Nobody's POV:
Same day - Saturday
...
8:45 AM
"There is no time for morality arguments. The baseline is that we are Jujutsu Sorcerers and our job is to exorcise cursed spirits. Which means to permanently end their existence. Sorcerers don't abide by morals. We abide by the rules. In war, your job is to kill the opposing side. It's either kill or be killed, remember that you two."
The first years winced as Nanami sliced the cursed spirit in half with a big, dull looking knife, causing red blood to spurt everywhere. They understood what he was saying, and they agreed with him to an extent. But still, there was just something about these select few curses that made their stomachs turn at the thought of killing them.
"I know it may feel wrong... and I know curses aren't supposed to show humanlike emotions such as sadness, but remember, we're doing this for the good of society." Nanami said quietly, turning towards the two younglings and offering them a tiny, but serene smile. "I'm glad you two aren't losing your morals, however. Doing this for a while dilutes them."
"There was just something... off about these curses." Kugisaki whispered, Itadori's eyes still fixated on the dead cursed spirit.
"Aren't they supposed to disappear once they're exorcised?" Itadori asked in a soft voice. The blond haired sorcerer nodded his head, crouching down and grabbing the curse's skin.
"I'll bring it to Ieiri, along with the other two you defeated Kugisaki. They're out cold, so it shouldn't be much of an issue, but for extra precaution, I'll call a couple other sorcerers to assist me in bringing them back. You two can return back to Jujutsu Tech, Ijichi is on his way anyway." Kento stated, putting his weapon away and standing up. Yuji began walking towards the street corner where they were supposed to meet Ijichi before, Nobara lagging behind.
"What about the security cameras?" The brunette questioned with a curious gaze, the adult shaking his head and closing his eyes.
"Nothing, no curse user; it would seem that a curse did it. All you could see were the victim's deaths, not who or what caused them. This is all very odd, but I'm sure we'll get answers soon. Go with Itadori and stay on guard." Nanami sighed, pulling a wrapped tarp from his suit pocket and opening it up, throwing it over the deceased entity on the floor.
"Alright..."
Kugisaki jogged a couple of meters through the parking lot, meeting up with her classmate, who was slouching and had his hands in his uniform pockets. Kugisaki, although still not on friendly terms with the latter, decided to put her stubbornness to the side for the time being and instead try to cheer the boy up.
"You should've seen me when I got angry... I almost unlocked a new technique, I can't lie. I was in the zone." The brunette chuckled, although the latter simply nodded and continued to stare forward. Nobara bumped him lightly, her eyes softening and her mouth curling at one end. "What happened to your happy-go-lucky attitude? You're seriously feeling this bad for a couple of curses?"
The pair made it to the end of the sidewalk, as they stared at the empty intersection. Itadori's face was blank, and his eyes were equally as hollow. "I dunno."
"I'm not gonna try my best to make you feel better or anything; I still hate you after all. But, I will tell you as your partner in battle and a sorcerer going through the same things you are, Nanami is right. Would you rather save one crying curse that's killed many people and will kill many more people, or save those people by killing that one crying curse? It's all black and white Itadori. We exorcise curses, we save humans. There's no ambiguity."
"What does that mean?" Yuji raised an eyebrow, the latter facepalming for a moment before continuing.
"It means there's no other way to see it Itadori. No hidden meanings, just kill or be killed like Nanami said. Kill or let even more be killed. Black and white."
"Everything is grey to me. Killing is killing Kugisaki. It's a sin." Itadori muttered, watching as a black car pulled in front of them, the driver side window rolling down and Ijichi waving at them. "But at the end of the day, you're right. This is what we signed up for after all, right?"
Nobara nodded her head, the latter opening the rear door for her in a gentleman's gesture, entering after her and shutting the car door.
They rode back in silence, the morning rain's soft acoustics being the only accompaniment to their thoughts.
-
-
-
Two days later - Monday
...
9:30 AM
"It's grim. I've never seen nor heard of anything like this before. They're human guys. Or they were."
Three adult sorcerers stood inside of the infirmary, staring at the dismembered curse that for some reason had humanlike organs, just scrambled around.
"They're... humans? But how?" Nanami stood over the metal table that Shoko was working over, as she shook her head and looked down at the curse– human. Gojo had his lips pursed and his eyebrows lowered, searching his brain for a plausible explanation.
"My guess – don't take my word for it – is that they were somehow manipulated by cursed energy and transfigured. There's no other explanation. Their very genetic makeup is altered... mutation." Ieiri sighed, Satoru pointing in the air with a lightbulb over his head.
"That's exactly right! It would explain why they were showing human emotions and were visible in pictures, they're not curses. You're so smart Shoko, what would we ever do without you!?" Gojo smiled brightly, but it quickly dissipated when the two other adults stared at him with unamused glares. He quickly turned chibi and sat in a corner.
