[fic] Step by Step; Light and Shade - (10/?)
TITLE: Step by Step; Light and Shade
PAIRINGS: Sakuraiba, Matsumiya, Aimiya, Ohmiya, ShoxMaki, and JunxMao
LENGTH: Multi-chaptered
BANDS: Arashi (with Horikita Maki and Inoue Mao)
GENRE: Romance, drama... etc.
RATING (by chapter): PG-13/14
WARNINGS: AU, language and potentially sexual situations in later chapters.
SUMMARY: "To watch us dance is to hear our hearts speak" - Indian Proverb
Sakurai Sho is the Chief Financial Officer for a large corporation, he has a loving girlfriend, a strange (but friendly) co-worker, and a best friend who teaches a ballroom dance class (which Sho has been guilted into attending). At the class, Sho's encounter with another unorthodox dancer -and his partner- will be the spark needed to kindle new relationships and end others.
PREVIOUS: Step01 | Step02 | Step03 | Step04 | Step05 | Step06 | Step07 | Step08 | Step09 |
NOTE: I've tried to do my research but I am neither a dancer or a business person, so please excuse any incorrect information!!
Step 10.
Sho hadn't been in his office ten minutes Friday morning before Ohno came knocking at his door. Sho's secretary was hovering behind him, looking concerned that he'd barged in without asking to be admitted.
"It's fine." Sho directed at her before gesturing for his colleague to come in.
Ohno did, and closed the door behind him before he would make eye contact. He looked awful. There were heavy bags beneath his eyes and he looked pale beneath his tan. Sho waited patiently for him to speak.
"I... did something pretty stupid last night." Ohno mumbled at length. He began pacing back and forth in front of the desk, wringing his hands and frowning.
Sho frowned too. "How stupid?" He asked warily.
"Really stupid."
Sho shifted anxiously in his chair. The last thing the company needed was for Ninomiya to file an assault charge against the president's son. "Please tell me this isn't going to end in a lawsuit against you."
Ohno turned his frown on him. "No, no, that's... not the problem really."
"...We're talking about whatever happened with you and Ninomiya, right?" Sho clarified.
Ohno nodded. "But... she wasn't mad at me for it or anything. I was attempting to do a favor for her... sort of."
"Sit down, please. You're making me nervous." Sho pointed at the chair across from him, feeling utterly confused. Ohno obeyed glumly. "Now, explain. What did you do?"
"I kissed her." Ohno said, looking and sounding forlorn.
Sho blinked at him. "...Why?"
"I don't know!" Ohno exclaimed, eyes wide. "I told you, it was stupid! I need to stop being impulsive... it's going to get me into trouble." He bit his lip. "I'm sorry. Your friend, Matsumoto-san... he saw. Well, that's why I did it! It was cruel of me, I'm sorry." He bowed deeply.
Sho took a moment to process everything. "So you kissed her, impulsively, in front of Jun... so that he would give up on her?"
Ohno nodded, morose.
"... Are you planning to keep up some sort of ruse that you're involved with each other?"
Ohno looked up, eyes wide again. "Will I have to? I don't think I can handle a repeat of last night. I'm losing sleep over this already..." He moaned.
"Was it really that bad?" Sho raised an eyebrow. "I know she's a girl and all, but it was just kissing. It's not like kissing girls is any different from kissing guys... probably."
"It's... not the kissing that was bad... It's that she kind of got into it, and I was just trying to go with the flow and look convincingly passionate, but then-..." He paused to chew on his lip again before continuing in a soft, wavering voice. "Sho-san... I think I accidentally touched a boob..."
Sho probably should have been more sympathetic, but the traumatized expression on his colleague's face was just too much and he couldn't help cracking up.
+++
“Where are you?! It’s lunch time and I need to vent!”
“I’m sorry, Nino-chan.” Aiba pouted into his cell phone and shifted a little on the porch steps where he was sitting. “I’m supposed to be meeting Sakurai-san.”
At lunch time?… Are you on a date?”
“No! No!” Aiba flushed, waving his free hand around though Nino couldn’t see him. “I’m at his house.”
“…”
Aiba frowned. Nino didn’t have to voice anything for Aiba to know what he was thinking. “Stop being a pervert, will you? I’m just babysitting his dog.”
“Oh, right.” Nino vaguely remembered Aiba telling him that Sho had adopted Chubby and offered him a job as a pet-sitter, but Nino had been too flustered at the time to pay much attention. “Chubby.”
“Right.”
“I forgot.”
“I’m not surprised.” Aiba smiled, pulling his knees up so he could rest his chin on them. “If you want to talk about last night, you can go ahead. I’ll listen until Sakurai gets here.”
“Hm… It’s not like there’s much more to say though, really. It’s just… confusing.”
“You guys made out, right?” Aiba asked, and was met with an affirmative grunt from the other end of the line. “Was he a good kisser?” A hesitation and then another grunt. Aiba chuckled. “What are you confused about?”
“I don’t know if I should be relieved -and guilty- that things are probably through with Jun, or worried that I’ve got another guy after me now.”
“Did Ohno-san say he liked you?”
“No, he acted like he was just trying to help me out. But, I mean, I hardly know him. Why would he care?”
“Well, maybe he’s just a friendly guy?”
“Yeah, really friendly.”
Aiba laughed.
“I’m definitely not looking forward to next Thursday, I’ll tell you that much.”
“Because of Matsumoto-kun?”
“Yeah. It’s gonna be awkward as hell.”
“I guess that means you won’t want to sign up for those extra lessons?”
“Oh shit.” Nino groaned dramatically. “I forgot you signed us up for that stupid competition.”
“Sorry, but I think it will be fun.”
“We’ll see about that.” Nino grumbled.
“I- Oh,” a car pulled up at the curb in front of the house. “Sorry Nino-chan, I think he’s here.”
“Don’t have too much fun!” Nino warned him teasingly before hanging up.
Aiba rolled his eyes and clambered to his feet, shoving his phone into his pants pocket and putting a bright smile on his face as Sho jogged up to the steps with a briefcase in hand. “Hello, Sakurai-kun.”
“Hey!” Sho returned the smile, slipping past him and pulling a keychain from the pocket of his suit jacket. “I hope you weren’t waiting long.”
Aiba shook his head, though his bottom was a little numb from sitting on the steps for near half an hour.
Sho looked relieved as he turned his key in the lock and opened the door. “Oh, good.” He held the door open for Aiba to step in behind him. “Traffic was bad, so I was worried.” He pulled his shoes off and waited for Aiba to do the same before leading him into the living room.
“Wow…” Aiba said, trying to take in the high ceilinged room. Everything looked immaculately tidy and put exactly in its designated spot. The furniture and furnishings looked expensive, and Aiba was already dreading accidentally putting something out of order. “You’re a real neat-freak, huh?”
Sho smiled sheepishly. “I… got up early this morning to clean. Normally this place is a lot more chaotic, but I didn’t want you to think I was a slob.”
“Oh.” Aiba felt himself relaxing again. “You don’t need to worry about that, my apartment is usually a mess.”
