Title: Corners of the world
Author: Biohazard Geeky Nutcracker
coolohohLength: One shot (878 words)
Rating: G
Pairing: General Arashi Friendship
Beta:
jheiliSummary: Five men, in different corners of the world, connected to each other by the Internet.
A/N: I wrote a sequel for this here:
Corners of the world - iOS 9 Five men sat. In five vastly different places. Holding the one thing that connects them together.
Their smartphones.
Technology.
Oh the wonders of technology, that small device, so small that it could fit in their pockets, yet so powerful.
Allowing them to communicate with each other even though they were miles away.
They were in a chat room.
Well a Facebook messenger group, to be exact.
Even though they were in different countries, with different lives and personalities... even though they have never met face to face before... something clicked between them in a random online encounter. They friended each other on Facebook and created a group to chat together. And chat together they did. In the short span of just a few months, they had exchanged over 200,000 messages with each other.
It was always the same for Ohno. Every weekday he'll roll out of bed at 8am, change, and have a quick breakfast before heading out to his art studio. On the way there, he'll check his mail, post a photo on instagram (usually taken the day before), and then open up the messenger app to say a quick good morning.
Normally he would be the first person chatting in the day.
Sometimes though, the businessman Sakurai Sho would have greet them already. Because he had to go to the airport to catch an early morning flight. Sho was constantly traveling between Singapore, Japan and China. And despite both of them staying in Tokyo, they have never met before. Apart from those rare days though, Sho would usually say his good mornings one or two hours after Ohno shows up. The two of them would often chat together before everyone else wakes.
Around lunch time Nino would show up (though he's been making efforts to wake up earlier). He was a gamer by profession, and though his birthplace was Tokyo, he was now residing in Okinawa, citing the warmer weather there. Ohno and him had made a pact, the next time Ohno went to Okinawa, they would meet up and go to the beach together. As a professional gamer Nino always stayed up all night to game, hence the weird body clock. Jun commented that Nino should join him in the US, then he wouldn't need to be a night owl.
"I actually like being a night owl, and really, you should speak for yourself" Nino had retorted with a snort on skype.
Jun usually shows up around Ohno's lunch time too. He was a night club owner in New York, and a complete night owl. Which ended up fine for the five of them because of their time zone differences.
Aiba would be the last to show up, usually after Ohno's tea break. He was working at a safari in Africa, and would often send them photos of animals, and vast expenses of land.
"Table for..?" The waiter asked.
Ohno didn't speak, but merely held up a single finger.
The waiter showed him to a table for two in the corner of the restaurant.
Ohno gave a sigh of relief as he slid down onto the sofa and picked up the menu. He smiled as he browsed through the menu. It was his 'once a month treat' night. Once a month where he'll relax in a restaurant for a nice meal. Today's menu would be steak. He smiled as he called the waiter over and placed his order.
Around him, families were gathered, parents feeding their little ones, or older kids discussing the day's happenings with their parents. There were couples and lovers too. Sitting on the same sized tables as him. He was the only person alone.
Well sort of.
Ohno wrinkled his nose as he took out his phone from his pocket and opened his messenger app. In there, his friends were engaged in a playful banter about the latest single by their idol. Ohno snapped a photo of himself making a funny face and sent it to his pals.
"Dinner!" Ohno wrote, as he sent another photo, of the menu this time.
J: Oh darn. You're making me hungry!!! Steak! Ooo steak! But I want sushi! Send me some sushi and I'll send you steak!
S: Oh, dinner alone?
O: Yeah
Sho sent a photo of a single shot glass on the bar counter.
S: Me too
In return, Nino sent a photo of glass of green tea standing beside his Xbox controller.
N: Me 3
A: Mou! You're making me hungry too! Well it'll be lunch time soooooon!
The steak arrived, just as Ohno started chuckling over Aiba's forlorn looking pout in the selfie he'd sent. The waitress gave Ohno a strange look before retreating. Ohno just ignored her as he burst out into silent laughter. He snapped a photo of the steak.
O: Itadakimasu!
S: Enjoy! Look delicious!
N: Wow!
J: Itadakimasu!
*loading*
'Woah nice!' Ohno said softly to himself as he saw the photos of the salmon avocado rolls Jun had sent.
O: Oh! Nice! Enjoy!
Ohno put his phone on the table as he picked up the knife and fork and started eating, reading the messages as the screen scrolled, and occasionally pausing to reply a word or two.
They may be alone, but they were not lonely.