When Satoru Gojo came to Kyoto for a special mission, he thought it might take him a day to be over and done with it. But a day turned into two, turned into three and when it was finally finished he was not just exhausted but also really annoyed. In such a foul mood he didn't like going back to Jujutsu Tech, especially not when he was teaching the next day. He preferred to put in the effort to be in a good mood, a happy mood, to make learning fun. There were already more than enough reasons for sorrows that made learning this kind of profession anything but fun.

Before he can dwell on any sour feelings or -God forbid- any sad memories, he decided to go somewhere to take his mind off of it all. Somewhere where it would be impossible to be in a bad mood. Somewhere with happy faces, cute girls and delicious sweets.

A Maid Café! That'll do the trick!

He once heard of a really nice one here in Kyoto. Well, he heard it from a guy he met on the street. Well, actually the guy was handing out flyers for the Maid Café, but never mind that! Who cares where he got it from. He just wanted to see some light and colors and good atmosphere.

That being said, when he arrived there he had to admit to himself that he might've overestimated the level of joy going on in these kinds of places. To be fair he's never really been to a Maid Café and seeing it now he knew why.

The guys there were actually quite pathetic. Undesirable, unkept and, worse of all, desperate! He stuck out like a sore thumb. Not only because he was much taller than anyone there, but he was also really good looking, especially today where he opted for a casual look with his oversized shirt and tight black jeans. He preferred sunglasses to the blindfold when he was out casually. They didn't attract so much attention . Well, usually they didn't… Not today, though. They made him look sexy and mysterious, yet also flirty, when his sky-blue eyes peeked out from them every once in a while. It made the guys stare daggers and the girls, in their cute little uniforms, gossip and giggle.

They stood around the counter, debating which one of them shall be the brave (and lucky) one to service him. Before they could make up their mind however, a blue haired girl, coming from the kitchen, swept past them, arms packed full of dishes, too busy to notice the fuss. She walked right in his direction, but before she could reach his table, she unloaded the dishes at another table. And while she stood there and served the guy with a smile and some very rehearsed sounding lines of affection, Gojo got a real good look at her.

Long light-blue hair made up into two adorable pigtails to either side of her head topped off by a black and white maid cap. Her outfit: a smart mix between the classic French maid look and some traditional Japanese details. The skirt: seductively short, worn with some black stockings cutting deliciously into her thighs. But what really gave her away were the bangs - those weird, asymmetrical bangs! And before Miwa Kasumi even turned around to him a wicked smile was already plastered on Gojo's face.

"Welcome to Shinigami Maid Café, dear Sir. We put your worries to rest! I'm here to protect you from all the evil spirits-..." Kasumi recited the scripted greeting with its choreographed gestures so automatically, she didn't even register who sat before her. "Huh...?" was all she could get out when she finally noticed.

"Well, hello to you too, Miwa-san." Gojo replied with a wide grin.

For a moment they just looked at one another. To him this was the most hilarious thing he could've imagined. To her the most mortifying.

G…G…Gojo…. Gojo Satoru! What on earth is Gojo Satoru doing here? her thoughts racing. There was not a single logical scenario that would make this meeting make sense.

While she was buffering he had the opportunity to take in the make-up on her face. It might've been the most made-up he's ever seen her. Pretty, with lots of sparkles and glitter; little hearts were outlined with red blush all over her cheeks like freckles. The lip-gloss made her lips look extra plump. He had already considered her cute before, but seeing her like this opened up so many more ideas in his mind - and some of them quite naughty…

Miwa, on the other hand, was frozen in shock and embarrassment. She stood, unable to decide what would be the best course of action, her thoughts racing: I can't believe this is happening! Me in this ridiculous outfit! Him with his face! Oh God, his face… Why are his eyes so gorgeous? I don't think he's ever looked at me this directly. And I'm here, practically wearing a fetish-costume… Oh God, he's staring. He's waiting for me to say something. I don't know what to say! Should I pretend like I don't know him? Technically, I'm at work... No, that would be rude! I don't want him to be offended! Oh God, do something, Kasumi! Say something! Anything!

Her continued silence was now starting to make Gojo a little unsure himself. Usually she was so happy to see him. This was ridiculous! He would just break the ice, very casually:

They both started talking at the same time. "Fancy meeting you here, in a place like this-" "–And what can I bring you, good Sir?!"

He stopped himself, irritated by her cold professionalism. But when he noticed the other maid-girls in the background staring daggers at Miwa, it dawned on him.

"Ohh, I see, we can't talk freely. Gotcha!" he said with a wink, "Don't worry, I won't get you into trouble."

He started ordering, "Then I'll just have the Kitsune Parfait. Aaaaand~... Hmm, oh, yes! The birthday special!" The last part summoned a wide grin on his face, but Kasumi couldn't help but feel utter distress at his request. The birthday special included a piece of cake with sparklers and the Maid, who serves it, has to not only sing 'happy birthday', but also perform a short, but very embarrassing dance. He didn't know what he was doing to her, although she wasn't sure it would've mattered if he did. Something told her he would be up for that kind of mischief.

"Really? But it's not even your birthday!" Kasumi bursts out, finally falling out of character.

Satoru blinked in delight to have finally gotten an authentic reaction out of her.

"But how would you know?" he said grinning.

"Because your birthday is in December."

"Yes, but…" he said with a wickedly teasing smile, "How would you, a stranger I have never met, know that?"

