Bubbles on the Water - Chapter Four (Ohmiya)
BUBBLES ON THE WATER
Multi-chaptered
An Ohmiya Fan-fiction (嵐)
By: Ami
Beta-reader: beastlover
Standard disclaimers apply.
4. Chapter Four
“Hey,” said Touya during one lazy afternoon, “You always look so busy.”
“Clearly I’m anything but busy right now,” Nozomu replied, resting his head on both palms, eyes focused on nothing in particular in the distance.
“I mean, when you’re busy, you’re very busy.”
“Hmm… that’s because people only stop by to buy bread in the morning, during lunch time, and sometimes when they get back from work,” Nozomu reasoned with a yawn. “Unlike you, they actually have some sense to eat balanced food instead of curry bread for breakfast, lunch and dinner.”
Touya grinned sheepishly, “I can’t help myself. It's because your bread is Ni---”
“-ppon-Ichi. I know.” Nozomu got up and started wiping the glass showcase again, mostly because he was bored, not because it needed it. “What are you trying to say anyway? Just tell me. As long as it isn’t begging for free bread, I might---”
“Can I work here?”
Nozomu stopped wiping.
“Pardon?”
“I don’t need a monthly salary. Just… feed me.”
“What are you, a pet?” Nozomu narrowed his eyes, “I can’t possibly do that! And how are you going to pay the rent?”
“Rent… ah… right… rent…” The way Touya spoke the word made it sound like a foreign word to the painter. “For the rent, I can… ummm… paint?”
Nozomu rolled his eyes. “Obviously, your job must have not paid you enough, for you to come and ask for a job here.”
Touya nodded guiltily.
Nozomu sighed deeply before reaching inside his drawer for his accounting book. “Well, it can’t be helped. I can’t promise a sky-high salary, but I’ll do my best. How much is your rent per month?”
XXX
Ohno unlocked the apartment door carefully. The ceremony had taken longer than he would have liked, but he took comfort in knowing that he could see Nino in their apartment straight after the dull event. He was not surprised to find that being able to come home to Nino brought him so much relief. After all, his house didn’t quite feel like home these days, with him avoiding his mother’s requests to consider marriage day and night. His mother’s cooking hadn’t even tasted good when he had been forced to chew while listening to the merits of having a good, stable, happy family with a child or two.
Obviously, going out wasn’t much of a solution, with his mother’s persistent mails and voice messages. He had only attended the matchmaking ceremony to get a temporary moment of peace, but the plan had seemed to backfire. His mother had been praising his wife-to-be during the entire trip back home. Now that she knew she could push Ohno into attending a matchmaking ceremony, she intended to push her luck and drag him into his own marriage.
“I’m home.” Ohno’s smiled bloomed when he noticed the warm light from the living room. He knew that he was truly home when he saw Nino lying languidly on the couch, with his glasses on and the movie script held loosely in his hand.
“Welcome back,” Nino greeted, keeping his eyes on the script. “Dinner is on the table. I hope you don’t mind takeout. Sho-chan told me that invalids shouldn’t work with kitchen appliances.”
“It’s okay,” Ohno put down his bag and took his coat off. “How do you feel?”
“Sore,” Nino replied quickly, “And how was your omiai?”
“Dull.” It took Ohno another moment to realize the meaning of Nino’s question, “Um. Did Sho-kun tell you?”
“Uh-hum,” Nino snapped his script book closed and finally looked up at his nervous lover with a bland expression. “How long were you planning to keep it from me anyway?”
“Not long, I swear.” Ohno blinked, “Are you mad?”
“Grab a bite,” Nino gestured to the packed miso ramen on the dining table. “Go on. You must be hungry. You can never eat a lot during formal events.”
Ohno hesitated for a moment before moving to prepare his dinner, keeping his eyes on Nino all the time. The younger man was acting normally, which was abnormal considering the circumstances. Ohno couldn’t tell whether Nino was really mad or really sleepy.
“You can tell me, you know.” Nino got up, walked towards the dining table, and took a seat across from him, “About these… things.”
