arashi fiction 12 - holiday season ficlet
Title: The Love Song of J. Matsumoto
Genres: Romance, Crack, Slight Angst (and surprise! Science Fiction)
Ratings: PG-13
Who: Arashi, Jun/Nino
Summary: One planet over and five brightly colored spacesuits later, the youngest of Arashi turned to his roommate and said, "Oh this is why you let the dishes pile up, but I haven't killed you yet."
Combined Prompts: Nino/Jun are 2/5 of Arashi, Nino/Jun + Sillyness of Arashi in the future on another planet. (rinalin, morimoli)
For the first time in a very, very long time, Matsumoto Jun had time. Time in abundance to think about all the things in his life that were different than he'd predicted them to be, and all the things that had turned out exactly (and frighteningly) as he'd expected. Time to write song lyrics about time, recite poems about the passing of time, idly discuss the time, make time for tea, and even time to reflect on all the time he'd not had in the past.
Most importantly, Matsujun had time to think of all the time he did have in the past that he'd effectively wasted, because now several moments had come and gone. Several opportunities had slipped right past him, hidden within arguments about proper hygiene and proper sleep patterns, locked away in unread glances during embarrassing heart-to-hearts, and gone unrecognized in the simplest of activities done together, not alone.
Matsujun had been working since age 16, started living at age 30, and was now "not quite 35 yet so stop rounding up and let me say I'm 34" years old.
Nino had been there for everything. Watching him go through puberty, noting his change in personality, building up his confidence when he started to lose sight of his purpose, meekly claiming that he'd always want the popularity Jun already had. He presented himself as the perfect rival, acting ability so natural that Jun couldn't help but hate him a little, thinking he'd won only to watch Nino leave for Hollywood (and feel his heart sink to his toes). "America was boring," Nino had said, when he could have bragged for hours, not revealing how he'd made up his mind to watch all of Hana Yori Dango (just because).
He chose to isolate himself from people (despite missing them fiercely), never thanking Jun for his unprompted visits, merely nodding as he stepped aside and let Jun through the door.
A door that eventually Jun could open himself, one that led to their apartment, but Nino was in Arashi, and it meant no more than that.
Sho would have helped Jun to the bathroom after a night of steady drinking, held his hair for him and tried to sooth him (as his stomach rejected the evening), saying "you should learn to drink less" (though he'd had too many himself).
And Ohno would have let him rest his head upon his shoulder, listened to his complaints ("being an idol is too stressful to be healthy"), and made a joke that shouldn't have helped matters (but of course, then somehow did).
Aiba was a connection to the brighter side of life, when Jun was ready to label things as 'rock bottom', a source of hugs and comfort without the embarrassment of having to ask.
But Nino was the one who saw all three of these things in Jun, his head there upon Jun's shoulder when he'd had too much too drink, thinking "the world isn't what I want it to be" as Jun whispered "you'll see, it's better." Nights spent explaining his latest magic trick and why holding hands 'is just so funny' to the one person he thought might hate him for it, might soon become bored with it all. Days of socks scattered across the living room floor, "those are for feet, not decoration", with one that had gone missing. One sock that was not eaten in place of real food (as accused), but kicked somewhere behind the couch and long since forgotten.
"Why did you want to live with me?" Nino had asked within the very first week, pressing the pause button on his video game and grabbing hold of Jun's pant leg at the calf.
"Sometimes I think I might like you the best," Jun had admitted against his better judgment, shoving toast into his mouth before retreating to his room.
Those days felt so distant now, as distant as the apartment they still managed to share, away from this journey, this time and place, back on Earth where things moved much faster (unless they were significant enough to count). Each time he looked at Nino, perpetually pale and as far away as home, he went right back to thinking - and he probably owed Nino that much.
"THIS IS NOT GOING TO WORK. THIS IS NOT GOING TO WORK ANYMORE. WHY DID WE THINK THIS WOULD WORK? I CAN'T EVEN TOUCH THE GROUND," Sho panicked, and not for the first time, clinging to Aiba's arm.
