Nobara falls asleep on Megumi halfway back to Jujutsu High, head pillowed on his shoulder, dead to the world.
It's all he can do not to shake her awake and ask her if she's serious. It has not even been an hour since they faced death in the form of special graded curses, by all logic they should be dead, and even more so, she should be angry with him for getting her into that situation in the first place, and-
And yet here she is, drooling onto his jacket unabashedly. She is heavy, and warm, and the fact that Megumi does not attempt to shove her (gently) off is absolutely a testimony to how tired he really is. And also maybe, just maybe, because warm and snoring mean she is also very much alive and it's more than he expected after tonight.
He seriously cannot believe her.
Despite that, he moves without conscious thought and snakes his arm out from under her, gently, gently, and instead lays it around her shoulders. Just to make sure she will not wake up with a crick in her neck and a mood worse than any curse.
To his other side, Yuuji is slumped over towards the window, forehead knocking against the glass with every little movement of the car. He seems awake, eyes half-lidded but bleary, and he makes no move to get away from the audible tock-tock his head makes with every thump against the glass.
Biting back a sigh, Megumi raises his free arm (ignores how it smarts painfully with the simple movement) and reaches over to pry the other boy away from the glass. Yuuji does not protest when he pulls, lets himself be manipulated over toward Megumi's other shoulder and actually closes his eyes once his head makes contact with the other boy's jacket.
And that's how Megumi finds himself in the back of a car with two people sleeping against him – on him – curling against him like he's the best pillow in existence. It is less than ideal. He is tired in a way he has never been, hurting all over, and he has an aversion to people touching him so casually on the best of days.
And yet. When he looks down at them (alive, alive, alive), sleeping so trustingly on top of him as if he has not dragged them into a life-and-death fight because of his personal problems only hours ago, he feels… only content.
He does absolutely nothing to stop the smile spreading on his face and straightens a little, even though it shoots a lance of pain through his abused head. There is another hour of driving to go, and despite feeling ready to keel over, he cannot let himself fall asleep just yet.
He is got someone to watch over after all.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ JJK ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
The sun is already rising by the time he stumbles into his room, and the faint light of the day's first light is already enough to make his eyes water and his head throb. Megumi mutters a curse under his breath and changes course, forces his heavy feet towards the window instead of the temptation of his bed.
Pulling the curtains closed feels like the chore of a lifetime. He is hanging onto the cloth to stay upright, and once he's done, he's out of breath and feels like he is going to throw up any second now.
Burned up every scrap of energy you had, and then some, Shoko had said while she had checked him over. If he had not believed her before, he does so now; it is exactly how he feels. As if he has been hollowed out, scraped empty, the shell of him the only thing remaining. Who knew Domain Expansion would take such a toll on a sorcerer untrained in it?
Worth it though, he tells himself as he stumbles towards the bed, or more like, allows himself to fall in that direction. He will take "burned out" over "dead" any day of the week, thank you very much.
His stumbling approach halts when his knees hit the bedframe and he lets himself go, falls face first onto the bed and just sprawls all over it. He is supposed to take another painkiller before going to bed, but he cannot get himself to lift ta single finger. He does not even have the energy to even attempt to take his shoes off, let alone all of his kit. The thought of sending a text to either Nitta or Gojo to let them know he is back and pretty much fine crosses his mind, but it is blurry and slips through his trembling fingers like a slippery fish.
Sleep catches up to him seconds after his head has met the edge of his pillow, and Megumi lets it claim him without any fight.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ JJK ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
When Megumi comes to again – and it really is that, and not waking, because he has been more unconscious than asleep from exhaustion – he notices three things in exactly this order: First, there is still dim half-light filtering in through the curtains, so it still has to be around early morning. Second, he feels much better already, thankfully. And third, he is not alone in his room.
The last thing should have startled him into motion, maybe even into a fighting stance, but the adrenaline just never comes. A second after the realization settles in, he simply kind of… knows. He does not know how he can just tell. Maybe it is the way there is no any sense of danger whatsoever. Maybe he has developed some kind of sixth sense for the two of them. Whatever it is, Megumi knows without a hint of doubt who is currently rustling around in his room.
He just can't figure out why.
Pushing himself up onto his elbows groggily, Megumi blinks into the half-shadows of his room, and towards the very familiar darker shapes bustling about so quietly, secretively. "What," he mumbles with a tongue too heavy, and a throat too dry, "are you doing?"
The rustling stops as the intruders seemingly freeze mid-motion. There is a quick series of sharp inhale, defeated sigh, and then the sound of fingers tapping on a phone screen.
The bright light of Yuuji's phone flicks to life and illuminates the faces of Megumi's friends sharply; Yuuji looks kind of sheepish over being caught, while Nobara is scowling to mask her own embarrassment.
"Hi," the boy says, awkwardly waving with his phone in greeting.
"Couldn't you have stayed asleep one more minute?" Nobara asks, even her whisper full of snark, as if all this is somehow his fault. "We were almost done."
Megumi's eyebrows possibly tick up even further. "Done with what?"
"Getting ready for the slumber party."
It is a joke. It has to be, with her voice dripping with sarcasm, and the fact that – well, they have never done something like a slumber party. But when Megumi blinks rapidly and looks around, it really does appear a little like he would imagine one to be. The two of them had dragged futons into his room and positioned them next to his bed. On top of the futons, on the ground, and cradled in Yuuji's arms are enough blankets and pillows for an entire army, from what Megumi can tell.
They had somehow managed to get this in here without even waking him? He must have really been out of it. It's a lot to take in, especially with how tired he still is, and Megumi can only stare at the chaos in his usually tidy room, and the two culprits, in perplexed silence.