Ohno nodded timidly, “I just… didn’t think that you would want to be bothered. I can take care of this problem myself, you know.”
Nino snorted. “You attended the ceremony. It’s obviously your mom’s win.”
Ohno looked thoughtful, “You’re right. It’s just… I just hate to think of this as some sort of competition against my mom.”
“Will you get married with some random girl if your mother insists on it?”
“No, of course not.”
“I know you won’t, I know, Oh-chan.” Nino idly brushed the bruised spot on his elbow. It still hurt just as much as before. He was just hoping that tomorrow’s filming costume would include long-sleeves. “But you do realize that as irresistible and charming as I am, I can never be your family’s ideal bride, right?”
Ohno fell silent, his chopsticks still held loose in his hand. The ramen he had poured in to the bowl had started to swell just a bit.
“You know, I really, really HATE this sort of conversation.” Nino crossed his arms, “Too bad this has become unavoidable. I’m not against staying casual, but I refuse to stay casual with a wife and two kids waiting for you at home.”
“I’m not getting another wife! I already have you!”
Nino held back a smile at the impulsive answer. “You do realize that if we ever manage to get married, I’m so making you the woman in this relationship.”
“Kazu,” Ohno looked at him, endearingly earnest, “Let’s figure this out together. I want to be together with you, no matter what.”
Nino let the other man hold his hand tight before releasing him gently to let him finish his dinner. After all, they have a long night of serious discussion waiting for them.
XXX
Matsumoto Jun was never a morning person. He had tried to fix this ‘morning blues’ syndrome several times before (two of which had provided unaired A no Arashi footage) but he could never seem to truly overcome it. That morning, once again, he stretched lethargically under the blanket in his comfortable bed while thinking about how crappy he felt and how audacious the sun was for finding its way through the folds of his curtains. He was in the middle of recalling his schedule for the day when his phone rang, quickly topping his ‘things which make crappier mornings’ list.
“Hello, Jun-kun, it’s me.”
Jun had expected it to be his manager, but it turned out to be one and the only Ninomiya Kazunari instead. Now the phone call had become weird rather than annoying.
“Nino, how… unusual.” Jun stifled a yawn, “What is it?”
“Oh, I just want to tell you that our dancing practice for the new single is in one hour. The practice has been advanced because my director decided to reschedule our shooting for the day.”
Jun glanced at the clock and hummed his understanding.
“I couldn’t reach your manager, so I figured I’d just tell you directly. Everyone is here already by the way. So if you get here earlier, we can start practicing right away.”
Jun frowned. For some reason, Nino sounded just as lethargic as he was. He wondered if it was the result of Nino’s accident.
“Are you sure you are well enough to start dancing? I heard you were pretty badly injured.” Jun mentally scolded himself for forgetting to call to ask about Nino’s condition the day before, “I’m sorry I didn’t call earlier. Are you okay now?”
“Yeah, mostly. I’m just sleep-deprived,” Nino replied blandly. “Oh-chan went to a matchmaking ceremony yesterday, so we were up very late to discuss our circumstances.”
“Oh, so you were up with---what? Matchmaking ceremony?” Jun’s eyes were suddenly open, wide and fresh, “With whom?”
“Dunno. His father’s friend’s daughter, maybe.” Nino paused to finish yawning, “I went to the restaurant but I didn’t manage to sneak a peek.”
“You what?” Jun sounded scandalized, “Did you… do something to ruin the ceremony or anything?”
“This is not a damn dorama. I didn’t do a thing.” Nino grumbled, “I thought I could do something, but, when I got there, I realized that I couldn’t do anything, so I went home.”
“Oh,” Jun stood up and reached for the discarded shirt he had carelessly thrown on the floor the night before. “Did you guys figure out what to do?”
“Not really. Oh-chan said he would try to talk to his mom. He said he could stop her, but I seriously doubt it.”
“I understand.” Jun put the shirt on to the hanger, making a mental note to send it for dry cleaning later. “This seems to be a difficult situation for both of you. I just want to let you know that you have my support.”
