Chapter Text
"Wait, I'm actually loosing my hearing?" Ai asked quietly as he sat on the cold sheets of a hospital bed. His doctor sighed, it was low and silent. Ai didn't expect this. Not at all. "I'm afraid so." Ai sulked. Anything but his hearing. Hell, he'd rather be blind. "You'll lose it bit by bit. It'll take about a month." Ai bit his lip and tried to keep himself from balling right there. "Ok." He said, barley audible, lying back in his bed, he needed sleep.
- Months later -
Everyone in Ai's house had learned sign language, for his sake. Even he did, he stopped using his voice all together, due to the fact he really can't control it. His family had been packing for weeks, ready to get out of town and move to a better place. Ever since his accident, they've been trying to get out. Finally they settled in a small town, not too far from their own. For their first couple of months there Aiichirou didn't attend school, but now he was enrolling in a public school. His parents couldn't afford school for the hearing impaired. Naturally it would be offered but Aiichirou was basically a normal child, he couldn't be separated from the other kids. It probably is best he'd attend a normal public school. "Ai I've finally got you into school!" His mother signed to him as she ran into his room with a huge smile. She jumped onto his bed with him and gave him a hug.
"Oh, really? Where?" He signed, smiling hopefully. "At a local public school," Ai lifted a brow. Thinking, why a normal school? With normal kids? That could hear? "Ai, your a perfectly fine kid, all you have is this little problem." His mother signed as her brows knitted together. "Also I want you to be with everyone else. I don't want you separated because of one little thing." She gave him a look of sympathy and kissed his forehead. Ai's features resting back into a soft smile. "I get it." He signed, sighing lightly. He shifted slightly in his bed. "Is the school nice and big?" He signed to his mother excitingly.
- Meanwhile at the school -
"How did I get an F?" Sousuke Yamazaki asked, slamming his test onto the desk of his teachers. The old man looked up, fixing his glasses and sighing. "Yamazaki, do you even study at all?" Sousuke backed up and looked off. "N...no." He said quietly taking the paper. He stood tall once again and sighed. "That's not it though! I know the basics of sign language, why am I not out of this class yet?" He asked lifting his arms and dropping them to his side. His teacher stood up and signed to him. "W-what is this? What are you doing?" He said a dumb and confused look painted on his face, as the old man signed "Because you aren't taking this seriously." Sousuke sighed. "Just tell me." He barked out at the old man. The man sighed and handed Sousuke a book on sign language. "I said that you aren't taking this seriously." Sousuke lifted a brow at the book. He looked at the cover, obviously hands signing "Sign Language". Sousuke snorted and put the book down. "I don't need this." "Oh yes you do." His teacher interrupted. The boy rolled his teal eyes and stuffed the book into his bag, storming out shortly after.
-
"I'm home!" Sousuke announced as he ran up stairs to his own room. He threw his bag onto the floor, the book falling out. A scowl slowly forming as he looked to the cover, suddenly the vibration of his phone causing him to jump. "Ah what the hell." He fished out his phone from his pocket and quickly answered. "What do you want?" He said as he face planted onto his bed.
"Mr. Tetsuya gave me some book on sign language. I don't see why I'm actually in that class still. I did my time." He sighed. "How's child development?" He asked chuckling shortly after. "Oh shut up!" The voice said on the other end. "It's shit." Sousuke laughed softly.
-
The next morning Ai woke to an empty house. Parents already have gone to work. His mother sent him messages about school, he sighed as he made himself breakfast. Obviously up way too early. It was nearly 6 am and school wasn't until 9. Aiichirou took advantage of his extra time and actually tried to look nice for his first day of school in months. He actually had enough time to take a shower, do his hair, and make himself breakfast and lunch, listening to music as he did so, well more feeling. The vibrations. The walk to the bus stop wasn't very far so he had more than enough time, but he did want to be early. So he left right after the song he currently had on ended.
"Oh yes I heard."
"That's excellent."
"I have the perfect student."
"Thank you."
"I'll tell him right after."
"Goodbye now." Sousuke's sign language teacher turned in his chair and laughed excitingly. Finally a chance for his student to become better and finally leave the class all he had to do was get a hold of Sousuke.
