arashi fiction 27 - who's the straightest one of all?
Title: Only the Unknown (Chapter 02)
Genre: Slight Angst, Romance, Eventual Fluff
Who: Sho/Nino
Rating: PG-13
Notes: FINALLY IT CONTINUES. Additional notes at the end. ♥ First chapter is here.
Summary: Sho continues to struggle with his feelings. Nino defends his honor. Ch-ch-ch-ch-changeeeeessss.
It wasn't that he was expecting special treatment, or that he assumed he'd have that much control over what happened after debut, but it had already been a year and, looking back, he couldn't think of a moment shared between himself and the people he worked with that wasn't similar to reading a script. Being in Arashi thus far seemed like an extended drama, not exactly a chore or a heavy burden, but still filled with obligations and direction and misplaced emotions.
"Ohno's not done anything very leader-like, but we all agree that he's the right person," he mentally rehearsed, sighing as the make-up artist attacked his face with a powder puff.
In actuality, it was getting easier and easier to be around his bandmates, but harder and harder not to display that naturally. Somehow, debuting with only a vague knowledge of his coworkers seemed to be an advantage. They had no trouble getting to know each other, were growing to really like each other, and yet... practically every moment spent in front of a camera was a lie.
Nino seemed to be handling things well.
He didn't have to just "let Matsumoto admire you, the fans will think it's cute." Even if he was the type to go along with what he was told, rather than push buttons, Nino at least had his own ideas for how he could play up his relationships within the group. It was obvious that Nino and Ohno had the same image of how to appeal to Arashi's fans, though they were stifled time and time again by the jimusho.
Sho didn't like to think of himself as jealous of the way Ohno and Nino seemed to cling to each other, used their similar senses of humor to get through particularly long work days. It was more that he didn't understand why. Why not him? Why was he the one acting like a leader while Ohno just sat there, doing nothing and still somehow managing to steal away his best friend among them?
All right, so he was jealous.
But he had thought that he and Nino were already friends, didn't need to worry about how to act around one another. He'd gotten the impression that they were close, close enough to worry about the future together and talk for hours without exhausting any topics. Suddenly he was finding himself second, maybe even third best. Fighting to keep the boy's attention and trying to convince himself that everything would work out in the long run. It was for Arashi. Why not let him get his space? I need to get over him anyway.
Because if his ridiculous crush made him act anything like -
"Sho-kun!" Jun's voice sounded, his grin impossibly wide as Sho's eyes met his in the mirror. "Your pants are really cool today. Did you pick them out yourself?"
Sho turned around in time to see Ohno flinch away from Nino's hand on his butt, smacking Nino's arm and chuckling before his eyes returned to a drowsy, half-lidded state.
"I never pick anything out myself," Sho gave his answer, flashing Jun a weak smile.
He stood and offered the boy the make-up chair, checking his cellphone for the time. It was enough. Enough to get out of there for awhile, clear his mind. He was probably just tired, probably exhausted, because staying up to finish a ten page paper was not the best way to prepare for an early morning interview.
He didn't realize he'd been followed until he felt the sudden weight on his back, grabbing skinny legs and holding them in place to keep himself from toppling over. Nino. He was the only one to ever ask for a piggy-back ride by not asking for one at all. One high-pitched laugh and a whine of 'heeeeeavy' and they were moving.
"Did you get fat?"
"You're tired."
"So you think now's a good time?"
"I played baseball after rehearsal yesterday. I'm beat," Nino informed him with a smirk, patting Sho's chest as a demand for him to keep walking.
"What's bothering you?" he added in question as he shifted his legs and made himself more comfortable.
"Nothing."
"Ah, so that's it then..."
"What are you saying?" Sho tried to turn his head to see Nino's expression.
"Nothing means everything, right? You have a brain, Sho, you should have known you can't have that and be in Johnny's," Nino teased, kicking his legs and causing Sho to stumble a little before continuing their journey to nowhere in particular.
