[Fic] That Place We Cannot Reach - Chapter 26
Kame spent the next day worrying about what he should do about Ryo. He had managed to avoid Jin completely, but after breakfast, he was starting to get really stressed. He had promised to make a new beginning without secret and lies, but on the other hand, Ryo had said that he didn’t intend to make another move…was it really fair to spill the beans about him? The last thing Kame wanted to do was to become the cause of another fight. Especially between two very good friends.
In the end, he decided to do the only thing that seemed good: to talk to Yamapi.
The latter was pretty surprised to hear that he wanted to talk to him in private and led him to his bedroom with curiosity plastered all over his face. Kame sat down on his bed, feeling like a kid who didn’t want to tell the teacher that he had seen someone cheating during a test. Yamapi was left looking at him patiently, but since the younger one kept his mouth shut, he sighed and headed to his desk and brought two cups of coffee, handing one to Kame. The one in question raised an eyebrow.
“What is this?”
“Coffee, haven’t you two met before?”
“No, I mean…how did you-“
“Sneaking in the kitchen is easier than you think.” Yamapi winked. “This one is Ryo’s, but since he’s not here, you can have it.”
“Great.” Kame almost growled, grabbing the cup and gulping down half of it immediately. Yamapi almost choked on his own drink, looking at him in shock.
“It’s not water, you idiot!”
“You shouldn’t have mentioned Ryo’s name, you idiot.”
“What? Why, what happened?”
Kame held the mug tightly in his trembling fingers and took a deep breath. He had to let it out, he had to let someone know what had happened. He didn’t want Ryo to think that he couldn’t keep a secret but what the hell, Ryo was the one to blame in the end. If Yamapi was just like the Yamapi Kame knew, then at least that secret was safe with them. Besides, Yamapi was Ryo’s friend as well, maybe he could look at things from a different angle than Kame did.
“He…he kissed me last night.”
This time, Yamapi didn’t manage to avoid chocking, and his intense coughing lasted for almost two minutes, during which he had to rush back to the desk to grab a bottle of water and put his mug down. Kame waited, licking his lips and struggling not to gulp down the rest of the coffee in an instant. Seeing Yamapi reacting like that meant that Ryo hadn’t told them a thing, either. So now, all that was left to wonder was whether he had screwed up big time by coming to tell Yamapi this or not.
Eventually, he came back to sit next to Kame, taking the cup from his hands and putting down on the floor, trying very hard to keep a serious face. He opened his mouth to say something but shook his head and closed it, turning his back on Kame. The younger one could hear him muttering something, but he couldn’t understand a thing and soon, it started pissing him off. Right as he was about to smack Yamapi’s back, the other turned and faced him again, still wearing the same expression.
“He did?”
“Yes! And I don’t know what to do!”
“I’m sorry.”
“You’re sorry? Why are you sorry?”
“I…tried to talk him out of it.” Yamapi confessed shyly, shifting back upon seeing the look Kame gave him. “He didn’t know what to do, how to handle how he feels.”
“…you knew? Why did you react like that, then?”
“Because he said he’d do his best to make sure nothing bad happens between you and Jin because of him! How was I supposed to know he’d make such a bold move?”
“Well…”
“What?” Yamapi narrowed his eyes when he noticed Kame licking his lips. “What is it, spill it.”
“I…”
Why wouldn’t it come out?
“Kame, speak now, otherwise I’m going straight to Jin.”
“What? No!” he almost jumped and Yamapi pierced him with his intense stare.
“You haven’t told him?”
“Not yet, that’s why I came to you! I don’t know what to do!”
“Ok, now I’m getting confused.” Yamapi sighed. “Do you like Ryo?”
“What?” Kame blinked in confusion as well. “No! Wait, how did we end up at this conclusion? This conversation is going nowhere, let me explain please.”
“I tried, but you weren’t really that talkative. If you have no intention of returning Ryo’s feelings, then why do you want to keep it a secret from Jin? What if Ryo tries to do something again?”