Busted!

She had to get her composure back. So she plastered her most professional smile on her face and replied in friendly neutrality, "Of course, one parfait and one birthday special for my most special patron."

When she left his table, he was beaming with mischievous amusement. He was right to come to the Maid-Café this evening, after all. This was truly the most amusing thing that could've happened today.

The food Miwa came back with, was much more extravagant than he had expected - all kinds of decorated and colorful and much more than he bargained for. But it was all worth it for the silly little dance she had to perform for his 'birthday'. It involved a slightly different version of the Happy Birthday song, an Idol-style choreographed dance and a sparkling wand that shot a bunch of glitter at him at the end - as a 'magical blessing'. It was everything he could've wished for and more. He enjoyed it all with childish delight, especially Miwa's utter embarrassment. She looked really cute, though. And he didn't really expect her to be so good at dancing either. It made her even more intriguing in his eyes.

However, to Kasumi the whole affair was mortifying! Utterly mortifying! It was more degrading than working in a Maid Café in the first place. But doing all of these theatrics in front of someone she regarded as highly as Gojo Satoru was so much more dreadful. How could she ever recover from this embarrassment? She made such a fool of herself. Here he was, looking so cool and she was dancing like a third-grade Idol-star. She was sure he could never take her seriously again after that.

When that disaster was over, Miwa opted to help out in the backroom with the manager. She didn't know how she could go back out there and face Gojo again. Fortunately, it really wasn't hard to find another girl to take over her section - especially with him sitting there. One of her colleagues called it: "finally some decent eye-candy in the shop". Under normal circumstances she would've agreed, if she hadn't so thoroughly embarrassed herself.

It's gonna be fine, though. He's gonna be gone, when her shift had ended and then the next time they might meet she'll just pretend like it never happened.

That was the plan at least…

Because when she finally got off work and opened the backdoor to leave; who was standing there, but Gojo Satoru, casually greeting her: "Hey, Miwa-san!"

And how could he resist? It was all such delicious fun. Teasing her turned out to be quite delightful! She turned the cutest shade of pink that reached up all the way to her ears.

Kasumi stood before him in her civilian clothes, which he admittedly never seen before. It also wasn't exactly what he would've expected from her. Gone were the girly frills of the Maid-outfit and gone the glittery Makeup. She was wearing a dark band T-Shirt, with a striped long-sleeved shirt underneath, paired with a short pleated skirt and quite a bit of chains and silver jewelry, together with long stockings and heavy boots. It all made her look like one of these alt- or e-girls. Somehow he imagined her to be more of a soft pastel kinda gal, but this didn't look bad at all and -weirdly enough- made her hair cut and color make way more sense.

He was wishing for a smile though, but her face just looked like she'd seen a ghost.

"What? Still not happy to see me?!" he said with a theatrical pout.

She frowned and then let out a deep sigh.

What kind of a welcome is that? he thought.

But then she finally said: "I am so sorry, Gojo-sama…! I was just really surprised. I would've never expected to see you here." she pointed behind her at the Café. "It caught me completely off guard…"

"Obviously." he said with a cheeky smile, "But I wouldn't have expected you in a place like this either, so what's up with that?"

She looked at him. For a moment she was really happy to see him smile at her so casually and far away from all kinds of academy business. But then the shame about her weird side-job set back in and all she could answer was a deep dramatic sigh.

"That bad?!" he laughed.

She didn't answer at first, only staring at her shoes and fidgeting with her fingers. Then she mumbled, "It's really embarrassing..."

"It can't be that bad."

Again she couldn't answer and he was starting to get a little less charmed and a bit more impatient.

"I'm sure it's not that bad."

"I don't think you would understand..." she said embarrassed.

That peaked his interest. Maybe she was into this kind of thing. Maybe she really liked dressing up and didn't want anyone to find out.

"Try me." he said.

She took a sharp breath and he perked up.

"Well, the thing is..." she started and continued after finding some shred of bravery: "I'm really poor."

"Eh?" confusion on his face.

"It's true."

"I wasn't doubting, I'm just confused how this relates to the Maid thing."

"Well, I wanted to help out my family financially. And I thought earning money through the jobs at the academy would be enough, but the truth is..."

She had to stop herself again, because even just looking at the strongest sorcerer in the world and admitting the next thing was just unbearably hard. She couldn't get the words out.

He had no clue what she was on about, but was really dying to know.

"Well?" he said, trying to stoke her.

"Well..." her voice came out all high-pitched and weak. "I'm not actually that good."

There it was.

But he was still confused: "Good at what?"

She could feel the red-hot embarrassment rising on her cheeks, "At being a jujutsu sorcerer!"

"I'm sure you're not that bad."

"Actually I am. That became really obvious when Zenin-san effortlessly took my katana from me at the last Goodwill Event."

"To be fair, Maki is really good; much better than her rank accounts for." he said nonchalantly.

She was getting more agitated: "I slept through the entire action when the event was hijacked!"

"But your pitch at the baseball game wasn't half-bad." he joked. But that just made her more frustrated.

"I told you, you wouldn't understand...!" she didn't yell at him but her frustration was audible.

He paused and she sighed, folding her arms over her chest averting her gaze.

