ᶻz ◜ oliwer◞ 𖦹

You forced your eyes to open before trying to sit up on the bed. With clenched teeth, you filled up the covers only to realise that the only piece of clothing covering you was a pair of boxers you didn't recognise as one of your own. Heat kept up on the back of your neck as your eyes landed on the obvious bite mark right above the waistband of the underwear.

You barely noticed another bite on your inner thigh when the door to the bedroom opened, forcing you to cover yourself.

"Ah, (name)! Good to see that you're awake." Alfred walked into a room with clothes in his arms. "The breakfast is almost ready. I also prepared some clean clothes for you. Let me know if they're not to your liking."

"Is, uh, is Bruce around?" You asked, unsure if you actually wanted to know the answer.

"Master Bruce has already left for work. He won't be joining us for breakfast, I'm afraid," Alfred sighed, placing the clothes on the bottom of the bed. "I assure you that Masters Damian and Duke with Miss Cassandra are here to keep you company."

"I don't think I should stay for breakfast," you decline, the voice in the back of your head telling you that waking up alone should be your cue that you're overstaying your welcome. "I'm not that hungry anyway."

Alfred sighed again, but didn't try to convince him to stay. Instead, he left the room to give you space to dress yourself.

You didn't stick around long enough for any of Bruce's kids to see you, practically running out of the manor. The second, the last piece of clothing was pulled onto your body.

You drove back to your flat on autopilot, deciding that being behind the wheel wasn't the time to freak out over sleeping with your boss. Even if you had a week or two of work left to be done for him, getting drunk and going to bed with the man wasn't your brightest idea. Especially that each time you tried to recall anything, the only thing you could remember was the feeling of Bruce's lips on your skin.

You only allow yourself to breathe again when the door to your flat closes shut behind you. You try to keep your breathing calm, keeping your thoughts as far away from Bruce as possible. Not think about his calloused hands roaming your body, his lips kissing down your neck while he spreads your legs—

As the hours had passed and nothing seemed to distract you enough to stop thinking about your previous night, you called your friend over.

Your friend wasn't the only one to stop by your house that night. They just happened to be the only ones you were aware of.

The Dark Knight stood by your window, this time far enough that you wouldn't notice him, and watched you and your friend talk over a glass of wine. He didn't remember about the microphone he accidentally left behind a while ago until his system asked about reconnecting with it. Giving it permission, Batman could now hear what you and your friend are talking about clear as day.

Bruce listened to try to recall your previous night together with your friend. He shifted slightly to ease the pressure around his crotch when you mentioned the bite marks he had left on you. He couldn't help but feel than feel slightly betrayed when you refused to tell your friend the name of the man you slept with. You should be able to tell your friends proudly whose bed you spent your night in, without having the shame of him being your employer.

He wondered if he had stayed long enough to see you leave, you would talk about your night together in a different light. Bruce knew that he would come off as an asshole for leaving him without a proper goodbye. A part of him hoped that Alfred would be able to convince him to join his kids for breakfast to lessen the blow, but it seemed like you made his absence worse than Bruce anticipated.

"You really need to start picking hook-ups that don't treat you like a common whore" your friend scoffed after you mentioned Bruce being long gone when you woke up.

"He... had work," you reminded them, finishing your glass.

"If he wanted to, he would wake you up to say goodbye. Or better, warn you about having to leave early before the two of you got drunk and had sex." Your friends rolled their eyes at your excuses.

They poured the two of you another glass, and you sipped the wine in silence. Bruce gritted his teeth at your friend's words. He wasn't sure what angered him more, the idea that the belief he sees you as nothing more than an ordinary whore. Or that there were people in your past that did.

"I'll tell you what. I have a friend that I know would die to have a date with a guy like you," your friend waved, reaching for their phone to look for a picture of the said man. "Why don't you give him a chance? Maybe the two of you could be more than a hookup?"

Bruce froze at your friend's suggestion. He wasn't expecting them to have a replacement for him so quickly. And you? You stared at the photo on their phone screen like you were truly considering it.

