Archive of Our Own

“Did I tell you”, Sukuna said, not looking up from his phone. He sat on one of the bar stools near their kitchenette, lazily manspreading as always. “Yuji’s got a job in town.”

“You didn’t.” Megumi put the glass bottle full of home-made ginger shots back into the fridge. Yuji was known to him more as a concept than a real person: Sukuna’s younger brother, alike in looks but not much else, a guy he had met a total of one time five years prior when he’d been invited to a dinner at the Itadori grandpa’s place which had ended in bitter faces since Sukuna had insisted no one would hear them if they fucked in the bathroom. Spoiler alert, the walls were thin, and things got awkward. Sukuna had mostly grinned about it.

As years went on, Megumi followed Sukuna to a neighboring town where the latter got the job as a piercer and Megumi acted house husband while studying. Sukuna wasn’t the type to invite family into his home and so when he met Yuji, they met while they were both out and about, and suddenly Yuji had apparently gotten good grades on some exam-or-other and moved across the country for some fancy-ass electrician college. Megumi presumed he must’ve graduated in recent days. Sukuna wasn’t very good at remembering to share that kind of stuff.

“Well”, Sukuna said, now locking the phone and pushing it away to rest on top of a pile of magazines on the counter. “He’s asked for help to carry his stuff when the truck arrives tomorrow. Job starts on Monday. Brat said he only has a mattress at the moment.”

“So he’s already moved back?” Megumi closed the fridge door with a little thump.

“Yeah.”

Megumi considered this. He wasn’t very keen on inviting people into his home. Home was where he got to be alone and poke around with his own, and Sukuna’s, things. Seeing how his own family was nonexistent though, there was a little part of him that wondered how he was supposed to act around Sukuna’s. Loving partner, opening their arms to a little brother that needed to be fed? Megumi couldn’t exactly picture himself doing it.

“Shouldn’t you invite him for dinner?” he said anyway, partly out of duty.

“Nah.” Sukuna got up from the chair. He was wearing a maroon t-shirt that had bunched while he was sitting down. Megumi smoothed the wrinkles out for him, his hand following the hidden V-shape tapering down the front of his jeans. Sukuna caught him by the wrist with a squeeze. “It’s my day off. The kid can wait.”

“All right”, Megumi said. “We can help him tomorrow.”

“Help? You too?” The hand Sukuna had wrapped around Megumi’s wrist slid with ease around his hip to rest at the small of his back instead. It was a hot summer day and still he wore a black t-shirt, not sweating, but slightly clammy. The fabric still rubbed comfortably between his skin and Sukuna’s broad palm, though.

“Why not?” Megumi asked. “I need to get out. I’m not a trophy wife.”

“You sure?” Sukuna grinned. He leaned down for a kiss and Megumi turned his cheek to him, hiding the irritated quirk of his brow. It was a joke, Sukuna would say if he noticed, and Megumi would prefer it if he didn’t. The kiss meant for his lips landed on the shell of his ear instead, slow and hot, and when Sukuna’s pierced tongue dipped into the windings of Megumi’s ear, his irritation melted away to give place for a tickle of arousal instead. Half-heartedly, Megumi wiggled in his grasp. Sometimes it was all too easy to think of Sukuna like a dog. Not that he was very dog-like, didn’t use any puppydog looks despite his brown eyes, but the way he asked for and stole attention was canine while Megumi felt like the owner with too much of a soft spot to properly discipline him. It was easier giving in and letting him have his way than to make a Point about being irritated. If he did so, Sukuna would be in a bad mood throughout the rest of the day, and it would still fall upon Megumi’s shoulders to cheer him up if he didn’t want to deal with a cranky boyfriend tomorrow as well. It wasn’t a big deal anyway. Dealing with him when he was in a good mood was to be preferred over everything else, Megumi reasoned, and so he tilted his head back and allowed himself to feel good about all the ways Sukuna knew how to touch him.

“Come on, babe”, he mouthed into Megumi’s ear. “Don’t be difficult.”

“Or what?” Megumi said. “You’ll punish me?”

As expected, Megumi could almost feel the excitement rippling through Sukuna’s body at this. Megumi walked his fingers down Sukuna’s toned stomach. It was easy, flicking the button of his jeans open. Easier, to let his body go soft and pliant as Sukuna grabbed him by the hips and hoisted him up to wrap him koala style around his waist. Megumi caught a glimpse of himself in the hallway mirror as Sukuna carried him toward the bedroom – his dark hair, unruly against the cotton candy pink of Sukuna’s. Megumi pushed his face into his neck then, biting a kiss onto the fat black line of his tattoo, still holding his own gaze in the mirror.

The apartment that Itadori Yuji had moved into was a hole in the wall, at best. On errands downtown Megumi passed the building from time to time, dismissing it as the concrete block that held the post office, not really noticing the horde of tiny apartments built on top. Being a newly graduated electrician of the fancy sort, Megumi had somewhat expected Yuji to move into something that at least had a separate bedroom. Standing in the doorway, this was what he saw: narrow corridor opening up into a square-ish room with a mattress on the floor. To the left was a tiny bathroom, to the right a tinier kitchen. That was it.

He'd been sent up to stand guard while the brothers navigated the truck down the street, which meant Megumi yet hadn’t seen Yuji in person. He took a stroll down the little corridor and peeked inside the bathroom. There was a yellow toothbrush and a bubbly bar of soap lying directly on the edge of the sink. At least he washed his hands. In the fridge was nothing, and by the mattress laid a discarded t-shirt and a pair of underwear. Nothing exciting to dig through, and nothing to keep himself entertained. In the end, Megumi stood hovering by the kitchen window, trying to look down the street when he heard the hum of a motor, soon accompanied by the rasp of Sukuna’s familiar voice as he shouted brotherly but indiscernible at Yuji.

Megumi blinked. The glimpse he’d caught of strong shoulders and a backwards cap had sent his mind to mover, as in Yuji had gotten his hands on some friends or just hired some strong guy to help them carry the things upstairs. There was the unmistakable pink of his hair poking out behind his ears though, and even though he’d gotten way meatier than back when Megumi had sat across from him at the dinner table, his smile was still boyishly bright. Five years. It wasn’t weird that five years had transformed him from a fit but gangly teenager to a strong and muscular young man – but still. If he remembered correctly, he and Yuji were the same age, and Megumi looked just about the same still.  

Megumi watched as the brothers, suddenly more physically alike each other than ever, stacked boxes on the ground next to the open truck. Bickering as they maneuvered an armchair over the edge of the metal ramp. Megumi supposed he should go down and help. He remained, though, watching Sukuna grow frustrated and growl loud enough for him to hear ‘I’ll do it myself’ even through the window. Soon enough, steps were heard in the stairwell, and Megumi left the miniature kitchen for the hallway just in time to see Yuji enter with two boxes stacked on top of each other. The top one leaned heavily on his chest and biceps.

“Oh, hey”, Yuji said, raising his chin in a try to see Megumi properly over the two boxes. “Long time no see!”

