Title: The Cure
Rating: PG
Member/Pairing: Sho/Nino
Author: ArashiYume (fiercekenjutsu@vox)


The Cure

My thumbs ached. I had blisters on the pads of both thumbs from countless hours of gaming, but I paid them no mind; or rather, I didn’t care enough to stop. It had been another day of gaming marathons. I’d taken one break to make some ramen at some point that morning—I couldn’t remember what time—but I hadn’t eaten since then. I also hadn’t taken a shower or gotten dressed all day. I was still in my boxers. But what did it matter? I was the only one home. I rarely got visitors, and if I did, they called first. My cell phone hadn’t rung in over a week, and the one call I’d gotten at home in recent memory was a telemarketer. So there I sprawled on the living room couch, steadily playing my PS3. My Nintendo DS was on the coffee table, readily within reach, and my laptop sat next to it, an online game pulled up. I had everything I needed right there, within arm’s reach. There was no reason to move, except for the occasional call of nature.

The only light in the room was from the TV screen. When night had fallen, I hadn’t bothered to flip on the lights. Why bother? The screen was bright enough. I kept playing.

I fell asleep around 4 a.m. I awoke at 3 p.m. the next day. I picked up my controller again and rebooted the game system. My stomach grumbled, but I ignored it, focusing only on the screen. Dimly, I felt pressure in my bladder, but I paid it no heed. It wasn’t that bad, and I wanted to get to the next level.

Two hours later, I went to the bathroom. On the way back to the couch, I stopped by the fridge. A beer caught my eye, but I grabbed a Red Bull instead. The alcohol would affect my gaming.

I switched to my computer and played until I fell asleep at noon the next day. I switched on my DS when I woke up. My stomach felt painfully hollow and empty, but I barely registered the fact. Just kept playing.

That’s the way it had been for weeks. I hadn’t had much individual work since Yamada Tarou ended. Sure, I had to leave the house for GRA and Shukudai-kun, but those we filmed only every few weeks. I hadn’t had any work at all for two weeks, and since then, I’d fallen into this routine. I gamed.

The other members were all busy with their own work, but I didn’t look for anything else to do. I didn’t see any reason why I should. Somewhere along the line, I’d lost the motivation to work. I didn’t want to do anything but play my games. What was the point? I was happy that way. Or, at least, I thought I was.

My internal clocked was completely skewed. I stayed awake as long as I could and slept when I couldn’t keep my eyes open any longer. Time really didn’t matter to me. I fed myself sometimes, but a rumbling stomach was easy enough to ignore, and hunger usually dulled after a while; besides, I had no appetite. Food held no particular attraction for me.

I hadn’t shaved in…how long? Whatever. My facial hair didn’t grow that fast anyway. My last shower was…a while ago. Didn’t matter. There was no one around to smell me. And if I’d been wearing the same pair of boxers for a few days, who cared?

That’s the way I lived for thirteen days before I received a phone call. I’d received messages on my cell, and at first I’d responded to them, but I hadn’t felt like reading them in the last four days. I didn’t answer when my cell phone rang. The light blinked; whoever had called had left a message. I didn’t check it, barely even noticed. I didn’t answer when my house phone rang a few minutes later. I didn’t pick up when Leader’s voice came on over the answering machine.

“Hey, Nino. Just checking in. I haven’t heard from you for a while. Call me when you get home, okay?” Click.

I didn’t call him back. The instant his voice stopped, my focus returned to the game; his call immediately slipped my mind.

A few hours later, I got another call on my cell. The person left a message. My house phone rang and the answering machine picked it up after four rings.

“Nino? It’s Sho. I haven’t seen you for a while. The other guys and I have been talking; none of us have talked to you lately. Are you okay? Please call me back.”

The next day, the process repeated itself, only Jun was the first to call, repeating basically the same message that Sho and Ohno had left. Ten minutes after Jun called, Aiba called.

“Nino-chan, where are you?” There was no mistaking the tinge of panic in his voice, but he was trying to hide it. “You haven’t answered any of our calls. If you’re out, why aren’t you answering your cell phone? Please, Nino, call me back.”