-
When Ai arrived at his new school, there weren't many students there, maybe he was early? The school was big, like his mother said, and pretty nice. Aiichirou slowly walked to the front doors, but suddenly he was on the ground. He looked up to someone running their mouth. An extremely attractive redhead. He read "I'm so sorry." Ai just smiled and stood up. Waving his hand. Signing. "I'm fine." The boy in front of him raised a brow. He didn't know sign language, he cursed silently and pointed to the boy. "Are you..uh...a mute?" The boy nodded and signed "Sort of." The redhead nodded and took out his phone and typed something onto his notes. Showing the screen to Ai. 'My name is Matsuoka Rin.' Ai laughed softly and waved to Rin. He took Rin's phone and typed another message. 'I'm Nitori Aiichirou, it's nice to meet you.' Rin smiled, taking the phone to type something else. 'Do you need any help? I could try my best to show you around a bit?' He flashed the screen to the smaller boy.
The silver haired child looked around and thought. He nodded slightly and took Rin's phone, leaving notes and giving Matsuoka his cell phone number. He signed to Rin, "It's a lot easier." Rin nodded and asked. "So yes to letting me show you around?" Ai read the boys lips and nodded. "You can read lips?" The redhead asked putting his phone away. The shortest nodded. Thank god, he didn't have to waste his phone battery. "Well, let's go." Rin said pushing the door open for Ai. When Ai walked in, it was alot bigger from the inside. And nicer. Also more students. He texted Rin. 'It's so nice and big!' The taller nodded and looked around. "Yeah I guess." He lead Ai into another area.
As the two walked down the hall a teacher approached them. Ai reading his lips the entire time. "Is this the newest student? You know? The impaired one?" The old man said looking to Rin and down to Ai. Rin looked down to the boy and nodded. "Yeah, is he needed?" He asked moving behind the boy. "Yes, we need him now, so is it fine if I take him to my room?" The teacher asked, looking at Ai as if he were a child. "Oh yeah. I'll see you later Nitori." Aiichirou only felt the vibrations of Rin's voice, turning to the taller teen, waving and walking off. He sighed and signed to the teacher. "What is wrong?" Surprisingly the teacher knew sign language. "Nothing at all, we are assigning you a mentor." The teacher signed to him. Ai lifted a brow and stepped into the room. Taking a seat right across from the teachers desk. Another teacher walking in. The other man stood up and whispered to the other. 'Please get Yamazaki Sousuke.' Is what Ai read from the mans lips.
-
"A mute?" Sousuke said as he sat with his friend, Matsuoka Rin. "Yeah, he was actually really cute." Sousuke nodded and ate his breakfast he picked up from a fast food place. "He's here now?" Sousuke said, mouth full. Rin nodded and took a piece. "He's with some teachers. Probably going to give him a student who knows sign language or something." The dark haired boy sighed and grabbed his bag. "Alright. Well I'm gonna dip real quick." He waved to the other and ran into the building.
Not too long after a teacher had stopped him. "Yamazaki?" He lifted a brow as he looked to the teacher in front of him. "Yes?" The man walked on, pushing Sousuke along. "W-wait?! What's going on?" He exclaimed getting out of the teachers hold. He looked the man up and down, fixing himself. "You don't know?" The elder said giving him a worried look. But what didn't Sousuke know? He hasn't heard anything? He didn't do anything? "About the mentoring?" Sousuke almost choked. "What?" The teacher walked him to his sign language teachers room. The man stopped in front of the door to tell Sousuke most of what he knew. "You expect me to walk around with a mute and I don't even fully know sign language?" The teacher nodded slightly and opened the door, Sousuke sighed and stepped in. Rin did say he was cute, lets just hope he was right on that part.
As he stepped into the room he made eye contact with beautiful blue eyes. He stopped where he was. Rin said he was cute, but not...this cute. "Shit." Sousuke mouthed to himself, causing Ai to raise a brow. When Sousuke looked back up Ai waved to him, smiling sweetly. "Yamazaki, This is Nitori-kun, he's our newest student. If you haven't heard, Nitori is impaired. And I wanted you to spend time with him." The old man said as Sousuke gave him an unamused look the entire time. "Are you serious?" Ai read only Sousuke's lips. "I don't even fully know the language and you expect me to help him?" The old man nodded. Sousuke sighed and looked to the boy. "...um. Can...Can you read what I'm saying?" Sousuke asked, lifting a brow. The smaller boy nodded and signed to him. "You just have to figure out what I'm saying." Sousuke backed off a bit. Looking to his teacher for an answer. "He said you just have to figure out what he says." Sousuke nodded and stood in front of the boy. "Well.." Dammit this kid was adorable, his stupid beauty mark, perfect skin and nice hair. Sousuke sighed. "C'mon then." He walked out the room and Ai quickly followed, almost falling out his chair.
