TOMORROW, IS HIS BIRTHDAY 1 | ENG - FANFICTION | HEY!SAY!JUMP! | YABU/INOO
Title: Tomorrow, is His Birthday | 1.
Pairing: Yabu/Inoo.
Normal warning applied.
Yabu had many things to ask about the brunette on the framed photo in the bedroom, but Inoo refused to talk.
"Because, the past should not know about the future."
Yabu found himself snuggling closer to the warmth that enveloped his body. For the first time in years, he could fall asleep soundly and it felt so comforting. He even forgot how to react when someone touched the tip of his hair. The arms around his waist him wrapped loosely, but enough to secure him in a tight embrace.
And it just ... fine. He thought.
Until he realized this was way too good to be true and too weird to be reality.
The peculiarity of the matter had not registered in his mind since both his eyes and brain were still hazy from the sleep for a second before his caramel orbs snapped open almost immediately. His sight met a lean chest covered with red―presumably a bite mark, and that’s a lot one. He followed the trance of the pale white arms, trailing the length to see a breathtaking view of a serene fair skinned face in front of him. A pointed nose and pinkish lips, and Yabu found himself perplexed for wondering what colour of the irises behind those locked eyelids.
Yabu was too mesmerized by how relaxed the man in his sleep, how sometimes the lips were pursed upward and how calm the breath he inhaled and exhaled. The curiosity in his brain unconsciously moved his hand to touch the soft hair―it indeed was, or to know whether it was a real human skin or a fragile porcelain―unintentionally forgetting the fact he was still in a stranger embrace that had a potential danger to him, oddly because the thought even had not crossed his mind. Not yet.
Upon receiving the cautiousness on his cheek, the unknown guy seemed to stir a bit, groaning an inaudible words uncomfortably, and slowly the eyes cracked open―showing Yabu a deep abyss that reflected his shocked image. Quickly, he retracted his hand with a speed he did not know his reflexes were capable of, and stumbled down from the bed they shared to retreat himself, his hands behind his―fortunately―clothed back and his soft honey eyes stared at the just woken up guy sceptically. He was definitely naked when rubbing his still sleepy eyes and confusedly sitting down, blanket slipping down to his waist, exposing his bare chest. Yabu resisted the urge to avert his eyes and continued eyeing the unknown male, released a relieved sigh when the almost naked body completely covered with the caramel colour of the fabric around his waist before as a slight tremor of him caught Yabu's attention. Yabu did not know the reason he held his breath whether in awe or alarmed, but he shook it off.
"Kou-chan?"
Yabu cringed with the overly familiar and silly nickname he just got. Secretly looking around the room to search the probability of someone else named 'Kou-chan' other than them in the room, to no avail, and to make him more nervous (he didn't want to admit it, though) for the fact he was undeniably alone with a mere stranger in some unknown place, and was called 'Kou-chan'.
The stranger stared Yabu back without expression, contrast with the latter's furrowed eyebrows and stiffed jaws―which Yabu wondered what kind of face he actually made to make the other deadpanned.
A heavy silence for a brief seconds before Yabu felt at edge and decided to break the weighted moment. "Who are ... you?" It wasn't his intention to sound so scared, but he couldn't absorb the reality of the world he was in now, and he couldn't deny that he was utterly confused.
The other guy (looked older and taller than him, maybe around twenty three or more, Yabu noted) startled for another second, opening his mouth before closing it immediately. He was practically as perplexed as Yabu, but showed it better than him. His legs crossed on the bed, eyes closed, and brows crinkled together, perhaps in a deep thought as both his thumb and index finger held his chin while the other were folded altogether.
When his black orbs opened again, Yabu was met with a genuine smile of his, weirdly because the warmth radiated to his own heart.
"You really don't know me? It's okay. I will exclusively introduce myself to only you. My name is Inoo Kei."
What's with his weird way of speaking? Yabu tried to ignore.
"Mine is Yabu Kota―but I suppose you know that already," Yabu turned his gaze to the framed photo on the nightstand, Inoo and some other guy, a brunette, taller, look like him but older―his future self perhaps, posing to the camera though it was only Inoo while the other was expressionless (clarified the fact he disliked being shot), yet Yabu had a inexplicable feeling that his face explained nothing but happiness.
