Life Stories (Part 2)
They always say time flies, times flies. But what people don't understand is it isn't about the times, it's about the people.
***
Call it crazy. Call it fate.
Both Kame and Jin got into JE, at the same time even. The rest was history.
***
Kame didn't know what to do when he saw Jin at the Jimusho. He stared at Jin in the hallway. Jin's hair grew out, it was now more blonde than brown, he grew taller too, he had more muscle too, but he was still good-looking. Still the same old.
Still shining, still brilliant.
And Jin stared back at him, his brown eyes wide, nearly watery. Kame clenched his fists together and turned around, and just walked. He didn't know where he was going but he just had to walk away from Jin.
"Kame..." he heard. But Jin didn't follow.
***
Jin didn't know what to do when he saw Kame at the Jimusho. Kame was still the same, taller, still skinny, his skin still pale and soft looking, still pretty. Still the same old.
But there was something different about this new Kame. He was confident, and he was no longer the same fragile looking kid two years ago. He didn't need Jin anymore.
Jin was shaking, just slightly, when Kame turned and walked away without any form of acknowledgement. "Kame..." he said, he wanted to follow him, he really did. But how could he?
How dare he?
He really couldn't, Kame was no longer his. But how can he explain?
That he couldn't bear to hear Kame's voice again and not be able to see him? That he thought that a clean break-off would have been the best for both of them? That he was scared and cowardly and pathetic? That he was a complete mess?
He couldn't do it.
***
It wasn't all so bad.
Until they had to form KAT-TUN. And things got a little edgy and pricky and dizzy. Jin wanted to make it up to Kame - but he could not, he wanted to explain - but he didn't know how, he wanted to say "I'm sorry" -but he didn't 'cause Kame was too much of a prick, or maybe it was just his ego.
KAT-TUN was a mess. Koki was unbearable, he hated KAT-TUN, he hated being "demoted", but honestly Jin didn't care. Nakamaru was pathetic, he couldn't really get anything done. Junno's life was the PS controller. Ueda was having affairs with fairies. That left him and Kame, which wasn't good news.
KAT-TUN was raking in popularity and fame through them both, and having to spend more time with each other wasn't helping things. They fought practicing for performances, they fought in photoshoots, they fought in interviews, they fought in everything. And neither of them was letting it go.
But thank god Okinawa happened.
Yes thank god for Okinawa.
***
"I need to talk to you."
"I have nothing to say to you."
"You do. We all have something to say, so why can't we just get it out?"
"Oh? So now you have something to say to me? So after disappearing for one and a half years, now you want to talk to me? Now? Jin, now?" Kame shook his head, eyes watering. "Isn't that a bit late, Jin? Are you serious?"
"I..." Jin tilted his head, trying to not let the tears fall. The Okinawa night sky was gorgeous, even after all the hell Tackey and the other senpais made them do.
"I'm sorry." It was a soft cracked whisper.
Kame didn't reply.
"This is a letter i wrote back then, right after i got to the new home. But i never sent it out. - Dear Kame, how are you? I'm fine in the new home, everyone is really nice. But i'm scared. Nobody sings me to sleep anymore when i can't fall asleep. I wished you were here, beside me so i can have someone. I have a very big room, but it doesn't mean anything because you're not around. I want to go back. I'm scared, Kame. I'm scared. I still love you! Love, Jin."
"Why didn't you send it?"
"I was scared. I was so scared. I didn't know how i could deal with it if i could hear you over the phone but not see you." A sob. "I didn't know how i could bear to leave you again if i visited you. I couldn't bear it, Kame i couldn't. I thought, then, a clean break-off would be the best."
Kame was shaking slightly. No way. No fucking way.
"And when i finally did get the courage to come and visit you, Sister Mary told me you were gone. You were adopted too." Jin smiled weakly, tears streaming down his face. "I was happy for you. They told me how you became popular, how you became so strong."
Jin was crying so hard he couldn't see clearly now, but he knew, Kame was crying too.
