Archive of Our Own

The airport was busy that afternoon.

Amid the throngs of people clustering in groups in the arrivals hall, a young man in his early twenties, his lean and sinewy frame suggesting his athetic calling, paced impatiently up and down, occasionally glaring up at the screen with a scowl. It was still early March, and the weather was notoriously unstable, causing delays and cancellations across a wide range of flights. Although a couple of people paused to glance at the youth, whose glower suggested that the screen itself had personally offended him, most just passed by, intent on their own errands. If they had stopped to look closer, they might have recognised him as Sawamura Eijun, the young pitcher who had taken the autumn baseball draft by storm. Seven clubs had fought over his signature, with the victor being the team in Chiba, and, with graduation mere days earlier, Eijun was now ready and raring to go, gearing up to prove that he had the mettle to make the starting roster in his very first season as a pro.

The sports media had reported on him extensively. Large glossy images of him in action on the mound had been sent with pride - and a little bit of self-importance! - back to his family's home in Nagano, but today, dressed in casuals and with a pair of thick rimmed costume spectacles perched on his nose, he was incognito. And, so far, nobody had made the correlation.

He had originally intended to go out with a fake moustache and beard as well, but had been stopped in his tracks by his more pragmatic other half. His partner of a year now, Tokyo catcher Miyuki Kazuya had pointed out - not without reason - that he'd make himself more conspicuous if he showed up looking like a bank robber or drug smuggler in the airport arrivals. He had argued the case, saying that the more he covered up his face, the less anyone would recognise him, but in the end the other's opinion had carried more weight, and so, reluctantly, he had gone with the low-key level disguise.

He had wanted to borrow a pair of Miyuki's glasses, but, and with equally annoying pragmatism, the catcher had reminded him that his spectacles came with a prescription, and that they might easily damage Eijun's eyes. In the end he had settled for a joke pair that he had got at the graduation gathering he and the rest of his college teammates had had a couple of weeks before, and, with a scarf also pulled up to his chin, he had hoped it would somehow do.

He had not intended to be at the airport for as long as this. He had arrived three hours ago to find the place in chaos, and had noted with some dismay that the flight he was waiting for - a direct long distance plane from Los Angeles - was likely to be at least two hours late. Now, at long last, it had landed, but patience had never been one of Eijun's virtues, and he felt sure that they were taking far too long to disembark. His imagination had begun to wander, conjuring up all kinds of reasons why the American flight's passengers might have been prevented from entering the arrival hall. Maybe there had been criminals on board, or perhaps there had been a hijacking. He had just begun to wonder whether the plane doors had got stuck and they were having to be cut open with a blow torch when he heard someone yell his name.

"Eijun!"

He swung around, recognising immediately the distinctively American way in which his friend pronounced his given name, and the impatient glower was replaced by a wide grin. He waved enthusiastically as the weary looking tall and rangy redhead wove his way through the crowds of other passengers, large holdall on his back. As he reached Eijun's position, he dumped the bag down on the ground, letting out a heavy sigh.

"Shit, that was a horrible flight. Sorry to keep you waiting. You must've been here a while."

"Exactly..." Eijun glanced at his phone dial, then, "three hours, twenty two minutes and...about nineteen seconds. No, twenty. Twenty one. Twenty two..."

"Okay, I get the picture," the other man looked rueful, reaching across to push Eijun's hand down. "I'm just glad I recognised you. You look ridiculous in those glasses, you know."

"Yeah, well, the media have been really interested in me since the draft," Eijun tried to make it sound like a burden, but he couldn't help basking a little in the admission. He slid his phone into his pocket, giving a casual shrug. "It means that sometimes I have to be careful when I go out. Especially with pre-season coming. You know, the press even came to my graduation!"

He tsked softly under his breath.

"Talk about an invasion of privacy."

"Which I bet you lapped up," Ryan said wryly. "While Miyuki-san hid somewhere shady and covert, no doubt."

"Mm...he didn't come to my graduation," Eijun looked slightly wistful, then he shrugged. "It was too big a risk, and he had a practice game that overlapped with some of it, and...it's fine, I didn't really expect him to be there, because...it would make people ask questions, and he wants everyone to recognise me for what I can do, not who I know."

He sighed gustily.

"But that's a whole other subject," he reflected. "Your flight was really late. I was beginning to wonder if it was hijacked."

"No, thankfully," Ryan offered a wry smile at his friend's imagination. "A storm over the sea and then we lost our landing slot because we had to avoid the worst of it and change our flight path a little. I swear we spent about an hour just circling here waiting for a gate. Just what you need after twelve hours on a plane, squashed in next to someone's three year old who ran out of colouring paper and decided you were a great potential canvas."