"Like Gojo said, that would explain their humanlike qualities. You said that they were begging to be killed, right?" Shoko asked the blond haired sorcerer, who nodded his head and sat beside her as they examined the dark green curse. "Perhaps they still had a conscience. The very foundation of what these humans were was changed by the curse or curse user that did this to them, so it's surprising they still had any kind of emotion. It's very unsettling."
"We'll get to the bottom of it, I'm sure. In the meantime, Gojo, is it possible to bring your two students on one more mission? There's something that I saw in the security cameras when I double-checked after they both had left. Also, don't tell them about what we've found, I don't want to alarm them." Nanami explained, turning to the white haired sorcerer, who had turned back to normal and was smiling.
"Of course Na-na-mi! Let me go get them!" Satoru sang, vanishing and leaving a frustrated Nanami and an amused Shoko behind.
Within seconds, Gojo returned, this time with company.
"Oh, Nanami-Senpai!" Itadori waved furiously at the blond haired sorcerer, who clenched his jaw at the incorrect honorifics.
"Ah! Nanami-Senpai, I like the ring to that!" Gojo teased, sitting down on the other seat next to Shoko, both Kugisaki and Itadori following him and standing around the table. They looked down at the lit-up dismembered entity with grimaces, their attention then locking onto the three adults.
"You two, there was something I saw on the security tapes when I went to check them again, or rather, someone I saw." Nanami stated, fixing his tie and furrowing his eyebrows. "A boy, looked around your age. At the time of the murders, I found him wandering the parking lot. I'm not sure if he's tied to what had happened, but it's our only lead for now. I'd like you two to look for him in the nearby High School, tomorrow afternoon. I'll show you a picture of him later, but I will not be accompanying you for this one. I'm sure Gojo trusts you both enough to do this alone."
Satoru nodded his head, sporting a thumbs up in both hands. Nanami stood up and walked towards the door, looking around the infirmary before bowing. "I have things to do... have a good day, all of you."
"Bye Nanamin!"
Everyone quickly turned to Itadori, who paused and looked around confusedly.
"What?"
"You mean Nanami. What's with the n at the end? And what happened to Senpai?" Kugisaki whispered, Itadori's eyes lighting up as he tapped the side of his head with his finger.
"Ah! You see, Nanamin gets mad every time I add the Senpai! So I thought long and hard about it just now! Instead of adding Sensei or Senpai, I'll instead use -san! But since I hate greeting people like that, I shortened it into a cool nickname. Instead of calling you Nanami-San, I'll now call you Nanamin!" Yuji blabbed, everyone gawking at him with their jaws hanging to the ground, Kento sighing so loudly you would think he was moaning (pause).
"Oh! I get it Yuji! Nanamin has such a good ring to it! Na-na-min, Na-na-min, Na-na-min." Gojo chanted, although the blond haired sorcerer was long gone, slamming the door behind him. The first year teacher pouted, turning to others, "He's always so poised and serious. It's great poking fun at him because it gets him out of his professionalism. Not sure why he left so angrily though... he needs a sense of humor! Haha!"
"My guess is he's fed up with both of you." Nobara crossed her arms, Ieiri nodding her head and reaching into her doctor coat pocket. She pulled out a cigarette box, however, it was quickly snatched by Gojo as he disapprovingly shook his head at the woman.
"I thought you stopped smoking! What's this?!"
Kugisaki and Itadori chuckled at the same time, Gojo beginning to lecture Shoko on the dangers of smoking while the two first years headed for the door since they weren't needed anymore. Yuji was excited about going on another mission with Nobara. Frankly, any and all chances of being with her alone was a win in his book, as it gave him plenty of opportunity to burrow his way towards her good side. Although, he already had a plan on how he would get some alone time with her. He would just have to put it into play today and hope it went well. For now, he would enjoy his first day back in class and assimilate himself once again In Jujutsu Tech.
-
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-
A few hours later
...
3:30 PM
Itadori stared into the brown abyss that were Nobara's eyes, as she fiercely gazed at him with this overwhelming coldness... it was now or never. It was time to put the first part of his plan into play. He steeled himself, took a deep breath in, and let the question slip from his mouth.
"Kugisaki... let's go shopping."
Silence with her eyes fixed open, presumably surprised...
Then stillness off her body and breath, presumably in thought...
Then the narrowing of her eyes and a cold stare, presumably with an answer in mind...
Yuji's hopes shot down, as she delivered the poison to his heart through her words.
"I'd rather be skinned alive than go shopping with you."
...
The school day had just ended, Itadori's official first day back in class being one that wasn't filled with much of anything. It felt like he came back home after a long trip overseas. Sure things weren't that much different... but there was a huge elephant in the room that had to be addressed, and that was Kugisaki not being very welcoming. She was really serious on not forgiving him, even after what they had been through two days ago.
