Archive of Our Own

Jiro never had once understood the appeal of aimlessly walking around. It seemed pretty pointless to him, just walking around without much of a purpose or destination to go to.

But when he’s with Jyushi, aimlessly walking around seems to be alright. In fact, it’s more than alright. It’s… exhilarating, in its own way. It’s funny to think about it, but the sights of the place he’s called his home for so long looks a little different when he’s with Jyushi.

It looks a little brighter… more homey, in fact.

For Jyushi, who is content with walking around and taking in the fresh sights to Ikebukuro, it’s perfect. Because he isn’t quite fond of crowds, this act of aimlessly walking around with no destination whatsoever helps him take the sights at his own pace.

Hands held tight, and Amanda by his side, this was perfect for him.

The pair come up to a small corner shop, putting out new bags for sale. Amanda stares at the two of them with a fierce intensity. “I’m sorry for interrupting your time with Jiro, Jyushi… but I think it would be a good idea if you got a bag to put me in… I don’t want to be parted from you… again….”

Jyushi hears it loud and clear and he squeezes Jiro’s hand twice. “Say, Jiro… can we go inside?”

Jiro comes to a halt and looks back to his (Stunning, otherworldly, too good to be real) boyfriend and nods. “Of course we can. Is there something you wanted?”

Jyushi holds Amanda a little closer to his body and nods. “Y-Your brothers kicked us out before I could put Amanda in my bag so….”

Jiro walks inside the store without another word. “That’s completely understandable. We wouldn’t want to lose them another time, would we?”

“They’re your precious buddy, after all.” Jiro mutters softly, only loud enough for the two of them to hear.

Jyushi looks down to Amanda, and smiles. “Yeah… they are.”

The two look at the bags on display and after a long while, Jyushi settles for a black crossbody ita bag. “Maybe I’ll make this my traveling bag…” Jyushi mutters softly while he pays for the bag.

“Oh yeah? What would you put in it?” Jiro asks. Jyushi thinks about it for a while before shrugging. “Whatever makes me think of you, I guess? Or of us, I should say.” There’s a bright pink flush that dusts his cheeks and it makes Jiro’s heart jump out of his chest, like all the other moments he shares with Jyushi.

“Then, we’ve gotta find a ton of stuff to put in that bag.” Jiro grins his large smile and Jyushi can’t help but smile in return. “Yeah, we do.”

After Amanda is (safely) stored inside the bag, the two leave the store and continue aimlessly walking. In no time they walk down a familiar street and Jyushi recognizes it as the street with the arcade. That place holds so many memories already… it just seems like yesterday when all those exciting things happened.

As Jyushi reminisces about the past, he remembers what he and Amanda talked about before while they were still in his apartment back in Nagoya. “Say Jiro… we should take a bunch of pictures together.”

“Hm?” Jiro tilts his head questioningly and Jyushi has to quickly turn away, lest the embarrassment get to him to the point he can’t even speak his thoughts.

“I-I just want to have a lot of memories with you. And… I don’t want to leave Ikebukuro again without having you on my lock screen…” Jyushi’s face continues to heat up more and more as he continues speaking, the embarrassment getting to the point that he could probably melt right this moment.

As Jiro processes those words he realizes that he has it easier because Jyushi is always showing his face with his band.

But Jiro isn’t that famous. Sure, Buster Bros!!! is well-known in Ikebukuro, and whoever might have had their eyes on the Division Rap Battle recognize him. But Argo Kishii Gakudan is on magazine covers and in news articles, always out promoting new singles and whatnot.

While Jiro is happy that Jyushi’s band is so successful…. it also bums him out because he doesn’t exactly have that definitive proof that he’s this wonderful musician’s boyfriend.

“Man, now that you bring it up, it freaking bums me out.” Jiro stops where he stands and fishes for his phone. “I was able to cope because your posters for Argo Kishii Gakudan are practically everywhere… but now I want some special pictures.”

“Special…. pictures?” Jyushi asks and Jiro raises his phone to take a selfie of the two of them.

“Yeah. Special.” Jiro turns to face Jyushi and presses a kiss to his cheek. His thumb holds the shutter button and his phone takes a large number of pictures. It excites him to see what kind of expression Jyushi will have. Maybe he’ll use one of them for his wallpapers right this moment.

Jyushi’s face heats up at the affection and an embarrassed groan falls from his lips. Even if he has the desire to hide behind his hands, though, he won’t. When Jiro pulls away, his lips are pulled into a large grin and his eyes sparkle in the afternoon sunlight.

Jyushi bites his lower lip, but when his embarrassment dies down a little bit, he also flashes a smile. Jiro looks down at his photos and smiles at the gradual progression of Jyushi’s embarrassment. After finding the best one, one with Jyushi staring right at the camera lens with this look of adorable resignation, he ends up replacing his home wallpaper with it. “It’s only the beginning, Jyushi. While you’re here, we’re gonna take a whole ton of pictures!”

Jyushi pulls out his phone and takes a selfie as well. Taking Jiro’s hand and pressing a kiss to it, Jyushi falls into his stage persona a little bit. His bright blue eyes stare right into Jiro’s eyes and a charismatic smile easily spreads on his face. The sudden change takes Jiro by surprise, and he ends up looking like a love struck fool for a little while. Even when Jyushi pulls away, Jiro seems a little lost, too engrossed in the drastic differences in his boyfriend’s character.

Jyushi chuckles fondly at the sight and scrolls through the series of photos just taken. Jyushi finds one where Jiro looks right at him while their hands are interlocked. The sheer look of fondness and love that seems to exude from Jiro at this particular moment fills Jyushi with a large amount of warmth and happiness, he can’t help but immediately set it as his lock screen’s wallpaper.

This particular moment is more perfect than any cool Argo Kishii Gakudan poster.

But he’s not satisfied with just this. He wants to collect more and more pictures while he’s here.

“This is only the beginning, Jiro. We’ll take as many as we can!” And the way Jiro grins at that response makes Jyushi share a smile of his own. Jiro tugs Jyushi down the streets and they enjoy the sights alongside the pleasant warmth of the afternoon sun.

The sky turns a vivid shade of orange and even though it’s a sight Jyushi is very much used to, it seems a little different here. Jiro squeezes the connection between the two of them and pulls Jyushi towards the open field of the park. When they look around, they see families and couples enjoying the beautiful sight as they are. Jyushi lets himself stare at the sky a little longer. “Even if this is a sight I’ve seen so many times… It looks a little different today.”

“It does, doesn’t it?” Jiro replies. Before he knows it, he’s softly humming to one of Argo Kishii Gakudan’s melodies. Jyushi lets himself listen to Jiro’s voice before he sings along with Jiro. It’s a rare occurrence that Jyushi lets himself sing without the help of his stage persona, but he feels like he can do so because he’s with Jiro.

Harmonizing with Jiro, he lets their melodies blend to each other in a way he’s never heard before. Jiro stares at him shocked, but Jyushi only gives him a fond smile as he continues to sing to their acapella. Jiro smiles like the lovestruck fool Jyushi has made him and he lets himself wander in their melody. This is something new, and Jiro wants nothing more than to indulge in this a little longer.

Their moment like this is cut short when Jiro’s phone buzzes. When he looks to see who it is, he can’t help but feel irritation. “What the hell Saburo?!” Jiro starts off with.

Jyushi can hear the two arguing over the phone quite easily, considering how Saburo yells back to Jiro’s yelling. With a calming brush of his free hand Jyushi grabs Jiro’s phone and puts it up to his ear.

“-I could care less about how long you stay out, but Ichi-nii would worry if you and your boyfriend weren’t coming home soon-“

“I see. Does that mean we should head back now?” Jyushi asks. Saburo cuts himself off for a few moments before speaking again.

“... Um… it’s up to you really. I can tell Ichi-nii if you’re still walking around and stuff but…”

“No, it’s alright. We can come back. I’ve been interested in Ichiro’s famous curry anyways.” Jyushi says fondly, deliberately looking up to Jiro when he says that. There’s background noise as Saburo relays the information and Jyushi can hear Ichiro’s happy voice in the distance.

Saburo sighs before coming back to Jyushi. “Alright. My idiot brother is gonna be bummed for a little while I bet, so I guess I'll leave him to you, Jyushi.” Jyushi pulls Jiro and starts walking away from the park. “Okay, will do.”

Jyushi hands Jiro back his phone and as Saburo expected, Jiro looks a little bit disappointed. Jyushi finds a large tree nearby and he tugs Jiro towards the back of this tree. After seeing that the coast was clear, he takes advantage of his five centimeter height advantage to cage Jiro to the tree and kiss him everywhere. First was the forehead, then down to his nose. Then right underneath his eyes, before his hands thread through Jiro’s hair and presses a long kiss to his lips. “Why do you seem so sad, my Knight?” Jyushi says softly and Jiro just shrugs.

“I know you’re staying at our house and all that… but somehow it makes me think we won’t have any more time together or something…”

Jiro strokes the locks of Jyushi’s layered hair that falls in front of him and presses a kiss to the blonde dyed tips. “As much as I’m happy to share my happiness with you to my brothers… I don’t want you to be taken away by them either.”

