Stray Cats

Megumi avoided him.

Like, actually avoided him.

Satoru would walk into a room and bam , the kid would vanish like he was a ghost with social anxiety. Eye contact? Gone. Words? Nonexistent. Blushes? Constant.

And it wasn’t the usual I hate you, you're annoying scowls anymore. It was blush-until-you-reach-boiling-point-and-escape-through-the-nearest-door levels of awkward. All over one stupid, admittedly naked, definitely-too-intense bathroom encounter.

Satoru didn’t even mean to make it weird. It just… spiraled. As things did with him.

Now Megumi couldn’t even look at him, and the only time they shared oxygen was when they were feeding the puppy-newly named Shiro , because it was tiny and white and looked like innocence personified. Unlike its emotionally constipated owners.

The vibe in the house?

Tense.

Satoru sighed into his smoothie and texted the only people who might understand. His therapists. Also known as:

Suguru Geto and Shoko Ieri.

They met at their usual spot: a café with overpriced drinks and zero judgment--unless that judgment came from Shoko, which it always did.

“So,” Shoko said, not even waiting for his order, “why does the emotionally unavailable himbo look like he’s processing grief?Is it a sex thing?”

“First of all, rude ,” Satoru muttered, flopping into the booth beside Geto. “Second, there’s this problem.”

Geto raised a brow. “With who? You? The man who ghosted three girls and a guy in one week and forgot their names?”

“It was two,” Satoru said. “And I only forgot one name. Mostly. ”

Shoko sipped her drink. “Wow. Look at you. Actually affected by something. Or someone.”

“It’s not like that!” Satoru snapped. “I just… okay. Hypothetically— hypothetically —let’s say a friend of mine had a situation.”

Geto smirked. “A friend.”

“Right,” Shoko nodded, amused already. “Totally not you.”

Satoru ignored them. “So this friend… was seen naked by someone younger. And now that someone is weird around him. And it’s not like that , okay? No perv stuff. It was just—wrong timing. Tub. Puppy. Nudity. Standard chaos.”

Geto blinked. “This is oddly specific for a ‘friend.’”

Shoko leaned in. “Wait. Hold up. A younger guy saw you— I mean, your friend —naked?”

“YES.”

“And now he won’t talk to you– I mean to your friend?” Geto asked, eyes already judging.

“Pretty much runs away every time I-my friend enter a room,” Satoru sighed, dramatically collapsing against the booth cushion while stabbing his straw into his iced matcha. “Like, sprinting. Full-on Olympic avoidance.”

“Damn. What did you-I mean your friend do? Flex too hard?” Shoko deadpanned.

“No! I- my friend may have told him to look because he was being annoying about not looking. And then he said something about my- his body being nothing special compared to his dad’s and—”

“Wait... Toji? ” Geto nearly choked on his drink.

“Not Toji-,” Satoru growled. “ The younger guy's dad! Imagine being compared to that over-muscled gym gremlin Idiot.”

Shoko burst out laughing, nearly choking on her drink. “Did you really bring up dick comparisons as a defense? Oh my god, I’m calling the FBI.”

“It’s not funny!” Satoru hissed, face red now. “And it’s my friends nemesis and he hates him!”
Shoko grinned wickedly. “Sure. Your friend whose name rhymes with... Matowu Rojo ?”

“What did this Friend of yours do other than being naked with this younger guy?” Geto asked again rubbing his head as if he is suffering from an oncoming headache.

“Ah–well—he—okay, fine, I-he might have made him touch m–his thing?”

Geto slowly turned to stare at him. “You what ?”

“It wasn’t like that! I-he was trying to prove a point!”

Shoko snorted. “You made him touch your dick to prove a point?”

“Well, when you say it like that—!”

“ Because that’s what it was! ” Geto smack him hard on the head. “Are you out of your mind ?!”

“It’s not that weird!” Satoru argued massaging his head. “Guys compare sizes all the time! We did it after football practice! Haibara did it. You did it!”