"You just don't get it..." she started another attempt at explaining herself, "You have all these powers and talents and you're from a rich, prestigious family... I wanted to help out my family, but it turns out when you're not that naturally talented you don't reach the Second Grade that easily. I can't go on missions by myself and bag the whole reward money, I always have to share with everyone there and although that's not necessarily bad, it leaves me with too little to be an actual help to my family. So, I decided to take on a second job."

He didn't say anything at first, just taking in her tone, her posture, her genuine frustration. She was right, he didn't really understand what it felt like, but that didn't mean that he couldn't feel for her circumstances. It was the first time he regretted that she wasn't one of his students.

"Fair enough." he finally replied. She looked up at him, slightly relieved that he hadn't lost all respect for her; that he wasn't making fun of her.

"But can I ask why a Maid Café and not just a regular coffee shop or restaurant?"

She didn't hesitate this time, but she still couldn't look him in the eyes. "In short? The pay is decent and the tips are actually really great. And the regular customers are really rewarding."

"In what way?" for a moment he feared she was into old men.

"Well, they ask to buy me gifts and I tell them, for example, to buy me the books my brothers need for school, without telling them that it's for my brothers of course. That is a huge financial relief, textbooks are really expensive." she said, playing with her hair.

He was impressed. Clever girl playing her cards well, even if she's working with a shitty hand. An amused smile played on his face.

Then his gaze turned ever so slightly conspiratorial, "But don't you ever let them give you gifts that you actually want?"

She thought about it and had to admit, "No, I don't think so... it never really crossed my mind." then added, "And besides, they couldn't give me what I wanted anyway."

"And what would that be?" His voice was velvety and smooth. That made her look up at him and fully meet his eyes. They had a foxy gleam in them. She was suddenly weirdly aware of the two of them. Standing in an alley at the back of a now closed-up and dark Maid Café. Late at night. Aware of herself as a woman and him as a man - a really tall, really handsome man. And nothing and no one around. She could feel a lustful heat rise up from inside her. He didn't move but she felt the need to take a step back, leaning her back at the brick wall behind her for support. Her knees suddenly felt weak.

"I-... I don't know..." she stammered, "I never really thought about it..."

A wicked smile spread over his face, "That's a lie if ever I heard one."

She felt busted. He looked at her as if he could see right through her - right to her heart at the silly, little girl crush she had been fostering.

But he decided to be kind and not push her on the matter; instead he shifted in his stance, defusing the tension. He turned his smile into a big, dumb grin. "But there has to be something else you must like about this job!"

She could feel the shift in him and was all too grateful for it. She replied with an innocent, "Like what?"

"I don't know, how about the outfits?" he said with a funny grin.

She couldn't help but blush with embarrassment, "Oh God, no..."

"And the dancing?! I was really surprised that Miwa-san can dance like that!" he kept on teasing.

"Please don't bring that up…" burying her head in shame.

"I thought you looked really cute."

"Stop…!" squealing while sinking her head further down.

"Would you consider doing that again for my actual birthday?"

"Please, please, please don't come to the Café again. I've gotten enough weird stares and dumb questions."

"Why? What did they say?" he said with a mischievous twinkle.

She mumbled to avoid the question, but that only stoked him up more, "Tell me. Tell me. Tell me. Tell me. Tell me." pestering her.

She gave in, "They asked stupid stuff, like, if I know you, if you were my boyfriend and if not then if you might have a girlfriend and if I could give you their numbers or introduce you."

He giggled with wicked delight. "And what did you say?"

"I said, I didn't know you and that if they wanted to talk to you they could have my tables."

"Oh, so that's why you vanished." That also explained why the servers kept changing, what felt like, every two minutes and all made such clumsy attempts at flirting.

Though, he wanted to tease her just a little more. "But you could've just said that I'm your boyfriend." he said obnoxiously flirty.

She knew what he was doing, but that didn't stop her from blushing - it was one thing to imagine it but hearing him say it was something very different. She couldn't let that stand. Feisty she replied, "Because it's not true." And before he could even think of a witty answer, she continued, "I actually have a boyfriend."

That got him wide-eyed and in shock, "How?"

"Because he asked me out and I said 'yes'." she said, a little insulted at the question.

"Who?" That sounded a little more serious than intended.

"No one you know."

"Then who?"

Now a teasing smile spread over her face. The banter made her bolder than she thought she could be. "Why do you need to know?" she asked sweetly.

"Because, why don't you ask him for money?"

Outrageous! she thought. "I would never do that!" she answered.

"Why not? That would certainly take some weight off of your shoulders."

"I want to earn that money myself!"

"So, you rather flirt and dance for random strangers, earning your own money, than to ask your boyfriend for financial help?"

He got her there.

For a moment she didn't know what to say, but then finally, "...Well, yes, actually…" And then added with a little more conviction, "Besides, he doesn't have that kind of money anyway…"

"I'm just wondering how you have time for a boyfriend on top of everything."

"He studies a lot. He doesn't have that much time either."

"You're sure he's real and not made up?"

"Why would I make up a boyfriend?"

"To make me jealous."

"Why would you be jealous…?"

She looked at him genuinely puzzled. But he raised an eyebrow, his sky-blue eyes peeking out over his sunglasses. Then he winked and it clicked.

"Eeehh?!" she said, turning bright red, "You're joking!"

"Yes, I am." shutting her down immediately with a grin.

The disappointment rushed over her like an icy wind. But she was also the slightest bit relieved. She had no idea what she would've done if he was serious.

