#yuuji remembering nanami as this soft mentor figure is something so special to me

[yuutaguro]

my dear, you are so so loved 🤍

[chaotic-noceur]

...waiting to be said

pairing: Nanami Kento x reader

summary: the fluff ending to never spoken, ever present. Also happens to be a chapter 120 fix-it

warnings: chapter 120 manga spoilers, mild angst, nanami is delirious and possibly ooc

a/n: idk what happened with the ending but i just want undefined relationship affection okay 😭🥺

[ part 1 | angst ending ]

He senses your curse technique before he sees you, feels it charging towards him before embedding itself in Mahito

Your body lands in the space between him and the special grade curse

He’s conflicted between telling you to run and to believe in your strength

He settles for the latter. He’s always trusted in you, there was no point in stopping now

He thinks fake pleasantries are exchanged and between the ringing in his ears and the pounding in his head, he thinks he hears a familiar yell that can only belong to Itadori

He’s faintly aware that he should be getting away from the inevitable path of your destruction and he uses what little strength he has left to drag himself away, leaning against a nearby pillar

He doesn’t know how long he sits there, drifting between states of consciousness but the next thing he knows, warm palms are cupping his cheek while fierce eyes meet his

You’re saying something but he can’t unscramble the words before he’s being hauled to his feet

He sways slightly and lets his head fall onto your shoulder

You whisper against his ear then, “you’re not allowed to die, you hear me? I haven’t even told you I love you yet.”

He nods deliriously as his feet drag against the ground, adrenaline quickly seeping out of his system

“Nanamin!” Yuuji exclaims as you approach, Nobara leaning partially against him

Nanami grimace against you at the nickname and you chuckle, squeezing the hand that’s slung on your shoulder

“He’ll be fine if we get him to Ieiri,” you declare in response to Yuuji’s panicked expression

It sounds like you’re trying to convince yourself of that statement and he wants to reassure you, but his head is pounding and his limbs are heavy. It's taking everything he has to not collapse his entire weight onto you

The next thing he remembers is you handing him off the Ieiri, placing him onto the makeshift emergency bed

He almost whines at the loss of contact but you tell him you have to go, and that you promise to be back

He believes you

He sees your figure walking away before his vision turns black

When he wakes, there’s a weight atop his hand that he almost shakes off, thinking it’s Yuuji

But when he glances down and sees you, half seated in a chair, half laying against the bed, his breathe hitches before he relaxes into the touch

He goes to stroke your cheek with his other hand but the marred skin catches his attention

Ieiri couldn't heal scars. He knows that. But it still shocked him to witness the damage that his body had taken

He lifts his arm to his face, finding similar corse patterns running from forehead to chin and a bandage over his eye

He grits his teeth as insecurity begins to bubble up within him but he doesn’t get the time to dwell on it

As if sensing the negative energy accumulating around him, you perk awake and blink the sleep out of your eyes momentarily

“Hey handsome” you greet when you notice he's awake and he laughs

He laughs because he doesn’t know what else to do; because he was knocking on deaths door but firmly turned away; because its just like you to know exactly what he’s thinking and exactly what to say to counter it

Well, you don’t love someone for this long and not know them like they’re a part of you, he supposes

And then you’re smiling at him like he’d just saved the world, like he’s all that matters and it brings tears to his eyes

The reality of the last... however many hours its been finally sinks in and he cries for the first time in a long time

He curses at his own frenzied emotional state, turning his face to hide the tears from you

You frown momentarily before climbing onto the bed with him, careful to avoid any healing limbs

He loops an arm around your waist instinctively as you cup his cheek and swipe at the tears

When his eyes meet yours, so full of concern and love, he breaks

“I love you” he repeats, over and over while he brings his forehead to meet yours. “I know that you know that, I just need to have said it at least once.”

You heart melts in your chest and your hand moves to the back of his neck

Gently, you bump your nose with his before connecting your lips together

The kiss is slow and soft — you’re mindful of the state of his body, but it conveys years of love all the same

“I love you too,” you whisper when you part

You stay there, holding each other without a care in the world. He has his head resting against your chest, grounding himself in the beating of your heart as he cherishes the brief moment of peace in between all the madness of the jujutsu world

or in this specific instance, the madness that is Gojou Satoru with Yuuji on his tail

“NANAMIN!” they both greet in unison and Nanami swears he’s going to slap the both of them

Gojou says something about how it took you guys long enough when he realises your cuddling form while Yuji gapes at you like a fish, his grip on the bouquet of flowers in his hands loosening slightly

His gaze shifts between his mentor and you, questions clearly building in his mind but with a look from Nanami, he deflates a little, saving them for later

“You guys couldn’t have left him in the box for a little while longer?” Nanami grumbles as he buries his head into your neck

Gojou pouts at you while you laugh, running your fingers along the back of Nanami’s neck

He notices Yuuji placing the bouquet onto the beside table out of the corner of his eye while Gojou rambles on about something

He tunes his senior out and focuses on the gentle rise and fall of your chest instead.

Here, with you in his arms, his mentee's laughter filling the room as his senior goes about his usual antics, he's happy. He's home, and he can breathe easy.

Where you both go from here? He doesn't know. But he knows that you’ll always be there when he needs you most, just as he’ll be for you.

[ part 1 | angst ending ]