Work Text:
Lunch at Tokyo Jujutsu High is rarely quiet.
Between Maki threatening to spear Panda with her chopsticks for stealing food off her tray, Nobara loudly debating whether instant noodles counted as a real meal, and Hakari accusing the vending machine of being rigged after it ate his money twice, silence is basically a foreign concept.
Toge sits quietly in the middle of it all, peeling back the wrapper of his tuna mayo rice ball while half-listening to the overlapping conversations around him. Afternoon light spills through the cafeteria windows, bathing the tables in amber glow and catching dust motes drifting in the air.
He feels perfectly at ease in his little bubble.
That is, until Yuuji barges into it.
“Okkotsu-senpai is really scary when he gets mad,” Yuuji whispers conspiratorially as he drops into the seat beside him.
Toge pauses mid-bite and glances at him bewildered, before chomping down his rice ball.
Yuuji looks around cautiously before lowering his voice even more. “Like, genuinely terrifying.”
“Sure,” Toge signs, unimpressed.
“No, I’m serious! I saw him glare at me once because he thought I broke your arm,” Yuuji insists. “I’ve been wary of him ever since.”
“Well, I’d definitely be pissed too if someone allegedly hurt one of my friends.”
From the other side of the table, Panda screeches in mock offense. “Do you really want to destroy our years of friendship over kimchi?!”
“Is asking permission first that hard?!” Maki counters, looking like seconds away from strangling him.
“That’s not the point,” Yuuji continues, jabbing a finger against the table. “The point is that Okkotsu-senpai does that thing where he gets really quiet first? And then the air gets all heavy and suddenly you remember he could probably snap a person like a twig.”
Toge chews thoughtfully.
Across the room, Yuuta stands near the window beside Gojo, shoulders relaxed as he listens to the older man talk. A quiet laugh escapes him, soft enough that the cafeteria noise overrides it entirely.
He looks… harmless. Not weak, though. Toge has seen him fight before.
Two summers ago, while walking home at night, he’d watched Yuuta step between a terrified woman and a drunk man in a narrow alley. Yuuta had stared the man down with such a cold intensity that even Toge–standing several feet away with his phone already in hand to call the police–had felt a chill crawl down his spine.
Toge knows exactly how frightening Yuuta can be when he needs to be.
But angry? At people? At his own junior, no less? That feels impossible.
As if sensing the attention on him, Yuuta glances over and immediately beams the second their eyes meet.
“Toge!” he calls warmly, waving his hand in greeting.
Toge watches him weave easily through the crowded cafeteria before stopping beside his chair and setting a bottled drink next to his tray.
“I found melon juice in the vending machine before Gojo-sensei hogged all of them,” Yuuta says proudly.
Toge’s eyes flick to the drink. He’s been craving melon juice for weeks. It’s a surprise Yuuta still remembers. “Thank you,” he signs.
Yuuta's smile widens, “Anything for you.” Then his attention shifts toward Yuuji, who is low-key hiding from Toge’s shoulder. “Oh. Hey, man.”
“H-hello, senpai!” Yuuji blurts out, sitting upright and nearly headbutting Toge as he bows instinctively. Thanks to Toge’s fast reflexes, he dodges out of the way in time.
“You should be more careful, Itadori,” Yuuta reminds with a polite smile. Yuuji somehow looks even more nervous afterward.
Then Yuuta turns his attention back to Toge, his expression softening immediately. “Gojo-sensei wants me to come with him to pick something up,” he says with a small sigh. “I really wanted to eat lunch with you.”
“We’ll eat together next time,” Toge assures him, trying very hard not to think about the warmth creeping into his face.
“I’d love that. I’ll see you later?”
“Of course. Take care, Yuuta.”
Yuuta smiles brightly one last time before heading back to the teacher.
The second he’s out of earshot, Yuuji grabs Toge by the shoulders and shakes him violently. “See?!” he hisses. “That’s what I mean! He’s too… scarily nice? It’s suspicious!”
Toge ignores him. Because really, Yuuji has to be exaggerating. Yuuta has always been kind, almost absurdly so when it comes to the people he cares about.
He remembers Toge’s preferred rice ball fillings and hands him one without needing to ask. Tuna mayo on regular days. Salmon after baseball training. Spicy cod roe whenever Toge feels down or upset.
The man also carries extra cough medicine in his bag specifically for Toge since the day he forgot to bring his own.
Once, after a winter shopping trip with Nobara, Toge had come back half-frozen and too exhausted to even bother fixing the scarf hanging loose around his neck. Yuuta had noticed immediately, and without saying a word, he’d stepped closer to wrap it properly on him. Toge remembers how gentle his fingers felt.
The idea of Yuuta looking scary or angry is almost laughable. Toge juts his lips thoughtfully as he watches Yuuta laugh again across the room, soft and entirely unsuspecting.
Maybe Yuuji is just being dramatic.
Or maybe… he is onto something.
Curiosity prickles beneath his skin as he wonders what it would feel to be the subject of Yuuta’s anger.
There is only one logical solution here: Toge would test it himself.
A slow grin tugs at the corners of his lips. Surely, even Okkotsu Yuuta has a limit.
Toge has already considered several options, but none of them feels right.
Hiding Yuuta’s favorite shoes sounds childish. Scaring the shit out of him does not work anymore. Pretending to be injured again is immediately discarded because the last time Yuuta thought something happened to him, the man nearly tore the classroom door off its hinges trying to get inside.
