Ding!

ding!

. . . nanami kento. in another universe.

note. happy birthday, kento! for my lovely, @yeonruco

birthday cakes were fun to make.

it was sweet, simple in its own way, and carried its own share of sentiment to both the birthday celebrant and the baker themself.

one of kento’s favorite mundane things to do on his days off was bake. he may not be the best at it, sure, but he has you right next to him as you read the instructions in your recipe book aloud. days like these are what he treasures most—a day where he can do things at his own pace, and though he usually does this even on his work days, he prefers these moments because he gets to spend them with you.

“you have, uh, a little something there, love,” you chuckle, wiping away the excess powdered sugar that got on his cheek with a clean cloth. “there we go!” you happily beam, “still as handsome as ever, eh?”

kento blinks at you, honestly stunned. after years of being married to you, his lovely spouse, he still found himself a bit flustered by the little mannerisms you do for him. he can’t even deny that it made his heart do little backflips—even cartwheels by the gesture, not that he’ll ever do so.

“oh, thank you,” he replies, offering you a soft kiss on the cheek in return.

“mm, happy birthday, kento!” you cheer. “you’re on year closer to becoming an old grandpa.” you glance at the cake and frosting you had prepared on the table, then back at your husband. “shall we get to decorating your cake?”

he can’t help but chuckle quietly at that. kento’s thumb softly caresses your cheek, completely disregarding your last sentence. he leans in closer, his face inches away from yours.

“but i’ll be an old grandpa alongside you, right? we’ll grow old together.” he says this, and it’s not a question, rather a statement.

he’d grow old with you until he’s all wrinkled and have gray hair.

you smile. “of course we’ll grow old together!” you reply, placing a soft kiss on his lips.

“really, happy birthday, love!”

you were met with an unwelcome silence. you must’ve been recalling things again because it’s been five years since your husband unfortunately passed away during his line of work.

a careful, melancholy sigh escaped your lips as you sat on his grave. his headstone newly polished since you had just visited a few days ago, and you didn’t even know if you were missing your dear kento because only his possessions are buried in his grave. were you technically just mourning his belongings? or did his memory become what your heart yearns to properly mourn instead of his absent physical body?

you didn’t dwell on the thought too much.

“happy birthday, love.” your voice is quiet and defeated. “i made your favorite cake.”

smiling sadly to yourself, you took a bite of your portion of the delicious cake, not before offering him the first slice, of course.

kento always loved it when he had the first slice or piece of something you baked. it made him feel as though he was the most important critic and fan of your masterpiece.

in another universe, kento is helping you bake his favorite pastries, just after baking his own birthday cake after many unsuccessful attempts.

noomon © 2023. do not copy, modify, or translate my work.

let go of the idea that you have to be the best or do the most to be worth something.

“Wasn’t that the definition of home? Not where you are from, but where you are wanted.”

— Abraham Verghese

👑Happy Birthday Nanamin 👑

ding!

. . . tsukishima kei. observant boyfriend things.

kei’s an observant person. he’s the type of person who knows there’s something wrong, even with the most subtle clues. it’s safe to say that there will never be a day where you successfully hide something from your boyfriend, not when he can read you like an open book in broad daylight.

“what’s with the sour look on your face?” he asks, though it’s quieter than he meant.

“nothing,” you reply with an uptight smile.

“you look constipated.”

“hey!”

he sighs. “how’d your volleyball tryout go?”

kei remembers a couple of nights ago when you told him that your school was holding tryouts for an upcoming sports week. he also remembers the time you told him that you used to play volleyball in middle school, and it didn’t take much to convince him that you were a decent middle blocker.

“i’m gonna die of embarrassment.”

“it didn’t go well, then,” he concluded with a slight shrug of his shoulders.

“kei, i made a fool of myself!” you whine, letting him carry your bag. “my serves were sloppy, barely making it above the net—which was set too tall, by the way—my receives were lacking, and my blocks—they’re left unspoken of.”

“what’s wrong with your blocks?” kei asks you. “they were fine when you forced me to practice with you.”

“force is a strong word,” you counter, poking his arm with emphasis.

“i simply bribed you with snacks!”

“which i paid for.”

“and lots of kisses.”

“those are already a given in this relationship, idiot.”

“stop being mean, beanpole.”

“not my problem; i grew and you didn’t.”

you nudged at his side, earning a slight and playful groan from your boyfriend. “i am not that short! whatever, let’s just not talk about my blocks.”

