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aibaexchange2017-12-27 08:15 pm
aibamods) wrote in aibaexchange2017-12-27 08:15 pm
Entry tags:
Gift Fic for Murrponchan
Title: An Introduction to the Sweets Club
Rating: NC-17
Word count: 6,870
Pairing: Aiba/Ohno
Warnings: Light bondage, heavily fictionalised and likely inaccurate references to concert preparations, behind the scenes moments, etc. (I wrote most of this too early for there to be anything spoilery!)
Summary: Most things in life are better when sweeter.
Notes: To my lovely recipient: I'm glad I got this chance to write for you! Initially I set out to fulfill your prompt asking for "A Guide on How to Manage Your Aiba Masaki", but along the way this fic became something a bit different. I hope you're still able to enjoy it. Merry Aibamas! ♥
“Ooh, it’s good!” Aiba exclaimed around the softening mixture of cream cheese and biscuit in his mouth. He considered the flavours on his tongue as he chewed and swallowed. “Sort of… tangy,” he decided. “But still sweet.”
Ohno nodded thoughtfully. “Passionfruit is good.”
“Better than strawberry?”
“Hmm... “ Ohno frowned at the half-eaten piece of roll cake on his plate. “I’m not sure. I think I need to try the cheesecake again.”
Aiba looked at Ohno and raised his fork, an offering for Ohno to take between his lips and taste the remnants of cheesecake there, if a taste was all he wanted. He wasn’t surprised when Ohno didn’t take it. Ohno frowned at Aiba and shook his head before nodding at the cheesecake on the table.
Aiba cocked his head, as though to say, “I thought you only wanted a taste?”
Ohno held firm and nodded at the cheesecake once more. His irritation at being denied what he wanted was starting to make him look cranky, and Aiba smiled. It wasn’t as though he hadn’t understood Ohno’s hinting in the first place—he wasn’t stupid—but Ohno was too fun to tease when he was so easily prone to sulking.
He relented this time and cut Ohno a piece of cheesecake. Teasing only went so far when it came to sweets. Sharing was more important, and as cute as Aiba thought Ohno was when he sulked, he was just as cute when he was filled with happy anticipation at getting to eat something sweet and delicious.
There were lots of cute sides to Ohno Satoshi. Aiba made sure to appreciate them all.
“So?” Aiba said once Ohno had taken a bite of the cheesecake. “Better?”
Ohno nodded and gave Aiba a thumbs up.
“What’s better?”
Sho’s voice cut across the green room, and Aiba twisted in his seat to see him having just walked inside. As Sho placed his bag down on one of the empty chairs, Aiba replied, “Passionfruit is better than strawberry.”
“You think?” Sho said. He caught sight of the sweets laid out on the table in front of Aiba and Ohno and he nodded, eyes widening with interest. “Starting already? You’re early today! What did you get?”
He moved closer, taking a seat on the other side of the table. Aiba lowered his plate and said nothing in response to Sho’s question. Ohno was similarly quiet. They watched Sho with careful gazes as he examined the sweets, seemingly unaware of the pinpricks of tension starting to emerge.
The silence stretched, and Sho looked up. Aiba glanced at Ohno, and then back at Sho.
“No,” Ohno said, mouth set in a stubborn frown.
“No?” repeated Sho, clearly confused.
Aiba knew he had to take the lead. “We need to have a talk with you, Sho-chan,” he said, removing all traces of humour from his voice. It was important to make Sho aware that they were about to have a serious conversation. There could be no misunderstandings.
Sho straightened in his chair. “A talk?”
“Yes. We want to make sure you understand what it is we’re doing here before we can let you join us.”
He thought he was being clear enough, but Sho still didn’t seem to comprehend. “Join you?” he said, looking bewildered as he glanced between Aiba and Ohno.
“As a member of the Sweets Club.”
“Oh.” Sho blinked slowly, realisation finally dawning. “I understand…”
“Do you? Do you really?” Aiba asked. He could hear the sharpness creeping into his voice, but he didn’t care to temper it. “This isn’t just something we do to pass the time, okay? It’s an important ritual: a gathering of friends with a common interest, a shared appreciation for the best sweets Japan has to offer. We take this seriously. And if you don’t, then maybe you shouldn’t eat with us anymore.”
Beside him, Ohno nodded his agreement. Aiba was glad for the support. He didn’t want to scold Sho, but there were some things he couldn’t let slide. It wasn’t that he was angry, but… well, maybe he was a little bit annoyed.
He didn’t like feeling betrayed.
Sho met his eyes, and he was more earnest this time when he said, “I understand. If I’ve been taking this lightly, I won’t anymore.”
“Really?”
“I promise.”
Aiba cast a sidelong glance at Ohno. He wanted to accept Sho’s pledge, but this wasn’t his decision to make alone.
Ohno raised his chin slightly in response, and that was good enough for Aiba. “Alright!” he said, turning back to Sho. “We’ll let you join us. But not officially, okay? You’re on probation.”
“Probation?”
“Yep! Once you’ve proved to us that you’re serious, we’ll reconsider your status. Don’t mess up again!”
He thought those terms were plenty fair, and he stared Sho down until he nodded his agreement. A wave of relief flushed through him, glad that everything was finally sorted. Though he’d been prepared to remain firm about revoking Sho’s membership if necessary, he’d never wanted it to come to that. It would be too sad! After all, Sho needed to be there to eat any slices of cheesecake they saved for him.
He told Sho as much. “It’s especially delicious today!” he added, referring to the cheesecake. There was still plenty left for Sho.
Ohno shook his head. “No cheesecake,” he said. “Not yet.”
“Ah.” Aiba took a moment to think. “You’re right; Sho-chan shouldn’t get cheesecake yet.” He leaned forward and transferred a slice of roll cake to an empty plate. “Here, try this,” he said as he passed the plate over to Sho. “Not cheesecake, but still good!”
Sho shot a wistful glance at the cheesecake, but he was wise enough to accept the offered plate without complaint.
“Don’t worry,” Aiba said, smiling as he caught Sho’s gaze. “You can have it next time.”
*
“Uh, not that I want you to think I’m not taking my membership seriously, but… do I also have to…”
“Hmm?” Aiba said absent-mindedly as he watched Ohno scoop some of the coffee-flavoured cream he recommended Aiba try.
“You know…” From the corner of his eye, Aiba could see Sho gesturing toward them. “Do that.”
“Oh.” Aiba paused. “No,” he said, and he briefly tore his gaze away from the cream-laden fork that was now hovering tantalisingly close to his lips. “Why? Are you feeling left out?”
“No—”
“Maybe when Sho-kun’s a proper member,” suggested Ohno.
“I don’t want to!”
Aiba shrugged and turned his attention back to Ohno. He was pleased to discover that the coffee cream was as delicious as Ohno said. Sho was missing out.
Aiba almost felt bad for him, but then again, some things were better when not shared.
“Strawberry?” he asked Ohno, fork already raised.
Ohno nodded, leaning closer, and Aiba was all too happy to give him what he wanted.
Aiba liked to think he knew how to be charming. After all, he wasn’t a national idol for nothing! The title came with the ability to smile under any kind of pressure; his reputation rested on being able to use his dimples for maximum effect. That was something in which he had confidence.
Unfortunately, there were always going to be those who were immune to his charm. Nino was proving himself once again to be one of those people as he crossed the waiting room of the dentist’s office, not letting his impassive stare budge even a fraction at the sight of his oldest friend’s most brilliant smile.
Aiba wasn’t going to lose. He rose to his feet and widened his smile even further.
Nino reached him and stopped. “Creepy,” he said.
Aiba frowned. “How is that a proper way to greet someone? After I waited for you and everything?”
“Who asked you to do that? Go home already.”
“But I bought beer!” Aiba said, lifting a plastic bag that had been newly acquired since he first saw Nino half an hour ago. He didn’t bother to elaborate. He’d waited for Nino to finish his appointment, and he had beer. Nino didn’t need more explanation than that.
“Fine,” Nino said, after allowing a few seconds to pass. His hesitation was all for show, Aiba was sure; he’d never had any doubt that Nino would accept his unspoken invitation.
Nino was easy.
Aiba stepped forward, nudging Nino as he headed for the door. “Let’s go!” he said.
Nino didn’t follow. “Aiba-chan.”
Aiba turned.
“I still have to pay.”
“Oh.”
Aiba hung back as Nino went to settle his account, but boredom and impatience took over, and he ended up inching closer and closer to the reception desk until he was almost pressed to Nino’s side.
Nino delivered a well-placed jab of his elbow to Aiba’s stomach.
“Ow.”
“Stop hovering,” Nino muttered.
Before Aiba could offer a retort, the receptionist chimed in with a polite enquiry as to whether she could confirm Nino’s next appointment. “I can move it so it’s at the same time as Aiba-san’s if you like?” she said.
“No thank you.”
“Why not?” Aiba protested. “Isn’t it easier that way?”
Nino glanced at him sidelong. “Aiba-shi… have you been changing your appointments to match mine?”
Aiba was never good at controlling his facial expressions. Nino rolled his eyes and turned back to the receptionist.
“Keep my appointment as it is.”
*
“Aiba-chan, there’s someone on your couch.”
“Huh?” Aiba glanced up, past Nino. “Oh!” he said. “Leader’s here.”
