[Yama fic] Rental Lover (Chapter 21)
Title: Rental Lover
Pairing: Yama (Ohno x Sho)
Rating: PG-13
Genre: AU, fluff, romance, drama
Summary: Jun learnt about the whole plot of Ohno hiring Sho to be his rental lover. Will he be able to help Ohno see the situation more clearly? Sho's whereabouts are revealed.
Chapter 21
“What’s going on here?” Jun looked at Ohno and Nino and back at Ohno, neither of them spoke.
“Satoshi-kun, what are you so upset about? Where is Sho-kun?” Jun continued to question. He had expected to find them together.
“Sho’s gone - ”
“Gone? Gone where? When is he coming back?” Jun was confused. It was certainly not what he had expected to come back to.
“I’m sorry, Jun-kun. I can’t talk about it right now.” Ohno couldn’t bear talking about Sho any more. All through the conversation he didn’t look at his cousin not wanting to show his sadness and anger. He needed a break from the emotional drain. So he just stood up and walked away, leaving an irritated Nino and puzzled Jun behind.
Jun was anxious to find out what happened, but he could sense that whatever it is, it wouldn’t be good. His cousin left, the only way he could find out was by asking the stranger in front of him.
“Can you tell me what happened with them?” Jun asked, when he remembered he didn’t know the other person’s name yet. “I’m sorry, you are - ”
“I’m Kazunari Ninomiya. Everyone calls me Nino.” Nino sat down at the bench and Jun settled himself next to him. “How long have you known Sho-kun?”
Jun told Nino about how he knew Sho at the Ohno villa when he was back during spring break and Ohno told him about Sho pretending to be his lover. He even told Nino how he was attracted to Sho and pushed Ohno to admit the same.
“Ha, that’s why Ohno-kun finally broke out of his shell.” Nino chuckled. “I was wondering about this all along. If you didn’t make him jealous, he never would have admitted his feelings.”
“Making him jealous was not my intention, believe me. I did truly like Sho-kun and wanted a relationship with him. But I also noticed the special bond between them, although they didn’t realize themselves. You seem to know them well too.”
“I was the one who introduced them to each other - ” Nino went on and told Jun about how he suggested the idea of pretending to be gay to Ohno to fool his parents and introduced Sho to be his fake lover. “I never thought they would really get serious though.”
Jun laughed. “So it looks like we both had boosted their relationship one way or another.”
“Aren’t you glad you did? I am. You can never imagine how being together affected the both of them in so many ways, good ways.” Nino had really wanted this relationship to work.
Jun nodded. “But if they were so happy, then what went wrong? What did Satoshi-kun mean when he said Sho-kun was gone?”
“Sho just left two weeks ago without leaving a word. Ohno-kun insisted that they didn’t have any argument or fight. Sho cut all his ties here, even withdrew from school. We have no idea where he had gone.” Nino didn’t mention anything about Sho’s family background and Ohno’s encounter with his father. Not knowing if Jun was prejudicial, he didn’t feel comfortable revealing such private matters.
“Although I hadn’t known Sho-kun for long, I don’t think he’s an irresponsible person. Could he be in some kind of trouble?” Jun expressed concern. “He seems to have too much pride sometimes.”
“That’s what I feel too. I’m sure there’s a reason behind his sudden departure. But sadly the person who should trust him the most is starting to doubt him.”
“You mean Satoshi-kun? Why would he doubt Sho-kun? It doesn’t make sense.”
“You’d have to ask him. I don’t know what had gotten into him. He sounded like he’s giving up on Sho. I don’t know what to do with this spoiled brat.”
“I’ll talk to him. I won’t let him make a mistake that he’ll surely regret later.” Jun determined to give his cousin another push.
“Thank you.” Nino was glad there is someone on his side, someone who he’s starting to like.
**********************************
Somewhere across town Sho was sitting on the stone stairs of an old building, eating his bento in between jobs. Took a look at his watch, he still had fifteen minutes to spare and his mind involunteerily went off to random thoughts.
He should be working on this graduation thesis at this time and not working double shifts and double jobs.
He should be laying in the arms of his beloved Satoshi and not sitting on these cold stone stairs alone.
Despite putting in all his efforts, he still could not break away from the shadow of his dear old father.