His heart broke, watching you study the man your friend had showed you. Bruce realised that his chance disappeared before he even got it. He wondered if maybe it was for the best. He couldn't give you the security a normal man could, not if he wanted to keep the freedom of being outside his sight.

Batman disconnected himself from the microphone in your kitchen and left without hearing your answer.

"No, I don't really want to go on a date, (friend's name)" you declined, your finger tracing the rim of your glass. "I'm not ready for that. The last guy.... I really thought we had something between us before last night."

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And while it meant that you and Suguru were more likely to be teamed up for more complicated missions, you couldn't help but pity Gojo. You could only imagine how exhausted he must've been from using his technique so much.

But pitying him didn't mean you didn't enjoy throwing objects at him as a part of 'training'. Most of those objects never actually hit him, but being able to throw them without precautions was fun enough for you and Shoko.

Watching Satoru learn more and more about Limitless made the doubt creep into your mind more. When both Satoru and Suguru were described as the strongest, you had ways to reason with your own doubt. There were two of them already, you still had your chance of being a third. Watching Suguru being stripped of the title of the strongest, despite both him and Satoru remaining at the same grade, was eye-opening. Was it really possible for you to join them, when even between them there's such a divide?

You didn't realise that you had zoned out when Gojo was explaining his technique, until he addressed Geto:

"Suguru, you lost weight," Satoru commented, his head tilted as he stared at the boy on your left. "Are you okay?"

Confused, you looked over to Suguru, trying to understand what your classmate was talking about. It was only when you took a good look at Geto, that you realised that Satoru was right. You knew that Suguru was tired, everyone saw it, but the realisation that he was now also losing weight worried you.

"I'm just fatigued from the heat. I'll be fine," Suguru replied with a soft smile.

Deep down you knew that he was lying, and you think that Satoru you too. You made a note to check on him when you catch him alone. Maybe you'd buy him a snack to make sure he fills his stomach a bit.

And you tried, you really did. You would try to talk to Geto in between classes and mission, making sure it was just the two of you so he wouldn't feel pressured to answer. But no matter what you said and how many snacks you brought, Suguru kept telling you that he was fine, that you had nothing to worry about. You only realised that you had to change your approach when you saw Satoru devour the chocolates you brought for Geto.

Desperate to help Geto, you ended up reaching out to Alfred. You ended up sending him a text asking for a call, something you had avoided since the summer when he visited Japan to see you. You did everything you could to keep the distance between you and Gotham, something only letters could provide. Your worry about Geto's health won, so you put your pride aside for his sake.

The call came in late at night, Alfred finding time between the vast list of tasks to complete for Bruce. You allowed him to express his happiness after you finally decided to call him. Let him plan making it a weekly occurrence. You were glad the butler couldn't see the way your eyes rolled at his plan. Luckily, you were able to remind Alfred that you had a reason to call before the older man could start talking about the family.

You told him about the situation with Suguru and the worry he filled you with. During the time we were talking, Alfred remained quiet save for the faint sound of his breathing. Once you finished, he didn't respond right away, almost as if he was thinking through the words he was about to choose.

"I always knew you were sensitive to others' feelings, (name)" Alfred started carefully. "Seeing your classmates and teachers disregard that with their own selfishness angers me to no end. If you were to return—"

"Alfred. I called because I trust you for giving me advice," you sighed, your hand wiping down your face. "Maybe I was wrong about calling you. I was hoping to avoid getting involved yoga involved, but since you're not willing..."

"I'm sorry, (name). I let my feelings get the better of me," Alfred apologised. "If your... friend doesn't want to talk about what's troubling him, then stop trying to get him to talk. Focus on being for him and show him that he can rely on you. Sometimes the knowledge of having somebody in your corner is enough."

You thanked Alfred for the advice and the call ended shortly after with an excuse of needing to finish homework. He made you promise to finally reply to his letter and see if your schedule would allow you to call him every once in a while. You promised to check, your fingers crossed behind your back. You knew you couldn't escape the letters, but calls are easier to make excuses for.