It’s not that I wanted them to worry. I barely registered their voices; I was so focused on my game. Or you might say that in my game-induced listlessness, I didn’t comprehend their messages. It just didn’t sink in. I didn’t care.

I got eleven more calls on my cell phone that day, and three more on my house phone, not that I answered any of them, or even really noticed. I got two messages on my house answering machine the following day.

“Kazu,” Ohno said. “It’s Satoshi. Please call me.”

“Nino,” said Sho a while later, his voice rough with anxiety. “I’m coming over to your house now.”

Even that didn’t shake me from my stupor—until the doorbell rang twenty minutes later. Then there was a knock. Pounding. Finally, there was a scraping sound as a key turned in the lock, and the front door flew open. Sho rushed in the doorway—and halted when he saw me slumped on the couch. His jaw dropped. I paused my game and stared dimly at him.

“Kazunari.” His voice was a mix of fury and incredulousness as he enunciated the syllables of my name. “What the hell is this?”

I shrugged.

“If you were here all along, why didn’t you answer the phone? What have you been doing all of this time?” As he spoke, I realized that my bladder was full to the point of bursting. I got up, paying Sho no heed, and shuffled to the bathroom. When I returned to the living room, relieved, Sho watched me in horror. He grabbed me by the arm before I made it back to the couch. “Nino. What happened to you?”

“Nothing,” I said finally. “Nothing happened to me. Just leave me alone.” I tried to pull away, but his grip tightened.

“Nothing? You look half-dead! You’ve lost so much weight! You look horrible.” He dragged me to my bedroom. “See?” He shoved me in front of the full-length mirror. Reluctantly, I looked at myself. He was right, of course. I was emaciated—in just two weeks, what little body fat I’d possessed had melted away. My bones jutted out at weird angles. My chin and cheeks were covered in scraggly growth, and my hair was tangled and greasy. The shadows beneath my eyes were like bruises, and my eyes were bloodshot. I almost didn’t recognize the waif in the mirror.

As I stared at my reflection, Sho pulled out his cell phone and dialed. “Satoshi,” he said. “I’m at Nino’s house.” Pause. “Yeah, he’s here. …He’s not in the best shape. I think he’s depressed or something. He’s alive, though. Not murdered, like you guys were worrying about.” Pause. “No, I’ll handle it. Could you call Jun and Aiba-chan for me? I don’t want them to worry anymore. I think Aiba-chan was on the verge of calling the police the last time I talked to him. Just let them know I found him and I’m taking care of the situation. Thanks.” He hung up and turned back to me. “Take those boxers off,” he ordered. I didn’t. He pulled them off for me and pushed me into the bathroom. He cranked on the shower and shoved me inside. “Wash.” I simply stood there.

With a growl of frustration, he picked up the bar of soap and began scrubbing me down. He poured shampoo and conditioner over my head, rinsed me roughly, and pulled me back out. He attacked my head with a towel, sopping up the excess water, then wrapped it around my waist. Then he sat me down on the toilet seat and took a razor from the medicine cabinet. Gently, with the utmost care, he shaved my face. I endured all of his ministrations silently. I couldn’t find the energy to resist.

Finally, he dressed me in a t-shirt and sweats and took me to the kitchen, forcing me into one of the chairs. He opened the refrigerator and sighed. “Nino, what have been eating all this time?” He glanced back at me and shuddered. “That’s right. Nothing.” He pulled out his cell phone again. “Mom? It’s Sho. Can you do me a favor? You know that leftover soup that we have? Could you bring it to Kazunari-kun’s house, please? I would come and get it but I’m a little—yeah. Thanks, Mom.”

Sho sat next to me at the kitchen table and cradled his head in his hands. “Nino,” he groaned. “What have you done to yourself? Aren’t you an adult?” Getting worked up, he raised his head and looked hard into my eyes. “What about work? Aren’t you a profession?”

“Maybe I wasn’t cut out to be an idol,” I mumbled, looking in the direction of the living room. My game was still paused on the screen. I was surprised when Sho grabbed my chin and forced me to look at him.

