Work Text:
竜
ᴅᴏɴ'ᴛ ʟɪᴇ!
ᴡʜʏ ᴡᴏᴜʟᴅ ɪ ᴀsᴋ ғᴏʀ ᴀ ᴅʀᴀɢᴏɴ ᴘʟᴜsʜɪᴇ?
❝ ─𝘐 𝘮𝘦𝘵 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘪𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘥𝘢𝘳𝘬 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘭𝘪𝘵 𝘮𝘦 𝘶𝘱
𝘠𝘰𝘶 𝘮𝘢𝘥𝘦 𝘮𝘦 𝘧𝘦𝘦𝘭 𝘢𝘴 𝘵𝘩𝘰𝘶𝘨𝘩
𝘐 𝘸𝘢𝘴 𝘦𝘯𝘰𝘶𝘨𝘩
𝘞𝘦 𝘥𝘢𝘯𝘤𝘦𝘥 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘯𝘪𝘨𝘩𝘵 𝘢𝘸𝘢𝘺 𝘸𝘦 𝘥𝘳𝘢𝘯𝘬 𝘵𝘰𝘰 𝘮𝘶𝘤𝘩
𝘐 𝘩𝘦𝘭𝘥 𝘺𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘩𝘢𝘪𝘳 𝘣𝘢𝘤𝘬 𝘸𝘩𝘦𝘯 𝘺𝘰𝘶
𝘞𝘦𝘳𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘳𝘰𝘸𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘶𝘱 ❠
The dogs howled in the distance as the moon faintly illuminated the route. Shoko put the key in the keyhole and opened her apartment door. She walked in and locked the door behind her. Looking at the clock on the front wall she sigh. It was 11:47 already. She removed and threw her bag and lab coat on the couch before walking into her bedroom. She looked at herself into the mirror.
She already looked depressed but the messy hairs weren't making it seem any better. And the worst thing was, how her eyes looked so dead. Like there was not an ounce of life remained in them. Being a doctor had taken its toll on her. She doesn't complain about it though, of course she likes her job. But sometimes it's just too much. She walked into the bathroom lazily and took a hot bath that helps her relax a little. After changing into a comfortable pair of clothes, she brushed her hairs and tied them up in a braid. A small lock of hair still remained out.
She checked her phone only to find out it was out of battery. Climbing the bed she reached for her charger. An annoyed hiss escaped her lips when she noticed the wire of the charger was chipped. This was the second time this month her charger wire got chipped by the rats. Thankfully she had brought an extra charger. She took the chair of her study table and placed it in front of her cupboard. She climbed onto the chair and opened the cabinets to search for the charger.
While searching, a plushie attracted her attention which was placed in the back of the cabinet. She tilted her head, trying to remember why she have a plushie in her apartment. She moved the front items aside to get a better look at the toy and pulled it out. It was a dragon plushie. With the colour combination of white and light green. Still soft and squishy as she squeezed the toy's legs in her palms. She got down from the chair along with the plushie. Completely forgetting about the charger she was looking for.
She raised the toy high up and stare at its eyes, trying to remember how she got it. Pieces of memories started to cross her mind and soon enough she recalled that night from a decade ago. It was winter of 2006. She was still in the second year at Tokyo Metropolitan Curse Technical College. It was her senior, Mei's birthday. Mei had invited her to celebrate her birthday at a well known bar. Shoko accepted the invitation and went to the bar along with Mei and Utahime.
The boys arrived shortly after in Gojo's car. Gojo already prepared fake I'Ds for them to enter since they all were still under age except Mei and Utahime. Nanami and Haibara were against the idea but Mei managed to persuade them. Gojo, Geto, Nanami, Haibara, Mei, Utahime and Shoko. They all went into the bar. The birthday celebration was a blast. They all enjoyed to the fullest, spending quality time together and making heartwarming memories.
They all drank except Gojo as he doesn't like alcohol. The girls decided to play a game. They'll drink and the one who'll drink the least will pay the bill. Half an hour later Shoko realised that accepting the challenge was a bad decision when she found herself drunk. Back then she wasn't a heavy drinker and getting drunk over 3 glasses was expectable. Yet a part of her didn't regretted as she won. After all she drank the most. Utahime and Mei cheered for her while she stood up on the table as if she won some valuable reward.
