Four Johnny's Boys Meisa Turns Down and the One She Doesn't - PG [Kame/Meisa]
Four Johnny's Boys Meisa Turns Down and the One She Doesn't
tinyangl, 3004 words.
Hints of Kuroki Meisa/Yamashita, Kuroki Meisa/Tanaka Koki, Kuroki Meisa/Ninomiya Kazunari, Akanishi Jin/Kuroki Meisa. Oh, and hints of Nagasawa Masami/Ninomiya Kazunari and Horikita Maki/Nakamaru Yuichi. Kamenashi Kazuya/Kuroki Meisa. The title says it all--Meisa works with a lot more Johnny's boys than one knows.
A/N: Simultaneously blaming and dedicating this to cynicalism and swtjemz. And since it was largely dedicated to cynicalism, go figure that the longest part of this fic is the Kame/Meisa part. The start of the year and already I hit 3000k. This bodes so well. Wow, this is a lot of het in one fic--and a lot of OOC. Sorry. Enjoy~ (Originally posted here.)
i.
Meisa has never trusted those Johnny's boys even if Koichi-san was nicer than she had thought. ("He's too old for you," Maki said, wrinkling her nose. "That doesn't mean a thing," Meisa insists.) So when she finds out that she has to work with not only one Johnny's boy in her next job, but two, she's not really happy about it.
"But it's with Yamashita-kun!" Maki insists. "You're in good hands."
"As long as said hands aren't touching me," Meisa snaps, before adding, "And you for that matter."
Maki only rolls her eyes. "Either ways. You have nothing to worry about."
"I bet you you're wrong," Meisa sing-songs.
Maki pauses, before replying. "I am not betting with you on whether or not Yamashita-kun will ask you out. I did that before and I've learnt my lesson."
"You're just mad that you had to call that band member of Kamenashi-kun and ask him out yourself." Meisa grins cheekily. "How's that going by the way?"
There's an unmistakable flush across Maki's cheeks before she turns. "Still not doing it." Maki goes into her bedroom as Meisa sighs, looking through her script.
--
Surprisingly, even to her--especially to her-- Yamapi's not half bad. He's cordial--probably got some kind of warning from Maki--and doesn't pester her a single bit. Which is good because going about set if she didn't like him would not help things--and Maki would likely be offended somehow.
They get along well enough--although she swears sometimes Yamapi's gaze lingers a little longer than it probably should, but that tends to flatter her more than it does annoy her. Plus, he stays out of her way when she wants him too, seeming to know when the right time is, but more importantly, when it isn't. ("See, I told you," Maki says with a smirk.
"Don't preen for too long. It doesn't suit you." Maki sticks her tongue out at Meisa.)
On her last day on set--she doesn't have terribly many scenes to film, Yamapi pulls her aside with a smile. Before he can even open his mouth, she does first. "No."
Yamapi blinks, startled. "What?"
"You were going to ask me out, weren't you?" Meisa asks, arm crossed. In her head, she cheers--only because it'll serve for fodder if she ever gets into this conversation with Maki--or you know, just for that night when she laughs at winning their kinda, but not really bet.
Yamapi scratches the back of his head, but carefully because his hair's already been prepared for shooting and Meisa figures he doesn't want to ruin it. "Well, it's more like I need a dinner date for this thing, and I was hoping--"
"Good try, but no." Meisa grins.
"Ah, well, worth a try. Maki-chan suggested that one."
Meisa narrows her eyes. "What, working against me?"
Yamapi grins, rocking on his heel. "More like, she wanted to win." Meisa's jaw drops as Yamapi waves and rushes back onto set. "Too bad, I would've liked dinner with you," he says over his shoulder.
Meisa makes sure to point out to Maki that getting Yamapi to ask her out was completely not the point of their bet. ("Maybe your bet," Maki says mysteriously with a wink before changing the topic completely.)
ii.
Meisa has to meet up with Yamapi and Koki when promotions for Byakkotai are starting up. She doesn't do as many of them (read: she only does one, but she's not really surprised or offended), but she's thankful because it means less chances of seeing them.
Yamapi waves at her with a grin, before settling down on the makeup chair. Koki who's already done stands next to her--she's also done--before greeting her nicely. "It's good to see you again."
Meisa raises her eyebrow. "You don't have to strike up conversation just because we're standing together," Meisa says bluntly.
Koki shrugs. "But the silence is annoying."
"Right..." Meisa says slowly, half urging the makeup artist in her mind to hurry it up so they can get started and then she can leave.
