluster and mended with fire after big chunks of the plot were cut off.
After I had finished the chapter, I was the most disappointed at everything that had to do with Tengen and the CG. So Gege sets up that the sorcerer life will continue afterwards. Even without wanting a Part 2, just ending the CG and Tengen's story like that is... unnecessarily boring and wasted space for nearly everything that came before that.
But then I read @thepersonperson post on how the last 3 chapters of JJK could possibly have been an induced dream sequence this whole time.
Induced by Yuji through his ability of creating fake memories right before defeat/death. His own DE is an application of this and Sukuna's strangely similar ability of talking with freshly deceased people in a dreamscape.
When Yuji had first expanded his domain, I went on such a ramble at the time about these strange abilities of them both. What I said back then was that Yuji wasnt an active/aware participant of them but by now he had acquired Sukuna's CT and again a DE.
This could mean that his induced dream sequences could've evolved enough that he became aware of them instead of only pushing them into someone else. In other words:
Yuji is dreaming of his best happy ending.
And here truly experiences that but he can't tell until now that it's a dream. He might very well be lying on the ground now about to die.
The post I linked adds more details to this theory like inconsistent character placements and "mistakes" like Megumi's scar suddenly missing, which would be commonplace in a dream.
That last picture up there with the guy who's supposed to be cursed but it was actually his girlfriend who had her perception of reality altered as well as the name of this chapter, would be the final hints about the last few chapters having been another glitch in perception.
Now only one week is left then we'll get our final answers to JJK. If this dream theory is true, then Gege will establish himself as the biggest troll, either with a JJK 2 or with a tragic ending.
(And if this really comes true, then I don't think I'll manage to escape the spoilers)
But whatever might come and even though I'm meh about the end (as it's presented to us right now) I still love JJK and immensely enjoyed reading, watching and engaging with it đ
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ŕŠâĄËłÂˇËâś â TEEN DAD! GOJO x FEM READER
wc â 500
tags â reminding you once again as I always do that teen dad Gojo and reader are child soldiers who should be experiencing some kind of trauma from their experiences, title inspired by Leila Chattiâs poem I Went Out To Hear, an extra scene in teen dad gojoverse, in which you and Gojo raise Megumi together Â
Itâs impossible to call life with Gojo boring, but itâs what you want for him, for both of your boys. Theyâve had enough hardship in their life. Heroes make for interesting stories but miserable lives. If you could spare them all that, you would.Â
Sometimes, in the dead of night, you canât sleep. You have to get up to creep into Megumiâs room, stroke his hair and remind yourself that heâs okay. Then you canât rest without checking on Gojo, though you know heâs fine in the shared bedroom you just came from.Â
He comes and finds you five minutes or less after youâve gotten up, he always does. If youâre gone, he wakes up almost instantly.Â
He always looks for you. If he finds you by the counter, nursing a glass of cold water like you always do, heâll slot himself between you and the hard marble, caging you in with his body. You say cage because thereâs no other way to describe it, but thatâs not what it feels like. The pressure calms you down, reminds you that this home youâve made for yourself is safe. Megumi is safe here. Gojo is invincible.Â
Heâll run his knuckles down your face and drape his arms around you. Sleepily, he presses his face into your neck, alternating between soft kisses and sweet words. His breath ghosts along your skin, a pleasant warmth. He always smells faintly of mint and citrus, a hint of jasmine, because you mentioned you liked it once and he never forgot.Â
âDonât worry, my love,â he says, and itâs always my love when you wake him up in the dead of the night. âIâm here.âÂ
Heâll hold you until you stop shaking, soothed by his presence and the familiarity of the kitchen you designed together. Itâs a reminder that this life is one the two of you share, that heâs yours. You picked the marble for the countertop together. Shoko gave you the glasses from your wedding registry. The white cabinets with their blue accents are your decision, because blue is your favorite color.Â
The lights overhead have a brightness setting that you can dim to be more comfortable, and in his embrace, you relax. When youâre ready, heâll guide you back to bed, still refusing to let go. Itâs with his steady weight behind you, a promise, that you can finally drift off.Â
#sera writes#satoru gojo x reader#satoru gojou x reader#gojo x reader#gojou x reader#jujutsu kaisen x reader#jjk x reader
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chapter nine
summary. in which two friends who desperately clings to each other until the other slips away . . .