At this, Jyushi chuckles fondly. “You think that I’d somehow be charmed by them or something? I thought I told you I feel like fate has brought us together. There’s no way I’d fall for them like I did for you.” He wraps his arms around Jiro and takes a moment to just enjoy the moment they have like this, in each other’s arms.

“I love Ichiro and Saburo for loving Jiro. The Jiro that I find so charming and so many other things, I don’t think I could name them all. Even if I spend time with your brothers, I’ll love you, and only you. Amanda brought us together, and I’ll trust them with everything I have.”

Jiro hugs Jyushi back and laughs softly. “Sure Amanda brought us together… but aren’t you putting too much faith in them rather than your own boyfriend?”

Jyushi pulls back enough to gaze at Jiro’s face with the happiest expression on his own face. “But it’s because I already know that we’ll be okay. And it’s because Jiro was the one who made me believe we could work out this long distance relationship.”

Jiro gasps softly. It was barely noticeable, but it was enough for Jyushi to see before Jiro’s eyes sparkle even in the shaded darkness from the tree. 

Jiro pulls Jyushi in for another kiss and after a long moment, pulls away with a content smile on his face. “I guess it’s kinda weird of me to be jealous over my own brothers getting your attention. But you’re gonna stay with all three of us while you’re here in ‘Bukuro, so I guess I should get used to it, huh?”

Jyushi laughs softly. “I don’t know if it’s something you have to get used to. But if you’re there by my side, that’s all that matters to me.”

Jiro guides Jyushi away from the park, towards the direction of his home. “Are you kidding me? I’m gonna stick by your side the entire time you’re here. It might get to the point you have to throw me off of you!”

Jyushi shakes his head as he keeps pace with Jiro. “There’s no way I’d do that. It’s making up for the time we can’t meet up.”

Jiro grins and he takes in the sight of Jyushi wearing his flannel once again.

“Say Jyushi. Let’s get you some more flannels.”

Jyushi flushes. “But I’d rather they be yours—-“ He yelps as he says that and Jiro has to cover his mouth before something even more sappy or love-struck can come out.

Even when the two sport the brightest blushes and the rest of their walk is quiet, one thought crosses their mind.

“Ahh… I’m really in love with him.”

Saburo can almost literally see the love in the air the moment Jiro and Jyushi walk inside. Before he has a chance to retort, Ichiro hands him plates to set on the table. “Oh, welcome back Jiro, Jyushi!”

“We’re home, Nii-chan!” Jiro walks inside the house, and Jyushi clutches the strap to his crossbody. “Pardon the intrusion…”

Saburo places the dishes on the table and turns to face them with a raised eyebrow. “It’s sure gonna sound reaaaal awkward if you say that every day you’re here.”

Jyushi frets where he stands. “But… I am intruding…”

“Don’t think of it that way Jyushi! We’re letting you stay here because you make Jiro happy, and people that make my brothers happy are always welcome to our home! You aren’t intruding.” Ichiro turns around, a warm grin on his face and Jyushi’s heart races. 

“T-T-Then… I… I’m home.” Next to him, Jiro brightens up so much more and the smiles on Ichiro and Saburo’s face say the same thing.

“Welcome home Jyushi.”

Jyushi feels like he’s really been welcomed home and it makes him smile a watery smile.

“C’mon, let's drop our stuff off first. You’re gonna love Nii-chan’s curry!” Jiro pulls Jyushi towards his room and Saburo looks up to Ichiro.

“I wonder how long it's been since someone told him that…” Saburo asks softly.

“I’m not sure… but we’ll be sure to say it as many times as we can while he’s here, right?”

Ichiro ruffles Saburo’s hair when he reluctantly nods.

Meanwhile, Jyushi puts Amanda on top of Jiro’s bedside drawer, wiping his tears as carefully as possible. Jiro places his hat back in its place by his closet and sees Jyushi wiping his tears. Immediately, he rushes to wrap Jyushi in a hug. “Hey Jyushi… what’s wrong..?”

Jyushi shakes his head. “I’m not really sure myself… I just suddenly…. When Ichiro-san and Saburo-kun welcomed me home I just felt…. so happy and loved… It’s been so long since I’ve felt like this….”

Jiro rocks both of them side to side a little bit. “Is it because your grandma passed?”

Jyushi nods. “I didn’t want to burden my uncle and his wife any more than I had to, so I moved out as soon as I could find a part time job. I had Amanda with me, and I thought it was enough…. but after hearing your brothers… I never realized just how long it has been since someone has welcomed me home that wasn’t myself….”

Jiro isn’t good with calming words. But the least he can do is speak from the heart. “While you’re here, you’ll always be loved. I’ll give you so much you’ll be overflowing with it when you have to return to Nagoya. And even when we can’t meet, I’ll continue to give you love some way or another. So then you won’t ever have to feel like this ever again.”

Jyushi turns around in Jiro’s hold and his eyes look down at Jiro with such a desperate hopefulness, Jiro wants to whisk away every single one of those worries and make it so that Jyushi will never have to worry about such things ever again.

“Do you swear to Amanda that you’ll do what you say?” Jiro wonders how many times Jyushi has said this, with the wrong outcome coming to hurt him. He wonders how many people would have laughed over that connection Jyushi has with a stuffed pig.

But that stuffed pig has done so much for Jyushi, Jiro can’t even count with his hands how much they’ve saved him and helped him. And Jiro already knew all of this from a couple days together and almost two months texting and phoning each other.

“I swear to Amanda I will do what I promise. I wouldn’t wish my lover to feel like this now that we finally can spend some time together. That’s why, we’ll spend the rest of your time here with smiles and not tears, yeah?”

Another tear forms and collects on Jyushi’s eyelashes. When he blinks, the tear falls between them and Jiro presses their foreheads together. Jyushi tries to hold back his tears, but they overflow once again, accompanied with a bright smile.

“Amanda will keep an eye on you.”

“What, and you won’t?”

Jyushi chuckles softly. “It just means Amanda’s wrath is that much more lethal than mine.”

Jiro doesn’t quite understand it, but he ends up grinning either way. As long as his boyfriend is smiling, that’s all that matters.

The two hug for a little while longer before washing their hands and heading out to the dining area, where Ichiro and Saburo wait.

Jyushi takes a seat next to Saburo, and Jiro sits next to Ichiro. Immediately Saburo notices the fresh tear tracks on Jyushi’s face. But when he smiles at the highly acclaimed Ichiro-specialty curry, Saburo figures it isn’t that bad.

Everyone says their prayers and digs in. And when Jyushi’s eyes glitter at the spectacular taste of the curry, Saburo can’t help but laugh softly. “If you’re excited about this, you’re in for a ride. Ichi-nii can make just about anything.”

“Really?! That’s so cool! I haven’t cooked anything for myself besides instant noodles.” Jyushi digs in again before putting his spoon up in recollection. “Ah… I actually made some yakisoba the other day. But that was the only time I cooked. Jiro told me it was pretty easy to do, and he was right about that.”

“Hmmmm? Well, Yakisoba is just about the only thing Jiro can cook that tastes good.” Saburo counters.

“Oi. I don’t want to hear that from someone who burns vegetables.” Jiro snaps. Saburo sticks his tongue out and the two glare at each other. Ichiro sighs at the normal family situation and Jyushi ends up smiling. He was right when he said that it was going to be a bright and lively situation when he met Jiro’s brothers. The two continue to bicker and Jyushi’s smile turns into outright laughter. The bright sound that escapes his lips makes Jiro and Saburo stop talking as they take a moment to look at their guest.

Jyushi carefully wipes the tear from his eye as his laughter dies a little. “Hah… I’m sorry, I just…” Jyushi reigns in his laughter and tears to the best of his ability before addressing all brothers. “I was just thinking how this was the perfect way to spend my time here in Ikebukuro. It’s lively in a way I rarely experience when I’m home, so…”

With this, Ichiro smiles and Jyushi can understand why Jiro looks up to his older brother at this moment. “Well, you’re gonna get the full-on Yamada household special while you’re here, Jyushi. It might take a little getting used to, but I’m sure you’ll enjoy yourself.”

Jyushi nods and Jiro sees the most adorable smile on Jyushi’s face, he can’t help but crack one too.

Saburo has to notice it though. “Uwa… Jiro looks like a lovestruck fool…” Before he has the urge to say anything else, he continues eating his curry.

When everyone finished their dinner, Saburo and Jiro argue over who’s on dish duty. When Jyushi overhears, he takes off Jiro’s flannel and pushes up his sleeves. “I can help!” When Jiro turns around to tell Jyushi otherwise, his mouth hangs open when he sees bare shoulders once again. 

