Behind the waves - Chapter 9
Title: Behind the waves
Pairing: Aiba Masaki/ Sakurai Sho; Matsumoto Jun/ Ohno Satoshi;
Rating: PG-13 (R for this one)
Warning: none
Summary: Aiba has a special ability - he can see shadows surrounding people who can’t get rid of their past and what had happened to them and the people they once loved. As psychologist it’s Aiba’s duty to help them getting rid of their bad experiences (and their shadows) to start a new life.
Weekend had passed far too quick. Nino was back in the hospital - preparing for a six days working week and Aiba was back with his patients.
“Come in, Sho-kun.” He smiled at Sho and let him into his house. “How was your trip to the mainland?” Aiba could see Sho wincing. He really didn’t like talking about Tokyo.
“I was able to clear things up. Now I am full-heartedly back to this island.” Sho sat down. He looked horrible - and Aiba got more and more interested what Sho had really done on the mainland.
“Tea? Coffee? You look terrible tired,” Aiba offered.
“Coffee would be really nice, thank you,” Sho answered. “How was your weekend?”
Aiba prepared the coffee and didn’t look up at Sho. He had thought the whole morning about telling Sho about Jun’s visit or not. “It was very nice. Nino and Jun were here.”
“Jun?” Sho sounded surprised.
“Yes.” Aiba placed the cup on the table. He loved the smell of fresh coffee. “He told me that Ohno went fishing and he didn’t want to be alone at home,” Aiba lied. He couldn’t tell Sho the truth about Jun’s visit. Even though Jun wasn’t his patient, their talk seemed to be something just between them for Aiba.
“Really?” Sho asked. His eyes were small and sparkling like he wanted to read Aiba’s thoughts. “He didn’t say something else?”
Got you - Aiba thought and hid a grin. He just needed to pretend that he had no idea. “Is there something he should have told me?”
Sho sighed. He was fighting with an answer and if he should tell Aiba the truth or not. It felt good to see Sho struggling with his own thoughts. It was a step forward for Aiba. “We had a stupid fight,” Sho finally said. Aiba was surprised even though he could see Sho thinking about what to say. He didn’t count with an honest answer.
“You and Jun?” Aiba acted the fool.
Sho shook his head. “No, not really. It was me and Ohno fighting, but in the end we slashed at Jun.”
“Do you feel sorry about that?” Aiba asked.
Sho looked up at him. There was a second where his wall fell down. It was just a second and nothing more, but Aiba had the feeling to see the real Sho there. And the real Sho felt sorry. “Yes, a little bit.” He sighed.
“What did you fight about?” Aiba asked.
Sho let out another deep sigh. He shifted nervously on his chair. “We discussed work and living here.”
Aiba looked at Sho closely. “And that let you end up in a huge fight?”
Sho leaned back against his chair. He seemed to seriously think about what to say now. “Yes, and no.” Sho smiled at him. It was a new smile he showed to Aiba - a mixture of sadness, confusion, mixed with tiredness - but the arrogance was gone. “Ohno had a real bad year back in 2011 and since back then he wished for fleeing from here, just Jun holds him back somehow. And I am stuck to here, because I fled from somewhere else, which Ohno doesn’t understand. I think that’s what makes us running in circles.”
“Do you want to protect your brother?” Aiba asked instead of asking further about the fight between Sho and Ohno.
Sho shook his head. “He has a good match with Ohno, just that Ohno has a big burden to carry. But I guess no one is problem free, right?”
Yes, that was true, but every burden was different and some were harder to work on, some were easier to handle. “What’s your burden, Sho-san?”
Aiba scanned Sho’s reaction. First there was no move, till Sho coughed and shifted again on his chair. He fumbled with his hair, staring at the ceiling. “Why are you doing this to me?” He finally said.
“What?”
Sho smiled. “I am here because I was forced to, and I swore myself that I won’t tell you a single bit of my life, and now you make me talking to you, and I don’t know why.”
“Maybe I am just a good psychologist.” Aiba shrugged.
Sho laughed out loud. “Yes, maybe.” He kept silent for a moment, and Aiba had the feeling that he got lost in his own world. It must have been a sad and depressing world, because Sho’s eyes got small and dark and his hands worked nervously on the napkin Aiba had placed next to the cup of coffee. “I lost someone.” Sho’s voice was husky. He didn’t say that out loud easily, and Aiba wasn’t sure how often he had already talked about that openly.