He finished kicking off his shoes and headed straight for the kitchen, leaving Nino standing in the genkan. On his way he spared a quick glance at Ohno sprawled out on his couch, still in the same spot as he was when Aiba left him—only now he was actually asleep instead of just sleepy.
“Has he been here the entire time you were out?” Nino asked from behind him.
“Yeah.”
“You just left him alone while you went to the dentist?”
“Oh-chan didn’t mind! I told him I would bring back beer.” Aiba turned to flash Nino a smile as he added, “And you!”
Nino stared at him.
“Okay,” he said, and he walked away. Aiba continued on his quest to find some snacks.
By the time he made it out of the kitchen, supplies in hand, Nino had joined Ohno on the couch. One of his hands was on Ohno’s hip and the other moved to grab his shoulder, shaking him awake.
“Get up, old man,” Nino said.
Ohno sniffed and opened his eyes a fraction. “Ah,” he said, still bleary with sleep. “It’s Kazu.”
A small smile appeared on his face and disappeared once more as he closed his eyes and rolled onto his side.
Nino smacked him. “Don’t be lazy.”
The soft grunt that Ohno made in response sounded more pleased than pained. “Where’s Aiba-chan?” he mumbled.
“I’m here!”
Aiba stepped closer, pausing to place the bowl of snacks he’d procured on the coffee table before turning to show Ohno the six-pack he held in his other hand. The bait worked; Ohno’s eyes finally found focus, and he looked up at Aiba and smiled. With a grace that seemed unnatural given his tangled state, he stretched one arm out toward Aiba, fingers unfurling with a wordless demand.
Aiba lifted the beers closer to his chest and told him, “Not until you sit up properly. I don’t want you spilling anything.”
Ohno pouted. Nino smacked him again.
“Get up, lazy butt.”
“It’s a nice butt,” Aiba quipped.
Nino nodded his agreement as he slid his hand past the curve of Ohno’s hip. Aiba was pretty sure he used the opportunity to cop a feel, but it wasn’t as though he could tell from Ohno’s lack of reaction. And Nino’s wandering hands didn’t stop Ohno from managing to pull himself up into a sitting position.
Once he was settled, he locked eyes with Aiba and tilted his chin expectantly. Aiba laughed.
“Okay, okay,” he said as he tugged a can free from the cardboard and pressed it into Ohno’s waiting hands. “Sorry for making you wait.”
Ohno smiled brightly, but Nino’s eyes narrowed. “Kirin?” he said darkly. “Really?”
“It’s good!”
“It’s wrong. They’re not paying us anymore.”
“Don’t be bitter,” Aiba scolded. He tugged two more cans free before setting the rest down on his coffee table—a choice that required a bit of a juggling act—and ended up dropping one rather unceremoniously into Nino’s lap.
“Careful!” Nino cried, fumbling to grab hold of the can before it fell onto the floor. “Now it’s going to be all shaken up.”
“Well, that won’t matter if you don’t want to drink it!” Aiba said cheerfully as he flopped onto the couch.
Aiba’s couch was large enough to comfortably seat four people, but that didn’t stop him from settling in close to Nino, thighs pressing together. On Nino’s other side, Ohno had already started drinking; he’d clearly seen no reason to wait. Ohno was smart like that. Aiba decided to follow his lead, letting the hiss of his can opening drown out the last of Nino’s disgruntled muttering. He relaxed back against the couch and closed his eyes as he enjoyed his first sip.
“What’s with the crackers?”
Aiba opened his eyes. Nino had shifted forward on the couch cushions, stretching to reach the coffee table. In his left hand was a can of beer—a fresh one, it seemed. The can Aiba gave him had been discarded and replaced. Nino’s right hand grasped the bowl Aiba had left on the coffee table, tilting it toward him slightly as he scrutinised the contents.
“They’re snacks!” Aiba said. He thought that was pretty obvious. “You know, in case anyone gets hungry.”
“But they’re sweet. You realised that, right?”
“So?”
Nino turned to look at him, nose wrinkling. “So? It’s weird. Who the hell eats sweets with beer?”
“I don’t think it’s weird,” offered Ohno.
Aiba beamed at him. “See, Leader agrees with me! You’ve been overruled.”
“No, it’s still weird. Neither of you are normal people.”
Ohno frowned and said, “Hey!” just as Aiba swatted the side of Nino’s arm. Aiba reached forward and took the bowl of crackers from the table.
“Does that mean you don’t want any?” he said, waving the bowl in front of Nino.
“Definitely not.”
Aiba shrugged and passed the crackers over to Ohno. “Leader?”
Ohno took one with a smile.
Nino sighed and shook his head. “Weird,” he said, but even as he took a sip of his beer, the rim of the can couldn’t hide the hint of a smile playing at the corners of his lips.
“So, I was thinking…”
On the floor, Ohno grunted. Aiba took that as a sign that he’d been stretched enough, and he slowly moved Ohno’s leg back until it was perpendicular to his body.
“Our unit is also kind of the Sweets Club, right?” he continued as he switched to Ohno’s other leg. “Do you think we should use that somehow? Like… what if we had special dance moves?”
“Dance moves?”
“Yeah! I know we’ve figured out most of the performance already, but it’s not like we can’t change it up a bit, right? Add a bit extra for the fans.”
Ohno craned his neck, eyes meeting Aiba’s. “Hmm… maybe.”
He pushed himself up onto his elbows and Aiba released his leg. Ohno stayed where he was on the floor, eyebrows drawn together in concentration. Aiba crouched down beside him.
“What do you think?”
Ohno said nothing. Slowly, he moved to his feet, and Aiba followed him. He could see that Ohno was lost inside his own thoughts, limbs twitching with subtle movements that gave no real hint as to what kind of moves he was considering, only that he was definitely trying to come up with something. That was enough to send a thrill of excited anticipation up Aiba’s spine. Getting to witness Ohno when he was like this, completely focused on creating choreography, was a rare pleasure Aiba always enjoyed.
Somewhat tentatively, Ohno raised his arms above his head, fingertips coming together to make a point. He looked at Aiba, and Aiba did his best to mirror the action. Whether Ohno was satisfied with his attempt, he couldn’t tell. Ohno’s expression barely changed.
He must have been satisfied because he dropped his arms and moved to stand next to Aiba. Still, he said nothing. He moved one foot forward and then back, adjusting his position until he nodded and stilled.
Aiba held his breath.
In one quick, fluid movement, Ohno pivoted so they stood toe-to-toe, and he snapped his arms up into the same gesture as before.
“Taiyaki,” he said.
It took Aiba a second to work it out.
“Does that mean Sho-chan will be the filling?” he asked, mouth cracking open into a smile.
The serious expression on Ohno’s face disappeared. “Kind of suits him, don’t you think? Red bean…”
Aiba stopped trying to hold back his laughter.
By the time Jun found them, they were near-breathless on the floor after their fourth attempt at perfecting the taiyaki move, both gasping through their struggles to find composure. The fourth variation had been the most inspired yet: Aiba decided that Sho-as-the-filling needed to do more than just stand still while they did all the hard work around him, and Ohno was quick to come up with an idea. He dropped to the floor and pushed his way through Aiba’s legs, trying to rise upward as he emerged while keeping his movements smooth and their bodies close.
Aiba could kind of understand what Ohno was attempting to do. He assumed Ohno wanted to create an image of filling being squeezed onto the centre of the batter from top to bottom—or tail to head, as it were—but having Ohno slide out from under his crotch caused his thoughts to travel in an entirely different direction.
Unfortunately, and perhaps inevitably, Ohno got stuck, and Aiba lost his balance. That was when they collapsed onto the floor. And that was when Jun arrived, looking as though he was still two hours and a shot of espresso away from being at his best.
“Do I even want to ask?” he said.
Aiba turned toward him first. “Matsujun! Great, now you can be Sho-chan for us!”
“I can be what?”
Jun was always a little slow in the mornings. Uncooperative, too, if one allowed him to be—which Aiba didn’t. He sprung to his feet and bounded across the studio, hands wrapping around Jun’s elbows as he dragged him into position.
“Just stand still,” he told Jun, slotting behind him.
Jun didn’t stand still. He twisted in Aiba’s grasp, trying to turn back around. “What are you—”
“Shh.” Aiba moved his hands up to Jun’s shoulders, righting him. Beside them, Ohno assumed his stance. “No talking. We’re going to show you something.”
Aiba was an unstoppable force and Jun wasn’t quite an immovable object. Aiba’s victory was assured before the battle even begun; he felt Jun soften under his fingertips and he smiled.
“And… go!” he said, and Ohno moved, swinging around to trap Jun between them. With perfect synchronicity, Aiba and Ohno snapped their hands above their heads.
Aiba met Ohno’s eyes from over Jun’s shoulder. “Number two?” he mouthed.
Ohno nodded and started swaying.
Variation number two involved stepping up their game by moving like fish, instead of just forming the fish-shape. Or something to that effect—they hadn’t quite perfected the concept yet, and Aiba wasn’t really sure how to look like a fish, but he waved his arms around and swivelled his hips, and he thought he was doing a pretty good job.
Jun didn’t seem to agree. “What exactly are you supposed to be showing me?” he said after a few seconds spent pressed between Aiba and Ohno’s writhing bodies.
