Once Again... I'm in Love with You - Chapter 2
The young barista was surprised to see Jun. Then he smiled softly, the same smile that Ohno often sees in Ninomiya sensei. A smile that seemed innocent but there's a hint of mischievous. He waved his hand at Jun before resuming his work. Watching that, Ohno could feel something raging inside of him. Something he didn't feel for a while and he didn't know why it resurfaced again now. He had a hard time keeping his face blank as he watched Nino, so he shifted his attention to Jun. Unlike Nino, Jun had a hard time trying to remain calm. He waited impatiently for their turn to order the drink.
"Nino." He called the barista when it was finally their turn. The cashier frowned upon hearing that while Nino smiled at Jun.
"Do you know my friend?" The cashier asked.
Jun nodded his head. "It has been a while, ne?"
"Yes, it has been a while," Nino responded. "I would like to catch up with you but we cannot do it now. Come to the shop again after work. Is Sho Kun with you?"
Jun nodded his head.
"Bring him, okay?"
"But..." Jun wanted to protest at first. However, Ohno stopped him and asked him to look around the shop. There were a lot of customers lining up behind them. Some of them even looked at him angrily. It will be impossible to talk seeing how busy the shop was so he finally nodded his head solemnly.
"I'll come again at around 6 PM," Jun told Nino, who handed two cups of coffee to both Ohno and Jun. Ohno looked at his drink, surprised that Nino had presented him with large French vanilla. Ohno hadn't ordered yet so he was shocked Nino knew what drink he wanted.
"Wow, I’m surprised you know my favourite." Jun smiled at Nino. The barista smirked triumphantly. As the customers behind them started to show dissatisfaction because of Jun, Ohno immediately pulled him from the line to sit at a table near the counter.
"I'm sorry about that." The cashier told the next customer cheerfully. "Let me guess. You want a medium hazelnut latte."
"How do you know that?" The customer couldn't hide her amusement because the cashier was able to guess her order correctly. However, she was even more surprised when Nino presented her with the drink a few moments after the cashier had guessed. Both of them did the same trick for the rest of the customer and Ohno was impressed with them. He wondered how both of them knew the order.
As he watched Nino, Ohno noticed how similar the barista was with his annoying teacher. He hadn't met Ninomiya sensei for a while. But, he remembered every detail on his face. His eyes, his lips, his nose, and even the mole on his chin. Everything was the same as his teacher. He looked mischievous, just like his teacher. It made Ohno wondered if they're related. That would explain the uncanny resemblance between them.
"What is your friend's name?" He asked Jun.
"Are you interested in Nino?" Jun teased him, instead of answering. "He's a brat, you know."
"And you're a diva!" Nino suddenly appeared, carrying a small plate with two blueberry muffins on it. Ohno glanced at the counter. There were only a couple of customers left and the cashier took over Nino's job.
"Thank you for the muffin," Jun said as he reached out to take a muffin from the plate. However, Nino took the plate before he could reach it and gave it to Ohno. From the corner of his eye, Ohno noticed Jun was pouting as Ohno awkwardly took one of the muffins from the plate. Then, Nino took the other muffin and took a bite.
"Hmmm… Umai!" Nino exclaimed as he took another bite. Jun glared at him.
"Ah, we just met again and you've already pissed me off," Jun grumbled.
"Well, you should know. Ninomiya Kazunari loves to annoy Matsumoto Jun."
Ninomiya Kazunari. That was the barista's name. Ohno was surprised to hear the name. Why did Nino and his teacher have the same name? He could only think of an answer. Nino and Ninomiya sensei are the same people. But, it's impossible. His teacher should be old now, not young like the barista standing near him.
"Brat!" Ohno's thoughts on his teacher were distracted when Jun snatched the muffin from Nino's hand and put all of it in his mouth. Nino narrowed his eyes while Jun smiled triumphantly at him before he squeezed Nino's cheeks, which resulted in Nino playfully pushed him away. Watching their interaction, the fire inside of Ohno was once again flaming.
"Still soft! Which product do you use?" Jun remarked as he continued to squeeze the cheeks. Nino didn't answer, instead, he rolled his eyes at Jun.
"You use soap to wash your face?"
"It's cheaper," Nino answered causing Jun to roll his eyes in disbelief.
"Ah... Time for work." Jun sighed as he looked at the clock. "It's nice to see you again."
"I know. You must be missing me so much, right, diva?" Nino said. Jun responded by pretending to vomit when he heard that.
"Anyway.." Ohno was surprised when Nino gave his full attention to him. The fire inside of him immediately disappeared. "The diva is being rude. He didn't introduce the two of us."
Upon hearing that, Jun was surprised as he stared at the two of them.