“Thanks, Jun-kun,” Nino sighed. “The only solution I can think of is admitting our relationship to our families. I keep thinking that it's bound to happen, sooner or later, if we want to be together.”
“Now, that isn’t a bad idea,” Jun perked up. “They might react strongly at the beginning, but in time, they should open up to you. At least they will know not to try to marry either of you off to some random girl.”
“…I’ll consider it after Oh-chan officially fails. Very soon, I bet.”
XXX
“I failed.”
“I see.”
Nino stared blankly at the staff members who were busy preparing their next set for the current scene.
“What did your mom say?”
Ohno sighed tiredly, “Things. I’d rather not remember.”
“I see.” Nino crouched down next to him, ruffling his short hair in frustration. Of course this outcome was more than expected, but this confirmation had crushed the little hope he had been holding on to.
“Hey, Oh-chan,”
“Hmmm?”
“What’s your father favorite food again?”
“He eats pretty much everything.” Just like me, Ohno refrained from adding.
“Think he fancies handmade sushi?”
“What?”
XXX
The next Sunday morning, Ohno found himself at his front gate, with fishing equipment in hand, and someone who resembled Nino standing just before him. Except, this person was dressed a bit more formally than Nino usually was. Clearly this person was not Nino. Nino did not come to his house early in the morning on his day off. And, more than anything, Nino did not bring presents when visiting people.
Yes, this person was either a figment of his imagination or, Nino’s twin. Ohno just had to ask one simple question to make sure.
“…Kazu?”
“Of course it’s me. Silly Oh-chan,” Nino smiled pleasantly as he calmly pushed the older man out of the way and rang the doorbell.
“Who is it?” asked Ohno’s mother from the other side of the intercom.
“It’s Ninomiya Kazunari.” Nino watched Ohno’s stunned expression with a wide smile, “I’m coming for a visit. Is Satoshi-kun home?”
“Oh, Ninomiya-kun, he has just left to fish! I’m so sorry. That boy didn’t tell me that you were going to visit…”
“Ah, it’s my fault for dropping by unannounced. Too bad… I was hoping to discuss our movie script with him.”
Ohno shivered. Nino definitely deserved to work under Clint Eastwood. His acting skill was unparalleled.
“Do you mind if I come to visit you instead, Mrs. Ohno? I have brought some humble presents you might like. I’d hate to let them go to waste.” Nino gestured for Ohno to leave.
“Of course you’re always welcome here, Ninomiya-kun! Just wait for a moment, we’ll open the door for you.”
“Are you going to ask for my hand in marriage?” Ohno asked after making sure that the intercom was off.
“You’re so silly. It’s adorable, Oh-chan.” Nino grinned, “What would you do if that was true?”
Ohno swallowed, looking very nervous. “I…”
Nino mock-frowned, “Should I be offended that you don’t look too happy about it?”
“No! I’m happy, but---“
“Well, you can go fish in peace, at least for the time being.” Nino gestured to the rather extravagant sushi box he was holding, “For today, I just plan to drop these off and chat a bit. You know, so I can get to know your parents better.”
Ohno was completely dumbfounded.
“I haven’t figured out what to do if they become too impressed with me and ask me to marry you, but… yeah, I’m ready to face your family.” Nino always talked a lot when he was nervous, Ohno knew this better than anyone. “Just… go and scare those poor little fishes. I can handle this myself. When you get home, your mom will definitely talk about how pleasant I am. I promise.”
“But, Kazu---“
“Just go, okay? Don’t let your mom catch us talking here.” Nino assured him once more, “I promise this will work out. Don’t you trust me, Oh-chan?”
Nodding hesitantly, Ohno turned around and started to walk away, feeling a heavy weight in each step. When he got far enough, he turned around to see his mother opening the gate for Nino. They looked very friendly with each other. He was sure that Nino would be able to charm his parents effortlessly.
It was Nino. Confident Nino never let anyone down. Everything would definitely work out.
But still…
Ohno frowned at the cloudy sky as his feet made bold strides back to his house.
