Archive of Our Own ^beta

Life has been so great with Sukuna by his side that Yuuji honestly stopped paying attention to the passing time, and before he knew it, Sukuna was zipping his bag for the last time before having to leave.

Yuuji"s standing just a meter away from the singer, fingers clenched around the hem of his shirt, biting on his lips. When Sukuna turns to look at him, he takes one good look and comes to hug him, one hand immediately landing in his hair to gently pet him, a soothing little motion that has Yuuji sigh and nuzzle closer and closer.

“We"ll see each other soon, baby,” Sukuna softly says, fingers sliding down until they gently tug on the necklace. “Keep wearing that until then ?”

“Why would I even take it off ?” Yuuji answers with a pout. “I feel naked without it…”

“Cute.”

How was that cute ? It was clingy and annoying and— no, not the moment to focus on that.

“Sukuna ? Can you…”

“Kiss you ? Make you cum one last time before I go take my shinkansen ?”

Yuuji blinks at him for a good few seconds. “I was gonna ask if you could leave one of your shirts here.”

Sukuna chuckles, moving to cup his face in a tender hold, squishing his cheeks until his lips jut out, “Oh, sweetheart,” he whispers before lightly kissing him, even if Yuuji probably looks like a fish right now. “You want to sleep wearing my clothes ?”

Yuuji hums in answer, and Sukuna kisses him once more before he steps back to grab one, oh, make that two shirts, dumping them in Yuuji"s hands. They share a smile at that, Sukuna ruffling his hair as Yuuji hugs the shirts close to his chest and–

“Wait,” Sukuna suddenly says, going back to his bag. “I"ve got an idea.”

It doesn"t even take fifteen seconds for him to come back with his bottle of perfume in hand, and Yuuji doesn"t have to think about it before he holds the shirts in front of him, one after the other, letting Sukuna spray some perfume on them to let them smell a bit like him rather than like Yuuji"s detergent.

“Thank you,” Yuuji breathes out, going on the tip of his toes to kiss the man once more, twice more, chuckling into the kiss as Sukuna decides to deepen it and tries to slip his knees between his legs. “We don– don"t have time–”

“Not even for a handjob ?” Sukuna asks between kisses, voice playful, but even then his knee stops moving in a way that would"ve coaxed pleasure out of Yuuji and just stays there, right under his crotch.

“Nope, your taxi will be here soon,” Yuuji reminds him, laughing when all Sukuna does is shrug and try to kiss him more. “Go put your perfume away before it slips out of your hand.”

That"d be way too much perfume for his little place. Oh, the headache. The burn in his nose. That"d be horrible.
And the glint in Sukuna"s eyes then, the small smirk on his face tells him that he"s thinking the same thing with a side helping of ‘you"d have to stay somewhere else’, and Yuuji totally would follow Sukuna to Tokyo for a few days if he didn"t have both work and practice multiple times a week until the competition (and Sukuna coming back to see him then. That"d make it worth it, in the end.)

So Yuuji slips out of the singer"s hold, laughing at the betrayed look on his face, poking his tongue out at him in a probably too childish moment of fun, but all Sukuna does then is fondly laugh and try to grab his tongue, because of course he would. And that would lead to some more making out and probably more stuff after that, so truly, Yuuji has no other choice but to step back some more, right ?

Some time later has them both sitting in the back of the taxi, hands clasped together between them. Sukuna had asked the driver to do a detour to drive Yuuji to work, and well, who was he to refuse a few more minutes with him. And a free ride.

But Sukuna, ever the most observant person Yuuji has ever met, sees the pout that Yuuji has been trying to fight back for some minutes now and tightens his hold on his hand.

“Tokyo is just two hours away by train. If you miss me too much just tell me, and I"ll buy you a ticket.”

Oh, to be rich enough to casually offer to spend thirty thousand yen like that just for what"d basically be a tantrum. Yuuji shakes his head at that and brings their linked hands up to kiss the back of Sukuna"s hand, mouthing his thanks against his skin, and Sukuna softly smiles at him.

The ride is over way too soon, and Yuuji hesitates a bit before getting out of the car. There"s only them and the driver there, and that man is politely pretending to look away, so Yuuji grabs Sukuna"s face and does his best to kiss him once more, one last time, because that was something he was going to miss a lot too.

“You"ll text me ?” Yuuji asks in a whisper.

Sukuna"s hand lands on his face to caress his cheek right as he smiles at him. “Mhmh, and you"ll call me ?”

“Yeah,” he answers, giggling at the small kiss the man leaves on the tip of his nose then.

Yuuji moves to kiss Sukuna"s birthmarks before finally getting out of the car, and then shyly waves.

