Satoru Gojo has a lot of love in his heart and he refuses to keep it all inside. His preferred method of showing exactly how much love he has to offer? Physical touch.
Even before he knew he loved you, your personal space had quickly become his personal space.
“Say, Gojo, you ever heard of personal space?” You asked one day as satoru pressed his leg up against yours while sitting on the bleachers. The two of you were watching Shoko and Suguru “spar”, though really it was just them doing the least amount of work possible - enough to keep Yaga satisfied but no where near enough for it to actually have any effect on their improvement (“you can only get better with real life experience!” Suguru would say leaning back on his chair slightly. “And i’ve got better things to do than fight this loser anyway.” Shoko nodded to herself , ignoring Suguru and Satoru’s eye rolls.)
“It’s Toru to you, and i’ve heard of it. Why do you ask?” He asked leaning closer to your face making you roll your eyes, “oh, you know, it’s just that usually people like to stay within their own personal space. Not in mine.” You thwacked his forehead causing him to whine dramatically before he threw an arm around your shoulders. “But I like your personal space better than mine, Sweets! Not my fault you have your own gravitational pull and stuff.” He grinned as he watched your cheeks bloom a lovely shade of red.
That being said if he sees anyone invading your personal space he will not hold back. “Hey, you mind backing out of our personal space?” he’d tell anyone who he deemed to be far too close to you before wrapping an arm around you and practically absorbing you into his side.
You’d only roll your eyes, heat filling your cheeks as you pinched his side. “Yeowch!” he’d exclaim dramatically but still never backing away from you.
Satoru Gojo also needs a lot of reassurance. He’s not picky on how he receives it as long as he receives it. He needs it. And if he felt he wasn’t getting enough back you’d definitely be hearing about it.
“I can’t believe we went from being madly in love to being just roommates.” he sighed one day, shaking head before placing the back of his hand over his forehead; imitating a damsel in distress. He was leaning against the bathroom door watching from his peripheral as you rolled your eyes, not moving away from in front of the bathroom mirror and into his arms like he had hoped.
“Neither can I… Because that hasn’t happened.” you sighed finishing your skin care before flicking the bathroom light off and squeezing past him, right under the arm that he had placed specifically to block you from leaving.
His pout deepened as he followed behind you like a lost puppy.
“Hasn’t?! As in it could?!” He whined reaching his arm towards you but narrowly missing the back of your shirt (you had sped up at the last second, already having had anticipated his behavior).
“Gojo.”
“That doesn’t work anymore, I’m not sure if you’re talking about me or you now, so you’ll have to be more specific about who you’re talking about!” he scoffed, finally grabbing onto your body before you were able to flop down onto your bed. You let out a whine, giving up and simply allowing him to maneuver your body however he pleased.
Taking your flimsy body as permission, he turned you around to face him, he wrapped his arms tightly around your torso before biting your cheek softly, coaxing a soft hiss from you.
“That’s exactly my point, Toru. We’re married not roommates… Does that not show how madly in love with you I am?” You couldn’t help but coo at him, wrapping your arms around his waist. He smiled widely at you, pursing his lips before tightening his already brutal grip on your body.
“Dunno… You’ve only kissed me like two times today. Tax getting high on them or what up? I can pay my fees, ya know?” You rolled your eyes again but a small smile pulled at the corners of your lips. You had definitely kissed him way over two times but you knew that when he got this way there was no other way to soothe him than by giving him what he wants.
“They’ll run you about 450… Each. Sure you got it like that?”
“What about the husband discount?”
“Make it 650.”
“Ugh! You’re an evil little gremlin, aren’t you?”
To nobody’s surprise he got his kisses. Several of them and in quick succession resulting in your face being covered in an abhorrent amount of his spit (his full face smooches are always so unnecessarily messy!) Family discount be damned, he’d pay whatever tariff necessary for your love (not that he ever had to!)
Tw: abusive/manipulative relationship mentions!
Choso knows your last boyfriend wasn't the best and he even used to scare and manipulate you, so he always comforts you in his little ways without making it obvious
When you break something- "it's okay baby, it's just a small mistake, we'll get another. "
When there's a loud sound- "it'll be over, it's nothing, you're so strong. "
He holds you every night in his big strong arms "Good night baby, I'll be here when you get up''
When he does something for you and you say "I feel sooo bad for not returning this favor" And he replies "there's no need to return it baby. Why do you think that? Come here. "
You feel the safest with him and he lives for that!<3
Chosoooooooo!!!! ≧﹏≦
Summary: Nobara and Itadori try to figure out the similarities between Megumi and his son. They manage to find that the infamous Zen'in frowny face is a dominant trait.
Tags: Megumi x F!Reader, Humor, Fluff, SFW, 1200 wc
Notes: I had this drafted for weeks. After seeing the epilogue and the grandkids, wish I had posted sooner, I felt there wasn't a more appropriate time for this. Happy belated-birthday 'gumi.
“No, no, look again, he definitely has his eyes,” Itadori points out.
Nobara lowers her face towards the baby currently blinking at the two of them from the comfort of his plush crib. Megumi stands off to the side, arms loosely crossed over his chest and an increasingly spreading scowl as his two friends, if he could call them that right now, poke and prod at his kid.
Nobara was the first one to point out how much his child was growing and starting to resemble his parents before noticing that his new emerging features leaned heavily to your side of the family, leading to this search to pick out their similarities.
“I’m not seeing it,” Nobara disagrees, failing to find the hint of dark blue that Itadori swears he can see in the baby’s right pupil. To her, all she can see is black all the way through both eyes, like the majority of the Zen’in clan geezers from those centuries old family books she helped Maki trash; unfortunately, this didn't include Megumi so they couldn't even count it. With a hand on her hip, she turns to Megumi. “Sheesh, he doesn’t resemble you at all. The misses really said copy and paste, huh?”
Megumi huffs, about three seconds away from shooing them into the kitchen where you’re making dinner. That’s until Itadori pipes up, “Sure he does.” And for a second, Megumi thinks they’ll finally drop this silly discussion. “He has the same grumpy face his dad does.”
Megumi sighs. He should’ve known better.
“Now that you mention it,” Kugisaki can barely contain her laughter as she reaches into the crib and gently pinches a chubby cheek. Your son makes no expression at her playful squeeze or poke to his belly. His tiny legs kick the same way any other baby would when tickled, but the flat line on his face refuses to budge. “This is the least smiley baby I’ve ever seen,” she concludes while Itadori nods in agreement as he goes in to tickle the baby’s foot – just to make sure.
Megumi knows the two idiots don’t mean any harm by it, being the person to receive the brunt end of their jokes and observations over his life, the kind that can only be made out of innocent obliviousness and overconfidence, but he can’t help but feel more defensive when it’s his kid.
“Do you two have nothing better to do than to shame a baby?” he gripes. “It’s late, go home.”
“Oh, lighten up, we were only teasing. He’s adorable,” Nobara dismisses as she notes how much bigger her future-partner-in-crime has become over the past few months. Looking back on it, she can’t recall any time she’s heard him laugh or much of anything. Sure, she’s seen him get fussy while babysitting, but she’s rarely heard him cry. “But you have to admit he isn’t very expressive…for a baby,” she mentions with a hint of concern, concern that isn’t needed from Megumi’s point of view.
“Maybe you two just aren’t funny,” he says, watching the way Itadori attempts to get his son to laugh by making silly faces; it results in little more than a fist full of pink hair getting tugged.
“I’m being serious. I mean…” she tilts her head, trying to word it delicately. “Does he smile at all?”
Megumi nods. “He smiles.”
“Does he?” Itadori presses, craning his neck as he struggles to free his hair.
“He does,” Megumi repeats, his eyes softening at the memory of that innocent and joyful giggle he first heard like an unimaginable dream come true. “It’s just when you’re not around.”
Nobara rubs at the back of her neck apologetically. “Sorry. I didn’t mean any offense by it. He’s a good baby,” she compliments before moving to help free Itadori’s hair from his iron-like grip. “And strong too,” she adds, looks at him, and clicks her tongue when she once again fails to find the bit of blue Itadori mentioned earlier, but it provides an opportunity to cut through the awkwardness they unwittingly created. She fakes a sigh. “Unlike your genes. I don’t think they even had a battle plan.”
“Very funny,” he puffs out between their chuckles then he hears another voice coming from the direction of the kitchen.
“That’s not true,” you say as you pad into the room with a milk bottle in hand, the grin on your face trembling as you try not to laugh with them. “They have a lot in common.” You begin to list off on your fingers. “They both like the same fruit and animals, he really likes books when you read to him, and do you think his hair maintains itself?”
Nobara breathes out an "oh" at your explanation. “So, he gets mom's good looks to balance out dad's aloof personality? Makes sense."
Your resistance breaks as you let out a giggle, ignoring the pout on your husband’s face. “Are you guys staying for dinner?”
“No, we should really get going,” Nobara states with a small yawn. “Mission reports won’t write themselves.”
You nod, handing Megumi the bottle of milk as you walk the others to the door and wave them off.
“Have a good night,” Itadori calls out while Nobara makes you promise to phone her tomorrow and to come hang out if you’re free.
Locking the door, you walk back in and head towards the crib.
“You really shouldn’t entertain them when they get like that," Megumi reminds you.
“You know they only do it to mess with you. It’s how they show they like you.”
“You mean they’re idiots.”
“Yet you open the door right up every time they come over.”
Megumi gives you a doubtful look. “Not by choice. It’d be like trying to stop a rampaging bull from barging in,” Megumi states, and you let out an amused huff.
No matter how much he complains and comments that they haven't changed one bit after leaving school, he enjoys them. You remember how excited he seemed when Itadori called to ask if it was okay to pop in since they were nearby. Well, excited in that he immediately started to straighten out the house even though he had already cleaned earlier that morning. It's cute little quirks that often gives him away and the ones that make you like him even more.
“If it makes you feel better, I think you have a great personality and good looks,” you compliment with a brush of your hand over his hair. You look down at your son, who still seem unmoved by all the events of the evening. It makes you laugh because Nobara and Itadori were right. Your son does have Megumi’s ever-dull facial expression.
“And both my boys have the cutest frowny faces,” you say, holding up your son to your face to nuzzle his nose. As you pull him away, your eyes brighten at the wide smile that flashes on his face followed by a warm giggle. “Hello to you too,” you coo and cuddle him again, causing another fit of giggles to fill the room, and the sound resonates in his chest and makes him forget any problems that arose on the way to getting to this point in his life.
“You forgot to tell them one thing,” Megumi says, coming forward to kiss your temple. As he told the others, his son does smile, and Megumi does too. “They both smile when they see mommy.”
୨ৎ — .ᐟ Him ‘n his stupid infinity! [Pt.3]
—> Part 3 belonging to the series of him ‘n his stupid infinity. Refer to part 1 and part 2 for earlier parts!
╰┈➤ Gojo Satoru is once more struck with the less than ideal dilemma of his cute underclassman hating him! It seems like no matter what he does, he always remains the object of your hatred—and he doesn’t even know why! Will today be the day where he finally has a chance to reduce your hatred? And maybe find out why you hate him?
Or in which, You hate Gojo Satoru! Him and his stupid limitless technique. Why does he only turn it on around you? A mere first year. Will today be the day you get some closure? Just why is his infinity activated at the mere sight of you?
warnings: fluff, literally one line of angst, reader is in denial and gojo is head over heels, they both r very loud students, takes place in 2006, reader is so cute…even gojo thinks so!! reader is a first year, gojo is a second year. ^.^
p.s—> i really enjoyed writing this! gojo n reader r my roman empire, i need them to get together soon ☹️ also— does anybody notice how gojo’s thoughts contain less exclamation marks when he’s not arnd reader? hehe—she just brings out the whiny man in him.
“I hate the rain! I hate umbrellas! Ughhh—“ A sniffle resounded from the classroom of the third years’ classroom, “Everything is working against me! Even her!”
“It’s peaceful.” His best friend, Geto, retaliated, throwing him a questioning look over his shoulder, “Since when do you not like the rain?”