"First compliment I've ever gotten from you," Sho pointed out with a snort of laughter, though Nino chose not to comment.
It was true, really, that it wasn't the popular choice to join Johnny's when you had an academic future secured and waiting. He'd always assumed he'd quit before he made it to University, and now he was struggling to keep up with his studies as well as his job, warming up family dinners to eat on his own and tossing and turning at night just thinking about what was still left to do for the next day. It made worrying about his lack of time with Nino that much more ridiculous. Even if Nino did make an effort to share his thoughts and feelings again, Sho probably couldn't listen to them all. Moments like this one were all he had time for, and that had to be good enough.
Especially when all other options were a loss. His parents wouldn't let him stay in Arashi unless he kept up with his studies. In order to keep up with his studies to the best of his abilities, it was almost necessary to quit Arashi anyway. The thought would cross his mind every so often, but it was always followed by thoughts of Aiba's jokes and Jun's support, Ohno's silent and slowly increasing enthusiasm, and Nino. Hundreds and thousands of things about Nino.
"You could always quit like you wanted to before. You know Oh-chan will leave before too long," Nino broke their short silence, arms dangling loosely in front of Sho's chest, chin digging somewhat painfully into his shoulder.
Sho didn't want to admit he thought it was possible too. Ohno had seemed completely against debuting from the start (not that Sho was any different), though he also had Nino's temperament, going along with what he was told in spite of his reluctance to even be in the business any longer. No matter how much he envied Ohno's ability to keep Nino's attention for longer than five minutes, he didn't want to see the older boy leave. He considered him a friend now as well, and chances of staying in touch without Arashi in common were slim.
"If you still think so, why are you trying to get close to him on camera?"
It didn't make sense. Why fight so hard to get your way when you knew it wouldn't last long enough to make a difference? Unless Nino saw this as his way out. Stick close to Ohno and when Ohno left, he could too, as if it would be the natural thing. 'There is no Nino without Ohno!' Was it possible to use fan sympathy as a way to flee without facing a lot of public outrage?
"I like him," he could feel Nino shrug, the words like a painful slap to his pent-up desires, "Might as well be friendly while I can."
"And you'll quit when he quits?"
"No."
Sho stopped walking, pushing Nino further up to avoid the press of the boy's knee against his thigh. His hips were bony, they could take it.
"What are you sticking around for?"
He'd not gotten a chance to ask, even with an entire year to approach him after their debut, why it was that he hadn't quit after seeing Arashi written on that paper. They'd both known and they both stayed.
Nino's arms tightened around his neck.
"Well, part of it is - " he began to reveal, saved by the appearance of his manager.
"If you could give us a minute," Nino's manager asked politely as Nino dropped ungracefully from Sho's back. Nino rolled his eyes at Sho, a look meant just for him that had Sho smirking instead of pouting and nodding at them both to excuse himself. He shoved his hands in his pockets and started back for the dressing room, laughing to himself as he listened to the manager speak up behind him.
"Ninomiya-san, do we need to go over boundaries again?"
Sho thought it was almost worth sticking around for, if it was going to be anything like the last time. All four of them had gotten a huge kick out of Nino's apparent inability to follow his schedule properly. Jun had loved the 'overactive bladder' excuse, but it hadn't won Nino any points.
"Especially in regard to Sakurai-san."
Sho immediately turned back around.
"I've told you," Nino stated in exasperation, "that Arashi is a pop group. Just because Sho does rap doesn't mean he needs to keep some hard image. That's between him and his manager, isn't it?"
"Maybe, but we're talking about you now. You can't be hanging off your coworkers any time you please. I'm not sure how to make it clear to you that there are consequences to every action like this. One mistake at the beginning and you could ruin your career."
He was standing stupidly in place, blocking the hall just as Nino and his manger were, but he couldn't bring himself to leave or interfere. He'd gotten speeches similar to this one in the past, about cause and effect and the building of popularity, but usually from higher-ups in the company not someone meant to work for him, and from the outside of things it seemed... harsh.