"What's not going to work? Us being safely on the ground? With trees and animals and... oh look over there Sho-chan, a convenience store!" Aiba continued to try the tactic they'd first come up with, refusing to ignore Sho's anxiety attacks as the rest had learned to do.
It hadn't been all that surprising that it just wasn't enough to sooth him anymore. Ohno's drawings were good, but hardly comparable to actual scenery out a normal vehicle's window, and now that the tape was becoming increasingly less sticky, bits of "dark and foreign" began to seep in at the corners.
"No matter what you say I know it's space outside those windows," Sho whined, hands trembling and eyes closing as the truth overwhelmed him once more.
"This is just a nightmare, right? It has to be a nightmare. I fell from the stage, I've hit my head too hard, none of you want to tell me I'm crazy because you think I'll not be able to cope!"
"You are crazy, but because you agreed to do this," Nino answered him as casually as possible, mouth upturned in half a smile.
"You did too!"
"I had my reasons."
"Why did we do this?"
"Because this is history," Jun gave his firm response, hoping to smooth things over more than present them with his opinion, "When your country asks you to do something, you don't refuse them politely."
It was at least one aspect of the truth. It was hard to say "no thank you" when you were asked to perform at the first ever music festival on Mars. They'd represented Japan in several different ways over the years, but this was the first time they had a chance to have their name printed in every textbook in every classroom. Twenty years after their debut and not one of them had refused, because this was about Arashi, and Arashi was each of their lives.
"Your nephew says you looked very cool on television yesterday, Sho-chan. Though I assume this means a week ago, but... " Ohno spoke up unexpectedly, continuing to lazily do backflips above the other man's head.
Ohno had always been good at unintentionally calming tense situations, and this was no exception. Being reminded that at least one of them had a son back home, a family that believed this was safe, was enough to put fear and doubt into perspective. Sho promptly stopped his vocalizations, rereading a newspaper instead.
Jun hadn't realized they were so close to landing, having lost track of estimates with no real windows to bring the planet into view, but his heart began to beat faster as those with experience explained procedures. Jun couldn't think of anything he wanted more in life than to be able to follow procedures, and that thought brought him closer to the reality of what was happening than the countdown and the blast off and the lengthy travel combined. He could feel the sweat appear on his forehead before he even understood that he was afraid, hoping he'd not missed something important in that moment he'd swallowed loudly - breathed deeply - noticed Nino's appearance at his side.
"Stop fidgeting and pay attention. Do you want to get yourself killed?" Nino teased, at first heightening Jun's sense of danger, but the hand that wrapped itself in his seemed to squeeze all the madness away.
When they were walking upon the surface, spacesuits as colorful as any old Johnny's costume ("If we aren't color coded, how will they know which one is which?" Sho had voiced his concern, and no one dared suggest that fans might remember where they had always stood for A.Ra.Shi), for the first time Jun was grateful that Aiba's child-like personality was there to raise spirits. His body shook with laughter as a green suit went flashing past his helmet, a voice in his ear echoing - "Don't worry about the aliens, all the UFO experts I know say they come in peace."
"BUUUUAH," sounded their leader from somewhere to the right, the arms of an orange suit raised triumphant and suspicious in the air behind him.
"Martians are very friendly," Nino clarified for them all, Ohno moving to hold onto the one in red as tightly as he could manage.
"I wouldn't have done this if it weren't for you guys. I couldn't have done this without you, all of you," Sho could barely raise his voice above a whisper, and Jun was sure he heard Aiba start to cry.
"We're all so very tiny. I'm so glad we don't all float away."
It was like an A no Arashi, but much more complicated, in fact.
