#zigreth writes

Megumis friends knew him as the king of nonchalance. Or, at least as someone who pretended to be that. Whenever they would go out as a trio Nobara and Yuji would get really excited or upset at whatever was happening. Say, Yuji was being silly, making Nobara angry. They'd run around Megumi, Nobara trying to hit Yuji, while he'd try to flee from her.

Meanwhile Megumi would stand in the middle of them, wondering what he'd done to deserve to be around so much noise and excess energy all the time. Like it wasn't enough that he had to grow up with Gojo as his guardian.

So it didn't come as a big surprise when Megumi fell for you. Not to anyone who knew him and everyone around him at least. Gojo saw it straight away, the very first time he'd introduced Megumi to the older students. Back when Megumi was the only first year, before Nobara and Yuji came along, Gojo had decided to put him with the second-years.

Megumi fit in well with the mostly quiet class of yours. Toge, who barely spoke at all due to his cursed speech. Panda, who was the most normal out of the group, despite being a literal panda. Maki, who was loud and often times quite angry.

And then there was you. Quiet, but not shy or delicate. Not nonchalant like Megumi either. Quiet like the sea. Calm and comforting, soothing even, at least to Megumi. He saw the alertness in your eyes, always scanning for danger, always aware. But never loud about it. Always only doing what was necessary, never wasting energy on anything, never losing control.

It was only for about one month but still, the glances Megumi threw at you always seemed to linger a little longer than they should have. Gojo noticed immediately, of course. Unfortunately for Megumi, nothing gets past the blindfolded dumbass.

So he pushed you two together. Made you partner up for sparring sessions or missions. Left you two alone whenever possible. Gojo knew he couldn't be too obvious about it, or else Megumi would notice and stop talking to you altogether, denying the fact that he ever had any emotions of any kind, ever.

It was delicate work and when the single first-year student suddenly turned into three, Gojo knew he'd have to give up on this mission. Unbeknownst to him, you two had already started dating. It just wasn't as loud or outgoing as Gojo would have expected, or… hoped. It was quiet, calm. Like everything about Megumi. Almost everything anyway.

What Gojo never saw was what happened when he left you two alone. The sparring session, that always became so intense either one of you would have to make up an excuse to leave the room to cool down. At least before you started dating. After that it became worse.

The missions that would be handled in basically no time at all, leading to you both being assigned harder ones. Which then turned to private dates for you two. It was perfect, really.

The veil being placed over a building, that all people had been evacuated from, leaving you and Megumi all alone, with no-one around to see. Except for the cursed spirit maybe, but it was usually very easy to pin it to a wall somewhere and deal with it when you two felt like the date had gone on long enough.

No-one ever questioned you about it and luckily for you, you were still assigned the joined missions, even after Megumi got his own class. Fewer missions, but it just made them all the more special. Megumi hated the idea of Gojo finding out about your relationship and you respected that, not that keen on that boisterous lunatic meddling with it either.

So the joined missions became really the only times when you two would be alone. The only times you could openly express any sort of affection for your boyfriend. The only times he would kiss you, like a man starved. Like the restraint of not doing so was physically gnawing at him. And in a way, it was.

"What are you doing tonight?" Megumi asked suddenly, not even looking at you, but rather watching his dogs chase around the two grade 3 curses you two were sent here to deal with. You two barely payed any attention to them, instead resting under the shade of a tree, your head on Megumis lap while he played with your hair. Not that any sunlight ever got through the veil.

When you had received the mission details you had almost burst out laughing. It was ridiculous to assign a mission like this to the both of you, but you would never complain out loud if it gave you a chance to spent time with Megumi.

"Nothing much. Maki and Nobara wanted to go out for Ramen tonight and I think Panda and Toge wanted to prank Yuji, which is not really something i want to be involved in." You opened your eyes to look up at Megumi who visibly struggled not to look at you. "Why do you ask?"

You watched as his cheeks turned a soft shade of red. You also watched him cringe when he glanced down at you for less than a second, seeing your amused expression. "Nevermind." At this point you knew him long enough not to push him. If he brought the topic up once, he'll bring it up again.

Instead, you closed your eyes again, a soft smile still lingering on your lips, and hummed in acknowledgement. After a few seconds Megumi looked down at you again, seeing you so content this close to him, it made his heart ache for more. He hated being reduced to these few hours a month where you two could be truly yourselves around each other.

He also knew that, realistically, the only one standing in the way of that was himself. Megumi took a deep breath, steadying himself and going back to enjoying this moment with you for as long as it lasted.

Eventually, you two decided you had been on this mission long enough. While you two got up from the grass, the demon dogs got rid of the cursed spirits and you met them at the edge of the veil as it slowly lifted, revealing Ijichi, waiting in his car as always.

The dogs sat on either side of you, patiently waiting, when the black one lightly nudged its head against your leg. Megumi felt his heart start to race and was about to release them but paused as he saw you crouch down. He wasn't quite sure how much you knew about shikigami but he had a hard time thinking much about it when you started petting the dog.

"Who's a good boy?" You cooed as you held the black dogs head between both of your hands. It made a little sound and tried to lick your face, earning a giggle from you. Megumi on the other hand sank into himself behind his collar, trying desperately to hide his embarrassment.

What neither of you saw was Ijichi taking a photo of the scene. Only later when he tried showing it to Gojo he remembered that shikigami don't appear in pictures. Gojo understood anyways, and almost burst Ijichis eardrums with the cheer he let out.

That same evening you were laying in bed when you heard a soft knock at your door. You weren't expecting anybody, and yet, when you opened the door to find Megumi you didn't feel all that surprised. He wordlessly held up a book and notebook and you let him in. The second the door was closed and locked you heard the books being tossed on your desk.

You barely had time to turn around before you felt Megumis arms snake around you and his head finding its spot on your shoulder. "I'm sorry." He sighed, holding you a little tighter and shaking his head slightly. "I can't do this anymore." You froze, eyes widening and a cold shiver running up your spine. Was he breaking up with you?

You grabbed him by the shoulders not-so-gently and pried him off of you. "Explain yourself." Megumi furrowed his brows in confusion before his expression fell, realising what it had sounded like. Even now you were like the sea: controlled, quiet, devastating.

Megumi pressed his eyes shut, unable to form words under your hard glare. "Hiding." The grip on his shoulder loosened ever so slightly. "I don't want to hide us anymore." He opened his eyes again to meet yours, seeing the tumultuous emotions behind them.

You let go of his shoulders and closed your eyes as you took a deep breath. When you looked at him again your eyes had lost barely any of the hardness. "Never. Do that again." You walked past him, glancing at the stuff he had dropped on your desk, deciding he brought it for the sake of plausible deniability.

"Sorry, this isn't how I wanted this to go." He said as he watched you walk over to your bed, stopping in front of it with your arms crossed in front of your chest. "You know I'm shit at expressing-" He cut himself for, not even able to say the word 'feelings'. You scoffed at that, turning around to look at him. "Yeah, you are."

When your eyes met his though, you realized how much he was trying. The fact that he was here in the first place was in itself astounding. He'd never done that before. You took another deep breath, letting your arms fall back down to your sides. With a little head-shake you decided to change the topic.

"Can I ask you something? Is it true what they say about shikigami? That they're not individuals but rather an extension of the sorcerer?" So you did know, great. Megumi felt his cheeks heat up again. He choked out a 'yes' which caused a giggle to escape you before you could stop yourself, causing his cheeks to heat up even more.

You stepped towards him, cupping one of his cheeks with your hand and watching him fight himself over fleeing from your touch or basking in it. A warm smile formed on your face as he settled on nestling his face in your hand, eyes pressed shut as if he was angry at himself for it. "You're cute when you're flustered."

He stilled, not daring to open his eyes, but clearly effected by your words. You gave him a kiss to the cheek you weren't holding before stepping back, not missing the moment of him chasing your touch for just a second before opening his eyes.

Megumi followed you with his eyes as you settled back into your bed before you invited him into it. "Let's just rest for now and talk about how to go about this tomorrow, yeah?" Megumi just hummed in agreement, already cuddling up to you, like you were the only thing that could keep him from freezing to death. For a guy who was so hellbent on appearing nonchalant he was ridiculously clingy.

When you woke up the next morning, still curled up in Megumis arms, you felt like the world was just right for once. You looked at his face with those beautiful lashes, for once peaceful, and whispered: "So, how do you plan to do this?" Megumi groaned, scrunching his nose up slightly. "I was hoping you'd forget about that." You blushed slightly at his morning voice and were grateful that he hadn't opened his eyes yet.

As you got ready for the day, Megumi sneaked out of your room, out of sight from everybody else. You chuckled slightly to yourself, wondering how this would play out. Today truly was the perfect day for something big. Some grant gesture to show everyone that you were a couple. It was Saturday and both classes, as well as Gojo, had agreed to go for a picnic.

You met the others outside the campus gate, ready to hike up the mountain for the picnic. On the way up there you strolled behind the others. Not for any particular reason, more out of habit of always keeping everyone in your line of sight.

After a little while Megumi fell back to match your pace. He didn't say a word but he walked just a tad bit closer to you than he normally would. What you didn't see was the courage Megumi was working up to do even just that. It went against every bit of his persona that he had build for himself. Against everything he wanted to be perceived as.

