Ramen

Satoru Gojo returned at noon the next day.

Suguru Geto was eating in the cafeteria. Lunch that day was ginger pork, with a small dish of pickled radish on the side.

He did not look up when the cafeteria door opened. He knew from the footsteps. Only one person walked with that lazy gait, each step almost dragging across the floor.

"You're back?" Suguru Geto said, continuing to eat.

"I'm back," Satoru Gojo said. He picked up the teapot on the table, poured himself a cup, drained it in one gulp, then poured another.

Suguru Geto waited until he finished the second cup before asking, "What did the Association want with you?"

Satoru Gojo set down his cup and leaned back in his chair, lacing his hands behind his head.

"Nothing major. They just wanted me to confirm whether the echo had really disappeared."

"And then?"

"Then I came back," Satoru Gojo said, as though it were the most natural thing in the world.

"Did they give you any trouble?"

Suguru Geto picked up a slice of pork, put it in his mouth, and chewed.

Satoru Gojo glanced at him. His sunglasses hid the expression in his eyes, but the corner of his mouth curved slightly.

"Who would dare give me trouble?"

Suguru Geto did not answer. He knew Satoru Gojo was telling the truth. He was the strongest in Jujutsu Society. No one dared give him trouble.

But Suguru Geto also knew that Satoru Gojo was not the sort to use his strength to bully people. He was lazy, easily annoyed, and unwilling to waste time on such things. The Association summoned him, so he went; they asked questions, so he answered; they finished checking, so he came back. He would not go looking for trouble, but he would not let trouble come looking for him, either.

"Have you eaten?" Suguru Geto asked.

"No."

Suguru Geto stood and went to the counter to get Satoru Gojo a meal. When he returned, Satoru Gojo was still in the same seat, his legs stretched beneath the table, his posture unchanged. Suguru Geto set the tray in front of him and sat back down.

Satoru Gojo glanced at the food on the tray.

"Ginger pork?"

"Yeah."

"I don't like ginger."

"Then don't eat it."

Satoru Gojo picked up his chopsticks, took a slice of pork, put it in his mouth, chewed, and swallowed.

"Not bad," he said.

Suguru Geto lowered his head and continued eating.

Satoru Gojo finished the entire serving of ginger pork. Even the shredded ginger.

After lunch, they left the cafeteria together. The hallway light had been repaired and no longer flickered. The new bulb was a little brighter than the old one, making the walls look white.

"They fixed the light," Satoru Gojo said.

"Yeah."

"Who fixed it?"

"I don't know," Suguru Geto said. "Someone was called yesterday. They came today."

Satoru Gojo said nothing more. He walked beside Suguru Geto, less than ten centimeters between their shoulders. The hallway was wide enough for them to walk farther apart, but they did not.

At the stairs, Satoru Gojo suddenly stopped.

"Geto."

Suguru Geto stopped too and turned to look at him.

"We have a mission this afternoon," Satoru Gojo said. "Mr. Yaga just sent it over. Saitama. A Grade 1 Cursed Spirit haunting a school. I can go alone, but..."

"I'll go with you," Suguru Geto finished for him.

Satoru Gojo nodded.

"You don't have to go if you don't want to," he said. "I can let Mr. Yaga know."

Suguru Geto thought for a moment.

"What time do we leave?"

"Two."

"All right."

Satoru Gojo glanced at him, saying neither yes nor no.

Suguru Geto stood at the foot of the stairs for a few seconds, then went upstairs too.

They left at two that afternoon, right on time.

This time Suguru Geto drove, with Satoru Gojo in the passenger seat. The car stereo was playing an English song Suguru Geto had never heard before. He simply listened, tapping his fingers lightly against the steering wheel in time with the music.

"Geto," Satoru Gojo said suddenly.

"What is it?"

"What did you do yesterday?"

Suguru Geto thought for a moment.

"Ate, took a walk, read, slept."

"That's all?"

"That's all."

Satoru Gojo fell silent for a few seconds.

"Were you bored?"

Suguru Geto turned his head to glance at him. Satoru Gojo was leaning back in his seat, his head turned toward the window. Light reflected off his sunglasses, hiding his eyes.

"Not really," Suguru Geto said.

Satoru Gojo asked no more questions.

After about an hour and a half, they reached Saitama. The school was on the outskirts, a small place with only one classroom building and a playing field.

The cursed spirit was haunting a classroom that had been turned into a storeroom.

When Suguru Geto pushed open the door, he found a room full of dust and cobwebs. The cursed spirit was hiding behind a cabinet at the far end. It was Grade 2, resembling a flattened frog, with dark green skin covered in lumps. Sensing someone enter, it gave a low gurgle, then lunged at them.

Satoru Gojo did not move.