It wasn't until Nino's spacesuit pushed against his, the man trying hard to keep helmet pressed to helmet, that Jun remembered that he'd not yet moved his legs and was simply bobbing in place. With Nino's face just barely visible, eyes wide and searching his own, Jun fully understood that he didn't want to move. He didn't want to move at all.
"Thank you for doing this. I know you hate to leave Japan," Matsujun started lamely, suddenly frustrated that his entire body was protected by material.
"Mmmmn."
"You're always so willing to... you just always... even though you didn't really want Arashi - "
"I didn't do this for Arashi," Nino stated clearly, calmly, reaching Jun's ears on Mars.
"No?"
"I didn't come here for Arashi," he said again, as if it were obvious, "I just didn't want you all to go so far without me."
It seemed almost stupid, really, that they were about sing their debut song again, but for the universe (the whole wide universe, and as funny as they all thought they were being, there were no aliens in sight, just a lot of empty space and no ears) to hear as well as their oldest fans... who could hear it on CD, on Earth, who didn't need them to prove they could accomplish things together. They always could. And that made all that thinking seem stupid as well, all the answers he'd ever needed bouncing about his vision now (in brightly colored suits).
"If you hadn't come, would you have still known I love you?" Jun asked of him, voice dangerously close to breaking, emotion hitting him faster than the speed of light or gravity or any other space metaphors that could be relative to the situation as he saw it now.
"Yes, but you shouldn't tell me here. I wait five years for you to get the message and it reaches you in space? What is wrong with you? Do you realize I'm in love with you and you've got a whole fucking force field protecting your ass?"
"I can't have sex with you on a spaceship, on television," Jun agreed with a heavy sigh, giving in to more laughter as Nino smacked the back of his helmet.
"I hate you right now," he warned in spite of his smile, allowing Jun to cling to him for balance.
"We'll have time," Jun assured him, his hand light against Nino's back, "We'll definitely have time."
A/N: Okay, I never thought it would get more strange than Ohno/Nino/DS, but I definitely think this is the weirdest thing I have ever written. Hope it makes some kind of sense and can receive at least one "awwww" from fandom.
Genres: Romance, Crack, Slight Angst (and surprise! Science Fiction)
Ratings: PG-13
Who: Arashi, Jun/Nino
Summary: One planet over and five brightly colored spacesuits later, the youngest of Arashi turned to his roommate and said, "Oh this is why you let the dishes pile up, but I haven't killed you yet."
Combined Prompts: Nino/Jun are 2/5 of Arashi, Nino/Jun + Sillyness of Arashi in the future on another planet. (rinalin, morimoli)
For the first time in a very, very long time, Matsumoto Jun had time. Time in abundance to think about all the things in his life that were different than he'd predicted them to be, and all the things that had turned out exactly (and frighteningly) as he'd expected. Time to write song lyrics about time, recite poems about the passing of time, idly discuss the time, make time for tea, and even time to reflect on all the time he'd not had in the past.
Most importantly, Matsujun had time to think of all the time he did have in the past that he'd effectively wasted, because now several moments had come and gone. Several opportunities had slipped right past him, hidden within arguments about proper hygiene and proper sleep patterns, locked away in unread glances during embarrassing heart-to-hearts, and gone unrecognized in the simplest of activities done together, not alone.
Matsujun had been working since age 16, started living at age 30, and was now "not quite 35 yet so stop rounding up and let me say I'm 34" years old.
Nino had been there for everything. Watching him go through puberty, noting his change in personality, building up his confidence when he started to lose sight of his purpose, meekly claiming that he'd always want the popularity Jun already had. He presented himself as the perfect rival, acting ability so natural that Jun couldn't help but hate him a little, thinking he'd won only to watch Nino leave for Hollywood (and feel his heart sink to his toes). "America was boring," Nino had said, when he could have bragged for hours, not revealing how he'd made up his mind to watch all of Hana Yori Dango (just because).
He chose to isolate himself from people (despite missing them fiercely), never thanking Jun for his unprompted visits, merely nodding as he stepped aside and let Jun through the door.