“I didn’t know whether it would be wise to tell Jin or not because Ryo told me he won’t try anything else and that all he wants is for me to know that he cares. I want to believe in him, which is why at first I thought that keeping it a secret would benefit all of us. I don’t want them to fight. But now I’m so worried that he might actually learn about it from someone else and I’m going to look like a traitor again…”
Yamapi fell silent, looking at him skeptically. Kame groaned and fell back on the mattress, moving left and right like a kid who had just been told “no”. He didn’t want to make a fuss about it, but if even Yamapi couldn’t help him, then how was he supposed to get out of this dead end? Stupid Ryo, no matter what world they were in, he just had to do go and do as he pleased…
He lifted his head a bit; Yamapi was still staring at him (or rather, his legs) in deep thought. Kame fell back again and closed his eyes. It was his second day here and he only had one more. Everything he wanted to do with Jin, all the things he wanted to do with his bandmates…he had no time for all of them. How had Juri come up with the 3-days-limit? Why couldn’t it be 4 or 5? He didn’t want to disappear again without a solution to his current problem, but time was running out. The door could open any moment now and Ryo or Jin could come in. And they sure as hell weren’t stupid enough to believe that Yamapi and Kame were just talking about random things that were of no importance.
“You should ask Ryo.” He finally heard Yamapi’s voice and sat up immediately in surprise. “You should be honest with him and tell him that you don’t want this to become a secret.”
“…what if he doesn’t want me to tell Jin, though?”
“I don’t know.” Yamapi shrugged. “I told you, I tried to talk him out of it, but in the end, I failed. I don’t know what else to do.”
“What do you think his reaction will be?” Kame asked with a thin voice filled with distress. “You know them both so well, you must have some sort of idea…”
“Kame, all I know is that Jin is not stupid to let you go again. Ok? You two fought once already and it messed up your hearts big time. He wants to make a new start, which means that he’s willing to sit and listen instead of snapping at the first word he doesn’t like. As for Ryo…like you said, I want to believe in him not making another move, but this doesn’t mean that you don’t have to talk to him. You have every right to have doubts and insecurities when it comes to that kiss. If I were you, I would have already beaten him up.”
“I can’t do that.” Kame replied with a faint smile. “You know I can’t.”
“Yeah, unfortunately.” Yamapi sneered, but his expression became serious again almost immediately. “Really now, try talking to him. Or to Jin, I don’t know. Just…don’t keep it bottled inside, ok? You don’t need more stress.”
Well, that sounded vaguely familiar…Yamapi telling Kame that he didn’t need more stress…where had he heard it before? Right, almost 10 years ago, during the filming of Nobuta wo Produce. This was a different year, a different reality and a different Yamapi but the similarity still didn’t fail to strike Kame and make his smile brighter. Yamapi looked at him a bit startled; weren’t people supposed to sulk when others told them to take care in a bossy way?
“Did I say something funny?”
“What? Ah, no, not at all, it’s just that…you remind me…of a friend of mine.”
“A friend?”
“Yeah. Not in this school, just…a good friend. He used to talk to me just like you do…when I was barely an adult and made many mistakes concerning my health and all.”
“Well, judging by what I see now, it was a good thing he did so back then, because even now, you’re still all bones.” Yamapi said half-angrily, half-jokingly. Kame shook his head with a knowing grin.
“I was way worse back then.” he replied and then made his way to the door, stopping right before opening it to turn to Yamapi again. “Thank you. Talking to you was a very good idea in the end.”
“Anytime.” Yamapi shrugged and Kame left the room with a new feeling, the feeling of relief. It was as a weight had been lifted off his chest. Yes, he hadn’t talked to Jin and basically, he was still keeping a secret from him, but at least now he knew what he had to do. He had to confront both of them, since both of them had a right to know how he was feeling about that kiss. And it would be best to start with Ryo.
………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….
An hour later, he still couldn’t find the black-haired one, though, so he realized that he had to admit that he had no other choice but to talk to Jin instead. And that was when the shock occurred, because the moment he opened the door to their bedroom, he came face to face with Ryo, who was probably about to exit the room. They stopped dead on their tracks looking at each other, until Jin came closer to see why Ryo wasn’t walking outside. And then, he froze as well.
“Kame…”
“Um…can I…” Kame tried to say, but then all the words died in his throat. What was he supposed to say? What was Ryo doing here and how was he supposed to talk to him now that both of them were there?
“Won’t you come in?” Jin asked and Kame glanced at Ryo, who took a step on his right and made a “you’re free to enter” signal. Kame’s eyes fell back on Jin, unsure of what to do or say.
“I…I want to talk to both of you, but separately…and now I don’t know who to start with.”
“I told him what I did.” Ryo let out calmly and Kame’s jaw almost dropped to the floor. Jin lowered his head as if he was the guilty one, but then he walked up to Kame and held his wrist, pulling him inside gently.
What was going on? Everything was happening too fast and Kame wasn’t sure he could follow without blurting out something silly. Had Ryo really confessed what he had done? And if yes, how was Jin so calm? The Jin from the real world would have sent Ryo to the nearest wall with his kick if he had been told such a thing…
“You told him?”