Suguru Geto raised his hand and subdued it with Cursed Spirit Manipulation. A black orb formed in his palm, then dissipated. The cursed spirit vanished, tucked into some space within him alongside his other cursed spirits.

"Done?" Satoru Gojo asked.

"Done."

"That fast?"

"It's Grade 2," Suguru Geto said. "It was weak to begin with."

Satoru Gojo shrugged and left the classroom. Suguru Geto followed him down the dust-covered hallway, across the weed-choked playing field, and back to the car.

"Straight back?" Satoru Gojo asked.

Suguru Geto checked his phone. Four thirty in the afternoon. The sun was still high, the sky still bright.

"Let's find somewhere to eat," he said.

Satoru Gojo did not object. They drove to the nearest small town and found a tiny ramen shop. The owner was the only person there, a woman who looked to be in her sixties, with graying hair and an apron washed almost white. Her eyes brightened when the two young men entered, then quickly returned to the mild expression of someone accustomed to customers.

"Two?"

"Yeah," Satoru Gojo said.

She led them to seats by the window, set down two glasses of ice water, and handed them menus. The menu was simple, offering only a few kinds of ramen and a handful of side dishes. Without even looking, Satoru Gojo said, "Soy sauce ramen, with extra chashu and a soft-boiled egg."

Suguru Geto looked over the menu and said, "Miso ramen."

The owner wrote down their orders and went into the kitchen. Soon, they heard boiling water and the sound of vegetables being chopped.

The ramen shop was small, with only four tables. They were the only customers. A few posters for movies from several years ago hung on the walls. Satoru Gojo took a sip of ice water, set the glass on the table, and slowly traced his fingers around it.

"Did anything feel different when you took in that cursed spirit?"

Suguru Geto thought for a moment.

"No."

"Same as before?"

"Same as before."

Satoru Gojo nodded.

"That's good, then," he said.

Suguru Geto watched him and waited a few seconds. When he said nothing more, Suguru Geto looked away.

Their ramen arrived. Satoru Gojo's broth was dark, covered with a generous layer of chashu. The soft-boiled egg had been cut in half, its orange-red yolk spilling out like a tiny painting. Suguru Geto's broth was lighter, rich with the fragrance of miso, with bean sprouts and chopped scallions floating on top.

They lowered their heads and ate without speaking.

Water bubbled in the kitchen. The owner's knife struck the cutting board as she chopped scallions, and chopsticks clicked against bowls, crisp and brief.

Halfway through his noodles, Suguru Geto stopped and took a sip of broth.

The taste of miso slowly spread through his mouth, salty and savory, with a hint of sweetness.

"Satoru." He set down his bowl.

Satoru Gojo looked up from his ramen, a noodle still dangling from the corner of his mouth.

"What is it?"

"Nothing," Suguru Geto said. "I just wanted to say your name."

Satoru Gojo looked into his eyes for two seconds, then slurped the noodle into his mouth, chewed, and swallowed.

"Geto."

"Yeah."

"Is your miso ramen good?"

Suguru Geto looked down at the half bowl of noodles he had left.

"Not bad."

"Let me try some."

Suguru Geto pushed his bowl to the middle of the table. Satoru Gojo picked up his chopsticks, took a small bundle of noodles, put them in his mouth, and chewed before pushing the bowl back.

"Mine's better," he said.

Suguru Geto did not argue. He lowered his head and continued eating his miso ramen.

After finishing their noodles, they left the ramen shop. It was almost dark.

"Let's head back," Satoru Gojo said.

Suguru Geto started the car and drove out of town.

The car rolled onward. Suguru Geto glanced at Satoru Gojo in the rearview mirror. He had fallen asleep, his breathing soft and slow, his head tilted slightly toward the window. His sunglasses had slipped down a little, revealing part of the bridge of his nose and his closed eyes.

Suguru Geto returned his gaze to the road and kept driving.

It was almost ten when they returned to Jujutsu High. He parked, turned off the engine, and looked over to find Satoru Gojo still asleep.

He hesitated for a second, then reached over and patted Satoru Gojo's shoulder.

"Satoru. We're here."

Satoru Gojo did not move.

Suguru Geto patted him again.

"We're here."

Satoru Gojo finally opened his eyes. He blinked, looked out the window, then sat up straight and adjusted his sunglasses.

"We're here?" His voice was hoarse with sleep.

They got out of the car and walked through the school gates. The hallway lights were on, the newly replaced bulb casting a bright light over the walls.

At his dorm room door, Suguru Geto stopped and turned.

"Good night," he said.

Satoru Gojo leaned against the hallway wall, his hands in his pockets, watching Suguru Geto.

"Do we have class tomorrow?"

"Yeah. Jujutsu theory, first period."

Satoru Gojo nodded.

"See you tomorrow, then."

"See you tomorrow."