Toge wanders into the kitchen of their shared apartment, still lost in thought. Outside the windows, the city yawns awake slowly beneath a clear morning sky. He can hear birds chirping in a soothing tune.
Somehow, it seems today is going to be a good day—which is exactly what gives Toge a genius idea.
Slowly, Toge turns toward the refrigerator and starts grabbing whatever ingredients he can reach.
He’s going to make Yuuta breakfast, an intentionally shitty one at that.
Yuuta is polite to a fault, but nobody wants to eat something disgusting first thing in the morning. Toge grins to himself. Ruining the start of Yuuta’s day will definitely put the man into a sour mood.
Toge immediately gets to work. He cracks an egg open into the frying pan, cooking it unevenly with one side burns while the middle somehow stays runny. He grabs sugar instead of salt halfway through, suddenly debating if the burning is enough, before deciding to double kill it.
Then he throws in shredded cheese, seaweed flakes, instant ramen seasoning, and peanut butter into the pan. By the end of it, the result looks so wrong that even he hesitates while staring at the monstrosity.
It’s perfect.
Right on cue, footsteps shuffle down the hallway. Yuuta appears in the kitchen doorway wearing loose gray sweatpants and a white tank top, hair sticking out from every direction. He blinks slowly at the smell permeating the air.
“Toge?” he murmurs, voice rough with sleep. “You’re up already?”
Toge gestures toward the stove proudly.
Yuuta’s eyes instantly widened. “You made breakfast?” He approaches the pan and tries to identify what exactly he’s looking at. A small, fond smile ghosts across his lips.
“...Omelet?” Yuuta guesses.
Instead of answering, Toge leads him to their dining table and hands him a plate along with a spoon and fork. He transfers the ominous omelet onto it and scoops a generous serving of rice beside it. Yuuta looks genuinely touched the entire time.
“Toge,” he breathes, “I’m so happy you did this for me. Thank you so much.”
Yuuta shifts in his seat and takes a bite. Toge waits in anticipation, fully alert just to see a crack on the man’s happy and content look.
He chews thoughtfully then smiles, “It’s good.” Yuuta takes another bite completely unbothered while Toge watches in growing disbelief. “The texture’s nice,” he adds.
Toge narrows his eyes suspiciously.
Yuuta only laughs softly under his breath by other's cuteness. “What?”
“Liar.”
Yuuta looks genuinely offended by the sudden accusation. “I’m serious,” he insists, almost sulking as he takes another bite.
“How are you still eating that slop?” Toge signs, baffled. “You know what, give me that.”
Yuuta immediately pulls the plate out of Toge’s reach protectively. “What– hey! I’m not done yet.”
“That can’t be good! You’ll upset your stomach.”
Yuuta hums after another mouthful. “Yeah, I think you mixed up the sugar and salt,” he says honestly. “But it’s still good. I don’t mind sweet things.”
Silence stretches for exactly five seconds before Yuuta bursts into laughter, shoulders shaking helplessly. “Don’t look at me like that, Toge,” he says, reaching out to pinch Toge’s cheek.
“You made breakfast for me,” Yuuta continues, then taking Toge’s hand to lean on his palm. “How could I pass up the opportunity?”
Toge feels his soul leave his body. There is no teasing in the man’s expression, just pure affection shining openly in his eyes.
It is deeply irritating.
Toge turns on his heel and walks away before Yuuta can catch the blush blooming on his face.
Behind him, Yuuta just chuckles. “Hey, don’t run away from me.”
But Toge does run away from him… For now.
By week two, the others start noticing.
Mostly because Toge has become weirdly committed to ruining Yuuta’s day, because it eventually dawns on him that none of his ragebaiting tactics seem to apply to Yuuta at all.
Normally, people get mad at some of the annoying things Toge does.
Nobara once chased him across campus with a hammer after he stole her skirt from the laundry as a prank. (It had actually belonged to Maki, which somehow made the situation even worse.) Panda still complains about the time Toge replaced all his phone alarms with cursed screaming audio. Even Maki banned him from their movie nights for a month after he hid her stash of junk food inside the principal’s office.
Those are normal reactions, and it absolutely gave him a good laugh then. Yuuta, however, seems to be completely immune to Toge’s particular skill set.
Because when Toge “borrowed” one of Yuuta’s oversized hoodies and wandered into the living room wearing it—fully expecting complaints knowing Yuuta dislikes people touching his things without telling—Yuuta had simply stared at him for three unsettling seconds before abruptly turning around and walking directly into a wall.
The nosebleed afterward had been deeply concerning because, first, the impact was not enough to bust a nose, and second, Yuuta’s face had gone oddly red for some reason.
If his usual tricks don't work, then Toge will have to tailor his methods into something more Yuuta-specific. Maybe targeting the things Yuuta genuinely loves to be exact.
Unfortunately, Yuuta loves almost everything connected to Toge too, which complicates matters significantly.
His motorcycle, though? Now that is the closest thing Yuuta has to a weakness. That must be it!
Yuuta babies that thing so much that he even gave it a name, “Otto.” He cleans it every weekend morning with almost religious dedication, refuses to let Gojo anywhere near it after he accidentally spilled soda on it before, and once spent fifteen minutes mourning a miniscule paint chip after a road trip in Osaka.
This is his chance.
Toge kneels beside the parked motorcycle after class with a realistic scratch sticker hidden in his sleeve. He is half-tempted to rub his palms together like a scheming villain, but that would be too much.
Yuuji watches supportively behind him. “Inumaki-senpai, I think this might actually work!”
