He crossed the room in seconds, dropping his keys on the counter without a second thought. The sight of her curled up like that, looking so small and sad in his hoodie, triggered something in him.
"Hey, baby,"his voice is soft as he kneels beside the couch, one hand immediately going to stroke her damp hair."I'm here now. Talk to me—what happened with your group?"
He studies her face carefully, looking for any signs of physical harm. When he doesn't find any, some of the tension in his shoulders eases, but the worry remains.
"Did someone hurt you? Say something to you?"There's an edge to his voice now, that cold quality that appears when he's considering whether he needs to deal with a threat."Because if Haruto or those other guys did something—"
He stops himself, taking a breath. Getting aggressive won't help her right now. Instead, he carefully lifts the blanket and slides onto the couch behind her, wrapping his arms around her and pulling her against his chest. He presses his lips to her head, breathing in the scent of his shampoo and conditioner that she'd been using. He can't help the smile that tugs at his lips from the fact that she smells a little bit like him. He'll have to take her shopping soon though so she can't pick out what she likes, regardless of the fact that he's enjoying her using something of his. She should have the things she likes here too if she's going to live with him.
"You don't have to talk about it right now if you don't want to. But I'm not going anywhere, okay?"He presses a kiss to the top of her head."Whatever happened, we'll figure it out together."
His hand runs soothingly up and down her arm.
"Do you want me to order food? Put on a movie? Or just stay like this?"
A deflated sigh leaves her as she looks up at him, "Can we order food in a bit and just sit like this for a moment? Please?"
"An Emi and I went to go to the bathroom and I wanted a snack from the cafeteria.So we were gone for a bit. On our way back we were walking through an isle of books that kind of hid us from there view. When we got half way there we noticed one of the guys, Ren was messing with some of Emi's notes for the project. We confront them about it & they denied it; Daiki got involved and told Emi that her model idea was shit and that we didn't know what we were doing. He was messing with our ideas to make it 'more effiecient'. Haruto wasn't there, he was in the computer room printing something, so it was literally our word versus theirs. Next week we have a part of the project were we have to put on a part of the architecture model we are building. Well, the model is at Ren & Haruto's frat house, because it's the only place big enough to fit it. Emi lives in the dorms and I didn't feel comfortable having a bunch of people in my space. So, their place was a logical choice. But now Emi & I don't want to go to their house like we've been doing. And Haruto says he can't pick a side because he wasn't technically there to see it. So yea, we're stuck at a stand-still." She sighed again, "Most likely though we'll end up at their place because of the project."
His arms tighten around her as she explains, and she can feel his body go rigid behind her.
"They did what?"His voice is quiet."They were that rude to you two and then tried to deny it? What, are they in fucking grade school or something? Are they really even adults if they're gonna be that petty? If you two don't feel comfortable there, then why don't you move the model here?"
He forces himself to take a breath, trying to calm down for her sake.
"We're not done with this conversation, but you and Emi need to report this to your professor. And—"he pulls out his phone to start ordering food, "Do you still have the notes they changed? If it's in their hand-writing, we might be able to prove that they messed with them. Then you and Emi will have a good reason to change groups."
He sets his phone aside for a moment and cups her face gently.
"I'm so sorry that happened to you guys, baby. And yes, we can absolutely stay like this and order takeout."He presses a soft kiss to her forehead."What do you want to eat? And did Emi end up making it home okay?"
She cuddles in closer to him, her back pressed against his torso, "Yea, Emi's fine. Her brother, he goes to the same college but is a different year, was worried so he came to get her. And we already changed back what they changed. Plus, it's not like we have actual camera footage or anything. And it's not that simple to move the model, it's 400lbs, in their garage. We decided we were all going to pay a mover to move it to the school on presentation day at the end of the year. To add to that, I'm not able to make the decision about where to move the model by myself. It's a group project so it has to be a group decision, it's unfortunately their work too."
She sighed in frustration before flopping her head on the couch arm, eyesclosed, "It's just really frustrating."
He watches her flop her head in frustration, and his hand goes to massage the back of her neck soothingly. Even though he's still frustrated about the situation himself, he knows pushing her right now won't help.
"You're right, it is frustrating. And complicated."He takes a breath, trying to think practically rather than just protectively."But here's what we're going to do—from now on, when you work with this group, you and Emi don't leave your notes out unattended. Ever. If you need to use the bathroom, you finish your work and put them up in a secure place."
He shifts so he's looking down at her properly, his fingers still working the tension from her neck. He leans down to kiss her temple, his soft lips brushing against her sun-kissed skin.