“We’re taiyaki!” Aiba said, dropping his hands to Jun’s hips. He was basically just grinding on Jun now, but was pretty sure Jun was enjoying himself. “What do you think? Will the fans get it?”
“I think they’ll get that you’re a couple of idiots.”
Aiba laughed and stepped aside, releasing Jun. Ohno was a little slower to do the same.
“So is this why you guys said you needed to come early today? I thought you wanted to work on your unit performance.”
“We did! We were just, you know… exploring some other ideas. Right, Leader?”
Ohno shrugged.
“... Right.” Jun glanced between them, eyebrows creasing into a frown. “I don’t want to interfere,” he said in a voice that meant he definitely did want to interfere, and he was about to, “but maybe you should save those ideas for another time. There’s still a lot of choreo to learn.”
“Don’t worry!” Aiba squeezed Jun’s shoulder and shot him a bright smile. “We’ll get through it all, I promise. We won’t disappoint you!”
Jun gave him a small smile in return. “I know you won’t. But no more messing around, okay? Group rehearsal starts in twenty. I gotta go sort a few things out—stay warm and drink some water. I’ll be back soon”
He started to leave, but just as he was about to hit the door, he stopped and turned back. “Was Sho-kun involved in coming up with that whole new move idea?” he asked.
Aiba shook his head.
“So you haven’t shown him it?”
Aiba shook his head again.
Jun pursed his lips, considering the new information. “Maybe there’s enough time for you to give him a demonstration,” he said, eyes twinkling with amusement. “It’s not really fair for him to be left out.”
Aiba grinned. “Do you want to be there when we show him?”
Jun left without giving a response. Aiba took that to mean he did.
The post-concert high always left Aiba a bit dazed and scattered. He was used to being one of the last to finish showering. Sometimes he managed to get someone to join him, and sometimes Jun was even slower than he was, but that night everyone had seemed to disappear too fast. Aiba was left alone with his thoughts, vivid scenes from the past few hours playing over in a loop, chanting and screaming still ringing in his eardrums.
He finished towelling off his hair and gathered his belongings, still moving slowly. Distracted as he was, he didn’t notice someone enter behind him.
“What are you doing? Stop spacing out.”
Startled, Aiba turned around. “Nino? You’re still here?”
Nino stepped forward and grabbed hold of Aiba’s arm. “Come on,” he said. “There’s somewhere you need to be.”
“But my stuff!”
“You can get it later.”
Nino dragged him away from the showers and through the hallway without slowing or giving Aiba an explanation. Only when they reached their dressing room did he stop.
He knocked on the closed door, and a second later, Jun’s face appeared from the other side.
“Where have you been?” he said, and he reached around the partially open door to tug Aiba inside. “Come on.”
Inside the dressing were the other members of Arashi and several of their closest staff. That wasn’t unusual. What was unusual was they were all standing and facing the door, as if waiting for Aiba’s arrival. Even more unusual was the fact that Sho, in the centre of the room, was holding a cake.
Sho grinned at the sight of Aiba and took a step forward.
Then he started to sing.
Sho made it through the first two lines of “Happy Birthday” reasonably well, but with the jump in pitch on the third “birth”, his voice cracked, and the rest of the song disappeared into abrupt, awkward silence.
He frowned and touched his hand to his throat, embarrassment plain across his features. “Ah,” he croaked. “Sorry.”
Jun sighed. “Sho-kun…”
“Hey, don’t get mad at me! It’s not fair you left me to sing by myself.”
Aiba was still a bit dazed by the entire surprise, but he knew he didn’t want the moment to be ruined. “Don’t worry about it!” he said. “You don’t need to sing.”
“Yeah, haven’t we done that enough tonight?” said Nino. “Time for the birthday boy to blow out his candles so we can wrap this up and go home.”
A gentle shove to his back had Aiba stumbling a step closer to Sho and the birthday cake he was still holding in his hands. Aiba looked down at the glossy, red cherries and shavings of dark chocolate scattered prettily over thick swirls of cream. In the centre was a solid piece of chocolate decorated with a scrawl of white letters in English that he couldn’t quite read.
He had half a second to wonder whether the second word was “Birthday” or “Bisday” before another touch from Nino reminded him of what he was supposed to do.
There weren’t too many candles to blow out. Aiba only needed a single, exhaled breath for the orange flames to flicker and disappear, leaving skinny wisps of smoke curling from the blackened wicks.
“We thought it might be nice to give you a cake you can take home with you,” Sho told him. “I hope you like Black Forest? It came highly recommended.”
Aiba nodded. “It’s perfect. Thank you, you guys, really…”
“You’re not going to cry again are you?” asked Nino.
“No.” Aiba sniffed. “The smoke is just stinging my eyes a bit, that’s all.”
“Well, can you save it until after we give you your presents? This is heavy.”
Sure enough, when Aiba turned to Nino he was holding a large plastic bag in one hand that he thrust toward Aiba. “You already got me a present?” Aiba asked, curling his fingers around the handles to lighten Nino’s burden.
“I got you two presents. I’m amazing, I know.”
“Can you really brag when one of those presents is beer?” asked Sho. “I don’t think that counts…”
Nino ignored him. “I figured that you needed to be introduced to a superior brand,” he said as he let go of the bag. “Next time I come over, I don’t want to see you still drinking Kirin.”
Before Aiba could decide which part of that to respond to first, Jun was there on his other side with a bag of his own to present to Aiba. His was made of a sleeker, white material that bore a label Aiba recognised from the last time they went shopping together. He didn’t need to look inside to guess what was there. And then Sho, still holding the cake, pointed out his present on the table behind him. “Don’t forget it!” he said. “The cake, too. I’ll fix the box up for you.”
Aiba was overwhelmed, but they weren’t finished yet. Everyone turned to Ohno and waited.
He’d been standing quietly throughout the entire proceedings, and it soon became clear as to why. “Ah,” he said sheepishly, scratching the back of his neck. “Sorry… I forgot.”
“Leader.”
“How could you forget? We agreed we were going to all bring presents today.”
Aiba only smiled as the others scolded Ohno. “It’s fine, you guys, really. I’m sure Leader will make it up to me later.”
He meant what he said. He was too happy to care about a single, delayed present, not when he’d been given so much already. And, as he locked eyes with Ohno, he knew he had no reason to worry.
Leader wouldn’t disappoint him.
*
Later, when just about everyone had left and all seemed eerily quiet, Aiba finished handing over the last of his bags to his manager and stepped out into the hallway, only to find they weren’t quite as alone as he thought.
Ohno was there.
Ohno shouldn’t have been there, he never stuck around longer than he needed to, but there he was. Aiba wanted to ask him what he was doing, why he hadn’t gone home, but he didn’t say anything.
He waved his manager ahead and waited.
“I didn’t forget,” Ohno said once they were alone.
After a second of confusion, Aiba figured what Ohno meant. And then, as he read Ohno’s expression, he took the next step and figured out what Ohno really meant.
Or at least, what he hoped Ohno meant.
Aiba cocked his head slightly, questioning Ohno just enough to be sure. He didn’t need more than that. The look in Ohno’s eyes made him certain.
Aiba trusted his manager with his belongings. And his apartment keys. And not to ask too many questions.
He didn’t need long to think before deciding his next move.
“Just give me a minute to sort things out,” he said, starting to smile, “and then we can go.”
Ohno nodded. “Don’t take too long.”
“I won’t.”
“We have a big day tomorrow,” Aiba said as he ran his fingers over the top of Ohno’s sweatpants, lifting his shirt just high enough to reveal a sliver of tanned skin. He hooked his thumb under the waistband, into the gap created by the sharp jut of a hipbone, but he didn’t push down. “It’ll be bad if we turn up and we aren’t at our best. Matsujun will get mad at us.”
“Matsujun doesn’t scare me.”
Aiba smiled. “Really? Can you say that to his face?”
Ohno nodded, chin raised high, and a breathy giggle pushed past Aiba’s lips.
It was probably too late to be considering the potential repercussions of a late night when he was in Ohno’s bedroom, moments away from stripping the rest of Ohno’s clothes and then his own, but Aiba wasn’t really worried. He was still too high on the post-concert adrenaline rush to sleep yet anyway.
He just liked to tease Ohno a bit.
“Maybe we should sleep,” he suggested, and he smiled at the way Ohno immediately shook his head. “Are you sure?” he asked. “You look pretty tired, Leader. I don’t want you to fall asleep on me.”
“I won’t.”
“Good,” Aiba said, and he leaned in to kiss Ohno the way he’d been wanting to all night.
Aiba always liked kissing Ohno. Kissing Ohno didn’t make him feel butterflies in his stomach or jolts of electricity sparking at his fingertips or anything like that. It was more like… a gentle warmth that spread across his skin the moment their lips touched, seeping into every pore until he felt happy and relaxed and invincible. And he was greedy about it, never really wanting to pause once they’d started. The soft promise of Ohno’s lips pulled him back again and again, until Aiba was left wondering why they didn’t spend more time kissing each other. Surely no one would complain if they knew just how good Ohno was at it, right?
In fact, Ohno was so good that it was distracting. Unfairly so, when Aiba wasn’t always the best multitasker. Ohno tried to tug him back onto the bed, and Aiba didn’t so much follow him as he stumbled and collapsed in an awkward tangle of limbs.
“Oops,” Aiba said with a giggle as he righted himself. “Sorry.”