“You’re too soft for him, Itadori,” Nobara says flatly. “We know damn well Okkotsu won’t get mad at him even if Toge takes his precious Otto hostage.”
Megumi, who has been silently observing from the sidelines, finally speaks up. “Inumaki could commit tax fraud and Okkotsu-senpai would apologize for not helping.”
“That’s what I’ve been saying!” Nobara exclaims.
Toge ignores all of them and carefully presses the scratch sticker onto the side of the motorcycle. He then steps back slowly to admire his work. From a distance, it genuinely looks like someone keyed the paint.
Yuuta arrives shortly after, carrying two iced coffees in his hands. His forehead is slightly damp from the heat, sleeves rolled to his elbows as he scans the parking lot.
The second Yuuta’s eyes land on him, his entire face lights up. “There you are!” he says warmly as he walks over. “I was looking for y–”
Yuuta stops abruptly, his eyes darting between the motorcycle and Toge.
“Toge,” Yuuta says sharply.
Finally! Toge pumps a victorious fist in his head. He braces himself in anticipation of Yuuta’s wrath.
Yuuta closes the distance quickly, shoving the drinks into Yuuji’s hands in haste. His hands immediately find Toge’s arms, turning him left and right like he’s checking for injuries before crouching slightly to inspect his legs too.
“Did someone do something to you?” Yuuta asks, brows pinched tightly together. “Your knees are covered with dust. What happened?”
Toge blinks.
Yuuta’s grip gentles instantly when Toge stiffens. “Did someone push you?” he asks urgently. “Toge, you have to tell me who it was.”
Megumi slowly rubs a hand down his face. “Okkotsu-senpai, I think you misunderstand.”
“Hey, shh!” Yuuji hisses. “Don’t you think it’s kind of romantic?” he sighs dreamily.
“Didn’t know you were a fudanshi,” Nobara says, raising a brow at him.
Meanwhile, Yuuta is still hovering anxiously around Toge like he’s doing a full body checkup. “You’re not bleeding, right?” Yuuta continues. “Did they threaten you?”
Toge stares at him in disbelief. Yuuta looks genuinely upset—not about Otto, but about him. A horrible feeling of guilt starts clawing Toge’s chest.
“I’m fine. Nothing happened, truly,” Toge signs awkwardly.
Yuuta only frowns harder, clearly unsatisfied with the answer.
“Oh my god, it’s a sticker!” Nobara interrupts, her patience finally snapping. “A fake scratch sticker,” she clarifies while pointing aggressively at the motorcycle. “Your idiot boyfriend kneeled on the ground to stick it onto your motorcycle!”
Yuuta blinks before slowly turning to Otto. He touches the edge of the “scratch” with his thumb, staring at the sticker for a moment before exhaling deeply in relief.
“Oh,” he murmurs. “Thank God.”
Nobara throws both hands into the air. “That is your reaction?!”
“I thought someone hurt Toge while I wasn’t here,” Yuuta says honestly, still sounding affected by the idea. Toge suddenly finds the asphalt incredibly interesting.
Yuuta glances back toward him, and the tension in his shoulders finally eases fully now that he understands what happened.
Yuuji pipes up, “Uh, Okkotsu-senpai? You can probably peel off the sticker now.” He passes Yuuta and Toge their coffee.
“No,” Yuuta replies immediately, one hand already resting protectively on the motorcycle.
“You’re keeping the sticker?” Megumi asks.
Yuuta looks confused by the question. “Toge put it there on Otto. Obviously I’m keeping it.” He tilts his head slightly, studying the sticker again. “It’s actually pretty cute now that I have a good look at it.”
A headache starts forming behind Toge’s eyes. Somehow, against all logic, this man has once again completely failed to get mad at him.
Mission failed.
The morning rush around campus is in full swing by the time Toge arrives. The pathways are crowded with slow-moving clusters of students, all drifting between classes and club activities.
Toge adjusts the strap of his baseball bag higher on his shoulder with a quiet sigh.
Today’s training is going to be a long one, which Toge only remembered the moment he woke up already tired. He had stayed up far too late the night before, partly gaming and partly trying to figure out why his tactics were so useless on Yuuta.
He drags himself forward with reluctant steps, legs heavy as if they’ve already been through practice. His uniform clings faintly to the back of his neck beneath his jacket. The duffel hanging from him feels significantly heavier than usual, stuffed with gear he forgot to clean out over the weekend.
Honestly, he’s considering abandoning half of it in a ditch.
“Tired already?”
Toge glances sideways.
Noritoshi Kamo walks beside him with his usual composed posture, one hand tucked inside his coat pocket while the other balances a cup of coffee. His expression remains calm as always, like one of those Korean drama actors Toge watches in his free time.
Toge huffs quietly in acknowledgment.
Unlike most people around campus, Kamo doesn’t get awkward around his speech patterns or stare too hard whenever Toge uses signs instead of speaking normally. Maybe it’s because they’ve shared classes for almost two years now. Or maybe Kamo is simply the type who adjusts to people naturally without making a big deal out of it. Either way, Toge appreciates it.
“You pulled an all-nighter grinding again, didn’t you?” Kamo continues. “I heard from Kokichi that there was a big update yesterday. I couldn’t get a hold of him because he was too busy playing.”
Toge snorts, “You guessed right. Maybe you should start getting into video games too.”
“Sure, but only if you’ll teach me.”