"Sho-kun! Tell the stylist that I can't wear tight pants today because - " Aiba spoke loudly behind him, eyes widening as Sho placed a hand over his mouth abruptly.
"I understand, I do, but it's not like he had his pants around his ankles. There aren't any cameras here, no tabloid reporters. And aren't employees paid to look the other way?" Nino seemed to keep his composure, to stay professional, though Sho could see his eyes were narrowing. Why didn't he say it was just a friendly piggy-back ride? Why didn't he just walk away and ignore it for later? Managers overreacted all the time, didn't they?
He shared a look with Aiba, sighing in frustration when Jun appeared at his other side to frown at the scene. Sho ignored the way he shook his head like this was just another one of Nino's problematic happenings. It wouldn't take long for him to realize the atmosphere was different, to feel as guilty as Sho did for watching this at all.
"No one has any intention of letting you flaunt your sexuality with Ohno-san in public, Ninomya-san. What makes you think," the manager hissed, and Sho felt his hand instantly clench at his side, "we'll turn a blind eye to your advances on members in private?"
"You have NO right - " Sho could no longer hold himself back, prepared to step in for his friend, but Aiba grabbed his arm and Nino spoke up, perfectly calm.
"You're fired."
He smiled at his friends as he brushed past them, leaving a gawking and red-faced manager in his wake.
Sho continued to stand there, hyper-aware of the way Aiba was grabbing his hand and placing it back over his mouth to hide his shock and ease the tension simultaneously. Jun whistled.
"They way you were going to stand up for him, Sho-kun, that was - "
"Are you going to be like this forever?" Sho finally snapped, body shaking as he tried to process all that had just happened. Were they allowed to fire their managers so easily without... company permission or something? Why was he being brought up specifically? Oh god, did Nino know? And why had Nino put up with such an asshole for a year anyway? He was almost more impressed with the patience it must have required than the way -
"First of all," Jun interrupted his thoughts, fixing him with a glare he'd eventually grow accustomed to, "You should know that I like girls."
Sho opened his mouth to respond, blinking rapidly and closing it again. Wait, what?
"Secondly... no."
Aiba giggled.
Oh. Well.
Fair enough.
Sho held out a hand and squeezed when Jun accepted it, letting their fingers lock together as they finally made their way back to the dressing room.
---
It was still in his mind days later, nagging at him as Nino made small-talk with his mother and offered to clean the dishes. Pestering him as Nino sat in a chair in the corner, quietly playing a video game while he tried to concentrate on his assignments. It was playing over and over again, stuck on repeat, for reasons Sho wouldn't have expected. It was the sudden surge of possibility that made it hard to sleep, not the over analysis of events that would normally plague him at a time like this. Because if they could choose who they worked with, if they could decide who Arashi was and why Arashi was, then maybe sacrifices would be worth making.
"Nino-chan, do you think - " Sho started, rolling over to glance over at the other, furrowing his eyebrows in confusion as he found Nino out of the guest futon and tinkering around with items on his desk.
"What?" Nino pretended to be offended by Sho's accusative stare. His innocent look was far from innocent, if you were Sho and had seen it enough times to know better. He'd seen it more times than Nino had provided it for him, but that was a problem for later.
"This isn't your room," he stated what should have been obvious. Nino shrugged.
"Couldn't find your porn anyway. What happened to you? Where's the Sho I knew in Hawaii?"
He didn't say anything when Nino slid into bed beside him, but mostly because he didn't know where to start. There were plenty of things on his mind, words poking and prodding and causing tension behind his left eye, but Sho could let himself be twitchy for a night if it meant not ruining the moment.
"Ninomiya-san, please, this is too real," he teased.
"Shut up and cuddle," Nino answered.
Sho turned and opened his arms.
AN: I am so sorry this took so long. I'm sorry it is jam packed with cliches. I'm sorry for many a thing. But hopefully the meaning behind events is clear and the fluff is good enough to make up for it all. Nowhere to go but forward!