A few minutes before you reached the top of the mountain you felt Megumis hand brush against yours. Once, twice. Deliberately. Then once more, slower this time, catching your pinky finger with his own. It was a very sweet gesture. When you glanced over at him you saw him swallowing hard, holding onto his composure with all his might and seemingly forcing back the blush that was creeping up his neck through sheer willpower. You held onto his pinky a little tighter.

When the group finally made it up to the top and Panda and Toge began setting up the picnic blanket, Nobara turned around, starting to complain about something but stopping mid-word when she saw it. She made a sound of surprise, loud and unmistakable. Everybody turned to look at you and Megumi and you could feel him tense up next to you. This was his personal hell.

Maki looked between Nobara and you two. "What's the big deal, they're not even holding hands properly." Nobara turned to her, grabbing her shoulders and shaking her slightly. "Are you kidding? For Megumi this is like… fully making out in front of us!" It took quite a bit of your own willpower not to laugh at that, because in a way, she was right.

It upset Megumi, though. Out of sheer spite, he huffed and grabbed your hand fully, looking more disgruntled than ever. Gojo didn't waste any time. You heard the click of his camera before you even fully realized what was going on. Yuji just stared at you two and your hands in deep thought. "How long has this been going on?"

Megumi didn't look at him when he answered. "Since before I met you." Nobara made another noise of disapproval. "Why didn't you tell us earlier? We wouldn't have tried to set you up with somebody else!" The look in his eyes was sharp. "I told you plenty of times not to do that."

Two weeks had passed since you had brought Toge the flavoured medicine. Every time he took some of it he heard your voice again, quietly whispering that you thought he was pretty. That single moment had burned itself into his mind and he was determined to chase that same high again.

You on the other hand had spent the first two days after locked in your room in embarrassment. It had taken a very confused Yuji and a very annoyed Nobara to drag you back out again. They took you to the city for some ramen where you met with Megumi and Nobara eventually tried to make you tell her everything that happened. Telling her was one thing, but with Yuji and Megumi there as well you wanted nothing more than to crawl back into bed and not look at anybody.

"It's not like we don't know you're into him." Megumi was as deadpan as ever, the statement draining all colour from your face. "The only thing I don't get is why you would lock yourself in your room. Did he reject you?" Yuji was asking genuinely but Nobara was quick to hit him for it anyways. You felt sick.

"I-," all of them brought their attention to you, "I'm not sure." Nobara nearly jumped on the table, the force of her hands making the decoration clink together. "WHAT??" Megumi just sighed while Yuji rubbed his chin in thought. "I don't get it." Nobara stood up straight and crossed her arms in front of her. "Yeah, me neither. There is no way he'd reject you. Hell, he'd be lucky to have you!"

You took a deep breath and started from the beginning, telling them everything that happened that day, only pausing to order food, ending with you running out on him before he could react. "It was so embarrassing! I've barely ever spoken to him and then I just drop something like that? He must think I'm so weird." With a thump your head landed on the table, the decoration clinking together once more.

"If anything, he's the weirdo, making you feed him the medicine like that." Megumi had pretended not to listen to your story but clearly that was just for show. He'd never admit to it but Megumi loved listening to other people's drama and judging everyone involved.

Yuji was deep in thought again. "Yeah, maybe. But it's also kind of… intimate, don't you think?" All three of you turned to look at him, silently asking him to elaborate. "Well, if we assume he also likes you, then wouldn't he…? I know I would do anything I could to be close to you, especially if I couldn't say it."

You felt your cheeks heat up again. "Do you really think so?" It took some effort not to sound too hopeful. Nobara nodded. "That actually makes a lot of sense. Let's assume that's why he did that and plan our next move." She grinned mischievously and you started to feel sick again when Megumi chimed in.

"Wouldn't it be on him to make the next move?" Nobara shook her head. "Absolutely not. You cannot trust a guy to have the balls for this sort of thing." If this hadn't been about you you would have laughed at that. The idea that you had the courage to do something like that again was ridiculous.

Thankfully, your conversation was abruptly ended when your ramen arrived and the four of you began eating. During the meal the three of them goofed around like they usually did, which actually made you feel a lot better.

To your surprise, Nobara barely brought the topic up again the following almost two weeks. You knew she was planning something, but it was easy to ignore the thought.

Especially on days like today. Since the day they had dragged you out of your room, the four of you had made an unsaid rule to go out to eat together every three days. You had been out for ramen again. As you were just finishing up your bowl you heard the familiar sound of Nobara receiving a text.

It wasn't unusual so you didn't pay it any mind. Although, if you had, you would have been a lot more suspicious over her trying to get you back to campus so quickly. The text she got was from Panda, asking if she knew where you were because Inumaki was looking for you. Nobara immediately put two and two together and told him that she'd have you back in 15 minutes.

When you got back you finally did notice how Nobara was steering you four towards the second-years, who were gathered under a tree near the dorms. You turned to her with pleading eyes but she just smirked at you, not stopping for a second. The boys behind you suddenly felt like a massive wall pushing you forward.

Once you were within earshot Nobara called out to them. "Hey guys!" There was no turning back now, as Maki, Panda and Inumaki turned towards the four of you. Inumaki quickly got up from the grass, followed by Panda, who you saw saying something to him that was too quiet to hear.

"We haven't seen you guys in days, where have you been?" Maki greeted your group, although she sounded as uninterested as ever. "Good to see you too, Zenin." Megumi replied sarcastically. "I told you to stop calling me that!" You didn't hear how their conversation continued because you caught Inumaki's eyes focused on you.

"Kelp." His voice sounded healthy again, which made you smile. "Hey, you sound good!" A pause that felt a lot longer than it was spread. Inumaki just blinked at you while Panda tried to hide his grin by joining the others, who had conveniently also gone quiet. They didn't want to miss anything, unlike you two, who didn't even notice their staring.

"I-I mean. You sound well. Better. Than last time." You felt your cheeks heat up again and you hated it. "Salmon." A small sigh of relief left you, the smile back on your face. Inumaki's mind was running wild. Seeing you in front of him was enough to throw him off but hearing you say that and seeing you smile at him like that? He was entranced.

Next to you two the others were just about ready to shake you both the longer you just stared at each other. Panda mouthed the words "Come on. Just like we practised." and Nobara next to him looked like she was about to explode trying not to just push you into him.

Toge found his voice again just as your smile started to turn a little uncertain. "Tuna." With that he held his hand out to you. Your eyebrows moved together slightly as you tried to understand him. "Tuna, as in, 'look'?" He turned his head to the side and moved his hand more towards you for emphasis. "Tuna." So that wasn't quite it.

You looked down at his hand and saw it trembling slightly. Without really thinking about it you raised your own hand, but you stopped yourself right before taking his. "Tuna, as in… 'take my hand'?"

This was hell, Toge wanted to scream. That's not what he meant, but it is what he wanted you to do. He was still debating what to say when he felt your hand in his, ripping him out of his thoughts. Your hand felt warm against his and he already never wanted to let go.

With the way his hand was shaking you were curious if it would be cold. It was. But it was nice, a calming sensation against your own rising temperature. You watched how your own hand fit into his before looking up at him again, only to find him already staring at you, eyes wide.

You were starting to wonder if he was more nervous about this than you were and the thought made you chuckle slightly. "Now what?" The words came out between the soft laughter, that damn smile on your lips again. It took everything in Toge to stay half composed. He tugged at your hand ever so gently, barely noticeable. "Tuna."

"Ah, I get it. Tuna, as in, 'I want to show you something', right?" Toge nodded his head, the smile he hid behind his collar evident in his voice. "Salmon, Salmon." You gripped his hand a little firmer and Toge felt his knees turn to pudding. "Lead the way."

As the two of you walked away the rest of your classmates collectively breathed out the breath they had been holding in. Nobara was the first to speak up. "Those two are insufferable! I have never seen anyone more obviously in love than them."

"But they're so cute together." Panda cooed, earning an annoyed growl from Maki. "If I ever end up all lovey-dovey like that just shoot me." Megumi didn't even turn to her. "Yeah, right. Like that would ever happen." This had Maki steaming, shouting "What's that supposed to mean?" and trying to hit him, which Megumi dodged.

Inumaki and you didn't notice any of that, the heartbeats in your ears drowning out most other noises. Neither of you said anything as you turned another corner revealing the flowers where you two had first met. You gasped at the sight, taking a couple of steps forward and letting go of Inumaki's hand in the process.

He thought about catching up and grabbing your hand again, unwilling to let that moment end, but dropped the thought when you turned around to him, beaming from ear to ear. "They're even more impressive than I remember! You make such a good gardener."

Toge felt his cheeks turn pink which made him sink deeper into his collar. He averted his eyes, knowing he couldn't handle your amused reaction to him. "Tuna." He said quietly, pointing at the petunias. You followed where he was pointing but only saw the flowers you had already seen. Yes, you would look at them some more, but you felt like that's not what he meant.

You turned back to him, a confused expression on your face. "Tuna Tuna." He seemed adamant about you looking at the flowers some more, so you stepped closer. Then you saw it, tucked between some gorgeous pink flowers you found a sheet of paper, neatly folded. You picked it up and turned back to him.

"Is this what you wanted to show me?" By now Inumaki had sunken so deep into his collar you could barely see his eyes looking anywhere but at yours. He nodded, not trusting his voice. God, he felt pathetic. He didn't even have to say it, you would just read it. Why was he so nervous? Why was his heart pounding so loudly in his chest he could barely hear your question? He shut his eyes as you started to unfold the paper.

You're prettier.

