The Strongest | ɢᴏᴊᴏ ꜱᴀᴛᴏʀᴜ

Chapter 34

My face is heating up with anger and irritation at the sound of the unwanted nickname he used for me. I roll my eyes, at the same time glad and annoyed that he can't see me. "Don't call me that," I hiss.

"Why not?" Gojo asks with an audible smile in his voice. "What would you like me to call you then?"

"My name would be just fine."

"Oh, so that's what you're into?" Before I can answer, he whispers into the phone, "Say my name."

Now, my face is redding with something that isn't quite anger. He can't say things like that in a tone like that with his voice like that and expect it to come off as a joke. I narrow my eyes and purse my lips, wishing he could see my disappointed face right now.

"You're not funny, you know that, right?" I say, but he only laughs in response.

"You're the one who texted me first."

"And I'm deeply regretting that now. I'm sorry to have bothered you, I'll go now," I snap, already moving the phone away from my ear when Gojo's hectic voice stops me.

"No, no, okay, I'll stop," his voice comes through my phone, making me sigh and put my phone back to my ear.

"Did you want something that made you call me twice and leave about a dozen messages?" I ask him, but I don't really care. I don't care if he had a good reason or just wanted to hear my voice. I don't care if he has something to talk about or not because that has never stopped him from talking before. It doesn't matter why he called; I just care that he did.

"What were you doing earlier?" Gojo asks me instead of answering my question, and my ridiculous brain is convinced that he only called to ask me that.

"I was having dinner and then helped Shoko clean like Yaga told me to," I tell him.

"Ah, that's right," Gojo replies in a surprisingly monotone voice, and I snort.

"You knew that already, didn't you?"

He's silent for a moment, which makes me laugh. "No?" His answer is more of a question than a statement.

I laugh even more. "Shoko said it won't happen again unless you ask her about it. Have you been asking about me?"

Silence again, followed by another uncertain "No?"

My face heats up first, and then my body. I kick the blanket away and grin. "Come on, you're a better liar than this."

Gojo chuckles, a soft and now familiar sound that I haven't heard in too long. "I'm a worse liar than you think."

"Sure, okay," is all I say to that and roll my eyes again. "I was on a mission today." Just as I said that, I wonder why I even told him. "Did you know that already, too?"

"I didn't," Gojo answers, and I believe him. "I called Shoko earlier to ask why you weren't picking up your phone, and she said you two just finished your punishment, and you're taking a shower right now. That's all."

I narrow my eyes, suspicious, but it does make perfect sense for him to call the one person who would know what I was doing while he was calling me like a frantic fool for no apparent reason.

"How was it?"

"Hm?" His question takes me by surprise.

"The mission?"

"Oh." I put my hand to my forehead and silently curse myself for being so stupid. "It was good. No big deal. It's not like it was a grade 2 or higher," I joke, referring to what he said about his own mission yesterday.