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“I’m just so excited for him, you know?”
“That’s the fifth time you’ve said that.” Mei Mei made a mental tally mark on the whiteboard that existed in her head.
“When I went on my first mission alone it felt so…liberating.”
“That’s a big word. Are you sure you know what it means?” Mei Mei asked lazily.
Gojo continued, ignoring the enthusiastic response of his peer.
“I was able to fight exactly how I wanted to fight. No need to hold back.”
Mei Mei sighed and began unbraiding her silky blue hair. “You and Megumi are two very different people. That’s a good thing too, we don’t need any more sorcerers like you roaming around.”
There was a scoff before Gojo continued rambling. “I mean, I’ve trained Megumi since he was six. I know the kid. He was thrilled when he found out I wouldn’t be going with him on the mission. So he’ll be fine.”
Mei Mei raised an eyebrow at the last comment. “No one ever said he wouldn’t be fine.”
Gojo paused. “Well…yeah anyway, he recently tamed this massive snake shikigami. It’s quite cool, I freaked out when I saw it, but I think that made Megumi like it even more.” Gojo laughed. “Dumb kid.”
Mei Mei finished unbraiding her hair and ran her fingers through it, directing the strands away from her face. She watched as Gojo stood up and began pacing around the sitting room they were in.
Many people thought they knew Gojo Satoru. However, Mei Mei wasn’t presumptuous enough to say the same. She knew the face that Gojo presented to everyone else. The happy-go-lucky teacher who was the strongest. She assumed there was something deeper to his character, but frankly she didn’t care enough to find out what it was. But now, in this moment, Mei Mei believed she was getting a glimpse of a part of Gojo he often hid.
Mei Mei may not know Gojo Satoru, but she did know that pacing was something that any human did when they were nervous. When they were afraid.
Mei Mei couldn’t be certain, but she believed Gojo Satoru was worried. She wasn’t under the assumption that Gojo was a cold, uncaring person, but to be privy to an emotion the strongest sorcerer often hid, was terribly interesting.
Oh dear, she was getting invested. Mei Mei tapped away on her phone for a bit while Gojo continued to wear holes into the floor and go on and on about the day Megumi almost was hit by a car while chasing after a dog.
Hmm, her phone told her she didn’t have any missions for another four hours. So unfortunately, no chance of making money. Mei Mei flicked her eyes up to the tall man walking to and fro.
Fine. She would indulge him.
“Gojo.”
The man’s masked face immediately turned towards her.
“Tell me about Megumi’s mission.”
Perhaps if Gojo started talking about the easy level of the mission, he would be able to convince himself Megumi could handle it. That was Mei Mei’s plan anyway.
Gojo ran a hand through his hair. His foot tapped on the ground restlessly. “The curse was reported to be a level 4. The scouter spotted it loitering near a daycare. With further investigation, blah blah blah, they found out it had latched onto one of the teachers in the facility. So all Megumi has to do is exorcize the curse. Something he’s done dozens of times with me there.”
“So why are you worried?”
“Because what if…” Gojo stopped himself suddenly. A lazy, care-free smile appeared on his face. “Who says I’m worried? What kind of teacher would I be if I didn’t have confidence in my favorite student?”
Mei Mei frowned slightly. She had seen that smile so many times. Everyone had. She had her suspicions that it was a fake expression, but now it was confirmed.
“Well for now he’s your only student. And he’s only thirteen.”
“Are you suggesting I was wrong in sending him on a mission alone?” Gojo asked, sounding genuinely upset.
“I would never suggest such a thing,” Mei Mei said truthfully. She had been going on missions alone since she was eleven. Sure, injuries were inevitable, but forcing a sorcerer to learn to rely on themselves from such a young age was an important skill to cultivate.
“You’ve known Megumi for longer than most teachers have known their students. I’m just saying that I wouldn’t fault you for checking on him.”
Gojo immediately shook his head. “Megumi wouldn’t want that. He would view that as me not trusting him.”
Mei Mei hummed in agreement. She didn’t know the kid well, but he seemed like the type to interpret an act of care as an act of doubting his skills.
