The Stranger on the Train
Just like any other day, the train was crowded. Thank goodness, there was an empty seat so Ohno rushed to sit. It was next to a man who was watching a video on the iPad.
Usually, Ohno wouldn’t be interested to see what the other people on the train did. He usually fell asleep and miraculously woke up when it’s almost time for his stop. But, not this time. The man next to him was watching the new Marvel movie, Shang-chi. Ohno didn’t have time to watch it in the cinema because he was swamped with work. But, if he was not mistaken, the movie would be released on the streaming device soon. Was it today and that’s why the stranger next to him was watching the movie now?
Shamelessly, Ohno continued watching the movie with the man. As indicated by the timer, the movie had just begun. So, he didn’t miss much.
However, five minutes later, the man suddenly paused the video much to Ohno’s dismay. From the corner of his eyes, Ohno could see the stranger was looking at him, making him shiver. What would the man do? Would he scold Ohno for watching the movie?
Reluctantly, he turned slowly to look at the man, expecting to see a furious look on the man’s face. However, to his surprise, the stranger was smiling at him. He blinked his eyes, blinded by how beautiful the smile was. Wow, the stranger was so handsome. How old was he? He looked so young, probably around seventeen years old. But, he didn’t dress like a schoolboy. Instead, he was wearing a white shirt with black slacks like a typical office worker.
Ohno took the chance to look at the man properly, memorizing every aspect of the man’s face. He had a cute button nose and a beautiful pair of brown eyes. His lips were so cute and thin. Everything about him was cute including the mole on his chin. Ohno had to restrain himself from reaching forward and touching the mole. It seemed soft.
The man cleared his throat and Ohno quickly looked away, realizing he was being rude for staring at the man. The stranger didn’t seem to mind. Instead, he seemed to enjoy it. What he did next surprised Ohno even more. He handed one of his earphones to Ohno as if inviting him to watch the movie together. Ohno tilted his head, unsure if he should accept it. But, his hand acted without thinking, reaching out to take the earphone from the stranger.
And, so, the two of them watched Shang-chi together in silence. Neither said anything. They simply enjoyed the movie together.
Thank goodness, when the train arrived at his stop, Ohno noticed it. If not, he would be late for an appointment with a client. However, as he was too hasty to get out of the train, he forgot to ask the stranger for his contact information. He could only hope they would meet again on this train.
But, they never did.
It had been two months since he met the handsome stranger. Ohno missed the man. He wanted to see him again. All his efforts to get on the train at the same time as when he met the man for the first time were futile. Never once had he seen the man on the train again.
Whenever he closed his eyes, he saw the man smiling at him. In order not to forget how the man looked, he decided to sketch the man. However, no matter how much he tried, his sketch failed to capture the man’s perfect features.
“Wow, who is that? He is so cute,”
Ohno almost cursed when he heard Aiba’s voice. Aiba was his colleague. He was nice but sometimes he tended to be nosy. And, seeing the grin on Aiba’s face, he knew Aiba was going to ask him about the stranger on his sketchpad. Ohno, on the other hand, didn’t want to tell Aiba anything about his crush on the stranger.
“Ohchan, who is he?” Aiba repeated the question when Ohno remained silent. “Your boyfriend?”
Ohno could only laugh when he heard the speculation. Boyfriend? How he wished that was true.
“Why are you here, Aiba-chan?” Asked Ohno, changing the subject. A pout was what he got from Aiba, sulking because Ohno didn’t answer him. Thank goodness, he didn’t press Ohno for an answer.
“It’s lunchtime, Ohchan,” said Aiba. “Let’s go,”
Ohno glanced at the clock, perfectly aware of the time. Whether or not he would eat outside usually depended on his mood. If he wanted to eat at the restaurant, yes, Aiba would be his companion. But, today, he was in no mood to go out. So, he already ordered his food online. Unfortunately, he forgot to tell Aiba about it.
“Sorry, I’m not going out today,” informed Ohno, earning him another pout from Aiba.
“I thought we’re going to try the new restaurant at the corner today,”
Ohno just shrugged him off, remembering that they talked about going there yesterday. He felt bad at Aiba for cancelling the plan. This wasn’t the first time he did something like this and Aiba was already aware of his sudden mood change when it came to eating outside. He would pout at first but in a split second, a grin would adorn his handsome face.
“Okay, then. I will go first,” said Aiba, understanding as always. “Do you want me to get you any desserts?”
Ohno chuckled. The two of them were fond of sweets and would always eat them for teatime.
