Chapter Text
Megumi opened the door, beckoning his friend inside his apartment. The silver frost on the cold brass door handle froze his hands, cementing him in place, reminding him of his position. A colleague, classmate, friend — best friend, maybe, but never more. Long ago, he had accepted his fate when he went through one of the worst experiences of his life, including experiences that were caused by events of a certain city that would haunt him for a life time, Shibuya.
He was never able to recover, never able to shake the feeling of inadequacy, of feeling like a monster, of losing those who meant the most to him. Never, did he ever think he'd sleep a night without the reminders of his trauma that haunted him in his nightmares.
But of course, he was still lucky. Not only was he able to heal physically, but he was also aided by his two best friends, the very people that experienced that same torture as him, alongside him. His days no longer always begun with the inevitable dread that came with being a sorcerer, of being a survivor, but instead sometimes begun with excitement, and relief, and an actual will to live, for once.
These days, he spent his mornings lounging about, waiting for his best friend to arrive so they could eat together. The pink-haired man always insisted on spending breakfast together, even if they saw each other the night before, claiming that he was lonely, or that he had made too much, when really that wasn't the case.
Megumi knew that it was just his way of looking after him, making sure he actually ate, or actually got out of bed instead of shutting himself out when the guilt and self-hatred got too much. The man was always too kind to Megumi, too understanding, too patient, too selfless. There wasn't a day where he felt deserving of his care and affection, unable to understand why a man like Itadori Yuuji would ever want to be around him.
Megumi, of course, would never voice out his feelings, ever, in fear of perhaps making Yuuji feel guilty, or even awakening these feelings in Yuuji, causing him to recognize his true worth, and inevitably leave him.
As Yuuji entered his apartment, Megumi forced his feelings down, choosing to focus on the man in front of him.
"Good morning!" Yuuji exclaimed, "Today I'm thinking of Meatballs. We can have a couple now for breakfast and save some for later... What d'you think?"
"Sounds good," Megumi nodded.
Making his way to the kitchen, Yuuji beamed. As he began to started chopping, Megumi sank down on the soft cushions on the sofa, sighing. Suddenly, memories of making meatballs in Jujutsu High flooded back to him, how Yuuji had taught him, and how he had made them after Yuuji's death, being complimented by Gojo and the other students. As much as Megumi refused to admit it, he did miss Gojo and the way school was before everything went wrong.
He ached for the chance to go back in time and yell at Gojo one more time. Or to visit Tsumiki again, or go on a random mission with Nobara and Yuuji, after being assigned by Gojo, no matter how annoying he found it at the time.
"Rough night?" A voice from the kitchen bellowed out to him, forcing him out of his thoughts.
"Huh..? Oh... No, not really. It's fine," Megumi shook his head.
"Okay, whatever you say," Yuuji smiled, understanding. "Whatever it is, you can tell me, you know."
"Yeah, I know," Megumi nodded. As much as he wanted to confide in someone, whether it was Nobara or Yuuji, all options were pretty unfavorable. Beside the obvious trauma and guilt caused by Sukuna and Kenjaku, one of his most pressing issues was actually one that existed pre-Shibuya - his feelings for Itadori Yuuji. Not that having a crush on Yuuji was anything horrible or stressful, if anything, Yuuji was probably one of the best people to have feelings for. He was kind, funny, handsome, talented, strong, emotionally intelligent and very understanding. Megumi had no doubt that if he confessed to his friend, he would be met with nothing but respect and kindness in his rejection, but that wasn't what he wanted.
As selfish as it was, he wanted Yuuji to love him back. In his wildest dreams he imagined living together with Yuuji. Eating homecooked meals together every time, not just for breakfast, watching the laundry dry as they talked about nothing, walking side by side as they completed errands, returning home after a long day to be welcomed by Yuuji, washing himself in a warm shower only to find Yuuji on his bed, their bed, waiting for him with his strong arms wide, ready to heal his cuts and bruises, fix his broken heart with soft kisses and sweet whispers... holding him firmly against his chest.. and his rock hard abs.. and his soft lips.. and his robe untied showing his—
Okay, so maybe some of Megumi's fantasies weren't perfectly innocent, but lately it was becoming harder and harder to repress his feelings of desire towards his best friend. Even now, the way Yuuji's muscles flexed slightly as he cut through the vegetables and as he lifted the pot to and from the stove, how his jaw tensed when he was concentrating, how his neck was a tiny bit sweaty from his run earlier, all had Megumi resisting the urge to drool, even by just looking at him.
Of course, Megumi would absolutely never admit this to anyone. As much Nobara enjoyed teasing them, both boys denied it strongly — Megumi more strongly than Yuuji maybe, but still. He was sure that if he confided in Nobara, her teasing would increase and it would only make Yuuji uncomfortable. And that was the last thing he wanted. Yuuji's friendship with him became his entire lifeline at one point, becoming the reason why he chose to stay alive, to actually live for someone else again. So, yeah, if there was a chance that his relationship with Yuuji could be tainted by some silly insignificant feelings he held, then he would keep them a secret forever, even if they maybe gnawed at him from the inside sometimes.
