One Man’s Hell is Another Man’s Heaven
TITLE: One Man’s Hell is Another Man’s Heaven
PAIRING: platonic TegoMassu
RATING: G
WORD COUNT: 4,240
SUMMARY: In the morning, Tegoshi is still in his own Paradise-like version of Hell.
The weather report had called for clear skies off the coast and a Northerly breeze of 10 to 15 knots.
When Tegoshi picks up the pamphlet from the shelf next to the complimentary mango juice, he can only figure out a few of the English words scrawled on it (‘boat’, ‘sea’, ‘ocean’), and immediately takes it to Shige.
“What does this say?”
Shige frowns over his coffee, and it’s only because of Koyama’s slight grimace and Ryo’s glaring that he even takes a closer look.
“I think it’s an ad for a day cruise.”
“That sounds like fun! Shige-“
“No.”
Tegoshi pouts and is about to ask Koyama to go with him, when Shige answers again. “He’s going shopping with me at Ala Moana.”
“Kei-chan,” Tegoshi whispers, sidling up to him at the table. “You’d have more fun with my on a day cruise. Think about it.”
Shige kicks Koyama under the table, and he looks conflicted, before he finally, declines the invitation.
Tegoshi deflates, after having them say no, and Ryo and Yamapi turn out the same way.
“We’re going surfing down the beach.”
“Come with me, Ryotan.” Tegoshi pouts and bumps his hips against Ryo’s shoulder.
“No. I’m going surfing. We’ve been looking forward to this!”
Tegoshi frowns, and concentrates all his unhappiness into it, but Ryo, some how, ignores him, focusing on his cereal instead. Yamapi is very specifically not making eye contact. Tegoshi’s about to throw a fit, stomp his foot and demand that some one go with him on the day cruise, when Masuda walks in, munching on an apple, wearing some new horrendous green and yellow t-shirt. Every one turns and looks at the shirt, judging it, but Masuda just smiles.
“I got it yesterday! Isn’t it cool?”
Ryo frowns and go back to his cereal. Koyama forces a smile.
Tegoshi sees his chance, and before any of the others can dig their claws into him, he jumps in front of Masuda, shoving the pamphlet in his face.
“Come with me!”
Masuda’s quiet, chewing his apple, and then says, “What’s this?”
“A day cruise!” Tegoshi moves the pamphlet out of the other’s line of vision and puts on his best face. “I want to go, but no one will go with me.”
Masuda face lights up, smiling widely. “Yeah! Let’s go! It’s been a long time since we’ve hung out just the two of us!”
-
They take a cab down to the little pier, cameras in hand, Masuda’s pockets lined with snacks for the day. The pier creaks when they walk down it, wet with seawater. Tegoshi wonders aloud if it can hold their combined weight, and Masuda just says he’ll save Tegoshi if he falls in.
The boat is nothing special. Mostly white, stained with algae and barnacles hiding just below the water level. Just as they arrive, a dark-skinned man in a t-shirt comes out from inside the cabin, considers them for a minute before smiling. Tegoshi holds up the pamphlet, and it’s all the communication that’s needed between them.
An hour later, they’re out on the water, the captain taking them around to little parts of the coastline that isn’t back-to-back mansions. Dolphins play along the side of the boat, giant sea turtles are obvious on the shore. Tegoshi and Masuda lean over the side and dip their hands in the water. Snap pictures of the wildlife. Rub suntan lotion in their skin.
About the time that Tegoshi figures is near the end of the day, the wind starts to pick up, strong and cold, and the sky turns an eerie grey color, contrasting sharply against the brightness of the shoreline. When he turns and looks at the captain, the man is frowning, looking at the horizon, where lightning is cracking against the sea. Tegoshi turns to Masuda, just pats his hand and says everything will be okay.
-
But Masuda lied.
The sea gets angry, rocks the boat around, and the captain sends Tegoshi and Masuda into the little cabin, but neither of them are sure why, since they couldn’t understand his hurried English. They understood the tone though, and it wasn’t a happy, carefree one. A wave crashes against the boat, and the pair fall against the opposite wall, shocked at the force of it. When Tegoshi moves his foot onto the floor of the cabin, there’s a resounding sploosh sound, and when he looks down, there’s water in the cabin, and it’s noticeably rising. Tegoshi grabs Masuda sleeve pointing at the water, too scared to say anything. The next moment, the captain is in the cabin, handing them bright orange life vests, and then disappearing back to the wheel.
It doesn’t take long for the cabin to be overrun with water, and Tegoshi and Masuda are forced up top, rain smacking them in the face. Tegoshi is clutching onto Masuda’s vest, like he doesn’t have one of his own. The captain’s face is grim.
Another wave hits the side of the boat, and it’s only the combined weight of Tegoshi and Masuda that keeps either of them from flying off the side of the boat. Tegoshi can feel his heart pounding his chest, deafening every other sound; the thunder, the waves, the hiss the rain, the captain’s swearing.