“Just buy me anything,”
Aiba nodded and then left. Ohno was once again alone in his cubicle. He stared at the sketch of the stranger on the train, wondering what he should do to meet the handsome stranger again. With a sigh, he put the sketch in his drawer. Lamenting would be useless. If fate wanted them to meet again, he would meet the man. Right now, he just wanted to eat.
Urgh, when will his food arrive? Shouldn’t it arrive by now?
Right on time, his phone rang. Good. It must be the rider. This has happened a few times. The rider usually had a hard time finding his office, which baffled him. His office wasn’t in a secluded area. It was easy to find it, actually. So, why did the rider always call him to ask for a direction to his office?
“Hello,” he answered the call. “Are you…”
“Hello,” the man on the other side of the line greeted him without letting him finish. “Is this Ohno-san?”
“Yes,” answered Ohno. He knew how annoying he sounded but he couldn’t help it. This has happened a few times. Why couldn’t the food rider locate his office? It was so easy to find. “Are you here already? My office is…”
“Huh?”
“Huh?”
The response baffled him. Why did the man from the other end of the line seem confused?
“Are you the rider?”
“What rider?” Asked the man.
“I ordered food. It should arrive now…” Oh my, this was so embarrassing as he finally realized the caller might not be the rider as he thought! Why was he so hasty? He should let the man talk first before assuming that the man who called him was the food rider. “You’re not the rider, right?”
A laugh was what he got as a response.
“I’m not,” clarified the man. “I’m Ninomiya Kazunari. I called on behalf of Sakurai Sho,”
“Sakurai Sho?” repeated Ohno. This was hard to believe. Everyone knew who Sakurai Sho was. He is a famous children book writer. Ohno didn’t want to have his hope high but if someone called him on behalf of Sakurai Sho, it could only mean one thing. Ohno works as a book illustrator. About a month ago, he had submitted his designs to Sakurai’s publication company, hoping to be chosen as the illustrator for the writer’s new book. And, now, this Ninomiya guy called him. What was the meaning of this? Did they choose him?
“Yes, Sakurai Sho. The children's book writer,” Ninomiya clarified. “Hmm… Sho-chan… I mean, Sakurai-san was impressed by the designs that you submitted to us and he decided to appoint you as the illustrator for his new book. Are you still interested in working with him?”
“Of-of course,” Ohno stuttered. He didn’t expect to be chosen.
“Great,” responded Ninomiya. “So, can we schedule an appointment? How about this Friday at 10 AM? Can you come to our office so we can discuss this?”
“Wait for a second,” said Ohno as he checked his calendar. Yes, that would work for him. He had no appointment on that day. “You mean 26th…” He ended up trailing off, noticing that it would be on his birthday.
“Yes, this Friday is the 26th,” said Ninomiya. “Are you okay with it?”
“Sure,”
“Fantastic. I’ll text you the address later. See you on Friday!”
Ohno arrived at the address sent by Ninomiya ten minutes before 10 AM on his birthday. At the receptionist, he was greeted by a sullen-looking man. The man was handsome but his refusal to smile made him look scary. And, the thick eyebrow did nothing to soften his facial features. How could a man like him be the receptionist? Shouldn’t a receptionist be someone with a bright smile like Aiba?
“Why are you here?” asked the man. He didn’t even try to sound friendly.
“Hmm…” Ohno tried to look confident. “I’m here to meet Ninomiya-san,”
“Ah, are you the book illustrator?” asked the man. Ohno timidly nodded.
“Okay, follow me,” instructed the man. “I will notify Sakurai-san and the brat that you’re already here,”
The brat? Did he mean Ninomiya? Wow, this company was so weird!
The receptionist brought him to a meeting room. He asked Ohno to sit first while he went to get Sakurai and Ninomiya. A few minutes later, a man entered the room and Ohno immediately recognized him as Sakurai.
“Hello, Ohno-san,” said Sakurai, extending his hand to shake Ohno’s. “Sorry, we might have to wait for a while. Ninomiya-san is kinda busy right now,” explained Sakurai. He paused for a while, appearing to be thinking. “Hmm… did Jun greet you properly when you arrived?”
“Jun?” Asked Ohno. “Hmm, do you mean the thick eye-brow receptionist?”
“He is not our receptionist,” Sakurai chuckled. “Our receptionist had an emergency. And, since Jun doesn’t have any appointments today, Nino makes him replace her. That’s why he is in a bad mood,”
“Oh…” responded Ohno. That would explain why the man didn’t behave like a receptionist at all.
“I hope he didn’t scare you,”
Ohno could only shake his head. Frankly, yes, he was intimidated by Jun. But, it was fine. He glanced at the clock, wondering how long it would take for Nino to appear. Yeah, he shortened the name. Ninomiya was too long. And, since Sakurai had been calling the other man Nino, he decided to do the same in his mind. As he was thinking about the phone call with Nino, the door of the meeting room opened. Ohno’s eyes opened wide. He couldn’t stop staring at the man standing in front of him. Was the man in front of him Nino? Wow, he couldn’t believe his luck!