“mm. let’s stop by a pharmacy, too.” he says, noticing how you fiddled with your bruised fingers. those were nasty for something as simple as volleyball tryouts. if anything, he would’ve assumed that you got them from an actual match against a prestigious school like shiratorizawa.

“yeah, it hurts,” you murmur.

“that’s because you're fiddling with them; quit it,” he scolds you with a sigh. “i’m sure you did well. if you could block those volleyball idiots’ quick, you already did well.”

“you know, kei, it’s nice when you care,” you smile.

“i always care.”

“and you always carry my bag as you should.”

“i care, y/n. i think you’re the one who needs glasses if you can’t see that.”

“oh, and when you’re attentive or observant too.”

“are you even listening?”

“nope, but i love you.”

“mm.”

“say it back! please! i know you care lots about me and i’m now listening, so say it back!”

noomon © 2023. do not copy, modify, or translate my work.

ding!

. . . gojo satoru. to me, to you.

note. vague manga spoilers ahead. i’d love to elaborate more on this dynamic; please let me know if you want me to as well.

satoru does not remember much of his childhood.

to him, memories of forever ago are left as though they were faded film strips, too damaged to even try and make something out of them. he doesn’t dwell on that part of his life because all he could ever recall was when he’s enlightened of his fate and the omnipotent power he possesses from a very young age.

but he did, however, catch a glimpse and managed to hold on—cling to—a few of the good ones.

and those memories were mostly with you.

“someone’s lost in their train of thought.” he hears your voice approaching from behind. he merely shrugs his shoulders, relaxing against the marble railing of his estate’s balcony.

“mm. yeah, guess i am.”

you offered him a can of soda—his favorite brand and flavor—that you brought with you. satoru’s lips curled into a small smirk as he awed at the thought of you remembering despite almost two decades of not seeing each other.

“you remembered.”

“of course. why wouldn’t i?” you reply with a quick, feeble chuckle. “you always used to nag me about how you could only ever enjoy a few sodas.”

“i just have preferences,” he tells you with a slight nudge to your side. “and it just so happened to be very specific.” he glances at the can he held, and though he had his blindfold on, he could still tell that you got it right; you got it down to a t. “i knew you loved me.”

“in your dreams.”

“mhm. in my dreams, indeed.”

“oh, god. i hate you.”

“i knew you missed me.”

you rolled your eyes at his remark, glancing at his soda, then taking a gulp of your own. “still your favorite, right?”

satoru doesn’t know what you’re referring to. whether you’re asking if you’re still his favorite or the soda, though he does have a concrete answer.

“yep! you’re so thoughtful, even though you pretend to have not missed me.”

“don’t feed your little ego, ‘toru. your head’s going to keep on expanding until it’s the size of a hot air balloon.”

“hey!”

conversations breeze by like the chilly night air, creeping in and making their way known. he thinks this is the most he’s ever felt like he’s home. his childhood home, a haven where he felt safe and could truly live a life that his younger self was deprived of duty to a handful of “duties” and whatnot.

it’s like the calm before the storm. the rest—his rest—before he takes on something that he should’ve dealt with a long, long time ago. he’s not afraid, oh no.

because he is satoru, after all. the strongest.

and then the memory of someone he also held close to his heart replays, like a sudden alarm that wanted to remind him.

“are you the strongest because you’re gojo satoru? or are you gojo satoru because you’re the strongest?”

“a penny for thought?” you ask, noticing his sudden quietness.

he perks up, a bit stunned in place. “just a question,” he sighs, setting his drink aside for later. “who am i to you?”

he thinks it’s stupid because he’ll always feel that there’s a barrier that separates him from others. from you. because he’s the strongest, and that’s what it means to be the strongest, right? to feel as though you’re being distanced from everybody else.

“who you are . . . to me?” you said, tilting your head to the side. “like, how i see you?”

“yes.”

god, satoru swallows the lump in his throat, anticipation clinging to his whole body as he waits.

“oh, well . . .”

he expected a handful of answers, but none of them ever came close to yours.

“is it weird that i still feel like i’m talking to fifteen-year-old you?” you told him. “it’s like my mind’s still processing to bridge the gap of our memories together; to fill in the years we haven’t seen each other, y’know?”

