Jingle jingle jingle.
The crisp alarm rang out. Eiji skillfully swatted the alarm clock and stumbled into the bathroom, yawning.
Because he had slept too late last night, Eiji groggily finished his morning routine and was about to head to school when he realized it was the weekend.
In that instant, Eiji felt an urge to smash the alarm clock.
He sat down on the sofa and began to ponder what to do with his day.
"Forget it, I'll just work out."
Sometimes, once you get caught up in thinking, the time spent thinking far exceeds the time spent doing.
For example, in his previous life, Eiji loved to find a novel or a livestream to watch while he ate.
Then, ten minutes for eating, half an hour to find something to read.
Ordering takeout was similar. If he couldn't decide what to eat, he might as well just make instant noodles at home.
The result was opening the food delivery app, spending half an hour ordering, another half hour waiting for delivery, and then ten minutes eating.
Time just slipped away like that.
By chance, Eiji stumbled upon a video by Teacher Luo. It said that if you don't know what to do and feel lost, then go read, go exercise, go enrich yourself.
Once you figure out what you want, then strive for it. Don't just lie there doing nothing when you feel lost.
Only then can you seize opportunities when they arise, in a perfect state.
Eiji found it made a lot of sense.
He changed into his workout clothes and began to exercise according to the methods he remembered.
First, a few sets of warm-up exercises.
100 push-ups, 100 sit-ups, and finally 100 squats.
These simple exercises worked the muscles in his chest, abdomen, and legs.
After warming up, Eiji headed out the door and turned left for a ten-kilometer jog.
Winter had arrived, but it hadn't snowed yet, so the leaves hadn't completely fallen from the trees.
Street sweepers would clean the streets as early as four or five in the morning, so there weren't many fallen leaves on the road.
While bored, Eiji would adjust his pace when he saw leaves, seemingly casually veering his running route slightly upward to step on them.
People are strange sometimes. When the trees were full of leaves, they wouldn't pay attention, but when only a few leaves remained, all their focus would be on those few.
Perhaps it was the monotony of jogging, but Eiji found himself exhibiting this mindset at the moment.
After running ten kilometers, it was close to noon. Eiji decided to visit Toji Fushiguro's place.
"Excuse me."
Changing into slippers and entering the room, Eiji saw a scene that made him chuckle.
"Stop pulling, kid."
"Toji, you shouldn't be rough with children."
Toji Fushiguro was sitting cross-legged on the sofa, with a soft pink blanket on his lap. Megumi Fushiguro, in the middle of the blanket, was looking at Toji Fushiguro with wide, curious eyes.
Tsumiki Fushiguro was sitting on Toji Fushiguro's shoulders, making "wah wah" sounds and occasionally grabbing his hair to maintain her balance.
"Find a place to sit yourself."
Toji Fushiguro glanced up at Eiji before returning his attention to the two children.
Toji Fushiguro had his arms raised high, trying to grab Tsumiki Fushiguro, but he was afraid of hurting her if he used too much force, so he could only keep his hands steady around Tsumiki Fushiguro, gently reaching out to her if she seemed like she might fall.
His crossed legs weren't idle either, gently swaying up and down, like a cradle, to soothe Megumi Fushiguro on his lap.
His clumsy movements and conflicted expression made Eiji unable to suppress a laugh.
"Minako-neechan, I'll help."
Sensing Eiji's gaze, Toji Fushiguro glared fiercely at him.
Eiji immediately turned his head and walked towards the kitchen.
"No need, lunch will be ready soon. Eiji, just sit and wait."
"I'll help too. Don't worry, my cooking is quite good."
Eiji gave a confident smile in return.
"Then, Eiji, you can handle the chopping."
Seeing this, Minako Fushiguro couldn't refuse. She put down the vegetables she was holding and began to prepare the fish, which was more difficult to handle.
This must be stir-fried bean sprouts, tofu, and these other ingredients. Miso soup, tomatoes...
They were all home-style dishes, and it was clear what was being made. Once he understood the situation, Eiji got to work.
Eiji, who had been single for two lifetimes so far, had quite a bit of experience with cooking and stir-frying. Why? Because after graduating from college, he couldn't afford takeout anymore.
After paying for utilities, phone bills, internet, heating... and all sorts of other expenses, did he really expect to eat takeout three meals a day?
He couldn't afford it at all.
The most Eiji ate was the steamed buns from the downstairs breakfast section. Three buns and a cup of soy milk for 7 yuan would fill him up.
Later, after he'd had enough of buns and fried noodles, he started researching cooking for himself.
Three vegetable stir-fries, one pan-fried fish, and a bowl of miso soup served with each person's rice.
"I'm starting to eat." x3
After a satisfying meal, Eiji sat on the sofa, with Toji Fushiguro lounging beside him.
Minako Fushiguro was holding Megumi Fushiguro with her left hand and playing a small game with Tsumiki Fushiguro with her right, a contented smile on her face.
Minako Fushiguro was Toji Fushiguro's second wife.
If Megumi Fushiguro's mother, Erika Fushiguro, were still alive, Megumi Fushiguro would have called her "big aunt."
If Toji Fushiguro hadn't died, Minako Fushiguro would probably be very happy.
Minako Fushiguro and Erika Fushiguro were cousins, and they had always supported each other in life.
Erika Fushiguro had a cheerful and somewhat cool personality, while Minako Fushiguro was gentle and quiet.
It was just that fate played a cruel joke on both of them. Not long after giving birth, Minako Fushiguro's husband died in an accident, leaving her a widow.
Erika Fushiguro also passed away shortly after giving birth to Megumi Fushiguro. Both of their fates were tragic.
Later, because Toji Fushiguro was completely incapable of taking care of children, Minako Fushiguro took Megumi Fushiguro in and raised him alongside Tsumiki Fushiguro.
Two broken people came together and formed a new family.
Toji Fushiguro would go out to work and earn money, which wasn't difficult for him with his fully realized Heavenly Restriction.
When he left the Zenin Family, Toji Fushiguro's strength had already reached Special Grade. With such strength, he wouldn't have to worry about earning money even if he did manual labor.
Not to mention that old man Naobito Zenin hadn't completely cut ties with Toji Fushiguro. If Toji Fushiguro needed it, he could still find out about some money-making channels through the old man.
In this way, Toji Fushiguro found his belonging and gradually understood what love was.
Minako Fushiguro also found reliance, having a lover who could shelter her from the wind and rain, and lively, healthy children.
If they were in another world, Toji Fushiguro and Minako Fushiguro might have had an ending that wasn't perfect but was at least decent. Unfortunately, they were born into the world of Jujutsu Kaisen.
The important characters depicted by Gege Akutami highlighted the "beautiful, strong, and tragic" archetype.
Some had tragic destinies, some had miserable endings, and some had both.
Toji Fushiguro was a character who had both.
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Translation by: randomtranslator.com
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