trololol

“is it anything physical?”

“not really. it’s-it’s more of a feeling i get,” he struggled.

"and when does this feeling occur?"

sukuna thought about it. it happened randomly. he couldn't pinpoint exactly what it was. it’s just that whenever it happened, sukuna got confused and even a little worried.

he shrugged again and shook his head, "don't know... it just kinda happens?"

the two of them had been going in a directionless conversation for the past twenty minutes. the only thing the doctor could get out of sukuna was that he was experiencing some sort of feeling.

the doctor sighed, "i'm not sure how i can help you then."

sukuna mirrored the sigh and hopped off the examination table, now towering over the sitting doctor. he placed his hand behind his neck and rolled his head as if trying to crack out the confusion he was experiencing.

"s'fine, doc. i'm not sure how I can help myself either."

sukuna exited the medical room. he needed to figure out was going on.

it was happening.

you weren't even doing anything. you were just sitting on the couch scrolling through your phone as you propped your elbow on the arm of the couch and leaned your face into your hand.

the urge was there.

sukuna wanted to bite your cheek.

the way your hand pushed into your cheek, squishing it, made sukuna want to take a nice chomp. he was walking from the bathroom to sit back down on the couch, but sukuna had to go into the kitchen to prevent that feeling from becoming a reality.

the urge he got was definitely not like how hannibal lecter would’ve gone about things. it was nowhere near actual cannonballism (im so sorry for the spelling, i don’t wanna get censored or whatever LOL). your cheek looked nice and soft and sukuna just simply wanted to feel it between his teeth, nothing more.

he genuinely could not understand what was going on. you were doing nothing and yet, this morbid urge just decided to pop up out of nowhere. sukuna leaned over the sink as he gripped the edge of the counter. his head hung low as he took deep breaths and tried to push the feeling away with every exhale.

sukuna decided he would leave the apartment. go to the gym, he thought, to get away from you and perhaps channel this feeling into the stress of lifting weights. he scurried off to the bedroom to go change.

as sukuna rummaged for some gym shorts and a t-shirt, you quietly pattered in. he became hyperaware of your presence as you sat down on the bed and went back to scrolling on your phone.

you did this quite often. sukuna noticed that you never needed to talk to him all of the time, but you always seemed to be near him in some capacity. “parallel play” is what you described it as with a tone like ‘duh’. sukuna didn’t really get the concept, but it didn’t bother him at all.

“gonna go to the gym for a little bit,” he grumbled.

“all good.”

sukuna briefly paused as he changed into his gym clothes. he purposefully faced away from you because he was afraid that the urge would return in full force if he were to look at you again.

but the way you said those two little words spiked the feeling again. a two syllable sentence, so simple, so short. but you said it so… cutely? sukuna slowly closed his eyes. he had to get out.

he straightened up and took three steps toward you. you still sat there on the bed, phone in hand. sukuna stared at the wall behind you before reaching out with his fist. without even looking you gave him two tiny fist bumps with your unoccupied hand.

he shouldn’t have done that. definitely shouldn’t have done that while this weird urge was starting to simmer into a boil. but it was a little thing you two had where one held a fist out and the other responded with a specific number of bumps.

sukuna swiftly turned away, “i’ll see you in a few hours. don’t eat all the garlic bread.”

you simply hummed, oblivious to the fact that this giant man was dealing with the strangest inner turmoil ever.

sukuna went and got a therapist.

shocking, he knows, but sukuna was becoming very worried that this little problem was really not going away. a month had already passed, and it seemed like this weird urge persisted in the same way your current hyperfixation of clownfish did.

the first session was awkward.

it was an intake session, but sukuna had the hardest time answering simple questions such as what his interests were. he was of the mindset that ‘therapy = fix problem’ and didn’t see the necessity of asking such unrelated questions.

but after a few more sessions, he was finally able to somewhat figure out this feeling. it was intense. it seemed to be more on the negative side given that it makes him want to engage in strange behaviors. but it’s source? definitely not negative.

sukuna was able to point out the pattern. the feeling only ever emerged whenever you were involved. you didn’t even have to be present. the mere thought of you had sukuna wanting to break a thick log in half.

it was strange for him to get these sudden, and somewhat violent, urges because of you. he knows that he would never do anything that could ever hurt you. it’s the fact that this feeling, which then transforms into such thoughts, is what disturbs him and led him to seeing a therapist.

“i think what you’re experiencing are bursts of aggression.”

sukuna frowned. he supposed that these “urges” were potential acts of aggression. why else would he want to break something or bite you?

“and you said it only happens around this one particular individual,” the therapist continued.

the tattooed man, who sat hunched in the arm chair because his large stature didn’t allow him to sit comfortably, slowly nodded.

“are there… any feelings of resentment towards this person?”

“no.”

his answer was quick and firm. you’ve never done anything where he felt wronged or angered. in fact, you’re the one that made him better. he became more mellow, more patient, more mindful of others. in no way could sukuna ever find it in himself to ever resent you.

“look,” sukuna leaned forward, propping his elbows on his thighs and clasped his hands together, “i- there’s no way i could or would hate this person. ever.”

the therapist simply nodded, scribbling down notes onto a notepad.

the big man sighed, “i just… i don’t like it when these feelings happen and i don’t want to do anything bad.”

“you’ve said that you’ve wanted to bite them or break something, correct?”

sukuna nodded.

“but it’s not out of malicious intent?”

he nodded again.

“and would you say that you, for lack of a better word, adore this person?”

a bit of a random probe, but the therapist was starting to catch onto what sukuna had been going through because of you.

“… i suppose…” sukuna felt weird to process such a word into his brain.

the therapist’s pen scratched against the paper. sukuna started to bounce one of his knees, his patience was slipping. the therapist paused, scanning over whatever notes were written before glancing back up at him.

“well, it seems to me that you’re dealing with a bad case of cuteness aggression.”

sukuna went straight to the internet to look up what cuteness aggression was.

his therapist already explained what it was to him, but his mind was absolutely baffled. you name it, he searched up research articles, looked at subreddits, hell, he even created a tumblr account to be a part of some ‘cuteness aggression’ community to gain further insight.

it’s quite normal and sukuna understood it to be the brain’s way of regulating an overwhelming amount of positive emotions. ‘cute’ was a word that never really swam through his mind, but he came to the conclusion that he, indeed, did find you cute most times.

this was further confirmed when sukuna was hit with over two hundred comments saying he was experiencing cuteness aggression from a post he made on that tumblr community. it made much more sense now. sukuna was now getting used to the fact that his desire to bite you was because he found you insanely cute.

yet, he hadn’t told you yet.

he should’ve done so as you were both sitting on the couch participating in your weekly couch-sleepover-movie-night.

the tv screen displayed the finding nemo scene where marlin and dory were getting chased by bruce the shark. your legs were folded against your chest with your arms locking around them. you had your weighted blanket wrapped around you and covering your head.

at first, sukuna wondered how you could have the heavy blanket lay on your head and be comfortable with it. but then his gaze moved onto your face. you were very engrossed in the scene. your eyes flitted around as you followed the characters swimming away from the shark.

the aggression was bubbling up within sukuna. you were too focused on the movie to even notice that sukuna was staring very hard at you.

i just wanna squeeze the ever living shit out of-.

“NO.”

you turned your head. he knew you didn’t mean it, but you gave him the nastiest look. it was an automatic reaction—your eyes narrowed, one corner of your mouth slightly sneering up, and your brows furrowing so hard they could’ve ended the botox industry.

“what d’you mean ‘no’?” boy, that tone was nasty too.

you had been reaching for the bowl of popcorn that had been nestled between you two. it took six seconds for sukuna to register what had just happened. he glanced down at your hand, and then back up to your face with that nasty look. it took another few seconds for him to realize that you thought he was saying ‘no’ to you.

sukuna blinked twice before looking away with a slight pout, “sorry, not you.”

he focused on the tv, the scene now shifting to when the torpedo was about to hit the ‘balloons’. sukuna could see in his peripheral vision that you leaned in closer to him. he could feel your eyes narrowing even more.

“then what is it?”

oh no. he could feel the heat of your body start to mix in with his. sukuna pursed his lips as he forced himself to side-eye the apartment door. he was trying his damned hardest to not make eye contact with you.

words started to tumble out of his mouth before he could even think.

“thatpopcornyouwerereachingforwasburnt.”

such a dumb excuse, but he knows that you hate eating burnt popcorn. you said that your taste buds would curl up and die every time you bit into one. you were getting ready to retort, but paused as you deciphered his words.

you looked down at the popcorn bowl and decided to inspect one of the kernels. you sniffed it. it was, indeed, slightly burnt. you gave sukuna a nasty side-eye. the man covered his mouth with his hand because he wanted to yell something, anything, to release the amount of cuteness aggression that was bubbling up as he observed your reaction.

“an intricate, yet lame excuse that somehow worked out for you.”

was all you said before turning your attention back onto the tv—the scene now changing to the bubble popping next to one of the two pelicans as they floated in the ocean. sukuna nearly let out a sigh of relief.

now, he really needed to figure out how to let you know what was going on, and that you were the culprit of his problem.

therapy was working, but it was not the most effective.

why?

because sukuna’s therapist did not have the whole picture. after he deemed you as the source of his issue, he kept referring to you as one of his friends. this led his therapist to advising him to subtly minimize contact with you.

and that’s the issue.

you were not his friend.

and he definitely could not minimize contact with you, even in a subtle way.

you’ve both been living together for the past four years now, and not in a ‘and they were roommates’ kind of way. sukuna let out a groan. he kind of fucked himself over with this one.

when neither of you were working, you did most things together.

today was no different as you both exited the locker rooms at the gym. you had a look on your face. sukuna knew that look. it meant something wasn’t going right. something would mess up how you would function for the rest of the day.

“what is it?” sukuna’s voice was gruff with concern.

“… forgot my hat…”

right.

you always wore a hat to the gym. something about not liking the way the air hit your scalp if you jumped or moved around. sukuna knew that your workout would not feel good if you weren’t wearing your hat.

“we can go back home and get it,” he offered.

you peered up at him. he nearly wanted to bite your face off this time. it wasn’t even a puppy look that you were giving. it was more like ‘sorry for inconveniencing you’. sukuna wanted to explode. the amount of positive emotions he was experiencing made his fingers twitch.

“it’s just a ten minute drive,” he muttered before tugging on the hem of your sleeve and gently dragging you back to the car to head back home.

“so, why’d you stop seeing your therapist?” your fingers lightly drummed on your thigh.

sukuna scratched his head. he figured this would come up eventually, and he thought he was prepared for it. but now, he could feel the embarrassment starting to slip into the pit of his stomach.

“solved my problem,” he grumbled.

maybe you’d leave it that. you’re usually respectful and make an effort to not be nosey about other people’s business.

“yeah, i noticed that you have been kind of different.”

sukuna blinked. was he too obvious? he had been trying his best to contain his cuteness aggression. even as he looked calm, eyes focused on the road ahead, sukuna was replaying every instance of cuteness aggression that nearly got externalized.

“how so?” he slowly asked.

there was a brief pause.

“i don’t know,” you shrugged, “just seemed like you’d get this really intense energy from time to time and got real quiet whenever it happened.”

you guys had arrived at the apartment building. sukuna parked the car. you had unbuckled your seatbelt as sukuna leaned his head toward and rested it against the wheel. he placed his arms around his head, so that you couldn’t see how red his ears and cheeks were becoming.

“yeah.” the word was slightly muffled.

you were quietly waiting for sukuna to continue.

he took a deep breath before exhaling out his confession, “i was dealing with… cuteness aggression… because of you…”

he didn’t see the way the corner of your lips quirked up, “really?”

“don’t make me say it again.”

sukuna turned his head, his right eye peaking out to see how you reacted. but you weren’t sitting up straight in the seat. you had rested your arms on the dash, your head laying into the crook of your elbow as you had been gazing it him. that tiny smile of yours had his ears burning hot, and sukuna instantly turned his head back into arms.

the gym was forgotten. your hat was forgotten. you were thoroughly endeared by this man’s internal affections for you.

“… well… i find you very cute too.”

“stop, stop. i’m actually gonna die because of you.”

but sukuna would gladly die a thousand times over if it meant being able to see just how cute you were every time.

i just wanna squeeze the ever living shit out of sukuna 🫪

taglist:

sukuna was glad he got the job.

now that he's become a firefighter, the brat could finally stop pestering him about seeing a firetruck in real life, even though sukuna was the one to offer yuji to take him to see one.

he sat comfortably in the office as the fire chief gave him the run-down of how things work at this fire station. everything seemed doable. after all, he trained for a year to get to this point.

a knock sounded from outside the door and sukuna turned to look back. in you entered with a bag of food that smelled really good. he saw the way your eyes paused on him. it was hard to decipher what you were thinking since your expression remained neutral, and you soon broke your gaze away as the chief got your attention.

sukuna watched as you handed the bag of takeout to the chief. you were now standing next to him and he became a little curious as to who you were. you seemed to be well acquainted with the chief. maybe you were related to him?

you looked nothing like the chief. however, even in this small and brief, first interaction he noticed how you played with the neckline of your shirt in the very same manner that the chief had been doing when sukuna first walked into the office.

the chief introduced you. you were one of the few paramedics that was assigned to this fire station. sukuna liked the way your name sounded. he almost tested how the letters would feel on his tongue, but stopped himself as you turned your head to glance at him.

sukuna held his hand out to you. he saw the corners of your lips perk up, your cheeks moving as you took his hand into yours.

it was like he was watching a scene happen and he was up close to a tv screen. all that flooded his vision was you and your smile. he could see your lips moving, but the movie he was watching was silent.

no amount of flowery vocabulary could help describe what sukuna was experiencing. was everyone in the fire station nice like you? sukuna thought back to how he first walked into the building and how some of the firefighters gave him somewhat wary looks.

but you? you didn't have a speck of wariness dusting your eyes as you looked at him. sukuna knows that greeting others with a smile is normal, but that was never the case for him. his appearance would often deter such friendly reception. even so much as glancing in someone's direction had them veering away from sukuna.

but you didn't veer away. the only thing that registered in his mind next was you letting go of his hand, but you still didn't veer away from him. he saw your lips moving again as you nodded at the chief.

your eyes settled back onto sukuna. you smiled again. yeah, you were really nice. sukuna stayed quiet as you left the office. he turned his attention back onto the chief, but you remained sitting in the corner of his mind.

the chief merely blinked at sukuna. sukuna blinked back. he could tell that the chief was assessing him again, but not on the basis of him being hired—he already got the job.

sukuna felt that he would likely need to make himself scarce around you because you're clearly held in high regards by the chief. but that didn't mean he would erase your smile from his brain. sukuna would keep this to himself.

what the chief doesn't know won't hurt him.

egg sandwiches had to have been one of the best breakfast inventions out in this world.