Suddenly, an obnoxious ringtone filled the quiet of the room. Gojo whipped out his phone faster than Mei Mei had ever seen him do so. If she were anyone else, she would be offended. Gojo never answered her calls. Thankfully, Mei Mei was…Mei Mei so she didn’t care.
She watched Gojo’s face closely as he answered the phone. She couldn’t see his eyes, but his mouth, posture, and tone of voice spoke for itself
The volume on the phone was quiet, so Mei Mei couldn’t make out what was said, she could only hear Gojo’s cold response
“Megumi, I don’t care about them. Stay out of sight. I’m coming.”
That was it. Three sentences and Gojo had ended the call. He motioned for Mei Mei to follow him as he sprinted out of the building.
Mei Mei wasn’t quite sure why she followed, but her body moved on its own accord. Perhaps she was more invested than she originally thought. She would have to bring up the topic of compensation once this whole business was over and done.
“What happened?” She asked as she slid into the passenger's seat of a black SUV.
“The scouter was a fucking idiot and reported the curse’s level incorrectly.” Gojo said.
Mei Mei buckled her seatbelt as Gojo pressed the pedal to the ground and aggressively steered the car onto the road.
“Megumi was fighting a level 3 curse. Not to mention there were children present that he had to account for and make sure didn’t die.” Gojo slammed his fist against the steering wheel.
Mei Mei shook her head. It was always a nuisance when people didn’t do their jobs properly.
“Is he hurt?”
Gojo’s mouth formed a straight line. His jaw was tense as he spoke. “He told me he was fine, but I know he lied. I could hear it in his voice.”
Mei Mei felt like she was learning more about Gojo Satoru today than she had in the past ten or so years.
She jolted forwards when Gojo slammed on the brakes. She patted her seatbelt in thanks before unbuckling and sliding out of the car. She followed a sprinting Gojo to an alley right next to a brightly painted daycare building.
“ Megumi! ”
Mei Mei almost tripped over her feet when she heard the yell. It was disturbing how fearful and full of care it was. Two emotions she wouldn’t normally associate with the strongest sorcerer. Anyone who claimed Gojo Satoru only cared about himself was as clueless and ignorant as an ant.
Mei Mei saw the crumpled form of Megumi leaning against the brick wall of an alley. Both of his hands were clutching his side. She was still quite a distance away, but her eyes couldn’t miss the obvious blood that had begun to pool on the ground around the kid.
Mei Mei reached Megumi two steps behind Gojo, who was frozen. His hands were hovering in the air like he was clueless of what to do next.
A gargling guffaw drew Mei Mei’s attention away. It seemed the curse was still alive. Mei Mei turned to Gojo and shoved him towards the curse.
“Finish off the curse and I’ll take care of Megumi,” She ordered. Mei Mei was suddenly glad Gojo was wearing his blindfold because judging by the way he was approaching the curse, his eyes would be overflowing with rage. She didn’t want that emotion directed at her. Not by the strongest sorcerer.
Mei Mei knelt down by Megumi and began scanning him for injuries other than the one on his side.
“Fushiguro, hey kid. Can you tell me how many fingers I’m holding up?... Good. What is 3 x 5?... Wonderful. On a scale of one to ten, how annoying is Gojo?... I fully agree.” It seemed the kid didn’t have a concussion. That was the good news. The bad news was that he was currently bleeding out and Mei Mei didn’t have any gauze or bandages on her.
I expect to be fully compensated for this.
Mei Mei shrugged off her jacket and pressed it against Megumi’s wound. The boy winced, his own hands flying up to try and pry her away, but she didn’t move.
“I know this probably hurts, but I have to stop the bleeding.” She said.
Megumi moaned in pain. Mei Mei noticed that his movements were growing lethargic. His head lolled to the side.
“Where’s…Satoru?” He asked, slurring his words.
Shit, this isn’t good. Gojo had better hurry it up.
Mei Mei turned her head and was about to call out to Gojo, but she couldn’t get the words out of her mouth. The sight in front of her was nothing short of disturbing. Something that would give a normal person night-terrors.