The next wave crashes right behind Tegoshi and Masuda, splitting them apart with the force of it. When Tegoshi opens his eyes, he’s on the other side of the boat and Masuda’s gone. He jumps up, looking over every side of the boat, but he can’t see anything in all the rain, not even the bright orange life vest. Tegoshi is so wrapped up finding Masuda out in the sea, that he doesn’t see the next wave that comes up behind him, and knocks him overboard as well.
-
The next time Tegoshi opens his eyes, all he sees is sand, golden and shining in the sunlight. He jerks up, notices the shrubs and trees at the far end of the shore.
“Massu!” He yells, but the only answer is the crash of waves on the shore, stretching towards his feet.
On shaky legs, he stands, chest hurting, skin dry and itchy, his clothes stiff from the dried seawater. He pulls the life vest over his head and dumps it on the beach. He climbs up near the trees and sits on a piece of drift wood, staring out at the sea, nothing but blue water in sight. Tegoshi sits there, completely still for a very long time. Maybe hours. When his stomach rumbles, he finally stands, unsure of what to do. So he walks down the shore.
He finds some red berries, and he’s about to eat them, when his common sense wins over, and he leave them on the vine. All along the beach, there are stretches of seaweed and kelp, but Tegoshi figures it would be nothing like the processed sheets of nori that he munches on at home.
And that single thought, of sitting on his couch, Tinny on his lap, eating snacks, brings tears to his eyes. He sits down on the beach, crying openly with no pretenses or reputation to protect. When the sun falls behind the canopy of trees and the sky turns blue, he can see every star, shining like they never could in Honolulu or Tokyo. But it doesn’t matter to him. Tegoshi lies down on the sand and falls asleep.
-
In the morning, Tegoshi is still in his own Paradise-like version of Hell.
He can’t hide from the sun when it rises right in front of his face, so stays lying on the beach, staring up at the sky, watching the stars and dark blue night sky recede into a light blue, barely a cloud in the sky. He sits up, and his stomach gurgles again. When he stands, he feels his skin crack, and salt literally falls off his clothes onto the sand.
Tegoshi rounds a corner of the beach, where rocks jut out of the sand, and he has to walk carefully, lest he fall and hurt himself. When he gets to the highest point, he stops for a rest. His chest hurts more than it did yesterday, and the pain is reaching up, clawing at his throat. He has a headache and his limbs all feel kind of funny and tingly.
He looks out, across the rest of the shore, the new part where he hasn’t been before, but it all looks the same as where he was before. A half-mile or so off, he can see something sticking out of the sand, green colored, but it’s obvious that it’s not more washed up seaweed. Tegoshi’s curiosity is peeked, and offhandedly wonders if he can eat it. He makes his way down the other side of the rocks and towards the green thing.
As he gets closer, Tegoshi can tell his not a fish or a plant and his walk turns into a slight jog the closer he gets, until he’s standing above it, looking down at the green, white and black patterns poking through the sand. He reaches down and pulls it out, holds it gently in his hands. It’s water-logged and smells horrendous. But regardless, Tegoshi holds it to his chest and falls down to the sand sobbing harder than he has in years.
It’s a shoe.
The kind of hideously colored and pattern thing that Masuda would love - and does love - because he was wearing this pair when they set out for the day cruise.
-
When his tears have all tried, Tegoshi is still sitting on the sand with the shoe. His throat hurts as much as his chest now and his vision is starting to get fuzzy. He looks out at the sea and curses it.
But Tegoshi stands, and keeps walking down the shore, hoping, thinking that maybe, his worst fears won’t come true.
-
As the sun is getting low in the sky, nearly about to fall below the horizon, Tegoshi turns a sharp corner in the beach line, and is immediately met with a cove, reaching in towards the island. The water is shallow across where the cove meets the sea, and on the other side is a dining table-sized flat rock. He pays it little mind, instead wondering if he should follow the cove, see if it leads him to something interesting, when there’s a flash of light near the big rock. Something’s shining in the fading light, and Tegoshi knows that if he doesn’t figure out what it is now, he’ll have to wait until tomorrow. So very carefully, still holding the shoe against his chest, he wades across the cove’s entrance, the water coming up to his knees and walks to the far side of the rock.
It’s a watch.
Stainless steel, designer. And next to it, sitting happily on its sole, is Masuda’s other shoe.
Tegoshi tries to shout Masuda’s name again, but all that comes out is a croak and he breaks down coughing. He sits down, leaning back against the rock. Tegoshi closes his eyes and opens them a few minutes later when he hears rustling in the bushes behind him. He stands, stepping away from the rock, shoe gripped strongly in his hands, breathing raggedly.