“What are you talking about? Arashi needs you. You love Arashi! Haven’t you said that you wouldn’t want any other job?” He shook his head roughly. “What is wrong with you?”

“Nothing,” I said. “I just…don’t want to do it anymore.”

“Do what?” I shrugged, but he didn’t accept that as an answer. “Do what, Nino? What do you not want to do anymore?”

I couldn’t answer, didn’t want to answer, but he didn’t let it go. He kept asking me what I meant.

Finally, my defenses crumpled and I muttered, “I’m tired. I’m tired of being empty, of being alone.”

“If you don’t want to be alone,” Sho said with patient logic, “then why have you been dodging our calls and holing up in here for so long? If you were lonely, why didn’t you call us?”

I shook my head. He didn’t understand. “I’m just so…tired. There’s nothing here,” I tapped my chest. “I’m empty, Sho-chan. I know…I know you guys care, but somehow…it’s not…not enough.”

We sat in silence until Sho’s mom brought the soup and some rice. He met her at the door. I was stayed where I was. When he returned, I was staring rather limply at the floor. He spooned some soup into a bowl and warmed it in the microwave. When he presented me with it, I turned my face away. The smell nauseated me. I still had no appetite.

“Please, Nino. Eat something,” he pleaded gently. I tried three bites, but my appetite remained untempted. I pushed it away. “Fine,” he sighed. “Come on, then.” He pulled me from my chair and led me to my bedroom. He pulled back the blankets and guided me into bed. “You should sleep.”

The moment my head hit the pillow, an overwhelming sleepiness struck me. Even I couldn’t deny my body’s need for rest any longer. I slept.


Some time later, my eyes opened. My bedroom was dark. No light shone through the shades. It was night.

I got out of bed and stumbled from my room, searching. I didn’t know what I was looking for until I found it—or rather, him.

Sho was sleeping on the couch. He had turned off all my game systems and now lay in the dark room. The only light came from the moonlight filtering through the windows.

Lying on his back in the moon’s glow, he was perfect. For once, he wasn’t snoring. He stirred once as I watched, kicking away the blanket he must’ve found somewhere. His shirt was untucked; it was hitched up and revealed several inches smooth stomach, muscles defined even in sleep. For the first time in a very long while, my heart began to beat faster. Maybe I was alive after all.

Not fully conscious of what I was doing, I went to him. For a moment, I stood over him. Then I climbed onto the couch and straddled him. His eyes flew open.

“Nino? What are you doing?” he asked, his voice hoarse from sleep.

“Kissing you,” I said, then proved it.



I awoke the next morning back in my bed. Sho lay beside me, still sleeping. I stretched and curled an arm around his bare waist, pulling him closer to me. His lips curled up at the corners, but he didn’t awaken. I settled my head down contentedly on his outstretched arm and was about to go back to sleep when the phone rang. He still didn’t wake up, so I grabbed it hurriedly off my bedside table and answered before it disturbed him further.

“Hello?” I murmured into the phone.

“Nino!” a familiar voice cried on the other end. It was echoed by voices in the background. “Nino? Nino?” they repeated. “Did Nino answer?”

“Yeah, it’s me.”

“Nino…” Ohno trailed off, as though he didn’t know quite what to say. “You had us worried,” he settled for.

“I know. Sorry.”

“So…what are you doing right now?” he asked. If it had been Jun, I would have been scolded, but Satoshi wouldn’t do that. Not now, anyway.

“I’m lying in bed,” I said.

Sho stirred beside me at that moment. “Nino?” he said without opening his eyes. “Who are you talking to?”

“Leader,” I answered.

“Was that Sho?” Ohno asked in surprise. “He sounded close.”

“He is,” I said simply. I had no reason to try and hide anything. “Do you want to talk to him? He just woke up.”

“No,” Ohno said after a brief pause, an odd note in his voice. “I’ll talk to him later.” There was another, longer pause. “Nino?” he said finally.

“Yeah?”

“Are you okay now?”

“Yeah.”

“Were you before?”

“…No.”

“Okay.” The final silence was the longest. “Well, take care. I’ll see you later.”

I hung up and returned to Sho’s arms, snuggling into his warm, naked chest.