For now, he allowed himself to bask in the warmth of the other's presence, and appreciate the way his heart swelled at the image of his best friend in his kitchen, in his apartment. Megumi couldn't imagine a time where he'd grow desensitized to being in the same space as Yuuji, let alone sharing his own space with the boy. Not to mention how comfortable Yuuji seemed in his apartment, cooking in his kitchen, laying on his couch, seemingly not noticing how domestic it all was.
By the time Yuuji had finished cooking, Megumi took it upon himself to set up the table, placing the cutlery and plates down on the soft wood, trying to ignore how Yuuji smiled appreciatively at him for doing so. But, of course, he failed, his face warming slightly at the mere thought of Yuuji's adorable smile.
Almost immediately after sitting down, Yuuji started to gobble down his food, seemingly as fast as physically possible, and Megumi chuckled at his friend's miraculous ability to gulf down whatever he's eating, no matter what. How cute.
Taken aback by the sudden laugh, Yuuji paused from his incessant chewing, looking up at Megumi, mouth full. "Wha's it?"
Megumi's eyes widened at being caught. Clearing his throat, he uttered a feeble excuse, "Oh, uh, nothing. You... You have a little sauce around your mouth.. Um.."
"Ah, really?" The other boy rushed to wipe his mouth with the edge of his sleeve.
Gross, Megumi thought. Good thing there wasn't actually anything on his face.
Yuuji hummed, "Damn, Fushiguro, you always catch me at my worst moments," he chuckled before adding, "I never see you do anything like this."
Megumi scoffed, "Well, I'd hope not. I'm 19 years old."
"So am I!"
"Huh... Maybe you're just stupid." He shrugged.
At that, Yuuji gasped dramatically. "No I'm not!" he shrieked.
Megumi felt a bit bad for a second, worried that he may have hurt his friend's feelings, until Yuuji's soft giggles filled the room.
Megumi's mood instantly improved — his favorite sound engulfing him in a warm bubble.
Maybe if Megumi closed his eyes, he could pretend that the rest of the world outside this bubble didn't exist, that the sweet boy in front of him was the only thing that mattered.
Ah, well, that wasn't too far off Megumi's current reality. Honestly, he wouldn't mind staying in this bubble forever, but alas, Yuuji had to ask him a question.
"Hey, Fushi, what are your plans for today?" he inquired, fiddling with his hoodie sleeve. Was he... He seemed almost.. nervous?
"Um," he really had to think before landing on, "not much, what about you?"
"Oh, haha. I'm not really doing anything either, um..." Megumi didn't miss how a pretty blush suddenly painted Yuuji's features.
"Yeah?"
"Do you wanna go with me somewhere? As in.. Like, can I take you out tonight?" Megumi's eyes widened. Yuuji's brown eyes sparkled at him in anticipation.
"Take.. me out?" he repeated. He couldn't be sure if he heard that right.
"Yeah! Or, um, it's fine if you can't. Or don't want to," Yuuji chuckled nervously, "I was just wondering."
"No, no, I want to," Megumi quickly backtracked, "Just.. where are you taking me?" Yuuji perked up.
"Okay, heh. It's a surprise, though," Yuuji winked at him.
"Right..."
"Okay, cool!" Yuuji replied enthusiastically, quickly grabbing his things. He made his way to the door. "I'll see you at 7?"
"Uh, yeah. Here?"
"Yeah! I'll pick you up!" Yuuji called out, grabbing his shoes.
"Cool."
"Cool," Yuuji mirrored, smiling at Megumi.
Soon enough, Megumi felt himself smiling too.
"So, I'll pick you up here at 7, yeah?" Yuuji asked, confirming.
"Yeah." He nodded.
"Don't forget!"
"I won't," Megumi sighed.
"'Kay, sounds good! It's a date!" Yuuji winked before heading out the door, beaming. "I'll see you later!"
Megumi's brain short-circulated. "I— yeah."
After Yuuji closed the door behind him, Megumi let out a deep breath he had been holding for a while.
He didn't even notice how Yuuji hadn't even closed the door properly, only pushing it towards the frame. He didn't even care about the fact that Yuuji didn't even clear up a single thing in the kitchen.
He could only focus on three words that had come out of Yuuji's mouth—
"It's a date."
A date. With Yuuji.
Quickly, he headed to his sofa where he could comfortably plop down on, ready to overthink the hell about this situation.
He didn't make it up, did he? Yuuji did, in fact, say those words. But what if he didn't mean in that way? Actually, it didn't even matter to him. The only thing that mattered was that tonight, at 7pm, Yuuji was going to show up at his door. Taking him out. On a 'date'.
Holy shit.