Another smack from Geto while Shoko doubles over from laughing.

“ What the hell is wrong with you? ”

“ What! We compared dick sizes all the time! ” 

“Nanami hated it,” Geto reminded him.

“Nanami hates joy , okay?”

“Still, that’s a minor!”

“Okay I panicked! I was mad he said Toji looked better!” Satoru groaned. “It was an ego thing! Not a crime!”

Shoko, wheezing, wiped her eyes. “Satoru. Babe. This might be your brain’s most unhinged moment yet.”

Geto looked at him, deeply unamused. “So what are you gonna do? Keep terrorizing the poor kid with accidental softcore moments until he calls child protective services?”

“No!” Satoru said, sitting up. “I want to fix it. He won’t talk to me. I spent weeks— weeks! —getting that grumpy cat to warm up to me. And now it’s all gone. Poof. I don’t even know how to look at him without making him combust!”

Shoko hummed. “Well. That does sound like guilt.”

“ It’s not guilt! ” Satoru snapped.

“It is guilt,” Geto said, sipping his tea. “And maybe a little—oh, I don’t know— feelings ?”

Satoru paused.

Then scowled.

“No. Absolutely not.”

Shoko raised a brow. “You sure? Because you’re kind of acting like you caught feelings. Like… real ones. Not the ‘I just want attention and to get laid’ kind.”

“It’s not like that,” Satoru said.

“Then what’s it like?” Geto asked.

Satoru opened his mouth.

Closed it.

Looked at the window.

Looked at his drink.

“…I think I like it when he yells at me,” he muttered.

Geto groaned. “Oh god, you have a crush .”

“I do not .”

“You do,” Shoko sang, kicking him under the table. "Oh no…the city’s hottest playboy is getting ghosted by a middle schooler and actually giving a shit.”

“I’m just saying… I worked hard to get that little emo urchin to like me. And now he won’t even look at me!”

“So say sorry?” Geto said simply.

Satoru frowned. “It’s not that easy.”

“Why not?” Shoko said. “You’re Gojo Satoru. You’re hot, stupidly rich, and emotionally unqualified. Apologizing is, like, the only normal thing you can do.”

“Yeah, but…” Satoru looked down at his drink. “What if it ruins everything?”

Shoko blinked.

Geto tilted his head.

And then Shoko smiled, almost softly. “Oh honey. That means it already matters. ”

Megumi came home from school to find Shiro bouncing at the gate, tail wagging like he’d won a puppy lottery. He barked once, then trotted proudly in a circle, showing off something shiny around his neck.

Megumi blinked.

“A collar?”

It was blue. Sky-bright and glossy, with a tiny silver paw-print tag that jingled when Shiro moved. The puppy looked smug about it, which was insane. But also… cute.

“…Satoru,” Megumi muttered, petting the pup’s ears despite himself.

He stepped inside the house, put down his bag, and immediately smelled it— tangy, sweet, sharp.

He froze.

No way.

Chicken nanban?

He followed the scent like a ghost being summoned. And there it was: a steaming plate, set on the table with perfect sides of rice and shredded cabbage. Crispy chicken, golden and glossy, topped with tartar sauce. Still warm.

Megumi stared at it.

It looked really good.

His stomach made a soft, humiliating growl.

He looked around. No maid. No Satoru. Just him, Shiro, and a culinary miracle sitting in front of him like a trap disguised as love.

“…I’m not touching that,” he whispered.

And then walked away.

Shiro barked after him, confused.

What Megumi didn’t know was that Satoru had been watching him from behind a hallway pillar like a war criminal in hiding.

He watched the whole thing.

The sniff. The pause. The longing stare.

And then?

The rejection.

Satoru slowly peeled his forehead off the marble wall and groaned.

“ He didn’t even touch it. I spent two hours on that chicken. Two. Hours. ”

The silence was killing him. The avoidance was worse. But the fact that Megumi had looked at that plate like it was sacred, then walked away ?