And when Masuda steps out of the bush, armful of something, Tegoshi breaks down crying again, except it’s less crying, and more a dry hiccupping sound. Masuda drops his things, stands at the edge of the shore and forest and stares like a deer caught in headlights, until he comes to his senses, takes four giant steps around the rock and pulls Tegoshi tight against him.
“Thank God, you’re safe.” is all Masuda can manage to say.
-
When Tegoshi stops hiccupping, Masuda steps back, giving them both a little space, and Tegoshi holds out the shoe.
“I found your shoe,” he mutters, voice tired.
“Thanks.” Masuda smiles and gingerly takes it, placing on the rock next to the other. “You must be hungry.”
He walks back the edge of the forest and picks up his things and takes them back to where Tegoshi is standing, climbs up onto the rock and directs Tegoshi to follow him.
“Here,” he says. “It’s a mango.”
Tegoshi looks it over in his hands, and yeah, it is a mango.
“I haven’t been able to find anything knife-like yet, so you’re gonna have to gnaw off the skin with your teeth.” And Masuda starts demonstrating just how to do that.
The fruit is sweet and soft, and it might just be the most delicious thing he’s ever eaten.
When Tegoshi’s had three of the four that Masuda brought back, he pokes at his shirt and more salt falls off it.
“You should probably take that off.”
Tegoshi frowns, throwing the last pit off the side of the rock. “It’s not like I have anything else to wear.”
Masuda hops off the rocks and heads towards the edge of the forest. “Your skin is going to crack it you leave it on, and that’s going to hurt. A lot.”
So, Tegoshi pulls it off and throws it behind him on the rock. His skin hurts and stretching only makes it worse. He scratches his arm, and immediately, it turns an angry red color. When Masuda comes back he has some weird branch-looking things in his hands and splits it open on the edge of the rock. He sits behind Tegoshi, and when the moist inside of the branch meets his skin, Tegoshi nearly moans.
“It’s aloe,” Masuda says. “And it looks like you really needed it. Tomorrow, we’ll go to the spring and wash your clothes.”
“The spring?”
“Yeah. There’s a freshwater spring a little ways in. I stayed around here because of it.”
“I’ve been walking every day.”
“I know. You’re the type who would do that. Too impatient to wait.” Masuda throws the branch over the side of the rock and opens a new one, sliding it across Tegoshi’s shoulders. “I figured if I started walking, we might miss each other. So I stayed here. And waited for you to show up.”
That night, the two of them sleep on the big rock, it radiating heat up onto them, Tegoshi wearing Masuda’s clean shirt.
-
For the first time in days, Tegoshi wakes up a little happy. He’s on the rock alone, and can hear Masuda singing quietly as he tromps through the forest and within a minute, he is handing Tegoshi a mango.
“I found some Guavas too!”
Tegoshi smiles, and bites at the skin.
After breakfast, Masuda leads the way through the forest, stepping around rocks and tree trucks, and shows him how to get to the spring. It’s nothing remarkably special, just a pool the size of a hot tub filled with clear water, and a little stream off the one side, which stops for a moment to form another smaller pool before continuing on.
“If you follow the stream, it’ll lead you to the cove near the rock. But it takes longer, so I cut through the forest.”
“Is the water safe to drink?”
Masuda scratches his head. “I guess? I’ve been drinking it for a few days and I feel fine. It’s really crisp.”
While Tegoshi crouches at the side of the smaller pool, scrubbing salt from his skin and soaking his clothes, Masuda meanders around the area, picking fruit and giving Tegoshi some privacy, but staying within earshot. When he’s done, Tegoshi wrings out his clothes, already able to feel how much softer they are without the salt and throws them over his shoulder and shouts for Masuda, who peers around a tree, arms full of wood.
They walk back together, Masuda in front, Tegoshi behind him. He lays out his clothes to dry on the rock and stands naked on the beach.
“You’re shameless. It’s like the robe, but worse,” Masuda mutters from near his pile of wood.
Tegoshi walks over. “What are you doing?”
“Making a smoke signal. It’ll help every one find us.” He points over towards Tegoshi. “Hand me that kindling.”
For the rest of the day, the two sit by the pile of logs and kindling, taking turns rubbing sticks together and clicking rocks, trying to make sparks. It’s nearly sunset before the tiniest bit of fire starts to grow, catching the kindling and spreading to the logs. They feed the fire for another hour, grabbing nearby driftwood and anything that will burn.
When the sun finally does set, Tegoshi puts on his dry clothes and sits next to Masuda, eating mangoes and guavas.
“In the morning,” Masuda says, “we’ll add some grass and get the smoke going.”
Tegoshi nods, and throws a mango pit into the sand.
-
In the morning, the pair eat more mangoes (Tegoshi is starting to hate them a little bit) and then collect more wood for the fire, and along with some grass, which smokes and smells horrible, but makes a long plume of grey smoke that rises up into the sky.
They sit on the beach together, upwind from the smoke and rub more aloe into their arms and legs.
