[fic] Step by Step; Light and Shade - (16.2/?)
TITLE: Step by Step; Light and Shade
PAIRINGS: Sakuraiba, Matsumiya, Aimiya, Ohmiya, ShoxMaki, and JunxMao
LENGTH: Multi-chaptered
BANDS Arashi (with Horikita Maki and Inoue Mao)
GENRE: Romance, drama... etc.
RATING (by chapter): G-13/14
WARNINGS: AU, language and potentially sexual situations in later chapters.
SUMMARY: "To watch us dance is to hear our hearts speak" - Indian Proverb
Sakurai Sho is the Chief Financial Officer for a large corporation, he has a loving girlfriend, a strange (but friendly) co-worker, and a best friend who teaches a ballroom dance class (which Sho has been guilted into attending). At the class, Sho's encounter with another unorthodox dancer -and his partner- will be the spark needed to kindle new relationships and end others.
PREVIOUS: Step01 Step02 Step03 Step04 Step05 Step06 Step07 Step08 Step09 Step10 Step11 Step12 Step13 Step14 Step15 Step16.1
+++
“Was this a mistake?” Nino mumbled.
Aiba wasn’t sure, to be honest. Though, he wasn’t sure that Nino wanted him to be honest. He decided on shrugging, rather than answering verbally.
Nino sighed, plucking at some loose strand of his wig and turning his back to the room. “Is it too obvious?” He fussed, glancing over his shoulder and then down at himself. “I feel like I’m being stared at.”
“Well…” So much for staying silent on the issue. “You could have at least worn a skirt.”
“I’m sick of shaving my legs.” Nino grumbled. “Besides, I made sure everything was tucked out of sight.” He shifted uncomfortably, then bent over a little to double check that nothing was visibly out of place.
“And was taping your junk up more or less of an ordeal than shaving your legs?” Aiba wondered aloud.
Nino scowled. “Shut up.”
Aiba could of course understand why Nino was worried. It wasn’t in his head. Matsumoto wasn’t even trying to hide that he was staring. He’d looked in the past, but tonight his expression wasn’t one of hurt or longing even. Aiba wasn’t sure what his expression was -somewhere between awed and curious, perhaps. Inoue Mao kept looking their way too, though more discreetly (she was much less discreet about elbowing Matsumoto whenever she felt he was being too obvious).
When Nino had said he was tired of dressing up quite so much, Aiba hadn’t expected him to make a change quite this drastic. He didn’t appear to be wearing makeup at all, and instead of any of his stylish Kazuko wardrobe, he was wearing a frumpy t-shirt, loose sweatpants, and sneakers. Other than his wig, his chest, and the chipped nail polish he hadn’t bothered to remove after Saturday night, there was nothing feminine left about him. He’d expressed his concern earlier, but Nino had been adamant that he was sticking to his new look, and so Aiba had dropped the subject. Now though, under so much scrutiny, it was obvious that Nino was having second thoughts.
It was taking Aiba a lot of effort to refrain from saying ‘I told you so’.
“Um, Ninomiya-san?” Matsumoto had evaded Inoue’s clutches and crossed the room to them while their backs had been turned.
Nino startled and turned to face him apprehensively.
Matsumoto hesitated, looking him over for a moment as though he’d never seen him before, before suddenly choosing to smile. “How’s your routine coming along? I’m sorry I haven’t been very helpful these last couple of weeks.”
“It’s fine.” Nino reassured him quickly, relief evident in his voice. “I think we’re doing a lot better now, anyway.”
“Nino’s been having private lessons with Ohno-kun while I’m away.” Aiba spoke up. “So now I’ve just got to catch up.”
“Right. Yes.” Jun nodded. He seemed slightly distracted, and he was still looking at Nino a little curiously. “He’s coming tonight, I think. Mao-chan told me.” He cleared his throat. “I really do want to apologize for acting awkward around you.” Jun bowed his head. “It was unprofessional of me, Ninomiya-san.”
