Yes, I AM a geeky fangirl
So, despite the busy day (as;ldfkjdkl WHY DO I HAVE THIS MANY KIDS? WHY DO I OWN THEIR FRIENDS, TOO?) and the fact that I have other things to write (a;sdkf;SUNDAY), I took twenty minutes to write this. Happy Birthday, Neen. You make me happy.
.
Nino always used his birthday as a chance to look back at his life and meditate on who he was, who he had been, and who he wanted to become. During the last ten years the time he had available to do this had diminished dramatically but he still kept the tradition. Last year's birthday had been spent on tour; getting to the venue, finding the hotel, quick meals and costume approval. This year's birthday was being spent taping. He tipped his head back for the makeup girl and let her jab at his eyes with an eyeliner.
As he did his best not to blink he could see his bandmates around him. Ohno was drowsing though having his hair styled and Aiba and Sho were laughing together as Aiba told stories about his latest trip for Shimura. Jun was sitting beside him, getting lipliner applied. He was scowling crankily at the room but it was early morning and he was clutching a red can of coffee with hummingbirds on it, so it was a better-than-even bet that Jun would wake up all the way sooner rather than later.
Looking at each of them Nino mentally cataloged how they'd all changed in the birthdays between their first meetings and today. Older, wiser, calmer, gentler, happier, sleepier, sadder, brighter, stronger, together. This was his life, his everyday life, and he was marking his twenty-sixth birthday, entering his twenty-seventh year, in the midst of it. He felt grown up and responsible and mature.
The makeup girl finished brushing mascara on him and turned him loose. Nino hopped out of the chair. "Presents!" he said, holding out his hands expectantly.
Four voices sounded at once and in complete unison. "I'm buying you dinner!"
Nino looked at them. "It's my birthday and you want me to eat four times?" he asked them, ignoring Sho's pained look and sullen mutter about regular meals and skin and bones.
"I've got a nice, little Italian place," Jun said, ignoring the make-up and sipping his coffee. "It's quiet, private, and the food is exceptional."
"Well, I've got a cheap place!" Aiba butted in. "Nino, I was going to take you to my family's place. It's so good and you know my mom will let us upstairs to play the Wii. My brother just got new games for it, too!"
Sho folded his arms. "I'm taking you someplace expensive with a lot of booze and I'll even pay for your taxi home," he told him.
"I went fishing yesterday," Ohno said dreamily.
Nino took that in stride. "I thought your fisherman's sunburn looked especially red and crispy today."
Ohno focused, rubbing absently at his nose. "I caught a really, really nice bass. The captain wanted to make sashimi but I brought it home and gave it to my mom and she brought it to your house and your mom is going to use it for your dinner."
There was a beat of silence, all of them staring at Ohno. Nino blinked twice.
"It took a lot of time and effort to catch it!" Ohno defended himself. "I caught it with love."
"With love," Nino said, looking like the words cost him.
"Leader!" Aiba howled. "Now the rest of us have to get him something else! I don't wanna spend the whole day in the geek district again!"
"The geek district?" Sho demaned. "The geek district? He's going to make me take him to that weird porn shop again! And DO things to me there!" He ended on a half-panicked, half-resigned shriek that Nino ignored.
Nino pointed at Jun. "I am not going to your frou-frou hair place again!" he put his foot down. "That is not a present, not even for what you pay."
"I'll trade you," Aiba said to Sho.
Nino turned on him next. "You are not taking away my trauma-face," he told him. "It's my birthday and I am not taking some pervert to the porn shop with me."
"But I can help!" Aiba protested. "I can make him try on the strap on harness!"
"I don't need a strap on!" Sho shouted.
"You need a hair cut. How long have you even had this style? You're twenty-six. It's your birthday. Try something NEW for once," Jun exhorted him, crushing his empty coffee can with his typical first-serious-dose-of-caffeine air of command.
"It was a really great fish," Ohno said to nobody in particular.
Nino patted him on the shoulder and ignored the way he jumped and flinched. "NO," he said. "It's MY birthday!"