The man in front of him… the man who called him for an appointment with Sakurai today… the man named Nino… that man was the stranger he met on the train! He was the stranger who invited him to watch Shang-chi together! Oh my, after days of waiting, they finally met again!
“Hi, I’m Nino,”
The man smiled at him. And, from the sly smile, Ohno knew Nino also remembered him.
It was hard to concentrate. But, how could he concentrate when the man of his dreams was sitting across from him? He kept trying to steal a glance but Nino ignored him, focusing more on the meeting.
They finished the discussion almost 3 hours later. He did great surviving the meeting without doing embarrassing things. Nino was so beautiful and he couldn’t stop himself from staring at the man. But, nobody said anything about it so he would just assume they didn’t notice it.
“So, we will meet again in two weeks, right?” Asked Sakurai, wrapping up the discussion. “If you have any trouble, just give me or Nino a call, okay?”
Ohno could only nod. In his head, he was thinking about how to ask Nino out. Should he ask the man to have lunch with him today? Would the man agree?
“Sho-chan, why don’t you go first?” said Nino. “Ohno-san and I have something to talk about,”
The request was met with a frown from Sakurai. He looked at the two of them, trying to figure out what kind of thing Nino and Ohno would talk about.
“Okay,” He finally said. “Don’t talk too long. We have another meeting after this,”
“Yes, Mommy,” responded Nino. Sakurai rolled his eyes but said nothing as he left the meeting room, leaving Ohno with only Nino as his companion.
“So…” Nino began, breaking the silence between them. “We meet again, Ohchan. Who would have thought? The man who shamelessly watched Shang-chi with me on the train is also the man who thought I was a food rider. You are so interesting, Ohchan,”
Ohno could only smile. With a timid voice, he responded. “I want to see you again. I’ve been taking the same train at the same time but you’re not there,”
“I wasn’t in Tokyo, Ohchan,” answered Nino. Ohno couldn’t deny it. He loved the way Nino said his name. Even though they had just known each other, the fondness in Nino’s voice when he said Ohno’s name made it sound like they had known each other for years, “I went to various places in Japan to help Sho with his research,”
“Oh…”
He wanted to ask the man out for lunch. But, since Nino would have another meeting after this, he doubted the man would agree.
“Should we go out together tonight?” suggested Nino.
Ohno was about to agree. But, before he could nod, he remembered the birthday party that Aiba had organized for him. He didn’t want Nino to know it was his birthday today but he wanted the man to be there for the party.
“We have a party tonight,” said Ohno. He wondered if it was appropriate to call it a party since only Aiba and his family would be there. “Would you come and join us?”
“But I want to be alone with you,” Nino pouted. “Maybe we can meet tomorrow,”
“Please come to the party,” begged Ohno. “I can’t cancel it. But, I want you to be there. I’m sure we can find time to be alone during the party,”
He stared at Nino intently, hoping the man would agree. Aiba said his puppy eyes were the best. It’s hard to resist him whenever he used puppy eyes.
“Okay,” Nino finally agreed. “Just text me the address and I’ll be there tonight!”
"Are you expecting someone?" Asked Aiba, surprising Ohno which ended up with him cursing. He knew he wasn't good at pretending. He kept looking at the door, expecting to see Nino arrive. Nino had told Ohno he would come. But, unless he saw Nino, he didn't think the man would show up. Yeah, he's a bit paranoid. It took him two months to meet Nino again. So, who knows if their third meeting would happen in another two months?
But… hmmm, that would be unlikely. He would meet Nino for Sakurai's books. Unless Nino decided to assign the job to the scary Jun. Ah, please don't let that happen.
"Who are you waiting for?" Asked Aiba when Ohno ignored him. "The man you sketch? You haven’t told me who he is. Is he your boyfriend?”
“ Stop saying ridiculous things!” chided Ohno. “He is not my boyfriend. I am still single,”
Right at that moment, the doorbell rang. Being closer to the door, Ohno’s mom went ahead and answered the door. It was Nino. Even though she seemed confused to see Nino, she still let him in.
“Hi,” greeted the man. “Is this Ohno-san’s house? I’m here to see him,”
Ohno was too stunned to react. He couldn’t believe his eyes. Nino was indeed here. Nino was indeed in his house. Taking advantage of his silence, Aiba went ahead to greet the other man.