The message was short but clear. You immediately felt your cheeks heat up again as you looked up to find him still pressing his eyes shut, clearly scared of your reaction.

With a soft smile on your lips you stepped closer to him until you stood right in front of him. You carefully took both of his hands into yours, holding them between the two of you. You could feel him trembling slightly under your touch as he slowly opened his eyes to look at you.

A sudden surge of boldness overcame you and you raised both of your hands higher, bringing his to your lips to plant a little kiss on each one. He stilled completely, only breathing out a soft "Caviar." You laughed at how cute he was. It was all you could do to stop yourself from crushing him in a big hug.

You both jumped slightly as you heard a loud but soft thud, followed by Nobara's voice. "Panda, you idiot, we were supposed to stay silent." Panda got up and brushed some loose grass from his fur. "It's not my fault they're so adorable, I lost my balance."

Inumaki furrowed his brows as he turned to his friend, taking his hands from yours in the process. "Fish Flakes! Caviar! Tuna mayo!" He was clearly very upset and yet you couldn't help but chuckle as you watched him try to push Panda away, who turned to you like this was the most normal thing in the world.

"We were thinking about all getting some milkshakes if you guys want to come with." You looked at Inumaki, who was slumped to the ground, clearly giving up. "I'd be up for that. What about you, Toge?" He froze. This was the first time you had called him by his first name and he never wanted to hear you call him anything else. "Salmon."

Later, you sat between Toge and Panda as everyone sipped their drinks. Panda slapped his forehead as he remembered something. "Oh, right. I meant to ask you something." You took the straw from your mouth. "Sure, what is it?"

"Toge mentioned that, back then when you visited him, there was a moment where you… for a lack of a better word… stared at his markings." Toge next to you stopped breathing for a moment, debating with himself whether he wanted to hear this or run away. "What were you thinking back then?" He stayed seated.

"Oh, it's, haha, a little, um… how do I even say this, you know those youtube clickbait arrows?" All your other classmates turned to look at you with expressions somewhere between confusion and disgust. "I was kind of thinking they were pointing to his mouth, as if to say," your voice turned quieter with every word you said, more and more embarrassed by your own thoughts, "kiss here."

The leaves rustled softly in the wind as Gojo Satoru and his second-year students wandered through the forest. Gojo was grinning that obnoxious grin he so often wore around them, full of mischief and schemes. Nobody really payed it any mind though - he does look like that virtually all the time. All the time you see him anyway.

This weekend, Gojo was on a mission. It wasn't just the camping trip itself, which Panda had suggested oh so perfectly. No, his mission would require a lot more finesse than just setting up a tent and catching fish in the nearby stream - it was a mission of love.

This man had convinced himself that you and Toge were meant for each other. It had started on your very first day, you had been transferred to the school a little after Yuta, which meant that Gojo introduced you to the others in much the same way he had done to Yuta before.

Except you didn't bring your personal curse with you, so the others had no reason to attack you. Which, honestly, when Yuta later told you that story about his first day had made you feel sick to your stomach. You joked to him then about how you "probably wouldn't have been able to show my face around here anymore" and Yuta just laughed along, saying he had considered the same.

So, in that regard, your first day had gone surprisingly well. Gojo had told you to wait outside the classroom until he called you inside and when he did you saw a class of exactly four students. For a moment you thought he was messing with you, especially because one of the students wasn't even human.

But, no, Gojo was fully serious and after he had told them your name he also listed of each of their names. When he was done it was silent for a moment, nobody quite sure what to say, until the guy standing on the left raised his hand and waved at you, muttering a silent "Kelp". With a shy, but still obviously amused smile on your lips you mirrored the boy, greeting him with a "Kelp" of your own.

The silence that followed was deafening. The only girl in the class had been looking fairly annoyed from the start, but now she was downright frowning at you, while the other boy and the panda looked more confused than anything. After what felt like an eternity, the girl, Maki, was the first to speak.

"Don't make fun of him. We don't like bullies around here." You raised your hands defensively, a worried expression now on your face. "I didn't mean to, I swear! I just thought it was a bit and wanted to go along with it, I'm sorry." Maki's response to that was more a grumble than actual words but her expression and stance softened somewhat, which made the other three relax visibly.

What you hadn't seen during all that was Gojo grinning to himself behind you. With his six eyes he was able to clearly see the way Toge's eyes lit up when you responded to him the way you did. He could see the smile that formed behind Toge's collar when you explained yourself. From that moment Gojo knew that that boy was whipped.

So now, with a weekend full of "team-bonding exercises" and some good old-fashioned forced proximity he was hoping to finally get you two to admit it to each other. Not just you two, though. Yuta and Maki have also been dancing around their feelings for each other. At least that's what Panda had told him when Gojo mentioned how close his classmates had gotten.

After Gojo explained that he was actually talking about you and Toge it was like someone had finally handed Panda the puzzle-piece he had been missing. Every interaction between the two of you for the past year was finally making sense. That's how Panda ended up planning this camping trip together with Gojo - planning the ultimate set-up.

When the six of you finally reached the camping grounds deep in the forest you all instinctively gathered around the stone circle that marked the empty campfire. Gojo clapped his hands as he looked around his students.

"Alright! We have now reached our camping grounds with roughly, uhhh, two hours of sunlight left. From now on until the end of the weekend you will have to perform a variety of tasks either as the whole group or in teams of two. Those teams of two are…" Gojo pulled a sheet of paper from his pocket, pretending to read it through his blindfold before pointing at you and saying your name.

"You will be partnered up with…" He pretended to read from his list again. "Toge! And next we have Maki and…" He really loved making a show out of everything. "Yuta! Which then only leaves Panda, who will be partnered up with me."

You furrowed your brows at the man. "How is that fair? Wouldn't it make more sense to have a group of three instead of putting yourself in one of the teams?" Maki crossed her arms in front of her chest as she rolled her eyes. "Yeah. At least give Panda a chance of winning this competition."

Gojo raised his index finger in the air, wagging it. "Uh-uh. Not a competition. Remember: This is about team-bonding, not team-fighting." He clapped his hands again. "So! That being said, I gave each team the set for one tent. You have until sundown to put it up, fastest wins. Ready?" Yuta took a small step forward. "But, you just said-" "GO!"

And with that Gojo and Panda sprinted off, about halfway between the fire pit and the end of the clearing, throwing all their bags on the ground and somehow making a mess of things before even really starting. You watched them for about three seconds before gently nudging Toge with your elbow. "Come on, I bet we can beat those losers." "Salmon."

As you and Toge walked away to find your own spot for the tent Maki audibly sighed as she tried to contain her annoyance. "Hey, I think we'll be a great team!" Yuta beamed at her, his expression so earnest that it melted some of her annoyance away. "Yeah, let's just get this over with." She turned around to find them a spot as well, staying one step ahead of Yuta so he wouldn't see the blush creeping up on her cheeks.

All three teams got to work and while Panda and Gojo were about exactly as chaotic as you'd expect them to be, Maki and Yuta did some good work, albeit a little slow. You and Toge quickly gained a lead in this first task, mainly due to your experience in setting up tents from all the camping trips in your childhood.

After your tent was set up you two put your bags inside, each rolling out your sleeping bags and anything else you wanted to prepare before it got dark. Once you were both happy with your tent and stepped outside again with still about 45 minutes of sunlight left, you watched Maki and Yuta putting the final tent pegs in the ground.

Gojo and Panda on the other hand had barely managed to sort the different parts and spread them out, they hadn't even begun setting it up. "Mustard leaf." You hummed in agreement. "You're right, let's help them."

When Panda saw you approaching he waved at you, a big smile on his face. Gojo perked up at that, turning to you as well. "No way, you're done already?" He leaned to the side to look past you both at Maki and Yuta's tent; they were both putting their things inside it as well now. "Those two, too, huh?"

You chuckled at his silliness. "Yeah, well, we figured you guys could use our help." "Salmon." Gojo turned back to you, his usual mischievous smile on his face. "How very team-ly of you." At that Panda threw a small branch at Gojo, knowing full well that his infinity wouldn't let it reach his face. "That's what we're here for, remember? Team-work, not team-sabotage?"

Gojo feigned innocence in a very dramatic, very Gojo, way. "Are you accusing me of sabotaging our tent?" "Is it sabotage to immediately disintegrate the instructions?" You could basically feel Toge next to you roll his eyes which caused you to chuckle again.

Through your own amusement you joined them and their tent pile. "This isn't going to help with your tent. How about I just tell you what to do and if you don't understand Toge will show you?" They both agreed and soon enough the tent was beginning to take shape.

By the time the sun started setting the tent was mostly standing but it wasn't done until the sun had fully gone down. In the dark only one thing was left - the tent pegs. You and Gojo were already joining Maki and Yuta, who had collected some wood for the fire.

As Panda went around the tent putting the pegs in the ground he unfortunately didn't see one of the strings he had already set up. He fell over it, which nobody would have even noticed if Toge hadn't started laughing, louder than you'd ever heard him laugh before. It warmed your heart to hear him laugh so freely. You smiled softly at the scene and didn't notice Gojo's smirk at your reaction.

Once Panda had picked himself back up and Toge had calmed down again they joined the rest of you around the fire pit. Maki immediately called Panda out for being clumsy, which he denied quite strongly. Yuta tried his best to keep them both friendly as they started to raise their voices a little.