Continue to Next Chapter
Genre: Slight Angst, Romance, Eventual Fluff
Who: Sho/Nino
Rating: PG-13
Notes: FINALLY IT CONTINUES. Additional notes at the end. ♥ First chapter is here.
Summary: Sho continues to struggle with his feelings. Nino defends his honor. Ch-ch-ch-ch-changeeeeessss.
It wasn't that he was expecting special treatment, or that he assumed he'd have that much control over what happened after debut, but it had already been a year and, looking back, he couldn't think of a moment shared between himself and the people he worked with that wasn't similar to reading a script. Being in Arashi thus far seemed like an extended drama, not exactly a chore or a heavy burden, but still filled with obligations and direction and misplaced emotions.
"Ohno's not done anything very leader-like, but we all agree that he's the right person," he mentally rehearsed, sighing as the make-up artist attacked his face with a powder puff.
In actuality, it was getting easier and easier to be around his bandmates, but harder and harder not to display that naturally. Somehow, debuting with only a vague knowledge of his coworkers seemed to be an advantage. They had no trouble getting to know each other, were growing to really like each other, and yet... practically every moment spent in front of a camera was a lie.
Nino seemed to be handling things well.
He didn't have to just "let Matsumoto admire you, the fans will think it's cute." Even if he was the type to go along with what he was told, rather than push buttons, Nino at least had his own ideas for how he could play up his relationships within the group. It was obvious that Nino and Ohno had the same image of how to appeal to Arashi's fans, though they were stifled time and time again by the jimusho.
Sho didn't like to think of himself as jealous of the way Ohno and Nino seemed to cling to each other, used their similar senses of humor to get through particularly long work days. It was more that he didn't understand why. Why not him? Why was he the one acting like a leader while Ohno just sat there, doing nothing and still somehow managing to steal away his best friend among them?
All right, so he was jealous.
But he had thought that he and Nino were already friends, didn't need to worry about how to act around one another. He'd gotten the impression that they were close, close enough to worry about the future together and talk for hours without exhausting any topics. Suddenly he was finding himself second, maybe even third best. Fighting to keep the boy's attention and trying to convince himself that everything would work out in the long run. It was for Arashi. Why not let him get his space? I need to get over him anyway.
Because if his ridiculous crush made him act anything like -
"Sho-kun!" Jun's voice sounded, his grin impossibly wide as Sho's eyes met his in the mirror. "Your pants are really cool today. Did you pick them out yourself?"
Sho turned around in time to see Ohno flinch away from Nino's hand on his butt, smacking Nino's arm and chuckling before his eyes returned to a drowsy, half-lidded state.
"I never pick anything out myself," Sho gave his answer, flashing Jun a weak smile.
He stood and offered the boy the make-up chair, checking his cellphone for the time. It was enough. Enough to get out of there for awhile, clear his mind. He was probably just tired, probably exhausted, because staying up to finish a ten page paper was not the best way to prepare for an early morning interview.
He didn't realize he'd been followed until he felt the sudden weight on his back, grabbing skinny legs and holding them in place to keep himself from toppling over. Nino. He was the only one to ever ask for a piggy-back ride by not asking for one at all. One high-pitched laugh and a whine of 'heeeeeavy' and they were moving.
"Did you get fat?"
"You're tired."
"So you think now's a good time?"
"I played baseball after rehearsal yesterday. I'm beat," Nino informed him with a smirk, patting Sho's chest as a demand for him to keep walking.
"What's bothering you?" he added in question as he shifted his legs and made himself more comfortable.
"Nothing."
"Ah, so that's it then..."
"What are you saying?" Sho tried to turn his head to see Nino's expression.
"Nothing means everything, right? You have a brain, Sho, you should have known you can't have that and be in Johnny's," Nino teased, kicking his legs and causing Sho to stumble a little before continuing their journey to nowhere in particular.
"First compliment I've ever gotten from you," Sho pointed out with a snort of laughter, though Nino chose not to comment.
