[⚠️] Content: Toxic parents, controlling parents, themes that align with anxiety and depression, Fushiguro Family antics, pizza takeout and home movies.
Summary: After a terrible and toxic phone call with your mother, you were left feeling down in the dumps. Megumi had an average day at school and Tojis work-day wasn't eventful, the boredom left you all craving a relaxing time with takeout and movies.
The dulling ache in your chest lingered as you stared out of of the window, watching the rain patter gently against the earth's soil and paths. A cup of untouched tea grasped firmly between your hands, full to the top and cold as the hour passed by.
The room was dark, lights off, the only light being what remained from the sky covered by rainy clouds. The cushions were comfortable, and the knitted blanket rested over your legs made things a bit warmer. Still, the emptiness of the room, of the house, in a storm - after your mother had degraded you for the third time that week - it was unbearable.
You'd usually avoid your mother's calls, she never really contacted you often enough. Though, when she did? She sure as hell made her thoughts known to you, anything and all, unfiltered and malicious. The words she spat were like acid being poured over your head, sizzling away at your good mood.
You'd spent just over 16 years dealing with your mothers displeasure - acting as if your existence was merely tolerable. Shrinking away from her vicious raised voice, her insults at every mistake, her day by day expectations for how she expected you to live your life - no room for your own decisions. 16 years you felt was too long.
You sighed, for the fifth time.
Your phone blew up with messages from your friend, Satoru, who was bragging about his new partner. Nanami messaged too, but you weren't one to discuss such sensitive matters with him as he was a Co-worker, not just a friend. You would handle it as you always had, alone, ignoring the issues existence.
The squeak of the front door travelled through the hallway, followed by a gentle lift of the handle to close it. You checked the time, you wasted your time sitting on the couch for an hour in the darkness. You didn't know why it didn't occur to you that Megumi would be home at that time. You turned your head slowly, acknowledging the footsteps that approached the lounge where you sat.
Megumi grunted, face decorated in surprise, shock and a sense of urgency as he dropped his bag, preparing to summon demon dogs for a possible intruder. There was no intruder, just you on your lonesome, "Patch?"
He called you by the famailar nickname. He'd given you it when you had a jacket full of holes, patched up with a chaos of multicoloured and unorganised cloth that was slightly freyed but still functional.
"Sorry Mimi, I was in my head, didn't mean to scare you." You shook your head of useless conflict and sat upright, nudging your cup further to the center of the coffee table, next to a wooden bowl of randomised wrapped candy. "How was school?"
He shrugged, "The same as always. Did Gojo message you? Said he needed your advice."
You nodded, Satoru did message you. You didn't know what about, but your phone displayed his name as it buzzed for each message he sent. "He did. I'll reply later."
You stood up, picking up your cold cup and wandering into the kitchen. Cup in the sink, counter quickly wiped down with a damp cloth, examining the cupboards with a keen eye as you thought about what to cook for dinner. "What are you thinking about for dinner?" you asked, defeated. You had sat in wallowing self-pity and lost whatever energy you could have spared to cook. It sounded bad, but you couldn't be bothered.
Megumi watched you, blinking silently in thought. Still, he shrugged once more. "Whatevers fine."
You wanted to hang your head. Neither you nor Megumi could decide on food. That left Toji to be the deciding decision. Or...
Your eyes skipped over the shelves by the TV, mind thinking about the possibility of ordering food and watching a movie. You leaned against the kitchen counter, arms crossed over your chest, crumpling your knitted cardigan as you thought to yourself. Toji could pick up takeout on his way home, you and Megumi could set the lounge up to watch a movie and it could be a carefree Friday night, one you all needed.
"How about a movie night? Do you have any movies you want to watch?" you pursed your lips, bobbing your head, "Or series?"
The raven haired boy sat himself down on the couch, tugging a pillow onto his lap and clutching it as if it were his lifeline. "Maze Runner?"
You grinned, brightening up, "Sounds good. I'll message your dad."
