Remix Fic
Title: The Distances Between
Rating: G
Group/Pairing: Massuda/Nishikido
Warnings: None
Summary: The evolution of RyoMass romance. Thank you to myxstorie for the beta. This is a remix of nanyakanya's story, Space. Originally posted here.
Disclaimer: I truly wish I could lay claim to them but they boys aren't mine. Hell, this is a remix; even the plot isn't mine.
Massu sat quietly and stroked his fingers through soft dark hair. He didn't know what this was exactly. It had become a routine between the pair of them. He looked down at the face nestled against his collarbone and smiled at the peace painted across it.
~
It had started out simply. Massu had been aware for months now that Ryo seemed to prefer to sit next to him when they travelled. It didn't matter if it was a plane to the other end of the country or just a van taking them to the other side of town. If they were travelling then Ryo was beside him. Of course, it hadn't always been that way but at some point it just started to happen. He barely even noticed it at first. Massu had a preference for retreating into his own headspace, hiding behind the barrier of his earphones when travelling.
There were days that he noticed a lack of chatter beside him and he appreciated it, but it wasn't until Shige pointed out that his peaceful trips were always a result of what Shige called 'Nishikido-kun clinging to your coattails' whenever they clambered into the van. At first Massu had just thought that Shige had been teasing, but then he slowly started to notice what Shige meant. Ryo would hover around him and disrupt any conversation with other members until Massu had taken his seat. Massu was always the first to choose a seat and he'd never really thought about it until he started watching Ryo's actions. He would subtly move the other members around and herd Massu to a place at the front of the group; prime position for being first through the door with Ryo right there beside him.
Self consciousness had invaded Massu at first, and he was always wondering what it was that Ryo wanted from him. It obviously wasn't conversation; Ryo never said anything. There had to be something else, except Massu just couldn't think of what it might be. Eventually, he'd asked Koyama and Shige's opinion, only to have Koyama scoff at him.
"I would think it was obvious; he wants to rest. You're the best person to be with when he wants some quiet time without offending anyone. Ryo-chan doesn't always have the energy for conversation and you are so comfortable sitting in shared space without really disturbing it." Koyama patted him on the shoulder and walked away, towing an amused Shige along with him.
After that there really had been a true air of ... well, not awkwardness. Which was new for Massu. Usually the moment he became aware of a situation he managed to unintentionally disturb the atmosphere. Somehow though, this felt comfortable. They never spoke about it but from that point on Ryo seemed to realise that he didn't have to work so hard to stick by Massu, because Massu had already chosen to stick by him.
~
Massu ran his fingers through the thick hair again and again, enjoying the unconscious, low rumble that purred through Ryo's chest at the sensation and thought back to the first time he had held him in his arms.
~
They had become more comfortable with their travel alliance but neither had ever spoken a word about it until that day. They had been on their way across town having just finished a round of interviews and photoshoots and on their way to the last job of the day. Everyone was fairly wiped out. It was amazing how tiring it was to smile so much in a single day. Massu watched Ryo stretching his shoulders through tired eyes. Ryo looked worse than the rest of them combined, but considering that he'd done the same thing with his other group just yesterday and spent his evening travelling back to Tokyo, it wasn't all that surprising that he'd be ready to give up for the day.
"Tired?" Massu asked, smiling kindly as he paused his music.
Ryo looked slightly frustrated, no doubt mentally berating Massu's skill to state the blindingly obvious. There was no snarky comment though, just a weary, "Yeah," as he rolled his neck, trying to work out the kinks it held and rubbing at his eye like a child in need of a nap.
Massu nudged him with his shoulder, regaining his attention, before nodding as if Ryo would understand the meaning. He wasn't sure what he was doing or what he was trying to convey, he just knew that he wanted to do something. Ryo stared blankly and he repeated the action, unsure if he could convey a message when he didn't even know what the message was.
Ryo seemed to understand the second nod and after a slight hesitation he moved across the seat a little and placed his cheek against Massu's shoulder. Massu smiled gently, deciding this was exactly what he'd been offering as he put his earphones back in and rested an arm down across the curve of Ryo's back. He felt the muscles there relax under the weight of his limb, Massu's upper arm rising and falling in time with the little huffs of breath that cut through the cotton of his shirt.
To Massu, it had felt right to have Ryo there, within his own fiercely guarded personal space. Comfortable.
~
That had been weeks ago. Since then there had been several times when Ryo had moved himself into Massu's space. This was the first time though, that they had come together just for the sake of being close. Usually it was between moments in their schedule, when they were travelling in the van or that one time during the break of a particularly exhausting dance rehearsal. This time though, was because Massu had been invited over to Ryo's to watch Shige's latest drama. The whole band had been invited, but at some point each of the other's had backed out leaving only the two of them.
The moment the show had begun Ryo had pulled his feet up onto the couch in front of him and moved into Massu's space, resting the crown of his head against Masu's bicep. Massu moved his arms, shuffling a little closer to cradle Ryo against his side. It was almost like a drug, this feeling of fitting together; they kept coming back to it without so much as a thought.
Logically he knew that Ryo was older, a sempai, an undoubtedly tough, strong, independent man. At the same time though, he looked down at the fragile shoulders under his arm and delicate eyelashes that were fluttering down against his cheeks before snapping back up as he tried to stay awake. There was something soft and innocent about this man that craved to be held.
Massu felt the shift as Ryo repositioned himself and held Massu's torso tight against him.
"What is this?" Ryo whispered against Massu's shoulder. Despite the annoyingly loud jingle on the chewing gum commercial, Massu heard the words clearly.
At first he wasn't sure how to answer. He looked into his own psyche and mulled it over. The ads were over by the time he was sure of his answer.
"It's whatever you want it to be." He mumbled into Ryo's hair then rested his cheek against the softness of it, eyes on the television and mind somewhere else entirely.
It was true. He would happily take whatever Ryo was willing to give and to give whatever Ryo wanted to take. If it was nothing more than comfort and a place to rest his head, then Massu would happily give and be content with that. But if it was more than that, if it was something special, then Massu would be more than willing to enter into that too.
Since the very start, this was the most that either had said about what occurred between them, but neither of them were really the type that needed to say things anyway. As it was neither of them said anything again until the show was over. Massu didn't even know if Ryo had heard his response.
When the show was over Ryo switched off the television with the remote and yawned against Massu in the dark. The yawn ended with a delicate brush of lips against Massu's neck that made his pulse jump erratically. Ryo moved sleepily against him sitting up slightly until their cheeks slid together and his quiet, warm breath tickled Massu's ear as he said a single word.
"Stay?"
Massu nodded and allowed Ryo to lead him through the dark and into the bedroom where they curled against each other beneath the sheets and slipped into a proper, peaceful sleep. Massu still wasn't sure what exactly it was that Ryo had decided would be between them. It was possible that even Ryo didn't know. But for now it didn't need a definition; it was enough just to have this.
Though waking up the next morning to lazy kisses and warm fingertips dragging along his torso did give him a fair idea of what the answer might be.