“Bye bye.”

“Bye bye, baby.”

And with that, Sukuna is gone.

True to his words, Sukuna texts and calls him, the messages coming in every day, from morning to the evening. Yuuji shyly started the very next day after his departure, sending a small good morning text, and since then it became normal for them. "Good morning, baby" Sukuna would say, and Yuuji would answer with a heart and a good morning of his own.

Sukuna sends him pics of animals every now and then. Mahito"s lizard with his miniature party hat that somehow perfectly stays in place for five entire minutes, Choso and Eso"s little chihuahua with her fluffy ears and pretty accessories (“The group"s princess” the text read, and Yuuji definitely agreed), and then videos of the pets of some people at the agency who somehow managed to come to work with them, too.

Another thing that happens almost every day now is phone calls. Sometimes just for a couple of minutes, more often for hours in a single sitting. To make sure that they both actually ate that evening at a normal time, to talk together until they fall asleep. Cute little things that make it easier to not be together after spending entire days where they could cuddle and kiss and fuck whenever they wanted, where they"d sleep in each other"s arms and wake up with their legs still tangled.

But even then, Yuuji still feels a bit lonely when he goes to sleep alone at night. So it"s not too surprising when his texts end up showing his clingy side, even if it happened quicker than he hoped it would.

And it builds and builds in him, making him turn this way and that way in bed, cuddling Sukuna"s pillow to his chest until he sleepily reaches for his phone, not even needing to really open his eyes to click on the conversation with Sukuna to send him a text.

Yuuji shamefully hides his face in the pillow after that. With a bit of luck, Sukuna would already be asleep or would be working on something and not notice it for a couple of hours, and then this"d become a problem for future Yuuji.

But not even five minutes later when Yuuji finally moves his face away from the pillow he is greeted by the tiny blinking light of a notification above his cracked screen.

Biting his lips, Yuuji slowly unlocks his phone.

Ah, he misses hearing that little word. Misses feeling it mouthed against his cheek or neck, hearing it whispered into his hair.

Sukuna calls so fast after Yuuji sends this one that his phone slips out of his hand in surprise. Was… Was he waiting for this message ? Wait, not the moment to think about that, his phone has already rang for way too long.

“Hey there,” Sukuna"s warm voice immediately purrs into the empty space of his apartment the moment Yuuji accepts the call, and it immediately makes him feel better. Ugh. He definitely was too needy, right ?

“Hey,” Yuuji still answers, a bit shy.

“Trouble sleeping ?”

“Yeah, and you ?”

Sukuna hums, and Yuuji hears some shuffling on his side of the call. “I"m still working on something.”

Blinking, Yuuji moves his phone away to check the time. “Sukuna,” he says, almost whining. “It"s one in the morning.”

Laughing, Sukuna seems to move again. “Don"t worry, I"m at my place. I just wanted to finish this demo I was working on.”

“A new song ?”

“Mhmh, wanna hear it ?”

Hold on, what. Did he really just say that ?

“Are you,” Yuuji starts to say, choking on his spit in surprise. Sukuna softly laughs, almost sleepily and warm and comforting in his ear, even if he was making fun of him then. “Are you sure that you can legally do that ?”

“Who cares, it"s not like you"d leak it, right baby ?” Sukuna says, a smirk evident in his voice. “And if you end up talking about it a bit too much we"ll just release it for free or something. Or just as a B side.”

For free ? That"s weirdly cute of him.

Yuuji considers it for a few seconds, and finally he whispers a soft “Let me hear it, please,” that makes Sukuna chuckle a bit.

The song starts suddenly, making Yuuji jump in surprise, and the energy doesn"t lower at all, the instrumental staying loud and strong, the guitar fast and energetic. The drums sound like they"d make his eyeballs shake in their sockets if he listened to it with earphones or live, and that"s great. That"s one of the reasons he likes The Curses" music so much, the way he can easily stop thinking while listening to it, how if he plays it loud enough he can feel his goddamn brain rattle in his skull. Good.

The song keeps on going for a few minutes, intensity lowering for a couple of seconds at one point in the middle only to come back even stronger, and Yuuji knows that he won"t be using that one as his alarm, but maybe he could dance to it. Maybe. Maybe not. He never really did a whole choreography to one of Sukuna"s songs before… Huh.

They stay silent for a while after its end, and Yuuji slowly blinks for a few seconds. “Woh,” he then says, and Sukuna laughs a bit.

“You liked it ?”

“Yeah, I like how fast it is.” Yuuji smiles. “But how am I gonna sleep now ?”

Sukuna snorts, and Yuuji hears a few clicks on his side of the line. “And you didn"t even hear the vocal track. That thing is a mess.”