Sho laughed and beckoned for Aiba to walk with him. “This is the living room. If you want to watch anything the television remotes are on the coffee table. They’re relatively straightforward. And… through there is the kitchen. There’s some stuff in the fridge, and the cupboards. Eat whatever you feel like.” Aiba nodded along as Sho started leading him up the staircase. “Across there is a bathroom you can use.” Sho said, pointing across the living room. “There’s another one upstairs too which you’re also welcome to use. My bedroom is at the end of the hall. Right here is my study.” He paused in front of the French doors. “You can read any of the books in the shelves if you get bored, or whatever. I’d rather if you didn’t touch the computer though. I’ve got a lot of important work files on there.”
“Of course. I won’t.” Aiba promised.
Sho smiled. “Great, thanks. And… here.” He continued walking to the closed door between the study and the doorway to his bedroom. “This is the upstairs bathroom. I locked Chubby in here before I left this morning. He’s got his toys and a blanket to lay on, so he should be okay… I just didn’t want him making a mess while he was here unsupervised.” Sho gave him one last look, as if to say ‘brace yourself’ before turning the knob and swinging the door open.
Chubby was flying from the far side of the tiled room before the door was even finished opening all the way. A loud yapp burst out of him and cut off abruptly as his good eye caught sight of Aiba. His bounding faltered and he stumbled momentarily before launching forward again. Aiba dropped to his knees in time to catch the puppy leaping into his arms. Chubby’s tail was wagging so furiously that it gave his whole body the impression of excited wiggling. In between excited barks, he thoroughly soaked Aiba’s neck and cheek with sloppy licks and chewed a bit on the collar of his polo shirt. “I missed you too!” Aiba squeaked through a grin, cuddling the dog to his chest and scratching behind his ears.
“Well… I guess he remembers you.” Sho chuckled, standing awkwardly to the side of their reunion.
+++
Jun wasn’t expecting to be ambushed when he stepped out of the café at the end of his shift.
A shout of fright died before it could leave his lips as he spun around to face the owner of the hands on his shoulders. He sighed, letting the adrenaline rush out of him as he met a quirked smile. “Mao-chan.” He said, too worn out (physically from his long shift, and emotionally from the heartbreak he’d experienced less than 24 hours ago) to be amused. “What are you doing here?”
“I was waiting for you to come out.” She said cheerily, grabbing his wrist and tugging him down the sidewalk. “We’re going for a drive.”
Jun frowned. “Mao, I’m tired. And my car’s parked in that direction.” He pointed over his shoulder.
“I’m driving.” She explained. “I can drop you back here when we’re done.” She stopped beside a navy blue motorbike and Jun raised his eyebrows, foul mood temporarily forgotten.
“This is yours?” He asked as she straddled the seat and passed him a helmet.
“No. I do drive one in New York, but this is a rental.” She fastened her own helmet beneath her chin and nudged the kickstand up with her heel. “Hop on.”
The bike rumbled to life beneath them and Jun wrapped his arms tight around Mao’s middle as she eased them into the street. Traffic started to clear up after the first intersection they crossed and Mao shifted gears to pick up speed. The wind was cold on his face as they whipped through the streets, but Mao’s back was warm even through her leather jacket. Jun squinted over her shoulder, not wanting to be surprised by any turns. The city lights in windows and on signs and lampposts seemed to blur together, almost blindingly bright.
Mao took them up a ramp and onto the highway and it felt like they were flying through the dark. Jun had the childish urge to stretch his arms out to either side, but couldn’t bring himself to be brave (and foolish) enough to let go. His heart was still hammering in his chest from their high speed when Mao turned them up an exit ramp and onto a quiet rural street. They drove at a leisurely pace on the winding road, and Jun was able to relax his tight grip around her middle enough to appreciate the drive. The sky above the treetops that lined the road was an inky purplish black, and away from the city a few stars could be seen shining distantly above their route.
“Where are we going?” Jun asked, leaning forward to be sure she would hear him over the engine.
“We’re almost there!” She called back, turning onto a narrow dirt road and easing them up the bumpy path. She slowed the bike to a stop when the slope leveled out to a rocky clearing, and Jun got off once she’d dropped the kickstand. To the right was a steep drop-off overlooking the tops of thick trees that bore leaves of gold and red and rustled dryly in the cold wind. Beyond the expanse of trees lay the highway that they had driven on earlier. White headlights lit the furthest trees up like the branches were sprouting flames as the vehicles drew close, and then extinguished the blaze when they zipped away in streaks of red taillights. It was as if each car was a spark drifting away and out of sight.
While he observed the area, Mao turned off the engine and dropped them into silence save for the quiet rush of motors passing on the highway and the chirping of crickets in the bushes behind them. She took his helmet from him and hooked both his and hers on the handlebars before opening the hatch on the compartment beneath the seat and pulling out a blanket and a six-pack of cans.
“… Beer?” Jun asked with a raised eyebrow.
Mao shook her head as she walked past him. Her smile was bright in the dark. “No, it’s Coke. I kept in mind that both of us will need to drive at some point tonight.” She set the cans down on a rock and spread the blanket out on the ground in front of it so she could use the rock as a backrest. She sat cross-legged and gave him an expectant look while she extracted one of the cans from the plastic rings and popped the tab. “… Not gonna sit with me?” She asked.
Jun sighed and settled cautiously beside her. The blanket did little to soften the hardness of the ground, but he was still wearing his work uniform and glad that she wasn’t expecting him to sit in the dirt. “Thanks.” He said as she passed him a can. He cracked it open slowly, then bent forward to lick some of the fizzy drink off the top. The trees rustled loudly as a cold wind blew, and Mao huddled a little closer to the rock they were leaning against. “…What are we doing here?”
Mao shrugged. “I just felt like kidnapping you. Did you have plans or something?”
Jun shook his head and lifted his can to his lips. The cola was cold and bubbly, and he half wished that it were a can of hot coffee instead.
“… It’s kind of pretty, isn’t it?” Mao said quietly after several long minutes of silence had passed. When Jun turned to look at her, there was a soft smile on her lips and she nodded towards the highway.
Jun spent another moment watching the lights fly through the dark in the distance before nodding his agreement.
“My parent’s got divorced when I was two. I don’t remember it, but I know it’s because my mother was always married to her work. Family came second for her, and she was so busy that she hardly ever had time for us. I lived with my dad until I was seven. He was a songwriter, and he worked mostly from his home studio so he was always around to play with or talk to.”
“Sounds like a fun guy.”
Mao nodded, smiling fondly. “Yeah. Our house wasn’t far from here, actually.” She gestured over her shoulder. “If you walk in that direction for about ten minutes, you’ll come over a hill and see a field. Our house used to be there, but the guy who owns it now tore it down. It’s all hay fields now.”
“Did you come out here often when you were little?” Jun asked tentatively. In the few years he’d known her, Mao hadn’t spoken much about her family or her childhood. All he knew was that she wasn’t very close with her mother, and that her father had gotten sick and died not long before she moved to New York with her mom. This conversation seemed delicate, and Jun had the impression that it was rare for her to bring up the subject of her past.
“A few times, I think. I was little, but dad took me up here sometimes. The only memory I have of being out here with him was just a month before he died. I had a nightmare that I was the only person left in the world, and I was so upset that I couldn’t calm down and go back to sleep.” She paused to take another mouthful of her cola. “He carried me out here on his shoulders and said something lame about everybody shining their lights at us to say ‘hello, we’re here!’” She laughed at her memory, and Jun didn’t say anything about the wetness in her eyes. “I just remember how reassuring it was to see that there were other people out there. I thought they looked like shooting stars disappearing into the trees, so my dad said ‘then make a wish!’ Ever since then, no matter where I am in the world, If I’m feeling alone I wave at the people driving by outside. And if I’m feeling down, I look out and make wishes on headlights.”
