Arashi: Green (04)
FANDOM: Arashi
RATING: G
PAIRING: Sakuraiba, Aimiya (friendship)
DATE: February 6rd, 2010
NOTES: This is a work of fiction. RedShiftverse AU.
Chapter Three | Chapter Five
CHAPTER FOUR
“Suzuki’s not coming today,” Aiba announced when Nino and Sho arrived. He and Sugimoto were already waiting at their usual booth at the local Saizeriya branch, where they usually met before practise.
As Nino and Sho took a place at the table, Nino asked, “why?”
“I’m not sure. He just said that it’s something really important and he couldn’t make it.” Aiba looked at Sugimoto. “Do you have any idea? You’re closer to him than either of us.”
Sugimoto shook his head. “He didn’t say anything to me, either. But my girlfriend is friends with Ai-chan, and she said - Ai-chan said, I mean - that Jun’s family might be moving.”
Aiba frowned. “He would’ve said something if he was, wouldn’t he? I mean, he wouldn’t leave the band in a lurch...”
“That’s why I’m not sure how true it is,” Sugimoto replied. “Ai-chan didn’t seem so sure, either.”
“What about today?” Nino asked. “Are we still going to practise?”
“We do have a live coming up next week, you know,” Sugimoto said in a worried tone. “What if he couldn’t make it?”
“Hey, hey, isn’t it too early to worry about that?” Aiba asked. “We don’t know anything for sure yet!”
“It doesn’t hurt to be prepared, though,” Sho suddenly spoke up. Nino just nodded in agreement, while Aiba bristled.
“You’re not really a band member, so you don’t have to say anything,” he told Sho.
“Sorry,” Sho said solemnly.
“He’s right, though, Aiba,” Nino inserted. “We need to come up with something just in case.”
“Yeah. If Jun can’t play next week, we’ll need a bassist.”
“I can play bass,” Aiba told them. “I’m not as good as Suzuki, but I’ve been practising on my own and I can handle all of our songs.”
Nino smiled. “Great. I know I said that you were wasting good money when you bought that bass guitar, but now I’ll admit that I’m wrong. We could try that at practise today, then. We’ll have to go and pick up your bass first, though.”
“Umm, guys?” Sugimoto asked, raising a hand as if he was in class. “What about Aiba’s guitar parts? Who would play that?”
“Oh, yeah...” Aiba said, only just realising. He slumped against his seat.
“That’s easy. Sho could stand in for Aiba,” Nino said simply.
“What?” Aiba asked, looking at Sho. “Can you even play? I mean, I know you can, but can you play our songs?”
“Nino had been trying them out with me as he wrote them, so I know most of them, I think,” Sho answered.
“That’s great!” Sugimoto exclaimed. “That’s awesome. Then you can practise with us today, Sakurai-kun. Aiba, you don’t mind lending him your guitar, right?”
“Yeah, sure,” Aiba said dully. He didn’t seem enthusiastic with the idea at all, and his tone made Sho frown and Nino narrow his eyes at him. “I’ll go pick up my bass; you don’t have to come along,” Aiba continued, getting up. “I’ll see you guys back here.”
Sugimoto got up as well. “I’ll go with you anyway, Masaki,” he said. “Ai-chan wanted me to ask you about something...” his voice faded as he and Aiba left the restaurant together.
“Aiba seems to be angry with me lately,” Sho said to Nino in a confused voice. “I don’t get it.”
Nino shrugged. “He’s probably jealous. I told him I didn’t want the two of you to meet each other at first, because I wanted to have friends that didn’t include him.”
“What? Why’d you say that? His feelings must be hurt,” Sho reprimanded.
“I told him I’m totally fine with you guys being friends now,” Nino answered in defense, holding his hands up in a 'don't blame me' gesture. “It’s not my fault if he’s being sensitive about it now.”
“At least it’s not because he hates me or anything,” Sho said, sighing. “Although after all the beams of sunlight and smiles I’ve been getting from him, it’s a bit of a shock to be treated so coldly,” he complained.