“What, you scream in it ?”

“Actually, I do.”

“Whaaaatttt, that"s gonna be so fun live,” Yuuji says, a big smile on his face, snuggling closer to Sukuna"s pillow. It still smells like him.

“For you maybe.” there"s the sound of the computer turning off and Sukuna walking away from it, a door opening and then closing. “My throat is going to be so raw.”

Heh, been there. “Welcome to the club.” Yuuji snorts.

There"s another door opening, and then the sound of clothes being taken off. “What, from me fucking it ?”

Oh god.

“Sukunaaaaa–”

“Yes sweetheart ?”

Ah, the butterflies are back, and Yuuji whines with his face smushed into the pillow.

“What"s wrong baby ?” Sukuna asks, playful, no actually he"s just smug, the absolute bastard. “Miss having me there with you to do it ?”

Yuuji sputters at that, “I, what, no, yeah–” oh, damn it. “Sukuna.”

“Yuuji.” Now there"s the sound of a faucet being opened and a glass being filled, and when Sukuna speaks again it"s around his toothbrush. “M"not lying.”

“Well, yeah, but…”

“You looked so pretty then, baby. All flushed and with glassy eyes.” The effect of it is almost ruined by the brush brush brush of his toothbrush and the mouthful of toothpaste, but oh, Yuuji is still blushing from it.

“I did ? Wait, no, don"t answer. I didn"t call for phone sex, Kuna.”

Sukuna hums and then spits. “Too bad, it could"ve been fun,” he says, and then rinses his mouth, gargling a bit. That sounded so weird directly in his ear and distorted by his phone"s speaker, what the hell. “Also I"m the one who called.”

“A-, another time, maybe ?”

“Okay, sweetheart.”

Yuuji suddenly yawns then, and listens to Sukuna walk to his bed, wishing he was there with him to cuddle. He really misses the hugs more than he thought he would…

“M"gonna hug you for ten minutes straight next time I see you,” Yuuji sleepily mumbles, deeply breathing in what was left of Sukuna"s perfume and aftershave on the pillowcase.

“Aww, you"ll be a cute little koala ?”

“Mmhh, you won"t go anywhere without me…”

“Good.” Sukuna says, sounding so so pleased. “That"s what I want too.”

Yuuji smiles, a soft and slow little laugh escaping him then. Ah, he is suddenly very very sleepy now… Feels so much better with Sukuna talking to him, even through a phone… Comfy and calm…

“You"re falling asleep, baby,” the singer says, and Yuuji hears him move in bed a bit. “Go to sleep.”

“But I don"t wanna stop talking to you…”

“I"ll still be here tomorrow, sweetheart. Call me when you wake up if you want.”

“M"kay… Goodnight, Kuna.”

“Goodnight Yuuji, my pretty baby.”

Yuuji is giggling when the call cuts and his place becomes silent again, and when he finally falls asleep it"s with a smile on his face.

So anyways, Yuuji has stopped counting the number of times he woke up with his phone stuck to his cheek, an indent left in his face from it after the third time it happened in a week. One of these days he"ll wake up from a cut, what with that stupid cracked screen.

Sukuna always laughs and laughs when Yuuji sends him selfies of him pouting with his cheek all red, smugly saying that it was simply because he wasn"t there to put his own marks on Yuuji"s skin that this happened, and this theory actually made way too much sense, so Yuuji also stopped sending those selfies after a while.

And instead, he focuses on work because they"re short one cook now after one of them ended up with a bad injury, and he focuses on practice until the entire routine is perfected and muscle memory to the point where Yuuji can dance it entirely even without music at all. And he focuses on the calls and texts, even if they"re ever so slightly rarer now as Sukuna is also busy with talks about getting another album out soon to ride on the publicity their little… Play… Ended up bringing to The Curses. No publicity is bad publicity and all of that.

Even then. Even then, Sukuna promises him that he"ll keep a few days free for him, for the competition and then one or two more days. Apparently, his manager wrote it down as a "mental health weekend", and no one is authorized to take it away unless they wanna pay for therapy fees. Yuuji kinda feels bad that the man apparently has to go to therapy because of Sukuna, but oh, well, he"d definitely need it too if he wasn"t able to at least hold hands with Sukuna again for a few minutes.

Fuck. That"s.. Pathetic of him, right ?

He shouldn"t miss Sukuna that much after having only spent, what, almost two weeks with him at his place.

But he does. Oh, he does so much.