“Very”, Megumi said. Yuji kicked a pair of his spare shoes to the side before squatting down and placing the boxes on the floor. He must be in his work clothes, or clothes that would be worn for work in the future. Rough pants with legs full of pockets. Thin, black t-shirt. Megumi thought he noticed a little darkened triangle at his sternum when he straightened back up.

“I’m sorry I’m a little sweaty”, Yuji said, raising his arm in what must be an invitation for a hug. Megumi wasn’t much of a hugger. He still found himself allowing it, going for the one-armed type of hug even guy friends could get away with, and got something bonecrushing in return. He was suddenly enveloped in Warm Man with his chest pushed up against Yuji’s and it was easy to put both his hands at his sides, curiously feeling the swell and dip of muscle atop his ribs. Like Sukuna. But… not really.

“I’m sweaty too, so”, Megumi said as they leaned back. He gave Yuji a quick once-over. Finding it weird to meet someone so familiar and still seeing so much new in his face. The more mature angle of his jaw, his cheekbones, his slightly more squared chin. Friendly, doe-like eyes. He had the same Cupid’s bow as Sukuna – wider than Megumi’s own, an accentuated dip where Megumi was sure he could put the pad of his little finger and it would fit perfectly. He’d grown up hot. Real hot.

There was a frustrated grunt coming from the open door. Partly visible, the top of Sukuna’s head and a piece of the armchair, whose leg had gotten stuck in the handrail.

“Come help instead of just standing there”, he growled. There was a bubble of laughter in Yuji’s throat as he hurried back out into the stairs to help, and of course they bickered more about Sukuna needing to back down a few steps to even get the leg out of the handrail, spitting and hissing venom that only siblings would allow.

Trying to be as little in the way as possible in an apartment built for a mouse, Megumi sidled along the wall to get himself outside. Compared to the brothers he was a thin thing, but not weak. There was smaller furniture that were easy enough to carry – like a bright red dresser, and several see-through bags seemingly full of hoodies. In the end, Yuji was a bachelor, and the truck was emptied quickly. They closed the door but opened the windows to clear the fusty air out, allowing the sounds of the city to come rolling in. Traffic, mostly, and school kids on their vacations screaming and laughing in a nearby city park. With the promise of pizza Sukuna reluctantly promised to help Yuji get the legs back onto the bed, and since Megumi hated just watching, he took it upon himself to unload the cartons marked fragile and rinse the plates and glasses off before putting them in the cupboards. There weren’t that many of them. Personally, he had an order he preferred, but when asked Yuji had just said it would be nice to not live around boxes and to just put things wherever, and that was that. Megumi had found a smaller bag with towels and used a checkered one to wipe the glasses dry. Listening, to tinny music playing from Yuji’s phone, and the brothers’ voices as they spoke and built.

Sometimes, he got the impression Sukuna didn’t like Yuji very much. Listening to them now, and hearing their mundane and relaxed voices, made Megumi reconsider it. One didn’t need to call or hang around people all the time to appreciate them, no? Megumi should know. There were still people in his life that he very much liked but very rarely bothered contacting. Megumi’s own sister was dead since several years. He rarely thought of her in the way that he missed a sibling, more like there was a hole in his life where she’d used to be. He wasn’t sure how he’d been around her if she’d still been alive. Called rarely but appreciated when it happened, maybe.

Megumi picked up a mug with a banana cat printed on it and wiped it free of waterdrops without really looking. He wasn’t sure what bothered him, really. Something small scratching at the back of his neck – wondering if his rare meetups with Yuji throughout the years had been due to the fact that Sukuna might have wanted to meet up alone, keep Megumi out of the picture. It had been easy to just assume Sukuna was like him, being perfectly fine without family. It might still be true. It might not. The times where he and Sukuna went drinking, at home parties or at clubs, Sukuna used to maneuver him around like a fancy accessory – arm tucked tightly around his waist, sharp grin shaped after Megumi’s ear as he kissed it, feeling him up when people could see. Showing him off. It was not a thing one would want to do in front of a brother, Megumi reasoned. Maybe that was it. 

There was a creak in the floor near the doorway and Megumi didn’t need to look up to recognize the shape of Sukuna in the corner of his eye. Yuji might have grown up to look more like him, but there was the obvious contrast of Sukuna’s tattoos, the swagger in his walk toward him. Megumi was still wiping the same mug when Sukuna’s hand followed the curve of his ass, to dip inside the back-pocket of his jeans and squeeze. Megumi leaned his head back into his shoulder with a little thump.

“Got the bed up and running?”

“Yeah. Wanna try it out?”

“Don’t be disgusting”, Yuji said from the doorway. His fingers curled around the edges of the doorframe as he leaned himself halfway inside the kitchen, swaying. “Pizza guy is here. I need to get down and get the door for him, so maybe you guys can try find the slicer if you haven’t already, Megumi?”

“I think I saw it”, Megumi said, his voice involuntarily hitching a little on the end syllable. Sukuna’s mouth was warm and velvety on the side of his throat. A kiss, and then another, and for some reason Yuji didn’t turn away and it just happened, that Megumi chose to hold his gaze even as the third kiss turned filthy wet at the top of his collarbone, a suckling, obvious sound from Sukuna’s tongue and lips and the love bite he was making. Yuji blinked. Megumi blinked back. Thinking of what had sounded reasonable just minutes ago and dismissing it. Brother or not, here he was, shown off. Filthy. Yuji’s eyes flitted down to approximately Megumi’s chin, or his head leaned back, or the way his throat must jut angular and inviting when leaning like he did.

“Great”, Yuji said. He cleared his throat, gave the doorjamb a tap-tap with a knuckle, and straightened up. “Well. Be right back.”

The door clicked shut gently behind him but still allowed them to hear the thumping of his hurried descent down the stairs. Sukuna’s hand traveled down the front of Megumi’s jeans. Rubbing the heel of it across the front seam, still moving downward. 

“What are you doing”, Megumi sighed.

“Can you blame me? You’re standing here, all tempting.”

“Do you have to feel me up in front of your brother?”

Sukuna snorted. “He doesn’t care.”

“You sure?” Megumi muttered. He closed his hand around Sukuna’s wrist with the intent of pushing him away, but in the end, he must be no better. He’d always loved hands. Especially Sukunas. The width of his palm, his squared nails. The raised veins, soft under Megumi’s touch as his fingers wandered downward, feeling across his knuckles, maybe… angling himself into his touch. A little.

“We’re going to eat that pizza”, Sukuna said against his throat. “And then we’re taking the car home, or else I’ll make truth out of fucking you in his bed.”

Megumi sighed. Short and defeated, wanting nothing to do with the pizza Yuji must be carrying up the stairs right about then. Wanting a little bit to do with the bed, but his morals had him angle his hips away from Sukuna’s hand as if to tell him that was final. It pushed his ass onto Sukuna’s crotch though.

“Keep it nice”, he said, and put the mug away.