After the talk with Ohno’s father, Sho knew he had to leave. No, Ohno’s father didn’t tell him to leave, not in so many words. But his intention and wish couldn’t be more clear. Even so his leaving was not because of Ohno’s father’s disapproval or threat to expose his father’s frauds. He left because he felt it’s best for Ohno, the one he loves. Pathetic thinking, he knew, but a person that came from an elite family with a bright future should not be with someone that had a shady past. It just wasn’t right.
He trusted his father, even when his addiction broke their family apart. When his grandmother died, he even went back to his old man when he showed up in the funeral. The man promised he'd changed and would take good care of him. He believed him. Things did go well for a couple of months and Sho's teenage heart thought he finally got his father back.
That's why when his father asked him to go to the bank and cash a check for him, he did it without suspicion. It was the pay check for doing some odd jobs, his father told him. He was happy that his father was earning money the proper way. Several weeks followed Sho had cashed checks for his father a dozen times, each time at a different bank as per instructed by his father. He felt a little strange but the desperate need to believe his father had changed made him put aside any doubt he might have. He didn't question since he didn’t encounter any problem, until that day.
Sho was running late after school. He had to ask a teacher something about the assignment. When he was done he realized he only had fifteen minutes to cash the check his father gave him but the bank he was asked to go was all the way across town. There's no way he could make it in time. It's not a big deal just to go to the same nearby bank he went before, right? Wrong! The minute he handed the check to the bank teller, he was escorted by securities to the police station. Cashing fake checks was the charge. Sho still thought it was a misunstanding until the police told him the address he gave to notify his parent was all vacant. His father had vanished, leaving him behind to face the fradulent charge.
He was angry, but sadness and hurt quickly overthrew the anger. He couldn't believe his father could do that to his own son.
Twice his father had tricked him, causing him to spend a year in juvenile detention and losing his scholarship that he worked so hard to get. He had lost the last bit of trust he had on his father, which made Sho went to find the old man immediately after leaving the Ohno villa. He had to make sure the man did not bother the Ohno family ever again.
“Papa, you can’t go near the Ohno family anymore. Do you hear me?” Sho literally yelled at his father. He had never spoken to him in such commanding tone before.
“Why not? Your boyfriend is so nice to give me spending money once in a while. He’s better than an ATM.” Sho’s father grinned.
“He - he is not my boyfriend anymore. We - broke up. So he won’t give you any more money. You’d better back off.” Sho couldn’t help but feeling sad and his voice softened against his will.
“Come on, you can’t fool me. I can tell that dumb guy really loves you. He’d do anything for you.”
Sho’s heart ached even more on his father’s remarks. He felt like he had betrayed Ohno’s love. But he had got to stay firm here, for Ohno’s sake.
“He found out you’re a fraud, and me being in the juvenile hall before. Who would want to have any tie with a conartist family?” Sho tried not to let his sadness be shown. “Besides, his father had gathered evidences of your scams. If you go disturbed them again, they would go straight to the police.”
“Ummmm”
Sho saw that his father was starting to believe him, but he had to take the last step to assure that. “I will provide you as much as I can, but you can’t ever go back to them, unless you want to go to jail.”
After weighing in the pros and cons, Sho’s father finally acceded to stay away from the Ohno’s.
“Come stay with me, son. That way I can be sure to find you when I need to.” Sho’s father wanted to take control over his son, now that he was his money source.
Staying with his father was the last thing Sho wanted, but at this moment he wouldn’t want to push his luck with his father any further. Besides, he didn’t really have any place to go either, and he could also keep an eye on his father. Knowing his father, he didn’t trust the man to give up on any money seeking opportunity that easily.
So there he was, living with his father after so many years and working two jobs trying to satisfy his needs. Fortunately his father seemed to be having good lucks recently and hadn’t really asked him for much yet. Sho knew too well that this wouldn’t last long.
It’s time to start his night job. Sho got up and stretched. Then he threw the bento box in the garbage bin and walked towards the store. Someday, he thought, someday he hoped to go back to finish school and get a life of his own. But right now he needed to keep his father away from the Ohno's as much as he could.
