Haunting Echoes of the Past

The calm before the storm

Gojo let him go. After all, Geto was already moving on, or so he thought.

Gojo started to put his life together, he found out that what he really wanted was to be a teacher, so he could protect kids like Geto; so, he could teach stupid kids -like he once was- to really be able to talk about their feelings and be strong enough to not fall into their families' expectations. Because he realized, his life had broken down in pieces because of him, his stupid choices, his family, and the cowardice that took over him back then.

Now, he would have to work his ass off, like he never did. Surprisingly, life gave Gojo a chance. That university degree that he thought would be of no use, was a useful tool for his new life as a teacher. It took him a while to find a place, but thanks to old contacts he had met while studying, he was given a place at a high school a bit far from the city.

Despite the unseriousness with which he spoke, Gojo was good at his job. He respected the rules, and the students trusted him, they almost saw him as a friend. Thanks to that, he was beginning to feel a little less lonely.

Yuta Okkotsu, one of his top students, said in his graduation speech that if he had been able to get this far, it was thanks to his teacher Gojo Satoru. Gojo was moved and he became fond of the boy. Even after graduating, the boy would email him to see how he was doing and ask if he wanted to go out for coffee sometime. Gojo accepted and discovered that Okkotsu was a more mature person than he thought he was, life had not been easy for him, and after a round of meetings, Gojo saw him as a friend.

Life was flowing calmly for the first time in years. A calm and quiet life, yes, he was lonely, but he felt peace. Every so often, he dreamed of Geto and the memories of his youth. When this happened, he would drink some water and avoid sleeping, then spent hours looking at the sky. He felt that the moon and the starry night were as close as he could ever get to Geto again. It was okay for him.

The years went smoothly, nothing big happened. A few more years working and then he could retire as a teacher, he thought.

It was a day like any other, when a woman arrived at his office. He was sitting in his desk looking through papers when the woman walked in without asking. He knew who this was, almost like if he had already met her before, except he didn't. He could feel his essence coming from her. A slim woman with blonde hair, he would never have guessed that this was Geto's type.

"Satoru Gojo." the thin woman said.

"Who are you?" he said, not caring.

"I think you know very well who I am."

"I don't know why you came here, but I don't have anything do to with him anymore. I haven't seen him for ages."

"He's dying." said the woman with a serious tone, there was not a bit of humor in her voice.

Gojo felt his world stop. He stood abruptly and slammed his hands on the desk at the same time.

"I'm not in the mood for jokes. Tell me why you are really here!"

He looked at the woman who had teary eyes, she wasn't joking, not in the slightest.

This was not possible, Geto was a healthy person, he took care of his diet, and exercised, he was a little thin but nothing to worry about. How could he be sick?

"What happened?"

"He has a heart condition that the professionals barely noticed. He had a heart attack a few weeks ago. We thought he was getting better, but his heart became less and less responsive. I'm afraid there's not much they can do."

Things were serious. Gojo's body felt heavier and heavier, and his whole body ached with pain too hard to bear. He sat back in his chair, trying to process the sad news, he didn't speak for a while, it was hard to breathe. On another occasion, he would have asked her to leave, but this woman didn't even have his number. Talking about Geto now was the only thing they could do.

"Where were you, huh? He spends years of his life with you, and you are not even able to take care of him and realize that he is getting sick." Gojo said with a tone of both disdain and disgust.

"And what about you? That you let him go just like that. Think I don't know about you and him? The pain you put him through?"

"His illness has nothing to do with me!" Gojo screamed.

"It does, you scumbag!" The woman lost her sanity. "I heard him mourn at night for years, during our marriage I had to hear him say your name in his sleep countless times, even if he cried or laughed, he always said your name!"

Gojo was speechless, how could Geto still think of him when he had a wife who loved him?

The woman kept touching her eyes, trying to stop the tears.

"You know...we even have two daughters, two adorable girls who love him. And he loves them more than anything in the world. I thought that by giving him children he would be able to move on, but even now, I know he's looking for you in the crowd."

Gojo could imagine him, Geto was probably a loving and responsible father, he imagined him playing with his daughters, taking them to stores, his daughters probably playing with his hair. He imagined Geto playing with dolls, and he couldn't help but smile.

The woman continued, "I am married to him legally, but I suspect he was always married to you in soul. He has a void that I will never be able to fill."

Gojo didn't speak.

"I don't know how much longer he has left, if you want to do something good for once and say goodbye, this is the hospital where he is. The girls and I are with him every hour." The woman took a deep breath. "I hate you more than anyone, I hope you realize that. But I know that seeing you one last time will give him the peace to leave without regrets." said the woman as she left Gojo's office, without even looking him in the eye.

What was Gojo going to do now? His life was finally going as it should, but now that he was calm, that woman came with news that made him lose his mind. He was going to lose him, not for the first or second time, he was going to lose him forever. Only at that moment did Gojo realize how insignificant all those years of pretending to leave everything behind had been. Nothing made sense, there was no point in pretending that he lived well and that he had made peace with his past. He had not.

He always thought that he would leave this world before Geto, because seeing himself alone in a world where his Suguru did not exist was too painful to bear. So, he always thought that he would die and Geto would live a long and happy life, even if it was without him.

It was as if the world was coming to an end.