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Oh! Is that it?

[ Yuji had thought there was going to be a serious problem, like he had done something really badly wrong, somehow, so this... Is kind of a relief. ]

That makes sense. I don't know if there is any kind of school here, or if they'll even let us go with our jobs and everything, but I'd like to do something to keep learning here. We didn't really do a lot of lessons at home with everything that happened.

[ Thanks, Shibuya and Culling Game... ]

Kugisaki-san agreed to tutoring if the two of you attended.

[ He's the one deflating now, because this feels wrong in every way, but Nanami feels responsible for them. ]

I'm not a teacher, but if it's regarding your future, I suppose in a way I'm still partially responsible for giving you opportunities where I can.

[ And Yuji did leave that in the little note. Nanami is trying very hard not to end up hurting Yuji with too much attachment, especially after what happened, but he also feels guilty for accepting gifts from Yuji without reciprocating. This is a serious dilemma for him. ]

If you and Fushiguro-kun don't object, then I can stand in until we find a better replacement...

[ This counts as helping, right? Without leaving too much of a mark on him. ]

Nanamin...

[ Yuji watches him for a moment. What he wants from this place is for Nanami to find some kind of peace, to find some kind of happiness, but... Would this make him happy, or would it just be more work for him?

He had promised to carry Nanami's share of pain and suffering, carry his burdens. Would he be easing them with this, or causing more issues?

He stares at the table for a moment, thoughtful. ]

I'd be happy to learn things from you, Nanamin, if that's what you really want. But if it's going to be a lot of trouble for you then we should find someone else.

[ He pauses, looking at Yuji with a reserved frown. What does he want? It isn't fair to ask that. What he wants is quiet and a boring, peaceful life. He wants sleep. And to have the opportunity not to think about all the weight and pain that exist and that they have to bear. That's what most people want, right?

Except he doesn't. Not entirely, at least. Looking across the table, what he wants to say is that he really wants Yuji to live a good life, to be happy, and to be able to move forward without any regret left. And he can't give Yuji that. He can do a lot for him, but he can't remove the world of regrets. But maybe he can work with him, piece by piece, to remove a little of something--the damage he knows was done already. By all of them, leaving those emotionally scars.

Hopefully this is the right thing. He's still breathing, so he can't just go back on it. ]

When are you trouble for me? Since we are here, it's better that we remain in contact and learn as much as we can. If it's not schooling, then at least trading information is vital.

[ For a long moment, Yuji just watches Nanami, as if evaluating the situation, before he breathes out slowly.

Being here is going to be intense, going to be dangerous - they're going to do missions and fight monsters, that's what LILITH wants them to do, and he can do that. Trying to do it while he also does what he can to make sure Nanami is alright, that Kugisaki is fine, that Fushiguro is the same... That's the responsibility he's chosen to handle. The idea of Nanami taking on more burdens isn't something he had ever wanted, and he immediately regrets the way he had cried when they'd first seen each other again.

All he does is cause the people around him problems; Yuji deflates a little, shaking his head. ]

We can remain in contact and share information without you having to tutor us. There must be some kind of school system we can get access to, and if not I can ask about it.

[ His hands drop to his lap, and he plays with the edge of his hoodie idly. ]

Your spare time should be for you to enjoy however you want. Not taking care of us.

[ He doesn't often feel judged. Even by Gojo, who Nanami is never entirely sure he can follow. The man's thought processes are well beyond his line of reasoning, but even still, it's hard to make Nanami feel the weight of being assessed by anyone. He's his own judge first.

But he feels it when Yuji watches him. He can see the deliberation, feel the way the young man works out what to do about him--and he's proud of that look. Despite himself, he feels that swell of warmth that seems like it pulls away the tension. Even when Yuji deflates in front of him, Nanami feels more at ease. ]

It wouldn't be so bad, would it?

[ He's half musing to himself, thinking out loud against the strange shift in pressure he's not used to feeling. He doesn't even realize at the moment that it isn't a weight, but the lack of weight that he's experiencing. It's just different enough to be unfamiliar and confusing. The realization will come later. ]

If you need a teacher anyway, it would make more sense to start from a familiar point, and sorcerers will understand other sorcerers better than anyone else. I would rather make sure you aren't learning anything inappropriate anyway. There are too many eyes in the city to be sure you aren't being monitored by someone else.

If I could pick anyone to have as a teacher you know I would pick you, Nanamin.