"Do you have any idea, how...different it was without you?!" Kame said, crying so hard yet trying to keep his composure. "Do you know how much i hated you? Do you know..."
"I'm sorry!" Jin grabbed Kame into his arms. "I'm sorry i'm so so so sorry." Jin held him tight, he was never going to let go again. Never.
"How dare you?! How could you!?" Kame screamed into Jin's shirt, thumping his hands hard against Jin's chest.
Jin didn't say anything else, he let Kame hit him, painful as it was, and stared at the nightsky. They stood there for a long long time, holding each other tight. It was going to be fine, everything is going to be okay.
***
Things got a little better. As years got by, everyone started to mature and get into the rhythm of things. Kame became a little too pretty, Jin'd rather have the bushy eyebrowed Kame than the shining starlet in eyeliner and fedoras. Koki started penning his own songs too, under JOKER. Ueda stopped playing with fairies. Junno was a more focused, and Nakamaru started beatboxing. KAT-TUN started to become very popular, and they were sure they were going to debut, someday.
Everyone was good with the pace, there wasn't any concerts to rush, just the right amount of rehearsals for performances, for a while, everyone was really happy.
Even when Kame and Jin both had to do Gokusen, everything was cool. They both got chosen, they both played the leads, it was all good. And in fact, Kame penned and sang the song Kizuna, Jin didn't say anything, but Kame knew he understood.
***
The next crack came when it was decided that Kame was to release a single with Yamapi and film Nobuta Wo Produce. Everyone was pissed.
"It's the management's decision." Kame said softly in their room.
No response from the other five for a long while.
"We were supposed to debut together. Whatever happened to that?" Koki fumed, storming off. Nakamaru, Ueda and Junno all said something nice and left but Kame could tell they didnt want that too. The worst, was Jin.
Jin didn't say anything at all.
Kame leaned against the counter. "Can you please, please just say something?"
"What do you want me to say, Kame? We are all grown up, i'll support you. It's good, releasing a single with...Pi."
Kame narrowed his eyes. "That's not being mature at all, Jin. You're...not happy about it."
Jin didn't say anything for a while. Then, "Whatever okay."
"No, not okay! I know you and Pi are good friends and i don't know how this came about okay? I didn't want this. I don't even like Yamashita!"
"You don't want this?" Jin hissed. "You fucking want this, Kame. I've seen you slog your ass off everyday, and you tell me you don't want this? Honestly. You deserve it, go ahead, do what you want!"
Kame stared at the schedule pasted on one side of the wall. What he worked so hard for, he didn't really know. How did things turn out like this? "You're just jealous, Jin. Yamashita's like the frigging golden boy of JE and I get to act with him, and you don't even have the chance to act with your own best friend, is that it? You've always been like this, Jin. Always the shining brilliant one, and now that i've got it and you don't, you feel jealous don't you?"
"No. That's crap."
"No it is not. You know it. And let me tell you what, i got here today because of you. I would never become this strong if not for you. If you didn't just leave and disappear that day!"
Kame was rambling nonsense, he just had to retort, and he felt like slapping himself when he saw Jin's eyes turn watery.
"Is that it?" Jin half laughed, half smirked, as he walked out of the room. The other four were standing outside, and Jin ignored them and walked away.
Kame slumped against the table, sliding to the floor, tears falling.
Here they go, falling and falling and it might just take another two years to stop. Or it might never, because it wasn't the same anymore.
***
KAT-TUN was cracking under all the pressure to debut, and Kame was falling apart with the drama, and his own band's debut. He was all shrivelled up, 40 kg of skin and bones. Dark eyebags etched above the sunken sallow cheeks, a worn-out body that survived on caffeine and the will to keep going.
Jin watched as Kame thinned, as his flesh eat themselves away in front of him. But he couldn't do anything. It was no longer about them in the past, it was about them now. The two frontman of KAT-TUN and the harem of problems they had to face.
Or didn't want to face.