Alfred's advice rang through your mind as you walked through the corridors of your school. You thought about how you could show Suguru that you were there if he needed you, when you heard two male voices talking around the corner. It took you a moment to realise that they belonged to Suguru and Haibara. You paused, not wanting to interrupt the two.

"Is that so? Bring back a souvenir," Geto chuckled, and you assumed the two of them were walking about the mission Haibara was assigned to.

"You bet," Haibara chirped, setting down a can with a soft thud. "Do you prefer sweet stuff or are you more of a salty guy?"

"Satoru and (name) might want some too," Suguru remembered, and you tried not to make a sound as your name left his mouth. "So sweet, I guess. You can ask (name) what he wants.

"You got it!" Haibara beamed.

You were about to take a step forward and join the two of them, when Geto's voice echoed through the corridor:

"Haibara. Do you like being a jujutsu sorcerer?" Suguru asked and you froze, confused. "It's not too hard?"

"Well, let's see," Haibara hummed, thinking of his answer. "I've never really been the kind of guy who thinks too deeply about things, you know? I like doing something not everybody else can do. And I like working hard."

"I see. I guess that's good," Geto agreed.

You walk in, trying to not make it too obvious that you heard their conversation. You opened your mouth to greet the two, when footsteps caught the attention of the three of you, forcing you to look in their direction.

"You with the hair! Are you Geto?" a blonde woman called out. "I was wondering what type of woman you are going for?"

"Who are you?" Suguru asked, with you looking suspiciously between the two of them.

"I like the type of girls who eat a lot," Haibara admitted, smiling widely.

"Oh?" The woman tilted her head.

"Haibara" Geto scolded your underclassman, and you cleared your throat to stop yourself from laughing.

"Don't worry about her, Geto," Haibara promised, the smile not leaving his face. "She's not a bad person, I'm good at judging people's characters."

"You say that while sitting next to me," Suguru mumbled.

"Hm? Yeah," Haibara responded, the smile on his face only growing wider.

You wanted to ask Geto what he meant by his words, but Haibara grabbed you by the arm and started dragging you away while talking about the snacks he could bring for everyone. You looked back at Geto, promising yourself to talk to him about his words later.

You never really got the chance to talk to Geto about his comment. Right after you returned from a mission, you received the news of Haibara's passing. The comment was pushed further into your mind as you ran down to the morgue.

You froze in the doorway at the sight of Haibara's body lying on the metal table, the blood of his injury drying slowly. You looked away from the body and towards the two men in the room.

"It was supposed to be an easy mission to exterminate a second-grade cursed spirit!" Nanami screamed, kicking a chair. "Their faith in Ubusunagami, that was a local deity. That was a first-grade curse!"

"Nanami. You should just rest," Geto suggested, covering Haibara's body. "Satoru has taken over your mission."

"Can't we just let him handle everything alone at this point?" Nanami questioned, his eyes covered by a rag.

Suguru didn't respond to Kento's comment. Instead, he turned towards him. He asked you to take Nanami up to his dorm and make sure he rests. He suggested you do the same. He brushed you off when you took a step towards him to ask if he was alright.

Satoru managed to drag you out of your room for the first time after Haibara's death, forcing a bag of candies into your hands. Walking the corridors, the bag of candy quickly stopped being just for you as Satoru kept stealing a few every so often and pretending he didn't know what you'd been talking about when you asked if he wanted one.

With each corridor the two of you walked through, the lighter you began to feel. Being able to stop thinking about losing your underclassman, even if temporarily, was just what you needed to stop yourself from spiralling further.

The smile you barely started forming fell when you and Satoru bumped into Yaga. You knew the news he was about to give the two of you were bad just by taking one look at his face.

"Huh?" Gojo questioned, furrowing his brows.

"Don't make me repeat myself," Yaga sighed. "Suguru killed everyone in the village and—"

"I heard you the first time," Satoru scoffed.

"Suguru's old home was already an empty husk," Yaga explained, catching his eyes for a second, before returning his focus to Satoru. "Though from the bloodstains..."