“That’s really sweet.” Jun commented, smiling at the image of her waving at random strangers.
“I’m glad you think so.” Mao chuckled. “I wanted to cheer you up, and this is what usually works for me.”
Jun frowned a little in confusion. “… Cheer me up?”
Mao looked a little sheepish. “I was talking to Ohno-kun earlier.” She admitted, and then hurried to continue before Jun could interject. “I know he’s one of the last people you want me to bring up right now, but hear me out? I was a little concerned that you’d disappeared so suddenly last night, so I asked him if he knew what had happened. I almost strangled him for being such an idiot, but trust me on this: he feels ridiculously guilty, and he’s not ‘with’ Ninomiya.”
Jun scowled uncomfortably, and chucked a small stone off the edge of the rocks in front of them. “Sure looked like he was.”
“He’s gay, Jun.” Mao sighed. “He has zero interested in kissing women, okay? He gave me permission to tell you that. He also wants me to say he’s sorry. He’s an idiot.”
“…But-“ Jun stuttered, brow furrowed in absolute confusion now. “If he’s-?”
“Don’t get your hopes up yet…” Mao continued cautiously. “He kissed Ninomiya in front of you because he knew Ninomiya wasn’t having any luck with telling you she didn’t want to date you…” She winced when his face fell. “It was a spur of the moment idea that Ohno-kun regrets, for multiple reasons, and he hopes you’ll forgive him and not blame Ninomiya because it was all his idea… and apparently she felt bad for accidentally leading you on for so long. That’s everything he asked me to say.”
“Well…” Jun mused, not sure how he should be feeling. His chest still ached, but it wasn’t quite as painful as it had been earlier. “That’s a lot to process.”
“I know.” Mao said sympathetically. She reached out and patted him comfortingly on the knee. “That’s why I told you my sob story first. If you want to sob now, go ahead.”
Jun couldn’t help but laugh at her offer, and she cracked a smile too. “Thanks, but I think I can contain myself.”
“Hmm…” Mao shivered as she made a thoughtful face.
“Cold? Maybe we should head back soon.”
“Yeah, but first!” She exclaimed, suddenly getting to her feet. “I know something that will definitely cheer you up.” She held a hand out to hoist him up too, and then gestured out at the cars. “You have to make a wish.”
Jun rolled his eyes. “Come on, seriously?”
“I’m not taking you back to your car until you make one. And you’ve got to yell it really loud, like it won’t come true unless they can hear you on the highway.”
“That can’t be how it usually works!”
She grinned. “I made that rule up, so what? You go first. I swear you’ll feel better.”
Jun pursed his lips for a moment, then cupped his mouth with his hands and yelled as loud as he could. “I WISH THE CAFÉ WOULD GIVE ME A RAISE!”
Mao grinned and followed his example. “I WISH FOR JUN-KUN AND I TO PLACE AT THE COMPETITION!”
They both laughed. “That’d be great.” Jun said. “We should start working on a routine.”
Mao nodded. “Let’s do one more before we leave.”
“Again?” Jun frowned thoughtfully for a beat and then took a deep breath. “I WISH I HAD NEVER FALLEN FOR NINOMIYA KAZUKO!” He shouted loud enough that his throat felt raw when he was done.
“I WISH JUN-KUN WOULD HURRY UP AND FALL FOR ME!” Mao hollered right after him, and then dissolved into a fit of breathless giggles as she turned and walked back to the bike.
Jun felt laughter bubble up in his chest too. Mao had been right, he felt a hundred times lighter now than he had earlier. It was like he’d screamed the tension out. “Keep wishing, Mao-chan.” He teased, gathering up the blanket and cans and bringing them over to the hatch.
Mao tossed him his helmet with a wide smile. “I will.”
+++
Sho had a quiet weekend. When he got home from work on Friday, Aiba informed him before he left that Chubby had already learned how to sit, so whenever Chubby started to get out of hand Sho just had to start practicing the new command with him. It worked well, and Chubby seemed all too eager to stop what he was doing and obey (the reward of chewy dog treats might have been his motivation).
Aiba came over again on Sunday (at a painfully early hour of the morning for a Sunday) with a brochure advertising puppy obedience lessons. “Walk-ins are welcome!” He announced, pointing at the corresponding text and then demanding cheerfully that Sho crawl back upstairs and change out of his sleepwear. When Sho came back, Chubby was waiting by the door, already wearing his collar and leash, and Aiba was coming out of the kitchen with two pieces of toast stuck together with raspberry jam. He shoved the toasted jam sandwich into Sho’s mouth, called it breakfast, and handed him his trainers. “Let’s go!”
They spent the day in a park with several other rambunctious pet owners, learning how to get Chubby to heel, lay down, and stay. The instructor was a bit of an impatient old grouch, and the sun was surprisingly hot for a fall day. Sho was sweaty, tired, and frustrated after the first couple of hours. Apparently, he wasn’t holding the leash right to encourage Chubby to stay beside him, and the instructor was continuously reprimanding him for it.
“I already know I’m doing it wrong. She could at least tell me how to fix this.” Sho grumbled to himself.
Aiba chuckled. “She’s not very good at teaching people, is she?” He stepped a little closer to Sho’s side, inconspicuously taking the leash from him as they all got ready to try walking again. “Hold it like this,” he said quietly, demonstrating, “and then just tug him back a little bit when he tries to pull you.” He passed the leather leash back into Sho’s hand and gave him a bright, encouraging smile. “You’ll get it with a bit of practice, same as Chubby.”
“Thanks.” Sho said quietly, grateful for Aiba’s patience.
“Okay everybody, again!” The instructor commanded shrilly.
Sho took a deep breath. “Chubby.” He said firmly, waiting for Chubby to stop leering at the daschund dog to their right and look up at him. “Heel.” He commanded, patting his hip and then stepping forward. Chubby, predictably, tried to surge ahead, but Sho made sure that he was holding the leash the way Aiba had and tugged Cubby back beside him. “Heel, Chubby.” He repeated. The whole cycle had to be repeated for the whole duration of the lap across the grass and every lap after that one, but the instructor had nothing negative to say about Sho’s performance this time, and by the end of the day Chubby was tired enough of being pulled back that he actually began lumbering along in line with Sho.
“Good job!” Aiba beamed, clapping Sho on the shoulder and then crouching down to roughhouse happily with Chubby. “Who’s a good boy, Chubby? Who’s a good boy?” He cooed, flipping the gangly puppy onto his back and tickling his belly. Chubby kicked his legs wildly, tongue lolling out of the side of his mouth, and Sho couldn’t help laughing at the image. Laughter bubbled out of Aiba too as Chubby wriggled free and began running hyper circles around him. “Sakurai-san did good too.” He chuckled, looking up at him.
Sho smiled, feeling more pleased by the compliment than he’d expected to be. He reached out a hand to help Aiba up. “Only thanks to you, Sensei.” He corrected.
Aiba shook his head, accepting Sho’s hand. His cheeks flushed pink. “No, no, I really didn’t do much.” He turned away, clapping his hands and whistling for Chubby’s attention. “Come on, Chubby!” He called. “Let’s go home.”
