East to West, Me to You - Chapter 1: How Shibutani Subaru got things rolling and Akanishi Jin helped

[yoru-no-hikaru.livejournal.com]

Pairing: TakkiRyo
Rating: PG-13
Disclaimer: Not mine. Well, the idea is, but the characters are not.
Warnings: bad language (a bad habit of mine), sex talk
Multi-chapter


Notes: I'm honestly not feeling too confident about this whole thing. But I decided to throw myself into it. The title suggests something epic and I wonder whether I can live up to that. In case anyone is wondering, the two kanji in the title are the "Sen" character of "senpai" and the "Kou" character of "kouhai", which share their second character. So, it means "elder to younger". In case some people are wondering, LE is in progress and will be updated soon. Ah, one more thing, Jin-kun gives a rather long speech in this one. I wonder how it happened. ^^" At any rate, it's my thoughts in his mouth and I want to assure that I do not mean to offend anyone by my claims or personal opinions.


Dedication: This is to my dear vivi000 , who keeps providing me with numberous ideas, be it for this one, or anything else that I create. I wonder whether you'll actually like it, because it turned out a bit different... well, interesting. But I'll give it my best and I hope you enjoy it anyway. ^^


Intro: Shooting together for "Orthros no inu" Takki and Ryo spend a lot of time together. Takki's worried for his kouhai's well-being and Ryo is delighted about his senpai's attentiveness. But, could it be... are they missing something?

“Otsukare-sama desu!” Ryo called out as he wanted to head out the door.

“Oi, Ryo,” Subaru called him back. “Where are you headed so hurriedly?”

“I’m having dinner with Takizawa-kun,” the younger announced with a smile.

Subaru just shook his head. “What – again?”

“Well,” Ryo smiled apologetically, “he says I keep losing weight and he wants me to eat properly.”

Subaru huffed. “I wonder what it is that he wants you to eat,” he mumbled.

“Sorry, what?” Ryo asked, frowning a bit.

The older boy sighed. “I was just thinking… isn’t it just a little bit odd? He keeps taking you out and stuff.”

“Come on now,” Ryo retorted, shrugging, “he feels he’s got to watch out for me, since we’re shooting together and all. He said he’s worried and I just want to reassure him. I mean, it’s not like we’re dating, or anything.”

“No?” Subaru mused, raising his brows.

Ryo frowned again. “If you want to say something, make a point.”

“I’m just saying that eating out together, third time this week – and it’s Tuesday – and only him and you – I mean, no staff, or co-actors, friends, or anything – and how he would take you home afterwards and then call you the following day to ask about your rehearsals… that sounds a lot like dating.”

“Stop babbling such rubbish,” Ryo demanded, pushing Subaru playfully. “He’s… I mean, he’s Takki. We’ve known each other forever and all he’s ever seen in me was a kouhai. I’d know if it were different – look at poor Pi.”

“Yes, yes,” Subaru waved him off with a sigh, “the Yamapi obsession. It’s growing old, really.”

“And yet, I find myself treated in no such manner either,” Ryo explained. “So, if his obsession has changed, it’s definitely not me. And who could blame him? He simply doesn’t look at me that way.”

Subaru eyed him, tilting his head slightly. “Are you sounding disappointed?”

Ryo laughed heartily. “Well, it’d be flattering, so I guess in a way it might be disappointing. But I don’t turn that way, so it doesn’t exactly mean a lot,” he shrugged.

“If you say so,” the older boy shrugged back. “But just in case… I mean, if you find anything odd about his behaviour, you had better put him straight on the way you turn.”

“Whatever,” the younger man sighed, rolling his eyes. “I’m off.”

With that he runs, leaving a frowning Subaru behind.

“They’re both oblivious.”

Subaru started at the voice behind him and jumped around to find Hina standing in the door to the showers.

“Fuck,” he cursed. “You almost gave me a heart-attack.”

“No such intention, sorry,” Hina assured him, rubbing his hair dry. “But I think it’s good you gave him that talk.”

“Oh yeah?”

“Yeah, maybe it’ll get things going,” Hina suggested.

“What – you mean, now I’ll be the reason they get together?” Subaru asked, sounding terrified.

“Ah, I wouldn’t put it that way,” Hina chirped. “You just might be the ray of enlightenment in this.”

“Oh my god, if that’s true, Maru’s gonna kill me,” Subaru uttered, sounding shocked.

Hina laughed at that. “Well, nobody could have foreseen that Ryo would develop a soft spot for Takki of all people. His poor Pi would faint if he knew.”

Subaru chuckled. “Womanizer Nishikido Ryo, out to get it.”