Yuji had decided to play his cards and ask her to come shop with him, frankly anywhere. However she didn't seem too open to that idea. He wasn't done persisting though.
"It can't be that bad... I mean... I can't be that bad to hang out with... right?"
"Honestly, I'd rather go back to my village than go shopping with you, and that says a lot considering the whole reason I'm here was to get out of there." Kugisaki crossed her arms and tapped her foot, the latter sighing and slumping over in his desk. Megumi, although very happy that his pink haired friend was back, couldn't be more absorbed in his phone as the other two bickered.
"Why are you so mean? I literally said I would buy you stuff." Yuji muttered, realizing now that any attempts at trying to get on Nobara's good side were futile. She was cold, ruthless, unforgiving, condescending, rude, antagonizing, selfish... and yet here he was hoping that he could bring out some type of warm feeling out of her, although that seemed to be impossible.
"With what money? Last time I checked you're broke. We all are. Well except for Fushiguro because he comes from some big shot family." Kugisaki turned to the raven haired teen, who still wouldn't look up, then turned back to her 'allegedly' most hated person in the world and pointed. "Why should I even let you have the luxury of buying me anything?"
"You can't be serious..." Itadori mumbled, shaking his head and turning away. "Gojo-Sensei gave me some money to spend, so I figured I'd spend it on you. But if you're that set on me not buying you anything, then fine."
"He gave you money?"
"That's now gonna be spent on me and what I want. I can't wait!" Yuji smiled brightly, flipping his red hood on and leaning back on his chair. He crossed his legs and waited for the incoming onslaught.
"HE GAVE YOU MONEY?! AND NOT ME?! NO FAIR, HE'S PICKING FAVORITES!" Kugisaki ranted, throwing her water bottle at the vessel and angrily banging her hands on her desk. However, her face quickly softened and a mischevious look appeared. "How much are we talking?"
"Well he gave me a small loan of a hundred thousand yen, but told me not to spend it all in one pl–"
"A HUNDRED THOUSAND?!" Kugisaki suddenly ran up to Yuji's desk and crouched, squinting at him with hunter eyes. "We're spending it all today, right?"
"I thought you said..." Yuji stopped for a moment. He raised an eyebrow, chuckled, then finally grinned. He wouldn't spoil the very obvious opening Kugisaki had given him. "Yeah, we sure are."
-
-
-
5:15 PM
The day was fair, the last of the setting sun's heat beating down on Tokyo, its streets busy and buzzing with people and vehicles. It seemed that everyone had the same idea as our two first years, considering it was Monday and this was around the time most people left work.
Yuji walked with a pep in his step, sporting a red hoodie along with some black jeans and black sneakers while the latter still had her full uniform on. She walked slower and had her hands in her pockets, simply looking at the ground instead of where she was going. To Yuji, this felt like a great time to reconnect with his friend and he was very excited. To Nobara, she couldn't wait to get back to her room and escape the weird tension she was unknowingly creating.
"Ugh... this feels like a date." Itadori heard the latter say as she caught up to him at an intersection. He laughed, shaking his head and staring at the crosswalk light.
"More like an atonement. What's so bad about a friend date anyway?" He asked inquisitively, the signal changing on the crosswalk light, giving them and a couple of others the green light to cross. Nobara batted her hair back and hung her head, exhaling loudly in annoyance.
"The thing that's so bad is that we're not friends. And this isn't any kind of date!" The two made it to the other end of the crosswalk, the mall in question about a block away and finally in viewing distance. "Don't you remember that I hate you? I'm forcing myself to come along solely because I want to spend that money."
Itadori's heart dropped and he frowned, deciding not to say anything and just continue walking. The latter saw this and pressed her lips flat, realizing that maybe she sounded a little too harsh. He deserved it though... it wasn't like he was some innocent puppy like he acted as. Through his actions, he had made both her and Megumi incredibly demoralized for nearly two months.
But still... he was trying really hard to fix things– to the best of his abilities at least. She couldn't necessarily fault him for that.
"Okay, that was a lie Itadori." Nobara blurted, jogging for a second so she could catch up to him again and walk at his side. "I do kinda wanna see what you have in mind to supposedly 'fix' things. You might be an idiot, but you're tenacious when it comes to your goals. But... I still hate you, don't forget."
Yuji tried his best to keep a straight face, but one look at the latter's eyes and he couldn't help but crack a small smile.
-
After a few more minutes of walking, the pair finally made it to the big mall's entrance, entering through the large sliding doors. The mall was huge, and as you'd expect, there were about a million people walking around. It was super loud, but Itadori didn't pay any mind as he inhaled and took a look around the large space. There were stores everywhere of every kind of niche you could think of. Men and women's wear, shoes, sports and fitness, toys, nursery and children, electronics, comic books and manga, the list went on and on. so many stores to check out, not much time to actually do the store checking out part.
