Strive For Something Better Ch7
STRIVE FOR SOMETHING BETTER - CHAPTER SEVEN
“Uh, Uebo, someone’s here to see you,” Ueda, having been laying on the sofa reading, lifted the book away from his face and looked at the door to see a widely smiling Nishikido Ryo lifting his hand in a lazy wave.
Ueda stared at him and blinked for a moment, then all but leapt to his feet and just barely held himself back from running to him, managing instead to approach him at a normal walking speed.
“Uh, hey, Ueda,” at that moment Ueda reminded himself to smile instead of looking astounded and smiled at him.
“Hey, Nishikido, what’s up?”
“Uh, Yamapi and the rest are…busy, you wanna grab lunch again?”
For a moment Ueda was quite certain the floor beneath him had dropped away and he was falling at great speed, that could be the only explanation for his painfully fast heartbeat and the odd thing his stomach was doing. Blinking he realised he hadn’t answered yet.
“Uh…s-sure, okay, one second,” he turned and felt his eyes open so wide he was worried his eyeballs would slip out of place. He dug his wallet out of his bag and made to turn back when a hand suddenly clamped down on his arm. He jumped and looked up at Kame, who was smiling at him, thankfully not in a creepy carnivorous way this time.
“Loosen up Uebo,” he muttered. Ueda glanced in Ryo’s direction, Jin was talking to him and trying to poke his cheeks, but Ryo kept swatting his hand away and eventually Jin received a slap over the head.
“Mou~ Kazu~, Ryo-chan is being mean to me!”
“Kame, why is he here?” Kame raised an eyebrow.
“You want him to leave?”
“No! I just, didn’t expect him to come ask me to eat…” he trailed off, biting his lip.
“Why not? You said you had fun yesterday,”
“Yeah, but I also thought he didn’t see me as a friend yet,”
“Maybe he wants to, maybe he wants to get to know you better, build a better relationship, sound familiar?” Ueda glanced up at his youngest band-mate, who smiled and winked at him.
“You know, for being the youngest here, you’re annoyingly insightful sometimes,” Kame grinned and put his hands behind his head looking innocently at the ceiling and rocking on the balls of his feet like a ten-year-old.
“You’re welcome,” he said vaguely.
At that moment there was another Bakanishi-like whine from the other side of the room and Kame rolled his eyes.
“Baby needs his bottle I think,” he muttered, wandering over to his childish boyfriend, and Ueda couldn’t help but wonder what happened to that calm and mature demeanour they saw during filming. Ryo looked over at him suddenly.
“Hime, you coming?” Ueda jumped and smiled, pushing aside his random musings and nodding. He joined Ryo by the door and glanced back at Kame, who was patting Jin’s abused head tenderly and grinning at him.
“If you’re going to keep poking him of course he’d hit you, baka,” Jin pouted at him and slid his arms around his waist, earning him and eye roll and a fond smile.
“Uh, Kame, our next practise starts at two right? I’ll be back by then,” Kame nodded at him and shoved Jin’s arms away playfully, wandering over to the couch and scooping up the book Ueda had left behind. Jin trailed after him and sat down next to him, leaning his chin on his shoulder. Ueda smirked and rolled his eyes before following Ryo out of the room.
“I thought that big baka matured lately, obviously I was wrong,” Ryo muttered, but when Ueda glanced at him he had a gentle look on his face, belying his true affection for said baka.
“He slips back into Junior mode around you and Kame and Yamashita-kun I think,”
“What’s he like around the rest of KAT-TUN?” Ueda grinned.
“An idiot, but not so much, more like…he jokes around a lot, and he’s usually smiling, but you and Yamashita-kun are his best friends and he loves Kame so he feels most secure around you I guess,” Ryo glanced at him with a raised eyebrow.
“You been studying psychology when no-one’s looking?” he asked with a grin. Ueda laughed and shoved his arm lightly.
“That’s just how I see it; it’s obvious he thinks the world of you guys,”
He bit his lip suddenly. It was happening again, that smooth, easy conversation that just happened effortlessly, without either of them realising it, they just stumbled right into without noticing and by the time they did they could have been talking forever.
Ueda smiled, maybe becoming closer with Ryo wouldn’t be as hard as he thought, especially if Ryo had also decided to try and improve their relationship as Kame seemed to think.
This time Ryo took Ueda to a café he sometimes went to with Kanjani8 when they were in Tokyo. It was surprisingly quiet and calm and Ueda couldn’t help but wonder what the atmosphere in the place was like when the Kansai natives were there. Ryo glanced at him as they sat down.
“I know, doesn’t seem to suit Kanjani8 does it?” Ueda grinned and looked at his menu. After ordering sandwiches and fries they sat and sipped their drinks, the conversation flowing once more like a woodland stream.
