Higenishi no more
I don't guess anybody who's interested missed the good news about the elimination of that horrible hairy caterpillar on Jin's upper lip in Sendai. It's been fun to watch the rejoicing ripple through the blogs and timezones.
"I beat Jin."
Taguchi's voice is awed. He's still craning his neck to stare at the sheet across from him. He looks back at his own with glazed eyes. "I beat Jin."
Jin has his 'Nobody talk to me or else' look, staring grimly at a point somewhere in the middle of the table around which they are all gathered on wobbly, uncomfortable chairs. Kame wishes he sat close enough to nudge him, or poke his collarbone. Defusing that mood would be worth a couple of bruises.
Not that he couldn't have predicted it. But Jin can be stubborn.
"I... beat Jin."
"The new hair suits you," Ueda says to Taguchi, like a parent explaining why apples don't fall upward. He has a quick glance at Taguchi's figures. "Didn't beat me, though," he adds smugly.
Kame stays out of it. There are no surprises in his report, which means that the only one who could have been serious competition is...
...Jin, who is lighting a cigarette in a non-smoking room and tapping his fingers impatiently on the table. "Can we move on already?"
"I beat---"
"Shut up," Nakamaru says tolerantly to Taguchi, but he's curious enough now to slide a glance over at Jin's sheet, too. His eyes widen.
"Holy shit, I b---"
It's enough. Kame stands, crisply folds the report on his share of the photo sales from Okinawa and slides it into the back pocket of his jeans. "I'm assuming Koki beat Jin, too. Congratulations, all. Don't miss this one-time opportunity to go celebrate. Meeting adjourned."
"One-time?" Koki protests. "Who's to say---"
Kame gives him a look. Koki shuts up.
"Out," Kame says. "And you..."
"I know, I know," Jin says. He crumples his report as he rises and tosses it across the room, neatly into the waste paper basket. With another deep drag on his cigarette he walks around the table, to blow a tiny puff of smoke in Kame's face. A little mischievous spark is back in his eyes. "Why don't you shave it off for me?"
END
Thanks to k_julia for prodding me to post this and for taking time out from the rewriting ARGH to give it a quick look-over.
I'm so looking forward to the Sendai pics. :-)
"I beat Jin."
Taguchi's voice is awed. He's still craning his neck to stare at the sheet across from him. He looks back at his own with glazed eyes. "I beat Jin."
Jin has his 'Nobody talk to me or else' look, staring grimly at a point somewhere in the middle of the table around which they are all gathered on wobbly, uncomfortable chairs. Kame wishes he sat close enough to nudge him, or poke his collarbone. Defusing that mood would be worth a couple of bruises.
Not that he couldn't have predicted it. But Jin can be stubborn.
"I... beat Jin."
"The new hair suits you," Ueda says to Taguchi, like a parent explaining why apples don't fall upward. He has a quick glance at Taguchi's figures. "Didn't beat me, though," he adds smugly.
Kame stays out of it. There are no surprises in his report, which means that the only one who could have been serious competition is...
...Jin, who is lighting a cigarette in a non-smoking room and tapping his fingers impatiently on the table. "Can we move on already?"
"I beat---"
"Shut up," Nakamaru says tolerantly to Taguchi, but he's curious enough now to slide a glance over at Jin's sheet, too. His eyes widen.
"Holy shit, I b---"
It's enough. Kame stands, crisply folds the report on his share of the photo sales from Okinawa and slides it into the back pocket of his jeans. "I'm assuming Koki beat Jin, too. Congratulations, all. Don't miss this one-time opportunity to go celebrate. Meeting adjourned."
"One-time?" Koki protests. "Who's to say---"
Kame gives him a look. Koki shuts up.
"Out," Kame says. "And you..."
"I know, I know," Jin says. He crumples his report as he rises and tosses it across the room, neatly into the waste paper basket. With another deep drag on his cigarette he walks around the table, to blow a tiny puff of smoke in Kame's face. A little mischievous spark is back in his eyes. "Why don't you shave it off for me?"
END
Thanks to k_julia for prodding me to post this and for taking time out from the rewriting ARGH to give it a quick look-over.
I'm so looking forward to the Sendai pics. :-)