Yuuji takes pity on him, or interprets his silence as disapproval. He starts talking quickly, grin apologetic and flush high in his cheeks. "Uh, sorry for all that. It's just, well, Shoko-san said it's possible you have a concussion and since you walked out on her, instead of staying under surveillance for a day or so, we decided that we're gonna keep watch until its safe."
Another blink, possibly even more perplexed than before. He had ignored the doctor calling after him, thoughts only set on stopping on sleep, and trying to escape her poking at him and shining lights into his already burning eyes. Really, it would have been his own fault if he made his injuries worse like this. And instead, those two had decided…
There is too many emotions at once slamming into him, so many he cannot even attempt to untangle them. When Megumi blinks this time, it is to hold everything back that is about to spill out of him, things that will just be entirely embarrassing. Much safer to say simply, "You don't have to."
"Of course we don't have to, stupid," Nobara admonishes him, waving it off and rolling her eyes, and really, how can she even look so condensing when she's been so close to death herself a short while ago? "Now shut up and let us go back to sleep. I'm tired."
And with that, she drops onto the first futon and shuffles around until the blankets and pillows are arranged to her liking. It all happens so fast that she already has her back turned to him and is comfortable before Megumi can even point out that she had already gotten some sleep, opposed to him. That's one way to end a conversation.
Yuuji laughs, thankfully quiet, at Nobara's turned back, as if her sharp tongue and brash behavior are somehow charming more than insulting. When he looks up, it is Megumi who gets hit by that full-force 1000-watt smile, and he is suddenly glad he is already lying down since it would have bowled him over otherwise.
"I think that meant sleep well in Nobara," the pink-haired boy whispers, eyes crinkling.
"Yeah," Megumi mutters back without any sarcasm, because it is impossible to stay sarcastic in the face of that brightness. "I think I heard that too."
Yuuji makes no move to lay down himself. "Do you need anything? I can go get some water or something."
"Thanks. I'm fine." Everything still hurts but it is a dull pain by now. "Sleep sounds good though."
Obviously having caught the dry humor in those words, Yuuji chuckles. "Got'cha. I will shut my mouth now."
The phone's light vanishes and plunges them back into dim half-darkness. Megumi tugs his pillow closer and nestles around to get comfortable, hears Yuuji do the same a little distance away. Rustling and shifting sounds before it all falls quiet, their quiet breathing the only sound in the room.
Megumi is about to fall back asleep, drifting comfortably towards that certain darkness, when Yuuji whispers something, half a question. It does not really penetrate the fog around his mind, and he blinks, hard, grumbles out a sleepy, "Mh?"
"Sorry," Yuuji sounds sheepish now, half-laughing. "Sorry, go back to sleep."
"No, 's alright." He makes a valiant effort to rub the sleep out of his eyes. "What were you saying?"
"I just thought. Something Nobara said just now, you know, about that slumber party? I never was on one."
It is strange that he would focus on that particular bit of their earlier conversation, but something about the way he says it makes Megumi lift his head again and listen very closely. He has rarely ever heard Yuuji this quiet.
When nothing follows after, he briefly considers letting the subject drop. Maybe the other had just been mumbling nonsense, half asleep already. But he finds that he can't; not when Yuuji is offering to talk about how he feels freely for once, instead of bravely smiling through it. So instead of doing the safe thing and drop back off to sleep, Megumi offers, haltingly, "Me, neither."
There is a blurry memory resurfacing, of Tsumiki inviting him to spend the evening with her and her friends from school. He had rejected the idea decisively back then - too many people, not his friends in the first place. Now he regrets the decision of his younger self; he can still recall how his sister's smile had crumbled for a second before she had caught herself and assured him it was fine. If you change your mind, let me know!
I was so dumb back then, he thinks, and immediately shoves the thought away again. No. He had been a child. A difficult child, with a difficult situation. He can't let himself get bitter over it and let it taint his every memory of his sister. She deserves better than that.
"Too busy being a troublemaker?"
Yuuji sounds teasing, and Megumi can't help but crack a smile even while he says, "Oh shut it. But yeah, maybe."
Another pause while they both dwell on their own thoughts. Something about Yuuji's statement keeps bothering him, and it does not take Megumi too long to figure it out – different from him, Yuuji is a people magnet. A smile from him, a laugh, a look into his sincere eyes, and people flock to him like moths to a flame. It makes sense, in Megumi's head at least, that he has not spent his childhood socializing, but Yuuji?
"What about you?" He whispers in the dark. It is fine to ask this, right? Yuuji started it, after all. "What were you too busy with?"
"Oh!" A rustle answers. He wonders if Yuuji just tried to look at him, and failed in the dark. "Dunno about busy? But, it's been just my grandpa and me, for such a long time." A pause, then a huffed breath of fond laugher. "And he was not really the type to have people over. He didn't even like people all that much. I think he liked me well enough but…yeah. Slumber parties were so not something he would have done."
He does not continue after that, but it is enough already. Megumi catches the strain of longing, of missing someone, in his quiet voice all the same, and with a surge of sickening clarity, he remembers that Yuuji had lost his grandfather the very same day Megumi and he had met. It was not long ago. And…
He didn't even have time to grief properly before I got him tangled up in all this.
He is aware Yuuji would not view it the same way; he would not blame Megumi for this, for any of it. He would laugh and say something selfless again, like I decided to swallow that finger, not you, dude! Still, the knowledge is there that Yuuji was a normal boy with a normal life not too long ago, and now… now, he speaks about everyday things like slumber parties and having people over as something that is no longer a possibility for him.
I'm sorry, Megumi wants to say, but he refrains. It is not enough. Will never be enough. Instead he says, "You can always still do that."
"Hm? Whu?" It sounds like he has startled Yuuji out of dozing now. It takes a beat before the other boy gathers himself enough to think, let alone answer. "Wha- a slumber party? Seriously?"
"Yeah. What's stopping you?"