And you did, a brief exchange of hellos, how's work, asking about takeout pizza, agreement and see you laters with a few x's and heart emojis. The rest could be exchanged when he got home, after the movie when Megumi went to bed. After all, the deciding factor of continuing your relationship was communication and you'd both improved significantly, but you had to get some feelings off your chest before they weighed you further down. Your mother was infuriating like that, finding ways to wriggle around in your mind when she wasn't even around you.
Toji stormed through the door carrying several boxes and mouthwatering pizza, shoes thudding against the wooden floor, dirting the rug. His feet took turns to kick his shoes off carelessly and tossed his jacket onto the storage dresser sat by the door. "'m Home."
The famailar scent of sweat mixed with smoked wood and the bitter dark chocolate overwhelmed the hallways fresh smell of laundry detergent as he made his way through the house, entering the open plan kitchen and lounge. He grunted to himself, "And dinners served. You're welcome."
You and Megumi sighed from relief, it hadn't been 30 minutes since your messages to Toji, in that time he'd managed to get off work an hour early and pick up Pizza on the way home. Nevertheless, you almost drooled, moving the wooden candy bowl to another coffee table, placing the graceful set of almost dead but still pretty flowers and their vase on the windowsil and tugging the curtains closed in a rushed attempt to make space for pizza boxes on the table that sat in the center of the couches.
Megumi laid himself head to toe on the smaller couch, head resting against one of the larger pillows. In his grasp was the remote for the TV, low volume clicks searching through the menu for the movie he wanted. Meanwhile, Toji and his large body occupied the corner of the bigger couch, feet placed lazily on the table in front of him and one arm crossed behind his head.
"How was work?" you asked, hushed in Megumis focus, making room for yourself next to Toji. The now full lounge with the subtle TV light illuminating the room was much more comfortable in comparison to the cold eerieness you surrounded yourself with moments prior.
Toji grumbled, low and gruff. "Same as always."
You covered your mouth as an amused huff escaped you. "Sounds eventful."
"Quite the opposite, 'ma." He sighed deeply, his arm pulling you to lean against his side. Forcing you, unusually tender when compared to his pure brute strength, to snuggle against his upper body, head buried in the dip of his shoulder. His voice became quiet, a blunt whisper as his lips nuzzled the tip of your ear. "And how was your day?"
You paused, smile falling into a deep, numb frown. You shook your head, left to right, dismissing the gravity of the question. "Quiet, mildly annoying since my mother tried to contact me again."
Toji stared down at you, a certain cocktail of concern laced with annoyance as you mentioned the old hag. His thumb, large and empowering, rubbed circles from your collarbone to the curve of your shoulder. His silent attempt at soothing your uneasiness. "Wanna talk about it Later? We can enjoy the movie for now, y'know, wind down."
You briefly nodded, grateful he didn't want to discuss it immediately. You all needed time to relax, stress was not part of the agenda. You especially didn't feel comfortable discussing the topic in front of Megumi who had already gone through enough since the initial split up with Toji a year prior. Your hand rested on his knee, appreciative of his patience.
"'Kay." The man took a deep breath, "What're we watchin' Megs?"
Megumi was focused on the TV as the movie began to play. His attention wasn't even piqued by the brief notification on his phone from Yuji, probably Sukuna losing his shit and running to the raven boy to fix Yujis hyperactivity. "Maze Runner."
Toji nodded, a subtle smirk tugging on his legs. "Sounds like a blast."
It didn't take long for tiredness to settle into your bones. Lashes fluttering as your eyes battled against sleep taking over. The boys were invested, fixated on the plot, occasionally reaching for a slice of pizza. Megumi quickly slipped away to grab drinks and rushed back, hurried taps against the floor as he launched himself back onto the couch to catch the good part of the movie.
Toji was dilligent, his foot swayed from side to side on the table, his arm firmly wrapped around you. Pins and needles pricked at his nerves but he was adamant to remain still, prioritising your comfort over his own, obsessed with your soft skin and gentle warmth as you tucked against him. Your head bobbed, going limp and adjusting, neck turning, making quiet hums akin to subtle snores.
The last thing you remembered was the hushed, gruff voice of Toji whispering a compassionate 'Sweet dreams.'
