Arashi: Green (13)
FANDOM: Arashi
RATING: G
PAIRING: Sakuraiba, Aimiya (friendship)
DATE: March 15th, 2010
NOTES: This is a work of fiction. RedShift AU.
Chapter 12 | END
CHAPTER THIRTEEN
Aiba was fuming. As soon as he reached his room he threw his bag in the general direction of his chair. It missed, and fell to the floor instead. Aiba ignored it, and went to his bed to lie down. It really annoyed him to see Nino and Sho arriving together and being really friendly, for some reason. It bugged him that they were fighting one moment and friends again the next, and were acting like they were so close all of a sudden.
When his phone rang, he saw that it was Sho and hesitated, but picked it up in the end. “What do you want?” he asked.
“I just wanted to check if you’re okay.”
“I’m still mad at you, if that’s what you’re asking.”
“I’m really sorry, but I’ve already made a promise with my parents.”
“I told you, do what you want.” He didn’t even really care about the live anymore. He was just mad, which was something he didn’t like at all, and the fact that Sho had made him mad just made him madder.
He heard Sho sigh impatiently, which irked him even more. “Are you free tomorrow?” Sho asked.
“No, I’ve got club activities. I’m meeting you the day after, anyway, right?”
“Um, that’s the thing,” Sho replied. “I kind of have this thing with Nino on that day, so I was hoping that I could see you tomorrow instead...”
Aiba bristled. “Weren’t you the one who said you had to honour earlier promises and all that? Or is it that you just prefer to hang out with Nino than me?”
“It’s not that. It’s just he’s helping me out with something -”
“Forget it. I’ll see you at band practise anyway. Go out with Nino if you want,” Aiba snapped, and hung up.
})i({
Nino picked up the phone at the first ring. “Yeah, Nino here.”
“Okay, I can go the day after tomorrow.”
“Why do you sound so unsure?”
“Aiba’s mad at me.”
“I thought we’ve already established that.”
“No, I mean, he’s mad at me for cancelling our plans to hang out with you.”
“Wait, you didn’t tell me that you had plans with Aiba! And you told him that you’re going to hang out with me instead?” Nino laughed. “You’re such an idiot; you probably deserve whatever Aiba does to you later.”
Sho frowned. “You were the one who was all mysterious and said we have to go on that day no matter what.”
“Yeah, yeah,” Nino replied carelessly. “Okay, I have an incoming call so I’ll talk to you later.”
As soon as he hung up on Sho and picked up the next call, Aiba’s voice came on.
“What are you and Sho doing the day after tomorrow? Can’t I come?”
Nino grimaced. It was fine to laugh at Sho, but it wasn’t as funny when he was talking to Aiba. “Sorry, Aiba. I can’t really talk about it right now, but Sho is really sorry about cancelling your date.”
“Were you talking with him just now?”
“How’d you know -” Nino paused and looked out his window. Aiba’s blinds were closed at the moment, but he could see a slight silhouette of his friend. “Were you using the binoculars to spy on me?”
“No, I wasn’t!” Aiba burst out indignantly. “Well, maybe, just a little... but it’s your fault for being so secretive!”
Nino gave a long suffering sigh, walked up to his window, and closed his curtains. “I promise I’ll tell you about it later, okay?”
“Why are you closing your curtains?”
“Because I’m going to change, and I’m going to bed, Aiba. Look, just do me a favour and put away those binoculars.”
“Okay. Done. Guess what, today Sugimoto said that Rika is getting a tattoo. I guess I shouldn’t be surprised, since it’s Rika, but I’m kind of surprised because I thought she probably had one already? And so he’s going with her today, you know, for moral support.”
“Is that so.” Nino was flipping through a manga with one hand as he listened.
“You don’t sound interested in what I’m saying at all!”
“Aiba, it’s late. I’m tired. Don’t you usually call Sho about this stuff?”
“But I’m mad at Sho right now, plus I want to talk to you. How come you don’t want me to go with the two of you? Do you like Sho or something?”
“I thought I’ve already told you that that’s the most ridiculous thing I’ve ever heard. I don’t even get why you would like him in that way, and to tell the truth, the both of you are annoying me because you’re both talking to me instead of to each other.”
