Chapter Text
Her body hasn’t forgotten how to react to a crowd.
A smile pressed against her cheeks and an arm raised half in the air to wave at the people ‘woo’-ing for her. Careful not to trip, she steps up to where the couch is, nodding ever so slightly to everyone in the room before facing the host and respectfully bowing to him.
She shimmies her way onto the edge of the couch where she sits and hovers over her seat as she awaits the next guest to come through and be introduced. Utahime spots a flock of her own fans in the corner of the audience, waving at her with grins on their faces and her own visage on their shirts. They bring her a sense of solace to ease the panic that’s stiffening her body.
The air is electric, she can feel the room abuzz. The teaser posted to social media announcing that both she and Gojo would be on the same late night show, laughing at the same joke, sharing the same couch as they talk about funny talking points to make themselves look like more interesting people, caused an absolute uproar on the internet. Her own PR team excited for how much good press this was already churning out for her.
“And your favourite baseball captain, Satoru Gojo!”
It isn’t before everyone else is already clapping that she joins it. The sound of it snapping her out of her daze as her eye darts for the entrance from which she knows he will emerge.
They left separately. Not that it would have mattered for those backstage, but their conflicting schedules didn’t allow them to come in the same car. Instead they met backstage for a brief moment, just enough time for Gojo to massage her shoulder a little and whisper calming words into her ear.
But being him they were more just words that allowed her to get annoyed at him and slap him across the chest. It did, however, take her mind off of everything.
He comes out from beyond the curtains with a grin on his face. Taking in the applause as if he knows that it is what he deserves. Utahime knows that it’s mostly part of the image that he’s trying to play up, but she almost rolls her eyes all the same.
Gojo bows to the audience before facing where the host and Utahime stand. He raises his arms like he’s meeting old friends at a high school reunion, so happy to be back with them. Tackling the host in a big hug before moving on to Utahime and bowing politely to her.
She does the same out of habit, but she knows her face freezes for a second as if unsure what to do.
His eyes don’t move from Utahime as he attempts to sit down. Smiling at her and raising his eyebrows, trying to lighten the mood as he notices her heart stuck in her throat. A sneaky wink before he reaches out his hand and helps her sit down beside him.
The room erupts in oohs and aahs before Gojo takes his hand back and sits on them.
“I’m gonna try and take her away if I don’t do this.” he makes a face like he knows he is misbehaving, allowing the audience to laugh at his relatability. “I can’t believe she’s real.”
“I can’t believe we made this happen!” the host laughs, definitely proud of his work. “Last time you were here you were gushing over her, and now you’re sitting next to her!”
“I know.” Gojo shakes his head like he can’t believe his luck either. Utahime laughs along as she tries to hide the cheeks growing warm at the attention. “I don’t think I can look at her.”
He raises his open palm and places it next to his eyes, as if to block her out of his periphery. The crowd eats it up and his whole giddy school boy act.
“And Utahime Iori, thank you so much for coming tonight we are so happy to have you on.” applause breaks out, “How are you?”
“I’m very well thank you, and how are you?”
“I’m not going to lie, I am excited.” the host grins, he points between the two of them. “And is this the first time you’re meeting Satoru Gojo?”
There’s a pause. Not sure how she should be answering the question. And it’s Gojo that saves her.
“We’ve met.” is all he offers as he looks at her.
The vagueness of his words is what the crowd grabs onto. He’s so usually a man of too many words, unable to close his mouth when he’s supposed to.
They look at each other with a cheeky grin on his end, and a roll of her eyes from Utahime. He winks at her overtly, to make sure that the audience catches it too. Another round of cheers from the sea of people only helps liven the mood in the studio. It causes the baseball captain and the idol to laugh together, everyone else joining them in tandem soon after.
When the noise calms down, everyone awaits the host’s next words.
“Now, we’re not going to beat around the bush here.” the host points his cards towards the pair. “But there has been a lot of buzz about you both recently because of something this man said on this show.”
Gojo shrugs exaggeratedly before he raises his hands to confess his wrongdoings, “Guilty as charged.”
The audience eats it up.
Utahime has to do her best not to roll her eyes too much or make disgruntled faces.
“And it seems that since last time Gojo was on this show and spoke so highly of you,” he points at Utahime, “you two have met, yes?”
“Perhaps.” Gojo is the one to answer. Like he is playing the ingénue, he feigns his innocence.
Utahime turns back from looking at Gojo to face the host, echoing the captain’s words and playing along with the stage he has set. “Perhaps.”
Laughter erupts, it’s never a dull moment with Gojo in center stage.
“We might have hung out once or twice.” he lightly rubs his eye as if the topic at hand matters nothing to him, “I had to apologize to her somehow. Make up for all the press I sent her way.”
