Title: Canyoning.
Pairing: Kukichi Fuma / Matsushima Sou.
Length: ~ 1155 words.
Summary: Sou is scared of jumping, but Fuma knows how to make him do it.
Note: Blame Sexy Zone Channel. The title and summary are as original as they could be.
All the encouraging words from his friends don’t help at all. They all sound like simple noise in his head, making his headache increase. Although he knows they’re doing it for him, he somehow wants them to stop just for a little bit. He keeps repeating in his head how impossible it is for him to do it, to simply jump when it’s that high and that dark, his eyes closed trying to concentrate.
It had been fun, canyoning, after all. The scenery was beautiful and he really had a good time, despite some being thanks to Shori. Those thoughts, though, don’t sound comforting in any way. He’s afraid and he’s not the one to hide it, screaming at the top of his lungs.
“This is impossible!” His legs are hanging, the rock strong under his body. He can hear the water under him and as well as Fuma screaming, “Where are you going to jump?”
“Wait,” his words leave his mouth without even wanting to, gazing at nowhere and trying to think about anything but the water awaiting for him. “It’s really scary, it’s seriously scary.”
“You’re a man, Sou! It’s okay!” Fuma encourages him from below and he can note the smile in his voice. He had always helped him in any way possible, and Sou knew he could trust him whenever he felt like he needed to, but this was just something he couldn’t control.
His eyes start watering, a tear rolling down his cheek as he carefully tries to wipe it without the others noticing. He thanks the darkness for it, but regrets it after it makes him even more scared. Seeing him, Fuma whispers, “It’s okay, Sou. I’m going to be here.” And that, somehow, feels like it was everything Sou needs to hear. The words struck him, his gaze even more lost than before, trying to search for Fuma in the dark water, but he can’t. The next moment he realizes life continues, Marius is gently pushing him aside and Fuma continues encouraging him.
“Okay, I’ll go then!” Marius screams with a smile on his face, actually excited to do this. Fuma gets excited as well, asking him where is he going to jump, and telling him it’s okay as he did with Sou. When he finally jumps, without hesitating that much, all Sou can hear is laughter in the water. He’s the last, and he seriously doesn’t think he can do it.
“Oh my god, that was super scary…” Sou actually laughs at that. “Sou-chan, we’re waiting!”
He breathes deeply and positions himself right where Marius has jumped seconds ago. His legs are still trembling, but if Marius did it, he also can, right? That’s what he tells himself, but worries run through his mind. “Does it hurt?”
“It doesn’t, it’s okay! It doesn’t hurt, it doesn’t hurt!” Fuma starts screaming again. He doesn’t even sound tired and he’s been telling the same words to Sou for ten minutes already. Sou actually feels bad. “Just close your legs, and close your arms as well!”
Shori finally pronounces himself only to say, “You can, you can! It’s okay!”
The staff counts to three, and he really thinks he can. “This is it,” he tries to bring determination into his thoughts, and when he hears “one…” he finally gathers his courage.
He screams his name just like Marius did before jumping and everyone’s waiting for him. Fuma waits. And then waits some more. But since the sound of him jumping into water doesn’t come, a desperate cry comes again into his ears. “Come, Matsushima!”
“This is so bad!” He actually thinks so. He’s so scared of this, and although he thinks it’s ridiculous to make them wait all this time for a simple thing such as jumping into the water, he can’t help it. He’s really grateful they haven’t started screaming at him or, worse, left already.
“It’s okay, Matsushima! Be a man!”
And, somehow, Fuma’s words finally help him. He closes his eyes as tight as he can, puts his hands on the rock and uses them as impulse to let his body fall. He tries to remember what Fuma told him. It doesn’t hurt. Put your arms and legs together. And although he doesn’t even see anything, the moment his body collides with the water is the worst thing he’s ever felt and the best thing at the same time. For a moment he’s underwater, unable to open his eyes, but short after his body itself rises to the surface. He shakes his head, trying to take the water out of his eyes, a smile on his face.
“It feels good!”
And now he can finally hear Fuma laughing up close. He doesn’t really see him, since it’s even darker than before, but the laugh is there and he knows he’s smiling proudly as well. The others are screaming happily, the sounds going away as they try to get out of the water now that everything has ended. As he tries to follow them, though, the sounds of water and someone getting closer startle him.
He suddenly feels a hand on his arm, not squeezed hard enough to hurt, but totally enough to maintain his body floating without effort. As the thumb caresses lightly Sou’s arm, though, he smiles.
“Although you were afraid of heights, you overcame it,” he knows Fuma’s smiling as well. He looks down although he knows there’s nothing to hide, Fuma probably doesn’t see his face like he doesn’t see Fuma’s, but the blush on his cheeks makes him do it unconsciously. He doesn’t even know what to say. “It was thanks to you” would be a good choice, but he can’t get those words to leave his tongue. Instead he just hums as he feels the older getting closer, suddenly feeling Fuma’s lips on his. The kiss is brief, and he wasn’t even expecting it, but that doesn’t mean he isn’t pleased by it. The blush on Sou’s cheeks intensifies and he feels like this is even more exciting than the mere fact of jumping into the water. Fuma separates quickly and ruffles his wet hair.
“That was the prize.”
And as Fuma swims to where the others are, already getting out of the water, Sou can’t really move. He can already hear the others laughing, telling each other they had a lot of fun, and he decides he should really go back before they start asking questions which Fuma would gladly answer.
“Aren’t you going to come back?” And as Sou sees Fuma on the edge, a towel on his hair, he thinks that maybe the jump was worth it. He smiles to himself and nods, carefully swimming so he can get outside, where Fuma is already waiting for him with a smile.
If this is the prize he’s getting for overcoming things, they can make him do whatever they want.