EARLY MORNINGS AND OVERTIME | Nanami Kento x Reader JJK fanfic | Chapter 14: At Last (FINAL CHAPTER)
Pairing: Nanami Kento x Reader (fem, first person pov) Word count: 5347 Fic Summary: A smutty fic in which Nanami Kento brightens up the mundane, flour-dusted life a college dropout working in a bakery. Chapter Summary: After seemingly walking into a trap, our baker must find a way to get herself free. No smut warnings this chapter.
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This isn’t good. This isn’t fucking good. I look around frantically, searching for the source of the noise but there’s nothing to be seen. Even with the help of my glasses I quickly threw on, I still can’t see whatever is steadily closing in on me.
How could I have led myself into a trap like this? I ended up doing the exact thing I was afraid of… I ended things with Nanami because I didn’t want this exact scenario to happen.
Then again, if he’s not here to witness what happens next, I guess I succeeded in at least part of my goal in separating myself from him. He may never know what happened to me but hopefully he’ll assume I just ghosted him and lived the rest of my life in safety - not that I met whatever terrible end I’m about to meet.
He can’t ever know I ended up like this… the thought of him being devastated brings me to the brink of sobs. I clutch my hand to my mouth instinctively, holding back tears or vomit or screams - at this point I could hardly tell.
But I have to focus if I want even the slimmest chance of walking out of here. Ever since I spent a week of training at the cabin with Nanami I’ve been keeping a small slicing knife from work sheathed on my leg. I’d normally use it for cutting precise layers of cake to carefully stack atop each other. Now, I can only hope it’ll be enough to thwart whatever intelligent cursed spirit has been stalking me in this alley. I know I need to exorcise it to make this cat-and-mouse game end once and for all, but I don’t know if I’m even capable of that right now. And without Nanami in the picture to help me learn… I try not to think about what that means for my likely short future.
Something crashes against a dumpster across the alley again, snapping me out of my daze. Three rodents quickly scurry out from underneath the heap of trash as if they’ve been spooked.
I need to remember every single piece of training Nanami taught me. We never made it to close combat, but hopefully I can prevent the curse from getting close enough to try.
Pulling the short but sharp slicing knife from its sheath with shaky hands, I raise it up chest-height in a protective stance. Elbow bent straight ahead, forearm parallel with my chest, palm facing down… I grip the hilt of it as hard as I can while my eyes desperately scan the street for a clear view of the circling cursed spirit.
I slowly turn in a tight circle, subconsciously stepping off the sidewalk and into the empty road. I’d rather be in an open road than stand too close to the nearby building and risk having my back to the wall without means to escape. I already feel vulnerable enough as it is, I don’t need to make myself an easier target.
A snuffling, gasping sound snaps my attention to another narrow alley down the desolate road. I’m officially not alone.
My eyes widen as I attempt to make out the figure peeking out from around the side of the building. The first thing I notice are the claw-tipped dark green hands covered in spores and scratch marks. The skin covering this being is scaly yet blemished with golf ball-sized lumps as if it’s filled with air bubbles vying to break the surface.
Just the upper half of its head is peeking out, but I can see all I need to see in order to know I should be very, very afraid. There are no recognizable features in any place you would expect them to be on a person’s head. Three rounded eyes dot its face in a triangle-shaped pattern: two spread apart on each side and one at the top. Each eye’s pupil is spinning in a different direction, yet I can somehow feel all of its attention on me. Even from this front-facing view I can see its neck protruding from its head. Instead of being located at the base, it sprouts upward from the back of its head. It seems to curve downward towards the rest of its body, as if the head and body are connected by a bent straw. There is no mouth or nose to be seen, but I don’t doubt there are terrifying rows of sharp teeth lining its gums.
A flicker of light catches my eye, and I quickly shoot my glance back to the space in front of me. I began shaking so much that the thin streak of sunlight peeking through the clouds reflected off my knife like a mirror. I give a half sigh of relief to know I caused the flicker myself and swiftly bring my eyes back to the alley to focus on the threat at hand.
It’s empty. There’s no hands, no glimpse of a head. No curse to be seen at the edge of the alley anymore.
Shit. Shit shit shit shit. How could I take my eyes off it for even a second?! Now I nee-
Pure panic takes over every cell of my body. In the brief second since I looked away, the curse quickly advanced in my direction and is now blocking my entire field of view. It’s so close I can smell the rancid odor leaking from its skin - a mixture of garbage and spoiled milk.
If I didn’t already know I was being hunted by a curse I would have never believed that this horrifying-looking creature is the same type of being as the flyhead. There are absolutely no similarities between the borderline innocent-looking flyheads and what appears before me.