"What? Why are you interested to know Ohno Kun?" Asked Jun. Ohno wondered if he should be offended because Jun seemed to think that he wasn't the kind of guy Nino would be interested in. But, he dismissed that as Nino suddenly leaned closer to him. He found it weird that he didn't feel uncomfortable with the closeness. Instead, he loved having the small guy near him. His action caused Jun to look at them inquiringly.
"So, your name is Ohno? May I call you Ohchan, then?" Nino asked, clearly ignoring Jun. Ohno nodded his head. To be honest, he didn't know how to react.
"Ohchan, I'm Nino. It's nice to meet you." Nino said, holding out his hand to shake. However, before he could return the gesture, Nino suddenly blinked and retreated the said hand. Ohno looked at him in confusion.
"Sorry, Aiba chan needs my help." He pointed at the cashier then immediately left before he could ask anything.
"Is he okay?" He asked Jun. His friend looked thoughtful for a while but he didn't offer him any answer.
"He is just weird." Said Jun. "Let's go."
Then both of them started to head out together. He cast one last look at Nino before he left the shop. Perhaps it was just his feelings but he could feel Nino's eyes on him as he left the shop.
Nino watched the two customers who had just left his shop. He was glad that he had the chance to meet them again. However, it was sad that one of them didn't remember him. Not for who he really was. He thought the bond between them was strong but apparently it wasn't.
"Are you okay?" Aiba asked him. He nodded his head and gave the guy a smile. He didn't want to make him worried. To be honest, he was surprised that Aiba could remain calm while he almost lost his composure upon seeing Ohno again.
Aiba seemed to understand his reluctance to talk further into this. So, he just patted his shoulder to encourage him. Once again, he smiled at his friend, feeling thankful for his understanding.
He wondered why he agreed with Aiba's suggestion to come here. He knew they had to flee but coming here brought him more pain especially when he met Ohno again. They had so much history together and it's painful that Ohno cannot remember any of it. Their bond allowed them to meet again but why couldn't it make Ohno remember?
There was a knock on the door of his office. Sho instructed the person on the other side to enter, expecting to see his secretary came in to inform him that one of his appointments had been cancelled. However, it wasn't his secretary. It was Jun, much to his surprise. The guy strode in and took a seat in front of him.
"What brings you here?" He asked. Jun never came to his office unless they'd a meeting.
Sho stared at the man in front of him, reminiscing how the two of them ended up in this foreign place together. They were not from here. They were from a place far away. A place where humans and Fae lived together. But now they were here, trying to find their prince who crossed the realm to save his soulmate. Worrying about his safety, the two of them went after the prince but they couldn’t find him when they arrived here. And now, they are stuck in this realm because they need the prince to open the door to their home.
"Nino," Jun answered. Sho couldn't hide his surprise. He hadn't heard the name for a while. It was the name of the prince. Did Jun…
"What's with him?" Sho asked curiously.
"I met him."
"Where? When?" Asked Sho in surprise. They’d been looking for him for a while but to no avail. To hear that Jun had finally found him was too surreal.
"During lunch. He works in a coffee shop. He wants to see us after work today."
Sho stayed silent. He stared at Jun carefully, trying to see if Jun was bluffing. Jun rarely bluffed, especially for matters related to Nino. But, there's no doubt that something was bothering him.
"Is he okay?" Sho asked. Jun nodded his head.
"Yes," Jun answered. "But, he acted weirdly. It seems like he is interested in Ohno Kun. Even Ohno Kun himself was weird. For the first time, he seems angry at me when he watched both of us."
Sho's eyes opened wide in surprise. That shouldn't happen. Nino should not be interested in anyone other than...
A realization struck him. There could be one reason if Nino was indeed interested with Ohno. His eyes met Jun. They both looked at each other with the same expression.
"Do you think..." He began. Jun nodded his head even without he finished the question.
No words were exchanged between the two of them for a while. Both were absorbed in their own thoughts, contemplating about what the discovery really meant for them. Sho felt stupid. He couldn’t believe that the reason they were stuck in this place was right in front of him all this time. Will they return home after this?
"Satoshi, do you believe in soulmates?" Ohno rolled his eyes at the teacher. The teacher was marking his worksheet when he asked the stupid question. He was just 10 years old. Wasn't it too young to talk about soulmates with him? Furthermore, there were no such things as soulmates. Anyone who believed that kind of things exists was stupid. "I've found my soulmate a long time ago." The teacher continued when he didn't answer him. It's hard to believe that Ninomiya sensei was one of the people who believed in that kind of thing. "But, a tragedy happened and I lost him. We were separated but we will always find each other. And I found him again. But, he was different. The saddest thing is he didn't remember me at all."
"So?" He asked the teacher. It was obvious he was annoyed with the teacher and had no mood to entertain him with his antics this time causing Ninomiya sensei to flinch because of what he said. Just for a brief second, he saw a hint of sadness in the teacher's eyes. But, it was quickly replaced with his cheerful smile.