“i see you as ‘toru. and to me, you are just ‘toru. that same ‘toru who i’ve been with since when we’re literally in diapers,

who kept on annoying me to wear matching pajamas when we were kids for the sleepover he begged his parents to agree to,

that same ‘toru who was spoiled to the core that he was so surprised that he went quiet when little me decided that they were over it with your incessant whining of wanting to play on the seesaw when they wanted to play on the sand box,

thee ‘toru who’s eyes almost always surprised me during the most random times, in a good way, of course.”

ah, now he remembers. those good memories, which were probably his core ones.

“you’re satoru—no, ‘toru,” you hum, thrumming your finger against the marble top. “my best friend. not the strongest sorcerer, not the wielder of the six eyes, not the teacher at jujutsu tech, but just ‘toru. my ‘toru. ”

satoru swore he’d lost his voice upon listening to your answer. and suddenly he feels as though he were a little kid again, looking at you with the utmost adoration—slight infatuation, even—as you told him through his little tears that it was normal to scrape his knee when he’s learning to ride a bike to be able to join you!

“thanks,” he says with a chuckle. “didn’t know i needed to hear all of that until now.”

“don’t mention it, ‘toru,” you nod. “ah, now that sounded sappy. ew! bleh, thought i left all of that behind.”

“heh, i like it when you’re a sap,” he mused.

“of course you do. but we have a lot to catch up on, so you better not die out there, mr. sorcerer.”

he smiles at that. “yeah. i’ll keep that in mind.”

“you still have those big, blue eyes you always used to get out of trouble?”

“knew you missed my eyes, too.”

“do not. you sure they’re not neon green now?”

“ha. ha. funny.” for a moment, he takes his time to remove his blindfold, his hand shaking a little as he does so. he doesn’t know why he’s so nervous.

“look.”

satoru notices the way you paused, examining how his features have matured over the years, and yet he’s still the satoru you knew. your ‘toru, as you said so yourself.

“eh. put the blindfold back on.”

“y/n!”

“i’m just saying,” you laugh a little. “your eyes haven’t changed; still as ethereal as ever.” you slid your half-empty soda next to his, signaling that you wanted him to finish yours. he’s known this for so long.

“let’s catch up again when you’re free, ok? i already gave you my number, right?”

he glances at the can, seeing the number—your number—written against the glossy layer. “yeah, do you want me to walk you home?” he offers, soft and warm.

you shook your head. “some other time, ‘toru.”

he nods in understanding as he watches you leave. as you fade alongside the background, slowly yet surely, satoru’s memories of his childhood are rekindled, outdoing his dim ones.

he’s glad that you’re home.

noomon © 2023. do not copy, modify, or translate my work.

JJK CHARACTERS AS VINE QUOTES

• Itadori Yuuji — Mom made me potato wedges! Just kidding, made them myself. Be cool to have a mom though 😗

• Nanami Kento — No off topic questions. Because I don't want to. No, permission denied. That's an off topic question. You have been stopped.

• Naoya Zenin — Four female Ghostbusters? The feminists are taking over! I'M AN ADULT VIRGIN

• Maki Zenin Naoya: sorry I fell asleep, I was waiting on you to make me a sandwich — Go back to sleep and STARVE

• Yoshino Junpei — Yall ugly *poofs away*

• Inumaki Toge — Yo what's the scoot? PENIS

• Ryoumen Sukuna — Ah, ☝ I'm not finished. First off, oh my god, can you let me do what I need to do

• Okkotsu Yuta — Hi my name is Derrick *gasps* let me guess, pizza? *faints*

• Ijichi — I'm in me mom's car, vroom vroom

• Todo Aoi to Takada Chan — I love you, bitch, I ain't never gonna stop loving you, BITCH

• Fushiguro Megumi — You know what? I'm going to say it. I don't care that you broke your elbow.

• Kugisaki Nobara Maki: Bring the beat in — Anything for you, my queen!

• Gojo Satoru — People are constantly asking me. What's it like being a sexy— *falls*

• Mahito talking to the sewer rats — So I was sitting there, barbecue sauce on my tiddies

• Choso Yuuji: WHAT ARE THOOOSEEE?? — THEY. ARE MY. CROCS.

• Noritoshi Kamo — IRIDOCYCLITIS

• Itadori Jin — I want a church girl that go to church...aNd rEaD hEr bIbLe

Be gentle with yourself, you are healing.

ding!