“Papa … ,” the shadow whispered. “You talk about it, finally.” The small shadow jumped up and down like she was happy that Sho finally spoke about it.
Sho looked at the sea, his thoughts pulled him into an absent-minded stare.
“Do you like the sea?” Aiba asked.
Sho looked at him. “No. I hate it.”
Aiba stood up and opened the door to the terrace. “Come.”
Sho followed him down the path till they reached the small beach at Aiba’s piece of land.
Aiba slipped out of his shoes and stepped into the cold water till it reached his knees. “Come in here.”
Sho bounced from one foot to the other. “I can’t. I have the feeling of getting sick when I go into the water.”
“You loved swimming and toying around so much, Papa. Don’t lose this, please.” The shadow splashed some water up. It looked like a wave had caught a stone, and Sho didn’t even realize that there was something wrong with the situation.
Aiba turned to look at Sho. He stared at a buoy far outside in the water. It was going up and down with the waves. Suddenly Sho knelt down, his hands pressed on his ears, like he wanted everything around him to become silent. Aiba had thought about at least 100 possible reactions from Sho in their session today - this wasn’t one of the possible ones.
He walked out of the water and knelt next to Sho, one hand touching Sho’s shoulder. “It was my fault,” Sho pressed out.
“No, no, no!” The shadow stomped with the left foot. “It wasn’t.” Aiba felt everything spinning. The energy the shadow took from him was enormous.
“Give me your hand, Sho-san.” Aiba had an idea. It was something he normally didn’t do, but Sho was so stuck in his role, he needed a push into the right direction.
Sho looked at him before he carefully stretched his arm. Aiba took his and guided it to the water till their hands reached the cold and wet sand on the sea’s ground. Sho was trembling. He hated this feeling, Aiba could feel it in the way he clenched around Aiba’s hand. His body was tensed. He wouldn’t stand this situation for long.
Aiba looked at the shadow, which knelt in the water. Its hand hovered a tiny bit over Aiba’s and Sho’s. Aiba pulled their hands up till Sho’s hand touched the shadows. Aiba had no idea if it would work out what he had planned.
The shadow’s hand crossed Sho’s and he immediately pulled his hand back. “I hate the sea.”
He sat back on the ground and stared at the horizon. Aiba sat next to him and they kept quiet for a moment. He thought the shadow would be able to get in contact with Sho, but it didn’t work out.
“Why do you hate it that much?” Aiba asked after a while.
Sho shook his head. “I … can’t …”
“What are your hobbies?” Aiba changed the topic. He knew it was senseless to ask further. Sho wouldn’t be able to talk about anything today anymore.
“What?” Sho blinked. He seemed confused. “I like reading a lot and I often go for a walk with our dog. I really enjoy long walks.”
“Sho-san, can I give you an exercise today?” Aiba asked.
Sho was thinking about what to say, but it seemed that he had found some trust in Aiba. Aiba didn’t know what he had done that this had happened out of the blue, but it made it for sure easier to work with Sho. “Okay,” he finally agreed.
“I want you to take pictures when you go for a walk with your dog. I want you to make selfies, but you need to smile on the pictures and I want at least one picture a day where you have the sea in the background,” Aiba explained.
He thought that Sho would immediately deny doing this, but for his surprise he agreed. “I’ll try.” This was definitely something new in their therapy.
“Good, that’s what I wanted to hear. You can send me the pictures, or post it on Instagram, so I will be perfectly informed about your exercise.” Aiba stood up and they went back to the terrace.
“We see each other on Friday, Sho-san.” Aiba guided Sho to the door.
“Jun and I wanted to go shopping tomorrow, maybe you want to join?” Sho asked. He added a short “What?” when he saw Aiba staring at him in disbelieve.
“Sho-san, you made clear that you really, really do not like me and you’re just here because you were forced to come here. So what’s this now?”
Sho smiled a little. “Don’t know. Changed my mind.”
The shadow pulled on Sho’s pants. “No, it was me. I send you a dream where I told you to listen to Aiba-kun. I told you in your dream that he can help you. That was all because of me.”
“Thank you;” Aiba said more to the shadow than to Sho, but the other didn’t recognize that after all.
A/N: Hello everyone, I am back with this multi. What do you think about that step forward between Sho and Aiba? What wl come up next? Will Sho really send Aiba those selfies?