ever since sukuna saw you make your egg sandwich with just cheese and mayo, he has been making one for himself every morning along side with his bowl of greek yogurt.

he followed every step in the same way you had done—toast the bread, fry the eggs, take the toast out, spread the mayo, slap the cheese on, and finally, the eggs.

just as he was finishing up making his sandwich, you walked in greeting him with your usual ‘morning’. sukuna took his plate in hand before turning to greet you back with a nod.

you glanced down at his plate and he noticed how the corners of your lips quirked up. sukuna felt a sort of satisfaction seeing and assuming that you were delighted to have rubbed off on him a little.

you said nothing as you proceeded to prepare your breakfast. sukuna assumed it was going to be an egg sandwich again, like the one he made. however, he saw that you grabbed a tomato and avocado along with the eggs and bread.

just like any other time, you toasted the bread and started to cook the eggs. now, you added another step into the routine.

you were swift as you got a knife and cutting board out. grabbing the bright, red tomato, you smoothly cut two thin slices.

at this point, sukuna had placed his plate onto the counter and had broken the egg yolks before dipping his sandwich like you had done. he took a bite as he watched you take the avocado and skillfully swiveled the knife into it.

you twisted the avocado, pulling the two halves apart before dipping the knife into the pitless half and making thin cuts. you carefully squeezed out the avocado slices onto one of the pieces of toast. sukuna was impressed with how precise, yet quick you were to cut everything and prepare everything.

you spread out the avocado very neatly before placing the two tomato slices on top, followed by the eggs and the final piece of toast. sukuna didn’t realize how much versatility an egg sandwich could have.

he was absolutely amazed that an egg sandwich could be more than just cheese and mayo. you were a genius. sukuna made a mental note to try out the tomato and avocado version next time.

usually, sukuna would head back to his dorm and eat his breakfast there. yet, he decided to sit at the dining table with you. his egg sandwich had cooled down a bit and sukuna was really curious how your sandwich tasted.

at least, that’s how he justified staying and eating with you. whether he wanted to admit it or not… well, maybe sukuna actually didn’t know how to articulate what he was going through, but he wanted to be around you more and more.

he already knows that he changed the routine that you and him had going on during the mornings, so sukuna had to be careful with this. he didn’t want to seem too obvious that he was becoming this down bad love puppy.

but you seemed to not mind. as kind as always. you didn’t get up and leave the minute he sat down. in fact, you started swaying from side to side, doing your little happy dance.

sukuna immediately looked down at his sandwich in his hands. he couldn’t describe what you were doing to him, but something warm spread throughout his chest.

he had been dealing with fires for the past four months of working at the fire station. he was used to intense heat. but this one was simply warm, soft even. sukuna can’t understand what you’re doing to him.

but what he does know, is that he likes whatever this is a little too much.

it was one of sukuna’s off-days.

he decided to go visit his old man, wasuke, who had gotten a procedure done recently and was in recovery. sukuna called the hospital to let his dad know that he’d be a little late and he was preparing for the upcoming berating.

as sukuna entered the hospital, he saw you standing in front of the reception desk, giving the receptionist all information on the patient you had to drive to the hospital. you were on duty.

you turned, eyes meeting his own before slightly smiling, “oh, hey.”

“hey,” sukuna waved.

ah, that smile of yours. if sukuna could, he’d paint your smile into memory for eternity. every time you smiled, whether it was at him or not, sukuna felt that soft warmth well up in his chest.

“how are you doing?”

sukuna knew you were on your shift, yet you still made time for him.

“fine,” he said coolly, “just here to see my-”

“what the hell is taking you so long?!”

you were slightly startled at the interruption, and sukuna slowly closed his eyes before quietly groaning.

“hi, dad,” sukuna sighed.

wasuke was being wheeled out by a nurse, “sukuna, you lazy ass! you’re already late as it is!”

sukuna tried to protest, “old man, i-”

“don’t old man me!” wasuke pointed a finger at sukuna, “this old man has been waiting for his lazy ass of a son to come visit.”

wasuke crossed his arms like an angry child before whipping his head to look at you. you nearly jumped at the sight. wasuke gave a mean glare, showing the family resemblance.

sukuna didn’t want his dad scaring you off, “well, i’m here now-”

“and who are you?” wasuke asked indignantly.

sukuna noticed how your eyes slightly widened. your body straightened, almost going rigid. sukuna didn’t like how this was going and he was about to save you from his dad. but you quickly interjected.

you slightly bowed your head in respect before introducing yourself to wasuke. as soon as you said your name, wasuke froze for a brief moment. his tense shoulders slightly relaxed.

wasuke closed his eyes and slightly tilted his chin up, “i see.”

sukuna frowned. what was with the sudden change of tone? his dad was always grumpy and always had an attitude with anyone in the vicinity.

“so you’re my son’s coworker,” wasuke peered up at you, and you could do nothing but nod politely.

sukuna has never mentioned you to his dad, so he didn’t know where this familiarity was coming from. his dad was a firecracker, and sukuna did not want to see what would pop off out of his old man’s mouth.

“come walk with me to my room.”

what? sukuna’s frown deepened. you politely declined, saying that you were still on duty and had to get back to the station. but somehow, wasuke was able to convince you.

“just until we get to the elevator,” wasuke chuckled.

it was more like an evil laugh to sukuna, but you being as kind as you usually are, caved. you walked alongside his dad, and sukuna followed behind.

“yuji has told me all about you,” wasuke started.

you only hummed, hands clasped and resting on your lower back. the elevator was just down the hall, but it felt like the longest trek ever.

“yuji seems to like you,” he chuckled again.

sukuna didn’t know where this was going.

“my grandson’s obsession was always with fire trucks, but it seems like he can’t stop talking about you whenever he visits me,” wasuke slightly turned his head and gave sukuna a smirk.

sukuna glared, opening his mouth to say something and stop his dad’s scheming. however, wasuke strategically held his hand toward you and slightly slumped his body as if he lost all energy.

“hold this old man’s hand, will you?”

sukuna shut his mouth as you took his dad’s hand into yours. he knew what his dad was doing, and yet, the sight of you holding his dad’s hand so gently had sukuna nearly melt into the hospital floor.

“the kid has been going on and on about you,” wasuke continued, “wondering if you’re married or something.”

wasuke laughed, acting like yuji’s curiosities were ridiculous. but sukuna knew. his fucking grump of a father was trying to play wingman. you only chuckled in response and said no.

wasuke gestured for you to lean down towards him and he quietly said something’s that sukuna couldn’t hear. you smiled and straightened your upper body.

“he’s not as lazy as you think, sir.”

wasuke only hummed as you all had finally arrived at the elevator. sukuna thanked whatever higher being there was because now this embarrassing conversation could end now.

“you’re too good for my son” wasuke strokes his nonexistent beard, “but you’d do good for the family.”

sukuna’s eyes went wide. you stood there, a little stunned. the implications of wasuke’s words were quite clear to the both of you, and sukuna wanted to sink into a hole beneath the hospital.

“oh, well, i’m flattered that you think so,” you replied diplomatically.

the elevator doors had opened with a ding.

“i don’t think so, i know so-”

sukuna took the wheel chair from the nurse and pushed his dad into the elevator, “alright let’s get you back into bed.”

sukuna stepped one foot out the elevator and glanced down at you. the amount of embarrassment that was surging all throughout his nervous system made it difficult to maintain eye contact with you.

“my dad’s a bit loopy,” sukuna explained, “i’m sorry for some of the things he said to you.”

“stop talking shit like i’m not here!”

sukuna’s head hung low as he groaned.

“it’s ok,” you smiled, trying to hold in a chuckle, “i’ll see you tomorrow at work.”

you left without another word. sukuna stepped back into the elevator. just as the elevator doors closed, sukuna turned and glared down at wasuke.

“now, why’d you have to go on saying that shit, old man?”

yyyyyyy/nnnnnnnn

sukuna?

hiiiiiiiiii

are you concussed again?

wat dos concsd mean?

i loooovvv yuuu

huh?

sukuna, this is serious.

are you ok?

i wan yu and uncl sukuna to ge merreed

yuji???

yessss

yuji, you should not be going on your uncle’s phone like this

so yu don wan uncl sukuna to be yer boyfrend?

get off your uncle’s phone right now

:(

okayyyy byyeeee

sukuna was mortified.

he scrolled through the conversation yuji had with you. why was his family making things worse for him? sukuna didn’t want to make you think that his family, and by extension him, were all weird.

it’s only been a month since he got your number and nearly seven months of knowing you from working at the fire station. now, both his dad and nephew have brought up prospects of marriage to you and sukuna wanted to absolutely die.

he scrolled back up to the beginning of the conversation, re-reading your exchange with yuji. his nephew said i fucking love you, as if sukuna was the one saying it to you. the brat was just as conniving as wasuke.

sukuna could only imagine what was going through your mind. probably confusion at first, especially with that six year old’s spelling, which likely made you think sukuna was actually concussed again.

but the minute yuji sent that i love you text, you were probably thinking that you had just received a confession from a coworker. sukuna dragged his free hand down his face before resting it on his mouth.

even in moments of dealing with seemingly delirium, you were still concerned for sukuna’s well being. his hand could feel how his face heated up slowly.

he scrolled. the fucking brat didn’t even know how to spell ‘married’ correctly.

as the phone lay in sukuna’s hand, he pressed his thumb onto the screen. he held his thumb down and slowly swiped to the left to see the time stamps of each text.

you were quick to respond, just like any good paramedic. you were also quick in dealing with his nephew’s dumb shenanigans.

however, there was one text that indicated a delay between responses. just after yuji had asked you about not wanting sukuna as a boyfriend, it took you four minutes to respond to that text.

sukuna didn’t know how to feel about this. you could’ve easily denied yuji’s question. instead, you avoided the question with a four minute delayed response.

not knowing how to respond at first and avoiding the question? sukuna might actually start becoming a little delirious, but this could mean one of two things:

1. you were actually baffled by the question that you were just so taken aback and couldn’t think of anything to say in that moment.

or

2. you actually wouldn’t mind sukuna being your boyfriend, and just maybe you almost slipped and took a moment to stop yourself.

sukuna definitely felt delusional for believing in the latter more, but the idea of you being open to him in this way? you could say that sukuna was in a pretty good position despite his family’s attempts at trying to get you together.

… and it was all thanks to that four minute delay.

sukuna finally did it.

he got you to go out with him for coffee. it was actually just getting coffee together in the kitchen. well, after eight months of knowing and working with you and only getting your number two months ago, sukuna considered it a win.

all he did was ask you if you wanted to get some coffee from the kitchen, nothing more than that. he made it sound casual, but you said yes, and sukuna couldn’t help but feel giddy.

he tried calming the little pep in his step as the both of you walked down the hall toward the kitchen. no, it wasn’t anything super serious, at least, not objectively. it was just getting coffee on a brief break during your shifts.

but for sukuna, this was the next big thing after getting your phone number. he doesn’t really count the whole ordeal of getting your number because sukuna was too much of a pussy to ask you directly. this time though? he finally gained the courage to ask you get some coffee with him.

entering the kitchen, sukuna went straight to work to prepare two cups of coffee. you leaned against the table, waiting patiently. sukuna was quick and efficient. the cheap coffee had brewed in less than three minutes and he poured and set down a cup next to you.

as he got his own, you took your cup and smiled, “thanks, sukuna.”

“i wouldn’t be doing this for just any coworker,” he tried to say with an aloof tone.

your smile became a teasing one, “oh, so i’m special is what you’re saying.”

you sipped your coffee, peering from above your cup as sukuna rolled his eyes and drunk from his cup. he couldn’t stand how… cute? you were from the way you teased and sipped the coffee he made for you.

“no, you’re just tolerable compared to the rest.”

such bullshit. you were more than tolerable. sukuna knew that. the over 6ft, 200 pound of a man has been crushing hard on you since the day he met you in the chief’s office. the first time you smiled at him was the moment you had him wrapped around your finger.

he wanted nothing but more with you, but sukuna was grateful to have always been in close proximity with you on a regular basis. sukuna doesn’t even know it himself, but he treasures every little moment he could get with you.

“well, i really like you,” you shrugged, taking another sip.

frozen, is what sukuna was. the words had processed in his brain, but he was trying to make sure that it actually was said and not something made up in his crush-deluded mind.

you said it with such simplicity. he couldn’t find a hint of any underlying meanings behind your words. sukuna didn’t say anything back for a minute.

you gulped down the rest of your coffee, “um, like you’re really nice, you know…”

the tips of sukuna’s ears started to become red.

you placed your cup of coffee into the kitchen sink. sukuna only stood there with his coffee in hand, still trying to make sense of the fact that you said that you liked him.

you started to head out the kitchen, but just before you left you paused, almost shyly turning back to him.

"we both have an off-day tomorrow..."

sukuna did nothing but stay silent.

"... so, we can, uh, talk about this more," you looked ahead, "outside of work. less formal, you know."

you quickly sauntered away, still hiding your face away from sukuna. did you suggest doing something tomorrow with him? like... an actual date?

sukuna felt like he got just punched in the gut by butterflies.

happy holidays, fluff freaks.

it was one of your off days.

but you still decided to go down to the station to bring some lunch down to the firefighter chief, who was a long time friend of your mom's, and still secretly had the hots for her.

you honestly didn't mind. he was pretty much a father figure to you and was always good to your mom and generally to others. he was so good that he would sometimes forget to prioritize his own health and maybe skip a meal.

so, any time on your off days you always brought something to eat for the chief. you greeted some coworkers as you entered the lobby of the fire station. you went straight to the chief's office.

the aromatic scent of the chicken biryani you ordered for takeout was filling the hall as a few firefighters and paramedics popped their heads out from their dorms to figure out what smelled so good.

as you arrived, you could hear the chief speaking behind the closed door of his office. you figured he was on the phone and proceeded to knock on the door. a muffled 'come in' sounded and you let yourself in.

the chief was sitting at his desk, but with no phone in hand. you realized that there was another person in the room, and that person was rather large. even though he was also sitting, the guy was broad and thick. his baggy jacket and pants did little to hide his stature.

he looked back at you as you entered the office with a plastic bag of two to-go containers of chicken biryani in your hand. he had pink hair, which amused you. however, that was offset by the black markings of tattoos that littered his face paired with a set of red eyes that felt like they could make you sink into the ground.

this guy was... he was like sublime art—a blending of beauty and terror that roused awe and a sense of being overwhelmed.

"ah, there you are. what's for lunch today?"

the chief's question broke your gaze away from the new face. you quietly thanked him because if your eyes had consumed that man's visage a second longer, you'd walk right out of the office and go straight home with your chief's lunch.