“Yes, I did. I could tell how much it troubled you and how scared you were to talk to him, so I decided to be a man and do it myself.”
“…but why?”
“Because you tried to treasure the friendship me and Ryo have.” Jin commented quietly, stroking his hair. “Is this why you were so eager to avoid me?”
“I just didn’t want you two to start fighting because of me.” Kame let out hesitatingly, still not sure about what had taken place between Ryo and Jin while he wasn’t present.
“No, it was all my fault.” Ryo laughed. “But I told Jin the same thing I told you and I intend to keep my promise. I would never try to steal away someone who is so precious to my best friend.”
“Then why did you kiss me?”
“Hey, I just had to. Once. If I didn’t, I would have probably done something worse in the following days.” Ryo said with a slight frown. “I couldn’t keep it inside, but my friendship with Jin is above all and I don’t intend to lose it.”
“And I believe in him.” Jin added. “So don’t feel bad, ok?”
“If you say so…”
“Great.” Ryo uttered, exchanging a knowing look with Jin. “I shall leave you two alone, then.”
Kame pierced Jin with his death glare, but the latter refused to open his mouth until the door behind Ryo was closed for good. Then he let go of Kame and tried to sit down to his bed, but the younger one pushed him instead and once he saw him landing with his back on the mattress, he jumped on him and pinned him down to the blanket.
“Spill. What’s up?”
“Hello Mr. Aggressive. “ Jin giggled as if he was drunk. “What is the matter with you?”
“I haven’t been here for long but there are certain things that I can read before you can even imagine. What was that look, what are you planning on telling me?”
“Hmmm, sharp observation. It’s true that I want to talk to you about something, but when you have me like this, the last thing I want to do with you is talk seriously.”
Kame narrowed his eyes but eventually gave in, sitting back a bit so Jin could also sit up and lean back on the pillows. With Kame on his legs, he took a deep breath and crossed his arms to his chest. The other’s expression changed; Jin being serious was a pretty rare sight; he had to be careful.
“I need to ask you a few questions about your world.”
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A/N: I AM ALIVE!
*coughs* Yes, this fic is alive as well. I am very sorry about taking so long to update, but a very hectic RL schedule + a severe lack of inspiration had me stuck completely :( This chapter is too short and basically sucks, but at least writing this finally made me see the light at the end of the tunnel (aka I finally know what to write in order to reach the end I have been planning since the start). Comments and honest opinions are always loved <3
In the end, he decided to do the only thing that seemed good: to talk to Yamapi.
The latter was pretty surprised to hear that he wanted to talk to him in private and led him to his bedroom with curiosity plastered all over his face. Kame sat down on his bed, feeling like a kid who didn’t want to tell the teacher that he had seen someone cheating during a test. Yamapi was left looking at him patiently, but since the younger one kept his mouth shut, he sighed and headed to his desk and brought two cups of coffee, handing one to Kame. The one in question raised an eyebrow.
“What is this?”
“Coffee, haven’t you two met before?”
“No, I mean…how did you-“
“Sneaking in the kitchen is easier than you think.” Yamapi winked. “This one is Ryo’s, but since he’s not here, you can have it.”
“Great.” Kame almost growled, grabbing the cup and gulping down half of it immediately. Yamapi almost choked on his own drink, looking at him in shock.
“It’s not water, you idiot!”
“You shouldn’t have mentioned Ryo’s name, you idiot.”
“What? Why, what happened?”
Kame held the mug tightly in his trembling fingers and took a deep breath. He had to let it out, he had to let someone know what had happened. He didn’t want Ryo to think that he couldn’t keep a secret but what the hell, Ryo was the one to blame in the end. If Yamapi was just like the Yamapi Kame knew, then at least that secret was safe with them. Besides, Yamapi was Ryo’s friend as well, maybe he could look at things from a different angle than Kame did.
“He…he kissed me last night.”
This time, Yamapi didn’t manage to avoid chocking, and his intense coughing lasted for almost two minutes, during which he had to rush back to the desk to grab a bottle of water and put his mug down. Kame waited, licking his lips and struggling not to gulp down the rest of the coffee in an instant. Seeing Yamapi reacting like that meant that Ryo hadn’t told them a thing, either. So now, all that was left to wonder was whether he had screwed up big time by coming to tell Yamapi this or not.