contains. fem!reader, friends to lovers, fluff, slowburn, cussing, grammatical errors . . .
a/n a bit longer than what i usually write. the ideas were spilling out bro đ
previous chapter
a promise between two lovers can easily be broken. so what of a promise between friends?
in all honesty. satoru regretted it. he regrets saying that the kiss was a mistake. he wanted to hit himself for saying that. why would he be so stupid? and the fact that he's taking so long to apologize and stop being dumb. he should've just admitted it.
that he loves you with all his heart, his soul, his entire being. but now he's afraid that he won't get the chance when you're laying in the hospital bed, body unconscious and unmoving while wearing a medical support.
shoko had done everything she could. and she herself admitted that you would be lucky enough to pull through the day. what went wrong? hadn't he said it himself, with all bravado that he would protect you. so how come you're laying here, barely alive and depending on a machine.
his hand ran through his hair, repeating of every scenario where he could have saved you.
while his face may not have shown it, the way his hand gripped his hair frustratedly gave it away. satoru wanted to beat himself up for not being able to protect you. he felt so helpless at the moment. what else can he do rather than wait and look at your pale features?
it hits him how much blood you had lost. he sucked in a sharp breath, trying to clear his mind from reeling into insanity.
.
"hey, i uh..." he trailed off. "shit," the white-haired male cursed under his breath. he had been pacing around the empty hallway, trying to figure out the right words he should say after you come back from your mission.
his playful expression came easily when his students came running towards him, a few scratches were evident on their face. "sensei! m-miss y/n-" the pink-haired boy panted, a panic expression on his face.
satoru's face hardens when he heard your name. "what's wrong?"
"there was a curse! she was trying to protect us from it and now she's- she's bleeding a lot!" kugisaki butts in. the white-haired male quickly ran into action.
when he arrived at the scene, he could see megumi's pale face as he pressed down on your stomach with trembling hands. "s-sensei..."
he felt like his whole world had crumbled before him when he witnessed the scene.
.
he sighed once again, sitting down at the chair that he had put close to your bed. his hand were hesitant to take and hold yours. but after a while, he held it in his, gripping it slightly as if he was begging for you to wake up.
satoru would cry if it meant for you to wake up. he would even move mountains if that's what it takes for you to open your eyes once again. he wanted to see those beautiful eyes that he had avoided so carefully for the past weeks.
his other hand reached out to move the strand of hair out of your face. you still look beautiful like this.
.
you could almost swear that you felt someone gripping your hand tightly. your eyes slowly flutter open and you looked around the room, still slightly disoriented. your blurry vision soon cleared up and your eyes immediately fell onto the white-haired male, laying his head on the bed by your side while his hands clenching yours tightly.
you wanted to move - to call out to him. but you felt your heart aches as you remembered the things that he said. if anything, you would like it better if he gives you an apology. you wanted so badly to hug him and tell him that you were fine - that the pain doesn't hurt anymore because he was here now.
you could imagine just how much he is blaming himself because you got injured so badly this time. it was just like the last time. he must have been so scared.
you stared at the ceiling as you continue to ponder your thoughts. your focus were immediately broken when you felt him squeezing your hand slightly and stirring awake from his deep slumber. you quickly close your eyes, still not ready to face him directly. "won't you wake up..?" he sighed, his hands gripping yours tighter that you almost wince in pain.
"'m sorry..." he rested your hand against his forehead, as if begging for your forgiveness. "i shouldn't have said that," he muttered softly. "i shouldn't have run away..." his tone was getting desperate, a sniffle underlying his words.
"i can't lose you too..." he kissed your hand softly.
.
xx xx 2006
"will you stop that?!" you raised your voice at him. "guys- i think that's enough," suguru gets in between the two of you. "suguru! he was insulting me!" you said frustratingly. "i'm sure he didn't mean it. right, satoru?" the black-haired male looked at his best friend sternly. "oh, i mean every word," he scoffed, crossing his arms in a childish manner.
his words made your blood boils. you immediately jumped on him, in hope to hit him somehow. but alas, your anger had gotten the best of you that you had forgotten about his limitless. you immediately fell to the ground on your bump, face flaring up in embarrassment. "ugh... i hate you," you muttered under your breath.