Beneath him, Ohno grunted. Aiba shifted onto his forearms so he could look down at Ohno, flat on his back, one arm flung out to the side and the other bent as he rubbed a spot on his neck.
“Did I hurt you?” Aiba asked.
Ohno met Aiba’s eyes and nodded.
“Where?”
For a second, Aiba was worried, but then Ohno tapped a single finger against his lips.
Aiba grinned. “Let me kiss it better.”
He kissed away the imaginary pain on Ohno’s lips, then his face and his neck, the stubble on his chin and the sharp ridges of his collarbones poking out from under his tank top. The top was in Aiba’s way, so he pulled it off, annoyed that he hadn’t done a better job of undressing Ohno earlier. Now he had clothes in his way when he could have just had naked Ohno, and naked Ohno was always the best type of Ohno.
Ohno seemed to agree, helpfully lifting his hips when Aiba slipped his fingers under the top of his sweatpants. Removing the rest of Ohno’s clothes proved a little challenging in their position, even with assistance. Aiba ended up stepping back off the bed, more careful this time so not to trip.
Stripping his own clothes was an easier task. He was down to his briefs in ten seconds flat, and back on the bed two seconds after that. Ohno had already shifted to accommodate him, propped up on his elbows with his feet flat on the mattress, knees bent.
As he settled in between Ohno’s legs, Aiba eyed Ohno’s cock, flushed and hard against his stomach. He slid his fingers around the base, curling them into a steady grip, and he bent down to take Ohno into his mouth.
Teasing wasn’t really an option when it came to having Ohno’s cock in his mouth. Its heavy weight pushed past his lips and slid across his tongue, flooding his senses with heat and faint musk and overwhelming fullness. Aiba sucked down as far as he could manage, and then again, gagging slightly when the tip bumped his soft palate but not caring too much. He liked it messy. He liked getting everything really wet, the slick of spit and precome pooling in his mouth until it had nowhere to go but past his lips and onto his hand fisting over the base of Ohno’s shaft. He liked feeling the growing ache in his jaw and the garbled noises that hummed from the back of his throat.
He liked when he could tell that Ohno was starting to lose control, hips jerking and cock pulsing, impossibly hard. Aiba was all enthusiasm and little technique, but his enthusiasm was enough.
When he knew Ohno was close, he drew back to focus his attention on the head of Ohno’s cock, letting his hand take care of the length. Aiba tightened his lips as he tongued the slit, working Ohno over harder and faster until Ohno came with a shaky cry.
Salty, bitter warmth flooded Aiba’s mouth, and it wasn’t his favourite taste in the world, but he swallowed it down. He cut the bitterness of Ohno’s come with the subtler flavour of his cock, lapping at the softening length until Ohno was forced to tug him away.
“Too much?” Aiba asked as he crawled up the length of Ohno’s body, taking care not to accidentally brush Ohno’s oversensitive cock as he did.
Ohno tightened his fingers still buried in Aiba’s hair and let go. Speech was apparently beyond him.
Aiba really wanted to kiss him then, but his skin was starting to feel uncomfortably sticky. “Wipes?” he asked Ohno.
Ohno rolled his head lazily in the direction of his bedside table.
Aiba found the wipes inside the top drawer. He also found something else.
“What’s this?” he asked as he removed a large, rectangular box from the drawer.
“Hmm? Oh. That’s your present. I told you I didn’t forget.”
He obviously did forget, or he would have given it to Aiba instead of leaving it to be found by chance, but Aiba wasn’t concerned about that now. “You got me chocolates?” he said, glancing back at Ohno.
Aiba liked chocolate. He couldn’t be upset at receiving it as a present, and the box looked pretty fancy, all wrapped up in shiny, white ribbon. But a box of chocolates wasn’t a gag or handcuffs or special underwear; it didn’t need to hidden away and saved for a private moment.
Ohno just said, “I thought the ribbon looked nice,” as though that explained everything.
Maybe it did.
Aiba looked back down at the box in his hands. The box was large, so the ribbon was long. In fact, it was just long enough, Aiba thought as he ran his fingers over the smooth fabric. He tugged at one end of the ribbon, releasing the knot.
“It is a nice ribbon,” he said as he lifted it free. “It would be a waste to just throw it away, don’t you think?”
Ohno said nothing.
“No?” Aiba said with a questioning glance at Ohno. He placed the box down on the surface of the table and raised his hand grasping the ribbon higher in the air, considering the fabric dangling from his fingertips. He shrugged and said, “I guess I’ll just leave it here—”
A sudden tug at one end of the ribbon made him stop. He looked down at Ohno’s fingers wrapped around the strip of fabric, curing tighter into a fist.
Ohno tugged again and Aiba followed. He followed until he was almost on top of Ohno, weight braced on one arm and the ribbon still connecting them, a line between their closed hands.
Ohno let go. Aiba didn’t.
“What is it, Oh-chan?” Aiba said, voice dropping into a tease as he leaned closer to Ohno. “Is there something you want? You can tell me if there is. I want you to tell me.”
Ohno’s eyes flicked up from the ribbon dangling between them, and he didn’t tell Aiba his answer.
He showed him.
“You sure?” Aiba asked, eyes never leaving Ohno’s face. He didn’t need to break eye contact to know that Ohno had raised both arms above his head and crossed them at the wrists, fingers curled underneath the headboard. Aiba probably could have closed his eyes before Ohno even moved and still have been certain of what he would do.
Aiba understood Ohno. Ohno understood him. They shared a common interest.
Ohno nodded at Aiba, and Aiba didn’t waste any more time before giving them both what they wanted. He shifted across to straddle Ohno and got to work.
The ribbon had looked pretty wrapped around the box of chocolates, but wrapped around Ohno’s wrists, white satin against tanned skin, made for something more than just pretty. It was art. Aiba secured the last knot and ran his fingers around the loops of fabric, feeling pretty satisfied with his efforts.
“Does that feel okay?”
He wasn’t expecting Ohno’s answer to come in the form of sudden warmth pressing into the front of Aiba’s briefs.
Aiba had been trying his best to ignore his erection while he focused on other things, but that was impossible to do now. He shuddered and canted forward on instinct, feeling the bump of Ohno’s nose and soft warmth of his lips. He looked down and saw the way Ohno was craning his neck, straining against his bindings, so that he could mouth Aiba through the thin layer of cotton that separated them.
It was too much.
Aiba cursed and shoved his hand into his briefs, fumbling for his dick. All thoughts of what he’d wanted to do with Ohno when he was tied up were flung aside. Aiba couldn’t be patient anymore. He needed this.
He slid the head of his cock over Ohno’s lips, already so pink and shiny and swollen. Ohno held still at first, letting Aiba do what he wanted, but then he dropped his mouth open and Aiba felt the drag of Ohno’s tongue against the underside of his cock. It was just a kitten lick, but it was followed by another, and then more until Ohno somehow worked Aiba’s cock into his mouth.
The angle was awkward and Ohno was flagging, Aiba could tell. It didn’t matter. Aiba was close. He thrust into his fist and past Ohno’s lips, rough friction and slick heat enough to push him over the edge. He came.
His release spilled into Ohno’s mouth and around it too, dirtying his lips. Aiba watched, transfixed, as the last tiny spurt of his come dribbled from the tip of his cock. It left a trail down Ohno’s chin when he slumped back, bone-weary, and he reached down to touch the shiny mark, feeling the sticky wetness slide under his fingertips.
“Sorry,” Aiba said, moving his fingers up to the corner of Ohno’s mouth and the thick, white glob resting there. “I made you a mess.”
Ohno blinked heavily, sleepy and sated. “S’okay,” Ohno mumbled, eyes falling shut. “Felt nice.”
Aiba tapped his cheek with two fingers. “Don’t fall asleep on me. You’re all sticky.”
He felt the heavy rise and fall of Ohno’s chest underneath him. Slowly, Ohno opened his eyes.
“Help me?” he asked.
Aiba smiled. “Of course.”
As he untied the knots in the ribbon around Ohno’s wrists, Aiba couldn’t help but feel a slight twinge of regret that they hadn’t had more time to play. “Next time, we’ll start like this,” he said, pulling the ribbon free.
Ohno hummed. “That would be nice.”
Aiba paused and looked at Ohno. “This was nice,” he said. He shuffled back a little further so he could lean down to press a short peck to Ohno’s lips. “Thank you for the present.”
“Happy Birthday,” said Ohno, a soft smile spreading across his lips.
Aiba returned the smile. It had been a happy birthday. And Christmas had only just begun.
He hoped to make it just as memorable.
Rating: NC-17
Word count: 6,870
Pairing: Aiba/Ohno
Warnings: Light bondage, heavily fictionalised and likely inaccurate references to concert preparations, behind the scenes moments, etc. (I wrote most of this too early for there to be anything spoilery!)
Summary: Most things in life are better when sweeter.
Notes: To my lovely recipient: I'm glad I got this chance to write for you! Initially I set out to fulfill your prompt asking for "A Guide on How to Manage Your Aiba Masaki", but along the way this fic became something a bit different. I hope you're still able to enjoy it. Merry Aibamas! ♥
Passionfruit Cheesecake
“Ooh, it’s good!” Aiba exclaimed around the softening mixture of cream cheese and biscuit in his mouth. He considered the flavours on his tongue as he chewed and swallowed. “Sort of… tangy,” he decided. “But still sweet.”
