Close to You

by Hikaru

**

Part 4

‘ I can’t believe I’ve been waiting in line for so long just to purchase these instant noodles.’

Sugizo tapped his foot rather impatiently, as if though it would make the line go faster. The people in front of him kept on looking back; some of them would be frightened by his glare and hastily turn away while others would say something rude that would flare Sugizo’s anger even more. The pink haired man ran a hand through his hair, thoroughly annoyed by his luck.

‘ Damn you Teru… can’t even buy food to feed your brother..’

~~

“ So…. You’re a dentist?”

The girl giggled, shaking her curls of hair away from her face. She leaned in so close to Teru they could’ve been Siamese twins. Teru didn’t seem to mind, instead his arm draped itself around her shoulders as he leaned in closer.

“ Yup! So open wide and let me see whether your teeth are in perfect condition or not..,” Teru’s finger trailed across her cheek and down towards her chin, prodding her to open her mouth.

The girl giggled even more as Teru leaned in to kiss her lips.

“ You’re a naughty dentist!” She wagged a finger at him in a teasing disapproving way.

“ Well.. at least I know you’ve been having too many sweets by how your lips tasted.. Ami-chan.” Teru said in a husky voice.

Her giggles became unstoppable.

Die rolled his eyes at the scene before him. Why he ever agreed to come to this place was beyond him. He knew that the girl had this infatuation for Teru and that she would probably be Teru’s next target after what had happened with Jiro. Die sighed, rubbing the back of his head; he could feel a headache coming his way.

“ Die-kun… what’s wrong? Do you need a massage?”

The girl with short blond hair cupping her adorable face looked at him with an expression of worry. Die dropped his hand, shaking his head.

“ No no.. iie, I’m fine. Just a minor headache, Yumi.” Die said reassuringly.

Yumi didn’t look convinced but smiled at him anyways. Die returned the smile, if there was a girl who had sense in her head in this place it was Yumi. How she could be Ami’s best friend was a mystery.. though they were both as kawaii as can be, Yumi was like a total opposite of Ami. He supposed his taste was different from Teru’s so it was expected for him to like Yumi while the other preferred the curly-haired girl.

‘ Just like how he prefer kawaii blond man while I prefer innocent red-heads..’ Die smiled at the thought.

“ What are you smiling about now, Die-kun?” Yumi asked, her tone teasing. “ You look like you’ve got something hentai in your mind.”

Die laughed, also draping an arm around the girl. He loved the way she was so straight-forward with him.

“ There’s nothing hentai in my mind girl,” Die chuckled, “ It’s you who’s thinking something hentai if you’re starting to see things that aren’t there…”

“ Die-kun!”

~~

Shinya walked towards the meeting spot, looking around for a certain someone. He brushed back the long strands of his hair before wrapping his arms around himself. The night was cold and he had forgotten to put on an extra layer of clothing on. He’s rushed out of his apartment as soon as he had received that call.

He wasn’t cold for long because someone graciously placed a jacket over his shoulders. Shinya spun around and smiled.

“ Hisashi-san!” He exclaimed before bowing in respect.

“ Shinya.” The blue-head nodded.

Shinya adjusted the jacket on himself before looking back at the older man.

“ You said you needed to talk about Jiro?” Shinya asked, looking worried.

~~

Sugizo saw that there were only two more people ahead of him and thanked the Gods that there wouldn’t be more waiting for him. That was… until he saw that the person at the counter was starting to unload a whole month’s worth of grocery. He sighed again, loudly enough to make the person in front of him turn to look at him.

He had been used to the stares from before so he just sent a glare back at the man. However, he was one of those people who didn’t flinch at his glare. Instead, he took a look at the pack of instant noodles in Sugizo’s hands then turned towards the lady at the counter.

“ Excuse me,” Sugizo heard the man calling the lady, “ Could you let my friend pay his items first? He’s only got a pack of nooddles and he’s been waiting for some time.”

Sugizo’s eyes widened when he heard the man’s request. He didn’t know these city people could be so kind!

“ Huh?” The lady turned to the man questioningly and he gestured at Sugizo. Her eyes turned understanding as she nodded her head, “ Sure, go ahead.”

The pink-haired man practically jumped to the front of the line, depositing the instant noodles and paying for them immediately. He thanked the lady over and over again before walking out the supermarket, stretching his arms. His legs were starting to kill him from the long wait and he needed the stretch badly.

Just as he was about to head off for his car he saw the same man who had helped him walk out the sliding doors.

“ Oi!” Sugizo yelled at him.