+++
“I’m going to kill him.” Nino murmured, shoving his cell phone back into his purse. He tossed his hair over his shoulder and turned his back on the door to the dance studio. There was no point in going in there if Aiba wasn’t even going to show up, and now he felt like an idiot for cross-dressing unnecessarily. “Damn you, Masaki.” He swore, stomping down the stairs. Just as he was coming around on the landing, he caught sight of a figure sitting on the lower flight of stairs and simultaneously went over on his ankle. He let out an embarrassingly unmanly yelp and lunged for the railing to steady himself.
“Oh!” Ohno exclaimed, getting to his feet and looking alarmed. “A-Are you okay?” He reached out like he wanted to help, somehow, but then hesitated and awkwardly retracted his hand.
Nino swore under his breath, sinking down to sit on the steps and inspect his shoe. The heel was broken, and he cursed again. “Just my luck.”
Ohno shifted awkwardly a few stairs below him. “…Sorry.” He said, ducking his head.
Nino glanced up at him and sighed. “It’s not like it’s your fault.”
“I know but…” Ohno bit his lip. “You’re leaving.”
“Yes.” Nino affirmed dryly.
“You’re not going to class… that’s probably my fault. Isn’t it?”
Nino shrugged. “My partner bailed on me tonight, and I didn’t want to hang around by myself.”
“Oh…”
Nino sighed, pulling the heel off entirely and massaging his ankle. When Ohno just continued to stand there awkwardly, Nino finally lifted his head and raised an eyebrow at him.
“Sorry.” Ohno promptly apologized, breaking eye-contact. “I just… about last week, I feel really bad about what I did. The more I thought about it the worse I felt. It wasn’t at all my place to interfere with your problems and I don’t normally kiss people at random, just so you know. I’m just… I’m not very good at thinking before I do things, especially if I’ve been drinking at all, and it was really stupid of me to kiss you like that. I’m so sorry.” He bowed deeply, ears burning red at the end of his rushed speech. “Really, I wish I could take it back.”
Nino blinked at him, caught off guard. “… Was I that bad of a kisser?” He blurted.
Ohno went wide-eyed and red-faced. “I didn’t mean that. I’m sorry! It’s just, I feel so guilty for doing that to Matsumoto-san, and putting you in that position against your will.”
“I wasn’t that unwilling.” Nino countered.
“Uh, w-well,” Ohno stammered, clearly uncomfortable.
Nino laughed. “It’s okay, Ohno-san. I’m just picking on you.”
“Oh.” He considered this and then took a deep breath. “Okay.” He smiled awkwardly.
Nino chuckled.
+++
“I’m home!” Sho called, wearily slipping out of his shoes and coat. To his surprise, the house remained silent. Frowning, he made his way through the living room and up the stairs to let Chubby out of his kennel. “Hey buddy!” He greeted the wriggling ball of fur that leapt out at him, patting the dog vigorously. Now that Chubby was causing so much less destruction, Sho found himself actually missing the little guy while he was at work. “Did Aiba-kun leave already? Hm?”
Chubby had no answer other than to try and lick his face.
Sho managed to dodge the slobber attack just in time. Aiba might be fine with dog kisses, but Sho was still a little uncomfortable with having puppy-chow scented saliva drying on his skin. “Okay, okay.” He extricated himself from the dog and got to his feet. “Food time, right?”
It wasn’t until after he’d filled Chubby’s little food and water dishes that Sho noticed the colorful note sitting on his kitchen table next to a couple of books.
‘Sakurai-san! Sorry I have to leave before you get home! It’s sudden, but I have to go home for a couple of days. Sorry to inconvenience you!!
I took Chubby for a walk before I left at around five, he’s getting a lot better at heeling! The books are a present for you; consider it an apology for leaving like this, and a thank you for being kind enough to give me this job. They might help you continue training Chubby while I’m gone! Also, I tried to make you something to eat, so you don’t have to order take-out when you come home late. It’s in the fridge, so all you have to do is heat it up… It might taste bad though. If it does, I’m sorry! I tried my best!
See you on Saturday!
-Aiba-chan’
Sho put the note down and turned his gaze to the books on the table. ‘You and Your Puppy’ and ‘The Beginner Pet-owner’s Guide to Training Terriers’. Sho smiled and set them back down before moving on to inspect the refrigerator. There was a bowl of surprisingly dark curry sitting on the top shelf.
A few minutes later, Sho was sitting at his kitchen table and choking on what appeared to be a lump of burnt potato. Even as his eyes watered and he chugged a glass of water to get the mouthful down, he couldn’t help but laugh and feel grateful for Aiba’s care.
+++
“… Why are you lurking out here anyway?”
“I’m… avoiding Matsumoto-san, actually.” Ohno confessed sheepishly. “Mao-chan doesn’t think he’s mad, but I still feel like I should keep my distance for a while.”
“Understandable.” Nino nodded. “You can sit down again, by the way.” He pointed out. “I don’t care.”
“Thank you.” Ohno bowed his head and sank down on the other end of the step Nino was sitting on. “… Why isn’t Aiba-san coming?”
“Oh, he’s… got some personal problems. I understand if he has to go home and help his family out on short notice, but I wish he’d told me earlier. I wouldn’t have bothered getting dressed up to come here.”
“I see…” Ohno hummed. “Sho-kun isn’t coming tonight either.”
“Girlfriend trouble?” Nino asked. Ohno looked at him curiously and Nino shrugged. “He came alone last week, so I just assumed.”
“Right.” Ohno sighed. “Yeah, I haven’t heard the full story from him, but it doesn’t sound good. It seems like Aiba-san’s been a big help to him though.”
“That’s good to hear.” They fell silent for a long time, until Nino heaved a sigh. “… I can’t believe Aiba signed us up for that competition.”
“You’re not looking forward to it?”
“How can I?” Nino groaned. “It’s going to be embarrassing. I’m having trouble with the steps anyway, and now my partner is gonna keep disappearing… And it’s not like I can get extra help from either of the instructors. Especially not after last week.” He buried his face in his hands.
“I’m sorry… That definitely is my fault.” Ohno apologized, looking pained.
“It’s fine.” Nino said glumly.
“No, I-… I wish I could make it up to you somehow.”
“It doesn’t matter. Even with help, I’m sure I’d still be terrible.”
“That’s not true. I think anyone can learn to dance.”
Nino lifted his head, fixing Ohno with a skeptical expression.
“If you want help, I could try to teach you sometime.” Ohno said, surprising himself as the words left his mouth. It was too late to take them back, and he could kick himself for speaking without thinking first.
Nino gaped at him for a moment, equally caught off guard by the sudden offer. “Ohno-san…” He said slowly. “…You’re sure you’re not trying to pick me up?”
+++
to be continued...
A/N: Well, clearly an apology is in order here... I can't even believe that it has been so many months since I posted chapter 9... All I can say is that I've been through a lot of weird personal shit in the past year that I feel really killed my inspiration and distracted me from writing, and I have actually been working on this chapter for aaaages, but every time I sat down to write it was painfully difficult to get more than a sentence or two churned out. In the last couple of days, for reasons unknown, I've been struck by crazy inspiration to write and so I managed to get this chapter finished. Thank god.
I swear, I'm not giving up on this fic, folks! Again, my apologies for the wait and for not responding to any comments on the last few things I posted. I feel really bad about that. Hopefully, this won't happen again!