“Do you think we’ll ever get off this damn island?”
“Of course!” Masuda immediately replies. “The others are looking for us. And the Coast Guard too. They’ll definitely find us soon.”
Tegoshi doesn’t say anything.
“And in the mean time.” Masuda throws the used branch of aloe into the fire. “We’ve got each other.”
-
It’s later in the day, the sun heavy in the sky, and Tegoshi and Masuda are sitting by the spring, washing their hands of mango juice and dirt. When a branch snaps and the bushes rustle loudly, they both turn, weary, having not yet run into any especially large wildlife on the island. When a pig pops through the bushes and noses through the dirt, Tegoshi relaxes.
“Oh, it’s just a pig.”
Masuda is still tense next to him. “It’s a boar.”
“Huh?”
“A wild boar.”
“And?”
Like it knows the pair are talking about him, the boar turns, and stares at them.
“Tegoshi,” Masuda whispers. “Stand up. Very slowly. And climb the nearest tree.”
“Wha-“
“Do it.”
The tone of his voice makes Tegoshi shudder, so he stands up - slowly - and backs up towards a tree. The boar watches him the whole time, pacing by the bush. Tegoshi reaches for a branch and pulls himself up, climbing until he’s a good 10 feet off the ground. Just as Masuda stands up, keeping an eye on the boar, it takes a step towards him and snorts, shaking it’s head. Masuda moves to his right, reaching for another tree when the boar wails and stiffens his stance.
“Massu!” Tegoshi whispers, but the other stills completely hand wrapped around a branch.
It’s like a staring war between Masuda and the boar, and without warning, the boar heaves its weight forward, charging Masuda and the tree. Tegoshi shouts, and Masuda scrambles up the tree as high as he can. But when the boar head butts the tree, the whole thing shakes and Masuda loses his grip and lands running while the boar wobbles on its feet, dazed. When it comes back to itself, the boar keens and makes running for Masuda, who jumps over the big pool, trying to put more space between them. But the boar charges through the pool, and Masuda can feel the boar right behind him. There’s a fallen branch to his right, knobbly and thick as his thigh. Without even checking how far away the boar is, Masuda grabs the branch with both hands and brings it around, strong and heavy. He feels the exact moment is connects with the boar; he feels the tremors up his arm and through his whole body. Distantly, he hears a piggish scream and a thump against the ground.
His hands are still on the branch, whole body shaking when he feels Tegoshi next to him prying his hands off the wood.
“Massu!” He shouts. “Massu!”
He lets go and nearly falls backwards, saved only by Tegoshi at his side.
-
After the boar, the two of them are both too weary to go back to the spring. However, their want for fresh water wins out in the end, and after feeding the fire logs and grass, they follow the cove into the island.
It’s harder going that way, roots sticking out of the ground and sharp rocks that Masuda is constantly pointing out to Tegoshi and telling him to be careful of. Small lizards scatter out of their way, and birds fly out of the canopy. When Masuda says they’re half-way to the stream, it’s more than twice the distant when cutting through the forest.
They rest on a fallen tree, picking at the moss and tossing small rocks into the still water of the cove. It’s quieter in the cove. No roar of the waves, no birds calling to each other, only their rocks plunking into the water. Tegoshi looks up through the break in the canopy idly, staring at the clouds, and just as he’s about to ask Masuda if they should keep going, a small plane, high and tiny, flies across the sky.
“Plane!” Tegoshi yells, and takes off running for the beach, Masuda right behind him.
With the adrenaline and excitement, the run to the beach doesn’t seem to take long. When they arrive, the fire is still spewing out black-grey smoke, but the plane is no where in sight.
They don’t ever make it back to the spring that day.
-
Tegoshi is down the beach the next day, collecting driftwood and humming lines from Kesenai while Masuda watches the fire, when a blow horn screams loud across the water. Tegoshi is almost afraid to turn around, like it might be his imagination. But when he does, he drops the armful of wood and openly starts crying at the sight of the red boat with “US COAST GUARD” written in thick, block letters across the side.
-
Within the hour, Tegoshi and Masuda are wrapped in blankets and are drinking water from a bottle, cold and most definitely safe. An officer is talking at them in halting and broken Japanese. They learn that the captain and the boat were never found, and it is assumed the boat sank, the captain going down as well. The officer also alludes to the fact that the captain had taken the boat into protected, wildlife preserve waters which are off limits and it made the search more difficult, because the Coast Guard was looking in the wrong spot. But the smoke signal was the single most helpful thing the pair could have done to assist the Coast Guard in finding them. He smiles then, tired and happy, a hand on each their shoulder and says he’s glad they’ve been found, if not a little worse for wear.