"indian food." was all you said as you handed the plastic bag to the chief.

he smiled, "ah, my favorite."

you could feel the man's eyes on you. you tried to focus on your breathing, attempting to weaken the magnetic force that tried to pull your head to look back at him.

the chief took the bag of food and gently set it aside before gesturing to the man that sat across from him, "this is sukuna! he's the new hire."

you craned your neck to glance down at sukuna. it wasn't fair. why did you have to be a sucker for things that looked aesthetically pleasing to the eye?

he looked like he could wreck your shit for just breathing the wrong way, and yet the details of his face created a rush of dopamine that flowed into your brain.

the chief introduced you as one of the paramedics, which prompted sukuna to reach out with an open hand. you reciprocated the action and grabbed his hand and shook it

you gave sukuna the tiniest of smiles, "nice to meet you."

your smile was a front to hide the fact that all you could focus on was the sheer size of his hand and how it practically encased your own. his hand was calloused and his grip was firm. even just from this one handshake, sukuna felt... solid.

you were the first to let go, your arm falling to your side. the scratchy feeling of his callouses lingered on your palm. you placed your attention back on the chief to get away from all of the tingling sensations that your sight and touch were eliciting.

"i'll be back tomorrow." you nodded at your boss.

your eyes quickly flitted back to sukuna only to find that he was still staring at you. as cheesy as it may sound, his eyes were like ruby gemstones, which didn't help because as a kid you always liked the allure and shininess of gems.

a tight-lipped smile stretched onto your face as you also nodded at sukuna before turning on your heels and leaving the office. as soon as you shut the door behind you and started to walk away, your eyes widened.

that fine specimen of a man was going to be your coworker, and you weren't sure if you should feel excited or scared.

it was just a standard uniform.

everyone at the fire station was required to have and wear their own uniform whenever on duty. the uniform was simply a navy blue shortsleeved button up with pants to match, made from durable and flame-resistant materials.

but none looked as good compared to the way the uniform fit sukuna.

most firefighters had to be jacked up and strong, and sukuna was no exception. there were other guys that worked at the station who probably had a similar physique as sukuna, but for some reason, he looked really good in the standard uniform.

you had entered the kitchen. sukuna's back faced you as he filled a bowl with greek yogurt from a gallon-sized tub. your head tilted to the side at the ridiculously large tub of greek yogurt.

but then you noticed how he stood there, leaning his weight onto his right foot. it was just a uniform, you reminded yourself. yes, it was... but that doesn't negate the fact that sukuna's ass looked great in those fire-resistant pants.

not only that, his back was huge and v'd outwards. was it possible to see muscles flex through a shirt that was supposed to fit a little loosely?

you quietly sighed to yourself. it was 7:47am, and it was too early for you to be getting all worked up from the sight of your coworker scooping greek yogurt into a bowl.

"morning." you chirped, as if not standing at the entrance of the kitchen scanning sukuna's backside just a second ago.

you went to the fridge as sukuna turned to glance back at you, "morning."

oh, that voice. deep and rich. this was the first time hearing his voice, and the way it hit your ears had you feeling like falling into a soft couch after a long day.

this was bad. you cursed to yourself as you got out some eggs, cheese, and a jar of mayo. there was a gruffness in his tone. considering that this was your first on-duty interaction with sukuna, you exercised a bit of caution since you still didn't know him.

you heated up a pan on the stove and proceeded to grab a loaf of bread out of the pantry and placed two slices into the toaster. once the pan heated up you poured a little olive oil before cracking two eggs into the pan.

the eggs sizzled as the slices of bread popped up from the toaster. you went to get a plate, but sukuna beat you to it, grabbing one from the shelf and placing it onto the counter near you.

you weren't sure if he was going to use it for himself since the distance at which he slid the plate near you wasn't enough to fully indicate that the plate was for you. so, you went ahead to grab another plate.

"it's for you."

it felt like his voice boomed into you, as you were both now standing next to each other. the resonance of his voice reverberated into your brain and down into your toes. you looked down at the plate a bit dumbfounded, but quickly shook it off.

"thank you." you say softly, trying to keep down the pleasant feeling you were experiencing from both the sound of his voice and the small gesture.

you placed your slices of toasted bread onto the plate before spreading some mayo and slapping a piece of cheese onto one of the slices. you forced your attention to be on the task at hand—making your breakfast.

carefully, you took each egg and placed it on top of the cheese, so that the heat from the eggs could melt it. you didn't know that sukuna had been observing how you were preparing your breakfast.

"what're you making?"

you glanced back up to find sukuna kind of leaned over as if trying to get a closer peek at your breakfast. the corners of your mouth quirked up. his curious expression softened his overall scary appearance.

you looked down at your plate still slightly smiling, "it's an egg sandwich."

you placed the other slice of toast on top of the eggs, completing the sandwich. sukuna only grunted and nodded. you grabbed your plate and sat at the end of the table.

you took the sandwich in your hands and slightly pressed it, making the egg yolks break and spill onto your plate. sukuna took his bowl of greek yogurt and started to walk out of the kitchen.

"see you around."

you glanced back at him and nodded, "see ya."

you turned back around and dipped your sandwich in the runny yolk before taking the first bite. your body slightly swayed side to side and you hummed in satisfaction.

you didn't know that sukuna caught a glimpse of you doing your happy dance.

it had been a long evening.

the station got called to handle a major fire in some corporate building because some ambitious ceo tried pitching an idea that had to do with inflammable curtains.

fortunately, everyone was able to evacuate the building and none sustained any major injuries. you remained outside standing next to the ambulance truck as you watched the rest of your coworkers work to put the fire out.

you leaned against the truck, crossing your arms as you scanned the crowd forming that was made up of a mix of the employees from the building and random bystanders.

smoke unfurled out the windows from the third floor as the firefighters aimed and sprayed jets of water from the giant hoses. sukuna had been preparing to enter the building and was putting on his personal protective equipment.

you were on duty. you were called to be on site like any other time.

and yet, this was probably one of the first times where you actually understood the hype around firefighters despite already having worked a few years with them.

sukuna was simply getting geared up, and was pretty much obscuring all aspects of him under his helmet, mask, and heavy bunker gear.

but, oh boy. the thoughts in your head were making such a plain act become an enticing display to consume. maybe it was because the thickness of the gear emphasized his stature and was just making him look more solid.

your cheeks felt hot, but you passed it off as being from the heat of the fire that was getting put out. you ripped your gaze off of sukuna and went back to scanning the crowd.

he walked past you, making your eyes instantly fly to his back. even just in that split second of his body blurring into your vision, your mind encoded into memory his red eyes that were filled with determination.

thank goodness his back was facing toward you, otherwise he would have caught you staring holes into him. you really needed to stop noticing every little detail about him.

sukuna and a few others entered the building to make sure the fire was fully extinguished. you probably stood there for another twenty minutes before it was declared that the fire was completely out.

you thought sukuna putting on his gear was already enough to make the dopamine dance in your brain. but the moment he ripped that hard helmet and mask off, you were done for.

sukuna started placing his contaminated gear into a separate bag. he proceeded to un-velcro his jacket. you followed his gloved hands as they efficiently worked their way down before getting the zipper and pulling it.

it shouldn't have looked as sensual as it did, but sukuna shrugging off the heavy-duty jacket from his shoulders had you feeling like a victorian man being exposed to an ankle for the first time.

your eyes drifted to how sukuna's forearms flexed as he took hold of his jacket. you heaved out an exasperated breath and shut your eyes as you ran your hand over your face before letting it rest on your eyes.

you didn't know how you were supposed to go on like this. you hoped that your state of being whenever sukuna was around would eventually wear off over time because this was just not good for work or for you.

"you good?"

your eyes flew open under your hand. that deep and rich voice. you moved your hand finding sukuna two steps away from you. he gazed up and down at you, but all you could see was concern in his eyes... far from the way you've been looking at him.

you looked away as you clasped your hands in front of you, "yeah, just a little tired."

sukuna stood there for a few seconds not saying anything. starting to feel the awkward tension, you peered back up at sukuna. he just stood there. still not saying anything.

"did you need something?" you asked gingerly.

sukuna looked over to the side, pursing his lips, "I cut my hand on my gear somehow."

your brain went into paramedic mode and instantly looked down to assess his hand. you couldn't see anything, so you proceeded to put on gloves and took his hand into yours to get a closer look.

moving his hand, you flipped it to check his palm and the sides of it. you genuinely couldn't find a single cut and he wasn't bleeding anywhere.

you glanced back up at sukuna in confusion, "i'm sorry, but I don't see anything wrong with your hand."

sukuna was still looking away, "i got the cut here."

he took his free hand and pointed at the second knuckle of his supposedly injured index finger. your brows furrowed as you slightly leaned in closer to follow where he pointed.

you still couldn't see anything. you squinted your eyes, trying to concentrate and detect the seemingly nonexistent cut. but then you saw something—a small cut.

a chuckle almost left your lungs, "oh, i see it now. let me disinfect it first."

you released his hand and got into the first aid box that had been resting on the ground. you dug through the box and got some sterile wipes out and proceeded to carefully clean his paper-cut wound.

you pulled out a small case of bandaids and looked into it, "seems i brought the kid ones today."

sukuna peered over to see the bandaids designed with different colors and patterns. you took a handful out, so that sukuna could a better look.

"i want this one." sukuna grabbed a bandaid and held it out to you.

it had one little sunny side-up egg that smiled, and above it, floated the word 'eggsellent'.

the fire station was a lot busier than usual. that was because it was 'bring a family member to work day' today. everyone, even those off duty, brought someone to work with them.

most of your coworkers brought their kids, some their friends. you decided to bring your mom, because you knew the chief would've appreciated it, and you even had an inkling that your mom would too.

your mom left you, she probably went off to hide in the chief's office. you expected this to happen, so you went into the kitchen to grab a snack. as you entered the kitchen, you found a kid climbing onto the counter.

you were about to say something, but paused when you noticed that the kid had pink hair just like-.

"sukuna?" you muttered as your head leaned to the side and frowned.

no way. did your hot and scary coworker shrink into a child? you always believed in some divine, higher power, but didn't think that you'd see it in action in your lifetime. the kid heard you and turned around.

he grinned sheepishly, "heh, could you help me?"

there was no way that this kid was sukuna. sukuna doesn't smile. at least, you've never seen him smile around you or others.

"sure," you said slowly as you approached the kid, "what do you need?"

the kid suddenly became bashful, "don't tell uncle sukuna i climbed on the kitchen, ok?"

you hid your smile since the kid seemed a bit serious and nodded.

he smiled again and nearly whispered to you, "i heard uncle sukuna saying that there was some soda somewhere."

ah, so he's sukuna's nephew, not a shrink-rayed sukuna. you matched the kid's smile as you opened the fridge, finding an assortment of soda.

"there's some in the fridge."

the kid jumped off the counter. your eyes widened, afraid in that split second that he could get hurt, but the kid landed perfectly. you stepped to the side to let him get a good look inside the fridge.

he grabbed a can of root beer and gave you a toothy grin, "thanks. i'm yuji!"

yuji opened the can of soda before holding out his tiny, free hand. you gently grabbed it and shook it as you told him your name. he nearly spit out the first sip he took as his eyes widened.

"are you ok?" your eyebrows furrowed, thinking that yuji choked on his soda.

he simply nodded, eyes still wide like he just realized something. yuji started to lightly bounce on the balls of his feet and kept making funny expressions. it was like he wanted to say something really bad, but was trying to hold back as best as he could.

luckily, sukuna walked in, interrupting whatever epiphany yuji was having.

"brat, what are you doing?"

for a moment, yuji was stunned from having been caught by his uncle, but his face soon turned into a devious expression, "oh, nothing. y/n helped me get some soda."

sukuna's eyes flitted to you and he cleared his throat and nodded, "i'm sorry about yuji bothering you."

you shook your head and smiled, "don't worry about it."

suddenly, yuji took your hand into his and guided you out of the kitchen. sukuna tried reprimanding his nephew, but failed to get you out of his clutches.

"i want you to show me the firetruck!" yuji beamed up at you.

"brat, you said you wanted me to-"

yuji pulled you away quickly and started to run, and you, for some reason, decided to run too. yuji cackled, and you couldn't help but inwardly rage at his cuteness.

you guys stopped in the apparatus bay where the firetrucks were parked. yuji was suddenly snatched away from you and he let out a squeal as sukuna placed him in a weak headlock. sukuna proceeded to give him a knuckle sandwich and yuji laughed.

while you found the scene endearing, there was something about sukuna being juxtaposed with a child. no, no, no. you were not about to get hot and bothered because sukuna looked good being a parental figure.

yuji skillfully squirmed out of sukuna's grip and ran away toward a group of kids that surrounded another firefighter showing off her gear.

"i thought you shrunk for a second when i first saw yuji in the kitchen," you blurted.

sukuna chuckled and crossed his arms as he watched yuji, "i only brought him because he's obsessed with firetrucks."

as if on cue, yuji started to intensely observe and trace the firetruck with his hand. you quietly laughed.

"told him i'd take him to see a real one," sukuna continued, "but that he had to wait until i started working at a firehouse."

you paused, moved by sukuna's thoughtfulness. eye candy be damned, this man was too good to be true.

"so, you became a firefighter for your nephew?" you glanced at sukuna, a smile threatening to break out.

sukuna looked away, shrugging it off, "it was just so he could see a real firetruck."

you tore your gaze away from sukuna and onto yuji, who was now wearing the helmet of one your coworkers. you started to grin.

"... you know... working here isn't a requirement if you want to visit..."

sukuna re-crossed his arms like a little kid before rolling his eyes and muttering, "just ruin my thunder, i guess."

sukuna seemed to be getting injured left and right.

it sort of baffled you how often he was getting hurt just within the week. he was always pretty careful and very mindful of himself, so you don't what was going on.

it was one of your off days and you were bringing the chief lunch again. he wasn't in the office, so you left the container of doro wat and bag of injera on his desk with a note. you were making your way to the lobby before one of your coworkers stopped you.

"sukuna was looking for you."

"huh? why?" you frowned.

"he got hurt."

you scrunched your eyebrows, "again?"

somehow, you were always around whenever sukuna had gotten hurt. most of his injuries were pretty mild, but sukuna was always seeking you out for medical attention even though there were at least two other paramedics on site.

one time, a fire extinguisher fell on sukuna's foot. you wrapped and iced his foot, but soon realized that the amount of care you had put in was a bit much—the fire extinguisher wasn't that heavy and sukuna had been wearing his heavy-duty boots.

another time, sukuna and some others decided to do the salt and ice challenge. he nearly gave himself a cold burn, but you had entered the kitchen just in time to wrap up his arms before you reprimanded sukuna for initiating the challenge.

your coworker led you to the dormitory. sukuna had been lying down on his bed with an arm resting on his face. your coworker left you without another word as you remained in the doorway of the dormitory.

you scanned sukuna's state of being. initially, your paramedic brain was just trying to assess how he was doing, but then the not safe for work thoughts were creeping into your mind.

sukuna was stretched out on the bed. his shirt had risen up from him having placed his arm on his face. it had risen just enough for you to get a peep at the tattoos on his torso that you didn't know he had.

his tattoos accentuated the small sliver of exposed skin. you licked your lips because they were dry. they were not dry

you quietly gulped before taking a deep, quiet breath. you approached sukuna slowly. he still remained the way he was—sprawled out on his bed. you became a little worried, thinking that he got seriously hurt this time.