You stopped listening to him then. You couldn't. There was no way that Suguru would kill those villagers, let alone his own parents. You knew him. You knew that he was the one to talk Gojo from killing that religious organisation that killed the Star Plasma Vessel. You didn't understand what pushed him to do something like that.

"Like hell he did!" Satoru yelled, snapping you out of your thoughts.

Yaga began speaking again, but you didn't stay to hear him. You dropped the bag of candy Gojo got you and turned on your heel. Without saying anything, you ran straight back to your dorm.

You tried calling Suguru, forcing him to explain himself. Maybe tell you it was an elaborate joke he got Yaga to participate in. Anything to prove that yoga was lying. All of your calls went straight to voicemail. You kept trying, your face wet from tears and snot, until you received a text from him:

Suguru: Stop that. You're being stupid.

You tried responding to the text, only to realise that he had blocked you. You threw your phone on top of the desk, having it fall on the letters Alfred sent you in the past.

Tracing the edge of one of them, you wondered about the butler's words. You begin to wonder if you should've stayed in Gotham. Or returned to the city when he first offered it. You were to desperate to prove that you belonged among your classmates, that you failed to see that Alfred might've been right.

You knew that Shoko had tried talking to you, but you never opened the door. You didn't know if you could face her or Satoru. You felt responsible for Suguru's downfall. You knew he wasn't doing well, yet you didn't do anything to help him. You should've been more attentive towards him, pay more attention. You could try to do some of the mission for him. Anything to have him stay in the school with you.

But you didn't.

This time it was Yaga who forced you to leave your dorm. He mentioned that Satoru and Shoko had talked to Geto and offered him to join him as he planned on talking to Gojo.

You silently followed Yaga out of the building, your mind racing with all the possible things Satoru could learn about Geto's actions. Did he try to get the two of them to join? If yes, why them and not you? Why would he exclude you? Were you really that weak in his eyes?

You and Yaga found Satoru as he was sitting down the stairs. You mirrored him letting your back rest on top of the stairs. Yaga remained standing in between the two of you.

"Why didn't you pursue him?" Yaga asked, staring down at Gojo with the hands in his pockets.

"Are you actually asking me that?" Satoru asked with a heavy sigh.

"Nah, it's fine," Yaga waved him off. "It was a stupid question."

"Yaga, do you think I'm strong?" Gojo asked, looking into the distance.

"Yeah, brazenly so," Yaga admitted.

"Yeah, but, apparently being strong isn't enough," Gojo scoffed, pushing his glasses up on the bridge of his nose. "The only ones that I can save are those already waiting to be saved by someone."

Alfred called you that night. You weren't sure why you picked up. Maybe you needed to hear about things outside jujutsu. Or maybe you just need a confirmation.

You ended up telling the butler everything right after the first question left his mouth. You were holding so much inside that the second someone showed concern for you, you spilt everything. You told him about Suguru, how you felt like you failed him. How he found a way to speak to both of your classmates, but not to you, despite you reaching out over and over. You sobbed, questioning Alfred if he also believes that you aren't worthy of being a jujutsu sorcerer.

You no longer thought about Alfred when he suggested that you return to Gotham. Agreed to let him book the next flight back. You promised that you would see him at the airport in a few hours.

The call ended, leaving you in silence. You stared at the black screen of your phone before standing up from the bed. You didn't look at the things you were throwing into the bag. They didn't matter, you just needed to get out as soon as it was possible. You only pack things that fit in a sports bag, leaving the rest to be dealt with by the school.

When you finished, you realised that you should say goodbye to Shoko and Satoru. You knew you couldn't face them with the news, so instead you wrote each of them a letter.

As you walked towards Yaga's room, Alfred sent you your ticket back. You stared at the message feeling numb.

Yaga didn't try to talk you out of leaving. He knew that your decision was final and fighting you about it now would only make matters worse. He offered to drive you to the airport, but you declined, only asking for him to order you a cab.

You repressed your tears when he pulled you into a hug with an apology escaping his mouth.