"So... any ideas?"
"Makeup!"
"Makeup?" Itadori turned, realizing that the girl was long gone as she sprinted into a pink and white themed makeup store. He exhaled loudly and followed suit, a small smile tugging the ends of his lips as he went through the doors of the store. As you would expect, the store only inhabited women, so he stuck out like a sore thumb. Nevertheless, he followed Kugisaki through the thousands of different makeup products and stopped when she stood in front of a gigantic wall that was filled with only concealer.
Yuji stood next to the girl as he inspected the wall and all the different brands, oblivious to all the side glances he was getting from the other women in the store. "You wear makeup?"
Nobara scoffed, picking up a specific brand that was also akin to her skin tone. "What girl doesn't? I don't really use it though, only if I'm dressing up, which I haven't in a while."
Itadori's eyebrows lifted, as he turned to the latter and studied her face. Her skin didn't glow, but it was certainly free from any and all blemishes. No marks, no scars, no acne, nothing; not even those tiny moles everyone gets, which was seriously a blessing. Also that scratch that she got two days ago seemed to have been healed by Shoko because it was no where to be found. "Your skin is literally perfect. You don't need concealer."
Kugisaki wasn't sure how to take his comment– whether it was a compliment or simply an observation he made. She looked him in the eyes, then rolled her own and turning around as she placed the concealer in a small basket she held. "You definitely do."
"Hey, not nice! And my skin isn't that bad..." Yuji pouted, the girl laughing quietly and turning around to head somewhere else.
"With those two huge marks under your eyes, I wouldn't be so sure."
"Sukuna, not me!" Itadori retorted, the girl merely snorting as they walked towards the mascara section.
"Shut up brat. My skin is flawless." A quiet, malevolent voice whispered from a random place on Yuji's face.
"You shut up. You're in my body."
...
...
...
'Ugh... they're all getting the wrong idea.'
Kugisaki had picked up on the glances they were getting from the other patrons in the store. She wouldn't say it really bothered her per se, because she was used to being looked at, but it did make her wonder if Yuji had any clue. And if he did, whether he cared or not.
"Hey Itadori, I think these people think we're a couple. That's probably the only conclusion they can come up with seeing a guy and a girl together in a makeup store. It's weird how people make assumptions upon first glance, don't ya think?" Nobara whispered under her breath, the latter simply shrugging and scratching his hair.
"What's up with you and constantly talking about romance. I mean, I get that you're lonely, but is that all you think about?" Itadori chuckled at his statement, the latter's eye twitching while her entire body shook in growing exasperation. Before she could blow up and embarrass both her and Yuji inside of the store, one of the employees walked up to them with a friendly smile on her face.
"Is there anything I could help you two with? Anything you can't find?"
Kugisaki's brown eyes averted from Yuji's terrified ones, as she turned to the blonde employee and shook her head with a grin. "No thank you, we're all good."
"Great, just call me if you need anything." The lady smiled, walking towards another customer. Before the brunette could resume her impending tirade, Itadori quickly put his hands up and frantically waved them.
"Look Kugisaki, I was just joking! It was–"
Instead of letting her anger boil over, she instead picked up the item she was looking for with indifference plastered on her face and placed it into the small basket, holding her hand up to stop Itadori from saying anything else. "We'll talk later, just give me the money so I can buy this." Kugisaki held her hand out, the latter stuffing his hand in his pocket and fishing out his wallet. He opened it and handed her ten thousand yen, which she took and brought with her towards the checkout counter.
"I'll um... wait outside."
She simply grunted in afirmation, Yuji awkwardly whistling and heading out of the store with his hands behind the back of his head. It hadn't even been half an hour since they arrived and he was already having second thoughts about this whole thing. Kugisaki had no sense of humor unless it involved making fun of him, she constantly gave him angry or annoyed glares, and she couldn't look more miserable being around him.
Yuji sighed loudly as he walked towards some big massage chairs in the middle of the mall that needed a couple hundred yen to work, sitting down on one of them to relax for a moment. The yells and chatter and laughter from everyone around him were drowned out as he could feel himself getting dragged into the world of peace, also known as slumber. However, his descent into quiet bliss was cut short by a loud grunt that entered his ear, his eyes darting open at an annoyed Kugisaki staring at him in anticipation with a white bag in her hand. She held it out and plopped it on the latter's lap.
"Hold this. Let's go get some food, I haven't eaten since lunch." Nobara muttered, waiting for Itadori to stand up so they could head towards the food court.