Already used to their antics you softly nudged Toge with your elbow, speaking to him quietly enough so that only he could hear. "You should laugh like that more often. It suits you." You weren't sure what had caused your sudden boldness but you were thankful for it when you saw Toge's eyes widen and his cheeks turn pink before sinking further into his collar. He was just too adorable.

Gojo's voice tore everyone from their conversations. "Okay, now that the tents are in place, let's start the campfire." He neatly arranged the branches the other two had gathered and placed the now crumbled up paper he had pretended to read from earlier under them before lighting it with a match. Soon enough he got a small fire going and the rest of you placed blankets around it to sit on.

You found a spot between Maki and Panda as Gojo began explaining the next day's activities. "We start at sunrise. After breakfast each team gets assigned a spot in the forest with two tiny flags. We all get three hours to set up traps in the forest. Then, each team has to collect one flag from both other teams, while a few low level curses are released in the area. Fastest team wins."

Maki was resting her chin on her hand as she listened to him with a stern expression. When he was done she immediately spoke up. "Can't you literally teleport?" Gojo placed his index finger over his mouth and you could swear you saw him wink behind that stupid mask of his. "I won't be doing that, of course." "Of course." You echoed unintentionally.

Gojo just ignored your comment and instead got excited all over again. "We should tell ghost stories! That's what you do around a campfire, isn't it?" He turned to you as if you were the only one who'd ever gone camping before. Perhaps you were. You nodded. "That or we could sing a song."

You grinned as you said it, looking at the fire instead of Maki but knowing full well that she'd hate the suggestion. She instantly grumbled and got up. "Yeah, no. I'm not sticking around for that." As she walked over to her tent she continued. "Don't be too loud about it, I'm going to get a head start on sleep."

Gojo's sing-sang voice rang through the air as she crouched to open the zipper of the tent. "That's not very team-ly of you~" She slipped into the tent. "So? You're not a part of my team." And with that she was gone for the night.

As Panda turned to you to talk about some panda-themed clothes he saw the other day, Yuta turned to Toge, speaking to him in a whisper. "I don't know if I can handle sleeping in a tent with her. What if I snore?" Toge scoffed at his friends worry, deciding to tease him for it. "Tuna mayo."

Yuta's eyes went wide and one of his hands shot up to cover his own mouth in shock. "No… you don't really think… Maki doesn't snore!" He half-whispered, half-shouted, which only caused Toge to giggle, lightly hitting Yuta on the shoulder. "Bonito Flakes." He managed to get out between giggles, visibly relaxing the other.

Meanwhile Gojo smiled softly to himself, staring into the fire. This was exactly the kind of casual fun he always tried to make possible for his students. The kind that he had been denied in his own youth.

"No, but seriously, you don't think it'll be weird? Aren't you worried at all?" Yuta's tone was still low, not wanting you to hear him as he asked his friend this question. Toge wasn't worried. Or, at least, he hadn't been. Until now. They had both sought out the other's advice before, so while Toge knew about Yuta's crush on Maki, he also knew about Toge's crush on you.

He blinked, the idea setting foot in his mind for the first time that day. You and Toge had been close from the start, bouncing jokes and pranks off of each other like it was the easiest thing in the world. Somehow, you had never been weird about his speech and even though you didn't understand him at first, you learned a lot quicker than most because you were so willing to just go along with whatever he said.

He couldn't help but develop a crush on you. You had carved a place in his heart so fast and effortlessly, he wouldn't wish it any other way. And yet, he had never voiced those feelings towards you, terrified to destroy this friendship that you had built. Scared not only of you rejecting his feelings but also him entirely.

But would you really? Toge often dared to hope that you wouldn't. On days like today, for instance, when you'd compliment him so honestly it had his heart stuttering in his chest. It had happened a few times before and each time Yuta had assured him that, yes, it means that you feel the same as him!

Still, it didn't help the cold shiver that ran up Toge's spine as an image of you manifested in his mind. In it you were looking at him, tired and disgusted as you removed the hand from your waist that he had placed there in his sleep, the fragile bond the two of you had built shattered in a single moment.

Toge pulled his legs towards himself and buried his face behind his knees. The look on Yuta's face next to him turned to panic. "N-No! Sorry, I didn't-" In that moment Panda noticed the shift in the mood as well. You followed his gaze as he spoke to Yuta. "What did you say to him?"

Yuta's eyes shifted nervously between Panda and you, not wanting to give away what they were talking about. "I'm not quite sure." Toge was staring at the fire, seemingly too lost in thought, even as Gojo chimed in and decided to distract everyone with a ghost story. Slowly but surely though, it worked and three stories later Toge seemed less upset.

All four of you were now tired though. You had leaned your head against Panda, his soft fur making for a way too comfy pillow. Toge sat leaning back on his hands while Yuta had slumped in on himself, occasionally nodding off. Gojo's laugh had all of you perking up.

"That's enough for today, you guys need to be ready and well rested tomorrow. So. Off you go now." He shooed all of you into your tents while he covered the remaining embers with sand, extinguishing the rest of the fire.

Sitting inside your tent, the reality of the situation sank in. You were sharing a tent with Toge. This wasn't bad, of course. Quite the opposite, actually! You had imagined what it would be like to fall asleep next to him often enough for it to be embarrassing. But there was one thing your imagination never included: Having to change in front of him.

As you pulled your sleepwear from your backpack you decided to be normal about it. Which is such a normal thing to decide. But you were friends, damn it! It's not his fault that you have a crush on him that makes you feel weird changing in front of him.

You started speaking as you turned around to him. "Toge, how-" The sound died in your throat as you were greeted by bare skin. Toge had already taken off his shirt, apparently entirely unbothered by the whole situation. At the sound of your voice he turned to face you as well, finding your eyes lingering on his torso a bit too intensely.

Your eyes flicked back up to meet his which only caused heat to rise up into your cheeks. As you felt the familiar sensation you quickly turned back around, shutting your eyes tight, as if you could ever forget the sight you had just witnessed. "S-sorry, I didn't… I, uh, just wanted to say I'll be changing now, too, i guess." You tried to swallow the lump in your throat, unsure whether to add 'don't peak!' to it, after you had already failed at it so miserably.

Toge on the other side of the tent turned back around now as well. "Salmon." He saw the way your eyes lingered on him. Hell, he felt it. Like his skin was sizzling under your gaze and the part of him that still dared to dream whispered into his ear that what he saw in your eyes was attraction.

Meanwhile the part of him that Yuta had unintentionally awakened today was quick to drown out his hopes, claiming that look in your eyes and the way you turned away so quickly to be a sign of disgust. He shook his head lightly and quickly changed out of the rest of his day clothes.

Then he waited until he didn't hear any more rustling from your side, too scared of tainting your view of him to even consider peaking. When it was silent on your side he spoke up. "Salmon?" He heard you take a breath before you responded, a smile evident in your voice. "Yes, I'm done."

He carefully turned around, looking around the tent for a moment before finding your eyes. "…Thanks," you said, quieter now, "for being more respectful than I am." You tried to hide your embarrassment with a soft laugh and Toge wanted nothing more than to tell you that he couldn't care less whether you saw him shirtless or not. In fact, he kind of wanted you to, actually, but he wouldn't dare to admit it.

The air in the tent was tense while both of you tried to figure out how to proceed. Toge decided to speak first. "Tuna…" And quickly realised that everything he wanted to say to you had the potential of ruining your friendship. That and the fact that his limitations made it virtually impossible to voice them anyway.

You watched his gaze turn downward as he trailed off and in a second surge of boldness you moved closer to him, placing your hand over one of his. Toge's eyes shot up at the sensation, first at your combined hands, then to your face. His eyes were wide and his pulse hammered in his ears so loudly he worried about not being able to hear your next words.

As if someone had slapped some sense back into you you pulled your hand away again just as quickly as you had placed it there. Toge already missed your warmth. "Shit, sorry. I don't know why I did that." You felt your cheeks heat up again as you fiddled with the zipper of your sleeping bag, trying to open it. "Let's just… go to sleep."

Toge stared at you as you opened your sleeping bag. He could just let it go. Pretend this tiny, insignificant, intimate moment never happened. He should let it go. For the sake of your friendship. Of all the things both of you had ignored before. Every lingering stare; every more or less deliberate accidental touch; every blush or compliment.

But something in the air tonight was different. The tent seemed smaller with every passing second that his eyes continued to drill holes into the back of your head. Toge couldn't take it anymore.

"Bonito Flakes." Your hands stilled.

"Caviar." The word came out rough, everything he said even more demanding than usual. By the deep breath Toge took you could already tell that he was about to reveal something big to you and you felt your heart start to race. You could hardly breathe as you waited, hoping desperately that this would go the way you wanted it to and not the way you feared the most.

"Tuna Mayo. Salmon." You could hear him huff in frustration. "Caviar." A distinct rustling of fabric had you finally remembering how to use your muscles. Slowly, you turned around to him, your eyes flickering over his face but not able to stay there, instead focusing on his hands typing away on his phone.

It didn't take him long to finish his text but he didn't turn his phone to you immediately. Instead, he just looked at you, as if asking himself once more if he should really show this to you. Once you read this text he would never be able to take it back. After a long moment you found the strength to properly look at him.

When your eyes met Toge's it was written all over his face. The uncertainty, the fear but also how much he cared for you and what you thought of him. You let out a breath, your lips forming into a small smile. In that moment you already knew what the text would say. And you were finally ready to allow both of you to admit it to each other.