Just one thing about the further time table: I will post two more chapters on next Sunday and the following, but then I am on holiday for three weeks where I'll probably make a posting break ;)
Pairing: Aiba Masaki/ Sakurai Sho; Matsumoto Jun/ Ohno Satoshi;
Rating: PG-13 (R for this one)
Warning: none
Summary: Aiba has a special ability - he can see shadows surrounding people who can’t get rid of their past and what had happened to them and the people they once loved. As psychologist it’s Aiba’s duty to help them getting rid of their bad experiences (and their shadows) to start a new life.
Weekend had passed far too quick. Nino was back in the hospital - preparing for a six days working week and Aiba was back with his patients.
“Come in, Sho-kun.” He smiled at Sho and let him into his house. “How was your trip to the mainland?” Aiba could see Sho wincing. He really didn’t like talking about Tokyo.
“I was able to clear things up. Now I am full-heartedly back to this island.” Sho sat down. He looked horrible - and Aiba got more and more interested what Sho had really done on the mainland.
“Tea? Coffee? You look terrible tired,” Aiba offered.
“Coffee would be really nice, thank you,” Sho answered. “How was your weekend?”
Aiba prepared the coffee and didn’t look up at Sho. He had thought the whole morning about telling Sho about Jun’s visit or not. “It was very nice. Nino and Jun were here.”
“Jun?” Sho sounded surprised.
“Yes.” Aiba placed the cup on the table. He loved the smell of fresh coffee. “He told me that Ohno went fishing and he didn’t want to be alone at home,” Aiba lied. He couldn’t tell Sho the truth about Jun’s visit. Even though Jun wasn’t his patient, their talk seemed to be something just between them for Aiba.
“Really?” Sho asked. His eyes were small and sparkling like he wanted to read Aiba’s thoughts. “He didn’t say something else?”
Got you - Aiba thought and hid a grin. He just needed to pretend that he had no idea. “Is there something he should have told me?”
Sho sighed. He was fighting with an answer and if he should tell Aiba the truth or not. It felt good to see Sho struggling with his own thoughts. It was a step forward for Aiba. “We had a stupid fight,” Sho finally said. Aiba was surprised even though he could see Sho thinking about what to say. He didn’t count with an honest answer.
“You and Jun?” Aiba acted the fool.
Sho shook his head. “No, not really. It was me and Ohno fighting, but in the end we slashed at Jun.”
“Do you feel sorry about that?” Aiba asked.
Sho looked up at him. There was a second where his wall fell down. It was just a second and nothing more, but Aiba had the feeling to see the real Sho there. And the real Sho felt sorry. “Yes, a little bit.” He sighed.
“What did you fight about?” Aiba asked.
Sho let out another deep sigh. He shifted nervously on his chair. “We discussed work and living here.”
Aiba looked at Sho closely. “And that let you end up in a huge fight?”
Sho leaned back against his chair. He seemed to seriously think about what to say now. “Yes, and no.” Sho smiled at him. It was a new smile he showed to Aiba - a mixture of sadness, confusion, mixed with tiredness - but the arrogance was gone. “Ohno had a real bad year back in 2011 and since back then he wished for fleeing from here, just Jun holds him back somehow. And I am stuck to here, because I fled from somewhere else, which Ohno doesn’t understand. I think that’s what makes us running in circles.”
“Do you want to protect your brother?” Aiba asked instead of asking further about the fight between Sho and Ohno.
Sho shook his head. “He has a good match with Ohno, just that Ohno has a big burden to carry. But I guess no one is problem free, right?”
Yes, that was true, but every burden was different and some were harder to work on, some were easier to handle. “What’s your burden, Sho-san?”
Aiba scanned Sho’s reaction. First there was no move, till Sho coughed and shifted again on his chair. He fumbled with his hair, staring at the ceiling. “Why are you doing this to me?” He finally said.
“What?”
Sho smiled. “I am here because I was forced to, and I swore myself that I won’t tell you a single bit of my life, and now you make me talking to you, and I don’t know why.”
“Maybe I am just a good psychologist.” Aiba shrugged.
Sho laughed out loud. “Yes, maybe.” He kept silent for a moment, and Aiba had the feeling that he got lost in his own world. It must have been a sad and depressing world, because Sho’s eyes got small and dark and his hands worked nervously on the napkin Aiba had placed next to the cup of coffee. “I lost someone.” Sho’s voice was husky. He didn’t say that out loud easily, and Aiba wasn’t sure how often he had already talked about that openly.