“Take it up with him,” Nino said, unconcerned. “Don’t worry, he’ll get over it soon enough. He always does when he’s mad at me.”
“I wonder about that,” Sho said, wearing a pensive expression that bothered Nino, just a bit.
})i({
By the time Aiba and Sugimoto were back, they only had an hour left to practise before they had to head home. Despite that, they all had to agree that they did well. Aiba wasn’t as good as Suzuki yet, but he had their songs down to pat, and Sho had to learn a couple of songs, but knew most of them already. They left practise with a satisfied feeling, and as they walked out of the rented studio, there was a general feeling of accomplishment and relief among the four.
As Nino and Aiba walked back together, Nino asked Aiba, “Aiba, are you mad at me or Sho?”
“Hmm?” Aiba mumbled. “Why would I be mad at you, Nino?”
“Well, you were kind of distant with Sho and I thought that it’s because of what I said the other day. You know that I really don’t mind you being friends with him, right?”
Aiba laughed. “I’m completely fine. I just have something else on my mind lately. And now that Sugimoto’s dating, he’s been trying to set me up, too.” He looked appealingly at Nino. “He told me today that Ai-chan has another friend that she wanted to introduce to me.”
Barely suppressing his laughter, Nino teased, “you better make sure that she doesn’t like to wear bondage gear, then.”
“That’s exactly what I told Sugimoto!” Aiba said seriously, his voice rising. “Although, maybe the universe is conspiring to set me up with scary girls, who knows? Speaking of which, do you think that it’s possible that nothing we do is really out of our own free will? Like there’s something out there that makes us do things... like, I don’t know... making you feel weird things at inappropriate times or about inappropriate people, or making you wear weird things and think it’s cool...”
Nino tuned Aiba out; it was something that he had had a lot of practise with. As they neared the front gate to Aiba’s place, Nino said, “there’s something you should probably know about Sho.”
Aiba looked at Nino questioningly, and his friend continued, “he doesn’t really have a lot of friends at school. It’s not like I was in junior high; most of the people in our class have been in the same school with him since junior high, and none of them are friendly with him for some reason. He acts like it doesn’t bother him, but I think it does. I should’ve introduced the two of you sooner, now that I think about it, because you’re the friendliest person I know. The fact that you immediately befriended him probably meant a lot to him, so just forget about what I said the other day, okay?”
Aiba looked down. “I was kind of mean to him today, wasn’t I,” he said quietly. “I really wasn’t thinking about that at all; I seriously had other stuff in my head.”
Smiling, Nino said, “I know. You never try to hurt people’s feeling on purpose, after all. Anyway, see you tomorrow.”
Aiba lingered at the gate as Nino left. He felt bad for treating Sho the way he did, especially since it wasn’t even Sho’s or Nino’s fault. He understood how Nino felt about needing some space, even if he didn’t feel the same way himself. It wasn’t bothering him at all. But every time he came close to the real reason he was feeling uneasy the last few days, he pushed the idea away to the back of his mind. He suddenly recalled Sugimoto’s words as they went back to his place.
“I couldn’t stop thinking about her,” Sugimoto had told him. “I keep thinking she’s the coolest person ever” - during which point Aiba had wondered if Sugimoto was a scary person just waiting to come out, too - “and just thinking about her makes my heart beat like crazy, and when she touched me, like when we’re holding hands or something” - during which point Aiba got Sugimoto to admit that he and his girlfriend hadn’t even kissed yet - “my stomach kept doing these stupid flips, and I don’t know if I was going to puke or -” during which point Aiba stopped him, not wanting to know the rest.
That sounds terrible, he had wanted to say, but he knew that it wasn’t the right thing to say. Sugimoto had looked so happy, and he wanted Aiba to understand that feeling, which was why he was now in league with Suzuki and Ai-chan in their “get Masaki a girlfriend” quest. What Aiba couldn’t tell them, because he couldn’t even admit it to himself, was that he already knew what it felt like, and he wished he didn’t.
