Satoru is having a hell of a night...er, morning now. He stifles a yawn as he unlocks the door to his apartment. Sliding off his shoes, he walks into the living room and halts.
Kagome is fast asleep on the couch with Koushi next to her in the bassinet. The yellow bookbag clashes with the color scheme, but it was the only bag Kagome had at home since she left the baby bag at her friend's apartment. Satoru runs his tongue along his teeth and swallows.
He has a kid.
Why is that just now sinking in?
Satoru shrugs off his jacket and slides off his blindfold. He hangs them up in the closet and then walks over to where Kagome is sleeping. He reaches for her and then pauses. What is he doing? His mind is jumbled from everything that went down, and there's still so much they need to clean up after.
Kagome stirs and opens her eyes. She blinks and then sits up quickly. "Oh, thank Kami." She places a hand over her heart as she peers down at Koushi.
"Are you too tired to talk?" He asks, sinking down into a squat next to her.
Kagome yawns, covering her mouth with her hand. "I am tired, but Koushi will be waking up soon. He's been cluster feeding."
She may as well be talking another language because he has no idea what the hell cluster feeding is, but he understands that Koushi will be waking up, so if they want to talk now, they can.
"What do you need right now?"
"Umm." Kagome fidgets. "I don't need anything from you, but I would like for Koushi to know his father."
"That's a given. No, I meant do you need food? Do you need me to watch him so you can take a bath?"
"Oh... maybe some snacks and something to watch in the background." She wrangles her hands. "I would like a bath, but I didn't pack—"
"I have clothes." He stands and reaches for her hand. "Come on." He leads her down the hall to the bathroom. "I'll bring you some clothes to change into. How much formula do I give him if he wakes up?"
Does the formula can have instructions on it?
Kagome sits down on the ledge of the bath and turns it on. "I won't be in that long. When he wakes, he'll need a diaper change and then I'll feed him."
"I can make a bottle." Satoru stuffs his hands in his pockets. Why is she being so difficult on this? He wants to help.
"Koushi is breastfed."
"Oh." He bites his lip. "That's uhh..."
Fuck. He's been doing his best not to look at her tits, but he swears they are like twice as big as the last time he saw her.
Satoru coughs and turns his head. "That's wonderful," he says. "I'll just leave the clothes by the door." He backs out and thank fuck for infinity because he almost busted his damn nose on the wall.
Operation: Don't think about his baby mama ain't going so well.
Satoru heads to his room and grabs an oversized button-down shirt for her to wear since she's breastfeeding and then she'll need to unbutton the tops... Damn it.
He's stronger than this. Satoru gives himself a mental shake and places the shirt by the bathroom door.
There's a wail and then the crying stops. Satoru sucks in a breath. Is Koushi... He blinks at the sight of his son floating in the air.
"Is this a normal thing for you?" Satoru asks, reaching for Koushi. How does one hold a baby? He played it cool in front of Kagome, but he doesn't know the first thing about babies other than they poop and eat a lot. He sniffs and retches. "Oh, da-dang bud, you stink." Satoru grits his teeth.
Why does Koushi smell so bad? What the hell? His poop alone could kill a curse.
"Okay, so your diapers are in here and there are the wipes." Satoru holds Koushi with one arm. "Tell ya what, bud. Don't need a paternity test on you, that's for sure."
Koushi babbles and grips his shirt. He tugs and Satoru rears back. The hell? What kind of hulk strength is this?
Okay.
Teleportation aside.
His kid might not be normal. Not even by sorcerer standards. The Gojo elders are going to shit themselves when he tells them about Koushi. Satoru smirks as he lies Koushi down on the mat.
"You know, Koushi. You ain't too-"
His lips twitch. Koushi peed on him. Right on the nose. Satoru reaches over and grabs several baby wipes and cleans his face.
He just got peed on.
"You traitor," he cries, "You can't pee on me. I'm your dad."
Koushi slobbers over his fist, not at all bothered by this injustice. It's fine. He isn't quite sure how that got past infinity, but that's a problem for another day or later today. Fuck, his brain is just done. But he's not going to sleep until he and Kagome have a chat. She needs to know he isn't mad about Koushi.
And he isn't resentful.
If anything, he's more concerned about their well-being and their security. That thing that was inside of Suguru was right about one thing. The birth of a second six eyes user and limitless will set the jujutsu world on fire. No one would be dumb enough to go after his son, but Kagome could be a target.