Was it just a foreboding of him with his other selves? He couldn't answer it even with the simplest 'yes' or 'no'.
What he knew was he didn't feel endangered anymore.
For a reason or another, a smile Inoo crept on his lips was enough to put him at ease, telling him not to worry because Inoo would not do any harm, and he promised.
Then, Inoo suddenly get out of the bed, forgetting the duvet on his shoulder and letting it fall to the floor like that. Just after noticing Yabu's cheek went beetroot red and immediately turned his head to the opposite side, Inoo laughed embarrassedly as he settled the blanket on his body once again. He approached Yabu who still had this adorable crimson colour on his face, even to his ears and neck, then crouched his body by putting his weight on his knee a bit to equal their height. On the other hand, Yabu tried not to feel offended.
"It is a bit late for breakfast, but do you mind having a lunch?"
Yabu still found the shelves of book more interesting than Inoo's face, mentally observing the title and concluded them as the black haired man’s likes. He nodded a little, receiving a large hand on his head, cursing Inoo for making his heart skipped a bit.
When Inoo was not in the same room as him anymore, Yabu inspected the room of the taller. The wall was painted beige with chocolate colour of the curtain. The mattress was also in dark brown bed sheet, messy with no blanket because Inoo brought it on him earlier. He walked to the study table and found more photos of him―his future self, oddly because all of them as if Yabu there was unaware being captured. Between one of the framed photo and closed drawing book, Yabu saw a pair of small sunflower plushies laying unmoved.
He thought to himself, what kind of relationship he shared with the ravenette? Too intimate to be called a friend who shared a same bed naked. Heck, Yabu even didn't know his older self would let someone else occupied his personal life. He's taken the curiosity to know more about his drastic change of personality. And maybe he would ask some from Inoo, when he was ready to reveal himself to him.
This was all speculation―and Yabu couldn't believe that something like time travel was possible, though he couldn't deny that it didn't exist either. But there was a chance he had swapped places with his future self, albeit he didn't know how and why.
Inoo didn't seem to mind him, though. Of course, naturally, he was supposed to be at the very least disturbed because an uninvited guest like Yabu slept together with him, in the same bed, side by side, hugging each other―not to mention almost seeing his well exposed body (Yabu wanted to erase the image right now, because he felt weird just by thinking about it). Moreover, the ravenette even made him a lunch.
Yabu decided maybe he could run away from the window, but when he saw he's somehow on the at least seventh floor, he invalidated the last option.
Lunch sounded better than died in a suicidal manner.
And he was hungry as well.
.
.
.
The first food displayed in front of his eyes was curry rice. He saw Inoo added not too much tomato paste before, and he thanked him for doing that. As he settled himself on the other chair in the dining room, Inoo already took his bite on the food. The older didn't seem to choke or sick with the taste, so Yabu assumed he didn't put any poison that could jeopardize his life. He followed to dig the curry rice and a spoonful of it went inside his mouth, melting on his tongue, and streamed down through his oesophagus.
Yabu didn't know what kind of face he expressed to make Inoo immediately chuckled when he took his second bite.
The older man didn't ask anything about his travel from the past, and neither Yabu asked. Inoo always talked and had an ability of speed-talking, Yabu had a hard time accustomed with the habit of the ravenette. He told Yabu works was tiring and because of his surprise visit, he could take a day off for today. Inoo was a part timer in a mini market near the station three blocks from his campus. Mostly his time spent by attending a university he enrolled, studying about architecture design. Yabu asked Inoo what faculty the brunette guy on the photo in his bedroom took, only answered by a mysterious smile on his face.
"The past should not know about the future."
Later on, he spent the rest of the day in the living room, watching a random program on it. There was a news that interested him, but the thing that caught his attention was the date the reported said.
June 12.
He abruptly landed his gaze on the calendar near the television, read the biggest number on it.
2027.
.
.
.