That almost broke him.

“I’m trying,” he muttered to himself, punching a cushion on the hallway bench. “I’m trying so hard.”

Later, Megumi changed into his usual soft black tee and shorts, ready to take Shiro out into the garden for their daily round of not-talking to certain someone and pretending everything was fine.

He opened the sliding door to the veranda…

And nearly walked straight into Satoru .

Standing like a dramatic anime villain, arms crossed, hair messy from running his fingers through it a thousand times.

They both froze.

Megumi’s eyes widened, cheeks flushing red on reflex.

Then— slam —he shut the door in Satoru’s face.

Or at least tried to.

Because a hand caught it halfway.

“What the hell—let go!” Megumi hissed from the other side.

“No! Stop running away like some tiny gremlin burglar!”

“ Move! ”

“ No! ”

They battled with the door like it was a tug-of-war match. Satoru’s strength was absurd and unfair. With one last yank, he forced it open— thud —and Megumi stumbled backwards, landing on the floor in a flustered heap.

“I don’t like you!” Megumi snapped, red-faced.

“No you don’t,” Satoru said, stepping in like he hadn’t just been physically assaulted by a door.

“Yes, I do —!”

“Well, I like you!”

Megumi froze.

Satoru loomed closer. Megumi scuttled back by pure reflex, but Satoru was faster. He swooped down, scooped him up in one smooth motion between his arms, and dumped him onto the bed like it was a soft jail cell.

Megumi immediately tried to sit up. “ You can’t just—! ”

Satoru caged him in, arms braced on either side of Megumi’s head, breath a little uneven.

“I’ve had enough of you running away like a rat in a hoodie.”

Their faces were way too close.

Megumi’s entire body went rigid, his face practically incandescent. “I’m not—! You’re the one who—!” he stopped.

Because Satoru wasn’t smirking.

There was no teasing. No smugness.

Just—quiet, genuine regret.

“I know, okay?” Satoru said softly. “I know . I was an idiot. A huge, emotionally constipated, wildly inappropriate idiot.”

Megumi stilled under him.

“I’m sorry for the bathroom thing,” Satoru said, quieter now. “It was a joke. A stupid, testosterone-poisoned, trying-too-hard joke. And I saw your face and—shit—I realized too late that I scared you off. That I hurt you.”

Megumi stared at him. Eyes wide. Breath caught.

“I just—” Satoru dragged a hand through his hair. “I worked so hard to get you to talk to me. To laugh. To stay . And I ruined it. Because I couldn’t shut up for five seconds. Because I’m used to people not giving a damn what I do.”

He looked down. Sky blue eyes unguarded.

“But I care if you do.”

Megumi opened his mouth. Closed it. Looked away.

For a second, Satoru thought he’d lost him.

Then…

“You are a jerk,” Megumi muttered.

Satoru blinked. “Okay. Ow.”

“You’re loud. And obnoxious. And you wear sunglasses indoors.”

Satoru nodded solemnly, biting his lip. “I’m sorry for being a dick. I’m sorry for being bigger than you. I’m sorry for making you touch my—--”

Megumi slapped a hand over his mouth, mortified.

“ No delicacy whatsoever, ” Megumi muttered, eyes squeezed shut, his hand trembling against Satoru’s lips. “You have no tact.”

Satoru blinked, wide-eyed.

“And for the record,” Megumi muttered, cheeks burning, “that was my first time touching someone’s…you know. And it felt weird .”

Satoru’s face crumpled into a guilty pout.

He gently pulled Megumi’s hand off his mouth, holding it in his own.

“I really am sorry, Gumi. Seriously. I’m an idiot. I’ll be better. I swear.”

Megumi sighed heavily, staring at the ceiling like he was asking the heavens why he had to deal with this.

Then, softer:
“You’re beautiful. Okay?”

Satoru blinked.

Megumi glanced at him, blushing harder. “You’re beautiful in everything. So stop sulking!”

Satoru’s heart did a dangerous little flip.

