Arashi: Green (11)
FANDOM: Arashi
RATING: G
PAIRING: Sakuraiba, Aimiya (friendship)
DATE: March 6th, 2010
NOTES: This is a work of fiction. RedShift AU.
Chapter Ten | Chapter Twelve
CHAPTER ELEVEN
Aiba didn’t show up at the following practice. Nino had messaged everyone to meet up at the studio instead of Saizeriya, and when he walked in to see only Sho and Sugimoto there, he just stood and looked at them questioningly. Sho just shot him a disdained look, while Sugimoto shrugged and mouthed the words, “not coming.” Nino lowered his eyes, knowing that the reason Aiba wasn’t coming was because of him. When he faced his band mates again, he just said, “well, let’s just continue as usual.” Sugimoto proceeded to inform Nino about several changes that Sho wanted to make in the lyrics of their new song, and Nino just said sharply, “do what you want.”
It wasn’t just Aiba, he thought. Even Sugimoto listened to Sho more. It really got on his nerves. It’s my band, not his! he thought. Or rather, it’s Aiba’s band. It was Aiba’s idea, after all… and now the idiot doesn’t even care enough to come to practice.
})i({
“Nino.”
Nino turned in surprise when he heard Sho called him. He thought that Sho had left; both he and Sugimoto seemed to be in a hurry to leave practice that day. But apparently Sho hadn’t left yet, or had decided to come back. “What do you want? I told you, you can do whatever you want with the song. I really don’t care.”
“I want to talk about Aiba.”
At another time, Sho might have found it interesting, the way Nino’s temper immediately cooled, and how his gaze on Sho turned icy within moments. But since Nino’s hostility was directed towards him, Sho wasn’t really in the position to appreciate it.
“There’s nothing to talk about,” Nino said.
“Yes, there is,” Sho insisted calmly. “You can be angry at me all you want, but please stop hurting Aiba.”
“You’re the one who’s going to hurt him in the end.”
Sho sat next to Nino. “Nino, I don’t know what’s going to happen in the future, so I really can’t promise you that I’ll never hurt him. But I can tell you that I like Aiba. I really, really like Aiba.”
“I don’t want to hear it,” Nino snapped. He paused, before adding, “And don’t think I’m not going to beat the crap out of you if you hurt him.”
“You have to know that I will never wish him harm.”
“You think I don’t know that? I know you don’t want to hurt him, but you will. Aiba’s really sensitive,” Nino said, his voice softening.
“I know. That’s why I want you to think about what you’re doing to him now. You’re his best friend, Nino. Aiba needs you right now, maybe more than he’ll ever need me.” Nino looked at Sho, startled by the words, and saw Sho’s wistful look as he said them. He realized that he wasn’t the only one who was jealous of the other.
“Why would he need me? He has you now.” As much as he hated to admit it, he knew now that the reason Aiba had been so distant with him was because he had Sho.
“What I have with Aiba is different from what you have with him,” Sho said quietly. “No one could replace a best friend, Nino. If you were dating right now, would that person be able to replace Aiba?”
Nino hadn’t thought about it that way. “I guess not,” he said grudgingly. He hated Sho, he decided, for being completely reasonable and right all the time. It just figures that the person Aiba would end up falling for would be someone Nino found absolutely irritating. And yet you were the one who befriended him in the first place, he reminded himself. He thought about how lonely Sho seemed at school and how surprised Sho was when Nino first talked to him. He thought about how Sho seemed above everything that was going on in school back then, and how being friends with Nino seemed to make him a little more vulnerable to the other students. Nino felt bad about what he did to Sho, because it was an undeniable fact that by cutting off his friendship with Sho he managed to make Sho more susceptible to the school gossips, but Nino was also annoyed by how stoically Sho took everything, like nothing bothered him at all. “I guess I haven’t been a great friend to you, either,” he commented, knowing that Sho would know that he was trying to apologize.
“I probably deserve it,” Sho said gruffly, accepting his apology. “We should’ve told you from the start.”