***
Nobuta Wo Produce was a huge hit, so was Seishun Amigo. But Kame was relieved they debuted soon after. Thank god.
***
Their debut was a huge success. They topped the Oricon charts for how long, Jin wasn't sure. But there was a huge fuss, they kept going on interviews, shows, performances. From what Jin sees, it should have been somewhat a huge deal.
In the making of Real Face, Jin said that Kame was unpredictable. He didn't know what else to say, or whether it was the right thing to say. But he said it anyway. Because that's the truth.
But he couldn't take it anymore.
***
"Give me three shots, and one Earl Grey Tea." For Ryo. Jin mouthed to Pi and everyone burst out laughing.
"Oh fuck you Jin." Ryo said, "I'll have the same, thank you."
"Come on Ryo, you can't drink for nuts." Pi laughed. "I'll have to fetch you home again, like the other time!"
Ryo shifted uncomfortably in the velvet sofa. "Oh please, i had like 20 shots that day." Yuu rolled his eyes. "Anyway, wassup, Jin. You called us here for?"
Jin took a shot, still contemplative. A long pause.
"I'm going to America."
"What? Are you crazy? KAT-TUN just debuted! It's like the friggin peak of your career!" Ryo exclaimed. Yuu nodded in agreement. "That's rather reckless, are you sure?"
"It's Kame isn't it." Pi's eyes were dark as he just downed another shot.
Jin flinched. "No it isn't. It has got nothing to do with him."
"Oh fuck it Jin, you know it is about him. I acted wth him for Nobuta and i know what Seishun Amigo cost you guys. But it's over and your debut's huge." Pi paused, "You know what, I didn't even like Kamenashi to begin with, but after acting with him, i kinda understood."
"Understood what?"
"That both of you are idiots who love each other but are too scared to face your own problems."
Jin didn't reply. Damn Pi for seeing through him. He merely downed another shot.
"Anybody can see how hard Kame works, but that's not really it. It's the reason why." Ryo said softly.
"And you know why." Yuu muttered.
Because he doesn't want to be left behind again. Jin smirked.
"I don't know okay. I just want to get out of this place and clear my head a bit. I'm leaving."
"How long?" Ryo asked.
"Six months. Tentatively. Maybe more. Maybe less. Maybe never."
***
When Jin decided his hiatus, there was no niceties from the members of the group. Koki very nearly punched him in the face if the others didn't hold him.
Jin wasn't exactly sober when he told them, he couldn't remember what really happened before, he couldn't really remember what happened after. He only remembered Kame walking out slowly of the room, saying "Good luck, Jin."
And Jin slumped on the futon, wondering about what he had just done, wanting to get Kame back, wanting to chase him, and trying to think, trying to concentrate, but his mind was a blank and his head started to hurt, and he zoned out.
***
"Why?"
"Because i need my space." Because i can't bear to have you around. "Because i need to figure things out." Because i don't understand why we are like this now. "Because i think we all need time." Because i hope when i get back, everything would be alright.
"How long?"
"Six months. For now. I...I don't know."
Kame nodded, he couldnt trust himself to look at Jin and not cry. He wanted to smack both of them, scream in their heads and tell them to let go of their stinking inflated egos and just get over it. But he couldn't, because he was Kame, calm and composed, always doing the right things.
They stood across each other, opposite ends of the room, tension bouncing off each other in waves. Kame forced his head up and looked at Jin.
Jin was a mess, but somehow he pulled it off. His damp rain-soaked hair was clinging to his temples, sticking out in the weirdest way. Jin's eyes were red too, watery, unsure. Kame didn't dwell on those. Jin's lips were bitten red, his face was slightly flushed, and he wore his favourite green shirt, the one he shared with Pi. "I have great character!" and frayed denim cutoffs.
Yes you have character, Jin. But it's not great. Kame could hear Jin shuffling from feet to feet as he proceeded to take his Gucci carryall and Raybans. He concentrated on picking up his loads, instead of Jin boring holes into his back and sniffling quietly.