A door that eventually Jun could open himself, one that led to their apartment, but Nino was in Arashi, and it meant no more than that.
Sho would have helped Jun to the bathroom after a night of steady drinking, held his hair for him and tried to sooth him (as his stomach rejected the evening), saying "you should learn to drink less" (though he'd had too many himself).
And Ohno would have let him rest his head upon his shoulder, listened to his complaints ("being an idol is too stressful to be healthy"), and made a joke that shouldn't have helped matters (but of course, then somehow did).
Aiba was a connection to the brighter side of life, when Jun was ready to label things as 'rock bottom', a source of hugs and comfort without the embarrassment of having to ask.
But Nino was the one who saw all three of these things in Jun, his head there upon Jun's shoulder when he'd had too much too drink, thinking "the world isn't what I want it to be" as Jun whispered "you'll see, it's better." Nights spent explaining his latest magic trick and why holding hands 'is just so funny' to the one person he thought might hate him for it, might soon become bored with it all. Days of socks scattered across the living room floor, "those are for feet, not decoration", with one that had gone missing. One sock that was not eaten in place of real food (as accused), but kicked somewhere behind the couch and long since forgotten.
"Why did you want to live with me?" Nino had asked within the very first week, pressing the pause button on his video game and grabbing hold of Jun's pant leg at the calf.
"Sometimes I think I might like you the best," Jun had admitted against his better judgment, shoving toast into his mouth before retreating to his room.
Those days felt so distant now, as distant as the apartment they still managed to share, away from this journey, this time and place, back on Earth where things moved much faster (unless they were significant enough to count). Each time he looked at Nino, perpetually pale and as far away as home, he went right back to thinking - and he probably owed Nino that much.
"THIS IS NOT GOING TO WORK. THIS IS NOT GOING TO WORK ANYMORE. WHY DID WE THINK THIS WOULD WORK? I CAN'T EVEN TOUCH THE GROUND," Sho panicked, and not for the first time, clinging to Aiba's arm.
"What's not going to work? Us being safely on the ground? With trees and animals and... oh look over there Sho-chan, a convenience store!" Aiba continued to try the tactic they'd first come up with, refusing to ignore Sho's anxiety attacks as the rest had learned to do.
It hadn't been all that surprising that it just wasn't enough to sooth him anymore. Ohno's drawings were good, but hardly comparable to actual scenery out a normal vehicle's window, and now that the tape was becoming increasingly less sticky, bits of "dark and foreign" began to seep in at the corners.
"No matter what you say I know it's space outside those windows," Sho whined, hands trembling and eyes closing as the truth overwhelmed him once more.
"This is just a nightmare, right? It has to be a nightmare. I fell from the stage, I've hit my head too hard, none of you want to tell me I'm crazy because you think I'll not be able to cope!"
"You are crazy, but because you agreed to do this," Nino answered him as casually as possible, mouth upturned in half a smile.
"You did too!"
"I had my reasons."
"Why did we do this?"
"Because this is history," Jun gave his firm response, hoping to smooth things over more than present them with his opinion, "When your country asks you to do something, you don't refuse them politely."
It was at least one aspect of the truth. It was hard to say "no thank you" when you were asked to perform at the first ever music festival on Mars. They'd represented Japan in several different ways over the years, but this was the first time they had a chance to have their name printed in every textbook in every classroom. Twenty years after their debut and not one of them had refused, because this was about Arashi, and Arashi was each of their lives.
"Your nephew says you looked very cool on television yesterday, Sho-chan. Though I assume this means a week ago, but... " Ohno spoke up unexpectedly, continuing to lazily do backflips above the other man's head.
Ohno had always been good at unintentionally calming tense situations, and this was no exception. Being reminded that at least one of them had a son back home, a family that believed this was safe, was enough to put fear and doubt into perspective. Sho promptly stopped his vocalizations, rereading a newspaper instead.