“Sorry,” Aiba said quietly. He realised that he wasn’t really behaving in a manner that would endear him to either Sho or Nino, but he couldn’t help but feel a little crazy at the thought that the two of them were hiding something from him.
“It’s okay. I’m just tired right now. I’ll talk to you later?”
“‘Kay,” Aiba said dejectedly, and hung up.
})i({
Aiba went back to his bed after hanging up, the phone still in his hand. He knew that Nino wouldn’t lie to him, but it seemed like something was going on between his best friend and boyfriend. Nino had pretty much admitted that he was talking to Sho. Aiba had seen Nino laughing when he was on the phone with Sho, and he had seen Nino make a face when Aiba asked about coming along with them to do whatever it was that they wanted to do.
There was only one thing left to do, Aiba decided. If they were going to be secretive about things, then Aiba would have to find out why.
})i({
“Why are we going all the way here to get a guitar?” Sho asked. They were in the train heading to Kichijoji, and Sho still had no idea why.
“Because it’s not any guitar,” Nino said. “We’re going to a second-hand shop that opens only once or twice a week, and this week this is the only day it’s open.”
“Okay, so that’s why we had to go today. I get it. But what’s so special about the guitar we’re going to get?”
“Well, the guitar itself isn’t that special. It’s just a normal precision bass, the kind you can get pretty much anywhere. But when we were in junior high we were really crazy about this band - come to think of it, Aiba’s been into bass guitars since then, even if he wasn’t vocal about it - and the owner of this shop is actually a friend of some of the band members. Anyway, this particular bass - this very simple, customised bass - used to belong to their bassist when they were just starting out.”
“Hmm,” Sho murmured, and nodded. “I see. How’d you know about it?”
“We came here when Aiba was getting his bass. One of our seniors at the music club recommended this store and we went to check it out, since he was looking for a second-hand guitar, and he just ended up staring at that sea-green bass the whole time we were there. In the end I had to drag him away, apologise to the shop owner, and take him to Ishibashi where he got the Mavis he’s currently using.”
})i({
Aiba had sat far away from Sho and Nino, so he didn’t hear what they were talking about. They seemed to be in deep conversation, however, and he wondered what it was about. He hated to admit it, but sometimes he felt left out because the two of them went to the same school, and had the same teachers and activities.
He followed them when they left the train, making sure to maintain a distance, so that they wouldn’t notice him. When they entered the shop that he recognised, he was surprised. Why did Nino keep it a secret, if he was just introducing Sho to a store? He remembered the beautiful bass that he had seen there, and felt longing stir within him, but he thought that it was probably sold by now. He didn’t know how long he waited before Sho and Nino emerged from the store, grinning. Sho had a guitar case with him that he definitely didn’t have before, so Aiba knew that he had bought something. Aiba was wondering again why they had kept quiet about where they were going, when Sho noticed him.
“Aiba, what are you doing here?”
Aiba looked back at Sho, an equally surprised look on his face. He had forgotten to stay out of sight while waiting for the two to come out. Nino just looked resigned.
“Obviously, he decided to follow us to see where we were going.” He suddenly broke into a grin. “I’ll leave you guys alone; I need to get back early, anyway.”
He left, leaving Aiba and Sho to stare at each other.
“You bought a guitar,” Aiba finally said lamely.
“Oh. Yeah, I did.” Sho held the guitar case out. “It’s for you, actually.”
“What?” Aiba accepted the guitar automatically, but didn’t quite process what Sho was saying. “Why are you giving me a guitar?”
Sho looked down in embarrassment. “It’s White Day,” he mumbled.
Aiba blinked at him. He had completely forgotten about White Day. “You got me a guitar for White Day,” he repeated blankly.
“It was Nino’s idea!” Sho said defensively. It seemed like a stupid idea to him now. Was it too much, to give something so big? he wondered.
“Is it that sea-green precision bass I wanted?”
“Yeah.” Sho cringed internally. Why couldn’t he get Aiba something more normal? “It’s a bit much, isn’t it,” he mumbled, still looking down.