"hey," you called out gently, “you ok?”

sukuna raised his arm from his face at the sound of your voice. he peered up at you through squinted eyes. he rested his arm back onto his face.

"hit my head," he grumbled, "been having a headache."

you frowned as you got closer to him, "i should check if you're concussed."

you moved sukuna's arm and leaned over him, "open your eyes."

you conducted the standard procedure for checking concussion symptoms. you flashed your phone light into each of his eyes, but neither showed any signs of concussion.

"have you been feeling nauseous?"

"no."

"dizziness?"

"no."

"has your vision been blurry?"

"only after you flashed that light into my corneas." sukuna grumbled with a hint of sarcasm.

you chuckled at sukuna's use of the medical term, "then you might just have a regular headache. how did you hit your head?"

"..."

"sukuna?"

"... the chief hit me on the head..."

you frowned and nearly scoffed, "what?"

sukuna sat up with ease, as if his headache wasn't bothering him that much anymore. he swung his legs over the edge of the bed, so that he was facing you.

"why did he hit you?" you were absolutely confused, the chief was always kind and gentle.

sukuna looked away and shrugged as the tips of his ears started to become red, "i, uh, got into trouble."

your eyebrows scrunched as you tilted your head, "can i ask what you did?"

"don't worry about it... was stupid anyway," sukuna shrugged again.

"um, ok. well, you're fine for the most part. just take some ibuprofen and ice your head if needed," you instructed.

as sukuna sat in front of you, thighs open, you took one small step back. you had taken note of your guys' proximity to one another, seeing that sukuna's knees were close to brushing your legs.

"well, uh," you paused and briefly glanced out the window, "i'm gonna go now if you don't need anything else."

sukuna sat there in silence for a few seconds before nodding, "thanks."

you smiled, "no worries."

you exited the dorm room and started to walk down the hall. the chief had spotted you.

"how's sukuna?" he asked with a slightly jolly tone.

you frowned again, confused as to what had went down with the chief, "he's fine."

"did he say anything to you?"

"no, not really," you say carefully, not wanting to snitch on sukuna for telling on the chief.

the chief frowned, crossing his arms and placing a hand under his chin before humming and muttering quietly, "should've hit him harder."

"huh?"

"don't worry about it," the chief shook his head and grinned, "say hi to your mom for me."

"okay," you say slowly before nodding.

you left the fire station bewildered, but later that night you received a message from an unknown number.

chief said i was a pussy for not asking you for your number

you nearly snorted as you realized it was sukuna.

he hit me on the head again

can you help? i think i'm actually concussed this time

gojo had it all.

money, looks, an obnoxious charm, you name it. everyone knew who he was and they either wanted to be him or be with him. don't get him wrong, he liked the attention because it validated that he was actually hot shit.

but he also didn't mind some peace and quiet, which is why he found himself entering a public library. it wasn't too public, though. the library was merged with a cinema theater and set away just outside the more popular hubs of the city.

it was a friday and late. 9:27pm to be exact.

many were waiting in line to get their drinks and popcorn as gojo made his way up the stairs to the library. his hands were shoved in his pockets, his steps echoing louder as the noise of cinema goers faded.

there was a door with no windows, only a sign stating to be quiet with a 'shhh'. gripping the handle and opening the door, gojo's vision was flooded with nice, warm lighting along with shelves upon shelves of books.

the library was quite empty from what he could see. many tables and lounge furniture were unoccupied as gojo started to peruse around. he could have gone out with some friends, blowing money on unnecessarily expensive drinks that were really only for show.

but what people didn't know was that gojo was a complete nerd for literature. the heels of his shoes softly clicked against the old wooden floors as gojo headed straight for the science fiction section.

his blue eyes scanned the shelves, looking for the label that marked the authors' last name with the letter 'L'. he was on the hunt for the lathe of heaven by ursula le guin. as he walked down each aisle, gojo heard a rustling of papers and a sigh.

he poked his head out from behind one of the shelves.

you were sat down at one of the tables, with the built in light turned on. your space was scattered with multiple papers that were annotated and marked up. you went to click something on your laptop before closing it and straightening your back.

one of your hands rubbed the back of your neck as you rolled your head to stretch out your tense muscles. you stood up, your chair squeaking a little. you went to gather the scattered papers and collect them into a neat pile.

"excuse me."

gojo didn't know why he said anything. his mouth just felt compelled to say something, and now he's got your attention. you looked at gojo waiting for him to continue as you gathered your papers.

"ah, sorry. but could you help me find a book?" gojo gave you a charming smile.

you merely blinked, "sure."

oh. your tone was flat. not rude, but absent of reciprocating gojo's light-hearted attitude. you finished gathering your things, papers placed in a green file and tucked into your bag along with your laptop.

slinging your bag over your shoulder, you approached gojo, "what book is it?"

you started to walk past him, gojo turned and followed, "the lathe of heaven."

you paused and craned your neck, glancing at gojo with an expression akin to disbelief, "you know the lathe of heaven?"

gojo tilted his head and chuckled, "what's with that question?"

you looked him up and down. gojo couldn't blame you—he was decked out wearing a cuban link, a rolex, dress pants, and a white button up shirt that had the yves saint laurent logo on the breast pocket. your deadpanned expression nearly made gojo laugh.

you turned back and grumbled to yourself as your eyes searched for the book. you stretched out your arm and brushed each book spine with your hand.

gojo started on the opposite end and did the same. he didn't realize that you had stopped and already pulled out the book. he bumped into you, his eyes widening as he became a little startled.

"sorry about that." he took a half-step back, trying to ignore how the nerves in his arm tingled.

you handed him the book, "it's fine."

"thanks-."

oh. but he could feel the ghost of your fingertips brush his own. gojo stared at you, wondering if the neurons in your fingers also fired with electricity in the same way his did. but instead, you swiped your hand against your shirt. the same hand that brushed gojo's.

"have a good night," you turned on your heels, leaving gojo stunned.

did you... did you just insinuate that gojo was dirty? (no, your hands were just clammy). but gojo had never interacted with someone in such a manner.

you didn't seem to be interested in him when he approached you. it was actually irking gojo that you simply did what he asked for. no stammering, no blushing, no bashful expressions, none of it.

and not only that, you wiped your hand like you needed to get the touch of gojo off of you (gojo is so fucking dramatic). it was odd. gojo was a little shocked, but that soon morphed into something else.

your nonchalance was refreshing, another form of peace and quiet, and gojo wanted more of it.

gojo sat at a table with you across from him. he couldn't help but stare at you as you scribbled down whatever annotation on the margin of the paper you were working on. the warm lighting of the library created intricate shadows that curved around your face.

he wondered what it was about you as he propped an elbow on the table and rested his cheek in his palm. gojo gazed down at your hand gripping the pen that furiously marked up page after page. the way your fingers wrapped around the pen was... oddly suggestive?

gojo looked away, the back of his neck starting to burn up. his eyes flitted back to your hand that underlined and circled words. you made a check mark, your hand bending and flicking up. the overall motion of your hand had gojo taking in a sharp intake of air before letting out a hot, shaky breath.

you looked up, "are you ok?"

gojo's eyes flew up to meet yours. he silently gulped before ripping his gaze away and settling onto some shelf that had old books with spines that were starting to fall apart. he placed both of his hands on the edge of the table and leaned back.

"yeah," he tried saying coolly with a lopsided smile, "don't worry about me."

your gaze was somewhat unsettling as you said nothing and continued staring at him. gojo couldn't decipher a single thought or intention from you. he looked down at his lap. he could feel a strange tension forming.

clearly you didn't—you went back to working on your paper. but gojo? oh, he was feeling the tension in his pants. did he... did he get hard just from the sight of your hand? gojo silently cursed to himself. he gripped the edge of the table a little harder

he tried relaxing his shoulders that had gone rigid as he attempted to pretend to cross his legs. but the movement only left a throb of heat that spread all throughout his body. his foot accidentally tapped yours as he stretched his legs.

"a-ah sorry," gojo nearly shuddered.

the contact with your shoe sent a jolt up his leg and straight to his cock. gojo's chest rose and fell. you peered up at gojo. you said nothing, yet again as you picked up your paper and flipped the page. were you annoyed? was gojo really the only one that was hot and bothered?

gojo felt like he was being weighed down into the chair. he was trying his best not to let out a sound. but the moment he gaped down at his lap, finding that the silhouette of his hard cock was being covered by your foot, gojo choked. oh. so, it was an actual weight that he felt.

his head snapped up, eyes wide as your foot pressed down. your pen rested on the table and your elbows propped up as you clasped your hands and rested your chin on them. you eyed gojo with a… hint of a smirk, he thinks, seeing how his body twitched as you stretched your foot.

gojo couldn't handle looking at you. his hands still gripped the edge of the table. his breathing became shaky as he looked back down at his lap. you started to roll your foot, the pressure had gojo's eyes fluttering shut and his head started to droop.

"f-fuck," he rasped.

"shhh," your foot moved at the speed of your chastising voice, "we're in a library, you can't be too loud."

gojo tried his hardest to not let the whimper escape from his lips. there was a shift in your foot, making the sole of your shoe hit a particular part of gojo's cock that made his vision start to blur. his face felt impossibly hot like he had a fever.

the edge of your sole felt painfully good. gojo's fingers bent, his nails scraping against the table. his breaths were ragged and his whole body quivered.

"k-keep going. kee-."

gojo's eyes flashed open as he heaved in a huge gulp of air. he jerked his body, sitting up and feeling his heart beat rapidly. gojo was hot and sweaty. his room was dark and the only thing he could make out were the trembling pants leaving his mouth.

he was unbelievably hard. hard from a wet dream he had that involved you. it's been a few weeks since he first saw you at that cinema-merged library. he didn't think you were still on his mind.

gojo got up to head to the bathroom. as he recalled the dream, the images were already blurring and fading away. but one thing was for sure. the feeling of your foot rubbing onto gojo's cock remained and had seared into his brain and throughout his body.

gojo's cock ached as he turned on the shower, leaving it on the cold setting. he quickly stripped and stepped into the shower, the freezing water waking him up. despite the water cooling down the muscles in gojo's body, his mind was scorched with him wanting the pressure that he felt in the dream returned to his cock.

gojo exhaled as he moved his arm and started to fist his cock to the thought of you and didn't stop until he spilled himself down the drain.

why was he here again?

gojo asked himself a little too late as he found himself standing in the library again.

he was starting to become a walking contradiction. after that wet dream and getting off to the thought of you, gojo was mortified and didn't know what he would do if he ever saw you again.

but somehow and someway, gojo went to the very place that had the highest probability of you being there. the moment he stepped into the warm, lit library, his feet became glued to the old wooden floors.

the lathe of heaven rested in his hand.

right. gojo needed to return the book. that's why he was here. he'd been holding onto the book, and it had been way past it's proposed return date. ever since that dream, gojo avoided the library, and that, consequently, meant not returning the lathe of heaven.

he tried his best ignoring the reminder emails that gently urged him to return the book. gojo even received a grace period of an extra week before the start of getting fined for not giving the book back. but then more reminder emails started coming in attached with an invoice that slowly increased as the days went by.

gojo could handle a little book fine, so he's not sure why he didn't opt to just keep the lathe of heaven and not have go to the library.

another run in with you, though? that was an entirely different game that money couldn't solve and gojo was berating himself for even thinking he could take it on.

it was 10:52pm.

gojo didn't even know if there was a librarian working at that hour even though the library was technically open 24/7. he ran a hand through his hair as the other gripped the book a little tighter.

the library was even more dead compared to the first time he visited. there were maybe two others studying or reading, and you were nowhere to be seen.

gojo unglued his feet, cautiously taking each step while scanning the vicinity. it seemed no librarian was working since the desk was empty. gojo figured he could just leave the book with a little note and some cash. but he didn't have any paper.

so, he walked up to one of the two remaining patrons that was studying. the person was wearing a large, baggy hoodie and sweatpants. gojo couldn't make out the person well as their hood was on and they were scrunched over the table scribbling furiously on some paper.

"um, excuse me."

gojo wished he never said anything to begin with. he wished he went to the other person that was reading, someone he could clearly see that wasn't you.

but you turned around, revealing a frown matched with tired eyes.

all gojo could think about was the dream. the dream where you literally gave him a foot job in this very library. he saw recognition briefly flash in your eyes as you spun the chair around a bit.

"oh, hey."

there you go again. a tone dripping with indifference and gojo couldn't help but be terrified at the fact that he actually liked it. you tilted your head slightly, blinking.

"did you need something?"

the question pulled gojo out of his brief stupor. he gripped the lathe of heaven so hard that the pages could have been pressed and stuck together.

gojo tried his best to not stammer, "i- uh, do you have some paper?"

you blinked again, "what for?"

it's only a question. it's just a simple question. but why did it feel so abrupt to the point that it made gojo’s cock involuntarily twitch?

gojo gulped before placing a hand behind his head and looked away from you, "i need to write a note. i came to drop off my book and the librarian isn't here."

he was surprised that his statement came out cohesively and didn't stumble between each word. you said nothing as you proceeded to dig into your bag. it felt like it took forever and gojo really just wanted to write the note, drop off the book, and get out of the library.

you got out a pack of sticky notes before peeling one sheet off and handing it out to gojo. gojo snatched it quickly before turning on his heels and returning to the librarian's desk.

mint green—the color of the post-it note you had given him.

gojo wondered if it was your favorite color (it was not). he realized he had been staring at the blank note for the past minute. gojo grabbed a stray pen off the desk and wrote down a half-assed sorry note followed by some cash that was more than the actual amount he needed to pay.

just as gojo turned around, you were passing by him. you weren't too far away and you weren't too close to him. but gojo's sensitivity to everything that had to do with you had heightened, and you seemed way too close to him.

"watch my stuff. i need to piss."

gojo was confused. you didn't bother looking back as you headed straight for the bathroom. he stood there for a few seconds before walking over to your table.

you were just so straight to the point and gojo couldn’t help but feel compelled to heed your command. but why should he? technically you, aside from one other person, were the only one in the library, and so the likelihood of your things getting stolen was low.

gojo shifted his weight on each foot, trying to covertly adjust the uncomfortable feeling that was growing in his pants.

you returned from the bathroom and went to sit back down at your table before glancing up at gojo, "you can go now."

but gojo remained, feet planted and now even more confused with whatever this dynamic was between the two of you. you gripped your pen as you continued to write some annotation on your paper.

gojo zeroed in on your hand. he inwardly punched himself for looking because he felt his cock start to throb at the familiar sight.