"i hate you, too!" the white-haired male returned his hatred. you know he didn't mean it. you didn't mean what you said either. but your ego said otherwise. the moment he walked away, you stubbornly walked the other way, leaving suguru alone in a shamble.
suguru was quick to catch up with satoru and he patted his shoulder. "why did you say that?" suguru chuckled softly. "i was just trying to say that she looks better with her old haircut," satoru sighed. "you're so in love with her that you can't even comprehend the words you say, huh?" the black-haired male teased, nudging his side slightly.
"i don't like her. i was just trying to be honest. she's my best friend, too. don't want some idiot to be bullying her because of her bad hair cut," he explained. perhaps, suguru was right after all. but he wouldn't say it out loud. he would never say it out loud. you were his best friend. what type of friend would he be if he's in love with you?
he had to be lying to himself to distract the unwanted feelings.
.
"satoru," you called out to him softly after listening to his prayers and apologies. his head snapped up immediately, his eyes slightly red from trying to keep his tears in. "you're awake," he breathed out a sigh of relief. before you could even spell out your next words, he cuts you off by pulling you into a deep kiss.
the kiss was somehow desperate, yet tender. it speaks how much he was sorry, how much he worried about you, how much he loves you. just went you were about to melt into the kiss, he pulled away all too quickly and started checking your face, as if he couldn't believe that you were really awake.
his arms immediately wrapped around you, his hand pulling your head close to his chest. you could hear the hard pounding of his heart and you smiled to yourself. "i love you," he whispered softly, his lips grazing your ear slightly. your heart skipped a beat too late at his confession. "i'm sorry," he started peppering kisses all over your face.
"you can hit me, hate me, hate my existence, but i won't stop loving you,"
taglist: @wooasecret @charisthemaniac @tw0fvced @1lellykins @dnnalssndra
masterlist
#gojo satoru x reader#gojo x reader#jjk#fluff#gojo satoru#angst#say you love me#say you love me : chapter nine#satoru gojo#satoru x reader#jjk fanfic#jjk fluff#jjk imagines#jujutsu gojo#jjk gojo#gojo#satoru gojo x reader
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I ârewatchedâ season 2 of JJK last week. @lmskitty made me do it (I never watched it in entirety tho. I always stop before Nana and Mimi get killed)
A few thoughts and observations
-Yuki I love you girl but you canât read the room đThat boy was having a whole ass awakening and she didnât even notice lmaooo. Talking about âI didnât get his typeâ lol
-Haibara keeps stealing my heart only to break it afterwards. I love that kid sm
-Shoko was so nonchalant in Shinjuku lol and sheâs right. Gojo looked like a wet cat tho (pathetic) Geto literally said
-Choso didnât have do to all that. Youâre 10 times older than Yuuji. Please.
-Meiâs voice is really sexy. I wanted her and Utahime to kiss.
-Kuroi and Riko had such a beautiful bond. I was in tears when Kuroi showed her the little starfish. She adored that kid
-Gojo literally told the paper bag guys to open a book lmao
-When Gojo said Riko probably didnât have any friends I laughed cause neither do you boo
-Geto shady as fuck (I love him and his sharp tongue)
-The shot of Gojoâs eye when Geto says he must be tired is literally the most precious thing ever. Like âI never stood a chance against that mf. Iâm so fuckedâ
-Gojo never called Riko by her first name but from their first interaction Geto called her Riko-chan
-Toji<<<< (he silly tho) He wanted to clap the Korean guyâs cheeks so bad lol
-You canât tell me Gojo doesnât get off when heâs in battle. Gege could have replaced the fight scene with a masturbation one. He was cackling like a crack head
-âMy soul knows otherwiseâ will always and forever be crazy
-Getoâs body really heard his ex bf and decided to come back to life for five seconds (eww)
-Kenjaku lol
-Canât wait for Yuuji to call Megumi by his first name (manifesting)
-Also THIS. Itâs so cute. Geto was holding it at the beach
#jujutsu kaisen#jjk#satosugu#geto suguru#gojo satoru#riko amanai#itadori yuuji#toji fushiguro#yuki tsukumo
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As dark as a story JJK can get, I love there are moments that are funny, some being moments that when you actually think about it, it's funny. Sometimes it would be something so outrageous that you have to laugh.