He held up his left arm to indicate the ink scribbles against his skin, and Eijun laughed.

"But you survived. So, welcome to Japan, Ryan," he said warmly, clapping his friend on the back. "And I don't mind waiting. You don't know Tokyo, not really, and if you're jet lagged, you might end up anywhere."

"Possible, on all counts. You should'a seen me at immigration, trying to remember my words in the right order for the customs people," Ryan Hennessey let out a groan. "I swear, my Japanese completely abandoned me. The guy let me through, but I did get an odd look. Later on I'll probably figure out what mistake I made and I'll die of embarrassment, but I'm just happy to finally have my feet on the ground. And that you haven't forgotten your English, because right now putting verbs together in sentences is hard enough even in my own language. I'll probably need to sleep before I can manage it in yours."

"It's a useful skill, Kazu-san said, so I try and keep it going," Eijun nodded importantly. "I have a Japanese friend who plays in the States, too, remember? He's more fluent than I am, so when I Skype him, we sometimes talk in English and he corrects me. But you always want to talk Japanese," he said reproachfully. "So I don't get much practice from you."

"Yeah, well, you're my practice guinea pig," Ryan looked sheepish. "In any case, here I am. What happens now? I guess we get a train? I've got all my stuff, and I dug out my ICOCA card from when I was in Kobe. Does that work here or do I need PASMO or SUICA to get around?"

"ICOCA should work fine, I think," Eijun frowned. "There's one way to find out, though. Come on. We have to get the train into the city and then change lines."

He looked guilty.

"I know it's only for a short spell, while they get everything organised, but I'd like you to be able to come stop at my place," he admitted. "Right now 'my place' is kind of...well, let's just say the furniture is more of the imaginary variety. My folks helped me with the downpayment on it, and I'm going to repay them once I can. But it's not really that habitable at the moment. I'm working on it. I want it to be ready by the time the season proper begins, but I've been spending a lot of the off-season in Tokyo at Kazu-san's place, while I can, and so..."

He shrugged, and Ryan nodded.

"It's cool. In any case, Chiba's a bit of a detour for me at the moment," he said ruefully, as the two men made their way along the corridor, past the transport advice desks and down towards the travel hub. "I still can't believe I'm actually here doing this. Fortunately the jet lag is stopping me from freaking out."

"I don't see why?" Eijun scolded. "This is what you wanted, isn't it? You have to take chances, sometimes."

"Yeah...but everyone back in the States thinks I'm crazy," Ryan said ruefully. "Not to want to play in Japan - I'm not the only one who's considered it. But this is pretty much unstable and unsettled. No guarantees. Three week trial in pre-season, with a view to a year if I'm lucky and they like me. If they don't, it's back to the drawing board...and even if they do, a year isn't a long time. But...the college coach back in the States knows Tanizaki-san, and when he asked me about it, I jumped at it. Sometimes you have to just follow your gut, right? And I wanted to be here...even like this. Fortunately I have an understanding girlfriend willing to tolerate long-distance for a while if it works out like that...so here I am."

He cast Eijun a smile.

"I know Miyuki-san put in a good word for me as well," he added. "And he's letting me stop at his place for the next few days, while the club sort out my accommodation. It's pretty awesome of him - though are you sure I'm not going to get in the way of you guys?"

"Chance would be a fine thing," Eijun groaned, grabbing his friend by the arm and pulling him off down a side corridor. "This one! We need this line. Better have your card ready, as it's a bit of a stampede and people don't like it when you hold them up."

"Sure," Ryan nodded, putting his hand in his pocket and pulling out a slightly scuffed but functional ICOCA card. "It still has some juice, so it should be fine."

"Great," Eijun produced his own travel card. "As for Kazu-san and I..." he shrugged. "It's pre-season. I'm in Chiba a lot more now I've graduated. He goes into a mad intense kind of trance when this time of the year comes up, but especially this year. Masuda-san had his knee op last November, and he's up and about and stuff, but not allowed to play at all this season. Tanizaki-san already spoke to Kazu-san about taking the main catcher jersey this year...but you know that," he grinned, clapping his hand down on Ryan's shoulder. "That's sort of where you come in, isn't it?"

"Mm. If I work out, yes," Ryan watched Eijun sweep his card over the ticket barrier then followed suit. It worked fine, and soon they were heading down onto the busy station to wait for the next train. "If they like me, I'm a relief catcher candidate, at least for this year. Apparently the guy who was earmarked to take that on this year went and ripped his cruciate ligament in a skiing accident over the winter. The draft's already done and nobody's looking to transfer a key catcher at this point. So...take a chance on an American rookie? At least, it's something like that."

