A Spoonful of Curry [One-Shot]
Title: A Spoonful of Curry
Pairing: Ohmiya
Genre: Drama, Fluff, Romance
Rating: G
Made this forgurajiorasu! Happy birthday, nugget!
Disclaimer: I only own the plot!
Summary: Nino asked for money, but he was given curry instead.
A/N: This is a birthday fic for Ari, one of the nugget's family! This fic was inspired by the newest More, the one where Nino wear a hoodie (damn wasnt he hot LOL). Anyway, hope you guys, especially Ari herself, enjoyed this! Comments will be loved!
Nino desperately needed food.
He walked in the street of Tokyo in silence; his stomach hurts, painfully so, and he realized that he had probably gone for a day, or maybe two, without eating anything at all but the occasional water he drink from a tap. He was a small eater, sure, but two days without eating was pushing it too much, and now his stomach hurts, and he felt like vomiting with every step he took. Sighing deeply, Nino pulled the hood over his head to cover his face from prying eyes as he kept on pushing himself to walk. His hands, which were stuffed in the front pocket, went to check his jeans pocket in hope that he’d find some money, but of course, there was none, and Nino had to gulp down the disappointment that was spreading in his chest upon realizing that he really didn’t have money and was hungry as fuck.
Maybe it’s time to die.
But that was stupid. Nino didn’t want to die - as much as he hated living in the street and getting into a fight with other people that were in no better condition than him, it wasn’t enough to drive him into killing himself. He managed to live for months in the street, so surely, he could survive this too. Nino stuffed his hand back into his hoodie’s front pocket, and his fingers brushed against something cold. He let out another sigh as he held the item tightly on his left hand; he always felt bad on doing this, but he needed to survive.
So he began looking around; it was pretty late already, but the city was still pretty much alive and the street was still bustling with crowd. Nino decided to leave this crowded part of city; he entered a dark alley, walking confidently through them and side-stepping someone’s vomit without even really looking. He kept on choosing a narrower and darker alley; sometimes he’d stop to look at someone that looked good enough to be his victim, but then he decided against it, and he kept on walking and walking until finally, he got to the quieter part of Tokyo. Here, most of the stores were already closed; it was dark and silent and not a single person could be seen, and Nino wondered if he had made a mistake on coming here. But when he was about to leave, he saw someone walking out from one of the stores. It looked like he was going to lock the store; he looked very unguarded and relaxed, and Nino’s heart leaped in both joy and guilty as he stealthily made his way to the unassuming man.
The man was fumbling with his keys absent-mindedly in front of the opened door, and Nino waited until he was close enough - until he could smell what seemed to be a soft scent of vanilla wafting from the man before he called out for him. “Hey.”
The man turned around, and without waiting anymore, Nino jumped on him, forcing him to stumble back and fall inside the store as he pulled out the pocket-knife out from his pocket. He straddled the man, who was looking too shocked to even do or say anything, and he placed the knife on his throat, ready to slit it if he has to (though he never really did it, and he didn’t want to start). “Give me your money.” He whispered.
The man blinked up at him; the store was pretty dark but from the light from the lamp street, but that was enough for Nino to see his victim. The man under him has a honey-colored sleepy eyes, ski-slope nose, pink lips with a mole on the lower one, and a pair of chubby cheeks that reminded him of a steam bun. He didn’t look afraid at all - cautious, yes, but not afraid to the point that Nino felt the need to growl at him. “Give me your money.” He repeated, this time he pressed the knife on the man’s skin, just to scare him. “Give me your money before I -“
“Satoshi? Satoshi, you’re still here?”
Nino nearly jumped upon hearing that voice. He looked up past the dark store to see a closed door behind the counter; someone was walking downstairs, and with each step Nino felt like his heart was being hammered.
I need to get out of here.
He started to leave but the man under him suddenly grabbed his arm; he looked at him with fear, knowing for sure that this man would definitely turned him in to the police and he would be thrown into the prison and -
“Satoshi?” The man called out again, and Nino waited for the door to be opened and for his life to be done for.
“I’m okay, Jun!” The man under him replied, and Nino flinched upon hearing the soft yet strong voice. “I’m okay - I slipped, but no biggie!”
“Are you sure?” The other man, Jun, replied, and Nino could heard his shuffled steps now. “Are you hurts?”
“No, I’m okay! I’ll be leaving now, so you better go back upstairs and work on your design!”
“Well, if you insisted…” Nino listened to the sound of that person leaving and climbing the stairs and when he realized that he was safe, he breathed in relief.
“You’re heavy.” The man under him commented. Nino turned his eyes back to him and without thinking he climbed off of him, though he didn’t forget his knife. He was still pointing it at the other man, watching him pushing himself up into a sitting position and groan softly as he rubbed the back of his head. “It hurts, you know.”
“Give me your money.” Nino said, ignoring his words. “I need it.”
“What for?”