“It is, a bit,” Aiba agreed in a solemn voice. He didn’t know what to do with Sho’s earnestness sometimes. It was really sweet, and it touched him, but at the same time, it made him want to laugh, because surely Sho could have thought of easier things to do. “It’s very like you, though. Trying too hard and ending up doing something that is... I don’t know. Stupid, kind of? You could’ve just taken me out on a date today instead of sneaking around with Nino. That would’ve been plenty romantic. But I guess that’s what I like about you.”
Sho looked up at those words, and saw that Aiba was grinning. “Nino only got you to get me that guitar,” Aiba continued, “because he promised to get it for me on my next birthday, and now he doesn’t have to. Plus it’s his way of telling me that he’s okay with us being together... I think.”
“So... you’re not mad at me anymore?” Sho asked.
“Oh, I’m sure I’ll be mad again later, but right now I can’t quite seem to manage it.” Aiba closed the distance between them and hugged Sho. “Relax,” he said teasingly, as Sho protested. “Friends hug each other all the time. Especially when their friends give them a guitar.”
“You’re bad for my health,” Sho muttered, thinking about how his heartbeat was rapidly increasing. He relented, though, and leaned closer to breathe Aiba in. “I’ll play at the live, if you really want me to,” he said, when he finally pulled away.
“That’s okay,” Aiba replied, and held up the guitar case. “You should keep your promises, you know. Plus, I’ll be too excited playing my brand new used bass to think of you,” he added jokingly, and Sho smiled. It was at that moment when he thought that perhaps Nino was right, perhaps he was truly falling for Sho, but he decided not to say anything yet. After all, they were only at the beginning of their story.
As they walked towards the station together, chatting about the impending live and what it would mean for the band, and making grandiose plans for Red Shift’s future, Aiba realised that he was feeling perfectly content and at ease. He glanced at Sho, who was talking animatedly on the subject of tattoos - he had just told Sho about Rika - and thought that he wanted to know this person even after many years had passed, and found himself wishing that their story would be a long and happy one.
~ the end ~
Chapter 12 | END
Marineko's Notes:
... I don't know... (-_-)
RATING: G
PAIRING: Sakuraiba, Aimiya (friendship)
DATE: March 15th, 2010
NOTES: This is a work of fiction. RedShift AU.
Chapter 12 | END
CHAPTER THIRTEEN
Aiba was fuming. As soon as he reached his room he threw his bag in the general direction of his chair. It missed, and fell to the floor instead. Aiba ignored it, and went to his bed to lie down. It really annoyed him to see Nino and Sho arriving together and being really friendly, for some reason. It bugged him that they were fighting one moment and friends again the next, and were acting like they were so close all of a sudden.
When his phone rang, he saw that it was Sho and hesitated, but picked it up in the end. “What do you want?” he asked.
“I just wanted to check if you’re okay.”
“I’m still mad at you, if that’s what you’re asking.”
“I’m really sorry, but I’ve already made a promise with my parents.”
“I told you, do what you want.” He didn’t even really care about the live anymore. He was just mad, which was something he didn’t like at all, and the fact that Sho had made him mad just made him madder.
He heard Sho sigh impatiently, which irked him even more. “Are you free tomorrow?” Sho asked.
“No, I’ve got club activities. I’m meeting you the day after, anyway, right?”
“Um, that’s the thing,” Sho replied. “I kind of have this thing with Nino on that day, so I was hoping that I could see you tomorrow instead...”
Aiba bristled. “Weren’t you the one who said you had to honour earlier promises and all that? Or is it that you just prefer to hang out with Nino than me?”
“It’s not that. It’s just he’s helping me out with something -”
“Forget it. I’ll see you at band practise anyway. Go out with Nino if you want,” Aiba snapped, and hung up.
})i({
Nino picked up the phone at the first ring. “Yeah, Nino here.”
“Okay, I can go the day after tomorrow.”
“Why do you sound so unsure?”
“Aiba’s mad at me.”
“I thought we’ve already established that.”
“No, I mean, he’s mad at me for cancelling our plans to hang out with you.”