The MC was already a powerhouse before the plot really kicks off. He is known to be such a powerhouse that some people believed he's the reincarnation of Mirko Cro Cop... WHO IS STILL ALIVE. That is a real person, folks!
The funniest thing Yuji be doing in fights for me is chucking things at people and curses. He has thrown cars, signs, etc.
Sukuna's introduction. This guy is known as the King of Curses and yet, Yuji is the first person of the story to actually humiliate him. He sasses him. "It's my body!" A 15-year-old sasses the King of Curses and even after he learns who he is really, Yuji is not intimidated by him in the slightest. At best, Sukuna annoys him.
Sukuna's outfit of choice in his soul room is a kimono with a bow tied in the back. He's a fashion icon, for real.
Nanami is the one who envisions the Gojo "I'll murder you" scene. He's responsible for that.
Jujutsu Kaisen has became known for jumping. A rather smart decision to do when facing a strong opponent. Like, jump that fool!
Speaking of jumping, Mahito has became a meme. Him getting jumped is pretty much why he set out to kill Yuji and Nanami, when you think about it.
Megumi had to take tame his shikigami to control them, except for the Divine Dogs. That means he had to tame frogs, a horde of rabbits and a damn elephant.
Nobara's weapon of choice? Hammer and nails. She's building houses out of curses with some voodoo thrown in there.
Shoko got her doctor's license by cheating. But she's still good at her job.
Gojo's forehead flicks are strong enough to send someone to Shoko.
Sukuna, during the Fearsome Womb Arc, actually waited for Yuji to switch back with him instead of immediately causing some havoc. The King of Curses, evil incarnate, waited.
One of the upperclassmen is a damn panda that's not really a panda.
Because Inumaki speaks in rice-ball ingredients, conversations with him will be funny.
Geto has an arsenal of squid curses. Where did they come from?!
Geto became a cult leader at 17. The biggest question I have is where the hell did a teenager get monk robes from?!
He was also called mommy by a worm curse. Was that foreshadowing? I don't know!
To think, later, his body is put in a nurse outfit. With lipstick and nails done, too.
Toji really had beef with kids. (Teen Gojo and Geto.) Dude even forgot his own kid's name. And it's probably the most ironic name of the series. MEGUMI'S NAME MEANS "BLESSING".
Yaga looks tough and he is, but this man has a weakness for cute things. Bro makes cute, creepy cursed dolls... I think we should hype Yaga up more.
Toji actually got in a fight with Red Lobster and Miruko's (BNHA) cousins.
Jogo got to live every fan's dream of being close to Gojo and Sukuna. He also got in Choso's face and touched Nanami.
Tengen's gender is "granny" apparently. They're so real for that.
Sukuna's right hand is Uraume and the reason being because they can cook.
Yuji is a fan of Jennifer Lawrence and will introduce himself as such.
Todo really beat Megumi's ass because his type are kind people. And when he was getting his ass beat, Megumi was gonna summon Mahoraga.
When Megumi finally does summon Mahoraga... it's against Haruta, of all fucking people.
Haruta tells Megumi "Fuck you" for that.
Nanako's technique is literally taking pictures. With her cell phone. I know for a fact she runs out of storage fast.
MAPPA be devious with the openings. "Oh, that character died? They're staying in the opening." "Oh, a city was destroyed? Here's a reminder during this fire ass song."
Choso and Todo's "false memories" of Yuji. That is all.
Choso's choice of hairstyle? High spiky ponytails. And it's iconic!
If you pay attention to the Sukuna vs. Mahoraga fight, you can see that Sukuna chucks a piece of the airplane at Mahoraga.
Before the fight really gets crazy, Sukuna comes out of a building with popcorn and soda. Mind you, the district was probably closed and evacuated.
Why did Megumi react like that towards Ozawa? "Oh, it's like that?!"
In dub, Nobara calls Mahito a "bitch".
