Chapter Text
If there was anything Inumaki Toge prided himself on, it was his observantness. It came naturally, though considering he’d been forced into a life of practical silence, excluding onigiri ingredients and intentional curses, it had to. His keen observations on more than one occasion had been the only deciding factor in life or death situations. Of course, that wasn’t the only time his alertness was useful. It also came in handy when Toge was fleshing out a prank and needed to be aware of everyone’s whereabouts. Or when someone was particularly touchy about a subject, for worse or better, and the room was in desperate need of a reading, Toge almost always knew how to react. This nearly sixth sense made it impossibly easy to butter up Gojo-Sensei and his friends whenever he wanted or needed something. Being observant was basically second nature.
So when Yuuta didn’t show up for class, Toge was the first to notice.
…ok, maybe Toge gave himself a bit too much credit there, considering their class was comprised of merely four students, but still…Yuuta was always in the classroom at 7:30 sharp—if anyone asked how Toge knew this, he’d blame it on his natural attentiveness, nothing else—and it was ebbing on to 8:00. Sure, by this time everyone had begun to question the ravenette’s whereabouts, but Toge had honestly been concerned since the clock ticked to 7:31.
Where was Yuuta?
At first, Gojo waved it off because of course he did. What else were the students expecting? “Kid probably overslept. He’ll be here in fifteen minutes max,” verbatim.
But that was the thing. Yuuta never overslept. He was always punctual, a stark contrast to Gojo’s lackadaisical personality.
Toge had known the childish and powerful sorcerer for far longer than he’d care to admit, but despite the man’s carefree disposition, Toge knew something was up. Gojo sat unceremoniously atop his desk at the front of the classroom, talking shit about the higher-ups like typical, laughing anytime something was exceptionally burnful, but it was all off. Every few minutes, Gojo would quickly shift his gaze towards the door, forehead creasing and signature smile falling into a thin, unenthused line before he’d direct his attention back towards his students as though his change in disposition was nonexistent.
Gojo was concerned.
If Maki and Panda noticed, they said nothing. They only fed into their sensei’s stories, sometimes agreeing with him and other times calling him out on his pettiness. Gojo would pout at their—mainly Maki’s—“cruelness,” only to once again turn his gaze back towards the door, back at them, rinse and repeat.
Toge was getting tired of this non-routine routine.
“Toge,” Panda’s voice broke through the ashen blonde’s head, causing amethyst eyes to shift, “you’re being awfully quiet. You good?”
Ah yes, their usually punctual friend was thirty minutes late to class, and no one had physically seen him since last night. “Shake.” He was just peachy .
A low, uncharacteristic hum reverberated from Gojo’s throat, as though the man was in thought. “I think we’ve waited long enough,” he surmised, placing his hands on his head and stretching out his elbows. “Toge,” the mentioned boy perked up, “go fetch the kid.” There was a twinge to their sensei’s voice, one that Toge was certain could easily be misinterpreted as irritation, especially since his smile had once again fallen. But Toge knew better.
Gojo’s concern had bubbled over.
A silent nod was all the response Toge relayed before exiting the classroom and making the short trek towards the mostly unoccupied dorms. The paths and hallways were quiet, eerily so for outsiders, but to Toge this was all normal. Too many dorms for too few students. He supposed he was slightly grateful for that, though.
He’d hate for too many people to have to live their lives like this. To the point where Jujutsu sorcery, horrifying curses, and death were all the more normal.
Yuuta’s dorm room was, coincidentally(?), right across from Toge’s, so the blonde knew the route well. Standing outside of Yuuta’s door gave Toge a strong sense of dejavu that hit him every single day. Without wasting a second, Toge lifted his fist and melodically knocked it against the wood.
Waiting for a response was another game, one that felt as though it stretched on for eternity, but in reality, was only a couple of seconds. Toge’s concern spiked momentarily when silence ensued immediately after his knock, but the moment he went to knock again, the door opened.
Toge inhaled sharply through his teeth.
Yuuta, in short, looked as though he’d been dragged through literal Hell and back. His black hair was ratted and disheveled, looking as though it hadn’t been washed or brushed in a week. His clothes were wrinkled as though Yuuta had lied in them for months without washing or ironing them. His skin was paler than typical, and his fingernails were jagged, almost as if the older boy had been biting or picking at them.
The worst of it, however, was his eyes.
Deep, dark blue eyes that often resembled the ocean were lifeless, similar to the first moment Toge had met the older boy. The edges of his sclera were a faint red from clear irritation, whether that was crying or not, Toge wasn’t sure, and circles darker than any storm Toge had ever witnessed hung sadly and heavily underneath Yuuta’s eyes. It looked as though he hadn’t slept in ages.
The tired orbs widened slightly when they fell on Toge’s form, clearly not having expected the shorter boy. “O-oh,” his voice was raspier than Toge’s after a mission, “Inumaki-Kun…hey.”
Toge really wished he’d stop with the formalities already. “Konbu.”
Yuuta blinked slowly…robotically. Much like he wasn’t in control of his own actions or as though he was in slow motion. “I-”
“Tsuna,” Toge interjected, pointing towards his wrist as though it had a watch. You didn’t show up to class.
Yuuta followed the blonde’s motions, a somewhat sheepish look crossing his face. “Oh, uh…late for class? Yeah, I uh…didn’t really want to come today.”
If nothing else had rung any sort of alarms through Toge’s head—which, of course, they had—that had definitely been the straw that broke the camel’s back. Yuuta wasn’t one who just didn’t show up. Even if he was sick or tired, he always mentioned something to Toge or, if not him, Gojo. While Yuuta still sometimes struggled with communicating, he was definitely better than he had been when he first started at Jujutsu High. For him to not only attempt to be a no-show, but to remain silent over the ordeal told Toge that something was clearly wrong.
“Takana?” Toge questioned, eyebrows furrowed. Why not? What’s wrong? What’s going on? You’re not normally this secretive, at least not anymore.
Yuuta gulped nervously, something he hadn’t done while regarding the blonde in a while. “I just…well, I…” His voice trailed off as though he was trying to find the right words without success. Unable to find them, Yuuta exhaled softly, retreating slightly further into his room. “It’s nothing. I’m sorry for keeping you all waiting. Tell Gojo-Sensei I’ll be there in ten minutes tops, please?”
Toge’s eyes widened slightly, but not enough that he’d expect the older student to notice. He opened his mouth to express his protest, but Yuuta shut the door before he could get a word out.
And so there stood Inumaki Toge, for once speechless not because of words he couldn’t say, but words he didn’t know how to say. Yuuta and he were best friends, a sweet and patient relationship that kindled the moment after their first mission together had been complete. Getting Yuuta to open up about his thoughts and feelings had been a slow and grueling process that Toge never wanted to revisit, his seemingly endless patience be damned. Their ability to speak freely with one another was something Toge cherished deeply about their friendship.
But for the first time since Okkotsu Yuuta had enrolled in Jujutsu High, Toge was shut out by his best friend.