“Wait, you didn’t tell me that you had plans with Aiba! And you told him that you’re going to hang out with me instead?” Nino laughed. “You’re such an idiot; you probably deserve whatever Aiba does to you later.”
Sho frowned. “You were the one who was all mysterious and said we have to go on that day no matter what.”
“Yeah, yeah,” Nino replied carelessly. “Okay, I have an incoming call so I’ll talk to you later.”
As soon as he hung up on Sho and picked up the next call, Aiba’s voice came on.
“What are you and Sho doing the day after tomorrow? Can’t I come?”
Nino grimaced. It was fine to laugh at Sho, but it wasn’t as funny when he was talking to Aiba. “Sorry, Aiba. I can’t really talk about it right now, but Sho is really sorry about cancelling your date.”
“Were you talking with him just now?”
“How’d you know -” Nino paused and looked out his window. Aiba’s blinds were closed at the moment, but he could see a slight silhouette of his friend. “Were you using the binoculars to spy on me?”
“No, I wasn’t!” Aiba burst out indignantly. “Well, maybe, just a little... but it’s your fault for being so secretive!”
Nino gave a long suffering sigh, walked up to his window, and closed his curtains. “I promise I’ll tell you about it later, okay?”
“Why are you closing your curtains?”
“Because I’m going to change, and I’m going to bed, Aiba. Look, just do me a favour and put away those binoculars.”
“Okay. Done. Guess what, today Sugimoto said that Rika is getting a tattoo. I guess I shouldn’t be surprised, since it’s Rika, but I’m kind of surprised because I thought she probably had one already? And so he’s going with her today, you know, for moral support.”
“Is that so.” Nino was flipping through a manga with one hand as he listened.
“You don’t sound interested in what I’m saying at all!”
“Aiba, it’s late. I’m tired. Don’t you usually call Sho about this stuff?”
“But I’m mad at Sho right now, plus I want to talk to you. How come you don’t want me to go with the two of you? Do you like Sho or something?”
“I thought I’ve already told you that that’s the most ridiculous thing I’ve ever heard. I don’t even get why you would like him in that way, and to tell the truth, the both of you are annoying me because you’re both talking to me instead of to each other.”
“Sorry,” Aiba said quietly. He realised that he wasn’t really behaving in a manner that would endear him to either Sho or Nino, but he couldn’t help but feel a little crazy at the thought that the two of them were hiding something from him.
“It’s okay. I’m just tired right now. I’ll talk to you later?”
“‘Kay,” Aiba said dejectedly, and hung up.
})i({
Aiba went back to his bed after hanging up, the phone still in his hand. He knew that Nino wouldn’t lie to him, but it seemed like something was going on between his best friend and boyfriend. Nino had pretty much admitted that he was talking to Sho. Aiba had seen Nino laughing when he was on the phone with Sho, and he had seen Nino make a face when Aiba asked about coming along with them to do whatever it was that they wanted to do.
There was only one thing left to do, Aiba decided. If they were going to be secretive about things, then Aiba would have to find out why.
})i({
“Why are we going all the way here to get a guitar?” Sho asked. They were in the train heading to Kichijoji, and Sho still had no idea why.
“Because it’s not any guitar,” Nino said. “We’re going to a second-hand shop that opens only once or twice a week, and this week this is the only day it’s open.”
“Okay, so that’s why we had to go today. I get it. But what’s so special about the guitar we’re going to get?”
“Well, the guitar itself isn’t that special. It’s just a normal precision bass, the kind you can get pretty much anywhere. But when we were in junior high we were really crazy about this band - come to think of it, Aiba’s been into bass guitars since then, even if he wasn’t vocal about it - and the owner of this shop is actually a friend of some of the band members. Anyway, this particular bass - this very simple, customised bass - used to belong to their bassist when they were just starting out.”
“Hmm,” Sho murmured, and nodded. “I see. How’d you know about it?”
“We came here when Aiba was getting his bass. One of our seniors at the music club recommended this store and we went to check it out, since he was looking for a second-hand guitar, and he just ended up staring at that sea-green bass the whole time we were there. In the end I had to drag him away, apologise to the shop owner, and take him to Ishibashi where he got the Mavis he’s currently using.”
