Brennend
Title: Brennend
Group/Pairing: Arashi/Matsumiya (slight)
Prompt: no. 035: Fire
Word Count: 1241
Rating: PG13
Summary: He decides to burn instead of fade
Disclaimer: Idea is all mine, but the men from Arashi are not ;~;
Note: Second part to Feuer. "Brennend" is German for "burning". Heh. I felt that it needed a second part, so I created one. I hope that it's okay. I don't enjoy it as much as the first part, but I believe that things like this are necessary n__n
------
A stench that is strong enough to clog lungs.
A flame that is hot enough to burn skin miles away.
Life is not so easily lived as it once was.
Even if the battles are over fights rage on inside.
---
Light floods the near empty room, refracting off of the empty fish tank. Other than that useless establishment there is a king sized bed, a dresser, and a daybed. Upon the daybed lies a body curled into fetal position. Except for the shock of black hair, his whole white-clad body melts into the pure white bed. Although it’s not pure white anymore. Stains of dried blood line the creases, smudges of soot and mud coating its delicate fabric. If the man woke up, he may feel bad because no matter how hard the stains are rubbed, they won’t disappear. But the man hadn’t woken up yet, and it doesn’t seem as though he will any time soon.
Jun though, doesn’t bother to try to clean the bed. It’s not a necessity to him anyway. When its use has reached its limit, he plans to hand it over to the people who actually need the bed. What Jun is more worried about is the man laying on it, curled tightly into a ball. He has not stirred since Jun brought him into his house and cleaned him up. The wash hadn’t been thorough, but good enough to last a few days. Since then, he had aged by nearly 6 days. He had not been able to wake the man or even make him stir. Jun was beginning to fret.
When Jun frets, he paces the room, just as he is doing now. For anyone watching it is infuriating. Biting his lip, Jun walks back and forth in a straight, calculated line. He rarely sleeps for trying to care for the man; heavy bags line his eyes and his cheeks had a hint of paleness to them. His appearance is ragged and broken. He assumes that if he does not somehow wake the man up, and soon, he will die.
Knowing this fact, Jun is frustrated. The man pleaded for his help, yet he is willing to just wither away on someone else’s daybed. Jun’s anger flares, for a mere second but it still flares, and he glares daggers at the young, beaten man.
He twitches and Jun’s fury is gone just as suddenly as it came. Rushing to the man’s side, Jun shakes his shoulders, harshly whispering his name over and over, “Ninomiya-san. Ninomiya-san!” Ninomiya turns over and blinks, his eyes blurry and his pupils pulsing in his dark eyes.
“Why,” his cracked voice says. “Why… am I not dead?” If the question wasn’t so filled with hatred and regret, Jun would not have gotten as worked up as he is. He stands and scowls scornfully down at the helpless, seething man beneath him. There is no pity in Jun’s eyes and even though Ninomiya is weak, he returns the glare and repeats. “Why didn’t you just let me die.”
This time, the phrase is not a question. Jun leans down and grabs the dark, soft hair, not as tightly as he could have, but tight enough to make Ninomiya wince if only slightly. “What are you, stupid?” He hisses. He doesn’t bother to mention that Ninomiya was the one who begged him to save him, it’s useless information in this situation.
“There’s nothing left for me,” Ninomiya bites back, his voice slowly getting less haggard. “Are you the stupid one?! Why in this hell would you think that I’d want you to save me?!”
Jun tightens his grip on the dark hair, only this time Ninomiya doesn’t wince at all. He is defiant and stubborn. Still, Jun does not tell him that he was the one who in fact asked to be saved. “What’s better?” Jun snaps instead. “Fading away or burning out?! When you have so much life and will left in you, why would you let yourself wither away like you have been here in my room? Why ‘in this hell’ would you not keep living until you can live no more?”
Ninomiya does not respond, but his eyes flicker away from Jun’s and he collapses back onto the bed as Jun releases his hair. Neither of them speaks and Jun pads around his house, out of Ninomiya’s sight, until his anger has seeped out of him. The next time he enters his room, he brings food for the meatless man. It’s only a little, scarce in protein or anything else, but Jun knows that he will not be able to eat anything rich in vitamins for a while. It’s difficult for him to eat a second bite and the first few meals come back up each night, with Jun rubbing his back as he vomits.