He misses the hand holding, the hugs, the kisses. He misses Sukuna lightly tugging on the necklace he bought for him, misses the feeling of his fingers tracing the shape of his neck, the line of his jaw, their feathery touch over his lips and eyelids. The way they traveled south and south, either to just hold his waist or to hold his hips right where Sukuna wanted them. He misses the careful touches to make sure that he was fine and pleased, to make sure that nothing hurt in a way that wasn"t the goal for them both. The fingers that circled his wrists and ankles to hold them and move them. The small kisses on his shoulders, on his knees, on the small of his back.

Yuuji sniffles and slaps his cheeks to refocus, and then goes back to work. He needs to stop being so fucking weak, that"s not like him at all. No matter what happens, Itadori Yuuji is a happy person. And he"ll be happier when back by Sukuna"s side, yeah.

Yuuji"s phone rings for a total of five seconds before he manages to accept the call, because of course he"d have trouble with it right now. Damn it.

But still. “Kuna,” he calls out the moment the call starts.

“I"m here, Yuuji. Having trouble sleeping again ?” Sukuna answers, voice steady, calming.

“M"yeah, I"m sorry…”

“Why ?”

“I feel too… Clingy. And dependent. M"sorry.”

Sukuna stays silent for so long that Yuuji feels scared of what the man must be thinking of him because of… This.

But Sukuna simply sighs and starts to calmly and gently talk. “Don"t be, you"re just stressed. We went from one extreme to the other really fast, and you had to get used to being alone again at the same time the competition started to really stress you.”

…. Oh. That… Made sense.

“You think ?” Yuuji asks with a little voice, biting his lips.

“Mhmh, I have trouble sleeping before big things too.”

“Yeah ?”

“Oh, yeah, it was horrible when I was your age.” Sukuna chuckles, “Once we did a monopoly game a couple of hours before going on stage because of that. Mahito went there with a couple of bills still in his pants.”

“Oh ! I"ve seen pics of that !”

“Everyone did.”

And Mahito used a pic of that as his header on twitter for close to a year after that. A closeup of the waist of his pants with the little game bills peeking out of them, one of them tainted by a drop of blood from a paper cut.

“So don"t worry, sweetheart. You"re not at an unhealthy level yet,” Sukuna says, still very calm, voice still all soft and gentle and warm. “You just need comfort, and you probably associated me with it.”

Yuuji groans at that, embarrassed, because what the hell was wrong with his subconscious ? But Sukuna only laughs in answer and keeps talking, and Yuuji realizes that he"s probably just trying to make him think of something else and relax by hearing him… And it"s kinda working.

“It"s okay, I like it. Think of me as comforting, calming, protecting. Whatever you want, sweetheart.”

“Yeah… ?”

“Yeah. I"ll keep you safe in my arms, baby.”

The warmth that Yuuji feels at those words makes him giggle, surprised, blushing so much that he"s (for once) glad that Sukuna isn"t with him right now. “That"s cheesy,” he says with a laugh, and Sukuna chuckles in answer too.

“It is, isn"t it ?” there"s a pause, then, as if Sukuna is carefully considering what he"s about to say. “Would you feel better if I told you that I felt better by your side too ?”

“We"re a mess,” Yuuji says, unlocking his door to finally be home.

“... Was that your lock ? Were you still outside ?”

“Yeaaahhh ?”

“Thank fuck I didn"t try to get you to relax with your hand in your pants, then.”

What. A surprised laugh gets forced out of Yuuji at that, and he knocks into his furnitures as he takes his shoes off. “What the hell, Kuna.”

“No exhibitionism when you"re alone, sweetheart, that"d be too dangerous.”

Yuuji blushes and laughs even more. Of course he"d think about that. That wasn"t even surprising coming from Sukuna, just as it was very on brand for him to think of doing this kind of stuff with him outside. … They kinda already did, with the whole, huh, pissing on stage thing. Hm. Yeah. Hehe, that had been… Hehehe…

“Hmm ? What are you giggling about ?” Sukuna asks, amused, and Yuuji hears the smile in his voice. Oooohhh he wants to kiss that smile. Soon.

“Was thinking about, hm, on stage, you know.”

“And it"s making you giggle ? Oh, you sweet little thing, I"ll do it again if you act all cute like that about it.”

Still giggling, Yuuji goes to sit on his old chair, one arm now resting on the kitchen counter. “Please don"t,”

“Not even for my birthday ? On that pretty back of yours, and then I"ll wash it all away for you.”

“Who even asks their… Their…”

“... Boyfriend ?”

Yuuji bites his lips, blushing about that word. That felt… Weird. “Who asks their… boyfriend… For, for that, as like what, a present ?” ah, damn it, his voice broke on… On that word. Yeah. Weird, but good. That was a word he was gonna squeal about into his pillow at very odd hours, wasn"t it ? And Sukuna using this word like that made it all feel… More real.