})i({
Aiba had sat far away from Sho and Nino, so he didn’t hear what they were talking about. They seemed to be in deep conversation, however, and he wondered what it was about. He hated to admit it, but sometimes he felt left out because the two of them went to the same school, and had the same teachers and activities.
He followed them when they left the train, making sure to maintain a distance, so that they wouldn’t notice him. When they entered the shop that he recognised, he was surprised. Why did Nino keep it a secret, if he was just introducing Sho to a store? He remembered the beautiful bass that he had seen there, and felt longing stir within him, but he thought that it was probably sold by now. He didn’t know how long he waited before Sho and Nino emerged from the store, grinning. Sho had a guitar case with him that he definitely didn’t have before, so Aiba knew that he had bought something. Aiba was wondering again why they had kept quiet about where they were going, when Sho noticed him.
“Aiba, what are you doing here?”
Aiba looked back at Sho, an equally surprised look on his face. He had forgotten to stay out of sight while waiting for the two to come out. Nino just looked resigned.
“Obviously, he decided to follow us to see where we were going.” He suddenly broke into a grin. “I’ll leave you guys alone; I need to get back early, anyway.”
He left, leaving Aiba and Sho to stare at each other.
“You bought a guitar,” Aiba finally said lamely.
“Oh. Yeah, I did.” Sho held the guitar case out. “It’s for you, actually.”
“What?” Aiba accepted the guitar automatically, but didn’t quite process what Sho was saying. “Why are you giving me a guitar?”
Sho looked down in embarrassment. “It’s White Day,” he mumbled.
Aiba blinked at him. He had completely forgotten about White Day. “You got me a guitar for White Day,” he repeated blankly.
“It was Nino’s idea!” Sho said defensively. It seemed like a stupid idea to him now. Was it too much, to give something so big? he wondered.
“Is it that sea-green precision bass I wanted?”
“Yeah.” Sho cringed internally. Why couldn’t he get Aiba something more normal? “It’s a bit much, isn’t it,” he mumbled, still looking down.
“It is, a bit,” Aiba agreed in a solemn voice. He didn’t know what to do with Sho’s earnestness sometimes. It was really sweet, and it touched him, but at the same time, it made him want to laugh, because surely Sho could have thought of easier things to do. “It’s very like you, though. Trying too hard and ending up doing something that is... I don’t know. Stupid, kind of? You could’ve just taken me out on a date today instead of sneaking around with Nino. That would’ve been plenty romantic. But I guess that’s what I like about you.”
Sho looked up at those words, and saw that Aiba was grinning. “Nino only got you to get me that guitar,” Aiba continued, “because he promised to get it for me on my next birthday, and now he doesn’t have to. Plus it’s his way of telling me that he’s okay with us being together... I think.”
“So... you’re not mad at me anymore?” Sho asked.
“Oh, I’m sure I’ll be mad again later, but right now I can’t quite seem to manage it.” Aiba closed the distance between them and hugged Sho. “Relax,” he said teasingly, as Sho protested. “Friends hug each other all the time. Especially when their friends give them a guitar.”
“You’re bad for my health,” Sho muttered, thinking about how his heartbeat was rapidly increasing. He relented, though, and leaned closer to breathe Aiba in. “I’ll play at the live, if you really want me to,” he said, when he finally pulled away.
“That’s okay,” Aiba replied, and held up the guitar case. “You should keep your promises, you know. Plus, I’ll be too excited playing my brand new used bass to think of you,” he added jokingly, and Sho smiled. It was at that moment when he thought that perhaps Nino was right, perhaps he was truly falling for Sho, but he decided not to say anything yet. After all, they were only at the beginning of their story.
As they walked towards the station together, chatting about the impending live and what it would mean for the band, and making grandiose plans for Red Shift’s future, Aiba realised that he was feeling perfectly content and at ease. He glanced at Sho, who was talking animatedly on the subject of tattoos - he had just told Sho about Rika - and thought that he wanted to know this person even after many years had passed, and found himself wishing that their story would be a long and happy one.
~ the end ~
Chapter 12 | END
Marineko's Notes:
... I don't know... (-_-)