"Listen," Koki starts and Meisa turns to look at him, eyebrow still raised.
"Mm?"
"If you're free tonight--"
"No," Meisa says abruptly. "Your friend over there." Meisa jerks her head towards Yamapi who is obviously listening with a half-grin, half-smirk on his lips. "Already tried. And just. No."
Koki stuffs his hands into his pockets. "Well, a guy's gotta try."
"Maybe less is more," Meisa snorts which starts Yamapi off while Koki raises an eyebrow--she's read those articles about him. She smiles cheekily before the makeup artist pushes Yamapi out of the chair with a gruff, "You're done." Which sets Meisa off. In a way, she's a little sad that this is over--they're not terribly bad, she supposes.
"You should really tell Maki-chan to stop match-making you," Yamapi murmurs at one point, hand dangerously low on her back. Meisa only glares at him, coughs pointedly--he thankfully lifts said hand--before shaking her head.
"Maki wouldn't be doing something like that. And if she was, definitely not with Johnny's boys."
Yamapi chuckles. "Maybe she knows something you don't."
Meisa scoffs before they start up the interview.
iii.
Meisa just thinks she's heavily unlucky when her next job ends up being with another Johnny's boy.
Maki shrugs. "I've never worked with him either, so don't look at me," she says, sucking on a lollipop and flipping through a script. Meisa raises an eyebrow at her.
"By the way, what's this about you trying to match-make me?"
Maki doesn't even blink an eye. "Oh, did Yamashita-kun say that? He's just being silly. Doesn't like to accept when he's been rejected."
"Uh-huh," Meisa says suspiciously, but she lets it go--she's letting a lot of things go, it seems.
--
"Ne, Meisa-chan," Nino says cheerfully, already familiar with her--so it seems--in just a few weeks. "Are you busy tonight?" He beams at her, scarily close and Meisa has to step back to get back her personal space.
She blinks before snapping incredulously, "Don't you have a girlfriend?"
"Masami-chan? Ah, that reminds me, I should call her." Nino shakes his head. "No, wait. I was just wondering if you'd like to celebrate the first episode airing!"
"...You still have a girlfriend."
Nino grins. "Yes, I do. That's why this is not a date."
"But it feels like you're inviting me on one." Meisa crosses her arms.
NIno shrugs. "Maybe because you want to go on one with me?" he smirks wickedly at her and Meisa finally realizes why people say Nino can be a downright asshole sometimes.
"Yeah, no," Meisa says, shaking her head as she turns around and walks away.
"The offer's always open!" Nino calls out before she hears him pull out his cell phone, punching at some number and saying loudly--to the point that she can hear halfway down the hall, "Masami-chan! How are you?"
Meisa rolls her eyes. ("Seriously, I don't understand why a guy with a girlfriend would ask someone out like that. How does Nagasawa-san deal with that?"
Maki blinks at her thoughtfully. "Ninomiya-kun has a girlfriend? Didn't know that."
Meisa stares. "Why do you only take that part out of this?" Maki shrugs, painting dark red nail polish on another one of Meisa's toenails--Meisa looks at her suspiciously.)
iv.
She meets him at the start-up party for One Pound Gospel, and honestly, Meisa's a little surprised to even see him there--it's not often that group members would crash parties like this.
"I was invited," Jin says pointedly, raising his glass towards Kame who's chatting with one of their co-stars.
Meisa raises an eyebrow. "Okay, but that doesn't explain why you're standing here and talking to me."
He looks at her with a grin, and Meisa gets the distinct feeling that he's looking at her like she's not wearing anything on--which she is, thanks. "Why would I want to talk to anyone else when you're here?"
"Wow," Meisa says with a laugh. "You're smoother than I thought."
"Thank you." Jin grins, winking at her before taking a sip of his drink.
"Don't thank me, you suck. You're just better than I thought." Meisa watches in amusement as Jin chokes on his sip, then turning towards her with slight awe.
"And you're snappier than I thought, but that's hot."
Meisa scoffs in disgust. "You would say something disgusting like that." She grabs the drink from his hand, swallows it down then beams at him brightly. "It was nice meeting you. Although not really."
She walks away in a bit of a huff, passing by Kame who gives her this glance before she waves him bye with a smile.
Kame gives her a smile in return, half bowing as she leaves.
i.
When Maki first finds out that Meisa's going to work with Kame in her next drama, she's more excited than Meisa thinks she should be. "Kamenashi-kun is really nice. You'll like him, I'll bet!"
Meisa scoffs at her--Maki's been wrong before.