"Show me." Your voice was soft as you gently motioned towards his phone with your chin. Toge swallowed but still handed you his phone. You didn't miss the slight tremble in his hand.

"I have a massive crush on you and I can no longer keep quiet about it. Please let me take you out on a date?"

You felt your cheeks heat up again, but this time you didn't turn away. Instead, you laughed lightly as you let the relief wash over you. Relief of knowing that your feelings are mutual. But also pure excitement at the prospect of going on a date with your best friend.

Toge felt like he was about to burst into flames, the few seconds it took you to answer feeling like the longest moment of his life. The uncertainty was eating away at him. There was no way you laughed at the text because you found it ridiculous and would reject him, right here, right now. Right? Right?

"I'd love that." As your eyes met his again you watched his expression change. All the tension he was holding in his tight lips and creased eyebrows washing away into big, open, hopeful eyes and lips slightly parted as he gasped quietly.

His voice was small, barely a whisper. "Salmon?" You exhaled through your nose, forcing yourself not to laugh again. You put the phone down beside you as you moved closer to him again until your knees touched. Before you could stop yourself you reached out your hand, carefully cupping his face. "Of course."

Toge leaned into your touch ever so lightly, as if he was afraid of scaring you off by being to forward. Like you were going to run off now. You let your thumb caress his cheek softly and you could see the way his shoulders dropped as he let out a shaky breath. A breath he's been holding onto since the first time your fingers brushed his as he handed you his phone to read something he wanted to tell you.

As his hand reached up to hold onto your wrist you slowly moved closer, gently pulling his head toward you as well until your forehead came to rest on his. There you stayed for a moment, just breathing each other in. A warmth bloomed in your chest and you couldn't help the giant smile forming on your lips.

"You have no idea how long I've wanted to do this." Toge made a sound of surprise before huffing quietly. Even without words you understood him perfectly. "We're both idiots, huh?" He chuckled softly, not daring to move too much. "Salmon."

You would have been happy to stay like this forever but eventually Toge moved again. He raised his other hand to your cheek and pulled back ever so slightly, just enough to look into your eyes. You watched his eyes flicker down to your lips once before coming back up to meet your eyes. Now that he's had a taste of heaven he felt himself go greedy.

Another small smile graced your lips as you nodded. Toge's expression softened and he smiled right back at you. Slowly, he leaned in. You closed your eyes in anticipation and felt his nose brush against yours. Just as your lips were about to meet, he stopped.

You could feel his breath ghosting over your lips and it made your mind go blank as something in your stomach tightened. You hadn't known just how badly you needed him to kiss you up until this moment. The words came out soft but needy, desperate. "Toge, please…"

You felt him take another shaky breath. Then, he finally closed the gap. His lips were a lot softer than you'd expected. They moved in tandem with yours like it was the most natural thing in the world. Just like everything you two did together.

You let your thumb move over his cheek again, holding his head there as you pulled away. When you opened your eyes you saw him pouting at you slightly, his cheeks tinted red and his lips glistening, inviting you back in. A soft chuckle escaped you.

"There is nothing I'd rather do right now than kiss you until the sun rises. But I don't think I can with our teacher sleeping in the tent next to us." Toge groaned, earning him another chuckle from you. He looked at you then like your chuckle was the greatest sound he'd ever heard. Like being able to make you laugh was an honour he held with pride. The intensity of his eyes had your cheeks heat up again.

"To think that this is what I was missing out on… We have to make up for so much lost time." His eyes sparkled with mischief and a smirk formed on his lips. You slapped his arm lightly. "Don't be gross," you tried to keep your laugh quiet, not wanting to bother the others, "at least take me out to dinner first."

Toge's eyes lit up as he moved closer again, cupping both sides of your face in his hands. His voice was determined. "Salmon." A kiss to your cheek. "Salmon." His voice got quieter as he kissed your other cheek and you couldn't help the laughter bubbling in your chest. "Salmon." His voice was almost a whisper now while he kissed your forehead.

"Salmon." He said it so softly now you barely heard it as he pressed another kiss into your hair. He moved his arms from your face to wrap around your shoulders as he held you close, resting his chin on your head. "Salmon." You continued softly chuckling as he pressed you into himself, breathing him in with your face pressed to his chest.

"I didn't know you were this sappy." You mumbled into his chest, trying to tease him a little. "Tuna mayo." He sounded content, like he was finally where he wanted to be. You smiled, feeling the same. "I guess there are a lot of things I don't know about you. I can't wait to find out."

After taking another deep breath you pushed Toge back, untangling yourself from his arms, much to the dismay of both of you. "…Tomorrow." He furrowed his brows at you and you fought the urge to pinch his cheeks. "We need to sleep, remember?"

Toge sighed but didn't protest as both of you climbed into your sleeping bags. You laid facing each other, his expression soft and happy while you smiled at him. Something flickered across his face as his hand twitched on the ground between you.

You shuffled closer to him, urging him to just do it. He swallowed before raising his hand and letting it rest on your waist ever so gently. You felt it shake slightly as it came to rest on your side. The smile on your face was enough to melt away his insecurities, shattering the idea of you being disgusted by him he'd had earlier.

"Goodnight Toge." You shuffled even closer to him, until your face was almost touching his chest again and he could feel your breath fanning around his shirt collar. "Tuna." One of your hands came up to rest against him, feeling his heartbeat slowly calming down as you both drifted off to sleep.

One tent over Panda and Gojo were still awake, quietly talking about today's events and if their plans were working out the way the wanted them to. "I don't think Maki and Yuta really had a chance to do something about it today. The other two though…" Panda thought out loud as Gojo just smiled knowingly.

He had forced himself not to focus on either of your tents as everyone went to sleep. However, his six eyes being as restless as ever, he couldn't help but check up on you just now and saw you and Toge holding onto each other in your sleep.

You sat bolt-upright in bed, gasping as your eyes blew open wide. With one hand raised to your chest you tried to steady your breathing, slowly coming to your senses as you remembered that this was the real world and not the one you had just awoken from.

In a way you had already been used to waking up in a panic from those horrid nightmares you kept having. However, this one was a little different. For one, it kept you awake for the rest of the night, your mind too consumed with the remainder of that dream to rest again. But also, it kept coming back. Night after night you now had the same horrid dream, over and over again.

It was starting to effect your daily life. You became clumsy, which is not ideal working in a café where you had to regularly carry multiple cups and glasses. The sleep you missed out on also found you in more and more unsuitable spaces. During mass or now even waiting in line at the store. It was getting out of hand and your father decided that something needed to be done about it.

At first he forbid you from leaving the house, too worried that you'd just fall over anywhere on the street. However, you still did not manage to sleep any more than before. Each night you entered a vast open space, covered entirely in a thick fog. The very first night you saw a tall, dark structure looming in the distance.

Those past few nights that structure was getting ever closer and you were starting to hear a voice. A deep, mighty voice. It was only that night that you were able to make out some of the things the voice was saying. By now, you could also see a long table between the dark columns. When you awoke that night the only thing you remembered the voice saying was his own name. The Fool.

It went on another few days before your father informed you that he had called some people who could help you. You felt relieved at the idea of finally being free from those wretched dreams. Especially now that you had gotten closer to the table. Now every night you feared that the man sitting at the head of it would see you.

Somewhere deep in your bones you knew that if he saw you it would end badly for you. You knew that the voice and the man always unsettled you greatly in your sleep, and yet, each time you awoke you could no longer recall either.

When the two men finally came to rid you of your nightmares they did not tell you much about what they would do. They claimed to be able to walk inside your dream and yet, they would not explain how they would be able to achieve such a thing. The charming one had only smiled softly and insisted that it was one of their trade secrets.

The smaller one had only seemed nervous, both at the prospect of talking with you and the task in itself. The charming one, he had introduced himself as Leonard, had chuckled and excused his partner, Klein, for being nervous about his first time tagging along.

Somehow those words had calmed your nerves a bit. Not that an unexperienced man was supposed to help, but rather that one could safely be brought along, implying that this task was a simple one to them.

Still, no amount of calming words could rid you of the unease of going back to that place, on purpose no less! There was also something else, something about that man, Klein. He seemed so very familiar to you and yet you couldn't recall from where.

After setting everything up the way they would need it to be Leonard instructed you to lay in bed the same you would do on any regular night. One of the things the had done to prepare was giving you a mild sedative to ensure that you would fall asleep and stay asleep for as long as they needed.

As you laid down you could already feel your eyelids grow heavier with each breath you took. The two men were engaged in some irrelevant conversation with your father when Klein made a remark that you didn't quite catch. The last thing you heard before falling into slumber left your blood running cold.

You had been plagued by a headache all day so when your boyfriend texted you, asking to come over, you tried to decline, explaining your situation. The tone of his messages shifted, from calm and flirty to legitimately concerned. He asked if you had enough water. If you ate enough. Slept enough. Asked if you had taken pain meds. You explained that yes, you had done all of those things but nothing helped. Also looking at the brightly lit screen was starting to hurt your eyes. You told him that you were sorry but you'd just have to sit this one out, before you put your phone away.

It was sweet how much he cared. You were sure he understood but you still felt bad about having to ghost him for the rest of the evening. After a moment of collecting yourself you decided to try sleeping again. Even though you knew you would not get rid of them through sleep, at least you wouldn't be conscious through the pain.

Just as you were slowly and carefully making your way to the bedroom, after getting some more water from the kitchen, you heard a knock on your door. You weren't expecting anyone. For a moment you considered whether you should just pretend that you're not home. That is, until the knock came again, paired with a muffled voice this time. "Please, it's me."