“You -“ He was about to say something good - something menacing and full of sarcasm, maybe, but then his stomach rumbled loudly, not wanting to be forgotten, and Nino quickly covered it with his free hand as his face blushed deeply. So not cool.
The man in front of him didn’t laugh though. He stared at Nino as if he finally understood, and then he nodded. “You’re hungry.” He said softly. “I thought you wanted money for things like drugs or cigarettes, but you’re just hungry.”
“Shut up.” Nino spat, feeling angry out of sudden. “Just give me your money now or else -“
“I have curry at home.”
“…What?”
“I said, I have curry at home.” The man repeated slowly as he stood. “And I have enough for two, so why don’t you just come over to my place?”
Nino stared at him like he was crazy. “Why should I believe you? You’re probably lying; you’ll definitely call the police and -“
“I can’t do that to someone that needed to steal money from others just because he’s hungry.” The man said gently; he looked at Nino with a soft smile in his face and he offered his hand. “Come on; let’s have dinner at my place.”
Nino stared at his offered hand; he wasn’t sure if he could believe him, but the offer sounded really nice. And if he lied, Nino could just easily stabbed him with his knife, so maybe it’d be okay. Sighing, he folded his pocket-knife and stuffed it back into his pocket without letting it go, and then he stood all by himself, ignoring the man’s hand. “Lead the way.” He said.
“Okay.” The man said all-too-cheerfully.
The two of them went outside the store - apparently it was a boutique, now that Nino got a clear view of it - and after locking it, they started walking down the street. Now that his adrenaline wasn’t rushing anymore, Nino’s stomachache was back, and he walked behind the man like a dog in tow, hoping that he really was going to feed him because he really, really need to eat. The walk to the man’s apartment wasn’t taking too long, thankfully, and in another ten minutes Nino already found himself in front of his room, with the man fumbling with his key. While waiting for him to open it, he read his nameplate, and he voiced it out. “Ohno.”
“Ah, yes. It’s my name.” The man - Ohno, replied. “What’s yours?” He asked as unlocked the door.
“Do you really think that I’m going to give you my real name so easily like that?”
“A nickname then.”
Nino pondered on it for a while as they made their way inside, and as he was taking off his worn out sneakers, he answered. “Nino.”
“Nino.” Ohno repeated with a slight smile. “Good name.”
Nino pretended not to hear it as he scanned Ohno’s apartment. The apartment was lacking lots of furniture to the point that it almost bare - the living room only has one purple sofa, a small coffee table and a TV, and then aside from that big canvases of painting was stacked up on the wall; it seems he mostly used that room for painting, judging by the scattered paints and brushes on the floor. Moving on to the kitchen, it also didn’t have much in there - only a small table enough for two. Nino went to sit on it, but Ohno stopped him. “Why don’t you take a shower?” He said. “You looked like you need it.”
“I don’t have any change - and I don’t want to leave you alone. You can call the police when I’m at the bathroom and I don’t want to go to the prison naked.”
Ohno laughed in amusement - his voice was strangely melodious, much to Nino’s annoyance, and he watched in silent as Ohno went to another room, only to come out with a t-shirt, training pants and towel on his hands. “You can use them. I think our size is almost the same.” He also put his phone on top of the clothes, and Nino raised his eyebrows. “Just in case you’re still worried that I’m going to call the police.”
“But -“
“I don’t have another phone but that one.”
Something in his eyes told Nino that he wasn’t lying, so he left Ohno’s phone in the dining table and went to the bathroom in defeat. But honestly, he was glad that he was being offered to take a shower - it has been days since the last time he got a chance to clean himself, and now, standing under the hot shower, he felt nothing but gratefulness towards the other man. Usually people wouldn’t even look twice at him, let alone offering to help - this was completely brand new, and Nino realized then that not everyone was a bastard; at least this one wasn’t worth of his cursing. Feeling much more relaxed and comfortable, Nino took his sweet time under the shower, making sure that every inch of his skin was clean; he even shaved, and once he was done, Nino saw his old-self in the mirror - for the first time after months, he felt a little better about himself, and he let a faint smile graced his lips as he made his way outside the bathroom in his borrowed clothes.
“You look good.” Ohno commented once he entered the kitchen; the delicious scent of curry filled the air, and Nino greedily took them in as he sat on one of the empty chair. “I know that I am.” He replied after he settled in.
Ohno looked at him with a funny look on his face, like he was holding back his laughter, not that Nino actually minded him laughing. He waited not-so-patiently as Ohno filled the plate with white rice and curry, and his mouth immediately water as Ohno placed the plate in front of him. Nino stayed still though; he waited as Ohno brought another plate for himself and also served the miso shiru and two glasses of water for them. He waited until Ohno was sitting in front of him. He waited until Ohno say, “Itadakimasu.”
And yet he asked, “Did you feed homeless person like me whenever you have free time?”
Ohno, who was busy mixing his curry with the rice, simply shrugged. “You’re the first.”
“Why?”