The silence stretches and stretches until Megumi thinks the other fell asleep. When the answer comes, itis soft, threaded with sleep and a smile he wishes he could see. "Huh. You're right. Should-… we should do that…"
Somehow it has turned to we. Megumi wonders if Yuuji even noticed, or if it is just so second nature to the boy to include everyone in the fun he does it subconsciously… the exact opposite of Megumi himself. It should bother him. It doesn't. In the dark, he allows himself to smile and be honest. "Sounds good."
"Yeah?" Yuuji sounds more asleep than awake by now, but his joy is palpable. "Good. We gonna… do that. Soon. Will… will be fun."
"Okay."
There is no answer anymore; Yuuji has probably fallen asleep for good. His deep, even breathing joins the near silent one of Nobara. Megumi remains the only one still awake, looking unseeing into the darkness and trying to hold onto the thought of giving Yuuji that one thing he had – kind of – asked for. He would not wake up tomorrow and have forgotten about it, he swears to himself. It is the least he can do.
There is a sleepy murmur from either Yuuji or Nobara, and he cracks a grin into the dark. Can't even be silent while asleep. He kind of wishes he could see them now; back in the car, them curled around him as if he was a stuffed animal, that had helped. Being able to see them. He cannot do the same now, but maybe…
Megumi inches towards the side a little more, reaching out before he can tell himself this is silly – they are right there. But it would help if he was sure of that, somehow. If he just lets his arm stretch a little further, dangles it over the edge of the bed…
There. He can feel the finest strands of Nobara's bedhead tickle his fingertips on one side, and puffs of Yuuji's gentle breathing of the other. It is good. Perfect really.
Finally, Megumi allows his heavy lids to fall closed, comforted by the familiar presences close by. He listens to the sounds of their breathing and fuzzy murmurs for as long as he's able to, before he lets the soothing cadence of it lull him back to into a deep, peaceful sleep.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ JJK ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Waking up is a step by step process. Megumi slips from being out like a light to dozing gradually, and stays that way for quite some time, feeling the heaviness of his body and listening to his own breathing for contentedly for a bit.
It is only when he realizes that it is the only sound he hears that he blinks his eyes open, frowning. Leisurely, he turns his head to look over to the futons on the ground.
He finds them deserted, blankets and pillows pushed haphazardly aside in a way that makes him smile. Chaotic.
Straining his ears a little, he manages to catch the wisp of a murmur, the whisper of something clinking. At the same time the smell of something mouth-wateringly good tickles his nose, and his stomach starts growling loudly on cue.
Oh, right. He hasn't eaten since before the fight. No wonder he is hungry.
Sitting up goes over much easier than he would expected. It hurts, yes; every muscles is sore as if he had had a training round with Maki again. But his head does not feel like it will split apart any second, and he can stretch his arms and legs just fine, apart from a little twinge.
While he sits on the mattress' edge, wriggling his toes a little, he pauses and frowns – he is sure he has not managed to take his shoes off before falling unconscious; why is he in his socks now? And now that he thinks about it, didn't he fall asleep on top of the blanket, instead of covered by it?
The confusion abates the moment his gaze lands on his shoes, tucked neatly together next to Nobara's futon. Oh. A blink, then a huff to cover the embarrassed grin taking over his face. Huh. I really must have been out of it if I didn't notice that.
He gets up slowly, careful to check how his body takes the movement; if there is any sense of dizziness. The headache is still there, unsurprisingly, but he feels steady on his feet, and no nausea follows when he turns his head left and right. Yes, it smarts a little, here and there as he moves about his room. He still has to move a little gingerly when he starts to change out of yesterday's clothes – wrinkling his nose at the state of them – and slips into something more comfortable, that is true. But all in all, it seems as if Shoko's treatment had done its job. The little pain he feels is nothing another painkiller won't fix.
Food and painkillers and finding his friends. Setting himself those goals, Megumi shuffles out of his room, shielding his eyes instinctively against the light that greets him out in the hallway. Judging by looking out the window, he figures it has to be around mid- or late afternoon. Huh. Didn't even sleep through the entire day then. Could be worse.
Megumi stops once more, considering. The smell and the lowered voices tempt him to go right, towards the kitchen. But a certain urge makes the loo sound more appealing right now, so he decides on the later and shuffles quietly down the hallway in the opposite direction.
A while later, he only just started washing his hands, there's a knock on the bathroom's door, much too forcefully knock-knock-ing a cheery tune against the wood. "Helloooo! I would never want to be a bother, but this is kind of urgent!"
Megumi catches his own surprised gaze in the mirror for a beat before he whirls and all but rips the door open, greeted by a very familiar and very dumb grin. "Sensei?"
"Yo!" Gojo raises one hand in a wave. He is back in his casual attire, consisting of wide shirt and slacks, the typical dark shades dangling so low on his nose that his face-splitting grin is almost enough to knock them off. "How's it going?"
"You… are you not supposed to be on a mission?"
"Oh, that. I finished early. Actually wanted to do some sightseeing after," of course you did, "but then a little birdie told me that my precious students went and battled not one, not two, no, three special grade curses all by themselves, and I had to come home and do a headcount to see if one of them has died again. One of the students, I mean," Gojou adds after half a beat, tapping a finger against his chin. "Not the curses."
"A bird-… ah," the solution sinks in before he can even fully voice the question, and Megumi sighs, running a hand through his hair. "You mean Nitta-san"
Of course it had been Nitta; after all, the young woman's worry had shown itself in a mixture of fluttering around them to check them over for injuries, and angry shouting at them for being, quote, reckless, unprofessional and stubborn. Megumi cannot even fault her for it; he cringes at the mere thought of what he had put her through: making her go ahead without him, sick with worry, even though she would be the one in trouble if she came back to Jujutsu High missing one the first years in her care. Or worse, all three of them, since Itadori and Nobara had snuck out and gone after him as well.
