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Gojo had finally done it.
After years and years of asking the Higher-Ups, he had finally done it.
He looked over the papers again, clutched in his hands as though they would vanish at any time. They did not. It wasn’t just a dream anymore.
He had to go talk to Megumi.
…
The Fushiguro kids were both a blessing and a curse to raise. Tsumiki was a bright, friendly girl. She was a lot easier of the two to talk to, and she opened up to Gojo quickly. Megumi outright refused to open up. He did not trust the adults in his life, and he hated Gojo.
The kids were already responsible enough, way beyond what they should’ve been at their age, so Gojo tried to give them their childhoods back. He tried to spend as much time with them as he could. He threw them parties for their birthdays (and he and Megumi’s “middle birthday”). He went to every one of Tsumiki’s recitals, and all of Megumi’s baseball games, no matter how much Megumi protested. The tradition of Gojo bringing back souvenirs from his work trips started with these kids. He joked, teased, and played with them as much as he could, trying to make them happy.
As he was only a teenager when he took them in, Gojo constantly doubted his ability to take care of them. He was a child raising children, after all. His ‘friends’ told him he shouldn’t have taken them in, that he was a bad father who was just being a nuisance to the kids. That he couldn’t be a good teacher, either, with his personality. He especially doubted himself when it came to Megumi. The boy didn’t listen to him, didn’t want him around, and didn’t care for him.
Yet Gojo stayed.
Gojo remembers the time Megumi first went to him, comforting him during the worst storm in a long time. He remembers the routine they had following that instant, whenever a storm came to town. He remembers baking cookies with Tsumiki, following a recipe her mom left behind. He remembers tenderly patching Megumi up after a fight at school. He remembers holding him while they both cried after Tsumiki was cursed, swearing to fix it. Most of all, he remembers when he started thinking of Tsumiki as his daughter, and Megumi as his son.
However, Megumi was now 15. In 3 years, his temporary guardianship would expire. In 3 years, his son would no longer be his. In 3 years, Gojo wouldn’t even be his teacher. In 3 years, he might never see him again. (With Tsumiki, it was 2 years, however, she was still in a coma, so he couldn’t ask her).
Gojo looked down at the papers still clutched in his hand. Adoption papers. All he had to do was ask Megumi to sign, and he would officially be his dad.
Without realizing it, he had walked over to Megumi’s room.
He took a deep breath, trying to steady himself. Why was it that this felt worse than any battle he had been in?
He heard knocking on the door, barely registering that he was the one tapping it. This was it. This was what he was waiting for.
Excitement and anxiety bubbled up in tandem in his chest, but he couldn’t exactly turn around now. Gojo stood there for hours, it felt, even though it was only a few seconds. He took another breath, shifting the weight in his feet as he moved to leave-
“Gojo-sensei?”
He really couldn’t leave now.
The words he had prepared, the script he had been rehearsing for weeks, months, years, completely disappeared from his mind as he saw his son’s face, glowering at him from the entryway. Maybe he shouldn’t have decided to do this. Maybe he should have picked another time. Megumi already seemed annoyed with him, why did he think this was a good idea at all? Who was he kidding? There was no way Megumi would agree to this. Maybe, if he came up with a decent excuse-
“Gojo sensei? What do you want?” Megumi huffed, snapping Gojo back into focus.
“Oh! Gumi! Are you busy right now, kiddo?” Gojo chirped, though his nerves showed through the shaking in his voice.
“It depends. What do you want?” Megumi repeated.
The words caught in Gojo’s throat. He felt like he was drowning. Floundering, he exclaimed “I just want to spend time with my precious student!”
“Well, I guess you can come in,” Megumi relented, an eyebrow raised.
Megumi let him into the room, clicking the door shut behind them with a sigh. Gojo’s nerves were on fire. He didn’t think he could do this. He wasn’t worthy of being Megumi’s family forever. He should’ve done better, given him to someone who would’ve done better, something-
A soft hand brushed against his own.
Gojo blinked, as if seeing the space around him for the first time. Megumi couldn’t tell due to the blindfold, but he could feel the energy in the room shift. Megumi’s face showed hints of concern, his eyes wider and forehead creased as though confused. Sighing again, Megumi asked, “What did you want to talk about?”
Easing out another breath, Gojo looked away from him.
“So, kiddo, do you know the nature of the contract I signed to take you in?”
Megumi nodded.
“Megumi… you’re 15 now. You will be 18 in 3 years.”
Megumi nodded again, although he looked troubled.
“I wanted to ask you- I wanted to ask if you had thought about what you wanted to do then.” Gojo took off his blindfold, looking at his kid with his own eyes.
Megumi flinched away from his piercing gaze, and raised a hand to his face to think. Gojo could feel his own pulse beating everywhere in his body. The pause between the question and the response felt like a void; oh, how he wished this moment would end.
“… Does anything have to change?”
“What do you mean, Gumi?”
“I guess I haven’t thought about it yet.” Megumi replied, clearly becoming uncomfortable.
“What do you want to do about it, Gojo-sensei?”
Oh no.
Steeling himself for his inevitable rejection, Gojo responded, “I was hoping you’d be willing to sign these!”
Gojo handed the creased papers to Megumi, hands shaking. He watched as Megumi’s confused face shifted to one of shock, disbelief.
Trying to help the tension in the air, Gojo rambled, “It’s okay if you don’t want to! I totally understand if you need time to think too! It’s a big decision and you can take as long as you’d like! And it’s okay if you don’t want anything to do with me after this-”
Tears streaked down Megumi’s face.
“Sorry…”
“No, I’m sorry! I shouldn’t have asked-”
Gojo reached out to recollect the papers, but Megumi grabbed his wrist before he could take them.
“Wait-“ Megumi gasped out. “Please wait.”
Gojo looked up at him, waiting.
“I’ll sign them.”
Gojo made a sound of disbelief.
“I said I’ll sign them. Let go already.”
Gojo immediately let go of the papers. Megumi held them tenderly as he walked to his desk.
“Wait, Megumi… Why?” Gojo questioned.
Megumi, not practiced or prepared in having emotional conversations, sighed again.
“Isn’t it obvious?”
He paused.
“You’re my dad.”