He laughed at her a bit and she played into it by pouting a little.

What Kasumi wasn't aware of, though, was that he wasn't entirely joking. It was more a test to see how far her admiration for him actually went. He made a mental note that apparently 'Miwa Kasumi had quite the crush on him' - and it might go further than just looking up to him as a mentor or the strongest sorcerer.

"Gojo-sama…" Kasumi started up carefully, snapping him out of his thoughts. "Please…" she said with the utmost humility, "Please, don't tell anyone about the Maid thing…"

Well, how could he tease her about that? He had also been teasing her enough for one day.

"Don't worry." he said with a reassuring smile, "Your secret is safe with me."

She smiled back, "Thank you, Gojo-sama."

In the end they smiled and waved at each other and went their separate ways. For now.

In the following weeks Gojo barely ever thought of that night. Although he kinda wished he made a photo of Miwa in the Maid outfit and pigtails - that really was a sight to behold.

But he had lots of other things occupying his mind. He almost missed when Miwa was in Tokyo for a mission. He might've even missed her entirely if he didn't just walk by.

Still sunken in thought, he could've sworn he heard someone sniffling while walking by the secluded little courtyard near the classrooms. He would've kept walking if it wasn't for the "Fucking bastard!" yelled in Miwa's voice. That had his attention!

Lo and behold, there she was, Miwa Kasumi sitting on the ground of the tiny little garden, leaning against the gallery wall, staring at her phone, mumbling profanities with tears in her eyes.

The poor thing. How could he possibly just walk past that?

"Miwa-san?" Gojo asked, very carefully approaching her. "Is that you?"

She tensed up.

He went on, "Is everything okay?"

Of all people! Why did it have to be HIM finding her there? In such a pathetic state. She really didn't want to look so weak in front of him but it was rather hard, when the wound was just now inflicted. First the Maid thing and now sobbing on the floor - just her luck that the one person, whom she really didn't want to see her like this, had to run into her in the most inopportune moments.

At first she couldn't look at him. She tried to play it all down by sloppily wiping her tears away. Then she gave him a big fake smile and a thumbs-up,"Yes, everything A-Okay."

"Are you sure…?" He was obviously not believing such a blatant lie.

"Yeah... Of course... All good..." she said while the tears came flooding back into her eyes.

But in the end she couldn't keep the tears at bay. They came streaming down her face, while she still had her thumbs up, desperately trying to keep the smile going.

"I'm fine. Really…" she sniffled.

He crouched down next to her and asked with a concerned face, "Then why did you curse out your phone?"

Oh fuck, he heard that?! she thought. And that was the last straw. She started bawling like she was a character in a Ghibli movie. And not 'pretty crying', like all girls wished they could in front of their crush. No, gross sobbing and sniffling, making her face look more and more like a Noh mask. Very attractive…

Gojo, unfortunately, was definitely out of his depth with this one. He had never been good with girls crying. Not that he was uncomfortable exactly - he just didn't know what to do about it. So most of the time he made fun of them or teased them. But Miwa didn't deserve that. Miwa was a sweet girl. He liked Miwa. She didn't deserve to be teased when she was in earnest distress.

But he still didn't know what he was supposed to do about it. Comfort her? Would that make it better or worse? Just leave her alone? Would that be mean? Maybe she wanted to be alone. He started to regret that he said anything in the first place. Maybe he could just talk with her about it. That might help…

"What… What happened?" he started very carefully, "Did someone find out about your side job?"

She shook her head 'no', still trying to make herself stop crying - in vain.

"Is it about a mission?" he kept going, but looked around if there was someone else approaching - that would definitely make the whole thing worse. Or better? He didn't know anymore…

"No…" she finally got out, "It's stupid… Really, it's so stupid…"

"Do you… wanna talk about it?" he offered stiffly.

She finally stopped sobbing, wiping her tears away with the sleeve of her jacket. She took a deep breath and sighed.

"My boyfriend just broke up with me…" finally getting the words out. "Over text…" And saying that reignited the initial anger in her. "…He said he found another girl online and he likes her more than me, because she has a better figure…" she continued, feeling the urge to curse again.

"And then he sent me her instagram! As if I wanted to see my competition!" With that she threw her phone in anger, but before it could smash into the ground Gojo caught it, sending it floating back to them.

She thought he would give it back to her, instead he caught it himself. He wanted to open it, but Miwa ripped it from his hands before he got the chance.

"Sorry." he said, "I was just curious to see what you're up against…" sounding not nearly as guilty as he should've been for planning to invade her privacy like that.

She really couldn't allow him to see her phone! Especially not because of her phone-background. She cursed herself for using the photo they took together, but it was just too tempting.

"Why would you want that?" she asked nervously.

"For context" he shrugged, "I guess." Also he still didn't fully believe that her boyfriend was real, but he wouldn't hold that over her while she was crying.

She hesitated but still ended up opening the phone for him and went on the girl's instagram profile.

"That's her…" she held up the phone.

To Miwa she was miles out of her league and she totally understood why Takahata replaced her for all that.

Gojo gently took the phone from Miwa to get a better look. She was pretty, sure, but there was something very cold around her eyes, that wasn't really his cup of tea. He could see, though, why her 'boyfriend' might've fallen for it. Especially if he was around Miwa's age.

"Ah, don't worry. She looks like she's more style than substance." was his final verdict.

Miwa raised an eyebrow at him, "What do you mean? She's gorgeous!"