His gaze traveled over to the six full plastic bags on Gojo’s desk, seemingly filled with all kinds of candies and snacks, did his best friend buy the whole convenience store or something?
“And do these…copious amounts of snacks have anything to do with it?” He thinks he could make quite a lucky guess.
For as long as Geto Suguru has known Gojo Satoru, it was always a silent fact acknowledged between them that Gojo has always been a fan of the rain—mainly due to the fact that he can activate his infinity at will whenever the rain pelts on him too hard.
But, who else does his infinity activate at will at?
“She hates me, Suguru.” A whine left Gojo’s mouth as he squished his cheek against the cool surface of the desk, eyes tracing the trail of the rain as it stained the windows. “Even when I’m being chivalrous! She denies all of my help!”
Geto can’t help himself from rolling his eyes, though with a hint of fondness, at how you’re mentioned once more.
He can admit that their underclassman is especially charming in your own way, but Satoru’s comical whining is getting old.
No matter what the conversation is about, Gojo always finds a way to bring up his dismay about the failure of his advances towards their underclassman.
If it wasn’t so consistent, then Geto would’ve thought that it was cute.
“What? Did you push her into the rain or something?” He chuckled, throwing his dismayed friend one last look before looking back towards the window, watching the raging rain.
Gojo’s expression dropped even more at the mention, “Why do all of you say that?! I’m not a monster!” A sigh left Gojo’s lips, his glasses discarded beside him on the desk as his gaze focused on two raindrops; a distance away from eachother, despite being on the same window glass.
A small smile unconsciously perks up the corners of his glossy lips.
If he could estimate the distance between those two drops, then he would say that they’re five feet apart.
Why, though?
Man! Even rain drops hated eachother! There was no hope!
“I just don’t understand why she has to keep her distance all the time! She’s so cozy with Haibara and Nanami, even with you and Shoko—but me?” He groaned, barely resisting the urge to roll his eyes, “Bleh! I’m trash apparently, according to her.”
Silence persisted in the classroom for a bit, granting peace and only broken by the sound of the storm outside.
Before his best friend’s laugh rang out in the otherwise empty classroom.
“Are you the reason why she came back to the dorms looking like that?”
The smile on Geto’s face was undeniably teasing, shoulders trembling with the evidence of laughter as he shook his head fondly.
“Suguruuu! Don’t laugh! Just listen—“
“I’ll be right back.” Your voice rang out in the first years’ classroom, tugging your bag off the chair as you approached the door. “And you’re not off the hook, Haibara!”
A whine followed your words, but it was quickly muffled as soon as the door to the classroom closed behind you.
A sigh left your lips, hiking your bag over your shoulder, stretching as soon as the door closed. “Man…”
As far as you knew…it is raining, and you love the rain!
Today has been a bit of a hectic day, so you were glad that you would have the time to walk on your own, peacefully, all the way to the nearby convenience store.
“Oh?”
At the, unfortunately, familiar voice, you snapped your head up, hands tightening around the strap of the bag.
“What.”
Ew. Why is this infinity activating idiot here?! Did he never have class or something? You seriously doubt he even attends his classes—based off of what Geto told you.
Does he have nothing better to do than pick on you everyday?
“And where are you going?” Gojo’s voice rang out in the empty hallway, a smug lilt to his tone as he tilted his head at you.
While he worked hard to maintain the cool and unbothered front on the outside. He was mentally cheering on the inside.
Yay! Score for Gojo Satoru!
Man, fate really liked him. I mean—why else would he be bumping into you every other day like this?
An exasperated look rested on your features, eye twitching in irritation, “I don’t think…that’s any of your business, Gojo-senpai.” You emphasized on the honorific, trying to resist the urge to just walk away and leave.
You dislike him…but, you also have to maintain respect to an upperclassman.
At the honorific, though a common thing to hear from the first years, Gojo couldn’t help but feel his heart race—feeling as if a cupid’s arrow had pierced through it. Not the bad kind this time!
Gojo is willing to hang onto any string of hope, even if your current glare was snapping the thread.
“Aw, come on! I can’t be not suspicious if my cute underclassman is leaving class in the middle of the day with her bag.” A huff left his lips, the signature pout making its way onto his lips.
What a man child!
“Are you sick?”
Your eye twitched.
“Tired?”
Your lips settled into a frown.
“Are you injured? But you had no mission today!”
Your eyes narrowed into a glare.
“Or—!”
“Enough!” A cry leaves your lips as you glare up at him, eyebrows pinched together, “I’m going to the convenience store! There! Happy?”
Silence took over, filling the hallway as they remained standing—five feet apart—with you glaring up at him, hands clutching into the strap of your bag.
Huh—why was this idiot so silent?
For Gojo, it felt like everything else you said had went through one ear and left out the other, the tinted view of you through his glasses was almost intoxicating.
The way that you had to look up at him, okay maybe you were glaring but whatever, your eyes rounded with annoyance—it was a sight that he should’ve gotten used to.
But it still managed to make his heart lurch everytime you even looked at him.
“Can I come with?” An excited exclamation left his lips, eyes sparkling as he shot you a small pleading look, “Pleaseee!”
This was definitely his chance!
“No.” So blunt!
“Why nooot? ‘promise I’ll be good company!” A whine left his lips, “Besides, it’s raining!”
…
Hah? What was this idiot on about?
You shot him a weirded out look, “Okay? Thanks? I sure couldn’t guess from the rain pelting on the classroom window.”
Gah! Now he seemed like a total idiot!
“Wait! I mean—you don’t have an umbrella!” He flailed his hands around, a panicked look setting onto his features, “I have one! Who wants to walk in the rain without an umbrella, right?” A hurried laugh slipped from him.
Was the Gojo Satoru nervous? You tilted your head, raising an eyebrow.
Of course he was nervous! He has one chance to make this work!
“I’ll just borrow an umbrella from Haibar—“
Oh, hell no!
“No! No—he’s like—his umbrella is probably not as functional as mine!” He spouted anything he could, trying to salvage anything that could be saved.
You raised a brow.
Huh? What? That doesn’t even make sense! No way his idiocy could reach those levels.
“That doesn’t even make sense! Your cursed energy is messing with your head or something!” You huffed, “Over my dead body will you accompany me!”
“Woooo!”
The sound of an umbrella opening echoed infront of the entrance of Jujutsu Tech, lost in the noise of the rain hitting the concrete harshly.
“Do you even want anything from the convenience store? Or are you looking for any reason to be anywhere but class?” You scoffed, crossing your arms as you watched him open the umbrella.
“You can’t keep skipping, yknow.” He skipped class way too much.
A nervous look was thrown to the storm outside, biting down on your bottom lip as you looked back at the umbrella in his hands.
How was his umbrella going to cover the both of you if you maintained the five feet rule?
Oh.
And the infinity.
Despite willing yourself to not get your hopes up, you couldn’t help but wonder if he would actually be decent this time and would keep his infinity off. No way he went through all this trouble only to have you stand in the pouring rain, right?
Gojo threw you an offended look, “Eh?— I just want to accompany my underclassman to the convenience store, like a good upperclassman would!” Before his shoulders dropped, a faux look of exasperation crossing his features.
“And I guess I could get something or two for Suguru.”
This was it! His chance to impress you and charm you away!
“It is my duty, as your faithful upperclassman, to make sure you’re safe all the time!” A charming smile perked up on his glossy lips, placing his hand over his heart in a display of chivalry.
Yaaay! He was probably looking cool as hell right now! You must totally be falling in love with him right now!
“Keep me…safe while going to the…convenience store?”
On his precious underclassman’s face was a smile, one so soft and sweet that he was afraid he would melt if he kept staring at it for too long.
your eyes carried a glint of a sparkle in them—a contrast to the gloomy weather—and Gojo always thought he had the prettiest eyes but—
He was seriously starting to doubt that now.
“That’s the dumbest thing, ever. I’m a sorcerer too, no?” You let out a small chuckle, exchanging a small glance with his glasses covered eyes.
The carrier of six eyes could pass down the title of the prettiest eyes to someone else now.
And oh—that chuckle.
His hand tightened around the handle of the umbrella, feeling a small lump form in his throat.
You shook your head, flashing him a weird look at his sudden silence, “Whatever, Gojo-senpai. Let’s just go. I don’t want to stay around you longer than necessary.”
So mean!
Tipping the umbrella forward, Gojo nodded his head towards the school doors, “After you.~”
He was being such a gentleman! Oh—how your heart must be fluttering for him right now!
“Idiot.” You scoffed.
He was such an idiot. Did he think he was in a movie or something?
A sigh left your lips, shaking your head in reply, “Don’t get me wet.” You mumbled in a warning tone, noticing how he held the umbrella at arm’s length.
A suggestive smirk flashed on his features, “Oh?~”
Your cheeks heated up, “Creep!” You huffed, walking beside him as they exited the building, protected from the rain by the shade of the umbrella above both of you.
“What a shameful excuse for an upperclassman. Good thing we have Shoko-senpai and Geto-senpa—“ You paused, noting something.
Huh…no infinity. You are…walking under the same umbrella.
Sure, you weren’t exactly standing close like you should be under an umbrella, there was some distance, but his umbrella was big enough to cover both of you even while there was a small distance between you.
!!
3 feet!
Hwaaah! They were three feet away and he didn’t activate his infinity! This was…a big achievement.
You cleared your throat, directing your gaze down as you focused on the splashes caused by your steps, pressing your lips into a straight line as you fought back the heat on your cheeks.
“Ahem…”
Confused by the sudden silence, Gojo turned his head to the side, tilting his head as he stared down at you, “Hey, yo—“
Ah?—
Gojo’s breath hitched, feeling his chest constricting as soon as he saw the absolutely bashful look on your face.
Gojo is familiar with looks of bashfulness, he’s a witness to these expressions each time a girl bounds up to him with red cheeks and a compliment. He’s not new to these looks—in fact, they’ve gotten quite old to see.
But…
Gojo thinks that a bashful look is absolutely precious on his little underclassman. It’s a sight that he doesn’t think he’ll ever tire of, no matter how much he encounters it.
“What’s with the radio silence, hm? Did I finally charm you? I knew it would happen!” He slipped in a quick remark in order to save face, trying to uphold his cool front.
“What? Cat got your tongue—oh wait, my bad. I forgot you’re like a little kitten, heh.”
It had always been a wish to see you flustered because of him, to see you blush and get embarrassed by him.
He’s starting to take back his words now.
He doesn’t think it will be good for his heart if he sees the sight of you being flustered, it isn’t healthy for it to be tugging at his heart this much.
His hand tightened around the handle of the umbrella, unconsciously tilting it a bit towards you in order to shield you from the rain completely.
His precious little underclassman.
You looked up, swallowing the lump in your throat, before turning your head towards him. This seems like a good time to finally crack the question.
“Gojo-senpai…” Oh, his heart stopped at the honorific, “Why do you always—“
Everything you said went through one ear and left out the other. Fuck. His heart was racing way too much, he couldn’t focus on anything but your bashful expression and that..
Honorfic.
It was dripping with honey whenever you uttered it out.
His eyes rounded behind his glasses, a subtle red flush spreading across his cheeks. His face felt like it was on fire, the heat unbearable. It felt like this is the first time he’s been flustered.
Like the tables have been turned.
“Gojo-senpai?” Fuck. You said it again.
“Are you listening to m— Ah!”
Before either of you knew it, you felt an invisible force repel, no—force you away from Gojo, almost as if a wall had suddenly formed between you.
It quite literally felt like, instead of only forming a barrier between you as usual, it pushed you away.
“Hey—!” A panicked call left Gojo’s lips, eyes widening.
You stumbled over your feet, due to not having time to process the sudden push, a small squeak leaving your lips as you slammed down onto the floor—right on your butt. Ouch.
“Fuck—“ A hurried curse slipped past Gojo’s lips as he looked down at you, “Hey, are you alright? What happened?”
A small hiss left your lips as you felt the cold rain water pelt harshly onto your head, soaking you from head to toe in no time. Your fingers twitched, feeling the hard concrete under them.