I was right about the teeth: they’re razor-sharp and there’s rows upon rows of them. But I was wrong to expect they’d be found on its head. Instead, there’s a grinning, teeth-filled mouth on each long limb: towards the end of each forearm and ankle. They’re positioned as if made for kicking or striking its victim while simultaneously biting down on its flesh. It’s a design of nightmares.
Before I can gulp down my sheer terror, a shrill, cackling laugh begins to bubble up out of all four mouths of the cursed spirit. It’s ear-piercing and nearly causes me to drop my knife while reaching for my ears. I’m gripping the sides of my head when the laugh turns into a scream that unexpectedly launches me backward, as if blown by an invisible wind.
I hit the ground in an instant, landing with a backwards somersault. I thankfully avoid an injury to my head due to my hands still being tightly gripped to the sides of it. I shuffle backwards hastily, scuttling my palms and feet on the hard pavement.
After collecting my bearings, I reposition the knife in my hand into a throwing position - there’s no way this will do me any good up close. If I want to have any chance of making it out of here, it seems I’ll need to rely on my good aim to hit at least one eye on the terrifying creature and run.
Steadying my breathing, I rise up on my feet and lift my arm above my head, ready to launch the knife that’s already become slick with sweat in my palm.
The curse hasn’t even moved from the same spot in the road, although that terrifying and haunting cackle has begun to bubble up out of its mouths again.
I train my eyes to the mouth on its left ankle… it seems like the target I’m most likely to hit.
With a deep inhale, I remember the hours of practice I spent aiming my throwing knives at the cabin with Nanami. How he made me hit the same target on a far away tree trunk over and over again. Until I learned how to still hit my target even with distractions. With the way he distracted me.How he took his time slowly lifting his hand up my thigh until he cupped me aching between my legs.
The maniacal cackle of the curse snaps me out of my memory of Nanami. If this throw doesn’t work, if it doesn’t give me a chance to run and get away safely, I’m at least glad I got to spend just a second in my mind with a fond memory of Nanami. I don’t want to die without at least the briefest moment of peace that only he can bring me.
Flexing the muscles of my arm, I grip the knife even tighter and throw. It sails through the air faster than any practice throw I’ve done, and looks to be exactly on track to hit the ankle-mouth I aimed for. I ready myself to run once I see it hit its mark.
Still soaring, the knife is just inches away from the now eerily-silent curse when it suddenly darts away in a flash to dodge the weapon. Without warning the curse once again materializes beside me in an instant, this time on my left. Again, I see each of its mouths open wide and scream, blasting me off my feet in the process. I fly through the air for barely a second before hitting the wall of the building I previously stepped away from. The force knocks the air out of me and snaps my head to the side hard enough to see stars. I’m unable to break my fall to the ground and cry out at the pain of my legs folding as I hit the pavement.
Every fiber of my being feels unbearable with pain and shock, but I can’t let myself stay down and vulnerable to attack. I attempt to scramble back up to my feet as fast as possible so I can reorient myself and decide what to do next. Panting, my eyes dart around in search for the curse but it’s nowhere to be found.
If I was panicking before I’m absolutely frozen in fear now. The curse is nowhere to be seen and I’m now weapon-less. Shaking, my eyes continue to scan every inch of the road in front of me desperate to s-
Without warning I hear the third shriek and feel the blasting wind of the curse knocking me completely off my feet - this time landing further down the road. There’s no doubt in my mind I must have broken or at least dislocated one of my arms now. The pain is past the point of ignoring and tears are silently filling and falling out the corners of my eyes. I instinctively wipe one away and realize why the curse took me completely off guard - my glasses are gone.
Disoriented and confused, I look back to where I was first thrown against the hard exterior of the building. There on the ground, shattered and bent, are the one thing that allowed me to see curses and have a fighting chance out of getting here alive: my glasses.
A sob tears out of me at the sight of them completely destroyed and unusable. I pull my knees to my chest and wrap my arms over the top of my head in a panicked fetal position. I’m done for. Absolutely done for. And I didn’t even stand a chance. Or save Nanami any of the heartbreak - I’ll still getting killed by this goddamn curse even after all the terrible things I said to break up with him. I should have known this plan would have never worked.
I hear the guttural cackling of the curse return and realize this must be the end for me. If this is how I go, I can’t do it cowering on the ground. Using my one good arm, I press my palm to the pavement and slowly begin to rise to my feet so I can at least prove to myself I’m still strong enough to die standing.
