[Multi-Chap] From Me To You (Chapter 5)
Title: From Me To You (a.k.a Reaching You)
Pairing(s): MaruDa, TaNaka friendship, JinDa friendship, RyoDa friendship, Junno/Jin/Ueda/Ryo/Kame friendship
Rating: PG
Warnings: Unbeta-ed
Summary: True love - nothing needs to be said, nothing needs to be heard. Just by being together, I hope my overflowing feelings will reach you.
Chapter 5
Sakura and Rai were fighting on the floor when Koki flipped through the latest issue of the ‘Music & Me’ magazine and made his discovery of the century. He first had to rack his brains a bit before he exclaimed in triumph but he discovered something big nonetheless. The next day at work, he told Yuichi the news.
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The young man had to suppress the whoop of joy when he read Tatsuya’s reply to his message. He didn’t expect a reply so soon, but he received it happily and smiled goofily all day.
Tatsuya had arranged the weekend for their ‘play date’ as he called it, and they were going to have dinner together at his apartment. But despite his happiness, Yuichi wondered if this was really okay. He was very pleased with his new friend’s amiability though it could be that he was just being polite. But then again, Tatsuya had always been treating him warmly and kindly, so it seemed almost impossible that he was just putting on an act. But Yuichi refused to be too hopeful, he didn’t want to take the risk of being disappointed or even worse, humiliated, but it was really hard to suppress the indulging excitement that made his stomach twist in delight and heart splutter every time he thought about it.
As he was trying to focus his mind on the work assigned to him, Koki suddenly emerged and nudged him with a magazine in his hand and said “Hey, guess what? I found some interesting news about your new friend. And how wicked of you, you never did introduce him to me, you just wanted to have all of his cuteness and prettiness to yourself didn’t you?” he shoved the magazine into Yuichi’s open hands and the latter raised a confused eyebrow. Koki gestured him to look at the magazine, and Yuichi’s furrowed brow evaporated into an expression of shock.
In front of him was a magazine spread with Ueda Tatsuya’s picture printed boldly and grandly in it. One of the pictures was him in a tuxedo playing the piano. It said that the photo was taken on his debut concerto a few years ago, and another picture noted that it was taken just recently in Tokyo in his grand concerto with an orchestra that originated from France. It was a big success and people were expecting more of him in the future; said the magazine.
“That’s him isn’t it? Ueda Tatsuya, your neighbour. Can you believe it, a popular pianist is living in the same building as you!” Koki grinned in awe and a little envy, and his friend flashed a shaky smile. “Yeah…it’s hard to believe.”
If he thought that he was extremely nervous the other day, then he was wrong. As the day of his big play-date approached, Yuichi was a nerve wreck. He was mulling on what he should wear, on what he should bring, and most of all, he was afraid if he wasn’t good enough to be friends with someone well-known. He tried calming himself but it wasn’t a success. Relax…calm down, Nakamaru Yuichi. This is just a normal dinner with a new friend to get to know each other better. He is also a human being like you, and he is also looking forward to this like you are… that’s what his mind told him, but his heart and body reacted otherwise.
He locked the door and with a last sigh, he headed up to Tatsuya’s apartment.
The last thing he expected was there were going to be other guests at the promised venue. Tatsuya opened the door to reveal a loud indignant cry from someone whose voice Yuichi didn’t recognize followed by a victorious laughter.
He smiled sheepishly and brought up the usual notebook which said ‘I’m sorry, I forgot I made dinner reservations with you and now I have some friends over, hope you don’t mind.’ Yuichi nodded assent and his lips tugged into a soft smile. “No, it’s okay.”
Tatsuya led him to the living room and Yuichi almost got the shock of his life and froze when three faces turned sharply to look at him. Nishikido-something, Kame-something Kazuya and Aonishi Jin were shooting questioning looks at him, but what threw him off-guard was Nishikido’s poisonous glare. He let go of the remote control in his hand, and stood up.
“Tatsuya, who is this?” Tatsuya emerged from the kitchen and Kame-something stood near Yuichi, beaming a smile.
“Ignore him. I think we’ve met before right? You’re the one who bumped into Ryo the other day, and before we could exchange greetings, you dashed off somewhere.”
“And he spilled coffee over my new shirt too.” Nishikido muttered under his breath and Kame-something shot a malevolent glare.
Tatsuya did some hand signs which Yuichi couldn’t understand at all and Kame-something nodded. “Let’s start over. Hi, I’m Kamenashi Kazuya. The one on the couch is Akanishi Jin and the annoying one is Nishikido Ryo.” He suddenly leaned in closer and whispered “But you can call him dokkun if you like” he winked and then went to the kitchen.
Kamenashi Kazuya-san, Akanishi Jin-san and Nishikido Ryo-san. Yuichi made a mental note of their names and features. He suddenly felt intimidated when he realized that he was surrounded by a bunch of good looking men, and knowing that he himself wasn’t much of a looker, he felt a pang of envy.