"you should take probably care of that."

gojo ripped his eyes away from your hand and onto you. your statement was abrupt and flat, but you had a sly expression as your eyes flickered downwards and gojo looked down.

oh. he was visibly hard and this wasn't a dream. you spun your chair around and continued your studying as if gojo wasn't just standing near you with a hard-on.

gojo wanted to die.

romance novels were absolute bullshit.

gojo knew there was always some form of unrealism attached to many of these stories, but he didn't know it was this bad. he did a speed run of reading four different romance novels in the span of a week.

all of them had some similar overarching themes and tropes, and none of them resonated with gojo and what he was currently experiencing.

don't get him wrong, the novels were all greatly written. it's just that none touched on the inner turmoil that a protagonist might feel about a crush, especially when those feelings teeter into more carnal desires.

for example, a few more wet dreams visited his sleeping brain in the past weeks.

one involved him sitting at a study table as you kneeled in front of him and sucked him off. he remembered the wet, slobbery feeling of your mouth, slick and hot with a hint of teeth grazing against his cock.

another had him gripping your hips, your back arched with you holding onto the bookshelf in front of you as gojo slid his cock into your hot hole. you had felt tight and velvety around him, and the sounds you were making made gojo cum in his sleep.

it was becoming worse for gojo. each dream was becoming more lewd and vulgar. it was so bad to the point that gojo was fisting his cock every other night before he went to bed because that was the only way to prevent such dreams.

to make it even more worse, gojo is pretty sure that you know that you are the reason for the filth that's been going through his mind and out his cock.

really, though. what was that expression you had when you called out gojo's cock for being hard? it almost seemed like you reveled in the fact that you were the source of gojo's lecherous thoughts that decided to physically manifest in front of you.

either gojo was deluded with lust or he really did see a glint in your eyes that night. did you want him in the same way he wanted you? have you had multiple nights where you just had to get yourself off to the thought of him?

such questions replayed themselves like a broken record in his mind. so much so, that he didn’t realize he walked straight up to you until the moment he was at arm’s length.

gojo clenched his fists and could feel his palms start to become sweaty. gojo was sure of it. there was definitely a smidge of delight that flashed in your eyes the second you glanced back at him.

you spun your chair to face him and tilted your head up. you crossed one leg over the other before leaning back into the chair. your elbows rested on the arms of the chair as you clasped your hands together.

gojo visibly gulped. you were waiting as always. but this time it wasn’t just merely to see what he’d do next. no, you wanted gojo to finally light up the fire that had been waiting patiently in the heat of smoldering embers.

gojo just stood there, saying nothing. you tilted your head to the side. gojo had finally worked himself up and all he could do was remain silent.

usually you would say something like asking he if needed something. but you stayed quiet, prolonging the silence that was making the tension start to feel suffocating for gojo.

with your chin tipped slightly down, you gave a mocking pout, “use your words.”

a teasing tone this time. gojo slowly closed his eyes and let out a quiet breath of air. as he opened his eyes, they flickered from your hands and up to your mouth.

yeah, fuck those romance novels. none depicted how a man could be in such a pathetic state in the way gojo was.

gojo thought he had it all.

no amount of money, looks, or obnoxious charm could top the way your pretty lips made his cock disappear into your mouth. it was just like his dreams and more.

in the library.

gojo leaned his head back against the book shelf as he heaved in and out heavy, hot breaths. he bit the neckline of his now wrinkled dress shirt, but it did little to muffle out the moans and whimpers.

he gripped the shelf behind him, trying to keep himself from collapsing at the sound of you slurping every time you bobbed your head back.

“is this how i did it in your dream?”

your hand circled around the base of his cock, giving it a good squeeze before tugging up. your thumb rolled up and over the sensitive tip of his cock. gojo’s white lashes fluttered as he looked down at you with clouded eyes.

it was everything and better.

you brushed your cheek against his cock and turned your head as you slowly opened your mouth again. your tongue peeked out, teasing drops of wetness upon gojo’s cock.

you met his eyes just as you stuck your tongue out more and slowly swirled it around his aching tip. gojo’s eyes rolled to the back of his head and his hands sharply flexed to grip the shelf behind him even tighter.

the sudden jolt of movement caused a few books to fall on either side of you both and gojo’s eyes shot open at the scattered thuds. but you gave his cock a good up and down motion with your hand, pulling him out of his panic.

“don’t worry,” you cooed, “no one comes to this area, especially this late.”

you were right, though. the science fiction section was always empty on a night around 11:28pm. it was one of the more discrete locations of the library with it tucked away in a corner on the third floor.

gojo's mind melted away from the worry of getting caught as your hot breath fanned against his cock. however, you stood up, briefly letting go of him.

you brought one of your hands to his face, your thumb brushing the bottom of gojo's lips.

"open."

the command was soft. gojo slowly opened his mouth. your thumb pushed down on his bottom lip before sliding in. just as the tip of your thumb pressed onto gojo's tongue, you grabbed his cock again and started to pump your fist up and down.

gojo nearly let out a loud gasp, but was stopped by your thumb moving and pressing down against his tongue. saliva started to slowly drip from the corner of gojo's mouth as you continued to jerk off his cock.

you leaned closer to gojo, "you gonna cum?"

gojo gagged out a whimper. you were so close to him. your hand was holding his cock. your other hand was shoving its thumb into his mouth.

yeah, romance novels had nothing on this.

a bead of sweat slid down the side of gojo's face. he was so focused on every little aspect of his circumstances, that he couldn't answer you.

you pushed your thumb further into his mouth, making gojo nearly choke. your fingers gripped his jaw a little harder as you pulled him toward you. your other hand started to stroke his cock faster and rougher.

"gonna cum, huh?" you repeated, tone now egging him on.

gojo nodded dumbly as his hips started to jerk up into your hand. he was getting so close. his lower abdomen started to flex and tighten as his breaths became more ragged. gojo's eyes scrunched close, focusing on the feeling of working towards his high.

your thumb rolled and swirled over his tip every few upstrokes. he was burning hot. gojo's vision started to become white as he was just a few strokes away from cumming.

but your thumb was suddenly gone from his mouth, and your other hand no longer wrapped around his aching cock. gojo's eyes flew open to find you taking a step back.

"w-what the fuck?" he panted heavily, his cock hot and heavy.

you took your phone out, checking the time. you wiped your mouth with your arm before sliding your phone back in your pocket. you proceeded to pack your things up.

"sorry, i forgot i have a meeting in the morning," you said as you placed your laptop into your bag.

no, because what the actual fuck. you just gave him blue balls, and you clearly didn't care (you actually reveled in the fact). the unreleased tension was hurting his cock as he tried to slowly breathe in and out.

as you slung your bag onto your shoulder, you glanced back at gojo.

"you should probably take care of that." your eyes flitted down with a smug expression.

it was just like that one time, except now gojo's cock was fully exposed and hard for you to see. his face and neck flushed.

but for the first time since encountering you, you smiled.

"i'll see you tomorrow."

and just like that, you were gone, leaving a grossly aroused gojo to finish himself off in the science fiction section.

the first time sukuna saw you was actually not when he came down the elevator to find you at 8:47am, falling asleep and bumping into him on the way in.

sukuna had always refrained from taking the elevator, opting for the stairs despite having to always go up four flights. something about always finding a way to get a work out in.

he got back from a late night gym session. his feet carried him to the entrance of the stairs. usually around this time, no one is roaming around the apartment complex. but sukuna heard someone quietly curse and glanced over to where the sound came from.

you were walking to the elevator as you struggled to zip open your bag. you must have moved in recently, sukuna noted. he watched you drop down a duffle bag that hung on your shoulder onto the floor, making it easier for you to get into your other bag.

you pushed the elevator button before getting back to your mission of finding whatever it was. as the doors slid open, you proceeded to kick the duffle bag into the elevator and took one step in. sukuna nearly let out a noise of amusement.

sukuna didn't know why he stayed to watch. typically, he didn't really care about what others did and kept to himself. but he was really curious as to what you were searching so hard for that you had to plop your duffle bag on the floor and crudely kick it into the elevator.

he saw that you finally got out what you were struggling to look for. the moment of truth came. is that... a lifesavers mint? sukuna tilted his head, wondering why you went through all of that trouble just to get out a little mint.

your actions were a little odd, but he's seen and done crazier things. sukuna didn't want to get caught and have you thinking that he was some creep, so he opened the door and prepared for his four flight journey of stairs.

annoyed.

that's what sukuna was feeling. he sustained a minor knee injury in the gym, at least that's what he considered it. his trainer, however, told him that he needed to minimize as much strain as possible.

he couldn't take the four flights of stairs whenever he wanted to leave his apartment, much to his dismay. something about losing extra gains or whatever. he was fine with taking the elevator, but after two weeks of doing so, sukuna was feeling like he was starting to lose a bit of his superhuman lung capacity that he worked so hard to build up.

he pushed the elevator button and impatiently waited for it to arrive. sukuna attempted to lean on his injured knee, feeling a light shooting pain. he grunted and thought about taking some supplements or look up whatever bullshit remedy to speed up his recovery.

the doors opened.

he found you standing in the middle of the elevator. the last time he saw you was that one morning where you looked positively dead and trudged in like a zombie.

you were-. no, he stopped himself from thinking anything further. cute was not something that was a part of his mental schema. his nephew was objectively cute, but sukuna never even saw the brat as cute.

maybe it was because you actually looked refreshed and not droopy-eyed and scrunched over from an eight-hour night shift.

he realized that he stood for a second too long as you moved into the corner of the elevator. great, now you think he's some brooding asshole. well, that description wasn't far off, but sukuna didn't mean to make you move out of his way. he could have easily stepped in and to the side of the elevator, and you could have remained where you were.

as he entered the elevator, sukuna briefly looked at the buttons ready to press his floor number. but he saw that it was already pushed. convenient.

he stood slightly in front of you. sukuna so badly wanted to turn his head to look back at you, but he didn't want to scare you any more than he already did. he decided to focus on a stray dust bunny that swayed side to side from the light breeze of the air conditioning.

sukuna felt your eyes on him. he wondered what you were thinking about. probably terrified that he turned out to be your neighbor. a tiny part of him felt bad even though it was a normal occurrence for him to intimidate others.

he knew that he was scary. the guy was all height and muscle, and his tattoos didn't help at all... and now he scared you, who just so happened to be his neighbor.

the elevator stopped, doors opening. sukuna exited first, pulling his keys out as he got to his door. he heard a tiny thud and looked at the ground. it was a lifesavers mint. you must have dropped it as you got your own set of keys out to unlock your door.

sukuna picked it up and strode toward you. he didn't know your name, so all he could do was call out with a 'hey'.

your head snapped to look at sukuna. your eyes were slightly wide. sukuna inwardly punched himself, seeing that he startled you. he didn't mean for his voice to boom out the way it did.

not wanting to be distracted from the task at hand, sukuna held his hand out, palm up as he revealed your fallen lifesaver.

"you dropped this."

you looked down in response. sukuna could see the gears in your mind turn. you stammered out a nervous reply before quickly opening your door and shutting it loudly behind you.

sukuna just stood there, a little dumbfounded. he let out a sigh, shoulders slightly slumping. he glanced down at the mint that looked incredibly small in his large hand.

it seemed he was bad at being nice and ended up scaring you again.

sukuna entered his apartment. he wasn't going to eat the mint, not wanting to ruin his sugar intake. but he didn't throw it away.

he left the mint on his dining table.

sukuna noticed that you had a designated spot in the elevator. specifically, the back right corner. any time he found himself with you in that moving box, you always shuffled to that little corner and pressed yourself into it.

he wondered what it was about that corner that always had you leaning against it. always the back right corner, never the left one.

as the elevator descended, sukuna took one step to the right. he pressed his shoulder against the wall as he tried settling into the very same spot you always chose to be in.

he shifted awkwardly, struggling to mold his large body into the corner. sukuna tried turning a little, positioning his body diagonally. but all that did was make his shoulders scrunch forward uncomfortably.

it racked his brain. how could you find the corner comfortable? he supposed it was due to the fact that you were much smaller than him, so it was easier for you to fit in. sukuna decided to face forward, his shoulders now relaxing as he leaned back on the wall and crossed his arms.

the elevator stopped and bounced, having arrived on the ground floor. it opened, revealing you as its next user. you made eye contact for half a second with him before scanning him down.

sukuna froze, feeling like he just got caught stealing from a cookie jar. in this case, he got caught standing in your designated spot of the elevator.

he didn’t know why it felt like a big deal for him. it was just a particular area of the elevator. but it was your area, and sukuna knew that. he already felt bad enough for scaring you constantly.

… and now you found him occupying your corner.

he uncrossed his arms instantly and walked out. you slightly shifted out of the way as sukuna got out. he looked straight forward, not wanting to see if you had an annoyed expression or something along the lines of irritation.

the whole thing was honestly a bit ridiculous. though, the thought conflicted with sukuna's actions. it was ridiculous for him to feel embarrassed that you saw him standing in your corner. again, the guy is all height and muscles, he should have no reason to get all nervous around you.

sukuna didn’t know why he felt such guilt. he usually didn’t give a shit about what others thought. but with you, he tried making an effort to not bother you in any way possible. well, he tried his best to not scare you.

maybe it was because you minded your own business, which sukuna had respect for. or maybe it was because he found you cute-. no. sukuna grumbled to himself, shaking his head. that concept is nonexistent for him.

what sukuna did know was that he vowed to never take your corner ever again.

it was strange.

it had been well over four months since sukuna's knee injury, and it has definitely healed. but sukuna now only took the elevator and the stairs haven't crossed his mind in a long time.

he made the excuse that he wanted to take the elevator to give him multiple attempts to re-try the back right corner. but that was complete bullshit because every time he was in the elevator, your designated spot was always left alone.

whenever he approached the elevator he told himself to 'feel out the corner'. but as soon as the doors would open, he would glance at that space and then remind himself of the little vow he had declared.

he really had no reason to be taking the elevator anymore. at least, that's what the conscious part of him would say. the unconscious part made sukuna's body always go to the elevator because according to its logic, there was always a chance of finding you in it.

sukuna's mind teetered back and forth. there was a... pleasant feeling that bloomed in his chest each time he saw you. he didn't know what to call it. sukuna has never been good at articulating his emotions unless it was in the gym through grunts and screaming muscles.

all he knew was that you and your presence was like a magnet and he made no efforts to stop its gravitational force.

he hoped that he'd find you in the elevator today. sukuna was coming back from the grocery store to restock his protein reserves—it was just a bunch of frozen chicken and a gallon of greek yogurt.

the bag of groceries hung heavily on sukuna's shoulder, his hand holding onto the strap. the other hand carried an extra item that he bought, something that he would never buy.

lifesavers mints. specifically, spear-o-mint flavor.

no, no, no. it wasn't for sukuna. he can't afford to ruin his sugar intake. it was a little gift for you—a small thank you. the flavor was chosen after sukuna had a 'cheat day' and ate the lifesavers mint you had left behind that one time.

but what did you do to prompt sukuna to get you such a gift?

well? all you did was hand him a protein bar that you didn't want because the texture was a bit chalky for you. you didn't know that it was a nice quality protein bar, but sukuna was more than happy to take it off of your hands.

the least he could do was return your unintended kindness, that he took a little too seriously, and get you a pound of the candy that you often grab out of your bag and pop into your mouth.

to his disappointment, the elevator opened and it was empty. he tried not thinking too much about it as he got into the elevator. sukuna knew he'd eventually encounter you.

once the elevator stopped at his floor, sukuna adjusted the grocery bag on his shoulder and readjusted his grip on the bag of lifesavers. the doors slid open and sukuna looked up, finding you standing outside the elevator.

you waited for sukuna to get out, but his mind went blank as his grip on the bag of mints slightly tightened. why the hell was he not saying anything and just standing there?

but you were patient and stretched your arm out to keep the elevator open, "are you going to get out?"

your voice brought him back to reality, the bag of mints now scrunching and crinkling.

