Thread by @genjiigenjii

title: keeping you close shouldn’t be this hard.
tags: angst, break up, hurt/comfort, misunderstanding, age gap, happy ending
pair: #fushiita
inspiration: shouldn’t be by luke chiang

yuuji’s fingertips run atop the engraved silver band that decorated his ring finger.

the band that had once been the symbol of his and megumi’s love. the band that from today forward will no longer be on his ring finger. he sighs softly, as he carefully sets the ring inside a box before closing it and placing the box inside the drawers on his dresser.

yuuji still has a couple of hours before he needs to head towards the lawyers office to sign the divorce papers. so he chooses to spend his free time on some mundane tasks, anything to keep his mind off of the inevitable.

he’s so involved on his own tasks, he doesn’t even notice sukuna come in through the front door, “you look pathetic,” sukuna says as soon as he closes the door to yuuji’s home. yuuji startles and turns to his younger brother. instead of snapping back, yuuji smiles softly.

“that what happens when you go through a divorce,” he answers honestly, before going back to whatever it is he’d been doing before his younger brother arrived. sukuna tsks at him, but chooses to stay silent and help around the house, bidding his time before driving yuuji.

it’s odd, sukuna thinks. try as he might, sukuna can’t understand where his older brother’s relationship could’ve gone wrong. yuuji and megumi had always seemed to disgustingly in love, and yet here they are. only two years into marriage, and it’s all fallen apart.

he and yuuji might not have the best relationship, but that doesn’t mean that sukuna wants to see that stupidly placid smile on yuuji’s face. he hated that expression the most, it reminded sukuna of a younger yuuji, one who’d given up his own childhood in favor of sukuna’s.

the one he’d always donned in front of the scrutiny of others, their jeers and insults as young teen with a child by his side. people had talked, how could they have not? yet, yuuji had beared it all with that smile of his.

perhaps, if sukuna didn’t know the truth behind that smile, he’d believe yuuji when he said he was ok. but sukuna knew, he’d seen the countless tears that only ever appeared in the middle of the night when yuuji thought sukuna asleep. the tiredness that gnawed at yuuji’s bones.

he’d seen, heard. yet the next day that smile was on his face, as though yuuji issues were nonexistent in the face of sukuna’s own. it’s because of that, that sukuna knows yuuji isn’t alright. how could he be? when everything he’s fought for is crashing down in front of him?

when megumi and him where getting a divorce, fushiguro megumi who’d fought tooth and nail to gain sukuna’s approval, because yuuji would never ever place his happiness above sukuna’s dislike or discomfort. so how had things turned out this way, when did their love fizzle out?

how had it been so easy for megumi to leave yuuji? and why had yuuji just accepted it? sukuna was no romantic, and yet even he fully believed that megumi and yuuji had been destined for each other. sappy as the thought may be, but it was the truth. megumi had made yuuji happy.

had understood him, loved him, protected him, so how had things turned out like this.

“suku, let’s go. they’re waiting.” he feels yuuji pull at the lapels of his coat to catch his attention. sukuna sighs, thinking about it won’t change anything, he nods, “let’s go,” he mumbles.

as they’re walking out the door, yuuji stops for a second, “it’s the last time i’ll step foot in this house.” he says softly. sukuna scoffs, “megumi offered to leave you the house. why’d you refused it?” yuuji smiles at sukuna, “how could i? it would only serve as reminder.”

a reminder of what had been lost. of what had been. what it could’ve been…

yuuji could never live surrounded by those questions, how could he have kept the house? he would have drowned. he takes a glance around the home he’d built with megumi and smiles, a silent goodbye.

he hooks his arm around sukuna and sigh, “let’s go.” he says softly, burrowing his face in sukuna’s shoulder, he thinks that maybe, one day, he’ll be ok. but for now, yuuji let’s his heart weep.

—

satoru stares at megumi with a blank expression, “what do you want?” megumi grumbles from his spot on the couch. satoru blink, “not that i don’t adore a visit from my lovely son,” “i’m not your son.” “but, why’re you here?” satoru finishes.

“i can’t be here? wow and here i thought i was your beloved son.” “only on the weekdays, i’ll leave weekends to your shitty old man.” he teases, megumi snorts, “i’m serious megs, are you sure about what you’re doing?” satoru turns serious. megumi sighs, “then… what do i do?”

“do you really want to go through with this divorce? don’t you love yuuji?” satoru goes on, megumi sighs, “gojo, there is no one on this earth that i’ll ever love, like i love yuuji. but…” megumi gets up and turns to satoru with a frown, “but?” satoru presses on.

“how many things has yuuji out on hold for me, how many milestones has he abandoned, given up on, or declined for me, am i worth all that, do i deserve that devotion? yuuji deserves the world, but i… i’m not ready to give it to him yet… someone like me, whose greedy, selfish.”

megumi laughs out bitterly, “how many times has yuuji been hurt at my side, how many insults does he have to face on the daily simply because he’s my husband, he doesn’t know that i know how it affects him, how he cries himself at night.” megumi grimaces.

“i’m not strong enough to protect him, not now, i need to become better, a better man for him. a stronger one, someone who can stand proudly at his side and not drag him down.” megumi whispers. satoru’s eyes widened, and he finally understands, “it’s not that you don’t love him.”

megumi sighs, “naobito warned me that if i didn’t divorce him, he’ll ruin him. he’s the power to do so, not only him, he’d go after sukuna too. satoru, sukuna is yuuji’s world, he would never forgive himself if anything happened him because of this. do you see?” megumi explains.

“the love of my life is going to loose it all because i’m not strong enough to protect him, i need to become stronger, i need to crush the zen’in, and to do that…” megumi trails off.

satoru understands, “to do that, you have to become the zen’in head… aish,” satoru groans.

“fuck kid, i get it, the zen’in have the power to do that and more… but why didn’t you tell yuuji? don’t you think he deserved to know?!” satoru asks, “yuuji already has so much on his plate, so much sadness and guilt, he’d find a way to make it his fault. i can’t do that.”

satoru sighs, taking a seat beside megumi. “what an ordeal… so what’re you going to do?” he asks, turning to stare at his ward. megumi sighs, “i’ve agreed to become the zen’in head. from there, i have to find a way to destroy the zen’in legacy and build one of my own.”

“i have to become a man that worthy of standing at yuuji’s side. someone who can protect him, not some brat that mooches off of his kindness.” satoru nods, “you really love him, don’t you?” satoru questions, megumi grins, “do you love suguru?” satoru snorts out a laugh.

“fine, i get it. i’ll help.” megumi turns wide-eyed, “you don’t,” satoru waves his concerns off, “you and tsumiki are my kids, just like nanako and mimiko, like yuuta. wether you like it or not, i’ll help you. besides,” at this, satoru grins, “i’ve had an itch to pick with them.”

megumi offers him the tiniest of smiles, but it’s there, “mhm.”

“but, you have to tell yuuji. you can’t expect him to wait for you forever, he needs to know why you’re doing this, lest the misunderstanding between you two grow, trust me, i know.” satoru says.

megumi sighs, “i,” he struggles to accept, but finally nods, “you’re right, he has to know. today, after we sign the papers i’ll let him know.” satoru nods, “atta boy.”

i have things to do, but i’ll come finish this later!!!