Fushiguro Megumi and the summer season weren’t exactly walking hand in hand. The warmth of the sun on crisp fall evenings was lovely, as was the waking spring, but at the height of summer he felt sweaty and bothered most of the time. It didn’t help that the AC had just broken and Mother Earth decided that she should hand them one of the hottest weeks as of yet. With nothing but a simple box fan, Megumi tried to cool himself down, and failed. He wasn’t proud of it, but the heat made him irritable, and things Sukuna did that otherwise could be dismissed with a pointed sigh and a headshake really did start to gnaw at him the wrong way. Stupid things. Less stupid things. Like how Sukuna forgot the butter on the counter when the apartment was boiling and it had turned near liquid at the time Megumi found it – and at his snappy comment about this Sukuna said he could buy another, what was the big deal, and Megumi said it didn’t matter if they could afford another it was stupid wasting perfectly good food by leaving it out that way, and Sukuna had raised his eyebrows in that way that made Megumi want to punch him and then went ahead and made it all worse by saying “you don’t need to be a bitch about it”.  

Megumi, sweating through his t-shirt, stood with his hands submerged in dishwater, trying to distract himself by scrubbing yesterday’s ramen bowls clean. The pathetic breeze from the box fan sent his loose cotton pants fluttering but did nothing whatsoever in cooling him down. He could feel a drop of sweat trickling down the side of his temple, tickling all the way down the angle of his jaw. AC guy would arrive tomorrow. Just one more day of this heat and things would be fine. Just ten minutes of dish washing, and he could award himself a glass full of ice to push onto his burning throat.

Megumi noticed Sukuna hovering behind him but pretended not to. It was the dog thing, again. Wanting attention, wanting things to be normal, but never learning how to apologize or work for it. He could feel it coming – and stiffened in anticipation even before he felt Sukuna’s hand at the small of his back. He put pressure at the heel of his palm. Rubbing a lazy half-circle, knowing just the way Megumi liked it. It pissed him off.

“Babe-” he said, and a sigh pushed itself through Megumi’s nose with near violent force.

“Don’t”, he said. Sukuna’s hand stiffened in surprise.

“What?” he said, sounding like a hurt kid.

“I don’t feel like it, so take your hand back.”

“Come on”, Sukuna said. Voice gone colder now, irritated. He didn’t bring his hand back. “You can’t be serious? This still about the butter?”

“Of course not”, Megumi muttered.

“Then what is it?” Sukuna’s breath against his already overheated neck. He wrapped himself around him like it was natural, and it was, the way his hand slid down the flat stretch of Megumi’s lower stomach. Bitterly, Megumi thought that this might be his own damn fault. Always letting him make up this way. Giving in all too easy. It could’ve worked again, could’ve worked any other day, but today, frustration bled like cold sweat across Megumi’s forehead and his submerged hands clenched around the ramen bowl he’d been scrubbing. Sukuna’s lips on his ear as he mouthed: “don’t make me guess.”

“What do you think?” Megumi sneered. “Stop. I’m not in the mood.”

“Just told you I didn’t wanna guess. What is wrong with you? Why’re you in such a bad mood?”

“Because you’re trying to fuck yourself out of this argument as always-”

“Argument? That what it is?”

“I said I didn’t want to, so stop touching me. Have a little respect.”

“Respect?” Sukuna snorted. His arm constricted around Megumi’s waist, as if this was something to charm his way out of. Touch out of. “Since when have you liked that?”

Megumi was confused about the way his eyes stung. He didn’t feel like crying. He was sweating, and salt burned in his eyes, and the tightening in his throat felt like there was a scream wanting to force its way out of him. He felt trapped, suddenly, by Sukuna’s huge body. He turned his head away, pushing his shoulder up and back into Sukuna’s face.

“Let me go”, he said, low and choked off. Hands cramping. Thoughts of how easy it would be for Sukuna to overpower him if he would ever want to. If he decided that the rough play they usually both enjoyed was something to be given even now, deciding that Megumi might just play hard to get, harder than normal. There was a moment where his hands stayed on Megumi’s body and Megumi stared down the suds in the sink and he stared until his eyes stung and then Sukuna let him go.

He did it with a scoff. Sharp and irritated, followed by a rasp that must mean he ran his hand down the buzzed short hair at the back of his neck.

“Whatever”, he said. “Then don’t tell me about it. Behave like a damn woman if you feel like it.”

“Fuck you. Shut the fuck up!” Megumi saw his own hand shoot out of the dishwater. Without the ramen bowl in his hand, luckily, but the soaked sponge catapulted into the chest of Sukuna’s white t-shirt with a splash. He sort of wished he had taken the bowl anyway. Staring, teeth bared, at the dumb bitch that was his boyfriend that looked honest to God confused. Having no idea why he was upset.

Staring ensued. Silence as well. Megumi’s pantlegs fluttered.

Sukuna threw his hands up. Rolling his eyes, clicking his tongue, leaving the kitchen for the hallway where he scuffled into his shoes. He made a big show of banging the door shut after himself. Megumi closed his eyes to the sound of what might be a sob, or a sigh, or a groan. Damn bastard had work, he knew. He would be out for a couple of hours. Megumi knew. He might be gone for the entire day, too, choosing to ignore Megumi now when the only other tactic he knew of had proved unsuccessful.

Megumi pulled the plug and the sink emptied with a gurgling, sucking sound. Rinsing the bowls off and throwing them upside-down in the rack, grabbing the sponge from the floor and throwing it in the trash because it was probably full of dust and crumbs now since neither of them had felt like vacuuming in this heat. That glass full of ice Megumi had promised himself got a generous amount of gin as company and he knocked the bottle cap off a tonic against the counter, not wanting to search for the opener and not feeling like biting it off like Sukuna always did for him. He sat down cross-legged in front of the box fan with his head tilted down and pressed the ice-cold drink to his throat.

He’d expected to regret it. Wanting to text, or call, bending and swallowing his frustration down like he always did, but the regret didn’t come. Was there a thing such as angry satisfaction? Even thinking of Sukuna’s eyes rolling in that condescending way made his jaw clench and he thought fuck that guy. It was about time he learned that things couldn’t always go the way he wanted them to. Megumi drank three deep gulps of his drink as if it had been regular water and eventually his body cooled down a little, as did his mind. Softly numbed by alcohol, he made himself another. Leaving the glass on the hallway dresser, he dug through Sukuna’s jackets and spare jeans in search for the package of party cigarettes that he knew would be there somewhere. He changed into a clean t-shirt, he combed his hair back and put his sunglasses on, and then he brought his things along to the balcony. It was hotter outside, but the wind brought the salt of the sea and rushed comforting along his arms. There was a sliver of shadow, too, in which he chose to sit.

It was strange, how it was possible to feel pissed off and calm at the same time. The apartment he shared with Sukuna was not on the fancy side, but it was large enough. Affording anything downtown was rare and being tenants that earned their money via piercings and studies shouldn’t be enough. It worked because Sukuna had inherited some money when old gramps Itadori had died. It worked because Sukuna was a slut and earned money via social media as well. Megumi took a sip of his drink and leaned back in the nylon fabric of the lounge chair, bitterly. Maybe he was a trophy wife after all. Trophy husband. Earning just a little, taking care of the household more than Sukuna did since he was home for the bigger parts of the day anyway. He still wished the guy could learn to put the butter back in the fridge though.

