Admiration of the Best Kind
Admiration of the Best Kind (1/?)
Title: Admiration of the Best Kind
Author: skytears9 (me!)
Fandom: Hey! Say! JUMP and ex-Ya-ya-yah
Genre: Angst (for now), Romance and Fluff. (Because I can’t help the fact that I’m a hopeless romantic at heart.)
Pairings: Hikabu (Hikaru x Yabu, one-sided), Hikanoo (Hikaru x Inoo), & Yamabu (Yamashita x Yabu).
Word Count: 1555
Summary: Ever since his first day on the Ya-ya-yah show, Yaotome Hikaru had always admired Yabu Kota. Along the way of their friendship Hikaru, unintentionally, fell in love with him. However, he doesn’t have the courage to confess his feelings. Will he ever? Or will someone else come along to take up Hikaru’s attention? (And I really suck at summaries. T_T)
Notes: Take note that this is in Hikaru’s POV and this chapter is in pre-HSJ days. Also, this is my first time writing a HSJ series fic, so please go easy on me! Hope that you like it and I’m sorry if it’s bad and reeks of newbie status. Comments are much appreciated and fun love!! And make me smile! Don’t be afraid to leave one :D
Disclaimer: I own absolutely nothing. Nothing, I tell you. Nada. Zilch. Zero. But I do own some JE magazines.
Chapter 1: The Day I Saw You
I vividly remember the first time I met Yabu Kota.
It was on my first day to star in the Ya-ya-yah show and I was a nervous wreck. Since I had just become a Johnny’s Junior, I didn’t know many of the people on the show and was labeled ‘the new kid’ as soon as I walked through the door. I felt like I was in a shark tank, because everyone just stared at me as if I was a piece of wary bait. In addition, I was very shy, so before the show started I walked around the set, looking for a place for me to hang out. I was just passing the big, black cameras near the audience’s seats when my eyes landed on him.
And he never looked more superb than he is today.
Of course, I knew him by face. Who didn’t? He was Yabu Kota; the current and most popular Johnny’s Junior and the leader of Ya-ya-yah. He was and still is known for having an amazing voice and cute looks that earned him extreme fondness from many of the senpais, especially Akanishi-senpai. Nobody could resist his strong aura on stage and charming personality off it.
I really admired him for that.
He sat a few feet away from me, talking to four other boys. But I didn’t really care for the other four, because at that moment Yabu was all I could see. I remember being mesmerized by how his flawless jet black hair fell into his dark brown eyes and the way his dazzling smile sent butterflies fluttering in my stomach.
I guess I stared a little longer than I should have, because Yabu felt my gaze and turned to look back at me. He smiled and motioned for me to come over. At first, I couldn’t believe my eyes. I blinked a few times and pointed to myself, hoping to clear up the confusion.
Yabu laughed and nodded. I don’t know why my legs chose to be glued to the floor at that time. Maybe because I was nervous or was a bit star struck.
Since I just stared as if I was stupid and didn’t know how to move, he got up from his seat and approached me.
“Hey, is this your first time on Ya-ya-yah?” Yabu greeted with a kind smile.
I looked behind him and saw that the friends he left behind were staring at me. “Y-yes. I’m really nervous though.” Ugh, why did I have to stutter?
“Oh, don’t be. I think you’ll do fine,” he reassured me. “I’m Yabu Kota, by the way. But everyone just calls me Yabu-kun. What’s your name?”
“Yaotome Hikaru. Pleased to meet you.”
“Likewise.” He flashed that dazzling smile again before putting a hand on my shoulder. “So, Hikaru-kun, do you want to join us? We’re just talking about how my friend Taiyo’s tall height doesn’t make him look cool at all.”
“Hey! I heard that Yabu-kun!” the tall boy named Taiyo called out.
Yabu laughed and took a hold of my hand as he brought me over to meet the rest of Ya-ya-yah.
And it was from that moment, I unintentionally fell for him.
[~ ~ ~ ~]
After that day, we became best friends and I was quickly introduced as the new member of Ya-ya-yah. I was so happy when I found out that we were going to be in the same group, because it gave me another reason to be around him.
And goodness, I loved to be around Yabu. He was one of the most wonderful persons I had ever met and I loved the feeling he gave me whenever we were together. It was a combination of butterflies and a warm sensation set off in my stomach and then my heart would get caught in my throat-I could never tire of the feeling.