Each vertebrae in my back feels battered and bruised as I extend it to stand. Before I reach my full height, I’m nearly knocked back down for another reason. The curse hasn’t attacked, but it must have been aiming to, because before I can even hear a shriek I see the familiar, strong body I’ve come to love so goddamn much dive in front of me. Nanami found me. He came back to me. Even after all I said.
He shouts at me to run while winding up his arm to deal a strong blow to the now invisible curse with his weapon. I can hear the impact despite not having my glasses on to see the actual strike to the curse. I’m thankful to hear a horrific yelp from the curse after Nanami’s weapon makes contact, but Nanami doesn’t seem to be relieved or at ease from the looks of his body language. He’s immediately readying his weapon again, running to the side at an impossibly fast pace to strike his weapon again. This time, it looks to have been a defensive hit, as though the curse was already recovered from whatever damage his first hit did.
“I said RUN!” Nanami barks breathlessly without looking in my direction. I realize I’ve remained wide-eyed where I once stood, though now I’m back to a seated position since getting knocked over by Nanami’s defensive dive in front of me. The short but strong burst of energy that coursed through me to stand up earlier is now gone, and I’m afraid I don’t even have it in me to run at this point.
Just as I debate crawling in a desperate attempt to find cover, I see Nanami get thrown aside as if the curse just picked him up by the shoulder and tossed him like a doll. He’s able to land on his feet in crouch much more deftly than I did, but it’s still obvious he’s hurt.
I must have gasped aloud in the process because Nanami once again shouts at me to get out of here, this time barely getting the words out without a sputtering cough. I can tell he’s hurt - probably worse than he’s even letting show.
I’m in no condition to help him though, am I? No weapon, no strength, not to mention zero ability to even see the enemy we’re up against. All I have is myself. But I can’t fail him again today.
If this curse truly has the upper hand and I’m not able to escape my fate afterall, I have to at least use the last tool I have left: myself. I can distract this curse with myself. This way, I’m not failing Nanami by lying to him about wanting to break up or worse, by dying in a way he thinks is his fault. I can choose to get up and walk back towards Nanami and this invisible curse blindly, meeting my fate and showing Nanami its not his fault. Then, he’ll have the chance to use this distraction as opportunity to get away and save himself.
It doesn’t take me long to decide on what I have to do. If I’m being honest with myself, I’m not really distraught at the fact I’m willing to sacrifice myself to a horrendous monster. Not the possible pain, or suffering. Rather, the only thing that’s upsetting me is knowing that this means my time with Nanami is really over for good.
I take a deep breath to muster the courage to stand just as Nanami is knocked to the ground again. He’s been striking the curse time and time again, and yet it isn’t preventing him from being overpowered.
He still hasn’t gotten up yet… I know it’s time for me to do what I have to do. And hopefully spare his life in the process. I hope he can forgive me.
“Here, over here!” I shout the words as loud as I can despite the cramped feeling in my lungs. I’m pushing myself off the ground and onto my feet as quickly as I can, though it feels like it takes me an entirety to get upright. As I stand at my full height, I raise my one good arm and flail it aimlessly - unsure where the curse is located but drawing attention to myself nonetheless.
I have to take one last look at Nanami, to tell him what he needs to do.
Swallowing air and fighting back tears, I turn my head to his direction and force out the words in one quick sentence: “I didn’t mean what I said.. You have the chance to get away now.. I’m sorry-”
Just as Nanami’s eyes widen and jaw drops in understanding, I feel a giant, scaly body tackle mine to the ground and everything goes black.
…….......................................………
The afterworld, or heaven, or wherever I am right now feels nice. Calm. It feels… serene. I’m not scared or nursing any broken bones back to health. I’m not even sad about leaving Nanami - because he’s here.
By “here” I mean the nondescript Parisian bakery Nanami was referring to when describing our imagined proposal story. I’m living out that day, here in the bakery and the park with him. The bread we pick out tastes more delicious than anything I’ve ever had, and the champagne he pops for us once I say yes and slip on the ring tastes like stars in a glass. All of my senses are heightened here in the most pleasurable way. And everything looks more beautiful - including Nanami. He looks happier than I’ve ever seen him, and so carefree. I’ve never seen him this at ease. Maybe it’s be-
The sense that my body is rolling uncontrollably is confusing at first but quickly shocks me with alertness. My ears are ringing, my clothes are tattered, and my lungs are burning from a lack of oxygen. I’m alive…? At least barely it seems.