Jiro can’t make up a coherent response to this, so Saburo does for him. “Ahhh I think that’s a good idea. You’d at least be better than this fool of a brother!” Saburo says deliberately and pushes Jiro out of the kitchen area. Jyushi pulls his hair back and takes up the spot in front of the sink. When the soap lathers up, Jyushi hums something while washing the dishes. He passes the cleaned dish to Saburo, who dries them off quickly. After a few minutes pass, Saburo looks up to Jyushi.

“So… did you intentionally or accidentally bring an entire wardrobe that will probably make my fool of a brother look like a permanent fool?”

Jyushi doesn’t look like he understands what Saburo is talking about. After Saburo stacks the clean plate, he points to the expanse of bare exposed skin on his shoulder. “My brother is acting like the virgin he is over this. So, I’m asking if it was accidental or intentional.”

If Jyushi could cover himself right now, he probably would. The blush that covers his face is extremely dark and Saburo has his answer. Jyushi still responds regardless. “I-I didn’t know. Amanda just told me to come with what makes me… me. They made me feel like I didn’t need to buy more clothes and whatnot… so I went with what I had. I didn’t know this would be a problem!”

Saburo shakes his head. “It’s not that it’s a problem, it’s just gonna be a very amusing ten days seeing Jiro look like this.” The two look over to Jiro, who has a red face. Whatever Ichiro says to him seems to go in one ear and out another as he looks like he lost all reason or ability to comprehend anything at the moment.

Jyushi can’t help but feel bad for unintentionally doing such a thing to Jiro, but at the same time he can’t help but also feel a little excited and happy about this new revelation. It just shows Jyushi that there’s many things that he needs to discover so then he knows just what can push Jiro’s buttons. 

To spare his boyfriend, Jyushi puts the flannel back on after the dishes have been washed. After doing so, he places his hands on Jiro’s face, effectively snapping Jiro back to reality. “I didn’t know this would shock you so much Jiro… I apologize for that.”

Jiro shakes his head. “It’s fine. I was just… shocked is all.”

Jyushi only laughs softly when he pulls away. “If this much surprises you though… you might be able to survive the entire duration of my trip here.”

“E-Eh?! What’s that supposed to mean?!” Jiro blinks and panics. 

Ichiro leans back against the couch and grins. “Hoo! That sounds quite interesting, Jyushi!”

Jyushi flushes. “T-There’s nothing more to that statement…!”

As everyone panics and whatnot, Saburo pulls out one of his board games with a grin. “So… Shall we get our tradition started then?”

“Tradition?” Jyushi turns to Jiro who immediately pulls his sleeves up with this intense fiery gaze. “Yeah, tradition! Every weekend we try to get together and play board games. We’ve got this tally going, and whoever gets to ten first will get to do something special. Not like we’ve actually kept track but-“

“That’s where you’re wrong, baka.” Saburo clears his throat before pointing to Ichiro. “Right now, Ichi-nii is leading with 8 wins. You and I are tied at six each.”

Jyushi looks at the board game on the table and tilts his head. “... The Life Game? What is this?”

Jiro turns his head. “Wha- you haven’t heard of this game?”

Jyushi shakes his head. “I never played video games, or board games. When I found my passion for Visual Kei bands, it was all I spent my time on.”

Jiro rubs his chin for a little while before an idea comes to him. “Alright! Then we’ll play together! You can learn how to play it this time around, and then you can try and play it on your own in the next round!”

Jyushi rubs the hem of Jiro’s flannel between his fingers and nods nervously. “O-Okay. If you think I’ll be able to…”

Jiro grabs Jyushi’s hand and pulls him to the table. They sit on one side, while Saburo and Ichiro sit on opposite sides facing each other. In front of Jyushi and Jiro, the TV plays something in the background that serves as background music of some sorts.

Saburo opens the lid and everyone helps to assemble the game pieces together. By time all the game pieces are set, the Yamada brothers immediately reach for their game pieces. Jyushi looks at them all with wonder. 

“These seem like… interesting game pieces…” Jyushi examines the ones they have picked out. A pair of headphones, a chess piece, and a soccer ball. When Jyushi takes the time to think about it, he can only seem to understand Jiro’s choice.

The confusion must show on his face, because Jiro grins softly. “Nii-chan is always walking around with these signature headphones. It’s something people can point out and all that stuff. Saburo likes playing games, especially these high level chess games online and stuff. And you know me…”

Jyushi nods. “Fortunately, I was able to understand that.”

Jiro leans in to Jyushi a little with a grin. “I’m glad you understood that much.”

Jyushi laughs softly. Saburo immediately sets his hand out. “Alright, time to determine who goes first!” Ichiro pulls his hand out and Jiro pulls Jyushi’s hand out.

“E-Eh?!” Jyushi is flustered. Jiro grins. “We’re playing this together right? So you’ve gotta pitch in some way or another.”

“B-But so suddenly..?!” Jyushi doesn’t even know what it is they’re doing right now! His anxiety leads to tears forming and Saburo sighs.

“You’re really an idiot, Jiro. Even Ichi-nii knew Jyushi is the type that panics easily. Now you’re making your own boyfriend cry, how do you like that.”

Jiro panics in his own way. “O-Oh shit. I’m sorry Jyushi!”

Jyushi wills the tears to go away and shakes his head. “I-It’s fine, Jiro. I just didn’t know what it was we’re doing… that’s all.”

Jiro pulls his boyfriend in for a hug. Their intimate closeness is not something Saburo wants to see, but he can see how Jyushi calms down, so he decides to not make a remark about it. 

“What we’re doing right now is determining who goes first. You could do it by the spinner that’s included in the game, or other ways. If you use the spinner, whoever has the highest number goes first. But we do it by playing a few rounds of rock, paper, scissors. It’s just always been our thing, y’know?”

Jyushi nods nervously. But now he knows what they’re doing. He can play rock, paper, scissors. With this endearing look of determination, Jyushi holds out his fist as well.

Ichiro grins in approval. “You explained that well, Jiro. Are you ready, Jyushi?”

“Y-Yes!”

Saburo and Ichiro hold their fists out and after look at each other, they all yell,

“First one is Rock! Rock, Paper, Scissors!!”

Jyushi squeezes his eyes shut as he nervously throws out paper. He doesn’t even open them until he hears Jiro yell.

“Alright Jyushi! We go first!!”

Jyushi opens his eyes to see that yes… they go first!! Both Ichiro and Saburo had thrown out rocks. “Alright, so Jiro and Jyushi go first. Are you ready, Saburo?”

“Yes, Ichi-nii!” Jyushi watches in amazement as Ichiro and Saburo simultaneously throw out paper, then rock, then paper again. But then Ichiro throws out scissors, and Saburo throws out a rock. 

“Alright, so Jiro and Jyushi start us off.” Ichiro shuffles the career cards and holds the stack for Jyushi to take from. After shakily receiving the card, Jyushi turns the card around. “Professional athlete?”

Jiro pumps his fist into the air. “That’s the one I always wanna get! It is something I can actually imagine myself doing after all.”

Jyushi nods distantly. “So… we need to take the college path then, huh…”

Jyushi stares at the card with a huge amount of focus that makes all the Yamadas go a little soft. His focused expression is indescribably adorable at this moment. But they don’t say anything as he finally takes Jiro’s piece to the college route and begins spinning.

They have about 5,000,000 yen to clear away before they can retain their salary, whatever it will be. 

Saburo also takes the college path, saying that the careers he aims for have degree requirements. Ichiro takes the straight into the workforce path, which is something he ended up doing in real life. 

“Is it hard, Ichiro-san?” Jyushi asks him.

Ichiro laughs at this question. “Why are you asking me this? You’re the same too, you know.”

Jyushi holds his hands together and looks down. “I know but… it was because music was my calling. And after all I had experienced from school, I didn’t think it was necessary… attending music school or something like that…”

Jyushi looks up to Ichiro, a questioning gaze laced with worry and curiosity. “But even though you have taken care of Jiro and Saburo-kun all these years, did you ever wish you had the opportunity to go into further education?”

Ichiro shakes his head without a second's notice. “I had no desire for those things personally. There were a lot of things that had happened to all of us, and I had sworn to be there for both of my brothers. Continuing education is not something I need, especially because I’ve more or less established myself as a jack-of-all-trades business. As long as I can give them an enriching future that I know they deserve, that’s all I need.”

Jyushi lets the answer seep deep into his bones and he looks around at the well loved Yamada household. Jyushi knows from Jiro that they don’t have a living mother or father, and yet, there’s still family photos of the three of them. 

When Jyushi thinks of family, he can’t help but look up to the Yamadas and simply love what they have. It makes him slightly jealous because he’s never felt something like this since his grandmother had passed, but if Jyushi thinks about the here and now… it’s better than ever.

Jiro’s arms are securely around his waist, their closeness something Jyushi wants to keep for as long as he can. Jiro and Saburo’s bickering over trading salaries, among other things, is pleasant even if Ichiro tries to get them to get along. Ichiro’s calming and heart melting praises make Saburo and Jiro happy, and even Jyushi finds himself wondering how it would be like to receive one of those Ichiro praises of his own.

