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Everything changes that night when Ohno appears at his door, beers in hand, offering a crooked smile and a plastic bag, which is filled with food if Nino's suspicions are correct.
“What are you doing here?” Nino asks before Ohno even has a chance to open his mouth.
Not that Ohno would have taken that chance. He's still just standing there, then holds up the plastic bag as if it explains everything.
“Bringing me... food?” Nino concludes, raising an eyebrow. Ohno rolls his eyes.
“Coming to see you,” he corrects.
Nino lets out a long-suffering sigh. “You and rules are not exactly on the friendliest of terms, are you?”
Because really, why did they ever agree among themselves that visits between members had to be arranged first? Why did they even hold a meeting last month with all five members, for one and a half hours, to drill the importance of such rules into even the thickest head if Ohno ignored it all entirely now?
Ohno shrugs and Nino can only shake his head in disbelief. Well, that's better than ramming it into the door frame, he decides.
“Well...?” Ohno prompts. Nino steps aside, inviting him into the apartment and asking himself, not for the first time, what he did to deserve such a leader. There's nothing positive about that thought though.
His apartment looks like it's been bombed, but if Ohno minds he doesn't say it. All the better, Nino thinks. He probably knows that in this case Nino would murder him painfully on the spot. After all, he is the uninvited intruder here.
Nino pushes the carelessly discarded jeans off the couch, throws his socks after it, and plops down cross-legged on the now free spot. His pants stretch tightly over his crotch showing Ohno more than he might want to see. Nino couldn't care less.
“At least make yourself comfortable now that you're here,” he says when Ohno doesn't make a move.
“Uh,” is Ohno's very intelligent answer. He puts down the plastic bag on top of one of the magazines strewn across the table, thus blocking their grinning faces on the cover. The rest of the couch is littered with controllers and video game cases. Ohno apparently doesn't dare to touch them, so he sits down on the floor. Nino is a little proud of him.
“So, what are you doing here?” he asks again, hoping to receive a decent answer this time. But he's known Ohno for a long time now and therefore is not half as surprised as he maybe should be at his answer.
“Paying you a visit.” Ohno is grinning as if this is all the explanation needed. And maybe it is in a way, which makes it even worse.
“You know that's not a legit reason?” Nino answers.
Ohno gets on his knees to reach for his bag and pulls out two cans of beer. He couldn't have made it more obvious that the topic is over for him.
It's not the first time Ohno appeared on his doorstep, but it is the first since their agreement on the rules. Rules they felt were needed after ten years of Arashi. They were getting older after all and also more mature – or so they like to tell each other. Nino doesn't even remember who brought up the idea of these rules (probably himself), but all of a sudden they found themselves in a heated discussion about what was okay between them – and what wasn't.
This was also the day they decided that fan service was to be exclusively reserved for the cameras.
Nino remembers well how Ohno excluded himself from the discussion. If he had said anything, this rule might never have been established. But he didn't object and Nino didn't want to be the only one against.
When they meet in the green room the next morning none of them mentions the previous night. There's nothing to talk about anyway. They simply stayed in Nino's living room, had two beers each and picked at the bento Ohno had brought. It wasn't even particularly tasty. After only one hour Ohno went home.
But a week later Ohno is on his doorstep again. Nino shortly considers slamming the door in his face, but he manages to contain himself just so. If Ohno gives him a good enough reason now, he will let him in.
“What do you want?”
Ohno's smile seems a little unsure.
“See you?” he tries hesitantly. Nino is waiting, counting to ten in his mind, but nothing follows, no sensible explanation as to why Ohno has once again decided to pay him a surprise visit.
So he shuts the door.
The bell rings again seconds later, of course.
“What do you want?” Nino repeats, more forcefully this time. He wants Ohno to understand that the fun is over and that they are breaking the rules. Even if these rules might seem kind of weird to begin with.
This time Ohno's smile is more confident.
“Can you teach me how to play Super Smash Brothers?”
“Which edition?” Nino asks right away to cover his surprise. He has to admit he didn't anticipate this at all.
Ohno's smile falters. “The ... newest?”
“Brawl,” Nino says at once and opens the door just a little further for Ohno to squeeze by him. He doesn't really know what he's in for.
This time Ohno takes a seat on the couch. Nino cleaned it after his last visit and has managed to keep it that way ever since. He hasn't really thought about it, but now that Ohno is here again sitting next to him Nino wonders if his subconscious has been hard at work in this case.