Getting tackled by the cursed spirit must have knocked me out. I’ve never experienced any type of dream state like that before. I can’t waste time dwelling on it though since I’m now back in the fray. I expect to hear scuffling feet and heavy breathing and clashing of weapons, but there’s none of that. It’s totally silent.
I’m finally able to fully open my eyes and reorient myself to my surroundings. I’m still here on the same road since I was tackled, but that doesn’t help the confusion.
I’m on high alert in case the curse pounces on me once again, but I don’t hear its cackling laugh or pointed claws or anything. I don’t hear anything. Even Nanami…
A new level of fear sinks in as I spot Nanami. My voice is so hoarse that the shocked cry I involuntarily make doesn’t quite come out. I lurch forward on all four aching limbs, desperately trying to propel myself closer and get to the collapsed, non-moving body across the narrow roadway.
My brain and body barely feel connected or functional - all I can think and see and do and feel is try to get to him. In what feels like days I’m able to drag myself over to him and throw myself on top of him. He’s on his side with his back to me, so I have to drape myself over his shoulder to see his face and check to see if he’s breathing or conscious.
His eyes are open, his chest is repeatedly rising with shaky breaths, and he’s… alive. I garble out another cry at the relief and shock. He’s alive and yet he’s still here unmoving and probably gravely injured.
I lick my lips to attempt to speak, but before I can utter a word he slowly drags his eyes to the side and turns his head towards me. He looks almost catatonic without expression, but the moment he turns enough to see my face he’s overcome with a look of sheer relief and sadness.
“I thought… I thought…” the words are barely coming out, but I know exactly what Nanami means when he says it.
“I’m alright, I’m here,” I respond - trying to convince both him and myself I’m still alive. There’s so many things I need to tell him… but first, I need to know if we’re still in danger. I have no idea if the curse is still around or if he managed to exorcise it. Clearly he didn’t run away as I had planned. “Is… did you exorcise it?” I’m practically shaking with nerves at the prospect of having to continue facing this thing.
Nanami still can’t quite form any words, but I know things are going to be okay when I see him nod slowly. I practically collapse against him, wrapping him in my arms once again and sobbing into his chest to hear that we’re not being hunted anymore. I can tell he’s crying too because I feel the shake of his chest.
We continue to hold each other, exhausted, in this heap for a moment until all the words I need to say to him come flooding back.
“I’m sorry,” I start to spurt out while slowly raising myself to a seated position. “I’m sorry for everything. I thought I could fix things and save you by telling you we were done and then when that failed I thought I could save you by buying you time and sacrificing myself in the process and that didn’t-” I’m cut off when Nanami manages to pull himself up as well and promptly leans in to kiss me mid sentence. He envelops my mouth and slowly works his tongue past my lips and it feels like he’s kissing me like its the last time. It really almost was.
He only pulls back to say, “I didn’t mean what I said either. About not being able to picture us together for the long term. I can picture it, clear as day… and that’s why I was so scared. I said I couldn’t promise a lifelong commitment because I was scared a situation like this would interrupt that commitment. And it almost did-”
“Stop,” I cut him off, tears still brimming in my eyes as I hold his face. “It didn’t. I tried to do the same thing and predict the future but it didn’t work. Of course my plan didn’t work. I thought that whatever curse was threatening you with taunts to hurt me would see us break up and wouldn’t be able to use me as a pawn anymore. But of course that wouldn’t work. Abruptly breaking up doesn’t change the fact that you would still be devastated if I got hurt… The curse would still get its revenge against you, breakup or not…” How could I have been so clueless? I start to beat myself up but realize I did the same thing as Nanami - the fear prevented me from thinking clearly. Also, part of me starts to feel an overwhelming surge of heartbreaking love for Nanami. He still cares so deeply for me no matter what, even after all I said. I thought I could release him from the trap of my fate, but now I realize those fears weren’t my fate - no one else decides my fate but me. I’m strong enough, (I’ve been taught well,) and risks don’t scare me anymore.
“We can’t predict the future,” I continue on, “and I won’t let you sacrifice your own happiness for the sake of my perceived safety. And I won’t let myself do it either. We owe that to each other and ourselves. I didn’t mean it when I said I didn’t want to be with you because your life and work is so risky - I only said that because I foolishly thought I’d be saving you the heartbreak.” If the situation wasn’t so dire I might even laugh at the irony of how we’ve nearly killed one another in our clueless attempts to save each other.
‘If you can’t promise me a future that has you safe in it, then I never want to see you again.’ My past words haunts me. How I thought hearing this would be easier on him than taking our chances getting hurt in the future is now a mystery to me. Now, I don’t care about a promised future, I just want to start my future with him at my side.