"You're not a rookie. You're one of the priveleged few who can catch my pitches," Eijun said companionably. "That's probably a part of the appeal. I'm a great pitching talent, apparently," he added proudly, and Ryan grinned. He nodded.

"You are that, but it's probably more attractive if you don't tell people yourself," he warned. "I think your team have got a good addition, but how they're gonna handle your crazier moments, only time will tell."

"Well, I want a roster shirt, first," Eijun admitted. "Kazu-san didn't get into the main team to begin with, and this is the pro league. It's not like there aren't already experienced pitchers and stuff in these teams. But I'm gunning to be part of the pool at least this year. Then build on that next year. Kazu-san said not to have too many expectations right at the beginning. You have to work hard, because not everyone gets their first start in their first season. Signing a contract is the start line. Not the end goal."

"Good advice," Ryan reflected. "Well, whatever comes of this three week trial, at the very least, it'll be good experience."

He grinned sheepishly.

"Everyone thought I was nuts, taking extra credits and shit to try and make sure I had enough to graduate in time for the autumn," he added. "But now, it's paying dividends. I wasn't eligible for the US Draft this time around, because I wasn't done with my degree in time. And I missed the Japanese autumn deadlines as well because of being a couple of credits light. I was thinking I'd have to wait for the US draft in the summer anyway, because keeping my fitness till the next Japanese sweep would've been hard."

He shrugged.

"Hanging with you and talking to Miyuki-san, I really wanted to try and see if I could make it in Japan," he added. "There's a lot of competition in the US, it's true, but I don't expect it to be less here. It's just that I really loved the semester I spent here. And when the coach called and said that Tanizaki-san was looking for a catcher to trial at short notice, I jumped at it. I mean, I'd rushed my credits through, so I'm done with senior year, even if I don't get to go to all the dumb summer parties or whatever. April's a bit pissed about that," he admitted, "but she knows this means a lot to me, so she's said she'll handle it and try to come over here in the summer if I'm still here instead. If it works out, then it'll have all been worth the effort. And if not? I'll go back to the US with a much better idea of what I need to improve on. My folks told me to go for it and take the opportunity, so here I am."

He sighed.

"I didn't expect Miyuki-san to give me a reference, mind you," he admitted. "He does sometimes give me advice on things, if I ask him, but...I feel like there's a whole big elephant still in the room where he's concerned. About what happened when he was in America. He never mentions it, and so I don't really want to. He acts like it didn't happen, and I go along with it. But...if I'm going to stay with him...tell me for sure, huh? Is it going to be awkward? He might be letting me stay as a favour to his club, but..."

"Kazu-san? Let someone into his house on a stranger's say so? Psh," Eijun snorted. "Don't be dumb. If he hated you, he wouldn't let you even near his door. Hell, he has friends who have never visited his apartment. Trust me, he's cool with you."

He smiled.

"Kazu-san is a difficult person to crack, and sometimes, it puts people on edge," he added thoughtfully. "Not me, of course - I'm a Kazu-san expert - but other people. The thing is, though, as twisty as he can be with his attitude to things, there's one thing about him I really admire. He doesn't hold onto grievances. He just doesn't. People can say all kinds of bad shit, or beat him in a game, or whatever. But he doesn't hold onto it. And what happened in LA was as much my fault as anything else. Plus, both Kazu-san and I gained a lot from that trip and the things we talked about, there. So there aren't any awkward bad vibes. Kazu-san thinks in baseball, anyway, most of the time. He recognises you as a player, which means he wants to help you out. I'd take that and run with it. But I wouldn't bring up Los Angeles, or try to apologise for it, or any of that. Chances are he doesn't care, and there's just no point in digging up irrelevant old stuff."

"Well, if you say so," as the train rattled into the station, Ryan shifted the weight of his bag with a frown. "You know him best. I won't pretend it's not a bit nerve-wracking, sharing space with a guy who's dating one of my good friends and who's a pretty celebrated player now in these parts...but I'll deal. I'm hoping to meet Masuda-san as well, while I'm here, but I'm definitely going to listen to the things Miyuki-san says. The advice he gave in America helped a lot with catching your pitches that year. And the Tokyo team has some decent throwing power. I don't want to be spilling balls like an amateur when I've only got this pre-season to really impress the coach."

"High stakes, but we're all in the same boat, really," as they squeezed into the nearest carriage, Eijun sighed contemplatively. "Although we'll be rivals, if you do end up staying there."

"Different leagues, though, right?"