The balcony was more like a deck, a somewhat large wooden square hanging from the side of the building. It overlooked the street below, lined with dry, green-brown trees, utility poles, streetlights. Tapping his fingers slowly onto the still closed packet of cigarettes, Megumi glanced down the street. He might have made that first drink a tad strong. With nothing more than salad for lunch, it had sunk its teeth in him and stayed, numbing, soothing. Summer might not be his favorite, but being drunk during sunny days like these made him feel like a cat dozing in a sunspot. He didn’t care what time it was. Didn’t even mind the noise as some kid dropped an ice-cream outside the grocery store and started bawling his eyes out. Just watched, cat-like, cooling his wrist down against the sweating glass.

His second drink was near finished by the time he allowed himself a cigarette. He lit it with the neon pink BIC lighter stored in the packet, savoring that first inhale like it was orgasm worthy. As the smoke swirled from his parted lips, he was hit with a sense of familiarity long before he realized that the person he’d locked eyes with down the street was none other than little brother Itadori. Paper bag in hand, Yuji squinted up at him with a smile rivalling the sun. Backwards cap. No sunglasses. That poor idiot.

Megumi used the cigarette hand to wave him closer. He realized he did it the same way Sukuna used to – palm facing upward, three fingers curling back toward himself, beckoning. Come here.

The paper bag in Yuji’s hand shone with a yellow M and a couple of greasy spots. He looked both ways before jogging across the street like a good boy, shielding his eyes from the sun as he looked up at Megumi. Four meters apart, there was no need to shout. Especially not now since the kid finally had calmed down over the ice cream incident.

“Hey”, Yuji smiled. “What’s up?”

“Not much”, Megumi said. The railing was a flat, wooden style, and it was easy for him to melt down against it with his arms folded lazily under himself. Peering down at Yuji like Bagheera on his branch in The Jungle Book. His tongue felt thick and numb with the alcohol. Moving it slowly against the insides of his teeth, Megumi looked at Yuji’s black t-shirt, the join of muscle and cord at the dip of his throat. Contrasting dark and cotton candy hair, sharp jaw. Sun-kissed skin. He sweated in the way that only certain kind of men managed to. Looking fresh, not beat, like a young buck jogging off a soccer field, ready to wipe his face with the bottom of his t-shirt. Megumi nodded very slightly toward the bag in Yuji’s hand. “Got lunch?”

“Yeah. Well.” Yuji looked at his bag of food. “Is there a word for a meal between lunch and dinner?”

“Don’t think so.”

“Just finished work and thought I’d allow myself some fries.”

Megumi took a slow drag off the cigarette. He heard his own voice forming the sentence: “if you’re free, want to come up here?”

and it rolled off his tongue like he was asking something forbidden. Maybe it was. Choosing to hang out with Yuji without Sukuna’s knowledge, a years-late piss off to all the times Sukuna never ever asked if he wanted to join. Spending time with the brother that had grown just as hot but hadn’t let it go to his head. Megumi’s lip twitched with amusement.

Yuji blinked in surprise. “Yeah! Wait, do I need to-”

“The door’s open. Just let yourself in.”

As Yuji disappeared inside the door to the stairwell, Megumi leaned back into his lounge chair. Flicking ash off over the railing. It took a minute or less before he heard sounds from inside the apartment, noticing movement through the partly open glass-door. Yuji thumped socked across the deck to sink down in the lounge chair across from Megumi’s, McDonald’s bag crinkling.

“Isn’t Sukuna at home?”

“He’s working”, Megumi said. He watched as Yuji produced a huge packet of fries from the greasy bag. Some of them spilled out across the table, shining golden and crisp in the sun. Megumi glanced up above his sunglasses. “Sorry about that.”

“Oh, I don’t mind.” Yuji fiddled some with the wrapping covering a tiny cheeseburger. “Actually, I was about to say it’s nice that I might get to know you a little better now as well. I mean- you’ve been a couple for years and I’ve barely seen you. Even before I moved away and all that.”

“Tell me about it.”

“At first I was thinking that you were shy, you know?” Yuji grinned. “But I’m not so sure anymore. Are you?”

“Not really”, Megumi said. He grabbed his glass and poured the sad amount that was left down his throat. Some of the ice cubes followed and bumped into his top lip as he did so, and because it was a hot day, he took one of them in between his teeth to suck on while they talked. “I assumed Sukuna wanted to spend time with you on his own.”

“Oh.” Yuji frowned at this. Since he had food, silence fell rather naturally. Megumi let the ice-cube roll over his tongue as he watched Yuji pick fries out of the carton. Again. Again. Megumi thought of people he’d heard about, families where boyfriends and siblings turned into friends. Yuji was friendly enough. Even for a quiet guy like Megumi, he seemed the sort to be easy to get along with. Didn’t mind being the only one talking, still knew how to shut up. Hopefully.

Maybe Megumi was still out for revenge. Questions and thoughts lingering from the day they had helped Yuji move in, frustration from whatever pathetic thing had played out earlier between him and Sukuna. He pondered how to phrase things as he chewed the cube to pieces. Maybe it was the sound that made Yuji’s eyes dart up to him, busy chewing. Crumb caught on his chin.

“Is that a drink?”

“Gin and tonic”, Megumi said helpfully.

“Ooh. Fancy on a Thursday.”

“You know what they say”, Megumi said flatly. “Day drinking is classy if you’re rich.”

Yuji laughed at this. It was a boyish sort of laughter that made Megumi smile despite feeling weird, and he tipped the glass back for another ice cube to snack on.

“It’s summer”, Yuji said after a little while. “You might as well make the best of your day off.”

“Mm…” It certainly sounded better than admitting he had poured himself drinks because he was upset. Megumi tinkled the glass with his fingernails. He reached out to grab one abandoned fry without really feeling like eating it and chewed the end off, raising his hand dismissively when Yuji suddenly looked panicked about not having offered him more. Before he could say something about it, Megumi continued: “Do you guys keep in touch often?”

“Me and Sukuna?”

“Yeah. I…” Megumi quieted as he reconsidered his words. He might be a little buzzed, but even now he wouldn’t want to say he doesn’t talk about you. It sounded harsh. Not that he cared all too much about Sukuna’s reputation right now, but who knew. Yuji might be hurt. “He’s not very good at talking about his family.”

“I guess he’s more of a face-to-face guy”, Yuji said. “We don’t really call unless there is something important that needs to be discussed. I was thinking that might change now though, when I moved here.”

“Is that something you’d want?”

“I think so. I mean… it seems you wouldn’t mind if I came around, at least.”

“I wouldn’t.”

Yuji crumpled the cheeseburger’s paper into a little ball. He continued rolling it between his palms as a little wrinkle formed in between his brows. Seemingly full of thought, he chose to suck his teeth clean before he spoke. “Sorry if this is weird-”

“Please”, Megumi said quickly.

