[Fic] Ten days, eight hours, twenty five minutes
Title : [Fic] Ten days, eight hours, twenty five minutes - Bonus 1
Author : Jadey
Rating : PG to R
Pairing : Ohmiya (Ohno/Nino)
Disclaimer : fiction, yo!
Summary : On the day Japan was hit by a massive earthquake and tsunami, the Jimusho gathered all of its artist for a headcount. All were present except for one : Arashi's Leader, Ohno Satoshi, was missing.
Word count : around 2600 words
Note : One more after this, then Epilogue XD, oh and Happy 17 Anniversary, Arashi <3
(Ten Days, Eight Hours, Twenty Five Minutes - Final)
“You…really don’t remember anything?” Nino asked. To his credit, it sure looked like that was the case. Nino was suddenly unsure what to say. “E-Earlier, the doctor said you woke up for a few minutes. And that you mentioned something about today being the tenth day, do you remember that?”
Ohno blinked and Nino saw not even a tiny bit trace of apprehension in his eyes. “I don’t remember,” Ohno said, then lowly, “Tenth day?”
Nino tried to breathe through the almost overwhelming cascade of emotion washing over him but then decided none of those mattered anymore anyway. Ohno was here, alive and well, and that was all that mattered.
“Never mind that,” he told Ohno, tightening his grip around Ohno’s hands. They were cold to the touch, and Nino felt wholly inclined to keep them warm if he could. Ohno’s eyes are shadowed with confusion and Nino found himself reaching over with one hand to brush the skin under Ohno’s eyes delicately with his thumb.
“You don’t have to worry about anything now, old man, okay?” he said as softly as he could manage it, touching Ohno in the same manner. “What matters is that you’re here and you’re okay. We can worry about the unimportant stuff later.”
“No, I want you to tell me what in hell happened to me,” Ohno said; he sounded stubborn and when Nino raised his head, he found that Ohno looked like it too. Nino shook his head, and for a moment, neither of them spoke.
“You need to rest, Leader,” he said after a long beat, rubbing the back of Ohno’s palm softly, carefully. He really shouldn’t have opened his mouth to ask- the amount of medication Ohno was on at the moment was probably one of the many reasons why Ohno was having trouble remembering things - but it was obviously a little too late for that now.
The least he could do was to distract Ohno from thinking about it. “I promise we’re going to talk about this, but not now. You’ve been through a lot and I don’t think -“
“How long was I missing?” Ohno cut in, his voice as stubborn as the look on his face was and Nino found a smile for him despite it. “Don’t laugh at me, Nino,” Ohno said, frowning.
“I’m not laughing at you,” he said, “I just, I honestly don’t know what to say.” He says, meaning it; “You really don’t remember anything?”
“I’m not going to ask you if I do,” Ohno said, sounding pissed. “So tell me.”
Nino shook his head again, not because he was not sure what to say - that’s just one tiny part of it, really - but more because he wasn’t sure where to begin. It wasn’t even proper to talk about this now, not when Ohno was still evidently unfit, emotionally at least, to be told such things this early.
But then again, if there was anyone who was stubborn enough to ask such delicate and best-left-for-later-discussion things, it was Ohno, and despite the fact that Nino was equally stubborn himself, he’d always been just a tad different, admittedly softer, when it came to Ohno. Ohno was apparently aware of it himself, using Nino’s weakness to his advantage.
Nino wanted to hate Ohno for it but at the same time, he couldn’t.
There were just so many things he didn’t know about what truly happened to Ohno during those past ten days he was missing and it would be terribly difficult to try and fill in those spaces without all the details that obviously only Ohno could provide. The things he did know he was sure he couldn’t tell Ohno, especially not after he’d learned Ohno didn’t remember anything, and even if he could, would Ohno even believed him?
Swallowing past the lump that had formed in his throat, he kept his gaze on his and Ohno’s hands, trying to rearrange the words in his head before he say them. It was hard, but Nino knew he had to try. For Ohno.