. . . miya atsumu. winning in carnival games and in love.

if anything, atsumu was fairly lucky when it came to carnival games.

games based on chance and pure luck are the ones he hates with every fiber of his being because miya atsumu was not that lucky when it came to winning said games. he’d rather take his chance on winning things that use strength, mobility, reflexes, and coordination. after all, those were his strengths, and in life, there’s a saying to play to your strengths.

just like what he is doing right now.

“hol’ on, ‘m goin’ to try and win that plushie. why? ‘cuz it reminds me of ya! why else?”

he had told you earlier, but what you didn’t expect was him almost clearing out the stands of their prizes because of how good he was at it. from catching magnetic sticks that dropped to test out one’s reflexes to him having to hold onto a bar for a certain amount of time, you best believe that he put those hours he spent at the gym for volleyball training to good use.

“go, tsumu!”

and really, your cheers that mirrored when he scored a point in his volleyball match fueled his determination to win.

he smiles in your direction, then looks back at the board with balloons taped onto it. atsumu takes a deep breath, then throws the darts he was given at the boards, making it look too easy to simply hit the targets. the small crowd that gathered around the booth cheered him as well, which fed your boyfriend’s ego well and would last him a week’s worth of oozing charm.

“where to next?” he asks, carrying paper bags upon paper bags filled with stuffed toys.

there were plenty more prizes that you two left by the security guards’ storage room near the entrance, which you would pick up on your way out so you wouldn’t have to carry lots of baggage.

“i think we should take it easy on winning these prizes, ‘tsumu,” you told him softly, motioning toward the bags he carried. “where are we even going to put all of these? we can keep some of them, but not all of them, y’know?”

atsumu nods, thinking to himself. as you two wandered from booth to booth, your attention turned to a child who was whispering to her mother about the plushies atsumu held. without much hesitance on your part, you dragged your boyfriend toward the child and her mother, offering to give her a stuffed animal.

“f– for me?” she asks quietly, looking at you as you crouched to level with her.

“of course! you see that prince beside me holding the paper bags? he won these plushies because he’s so strong!” you answered. “he’s glad to give these away to princesses like you.” you glanced at her dress, seeing that she wore something similar to a princess gown. “isn’t that right, ‘tsumu?”

“oh— yeah, totally,” he agreed with a slight blush on his cheeks. the gears in his head are still trying to process your compliments.

“wah, thank you!” she said to the both of you, and not too long after, she and her mother bid goodbyes.

you sighed, linking your arm with atsumu’s as you watched the little girl happily hug her stuffed animal.

“should we give the rest of those away?”

“i’m down with whatever ya want to do with ‘em,” he tells you. “i did win ‘em for you, after all ‘cuz i’m very strong, right?”

“oh, you,” you rolled your eyes at him, continuing your walk to give away a few of the prizes he had won. “wait, you have something in your hair; hold on.” you got the fallen leaf that fell on his hair, smiling. “there we go.”

atsumu blinked at you, then grinned cheekily. “yer goin’ to make this strong prince fall in love with ya even more.”

“hm, what if that’s my plan all along?” you chuckle, tugging at him once more. “let’s go, we still have a lot of prizes to give away.”

he may not be lucky when it comes to claw machines, chance and luck-based games, and whatnot, but it doesn’t matter to him that much now when he’s winning in most carnival games and especially in love.

note. @miaumooo, for you! i combined two of the prompt entries you sent in.

noomon © 2023. do not copy, modify, or translate my work.

nanami kento carries band aids in his wallet in case they are ever needed (unbeknownst to you) and one day, when you’re grocery shopping, he sees you walk with the slightest limp.

“whats wrong?”

you’ve stopped to pick out some tomatoes. “what do you mean?”

“you’re limping,” he says, hands on the shopping cart. “are you hurt?”

“oh. i’ve got a blister,” you respond nonchalantly, drop a fat tomato into a plastic bag. “but i really like these shoes and i forgot to put a band aid on.”

he kneels, much to your surprise, takes out his wallet and out of the leather, a band aid. he takes your foot out of your shoe, peels down your sock and unwraps the band aid.

he applies it with ease, returns your foot into your shoe gently, stands to his full height.

you’ve got stars in your eyes.

“next time, pick some comfortable shoes, sweetheart.” he plants a kiss on your lips, pushes the cart over to the avocados.

“god, i think i love you, kento.”

a light smile quirks his lips upward, his tired eyes gleam. “i think i love you too.”