“It’s like I said, I just sort of assumed you were shy or that it was you that didn’t want to meet up, you know. It sounded like it when I asked him about it. Now I’m sort of just wondering if he didn’t want me to meet you, or if he’s dumb enough to be embarrassed about being seen with someone he actually likes, not that it… uh, it sure didn’t seem like it last time, when you and he- I mean he was quite lovey-dovey in the kitchen. God. That’s not the point. Maybe he’s gotten over it. It’s just. It feels a little weird. He’s a little weird. He’s kind of always been a little…”

Megumi had a hard time not smiling. It was a little bit easier while busying his mouth with the ice, but anyway. It seemed him and Yuji went ahead and thought the same thing, just in different versions.

“If you want to say that he’s a jackass or something, go ahead”, he said, waving his hand lazily over the table. “I kind of threw him out earlier today so I’m perfectly pissed.”

Yuji heaved a laugh. “No, but seriously…”

“It’s fine. Actually, I’m dying to talk shit, but it feels better if you start.”

“All right. Well, okay, here’s what I thought before I started babbling”, Yuji said, seemingly relieved as he stretched out both his hands in front of himself. “When we were younger he always stole my girlfriends, so I was seriously wondering if when he met you, he was worried I would do the same or something. Like I would do that? But now I don’t know.”

Megumi squinted at him. The thought might make sense, but it was the first part of the little tale that caught his interest. “Stole your girlfriends? As in several?”

“Well. We weren’t really dating. It’s more like I brought some girl home that I liked and he was older and charming and it happened more than once that he got her number…” Yuji smiled wanly as he wrapped the paper bag back up.

Megumi realized that while he was thinking he hadn’t yet said anything out loud, and was simply left frowning at him. Yuji had a pair of rare dimples below his eyes that showed like shadows when he smiled. He might be handsome now, but he’d been a looker when he’d been younger, too. Megumi thought back to the first and only dinner where he had squeezed Megumi’s hand over the table and excitedly asked him about his family and school. Current Yuji was wearing a face that looked like he wanted to say it was all right to make sure his brother was not cast in a bad light. He refrained, though, and Megumi was glad for it.

“As in he did it on purpose?” Megumi asked, despite already knowing the answer.

“Yeah”, Yuji shrugged. “It was long ago, though. He was a teenager too.”

“Still a shitty move.” Megumi stubbed the cigarette butt out on the railing and left it there as he dug another one out of the packet. It surprised him zero percent that Sukuna had been the type to steal girlfriends. Wanting to own, to parade, to compete. He clicked his tongue as he put the cigarette between his lips. “He’s such a fucking dick.”

“Well”, Yuji said diplomatically. When Megumi glanced at him pointedly over the sunglasses, he barked a laugh that seemed to surprise even himself. “He can be.”

“He can be”, Megumi repeated. He bit down unnecessary commentary like, if he hadn’t been so good in bed I would’ve dumped him, because it wasn’t completely true. He loved him. It was a frustrating sort of love, though. Stubborn, fiery. Illogical. Sukuna was generous in showing how much he loved his body but rarely made him feel known. Part of this was Megumi’s own fault, he knew, but he wasn’t the kind to tell without having been asked, and Sukuna wasn’t the type to ask. They’d been a couple for years now and it wasn’t bad, really, but it wasn’t… perfect. Sometimes Megumi thought about how things could be different. How, and if, he wanted them to be. The answer almost always boiled down into him not really being interested in another relationship, and if he wasn’t, why should he break up with a boyfriend he loved to sleep with when he would probably come crawling back to suck his dick anyway. They had their sweet moments, too. It was just hard to remember when Sukuna blurted out things like don’t be a bitch about it.

“Was it a serious fight?” Yuji asked carefully. Megumi had almost forgotten about telling him, so he shrugged.

“Not really.”

“So you’re ok?”

“I am.” Megumi flicked some ash off. “Cigarette?”

“No, thanks. I just cough.”

“You seem like the good type.”

“Not so sure about that”, Yuji snorted.

“Aren’t you the good brother, and Sukuna is the bad one?”

“Well, compared to him I’m a fucking angel.”

“That’s what I thought.” Megumi glanced toward the door. The table out on the deck wasn’t very large, and so it was easy for him to bump his bare foot into the side of Yuji’s calf. “Can I be rude and ask you to bring me the gin and a bottle of tonic while I smoke?”

“Oh, sure”, Yuji said, already on his way up from the chair. Megumi would have been perfectly fine with him bringing it all outside, but Yuji grabbed the trash and Megumi’s glass as he started walking toward the door.

Megumi watched him. The way his ass rounded as he bent over to pick out the bottle of gin from the lowest shelf in the glass cabinet where he and Sukuna kept their liquor. How his shoulders moved, how the hair poked out behind his ears and under the edge of the cap. He rustled some while digging ice out from the ice machine. Found himself a bottle of tonic and seemed to look about in confusion in search of the bottle-opener, and when he didn’t find it, he hesitated. Megumi sort of wished he would bite it. He opened it with his keys instead.

Megumi leaned forward to put his elbows on the table. How was he any better? Watching, angling his hips back to shift the pressure on his crotch. Thinking of how Sukuna’s little brother might look when he fucked. Did he stay sweet? For some reason, Megumi wanted to think no. He looked like the type that would take you for the ride of your life and bring you towels and kisses afterward. He thought about his voice, how he sounded so inherently Yuji except for some little words, or sounds, where he sounded just like Sukuna. Megumi thought about hands, and let his eyes drift down to the one wrapped around the drink glass Yuji now came to place before him. Strong, wide palm. Raised veins, snaking their way up across his wrist and forearm in this god-forsaken heat. Megumi busied his lips with the cigarette filter to not lick them.

“Didn’t make yourself one?”

“Not a big fan of tonic, sadly”, Yuji said as he sat down.

“There’re other things. What do you like?”

“Hm…” Yuji squinted out toward the street. Cap pointing sharp and black toward the house. Drop of sweat running down his temple. “In this weather I’m not very picky, to be honest. Just a baby about these bitter…ish, tastes.”

Megumi could with ease tell him to help himself to whatever in the glass cabinet or the fridge. There were a couple of beers, some seltzer tasting like no alcohol at all despite donning a good five percent.

He chose to say: “I can make you another of my favorites, if you want?”

“Really? Thanks. I’d like that.”

Megumi exhaled the smoke through the corner of his mouth. He could drag the process out, take the rest of the cigarette slow, leaning back with his eyes closed and all that jazz. He chose not to. Inhaling deep, he stubbed the second cigarette out next to the sooty smear of the first one. Getting up on his feet allowed for the alcohol to sink through his limbs, like a lazy trickle, or a fizzy drink. He still chose to bend down over the table to steal a sip out of the drink Yuji had prepared for him. Lips on the straw, front of his t-shirt billowing out and down. Through his slitted eyes and the dark lenses of the sunglasses, he noticed Yuji’s eyes dart down his front, then away.