"Good luck, Jin." Kame strode across the room with a perfect fake smile, with as much confidence as he could muster, and once out of the room, he started running.
***
There were just a couple of people seeing him off at the airport, but that was fine, he'd rather it be that way. He had enough from all the interviews and press conferences and talks about his hiatus and enough crap for JE to last a lfietime.
Ryo, Yuu, Pi, TTUN, and some senpais and kouhais here and there. But no Kame.
Jin didn't know whether he was dumb or dumb, he actually expected Kame to be there.
"He has some photoshoot. So i don't suppose he will come." Ueda lied. He knew Kame was lurking around the corner somewhere, and he would appear the moment Jin left.
Ueda watched as Jin's face fall. "Yes photoshoot, yeah sure. Yeah. I understand. Yeah, yup sure. Of course." Jin said, a little too many yeahs Ueda realised how hard it was, for him too.
"You know." Ueda paused. "I don't know which is harder. You watching him die a bit everyday in front of you, or him watching you leave and dying a bit more."
Jin stared at Ueda. "I don't know what you are..."
Ueda smiled softly. Sorry Kame, Jin's my friend too. "He's probably sitting in Starbucks now, watching you." Ueda nodded towards the cafe to the right.
"Oh." Jin said slowly.
"Oh." Again.
"Aren't you going over to see him?"
Jin hitched his thumbs into the pocket of his jeans, trying to fake nonchalence. "Nah. We don't have anything to say really."
Ueda stared at his friend incredulously. Honestly, didn't they realise how their relationship is impacting KAT-TUN and the other four of them? It wasn't about them anymore.
Jin smiled a fake wide smiled and hugged him, "Take care. And urm. Take care of him." he smiled again. Then he proceeded smoothly to hug everyone else, and then he left.
***
Kame watched as Jin turned as walked through the departure gates, and he walked out of the airport and watched as Jin's plane take off.
He watched as the plane grew smaller and smaller and smaller until it was just a speck of grey in the white clouds, until Jin disappeared.
continue
***
Call it crazy. Call it fate.
Both Kame and Jin got into JE, at the same time even. The rest was history.
***
Kame didn't know what to do when he saw Jin at the Jimusho. He stared at Jin in the hallway. Jin's hair grew out, it was now more blonde than brown, he grew taller too, he had more muscle too, but he was still good-looking. Still the same old.
Still shining, still brilliant.
And Jin stared back at him, his brown eyes wide, nearly watery. Kame clenched his fists together and turned around, and just walked. He didn't know where he was going but he just had to walk away from Jin.
"Kame..." he heard. But Jin didn't follow.
***
Jin didn't know what to do when he saw Kame at the Jimusho. Kame was still the same, taller, still skinny, his skin still pale and soft looking, still pretty. Still the same old.
But there was something different about this new Kame. He was confident, and he was no longer the same fragile looking kid two years ago. He didn't need Jin anymore.
Jin was shaking, just slightly, when Kame turned and walked away without any form of acknowledgement. "Kame..." he said, he wanted to follow him, he really did. But how could he?
How dare he?
He really couldn't, Kame was no longer his. But how can he explain?
That he couldn't bear to hear Kame's voice again and not be able to see him? That he thought that a clean break-off would have been the best for both of them? That he was scared and cowardly and pathetic? That he was a complete mess?
He couldn't do it.
***
It wasn't all so bad.
Until they had to form KAT-TUN. And things got a little edgy and pricky and dizzy. Jin wanted to make it up to Kame - but he could not, he wanted to explain - but he didn't know how, he wanted to say "I'm sorry" -but he didn't 'cause Kame was too much of a prick, or maybe it was just his ego.
KAT-TUN was a mess. Koki was unbearable, he hated KAT-TUN, he hated being "demoted", but honestly Jin didn't care. Nakamaru was pathetic, he couldn't really get anything done. Junno's life was the PS controller. Ueda was having affairs with fairies. That left him and Kame, which wasn't good news.