"Hmm… maybe, but that isn't everything."

"You're just saying that..."

"Nah… believe me. He might think that's what he wants, but you have something she doesn't and he doesn't know how to value it yet."

"And what would that be?" she said skeptically.

He gave her a warm smile and said in a silky smooth voice, "Kindness." making Miwa's heart beat faster. She averted her eyes shyly while the blood rushed into her face, spreading from ear to ear. Meanwhile, Gojo started snooping in her phone.

Closing the app immediately exposed him to her phone-background. For a moment he was taken aback to see himself smile back at him. But then a grin started to tuck on the corners of his lips. Mental note to himself: 'even with a boyfriend, Miwa still kept Gojo Satoru close with her at all times.' How cute!

Opening the messenger app, he found the chat of 'Takahata-chan '. That must be him. And by the last messages - all from the guy ruthlessly breaking up with Miwa, no mercy or empathy in his tone - Gojo knew he was right about him. He took a look at the profile pic and to his surprise he looked extremely average. There really wasn't anything special about him. How such a bland-looking guy could snag a girl like the instagram chick and break the heart of someone so sweet as Miwa was a mystery to him.

Finally, Miwa snapped out of her blushing stupor and noticed Gojo going through her phone. Blind panic flooded her, The photo! He can't see the photo!

"Ah! Gojo-sama…!" she wanted to rip the phone from him.

Instead he held it up with Takahata's profile picture on display, "Is that him?"

"…Yes…" Miwa admitted meekly.

He took one more look at the guy and gave her the phone back. Then said with a heartfelt smile, "You can do better!"

There it was again: her heart racing, pounding all the way up in her ears, "You think so…?"

"I know so." he said with a soft smile.

Gojo got back on his feet, "Come on. Don't let such a silly thing get you down." He reached out a hand to help her get up too, but she wasn't quite there yet.

She stared at his hand for a moment, then back at her phone with Takahata on it.

On the one hand she didn't really believe that she could do better. And on the other it wasn't that silly of a thing to her in the first place. To her it was a relationship that kept her grounded into something resembling normality. She met Takahata before she was scouted for the Academy. He was her last connection to her old life, when she was just a carefree Middleschooler. He was there when she started seeing the monsters that other people couldn't.. And even though he didn't understand it and told her it's just her mind playing tricks, he still was there to comfort her and gave her a shoulder to cry on when it was all too much. To her he was important and she thought she was also important to him. But being thrown away like that - canceled over text, replaced by an upgraded model who probably didn't come with all her difficulties and weaknesses - That was so… so… Humiliating!

She decided not to cry anymore. If this was all she was worth to him, then he didn't deserve her tears either. She would get him out of her system right here. Today!

"You're right!" she said, finally taking Gojo's hand and getting back up from the ground. "I'm not gonna cry anymore. I'm gonna get over it!" smiling at Gojo.

He felt glad that she could get out of her funk that quickly. There was something resilient and determined in her after all. He was starting to really like that.

But then she said, "And the best way to get over someone is to get under someone else! So, that's what I'm going to do today! I'm going to go out, get plastered and grind up against some cute guy!"

"Eh?" that took him entirely by surprise. Not the kind of 'determined' he ment!

"That's right. I'm done crying over him. I'm ready to get under someone else." she said with a big -now earnest- smile and a thumbs-up.

"Wait, what?"

"Thank you, Gojo-sama! You really helped me." still smiling, but she started to walk past him in order to leave.

"No... wait, that wasn't what I meant!" he said, but she was already waving him good-bye and started walking away, leaving him to contemplate what her proposition would mean.

His imagination suddenly ran wild with scenarios - of Miwa dancing in a club; creepy guys circling around her like sharks, hungry for some reckless, desperate piece of flesh; Miwa getting too drunk to defend herself, or worse! Miwa being too naive to notice how toxic those vultures actually are! He had to do something! It wasn't like he didn't trust her to be able to defend herself, it was more that she seemed determined not to, therefore he couldn't just let her leave like that.

"Miwa-san, wait up!" he came after her. She turned around.

"How about I come with you?" he asked, trying to sound as neutral as possible. He really didn't want to make it too obvious that he wanted to keep an eye on her.

She was flabbergasted, "Are you sure? Aren't you way too busy for that?"

Technically he was, there was always something for him to take care of. But he said, "Nah, I'm off the clock. It's fine."

She couldn't believe it. Her heart started fluttering like a little bird. THE Gojo Satoru wanted to go clubbing with her! That was a dream come true. A dream she didn't even know she had - scratch that: one she would've never allowed herself to have.

She looked at him with big, sparkling eyes, "Really?!"

"Really, really." he smiled with the slightest hint of nerves, but she didn't notice that. She was way too happy for this unlikely scenario.

And so they found themselves in a rather small-scale club, but that was what Gojo wanted. He wouldn't risk losing her in some big crowd. The club had only one dancefloor and the music was rather on the loungy, R&B side, but still very danceable. The moody lighting drenched everything in purples, blues and neon-pinks.

The club wasn't too packed yet, but it would fill up soon enough.

Miwa was giddy with excitement. She didn't want to admit it in front of Gojo but this was her first time in a real club. She never had anyone to go with her or was too shy to go by herself, but today was different! Because today someone actually went with her. Gojo Satoru went with her!