Panda wants to punch a zebra one day.
Kenjaku is a dad and a mom.
Can't believe Gojo and Geto broke up in front of the KFC.
There's a guy who wears a costume that has him half nude. And he's funny.
Look, there's a lot of things.
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Ijichi appeared and he didn't mention Gojo?! Come on asfbsknfkd
#jjk spoilers#I may be more invested in this than I thought oops#Where is Shoko?#Nanami got his post death friendly moment come on#That scene is everything btw#I talk too much#I should probably delete this later#Shoko appears as well. Good. Wonderful Megumi and Shoko scene. I do love them a lot#But damn why not a comment? Not super emotional just. Something like what Nanami got I guess#That weird evolution of a past friendship#Painful yet detached#The fragments of the love and intimacy that once were#Shokoâ Utahime and Ijichi appear and that's good though#No one else interests me enough to read leaks though#I just got spoilt by a panel in which Ijichi appeared and I had to give a look for more#I've been waiting for Ijichi to appear for weeks after all lol
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I donât know if you care for the hunger games at all BUTTT with the new movie out Iâve been thinking
Hange would have totally played Katniss early in her career and I think Sasha would have been a good Lucy Gray from the new movie :)) Iâm also thinking gojo for young Coriolanus just cause of the blonde hair and blue eyes lol
OH AND yn wouldâve defffff sang âcanât catch me nowâ by Olivia Rodrigo from the soundtrack of the new movie
omg ANON THE HUNGER GAMES WAS MY ROMAN EMPIRE. I had to put a read break cuz I rambled
two unsolicited ronnie stories to prove it:
when I was in seventh grade, I bought a mockingjay necklace from hot topic and wore it to school. but I went to private school and wasn't allowed to wear necklaces like that. and when my teacher asked me why I wore it, I looked at her straight in the face and said that "I was the mockingjay"
I used to be in orchestra when I was in middle school and there was one year where we got to vote on the song we played. so naturally, I stood up and I was like guys...there's this really underground song idk its called the hanging tree. and it litearlly won but then I took it ten steps farther and made us all do the whistle together and the little salute when we finished because naturally, I am dramatic. I am unfortunately never beating the weird kid allegations
that being said, THERE'S SO MANY GOOD HUNGER GAMES FANCASTS. this was the one I had in mind (but I love yours too!!) + it's the one fancast I chose to include in my ACTUAL fic (towards the end chapters, so we'll see this one come back)
original trilogy
yuuji as peeta mellark, duh. our beautiful boy with the bread
y/n as katniss
gale you are a lame, sack of bones. so obviously floch.
ceasar flickerman is CONNIE SPRINGER YUP
levi as haymitch
hange as effie, obviously
finnick is jean
mikasa is annie (they are soulmates everywhere I fear)
annie is johanna mason and I think that bertholdt would be a really good betee
erwin plutarch heavansbee that one wrote itself
gojo is seneca crane đ, heavy on that one scene where hes like everyone loves an underdog đ and president snow is like no.
nobara is playing the extras that are part of effie's prep team or just someone in the capital you will not catch her being one of the tributes
YELENA SCARY BITCH IS PRESIDENT COIN
ballad of songbirds and snakes
utahime as lucy gray baird
young gojo as president snow (the entire press is utahime saying she vomitted after she kissed gojo as a joke and people think its real)
suguru as sejanus :((((((
shoko as tigris snow (says having to be nice to gojo during the scenes was her personal hell)
alternate (from the fic)
this is the one i'm including in the fic!
y/n and yuuji, true to the original, play katniss and peeta
(megumi and eren are the most supportive boyfriends to boyfriend)
gabi plays lucy gray baird
gabi gets to write eyes open for the original trilogy
y/n writes you can't catch me now for the ballad
they are mother and daughter your honor (can you tell im so excited to unleash my gabi yn dynamic in the next chapter)
#asks!#method acting#oh I love to fancast#connie as caesar flickerman#and gojo and suguru as coryo and sejanus#OH IT KILLS ME#AND GOJO AS SENECA CRANE MAKES ME CACKLE IDK#levihan as haymitch effie too like guys
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for the ask: đŻď¸đđŹ
đŻď¸ ⢠on a scale from 1 to 10, how much do you enjoy editing? why is that?