[ Maybe even over Gojo-sensei sometimes, because as powerful and strong as Gojo is, he's 1) not here and 2) poor with explanations sometimes. There were things Gojo would be able to help him develop more, but there's no denying that Nanami did his fair share in a short amount of time too. Yuji had learned a lot from them both, but that learning took different shapes.

Looking over, he smiles softly, feeling that bubble of warmth inside of him. Nanami isn't like other people who show they care with obvious words. He's a little more like Fushiguro, showing it with actions and what they choose to do with their time. ]

If this is what you want to do, then I'll be happy. But if it gets too much or you need a break, you need to tell us, okay? I know all three of us together are a lot to handle.

[ Even if Gojo-sensei matched their energy most of the time... ]

I want to spend time with you too, Nanamin. As much as you'll let me.

You should pick your instructors based on their actual knowledge and qualifications, Itadori-kun.

[ He's definitely not trained to be a teacher, and if it's knowledge of jujutsu techniques, he knows there are also more qualified people for that. But for basics, for foundations, and maybe for something else that the other instructors lack (he won't name what that is), Nanami thinks that maybe there really was a reason Gojo had turned to him. He had thought their strongest had been pawning Yuji off a little at the time, doing what Gojo often does, but did he actually know how much the young man would come to mean to him? Trust your senior. Had he already seen it then? Nanami had wanted to avoid the actual teaching aspect of work, but that also feels like another lifetime. Another piece of him left behind in the station. ]

However, they say teaching is one of the best ways to learn. I want you to receive actual instruction and not ignore all aspects of this life, so I can also train as we go, as long as you accept that.

[ He says it seriously, so that he can't hear the beating of his own heart. This isn't the time to let those simple, kind words affect him. Nanami realizes that he misses his sunglasses now, but instead of trying to hide his face, he breathes, in and out, slowly. ]

In any case, I hardly think you three can be more challenging than defeating curse spirits. Please don't learn from your previous instructor and underestimate me.

You worked in an office, right? So that must mean you have some good qualifications or they wouldn't hire you.

[ Take that, Nanami!

The issue is, of course, that Yuji has the emotional investment. If he had to pick someone to spend time with, to trust in to train him, then he would pick the person he trusts most in the world. Nanami is wise, and brave, and an incredibly good sorcerer, so what else could he want? Maybe he should be finding out how to do things like read English or do sciences with other people, but Nanami's definitely the one he'd turn to for help with homework anyway.

Nodding his head, he leans back in his chair, trying not to sigh. He doesn't want to keep offering more and more burdens, but... ]

I'm not underestimating you at all. I saw what you were able to do in... In Shibuya, Nanamin, and I know you're strong. I know you're pretty determined, too. I just don't...

[ He hesitates, then pauses, then glances up, finally. ]

I don't want our relationship to feel like a job to you. Like work.

[ Because work is shit, right? ]

[ He doesn't bother to argue the differences between office work and education. Not for this particular moment. Yuji's emotional investment is an understood truth, and Nanami is well aware that trying to pick every fight over minor details is only going to work against him in the end. Yuji's enthusiasm is refreshing. It reminds him of better times, something he had put behind him.

And he's not Gojo. He knows there's simply no comparison, not just in strength, but in the energy they all have. He will never match that. It's a separation he never wanted to bridge. ]

"Pretty determined."

[ He raises his eyebrow, giving Yuji a look that clearly says he is taking that as a backhanded compliment. But there's no anger in his expression. If anything, he's fighting a smile, because he can't allow that to take root. Even after going through so much loss and suffering, somehow Yuji is still the same as ever, bright and determined. Innocent when he shouldn't be. Only he would still be able to worry about whether Nanami might be treating him as just a job after everything he lived through. If he smiles now, like this, then it really might end up holding Yuji back later. ]

Why are you worried about that? You've dealt with other instructors, and despite what they may say, they treat their work as work. Even the ones who like to play too much.

[ They are always working. That's what they do. He does understand Yuji's point, though, and Nanami sighs a little. ]

Do you trust me?

You know what I mean.

[ He fought so many curses alone and that's impressive. Yuji was still holding back a little against the things Mahito made, still not wanting to hurt other people or steal their lives from them, but when Mahito took Nanami and Kugisaki from him in a span of ten minutes... He lost that rationality. He would do anything for the people he cares about, and there's no denying that it meant pushing himself to a whole new level, to new limits.

He was a threat, and he knew it. He would have killed Mahito in Shibuya if he'd been allowed to. ]

I know, but...