So much for not wanting to get wet.
This…despicable man!
You kept your head down, trying to will yourself to calm down, taking a deep breath.
“Hey.” Gojo lowered his voice, brows furrowing in concern at your sudden silence. He kneeled infront of you, keeping the umbrella over him—you were already wet anyways. “What’s up? Did you hurt yourself or something? Let me see.”
At his words, your head snapped up, eyes narrowed into a glare, face contorted into an angered expression, “What’s wrong with you?!” Seriously! Did he find any of this funny?
Huh? What did you mean what was wrong with him? Is it so bad to want to check up on his junior? Arrest him then!
He huffed, tilting his head with a confused hum, “What’s that supposed to mean? You’re the one who tripped. Don’t blame it on me!” He clicked his tongue, shaking his head disapprovingly, “You really ought to stop being so clumsy.”
He internally cooed. Poor underclassman, these strong winds probably pushed you! Worry not, he’ll protect you!
You sneered. “Do you not have a single serious bone in your body?”
Was this idiot being for real? This really was not a funny joke, this was you constantly getting humiliated whenever you were around him.
This time, you would not only be humiliated, but will also get a cold! Ahh! This was so frustrating!
“Shut up! I’m not laughing! Nobody is!” You could feel the tip of your nose freezing, hair sticking to your face as the water seeping into your uniform weighed you down, a shiver running down your spine.
Seriously, why were you always so against him helping you? Your hatred for him really ran a long way, huh?
“You always do this! How hard is it to not do it? Will you die if you hold back from doing it?” You huffed.
“What are you on about? I think the rain water is getting into your brain!” A pout pulled down the corners of his lips as he looked at you, “Why would I go through all the trouble of getting you to walk with me if I was going to deliberately push you or something?”
You really weren’t making sense to him! He was only being chivalrous and helping you. What did you mean by he always does this? Be a gentleman? Duh!
A frown rested on your lips, “I don’t know? You’re so complex! You always end up doing this. What about me is so intimidating?”
Nothing. Gojo thinks that nothing about you is intimidating except for your beauty, that’s the most intimidating thing about you.
Besides, how could he ever find you intimidating when, even though you were on the ground and he was kneeling infront of you, you still had to look up at him? You were so small.
“You? Intimidating? Please. A little kitten is more intimidating than you.” He chuckled, shaking his head, a teasing smile on his lips.
Gojo thinks that’s the most precious sight he would ever grow to see in his life. He finds himself feeling bad for everyone else that never had the opportunity to view such a cute sight like you in the rain—
but, he also finds himself feeling prideful that he’s the one to see it.
He’s such a lucky bastard, no?
“Nevermind! I don’t want to go to the convenience store! What’s the use, anyways?” You retaliated, a hand raising to your head to brush away the strands of hair sticking to your face—
Gojo’s heart skipped a beat.
“Don’t approach me ever again! I’ll tell everyone at school how despicable you really are! Hmph.”
“Wait wait—what?! No! I’m the totally cool and dashing upperclassman that loves all his underclassmen—“ You the most. “And all his underclassmen love him!” Except you. And Nanami.
Bless Haibara’s soul.
You shot him an exasperated look, “Your delusions are stronger than your cursed energy.” You mumbled under your breath, breath coming out in a small cloud of air—a testament to how cold you are.
Internally, Gojo felt horrible, seeing you this cold, fighting to not shiver and your face turning red, but it was also adorable.
“Huh?! That’s so mean! Where do you store all of that hatred, huh?” He pouted, feeling an arrow strike his heart at your direct comment.
“Shut up.” You grumbled, supporting your weight on your hands as you stood up, kneeling down and picking up your drenched bag, “I knew it was wrong to trust you.”
At your words, a lump formed in Gojo’s throat, hand tightening around the handle of that stupid umbrella. He looked up at you from his kneeling position, watching you stand up and adjust your bag over your shoulder.
You always said hurtful things to him, but it resonated a lot more with him this time. Even when you hurt him with your words, you still looked as majestic as ever.
Did you ever think about how alluring you are?
“Hmph. My bad for wanting to help you!” He huffed, standing up and closing the umbrella, tucking it under his arms as he folded them, “Where’s my ‘Oh thank you, Gojo-senpai! You’re the coolest upperclassman ever!’ ?”
Your eye twitched at how he pitched up his voice, a horrible impression of you, “Go die, Gojo-senpai!”
You glared at him, before turning your back to him, walking back to the school, “I don’t want to see your face today.”
What?!— No!
“Wait—! I’m sorry!” He hurriedly followed after. He doesn’t even know what he did!
“I don’t care!” You looked at him over your shoulder, the rain falling harshly on your head, “Don’t—!” In your haste of wanting to berate him once more, you stumbled over your feet—for the second time that day.
Can you really be blamed? The concrete was wet and slippery and your wet shoes and socks weren’t doing you any justice. Plus the soaked clothes!
Gojo’s eyes widened, a panicked curse escaping his lips before—with his fast reflexes, he was the strongest after all—he stepped towards you, acting on instinct.
He hastily slid his arm around your waist, wrapping around it as his palm rested on your clothed stomach, supporting your back against his sturdy frame.
“I got you.” His tone dropped in pitch, holding you close against his chest, “Don’t worry.”
…
A small gasp left your lips, shoulders tensing up as you looked down, gaze falling on his giant palm that rested on your stomach, nearly taking up the whole circumference, your back pressed against his clothed chest, able to feel his sturdy muscles through his wet uniform.
His wet uniform…the rain is falling on him, he’s touching you…his infinity isn’t on!
You swallowed, heart stuttering in your chest, “Huh—“ You looked up at him, eyes round with shock, cheeks heating up despite the cold weather. “You’re…”
This is the first time…they’ve touched—let alone stood this close to eachother.
“You—“ He let out a staggering breath, arm tightening around your midsection, “See? I helped you..”
Gojo’s heart positively felt like it was about to burst, not only at how soft you felt under his touch, but also at the way you looked up at him.
Hair wet, looking up at him with those round eyes, filled with wonder and awe, rain water dripping down your cheeks—and most of all, the rosy tint on your cheeks that strangely matched the color on his cheeks.
Fuck. You were so cute.
His heart picked up the pace, not knowing how to react to this new overwhelming sensation he felt being this close to you.
“…” You pressed your lips together, feeling your clothes weigh you down as your stomach fluttered, “Gojo—senpai, you—!”
And of course, his body acted on his instincts, on what he knew to do best when the adrenaline rushed in.
Infinity.
A yelp left your lips as you stumbled forward, barely having the time to balance yourself and regain your footing—thankfully you managed to do it this time, and didn’t end up on you already sore bum.
You were just getting thrown around today like a damn ball! This is getting ridiculous! Can’t you get a break?!
“Huh? Is this your way of thanking me?” His annoying whine returned, gone his flustered nature and replaced with a pouting one, “Do you not feel soooo safe and protected in my arms..?”
Gah!— He just couldn’t win! Never with you!
“You jerk! You just don’t know when to stop!” You stomped your foot angrily, the water pooled on the ground splashing at your little movement.
You wholly believe he uses his technique to have fun more than he uses it to kill curses. The universe gifted the wroooong person!
“You’re so childish and you lack any type of common sense. You just enjoy getting my hopes up, huh?!” Damn him and his stupid limitless—his infinity, his six eyes!
“What hopes?! You’re the one who flips a switch all the time whenever I do something nice.” He huffs, crossing his arms, a pout on his glossy lips as he looked away.
Was being mean to him your way of denying you’re flustered? Weird. “You don’t know how to say thank you!”
You ignored how downright attractive he looked with his hair sticking to his face, wet with water and not in its usual style, “That’s because you don’t deserve it. Go die!”
You huffed, straightening your posture, before turning your back to him, stomping back to the school. You didn’t even feel hungry anymore.
Was it from the fluttering you felt in your stomach? That was probably just your stomach turning in disgust at the sight of him!
A dismayed hum left Gojo’s lips, rolling his eyes begrudgingly as he watched you walk away, “Talk about a moody underclassman, gee…” He snatched his phone out of his pocket, dialing a number.
“Heh…she looked like a soaked kitty, I should’ve snapped a pic.”
He held his flip phone to his ear, staring at his umbrella on the floor.
Huh? Why wasn’t he getting wet?
Since when did he turn on his infinity? Must be instinct as a response to the rain. He shrugged.
“Ah! Haibara! My favorite guy!” He grinned, pressing the phone to his ear, “Would you do your cool upperclassman a favor? Do you happen to know what a little moody kitty likes to eat from the convenience store?”
“Huh?— Hey— What happened?”
“Your best friend happened, Geto—senpai.” A sigh left your lips.
“Silly Satoru…what ever am I going to do with him.” A fond sigh left his lips.
“Kill him—“
“Alright alright.” He let out a small chuckle, charming, “Go to your room and change. Don’t catch a cold, ‘kay?”
He was so charming. The perfect example of an upperclassman, not like that other bastard.
Geto chuckled.
Hah…
Gojo would freak out if you got a cold, anyways.
I would offer my entire chocolate stash for a Viltrumite Mark ver of them bath blurb
I'll take it, chocolate and tiramisu is a diabolical pairing.
Thank you for rqing!! I added full mask mark because he's a cutie patootie♡ pt. 1 here !! Based off this
Includes: Viltrumite, Full Mask
♡ Threatening him with no more baths together if he doesn't bail out of a fight immediately pt. 2
Viltrum Invincible:
I don't need it. I don't need it... IIII NEEEEEED IIIIIIIT!!!!
At first, he's almost offended by the threat, you think he NEEDS to bathe with you every time? No, no he definitely doesn't need to feel your skin against his in the comfort of bubbles and warmth. Definitely not.
"Fine, be that way...! Bathe alone!" He grits out, but the frustration was clearly placed in the enemy he was facing. You can tell based on how he's starting to move more frantically.
Usually the silver-white uniform remains clean whenever he has to deal with unwelcome guests, but this time? He figured he could get messy at the mention of a bath.
And when he comes back, he's glaring at you like you took away his plate from him mid-meal. "I told you I could handle it." He stomps his way to you, blood squelching under pristine shoes and tugging you in a hug; he always did this after being apart for a while but this time felt... calculated.
Pulling away from you, you immediately complain about whatever grime got on your clothes, he doesn't seem annoyed
"It's just blood, it's fine." He picks you up while disregarding your complaints and tugs you closely, flying out and heading back to your place
Looking down at your filthy clothes makes him happy, you can see him try to fight off the smug grin. "We should bathe together to... 'save water', as you say." He recalled your many complaints about the water bill, he didn't understand fully but he's glad he could use it against you.
Full Mask Invincible:
One of the only variants who actually listen to you, but tries to bargain.
He almost chokes on his own spit the moment the words leave your lips, looking away from the opponent. "What?! Y-you can't just drop that on me now!! (Name)!" He's frantically trying to get you to respond. "I can do this, I swear! Just gimme 5 minutes—"
The complaints die down when you decide to double down and tell him to bail out at once. "But—" "NOW!" And he's flying back with his tail between his legs.
He's okay with putting his ego aside for you, so he didn't have a lot of trouble ditching the pest to come to you, ultimately getting swapped out.
You felt guilty, he tugs off the mask that swallowed his entire head, letting his hair breathe as he looked down shamefully. "... look- I'm really sorry, you know I'm not used to just... giving up." He looked guilty, like he's sad he upset you.
It's only when you kiss his cheek and reassure him that he finally relaxes. "I wasn't serious, I'll take as many baths with you as you want. I'm glad you backed out when you did."
He hugs you close and although his suit was clean, he'd always come home sweaty from all the physical work, and you always smelled so sweet it makes his mouth water.
"So... you don't mind if we go bathe together now?" He didn't hide how eager he was, restraining a smug smile that almost looked shy.
Teahouse Jealousy
"He was honest about his desires. That is a swordsman who knows the shape of his soul."