The corner of Toge’s mouth twitches upward as they continue through campus together. Around them, students weave past in a blur of movement and chatter. The trees lining the walkway sway gently under the morning breeze, scattering bits of gold sunlight through their leaves.
Then suddenly, the strap of Toge’s baseball bag slips off his shoulder completely. The heavy duffel drops against his side hard enough to nearly drag him down with it. Kamo catches it before it hits the ground.
“You carry too much,” Kamo says simply, already readjusting the strap over his own shoulder before Toge can protest.
Toge immediately reaches toward him to take it back.
“It’s fine,” Kamo interrupts before he can even start signing. “Let me help you.”
Toge internally debates, but the immediate relief on his shoulder persuades him to allow it. He rolls his arm to loosen the soreness while Kamo continues walking beside him.
“You should cut down on what you’re packing in here,” Kamo comments after a moment. “It looks like you’ve brought your whole house.”
Toge signs defensively, “I was really about to, but I forgot.”
Kamo gives him a long look. “Should I remind you later then? Pretty sure you’ll forget about it again.”
Toge pauses briefly, narrowing his eyes over Kamo’s teasing. Before he can sign something witty in retaliation, a movement near the administration building catches his attention.
Yuuta descends the front steps with several papers tucked beneath one arm while speaking to another student beside him. He’s dressed more neatly than usual today, dark slacks paired with a fitted black coat instead of his typical oversized hoodies. A lanyard from the student council hangs around his neck, swaying lightly as he walks.
He looks busy. Maybe tired, too. There are faint shadows beneath his eyes that even a good lighting can’t fully hide, though his posture remains straight despite it.
Yuuta says something to the student beside him with an apologetic smile before finally glancing toward the main pathway, and stopping completely when he notices him with Kamo.
The student beside Yuuta keeps talking for another few seconds before slowly trailing off when Yuuta doesn’t respond.
Yuuta’s gaze lingers on the duffel strap resting over Kamo’s shoulder, then smoothens his face with a smile.
“Toge,” Yuuta greets, though his expression feels just a little too stiff. He reaches them quickly, eyes flickering once more toward the bag before settling onto Toge’s face.
“You got here early,” Yuuta says softly.
Toge signs a greeting back. “I have training today.”
Kamo inclines his head politely. “Okkotsu.”
“Kamo.” Yuuta’s tone remains perfectly pleasant. “I didn’t know you two came to campus together.”
“We ran into each other near the gates,” Kamo answers smoothly.
“I see.”
For a brief moment, silence settles strangely between them. Yuuta stares at Kamo, and the other does the same. Yuuta’s attention eventually drops once more toward the baseball bag before he reaches a hand out to the strap.
“You don’t have to carry that,” he says to Kamo with an easy smile. “I’ll take it from here.”
There’s a glint on Kamo’s eye for the briefest second, but he still doesn't hand over the bag.
Before the situation can become weird, Toge immediately shakes his head.
“No need,” he signs quickly toward Yuuta. “Kamo’s already helping.”
Yuuta stills.
“It’s heavy,” Toge adds quickly, gesturing toward the folders tucked beneath Yuuta’s arm. “And don’t you have something else to do?”
He pauses, then displays that warm smile again. “It’s okay,” Yuuta says. “I don’t mind carrying your things.”
Kamo, meanwhile, adjusts the bag strap higher onto his shoulder. “I’m heading to the athletics building anyway. I’ll drop him off to the field. Don’t worry, man.”
Yuuta’s gaze flickers toward him, “Oh? How convenient. I guess that works.” Something unreadable passes through his expression so quickly that Toge almost misses it entirely.
Then, just as suddenly, Yuuta steps back with the same gentle composure as always. “Well,” he says, voice light, “don’t let me keep you two.”
By the time training ends, the sun has already dipped lower in the sky.
The field smells faintly of dry grass, warm from hours under the sun. Chatters overlap loosely as players pack up gear, laughing about missed swings and planning where to eat after.
Toge wipes his face with the edge of his towel, exhaling slowly as the tension from practice finally starts to leave his shoulders. His uniform clings slightly at the collar, hair damp with sweat as he slings his bag over one shoulder again.
And then he sees him. Yuuta is standing near the edge of the field, waiting.
“He’s been there for hours,” his teammate suddenly notes in front of him, looking at Yuuta’s direction before turning to him. “Do you have an extra towel? I think I lost mine.”
Toge blinks, digging his bag to pull out his fresh towel.
“Thanks a lot, Inumaki! I’ll return this tomorrow, nice and clean,” the other says. “Now, shoo! Go to your boyfriend already.”
Toge playfully flicks his teammate’s forehead for teasing before waving him goodbye. He jogs to Yuuta, and the man immediately softens when he sees him.
“Hey,” he greets, already tugging the bag off Toge’s shoulder to carry himself.
Toge lifts a hand in greeting and thanks, still catching his breath.
Yuuta glances briefly at the field behind him, where some of the players are still stretching and shouting to each other.
“Your group finished early today,” Yuuta observes.
Toge nods, then because his brain is still half in post-practice chatter, he signs casually, “Kamo came again, around nearing the end of our practice.”
Yuuta blinks once. “…Kamo?”
Toge nods again, “He stayed to watch for a bit.”
Yuuta’s gaze flickers past him again, seemingly searching for something or someone.
“Oh,” he says.
Toge tilts his head slightly at the short reply. Usually, Yuuta asks questions to keep the conversation going.