**********************************
After the chat with Nino, Jun decided to have a talk with his cousin. He didn’t believe Sho was the type of person who would fool around with relationships and curious why Ohno would mistrust their love. There must be something that Ohno was too angry or hurt to notice.
“May I join you?” Jun found Ohno sitting alone on a garden chair.
“Ah, oh, of course.” Ohno was brought back from his daze by Jun. “I’m sorry about earlier. I didn’t mean to be so rude.”
Jun shook his head. “Don’t worry about it. I know you’re upset. But what actually happened with you and Sho?”
“Can we not talk about him?” Ohno was avoiding the subject. By not talking about it he didn’t have to face the reality that Sho had deceived him. “How long will you stay this time?”
“Don’t change the subject! Since when did you become an ostrich? Where is the optimistic Satoshi-kun that I know for twenty years?” Jun was annoyed.
“You don’t understand. He left me, OK? What’s more to talk about?”
“Do you know why? You just told me things were great between you two not long ago.”
“He just wanted my money. He never loved me.”
“Money? Where did that come from?”
Relunctantly Ohno told Jun everything, from hiring Sho to be his rental lover to falling in love with him, from finding out about Sho’s family background to giving money to Sho’s father.
Jun took a moment to digest what he heard. The whole thing sounded ridiculous to him. His cousin was more immature than he thought. “I couldn’t imagine you’d pull a stunt like that.”
Ohno gave out a bitter smile. “Is that a compliment?”
“Seriously, you amazed me. But what’s done is done. I am not going to speak for Sho, but some things don’t add up here. If you are still giving money to his father, why would they leave? Also, if Sho was leaving why didn’t he take any valuables from the house with him? He could have easily taken the laptops and jewelries with him.” Jun questioned.
“I don’t know - may be he left in a hurry.” Ohno said randomly. He never thought about these details.
“Satoshi-kun, all I’m saying is that there’re still a lot of unanswered questions. You can’t just give up like that. You can’t jump to conclusions without knowing all the facts. At least you should find Sho and let him tell you himself. You owe yourself that much.” Jun insisted. “Remember the last time we chatted here? You didn’t even want to admit your feelings for Sho, and it turned out I’m right. You should at least listen to me one more time.”
Ohno remained silent. A lot of things went through his mind. Part of him was still blinded by the feeling of betrayal, but part of him knew Jun was right. He should find out what really triggered Sho’s departure before starting to blame him. The love he felt from Sho was too real to be fake.
“Do you know what happened that day after you left for your excursion?” Jun was the more rational one here. To find out the truth, he knew they needed to start from the very beginning.
“Nobody knows. No one saw Sho leaving.”
“Anything unusual happened before he left? Did you ask Nishimura?”
“He said he was out most of the day.”
“Someone has got to see something. Come, let’s go ask him again.”
Jun grabbed his cousin and go inside the house. They found Nishimura in the kitchen looking over the dinner menu.
“Nishimura, what time did you leave the house the day Sakurai-san left?” Jun wanted to know as much detail as possible.
“Around noon, Matsumoto-san. Master Ohno asked me to chauffeur him.” Nishimura recalled.
“So Sho was still in the house when you left?” Ohno jumped in.
“Yes, I am pretty sure of that, since I saw Master Ohno went into your room and talked to Sakurai-san. It was after he came out from your room that he told me to chauffeur him. I wasn’t expecting that, so I left in a hurry.” Nishimura replied.
“Papa talked to Sho that morning?” Ohno was surprised to hear that. He knew his father was not too fond of his boyfriend and initiating a talk with him was the least he expected. “He seldom talked to Sho even when I was around. What could he possibly talk to him about when I was gone, especially in private?!”
Jun saw the puzzled look on Ohno’s face. It might be something they could persue in finding the answer that they’ve been looking for. “Satoshi-kun, may be you can ask Ojisan about it? Sho might have said something to him that can give us some clue on why he left.”
Talking to his father is not his favourite thing to do, but he was curious on what his father and Sho talked about, especially after what his father told him what he knew the other day. At this point he’d do anything to find out what really happened.
“I’m going right now.”
To Be Continued....
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A/N: Thank you everyone for your lovely comments. I'm so happy to see so many new names XD No matter you are commenting for the first time or many times or even never commented, I still appreciate everyone who read this story and my other fics.