“You remember what I told you a while ago? About what the doctor told me?” he said, pausing for a bit to breathe, watching his thumb as he rubbed little circles against Ohno’s palm while Ohno remained dutifully still and quiet. He didn’t know how long he was holding Ohno’s hand in his, much more feel properly embarrassed for acting like a clingy girlfriend but he couldn’t find it in him to care. Not when it was clear that Ohno seemed not to mind it either, so Nino figured it was okay.
And either way, Nino wasn’t planning on letting go anyway. At least not until Ohno told him to, or maybe even then. He couldn’t, not when the bitter-aftertaste of the past ten days’ misery was still lingering strongly beneath his tongue despite the fact that Ohno was already here, with him.
“He said you were awake for a few minutes before I arrived,” he continued, “And that you said you were expecting someone to visit you today, even though you were still mostly asleep. But that you looked completely coherent, certain, when you said that someone surely would come for you today. Today being the tenth day since…since…since you went missing.”
Nino felt more than heard Ohno’s sharp intake of breath, shutting his eyes close for a moment before bravely shifting his gaze onto Ohno’s face. There was a moment of quiet stillness while Nino stared at Ohno, unsure of what to say as he watched more than half a dozen emotion flit across Ohno’s eyes before it settled on one. This, Nino was sure he was going to have a hard time forgetting anytime soon, his chest twisting painfully in answer as his fingers settled around Ohno’s own tightly as if on cue.
“I d-don’t… I don’t remember it,” Ohno said, his voice sounded miserable and confused. Nino couldn’t exactly blame Ohno for feeling that way. “I don’t remember saying any of that.”
Nino’s heart was breaking for Ohno but he kept a good hold of himself, careful not to let Ohno see how his confusion was equally breaking Nino apart.
“And I told you, it doesn’t matter,” he countered, firmly, letting Ohno know he meant it because it was the truth. “You’re here, that’s what’s important, and besides -“
Ohno didn’t seem to be listening. In fact, there was this faraway look on his face that was alarmingly familiar. Nino hated seeing it.
“The last thing I remember is… is…you. I… I was talking to you…on the phone,”
“Leader -”
Ohno shifted towards him then, eyes glazed with something Nino couldn’t quite fathom.
“T-That…that was last night, r-right?” Ohno asked, hesitant. “And this… place is a hotel room or something, right? Nino?”
Nino’s heart was breaking for Ohno and he couldn’t help it. So was that the reason why Ohno said he hadn’t been waiting for long when Nino came? Because he had no recollection of the past ten days, remembering only the things that happened before the incident.
“No, Oh-chan,” he said, tugging Ohno’s hand and lifting it up to his lips, “It wasn’t,” he said, “You’re not. This is…we’re in a hospital.”
“No, no, that’s not… I.. took the day off yesterday,” Ohno said, voice shaking, “11th of March, right?”
He shook his head, feeling the dampness before he even realized he was crying, his lips pressed softly against the back of Ohno’s hand. “Today is March 21, Satoshi. The 21st. You’ve been missing for ten days, eight hours, and twenty-five minutes before we found you. I’m sorry. I’m so sorry.”
+
“We don’t know exactly what happened,” he said a long moment later, when he could finally talk without ending up bawling against his and Ohno’s joined hands. To his credit, Ohno didn’t call him out on it or even tease him for being such a drama queen, not when he was certain Ohno himself was having a hard time keeping his own tears at bay as Nino cried for them both. “On the day it happened, the earthquake, everyone was called to head back to the Jimusho. Everyone… everyone was there except…except you. I - I knew you were supposed to go out that day because we were talking about it the day before, so I was… I was worried.”
“Nino -“
He breathed in deeply and gathered all of his remaining courage so he could look Ohno in the eye as he squeezed Ohno’s hands consolingly.
“And it wasn’t unfounded,” he continued, swallowing past the terrible lump forming in his throat at the remembered pain of that day and the following days after. “Because even before I told them you were supposed to be out at sea that day, they’ve already been calling you. And they couldn’t contact you. We couldn’t contact you, Oh-chan. For the first twenty-four hours, we tried reaching you, on your phone, anyone who might know where you are, but we couldn’t…no one knew where to find you.”