The numbness stayed with you as you waited for your flight to be called out. You stared blankly at the floor in front of you, counting down the time until you will be able to leave.

When the time had finally come, you heard someone call out your name. You turned around stunned when you recognised said voice. You were now face to face with none other than Suguru Geto and two girls that were hiding behind him.

"And here I was thinking I could be wrong about you," Geto scoffed, looking you up and down.

"What?" You choke out, not believing that he came to see you off.

"I always knew you weren't cut out for any of this," Suguru admitted with a smile. "That's why I pitied you. You were so desperate to prove yourself. To show that you belong in this word.

"I do belong," you argued. "I just..."

"Then why are you running?" Geto questioned, succumbing when his mouth opened, but no words left it. "You're really not that different from those monkeys."

Without letting you respond, Suguru turned around and left with the girls following behind him. You watched him disappear into the crowd as your flight number was called out again.

Every fibre of your body knew you had to do it. Pull the Plaster off the wound before it gets infected. Or got worse than it already is.

You knew that Dick wasn't a good boyfriend. Or at least not to you. He liked to hang it above your head, whenever you tried to mention that his behaviour was hurting you.

"Barbara thought..." Dick would say. "Kori never..." he would remind you.

The first time Dick used one of his exes as an excuse, you wanted to blame the women for it. You wanted to hate them, maybe even be horrible towards them the same way Dick was to you. But you just couldn't. Not when Kori made sure you always felt included in the few hangouts between their friends that Deck bothered to take you for. Same ones he did everything he could to keep everyone from interacting with you. Or when Barbara sends you funny moments from the family's patrols with '(character name) making a fool of themselves again'.

If anything, your relationship with Dick kept declining the more thankful for them you were. After all, they helped you realise that Dick wasn't a bad boyfriend because of them, but because he was living up to his nickname and being a dick.

Despite that, you stayed with him. You kept holding onto the hope that he would change. That maybe if you sacrificed enough he would realise his wrong doings, becoming the boyfriend he was to his exes.

Or maybe you didn't want to be his only 'bad' ex. The one Dick would use his as an example whenever the subject of disappointing significant others came up.

Deep down you knew that you were simply scared of leaving Dick. Less about him hurting you or destroying your reputation, but more because of the man that took him in as a child. Bruce Wayne was the reason the two of you met in the first place. You freshly started working for him when Bruce introduced you and Dick to each other. For a long time you ignored all of Dick's advances at first, trying to remain professional. Now you wish you had tried harder back then.

Despite dating his son, you never stopped working for Bruce and now that the thoughts of breaking up kept you up at night, you worried leaving Dick in the past would mean no longer working for Bruce. Something you want to avoid at all cost.

But now watching Dick sit across from you at the restaurant, talking about a trip he had with Wally. The trip, he told you, was Nightwing related, and he couldn't miss, even if that meant not spending your birthday with you. It was then that you decided that no work for no man was worth staying in this relationship.

Before you could talk yourself out of it, you pushed the chair away from the table, letting it scratch at the floor.

"We're over. I don't think this is working, Dick," you said, taking a deep breath to stop your voice from shaking. "I'll send your stuff over, don't bother with mine. You can throw them out I don't need them."

After finally making it back to your flat, you made your way through each room, throwing everything that belonged to Dick into rubbish bags. You also blocked him before he could contact you, and before you could get second thoughts about the breakup.

You waited until the next night to drop off his things, waiting for him to be gone for his nightly duties. You left all the bags in the living room with the key he gave you on the coffee table. You also made sure to take off the key to your flat from his bundle of keys, regardless of having a locksmith coming in the next morning.

You spent the first week of your new single life isolating yourself, occasionally responding to your friends and family to stop them from worrying.

Dick's family and friends had reached out to you with Bruce being on top of the list because you were no longer showing up for your shifts. You ended up responding to Barbara, knowing that she was most likely to manage by forcing the rest to leave you alone.

Bruce sent his last message less than an hour later: 'I'm sorry that you and Dick didn't work out, we're here for you if you need someone to talk to'.