You stared at the door for another second. How the hell did he get here so fast? Slowly, you shuffled towards the door and opened it. On the other side was no-one else but Suguru Geto. You must have worn your disbelief on your face because he rubbed the back of his neck, smiling sheepishly at you with his eyes closed as he explained. "I, uh… rode here on the rainbow dragon." You just blinked at him.

Suguru opened his eyes and looked at you expectantly but said nothing. Even without words you understood and freed the way for him to step into your apartment. You closed the door behind him and slowly followed him, still clutching the bottle of water you wanted to take to the bedroom with you.

A quiet sigh escaped you. "I was just about to try sleeping again." Suguru nodded absentmindedly. "Good, good." He started rummaging through the cabinets in your kitchen and didn't complain as you walked past him to do what you were trying to do in the first place. You put the water bottle on your nightstand and grabbed your pyjamas as you headed to the bathroom.

When you stepped out again, now ready for sleep, you found Suguru sitting on your bed, waiting. The air smelled of warm, calming herbs. You quickly found the source - the mug of tea sitting on your nightstand, next to the water you had just put there. "It smells good," was all you managed to say as you stepped closer. Suguru smiled softly and made enough room for you to sit on the bed as well.

He watched you take a seat next to him but stopped you before you could turn to lay down on the pillow. "I know you tried everything already, but please, allow me to try one more thing?" You looked at him, breathing in the calming air of the tea and considering being sassy, telling him that he's tried one thing already. However, the headache had drained you of so much energy that you couldn't manage to get the words out.

Instead, you nodded, instantly regretting the motion and letting one of your hands shoot up to your neck as you pressed your eyes shut. If your eyes hadn't been closed you would have seen Suguru frown so quickly, it looked almost like he flinched at your pain. After you relaxed a little, he put one hand on your shoulder and guided you carefully. "Turn your back to me, please."

You breathed out slowly, his warm hand instantly calming your nerves through the headache. With your back to him, you stared at the wall, waiting for whatever he was planning to do. You felt him shift behind you and then both of his hands found your shoulders. The were heavy, firm and grounding. He slowly let them draw closer towards your neck, watching every little movement of yours. Once there, he gently place his thumbs over the vertebrae with the rest of his fingers resting on your neck, before pressing down ever so slightly and moving his hands upwards.

You groaned and let your head fall back slightly, into his hands. The relief was instant but didn't last nearly long enough. Suguru chuckled softly behind you. "Please keep your head up, love." You were so lost in the feel of his hands and the pain and the calming herbs in the air that the new nickname didn't even register in your mind.

And lucky for him, you also didn't see how red his face turned as he realized that he just said that to you. Your relationship hadn't really been going on for long enough to say how much you loved each other. Not that either of you was against that idea.

After you had pulled your head up again, you felt his hands move down your neck in the same way they had moved up before. You tried to suppress it this time, but a low grumble was still audible. Suguru scoffed quietly, his hands still. "No need to be shy now." You could basically hear the smirk in his voice. "Suguru, please. Don't mock me." You whined and were shocked to find that you had already regained enough energy for that. Somehow, this was working wonders on you. You took another deep breath.

"This is working by the way." Suguru hummed behind you and let his hands move upwards again. Slowly, he worked his way up to your head and massaged that as well, before working his way down to your neck again. You didn't know where he learned to do this but before you knew it your headache was almost entirely gone and the noises you made were drifting closer towards pleased moans than pained grunts.

Eventually, way to soon in your opinion, his hands slowed at the base of your neck, moving back out towards your shoulders and resting there. "Judging by the sounds you made I'd say that you're feeling better. Is that true?" You sighed wistfully. "If I say no, will you keep going?" Suguru chuckled softly behind you. That same fond, adorable chuckle that had your heart melting in your chest. You leaned back slightly, carefully and he understood, removing his hands from your shoulders to wrap them around you, pulling you into his chest.

"How is your headache?" You hummed, enjoying him holding you close. "Not gone, but mostly. Can hear myself think again." Suguru hummed in return, gazing around the darkening room. After a few moments of just holding you like this he loosened his grip slightly. "Maybe you should try sleeping now. I would bet you'd have better luck with it now." You complied begrudgingly, moving around in your bed to rest with your back against the pillow. Suguru was quick to grab the blanket to pull over you.

But, you weren't lying down yet. Instead, you grabbed the mug from your nightstand, holding it in both hands to feel the left over heat radiating off of it. You raised it to your nose and took a deep breath before taking a sip. Suguru smiled as you did so. He hadn't expected you to actually drink the tea. Its purpose was mostly in you breathing it in anyways. The tea had cooled down to just above room temperature so it was easy to drink pretty quickly, but still warm enough to enjoy it.

After you had finished it you were about to put the mug back on your nightstand but Suguru took it from you and walked back into the kitchen with it. A sudden pang of unease ran through you at the thought of him not being in the room with you. You called out to him. "Are you gonna stay here tonight?" Suguru smiled from his place in the kitchen. "If you'll let me. I'd love to." There it was again, less obvious this time. He was glad you couldn't see him cringe at his own choice of words.

The night air was cold as you stepped out of the building. Another boring evening with virtually no costumers to entertain drawing to a close. You took a deep breath of the fresh air before tightening your scarf and coat around yourself, trying to keep as much of the warmth of the bar with you.

Things had changed so much since Atlas died. The bar was running on its last leg with Viktor as a rather unfriendly barkeeper and Rocky in charge of obtaining the much needed alcohol. Even Mordecai had left.

You started walking your way home, shaking all thoughts of times gone by from your mind, instead trying to enjoy the breeze. When you came towards the one unlit alley on your way you noticed three guys not far, waiting for an opportunity. You couldn't stop and think up a new route on the spot.

You also didn't want to give them the idea that you weren't fully aware of your surroundings. Confidence is key is what you were always taught. It didn't help you out much in this case though. As you entered the narrow path you could feel their eyes following you before they themselves did as well. It was three guys with orange fur, at least as far as you could tell before, you weren't going to turn around and look anxious to make it fun for them.

Didn't mean they didn't try to make it fun. One of them let his claws drag along the brick wall, creating an awful scratching sound that your ears reacted to involuntarily, folding neatly to your head. One of them laughed at that, loud and obnoxious. Did they want money? For a moment you considered just letting some drop to the ground but decided against it. It wasn't exactly like you had enough to go around.

As you were about to step back out onto the street you were cut off by the third of the gang, standing in front of you with a big, self-assured smirk. "Now, where's someone like you gotta be at this time of night?" Instinctively, you took a step back which only earned you a low chuckle from the two behind you.

You turned to the side, still stepping backwards until your back hit the wall. The three of them towered above you, each wearing a differently disgusting look on his face. "I swear I have nothing that fine gentlemen like yourselves could want." You tried to reason with them. Futile but the only thing you could do at this point. "I wouldn't be so sure of that." The one that had cut you off said, stepping closer to you.

Peng. A bullet shot through the air, between you and the men, grazing the cheek of the one getting closer to you. All three of them perked up, their ears turning in all the directions they couldn't look at. You tried to keep quiet as you put your hands up, protecting your head.

The head of the gang growled when another shot rang through the air, turning to the other two. "Screw this, just grab and run!" With that you felt both of your wrists being grabbed as they tried to pull you with them out of the alley. "No! Let me go!"

You heard another growl, although this time it sounded a lot more dangerous and further away. The four of you froze for a split second but that was enough. It happened so fast you were barely able to follow it with your eyes. The scene in front of you became a blur of orange and black and you could swear you spotted a hint of green glowing in there as well, dangerous and sharp.

You stumbled backwards against the wall again. The fight was intense. Claws and Fangs glinting in the moonlight, clothes being scratched and torn, accompanied by a series of blood-curdling snarls and hisses. Then, as it looked like the orange was about to overpower your saviour, another gunshot. The main guy yelped as some of his blood pooled on the ground.

He yelled at his men to go and a few seconds later, they were gone. You followed them with your eyes for second and when you turned back toward the man who had saved you you found no one. But you did spot something: A faint trail of blood. You followed the trail to a nearby dumpster. Behind that, slumped against the wall and clutching his bleeding side you finally recognised him - Mordecai.

"Wh-What are you doing here? You could have gotten yourself killed!" You immediately sprung into action, stepping closer in an attempt to help with his wound. Mordecai slapped your hand away and hissed at you. Your eyes widened for a second, irritated that he would hiss at you, before going back in. This time you caught his wrist with your other hand as he tried to slap yours away.

"Now is not the time, Mordecai. Let me look at it." He glared at you but didn't fight you again as you slowly removed his other hand from the wound. Yep, exactly what you expected - a good scratch, not quite deep enough to need stitches, but the four neat lines would definitely leave a mark.

Mordecai watched you look around the alley for anything you could use before pulling a neat, white handkerchief from your coat. It was the one thing your father had left you when he had passed away. You had told him about it back in the day, when he had asked what the initials embroidered on it stood for. He wanted to tell you not to waste it on him, stain it with his blood, but you were faster.

You tore at his already ruined shirt so you could stick your hand through and pressed the cloth into his side. He hissed again, this time from both pain and the fact that you were touching him. His whole body tensed up.

