Tu Bai wanted to laugh, but his nose felt a bit stingy.
He turned his face away, his eyes staring at the Floor.
This kind of tenderness.. is just too much.
He closed his eyes, pretending to be sleepy. Gojo Satoru noticed, his voice growing even softer before finally falling silent.
"Sleepy?" he asked.
.. Yeah.
Then go to sleep," Gojo Satoru said, closing the book. "We'll read more tomorrow.
Tu Bai stood up and walked toward the room. When he reached the door, he turned back to take a look.
Gojo Satoru was still sitting on the Sofa, looking down at that Fairy Tale Book, his Finger gently stroking the pages.
The light fell upon his white hair, plating it with a layer of warm yellow.
Tu Bai quickly turned back and closed the door.
He leaned against the door, his hand placed on his abdomen.
The mass of energy inside was pulsing faintly.
It was as if it were saying: I am here.
Tu Bai took a deep breath, then exhaled.
He walked to the side of the Bed, lay down, closed his Eyes.
But his brain was filled with the sound of Gojo Satoru reading stories, the sight of him seriously marking the Calendar, the way his Ice Blue Eyes lit up when he said, "Our child."
Tu Bai rolled over and buried his face in the pillow.
He couldn't let himself be soft-hearted.
He said to himself.
The plan cannot change.
---
Meanwhile, in the Living Room, Gojo Satoru's Mobile Phone vibrated.
He picked it up to look; it was a Message from Ieiri Shoko.
How is Tu Bai-kun doing today?
Gojo Satoru typed: 【He's doing okay, just doesn't have much of an appetite. Are you sure it's a false Pregnancy?】
Ieiri Shoko: 【Confirmed. It's a mimicry of Demon Power, very sophisticated, but it can't hide from me. However, you'd better not expose it; his Emotion is unstable right now, if you do, he might have a breakdown.】
Gojo Satoru: 【I know. Then let's just treat it as the truth.】
Ieiri Shoko: 【Are you serious? Playing along with him?】
Gojo Satoru: 【Mm. If he thinks it's real, then it's real. I'll take good care of him.】
On Ieiri Shoko's side, it showed "typing..", after a while, a message finally arrived:
Fine. But you need to manage the degree yourself. A False Pregnancy usually lasts about three months, by then, the Demon Power Mimicry will naturally dissipate. How are you going to explain the 'Miscarriage' to him?
Gojo Satoru stared at that sentence for a long time.
Then he replied:
We'll talk about that when the time comes. For now, just let him be happy.
He put down his Mobile Phone, picked up that Fairy Tale Book, turned another page.
A Finger lightly touched the illustration on the page of the Fairy Tale Book.
Whether it is real or not," he said softly, as if talking to himself, "I will protect you all.
Outside the window, the night view of Tokyo was brightly lit.
As for the two people inside the house, one was pretending not to know, while the other was pretending to accept it.
No one knew how this play would ultimately end.
Chapter 25
Just after six in the morning, Tu Bai was jolted awake by a wave of nauseating turmoil.
He bolted upright from the bed with his hand over his mouth, rushed into the Bathroom without even putting on his slippers, knelt before the toilet to retch. His stomach was empty, he could only vomit up bile, but that wave of nausea refused to subside, forcing tears to well up in his eyes.
“Xiao Bai?”
The Bathroom door was pushed open, Gojo Satoru poked his head in, his messy white hair disheveled. He had probably stayed up late again last night; his blindfold hung crookedly around his neck, revealing the Ice Blue Eyes beneath—at this moment, those eyes were filled with the dazed confusion of someone who hadn't fully woken up, but the moment he saw Tu Bai kneeling on the floor, he became instantly alert.
"What's wrong? Is your stomach bothering you?" Gojo Satoru walked in quickly and squatted beside him, his hand hovering over his back, looking as if he wanted to touch him but didn't dare.
Tu Bai waved his hand, wanting to speak, but was interrupted by another bout of dry heaving.
Gojo Satoru immediately turned and walked out. Tu Bai heard the sound of rummaging coming from the Kitchen, along with the light clinking of glass cups. After about a minute, Gojo Satoru returned, holding a mug of Warm Water in his hands.
"Rinse your mouth." He handed him the Mug.
Tu Bai took it and rinsed his mouth, feeling a little better. He tried to stand up by bracing himself against the edge of the toilet, but his legs were a bit weak. Gojo Satoru reached out to support his arm and pulled him up.
Are you feeling any better?" Gojo Satoru stared at his face, his brows furrowed tightly. "Your complexion is so pale.
Mm.." Tu Bai leaned against the sink, panting, "It should be.. Morning Sickness.
When he said the word, his voice was a bit weak. Although he had looked up plenty of information over the past few days and knew this was a normal reaction, experiencing it firsthand still felt unbearable.
What made his heart feel even more stifled was that the person standing before him, this "Strongest" who should have been able to handle anything with ease, was currently showing such.. clumsy concern because of his morning sickness.
Gojo Satoru clearly had no experience either. He stood there stunned for two seconds, then suddenly said, "Wait a moment."
He went out again. This time Tu Bai heard the sound of him scrolling through his Mobile Phone, along with a voice lowered in volume—he was likely making a Phone call to consult someone.
Tu Bai leaned against the sink, looking at his own pale face in the mirror, at the tall back of the person standing in the Living Room, facing away from him while talking on the Phone.