“I - I don’t remember any of this -“
He nodded, patting the back of Ohno’s hand knowingly. It was probably for the best that Ohno didn’t, Nino thought, especially after everything that had happened.
“We…We were able to find the captain of the boat that was supposed to charter your trip that night,” he said. “He told us he didn’t go.” To this, Ohno nodded.
“His boat needed some last minute repairs,” Ohno said, brows furrowed; “I remember that. He - there was another boat, one that was available. He knows the Captain. He made the call, he -“
“Yes,” Nino agreed, remembering his struggle to keep his sanity when he learned that that person, along with two of his crews was dead. “The Captain of that boat is dead, Leader,” Nino said, “I’m sorry.”
“D-Dead?”
“The boat itself was found abandoned near the port of Matsushima, the Captain and three of the crews dead. You weren’t with them.” Ohno gasped at this and Nino’s hand absently went tight around Ohno’s own.
“S-So how did I…how come I am alive?” Ohno asked, voice filled with wonder and something else.
Because you promised me, Nino choked on the words even though he couldn’t say them, biting his lips hard enough to draw blood as he kept his eyes on Ohno’s face. Because you said you will stay alive for me.
“I don’t really care about the how’s and the whatnot,” he grunted, “You’re alive and that’s the only thing I care about. Because if you died that night, I swear to you that I will find you, revive you just so I can kill you myself. I already told you this before, you keep on forgetting it.”
“I don’t,” Ohno said, “I haven’t,” his expression softening. “I promised you I will stay alive, and I did, right? I did stay alive, Nino, even though I’m not really sure how it happened. Wow.”
“As you should,” he agreed, nose in the air. He didn’t think he would even want to remember the very same conversation again without ending up in tears but he guessed it couldn’t be helped.
“Then?” Ohno prompted after a moment. Nino realized had kept quiet as well. “What happened after?”
Nino found himself taking another deep breath. “They…They found you nowhere near the location of the boat you boarded, not even close to where it was found,” he said, looking up at Ohno for confirmation. Ohno seemed to be holding his breath as Nino squeezed their fingers together.
“I… W-What do you mean?” Ohno asked. “Where did…where did they find me?”
“In Fukui, Oh-chan,” he said, “A group of rescuers found you floating near the Fukui port, unconscious and hogging a large piece of wood the day after the earthquake.”
“B-But how…how did I end up there?” Ohno frowned, “That’s completely…that’s impossible!”
“Oh-chan -“
“Jesus, that’s not even…” Ohno’s voice trailed here, his eyes wide with surprise. “Then how did you…How did you guys find me?” Ohno asked, breathing hard. “So, are we…are we in Fukui now?”
“No,” Nino said, and the urge to hold Ohno close to him was so strong he had to breathe a couple of times to calm himself. “We’re in Tokyo now. They’ve transferred you here from Fukui a couple of days ago.”
“T-Then how? How did you know where to find me?”
Nino was sure this was where he needed to skip so many things, at least until he was sure Ohno was healed enough to take every bits of information with regards to how Nino was able to find him. He couldn’t tell Ohno about it, of how Nino was certain Ohno himself had been the very reason Nino had known where to go, that it was Ohno who had kept Nino’s hopes up even though it sure felt like there weren’t any left, at least not now, and if Nino could help it, maybe he wouldn’t ever.
Still, it wouldn’t probably hurt to say the things that truly mattered, or at least everything Nino had kept hidden for so long because of his fear, his lack of courage. He’d waited more than a decade (and an awfully frightening incident of almost losing Ohno) for this after all, more than a decade to be able to come to terms with the fact that if there was one thing he couldn’t live without, it was Ohno Satoshi himself.
Bravely reaching up to curl his fingers around Ohno’s jaw, Nino smiled, heart twisting inside his ribcage in a way that was completely different from how Nino was used to feel before.