“How long are Kanjani8 in Tokyo anyway?”
“Just until next week, I have to stay here to work with NEWS for another week, then I’ll join them in Osaka,” Ueda nodded thoughtfully, staring down into his drink to mask the fact that he was unhappy that Ryo would only be in Tokyo for another two weeks at most. He wanted so much at that moment to ask how long he’d be in Osaka but he couldn’t do it, it might be too weird for him to ask, Ryo might think he was being nosy or something, but as he lifted his head, intent on changing the subject Ryo answered the unuttered question.
“I’ll only be there for a month I think, we’ll be promoting the new album there, then coming back to Tokyo for a while before the tour,” Ueda nodded again, shoving his smile back into place.
He was saved from having to think of anything to say for a moment when their food arrived and a comfortable silence descended over them as they began to eat. Setting down half his sandwich Ryo picked up his drink and watched Ueda over the rim of the glass as he picked up a single fry between his thumb and forefinger and slowly pushed it into his mouth, letting his eyes roam around the diner.
He would be lying if he said he didn’t enjoy talking to Ueda, on one hand it was as though they had known each other forever, making jokes and pretending to poke fun at each other, their words unguarded and the conversation natural, but on the other hand, in reality they barely knew anything about each other, so there was so much to discover, so much to say, to talk about, so many reasons to stay right where they were for as long as they liked.
Of course that was impossible, Ueda had to be back before two and Ryo was sure he had a magazine interview with one of his bands that afternoon. A glance at the wall clock behind the counter assured him they still has just over an hour and within less than fifteen minutes their sandwiches were gone and they were both plucking fries from the basket and chatting aimlessly and with every passing moment Ueda became more and more certain his chest was going to implode.
He hoped absently that Ryo couldn’t tell how hard he found it to breathe whenever their eyes met, how red his cheeks must be since they felt hot enough to grill beef tongue, or how he flinched and his speech jumped when their fingers happened to ghost past each other when they reached into the basket at the same time.
True he had thought at first that it might hurt to start associating more with Ryo because he knew Ryo would never have the same feelings for him, but instead he felt beyond grateful that Ryo was willing and eager to better their relationship. The fact that he had been the one to suggest eating out together this time made him ecstatic all by itself.
Maybe, even if Ryo never knew how he really felt, even if they never made it past friends, assuming they were even going to be friends, maybe Ueda could be happy just with that. He was already happy to be able to talk with him, eat with him and laugh with him. Maybe, just maybe he could be satisfied with this much.
“Ah! It’s already 1:45, we have to get back!” Ueda shot a glance at the clock. Ryo was right, they had been sitting talking for longer than they had realised. Again. He smiled as he stood up and fished his wallet from his pocket. Ryo glanced at him and shook his head, waving his hand at the money.
“Ah, put that away, I’ll pay,” Ueda blinked.
“Eh? Wait, that’s okay, I-”
“Let me get this one, you can treat me next time, okay?” he winked and wandered over to the cash register without giving him the chance to argue any further. Ueda stared at the empty space in front of him, trying desperately to slow his heart rate. I don’t think even multiple hours of boxing training can do this to my heartbeat.
He looked up as Ryo walked back to him, mentally yelling at himself to get a grip and move.
~~~
Tegoshi was trying without success not to pace the entire lobby of the building. He had started off just pacing around the little cluster of sofas people used as a waiting area, and had ended up walking all over the place, his arms folded, an angry pout marring his features and an invisible storm cloud over his head. Thunder crashed with every step and more than a few Juniors had made the decision to leave or enter the building a different way rather than risk crossing his path.
He had been asking Shingo about Kanjani8’s schedule when he had noticed that it was lunchtime, and since Ryo had been in NEWS’ room that morning with Yamapi he had smirked at Shingo and said he’d go snag him for the hour, which had earned him a glare and a clenching of fists. But when he had reached the room he only found Massu who had started to smile at him until he saw the look of murder brewing on Tegoshi’s face.
He knew before Tegoshi even opened his mouth what was wrong and found himself trying to sink further into the couch. He was not at all used to this menacing side of his usually cheerful band-mate.
“Where is he? He was here before,” Massu swallowed.
“He went out to eat,” Tegoshi’s eyes narrowed.
“With who?”
“He didn’t say,” at that moment Pi returned and instantly took note of the look o Massu’s face, and once he got a look at Tegoshi he almost recoiled in fright himself.
“Tegoshi, is something wrong?” Tegoshi looked at him and crossed his arms.
“Where’s Ryo-tan?”
“He went out to eat with Ueda-kun,”
“Why?” Pi almost flinched at the tone of the question
“He and Ueda-kun wanted to better their relationship,” Tegoshi eyes narrowed..
“Why? It’s been four years or something, why worry now?”