Gojo had taken off his blindfold. The look in his eyes was eerie. It was hateful. It felt like if you stared into them for too long you would be sent straight into the pits of hell.
Mei Mei was frozen as she watched Gojo annihilate the curse. She could tell he was pouring his wrath into every bone he broke. Every layer of skin he shredded off the curse was reflecting the rage in his soul. His actions practically screamed “You hurt my kid so I’m going to hurt you.”
Mei Mei had seen the ease and swiftness of which Gojo had ended curses before. This was not one of those occasions. He was taking his time and making an example of the curse. There would be no painless exorcism for this curse. Not when he had injured Megumi.
Mei Mei felt herself subtly shift in front of Megumi to shield him from the sight.
Gojo tore the curse in half, then into quarters, eighths, and so on. Then he would put it back together again to just shred it further down to the last atom.
Mei Mei could hear Gojo speaking to the curse in low tones.
“You’re not even worth all this effort. I’m not going to waste anymore energy on you.” With that, Gojo waved his hand and the creature was dispersed with a wail of agony.
Mei Mei watched Gojo’s shoulders heaving up and down. The sorcerer turned around and began walking towards Megumi, a murderous glint still in his eyes. For a moment, Mei Mei wondered if she should let him near Megumi in such a state. Thankfully, she was smart enough to realize she shouldn’t stand in between Gojo and his kid. She swiftly moved aside.
When Gojo finally laid eyes on the injured Megumi, something remarkable happened. The fury in his eyes melted in an instant and was replaced by a gentle, worried warmth. He crouched down and placed one hand over Megumi’s wound while the other brushed sweaty hair away from the kid's forehead.
Mei Mei was speechless at the words Gojo spoke.
“Hey ‘gumi. You did so well, I’m so proud of you. Listen, here’s the plan. Mei Mei and I are going to get you back to Shoko and she’ll heal you up. You’ll be as good as new, bud. Sounds good?”
Without waiting for a response, Gojo gently curled Megumi into his arms, clearly trying not to jostle his wound.
Mei Mei followed Gojo to the car, feeling a bit numb. The tone Gojo spoke with was so…careful. He was treating Megumi like he was a piece of glass that would shatter if handled too roughly.
Who knew. Mei Mei thought. He’s a proper dad.
___
Mei Mei leaned against the wall outside of Megumi’s room. Shoko had treated him and reported that the kid would be as good as new in three days. Gojo’s intense relief had been palpable.
Mei Mei fiddled with the end of her braid, debating on whether or not she should enter the room.
Fuck it.
She opened the door and stepped in. The sight that greeted her was far too domestic for her taste.
Megumi was fast asleep, facing Gojo. The older man was holding one of Megumi’s hands and carding his fingers through the kid's long black hair. The look on Gojo’s face was one Mei Mei had never seen before. It was a mixture of pride, worry, and care.
“Are you his dad?”
Mei Mei wanted to chuckle at how fast Gojo whipped his head to the side.
“Are you here to collect your money?” He asked.
Mei Mei shrugged. “I wouldn’t say no to some bills. But I also wanted to…see…how, uh the kid was handling things.”
Gojo scoffed. “Just say you were worried about him and move on.”
Mei Mei shook her head. “No.”
Gojo looked back down at the face of the sleeping Megumi. “He has this effect on people, you know? He doesn’t talk much, but after only a few interactions with him, you’d be willing to die for him. I don’t know what it is, but he’s special.”
Mei Mei crossed her arms. She wouldn’t say she was to the stage where she would die for the kid, but she didn’t mind him.
“I guess you raised him…decently.” Mei Mei said.
Gojo grinned. “Of course I did. He’s my little mini me.”
Megumi frowned in his sleep.
“Chirp up, ‘gumi. Once you wake up I’ll order some ginger chicken for you.”
Mei Mei shook her head and spun around. She had her fill of sappy moments for the day. She would let the father-son moments continue without her presence.
As she walked down the empty halls of Jujutsu High, the chilling look in Gojo’s eyes kept flashing in her mind.
Hell hath no fury like Gojo Satoru.