tomodachi - VII. ordinary (epilogue)
~友達~
~tomodachi~
VII. ordinary
Ryo burst into laughter. “It’s all right, I was just kidding, Yasu,” he assured.
“Are you sure?” the older boy asked, touching his hand to Ryo’s cheek softly so he would stop laughing and look up into his eyes once more.
“Yes, I’m sure,” Ryo nodded, his mind blurring as warmth delved its way onto his reddening cheeks. But before his thoughts managed to register what was going on, the touch of Yasu’s soft lips grazed his forehead where his fingers had struck.
“Y-Yasu, don’t…” was all he could stammer, interrupted by the quickening thuds of his beating heart.
“Yasuda! Are you out there? I need to hear your account of what happened in here!” The principal’s booming call from within the classroom rang out like crackling thunder. He did not sound pleased at all with what he had found inside.
“I guess I… I better go,” Yasu flashed a worried gaze at Ryo before getting back up to his feet. “I’ll be right back, but will you be all right on your own for a little while?”
Ryo nodded wordlessly, rolling his eyes to indicate he didn’t enjoy being babied, but he was unable to find the voice to speak.
Another smile, then he was gone.
“What’s this? Is that Ryo Nishikido? What are you doing, moping there so pitifully on the floor?” A crude laugh followed the demeaning remark.
Ryo looked up to see a group of seniors walking towards him, he cursed under his breath. His own unchangeably apathetic nature and seemingly disobliging attitude had earned him a not-so-favorable reputation with the older boys at the school. But he didn’t even have the energy to fight them off at the moment, neither the words nor the strength.
“What do you want?” was all he could think of to say. The question had sounded much less pathetic in his mind. He cursed again.
“Feeling a little touchy, are we?” the lead senior chuckled lightly. “What’s wrong? Not being so stupidly cocky and daring today? Is the great Ryo Nishikido not feeling so great for once?”
“Shut up…” Ryo muttered indignantly. He wasn’t even all that bold anyhow; he had never even considered himself to be great in any way. He was just trying to live through life unnoticed, unbothered, but of course, things almost never went the way he wished. “Just leave me alone.”
“Oh wow, I’m so scared.” The senior rolled his eyes. “Very impressive rebuttal, Nishikido.”
“Go away,” Ryo stated. He refused to show any emotion. He wasn’t going to let them toy around with him so easily.
Unfortunately, this only angered the senior even more. Without warning, he grabbed Ryo’s collar and hauled him up from the floor, painfully dragging him by the neck to stand on his feet. “You think you’re so cool, don’t you? Well, let me just tell you, I hate kids like you. You think you’re all that, but really, you’ve got nothing. So why don’t you just settle back down and be polite like a good little boy should?”
Little. The insult was all-too familiar, triggering unwanted tears to dampen his eyes from the horrifying memories.
Laughter exploded from the group surrounding him. “Aw, look! I made little Ryo cry!” he shrieked in pleasure.
“Get off of me!” Ryo shouted back, shoving his way out of the senior’s grip.
“Being a little aggressive?” the leader leered.
“Leave me alone,” Ryo repeated.
“Why should we? You’re so fun to play with, Ryo!” He laughed, motioning for the others to grab hold of Ryo’s shoulders, slamming his already-weakened body against the concrete wall.
I can’t take this! Ryo screamed in his mind.
The senior smirked. “Let’s see how bold you’ll be after we get through with you!”
“STOP!”
The deafening cry shattered the blaring racket of the fight. Ryo smiled softly at the sight of his familiar friend.
“Go pick on someone your own age! What the hell is wrong with everybody these days!? First a teacher, now the seniors! Come on, Ryo, we’re leaving.” He declared defiantly, clasping his hand onto Ryo’s wrist and leading him out of the struggle.
“HEY! Don’t think we’re done with you here! You can’t run away from us!” The senior yelled at their departing figures.
“Yeah, whatever…” he whispered under his breath. But Ryo heard him, and smiled once more. His friend seemed to have that effect on people. Or maybe it was just on Ryo.
Bursting outside, his first breath of fresh air brusquely reminded Ryo of his body’s fatigue, and his legs collapsed beneath him.
“Ohkura…” he whispered, his hand slipping out of the younger boy’s warmth.