[ The question makes him jerk his head up, and for a moment he feels a little voiceless. Does he trust him? Of course he does - that was never in doubt, and the fact that Nanami even feels the need to ask makes him ache a little. He's just concerned that Nanami is somehow wasting his second life here, but... ]

I trust you, Nanamin. With anything, no matter what.

[ It's strange, seeing Yuji now and knowing the change between them. It's so simple, just right in front of him: he's good, but he's no longer at the level to match Itadori Yuji. Just like that, and the difference is there. Nanami shouldn't be alive to see it--he had been content to let go--but now that he is, it almost feels like he's looking at yet another Gojo, someone he also trusts but can't reach. Only Yuji is being careful with him, and Nanami can see that. ]

You can trust me with this.

[ Even if he's falling back in on the same feeling as before, even if he can't stop himself from trying to protect people in front of him regardless of his own life.

Even if he's doing something he doesn't love to do.

He's just not the type of person to worry about his own needs or wishes if there's still work to be done. Yuji is trying to give him back a gift he already surrendered a long time ago, and to Nanami daydreaming about lost time is a wonderful but ultimately intangible fantasy. Things that he wanted, even things he still wants--they are all pointless if he can't live with himself first. The future he dreamed of was already handed over to Yuji himself with a blessing from someone he never met but who would have loved him. Nanami just has to get him there. ]

I choose this. Because it's work that I can do and because you should have it. It's the adult's responsibility as the one who goes first to take care of those that follow, not the other way around. This is my job, and it's one I accepted as a personal request. It has nothing to do with official work.

[ It was never really about what the rest of the jujutsu world wanted to begin with. He just needed to see Yuji properly guided forward with the support they had never felt. ]

Itadori-kun, if I don't do this, what else will I do?

[ Maybe things would be easier for them all if they weren't expected to fight - Yuji would be able to urge Nanami to find some kind of quiet contemplation, something to fill his time that wasn't taking care of them and fulfilling some role he shouldn't have to do. Yuji doesn't like the idea of continuing to cause Nanami problems, or demanding too much of him, but...

Yuji wishes he could reach over and take all those bad feelings away from the man in front of him. After everything that happened in Shibuya, hadn't he earned it? The same doesn't apply to himself, not really - Yuji has never for a moment thought that he had earned some kind of peace. The problems he's caused by simply existing are far too much to ever expect anything like that, but Nanami...

You've got it from here.

Nanami had entrusted his burdens, his suffering, his legacy to Yuji, and he didn't want to squander that. He didn't want any of it to go to waste. ]

I'll accept it, because it's something you want to do.

[ Even if he feels responsible, in a way other adults in the school might never feel, especially for someone like Yuji. ]

I'd like you to do anything you want to do, but I know we're trapped here. You can't go anywhere else, but... You can read here, or see movies, or make friends and spend time with them. I want to spend as much time with you as possible, Nanamin, but I also want you to be happy.

[ His hands are on the table now, and if it was anyone else he might reach out - if it was Fushiguro or Kugisaki he definitely would - but there are limits to what Nanami might accept, even from someone like Yuji who pushes his limits. ]

More than anything, I want you to be happy.

[ Across from Yuji, who is definitely thinking some frustrated and complicated thoughts, Nanami watches. He's fairly relaxed now that he's said his piece and gotten a feel for the situation. He might not be sure either about how things will go, but worrying about that already feels like something outside of his concern. He does what he can and that is enough. His only real concern is the way that Yuji seems to be seriously wrestling with his decision, and Nanami can hazard a guess as to why.

And then he doesn't have to guess, because Yuji says it. Leave it to Yuji to put things right out in the open and follow his feelings with that innocent bluntness. As strong and as battle-experienced as he is, he's still young, and he makes it so Nanami can't forget that. ]

I appreciate your concern for me, Itadori-kun, but you and I are both sorcerers. Even if there were somewhere else to go, that's not an option I could take.

[ Will he understand? What Nanami wants for himself and what he can do for others are in conflict, but he's already made his choice. It matters enough to the few he can reach, and even if that means throwing away a second or third chance at life, as a jujutsu sorcerer, he doesn't actually regret doing it. Tired, sometimes angry and probably a little broken, Nanami can still appreciate the things they do for people who can't. ]

Whether it's curses there or monsters here, fighting or teaching, there's still a job to do. Our lives are filled with things we want to do and things we have to do, and we can't only choose what we want out of life.

[ He makes sure to meet Yuji's eyes for the next part: ]

But I don't have any regrets. Assisting you and the other students and staff was my choice. I wouldn't be satisfied letting you fight if I still have some breath left. I stand by what I said before, but I also still need to keep going if I can. Don't worry. I don't like to rush things anyway.