They both looked miserably grumpy, annoyed, and kind of awkward, as they slouched and trudged towards the food court. They arrived in silence, stood in line at a random sushi spot in silence, and waited... in unbearable silence.
Yuji, although keeping a completely cool exterior, was losing it on the inside. He couldn't go another second without saying a word... but at the same time he had nothing to say to Nobara. What could he possibly say or do anymore? Sure they had only shopped at one store, but that one store proved that the rest of their time here would more or less be the same. It was frustrating and it hurt like shit.
Would their relationship from now on be this strained and tense? Would it affect them on future missions together? Would they ever work things out in the end? Would she ever be able to acknowledge him as a friend again? Would things stay like this forever?
...
"Can I get..."
"I want some..."
"Shrimp tempura!" Yuji and Nobara exclaimed simultaneously, the pair looking at one another with grins. It was one of those moments where they simply just clicked, like they had a few times before Yuji's untimely 'death'. Think of when you finally get that perfect dap and it nearly breaks the sound barrier, that kind of harmonization. They turned back towards the male cashier, who nodded his head and typed on the computer.
"Two orders of shrimp tempura... got it. Is that all?"
"Can I also get a bottle of water?" Yuji turned to the brunette with an eyebrow raised, who nodded her head. "Make that two. That'd be all."
"Got it. That'll be thirty two hundred yen." Itadori handed the cashier a five thousand note, recieving his change. A piece of paper printed along with the receipt. "Here's your order number, we'll call you guys up when it's ready." The cashier handed Yuji the piece of paper with the number, the duo getting out of line and heading towards the seating area that consisted of many round metal tables with black cushioned chairs. They sat down simultaneously and put all of their stuff to the side.
Sensing that perhaps the latter was open to talking now, Yuji opened his mouth, but was stopped when he saw the brunette take a deep breath in and exhale slowly.
"Look, Itadori." She began, placing her clasped hands on the table and staring at them for a moment, then looked up and locked eyes with the vessel. "I appreciate this whole 'atonement' thing. I know I might come off as uncaring or whatever, but I want you to know that it does mean something to me that you're going out of your way to do this. You don't have to, but you are. I'm not the big meanie you think I am."
Yuji nodded, his eyes averting downward since he didn't really know what to say at the moment. Kugisaki continued.
"It's been eating at me this whole week. What I want to know is... why did you do it? What was the real reason? Don't give me that lame excuse you gave me last time." Nobara said softly as she furrowed her eyebrows, leaning forward in anticipation. This was it. It was time to put herself to the side like Gojo had told her a couple nights ago and finally open up to the possibility of forgiveness.
This was the perfect scenario to do so.
Itadori stared at his blurred reflection in the metal, not daring meet his eyes with hers. If he did, he would mess up and say something wrong, or maybe he would lose his will to speak altogether. He honestly didn't know what was going through his head when he accepted Gojo's proposal all those weeks ago. Perhaps the exhilaration of returning from the dead messed with his cognitive function. It wasn't like he was smart to begin with, but that was an all time high in stupidity. He wasn't sure why he didn't think about Kugisaki or Fushiguro during that time, and how they felt.
"It was... selfish. Really selfish." He began and shook his head. If he was going to be honest, he might as well tell her everything. "Back during that mission... I had what was probably my lowest moment in my life. I lost my hand to that special grade curse... I burnt off the fingers from my other hand. I stood there with this pit of despair in my heart that I was really going to die. That this was it." Yuji recounted, looking up to read the girl's eyes. They begged for him to continue, so he did. "Jujutsu Sorcerers are supposed to die without regrets, right? That's the number one thing I've learned during my time with all of you. Yet at that moment, it was filled with regret and sorrow. Thankfully – or well I'm not really sure if I can say thankfully – I switched with Sukuna and he killed the cursed spirit. Compared to him... I was weak. So freaking weak. It made me sick."
"That doesn't explain anything Itadori. I feel for you, but it doesn't bring me any sort of closure."
"The bottom line is that I'm weak. In every sense, I'm weak. Compared to everyone else, I'm weak. That moment that I just told you about, along with how easily I died when Sukuna fought Fushiguro, shoved in my face how much of weakling I truly was. I had never thought about it, nor have I ever had anything like this happen to me before. It sucks, because I didn't realize I was weak until I actually died, so in reality, I did die with regret. I died with the regret of being weak, the regret of meeting my end so soon when there was so much more to learn and explore, and the regret of leaving you guys behind. I don't have any family, but I was introduced to all of you and thought that maybe this was my family now. I regretted that our time together was so short."
Nobara's lip quivered, her head dropping and her heart squeezing.
"When I came back to life, I was so happy. I could right my wrongs, I could cap off any loose ends and not have any regrets. I could actually do what I wanted to do from the start, which was save people. I thought that maybe if I trained hard on my own with Gojo-Sensei, I could become so much stronger. I thought that I could return to you guys and never have to worry you guys ever again. I hoped that I could actually keep up with you guys and we could all grow together, something I was so excited for."