“Like I said, I have enough curry for two, and -“
“Not that, but why? Why do you care? Why do you went through all the trouble - “
“Nino.” Ohno stared at him; his curry, at last, was forgotten. “I don’t really have any reason. I just want to feed you, so eat.” And to forcefully end their conversation, Ohno took a spoonful of curry and eat it. “Umaiii~”
Nino watched him stuffing his mouth with the curry endlessly, and after a while, he finally looked down at his own. The curry gleamed under the light, and he quietly picked his spoon and scooped both the curry and the rice with it. He stared at it for a while, and finally, he put it inside his mouth.
And it was, well, delicious.
The curry was delicious, especially since it was mixed with the warm rice. Nino took another, and then another, again and again until his cheeks was stuffed.
He didn’t realize when his eyes did got blurry or when did he started crying, at least not until Ohno gently wiped his tears with the tissue. Nino looked up at him then, and, seeing the other man gently smiling at him made him put down his spoon to cover his face and cry. “Thank you.” He sobbed from behind his hands. “Thank you for being so kind to me. Thank you.”
Nino heard the sound of the chair being pulled back, and then he felt someone hugging him; out of instinct, Nino hands reached up to hug him back, and he buried his face to Ohno’s chest, clinging to him in a craving for someone else’s warmth. “Thank you.” He whispered, again and again. “Thank you so much. Thank you so much.”
Ohno didn’t say anything, but he hugged Nino tighter as he waited for his tears to dry up, and when he was done crying, Ohno asked, “How about ice cream for dessert?”
That night, when he was already lying on a futon, Nino swore that he was going to change his lifestyle. He couldn’t live in the street anymore - he needed to get a job, somehow. He needed a better life. He needed to repay Ohno’s kindness.
But that was for tomorrow; for now, Nino let himself being tucked in by Ohno, warm and full and comfortable, and he drifted asleep while watching Ohno’s peaceful sleeping face in the bed across him.
***
Nino was gone in the morning.
Ohno woke up and found that the futon has been neatly folded in the corner; on top of it, he found his own wallet and also a piece of paper. He noticed that his wallet was empty but from some of his precious cards, but he ignored it as he went for the paper instead. He unfolded it, and then he read.
Dear Ohno Satoshi-san,
I really am grateful for what you’re doing for me last night. I’ve decided then that I have to get a better life, somehow. And for that, I need a lot of money, so I took all of your money (don’t worry, I left a few coins, don’t need them after all). But since that wasn’t really enough, I also took the iPod in your nightstand (aren’t I kind enough to leave out your phone? I am). I promise that I’ll return everything to you someday, when I’m already back on my feet. Until then, please kindly wait for me.
P.s : Your curry is really delicious. I’m looking forward to eat it again sometimes in the future.
Thank you.
Ninomiya Kazunari.
“So Nino is his real name…” Ohno mumbled to himself as he folded the paper again; he took his empty wallet and he kept the paper there. He silently wondered on how to survive the rest of the month without his money, and also how to explain to his friend, Jun, that his iPod was being ‘borrowed’ by someone else until who knows when.
But even then, Ohno found himself smiling.
I’ll wait for you.
***
A year later
Ohno walked out of Jun’s store with a deep sigh; he was really tired today, and he couldn’t wait to go home and have a hot bath - maybe he could even drink a beer or two while he was at it. Ohno fumbled with the keys, lazily searching for the right one, when he felt a soft tap on his shoulder. “Hey.”
His heart skipped a beat, and he turned around; he half-expected to be shoved inside again, but instead, he felt a box being shoved into his hand by the man in front of him. “Wha -“
“The iPod.” The man in front of him said; Ohno couldn’t really see him because his face was being covered by the hood of his hoodie, but he didn’t even have to see his face fully to know who he was. “I bought you another iPod, to make up for the last one.”
Ohno looked down at the box; he didn’t really care about it - after all, Jun has been cutting off his salary every month until he could buy a new one, so Nino didn’t really have to buy him an iPod. But the fact that Nino managed to buy him one must meant that he has been successful on getting a better life, and Ohno held the box tighter as he felt his smile grow. “How are you?” He asked.
“I’m good.” Nino answered softly as he pulled back his hood, and true to his words, Ohno could see that he looked chubbier and healthier than the last time he saw him. “Ever since then, my life has been good. I used your money to -“
“Sssh.” Ohno put his finger on Nino’s lips. “Let’s talk over dinner. How does curry sounded to you?”
Nino blushed, but he had this brilliant smile on his face as he answered, “I’d love it.”
And so Ohno locked the door and they both walked down the street together, shoulders bumping more than once, though neither seemed to mind. They just looked at each other when it happened, and they’d smile and giggle over it.
The curry they had that night tasted even better than the usual, and when Ohno wake up in the morning, Nino was still there, lying comfortably on his futon. He stayed.
Nino then turned to stare at him; their eyes met, and Nino whispered, “Thank you.”
And they smiled.