"Yeah," Eijun screwed up his features. "I'm not sure about that. Kazu-san thinks it means that when we play each other, it'll be more exciting, but I'd like to have more games. Especially since there's no guarantee I'd be on the mound in my first season if we did play them. They were a heartbeat away from the Japan Series final last year - oh, yeah," he looked sheepish. "Maybe don't mention that to him too much, either. He has a lo-o-o-ng and very boring tactical rant about why the umpire's call in the eighth was unfair and how it cost them the fixture. And I hoped he'd have got over it by now, but he hasn't. I said he doesn't hold grudges on people - and he doesn't. But sometimes he gets fixated on tiny baseball details, and that game decision really irritated him. All the cameras and stuff afterwards back up his impression that it was in and not out. It shifted the entire momentum of that game right at the end, and that irked him pretty bad. He doesn't hold grudges, but he does hate things that aren't right. And he will go on about the most pedantic thing...if you're not careful."

"Got it," Ryan chuckled. "I got that impression from him, anyway - that he was a stickler for detail and a tough task master. I'm gonna be good, don't worry. And if you need me to make a tactical retreat for a few hours, I can do that, too. I'm not going to get in your way...and the club will help me with finding accommodation and stuff. It's literally just until that gets sorted out, so it shouldn't be more'n a handful of nights. He did say if I need accommodation for the three weeks of the trial, then he could do that, but it sounded like the club would get something else worked out with me sooner than that...three weeks is a worst case scenario. But even if it ended up being that, I don't want to be in your way. This is your patch and he's your guy, so, let me know if I'm killing the mood."

"I will, but right now, Kazu-san's baseball obsessiveness is more of a mood-killer," Eijun said wryly. "This is the guy who can pull an all-nighter watching the same game video over and over again."

"You don't do that?" Ryan looked surprised, and Eijun groaned, clapping a hand to his head.

"I knew it. Catchers are aliens. All of you," he proclaimed dramatically, and Ryan laughed.

"It's useful, sometimes. And I know you do go over games played, so don't pretend it's all on us being geeky and weird," he objected.

"Yeah, I do, but I remember to sleep as well, sometimes," Eijun retorted. "In any case, I know my stopping over at Kazu-san's while he's in this "Shit-I'm-The-Main-Catcher" brain whirl is not going to be productive. Not to mention I'm not really welcome to just drop by unnannounced on a romantic whim at the moment, in case he's brainstorming tactics - which is pretty much what he seems to be doing when home."

"You're not welcome?" Ryan looked blank, and Eijun's expression became sheepish.

"Yeah, well, I take it as a compliment, really," he owned. "It's because I might be his partner off the field, but now I'm also a 'rival' on it, and pre-season means friendlies against anyone, regardless of league. If he's doing tactics, then a player from another team isn't welcome. It's not that he doesn't trust me - if he didn't, he wouldn't let me come meet you like this. But he's conscious of public opinion and causing complications for his club or mine by letting his guard down too much. So between that and his obsessiveness, since the start of pre-season I've had to pick my moments carefully and book in advance. You're definitely not the roadblock, let's put it that way."

"I see. That makes sense," Ryan grinned. "If that's the case, then it's fine. But let me know, all right? We're friends and you can trust me to be discreet and to be supportive. I'm good at those things, generally."

Probably, by the time he comes out of his baseball haze, you'll already be settled in the accommodation the club are arranging, so don't worry. You're only gonna be there for short while," Eijun shrugged. "So long as you don't mind sharing space with a fuzzball, of course."

"Ah yeah, the kitten," Ryan smirked. "I don't mind. My uncle has six cats and they run riot all over his farmhouse whether he likes it or not. Whenever I go stop with him, I always wake up with at least two cats on top of me. I think I can handle one little critter."

"We'll see," Eijun warned. "He's not so much a kitten now. He's about a year old, more or less, and a heavy lump if he jumps on your gut unexpectedly. Which, by the way, is a game he saves for me." He grimaced. "In any case, Kai is very smart - well, of course he is, he's our furbaby, and we're raising him properly," he added proudly, "but he's really good at getting into things. He hasn't learned to open doors yet, but one of my senpai sent Kazu-san a video the other day showing cats figuring out how to get into all kinds of human things. I don't know if Kai saw it too, but if he did, he might be getting ideas."

"Eijun, we're talking about a cat, not a baby," Ryan was amused, and Eijun shrugged.

"As far as I'm concerned, right now, same difference," he said, unconcerned. "Between you and me, it's all part of my master-plan to bring Kazu-san around to the idea of having kids some time in the future. Providing the law changes, of course. Probably not till we retire. But still. Kai is the practice model. And I'm not kidding about him being smart. If he can, he'll get into something - or out of something - so be aware, all right? Kazu-san already had to chase him down to the complex lobby and break up a fight between him and a neighbour's dog, so just be on your guard."

