Chapter Text
The car was warm. Too warm. The cold weather outside almost made Satoru Gojo want to stay inside the car, even though he knew he could not.
His father let go of the steering wheel and smiled. "Here you are, champ. Take a look at it. The first view is always the best."
Satoru offered his father a tired smile. He rolled down the window and stuck his head out, wincing as the cold October wind sliced across his nose. His mother had warned him about the cold climate of Northern Hokkaido, but of course, he hadn't paid attention to her. Now, he was thoroughly regretting ever leaving the bungalow without wearing a sweater. How was his mother always right?
He could not see much from the car, but he did get a good view of the huge front gates. The walls rose tall and high beside the iron gates, painted in black and blue. The decorated plaque at the top read: JUJUTSU UNIVERSITY, GATE NO 1.
Well, this was it.
Satoru stepped out of the car with his father in tow. Satoshi Gojo was a tall man with a pretty impressive build, but even he was dwarfed by the sheer grandeur of the gate alone.
"Your luggage is already there," said Satoshi, nodding his head at the university. "You have your dorm keys with you, right?"
Satoru took out the key from his pocket. The number on it read 236.
He took one last look at his father. His mother had refused to come, saying that she would grow too emotional to see her son walking inside his university while knowing that he would be staying in the hostel, but his father had laughed and called her a coward. Now that the moment was at hand, he seemed to be getting a little misty-eyed himself.
Satoru shook his head. "Jesus Christ, Dad, why are you growing sentimental? I'm going to uni, not to the gallows."
Satoshi Gojo frowned at his only son. "When you become a parent, you will under—"
"Oh my god." Satoru threw his hands in the air. "I'll be back for winter break in three months. You know that, right?"
"Don't get into trouble," said his father, checking his Audemars Piguet watch. "You had a load of complaints lodged against you back at Tokyo University."
Satoru quipped. "All false allegations."
His father continued. "You are going to start your third year here, so don't get into trouble on the first day. I am serious, Satoru. Focus on your studies. The company is waiting for you."
Satoru's happy spirits fizzled out at the last words. He smiled at his father for one last time, but his heart was performing a somersault inside his chest. The company was waiting for him. He did not know what Gojo Industries would do with his Physics PhD, but he knew that huge cabin beside his father's own in their main office was his final destination.
Oh, well.
Satoru smiled at the security guards as he stepped foot inside Jujutsu University.
This was going to be fun.
Transferring to a new university — and such a prestigious one, at that — was always fun. Sure, he had had plenty of fun back at Tokyo, but Jujutsu University promised something more than Tokyo. It promised elite academic exposure, competition with some of the brightest students in Japan and a chance to grow social connections. He was heading inside a dark den of scowling scholars, and by God he would seize this chance to place himself on top of the university hierarchy.
Satoru had seen photos of the complex, but nothing prepared him for the utter vastness of it. A huge, central courtyard dominated the front of the school. Towering, castle-like buildings were scattered throughout the area, fenced with flowering gardens, green ponds and small, cozy club rooms for various activities. The architecture was so clearly inspired by the Neo-Gothic style that Satoru almost laughed.
The buildings were honestly monumental, with spires reaching to the cloudy sky. Satoru swore he could see fine grey mist curling at the tops of those turrets. There were lace-like patterns on the windows with steep gable roofs.
It looked like something straight out of a dark fairy-tale.
Students were milling around the courtyard. The girls were dressed in sky blue shirts, much like the colour of his eyes, and long, black skirts with black shoes. The boys had a similar outfit, but with black pants. Each was adorned with thick, dark grey blazers which carried the crest of the university.
Satoru wanted to wear one of those blazers. They looked awfully warm.
He glanced at his phone. The first task to be completed was to report to the Admissions Office, which would direct him to his room, give him his routine and uniform. But the buildings looked very similar to each other.
Satoru tugged at his black shirt. Well, it was time to sprinkle some of his charm and ask a student for help.
His eyes scanned the area, and soon fell upon a girl. She was thin and lanky, leaning against one of the buildings with a bored expression on her face. Her hair was short and brown.
Satoru sauntered over to her. "Hey," he drawled, giving her a dazzling smile. "I'm new here. It's my first day, actually, and I need help. Would you tell me where the Admissions Office is?"
The girl looked him in the face without smiling. Satoru's widened. Did she not like his smile?
"I would help you," she said, her voice husky. "But I'm afraid I cannot. I am currently engaged."
"Currently engaged?" Satoru put his hands on his hips. Who was this girl who was rejecting a chance to help him? "You are literally standing here doing nothing."
The girl did not react. "I am working," she said simply.
Satoru scowled. "Oh, really?"
"Yes."
"Pray tell me what you are working on."