Except this time, she's actually not. "Kuroki-san, right?" Kame greets, smiling. "Maki-chan told me to look out for you."
Meisa rolls her eyes. "I don't need to be babied," she snaps, frowning.
Kame quirks an eyebrow. "I figured. That's why I told her that I'm sure you'll do fine."
Pause. "Thank you," Meisa ends up saying, blinking at him in confusion.
Kame gives her a nod before waving. "We'll probably be seeing each other a lot, so let's work well together."
Meisa nods back. "Yeah. Let's work well together."
That night, Meisa can't think of a single thing to tell Maki when she asks expectingly, "So? What do you think?"
"I. He's not half bad, I guess."
Maki grins widely. "I knew you'd like him."
"No, I don't," Meisa argues. "He's just better at first impressions than most people. That's all."
Maki laughs before shaking her head. "Want me to do your hair for tomorrow?"
"I'll be wearing a habit. There's really no point," Meisa says dryly.
"But what about when you enter the studio? These things are important."
Meisa thinks Maki's being ridiculous.
--
"I'm sorry," Kame apologizes with a slight flush on his face as they're getting dressed to go back to the studio after some interview.
Meisa shakes her head. "It's okay. I mean, it's not the first time I've been asked to feel up my co-stars."
"Really?" Kame asks with mild surprise.
"Well, no. But I was trying to make you feel better."
Kame stares at her before laughing. "That's nice of you, thanks. I don't think it helped, but thanks."
Meisa blushes--she never blushes, what is this?--while she stares into the locker she was standing in front of. "Yeah, no problem."
"Well, I'll see you outside," Kame says, walking out the door while Meisa finishes getting ready. She sits down first, startled before wondering to herself. Why had she done that?
--
She doesn't want to admit it, but she's actually grown to like Kame. ("I told you you would," Maki sing-songs. Meisa only glares, but Maki's laughter is infectious and she can't hold it for too long.) Meisa doesn't actually know why and that slightly frustrates her, but at the same time, she's not entirely sure she minds. She also hopes he doesn't notice, more importantly. She's not supposed to like a Johnny's boy--she'd pretty much forbidden it of herself. Minus that mild crush on Koichi--but really, could she be blamed?
With wrap-up approaching, Meisa wonders if she's actually going to do something about this--she won't, she knows she won't because sometimes, she can be just as bad as Maki is at actually doing something instead of just thinking it.
"What, do I need to come up with a bet just so I can get you to ask him out?" Maki asks incredulously.
"It worked for you, but I don't think so." Meisa continues flipping through her script.
"I bet you that he'll call you in ten minutes."
"What?" Meisa snorts. "No way. I don't think he even has my number."
They don't even have to wait ten minutes, the phone rings in the next two. Meisa's eyebrows furrow as she stares at her phone--an unknown number--before Maki looks over and grins. "That would be Kamenashi-kun's phone number."
Meisa almost drops it in her surprise. "What?!"
"Answer it!" Maki exclaims while Meisa pushes the still-ringing phone towards Maki.
"I am not answering this! You answer!"
"It's your phone," Maki hisses, pushing it back towards her. It's almost like a tug of war battle, except backwards, that ends when the phone suddenly stops ringing. Maki frowns, blowing a hair out of her eyes. "You should've answered." She crosses her arms, looking down at Meisa with mild disappointment.
"You shouldn't have given him my number!" Meisa retorts back, pushing her phone far away from her.
"I didn't!"
"Then you shouldn't have gotten your boyfriend to give him my number," Meisa amends.
"I didn't do that either," Maki insists, sitting back down on the couch.
"Then how--" Maki shrugs.
--
"Hey, I called you yesterday," Kame greets her with the next day. Meisa almost drops her prop--a rosary--in surprise.
"Oh, was that you? It was unknown so I didn't answer," Meisa lies smoothly, pointedly avoiding Kame's stare. "How'd you get my number anyway?"
"Yamapi passed it to me a while back, saying that I would probably need it at some point." Meisa turns to Kame abruptly, jaw open.
"How does he have my number?"
Kame shrugs. "Maki-chan? I don't know." Meisa thinks she's going to kill Maki when she gets home. "But I was calling to ask--"
"No," Meisa says abruptly, trying not to swallow.
Kame blinks at her. "You didn't even know what I was going to say."
"You were going to ask me out." Meisa adjusts her habit--suddenly feeling really hot.
"Well, yes," Kame says almost grudgingly. "But why not?"
Meisa starts. She's never actually been asked that--and in this case, she really doesn't have an answer, other than a "Just because." Which she ends up saying.