NEXT>>>
PAIRINGS: Sakuraiba, Matsumiya, Aimiya, Ohmiya, ShoxMaki, and JunxMao
LENGTH: Multi-chaptered
BANDS: Arashi (with Horikita Maki and Inoue Mao)
GENRE: Romance, drama... etc.
RATING (by chapter): PG-13/14
WARNINGS: AU, language and potentially sexual situations in later chapters.
SUMMARY: "To watch us dance is to hear our hearts speak" - Indian Proverb
Sakurai Sho is the Chief Financial Officer for a large corporation, he has a loving girlfriend, a strange (but friendly) co-worker, and a best friend who teaches a ballroom dance class (which Sho has been guilted into attending). At the class, Sho's encounter with another unorthodox dancer -and his partner- will be the spark needed to kindle new relationships and end others.
PREVIOUS: Step01 | Step02 | Step03 | Step04 | Step05 | Step06 | Step07 | Step08 | Step09 |
NOTE: I've tried to do my research but I am neither a dancer or a business person, so please excuse any incorrect information!!
Step 10.
Sho hadn't been in his office ten minutes Friday morning before Ohno came knocking at his door. Sho's secretary was hovering behind him, looking concerned that he'd barged in without asking to be admitted.
"It's fine." Sho directed at her before gesturing for his colleague to come in.
Ohno did, and closed the door behind him before he would make eye contact. He looked awful. There were heavy bags beneath his eyes and he looked pale beneath his tan. Sho waited patiently for him to speak.
"I... did something pretty stupid last night." Ohno mumbled at length. He began pacing back and forth in front of the desk, wringing his hands and frowning.
Sho frowned too. "How stupid?" He asked warily.
"Really stupid."
Sho shifted anxiously in his chair. The last thing the company needed was for Ninomiya to file an assault charge against the president's son. "Please tell me this isn't going to end in a lawsuit against you."
Ohno turned his frown on him. "No, no, that's... not the problem really."
"...We're talking about whatever happened with you and Ninomiya, right?" Sho clarified.
Ohno nodded. "But... she wasn't mad at me for it or anything. I was attempting to do a favor for her... sort of."
"Sit down, please. You're making me nervous." Sho pointed at the chair across from him, feeling utterly confused. Ohno obeyed glumly. "Now, explain. What did you do?"
"I kissed her." Ohno said, looking and sounding forlorn.
Sho blinked at him. "...Why?"
"I don't know!" Ohno exclaimed, eyes wide. "I told you, it was stupid! I need to stop being impulsive... it's going to get me into trouble." He bit his lip. "I'm sorry. Your friend, Matsumoto-san... he saw. Well, that's why I did it! It was cruel of me, I'm sorry." He bowed deeply.
Sho took a moment to process everything. "So you kissed her, impulsively, in front of Jun... so that he would give up on her?"
Ohno nodded, morose.
"... Are you planning to keep up some sort of ruse that you're involved with each other?"
Ohno looked up, eyes wide again. "Will I have to? I don't think I can handle a repeat of last night. I'm losing sleep over this already..." He moaned.
"Was it really that bad?" Sho raised an eyebrow. "I know she's a girl and all, but it was just kissing. It's not like kissing girls is any different from kissing guys... probably."
"It's... not the kissing that was bad... It's that she kind of got into it, and I was just trying to go with the flow and look convincingly passionate, but then-..." He paused to chew on his lip again before continuing in a soft, wavering voice. "Sho-san... I think I accidentally touched a boob..."
Sho probably should have been more sympathetic, but the traumatized expression on his colleague's face was just too much and he couldn't help cracking up.
+++
“Where are you?! It’s lunch time and I need to vent!”
“I’m sorry, Nino-chan.” Aiba pouted into his cell phone and shifted a little on the porch steps where he was sitting. “I’m supposed to be meeting Sakurai-san.”
At lunch time?… Are you on a date?”
“No! No!” Aiba flushed, waving his free hand around though Nino couldn’t see him. “I’m at his house.”
“…”
Aiba frowned. Nino didn’t have to voice anything for Aiba to know what he was thinking. “Stop being a pervert, will you? I’m just babysitting his dog.”
“Oh, right.” Nino vaguely remembered Aiba telling him that Sho had adopted Chubby and offered him a job as a pet-sitter, but Nino had been too flustered at the time to pay much attention. “Chubby.”
“Right.”
“I forgot.”
“I’m not surprised.” Aiba smiled, pulling his knees up so he could rest his chin on them. “If you want to talk about last night, you can go ahead. I’ll listen until Sakurai gets here.”
“Hm… It’s not like there’s much more to say though, really. It’s just… confusing.”
“You guys made out, right?” Aiba asked, and was met with an affirmative grunt from the other end of the line. “Was he a good kisser?” A hesitation and then another grunt. Aiba chuckled. “What are you confused about?”
“I don’t know if I should be relieved -and guilty- that things are probably through with Jun, or worried that I’ve got another guy after me now.”
“Did Ohno-san say he liked you?”
“No, he acted like he was just trying to help me out. But, I mean, I hardly know him. Why would he care?”
“Well, maybe he’s just a friendly guy?”
“Yeah, really friendly.”
Aiba laughed.
“I’m definitely not looking forward to next Thursday, I’ll tell you that much.”
“Because of Matsumoto-kun?”
“Yeah. It’s gonna be awkward as hell.”
“I guess that means you won’t want to sign up for those extra lessons?”
“Oh shit.” Nino groaned dramatically. “I forgot you signed us up for that stupid competition.”
“Sorry, but I think it will be fun.”
“We’ll see about that.” Nino grumbled.
“I- Oh,” a car pulled up at the curb in front of the house. “Sorry Nino-chan, I think he’s here.”
“Don’t have too much fun!” Nino warned him teasingly before hanging up.
Aiba rolled his eyes and clambered to his feet, shoving his phone into his pants pocket and putting a bright smile on his face as Sho jogged up to the steps with a briefcase in hand. “Hello, Sakurai-kun.”
“Hey!” Sho returned the smile, slipping past him and pulling a keychain from the pocket of his suit jacket. “I hope you weren’t waiting long.”
Aiba shook his head, though his bottom was a little numb from sitting on the steps for near half an hour.
Sho looked relieved as he turned his key in the lock and opened the door. “Oh, good.” He held the door open for Aiba to step in behind him. “Traffic was bad, so I was worried.” He pulled his shoes off and waited for Aiba to do the same before leading him into the living room.
“Wow…” Aiba said, trying to take in the high ceilinged room. Everything looked immaculately tidy and put exactly in its designated spot. The furniture and furnishings looked expensive, and Aiba was already dreading accidentally putting something out of order. “You’re a real neat-freak, huh?”
Sho smiled sheepishly. “I… got up early this morning to clean. Normally this place is a lot more chaotic, but I didn’t want you to think I was a slob.”
“Oh.” Aiba felt himself relaxing again. “You don’t need to worry about that, my apartment is usually a mess.”