The girl pointed to the wall she was leaning against. Now that he was seeing it carefully, Satoru noticed that it was not a wall she was leaning against, but a door. There was a room embedded in this wall. When he leaned closer to inspect it, he heard distinct voices coming from behind the door.
Satoru looked at her confusedly. "Uh, why are you eavesdropping?"
The girl shook her head. "I am not." A glint came to her soft, brown eyes. "I am guarding."
"Guarding what?"
"Guarding my friend, who is inside that room doing something."
Satoru's suspicious feelings only worsened. "Doing what?"
The girl sighed. As she did so, Satoru could hear the voices behind the door growing progressively louder. Now, he could make out words. There was an argument going on between three guys inside. There was a steady sound of footsteps thundering inside, then—
The girl jumped away. "Hey, move!"
But Satoru was too slow to follow her command. The door opened with a loud bang and he found himself getting pushed by two people coming out of the room.
"...and then you will be sorry!" snarled one of the boys. He was wearing the university uniform and was a strong, muscular fellow with brown hair and one of the ugliest faces Satoru had ever seen. His ID card flashed his name: Hanami.
"You are being stupid!" growled another boy, equally horrifying and ugly, with red hair.
The two boys were shouting at someone who was still inside the room.
A smooth voice erupted from inside that dark chamber. "Hanami, Drogo. Piss off before I do something about it."
Satoru knew he ought to run away from this. It was dangerous to get involved in a fight on your first day, but he could not move. He stared as Hanami and the other guy Drogo cackled and started to call the guy inside "a bitch."
The first glimpse of Suguru Geto that Satoru Gojo got was that of his hand. It flew out from the dark recesses of the room and landed square on Hanami's nose.
"Ah, shit!" said Satoru, scrambling away as Hanami's nose quite effectively burst into blood. He fell to the ground with a choked howl, while Drogo stood beside him and balled his hands into fists.
"Come out and fight like a man, coward!"
Satoru stepped back as a tall boy came out of the room.
And Lord, what a boy he was.
Satoru used to think that Kim Taehyung of BTS was the most handsome guy he had ever seen, but he was being proved wrong by this new guy. He wore the uniform, which meant that he was a student, but his blazer was wrapped around his waist. His hair was long and black and silky, tied into a swinging high ponytail. His sleeves were rolled up, exposing tanned forearms littered with cuts and bulging veins.
Satoru thanked the gods that he did not drool at the sight.
"You little shit," said Hot Guy, with no real anger. In fact, he did not look angry or even annoyed. His lips were twisted into a smile as he advanced towards Drogo, his walk languid, like a cat's. "I asked such a simple thing of you and you cannot comply with it? That's very bad."
"Simple thing? You are asking us to delete that entire pen-drive!"
"Yes." Hot Guy nodded. Satoru peeked a little and saw his face. Okay, why was he so pretty? Boys shouldn't be so pretty, especially the ones with such a mean punch.
"We are not deleting anything!" howled Hanami.
Hot Guy gave him a kick right in the middle.
Drogo ran towards him with a defensive yell, but Hot Guy side-stepped him and thew him to the ground. He planted several brutal kicks at his back.
By this time, a small crowd had gathered around them. Most of the students were huddled together like a circle, watching the fight (or, rather, the one-sided rampage) go down. The girl with the brown eyes called out, "Hey, that's enough."
Hot Guy nodded. "Yeah, wouldn't want you to die. Hanami, hand over the pen-drive."
Hanami lumbered up, clutching his nose. He handed over a little pen-drive to Hot Guy, who pocketed it and dug his boots on Drogo's spine. "Is this it, or do you guys have a copy somewhere?"
"No, no, no," mewled Drogo, kicking his hands on the floor. "Let me go!"
Hot Guy hauled him up by his shirt collar. "Nice," he grinned, dusting Drogo's uniform while he cradled his cheek. "Scram. Shoo. Tell Jogo that if he wants a sweet revenge on me, he won't be able to birth kids. Ever. If you know what I mean." His dark eyes twinkled.
Satoru, despite the bloody situation, snorted at the dirty implications of the threat.
That was when, finally, Hot Guy looked at him.
Satoru smiled at him.
Hot Guy's face went through a series of emotions. He frowned in confusion, not recognising Satoru, but then his lips twitched into an appreciative smile as he raked his eyes over Satoru's body in a very shameless manner. When his eyes reached Satoru's face, he smiled like a little kid.
Satoru raised his eyebrows. Was he checking him out? He must be, and that did not surprise him. Satoru knew how good-looking, sexy and attractive he was. Sometimes, he was jealous of his own reflection on the mirror.
He was about to open his mouth, but suddenly, Hanami took this chance to land a kick on Hot Guy's back. He stumbled, Satoru gasped, the crowd shouted in alarm, but Hot Guy recovered quickly and swung around to place a well-executed uppercut to Hanami.
