dating a walking red flag with a law degree was never the problem. the problem is your sister has made a hobby out of stealing your boyfriends. your latest ex was no exception—except this time, she helped blow up your relationship before conveniently announcing their engagement. unfortunately for her, your new boyfriend is ryomen sukuna. and he knows exactly why her last marriage ended. intimately. good luck, babe.
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@rampagehi clowder! y’all are we in floptropica or no lmfao 😭 anyways, sukuna looks good in a suit, so… yes!
Song Recommendations for this story:
SAD GIRLZ LUV MONEY — Amaarae
thank u, next — Ariana Grande
Older — Isabelle Larose(?)
Adorn — Miguel
Woman — Doja Cat
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The thing about siblings is that they know exactly where to strike. Not just to hurt — anyone can hurt. But to leave a mark that lingers, the kind that resurfaces years later in the middle of an ordinary Tuesday when you're just trying to buy groceries. Your sister has always been exceptionally good at that.
You've spent years cataloging the offenses. The boy you liked in middle school who suddenly started showing up to family dinners as her date. The college boyfriend who "just happened" to run into her at a coffee shop and somehow ended up in her bed. The almost-fiancé who swore he'd never look at another woman until he saw your sister laugh, all pretty and perfect, in that way that made people forget she'd ever done anything wrong.
And then there was Kenji.
Kenji, who'd held your hand through your father's health scare. Kenji, who'd learned your coffee order and your favorite songs and the exact way to rub your shoulders after a long day. Kenji, who'd been inside your childhood bedroom, with the pale pink walls and the shelves of old books, and still managed to fuck your sister in it while you were at work.
You found out three days before your birthday.
Now the two of them are engaged, and your sister has the audacity to act as though she's done nothing wrong. As though she's done you a favor, really, because if he was that easy to steal, he wasn't worth keeping. As though you should be thanking her for revealing his true character before you wasted any more years.
But here's the thing about moving on: it doesn't mean forgetting. It means finding something — someone — so consuming that the old wounds stop bleeding. Someone who makes you stop checking for your sister's shadow every time you introduce him to someone you love.
Ryomen Sukuna is not the kind of man people forget.
He's 32 and built like he spent his twenties throwing people out of bars instead of studying case law. He's a senior partner at one of the most elite law firms in Tokyo, specializing in high-net-worth divorces — the kind that make newspapers, the kind that drag on for years and leave reputations in shreds. He's ruthless in the courtroom, meticulous in his preparation, and completely unapologetic about it.
He's also, somehow, yours.
The relationship is relatively new, but he's already serious about you. It's in the way he remembers the names of your coworkers and asks about your day like he's actually listening. It's in the way he keeps a drawer empty in his bedroom because your things kept migrating there. It's in the way he looks at you across a crowded room, like you're the only person worth looking at.
There's just one little detail you haven't gotten around to mentioning.
Sukuna was your sister's ex-husband's divorce attorney.
Not just any divorce attorney, either. He was the attorney. The one who'd spent months dismantling Zara's increasingly desperate attempts to drag out the divorce after her own repeated infidelities. The one who'd uncovered every affair, every conveniently missing financial document, every ridiculous excuse, every attempt to manipulate the proceedings. The one who'd stood in a courtroom and made your sister's life an absolute nightmare in front of a judge, a room full of lawyers, and a very satisfied ex-husband.
Zara, naturally, has never bothered to remember his face.
But Sukuna remembers hers.
And now, you've been invited to a family gathering. The first one you've attended since the engagement was announced. The first one you've attended since your entire family discovered that your sister was marrying your ex-boyfriend. The first one you've attended since you stopped answering her calls and started pretending that the thought of her didn't make you want to scream.
Sukuna, of course, has been invited too.
You haven't told him who your sister is.
You haven't told him much of anything, really. Just that there's a family dinner, and you'd like him to come, and yes, you're sure, and no, he doesn't need to bring anything, and please don't make anyone cry.
He'd raised an eyebrow at that last part.
The evening hasn't even started yet, and you're already picturing how this will go. Zara will see him. Zara will want him. Zara will try to take him. It's what she does. It's what she's always done.
But Sukuna isn't like the others.
Sukuna has already seen her worst. He's read her files. He's heard the recordings. He's watched her lie to a judge with such practiced sincerity that even you, who knew exactly what she was, almost believed her. He's the man who made her divorce an absolute financial and legal nightmare.
And he's very, very good at his job.
The invitation sits on your kitchen counter, the date circled in red pen. Your phone buzzes.
Sukuna's name lights up the screen.
You have about six hours before the family gathering begins.