“Was it all right?” Yuji asked as Megumi straightened back up.

“It was good. You did good.”

Yuji snorted. “Thanks.”

“On second thought”, Megumi said as he started walking toward the door. “Come with. Might as well take a shot.”

“A shot?”

“Would feel a little bit too pathetic to have one on my own. With you here, I have an excuse.”

“Ah. All right. Sounds fair.”

“Right?” Megumi pushed the door open wide to not need to bother with moving in and out. He was feeling a bit more dazed than he’d realized. Hot, like his head was a little too large, but not necessarily in a bad way. His hair got combed back in a lazy sprawl when he pushed the sunglasses up to rest on his forehead, reaching for the shot glasses in the cabinet. They had a lot of them. Stuff Sukuna bought because they came in collections or looked cool, and it would be stupid to get rid of perfectly fine stuff, cue the liquor department in their home looking like a functional bar. Megumi supposed he shouldn’t be bitching about it. He was the sole reason for the bookshelf spilling over.

Yuji’s form in the door cast a shadow over the counter as Megumi poured them a shot each out of a bottle he’d grabbed randomly. When he straightened up, the sunglasses slid back down to rest on his nose.

“Is that tequila?” Yuji frowned.

“Yeah. Do you need lemon?”

“You’re not having any?”

“Nah. Can’t be bothered when it’s just one shot.”

“Phew. All right.” Yuji rolled his shoulders and feigned cracking his knuckles before he grabbed the tiny glass. He winced like he’d been served poison when they, with acceptable timing, knocked the shots back. With a cough and a sniffle, he loudly cleared his throat. It did nothing whatsoever to help clear the rasp from his voice when he said: “wasn’t that bad.”

Megumi laughed. It just blurted out of him. He was thankful for being cheered up, relieved that his entire day didn’t need to go to shit because of some stupid fight. A bit drunk, too. Which made him a little friendlier, he supposed.

“About to throw up?”

“God, no. It’s all good now”, Yuji grinned. “So, about that drink…”

“You know what.” Megumi reached behind himself and grabbed a hold of the counter to scoot himself up on it. The handles of the overhanging cupboards cut into his shoulder blades in a way that made him roll lazily from side to side, using them to massage a stiff cord of muscle near his spine. “I can teach you how to make one of my favorites, if you want to.”

“Sure. Do you care about what glass it is and stuff like that?”

“Not really. That’s mostly Sukuna’s thing, but just for the sake of it- grab a highball one.”

Yuji squatted in front of the cabinet. His t-shirt rode up a little bit as he did so, revealing a sliver of skin just above the hem of his pants. Megumi pushed the handles into a knot of muscle that made his entire arm burn. Looking, with a capital L, at the cute back dimples at either side of Yuji’s spine.

“Maybe this is your plan to make me into your bartender”, Yuji said while carefully extracting a glass from a full shelf. “Teach me to do all the drinks you like and then you can just snap your fingers and I’ll be here making them.”

“Doesn’t sound so bad”, Megumi said slowly. “What about work though? Or do you expect me to pay you?”

“Hm…” Yuji leaned his butt onto the counter opposite of where Megumi was sitting. “I get to drink the drinks you’re teaching me to make, so… that’s payment enough?”

“One could suspect this is my master plan to turn the good brother into another baddie.”

“As if it would be your fault Sukuna’s the way he is”, Yuji snorted. “Ice?”

“Yeah. Like, half of the glass.”

The ice cubes crunched. Megumi continued rolling the knot in his back against the handle, watching Yuji try his best to make the drink while listening to Megumi’s instructions. They had proper shakers and measuring tools, Megumi used them sometimes, but for today he found satisfaction in watching Yuji try his best to pour a decent amount counting seconds, stirring with a spoon, pulling his eyebrows together in concentration. It was a basic, rather boring drink. Tangy and fresh with quite a lot of alcohol you barely noticed, which made it dangerous in hot weather like this. Megumi tipped his head back to rest on the cupboard. The sun blazed through the open door. Cicadas whirred.

“This is nice”, Yuji said. He’d gotten back into leaning onto the opposite bench, hip tilted relaxedly, sweating glass in hand.

“Right?” Megumi said lazily.

“Summery”, Yuji said after having another taste. In the brightness of the room, he squinted as he looked out onto the deck. It made the high dimples in his cheeks show in the same way as when he smiled. He was saying something else now, Megumi thought distantly, since his mouth was moving and with it, so was his jaw, and his throat. Megumi was all too busy looking at the bead of sweat at his temple. Some stray pink strands had gotten caught in the dark buzz of the undercut, sticking out in spikes behind his ears, caught by the brim of the cap. Megumi had never thought anything in particular about caps. He thought quite a lot now. Like how it made Yuji look boyish and manly at the same time. Like how he kind of wished to slap the bill and see if it would topple off his head. He was the type of guy that awoke the impulse in Megumi to tease. See him flustered. Make him a bit frustrated, maybe. See what he’d do about it.

“Sorry”, Megumi said when it dawned on him that Yuji must be finished speaking. He was looking at him like he was amused, deepening those shadows below his eyes. “Zoned out.”

“You don’t say”, Yuji said around the straw he’d allowed himself. He must’ve been thirsty. Half of the drink was already gone, ice cubes barely melted. “You’re not getting heat stroke?”

“Mn. Nah. Just a bit hot.”

“Tell me about it. It’s like, scorching in here.”

“The AC guy is coming tomorrow.”

“Ah. Lucky.” Yuji slurped the drink. Then he laughed. “Man, that shot went straight up. I got up at like four this morning or something.”

“That’s early.” Megumi tapped his fingers onto the countertop, thinking. He sank into a more relaxed pose as he waved Yuji closer, pointing to his own face. “Can I just… I want to look at your dimples.” 

“My dimples?”

“Yeah. Come here.”

Yuji sauntered over. Just like Sukuna, he was the extroverted type that didn’t seem to care much for personal space even while sober. Alcohol tended to numb that trait further in just about anybody. Which was, Megumi thought, what he’d been after. Yuji placed himself relaxedly in front of him which automatically put him between Megumi’s knees. Shoulders relaxed, glass discarded behind him, he’d hooked his thumbs in his jeans pockets. Expectant like a dog prepared to get his ears rubbed.

“What’s with my dimples?” he asked, brown eyes following the movement of Megumi’s hands. He blinked sweetly when Megumi cupped his face as if to kiss him. Megumi only moved his thumbs along Yuji’s upper cheeks, expecting to feel something but only finding smooth skin. Pressing down gave away for the sensation of bone. As Yuji’s mouth crinkled with a barely held smile, the dimples appeared under Megumi’s fingers.

“I like them”, he said, quietly. Shifting on top of the counter made his foot bump into the side of Yuji’s knee, and he hooked it around him without thinking. Dragging his toes up along the dip and sinew of the backside of his thigh.

Confusion flickered syrupy and slow in Yuji’s eyes.