“Pervy bastards like me, I guess.” Sukuna laughs. “And I"d definitely be fine with you letting me indulge in this kind of kinks for my birthday only. Or waking me up with a blowjob. Or both.”

“You"re not a bastard,” Yuuji pouts, deciding to focus on this rather than the rest, keeping it all in a corner of his mind.

“Only with you, baby, and you know that.”

Yuuji makes a weird little noise at that, whiny and needy and high pitched, and Sukuna hums in answer, clearly pleased by his reaction. You know what, no, he was right, he"s a bastard.

And then, as Yuuji hides his face in his arms, he hears a weird little noise from Sukuna"s side. Yuuji blinks, trying to remember what that was. Huh… “A lighter ?” he asks, chin resting on the counter. “You"re smoking ?”

“Mhmh,” Sukuna hums, and if Yuuji really listens he feels like he can hear him take a drag on his cigarette. “You"re not the only one getting restless.”

“M"yeah ?”

“Yeah,” he takes a pause there, slowly exhaling, the noise picked up by his phone. “Didn"t really smoke when I was with you.”

Oh.

There"s a barely hidden meaning, there, right ? That Yuuji has a good effect on him like he does on Yuuji, r– right… ?

Yuuji chews a bit on his bottom lip, a pleased blush on his cheeks. Oh, he"s never blushed that much before.

“I"m… Glad, I guess ?”

“You can be.” Sukuna takes another slow and long drag, and Yuuji closes his eyes and rests his head on the kitchen counter again. “Say, baby, you"ve got anything to do tomorrow morning ?”

“Huh ? Just some grocery shopping, I think ?”

Why was he asking that ? Obviously not to come over or make him go to Tokyo, that wouldn"t be worth it for just a few hours…

“I"ll take care of that,” Sukuna calmly says in a way that makes Yuuji immediately know that he can"t argue with it. “So try to rest a bit longer tomorrow.”

“I"ll try…”

“Hmm, good little baby.”

Ah, that praise, Yuuji could feel it warm him all over, could feel it settle in his belly and soothe him…

“You"ll be a good boy and do what I"ll tell you to do, right ?”

Yuuji hums in answer, eyes still closed, feeling soft from Sukuna"s voice and the words he said, the careful strength put behind them, almost like… Like an order ? Yeah, something… Something like that…

“Listen baby, you"re going to take a good shower, put on some soft clothes, and then you"ll eat the meal I"ll get delivered to your place, alright ?”

“Okay… … I want some gyoza.”

Sukuna laughs at that, “Sure, sweetheart. You"ll eat and then go to bed and send me a cute little goodnight text, because that"ll make me very happy.”

“M"kay Kuna…”

“Ah, I should stop here before I somehow manage to make you drop from all the way over here,” Sukuna says with a little chuckle that just tickles Yuuji"s ear just right.

But also, what. “Drop ?” Yuuji asks, because he has no idea what he means by that.

“Remember how you felt when I put your collar on you ?”

“Huh, all… fuzzy and kinda… Kinda away ?”

“Mhmh, that looked a lot like you were in subspace to me. Wait, hold on,” Sukuna apparently moves his phone away then, but Yuuji still faintly hears him anyway. “What ? … Fuck, it"s starting now ?” he says to someone too far away for his phone"s microphone to pick up.

Yuuji sleepily blinks, staring at his wall. Is that some water damage that"s starting to appear over there next to his old microwave ? It kinda looks like a face… Ugh, creepy.

“Yuuji.” Sukuna suddenly calls for him, voice gentle but firm, getting his attention back just that easily. “I gotta go. We"ve got one last meeting tonight.”

“Awwhh…” Yuuji whines, “Felt good to talk to you.” he then says with a smile, feeling much better than when that call started.

“Yeah, for me too. Remember : shower, eat, bed, text, and then sleep in until like 9am.”

Yuuji laughs, and the call ends with them smiling and happy and better than before. … Thank fuck they weren"t alive before cellphone were really a thing, they both wouldn"t have survived more than a week without their phones, ugh.

As if it isn"t enough, another injury happens around Yuuji. One of the dancers from the crew went and broke his ankle, only a few days before the competition.

And Yuuji is the one who ends up being given the center parts of that guy.

That"s… That"s awesome, and very cool and all of that, but Yuuji already feels like his plate is full with what he already has. He"s already five minutes away from a breakdown on a good day, feels like the only thing holding him together is Sukuna with his texts and calls, and here he is sleeping even less than before to work more, to train more.

And to make it all worse…

It takes twenty minutes for Sukuna to answer, twenty long minutes Yuuji spends practicing the new steps he has to learn in what, five days at most ?