When they arrive in Honolulu, it’s at a big metal pier, all the other boats being part of the Coast Guard as well. But standing on the pier, is an army of reporters, cameraman, random bystanders, wondering about these Japanese idols who got lost and the local news hasn’t shut up about for days. As they walk down the plank, the journalists move in, shouting questions in half-English, half-Japanese, and Tegoshi instinctively reaches for Masuda, who’s behind him. In Masuda's right hand, he’s holding his ruined shoes, and with his left, he reaches to meet Tegoshi's.
There’s a familiar shout and yell, and then Ryo is pushing his way through the inner most ring of reporters, literally shoving them aside, followed immediately by YamaPi, Koyama and Shige. There’s a dramatic group hug on the pier, none of the six bothering to hide their tears.
-
At the hotel, the two head straight for showers, relaxing under the hot water, washing out all the salt and dirt and non-pleasantries. When they convene in one of the rooms, Tegoshi and Masuda wrapped in bathrobes, there’s take-out of every kind, Koyama saying with tears in his eyes (again) that they weren’t sure what the two would want to eat, so they got a little everything. Masuda wolfs down the gyoza in record time, and then the fried rice, while Tegoshi eats chicken shish-kabob.
Johnny wants Tegoshi and Masuda to rest in Hawaii for a week or so before they come back to Japan, but the two are restless, ready to get the hell out of there and be back home where they can’t see the stars at night and every kind of amenity exists. Two days later, they’re on a plane, two set of three seats, with Tegoshi stretching across Koyama and Ryo, Masuda across Shige and YamaPi.
Tegoshi and Masuda’s families are given special permission by the Narita airport authorities to come back through the airport hallways and meet their sons right after they disembark the plane. When they finally meet, the mothers and Masuda’s sister break out crying, the fathers attempt to look stoic, but it’s obvious they’re just as relieved and happy to have their children back safely. Tinny barks happily and licks Tegoshi’s face, and Koyama starts crying again.
PAIRING: platonic TegoMassu
RATING: G
WORD COUNT: 4,240
SUMMARY: In the morning, Tegoshi is still in his own Paradise-like version of Hell.
The weather report had called for clear skies off the coast and a Northerly breeze of 10 to 15 knots.
When Tegoshi picks up the pamphlet from the shelf next to the complimentary mango juice, he can only figure out a few of the English words scrawled on it (‘boat’, ‘sea’, ‘ocean’), and immediately takes it to Shige.
“What does this say?”
Shige frowns over his coffee, and it’s only because of Koyama’s slight grimace and Ryo’s glaring that he even takes a closer look.
“I think it’s an ad for a day cruise.”
“That sounds like fun! Shige-“
“No.”
Tegoshi pouts and is about to ask Koyama to go with him, when Shige answers again. “He’s going shopping with me at Ala Moana.”
“Kei-chan,” Tegoshi whispers, sidling up to him at the table. “You’d have more fun with my on a day cruise. Think about it.”
Shige kicks Koyama under the table, and he looks conflicted, before he finally, declines the invitation.
Tegoshi deflates, after having them say no, and Ryo and Yamapi turn out the same way.
“We’re going surfing down the beach.”
“Come with me, Ryotan.” Tegoshi pouts and bumps his hips against Ryo’s shoulder.
“No. I’m going surfing. We’ve been looking forward to this!”
Tegoshi frowns, and concentrates all his unhappiness into it, but Ryo, some how, ignores him, focusing on his cereal instead. Yamapi is very specifically not making eye contact. Tegoshi’s about to throw a fit, stomp his foot and demand that some one go with him on the day cruise, when Masuda walks in, munching on an apple, wearing some new horrendous green and yellow t-shirt. Every one turns and looks at the shirt, judging it, but Masuda just smiles.
“I got it yesterday! Isn’t it cool?”
Ryo frowns and go back to his cereal. Koyama forces a smile.
Tegoshi sees his chance, and before any of the others can dig their claws into him, he jumps in front of Masuda, shoving the pamphlet in his face.
“Come with me!”
Masuda’s quiet, chewing his apple, and then says, “What’s this?”
“A day cruise!” Tegoshi moves the pamphlet out of the other’s line of vision and puts on his best face. “I want to go, but no one will go with me.”
Masuda face lights up, smiling widely. “Yeah! Let’s go! It’s been a long time since we’ve hung out just the two of us!”
-
They take a cab down to the little pier, cameras in hand, Masuda’s pockets lined with snacks for the day. The pier creaks when they walk down it, wet with seawater. Tegoshi wonders aloud if it can hold their combined weight, and Masuda just says he’ll save Tegoshi if he falls in.
The boat is nothing special. Mostly white, stained with algae and barnacles hiding just below the water level. Just as they arrive, a dark-skinned man in a t-shirt comes out from inside the cabin, considers them for a minute before smiling. Tegoshi holds up the pamphlet, and it’s all the communication that’s needed between them.