"Well okay," he says with a shrug and a half-smile in her direction. "Worth a try."
--
"YOU TURNED HIM DOWN?" Maki stares at her, wide-eyed before glaring--Meisa almost feels guilty.
"Yes," Meisa manages to say--even though she's kind of scared at the look in Maki's eyes.
"I cannot believe. After all--After everything, you. I." Maki throws up her hands in the air before sliding into the dining room chair. "Why?"
"Just because."
Maki's glare only gets heavier. "That might work with him, but it's not going to work with me. What's your real answer?"
"I don't. I don't really know." Meisa fumbles with her hands.
Maki's eyes soften before she sighs. "Is this about your decision never to get involved with a Johnny's boy because I told you before it's ridiculous."
"It's not," Meisa insists. "I don't think we'd work anyway. Plus, before I forget, what's this about you giving my number to Yamashita-kun?"
Maki goes red. "Ah. Right. I'd forgotten about that."
"Why are you so hardpressed on match-making me anyway? And don't say you aren't, because you obviously are. And only with Johnny's boys at that."
"Because I'm trying to get rid of that bias you have. Not all of them are horrible, you know."
"Said perfectly by someone that's dating one."
"Says the one who's crushing on one."
"I am not!" Meisa crosses her arms.
"So then why will one dinner hurt?" Maki raises an eyebrow. Meisa pauses.
"I swear, you're manipulating me. You're not supposed to do that. I am."
Maki laughs. "Living with you for so many years, something had to catch on." Meisa rolls her eyes. "Now, why don't you call Kamenashi-kun back and I'll fix your hair for your date tomorrow."
"It's like you already have this planned," Meisa grumbles as she pulls out her phone.
Kame's more than a little surprised to hear from her, but he accepts the date nonetheless. Maki grins at her from across the table.
--
"You know, you don't have to do this if it's an obligation," Kame says over the table.
Meisa fidgets in her seat, shaking her head. "No, it's nothing like that," she insists. When she looks up, Meisa's slightly caught between staring and trying not to look obvious as Kame flips through the menu, eyebrows furrowed as he looks at the choices. She curses herself in her head before looking back down at her own menu.
"Is this awkward?" Kame asks a few minutes later after they sit in silence, just sipping their water.
"A little," Meisa answers truthfully. She sighs while Kame chuckles.
"Well, when you're doing this for someone else and not for yourself," Kame says before Meisa shakes her head abruptly.
"Really, this wasn't for anyone--"
Kame shakes his head. "Really, I won't be mad, Kuroki-san. Maki-chan's really good at convincing people, ne?"
Meisa starts. "Did she convince you?" she asks, suddenly suspicious.
"Not really," Kame answers. "Maybe a little push. But the rest was just me."
Meisa wonders if there's a confession in there somewhere, but she doesn't really want to figure it out. "Well, Maki-chan gets it all from me anyway," Meisa jokes.
"So that's all your influence? I should've known," Kame snorts. "She wasn't like this three years ago."
"Hey. It was not all me," Meisa says with a laugh. "I'm pretty sure that bandmate of yours had some influence over it."
"Oh please, Nakamaru? That guy is like the epitome of innocence. If he didn't have a girlfriend right now, I'd be willing to bet he'd be single."
Meisa rolls her eyes. "Are you sure you're just not talking for yourself? I don't see a girlfriend around."
Kame only snorts. "Doesn't mean I don't have one."
"Do you?" Meisa asks pointedly, twirling her straw around in her glass.
Kame pauses. "No, but that's not the point." Meisa cracks up.
--
"We should do this again," Kame says at the end as he's dropping Meisa off in front of her apartment--he'd insisted. It was the proper thing to do after all. Meisa blinks at him, a little startled by the sudden skip her heart had made.
"I-" She starts before he smiles at her.
"Don't say no just to say no."
Meisa snorts, shaking her head. "If I say no, then I'll have a good reason to."
"Really? Then I'm asking you on a second date."
Meisa stares, and then frowns. "No."
Kame laughs like he'd expected her to say exactly that. "Why not?"
"Because I'm asking you out for next time."
Kame goes silent fast--that one he hadn't. "What?"
"We should have a second date," Meisa says with a grin. "Sound like a good idea?"
Kame returns it. "Yeah. It does. No matter who asks."
Her grin gets wider. "Good. Because I'll probably ask more times than you."
"Making it a bet?" Kame raises an eyebrow.
"Sure, why not?"
--
"I told you," Maki laughs as Meisa settles into the couch beside her.