hmm. like a 6. i like it because im a self-indulgent writer so it's like getting to read exactly what i wanna see. but also editing is a PAIN especially when it comes to paragraphs that are just like. what am i even talking about. or sometimes i skip scenes and i just stick in smth like [they talk] [funny joke idk] and having to cross the bridge i have gotten to is not fun HELP
đ ⢠share a head canon for one of your favourite ships or pairings
omg!!! putting a few because nobody can stop me:
đđŻ sskk -> akutagawa calls atsushi 'my love' or 'my darling' while atsushi calls akutagawa 'ryuu'
đ𧥠kunichuu -> is this even a hc. SPIDERMAN KISS. wait but also chuuya getting flustered and losing control over his ability and he goes crashing down after the spiderman kiss
đ¸đž itafushi -> megumi's shikigami popping up (out of his control) when hes watching yuuji because they love yuuji as much as he loves yuuji. mostly the dogs and the rabbits
đđ§Ąđ¤ kunichuuzai -> cane user dazai x chronic pain chuuya x knkd with hand tremors. important to me
đĄď¸đŞ tachigin -> sometimes gin doesnt want to talk so tachihara learned sign language specifically for them and convinced most of the port mafia to learn it too
đŹ ⢠post an unpopular opinion about a popular fandom character
oh my god UMMM okay. lets talk about gojo satoru.
a lot of the fandom believes that he only cares about geto and that frustrates me a lot because while yes, a lot of gojo's reckless decisions are based on geto and he always looks to him for guidance, it has been shown time and time again that gojo cares for many others. he would not sacrifice his students to save geto. he is selfish, but he is not irrational. gojo loves his students. he loves nanami and shoko. we've seen how affected he is at nanami's death, the pure rage at the higher ups who wanted to kill yuta and now yuuji, how highly he thinks of megumi and his power etc. he believes in creating a future for jujutsu society that isnt corrupt, one which his very own students will run. while stsg share an undeniable bond, so deep that gojo is still paralysed by geto's body even after years of not seeing each other again, he would not choose geto over what he believes is the saving grace of jujutsu society. gojo will fight and scream and sink his fangs into whatever he can to get geto back, but his love and loyalty is not limited to just that. at the end of the day, hes the strongest, and he is lonely. why would he abandon those he keeps dear to his heart? for geto? that would go against his character and the future he is working so hard to create. he can love more than one person
SORRY THIS IS SUCH A LONG REPLY AKSJAJKS
send some asks here <3
#disclaimer i LOVE satosugu im not trying to undermine them. but saying that gojo only cares about geto. uhhh. no#ask game#thank you for the ask!! <3#bsd#jjk#shin soukoku#kunichuu#kunichuuzai#itafushi#tachigin#gojo satoru
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Would like to share an opinion on the end of Jujutsu Kaisen
Spoilers for chapter 271 under the cut (also this is turning out to be a really long, rambling post, sorry in advance)
I'm kind of disappointed they didn't show Gojo's funeral. Not just because he was one of my favorite characters and I think that's the least he deserved, but in service of a narrative choice that I personally would have made if I was Gege.
Gojo has always been about tearing down the old world and replacing it with something new and better. Even in the flashback Yuji has to the conversation they had together (the one he has during the mission to take down that curse user terrorizing that lady), Gojo insists that others simply keep pushing forward after he's gone. Don't worry about him, he's not important. You don't even have to remember his name. Just keep going and be better than he was. He was up in the faces of jujutsu brass for so much of his life, stating his ideas with confidence bordering on arrogance, knowing that there was NOTHING anyone could do to make him shut up because he was basically a walking, talking atom bomb.