“I probably would’ve reacted the same way even if you did,” Nino admitted. “I’m really not the most rational of people when it comes to Aiba.”
“I’ve noticed,” Sho remarked dryly, before continuing in a much more sombre tone, “look, we both care about Aiba a lot. Neither of us wanted to see him hurt. That should put us on the same side… right?”
“I suppose.” Nino stood up, and grabbed his bag. “I’ve got to go.”
Sho frowned at Nino. He wondered if any of the words he said had really registered, when Nino said, “see you at school,” over his shoulder before leaving the studio.
})i({
Aiba hated mathematics. He got better grades for math compared to geography and English, but while he found the other two subjects fascinating, and despite the fact that he understood the concepts he learned in math pretty easily, he still hated math more than any other subject in school. He would usually feign ignorance and get Nino to ‘tutor’ him, while Nino did most of his work, but he couldn’t do that now.
Math reminded him of Nino that evening, and because of that, he hated it even more. He stared at the questions, but the numbers just swam around on the page in front of him, and he couldn’t focus on anything. He wondered if he should have gone to practice that day, because at least it would have meant he would be able to see Sho.
“Nii-chan,” Yusuke called out from the door. “Someone’s here to see you.”
Sho! Aiba thought immediately, and stood up and turned towards the door with a smile, but was greeted by the sight of his brother and Nino instead. His smile disappearing, he just looked at Nino blankly while Yusuke excused himself and left.
“You missed practice,” Nino said, and winced internally at how harsh he sounded. The fact that Aiba’s smile faltered at the sight of him was already making him feel like the world’s biggest jerk.
“Sorry,” Aiba said. He was just apologizing for missing practice, but for some reason both of them thought that his words felt heavier, as if he was sorry for every single mistake he had made in his life.
“I’m sorry, too,” Nino said, to Aiba’s surprise. “I had a talk with Sho today,” he explained. He sat on Aiba’s bed, and Aiba hesitated, before sitting back down on his chair. “Basically he chewed me out for how I’ve been acting.”
Aiba remained quiet.
Unused by such behaviour from his best friend, Nino continued talking to fill in the silence. “I don’t know how you can stand him sometimes,” he complained. “He acts like he knows everything and like he’s right all the time and everyone listens to him, and I know the only reason people treat him the way they do at school is because they all wish they were him, and I can’t stand it! I mean, he’s my friend, but it’s annoying how he acts like he’s Mr. Perfect all the time.”
Aiba chuckled. “Sho-chan’s not perfect,” he said. “He’s really shy, even though he tries so hard to hide it. He doesn’t want anyone to see it either, which is why he tries to act so cool, but really he’s sensitive about what people think about him. He has zero hand-eye coordination,” Aiba continued, “and Ferris wheels freak him out a little.” He smiled to himself, remembering.
Nino watched Aiba’s expression as he talked about Sho, and observed, “You’re in love with him.”
“Eh? No, I’m not,” Aiba replied automatically, but he was already turning red. “We’ve only started dating.”
Nino grinned. “Nope, you’re definitely in love. Nothing gets past me, you know.” He gave an exaggerated sigh, before continuing, “I guess there’s no helping it. You and Sho are destined to be all lovey-dovey while I play the third wheel, hearing you gush sickeningly about how in love you are.”
“It’s not like that at all,” Aiba said in embarrassment. “I told you, we’re just started dating. I don’t gush about Sho-chan or anything -” he stopped, seeing Nino’s teasing smile. “You’re mean,” he finished, smiling back. “I missed you.” The last words were spoken softly, as if he wasn’t sure if it was something that should be said.
But Nino repeated the words, and for awhile the two boys just sat and grinned at each other, relieved that they were friends again.
~ to be continued ~
Chapter Ten | Chapter Twelve
Marineko's Notes:
Yay, things are finally getting better.