Meisa tosses her handbag on the nearby table. "Oh, shut up and pass the ice cream." Maki grins wickedly.
tinyangl, 3004 words.
Hints of Kuroki Meisa/Yamashita, Kuroki Meisa/Tanaka Koki, Kuroki Meisa/Ninomiya Kazunari, Akanishi Jin/Kuroki Meisa. Oh, and hints of Nagasawa Masami/Ninomiya Kazunari and Horikita Maki/Nakamaru Yuichi. Kamenashi Kazuya/Kuroki Meisa. The title says it all--Meisa works with a lot more Johnny's boys than one knows.
A/N: Simultaneously blaming and dedicating this to cynicalism and swtjemz. And since it was largely dedicated to cynicalism, go figure that the longest part of this fic is the Kame/Meisa part. The start of the year and already I hit 3000k. This bodes so well. Wow, this is a lot of het in one fic--and a lot of OOC. Sorry. Enjoy~ (Originally posted here.)
i.
Meisa has never trusted those Johnny's boys even if Koichi-san was nicer than she had thought. ("He's too old for you," Maki said, wrinkling her nose. "That doesn't mean a thing," Meisa insists.) So when she finds out that she has to work with not only one Johnny's boy in her next job, but two, she's not really happy about it.
"But it's with Yamashita-kun!" Maki insists. "You're in good hands."
"As long as said hands aren't touching me," Meisa snaps, before adding, "And you for that matter."
Maki only rolls her eyes. "Either ways. You have nothing to worry about."
"I bet you you're wrong," Meisa sing-songs.
Maki pauses, before replying. "I am not betting with you on whether or not Yamashita-kun will ask you out. I did that before and I've learnt my lesson."
"You're just mad that you had to call that band member of Kamenashi-kun and ask him out yourself." Meisa grins cheekily. "How's that going by the way?"
There's an unmistakable flush across Maki's cheeks before she turns. "Still not doing it." Maki goes into her bedroom as Meisa sighs, looking through her script.
--
Surprisingly, even to her--especially to her-- Yamapi's not half bad. He's cordial--probably got some kind of warning from Maki--and doesn't pester her a single bit. Which is good because going about set if she didn't like him would not help things--and Maki would likely be offended somehow.
They get along well enough--although she swears sometimes Yamapi's gaze lingers a little longer than it probably should, but that tends to flatter her more than it does annoy her. Plus, he stays out of her way when she wants him too, seeming to know when the right time is, but more importantly, when it isn't. ("See, I told you," Maki says with a smirk.
"Don't preen for too long. It doesn't suit you." Maki sticks her tongue out at Meisa.)
On her last day on set--she doesn't have terribly many scenes to film, Yamapi pulls her aside with a smile. Before he can even open his mouth, she does first. "No."
Yamapi blinks, startled. "What?"
"You were going to ask me out, weren't you?" Meisa asks, arm crossed. In her head, she cheers--only because it'll serve for fodder if she ever gets into this conversation with Maki--or you know, just for that night when she laughs at winning their kinda, but not really bet.
Yamapi scratches the back of his head, but carefully because his hair's already been prepared for shooting and Meisa figures he doesn't want to ruin it. "Well, it's more like I need a dinner date for this thing, and I was hoping--"
"Good try, but no." Meisa grins.
"Ah, well, worth a try. Maki-chan suggested that one."
Meisa narrows her eyes. "What, working against me?"
Yamapi grins, rocking on his heel. "More like, she wanted to win." Meisa's jaw drops as Yamapi waves and rushes back onto set. "Too bad, I would've liked dinner with you," he says over his shoulder.
Meisa makes sure to point out to Maki that getting Yamapi to ask her out was completely not the point of their bet. ("Maybe your bet," Maki says mysteriously with a wink before changing the topic completely.)
ii.
Meisa has to meet up with Yamapi and Koki when promotions for Byakkotai are starting up. She doesn't do as many of them (read: she only does one, but she's not really surprised or offended), but she's thankful because it means less chances of seeing them.
Yamapi waves at her with a grin, before settling down on the makeup chair. Koki who's already done stands next to her--she's also done--before greeting her nicely. "It's good to see you again."
Meisa raises her eyebrow. "You don't have to strike up conversation just because we're standing together," Meisa says bluntly.
Koki shrugs. "But the silence is annoying."
"Right..." Meisa says slowly, half urging the makeup artist in her mind to hurry it up so they can get started and then she can leave.
"Listen," Koki starts and Meisa turns to look at him, eyebrow still raised.
"Mm?"