Sho laughed and beckoned for Aiba to walk with him. “This is the living room. If you want to watch anything the television remotes are on the coffee table. They’re relatively straightforward. And… through there is the kitchen. There’s some stuff in the fridge, and the cupboards. Eat whatever you feel like.” Aiba nodded along as Sho started leading him up the staircase. “Across there is a bathroom you can use.” Sho said, pointing across the living room. “There’s another one upstairs too which you’re also welcome to use. My bedroom is at the end of the hall. Right here is my study.” He paused in front of the French doors. “You can read any of the books in the shelves if you get bored, or whatever. I’d rather if you didn’t touch the computer though. I’ve got a lot of important work files on there.”
“Of course. I won’t.” Aiba promised.
Sho smiled. “Great, thanks. And… here.” He continued walking to the closed door between the study and the doorway to his bedroom. “This is the upstairs bathroom. I locked Chubby in here before I left this morning. He’s got his toys and a blanket to lay on, so he should be okay… I just didn’t want him making a mess while he was here unsupervised.” Sho gave him one last look, as if to say ‘brace yourself’ before turning the knob and swinging the door open.
Chubby was flying from the far side of the tiled room before the door was even finished opening all the way. A loud yapp burst out of him and cut off abruptly as his good eye caught sight of Aiba. His bounding faltered and he stumbled momentarily before launching forward again. Aiba dropped to his knees in time to catch the puppy leaping into his arms. Chubby’s tail was wagging so furiously that it gave his whole body the impression of excited wiggling. In between excited barks, he thoroughly soaked Aiba’s neck and cheek with sloppy licks and chewed a bit on the collar of his polo shirt. “I missed you too!” Aiba squeaked through a grin, cuddling the dog to his chest and scratching behind his ears.
“Well… I guess he remembers you.” Sho chuckled, standing awkwardly to the side of their reunion.
+++
Jun wasn’t expecting to be ambushed when he stepped out of the café at the end of his shift.
A shout of fright died before it could leave his lips as he spun around to face the owner of the hands on his shoulders. He sighed, letting the adrenaline rush out of him as he met a quirked smile. “Mao-chan.” He said, too worn out (physically from his long shift, and emotionally from the heartbreak he’d experienced less than 24 hours ago) to be amused. “What are you doing here?”
“I was waiting for you to come out.” She said cheerily, grabbing his wrist and tugging him down the sidewalk. “We’re going for a drive.”
Jun frowned. “Mao, I’m tired. And my car’s parked in that direction.” He pointed over his shoulder.
“I’m driving.” She explained. “I can drop you back here when we’re done.” She stopped beside a navy blue motorbike and Jun raised his eyebrows, foul mood temporarily forgotten.
“This is yours?” He asked as she straddled the seat and passed him a helmet.
“No. I do drive one in New York, but this is a rental.” She fastened her own helmet beneath her chin and nudged the kickstand up with her heel. “Hop on.”
The bike rumbled to life beneath them and Jun wrapped his arms tight around Mao’s middle as she eased them into the street. Traffic started to clear up after the first intersection they crossed and Mao shifted gears to pick up speed. The wind was cold on his face as they whipped through the streets, but Mao’s back was warm even through her leather jacket. Jun squinted over her shoulder, not wanting to be surprised by any turns. The city lights in windows and on signs and lampposts seemed to blur together, almost blindingly bright.
Mao took them up a ramp and onto the highway and it felt like they were flying through the dark. Jun had the childish urge to stretch his arms out to either side, but couldn’t bring himself to be brave (and foolish) enough to let go. His heart was still hammering in his chest from their high speed when Mao turned them up an exit ramp and onto a quiet rural street. They drove at a leisurely pace on the winding road, and Jun was able to relax his tight grip around her middle enough to appreciate the drive. The sky above the treetops that lined the road was an inky purplish black, and away from the city a few stars could be seen shining distantly above their route.
“Where are we going?” Jun asked, leaning forward to be sure she would hear him over the engine.
“We’re almost there!” She called back, turning onto a narrow dirt road and easing them up the bumpy path. She slowed the bike to a stop when the slope leveled out to a rocky clearing, and Jun got off once she’d dropped the kickstand. To the right was a steep drop-off overlooking the tops of thick trees that bore leaves of gold and red and rustled dryly in the cold wind. Beyond the expanse of trees lay the highway that they had driven on earlier. White headlights lit the furthest trees up like the branches were sprouting flames as the vehicles drew close, and then extinguished the blaze when they zipped away in streaks of red taillights. It was as if each car was a spark drifting away and out of sight.
While he observed the area, Mao turned off the engine and dropped them into silence save for the quiet rush of motors passing on the highway and the chirping of crickets in the bushes behind them. She took his helmet from him and hooked both his and hers on the handlebars before opening the hatch on the compartment beneath the seat and pulling out a blanket and a six-pack of cans.
“… Beer?” Jun asked with a raised eyebrow.
Mao shook her head as she walked past him. Her smile was bright in the dark. “No, it’s Coke. I kept in mind that both of us will need to drive at some point tonight.” She set the cans down on a rock and spread the blanket out on the ground in front of it so she could use the rock as a backrest. She sat cross-legged and gave him an expectant look while she extracted one of the cans from the plastic rings and popped the tab. “… Not gonna sit with me?” She asked.
Jun sighed and settled cautiously beside her. The blanket did little to soften the hardness of the ground, but he was still wearing his work uniform and glad that she wasn’t expecting him to sit in the dirt. “Thanks.” He said as she passed him a can. He cracked it open slowly, then bent forward to lick some of the fizzy drink off the top. The trees rustled loudly as a cold wind blew, and Mao huddled a little closer to the rock they were leaning against. “…What are we doing here?”
Mao shrugged. “I just felt like kidnapping you. Did you have plans or something?”
Jun shook his head and lifted his can to his lips. The cola was cold and bubbly, and he half wished that it were a can of hot coffee instead.
“… It’s kind of pretty, isn’t it?” Mao said quietly after several long minutes of silence had passed. When Jun turned to look at her, there was a soft smile on her lips and she nodded towards the highway.
Jun spent another moment watching the lights fly through the dark in the distance before nodding his agreement.
“My parent’s got divorced when I was two. I don’t remember it, but I know it’s because my mother was always married to her work. Family came second for her, and she was so busy that she hardly ever had time for us. I lived with my dad until I was seven. He was a songwriter, and he worked mostly from his home studio so he was always around to play with or talk to.”
“Sounds like a fun guy.”
Mao nodded, smiling fondly. “Yeah. Our house wasn’t far from here, actually.” She gestured over her shoulder. “If you walk in that direction for about ten minutes, you’ll come over a hill and see a field. Our house used to be there, but the guy who owns it now tore it down. It’s all hay fields now.”
“Did you come out here often when you were little?” Jun asked tentatively. In the few years he’d known her, Mao hadn’t spoken much about her family or her childhood. All he knew was that she wasn’t very close with her mother, and that her father had gotten sick and died not long before she moved to New York with her mom. This conversation seemed delicate, and Jun had the impression that it was rare for her to bring up the subject of her past.
“A few times, I think. I was little, but dad took me up here sometimes. The only memory I have of being out here with him was just a month before he died. I had a nightmare that I was the only person left in the world, and I was so upset that I couldn’t calm down and go back to sleep.” She paused to take another mouthful of her cola. “He carried me out here on his shoulders and said something lame about everybody shining their lights at us to say ‘hello, we’re here!’” She laughed at her memory, and Jun didn’t say anything about the wetness in her eyes. “I just remember how reassuring it was to see that there were other people out there. I thought they looked like shooting stars disappearing into the trees, so my dad said ‘then make a wish!’ Ever since then, no matter where I am in the world, If I’m feeling alone I wave at the people driving by outside. And if I’m feeling down, I look out and make wishes on headlights.”