I was away and internet-less for the last couple of days, but I managed to update both my fics and a one-shot Shida requested... hope I'm not spoiling y'all by posting everything in one go? XD
RATING: G
PAIRING: Sakuraiba, Aimiya (friendship)
DATE: March 6th, 2010
NOTES: This is a work of fiction. RedShift AU.
Chapter Ten | Chapter Twelve
CHAPTER ELEVEN
Aiba didn’t show up at the following practice. Nino had messaged everyone to meet up at the studio instead of Saizeriya, and when he walked in to see only Sho and Sugimoto there, he just stood and looked at them questioningly. Sho just shot him a disdained look, while Sugimoto shrugged and mouthed the words, “not coming.” Nino lowered his eyes, knowing that the reason Aiba wasn’t coming was because of him. When he faced his band mates again, he just said, “well, let’s just continue as usual.” Sugimoto proceeded to inform Nino about several changes that Sho wanted to make in the lyrics of their new song, and Nino just said sharply, “do what you want.”
It wasn’t just Aiba, he thought. Even Sugimoto listened to Sho more. It really got on his nerves. It’s my band, not his! he thought. Or rather, it’s Aiba’s band. It was Aiba’s idea, after all… and now the idiot doesn’t even care enough to come to practice.
})i({
“Nino.”
Nino turned in surprise when he heard Sho called him. He thought that Sho had left; both he and Sugimoto seemed to be in a hurry to leave practice that day. But apparently Sho hadn’t left yet, or had decided to come back. “What do you want? I told you, you can do whatever you want with the song. I really don’t care.”
“I want to talk about Aiba.”
At another time, Sho might have found it interesting, the way Nino’s temper immediately cooled, and how his gaze on Sho turned icy within moments. But since Nino’s hostility was directed towards him, Sho wasn’t really in the position to appreciate it.
“There’s nothing to talk about,” Nino said.
“Yes, there is,” Sho insisted calmly. “You can be angry at me all you want, but please stop hurting Aiba.”
“You’re the one who’s going to hurt him in the end.”
Sho sat next to Nino. “Nino, I don’t know what’s going to happen in the future, so I really can’t promise you that I’ll never hurt him. But I can tell you that I like Aiba. I really, really like Aiba.”
“I don’t want to hear it,” Nino snapped. He paused, before adding, “And don’t think I’m not going to beat the crap out of you if you hurt him.”
“You have to know that I will never wish him harm.”
“You think I don’t know that? I know you don’t want to hurt him, but you will. Aiba’s really sensitive,” Nino said, his voice softening.
“I know. That’s why I want you to think about what you’re doing to him now. You’re his best friend, Nino. Aiba needs you right now, maybe more than he’ll ever need me.” Nino looked at Sho, startled by the words, and saw Sho’s wistful look as he said them. He realized that he wasn’t the only one who was jealous of the other.
“Why would he need me? He has you now.” As much as he hated to admit it, he knew now that the reason Aiba had been so distant with him was because he had Sho.
“What I have with Aiba is different from what you have with him,” Sho said quietly. “No one could replace a best friend, Nino. If you were dating right now, would that person be able to replace Aiba?”
Nino hadn’t thought about it that way. “I guess not,” he said grudgingly. He hated Sho, he decided, for being completely reasonable and right all the time. It just figures that the person Aiba would end up falling for would be someone Nino found absolutely irritating. And yet you were the one who befriended him in the first place, he reminded himself. He thought about how lonely Sho seemed at school and how surprised Sho was when Nino first talked to him. He thought about how Sho seemed above everything that was going on in school back then, and how being friends with Nino seemed to make him a little more vulnerable to the other students. Nino felt bad about what he did to Sho, because it was an undeniable fact that by cutting off his friendship with Sho he managed to make Sho more susceptible to the school gossips, but Nino was also annoyed by how stoically Sho took everything, like nothing bothered him at all. “I guess I haven’t been a great friend to you, either,” he commented, knowing that Sho would know that he was trying to apologize.
“I probably deserve it,” Sho said gruffly, accepting his apology. “We should’ve told you from the start.”
