When Kento was growing up, he had spent a lot of time in Denmark. Him and his parents lived in an apartment in a medium sized city, so his mother loved travelling to the little european country, where her father’s side of the family had a cottage complete with a garden where they would grow vegetables and berries, trees with fruit ready to fall onto the grass.  While they were there they would often go to the sea, and there Kento could spend hours watching the waves hit where Kattegat and Skagerrak met.

 

The blue of the cold ocean of northern Denmark filled his mind as he faced death for the first time in his life, staring into the face of a boy with eyes so blue they looked otherworldly.

️

He’d been on a trip to Tokyo with his mother when he’d spotted a cursed spirit the height of a bus hovering at an intersection. He’d known for a while now that almost no one else could see these creatures that seemed to have stepped out of his nightmares.

 

When he was younger he’d been taken to the doctor once when his parents worried about him possibly having hallucinations. It had only been by chance that one of the nurses at the hospital had been able to see them too, and she had taken them aside to tell him and his parents all about what he was seeing with great patience and understanding when neither of his parents were willing to believe her. With time they came to accept the truth, which added a whole new type of worries to consider.

 

Kento had never seen such a large curse before, it made him lose his breath at the sight of it. His mother, unaware, kept walking until she noticed her son standing stock still a few steps behind her. Over her shoulder, the cursed spirit was slowly moving along the sidewalk on the other side of the road, drawing closer and closer to something. With his heart beating out of his throat, Kento rushed toward it to see what it was doing. At age ten he didn’t really know how to deal with them yet, but he knew that the purpose it was moving with could only spell trouble. 

What happened next was a blur of everything happening all at once. He saw the spirit reaching out, knifelike fingers slashing through the air. A white flash of hair in its path made Kento yell out in warning, rushing across the street into oncoming traffic to the horror of his mother. Without thinking he pushed the person the spirit was aiming for to the ground, shielding the stranger from a blow meant to kill. He squeezed his eyes shut, awaiting the painful brutal death that awaited him, and then…

 

Nothing.

 

There was no pain, no screams of horror at someone being ripped apart seemingly out of nowhere. For a moment there was only the sound of traffic and people walking around them, seemingly ignoring the two people prone on the ground.

 

Kento opened his eyes.

 

Who he had thought to be an elderly person was in fact a boy his own age, staring at him with wide eyes so blue it put the clearest of skies to shame. The boy was lying on his back underneath him, one arm raised next to Kento’s head, hand stretched out behind him.

For a moment the only thing he could focus on were those eyes, so bright they looked fake. Then Kento felt something drip on the back of his neck, and he lifted himself up, twisting his body to look behind him.

Where a torso and a head had just been there was now empty space. Bloodlike ichor was dripping from the curse as it crumpled to the ground, a cloud of smoke turning it into nothing. Kento turned back just as the other boy was lowering his hand, still staring at him with those eyes that managed to be both unnerving and beautiful at the same time.

“Y-you… How did you-”

“Kento! Oh my god Kento, what are you doing?!” That was when his mother finally came running, quickly kneeling next to the two boys. She put her hand on Kento’s shoulder, reaching out to put her hand on the other boy’s as well, but his eyes snapped toward her so quickly she froze in her movement. She lowered her hand, uncertain. “What happened? Are you boys alright? Was it, a…” Her eyes flickered between her son and the stranger, not sure what she should say to ask her question without making the other boy find her son more strange than she thought he probably did already.

 

Kento glanced at her, then back at the boy. “He, he killed it.”

“He-” Her eyes shifted between the two boys, shocked. “Is that, how could a child-”

“It’s easy,” the boy said, where he was lying flat on the ground. His voice was flat, but there was a spark of interest in his eyes as he looked at Kento. “Why did you-”

 

“Satoru-sama!” A man with hair graying at the temples came running around the corner right in front of them, catching his breath with his hands on his knees. “Please, you’ve been told not to run off on your own-” He stopped, taking a moment to take in the scene in front of him. Then, he brusquely tried to get Kento off of the other boy. “What in the world are you doing? Get off of him this instant, have you no sense of what is proper?”

Kento shuffled around to get up, cheeks flushed at being scolded by a stranger in this manner. He glanced back at the other boy once he was standing, reaching out a hand to offer the other. “I’m sorry for knocking you over. And thank you for saving me. I, you clearly had it handled, I didn’t really know what I was doing…”

 

For a tense moment the boy just stared at his hand, before glancing up at his face for a split second. Then, he put his hand in Kento’s, letting himself be pulled up onto his feet. The disgruntled man made sure their hands were quickly disconnected and when Kento looked the other boy in the eyes again he noticed just how different his face looked compared to just a few moments before. 

 

He looked cold, that earlier spark in his eyes gone.

 

“It’s alright,” he said, before letting the man usher him away, silent while the man kept talking, very clearly unsatisfied both with Kento and the boy he seemed to be in charge of.

His mother kneeled in front of him, hands resting on his arms. “I’m not entirely sure what happened, but I think you were trying to help him? I appreciate that you want to help others, but please, Kento, you could have gotten run over, or, or whatever monster you saw could have hurt you. Please, be more careful next time.”

“I promise, mum.” He let his mother hug him in the middle of the sidewalk, even though he was far too old for that. After how scared he’d been the moment he thought he would die, it was a welcome feeling, to be enveloped in his mother’s warm embrace.

He looked up, catching a final glimpse of the boy and the man in the distance.

 

He vowed to learn not to be so helpless ever again.

️

As he got older he never expected to meet said boy again. A person like that isn’t someone you meet twice just like that, but to his surprise he came face to face with none other than the boy who had been called Satoru-sama on his very first day of high school at a proper jujutsu sorcery school.

He was exiting his new classroom with his only classmate when Yu grabbed his sleeve, pulling him toward the window. “Oh my god, look, it’s him. I’ve heard about him but I’ve never actually seen him before, wow!”

Kento followed the line of his finger outside, where three teenagers were just done with their training for the afternoon. His eyes widened at the sight of white hair and blue eyes lit up by the sun, just barely visible from behind a pair of sunglasses only thanks to the upwards angle from the second floor.

 

It was the boy he had met several years ago, now a lot taller, looking gangly in his school uniform, all legs and arms. His facial expression was completely different, but he was unmistakeable.

 

He felt his mouth go dry and his heart beat faster in his chest. He would be lying to himself if he hadn’t thought about the other boy when he was unable to sleep sometimes. It had felt strange to call it a crush when it was someone you had only met for a couple of minutes, but feelings were known to do what they wanted regardless of logic and sense.

His breath hitched when the sunglasses were pushed down a fraction and those blue eyes locked with his. He was so distracted by the way they looked while reflecting the sun that he failed to notice the mischievous grin making its way onto the older boy’s face.

Until he spoke, that is.

 

“Look, Suguru, Shoko, such cute little kouhai! The puppy and the emo!”

 

Maybe he’d gotten the wrong person after all. 

️

Kento had known that going into jujutsu sorcery wouldn’t be easy, but he hadn’t expected the amount of trauma it ended up bringing. Hearing about what happened to Amanai Riko and everything that surrounded it had been more than enough.

 

And then Yu had died.

 

His best friend, life snuffed out so easily, it had almost made him want to throw in the towel. But he hadn’t, determining to fight Yu’s share as well instead.

It hadn’t gotten easier, seeing what happened after with Geto and Gojo, Gojo’s heart left in tatters when someone who was so obviously important to him turned his back on society. Looking back on it it hadn’t been as sudden as it had felt in the moment. The effects it had on both Gojo and Shoko had been blatant when you had the past few years to look back on, though after graduation he saw more of Shoko than he did the man who was now the only one standing at the top. A top he had once shared with Geto.

 

He ended up quitting as a sorcerer in the end, unable to deal with everything that came with it. Not when more and more people he knew kept dying.

The only one he really was in regular contact with was Shoko, whenever she went out with him to drink. They could sit for hours at different bars, though a certain izakaya became their favourite. It wasn’t very crowded and the location lended for running into slightly less curses than the more bustling parts of Tokyo.

Sometimes Gojo would join them, though he never had a drop of alcohol, opting for cream sodas or lemonade, even with the strange looks he got from others for it. Kento never asked about it. They didn’t have that kind of relationship.

️

It was on one of those nights that Kento found himself stuck between a rock and a hard place, known as Gojo Satoru and the wall. Shoko had forced Gojo to move to the other side when he dared point out that she had been smoking too much lately. Though it felt more like a punishment to Kento than it did to Gojo, Kento’s temple twitching when Gojo told him he smelled a lot better than Shoko did.

It wasn’t like he disliked the man, really. In fact, he had come to accept the obnoxious side of him, having known him long enough by now to know that there was more to him than that, even though he did his best to pretend like there wasn’t. 

He remembered their first meeting long before they attended the same school. The contrast to them meeting again when Kento first started high school had been so startling that there had to be something he was making up for. And after everything that happened with Geto and Amanai… well, he couldn’t very well pretend like there was nothing between those ears, could he? Though that would certainly have made getting over his childhood crush a lot easier.

Instead, the feelings came and went on their own, uncontrollable, doing whatever they wanted.

 

Shoko was outside, leaving the two of them to their own devices while she smoked by the store front. Kento wondered if he too should take up smoking, just so he could have an excuse to ditch the man sitting next to him.

Especially when he started talking.

 

“Did you get a new cologne?

 

Kento looked away from where he had firmly been glaring at his beer, meeting the other man’s eyes.

In the warm light of the izakaya his eyes looked gentle, the intense icy blue fully visible behind the sunglasses that were sliding down the bridge of his nose. He would have questioned the intentions of the man, had he not found only openness in them. He had grown accustomed to rarely seeing his eyes even when they ran into each other, so being properly face to face with the other man for once was disarming. It made his heart do unnecessary things within the confines of his chest.

 

He cleared his throat, breaking eye contact. “Yes. Although I can’t fathom why you would care to notice such a thing.” It wasn’t a strong scent. Japan was a country that didn’t appreciate heavy perfumes, so he always took care in choosing what he was wearing.

Even with his face turned toward the door (urging Shoko to return quicker) he could see the soft smile on Gojo’s lips. To his chagrin it made his cheeks grow just a tad hot, though he decided to blame it on the alcohol.

 

“I like it.”

“Thank you.” What else was there to say? Being rude about it didn’t exactly sit right, now that Gojo was behaving himself comparatively well.

 

“You know,” Gojo started, slowly, as if not quite sure if he should continue his thoughts aloud. “You always smell so nice, it’s kind of distracting.”

 

This made Kento’s head turn, and he could no longer blame the heat on his face on anything other than a blush. He was not foolish enough not to pick up on what Gojo was saying.

 

“Gojo-san, are you hitting on me?”

 

Maybe he was a little bit more drunk than he had initially thought. It was generally not considered particularly smooth to outright ask such a thing. It did make Gojo laugh though, and the taller man looked away, fiddling with the straw of his soda, pushing at the ice cream float. He looked almost bashful. “Yeah. Absolutely I am.”

Kento drummed his fingers against the table, contemplating for a moment. He didn’t intend to make Gojo fret, but while he looked at him he could see the man starting to look properly flustered. His cheeks were actually growing red. “Are… aren’t you going to say anything?” Gojo mumbled against the back of his hand, hiding the lower half of his face behind it.

It didn’t help him much when he was red all the way to the tips of his ears. “If you keep staring at me like that I’m gonna get the wrong impression.”

 

He couldn't help the corner of his mouth twitching upwards. He leaned in a little closer to Gojo, staring him in the eye. His eyes looked even more startingly blue with the added contrast of his red cheeks. “And what impression would that be?”

“Nanami-”

 

“Ew, get a room.”

 

Gojo’s back straightened comically fast, making him almost fall backwards. He flailed for a second, before one hand grabbed the table, the other Kento’s shoulder. They both turned their eyes toward the woman who had so rudely interrupted.

“Shoko, don’t be homophobic,” Gojo whined, regaining his composure quickly.

Their friend raised an eyebrow at him as she sat down. “I’m gay, you idiot.”

“Still!”

Kento watched them fall into banter as if they were still in high school. Right at the edge of his field of vision he could see a hand resting awfully close to his knee. In silence, Kento slid his own hand over to rest the tips of his fingers against Gojo’s. 

 

If he hadn’t already seen it a minute earlier, he would have doubted his eyes when he saw the other man’s cheeks grow red.

️

It was late in the afternoon, and Kento was getting ready to clock out for the day. He was just about to log out from his computer when the phone on his desk rang. Annoyed, he took a few seconds before picking up the mouthpiece. It was the number from the front desk, surely they wouldn’t call at this time if it wasn’t important. “Yes, this is Nanami Kento.”

“Nanami-san, there is, um, a man downstairs who wants to see you? He says you’re his friend?”

He was pretty sure the other staff thought he didn’t have any other friends outside the office other than Shoko at this point. He’d heard the gossip about how they thought she was his girlfriend or even his wife. “Did he give a name?” He already suspected he knew who it was, but if he was right he needed to come down quick before the man said something embarrassing.

“A Gojo-san, sir,” came the reply.

 

“I’ll be right on down.”

️

Gojo was dressed in his usual uniform and bandages over his eyes when he spotted them. There would undoubtedly be discussions on why he was covering his eyes like that once they left, and Kento wished the man had the sense to switch to his sunglasses before arriving. 

 

“Naaanami! I came to pick you up!” The smile on Gojo’s face was wide, and he held out a box in front of him. “It’s from that bakery you like, Shoko told me about it.”