He grinned–huge, unrepentant–and before Megumi could squirm away, he hugged him tightly, burying his face into Megumi’s shoulder.


Megumi stiffened immediately.

“ Let me go, ” he growled, struggling.

“Nope,” Satoru said smugly, burying his face in the boy’s messy hair. “You’re a cutie. And you forgave me so now, you’re my cutie. And I’m gonna be good to you from now on. Super good.”

“You’re so weird…..”

“I know! ” Satoru chirped, nuzzling him like a pet dog.

“Oh! Speaking of good,” Satoru said brightly, finally letting him go, “I made you Chicken Nanban!”

Megumi blinked at him. Suspicious. “How do you even know I like Chicken Nanban?”

Satoru preened. “Oh, you know. I asked around. Did a little detective work.”

(He absolutely begged his mom to ask Toji, who responded with “I dunno, he eats chicken? Nanban maybe?” because of course Toji was useless.)

Megumi narrowed his eyes. “You didn’t burn it.”

“Excuse you, I watched three tutorials and cried twice.”

“I’m not eating your feelings.”

Satoru laughed. “Fair.”

Then, with a mischievous twinkle:
“So... can I walk around shirtless? I mean, if you’re over the trauma.”

Megumi scowled. “I don’t care. As long as you’re not swinging your junk around like a lunatic.”

Satoru laughed, light and easy, tossing his head back.

“You’re adorable.”

“Shut up.”

“ ADORABLE. ”

Megumi threw a pillow at him.

Andonce again, it felt normal again.

Better, even.

Saturday morning arrived with sunshine, birdsong, and Satoru Gojo’s voice echoing through the house like a disaster siren.

“Gumi-chaaaaaan~!”

“No,” came the immediate, muffled reply from Megumi’s room.

“You don’t even know what I’m asking!”

“Still no.”

But Satoru wasn’t a quitter.

He threw open Megumi’s door dramatically, striking a pose with a reusable tote bag and an expression of pure chaos. “We’re going shopping!”

Megumi looked up from where he was attempting to peacefully pet Shiro in bed, eyes squinting with suspicion. “Pass.”

Satoru clutched his chest like he’d been stabbed. “That’s so cold. You won’t even let me make it up to you?”

Megumi rolled his eyes. “I already forgave you.”

“Yeah, but I haven’t earned it yet,” Satoru said dramatically, flopping onto the floor like a dying swan. “Let me take you out! It’s a day of atonement! ”

“I don’t want to go out.”

Satoru leaned in, eyes glinting. “We’re stopping at the pet store.”

Megumi raised a brow.

“We need dog food for Shiro, its running out.” Satoru added casually.

Pause.

“…And birdseed for that one-legged fat pigeon you won’t stop feeding.”

Megumi said nothing.

“…And probably more cat treats for those gremlin strays that keeps showing up in the garden. What’s their name again? Satan and Lucifer?”

“Momo and Miho,” Megumi said automatically, then frowned.

Satoru grinned. Hook, line, and cat food.

“Fine,” Megumi muttered, shoving off the covers. “But you’re carrying the bags and paying.”

Satoru beamed. “Gladly.”

The mall was mercifully quiet for a Saturday morning. Just a few early shoppers, background music playing over the speakers, and one tall idiot trying to carry a comically large bag of kibble like it was a trophy.

Megumi walked ahead with purpose, checking labels and comparing prices like a seasoned Animal Dad. He loaded their cart with a mix of essentials: high-protein puppy food, grain-free kibble for the cats and a bag of exotic bird mix with suspiciously gourmet ingredients. He stopped by to an aisle with a very expensive brush shaped like a bunny. He just looked at it and Satoru picked it and put in their cart.

“That’s pretty expensive!”
“Ah really, doesnt matter…” Satoru muttered, lifting a pink fish-shaped chew toy.

“You shouldn’t waste money…” Megumi replied without looking up.
“But you liked them right, Gumi? And I’m paying.” Megumi opened his mouth. Closed it.
“T-thank you…” he said bashfully before turning away to another aisle.