It was true, really, that it wasn't the popular choice to join Johnny's when you had an academic future secured and waiting. He'd always assumed he'd quit before he made it to University, and now he was struggling to keep up with his studies as well as his job, warming up family dinners to eat on his own and tossing and turning at night just thinking about what was still left to do for the next day. It made worrying about his lack of time with Nino that much more ridiculous. Even if Nino did make an effort to share his thoughts and feelings again, Sho probably couldn't listen to them all. Moments like this one were all he had time for, and that had to be good enough.
Especially when all other options were a loss. His parents wouldn't let him stay in Arashi unless he kept up with his studies. In order to keep up with his studies to the best of his abilities, it was almost necessary to quit Arashi anyway. The thought would cross his mind every so often, but it was always followed by thoughts of Aiba's jokes and Jun's support, Ohno's silent and slowly increasing enthusiasm, and Nino. Hundreds and thousands of things about Nino.
"You could always quit like you wanted to before. You know Oh-chan will leave before too long," Nino broke their short silence, arms dangling loosely in front of Sho's chest, chin digging somewhat painfully into his shoulder.
Sho didn't want to admit he thought it was possible too. Ohno had seemed completely against debuting from the start (not that Sho was any different), though he also had Nino's temperament, going along with what he was told in spite of his reluctance to even be in the business any longer. No matter how much he envied Ohno's ability to keep Nino's attention for longer than five minutes, he didn't want to see the older boy leave. He considered him a friend now as well, and chances of staying in touch without Arashi in common were slim.
"If you still think so, why are you trying to get close to him on camera?"
It didn't make sense. Why fight so hard to get your way when you knew it wouldn't last long enough to make a difference? Unless Nino saw this as his way out. Stick close to Ohno and when Ohno left, he could too, as if it would be the natural thing. 'There is no Nino without Ohno!' Was it possible to use fan sympathy as a way to flee without facing a lot of public outrage?
"I like him," he could feel Nino shrug, the words like a painful slap to his pent-up desires, "Might as well be friendly while I can."
"And you'll quit when he quits?"
"No."
Sho stopped walking, pushing Nino further up to avoid the press of the boy's knee against his thigh. His hips were bony, they could take it.
"What are you sticking around for?"
He'd not gotten a chance to ask, even with an entire year to approach him after their debut, why it was that he hadn't quit after seeing Arashi written on that paper. They'd both known and they both stayed.
Nino's arms tightened around his neck.
"Well, part of it is - " he began to reveal, saved by the appearance of his manager.
"If you could give us a minute," Nino's manager asked politely as Nino dropped ungracefully from Sho's back. Nino rolled his eyes at Sho, a look meant just for him that had Sho smirking instead of pouting and nodding at them both to excuse himself. He shoved his hands in his pockets and started back for the dressing room, laughing to himself as he listened to the manager speak up behind him.
"Ninomiya-san, do we need to go over boundaries again?"
Sho thought it was almost worth sticking around for, if it was going to be anything like the last time. All four of them had gotten a huge kick out of Nino's apparent inability to follow his schedule properly. Jun had loved the 'overactive bladder' excuse, but it hadn't won Nino any points.
"Especially in regard to Sakurai-san."
Sho immediately turned back around.
"I've told you," Nino stated in exasperation, "that Arashi is a pop group. Just because Sho does rap doesn't mean he needs to keep some hard image. That's between him and his manager, isn't it?"
"Maybe, but we're talking about you now. You can't be hanging off your coworkers any time you please. I'm not sure how to make it clear to you that there are consequences to every action like this. One mistake at the beginning and you could ruin your career."
He was standing stupidly in place, blocking the hall just as Nino and his manger were, but he couldn't bring himself to leave or interfere. He'd gotten speeches similar to this one in the past, about cause and effect and the building of popularity, but usually from higher-ups in the company not someone meant to work for him, and from the outside of things it seemed... harsh.