What. WHAT. Why did he say that ?! Where did that even come from ?! Oh no oh no oh no, he"s truly an idiot, isn"t he ? They never… Discussed it… And Sukuna is sending messages now—

O-oh ? He liked it ? Yuuji chews on his lips then as he carefully considers what to say. He could agree that he just wanted to be bratty, or…

Ah, no, that"s enough. Blushing, Yuuji opens his bag and dumps his phone in it, going back to practice for a bit. Too much too much too much, he feels like his brain will fry with the warmth of his cheeks and the embarrassment flowing through him. So he goes over the entire choreography two times before he comes back to his phone, and then…

And then notices that in the eight or nine minutes it took him, Sukuna has sent a few messages.

There"s a slight pause there, roughly five minutes long. An eternity for a normal conversation, but just a slight pause for texts between two men who probably have too much to do to negotiate a goddamn daddy kink of all things.

Another pause, much shorter this time.

Oh fuck, that came to him naturally, didn"t it ? But before going into any of that, he has something to address…

And just like that, there"s a new development to their relationship.

So close. They"re so close now. One more day and a few hours and they"ll be together again. Yuuji just has to dance, and then he"ll hug Sukuna the moment he"ll get his hands on him. Hug him and kiss him and then bend over for him, because he also kinda really misses and wants to get fucked until he cries again.

But the stress is getting… Worse. Sue him, it"s his first big competition like that, and he has a center part in it now too. The moment Sukuna learns about this he casually asks if he should come over with a bouquet of flowers for him, for some reasons, and that"s enough to make Yuuji laugh and smile for some time.

And Sukuna keeps telling him to relax today, and Yuuji keeps saying that he can"t, because he really needs to practice some more or he"ll freeze up like an idiot while dancing.
So it"s not much of a surprise when his phone lights up with a call after the third time this exchange happened in a single day.

Yuuji accepts the call, drying the sweat on his forehead with his wristband. “Yeah ?”

“Itadori Yuuji.” says Sukuna, all cold and almost angry.

“Oh no.”

“You have trained enough today, go back home.”

“Nope, not happening.” Yuuji answers as he goes to grab his water bottle.

Sukuna seems to wait for him to be done drinking, somehow, probably because he considers it as a small rest or… something ? “Stop being such a brat.”

“But why ? I"m not tired or anything, I can keep going.” Yuuji scratches his neck as he says that, nose scrunching at the sweat gathered there.

“That"s the kind of things I"d like to hear during sex, not a few hours away from something big for you.” Sukuna sighs, exasperated. “But if you keep acting like that…”

Uh-oh. “Y-yeah ?”

“I"ll have to punish you, brat. Get you on my lap to spank your cute ass.” his voice is so fucking rough as he says it, all husky and so low that Yuuji feels shivers traveling along his spine from it.

“Ah, that"s…”

“The pretty little thing would like it ?”

“M-maybe. I don"t know ?”

Sukuna hums, and when he speaks again his voice is just a bit softer. “So go back to your place, or at least do something else than training or working. You"ll end up fainting on stage if you keep doing that.”

… He does have a point.

“If I go get a snack, will you, huh, stop being angry ?” Yuuji shyly asks, dropping his bottle back in his bag to stop fidgeting with it.

Sukuna takes a few seconds to answer. “I"m not really angry, sweetheart,” he says, now so gentle that Yuuji feels the whiplash from it. “But I am worried for you.”

“But I"m fine…”

“I know you feel fine, but please.”

Yuuji bites his lip and looks up, staring at his reflection. His cheeks are red, he"s sweaty, his hair isn"t really the cleanest it"s ever been, and he"s… Pretty sure he"s lost some weight over the time he"s been alone…

… Sukuna is right, huh. Of course. Yuuji… He"s been pushing himself too hard, hasn"t he ?

“... Okay.” he whispers, because even if he kinda agrees now he"s not… He doesn"t really know what he is (or, well, isn"t), actually, but it feels like something he can"t say louder.

“Thank you, baby.” Sukuna softly, so very softly says. “You"ll still go and get a snack, right ?”

“Yeah. I"ve got some extra money thanks to you, so I think I can get… A pastry ?”

“Good idea.” there"s a pause, there. “Also. Money thanks to me ?”

“Uuuhhh, when you bought my groceries ? One less expense than usual ?”

“Oh, right, makes sense. … You do know that I"d give you a little… Allowance for some extra stuff like that, right ?”

What.

Yuuji frowns, just a bit, and his expression kind of looks funny actually. “What am I, your child ?”