Maybe Yuuta doesn’t feel like taking the lead, so Toge continues instead, “Turns out he usually spends his free time watching in the field. I didn’t really notice until he pointed it out.”
Yuuta is quiet for a moment, then plasters the polite smile he has been wearing earlier. “Is that so,” he says.
Toge nods, oblivious. Then, as if remembering something amusing, he adds, “Kamo is actually pretty funny. My teammates warmed up to him almost in a snap. I think you two will get along well.”
Yuuta stares at him without speaking before nodding once. “I see.”
Toge finally notices the shift properly now. Yuuta isn’t smiling anymore. Well, not fully. It’s still there at the edges of his mouth, but it doesn’t reach his eyes anymore.
Toge frowns slightly. Is Yuuta worried about him? He does tend to mother him over little things.
“He didn’t do anything weird,” he signs, trying to reassure him.
Yuuta’s eyes flick down to Toge’s hands then back up to his face. “No,” he says calmly. “I didn’t think he did.”
The way he says it makes Toge pause. Yuuta feels different. A little scary, even.
When Yuuta notices him taking a step back, he softens his expressions quickly. “I mean,” he adds, smoother this time, “he’s your friend. I doubt he’d ever wrong you.”
Toge only stares at him, confusion written plainly across his face.
“I would’ve come earlier if I wasn’t stuck in meetings,” Yuuta continues after a beat. “I could’ve watched too.”
Toge’s frown eases slightly at that. “It’s fine. You were busy,” he signs. “It’s just practice, anyway.”
Yuuta nods slowly, then waves a hand in front of his face like he’s brushing away his thoughts. “Let’s go,” he says gently. “I’ll walk you back.”
Toge pauses, but follows anyway. As they start walking side by side again, he can’t shake the feeling that Yuuta is still thinking about something he hasn’t said out loud.
The next two weeks become hell for entirely different reasons. Not because Toge is still failing to get a reaction out of Yuuta, but because suddenly, he barely even has time to try.
Baseball season preparations hit their club all at once. They got stuck in a loop of doing extended batting drills and strategy meetings that never fails to drag on forever. Their coach becomes progressively deranged each day, which naturally means everyone else suffers with him.
Toge’s schedule collapses into a miserable routine of attending classes, training, and then passing out face-first onto his bed before midnight.
But interesting enough, Yuuta somehow keeps appearing in the middle of it anyway.
At first, Toge assumes it's just a coincidence. Yuuta waits outside the athletics building after practice one evening because “he happened to do something nearby.” Then he shows up the next morning with canned coffee for him before training starts.
The day after that, Toge walks out of the locker room to find Yuuta already sitting on the bleachers beside the field with paperwork spread across his lap.
He taps Yuuta’s shoulder and signs, “You’re here again?”
Yuuta glances up immediately, expression softening at the sight of him. “Mhm. Student council work.”
“There are benches literally everywhere else on campus.”
Yuuta looks at him innocently. “This one has better lighting.”
Toge narrows his eyes, but Yuuta only smiles and hands him an energy drink.
It keeps happening after that. Always nearby, Always present. It’s never intrusive to warrant Toge to call Yuuta out for it, but frequent enough that even his teammates start feeling suspicious.
By the third consecutive afternoon of Yuuta waiting outside practice, whispers begin spreading through the baseball club.
“That’s him again, right?”
“The scary upperclassman?”
“No, no, he’s the student council president or vice president or something.”
“I heard he almost punched someone last year.”
“Shut up, Inumaki can hear you.”
Toge pointedly ignores them while stretching near the dugout. Unfortunately, his teammates are incapable of minding their business.
One of them eventually scoots beside him during a water break, lowering his voice cautiously. “…Are you guys fighting?”
Toge nearly chokes on his drink. “No? What makes you say that?”
The teammate glances toward the bleachers. Yuuta sits beneath the shade near the fence, one leg crossed over the other while reading through documents clipped neatly onto a board. He looks like a perfect model student.
Then another teammate walks past him carrying equipment. Yuuta looks up briefly when the guy accidentally blocks his view of Toge. The poor man visibly flinches.
“Well…” the teammate beside Toge drawls with a knowing look. “Your boyfriend looks like he’s about to commit murder the moment someone breathes wrong near you.”
Toge sputters immediately at the word “boyfriend.” Normally, he would just ignore the teasing since he’s used to it, but this teammate is someone he barely talks to. “He’s not— we’re not—”
The teammate raises both hands defensively. “I’m just saying! He's been kinda intense lately.”
Toge frowns. Intense?
His gaze drifts back toward Yuuta again, and incidentally, Yuuta does the same. The man smiles warmly at him, lifting one hand slightly in greeting.
Toge blinks, but waves back regardless. “See? He’s okay.”
His teammate stares at him in disbelief. “You’re either blind or wearing rose-tinted glasses.”
Roses what now? Toge throws his towel directly into the man’s face. Why is he getting poetic about it anyway?
Still, the comment lingers in his mind. Because over the next few days, Toge slowly starts noticing those subtle shifts in his behavior. Like how Yuuta grows unusually quiet whenever his teammates get touchy with him. Or how his smile becomes strangely polite whenever Kamo talks to him.
One afternoon, Kamo arrives midway through practice carrying bottled drinks for Kokichi and passes the extras to anyone in the field. The entire interaction lasts less than five minutes. Yet somehow, when Toge glances toward the bleachers afterward, Yuuta is glaring at the unopened bottled water in his hand.
Toge jogs over during break, confused. “You okay?”