He doesn’t have to wish or wonder when he lands on a spot that says he won the lottery. “Heeeh?! You landed on the lottery spot! That’s one of the hardest places to land on!!” Jiro yells.

“For you, maybe. But Ichi-nii has managed to get it a couple times too!” Saburo counters.

“Ohhh! It’s been a long while since we saw someone win the lottery in this game! Nice job Jyushi!”

Jyushi turns a bright pink and he stares at their stack of paper money bashfully. He feels impossibly warm, like something had ignited in his body and now he’s flying somewhere in the back of his mind. It almost makes him feel like he’s invincible.

“I-Is this a special power of Ichiro-san’s?!” Jyushi squeaks aloud and hides behind his hands. Jiro laughs. “Even Jyushi can’t resist Nii-chan’s praises, huh?”

Saburo makes a humph of approval. “At least your boyfriend knows how great Ichi-nii is.”

“And you say I don’t Saburo?!” Jiro counters.

Jyushi continues to heat up behind his hands. “H-He makes me feel like I can do anything! Even just like this I could… do things that I can’t do on my own! Without the help of my other self!”

Ichiro blinks dumbly at Jyushi’s statements before laughing long and hard. “Well, I’m at a loss for words! I’ll take that as a compliment Jyushi! But you should know that deep inside you… you do have the guts and ability to do anything with your own power. Of course… you may have to rely on some people, but there’s no shame in having to rely on others. That’s what friends, family and loved ones are for!”

Jyushi looks up to Ichiro again and stares at him for a long time. “... I think I can understand why you think of your older brother in a way that’s similar to the way I think of Amanda, Jiro…”

Jiro hugs Jyushi tighter. “Makes you feel like everything will have a good outcome, right?” Jyushi nods, a smile on his face.

At this moment the television broadcast shows Argo Kishii Gakudan’s CM for their in house live at Nagoya. Jiro seems to immediately recognize the song that they’re playing and hums along to it. Saburo nods slowly in recognition. “I gotta hand it to you, Jyushi. Your band does some good music.”

“T-Thank you for the support!” Jyushi exclaims. Ichiro laughs. “Of course we’d support you! You’ve been taking great care of Jiro after all. And like Saburo said, your music is great!”

Jyushi flushes for a long time before reaching for the spinner and successfully taking him and Jiro to retirement.

As Saburo and Ichiro finally make it to retirement, everyone counts their money and extra reward tiles, and this time, Saburo wins by a mere 100,000 yen difference to Jiro and Jyushi.

“It couldn’t be helped. Jiro…. we had to pay for life saving operations and all those other things. I consider it a victory, because we safely managed to pay everything without having to go and take out loans.” Jiro grumbles for a long time, but he sets his chin on top of Jyushi’s shoulder and sighs. “When you put it that way….”

Everyone pitches in to put the game pieces back into the box. After it's done, Ichiro looks at the time and leans back against the couch. “It’s getting late… Do you two have plans for tomorrow?”

Jyushi shakes his head. “Nothing in particular. I’m even happy just having the opportunity to be close to Jiro like this every day.”

Saburo slides the lid onto the box and sighs. “You might have to reconsider that, you know. My idiot older brother can be quite the handful.”

“Oi, Saburo!!”

Jyushi just holds Jiro’s hands in his. “It’s okay Saburo-kun. I wouldn’t want it any other way.”

Saburo walks away with a shrug, but Ichiro sees the small smile that graces his features as he walks away. After a little moment of silence, Jyushi gets up. “If you don’t mind, I shall borrow the bath first.”

Ichiro nods. “That’s fine. If you didn’t pack whatever you need, you’re free to use whatever’s already there.” With a bow of gratitude, Jyushi parts from Jiro and makes his way to Jiro’s room.

Before reaching the luggage, Jyushi sits on top of the bed and holds Amanda close.

“I’m sorry for leaving you alone like this, Amanda.” Jyushi starts. Amanda snuggles into Jyushi’s hold. “It’s quite alright, Jyushi. I heard you were having fun with Jiro and Yamada Ichiro and Saburo. Was it as fun as it sounded?”

Jyushi brightens up. “It was! I finally got to play the Life Game!”

“It’s the game your band mate is in love with, isn’t it?” Amanda asks.

Jyushi nods. “It’s quite interesting. You can collect a lot of money, or pay loans and other strange things. You can even change salaries with your opponents! For my first time, I think I did great. Even though I was playing with Jiro and not by myself… It seemed very enjoyable….”

“I’m glad for you Jyushi! Will you play it again sometime?”

Jyushi shakes his head. “I might not… I think it was more enjoyable? Memorable? Because I was playing it with Jiro. I don’t think it would feel right if I played this without Jiro by my side….”

Amanda takes this all in and nods. “Well, you could try next time your friend wants to play with the band! You’ll never know if you don’t try, after all!”

Jyushi nods at this. “That is true… I should give it a shot at least once, right?”

“That’s the spirit, Jyushi!”

At this Jyushi laughs softly. Saburo walks by to see Jyushi gently caressing his stuffed pig with such love and care, and a small smile escapes him without realizing.

He guesses Aimono Jyushi has wormed himself into his heart a little more than he expected. It might be a little worrisome when he leaves to return to Nagoya, but these few hours he spends with Jyushi out of the day will be a memorable few hours at the very least.

It will be a positive experience, Saburo thinks. Especially if there’s bright smiles all around the household he loves and cherishes in his own, stubborn way.

Jyushi feels very bad for doing this, but he takes a long time to bathe. Half of the problem was the makeup. There was a moment where he knew clumps of mascara were clinging to his eyelashes, even after eye makeup removal took the rest off, and the cleanser didn’t help either. It was a struggle trying to get the mascara off without irritating his eye or pulling his eyelashes out.

When he finally had been victorious over the mascara, the rest of the problem had been his hair. As the days pass, Jyushi can tell the humidity’s rising just by how difficult it is to get his hair to stay straight. He knows there’s going to be a lot to tackle when he gets out of the bath, so while he does enjoy his time soaking in the bath, he also spends a lot of time running his hands through his hair.

Jyushi sobs when he untangles knots in his hair, and sees that he pulled hair out in the process. But he’s almost positive he didn’t pack a comb to help with this problem… He continues to finish untangling his hair to the best of his ability with a sob. When everything seems okay, he finally gets out of the bath. Slipping into his pajamas, he carries his cosmetics bag along with another towel for his hair and slides out of the bathroom.

“Thank you for letting me use your bath first…” Jyushi walks to the living room and awkwardly bows to Ichiro. 

“Don’t even worry about it Jyushi. But you should dry your hair soon, or you’ll catch a cold.” Ichiro says. Jyushi jumps. “Yes, um… I still have a lot I need to do, so…”

Jyushi looks around and sees a perfect spot to place his mirror. Setting the mirror on the counter, Jyushi first proceeds to clean up whatever remaining makeup residue that was underneath his eyes. After doing so, he made sure his skin was properly moisturized. Then he goes to towel drying his hair… or he was going to.

There’s a pair of hands on top of his head and Jyushi tilts his head back to see who it was.

Underneath the white towel he can see that bright grin of Jiro’s, as always. And as usual, he can’t help but crack a smile in return.

“I’m happy I get to see you without makeup Jyushi. Like I said before… you’re stunning.”

Jyushi flushes a bright pink. “P-please… you’re embarrassing me!”

“I’m only telling the truth…” Jiro begins towel drying Jyushi hair, and Jyushi can’t help but sigh in response to the action. It was warm and comforting. Not too rough, yet not too gentle either. Jiro was thorough with this too, sliding the towel down to the ends that cascades down Jyushi’s back.

When Jiro pulls away, Jyushi can’t help but laugh at how messy his hair looks right now. If this happened at any other time, Jyushi would think this is the end of the world. But right now, he feels like everything is alright.

He works some serums into his hair and Jiro hands Jyushi the comb he thought he didn’t pack.

“It fell out of your bag. I figured you’d need this.” Jyushi takes the comb appreciatively and runs it through his perfectly straight hair. It looks as perfect as it could be right now, when the night time was merciful to him at least.

It might be another battle with the humidity tomorrow, but at least Jyushi had done what he could to protect his hair at night.

“But it sure is surprising how much you have to do… Does this take you a long time?” Jiro asks. 

Jyushi shakes his head. “After doing it for so long, you just do it. Now I can do everything in around half an hour if I have everything I need close by.”

“Man, that still sounds like a long time…” Jiro looks over to Jyushi and grins. “Well, at least I know some of the trade secrets that make my boyfriend look stunning as he usually is.”

Jyushi flushes at this before Saburo calls out, saying the bath was open. Ichiro seems to be deeply invested in the anime that’s on right now, so Jiro takes it as his opportunity to shower. A quick hug and Jiro’s off to his room. Jyushi packs everything into his bag before going to pick up Amanda from where they stayed in Jiro’s room. When he does pick them up, he quickly closes the door to Jiro’s room again and joins Ichiro on the couch.

At the moment, a sports anime was playing. But it wasn’t volleyball or something like that. It was men’s rhythmic gymnastics.