“Does it matter?” he found himself saying, vaguely wondering if was simply saying it to buy more time, more courage.
“It matters to me, Nino,” Ohno said, his mouth lilting thoughtfully at the edges and Nino had this sickening urge to press his lips against Ohno’s own, if only to make sure he wasn’t dreaming. “Because I…I do remember us talking…about this…before…”
“Yes,” Nino breathed, quick, surprising even himself at the swiftness with which he was agreeing. “So you do remember it? The exact number of days and hours I’ve mentioned before?”
“Ten days, eight hours and twenty-five minutes, right?”
“Yes,”
“It was a joke,” Ohno said, but Nino was certain he didn’t mean it.
“You know it’s not,”
“It’s not,” Ohno agreed, wholeheartedly, and Nino never felt so sure about his feelings for Ohno, or at least the ones he vowed to never say in his presence, until that moment. Ohno tugged at their hands, softly, ever so softly, until Nino realized he was leaning in, bracing himself with a hand against the bed, and Ohno’s face not even an inch away from his own. “At least not for me.” Ohno said, his voice filled with so many different things Nino himself had hoped he could verbalize sooner, but wasn’t able to.
But it wasn’t Ohno who had to suffer the past ten days thinking he’d lost the very thing that meant the world to him, and so Ohno wouldn’t probably know.
But Nino did, so he wasn’t going to wait anymore.
“I love you,” Nino breathed, softly, barely inaudibly against Ohno’s mouth. He was smiling but he couldn’t help it, not with the way Ohno’s eyes lit up in comprehension, the way he drew his breath happily as Nino pressed their mouths together, firmly, and making Nino realize he wasn’t the only one waiting.
When Nino pulled back, he was met with a whining sound and Ohno rounding his free hand to the back of his neck to pull him in, and Ohno’s mouth - soft and warm and coaxing - was on him, putting all of the decade-long love and frustration in that one kiss with his hand steady around Nino’s head.
(10 days 8 hours 25 minutes - Bonus 2 + Epilogue)
Author : Jadey
Rating : PG to R
Pairing : Ohmiya (Ohno/Nino)
Disclaimer : fiction, yo!
Summary : On the day Japan was hit by a massive earthquake and tsunami, the Jimusho gathered all of its artist for a headcount. All were present except for one : Arashi's Leader, Ohno Satoshi, was missing.
Word count : around 2600 words
Note : One more after this, then Epilogue XD, oh and Happy 17 Anniversary, Arashi <3
(Ten Days, Eight Hours, Twenty Five Minutes - Final)
“You…really don’t remember anything?” Nino asked. To his credit, it sure looked like that was the case. Nino was suddenly unsure what to say. “E-Earlier, the doctor said you woke up for a few minutes. And that you mentioned something about today being the tenth day, do you remember that?”
Ohno blinked and Nino saw not even a tiny bit trace of apprehension in his eyes. “I don’t remember,” Ohno said, then lowly, “Tenth day?”
Nino tried to breathe through the almost overwhelming cascade of emotion washing over him but then decided none of those mattered anymore anyway. Ohno was here, alive and well, and that was all that mattered.
“Never mind that,” he told Ohno, tightening his grip around Ohno’s hands. They were cold to the touch, and Nino felt wholly inclined to keep them warm if he could. Ohno’s eyes are shadowed with confusion and Nino found himself reaching over with one hand to brush the skin under Ohno’s eyes delicately with his thumb.
“You don’t have to worry about anything now, old man, okay?” he said as softly as he could manage it, touching Ohno in the same manner. “What matters is that you’re here and you’re okay. We can worry about the unimportant stuff later.”
“No, I want you to tell me what in hell happened to me,” Ohno said; he sounded stubborn and when Nino raised his head, he found that Ohno looked like it too. Nino shook his head, and for a moment, neither of them spoke.