 

In the corner of his eye he could see the receptionist lean closer to a salary-woman who was standing nearby. He could hear them whisper amongst themselves.

There would definitely be new gossip going around come morning.

️

“They think you and Shoko have taken me in as a third, you know.” Gojo’s eyes were sparkling, now in unobstructed view from either bandages or sunglasses as they sat by Kento’s kitchen table, the pastries he had brought divided between them; Gojo was already mostly done with his first. “If I hadn’t mentioned her I think they would’ve assumed I was a homewrecker instead. Now I’m a unicorn.”

“I’m glad you’re happy with the gossip you’re causing,” Kento deadpanned, but honestly, he didn’t care awfully much. (Though he wasn’t sure what that last part even meant.) He got along with his co-workers fine enough, but he didn’t work there primarily to make friends. He wanted to make the money he needed and then be done there. He didn’t plan on staying in contact with any of them once he left.

Gojo leaned forward where he sat on the other side of the table, mischievous grin on his face. “You don’t mind them thinking you’re with me? You know, after that last time at the bar, and now this, I might start thinking you like me.”

 

“I was about to kiss you that night, why would I mind you thinking that?”

 

Gojo was good at dishing out flirty or suggestive lines, but he clearly wasn’t as good at receiving them, as Kento once again caught him growing red. “I wasn’t sure that was just cus you were drunk or not.”

“And you would have been fine with it if I didn’t want to kiss you after that?”

“Well,” Gojo cradled the mug of tea in front of him, rubbing his finger against the clay. “Yes and no? I kinda like you. But I don’t want to lose you as a friend so I would’ve gotten over it. I’m not gonna do something you’re actually uncomfortable with, believe it or not.”

“I don’t believe you,” Kento said, but there was a teasing smile on his face at Gojo’s indignant face. “I know. Even though you may behave in absurd ways a lot of the time.” For how much people didn’t think Kento had many friends, he knew Gojo had even less. He had a tendency to keep people at arms length despite how he acted. Shoko had complained about it once, having had enough to make even her drunk off her ass. After Geto left, something had broken inside Gojo, something that couldn’t so easily be put back together. Especially not with the man still on the run, causing mayhem wherever he went.

 

But now, in this moment, Gojo was letting him in, just a little bit closer.

 

Kento stood up, walking around the table until he was looming over Gojo. The white-haired man looked up at him, the smile on his face looking just a little bit confused around the edges. Kento raised his hands to Gojo’s face, cupping the sides of his face, thumbs resting on the roundness of his cheeks. “I’m going to take that kiss Ieiri-san interrupted the other night now, if that’s alright with you.”

“I-it’s alright! More than alright, actually! I don’t mind at all!” The way Gojo’s face grew red was endearing. He never would have guessed how easy he would be to fluster with some honest affection. He leaned down, pressing his lips firmly to Gojo’s. Gojo’s eyelashes fluttered as he closed his eyes, body straightening to push himself further into the kiss. Kento’s own eyes fell closed as he felt Gojo’s arms wrap around his waist, hands moving up to rest against the bottom of his shoulderblades. For a few moments they did nothing but stay there, caught in the moment.

When he pulled back, he looked down at Gojo, who stared up at him through his eyelashes, looking dazed. If he thought Kento would miss the quick glance down to his lips he was mistaken, and it made the corner of Kento’s lips turn upwards. “Yes, Gojo-san?”

 

“Kiss me again, please,” Gojo breathed, eyes staring deeply into his soul.

 

Who was Kento to say no when he asked so politely?

️

It took little time to find out that Gojo was a very affectionate lover.

 

Once they properly started going out, Gojo took every moment he could to spend it together with him, though with his irregular work schedule it was still hard to find the time. Teleporting made it a tiny bit easier, as did Kento’s regular workdays that were never-changing, especially with his lack of desire to work overtime.

They did their best to steal moments for themselves, even if it was just mundane things like Gojo dragging Megumi and Tsumiki with him to go to the grocery store with Kento.

The two children in Gojo’s care were like night and day. Where Tsumiki was bright and bubbly, Megumi was more reserved with a sharper tongue. Not to say that Tsumiki didn’t know how to give a mean comment when she wanted to, even though it seemed to be mostly accidental. Children didn’t always know what things were right to say, but she did her best. And when it was aimed at Gojo it was a little bit funny. Gojo had complained more than once about all of them ganging up on him.

️

They were a few months into dating when Kento got an email close to the end of his shift.

 

Sent: Wed. 28 Nov 2012 17:46:35
From: Gojo Satoru
To: Nanami Kento
Subject: emergency!! Bdprest!!!!!!!!1! Nanami help!!!(ᗒᗣᗕ)՞

do u think megu would prefer okamiden or lego lotr more? okami has wolves but is kinda old lego lotr is new but in english ☆ｏ(＞＜；)○ not that i should encourage him focusing on the wolves so much when were tryin to work on the others too but it looks cute!!! nanani what do i do!!! <(￣ ﹌ ￣)>

http://www…
http://www…

 

Now, what Gojo was getting Megumi for his birthday was important, but it could hardly be called an emergency. Especially not with that many exclamation points. He managed to keep the smile off his face as he pressed the reply button and started typing.

 

Sent: Wed 28 Nov 2012 17:48:07
From: Nanami Kento
To: Gojo Satoru
Subject: Re: emergency!! Bdprest!!!!!!!!1! Nanami help!!!(ᗒᗣᗕ)՞

Good afternoon Gojo-san. How well is he doing with his English classes? The second game could motivate him to improve depending on his feelings on the subject. I don’t know anything about the first game aside from the art, but it looks age appropriate and could be good to get him to relax more.

Also, Nanani?

 

From,
Nanami Kento

Sent: Wed. 28 Nov 2012 17:48:59
From: Gojo Satoru
To: Nanami Kento
Subject: Re: Re: emergency!! Bdprest!!!!!!!!1! Nanami help!!!(ᗒᗣᗕ)՞

nanamis making fun of me! (」°ロ°)」making his boyfriend cry on a wednesday of all days how sad so sad sobsob (*꒦ິ⌓꒦ີ)

im getting both to b safe cant go wrong w puppies but i wanna encourage his language skills

i think hes been getting in trouble at school lately(｡•́︿•̀｡) we have a meeting with his homeroom teacher tmrw_:(´ཀ`」 ∠):_

 

The first part of the email made Kento let out a small chuckle, but he was quick to school his expression at the glances thrown his way. The last part made him a little bit concerned. He didn’t know what kind of trouble Gojo was talking about, but he knew he had struggled with taking care of the two children. He never would have pegged Gojo to be the fatherly type in high school, and it wasn’t surprising that it was a lot for him to handle. The saving grace was the fact that they were already used to taking care of themselves, as harsh as that may sound.

 

Sent: Wed 28 Nov 2012 17:57:16
From: Nanami Kento
To: Gojo Satoru
Subject: Re: Re: Re: emergency!! Bdprest!!!!!!!!1! Nanami help!!!(ᗒᗣᗕ)՞

I am a terrible boyfriend. I suppose I will have to make it up to you. Are you available any time this week so I can take you out?

Getting both might be the right choice this time.

I assume he hasn’t told you anything about it himself. I also assume Tsumiki-kun will be alright on her own while you’re at your meeting, but if you need me to I will keep her company. Either way, call me after and let me know how it goes.

 

From,
Nanami Kento

 

He didn’t get another response after that, but as soon as he clocked out from the office his phone started ringing as if the other man had known exactly what he was doing. Given how punctual Kento was, he had no doubt he actually did.

 

He flipped his phone open, answering the call without even looking who it was. There was no need to.

“I’m free right now if a handsome man felt up to going on a date tonight.”

 

The tiny exhale of air was the only hint Gojo got that Kento was at least a little bit amused. “Don’t you need to take care of the children?” He knew he was only fanning the flames of the gossip by taking this call while he had yet to exit the office building, but he didn’t care. Let them talk.

“Megu needs some space right now or he’s gonna blow up at the meeting tomorrow, 100%. He’s pretty pissed off right now.”

“What about their dinner?”

“I was grocery shopping with Miki earlier, she’s making him curry. Something about cutting potatoes and carrots in cute shapes. Either way, I need to be out of the flat right now or Megumi’ll get even angrier with me than he usually is.” If Gojo knew not to annoy the boy further, he really had to be angry.

“Alright. Where are you? I’ll pick you up.” They didn’t really need to bother Ijichi about driving them on a date. That didn’t seem very nice. The man had better things to do than wait on Gojo a wednesday night.

“Right outside this big building that has the name XXX on it. Heard of it?”

 

That’s when Kento reached the exit of the building, the doors sliding open, revealing Gojo standing right outside. He was leaning against the railing keeping them separated from traffic, looking oh-so casual and a little out of place with sunglasses on in the late autumn evening.

 

Kento huffed and ended the call. “If you were already here you could have just come inside.”

“And miss hearing your sexy voice through the phone? No way.” Gojo moved in close, pressing his shoulder against Kento’s as they headed down the street. He could feel the back of Gojo’s hand ghost against his. “I should record one of our phone calls some time and make you listen, do you have any idea how good you sound? You sound good all the time but something about the sound of it through the phone is hot as hell.”

He couldn’t stop his face from growing just a tiny bit hotter despite the chill in the air. “Absolutely not, I don’t think many people enjoy listening to a recording of their own voice. You keep that to yourself.”

 

Gojo pushed his sunglasses down a fraction, batting his eyelashes at him. “But you’re fine with me recording you? You know what it’d be for, right?”

“I am aware. I don’t see the appeal, but I don’t see an issue with letting my partner get off on his own with something they like. I’m not going to get jealous of my own voice.”

His reply was a soft hum, and Gojo finally taking his hand in his, clearly not caring about people’s opinion on PDA. His hand was warm despite his lack of gloves. “If you play your cards right I’ll give your voice something to be jealous about.”

“That doesn’t even make any sense.”

 

Gojo burst out laughing.

️

The problems with Megumi’s school were a lot to deal with.

 

It turned out that the boy was beating other people up, but when Gojo found out they were all bullies, he had scared the teacher by telling her (in front of Megumi!) that he didn’t see anything wrong with that.

It was kind of ironic, really, that Gojo, who could most definitely have been called a bully in his teen years, was telling elementary school teachers that Megumi was just beating the bullies up because the teachers failed at stopping the bullying in the first place.

When Gojo told Kento that Megumi had told Gojo, while still in the classroom with the teacher, that he was going to kick Gojo’s ass too, Kento hadn’t been able to keep from laughing. Apparently he had said it with a completely straight face too.

 

The teacher was complaining, Gojo was excusing it, and the students didn’t actually want to come forward themselves which left the principal’s hands tied. It was a mess that didn’t seem to be anywhere close to being solved. In fact, Megumi had no intentions of stopping, and Gojo thought the whole thing was hilarious.

️

It was the middle of the night when Kento was woken up by a noise in his apartment. Immediately on high alert, Kento grabbed the closest thing by his bed to defend himself with.

He moved slowly in the direction of the sound, making sure not to make a sound. He peered around the doorframe to the kitchen.

 

The click of the light switch was loud in the dark apartment, and the man sitting by the table jumped, just a tiny bit. “Oh! Nanami! I thought you were sleeping.”

 

“I was.”

 

“I didn’t mean to wake you up.” Gojo had the sense to look sheepish, tugging at a strand of hair that was falling into his eyes. He needed a haircut.

Kento moved properly into the room, pulling out the chair opposite of Gojo when he took pause, staring at the space in front of the man. “Are you eating an entire cake right now?”

“It’s 7 AM somewhere!” Gojo responded, as if that explained his actions.

 

Kento sighed, walking over to the cupboards to get two plates out. Then he brought out a knife and a fork. “Cake is hardly breakfast food.” Finally he got out two glasses and a jug of water. “But I’ll allow it, this once.”

“Just this once?”

“It’s your birthday now, isn’t it? I thought we were meeting for dinner later. How come you’re here?” Kento sat down next to Gojo, handing him one of the plates. If Gojo was going to keep eating cake at ungodly hours, the least he could do was not eat straight off it, like a child.

 

Gojo looked down at the cake, silent while Kento cut a piece for each of them. “I’ve been requested at the estate. I don’t know how long it’s gonna take, but my bet is it’s gonna interfere with our plans.” He picked sadly at his cake, no longer digging into it the way he had before Kento showed up. “They’re mad at me for daring to not keep quiet about us, like you’re supposed to be my dirty little secret or something.”

“Why do you think that?”

“They’ve done this before, kinda,” Gojo explained. “When I was, what, seven? Eight? I made friends with this boy, a boy from an offshoot of the family. And I kinda liked him, I guess. You know, in that kids-with-their-first-crush kinda way? I must’ve been pretty obvious about it, didn’t really know boys weren’t supposed to like other boys like that, so I didn’t know to hide it.”

 

“My family’s never celebrated my birthday, so I made plans to play with him, to celebrate together.” He pushed a strawberry back and forth on his plate, watching it like it was going to run away if he didn’t. “But then, just before I was supposed to go meet this boy, one of my caretakers told me my family wanted to celebrate my birthday with me.”

“As you can imagine, I was surprised but also really excited. I hadn’t seen my parents in ages! And they wanted to celebrate my birthday with me! So I went, of course, but they spent the whole time telling me not to disgrace the family with my ‘unsightly homosexual tendencies’ and told me I was never allowed to see this boy again.” He motioned airquotes with his fingers at what he could clearly remember being told. Then he proceeded to stab into the strawberry, almost slicing it in two with the force of it.