"Ding-ding-ding!" A grown man should absolutely not finger gun enthusiastically, Megumi thinks, but of course that does not stop Gojo at all. "Hundred points for my smart student! Or, not quite that smart, if you listen to what Miss Birdie has to say. There was something about irresponsible and thoughtless being tossed around…"
Another sigh leaves Megumi, this time more annoyed than defeated, while he eyes his smirking teacher carefully. "And you will tell me the same now? Because it would be ironic, coming from you."
"Who, me? Never ever." Gojo throws one hand up to his chest in mock hurt. "What I want to know is -…"
And just like that, before Megumi can do more than blink, the cheery nuisance of a man-child is gone as Gojo is leans in, cheery voice dropping to a more even tone, sky-blue eyes peering over the rim of his shades into Megumi's eyes with the intensity of a laser. "How did it feel? Giving it your all for once."
The abrupt change would be startling, had Megumi not witnessed it time and time again. He looks back steadily without flinching and answers truthfully. "Gave me a damn headache after. But…," and here, he can't help but smirk himself, recalling the absolute rush he had felt as his powers had reached their limits and gone beyond, "felt pretty good, too."
It has to be what his teacher wanted to hear. Gojo's smile widens nto the ridiculous again while he rears back, bouncing happily on the balls of his feet. "Good to hear! Really now, Domain Expansion, just like that! Sensei is so proud!"
"Please don't be. You are just going to be embarrassing about it."
"Good thing you asked me for help before this mission, hmmm?"
"Yeah, probably… wait. Wait, no!… urgh."
He realizes his mistake the moment the words leave his mouth and wants to kick himself for it, and then immediately delete the last half minute. But it is too late, he cannot take it back, and Gojo heard. No doubt about it; the grin on the man's face is wide and toothy and absolutely shit-eating. Megumi is never going to hear the end of it.
One time, just one time he asks this guy for help, and it is going to haunt him for the rest of his life now. Great. He is absolutely not in the mood to deal with this.
"Alright." With a deep sigh, Megumi hangs his head and closes his eyes, squeezing the bridge of his nose. "You know what - go ahead. Get it over with. Start telling me what an incredible teacher you are, and how grateful I should be."
Gojo does not answer immediately. Not that he needs to; Megumi can vividly imaginethe triumphant grin he must be sporting right now. Clothes rustle, and the boy squeezes his eyes tighter shut in preparation, promising himself sullenly, If he makes my headache any worse with one of those stupid forehead-flicks I swear I will-…
His thoughts screech to a halt when a warm hand lands on the top of his head.
When he looks up, startled, there is neither the dumb, wide smile on his teacher's face, nor the sharp smirk. It is a softer, gentler thing. Genuine, and something Megumi has only seen a handful of times since knowing the other, each of those moments so rare they are all the more precious for it. And if that is not already enough to pull the ground from under the boy's feet, Gojo says as earnest as he has ever seen him, "You did great."
It is all too much.
Megumi stands there, shocked into stillness under the gentle touch and that smile, and all of a sudden, he does not feel fine at all. He realizes with a start that he is about to cry if they stand here like that any longer, like the child he does absolutely not want to be, ever, not in front of Gojo especially, not in front of anyone. In an attempt to stop it, he bites his trembling bottom lip hard until he tastes copper and is distracted from the burning in his eyes.
Until he is sure he won't break down and start blubbering out all that fear and hopelessness and pain he felt yesterday night when he thought he would die, and worse, his friends would die, and Tsumiki would die, and it would all be his own fault because he was not strong enough.
They are alive, he tells himself sternly, struggling to get his breathing under control. In, and out. Slowly, slowly. The shivering subsides somewhat. They are alive, so don't be stupid, and pull yourself together.
A flick to his ear is what pulls him out of it for good, of all things. While Megumi hisses out a startled breath, more out offense than real pain, tears forgotten in his surprise, Gojo fairly chirps, "Now, off with you – I wasn't kidding when I said I need to use the bathroom urgently, you know!"
"You – what – oh come on!" Pulling a face, Megumi steps aside to let the man into the bathroom, but calls over his shoulder before the door can fall closed completely, "Too much information!"
The mad, delighted cackle of his teacher answers him even through the wood, and he rolls his eyes at it, huffs out a laugh that is more openly fond than he would like to admit. "Blindfolded idiot."
He makes sure to wipe the back of his hand across his eyes, checking for wetness, before he reaches the kitchen. Just, to be sure. Satisfied with his state, he ducks into the room.
The scent of food is so strong here, it is nearly enough to make him feel nauseous on his empty stomach. But that is not what makes him stop in the doorway; it is to take in the welcome sight.
Yuuji and Nobara are seated at the table, a mess of empty bowls and glasses, and array of tiny, colorful bottles amassed on the surface between them. They look good, Megumi decides, healthy and relaxed in baggy shirts and jeans, an overall for Nobara. As he watches, Yuuji does a ridiculously waving motion with his arms to describe something, and Nobara throws her head back in uninhibited laughter, snorting with it.
Whatever tension had still been lingering in Megumi's chest and behind his eyes eases, and his voice is steady when he steps into the room. "Hey."
Two heads whip around towards him simultaneously, two faces brighten like the sun coming up. "Hey, Fushiguro!" Yuuji waves him over excitedly.
"How's the head?" Nobara adds, ever practical.
"Like I got a punch to the face from a special grade," Megumi offers with a shrug while he joins them. "I've had worse."
"Oooh, pulling the big, strong man act." With a lopsided grin, Nobara pushes a glass of water and a few pills into his direction. "Won't save you from taking these. Doctor's orders."
"Thanks."