"u-uh, yeah, um."

did sukuna just stammer? what the actual fuck.

for the first time in sukuna's life, he actually felt mortified in this moment. he couldn't keep making a fool out of himself in front of you anymore, so he held out his arm revealing the large bag of lifesavers to you.

"i got you these," he said dumbly.

you paused and glanced at the item in his hand.

"you gave me that protein bar, so I thought you'd like these." he said lamely.

sukuna didn't think he could feel any more foolish than he was already making himself out to be. but then you smiled. a small smile, but one that made the tips of his ears burn hot.

you stepped in the elevator and took the bag of lifesavers from him. you scanned the bag, your small smile widening just ever so slightly.

what was this? sukuna could feel his heart beating harder. the feeling was much different compared to whenever his heart rate elevated from working out.

he was so focused on your smile and how his heart pounded that he didn't even notice the elevator doors closing, shutting you both in together.

the elevator started to go down. someone on another floor must've pressed the button to call it down. it seemed you were too immersed in the act of kindness that the big, grumpy sukuna did for you to even notice that he just missed your guys' floor.

you looked back up at sukuna, your smile morphing into a grin.

"thanks, sukuna... it's my favorite flavor"

the corner of sukuna's lips threatened to twitch upward. he would have to take another trip back up. he needed to put his frozen chicken and gallon tub of greek yogurt in the fridge.

but that could wait. if it meant being in the elevator with you, he could wait.

you were overwhelmed today. sukuna noticed it first thing when you entered the elevator, eyes casted downward and not greeting him. you settled into your corner as you clasped your hands together, thumbs lightly tapping your index finger.

he took a step forward and pushed your guys' floor. he stepped back before looking over at you. you were still looking down, your body scrunching inwards.

"will you be ok?" he tried softening the rumbling of his voice.

you only nodded. sukuna didn't bother pushing you any further and remained silent for the rest of the elevator ride. but it stopped on the floor just below yours.

sukuna took a step forward as the elevator opened. he stopped the person from entering as he stood at the entrance.

he peered down at the person as they looked up at him, "elevator's under maintenance."

the person was confused, and looked over at you, "but-."

"take the stairs." sukuna said gruffly and the elevator doors started to close.

sukuna grunted, satisfied that he stopped the other tenant from intruding in on your space.

"you didn't have to do that."

sukuna turned at the sound of your soft voice. your hands were still clasped together as you gazed up at him. he shrugged like it was no big deal.

"can't have any more disturbances," he mumbled.

the elevator stopped and bounced, doors opening to reveal your floor. sukuna left first and you followed after. he took a few steps forward before turning back to see you stopping just outside the elevator.

he strode back to you. you watched sukuna, wondering why he he was approaching you.

"let's sit down," he suggested.

your brows furrowed in confusion. sukuna walked past you before settling down onto the floor and leaned against the wall next to the elevator. he watched you blink twice before you did the same and sat down next to him.

your arms softly pressed against each other. sukuna didn't say anything as he focused on the sound of your soft breaths. you shifted slightly. sukuna felt a weight on his shoulder. he glanced to his side seeing that you decided to rest your head on him.

he could feel you start to relax against him, making him look away from you and gazing down the hallway of your guys' floor. sukuna leaned his head back against the wall as his own body sunk into the comfortable silence.

"i don't think you're a weirdo." you mumbled out loud.

sukuna glanced back down at you. he noticed how your eyelashes fluttered with every blink you made. cautiously, he moved his head, slowly resting his cheek on the top of your head.

the pleasant feeling bloomed a little warmer in his chest this time.

"you're not a weirdo either."

you clicked the elevator button to go up and stepped back to wait. you were exhausted, having worked a graveyard shift and you had moved into your new apartment just days ago. your eyes throbbed as you pulled out your phone and tapped the screen.

8:47am.

you barely registered the sound of the elevator doors sliding open when you slipped your phone back into your pocket. you blinked, eyes attempting to stay open as you sluggishly trudged into the elevator.

somehow, through all the tiredness that infested your body, you sensed that your shoulder had brushed against something, or rather, someone.

“sorry,” you softly muttered, voice strained.

you couldn’t bother to look up at the person when you stepped in. all you could think of was your bed that waited for you. you cursed yourself for taking on that shift that coincidentally lined up just after you moving in.

“s’fine,” a deep voice muttered back.

the person’s footsteps echoed away as you turned and clumsily pressed the button to your floor. you shifted your gaze, settling on the person’s back. oh, that’s a big man with a dorito back, you thought in your tired delusion while making out his silhouette under his black hoodie.

but your mind couldn’t think further, shutting down like the elevator doors closing.

bed, sweet bed.

it was a sunday.

you got back from brunch with some friends and had parked your car in the garage below the apartment complex. you got in the elevator and punched in your floor number.

you always hope that the elevator goes straight up without any stops on the way. it seemed like a trivial thing, but sometimes the presence of another or others with you in that not so large space was just… not preferable.

you liked the peace of having the elevator to yourself. but today just couldn’t give you that peace as the elevator decided to stop on the ground floor. you softly heaved in a breath and exhaled, preparing for your lonely peace to get disrupted.

the elevator opened, revealing a large man in a black hoodie and matching sweat pants. his spiked, pink hair gave him a few more inches in height. he wasn’t just tall, he was broad and his red eyes made him all the more intimidating.

you shuffled into the back corner of the elevator to make space for him. he stepped in and glanced at the buttons. you really hoped he was living on a floor that was below yours. if that were the case, you’d get some of that peace back of being in the elevator alone.

he glanced away and turned, facing forward. what were the odds? you pushed down the irritation that itched throughout your body by looking up at the tiny screen that flipped the floor numbers.

you briefly glanced over at the man. his pink hair greatly contrasted with the tattoos that peaked out above his hood. you blinked, returning your gaze back onto the screen that flipped to your floor number.

the elevator stopped, slightly bouncing before the doors slid open. the man walked out. you waited to exit the elevator until he was at least three paces ahead of you.

his apartment was the first door, and you, three doors down. you dug for your keys from your bag. they jingled as you got ahold of the right one. you swiftly put the key in the lock.

“hey.”

you looked to your left as the deep rumble of his voice startled you.

“you dropped this.”

your eyes flitted down at his hand that held out a lifesavers mint.

“uh, you can have it,” you said dumbly before unlocking your door and shutting yourself into the safety of your apartment.

it went like that for the next few weeks. throughout the week, you and that man would sporadically find each other in the elevator together, and occasionally, at really odd hours. no words were ever exchanged, just mere glances of acknowledgment.

but today, it seemed a little companion came with him.

you were mindlessly scrolling through your phone as the doors started to close.

“wait! keep it open!”

you glanced up to see a kid running towards you. he was practically a replica of your neighbor. you blinked once, then twice to make sure you were in a clear state of mind and that your brain didn’t just magically shrink your neighbor into a child.

you saw your neighbor following the kid, leisurely walking behind. as it clicked—that the child running wasn’t the intimidating man with the red eyes and tattoos—you reached out and pressed the button to open the doors back up.

the kid hopped into the elevator landing next you with a grin, “thanks.”

you gave him a tiny smile and slightly shuffled over, settling into your corner, “no worries.”

“i’m yuji!” the kid said, still grinning, “what’s your name?”

“shut it, brat,” the man grunted as he entered the elevator.

yuji looked back with a slight glare, “you shut it, uncle sukuna. sorry, you don’t know how to be nice.”

you glanced down at your shoes, holding in a laugh. at the same time, you were satisfied—finally knowing the name of your intimidating neighbor. while you never went out of your way to talk to him, curiosity always swam through your mind any time you saw him.

your mini-neighbor tugged on the hem of your jacket, making you look down at him. yes, you liked your space, but kids always seem to soften that little rule of yours.

“don’t worry. uncle sukuna is always grumpy,” he smiled up at you reassuringly.

“that’s ok,” you replied softly.

you actually liked that about sukuna. you wouldn’t call it grumpiness, but rather a no shit-giving demeanor. it made the dynamics between you much easier to handle. because sukuna kept to himself, you never had to find yourself questioning his intentions with you.

he only said things that needed to be said with short and direct, efficient sentences. much like his appearance, his words, few that they may be, were absent of flowery tones. blunt and rude, some may say, but easy to understand for you.

the elevator stopped with a familiar bounce and yuji tried jumping at the same time. the bottom of your coat flapped up as it was still in the tiny clutches of yuji.

once the doors opened, yuji was the first to exit. you followed next since your coat was being tugged forward by the kid. he stopped at sukuna’s door.

“brat, let go.” sukuna called out, “stop bothering my neighbor.”

yuji circled his short arms around your leg, not letting you go, “your neighbor is nicer than you. you’re always boring when you have to babysit me.”

you didn’t know what to do. you just stood there as you replayed the moments in the elevator trying to search for any instance where you were really nice to the kid. but you didn’t say more than four words to him?

sukuna grumbled and crouched, bending down to yuji’s level. it was amazing to see the big man attempting to shrink himself down. the corners of your lip twitched upward.

but just as your lips stretched, they immediately flattened as you realized that sukuna reached out and placed his hands on yuji’s arms. you became hyper aware that sukuna’s fingertips grazed your leg as he pried the kid away from you. the sensation tingled throughout your knee.

“yuji, stop it,” sukuna grunted, “i’m serious.”

yuji let out a resistant whine before reluctantly releasing you. sukuna stood back up and held onto yuji with one arm, the other skillfully digging out his keys and unlocking his door.

he looked back at you, head tilting down before slightly nodding, “sorry about that.”

“if you’re really sorry, you should let your neighbor in,” the kid cheekily quipped.

sukuna glared down at his nephew and pushed him in the apartment. he shut the door behind him and you could make out a muffled, “my neighbor’s gonna think i’m a weirdo, brat.”

you stumbled into the apartment complex, boots clicking unevenly against the floor. what was supposed to be a casual night out with friends turned into a tequila shot contest.

you don’t even know how you made it back in one piece, and you don’t even how you accidentally pressed the down button as the elevator descended to the garage floor.

everything felt heavy as you pushed yourself into your corner, head leaning back against the wall. it felt like a moderate earthquake when the elevator stopped and bounced. you held onto the railing, trying to ground yourself and regain a sense of balance.

the doors opened and in walked your neighbor, sukuna. he raised an eyebrow in slight concern, seeing your disheveled figure and heavy eyes.

“you ok?”

you lolled your head to look at sukuna. you responded with a lazy smile, nodding and humming.

it felt like your head weighed as much as a bowling ball, feeling your cheek starting to rest on your shoulder, “tequila shots.”

sukuna let out an amused scoff before pressing your floor number. the elevator started to ascend and it felt like your body was sinking into the floor. you shifted your head, eyes gazing up.

“did it hurt?”

sukuna’s brows furrowed as he glanced back at you, “huh?”

“your tattoos,” you slightly slurred, “did they hurt?”

sukuna blinked, processing your question before shrugging, “eh, yeah.”

your body swayed with the movement of the elevator stopping. you took a heavy step forward once the elevator opened. usually you always let sukuna leave first, but your mind was like soup and being conscientious was out the door.

it seemed you leaned one way a little too much, the weight of your body going in one direction and you couldn’t stop it. you knew you were starting to fall and drunkenly accepted it.

but two big hands held your shoulders, steadying you. you looked up, head leaning back and settling your gaze on sukuna.

you blinked with a small smile, “ah, thanks.”

your neighbor lightly shook his head and grumbled with an annoyance that had no true bite to it. he adjusted his grip on you, but still held his arms out to keep you at an appropriate distance. sukuna guided you out of the elevator. your feet clumsily slid across the carpet.

the way to your door felt like a whole journey. sukuna’s hands were firm on your shoulders and were the only thing keeping you from falling face first. your mind was swimming. all the sensations of your heavy body trudging and sukuna’s hands were vibrating.

you shoved your hands into the pockets of your jacket, digging for your keys that were actually located in your bag.

“shit, where are they?” you muttered.

“what?”

you lolled your head again to glance back at sukuna, “my keys.”

sukuna blanked for a moment as the two of you arrived at your door, “is it in your bag?”

your mind was slow to process. sukuna shifted you to lean against the wall and unhooked your bag from your arm. he opened your bag and held it out for you. your head rested on the wall as you looked down into your bag.

you sluggishly raised your arm and shoved your hand into your bag. your keys jingled and you smiled in drunken relief.

“oh, good,” you said as you pulled them out.

the keys slipped out of your hand, falling on the carpet with an exaggerated ring. you pushed yourself hard off the wall as you attempted to reach down for your keys. once again, you leaned forward a little too much, creating another opportunity to fall.

sukuna skillfully caught you by the waist with one arm, “ok, let’s not do that.”

slinging your bag on his shoulder, sukuna kneeled down and grabbed your keys before hoisting you up to stand. you fell into his side as your door opened. sukuna slightly stiffened at the sudden contact.

he dragged you to your couch, sitting you down. your upper body fell to the side, hitting the plush cushions. you closed your eyes.

“ok, i’m gonna leave now.”

you cracked open your eyes, your vision blurring. you shut them again. you heard a quiet sigh and pattering footsteps. the sound of water ran from your kitchen sink followed by a glass being set on your coffee table.

“there’s water,” sukuna said gruffly.

you only hummed, eyes still closed. there were a few seconds of silence.

“ok, i’m gonna go for real now.”

his steps echoed away and you tried cracking your eyes open again. you failed to do so.