Jyushi watches in amazement as the people on the floor do a handstand at the same time, with spectacular angles to boot. Next to him, Ichiro sniffs and rubs his eye quickly. “I knew he’d be able to do it!”

“Did they struggle?” Jyushi asks.

Ichiro looks away from the screen with a glimmer in his eyes. “It was a struggle, I tell you! But it was also because he was a newbie at gymnastics, so he didn’t know how to do any of the moves and stuff. I’m glad to know that their efforts weren’t put to waste because that was one beautiful routine. Beautiful I tell you!”

Jyushi finds himself very much enraptured by this anime, and decides to put the title to memory so he can check it out later.

When the credits end and the program leads way to another anime, Ichiro stretches and finds himself standing from the couch the minute Jiro says the bath’s open. Ichiro casually mentions Jiro needs to properly dry his hair while giving him an affectionate rub to his head before leaving to take his own bath.

Jyushi places Amanda to the side and ushers Jiro to sit in front of him. With a grin, Jiro does just that, and yells excitedly when an old rerun of an old favorite anime of his turns on. Jyushi collects the towel in his hands and thoroughly towel dries Jiro’s hair the way Jiro did for him. Somehow, the time is immensely shorter compared to how long Jiro had rubbed Jyushi’s hair dry.

But when Jiro melts into his hold, appreciative of the action, Jyushi decides to not worry about it that much.

“There.” Jyushi holds the damp towel over his lap and runs his hands through Jiro’s dried hair. As gently as he can, he untangles Jiro’s knots and marvels at how soft his hair feels underneath his fingers. Well, it wasn’t the first time he had his hands running through Jiro’s hair… but having the opportunity to actually feel it was a different story.

“You have such soft hair Jiro… I’m kinda jealous.” Jyushi says softly and Jiro laughs. “Well, you’re probably the only one who likes it. We all kinda don’t have an appreciation for hair care or whatnot. Things like that weren’t part of the things we worried about when we were in the orphanage and all that, you know?” 

Jyushi runs his hands through and he gently cradles a part of Jiro’s hair that Jyushi recognizes as one of the unruly parts. Regardless, he leans down to the best of his ability and presses a kiss to it. “No matter what you do Jiro, continue using whatever you’ve been using. It’s so healthy and soft. You don’t need to do much to keep it like this, unlike mine.”

Jiro leans back and his gaze locks on to Jyushi’s. “I still love your hair, you know.”

Jyushi takes the compliment with a smile. “At least I am aware of that.”

The two spend a little moment like this just holding each other’s gaze until Saburo comes back to the kitchen area to grab a glass of water. He flashes them a look of horror, disgust, and conflicted resignation which Jyushi can’t decide is a good thing or a bad thing.

“You know Jyushi… it’s bad to spoil my dummy big brother. He’ll begin to expect things.”

Jiro is a second away from saying something back to Saburo before Jyushi holds Jiro closer to himself. “It’s fine. I can just think of it as giving him what we can’t have all the time.”

Saburo shrugs at that before walking off. “I’m gonna stay in my room then. Good night.”

“Oi Saburo, don’t think about playing those competitive chess matches all night.” Jiro calls.

“I wasn’t even gonna do that, baaaka.” Saburo yells back.

“G-Good night Saburo-kun!” Jyushi calls out.

Saburo waves at him for the slightest of seconds before disappearing into his room.

There’s a loud explosion from the TV and Jiro is immersed in the scene. Jyushi tries his best to keep up with what’s going on, but he can’t really understand it because it seems pretty far into the series.

A few minutes later, Ichiro comes out of the bath and looks around.

“Saburo already turned in for the night.” Jiro says.

“Ah, that seems like a good idea actually… Are you two gonna stay up some more?” Ichiro continues rubbing the water out of his hair and Jyushi stands up. “U-Um… I think I’m ready to sleep.”

Ichiro gives him a smile and nods. He walks down the hallway and pulls out their spare futon and Jyushi rushes to hold it. “Oh please Ichiro, I can carry it!”

“Nah, this is nothing!”

Jiro takes care of the damp towels and turns off the TV. When he returns to the couch, he gently tucks Amanda under his arm and turns off all the lights in the living room area before he follows Jyushi and Ichiro to his room. Jyushi frets back and forth, trying to get Ichiro to let him unfurl the futon and set it instead of Ichiro.

With a hearty laugh, Ichiro continues doing his task until it was neatly set up next to Jiro’s bed.

Jyushi hangs his head in defeat before Jiro laughs. “When it comes to things like this, you just gotta let Nii-chan do it if he wants to.”

“Alright, if you need anything else Jyushi, Jiro knows where it all is. I’ll see you two tomorrow.”

“Good night Nii-chan!” Jiro calls out.

“Good night, Ichiro-san…!” Jyushi says soon after. Ichiro waves at them with caring smiles. “Good night, Jiro, Jyushi.”

The door closes shut and soon after, Ichiro’s door opens and closes.

Jiro looks down at their spare futon with a caring smile. “I’m kinda happy…. you’re gonna sleep now and it isn’t even five am.”

Jyushi plays with his toes, bonking them together and overlapping them nervously. “There wouldn’t be any point if I couldn’t spend as much time with Jiro as I wanted. If I have to sleep earlier to spend as much time with Jiro as possible, I’ll do it, of course…”

Jiro gently places Amanda on his bedside table and pulls Jyushi in a hug. “We’ll get to spend all the time we have while you’re here. Even sleeping like this is spending time together, in a way.”

Jyushi hums in agreement and lets his hands feel the softness of Jiro’s worn out T-shirt. He’ll get to see all sorts of Jiro while he’s here. Sleeping Jiro, of course, is the one he looks forward to the most.

Jyushi pulls away from the hug and grabs the cover to the futon. “Then, I guess I should sleep here…”

Jiro scrambles to his knees and pries the cover from Jyushi’s hands. “No Jyushi. You’re the guest! You sleep on the bed!”

Jyushi blinks innocently. “But it's your bed Jiro! Why should you have to give it up because of me?”

“I’m doing it because it's you, Jyushi! I can’t let you sleep on the floor!” Jiro responds in his best inside voice.

The two argue about this situation for a little while before a pout appears on Jyushi’s face. “Why won’t you let me sleep here Jiro? There’s nothing wrong with sleeping on the futon!”

Jiro scratches his head before something in him explodes. “Because, if I sleep on the floor, then I won’t think about asking you to sleep on the bed with me!”

Jyushi is dumbfounded for a few seconds before a bright blush explodes on his face. Jiro sighs heavily before he realizes what came out of his mouth.

Jiro covers his face behind his hands and groans long and hard out of embarrassment. “That came out didn’t it…!!!”

Jyushi nods, unable to form any coherent words to say in response.

After Jiro doesn’t feel like dying, he looks at Jyushi, a deep red blush covering his face. “W-Well, now you know… How I feel about this…..”

Jyushi wrings his hands together as a way to disperse the nervous energy and nods. “W-Well… if it’s Jiro… of course I’d say yes….”

“I know it's too soon for this but it's a rare chance for us to spend time together and—- huh?” Jiro is dumbfounded before Jyushi nods again. “I’ll sleep with you on the bed. I won’t take the futon, and Jiro won’t take the futon either…”

Jyushi folds the futon and puts it to the side of Jiro’s room before sitting on the bed. Jiro turns on the lamp before scurrying to turn off the overhead light. When he returns, he has to look at Jyushi with another worried expression. “Are you sure Jyushi? I’m not forcing you or anything, right?”

Jyushi takes Amanda into his arms and shakes his head. “I… to be honest… wondered what it would be like if we could sleep together on the same bed. Being so far apart, only to be able to be together like this at last… I don’t want to separate from Jiro as long as I have to. And hours sleeping is hours wasted, you know.”

Jiro pulls the covers back and slides in after a long moment, his back to the wall. Jyushi continues holding on to Amanda and lies down facing Jiro. After they’re settled into bed, Jiro turns off the lamp and they’re enshrouded in darkness. But even through the darkness, Jyushi should see all of Jiro from the minimal moonlight cutting through the window. With a free hand, he reaches out to caress Jiro’s cheek and he smiles softly.

“It already seems a little surreal to me…” he starts off with. When Jiro wraps his arms around Jyushi and pulls him closer, Jyushi can see the smile on his boyfriend’s face. “It’s always been a dream of mine to see your sleeping face.”

“Oh please! What if I look horrible?”

“You don’t Jyushi. I think you’d make a wonderful slumbering Prince!” Amanda says. Jiro is taken aback, but he knows Amanda was the one that said that. “S-so Amanda can talk?”

Jyushi nods. “That’s why I can say they’re my closest friend. They’ve helped me out so much… But no matter how many times I say it, nobody believes me… Amanda themself doesn’t know how it is that only I can hear them… and now Jiro can hear them….”