Aiba’s attention wandered a little, not wanting to intrude too much on Matsumoto’s apology. The clock above the studio door said it was almost time for class to start. He’d invited Sho to come if he wanted, but he’d said he probably wouldn’t make it because he had a meeting to attend. The situation with his mother’s hospitalization had made him a little impulsive, and he’d made a call to his landlord that morning. After all, he wasn’t going to be spending a lot of time in Tokyo for the next couple months (and Nino had already offered up his guest futon if he needed somewhere to crash) and after quitting his part-time dog-sitting job he really wasn’t going to have any income to pay his rent with anyway. Nino had understood his reasoning and spent the morning helping him pack all his things into boxes, and Aiba was planning to rent a truck on the weekend to transport it all down to Chiba. He had to break the news to Sho, particularly now that they were back on good terms with each other, and he’d hoped the dance class would be an easy excuse to meet. But if Sho couldn’t make it, he’d just have to man up and drop by his house for a chat. There was movement in the hall though, and Aiba let his hopes rise for a moment.
It was Ohno Satoshi who walked in. His cheeks were flushed from the cold, his hair a mess from having just pulled a cap off his head. Aiba turned to gauge Nino’s reaction and nearly laughed. He was completely distracted from whatever Matsumoto was saying, eyes unsubtly tracking Ohno’s movements as he shed his coat and unwrapped a long blue scarf from around his neck.
“So, no hard feelings?”
“Uh, none at all.” Nino answered, accidentally speaking a little deeper than he normally allowed himself while dressed as Kazuko. He looked away from Ohno only long enough to meet Matsumoto’s eyes and smile.
Matsumoto seemed to have realized the source of Nino’s distraction. He glanced in Ohno’s direction and a surprisingly amused expression lit up his face. “Great. Well, if you’ll excuse me…”
Ohno made it halfway across the room before his eyes landed on Nino and he stopped as abruptly as though he’d hit a brick wall. Nino and Aiba shared a concerned glance at his reaction. Ohno’s mouth had dropped open slightly, his eyebrows had raised and his widened eyes roved Nino’s body from head to toe. For a long moment he just stared, and then he blinked several times and continued his approach at a slower -almost wary- pace.
“Ohno-kun?...” Nino questioned when he’d gotten close enough.
Ohno swallowed visibly, eyes still flicking up and down and taking in Nino’s changed appearance. “You look different.” He said at length.
Nino flushed slightly. “Ah, well…”
Matsumoto called the class to attention before Nino could elaborate.
Aiba hadn’t spent a lot of time in Ohno’s company, but he didn’t recall his eyes ever looking as alert as they did while studying Nino’s more boyish appearance. A red flag went off somewhere in the back of Aiba’s mind, but he didn’t get a chance to consider what it could mean.
“Well.” Ohno seemed to snap out of whatever had possessed him. He blinked and smiled at them both, as though he’d only just noticed Aiba’s presence. “I’ll just be observing today.” He nodded his head and then meandered off to the bench behind them.
“I see what you meant now.” Aiba whispered while they participated in the warm up stretches. “He does look at you strangely.”
Nino was frowning. “Even stranger than usual, today.” He grumbled, glancing down at his attire again. “This really might have been a bad idea.”
+++
The dance class had probably started, Sho thought a little wistfully. It wasn’t that he missed the class itself, (he’d only actually participated a couple of times, after all) but he missed the atmosphere. He missed watching Jun being so obviously in his element while he instructed everyone, and he even missed watching the drama unfold in the strange love triangle between Jun and Mao and Ninomiya.
Most of all, of course, he missed Aiba.
He’d considered going to watch tonight for that reason alone. They’d spent over an hour chatting on the phone the night before, and it was an unbelievable relief that they were apparently back on friendly terms with each other. Much as he was tempted to accept Aiba’s invitation to go watch, he’d already made up his mind to be somewhere else.