It  touched Satoru’s soul, he could melt.

“Awww.”

They stopped for a moment at the plush toy section. Megumi lingered in front of a shelf of animal-themed phone holders, eyeing a tiny panda one with a secret kind of sparkle in his eyes.

Satoru didn’t say a word.

He just tossed it in the cart.

“Ice cream?” Satoru chirped hopefully as they left the pet store. “I saw a place with mochi cones. I’ll even let you lick mine.”

Megumi glared at him like he’d just said something criminal. “It’s not even lunch yet.”

“Come on, sweets before meats!”

“No. Eat lunch like a normal person.”

Satoru pouted. “You’re ruining my youth.”

Megumi ignored him entirely and steered them toward a sushi place with crisp white counters and tablet menus. Satoru dramatically collapsed into the booth. “This is oppression.”

“Order the salmon,” Megumi said, already tapping through the touchscreen. “And no sweet shrimp. You said it made you itchy last time.”

Satoru blinked. “You remember that?”

Megumi shrugged. “You complain loudly.”

Lunch was warm, calm, and for once, not a performance. Megumi didn’t say much, but his eyes sparkled every time the food arrived, and he made this barely-there pleased hum when the unagi nigiri was especially good.

Satoru watched him eat more than he ate himself.

He didn’t say it, but he was smiling the entire time.

After lunch, grocery shopping should’ve been simple.

But nothing with Satoru Gojo was ever simple.

“Put that down,” Megumi said, grabbing a bag of neon-blue candy from the cart.

“Why?” Satoru whined, clutching it dramatically to his chest. “It’s gluten-free . That’s healthy!”

“No, it’s not. It’s sugar and you’ll get diabetes.”

Satoru gasped, deeply offended. “You’re so mean.”

“You’re so childish.”

Satoru pouted as Megumi toss the bag of candy back to the shelf before he turned his back.

It was weird, honestly. Refreshing. Like breathing properly for the first time after being stuck underwater.

Megumi was talking to him again. Scolding him. Bossing him around like some grumpy miniature librarian.

It was different from what he have grown up to. It was nice. It was bliss.

Satoru grinned to himself as Megumi moved to the next aisle, focused and serious like he was leading a tactical grocery operation.

He was about to sneak another bag of marshmallows into the cart when he spotted something ahead that made his soul leave his body.
He saw them on the other snack aisle, and he cursed.

"Abort," Satoru hissed when he looked up and saw his friends .

Shoko, Geto, Nanami, and Haibara, standing twenty feet ahead, laughing over, picking up snacks from the shelf.

“Abort, abort mission—Gumi, quick, hide in the bread aisle!”

Megumi blinked up at him, confused.

And then too late.

Geto spotted them.

“YO!” Geto called, waving like an idiot.

Satoru visibly winced.

Moments later, they were ambushed. cornered.

"Look who it is," Shoko said, hands in her pockets, grinning lazily. Her gaze landed on Megumi and paused.

“Ah..this must be the mysterious little brother, Hello My name is Shoko…” Shoko introduced warmly. “..And this is Suguru…” She pointed to Geto who waved at Megumi.

Megumi, to his eternal credit, simply bowed his head slightly and said, “Good afternoon. My name is Megumi Fushiguro. It’s nice to meet you.”

There was a beat of stunned silence.

Geto’s grin widened.

Shoko whistled under her breath.

Nanami nodded approvingly.

And Haibara, wide-eyed and delighted, whispered, "He's so polite... and a cutie."

Meanwhile, Satoru stood there looking like a guilty golden retriever caught chewing the couch.

"Polite. Handsome. Well-behaved," Geto said, smirking at Satoru. "He’s like the angel version of you!"

Megumi blinked innocently.

Satoru scowled. "HEY!"

"Fushiguro-kun," Nanami said seriously, " My name is Nanami Kento and If Gojo does anything inappropriate, call me immediately. I’ll file a report."