Yuuta looks up immediately, expression smoothing out so quickly it almost startles him. “Of course,” Yuuta says gently.
Toge points toward the drink Kamo gave him. “You look upset, though?"
“I’m not upset,” Yuuta says evenly. “Kamo is… very thoughtful.”
The way he says thoughtful somehow sounds like a threat. Toge can’t help but stare incredulously.
Yuuta only returns his stare with a pleasant smile. “Toge,” he starts, almost sounding like a whine, “why are you looking at me like that?”
Because you’re being weird right now, is what Toge wants to sign but didn't.
It makes no sense. Yuuta is still the person who acts like a personified sunshine, but there is something off about him lately that Toge can’t point a finger to.
The “angry Yuuta” experiment had started because Toge wanted to see what Yuuta looked like when genuinely annoyed. Instead, somehow, Yuuta has only gotten stranger more than anything else.
And now Toge is the one growing increasingly unsettled. Especially when everyone else keeps feeding him ideas about Yuuta being genuinely scary.
Today proves it again.
Practice finally ends just before sunset. Toge feels half-dead as he drags himself toward the benches near the field, peeling off his batting gloves with exhausted movements.
A first-year teammate suddenly approaches him nervously. “…Inumaki-senpai?”
Toge hums with a weak smile, and the boy immediately takes that as permission to continue quickly. “I think Okkotsu-senpai scared Kondo.”
Toge blinks. “I’m sorry?”
Apparently during practice, Kondo had playfully thrown an arm around Toge’s shoulders after a successful play. Which is nothing new for the group. But Yuuta had looked up from his paperwork at that exact moment, and made Kondo immediately remove his arm like he touched a live wire.
His teammate lowers his voice further. “…Seriously, Inumaki-senpai, is Okkotsu-senpai bullying you or something? We’re here if you need help.”
Toge frowns harder. “No,” he signs slowly. “He’s not like that, and Kondo probably misread the situation.”
That’s what bothers him most, though. It’s no longer just Yuuji who thinks Yuuta is scary.
And the fact that he hasn’t provoked Yuuta once this entire time baffles him more.
Why does everyone suddenly feel like Yuuta is angry anyway?
Rain starts halfway through practice. The weather has been weird recently–one day is hot, the next cold. And it seems today, the weather roulette landed on cold as raindrops abruptly fell on them.
“SHIT—”
“Cover the equipment!”
“Get the balls first!”
The entire field dissolves into chaos instantly. Players scatter in every direction while the coaches yell contradictory instructions from the dugout. The sharp scent of rain and wet earth floods the air as water drenches the field within seconds.
Toge barely manages to yank his jacket over his gear bag before another wave of rain crashes down harder.
Beside him, Kamo catches two equipment baskets before they tip over completely.
“This way,” Kamo says calmly over the noise.
Toge follows him toward the covered walkway beside the athletics building, shoes splashing through shallow puddles gathering along the concrete. By the time they reach shelter, both of them are damp.
Around them, groups of athletes crowd beneath the awnings and corridors while rain hammers against the campus grounds in deafening sheets.
Someone groans loudly nearby. “There goes outdoor training.”
Another student sighs. “The trains are gonna be awful later.”
Toge exhales tiredly, pushing soaked bangs back from his forehead.
Kamo sets the equipment baskets down neatly beside the wall before glancing toward him. “It’s my first time seeing your forehead.”
Toge gives him a flat stare. “Don’t get used to it.”
Kamo laughs quietly under his breath before reaching into his bag. “Here.”
A bottle of tea appears in front of Toge’s face. Toge tilts his head, “When did you buy that?”
“This morning.”
“…Why?”
Kamo twists his own drink open casually. “Is this an interrogation, Inspector?”
Toge snorts despite himself before accepting it. The bottle is cold against his palm.
Rain continues pouring relentlessly over campus, turning pathways into shimmering rivers beneath the dim gray sky. Wind occasionally sprays mist beneath the shelter, cool against overheated skin.
Kamo leans loosely against the wall beside him, entirely unbothered by the silence stretching between them. It’s comfortable. Toge finds himself relaxing too.
“You know,” Kamo says eventually, watching the rain, “I’m actually surprised no one is coming for my blood yet.”
Toge shakes his head. “You really love saying random things. What’s that even supposed to mean?”
Kamo sighs dramatically. “I haven’t seen him.”
“Who?”
A voice suddenly cuts through the rain. “Toge.”
Toge and Kamo both follow the voice and find Yuuta standing several feet away near the entrance of the walkway, umbrella lowered at his side. His dark coat is damp around the shoulders from the storm, black hair slightly wet where rain must have caught him on the way over.
Yuuta smiles politely, fast-walking until he reaches Toge. “Took me a while to find you,” he says.
Toge blinks in surprise. “What are you doing here?”
“I figured training ended already, so I thought I’d come see you,” Yuuta explains, lifting his umbrella slightly. “Then it started raining.”
Kamo straightens slightly beside him. “Okkotsu.”
“Kamo.”
Yuuta’s gaze shifts briefly toward the bottled tea in Toge’s hands, then toward Kamo’s identical drink.
He doesn’t comment on it. Instead, he says softly, “You’re wet, Toge.”
Yuuta then steps forward instinctively and reaches up. His fingers brush lightly against Toge’s damp hair near his forehead. "You'll get sick at this rate,” Yuuta murmurs against his ear.
Kamo watches the interaction quietly over the rim of his drink. The attention makes Toge suddenly become hyperaware of how close Yuuta is standing.
