The morning heat had given way to a cool, quiet evening, bathed in the soft orange glow of the setting sun over the Jujutsu High campus.
Yuji sat on the edge of the elevated wooden porch, his legs dangling over the grass. Next to him sat a oversized, ridiculously fluffy, three-foot-tall bright blue dog plushie, its tiny bead eyes staring blankly into the yard.
Beside the plushie sat [Name], clutching a plastic cup of three-layer shaved ice. Her track jacket was tied around her waist, and her high ponytail swung gently as she kicked her feet in rhythm with his.
It had taken Yuji forty-seven hundred-yen coins, two light threats to break the machine's glass, and a very tense fifteen minutes at the Shibuya arcade, but he had done it.
"I still can't believe you actually got it," [Name] said, her voice soft with a quiet, lingering awe. She reached over and patted the giant plushie on its plush head. "It's so soft. Look at its little snout."
"I told you!" Yuji said, though his usual booming volume was replaced by a strangely gentle tone. "I said I'd get it for you. A senior always keeps his word."
[Name] took a bite of her strawberry-and-condensed-milk ice, humming in satisfaction. "You're a good senior, Itadori."
Yuji looked at her profile—the way the fading sunlight caught the hazel in her eyes, the small speck of blue syrup near the corner of her lip, the calm, relaxed posture of her broad shoulders. His chest felt full, but for the first time in a week, the panic was gone. It had been replaced by a quiet, steady certainty.
"Yeah?" She turned her head, looking at him openly, with zero walls or hesitation.
Yuji took a slow, deep breath. He didn't look away this time. He didn't scramble for an excuse, and he didn't try to hide behind a joke.
"I don't just want to be your good senior," Yuji said clearly.
[Name] paused, her spoon hovering halfway to her mouth. She lowered the cup slowly into her lap, her heartbeat suddenly picking up a steady, rapid thud in her throat. "What do you mean?"
"I mean... when I said you were my type on the track the other day, I wasn't just talking about sports or footwork," Yuji said, his face warming up, though his gaze remained fixed on hers. "I mean I like you. Like, really, really like you. I like how strong you are, I like how loud you laugh, and I like how every time you walk into a room, my whole day just gets better."
The silence that settled between them wasn't cold or awkward. It was heavy with anticipation, carrying the soft rustle of evening leaves around the courtyard.
[Name] felt a wave of warmth flush straight to her face, a deep, blooming blush spreading across her cheeks. But instead of shrinking back or laughing it off, she set her shaved ice down on the wooden floorboards next to her.
She shifted around to face him, drawing one knee up onto the porch.
"You know," [Name] began, her voice unusually quiet, "when I first came here, I thought you were just this super cool, crazy-strong second-year who was nice to everyone."
Yuji blinked. "I am nice to everyone!"
"You are," she smiled, a small, genuine curve of her lips. "But then you started bringing me that specific milk. And you caught me in the rain without even thinking about it. And then you sprinted across an entire field just to make sure I wasn't sad."
She reached out, her fingers closing gently around Yuji's hand where it rested on his knee. His breath hitched at the contact, his fingers twining around hers instinctively.
"I've never met anyone like you, Itadori-senpai," [Name] whispered, looking right into his eyes. "You make me feel safe, but you also make my heart do this stupid, fluttery thing that I didn't understand until now. So... I like you too. A lot."
Yuji stared at her, his jaw slightly open, as if his brain was processing the words one by one. "Wait. Really? Like... dating like?"
[Name] let out that loud, wheezing laugh, leaning her forehead against his shoulder for a second before looking back up. "Yes, you idiot! Dating like! Unless you were planning on winning giant blue dogs for all your other juniors?"
"No! Absolutely not! Only you!" Yuji blurted out instantly, his grip on her hand tightening as a massive, radiant smile split across his face. "Just you! Forever!"
"Okay, good," she grinned, her cheeks still bright pink. "Then we're dating."
"We're dating," Yuji repeated, the words sounding unreal and wonderful on his tongue.
He didn't hesitate this time. Driven by a wave of pure, unfiltered joy, Yuji leaned in and wrapped his arms around her, pulling her into a big, tight hug. [Name] gasped softly in surprise before laughing and wrapping her arms around his neck, burying her face into the crook of his shoulder. He smelled like soap, sunshine, and victory.
From the second-floor window overlooking the courtyard, three heads were crammed together behind the curtain.
"Finally," Maki muttered, crossing her arms and stepping back. "If they took another day, I was going to set fire to that plushie."
"They're cute," Panda sniffed, dabbing at a fake tear on his furry cheek. "Look at them. It's youth."
Megumi just sighed, letting the curtain fall back into place, though the corner of his mouth twitched upward into a rare, faint smile. "At least he'll stop jumping off the balconies now."
"Don't count on it," Nobara smirked, taking a photo through the glass with her phone. "Now he's just going to be twice as loud about it."
Down on the porch, the sun finally dipped below the horizon, painting the sky in deep shades of violet and pink. Yuji pulled back slightly, his hands resting on [Name]'s broad shoulders, his face glowing with an easy, radiant happiness that no curse in the world could touch.
Hearing her drop the senpai made his heart do one last, blissful flip.
"Want to go get more pork buns tomorrow? As my girlfriend?"
[Name] grinned, leaning forward to lightly bump her forehead against his. "Only if you pay, boyfriend."