An hour later, they’re out on the water, the captain taking them around to little parts of the coastline that isn’t back-to-back mansions. Dolphins play along the side of the boat, giant sea turtles are obvious on the shore. Tegoshi and Masuda lean over the side and dip their hands in the water. Snap pictures of the wildlife. Rub suntan lotion in their skin.
About the time that Tegoshi figures is near the end of the day, the wind starts to pick up, strong and cold, and the sky turns an eerie grey color, contrasting sharply against the brightness of the shoreline. When he turns and looks at the captain, the man is frowning, looking at the horizon, where lightning is cracking against the sea. Tegoshi turns to Masuda, just pats his hand and says everything will be okay.
-
But Masuda lied.
The sea gets angry, rocks the boat around, and the captain sends Tegoshi and Masuda into the little cabin, but neither of them are sure why, since they couldn’t understand his hurried English. They understood the tone though, and it wasn’t a happy, carefree one. A wave crashes against the boat, and the pair fall against the opposite wall, shocked at the force of it. When Tegoshi moves his foot onto the floor of the cabin, there’s a resounding sploosh sound, and when he looks down, there’s water in the cabin, and it’s noticeably rising. Tegoshi grabs Masuda sleeve pointing at the water, too scared to say anything. The next moment, the captain is in the cabin, handing them bright orange life vests, and then disappearing back to the wheel.
It doesn’t take long for the cabin to be overrun with water, and Tegoshi and Masuda are forced up top, rain smacking them in the face. Tegoshi is clutching onto Masuda’s vest, like he doesn’t have one of his own. The captain’s face is grim.
Another wave hits the side of the boat, and it’s only the combined weight of Tegoshi and Masuda that keeps either of them from flying off the side of the boat. Tegoshi can feel his heart pounding his chest, deafening every other sound; the thunder, the waves, the hiss the rain, the captain’s swearing.
The next wave crashes right behind Tegoshi and Masuda, splitting them apart with the force of it. When Tegoshi opens his eyes, he’s on the other side of the boat and Masuda’s gone. He jumps up, looking over every side of the boat, but he can’t see anything in all the rain, not even the bright orange life vest. Tegoshi is so wrapped up finding Masuda out in the sea, that he doesn’t see the next wave that comes up behind him, and knocks him overboard as well.
-
The next time Tegoshi opens his eyes, all he sees is sand, golden and shining in the sunlight. He jerks up, notices the shrubs and trees at the far end of the shore.
“Massu!” He yells, but the only answer is the crash of waves on the shore, stretching towards his feet.
On shaky legs, he stands, chest hurting, skin dry and itchy, his clothes stiff from the dried seawater. He pulls the life vest over his head and dumps it on the beach. He climbs up near the trees and sits on a piece of drift wood, staring out at the sea, nothing but blue water in sight. Tegoshi sits there, completely still for a very long time. Maybe hours. When his stomach rumbles, he finally stands, unsure of what to do. So he walks down the shore.
He finds some red berries, and he’s about to eat them, when his common sense wins over, and he leave them on the vine. All along the beach, there are stretches of seaweed and kelp, but Tegoshi figures it would be nothing like the processed sheets of nori that he munches on at home.
And that single thought, of sitting on his couch, Tinny on his lap, eating snacks, brings tears to his eyes. He sits down on the beach, crying openly with no pretenses or reputation to protect. When the sun falls behind the canopy of trees and the sky turns blue, he can see every star, shining like they never could in Honolulu or Tokyo. But it doesn’t matter to him. Tegoshi lies down on the sand and falls asleep.
-
In the morning, Tegoshi is still in his own Paradise-like version of Hell.
He can’t hide from the sun when it rises right in front of his face, so stays lying on the beach, staring up at the sky, watching the stars and dark blue night sky recede into a light blue, barely a cloud in the sky. He sits up, and his stomach gurgles again. When he stands, he feels his skin crack, and salt literally falls off his clothes onto the sand.
Tegoshi rounds a corner of the beach, where rocks jut out of the sand, and he has to walk carefully, lest he fall and hurt himself. When he gets to the highest point, he stops for a rest. His chest hurts more than it did yesterday, and the pain is reaching up, clawing at his throat. He has a headache and his limbs all feel kind of funny and tingly.
He looks out, across the rest of the shore, the new part where he hasn’t been before, but it all looks the same as where he was before. A half-mile or so off, he can see something sticking out of the sand, green colored, but it’s obvious that it’s not more washed up seaweed. Tegoshi’s curiosity is peeked, and offhandedly wonders if he can eat it. He makes his way down the other side of the rocks and towards the green thing.
As he gets closer, Tegoshi can tell his not a fish or a plant and his walk turns into a slight jog the closer he gets, until he’s standing above it, looking down at the green, white and black patterns poking through the sand. He reaches down and pulls it out, holds it gently in his hands. It’s water-logged and smells horrendous. But regardless, Tegoshi holds it to his chest and falls down to the sand sobbing harder than he has in years.