Kugisaki sighed sadly, picking at her nails in thought, then rested her head in her arms. She knew he wasn't lying, and she was thankful that he had realized the error in his ways... but she still wasn't completely satisfied. "I told you I didn't want to hear that excuse again..."
"It's all I have Kugisaki. There's nothing else for me to say. I'm just... really sorry."
Nobara sniffled, shutting her eyes while trying to process everything. He said that he did it because he was selfish and didn't take into account her or Fushiguro's feelings. But to her, that isn't really a selfish reason, because he had both of them on his mind when he made the decision to do what he did.
A part of her wanted to hate and reject Itadori for what he put them through, but a bigger part of her couldn't help but understand his reasoning. He did it so that they wouldn't have to have the burden of him potentially dying ever again. Still... he could've gotten stronger with them instead of without.
"I wish you would've just came to us. I really wish you did." Nobara opened her eyes and drew circles onto the table, smudging the reflective metal with her finger. "Then I wouldn't have this constant back and forth in my mind on whether I should accept you back."
Itadori nodded his head, understanding that getting past this would take a while. He dug himself into a huge hole.
Kugisaki stopped what she was doing, lifted her hand up and grabbed her head. A habit she had was to fiddle around with her hair whenever she was in deep reflection, so that's what she did. She pulled the soft, silky brown strands of hair gently as her mind sorted through each and every one of her thoughts.
The last two months had felt so empty without Itadori. For those two months, she craved for him to come back in any way, shape, or form. It just wasn't the same with just her and Fushiguro. I mean, sure Fushiguro was good company, but there was just something different with the way she first bonded with Itadori. She couldn't put her finger on it, but they hit it off so well when they first met. She loved the dynamic they had, and she especially enjoyed spending time with him, Fushiguro, and Gojo together.
Even though Yuji hurt her... her wish had undeniably come true. He could actually be dead right now and she could be in her room sulking on the fact that he would never come back. But he was here, sitting in front of her... alive, her prayers answered. What was she doing? He wanted to return to her and the others as much as she wanted him to come back. So what was she waiting for?
...
What he did was borderline unforgivable.
"But..." She thought out loud.
There was no more reason to be mad, nor was there any reason to bear this grudge and continue to be hurt by it. She wouldn't forget this whole ordeal, never in a million years. But she was willing to take the first step of forgiveness and let go of the pain, instead, rejoice in the fact that he really was alive.
"I-I'm... I'm not gonna hold it against you anymore. It's just hurting both of us at this point, so I refuse to. We'll move past this Itadori." The brunette concluded with assertion.
Yuji felt the weight of the world release from his back, as he thought about standing up and giving the latter the tightest bear hug he could muster, but stopping himself from doing so as he pumped his fist up and beamed brightly. "YES!!! THANK YOU SO MUCH KUGISAKI!!! I promise we'll be back to beating up cursed spirits together in no time!"
The girl's eyes softened, a small smile tugging the edges of her small, pink lips. It was really odd seeing her be so mellow and emotional, but he was incredibly grateful she was showing this side of her to him.
Nobara shifted, looking up with determination. "And one more thing. Let's do it."
Yuji returned to reality from his excitement trip and tilted his head in confusion, watching the girl wipe her eyes with her sleeve and return his grin in full. "Do what?"
"Grow together, like you've always wanted to. You, me, and Fushiguro."
Itadori felt another surge of excitement expel from his body, but he was able to keep it contained this time as he lightly bounced up and down in his chair like a toddler. Kugisaki chuckled softly at the latter's antics, but her smile quickly went away while turning serious. The warm connection that Yuji felt with Nobara turned ice cold and severed for a moment, causing him to become serious too.
"But... this is all on one condition." Nobara leaned forward, her eyes shadowed and her aura dark. However, it quickly went away when she saw the openness in Yuji's own eyes. She eased up.
"Anything."
Kugisaki paused for a moment, closing her eyes and pondering on the last two months and how they had made her feel. Never again did she want to be subject to any of that, at least not with him. "Promise me you won't ever die again, unless it's a natural death many years from now. I don't think I'd be able to take it. Or maybe I would, it depends how long you stay on my good side."
Itadori grinned from ear to ear, the latter doing the same.
"I promise."
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6:05 PM
Yuji and Nobara sat in a relaxed silence for the next half hour– or
well, silence between them, since the mall was buzzing with noise. They had received their food and were chomping away on the rolls of fried shrimp and other goodies, not having much time for conversation, besides the occasional look they would give each other as they swallowed bliss in the form of sushi.