She did take out that special grade, though, and she destroyed one of Sukuna's fingers. What the hell was that energy? If he had sensed it that night, he would have... he wouldn't have slept with her. No, he probably would have tried to recruit her and then maybe slept with her. Satoru shakes his head as he picks Koushi up and tosses the dirty diaper in the trash.
"Hey, Satoru? Do you not have pants?" Kagome walks into the living room and his mouth waters. Every inch of her is just... a second round wouldn't hurt anyone.
"Satoru?" Kagome calls his name as she takes Koushi back.
"Uh... yeah? I thought you didn't like pants. You said that once, that night," he rambles. Can they revisit that night?
"I don't want to sleep on your couch without any panties on." She smiles down at Koushi as she rocks him.
"Who said anything about sleeping on the couch? The bed is far more comfortable. But uh, I need to shower real quick. He kinda peed on me."
"Oh. Sorry, I forgot to tell you to change him sideways, because he does that. It's a boy thing." Kagome looks up at him. "No pants?"
"I don't mind you not wearing panties," he quips, shrugging. Wait. "Are you single?"
Kagome blinks. "Yes? What does that have to do with pants?" She huffs. "Last time I had no underwear on around you, I got pregnant."
"Koushi might want a sibling," he jokes, throwing his hands up. "Alright. Alright. I got some sweats you can wear." He backs away and winks at her. He doesn't want another kid. Truth be told, he didn't want a kid period, but Koushi is here, and it is what it is. Even if he could go back in time, he wouldn't change a thing.
No, he'd still go out to that bar and chat with Kagome. He turns on the shower and undresses. Yeah, he regrets a lot of things, but he doesn't regret meeting Kagome.
He doesn't regret his son.
But.
He regrets not being there for Suguru. For not seeing the signs that Suguru was drowning while he was too caught up in getting stronger. Too caught up in training his infinity to where he could run it automatically. Satoru clenches his fist. He never wants to be caught off guard again like he was with Toji.
But, Kagome and Koushi? No, he doesn't regret them. It would have been nice to be there for her when she was pregnant. Was the pregnancy hard? How confused was she when Koushi was born, and he was clearly different from other babies? He wishes he could have been there.
Satoru quickly washes and turns off the shower. He towels off and wraps the towel around his waist.
"Um... I was going to ask where the snacks are," Kagome says, cradling Koushi, who nuzzles against her chest.
Satoru swallows. "In the top cabinet. I can get it for you. Just...you wanted pants." He rubs his temple. "This way." He slides past and blows out a breath. The hell is wrong with him? He's been rearing to go since he saw her back at the station.
It was one night, and he's been dreaming of her ever since.
Satoru pulls out a pair of black sweats and holds it out to Kagome. She thanks him and then flushes when he drops the towel. Satoru pulls out a pair of sweats for himself and slides them on.
"What?"
"You just... dropped your towel." Kagome bounces Koushi.
"Nothing you haven't already seen. Unless it bothers you." His brows pinch together. He doesn't want her to be uncomfortable around him.
Kagome opens her mouth and then closes it. She hands Koushi over to him and then slides the dark sweats on. A shame. Now he can't see her legs.
"We should discuss boundaries, too." She takes Koushi back, who fists her shirt and nuzzles against her. "He's hungry," she says.
"Right. You wanted snacks." Satoru places his hand on her back and nudges them out of the bedroom and back to the living room. "Get comfortable. I'll bring you something to drink and snacks." He exhales once he reaches the kitchen. His fingers grip the counter. Boundaries? What kind of boundaries? Like she only wants him to see Koushi on certain days? He grabs a bunch of snacks from the cabinet, not at all sure if she even likes these sweets or chips, but it's all he has.
Satoru walks out of the kitchen, snacks in hand, and a bottle of water for her. He swallows.
"I got snacks."
"Thanks," Kagome murmurs, not looking up from feeding Koushi. "He'll be eating on and off for the next couple of hours." She yawns, her feet tucked under her.
He feels like a perv.
Her areolas are bigger. Darker. And who the fuck is he kidding? If she said let's go again right now, he'd drop his pants. Strongest he may be, but at the end of it all, he's still just a man... And the way she took out that special grade was fucking hot. He gives himself another mental shake.
Focus. He needs to focus.
Satoru sits down next to her on the couch and places the snacks on the coffee table. He moves the bassinet over to the side. "You should take the bed. I can sleep on the couch if you're uncomfortable with me in the bed with you."