“I probably would’ve reacted the same way even if you did,” Nino admitted. “I’m really not the most rational of people when it comes to Aiba.”
“I’ve noticed,” Sho remarked dryly, before continuing in a much more sombre tone, “look, we both care about Aiba a lot. Neither of us wanted to see him hurt. That should put us on the same side… right?”
“I suppose.” Nino stood up, and grabbed his bag. “I’ve got to go.”
Sho frowned at Nino. He wondered if any of the words he said had really registered, when Nino said, “see you at school,” over his shoulder before leaving the studio.
})i({
Aiba hated mathematics. He got better grades for math compared to geography and English, but while he found the other two subjects fascinating, and despite the fact that he understood the concepts he learned in math pretty easily, he still hated math more than any other subject in school. He would usually feign ignorance and get Nino to ‘tutor’ him, while Nino did most of his work, but he couldn’t do that now.
Math reminded him of Nino that evening, and because of that, he hated it even more. He stared at the questions, but the numbers just swam around on the page in front of him, and he couldn’t focus on anything. He wondered if he should have gone to practice that day, because at least it would have meant he would be able to see Sho.
“Nii-chan,” Yusuke called out from the door. “Someone’s here to see you.”
Sho! Aiba thought immediately, and stood up and turned towards the door with a smile, but was greeted by the sight of his brother and Nino instead. His smile disappearing, he just looked at Nino blankly while Yusuke excused himself and left.
“You missed practice,” Nino said, and winced internally at how harsh he sounded. The fact that Aiba’s smile faltered at the sight of him was already making him feel like the world’s biggest jerk.
“Sorry,” Aiba said. He was just apologizing for missing practice, but for some reason both of them thought that his words felt heavier, as if he was sorry for every single mistake he had made in his life.
“I’m sorry, too,” Nino said, to Aiba’s surprise. “I had a talk with Sho today,” he explained. He sat on Aiba’s bed, and Aiba hesitated, before sitting back down on his chair. “Basically he chewed me out for how I’ve been acting.”
Aiba remained quiet.
Unused by such behaviour from his best friend, Nino continued talking to fill in the silence. “I don’t know how you can stand him sometimes,” he complained. “He acts like he knows everything and like he’s right all the time and everyone listens to him, and I know the only reason people treat him the way they do at school is because they all wish they were him, and I can’t stand it! I mean, he’s my friend, but it’s annoying how he acts like he’s Mr. Perfect all the time.”
Aiba chuckled. “Sho-chan’s not perfect,” he said. “He’s really shy, even though he tries so hard to hide it. He doesn’t want anyone to see it either, which is why he tries to act so cool, but really he’s sensitive about what people think about him. He has zero hand-eye coordination,” Aiba continued, “and Ferris wheels freak him out a little.” He smiled to himself, remembering.
Nino watched Aiba’s expression as he talked about Sho, and observed, “You’re in love with him.”
“Eh? No, I’m not,” Aiba replied automatically, but he was already turning red. “We’ve only started dating.”
Nino grinned. “Nope, you’re definitely in love. Nothing gets past me, you know.” He gave an exaggerated sigh, before continuing, “I guess there’s no helping it. You and Sho are destined to be all lovey-dovey while I play the third wheel, hearing you gush sickeningly about how in love you are.”
“It’s not like that at all,” Aiba said in embarrassment. “I told you, we’re just started dating. I don’t gush about Sho-chan or anything -” he stopped, seeing Nino’s teasing smile. “You’re mean,” he finished, smiling back. “I missed you.” The last words were spoken softly, as if he wasn’t sure if it was something that should be said.
But Nino repeated the words, and for awhile the two boys just sat and grinned at each other, relieved that they were friends again.
~ to be continued ~
Chapter Ten | Chapter Twelve
Marineko's Notes:
Yay, things are finally getting better.
I was away and internet-less for the last couple of days, but I managed to update both my fics and a one-shot Shida requested... hope I'm not spoiling y'all by posting everything in one go? XD