~
Things have been building for a while. Mizu is happy to avoid the topic, in favor of focusing on her mission. Finding yourself exasperated, you accept some help from an unexpected source.
~~
A/N: ITS DONE, FINALLY. Fucking 7600 WORDS of slow-burn mutual pining, bad communication, and jealousy. But hey, I did manage to fit in some spice at the end, hey?
Anyway, this is my first actual fic on here, so lmk what you guys think? Should I stick to lists? :,)
WARNING: this is REALLY LONG. I'm very sorry.
TW: jealousy, mentions of murder, mentions of sex work, SPICE
For this outing, Mizu insists on the boy disguise, your least favorite. You greatly prefer it when you can pretend to be her wife (of course), or even possible meat for the flesh market–because then she plays it up, a hand on your lower back, her voice dropped to an extra raspy register. But that last one is rare; you know the cost that playing that role seems to take on her, and you don't encourage it, despite the tingles it sends up your spine.
And you certainly don't complain about the freedom the boy disguise gives you for movement. But it does limit your ability to speak, as well as blocking your ability to get close to her side…you would never admit the reason you don't like it, but your reproachful expression says enough. She huffs out a sigh.
“Nobody brings a maiden to a brothel. You'll make us look odd,” she tells you, in the tone of voice that brooks no argument.
You wilt further the second she mentions a brothel, zoning out Ringo’s anxious questions; it was bad enough clenching your fists and staying silent while those two women ran their hands over her in Kyoto; now she's actually seeking such a place out? Your stomach squirms. Kyoto, and every moment of that visit, are burned into your brain. You share a trepidatious look with Ringo. You vow not to leave her side for even a second.
~~
Your explicit instructions were to “just look flustered and don't say anything”. That's not hard. You avoid eye contact with the working girls, and stare down at the table while you all wait for Kaji. The atmosphere of sexuality is stifling; it mingles strangely in your stomach with your feelings for Mizu, leaving you feeling on-edge, paranoid about being caught out. You could almost believe that these women, of anyone, will be able to smell the desire on you at a single glance. You've got Mizu’s fingerprints denting the very clay of your soul.
Madam Kaji, when she appears, does nothing to set those fears at rest. Her voice may be melodic, but you can feel her eyes scrape over you like a razor, as if they could peel back your skin and see underneath. You do your best to mimic Mizu's flat stare; after this long traveling together, you usually manage rather well. You've even managed to shoo off a few bothersome pests of your own in the past. This time, though, there's a hard edge to her smile that makes you wonder how much slipped through.
~
For all Ringo says about an apprentice should stay with his master, you somehow seem to lose sight of him in the walk from the corner where you were sitting to the hallway Madam Kaji pauses in. You remain by Mizu’s side. You don't feel any scorn towards Ringo for this. Nobody could say he isn't as loyal as they come, but desire is a powerful force.
Desire. Need. It's why Ringo disappears, and why you don't. He has his own desires to attend to, and you can respect that. But there's nothing in this brothel that you desire more than what you're already standing next to.
Madam Kaji motions to a small pocket of light at the base of one of the hallway panels. There’s a pause. When Mizu doesn't move to look through the peephole, Madam Kaji motions in your direction. “Perhaps the gentleman's apprentice would like to show him that desire is nothing to shy away from?”
You freeze like a cornered deer, meeting her taunting gaze with wide eyes. Her expression says it all; there's a test in this somewhere, a challenge.
Where the hell is Ringo. Trust him to be gone when there's something he would actually want to do. Nevermind on that whole no-scorn thing! You're going to kick him next time you see him.
Your pleading glance at Mizu produces no reaction; she doesn't even look your way. She's simply glaring at Madam Kaji. Challenges have never bothered her; if she doesn't want to do something, she just doesn't. Ugh. Someone needs to do something.
You look through the hole.
…Hm.
Honestly…it's not that bad.
Strange, certainly. The men in ropes, the writing, but you find yourself privately siding with Madam Kaji; it's nothing shameful. Just more of what you had observed while waiting in the main teahouse room. They're not bothering anybody. You consider that there have been worse atrocities you've seen in your travels with Mizu, all the way back to your first meeting.
You shrug up at Mizu. It’s nothing she'll be interested in, nor that she needs to see. She just looks even more impatient at the delay, fingers tapping on her crossed arms. The expression she shoots at Kaji is her classic get on with it glare.
Smirking, Madam Kaji motions to the final peephole. By now, you've lost your hesitation. If you feel anything, you're relieved that this is the last one. This shuffling around on your knees is not only making them sore, it's embarrassing to do with two people standing silently over you, eyeing each other warily.
You peer in.
At first glance, it seems to be just a man and a woman–nothing so strange as the other ones. The man is dressed in dark blue, his hair tied up in a knot like Mizu’s. But then the girl turns to the man, pushing his yukata off his shoulders; it's not a man, but another girl, bared to the touch of the first woman. They kiss, bodies molding together with no hesitation.
You tumble back abruptly, eyes wide, feeling your face flush so fast that the skin on your neck is prickling.
“What? What?” Momentarily distracted from glaring, Mizu looks startled by your reaction. When you shake your head in silence, worried that explaining would give your secret away, she glares suspiciously at Madam Kaji. She's clearly bristling at your apparent distress, assuming you've had a trick played on you. She reaches down to haul you to your feet with a rough tug to your arm, shoving herself half in front of you. “What did you show-...him?”
Kaji’s eyes narrow a fraction at Mizu’s brief stumble on your pronouns, and she smiles, sharp as a knife. With a little click, she slides the peephole shut. “Desire. A complicated thing,” she murmurs in that teasing, seductive tone. “We are not always ready to face it when it first finds us.”
She slides open another full panel, revealing a pleasantly decorated little room. A couple of the girls are in there, already, setting up a table with ink and paper. They look up and giggle when they see you both, their eyes lingering on your flushed cheeks. You can feel them darken again under the scrutiny, and drop your eyes to the mat until the girls leave. When you hear the panel slide shut, you look up to see Madam Kaji’s eyes on you. As soon as you make eye contact, her gaze slide away, to Mizu.
She doesn't look at you again until the moment of Mizu’s proposal.
You both can see the moment that the refusal in Kaji’s eyes wavers, but something else flickers in their depths when she glances between you, and you know what's coming. She wants to talk to Mizu alone.
With Mizu's husky name your desire still bouncing around in your head, obliterating your every other thought but how much you want her, Kaji's desire to exclude you makes you want to bite the woman like a territorial dog. You take a half-step closer to Mizu as Kaji suggests that she take a walk with the gentleman “one-on-one”.
“Perhaps the gentleman’s apprentice would like to enjoy some of the pleasures of my teahouse while…he waits?” She asks sweetly, her smile warm and her eyes hard as gemstones.
Mizu looks at you expectantly, seemingly unbothered by this; she'd probably agree to making you wait on the roof if it got her the information she wanted. You shake your head instead, giving her a look of incredulity in return. Obviously no. When is she going to start trusting you to stay at her side? What do you have to do to prove yourself?
“I haven't got any money,” you reply cleverly, keeping your voice as hushed as you can to disguise it, your eyes flicking up to meet blue orbs like a challenge. You can't really refuse, given that you're playing at master-and-apprentice, but you can make it hard. She can't keep shutting you out. Not this time; now you have an excuse. What prostitute will keep you busy for no money?
A brief light of pure, gremlin devilment comes into her eyes–it doesn't happen often that her rare sense of play is roused, but from what you've seen, that never means good things for the recipient. You should have known better; Mizu never tolerates being maneuvered into allowing something she doesn't want.
She holds the money bag out to you with a little shake to jangle it, and you deflate visibly.
For a moment, there's an unspoken moment of confusion and communication both ways; at first, Mizu holds the money bag out with an almost teasing smirk, clearly indicating let’s see how you manage this one. She doesn't see any danger in it. You can always just sit in the room alone. She's only interested in making a point; this is about negating your excuse.
But when you slump with such an obvious air of rejection, the playfulness drops from her gaze, replaced with a bemused concern. She'll be back in a handful of minutes, why is it such a big deal? This isn’t your fight, you don't need to be here to begin with, much less be stuck with her every moment of the day. So… why does she feel such a pang at your hurt face? You in turn see the momentary flash of confused guilt in her eyes, before she drops the money bag in your hands.
It startles you. You didn't expect that she would care.
Madam Kaji, watching all this and not missing a single beat, says nothing. She claps sharply. Two girls pop out of what seems to be nowhere, taking your hand with an air of false promise in their eyes.
“Ooh. you’re a pretty one,” one purrs, tilting her head with carefully practiced flirtation.
“We almost never see any young and pretty boys,” the other concurs. It’s like being slowly engulfed by the coils of a very nicely perfumed snake. At Madam Kaji’s nod, you’re tugged away, looking over your shoulder at Mizu with a distinct air of betrayal. You fully expect her to turn away, but she keeps staring as the girls lead you back into the room, her expression unreadable.
Even after the door slides shut, she doesn’t move, listening to the giggling emanating from inside, her hand clenching unconsciously on the hilt of her sword. It takes a prompt from Madam Kaji to get her moving again. Face snapping into its usual scowl, she turns and stalks away, leaving Kaji to try and match Mizu’s longer stride in the confines of her kimono.
~
“So, pretty apprentice, what can we do?” Asks the one in green, her dark eyes sparkling as they flick to the money bag still clutched in your hand. “How can we serve your pleasure?”
As attached to Mizu as you are, you’ve never been flirted with by a woman before, and you can’t help the blush. But even that isn’t enough to distract you from the melancholy of being left behind like a pet yet again. Waiting in the cold for hours on the bridge to Shindo Dojo, left in town with Ringo in Mihonoseki, watching her leave with Taigen down that narrow chasm… You shake your head, mouth twisting in tandem with your guts. What if Mizu never comes back? You know the trick she played on Ringo; you giggled about it at the time, you recall guiltily. But you can’t track like he can, even if you’re faster than him. And if she leaves you alone for something like this, what is she planning for the actual attack on Fowler? Maybe you really are just a burden she can't figure out how to shake…
“Why so sad?” The one in gold asks, her sympathy syrupy-sweet. She puts a hand on your arm, but you shift away.
“I'm sorry,” You say, distractedly. You aren't watching your tone as well as you should be. “I would rather be alone. Thank you.”
Silence. They don't move to leave, nor do they try to further convince you. You look up from your despair after a moment, becoming aware of their lack of response.
They're both staring. Studying you. Then they look at each other.
Before you can parse why, the gold-clad girl suddenly lunges forward, catching you by the chin and jerking your chin up, staring at your neck. Your smooth, Adam's-apple-less throat.
“Hey!” You yelp, knocking her hand away; she lets you go readily, already smiling with a distinctly cat-got-the-cream air.
“So that's it,” she says, smugly. “I suspected as much.”
“Is it…?” The other asks fascinatedly. Your eyes dart between them, confused, forboding building in your gut.
“Definitely,” says the first. They both turn to you, looking amused and intrigued.
“Playing dress-up, girl?” Asks Green, smiling archly.
Oh….oh no.
You go cold. “I…I don't know what you…”
“Re-lax. You think you're the first to put on men’s clothing in here? Didn't you see the little show we put on for you?” Gold waves a hand dismissively, talking out over top of you.
“It happens all the time. So, what does your man want? To pretend you're a boy? A new flavor to try? Or some training for you?” Green cuts in, raking her eyes over you. “Is he selling you?”
“He’s–…not–...my man,” you stumble. How to even explain that tangle? Clearly they believe Mizu's disguise, if not yours. You're not about to spill any of those beans, more than you need to. “And I would never stay here.” You pause, suddenly hearing yourself, and bow apologetically. An aching heart is no reason to be rude. “Not that I mean to degrade your work. I'm sorry.”
Both women look at each other, then start to laugh. Clearly they've heard worse.
“Then why do you look so sad?” Asks Gold once her laughter has passed, and this time she sounds almost genuinely interested. She pets your hair, gentle, like an older sibling. “Come on, girl, you can tell us.”