Gojo looked around the room while sipping his chocolate milkshake through a straw. A cheeky grin formed on his face when people around him were getting drunk and having a good time. His eyes darted around the room, taking note of every person...until they caught Nanami, who was trying to avoid a very drunk Utahime, who was trying to make him drink. He chuckled and elbowed Geto and Haibara. Haibara laughed at the scene too while passing a drink to Geto who just shook his head.
After enjoying Nanami's struggles for a while, he decided to act. He walked over to them, getting in between Nanami and Utahime and pulling the latter away. He then turned to Nanami and winked at him who gave him a thankful look. "Get off me, ugly scum." A loud drunken yell attracted his and Utahime's attention. They both turned to look at the person who yelled and found Shoko trying to push off a drunkard who was being clingy.
Few other peoples turned to look at the scene too while Geto and Haibara started cheering Shoko and Mei pulled out her phone to capture the moment. Shoko let out a chuckle at their cheering and in the blink of an eye, kicked the man in groin. The man fell down on the floor and started rolling around clutching his groin while groaning in pain. Geto laughed wholeheartedly as he patted Shoko's back with a proud look making her almost choke out. Mei chuckled turning the camera to the man on the floor who was on the verge of crying now. The people who had turned to look at the scene, made themselves busy again.
Gojo face palmed himself looking at his drunk friends and their questionable behaviour. Geto continued drinking with Haibara and Nanami while Utahime asked Mei for a dance. Shoko was cheering at her friends who danced like there's no tomorrow. Gojo was a bit concerned about Shoko now. She never drank so much to become this drunk. He approached her held her by her shoulders to stop her from swaying.
Her hairs were a bit messy and there was a faint red tint on her cheeks because of Alcohol. She could barely keep her balance as she waved at her friends who were still dancing as if they're alone. "Gosh, girl. How much did you drink?" He asked her with a hint of worry. She turned to him with a grin and let out a chuckle. "Just one glass ... and ... two bottles ... hehe." Gojo's eyes widened. Two bottles? And Mei didn't stopped her?
"You should really go home now, it's getting quite late. Should I accompany you?" Gojo glanced at his watch, noticing the time quickly passing by it was past 12 already. Shoko really should go home. She had already kicked a man and he doesn't look pleased when he left. Gojo remembered the murderous look in his eyes. He didn't wanted her to get in trouble and do something she'll regret later. "No thanks..." Shoko smiled at him and attempted to walk on her own. "I can go on my own-"
Before she could complete her sentence she bumped into Mei and stumbles back before falling down. She groaned calling out Mei's name and winced like a child who got pushed by her bullies. Mei chuckled and mouthing a sorry, continued dancing. Gojo who was looking at the scene with his arms crossed, sigh and took a step closer to Shoko. He held her by her shoulders and pulled her up to make her stand up. Shoko who had her arms crossed, staring at Mei and Utahime, let herself be pulled up like a punctured doll.
He couldn't help but chuckle seeing her in such a state. "Sure you can go home on your own, Sho. I bet by morning you'll end up in a junkyard." He smirked at his own words and Shoko elbowed him with an annoyed look. His smirk turned into a genuine smile, when she tilted her head up to look at him. He seemed to forget about his proposition in the moment, seeing how drunk and vulnerable she was and the annoyed pout that was plastered on her small lips. "Am I..." hiccups "That drunk?"
Gojo couldn't help but let out a small laugh at Shoko's question, finding her drunken antics amusing. "Yes, miss troublemaker. You are. You shouldn't drink this much you know. It's dangerous. you might black-out and wake up somewhere you really wouldn't want to be. Like a back-alley or something. And who knows who'd be there?" Gojo, holding her by her shoulder, walked her to the nearest table and made her sit on it as he looked around the room for his friends.
"Curses? I will heal myself if anything happens anyway, hehe~" Gojo ignored her babblings and found all of their friends enjoying the small party. The idea of leaving her alone when she's this drunk doesn't fit well with him. And it was pretty late already. "I know you're perfectly capable of healing yourself but I still think you should return home now. It's pretty late and the party is almost over anyway."