Mordecai had promised himself he wouldn't let you know that he kept such a close eye on you, but then again, he only did it for nights like these. He would kill for you, die for you, do anything to protect you. And yet, even with you he had trouble letting you close, always keeping you at least an arms length away from him.

And yet, you had been nothing but kind to him. Patient too. He wasn't sure how much of that he deserved. You definitely didn't deserve him ruining the only memory of your father. "You shouldn't be using that. Not for me." Every word was rough with how much he didn't want to say them. You just frowned, not even looking up from his wound.

"Don't safe me then." You pressed the cloth harder into his side and he hissed again. "I thought you were done with us." With me. The words hung in the air, unsaid but clear. Mordecai looked away, suddenly unable to look at you. "Never." You finally looked up only to find him turned away. You wanted nothing more than to raise your hand to his cheek and turn his face to you but you knew how much he would hate that. So you didn't.

Your gaze drifted downwards again and you noticed that the blood was flowing slower from his wound, the big red stain on the cloth having barely grown since you looked up at him. You swallowed thickly before speaking. "It's not that serious, you don't need me to do this. Just put your hand back here and put pressure on it until the bleeding stops."

You moved your hand so that you were just barely holding the cloth to his side, allowing Mordecai to take over without needing to touch your hand. As soon as you were sure he was holding the handkerchief up himself you stepped back, giving him the personal space you knew he needed.

Mordecai sighed deeply, his shoulders loosing some of the tension as you stepped back. It wasn't really conscious and you tried not to take it too personal that he felt relief when you weren't as close to him. Still, it stung. "I-" You started but paused when your eyes met his. They were softer now, you imagined to see a hint of guilt in them. You cleared your throat, turning your gaze to the ground again.

"I'm sorry for being the cause of this but I thank you for saving me from them." Mordecai pressed his eyes shut, wishing for a world where he could treat you the way you deserved, love you the way you wanted him to. He opened them again only to notice your tail being curled around your leg subconsciously as if to sooth yourself.

He straightened up, no longer leaning against the wall for support. "It was the right thing to do. You really should be getting home now. And I should take care of this." He gestured to his side halfheartedly. You nodded and turned to leave without saying another word or even looking at him again.

It was painful for both of you to be apart like this. Mordecai had hoped that being away from you would aid in letting his feelings fade but it seemed to have only worsened them. You on the other hand had not taken well to him leaving either.

For a while you had blamed Viktor. After you had found out that he had left because they had a big argument you didn't talk to him for a whole month. That was until you decided that obviously you hadn't meant as much to Mordecai as you had thought or else he would have stayed or at least tried to work it out.

But seeing him here now, protecting you even though you hadn't spoken to or even seen each other in months? It had let all your feeling bubble up again and you hated yourself for that. Still, after all that had happened, you couldn't help but hope as you closed your door behind you, finally safe at home.

When Mordecai reached his own place and exchanged the cloth with some proper bandages he couldn't help but replay the scene in his head. The way you, even in a situation like that, respected all the things he had told you back then. Only touching him as much as you needed to and immediately giving him space when possible. He didn't know anyone else who would have behaved like that.

He couldn't help but imagine the next time you two would meet - you had given him a reason for him to see you again after all. He gently placed the handkerchief in a bowl with cold water, not letting the blood dry into it. The tiniest hint of a smile tugged at his lips as he imagined handing it back over, grazing your hand ever so slightly. The way your breath would catch, knowing full well that he did it on purpose.

You had been on a joint mission with Megumi and on your way back you had begged him to have his demon dogs walk you both home. Reluctantly, he agreed. On the whole way back those two big dogs were nothing if not well behaved:

They walked on either side of you, always looking both ways with you while crossing the road, stepping in front of you to stop you if you didn't see a biker and so on. They even… wore the same focused expression Megumi wore while out on missions.

That was, at least, until you stepped inside the dorm building. Then it was like the dogs had officially done their duty for the day and were now experiencing some free time. They immediately lit up, looking up at you with big eyes and begging to be pet. You complied happily, of course. This was what you had hoped for, after all.

What you never really seemed to understand, however, was that the dogs were an extension of Megumi. Meaning, they were only mirroring him. The reason the dogs relaxed when you entered the building was because Megumi finally had regained a sense of safety being inside the school buildings. They were looking out for you on the road because that's really what Megumi intended to do.

And now, the dogs were rubbing their faces into your hands as you pet them, running into you at full speed, knocking you onto the floor and then licking your face because that's what Megumi wanted to do. Well… he really wanted to hug and kiss you, but the dogs were mirroring his crush on you in a way that a dog would show affection.

You were laying on your back now with the black dog resting his head on your stomach while you hugged and cuddled and kissed the white dog. That one was still trying to lick your face which only earned a laugh and some cooing from you.

Megumi had been hiding the fact that he couldn't keep the corners of his mouth down with his jacket. But now, and maybe it was the fact that the fight before had exhausted him and keeping the dogs running around was continuing to drain his energy, he started frowning. From somewhere deep within him, he felt a pang of jealousy.

He quietly scoffed at himself as he realised what he was feeling but it only took him a couple more seconds before he couldn't stand seeing you this happy with his dogs anymore. Megumi knew it was stupid - they were his dogs! He could have done literally anything else but his mind was a little too fried at the moment to make better choices.

Instead, he excused himself. You looked up at him questioningly, holding the white dog's head a bit away from you to look at him properly. "I uh… need to take a shower. Maybe I'll come back after that." He had no intention of doing so, but he also hated upsetting you. "Oh, okay."

You moved to sit up, lightly shooing the dogs Megumi's way but he just frowned slightly. "No. They'll keep you company." You blinked at him, uncertain. "You sure?" Megumi just nodded and turned around. As he walked away he heard you calling for them to come back to you, heard their paws hitting the floor as they sprinted towards you, felt the way his heart started racing at the thought of doing the same.

He did end up showering, like he had said, but it had taken him a considerable amount of time to do so. With every moment his movements grew more sluggish. Megumi knew that he shouldn't keep the dogs running around any longer, they were literally draining him of cursed energy.

But he just couldn't do it. He knew how much you loved those dogs. And even though he felt jealous that they were receiving all your affection instead of him, at least you were giving it to his dogs. Megumi told himself that even if you didn't feel the way for him that he felt for you, at least you loved one part of him. Or, well, two parts.

You continued playing with the divine dogs as Megumi left but after an hour or so, you noticed that their movements were slowing down slightly. Eventually, they settled on resting their heads on your lap as you pet them.

You continued doing so, smiling softly to yourself as Gojo entered the room. "Hey Megumi~, are you back ye-" He cut himself off as he saw you sitting on the floor with Megumi's divine dogs. A lazy smile played on his lips as he approached you. "Now what's going on here?"

You didn't even look up at him, just shrugged before you found an answer. "Megumi left them to keep me company while he takes a shower. Or… took, I can't imagine he's still in there." A short laugh escaped you before adding. "But I think I managed to tire them out a little, huh boys?" You leaned in closer to the white dog while the black one let out a big, long, dramatic sigh in a way only a dog could.

Gojo hummed to himself, amused. It was kind of adorable how unaware you were about the nature of these creatures. "You really think you can just… tire out a shikigami? I mean, unless you used cursed energy against the-" "Never!" You interrupted him, ignoring how rude you were being, considering that he was still, technically, your teacher.

He hummed again, even more amused and self-assured now. "Well, you didn't. Not them, anyways." Your brows knitted together in confusion at that. Who else would be affected when-? Your eyes widened as the realisation struck you. You looked up at Gojo, searching for anything more. He looked at smug as ever, his arms crossed in front of his chest. "You might want to check on him."

You sprung into action, moving quickly to get up and all but run towards Megumi's room. The dogs, sensing your panic, were imbued with new energy and moved beside you. Their underlying purpose - protecting you - kicking back in.

When you reached his door you stopped dead in your tracks, taking a few deep breaths before carefully sliding the door open. Megumi was laying on his bed, face down, hair still dripping. You would have been worried about him suffocating if it weren't for the quiet snoring.

You moved through the room, the dogs strutting just behind you. Megumi immediately stirred as you touched his shoulder, crouching down next to his bed now. He didn't wake up though. Carefully, you shook him and called out his name. At that he gave a small grumble before turning his head the other way.

Only when you tried again did it seem to do the trick. He turned his head back in your direction and cracked open his eyes ever so slightly. "What." His voice was rough with sleep and you pretended to ignore how much you liked the sound of it.

"Stop wasting cursed energy, you idiot. Call them back." He scoffed, brain still muddled with sleep. "Just say you don't like us." This took you aback for a moment. Behind you, you heard Gojo chuckling. He was leaning against the doorframe. You knew he was a nosy guy, but goddammit.

"Did you figure it out yet?" Gojo's tone was somewhere between condescending and motivational. You just wanted to tell him to go suck an egg but then again, he was basically Megumi's adoptive dad, so it made sense that he would know stuff about him.

Your face was still locked on Megumi's who had now closed his eyes again, already drifting off again. The dogs still hovering around you, occasionally nudging you with their snouts. "Just tell me, no need to be a dick about it."

Gojo hummed again, very obviously trying not to laugh. He was enjoying this way too much. "The dogs are him." You furrowed your brows and shook your head slightly. "What?"

"He doesn't just give them orders or control them or whatever. They are literally a part of him. They act how they act because… well, it's like they share a brain. If he thinks he should exorcise a curse, then they will think the same and act on it."