“So, SSB it is. I hope you have a valid reason for this,” Nino challenges. Ohno's gaze shifts away from him, scanning Nino's living room and seemingly lingering on the heap of dirty laundry next to the TV set. Nino isn't sure whether Ohno is really interested in his laundry or has already spaced out too much to realize what he's looking at.
It's not too late to throw him out.
“Bingo,” Ohno says out of the blue. Nino can't help but stare at him incredulously.
“What?”
“Our New Year's Bingo. My family wants to do something new. So we're going to play Super Smash Brothers this year,” Ohno explains shortly.
“Your family wants to do—what?” Nino asks again, completely bewildered. For a moment he's at a loss for words.
“I don't wanna be last,” Ohno continues, “so I thought you might be able to help me.”
“And you couldn't have asked after Shiyagare today?” Nino grumbles because, really now, why does he have to pop in uninvited again for that?
“Forgot,” Ohno simply replies. The problem is Nino could just believe him.
Even if the rest sounds like one of the worst pretexts Ohno has ever come up with. However, when Ohno looks back at him again with pleading puppy dog eyes, he only raises an eyebrow without saying a word. Suddenly he's far more interested in the reason why Ohno is telling him such lies. What his motives are.
“Okay, we can do this. But under one condition. You will inform me before you intend to come by. You will stick to our stupid rules and ask whether I have time and if I have time and I'll say yes you may come here and I will teach you to be the best SSB player of your entire family.” Nino enunciates every word very carefully, hoping to gain Ohno's attention.
“Yup,” Ohno simply answers. Nino wants to hit him for it.
He hasn't played Brawl in a long time and has to search through his piles of video games first. Ohno sits patiently on his couch, Nino can feel his eyes on his back and tries not to mind.
“Whose stupid idea was it anyway?” he asks while rummaging through his Wii games. Maybe he should start sorting them someday.
“Hm?”
“To take a break from your traditional Bingo.”
“Ah. Uh. My mom's.” Nino instantly registers that Ohno had to think about that. But he doesn't comment.
Not yet.
A familiar case appears in the depths of his wardrobe and Nino grabs it triumphantly. He knew that Brawl was somewhere in here. He doesn't bother standing up, just scoots over two meters from his spot to the TV set to insert the game.
“Have you ever played SSB before?” he asks Ohno while the game is loading.
He can practically see Ohno's crooked smile before him even with his back turned to him.
“Nope.”
Nino now believes he knows what he is in for. And it's nothing good.
It takes two hours for Ohno to finally manage not to fall off the platform without Nino even having to attack.
“I'm getting better, aren't I?” he asks so enthusiastically that Nino can't find it in him to tell the truth.
“Yes, it's going really well already,” he lies. Ohno beams at him.
“Great, then let's fight against each other now.”
Nino tries hard - he really does, - to play badly but his reflexes keep intervening so that after three minutes Ohno has lost all of his lives and Nino hasn't even taken more than 20% damages.
Ohno puts down the controller, dejected.
“It's...,” Nino starts hesitantly when the silence becomes too oppressing. “There's still some time before New Year's.”
The next week he at least gets a message from Ohno. With ten minutes to spare and the very concise content I'm on my way. Nino shakes his head but stops his game anyway to insert SSB. His couch is still litter-free and this time he even tries to clear his table. Shortly after, the door bell rings.
“You are aware that I meant something a little different when I told you to inform me beforehand?” Nino asks as Ohno is pulling off his shoes. But the other just glances over his shoulder, grinning.
“Yet you let me in,” he jests, striding straight into the living room. Nino stares after him for a few seconds before slumping his shoulders and following with heavy feet. Ohno is already busying himself with connecting the Nunchuk to the Wiimote, his face a mask of concentration.
Even though he already knows that nothing good can come out of this whole arrangement, Nino has to admit it's kind of endearing. And he gets to play video games as a bonus.
“We'll include a computer-player now. That way you can fight against him and I can watch and will only intervene when things get too tough,” Nino explains with Ohno nodding along.
“Great, I can do this. But let's take the Zelda platform. I don't fall off that one that easily.”
“That's the Hyrule temple,” Nino corrects with a sigh. At least Ohno has stopped calling Link Zelda. When he did that at the beginning Nino was close to strangling him. Every time.
“Whatever,” Ohno replies, already deeply immersed in the fight. Since Nino doesn't do much more than let his character trail after Ohno's or jump around, he has time enough to steal little glances at Ohno.
