Work Text:
It was a fun little game that the entire crew was in on. Kou didn’t know why they called them C-47s on set. They were just clothespins. Like how an extension cord was called a stinger instead. Whatever, it didn’t matter. What mattered was watching her back, because this aforementioned game was seeing who could stick as many as they could on their crewmates unnoticed.
Yokkun and Ken-chan were always the most invested. They had the most creative ways of setting up a sneak attack, but their laughter would always give them away. Naoya, however? He was a freaking ninja. In and out. Like a little magic trick. Something about how good he was at it flustered Kou a bit, but whenever someone found a C47 on the back of their hat that had been there for 20 minutes, they knew it was Naoya’s doing.
“Kou-kun! Good morning!” Nao chirped. 7 AM call time. Not her favorite thing in the world. Her early bird crush, however, was chipper as always. He even brought coffee when he had the time. Before he handed it over, however, he gave a playfully stern look.
“How many Celsius drinks are in your bag?”
“…Two…?” Kou stammered under his scrutinizing gaze.
“I’m giving you this under the condition you stretch those out through the weekend and don’t drink them all today. AND you drink two full bottles of water at LEAST.”
Behind his gentle playfulness held a bit of sternness. She was notorious for being horrendously dehydrated, especially on set days. She had even collapsed during an outdoor shoot, causing Nao to keep a closer eye on her and demand she drink more water throughout the day.
“Do you accept the terms and conditions?” He asked, swirling the sweet coffee over her head.
Kou sighed reluctantly. “Y-yes…”
“Good!” Nao perked right back up and handed her the coffee. Now that that was over, Kou couldn’t help but notice something.
“Um…Nifuji-kun?”
“Yeah?”
“What—um…y-your…”
“Hmm? What’s the matter?”
“Y-your, um, your h—“
“BWAHAHAHA! Nao-chan, what’s with the ponytail?!” Yokkun cackled. Sure enough, Nao’s hair had been pulled back into the cutest little sprout of a ponytail. Ken-chan behind him was wheezing too hard to even speak.
“I wanna keep my hair out of my eyes today, Yokkun! I need to get it cut—hey, stop touching it!” Nao whined at his friend’s ridicule, crossing his arms with a pout while they flicked it like a mini punching bag. True, now that she looked a bit closer, she could see navy roots peeking out against the blonde covering the rest of his head.
(Gently) slapping a hand on her back, Naoya heard Kou squeaked in surprise. “At least Kou-kun’s not making fun of me!” He pouted, pulling her closer to make a point. She really needed to get better at this, just his hand on the small of her back had her face red and head spinning.
…so much so that it was only when Naoya walked away to join the safety meeting, she noticed the little wooden clip dangling from her shirt.
“He got you already?!” Ken-chan gawked in equal surprise to Kou.
As she rushed to catch up and join the meeting, she caught the slightest glimpse of a smirk on his face. A self-satisfied, adorably dumb, playful little smirk.
Oh, it was ON.
Well, if she could get a chance to. Their departments didn’t really overlap, and even during lunch, she fiddled with the same clip in her pocket. At the crafty table, lunch, any sort of down time, she was too afraid to strike. He’d totally catch her, right?
By the end of the day, Nao had definitely caught onto his new little shadow. “Kou-kun? Can you c’mere for a sec?” He asked when he finally had a second.
“Oh! Yes!” She scrambled out to the corner he was at. Oh. He was in a corner. For a private word. Oh shit did she do something—
“Are you okay?”
“W—what?”
“It’s just…you look like you’ve been wanting to say something all day. We have a few minutes, so let’s get it off your chest!”
Oh.
“I—I’m so sorry! I’m sorry, I didn’t realize I came off—!”
“You didn’t come off any sorta way! You’ve just been looking like you have something you wanna tell me! Am I wrong?”
Shit, she had to think of something and fast. What’s the first thing that came to mind??
“I think your ponytail is cute—“ she blurted, covering her mouth as soon as she’d said it. The embarrassment was arguably worse than if he’d caught her.
Nao’s reaction, however, somehow made it worth it. The man was just so expressive, it was the cutest thing. His eyes lit up and a giddy smile broke out all over his face. “I’m gonna go tell Yokkun you said that! To rub it in his face!”
Amidst his giggling, he poked his head back into the hot set before quickly ducking back out. “Ah, he’s still talking with the 1st AD. While we have the time, have you been drinking water?”
“Huh? Oh, y-yes, I have! I think I’m about…one and a half in?”
“Atta girl, Kou-kun!” Nao, clingy golden retriever he was, found no better way to accentuate his point than scooping Kou into a big bear hug. Once the initial shock and stammering subsided, Kou allowed herself to remember just how nice his hugs felt. Nao rubbed her shoulders with a sigh. “You’re all tense. We wrap soon, okay? I think, like, two more shots and we’re done for the day.”
“Yeah…” she nodded softly, returning the hug after a moment of hesitation.
“Hey, we didn’t hire an intimacy coordinator!” The sudden call from Yokkun made the two of them squeak and let go quickly, faces turning red.
“A-ah, Yokkun, I was just looking for you!” Nao turned to run towards him, but stopped when he felt a tug on the back of his hair. “Ow! What the—…”
His jaw hit the floor. “…Kou-kun?”
“Yes…?”
“Did you—…?”
“I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
“And here I was giving you hugs and everything! No good deed goes unpunished in this cruel, cruel world!” Naoya wailed, Yokkun laughing loudly behind him.
“She got you! In the back of the stupid ponytail!” He howled.
“Traitors, both of you! Hostile work environment!”
Kou finally let herself burst into giggles, something that always seemed to make Nao drop the fake outrage and laugh with her.