But Sukuna just snorts at it. “I do call you baby. And you did say you were fine with calling me da–”

“OKAY I get it ! Please don"t embarrass me…” ughhh now his cheeks are red for an entirely different reason.

As if sensing his thoughts, Sukuna chuckles and asks with a teasing tone, “Will you blush all prettily for me when I"ll say that word in the same room as you ?”

Damn it. “Mayyybe… ?”

“And now I have a reason to wait to say it. Great.”

“Sukuna,” Yuuji whines, pouting when all it gets him is a laugh from the singer.

“So, the allowance.” he"s clearly trying to make Yuuji forget about the teasing, and damn it it"s working.

“I have a job, I"m fine,”

“And I know that. But I do want you to get yourself fun things more often.”

… Well, yeah, okay, said like that it isn"t… Horrible, but…

“I can get myself stuff, you know.” Yuuji pouts, tapping the ground with the tip of his sneaker as he kind of fidgets in place.

“I really, really want to spoil and help you. And you"re not letting me, baby…”

“But the mattress…”

“Was for my own benefits too, fuck that old thing you had.”

That makes Yuuji laugh, because okay yes, true. “Alright, I"m not counting it then.”

“I"ll be fine even with a small amount, sweetheart. Or just let me get groceries delivered to your place once or twice a month.”

Wait, “I can… Live with that, I think. The groceries, I mean. But only basic things ! Nothing, like, extravagant or something !”

“Got it, normal things so that my baby gets to feed himself all nicely and be full of energy when with me.” Sukuna says, a smile evident in his voice, obviously happy to have found a way to deal with his apparently very strong need to spend money on Yuuji, because what the hell it feels like they"ve had a discussion like that last week already. But also,

“... Is that just a plan so that my energy will match your libido ?” Yuuji just has to ask.

“Maybe. I"ll add vitamins to the list.”

“Sukunaaaaa”

“And orange juice boxes.”

Sukuna"s voice is so overly serious then that Yuuji laughs until he grabs his stomach and kinda just curls around his middle. What the hell was wrong with this man–

But Sukuna sounds so amused by Yuuji"s reaction when he speaks again that it honestly warms him up. “Unless you"d prefer another type ?”

“... Apple, please.”

“See, we"re making progress.” Sukuna says, still sounding way too happy. “Soon enough you"ll ask me for other things than groceries. Good.”

At that, Yuuji kind of just– bites his lips, feeling unsure, and sits down in front of the big mirror of the dance practice room. “But why would you spend so much money on me…?”

“I"ve said it before, Yuuji. It makes me happy to make you happy.”

“But you don"t need to buy me things for that. Just by— by holding my hand, or, or kissing me, or hugging me, or when you, you put me just how you want to fu–, huh, fuck me. It already makes me very happy, you know ?” Yuuji says, way too shyly, stuttering and blushing honestly way too much. But. He"s alone. Sukuna can"t see his reaction. And the singer won"t judge him for it anyways, so.

“Yeah ? I"ll keep doing that too, sweetheart. But what about when I"m not with you ?”

“Gimme more of your shirts. And…”

“And ?”

“Sing me to sleep once in a while ?”

There"s a surprisingly long pause, there, and then Sukuna chuckles, and Yuuji wishes he could see him to maybe then understand him. “You"re in a relationship with a singer who has old money and all you ask for is my old cotton shirts and lullabies ?”

Why is it making him even more embarrassed ?! “I, yeah. Is that bad ?”

“Not at all, baby,” Sukuna says, all sweetly and smoothly. “But buying you stuff would be my lullaby.”

Huh. That"s probably a weird way to put it, but… Weirdly enough, Yuuji begins to get it, now.

Still. It doesn"t change the fact that he"s feeling very shy. “It"d make you feel warm ?” he softly asks, hesitantly meeting his own eyes in his reflection.

“Ah, yeah, it would.” Sukuna agrees, and somehow Yuuji has a feeling that Sukuna is somewhat reassured now that he"s starting to get it a bit more. “I make you feel warm, baby ?”

Ah, god damn it.

“I, huh, well. Yeah. Since before. It"s always been like that.”

“Yeah ?”

“M"yeah. Can I sound like a cringy fanboy for a minute ?”

“Go on.”

“Well. I. Discovered you guys pretty soon after you went pro ? So four-ish years ago ? And back then I was pretty stressed and sad.” Yuuji kind of just mumbles, hoping that Sukuna won"t ask too many questions and instead assume it to be normal teenage angst. “But never when I listened to your music. Either it was loud enough that everything in my head would get drowned out, or your voice would just… Captivate me. And warm me up.”

“Yeah baby ?”

“Yeah. Even before you"ve known me… You"ve been helping me, somehow.”

