Work Text:
"Satoru," said Suguru.
"Suguru," replied Satoru.
They were alone in his dorm room. Certainly not for the first time, but two slumbering figures made up the difference. After Shoko had cleared the girls, they had brought them here. Mimiko and Nanako had fallen right to sleep, no doubt exhausted from everything they had gone through. The room was completely dark, save for the moonlight spilling in.
"I'm going to quit jujutsu sorcery," Suguru announced after a few beats of silence.
Satoru grimaced, though she couldn't say she hadn't expected it. Tonight had been... dangerous. Her friend was teetering over the edge of a cliff, anything could knock him right over. Sure, she had stopped him tonight, but what if he didn't call her the next time? What if he gave into those dark thoughts? They couldn't risk it.
But Satoru didn't want him to leave. She wanted him to stay by her side. She knew it was selfish and childish, but she didn't want to let him go. And it was on the tip of her tongue to say so.
"We should talk to Yaga-sensei," she suggested instead. "Maybe we can get you put on leave or something. Wouldn't want you to get too complacent as a stay-at-home dad." I don't want you to go. I need you here with me.
Suguru, at least, seemed to be considering this. "It's not like a dorm room is the ideal place to raise two little girls," he mused.
And Satoru couldn't argue that. They were finishing school soon anyway, finding places to live was the next step, right? "They can sleep in your room," she suggested. "You can bunk with me."
A little smirk playfully graced his face. "Your mother would die from a heart attack if she knew," he pointed out. He had met her mother exactly once while the two of them fended off curse users gunning for her head. To say that Yoshimi Gojo was a traditionalist would be an understatement.
Satoru cackled at the thought.
XXX
Satoru took the whack from Yaga-sensei gracefully. She didn't even turn on Infinity! "It isn't abnormal for the two of you to disobey direct orders," he fumed at them. She and Suguu both rubbed their throbbing heads. "But Gojo, you weren't even supposed to be on this mission!"
She tried not to flinch; Yaga-sensei hardly ever used her family name. "Come on, Sensei, without me around who would keep Geto out of trouble?" she reasoned. She grinned, attempting to cover up the pang in her heart she felt at her teacher's disappointment. Yaga-sensei was the first adult who had cared about her past her strength and what she could do for the world. He worried about her well-being.
She didn't like to let him down.
Suguru gave her a look. "I'm sorry, who's keeping who out of trouble?" he questioned indignantly.
"Whom," Satoru corrected, holding in her grin at his obvious exasperation.
"Both of you, shut it," their teacher ordered. They stopped talking. "Explain to me why you were even in the area, Satoru, and why the two of you brought children to Jujutsu High School."
"The villagers were keen on blaming them for the deaths," Suguru explained. His voice was smooth, as it always was when talking to adults. He looked to be the epitome of calm. But Satoru knew better, she saw the furious spark in his dark eyes. "So, we removed them from a dangerous situation."
Satoru plastered a sweet, innocent smile onto her face. "I smoothed things over with them," she supplied truthfully. "That's why Suguru called me, so that he could get the girls away safely."
Yaga-sensei eyed them suspiciously. "I'm having a hard time believing that Satoru deescalated a situation," he said. "Usually, she's the reason it escalated in the first place."
She pouted. "Sensei! How could you say such a thing?"
He ignored her, staring intently at Suguru. "Everything's alright then?"
Suguru gave one of those placating smiles that never reached his eyes. "Of course, Sensei," he assured the older man. "I would like to take the girls into my own custody, if that's alright?" Satoru didn't miss the challenging gleam in his gaze. Something told her that Hell would freeze over before he gave up those girls.
And Yaga-sensei seemed to know it too. "We'll talk more about it later," he decided. "Now get to class, both of you. I can already feel a migraine coming on."
XXX
Mimiko and Nanako liked to play with her hair. This was discovered two weeks after bringing them back to Jujutsu High.
"It's so pretty!" gushed Nanko, eagerly twisting the stands into god knew what. Undoubtedly, it would be a bitch to untangle in the morning. Oh well.
Mimiko was a lot gentler, running her tiny fingers through the long locks. "It's like snow," she murmured softly.
Satoru grinned, sticking her tongue out at Suguru. "Even if you do grow out that greasy mess, it still isn't as pretty as mine," she teased, sticking her tongue out. "Jealous?"
But she was wholly unprepared to be faced with the exceptionally soft look on his face. "How ever will I compete?" he mused as he sat himself next to her. Something about the way he was looking at them made her face feel warm, had she ever seen that look on his face? She was thankful for her glasses properly hiding her expression.
Mimiko frowned, reaching out to the man. "Geto's hair is pretty too," she affirmed.
It was adorable, the way Suguru's face lit up. "That so?" he asked, scooping her up and holding her to his chest. She willingly snuggled into him. Both the girls loved Geto, but Mimiko was attached.
Nanako, not to be left out, abandoned Satoru's hair and also reached towards him. He took her into his other arm. "Even if your hair is greasy, we still like it," she said. "We like you. We wanna stay with you forever."