Shoko let out a sigh after hearing his words. She was feeling light headed because of all the alcohol she had just gulped down. "Fine then. I want a dragon as cab to ride me back." The idea popped in her head out of nowhere and somehow aroused her interest as she found it adventurous. Gojo felt his eyes roll when he heard her drunk suggestion. How was he supposed to bring a dragon? That too, one that'll give her a ride back to the school. "I don't think there are any dragons available to be taxi's at this time of hour" He looked at her, hoping that his answer didn't upset her in any way.
"Then I won't go back home." It hit him like a truck. The answer he hoped wouldn't come out of her mouth. Gojo felt his eyes twitch at her plain tone. Yet his lips curve into a smile when he witnessed this rare side of her. She was being cute and it was rare to see Ieiri Shoko being cute. He found it quite entertaining. "You can't possibly have a dragon ride you back like a taxi." He then crouched down in front of her, holding out his hand. "That's enough for today. Come on, I'll help you up and take you home."
His suggestion doesn't seemed to fit well with her. She shook her head and pulled her legs up on the chair on which she was sitting. She hugged her legs keeping herself in fetal position. Her short brown hairs hid her face from him. "No! I want a dragon!" Shoko scoffed and turned her head away. Indicating that she was upset. Determined to have a dragon ride her back home. Gojo face palmed himself at her reply. "Sorry, no dragons to my knowledge. Besides, even if there were dragons, I doubt they'd be willing to act as cabs for people."
Shoko shook her head again making him sigh. After few minutes which felt like eternity, Gojo somehow manages to drag her outside the club. Of course after receiving 11 kicks 6 punches and countless curses. They reached at his parked car in the parking lot. He opened the passenger seat door for her but she refused to sit in the car and demanded she want a dragon again. She tried to go back into the club too and Gojo had to hold her arm to stop her. Yet she kept trying.
Something clicked in Gojo's mind and he pulled out his phone. He knew Geto can summon dragon with his curse technique as he called his best friend. The entire time, Shoko kept babbling on drunkenness while Gojo tried to make the phone call. He called Geto but the one who picked up was Nanami. "Nanami, is Sug- wait ... I called Suguru and you picked up. That's sus. Are you making out with my baby boy?" Gojo grinned mischievously.
He couldn't help but widen his grin when he imagined Nanami's face after hearing his words. "It looks like you're high on some soft drinks so I'll hang up for now." Hearing Nanami's response, his grin faded. "Okay fine, wait. Is Suguru around there? Give him the phone it's urgent." Nanami took a while to reply. "He went to washroom. I'll tell him to call back once he returns."
Gojo sigh in disappointment. "Okay. If others ask about me and Shoko just tell them I took her back to Jujutsu Tech." Nanami questioned Gojo why he was taking her back when the party haven't ended yet and Gojo was about to reply to Nanami when Shoko bite his wrist from which he was holding her arm. At first he didn't reacted ... at all and just froze there like a statue. He kept staring down at Shoko who had his wrist in her mouth with an expressionless face. When the realisation hitted, he let out a dramatic scream in pain, feeling his wrist be punctured by her sharp canine teeth. The pain quickly subsided due to her teeth barely piercing the skin, but still stung nonetheless.
At this point, Gojo felt helpless of the situation he had put himself in, feeling Shoko bite harder on his wrist. He started to regret his own decisions. Another idea popped in his head while he was staring at Shoko. She looked like she wasn't planning on leaving his wrist just yet. He walked down an alley with her in tow. Entering a shop he searched for a while for something while Shoko keeps babbling behind him. After a while, he found the thing he was looking for.
He finally succeeded in making Shoko shut her mouth once he handed her the dragon plushie he had just purchased. But what he hadn't counted on was her starting to bite and suck on the plushie's horn as she demanded it to 'fly her home'. He had his jaw on the floor in disbelief as he looked at her questioningly. Is this really the laid back and nonchalant girl he knew?
Gojo had enough of her antics as he dragged her back to the club parking lot. He opened the door of the passanger seat and picked her up before putting her onto the seat and wrapping the seat belt around her. Shoko was about to protest but Gojo beat her to it and placed his palm over her mouth. "Not. A. Word, Sho." His voice was stern, as if scolding a little kid. Shoko pouted again as he finished buckling her seatbelt.
Gojo sighed in relief once he managed to get the drunk Shoko in the car and closed the door. He walked to the other door and got into the driver's seat. After closing the door and putting the key in the keyhole, he started the engine. Feeling Shoko's arm tap his shoulder, he turned to face her with a raised brow. "I want to puke-" Shoko had her hand over her mouth as she looked at him innocently. This was enough to put him in the state of panic. He was on the verge of freaking out.
"NOT IN MY CAR!-" Gojo hurriedly unbuckled both his and her seatbelt and got out of the car. He opened the door of passanger seat before pulling her out. He picked her up by wrapping his arm around her waist. The position made her face, face the ground. She kept a tight grip on her mouth while he ran as fast as he could back inside the club and went straight to the washroom.
The entire time Shoko was babbling about how she was 'flying on her dragon home' and was 'having a great time' because of how fast he was running while Gojo was feeling a large amount of panic and exasperation. Eventually they made it to the washroom, where Gojo tried to support her by holding her hairs back while she relieve her stomach.
After washing her mouth Gojo lead her out. He reached his car. He helped her sit inside and started the car after taking the driver seat. It had been barely 4 minutes of driving when he stopped again. He got out of the car and opened the passanger seat. "Shoko. Sit inside the car and wait for me okay? I'll be back in a minute. And DON'T make a scene until I come back. Understand?" Shoko saluted at his request like a soldier. One of her eye half opened. Gojo just stared at her, feeling baffled by her antics.
He was about to question it and try to get her to act like an adult, only to pause, remembering that she was drunk. He let out a tired sigh, deciding to not to push it for the time being. He was glad that she at least understood that much. He quickly closed the door and went towards a convenience store nearby. After roaming around the store, he purchased some pills for headache and painkiller before he walked out of the store.
As he walked towards the store exit, he put the medicines in the pocket of his jacket and ran towards his car. From the distance, he saw Shoko arguing with two men. For a moment, he froze. His eyes widened in horror, seeing Shoko in such a precarious situation. Then he grabbed his head with both of his hands out of frustration as he groaned and curses clutching his own hairs while looking at the sky. He shook his head to brush off unnecessary thoughts and ran towards the scene.
Gojo approached them and pushed Shoko behind himself. He tried to calm the situation down and asked the elderly men the reason for their argument. "She ate the food without paying!" One of the men with long beard replied to him with obvious anger as he pointed his wooden spoon to the girl behind his back. Gojo looked to his right and saw a small shop of Tornado Potato. The mens are probably the shop owners.
When he looked back at Shoko behind him, he found her already staring at him with those big pupils that can melt even the curse king himself. While she clutched her dragon plushie he had brought earlier with one hand and the other hand clutched his jacket from behind. Spices were visible on the side of her lips, indicating that the shop owners were right. This made him massage his temples. Gojo pulled out his card and paid some extra money as compansation.
After that he apologized. But Shoko was still in a mood for some battle as she walked and stood in front of him. She began to argue again. Gojo's eyes turned dark when he saw Shoko trying to argue again. He felt a pang of exhaustion and a little hopelessness when he realised she had most definitely not learnt any lessons from her little incident. Not giving her chance to start again, he picked her up and put her over his shoulder. As he started walking towards his car, Shoko flipped off the shopkeepers.
After putting her back in the passenger seat, he again buckled her seatbelt and sat onto the driver's seat. He began driving to jujutsu tech and after barely 10 minutes of drive, she fell asleep on the passanger seat. Still clutching the dragon plushie and the spices sticking to her mouth. His eyes flitted to the passenger seat where Shoko had fallen fast asleep. His face turned amused again, finding the entire situation both amusing and frustrating. After creating such chaos, she slept like a baby, cuddling the plushie.
Seeing her still clutching her dragon plushie and her sleeping soundly, he felt a strange warmth form in his heart. It was quite confusing for him, as he doesn't feel anything of the sort for anyone most of the times. He shook his head and focused on driving instead. After reaching at jujutsu tech, he opened the passanger seat. She was still sleeping. So instead of waking her up, he pick her up in his arms.
She remained in her dreamland when he walked upstairs and went inside her dorm room. He closed the door by his foot before walking further into the room. Her soft breathing and the plushie she was cuddling seemed so adorable to him. He felt a strange sense of attachment towards the girl. His lips curved into a small smile, seeing her peacefully asleep. He carefully place her on her bed and then sat down beside her.
He remained silent for a while, staring at the wooden floor. There was complete silence. But it carried a sense of comfort. He tilted his head to look at her. Taking a tissue from the bedside drawer he cleaned her mouth which was still stained with spices. After that he carefully removed her shoes and coat. Then wrapped her with the blanket. He didn't knew what got into him but he leaned down and pecked her forehead. An action that probably no one can expect from the great Gojo Satoru. He got up, walking towards the door and gave one last look at her before leaving the room. The night passed peacefully.
Shoko streched as she woke up because of the sunlight. She sat up on her bed, running her fingers though her hairs. She was having a bad hangover. Her head aching like hell. She pushed off the soft toy that was on her lap with a cringe face and drowsily walked out of her dorm room while rubbing her eyes. The hallway was silent. Probably because everyone was still asleep after last night's celebration. She walked into the school kitchen and found Gojo, already up and preparing something for himself.
"Morning, sleeping beast, feeling the alcohol hammering your head?" He couldn't help but smirk when he noticed her walk into the kitchen, he doesn't seemed to hold any anger towards her for last night's antics. While she may not remember much of last night, Gojo has not forgotten a single thing. She rolled her eyes, still clutching her head. She sat on the counter as per her habit. Completely ignoring the empty chairs of the tables. She watched as he prepared the breakfast.
Gojo shook his head, feeling slightly annoyed at all the trouble she went through to sit on the counter, despite the empty chairs. He opened one of the cabinets and pulled out another pack of noodles. After a few minutes, he finished cooking and set two bowls of noodles on the table with a mug of coffee since she loves it. When he put the food on table, she climbed off the counter and sat on the chair across from him as they began to eat. "Who bring me here?" What a silly question to ask.
He put the chopsticks filled with noodles in his mouth while staring at her as she stare back at him with a raised eyebrow. "Of course your unpaid servant." He grinned pointing his thumb at himself. Shoko groaned and put her head down on the table. Gojo stood up and pulled something out of his jacket and put it in front of her. She raised her head and saw the medicine for headache and painkillers. He told her to finish the breakfast and take them after she was done.
Gojo smiled when Shoko finally started eating. As soon as she finished eating, he reminded her to take the pills immediately. "Last night...I didn't did something stupid, right?" Her tone was filled with nervousness and Gojo choked on his food as last night's event flashed before his eyes.
How she got drunk and kicked a man in groin. How she demanded she wanted a dragon to ride back. How she ate tornado potatoes without paying and argued with the shop owners and how she slept like a baby after making chaos. Gojo began to laugh, after recounting her antics last night. Shoko indeed acted very stupidly, but despite feeling annoyed last night, he was rather fond of the experience.
Shoko just stare at him with a blank expression while he laughed like a maniac. When he settled back down, he answered her question. "Yeah, Sho, I'd say you acted ... very stupidly. But hey, at least it was entertaining for me. I had a lot of fun last night at your expense." Shoko's face filled with horror as she started thinking of the worst things she could've done. "Wh- what did I did?" Gojo wiped the little tear from the corner of his eye.
"You got drunk, kicked a man in the groin, demanded you wanted a dragon to ride back home, bite my wrist like it's some piece of bread, you puked a lot, and ate free tornado potatoes. You even flipped off a few people while arguing with them. Not very ladylike ... or proper behaviour from the great Ieiri Shoko." He giggled, thinking about her antics and having no regrets about last night. He was enjoying retelling her antics to her right now and found them funny, although he knew how annoyed she'll become soon enough.