"Fine, I'll be kitty-aware," Ryan chuckled. "As for the other stuff - frankly, at twenty-two, I'm miles away from thinking about kids and, thankfully, so is April. We're both worried about jobs, careers, mortgages and whatever. Surely there's time to think about having a family later on down the line? Especially since the law here would have to change or you guys would have to ship stateside. Which would be awesome for the MLB," he added, "but a loss to Japan."

"Well, my aim is for us to retire to the farmhouse in Nagano, so even if we do play in the US at any point, it still needs things to change here," at that point they reached their station, and the two men disembarked, pushing through the crowds of people and safely navigating the exit gate before stepping out onto the pavement outside. Eijun sighed. "But I've learned that with Kazu-san, you really have to start planning early. I mean, look at the evidence." He skirted around a parked bike and a road cone. "I might have realised my feelings when he graduated, but he didn't. And even when he did realise, it took him two more years and appendicitis to even agree to go out with me. Based on that math, I think..." he counted randomly across his fingers, then lowered his hands, shooting Ryan a rueful smile. "Probably about ten years to get him on board for the other stuff. I'm twenty-two now, and he's twenty-three. Ten years will put us in the early thirties. I hope we'll both still be playing, but still, you never know. But if he's cool with the idea by then, then it will be a job well done. And his adopting Kai proves he's subject to persuasion and he has the right protective instincts to be a parent. I just have to make him think so."

"You are really sneaky sometimes," Ryan chuckled. "Poor Miyuki-san. Everyone talks about him as the strategist, but you're just as manipulative when it's something you want, aren't you?"

"If you don't go for it, you don't get it. Persistance is one of my best features," Eijun said proudly. "And he has a weakness, which is me. So I'll play the long game. I intend to get what I want in the end, but it's better if he thinks he's decided it, because he likes to be in control. That's just how it works."

"I feel bad for your new catcher," Ryan snorted. "What's he like, anyway? You did meet him, right? Is he as good as Miyuki-san and I?"

"He's quite experienced," Eijun looked thoughtful. "I've only thrown to him a coupl'a times. He seems pretty laid back, and apparently he doesn't give a lot of signs in games unless he has to. He prefers to work stuff out in advance and then discuss changes in time-out or between innings. I haven't played a game, yet, though. I've seen the ace in action - so I know what my competition is - and that's about all."

"Yeah, your team has that guy from New York as main pitcher, right? Craig DeSantos?" Ryan pursed his lips. "I remember him. Was a big deal when he decided to go to Japan. He's got a lot of plaudits here though."

"Well, it's a good benchmark to start with, as a target," Eijun agreed. "But he and I are already getting on just great. He said my English is awesome, by the way," he added, pronouncing the adjective with a perfect American accent, and Ryan grinned.

"It is, thankfully," he agreed. "I remember an interview with DeSantos, right after he transferred over, and he was having a lot of shit with the language. I guess he speaks Japanese fairly good now, it was five years or so ago now - but it's probably a relief to have people he can talk to in his own tongue as well sometimes. I'm glad that I know Miyuki-san speaks English - I'm not sure about the rest of the team, though, yet. Some of them, maybe? I guess we'll see. It'll be the biggest test of my Japanese to date. I've been really working on it, and I'll feel defeated if they have to use an interpreter."

"Then we should start speaking Japanese, right now," Eijun switched languages, and Ryan looked sheepish.

"All right," he agreed. "But be nice to me if I make mistakes. Remember the jetlag."

"Sure," Eijun grinned. "We're about here, anyway. That," he pointed to a large building ahead of them, "is Kazu-san's apartment building. Today's meant to be his day off," he grimaced, "but currently Main-Catcher-Kazu-san hasn't heard of days off. That means he's at the ground right now blooding new pitchers - probably literally, knowing him. He sent me a message earlier telling me to let myself in and get you settled, though. He has a spare room and we talked about it on the phone last night, so it's all fine. I have my key and the security people know me so there won't be any problems. They're really nice," he added as an afterthought. "Kazu-san said he'd be back around eight or nine, he thought, and it's only six-thirty now, so I vote we dump your stuff and go find food. Kuramochi-senpai keeps talking about a noodle bar in this area, so I thought if you're not too dead tired we could go find it."

"I'm tired, but I'm also hungry. Noodles sound good," Ryan agreed, adjusting his bag on his shoulder. "I'm following you. Let's go."

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