Gojo Satoru wore loose grey loungewear, his white hair looking fluffy in the morning light. He held a Mobile Phone in one hand, while his other hand unconsciously ran through his hair, his movements betraying a rare sense of helplessness.
Tu Bai lowered his Eyes.
He shouldn't be soft-hearted. He said to himself in his heart. This was all part of the plan, nothing more than acting.
But when Gojo Satoru hung up the phone and walked back to the Bathroom, holding a box of soda crackers and a small jar of pickled plums, Tu Bai still felt a slight poke in a certain part of his heart.
Ieiri Shoko said you could eat some of this first to settle your stomach," Gojo Satoru said as he opened the crackers and handed one over. "He said if the vomiting continues severely, you'll have to go see him. How are you feeling? Do you still feel like vomiting?
Tu Bai took the cracker and nibbled on it in small bites. The cracker was very dry, but after eating it, his stomach did indeed feel a bit more comfortable. He shook his head. "Much better."
Gojo Satoru breathed a sigh of relief. He leaned against the doorframe, watching Tu Bai finish a cracker before handing him another one. His Ice Blue Eyes stared at him without blinking, as if he were afraid of missing even the slightest hint of discomfort on his face.
Tu Bai felt a bit uncomfortable under that gaze and turned his face away. "Don't you.. don't you have to go to Jujutsu High?"
I don't have any classes this morning," Gojo Satoru said. "Besides, how can I leave when you're acting like this?
He spoke as if it were the most natural thing in the world. The Finger holding the Crepe tightened slightly.
After eating three or four crackers, the feeling of nausea finally subsided. Tu Bai washed his face, when he looked up, he saw Gojo Satoru still standing behind him in the reflection of the mirror. The man had put his blindfold back on at some point, but a bit of blue stubble had appeared on his chin, there were faint shadows under his eyes.
"Did you not sleep well last night, Senpai?" Tu Bai asked instinctively.
Gojo Satoru froze for a moment, then laughed: "Is it that obvious? I was looking through some materials and went to bed late."
What kind of materials?
Just.. stuff related to pregnancy." Gojo Satoru scratched his hair, his tone casual, but Tu Bai saw the tips of his ears turning slightly red. "I have to know what's going on, otherwise I won't know what to do when you're vomiting like this.
Tu Bai fell silent. He turned around, walked past Gojo Satoru out of the Bathroom, returned to the Bedroom to sit at the Bedside. Gojo Satoru followed him in and sat down beside him.
Morning light leaked through the gaps in the curtain, casting a small patch of warm yellow on the wooden floor. The room was very quiet, only the faint breathing sounds of the two could be heard.
Tu Bai stared at the patch of light on the Floor, his Finger unconsciously clutching the Fabric of his Sleep Pants. He needed money, he needed a lot of money.
Running away with a child requires funds, a false identity requires funds, starting over in a foreign country also requires funds. The savings he had accumulated from his previous missions as a Sorcerer were far from enough.
And the fastest source of Funds is sitting right next to him.
He took a deep breath and looked up at Gojo Satoru.
"Senpai," he called out, his voice very soft.
"Hmm?" Gojo Satoru immediately turned his head.
Tu Bai licked his somewhat dry lips, his fingers interlaced: "I.. I'm a little scared."
Gojo Satoru's expression immediately turned serious: "Fear what?"
I'm afraid of the future." Tu Bai lowered his head, looking at his abdomen—it was still flat, but he could already feel that mass of warm energy. "I'm afraid I won't be able to raise him well, afraid I won't provide him with a good enough life, I'm also afraid.. afraid I won't be able to handle it all on my own.
Gojo Satoru was silent for a few seconds. Then he reached out and gently took hold of Tu Bai's interlaced hands.
You won't be alone," he said, his voice steady. "I am here.
Tu Bai bit his lower lip: "But.. what about the money? Having a baby costs money, raising a child costs even more. I'm still a student, my income from Missions isn't stable.."
He didn't finish his sentence, but his meaning was clear.
Gojo Satoru looked at him and suddenly smiled. He released Tu Bai's hand, stood up, walked to the wardrobe, pulled a wallet out of a Jacket pocket, walked back after taking out a black card.
"Here." He stuffed the card into Tu Bai's hand.
Tu Bai looked down. It was a matte-textured black card with gold lettering in the bottom right corner, it had no credit limit. The card was still warm, carrying Gojo Satoru's body temperature.
This is my secondary card." Gojo Satoru sat down beside him again, his tone as casual as if he were discussing today's weather. "The passcode is your birthday. Buy whatever you want, no need to ask me.
Tu Bai pinched the card, feeling his fingertips grow hot. He had imagined many possibilities—that Gojo Satoru might hesitate, might ask him how much he needed, or might say, "Tell me what you need and I'll buy it for you." But he hadn't expected the other man to be so decisive, so decisive that it made his own little calculations feel exceptionally filthy.
"This.. this is too much." He heard himself say hoarsely.
“It’s not much,” Gojo Satoru said, reaching out to ruffle his hair. “What is mine is yours. From now on, all the expenses for the child will come from here, yours will too. Don't overthink it, okay?”
Tu Bai looked at the black card in his hand, then looked up at Gojo Satoru. The man was wearing sunglasses, so he couldn't see his expression clearly, but he could feel that the gaze falling upon him was gentle.
"Thank you," he said softly, clutching the card tightly in his palm.
The edges of the card pressed painfully into his palm.