Ohno nodded thoughtfully. “Passionfruit is good.”
“Better than strawberry?”
“Hmm... “ Ohno frowned at the half-eaten piece of roll cake on his plate. “I’m not sure. I think I need to try the cheesecake again.”
Aiba looked at Ohno and raised his fork, an offering for Ohno to take between his lips and taste the remnants of cheesecake there, if a taste was all he wanted. He wasn’t surprised when Ohno didn’t take it. Ohno frowned at Aiba and shook his head before nodding at the cheesecake on the table.
Aiba cocked his head, as though to say, “I thought you only wanted a taste?”
Ohno held firm and nodded at the cheesecake once more. His irritation at being denied what he wanted was starting to make him look cranky, and Aiba smiled. It wasn’t as though he hadn’t understood Ohno’s hinting in the first place—he wasn’t stupid—but Ohno was too fun to tease when he was so easily prone to sulking.
He relented this time and cut Ohno a piece of cheesecake. Teasing only went so far when it came to sweets. Sharing was more important, and as cute as Aiba thought Ohno was when he sulked, he was just as cute when he was filled with happy anticipation at getting to eat something sweet and delicious.
There were lots of cute sides to Ohno Satoshi. Aiba made sure to appreciate them all.
“So?” Aiba said once Ohno had taken a bite of the cheesecake. “Better?”
Ohno nodded and gave Aiba a thumbs up.
“What’s better?”
Sho’s voice cut across the green room, and Aiba twisted in his seat to see him having just walked inside. As Sho placed his bag down on one of the empty chairs, Aiba replied, “Passionfruit is better than strawberry.”
“You think?” Sho said. He caught sight of the sweets laid out on the table in front of Aiba and Ohno and he nodded, eyes widening with interest. “Starting already? You’re early today! What did you get?”
He moved closer, taking a seat on the other side of the table. Aiba lowered his plate and said nothing in response to Sho’s question. Ohno was similarly quiet. They watched Sho with careful gazes as he examined the sweets, seemingly unaware of the pinpricks of tension starting to emerge.
The silence stretched, and Sho looked up. Aiba glanced at Ohno, and then back at Sho.
“No,” Ohno said, mouth set in a stubborn frown.
“No?” repeated Sho, clearly confused.
Aiba knew he had to take the lead. “We need to have a talk with you, Sho-chan,” he said, removing all traces of humour from his voice. It was important to make Sho aware that they were about to have a serious conversation. There could be no misunderstandings.
Sho straightened in his chair. “A talk?”
“Yes. We want to make sure you understand what it is we’re doing here before we can let you join us.”
He thought he was being clear enough, but Sho still didn’t seem to comprehend. “Join you?” he said, looking bewildered as he glanced between Aiba and Ohno.
“As a member of the Sweets Club.”
“Oh.” Sho blinked slowly, realisation finally dawning. “I understand…”
“Do you? Do you really?” Aiba asked. He could hear the sharpness creeping into his voice, but he didn’t care to temper it. “This isn’t just something we do to pass the time, okay? It’s an important ritual: a gathering of friends with a common interest, a shared appreciation for the best sweets Japan has to offer. We take this seriously. And if you don’t, then maybe you shouldn’t eat with us anymore.”
Beside him, Ohno nodded his agreement. Aiba was glad for the support. He didn’t want to scold Sho, but there were some things he couldn’t let slide. It wasn’t that he was angry, but… well, maybe he was a little bit annoyed.
He didn’t like feeling betrayed.
Sho met his eyes, and he was more earnest this time when he said, “I understand. If I’ve been taking this lightly, I won’t anymore.”
“Really?”
“I promise.”
Aiba cast a sidelong glance at Ohno. He wanted to accept Sho’s pledge, but this wasn’t his decision to make alone.
Ohno raised his chin slightly in response, and that was good enough for Aiba. “Alright!” he said, turning back to Sho. “We’ll let you join us. But not officially, okay? You’re on probation.”
“Probation?”
“Yep! Once you’ve proved to us that you’re serious, we’ll reconsider your status. Don’t mess up again!”
He thought those terms were plenty fair, and he stared Sho down until he nodded his agreement. A wave of relief flushed through him, glad that everything was finally sorted. Though he’d been prepared to remain firm about revoking Sho’s membership if necessary, he’d never wanted it to come to that. It would be too sad! After all, Sho needed to be there to eat any slices of cheesecake they saved for him.
He told Sho as much. “It’s especially delicious today!” he added, referring to the cheesecake. There was still plenty left for Sho.
Ohno shook his head. “No cheesecake,” he said. “Not yet.”
“Ah.” Aiba took a moment to think. “You’re right; Sho-chan shouldn’t get cheesecake yet.” He leaned forward and transferred a slice of roll cake to an empty plate. “Here, try this,” he said as he passed the plate over to Sho. “Not cheesecake, but still good!”
Sho shot a wistful glance at the cheesecake, but he was wise enough to accept the offered plate without complaint.
“Don’t worry,” Aiba said, smiling as he caught Sho’s gaze. “You can have it next time.”
*
“Uh, not that I want you to think I’m not taking my membership seriously, but… do I also have to…”
“Hmm?” Aiba said absent-mindedly as he watched Ohno scoop some of the coffee-flavoured cream he recommended Aiba try.
“You know…” From the corner of his eye, Aiba could see Sho gesturing toward them. “Do that.”
“Oh.” Aiba paused. “No,” he said, and he briefly tore his gaze away from the cream-laden fork that was now hovering tantalisingly close to his lips. “Why? Are you feeling left out?”
“No—”
“Maybe when Sho-kun’s a proper member,” suggested Ohno.
“I don’t want to!”
Aiba shrugged and turned his attention back to Ohno. He was pleased to discover that the coffee cream was as delicious as Ohno said. Sho was missing out.
Aiba almost felt bad for him, but then again, some things were better when not shared.
“Strawberry?” he asked Ohno, fork already raised.
Ohno nodded, leaning closer, and Aiba was all too happy to give him what he wanted.
Kawara Senbei
Aiba liked to think he knew how to be charming. After all, he wasn’t a national idol for nothing! The title came with the ability to smile under any kind of pressure; his reputation rested on being able to use his dimples for maximum effect. That was something in which he had confidence.
Unfortunately, there were always going to be those who were immune to his charm. Nino was proving himself once again to be one of those people as he crossed the waiting room of the dentist’s office, not letting his impassive stare budge even a fraction at the sight of his oldest friend’s most brilliant smile.
Aiba wasn’t going to lose. He rose to his feet and widened his smile even further.
Nino reached him and stopped. “Creepy,” he said.
Aiba frowned. “How is that a proper way to greet someone? After I waited for you and everything?”
“Who asked you to do that? Go home already.”
“But I bought beer!” Aiba said, lifting a plastic bag that had been newly acquired since he first saw Nino half an hour ago. He didn’t bother to elaborate. He’d waited for Nino to finish his appointment, and he had beer. Nino didn’t need more explanation than that.
“Fine,” Nino said, after allowing a few seconds to pass. His hesitation was all for show, Aiba was sure; he’d never had any doubt that Nino would accept his unspoken invitation.
Nino was easy.
Aiba stepped forward, nudging Nino as he headed for the door. “Let’s go!” he said.
Nino didn’t follow. “Aiba-chan.”
Aiba turned.
“I still have to pay.”
“Oh.”
Aiba hung back as Nino went to settle his account, but boredom and impatience took over, and he ended up inching closer and closer to the reception desk until he was almost pressed to Nino’s side.
Nino delivered a well-placed jab of his elbow to Aiba’s stomach.
“Ow.”
“Stop hovering,” Nino muttered.
Before Aiba could offer a retort, the receptionist chimed in with a polite enquiry as to whether she could confirm Nino’s next appointment. “I can move it so it’s at the same time as Aiba-san’s if you like?” she said.
“No thank you.”
“Why not?” Aiba protested. “Isn’t it easier that way?”
Nino glanced at him sidelong. “Aiba-shi… have you been changing your appointments to match mine?”
Aiba was never good at controlling his facial expressions. Nino rolled his eyes and turned back to the receptionist.
“Keep my appointment as it is.”
*
“Aiba-chan, there’s someone on your couch.”
“Huh?” Aiba glanced up, past Nino. “Oh!” he said. “Leader’s here.”
He finished kicking off his shoes and headed straight for the kitchen, leaving Nino standing in the genkan. On his way he spared a quick glance at Ohno sprawled out on his couch, still in the same spot as he was when Aiba left him—only now he was actually asleep instead of just sleepy.
“Has he been here the entire time you were out?” Nino asked from behind him.
“Yeah.”
“You just left him alone while you went to the dentist?”
“Oh-chan didn’t mind! I told him I would bring back beer.” Aiba turned to flash Nino a smile as he added, “And you!”
Nino stared at him.
“Okay,” he said, and he walked away. Aiba continued on his quest to find some snacks.
By the time he made it out of the kitchen, supplies in hand, Nino had joined Ohno on the couch. One of his hands was on Ohno’s hip and the other moved to grab his shoulder, shaking him awake.
“Get up, old man,” Nino said.
Ohno sniffed and opened his eyes a fraction. “Ah,” he said, still bleary with sleep. “It’s Kazu.”