~to be continued~
Chapter Three | Chapter Five
RATING: G
PAIRING: Sakuraiba, Aimiya (friendship)
DATE: February 6rd, 2010
NOTES: This is a work of fiction. RedShiftverse AU.
Chapter Three | Chapter Five
CHAPTER FOUR
“Suzuki’s not coming today,” Aiba announced when Nino and Sho arrived. He and Sugimoto were already waiting at their usual booth at the local Saizeriya branch, where they usually met before practise.
As Nino and Sho took a place at the table, Nino asked, “why?”
“I’m not sure. He just said that it’s something really important and he couldn’t make it.” Aiba looked at Sugimoto. “Do you have any idea? You’re closer to him than either of us.”
Sugimoto shook his head. “He didn’t say anything to me, either. But my girlfriend is friends with Ai-chan, and she said - Ai-chan said, I mean - that Jun’s family might be moving.”
Aiba frowned. “He would’ve said something if he was, wouldn’t he? I mean, he wouldn’t leave the band in a lurch...”
“That’s why I’m not sure how true it is,” Sugimoto replied. “Ai-chan didn’t seem so sure, either.”
“What about today?” Nino asked. “Are we still going to practise?”
“We do have a live coming up next week, you know,” Sugimoto said in a worried tone. “What if he couldn’t make it?”
“Hey, hey, isn’t it too early to worry about that?” Aiba asked. “We don’t know anything for sure yet!”
“It doesn’t hurt to be prepared, though,” Sho suddenly spoke up. Nino just nodded in agreement, while Aiba bristled.
“You’re not really a band member, so you don’t have to say anything,” he told Sho.
“Sorry,” Sho said solemnly.
“He’s right, though, Aiba,” Nino inserted. “We need to come up with something just in case.”
“Yeah. If Jun can’t play next week, we’ll need a bassist.”
“I can play bass,” Aiba told them. “I’m not as good as Suzuki, but I’ve been practising on my own and I can handle all of our songs.”
Nino smiled. “Great. I know I said that you were wasting good money when you bought that bass guitar, but now I’ll admit that I’m wrong. We could try that at practise today, then. We’ll have to go and pick up your bass first, though.”
“Umm, guys?” Sugimoto asked, raising a hand as if he was in class. “What about Aiba’s guitar parts? Who would play that?”
“Oh, yeah...” Aiba said, only just realising. He slumped against his seat.
“That’s easy. Sho could stand in for Aiba,” Nino said simply.
“What?” Aiba asked, looking at Sho. “Can you even play? I mean, I know you can, but can you play our songs?”
“Nino had been trying them out with me as he wrote them, so I know most of them, I think,” Sho answered.
“That’s great!” Sugimoto exclaimed. “That’s awesome. Then you can practise with us today, Sakurai-kun. Aiba, you don’t mind lending him your guitar, right?”
“Yeah, sure,” Aiba said dully. He didn’t seem enthusiastic with the idea at all, and his tone made Sho frown and Nino narrow his eyes at him. “I’ll go pick up my bass; you don’t have to come along,” Aiba continued, getting up. “I’ll see you guys back here.”
Sugimoto got up as well. “I’ll go with you anyway, Masaki,” he said. “Ai-chan wanted me to ask you about something...” his voice faded as he and Aiba left the restaurant together.
“Aiba seems to be angry with me lately,” Sho said to Nino in a confused voice. “I don’t get it.”
Nino shrugged. “He’s probably jealous. I told him I didn’t want the two of you to meet each other at first, because I wanted to have friends that didn’t include him.”
“What? Why’d you say that? His feelings must be hurt,” Sho reprimanded.
“I told him I’m totally fine with you guys being friends now,” Nino answered in defense, holding his hands up in a 'don't blame me' gesture. “It’s not my fault if he’s being sensitive about it now.”
“At least it’s not because he hates me or anything,” Sho said, sighing. “Although after all the beams of sunlight and smiles I’ve been getting from him, it’s a bit of a shock to be treated so coldly,” he complained.
