– Several months prior –
I have indulged him too much, he thinks as he massages his temple in annoyance. The occurrence was far too often for his liking. The extension of his patience for him should constitute an affront against his eminence.
The King of Curses and his esteemed bride are currently situated in a secluded area near the frosty mountainside, where an open-air hot spring is exclusively for their taking. No one else was allowed to venture into this area lest getting sliced in half on the spot. With a panoramic view of the lush forest beneath them, it was the perfect breather for one newly pregnant Yuuji.
Yuuji had been incessant in his yammering that he was feeling too cooped up in their estate. He had been suffering from heavy morning sickness as of late, leaving him bed-ridden during most of his waking hours. But as the days grow shorter and the first set of snow began to fall, the esteemed bride has decided enough rest is enough.
"I am pregnant, not paralyzed! And I'm all better now, see?" Yuuji gives Sukuna a beaming smile — one that is guaranteed to sway anyone. The cursed being was not amused with his human, with the scowl on his roguish face being more apparent.
Before Sukuna could get a word in – and a smack in the head – Yuuji takes two of his large hands and clasps them with his smaller ones. He then gazes up at him with those pleading, deep honey eyes.
"Please, 'Kuna? It's been so long since we last took a trip there, only for the two of us." The longing in Yuuji's tone made Sukuna face his little bride. "I just miss going out freely with you, like we used to..." Ah, his favorite human can be too adorable for his own good.
"I'll even wash your stinky tummy mouth!" Yuuji proudly states with a silly thumbs up.
Now that remark earned Yuuji a particularly hard flick on his forehead. He immediately wailed about how he was going to get dumber from that 'critical' hit. Sukuna was tempted to smack him again for being ridiculous. But in the end, he begrudgingly gave in to Yuuji's wishes.
From where he stood, the King of Curses watches silently as his little bride strips off the last of his heavy garments, his noticeable baby bump now on full display along with the rest of him. The gust of steam from the natural onsen makes his supple body glisten in the light. The sun's rays were gradually setting over them, cloaking the dips and curves on Yuuji's body in various hues of gold and scarlet, giving him an ethereal glow.
Sukuna could look at him forever and it wouldn't be enough.
Yuuji takes a step towards the edge of the onsen. Not minding the biting cold in the winter air, he raises a leg and directly plunges his foot to test the water. With widened eyes, Yuuji immediately lets out a loud yelp after realizing the notably high temperature.
"Eek! Hot, too hot!"
Sukuna could only snort at his antics. He's really bonded to this idiot. One cannot fault him for wanting to own that pretty face, but still — how the mighty have fallen. And they fell hard.
"Had enough?" Sukuna asks his little bride, mirth evident in his fiery crimson eyes. "Let us retire for the night before you bring more misfortune upon yourself and that offspring with your recklessness."
A small frown forms on Yuuji's face. He rubs his hands around the small bump on his body before shooting a pointed look at Sukuna. The latter smirks at him in return.
"'That offspring' you speak of is our baby, Sukuna-sama," he dutifully reminds his curse husband. "And I would like to soak in a little longer, thank you very much."
Without waiting for a reply, Yuuji turns away from the cursed being and gently immerses himself in the hot spring bath, welcoming the heat on his shivering skin. He hums in contentment.
Sukuna settles himself not too far from the edge of the spring. He'd rather wait out until the brat is finished with his bath, then they can finally return to the safety of their abode. Conjuring a kiseru on one hand, he blows a cloud of smoke into the chilly air.
"You know," Sukuna begins to say as he glances at Yuuji. "You're quite lucky your impudence hasn't cost you yet, my little bride. I would have ripped out your tongue otherwise." Sukuna puffs another smoke, staring down at his human.
"I know you won't, Suku." Yuuji continues to wade through the milky blue waters, unbothered by the underlying threat from the cursed being. "You'd miss my tongue too much, anyway." Yuuji has the gall to wink at him. Sukuna should have devoured him right then and there.
Yuuji slowly raises himself from the onsen, droplets of water cascading down his form as he approaches the cursed being. Sukuna eyes him heedfully as he blows another puff of smoke from his pipe.
Yuuji extends a hand towards his curse husband, a sweet smile adorning his face as he addresses him. "Join me, please?"
"If you freeze to death prancing around naked like that, I'll leave your corpse to rot. Maybe then I wouldn't have to deal with such a loud-mouthed idiot." Sukuna replies, setting down his kiseru. He would be lying if he said he didn't prefer Yuuji like this, all bare and bright for him. Only for him.
"I hear ya, you big oaf." Yuuji beams at him, noting the well-hidden concern from his significant other. He doesn't let his extended hand drop until Sukuna takes it with his much larger one and they both head to the hot bath once again.
The King of Curses helps his little bride into the water first. This time, it was Yuuji who was subtly admiring Sukuna as the cursed being unveils his kimono, revealing a herculean form covered in intricate black markings. Yuuji held in a breath while watching the expanse of his rippling muscles, along with the scars adorning them. His deep honey eyes trailed all the way down to a large half-hard member. Yuuji suddenly felt his throat go dry, the heat in his body pooling below his gut, growing hot white.
The King of Curses wasn't unaware of his little bride's barely concealed desire, and he can't help but be smug. "Like what you see, brat?"
With his eyes refocusing, Yuuji is taken out of his daze in a flash and struggles to form a coherent sentence.
"W—what? I wasn't staring!" He weakly says in defense. Trying to calm his rapidly beating heart, Yuuji turns away from Sukuna. The smaller male puts an ample distance between them in the water while he attempts to mentally convince himself that the red tinting his cheeks was due to the natural steam.
Sukuna was tempted to let a small smile show on his face. Oh how amusing you are, my little bride.