Hanami fell down for the second time.
"Didn't I shoo you off?" asked Hot Guy, not even offended. It was as if he dealt with such things on a daily basis. "Go."
Drogo carried his half-unconscious friend out. As they staggered away, Hot Guy walked past Satoru and said, "Oi, Drogo."
"What?"
Satoru saw the exact moment when Hot Guy's punch made Drogo's nose erupt in a fountain of blood. At the same time, Hot Guy's knuckles cracked, blood flying in all directions. If Satoru had been a director, he would have probably found this scene aesthetic, but since he was just a 20-year-old student, he looked away in fear.
Jesus Christ.
Hot Guy's voice turned cold, sharp. "That was for bullying and beating Ijichi," he said. "Next time, Drogo, pick on someone your size."
The crowd parted to let Hanami carry Drogo through.
A stunned silence fell over the courtyard.
Satoru felt like he had just seen a gory, bloody action film, because what on Earth was that? Who was this guy and why did he want that pen-drive? Why were the students acting like this was a daily occurence, like a cinema? Why was Hot Guy so hot? And why was he currently walking towards him?
"Hi," he said, wiping his bloody knuckles on his pants. "Don't think I've seen you before."
"He's new," said the girl. She came over and told the crowd to go. "Show's over, guys. Go to your classes. It's our first day."
Hot Guy nodded. Then, he stuck out his hand. "Geto. Suguru Geto."
Satoru's smile returned. "Suguru Geto," he said, the name rolling off his tongue like water. "My name is Satoru Gojo." He shook his hand, which was a surprisingly strong grip. But maybe it shouldn't be surprising. After all, this Suguru Geto seemed to be strong. Very strong.
"Suguru!"
A voice snapped Suguru's name. Suguru winced and left Satoru's hand. A girl was standing behind them, her dark blue eyes shining with anger. "Suguru! What did you just do?"
"Kicked ass," said Suguru, laughing. "No, wait, don't grow so angry, Riko. I tried to play diplomatic with them but they didn't listen. They deserved it. They bullied Ijichi some days ago. Beat him and humiliated him and made a video of it. They were threatening to release that video and blackmail Ijichi. So, Ijichi called me, paid me and I got the job done." He took out the pen-drive. "Give this to him during your next Business Management class, yes?"
Riko scowled. "Today's the first day of the semester and you are already fighting. And Shoko, you are encouraging it. Again."
The girl, whose name was Shoko, shrugged.
Riko stomped her feet and went away.
"Whooo!" Suguru made the sound and massaged his shoulders. "Come on, Shoko. Let's grab a bite before first class."
Shoko nodded. "Sure. Oh, Satoru Gojo, now I can take you to the Admissions Office."
The Admissions Office.
Satoru had forgotten about it.
Suguru's ears twitched. "Don't go alone, you two," he said, dragging Shoko by her shoulders. "You need your local dark knight to help you through the treacherous path to the Admissions Office."
Shoko frowned. "Suguru, please let me go. You are sweaty."
But Suguru was already leading the way, gesturing for Satoru to follow him. "Listen, Shoko. These are dark times, my friend. If you, a lone girl, and Gojo here, a new boy, go alone, then you might be jumped by Jogo or Mahito. Let's not take that risk."
Satoru thought he detected genuine worry in Suguru's tone beneath the laughter. Who were these Jogo and Mahito and why were they so violent?
Was Jujutsu University home to such students?
"What major are you guys?" asked Satoru. He tried to place Suguru in his list of "Rich Families," but his surname was not ringing a bell. Perhaps they were related to the Geto family of Ibaraki. Those were a heritage family.
Shoko said, "Biology major. Third year. Partial scholarship."
Satoru nodded. She must be intelligent if she was a scholarship student.
Suguru ran a hand through his hair. "Psychiatry. Third year. Tuition and boarding scholarship." He turned around and asked, "You?"
Satoru could not understand how a guy like Suguru was studying psychiatry on an almost full scholarship, but the wonders never ended. "Physics. Third year." He cleared his throat, suddenly feeling self-conscious, which he never felt. "Uh, no scholarship. Just...a student."
Shoko and Suguru stopped.
The self-labelled local dark knight grinned. "Oho. Rich boy, huh? Hey, you must be a legacy."
Satoru scratched his head. He was a legacy, seeing that his father and grandfather and almost everyone in the Gojo family had attended Jujutsu University once in their lives. But admitting it out loud was a little strange to these two scholarship students. He settled for a nod.
Shoko did not look like she was judging him, though.
Suguru, meanwhile, was calculating something in his mind. "You know, Satoru — can I call you Satoru? — yes, thank you. You know, Satoru, if you are ever in a pinch in this university..." Suguru clapped his back and almost sent him flying. "You know who to call!"