[aimiya] Patience
TITLE: Patience
PAIRING: Aiba Masaki/Ninomiya Kazunari
RATING: PG-13
LENGTH: 1551 words
SUMMARY: Aiba and Nino play Super Mario Bros. and talk about this.
A/N: This radio clip had me all over the place. Seriously, love. ♥
“You talked about me last night,” Nino suddenly pointed out, causing Aiba’s thumb to slip and his Luigi character to walk right into a horde of gumbas. The taller man groaned in complaint when he realised that he’d lost his last life. Nino chuckled briefly, his eyes remaining glued to his TV screen as he cleared the rest of the level with ease, waiting for Aiba to respond to his earlier statement.
“Hmm?” Aiba mused, idly smashing the buttons on his remote, amusing himself with the honking noise which came with each press.
Nino however, was unaffected, and continued on to guide Mario to the top of the flagpole. He clapped his hands in triumph as the small character slid back down and the stage cleared. “On Rekomen?” he prodded, clicking through the title screens and leading their characters to the next world.
“Ah,” Aiba said, soundly strangely surprised, “You still listen to that?”
“Of course,” Nino replied nonchalantly, rushing ahead as they entered a new world, his Mario popping open a hidden box mere seconds into the stage. “Every week,” he added, casually scooping up both powerups which emerged from the opened box.
“OI!” Aiba exclaimed, suddenly noticing that Nino’s Mario was shooting fireballs all over the screen while his Luigi remained tiny as ever. “You said you’d shareee!” he whined as he dodged another gumba in his path (one Mario had conveniently decided not to kill off). Nino laughed, sounding genuinely happy and amused by Luigi’s distress. Despite his often selfish gaming tactics, Nino’s laugh was a beautiful sound, one which made it highly difficult for Aiba to be seriously annoyed at him. He wasn’t even angry when Luigi lost yet another life, because the look of enjoyment on the smaller guy’s face was worth it. Sometimes even Aiba, who had known Nino for over half his lifetime, found it difficult to believe the man was nearing 30. Especially with the way his youthful face lit up at the colourful gamescreen and the childish strategies he’d employ.
“That fan sure wanted to know a lot, ne?” Nino prompted again, clearing the path ahead in a spur of generosity towards Luigi.
“Mmm,” Aiba mumbled as he guided Luigi after Mario like a puppy. Truth be told, there really wasn’t much for him to do, as Nino had pretty much collected all the coins in their path (who knew Nino loved money as much in the world of pixels as he did in real life) and defeated all the enemies ahead. Nevertheless the taller man played along. If anything, he played games with Nino for the sake of seeing him be this happy. Whether he won or not was never a factor. “I answered everything though, right?”
It was Nino’s turn to murmur in agreement. “We had fun, right?”
“Right!” Aiba replied happily, raising his hand for a high-five as Mario and Luigi cleared the stage together. “Yay~!” Nino returned the high-five before moving them to Bowser’s Castle.
“But Chika-san sounded so suspicious, don’t you think?” Aiba suddenly asked, bouncing happily on the couch when he managed to grab a mushroom for Luigi before Nino did for Mario. He completely missed the small smile which had formed on Nino’s face.
“What do you mean?” the gamer responded earnestly, fingers gliding over the wii remote with practiced fluidity.
“Like, when I said you went home after we ate and drank and played games, he sounded surprised!” Aiba explained, letting out a pleased sound as his Luigi successfully leapt over a spike to collect a golden star. “What else were they expecting we do?!” he asked in honest confusion, a thin frown crossing his forehead.
Nino smiled to himself, not offering the other man any suggestions. It was kind of amazing how naive Arashi’s renowned porn supplier could be. Naive and so incredibly adorable it was borderline disgusting. He let Mario walk straight into a Dry Bones. A convincing “Oh,” fell from his lips.
“Eh?!” Aiba stopped his Luigi immediately, Mario’s death coming all too sudden and unusual. He turned towards his companion to seek an explanation for the amateur death, and was surprised to be met with a serious face brought dangerously close to his own. “N-Nino?” a tiny voice let out.