KAT-TUN was raking in popularity and fame through them both, and having to spend more time with each other wasn't helping things. They fought practicing for performances, they fought in photoshoots, they fought in interviews, they fought in everything. And neither of them was letting it go.
But thank god Okinawa happened.
Yes thank god for Okinawa.
***
"I need to talk to you."
"I have nothing to say to you."
"You do. We all have something to say, so why can't we just get it out?"
"Oh? So now you have something to say to me? So after disappearing for one and a half years, now you want to talk to me? Now? Jin, now?" Kame shook his head, eyes watering. "Isn't that a bit late, Jin? Are you serious?"
"I..." Jin tilted his head, trying to not let the tears fall. The Okinawa night sky was gorgeous, even after all the hell Tackey and the other senpais made them do.
"I'm sorry." It was a soft cracked whisper.
Kame didn't reply.
"This is a letter i wrote back then, right after i got to the new home. But i never sent it out. - Dear Kame, how are you? I'm fine in the new home, everyone is really nice. But i'm scared. Nobody sings me to sleep anymore when i can't fall asleep. I wished you were here, beside me so i can have someone. I have a very big room, but it doesn't mean anything because you're not around. I want to go back. I'm scared, Kame. I'm scared. I still love you! Love, Jin."
"Why didn't you send it?"
"I was scared. I was so scared. I didn't know how i could deal with it if i could hear you over the phone but not see you." A sob. "I didn't know how i could bear to leave you again if i visited you. I couldn't bear it, Kame i couldn't. I thought, then, a clean break-off would be the best."
Kame was shaking slightly. No way. No fucking way.
"And when i finally did get the courage to come and visit you, Sister Mary told me you were gone. You were adopted too." Jin smiled weakly, tears streaming down his face. "I was happy for you. They told me how you became popular, how you became so strong."
Jin was crying so hard he couldn't see clearly now, but he knew, Kame was crying too.
"Do you have any idea, how...different it was without you?!" Kame said, crying so hard yet trying to keep his composure. "Do you know how much i hated you? Do you know..."
"I'm sorry!" Jin grabbed Kame into his arms. "I'm sorry i'm so so so sorry." Jin held him tight, he was never going to let go again. Never.
"How dare you?! How could you!?" Kame screamed into Jin's shirt, thumping his hands hard against Jin's chest.
Jin didn't say anything else, he let Kame hit him, painful as it was, and stared at the nightsky. They stood there for a long long time, holding each other tight. It was going to be fine, everything is going to be okay.
***
Things got a little better. As years got by, everyone started to mature and get into the rhythm of things. Kame became a little too pretty, Jin'd rather have the bushy eyebrowed Kame than the shining starlet in eyeliner and fedoras. Koki started penning his own songs too, under JOKER. Ueda stopped playing with fairies. Junno was a more focused, and Nakamaru started beatboxing. KAT-TUN started to become very popular, and they were sure they were going to debut, someday.
Everyone was good with the pace, there wasn't any concerts to rush, just the right amount of rehearsals for performances, for a while, everyone was really happy.
Even when Kame and Jin both had to do Gokusen, everything was cool. They both got chosen, they both played the leads, it was all good. And in fact, Kame penned and sang the song Kizuna, Jin didn't say anything, but Kame knew he understood.
***
The next crack came when it was decided that Kame was to release a single with Yamapi and film Nobuta Wo Produce. Everyone was pissed.
"It's the management's decision." Kame said softly in their room.
No response from the other five for a long while.
"We were supposed to debut together. Whatever happened to that?" Koki fumed, storming off. Nakamaru, Ueda and Junno all said something nice and left but Kame could tell they didnt want that too. The worst, was Jin.
Jin didn't say anything at all.
Kame leaned against the counter. "Can you please, please just say something?"
"What do you want me to say, Kame? We are all grown up, i'll support you. It's good, releasing a single with...Pi."