The supper food he was consumed on the next day was udon, another favourite food of him. Yabu thought it was a terrifying to be said as coincidence. Inoo gave a plastic bag of tangerines when they watched a midnight movie yesterday. This morning, the ravenette made him a black coffee without cream and one block of sugar, while Inoo himself preferred a green tea instead. The amount of sweetness fit his tongue―albeit he was only fourteen by the age, he couldn’t reject the taste of bitterness from the coffee.
On breakfast the further morning, Inoo made an omelette. He belatedly notice the lack of tomatoes on his plate, while Inoo had an abundant (the fact was a normal amount, but Yabu's loathe on the food was exaggerating) quantity on it.
Yabu realized all the meals he had had for these three days on staying with Inoo in the future comprised of nothing but food he liked. The revelation startled him for a moment, but Yabu was left wordless by the smile Inoo gave him afterwards.
It was absolutely unnerving how Inoo could read him so easily. Not that Inoo was all that difficult to read either; the older boy never bothered to hide his feelings around him, showing Yabu nothing but his genuine and sincere feelings. Still, it irked Yabu how someone who was practically a stranger, even if the aforementioned was far from such to his future self, knew almost everything about him. It made him wonder once again, to what extent did his relationship with Inoo go to?
Yabu did not ask such question when he found Inoo gazing on his older self picture in their shared bedroom, trailing his hand on the hard surface, his side faced Yabu who just finished bathing that night, thus Yabu could see the explainable smile on the older male’s lips, one of his expression he hadn't shown to Yabu.
It's enough proof.
Yabu was special for Inoo.
But, still not satisfying enough to reveal about him more.
Did the Yabu on the future opine the same for the ravenette?
Yabu shook off the thought. He didn't like being in a deep thought of not knowing about anything. It's pointless to ask, because Inoo always refused to talk.
"I'm sleeping first," he stated to the startled guy. When Inoo turned his body from the chair he was sitting, he smiled, noting Yabu to go on. And Yabu crawled to the soft bed, taking the last look of Inoo's existence, before succumbed himself to the deep slumber.
Inoo was always a cuddler, yet Yabu let the other guy be. Whenever they fall asleep with his back towards Inoo, Yabu would wake up with himself being secured in the older male’s arms. He never liked being touched nor hugged, but he didn't mind, if it was Inoo. The older male had something Yabu couldn't decipher and it frustrated Yabu because the simplest thing Inoo did, created a huge catastrophe inside him, especially his heart.
He craved to know.
Albeit the disaster Inoo brought for him, there was warmth he had been longing for years. Inoo's presence and his ethereal, tender gaze made Yabu felt like he was at ... home. A place he hadn't been living before.
Since he was in kindergarten, his father had always been so kind. He gave Yabu a lot of candies, toys, and money. To get those, Yabu only needed to shut his mouth, to keep silent as his father held an unknown woman to his car, leaving Yabu wondering who she was. Yabu did what his father told him though, not telling his mother about a sinful affair his father had to other woman. But, as time went by, the secret leaked like his tears when his father hit him for the first time. He accused Yabu for revealing the secret to his mother. Even after the older Yabu left both of them alone, Yabu hadn't opened his mouth yet as he kept the promise he just made with his father.
The moment his father was gone, his mother changed due to her broken heart. Taking pleasure to hit him aytime, anywhere, and blamed him for everything that happened.
Yabu was lost, and had nowhere to go.
And then, here he was, sitting in front of a big shelf on the living room, scanning every photo on the white album. Perhaps there was a connection between his future self and himself that had caused the two of them to switch places in time. To discover what that possibly was, it was necessary to know his future self better and thus led him to the albums. However, without realizing it, he spent more time admiring the smiles on both Inoo and his future self's faces than cracking the mystery behind his time travel. Inoo was still outside attending his lecture, but would be at home in any minutes now.
When he opened the album, the first photo that met him was Inoo with his future self standing on the beach, seemingly other person captured it. Inoo was waving to the camera, smiling brightly while his older self was standing a little behind him, not looking at the one who snapped the shot but at Inoo. He was secretly glancing at the ravenette's flowing hair and white slightly damped shirt.