"Now, let's table this for tonight because I can see how stressed you are. What do you want for dinner? Thai? Chinese? Pizza? Whatever you want, it's yours."His thumb traces her cheekbone."And then we're putting on whatever movie you want and I'm holding you all night. Sound good?"
Her brow creases in concentration before her gaze swings up to him, the tv light reflecting off her light grey eyes.
"How about Chinese? And I was thinking about watching this new show on HBO based on the original 'IT' movie called 'Welcome to Derry'. It had really high reviews."She unconsciously plays with the strings of his hoodie
He notices her playing with his hoodie strings and it does something soft to his chest, cutting through some of his lingering anger about her group situation.
"Chinese and a horror show it is," he reaches out for his phone, keeping one arm firmly around her as he navigates to his usual delivery app."What do you want? I'm thinking orange chicken, lo mein, maybe some dumplings..."
He glances down at her, a small smile playing on his lips despite everything.
"You know, most girls would want to watch something light and fluffy after a shitty day. But not you—you want to watch killer clowns." There's affection in his teasing tone."It's cute in a weird way."
He places the order with one hand, his thumb scrolling through options."Got you some crab Rangoon's too. They were pretty good the last time I had them."
Once the order is placed, he sets his phone down and fully focuses on her again, both arms wrapping around her waist.
"While we wait for food, tell me something good that happened today. Before everything went to shit with your group. There had to be something—you were so cute and excited in that first photo you sent me."
He nuzzles against her neck, breathing in the scent of his body wash on her skin mixed with his hair products.
"And for the record? You look really fucking good in my hoodies. Might have to make this a permanent thing."
She looks at him for a minute, thinking, before looking shyly away, "You.. you called me your girlfriend. That made me really happy earlier."
Noa shrinks into him on the couch further, trying to hide her embarrassment, "And, I mean, I technically don't have any clothes here besides yours. I only brought maybe two outfits total, & those already have to be cleaned haha."
Her admission makes his chest tighten in the best way, and he can't help the genuine smile that spreads across his face. He tightens his arms around her, pulling her even closer against him.
"Yeah, I did call you my girlfriend. Because that's what you are."He gently turns her face back toward him so she can't hide."And the fact that it made you happy? Baby, that makes me happy."
He kisses her softly, lingering for a moment before pulling back with a playful smirk.
"And about the clothes situation—we're fixing that tomorrow. I'm taking you shopping, and before you even start to argue—"he places a finger over her lips,"I want to do this. Let me spoil you a little. Besides, you'll need more than my hoodies if you're living here permanently."
His hand slides under the hoodie she's wearing, his calloused fingers splaying possessively across the bare skin of her lower back.
"Though between you and me? I'm perfectly content with you wearing nothing but my hoodies and your underwear around the apartment. It's a very good look on you."His voice drops lower, more heated."In fact, knowing that's all you have on right now under this blanket is making it very difficult to focus on waiting for food."
He groans and drops his head to her shoulder, when she turns her head to stare at him, grey locking with blue.
"You're dangerous for my self-control, you know that? My sweet, shy girlfriend who gets embarrassed so easily but looks at me with those eyes..."
A vulnerable look softens her features, catching her breathe as his hand splays across her lower back, "S-Satoru, can you say it again, please?"
He knows what she's asking for, and the look in her eyes makes his heart skip. He shifts their positions slightly so he can look directly into her eyes, shifting over her, his hand still warm against her lower back while his other hand cups her face.
"You're my girlfriend, Noa,"he says softly, his blue eyes intense and sincere."Mine. The girl I want coming home to me every day. The one I want wearing my clothes and sleeping in my bed and making me lose my mind with how much I want her."
Gojo's thumb brushes across her cheek tenderly.
"You're the girlfriend I'm going to take shopping tomorrow, the one I'm going to protect and spoil and probably annoy with how possessive I get."A slight smile tugs at his lips."The one who somehow made me—the strongest sorcerer in the world—weak for her in less than forty-eight hours."
He leans in, his forehead touching hers.
"My girlfriend. The only one I want. Is that what you needed to hear, baby?"His voice is barely above a whisper now, intimate and honest. "Because I can keep saying it. I'm your boyfriend, you're my girlfriend, and I'm not letting you go."
His hand slides further up her back under the hoodie, then appendage warm against her skin as his finger splay outward in the middle of her back, pulling her flush against him.
"Now, do you want me to keep talking, or do you want me to show you how serious I am about this?"