Work Text:
It was a typical day at Jujutsu Tech. Our hero was currently running to the courtyard, afraid of being late for training.
"My name is Junpei Yoshino and I'm just an ordinary boy. I recently transferred to this school, but-"
THUD!
Without warning, Junpei found himself colliding with another person. But it wasn't just anyone. He caught a flash of bright pink standing before him and his heart started pounding.
"You okay?" Yuji asked. "You seem a little rushed."
"I'm fine," Junpei reassured, glad his bangs could partially hide his pink-tinged cheeks.
This boy was Yuji Itadori, the object of Junpei's affections. The two met after a dreadful encounter with an unpleasant teacher. From the moment he offered to come with him to this safe haven of a school, Junpei had fallen in love with Yuji. Who wouldn't be attracted to that gentle face and strong physique? It was those reasons that made Junpei decide he will confess his true feelings to the one person who actually cared enough to save him.
Of course, it seemed today was going to be an extra-special day. As the two hurried towards the courtyard, Junpei noticed Yuji looked more handsome than usual. His usually spiky hair was softer and his eyes seemed a little more sparkly. Seeing the pinkette like this made Junpei's heart pound faster than usual. How did this happen, you may ask? Well last night, he came across some very interesting reading material that stirred some repressed emotions deep within him. Fueled by a desire to fall in love, his mind became warm and fuzzy to the point where even the very environment was affected.
It was like he had died and woke up in a softer version of his world.
Once the first-year and second-year students gathered at the courtyard, Gojo explained today's training exercise. It was something about fighting in pairs based on curse ability compatibility. Usually this would mean someone would have to sit out, but Yuta was taking a break from his overseas training, allowing the student count to be an even number. But for Junpei, he was barely paying attention to the details. He was standing next to Yuji and Yuta, the former having a pleasant scent that was probably cologne and the latter looking far more handsome than he initially thought.
"Maki's a lucky girl," Junpei noted, recalling how she fell in love with Yuta for being the one guy who's stronger than her. It was very clear the two were in a romantic relationship, especially given her strong blush and occasional glances towards him.
Once the training details were completed, the pairings were assigned as followed. Panda vs. Megumi, Toge vs. Nobara, Yuta vs. Maki, and Junpei vs. Yuji. Gojo did admit he planned to have a first-year student fight a second-year student, but with Yuji being the only one who was immune to Junpei's poison, he had to change things up a little. That actually worked out well for Junpei. He never really got to see how well Yuji could handle his Poison Tap. The pinkette could walk out of Moon Dregs' tentacles unscathed and only got stabbed by that same shikigami's stingers. But now Junpei was fighting with his own power. He wasn't sure what the limits of Yuji's poison immunity were.
Just thinking about using Poison Tap to touch his crush made Junpei Yoshino feel warm and fuzzy once more.
So with the four pairs split up throughout the training grounds, the sparring sessions commenced with Gojo overseeing the students. Both Yuji and Junpei sparred through hand-to-hand combat, but in different styles. Yuji relied on his usual bare-handed punches, while Junpei alternated between the various open-hand strikes he learned about. But since this was focusing on curse energy compatibility, they had to keep their respected energies active.
Unfortunately, Junpei was way too out of it to fight cohesively. Yuji looked so cool as he utilized his Black Flash-powered punches. The black-red light of his curse energy brought out the intensity of his eyes as they narrowed in deep focus. Even those closed-eye markings enhanced his cheekbones. Junpei was somewhat conscious enough to block these punches with palm-strike catches, yet he was tempted to close his hand around Yuji's fist, feeling the rough callouses of his knuckles.
But Junpei wasn't the only one who was feeling warm and fuzzy. From a fleeting glance, he could see Yuta and Maki sparring nearby. It was his bamboo sword vs. her metal polearm, a clash between two weapon users. But the way they moved... It felt reminiscent of a careful waltz. Their training weapons slashed in a rhythmic melody and their footsteps were in perfect sync. One two three, one two three, clash, turn, pivot...
"Not bad," Yuta complimented, his voice sounding husky and low. "You got strong since we last saw each other." He let out a sigh as he smiled. "But I picked up a few tricks in Africa."
Maki blushed deeply. "Then show me what these new tricks are," she flirted back.
"I wish I could be like that towards Yuji," Junpei thought to himself, wanting to be as smooth as the katana wielder. Switching his focus back towards the pinkette, he wondered if this was his shot. He was a little too focused in trying to land a punch that he could have possibly left his defenses wide open. What if...?
"There!"
Junpei switched from a palm strike to grasping Yuji's curse energy-powered fist. Then, using his free hand, he grabbed the pinkette's waist and dipped him downwards, catching him off guard. But then, the warm and fuzzy feeling came back strong. It was the first time Junpei was in such close proximity towards Yuji. His heart pounded as time seemed to slow down. A slight breeze passed by, brushing through both boys' hair as Junpei fought back a blush. He could hear soft piano music as his vision was clouded with sparkly bubbles.
"He's so handsome..." the dark-haired teen gushed. He was glad Gojo made him get his hair cut. With his right eye peaking out from his bangs, he could see the boy of his dreams without any interference. He wanted to kiss his savior right then and there. And so, with his mind free of all mental restrictions holding him back, he pulled Yuji up close to him.
"Junpei...?" Yuji asked. "What are you-"
Junpei smirked as he leaned close towards Yuji's ear. "Poison Tap," he whispered.
The poison curse user pulled back and waited to see Yuji wince in pain. But as time passed, nothing seemed to happen. Was this just like what happened with Moon Dregs? Was there no poison that could harm Yuji Itadori? If so, that meant he would be completely immune to all of Junpei's poison, no matter how many variations he unlocked.
But wait! What about the spots? Surely there had to be some kind of marking visible. So without a second thought, Junpei shifted his hand on Yuji's waist to his jacket uniform, slowly pulling it upwards to check if he could see the familiar purple blotches associated with his poi-
"Time out!"
Upon hearing Gojo's voice, the warm and fuzzy feeling was instantly shattered. Reality sunk in as Junpei's mind cleared up. His body was dangerously close to Yuji, whose eyes were wide open in confusion. Glancing around, the dark-haired teen noticed there was a very noticeable audience consisting of the other students and Gojo. His face slowly turned bright red as he released his grasp.
"S-Sorry Yuji!" Junpei panicked, finger-combing his bangs downward to try and hide his nervous eyes. "I don't know what came over me!"
"Weren't we sparring?" Yuji asked, to which the dark-haired teen let out an embarrassed groan, too ashamed to even speak properly.
And that was how romance manga was banned from the Jujutsu Tech school library.