With this in mind, I would have personally dedicated a scene to Gojo's funeral with Yuji and the gang attending. Just Yuji, Nobara, Megumi and Yuta (I know Shoko would probably want to be there, but I'm leaving it at these four specifically for the purposes of my idea here). This can be used to convey two things:
A direct contrast/mirror between this and Yuji's grandfather's funeral at the very beginning of the series. Yuji's grandfather was a bitter, lonely man. The only person who cared when he died and who attended his funeral was Yuji himself. Before his passing, he insisted that Yuji live differently than he had; to not be bitter like he was, to let people into his life. To be happy. Maybe have Yuji think back on this while he's performing Gojo's funeral rites (passing around the bones with their chopsticks) with his friends: is he really happy now? Did he manage to carry out his grandpa's last wish? Has he found people who make him happy? Has he been of service to others? Has he lived a good life so far? Perhaps he isn't able to fully answer these questions yet, but as he goes through with the funeral rite - as he sits beside his dear friends, these people who he's had so much fun but also suffered so much with, mourning their shared mentor/father figure whom they all very much cared for regardless of appearances - he can, perhaps, at least be able to say that he's found some measure of happiness, even after everything he's endured. All the people he's lost. All the destruction he's witnessed. All the bones he's broken, all the blood he's spilled. Funerals are sad. The fact that it's Gojo's is sadder. But being there, being able to mourn and remember and lay him to rest, alongside others who he's come to love and cherish and who do so to him in return, to not be all alone at the end... Yes, Yuji can probably say that he did what his grandpa asked him to. (And also, find some comfort in knowing that, unlike his grandpa, Gojo had people who loved him enough to want to send him off.)
The representation of this "old vs new" dichotomy, and Gojo's insistance on championing the latter. This is why I didn't add Shoko to the list of attendees, as much as it would make sense for her to be there. These four are young. Hardly even out of high school. That's as "new world" as you can get. Together, they represent change. So many sorcerers are dead now, including a huge portion of jujutsu leadership, including their school's leadership, including Gojo, who was basically a god in the jujutsu world. With all of them gone, who will take their place? It has to be the young people, the ones who are left. It can be these four specifically, because they're all kids Gojo himself took a chance on. Gojo saw something great in these kids, he took them under his wing, he sheltered them from jujutsu leadership's wrath, he even outright saved Yuji from execution. I think he wanted these four to be the ones to rise up and make those big changes that Gojo wished to see in jujutsu society. An outcast in normal society (Nobara), an outcast from his family (Megumi), young men burdened with great power at an even greater cost, which makes them feared and hated (Yuji and Yuta). Gojo taking over would've just been seen as a regular power play in history. These young people pushing back against those who persecuted them and making a real difference in the world, thus proving them wrong, would be so much more impactful. It's gotta be these four, gathered around Gojo's remains, passing his bones around and into his urn, because there aren't any others who symbolize Gojo's dream of change and improvement more than they do.
Idk if any of this makes sense at all. It's just something that's been sitting in my mind since I read through the chapter. I have other issues with it (and the series as a whole honestly), but that's for another post if anyone would care to hear them.
#jujustu kaisen#gojo satoru#yuji itadori#jjk chapter 271#jjk spoilers#i guess there isn't that big of a spoiler in here but I'll tag it anyway#jjk thoughts
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First off, the way you write Tsumiki is so beautiful and makes so much sense and I would die for her. Also, Tsumiki/Maki is fucking inspired. It fits so perfectly within the story and fleshes out both of their characters and I have so many feelings about it.
What you wrote about the cause of the no-contact fits so well with the Zenin how do you even come up with this!! And it also reframes so many scenes in sea glass gardens (specifically, I went to double check bc I just realized that Tsumiki still refers to Megumiâs dogs by their names and they still reapond to them. I am going to cry Megumi deserved so much better). Nanami is absolutely insane in the best way for demanding half custody like he seems like heâd be willing to throw hands over it regardless of the cost to himself and itâs so perfect with how much he (like Gojo) believes so much in protecting children. I have more words to say but not the brainspace to say them bc it is late at night for me. But! I would die for you and your writing thank you so much for getting into jjk
Iâm soo glad that yâall liked Tsumiki/Maki too. The versions of them that live in my head just fit together like puzzle pieces. They were each otherâs foil and they understood the other all the more for being what the other had chose not to be. Tsumiki had chosen her sibling and Maki had chosen herself, and both of them know what it means to have those be mutually exclusive.
Also the version of Tsumiki that lived in my head violently hates the Zenin and I could not imagine anything more attractive to Maki. Tsumiki would firebomb their compound without hesitation or regret. Maki wants to kiss her on the mouth.