A small smile appeared on his face and disappeared once more as he closed his eyes and rolled onto his side.
Nino smacked him. “Don’t be lazy.”
The soft grunt that Ohno made in response sounded more pleased than pained. “Where’s Aiba-chan?” he mumbled.
“I’m here!”
Aiba stepped closer, pausing to place the bowl of snacks he’d procured on the coffee table before turning to show Ohno the six-pack he held in his other hand. The bait worked; Ohno’s eyes finally found focus, and he looked up at Aiba and smiled. With a grace that seemed unnatural given his tangled state, he stretched one arm out toward Aiba, fingers unfurling with a wordless demand.
Aiba lifted the beers closer to his chest and told him, “Not until you sit up properly. I don’t want you spilling anything.”
Ohno pouted. Nino smacked him again.
“Get up, lazy butt.”
“It’s a nice butt,” Aiba quipped.
Nino nodded his agreement as he slid his hand past the curve of Ohno’s hip. Aiba was pretty sure he used the opportunity to cop a feel, but it wasn’t as though he could tell from Ohno’s lack of reaction. And Nino’s wandering hands didn’t stop Ohno from managing to pull himself up into a sitting position.
Once he was settled, he locked eyes with Aiba and tilted his chin expectantly. Aiba laughed.
“Okay, okay,” he said as he tugged a can free from the cardboard and pressed it into Ohno’s waiting hands. “Sorry for making you wait.”
Ohno smiled brightly, but Nino’s eyes narrowed. “Kirin?” he said darkly. “Really?”
“It’s good!”
“It’s wrong. They’re not paying us anymore.”
“Don’t be bitter,” Aiba scolded. He tugged two more cans free before setting the rest down on his coffee table—a choice that required a bit of a juggling act—and ended up dropping one rather unceremoniously into Nino’s lap.
“Careful!” Nino cried, fumbling to grab hold of the can before it fell onto the floor. “Now it’s going to be all shaken up.”
“Well, that won’t matter if you don’t want to drink it!” Aiba said cheerfully as he flopped onto the couch.
Aiba’s couch was large enough to comfortably seat four people, but that didn’t stop him from settling in close to Nino, thighs pressing together. On Nino’s other side, Ohno had already started drinking; he’d clearly seen no reason to wait. Ohno was smart like that. Aiba decided to follow his lead, letting the hiss of his can opening drown out the last of Nino’s disgruntled muttering. He relaxed back against the couch and closed his eyes as he enjoyed his first sip.
“What’s with the crackers?”
Aiba opened his eyes. Nino had shifted forward on the couch cushions, stretching to reach the coffee table. In his left hand was a can of beer—a fresh one, it seemed. The can Aiba gave him had been discarded and replaced. Nino’s right hand grasped the bowl Aiba had left on the coffee table, tilting it toward him slightly as he scrutinised the contents.
“They’re snacks!” Aiba said. He thought that was pretty obvious. “You know, in case anyone gets hungry.”
“But they’re sweet. You realised that, right?”
“So?”
Nino turned to look at him, nose wrinkling. “So? It’s weird. Who the hell eats sweets with beer?”
“I don’t think it’s weird,” offered Ohno.
Aiba beamed at him. “See, Leader agrees with me! You’ve been overruled.”
“No, it’s still weird. Neither of you are normal people.”
Ohno frowned and said, “Hey!” just as Aiba swatted the side of Nino’s arm. Aiba reached forward and took the bowl of crackers from the table.
“Does that mean you don’t want any?” he said, waving the bowl in front of Nino.
“Definitely not.”
Aiba shrugged and passed the crackers over to Ohno. “Leader?”
Ohno took one with a smile.
Nino sighed and shook his head. “Weird,” he said, but even as he took a sip of his beer, the rim of the can couldn’t hide the hint of a smile playing at the corners of his lips.
Taiyaki
“So, I was thinking…”
On the floor, Ohno grunted. Aiba took that as a sign that he’d been stretched enough, and he slowly moved Ohno’s leg back until it was perpendicular to his body.
“Our unit is also kind of the Sweets Club, right?” he continued as he switched to Ohno’s other leg. “Do you think we should use that somehow? Like… what if we had special dance moves?”
“Dance moves?”
“Yeah! I know we’ve figured out most of the performance already, but it’s not like we can’t change it up a bit, right? Add a bit extra for the fans.”
Ohno craned his neck, eyes meeting Aiba’s. “Hmm… maybe.”
He pushed himself up onto his elbows and Aiba released his leg. Ohno stayed where he was on the floor, eyebrows drawn together in concentration. Aiba crouched down beside him.
“What do you think?”
Ohno said nothing. Slowly, he moved to his feet, and Aiba followed him. He could see that Ohno was lost inside his own thoughts, limbs twitching with subtle movements that gave no real hint as to what kind of moves he was considering, only that he was definitely trying to come up with something. That was enough to send a thrill of excited anticipation up Aiba’s spine. Getting to witness Ohno when he was like this, completely focused on creating choreography, was a rare pleasure Aiba always enjoyed.
Somewhat tentatively, Ohno raised his arms above his head, fingertips coming together to make a point. He looked at Aiba, and Aiba did his best to mirror the action. Whether Ohno was satisfied with his attempt, he couldn’t tell. Ohno’s expression barely changed.
He must have been satisfied because he dropped his arms and moved to stand next to Aiba. Still, he said nothing. He moved one foot forward and then back, adjusting his position until he nodded and stilled.
Aiba held his breath.
In one quick, fluid movement, Ohno pivoted so they stood toe-to-toe, and he snapped his arms up into the same gesture as before.
“Taiyaki,” he said.
It took Aiba a second to work it out.
“Does that mean Sho-chan will be the filling?” he asked, mouth cracking open into a smile.
The serious expression on Ohno’s face disappeared. “Kind of suits him, don’t you think? Red bean…”
Aiba stopped trying to hold back his laughter.
By the time Jun found them, they were near-breathless on the floor after their fourth attempt at perfecting the taiyaki move, both gasping through their struggles to find composure. The fourth variation had been the most inspired yet: Aiba decided that Sho-as-the-filling needed to do more than just stand still while they did all the hard work around him, and Ohno was quick to come up with an idea. He dropped to the floor and pushed his way through Aiba’s legs, trying to rise upward as he emerged while keeping his movements smooth and their bodies close.
Aiba could kind of understand what Ohno was attempting to do. He assumed Ohno wanted to create an image of filling being squeezed onto the centre of the batter from top to bottom—or tail to head, as it were—but having Ohno slide out from under his crotch caused his thoughts to travel in an entirely different direction.
Unfortunately, and perhaps inevitably, Ohno got stuck, and Aiba lost his balance. That was when they collapsed onto the floor. And that was when Jun arrived, looking as though he was still two hours and a shot of espresso away from being at his best.
“Do I even want to ask?” he said.
Aiba turned toward him first. “Matsujun! Great, now you can be Sho-chan for us!”
“I can be what?”
Jun was always a little slow in the mornings. Uncooperative, too, if one allowed him to be—which Aiba didn’t. He sprung to his feet and bounded across the studio, hands wrapping around Jun’s elbows as he dragged him into position.
“Just stand still,” he told Jun, slotting behind him.
Jun didn’t stand still. He twisted in Aiba’s grasp, trying to turn back around. “What are you—”
“Shh.” Aiba moved his hands up to Jun’s shoulders, righting him. Beside them, Ohno assumed his stance. “No talking. We’re going to show you something.”
Aiba was an unstoppable force and Jun wasn’t quite an immovable object. Aiba’s victory was assured before the battle even begun; he felt Jun soften under his fingertips and he smiled.
“And… go!” he said, and Ohno moved, swinging around to trap Jun between them. With perfect synchronicity, Aiba and Ohno snapped their hands above their heads.
Aiba met Ohno’s eyes from over Jun’s shoulder. “Number two?” he mouthed.
Ohno nodded and started swaying.
Variation number two involved stepping up their game by moving like fish, instead of just forming the fish-shape. Or something to that effect—they hadn’t quite perfected the concept yet, and Aiba wasn’t really sure how to look like a fish, but he waved his arms around and swivelled his hips, and he thought he was doing a pretty good job.
Jun didn’t seem to agree. “What exactly are you supposed to be showing me?” he said after a few seconds spent pressed between Aiba and Ohno’s writhing bodies.
“We’re taiyaki!” Aiba said, dropping his hands to Jun’s hips. He was basically just grinding on Jun now, but was pretty sure Jun was enjoying himself. “What do you think? Will the fans get it?”
“I think they’ll get that you’re a couple of idiots.”
Aiba laughed and stepped aside, releasing Jun. Ohno was a little slower to do the same.
“So is this why you guys said you needed to come early today? I thought you wanted to work on your unit performance.”
“We did! We were just, you know… exploring some other ideas. Right, Leader?”
Ohno shrugged.
“... Right.” Jun glanced between them, eyebrows creasing into a frown. “I don’t want to interfere,” he said in a voice that meant he definitely did want to interfere, and he was about to, “but maybe you should save those ideas for another time. There’s still a lot of choreo to learn.”
“Don’t worry!” Aiba squeezed Jun’s shoulder and shot him a bright smile. “We’ll get through it all, I promise. We won’t disappoint you!”