The blond looked annoyed at being called out like that but he turned anyways.

“ Yeah?” He looked at Sugizo curiously.

Sugizo walked up to him and held out his hand.

“ My name is Sugizo.. thanks for helping me just now.”

The blond’s curious look melted into a smile. Sugizo cocked his head to one side; the man looked like an angel when he smiled!

“ My name is Jiro.”

Sugizo’s eyes widened at the name.

‘ Jiro??’

~~

“ So this man left my brother alone in Bali after sleeping with him?” Hisashi’s voice shook with fury. “ Who is he?!”

“ His name’s Teru. He’s a dentist I recommended to Jiro-chan…,” Shinya looked guilty, “ I guess it was my fault that Jiro’s feeling so bad right now.. if I hadn’t told him to go meet Teru..”

“ It’s not your fault.” Hisashi’s voice was sharp. “ It’s that Teru’s fault! He’s not supposed to treat my brother like that! Jiro deserves much better!”

“ Well… you don’t have to worry about that..,” Shinya said, his words drawled out slowly.

Hisashi turned to his brother’s friend.

“ What do you mean by that?”

“ They broke up.” Shinya shrugged. “ Teru came to apologize the other day and tried to make amends with Jiro but your brother didn’t want to get into anything with him anymore.”

Hisashi ‘hmph’ed, crossing his arms.

“ My brother’s a lot more smarter than he looks. If he had gone back with that Teru.. I don’t know what I’ll do…”

His eyes narrowed at no one in particular, gazing off into the distance. Shinya stood beside him, waiting for Hisashi to speak.

“ Jiro deserves a nice girl, someone who’d love him and respect him.. not that sort of person.”

Hisashi took out a cigarette and was about to light it before he noticed the disgusted look on Shinya’s face.

“ What’s wrong?”

“ Could you not smoke when I’m around?” Shinya was still eyeing the cigarette. “ I don’t like the smell of it.”

Hisashi raised an eyebrow at this then shrugged, putting the cigarette away.

“ No wonder you and Jiro get along so well.”

Shinya thought that there was more to be said by his friend’s brother but Hisashi stayed quiet and they kept on looking out into Tokyo’s night sky in silence. He fidgeted a bit, he was never sure of how to act in front of the quiet Hisashi but he knew he should say something.

“ Ano… Hisashi-san?”

“ Mm?”

“ What if Jiro got back with Teru… later on?” Shinya asked carefully.

Hisashi turned to look at him abruptly. There was a harsh look in his eyes that made Shinya want to wince but the petite man stood his ground, looking back into Hisashi’s eyes with a demand for an answer.

“ I won’t allow it.” Hisashi said, his tone final.

“ But..”

“ No ‘but’s. Jiro should date girls not men.”

“ Look who’s talking now.” Shinya muttered, loud enough for Hisashi to hear.

The blue-head looked pained at Shinya’s statement and reached for his cigarette again, this time ignoring Shinya’s look.

“ Shinya.. you have no idea how much I love my brother.” Hisashi said softly. “ He’s all the family I’ve got now… our parents didn’t approve of my being homosexual and they threw me out because of that. The hurt that I felt at that time… only God knows.”

He turned to Shinya after taking a long drag.

“ It was even more terrible when the man I thought I loved left me for someone else.” Hisashi placed a hand on Shinya’s cheek. “ If Jiro hadn’t accepted me into his life, I don’t know what would’ve happened to me.

I don’t want my little brother to go through my pain. It’s a terrible feeling and I want to protect him from it. He still has our parents loving him, I don’t want him to lose that.”

Shinya hated these sort of confessions. They always made him feel sad and touched. And now that Hisashi was standing in front of him, his hand warming his cheek, looking at him with a pleading look, he felt even more sad.

“ Do you understand why I don’t want him to be with Teru?” Hisashi asked.

Shinya didn’t trust his voice so he nodded. Hisashi sighed in relief, leaning in to run his hand through Shinya’s thick mane of hair. He smiled a smile Shinya couldn’t read before patting his cheek.

“ You’re like another little brother I’m looking out for. You’ve been a good friend to Jiro, thank you.” Hisashi said. “ Don’t let anyone hurt you.”

Shinya nodded again.

“ Would you want me to walk you home? It’s getting late..,” Hisashi glanced at his watch.

“ No, it’s okay.” Shinya shook his head. “ You go back now, Jiro might be wondering about you.”

Hisashi smirked.

“ I doubt that. Ja ne.”