“That’s really sweet.” Jun commented, smiling at the image of her waving at random strangers.
“I’m glad you think so.” Mao chuckled. “I wanted to cheer you up, and this is what usually works for me.”
Jun frowned a little in confusion. “… Cheer me up?”
Mao looked a little sheepish. “I was talking to Ohno-kun earlier.” She admitted, and then hurried to continue before Jun could interject. “I know he’s one of the last people you want me to bring up right now, but hear me out? I was a little concerned that you’d disappeared so suddenly last night, so I asked him if he knew what had happened. I almost strangled him for being such an idiot, but trust me on this: he feels ridiculously guilty, and he’s not ‘with’ Ninomiya.”
Jun scowled uncomfortably, and chucked a small stone off the edge of the rocks in front of them. “Sure looked like he was.”
“He’s gay, Jun.” Mao sighed. “He has zero interested in kissing women, okay? He gave me permission to tell you that. He also wants me to say he’s sorry. He’s an idiot.”
“…But-“ Jun stuttered, brow furrowed in absolute confusion now. “If he’s-?”
“Don’t get your hopes up yet…” Mao continued cautiously. “He kissed Ninomiya in front of you because he knew Ninomiya wasn’t having any luck with telling you she didn’t want to date you…” She winced when his face fell. “It was a spur of the moment idea that Ohno-kun regrets, for multiple reasons, and he hopes you’ll forgive him and not blame Ninomiya because it was all his idea… and apparently she felt bad for accidentally leading you on for so long. That’s everything he asked me to say.”
“Well…” Jun mused, not sure how he should be feeling. His chest still ached, but it wasn’t quite as painful as it had been earlier. “That’s a lot to process.”
“I know.” Mao said sympathetically. She reached out and patted him comfortingly on the knee. “That’s why I told you my sob story first. If you want to sob now, go ahead.”
Jun couldn’t help but laugh at her offer, and she cracked a smile too. “Thanks, but I think I can contain myself.”
“Hmm…” Mao shivered as she made a thoughtful face.
“Cold? Maybe we should head back soon.”
“Yeah, but first!” She exclaimed, suddenly getting to her feet. “I know something that will definitely cheer you up.” She held a hand out to hoist him up too, and then gestured out at the cars. “You have to make a wish.”
Jun rolled his eyes. “Come on, seriously?”
“I’m not taking you back to your car until you make one. And you’ve got to yell it really loud, like it won’t come true unless they can hear you on the highway.”
“That can’t be how it usually works!”
She grinned. “I made that rule up, so what? You go first. I swear you’ll feel better.”
Jun pursed his lips for a moment, then cupped his mouth with his hands and yelled as loud as he could. “I WISH THE CAFÉ WOULD GIVE ME A RAISE!”
Mao grinned and followed his example. “I WISH FOR JUN-KUN AND I TO PLACE AT THE COMPETITION!”
They both laughed. “That’d be great.” Jun said. “We should start working on a routine.”
Mao nodded. “Let’s do one more before we leave.”
“Again?” Jun frowned thoughtfully for a beat and then took a deep breath. “I WISH I HAD NEVER FALLEN FOR NINOMIYA KAZUKO!” He shouted loud enough that his throat felt raw when he was done.
“I WISH JUN-KUN WOULD HURRY UP AND FALL FOR ME!” Mao hollered right after him, and then dissolved into a fit of breathless giggles as she turned and walked back to the bike.
Jun felt laughter bubble up in his chest too. Mao had been right, he felt a hundred times lighter now than he had earlier. It was like he’d screamed the tension out. “Keep wishing, Mao-chan.” He teased, gathering up the blanket and cans and bringing them over to the hatch.
Mao tossed him his helmet with a wide smile. “I will.”
+++
Sho had a quiet weekend. When he got home from work on Friday, Aiba informed him before he left that Chubby had already learned how to sit, so whenever Chubby started to get out of hand Sho just had to start practicing the new command with him. It worked well, and Chubby seemed all too eager to stop what he was doing and obey (the reward of chewy dog treats might have been his motivation).
Aiba came over again on Sunday (at a painfully early hour of the morning for a Sunday) with a brochure advertising puppy obedience lessons. “Walk-ins are welcome!” He announced, pointing at the corresponding text and then demanding cheerfully that Sho crawl back upstairs and change out of his sleepwear. When Sho came back, Chubby was waiting by the door, already wearing his collar and leash, and Aiba was coming out of the kitchen with two pieces of toast stuck together with raspberry jam. He shoved the toasted jam sandwich into Sho’s mouth, called it breakfast, and handed him his trainers. “Let’s go!”
They spent the day in a park with several other rambunctious pet owners, learning how to get Chubby to heel, lay down, and stay. The instructor was a bit of an impatient old grouch, and the sun was surprisingly hot for a fall day. Sho was sweaty, tired, and frustrated after the first couple of hours. Apparently, he wasn’t holding the leash right to encourage Chubby to stay beside him, and the instructor was continuously reprimanding him for it.
“I already know I’m doing it wrong. She could at least tell me how to fix this.” Sho grumbled to himself.
Aiba chuckled. “She’s not very good at teaching people, is she?” He stepped a little closer to Sho’s side, inconspicuously taking the leash from him as they all got ready to try walking again. “Hold it like this,” he said quietly, demonstrating, “and then just tug him back a little bit when he tries to pull you.” He passed the leather leash back into Sho’s hand and gave him a bright, encouraging smile. “You’ll get it with a bit of practice, same as Chubby.”
“Thanks.” Sho said quietly, grateful for Aiba’s patience.
“Okay everybody, again!” The instructor commanded shrilly.
Sho took a deep breath. “Chubby.” He said firmly, waiting for Chubby to stop leering at the daschund dog to their right and look up at him. “Heel.” He commanded, patting his hip and then stepping forward. Chubby, predictably, tried to surge ahead, but Sho made sure that he was holding the leash the way Aiba had and tugged Cubby back beside him. “Heel, Chubby.” He repeated. The whole cycle had to be repeated for the whole duration of the lap across the grass and every lap after that one, but the instructor had nothing negative to say about Sho’s performance this time, and by the end of the day Chubby was tired enough of being pulled back that he actually began lumbering along in line with Sho.
“Good job!” Aiba beamed, clapping Sho on the shoulder and then crouching down to roughhouse happily with Chubby. “Who’s a good boy, Chubby? Who’s a good boy?” He cooed, flipping the gangly puppy onto his back and tickling his belly. Chubby kicked his legs wildly, tongue lolling out of the side of his mouth, and Sho couldn’t help laughing at the image. Laughter bubbled out of Aiba too as Chubby wriggled free and began running hyper circles around him. “Sakurai-san did good too.” He chuckled, looking up at him.
Sho smiled, feeling more pleased by the compliment than he’d expected to be. He reached out a hand to help Aiba up. “Only thanks to you, Sensei.” He corrected.
Aiba shook his head, accepting Sho’s hand. His cheeks flushed pink. “No, no, I really didn’t do much.” He turned away, clapping his hands and whistling for Chubby’s attention. “Come on, Chubby!” He called. “Let’s go home.”