Jun gave him a small smile in return. “I know you won’t. But no more messing around, okay? Group rehearsal starts in twenty. I gotta go sort a few things out—stay warm and drink some water. I’ll be back soon”
He started to leave, but just as he was about to hit the door, he stopped and turned back. “Was Sho-kun involved in coming up with that whole new move idea?” he asked.
Aiba shook his head.
“So you haven’t shown him it?”
Aiba shook his head again.
Jun pursed his lips, considering the new information. “Maybe there’s enough time for you to give him a demonstration,” he said, eyes twinkling with amusement. “It’s not really fair for him to be left out.”
Aiba grinned. “Do you want to be there when we show him?”
Jun left without giving a response. Aiba took that to mean he did.
Black Forest Gateau
The post-concert high always left Aiba a bit dazed and scattered. He was used to being one of the last to finish showering. Sometimes he managed to get someone to join him, and sometimes Jun was even slower than he was, but that night everyone had seemed to disappear too fast. Aiba was left alone with his thoughts, vivid scenes from the past few hours playing over in a loop, chanting and screaming still ringing in his eardrums.
He finished towelling off his hair and gathered his belongings, still moving slowly. Distracted as he was, he didn’t notice someone enter behind him.
“What are you doing? Stop spacing out.”
Startled, Aiba turned around. “Nino? You’re still here?”
Nino stepped forward and grabbed hold of Aiba’s arm. “Come on,” he said. “There’s somewhere you need to be.”
“But my stuff!”
“You can get it later.”
Nino dragged him away from the showers and through the hallway without slowing or giving Aiba an explanation. Only when they reached their dressing room did he stop.
He knocked on the closed door, and a second later, Jun’s face appeared from the other side.
“Where have you been?” he said, and he reached around the partially open door to tug Aiba inside. “Come on.”
Inside the dressing were the other members of Arashi and several of their closest staff. That wasn’t unusual. What was unusual was they were all standing and facing the door, as if waiting for Aiba’s arrival. Even more unusual was the fact that Sho, in the centre of the room, was holding a cake.
Sho grinned at the sight of Aiba and took a step forward.
Then he started to sing.
Sho made it through the first two lines of “Happy Birthday” reasonably well, but with the jump in pitch on the third “birth”, his voice cracked, and the rest of the song disappeared into abrupt, awkward silence.
He frowned and touched his hand to his throat, embarrassment plain across his features. “Ah,” he croaked. “Sorry.”
Jun sighed. “Sho-kun…”
“Hey, don’t get mad at me! It’s not fair you left me to sing by myself.”
Aiba was still a bit dazed by the entire surprise, but he knew he didn’t want the moment to be ruined. “Don’t worry about it!” he said. “You don’t need to sing.”
“Yeah, haven’t we done that enough tonight?” said Nino. “Time for the birthday boy to blow out his candles so we can wrap this up and go home.”
A gentle shove to his back had Aiba stumbling a step closer to Sho and the birthday cake he was still holding in his hands. Aiba looked down at the glossy, red cherries and shavings of dark chocolate scattered prettily over thick swirls of cream. In the centre was a solid piece of chocolate decorated with a scrawl of white letters in English that he couldn’t quite read.
He had half a second to wonder whether the second word was “Birthday” or “Bisday” before another touch from Nino reminded him of what he was supposed to do.
There weren’t too many candles to blow out. Aiba only needed a single, exhaled breath for the orange flames to flicker and disappear, leaving skinny wisps of smoke curling from the blackened wicks.
“We thought it might be nice to give you a cake you can take home with you,” Sho told him. “I hope you like Black Forest? It came highly recommended.”
Aiba nodded. “It’s perfect. Thank you, you guys, really…”
“You’re not going to cry again are you?” asked Nino.
“No.” Aiba sniffed. “The smoke is just stinging my eyes a bit, that’s all.”
“Well, can you save it until after we give you your presents? This is heavy.”
Sure enough, when Aiba turned to Nino he was holding a large plastic bag in one hand that he thrust toward Aiba. “You already got me a present?” Aiba asked, curling his fingers around the handles to lighten Nino’s burden.
“I got you two presents. I’m amazing, I know.”
“Can you really brag when one of those presents is beer?” asked Sho. “I don’t think that counts…”
Nino ignored him. “I figured that you needed to be introduced to a superior brand,” he said as he let go of the bag. “Next time I come over, I don’t want to see you still drinking Kirin.”
Before Aiba could decide which part of that to respond to first, Jun was there on his other side with a bag of his own to present to Aiba. His was made of a sleeker, white material that bore a label Aiba recognised from the last time they went shopping together. He didn’t need to look inside to guess what was there. And then Sho, still holding the cake, pointed out his present on the table behind him. “Don’t forget it!” he said. “The cake, too. I’ll fix the box up for you.”
Aiba was overwhelmed, but they weren’t finished yet. Everyone turned to Ohno and waited.
He’d been standing quietly throughout the entire proceedings, and it soon became clear as to why. “Ah,” he said sheepishly, scratching the back of his neck. “Sorry… I forgot.”
“Leader.”
“How could you forget? We agreed we were going to all bring presents today.”
Aiba only smiled as the others scolded Ohno. “It’s fine, you guys, really. I’m sure Leader will make it up to me later.”
He meant what he said. He was too happy to care about a single, delayed present, not when he’d been given so much already. And, as he locked eyes with Ohno, he knew he had no reason to worry.
Leader wouldn’t disappoint him.
*
Later, when just about everyone had left and all seemed eerily quiet, Aiba finished handing over the last of his bags to his manager and stepped out into the hallway, only to find they weren’t quite as alone as he thought.
Ohno was there.
Ohno shouldn’t have been there, he never stuck around longer than he needed to, but there he was. Aiba wanted to ask him what he was doing, why he hadn’t gone home, but he didn’t say anything.
He waved his manager ahead and waited.
“I didn’t forget,” Ohno said once they were alone.
After a second of confusion, Aiba figured what Ohno meant. And then, as he read Ohno’s expression, he took the next step and figured out what Ohno really meant.
Or at least, what he hoped Ohno meant.
Aiba cocked his head slightly, questioning Ohno just enough to be sure. He didn’t need more than that. The look in Ohno’s eyes made him certain.
Aiba trusted his manager with his belongings. And his apartment keys. And not to ask too many questions.
He didn’t need long to think before deciding his next move.
“Just give me a minute to sort things out,” he said, starting to smile, “and then we can go.”
Ohno nodded. “Don’t take too long.”
“I won’t.”
Chocolate Truffles
“We have a big day tomorrow,” Aiba said as he ran his fingers over the top of Ohno’s sweatpants, lifting his shirt just high enough to reveal a sliver of tanned skin. He hooked his thumb under the waistband, into the gap created by the sharp jut of a hipbone, but he didn’t push down. “It’ll be bad if we turn up and we aren’t at our best. Matsujun will get mad at us.”
“Matsujun doesn’t scare me.”
Aiba smiled. “Really? Can you say that to his face?”
Ohno nodded, chin raised high, and a breathy giggle pushed past Aiba’s lips.
It was probably too late to be considering the potential repercussions of a late night when he was in Ohno’s bedroom, moments away from stripping the rest of Ohno’s clothes and then his own, but Aiba wasn’t really worried. He was still too high on the post-concert adrenaline rush to sleep yet anyway.
He just liked to tease Ohno a bit.
“Maybe we should sleep,” he suggested, and he smiled at the way Ohno immediately shook his head. “Are you sure?” he asked. “You look pretty tired, Leader. I don’t want you to fall asleep on me.”
“I won’t.”
“Good,” Aiba said, and he leaned in to kiss Ohno the way he’d been wanting to all night.
Aiba always liked kissing Ohno. Kissing Ohno didn’t make him feel butterflies in his stomach or jolts of electricity sparking at his fingertips or anything like that. It was more like… a gentle warmth that spread across his skin the moment their lips touched, seeping into every pore until he felt happy and relaxed and invincible. And he was greedy about it, never really wanting to pause once they’d started. The soft promise of Ohno’s lips pulled him back again and again, until Aiba was left wondering why they didn’t spend more time kissing each other. Surely no one would complain if they knew just how good Ohno was at it, right?
In fact, Ohno was so good that it was distracting. Unfairly so, when Aiba wasn’t always the best multitasker. Ohno tried to tug him back onto the bed, and Aiba didn’t so much follow him as he stumbled and collapsed in an awkward tangle of limbs.
“Oops,” Aiba said with a giggle as he righted himself. “Sorry.”
Beneath him, Ohno grunted. Aiba shifted onto his forearms so he could look down at Ohno, flat on his back, one arm flung out to the side and the other bent as he rubbed a spot on his neck.
“Did I hurt you?” Aiba asked.
Ohno met Aiba’s eyes and nodded.
“Where?”
For a second, Aiba was worried, but then Ohno tapped a single finger against his lips.
Aiba grinned. “Let me kiss it better.”
He kissed away the imaginary pain on Ohno’s lips, then his face and his neck, the stubble on his chin and the sharp ridges of his collarbones poking out from under his tank top. The top was in Aiba’s way, so he pulled it off, annoyed that he hadn’t done a better job of undressing Ohno earlier. Now he had clothes in his way when he could have just had naked Ohno, and naked Ohno was always the best type of Ohno.