“Wait”, Yuji said carefully. He didn’t pull back, but the wrinkle between his brows furrowed deeper and his eyes followed Megumi’s hand as it made it down the front of his shirt. Fingertips trailing along sternum, summer hot skin under thin fabric. The sun burned at the side of Megumi’s face. “What are you doing?”

“What does it look like I’m doing?” Megumi glanced up at him over the sunglasses. He knew what it made him look like. Remembered the countless times he’d driven Sukuna insane simply by letting his eyes roll back a little extra, use the fact that his eyelashes were long and dark and his eyes transfixingly emerald. An urgent blush rose along the sides of Yuji’s neck.

“Megumi, I-”

“Don’t you want to? I saw the way you looked at me when we were outside.”

“What about Sukuna?”

“What about him?” Megumi parted his knees wider. It scooted his ass closer to the edge of the counter, allowed for him to hook both feet around the backs of Yuji’s knees. While he stiffened, he still made no attempt of pulling back. Satisfaction pooled dangerous and hot in the pit of Megumi’s stomach. Making him tilt his head back, his lips fall open, and he spoke very softly as he continued. “He doesn’t need to know.”

Yuji opened his mouth as if to answer but no words came. He looked lovely. A mix of want and pain and guilt painted his face serious, more mature than his otherwise ever so smiley nature. Megumi wondered if he would be so good he’d decline despite how his pulse beat noticeably faster in the hollow of his throat. He wanted to play this right. Get what he wanted. Give him what he wanted.

Slowly, as if not to scare him, Megumi wrapped his fingers around Yuji’s wrist.

“Isn’t it only fair?” Megumi said. Slowly turning Yuji’s hand over, he used both of his hands to push his palm flat onto his stomach. “You said he fucked your girlfriends. If you fuck me, he doesn’t even need to know.”

There was a tremble in Yuji’s inhale. Something fighting to stay down, or get out, something that made the blush creep deeper down his chest and left his mouth open. Megumi held his breath as he continued to move Yuji’s hand downward. Over the soft fabric of his shirt, down the slight curve of his lower stomach. He pressed his fingers down on him to have his hand slide inside the cotton hem of his pants, and it was pure luck really, the way his underwear clung to the band of the pants, allowing Yuji’s hand to go further down – palm pressing down on his mound, his fingers automatically curling when they slid along the wet slit of his cunt. Yuji gasped quietly as if he was surprised. Megumi’s eyelashes fluttered. He tilted his hips up to rub along Yuji’s fingers and exhaled deep and sharp, eyes closed, jackpot, a tingling sensation building at the base of his thighs. Sukuna must’ve told Yuji he had a pussy, right? He wasn’t the type to shut up about it. Yuji looked pained and aroused more than freaked out, at least, and there was a darkness to his eyes that Megumi hoped meant he was considering to rid himself the good boy hat and just go. Megumi stroked his hand up slow along his chest. Up along the side of his thick neck, below the bill of the cap.

“Please”, he mumbled, leaning close so he could let the words run from his lips and down the windings of Yuji’s ear. “Fuck me.”

Yuji exhaled as if he had been punctured. Megumi had been prepared to lead him through it. Promise it was okay, no one needed to know, be nice if he wanted to, or dirty if he wanted to. Play slutty and moan and mewl like a bitch, if he wanted to. The bill of Yuji’s cap pushed into the side of Megumi’s sunglasses as his breath puffed hot along his cheek. There was a roughness to his exhale that got Megumi’s thighs twitching. Angling his hips in anticipation, impatiently pushing at his thighs using his heels, he thought of cock and how bad he wanted it, so that when Yuji pushed his fingers deep into the heat of his cunt, he curled around him by reflex. He clutched his hands in the front of Yuji’s t-shirt and in the meaty muscle just above his elbow. As if scared he would draw back.

“Nh… fuck”, Megumi panted into the sweat-damp hair behind Yuji’s ear. He didn’t have hands to rid himself of the glasses, so when they were tilted askew he simply rubbed his face along Yuji’s shoulder to let them clatter to the floor. He felt the way the muscles flexed in Yuji’s arm when he got his hand moving. Pumping two fingers deep, curled into the sweet spot.

“God you’re wet”, he said, and it was near obscene to hear his voice so low and breathy over the slick squelch of his fingers. Megumi leaned his chin on Yuji’s shoulder to feel around the front of his pants.

“Yeah”, he panted. His fingernails skidded over the jagged zipper. Anything sultry he’d wanted to mouth into Yuji’s ear disappeared to give way for a needy sigh as he squeezed around his swollen cock. He could feel the heat and the hardness of him even through the thick fabric. It was intoxicating, like getting to touch him blended together with the rush of alcohol, and it made Megumi’s body soft and pliant. He pushed his slack and wet mouth onto the side of Yuji’s neck, watching the bright light of the kitchen flicker confetti-like through his eyelashes as his eyes started to drift shut. He'd always loved to fuck while drunk. It got rid of everything that was filter and restraint, allowed the free flow of sensation. Yuji thumb swiped slick over Megumi’s clit and Megumi moaned without caring, breathy and broken, clenching down hard on his fingers.

Their voices mingled together while Megumi tried, and failed, to urge Yuji on with something that should have been come on. Yuji sounded like he tried to swear, or sigh, and maybe he understood what Megumi meant because he nodded into his shoulder. Shifting. Hiking Megumi’s knee up above his hip while he fumbled around the front of his jeans. It was clumsy and hurried and the room was so hot, Megumi found laughter in his throat. He thought of skin, skin, skin, snaking his arms around Yuji’s shoulders and digging his fingers into his shoulders. He thought of the many places where they lined up. His forearm and the back of Yuji’s neck. Yuji’s nose and lips on the dip of his collarbone. Jeans open, cotton pants pulled down, Yuji replaced his fingers with the slick head of his cock. There was confidence and determination in the way he folded Megumi’s legs over his arms. Held by the hips, Megumi’s tailbone and asscheeks barely balanced on the edge of the counter in a way that was uncomfortable but didn’t fucking matter because the glide of Yuji’s cock was good so good so good.

Megumi held on and panted encouragement into his ear. Words at first, soft and broken sounds later. Just proof that he was making him feel good and he needed him to know it. It was hot. Sun scorching, door left ajar to the balcony and the buzz of the city, Yuji’s drink glass abandoned on the counter opposite and Megumi exhaled a sob of a moan, smiling as his head tilted backward to thump into the cupboard.

“That’s good”, he sighed. “That’s so good.”

“Yeah?”

“Mm…”

Yuji mouthed a kiss onto the side of Megumi’s throat. Out of everything deemed wrong, there was a filth to it that made Megumi’s thighs twitch. Sort of hoping Yuji would bite. Sort of fearing it, too.