“Hi,” said Aiba, extending his hand to Nino. To Ohno’s horror, his friend then added. “I know he is waiting for you. He didn’t want to tell me who you are. You are his boyfriend, right?” Aiba continued without letting Nino answer. “How could he not tell me about you? I’m his friend. He keeps a sketch of you in the office so I know you are someone special,”
“A sketch of me?”
Stupid Aiba! Ohno kept the curse in his head. Why couldn’t Aiba keep his mouth shut?
To avoid Aiba from saying more embarrassing things about him, Ohno dashed towards Nino and pulled him away. He had no destination in particular but the roof would always be where he went whenever he was feeling anxious.
Once they arrived at the roof, Ohno remained silent. He didn't know what to do or say. Would Nino think of him as a creep for keeping a sketch of the man? He hoped not.
"I want to see the sketch," said Nino, breaking the silence between them.
Ohno shook his head. "I don't want to show it to you. It's ugly,"
"Do you mean… I am ugly?"
"No!" Ohno quickly denied. "You are the most beautiful man I've ever seen," Ohno frowned, deciding that it wasn't true. "No, you're the most beautiful human I've ever seen. But, my drawings failed to capture your beauty. That's why I don't want you to see it. It's ugly,"
A chuckle was what he got as a response.
"Sweet talker, aren't you?" Said Nino and Ohno frowned. He wasn't a sweet talker. He was just telling the man the truth.
"Say… today… it's your birthday, right?"
Ohno's eyes widened, wondering how Nino knew about it.
"You don't have to look surprised," continued Nino, smiling. "I'm not stupid. When you told me about having a party tonight, I immediately guessed it's for your birthday. And, I saw the cake when I entered your house just now,"
“Oh…” That was the only response he could think of.
“Still, I didn’t buy you anything for your birthday because it was just a guess. If I was wrong, it would be a waste of money,”
“It’s okay,” said Ohno. “You don’t have…”
“But, I prepared something for you,” said Nino, cutting him off. “Close your eyes,”
“Huh?”
“Close your eyes!” urged Nino. And, even though he was hesitant, Ohno still did as he was ordered to. He kept his eyes shut and felt Nino shorten the distance between them. He wondered what kind of gift Nino prepared for him when soft lips were pressed against his. Even with his eyes closed, he knew it was Nino who kissed him. Their lips touched for a minute or so and when Nino wanted to pull away, Ohno wrapped his arms around the other man’s waist, refusing to let the kiss end. Thank goodness, Nino continued kissing him. The kiss went deeper this time.
They finally let go of each other to catch their breaths. However, Ohno kept his arms wrapped around Nino’s waist. He didn’t want the man to go away. As he stared at the man, a giggle could be heard from the entrance of the roof. He immediately recognized the giggle. No one else would giggle like that. Without a doubt, Aiba must be spying on them. And, when he looked at the door, Aiba stood there with Ohno’s sister.
“Stupid Aiba-chan,” said his sister, smacking Aiba’s head. She winked at Ohno and then ran away. Aiba followed her.
And, once again, Ohno had to resist the temptation to curse. These two! He would surely punish them later. For now, he would only focus on the man in front of him.
“Thank you,” said Ohno, slowly caressing Nino’s hair. “I love the gift,”
Nino chuckled. “Happy to know you enjoy the gift. I could give more but…”
The man deliberately took his time to continue.
“But…”
“I like you, Ohchan,” expressed Nino. “Hmm, would you date me properly? I don’t want this to be a one-time thing,”
Despite looking confident, Ohno could see a glimpse of insecurity in Nino’s eyes. Has he been hurt before? Ohno was curious to know. But, that would be for later. Right now, he needed to assure the man that he wanted a serious relationship with Nino.
“I like you too, Nino," assured Ohno. "I want to be serious with you. Let's get to know each other better and go on a proper date,"
"Are you sure?" Asked Nino. "Do you really want to be with me? Do you really like me?"
He sounded so scared. So, Ohno hugged the man tightly, hoping it would help to assure the man that he wasn't bluffing.
"Yes, my dear. I really like you,"
"Thank you," Nino was once again smiling. "I'm so happy that you like me too,"
And, then, the two of them leaned in for another kiss.
A/N: Happy birthday, Ohno Satoshi! Thank u for being the awesome person. Thank you for appearing (even though it was just his voice) in the FC video. Thank u for participating in the twitter chat. I love u 5000.
I hope u will enjoy this fic. I know it's kinda lame and I've tried my best to make it interesting. I'm sorry if u didn't like it.
The idea for this fic comes from a member of Kpop idol. The group is Seventeen and the member is Vernon. Apparently, he once watched a video with a stranger on the train. He kinda reminds me of Ohchan because he is also always in his own world.
As always, comments will be very much appreciated :)