Chapter Twenty-Two ✩ Doctor's Orders

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"Ho Ho Ho!" Gojo held his belly attempting to let out a jolly laugh that fell flat on Kanae's ears.

Instead of feeling the holiday spirit to the sound of his voice, she began to feel something else. Having a crush on someone made everything they did seem much more attractive. It didn't help that instead of a round belly, Gojo had a chiseled abdomen.

"What a terrible impersonation on Santa. 1/10."

"Sorry, I can't help that I'm a bit more charming than the big guy." He winked at her.

Tilting his head to the side, his expression popped noticing her pyjamas. Her nightwear was a two piece set patterning a chibi face of Naruto and ramen bowls. She could feel his stare and which only poured in embarrassment for her. The ensemble was cute to him and continued to show him how deep her love for Naruto went.

Instead of teasing her about her garments, he kept it short and sweet. Clearing his voice, his mouth rubbed against the base of his hand.

"You were sleeping?"

Compared to other days, this was early for Kanae. Their schedules matched one another as she was a night owl and he himself never found himself loving sleeping early. The best things happen at night. Well that's what he had told himself.

"Well..." She scrunched her lips as she crossed her arms and shifting her weight. "My body is in need of rest."

"What's got it needing rest?" He questioned.

Rolling up her pants, he noticed her bandaged ankle. It began to make sense, but another thing settled in for him. She was hurt.

"You got hurt, again?" Kanae was constantly coming from missions with injuries. Even though they were minor, it made him wonder how far she was willing to let such happen.

"It's not a big deal. I just...I'm still learning new things about my power."

"Still."

She noticed his eyes, the playfulness washed away as it seemed to ache him more than it did for her. He pushed her door further open walking in as she followed limping. He bit the inside of his cheek as he assisted her to sitting on her bed. He paced a bit in her room plotting words in his head before turning his attention towards her.

"This won't do."

"What wont do?"

"You getting hurt all the time? It needs to stop." He couldn't understand why it wasn't a big deal to her. Maybe she was convinced Shoko would always be there. Even if that was the case, that wouldn't be the appropriate way to live. "At this rate, you could get seriously injured."

"Stop cursing me!" Clenching the edges of the bed, she frowned. "You know I'm not a child Gojo. I can take care of myself."

"Is that what this is?" He pointed at her ankle. Now that he was thinking about it, he noticed how low her energy had felt. "What's up with you? You seem less...empowered."

Talk to him Kanae. That's the doctor's orders. Releasing all her stubbornness, she allowed herself to be vulnerable.

"Do you remember my old school?" She questioned.

How could he forget? Her first real exorcism that went well. He still had questions about that day.

"Of course I do! Riko threatened to break my legs." He chuckled at the memory. It still humoured him how confident she was in her own abilities to do so.

"You never asked how I did it." Her voice went low, an airy-like state. "How I..took out the curse."

His eyes widened at her words. Had he thought of such? He always assumed her technique was merely superior in the end. Though, if the curse was that strong, maybe there always was a seed of doubt. With all of that, he still found no reason to question her. He loved how confident she was in her abilities and someone being in that state can go a long way in making them stronger.

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