“Papa … ,” the shadow whispered. “You talk about it, finally.” The small shadow jumped up and down like she was happy that Sho finally spoke about it.
Sho looked at the sea, his thoughts pulled him into an absent-minded stare.
“Do you like the sea?” Aiba asked.
Sho looked at him. “No. I hate it.”
Aiba stood up and opened the door to the terrace. “Come.”
Sho followed him down the path till they reached the small beach at Aiba’s piece of land.
Aiba slipped out of his shoes and stepped into the cold water till it reached his knees. “Come in here.”
Sho bounced from one foot to the other. “I can’t. I have the feeling of getting sick when I go into the water.”
“You loved swimming and toying around so much, Papa. Don’t lose this, please.” The shadow splashed some water up. It looked like a wave had caught a stone, and Sho didn’t even realize that there was something wrong with the situation.
Aiba turned to look at Sho. He stared at a buoy far outside in the water. It was going up and down with the waves. Suddenly Sho knelt down, his hands pressed on his ears, like he wanted everything around him to become silent. Aiba had thought about at least 100 possible reactions from Sho in their session today - this wasn’t one of the possible ones.
He walked out of the water and knelt next to Sho, one hand touching Sho’s shoulder. “It was my fault,” Sho pressed out.
“No, no, no!” The shadow stomped with the left foot. “It wasn’t.” Aiba felt everything spinning. The energy the shadow took from him was enormous.
“Give me your hand, Sho-san.” Aiba had an idea. It was something he normally didn’t do, but Sho was so stuck in his role, he needed a push into the right direction.
Sho looked at him before he carefully stretched his arm. Aiba took his and guided it to the water till their hands reached the cold and wet sand on the sea’s ground. Sho was trembling. He hated this feeling, Aiba could feel it in the way he clenched around Aiba’s hand. His body was tensed. He wouldn’t stand this situation for long.
Aiba looked at the shadow, which knelt in the water. Its hand hovered a tiny bit over Aiba’s and Sho’s. Aiba pulled their hands up till Sho’s hand touched the shadows. Aiba had no idea if it would work out what he had planned.
The shadow’s hand crossed Sho’s and he immediately pulled his hand back. “I hate the sea.”
He sat back on the ground and stared at the horizon. Aiba sat next to him and they kept quiet for a moment. He thought the shadow would be able to get in contact with Sho, but it didn’t work out.
“Why do you hate it that much?” Aiba asked after a while.
Sho shook his head. “I … can’t …”
“What are your hobbies?” Aiba changed the topic. He knew it was senseless to ask further. Sho wouldn’t be able to talk about anything today anymore.
“What?” Sho blinked. He seemed confused. “I like reading a lot and I often go for a walk with our dog. I really enjoy long walks.”
“Sho-san, can I give you an exercise today?” Aiba asked.
Sho was thinking about what to say, but it seemed that he had found some trust in Aiba. Aiba didn’t know what he had done that this had happened out of the blue, but it made it for sure easier to work with Sho. “Okay,” he finally agreed.
“I want you to take pictures when you go for a walk with your dog. I want you to make selfies, but you need to smile on the pictures and I want at least one picture a day where you have the sea in the background,” Aiba explained.
He thought that Sho would immediately deny doing this, but for his surprise he agreed. “I’ll try.” This was definitely something new in their therapy.
“Good, that’s what I wanted to hear. You can send me the pictures, or post it on Instagram, so I will be perfectly informed about your exercise.” Aiba stood up and they went back to the terrace.
“We see each other on Friday, Sho-san.” Aiba guided Sho to the door.
“Jun and I wanted to go shopping tomorrow, maybe you want to join?” Sho asked. He added a short “What?” when he saw Aiba staring at him in disbelieve.
“Sho-san, you made clear that you really, really do not like me and you’re just here because you were forced to come here. So what’s this now?”
Sho smiled a little. “Don’t know. Changed my mind.”
The shadow pulled on Sho’s pants. “No, it was me. I send you a dream where I told you to listen to Aiba-kun. I told you in your dream that he can help you. That was all because of me.”
“Thank you;” Aiba said more to the shadow than to Sho, but the other didn’t recognize that after all.
A/N: Hello everyone, I am back with this multi. What do you think about that step forward between Sho and Aiba? What wl come up next? Will Sho really send Aiba those selfies?
Just one thing about the further time table: I will post two more chapters on next Sunday and the following, but then I am on holiday for three weeks where I'll probably make a posting break ;)