"I'm sorry. I get a little carried away." Ninomiya sensei apologized. He quickly marked his worksheet and handed it back to him. Ohno immediately stood up and left the classroom. If the teacher didn't talk to him while he marked his worksheet, maybe he can get home sooner.
As he walked home, he felt something was missing. He realized he didn't say goodbye to the teacher. It's because the teacher didn't initiate it first. Well... Whatever... He decided to dismiss the uneasy feeling he had because of it.
That was actually the last time he saw the teacher.
Ohno couldn't focus at work. He kept thinking about Ninomiya sensei. A distant memory between him and Ninomiya sensei kept popping in his mind. He had no idea why he kept thinking of that memory since his meeting with Nino this afternoon.
Soulmates. That was the last thing Ninomiya sensei bothered him about. He remembered how hostile he was when Ninomiya sensei happily told him about his soulmate. At first, he thought he was annoyed with Ninomiya sensei for telling him such a stupid story. Now, he had a different perspective on that matter. He wasn't annoyed. Instead, he was… even though it was hard for him to admit… he was jealous. He was jealous of the attention that Ninomiya sensei had given to other students. Whenever Ninomiya sensei shifted his attention to him after focusing on them and started to tease him, he treated the teacher badly not because he was annoyed. But, it was because he was sulking.
Ohno was even angrier when Ninomiya sensei talked to him about meeting his soulmate. He was angry because it wasn't him. But, he didn't recognize the feeling at first. It took him years to understand what he truly felt for his teacher. From the very first time he met the teacher, he was attracted to him. Why? He had no idea. And, he had never felt this way to other people. Only to Ninomiya sensei.
And now he felt the rage again. He felt the rage towards Jun and it's because of Nino. But, as he was older now than the first time he met Ninomiya sensei, he could control his feeling better.
This thing was making him confused. Why would he feel the same thing about Ninomiya sensei to Nino? The only possible thing would be because Nino is...
His phone vibrated, interrupting his thoughts on the matter. It was his father. He didn't know why but he had a bad feeling as he answered the call.
"Hello." He greeted the person at the end of the line.
"Hello." He frowned. It wasn't his father who answered the call. It was someone else. The voice was thick with accent.
"Where is my papa?" He asked. But, the other person laughed in return. The laugh sounded inhuman.
"Sa... To... Shi..." He heard his father's voice from the background. He sounded weak and the laughter continued.
"WHAT DID YOU DO TO MY PAPA?" He shouted. Everyone in the office looked at his direction. But, it didn't matter to him. What mattered was his father. What did the person do to his father? If he dared to hurt him, Ohno swore he will make sure he will regret the day he was born.
But, the phone call ended abruptly causing him to be bewildered with the caller's action. Feeling worried for his father, all he could think of was to sprint home. But, when he reached the door of his department, he bumped into Jun and Sho.
"Ohno Kun, what's wrong?" Jun asked, looking worried.
But, he pushed him away. There was a pressing matter to handle right now. He ran home, not caring how tired he felt. His legs hurt so much for running. But, he ignored the pain. He quickly entered the house, noticing it wasn't locked. His worry instantly elevated to see the unlocked door.
"Mama... Papa..." He shouted as he entered the house that he hadn't visited for a while. It was eerily quiet. No one responded to his call.
"They’re here." He turned around when he heard Sho's voice behind him. He wasn't alone. Jun was with him. But, Ohno ignored them. He will deal with them once he made sure his parents were okay.
"What..."
Ohno was at a loss for words when he entered the living room. It was chaotic. It was messy with stuff sprawling everywhere in it. There was blood everywhere in the room. He almost vomited because of the sight and smell. But, his parents were nowhere to be seen.
Ohno walked further into the living room, trying to find his parents. His steps faltered as he approached the sofa. The bad feeling got even worse with each step he took. He looked behind the sofa, spotting both his parents lying down next to each other. He froze. He didn't know what to do. He didn't want to get near, afraid of what he might find out. Scratches and bites decorated his parents' bodies. What kind of creatures attack his parents, he asked himself. The wounds looked like it was from a wild animal. But, it's impossible for an animal to attack his parents. Not in the city they lived in.
"Ohno Kun..." He was startled when Jun suddenly stood next to him. He almost forgot that Jun and Sho had followed him here.
But, before he could say anything, he was distracted by a noise from the kitchen. His parents' killer was still here. Without wasting any moment, he ran towards the kitchen. He couldn't think properly. All he could think of was killing the thing which was responsible for his parents' death.
However, his eyes opened wide in surprise once he entered the kitchen. It wasn't an animal. Or any unworldly creature. It was Aiba, the cashier who was with Nino in the coffee shop.
A/N: I hope this isn't too weird. Comments are very much appreciated :) And thank you for participating in my poll