He started his twenty-seventh year screaming just as much and as grumpily as he had started his first. The continuity of it made him smile when he thought of it.
PS. The coffee is Meg's.
.
Nino always used his birthday as a chance to look back at his life and meditate on who he was, who he had been, and who he wanted to become. During the last ten years the time he had available to do this had diminished dramatically but he still kept the tradition. Last year's birthday had been spent on tour; getting to the venue, finding the hotel, quick meals and costume approval. This year's birthday was being spent taping. He tipped his head back for the makeup girl and let her jab at his eyes with an eyeliner.
As he did his best not to blink he could see his bandmates around him. Ohno was drowsing though having his hair styled and Aiba and Sho were laughing together as Aiba told stories about his latest trip for Shimura. Jun was sitting beside him, getting lipliner applied. He was scowling crankily at the room but it was early morning and he was clutching a red can of coffee with hummingbirds on it, so it was a better-than-even bet that Jun would wake up all the way sooner rather than later.
Looking at each of them Nino mentally cataloged how they'd all changed in the birthdays between their first meetings and today. Older, wiser, calmer, gentler, happier, sleepier, sadder, brighter, stronger, together. This was his life, his everyday life, and he was marking his twenty-sixth birthday, entering his twenty-seventh year, in the midst of it. He felt grown up and responsible and mature.
The makeup girl finished brushing mascara on him and turned him loose. Nino hopped out of the chair. "Presents!" he said, holding out his hands expectantly.
Four voices sounded at once and in complete unison. "I'm buying you dinner!"
Nino looked at them. "It's my birthday and you want me to eat four times?" he asked them, ignoring Sho's pained look and sullen mutter about regular meals and skin and bones.
"I've got a nice, little Italian place," Jun said, ignoring the make-up and sipping his coffee. "It's quiet, private, and the food is exceptional."
"Well, I've got a cheap place!" Aiba butted in. "Nino, I was going to take you to my family's place. It's so good and you know my mom will let us upstairs to play the Wii. My brother just got new games for it, too!"
Sho folded his arms. "I'm taking you someplace expensive with a lot of booze and I'll even pay for your taxi home," he told him.
"I went fishing yesterday," Ohno said dreamily.
Nino took that in stride. "I thought your fisherman's sunburn looked especially red and crispy today."
Ohno focused, rubbing absently at his nose. "I caught a really, really nice bass. The captain wanted to make sashimi but I brought it home and gave it to my mom and she brought it to your house and your mom is going to use it for your dinner."
There was a beat of silence, all of them staring at Ohno. Nino blinked twice.
"It took a lot of time and effort to catch it!" Ohno defended himself. "I caught it with love."
"With love," Nino said, looking like the words cost him.
"Leader!" Aiba howled. "Now the rest of us have to get him something else! I don't wanna spend the whole day in the geek district again!"
"The geek district?" Sho demaned. "The geek district? He's going to make me take him to that weird porn shop again! And DO things to me there!" He ended on a half-panicked, half-resigned shriek that Nino ignored.
Nino pointed at Jun. "I am not going to your frou-frou hair place again!" he put his foot down. "That is not a present, not even for what you pay."
"I'll trade you," Aiba said to Sho.
Nino turned on him next. "You are not taking away my trauma-face," he told him. "It's my birthday and I am not taking some pervert to the porn shop with me."
"But I can help!" Aiba protested. "I can make him try on the strap on harness!"
"I don't need a strap on!" Sho shouted.
"You need a hair cut. How long have you even had this style? You're twenty-six. It's your birthday. Try something NEW for once," Jun exhorted him, crushing his empty coffee can with his typical first-serious-dose-of-caffeine air of command.
"It was a really great fish," Ohno said to nobody in particular.
Nino patted him on the shoulder and ignored the way he jumped and flinched. "NO," he said. "It's MY birthday!"
He started his twenty-seventh year screaming just as much and as grumpily as he had started his first. The continuity of it made him smile when he thought of it.
PS. The coffee is Meg's.