“And I will never decline a free meal.” Utahime finally feels comfortable enough to chime in. The audience chuckles, more than curious about her side of the story.
“And?” The host tries his best to dig as much information from them as he can.
They all went over this in the pre-interview meeting. Allowing the host to ask them as many questions as he wants about their relation post-Gojo’s previous talk show appearance, as long as he allowed Gojo and Utahime to steer the conversation.
A deal the studio was more than happy with. They knew they’d get the views as long as they kept the topic on the two of them.
“I’m more in love with her than ever.” Gojo is overly comfortable, but never close enough to touch Utahime. He leans deeper back into the seat, as if it’s his own home. Almost tempted to bring his feet up and cross his legs on the couch.
Everyone is eating from the palm of his hand.
“He just flatters me too much.” Utahime interjects, trying to stop his kind words.
“She’s being humble.” Gojo jumps back in. “She’s more than I could ever imagine.”
“And who wouldn’t be in love with her, right?” the host riles up the audience as they jeer for her. Clapping their hands as Utahime waves her hands in the air to try and stop them.
“I’m just glad that she has accepted my friendship, even after everything.” he laughs slightly but there’s a authenticity that laces his voice, something even the audience can hear from him.
Uthaime can’t help the blush reddening her cheeks. She can only hope that it’s only showing up as her blush on camera.
Her body stiffens. Knowing that she can’t hide her face behind her hands, it would only make her seem even more suspicious. She should laugh along with whatever they’re talking about, smile some more to make it seem like she’s in on the joke. But the constant compliments with Gojo right there beside her has started to become daunting. To have someone she loves so dearly speak so highly of her to such a public audience is making her feel more vulnerable than she ever has.
She tucks a loose strand of hair behind her ear, trying to play it off while Gojo and the host bounce off each other again. Trying to get back into the conversation, nodding and smiling where she needs to.
Gojo must have caught on, because the moment Utahime catches him looking at her in her periphery, he nods ever so slightly to her.
As if knowing that now is the correct moment, as if to reassure her that he has everything under control.
Gojo bites the tip of his thumb like he’s a nervous child. “Well actually, I have a confession to make.”
Everyone is suddenly on the edge of their seats.
“Maybe we have a confession to make.” Utahime chuckles mostly to herself, but the audience catches it and starts oo-ing at her words.
No one says anything for a second, the host, the guests and the audience all looking at each other like a Mexican stand off.
“And?” the host finally pushes them.
Gojo takes a glug of his water, playing it comically for effect. Taking his sweet time to prolong the suspense. The room chuckles along with his act.
“You know when I said that we’ve met before,” he looks at the host, the host nods back viguourly to try and get him to continue quicker. “Don’t worry it’s true.”
More chuckles, it softens the suspense.
“However,” It’s odd to see Gojo hesitate. Utahime can see him trying to figure out the best way to get the words out of him.
He catches Utahime’s gaze, she smiles at him. Warmth and support beams from her, almost as if she’s holding his hand and letting him take his time. She waits patiently and kindly, the rest of the room blurs and there’s only her in that moment.
It’s only ever been her.
He looks back at the host, now confident in his words.
“We are married, actually.”
He says it like it isn’t news. He says it like it’s just a fun factoid you’d read on someone’s wikipedia page. He says it as if he’s just fact checking the work and letting the team know gently that they’re slightly wrong on one thing and that they should change it in the script.
And then there is only silence.
As if the weight of his words was slowly trickling into the audience as they try to make sense of what was being said.
Still the silence lingers.
“What?” the host finally says.
Slowly the chatter in the audience starts to bubble. Questions and confusion rampant among the crowd as they try to quickly whisper to each other.
But now his hand feels warm, as Utahime slips her hand in his. He looks up at her, smiling sweetly at him while she chuckles at the situation. She shakes her heard as she laughs, allowing him to join in tandem.
He takes the back of her hand to his lips, closing his eyes as he presses a kiss into her skin to seal in the moment. Everything is dawning on them both, but the pressures of the world finally lifts from both their shoulders.
The sound of the studio drowns out like and it’s as if they’re the only two people in the room.
She smiles at him like he’s everything to her.
He winks at her.
She rolls her eyes.
He rubs the inside of her hand with his thumb.
She holds on tight.
Utahime can’t help but think that maybe it’s alright after all.
Knowing that Gojo is here with her through all of it.
Every single thing she carries on her shoulders, he’ll be there to share the burden.
“Yeah,” Utahime laughs as the crowd clings on to her every word. “Can you believe we’ve been together for 5 years now?”
Absolutely no one can believe it.