Bare Knuckled Burning - A Jujutsu Kaisen Fic

Chapter 2: Four First Years

There were nights were Yuma dreamed of packing up her bags and running off. Somewhere far where no one was around. A place where she could let loose and be as free as possible. But that's all it was...a dream.

Now though...it wasn't the dream she had in mind, but in the insane world, it was quite possibly the closes Yuma would get. And the best part, she wouldn't have to do so alone.

The once bare room of Yuma's new abode was properly decorated to the standards of the young woman. Posters pinned up, figures set on a shelf, bedspread laid out on the new bed. She wished she had known about the small kitchenette the unit had or she would've brought some of her smaller cooking gadgets with her. Cooking was calming, and Yuma loved to eat.

"Done..."

Yuma sighed, satisfied as she sat on her new bed. Her hands were folded in her lap as she swung her feet back and forth, nowhere close to touching the ground.

What was she supposed to do now? Wait here in her room? Go outside? Wander the campus and try to figure out the landscape. Gojo had just dropped her off without any real instructions. When would she start classes? While her mind pondered on what in the world she should be doing a knock came to her door.

Getting up her sock-clad feet padded against the wood flooring as she made her way to the door. She was expecting Gojo but was surprised to find three teenagers. They were all vaguely familiar, the tall one in the middle was most recognizable. His wide smile had been embossed in her head since that night.

"It's him and the others from the night in the graveyard," Yuma thought.

Now that she was no longer in a daze, coming off a high form fighting and transforming, Yuma could get a better look at the trio. The one in the middle, pink hair with a black undercut. His smile was far too bright for this world. On his left a girl, short orange hair cropped just below her ears. She had what Yuma would describe as a sharp beauty. Last was another boy far less cheerful than the other. His black hair stood every which way in unmanageable spikes, but he had fluttering eyelashes that could make anyone jealous.

"Hello! I'm Yuji!" The smiley one greeted.

"These must be the other first years, so there really are only four of us."

Yuma gave a slight bow. "My name is Abiko Yuma. I'm from a small town in the Fukuoka Prefecture. Uh...I like classical music. Oh, um—"

Yuma did her best to smile, but she still wasn't used to expressing her emotions so outwardly yet. She could feel her lips twitch but by the looks of the others her smile was coming off as a rather awkward one.

She dropped the forced smile going into her neutral facial expression.

"By the looks on their faces that wasn't too welcoming. Hopefully, as time goes by I'll get better at it."

The only other female amongst them stepped forward. "I'm Kugisaki Nobara. We're the only ladies of the group so it's up to us to make sure the femininity stays ahead of the masculinity."

"Oh um, okay-!"

Yuma bit her tongue as Nobara moved in swiftly, eye to eye, although the taller girl had to bend over to do so.

"Hmmm..."

Yuma started to sweat. Why did she feel like she was being examined under a microscope?

"Your skin..." Nobara began. "It's like you a porcelain doll. What products do you use?"

"Oh um," Yuma touched her skin, "just whatever my sister would buy for me."

Yuji had shimmied his way around the girls sticking his head into Yuma's room.