Weeks pass, and slowly, Ninomiya gains a few pounds. After the first week, he is able to get up off the daybed and wash himself. Jun decides, at this point, that the man can have a room to himself and he disposes of the daybed. He does not remove the smell of death from his room, but lets it escape on its own accord. When Ninomiya sees that the bed is gone, he scowls down at his feet and retreats into his new room. Though, most of the time, he sits against the wall in Jun’s room, studying the stoic man as he reads or writes. Jun chooses not to acknowledge this until Ninomiya speaks up one day, his voice immensely kinder than it was just weeks ago, although it still has a slight bite to it. “People used to call me Nino.”
From then on, Jun calls him by the nickname. He doesn’t talk to him much, but slowly he can feel the distance shortening between them and he is content.
When Nino can finally eat full meals again, the two eat at a table that Jun had brought to the empty space in his room due to the absence of the daybed. Nino asks where it’s gone, obviously perturbed by the thought. “I donated it,” Jun says offhandedly, chewing and swallowing a bite of rice. “To a shelter.”
Nino is startled and his eyes tear up. Even though he was one of the people lying in the decimation, he was aware of the shelters. He had even wished that he was in one himself. But he was here, and he was actually content. He is living a good life compared to those in those shelters; he has Jun to care for him.
Nino drops his chopsticks and they clatter off the edge of his bowl, onto the floor. “H-hey,” Jun complains, rising to collect the discarded items. Nino lowers his head and grips the hem of his shirt, biting his lip.
“I’m… glad,” he says in a shaky, weak voice. “I’m glad that… you saved me, that I’m not fading away in that place anymore.” Startled, Jun freezes in place, watching Nino carefully. His knuckles are white and his body trembles. “Thank you…” he mumbles as tears start flowing unrestrained down his cheeks. “Thank you, Jun.” Slowly, Jun walks around the small table to stand beside the trembling man. He really has come a far way since the day he found him near-dead in the rubble.
Jun wraps his arms about Nino’s body, embracing him tightly, and smiles. “You’re welcome.”
Group/Pairing: Arashi/Matsumiya (slight)
Prompt: no. 035: Fire
Word Count: 1241
Rating: PG13
Summary: He decides to burn instead of fade
Disclaimer: Idea is all mine, but the men from Arashi are not ;~;
Note: Second part to Feuer. "Brennend" is German for "burning". Heh. I felt that it needed a second part, so I created one. I hope that it's okay. I don't enjoy it as much as the first part, but I believe that things like this are necessary n__n
------
A stench that is strong enough to clog lungs.
A flame that is hot enough to burn skin miles away.
Life is not so easily lived as it once was.
Even if the battles are over fights rage on inside.
---
Light floods the near empty room, refracting off of the empty fish tank. Other than that useless establishment there is a king sized bed, a dresser, and a daybed. Upon the daybed lies a body curled into fetal position. Except for the shock of black hair, his whole white-clad body melts into the pure white bed. Although it’s not pure white anymore. Stains of dried blood line the creases, smudges of soot and mud coating its delicate fabric. If the man woke up, he may feel bad because no matter how hard the stains are rubbed, they won’t disappear. But the man hadn’t woken up yet, and it doesn’t seem as though he will any time soon.
Jun though, doesn’t bother to try to clean the bed. It’s not a necessity to him anyway. When its use has reached its limit, he plans to hand it over to the people who actually need the bed. What Jun is more worried about is the man laying on it, curled tightly into a ball. He has not stirred since Jun brought him into his house and cleaned him up. The wash hadn’t been thorough, but good enough to last a few days. Since then, he had aged by nearly 6 days. He had not been able to wake the man or even make him stir. Jun was beginning to fret.
When Jun frets, he paces the room, just as he is doing now. For anyone watching it is infuriating. Biting his lip, Jun walks back and forth in a straight, calculated line. He rarely sleeps for trying to care for the man; heavy bags line his eyes and his cheeks had a hint of paleness to them. His appearance is ragged and broken. He assumes that if he does not somehow wake the man up, and soon, he will die.