Ohno seemed to agree, helpfully lifting his hips when Aiba slipped his fingers under the top of his sweatpants. Removing the rest of Ohno’s clothes proved a little challenging in their position, even with assistance. Aiba ended up stepping back off the bed, more careful this time so not to trip.
Stripping his own clothes was an easier task. He was down to his briefs in ten seconds flat, and back on the bed two seconds after that. Ohno had already shifted to accommodate him, propped up on his elbows with his feet flat on the mattress, knees bent.
As he settled in between Ohno’s legs, Aiba eyed Ohno’s cock, flushed and hard against his stomach. He slid his fingers around the base, curling them into a steady grip, and he bent down to take Ohno into his mouth.
Teasing wasn’t really an option when it came to having Ohno’s cock in his mouth. Its heavy weight pushed past his lips and slid across his tongue, flooding his senses with heat and faint musk and overwhelming fullness. Aiba sucked down as far as he could manage, and then again, gagging slightly when the tip bumped his soft palate but not caring too much. He liked it messy. He liked getting everything really wet, the slick of spit and precome pooling in his mouth until it had nowhere to go but past his lips and onto his hand fisting over the base of Ohno’s shaft. He liked feeling the growing ache in his jaw and the garbled noises that hummed from the back of his throat.
He liked when he could tell that Ohno was starting to lose control, hips jerking and cock pulsing, impossibly hard. Aiba was all enthusiasm and little technique, but his enthusiasm was enough.
When he knew Ohno was close, he drew back to focus his attention on the head of Ohno’s cock, letting his hand take care of the length. Aiba tightened his lips as he tongued the slit, working Ohno over harder and faster until Ohno came with a shaky cry.
Salty, bitter warmth flooded Aiba’s mouth, and it wasn’t his favourite taste in the world, but he swallowed it down. He cut the bitterness of Ohno’s come with the subtler flavour of his cock, lapping at the softening length until Ohno was forced to tug him away.
“Too much?” Aiba asked as he crawled up the length of Ohno’s body, taking care not to accidentally brush Ohno’s oversensitive cock as he did.
Ohno tightened his fingers still buried in Aiba’s hair and let go. Speech was apparently beyond him.
Aiba really wanted to kiss him then, but his skin was starting to feel uncomfortably sticky. “Wipes?” he asked Ohno.
Ohno rolled his head lazily in the direction of his bedside table.
Aiba found the wipes inside the top drawer. He also found something else.
“What’s this?” he asked as he removed a large, rectangular box from the drawer.
“Hmm? Oh. That’s your present. I told you I didn’t forget.”
He obviously did forget, or he would have given it to Aiba instead of leaving it to be found by chance, but Aiba wasn’t concerned about that now. “You got me chocolates?” he said, glancing back at Ohno.
Aiba liked chocolate. He couldn’t be upset at receiving it as a present, and the box looked pretty fancy, all wrapped up in shiny, white ribbon. But a box of chocolates wasn’t a gag or handcuffs or special underwear; it didn’t need to hidden away and saved for a private moment.
Ohno just said, “I thought the ribbon looked nice,” as though that explained everything.
Maybe it did.
Aiba looked back down at the box in his hands. The box was large, so the ribbon was long. In fact, it was just long enough, Aiba thought as he ran his fingers over the smooth fabric. He tugged at one end of the ribbon, releasing the knot.
“It is a nice ribbon,” he said as he lifted it free. “It would be a waste to just throw it away, don’t you think?”
Ohno said nothing.
“No?” Aiba said with a questioning glance at Ohno. He placed the box down on the surface of the table and raised his hand grasping the ribbon higher in the air, considering the fabric dangling from his fingertips. He shrugged and said, “I guess I’ll just leave it here—”
A sudden tug at one end of the ribbon made him stop. He looked down at Ohno’s fingers wrapped around the strip of fabric, curing tighter into a fist.
Ohno tugged again and Aiba followed. He followed until he was almost on top of Ohno, weight braced on one arm and the ribbon still connecting them, a line between their closed hands.
Ohno let go. Aiba didn’t.
“What is it, Oh-chan?” Aiba said, voice dropping into a tease as he leaned closer to Ohno. “Is there something you want? You can tell me if there is. I want you to tell me.”
Ohno’s eyes flicked up from the ribbon dangling between them, and he didn’t tell Aiba his answer.
He showed him.
“You sure?” Aiba asked, eyes never leaving Ohno’s face. He didn’t need to break eye contact to know that Ohno had raised both arms above his head and crossed them at the wrists, fingers curled underneath the headboard. Aiba probably could have closed his eyes before Ohno even moved and still have been certain of what he would do.
Aiba understood Ohno. Ohno understood him. They shared a common interest.
Ohno nodded at Aiba, and Aiba didn’t waste any more time before giving them both what they wanted. He shifted across to straddle Ohno and got to work.
The ribbon had looked pretty wrapped around the box of chocolates, but wrapped around Ohno’s wrists, white satin against tanned skin, made for something more than just pretty. It was art. Aiba secured the last knot and ran his fingers around the loops of fabric, feeling pretty satisfied with his efforts.
“Does that feel okay?”
He wasn’t expecting Ohno’s answer to come in the form of sudden warmth pressing into the front of Aiba’s briefs.
Aiba had been trying his best to ignore his erection while he focused on other things, but that was impossible to do now. He shuddered and canted forward on instinct, feeling the bump of Ohno’s nose and soft warmth of his lips. He looked down and saw the way Ohno was craning his neck, straining against his bindings, so that he could mouth Aiba through the thin layer of cotton that separated them.
It was too much.
Aiba cursed and shoved his hand into his briefs, fumbling for his dick. All thoughts of what he’d wanted to do with Ohno when he was tied up were flung aside. Aiba couldn’t be patient anymore. He needed this.
He slid the head of his cock over Ohno’s lips, already so pink and shiny and swollen. Ohno held still at first, letting Aiba do what he wanted, but then he dropped his mouth open and Aiba felt the drag of Ohno’s tongue against the underside of his cock. It was just a kitten lick, but it was followed by another, and then more until Ohno somehow worked Aiba’s cock into his mouth.
The angle was awkward and Ohno was flagging, Aiba could tell. It didn’t matter. Aiba was close. He thrust into his fist and past Ohno’s lips, rough friction and slick heat enough to push him over the edge. He came.
His release spilled into Ohno’s mouth and around it too, dirtying his lips. Aiba watched, transfixed, as the last tiny spurt of his come dribbled from the tip of his cock. It left a trail down Ohno’s chin when he slumped back, bone-weary, and he reached down to touch the shiny mark, feeling the sticky wetness slide under his fingertips.
“Sorry,” Aiba said, moving his fingers up to the corner of Ohno’s mouth and the thick, white glob resting there. “I made you a mess.”
Ohno blinked heavily, sleepy and sated. “S’okay,” Ohno mumbled, eyes falling shut. “Felt nice.”
Aiba tapped his cheek with two fingers. “Don’t fall asleep on me. You’re all sticky.”
He felt the heavy rise and fall of Ohno’s chest underneath him. Slowly, Ohno opened his eyes.
“Help me?” he asked.
Aiba smiled. “Of course.”
As he untied the knots in the ribbon around Ohno’s wrists, Aiba couldn’t help but feel a slight twinge of regret that they hadn’t had more time to play. “Next time, we’ll start like this,” he said, pulling the ribbon free.
Ohno hummed. “That would be nice.”
Aiba paused and looked at Ohno. “This was nice,” he said. He shuffled back a little further so he could lean down to press a short peck to Ohno’s lips. “Thank you for the present.”
“Happy Birthday,” said Ohno, a soft smile spreading across his lips.
Aiba returned the smile. It had been a happy birthday. And Christmas had only just begun.
He hoped to make it just as memorable.
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I really enjoyed this story, thanks for sharing Anon-san. :)
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The characters were great and the pacing was spot on and consistent. And Tennen is so perfect here. I loved every moment, but I truly enjoyed how you wrote Aiba's 'voice' here. The way he thinks is marked so effortlessly on the page, that I found myself completely sold on the concept of this fic. I can't wait for the reveals, so I can explore what other stories you might have written. (And if there are none, encourage you to write more) ;-D
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I enjoyed it a lot, thaks for sharing!
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I loved this, thanks for sharing, Anon!!
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Really enjoyed the story, author!! :D
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This started out so sweet and innocent, but it ended HOT.
I've read this several times already, but after the first time I read it, it inspired my subconscious to dream about Arashi. And though I don't remember exactly what the dream was, I remember waking up and thinking THAT WAS FANTASTIC.
A+, anon. I really loved this. Thank you for writing it for me.
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Honestly, I'm not that much interested in the Aiba/Ohno pairing as I am in others but this sounded quite interesting so I checked it out and I didn't regret it. ^^
I really love how you portrayed all the characters and I really enjoyed the slice-of-lifey fragmency of your story, and how still everything connects with the titles including sweets throughout the story. Aiba and Ohno's chemistry was amazing and I loved their "sweets club" so much xD That was really fun, especially how they wanted Sho to join but not make it too easy for him or how they came up with those adorkable ideas for their unit performance! LMAO
Also I love how you (they) included the other members here and how each of them got their own little segment so to say until it built up to... well... the big finale, you know what I mean XD I bet, Aiba appreciated his present from Ohno very much ahaha
Thanks for sharing this! <3