 

The plate made a terrible noise, and for a moment Kento wondered if it had cracked.

 

“The next day I went to see the boy again, and I just barely caught him and his parents as they were leaving in their car. He was so mad. Called me gross and disgusting and that it was my fault that they had to move now. He threw rocks at me.”

Gojo’s hand was trembling with how tightly he was gripping his fork, the movement of it pushing the broken plate apart so the metal was pressing directly into the table, the juice of the strawberry seeping into the holes left in the wood. “They haven’t wanted to celebrate my birthday even once since then, they’re trying to do the same thing again, I don’t know what they’re gonna do to you but they’re-”

 

Kento gently took Gojo’s hand, effectively cutting his stressed ramblings off. His mouth fell shut, and he let go of the fork, the clatter of metal against porcelain loud in the otherwise silent apartment. He buried his face in his hands, and Kento was thankful that he didn’t turn on Infinity so he could wrap his arms around him.

Gojo’s hands twisted around so they could hold on tightly to the fabric of Kento’s nightshirt, the nightshirt Gojo had once said made him look like a grandpa, so tight the threads were screaming. Kento just held him close, not saying anything as hot tears fell on his collarbone where Gojo pressed his eyes against his skin.

 

For a while they just sat there, until Gojo’s sobs turned into hiccups, and the hiccups turned into tired sniffling.

Kento didn’t know what time it was by the time Gojo spoke, but he already knew he was going to call in his first ever fake sick day come morning.

 

“Sorry about that, god, didn’t mean to freak out on you like that.” Gojo murmured as he wiped his eyes with his fingers. “That was pathetic, ugh.”

Kento took Gojo’s face between his hands, urging him to listen to him. “Gojo-san,” he started. “Their tactics might work on an impressionable child with closeminded parents, but I am a grown man. They can’t turn your feelings for me into something disgusting, and my parents do not dictate who I love.”

That finally made Gojo look at him, his eyelashes sticking together with tears, his eyes rimmed with red.

 

“...You love me?”

 

“Despite everything, I do in fact love you. I think I have for a very long time.”

The ghost of a tiny smile played on Gojo’s lips. His voice sounded hoarse when he spoke again. “That’s one hell of a birthday present.” The smile slowly grew, alongside the redness of Gojo’s cheeks. “I love you too, by the way. In case that wasn’t obvious already.”

Kento pressed a kiss between Gojo’s eyebrows.

“It was, but I don’t mind hearing you say it.”

 

The smile Gojo flashed him was bright, even with the evidence of his tears still clear on his face. “Good, cus now that I’ve said it once, you’re gonna hear it a lot.”

️

It was around three in the afternoon that same day by the time someone rang the bell outside the apartment Gojo was renting for himself and the kids.

 

Kento was there, keeping Tsumiki and Megumi company in Gojo’s stead. Him and Gojo weren’t the only ones who had their plans ruined by an impromptu summoning. Surprisingly, even Megumi had seemed a bit disappointed by the cancelled plans, but was quickly cheered up by the promise of pizza and video games. That, and that he was allowed to be up later than his regular bedtime, which was rare when Kento was over. Gojo was a lot more lax with it, but he was getting better at making the kids stick to it, in Kento’s opinion.

Setting his controller down, Kento headed for the door. Peering through the peephole he spotted a man and a woman in traditional garb, serious looks on their faces. Bracing himself, Kento opened the door.

 

“Nanami Kento-sama, I presume?” The woman said, not waiting for him to greet them. They both made moves to step inside, but Kento blocked their way. He wasn’t going to let them inside the apartment. They had no right to the living space Gojo had made for himself outside his clan. “If you’d let us inside so we can talk, this is going to be over quickly.”

“No,” Kento replied, tone clipped. He knew he was being impolite, but given what he knew of the family’s history of meddling in Gojo’s private life, he had no desire to be respectful. “I would rather not. We can talk out here, where we don’t disturb the children.”

 

The Gojo clan members exchanged looks at the mention of the Fushiguro siblings, the expressions on their faces making it obvious that they didn’t approve of their presence in Gojo’s life either. Well, tough luck.

“Very well.” The man reached into his sleeve to pull out a thick envelope, bursting at the seams. “We need you out of Satoru-sama’s life. The clan is willing to pay you handsomely if you stay away from him. We don’t need him being more of a disgrace to the family than he already is.”

Kento didn’t need to look inside the envelope to know it was filled with more money than he could hope to make in several years combined. He had expected threats, but to be bought off? He crossed his arms over his chest. “And if I refuse?”

“Then we will have no choice but to make this difficult for you,” the woman said. Kento narrowed his eyes, glaring at her. She shifted uncomfortably beneath his gaze. 

“Take your money and leave. Try whatever you want, but you could never force me to leave if I didn’t want to. Never step foot here again.” He had to fight himself not to slam the door shut on them, as to not startle the children. The lock clicked as he turned it, and he turned around.

 

He came face to face with a teenager and a child who was about to hit double digits in just a few weeks, peering at him from the doorframe to the livingroom.

 

“How much of that did you hear?” Kento asked, leading them back to the couch.

“All of it,” Megumi said, Tsumiki being the only one who looked even a little bit embarrassed to have been caught eavesdropping. “Why did they try to give you money to go away?”

Kento put a hand on Megumi’s head, ruffling his hair. “Some people have a problem with people who are not of the opposite gender being together. Gojo-san’s family are some of those people, and so they want us to break up.”

“That’s stupid,” Megumi grumbled, flipping back against the armrest of the couch, fiddling with his controller, the game still paused. “Gojo’s annoying, but he’s a lot happier now that he’s with you. If they got rid of you he’d just be dumb and mopey about it, why would they want that?”

“Gojo-san is going to become the head of the clan sometime soon. I don’t think they care about his happiness as much as they care about their reputation. And they think him being with another man is going to ruin it.”

 

Tsumiki had been quiet up til then, but at that she finally spoke up. “I hope that if they see how happy you make him they change their minds.”

Kento knew that they wouldn’t, but the thought was sweet, and he couldn’t bear to crush her hope. “I hope so too.”

“Me too,” Megumi added, before grimacing. “Even though the way he sighs all gushy-like when he thinks about you’s kinda gross.”

That made Tsumiki gasp and let out a ‘rude’, but it did make Kento smile.

️

It didn’t take long for Gojo and Kento to notice the former’s clan meddling in their business.

 

It started when they were out on a date to make up for the missed time on the 7th, only about a week after Gojo’s birthday. Their first date since the day Gojo’s family declared themselves against their relationship.

 

They were eating at a little café, sitting next to each other in a booth when a man in his fifties or so slid into the seat opposite them. Kento had never seen the man before, but Gojo’s eyes narrowed, looking annoyed. “I think I’m too old for a chaperone, aren’t I?”

Ah, so that’s what this was. The interference into their relationship had officially started.

 

“As Satoru-sama does not have the propriety to at the very least keep his relationship private, the clan has deemed fit to see that you do not do anything to further disgrace the family.”

“Blah blah blah, you’re so stiff. Didn’t you hear what Nanami said last week? You can’t fuck with us.” Not the exact words he’d used, but the overall message was correct. Kento put his hand on top of Gojo’s, giving it a squeeze of reassurance. He ignored the glare the man on the other side of the table aimed at their hands, clearly offended by the gesture.

He opened his mouth to speak, only to be cut off by Gojo. “You know what, you chose to run the errands of those old farts, so you can either just leave or sit there and be quiet. I’m on a date with my lover right now, and I’m not gonna let you stop us from enjoying ourselves.”

 

The man made an uncomfortable face at the way Gojo said the word lover, but when he started to speak again, Gojo raised his hand, motioning with his hand in front of the other man’s mouth. “No. Zip it. Shush. Quiet.”

Another attempt at talking was made, but the deathglare Gojo sent him made him shudder. It was a look that could put even Megumi’s meanest glares to shame.

 

Gojo turned back to Kento, leaning in close to whisper in his ear. “I’m gonna lay it on a little thick now, I know we’re in public so would you be down with that?”

Kento’s nod was imperceptible to anyone aside from Gojo with his all-seeing eyes, and it made Gojo beam. Gojo turned so he could swing his leg over Kento’s, hooking them together, the back of his shoe pressing against Kento’s ankle. He leaned to the side, cutting off a piece of chocolate cake with his fork. He raised it, pausing it right in front of Kento’s lips. “Here, Nanami,” he cooed, ignoring the way the man on the other side of the table was awkwardly clearing his throat. “Say aah.”

 

He wasn't going to say ‘ah’, but he would accept the forkful of cake.

 

Kento opened his mouth, leaning forward to take the prongs of the fork into his mouth. Gojo pulled the utensil out of his mouth, tapping the flat back of it against his lips, smiling at him as he watched Kento chew. “Good, right? It has salted caramel so I thought you might like it since it’s not as sweet. Wanna try the other one too?”

“No thank you, but here, let me.” Instead of letting Gojo feed him again right away, he cut a piece of the other cake to feed to his date. The look on Gojo’s face was delighted, and he happily accepted the mouthful with an exaggerated little ‘aah’, his finger trailing up and down the arm Kento wasn’t holding the fork with all the while.

 

When Kento wiped the cream off the corner of his mouth with his thumb, Gojo swooned. The man who was so rudely intruding on their date looked about ready to pass out.

️

If Gojo had hoped their antics would make his family less likely to bother them further, he was proven wrong. Kento was annoyed by this, but he had to admit to himself (and after a bit of prodding from Gojo and Shoko, to them as well) that it was a bit fun to make those so-called  ‘respectable’ people severely uncomfortable. 

They were simply reaping what they sowed, Shoko said, glancing in the direction of the table next to them at the izakaya where they were yet again being watched by members of the Gojo clan. This time there were two of them, though they seemed to be intimidated by Shoko’s mere presence, much to everyone’s excitement.

️

In March of 2013, Kento finally asked Gojo if he wanted to meet his parents. 

 

Gojo had been a little bit nervous, but when Kento told him that the kids were free to come along, most of it seemed to melt away. The added people would take some of the focus off of the older man, and while he usually thrived off attention, meeting your partner’s parents for the first time was always nerve-wracking. 

 

When Kento came over to the apartment to pick the three of them up, Megumi told him that Gojo was still stressing out over his clothes, to which Gojo called out from his bedroom that he totally wasn’t stressing out, Megumi was a little liar.

 

Kento wandered into the room where Gojo was totally-not-at-all freaking out over his clothing options. Heaps of clothes lay on the bed, the open suitcase on the floor next to him still completely empty. “Nanami! You’re here, perfect! Which do you think would be better? This gives kind of a sexy vibe, and this makes me look more pretty.”

In one hand he held up a clothes hanger with a sleeveless black turtleneck shirt under a button-up shirt with thin black stripes set far apart on the white cotton. In the other he held a hanger with a white button-up with blue detailing.

“That one. It brings out your eyes.” He motioned to the second. Immediately Gojo threw the clothes onto his bed so he could pull the t-shirt he was wearing over his head, chucking it in the direction of the hamper (and missing it by a long shot). “You could bring the other one for tomorrow, you do remember we’re staying the night, right?”

“Oh, oh yeah, right, I know, I was just, first impressions and all that.”

“That ship sailed a long time ago when you bullied me in high school.”

“Oh my god Nanami, they already hate me? Why would you invite me into your childhood home if they already hate me?”

 

Kento couldn’t help but smile when he pulled Gojo close to him, making him pause his fluttering about the room, picking at every little thing to distract himself. “They don’t hate you. I’m just trying to say you don’t have to worry about making a good first impression. You certainly made a hell of an impression the last time you met my mother.”

 

That made Gojo finally stop moving, his hands no longer fussing with the collar of Kento’s shirt. “When I what?”

 

“I made a fool of myself trying to save someone from a curse when I had no idea what I was doing, only to be saved instead. That was you, if I’m not mistaken.”

“I… I wasn’t entirely sure that was you to be honest. You never brought it up, so I thought I had the wrong person.” Gojo puffed his cheeks in indignation. “I should’ve known there was no way I was mistaken! God, you made such a strong impression on me and then you made me second-guess myself for years!”

 

Kento huffed in amusement. “You could’ve said something too, you know.” He pressed his hands firmly against the small of Gojo’s back. “I made an impression on you, huh? Are you sure it wasn’t the other way around?”

“Of course you did! You were the first person to do something for me at the risk of their own life like that. Do you know how many times people have tried to kill me since I was born? I’ve always been expected to take care of it myself by the time I was old enough to do so. And then here comes this random boy ready to throw his whole life away for someone he’s never met just because they happen to be at the same place at the same time? How could that not make an impression on me?”

 

Gojo rested his hand on Kento’s cheek, caressing the skin underneath his eye with his thumb. “I laid awake thinking about you that night,” Gojo admitted, a blush tinting his cheeks pink. “Not just that night, honestly. You were on my mind for quite some time after that.”

Kento leaned his forehead against Gojo’s, looking into his eyes. “You were on my mind too. I thought about you every time I went to this specific place in Denmark.”

“You’ll have to show me where that is, then,” Gojo whispered, his lips brushing against Kento’s.

Kento let his eyes slip shut. “I’d love to.” He leaned in, pressing his lips softly against Gojo’s.

 

“Are we leaving yet?”

 

Megumi’s voice cut through the calm of Gojo’s bedroom like a knife, shattering the moment. Gojo pulled back, cheeks red and a disgruntled look on his face. “Have you been taking lessons from Shoko or something? Your timing is awful.”

“And you said we were leaving fifteen minutes ago but you’re just in here making out with your boyfriend. We’re gonna be late.”

 

Kento ushered Megumi out of the room before Gojo threw a pillow or something at the boy. He heard Gojo call out behind them, “We weren’t even making out you little gremlin!”

“You were going to!” Megumi yelled back.

️

They were only just under half an hour late by the time they arrived at the apartment Kento’s parents lived in. With the car parked out front on the street, Kento helped Tsumiki with her overnight bag while Megumi complained about Gojo making them late ‘all the time’.

 

They took the elevator up, Tsumiki bouncing in excitement, Megumi grumbling under his breath, and Gojo fidgeting anxiously. The worst of the nerves seemed to be gone, but he hadn’t been able to dissuade all of them. Well, with how his own family had reacted to him liking men, it wasn’t too strange that he had some negative emotions tied to the whole idea of parents and partners meeting.

Megumi rang the doorbell, but let Kento be the one to open it when a woman called out for them to enter. A little bit of the nerves were carrying over from Gojo to the boy it seemed.

“Hello mum, dad, we’re here,” he called out as he stepped inside the apartment, hit by the smell of freshly cooked food. He urged the others inside, closing the door behind them. There were a few moments of shuffling as they all took their jackets and shoes off, and then Kento led them further into the apartment.

 

A woman with hair a similar shade of blonde as Kento’s greeted them at the door to the kitchen, a casserole dish filled to the brim with steaming hasselback potatoes in her hands. Kento leaned forward to kiss his mother’s cheek, at the same time taking the dish out of her hands. “Sorry for being late.”

“Oh, no worries, no worries, we got started on the food a little bit late anyways so it worked out perfectly.” She turned to face her guests, Kento pausing with the food in his hands to make sure everything went smoothly. “Satoru-kun, it’s so nice to meet you. Your reputation proceeds you. You’ve caused quite the rollercoaster of emotions in our dear Kento, I’m sure.”

Gojo smiled, though Kento could see the slight heat rising to his cheeks. “Not all bad, I hope,” he joked, knowing full well that such a thing was impossible, or he wouldn’t have been invited in the first place.

“Not at all, only some of it,” his mother beamed up at him. “Call me Katja, sweetheart.”

 

“Okay,” Gojo agreed easily, his voice only cracking slightly. His mother wasn’t rude enough to point it out, though Megumi opened his mouth to do so instead. Luckily Kento’s mother was quicker.

“And you two must be Megumi-kun and Tsumiki-chan, it’s nice to finally meet you. Come along, I’ll show you where you’re going to sleep tonight.”

 

She left like a whirlwind, clearly leaving Gojo a bit winded, judging by the look on his face. And there was still one more person for him to meet. He told Gojo to wait there for a moment, and he walked into the dining room to leave the potatoes on the table before quickly coming back to his partner.

 

His father could be heard silently humming a melody to himself in the kitchen, and Kento rested his hand between Gojo’s shoulderblades to lead him into the room.

 

A man with salt and pepper hair stood with his back turned, flipping something over in the pan. Kento could recognise the smell of the pork patties his grandfather had taught most members of the family to make wafting through the air. 

“Dad,” he called out, and the man turned around, looking a little bit lost. Clearly he had been in his own little world up until then.

“Oh, hello. Kento, welcome home. And you must be Gojo Satoru-kun, nice to meet you. I’m Nanami Hayato. Did you have a safe drive?”

“We did, Nanami’s a good driver,” Gojo said, bumping his shoulder lightly against Kento’s. When Kento met his eye the man was smiling, Kento unable to help giving a smile right back.

 

“Oh, how cute,” came Katja’s voice behind them, and when they looked over at the door she was smiling at them while Megumi was making barfing gestures behind her. Tsumiki did her best to stop him, but clearly Megumi was enjoying himself in making fun of the two adults. “I think dinner is right about ready now, why don’t you show our guests where to go, Kento?”

Kento agreed, steering them in the direction of the dining room.

️

Dinner went smoothly for the most part. The hasselback potatoes were paired with karbonader and vegetables, something even the kids seemed to enjoy. His parents had baked shrovetide buns for the occasion, though it was usually something eaten a little bit earlier in the year. It was a special day after all, his mother told them. It wasn’t every day you met people so important to your son.

His mother basked in the compliments on the cooking, while his father was a bit more bashful about it. They were both happy to offer seconds.

️

The futons on the floor were laid out together in what used to be Kento’s childhood bedroom. The room had been converted to a hobby room a long time ago, brushes, paint and canvas both filled and empty mixed in with yarn in overflowing boxes.

The room had been aired out and smelled of the flowers someone had put on the windowsill. Flowers and traces of paint thinner that hadn’t been able to be aired out of the walls.

 

Kento watched his partner change into his pajamas in the dim light from the lamp sitting in the window next to the flowers, eyes tracing the figure of his waist, the muscles moving in his back as he lifted his arms over his head.

 

Gojo turned his head, glancing over his shoulder with a grin. “You’re ogling me right now? Naughty Nanami,” he purred, lowering his arms again, letting the t-shirt he was about to put on fall to the floor. He sank down on his knees in front of Kento, trailing a finger up Kento’s stomach, flattening his palm against his chest once it rested above his heart. “What’re you gonna do if you get me all riled up tonight?”

“I suppose you’re just going to have to be very, very quiet,” Kento replied, moving his hand to rest against the back of Gojo’s neck. An excited noise escaped Gojo’s throat, and he leaned in, claiming Kento’s lips in a passionate kiss.

Kento answered the kiss, pushing the man backward until Gojo fell onto his back, legs sprawling. Kento took the moment to follow, pressing himself against Gojo’s body, the other man’s legs wrapping around him as he pressed up against him.

 

“I, I suppose I could do that,” Gojo finally said, gasping as Kento bit into the side of his neck. He bit his lower lip to keep himself from moaning as he bit down harder, sure to leave a mark if Gojo didn’t choose to use reverse technique to remove it.

However, knowing what Gojo was going to wear tomorrow he knew that the bruises on his neck weren’t going anywhere anytime soon.

️

Before they had left to go back to Tokyo, Gojo had exchanged numbers with Kento’s mother. The two seemed on track to become friends, much to Gojo’s delight and Kento’s relief.

 

They were about an hour away from Tokyo, and Gojo couldn’t stop talking, hands moving animatedly in the air as he spoke. Somehow both kids had managed to fall asleep in the backseat despite of it.

 

Kento glanced over at him from the drivers seat before his attention was back on the road. “You seemed to enjoy yourself.”

Gojo’s smile was bright. “Yeah, your parents are super nice, I’m really happy you invited us over. We gotta invite them to Tokyo sometime soon.”

“We will. Maybe for Tsumiki’s birthday next month.”

“That’s a great idea, she’d love that.” Gojo rested his hand on Kento’s on the steering wheel. “Hey, I was thinking.”

“Uh-oh.”

“Rude,” but they were both smiling, exchanging glances that would make Shoko tell them to knock it off or get a room, “anyway, since I’m on first name basis with your mum now, would you mind if I called you Kento?”

 

They had been dating for quite some time now, and Kento was honestly surprised he hadn’t started to call him by his first name already. “I wouldn’t mind that at all, Satoru.”

 

The smile on Gojo’s face was so dazzling he had to turn his eyes away from him so he wouldn’t get blinded.

️

They were a few days out from having celebrated Tsumiki’s 16th birthday by the time Kento sat Satoru down for an important conversation.

 

“I’m thinking of quitting my job,” he told him where they sat in Kento’s apartment. Shoko was keeping the Fushiguro siblings company over the night while the two of them took some time for themselves. Now they were sitting in the living room, next to each other on the couch. “I’m going to come back to sorcery.”

 

Satoru looked surprised. Kento had been thinking about it for a little while throughout the spring, watching Satoru, Shoko and other sorcerers spread themselves thin with how much they were working. It was a foolish move, really, the field wasn’t very pleasant, but it beat the nightmare his office job was becoming. On some nights he would have actual nightmares about being stuck in the same office to his death. It was on those nigts he especially wished Satoru was there.

“Oh? I thought you hated it.”

“I did. But being a salaryman has become equally terrible. At least I’m suited to being a sorcerer. And it leads to some variation, unlike being in the office every day.”

“I’ll put a good word in for you with Yaga, he could probably help with your reassessment for your grade,” Satoru promised. “As long as you’re sure.”

“I am. Thank you.”

 

Satoru pulled a leg up underneath him, one arm propped against the backrest behind Kento. He leaned his head against his hand. “You’re probably still gonna hate it, you know?”

“Probably.” Kento rested his hand on Satoru’s thigh, rubbing circles into his skin with his thumb. “But I don’t think I’ll mind as much this time around.”

“I hope you’re not doing this for my sake. I think I’d have to tell you not to if that were the case.”

“No.” He pushed a finger through a tear in Satoru’s jeans, feeling out the soft skin of his inner thigh. He could both see and feel the shiver run down his lover’s spine. “My reasoning is more selfish than that. I can’t deny that if it gives me a chance of seeing more of you, that is a point in its favour though.”

️

Kento had asked that they not make a big thing out of his birthday, and with it falling on a workday, it was fairly low key. His parents had come to spend some time with him, Satoru and the kids the previous weekend, and they had also introduced them to Shoko, so on the day of it was just him, Satoru, the Fushiguros and Shoko. They were at their regular izakaya, although a lot earlier than what was usual for them, as it was a school night. 

 

He’d gotten emails and texts from various sorcerers throughout the day, including one that suggested Mei Mei was planning on sending him some sort of adult toys, much to Satoru’s entertainment and curiosity.

As had become usual at this point when Satoru and Kento were out together, they were being watched by members of Satoru’s clan.

 

It was becoming increasingly annoying how they refused to stop bothering them. Satoru had even pointed them out in the grocery store, looking quite out of place as they did no shopping, only following them around and staring.

They were lucky that they’d only been doing this so far, Shoko had pointed out. They could be outright harassing them if they wanted to, but that would have been harder to play off if the people around them were to call them out or contact the police.

 

Though if anyone was getting into trouble tonight it would be their own table, as Megumi was stealthily chucking edamame at tonight’s stalkers.

No one at their table made a move to stop him. Not even Tsumiki.

️

What with Satoru’s clan constantly being around any time they spent any sort of time together outside, they opted to celebrate their one year anniversary indoors. Shoko was taking the kids to Kyoto for the weekend, leaving the two of them alone in Satoru’s apartment with plenty of time alone to spare. Satoru had even turned his phone’s settings so the only ones able to reach them were Shoko, the kids, and Yaga, in case of an emergency. His family was completely blocked for the time being.

 

Satoru put away his phone, letting him know that their friend and his charges were safely aboard the train.

 

Kento stood in the kitchen, putting the finishing touches on what was supposed to have been breakfast but had quickly become brunch. It was a bit cheesy, he admitted, but when he had asked Satoru if he wanted anything specific for their first anniversary, the man had simply replied ‘anything edible that’s heart shaped’, so here he was, tipping a heartshaped friend egg onto heartshaped slices of bread that he and Tsumiki had baked together the day before.

They had baked two loaves, so the kids could bring one with them. Megumi had made faces at them when he’d found out why they were going on vacation with Shoko, but Tsumiki had shushed him and told them it was romantic.

 

He felt Satoru’s arms slip around his waist from behind, a chin resting on his shoulder. “That looks so cute, Kento!” he cooed, kissing him on the cheek with an exaggerated smacking sound. “It smells really good. Send my compliments to the chef.”

Kento smiled, turning his head so he could steal a kiss. “I’ll let him know,” he replied, turning back to the food. Satoru pressed his warm cheek to Kento’s, and for a while they just stood there, enjoying each other’s company while Kento finished up the rest of the food.

️

When Mei Mei told Kento she was sending him sex toys, he had expected one or two, at most. But no, she had sent an entire box his way.

 

Several of the things he was familiar with personally, some he had heard of, but some were completely new. Judging by the look on Satoru’s face when he saw it though, Satoru knew exactly what an ‘ovipositor’ was. It was too much even for him, he’d told Kento. Maybe some day, but right now it made even Satoru too flustered. Once Kento actually looked up what it was on his own, he tended to agree, at least for now.

He had learned that Satoru was actually a lot more vanilla than he would have expected though, so he let the other man lead the way so as not to do anything he was uncomfortable with.

 

They hadn’t had the chance to use most of it so far, but Mei Mei made sure to ask regularly, with plenty of invasive questions. There was one time when she’d come with them and Shoko to a bar, and even though they were in public she had no problem asking about it. The way their stalkers-of-the-night had looked had made it almost worth it. She wasn’t even going out of her way to make their uninvited guests uncomfortable, she was just her normal self.

This weekend though, they had plenty of time to do anything they wanted, and it didn’t take too long for them to crack upen the box. It was like Christmas Eve for someone obsessed with sex inside of it. A note in the box read ‘I’ll send you some bigger things once the kids move out’ .

 

Satoru’s face had glowed red as Kento read it out loud.

️

Once Kento was back in the swing of things as a sorcerer, he found the days go by fairly smoothly. Some curses were stronger than others, but so far he’d managed to get out of it okay. He spent more nights in Satoru’s apartment than his own, so when the time for Kento to renew the lease on his apartment came, Satoru asked him if he wanted to move in. They had been dating for a little over two years by then, and it was easy to say yes.