"Wait, here!" Yuuji jumps into motion, meaning he literally jumps up from his chair and darts over to the kitchen counter, fiddling around with something for a bit before he whirls back around, presenting with a proud grin a tray completely stacked with food. He puts it in front of an incredulous Megumi carefully and declares, "You're not supposed to take pills on an empty stomach."
"There is no way I can eat all of that." He really thinks it is impossible, even though his stomach is growling even louder at him. The food does look delicious, but there is way too much - a huge bowl of rice, an equally large one full of still steaming miso soup, little side dishes of fish and umeboshi and those meatballs Yuuji makes so well, and cheese bits, and…He has to stop looking, or it might already make him feel stuffed.
Megumi can only shakes his head, unsure where to even start. "For how many people is this supposed to be?"
"Hah!" Yuuji's grin is unashamed and he shrugs only a little bit apologetic. "I couldn't decide if it's better to make breakfast or dinner food at this time of the day, so I made a little bit of everything? And you gotta be hungry – when's the last time you ate?"
"I could stop eating for ten years and this would still be too much," he mutters, but it is halfhearted. He is hungry after all, and the fact that Yuuji went such lengths is… nice. Really nice. Deciding that he can always just give up halfway through, Megumi picks up the chopsticks delivered with the entire tray and starts in on one of the meatballs. They are just as delicious as he remembers them; tons better than the one he made himself with the very same receipt.
Yuuji grins widely at him, as if eating the food he made is the best gift Megumi could give him, and Megumi ducks his head to cover the fond smile he knows is starting to form on his face. Safer to stuff his mouth with more food before it can give him away like that.
He has eaten four more meatballs and a bit of rice before he remembers to take his pills, too busy enjoying the flavors bursting on his tongue and the contentment that comes with filling an empty stomach. While he washes it all down with great gulps of water, Megumi really takes notice of the many colorful bottles and what seem to be tiny brushes strewn in front of his friends for the first time. Both Yuuji and Nobara seem to be busy sorting them by some kind of color scheme.
He can't really make sense of it and asks after another few bites, "What are you doing, anyway?"
Nobara hardly looks up from her work, only offers him a quick glance. "You ask us that a lot, don't you."
"Mh. Got a reason for it most of the time."
"We're trying to decide on a color," Yuuji offers distractedly, as if that explains anything. He scrutinizes a bottle of what Megumi can only describe as mustard-yellow closely and holds it up to Nobara. "I kind of like this one."
"Hm? Oh, no," Nobara takes one look at it and clacks her tongue, tone imperious when she tugs in from his grip and puts it aside to a few others. "That one does not go with your hair color, trust me."
"But I have a shirt in the same color!"
"Then that shirt does not go with your hair, either."
"Aw. Harsh."
"Uh," Megumi interrupts without meaning to, eyebrows climbing up almost to his hairline when something clicks. He knew the bottles looked familiar somehow, and now he recognizes them as nail polish like Tsumiki used sometimes. "Are you going to paint Itadori's nails?"
Nobara stops picking through the last few bottles long enough to level him with a look that nearly makes him flinch; it is not anger or reprimand, but so unimpressed that it comes uncomfortably close to disappointed. "Yes. Problem?"
"No," he says, truthfully, not just out of fear of incurring her wrath. He really does not have a problem with it, he is just surprised. "What brought this on?"
"No reason? He can look pretty, too, for once –"
"For once?" Yuuji asks, looking unsure if he should be offended or amused.
"-…or handsome, if you like that word better."
"Yeah, not the part that bothered me."
"And anyway," Nobara continues with a wave as if to idly swat away his halfhearted protest, "doing each other's nails is a really popular activity for slumber parties."
There is a few beats of silence while the boys puzzle out what she has just said. Once he does, Megumi breathes a little surprised laugh; not just because of course she heard but also because he can watch the realization dawn on Yuuji's face, and it is a sight to behold. The boy's eyes go wide and wider before a brilliant smile stretches over his face, so large it must hurt his cheeks. There is very nearly stars in his eyes when he exclaims, "No way, really?!"
"Really. I only remembered because you guys talked way too loud." Clearly trying to sound casual about it, Nobara messes it up by flushing and looking to the side. "How was I supposed to sleep through it?"
"So you were just pretending to be asleep?" Megumi cannot help but needle her a little about it. The two of them had plenty of chances to tease him about his days as a troublemaker; it only seems fair that he can do the same, from time to time.
"Like I said," Nobara snaps without any real bite behind it. "You guys. Way too loud."
"So you would want to do a slumber party with us, Kugisaki?" Yuuji seems to be vibrating in his chair with excitement. He looks very much like a happy puppy, Megumi thinks amusedly.
Nobara must think along the same lines, since her embarrassment evaporates the moment she looks at Yuuji again. She sighs, gentler than usual, and puts her chin in one hand, hiding her smile behind it. "Sure, why not."
"Awesome!"
"But!" A finger flicks forward, pointing at Yuuji from so up close that his eyes nearly cross to look at it. Nobara seems to have recovered from her embarrassment over his adoring look at her and is back to fierce and firm. "That's not gonna happen if you keep picking colors like this yellow."
It is said with so much disdain, Megumi hides a snort behind his next mouthful of food.
"Okay, okay," Yuuji throws his hands up in surrender, laughing. "No yellow. And no… I don't know, no red? Honestly though, I got no idea about what colors are good or bad."
"Yeah, obviously," Nobara rolls her eyes at him, smirking when he protests with a laughed Hey. She starts picking through the nail polish bottles herself, mumbling to herself as she goes. "Fine, if you're going to be difficult, I will pick for you. Let's see - something dark would be good. Purple is nice. Or black, that's a classic…"
The rest of what she says is lost to Megumi. Blood is rushing in his ears all of a sudden, breath catching as a memory is triggered by the words – the mad cackling of an ancient curse; of its fingers, adorned with dark painted nails, slashing down and cracking open Yuuji's ribcage with ease to close around his still beating heart; blood, so much blood, creating a puddle around the lifeless body of Yuuji.