Kame narrowed his eyes. "That's not being mature at all, Jin. You're...not happy about it."
Jin didn't say anything for a while. Then, "Whatever okay."
"No, not okay! I know you and Pi are good friends and i don't know how this came about okay? I didn't want this. I don't even like Yamashita!"
"You don't want this?" Jin hissed. "You fucking want this, Kame. I've seen you slog your ass off everyday, and you tell me you don't want this? Honestly. You deserve it, go ahead, do what you want!"
Kame stared at the schedule pasted on one side of the wall. What he worked so hard for, he didn't really know. How did things turn out like this? "You're just jealous, Jin. Yamashita's like the frigging golden boy of JE and I get to act with him, and you don't even have the chance to act with your own best friend, is that it? You've always been like this, Jin. Always the shining brilliant one, and now that i've got it and you don't, you feel jealous don't you?"
"No. That's crap."
"No it is not. You know it. And let me tell you what, i got here today because of you. I would never become this strong if not for you. If you didn't just leave and disappear that day!"
Kame was rambling nonsense, he just had to retort, and he felt like slapping himself when he saw Jin's eyes turn watery.
"Is that it?" Jin half laughed, half smirked, as he walked out of the room. The other four were standing outside, and Jin ignored them and walked away.
Kame slumped against the table, sliding to the floor, tears falling.
Here they go, falling and falling and it might just take another two years to stop. Or it might never, because it wasn't the same anymore.
***
KAT-TUN was cracking under all the pressure to debut, and Kame was falling apart with the drama, and his own band's debut. He was all shrivelled up, 40 kg of skin and bones. Dark eyebags etched above the sunken sallow cheeks, a worn-out body that survived on caffeine and the will to keep going.
Jin watched as Kame thinned, as his flesh eat themselves away in front of him. But he couldn't do anything. It was no longer about them in the past, it was about them now. The two frontman of KAT-TUN and the harem of problems they had to face.
Or didn't want to face.
***
Nobuta Wo Produce was a huge hit, so was Seishun Amigo. But Kame was relieved they debuted soon after. Thank god.
***
Their debut was a huge success. They topped the Oricon charts for how long, Jin wasn't sure. But there was a huge fuss, they kept going on interviews, shows, performances. From what Jin sees, it should have been somewhat a huge deal.
In the making of Real Face, Jin said that Kame was unpredictable. He didn't know what else to say, or whether it was the right thing to say. But he said it anyway. Because that's the truth.
But he couldn't take it anymore.
***
"Give me three shots, and one Earl Grey Tea." For Ryo. Jin mouthed to Pi and everyone burst out laughing.
"Oh fuck you Jin." Ryo said, "I'll have the same, thank you."
"Come on Ryo, you can't drink for nuts." Pi laughed. "I'll have to fetch you home again, like the other time!"
Ryo shifted uncomfortably in the velvet sofa. "Oh please, i had like 20 shots that day." Yuu rolled his eyes. "Anyway, wassup, Jin. You called us here for?"
Jin took a shot, still contemplative. A long pause.
"I'm going to America."
"What? Are you crazy? KAT-TUN just debuted! It's like the friggin peak of your career!" Ryo exclaimed. Yuu nodded in agreement. "That's rather reckless, are you sure?"
"It's Kame isn't it." Pi's eyes were dark as he just downed another shot.
Jin flinched. "No it isn't. It has got nothing to do with him."
"Oh fuck it Jin, you know it is about him. I acted wth him for Nobuta and i know what Seishun Amigo cost you guys. But it's over and your debut's huge." Pi paused, "You know what, I didn't even like Kamenashi to begin with, but after acting with him, i kinda understood."
"Understood what?"
"That both of you are idiots who love each other but are too scared to face your own problems."
Jin didn't reply. Damn Pi for seeing through him. He merely downed another shot.
"Anybody can see how hard Kame works, but that's not really it. It's the reason why." Ryo said softly.
"And you know why." Yuu muttered.
Because he doesn't want to be left behind again. Jin smirked.