Eventually, he came back to sit next to Kame, taking the cup from his hands and putting down on the floor, trying very hard to keep a serious face. He opened his mouth to say something but shook his head and closed it, turning his back on Kame. The younger one could hear him muttering something, but he couldn’t understand a thing and soon, it started pissing him off. Right as he was about to smack Yamapi’s back, the other turned and faced him again, still wearing the same expression.
“He did?”
“Yes! And I don’t know what to do!”
“I’m sorry.”
“You’re sorry? Why are you sorry?”
“I…tried to talk him out of it.” Yamapi confessed shyly, shifting back upon seeing the look Kame gave him. “He didn’t know what to do, how to handle how he feels.”
“…you knew? Why did you react like that, then?”
“Because he said he’d do his best to make sure nothing bad happens between you and Jin because of him! How was I supposed to know he’d make such a bold move?”
“Well…”
“What?” Yamapi narrowed his eyes when he noticed Kame licking his lips. “What is it, spill it.”
“I…”
Why wouldn’t it come out?
“Kame, speak now, otherwise I’m going straight to Jin.”
“What? No!” he almost jumped and Yamapi pierced him with his intense stare.
“You haven’t told him?”
“Not yet, that’s why I came to you! I don’t know what to do!”
“Ok, now I’m getting confused.” Yamapi sighed. “Do you like Ryo?”
“What?” Kame blinked in confusion as well. “No! Wait, how did we end up at this conclusion? This conversation is going nowhere, let me explain please.”
“I tried, but you weren’t really that talkative. If you have no intention of returning Ryo’s feelings, then why do you want to keep it a secret from Jin? What if Ryo tries to do something again?”
“I didn’t know whether it would be wise to tell Jin or not because Ryo told me he won’t try anything else and that all he wants is for me to know that he cares. I want to believe in him, which is why at first I thought that keeping it a secret would benefit all of us. I don’t want them to fight. But now I’m so worried that he might actually learn about it from someone else and I’m going to look like a traitor again…”
Yamapi fell silent, looking at him skeptically. Kame groaned and fell back on the mattress, moving left and right like a kid who had just been told “no”. He didn’t want to make a fuss about it, but if even Yamapi couldn’t help him, then how was he supposed to get out of this dead end? Stupid Ryo, no matter what world they were in, he just had to do go and do as he pleased…
He lifted his head a bit; Yamapi was still staring at him (or rather, his legs) in deep thought. Kame fell back again and closed his eyes. It was his second day here and he only had one more. Everything he wanted to do with Jin, all the things he wanted to do with his bandmates…he had no time for all of them. How had Juri come up with the 3-days-limit? Why couldn’t it be 4 or 5? He didn’t want to disappear again without a solution to his current problem, but time was running out. The door could open any moment now and Ryo or Jin could come in. And they sure as hell weren’t stupid enough to believe that Yamapi and Kame were just talking about random things that were of no importance.
“You should ask Ryo.” He finally heard Yamapi’s voice and sat up immediately in surprise. “You should be honest with him and tell him that you don’t want this to become a secret.”
“…what if he doesn’t want me to tell Jin, though?”
“I don’t know.” Yamapi shrugged. “I told you, I tried to talk him out of it, but in the end, I failed. I don’t know what else to do.”
“What do you think his reaction will be?” Kame asked with a thin voice filled with distress. “You know them both so well, you must have some sort of idea…”
“Kame, all I know is that Jin is not stupid to let you go again. Ok? You two fought once already and it messed up your hearts big time. He wants to make a new start, which means that he’s willing to sit and listen instead of snapping at the first word he doesn’t like. As for Ryo…like you said, I want to believe in him not making another move, but this doesn’t mean that you don’t have to talk to him. You have every right to have doubts and insecurities when it comes to that kiss. If I were you, I would have already beaten him up.”
“I can’t do that.” Kame replied with a faint smile. “You know I can’t.”
“Yeah, unfortunately.” Yamapi sneered, but his expression became serious again almost immediately. “Really now, try talking to him. Or to Jin, I don’t know. Just…don’t keep it bottled inside, ok? You don’t need more stress.”
Well, that sounded vaguely familiar…Yamapi telling Kame that he didn’t need more stress…where had he heard it before? Right, almost 10 years ago, during the filming of Nobuta wo Produce. This was a different year, a different reality and a different Yamapi but the similarity still didn’t fail to strike Kame and make his smile brighter. Yamapi looked at him a bit startled; weren’t people supposed to sulk when others told them to take care in a bossy way?
“Did I say something funny?”
“What? Ah, no, not at all, it’s just that…you remind me…of a friend of mine.”
“A friend?”
“Yeah. Not in this school, just…a good friend. He used to talk to me just like you do…when I was barely an adult and made many mistakes concerning my health and all.”
