Love wo Produce - Chapter 3: Ups and Downs

[yoru-no-hikaru.livejournal.com]

Pairing: Shuji to Akira (Pikame)
Characters: Kusano Akira (Yamashita Tomohisa), Kiritani Shuji (Kamenashi Kazuya), Mr. Honeybutt, OC, probably others
Rating: PG-15
Disclaimer: Don't own them, just love them ^^
Setting: drama
Warnings: Probably a chaotic story-line, kissing and making out
Multi-Chapter


Notes: This is for my dear yukitsubute, finally the new update.


Intro: After they had their talk about what they want to do, some things are still not settles between Shuji and Akira. While Shuji is slowly coming to terms with the new situation, Akira finds himself unexpectedly troubled.

Shuji sighed deeply, staring at the ceiling. Akira had gone out to play with Mr. Honeybutt, but he had decided to stay behind. First, he felt like he needed some time to sort himself out. As for second, he hated to admit it, but ever since Akira had kissed him, even after they had talked, the air between them was awkward. It wasn’t like he was bothered by Akira, but he couldn’t help feeling uncomfortable. He bit his lip. What could he do to solve this? Was he in love? With Akira? Or was there just a confused kind of mess in his head? With a grunt he decided that he needed to know where he was standing and if his feelings wouldn’t take a clear form, analytical logics were the thing to go for. He got up from the floor and from a drawer he grabbed a piece of paper and a pen. After he’d seated himself on the sofa, he wrote “Pro” on the left top of the sheet and “Con” on the right top.

“Okay,” he mumbled to himself.

First, Akira was his friend. But where did that go on the list? They were close, had a kind of connection. That was definitely a pro. Sex would definitely be nice, but next to that, he also wanted someone he felt connected with. And as he thought of it, sex was something else to consider. So after a minute “friends” and “sex” stood on his pro side.

Then again, Akira could be so annoying. That went to the con side, without a doubt. Not to mention that he could never tell anyone about him and Akira. So the words “annoying” and “secrecy” went to his con side.

But then, even though Akira could be annoying, he could also be really sweet. Pro. But he ate like a pig. Con. He was strong. Pro. But then, he snored. Con. And his feet were cold in bed. Con. His lips were really beautiful, though. Pro.

Shuji sighed. If he kept going like that he’d never be able to read anything out of that list. Akira was… many things, but in the end he was… Akira. Shuji thought about that for a while. It was Akira. That could either be read as a pro, or a con. He frowned. The fact itself that it was Akira was… a draw? Sighing in frustration Shuji gripped the sheet and forced it into a somewhat sphere-like form before he disposed it into the dustbin. Then, without much drive, or even thinking about what should come of it, he grabbed for his phone. He didn’t call anyone, but he wrote a short message.

Hey there, Nobu-chan! How are you doing? I hope that boyfriend of yours is being nice to you. If he’s mean, I’ll come back and beat him up. :D  Shuji

With a slight smile he laid down the phone and rested himself against the sofa. Just as he wanted to turn on the TV, his phone made a noise to indicate that he’d received a message.

Hi, Shu~ji-kun! <3  Doing fine here, thanks. How are things with you and Akira? Karu is totally sweet, so no need for you to get here. XP  Nobuta

Shuji laughed slightly and made to answer right away.

Glad to hear you’re doing fine. Things are okay here. Akira is… well, Akira. He brought a dog here the other day. We brought him down to the old man with the ramen store. Akira’s totally in love with that animal and plays with him all day long.

Not even a minute after Shuji had sent his message he got another one.

Akira with dog must be… tiring?

Shuji grinned.

A bit. But it’s also really cute.

Soon there was another message.

Send me pics.

I will. Nobu-chan, I want to ask something. How did you know you were in love with Karu?

This time there wasn’t a message for a while, but several minutes later his phone gave notification again.

Well, your stomach gets all fluttery and you’ll want to be close to the person, even though you’re always nervous and can’t stop sweating.

Shuji sighed as he responded.

That sounds like a nasty disease… Forget it, didn’t mean to bother you.

After that no message came for a long ten minutes. Shuji had already thought Nobuta had stopped writing, but then there was a new message.

You sure you’re okay?

Shuji sighed.

Yeah. Just… Do you think there is love that is… not supposed to be?

The next message only read a few signs.

?????

I mean, let’s say you really like someone, but you know that it could cause a lot of problems.

How?

Like, other people might not like it.

Shuji, you were the one who taught me to follow my feelings. If it hadn’t been for you, I wouldn’t have a boyfriend. Why are you thinking about these things now?

Shuji bit his lip, wondering how to respond to that.

Because it’s a very special someone. We’ve been friends forever. If it hadn’t been for that person, you and I wouldn’t be friends. I wouldn’t even be me…

Shuji had expected he’d have to wait for an answer, but his phone rang with the signal almost immediately again. The message was very short, though.