And despite my small yearning for something more than friendship, I never knew I could be so content just by being next to him. Honestly, it didn’t matter to me where we were or what we were doing, just as long as I felt him by my side.
However, I didn’t know that always being around him would be my downfall. As time went by, I took notice of his habits, likes, dislikes, and certain body language-the usual things that any person would know of their best friend. So, I noticed the specific way Yabu would act around him.
In the beginning, my heart couldn’t take the reality of it. I refused to see the way the two looked lovingly at each other in the dressing room. I wanted nothing more than to turn a blind eye at how they seemed to be in their own little world when they were together.
My breaking heart just screamed for me to deny everything I heard or saw.
No, Yabu wasn’t whispering sweet nothings into Shoon’s ear on our way to the shooting location. No, I didn’t catch Shoon tenderly caressing Yabu’s face before I entered the dressing room. And the reason I put my headphones at the highest volume wasn’t because I tried to drown out the sounds they made backstage.
It’s because they were best friends and nothing more, I repeatedly reasoned with myself.
But denial could only get me so far. Eventually, I faced the truth and tried my best to put aside my feelings for Yabu. It was a very difficult thing to do, because I was constantly reminded by the reason why I would never have a chance with him.
Who knew during that heart-breaking time he would enter my life?
[~ ~ ~ ~]
Since Shounen Club dance rehearsal was always tiring, I liked to spend break time by relaxing and listening to my music in the dressing room. Usually, I would try to do the steps in my head and slowly zone out.
“Hey, Hikaru-kun?” a sweet voice called and broke me out of my daze.
I looked up from my seat on the couch to see a feminine-looking boy about my age standing in front of me. His soft-features looked familiar as my mind tried to recognize who he was. About a month ago, a new group called J.J. Express was formed and introduced on the Ya-ya-yah show. They’ve become regulars as our back dancers and also sing with us in some of the songs, but I’m still learning all of their names.
Ah-he’s that one kid from the Puri-puri-pretty skit with Matsumoto Kohei! What’s his name again? In-Inoto? Inoo Kei!
“Oh, Inoo Kei, right?”
His eyes filled with joy when I said his name. “Oh, you remembered my name! I always thought that you didn’t know who I was, because I’m not as well known as Nakajima-kun,” Inoo gushed with a pretty smile.
Wow, his feminine features perfectly match his girly personality. I laughed at the thought before saying, “No, of course, I would remember a cute face likes yours. What’s up?”
A blushed appeared on his face before he hesitantly answered, “Well, the other day after practice, I noticed that you walk home the same way that I do. So, I was wondering if you would like to walk home with me today?”
Usually, I stayed around in the rehearsal room to see Yabu leave.. with Shoon. But since I was in the process of getting over him, there wasn’t really a need for me to see him off.
I thought about Inoo’s offer and quickly checked him out. He seemed friendly and looked too cute to say ‘no’ to. I especially liked how his smile made me blush a little.
Wait-why was I blushing?
“Yeah, sure, that’d be nice,” I replied, trying to avoid my own question. “I sometimes get lonely walking home, so it’ll be a good change to actually have someone to talk to on the way.” Inoo’s smile was so contagious that I couldn’t help, but smile back at him.
His smile went wide at my answer. “Hontoni? Yatta! Now I can’t wait until practice is over!” Quickly and without warning, Inoo enveloped me into a hug and I felt myself go warm at his touch. But I wasn’t able to relish in the feeling, because all too soon his arms were gone. “I’ll see you later, Hikaru-kun!”
I smiled again and watched as Inoo skipped away. The sight made a small laugh surpass my lips when I realized it was the first time in a while that I had actually laughed.
Was it really? I wonder why I haven’t laughed in such a long time?
Maybe it was because I haven’t seen anything funny. Maybe it was because I haven’t really found a reason to laugh. Or maybe it was because of…
I stopped to look at them. The two sat on the couch across the room from me and were talking about something they both felt passionate about. I guess it was really passionate, because I caught Shoon intertwining his fingers with Yabu’s.
On impulse, I turned away to stare at the wall. I know I’m supposed to be over him and that the sight shouldn’t even effect me.
But why did I suddenly feel as if air was taken from my lungs and my heart run over by a truck?