Satoru giggled at the way his expression broke. Oh, those girls had him wrapped around their fingers. "And Geto wants you to stay with him forever," she told them. "He even threatened our teacher to keep you."
They looked at her with starry eyes. "Really?!"
Suguru sighed. "Satoru." But his smile betrayed him.
Mimiko pointed at her. "Will Gojo be there too?"
Suguru blanked, but Satoru laughed. "Oh, I'll be around," she answered. "Popping in here and there." She addressed the girls, but stared at him through her shades. "If that's alright?" The girls nodded eagerly, but Suguru simply stared at her. She lowered her glasses and winked, and he just shook his head in amusement.
XXX
Apartment hunting wasn't nearly as fun as TV made it out to be. Especially not with someone as picky as Suguru.
He was her best friend, her dearest person, her One and Only. But Satoru was this close to strangling him. "Suguru, this is the eight apartment we've looked at!" she complained. She wasn't a patient person anyway, but this was crazy! The last one was a perfectly cozy (affordable) two-bedroom, but the flooring had a slightly uneven surface.
The other six he didn't even let them step inside.
Suguru paid her no mind. "No one forced you to come, Satoru," he reminded her, rolling his eyes. "I should have taken Mimiko and Nanako instead. They would have been better behaved."
Satoru stuck her tongue out at him. "It's a good thing I did! Imagine the poor girls being dragged along while you shoot down every possibility!" Surely, Auntie Shoko was ten times more fun... Unless she was rambling or spaced out. Which was typical Shoko behavior...
Shit.
The corners Suguru's mouth twitched up into a smile. "If you stop complaining, we can stop by that bakery you like," he compromised. "I've been meaning to get the girls something from there for a while now anyway..."
Satoru beamed in excitement; they had the best kikufuku! "What are we waiting for? Let's go!"
Her friend chuckled. "I can always bribe you with food..."
When they reached the next apartment, Satoru let out a low whistle. It was a very nice two-bedroom, utilities included. Everything seemed modern and up to date. "Not bad," mused Satoru. As far as her Six Eyes could tell, there wasn't so much as a roach around. There's no way Suguru could find a problem with this one, right?
Suguru sighed. "We'll have to keep looking," he decided.
She gaped at him. "What?" she demanded. There was no way he had a problem with this one. "This one's perfect! Suguru stop being so such a stubborn ass-"
"Too expensive," he interrupted her. She could hear the irritation in his tone. "Even with my salary as a special grade, I couldn't afford it. The girls need things, Satoru. Clothes, food, school supplies. I can't afford to waste so much money on a place like this."
Satoru raised an eyebrow, turning to the complex owner. "How much?" she asked.
"¥250,000 per month," he told her.
She hummed; that was doable. "And the down payment?" she questioned, pulling out her checkbook. Probably around 20 or 30%, right? Would be a hefty price to pay out of pocket... if she wasn't Satoru Gojo.
"¥62,500."
Suguru's hand closed around her wrist. "Satoru," he said lowly, expression unreadable. "What are you doing?"
Satoru scoffed. "Getting you and the girls a place to live," she told him. What else would she be doing? Was he stupid?
"Satoru," he repeated. His grip tightened slightly. "I can't let you do that."
She raised an eyebrow at him. "You aren't," she replied. "That's what I'm here for, dummy." She had thought that was obvious. Why else would she have let him drag her halfway across Tokyo?
Suguru's eyes narrowed. "Satoru."
Satoru's face remained unchanged. "Suguru."
They stared at one another for a good minute or so, unflinchingly. Satoru didn't see what the big deal was, it wasn't that much money. And he deserved a nice place to raise the girls.
"I don't need your pity, Gojo," he spat.
"And you're not getting it, Geto," she shot back, rolling her eyes. He was being exhausting. "If it's that big of a deal to you, you can pay me back whenever. But I'm paying for it right now and there's nothing you can do about it so there." She stuck her tongue out. Suguru's eye twitched and he looked ready to tear her a new one.
But the complex owner cleared his throat. "The down payment isn't paid right away," he cut in awkwardly. "There's still quite a bit of paperwork, you see..."
Oh. Satoru hadn't known that.
XXX
Once all the paperwork was squared away and the down payment handled, they walked side-by-side to the car. "I didn't ask you to do that," Suguru said again. He didn't sound angry at her, though, which was good. She didn't feel like arguing about it again, especially since it was already done.
Satoru scoffed. "Well, obviously," she replied. "You didn't have to, you're my best friend. I would do anything for you." Why did she have to tell him that? Wasn't it obvious? "Besides, the little ankle-biters have grown on me too, y'know. Need to make sure they're properly taken care of." She felt his eyes on her as she spoke, but pretended not to.
Suguru smirked a little. "Satoru Gojo going soft... never thought I'd see the day."
"EH?" demanded Satoru, obnoxiously getting in his face. "Going soft?! What's that supposed to mean?"
He shook his head, grin growing wider. "Oh nothing..." He pulled back and walked ahead of her.
Satoru gave chase. "Oi! Get back here you ass!"