“We can’t control what dangerous, shitty situations are going to come our way whether we’re together or not - so why deny ourselves the chance to at least be happy in the meantime?”
Nanami looks at me with such genuine, emotional longing that I nearly start crying all over again. I can tell he has a million words to get out as well but is still so shocked by my near-death that it’s difficult to speak. “We… we can move away from here. Leave the city where cursed energy is higher and go further out of town.”
“Yes!” I completely agree without question. I can tell he never wants to experience this scenario again, and I don’t blame him. And, I want him to be safe. I want to see him be carefree and at ease the way I did in my dream. “What about the cabin? We can go there as soon as we get healed and figure it out from there. I’ll go anywhere with you.”
His eyes seem to spark back to life a bit at the suggestion. He starts to smile and nods in agreement before kissing me again. It feels impossible to pull myself away again, but making sure he’s physically okay is more important right now. I start to scan over his body, looking for broken bones or bloodstains. Apart from the same road rash I’m sporting, he doesn’t seem to be in as bad of shape as I thought. Still, we both will need help to heal. “We need to get to a hospital-”
He raises his hand to stop me and explain that he has a colleague who can help us. He’s able to reach for his phone and call them right away.
We continue to sit side by side, waiting for one of his jujutsu peers to pick us up so we can be healed. I’m not sure what that entails but I trust him.
Just as a black sedan begins to pull up to the curb, Nanami turns to me again before standing. “Seeing you hurt like that… and thinking you were gone, I…” he chokes up, unable to finish the sentence. He gulps and inhales before starting again, “I need to know I’m doing all I can to protect you and prevent that from happening ever again.” Another inhale. “I’ve always hated jujutsu sorcery, and now more so than ever. It can’t… it won’t be a part of my life again.”
I stare, confused, at his face. He looks determined and decided.
“I have the ability to see and sense curses still, that’s not going to change… but I’m choosing to distance myself from jujutsu.” We’re both standing now as the car pulls up, and he looks deep into my eyes as he reaches to open the door for me and says, “What’s important to me now is making a commitment to truly enjoy a restful life… with you.”
My response comes as easily as loving him does, “I like the sound of that.”
………….......................................................……….
Two Months Later
Packing up all our belongings from the cabin is an odd feeling. Not odd in a bad way, but odd in a too good way. Nanami and I have spent the time to heal our wounds physically and emotionally. Seeing me collapse took a toll on Nanami that was hard to shake. Thankfully, stepping away from the city and its overflow of cursed energy was the right move.
Now, we can spend the warm afternoons drinking tea on the small table in the backyard, and spend the chilly evenings snuggling in bed with the windows cracked. This is the first time we’ve really felt peaceful together.
The only reason we’re packing to leave is because Nanami bought us a place of our own! It’s even further out of town and on a bigger piece of land, so we really get the chance to tuck ourselves away in our own little world. I cannot wait to finish packing the car and making the drive over there this afternoon. I plan to surprise Nanami by growing a garden in the yard with all sorts of different herbs and veggies. That way I can experiment with cooking new types of savory breads and pastries for him to try.
With the last of my small bags in hand (Nanami wouldn’t let me carry out any of the heavier ones,) I pull the front door of the cabin shut behind me and walk out to the car. Nanami is there loading up the open trunk with the larger boxes, and smiles as soon as he catches sight of me.
I give him a quick kiss as soon as I step up close to him, and he puts his hand on my back before quickly moving it under the bag’s strap on my shoulder. He swiftly lifts the bag off my shoulder and places it gently in the trunk. I can’t help but smile at the simple kindness he shows me every day without even thinking twice about it.
“We’re just about ready to go,” he lets me know while shifting some of the boxes in the trunk to make room for the remainders. “I just need to move one more thing back here - can you hand me that container to your right?”
I look to the stack of boxes he’s referring to and grab the small open container from the top of the stack. There’s an envelope peeking out addressed to me. Holding it between my fingers, I turn back to Nanami and ask what it’s for.
“Open and take a look,” he replies with a sly yet innocent smile.
Curious, I pull open the envelope and reach inside for its contents: two small pieces of paper. I hold them in my hand and keep reading them over and over again, unable to believe my eyes.
Inside the envelope are two tickets for a flight to Paris.
....
After much deliberation I decided on making this a happily ever after afterall <3333 our fave worker bees deserve it fr :’( THNK U all for coming along this journey with me - it’s the first fic i’ve ever published and there were times i never thought i’d be able to finish it. writers block gets so real. but its my love for these characters and stories that motivates me to stay creative and i love them for that:)
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