“That was nasty,” Hina scolded him. “It’s not like I’m sure in the first place. I mean, he’s always been fanboying Takki. And now they’re working together, Takki is a very attentive person and it is more than possible that Ryo just enjoys the comforts of that.”

“I agree that just spending a lot of time together doesn’t say much,” Subaru agreed. “But the number one sign of a crush is spending no time with other people, neglecting friends. Hiro complained to me that Ryo seems even more busy than usual and that he hasn’t seen him in ages and even Akanishi dared approach me to ask me on the matter.”

“I have to admit,” Hina chuckled, “that’s highly alarming.”

“Well, it’s certainly not usual,” Subaru insisted.

“No, it’s not,” Hina agreed. Then he sighed. “Well, I guess we’ll have to wait what comes off your suggestion to Ryo.”

“I didn’t suggest anything,” Subaru defended himself.

“Yes, you did,” Hina retorted. “You suggested Takki likes him.”

“But… it can’t be because of me!”

________________________________________________________________________________________

“How’s work been today?” Takki asked with a kind smile on his face.

“Oh, it was cool,” Ryo answered merrily. “I’ll be looking forward to performing live again. It’s so much better than studio work.”

“Agreed,” Takki nodded. “Just don’t over-do it,” he said sincerely, touching Ryo’s shoulder.

Usually such a move wouldn’t stir Ryo in the slightest, but after the talk he’d just had with Subaru his senses suddenly sharpened. Takki was sitting rather close and next to him instead of opposite. Had they done that before? The hand on his shoulder was warm, fingers rubbing his flesh softly, faintly almost. Being aware of the situation he was in, he couldn’t help blushing. He cursed his body for reacting so impulsively – Takki wasn’t even touching him in earnest. And yet, Subaru’s words kept spinning around in his head, bringing pictures he didn’t really know what to do with. His reaction had apparently surprised Takki, since the hand on his shoulder vanished and Takki gave him a quizzical look.

“You okay?” Takki asked, concern still in his voice.

“Yeah, sorry,” Ryo stuttered out. “I just… zoned out,” he tried, looking somewhere between apologetic and embarrassed.

Takki blinked at him for a moment longer, then he grinned.

“Ryo-chan,” he dragged out in a teasing voice, “were you having dirty thoughts during bright-lit daytime?”

At that Ryo blushed even more furiously and shook his head insistently.

Takki laughed. “Ah, it’s okay. Really, it’s fine. Actually, it’s healthy. I was worried you never think about anything but work.”

Deciding that Takki thinking what he did was still less embarrassing than what had just happened, Ryo sighed, shrugging.

“Well,” he admitted, “I haven’t… in a while.”

“Why, I’ve heard that somewhere before,” Takki replied with a sigh.

He blinked again at the shocked look Ryo gave him. Then he chuckled nervously, fumbling with his chop sticks.

“Sorry,” he said in a slightly embarrassed voice. “Do you feel uncomfortable if I talk so plainly?”

“Eh? Oh. No. Well – I mean…” Ryo stuttered, then forced his brain to form a coherent sentence. “It’s not that. I mean, it’s more like… I haven’t heard you talk like that before.”

Takki nodded at him. “Yes, that is true. Well, it’s not exactly appropriate, talking to a kouhai like that, is it?”

“So…” Ryo state-asked.

Takki just laughed. “What – are you still on that? Can’t we agree that we’ve come past the senpai-kouhai thing?”

“We’ve come past?” Ryo asked, feeling a bit edgy again.

“Well, I mean, you’re way off age, aren’t you?” Takki explained. “And it’s not like you need a lot of my guidance anymore either. I said this before, to me you’re a colleague now.”

“A colleague,” Ryo repeated, frowning slightly.

“Do you dislike that?” Takki asked.

“It sounds so distant,” Ryo simply blurted out.

As soon as he realised what he’d just voiced, his eyes grew wide and he started to stutter out explanations. “I mean, I wanted to say… that is, I don’t mean… well…”

Takki laughed again heartily. “Ryo-chan,” he said softly, “you’re a real sight when you’re embarrassed. No need for explanations, though. I get it. Then, what would you want us to be?” he asked, smiling.

Ryo choked. “Eh?”

“Well, it should be something different from before, since we’re different. Don’t you think?”

The younger man merely nodded.

“So, what do you want it to be?” Takki asked again.

Ryo averted his gaze, shifting nervously on his seat. Takki noticed, but made no move to either tease him about it, or to save him by speaking up again. He simply waited. Finally Ryo’s lips opened.

“Ano… I think… f-f-friends?” he mumbled out quickly.