Submerging his lower half in the water, Sukuna instantly finds himself in front of a blushing Yuuji, who still refuses to face him.
"Are you being shy now, my little bride?" Sukuna whispers close to Yuuji's ear, prompting the smaller male to release a pleasing shudder. "It's nothing you haven't seen before."
"Suku…don't tease me now…" Yuuji whimpers, holding on to his small baby bump.
Without warning, Sukuna envelops Yuuji with two large arms and proceeds to carry him bridal style. The smaller male utters a surprised squeal before he was gingerly set down on his curse husband's lap while the latter lies back against the edge of the hot spring.
Just when Sukuna finally felt himself relax, Yuuji was busy scrambling to adjust his lithe body in Sukuna's hold, making the cursed being emit a low growl.
"Brat, stop fidgeting like that if you still want to walk rightly tomorrow." It was more of a tease than a warning, Yuuji knows that. Nevertheless, he gulped in nervousness, stilling in his movements. His pregnancy was not a hindrance when it comes to Sukuna satiating his desire for him. If anything, the thought of wrecking his pregnant bride spurs on the King of Curses even more.
"I can't help it, okay?" Yuuji mumbles against Sukuna's chest, his small hand tracing the embedded black markings. "The hormones are making me act up and all."
"I have already told you that we can get rid of that parasite thus relieving you of any more affliction," Sukuna says casually while playing with the wisps of Yuuji's faded pink hair. "You're the only one who insists to keep carrying that troublesome chore."
"Why are you so against our baby, Sukuna?"
Heaving a deep exhale, the esteemed bride positions himself so that he can talk properly with his curse husband. Yuuji was now looking at Sukuna with a hardened reflection, his deep honey eyes filled with concern. "Are you ashamed of me—"
"That is not true. It's not the case at all." Sukuna cuts him off before he could even finish that statement.
"Then why…? Why won't you tell me anything?" Yuuji asks, slumping against Sukuna's hold. "I know I'm the one who asked to keep them, but you still won't give me a reason as to why I shouldn't have. It makes me feel like I'm the one burdening you, Sukuna."
Tears were beginning to well up in Yuuji's eyes and Sukuna mentally berates himself for being the cause of such an upsetting expression. The cursed being lets out a heavy sigh, hugging his bride closer to him, not wanting to let go until he's sure that Yuuji feels better.
"Yuuji, look at me," Sukuna says as his large hand tenderly lifts up Yuuji's chin, making the smaller male face him with those glimmering, deep honey eyes. "You are not a burden. You may be a gigantic pain in the ass, but you were never a burden."
"And I will personally drag to hell the corpse of any unfortunate fucker who makes you feel less than who you are." Yuuji gives off a tearful laugh at that, and what a melody it is to Sukuna's ears. "You are far too good and too important to me."
Yuuji was his chosen bride, his favored human, and they were bonded for life. His one and only brat. There was no other being throughout heaven and earth that he would honor more.
"I still don't get why you're against me having this baby." Yuuji caresses the tattoos on his cheek. His deep honey eyes boring into fiery crimson ones as if all his questions could be answered if he only looked within. "Don't you want a family with me?"
"You are my family, Yuuji. Can't you understand that?" Sukuna takes a sharp, fissuring breath before continuing. "This 'baby' you want to protect, it's beyond your comprehension right now. A cursed being isn't supposed to beget an offspring with a human. The human will die in preserving the anomaly in its womb."
A stunned expression settles on Yuuji's face. The shock of it seeped into his bones, leaving him with cold dread inside despite the steaming water they were immersed in. But Sukuna continued, he had to let him know.
"When we bonded, I didn't believe in such possibility. But then you started manifesting the basic symptoms of any other child-bearer." Sukuna shakes his head in disbelief, clutching Yuuji's hands tightly.
"We have no idea what this thing inside of you is capable of, brat. It may feel alive to you, but I can sense no human nor curse energy from it."
A blanket of silence falls over them. The pensive look on Yuuji's face lingers for a long while, and then it dissipates — turning into a conviction.
"I won't die," Yuuji assures his curse husband, his hold on him growing tighter. "I won't leave you, Sukuna."
"No. You fucking won't."
"And I still want to have this baby with you." The King of Curses nearly rolled all of his four eyes at his little bride. Why does he even bother? He is clearly bonded not just to an idiot, but a suicidal one at that.
Yuuji bumps his forehead against Sukuna's, trying to get the larger male to listen. "I'm not screwing around. I want this baby with you. Even if the odds are against me…I have you, Sukuna. I always have you and you have me."
"I'm not a miracle worker, you fucking brat." Sukuna does the opposite as the King of Curses, in fact.
Yuuji detaches himself from Sukuna's hold, standing upright between the larger male's thighs and focusing all his attention on him. In this angle, his small baby bump hovers against the surface of the milky blue water. Yuuji grabs one of Sukuna's large hands and places it against his baby bump.
"You did give me a miracle, Suku. You love me and we made this happen." Yuuji gives him a warm smile, his face full of hope. "If there is a chance that I might die, then there's a chance that I'll survive, too."
The King of Curses smiles wryly at him. "You're awfully optimistic for someone who is essentially walking with one foot in the grave."
The esteemed bride simply shrugs, mirroring his smile. "I fell in love with you and made a vow on it. I was bound to run into the worst things."
Yuuji draws closer, tilting up his head. He could feel Sukuna's breath against his own as he sealed their lips together in a soft, sweet kiss. Shifting their bodies closer, Yuuji wraps his thighs around Sukuna, their moans reverberating throughout the open-air onsen.
Before Sukuna could taste more of him, Yuuji breaks away for air and locks eyes with his cursed being, imploring the other with his heated gaze.
"Please, Suku. Please protect our baby with me, no matter what happens."
Promise me.