The memory is so visceral he shudders involuntary, feeling cold even in the bright and cozy kitchen. "Nothing dark," he says, voice tight.
It is too forceful, he knows it. Nobara looks over at him with clear confusion in her features, eyebrows raised in a silent question. Megumi only shakes his head, both to block her gaze and shake himself out of it, and tries again, "I mean, light colors are probably nicer…?"
"Light colors sound good. I like it," Yuuji adds, saving him from having to explain. He, too, looks a little pale now, and Megumi knows without a hint of doubt they had just remembered the same thing.
"Uh-huh." Nobara looks from one to the other with her eyes narrowed. Her thoughts are clearly written on her face: I know you two are not telling me something. Thankfully, she lets it drop in favor of appraising Yuuji once more. "If you want light, how does light green sound? Maybe a little turquoise."
"That's the blueish-green, right? I'll take it."
"You're not supposed to just take it, you're supposed to like it."
Comforted by the knowledge of having averted this minor crisis, Megumi turns back to his food. Or at least, he tries to. He finds his attention keeps sliding back to the argument next to him.
"I don't know what it will look like, how am I supposed to know if I will like it?" Yuuji only shrugs, grin half-sheepish, half-amused.
Nobara looks ready to argue for a second before she shakes her head, snorting a laugh, and waves it off. "Okay, well, leave it to me. We're gonna buy you one you will absolutely love - or my name will no longer be Kugisaki Nobara!"
"Now that would be a shame," Gojo strolls into the room, casual-as-you-please, and immediately chimes in. "Just changing your nice name like that!"
The moment Yuuji catches sight of the man, he seems to light up even more. He throws his hand into the air as if hoping to be called upon in a classroom. "Sensei!"
"Yes, Yuuji-kun!"
"We're gonna have a slumber party. You're joining us, right?"
It is a rare occurrence that Megumi sees Gojo actually falter, but having an excited Yuuji inviting him to a kids' sleepover apparently does the trick. The man pauses imperceptibly in his stride and does not, for once, immediately have an answer at the ready. Not that he stays poleaxed for long; he is already grinning cheerily again by the time he pulls out the last chair and drops into it the wrong way around, arms crossed on the backseat. Without so much as a cursory look, he reaches over the table and pilfers one of the meatballs still on Megumi's plate, popping it into his mouth before his student can even squawk in protest.
Megumi glowers at him for a beat before deciding it is just as well; there's still more than enough food left. He tugs the bowl with the last meatballs closer to himself anyway, not inclined to share that particular treat.
Chewing his stolen goods, Gojo mumbles through the mouthful, "A slumber party, huh? The things you kids come up with…"
"It's going to be fun!" Yuuji tries to cajole, brimming with energy as he starts listing up, "We're gonna watch movies all night, and eat all the snacks we like, and paint each other's nails…"
"We also need someone's credit card to pay for everything," Nobara throws in without a single ounce of shame, causing Megumi to nearly spit out his water when he sucks in a breath to laugh in surprise.
Instead of seeming offended at her brazenness, Gojo's grin stretches to dangerous levels. Rocking his chair back and forth, he hums cheerily. "Someone will pay if they also get their nails painted."
"Deal!" Nobara declares without missing a beat and reaches across the table corner to shake hands on it with him.
Megumi cannot help but throw her an impressed look. "You should go into business or something."
"I know."
"This is gonna be so cool!" Yuuji's excited hoot makes them all grin. Scooting closer to the table, he angles his phone out from under the pile of things he and Nobara had strewn out and starts typing around on it, eyes glittering. "I'm gonna pick the movies."
"I take care of snacks, drinks and nail polish," Nobara joins him, pulling up what seems to be a note on her phone to start typing in everything they will need.
"Wait, are we doing this today?" Megumi does not know if to laugh or feel dread – so maybe he should not have eaten so much of this dinner-breakfast. The list of food Nobara is conjuring up next to him looks a little terrifying on a full stomach now, even while he is smiling at their enthusiasm.
"Why not? We don't got any jobs right now, right, Sensei?"
"You guys are supposed to be resting for the next few days," Gojo confirms cheerily. "Doctor's orders."
"And you?" Megumi asks, pretty sure he already knows the answer.
"Why, someone has to be your caretaker in the meantime, right?"
A likely excuse to slack off again, Megumi thinks with an eye roll. With the way Gojo's grin ever widens, his train of thoughts has shown clearly on his face.
"… light colors for Itadori, and for Sensei…" Nobara trails off mumbling to herself about colors or what not, gaze going a little unfocused while she mulls something over. After a beat, she snaps around so fast it would have startled anyone but those who knew her so well. "Sensei?"
"Present!"
"Can I see?" She is already reaching out towards him, slow enough and even stopping a few inches away from his face to give him ample time to back away. "Your eyes. Finding a good color for you is easier if I know what color they are."
There is a beat, just the blink of an eye, in which nothing happens. Then Gojo tilts his head in her direction in a clear invitation, and Nobara takes it without hesitation, pulling the shades away from his face and leaning in to get a better look.
As she does, Megumi keeps a close eye on her, interested to see how she reacts. Even after years and years of knowing Gojo, and even after swearing he has already lost basically any ounce respect one could possibly have had for the strongest sorcerer there is (really, the guy is just too childish) – even after all that, Megumi has had to actively practice to shake of the uneasiness the man's eyes elicit in him. There is something about that otherworldly blue, like pieces of the endless sky trapped in a mortal's eyes, which just makes part of him scream wrong, wrong, wrong even to this day. There is too much and not enough in those endless eyes, all at the same time, and looking at them has always made Megumi feel a little like standing in front of an abyss, torn between excitement to jump and fly, and terror of falling.