Before they went in she had taken it upon herself to modify her work outfit by taking off the suit jacket and tightening it around her waist, also rolling up her sleeves and opening the first few buttons of her dress shirt to show a little bit of cleavage - she was on the hunt after all. Her tie was tying up her hair in a high ponytail, almost looking like a bow. She felt cute and sexy, just right for the occasion. And although she knew he wasn't here as her escort or date or anything, she couldn't help but wonder what Gojo thought about her outfit.

Gojo didn't modify much of his clothes at all. He took off his blindfold though and replaced it with oval sunglasses, but that already had a huge effect. His white hair fell soft around his face and his mesmerizing eyes peeked out over his glasses every once in a while. He turned a lot of heads - women mostly. And he had in fact taken note of Miwa's party-look. He liked the ponytail and the way it swung from side to side when she walked. Also because it reminded him of the pigtails from her maid outfit. But overall he was more concerned with scanning the room, looking out for some potential creeps. And sure enough, there were quite a few gawking after Miwa while she was making her way over to the bar. They looked her up and down with a weird hunger in their eyes. He could tell that they expected her to be easy prey. Gojo stepped up closer to Miwa to make sure these men could see that he had her back against any of them.

Miwa was blissfully ignorant of all this. All she wanted right now was to get drunk. She might've been bold in her declaration to sleep with a stranger, but in practice she had only ever slept with one person and that only after they were already dating for two years. She wasn't exactly sure what she was doing...

"I'd like a whiskey neat, please!" was the first thing Miwa ordered when she reached the bar.

"Woah, there. Are you sure about that?" said Gojo from behind her.

"Why not?"

"Because it's quite strong."

"That's the point, isn't it?"

"Don't you wanna start with a cocktail first?"

"Nope." she said and on cue her whiskey arrived in front of her. She took a seat on one of the bar stools.

"And what can I do for you, Sugar?" the bartender asked Gojo. She was a small, busty woman in her mid-twenties, wearing a black vest which squeezed her boobs up in a way that made them look almost corseted. She was checking out Gojo with intense flirty-eyes.

The 'Sugar' took him a little by surprise and made him smile. "A Sex-on-the-Beach." he replied confidently.

Was he flirting back? The bartender certainly thought so, biting her lip a little. Miwa didn't want to admit it but she suddenly felt a pinch of jealousy. But then he took it all back by adding, "And make it a virgin, please."

Both women were looking at him funny. The bartender looked especially irritated - this wasn't sexy at all.

"Are you sure?" Miwa asked.

He took a seat next to her and replied with a smile, "Positive. Alcohol is not really my thing."

The bartender grew cold on him, "Coming right up." she said with a note of displeasure. She fixed up the drink while throwing a weird side-eye at the two of them. But that was the end of her flirting. Without a word she delivered the cocktail and turned her attention to a group of businessmen who just reached the bar.

"That could've been your shot." Miwa said, nudging to the bartender and taking a sip of her drink only to flinch at the burning oiliness that trickled down her throat - she didn't expect hard liquor to be this intense. A bit naive on her part.

"What shot?" he asked back.

She had to clear her throat a little before she could answer, "Your shot at getting laid tonight."

He raised his eye-brows in surprise before he started grinning. "Who says I'm trying to get laid?"

"You're not?" genuinely puzzled, "But why did you come then?"

"Uhm..." he was looking for a good excuse and scolded himself for not thinking one up sooner, "Maybe I just really want to dance."

She frowned at him, "You can dance?"

He played up being insulted, "Of course I can. I'm good at pretty much everything I try my hands on. I'm a fast learner, you know." He winked on the last sentence for emphasis.

She tried to imagine it, but something about his height and long limbs made it hard for her to see it. She did think of him as very attractive, but something about imagining his body proportions in motion was really hard for her.

Instead of entertaining this further, she decided to switch gears, "But that's gonna make this really awkward later. When I'm gonna go home with someone and you're still sitting here all alone..." she took another sip of her drink; noticing, that every time she did, it burned a little less.

"You're really determined about that, aren't you…" he replied.

"Sure am!" she said and took another generous sip, emptying her drink.

She raised her hand to signal the bartender to get her another one.

He frowned, a little (a lot) worried about her determination to throw all caution to the wind. She didn't strike him as a girl that would be so reckless - quite the opposite actually. He has seen 'reckless'. Hell, he's been 'reckless'! Usually he was the one doing poorly thought-through things and had to be reigned in by others. When did he become the responsible one?

"Listen..." he started up with as much tact as he could, "It might be none of my business, but I don't think that you find the medicine for your broken heart at the bottom of another drink. Or in the bed of some stranger for that matter."

"No, I know…" she said, a little repentant. "But you know what I might find?" He raised an eyebrow, questioning. She continued, "Fun! I might finally find some fun!" she took a sip of her new drink, letting it burn down her throat further.

"For years I hadn't had much fun at all. Always just trying to be there for everyone else. Always trying to spend time with my boyfriend-... well, ex-boyfriend now, I guess…" a pang of sadness came over her at the word and the weight of its meaning. "When we met up, we always did what he liked doing, which wasn't much, to be honest. We mostly stayed at his place and played video games, which is nice, but-…" she let out a deep sigh as if to clear out her lungs from the dust of the past. Then continued, "You know, I always wanted to go to a bar like this with him and try the whole menu. All those famous drinks people in movies ordered. And I actually really like dancing. I wanted to dance with him too, but he never wanted to go anywhere and he said that dancing is stupid, so I never brought it up again…"

She sat for a moment lost in her memories. All Gojo could do was listen. He gave her the space to sort out her feelings, occasionally sipping on his drink. He could see clearly that this stirred up much more than she had bargained for, things that she probably wished would've stayed buried. But now that the guy broke up with her it was like the rose-colored glasses had shattered and so many memories needed to be repainted in another light. He knew what that felt like...