Ai already kind of liked Sousuke. He didn't treat him like he was retarded or a child. He kind of just talked to him like he was a normal kid. And Ai liked that. Sousuke walked Ai outside, where Aiichirou had encountered his red headed friend. Sousuke looked to Ai, "um, I think you know him, but I'm taking you to someone." Ai lifted a brow and mouthed "Who?" Sousuke's brows raised. "Just someone c'mon." He patted the boys back and the two walked toward someone to their back. He noticed familiar red locks. The boy turned around and immediately recognized Ai. The redhead smiled brightly. "Oh, Hey! Nitori!" Ai smiled and nodded to Rin. "Is he who you were talking about?" Sousuke asked quietly. "yeah. Wait...are you?" "His mentor." Sousuke interrupted. Rin held in his laugh, turning a light shade of pink. "Oh let it out." Sousuke said looking to Ai. Rin laughed a little and patted Sousuke's back. "Oh man," Ai noticed the redheads laughing and signed to Sousuke. "What's wrong with him?" Sousuke only understanding about two words. He just shrugged, hoping that would be a good enough answer for the boy. And it was, he mouthed "oh" and gave Rin a worried look. Rin stopped and looked to Ai, still pink from his laughing. "Nitori, do me a favor. Text me later and tell me how this goes." The shortest nodded and gave him an ok sign. "Thank you." Rin walked into the building before the two. "So. I'm going to try my best. Ok?" The tallest said looking down at Ai. The smaller boy nodded and began walking inside.
Throughout classes, Sousuke had written notes for him and didn't speak to him at all. It was kind of...extremely awkward. Ai watched as the boy wrote down notes quickly and handed them to Ai to copy. He seemed annoyed. He watched him, brows knitted together. Was he really annoying him?
After their class the two left for lunch. He did appreciate the fact that Sousuke did let him follow him around like a lost puppy. Students just stared at the two like they were insane.
"Are you ok with eating outside?" Sousuke asked looking to the boy, as they were already on the stairs to the roof. Ai nodded lightly, giving him a clueless look. "You ok, kid?" The taller teen walked forward, Ai stepping back. Sousuke noticed, immediately going to the first question in his head. "Are you scared of me?" Eyebrows furrowed. Ai lifted a brow and shook his head. He mouthed to him. "Why would you think that?" The taller of the two shrugged. "I don't know, because. I'm big. I'm mean?" Aiichirou shook his head once again. Signing to him. "Your not mean at all. You've really helped me." Sousuke still didn't know the language. He just sighed and sat on the steps. Now face to face with the small beautiful mute. Ai took out his own cell phone. Pointing to it. "What?" Sousuke asked. "Give me yours." He mouthed to the larger male. Sousuke reached in his pocket, taking out his cell phone and handing it to the boy. He watched as the boy tapped and scrolled. After a good 30 seconds Ai's phone vibrated in his other hand. Aiichirou showed his screen to the other. "Oh." Sousuke took his phone back. "Is it because I don't know much sign?" Ai nodded and patted Sousuke's shoulder, watching him flinch. He snapped his hand back quickly, looking to it. "It's nothing." Sousuke said standing up and walking out the door.
When the two walked onto the roof it was empty, not even Rin was there. Sousuke sighed and sat onto the ground, patting the spot right next to him. Ai just sat where he was. It was so quiet and awkward, Sousuke had to fix it. He played some music, Ai looking to the device and smiling. The teal eyed teen saw that Ai was excited. He waited until the boy noticed. "You listen to One ok Rock?" He said lifting a brow. The smaller nodded. "I thought people like you didn't listen to music." Ai shook his head and signed. "We feel the music." Somehow, Sousuke understood that. He texted Sousuke, making the music fade out and fade back in. 'I wasn't always this way.' Sousuke scooted closer to Ai. "So you can talk and stuff?" Ai nodded. "Then why don't you talk?" Ai looked down and bit his lip. Signing. "I can't control the volume of my voice, also I'll probably sound ridiculous." Sousuke only understood half. He nodded lightly and took a bite of his food. "I see. Rough." Aiichirou nodded and bit into his food.
-
"I'm home!" Sousuke shouted into an empty house. Looking to the note on the kitchen counter. 'Your father and I are out for important business, call if anything goes wrong.' Sousuke put the note down, heading upstairs to his room. He looked around and slammed onto his bed. Opening his cell phone to his and Ai's messages. Sousuke stared at the screen for a while. Leaving the app and putting on music. He sat up and saw the book his teacher had given him. The boy sighed, walking over and picking the book up.