Megumi was equally satisfied as he was disappointed over feeling the shift in Yuji’s body when he was getting closer. Rougher. More selfish, just like his brother, going deep while chasing his own high. Megumi loved it. Feeling his hardening grip on his hips, fingers and nails going bruisingly deep just to hold him still by the counter’s edge as he fucked into him. Megumi considered begging him to come inside. Whisper fill me up into the shell of his ear like he did every fucking night with Sukuna. He bit his tongue before it dared speak any words, and there was a moment of ragged breaths and Yuji’s sweaty palm slapping down onto the countertop to keep them both from tumbling away from the counter. Megumi needed to fold himself uncomfortably down below the cupboard to lean his shoulder blades on the wall. He did it so he could pull his t-shirt up, offering Yuji his stomach wordlessly. It felt nicer, in a way. Dirtier, too.

Yuji was the type to look like he was in pain when he came. All concentrated and sexy until pleasure hit and his eyebrows drew together and the corners of his mouth turned downward. He pumped his hand hard and fast around his cock as he came, painting both Megumi and the bundled-up t-shirt with ropes of cum.

“Fuck”, he breathed. “Oh fuck me.”

Megumi bit the collar of the t-shirt. Thoughtlessly sucking on it as he watched Yuji and the rapid rise and fall of his chest.

He was feeling all right, really. He was feeling like a king when Yuji, still out of breath, dropped down heavily on his knees between Megumi’s legs. He only saw the top of Yuji’s head as he started tugging his pants further down. A thump when he must’ve bumped his knee onto the cupboard below. Megumi gasped in surprise when Yuji hauled his legs up above his shoulders, sliding awkwardly across the counter with his head going about like some bobble-doll. Elbow down, Megumi caught the slick pink of Yuji’s tongue as he put his mouth to him. Lapping broad across his entire slit. He wrapped his arm around one of his thighs to hold him down as Megumi’s hips bucked reflexively, and it turned into a downward grind against the whole bottom of his face. There was a slight rasp to his chin. Tickling and stinging across the insides of Megumi’s thighs as he ground onto him again. And again. Going, until his movements got jagged and hurried, his stomach and neck burning from exertion, and Yuji dug two of his fingers into his cunt. He got three in there eventually, pistoning them hard and fast into that sweet, deeper spot that had always made Megumi feel like he would fall apart, or explode, or piss himself, or all three. He came hard. He gulped down a breath as his cunt clenched around Yuji’s fingers and the fucker kept going, going, until Megumi’s legs thrashed around the sides of his head and a thick glob of tears rose in his throat. He hadn’t meant to cry. Hadn’t felt like it until it happened, and it happened short and confusedly. A sniffle, a sob, his hands shivering as he felt around the sides of Yuji’s face. His damp hair, wet face, the plastic backstrap of his cap and his bangs poking out of it.

“You all right?” he dared ask.

Megumi tried to nod. He was too exhausted to even care if Yuji noticed. There was a couple of seconds where he laid folded shrimp-like on the counter, having trouble to breathe due to the weird angle of his neck. Somehow, Yuji eased him down the counter to join him at the floor. They were like a heap of bodies. Legs this way and that, clothes even worse. Megumi was sitting on his sunglasses, he realized, but they looked okay despite a slightly wonky temple. He toyed lazily with the sunglasses as he calmed down. Listened to the whirr of the bugs from outside, and the whirr of the tired box fan from inside. The near unnoticeable breeze licked mellow along his bare thigh.

Yuji had leaned himself against the counter opposite. Cap now in his hands, his hair was a mess as a result. He looked a little bit worried. A little bit smug. As he should.

“Maybe you’d gotten all of your girlfriends back if you’d shown them that”, Megumi mumbled. He limply wiped the back of his hand across his mouth. Prepared Yuji hadn’t heard him, he glanced up at him to find he was grinning down at the cap in his hands.

“I…” he said. “I really shouldn’t…”

“Stop”, Megumi interrupted him. “It doesn’t matter. I won’t tell.”

Yuji wet his lips. It seemed something relaxed in his shoulders. His dark eyes roamed across Megumi’s front – from his mouth and chin to his cum-stained t-shirt, and bare legs. Then he nodded.

“Okay.”

“And… you won’t either. Right?”

Yuji shook his head. “I won’t.”

Megumi tilted his head back to lean against the lower cupboard. Looking. Just looking, for a while. He said; “good.”

It always felt a bit weird to sober up during the night. After Yuji had left, Megumi had poured himself only water while he cleaned up the apartment. Rid of dirty dishes, rid of cigarette butts on the deck railing. Rid of cum soaked clothes and stains on the counter.

Time went on and the sun sank, turning into a humid evening. Megumi had nothing other to do than to head for bed. He’d moved the box fan there in hopes to get the air moving, and perhaps it was, but it was barely noticeable. At least the low humming was somewhat soothing. He was the type to have trouble sleeping without a blanket, but it was too hot to keep it on himself. He ended up with a mix – lying on his side with the blanket tucked between his legs, back turned to the door and the fan and it’s weak but still comforting breeze.

He must’ve fallen asleep, eventually. He couldn’t recall any dreams. He’d been lying there feeling too hot, feeling not drunk but not completely sober either, and he was filled with a feeling of having just being woken up. By the door?

There was a creak of the floor out in the hallway.

Sukuna, Megumi realized. Sukuna was home.

After his confusion had settled, Megumi noticed the digital clock on Sukuna’s side of the bed showed 03.20. He must’ve been asleep far longer than he’d thought. He rubbed the back of his hand slowly across his eyes. Prepared to pretend to sleep, prepared to do anything, when the mattress dipped, and Sukuna’s hand ran warm and gentle across his bare waist.

“Babe”, he whispered into Megumi’s shoulder as he kissed it. “… you sleeping?”

“Mm…”

“I’m sorry.” The sheets rustled. Megumi slid toward the middle, closer to Sukuna’s side of the bed, as Sukuna chose to get in behind him. He was clumsy and breathed heavy through his nose which meant he was drunk, and the breath rolling hot over Megumi’s neck smelled like rum to prove it. Was that it? Rum and coke with his buddies, drinking the day away because they’d fought hours ago. Sukuna’s bare chest pressed hot against Megumi’s back as he nuzzled his face into his hair, sniffing. Sniffling, maybe. “I’m sorry, babe. Didn’t mean to fight with you.”

Megumi blinked toward the dark corner of the room. Feeling the rise and fall of Sukuna’s chest as his body curved along his own – his strong arm wrapped around his waist. Trailing down, toward his hip. Toward his thigh. Begging for forgiveness with sex, as always. Megumi bit his tongue. He inhaled deep and slow through his nose, and then he turned over, rolling his body into the large frame of Sukuna to suck at the spot just below his collarbone. Mark a little. Punish a little. There was an instant twitch in Sukuna’s arms. Hopeful, maybe.

“Yeah?” Megumi whispered onto his throat as he twisted against him. “You’re sorry?”

“Myeah….” Sukuna curled downward to meet him. He kissed clumsily along the side of Megumi’s face. I’m sorry, I’m sorry, I’m sorry. His hand caught Megumi by the thigh to pull his knee up toward his hip, pulling him close enough to push him onto his crotch where his cock seemed drunkenly confused and half-hard. Megumi closed his eyes. Thinking, as he wrapped his arms slowly around the back of Sukuna’s head.

“Then prove it.”