You should just tell them to go. But the room is quiet, and warm, and clean, after months of shacks and forest camping and inns full of leering men. And gods… you're so tired. To unburden yourself to someone would be such a relief. You haven't ever been able to talk about these confusing feelings; the only confidant that you have is Ringo, and you do not trust him with that kind of conversational grenade.
Discretion is the whole point of this place right? There are far worse secrets that they must keep.
Green leans against your shoulder, and this time it feels less sensual, and more like a friendly touch. You're surprised by how it loosens a knot in your chest that you hadn't recognized until now. When was the last time you were hugged?
You sigh. “It’s a long story…”
~
As it turns out, it's a long enough story to require two pots of tea–and then a relocation, as the girls drag you back to the dressing room to re-tell all the juicy details to the rest of the girls.
It's…therapeutic, to bare your heart to a group of open-minded, half-drunk women. They’re clearly connoisseurs of gossip, and they make extremely good listeners; gasping in all the right parts. You can't help but enjoy it a little, finally just venting it all out, lounging with the ever-shifting number of girls as sake replaces the tea. Girls come and go from the room as they head to various clients, but except for one they call “new girl”, who keeps her face turned away from you, they all come over to listen for a while.
(As you're surrounded by girls, slowly explaining the tangled story of your time with Mizu, Mizu returns from her walk with Kaji to find the room empty of you.
She pauses, surprised by her own disappointment. She can't admit it to herself, but she had expected you to have shaken off the girls and be waiting for her. You're always there when she comes back. Something burns in the pit of her stomach to find you gone; after the heavy deal she just made, she has need of the comfort you bring her–not that she'd admit that to herself, either. The images of you, somewhere in the brothel at this moment, half-dressed and flustered, makes her stomach flip. But then she imagines you under some faceless nude woman and her throat tightens. She sits down with a thump in front of the mirror and removes her glasses, studying her own face critically. It must be nice for you to be seeing pretty women for once, instead of her…)
“But why him?” One finally asks, wrinkling her nose, as you pause for breath. She's in a pink kimono–you think the others might have called her Ise. “You're a pretty girl, even in disguise. You could do better. He's hardly a looker.”
Your head snaps up, frowning in offense. The girls giggle at your suddenly icy glare, all warning Ise to duck, and Ise dramatically throws her hands up in front of her defensively. “Alright, alright, don't get your sword in a knot. I'm just saying…”
A couple girls nod in agreement. “Those eyes…” one murmurs. The white-haired girl in the corner turns to glare at her as a few others titter.
“Like a demon,” another says with a shudder.
Your fingers clench against your thighs, brow darkening. “I think they're beautiful.” Your voice is quiet, but hard as stone; the girls all fall silent, looking at each other uncertainly. There's a world of emotion in your heavy tone; a sincerity that they know, better than most, is rare and precious.
It’s Ise that smiles, slowly, with a dark, wicked gleam in her eye. “Do you want an answer?” She asks you bluntly, making you forget your anger in confusion.
“To whether he wants you,” she clarifies with a sigh.
You hesitate. Do you? If the answer is no… gods, that will hurt. And you know in your heart that you won't stop holding out hope, even then. You'll stay. You'll keep loving her. So does it matter?
But what if the answer is yes?
Slowly, wordlessly, you nod, stomach clenching. Ise smiles wider, and reaches for your topknot. “I know a method that never fails.”
~
Mizu looks up when you slide the panel open a crack, brow plunged in a deep scowl.
“I said I didn't–...Oh.”
You duck your head, wordlessly apologizing, even though you’re not even sure why. She only looks marginally less annoyed, watching you come in and sit down against the wall. Ringo is there, too, and he greets you brightly, looking rather pleased with himself. His kimono is slightly askew.
“Where have you been?” Her tone is sharp, her eyes sharper, as she takes in the tousled hair and haphazardly tied clothing on you. The girls had agonized over exactly how much to tousle you. That had honestly taken up the most time.
You shrug a little sulkily, keeping your eyes down. Part of you wants to abandon the idea, now that you've gotten snapped at–is it worth the risk of antagonizing her?--while part of you is still upset at getting left behind again. But the thought of Mizu picturing you doing… that…is making you blush yet again. Ise had explained what they were going to imply you did, which gave you a mind full of images that you know will probably haunt you worse than they haunt their intended target. What if Ise was messing with you? This is never going to work, you're already botching it by getting flustered.
In your mind, your avoidance is a dead giveaway that you're being shady…but to Mizu, the tousled appearance and shamefaced blush give exactly the impression Ise planned, and her fingers clench again, until the knuckles crack. Her lips tighten and thin, but she says nothing further, turning back to the mirror with a faint huff. Silence descends, but there’s a strange tension to the air that even Ringo notices. He glances between you two, gaining the worried expression that always makes you want to immediately reassure him.
“So, how much of my money did you spend?” Mizu abruptly spits at you, as though she's finally thought of an excuse to be angry. There's an unusual amount of venom behind her tone, harsh enough that Ringo’s eyes widen and he sits up a bit straighter, while you shrink in on yourself a bit. Wordlessly, still avoiding eye contact, you reach into your haori and pull out of the money pouch, tossing it to her.
She can tell as soon as she catches it that you haven't spent a single coin. “...Hm,” she says again, heat immediately bleeding out of her voice as her expression lightens. She surveys your disheveled appearance again, quirking an eyebrow.
“So why are you–” she starts, before there's another knock at the door. The panel slides open a crack as Mizu heaves a loud sigh of exasperation, her eyes rolling.
But before she can reiterate yet again to leave her alone, two girls’ heads poke in, and they aren't looking in her direction. They're whispering and giggling, completely unprofessionally, nudging each other, and staring at you.
“That's him,” one points.
“No! Is it really…?” The other gasps.
Both Mizu and Ringo turn to look at you, mirrored looks of confusion on their faces. Your expression is that of a dog facing down a speeding horse cart, unable to move, wide eyed. You regret agreeing to this; you want to sink into the tatami.
Their next whispers turn all three of you into statues.
“Ise says she finished three times…”
“Didn't even charge him…”
“He never even undressed–”
Ringo’s eyes and mouth all drop wide open, looking avidly between you and the door. Mizu is… frozen. Her face has taken on that blank expression that you've learned has all the safety of a rumbling mountainside. You don't dare shift an inch, but you can't help but stare at her. Your eyes slide from her stricken face to her hands; they're slowly curling into fists. Is it… working?
More giggling from the hallway, and something thumps the panel. It sounds like there are more girls gathering in the hallway. Another head pokes in, gets pushed back, and more sounds of muffled tussling leaks into the room. It sounds like most of the girls in the teahouse are having a little too much fun with this; they're probably thrilled to get to act out a little.
“Don’t shove–”
“Let me see! I want a turn–”
“... haven't had an orgasm like that in forever–”
“I can't wait to have a good scream–”
Oh gods above. Your face is crimson. You should have expected that they would go straight to vulgarity. Ringo chuckles with surprised and impressed delight, thumping you on the shoulder with one wrist like a comrade. This is so embarrassing.
One of the girls, braver than the rest, managing to wrestle the others back, calls out, “Mr. Samurai, can we borrow your apprentice?” This produces an absolute cascade of giggles and more heads poke into the door again.
“Yeah, me next!”
“Only after me!”
“You don't need him tonight, right, Mr. Samurai?”
“We promise not to break him–”
Mizu finally moves, moving towards the door with a speed that actually makes your heart clench with fear for the prostitutes. They all fall back, a chorus of shrieks and yelps echoing in the hallway as she almost seems to abruptly materialize in front of them.
“We're busy.”
Oh.
Her voice is so frozen with fury that it's a miracle she doesn't breathe out icy smoke. It’s a tone you've only heard a handful of times, always followed by blood spattering across snow. You can feel that familiar twisting ache of mingled fear and arousal in your core that you've grown to associate with Mizu at her most deadly. But this time it's complicated by a second layer of blending; uncertainty–is she just irritated by these twittering women?--and hope, delicate, frail, slowly blossoming.
Is she…jealous?
She slams the panel closed hard enough that there's an ominous wood crunching noise.
Silence falls. You watch Mizu, warily, as she stands at the door, her fingers still white-knuckling the edge of the panel.
“Wow, what did you do?” Ringo demands. You turn to look at him, startled. You were so focused on Mizu's reactions that you almost forgot he was a second witness. “How does that even work?”
“U-uh…I…” Oh gods, what do you say? You didn't actually do anything! Your idea of arousing is Mizu standing over you after a spar, the tip of her sheathed sword digging into your throat, an icy, smug satisfaction in her eyes. What do normal women find titillating?
“Come on, you gotta tell me. I wanna get with prostitutes for free, too!” Ringo gives you puppy eyes. “How'd you do it without them finding out… you know.” He gestures at your clothing. “Was it your hands? Is that the secret?” He asks, holding up his wrists and looking at them worriedly, as though hoping that that isn't the answer. “Wait–” he squints at you. “Where did you even learn to do anything like that anyway–”
“No more questions.” Comes the snarl from the door.
You glance away from Ringo to Mizu.
She's still got her back to the room. Her shoulders are drawing up in a hard hunch, free hand clenching tight again. The rumbling from the mountain is getting louder. You're not sure whether you should be exulting that she actually seems bothered, or be worried about the upcoming danger if she pops. She's not usually the type to explode, but when she does…
You both fall silent, watching as her shoulders heave in one deep, steadying sigh, before she finally turns around. Her face is composed, back to its usual resting glare, and you feel a bit let down. Maybe she just found it all annoying. All that, for no real answers…
Ringo stays quiet long enough for Mizu to return to her seated position by the mirror, but you can see him fidgeting. Before long, he leans over closer to you. His voice is hushed, trying to be discreet. For Ringo.
“So was it a tongue thing, or–”
THUNK. Mizu’s fist strikes the lap table hard, hard enough to upset the elegant centerpiece. You both jump and turn to look at her, freezing in place.
“If you want to know so badly, go ask them yourself.” Every syllable burns, blue eyes blazing.
Ringo, undeterred as ever, leaps to his feet. “I will!” He chirps, padding quickly over to the door. There, he pauses, bowing to Mizu. “Thank you for the permission, Master.”
Mizu watches him leave, her glare never wavering. After the door shuts, she snaps her gaze back to you. Your heart beats a little faster, as ever, feeling that little tingle that comes with getting her focused attention.
“You.” She jabs a finger at you; you flinch. “You. Don't. Leave this room again tonight. And nobody but Ringo comes in. Got it?”
Oh gods, she's jealous, she has to be, she's actually–
Now probably isn't the time to be cheeky and point out that she didn't put herself on that list. You nod. You've never been so happy to be glared at before. She wants me here. With her.
“Of course,” you say. “That's fine.”
Her glare softens at your voice.
You can see the way her eyes flick to your mouth as you form the words, and your heart flutters again. It's real, it must be, oh gods above– no way that this is happening, no way– You open your mouth again, unsure what else to say, but wanting to reassure her, to tell her that here is the only place you want to be. But before you can do that, there's a knock at the door again.
Mizu’s eyes blaze. She actually growls this time, turning towards the door with the feral speed of the truly enraged.
“I said we're busy,” she snarls, whipping the door panel open hard enough that it rattles the entire wall.
You see her freeze, as a soft, delicate voice rings through the room. “May I serve you?”
A pit suddenly opens in your stomach at the absolute stillness in Mizu’s posture. Even from behind you can tell she's staring at the girl’s face. The voice is so pure, so sweetly feminine that you can picture the kind of face it must belong to; a perfect doll, sparkling eyes, symmetrical features, neat teeth behind full, petal-soft lips. No blemishes, no scars, no days of sweat and greasy hair after too long on the road. Your heart twists; finally, finally Kaji has found someone perfect enough to take even Mizu’s breath away, and your chance with her is gone.
Is this how your little trick made her feel? This pain in your chest must be karma come knocking. The second you're away from this brothel, you’re coming clean; you can always say they just wanted to prank her. But you won't leave her believing it truly happened. No more of this back-and-forth of jealousy–if it ever was that on her end.