“Ryo…” He stopped, dropping himself down beside his wearied friend. “I’m so sorry. I’ve failed you, haven’t I?” Ohkura murmured, the sorrow muffling his voice with tears. “In the end, I wasn’t able to do anything to protect you. I let you put yourself in danger, and I didn’t even stop you. I waited and merely watched as someone else then saved you from your pain… I-I’m sorry I’m so worthless…”
“Shh… it’s okay,” Ryo smiled weakly. “I haven’t even thanked you yet… for being there. For helping me. Without you, I would never have been able to summon the courage to face him. You gave me strength… by knowing you were there, it was the only way I knew everything would be all right. I knew that no matter what, you would be there for me.”
“To fail at protecting you?” Ohkura laughed bitterly.
“No, to protect me. And not fail at it,” Ryo added teasingly. “Don’t lie just because you feel embarrassed,” he smiled.
“I-I’m not! I-I seem to be doing a horrible job, even now. I mean, shouldn’t I be the one comforting you at the moment, not the other way around?” He smiled lightly. “Come on, let’s get away from here. I’m sick of this corrupted school.” He stood up, stretching out his long arms like he had just awoken from a peaceful sleep.
“But Ohkura, I can’t, my strength…”
“I thought you said I could give you strength,” Ohkura crouched down in front of Ryo. “I’ll carry you.”
The older boy raised an eyebrow skeptically. “No, thanks.”
“Come on, I’m stronger than you think,” he grinned.
Ryo rolled his eyes. “Whatever you say…” he muttered leaning forward to rest his body weight on Ohkura’s back, his arms reaching forward to envelope around his shoulders.
“You ever been carried before?” Ohkura grunted as he straightened himself back up, the new weight bearing down on his body, but not too heavily.
“Nope.”
Ohkura smiled.
As he walked, one step in front of the other, he felt Ryo’s burden less and less, and Ohkura could only imagine it was because he was enjoying it more and more. The feeling of their bodies, in constant connection, of Ryo’s breath caressing the back of his neck, of having his own arms wrapped around Ryo’s legs, lifting his weight. It was like Ryo was relying on him, trusting him, leaning on him for support.
It was an unfamiliar feeling, but he cherished it nevertheless. Eventually, Ohkura stopped suddenly upon reaching their destination. No place fancy, but a meadow on a hillside behind their school, facing a busy street on one side, and a clear pond on the other. A wreath of yellow flowers encircled the peaceful water, dotting the green grasses with splashes of color.
“I… I took the long way,” Ohkura realized, finding himself having walked so long to come only so far.
“I didn’t notice,” Ryo murmured from behind his ear.
Softly, Ohkura set Ryo down on the tickling grass, its protruding blades prickly, but not sharp. Ryo’s eyes followed Ohkura’s figure as the tall boy stepped closer to the pond’s edge. A frail breeze wisped by, ruffling through his hair. Ryo smiled, admiring the younger boy’s delicate features, outlined by the golden rays of the gradually descending sun.
“Beautiful, isn’t it?” Ohkura whispered, his words as airy as the gentle wind itself.
Ryo nodded, his breath stolen from within him. Closing his eyes, he filled his lungs with the sweet scent of the perfumed air. It had been a long while since he last stopped to actually smell the flowers in nature. Leaning back, he let his body fall weightlessly to the ground, lying down among the scattered colors of the sighing earth.
Without the need to speak, Ohkura settled himself down beside Ryo, and smiled as he watched the sunset stain the town in red. The businessmen sitting in the traffic jam of cars on the road behind them, the soft ripples on the pond before them, everything seemed to slow, dyed in the warm inks of the changing sky. Strangely, they were caught in the middle of it all, watching as the sun glided downward, through the sky, only to be engulfed smoothly by the darkening hillside. Pale moonlight beamed across the fresh night, and once the warmth was completely swallowed by the darkness, Ohkura finally began to speak.
“When I was little, Yasu would always bring me here when I felt down. It was like my sadness could be melted away by the beauty of the earth, contrasting so sharply with the street just on the other side of this hill. He showed me that even when your road in life feels twisted or blocked, there will always be another path for you to take. As long as you can find this ‘piece’ within yourself, your troubles will never last.” He smiled gently, then stretched out his legs and stood up, offering his hand out to Ryo to help him do the same.