“thanks… sukuna…”

sukuna said nothing as he left your apartment with a soft click of your door closing. in the back of your mind you noted that sukuna wouldn’t have been able to lock your door when he left.

but your tired worries were for nothing because sukuna sat outside on the floor and slept against your door to make sure no one got in.

you both never spoke of that night just like how you two were standing in the elevator together now, neither one saying a word. the two of you were coming from the parking garage and sukuna had already pressed your floor number.

you still remained comfortable in your corner, but noticed that you weren’t trying as hard to become a part of it. the elevator stopped on the ground floor and you slightly frowned.

as the doors opened, a jumble of voices and laughter flooded into the elevator. there had to have been at least eight people that made their way in. your eyes widened at the sudden interruption. no one seemed to care about even the smallest smidge of personal space as they all packed in like sardines.

you quickly moved out of your corner, sidestepping next to the one thing that was familiar in all of the chaos. your arm pressed against sukuna’s as you tried shrinking yourself away from being touched by the random people that squeezed in.

you tried focusing on your breathing and looked up at the tiny screen that flipped the floor numbers. but some guy with hair that somehow defied gravity obscured your vision. you looked up at the lights, trying to find something else to focus on.

but the voices were loudly concentrated and made the lights seem a little too bright for your eyes. you clasped your hands and settled them just below your chest. you gazed down as you softly tapped your thumbs on your index finger.

someone brushed against your other arm, causing your breath to quietly hitch as you briefly side-eyed the person. your thumbs started to tap a little faster and a little harder.

an arm had slid across your back followed by a hand shoving itself between your arm and the person that brushed against you. you flinched, snapping your head to look up at sukuna.

he merely glanced back at you before gently bringing you into his side, so that there was an even larger gap between you and the person. the physical contact seemed to have lessen your senses toward everything going on around you two.

sukuna felt warm. your hands remained clasped, thumbs now resting. you looked down and slightly turned in. the elevator stopped. the doors opened and everyone slowly shuffled out. you breathed in and exhaled, your shoulders dropping more and more with each person exiting the elevator.

the doors closed, the elevator now filled with silence as it ascended. sukuna let go of you and took one step to the side, giving you your space back. your hands fell to your sides as you took in long breaths.

neither of you said anything. your grateful sukuna didn't question your reaction just moments ago. and you're even more grateful because without thinking, you sidestepped toward him, arms once again pressing together, and sukuna didn't question that either.

you scanned the club, your drink brushing at your lips. despite the dancing lights and loud music, your vision narrowed at the sight of a familiar face. as it registered in your mind you grinned instantly.

"shoyo! is that you?!" you hopped from your seat at the bar and made your way over to hinata.

as you got closer, your eyes couldn't help but take in his appearance—more grown-up, muscles filling in the spaces that he lacked back in high school.

hinata blinked again as the reality of you approaching hit him. he slightly shook his head as a grin to match yours made its way to his face and he called out your name.

"w-what are you doing all the way out here?!" hinata wasn't expecting a giant bear hug from you as his arms wrapped around your back. he felt the expanse of your back. soft, he noted.

you leaned back, your arms circled around his neck still, "i have a wedding to go to, but i planned to stay a week after for a little vacation."

as you explained your reason, you suddenly realized how broad hinata felt in your arms. his arms, chest, shoulders, everything felt like it fully encapsulated your being.

gone was the small kid you knew from high school. you stepped back to stop any more thoughts that threatened to cloud your little reunion.

"oh nice!" hinata eyes flitted down your body before sharply glancing away, "... nice."

you seemed to have missed his gaze as you tilted your head and smiled, "brazil seems to be treating you nice. how has it been?"

whatever haziness that settled in hinata dissipated. he rambled and rambled on what had been going on—beach volleyball, meeting oikawa, his winning and losing games with kageyama.

oh, but brazil really seemed to be treating hinata nicely. his tan skin contrasting against his white t-shirt only accentuated the muscles you could see. freckles peppered all over his face like a constellation that you want to trace.

"say, are you hungry?" hinata paused mid-sentence in his rant, "we could grab a late-snack somewhere? my treat!"

"that sounds good with me," you smiled and nodded. without thought you grabbed hinata's arm and guided each other out of the crowded club, "let's go."

you didn't notice how red hinata became as your hand grasped his forearm. hinata stammered, quickly adjusting his posture, "o-ok!"

as the two of you exited the club, the warm brazilian breeze curled around your bodies. you sighed in relief as the noisy music and crowd became muffled, "so, what do you recommend?"

"there's this great place near my apartment! they've got good barbecue!" hinata beamed, leading you down the sidewalk.

you were just about to let go of his arm, but hinata had interrupted you, "do those hurt? you can hold onto my arm. i know a shortcut from here to save your feet."

you followed hinata's gaze looking down at your heels. they were hurting like a motherfucker. without waiting for an answer, hinata lightly grabbed your elbow to place your arm in his and veered left, leading you down an alley.

your hooked arms brought you both shoulder to shoulder. he slowed his pace to match yours. the city noises of laughter and traffic faded as you both walked down the narrow passage.

"i'm really glad you're here," hinata said aloud as you walked, "it was getting kinda lonely again."

you glanced at hinata. he had a content smile on his face as well as a... glint in his eyes? but maybe it was just the lights that lit up the food stalls lining the street?

certainly it wasn't the same glint in your eyes that you had been trying to hide throughout the night.

hinata stopped dead in his track, "this is the place!"

"what's wrong?" he turned to you, tilting his head as his amber eyes searched yours.

you paused for a brief moment before shaking your head with a smile, "it's nothing." what's wrong is thinking of how much i want to-.

"come on, i'm starving~" you grabbed his hand, interrupting your own thoughts as you walked toward the food stall.

hinata's heart hammered against his ribs as he stared down around your linked hands. your skin was warm against his.

at the stall, hinata ordered rapidly and messily in portuguese, barely registering the vendor's amused response. only when the two sticks of grilled meat arrived did hinata realize he hadn't let go of your hands.

"oh, uh, h-here!" he shoved the skewer at you, distracting you from how red his ears had gotten and swiftly letting go of your hand.

you took a bite of the skewer, the flavor exploding on your taste buds. you closed your eyes and hummed... nearly moaned out of satisfaction.

"it's so good! i can't believe your apartment is so close by to these food stalls."

the sound that came from your mouth had hinata chewing a little faster and harder. he gulped down his food, looking away from how some of the juice of the meat hung on the corner of your lip. and especially looking away from how the tip of your tongue peaked out to lick it up.

"yeah, the location's, uh, perfect—just a block down actually, so it's nice if you have late-night cravings." hinata let out a an airy chuckle.

do it, do it, do it, do it, do it-hinata took the last big bite of his skewer. with a mouth full, "hey, uh... do you wanna come over after we eat?"

he swallowed hard, avoiding eye contact and fiddle with a now empty skewer stick, "of course, no pressure! i just thought you'd like to rest your feet or something. but you can always go home if you prefer. i can actually call you a taxi and wait with yo-"

"i'd like that" you interrupted his rambling with a small smile, "it'd be nice to get off of my feet for a little bit. i'm actually done eating too, so we could go now?"

hinata's eyes widened in surprise, "r-really? cool!"

the pro-athlete beamed as he gently grabbed your wrist, tugging you toward his apartment building. the lobby smelled of lemon polish and echoed with the sound of your clicking heels. you entered the elevator, and as it ascended, hinata lightly bounced on the balls of his feet.

"it's not much, but i do have a pretty nice view of the city!"

hinata slid the door open, revealing the minimalist design of the apartment. there was a large sectional sofa that faced floor-to-ceiling windows that overlooked the shiny and glittering rooftops of rio.

"ta-da!" hinata spread his arms wide with a grin, "make yourself at home! can i get you anything? water?"

you took your heels off at the front door, sighing in relief as the ache in your feet started to slowly go away, "water would be nice."

hinata disappeared in the kitchen as you settled yourself on the couch. he returned moments later with two bottles of cold water—one already open for you, "here you go."

"thanks." you took a swig of the water. the cold liquid awakened your tiredness.

hinata sat down next to you. he lazily stretched, his white t-shirt slowly riding up just enough to reveal the v-line of his hips and hint of the ridges of his abdomen. oh, you were waking up a little more now.

"do you have any plans tomorrow? I was thinking of taking you to one of the beaches. they're great here," hinata began twisting the cap off his water bottle.

your eyes (for some freaky reason) made their way down to the revealed bit of hinata's skin. you bent your knees under you onto the couch and took another sip of the cold water hoping to cool down the heat that had been simmering in your body all night.

you turned towards hinata slightly as you cooly said, "beach sounds like a deal."

blinking slowly at the unexpected proximity, hinata saw your knees bending, noting how the hem of your dress stretched and moved against your thighs. hinata nervously gulped down his water.

yet, his throat went dry just a few seconds later, "uh—yeah. s-soon then. like... real early in the morning so tourists can't ruin the sand."

you tilted your head, now seeing his quietly flustered reaction. you saw how his gaze flickered down at your exposed legs. you placed your water bottle down on the coffee table in front of you.

you leaned in just ever so slightly letting out a breathy, "shoyo."

both of you could feel how your body heat mingled together. as hinata's head whipped around to look at you, a quiet and strangled gasp escaped him as you leaned closer.

"h-huh?" his voice cracked embarrassingly. his eyes darted wildly between your lips and your eyes.

you placed your hands onto the couch in front of your knees, now leaning in even closer, "do you find me attractive?"

"i- i mean, obviously?" the words tumbled out in a jumbling mess, "you've- you've always been really pretty!"

hinata covers his face, head sinking down into the back of the couch and groaning into his palms, "why'd you ask? is everything ok?"

you couldn't help but chuckle as you closed the gap between you two. you grabbed his hands and gently removed them from his face. now he was being cute, and it was making you feel even hotter.

"shoyo," you cooed, "i've always liked you, silly."

before he could say anything, your bent legs lifted yourself up to close the already tiny gap between you. as you pushed your lips against his cheek, hinata froze completely, eyes widening comically.

your words echoed through his mind, sending a rush of adrenaline like after every point he scored in a game. but the kiss you placed left icy-hot tingles on his face. his heart thumped erratically against his chest. he couldn't think anymore.

hinata stuttered and stammered. he shifted forward, his knees brushing yours. you smiled cutely as one of your hands reached out to touch his face. you gently pulled his face to look at you, "i can stop if you're not comfortable, sho."

oh that face. that innocent expression you were giving off was enough for hinata to grab your waist in an instant. he barely registered your words as your knees settled on each side of his thighs.

"impossible," he let out a shaky breath. one hand shot up and lightly grasped the nape of your neck, eyes now locking onto yours with desperate intensity.

"but, sho, we can take things slow-" hinata surged forward, clumsily crashing his mouth onto yours.

you moved your hands to cradle his face. the room became hotter as hinata's hands gripped your waist. one hand slid around and up your exposed back. the heat of his mouth matched the heat of the room.

your arms circled around his neck, gluing yourself against hinata's chest and settling your weight down onto his lap. you let out moans captured by hinata's kisses. your hips moved in slow, soft circles.

your tongues tangled together—hot, slick, and messy. when your hips rolled, a whimper tore itself from hinata's throat. his grip on you tightened as his cock started to strain against the fabric of his shorts. each deliberate circle of your hips made hinata buck his own upward.

he called out your name in a stutter, "p-please, ah, more.."

you slowly peppered kisses along his jaw and down onto his neck while pushing your weight down more. you could feel the hardness of his cock hiding beneath his shorts, making you gradually speed up the motion of your hips.

"you sound so nice like this, sho," you breathed against his neck. you rolled your hips again, "feels so good."

hinata arched helplessly into your movements. your praise melted him further as he whimpered, "d-don't stop. p-please."

hinata's hips jerked uncontrollably now, matching your rhythm with increasing urgency. the friction was building fast, tightening a coil in his lower abdomen.

the volleyball player buried his face into the crook of your neck, muffling broken cries and whimpers as his whole body started to shudder violently, "f-fuck, s-so close."

he could feel the heat of your cunt seep from your panties and through his shorts. but then he felt your hot breath hit his ear.

"come on, shoyo. you can do it," followed by a gentle bite of his ear.

that did it for hinata. he pulled you impossibly closer as the last threads of his restraint frayed, "f-fuck!"

hinata's eyes rolled to the back of his head as he came. his lower abdomen convulsed as spurts of hot, sticky cum soaked and seeped into his shorts. wave after wave crashed throughout hinata's body blurring his vision.

panting harshly, hinata slumped against the couch trembling. his arms remained draped loosely around your back, "did i-, did i make a mess?"

you merely chuckled as you brushed away some hair from his forehead, “only in your shorts, sho.”

your dress had ridden up, exposing your thighs and black panties that peeked out. hinata’s neck flushed brightly as he looked down.

“ah, s-sorry-” he paused as he caught sight of your clothed cunt peeking beneath the bunched fabric of your dress. his breath hitched.

“um, can i,” he swallowed hard, shifting awkwardly, “maybe clean up, or change my pants, or both?”

the thing you did next nearly made him malfunction. you slid your legs off the couch and kneeled on the fuzzy carpet below, settling between his knees.

“would you like me to clean it up for you, shoyo?” you smiled cutely as you rested your head against his inner thigh.

a choked gasp ripped from hinata’s chest. your warm breath crept along the exposed, sensitive skin of his thigh.

“w-wait!” hinata placed his hands on your shoulders, not pushing you away, but frozen in indecision.

the contrast between his flushed face and your cute expression nearly broke him. his cock gave an involuntary twitch against the warm and moist fabric of his shorts.

“not here, but in- in the shower?” he stumbled on his words, “together?”

his eyes widened in horror before squeezing shut, “no, no, no, forget what I just said. pretend I didn’t say any of that.”

you sat up straight, (and just like the freak you are,) “we can shower together if you want instead.”

you fidgeted with your hands before looking purposefully away shyly, “but you can also shower by yourself if this is too much.”

your shyness was a farce as you instantly batted your eyes and peered up at hinata with a slight pout, “i understand if you don’t want to.”

"b-bathroom's down the hall," how could he say no to you?

a new surge of warmth bloomed in his chest. hinata stood up abruptly, grabbing your hand impulsively and pulling you up with him. without meet your eyes he led you to his bathroom. his free hand fumbled with his shorts, trying to discreetly adjust the uncomfortable dampness.

"showering together saves water anyway."

the lame excuse hung in the air and you could do nothing but grin.

Your head whipped back up at Oikawa's response. That was much better than what you had initially imagined how it was going to go. The next sentence he threw at you almost made you stop breathing for a moment.

"I'm just really glad to hear your voice again."

You let out a sigh of relief. The unease you had felt going into this moment started to vanish. Oikawa's receptiveness made you start to let your guard down.

"Did I wake you," you asked softly.

"No," Oikawa rasped.

You silently chuckled, "You liar, I did, didn't I? I'm sorry."

"No, no, no, it's fine," the setter replied hastily.

Oikawa muttered something that you couldn't make out, prompting you to ask him what he said.

"I, uh, it's nothing," he shrugged, "I was just saying that I don't mind because it's you."

That made the corners of your lips tug up. He ended mumbling that last bit, but you could easily understand what he said.

"I'm really sorry for not keeping in touch, I-"

"Don't worry," Oikawa cut you off, "Iwa-chan had told me you were going through some things."