The shop seemed almost abandoned as you entered, were it not for the fact that the lights were still on and no dust had settled on any of the mannequins. They were all neatly lined up, each one wearing only a face-mask. You looked around the room for anybody working there, or at least some sort of bell perhaps that you could ring to let someone know that you were there.

You found nothing of the sort and instead decided to wait for someone to return. As you waited you looked around the room, inspecting the masks and their make. There was one section of masks that only covered half of the face, although it wasn't consistent which half they covered. Another section only featured masks made from wood and another only leather ones.

While you were looking around the room Uta took a deep breath as he carefully reached for his throat, letting his fingers glide over the tattoo. He had hidden under a sheet, pretending to be one of the mannequins. It was a good enough bit that would usually lighten the mood for any new ghouls. However, you were no ghoul.

As you were looking at some masks on the wall Uta took the chance and silently removed the sheet. He stood up and took a couple of steps towards you but you didn't react, almost as if you didn't hear him. Uta stopped behind you, taking another deep breath to calm his racing heart. Humans always got him so excited.

"Boo." You yelped and jumped, clearly taken by surprise at the sudden voice behind you. You turned around quickly and stuttered out an embarrassed: "Sorry, I didn't hear you enter." He could have killed you right then and you wouldn't even have noticed. Exhilarating.

After a moment of you coming to your senses again you looked at him with a spark in your eyes. "I heard that you make masks here so I came to get one for myself. And let me just say, you have some stunning masks in your shop." Uta leaned his head to the side, a little surprised to have someone look at his work with so much enthusiasm.

"Thank you. Did you have anything specific in mind?" He strolled towards his desk, picking up his sketchbook and pencil. "I was told that your very creative and I probably shouldn't give you too many rules to follow. The only thing I will tell you is that I don't want any zippers - kind of worried to get my hair stuck in it." Uta raised an eyebrow as he watched you rub the back of your neck sheepishly.

"Do you have any allergies? And who told you so much about me?" You blinked at him before letting a smile overtake your face. "No, I don't. And, it would kind of ruin the mystique if I told you, wouldn't it?" Uta hummed as he started to sketch the shape of your head. "I guess so. Tell me something about yourself. Anything that could keep me interested in this mask."

You thought for a moment as you looked at the man in front of you. Everyone from here sort of knew that this shop was run by a ghoul. Nobody really wanted to mess with him though, not when they also knew that he helped keep the district quiet and didn't even eat his customers. This guy though? He looked a lot more like some alternative sort of guy. If you didn't know better you would totally buy that he had his eyes tattooed to look like a ghoul's - it fit his vibe incredibly well.

"I like to bake. Love to think up what to put into and how to decorate cakes. My favourite animals are capybaras and I love the colour green." He hummed but his tone sounded only vaguely interested. You sat down on one of the pedestals in front of him, watching as he sketched away.

"I also enjoy listening to bands like My Chemical Romance, I think ghouls are pretty cool and don't need to be hunted aaannd I'm currently going to uni to become an architect." Uta's eyes widened slightly and the pencil in his hand stilled. He looked up at you still smiling at him. Your smile seemed genuine but the sparkle that was still in your eyes less so. Were you trying to hint that you knew about him? Didn't you know that was a safe way of getting yourself killed?

"Architecture and decorating cakes - both require quite some artistic skill. Do you have a preference? The flat but precise nature of architecture or the three dimensional but chaotic ways of baking?" Your eyes lit up even more, although this time because he was asking about your favourite things.

"The best part is definitely building the models of the buildings I dreamed up. It's like combining both of those things into one. I imagine your mask-making must be similar in that way." Uta tapped his pencil on the paper three times. "It is." Then he stood up and walked towards you with a measuring tape in hand.

He instructed you to hold still as he measured your head and scribbled everything into his notebook. You felt surprisingly comfortable in his presence. So much so that you decided to push your luck. "So what's your opinion on ghouls? There are quite a few in this district, aren't there?" His movements didn't stop this time. "There are."

Him ignoring your bait was only egging you on further. "Is that why you tattooed your eyes to match theirs?" Uta took another deep breath. "Yes. It's safer." He let the tape snap back into its casing, making you jump slightly and ending this part of the conversation as he walked back to his desk.

"Come back one week from now. I'll have your mask ready by then." Your eyes widened with excitement. Somehow, in all your scheming to get closer to this ghoul guy you hadn't really thought about actually getting a personalised mask. It was kind of cool. "I will, thank you so much!"

As you turned around to leave Uta sighed audibly, making you turn back around to look at him. "You might want to avoid asking questions like that to just anybody. Some people get a little jumpy at the mention of ghouls." You stared at him for a moment before thanking him again and leaving.

For a moment Uta considered just not working on your mask, seeing as you would surely die sooner rather then later. But then again, you had managed to pique his interest and it would be a shame to let an idea for a mask go to waste.

Exactly six days later you were standing in your kitchen gathering all the ingredients you would need for your next cake. It wasn't a cake you yourself would enjoy but rather… an experiment. You smiled to yourself as you put the bottle of blood on your kitchen counter, next to the other, mostly normal, ingredients.

As you were researching cake ideas a few months ago you stumbled across an article that talked about substituting eggs with blood. It was talking about it like it was some sort of vegetarian alternative, but it still stuck in your mind. Today, you decided to try it out and then hand it to the only ghoul you knew tomorrow. At least the only one you thought you knew. Who's to say how many ghouls run around at your uni.

You decided on coffee as the main flavour of the cake, seeing as that mask guy seemed like the kind of guy who'd drink absurd amounts of the stuff. So in it went, along with all the normal cake ingredients and then the blood in place of the eggs. Lastly, you added black food colouring. Mainly because you were worried that the baked blood would come out of the oven looking like shit. But also because he would surely appreciate a black cake.

You didn't go crazy with the decoration, just some borders and some thin lines drawing a face with crossed out eyes. All of it in black, of course. When you were done you put it in a box and the box in the fridge before going to bed.

The next day you were very nervous. On your way to his shop you started to worry, whether or not you had made the wrong call. What if he was actually just a normal human guy and you handed him a cake with human blood? Would you then be at fault for making him a cannibal? Would you even tell him? Your thoughts ran so wild that you barely noticed entering his shop.

Uta could smell you before he could see you. You and… something else. Something delicious. His guests could smell it too. All three of them turned towards the door as you entered, the box with the cake held in front of you. You froze as you saw the tall, white haired man and the orange haired woman. They froze as well, although they hid it better.

You didn't know, but all three of them could smell the coffee and blood inside that cake. Yomo turned to Uta with a frown. "Uta?" The man in question turned to Yomo, expressionless as always. "I must have forgotten. Just a customer stopping by to collect a mask." Itori's eyes never left you and it started to unnerve you. "I'm sorry, I can come back at another time."

You were already reaching for the door behind you when Uta turned to you. "No need. I got it right here." He stood up and walked to a mannequin at the other end of the room. "Just sit down, I might need to make some tiny adjustments." You did as he said, putting the box down on his desk first. He grabbed the mask and as he passed by his two guests told them: "Relax. This won't take long."

You swallowed thickly, suddenly aware that walking into this place with a fresh blood cake might not have been your smartest idea. Especially considering that those other two might now also be out to kill you. Uta was still as calm as ever as he carefully put the mask onto your face, adjusting some straps and pulling it in the right position. He took a step back to get a better look before turning a mirror to face you.

The mask was incredible. It was a wooden mask covering your entire face but every part and line of the face was piped onto the mask like you would pipe the frills on a cake. It was even green. You gasped as you took it in, standing up and getting closer to the mirror to get a better look, only being able to let out a breathed "Wow". Yomo rolled his eyes behind the mirror.

"How does it feel? Does it scratch anywhere?" You shook your head, unable to take your eyes off of your own reflection. "No, it-it's perfect! And the pipework is so clean - I wish my cakes would look like that." You chuckled slightly at your own joke. "You mean like this cake?" Itori chimed in, pointing at the cake she could see very clearly through the transparent top of the box.

"Ah! N-No!" You moved towards her quickly but you weren't fast enough - she had already opened the box. All of their eyes widened as the scent hit them, a lot more intense now that the cake was out in the open. Yomo was the first to regain his composure. "Itori! Don't play with other peoples things like that." She shook her head and stepped away with a sheepish grin on her face. "Sorry."

Now Uta stepped closer to the cake, crouching down to it's level to inspect it, and to sniff it. "Why did you bring this here?" He wasn't looking at you but the other two were. Not that it wasn't obvious that the question was for you. "I told you, I love to think up what to put into and how to decorate cakes. Tried something new with this one and didn't really know who to give it to."

He turned to you again, his head still level with the cake and holding onto the desk with his hands. "Let's try it together then." Uta got up again, ignoring the angry stares he got from his friends. "N-No! No, thank you. I-I already know I wouldn't like it." The other two's heads turned to you again; Uta just raised an eyebrow at you. Quickly, you added: "I don't really like coffee."

Their heads turned to Uta again. Both Yomo and Itori just couldn't decide whether Uta had told you about himself or not but they sure as hell wouldn't be the ones to give the three of them away now. "I'll be back in a second." He was already walking towards a door to the back. "How about if I like the cake I'll just have you pay for the mask with more cakes."

His tone was amused while the rest of you stood in horror, all of you painfully aware of the blood inside that cake. You stood in deadly silence with the other two until he came back. He brought a plate, a knife and a fork. First he cut a piece off of the cake and placed it on his plate, admiring that it was also black inside.