“I’m home.”
XXX
つづく
Multi-chaptered
An Ohmiya Fan-fiction (嵐)
By: Ami
Beta-reader: beastlover
Standard disclaimers apply.
4. Chapter Four
“Hey,” said Touya during one lazy afternoon, “You always look so busy.”
“Clearly I’m anything but busy right now,” Nozomu replied, resting his head on both palms, eyes focused on nothing in particular in the distance.
“I mean, when you’re busy, you’re very busy.”
“Hmm… that’s because people only stop by to buy bread in the morning, during lunch time, and sometimes when they get back from work,” Nozomu reasoned with a yawn. “Unlike you, they actually have some sense to eat balanced food instead of curry bread for breakfast, lunch and dinner.”
Touya grinned sheepishly, “I can’t help myself. It's because your bread is Ni---”
“-ppon-Ichi. I know.” Nozomu got up and started wiping the glass showcase again, mostly because he was bored, not because it needed it. “What are you trying to say anyway? Just tell me. As long as it isn’t begging for free bread, I might---”
“Can I work here?”
Nozomu stopped wiping.
“Pardon?”
“I don’t need a monthly salary. Just… feed me.”
“What are you, a pet?” Nozomu narrowed his eyes, “I can’t possibly do that! And how are you going to pay the rent?”
“Rent… ah… right… rent…” The way Touya spoke the word made it sound like a foreign word to the painter. “For the rent, I can… ummm… paint?”
Nozomu rolled his eyes. “Obviously, your job must have not paid you enough, for you to come and ask for a job here.”
Touya nodded guiltily.
Nozomu sighed deeply before reaching inside his drawer for his accounting book. “Well, it can’t be helped. I can’t promise a sky-high salary, but I’ll do my best. How much is your rent per month?”
XXX
Ohno unlocked the apartment door carefully. The ceremony had taken longer than he would have liked, but he took comfort in knowing that he could see Nino in their apartment straight after the dull event. He was not surprised to find that being able to come home to Nino brought him so much relief. After all, his house didn’t quite feel like home these days, with him avoiding his mother’s requests to consider marriage day and night. His mother’s cooking hadn’t even tasted good when he had been forced to chew while listening to the merits of having a good, stable, happy family with a child or two.
Obviously, going out wasn’t much of a solution, with his mother’s persistent mails and voice messages. He had only attended the matchmaking ceremony to get a temporary moment of peace, but the plan had seemed to backfire. His mother had been praising his wife-to-be during the entire trip back home. Now that she knew she could push Ohno into attending a matchmaking ceremony, she intended to push her luck and drag him into his own marriage.
“I’m home.” Ohno’s smiled bloomed when he noticed the warm light from the living room. He knew that he was truly home when he saw Nino lying languidly on the couch, with his glasses on and the movie script held loosely in his hand.
“Welcome back,” Nino greeted, keeping his eyes on the script. “Dinner is on the table. I hope you don’t mind takeout. Sho-chan told me that invalids shouldn’t work with kitchen appliances.”
“It’s okay,” Ohno put down his bag and took his coat off. “How do you feel?”
“Sore,” Nino replied quickly, “And how was your omiai?”
“Dull.” It took Ohno another moment to realize the meaning of Nino’s question, “Um. Did Sho-kun tell you?”
“Uh-hum,” Nino snapped his script book closed and finally looked up at his nervous lover with a bland expression. “How long were you planning to keep it from me anyway?”
“Not long, I swear.” Ohno blinked, “Are you mad?”
“Grab a bite,” Nino gestured to the packed miso ramen on the dining table. “Go on. You must be hungry. You can never eat a lot during formal events.”
Ohno hesitated for a moment before moving to prepare his dinner, keeping his eyes on Nino all the time. The younger man was acting normally, which was abnormal considering the circumstances. Ohno couldn’t tell whether Nino was really mad or really sleepy.
“You can tell me, you know.” Nino got up, walked towards the dining table, and took a seat across from him, “About these… things.”