Yamapi stared at him for a moment. Was this jealousy? Not quite, it was similar, yet, not ordinary jealousy, Tegoshi was angry, but it seemed more like someone had taken something from him, not someone, something, and it was confusing and creeping Pi out.
“Would you want to stay enemies with someone in the same company for no reason?” but the second he’s voiced the question he knew he wasn’t getting anywhere. He had been right the other night; Tegoshi had something going on with Ryo. The scary thing was, Ryo most likely was unaware of it.
“Ueda-kun and Ryo-tan have been keeping out of each other’s way all this time, way go out of their way to spend time together?” Yamapi, despite being disturbed by Tegoshi’s attitude, was beginning to feel rather annoyed by it, he was acting like a kindergartener and if he didn’t knock it off he was going to hear about it, at a very high volume.
Yamapi glanced at Massu’s worried face and took a deep breath to prevent himself from making a scene in their dressing room.
“Tegoshi, I think getting along better is a good idea for them, what if they end up having to work together? They couldn’t do it properly if they were on bad terms could they? Besides, I think Ryo is enjoying spending time with Ueda-kun,” he somewhat regretted his choice of words at the flash murderous intent that crossed Tegoshi’s face.
Tegoshi had looked away upon hearing that, why was Pi so keen on those two spending time together? What exactly was the point, more specifically, why leave the Jimusho without him or anyone from NEWS or Kanjani8? This made the plan harder, and he had never once thought Ueda would become a problem for them. Fair enough, it was just lunch and getting along better, but it would be troublesome if they kept doing this.
Suddenly he snapped his gaze back towards the doors as they slid open. Ueda and Ryo walked in, laughing about something. Tegoshi watched for a moment, eyes narrowing angrily as Ryo pretended to smack Ueda over the head and Ueda stuck his tongue out at him. With a cunning smirk he took off towards them, smoothing his features back into their adorable preset.
“Ryo-tan!” Ueda and Ryo both looked up. Tegoshi kept his eyes fixed on Ryo, not noticing the unconscious apprehensive look Ueda had taken on, the strange expression he had been wearing at the rehearsal the day before yesterday came instantly to mind, and it didn’t sit well with him somehow, but he said nothing, looking on as Tegoshi attached himself to Ryo’s arm.
“Ryo-tan, we have a photo shoot soon!” Ryo blinked in surprise.
“Really? I thought it was an interview?” Tegoshi didn’t miss a beat and widened his grin.
“That must be with Kanjani8, let’s go so we’re not late!” he punctuated this with a tug on Ryo’s arm. Ueda’s mouth twitched and the word ’brat’ flashed up in bright pink neon in his head. Ryo just shrugged and turned back to him, smiling and he couldn’t help but smile back.
“I guess I’ll see you later,” Ueda nodded.
“Sure, later Nishikido,” he nodded to Tegoshi, trying not to look as though he’d like nothing better than to beat him around the head with a baseball bat and headed for the elevator. He was just about to press the button for his floor when a hand clamped onto the edge of the door and they slid back open, allowing Yamapi into the lift with him.
“Yamashita-kun! You surprised me!” Yamapi gave him a grave look and wordlessly hit the ‘door close’ button and hit the highest floor.
“Uh, Yamashita-kun, is anything wrong?” Yamapi sighed and leaned back on the other side of the elevator, his arms folded, biting his lip as he looked at the floor, taking a moment to choose his words.
“Ueda-kun, this might sound completely random to you, but please think carefully about it,” he glanced up at Ueda’s completely confused expression and sighed before speaking again.
“Have you…noticed anyone out of my group acting…oddly, recently?” the confused look suddenly turned apprehensive and Ueda mirrored Yamapi’s position, leaning on the wall and folding his arms.
“That depends on which member you’re thinking of,” Yamapi sighed again and ran a hand through his hair.
“So you have noticed?” Ueda raised one eyebrow.
“Tegoshi-kun? He’s not exactly a master of subtlety,”
“You wouldn’t happen to have any clue as to what his angle is would you?”
“No, why would I?” Yamapi took a deep breath before explaining how he had noticed Tegoshi’s sudden clingy behaviour towards Ryo, how he and Subaru had noticed not only his behaviour but Shingo’s the other night, and how annoyed Tegoshi had been to hear Ryo had left the Jimusho to eat out with Ueda.
“Why get so angry about that?” Ueda muttered.
“I don’t know, normally I’d have thought he’d be happy you two are trying to get along better, ah, congrats on that by the way,” Ueda looked up at him suddenly.
“Eh?” Yamapi finally smiled.
“I’m glad you two are getting along now,” Ueda smiled back. Then he bit his lip.