We got out of bed hours later. Together, we showered and dressed. We ate the rice that his mom had brought, and then we sat in companionable silence on the couch. He read the newspaper and I watched him peacefully. That’s how it was for the whole day—he and I sitting, reading, eating…and learning about each other’s bodies in ways that we’d never imagined before the previous night.

Sho’s presence was like a natural remedy. Like a piece of the puzzle—my puzzle—was missing, and he perfectly into that vacant spot. Like somehow, just by being there, he was giving me exactly what I needed, and I began feeling like myself again. But not like my old self, with the hidden chip on my shoulder and the guarded, incomplete heart. A new me. A whole person who just might have found the key to his happiness once and for all.

Our restful, healing peace lasted until the following afternoon. That’s when the visitors arrived. There was a sound at the door. It sounded like a voice. Sho heard it too, and looked up. Together, we got up and padded silently to the front door.

“—told you we should have come later!” a muffled voice said. “Who knows what they’re doing now? Look how dark the house is. They could be—”

“Later is worse!” Jun interrupted Aiba. “It’s the middle of the day now. Later they might be—”

“But we don’t even know if they actually did anything, so—”

“Should I knock?” Satoshi asked.

“But—” Aiba started.

“What if—” Jun paused and sighed. “Screw it. Leader, you decide what to do.”

“I’m going to knock,” he said. Before he got the chance, I swung the door open. They jumped back, startled.

“Hi, guys,” I said casually.

“Nino!” they all exclaimed at once. I wondered why they were surprised. Who else did they expect to answer my door?

“What happened?” Jun and Aiba started shooting questions at me.

“What’s wrong?”

“Why are you depressed?”

“Guys, guys,” I said, “One question at a time.” They looked at each other, and Aiba-chan raised his hand. I nodded for him to go ahead.

“Are you okay?” he asked. I smiled at the kindness in his voice and the earnestness in his eyes.

“Yeah, I’m fine now.”

“What happened?” Jun asked. Satoshi nodded, more concern in his dreamer’s eyes than I’d seen since Aiba-chan was hospitalized all those years ago.

“I…got pretty down. Sho-chan made me human again.” I smiled at Sho, who returned it, suddenly shy. Internally, I cringed slightly at the ridiculously romantic statement I’d just made. I saved my reputation by adding, “Sex is an amazing cure for a wide variety of issues.” They gaped at me, and I placed a casual hand on Sho’s hip. He was blushing and looking modestly at the floor, but I looked bluntly into the eyes of the other members, daring them to protest.

Finally, Aiba whistled. “Wow. Sho-chan must be a great lay.” Jun immediately smacked him on the head.

“Um,” Satoshi said. “Does this mean you two are…?”

I glanced at Sho, who met my gaze questioningly, seeming to have at least partially conquered his embarrassment. I shrugged. “There’s definitely no turning back now.” I grinned. “We’ll just have to see where it goes.” Jun, Satoshi and Aiba each produced tired grins of their own and ruffled my hair in turn.

“Don’t scare us like that again, okay?” Jun said wearily. Sho wrapped a tentative arm around my waist.

“I won’t let it happen again,” he promised. I smiled, but I kept this smile inside. This glow, this new happiness within me, was what I had been missing all along. That empty place had been filled. Suddenly, the future seemed bright. I wasn’t alone anymore, and I never would be again.

---------------------

Well, that's it. You made it all the way through! Or maybe you just skipped to the bottom to see how long it is. Regardless, thanks for trying!

Sorry for any typos and spacing errors; I had to go through and put a space between every paragraph before posting this because indenting doesn't work. I probably missed some paragraph breaks.

I know that this story isn't perfect; I did my best, but I feel like it should be better. For some reason, it was really hard for me to write and make everything sound natural. Despite that, I really wanted to go with this idea, so worked through it and this is the result. I hope you've gotten at least a little enjoyment from it!

Anyway, comments are always appreciated Thanks for reading!
~Katy

interesting(: rarely get to read sho/nino's fics. haha hope you would write more of the couple, they have too little love~ hahaha
thanks for the story((: