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“Brat, if you don’t get in the car in 0.5 seconds, I’ll go back to bed,” Sukuna announced impatiently.
“I’m almost ready, two more minutes, please!” Yuji pleaded, throwing multiple items inside his backpack all at once. Thinking back, he knew he really should’ve packed the day before, but procrastination was a curse, and he’d fallen victim to it too many times.
“One more minute or else….” His uncle trailed off, leaving the room.
Yuji quickly zipped his backpack, grabbed his phone that was lying on the bed and looked around, trying to remember if he had forgotten something. Aha! He thought when his eyes met his sunglasses. Can’t leave without these.
Ready, Yuji rushed to the car and found Sukuna already in there. It was an unusual act of kindness of his uncle, agreeing to take Yuji and his group of friends on their camping trip, but one the boy was very thankful for. I’ll think about what he’ll ask in return later.
Their first stop was a convenience store to grab a few bottles of soda — the only thing Yuji was in charge of bringing — plus ice packs for the cooler. Thankfully, the boy had thought of putting the cooler inside the car the night before, or else he would’ve likely forgotten it. Haha, that would be messy .
Then, they headed to Megumi’s house, finding the boy patiently waiting at the door with two backpacks, a tent and a cooler. Yuji jumped out of the car to help him load the trunk. Once they were back in the car, they headed to Nobara’s house. The girl also had two backpacks and a tent with her, but only the latter fit the trunk, so the bags went in the backseat with her.
With everyone assembled, they started their trip to the countryside of Tokyo. The car radio was on with some metalcore music Sukuna had chosen. It was so loud that it killed any attempt at conversation, to the older man’s satisfaction.
An hour passed by smoothly, when suddenly something finally clicked in Yuji’s brain. He looked quickly to the backseat, specifically at the bags in Nobara’s lap, and his eyes widened. “That’s a sleeping bag,” he sputtered.
Nobara frowned and tilted her head. “Yeah?”
“You also brought a sleeping bag.” Yuji pointed at Megumi, who nodded. “Crap! I forgot my sleeping bag!” He grunted, grabbing his hair in frustration.
Then, all three heads turned in sync towards Sukuna. Noticing the attention, the older Itadori rolled his eyes. “I won’t drive an hour back and forth to retrieve your sleeping bag, sleep on the floor for all I care.”
Defeated, Yuji let his body sink in his seat, dreading the uncomfortable night he was bound to spend. “Why didn’t anybody notice this before?” He groaned.
“I’m not your babysitter,” Nobara answered, while Megumi said, “I thought it was in the front seat with you.”
“That’s why we didn’t let you be in charge of anything vital,” Nobara added with a sigh.
“That’s soooo unfair. This trip is going to suck,” Yuji pouted.
“Stop whining, or we're all going back home,” Sukuna threatened, and increased the volume of the music, reestablishing the conversation-free environment he had cultivated throughout the trip.
Thirty minutes later, they arrived at the campsite, and Sukuna was quick to vanish after dropping them off.
“Mother nature!” Nobara yelled, spinning with her arms open and a smile. “Fresh air!” She breathed in deeply. “This is going to be awesome!”
Yuji, who had been upset for the last part of the trip, immediately gave in to Nobara’s excitement. He jumped towards her and opened his arms, joining his friend in the happiness spin, both emitting little sounds of joy. Megumi watched the scene with a displeased face.
“Stop being idiots, we have to find a place to set up camp.”
Yuji stopped in his tracks and jogged back to Megumi. “Let's go!” He screamed, grabbing the tents and hanging them on his shoulders, then picking up a cooler with each hand and standing with his chest puffed and a large smile.
“You don't have to carry it all by yourself, idiot,” Megumi scolded, picking up his backpack and sleeping bag.
“It’s all good for me,” Nobara said with a thumbs up. “Thank you, Yuji.”
“No problem, I have to put my muscles to use,” he said, flexing his arms, using the coolers as dumbbells. Megumi scoffed and started to walk, leaving the other two to follow behind.
They walked in a straight line for a few minutes until they found a clearing that had enough space to set up camp.
Megumi set up his tent by himself proficiently and stopped to watch as Nobara and Yuji took twice as much time to do it.
When they finished, Nobara noticed Megumi staring and pointed accusingly at him. “What's up with that smug smile, Megumi?”
The boy suppressed his smile and looked away. “Nothing…”
“I'll make you carry the logs,” she threatened, walking towards him with her eyes narrowed.
Megumi chuckled.
Yuji walked towards him with a smile and slapped his shoulder. “Don't worry, Megumi, I will carry them for ya.”
Nobara slapped the back of Yuji's head. “You're too soft on him, that's why he acts so spoiled!”
“No, that's because of Gojo-sensei,” Yuji countered, receiving another slap, this time from Megumi. “Ouch, what was this for?”
Megumi only growled and started to walk towards the trees. “Let’s grab some wood.”
The other two quickly caught up with him.
-
“Who knows how to light this thing up?” Yuji asked when they got back to the camp, dropping the logs on the grass. The other two followed the cue to drop their findings as well.
“Am I the only one who has gone camping before?” Megumi asked, flabbergasted.
Yuji shrugged. “I’ve always wanted to, but gramps was too old for that stuff and Sukuna is an ass, so…”
“I never thought of doing it, to be honest,” Nobara said with a hand on her chin, deep in thought. “I had a lot of sleepovers back in the village, though.”
“How come you have camped before?” Yuji frowned.
Megumi scratched the back of his head. “Gojo takes me and Tsumiki camping once a year… he says it’s to strengthen family bonds.”
“Wow, that's so considerate of Gojo-sensei,” Nobara praised, evidently surprised.
Megumi rolled his eyes. “Yeah, I guess.”
Being the only one who knew how to do it, Megumi grabbed a bunch of the leaves and placed them where he wanted the campfire to be, not too close nor too far from the tents. Then, he grabbed a few sticks and put them in a tent-like position over the leaves.
“Anyone got a match or a lighter?” He asked, a bit worried that he'd receive no as an answer.
“I do,” Nobara said before running to her tent. Soon enough, she was back, throwing Megumi a match box.
Megumi tossed a match at the leaves and watched carefully as the fire started to ignite. Then, he added a few more leaves to increase the fire.
“Wow, Megumi, you're so good at this kind of thing.” Yuji’s eyes were wide in admiration.
Megumi hid a grin and picked up the logs near Yuji to build a cage around the stick tent up to the top. When he was done, he got up and cleaned his hands on his pants. “I'll get the grill grid in place, and then we will wait a bit,” he announced, and then walked towards the tents to retrieve the coolers and the grid, putting them near the campfire.
Megumi joined Yuji and Nobara sitting next on the grass and placed the grid on top of the logs. Opening the first cooler, he grabbed a bottle of coke. “Ah, Yuji, where are the cups?” he asked, turning to look at his friend.
Yuji's eyes widened, his mouth dropped. “C-cups?” he stuttered.
Megumi sighed. “You brought bottles… and no cups…”
Yuji grinned, his cheeks going red. “Sorry…”
“You're such an idiot, Yuji,” Nobara said, pushing him to the side and making him fall against Megumi, who promptly pushed him back.
“Well, we can drink from the bottle though, can we not? We're all friends,” Yuji suggested.
“Ew, boy saliva,” Nobara whined, scrunching her nose.
“You're the lesbianest person I know,” Megumi commented, rolling his eyes. Nobara opened a smile from one ear to the other.
Ignoring the protest, Yuji grabbed the bottle from Megumi's hand and opened it, quickly chugging the liquid down. Then, he lowered the bottle and grinned at the others. “C'mon, it's no big deal.” He passed it to Nobara, who begrudgingly took a sip.
With that being settled, Megumi opened the second cooler and took out a few skewers with meat and vegetables, placing them on the grill.
Yuji raised an eyebrow at the nicely cut and prepared food. “Did you make these, Megumi?”
“No, it was Tsumiki. Why?”
Yuji nodded. “Of course it was, you don't even know how to hold a knife.”
Megumi glared at Yuji. “That only happened once,” he growled. “I was distracted.”
Yuji threw his head back laughing, his hand resting on his belly and his whole body shaking. “It took you so long to notice you were cutting with the back of the knife.” The laughter died slowly, and he wiped a fake tear from his eye.
Before Megumi could answer, Nobara intervened with a pout. “I’m just now realizing you two hang out a lot without me.”
Yuji scratched his neck, looking at Nobara with a guilty face. “I was giving him cooking lessons, that’s all.”
“Bad friends,” she scolded.
“It wasn't that many times,” Megumi tried to amend, his cheeks red from embarrassment.
“Yeah, like, it's only on Sundays,” Yuji added.
A moment of silence followed before Nobara narrowed her eyes at them and said: “Every Sunday?”
Megumi punched Yuji's leg. “Idiot.”
But, to their surprise, Nobara chuckled and waved it off. “Eh, it's fine. I understand. I also like Maki way more than I like you two.”
Yuji grinned and nudged her with his elbow. “Yeah, but that's because you're in love with her.”
Nobara’s mouth dropped. “How did you know?”
“Everybody knows,” Megumi answered plainly.
She huffed. “But even Yuji? I didn't know he was so perceptive.”
“Well, I can notice stuff like that, you know? Plus, it was so obvious.”
Nobara raised an eyebrow, amused. “So funny of you to say that…”
“Anyway, lunch is ready,” Megumi interrupted, shoving a skewer in Nobara's face. She took it, biting her lip to hold back a laugh. More gently, Megumi handed Yuji one.
“Thank you, Megumi!” Yuji opened a big smile before biting the meat off the stick. Then, Megumi got his own skewer and put another three to grill.
It was for the best that they kept their mouths shut for a while, Megumi thought, but as it turned out, having his mouth full didn't stop Yuji from speaking. “So, who's going to share a sleeping bag with me?”
Nobara exaggeratedly pretended to vomit.
Yuji sighed and turned to Megumi. “Please?” He gave the boy his best puppy eyes.
Megumi almost choked on the food and quickly looked away, avoiding his gaze. “Fine, the idiot can sleep with me,” he mumbled.
Yuji's smile grew bigger, and he gave Megumi a side hug. “Thank you so much, Megumii!!!” Yuji sighed contentedly. “I love guys so much,” he added, passing an arm around Nobara's shoulders as well and pulling them both closer. “I'm so happy we came here. It's really rare for friends these days to hang out without being on their phones all the time.”
“Yeah…” Nobara said, quickly hiding her phone under her leg. “So good to be in touch with mother nature. I already feel like a different person.” She sighed.
“I couldn't ask for better friends,” Yuji said cheekily.
“Corny,” Megumi scoffed, but the corner of his mouth curled slightly in a smile.
-
A couple of hours later, Yuji decided they should swim, and so they retreated to their tents to get ready.
Inside, Megumi observed as Yuji ruffled through his bag and frowned. “I didn't bring a change of clothes… I think it's best if I just stay here and look out for our stuff.”
“Don't worry, Megumi. I brought two swimming trunks, you can use one of mine,” Yuji replied.
Megumi chuckled. “You remembered to bring two swimming trunks but forgot your sleeping bag and the cups?”
“I used my low storage brain to remember the important things, is that so wrong?” Yuji pulled two swimming trunks out of his backpack, causing many other items to fall off with it. “Here, you can have the navy one, since you're emo.” He threw the piece of clothing to Megumi’s chest.
Megumi grabbed it and scrunched his nose. “This is way too short.”
“We’re not nuns, Megumi, we can show a little skin.”
Then, unceremoniously, Yuji started to remove his shirt. Megumi’s eyes widened and he looked away quickly. “I'll wait outside,” he stated before leaving the tent.
Outside, he put out the fire and paced back and forth, nervously waiting for his friends to get ready. The first one to get out was Nobara, wearing a black bra and a towel around her waist.
“Can I use your tent to change?” Megumi asked, and she nodded in response.
Megumi entered the tent and quickly took his clothes off, slipping into Yuji’s blue swimming trunks. It was shorter than Megumi's usual shorts, and it was a little loose around his hips, but it fit well enough.
When he left the tent, Yuji was already there, wearing pink swimming trunks and spreading sunscreen on Nobara’s back.
Megumi walked towards them and rolled his eyes when he looked at Yuji’s face. “You didn't spread it right,” he said before smoothing out the white parts of Yuji's nose and chin.
Yuji opened a big grin. “Thanks.” Then, he clasped his hands and said: “All done, Nobara.”
Nobara turned around and grabbed Megumi's arm. “It's Megumi's time now.” Megumi's eyes widened. He had less than a second to register what was happening before she dragged him to where she was standing, his back towards Yuji. Then, Yuji poured a handful of sunscreen on his skin, making Megumi flinch. Slowly, Yuji's hands rubbed the cream on Megumi's lower back, then moved upwards in circular movements.
“Megumi, your muscles are all knotted,” Yuji commented, pressing his thumbs along Megumi's shoulder blades, and shivers ran through his body.
“What are you, a physiotherapist?” Megumi deadpanned.
“Even an amateur can see you’re all tensed up.” Yuji then moved to massage Megumi’s shoulders. It did alleviate the tension a bit, but it also made goosebumps rise in Megumi's whole body, taking the boy to the limit of his sanity. So, he stepped away from Yuji and turned around to thank him.
Yuji, though, didn't seem to notice his uneasiness. “C’mon, now it’s the face.” He poured a lot of sunscreen on his hands and reached for Megumi’s face, but the boy dodged at the last second.
“I can do it myself.”
Yuji lowered his hand, pouting. “Do you hate me?”
Megumi scoffed and rolled his eyes. “Of course not.” Yuji took it as permission and went back to spread sunscreen on his face.
From behind them, they heard gagging noises. “You two are so gross,” Nobara whines.
“Ignore her, Megumi, she’s bitter because she doesn’t have a girlfriend,” he murmured, but Nobara definitely heard it by the way she started to complain.
Megumi, though, had a hard time understanding what she was saying, because all he could focus on was how Yuji’s hands were rubbing softly against his face and how the boy smiled kindly while doing it.
Megumi clenched his jaw and tried to redirect his thoughts to a safer environment, but it all went to shit when Yuji started to rub the sunscreen on his chest so slowly and carefully that it felt like he wanted to tease Megumi. It was almost like he knew it was killing him.
Just as Megumi felt like he was about to explode, Yuji stopped. “All ready,” he said with a little tap on Megumi's shoulder.
Megumi released the breath he didn’t realize he was holding and watched as Yuji went back to the tent. Nobara approached him and nudged his ribs with her elbow. “Good luck sleeping next to him,” she said with an all-knowing expression that made Megumi shudder. He didn't answer, thinking he could only make his situation worse if he tried.
-
The three of them spent hours in the river, making up a thousand different bets — like who can swim faster and who can stay underwater for longer — that ended up in Yuji winning 80% of the time. Once they were back at the camp, Megumi lit up the fire again, and they sat down to talk, chatting all the way into the night, eating and drinking until they were stuffed.
Megumi opened a small smile as he watched Yuji telling another story, to which Nobara responded with big facial expressions and a large range of sounds.
Megumi sighed, thinking about how effortlessly their friendship was, so much that it felt unreal sometimes. There had been a time before Megumi met them when he cultivated more people that feared him than people who actually liked him. He used to get in a lot of fights with people who picked on others, but he ended up being feared just as much as they had been. It made it very hard to make friends.
But with them, it was as easy as breathing, especially with Yuji. With just one look, Megumi had known the pink-haired boy was someone he wanted to have by his side for a long time. Their friendship was Megumi's most precious possession, and he'd do anything to preserve it.
He looked away from them, resting his head on his knees.
He'd do anything to preserve it, even hiding his feelings as deep as he could.
-
When the chatter got cold and they headed for their tents, Nobara pointed at the two boys. “Hey, you two.” They raised their heads to look at her. “No funny business, remember I'm right outside and the walls are thin!”