+++
“I’m going to kill him.” Nino murmured, shoving his cell phone back into his purse. He tossed his hair over his shoulder and turned his back on the door to the dance studio. There was no point in going in there if Aiba wasn’t even going to show up, and now he felt like an idiot for cross-dressing unnecessarily. “Damn you, Masaki.” He swore, stomping down the stairs. Just as he was coming around on the landing, he caught sight of a figure sitting on the lower flight of stairs and simultaneously went over on his ankle. He let out an embarrassingly unmanly yelp and lunged for the railing to steady himself.
“Oh!” Ohno exclaimed, getting to his feet and looking alarmed. “A-Are you okay?” He reached out like he wanted to help, somehow, but then hesitated and awkwardly retracted his hand.
Nino swore under his breath, sinking down to sit on the steps and inspect his shoe. The heel was broken, and he cursed again. “Just my luck.”
Ohno shifted awkwardly a few stairs below him. “…Sorry.” He said, ducking his head.
Nino glanced up at him and sighed. “It’s not like it’s your fault.”
“I know but…” Ohno bit his lip. “You’re leaving.”
“Yes.” Nino affirmed dryly.
“You’re not going to class… that’s probably my fault. Isn’t it?”
Nino shrugged. “My partner bailed on me tonight, and I didn’t want to hang around by myself.”
“Oh…”
Nino sighed, pulling the heel off entirely and massaging his ankle. When Ohno just continued to stand there awkwardly, Nino finally lifted his head and raised an eyebrow at him.
“Sorry.” Ohno promptly apologized, breaking eye-contact. “I just… about last week, I feel really bad about what I did. The more I thought about it the worse I felt. It wasn’t at all my place to interfere with your problems and I don’t normally kiss people at random, just so you know. I’m just… I’m not very good at thinking before I do things, especially if I’ve been drinking at all, and it was really stupid of me to kiss you like that. I’m so sorry.” He bowed deeply, ears burning red at the end of his rushed speech. “Really, I wish I could take it back.”
Nino blinked at him, caught off guard. “… Was I that bad of a kisser?” He blurted.
Ohno went wide-eyed and red-faced. “I didn’t mean that. I’m sorry! It’s just, I feel so guilty for doing that to Matsumoto-san, and putting you in that position against your will.”
“I wasn’t that unwilling.” Nino countered.
“Uh, w-well,” Ohno stammered, clearly uncomfortable.
Nino laughed. “It’s okay, Ohno-san. I’m just picking on you.”
“Oh.” He considered this and then took a deep breath. “Okay.” He smiled awkwardly.
Nino chuckled.
+++
“I’m home!” Sho called, wearily slipping out of his shoes and coat. To his surprise, the house remained silent. Frowning, he made his way through the living room and up the stairs to let Chubby out of his kennel. “Hey buddy!” He greeted the wriggling ball of fur that leapt out at him, patting the dog vigorously. Now that Chubby was causing so much less destruction, Sho found himself actually missing the little guy while he was at work. “Did Aiba-kun leave already? Hm?”
Chubby had no answer other than to try and lick his face.
Sho managed to dodge the slobber attack just in time. Aiba might be fine with dog kisses, but Sho was still a little uncomfortable with having puppy-chow scented saliva drying on his skin. “Okay, okay.” He extricated himself from the dog and got to his feet. “Food time, right?”
It wasn’t until after he’d filled Chubby’s little food and water dishes that Sho noticed the colorful note sitting on his kitchen table next to a couple of books.
‘Sakurai-san! Sorry I have to leave before you get home! It’s sudden, but I have to go home for a couple of days. Sorry to inconvenience you!!
I took Chubby for a walk before I left at around five, he’s getting a lot better at heeling! The books are a present for you; consider it an apology for leaving like this, and a thank you for being kind enough to give me this job. They might help you continue training Chubby while I’m gone! Also, I tried to make you something to eat, so you don’t have to order take-out when you come home late. It’s in the fridge, so all you have to do is heat it up… It might taste bad though. If it does, I’m sorry! I tried my best!
See you on Saturday!
-Aiba-chan’
Sho put the note down and turned his gaze to the books on the table. ‘You and Your Puppy’ and ‘The Beginner Pet-owner’s Guide to Training Terriers’. Sho smiled and set them back down before moving on to inspect the refrigerator. There was a bowl of surprisingly dark curry sitting on the top shelf.
A few minutes later, Sho was sitting at his kitchen table and choking on what appeared to be a lump of burnt potato. Even as his eyes watered and he chugged a glass of water to get the mouthful down, he couldn’t help but laugh and feel grateful for Aiba’s care.
+++
“… Why are you lurking out here anyway?”
“I’m… avoiding Matsumoto-san, actually.” Ohno confessed sheepishly. “Mao-chan doesn’t think he’s mad, but I still feel like I should keep my distance for a while.”
“Understandable.” Nino nodded. “You can sit down again, by the way.” He pointed out. “I don’t care.”
“Thank you.” Ohno bowed his head and sank down on the other end of the step Nino was sitting on. “… Why isn’t Aiba-san coming?”
“Oh, he’s… got some personal problems. I understand if he has to go home and help his family out on short notice, but I wish he’d told me earlier. I wouldn’t have bothered getting dressed up to come here.”
“I see…” Ohno hummed. “Sho-kun isn’t coming tonight either.”
“Girlfriend trouble?” Nino asked. Ohno looked at him curiously and Nino shrugged. “He came alone last week, so I just assumed.”
“Right.” Ohno sighed. “Yeah, I haven’t heard the full story from him, but it doesn’t sound good. It seems like Aiba-san’s been a big help to him though.”
“That’s good to hear.” They fell silent for a long time, until Nino heaved a sigh. “… I can’t believe Aiba signed us up for that competition.”
“You’re not looking forward to it?”
“How can I?” Nino groaned. “It’s going to be embarrassing. I’m having trouble with the steps anyway, and now my partner is gonna keep disappearing… And it’s not like I can get extra help from either of the instructors. Especially not after last week.” He buried his face in his hands.
“I’m sorry… That definitely is my fault.” Ohno apologized, looking pained.
“It’s fine.” Nino said glumly.
“No, I-… I wish I could make it up to you somehow.”
“It doesn’t matter. Even with help, I’m sure I’d still be terrible.”
“That’s not true. I think anyone can learn to dance.”
Nino lifted his head, fixing Ohno with a skeptical expression.
“If you want help, I could try to teach you sometime.” Ohno said, surprising himself as the words left his mouth. It was too late to take them back, and he could kick himself for speaking without thinking first.
Nino gaped at him for a moment, equally caught off guard by the sudden offer. “Ohno-san…” He said slowly. “…You’re sure you’re not trying to pick me up?”
+++
to be continued...
A/N: Well, clearly an apology is in order here... I can't even believe that it has been so many months since I posted chapter 9... All I can say is that I've been through a lot of weird personal shit in the past year that I feel really killed my inspiration and distracted me from writing, and I have actually been working on this chapter for aaaages, but every time I sat down to write it was painfully difficult to get more than a sentence or two churned out. In the last couple of days, for reasons unknown, I've been struck by crazy inspiration to write and so I managed to get this chapter finished. Thank god.
I swear, I'm not giving up on this fic, folks! Again, my apologies for the wait and for not responding to any comments on the last few things I posted. I feel really bad about that. Hopefully, this won't happen again!
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