The business card in his hand was creased and bent from fidgeting with it so often. He idled for a moment on the sidewalk, but the lights inside the townhouse were on and he could see movement behind one of the second floor windows. Someone was definitely home. Sho climbed the steps to the front door slowly, but determined, and rang the bell.
Maki only looked momentarily surprised to see him. There was a towel around her neck, her cheeks were rosy and her hair still damp from the bath. “Sho.” She greeted quietly.
Sho felt a small smile on his lips. Though guilt churned in his gut, it was undeniably good to see her again.
Her answering smile was a little bit sad, as though she already knew what he was there to say. “Come in.” She said, holding the door open. “I just put the kettle on.”
+++
This was certainly an interesting development.
Mao had voiced the same thought upon sliding onto the bench beside him. “Does he know?”
“That we know?” Ohno shook his head. “I haven’t said anything.”
“Yet?”
He shrugged. “Don’t know if I should or not.”
Mao hummed thoughtfully. “He really does look like a guy without makeup.”
Ohno laughed. “Because he is.”
Mao grinned slyly at him. “He’s also pretty good looking…” Ohno pouted at her and she held her hands up in mock surrender. “Hey, don’t worry, he’s all yours.”
Ohno rolled his eyes, but couldn’t keep from smiling. “I don’t need to worry when you’ve obviously got your hands full with Jun-kun now.”
“Ah~” Her grin softened fondly as her gaze shifted to watch Jun correcting a couple’s posture. “You noticed, huh?”
“You’re both glowing every time you look at each other.” Ohno pointed out, delighting in the redness of her ears. “Not even a little bit subtle. Has he finally seen the light and agreed to go out with you?”
She nudged him, embarrassed, but her eyes never left Jun. “Sort of. We’re taking it slow.” She answered. “And don’t think I didn’t notice that smooth subject change away from Ninomiya-kun.”
Ohno hummed as though he had no idea what she was talking about.
“You’ve done a good job with him though.” She commented. “His dancing has improved a lot. He’s even teaching Aiba-san as they go.”
“Thanks…” He trailed off, distracted as he watched Aiba and Ninomiya work through the most difficult passage of their waltz routine. “But there’s still something a little… off, don’t you think?”
Mao laughed and shook her head at him fondly. “Perfectionist.” She chided. “They’re dancing at a beginner’s level, don’t forget.”
Ohno hummed vaguely, lost in thought while she excused herself to return to Jun’s side. Ninomiya ducked under Aiba’s arm smoothly, the steps were right and his posture was greatly improved, but there was a certain ‘forced’ quality to the move nonetheless. “Oh!” The answer struck him suddenly, and a lesson plan began to take shape in his head.
+++
“So… that’s the gist of it.” He finished, hardly able to hear his own voice over the pounding of his own pulse. He couldn’t remember the last time he’d been so nervous. Probably never. He’d never felt comfortable talking about his feelings, and these were feelings he’d never talked to anyone but Ohno about (and there’d been no danger of Ohno reacting unkindly).
Maki had been silent for a long time -the whole time he’d been rambling, in fact. Their teacups on the table still sat untouched, and had long since stopped steaming. Her lips were pursed thoughtfully, and her brow was furrowed. The second of silence seemed to stretch on for years, until Sho could stand waiting for her reaction no longer.
“I need you to know that I didn’t know this about me until recently. I wasn’t trying to deceive you. I-“ His throat was so dry he was afraid his voice might crack and give out completely. “I really did care for you. I still do. I really can’t forgive myself for hurting you. I’m so sorry.” Before he even realized what he was doing, his knees had hit the kitchen floor and he bowed the deepest and sincerest he ever had in his life. “I know you probably hate the sight of me right now, and I have no right to ask this of you, but please- Please forgive me!”
He’d barely finished speaking before he felt her hands on his shoulders, pulling him upright. She got down on the floor beside him and drew him to her chest with near violent force. Sho was so horrified to feel tears rolling down his cheeks that he couldn’t even consider resisting. One arm wrapped tight around his shoulders and her other hand slipped into the hair on the back of his head and held him close. “Sho.” She murmured, bending her head to press her lips into his hair. “It’s okay. Just breathe.”