It’s not often that he sees Ohno so concentrated on a video game. Sure, he had fun with Super Mario Brothers at the CM shooting, but that was about it. Ohno is no gamer. Ohno goes to the seaside to fish or encloses himself in his studio to create all kinds of queer stuff. Therefore the picture of him sitting next to Nino, controller in hand and concentrated eyes glued to the screen, is all the more interesting.
He likes it. Kind of.
When Ohno comes by the next time (this time even with a one day warning, though it was in the middle of their VS shoot) it's already half past eleven; the middle of the night.
“Sorry, I got stuck talking with Maru. I'm telling you, this guy just won't stop talking once he's started,” Ohno explains as if there's nothing more ordinary than calling on a band member at such a late hour.
“Then why didn't you just go home?” Nino asks puzzled because he really doesn't get why Ohno is here.
“'Cause I have to train? And today is the only night I'm free this week.”
Ohno smells of cigarettes and beer so Nino sends him to shower immediately. He wanted to go to bed early tonight because they are going to shoot three episodes of Shiyagare in a row tomorrow. Instead, he finds himself playing Wii with Ohno until the wee hours of morning.
“Why have I done this to myself?” he asks himself in resignation. He could throw him out, send him home or something similar, but he doesn't do it. Instead, he plops down on his couch, wraps himself in a warm blanket, and waits.
“I borrowed some of your clothes,” Ohno informs him as soon as he enters the living room. Nino is about to ask why he didn't simply put on the clothes he came in with, when he sees that Ohno is wearing his pajamas.
“I'm not a hotel,” he protests.
Ohno rolls his eyes.
“Do you really think I'll catch a train home at this hour? Besides, we have to be at the same studio tomorrow.”
So Ohno has decided to stay the night. Without even consulting with him on that decision. Nino has a strong feeling that he's made some major mistakes in his choice of friends.
But it's gotten so far that three hours later he is not even surprised when Ohno crawls into bed with him. Sadly, Nino is much too tired to argue against it. That's why he's lying in his bedroom now, back to back with Ohno, trying hard to fall asleep. It wasn't a problem in the earlier days, he tells himself. Back when they often shared beds. But all that seems such a long time ago.
Of course they draw attention when they arrive at the studio together the next day – not only because they are both unshaved and almost too late and everybody's already waiting for them.
“Huh? I thought you were with Maru yesterday?” Aiba asks, astonished, when they hurry into the studio. Jun is already clad in the black leather outfit he's been given for the shoot which almost makes it funny when he stares at them with crossed arms and a suspicious look.
“I was,” Ohno answers shortly, attending to his own clothes. Nino can feel Jun's gaze boring into his skin, but he knows that it would be fatal to meet it. For him, for Jun, for Ohno, probably for everybody in here. Because Nino hates stressful mornings (especially in addition to lack of sleep) and Jun hates tardiness. They would most likely start fighting if one of them said anything.
But this is one of the reasons why they haven't had a serious fight in all these years. Each of them knows when it's best to hold their tongue, maybe even ignore each other to a certain degree.
After the first shoot, though, the atmosphere is relaxed again because filming always gets them closer together, strengthens their bond, and that makes it easier to accomplish the next two shows. Plus, it wipes away any animosities there were.
Ohno makes it a habit to turn up in the middle of the night. Nino is sick of it, but instead of telling Ohno straight on he let's him feel it. So it doesn't take long until Ohno pauses the game one day to cast Nino a serious look.
“You know you can just tell me to leave.”
Nino hesitates. He knows that he can do that. Normally he has no problem with telling people to leave right to their faces. But the fact that he hasn't thrown Ohno out yet makes him realize that he doesn't want to do it after all.
“It's okay,” he simply says. Ohno makes a face, but turns his attention back on his opponent. They don't talk much that night.
But this time, when they're lying in bed, Ohno turns to him.
“Nino?,” he whispers making Nino turn as well to face him.
“Hm?”
“You have to tell me if you’re sick of this, okay?”
Nino takes a deep breath looking Ohno straight in the face. He can't see much, just vague outlines, because, save for the faint light from his alarm clock, his room is pitch black. But Ohno's eyes are shining.
“Don't worry, I'll throw you out once you become too annoying,” Nino says. He can hear Ohno giggling through his nose.
“Sounds just like you.”
“Who else should I sound like?” Nino laughs. He believes he can see a smile on Ohno's face, but he's not sure. It's too dark.