️

It seemed like them moving in together was the catalyst for the Gojo clan to ramp up their attempts to break them up. The clan could no longer pretend like it was simply dating that could end at any point, with just a little bit of interference. They couldn’t deny that the two of them were serious anymore. 

 

This was why when Satoru popped into the apartment via teleportation after a mission looking very upset, almost pissed off, Kento knew that something was very wrong. He threw a quick glance toward the kids' bedrooms, but he knew they were asleep by now.

 

“What happened?” he asked, eyes following Satoru’s movements as he paced the living room. 

“I can’t believe the- the nerve of them-” Kento reached out to take his hand when he passed, pulling him down next to him. Satoru dropped down in the seat next to him, pressing his nose against Kento’s neck. The tip of his nose was cold against his skin, clearly having come right from outside.

 

For a few moments he got nothing out of Satoru, who just sat there with his arms wrapped around him, nose slowly warming up against Kento’s neck. Then, he finally pulled back, dragging his hands down his face. “Okay, okay, I’m calm. Totally calm.”

 

He turned to Kento. “The mission was fake. It was my clan, they reported in a fake curse to get me there. It was an omiai. A god damn omiai. They’re trying to set me up to get married to some woman I don’t even know. This is the second time in a week where they’ve done this.”

 

Ah. That explained all the emotions he could see rolling around in the blue of Satoru’s eyes. He didn’t blame Satoru for not telling him about it right away. He must’ve hoped it was a one-off, but he couldn’t call it that anymore.

 

He rested his hand on top of the hands Satoru had clasped together between his knees, his leg bouncing up and down. “Surely they can’t force you to marry just like that?”

Satoru let out a bitter laugh, dipping his head down to rest on top of Kento’s hand. “They’re sure gonna try to. As long as my dad’s the head of the clan they’re gonna keep doing this shit. I was told as much. Can you believe it? I can count the times in my life I’ve seen him and now he’s gonna try to boss me around? No fucking way.”

 

“I’m sure we can figure something out. They can’t marry you off without you agreeing to it, we’ll have to figure out how to get them to leave you alone.”

“They’ve tried to marry me off before, I just thought they’d dropped it when I got older since they haven’t brought it up in like 15 years,” Kento didn’t want to do the math on that, but it came to him anyway. They’d tried to marry him off when he was just nine years old? He could never imagine trying to do that to someone even Tsumiki’s age, much less that young.

 

“I see that face, Kento,” Satoru sighed. “They were especially gung-ho about it after the incident with that boy, for a couple of years. I guess they thought they scared me straight after that so they didn’t worry about it as much for a while.” He listed to the side, leaning heavily against Kento. “I know they’d shut up if I just got married, did the thing, but who the hell would agree to a fake marriage? Shoko? There’s no way Utahime would be okay with that.”

 

“Who says it has to be a fake marriage?”

 

Satoru’s eyes turned to him, eyebrows furrowed. “Are you even listening to yourself? If I did that we’d have to break up, and that’s the opposite of what I want.”

“Satoru,” Kento moved, forcing Satoru to support his own weight or fall over. He turned so his body was properly facing the other. “Same-sex marriage is legal in Denmark.”

 

For a few seconds it looked like Satoru wasn’t following, his brain failing to take in what he just said. Then, he blinked rapidly, before he put his hands on Kento’s shoulders, looking him deeply in the eye. “Are you serious? You know you shouldn’t ask this just because I’m in a tricky situation, right?”

“If I didn’t mean it I wouldn’t be asking. I’ve known I’ve wanted to marry you for quite some time. So,” He got off the couch, getting down on one knee. He took Satoru’s hands in his. “Gojo Satoru, will you marry me?”

 

For a moment it looked like Satoru was going to start crying.

 

He bit his lip, but the grip on his flesh slipped when he started to smile. “Of course I will marry you. There’s no way in hell that I wouldn’t.”

 

Kento smiled back at him. “I suppose we’re going to have to pick out rings together.”

“Absolutely. You know, Shoko is gonna lose her mind when I tell her. Oh, I should tell the kids-”

“Satoru it’s almost midnight on a school night, do not wake those children up.”

 

Satoru stopped in his tracks where he had been well on his way out of the room. “Oh right. But I’m telling them first thing in the morning. Do you think I could rock a wedding dress or would that be too much?”

 

He loved this ridiculous man.

️

While Satoru had to wait a couple of hours to tell Megumi and Tsumiki about their engagement, there was no way for Kento to get Satoru to hold off on calling Shoko. Given her sleep schedule she was likely to be awake anyway.

 

She picked up on the third ring. Satoru immediately put her on speaker.

“Shouldn’t you be on a mission right now?”

“Oh no, it was fake, clan bullshit.” He didn’t give Shoko the time to even react to that before giving her the news. “We’re engaged! We’re gonna get married, Shoko!”

 

“I would never marry you.”

 

“Ew no, don’t be gross.” Satoru made a face like a child complaining about cooties. “Obviously me and Kento. Do you need to go to bed? I’ll sing you a lullaby.”

Kento could hear the groan Shoko let out all the way across the room. “Please don’t.” That made Satoru giggle and he came over to make himself comfortable next to where Kento had returned to his seat on the couch, throwing a leg over Kento’s knee, letting it dangle off the floor. “But congratulations, I assume he asked you?”

“Now why would you assume that? I mean you’re right, but still.”

“Because for as long as I’ve known you you’ve never had your shit together. Especially emotionally.”

 

Kento choked on laughter, Satoru giving out an exaggerated shocked gasp. “Oh my god, so mean, the both of you. My best friend and my fiancé ganging up on me.”

“You knew that was going to happen,” Kento said in his most even voice, even as he tried not to laugh. The sound of the word ‘fiancé’ in Satoru’s voice made him feel warm inside.

“Ah, so I’m on speaker. Congratulations, Nanami.”

“Thank you.”

 

“So when’s the wedding? I didn’t expect it so soon, did you knock him up or something?”

Satoru let out an affronted ‘hey’ at that. “You’re assuming a whole lot about our dynamics here,” he complained.

“Is he pouting? He sounds like he’s pouting.”

“Am not!” Satoru pouted.

“He is,” Kento told Shoko. Satoru’s gasp of ‘betrayal’ made him smile. “No, I did not knock anybody up, though we are going ahead with this a bit faster than either of us planned. There are complications with his family, so we’re planning on getting married in Denmark.”

 

Satoru wrapped his hands around Kento’s upper arm. “Instead of a curse waiting for me at the mission there was a lady expecting a date! Spooky stuff.”

“Haunting, I’m sure. She’d never be able to handle your nonsense. Nanami is a far better match.”

“Kento loves my nonsense,” Satoru said, beaming at Kento. Kento leaned in to place a kiss on his forehead, making the man squeal.

"God, get a room, I can tell you’re being sappy as shit.” They could hear the clicking of her lighter, followed by a deep breath. “I’d recommend you don’t let them find out about your plans til you’re already married. Might try a kidnapping to stop you.”

“As if they could manage to kidnap me,” Satoru said. “And before you say it, I wouldn’t let them kidnap Kento either. But that’s probably a good idea. As much as I wanna rub it in their faces.” That last part was said under his breath, but both Kento and Shoko managed to pick it up.

“You’ll have plenty of time to rub it in their faces once we’re actually married. We should probably lay low until then.”

“Ugh, fine. I don’t really ‘lay low’, but I’ll do it for you,” Satoru agreed.

“Good. Now go the fuck to bed, losers. Night.”

“Night Shoko, love you bye!”

She hung up with a rumble of ‘love you too’ .

 

For a few seconds they sat there in silence, letting the screen of Satoru’s phone go black. “You know, now that I think about it,” Satoru started, quietly. “They could also try to go for the kids. They never liked that I took them in.”

Kento wrapped his arm around Satoru’s waist. “You’re right. Ieiri-san’s suggestion to keep it under wraps is a good idea.”

“We’re gonna have to tell your parents about it though, I don’t think I could keep a straight face talking to your mum. She’s already talking like me and the kids are a permanent part of the family, there’s no way she won’t figure us out.”

“I was actually going to ask you if you want to get married at my relatives’ cottage. My family goes there all the time so it wouldn’t look out of place if you decided to come with us.”

 

Satoru’s eyes lit up. “That sounds great! So we’re telling the kids and your parents. Do you think it would be strange if Shoko came to Denmark with us too? I’d like for her to be there.”

“We can find a way to get her there, I’m sure.”

 

That seemed to put Satoru at ease.

️

When they told Megumi and Tsumiki about the engagement the girl had been louder than either of them had ever heard her before.

 

“You should’ve woken us up! Oh my god I’m so excited, I can’t believe you’re getting married! When’s the wedding? This is amazing!”

She was practically vibrating in her seat. Megumi was looking between them, and with a serious look on his face he turned to Kento. “Are you sure?”

Satoru let out a ‘hey!’ over his breakfast. “He asked me, you know.”

“I stand by my question,” Megumi replied with no small amount of snark. “You’re kind of a lot.”

 

Kento took the question in stride, taking the boy with the seriousness he deserved. “Satoru has always been a lot to handle, but I still love him. Will you give us your blessing on our marriage?” He was an important part of Satoru’s life. It wouldn’t be ideal if someone who played such a big part in it didn’t want him there.

 

Megumi looked at him, as if sizing him up before finally nodding. “Fine. It’s your funeral anyways.”

That was probably as glowing an endorsement from Megumi as they could hope for.

️

His parents were fully on board, of course. Kento had never doubted that they wouldn’t be, but it was still a comfort to have it spoken out loud.

 

They were trying to set a date for the wedding by the time they realised they would have to tell Yaga. The man did a lot to help Satoru with his schedule, and if they wanted to be able to get Shoko to come as well they would have to coordinate with someone at the school where she worked, and where Satoru was soon about to get a job. He needed to know why two of his staff members needed to disappear at the same time.

 

Kento could tell that Satoru didn’t really look forward to it.

️

Satoru was the picture of calm where they sat in Yaga’s office, but Kento knew that he was fretting on the inside. While he couldn’t quite call the man a father figure to his future husband, he was an important figure who had shaped his mid teen years.

 

“So,” Kento could tell that Yaga’s eyes were moving back and forth between the two of them behind his sunglasses. “Why did you call for this meeting, Gojo, Nanami?”

 

Kento had hoped that Satoru would ease the principal into the news, but he went in guns blazing. “We’re getting married. Us two.” He gestured between himself and Kento, clearly remembering how Shoko took the words. Not that Kento thought that Yaga would misunderstand what was going on, but Satoru still took the extra second to clarify. “So I need to borrow Shoko for a couple days so we can go to Denmark.”

 

Yaga let out a slow, groan-adjacent breath as he rubbed his temples. “I didn’t even know you were dating,” he admitted, running his hand down his face, letting it rest around his jaw, covering his mouth.

“If you let me on the staff sooner you probably would’ve noticed old man,” Satoru quipped, cheerful in his delivery. He had been asking Yaga to let him become a teacher for months on end now.

“I guess you’re not wrong about that.” While Yaga knew very little about Shoko’s private life, he still knew she had been dating Utahime for years at this point, just by being around her when the other woman contacted her. If he’d spent as much time around Satoru after the man’s graduation, he was sure the man would happily supply him with all the information he didn’t need.

 

He turned his eyes back up toward them. “Why Denmark?”

“It’s legal there and Kento has dual citizenship,” came Satoru’s easy reply. “We don’t have anything even close to making us able to get married here so Denmark is our best option.”

 

“When were you planning on getting married?”

“Ideally in a month at the latest. Absolutely before my next birthday.”

 

They’d discussed this extensively by now. The first year they were dating the clan had made Satoru spend the entire day at the clan’s estate. The next they had attempted to hold him there for days. Now that they lived together they had no idea how far they would be willing to go to make sure to get in their way. They might not have the ability to get married in Japan, but the country still had to acknowledge foreign marriages in some aspects. For example, Satoru would not be able to marry anyone else while married to Kento.

 

Yaga choked and coughed at the announcement. “How, how long have you been dating? You’ve been engaged for how long?”

“Dating for two years, two and a half months. Engaged for 12 days.”

 

That knowledge certainly didn’t seem to make Yaga any less stressed. “ Twelve d- what do you need to get married so quickly for?! Don’t you young people have any patience nowadays?!”

“If my clan finds out they’re gonna try to stop us. I’m not sure what they’re gonna try if they find out beforehand.”

 

Yaga could only put his head in his hands in exasperation. “God damn clan bullshit.”

️

They managed to get Shoko to the wedding by buying her and Utahime tickets to Cologne in the guise of a trip all about German beer. If Shoko took the chance to go a few days early to enjoy said drink in full, no one made a move to stop her. She even promised Kento that she would bring some of the local beer with her. She took the money out of Satoru’s wallet and called it a birthday present.

 

Kento made sure that Shoko promised to tell Utahime about the wedding she was about to attend before the actual date of said wedding. Shoko waved him off by saying she would tell her when they landed in Germany.

️

The plane landed in Kastrup 7AM local time on November 10th. The ride had taken almost half a day, and they were all exhausted by that point. Megumi was even crankier than usual but still a little bit excited for his first trip to Europe.

 

Satoru was carrying Megumi on his back, even as the boy fought to stay awake. By the time they reached the taxi he was completely dead to the world, snoring and drooling into Satoru’s hair.

 

Tsumiki nodded off once she was seated in the taxi, propped up against the window, Megumi next to her in the middle seat, Satoru on Megumi’s other side while Kento took the passenger seat. The ride to the cottage lasted for a good hour, in which even Satoru looked like he was going to fall asleep, much to Kento’s amusement. Satoru was used to being able to teleport, and thus wasn’t as accustomed to long plane rides as Kento and his parents were.