You shook your head after reading it. That was definitely one way of putting it.

Bruce's message made you realise that you couldn't avoid him any longer. Not when you still technically work for him. Staring at the lines of text he sent since your breakup with Dick, you decide that you can't keep working for Bruce.

You responded with your resignation after a week of silence, hoping it wouldn't destroy your chances at working for someone else. You threw your phone to the other side of the bed when you realised that Bruce read your message. Shaking, you waited for the familiar sound of the notification.

The sound never came.

Just as you were about to wish the ground would swallow you, the doorbell rang through your flat. You got up to open it, confused about who would visit you as you weren't expecting anyone.

You opened the door and tried to shut it when you saw Bruce standing on the other side with a box in his hands. The years of being Batman paid off, stopping the door with his foot before it could shut.

"I forced Dick to gather your things, made sure he didn't destroy anything," Bruce explained, his head gesturing to the box in his hands. "I know he... wasn't... treating you well."

You let go of the door, letting Bruce walk into your space as you returned to your living room.

He set the box on your coffee table, sitting down in an armchair to give you space. For a while, both of you sat in your living room in silence.

You could feel Bruce's eyes fixated right on you, but you didn't meet them. You didn't know how, not when you knew the truth behind your and Dick's relationship. You were trying to understand what Bruce was doing here. Was he here to threaten you to not talk about it? To blame it on you? Or—

"(Name), I—" Bruce choked out before he thought about how he wanted to approach the subject. "I'm sorry."

You forced yourself to look up after Bruce's apology.

"I'm sorry that I haven't caught up sooner and stopped him," Bruce apologised, his hand reaching towards you but stopping before it could touch you. "And I'm sorry for making you feel like you can't bring it up to me."

"How did you find out?" You asked, pulling your knees up to your chest.

"Your mum is your emergency contact, so I called her to make sure you're fine," Bruce explained, mindlessly fixing the coasters on the coffee table. "She had... quite a few things to say about me and Dick."

"I'm so—"

"Don't apologise, I agree with the things she said about us," Bruce stopped you. "She made some pretty good points and made me realise just how blind I was to the situation."

You nodded, your eyes now focused on the box of things Bruce got from Dick's flat.

"I made sure he knows how disappointed I am in him," Bruce continued, moving from the armchair to join him on the sofa. "I also made sure the rest knew what happened and made them promise to give you the space you need."

"Thank you," you whispered, letting your body rest against Bruce.

"Of course, that was the least I could do," Bruce wrapped his arm around you. "I understand that you might not be comfortable working for me because of him and I understand. I'll help you find a new one if you'd let me or make sure to praise you well if you prefer to look on your own. Whatever makes you comfortable.

"Can I have one more request?" You asked, moving your legs to have them rest on the floor.

"Anything," Bruce promised, rubbing your shoulder.

"Take the box back, I don't want the things inside," you reached towards the box and picked it up. "I would prefer for you to burn it, but do what you think is best."

You made to the sight just as Satoru used his power to break the illusion the curse had created and let the walls fall.

"I'm here to save you, Utahime," you heard Gojo mocking the girl and had to stop yourself from rolling your eyes. "You're crying?"

"No, I'm not crying! Be more polite," Utahime reprimanded him.

"If I was crying, would you console me?" Mei teased, walking up towards Satoru. "I'd like that."

"But you wouldn't cry, Mei," Gojo insisted, turning to face the woman. "You're strong."

"Gojo, listen to me! I don't need your help!" Utahime yelled, cleaning her clothes from any dust, ready to prove her point.

Utahime made a step towards Satoru, when the curse shot out from behind her. Before she could react, another curse, one that belonged to Suguru, wrapped its mouth around the one she was sent to illuminate. You could hear Suguru instructing his curse to not eat it as he needed to absorb it.

"Satoru, it's not nice to pick on the weak, you know," Geto mocked after absorbing the curse.

"Yeah, but what kind of idiot picks on the strong?" Gojo scoffed, fixing his sunglasses.