“I noticed he seemed sort of annoyed at the rehearsal the other day, if Ryo wasn’t talking to him he got sort of…”
“Moody?” Yamapi supplied with a raised eyebrow. “Kei has said it before, that boy is a brat, but usually a harmless one,” Ueda looked concerned for a moment, chewing his lip so hard Yamapi was worried he was going to make himself bleed, he was about to say something when Ueda suddenly spoke again.
“I’m sure it’s nothing too serious, we’re probably blowing this all out of proportion,” Yamapi sighed again.
“Maybe, I hope so anyway, I just wanted to make sure you knew, since he got so annoyed when he heard Ryo was with you,” Ueda smiled at him reassuringly.
“I’m sure it’s nothing, but I’ll keep my eyes open, okay? Thanks for telling me Yamashita-kun,” Yamapi smiled and nodded and reached over to hit the button for his floor.
~~~
Shingo frowned at his phone. Tegoshi had just sent him a message that seemed as angry as the younger singer had been the previous day.
If Ryo-tan isn’t with NEWS make sure you keep an eye on him, he’s been eating out with Ueda-kun and if it keeps happening that’ll make this plan more difficult, we have to make sure we’re with him at lunch tomorrow!
Shingo sighed. This was all getting a bit high school-ish for him. Wasn’t this just supposed to be a silly bet between him and Yoko? He’d been hanging around Ryo as much as he could, flirting with him and going out of his way to spend time with him or be near him but if in the end it didn’t work then he would lose the bet and that was that. Why was Tegoshi treating this like a war?
He rapidly typed out a reply.
Tegoshi-kun, I think you’re taking this a little too seriously, it’s just a bet, besides, like I said, I’m the one with the time limit, so what if Ryo wants to eat out with someone else?
He flipped his phone shut, rooted through his bag for the magazine he had bought that morning and was about to go over and flop onto the couch to read it, but his phone buzzed angrily in his pocket and he winced and sighed as he flipped it open. Damn but Tegoshi could type fast!
I hate losing! And I hate being wrong! I have to win this, and if we want to win we have to be serious, besides, Ryo-tan and Ueda-kun have stayed away from each other for years, this is all too inconvenient! Make sure you’re with him tomorrow at lunch!
Shingo sighed and fell back onto the couch. He was about to open the magazine when Subaru, who he’d thought was engrossed in his book on the opposite couch, suddenly spoke up, and it wasn’t his usual light-hearted tone either.
“Hina, what exactly are you doing?” he stared at him as he waited for his answer, and Shingo could only stare back in mild confusion.
“Uh, right now? I was about to read a magazine, why?” Subaru didn’t smile, the look on his face was uncharacteristically serious and it made Shingo a little nervous.
“Not funny, whatever you’re trying with Ryo-chan, I want to know what it is,” Shingo felt his stomach drop into his shoes. Uh oh…
“I see you, all the time, clinging to him, flirting with him, you’re always around him, and you know what? So is Tegoshi-kun, Yamapi noticed too, what exactly is it that you’re after?” Shingo stared at him for a moment, somewhat resembling a deer caught in the headlights of an SUV rather than a car.
“I…have no idea what you’re talking about,” he said, but his voice was anything but convincing and Subaru, quite predictable seemed like he was going to get angry.
“Hina, don’t bullshit me, I wasn’t born yesterday, you and Tegoshi-kun have been acting strangely towards Ryo for the past couple of days and I want to know why! If you do something to hurt him somehow I swear the whole band will lynch you both!” Shingo flinched as Subaru suddenly stood up and stared down at him. Shibutani Subaru was not a tall man, in fact besides Yassu, he was the shortest in the group, but right now he seemed incredibly intimidating regardless of his height, and since Shingo was still seated he towered over him and his glaring face was cast into eerie shadow, as the hanging light was behind him.
Shingo swallowed.
“Really, Baru, it’s nothing, I’m not trying anything, I’m not going to hurt Ryo-chan, honest! I…I didn’t realise I was acting weird, I’ll try and knock it off, okay?” Subaru stared at him for a moment longer.
“If you’re lying to me, you’re signing your own death warrant, and you’d better tell Tegoshi too, if either of you do anything, either me or Yamapi will find out!” with that he sat back down and picked up his book again, glaring into the pages.
Shingo watched him for a moment before opening up his magazine, he was reminded forcibly of the reason he and Yoko had decided Subaru was not a good target for this bet. Despite his silly antics and generally easy-going attitude, the man was fiercely loyal and a force to be reckoned with when angry.
It seemed that he was going to have to be more subtle in his approach if he didn’t want to lose his bet. And he would have to warn Tegoshi that both their leaders had noticed. He groaned inwardly at the thought.
Tegoshi wasn’t going to take that well, and what with his sudden vendetta against Ryo eating with anyone besides either of them added to the fact that Subaru and Yamapi were getting suspicious of them, this whole bet was becoming a lot more complicated.