“You need to rest, Leader,” he said after a long beat, rubbing the back of Ohno’s palm softly, carefully. He really shouldn’t have opened his mouth to ask- the amount of medication Ohno was on at the moment was probably one of the many reasons why Ohno was having trouble remembering things - but it was obviously a little too late for that now.
The least he could do was to distract Ohno from thinking about it. “I promise we’re going to talk about this, but not now. You’ve been through a lot and I don’t think -“
“How long was I missing?” Ohno cut in, his voice as stubborn as the look on his face was and Nino found a smile for him despite it. “Don’t laugh at me, Nino,” Ohno said, frowning.
“I’m not laughing at you,” he said, “I just, I honestly don’t know what to say.” He says, meaning it; “You really don’t remember anything?”
“I’m not going to ask you if I do,” Ohno said, sounding pissed. “So tell me.”
Nino shook his head again, not because he was not sure what to say - that’s just one tiny part of it, really - but more because he wasn’t sure where to begin. It wasn’t even proper to talk about this now, not when Ohno was still evidently unfit, emotionally at least, to be told such things this early.
But then again, if there was anyone who was stubborn enough to ask such delicate and best-left-for-later-discussion things, it was Ohno, and despite the fact that Nino was equally stubborn himself, he’d always been just a tad different, admittedly softer, when it came to Ohno. Ohno was apparently aware of it himself, using Nino’s weakness to his advantage.
Nino wanted to hate Ohno for it but at the same time, he couldn’t.
There were just so many things he didn’t know about what truly happened to Ohno during those past ten days he was missing and it would be terribly difficult to try and fill in those spaces without all the details that obviously only Ohno could provide. The things he did know he was sure he couldn’t tell Ohno, especially not after he’d learned Ohno didn’t remember anything, and even if he could, would Ohno even believed him?
Swallowing past the lump that had formed in his throat, he kept his gaze on his and Ohno’s hands, trying to rearrange the words in his head before he say them. It was hard, but Nino knew he had to try. For Ohno.
“You remember what I told you a while ago? About what the doctor told me?” he said, pausing for a bit to breathe, watching his thumb as he rubbed little circles against Ohno’s palm while Ohno remained dutifully still and quiet. He didn’t know how long he was holding Ohno’s hand in his, much more feel properly embarrassed for acting like a clingy girlfriend but he couldn’t find it in him to care. Not when it was clear that Ohno seemed not to mind it either, so Nino figured it was okay.
And either way, Nino wasn’t planning on letting go anyway. At least not until Ohno told him to, or maybe even then. He couldn’t, not when the bitter-aftertaste of the past ten days’ misery was still lingering strongly beneath his tongue despite the fact that Ohno was already here, with him.
“He said you were awake for a few minutes before I arrived,” he continued, “And that you said you were expecting someone to visit you today, even though you were still mostly asleep. But that you looked completely coherent, certain, when you said that someone surely would come for you today. Today being the tenth day since…since…since you went missing.”
Nino felt more than heard Ohno’s sharp intake of breath, shutting his eyes close for a moment before bravely shifting his gaze onto Ohno’s face. There was a moment of quiet stillness while Nino stared at Ohno, unsure of what to say as he watched more than half a dozen emotion flit across Ohno’s eyes before it settled on one. This, Nino was sure he was going to have a hard time forgetting anytime soon, his chest twisting painfully in answer as his fingers settled around Ohno’s own tightly as if on cue.
“I d-don’t… I don’t remember it,” Ohno said, his voice sounded miserable and confused. Nino couldn’t exactly blame Ohno for feeling that way. “I don’t remember saying any of that.”
Nino’s heart was breaking for Ohno but he kept a good hold of himself, careful not to let Ohno see how his confusion was equally breaking Nino apart.
“And I told you, it doesn’t matter,” he countered, firmly, letting Ohno know he meant it because it was the truth. “You’re here, that’s what’s important, and besides -“
Ohno didn’t seem to be listening. In fact, there was this faraway look on his face that was alarmingly familiar. Nino hated seeing it.