Kugisaki patted her lips with a napkin, tilting her head to the side slightly and peering off into space. She looked back at Itadori, a question popping up into her head. "You think there's more to that whole crying curse thing on Saturday?"
Yuji pursed his lips, wondering the same thing himself. "I'm not really sure... but I swear I could feel their emotion. It was humanlike. I'm not sure what it means and it hurts my brain to think about it too much. Hopefully Nanamin and Mrs. Ieiri figure it out."
"I can't even call you stupid because it hurts my brain thinking about it too." Kugisaki chuckled, tapping her finger on the table with a tad bit of anxiety swirling in her stomach. "It makes me a little nervous at what this all means, I won't lie. I have a feeling that it's way more malevolent than we can imagine. Curses that everyone can see? Curses that are crying and begging for you to kill them? I mean... it's all so skin-crawling. But I guess that's what I signed up for when I decided to be a sorcerer. Gotta embrace the creepiness."
"Do you wanna go back to Jujutsu High? I don't really feel comfortable talking about this here. Maybe we can come back another day to finish our friend date." Yuji shook quietly with laughter, waiting for the latter's reaction, although she just shrugged and looked unbothered. She picked up their empty plates and tossed them in the garbage.
"If that's what's you want, then let's go I guess."
Itadori sensed a tinge of disappointment from her, so he grinned and stood up. "Oooorrr... we could talk about this later and finish spending all of this money. Wouldn't wanna lose this opportunity to stay on your good side, right?"
Kugisaki smirked, batting her hair and closing her eyes. "That's more like it."
"So where to?"
"How about that Prada store over there?!" Nobara gushed, the mere sight of a stupidly expensive brand causing her body to tingle with excitement.
"Isn't everything there like– half a million yen each? What would you even buy?" Yuji wondered out loud, the latter already running in place, ready to full on forty-yard dash towards the black and white themed store that had no justifiable reason for its absurd prices. "And why would anyone even shop there unless they're Gojo-Sensei?"
"There's no harm in looking! Let's go Itadori, stop making me wait!"
"Go knock yourself out." Yuji snickered, the brunette comically sprinting towards the Prada store, pressing her face against the glass as she stared at all the handbags that she could only dream of having. She received a couple of weird looks from people passing by, but she ignored them as she fantasized about how good she would look with one of those bags around her shoulder... or maybe that short black dress that costed a quarter million yen. Being a sorcerer in the future had better pay the big bucks.
"How do you think I'd look in that dress? Could you imagine being able to afford something so... luxurious?!" Kugisaki turned to the latter with heart shaped eyes, pointing at the dress through the store window.
"You would look pretty, obviously. And I grew up modestly, so no, I couldn't imagine that." Yuji answered truthfully, the latter shaking herself out of her love-induced stupor and raising an eyebrow at the latter. Itadori returned her gaze with confusion. "What?"
"Did you just call me... pretty?" Nobara's eyebrows narrowed, a weird feeling striking her in the heart before she shook it away and waited for the latter's response. He looked completely oblivious to everything.
"I mean... you asked? So I answered. Um... sorry?" The pink haired teen replied with a puzzled look plastered on his face, Kugisaki's eyebrows narrowing even further as she looked down in thought for a second. Feeling as if she was looking too much into it, she rubbed her eyes and shook her head, sporting a tiny grin.
"Don't apologize Itadori, remember, apologies are annoying. I agree with you though, I would look too pretty in a dress like that. Oh the woes of being beautiful. You couldn't relate, huh? I bet you weren't so popular with the ladies back in your middle school days." Nobara looked into the latter's eyes, quickly getting that weird feeling again and breaking eye contact.
"Wow, you're mean. Believe it or not, back during my time in middle school, a girl there was really into me. I don't care for romance so I kept my focus on school, but it was nice knowing that I got a lot of attention from her. It's really confidence boosting." Itadori grinned softly, reminiscing on his middle school days. It was kind of crazy how much his life had changed in such a short amount of time. From doing ordinary activities in middle school to exorcising curses and dying a couple months later.
"What's your type?" Nobara couldn't help but ask, leaning her back on the glass. The latter took a step back, staring at the ceiling in very deep thought because that was actually a really good question.
"On the surface? Someone like Jennifer Lawrence... she's sooooo perfect! Perfect everything." Yuji thought of his beloved actress, shaking his head and laughing. He looked around the mall, truly wondering what his type was deep down. He's never really given it that much thought before. "But as for someone I would want to spend my life with... that's a tough one."
"Jennifer Lawrence is really pretty, I can see why you're obsessed." Nobara answered with a humored gaze, walking over to and sitting on a bench that overlooked the big Prada store, her face returning to neutral. She wouldn't lie, she didn't feel like being here at the mall anymore and she wasn't really sure why.