つづく
.
“Uh, Uebo, someone’s here to see you,” Ueda, having been laying on the sofa reading, lifted the book away from his face and looked at the door to see a widely smiling Nishikido Ryo lifting his hand in a lazy wave.
Ueda stared at him and blinked for a moment, then all but leapt to his feet and just barely held himself back from running to him, managing instead to approach him at a normal walking speed.
“Uh, hey, Ueda,” at that moment Ueda reminded himself to smile instead of looking astounded and smiled at him.
“Hey, Nishikido, what’s up?”
“Uh, Yamapi and the rest are…busy, you wanna grab lunch again?”
For a moment Ueda was quite certain the floor beneath him had dropped away and he was falling at great speed, that could be the only explanation for his painfully fast heartbeat and the odd thing his stomach was doing. Blinking he realised he hadn’t answered yet.
“Uh…s-sure, okay, one second,” he turned and felt his eyes open so wide he was worried his eyeballs would slip out of place. He dug his wallet out of his bag and made to turn back when a hand suddenly clamped down on his arm. He jumped and looked up at Kame, who was smiling at him, thankfully not in a creepy carnivorous way this time.
“Loosen up Uebo,” he muttered. Ueda glanced in Ryo’s direction, Jin was talking to him and trying to poke his cheeks, but Ryo kept swatting his hand away and eventually Jin received a slap over the head.
“Mou~ Kazu~, Ryo-chan is being mean to me!”
“Kame, why is he here?” Kame raised an eyebrow.
“You want him to leave?”
“No! I just, didn’t expect him to come ask me to eat…” he trailed off, biting his lip.
“Why not? You said you had fun yesterday,”
“Yeah, but I also thought he didn’t see me as a friend yet,”
“Maybe he wants to, maybe he wants to get to know you better, build a better relationship, sound familiar?” Ueda glanced up at his youngest band-mate, who smiled and winked at him.
“You know, for being the youngest here, you’re annoyingly insightful sometimes,” Kame grinned and put his hands behind his head looking innocently at the ceiling and rocking on the balls of his feet like a ten-year-old.
“You’re welcome,” he said vaguely.
At that moment there was another Bakanishi-like whine from the other side of the room and Kame rolled his eyes.
“Baby needs his bottle I think,” he muttered, wandering over to his childish boyfriend, and Ueda couldn’t help but wonder what happened to that calm and mature demeanour they saw during filming. Ryo looked over at him suddenly.
“Hime, you coming?” Ueda jumped and smiled, pushing aside his random musings and nodding. He joined Ryo by the door and glanced back at Kame, who was patting Jin’s abused head tenderly and grinning at him.
“If you’re going to keep poking him of course he’d hit you, baka,” Jin pouted at him and slid his arms around his waist, earning him and eye roll and a fond smile.
“Uh, Kame, our next practise starts at two right? I’ll be back by then,” Kame nodded at him and shoved Jin’s arms away playfully, wandering over to the couch and scooping up the book Ueda had left behind. Jin trailed after him and sat down next to him, leaning his chin on his shoulder. Ueda smirked and rolled his eyes before following Ryo out of the room.
“I thought that big baka matured lately, obviously I was wrong,” Ryo muttered, but when Ueda glanced at him he had a gentle look on his face, belying his true affection for said baka.
“He slips back into Junior mode around you and Kame and Yamashita-kun I think,”
“What’s he like around the rest of KAT-TUN?” Ueda grinned.
“An idiot, but not so much, more like…he jokes around a lot, and he’s usually smiling, but you and Yamashita-kun are his best friends and he loves Kame so he feels most secure around you I guess,” Ryo glanced at him with a raised eyebrow.
“You been studying psychology when no-one’s looking?” he asked with a grin. Ueda laughed and shoved his arm lightly.
“That’s just how I see it; it’s obvious he thinks the world of you guys,”
He bit his lip suddenly. It was happening again, that smooth, easy conversation that just happened effortlessly, without either of them realising it, they just stumbled right into without noticing and by the time they did they could have been talking forever.
Ueda smiled, maybe becoming closer with Ryo wouldn’t be as hard as he thought, especially if Ryo had also decided to try and improve their relationship as Kame seemed to think.
This time Ryo took Ueda to a café he sometimes went to with Kanjani8 when they were in Tokyo. It was surprisingly quiet and calm and Ueda couldn’t help but wonder what the atmosphere in the place was like when the Kansai natives were there. Ryo glanced at him as they sat down.
“I know, doesn’t seem to suit Kanjani8 does it?” Ueda grinned and looked at his menu. After ordering sandwiches and fries they sat and sipped their drinks, the conversation flowing once more like a woodland stream.
“How long are Kanjani8 in Tokyo anyway?”