The older man looked at him for a moment, then smiled and nodded. “Being friends sounds good to me,” he agreed. “Okay, so we’re friends now. So, I can talk to you freely, as a friend, right?”

Ryo just blinked at him.

Takki chuckled. “Well, about getting some,” he said, winking. “You know, what we talked about before.”

“Oh,” Ryo made, blushing, but then nodded quickly. “Of course, it’s okay, talking as friends.”

“Good then,” Takki nodded. “Just to be sure about that.”

Ryo nodded back, smiling. He felt very content in that moment. Takki had accepted him as something more than just a Junior. Takki loved all his kouhai, but he didn’t call them his friends, so he knew that he was indeed someone special to the other. He kept smiling to himself as he made to finish his Yakisoba.

______________________________________________________________________________________

“And then she was all over Takki for the rest of the day,” Ryo complained. “I mean, it was in the script. If I got it on with every girl I
got to kiss while acting, I’d be…” he broke off, shaking his head.

“Woah, Nishikido Ryo talking dirty,” Jin teased. “You’re really pissed.”

Ryo just gave him a glare.

“Hey, I didn’t do anything,” Jin reminded him, holding up his hands defensively.

Ryo sighed. “I know. She’s just so annoying.”

“Sounds like someone’s jealous,” Jin suggested, pressing his tongue against the inside of his cheek.

“Don’t be an ass,” Ryo demanded, weakly throwing a pillow at him.

“Because you don’t like ass,” Jin analysed, still grinning.

“Why is everybody giving me shit like that lately?” Ryo groaned out, grabbing another pillow and throwing with more force.

“Oh, so I’m not the first?” Jin chirped. “Well, think about it. It might have something to do with your behaviour,” Jin suggested.

“If you’re talking about your coke, I wasn’t looking which one I grabbed,” Ryo bit out, still glaring.

Jin just laughed. “It’s not a problem,” he assured the other. “I think I’m a bit too old for the `indirect kiss´ excitement. What I’m talking about is that ever since you got here every second of your sentences started with `Takki´.”

Ryo just blinked at him. “What?”

“No matter what I say, whichever topic, your first association is always Takki,” Jin explained. “Makes you wonder…” he grinned suggestively.

“Stop giving me that shit,” Ryo demanded. “We spend a lot of time together, so naturally, I’d talk about that a lot.”

“If you say so,” Jin shrugged.

“And what’s with that `If you say so´?”

“Ah, you got that one already too?” Jin asked, sounding amused. “Shoot, I’m late. Travelling to America and back a lot has me so busy I feel I’m losing grip of what’s going on in your life.”

“Nothings going on in my life,” Ryo bit at him. “What’s with those stupid suggestions? I’m straight, remember?”

“So you fuck girls,” Jin shrugged. “Have you never done anything with a guy? Or at least thought abou it?”

Ryo just stared at him in utter shock.

The taller man burst out laughing. “You should see your face. Ryo-chan, you’re killing me.”

“Well, what to do with you saying such things,” Ryo grumbled.

“Yeah, I know,” Jin sighed, rolling his eyes. “Saying the unthinkable. Really, Japanese mentality is so 19^th century there. In America things are a lot easier and lighter. I mean, when you’re famous you still can’t out yourself. But for commoners, it’s not only possible, it’s widely accepted. What’s more, the bi-orientation is also known, accepted and practiced a lot.”

Ryo’s head was beet red, listening to his friend. “What, have you got it on with a guy, or what?”

Jin glared at him for a moment, but then just shook his head. “I’m not necessarily talking about sex, you know. Not that it doesn’t happen. All I’m saying is that I like and support the idea that…” He considered his friend, then grinned. “Which do you prefer, dark, or blond?”

Ryo blinked, but replied readily. “Dark.”

“Okay,” Jin nodded. “And… cute, or boy-ish?”

“Cute,” Ryo answered, shifting.

“For presenting in public and boy-ish for your bed,” Jin mused, grinning.

Ryo just glared again, but didn’t reply.

“So… you prefer dark. Big eyes?” he asked and got another nod. “Okay,” he continued, “let’s say you meet a really nice girl. Hot too. Charming and all. But she’s blond. Would you turn her down?”

The smaller man blinked, confused. “Eh? Well, no. I mean, not necessarily.”

“Exactly,” Jin said intensely. “So, if you meet a nice and kind person, who will give you a feeling of comfort, who will attend to you, love you well, you know, like it’s just perfect… would you turn that person down because it’s a guy? Necessarily?”