"I mean at the end of the day..." she finally continued, "I feel almost as if I missed out on so many things of my youth. I know how that sounds. I know, I'm not that old, but-... This life we lead, this job we do... It's so dangerous and thinking how any day could be our last... It might sound silly to you but, it makes me feel like there are still so many experiences I want to have. So much more I want to do. So much I want to see. And I see other people my age do these things and I feel like I'm missing out. On life. On youth-... You know?"

She looked up at him, searching for an indication of him judging her for such a sentiment, but what she found was a whole lot of understanding. He knew exactly what she was talking about, but he didn't expect her to feel that way. A very soft and warm smile started to spread over his face. He was weirdly proud of her for understanding these things he had to go through a lot of death to fully comprehend.

His expression made her feel really warm inside. She couldn't help it. He was looking at her so clear and so direct - she felt so fully seen by him.

Shaking his head ever so slightly, "I can't argue with that.". he said.

"And as you know," he continued, "I understand a thing or two about fun, So if you allow me, then I'll be your fun-guide for the evening. Like a spirit guide of fun." He raised up his cocktail-glass. "To youth."

She was beaming with a smile, "To fun!" She raised her glass to meet his and they clinked them together in a triumphant toast.

"First order of business..." he turned to the bartender, "Excuse me, we would like some shots! Six to start with, thank you!"

Miwa flinched, "I can't do six shots by myself."

"'Course not. Half for you, half for me." he said with a wink in her direction.

"You're going to drink with me? But I thought you didn't like alcohol." Before she could continue the bartender put the tray of shots in front of them.

"Yeah, I don't." he said while dividing up the shots, "But some people are worth getting a little tipsy for." He smiled at her and she smiled back, blushing cutely. And then he took a shot glass and downed it in one smooth motion. She was weirdly impressed and followed suit, thereby thankfully not seeing the sour face he made afterwards. He really didn't like the bitter taste of liquor. Even avoiding it when he was a teenager and it was still considered 'cool'.

"I'm really glad." she said smiling to herself, reaching for the next shot, "Now we're both looking for someone to go home with and I don't have to feel bad for leaving you all alone later."

He almost spit out his drink, "That's not-... I'm still not gonna-... I still have no intention of hooking up with anyone tonight."

"But-..." she said embarrassed, "But I thought that's what you meant."

"Why are you so concerned with my love life?" raising an eyebrow at her.

Miwa was stunned. She had no real answer for that. "Maybe-... I just don't want you to be lonely..." she said, almost innocently.

"Who says I'm lonely?" He gave her a quizzing look.

"Huh?!" she asked, equally puzzled, "But I thought you were single? Or do you-... Do you have a girlfriend?" She tried to imagine Gojo with a girlfriend, but had to stop herself immediately before she could make herself too jealous.

"I don't. But that doesn't mean I'm looking for one."

Something about that answer stung like catching a splinter.

She shifted uncomfortably in her seat, "I'm sorry. I didn't mean-... I was just thinking that that's what you meant by "fun", because that's what I meant by 'fun'. But that's clearly not-..." She opted to defuse her discomfort by quickly taking another shot.

Her awkwardness was telling and a mischievous smile started tugging on the corners of his lips.

"Miwa-san, don't worry about me." he said, "I know how to have plenty of 'fun'..."

She looked up only to meet his eyes and an intense heat rose up inside her at the potent look he gave her. She felt almost undressed by his stare and he didn't make any attempt at breaking it. But she couldn't take it anymore.

"Well, that's good...!" she started to stammer while prying her eyes away. "That's great!" She didn't quite register what she was saying "I'm glad. I'm very happy you can find the time. Can't let you die a virgin, now, can we..."

That caught him entirely off guard and made him laugh whole-heartedly. She looked up in confusion.

"Do I look like a virgin to you?" he said, still laughing.

"No! I don't know-...maybe? I don't know!"

He laughed even more. "Really?! What about me?"

She started blushing, now fully in embarrassment, "I don't know...! It's not that you look like a virgin- It's more like- your schedule being so busy and all... I wouldn't even think you have the time, is all-..." She reached for her last shot of liquid-courage. She felt like she was just talking herself into a hole and really needed to stop.

The mischievous smile returned and he said velvety, "Oh, there is always time for that...!"

He raised his glass and their eyes met again. It made heat from her very core flood her whole body. She really started to question what he was doing to her. Was he flirting or toying with her?

"Fine. Okay. Not a virgin. Got it." she stammered, blushing profusely and drank her last shot in one fell swoop.

He also downed his drink but couldn't help but make a face at the taste of it. Miwa was surely better at this than him.

She thought to herself that she had already said enough silly stuff for the evening and it was time to get back on mission: getting laid! - With someone else! Not Gojo! Obviously... And before the idea could even fully form in her mind, an image of a shirtless Gojo on top of her already flashed before her eyes. It made her quickly jump down from her seat and take a few steps towards the dancefloor in the hopes of getting some distance between her and the fantasy.