“The last thing I remember is… is…you. I… I was talking to you…on the phone,”
“Leader -”
Ohno shifted towards him then, eyes glazed with something Nino couldn’t quite fathom.
“T-That…that was last night, r-right?” Ohno asked, hesitant. “And this… place is a hotel room or something, right? Nino?”
Nino’s heart was breaking for Ohno and he couldn’t help it. So was that the reason why Ohno said he hadn’t been waiting for long when Nino came? Because he had no recollection of the past ten days, remembering only the things that happened before the incident.
“No, Oh-chan,” he said, tugging Ohno’s hand and lifting it up to his lips, “It wasn’t,” he said, “You’re not. This is…we’re in a hospital.”
“No, no, that’s not… I.. took the day off yesterday,” Ohno said, voice shaking, “11th of March, right?”
He shook his head, feeling the dampness before he even realized he was crying, his lips pressed softly against the back of Ohno’s hand. “Today is March 21, Satoshi. The 21st. You’ve been missing for ten days, eight hours, and twenty-five minutes before we found you. I’m sorry. I’m so sorry.”
+
“We don’t know exactly what happened,” he said a long moment later, when he could finally talk without ending up bawling against his and Ohno’s joined hands. To his credit, Ohno didn’t call him out on it or even tease him for being such a drama queen, not when he was certain Ohno himself was having a hard time keeping his own tears at bay as Nino cried for them both. “On the day it happened, the earthquake, everyone was called to head back to the Jimusho. Everyone… everyone was there except…except you. I - I knew you were supposed to go out that day because we were talking about it the day before, so I was… I was worried.”
“Nino -“
He breathed in deeply and gathered all of his remaining courage so he could look Ohno in the eye as he squeezed Ohno’s hands consolingly.
“And it wasn’t unfounded,” he continued, swallowing past the terrible lump forming in his throat at the remembered pain of that day and the following days after. “Because even before I told them you were supposed to be out at sea that day, they’ve already been calling you. And they couldn’t contact you. We couldn’t contact you, Oh-chan. For the first twenty-four hours, we tried reaching you, on your phone, anyone who might know where you are, but we couldn’t…no one knew where to find you.”
“I - I don’t remember any of this -“
He nodded, patting the back of Ohno’s hand knowingly. It was probably for the best that Ohno didn’t, Nino thought, especially after everything that had happened.
“We…We were able to find the captain of the boat that was supposed to charter your trip that night,” he said. “He told us he didn’t go.” To this, Ohno nodded.
“His boat needed some last minute repairs,” Ohno said, brows furrowed; “I remember that. He - there was another boat, one that was available. He knows the Captain. He made the call, he -“
“Yes,” Nino agreed, remembering his struggle to keep his sanity when he learned that that person, along with two of his crews was dead. “The Captain of that boat is dead, Leader,” Nino said, “I’m sorry.”
“D-Dead?”
“The boat itself was found abandoned near the port of Matsushima, the Captain and three of the crews dead. You weren’t with them.” Ohno gasped at this and Nino’s hand absently went tight around Ohno’s own.
“S-So how did I…how come I am alive?” Ohno asked, voice filled with wonder and something else.
Because you promised me, Nino choked on the words even though he couldn’t say them, biting his lips hard enough to draw blood as he kept his eyes on Ohno’s face. Because you said you will stay alive for me.
“I don’t really care about the how’s and the whatnot,” he grunted, “You’re alive and that’s the only thing I care about. Because if you died that night, I swear to you that I will find you, revive you just so I can kill you myself. I already told you this before, you keep on forgetting it.”
“I don’t,” Ohno said, “I haven’t,” his expression softening. “I promised you I will stay alive, and I did, right? I did stay alive, Nino, even though I’m not really sure how it happened. Wow.”
“As you should,” he agreed, nose in the air. He didn’t think he would even want to remember the very same conversation again without ending up in tears but he guessed it couldn’t be helped.
“Then?” Ohno prompted after a moment. Nino realized had kept quiet as well. “What happened after?”