But then maybe she won't care by then. And I would deserve that. This pain is wrong, it was wrong to bait her because you were too cowardly to be honest about your feelings. She may have given you moments of jealousy before but they were never intentional. And now–
Mizu takes a step away, turning away from the girl towards you as she walks back to her previous seat. Her expression makes you pause on your internal journey of self-pity. It isn't lovestruck, or lustful. Not a flicker of a blush; she's all business. Her eyes seek yours out, a split-second look that you know all too well. The look that comes with a new, unexpected layer of trouble.
Your eyes flick towards the girl, now revealed as she steps into the room. She's as lovely as her voice would have suggested, tiny, exquisitely made up. But it's not your accurate prediction of her perfection that makes you freeze just as Mizu had. It's that you know her, from that bridge in Kyoto. As before, your every memory of that trip is seared in.
You don't dare try to catch Mizu’s eye again; this might be a problem, but for the moment, the girl clearly doesn't realize her hand has been revealed.
Just like that, the jealousy and pining take a backseat, as they so often have on this shared journey. Once again, you and Mizu are a united front, dealing with a new threat.
And through the chaos that quickly devolves around you, clarity comes to you. You didn't need to play this charade. All this time, all the worrying about who feels what, when that look Mizu shot you a moment ago says it all. In the moment where things got serious, upset with you or not, she trusted you to understand immediately. In the moment of trouble, she looked towards you.
–
When she comes back from her mysterious task, you're waiting in the hallway, too restless to stand Ringo’s chatter and Akemi’s sniping. Akemi had heard it all, of course, in the women’s dressing room, and she wasn't going to pass up an opportunity to needle you, since she couldn't seem to needle Mizu effectively. You don't doubt she'll blurt the whole sorry tale out to Mizu at her first opportunity, and standing in the dark in the hall leaves you with little to do but fret about that.
It hasn't been as long as you would have expected, when she comes back.
You look up at the quiet footfall, and pause, heart clenching at the sight of her face in the shadowy hall. Mizu pauses, too, stopping a little distance away from you, as if afraid to get too close. She's carrying her hat under her arm, and her face looks…gods. You've seen her furious, cold, exhausted, conflicted, even amused.
This is something else, something worse than anything you've ever seen. She looks bereft, hollowed out, her eyes staring ahead as though looking at some horror no one else can see.
In that moment, you move without thought of rejection. Something in her face just calls to you, more deeply than words, drawing you together like magnets.
You push off the wall and step up to meet her.
“Mizu…?” You keep your voice as soft as you can. She doesn't raise her eyes. Instead, you can see the lids lower until they fall shut.
Slowly, you reach up to cup her face; you expect her to push your hand away, but you would have tried anyway. It’s your heart reaching out to touch hers in the only way you can, and it cannot be suppressed. In this moment, even though it's the closest you've ever been, you're not thinking about wanting her, only wanting to soothe her. Strange that your first moment of deeper intimacy should come from this clear pain, surrounded by the trappings of lust itself.
She doesn't fight you. When you bring your hands to the sides of her head, slowly pulling the glasses away, she lets you guide her face down to you, until her head is resting heavily against your shoulder. Her arms remain at her sides, hanging limp. When your hands cradle her head, her hair, she shudders violently for a second with a little choke, remembering the way she cradled another head, and then subsides.
You stand that way for a long time, in utter silence, utter stillness. The only movement is a very faint shivering that suffuses her frame. She's breathing slowly, with an exaggerated evenness as though deliberately forcing herself to do so. Your mind is racing; what on earth could have produced such a response?
Mizu… what did you do.
You already know you aren't going to ask, and make her relive it. Maybe someday, if she wants to unburden herself… but it doesn't matter now. It doesn't really matter at all; you know there's very little you wouldn't forgive her for. And you could see the regret in her eyes, that no matter what heinousness produced this, she feels no peace in the aftermath.
“It was a girl.” You can barely hear her.
“What?”
“I killed a girl tonight.”
Your heart constricts at her quiet voice. She says it tonelessly, unemotional, but you can feel her shoulders tensing under your hands. To her, this is the moment; you, seeing the monster that she is, pulling away, refusing further comfort.
“A girl?”
A faint shift of her head against your shoulder that might be a nod. A chill runs through you; she feels your shudder and braces for the shove, the exclamation of horror.
“Was it…necessary?” You ask slowly, instead, trying to understand. You've never known Mizu to kill an innocent before. There must have been a reason.
You can feel the way the question strikes her, unexpected. When was the last time anyone asked her about why she does what she does?
“...I don't know,” she says bleakly, her voice cracking.
Another long silence; the shoulders grow even more tense. She almost seems to stop breathing. You turn your face to her hair, silently, and feel her body go loose again. There's nothing you can say to fix this; only offer your steady presence.
“... Thank you.” This time the voice has a hoarse, shaky edge. You make a questioning noise, your fingers stilling. You hadn’t realized you'd been stroking her hair.
“For not…pulling away.” Her voice is growing quieter and quieter with each word; she turns her face harder into your shoulder, as though she can hide her vulnerability along with her face. “For not… thinking ill of me.”
“Never.” Your whisper is vehement, your fingers tightening against the back of her head.
“You should.”
You pause; the contrast of her gratitude and disapproval flummoxes you for a moment. You have no recourse but to be honest.
“I knew what this path would be when I chose to follow. I will not reject you for following your ember.”
You're shocked to hear a faint sniffle before she straightens, and even more shocked to feel wetness cooling on your shoulder. She hadn’t made a single sound of weeping; not a sob, not a hitch of breath. You saw no tear slide down her face.
Her expression is a different story; as stoic as ever but for those red-rimmed, haunted eyes. She’s still staring into the middle distance, unfocused. At the sight of her, your resolve snaps; you blurt it out. You can't fix this pain killing her inside now; you can only right the wrong you had done earlier.
“It didn't happen.”
“Mm…?” she looks at you, finally, but it's as if she is seeing someone else.
“The… the girls,” you stumble on your words for a moment. You want to be honest about what happened, but now doesn’t feel like the time to confess love, not when she's so wreathed in this empty sadness. You settle on, “I didn't do anything with them.”
She blinks, starts to focus a tiny bit. “Then they-…and you never…”
You shake your head.
She blinks, then blinks again. She doesn't look immediately relieved, at least not straightforwardly, but she looks strangely more alert. It's as if the weight on her shoulders was heavier, but it was a weight she was more willing to tolerate. Her brow pinches as she seems to think of something.
“I'm…sorry you had to look through those holes,” she says finally, staring down at your feet. Her voice is soft, barely above a breath. “You're… not meant to see all of this.”
“It wasn't so bad,” you reassure her. “I can handle it.”
She shakes her head impatiently.
“This isn't how you should be seeing…I'm…supposed to–…” She stops, looking confused by her own words. You stare at her in surprise. Supposed to what? Protect me? That would be a departure indeed from her constant insistence that you are here of your own free will, that she isn't responsible for you, that she isn't your protector… and so on.
You laugh a little, warmly. It's not funny, any of this, but there's a tiny bubble of something warm glowing in your chest, something that feels as though it's solidified between you, and the icy wall of uncertainty that plagues your every step has begun to trickle away.
“I can protect myself now, thanks to you,” you murmur, ducking your head a little to try to meet her gaze as she hangs her head. The next words are hard to say, but you want her to hear them. “And, truly…I don't think there's a better place in all of Japan than next to you.”
She looks up at you, eyebrows quirking up in surprise; it's the last sentiment she would expect to hear from anyone right now. The eye contact in this moment is lightning-sharp; a myriad of emotions run through her gaze, her face twitching through what looks like guilt, shame… and then a deeper, aching longing. The potency is as intense as every other emotion in her, and it arrests your very breathing.
You know. In that moment, you know; the trickle becomes a meltwater flood, soaking warmth through your ribcage. You’re pulled into the undertow of ocean eyes that glow in the cocooning darkness.
Her lips press together tightly as her eyes flick to your mouth as they did once, hours so. She looks suddenly lost; too emotionally overwhelmed by the events of the night to keep her walls up any longer. Distraction, validation, reassurance… human weaknesses she normally scoffs at. Tonight, her last rest before Fowler, before possible death, she'll let herself be human. She will seek comfort from someone that will touch her like she isn't a monster, confirm to herself that she can be capable of love, softness. That after her revenge, a happy life could be possible for her.
“I'm glad–...” her voice hitches as she leans closer to you, then sways back again, uncertainly. In the dark, her blush doesn't show, but the flustered expression is enough to make your heart suddenly race. “I'm glad that… you didn't. With them.”
You can't breathe. Your heart is in your throat; its rabbiting beat is making you shake so strongly with adrenaline that you have to force your teeth not to chatter. You've been waiting for so long, with never the slightest inkling of hope…
“...I am, too.” In the intimate darkness surrounding you, your whisper feels loud. Her gaze focuses in like a beam of burning light; your own expression says everything.
This time she steps closer again without flinching, and you feel like you might pass out. The hesitant look flickers across her again for a moment, before her brow suddenly furrows. You have a half second to recognize the familiar look of determination that precedes every risky move before there's a long fingered hand curling around your nape, and a pair of thin, sculpted lips on yours.
Oh.
It's as though every muscle in your body melts away in an instant. The second you lean into it with enthusiasm, you’re enveloped; her arms are like iron, clutching you tight. It's every bit as mind-numbing as you had fantasized; the taste of her lips is tea and copper, blood-hot as her tongue slips against yours. Mizu does nothing halfway. She kisses like she fights; overpowering, ruthless, clever and swift. Every twitch of reaction is caught and dragged free of you again and again as that famous adaptability is turned on you and achieving your pleasure. Her hands roam restlessly, mapping over the lines of your body, prompting a squeak when they suddenly squeeze tight, nails dimpling your flesh, before sliding on. You hope that every time her fingers sink in, there's a mark you'll see tomorrow, until she's littered every inch of your skin.
Your mingled breaths are loud in the silence of the hall. Your own hands are in her hair, slipping down her neck, reveling in the shift of the muscles in her shoulders; you can touch her now, you can touch her, she's kissing you, she wants you, gods above–
“Mizu…” You can't stop the soft whine, muffled by her lips; it thrills you to feel her shudder in response to it, her arms tightening around you with a hushed groan. The hand at the back of your neck grasps a hank of your hair like a handle, tugging your head to the side with accidental roughness. The pain sparks like flint against the heat building between your thighs, flaring it to a roar. Your little hiss is choked off by a gasp as she buries her face in your neck and inhales you, deep and greedy, indulging herself, before biting down hard on the soft skin below your ear.
Your grip on her shoulders tightens with a bitten-back cry, lust shooting through you like a grassfire. It runs molten between your thighs, softening your legs until your knees buckle–swift as an arrow, your world spins.
Your spine thumps into the support beam, her front molded to yours as she pins you against it; you can feel her heartbeat pattering against her bindings, the sharpness of her hipbones against your belly. Everything in your body pulses with one hard beat of desire; it thuds from your throat to your fingertips every time you hear that harsh inhale of her panting through her nose between kisses, the soft grunts of response to each slide of tongue and teeth. You don't notice your haori part until cool fingers slip along your ribcage. You flinch with a gasp, your back arching wanton and shameless into the touch. The husky chuckle at your ear makes your core throb so hard it hurts.
Your thighs tangle together without a care to your surroundings. “Ngh–” Another desperate, muffled groan vibrates against the side of your throat when you press your leg up between hers. Her hips spasm and buck, her groan fracturing into something soft and needy–“ah-...ahh”--breath puffing faster over your skin; there's a searing softness pressing against your thigh, already damp through the thick fabric of her pants. In response, the lean muscle of her own leg presses up between yours, hiking you higher against the wall until you’re spread across it, your own weight bearing you down against it with a cruel pressure to the very source of your ache. As you’re yanking her hair free with a high-pitched moan of her name–
The soft sssh-thnk of a door panel makes you both freeze.
“Master? Are you out here? I heard–...oh.”