His parents took a different cab, going a few minutes ahead to unlock the door and turn on the lights.

 

Kento calmly looked out the window as they left the airport behind, and soon they were travelling toward the countryside. He glanced back at the three in the back, Satoru’s head propped up on his hand as he dozed next to the sleeping children. He snapped a photo and quietly sent it to Shoko.

️

With such a small and impromptu wedding, there was a lot to do in a very short amunt of time. They spent the first while in Denmark catching up on sleep, but once they woke up they were all put to work.

It being so late in the year, they were lucky that the weather was as mild as it could get. They were only going to hold the actual ceremony outside, moving indoors right after. With how few people were going to be there they would be able to fit inside with little problem.

Tsumiki and Kento’s dad were in the kitchen baking the cake while Megumi was helping his mum prepare the dining and living rooms for both the feast and party after the wedding. This left Gojo and Kento to set everything up outside.

 

They were wiping down the patio chairs of any dust or dirt from them standing outside all year when Kento felt a tap on his right shoulder. Looking to the side he expected to see Shoko and Utahime, who were supposed to arrive sometime in the afternoon, but found nothing but empty space. He turned toward Satoru to ask if he’d seen anyone but his words were stopped by lips pressed to his, Satoru’s fingers gently gripping his chin.

 

When the kiss ended, Satoru was smiling, licking his lips. “Got you.”

 

A smile of his own made its way onto Kento’s face. “If you wanted a kiss, all you had to do was ask.”

Satoru leaned in close, batting his eyelashes at him. They were so close their noses touched. “Mmm, can I have a kiss, pretty please?”

 

“Only because you asked so nicely.”

 

Kento raised an arm so he could rest his hand at the back of Satoru’s neck, pulling him in the last few centimeters needed to kiss him. Satoru let go of the rag in his hand, taking a hold of the front of Kento’s shirt, making sure he didn’t pull back.

Satoru’s other hand moved from his chin to his hair, running through it, down his neck and back, coming to a stop just above the hem of his slacks.

 

The kiss eventually ended, the two of them simply looking at each other through barely open eyes, smiles on their faces. Satoru ran his finger across Kento’s bottom lip. “We should probably get back to work,” he murmured, but made no move to pull back.

“We should,” Kento agreed, staying equally still.

 

The smell of tobacco reached their noses, making both of them turn to look behind them.

 

“Shoko!” Satoru lit up, greeting his friend. “And Utahime,” he tacked on, looking at the woman next to the other. “I thought you weren’t getting here til three.”

“It’s been three. You’ve just been too busy making out to notice,” Shoko responded. She held up a big bag that clicked suspiciously when it was jostled. “We brought wedding gifts.”

“You say that, but I know you used my money to buy it, didn’t you?” Satoru got onto his feet, stretching a little before walking over to the women. Kento followed close behind. Shoko had no qualms about admitting she did indeed use one of Satoru’s cards to pay for it. “Oh, beer. This must be for you, Kento,” Satoru picked up one of the bottles, handing it to him. Kento gladly took it to inspect. “Did you have fun in Germany?” he asked.

“We did. I think we visited about 20 breweries on our way here.”

 

Utahime cleared her throat awkwardly, holding out a smaller bag toward the two men. “We did buy something ourselves too. When Shoko told me what we were doing I thought we shouldn’t only spend your money.”

 

Satoru looked genuinely surprised that Utahime was giving them a gift as well. They both knew that their relationship wasn’t exactly good. “Oh. Thank you. Do you want us to open it now?”

“It’s for the ceremony, so yes.”

“Cool!” Satoru turned to Kento, who put the beer bottle back in the bag so they could open the gift together.

 

Inside the bag, wrapped in plenty of paper to protect it was something made out of silver that looked like a woman holding a basket over her head. Kento thought he had seen something similar before, but couldn’t quite place it. Satoru on the other hand had nothing. “What is it?”

 

“When I asked a tour guide about wedding gifts they suggested this. You drink the first toast out of it at the same time to symbolise good luck in the marriage. Usually the bride drinks from the basket and the groom drinks from the skirt. You’ll have to choose who drinks from where yourselves in this case.”

“I suppose I could have a toast for good luck,” Satoru said as he took a closer look at the cup. “That’s really thoughtful of you, Utahime, thank you.”

 

She looked flustered by his sincerity. “Yes, well, it’s mostly for Nanami.” Shoko raised an eyebrow at her, making her blush. “Okay, fine, it’s for you too. A wedding is a special occasion, even if your circumstances are a bit… different.”

“So Shoko told you about that, huh?”

“Of course,” Shoko said, stubbing out her cigarette against the sole of her shoe. She chucked the butt into an empty old pot that had seen better use. “I was considering surprising her with the wedding when we got here, but I did promise Nanami not to. So I gave her all the juicy details of your shotgun wedding.”

“Now you’re making it sound like Kento made me pregnant again.”

“There’s still time for that,” Shoko deadpanned.

 

Utahime choked on her spit and started coughing.

️

Kento was smoothing out his black double-breasted vest when there was a knock on the door. When he told whoever it was to come in, he came face to face with none other than his fiancé.

 

Usually the two getting married were supposed to stay in different places the night before the wedding, but they had to bend the traditions a bit on this occasion. Given the short time to prepare the whole affair was a mishmash of traditions both from Japan and Denmark, and now with the added German touch thanks to Utahime and Shoko.

 

Satoru slipped inside the room they were sharing during their stay, still only partially dressed. “Hello handsome,” he greeted, sneaking a quick kiss. “I think your mum is gonna explode if I don’t get dressed soon. She keeps reminding me to not forget that I gotta wear something red.”

“I’m starting to think she’s more nervous than either of us,” Kento smiled, running his hand through Satoru’s hair. “You better get dressed then, before she comes running in here and tries to do it for you.”

Satoru laughed, walking over to the closet where his suit hung on the door. He had considered wearing traditional Japanese clothing for a while, but opted not to in the end. They could always have a bigger ceremony where they wore different clothes if they wanted to, or simply wear traditional clothes for atodori.

God knows Satoru would love to send out their wedding photos to his family after the fact, knowing that they had been unable to put a wrench in the ceremony and could no longer marry him off to anyone else.

 

Satoru pulled on a white vest with a subtle white pattern making it shine under the light, buttoning it up in the front. “Help me adjust it in the back?”

 

He knew Satoru was perfectly capable of doing it himself, but taking every second of closeness they could spare, Kento obliged, allowing himself to run his hands around his partner’s waist afterwards, pressing himself against his back. He watched as Satoru fastened a brooch to the front of the vest, the red of it in stark contrast to the white of the rest of him. 

 

“How do I look,” Satoru asked, resting his hands on top of Kento’s.

 

Kento took a few seconds to watch him in the large mirror that hung on the inside of the door. “Beautiful,” he said, pressing his lips to the shell of Satoru’s ear. “Really beautiful.”

️

Satoru had to move the brooch again after Katja reminded him of the blazer he should be wearing. It was a little bit too cold outside not to wear one.

️

They walked down the makeshift aisle arm in arm. The ground was littered with countless flowers, Satoru having gone with Hayato to a flowershop early in the morning to pick up the bouquet and a whole range of flowers for decoration. Satoru made sure that Kento’s dad didn’t see what the bouquet looked like; just because they were throwing some traditions out the window didn't mean they culdn’t leave some surprises for later.

 

They had managed to book a violinist when they called the courthouse in the nearby city to have someone officiate the wedding, the music surrounding them in the middle of the garden, the sound bouncing off the surrounding trees.

 

Satoru was beaming next to him, and Kento knew his smile matched it well.

 

His mother was already crying, watching them happily in her seat. The rows were a bit uneven due to the numbers of guests, but the important part was that they were there, that this was happening. Satoru had told Kento that he would have been completely fine with eloping if Kento had asked him to, but Kento wanted a little more formality than that. It was enough that Satoru wasn’t able to have anyone from his family there to support him, he didn’t want him to miss having at least Shoko there.

Unavoidably, they had also discussed Geto. Satoru admitted that when they were younger he would have wanted Geto as his best man, but that was impossible now. Sometimes things didn’t work out the way you wanted them to.

️

They stood in front of the officiant, hand in hand. The man was reciting his script in English with passion despite undoubtedly having said the same lines over and over, only adjusting for their names and pronouns.

 

“Do you, Kento Nanami, take Satoru Gojo as your lawfully wedded husband, to have and to hold, in sickness and health, to love, to cherish, in good times and bad, for rich or poorer, keeping yourself solely unto him for as long as you shall live?”

Kento looked at Satoru, his eyes gentle. “I do.”

“Do you, Satoru Gojo, take Kento Nanami as your lawfully wedded husband, to have and to hold, in sickness and health, to love, to cherish, in good times and bad, for rich or poorer, keeping yourself solely unto him for as long as you shall live?”

“I do.” Satoru’s voice trembled a little with emotion, and as soon as the officiant declared them husbands he took hold of the sides of Kento’s face, pressing a kiss to his lips.

️

The officiant was sent on his way with his official papers by 12.30, ready to be filed in case the marriage license was lost in the mail (they would make sure to deliver it personally at the office themselves just to make sure it wasn't tampered with, just to be on the safe side). The violinist was sent home at the same time. They all moved inside, Kento and Satoru stepping underneath the æresport as married men.

Everybody had helped out with cooking, and now gathered in the dining room. The scent of all the food was almost overwhelming, the table filled with anything they had been able to come up with that fit into a wedding, both per Japanese and Danish tradition.

 

Before sitting down, Shoko filled the bridal cup with wine. Satoru was happy to take the smaller basket shaped cup while Kento took the skirt. With some careful coordination the two drank out of their cup, somehow managing not to spill a single drop.

Then they were given the traditional sake, taking their sips before the stacked cups were manouvered to Shoko and Kento’s parents. Shoko had been happy to act as the missing set of parents when she was asked to take part of the san-san-kudo.

The order of everything was a bit haphazard, but with the officiant not being familiar with the tradition they had opted to do it at the start of the meal instead.

 

They sat down around the table, food being passed around, nothing missing anybody’s plates. If it hadn’t been for everyone’s attire, it would have felt like a regular dinner party, but the tapping of knives against platters and stomping of feet Katja had told them about made it obvious what was going on.

 

Utahime would blush whenever the newlyweds were prompted to kiss, Tsumiki clapping her hands. Megumi rolled his eyes at it all, but seemed generally as pleased as grumpy little boys could be. Satoru clearly enjoyed the hubbub of the tradition, readily getting on his chair or on the floor as the signals would demand. Kento couldn’t help but be amused by it all, kissing Satoru back just as readily.

️

They hadn’t let Satoru and Kento see the cakes before the actual party, and so Satoru couldn’t keep himself from taking hold of Kento’s arm and gasp when he saw the tall tower of rings being carried into the room, quickly followed by the horn of plenty. “Kento, look at that!”

The top ring was picked up, Katja telling them to save it for their first wedding anniversary. She told Satoru that you could also eat it at the baptism of your first child, but with Tsumiki and Megumi around, they would probably want to save it for next year instead.

️

After the meal, Kento and Satoru moved into their bedroom to change. They stole quick kisses before they were called into the living room, now dressed in more colourful clothing. Satoru was dressed in blue, vest and trousers matching in their colour. Now it was Kento’s turn to wear red, the red-on-red pattern woven into the fabric matching that of Satoru’s blue-on-blue.

 

His parents turned on the stereo, music coming on. Dancing was usually a thing left to the after-party at Japanese weddings, not so much a part of the actual wedding, but in this moment it took a larger role. Neither man knew how to waltz, so they skipped straight to everybody taking part right away. Tsumiki even managed to get Megumi to join a dance or two, thugh he drew the line at dancing with Satoru.

 

His now-husband did manage to wiggle his way into dancing with every single person aside from Megumi though, even Utahime.

️

It was pitch black outside by the time things were winding down. Megumi was starting to fall asleep already, and so Satoru and Kento opted to fetch the bouquet and the letter they’d stored in their bedroom until this point. Shoko had told them she only wanted the extra sake, she didn’t need to stand in for Satoru’s parents in this regard too, so they handed the bouquet over to Kento’s parents.

Katja wiped her eyes with a handkerchief when she accepted the flowers, Hayato telling them they were beautiful.

 

Then came the final part of the wedding, a part Satoru had poured himself over for hours. He had lamented that it had turned out so short considering how long he had spent on it, but Kento let him know that his parents wouldn’t mind in the slightest.

Satoru opened the envelope and started reading.

 

“When you pictured your son getting married, it might not have been so sudden. But I can’t imagine marrying anyone else, and share my life with. I don’t really have anything to compare you to, but I know you’ve done your best by Kento, and it’s in big part to you that he became who he is, and if you’ll let me, I know I will do my best by him too.

When the officiant asked about everything, in sickness and heath, better or for worse, I mean all those things. I might annoy him sometimes,” Satoru glanced at Kento with a smile. “But I will do my best to make him happy.”

He lowered the letter, looking at Katja and Hayato. “And I would love it if you’d let me and the kids be a part of the family for as long as you’ll have us.”

 

While Satoru had been nervous about reading the letter, and no small amount of awkward, he had done so with all the sincerity he could muster.

 

Kento’s mother was smiling, handing the bouquet to her husband so she could pull Satoru into an embrace. “We’ll have you as long as you’d like.”

 

If anybody claimed their eyes were dry at the end of the afternoon, they were lying.