It’s a shoe.
The kind of hideously colored and pattern thing that Masuda would love - and does love - because he was wearing this pair when they set out for the day cruise.
-
When his tears have all tried, Tegoshi is still sitting on the sand with the shoe. His throat hurts as much as his chest now and his vision is starting to get fuzzy. He looks out at the sea and curses it.
But Tegoshi stands, and keeps walking down the shore, hoping, thinking that maybe, his worst fears won’t come true.
-
As the sun is getting low in the sky, nearly about to fall below the horizon, Tegoshi turns a sharp corner in the beach line, and is immediately met with a cove, reaching in towards the island. The water is shallow across where the cove meets the sea, and on the other side is a dining table-sized flat rock. He pays it little mind, instead wondering if he should follow the cove, see if it leads him to something interesting, when there’s a flash of light near the big rock. Something’s shining in the fading light, and Tegoshi knows that if he doesn’t figure out what it is now, he’ll have to wait until tomorrow. So very carefully, still holding the shoe against his chest, he wades across the cove’s entrance, the water coming up to his knees and walks to the far side of the rock.
It’s a watch.
Stainless steel, designer. And next to it, sitting happily on its sole, is Masuda’s other shoe.
Tegoshi tries to shout Masuda’s name again, but all that comes out is a croak and he breaks down coughing. He sits down, leaning back against the rock. Tegoshi closes his eyes and opens them a few minutes later when he hears rustling in the bushes behind him. He stands, stepping away from the rock, shoe gripped strongly in his hands, breathing raggedly.
And when Masuda steps out of the bush, armful of something, Tegoshi breaks down crying again, except it’s less crying, and more a dry hiccupping sound. Masuda drops his things, stands at the edge of the shore and forest and stares like a deer caught in headlights, until he comes to his senses, takes four giant steps around the rock and pulls Tegoshi tight against him.
“Thank God, you’re safe.” is all Masuda can manage to say.
-
When Tegoshi stops hiccupping, Masuda steps back, giving them both a little space, and Tegoshi holds out the shoe.
“I found your shoe,” he mutters, voice tired.
“Thanks.” Masuda smiles and gingerly takes it, placing on the rock next to the other. “You must be hungry.”
He walks back the edge of the forest and picks up his things and takes them back to where Tegoshi is standing, climbs up onto the rock and directs Tegoshi to follow him.
“Here,” he says. “It’s a mango.”
Tegoshi looks it over in his hands, and yeah, it is a mango.
“I haven’t been able to find anything knife-like yet, so you’re gonna have to gnaw off the skin with your teeth.” And Masuda starts demonstrating just how to do that.
The fruit is sweet and soft, and it might just be the most delicious thing he’s ever eaten.
When Tegoshi’s had three of the four that Masuda brought back, he pokes at his shirt and more salt falls off it.
“You should probably take that off.”
Tegoshi frowns, throwing the last pit off the side of the rock. “It’s not like I have anything else to wear.”
Masuda hops off the rocks and heads towards the edge of the forest. “Your skin is going to crack it you leave it on, and that’s going to hurt. A lot.”
So, Tegoshi pulls it off and throws it behind him on the rock. His skin hurts and stretching only makes it worse. He scratches his arm, and immediately, it turns an angry red color. When Masuda comes back he has some weird branch-looking things in his hands and splits it open on the edge of the rock. He sits behind Tegoshi, and when the moist inside of the branch meets his skin, Tegoshi nearly moans.
“It’s aloe,” Masuda says. “And it looks like you really needed it. Tomorrow, we’ll go to the spring and wash your clothes.”
“The spring?”
“Yeah. There’s a freshwater spring a little ways in. I stayed around here because of it.”
“I’ve been walking every day.”
“I know. You’re the type who would do that. Too impatient to wait.” Masuda throws the branch over the side of the rock and opens a new one, sliding it across Tegoshi’s shoulders. “I figured if I started walking, we might miss each other. So I stayed here. And waited for you to show up.”
That night, the two of them sleep on the big rock, it radiating heat up onto them, Tegoshi wearing Masuda’s clean shirt.
-
For the first time in days, Tegoshi wakes up a little happy. He’s on the rock alone, and can hear Masuda singing quietly as he tromps through the forest and within a minute, he is handing Tegoshi a mango.
“I found some Guavas too!”
Tegoshi smiles, and bites at the skin.
After breakfast, Masuda leads the way through the forest, stepping around rocks and tree trucks, and shows him how to get to the spring. It’s nothing remarkably special, just a pool the size of a hot tub filled with clear water, and a little stream off the one side, which stops for a moment to form another smaller pool before continuing on.
“If you follow the stream, it’ll lead you to the cove near the rock. But it takes longer, so I cut through the forest.”
“Is the water safe to drink?”
Masuda scratches his head. “I guess? I’ve been drinking it for a few days and I feel fine. It’s really crisp.”