Before either of your classmates can annoy Utahime further, you and Shoko step closer so she can see you.

"Utahime! Are you okay?" Shoko asked, slouching over to see inside the crater where the mansion used to stand.

"Ignore the idiots, they're fighting over whose ego is bigger again," you laughed, waving towards Iori.

"Shoko! (Name)!" Utahime yelled out.

"We were so worried about you," Shoko stressed, walking towards the Utahime.

"You were nowhere to be seen! It's been two days," you added, following behind Shoko.

The two of you don't make it far as Utahime runs up to the two of you to pull you close.

"Please, don't turn out like those two," Utahime begged, squinting her eyes as she looked at Gojo and Geto.

"We're not trash like they are," Shoko bantered while you scoffed.

"Don't let yourself turn out like Utahime," Gojo sneered to Geto.

Utahime was about to snap back at Gojo, when Mei Mei walked up to her group. She asked about the veil the four of you that were sent over to help were supposed to put around the perimeter of the mansion. All of you froze at the mention of the veil, the realisation of what forgetting it meant hitting you.

'Next up, yesterday's large explosion rocked Schizuoka Prefecture in Hamamatsu City...' The reporter's voice as you and your classmates sat on your heals in front of Yaga. His expression was tense, and you knew the punishment he'd be about to give out wouldn't be a pleasant one.

"You were supposed to oversee that mission," Yaga sighed, massaging the bridge of his nose. "You also left your assistant supervisor behind and to top it all off, you forgot about the veil."

Yaga demanded to know who was the culprit behind it all and everyone pointed towards Satoru without a second thought. Gojo tried talking Yaga out of hunting down the culprit, but your teacher was immune to his begging.

The group had moved to the gym, where Suguru bounced around a basketball, occasionally throwing it towards the hoop. Satoru, instead, kept complaining about the need to hide from the non-sorcerers when they aren't even able to see curses. You and Shock only partially listened to him, more interested in messing around with Gojo’s glasses.

Geto tried explaining the reason why sorcerers use veils and why it is important to protect the weak.

You and Shoko could sense both of your classmates' arguments getting more heated. She returned the glasses to Gojo, swiftly slipping them on the bridge of his nose.

"Smoke break!" Shoko announced, grabbing your sleeve to drag you out of the gym.

Walking to yours and Shoko's usual spot, the two of you miss Yaga walking towards the gym.

Later, you find out that Suguru and Satoru had been assigned to handle the Star Plasma Vessel and bring her to Tengen.

"Be careful," you wished, catching Suguru’s eyes.

"I'll be back before you know it," Suguru promised, winking as the grin stretched across his lips.

"And where's my 'be careful'?" Satoru questioned, wiggling his brows at you.

"Oh, now you're worried about surviving?" you scoffed, shaking your head.

"Yeah, what happened to being the strongest?" Suguru laughed, giving your arm a quick squeeze.

When both of them leave, Shoko jumps on you to tease you about your interaction with Suguru. You knew she had an ongoing bet with Haibara about where your relationship would go. At first, you called the bet ridiculous, you and Suguru were nothing more than friends. Now, you shoved her off, trying to ignore the way your heart began to beat faster.

With Satoru and Suguru away handling the Star Plasma Vessel, you and Shoko end up with the first years of training. Neither of the two contacted either of you, save for one selfie Gojo sent with an unconscious man in the background.

Training alongside the first years filled you both with pride and anxiety. Watching them improve gives you hope for the future of jujutsu society. Thoughts of them being the future of society filled you with worry just as much as it made you proud. A selfish part of you wished neither them nor you and your classmates had the right to protect the non-sorcerers. You knew it wasn't fair, it wasn't their fault that they couldn't use curse techniques to fight curses most of them weren't even able to see.

And so, you kept your thoughts to yourself, giving the words of encouragement and a shoulder to lean on when needed.

While Satoru and Suguru kept the vessel safe, you, and the other students were sent out on more missions. A lot of them were out of your grade range, forcing the teachers to group their students to defeat curses Gojo and Geto would be able to exorcise by themselves.