Nobara either does not experience the same kind of feeling, or she is immune to it. She stares at the rumored Six Eyes not with awe, or fear, or any other grand emotion, but with a ridiculously over-the-top squint which scrunches up her entire face. After half a minute or so, she nods sagely and concludes, "Thought so. For you, we would have to get blue."
"Oh?"
"Eh, it's so easy?" Yuuji scratches the back of his head. He sounds disappointed of all things; Megumi faintly wonders if he had expected the choosing of the right color to be some kind of sorcery in its own right.
Funnily enough, Nobara seems to have thoughts along the same line, since she looks downright insulted by the question. "Easy? You think you could do it then?"
"Uh, I mean, you just picked the same color as his eye color?"
"When did I say that?!" Still so very much not impressed, Nobara leans over and, just, pushes Gojo's bangs out of his eyes, allowing them all a better look at that unnatural sky-blue while she explains, "Blue is not the same as blue, you dork! For Sensei, it got to be a combination of light blue and something dark, as a contrast. Especially with his hair! Take only one color, and it gets totally lame."
"Huh, so it's really complicated after all!"
"It is!" Nobara pronounces, so high and mighty as if this is an art, and she the master artist. "You're lucky you got me around; you boys have no sense for color apparently."
"… this is about my yellow shirt again, isn't it."
"It totally is!"
And there they go again, all excitement and enthusiasm. Megumi is content to watch from the sidelines, for the moment forgotten by his friends while they chatter and gesture and laugh, as pumped about this as children let loose in a toy store.
Megumi is not sure what about this entire scenario baffles him the most: That they somehow manage to get so worked up over something like nail polish, that even Sensei seems to be completely on board with this, or – the most startling – that he is actually having fun. He is not even taking part in this, himself, but he has to hold onto himself not to start laughing aloud while he watches them argue over colors, and glitter, and then somehow veer completely off topic towards what food and games and movies they will need for the slumber party. As it is, he is already unable to tame the wide smile on his face as he watches his friends go at it, only saved by the fact that they are too busy to notice and call him out on it.
"Let's compare!" Nobara calls out after some back and forth, slamming her phone with the notes in the middle of the table. Yuuji lays his own phone next to it and him, Nobara and Gojo crowd around the devices for a good look.
Megumi briefly considers joining them but then only shakes his head, smirking. They are gonna figure this one out just fine.
"… Looks good, doesn't it?" Yuuji starts grinning widely once he finishes reading, checking with a curious look what the other two think.
Gojo hums, a little muffled with his chin perched on the boy's shoulder. "I'm in as long as there is soda and popcorn with the movies."
"Got you covered, Sensei. See, it's on the list."
"That's my student!"
"I think we got everything we're gonna need," Nobara declares obviously pleased. "Now we just have to get to the mall."
"Ask Ijichi to give us a ride?"
"Yuuup." Gojo lets himself fall back into his chair, his phone appearing in his hand all of a sudden with the lazy flick of a wrist. "I will give him ten minutes to get here."
"Don't bully him again, Sensei."
"I would never."
While she lets the man make the call, careless and demanding as a child ("Hey-o Ijichi, hurry on over!") Nobara jumps up and claps her hands, full of energy. "We should go get ready in the meantime."
"Oh," Yuuji follows her example, then stops, considering something, and grins widely. "Race you!"
And he is off like a shot, startling an offended squawk out of Nobara who needs a precious second to find her footing again before she dashes after him, yelling, "Hey! Get back here, you had a head start!"
"I just know I'm winning!"
Over the yelling and laughing of his friends, Megumi exchanges a quick glance with his still talking teacher before he rolls his eyes, amused, and starts to gets up and gathers the mostly empty bowls and dishes together to carry them over to the sink.
Behind him, a click signals the end of Gojo's phone call, and the man remarks, "Eight minutes 'til Ijichi is here."
"You did bully him," Megumi observes, a little reprimanding. Not that there is much sense in it; he knows well enough it flies right over Gojo's head most of the time. He turns the tap on and starts stacking the dirty dishes in the sink.
"Nope! But some people actually respect your dear Sensei, and hurry to help him out."
"Can't imagine why."
It is said without heat, and Gojo knows it; a bark of true, delighted laughter, not his usual giggle, echoes in the kitchen, and he is still chuckling while his footsteps sound, signaling he is leaving. "Hurry, hurry, or we're dragging you along!"
"Yeah, yeah."
Megumi does not even have enough time to start doing the dishes before he is already interrupted once more. "Fushiguro!" Yuuji's head pops up around the door frame, face flushed and eager. "Come on, get ready! If you stay here, you can't pick your own favorites out of the snacks aisle!"
"Oh, so I am invited to the sleep over, too?" Megumi gives back, trying and failing to even pretend to be offended. "Because nobody asked me."
Strangely enough, that actually seemed to give the other pause. Blinking, Yuuji tilts his head, clearly puzzled. "But it was your idea in the first place, wasn't it?"
"Oh." For a beat, blinking stupidly at nothing is all he can really do. Because, well, Yuuji is right, isn't he? He did propose the whole thing, even if did not think they would jump at the opportunity quite like that. "Well then. Alright."
"Heh!" Yuuji's grin returned full force and he gave a quick thumbs up. "We're gonna wait outside for you!"
"Mh. Be right there."
Footsteps hurry away, and Megumi is left to stare at his wet hands, at the dishes he was supposed to do. What he would be doing right now if this is was a normal day.
"Fushiguro, come on!"
"We're waiting!"
A grin nearly splits his face, and he shakes his head, flaps his hand to get the worst of the water off. "Coming!" He bellows in the direction of the three voices still calling for him – are they actually doing a chorus right now? - laughing himself.