Tatsuya started doing hand signs again and frowned at Nishikido. The latter sighed and rolled his eyes, while Akanishi continued to flick through the channel wearing a bored expression. “Fine, I’ll try to be nice.” Nishikido said in a resigned tone and slumped back down to the couch.
Tatsuya led Yuichi to a chair and motioned for him to sit there while he prepared dinner. And so, he was alone in the living room with two people whom he barely knew.
Nishikido started to fight over the remote control with Akanishi, saying things like “Let go Bakanishi!” and the other replying with “You were the one that let it go just now so back off!”
Yuichi stifled a laugh and Akanishi who seemed to finally notice his presence swiveled his gaze over to him. “Hey, I still haven’t got your name yet.” Yuichi regained composure and said politely “I’m Nakamaru Yuichi. Nice to meet you by the way, Akanishi-san”
Akanishi seemed wistful for a while and finally said “Akanishi-san sounds so boring. Just call me by my first name, I won’t mind”
Though he sounded friendly, Yuichi noted the guarded look that Jin wore, and that he still hadn’t bloom a smile even if it was the merest curve of his lips. As he continued his little squabble over the remote control with Nishikido, Yuichi decided to ignore his perturbing thoughts.
The bell suddenly rang and Tatsuya came out front to answer the door. “It must be Taguchi” Jin inserted.
A tall and an equally attractive young man shuffled into the living room, a huge smile plastered on his face, turning his eyes into a crescent shape. He had dark brown hair which was just a little above his shoulders, licking its way over his ears and draping on his neck.
His voice sounded merry and he greeted everybody with a loud ‘Good evening’. Yuichi finally remembered his face; the one from the photo where Tatsuya was in a high-school uniform along with Nishikido.
Yuichi gave a polite bow and smiled. He reached out a hand when the other did. “Hi there. You must be Uepi’s new friend. I’m Taguchi Junnosuke.” Yuichi received a firm and friendly hand-shake and greeted himself. “Nakamaru Yuichi” Taguchi nodded and went into the kitchen carrying some plastic bags which he brought with him.
A ripple of tension ran through the dining table when everybody was on their seats. Somehow or another, Nishikido looked at the newcomer with a vicious glare and practically threw daggers when Tatsuya gushed for Yuichi to sit next to each other. That’s what Yuichi didn’t understand; Tatsuya wanted for Yuichi to sit next to him, and not with Nishikido, so why was he giving a menacing glare to Yuichi? He didn’t do anything wrong, or was it that Nishikido still holds a grudge against him for ruining his shirt with coffee the other day?
And while Kamenashi helped Tatsuya with setting the pot of miso to the table, the remaining three stared expectantly at Yuichi, and he squirmed and fidgeted endlessly, eyes kept downcast.
Jin who had one hand propped up under his chin on the table broke the silence. “So you live here? How old are you?”
Yuichi silently thanked him when he felt the tension slowly dissipating. “Yeah, I live on the lower floor. And I’m about Tatsuya’s age.”
“I see. Me and dokkun here are of the same age, and we’re a year younger than Tat-chan--”
“I’m 25 years old and I met Uepi during high school.” Taguchi chirped in before Jin could continue.
“We used to hang out together all the time, and then we met Kazuya and Jin a few years later.” He smiled fondly and Yuichi merely nodded, grinning together with him.
Kamenashi and Tatsuya had finally settled in on their seats and they grabbed their chopsticks. “Let’s eat. Ittadakimasu!”
Yuichi took a tentative bite of his meal and quietly studied the people surrounding the table. He knew immediately that all of these men were very close to each other, and their bond was solid. They were always giggling and laughing plus the occasional teasing and they were a picture of happiness.
But that was what made Yuichi felt left out. Tatsuya was frequently giving hand signs which he couldn’t understand at all, but the others knew what he was conveying. He knew that Tatsuya was being very amiable and made sure that he didn’t feel alienated by giving reassuring and concerned glances along with his quirky smile every now and then, and that helped, but still, Yuichi felt that he didn’t belong there. And to his chagrin, he couldn’t get to know and understand Tatsuya any better than he did when they last met. He unconsciously ogled at Tatsuya surreptitiously and ignored the food in front of him.
Amidst the gratifying laughter and Yuichi’s surreptitious gaze to the person sitting next to him, Nishikido had set his eyes on Yuichi between bites, and noticed that glint of longing and affection in the older’s eyes. He inaudibly clicked his tongue and continued his dinner.
Taguchi had randomly put on a movie and all of them cramped into the living room with two bowls of popcorn and cans of soda. Kamenashi sat between Yuichi and Nishikido, and much to Yuichi’s dismay, Jin was the one who had Tatsuya all to himself on the other side of the room. After a few moments, Jin started to murmur sedately to his friend and every now and then Tatsuya would reply with hand signs or merely with grins and small gestures. And Yuichi discovered that Jin often gave off his rare and unguarded smiles during the exchange of ‘conversation’ and also during dinner. He concluded that Jin was actually attentive, cheerful and friendly deep down inside, but he would always hide that part of him behind a shroud of cool and wry behaviour. Maybe it’s because I’m a stranger?