“Well, judging by what I see now, it was a good thing he did so back then, because even now, you’re still all bones.” Yamapi said half-angrily, half-jokingly. Kame shook his head with a knowing grin.
“I was way worse back then.” he replied and then made his way to the door, stopping right before opening it to turn to Yamapi again. “Thank you. Talking to you was a very good idea in the end.”
“Anytime.” Yamapi shrugged and Kame left the room with a new feeling, the feeling of relief. It was as a weight had been lifted off his chest. Yes, he hadn’t talked to Jin and basically, he was still keeping a secret from him, but at least now he knew what he had to do. He had to confront both of them, since both of them had a right to know how he was feeling about that kiss. And it would be best to start with Ryo.
………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….
An hour later, he still couldn’t find the black-haired one, though, so he realized that he had to admit that he had no other choice but to talk to Jin instead. And that was when the shock occurred, because the moment he opened the door to their bedroom, he came face to face with Ryo, who was probably about to exit the room. They stopped dead on their tracks looking at each other, until Jin came closer to see why Ryo wasn’t walking outside. And then, he froze as well.
“Kame…”
“Um…can I…” Kame tried to say, but then all the words died in his throat. What was he supposed to say? What was Ryo doing here and how was he supposed to talk to him now that both of them were there?
“Won’t you come in?” Jin asked and Kame glanced at Ryo, who took a step on his right and made a “you’re free to enter” signal. Kame’s eyes fell back on Jin, unsure of what to do or say.
“I…I want to talk to both of you, but separately…and now I don’t know who to start with.”
“I told him what I did.” Ryo let out calmly and Kame’s jaw almost dropped to the floor. Jin lowered his head as if he was the guilty one, but then he walked up to Kame and held his wrist, pulling him inside gently.
What was going on? Everything was happening too fast and Kame wasn’t sure he could follow without blurting out something silly. Had Ryo really confessed what he had done? And if yes, how was Jin so calm? The Jin from the real world would have sent Ryo to the nearest wall with his kick if he had been told such a thing…
“You told him?”
“Yes, I did. I could tell how much it troubled you and how scared you were to talk to him, so I decided to be a man and do it myself.”
“…but why?”
“Because you tried to treasure the friendship me and Ryo have.” Jin commented quietly, stroking his hair. “Is this why you were so eager to avoid me?”
“I just didn’t want you two to start fighting because of me.” Kame let out hesitatingly, still not sure about what had taken place between Ryo and Jin while he wasn’t present.
“No, it was all my fault.” Ryo laughed. “But I told Jin the same thing I told you and I intend to keep my promise. I would never try to steal away someone who is so precious to my best friend.”
“Then why did you kiss me?”
“Hey, I just had to. Once. If I didn’t, I would have probably done something worse in the following days.” Ryo said with a slight frown. “I couldn’t keep it inside, but my friendship with Jin is above all and I don’t intend to lose it.”
“And I believe in him.” Jin added. “So don’t feel bad, ok?”
“If you say so…”
“Great.” Ryo uttered, exchanging a knowing look with Jin. “I shall leave you two alone, then.”
Kame pierced Jin with his death glare, but the latter refused to open his mouth until the door behind Ryo was closed for good. Then he let go of Kame and tried to sit down to his bed, but the younger one pushed him instead and once he saw him landing with his back on the mattress, he jumped on him and pinned him down to the blanket.
“Spill. What’s up?”
“Hello Mr. Aggressive. “ Jin giggled as if he was drunk. “What is the matter with you?”
“I haven’t been here for long but there are certain things that I can read before you can even imagine. What was that look, what are you planning on telling me?”
“Hmmm, sharp observation. It’s true that I want to talk to you about something, but when you have me like this, the last thing I want to do with you is talk seriously.”
Kame narrowed his eyes but eventually gave in, sitting back a bit so Jin could also sit up and lean back on the pillows. With Kame on his legs, he took a deep breath and crossed his arms to his chest. The other’s expression changed; Jin being serious was a pretty rare sight; he had to be careful.
“I need to ask you a few questions about your world.”
................................................................................................................................................
A/N: I AM ALIVE!
*coughs* Yes, this fic is alive as well. I am very sorry about taking so long to update, but a very hectic RL schedule + a severe lack of inspiration had me stuck completely :( This chapter is too short and basically sucks, but at least writing this finally made me see the light at the end of the tunnel (aka I finally know what to write in order to reach the end I have been planning since the start). Comments and honest opinions are always loved <3