Who is he kidding? This is a normal day. Not the kind of day any other Jujutsu Sorcerer would have, maybe, but a pretty normal one for him ever since he has met these crazy people.
He would not want it any other way.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ JJK ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"You're really good at this, Kugisaki!"
"I said I am."
The movie has been droning on for about ten minutes now. It is a comedy, because none of them really felt like watching action or horror, and it seems actually quite funny.
Despite that, none of them is really paying attention to it.
Megumi is busy people-watching, curled into a corner of the couch; Yuuji and Gojo are sitting on the ground in front of him, comparing their painted nails and all but cooing over it. And Nobara, taking up the leftover space of the couch as if it is her throne and she is the queen overlooking her subjects, is openly gloating about their praise.
"I actually like turquoise now," Yuuji declares, waggling his fingers in front of his face and smiling every time the color catches the light.
"Told you," Nobara tosses her hair over her shoulder, smirking. Her own fingers, crowned with nails in a color she had called "pearl", tap a quick staccato against her proudly crossed arms. "I'm the expert, and you should listen to me."
"Alright, alright I get it, oh mighty Kugisaki." Yuuji ducks away from the pillow she throws at him, laughing merrily.
"You have an eye for color, that's for sure." Gojo muses. Holding up his hands, fingers spread wide and showing off the blue paint with glitter, he croons, "Look at this! It matches my sparkling personality!"
Nobara rolls her eyes with a groan of despair while Yuuji snorts so hard it nearly makes him fall over backwards.
Megumi is smiling too much to really put any bite behind it, but at least attempts to stop the nonsense before it can get out of hand, "Gojo, don't make us listen to you being you all night."
"So harsh!" Their teacher does not seem bothered by it at all, despite his whining words. He picks the pillow Megumi had thrown earlier up and swats at Megumi's feet with it. "Fushiguro, you haven't told us what you think yet."
"Oh, yeah!" Brightening instantly, Yuuji joins in on the fun and pokes at Megumi's legs despite the halfhearted grumbling he gets for it. "What do you think? You like it?"
"Yes, sing me praises already," Nobara commands haughtily, smirking when he glowers at her for it.
"Why are you teaming up on me now?"
"Because we want to hear you say it!"
"Why are you even asking if you know already," Megumi mutters, rolling his eyes. It is a lost battle he is fighting here, and they know it; heck, he knows it, too. As if he stands a chance against the combined force of three equally eager and knowing grins. Still, he sighs as if this surrender cost him plenty. "Alright, alright. It's good, okay? I like it."
It is in no way a glowing praise, of course. Despite that, their reaction is instant and completely over the top, just like Megumi expected. Both Yuuji and Nobara cheer as if they just won the jackpot and high five with a loud slap while Gojo throws a double thumbs up and declares "Victory!"
"You're all ridiculous, I hope you know that." He can only shake his head at their antics, ducking his head to try and hide his grin. His gaze catches on the paint as he does – a deep sea green is not what he expected Nobara to go for, here, but he is truthful that he does like it. It is a nice blend of the bright color she chose for Yuuji, and the darker one of Gojo, and complimenting her own. Like they are wearing team colors. He likes that thought.
It is also a thought he is absolutely keeping to himself because they will never stop teasing him otherwise.
"Let's take pictures!"
Megumi's smile drops and his head snaps around so fast to a widely grinning Gojo, he actually feels his headache come back. "Forget it-…"
"Okay," Nobara answers at the same time. Yuuji seems about to cheer as well but interrupts himself, looking worried, "Ah, Fushiguro, do you not like to have your picture taken?"
Now they are all three looking at him again, two mildly worried, and the third sporting an absolutely too cheerful grin. Megumi glowers at the later and wrinkles his nose, then sighs. "Not that much."
"He worries he is not photogenic," Gojo comments all too readily. In answer, Megumi pulls the pillow he's still flapping around happily out of his hand and throws it in his general direction. It misses, of course. Damn omnipotence and all that. "Shut it."
"It's just for fun," Nobara comments before a full on pillow fight can break out. "If you don't want to, you don't have to."
"I will make silly faces so I look way worse than you," Yuuji offers readily.
Their readiness to drop the fun for his sake is what makes Megumi relax again and he huffs a fond breath. "Nah. It's fine. Just – not too many."
"Let's go with a group picture then," Gojo says it so readily that it dawns on Megumi that this was very likely his plan all along. The man has even his phone in his hand already, damn him, waving it around. "This will go in the group chat for your senpais to see and be jealous of!"
"Uh, we have a group chat?"
"We do now!"
"… You really did plan ahead the entire time, didn't you."
"That's Sensei for you."
"Whatever. Let's make them jealous!"
And so, for the second time in not even twenty-four hours, Megumi finds himself squashed in between two people – three, even, this time – and does not mind it. They are all trying to get onto the couch and simultaneously attempting to fit their faces and their hands into the picture, and somehow the entire thing has spiraled into a mess of limbs and laughter. Nobara's cheek is smooshed against Megumi's so he can feel her wide grin as much as he can hear her laugh. On his other side, Yuuji's chin rests on his shoulder, the boy's arm is around his waist, bright laughter shaking them both.
"This should do iiiit… there we go!" Gojo grins in triumph while he uses the arm around all three of their shoulders to tug them closer into his side, positioning the phone in the right angle above all of their faces at the same time. "All hands in position? Looking at the camera? Get ready – cheese!"
There is absolutely no way he is going to say that, Megumi thinks at the same time as Nobara and Yuuji and Gojo enthusiastically chorus "Cheeeese!" at a volume that is enough to make his ears ring.
And, anyway. He doubts he could even say it if he wanted to.
For he is smiling too widely to speak, laughing whole heartedly the entire time he gets swayed back and forth in their group embrace; for the moment without a care in the world.