Nino found himself taking another deep breath. “They…They found you nowhere near the location of the boat you boarded, not even close to where it was found,” he said, looking up at Ohno for confirmation. Ohno seemed to be holding his breath as Nino squeezed their fingers together.
“I… W-What do you mean?” Ohno asked. “Where did…where did they find me?”
“In Fukui, Oh-chan,” he said, “A group of rescuers found you floating near the Fukui port, unconscious and hogging a large piece of wood the day after the earthquake.”
“B-But how…how did I end up there?” Ohno frowned, “That’s completely…that’s impossible!”
“Oh-chan -“
“Jesus, that’s not even…” Ohno’s voice trailed here, his eyes wide with surprise. “Then how did you…How did you guys find me?” Ohno asked, breathing hard. “So, are we…are we in Fukui now?”
“No,” Nino said, and the urge to hold Ohno close to him was so strong he had to breathe a couple of times to calm himself. “We’re in Tokyo now. They’ve transferred you here from Fukui a couple of days ago.”
“T-Then how? How did you know where to find me?”
Nino was sure this was where he needed to skip so many things, at least until he was sure Ohno was healed enough to take every bits of information with regards to how Nino was able to find him. He couldn’t tell Ohno about it, of how Nino was certain Ohno himself had been the very reason Nino had known where to go, that it was Ohno who had kept Nino’s hopes up even though it sure felt like there weren’t any left, at least not now, and if Nino could help it, maybe he wouldn’t ever.
Still, it wouldn’t probably hurt to say the things that truly mattered, or at least everything Nino had kept hidden for so long because of his fear, his lack of courage. He’d waited more than a decade (and an awfully frightening incident of almost losing Ohno) for this after all, more than a decade to be able to come to terms with the fact that if there was one thing he couldn’t live without, it was Ohno Satoshi himself.
Bravely reaching up to curl his fingers around Ohno’s jaw, Nino smiled, heart twisting inside his ribcage in a way that was completely different from how Nino was used to feel before.
“Does it matter?” he found himself saying, vaguely wondering if was simply saying it to buy more time, more courage.
“It matters to me, Nino,” Ohno said, his mouth lilting thoughtfully at the edges and Nino had this sickening urge to press his lips against Ohno’s own, if only to make sure he wasn’t dreaming. “Because I…I do remember us talking…about this…before…”
“Yes,” Nino breathed, quick, surprising even himself at the swiftness with which he was agreeing. “So you do remember it? The exact number of days and hours I’ve mentioned before?”
“Ten days, eight hours and twenty-five minutes, right?”
“Yes,”
“It was a joke,” Ohno said, but Nino was certain he didn’t mean it.
“You know it’s not,”
“It’s not,” Ohno agreed, wholeheartedly, and Nino never felt so sure about his feelings for Ohno, or at least the ones he vowed to never say in his presence, until that moment. Ohno tugged at their hands, softly, ever so softly, until Nino realized he was leaning in, bracing himself with a hand against the bed, and Ohno’s face not even an inch away from his own. “At least not for me.” Ohno said, his voice filled with so many different things Nino himself had hoped he could verbalize sooner, but wasn’t able to.
But it wasn’t Ohno who had to suffer the past ten days thinking he’d lost the very thing that meant the world to him, and so Ohno wouldn’t probably know.
But Nino did, so he wasn’t going to wait anymore.
“I love you,” Nino breathed, softly, barely inaudibly against Ohno’s mouth. He was smiling but he couldn’t help it, not with the way Ohno’s eyes lit up in comprehension, the way he drew his breath happily as Nino pressed their mouths together, firmly, and making Nino realize he wasn’t the only one waiting.
When Nino pulled back, he was met with a whining sound and Ohno rounding his free hand to the back of his neck to pull him in, and Ohno’s mouth - soft and warm and coaxing - was on him, putting all of the decade-long love and frustration in that one kiss with his hand steady around Nino’s head.
(10 days 8 hours 25 minutes - Bonus 2 + Epilogue)