Then he closes his eyes because they're in bed to sleep after all, not to talk. They will be able to talk tomorrow; there are four hours to go until the alarm goes off and they have another trying day ahead of them.
But just as he is about to drift off into sleep he feels something, a quick, feather-light touch to his cheek. He doesn't know what it is exactly and he's far too sleepy to analyze it, but it feels good. So good in fact that he remembers it as soon as he wakes up again.
His hand sluggishly finds the alarm clock to set it for just a little later, giving them five more minutes before having to face the everyday-hustle. During the night he's turned away from Ohno facing the other side, but Ohno has stayed the way he was when they fell asleep. Which means that he is lying pressed to his back, very comfortable and warm. He moves a little, ending up even closer to Nino's body.
Nino touches his cheek asking himself what it was that touched him there yesterday. Ohno's finger? His nose? Maybe even his lips?
Before he can find an answer he dozes off again. Five minutes later the alarm goes off once more and the train of thought is gone.
Sho is the first to react. Nino wouldn't have noticed if he hadn't looked up from his DS to steal a glance at Ohno right when Sho went to him. He sees how serious Sho is in his eyes and his knitted eyebrows. And he understands what he is telling Ohno even though they're too far away to hear the words; but they're written plain on Sho's face, big and bold.
We need to talk. About you and Nino.
The fact that Sho looks over at him them underlines his suspicions.
So it's started, Nino thinks. Now the rest of Arashi is going to meddle. Though they haven't even broken any of the rules.
His feeling like a heavy offender anyway doesn't even surprise him anymore. Nonetheless he finds himself questioning how they came from playing Super Smash Brothers Brawl to sharing Nino's bed night after night. Then suddenly he can feel the touch again, the warmth on his cheek, even though he's sitting on his couch all alone and there is no one to touch him.
He won't think about it.
Not now.
So he turns back to his DS, losing himself in a world of fights and adventure and magic, because after all it's not him Sho wants to talk to. He is still safe from that confrontation.
He knew that Ohno would refrain from dropping by for a while. Maybe even forever, depending on how convincing Sho had been.
What he didn't know was that he'd miss him.
Not fair, is the first thought flashing through his mind when he steps into the green room and finds Aiba hunched over Jun, their faces inches apart so that Aiba's lips almost touch Jun's cheek.
So not fair.
Jun seem flustered. Aiba is simply surprised. They pull away from each other a little but to Nino it makes no difference anymore.
“Why do we have these rules anyway?” he asks instead of firing all the accusations flying around in his head at them.
He leaves the green room without giving them time to answer, because he knows that basically it's none of his business and he knows that Arashi is still successful because they don't discuss such issues.
They talk about inconsequential stuff, funny things, they joke and bicker, but they avoid serious confrontations.
Okay, so Sho talked to Ohno. But these two have always been an exception. Maybe because they're the oldest. Or because they share a different kind of friendship.
Nino doesn't really know where he wants to go with his thoughts. He only knows that it feels unfair that Jun accepts Aiba's advances so readily while Nino himself struggles desperately to find a reason to legitimate sharing a bed with Ohno once a week.
Used to share, he corrects himself and swallows the bitter feeling threatening to rise in his throat.
Some years ago he thought about how it would be if he and Ohno would get together. The thought itself was neither frightening nor far-fetched. It had been a time when Nino was able to rationalize his entire life. That was also the reason why he came to the conclusion that it wouldn't make sense. That they had no future.
Arashi had always been his first priority. It is still and will always be. His feelings for Ohno would always come second and Ohno didn't deserve this. It had been as easy as that.
The realization hasn't left him since. It still hits him whenever Ohno's closeness threatens to drown him completely. Whenever Ohno shoots him that one, hopeful look which Nino either tries to ignore or pretends to not understand.
Then there was their discussion with the new rules as a result. Nino knew even then that they wouldn't keep to them forever. Couldn't do it.
But he didn't anticipate Ohno being the first to break them.
He thought it would be himself.
It's only one week until Christmas, two weeks until New Year's, and the first snow covers Tokyo in a powdery blanket when Ohno stands in front of his door again. Unannounced.
“I thought you weren't coming anymore,” Nino says trying to sound uncaring, he’s really trying, but there are just too many emotions welling up inside as he sees Ohno standing in front of him, wrapped in a thick scarf, with a red nose and melting snowflakes in his hair.
“Would you have preferred that?” Ohno asks up front.
It would've been better, he thinks.