"I don't know okay. I just want to get out of this place and clear my head a bit. I'm leaving."
"How long?" Ryo asked.
"Six months. Tentatively. Maybe more. Maybe less. Maybe never."
***
When Jin decided his hiatus, there was no niceties from the members of the group. Koki very nearly punched him in the face if the others didn't hold him.
Jin wasn't exactly sober when he told them, he couldn't remember what really happened before, he couldn't really remember what happened after. He only remembered Kame walking out slowly of the room, saying "Good luck, Jin."
And Jin slumped on the futon, wondering about what he had just done, wanting to get Kame back, wanting to chase him, and trying to think, trying to concentrate, but his mind was a blank and his head started to hurt, and he zoned out.
***
"Why?"
"Because i need my space." Because i can't bear to have you around. "Because i need to figure things out." Because i don't understand why we are like this now. "Because i think we all need time." Because i hope when i get back, everything would be alright.
"How long?"
"Six months. For now. I...I don't know."
Kame nodded, he couldnt trust himself to look at Jin and not cry. He wanted to smack both of them, scream in their heads and tell them to let go of their stinking inflated egos and just get over it. But he couldn't, because he was Kame, calm and composed, always doing the right things.
They stood across each other, opposite ends of the room, tension bouncing off each other in waves. Kame forced his head up and looked at Jin.
Jin was a mess, but somehow he pulled it off. His damp rain-soaked hair was clinging to his temples, sticking out in the weirdest way. Jin's eyes were red too, watery, unsure. Kame didn't dwell on those. Jin's lips were bitten red, his face was slightly flushed, and he wore his favourite green shirt, the one he shared with Pi. "I have great character!" and frayed denim cutoffs.
Yes you have character, Jin. But it's not great. Kame could hear Jin shuffling from feet to feet as he proceeded to take his Gucci carryall and Raybans. He concentrated on picking up his loads, instead of Jin boring holes into his back and sniffling quietly.
"Good luck, Jin." Kame strode across the room with a perfect fake smile, with as much confidence as he could muster, and once out of the room, he started running.
***
There were just a couple of people seeing him off at the airport, but that was fine, he'd rather it be that way. He had enough from all the interviews and press conferences and talks about his hiatus and enough crap for JE to last a lfietime.
Ryo, Yuu, Pi, TTUN, and some senpais and kouhais here and there. But no Kame.
Jin didn't know whether he was dumb or dumb, he actually expected Kame to be there.
"He has some photoshoot. So i don't suppose he will come." Ueda lied. He knew Kame was lurking around the corner somewhere, and he would appear the moment Jin left.
Ueda watched as Jin's face fall. "Yes photoshoot, yeah sure. Yeah. I understand. Yeah, yup sure. Of course." Jin said, a little too many yeahs Ueda realised how hard it was, for him too.
"You know." Ueda paused. "I don't know which is harder. You watching him die a bit everyday in front of you, or him watching you leave and dying a bit more."
Jin stared at Ueda. "I don't know what you are..."
Ueda smiled softly. Sorry Kame, Jin's my friend too. "He's probably sitting in Starbucks now, watching you." Ueda nodded towards the cafe to the right.
"Oh." Jin said slowly.
"Oh." Again.
"Aren't you going over to see him?"
Jin hitched his thumbs into the pocket of his jeans, trying to fake nonchalence. "Nah. We don't have anything to say really."
Ueda stared at his friend incredulously. Honestly, didn't they realise how their relationship is impacting KAT-TUN and the other four of them? It wasn't about them anymore.
Jin smiled a fake wide smiled and hugged him, "Take care. And urm. Take care of him." he smiled again. Then he proceeded smoothly to hug everyone else, and then he left.
***
Kame watched as Jin turned as walked through the departure gates, and he walked out of the airport and watched as Jin's plane take off.
He watched as the plane grew smaller and smaller and smaller until it was just a speck of grey in the white clouds, until Jin disappeared.
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