Rainwater drips steadily from Yuuta’s umbrella onto the concrete beside them.
“I brought towels,” Yuuta says, reaching into his bag and handing him a folded towel first before pulling out another one for himself.
“None for me?” Kamo interjects.
Yuuta merely pays him a glance. “I have no extras, man. You should bring your own or ask that Kokichi guy next time."
Kamo hums once into his drink. The silence afterward feels strange. Toge looks between them uncertainly.
Why does this suddenly feel like a stand-off between two people when neither of them are actually saying anything?
“We should head home soon,” Yuuta says gently. “The trains will get crowded.”
“We’re waiting for the rain to calm down first,” Kamo answers before Toge can.
Yuuta smiles at Kamo. “I can see that.”
“You’ve been around the field a lot lately too,” Kamo adds casually.
“I visit when I can.”
“Mhm.”
“You make it sound strange.”
“Do I?”
“Kamo,” Toge signs sharply.
Neither of them look at him. What the hell is even happening?
Yuuta’s expression remains calm, but Toge notices the subtle tension sitting in his shoulders again, that same tight composure he’s been carrying around for weeks.
Kamo notices too. Then, unbelievably, the man smiles slyly into his drink. “Don’t you think you’ve been stalking Inumaki a lot?”
Yuuta stills before tilting his head innocently. “Stalking?”
Kamo studies him for one long second, then chuckles. “Oh, sorry, I used the wrong term. Following might be the word I’m looking for.”
“I look after him because I care.” Yuuta says, then turns to Toge. “There’s a convenience store near the station,” he says. “Do you want something warm before we head home?”
Toge looks between Yuuta and Kamo before nodding slowly.
“Alright, let’s go,” Yuuta says, tugging Toge to the exit without letting him greet Kamo good bye.
The familiar warmth of the apartment greets them immediately the moment they step in.
Toge slips his shoes off near the entrance, nudging them messily beside Yuuta’s much neater pair despite repeated complaints about it.
Normally, Yuuta would say something about that.
Tonight, he doesn’t.
Yuuta closes the door quietly behind them before setting the umbrella aside near the rack. Water drips softly onto the tiled floor.
“I’ll make tea,” Yuuta says after a beat. Toge watches him disappear into the kitchen without waiting for an answer. Something twists unpleasantly in his chest.
The entire train ride home had been filled with odd silence. Yuuta held onto the overhead rail while Toge stood beside him close enough for their shoulders to brush occasionally whenever the train shifted. Usually, Yuuta would lean into it naturally. But, he hadn’t and Toge hated how much he noticed.
He drops his bag beside the couch before wandering toward the kitchen doorway. Yuuta stands with his back facing him while filling the kettle.
“Yuuda?” Toge calls softly, voice hoarse from prolonged disuse.
Yuuta hums in acknowledgment without turning around.
“Are we okay?”
The kettle clicks softly against the counter. “Of course.”
Toge leans against the doorway, arms folding loosely across his chest. “Then what’s wrong?”
“Nothing’s wrong,” Yuuta says easily, still not looking at him.
Toge frowns harder. He knows he should drop it already. Yuuta clearly doesn’t want to talk, and he is not one to disrespect someone’s boundary. But his gut tells him he should address the elephant in the room before things get worse.
“You’ve been weird ever since Kamo started hanging around more.”
Yuuta pauses.
The kitchen suddenly feels loud beneath the hammering raindrops against the roof. Or maybe it was just the pounding in Toge’s chest.
“So this is just about him,” Yuuta notes.
Toge blinks, not at the response, but to the coldness as he said it.
Yuuta finally turns around then. His expression remains composed, frustratingly unreadable in the warm kitchen lighting.
“You’ve been asking me what’s wrong ever since we left campus,” Yuuta says quietly. “And every question somehow circles back to Kamo.”
Toge stares at him for a second before scoffing lightly. “Because you’ve been acting strange around him.”
Yuuta laughs softly under his breath, though there’s no amusement in it. “You think?”
The kettle begins heating behind him with a low hum. Toge pushes himself off the doorway and walks further into the kitchen. “You glare at him," he signs. "This isn't like you."
Yuuta only smiles at him. “I don’t glare at him, Toge."
“You absolutely do.”
“I literally just look at him.”
“Even my teammates think the same thing. Kondo is now scared of you.”
“That sounds like Kondo’s problem.”
The sharpness in Yuuta’s response makes Toge pause.
Oh.
There it is again. That tiny crack in his polite smile.
And somehow, excitement sparks unexpectedly beneath his ribs when he realizes Yuuta is irritated. Like actually irritated.
After weeks of trying and failing, Toge finally found the thing that gets under his skin.
“You’ve been weird around me too,” Toge continues before he can help himself. “The other’s keep asking if we’re fighting.”
Yuuta’s jaw tightens almost imperceptibly. “We aren’t fighting,” he says, sternly.
“Then why are you acting like this?”
“Acting like what exactly?”
"I don't know, Okkotsu. You tell me."
That carefully controlled expression hasn’t slipped fully yet, but tension now sits visibly in his shoulders. Toge notices the way his fingers curl slightly against the edge of the counter.
“What the hell do you want me to say, Toge?” Yuuta snaps suddenly, frustration flashing openly across his face for the first time in weeks.
Silence crashes between them immediately afterward. Yuuta freezes too, like he hadn’t meant for it to come out too strong on him.
Toge only stares at him. And despite the tension clawing at the room, his heart sings at the sight.