"If you're free tonight--"
"No," Meisa says abruptly. "Your friend over there." Meisa jerks her head towards Yamapi who is obviously listening with a half-grin, half-smirk on his lips. "Already tried. And just. No."
Koki stuffs his hands into his pockets. "Well, a guy's gotta try."
"Maybe less is more," Meisa snorts which starts Yamapi off while Koki raises an eyebrow--she's read those articles about him. She smiles cheekily before the makeup artist pushes Yamapi out of the chair with a gruff, "You're done." Which sets Meisa off. In a way, she's a little sad that this is over--they're not terribly bad, she supposes.
"You should really tell Maki-chan to stop match-making you," Yamapi murmurs at one point, hand dangerously low on her back. Meisa only glares at him, coughs pointedly--he thankfully lifts said hand--before shaking her head.
"Maki wouldn't be doing something like that. And if she was, definitely not with Johnny's boys."
Yamapi chuckles. "Maybe she knows something you don't."
Meisa scoffs before they start up the interview.
iii.
Meisa just thinks she's heavily unlucky when her next job ends up being with another Johnny's boy.
Maki shrugs. "I've never worked with him either, so don't look at me," she says, sucking on a lollipop and flipping through a script. Meisa raises an eyebrow at her.
"By the way, what's this about you trying to match-make me?"
Maki doesn't even blink an eye. "Oh, did Yamashita-kun say that? He's just being silly. Doesn't like to accept when he's been rejected."
"Uh-huh," Meisa says suspiciously, but she lets it go--she's letting a lot of things go, it seems.
--
"Ne, Meisa-chan," Nino says cheerfully, already familiar with her--so it seems--in just a few weeks. "Are you busy tonight?" He beams at her, scarily close and Meisa has to step back to get back her personal space.
She blinks before snapping incredulously, "Don't you have a girlfriend?"
"Masami-chan? Ah, that reminds me, I should call her." Nino shakes his head. "No, wait. I was just wondering if you'd like to celebrate the first episode airing!"
"...You still have a girlfriend."
Nino grins. "Yes, I do. That's why this is not a date."
"But it feels like you're inviting me on one." Meisa crosses her arms.
NIno shrugs. "Maybe because you want to go on one with me?" he smirks wickedly at her and Meisa finally realizes why people say Nino can be a downright asshole sometimes.
"Yeah, no," Meisa says, shaking her head as she turns around and walks away.
"The offer's always open!" Nino calls out before she hears him pull out his cell phone, punching at some number and saying loudly--to the point that she can hear halfway down the hall, "Masami-chan! How are you?"
Meisa rolls her eyes. ("Seriously, I don't understand why a guy with a girlfriend would ask someone out like that. How does Nagasawa-san deal with that?"
Maki blinks at her thoughtfully. "Ninomiya-kun has a girlfriend? Didn't know that."
Meisa stares. "Why do you only take that part out of this?" Maki shrugs, painting dark red nail polish on another one of Meisa's toenails--Meisa looks at her suspiciously.)
iv.
She meets him at the start-up party for One Pound Gospel, and honestly, Meisa's a little surprised to even see him there--it's not often that group members would crash parties like this.
"I was invited," Jin says pointedly, raising his glass towards Kame who's chatting with one of their co-stars.
Meisa raises an eyebrow. "Okay, but that doesn't explain why you're standing here and talking to me."
He looks at her with a grin, and Meisa gets the distinct feeling that he's looking at her like she's not wearing anything on--which she is, thanks. "Why would I want to talk to anyone else when you're here?"
"Wow," Meisa says with a laugh. "You're smoother than I thought."
"Thank you." Jin grins, winking at her before taking a sip of his drink.
"Don't thank me, you suck. You're just better than I thought." Meisa watches in amusement as Jin chokes on his sip, then turning towards her with slight awe.
"And you're snappier than I thought, but that's hot."
Meisa scoffs in disgust. "You would say something disgusting like that." She grabs the drink from his hand, swallows it down then beams at him brightly. "It was nice meeting you. Although not really."
She walks away in a bit of a huff, passing by Kame who gives her this glance before she waves him bye with a smile.
Kame gives her a smile in return, half bowing as she leaves.
i.
When Maki first finds out that Meisa's going to work with Kame in her next drama, she's more excited than Meisa thinks she should be. "Kamenashi-kun is really nice. You'll like him, I'll bet!"
Meisa scoffs at her--Maki's been wrong before.
Except this time, she's actually not. "Kuroki-san, right?" Kame greets, smiling. "Maki-chan told me to look out for you."