Oh…

After that there was a longer pause. Shuji was relieved when he got another one.

Do you like him?

You know I like him.

That’s not what I mean…

It’s difficult.

Why?

Because.

Shuji, love isn’t as complicated as many people tend to portray it. Just erase all the odds. Pretend there are no ifs, no buts, no people judging you. If you could just decide on whether you want it. Whether YOU want it… do you? Want it?

Shuji blinked at the message. It sounded quite reasonable. But things weren’t as easy. The world wasn’t a kind of sweet day dream he could create to fit him. Reality was a bitch and there would be too many odds. Of course, if it were as simple as to just pick the one you like and everybody would be happy with it, then… He blinked again as he got another message.

Remember… You don’t need to conquer the world. To win someone’s heart, that’s quite an achievement – and one you should treasure, if you can.

Shuji laughed at the message, shaking his head. He just pressed a few more buttons before he discarded his phone onto the table. In the same motion he shot up from the couch and made for the door. With just a pair of house slippers he hurried down the stairs, out onto the street and ran over to the ramen store. He didn’t even greet Miyagi back as he swished through the main room, heading for the yard. Right there he found Akira, who was playing leisurely with the huge dog they’d both come to grow fond of. The other took notice of him just in time, just a second before Shuji grabbed his friend, threw his arms around him and placed his lips on a trembling counter pair. They stayed like that for a while, frozen in their position. As Shuji drew back awkwardly, he found Akira staring at him. Neither of them really moved or said anything. Finally Shuji licked his lips.

“Ano… you know… it’s…” He looked helplessly at his friend. “Shuji likes Akira.” He blushed as he said the words.

Akira just smiled at him, his eyes glittering happily as he pulled Shuji closer and they both moved in for a real kiss. Shuji sighed his appreciation. That was really nice. And suddenly he felt it. That fluttery feeling in his belly that made his heart beat fast and a second’s thought went to his phone that was lying on the table in their apartment, almost forgotten and still showing the words of his latest message.

I will.

________________________________________________________________________________________

 After their first little outburst, they had decided that it wasn’t wise to snog out in public. So, they went back inside, had a short polite chat with Miyagi and then retreated into their apartment again.

“So,” Akira started carefully. Suddenly he was very scared, wondering if Shuji had just been in frenzy and would deny what happened and refuse him again. “Are we… a couple now?”

“That sounds pretty weird,” Shuji mused. “But then, we’re a weird couple to begin with, aren’t we?”

“So?” Akira pressed the point.

“Uhm, yes, we’re a couple now,” Shuji nodded.

Akira bit his lip. “So… are you going to sleep with me?”

The other stared at that. “What?!”

Akira sighed. “Look, the thing is, I just want you to know what you’re in for and if it’s really what you want. I’m not saying I’m not happy right now. Actually, I don’t think I could be any happier, but I’m thinking… if you’re just going for a few kisses and stuff and when I ask for more you'll deny me… I couldn’t handle that.”

Shuji looked at the other in earnest. “I understand what you mean. It’s only natural you’ll be worried about that. I’ve been very wary, after all. And… I’ll admit that it’s something I can’t imagine right now. But it’s not because I don’t want it, or think it’s gross, or something.”

“Then why?” Akira wanted to know.

“What are you thinking of me?” Shuji pouted. “I’m not an easy guy. If you want… that, then you’ll have to attract me.”

“Am I not attractive enough?” Akira joked.

“Please, give me some time,” Shuji requested. “It’s not that I’m wary about you… I mean, it’s not the fact that it’s you. I… I haven’t shared this kind of thing with anyone, so… it’s a bit unsettling. I don’t really know what to do with myself.”

“Oh, I’ll show you,” the other offered with a grin.

“I mean it,” Shuji warned him. “You don’t just drag me off and get a go.”

“Hey, I was joking,” Akira chuckled. “I get what you mean, okay? And you shall have it all. I’ll happily try to attract you.”

“Really?”

“Oh yes, and I’ll start right now,” Akira announced.

He pulled the other into a warm embrace, moving slowly, carefully, giving Shuji all the room to draw back if he wished to. The latter, however, did not fight or run. He let himself be pulled in, looped his own arms loosely around Akira’s waist and happily moved in as a pair of lips captured his in a kiss that was still chaste, but not shy anymore. It felt good, Akira smelled sweetly and soon they approached the first border and took it, tongues coming into play as the kiss grew deeper. Shuji blushed at the feeling. It was a bit wet and sticky, but it was still pleasing to feel the other like that. Their kiss went on for a long time and they both enjoyed that it wouldn’t have to be any more than just that. Occasionally Shuji would daringly feel up the other’s body, which seemed to make Akira shiver. Shuji only felt shy hands around his body, sometimes changing to his shoulders, or sliding up to cup his face. The awkwardness between them faded and after a while Shuji was totally lost in the moment and wished they could just remain like that forever. His lips were already burning badly, but he still refused to let off. Only when he heard a strange rumbling sound they parted to blink at each other.