Pairing: Yama (Ohno x Sho)
Rating: PG-13
Genre: AU, fluff, romance, drama
Summary: Jun learnt about the whole plot of Ohno hiring Sho to be his rental lover. Will he be able to help Ohno see the situation more clearly? Sho's whereabouts are revealed.
Chapter 21
“What’s going on here?” Jun looked at Ohno and Nino and back at Ohno, neither of them spoke.
“Satoshi-kun, what are you so upset about? Where is Sho-kun?” Jun continued to question. He had expected to find them together.
“Sho’s gone - ”
“Gone? Gone where? When is he coming back?” Jun was confused. It was certainly not what he had expected to come back to.
“I’m sorry, Jun-kun. I can’t talk about it right now.” Ohno couldn’t bear talking about Sho any more. All through the conversation he didn’t look at his cousin not wanting to show his sadness and anger. He needed a break from the emotional drain. So he just stood up and walked away, leaving an irritated Nino and puzzled Jun behind.
Jun was anxious to find out what happened, but he could sense that whatever it is, it wouldn’t be good. His cousin left, the only way he could find out was by asking the stranger in front of him.
“Can you tell me what happened with them?” Jun asked, when he remembered he didn’t know the other person’s name yet. “I’m sorry, you are - ”
“I’m Kazunari Ninomiya. Everyone calls me Nino.” Nino sat down at the bench and Jun settled himself next to him. “How long have you known Sho-kun?”
Jun told Nino about how he knew Sho at the Ohno villa when he was back during spring break and Ohno told him about Sho pretending to be his lover. He even told Nino how he was attracted to Sho and pushed Ohno to admit the same.
“Ha, that’s why Ohno-kun finally broke out of his shell.” Nino chuckled. “I was wondering about this all along. If you didn’t make him jealous, he never would have admitted his feelings.”
“Making him jealous was not my intention, believe me. I did truly like Sho-kun and wanted a relationship with him. But I also noticed the special bond between them, although they didn’t realize themselves. You seem to know them well too.”
“I was the one who introduced them to each other - ” Nino went on and told Jun about how he suggested the idea of pretending to be gay to Ohno to fool his parents and introduced Sho to be his fake lover. “I never thought they would really get serious though.”
Jun laughed. “So it looks like we both had boosted their relationship one way or another.”
“Aren’t you glad you did? I am. You can never imagine how being together affected the both of them in so many ways, good ways.” Nino had really wanted this relationship to work.
Jun nodded. “But if they were so happy, then what went wrong? What did Satoshi-kun mean when he said Sho-kun was gone?”
“Sho just left two weeks ago without leaving a word. Ohno-kun insisted that they didn’t have any argument or fight. Sho cut all his ties here, even withdrew from school. We have no idea where he had gone.” Nino didn’t mention anything about Sho’s family background and Ohno’s encounter with his father. Not knowing if Jun was prejudicial, he didn’t feel comfortable revealing such private matters.
“Although I hadn’t known Sho-kun for long, I don’t think he’s an irresponsible person. Could he be in some kind of trouble?” Jun expressed concern. “He seems to have too much pride sometimes.”
“That’s what I feel too. I’m sure there’s a reason behind his sudden departure. But sadly the person who should trust him the most is starting to doubt him.”
“You mean Satoshi-kun? Why would he doubt Sho-kun? It doesn’t make sense.”
“You’d have to ask him. I don’t know what had gotten into him. He sounded like he’s giving up on Sho. I don’t know what to do with this spoiled brat.”
“I’ll talk to him. I won’t let him make a mistake that he’ll surely regret later.” Jun determined to give his cousin another push.
“Thank you.” Nino was glad there is someone on his side, someone who he’s starting to like.
**********************************
Somewhere across town Sho was sitting on the stone stairs of an old building, eating his bento in between jobs. Took a look at his watch, he still had fifteen minutes to spare and his mind involunteerily went off to random thoughts.
He should be working on this graduation thesis at this time and not working double shifts and double jobs.
He should be laying in the arms of his beloved Satoshi and not sitting on these cold stone stairs alone.
Despite putting in all his efforts, he still could not break away from the shadow of his dear old father.