"Sho-kun! Tell the stylist that I can't wear tight pants today because - " Aiba spoke loudly behind him, eyes widening as Sho placed a hand over his mouth abruptly.
"I understand, I do, but it's not like he had his pants around his ankles. There aren't any cameras here, no tabloid reporters. And aren't employees paid to look the other way?" Nino seemed to keep his composure, to stay professional, though Sho could see his eyes were narrowing. Why didn't he say it was just a friendly piggy-back ride? Why didn't he just walk away and ignore it for later? Managers overreacted all the time, didn't they?
He shared a look with Aiba, sighing in frustration when Jun appeared at his other side to frown at the scene. Sho ignored the way he shook his head like this was just another one of Nino's problematic happenings. It wouldn't take long for him to realize the atmosphere was different, to feel as guilty as Sho did for watching this at all.
"No one has any intention of letting you flaunt your sexuality with Ohno-san in public, Ninomya-san. What makes you think," the manager hissed, and Sho felt his hand instantly clench at his side, "we'll turn a blind eye to your advances on members in private?"
"You have NO right - " Sho could no longer hold himself back, prepared to step in for his friend, but Aiba grabbed his arm and Nino spoke up, perfectly calm.
"You're fired."
He smiled at his friends as he brushed past them, leaving a gawking and red-faced manager in his wake.
Sho continued to stand there, hyper-aware of the way Aiba was grabbing his hand and placing it back over his mouth to hide his shock and ease the tension simultaneously. Jun whistled.
"They way you were going to stand up for him, Sho-kun, that was - "
"Are you going to be like this forever?" Sho finally snapped, body shaking as he tried to process all that had just happened. Were they allowed to fire their managers so easily without... company permission or something? Why was he being brought up specifically? Oh god, did Nino know? And why had Nino put up with such an asshole for a year anyway? He was almost more impressed with the patience it must have required than the way -
"First of all," Jun interrupted his thoughts, fixing him with a glare he'd eventually grow accustomed to, "You should know that I like girls."
Sho opened his mouth to respond, blinking rapidly and closing it again. Wait, what?
"Secondly... no."
Aiba giggled.
Oh. Well.
Fair enough.
Sho held out a hand and squeezed when Jun accepted it, letting their fingers lock together as they finally made their way back to the dressing room.
---
It was still in his mind days later, nagging at him as Nino made small-talk with his mother and offered to clean the dishes. Pestering him as Nino sat in a chair in the corner, quietly playing a video game while he tried to concentrate on his assignments. It was playing over and over again, stuck on repeat, for reasons Sho wouldn't have expected. It was the sudden surge of possibility that made it hard to sleep, not the over analysis of events that would normally plague him at a time like this. Because if they could choose who they worked with, if they could decide who Arashi was and why Arashi was, then maybe sacrifices would be worth making.
"Nino-chan, do you think - " Sho started, rolling over to glance over at the other, furrowing his eyebrows in confusion as he found Nino out of the guest futon and tinkering around with items on his desk.
"What?" Nino pretended to be offended by Sho's accusative stare. His innocent look was far from innocent, if you were Sho and had seen it enough times to know better. He'd seen it more times than Nino had provided it for him, but that was a problem for later.
"This isn't your room," he stated what should have been obvious. Nino shrugged.
"Couldn't find your porn anyway. What happened to you? Where's the Sho I knew in Hawaii?"
He didn't say anything when Nino slid into bed beside him, but mostly because he didn't know where to start. There were plenty of things on his mind, words poking and prodding and causing tension behind his left eye, but Sho could let himself be twitchy for a night if it meant not ruining the moment.
"Ninomiya-san, please, this is too real," he teased.
"Shut up and cuddle," Nino answered.
Sho turned and opened his arms.
AN: I am so sorry this took so long. I'm sorry it is jam packed with cliches. I'm sorry for many a thing. But hopefully the meaning behind events is clear and the fluff is good enough to make up for it all. Nowhere to go but forward!
Continue to Next Chapter