“Fuck, I"m glad, baby. You deserve to feel all warm and safe.”

Yuuji laughs a bit at that, nose scrunched and blush back in full force. “You"re the one who sounds cringy now.”

“Heh, I don"t care about that kind of thing.”

Well, yeah, obviously. Sukuna doesn"t let anyone else but himself say what he can and can"t do or say. He doesn"t even listen that well to the lawyers of his company, based on all the… things he"s done. It"s always been refreshing to see in videos and interviews and such, to hear him say some really rough and rude stuff and immediately after that laughing so hard that tears would cling to his eyelashes, looking way too cute. He never even refused to even just hold onto something cute by saying that it didn"t fit his image, unlike some other singers and idols Yuuji has seen interviews of.
For a while, Yuuji"s lock screen had been a picture of Sukuna wearing black skinny jeans and a leather jacket, hello kitty plushie under his arm. Gap moe.

What was he thinking about, again ?

“–uji ?”

Huh ? Oh, Kuna.

“Sorry, got lost in my thoughts. What were we talking about ?”

“I"ll buy you groceries, and we won"t argue about it anymore.” Sukuna calmly says in that tone that means that yeah, that"s done and actually decided.

“Okay… But just the groceries.”

“And the occasional gifts.”

“God damn it—”

Sukuna laughs then, loud and happy, and Yuuji is torn between laughing too and pouting. “You definitely weren"t acting like that when I gave you your collar.”

Fuck"s sake now he"s gone full on in his teasing mode. It"s… Just a bit less fun when he"s not there with him, when Yuuji can"t see his smirk or the mischievous glint of his eyes. But it"s not enough to even just start to make him uncomfy, so.

“The collar"s fun. And you like it too, no ?” Yuuji pouts, scratching a random itchy spot on his leg.

“I definitely do, baby.”

“Kuna ?”

“Yeah ?”

“Will you put it on me again soon ?”

“Oh, sweetheart. I will, as soon as you"ll walk into my place if you want to.”

He has no right to sound so soft. Ryoumen Sukuna, softest boyfriend ever, Yuuji"s the luckiest boy ever.

But still. Yuuji"s pout becomes even bigger at that. “But we don"t know when that"ll happen…”

Sukuna hums, “Then just come over as soon as the competition"s done.”

“I caaaan"t,” Yuuji whines, zipping his bag close and getting up. “I"ve got work…”

“Too bad, then.”

“Kuuunaaaaa,”

There"s some light chuckling from Sukuna"s side of the call. “That collar will stay in my bedside drawer until you"ll be close enough to open it yourself.”

“What. But please, da—” oh. Nope. Not doing that now. “Kuna.”

“Ah, almost. That was so close. Don"t you want to say it, baby ?”

Nope, nope, nope. Not happening. “Oh, did you hear that ? There"s a pastry calling for me !”

And Sukuna is laughing some more now, “Come on sweetheart,”

“Right, bye, talk to you later–”

“Mhmh, eat well.”

“I will, thanks, bye !”

And Yuuji cuts the call then, before he says something even more dumb that"ll make him want to hide in his bed for a week or two. Or twelve. Or until Sukuna comes over and breaks his door and forces him to get out of bed. Whichever happens first.

But anyways. Cake.

The next morning, Yuuji wakes up to a little heart from Sukuna. They"re kinda rare, rarer than Yuuji"s, so it immediately makes him smile as he sleepily sends back one, or maybe twenty. He doesn"t really count and just tap tap taps the screen, probably sending some of his other last used emojis alongside it, but whatever. He"s feeling too happy to care, right now.

Of course it crashes down very soon after as he sits wet and naked in the middle of his bathroom as his stress makes its comeback. He"s practically dry when he finally moves to grab his phone to try to find something calming or whatever, and Sukuna somehow sends him a text exactly then.

Right. Yeah. The competition is stressful, but it also means being with Sukuna again for a couple of days.

Yuuji kind of just… Shuffles in place in his little corner backstage, basically vibrating where he stands. They"re passing right after the guys on stage now. Soon. Soon soon soon soo—

“You look very happy, Itadori.” the crew"s leader says to him with a smile.

“My boyfriend is here,” Yuuji answers, his own smile so big that his cheeks hurt from it.

The leader"s entire expression softens at that. “Yeah ? Then you gotta dance with all you"ve got to make him proud.”

“Yep !”

Yuuji checks his shoes once more. Makes sure once again that his fly is up and closed. Cracks his fingers and pops his shoulders, stretches his legs. Thumbs at the necklace around his throat. And, once the mental checklist is complete for the last time,

Steps up on stage with the rest of the crew.