Your heart stopped for a second, "Did he tell you exactly what those things were?"

"No, he said that you would let me know when you were ready."

"Ah," you breathed, "ok."

"But, y/n..."

Oh how you missed your name being called out by him. Oikawa always had a teasing tone in his voice when he called you by your name. But this time, the teasing tone was absent. There was a tenderness that painted out the sound and syllables of your name.

"It's been almost two years... are you ok?"

Such a simple question. You knew Oikawa was being very careful. He was typically very nosy, but he was also very perceptive. That question cloaked a million other questions that Oikawa wanted ask.

It almost brought out some stray tears that had remained within you.

You smiled somberly, "I am now."

A comforting silence fell upon you two.

You're not sure what it was, but things were finally feeling right. Even after two years of not communicating with each other, you and Oikawa still seemed to be on the same page.

"Um," you were still a bit hesitant, "I also wanted to let you know that I found a job in Brazil."

This was definitely news. At first, Oikawa was excited to be in closer proximity to you after years of being thousands of miles apart. But then he realized that that bastard would be coming with you. Oikawa's excitement fizzled into something bitter.

The bitterness inside got the better of him.

"Oh, that's great," he quipped, "and I'm guessing what's-his-face is comin-"

"He's not in the picture anymore," you shut up Oikawa.

"Oh..."

That was all you had to say. Oikawa tried filling in the blanks, but didn't push you further. Don't get him wrong, Oikawa was definitely shocked. But the selfish part of him found a silver lining in your situation.

"Anyways," you softly deflected, "I just thought it would be nice to meet up when we both have the time."

The silver lining being the second chance that Oikawa never thought he was going to ever get. The initial bitterness he felt reverted back to excitement.

Oikawa sat up, propping himself against the headboard of his bed, "Yes."

He thinks he might've said that too quickly.

"I mean, uh, yeah," he tried to smoothly play it off, "just let me know when you get to Brazil, and I'll find time for you."

That last bit made you smile again.

"Oh, I, uh, forgot to mention that I'm already living in Brazil," you sheepishly said.

"Oh," Oikawa started, "well, that's perfect."

"Really?" You raised your eyebrows.

"Yeah," he said before whispering, "really perfect."

You were glad that the two of you were only on a phone call. If Oikawa saw how bashful you looked now, he would ruin the mood with his endless teasing.

On the other end, Oikawa fell into a dreamy state. He couldn't believe this was real. It wasn't until now did he realize how much he yearned to talk to you again.

Knowing that you currently live in the same continent as him made Oikawa nearly evaporate. What were the odds that you suddenly appeared so close to him when the two of you seemed like strangers.

"Ok," you felt a little giddy, "well I'll let you go since it's late."

"I don't mind," the setter bluntly stated.

"Are you sure?"

"Yeah," Oikawa reassured you, "I have the day off tomorrow anyways."

"Ah, but I don't want to take up time during your day off-"

"Y/n."

"Yes?"

"I'm telling you that I want to stay up and talk to you," Oikawa resolutely stated.

You paused before attempting to convince Oikawa that you wanted to respect his time again.

He wanted to do these things for you. When was the last time someone had done that for you? Oikawa desired to stay up late because he got to talk to you and hear your voice. Because it's you.

Something pleasant bubbled up inside you as a grin broke out onto your face. You're glad Oikawa made it clear to you. Why?

You always knew in the back of your mind Oikawa stood there. But you often rationalized your acceptance for not grabbing onto Oikawa and taking him with you from your mind and into reality.

You tried telling yourself that what you felt for Oikawa was just a one-sided crush. You minimized the magnitude of your love for Oikawa by sweeping it away when someone else decided to show you love.

However, finally being without your ex-fiancé has made you realize that that old love of yours never disappeared.

But there was distance between you and his heart. It seems he had closed it off in the same way you had done before. This thought made you worry about the nonexistent consequences of your actions.

If Oikawa had closed himself off from you, has he opened his heart for another?

A part of you grew possessive of him. The selfish side you had tried so hard to suppress, slipped through and you started to embrace it like an old friend.

All of those times that instigated the simmering jealousy within you, started to steam out.

You had grown tired of letting go. You felt lost, and this was perhaps the cause of the emotional nausea you had experienced for years. Not knowing where you stood with Oikawa, the person you were closest with and had truly loved, had slowly dug a hole in your chest.

There were many times in which you mentally ripped your hair out, frustrated of being in the state of not knowing.

Even if you couldn't have the love you desired from Oikawa, you still, at the very least, wanted to repair the friendship you both had. A part of you felt responsible for pushing him away and letting it happen.

Communication between the two of you had nearly become nonexistent since you became officially single. You were too preoccupied with the emotional turbulence from what you had gone through. But now that it seems like everything has come down to a calm, you could now steer your way back to Oikawa. L

You stood from your chair of contemplation. You had been basking in the warmth of the sun until it disappeared. The warmth couldn't quite reach your heart.

You walked back into reality as your feet led you inside your apartment.

So much thought was given to this very moment. So many hours were spent as you wandered off into different scenarios. But reality has hit you and your feet stayed glued to the floor, no longer inching your way closer to the task at hand.

You expected this. It always happened. Somehow you would muster up the courage to go back to Oikawa, but then suddenly stop yourself. It was hard to take that next and final big step.

You were scared of stepping into the unknown. You had, after all, been floating around aimlessly for years not knowing anything.

You looked down and met your reflection in the black mirror that sat on your kitchen counter. You became lost again, in the nothingness. Your mind slipped away from reality as it was being absorbed by the darkness.

You heaved in a large breath, shoulders lifting as air filled your lungs. When you couldn't take in any more air, you slowly exhaled it from your mouth and your shoulders started to drop.

This would be the last time that you would let go.

You released yourself from your fear and doubt as you reached out for the object in front of you. Your hands felt clammy holding onto it as you once again stared back into your reflection.

Without thinking more, your thumb tapped it. Your reflection disappeared as the screen lit up displaying a picture of you and Oikawa when you were little kids.

—————————

It was 11:37 at night when Oikawa's phone started to violently buzz on his end table. He could have sworn that he had his Do Not Disturb mode on, making him groan. He was just starting to fall asleep.

Heaving a sigh, Oikawa propped himself up on one elbow and reached for his phone. He blinked a few times, trying to clear the sleepy bluriness in his eyes.

When his vision became focused, Oikawa had never sobered up from sleep so quick in his life. If it were anyone else, he would've denied the call, but it was you.

He blinked a few times, trying to process each letter of your name. Was he dreaming? Ten seconds later felt like a lifetime before he decided to answer.

"Hello?"

Oikawa held his breath. His heart beated louder and louder in his head, filling the silence that met him. No sign of you indicated that you were on the other line, making Oikawa become anxious.

Maybe it was a mistake?

Whatever little hope Oikawa had started to chip away from underneath him. How could he truly think that you would want anything to do with him when he was the one who started to crack away at your friendship?

He could feel himself slipping away again. Oikawa was falling back into that pit of self-loathing. He had desperately been clinging onto that sliver of hope for so long, and maybe this was a sign that he should move on.

But just as he was about to let himself fall, your voice chimed in like a bell and grabbed him.

I was twelve when I realized my feelings for you.

It was my first game of the season during my first year of junior high. My nerves were getting the best of me. I had been looking forward to this game, but the doubts about my ability were pulling me down. Of course, you noticed this. You were always perceptive despite never verbally expressing your observations.

You... raised your fist and brought it down onto my head. I remember dramatically crying out, asking why you did that to me. You gave me an unimpressed look as I tried feigning ignorance to the reason of you bonking me on the head. You then harshly flicked my forehead, making me yelp out again. You told me to stop doubting myself. You said five words that have stuck with me ever since then. I have faith in you.

My view of you changed. You were the first to have believed in me. I still beat myself up for not having valued that enough throughout junior high and high school. But it was what made me start to like you more than just a friend. I should have confessed my feelings, but I was too much of a coward to do so. I couldn't ruin what we already had.

I was seventeen when you had first met him.

You probably wondered why no one would ever confess their feelings to you or ask you out. That was my selfish doing. Yes, it was hypocritical of me because I had dated that one girl. But I did that to try and forget my feelings for you. Obviously, it didn't work out, which I'm honestly grateful for. I just couldn't stand the thought of you loving someone else, so I scared away any admirers of yours.

But somehow, he managed to slip through the cracks and slithered his way into your pure heart. Don't get me wrong, he seemed like a nice guy and made you happy. However, my thoughts of jealousy and pettiness made me thoroughly resent the guy. I didn't want him stealing away my best friend, the person I love. I didn't want him knowing you the way I had gotten to know you.

You welcomed him with open arms. I couldn't do anything. I didn't want to ruin the happiness you had gained from him. I should have confessed to you back in junior high. Maybe it would have prevented the ache I had been feeling in my heart. But I loved you too much and couldn't destroy your happiness.

I was eighteen when I left you.

After graduating, I planned to go to Argentina to pursue my career in volleyball. You, of course, supported me. A small part of me wanted you to tell me not to leave, and I honestly would have dropped it for you. But why would you do that? You were never selfish in that way. Your kindness is what made me fall in love with you.

You and your brother dropped me off at the airport. It was easy saying goodbye to him, but you? I'm pretty sure we didn't even verbally exchange an actual goodbye. I really didn't want to let go of you. It was difficult. You were crying and held onto me tight.

I don't know why, but I placed my lips on your forehead. Maybe it was the closest form of intimacy I could have with you since you were already with someone else. Or... maybe it was my way of trying to let you go. I really miss you.

I was twenty-three when you told me of the... news...

Your face beamed through the screen. I felt... bitter. I wanted to throw up. I could feel my insides twisting and my heart felt like it was going to drop into my stomach. How selfish I was. I wanted to be happy for you, but my true feelings nearly got the best of me. I masked them with my playful demeanor. But even so, I selfishly made a dig at you. I teased how you were never one for marriage.

It might have been a joke, but I know you. You would actually sit back and think about it, and even second guess yourself. You knew there was truth in my words. I shouldn't have given you a hard time about it, but it was so hard not to. I had to force my congratulations off my tongue. I wonder if you knew how sincere I was being.

Instead of every day, our calls became every other day, then to once a week, and now sporadic. The practical side of me knew it was because we were pursuing our careers, so we naturally became busier. Another part of me knew why the distance between us intensified. You being engaged shouldn't have changed our relationship, but it did.

I had been the one that put the distance between us. My schedule had conveniently gotten busier, giving me an excuse to not facetime you. I honestly could not stand seeing him whenever he was in the frame when we were talking, so our facetime calls became shorter and shorter. It pushed me to prefer calling you and not seeing your face.

I was ten when I finally accepted that I had a crush on you.

At first, it was because I thought you were cute—a child's physical attraction. But then I realized it was more than just that. Yes, you teased me most of the time, but you were always so kind to me. You, Hajime, and I were inseparable. You always stood up for me, protected me, and cared for me when we were children. I was truly happy to call you my best friend.

I struggled very much to come to terms with the fact that I had liked you more than a friend. There was no way I could like you like that, you were my best friend. I saw you as another brother, before my feelings for you became too much. I couldn't help but like you. I never told anyone, not even my mom or Hajime.

And yet, even as children, I never wanted to jeopardize our bond for my feelings. I wasn't sure if you liked me back, and I was scared of the possibility of rejection coming from you. So I kept my feelings at bay, holding the status of being your best friend. But little did I know that would be one of my biggest regrets in life...

I was thirteen when you won the Best Setter Award.

You were crying, and snot was coming out of your nose. I was surprised you let everyone at the ceremony see you like that, considering that you always loved to look good in front of others. But after the ceremony, you ran to me and nearly hugged the life out of me. You were so happy and so proud of yourself. You finally saw the fruits of your labor, of how hard you had to work to get to where you are.

I was so proud of you, and I knew how much it meant to receive the validation and reward of your hard work. Although it made me a little sad that my validation was not enough for you. You always held my and Hajime's opinions to the highest degree with most things, so why not this too?

I was fifteen when you had your first girlfriend.

It was my first year in high school and I was excited to be with you and Hajime, just like old times. But then I saw her hanging on your arm, and you smiled charmingly at her. Is it possible to have a heartbreak caused by someone you're not with? I never wanted to sabotage your relationship because you seemed so happy.

But it still hurt. I could tell that she only wanted to be with you for your looks and popularity. She truly didn't know you. She never truly saw you for who you were. She was materialistic and superficial. You were vain about your looks, yes, but I will never forget about that ugly outfit with the plaid shorts you wore that one time.

But I guess I needn't worry about her. She broke up with you because you never made time for her. Volleyball was your number one passion after all. And yet, it seemed like we spent more time together than you and your ex-girlfriend did. Perhaps it was because I was your best friend. We had a special bond and I didn't want to ruin that either.

I was sixteen when I had first met him.

He was a new student and needed help with navigating the school. For some reason, I was the one to show him around. He was charming and a social butterfly. He had a kindness about him that attracted everyone to him like a moth to a light. I, like many others, fell under his spell. My feelings for you had been closed off for so long that my heart suddenly opened up to him

It somehow all worked out. I fell for him, and he fell for me. It was refreshing to be seen that way. I guess I had longed for you to see me in the way that I saw you, and because it never happened, I easily allowed myself to be swept away by someone like him.

I remember I introduced you to him. You were cordial, yet teasing. You seemed unbothered to everyone else, but I saw a gleam in your eyes that told me you didn't fully approve. But you never acted on whatever you were feeling, and left me and my new relationship alone. Maybe things would have been different if you had done so.

I was seventeen when you left for Argentina.

Hajime and I dropped you off at the airport. I... I really didn't want you to leave... to leave me... But I didn't want to stop you from pursuing your dream, your happiness was one of the most important things to me. After you and Hajime said your goodbyes, I couldn't help myself when I tackled you into a hug. I cried so hard. I sobbed and hid my face in your chest, clinging onto your hoodie. I didn't want to let go.

You reassured me that you'd keep in contact and visit when you could. But none of that took away the heartache. You held onto me so tight, almost as if you didn't want to let go either. But both you and I knew you had to. You pulled back still holding me. My sight was blurred with tears as you smiled somberly. You shocked me. You kissed my forehead before finally letting go. You haven't done that since we were children.

I was twenty-two when he proposed to me.

I was shocked and happy. He did it at a school reunion for our class, so everyone knew and word spread pretty quickly. I video called you that night and told you of the news. You smiled, but I could tell your body went rigid. You said you were happy for me, but at the same time, your eyes held a look of sadness. You immediately moved on and teased me, saying you'd never thought I'd be the marrying type.

You weren't wrong, marriage wasn't something I had thought of. I guess I never really cared for it. It was something that I would have to adjust to, but I didn't mind. I was with someone that made me happy.

Yet, deep down, in the back of my selfish mind, I wished it was you. I thanked you for congratulating me. Before ending the call you smiled again and said 'I'll always be here for you'.