“No,” he says.
Ohno hides his beaming smile in his scarf but Nino catches it in his eyes.
It quickly becomes apparent that Ohno has forgotten all of his tips and the meticulously thought out strategies. He can't even manage the Smash Attack anymore, even though he was so proud when he had finally mastered it.
For Ohno it’s a reason to come by more often during these two weeks to New Year's. For Nino it’s an excuse.
On Christmas they go to Aiba's birthday party together and also leave together. Nino catches the short exchange of looks between Ohno and Sho, but nobody says a thing.
But Ohno is very quiet when they're back at Nino's, sitting next to each other on the couch. For a long time they just stare at the TV screen showing the Wii symbols, no one making a move to start the game.
“Sho-kun said we have to be careful,” Ohno says ponderously after a while. His voice is in stark contrast to the jolly video game music blaring from Nino's speakers.
Nino hasn't been prepared for the anger flaring up against Sho. That's why the words sound much harsher than intended when he blurts out:
“It's none of Sho-kun's business!”
Ohno doesn't seem surprised by his hissing fit, though.
“I wish it were so easy.”
He sounds so honest, leaving Nino at loss on how to react. And then he realizes that this is exactly their problem. There is no answer to that.
“Do you think the trains can even travel in this snow?” Ohno asks when they get tired of gaming. A look outside, however, reveals his true intentions. Because the snow has long started to melt away and there's only a few fluffy flakes falling to the ground. Of course the trains are still mobile.
“I don't think so. You have to stay here, it seems,” Nino replies with what they both want to hear.
“Seems wiser,” Ohno agrees.
This time it's Nino who turns around when they're lying in bed together. It doesn't take long for Ohno to do the same. The scene is the same as a few weeks ago with only the faint light of the alarm clock illuminating Ohno's face.
“You know...,” Ohno begins, but pauses as if he has to stop himself from saying something that shouldn't be said.
Nino is lying there, tense. Those few inches of safety distance seem so very important all of a sudden.
Sho said they have to be careful. But why? Because they're lying here on Nino's bed on Christmas Eve, because they have put off their families until tomorrow, and used Aiba's birthday party as an excuse? Or because the distance between them has grown smaller and smaller with every night they have slept in the same bed?
Why exactly do they have to be careful, he wants to ask Sho.
After all, Nino knows that they have no future.
And he has some hope that Ohno knows that too.
“You are aware that half of my family has no idea how to play Wii, right?” Ohno finally finishes his sentence making Nino's hopes disappear. Why does he have to choose tonight of all nights to be honest? Just now when his head is swimming in a sea of doubts.
“Yeah, I know,” he whispers. What else is he supposed to say? Ohno wouldn't believe him if he feigned surprise.
“My mom doesn't even know Super Smash Brothers,” Ohno adds, even though no further explanations are necessary. Maybe it's supposed to sound apologetic because he's confessing about lying to Nino. But it doesn't.
“Would've surprised me,” Nino answers sheepishly.
“You didn't wonder?” Ohno asks then. Nino is aware that he means something else entirely. He listens inside himself, questioning if he ever wondered about Ohno using a family SSB tournament as an excuse just to spend time with him.
“I was wondering why you'd need an excuse,” he replies to Ohno as much as to himself.
Nino turns on his back, because even if he can't make out much in the darkness, it feels awkward to look Ohno's way. He can't hear the other move, though, so he concludes that Ohno is still looking at him.
“The excuse was for you,” Ohno says quietly, carefully. Nino is grateful for having turned away. “I know that you need a reason to spend time with me.”
Now that's a surprise. Nino automatically turns his head towards Ohno and for the first time tonight wishes he could see more. He wants to look Ohno in the eyes to find out whether he's really serious. But here in the darkness he can only rely on the tone of Ohno's voice.
“And what was in it for you?” he asks just to say anything and keep the conversation alive. He should ask what Ohno means exactly, what is behind it all – but the words just won't pass his lips.
“The question is pretty stupid, Nino,” Ohno says with a hint of resignation. And truth be told, it's quite obvious what was in it for Ohno. After all, it seemed to have been his plan all along to spend more time with Nino.
“Will you come visit again?” is Nino's next question ignoring Ohno's previous words. At least this is one of the questions he intended to ask even though it's by far the least important.
He can hear Ohno taking a long, deep breath. “Will you let me in?”
“I haven't left you standing outside yet. And I don't intend to start doing it now.”