“Just until next week, I have to stay here to work with NEWS for another week, then I’ll join them in Osaka,” Ueda nodded thoughtfully, staring down into his drink to mask the fact that he was unhappy that Ryo would only be in Tokyo for another two weeks at most. He wanted so much at that moment to ask how long he’d be in Osaka but he couldn’t do it, it might be too weird for him to ask, Ryo might think he was being nosy or something, but as he lifted his head, intent on changing the subject Ryo answered the unuttered question.
“I’ll only be there for a month I think, we’ll be promoting the new album there, then coming back to Tokyo for a while before the tour,” Ueda nodded again, shoving his smile back into place.
He was saved from having to think of anything to say for a moment when their food arrived and a comfortable silence descended over them as they began to eat. Setting down half his sandwich Ryo picked up his drink and watched Ueda over the rim of the glass as he picked up a single fry between his thumb and forefinger and slowly pushed it into his mouth, letting his eyes roam around the diner.
He would be lying if he said he didn’t enjoy talking to Ueda, on one hand it was as though they had known each other forever, making jokes and pretending to poke fun at each other, their words unguarded and the conversation natural, but on the other hand, in reality they barely knew anything about each other, so there was so much to discover, so much to say, to talk about, so many reasons to stay right where they were for as long as they liked.
Of course that was impossible, Ueda had to be back before two and Ryo was sure he had a magazine interview with one of his bands that afternoon. A glance at the wall clock behind the counter assured him they still has just over an hour and within less than fifteen minutes their sandwiches were gone and they were both plucking fries from the basket and chatting aimlessly and with every passing moment Ueda became more and more certain his chest was going to implode.
He hoped absently that Ryo couldn’t tell how hard he found it to breathe whenever their eyes met, how red his cheeks must be since they felt hot enough to grill beef tongue, or how he flinched and his speech jumped when their fingers happened to ghost past each other when they reached into the basket at the same time.
True he had thought at first that it might hurt to start associating more with Ryo because he knew Ryo would never have the same feelings for him, but instead he felt beyond grateful that Ryo was willing and eager to better their relationship. The fact that he had been the one to suggest eating out together this time made him ecstatic all by itself.
Maybe, even if Ryo never knew how he really felt, even if they never made it past friends, assuming they were even going to be friends, maybe Ueda could be happy just with that. He was already happy to be able to talk with him, eat with him and laugh with him. Maybe, just maybe he could be satisfied with this much.
“Ah! It’s already 1:45, we have to get back!” Ueda shot a glance at the clock. Ryo was right, they had been sitting talking for longer than they had realised. Again. He smiled as he stood up and fished his wallet from his pocket. Ryo glanced at him and shook his head, waving his hand at the money.
“Ah, put that away, I’ll pay,” Ueda blinked.
“Eh? Wait, that’s okay, I-”
“Let me get this one, you can treat me next time, okay?” he winked and wandered over to the cash register without giving him the chance to argue any further. Ueda stared at the empty space in front of him, trying desperately to slow his heart rate. I don’t think even multiple hours of boxing training can do this to my heartbeat.
He looked up as Ryo walked back to him, mentally yelling at himself to get a grip and move.
~~~
Tegoshi was trying without success not to pace the entire lobby of the building. He had started off just pacing around the little cluster of sofas people used as a waiting area, and had ended up walking all over the place, his arms folded, an angry pout marring his features and an invisible storm cloud over his head. Thunder crashed with every step and more than a few Juniors had made the decision to leave or enter the building a different way rather than risk crossing his path.
He had been asking Shingo about Kanjani8’s schedule when he had noticed that it was lunchtime, and since Ryo had been in NEWS’ room that morning with Yamapi he had smirked at Shingo and said he’d go snag him for the hour, which had earned him a glare and a clenching of fists. But when he had reached the room he only found Massu who had started to smile at him until he saw the look of murder brewing on Tegoshi’s face.
He knew before Tegoshi even opened his mouth what was wrong and found himself trying to sink further into the couch. He was not at all used to this menacing side of his usually cheerful band-mate.
“Where is he? He was here before,” Massu swallowed.
“He went out to eat,” Tegoshi’s eyes narrowed.
“With who?”
“He didn’t say,” at that moment Pi returned and instantly took note of the look o Massu’s face, and once he got a look at Tegoshi he almost recoiled in fright himself.
“Tegoshi, is something wrong?” Tegoshi looked at him and crossed his arms.
“Where’s Ryo-tan?”
“He went out to eat with Ueda-kun,”
“Why?” Pi almost flinched at the tone of the question
“He and Ueda-kun wanted to better their relationship,” Tegoshi eyes narrowed..
“Why? It’s been four years or something, why worry now?”
Yamapi stared at him for a moment. Was this jealousy? Not quite, it was similar, yet, not ordinary jealousy, Tegoshi was angry, but it seemed more like someone had taken something from him, not someone, something, and it was confusing and creeping Pi out.
“Would you want to stay enemies with someone in the same company for no reason?” but the second he’s voiced the question he knew he wasn’t getting anywhere. He had been right the other night; Tegoshi had something going on with Ryo. The scary thing was, Ryo most likely was unaware of it.
“Ueda-kun and Ryo-tan have been keeping out of each other’s way all this time, way go out of their way to spend time together?” Yamapi, despite being disturbed by Tegoshi’s attitude, was beginning to feel rather annoyed by it, he was acting like a kindergartener and if he didn’t knock it off he was going to hear about it, at a very high volume.
Yamapi glanced at Massu’s worried face and took a deep breath to prevent himself from making a scene in their dressing room.
“Tegoshi, I think getting along better is a good idea for them, what if they end up having to work together? They couldn’t do it properly if they were on bad terms could they? Besides, I think Ryo is enjoying spending time with Ueda-kun,” he somewhat regretted his choice of words at the flash murderous intent that crossed Tegoshi’s face.
Tegoshi had looked away upon hearing that, why was Pi so keen on those two spending time together? What exactly was the point, more specifically, why leave the Jimusho without him or anyone from NEWS or Kanjani8? This made the plan harder, and he had never once thought Ueda would become a problem for them. Fair enough, it was just lunch and getting along better, but it would be troublesome if they kept doing this.
Suddenly he snapped his gaze back towards the doors as they slid open. Ueda and Ryo walked in, laughing about something. Tegoshi watched for a moment, eyes narrowing angrily as Ryo pretended to smack Ueda over the head and Ueda stuck his tongue out at him. With a cunning smirk he took off towards them, smoothing his features back into their adorable preset.
“Ryo-tan!” Ueda and Ryo both looked up. Tegoshi kept his eyes fixed on Ryo, not noticing the unconscious apprehensive look Ueda had taken on, the strange expression he had been wearing at the rehearsal the day before yesterday came instantly to mind, and it didn’t sit well with him somehow, but he said nothing, looking on as Tegoshi attached himself to Ryo’s arm.
“Ryo-tan, we have a photo shoot soon!” Ryo blinked in surprise.
“Really? I thought it was an interview?” Tegoshi didn’t miss a beat and widened his grin.
“That must be with Kanjani8, let’s go so we’re not late!” he punctuated this with a tug on Ryo’s arm. Ueda’s mouth twitched and the word ’brat’ flashed up in bright pink neon in his head. Ryo just shrugged and turned back to him, smiling and he couldn’t help but smile back.
“I guess I’ll see you later,” Ueda nodded.
“Sure, later Nishikido,” he nodded to Tegoshi, trying not to look as though he’d like nothing better than to beat him around the head with a baseball bat and headed for the elevator. He was just about to press the button for his floor when a hand clamped onto the edge of the door and they slid back open, allowing Yamapi into the lift with him.
“Yamashita-kun! You surprised me!” Yamapi gave him a grave look and wordlessly hit the ‘door close’ button and hit the highest floor.
“Uh, Yamashita-kun, is anything wrong?” Yamapi sighed and leaned back on the other side of the elevator, his arms folded, biting his lip as he looked at the floor, taking a moment to choose his words.
“Ueda-kun, this might sound completely random to you, but please think carefully about it,” he glanced up at Ueda’s completely confused expression and sighed before speaking again.
“Have you…noticed anyone out of my group acting…oddly, recently?” the confused look suddenly turned apprehensive and Ueda mirrored Yamapi’s position, leaning on the wall and folding his arms.
“That depends on which member you’re thinking of,” Yamapi sighed again and ran a hand through his hair.
“So you have noticed?” Ueda raised one eyebrow.
“Tegoshi-kun? He’s not exactly a master of subtlety,”
“You wouldn’t happen to have any clue as to what his angle is would you?”
“No, why would I?” Yamapi took a deep breath before explaining how he had noticed Tegoshi’s sudden clingy behaviour towards Ryo, how he and Subaru had noticed not only his behaviour but Shingo’s the other night, and how annoyed Tegoshi had been to hear Ryo had left the Jimusho to eat out with Ueda.
“Why get so angry about that?” Ueda muttered.
“I don’t know, normally I’d have thought he’d be happy you two are trying to get along better, ah, congrats on that by the way,” Ueda looked up at him suddenly.
“Eh?” Yamapi finally smiled.
“I’m glad you two are getting along now,” Ueda smiled back. Then he bit his lip.