Knowing this fact, Jun is frustrated. The man pleaded for his help, yet he is willing to just wither away on someone else’s daybed. Jun’s anger flares, for a mere second but it still flares, and he glares daggers at the young, beaten man.
He twitches and Jun’s fury is gone just as suddenly as it came. Rushing to the man’s side, Jun shakes his shoulders, harshly whispering his name over and over, “Ninomiya-san. Ninomiya-san!” Ninomiya turns over and blinks, his eyes blurry and his pupils pulsing in his dark eyes.
“Why,” his cracked voice says. “Why… am I not dead?” If the question wasn’t so filled with hatred and regret, Jun would not have gotten as worked up as he is. He stands and scowls scornfully down at the helpless, seething man beneath him. There is no pity in Jun’s eyes and even though Ninomiya is weak, he returns the glare and repeats. “Why didn’t you just let me die.”
This time, the phrase is not a question. Jun leans down and grabs the dark, soft hair, not as tightly as he could have, but tight enough to make Ninomiya wince if only slightly. “What are you, stupid?” He hisses. He doesn’t bother to mention that Ninomiya was the one who begged him to save him, it’s useless information in this situation.
“There’s nothing left for me,” Ninomiya bites back, his voice slowly getting less haggard. “Are you the stupid one?! Why in this hell would you think that I’d want you to save me?!”
Jun tightens his grip on the dark hair, only this time Ninomiya doesn’t wince at all. He is defiant and stubborn. Still, Jun does not tell him that he was the one who in fact asked to be saved. “What’s better?” Jun snaps instead. “Fading away or burning out?! When you have so much life and will left in you, why would you let yourself wither away like you have been here in my room? Why ‘in this hell’ would you not keep living until you can live no more?”
Ninomiya does not respond, but his eyes flicker away from Jun’s and he collapses back onto the bed as Jun releases his hair. Neither of them speaks and Jun pads around his house, out of Ninomiya’s sight, until his anger has seeped out of him. The next time he enters his room, he brings food for the meatless man. It’s only a little, scarce in protein or anything else, but Jun knows that he will not be able to eat anything rich in vitamins for a while. It’s difficult for him to eat a second bite and the first few meals come back up each night, with Jun rubbing his back as he vomits.
Weeks pass, and slowly, Ninomiya gains a few pounds. After the first week, he is able to get up off the daybed and wash himself. Jun decides, at this point, that the man can have a room to himself and he disposes of the daybed. He does not remove the smell of death from his room, but lets it escape on its own accord. When Ninomiya sees that the bed is gone, he scowls down at his feet and retreats into his new room. Though, most of the time, he sits against the wall in Jun’s room, studying the stoic man as he reads or writes. Jun chooses not to acknowledge this until Ninomiya speaks up one day, his voice immensely kinder than it was just weeks ago, although it still has a slight bite to it. “People used to call me Nino.”
From then on, Jun calls him by the nickname. He doesn’t talk to him much, but slowly he can feel the distance shortening between them and he is content.
When Nino can finally eat full meals again, the two eat at a table that Jun had brought to the empty space in his room due to the absence of the daybed. Nino asks where it’s gone, obviously perturbed by the thought. “I donated it,” Jun says offhandedly, chewing and swallowing a bite of rice. “To a shelter.”
Nino is startled and his eyes tear up. Even though he was one of the people lying in the decimation, he was aware of the shelters. He had even wished that he was in one himself. But he was here, and he was actually content. He is living a good life compared to those in those shelters; he has Jun to care for him.
Nino drops his chopsticks and they clatter off the edge of his bowl, onto the floor. “H-hey,” Jun complains, rising to collect the discarded items. Nino lowers his head and grips the hem of his shirt, biting his lip.
“I’m… glad,” he says in a shaky, weak voice. “I’m glad that… you saved me, that I’m not fading away in that place anymore.” Startled, Jun freezes in place, watching Nino carefully. His knuckles are white and his body trembles. “Thank you…” he mumbles as tears start flowing unrestrained down his cheeks. “Thank you, Jun.” Slowly, Jun walks around the small table to stand beside the trembling man. He really has come a far way since the day he found him near-dead in the rubble.
Jun wraps his arms about Nino’s body, embracing him tightly, and smiles. “You’re welcome.”