“Just hearing you say that…” Ryo answered finally. “It’s like just by being here, I’ve been rejuvenated.” Slowly, he grasped onto Ohkura’s outstretched hand and pulled himself, wobbling, to his feet.
“It works, doesn’t it?” Ohkura grinned.
“Thank you,” Ryo mumbled shyly. “Ohkura, you and Yasu… you must’ve had some history together,” he laughed.
“Yeah… but Yasu… Yasu will just always be my best friend. Just now, before we left, it was Yasu that told me to take you away. He said he was going to himself, but…”
“It’s really you that I need, Ohkura.” Ryo interrupted.
Ohkura nodded slowly. “That’s just like what he said…”
“He was right,” Ryo whispered. “I need you.”
“Ryo, I…” Ohkura looked down in confliction, realizing now that he still had yet to let go of Ryo’s hand, held tenderly in his own. “I want to know… Could we ever be more than just friends?”
“Aren’t we?” Ryo answered. He reached forward to wrap his arms around the younger boy’s body, waiting for, and tempting Ohkura to return the act. “I’m ready.. to love you and be loved by you,” he murmured.
“I already love you,” Ohkura smiled, giving in to Ryo’s temptations as he enveloped the older boy gently.
Even still, a faint light remained in the sky, amid the row of red lights decorating the street behind them. From a distance, a single song could be heard being played on the radios of the stopped cars. The only discernible lyrics:
『 I love you, I love you. 』
~~
“Ryo, what are you doing?” Ohkura stepped back in surprise at the sight of Ryo having littered their room with sheets upon sheets of scribbled staff paper.
“I… I wrote you a song,” Ryo smiled shyly, grabbing his guitar and sitting himself down on top of his bed. “Come listen?” He requested, patting the empty space before him on the mattress to indicate for Ohkura to join him.
“S-Sure,” the younger boy wasn’t sure how he was to react, but a warm flush had already begun to color his cheeks as Ryo began to strum the instrument cuddled in his arms. He began slowly, singing the song like a ballad, as if trying his best to make sure he wouldn’t slip up.
The sunset stains the town in red,
A traffic jam caused by road work stretches out ahead of me
People in suits hurry along the footpath; I just picture you.
That night with the moonlight shining;
that road we run along, without even thinking of where to go
Taking the long way, pretending not to notice; I’m still picturing you
Your whispered words, the warmth of your hand in mine
Envelop me gently; the scenery is changing now
Adding color to these boring days, casting a spell on my gloomy tomorrow,
Turning even ordinary times we spend into precious memories
There’s still a faint light in the sky; amid the row of red lights
A love song plays on the radio, “I love you”, “I love you”
I’m going to go and tell you now, like that movie
Your ordinary mannerisms,
the way you lie to cover up your embarrassment,
the tears you suddenly shed, your carefree smile
I want to embrace it all if I can, so stay by my side
Adding colour to these boring days, casting a spell on my gloomy tomorrow,
Turning even ordinary times we spend into precious memories
With ordinary, everyday words,
with the kind of ordinary melody you hear all the time
With my unchanged, familiar voice, I’ll sing my own love song
I hope it reaches you, only you;
I hope it rings out to you, only you
As the final notes slipped away from his guitar, he looked up at Ohkura, himself notably flushing faintly from embarrassment.
“It’s beautiful…” Ohkura breathed.
Ryo smiled ruefully. “But not nearly as beautiful as you …”
“R-Ryo,” Ohkura murmured, his racing heart pounded in his ears. Leaning forward ever so slightly, he smiled as his lips met Ryo’s for the second time since they had met; only this time, he wasn’t pushed away.
~~
A/N: credits to the translation of "ordinary" from kiwi musume~ ^^ Writing out this epilogue was tougher than I had thought at first, having to decide what would happen at the end and how, so I can only thank Ryo for creating his beautiful song to inspire me (hehe yays!) ^^ Hopefully the ending did come out all right then...xD I've always loved his lyrics, and I'm not exactly sure how many songs he also composed the music for.. and maybe I'm just bad at searching, but it seems like I can't find more than one performance of Ryo singing "ordinary" live, and his voice then sounded like he was pretty sick.. *poor ryo-chan!* :( but even still, this song is forever one of my favorites :3