[ Yuji can't keep pushing him, not really. There's so much more he could say, he could complain, make the point that maybe they're not sorcerers here, that they're just... People, brought here to fight like dozens of others, but none of that seems to matter. In the end, Nanami has made his choice, and the two of them are going to be as stubborn as one another without hesitation. Yuji will have to accept it, because he doesn't want any other stumbling blocks to get between them.

Above anything else, Yuji is happy to have Nanami back at his side. He's happy that he can do something as simple as go out and get dinner with him, or be taught by him, or to message him whenever he'd like. He might never stop worrying, but at the same time... He'll never be able to stop feeling an overwhelming sense of utter joy and happiness. They've earned this, a little respite, the two of them.

Hadn't they done enough fighting? ]

I understand, Nanamin. I won't argue any more.

[ He waves his hand, sighing softly. ]

But just so you know, I'm really bad at science! I failed that.

[ Which is funny, considering how scientific some of their fellow sorcerers' techniques are, but... ]

Thank you.

[ Because he's not really going to argue with Yuji. Arguing is exhausting and Nanami has rarely found it worth the effort. He will simply find a way around it, and keep doing what he sets his mind to, and that's what he's always done. But for Yuji, Nanami makes a little more effort. He wants him to understand that they aren't different. He might have a low opinion of jujutsu society overall, but his reason for being a sorcerer is the same reason that brought him to Yuji in the first place--Gojo had seen it, and he had relied on Nanami's nature as much as his experience. He was a little annoyed at first when he realized what Gojo was doing, but Yuji had changed that. Now he wants to change Yuji's mind in return. ]

You can argue, but it won't stop me.

[ Just so they both know. He doesn't even sound that tired, somehow gaining a little more energy from talking to Yuji. ]

That's what teaching is for. If you already knew the answers, there would be no point. Don't worry about that.

[ What exactly did he do before? Maybe Gojo really didn't pay much attention to their lessons. Nanami sighs thinking about that. ]

By the way, I expect you to take studying seriously. Don't treat it with a low priority just because you don't enjoy it.

[ He definitely had this exchange with Nobara before. ]

I think you might be as stubborn as I am, Nanamin.

[ Which might not be saying a lot to other people - sometimes Yuji is as flexible as wet pasta when it comes to the people he cares about - but when he's determined to do something... Nothing will get in his way. If this is really what Nanami wants to do, then there's nothing he can really do or say to stop him; he just has to accept that this is how it is. This is how it's going to be, and he has to be okay with it.

Their food comes and Yuji shifts back and out the way as the waitress places it down for them, and he says a quick thank you for the meal before he grabs his chopsticks. ]

I'll work hard, and I'll take it seriously. I might not look like it, but I always handed in every assignment back at school.

[ ... Even if sometimes it was late, or he did it the night before. That's the kind of person he is, after all. ]

[ He tilts his head at that statement. Yuji? Calling him stubborn? His expression doesn't really change, but there's definitely a quiet acknowledgment of the humor in that kind of declaration. The young man who started their relationship ready to hit the ground running and never stop describing him as stubborn after knowing his history feels like a joke. But since Yuji doesn't joke about his focus, Nanami just clears his throat quietly.

He can only shoot the young man a look over his coffee when Yuji says he always turned in his work. Someone that Gojo was so drawn to doesn't give him a lot of faith in Yuji's academic focus. ]

I'll be sure to remind you that you said that later.

That's fine!

[ Look, he's just happy to be here. He eats a little bit of his meal before he glances up at Nanami, grin on his face all the same. ]

Hey, Nanamin... Does this mean I get to call you Nanamin-sensei after all?

[ Is this a win for Yuji Itadori, finally? ]

[ He knew it was coming, but he still grimaces. ]

I'd prefer if you didn't.

[ Because he definitely isn't really that, and maybe they'll eventually pull up a better choice. But he doesn't completely reject the idea anyway. ]

Okay, okay. That's fine, I prefer Nanamin anyway.

[ Grinning, he ducks his head a little to properly tuck in to his food, obviously very happy. ]

[ The look he gives Yuji is flat, but it's already something that was decided long ago. ]

You don't have to celebrate.

[ Stop laughing at him. ]

I'm not celebrating!

[ He definitely was, actually, and he does his best to put on a stern expression. Maybe he's copying Nanami a little. ]

Itadori-kun.

[He can still lift you over this table, don't test him.]

[ Ahah... ]

Sorry, Nanamin...

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