Because of that 'the two of you will be joining the first years' quickly changed to 'Shoko will be joining the first years while you'll be lucky to sleep in your dorm'.

The fatigue that came with using your curse energy to such amounts didn't go unnoticed by Shoko. She tried to convince you to speak up about it to Yaga before you would get hurt, but no matter what Shoko said, you kept refusing.

It felt selfish. Even if there were other sorcerers who could handle some of the missions you went sent on. You couldn't allow yourself to rest. Not when Satoru and Suguru were out there risking their lives to keep the Star Plasma Vessel alive.

Shoko had to stop herself from telling you 'I told you so' when they brought your half-conscious body into the affair. She heard the sorcerer that was with you tell Yaga about the curse you were sent after catching both of you off guard as she worked on your injuries.

It was only until you were healed up and strong enough to sit up on your own, that you found out about Nanami and Haibara being sent to Okinawa to help your classmates. When you questioned why them and not you, bringing up your concerns about it not being a mission suitable for first years, Yaga scoffed and shook his head.

"They didn't try to work themselves to death, (name)" Yaga sighed, staring at you with disappointment in his eyes. "Ieiri told me you refused to speak up about not feeling well."

You tried arguing with your teacher, but he raised his hand to keep you quiet.

"Use the time you gain to reply to that butler of yours," Yaga ordered, stepping away from your bed. "I noticed the letters from him pulling up on your desk and I don't want another surprise visit from him."

Reading the letters from Alfred, you couldn't help but feel annoyed. There were only three of them, the last one dating back to a few days ago. Alfred had long ago given up on using the traditional way of exchanging letters and now bluntly used Bruce's resources to cut down on delivery time.

The first two were rather typical letters Alfred would send. He spent most of them telling you how much he and his family missed you and news about each family member. Only at the end did he leave a few questions about your well-being and your life and school.

The last letter stood out. You assumed Alfred had to be in one of his moods when writing it. Almost the entire thing focused on how badly he wished you were with your family in Gotham. How he wished you were there with him when he redecorated your room. That he couldn't wait for you to bring the things from your dorm back to your room at the manor. Instead of ending with a few questions for you, Alfred doubted if you belonged at your school. He questioned if you're able to handle being so far away.

Alfred ended the letter with: 'but don't worry, you will always belong here in Gotham, right next to me and your family'.

You rolled your eyes as you read the last line. You took out paper and pen to reply to the butler. You furiously scribbled down words onto the paper, telling Alfred that you would always belong among your classmates. You reminded him that, unlike Bruce and his kids, none of them ever feared you. You ended it by warning him about questioning where he belongs might force you to cut him off.

Just as you put the pen down, the door to your dorm opened, revealing a scared Haibara. With his voice shaking, he told you that Suguru was with Shoko. Your underclassman barely managed to finish the sentence when you were already out of your dorm. You ran straight to the infirmary with your ears ringing. You always considered Gojo and Geto as untouchable, undefeatable. You couldn't imagine what went wrong in the mission that left Suguru needing help.

You pushed the door open just as Shoko was finishing with the healing process. You stayed near the doorway, giving her the space to finish in peace.

Suguru didn't stay in the infirmary long after Shoko finished. Her hands barely left his torso when he was out of the affair. Without a second thought, you started following behind him. You didn't know where Satoru was, and you refused to let Suguru go after the person that attacked him alone.

"No," Suguru ordered, stopping right in front of you suddenly. "Stay in school, (name)"

"Let me—" you tried to argue, but Suguru turned and grabbed your face with his palm.

"I can't risk you dying, (name)" Suguru confessed, caressing your cheek. "Stay within the barrier, please."

You nodded, nuzzling your face into his hand. The contact didn't last long, and soon you were forced to stay in place watching Suguru leave.

You wanted to move, to ignore his words and run after him.

But you couldn't. Despite your heart aching for you to do so, your brain rationalising why you should.

Suguru wanted you to stay alive. To stay within the barrier.

And you will. For him.