Pickles ||Inumaki x Reader||

[Art by zuyuanzesar on Instagram]

My hand traced over his pale skin, stars dancing beneath my fingertips as I grazed over each burn and bruise. His chest rose and fell slowly and I could hear faint cracking in his lungs as he breathed. Toge was heavily injured, but alive.

I softly held his pale hand as he slept peacefully, completely unaware to the hours I had spent sitting next to his bed waiting for him to wake up from his nap. But at the end of the day, I didn't mind. Just getting to be in that room with him and hear his soft exhales in sync with the ticking clock was enough for me.

Buried deep in my thoughts, I absentmindedly rubbed my thumb across his knuckles in a circular motion- similar to how he used to do whenever I was stressed. My gaze shifted from his hand to his opposite shoulder and down to the his upper arm which was wrapped entirely in seals; the memories of what Sukuna did to him came rushing back and all of a sudden I had to suppress the urge to throw up. 

Toge would have to live the rest of his life without an arm. He didn't deserve that. Not my Toge. 

I gulped hard, sending the guilt back down my throat, before wiping the small tears away. I leaned over his bed and planted a small kiss on his cheek. Even after that, I didn't want to sit back down on the chair just yet. I just loomed a few inches away from his face, admiring the way his skin glowed, because to me, Toge was the most perfect person in every way possible. He was an intelligent sorcerer, a reliable friend and a loving partner. No matter what the world threw at him he would catch it and throw it right back with twice as much strength. He was a good boy. An angel.

My train of thoughts came to an abrupt halt when he suddenly jolted awake, smashing his forehead onto mine when he tried to get up. 

We both screamed in unison and I fell back onto my chair in pain, "Ow, what the fuck!? Is your head made of steel or something, dude!?" 

Toge also squinted in pain after our unforeseen headbutt but immediately opened his eyes at the sound of my voice. It finally clicked that he had woken up the second he turned to me with an open jaw, and when we locked eyes like that, all the anger in me just melted.

"Tuna mentaiko salmon flakes mayo cod roe!" The random ingredients tumbled out of his mouth one after the other as he reached his hand out to hold me. 

I wasted no time in throwing myself at him, burying my face in the crook of his neck as he fell back onto his mattress, taking me with him. And for a while we just laid like that.

"Mustard leaf?" The boy mumbled into my hair after a few moments of silence.

"I should be the one mustard leafing you." I whispered sadly. "I thought I lost you."

He didn't reply but only tangled his fingers in my hair. It was his way of comforting me, letting me know that he's okay and alive. He must have known that I had been carrying the weight of everything in Shibuya on my back. Toge always knew.

As I laid on his chest, my eyes were glued to his severed arm and I continued to look at it until the tears blurred my vision. "I'm sorry Toge," I sobbed pathetically. "I'm sorry, I'm sorry I'm sorry," With each apology, my voice trembled and my hands shook. 

"Shhh... it's not your fault." His words should have been reassuring, it should have made me feel better but instead I only cried harder. How could he still insist that all this pain and suffering he has to endure isn't because of me in the slightest? How could he sacrifice himself to save me and still be able to treat me like nothing happened afterwards?