"Don't lie! Why would I ask for a dragon?" She smashed the chopsticks on the table with a seriously angry look. "Oh yeah, then why is there a dragon plushie in your bed?" Gojo said sarcastically and she remembers having a dragon plushie on her lap when she woke up. He had expected her to recall most of her antics, and it was funny how she was already beginning to be embarrassed about it.
"And I also have proofs." He showed her some images on his phone. Pic of her kicking a man in groin at the bar. A selfie of her biting his wrist while he made a cringe face looking at the camera. A selfie of her puking while he held her hair. A selfie of him holding her over his shoulder. Her sleeping like a baby as she clutched the dragon plushie while her mouth was covered with spices. She couldn't believe even in those situation he thought of taking her ugly pictures first. "Hey! Delete them!" She lunged forward to snatch his phone but he dodged her and ran out of the kitchen, followed by Shoko.
They both started running around the corridors. He giggled when Shoko tried to grab his phone. He began to run faster, trying to hide his phone from her reach. When she began to chase after him, they basically began playing a fun game of Cat and Mouse, running around the corridors and dorm rooms, ignoring their peacefully sleeping friends. "Do you know what I have in mind? Next time when I'll go on any mission abroad, I'll make an expert artist draw these photos and frame them on my clan house walls."
When he mentioned his idea of framing the photos, Shoko stopped, her face turning into one of horror. "W- Wait, what?" If Geto or anyone else would've said that, she would've laughed it off but it's Gojo. And knowing what kind of person he is, he'll do it just to annoy her. The way she froze in terror was even funnier to him.
As they entered her dorm room again. Gojo was laughing at her. He thought nothing could go wrong right now ... until the first pillow struck his face. As soon as it connected with his face, Gojo realised that the pillow fight had commenced. He threw a pillow back at her, aiming it at her face while laughing. While the fight continued, She tried to pull his arm down so that she could snatch his phone but he held his hand high. Plus he was almost 22 cm taller than her.
When she jumped on him, he stumbled back and was about to fall down. But he grabbed her arm on time causing them both to fell on her bed. Gojo was laying on the bed and Shoko was on top of him. She still tried to reach to the phone but there's no chance he'll allow himself to lose these pictures of her. He quickly began to tickle her to prevent her from getting her hands on his phone. Shoko's loud laughter at the tickling was somehow too heartwarming to him, who began laughing too. He continued tickling Shoko, finding it more and more funny the harder she laughed.
They kept tickling eachother getting tangles along with the sheets as they laughed to their hearts content. He looked at her when she laughed closing her eyes and suddenly felt an urge to embrace her. He pulled her closer hugging her tight. She still laughed. "Sho..." Hearing him she put her chin on his chest and looked at him to let him continue. "Promise me we'll always stay together. No matter what happens in the future. Say you won't let go of what we have. Ever."
She kept looking at him while he talked. A faint smile creeping on her lips. She rested her hands, one upon another on his chest and rested her cheek over her hands as she smiled at him. "Of course not. Why do you think you can get rid of someone like me, who'll sit on your head like a curse spirit?" He smiled at her yet didn't looked satisfied with her answer.
"Promise me, Sho."
"I promise, scum."
He chuckled with a look satisfaction as the tickling fight began again. Just like the sparks of fire fades into the air, similarly, the chains of her memories faded with both of their laughter still ringing in her head and she found herself back in her dimly lit room. Her eyes fell on her reflection in the mirror. A smile plastered on her lips. Her eyes glistening full of life. For a moment she just stood there holding the dragon plushie in her arms as she stare at her reflection.
She shook her head and layed down on her bed, covering herself with the blanket. The plushie remained in her arms. The smile failed to leave her lips. She hid herself in the blanket, snuggling to the plush toy as she took a deep breath closing her eyes. Her eye lids immediately felt heavy. Her half closed eyes didn't move from the plush toy for even a second. As if afraid she'll loose it along with her memories if she let go. A silent word escaped her mouth remembering how she got the plush toy before she fell asleep.
"𝘐𝘥𝘪𝘰𝘵"