Geto POV

I haven't moved in what feels like weeks.

My eyes were out of tears, still swollen and red from the amount of sadness they had spilled as I stayed laid up in my apartment.

Y/n was gone, and it seemed like I had no reason to keep going.

I didn't know what was worse. The feeling of my entire body aching and trembling as I thought about how I would never see her again. Or the complete emptiness I now felt with no desire to move forward.

I should've stayed. I should've been there for her. I should've held her before she was gone forever.

"Suguru?" Satoru called out as he came through the front door.

I should be pissed at him. I should hate him. I wanted so badly to blame him for everything that happened between me and Y/n.

But I fucked up too. And I couldn't keep on pretending I didn't make my own choices. He never forced me to do anything.

I had no one to blame but myself.

He took her life, but she sacrificed herself. Satoru would've never really killed her. At least that's what he claims now.

Who knows what would've happened if we were actually able to leave together.

Still, this is the shit that happens when you're in this life. You save as many as you can, but often times you lose many more along the way.

Nanami on the other hand, he hated us both. He couldn't seem to forgive us for all the shit we put Y/n through. He was right though, she deserved so much more. And honestly, I hated us too.

"How are you?" Satoru huffed as he plopped down on the couch next to me.

I barely glanced over at his direction, my head resting on the back of the sofa as I stared up at the ceiling.

"You sure you're ready for this?" he asked as he realized I wasn't going to be answering his first question.

I sighed, "I mean, we have to go on eventually..."

The situation between us and the protectors continued to escalate, and with Y/n gone, it made my choice easy. I'd do whatever was needed of me. Just like I did before I ever met her.

They asked us to meet them today, and I was joining Satoru and some others to hear whatever is they had to say.

The higher ups considered us to be at war with them, so we'd do whatever was necessary to get back everything they took.

This is the first time we've ever been able to find them in generations, and the council was afraid of losing the momentum.

Who would've guessed that the first time I ever fell in love would lead to all of this...

Fucking 28 and it finally happened. I spent years dating and figuring out exactly what I wanted, waiting until the right one came along.

And she did. She was more amazing than I could've ever thought possible. She lit up even the darkest parts of me.

"Well, we should get going then," Satoru patted my leg awkwardly before standing up.

He really didn't know how the hell to act around me now, which was understandable. Both of us were completely overwhelmed by the situation.

Satoru didn't know about the murders of those protectors until after the fact either, but once he was notified, he was responsible for making sure no one else knew.

He might hate a lot of sorcerers, but he took his part in this world very seriously. So when Y/n's friend showed up with that information, he was doing what he had to.

I think he was really torn up about Y/n's sacrifice and death. All of us were. But time wouldn't stop for us, so we pushed forward, hoping all this shit could end as quickly and smoothly as possible.

Now that Y/n is gone, protectors didn't have much of a choice. She was their best bet as putting up a fight, so losing her took a hit on their physical abilities and their morale.

More than anything, I just wanted to keep Satoru and everyone else in check. The last thing we needed was more death.

With any luck, we'd strike up a deal and end this all today. But luck didn't seem to be on my side lately, so I was preparing for the worst just in case.

••••

Y/n POV

"You sure you're up for this?" Kai asked me.

I glanced over at him, feeling a little on edge, "Do you have any other ideas?"

He silently shook his head.

"Didn't think so..." I muttered out.

No I wasn't up for this. I would never be up for this. But that didn't matter now. I wasn't going to show an ounce of weakness.

Being alive when they thought I was dead would give us the advantage we needed, and I was somewhere between terrified and eager to see their reactions.

But I can't afford to be caught off guard when seeing Suguru. I can't allow myself to get sucked back in by him.

My objective is to have them trembling at the thought of my next move.

"Still," he continued in a more agitated tone. "This can't be easy for you. I mean, for you to actually be in love with someone..."

My head shot up to look at him, "Really? You want to do that now?"

He scoffed, "I figured now that you finally know what it's like to feel heartbroken, you'd have some compassion."

"The only thing heartbreak taught me is that not everyone deserves my compassion," the words shot off my tongue.

I didn't have the patience for this. Not now. Because Kai didn't want closure, he wanted me to concede. He didn't want to be loved by me, he wanted to not be rejected by me.

Aiko chuckled as she walked over to us, quickly intervening, "Alright, save that fire for later Y/n. Kai isn't the enemy."

"Not the enemy, just her undeserving ex," he sneered. "Isn't that right?"

"Well as long as you know," I muffled out as I continued to adjust my gear, readying myself just in case today took a turn for the worse and led to a fight.

Kai took that as his cue to leave, grumbling incoherently to himself while Aiko continued to shake her head at me, "You shouldn't be that way. He's really torn up about this."

"I don't see how that's my problem."

"You were ready to run off with some guy you've know for only a few months."

"And?" I glanced over at her.

"And you didn't even know if you loved Kai after over a year. You turned down his proposal not even six months ago Y/n."

"I won't apologize for my feelings."

She put her hand on my shoulder, "Just be gentle. Today has everyone on edge."

As if I didn't know that.

"Let's just get this over with."

We really didn't have time for meaningless distractions. All our feelings would need to be put on the back burner until this is over with.

Mine especially.

I felt like a ticking time bomb ready to blow with just a single wrong look shot in my direction... I can't even imagine the ferocity that'll surge through me when I see Suguru.

Or maybe it'll be devastation.

The passion brought about by betrayal felt so familiar, reminding me that love and hate are two sides of the same coin.

I stormed off, leading the way towards Jujutsu High. We chose the rendezvous point on their territory, hoping it would reiterate the message that we weren't backing down.

I planned out every last detail, now all that remained was the execution.

Aiko grabbed my hand and gave it a squeeze as a small blur of people came into view in the distance, a silhouette of Suguru immediately catching my attention.

I looked over at her, my heart already thrashing against my chest.

I whispered so only she could hear, "I don't know if I can do this."