"I can help too! My name is Haibara Yu" Haibara chirped brightly.
“Nice to meet you too..” again Megumi politely bowed

"I’ll provide emotional support," Shoko added.

Megumi tilted his head slightly. "Thank you. I'll keep that in mind."

Satoru groaned, dragging a hand down his face. "I'm literally a model guardian."

Geto grinned. "Model idiot maybe."

Satoru glared. "I'm the big brother here!"

"Are you though?" Shoko teased. "Feels more like he’s raising you. "

Megumi, deadpan, said, “It’s exhausting.”

The group howled .

Satoru crossed his arms, utterly betrayed. “I see how it is. Gang up on the beautiful one.”

"Anyway," Satoru muttered, regaining some dignity, "what are you guys even doing here?"

“Buying snacks,” Geto said lazily. “We’re heading to the movies after. Sent you the invite, but clearly you were too busy.”

Shoko smirked. “Busy dating your little stepbrother.”

Satoru flushed bright red. “It’s not a date, you psychos! I’m supervising! It’s family bonding! ”

Geto shrugged, unbothered. “Looked like a date.”

Satoru opened his mouth, then shut it because honestly? From the outside? It did look a little like a date.

He was trying very hard not to think about it.

Geto, grinning wickedly, turned to Megumi. “Hey, Fushiguro-kun, want to ditch this idiot and watch the movie with us?”

Satoru snapped, stepping forward and wrapping an arm around Megumi’s shoulders, tugging him close. “Nuh uh…”

Nanami, reprimanding, added, “Let Fushiguro-kun decide.”

Megumi blinked, thoughtful for a second.

Satoru looked at him. Pleadingly, puppy dog eyes and all...

Megumi sighed.

“Thank you,” he said politely, “but I have to walk Shiro and feed the animals.”

A pause.

Then he bowed slightly. “Maybe next time.”

He said it so sincerely, so apologetically, that the entire group melted into goo.

“Oh my, he’s precious,” Shoko said.

“Adopt me instead,” Haibara joked.

Satoru breathed an audible sigh of relief.

Then Geto, the absolute traitor, winked and said, “Megumi-kun, want to go on a date with Suguru-nii instead?”

Satoru lost it.

He tightened his arm around Megumi’s shoulders instantly, pulling him into a protective hug.

“Get your own midget!” Satoru snapped.

Megumi, poker-faced but pink around the ears, stood there in the chokehold with an impressive level of patience.

“I’m good, thank you,” Megumi monotonously said to Geto, ignoring Satoru’s clinginess.

Geto grinned. “Aww..then message me when you changed your mind” he then took out his phone and showed Megumi hi number. “Here’s my number.”

“He will not need you Number Thank you very much…”Satoru said grabbing Geto’s phone and throwing it back to him…He then held Megumi tighter like a possessive, overgrown cat.

“He’s mine. My adorable, polite, endlessly judgmental little Gremlin,” Satoru said dramatically, squishing Megumi’s cheeks between his hands.

“Let go or I’ll punch you,” Megumi muttered, glaring at the older teen while the others were amused at their antics.

“Nope.”

Shoko pulled out her phone. “Smile for the family album!”

Satoru beamed.

Megumi looked like he was plotting murders.

“Then see you two lovebirds” Geto winked at them

“We’re not lovebirds!” Satoru barked as they walked away, laughing.

Megumi didn’t correct them.

He just quietly picked up a box of chocolates Satoru had dropped in all the chaos and placed it neatly into their cart.

As they moved toward the checkout, Satoru nudged his side gently.

“Hey, thanks for not ditching me for Suguru.”

Megumi rolled his eyes, but there was no real annoyance there.

“Someone has to make sure you don’t get arrested for indecency.”

Satoru laughed.

And when Megumi looked up at him, face still faintly pink but steady, Satoru felt the world tilt slightly on its axis.

Oh no. oh God. his heart just skip a beat.