Yuji followed Kugisaki and sat next to her, the girl instinctively scooting away and burying her cheek into the palm of her hand. He noticed this, but didn't pay much mind to it.
"I would say my type is something generic, something that everyone else wants. I guess that would be someone who would stick with me through life to the end. I wouldn't be mad if they were a sorcerer– well I guess that would make life a lot easier, but also harder at the same time. Easier in the sense that my significant other would be fighting alongside me and I wouldn't have to explain my profession to them. Harder in the sense that they would constantly be put in danger, and I'm not sure if my heart could take that." Yuji concluded seriously, turning to the latter.
"I guess it would be a smarter choice to... stay alone, huh?" She concluded, crossing her arms while staring forward.
"Maybe. But I would be willing to take the risk. It must feel really nice having someone to come home to. Someone you love at a higher level than even your own blood. Also the fact of having kids and extending your bloodline is a cool bonus." The vessel chuckled, stretching his arms and his legs, the latter staying quiet for a few moments. "What do you have to say about that? Aren't you a huge romance nerd?"
Nobara, having never vocalized her feelings about love with anyone in the world, decided that maybe it wouldn't be so bad to share her views on the subject... and get a little personal. "I'm gonna be honest Itadori, and don't take this as me being weird or desperate or anything." Taking his nod as confirmation, she continued, "I've been looking for a boyfriend for a while. Actually, I wouldn't really say looking, but I've been hoping someone just randomly shows up on my doorstep, ya know? I guess you could call me a hopeless romantic. It's not that I need one, because I don't, I'm really independent. It's just that I see all these couples doing fun stuff together and I kinda want that too. But DO NOT tell anyone I told you this or I might have to kill you."
"Lips sealed." Yuji acted as if he zipped his lips, beaming internally that she trusted him with something as secretive as that.
"I'm starting to think that there might be something wrong with me. Like, why don't boys approach me? Or I guess they do, but they never stay and chat. I'll admit, sometimes I push them away, but most of the time they run away on their own. Am I off-putting? Is there something wrong with me that I can't see? I don't have confidence issues, it's just that I'm tired of the same thing happening over and over again." Kugisaki sighed, turning away in embarrassment.
Itadori placed a finger on his bottom lip and thought long and hard. He wasn't some love expert or anything, nor could he speak from first hand experience considering he's never actually had a girlfriend before. "You're very attractive Kugisaki. You know that, I know that. Can I be honest with you, please don't get mad at me."
"Sure..."
"Even though looks matter to some degree, especially at first, what's inward will always overshadow that sooner or later. You're way too hard-headed! You're also kinda condescending. You remember two weeks ago when we ran into each other at that pizza place? I was being nice, but the way you were talking to me kinda bothered me. If I didn't know you, I would've thought you had a superiority complex or something. Maybe that's what other guys see when they talk– *ahem* try to talk to you. But, I think that once someone gets past that wall of stubbornness you have set up around you, they'll really fall in love with your personality. Take my word for it, because I think you're awesome." Itadori smiled at the latter pleasantly, who was trying her very best to suppress a blush. I mean, who wouldn't blush after that last sentence? Although he was an idiot, Yuji did have a way with words that made you feel good about yourself. He was an incredibly kind person after all, something she couldn't help but like.
"Stop it! I hate how good compliments make me feel." Nobara chuckled and stood up, uncharacteristically grabbing the latter's hand and lifting him up. She squeezed, letting go and smiling. "I appreciate everything you've said and done today for me Itadori. I don't think I've had realer conversations with anyone ever. I'm sorry for giving you such a hard time this past week, I should've accepted your apology at first."
Itadori let out the biggest sigh of relief, fully realizing how important that last couple hours were to both his future and Kugisaki's future. They actually settled their differences, she forgave him, and now they were actively set on growing together. Today couldn't have turned out any better. "No problemo! The important thing is we're friends now and nothing will take away from that fact ever again!"
"Yeah... friends." Kugisaki's brown eyes stared at Itadori for a moment too long before she smiled softly and nodded. "Let's get out of here. Starting to feel a little crowded."
"Yeah, I guess that's a good excuse to set up a second friend date... huh?"
"I guess it is." Nobara giggled, the pair stretching and turning towards the other side of the store where they had entered from. They strolled in high spirits, exiting the mall and breathing in the fresh air of nighttime.
Both were happy, both were relieved, and most importantly, both had regained their lost friendship. Whatever was in store for them in the future, whether good or bad, would now involve them working it out together as friends.
Today was a good day.
...
...
...
Nobara looked down at the sidewalk as she strolled besides her talkative friend, a thought picking at her brain.
That microscopic but noticeable feeling that had burrowed its way into heart, twice.
What was that all about?
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Lots of yapping, I know, but a much needed event between these two. Took me a while to finish this but we're here! See y'all next chapter!