He then analyzed the others’ demeanour. Taguchi obviously had a cheerful and bright personality, and his smile was infectious. Though Yuichi noticed that he was somewhat insensitive and clueless when it came to certain things.
Then there was Kamenashi. He was sweet and kind, and had this effeminate motherly aura which would make others feel absurdly comfortable around him.
And Nishikido. Yuichi didn’t understand why he was so scornful towards him. At first he was angry for having coffee spilt over his shirt, and then during dinner he shot dreadful and malevolent icy glares which Yuichi decided that it was most probably because he was still upset about the incident, but he wouldn’t be that childish and punctilious over such trivial matters right? So what exactly was his problem? Yuichi didn’t like causing stirs nor did he like to have bad terms with anybody, so he wished that Nishikido could just forgive him already and articulate what was causing his cold attitude towards Yuichi.
Before long, Taguchi dozed off in his seat on the floor and Nishikido started to flicker popcorns at him. Jin decided that he would head home early as he had work tomorrow, and he roused Taguchi from his slumber. The both of them gathered their belongings and put on their jackets.
“I guess I’ll be seeing you again on our next gathering huh, Yuichi-kun? Well, take care!” Taguchi graced a broad grin and waved. Jin simply gave a little bow and they both headed out.
The others decided to finish the movie and by 10 o’clock, Nishikido and Kamenashi turned in for the night. Kamenashi jubilantly patted Yuichi’s shoulder while smiling and said goodbye. But Nishikido showed hesitance when Tatsuya sent him to the front door. He said something in a low voice, frowning a little, but Tatsuya chuckled and gave some hand signs, which seemed to finally convince Nishikido to leave.
And the both of them were alone in Tatsuya’s apartment.
Yuichi froze on the couch, wondering if he should leave too. But I don’t want to go yet… His brow creased slightly and he looked at his friend who was writing something in his book. It occurred to Yuichi that communicating with Tatsuya was a burden to the younger, he would always have to jot things down to tell Yuichi something. He realized with a sinking feeling that one day Tatsuya might just get tired and find him troublesome. He was startled out of his reverie when Tatsuya tapped his shoulder and showed him the book.
‘We always gather somewhere at least once a week to just hang out. Sometimes at the others’ house or outside, but they seem to enjoy crashing into my place. I don’t actually mind, because sometimes they would help me with the chores.’
They both giggled a little and Tatsuya wrote something again. ‘Stay here for a little bit longer and have some drinks?’
Yuichi couldn’t resist and willingly accepted the offer.
They moved out to the balcony and leaned by the holding. The crisp breezy night air danced and ruffled over them as if gracing them with its blessings and the silver moon was shining at its best that night. Tatsuya rested his elbows on the cold metal holding and had his arms dangling over and Yuichi did the same.
“So…I found out that you’re a pianist. No wonder your playing sounded wonderful when I heard it the other day.”Not to mention captivating and extremely soothing.
He looked surprised but then he crooked a smile and nodded.
Serene silence drowned the both of them and it dragged on for a long time. The younger broke the spell when he suddenly started to write again in his notebook. ‘Did you enjoy tonight’s dinner? I couldn’t help but notice that something was bothering you.’
The other’s brow creased with deliberative thoughts, his heavy black eyebrows drawn together over the bridge of his nose. He set his eyes downwards and wondered whether he should tell how he really felt. I feel that I’m not able to communicate and connect well enough with you. I want to get to know you better but at the same time I feel as though I’m a burden, or that maybe I’m not applicable for you. How am I supposed to convey and decipher these feelings which are causing stirrings in my mind? Yuichi bit his lips and tried a smile. It felt forced, but he hoped that it seemed convincing enough.
“Tonight was fun. And I don’t have any problems that are bothering me. But…” he paused. Tatsuya raised a delicate eyebrow. “…but never mind. It’s nothing really. You know what, it’s getting late. I’d better go back to my apartment.” He pretended to squint at his watch and stepped back inside. He donned his jacket and put on his shoes.
Before he reached the door, a hand tugged his sleeve and he stopped. He gulped inwardly and turned around. Tatsuya was close, too close, and he was looking straight into Yuichi’s deep-set eyes. Strangely, the latter felt, sensed; knew, that Tatsuya was saying ‘Come back again, and next time it’ll only be the two of us’.
Chapter 6
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Readers: Why the late update?
Me: Err...Hey, look! Is that fairy!Ueda?
Readers: Where, where?
Me: *runs*
I truly apologize for the super-late update. I was short of ideas.and procrastinated too much
and btw, HAPPY BIRTHDAY RYO-CHAN!!!:D