Jiro looks down at the stuffed pig before stroking it awkwardly in an attempt to be caring. “I wonder if it’s something pertaining to Jyushi…”

Amanda looks up at Jiro and leans into the touch the slightest bit. It surprises Jiro, but he continues petting the stuffed pig with a grin on his face. “Whoever can’t see how much this guy has helped you is blind or something.”

Jyushi squeezes Amanda and can only smile at the way his closest friend in the world and his boyfriend look together. “I exist to ensure Jyushi’s happiness. You might be right in thinking that only people who care for Jyushi can hear me.”

Jyushi looks concerned. “So are you trying to tell me that my bandmates…?”

“I’ve never tried to talk to them. I think they care for you very much, Jyushi. I just wanted to act like the stuffed animal they think I am in front of them.”

Jyushi nods understandably. “Okay. I trust Amanda’s decision.”

Amanda slowly turns around to face Jiro and puts their stuffed appendages on Jiro’s chest. “The love you have for Jyushi is real. And the way you two make each other happy is all I’ve longed to see for Jyushi. Jyushi has lost so much in his school days, and he lost all hope for romance like this at one point in life. I have to thank Jiro with all my being for being able to give Jyushi the love he deserves. And I’m glad I can finally tell this to you, Jiro.”

Jiro pulls both Amanda and Jyushi tighter into his hold and Jyushi can’t help but shed a few tears over this. “I’m just glad that I found Jyushi when I did. Even I thought romance was just a stupid delusion nobody gets to experience at one point in time. Now though, I’m happy I let my emotions guide me on this one. Because now I get to spend all this wonderful time together with this wonderfully talented and good looking musician, and his wise stuffed pig.”

Jyushi’s tears begin to fall faster as he hears this.

“Who cares if Nagoya is hella far away from “Bukuro. Some physical distance like this is nothing for us. And we’ll just do everything that we did before. And when it’s not enough, we just get on the train and visit each other. But even if I say that… we haven’t really done it…” Jiro’s voice cracks as he resists the urge to cry.

Jyushi laughs at this. He wipes his tears quickly before looking up to Jiro. “You have school to attend in Jiro. And you have this life here in Ikebukuro, full of friends and family. It’s not that easy to just drop things and come out to visit someone.”

“I feel like it is with you though.”

Jiro looks down and can’t help the tears that slowly stream down his face. Jyushi ends up tearing up again, a smile spread wide on his face. “How coincidental. I feel the same.”

The two hug each other with Amanda stuffed between them. If they could cry, they’d probably cry their own river. They see the bright red bonds wrap around their fingers, tighter and tighter and tighter until hardly any distance is between them. “It truly is a fated pair…” 

Amanda doesn’t mind that they don’t hear them. They’re too busy trying to kiss away their tears so like the responsible stuffed animal they are, they enjoy the beauty of the moon through Jiro’s window as the two relish in what they have together while they're able to remain only mere feet or inches away from each other.

Amanda did have to admit though. The moon looked spectacularly beautiful right now. It might just be their imagination, but it truly felt like it was a blessed day.

They only hope that there’s more in store.

Jiro groans in irritation when his phone constantly buzzes against the table. “It’s too early to get spammed with messages…” Even as he says that though, he carefully reaches out over Jyushi’s sleeping form to look at the messages.

Oi Jiro, you’re not ditching us, right?

Where are you Jiro? I thought we were still down for our match today?

Jiiiiro?!

Did your dumb ass oversleep again?

Did he actually oversleep, or was it because something else happened without us knowing?

You’re actually gonna say that shit in the group chat dude? Uncool.

Jiro scrolls through the hoard of messages on his notifications tab and a cold sweat runs down his back. 

“Oh shit I’m late!!” Jiro yells. At that moment Jyushi groans and Jiro slaps his hand over his mouth. He takes a moment to enjoy the view of sleeping Jyushi. Something he’s always wished to see, something he’s always dreamt of in one way or another.

It truly is a beautiful sight. Long layers of black and blonde highlighted hair tumbling across Jiro’s sheets, with Jyushi’s peaceful resting face and his arms holding Amanda close to his chest. The top button of the black button up has come undone, and Jiro gets to see that charming collarbone and more… But his mind just stops as he takes in the sight of his boyfriend. His boyfriend, who was sleeping on his bed, and he was real to boot. 

If this was an anime or a drama or something, Jiro thinks the most romantic tune the composer wrote would be playing right now.  But never mind that… because it would also serve as an indicator of how much Jiro just loves this man that rests on his bed.

Amanda turns around to face Jiro. Jiro takes his hand away from his mouth and pets Amanda. “Good morning Amanda…” He smiles softly at the way Amanda accepts the touch and leans into it like they do with Jyushi. “Good morning Jiro. Should I wake Jyushi up?”

Jiro looks over to his slumbering boyfriend and shakes his head. “It’s alright. Let him sleep. I figure he didn’t get much yesterday anyways.”

Amanda nods. Jiro takes it that Jyushi didn’t sleep much like he thought. “I gotta go and hang out with my buddies from school. When Jyushi wakes up, can you tell him that we’ll be playing soccer at the park where we were yesterday?”

Amanda takes out a stuffed leg from Jyushi’s hold and Jiro finds it adorable that Jyushi’s stuffed pig does everything in their power to make themselves understood.

Jiro grabs his clothes and slips out of his bedroom before making a mad dash through morning preparations and running out with barely a piece of toast hanging from his mouth.

Saburo eats a sausage with a sigh. “One day. Jyushi’s been here for one day and that guy forgot all about his prior engagements.”

Ichiro laughs. “That, Saburo, was because he forgot to set his alarm.”

“And I’m saying that Jyushi’s presence here made him forget about setting an alarm in the first place…” Saburo sets his chopsticks down to the side and mutters a soft “gochisou-sama.” When he joins Ichiro at the sink to wash his used dishes, Ichiro can’t help but see the small smile that graces Saburo’s features.

“You’re happy Jyushi is here, huh?” Ichiro smiles fondly at the blush that dusts Saburo’s cheeks. “It’s just… he wormed his way in a short time. I’m quite interested in how the rest of his stay will be like.”

Ichiro takes that as a close enough answer and takes Saburo’s washed dishes from him. “That goes for me too, Saburo. Shall we think of what we should make for lunch?”

Saburo sighs. “I don’t know to be honest. That baka Jiro will be starving when he finishes playing his game…”

Ichiro whistles a tune before an idea hits him. “I’ll make Jiro and Jyushi bentos.”

Saburo nods begrudgingly. “Only because I want Jyushi to understand how amazing your cooking is…”

Ichiro hugs Saburo and ruffles his hair. “Aww Saburo! You’re gonna make me blush!”

“Ehe…” Saburo lets Ichiro do whatever he wants with his hair before a message comes to his phone. “Ah, my friend is ready to play a round of chess!” With a wave. Saburo returns to his room. Ichiro looks at the clock and thinks he has around an hour to kill before having to start preparations for lunch.

Perfect timing too. He was half way into a light novel yesterday. That should be enough time to finish it off.

Jyushi feels like he slept for a really long time. It’s been a long while since he’s slept this well. When he looks at the time though, he understands why.

He slept for over ten hours.

“J-Jiro?” Jyushi sees Jiro is nowhere to be seen. Amanda taps Jyushi’s arm. “Jiro had to leave for a friend gathering of sorts. He told me to tell you that he will be playing soccer at the park you two visited yesterday.”

Jyushi takes the information gratefully and moves towards his luggage. Tying his hair back with a ribbon that’s gentle on his hair, he moves to greet Ichiro and Saburo for the morning.

“G-Good morning Ichiro-san…” Jyushi calls out. “Ah, good morning Jyushi! Did you sleep well?” Ichiro looks up from his light novel and Jyushi nods. “I-I did, thank you very much.”

“Ah, perfect. I’m gonna get preparations started for Jiro’s lunch. You should eat something too…”

Ichiro puts on his bright red apron once again and goes about cooking a simple breakfast for Jyushi. When Jyushi receives his breakfast, it’s nothing quite like anything he’s had in a long while. For him, it’s always been instant foods and diner meals because of his living situation and low confidence about his nonexistent kitchen skills.

But this made him feel like he could do this if he tried and kept trying. After finishing up his breakfast, Jyushi tries to make fast work of his morning regimen and changes out of his pajamas. A simple burgundy smokey eye look later, Jyushi decides to wear a ribbed tank top with a slightly cropped biker’s jacket on top, alongside his trusty belt accessory and ripped jeans. After feeling satisfied in his outfit of the day, he leaves the ribbon in his hair.

He walks out to the kitchen and Ichiro turns with a grin. “Hey Jyushi! Wanna help me make Jiro’s lunch?”

Jyushi blinks a couple times. “B-But I can’t cook anything…”

“It’s fine. I’ll tell you how to make everything. I know it might be hard the first time, but I think if you at least have taken that first step, it will be easier to know how it should taste later. I think Jyushi is a fast learner too.”

Jyushi clenches his hands into fists again before giving Ichiro a hesitant nod. “O-Okay. I’ll try it.”

