"Geez this Strawberry Vineyard is huge."
Satoru spoke, as he observed the multiple rows strawberries. A soft gentle spring breeze passed through the both of you, as you held unto Satoru's forearm. "Fukuoka is known for its strawberries. There's multiple different vineyards dedicated just for strawberries here in Fukuoka, this is just one of the many." He nodded, processing the information you just told him about. You couldn't help but release a chuckle, as you watched a him furrow his eyebrows together.
You reached your free hand, and gently ruffled his hair. "After this, would you like to have some strawberry delicacies at a nearby cafe? They take the strawberries we pick, and give us a discount on our orders." His eyes lit up, as he grinned like a young boy. "The one we used to go to when we were kids?" His sunglasses slowly falling off his nose, which revealed his iridescent sapphire orbs. Did his eyes always shine that bright, were they always that variegated? You gulped, as you were left speechless by the beauty of his orbs.
Gojo Satoru truly had the looks that could captivate and enamor anyone who'd get to sneak a glance at him.
"Sweetheart? If I didn't know any better, I'd think you'd fallen in love with me even more." He snickered, as he put his hand on his chin making a "v" with his thumb and index, almost as if he was in deep thought. You lightly punched him on his chest, embarrassed, Satoru really knew how to push your buttons. "Push your glasses up Satoru, you're gonna overuse your six eyes and give yourself a headache." You spoke, striding pass the man, with your cheeks still flushed red. Satoru's eyes widened in slight amusement, before chasing after you.
"Wait for me!"
The two of you were picking fresh strawberries in tranquility, when Satoru broke the silence that the two of you were engulfed in. "Darling.. You know.. I've just realized that we haven't continued our process of moving together." He spoke, never once looking up or away from the strawberries he was picking. You paused, your fingers barely touching the strawberry you were about to break off its stem. "I guess we should do it soon.. The Kyoto Sister-School Goodwill Event is going to start in around a week or two right?" (Y/N) turned her head to get a better look at her lover, and watched him nod his head.
"I sure hope that Yuji-Kun has rested and regained some of his strength back." Satoru chuckled beside you, as he picked another strawberry off its stem. "Yuji is strong. I wouldn't doubt it if he's already all fired up to spar with the rest of his classmates." You couldn't help but let a small smile reach your face, how glad you were that you lost no one to the cursed womb. You knew you wouldn't be able handle adding unto the long list of your regrets you already had, it was long enough as it was.
Itadori Yuji was essentially dead, several of your students were severely injured. Therefore, even if they were all left scathed with extreme amounts of injuries, it was better than for them to be dead. Although, with the Kyoto Sister-School Goodwill Event around the corner, you were sure that all the students wouldn't be left unscathed. But the terrible thing about the Kyoto Sister-School Goodwill Event, was that it wasn't all that terrible.
You were once part of the Kyoto Sister-School Goodwill Event as well.
It's a good test of skill that was held every year between the two schools, and besides, neither of the students can kill each other- it's not allowed. All they have to do is spar, using any sort of Jujutsu to win, anything was possible during the Goodwill Event. They were also students who were soon promoted to the next level grade level after the event, being deemed to be more than talented enough to advance higher up into the ranks.
"We want to promote you (Y/N), I think you're more than ready to become a special grade one sorcerer, along with Gojo and Getō." Masamichi spoke to the fifteen year old (Y/N), staring at her dead in the eye, as he kept sewing more of those cursed plushies. "You already know my response to that Yaga-Sensei. I truly don't wish to become one, I'm not even sure if I'll continue to be a shaman after graduation.." You mumbled, looking away from your teacher's intimidating stare. That's right, you chose not to advance any further from being a grade one sorcerer; it was your own decision.
"So after this trip (Y/N)? It sounds like a great time to move into the new apartment together, especially since the Kyoto Sister-School Goodwill Event will take quite awhile- and I don't think I can live away from you much longer." He spoke beside you, as your attention was diverted away from your thoughts. You laughed, Satoru was so clingy that it was undeniably adorable, making your flutter.
"Let's move into our new apartment together when we get back to Tokyo, Sato."
Eventually the two of you finished strawberry picking, Satoru filling up almost two baskets of perfectly ripe strawberries- while you struggled to even get a basket full of strawberries. The two of you went ahead and paid the fees for the strawberry picking, before heading over to the nearby cafe. The young woman who greeted the two of you as soon as both Satoru and you entered the cafe, did not once remove her eyes off Satoru. Who could blame her? Satoru was quite a sight.
You'd notice how she'd eye him, even how the other workers in the cafe would as well, both men and women. Even the children were in awe of the sight, it honestly made you wonder if Gojo Satoru was like a God in their eyes. The waitress would try to crack a joke with Satoru, and Satoru would laugh at it, out of pity.
Once the two of you were finally seated at a table, by the window, the waitress would only ask Satoru of his order; almost as if she was ignoring your entire existence. You weren't upset of course, why would you be? You've been with Satoru for more than two decades, this attention he was getting was nothing out of the blue, and you've dealt with it. Sure at the beginning, it was hard to deal with your jealousy, but you'd feel terrible when Satoru had to constantly comfort you due to your insecurities.
"Actually.. I think my wife would like to order now." He spoke to the waitress, still smiling at her, as he reached for your hand over the table. Wait, did he just say wife? "Sato-.. Ah.. Yes.. I would like to have your strawberry parfait and strawberry shortcake please." You told the waitress, she nodded her head and Satoru asked about the strawberries and the discount that was offered. The young waitress quickly took a basket filled strawberries off his hands and went to go to the back in a haste, to grab both yours and Satoru's orders.
