Chapter Text
Yuuji closed the front door behind him, and the tension gradually melted away from his shoulders. He was startled when the landline phone began to ring. The college student hesitated for a moment, but when it became clear that the caller had no intention of giving up, he finally walked into the living room to answer it. He crossed the room to the table where the phone sat, picked up the receiver, and brought it to his right ear.
"Itadori's house, who is it?" Yuuji asked.
"Hello to you too, Yuuji," Nobara's sarcastic voice answered.
"Oh, it's you, Nobara, how are you?" Yuuji smiled slightly.
"You entered the new shop, how is it? Anything interesting?" the girl demanded to know, ignoring completely his question.
"How did you know I went there this morning?"
"Yuuji… we live in a small village. By now, almost everyone knows you went there," Nobara pointed out.
"Oh… yeah, I should have known that," Yuuji scratched his neck.
"Now tell me, how is the owner?" Nobara insisted, not ready to give up. Yuuji shivered a bit when he recalled his meeting with Sukuna.
"He is… well… a very interesting man, I guess," the university student confessed. Nobara huffed, annoyed.
"Interesting how? Will being more specific kill you or what?"
"...I just don't know how to describe him. Ryomen-san was a bit… eccentric, if I am completely honest," Yuuji mumbled.
"Did something happen?" Nobara asked a bit abruptly, cutting her friend.
"Nothing, really," Yuuji lied, feeling a lump in his throat. "I just helped him to clean the shop a bit and he attempted to give me an expensive looking pendant as gratitude, but I refused it." Nobara remained silent for a few seconds.
"I am coming to your house. You'll tell me everything and you better not skip any details, do you understand me, Yuuji?"
"It's not necessary, Nobara, really. It was nothing," he tried to placate her, but his efforts were in vain.
"I will be the one deciding that once you tell me everything!" The girl snapped. Yuuji rolled his eyes and sighed.
"Okay, whatever you say, Nobara," he conceded, giving up.
"I will be there in ten minutes. See you, Yuuji."
Yuuji hung up and rubbed his face with both hands. "Maybe getting her perspective won't be that bad," he thought, trying to lift his spirits. "I better get things ready."
Knowing his friend, she would like to have some chocolate biscuits and probably a coffee with milk, so Yuuji went straight to the kitchen to start preparing everything.
The shop opened a week after Yuuji's meeting with its strange owner. Following what Yuuji and Nobara agreed, he had been trying his best to avoid the place.
One day when he was walking around, the pink-haired young man found himself passing by the shop, noticing the elegant store sign. Needful things.
Yuuji frowned a bit looking at the eccentric name choice. He stopped and looked through the window, observing a white haired person attending to some customers. The man frowned, tensed for a second when their eyes met, making Yuuji avert his gaze immediately.
"What an unusual eye colour," Yuuji thought, stopping on a nearby bench. "But who are they and where is Ryomen-san?" The university student sat, making sure the store was in his eyesight.
He waited until the two customers left hurriedly. Yuuji arched his right eyebrow when he noticed one of them, a young looking woman, was carrying a very large package. But what really caught Yuuji's attention was their guarded gestures, as if they wanted to avoid the people passing by to see what they had bought.
Only when both people were out of his sight, Yuuji got up and walked slowly towards the shop. He opened the door and the bell that was above it chimed lightly, breaking the silence and announcing Yuuji's presence.
"Good morning," the white haired person walked towards him, looking intently at the university student. "Welcome to Needful things, how can I help you?"
"I'm just looking," Yuuji eyed the shop's interior.
It was nothing like the place he saw a week prior. The floor was polished impeccably and there were some small tables with a variety of small objects. Some expensive old-looking furniture pieces were around too. A classical music piece was playing inside, creating a warm and inviting atmosphere.
"Has anything caught your attention?" the shop assistant asked, curious, sporting a professional small smile. Yuuji was about to answer when his eyes landed on the pendant Sukuna offered him the week prior and the words died on his throat.
The assistant noticed where Yuuji was looking and walked towards the table. "This is a magnificent piece of jewellery, you have a great eye, míster…"
"Yuuji. Yuuji Itadori," the student managed to answer mechanically. The assistant grabbed the object and looked expectantly at their customer.
"Oh, you are the kid Sukuna mentioned before. A pleasure to finally meet you, Itadori-san. I am Uraume." The assistant introduced themselves. "If you want, you can try the pendant. I am sure you will love it."
"... I am afraid I cannot afford buying it," Yuuji stammered, taking an involuntary step back.
"How much do you think it costs?" Uraume asked, curious.
Yuuji was laying on his bed, examining the pendant closely. It felt nicely warm at the touch.
"Now that I see it more closely, I have to admit it's really beautiful," Yuuji admitted to himself. He doesn't know how much it has cost though. For some reason, no matter how much he tried, Yuuji couldn't remember part of what had happened when Uraume was speaking to him.
All he was sure of is that he had made a great purchase and that the pendant had been cheap. Yuuji was able to recall was him entering the shop and then Uraume wishing him a good afternoon seconds before he exits carrying the pendant.
"In the end, I didn't see Ryomen-san," Yuuji sat up abruptly then, feeling a sudden desire to wear the pendant.
It was easy to put it around his neck and adjust it. Yuuji got up and looked at his reflection in the mirror that was in front of his bed. Perhaps it was due to the light, but the red stone appeared to shine slightly for a second.
"It suits me more than I expected," Yuuji mumbled, smiling slightly, satisfied.