"Enough talking." she yelled back to him. "I wanna dance!"

She wasn't quite sure in what way dancing would defuse anything in this heated situation, but surely when she was out there, she would attract someone.

She let the music and atmosphere lull her senses. The bass synchronized with her heartbeat and the warmth of the club, that had slowly filled up, made her skin buzz with electricity, the music seducing her to move her hips.

He observed her from the bar. He was not quite sure if he should follow her or not. He wanted to keep an eye on her, keep her from creeps. He could do that comfortably from the bar. All that flirty teasing might've done a number on him too. She surprised him and he hadn't expected her to be this... interesting.

But really, it didn't mean anything anyway, right? He wasn't so sure about that anymore. Her words set up ideas in his head that he didn't want to fully claim and the vodka shots started to hit him harder than he intended to. He really had no tolerance for it. His mind started to feel fuzzy and the way she looked while moving like that didn't help.

Her hands wandered up her body to her hair. She let her hands glide through her ponytail, tugging on it ever so lightly. He imagined doing the same.

Even more reason to stay put! he scolded himself. But his intentions were high-jacked by her turning around and fixing him with her eyes. His heart skipped a beat. She smiled at him sweetly, then waved him over to join her. He knew it was a bad idea, because his drunken urges were encouraging him to go.

He waved her off, declining her offer. She gave him the cutest little pout, making his heart skip another beat. This was definitely a bad idea, he was really not himself right now. She waved him over again while shimmying to the beat, making her look even more tempting.

What has gotten into her?

She was asking herself the same thing. She should've been waving over someone else, but seeing him sitting there at the bar - a little lonely, a little out of his element - filled her with a strange confidence. And she really couldn't deny that if there was any chance in hell that she could have just one dance with him, she had to take it! So, it might've been the booze, it might've been the music or the electricity buzzing underneath her skin, but she had to at least try to get him on the dancefloor. She called over to him, "What's wrong? I thought you came here to dance? Or was that a lie and you're actually no good?" She giggled, a little at her own bravery and a little at his startled face.

That was it! He couldn't let her get away with such an accusation. He downed his last shot, this time not flinching as much anymore. He got off the bar stool and crossed the distance between them in a few strides.

Him coming up at her so fast, looking down on her, made her bite her lip almost on instinct. A cheeky smile was tugging on his lips but his eyes were filled with a strange, new darkness.

She turned around and walked further into the dancing crowd. He followed close behind her. Even surrounded by so many other people she was very much aware of his body behind her.

She stopped eventually but somehow his closeness made it hard for her to turn around. She couldn't face him. Not like this. Not with all this tension. But she decided to stop her train of thoughts and just start dancing.

He stood behind her, practically towering over her (and most everyone else for that matter). The music enveloping them and the alcohol muddying all thoughts, letting any good sense fly out the window. His eyes followed her form, from the swing of her ponytail to her waist to her hips to her butt. His self-restraint at an all time low, he reached out to touch her hair, slightly tugging on her ponytail. He expected her to resist but instead she arched her head back, opening the view to her neck, collarbone, breasts. He had tried to avoid looking down her shirt all evening out of respect but from this angle it was practically impossible. He also didn't care anymore.

His other hand reached up to lightly brush his fingers against the soft skin of her neck. He was still waiting for her to flinch away, but her self-restraint must've been as bad as his, because instead she leaned back against him. He could feel her body press against him, all of him. -Very dangerous territory.

She didn't know what moved him to touch her, but she decided she'd be a fool not to take the shot. An opportunity like that might never come around again. It might be over in a flash. She didn't care and was too dizzy to try to. All she knew was that where he touched her skin it felt like a trail of fire. Everything just felt so good, especially when they started moving to the music; their bodies almost as one as.

His fingers wandered from her neck over her collarbone, tracing the outline of it, following the shape of her shoulder, then gliding down her arm. Her arm moved up to aid his motion and at the end he interlaced their fingers, guiding her hand up to his head, placing it on the nape of his neck. She didn't hesitate gliding her fingers into his hair, brushing the buzzed-out stubble on the base of it. She kinda always wanted to do that.

Her touch made him arch down towards her and she could feel his breath on her skin. His other hand had snaked down and around her waist, tightly pressing her up against him. She held on tight to his forearm. She could've just melted into him.

His lips hovered over her pulse. She wished nothing more than for him to just kiss her there. Kiss her everywhere.

He took in her scent and it clouded up his mind even more. She smelled faintly of vanilla and blueberry muffins and he was tempted to take a bite.

But instead of kissing her, he whispered in her ear, "Listen…I have an idea about your financial problems..."

"Huhh…?" she moaned in response.

"What if…"

"Hmmm…"

"...I help you out with that…"

"Hmm?" she was confused, but entirely unwilling to break their tight embrace.

"...I know that you want to earn your money yourself."

"Huhuhh"

"And I definitely want to encourage that." his breath dancing over her hot skin with every word.

"Hmhmm"

"So I was thinking we could make a deal. You could do me a favor… or two…"

"But what could I do for you…?" her eyes closed, still intoxicated with the whole situation, still only wanting to feel his body on hers.

"I was thinking,..."

"Hmhmm…"

"…you could come over…"

"Yeah…"

"...and…"

"Yes…?"

"Relief me of my 'virginity'…"