He gave a slight wave of his hand then turned to walk back to his apartment. Shinya watched as Hisashi’s silhouette disappeared into the night. He relieved a long sigh, his eyes turning even more depressed.

“ Hisashi-san… don’t you see how deep Jiro has fallen for Teru? He’ll never love anyone else.”

~~

“ You’re Jiro?”

Jiro raised an eyebrow at the man in front of him. He didn’t know who he was but he was starting to get the feeling that maybe he should make a run for it. However, he was brought up too well to do such a thing and he stayed put.

“ Yes, I’m Jiro. Do you know me… Sugizo-san?” Jiro asked.

The man gave him a strange look before shaking his head.

“ No, no I don’t.” Sugizo smiled. “ But I would like to.”

Jiro nearly gasped at the smile. This man reminded him so much of Teru! Was he related in any way to that dentist? But that couldn’t be… Teru hadn’t mentioned anything about a brother..

“ Actually.. maybe I should be honest with you.” Sugizo tapped his chin, as if though considering something. “ Someone I know *does* know you… my brother, Teru.”

He felt his mind freeze at the mention of Teru’s name. So he was right!

“ Are you alright?” Sugizo asked, looking worried.

“ I’m fine.” Jiro said curtly. “ I should go now.”

He turned, wanting to walk back to his car when Sugizo’s words stopped him.

“ You slept with my brother, didn’t you?”

Jiro spun around, shocked as hell. The tall man chuckled at his expression, walking towards him before placing an arm over his shoulder.

“ We’ve got a lot to talk about, Jiro.” Sugizo lead him to his car.

“ M-my car’s that way…,” Jiro pointed to one side of the parking lot, feeling as if though he was in a dream.

“ Like I said… I want to get to know you.” Sugizo smiled, this time there was a hidden meaning to it that Jiro couldn’t figure out. “ And since you’re an… acquaintence of my brother, I’m even more interested to. We’ll go and get some drinks… there should be a bar opened somewhere around here.”

“ But..,” Jiro started to protest.

“ Let’s go!”

Jiro felt himself being pushed into the front seat of an old Toyota then felt the door close beside him. Sugizo slid into the seat next to him soon enough and drove them out of the parking lot.

‘ What have I got myself into..?’ Jiro felt himself moaning.

~~

“ Teru, where are you going?!”

Die’s voice seemed like millions of miles away. Teru waved him off, quite drunk. He was being supported by Ami, who was still giggling beside him.

“ I think you took one too many drinks Teru…,” she steadied him as he was about to fall again.

“ Nonsense!” He pronounced loudly. “ There’s no such thing as too many drinks!”

“ Do you want me to drive you home?”

“ Hmm….??”

Ami’s voice was so comforting. He looked up into her eyes and saw her smile at him sweetly. His vision was blurred and he found himself staring into Jiro’s smiling face. Teru felt his heart thump wildly as he tried to reach out to his vision.

“ Jiro….” He mumbled.

“ Jiro? Who’s Jiro?” Ami looked confused.

Her question was left unanswered because before she knew it, she was engaged in a long, blissfull kiss with the handsome man. She could taste the liquor from his lips as he continued to kiss her, pushing her back against a nearby wall. In all her life, she’d never been kissed with such passion and vigour before.

“ Teru…,” she felt herself moaning his name.

She parted his lips, welcoming the taste of Teru into her mouth.

~~

Die felt like puking from the scene before him. Honestly, it was as if though Teru couldn’t find a more discreet place to make out. He looked around, there was no way he could find a ride home at this time of the night.

“ Die-kun, do you need a lift?”

Yumi stood in front of him, her eyes looking up at him expectantly.

“ Teru-kun looks a bit… busy with Ami.. I don’t think he’ll be able to bring you home.”

“ I doubt that too.” Die laughed. “ Sure, thanks Yumi… you’re a lifesaver!”

Yumi blushed a bit. Die chuckled at her face, thinking how it was so weird that Shinya could look much more cuter when blushing.

“ Come on! I’ve got to work early tomorrow.. let’s go!” Yumi grabbed his wrist and pulled him towards her car. “ Where do you live?”

“ Um.. not too far from here. I’ll direct you.” Die said. “ Where do you live?”

“ You’re not coming anywhere near my house, Die-kun!”

Die laughed again. He really did enjoy her company.

“ I didn’t mean it that way… I was just wondering if it’s a bit of a trouble for you if you live in the opposite direction of my place.”

Yumi waved Die’s statement off.

“ Don’t worry about me. Just show me where you live.”