️

It took about a week for the clan to find out about the wedding, and it was all because Satoru decided to send their photos after their atodori to all the people in his address book as soon as they had it in their own hands.

He’d sent the photos people had snapped from the actual wedding day to Yaga as soon as he was able, and the man had promised to take them out to dinner once they were back in the country.

They’d have to push said dinner off a little bit however, as they were quickly summoned to the Gojo estate as soon as news spread among the clan.

️

Kento felt terribly out of place in his suit as he walked down the carefully raked gravel path toward the main building on the sprawling grounds the Gojo clan called theirs. Satoru was right next to him, pointing out what each building they passed was, ignoring all the stares they were receiving. He was no stranger to them after all.

 

Satoru would normally barge right in, but this time he knocked on the frame to the shoji screen where all the elders were waiting. Elders that included his father.

They were invited inside, and they took their seat in front of a collection of old men, sitting seiza on the tatami. Satoru couldn’t help himself from sitting extremely close to Kento however. A little part of him was always ready to do as he wanted and not as he was told.

 

It made Kento fight back a smile.

 

It was easy to tell which one of them was Satoru’s father, not only because he was sitting in the center of the room. His hair was just as white as Satoru’s, the brightness of it unlike that of anyone else he’d ever seen. He didn’t have Satoru’s eyes however, his a darker blue that mirrored that of a bottomless sea.

He looked stern and serious, mouth drawn into a frown.

 

“Hello father,” Satoru wiggled his left hand's fingers in a wave, the silver of the ring on his ring finger catching in the light, drawing everyone’s eyes toward it.

 

The room filled with whispers until the head of the Gojo family raised his hand to silence the murmurs. “Satoru,” he started, staring at his son. “Do you not think about the consequences of your actions at all? Running away to a foreign country to play family like a mere child?”

“I wouldn’t really call legal documents playing, but I think I picked a pretty good family, actually. They actually seem to like me, unlike some people.” For the most part.

 

There was rage in the Gojo patriarch's eyes, and Kento could hear the anger he was restraining in his voice. “Are you this desperate to besmirch the family’s reputation just for some… man? One of no social standing no less?” His eyes turned toward Kento, filled with contempt. Kento felt extremely uncomfortable having those eyes on him. He couldn’t picture having that look thrown his way as a small child.

 

“I wouldn’t expect some old fart who married just to continue the bloodline to recognise love when he sees it.”

The man looked like he was ready to lose it. Like he wanted desperately to hit Satoru, but was only refraining to do so because he knew he would be met with Infinity. “I will not have this disrespect in my own house. I will have this marriage annulled one way or the other, mark my words.”

 

If there was ever a time for Satoru not to antagonise someone, this was it. But the man had always liked to play with fire. “I don’t think the Danish government gives a shit about who you are, old man. Just you try.”

 

“I’ll exile you from the family, you insolent child!”

“And then who’s gonna take over after you croak? You and I both know I’m your only option. These remoras you’ve surrounded yourself with would rather cut the clan into pieces before letting one of the others take over as leader and you know it.” Satoru was standing now, staring down at his father, a crazed grin on his face. “You reap what you sow, and you’ve planted some very bad seeds. Myself included.”

 

It almost felt like the room would burst from all the emotions flowing, the rage bubbling enough to lift the lid off the pot at any second. “You’ve treated me like shit all my life, don’t think you can start demanding I dance after your fiddle now.” Satoru took a step forward, the other men scrambling to get out of his way. “If you cut me out of the family we both know how this will go. It’ll be the end of the clan. And if you just leave me and my family the fuck alone? Maybe I’ll have enough care left in me not to let them at it once you fucking die.”

 

Kento was reminded of what he had heard about Satoru’s fight with Fushiguro Toji. How he had seemingly died and come back completely off his rocker. This is all he could think about as Satoru grabbed his hand, pulling him to his feet.

“Let’s go, Kento. They won’t bother us again if they know what’s good for them.”

His heart was pounding in his ears, deafeningly loud.

 

He hoped that this would finally get them to leave them alone. He wasn’t sure what Satoru would do otherwise.

️

Once they were back home, it seemed like all the energy left Satoru at once. All those emotions that had made the room at the Gojo estate feel loaded with electricity ready to spark and catch on fire caved in on themselves, leaving his husband hollow.

 

Satoru fell into his arms, Kento catching him by pure reflex alone.

 

“Are you alright?” he asked, lifting him off the ground, one hand on his back, the other at the crook of his knees. He carried him to the bedroom, where Satoru curled into a ball. Kento tried to straighten up to go get him a glass of water, but was stopped by a hand taking a white knuckling grip on his tie. “Don’t leave. Please.”

Kento’s hand gently touched the back o fSatoru’s, and he sat down on the edge of the bed. “I’m not leaving. I’m just going to get you something to drink. Is that okay?”

The grip on his tie slowly loosened until Kento could pry the fingers away from the fabric. He turned the hand over, pressing a kiss to his palm. “I’ll be right back. I promise.”

 

He left for the kitchen, filling up a glass with water. For a second he considered what they had in the pantry, and brought a bag of small cookies with him as well. Just in case.

 

Satoru had moved underneath the blankets by the time he came back into the room. Kento was thankful the kids were still at school. He wasn’t sure if Satoru had the wherewithal to be around more people right this moment. “Here,“ he sat down on the other side of the bed, holding the glass out for him. 

After some amount of struggling, Satoru sat up, legs crossed at the ankles, blanket draped around him and pulled over his head to cocoon him. “Thank you,” he murmured, accepting the glass. He sipped it slowly, eyes cast downward.

 

“I uh,” he started, uncertain. “I might have made things worse for us. Or better. I don’t know. When I was a kid they’d just make me train til I threw up or passed out when I acted out, cus only my parents and my trainors could get away with hitting me so the next best thing was watching me get my ass kicked, I guess. They’d sit there salivating at the thought of getting to do it themselves. But they can’t exactly punish me like that these days so… they might take it out on you. Or they might not. I’m sorry.”

“Satoru, that’s awful.”

“I know, sorry.”

“Not that.” Kento took the empty glass and put it on the bedside table. He moved in closer, lifting the edge of the blanket Satoru was wrapped in. “May I?”

 

Satoru dove into his arms instead, wrapping himself around Kento like a koala. Kento wrapped them both up in the blanket, leaning back against the headboard. Satoru’s hair tickled his neck. “I meant what they did to you as a child.”

“It’s normal. It doesn’t really bother me, I’ve trained harder on my own anyways. And I train the kids hard too.”

“You aren’t using it as an excuse for abuse though, are you?”

 

Satoru made a dismissive sound. “Eh, I wouldn’t call it abuse. It’s what all the clans do to their young. I mean it’s bad, and I want to change it, but I didn’t go through anything abnormal to my peers.”

“Then what were you referring to when you said your father treated you like shit?”

 

That brought Satoru pause, and he glanced up at Kento through his fringe. “Oh, that.” He shifted, getting more comfortable where he was, sitting in Kento’s lap. He moved so both of his legs were slung over one of Kento’s, snuggling closer to his chest. “I don’t remember the details, it’s kind of blurry to be honest. I just remember absolutely hating it.”

A tight feeling grew inside Kento’s chest. “There was this room he’d lock me in, he called it the white room. It had bright lights coming from all directions so you don’t cast a shadow. He’d keep me in there until I was in tune with Six Eyes. Whenever he came to check on me he’d tell me if I’d done well enough or not. Then he might let me out, or he might not. That’s it.”

 

“That…” How do you tell a man called the strongest man born in centuries that what he was describing was an actual method of torture? “Satoru… have you told anyone else about this?”

“Hmm, I might have told Suguru at some point. He got pretty quiet after, kinda like you are now. Even asked me the same thing.”

 

Kento had never wanted to speak to Geto after what he did as he did in this moment.

 

He cupped Satoru’s cheeks, turning his head up to look at him. “Satoru, promise me you won’t let them put you or anyone else in that room again.”

“Oh, they can’t. I broke out of there when I was 14, completely ruined the entire section of the house. When they rebuilt it there was a completely normal room in there, no white walls or light. Just normal. Kinda made me wonder if I’d made the whole thing up. My dreams about it are too vivid though. I still go there sometimes just to make sure.”

That was a relief to hear. Though if the excuse to use it was to train Six Eyes, he doubted they had much use for such a room now that they couldn’t use it on Satoru.

 

He wrapped his arms tightly around Satoru, holding him close to his chest. He could feel Satoru relax against his body, melting into the touch. The other man moved his arms, fingers hooking over Kento’s shoulders from behind. “You’re so warm, Kento,” he murmured, turning his head to bury his nose in his shirt. “You still smell so good, too. I love the way you smell.”

“I love you, Satoru,” Kento responded, burying his nose and lips in white hair. “I love you.”

“I love you too,” Satoru whispered.

️

The big test on whether the Gojo clan was going to leave them alone or not came on December 7th. Satoru’s birthday.

They made plans, ready with backup plans in case they were going to get disrupted again, like they had the last few years.

 

And then nothing happened.

 

It felt like they went through the entire day waiting for the other shoe to drop, leaving a tense air everywhere they went. It didn’t dissipate until they were finally at dinner with Shoko and the kids, well into the evening.

 

Shoko was sitting between Megumi and Tsumiki, the two siblings having picked up on the strange feeling emanating off the two adults on the other side of the table. Megumi looked around, staring at the other patrons in the restaurant, even out at the strangers on the street. “Hey,” he said. “There’s no stalkers today.”

Satoru and Kento’s backs straightened, Kento looking around while Satoru picked everyone apart with his Six Eyes. “You’re right,” Satoru’s face split into a grin. “We’re not being watched!”

Well, they certainly were now, but only by people confused by his outburst and suddenly standing up in his seat. He sat down again, smile wide on his face. He turned to face Kento. “What do you know, they're actually leaving us alone.”

 

A smile grew on Kento’s face in turn. Finally, they had finally decided to leave them alone.

 

Then Satoru’s smile dropped, and he turned his head to the side to stare out onto the street.

 

“What?” Shoko was the fastest to ask, as everyone’s heads turned in the same direction.

“Suguru,” Satoru breathed, and then they saw him. In the shadows of an alleyway on the oter side of the street was the familiar shape of someone that used to be a friend.

“I’ll come with you,” Kento offered, worried that Satoru might run right outside. He didn’t know what the man would do. He just knew that the last time they’d seen each other Satoru had failed to kill him, even though he should have, and it was the first time he’d ever seen the other cry, later that night when he met him at school, sitting in Suguru’s former seat in their classroom.

He was worried that Satoru would ask him not to come.

“Okay,” came the silent reply, and relief flooded his senses as Kento quickly stood up to follow him out the door. They could hear the children asking Shoko questions as the door to the restaurant closed behind them.

 

Kento had to hold Satoru back from crossing the road without looking. After so long, the fact that Geto was showing up today of all days was no cincidence, and they both knew it.

 

They finally stepped into the alley, finding Geto waiting. “Oh, you brought your husband with you. How endearing.”

So he had heard about it. Well, the news were spreading like wildfire after they started telling people, so it was really no wonder that it had reached even Geto’s ears. “Suguru, why are you here?”

 

“No ‘I missed you’? Not even a ‘hello’? How cold, Satoru.”

 

Kento could see the trembling in Satoru’s bottom lip, and he took his hand in his to help calm his nerves. “I asked you a question, Suguru.”

“So demanding! I guess Nanami must be into that. I just came to wish you a happy birthday, and” His eyes turned to look at Kento. “Give you my congratulations and to wish you well on your marriage. I heard you caused quite the stir at the Gojo estate a couple of weeks ago.”

“Thank you,” Kento said, voice even. “But your wishes would have weighed more had you been at the wedding. If you’d still been here.”

“God, don’t be such a stick in the mud Nanami,” Geto rolled his eyes. “It’s too late for that kinda talk, isn’t it. By quite a few years.”

“Yet you’re here.”

“Maybe I thought it would be fun to play around a little. It’s not every day you get the chance to see the strongest get his feathers ruffled so easily.”

 

Kento looked over at Satoru. Ruffled feathers was an understatement. Satoru looked severely upset, like he was about to cry and scream all at once. Kento rubbed his thumb against the thin skin of his knuckles. “I think you’ve ruffled enough feathers for one night,” he told Geto, who had the gall to laugh.

 

“Maybe. Send Shoko a kiss from me, will you?”

He slipped around the corner, Satoru lifting his hand as if to use his cursed technique on him, but he was gone before his arm was up. 

 

The night was a disaster for completely different reasons than they had expected.

 

He guided Satoru back to the restaurant, the man’s chest heaving from how heavy he was breathing. Instead of taking him to the table, he brought him to the bathroom in the back, sending Shoko a quick glance. She looked back at him briefly before turning her attention back to the kids.

 

Kento sat Satoru down on the toilet, getting down on his knees despite it desperately needing cleaning. “Satoru, would you look at me, please?” 

It took a few seconds, but eventually those blue eyes turned to look at him. They were bloodshot and red, and he could tell the man was seconds away from a mental breakdown. “It’s been years. I can’t believe I let him get me this worked up, it’s, it’s,” Satoru cut himself off, tipping his head back so he was staring into the fluorescent lighting above them. “I can’t let the kids see me like this. Not today.”

“That’s alright. We’ll take a minute. There’s no need to go out there right this second.”