He only saw the playful smirk on the other man’s lips briefly before the thin lips were pressed to his own, the kiss they delivered gentle and sweet. The gamer pulled back, face perfectly smug as he assessed the taller man’s state of shock. Aiba frowned, absentmindedly swiping his lips with his tongue as he continued to stare wide-eyed at his best friend. As short-lived as the kiss was, Aiba could taste the other man on his lips, so incredibly faint yet distinctly Nino. He bit his lip in yet more confusion. “Eh??”
“Something they might have expected,” Nino said simply, still grinning cheesily to himself at Aiba’s flustered state. The tanned man’s eyes widened further. “C-Chika-san?!” he blurted in disbelief. Surely Chika-san wasn’t expecting them to have kissed? And even if they had, surely he wouldn’t expect him to reveal it on national radio?!
Nino laughed again, loud and hearty. “Of course not, idiot,” he said with a smack to Aiba’s head out of habit, “But it’s what all the fangirls were thinking, I’m sure...”
Aiba’s face remained confused and it was evident that he was trying to process it all. It wasn’t that he and Nino hadn’t fooled around before, for they’d always been closer than most best friends were. It was just that Aiba had never found out whether all those times had meant anything to the other man. Their wii game forgotten, Nino’s face came close again, eyes soft and sincere, gently enquiring. His small body was mere centimetres from his own, making the comforting body heat radiating from his core ever so noticeable. Their scents mixed, creating something both exciting and intoxicating, and Aiba found himself being drawn in by Nino all over again.
Aiba didn’t know how many times he’d wondered if he meant anything more than a friend to Nino. From the very first time they’d fooled around he had wondered, but he’d always been too afraid to ask. Despite coming off as quite a spontaneous person on their TV shows, in reality Aiba Masaki was quite withdrawn when it came to his feelings. Especially when they involved a very particular Ninomiya Kazunari.
Naturally, along with that desire to know, there’d always been that fear of knowing too much. The fear of knowing and then being disappointed. Never liking disappointment, eventually he’d decided that he’d let things be. The last thing he wanted was for them to be wanting different things and their dynamics suffering. If waiting silently meant there was no risk of losing Nino, Aiba Masaki would wait. Things that were meant to be would become to be, he reasoned.
So Aiba waited, and before either of them knew it, years flew past. Their dynamics never changed, they remained the ‘teaser and the teased’ pair, their perfectly odd friendship growing stronger than ever. It didn’t help that Nino was equally passive about his feelings, both men falling back into their comfortable shells after each over-familiar encounter. It was complicated and frustrating, but it seemed like both parties had decided it would be better to wait until the other cracked their shell. Cowardly, sure, but at least it was safe.
Aiba’s heart pounded loud in his ears against the Super Mario Bros. BGM as Nino eyes continued to bore into his own, searching deeply for a signal of any kind. A sign was all he needed. The air was electrifying, both men drawn to the brinks of their shells. Both so close to cracking yet holding on, waiting. Their foreheads touched, and it was then that they both finally realised; waiting is all they’ve ever known.
It was a moment of mutual understanding, something only years of yearning could explain. Their teeth clashed simultaneously, a kiss both familiar and unfamiliar unfolding between them. Nino was pulled into Aiba’s lap, long arms fitting around his slim waist perfectly, holding him protectively. Nothing was unpracticed, yet everything was new and exciting.
“K-Kazu, I-” Aiba started, breaking their kiss, his emotions threatening to burst.
“I know, Masaki, I know,” Nino hushed him, reconnecting their lips. His hands encircled Aiba’s neck and entangled in the silky hairs at his lower nape, pressing him closer. Aiba obliged, assured that words weren’t necessary this time round, and nor was fear.
They’d finally broken free, together, two hearts racing alongside each other, impassioned and pure.
Things that were meant to be would become to be.
*
A/N: Okay so this was also meant to be a drabble... Then it turned fluffy and not-so-drabble-y. Hmm I seem to have an issue with writing drabbles. Oh well I hope this turned into an enjoyable oneshot! Comments are loved :)