~~

“ So…. You guys went to Bali together, huh?” Sugizo downed the drink in front of him, turning towards Jiro who hadn’t touched anything in the past hour.

“ Yeah.. but nothing happened.”

Sugizo laughed out loud, banging his fist repeatedly on the table.

“ Alright.. nothing long lasting happened.” Jiro corrected himself. “ I mean, we’re not together or anything.”

“ Mm…,” Sugizo nodded, “ So.. let me ask you this, boy…”

Jiro felt a nerve stiffen at the back of his neck.

“ Could you not call me that?”

“ You’ve got the same temper as Teru!” Sugizo exclaimed. “ Now, tell me.. are you a whore?”

Jiro felt like punching the man in front of him. How dare he?? What kind of question was that? Were all of Teru’s family so straight-forward in what they wanted? If this was how his family acted then he was glad he didn’t have anything to do with them!

“ What do you think?” Jiro said through clenched teeth.

“ You don’t look like one… unlike that Toshiya guy..,” Sugizo looked him up and down, analyzing him, “ But looks can be pretty deceiving.”

“ So I’m a whore.” Jiro said, annoyed. “ Whatever. I need to go home. It’s late.”

“ You’ve never stayed up late before?” Sugizo blocked his exit, not letting him escape so easily.

“ Listen, Sugizo-san.. if you’re worried I’m gonna hurt your brother or anything.. don’t worry cause we’ve got nothing between us now.” Jiro said. “ And if you’re just doing this to piss me off, you succeeded so go throw a party or whatever… just leave me alone!”

Sugizo gazed at him for a long time. He grabbed hold of Jiro’s wrist, pulling him into the seat next to him again.

“ So this is why my brother likes you so much.” Sugizo said, his face inches away from Jiro’s face.

Jiro’s heart started to beat rapidly.

‘ Teru still likes me? Impossible!’

“ You’re so… enthralling…” Sugizo’s voice was barely a whisper.

Before he could register Sugizo’s words, he felt lips on top of his and he reacted the same way he did to Teru’s lips—he melted.

~~

“ Hey.. that person looks familiar!” Die looked out of the window, noticing an auburn haired person walking alone. “ Yumi, stop a sec!”

Yumi pressed on the breaks, annoyed that Die was making her stop in the middle of nowhere. She watched as he walked out of her car, walking very carefully towards the skinny person in front of him. She continued watching him, curious.

~~

Shinya felt a prescence from behind and was about to turn around when an arm wound themselves tightly around him and a hand clamped his mouth shut. He was terrified to death. He felt himself breathing in and out unevenly, this was too surreal!

“ Don’t move if you don’t want to be hurt.”

Shinya’s eyes widened at the teasing tone. He knew that voice!

Turning around whilst pushing the taller figure away, his thoughts were confirmed when he met face to face with a cheeky looking Die. He raised a hand, still shaking, pointing accusingly at the red head.

“ Y-y-you….!”

“ Hello Shinya… fancy meeting you here!” Die said, quite cheerful and happy.

“ You scared me to death!” Shinya yelled, furious.

“ Mou… don’t exaggerate Shinya..,” Die drawled, still smiling that cheeky smile, “ You’re looking very much alive at the moment.”

“ What’re you doing scaring people in the middle of the night?!” Shinya yelled out, even more furious.

“ What’re you doing walking around alone at night?” Die said, his cheekiness toning down a bit. “ Don’t you know it’s dangerous for someone as pretty as you to be out so late?”

“ I can take care of myself just fine, thank you!” Shinya retorted.

“ Aww.. don’t be like that.. Come, I’ll accompany you home.. then you’ll be safe!”

“ Walking with you is anything but safe!” Shinya yelled out, not believing his luck and meeting Die in the middle of the night.

“ Shin—“

“ Die, hurry up will you! I need to go home too!”

Shinya turned towards the voice and saw an annoyed, but rather cute, girl looking out of her car window. Die waved to her, chuckling.

“ Wait a sec, Yumi, I’m almost done!” Die called out.

“ Who is she?” Shinya asked, curious.

“ Yumi? She… she’s a friend.” Die answered.

He didn’t know why, but he didn’t want to be where he was anymore. Shinya gave Die a weird look then turned on his heels, walking away while muttering a brief ‘good-bye’.

~~

“ Who’s that?” Yumi asked.

“ Shinya?” Die grinned at the question. “ He’s this really amazing person I know, that’s all.”

Yumi decided she didn’t like the smile on Die’s face… nor this ‘amazing’ Shinya person.

**

End of Part 4

to be continued~

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