 

He tore some paper off the roll, handing it over to his partner. Satoru blew his nose, tossing it into the bin next to them. Then he let himself lean his cheek against Kento’s shoulder, doing his best to take slow and even breaths. Each breath in was steady, but when he breathed out his breath came out shaking.

 

Kento reached up to wrap his arms around Satoru, the position awkward but hopefully good enough.

He felt Satoru press his nose against his neck, and over time he started relaxing, breath becoming smooth and calm.

 

When he pulled back he no longer looked like he was going to cry, but his face was still red and blotchy. “Thank you,” he said, running the back of his nails down Kento’s cheek.

“No problem,” Kento smiled. “Ready?”

Satoru nodded. “As I’ll ever be tonight.”

 

They left the bathroom together, slipping back into the booth where they had left the others.

If they had seen Satoru about to cry before, none of them said anything, and for that Kento was thankful.

️

On Christmas that year Kento’s mother sent all of them hand knitted sweaters. His parents had gone on vacation to Denmark for the holidays, and the sweaters reached them just in time. Satoru excitedly put his on as soon as it was out of the package. “This is so nice! Your parents are so nice, look, it has my name on it down here.” He showed Kento the embroidered nametag attached to the inside of the knitted elastic hem. “I gotta send your mum a picture, come on, put yours on.”

Megumi was the only one grumbling. He was tired and had little social battery left after his birthday celebration just days before. Satoru wouldn’t stop telling him to put it on though, and eventually he gave in, just to get him to shut up. 

Satoru propped his phone up and set the timer, hurrying over to the others before the shutter sounded. “Say cheese!” 

 

At least Tsumiki’s smile was wide enough to make up for Megumi’s grumpy-looking face.

️

They had a good few months of peace.

 

Time went by quickly once they were in the new year. Tsumiki’s birthday was celebrated in Denmark this year, as Kento finally introduced Satoru and the Fushiguros to the rest of his family. They could add a whole lot of friendly faces to the list of people they knew in Europe.

 

Kento’s birthday was spent with the two of them camping, though the weather had them holed up in their tent for most of the afternoon. Kento didn’t mind though, once the rain stopped and they could watch the midnight sky with all its stars littering the sky.

Satoru sat with his back against the trunk of a tree, humming a song Kento only knew through osmosis. He wasn’t sure he’d ever heard the actual song. Kento lay with his head in Satoru’s lap, watching the fire reflect in Satoru’s eyes between his eyelashes. His hair was glowing in the warm light of the fire.

 

Kento lifted his hand to caress Satoru’s cheeks, making the other’s voice pause and his eyes open more. A gentle smile played on Satoru’s face. “What?” he asked, turning his head so he could press a kiss to Kento’s palm.

“You’re beautiful,” Kento told him, making Satoru turn his eyes away, suddenly bashful in the tenderness of the moment.

 

“You tell me I’m pretty all the time,” He bent down, his lips brushing against Kento’s as he continued. “But I’ll have you know, I think you’re awfully pretty too.”

 

Kento smiled, running his fingers through his husband’s hair. “Kiss me already,” he whispered, and Satoru was more than happy to oblige.

️

Then came the day that they were reached by the news that the head of the Gojo clan had passed away.

 

Satoru stood at the foot of the bed when Kento woke up in the morning, staring out through the window. “I thought I’d be happy. Piss and dance on his grave kinda happy. But I don’t really feel much of anything.”

He turned the phone over in his hand, but didn’t really take the object in.

“Mother called me an hour ago. He’s finally dead,” he then clarified. “I suppose he knew in the end not to cut me out of the will, she says I’m officially the head of the family now.” His jaw worked as he mulled the thought over. “Will you come with me to the funeral?”

 

“Of course.”

️

It was kind of ironic in a way, Satoru told him when they arrived at the Gojo estate. He was so vehemently trying to stop Kento from being a part of Satoru’s life while he was alive, but now that he was dead he stood powerless to even stop him from attending his funeral.

After having had such little part in Satoru’s upbringing, it was still Satoru who had to be the one in charge of planning the funeral. He’d told Kento that he was tempted to just chuck him in the fire and be done with it, but in the end he was steered to do it properly. He couldn’t start off his time as head of the clan pissing everyone off quite so soon. He had plenty of time to do that later.

 

Kento had stayed nearby should Satoru ever need him, but Satoru’s mother made it clear that he wasn’t welcome in the room during the steps before the funeral. After Satoru finally got out of the room, he told Kento that he didn’t even know what the priest expected when he was asked about his father’s favourite food to give as an offering. To hell if he knew, Satoru said.

 

True to Satoru’s mother’s word, Kento couldn’t actually attend until it was time for the actual funeral service. He stepped into the space where the funeral was held next to Satoru. Whispers could be heard throughout the hall, but Satoru had prepared him for this. They listened to the priest give the eulogy, Satoru’s hand resting on top of Kento’s. 

 

Once it was time for them to say their goodbyes, Satoru’s mother tried to stop Kento from going, but Satoru let her know that if she didn’t let Kento go, he wouldn’t either. ‘And how would that look, mother dear?’ She relented.

Kento didn’t know what to say once he stood in front of the body of the man who had ruled the Gojo clan for years. He looked over at Satoru, who caught his eye. He gave a slight smile before schooling his face, making Kento force back a snort. No, it was fine. They didn’t need to say anything at all.

️

At the crematorium, Satoru stood silently, eyes as void of emotion as they had been when he’d turned to his caretaker when the two of them first met all those years ago. He stared straight at his father’s body as it was moved inside the oven. Looking around at the people gathered there, Kento saw that not a single person seemed to be crying.

️

“God, I can’t believe I have to do this for another 48 days,” Satoru complained when he got back home to the apartment.

 

Tsumiki gasped. “Don’t say that, isn’t it important to mourn the dead?”

Megumi, who was pretending to do his homework under Kento’s watchful eye, quipped “not if they’re not important. I wouldn’t mourn if my dad died.”

Satoru grimaced behind Megumi’s back. Kento didn’t know if they were ever going to be able to broach the subject of Megumi’s dad’s death. At least it didn’t seem like the boy was missing him.

“Megumi’s right,” Satoru sighed as he sat down next to Kento, making the other bounce a little with how heavily he sank down. “And I’ve got no reason to mourn. Actually, I should be celebrating!”

 

Tsumiki tutted at him, shaking her head in disapproval. “I think I’d be sad, even if I didn’t like my dad,” she said. “Wouldn’t you be sad, Nanami-san?”

“That’s different,” Satoru interrupted. “Kento’s dad is a good man. My father was a piece of shit.”

Tsumiki quickly covered Megumi’s ears. “Oh my god, Gojo-san, language!”

Megumi batted her hands away. “I’ve heard him say way worse things than shit.”

“Still!”

️

Megumi had told Satoru that he had no intention of becoming a sorcerer several times. They didn’t see that changing any time soon. 

 

But then a curse caused Tsumiki to fall into a coma.

 

He had begged Satoru for help, for him to do anything, but his pleas turned into cursing as he realised that despite being the strongest sorcerer of their time, Satoru was just as helpless as the rest of them all.

Megumi came to accept that it wasn’t Satoru’s fault that he couldn't help eventually, instead asking him to train again. They used to train together when Megumi was younger, but it had dwindled at the lack of interest Megumi showed outside of mastering it enough to get by.

 

Kento would often find the boy exhausted, falling asleep at the kitchen table in the middle of dinner. He was just as unable to do anything as anyone else.

 

Megumi spent a lot of time at Jujutsu Tech even before his enrollment. He trained together with Satoru’s students occasionally, who took turns to pick on him.

️

It seemed like everything was happening in rapid succession, spreading every single sorcerer so thin you could almost imagine yourself seeing right through them.

 

Satoru was sent on mission after mission, had less and less time to spare for anything else. They barely had time to see each other, and when they did they only had the spare seconds for desperate touches, no time to fit in all they wanted to say to each other in those short moments.

 

And then Geto Suguru was dead.

 

He had been defeated by a child set for execution due to a curse he had put on a loved one, the same curse that helped him save the lives of his friends on December 24th, 2017.

They knew that Geto had killed countless people, but for him to have become so twisted was beyond anyone’s imagination.

 

When Kento arrived at the school in the aftermath, he found hurt children in the middle of Shoko healing them, Satoru having left them in her care.

 

He made his way to Satoru’s room, where he found the man sitting on the edge of his bed, bandages in hand, staring at the wall. Kento sank down next to him, and for a while they just sat there in silence.

 

After a few minutes, Satoru leaned heavily against him, Kento’s arm wrapping around his shoulders. “Suguru is dead. I killed him.” He let out a bitter laugh. “Well, Yuta did the dirty work.”

 

He didn’t say ‘I’m sorry’ or ‘my condolences’. They both knew that it was only a matter of time before Suguru would die. And everyone had expected it to be Satoru who would do it. Kento pressed his lips into Satoru’s hair, right behind his ear. Even Suguru must have known that if anyone were to kill him, it would be his former best friend.

 

The room was silent again, until Kento finally spoke again. “The kids told me Okkotsu’s curse is broken. At least he should no longer be facing execution.”

“Yeah. Those old farts aren’t gonna be happy with that. You should’ve seen their faces when they didn’t get to kill him off in the first place. They were fuming.”

“Thanks to your interference he got to live long enough to learn how to work with Rika. And thanks to the other kids he’s not that nervous wreck of a boy anymore. I think even if they throw a fit about him, he’ll be fine.”

“He will be.” Satoru turned his head, the cold tip of his nose ghosting Kento’s neck. His eyes looked heavy.

 

“Do you want to go back home?”

“Yeah. Let’s go home. At least for a little bit.”

️

Itadori Yuji was a wonder of a boy. He was reckless and brave, a little stupid but full of heart. Kento could see why Satoru left him in his care. It was a bit heartbreaking to hear Satoru talk about the way Megumi looked at the other boy, his affection clear as day. While they had managed to sidestep Yuta’s execution, they couldn’t figure out a way to get around Yuji’s.They could only stall it for as long as they were able.

️

Satoru’s inability to have Geto’s body properly disposed of turned out to play right into the hand of the unexpected. When Kento found out about Satoru being sealed his heart ached, but the situation at hand left no time to dwell on his husband’s situation, as much as he wanted to. If they could get Satoru back everything would be fine. Without him humanity would turn into shambles. Satoru had mentioned how his own clan would tear itself into peaces if they disowned him, but with him completely out of the picture the destruction would be so much larger than that.

 

It was with determination he faced Dagon, and through some miracle he managed to survive Jogo’s flames.

 

He thought about his dreams to retire somewhere, live the rest of his days in peace, as he wandered through the halls of the train station. The shutters were all down, no sign of human life. He thought of Satoru, locked inside a prison where time flowed differently when a second was already so long to someone like him.

 

When he reached the bottom of the steps there were a handful of curses standing in his way, waiting as if measuring the perfect moment to attack. With a sigh so deep he could feel it in his bones, Kento moved in. Every little movement hurt enough it made him want to give up, but he was here for a reason. He couldn’t just stand there and let himself be taken by this world, a world he had chosen to come back to. He had known it wouldn’t be easy. Sorcerers who had a peaceful and painless death were few and far between.

 

The curses fell at his feet, revealing the patchwork-faced curse of a man. He couldn’t feel the hand with its firm press of skin against skin against his chest, but he knew it was there. He knew he had finally run out of time.

 

He just wished he’d had a little bit more of it.

 

More time with his husband, time to watch Megumi and the other students grow up, for Tsumiki to wake up again.

 

There was a vision of a ghost, a boy he had cared for so deeply. A boy he had learned to live without. He followed the direction the ghost pointed, meeting Yuji’s wide eyes.

 

He hoped his last words wouldn’t weigh too heavy on the boy.

 

“You’ve got it from here.”

.

.

.

.

.

 

Everything was silent around them. Satoru lay on the ground, a boy he had known since he was little only a few meters away. His body was still, chest no longer filling with air.

 

He didn’t have the energy left to turn his head to look, but he knew.

 

He could only hope that Megumi would come back from the dead the way Yuji had, only without Sukuna in tow this time, but he wasn’t sure he would get the chance to find out. Not when his Six Eyes could see the familiar energy draw closer.

He started to sound out Suguru’s name, stopping himself at the first syllable. It wasn’t Suguru. Whatever had caused him to be present enough in Shibuya hadn’t happened again.

 

Satoru’s lips shaped into a smile, and he choked on blood as he laughed. “It’s kind of funny,” he said, voice shattering the silence as Kenjaku came to a stop in front of him. “Last year Yuta defeated Suguru and I ended his life. Now you have Sukuna fight me only so you can use Suguru’s body to kill me. Kind of poetic.”

 

“Spare me your waxing. You told me to choose my last words wisely, are these really going to be yours?”

 

“I’m not really looking to come back as a curse. Funny as it’d be to still get to kill you even though I’m dead.”

“Alright then. I look forward to sending your precious friends and students your way soon.”

 

Impossibly blue eyes struggled to open, blood both fresh and crusting making it difficult. He couldn’t move his head enough to look at the man standing by his feet.

“I trust them to take care of you.”

“Foolish mistake, really.” Kenjaku’s shadow was long in the sunset, stretching along the blood-soaked remains of the street.

“Good bye, Gojo Satoru.”

The smile on Satoru’s lips grew, fresh blood dripping into his mouth as they cracked. He closed his eyes again, feeling the last bit of life slip out of his fingers.

The last thing he thought about as his mind faded was Kento, and he thought, if there is such a thing as life after death, he sure hoped they would meet again. And that he would have the courage to tell him how he felt sooner next time.

 

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