Tsumiki very purposefully was designated as the character who would keep calling the dogs by their names, because sheâs the one who most aggressively tries to insulate Megumi from the effects of the jujutsu world on him.
Tsumiki knew Kuro and Shiro longer than anyone. She remembers when Megumi first summoned his puppies. She knows exactly how much he loves them and she knows exactly how badly he must have been hurt to push him to never call them by their names again. Those dogs mean the world to him, and she knows it.
In her mind, what Megumi lost wasnât his love for his dogs. If he lost that, she thinks heâd be more willing to call them by their namesânames are just easy ways of distinguishing them, after all. Theyâre already named. Heâs only inconveniencing himself by never saying their names aloud.
She thinks Megumi stopped calling them by name as a way of protecting them from the Zenin clan.
He never saw his family again, is the thing, but the Zenin have always existed on their periphery. They know that the Zenin havenât lost interest in him. Gojo tries to shield them (but mostly Megumi) from as much of the Zenin as possible, but they know that the Zenin have been prodding them for more contact and information on Megumi ever since Gojo cut them off. And they know that the Zenin have a lot of contact with the jujutsu world. They both assumed that, over the years, plenty of people have reported back to the Zenin on Megumi.
They trust Gojo, Nanami, Shoko, and Ijichi to not leak information to the Zenin. No one else.
Sheâs always suspected that Megumi stopped calling his dogs by their names because he didnât want it to get back to the Zenin that he loved them like pets still. Theyâd be safer if the Zenin didnât realize how much he still loved them. Maybe if he hid it, theyâd assume they scared him off, and they wouldnât hire someone to kill a dog when heâs on a mission or something. And thatâs what sheâll never forgive the Zenin for taking from him.
They took away Megumiâs safety in his love. It became something he didnât feel comfortable showing, ever, because it was something he would be hurt over. They made him hide it. And it kills Tsumiki to see, because her brother loves more fiercely than anyone sheâs ever met. He loves in a way that terrifies her, sometimes, because she thinks it will kill him one day, she really does.
He loved those dogs enough to be beat within an inch of his life to keep them safe. He wouldnât just suddenly start treating them like theyâre impersonal weapons. Theyâre still Kuro and Shiro to him, she knows it. Theyâre still his puppies. And she doesnât want the Zenin to get to take that from him.
She doesnât want Megumi to just⌠succumb to what the jujutsu world did to him. She doesnât want him to just take the beating the way he took it for his dogs. And she doesnât want him to just sacrifice himself for her and call it a day. She wants him to fight for himself and for his right to live on his own terms. And sheâs not sure if heâll do that.
So sheâll fill in the gaps where she can. His dogsâ names are Shiro and Kuro, and theyâre her brotherâs puppies. Theyâre her best boys and sheâll treat them like pets all day long if she pleases, because the Zenin had no fucking right to take that from her brother. Sheâll spit in Zenin Naobitoâs face if she ever gets half a chance.
#sea glass gardens#tsumiki throughout the fic is meant to be the one dragging Megumi to fight for himself#he has no problem fighting for other people in the fic#fuck his intro was fighting for tsumikiâhis first action is to send shiro to attack maki#but megumi has to consistently be catalyzed into summoning the same effort for himself and tsumikis the only one who can get him to do it#that was the theme I tried to keep consistent throughout his scene with the car and treatmentâtsumiki had to be the one to spur him to act#with her he wanted her safe but with himself he just wanted to be /done/#tsumiki is stubborn and angry and her brother is the one thing she canât let go of. itâs the core of her character. she only has the energy#to have one nonnegotiable and itâs megumi. everything else can be sacrificed.#one other thing I like about tsumiki being the one to keep calling the dogs by their names is that it inadvertently had a domino effect#yuuta and the others (sans maki who only has a few concrete details and a lot of suspicions about what happened all those years ago) have no#idea about any of this. they were introduced to the dogs as shiro and Kuro because thatâs what tsumiki called them. they donât know any of#the drama. but megumi doesnât speak of them by name. he just calls them the dogs. tsumiki is the one who kept their name alive#she is just constantly radiating âthe Zenin can fuck themselvesâ energy
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