“Sorry,” Akira smiled apologetically. “I guess I’m really hungry.”

Shuji just looked at him for a moment, thinking about whether he should be upset, but then he smiled brightly and hugged the other once more tightly to himself, before letting go completely.

“Well, I guess we better get something to eat then, ne?”

Akira blinked a bit, confused, but then he nodded happily. And so they set off to Miyagi-san’s store to get some food.

________________________________________________________________________________________

“She’s so into you. I’m telling you, Kiritani, you should ask her out.”

Shuji sighed. “Stop pestering me about it already,” he complained.

“But really…”

“Look, if you like her so bad, Nishikawa, why don’t you ask her out?” Shuji asked, his voice sounding annoyed.

“Because,” Nishikawa stated, pointing his chopsticks at Shuji, “you’re the one she likes.”

“Yeah, well, but I’m not interested,” Shuji declared.

“What is your problem?” Nishikawa wanted to know. “She’s cute and good-looking and she keeps circling you.”

“She’s just not my type,” the other merely shrugged.

“Yeah, I wonder what your type is,” Nishikawa muttered.

“Kusano,” the guy sitting next to him announced.

Suddenly it was very silent. Shuji stared at his fellow student, his heart racing madly. Had he said something? Done something? Had he given himself away? The guy, however, looked at Akira.

“Kusano, you would know that, right? You two share an apartment, after all. So, what is Kiritani’s type, huh?”

“Izumi-kun, I’m having lunch,” Akira mumbled around a mouth full of food.

“Hey,” Izumi said agitatedly, “don’t you want your friend to find a good girl?”

“He can do that by himself,” Akira explained. “Even back in High School he was really popular. His girlfriend was the prettiest girl in school and she would even bring him lunch every day.”

Both Nishikawa and Izumi whistled amusedly.

“Ah, Kiritani’s a hit with the girls, huh?” Izumi winked. “Well, he does have a pretty face.”

“You know,” Nishikawa started again, “you don’t have to get married to her, or anything. Just have some fun while you’re young.”

“Sometimes you guys are really annoying,” Shuji frowned. “She’s a nice enough girl, I don’t want her to get hurt.”

“Maybe if you get to know her better you’ll like her,” Izumi mused. “Na, Kusano. What are you thinking?”

All eyes went to Akira, who was currently chewing on a bigger piece of meat. As he was done with it, he wiped his mouth. Then he took a sip from his coke.

“Sure,” he finally stated with a smile. He nodded at Shuji encouragingly. “Shuji should absolutely go and date girls.”

“Hah,” Nishikawa made. “See? Even your room mate says you’re too much of a remote.”

“Just go out with her already,” Izumi urged.

“Yeah, Shuji, I really think you should,” Akira agreed with them.

“Well, thank you all, really, for your advice and your concern,” Shuji bit out, glaring at his friends. “I’m very well-suited, though and I don’t need anyone to push me, or shit. I’m not going to say it again, or write an essay on my specific reasons. I’m going to say it this one more time and after that I never want to hear of this again. I. Am. Not. Interested.” He got up, grabbing his tray. “See you guys. I left some of my books at home, so I’m skipping class. Bye.”

As he left the table, all the others stared after him.

“What the…?” Nishikawa mumbled.

“Do you know what that was?” Izumi asked Akira.

“No idea,” Akira shrugged. “Really.”

“Maybe a girl once did something hideous to him and now he’s afraid of them?” Nishikawa suggested.

“Don’t be stupid,” Akira shot out.

“Yeah,” Izumi agreed. “Maybe he’s got a special kind of fetish, or something?”

“Whatever,” Akira shrugged. “If he doesn’t want to say, we won’t know. We’ll be late if we don’t hurry.”

“Okay, let’s go,” Izumi agreed.

The three of them got up, cleared their table and went to bring their trays back.

“Politics… so boring,” Nishikawa complained.

“Ah, guys, listen, I’ll be going to hte toilet before class, you go and save us some seats?”

“Okay, see you there,” Izumi waved at him.

Akira sighed as he moved towards the restrooms. He slid in and went straight for a cubicle, which he looked quickly. He turned his back to the door, his hand moved to cover his mouth as silent tears slid down his face.

________________________________________________________________________________________

Is it bad to stop here? <(o.o)>  Well, this came as quite a surprise. Now I'll have to think of a way they can deal with it. ^^" Well, they are moving towards a certain kind of outcome, whichever it will be. I hope you like it. I'm sorry this one took so long and I'll try to be quicker with the next one. Thanks to everybody! <3