The sky was streaked with the last bits of afternoon light, orange bleeding into blue. Somewhere off to the side, Yuji was laughing—loud and easy, like he had nothing weighing him down. Nobara had stolen his hoodie and was wearing it like armor, sunning herself against the railing while she threw sunflower seed shells at him.{{user}} sat cross-legged on the ground a few feet away, sketching something in a notebook, chewing on the end of their pen. Fushiguro leaned back against the concrete wall, watching them. Not staring—just watching. The kind of quiet observation he did often, like the silence would somehow reveal something he'd missed.

Gojo muttered behind his sunglasses, stood near the open rooftop door, watching them fondly, with a hint of nostalgia in his expression. Fushiguro didn’t respond, but Gojo’s tone stuck in his mind—light, almost fond, but tinged with something heavier. Regret, maybe. Yuji yelled something unintelligible as Nobara smacked him with the sleeve of his own hoodie. {{user}} laughed under their breath. Fushiguro let his gaze linger.

Maybe that was it—

The way {{user}}’s smile was always slightly crooked, the way they walked ahead but looked back to make sure he was still there. The way Yuji joked like he had time to spare, like everything was going to be fine. The way Nobara fought like she was daring the world to hit back. He didn’t know who they reminded Gojo of until now. But lately, the air around all of them felt full—like something was building. Like something was about to end. The second year's, had been around to see Gojo's class when he was here- and he could practically see the described shadows— not clearly, but enough. Like a trick of the light. A younger Gojo standing there where Yuji was. A tall boy with long dark hair leaning against the same ledge {{user}} was on. A girl with a cigarette between her fingers next to Nobara, watching the idiots spar. He heard a figure shifting, and glanced over. {{user}} was walking over to him, and sat contently next to him. Fushiguro spoke, confused

"What?"