Jun hadn't realized they were so close to landing, having lost track of estimates with no real windows to bring the planet into view, but his heart began to beat faster as those with experience explained procedures. Jun couldn't think of anything he wanted more in life than to be able to follow procedures, and that thought brought him closer to the reality of what was happening than the countdown and the blast off and the lengthy travel combined. He could feel the sweat appear on his forehead before he even understood that he was afraid, hoping he'd not missed something important in that moment he'd swallowed loudly - breathed deeply - noticed Nino's appearance at his side.
"Stop fidgeting and pay attention. Do you want to get yourself killed?" Nino teased, at first heightening Jun's sense of danger, but the hand that wrapped itself in his seemed to squeeze all the madness away.
When they were walking upon the surface, spacesuits as colorful as any old Johnny's costume ("If we aren't color coded, how will they know which one is which?" Sho had voiced his concern, and no one dared suggest that fans might remember where they had always stood for A.Ra.Shi), for the first time Jun was grateful that Aiba's child-like personality was there to raise spirits. His body shook with laughter as a green suit went flashing past his helmet, a voice in his ear echoing - "Don't worry about the aliens, all the UFO experts I know say they come in peace."
"BUUUUAH," sounded their leader from somewhere to the right, the arms of an orange suit raised triumphant and suspicious in the air behind him.
"Martians are very friendly," Nino clarified for them all, Ohno moving to hold onto the one in red as tightly as he could manage.
"I wouldn't have done this if it weren't for you guys. I couldn't have done this without you, all of you," Sho could barely raise his voice above a whisper, and Jun was sure he heard Aiba start to cry.
"We're all so very tiny. I'm so glad we don't all float away."
It was like an A no Arashi, but much more complicated, in fact.
It wasn't until Nino's spacesuit pushed against his, the man trying hard to keep helmet pressed to helmet, that Jun remembered that he'd not yet moved his legs and was simply bobbing in place. With Nino's face just barely visible, eyes wide and searching his own, Jun fully understood that he didn't want to move. He didn't want to move at all.
"Thank you for doing this. I know you hate to leave Japan," Matsujun started lamely, suddenly frustrated that his entire body was protected by material.
"Mmmmn."
"You're always so willing to... you just always... even though you didn't really want Arashi - "
"I didn't do this for Arashi," Nino stated clearly, calmly, reaching Jun's ears on Mars.
"No?"
"I didn't come here for Arashi," he said again, as if it were obvious, "I just didn't want you all to go so far without me."
It seemed almost stupid, really, that they were about sing their debut song again, but for the universe (the whole wide universe, and as funny as they all thought they were being, there were no aliens in sight, just a lot of empty space and no ears) to hear as well as their oldest fans... who could hear it on CD, on Earth, who didn't need them to prove they could accomplish things together. They always could. And that made all that thinking seem stupid as well, all the answers he'd ever needed bouncing about his vision now (in brightly colored suits).
"If you hadn't come, would you have still known I love you?" Jun asked of him, voice dangerously close to breaking, emotion hitting him faster than the speed of light or gravity or any other space metaphors that could be relative to the situation as he saw it now.
"Yes, but you shouldn't tell me here. I wait five years for you to get the message and it reaches you in space? What is wrong with you? Do you realize I'm in love with you and you've got a whole fucking force field protecting your ass?"
"I can't have sex with you on a spaceship, on television," Jun agreed with a heavy sigh, giving in to more laughter as Nino smacked the back of his helmet.
"I hate you right now," he warned in spite of his smile, allowing Jun to cling to him for balance.
"We'll have time," Jun assured him, his hand light against Nino's back, "We'll definitely have time."
A/N: Okay, I never thought it would get more strange than Ohno/Nino/DS, but I definitely think this is the weirdest thing I have ever written. Hope it makes some kind of sense and can receive at least one "awwww" from fandom.