You felt Satoru intertwine your fingers with his, "She was quite rude wasn't she?" He spoke, as he smiled at you with his eyes closed. He's annoyed, you knew because you've seen it on his face multiple times, it was the same look he'd give to the higher-ups. "It's alright, can't blame them Satoru, you are quite a sight." You knew your words would only boost his ego more than it already was, but the grin that Satoru would give you- god, that made his boosting ego all the more worth it.
"But you're so much more of a beautiful sight, my princess."
Once the two of you got your orders, you two ate in peace. Satoru would crack jokes here and there that you couldn't help but laugh, no matter how stupid the jokes were. He'd talk about his missions that he'd go to without you, how more often than not, those were incredibly pointless missions. It was either too easy, or another sorcerer could've done it. If there was one thing that didn't change about the white-haired man in front of you, it was his cockiness; and of course, his hatred towards the higher-ups.
Yet, even though it seems that nothing has changed on the exterior, Satoru Gojo was most definitely a changed man. The man in front of you has actually changed more than what meets the eye, you just had to look closer. Losing important people in his life, even when he tried to avoid the pain, you can see still see it in how he coped. He trained harder than anyone, even though he was perfect in numerous of ways, from making tactical decisions on the spot, to being genetically gifted with both the six eyes and an immense amount of cursed energy.
Feeling grief, remorse, and guilt were just some of the emotions that changed Gojo Satoru. The young boy never knew how to cope, so he always put himself into training harder, as if he believed that would make it all go away- as if that would bring back his dead friends. Your hospitalization, Riko Amanai's death, and the betrayal of his only friend Getō Suguru, it was all enough to traumatize Gojo.
When you did ask him about how he felt, or told him that it was okay to cry too. That it was okay to feel weak, and feeling weak isn't a weakness- it was just a human emotion, he'd push you away almost immediately. He hated weak people, but he hated having to feel weak the most, because to him, being weak equaled incapability. He believed that he was weak then, that's why he couldn't stop you from being hospitalized, he couldn't stop Riko's death and he couldn't stop his best friend from murdering an entire village.
You felt terrible for Satoru, and empathized for him. In your eyes, he was still nothing more than just a young boy who was never given a chance to properly experience human emotions. Who was just a weapon, nothing more to both his parents and the Jujutsu Council. But he was also the same man you've loved then, and now and that has never changed.
"(Y/N), after this I have somewhere left to show you."
He spoke, as he took one last bite of his strawberry shortcake. Geez, just how many strawberry shortcakes did this man have. The parfaits too! You on the other hand, only had tea, one parfait and one strawberry shortcake; and you even struggled finishing the cake. Satoru paid for both of your orders, and you made sure to save the two basket-filled strawberries to take back home to Tokyo for the students and the staff.
The two of you headed out of the cafe, and Satoru held unto your hand, leading the way towards the mountains. "Sato, where are we going?" He only hummed in response to your question, but you did feel oddly nostalgic about the pathway the two of you were treading on. It felt familiar, the way the air got colder, the further up the two of you went. The Cherry Blossom trees that bloomed, wait, the Cherry Blossom trees in Fukuoka typically only bloomed by Maizuru Park, or the castle- but this pathway led to neither of those directions. The only Cherry Blossom trees that were planted this high up was-
"Our secret meeting place."
Satoru let go of your hand, as he set the strawberry-filled baskets down unto the ground. He looked up and admired the cherry blossom petals got swayed by the wind and eventually falling off the trees, "We could've gotten here much faster, but you told me no Jujutsu.." You pursed your lips together, "What are we doing here Sato-Kun?" He turned around and gave you a heartwarming smile, before kneeling down on one knee. Wait, why was he kneeling down on one knee? Your eyes widened at the sudden sight.
"Sato-.. What are y-.."
"I'm not asking you to marry me yet!
I just I wanted to make a promise."
You watched him gulp, he was nervous. You felt your cheeks become warm, as you watched him avert his eyes away from yours behind those darkly rimmed sunglasses. He cleared his throat, removed his glasses, placed them on his shirt and pulled out a small velvet box. He fumbled with the thing inside of the small velvet box for a bit, before turning it towards you.
It was a ring, a sterling silver ring.
"(Y/N). I'll eventually ask for your hand in marriage, but for now, I want to give you this ring as a sign of promise that I will marry you and I will eventually ask you to marry me. I've loved you since I first met you, and I want to commit myself to you. I want this promise ring to be a promise between the two of us, that we will always be together, that the two of us will eventually get married.. Have our own children together.. That we will always believe in each other, no matter the circumstance. Will you do me the honor of putting this promise ring on you?" You felt your breath hitch, as you stared at the ring, then looked at Satoru- looking for any signs that he was just messing with you. But, he was quite dead serious, he stared at you with those irresistible sapphire blue eyes.
You were shaking, and you weren't sure why, perhaps it was from the excitement? The fear? The anxiousness? You nodded slowly, allowing a soft 'yes' to escape your lips. Satoru's eyes widened in surprise, as he quickly stood up, put the ring on your right ring finger. He swept you off your feet, and twirled the both of you around, as he locked his lips unto yours. You felt him grin against your lips, as his hold on your waist tightened. He eventually stopped going around in circles, as he gently placed you on your feet.
He placed his lips against yours once more, both of his hands cupping your face gently. He whispered how much he loved you, and how happy he was in between kisses. And you couldn't help but feel nothing but that warmth that engulfed your heart, and it felt like your stomach was doing backflips. Satoru couldn't stop kissing you, just when you thought he was done kissing you, he'd go right back in and savor your lips some more.
"We'll truly be together, forever, now."
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Strawberry picking and an engagement, not engagement hehe? ❤
As always,
Peace ❤