Yuji frowned and then threw his head back laughing. Megumi gave her his scariest look, but she just smiled and disappeared inside her tent.
Megumi entered theirs first, quickly sliding into the sleeping bag. Yuji stood still near the door, gazing at the floor. “Are you coming?” Megumi asked with a frown.
At the sound of his voice, Yuji shook his head and grinned, then moved to join Megumi in the sleeping bag.
The first thing Megumi thought when the boy slid next to him was: this definitely wasn't made to fit two people. There wasn't enough space for them to lay completely on their backs, so they were facing each other, bodies squeezed together way more than Megumi expected.
“It’s bonding time!” Yuji chuckled. “Damn, this is so tight.” He wiggled his body, trying to get comfortable, but there was barely any room left.
“Stay still, idiot,” Megumi breathed out, his heart hammering on his chest. Can Yuji feel it? He asked himself with dread.
But Yuji seemed completely at peace, a soft smile on his face as his eyes bore into Megumi's soul. His breath was steadily hitting Megumi's face. Smells like meat, he registered. Megumi's breath, on the other hand, wasn't steady at all. Am I claustrophobic? He wondered. It seemed like a reasonable explanation, because he was panicking, and it definitely wasn't because Yuji was stunningly staring at him. Right?
Needing to put an end to it, Megumi turned his body away from Yuji. It wasn't an easy task, but it was worth it. He breathed out, relieved, feeling the pressure of Yuji's eyes leaving him.
But his peace didn't last for long.
“Should we cuddle?” Yuji questioned, genuine doubt in his voice.
“Why?” Megumi asked faintly, and his heart skipped a beat.
“We’re basically cuddling already, but like this, my arms are weird,” Yuji explained.
Megumi gulped and took a deep breath. Then another one. Then another one. “Fine,” he said finally.
Yuji quickly wrapped his arm around Megumi and hummed contentedly. Megumi let out a shaky breath. He was surrounded by Yuji's warmth, and it made his blood rush to his cheeks.
“Ya know,” Yuji mumbled. “It’s kinda nice being like this with you. We should do it more often.”
Megumi choked on air. “What?”
“Yeah, like, bro cuddling. It's a thing.”
Megumi huffed, but his heart was beating even faster. Despite the wording, the idea of Yuji wanting to cuddle with him again made Megumi's stomach hurt with anxiety.
Then, Yuji hugged Megumi tighter, snuggling his nose in his friend's hair. “You’re so nice to hug,” he mumbled.
Megumi breathed out loudly. Why me, God? He cried to the skies. I'm not your strongest soldier.
The way things were, Megumi would never fall asleep. Maybe he should offer to sleep on the floor and tell Yuji that it was too uncomfortable.
But…
But it was nice.
Would it be so wrong if he indulged in it for one night? Megumi sighed. Even if it wasn't fair that Yuji was completely oblivious to his feelings, he was simply accepting his best friend's kindness. Yuji was a very affectionate person and Megumi experienced that first hand in the year they'd been friends. He would probably be upset if Megumi said he had something against cuddling with him. So, in the end, it was best to just enjoy it. Right?
With his new resolve, Megumi relaxed into Yuji's arms. It felt good, even better now that he wasn't fighting the feeling. At the same time, his heart thumped hard against his ribs, begging to come out, to tell the truth. It was as if everything Megumi had ever felt for Yuji was flourishing in his chest all at once.
“Yuji…” It escaped his lips. He didn't mean to say anything, but his brain was screaming his name, and before he could stop it, he had already said it.
“Hmm?” Yuji hummed, one step too close to sleep.
Megumi gulped and breathed deeply. He knew what he wanted to say, what his soul was screaming.
You're perfect.
I adore everything about you.
I love you.
“Goodnight,” he whispered instead.
Yuji's arms around him tightened and he mumbled. “Goodnight, Megs.”
-
Megumi woke up feeling a light stroke on his hand. He blinked a few times, his brain still adjusting to the unfamiliar place he had woken up to. Then, he remembered it. Yuji was still lying next to him, clearly awake as he petted Megumi's hand.