“Take it up with him,” Nino said, unconcerned. “Don’t worry, he’ll get over it soon enough. He always does when he’s mad at me.”
“I wonder about that,” Sho said, wearing a pensive expression that bothered Nino, just a bit.
})i({
By the time Aiba and Sugimoto were back, they only had an hour left to practise before they had to head home. Despite that, they all had to agree that they did well. Aiba wasn’t as good as Suzuki yet, but he had their songs down to pat, and Sho had to learn a couple of songs, but knew most of them already. They left practise with a satisfied feeling, and as they walked out of the rented studio, there was a general feeling of accomplishment and relief among the four.
As Nino and Aiba walked back together, Nino asked Aiba, “Aiba, are you mad at me or Sho?”
“Hmm?” Aiba mumbled. “Why would I be mad at you, Nino?”
“Well, you were kind of distant with Sho and I thought that it’s because of what I said the other day. You know that I really don’t mind you being friends with him, right?”
Aiba laughed. “I’m completely fine. I just have something else on my mind lately. And now that Sugimoto’s dating, he’s been trying to set me up, too.” He looked appealingly at Nino. “He told me today that Ai-chan has another friend that she wanted to introduce to me.”
Barely suppressing his laughter, Nino teased, “you better make sure that she doesn’t like to wear bondage gear, then.”
“That’s exactly what I told Sugimoto!” Aiba said seriously, his voice rising. “Although, maybe the universe is conspiring to set me up with scary girls, who knows? Speaking of which, do you think that it’s possible that nothing we do is really out of our own free will? Like there’s something out there that makes us do things... like, I don’t know... making you feel weird things at inappropriate times or about inappropriate people, or making you wear weird things and think it’s cool...”
Nino tuned Aiba out; it was something that he had had a lot of practise with. As they neared the front gate to Aiba’s place, Nino said, “there’s something you should probably know about Sho.”
Aiba looked at Nino questioningly, and his friend continued, “he doesn’t really have a lot of friends at school. It’s not like I was in junior high; most of the people in our class have been in the same school with him since junior high, and none of them are friendly with him for some reason. He acts like it doesn’t bother him, but I think it does. I should’ve introduced the two of you sooner, now that I think about it, because you’re the friendliest person I know. The fact that you immediately befriended him probably meant a lot to him, so just forget about what I said the other day, okay?”
Aiba looked down. “I was kind of mean to him today, wasn’t I,” he said quietly. “I really wasn’t thinking about that at all; I seriously had other stuff in my head.”
Smiling, Nino said, “I know. You never try to hurt people’s feeling on purpose, after all. Anyway, see you tomorrow.”
Aiba lingered at the gate as Nino left. He felt bad for treating Sho the way he did, especially since it wasn’t even Sho’s or Nino’s fault. He understood how Nino felt about needing some space, even if he didn’t feel the same way himself. It wasn’t bothering him at all. But every time he came close to the real reason he was feeling uneasy the last few days, he pushed the idea away to the back of his mind. He suddenly recalled Sugimoto’s words as they went back to his place.
“I couldn’t stop thinking about her,” Sugimoto had told him. “I keep thinking she’s the coolest person ever” - during which point Aiba had wondered if Sugimoto was a scary person just waiting to come out, too - “and just thinking about her makes my heart beat like crazy, and when she touched me, like when we’re holding hands or something” - during which point Aiba got Sugimoto to admit that he and his girlfriend hadn’t even kissed yet - “my stomach kept doing these stupid flips, and I don’t know if I was going to puke or -” during which point Aiba stopped him, not wanting to know the rest.
That sounds terrible, he had wanted to say, but he knew that it wasn’t the right thing to say. Sugimoto had looked so happy, and he wanted Aiba to understand that feeling, which was why he was now in league with Suzuki and Ai-chan in their “get Masaki a girlfriend” quest. What Aiba couldn’t tell them, because he couldn’t even admit it to himself, was that he already knew what it felt like, and he wished he didn’t.
~to be continued~
Chapter Three | Chapter Five