“Okay!! There’s a spare apron on that hook over there.” Jyushi takes the black apron that hangs on the side of the wall and takes off his jacket before slipping the apron on.

He’s extremely nervous as he stands in front of the stove, but when Ichiro moves him to the cutting board, it makes him feel much more at ease. “I was about ready to cook the octopus weiners too. This is one of the simplest parts of the bento if you ask me. But how the ends curl on the weiner depends on how deep your cut is. You don’t want it to be too short, but too long isn’t good either.”

Jyushi takes the bottom of the kitchen blade and with an intense focus, tries to make perfect cuts into the weiner. When he finishes, they’re all various sizes, but Ichiro smiles. “This is also something I like about cooking. Things you make by hand won’t always look the same. The shape may be different, but the love and care that has been put into each element of the meal is still present.”

Ichiro fries the weiners and Jyushi marvels at how the legs curl up, long or short. “I wasn’t all that great when I started cooking too. But when I thought about how my food could make Jiro and Saburo smile… I just couldn’t help but keep trying. I know you’re always alone, but even cooking for yourself has its own merit. And I think you’d make good food if you think about how you’d like to give it to Jiro. Because more than skill and practice, feelings from the heart come across more easily in things like food. Isn’t it the same with music?”

Jyushi looks at the frying pan with this thought in mind and nods. “You’re right…! I… I always wondered how it would be like if I could make something for Jiro. After he told me about his yakisoba… it made me think about these things. Things I never once thought about because I had no reason to cook. The way I thought about cooking was like how I think when I’m writing new music… No…. Actually…. it's more.”

A lock of hair falls out of the ribbon, but Jyushi looks unfazed by it. “Because I was thinking about Jiro, I ended up thinking about a lot of other things. Like how it would be if we could always eat together…. or something like that.”

Ichiro hands Jyushi the large chopsticks. “That’s the spirit, Jyushi. As long as you have that behind you, you’ll always strive to do your best in cooking.”

After Jyushi smiles, he tries his best with helping out. When the karaage gets placed inside the bento, Ichiro claps his hands. “What’s left is the tamagoyaki.”

Jyushi gulps. He knows when done right, they’re fluffy. But he also knows it’s difficult getting them to be that lightweight. Regardless, he wants to be able to say he was able to try. For Jiro’s sake, he will gather his courage and work these layers of egg to the best of his ability.

The first layer was disastrous. He wanted to cry when he saw the large rip in the first layer. Regardless, Ichiro kept on encouraging him and Jyushi manages to flip the first layer all the way to the top of the pan. Ichiro pours the second layer of egg, and Jyushi tries to do as he was taught, clearing away the air bubbles and sliding the new layer of batter underneath the folded layer. With trembling hands, Jyushi takes the folded layer and folds it down the pan. He’s worried about how it will break, but he manages to save it before it ripped once again. 

Ichiro pours the final layer into the pan and Jyushi takes a deep breath. His arms feel like jelly from the way he’s tightly grasping the chopsticks and the handle to the pan. But he continues on his task wholeheartedly. When the omelette is complete, Jyushi tries to take it to the cutting board. As he’s taking it out, however, it splits between the space where the chopsticks are holding it and Jyushi gasps as it falls into two halves on the board.

He looks at Ichiro with this expression like the world has ended, and Ichiro calmly cuts the pieces into six pieces. “You did wonderfully for your first time, Jyushi. I think you’ll just continue to get better and better from here on out. And this is the kind Jiro loves.” Ichiro gives Jyushi a solid pat on the back and grins. “So, what d’ya say? Gonna keep giving cooking a fair chance?”

Jyushi is scared of failures. But his motto for so many years of his life has been, Never, never give up. So of course, that should apply to cooking as well!

“I-I want to witness the day I can cook all of Jiro’s favorites by my own hands!” Jyushi ends up saying. The fresh shine to Ichiro’s eyes go unnoticed by Jyushi, but the warm, appreciative voice that Ichiro has when he thanks Jyushi is more than enough to know.

He’s happy Jiro has found some sort of happiness.

That thought is enough to make Jyushi himself want to cry. But instead, he stacks the bentos. After they’re tightly wrapped in a large cloth, Ichiro slides all the used utensils into the sink. “Jiro and his friends usually play their soccer games nearby. Do you want me or Saburo to show you?”

Jyushi takes off the apron and shakes his head. “It’s quite alright, Ichiro. Jiro told me it was at the park we went to yesterday. I think I’ll be able to handle this.”

Ichiro quickly turns around to wipe his tears before grinning. “Have fun out there Jyushi.”

Jyushi unravels the ribbon and slips his jacket back on. “I will! Ah, and if you don’t mind me asking…. Later, can you teach me how to cook Jiro’s favorites?”

Ichiro laughs. “I was already planning on doing that!”

He ushers Jyushi out of the house after Jyushi packs his crossbody with his phone, wallet, and Amanda. When the door closes, Ichiro feels another wave of tears pricking his eyes. “That Jyushi… he really does love Jiro, huh…”

In this moment of solitude, Ichiro sheds a few tears out of pure joy and happiness. He never once expected there to be a day where Jiro had found someone he was into like he was with Jyushi. But after everything that all of them as a family have experienced, Ichiro can’t help but feel a little emotional over the fact that Jiro finally has someone by his side that cherishes him, despite only being together for a mere few days.

After letting the heavy emotions fall from his shoulders, Ichiro grins as he checks out the fridge. Now then… What should he make for him and Saburo to eat?

Jyushi nervously walks down the streets of Ikebukuro, looking out for markers he remembered to lead him to the park. A couple blocks up from the Yamada residence, Jyushi recognizes the sign from the makeup shop he thought about checking out later, and he turns left alongside other pedestrians. He can hear a lot of them marvel over his height, and Jyushi wants to do nothing more than try to shrink in on himself, but he ends up not doing that when he begins to see a line of trees.

He was close to the park.

Meaning he was close to Jiro. There’s a chorus of people calling for the ball and Jyushi follows the sound. It was still faint, but it was enough for Jyushi to walk north. This was a part of the park he didn’t see yesterday, but Jyushi figured this was where the playing fields were located. He continues walking and he spots the baseball field. And then further along back were a bunch of people playing on a soccer field.

They all were wearing T-shirts and shorts, but some of them even wore jeans, and Jyushi has to hold back his laughter when he hears one of the people wearing jeans slide along the grass to steal the ball, only to yell in frustration upon getting fresh grass stains on his new potential date clothes. To make things worse, he didn’t even steal the ball.

But the person who slid the ball past him was none other than the one Jyushi had come out to see.

Jiro was laughing at his friend’s misfortune and he approaches the goalie from the enemy side. With a grin, Jiro stretches his leg and kicks the ball, aiming for the top corner of the net. The goalie jumps, trying to catch the ball, but he jumps too late, the ball just slipping past his fingers to hit the net.

Jiro and his friends jump in excitement as they win the point, and Jyushi can’t help but applaud them. “That was amazing!! Amanda, if only you could see this!!” Jyushi says before realizing YES! Amanda can watch the game with him! Jyushi sits on the edge of the concrete and places the bentos to his side. Then, he pulls Amanda out from the bag and Amanda gasps in amazement as they watch the real life soccer game.

“It’s all so cool to watch, isn’t it!”

Jyushi smiles. “It is. And Jiro looks like he’s having fun.”

“He does, doesn’t he?”

The two continue watching as Jiro’s team overpowers the other team. Their rivals complain because Jiro is on the other side, which makes it impossible to do anything. Jiro wipes the sweat from his brow and gives them a cheeky grin. “Well, if you guys didn’t want to wait for me, it would’ve been a much easier game.”

Jiro’s friend with the fresh grass stain points an accusatory finger towards Jiro. “Well, sorry for being sorry and single!!”

Jyushi can hear their conversation from over where he was, his exceptional hearing working to his disadvantage sometimes. But Amanda nudges Jyushi with their stuffed leg. “Shall we go and introduce ourselves then?”

Jyushi’s face burns, but he ends up nodding. “Jiro must be hungry…”

But then Jyushi ends up remembering they don’t have drinks. He frantically turns around and spots the vending machine. Pulling Amanda and the bentos with him, he buys a couple bottles of pocari for himself and Jiro before slowly approaching the soccer field.

The closer Jyushi gets to Jiro and his friends, the faster his heart beats against his chest. But he can’t help the smile that spreads on his face. Jiro and his friends are talking about how much their outings are like dates, but for single people and they tease Jiro for being the lucky bastard who got someone they can spend summer with.

Jyushi stops walking mere steps away from Jiro. He bites his black stained lips nervously, but after taking a few deep breaths, he continues walking the rest of the distance between himself and Jiro and leans against him.

Jiro jumps at the sensation. Jiro’s friends all stare dumbly at the new situation. Jiro ends up grinning like a fool. “Well, sorry for being the lucky bastard who gets to hang out with their wonderful musician of a boyfriend. But I’m telling you, I’m glad to be that lucky bastard.”

Jiro turns around to look at Jyushi with a large grin on his face. “Hey, Jyushi.”