Nino turns on his side again, directly facing Ohno. He's just in time to get a glimpse of Ohno's smile which disappears again instantly. But Nino is smiling now, too, maybe in order to reassure Ohno that it's okay to smile, though he's not certain if Ohno can even see him. Which he most likely can’t, because the sole light source in the room is behind Nino. For Ohno his face is probably just a black blotch.
Ohno scoots closer making Nino automatically hold his breath.
But nothing happens. Ohno is just lying next to him, his face close enough for Nino to feel his breath, but far enough to prevent anything from happening that should better not happen.
“That's good,” Ohno says. Nino needs a few seconds to understand what he's referring to. The blanket is moving, rustling, and shortly after Nino can feel Ohno's hand tentatively, very carefully, touching his arm. Ohno's fingertips stroke the bare skin with the lightest touch which nonetheless provokes multiple shivers running through his body.
All these jumbling thoughts left his body overly sensitive.
“Mh-mh,” Nino murmurs, partly because he feels uncomfortable not answering to Ohno's words and partly because every second of silence makes him more tense.
Ohno comes even closer, their foreheads touching now. His fingers keep on stroking Nino's arm, up and up, shortly disappearing under the hem of his shirt, but never reaching beyond the shoulder because the sleeves are too tight. Nino hopes that Ohno will just give up there.
But he doesn't. Instead, Ohno lifts his hand to Nino's neck, stroking his throat down to the collar bone. His touch sends tiny electric shocks through Nino, who only realizes that he's panting when his lungs start protesting painfully. He closes his eyes counting twenty-one, twenty-two, twenty-three, and tries to calm down. Ohno's finger just won't stop, stroking up to his jaw and along his chin and down again.
Nino asks himself whether Ohno can hear his heart, being so close. With it beating so loudly.
Maybe, somewhere in the back of his head, he's aware of Ohno's intentions, but he won't allow this knowledge to poison his mind. Otherwise he might struggle against the touches or just run away.
Ohno makes a noise Nino can't identify. It sounds as if it's escaped unintentionally – like when someone is talking half asleep before realizing that they're not yet dreaming. Ohno's touches, however, make it very clear that he is far from sleeping. He has now made his way up to Nino's ear which leads to him deciding that it's time to intervene.
But then Ohno cups his cheek with one hand and Nino realizes the moment is gone.
“Nino,” Ohno whispers making him shiver again. Nino, Nino, Nino, Ohno's voice echoes in his mind and he has to open his eyes again. He's looking straight into Ohno's and they are shining.
He can still feel the other's hand on his cheek. It's lying there, calm and waiting.
The tension becomes too much to bear, he starts to tremble slightly, desperately hoping that Ohno won't notice. He wants to calm down, gain back at least a little self-control, but he's not even capable of forming a coherent thought.
Ohno is so close, filling him with his warmth, his familiar, intoxicating scent.
“Nino,” Ohno repeats, but Nino is way past able to answer. Everything about this situation screams for him to bridge the slight gap between them and kiss Ohno, to finally give in to the years of temptation. But nothing happens. They're just lying there, so damn close, looking at each other while Nino is fighting one shiver after the other.
It's driving him crazy.
But at the same time he can't move an inch, can neither tear himself away from Ohno nor kiss him. He can only stay in place hoping for Ohno to rescue him from his trepidation.
“Do you need an excuse for this, too?” Ohno asks quietly against his lips. Nino opens his mouth to at least try and answer but then he feels Ohno's thumb on his bottom lip.
Realization hits him.
This is far beyond any excuse. Here, in the safety of the dark, where nobody can see them and it's only about Ohno, he doesn't need any excuses anymore. No explanations, no justifications. It's all about what he's feeling deep inside.
He draws new strength and courage from this realization and leans forward.
Finally kissing Ohno is a great relief. The trembling ceases making way for a pleasant tingling all over his body and settling in his stomach.
It's the first time that his brain is not judging him, telling him whether it's right or wrong, because the prevailing thought in his mind right now is just how good Ohno's lips feel under his.
Ohno sighs into the kiss, making Nino comprehend that he's not been the only one secretly pining for this moment. With the difference that Ohno has allowed the feeling and started to act on it in order to turn wishful thinking into reality. He's taken on Nino's ratio in a fight.
And he won.
Even if there are still many unresolved issues between them, many things that should have been openly discussed, Nino believes he's taken a step in the right direction. Now all he has to do is accept what Right means for him.
The End