“I noticed he seemed sort of annoyed at the rehearsal the other day, if Ryo wasn’t talking to him he got sort of…”
“Moody?” Yamapi supplied with a raised eyebrow. “Kei has said it before, that boy is a brat, but usually a harmless one,” Ueda looked concerned for a moment, chewing his lip so hard Yamapi was worried he was going to make himself bleed, he was about to say something when Ueda suddenly spoke again.
“I’m sure it’s nothing too serious, we’re probably blowing this all out of proportion,” Yamapi sighed again.
“Maybe, I hope so anyway, I just wanted to make sure you knew, since he got so annoyed when he heard Ryo was with you,” Ueda smiled at him reassuringly.
“I’m sure it’s nothing, but I’ll keep my eyes open, okay? Thanks for telling me Yamashita-kun,” Yamapi smiled and nodded and reached over to hit the button for his floor.
~~~
Shingo frowned at his phone. Tegoshi had just sent him a message that seemed as angry as the younger singer had been the previous day.
If Ryo-tan isn’t with NEWS make sure you keep an eye on him, he’s been eating out with Ueda-kun and if it keeps happening that’ll make this plan more difficult, we have to make sure we’re with him at lunch tomorrow!
Shingo sighed. This was all getting a bit high school-ish for him. Wasn’t this just supposed to be a silly bet between him and Yoko? He’d been hanging around Ryo as much as he could, flirting with him and going out of his way to spend time with him or be near him but if in the end it didn’t work then he would lose the bet and that was that. Why was Tegoshi treating this like a war?
He rapidly typed out a reply.
Tegoshi-kun, I think you’re taking this a little too seriously, it’s just a bet, besides, like I said, I’m the one with the time limit, so what if Ryo wants to eat out with someone else?
He flipped his phone shut, rooted through his bag for the magazine he had bought that morning and was about to go over and flop onto the couch to read it, but his phone buzzed angrily in his pocket and he winced and sighed as he flipped it open. Damn but Tegoshi could type fast!
I hate losing! And I hate being wrong! I have to win this, and if we want to win we have to be serious, besides, Ryo-tan and Ueda-kun have stayed away from each other for years, this is all too inconvenient! Make sure you’re with him tomorrow at lunch!
Shingo sighed and fell back onto the couch. He was about to open the magazine when Subaru, who he’d thought was engrossed in his book on the opposite couch, suddenly spoke up, and it wasn’t his usual light-hearted tone either.
“Hina, what exactly are you doing?” he stared at him as he waited for his answer, and Shingo could only stare back in mild confusion.
“Uh, right now? I was about to read a magazine, why?” Subaru didn’t smile, the look on his face was uncharacteristically serious and it made Shingo a little nervous.
“Not funny, whatever you’re trying with Ryo-chan, I want to know what it is,” Shingo felt his stomach drop into his shoes. Uh oh…
“I see you, all the time, clinging to him, flirting with him, you’re always around him, and you know what? So is Tegoshi-kun, Yamapi noticed too, what exactly is it that you’re after?” Shingo stared at him for a moment, somewhat resembling a deer caught in the headlights of an SUV rather than a car.
“I…have no idea what you’re talking about,” he said, but his voice was anything but convincing and Subaru, quite predictable seemed like he was going to get angry.
“Hina, don’t bullshit me, I wasn’t born yesterday, you and Tegoshi-kun have been acting strangely towards Ryo for the past couple of days and I want to know why! If you do something to hurt him somehow I swear the whole band will lynch you both!” Shingo flinched as Subaru suddenly stood up and stared down at him. Shibutani Subaru was not a tall man, in fact besides Yassu, he was the shortest in the group, but right now he seemed incredibly intimidating regardless of his height, and since Shingo was still seated he towered over him and his glaring face was cast into eerie shadow, as the hanging light was behind him.
Shingo swallowed.
“Really, Baru, it’s nothing, I’m not trying anything, I’m not going to hurt Ryo-chan, honest! I…I didn’t realise I was acting weird, I’ll try and knock it off, okay?” Subaru stared at him for a moment longer.
“If you’re lying to me, you’re signing your own death warrant, and you’d better tell Tegoshi too, if either of you do anything, either me or Yamapi will find out!” with that he sat back down and picked up his book again, glaring into the pages.
Shingo watched him for a moment before opening up his magazine, he was reminded forcibly of the reason he and Yoko had decided Subaru was not a good target for this bet. Despite his silly antics and generally easy-going attitude, the man was fiercely loyal and a force to be reckoned with when angry.
It seemed that he was going to have to be more subtle in his approach if he didn’t want to lose his bet. And he would have to warn Tegoshi that both their leaders had noticed. He groaned inwardly at the thought.
Tegoshi wasn’t going to take that well, and what with his sudden vendetta against Ryo eating with anyone besides either of them added to the fact that Subaru and Yamapi were getting suspicious of them, this whole bet was becoming a lot more complicated.
つづく
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