Meisa rolls her eyes. "I don't need to be babied," she snaps, frowning.
Kame quirks an eyebrow. "I figured. That's why I told her that I'm sure you'll do fine."
Pause. "Thank you," Meisa ends up saying, blinking at him in confusion.
Kame gives her a nod before waving. "We'll probably be seeing each other a lot, so let's work well together."
Meisa nods back. "Yeah. Let's work well together."
That night, Meisa can't think of a single thing to tell Maki when she asks expectingly, "So? What do you think?"
"I. He's not half bad, I guess."
Maki grins widely. "I knew you'd like him."
"No, I don't," Meisa argues. "He's just better at first impressions than most people. That's all."
Maki laughs before shaking her head. "Want me to do your hair for tomorrow?"
"I'll be wearing a habit. There's really no point," Meisa says dryly.
"But what about when you enter the studio? These things are important."
Meisa thinks Maki's being ridiculous.
--
"I'm sorry," Kame apologizes with a slight flush on his face as they're getting dressed to go back to the studio after some interview.
Meisa shakes her head. "It's okay. I mean, it's not the first time I've been asked to feel up my co-stars."
"Really?" Kame asks with mild surprise.
"Well, no. But I was trying to make you feel better."
Kame stares at her before laughing. "That's nice of you, thanks. I don't think it helped, but thanks."
Meisa blushes--she never blushes, what is this?--while she stares into the locker she was standing in front of. "Yeah, no problem."
"Well, I'll see you outside," Kame says, walking out the door while Meisa finishes getting ready. She sits down first, startled before wondering to herself. Why had she done that?
--
She doesn't want to admit it, but she's actually grown to like Kame. ("I told you you would," Maki sing-songs. Meisa only glares, but Maki's laughter is infectious and she can't hold it for too long.) Meisa doesn't actually know why and that slightly frustrates her, but at the same time, she's not entirely sure she minds. She also hopes he doesn't notice, more importantly. She's not supposed to like a Johnny's boy--she'd pretty much forbidden it of herself. Minus that mild crush on Koichi--but really, could she be blamed?
With wrap-up approaching, Meisa wonders if she's actually going to do something about this--she won't, she knows she won't because sometimes, she can be just as bad as Maki is at actually doing something instead of just thinking it.
"What, do I need to come up with a bet just so I can get you to ask him out?" Maki asks incredulously.
"It worked for you, but I don't think so." Meisa continues flipping through her script.
"I bet you that he'll call you in ten minutes."
"What?" Meisa snorts. "No way. I don't think he even has my number."
They don't even have to wait ten minutes, the phone rings in the next two. Meisa's eyebrows furrow as she stares at her phone--an unknown number--before Maki looks over and grins. "That would be Kamenashi-kun's phone number."
Meisa almost drops it in her surprise. "What?!"
"Answer it!" Maki exclaims while Meisa pushes the still-ringing phone towards Maki.
"I am not answering this! You answer!"
"It's your phone," Maki hisses, pushing it back towards her. It's almost like a tug of war battle, except backwards, that ends when the phone suddenly stops ringing. Maki frowns, blowing a hair out of her eyes. "You should've answered." She crosses her arms, looking down at Meisa with mild disappointment.
"You shouldn't have given him my number!" Meisa retorts back, pushing her phone far away from her.
"I didn't!"
"Then you shouldn't have gotten your boyfriend to give him my number," Meisa amends.
"I didn't do that either," Maki insists, sitting back down on the couch.
"Then how--" Maki shrugs.
--
"Hey, I called you yesterday," Kame greets her with the next day. Meisa almost drops her prop--a rosary--in surprise.
"Oh, was that you? It was unknown so I didn't answer," Meisa lies smoothly, pointedly avoiding Kame's stare. "How'd you get my number anyway?"
"Yamapi passed it to me a while back, saying that I would probably need it at some point." Meisa turns to Kame abruptly, jaw open.
"How does he have my number?"
Kame shrugs. "Maki-chan? I don't know." Meisa thinks she's going to kill Maki when she gets home. "But I was calling to ask--"
"No," Meisa says abruptly, trying not to swallow.
Kame blinks at her. "You didn't even know what I was going to say."
"You were going to ask me out." Meisa adjusts her habit--suddenly feeling really hot.
"Well, yes," Kame says almost grudgingly. "But why not?"
Meisa starts. She's never actually been asked that--and in this case, she really doesn't have an answer, other than a "Just because." Which she ends up saying.
"Well okay," he says with a shrug and a half-smile in her direction. "Worth a try."
--
"YOU TURNED HIM DOWN?" Maki stares at her, wide-eyed before glaring--Meisa almost feels guilty.
"Yes," Meisa manages to say--even though she's kind of scared at the look in Maki's eyes.
"I cannot believe. After all--After everything, you. I." Maki throws up her hands in the air before sliding into the dining room chair. "Why?"
"Just because."
Maki's glare only gets heavier. "That might work with him, but it's not going to work with me. What's your real answer?"
"I don't. I don't really know." Meisa fumbles with her hands.
Maki's eyes soften before she sighs. "Is this about your decision never to get involved with a Johnny's boy because I told you before it's ridiculous."
"It's not," Meisa insists. "I don't think we'd work anyway. Plus, before I forget, what's this about you giving my number to Yamashita-kun?"
Maki goes red. "Ah. Right. I'd forgotten about that."
"Why are you so hardpressed on match-making me anyway? And don't say you aren't, because you obviously are. And only with Johnny's boys at that."
"Because I'm trying to get rid of that bias you have. Not all of them are horrible, you know."
"Said perfectly by someone that's dating one."
"Says the one who's crushing on one."
"I am not!" Meisa crosses her arms.
"So then why will one dinner hurt?" Maki raises an eyebrow. Meisa pauses.
"I swear, you're manipulating me. You're not supposed to do that. I am."
Maki laughs. "Living with you for so many years, something had to catch on." Meisa rolls her eyes. "Now, why don't you call Kamenashi-kun back and I'll fix your hair for your date tomorrow."
"It's like you already have this planned," Meisa grumbles as she pulls out her phone.
Kame's more than a little surprised to hear from her, but he accepts the date nonetheless. Maki grins at her from across the table.
--
"You know, you don't have to do this if it's an obligation," Kame says over the table.
Meisa fidgets in her seat, shaking her head. "No, it's nothing like that," she insists. When she looks up, Meisa's slightly caught between staring and trying not to look obvious as Kame flips through the menu, eyebrows furrowed as he looks at the choices. She curses herself in her head before looking back down at her own menu.
"Is this awkward?" Kame asks a few minutes later after they sit in silence, just sipping their water.
"A little," Meisa answers truthfully. She sighs while Kame chuckles.
"Well, when you're doing this for someone else and not for yourself," Kame says before Meisa shakes her head abruptly.
"Really, this wasn't for anyone--"
Kame shakes his head. "Really, I won't be mad, Kuroki-san. Maki-chan's really good at convincing people, ne?"
Meisa starts. "Did she convince you?" she asks, suddenly suspicious.
"Not really," Kame answers. "Maybe a little push. But the rest was just me."
Meisa wonders if there's a confession in there somewhere, but she doesn't really want to figure it out. "Well, Maki-chan gets it all from me anyway," Meisa jokes.
"So that's all your influence? I should've known," Kame snorts. "She wasn't like this three years ago."
"Hey. It was not all me," Meisa says with a laugh. "I'm pretty sure that bandmate of yours had some influence over it."
"Oh please, Nakamaru? That guy is like the epitome of innocence. If he didn't have a girlfriend right now, I'd be willing to bet he'd be single."
Meisa rolls her eyes. "Are you sure you're just not talking for yourself? I don't see a girlfriend around."
Kame only snorts. "Doesn't mean I don't have one."
"Do you?" Meisa asks pointedly, twirling her straw around in her glass.
Kame pauses. "No, but that's not the point." Meisa cracks up.
--
"We should do this again," Kame says at the end as he's dropping Meisa off in front of her apartment--he'd insisted. It was the proper thing to do after all. Meisa blinks at him, a little startled by the sudden skip her heart had made.
"I-" She starts before he smiles at her.
"Don't say no just to say no."
Meisa snorts, shaking her head. "If I say no, then I'll have a good reason to."
"Really? Then I'm asking you on a second date."
Meisa stares, and then frowns. "No."
Kame laughs like he'd expected her to say exactly that. "Why not?"
"Because I'm asking you out for next time."
Kame goes silent fast--that one he hadn't. "What?"
"We should have a second date," Meisa says with a grin. "Sound like a good idea?"
Kame returns it. "Yeah. It does. No matter who asks."
Her grin gets wider. "Good. Because I'll probably ask more times than you."
"Making it a bet?" Kame raises an eyebrow.
"Sure, why not?"
--
"I told you," Maki laughs as Meisa settles into the couch beside her.
Meisa tosses her handbag on the nearby table. "Oh, shut up and pass the ice cream." Maki grins wickedly.