"I'm not uncomfortable," Kagome says. "I just don't want you thinking you have to be in a relationship with me or something because we have a kid. I'm not pushing you for a relationship. Or Kami forbid, a proposal. Or your money. What's important is that Koushi knows who his dad is, and I would love for you to focus on him."
Satoru blinks. "Alright. Here's the thing." He reaches over and opens the bag of chips for her. "My last name is Gojo." He pauses. Okay. No recognition. So, she can see curses, but that's about it? "I'm part of a clan."
"Clan?" She wrinkles her nose before eating a chip.
"Yep," he pops the p. "I'm from a clan of sorcerers. Jujutsu sorcerers. A sorcerer is someone that can use cursed energy, and sorcerers use that ability to keep the general public safe from curses or curse users."
Kagome nods her head. "Curses. Is that what that Volcano thing was? And the patched face?"
"Yes, they were special grades. But we can get into that later. The biggest issue is I'm from a clan. I'm the clan leader of the Gojo clan because I have the six eyes."
Kagome squints. "You have two eyes."
He chuckles. "No, I don't literally have six eyes. It's a curse technique. Koushi has it too. The six eyes and limitless are prized cursed techniques for the Gojo clan. There are other clans that have their own prized family techniques. The problem here is that only one six eyes user can exist at one time, but I'm still alive and Koushi is very much alive."
"So, what are you trying to say, Satoru?"
"I'm saying that you and Koushi are extremely lucky that no one went after you. I don't want anything to happen to you." He reaches over and brushes her hair. "I'm the strongest. I will protect you and Koushi."
Kagome pulls away and unlatches Koushi, who fusses for a moment and then settles down. "I tried to find you, but we never exchanged information." She re-buttons the shirt.
He stares at the top of her head. There should be a manual or a guide for this kind of situation.
"You don't have to apologize. I was in and out of the country... and the end of last year was a doozy." A doozy is an understatement. He killed Suguru last year, and he had to kill him again tonight. "And I'm not blaming you. Guess the condom failed."
"And my implant," she says with a huff. "So, this clan..."
"We need to tell them." He pinches the bridge of his nose. "I don't like it, but it would offer more protection when I'm not here. There's only three special grade sorcerers and only two of us are working, so I'm stretched thin with missions." Not to mention the sheer number of curses that are going to emerge just from tonight alone.
He has a headache thinking about it. And that cursed painting is still out there.
"You think your clan would protect me?"
"That's the beauty of being clan leader. They don't have a choice."
"I'm not a part of a clan. Obviously, you saw the shrine." She wets her lips. "Clan leader or not, why would they protect me?"
Satoru leans forward and props his chin up on his palm. "I'll just tell them you're mine."
"Yours?" Her eyebrows shoot up. "I'm not asking you for a relationship."
"I'm not asking you either."
She narrows her eyes. He shivers. She's so fucking hot.
"Right now, our focus is on Koushi. I'm only claiming you for your protection." He stands and stretches his arms. "You wanna go to bed?"
Kagome sighs. "Koushi seems more at ease now that you're here." She accepts his outstretched hand. "And don't take this the wrong way... I am extremely attracted to you, but I'm not sleeping with you again." She shifts Koushi in her arms. "Your sperm got through the condom, and it got past my implant. I don't know what kind of superhuman sperm you have, but I am not trying to get pregnant anytime soon."
Satoru swallows. "So... what you're saying is you just want to space the ages out?"
Kagome gives him a flat stare.
He laughs. It was worth a shot. "Come on, let's try to get some rest. We can go back to the shrine in the morning to get some more of your things."
"I never said I was moving in with you." She worries her bottom lip. "What about a trial run instead? We stay with you some nights out of the week and go from there?"
He doesn't like it. He'd much rather her be somewhere he has more control, but they are practically strangers, and he still doesn't know what that energy she used was. It wasn't cursed energy, that's for sure. Satoru glances at Koushi. Whatever energy Kagome has, Koushi has it too.
"Sure. We can take it slow."
A/N: I surprised myself lol. Satoru is down bad. The Gojo clan is about to lose their minds. Next update will be How To Tame and then probably Thousand Days. Wish I could takes a bit longer to draft since the chapters are longer.
Hope you are having an amazing weekend. Take it easy! Refill your well. And try to do at least one thing that makes you happy today.
Side note, I need Satoru to come back in the main story because I have all these side stories I can't publish until he comes back.