He tried, and nearly choked on a sob trying to wrench free of his throat. When had he started hyperventilating? His hands came up of their own accord to fist in the back of her housecoat.
“I’m not a monster.” She continued quietly. Her own voice sounded thick with tears. “I care for you too. How could I possibly hate you?”
“But I-“ He choked, squeezing his eyes shut. “I’m-“
“People love who they love. Male or female, it doesn’t matter, right?”” Her hand smoothed over his shoulder blades in gentle circular motions. “I won’t pretend I’m not a little heart broken that we aren’t going to work out as a couple, but I’ve had some time to think about moving on from you these past weeks.” She sighed, squeezing him a little tighter. “This is just closure.”
+++
“You guys are doing great!” Jun smiled, approaching them after class had ended. “Aiba-san, if you keep practicing it like you did it tonight, you two should be all set for the competition. Don’t you agree Ohno-san?”
Nino was startled to find Ohno standing directly behind him. He’d been so quiet throughout the whole class that Nino had almost forgotten he was there at all.
“Mm, yes.” Ohno smiled, looking almost sleepy. Nino tried to pretend he didn’t find the look strangely attractive (It seemed everything about Ohno Satoshi was both strange and attractive). “You’re doing great, Aiba-san. Just keep it up.”
Nino couldn’t help raising an eyebrow at him. “I notice that praise didn’t apply to me.” He crossed his arms.
“I’ve got one more thing to work on with you, Nino.”
Nino’s mouth dropped open at the use of his nickname. Nobody who knew him as Kazuko had ever called him Nino, but Ohno seemed to think they were at nickname familiarity now. Ohno was smiling pleasantly but his eyes looked amused. Nino frowned, though he was of course happy that Ohno thought they were so close. “I’m pretty sure I did everything you taught me, Oh-chan.”
Something flashed in Ohno’s eyes, almost as if they suddenly turned a darker shade of brown. His smile widened, definitely pleased by Nino’s response.
Jun cleared his throat, looking between the two of them with a mixture of confusion and amusement. Beside him, Aiba was doing a poor job of hiding a grin behind his hand. “Well, I’ll see you guys next week?” Jun started to excuse himself.
“Matsumoto-kun, would it be possible for me to use this studio space for a while?” Ohno spoke up suddenly, dragging his gaze away from Nino and over to the instructor. “Do you know if it’s available?”
“Nobody else is using it tonight.” Jun answered slowly. “Just… don’t wreck the place.” Ohno laughed. “And please lock the doors behind you when you leave.”
“I will.” Ohno beamed, waving as the instructor turned to leave. “Thanks, Jun-kun!”
“What do you want it for?” Nino asked, causing Ohno’s eyes to snap back to him. “You want to practice with me right now?”
“Are you free?”
“Well…” Nino hesitated, looking to Aiba. “Your train doesn’t leave for a while, though, right?” He wasn’t entirely sure what Aiba had planned to do between the class and heading back for Chiba, but he wouldn’t be surprised if he’d been planning to hang around at Nino’s place.
But Aiba shrugged, stepping backwards and pulling out his phone. “If he’s home yet, I was thinking I’d visit Sho-kun before I go. You don’t mind, do you?” He grinned cheekily, already backpedaling towards the exit without waiting for an answer. “You and Ohno-san have fun!”
Nino clenched his teeth. He had nothing lady-like to say in response to Aiba’s teasing. Ohno’s smile was stupidly wide (and stupidly attractive, of course).
Ohno just stood there; content to be silent until every other person had left the studio. Finally, he broke the quiet by reaching out to smooth a wrinkle in the sleeve of Nino’s t-shirt. “I like you like this.” He said casually. “You look good.”
Nino stared as Ohno turned his back and crossed over to the coat pegs by the door. It took him a moment to think of anything to say. “So Ohno-san’s got a thing for tomboys, huh?” He tried to joke.