Ryo made a face at that. “You can’t compare that. You make it sound like gender is just…”

“What,” Jin teased, “a physical feature? Think about it rationally. Dark, small, boobs, hair, legs, ass, eyes, whatever makes the appeal of a person is just a small component. So is gender. It’s just a thing on the list. I’m not saying that you won’t have preferences, especially when it comes to gender, but to say that you’re exclusive about one is close to lying.”

“That’s just…” Ryo stuttered, but broke off. Then he looked intently at Jin again. “So, have you?”

“What?” the other asked casually.

“Done something with a guy?”

“Why? Want to practice?” Jin said, winking.

“I just want to know whether you live what you say you believe in,” Ryo explained, rolling his eyes, but ignoring the teasing.

“I’ll tell you that my thoughts have wandered there,” Jin said shrugging, “the rest is for me to keep to myself.”

Ryo started at his friend. “You’ve really thought about that?”

“Why not?” Jin asked casually. “It doesn’t hurt anyone. And believe me, there is no gain in terminating the possibility.”

“But… that…” Ryo stuttered, shaking his head.

“I know it’s an unusual thought,” Jin said, now smiling. “I think I reacted quite the same when first I came across this kind of thing. But let me tell you, it’s a good thing to consider. If you feel like something, it’s okay to go for it. So long as nobody gets hurt and everybody will be happy with it – isn’t that okay?”

“Well, of course, it’s okay if people… do that. You know I don’t have a problem with it. So, you can tell me too, I won’t judge, or anything.”

“I’m not saying,” Jin retorted. “And it’s only okay so long as it’s `those´ people. The categorising is merely a protection. Guys who do guys are gay. If you don’t do guys, you’re not gay. Knowing that you can assure yourself that `it’s not in you´, because once it’s decided, it’s settled forever. But who said you cannot change your mind? Or pick by person? You know, I’ve seen everything. Gay guys having girls and straight guys having fun together. It’s not nearly as big a deal as you think right now.”

“Well, thanks for sharing your philosophy,” Ryo said carefully. “But why tell me this?”

“Because you might keep yourself from being happy without even realising it,” Jin explained. “People can call it fanboying all they want, I know a crush when I see one.”

“A crush?” Ryo gasped out, blushing.

“And your reaction proves me right. I just thought I’d give you a new perspective to think things through. Maybe you’ll find something that you haven’t realised was there.”

“What – with Takki?” Ryo asked timidly.

Jin rolled his eyes. “No, with Ueda. Of course, with Takki!”

“You mean, you think I like him?” Ryo said, more to himself than to his friend.

“Well, I can’t be sure, but it looks a lot like it,” Jin told him plainly. “And I thought I’d just tell you that if it’s the case, it’s okay. And it doesn’t make you gay.”

“It doesn’t?” Ryo blinked.

Jin chuckled. “Well, do you find appeal in girls?”

“Sure,” the other nodded.

“Then the most important characteristic of a gay man is ruled out for you,” Jin told him.

“But then, if I like Takki,” Ryo saw Jin getting ready to talk and continued quickly, “and I’m not saying that’s the case, but if I liked him, what would that make me?”

Jin just shrugged. “How would I know? You could call yourself bi. Or straight with an exception. Or gay for Takki, perhaps. There are a lot of definitions. It all depends on you. The way you see yourself, that is what you are.”

“That’s… complicated,” Ryo said knitting his brows and shaking his head in defeat.

“It just takes some getting used to,” Jin told him. “Once you’ve thought it through, it’s quite simple, really.”

“So, assuming you’ve thought it through – what are you?”

“I’m Akanishi Jin,” the other retorted simply.

“That’s not an answer,” Ryo complained.

“Yes, it is,” Jin told him. “Because sexual desires are as individual as your own mind. You can put yourself together with people of the same interests, but you won’t find another mind like your own. So, it is too an answer.”

“But that’s not what I meant,” Ryo demanded.

“You want details about my sex-life?” Jin asked, eyeing him.

“Forget it,” Ryo groaned, flopping back onto the couch.

A longer silence followed. Then Jin spoke up again.

“Hey, wanna watch some porn?”

“Okay, that’s it,” Ryo decided, jumping up to chase Jin through his living room.

________________________________________________________________________________________


Okay, chapter one is finished. I hope Jin didn't become too much of a busy-body with his lecturing. But on a second reading, it actually felt rather casual. Well, maybe that's just me trying to reassure myself. *sighs* Jin's not an easy character for me to write. Anyways, I hope you liked. If you did, please comment! I love comments. (Don't we all? ^_~ ) So, I hope I'll see you for the next one too. Yoroshiku. ^^

Chapter 2