Ohno nodded timidly, “I just… didn’t think that you would want to be bothered. I can take care of this problem myself, you know.”
Nino snorted. “You attended the ceremony. It’s obviously your mom’s win.”
Ohno looked thoughtful, “You’re right. It’s just… I just hate to think of this as some sort of competition against my mom.”
“Will you get married with some random girl if your mother insists on it?”
“No, of course not.”
“I know you won’t, I know, Oh-chan.” Nino idly brushed the bruised spot on his elbow. It still hurt just as much as before. He was just hoping that tomorrow’s filming costume would include long-sleeves. “But you do realize that as irresistible and charming as I am, I can never be your family’s ideal bride, right?”
Ohno fell silent, his chopsticks still held loose in his hand. The ramen he had poured in to the bowl had started to swell just a bit.
“You know, I really, really HATE this sort of conversation.” Nino crossed his arms, “Too bad this has become unavoidable. I’m not against staying casual, but I refuse to stay casual with a wife and two kids waiting for you at home.”
“I’m not getting another wife! I already have you!”
Nino held back a smile at the impulsive answer. “You do realize that if we ever manage to get married, I’m so making you the woman in this relationship.”
“Kazu,” Ohno looked at him, endearingly earnest, “Let’s figure this out together. I want to be together with you, no matter what.”
Nino let the other man hold his hand tight before releasing him gently to let him finish his dinner. After all, they have a long night of serious discussion waiting for them.
XXX
Matsumoto Jun was never a morning person. He had tried to fix this ‘morning blues’ syndrome several times before (two of which had provided unaired A no Arashi footage) but he could never seem to truly overcome it. That morning, once again, he stretched lethargically under the blanket in his comfortable bed while thinking about how crappy he felt and how audacious the sun was for finding its way through the folds of his curtains. He was in the middle of recalling his schedule for the day when his phone rang, quickly topping his ‘things which make crappier mornings’ list.
“Hello, Jun-kun, it’s me.”
Jun had expected it to be his manager, but it turned out to be one and the only Ninomiya Kazunari instead. Now the phone call had become weird rather than annoying.
“Nino, how… unusual.” Jun stifled a yawn, “What is it?”
“Oh, I just want to tell you that our dancing practice for the new single is in one hour. The practice has been advanced because my director decided to reschedule our shooting for the day.”
Jun glanced at the clock and hummed his understanding.
“I couldn’t reach your manager, so I figured I’d just tell you directly. Everyone is here already by the way. So if you get here earlier, we can start practicing right away.”
Jun frowned. For some reason, Nino sounded just as lethargic as he was. He wondered if it was the result of Nino’s accident.
“Are you sure you are well enough to start dancing? I heard you were pretty badly injured.” Jun mentally scolded himself for forgetting to call to ask about Nino’s condition the day before, “I’m sorry I didn’t call earlier. Are you okay now?”
“Yeah, mostly. I’m just sleep-deprived,” Nino replied blandly. “Oh-chan went to a matchmaking ceremony yesterday, so we were up very late to discuss our circumstances.”
“Oh, so you were up with---what? Matchmaking ceremony?” Jun’s eyes were suddenly open, wide and fresh, “With whom?”
“Dunno. His father’s friend’s daughter, maybe.” Nino paused to finish yawning, “I went to the restaurant but I didn’t manage to sneak a peek.”
“You what?” Jun sounded scandalized, “Did you… do something to ruin the ceremony or anything?”
“This is not a damn dorama. I didn’t do a thing.” Nino grumbled, “I thought I could do something, but, when I got there, I realized that I couldn’t do anything, so I went home.”
“Oh,” Jun stood up and reached for the discarded shirt he had carelessly thrown on the floor the night before. “Did you guys figure out what to do?”
“Not really. Oh-chan said he would try to talk to his mom. He said he could stop her, but I seriously doubt it.”
“I understand.” Jun put the shirt on to the hanger, making a mental note to send it for dry cleaning later. “This seems to be a difficult situation for both of you. I just want to let you know that you have my support.”