Yuuta is angry.
The realization sends a strange rush through him because finally, finally, he’s seeing the side of Yuuta everyone else kept warning him about. The intensity of it feels almost overwhelming directed fully at him like this.
Yuuta drags a hand over his face immediately after, eyes squeezing shut briefly. “Okay,” he mutters. “Okay, Toge. You win.”
He pushes himself slowly off the counter and drags his feet toward Toge. “I’ve been trying,” Yuuta continues, looming over him, “to keep playing along with your game. About him. About everything.”
Toge opens his mouth in shock at the sudden shift, struggling to catch up. Yuuta only exhales, taking his hand to trace small circles.
“It was fun at first. I enjoyed all the attention you gave me,” Yuuta says, voice low. “But you started paying attention to someone else while I was still right here.”
Toge’s eyes widen. “...You knew?”
“About your grand scheme on ragebaiting me? Oh, absolutely, but my reactions were genuine,” Yuuta murmurs, fingertips gently following the line of Toge’s jaw.
Yuuta leans in, hovering one breath away from Toge’s lips before whispering to his ear instead, “I just really, really don’t like Kamo around you.”
Toge blinks as Yuuta pulls back, putting a little distance between them.
“That’s it,” Yuuta admits in defeat. His eyes meet Toge’s directly, stripped raw of the careful politeness from before. “That’s the truth. It’s not about him. It’s not even about what he's doing. It’s about me not liking how easy it is for you to be with someone else.”
Toge now understands. Because beneath the frustration, jealousy and tension, all Toge sees now is fear. Raw, desperate fear.
“I’m in love with you,” he says softly.
Toge’s entire body goes still.
Yuuta’s gaze drops immediately afterward like he already regrets saying it aloud. “I didn’t plan to confess to you this way,” he mutters. “But I’m selfish.”
Yuuta’s eyes shine from unshed tears. “So before you choose someone else,” he swallows once. “Could you at least consider me as one of your options too?”
Toge stares at him in complete disbelief, suddenly feeling irritated at the sheer absurdity of the man's speech.
An option? Is that all he thinks he is?
He fists the front of Yuuta’s shirt hard, eyes now burning with rage. “You’re a fucking idiot,” Toge snaps hoarsely.
And drags him into a searing kiss.
<Epilogue>
Lunch at Tokyo Jujutsu High is weirdly quiet.
Between Maki sharing food with Panda, Nobara slurping the instant ramen to her heart’s content, and Hakari bringing his own drink instead of fighting the vending machine, silence has somehow settled over the cafeteria.
Yuuta sits quietly in the middle of it all, peeling off the lid of his packed lunch, which contains his favorite cabbage salad with sesame oil. Afternoon light spills through the cafeteria windows, kissing the tables with amber glow and catching dust motes in the air.
He feels uneasy in his seat.
That is, until Yuuji makes it worse.
“Inumaki-senpai is really scary when he gets mad,” Yuuji whispers emphatically as he drops into the seat beside him.
Yuuta shuts his eyes for a second.
Yuuji glances around cautiously before lowering his voice more. “What did you do?”
“Nothing…?” Yuuta answers weakly.
“No, you can’t be serious!” Yuuji scream-whispers. “Look in front of you!”
Across the table, Toge is glaring holes on Yuuta’s head. It is actually a surprise his packed lunch contains his favorite food. Or, well, if this is poisoned, he’d gladly meet his end at this point.
“I said no marks, Okkotsu.”
Yuuta chews his lip nervously on the inside of his cheek before forcing himself to smile at his boyfriend. “I’m sorry, baby. It won’t happen again.”
“I am wearing a scarf," Toge signs aggressively. "In this hot weather.”
Yuuji slowly turns to the people around the table. “Should we all escape?”
“Hey!” Yuuta hisses under his breath. “Don’t leave me.”
Toge keeps glaring while tugging his scarf higher over the lower half of his face. The movement only reveals the faintest glimpse of reddish marks disappearing beneath the fabric.
His soul nearly leaves his body. “Sorry, Toge. I overdid it,” Yuuta says. “It was... only one time, though?” he tries to argue weakly.
“One time too many.”
“But you love it, right…?”
“Yuuda.”
Yuuta immediately straightens. “Right. Sorry.”
The entire table falls silent again. Panda looks between them slowly. “…So you’re telling me Okkotsu survived all those weeks of jealousy only to die because he got too horny?”
“Tragic,” Nobara says while sipping her ramen broth. "Still love the part he almost died stressing over a taken man, though."
Yuuji, meanwhile, looks genuinely elated. “Wait, wait, wait! You guys kissed?!”
Megumi sighs tiredly into his drink. “Please catch up, fudanshi-dori.”
Yuuta carefully pushes a spicy cod roe-flavored riceball toward Toge like a peace offering. Toge eyes it suspiciously before accepting the food.
The tension dissolves instantly, and Yuuta visibly relaxes in his seat.
Yuuji points at him in disbelief. “That’s all it took?!”
“Is it?” Toge signs, chewing his rice ball harshly. “You’re still dead to me, Yuuta.”
Yuuji looks between them helplessly. “Okay,” he says weakly. “Maybe you’re both scary.”
Yuuta glances toward Toge, opting to wear a warm and polite smile on his face. "Should I try joybaiting you?"
Toge returns the same just as dangerous beneath his scarf. "I'd like to see you try."
Yuuji now understands exactly why these two are perfect for each other. He sighs dreamily.