The second photo was taken by Inoo himself, as his arms stretched to the photo. They were facing camera that time. Inoo had his broad grin while his other hand made a peace sign. They were in front of a place Yabu recognized as Tokyo Tower. He was wearing a plain azure short-sleeved shirt and gray blended jeans. Inoo was wearing a white shirt beneath maroon cardigan and lighter gray jeans. They shared a same designed cap with different colour; his was red and Inoo's blue sky one, possibly a couple-y thing. To think his future self would be this kind of person, he couldn't help but snickered. Below the photo was written; September 23, 2023 third anniversary.
Just, how many years they've been so close?
Yabu kept observing the album, scanning his fingers through the hard surface. Until he saw the last photo of them, Yabu and Inoo, sitting side by side, hands were locking each others' fingers in secure grasp―on their laps. Someone else took the picture. Yabu's head was on top Inoo's that rested on his shoulder. They were sleeping peacefully in a bus, wearing a high school uniform. School trip? Yabu didn't remember the last time he joined a school trip since, well, practically he hadn't been in one before, because his mother never let him went.
"This one brings back memories."
Yabu slightly jolted upon hearing Inoo's voice. He was perplexed with the fact he let his own guard down, unaware of other people's presence. Fortunately it was Inoo, what if the other that possibly dangerously threatened his life? But, as the other was busied informed him about the photo Yabu's been staring for minutes, it turned out Yabu didn't pay any attention but captivated of the way Inoo spoke softly to him, the way his lips pursued downward when telling a bad times, or the way his long eyelashes fluttered. It was utterly perfect. Inoo seemed to forget the slip, but Yabu was more focused with his voice, not words. Strangely, the mere sound of Inoo Kei could make him calmed down and ignored the things he was worrying about. Was it the reason why his future self didn't mind the presence of Inoo around his personal space?
"He was so beaten when I found him," Yabu was taken back to the world when Inoo turned to stare at him, continued, "I didn't know what's gotten into me to rush to that place, finding him in such state, I felt my heart ached."
Yabu mentally noted he was together with Inoo for more than eight years.
Belatedly, he noticed the neat handwriting below the conversed photo; June 22, in which I received a memorable and precious present in my birthday.
Later that night, Yabu was, once again, hugged by the ravenette. Unlike the first time he awoke in visible surprise, or the first three days of staying with conspicuous unpleasant faces, in his ninth day in the same bedroom, Yabu gave up on resisting. But, he still had a hard time to sleep. There was something he couldn't explain about Inoo. About how Inoo talked about his future self hours ago, or how Inoo was staring at his future self's photo ... lovingly. He recognized the eyes, the same eyes of his mother used to show seeing her wedding photo with his father back then. But, somehow, it irritated him so much. He didn't know since when, but every time Inoo said something about his older self, he tried to mentally cover his ears.
"... Kou...ta ...."
Yabu knew Inoo wasn't unconsciously mumbling his name. He was calling out for him, his future self. Inoo had only ever called him "Yabu-kun" during his stay here, except for that one weird nickname at their first meeting. His chest tightened uncomfortably and for a moment Yabu found he was unable to breathe, nor hear, as the sound of static rang loudly in his ears. A hand reached up to grip firmly at his chest. It hurt so much, but why.
He just didn't understand. When had he gotten so attached to Inoo? At first, Yabu had thought nothing much of the man. Even Inoo was physically attractive, too delicate to be a guy, Yabu wasn't interested in any romantic relationship. Inoo also had a slightly above average in intellect, the only reason Yabu would treat him with respect, but still would remain distant. He had only intended to stay on Inoo's good side so he had a means of shelter and food while in this unfamiliar world, but at one point or another he had began craving for more.
What was it about Inoo that drew Yabu to him? He didn't understand.
And that was when Yabu wished he'd just return back to his world already, where he was free of these conflicting thoughts, of these painful feelings―and of Inoo Kei. The last thing crossed his mind before Yabu succumbed to a deep slumber was; June, 22.
Tomorrow, is his birthday.
.
.
.
To be continued....