After the talk with Ohno’s father, Sho knew he had to leave. No, Ohno’s father didn’t tell him to leave, not in so many words. But his intention and wish couldn’t be more clear. Even so his leaving was not because of Ohno’s father’s disapproval or threat to expose his father’s frauds. He left because he felt it’s best for Ohno, the one he loves. Pathetic thinking, he knew, but a person that came from an elite family with a bright future should not be with someone that had a shady past. It just wasn’t right.
He trusted his father, even when his addiction broke their family apart. When his grandmother died, he even went back to his old man when he showed up in the funeral. The man promised he'd changed and would take good care of him. He believed him. Things did go well for a couple of months and Sho's teenage heart thought he finally got his father back.
That's why when his father asked him to go to the bank and cash a check for him, he did it without suspicion. It was the pay check for doing some odd jobs, his father told him. He was happy that his father was earning money the proper way. Several weeks followed Sho had cashed checks for his father a dozen times, each time at a different bank as per instructed by his father. He felt a little strange but the desperate need to believe his father had changed made him put aside any doubt he might have. He didn't question since he didn’t encounter any problem, until that day.
Sho was running late after school. He had to ask a teacher something about the assignment. When he was done he realized he only had fifteen minutes to cash the check his father gave him but the bank he was asked to go was all the way across town. There's no way he could make it in time. It's not a big deal just to go to the same nearby bank he went before, right? Wrong! The minute he handed the check to the bank teller, he was escorted by securities to the police station. Cashing fake checks was the charge. Sho still thought it was a misunstanding until the police told him the address he gave to notify his parent was all vacant. His father had vanished, leaving him behind to face the fradulent charge.
He was angry, but sadness and hurt quickly overthrew the anger. He couldn't believe his father could do that to his own son.
Twice his father had tricked him, causing him to spend a year in juvenile detention and losing his scholarship that he worked so hard to get. He had lost the last bit of trust he had on his father, which made Sho went to find the old man immediately after leaving the Ohno villa. He had to make sure the man did not bother the Ohno family ever again.
“Papa, you can’t go near the Ohno family anymore. Do you hear me?” Sho literally yelled at his father. He had never spoken to him in such commanding tone before.
“Why not? Your boyfriend is so nice to give me spending money once in a while. He’s better than an ATM.” Sho’s father grinned.
“He - he is not my boyfriend anymore. We - broke up. So he won’t give you any more money. You’d better back off.” Sho couldn’t help but feeling sad and his voice softened against his will.
“Come on, you can’t fool me. I can tell that dumb guy really loves you. He’d do anything for you.”
Sho’s heart ached even more on his father’s remarks. He felt like he had betrayed Ohno’s love. But he had got to stay firm here, for Ohno’s sake.
“He found out you’re a fraud, and me being in the juvenile hall before. Who would want to have any tie with a conartist family?” Sho tried not to let his sadness be shown. “Besides, his father had gathered evidences of your scams. If you go disturbed them again, they would go straight to the police.”
“Ummmm”
Sho saw that his father was starting to believe him, but he had to take the last step to assure that. “I will provide you as much as I can, but you can’t ever go back to them, unless you want to go to jail.”
After weighing in the pros and cons, Sho’s father finally acceded to stay away from the Ohno’s.
“Come stay with me, son. That way I can be sure to find you when I need to.” Sho’s father wanted to take control over his son, now that he was his money source.
Staying with his father was the last thing Sho wanted, but at this moment he wouldn’t want to push his luck with his father any further. Besides, he didn’t really have any place to go either, and he could also keep an eye on his father. Knowing his father, he didn’t trust the man to give up on any money seeking opportunity that easily.
So there he was, living with his father after so many years and working two jobs trying to satisfy his needs. Fortunately his father seemed to be having good lucks recently and hadn’t really asked him for much yet. Sho knew too well that this wouldn’t last long.
It’s time to start his night job. Sho got up and stretched. Then he threw the bento box in the garbage bin and walked towards the store. Someday, he thought, someday he hoped to go back to finish school and get a life of his own. But right now he needed to keep his father away from the Ohno's as much as he could.
**********************************
After the chat with Nino, Jun decided to have a talk with his cousin. He didn’t believe Sho was the type of person who would fool around with relationships and curious why Ohno would mistrust their love. There must be something that Ohno was too angry or hurt to notice.