Mizu slowly raises her head from your neck as you turn your head. Is this how you die? Of embarrassment?
Ringo’s eyes are like saucers; behind him, the faint sound of Akemi protesting spills out into the hallway as the three of you stare at each other in silence. “What? What is it? Ringo? Hey! Untie me! Let me see!”
Ringo opens his mouth, then closes it again. A wide, delighted grin slowly spreads over his face. Without another word, he slowly leans back into the room, shutting the panel behind him.
You both stare at the door for a minute. Akemi's complaints can still be heard from inside. Then you look at each other.
You giggle first, trying to stifle it, horrified at yourself as it bubbles free. “Sorry, s-sorry–” you hiss, more giggles escaping you, edged almost hysterical. It's not funny, at all, but you can't seem to stop.
Mizu watches you, perplexed at first, her mouth twitching as though she's not sure whether she should be laughing with you, or not. Finally she just sighs, too exhausted to give a damn, leaning her head on your shoulder again. This time you don't hesitate to wrap your arms around her, nuzzling into her hair as her own arms curl around you tightly.
It's not okay, nothing is okay, but, this… this is good.
Into the silence, a woman screams.
You’ll be getting a lot more than serotonin if werewolf Steve knots you buddy 😉
i just want him to be unprepared and unready for it so he half freaks out when he can't pull out, but the other half of him that's experiencing pure bliss just overwhelms him entirely and makes it impossible to even think of worrying about it. and as soon as he softens up enough to move and he's flooded your poor hole with cum, he's immediately thinking of diving back in and soothes your aching walls with his fingers to prep you for another breeding session he has waiting in the wings. because fuck, it was a little scary, but whatever that was that he did he wants to do it again.
hiii :3 i had a request on something angsty if you do that 😭 im super into mouthwashing too and love daisuke :333
enough yapping, but if you could do a thingy when it's between the 'hours of judgement' and everyone is dying... ermm, the reader dies a little before daisuke, do whatever you want for the death.
If not, then something fluff and just general dating hcs for daisuke 🥲🥲
HOPE YOU HAVE A GOOD DAY OR NIGHTT !!!! 😘
p.s you can ignore this if it's too much ^^
Nine hours before judgement.
Jimmy's not right.
4 months have passed since the crash, and nobody's gotten happier. Hell, everyone's drunk most of the time. It's hard to feel optimistic when you're shitfaced and hungry. And Jimmy's only been getting more... unlike himself.
Daisuke feels things are a little better with you by his side, at least. It's embarrassing to say it out loud, so he doesn't. He, instead, shows it through other means.
"Other means," as in moving his makeshift bed next to yours. "Other means" as in sharing his meager food rations and extra sugar packets with you. "Other means" as in refusing to leave your side.
But Jimmy's still been getting worse. To the point where he's been blowing up at every crew member once or twice a day, yelling in their faces and looking like he's about to blow a fuse. Anya's got yelled at twice this week, Swansea once, and Jimmy outright refuses to acknowledge Daisuke and his mess-ups at this point.
It's grating to watch. But Daisuke can't do much against the now-captain of this ship.
At the moment, you two are sitting on your now makeshift beds, sharing a bottle of mouthwash. You’re in the process of getting drunk again, and Daisuke is definitely tipsy at this point. He has a bit of a laughable tolerance considering how much the crew has been drinking recently. He’s currently slumped against the wall, brown eyes hazy with a warm smile stretched across his lips.
“Y’know… the ship’s always been so cold. I need someone to warm me uuuuup.” He nudges you, and you can’t help but laugh. “Stop that. Your pickup lines don’t work just because you’re drunk.” He huffs, leaning his head against your shoulder.
“You’re no fun.”
“I’ll be more fun if you don’t drink all the mouthwash in one go. Lemme have some.” Daisuke hands you the mouthwash, lacing his other hand with yours and brushing his thumb over your knuckles absentmindedly, sending a shiver up your spine. He notices your reaction and smiles slightly.
“Sensitive.”
“Be quiet.”
He laughs airily, watching you as you drink, hazel eyes fixed on how the orange from the fake, cracked sky lights you up so prettily. He’s so fixated on the sight of it that he doesn’t even realize he’s said it out loud. You turn to him, a little embarrassed from the intense adoration in his eyes. “...you think I’m pretty?”
Daisuke blinks, then smiles. He’s drunk. He has to be. “...I do. You’re really pretty.” And thorough he stumbles on the word pretty, you can feel the weight to them. It makes you swallow hard, breaking eye contact.
“...you’re drunk.”
“So are you.”
You huff slightly, eyes fixed on the bottle in front of you, only a few drops left now. You mumble, a soft smile on your lips. “...You’re very sweet when you’re drunk.” Daisuke grins, squeezing your hand.
“Must've been the sugar packets.”
Daisuke doesn't know how you haven't figured out he really likes you yet. Every time he gets tipsy from the mouthwash, he says something stupid that gives him away. And every time, you never say a thing about it.
But he's just happy to have you as a friend. At least, he thinks he's happy about it. But whatever. He's too tipsy to ponder it right now. He just wants to keep his head on your shoulder and your hand in his for now.
Eight hours before judgement.
Daisuke has now pulled you over to the couch and the board game table, having convinced you to finally finish the game the crew started before the crash. He’s playing both his and Anya’s pieces, and you’re playing Curly’s and your pieces. Through your drunken haze, you get a vague sense he’s letting you win. But you swallow down the rush of happiness it gives you and instead focus on beating his ass.
As you play, you share your wired headphones with Daisuke, which are connected to an old MP3 player with hundreds of songs downloaded on it. They’re your only surviving possessions from the crash. You hum along to one of the songs as you capture one of his pieces, smiling triumphantly as you turn to face him.
“Ha! You suck at this, Daisuke.”
“I do not!” He retorts back petulantly, crossing his arms and barely managing to hide his smile. Both of you are drunk by now, too giggly to notice how close you two are like this. He takes his turn, accidentally knocking over a piece with his clumsy hands. He scowls slightly, fixing his mistake.
He doesn't seem to notice how you stare fondly at the little crease between his brows as he fumbles with the little pieces.
You’re so distracted that you don’t hear Jimmy approach behind you. So distracted that you only become aware of his presence when he yanks the headphones out of both of your ears, causing the two of you to flinch at the slight flash of pain at the sensation.
You twist in your seat to look at Jimmy, reflexes slow with the mouthwash. He looks pissed as he roughly stuffs the headphones and the MP3 in his pocket. You immediately protest.
“Jimmy-? What the hell are you doing with my headphones?”
“You two were hired for a reason, weren’t you?”
You and Daisuke share a bewildered look, thought processes slowed with the alcohol. Daisuke mumbles, eyes narrowing. “...huh?”
Jimmy’s face twists, running a hand through his already disheveled hair. “You two have jobs. Internships. Whatever. But you have actual things to do around here, yeah? Instead of sitting around on your asses all fucking day?” His voice is biting, edged with barely-hidden rage. Yuo stand up a little unsteadily.
“We’re taking a break. What else do you want us to do?”
“Fucking try to get us off this ship. I feel like I’m the only one here who’s trying to fix things and get shit done! You two have done jackshit for this entire operation.” Jimmy’s getting louder, hands twitching at his sides.
“Jimmy, we can’t do anything but survive at this point. We can’t clear the foam without risking dying, we already opened the cargo hold, we’re already rationing to hell and back– there’s nothing we can fucking do at this point. So stop berating us like we’re kids and give me back my headphones.” The alcohol has made you way more unafraid to talk back to Jimmy, slightly slurring your way through it. Daisuke glances at you, a little surprised at your words. Makes him smile a little bit.
Jimmy just stares at you a moment longer, face unreadable. He turns around and stalks off, leaving you and Daisuke in silence. You splutter, stumbling around the couch and after Jimmy. “What the-? You can’t just- give me back my headphones!”
“Wait! Hold on.”
Daisuke calls out after you, still on the couch. He’s still a little hazy from the alcohol, but Jimmy’s whole deal sobered him up somewhat. “You sure it’s worth it? He's just gonna yell at you like crazy.”
You huff slightly, eyes still fixed on the hallway Jimmy disappeared in. “I need those headphones. They’re the only things I have on this stupid ship.”
And before Daisuke can try to change your mind, you’re off chasing Jimmy down the hall. His protest dies on his lips, a strange feeling in the back of his mind. Something feels off about this. He sighs softly, slowly turning back to the game board. He absentmindedly knocks over one of your pieces.
Meanwhile, you’re stumbling down the hall, fueled by drunken pettiness and a need to get your damn headphones back. You finally catch sight of Jimmy turning a corner into a room, grumbling about something nonsensical. You quickly step into the room before the door slides closed behind the two of you.
The room was heavily wrecked from the crash, it looks like. It used to hold spare parts for the ship, all of which were thrown around and mangled in the crash. The wall paneling is all jagged, support beams sticking out at strange angles. Metal debris litters the ground. In the middle of it all, Jimmy stands there, hands shoved in his pockets, breathing heavily.
You speak, voice cold. “Give them back.”
Jimmy jolts, torn from his thoughts. He scowls, answering simply. “No.”
You’re left in silence for a long moment, stuck staring right in his eyes. Anger bubbles up in your chest. You can’t help the bitter scoff that leaves your lips, hissing through gritted teeth. “What the hell is your problem with me?”
“I don’t have a problem with you. You’ve simply stopped doing things on this ship. You’re lazy. You’re just waiting to rot away and die here-”
“There’s nothing we can do! We’re fucked, Jimmy!” You step forward, the anger of speaking to him burning the back of your throat now.
“There's always something you can do! You’re the useless one on this goddamn team. So fucking pathetic.” The way he chews on his words, the way he’s been so volatile this past week, the way he’s got the one thing you own in his possession– your next biting remark is a manifestation of drunken thoughts and reckless frustration.
“Fuck you. I know what you did to Anya.”
And you swear you see Jimmy’s eyes change.
Seven hours until judgement.
Daisuke hasn’t seen you since you disappeared down that hall to go talk to Jimmy. That strange feeling in his chest hasn’t gone away. In fact, it’s only gotten worse. The alcohol has worn off by this point, leaving him with a slight headache and an itch for water the ship doesn’t have. He sighs, head lolling back to lean against the couch.
After a long, long moment, he decides to go bug Anya to get his mind off you. He slips off the couch, walking over to the medical room and humming one of the songs he was listening to with you earlier.
But when he tries to open the door, it’s locked. He tries again, only for it to stay, unbudging. He calls out.
“Yo, Anya? You okay in there? Did you get stuck or something?”
There’s no response from inside. This doesn’t help his weird anxiety in the slightest. He tries at the door again, to no avail.
“Anya! Are you okay?”
No answer. He backs away slowly, before taking off jogging down the hall.
“I’m gonna get help, okay? I’ll be back!”
And as he rounds one corner, then another, he crashes straight into the guy he was looking for– Jimmy, who looks… odd. More disheveled. A strange red mark on his jaw. Breathing hard for no reason. And even though you were the last one with Jimmy… there's no sight of you around.
Daisuke stumbles back from the impact, taking in his appearance. Something twinges in his chest. Something isn’t right. Something isn’t right. “Jimmy! Hey, uh, there’s a problem at the medbay right now, but, uh, where'd… where’d they go?”
Jimmy’s eyes flash with something indiscernible before he masks it with a scowl, walking past Daisuke. He grumbles.
“I don’t know.”
Daisuke watches him go, standing there for a moment, eyes fixed on Jimmy’s back. He may be stupid sometimes, but he's not dumb. He turns the opposite direction, going where Jimmy came from. He needs to find you.
Seven and a half hours until judgement.
You see the way your words hit Jimmy, and with your alcohol muddled mind, you take it and run, voice rising. “I’m about two seconds away from going out there and telling them what a monster you are.”
Jimmy only seems to get more panicked, stepping forward, his voice quieting and getting more intense.
“No, you won’t. You’re not gonna tell them. Nobody would believe you.”
You sneer, stopping forward to match him. “They would. You aren’t some angel they have blind faith in. Swansea might even try to kill you.”