“Hi, Jiro.” Jyushi pulls the bento in front of him. “I… I brought lunch. Ichiro-san said you’d be hungry right about now…”

The way Jiro’s stomach responds to the sight of food makes Jyushi laugh fondly. 

“I guess I am.” Jiro responds. Jiro’s friends look at each other, trying to remember where they’ve seen this guy before.

The next thing Jyushi knows, Jiro’s friends are all on him. “A-Argo Kishii Gakudan?!!”

Jyushi jumps at the sudden confrontation and his persona comes to the rescue. With a flashy pose, Jyushi speaks to them like he does with his stage audience. “It seems like you are aware of the existence of my band. Yes, I am the Dark Prince of Argo Kishii Gakudan, Aimono Jyushi!!”

Jiro’s friends turn to him. “What the hell man?! You got together with one of the most popular vocalists right now?!”

Jiro crosses his arms. “Oi. I’m gonna draw the line right there. Step away from the boyfriend!!”

Jiro’s friends begrudgingly do so, but they look like they’re demanding answers. Jyushi lets his stronger persona give him the courage to pull Jiro close to him, wrapping his free hand around Jiro’s waist. Jiro looks up, momentarily lost in what’s happening, and Jyushi closes the distance between them, a firm kiss pressed to his lips.

Jiro’s friends all yell in various stages of envy, happiness, and pure sensations of “WHAT THE FUCK JIROOOOO!!”

“My Precious Knight Jiro helped me find my most prized friend in my time of darkness when I came to Ikebukuro for a concert. My Knight didn’t do much, but managed to intrigue me in such a short time. It is I who should say I’m the lucky one to have found My Knight when I believed all hope was lost.”

Jiro nudges Jyushi with a flush and a smile. “It’s fine man. As long as we’re happy now, isn’t that more important?”

Jyushi slips out of his persona and gazes at Jiro with such love and care, Jiro’s friends are feeling like insignificant side characters in a manga. But at the same time, they feel inexplicably happy for Jiro. With a grin, Jiro’s friends pull away, running to get food from the nearby conbini or takeout. They promise to return so they can hear all the details of their relationship.

When Jiro and Jyushi are alone, Jiro stays in Jyushi’s hold for a little while longer before turning to face him. “So, I guess we should find a place to eat.”

Jyushi nods and follows Jiro down towards the open field, away from the soccer goals. Their hands feel like they’re in their natural state, easily entangled in each other’s. There’s a large shaded area and Jiro stops there. Jyushi worries about the damp grass before Amanda pops out and has a picnic blanket in between their stuffed appendages. “Yamada Ichiro put this in your bag while you were getting ready to leave. I think we can use this!”

Jiro takes the cloth from Amanda and strokes their head. “As expected of Nii-chan. Always thinking of everything.”

Jiro unfurls the blanket and Jyushi thinks it won’t be large enough for all of Jiro’s friends to sit on. “They can use their own jackets or whatever. They won’t mind a little wet grass if it means getting to talk to you.”

Jyushi frantically tugs his bangs. “It’s surprising…. though if you ask me.. I kinda just wanna be Jyushi, Jiro’s boyfriend. Not Aimono Jyushi, the vocalist of Argo Kishii Gakudan.”

Jiro pulls Jyushi’s hand away from his bangs and grins. “Then you can tell them that. My friends can be real jerks sometimes, but they know when enough is enough.”

Jyushi nods. “O-okay then… I will.”

With that, Jiro takes possession of the bento and unwraps it. Jyushi’s heart races again as he watches Jiro lift the lid to the bento. Jiro grins as he sees that a lot of his favorite sides are stuffed inside. He can’t help but notice the inconsistencies of the octopus weiners, unlike Ichiro’s. When he looks at Jyushi, he frantically tugs his hair in front of his face again. “I… I… I tried cooking some of your bento with Ichiro….. sorry if it doesn’t taste the same….”

Jiro takes the chopsticks and digs in. “It will taste good all the same. Because I know Jyushi tried his best even though he isn’t used to cooking.” Jyushi pulls out the bottles of pocari from his bag and takes a long sip from his bottle. His nerves are getting to him in a bad way.

But Jiro smiles as he tastes the octopus weiners. They were slightly burnt on some sides, but they still were cooked through! He eats some more, savoring the karaage complimented with rice before he looks at the broken tamagoyaki. “I tried flipping the layers… but then it broke when I was taking it out of the pan… Ichiro sliced it up and it looks okay now but…”

Jiro takes a piece and savors the texture of the layered egg. It was soft, yet not completely fluffy. The layers weren’t densely compressed either, which somehow adds to the soft texture. It was an amazing attempt for Jyushi’s first try. But from the way that Jyushi looks like he’s beating himself up, Jiro figures he hasn’t tried anything he tried cooking himself.

“Hey Jyushi. Open up.” Jiro takes the other half of his broken piece and slides it into Jyushi’s mouth. Jyushi blinks many times as he slowly chews the tamagoyaki he had made himself. The taste…. was exceptional. It was a savory tamagoyaki, with some hints of sweetness to it. And the texture… it was so much better than Jyushi realized!

“It’s good…!” 

“I told ya it would be good.” Jiro grins as he feeds Jyushi some more from the bento. Jyushi waves his hands in front of himself. “No Jiro! This is for you!”

“And I’m saying I’m gonna share this with you. Food always tastes better when you eat it with other people.”

Jyushi stares at Jiro for a long time, but he loses easily to Jiro’s determination at this moment. With a slump of his shoulders, Jyushi submits to being fed Jiro’s food.

When Jiro’s friends return they all yell and complain that Jiro and his boyfriend are acting like they’re on their honeymoon period.

“Hey! Nagoya’s freakin’ far away okay?! I’m gonna do all the sappy shit I wanna do while Jyushi stays in ‘Bukuro!” Jiro yells. His friends end up laughing and nudging him as they take seats around the couple. When Jyushi is bombarded with questions about his band, he shakes his head. “While I am thankful for the support you’re giving me and my band… I would rather like it if we could converse like we were friends. Please… just think of me as Jiro’s boyfriend. That’s it.”

Jiro’s friends end up nodding. “Of course! I think it would be easier for us to chat this way too!!”

With smiles and food, Jiro, Jyushi, and Jiro’s friends end up chatting away the hours underneath the shaded area until the sky turns a vivid orange.

As Jiro and Jyushi turn to leave, Jyushi feels a hand on his shoulder. It’s Jiro’s friend with the grass stain. “Hey Jyushi. We were all gonna go and hang at the amusement park in a couple days. Right now there’s some summer specials that we were planing check out. Would you like to come with us?”

Jyushi clutches his crossbody. “A-are you sure I can come with you all?”

Jiro’s friend grins. “Of course you can. You’re Jiro’s boyfriend! Why wouldn’t we invite you?”

Jyushi accepts the invitation with a smile. “Thank you, Takahashi-san was it?”

Jiro’s friend gives him a thumbs up. “Yep! Okay we’ll all see you in a couple days then!!”

With that, Takahashi and the rest of Jiro’s friends walk down the street opposite to Jiro and Jyushi. When they walked back home, Jiro holds Jyushi’s hand tight. “I’m glad you got along with my friends. I think it would be kinda bad if you guys didn’t get along…”

“All your friends are pretty lively in their own way.” Jyushi stops walking and Jiro notices. When he turns around, Jyushi has an appreciative smile on his face. “I’m glad I got to see a little into Jiro’s life here in Ikebukuro.”

Jiro pulls Jyushi into a hug and holds him tight. “I’m glad you’re here so I can show you my life here. I want to share everything I have here with you while you’re here. Since all these things make me happy, I wanna share it with the guy that makes me happy.”

Jyushi feels the tears prick his eyes, but he feels like it’s okay to cry this time. “When you come to Nagoya, I’ll introduce you to my band friends. There isn’t much else of course… but I still want to share with you the things that make me happy.”

Jiro takes the information and lets it seep into his bones. There’s still so much Jiro and Jyushi need to learn about each other, but they’re willing to do what they can to share their lives with each other, even when they live in places so far away from each other.

Jiro pulls away to press a long kiss to Jyushi’s lips, pouring all his gratitude, love, and everything else into it. “I want you to remember all that you can, so you can think about it all when you think of me….”

Jyushi lets the tears fall as he returns Jiro’s kiss the best he can. “I will. I’ll remember all I can, because Jiro’s happiness is my own.”

When they both feel like they have calmed down, they begin walking once again. It’s only been two days, yet Jyushi feels like so much has happened. It makes him excited for what is going to happen.

“What will Ichiro-san have in store for us for dinner?” Jyushi asks.

“Knowing Nii-chan, it’s gonna be good!” Jiro yells.

The couple continues walking down the street, and Amanda is happy just getting to hear all of these things from inside the bag. These experiences are just proving to Amanda that Jiro was the one out there that was fated to love Jyushi the way he should be.

Now, just what will tomorrow hold in store for them?

Amanda can’t wait.