“May I join you?” Jun found Ohno sitting alone on a garden chair.
“Ah, oh, of course.” Ohno was brought back from his daze by Jun. “I’m sorry about earlier. I didn’t mean to be so rude.”
Jun shook his head. “Don’t worry about it. I know you’re upset. But what actually happened with you and Sho?”
“Can we not talk about him?” Ohno was avoiding the subject. By not talking about it he didn’t have to face the reality that Sho had deceived him. “How long will you stay this time?”
“Don’t change the subject! Since when did you become an ostrich? Where is the optimistic Satoshi-kun that I know for twenty years?” Jun was annoyed.
“You don’t understand. He left me, OK? What’s more to talk about?”
“Do you know why? You just told me things were great between you two not long ago.”
“He just wanted my money. He never loved me.”
“Money? Where did that come from?”
Relunctantly Ohno told Jun everything, from hiring Sho to be his rental lover to falling in love with him, from finding out about Sho’s family background to giving money to Sho’s father.
Jun took a moment to digest what he heard. The whole thing sounded ridiculous to him. His cousin was more immature than he thought. “I couldn’t imagine you’d pull a stunt like that.”
Ohno gave out a bitter smile. “Is that a compliment?”
“Seriously, you amazed me. But what’s done is done. I am not going to speak for Sho, but some things don’t add up here. If you are still giving money to his father, why would they leave? Also, if Sho was leaving why didn’t he take any valuables from the house with him? He could have easily taken the laptops and jewelries with him.” Jun questioned.
“I don’t know - may be he left in a hurry.” Ohno said randomly. He never thought about these details.
“Satoshi-kun, all I’m saying is that there’re still a lot of unanswered questions. You can’t just give up like that. You can’t jump to conclusions without knowing all the facts. At least you should find Sho and let him tell you himself. You owe yourself that much.” Jun insisted. “Remember the last time we chatted here? You didn’t even want to admit your feelings for Sho, and it turned out I’m right. You should at least listen to me one more time.”
Ohno remained silent. A lot of things went through his mind. Part of him was still blinded by the feeling of betrayal, but part of him knew Jun was right. He should find out what really triggered Sho’s departure before starting to blame him. The love he felt from Sho was too real to be fake.
“Do you know what happened that day after you left for your excursion?” Jun was the more rational one here. To find out the truth, he knew they needed to start from the very beginning.
“Nobody knows. No one saw Sho leaving.”
“Anything unusual happened before he left? Did you ask Nishimura?”
“He said he was out most of the day.”
“Someone has got to see something. Come, let’s go ask him again.”
Jun grabbed his cousin and go inside the house. They found Nishimura in the kitchen looking over the dinner menu.
“Nishimura, what time did you leave the house the day Sakurai-san left?” Jun wanted to know as much detail as possible.
“Around noon, Matsumoto-san. Master Ohno asked me to chauffeur him.” Nishimura recalled.
“So Sho was still in the house when you left?” Ohno jumped in.
“Yes, I am pretty sure of that, since I saw Master Ohno went into your room and talked to Sakurai-san. It was after he came out from your room that he told me to chauffeur him. I wasn’t expecting that, so I left in a hurry.” Nishimura replied.
“Papa talked to Sho that morning?” Ohno was surprised to hear that. He knew his father was not too fond of his boyfriend and initiating a talk with him was the least he expected. “He seldom talked to Sho even when I was around. What could he possibly talk to him about when I was gone, especially in private?!”
Jun saw the puzzled look on Ohno’s face. It might be something they could persue in finding the answer that they’ve been looking for. “Satoshi-kun, may be you can ask Ojisan about it? Sho might have said something to him that can give us some clue on why he left.”
Talking to his father is not his favourite thing to do, but he was curious on what his father and Sho talked about, especially after what his father told him what he knew the other day. At this point he’d do anything to find out what really happened.
“I’m going right now.”
To Be Continued....
Previous | Index | Next
A/N: Thank you everyone for your lovely comments. I'm so happy to see so many new names XD No matter you are commenting for the first time or many times or even never commented, I still appreciate everyone who read this story and my other fics.