Ohno chuckled. “Sort of.” He answered vaguely. When he turned back around he was holding the same dark blue scarf he’d been wearing earlier. “This is the subject of tonight’s lesson.”
“Oh god.” Nino balked. “Is this going to be some kind of fashion lesson?”
Ohno laughed and shook his head. “I noticed tonight that you’re not naturally a follower. You’re not used to letting someone else take control.”
Nino shifted uncomfortably. “So?”
“So,” there was a wicked gleam in Ohno’s eyes. He held up the scarf. “How do you feel about being blindfolded?”
+++
They sat on the swings at a little playground a block away from her home, chatting and laughing while Mao finished her ice cream cone. “He must know we’re onto him now.” She said through her mouthful. “After the way you kept acting around him.”
“You can’t just blame me.” Jun laughed, not remotely apologetic. “Did you see the way Ohno-san reacted?”
She grinned, kicking her feet out to start swinging gently. “Poor Ohno-kun’s in deep I think…” She mused.
“I feel kind of bad that Ninomiya doesn’t know we all know… Do you think Ohno will tell him?”
“Don’t know. I hope so.” She swallowed the last bite of her cone. “Maybe that’s what he’s planning to do at the studio tonight.”
“Maybe…” Jun was momentarily distracted by watching Mao lick ice cream off the tips of her fingers but, suddenly, another thought occurred to him. “Ah! The lock!”
“Hm?” Mao got to her feet. “You already reminded Ohno-kun to lock up when he leaves.”
“No, I forgot Yamamoto-san installed a digital alarm this week in preparation for the building being sold. You need to know the passcode to lock it… Can I borrow your phone to text him?” Mao got a blank message ready and handed it over to him. “I’d better let him know I’m coming back to do it.”
“You have to go all the way back?”
Jun sent the text and handed the phone back to her. “Yamamoto probably wouldn’t like me giving out the code to other people, so I’d better do it myself.” He shrugged. “Shall I walk you home first?”
“No need.” She shook her head. “It’s only a block. I can make it back safely on my own.”
“I don’t mind walking you though.” He frowned. “And it’s not like you have to worry about your mother. She doesn’t get home until this weekend, right?”
“The doorman would definitely tell her if he saw me with you. She has eyes everywhere.”
Jun chewed his lip. He couldn’t keep a shadow from crossing his expression.
She sighed heavily. “I’m sorry… I’m not ashamed of you Jun.” She said, as if she could read his thoughts. “It’s just I know how she’ll react, and I’m not ready to face her yet.”
Jun nodded, pasting a reassuring smile on his lips when he looked back up at her. “I understand.” He did, after all. She was the heiress to a multi-billion yen company with international roots, and he was a waiter who needed to work part-time on the side just to make ends meet. It was a little baffling that she was interested in him at all.
Mao smiled back, tucking a piece of hair behind her ear. “Thanks for the ice cream. Call me, okay?”
Jun nodded, feeling his own smile grow more genuine. Her cheeks were rosy from the cold, and her eyes were bright and kind. “We should go on a proper date.” He said
She ducked her head shyly, and then bent down to kiss him. Her lips were soft but firm against his, and her fingers caressed his cheek gently. Jun barely had a chance to respond and kiss her back before she pulled away and straightened up. “Goodnight, Jun.” Her eyes were positively sparkling.
Jun watched her jog down the sidewalk with a stunned expression on his face. He licked his lips as he got to his feet, and tasted vanilla. Jun grinned all the way back to his car.
Neither of them had noticed the flashing of a camera phone across the street.
+++
to be continued...
>>>>NEXT>>>>
A/N: Hello~ This chapter just kept getting bigger and bigger, so I decided it was best to end it here. BUT that means I've already got the next one half finished, and I feel like I'm on a bit of a roll. Don't hold your breath, but I don't think it'll be too much longer 'til the next one gets posted! Thanks for reading guys! Also, please let me know if you notice any errors in this, I checked it over but I always seem to miss something.