“Good morning,” Yuji mumbled, confirming Megumi's suspicion.
“How long have you been awake for?”
“A while,” Yuji answered. “I didn't want to wake you up so I waited.”
Megumi suppressed a smile. “You can get up now.”
Yuji hummed. “But I don't wanna.”
Megumi gulped, and his heart skipped a beat. “Nobara will tease us for sleeping in.”
Yuji whined. “Just wanna hug you a bit more.”
Megumi was left speechless, his mouth hanging open. His breathing became heavy, all the anxiety he had felt last night came back to him. Why does Yuji like it so much? He wanted to ask, but was too afraid to do so.
“Did you sleep well?” Yuji asked, putting a stop to Megumi's frantic thoughts.
Megumi nodded. “Yeah, I think so.”
“Good. I did too.”
There was a big moment of silence that should've felt weird, but for some reason it wasn't. Yuji was still drawing shapes on Megumi's hands and the weight of his arm over him was a bit soothing. Megumi let himself concentrate on that, numbing out his own thoughts.
Then, sounds coming from the outside startled them. Suddenly, their tent was being opened and a shit ton of sunlight creeped in, along with the girl's head.
“Wake up, sleeping beauties!” She yelled. Then, her eyes seemed to register the position they were in and her face softened. “Aww, you look so cute.”
Megumi frowned and scoffed. “I'm not cute.”
“You kinda are, though,” Yuji said, chuckling and holding Megumi closer. The comment made a blush creep onto his face.
“Shut up, Yuji,” he muttered, half-heartedly.
“Aw, you two gotta stop, or I'll cry,” Nobara said, dramatically putting a hand on her chest.
“We'll be out in a second,” Yuji promised. Nobara left the tent and closed it again. Then, he sighed and ruffled his nose in Megumi's hair. Is this becoming a habit or what?
“I wish I could do this every day,” Yuji whispered. Megumi's eyes widened, and his heart almost jumped out of his mouth.
“What are you saying?” Megumi tried his best not to sound nervous, but his voice came out shaky.
“Just… I don't know. We've been friends for so long and I love it… I love being your friend. But…” Yuji paused, biting his lip.
“But what?” Megumi urged him, anxious to know what was going on in Yuji's mind.
“I think I've fallen in love with you.” It came out as a whisper. Yuji's eyes were closed and his hand, still on Megumi's waist, was shaking lightly.
Megumi opened his mouth, but no words came out of it. For a moment, he was frozen, completely unable to react. When you really want something so hard it hurts, but you never really thought you could have it… How do you react to it being given to you so suddenly?
Yuji let out a shaky breath. “It's fine if it's weird for you…” He said, forcing a smile to form on his lips. “You don't have to say anything.” The hurt in Yuji’s voice, evoked by a sense of rejection, snapped Megumi out of his stupor and he did the only thing his brain could think of.
He kissed Yuji.
Was it really a kiss when he merely smashed his lips against Yuji's with all the strength he had? It didn't matter, because it got the message across. Yuji's eyes opened wide, in contrast to Megumi's closed ones. They stayed still for what felt like decades and seconds at the same time. Then, Megumi lightened the pressure, brushing his lips lightly against Yuji's, leaving small pecks on them. The pecks then evolved into open-mouth kisses, which captured Yuji's bottom lip. Yuji moved along, reciprocating the kiss, their lips fitting together like puzzle pieces.
Yuji's hand moved to cradle Megumi's cheek, and he licked tentatively the space between Megumi's lips, to which Megumi opened them to let Yuji come in.
It all felt like a dream, a soft and heavenly dream. There wasn't any awkwardness between them, only sheer affection. Who would've thought that it was this easy to kiss your best friend?
Feeling an urge in his chest, Megumi broke the kiss, desperately needing to say something. Yuji's eyes on him were shining like a beacon and his smile was as bright as the sun. Megumi let out a shaky breath before he gave back a smile of his own. “I love you too, idiot.”