“Thanks, Jun-kun,” Nino sighed. “The only solution I can think of is admitting our relationship to our families. I keep thinking that it's bound to happen, sooner or later, if we want to be together.”
“Now, that isn’t a bad idea,” Jun perked up. “They might react strongly at the beginning, but in time, they should open up to you. At least they will know not to try to marry either of you off to some random girl.”
“…I’ll consider it after Oh-chan officially fails. Very soon, I bet.”
XXX
“I failed.”
“I see.”
Nino stared blankly at the staff members who were busy preparing their next set for the current scene.
“What did your mom say?”
Ohno sighed tiredly, “Things. I’d rather not remember.”
“I see.” Nino crouched down next to him, ruffling his short hair in frustration. Of course this outcome was more than expected, but this confirmation had crushed the little hope he had been holding on to.
“Hey, Oh-chan,”
“Hmmm?”
“What’s your father favorite food again?”
“He eats pretty much everything.” Just like me, Ohno refrained from adding.
“Think he fancies handmade sushi?”
“What?”
XXX
The next Sunday morning, Ohno found himself at his front gate, with fishing equipment in hand, and someone who resembled Nino standing just before him. Except, this person was dressed a bit more formally than Nino usually was. Clearly this person was not Nino. Nino did not come to his house early in the morning on his day off. And, more than anything, Nino did not bring presents when visiting people.
Yes, this person was either a figment of his imagination or, Nino’s twin. Ohno just had to ask one simple question to make sure.
“…Kazu?”
“Of course it’s me. Silly Oh-chan,” Nino smiled pleasantly as he calmly pushed the older man out of the way and rang the doorbell.
“Who is it?” asked Ohno’s mother from the other side of the intercom.
“It’s Ninomiya Kazunari.” Nino watched Ohno’s stunned expression with a wide smile, “I’m coming for a visit. Is Satoshi-kun home?”
“Oh, Ninomiya-kun, he has just left to fish! I’m so sorry. That boy didn’t tell me that you were going to visit…”
“Ah, it’s my fault for dropping by unannounced. Too bad… I was hoping to discuss our movie script with him.”
Ohno shivered. Nino definitely deserved to work under Clint Eastwood. His acting skill was unparalleled.
“Do you mind if I come to visit you instead, Mrs. Ohno? I have brought some humble presents you might like. I’d hate to let them go to waste.” Nino gestured for Ohno to leave.
“Of course you’re always welcome here, Ninomiya-kun! Just wait for a moment, we’ll open the door for you.”
“Are you going to ask for my hand in marriage?” Ohno asked after making sure that the intercom was off.
“You’re so silly. It’s adorable, Oh-chan.” Nino grinned, “What would you do if that was true?”
Ohno swallowed, looking very nervous. “I…”
Nino mock-frowned, “Should I be offended that you don’t look too happy about it?”
“No! I’m happy, but---“
“Well, you can go fish in peace, at least for the time being.” Nino gestured to the rather extravagant sushi box he was holding, “For today, I just plan to drop these off and chat a bit. You know, so I can get to know your parents better.”
Ohno was completely dumbfounded.
“I haven’t figured out what to do if they become too impressed with me and ask me to marry you, but… yeah, I’m ready to face your family.” Nino always talked a lot when he was nervous, Ohno knew this better than anyone. “Just… go and scare those poor little fishes. I can handle this myself. When you get home, your mom will definitely talk about how pleasant I am. I promise.”
“But, Kazu---“
“Just go, okay? Don’t let your mom catch us talking here.” Nino assured him once more, “I promise this will work out. Don’t you trust me, Oh-chan?”
Nodding hesitantly, Ohno turned around and started to walk away, feeling a heavy weight in each step. When he got far enough, he turned around to see his mother opening the gate for Nino. They looked very friendly with each other. He was sure that Nino would be able to charm his parents effortlessly.
It was Nino. Confident Nino never let anyone down. Everything would definitely work out.
But still…
Ohno frowned at the cloudy sky as his feet made bold strides back to his house.
“I’m home.”
XXX
つづく