Jimmy’s face darkens, and you feel a twinge of fear in your gut at the look in his eyes. You get this gut feeling to run. But you don’t, even as he grabs your wrists in a vice-like grip, preventing you from stepping towards the door. He hisses, getting uncomfortably close to your face.
“Shut up. Shut up. They aren’t going to. Because you’re not going to tell anyone. Not a single fucking word.”
You feel that fear roar to life with his jerky, desperate movements. You try to pull away, fighting the longer he holds on, that drunken fire slowly leaving your eyes. “Let go of me. I just want my headphones.”
“No– stop struggling– say you aren’t going to tell anyone.” His face twists in anger as his grip tightens on your wrists. Panic fills your eyes. He’s not right. In a desperate move, you somehow manage to shove him off you, sending him back into a wall– hard. You stand there, watching as he straightens up, his eyes almost demented.
You feel a chill go through your body. You back away towards the door, hand gripping the handle.
“I’m telling them.”
You whip around, about to take off running when he grabs your arm and rips you backward, yelling as he shoves back into the room and shutting the door with a slam. “No!”
You shriek, adrenaline taking over as you whip around and punch him hard in the jaw, trying to get away. But he gets your elbow again and pulls you back with a strained grunt, throwing you to a jagged wall. You feel the ripped up metal scratch at your skin through your clothes, bruising you slightly. He’s just about to grab your wrists again when you knee him right in the crotch, sending him reeling.
You stumble past him, breathing hard. You should have left earlier. Fear rockets through your veins, sobering you up more than anything else ever could have. You trip on metal debris littering the floor, quickly scrambling to your feet as best as you can.
Jimmy is desperate. No one needs to know what he did, he can’t let them know, he can’t let you tell anyone, you can’t tell anyone, you can’t, you can’t–
He sees a jagged metal pole sticking out of the wall, the end sharp and lethal if touched. He doesn’t think. He can’t think. He only does.
So he stops you right as you reach the door and he shoves you right into the rebar. There’s a sickening squish and a strangled gasp.
There's a long, long moment of silence, the only sound being your strained breathing. The world seems to go still.
Your hand slowly, shakily comes up to your stomach, feeling the now-bloodied end of the metal pole sticking right out of your stomach.
Impaled.
Jimmy stumbles back as you choke on blood that rises up in your throat, leaking out of the corner of your mouth. You can only watch wordlessly, as he just leaves you in the dark, shutting the door behind him.
Six hours and fifty minutes until judgement.
Daisuke has checked every single room you could’ve been in. All the other rooms are foamed up or unusable, no reason for you to be in there. He paces the halls, his chest tightening with each lap around the ship. He should’ve found you by now.
He goes past Swansea guarding the foamed up utility room, snoring loudly in his chair. He doesn’t even pay any mind to the Polle posters decorating the walls.
He reaches the same dead end with no sign of you, and he curses under his breath. Why hasn’t he found you yet? You have to be here. You have to–
He hears the sound of a weak, barely-there call for help. Muffled by a door or a wall or something. His heart picks up. He checks door by door, even the foamed up rooms to find you. And on the fourth door, he enters a dark room.
He can hear the sound of something dripping and the faint, pained breathing of someone. The light from the doorway lights up the edge of a puddle of dark red, thick and viscous.
The lights flicker on. His heart drops.
You’re barely standing, legs having gone numb, only held up by the rusty, blood-soaked metal pole going through your stomach. Your clothes are soaked red from the waist down, gathering in a puddle beneath you. You breathe weakly, eyes wide and teary as they meet his.
Is this hell? Is he imagining this? This can’t be real. You can’t be… this can’t…
His body finally reacts, stumbling forward, legs like lead. He doesn’t know what to do, how to help– he’s shaking, hands hovering over you, unsure of how to help you in this condition. He doesn’t even realize he’s rambling, panicked.
“No, no, nononono– shitshitshit what- what happened? Oh– oh my god, there’s so much blood, I don’t– I’m not– ”
You cough up more blood into your cold hand, the sound wet and painful. Your whole body lurches forward with the effort, trembling hard as pain radiates like molten lava from your wound. Daisuke sees you weaken once the coughing stops, quickly holding your face in his hands and hurriedly whispering to you.
“Nononono– don’t– don’t close your eyes, o-okay? I- I’m gonna fix th- fix this. You’re gonna be okay.”
He can’t tell if he’s saying it more to himself or you. You slump forward, your head resting on his shoulder. Everything’s so cold. Black edges at your vision, but you fight through it to speak weakly in his ear.
“...y’ found me.”
Daisuke nods, trying to keep his breathing steady so he can figure out a way to fix this. He smiles half-heartedly, setting his hands on your shoulders, hands warm against your cold skin.
“Y- Yeah. I did. I always do.”
And through the pain that lights up your body with every breath in, every twitch, through the numbness that swallows your legs and hands, through the chill of blood loss– you smile softly into his shoulder, eyes fluttering shut. He’s always been the one to keep you calm.
He’s always been the one for you. The one who you would’ve gone crazy without on this ship. The one who’s made you smile since the day you met him, the one who’s shared his secrets and sugar packets unabashedly with you. You feel your heart warm.
You mumble quietly, a hazy confession you knew you should’ve made a long, long time ago. You know you don’t have much time for this, anyway.
“...’m in love with you.”
And at that small, weak confession from you, Daisuke tears up. Because for the person he’s grown so close to, the person he’s loved, to be reduced to this? He wanted to confess a week or two from now. Not like this. Never like this. He sniffles, pressing his face to your shoulder as he wraps his arms gently, ever so gently around you.
“Don’t- don’t say it like that,” he manages to get out, voice choked and broken, “Don’t say it like- like it’s goodbye– you’re gonna be okay, I swear–”
The feeling in your body is receding fast. Your eyes flutter shut, breath coming in shallow little inhales, the pain fading to a cold ache in the pit of your chest. You whisper, words uncoordinated with the blood loss.
“L-Live. Please. Get off this sh-ship. ‘n don’t- don’t trust Jimmy.”
Daisuke can’t help but let out a choked sob at the sound of those words, hugging you tighter. He doesn’t want you to go. He can’t. He can’t do this without you. And as childish as he sounds, he speaks quietly into your shoulder.
“I don’t want you to go.”
Somehow, you manage to come up with the strength to run a hand through his hair, the feeling dulled by the numbness. You can feel static start to take over your vision, your hearing, all your senses. Your time is up. Quietly, you whisper, focusing on the lingering warmth he’s always brought you.
“...’m sorry.”
And with a strained exhale and a slight shudder–
You go limp.
Six hours until judgement.
Daisuke doesn’t know how long he spent in that room crying. How much time he spent cleaning the blood from your features, trying to warm your hands, brushing your hair back from your face.
In his head, he justifies it by saying he wanted to make sure that whoever finds this ship will see you for who you were. Not just an impaled corpse.
He really just wanted to feel you one last time.
But when he stumbles back into the lounge, he’s met with Jimmy brewing a mocktail, pouring in something he can’t see. Jimmy sees the blood on Daisuke’s shirt, his red eyes.
He pays it no mind, voice gruff. No remorse.
“Daisuke. I need your help with the utility room. You’re gonna help me get Anya out.”
evil smile. hope u liked this took me way longer than I thought but I guess it's because I'm a yapper LMFAOOAO
btw expect some daisuke relationship headcanons soon. much love to the daisuke lovers. okay bye
dating a civilian
The meeting had been dragging on for too long, and Mark was already exhausted. Missions, responsibilities, the weight of being Invincible—it was all piling up. But when Eve made her comment, all of that faded into the background.
"Mark, I just don’t get it," Eve said, crossing her arms. "You’re risking too much by being with a civilian. You know that, right? She can’t keep up with you. She can’t fight. She’s vulnerable."
Mark’s jaw clenched. He slowly turned to face her, his usual easygoing expression hardening into something unreadable.
"You think I don’t know that?" His voice was quieter than usual, but firm. The room went still.
Eve hesitated. "I just mean… You live in different worlds. What happens if she gets hurt because of you? Or worse? You should be with someone who understands what it means to be a hero."
Mark let out a sharp breath, his fists clenching at his sides. "You don’t get to decide that for me, Eve. I love her. And yeah, she doesn’t have powers, but that doesn’t mean she’s weak. She’s stronger than you think."
"Mark—"
"No," he cut her off. "She takes care of me. After every fight, every mission, every time I come home half-dead, she’s the one who patches me up. She’s the one who holds me when I feel like I’m falling apart. She makes me want to be better, not just as Invincible, but as a person. And you think she’s not enough just because she doesn’t have powers? That’s bullshit."
Eve frowned, clearly taken aback by the force behind his words. "I just… I worry about you."
"Then trust me to make my own choices," Mark said, his voice softer but no less determined. "I know what I’m doing. And I’m not going to let anyone make me doubt that."
The room was silent. No one else dared to speak. Mark exhaled slowly, shaking his head before turning away, ready to leave. "I’m done here."
When he got home that night, he didn’t say anything at first—he just wrapped his arms around you, holding you close, breathing you in. You could feel the tension in his body, the weight of the conversation still lingering on his shoulders.
"Mark? What’s wrong?"
He buried his face in your neck, his voice a little rough. "Nothing. Just… I love you."
You smiled softly, running your fingers through his hair. "I love you too. Always."
He pulled back just enough to meet your eyes, his gaze full of determination and something fiercer—something protective. "No one gets to tell me that I shouldn’t be with you. No one."
And you knew, without a doubt, that he meant every word.
gojo’s daughter doesn’t know her mom. she’s never been around, nor does she want to be around. there’s been a few feeble attempts of her trying to get in contact with emi, but they all came up short, always ending in tears while gojo tries to console her in the walmart parking lot where her mother was supposedly going to pick her up.
this is a strange predicament, consoling emi in her bed while gojo was outside cursing out her mother on the phone. somehow, emi’s mother found gojo’s facebook account where he often posted pictures of the three of you, whether it’s at the pumpkin patch or just a simple run to target, he documented everything. she was angry, jealous even, that you were more suitable to be a mother to her child than she was, that she loved you more, because that all she’s ever known. so when she came across these photos, she was livid, posting nasty comments that were all alike in hatred.
he was livid, how dare she speak like this? as if he went behind her back, as if she’s ever been there for emi the way you have. “are you fucking kidding me? you’ve never been there for her, y/n has, she’s basically y/n’s child! you selfish little..” he hesitated. how could he speak like this to someone he once loved? well, he loved her enough to make a baby with her, but she didn’t love either of them enough to stay. “little what? go on, say it.” she coaxes him over the phone, a smirk being heard through her voice. “little bitch! you don’t care about her, you act like you do to impress your sorry ass family, fuck you, and leave us alone. you’re a pathetic excuse for a mother, if you can even claim that title.” and gojo hangs up the phone, walking back inside, huffing with anger. the entire time you covered emi’s ears to overpower the profanity spewing from her father’s mouth.
“daddy? are you okay?” she asks. she’s only six, which makes everything worse. she’s been let down almost 12 times in her short life, her feelings haven’t developed all the way for her to even understand the full disappointment of having an absent mother, but you’ve been there for emi, you’ve tucked her into bed, you’ve taken her out for her birthday, you’re her mother.
gojo lays in the bed with you too, fiddling with the hairstyle you’d put in for bed. “daddy’s fine, okay?” he smiles, kissing her temple. he looks up at you, seeing the tinge of sadness in your eyes. you hurriedly look away and look down at emi, smiling. “you ready for bed?” you ask, picking her up. “yeah! wanna read a longggg story!” she giggles, kicking her feet. you put her on your hip as you walk down the hallway. “oh yeah? who’s gonna read this longggg story to you?” you tease, sitting her on her bed. “you, mommy!” you stop in your tracks, your heart beat racing, mommy?! you’ve never even hinted at emi to start calling you that! you smile and grab a book, sitting next to her.
“yes mommy will.” you smile.
i didn’t mean for this to be long oops; also sorry for spelling mistakes lololol