While Tegoshi crouches at the side of the smaller pool, scrubbing salt from his skin and soaking his clothes, Masuda meanders around the area, picking fruit and giving Tegoshi some privacy, but staying within earshot. When he’s done, Tegoshi wrings out his clothes, already able to feel how much softer they are without the salt and throws them over his shoulder and shouts for Masuda, who peers around a tree, arms full of wood.
They walk back together, Masuda in front, Tegoshi behind him. He lays out his clothes to dry on the rock and stands naked on the beach.
“You’re shameless. It’s like the robe, but worse,” Masuda mutters from near his pile of wood.
Tegoshi walks over. “What are you doing?”
“Making a smoke signal. It’ll help every one find us.” He points over towards Tegoshi. “Hand me that kindling.”
For the rest of the day, the two sit by the pile of logs and kindling, taking turns rubbing sticks together and clicking rocks, trying to make sparks. It’s nearly sunset before the tiniest bit of fire starts to grow, catching the kindling and spreading to the logs. They feed the fire for another hour, grabbing nearby driftwood and anything that will burn.
When the sun finally does set, Tegoshi puts on his dry clothes and sits next to Masuda, eating mangoes and guavas.
“In the morning,” Masuda says, “we’ll add some grass and get the smoke going.”
Tegoshi nods, and throws a mango pit into the sand.
-
In the morning, the pair eat more mangoes (Tegoshi is starting to hate them a little bit) and then collect more wood for the fire, and along with some grass, which smokes and smells horrible, but makes a long plume of grey smoke that rises up into the sky.
They sit on the beach together, upwind from the smoke and rub more aloe into their arms and legs.
“Do you think we’ll ever get off this damn island?”
“Of course!” Masuda immediately replies. “The others are looking for us. And the Coast Guard too. They’ll definitely find us soon.”
Tegoshi doesn’t say anything.
“And in the mean time.” Masuda throws the used branch of aloe into the fire. “We’ve got each other.”
-
It’s later in the day, the sun heavy in the sky, and Tegoshi and Masuda are sitting by the spring, washing their hands of mango juice and dirt. When a branch snaps and the bushes rustle loudly, they both turn, weary, having not yet run into any especially large wildlife on the island. When a pig pops through the bushes and noses through the dirt, Tegoshi relaxes.
“Oh, it’s just a pig.”
Masuda is still tense next to him. “It’s a boar.”
“Huh?”
“A wild boar.”
“And?”
Like it knows the pair are talking about him, the boar turns, and stares at them.
“Tegoshi,” Masuda whispers. “Stand up. Very slowly. And climb the nearest tree.”
“Wha-“
“Do it.”
The tone of his voice makes Tegoshi shudder, so he stands up - slowly - and backs up towards a tree. The boar watches him the whole time, pacing by the bush. Tegoshi reaches for a branch and pulls himself up, climbing until he’s a good 10 feet off the ground. Just as Masuda stands up, keeping an eye on the boar, it takes a step towards him and snorts, shaking it’s head. Masuda moves to his right, reaching for another tree when the boar wails and stiffens his stance.
“Massu!” Tegoshi whispers, but the other stills completely hand wrapped around a branch.
It’s like a staring war between Masuda and the boar, and without warning, the boar heaves its weight forward, charging Masuda and the tree. Tegoshi shouts, and Masuda scrambles up the tree as high as he can. But when the boar head butts the tree, the whole thing shakes and Masuda loses his grip and lands running while the boar wobbles on its feet, dazed. When it comes back to itself, the boar keens and makes running for Masuda, who jumps over the big pool, trying to put more space between them. But the boar charges through the pool, and Masuda can feel the boar right behind him. There’s a fallen branch to his right, knobbly and thick as his thigh. Without even checking how far away the boar is, Masuda grabs the branch with both hands and brings it around, strong and heavy. He feels the exact moment is connects with the boar; he feels the tremors up his arm and through his whole body. Distantly, he hears a piggish scream and a thump against the ground.
His hands are still on the branch, whole body shaking when he feels Tegoshi next to him prying his hands off the wood.
“Massu!” He shouts. “Massu!”
He lets go and nearly falls backwards, saved only by Tegoshi at his side.
-
After the boar, the two of them are both too weary to go back to the spring. However, their want for fresh water wins out in the end, and after feeding the fire logs and grass, they follow the cove into the island.
It’s harder going that way, roots sticking out of the ground and sharp rocks that Masuda is constantly pointing out to Tegoshi and telling him to be careful of. Small lizards scatter out of their way, and birds fly out of the canopy. When Masuda says they’re half-way to the stream, it’s more than twice the distant when cutting through the forest.
They rest on a fallen tree, picking at the moss and tossing small rocks into the still water of the cove. It’s quieter in the cove. No roar of the waves, no birds calling to each other, only their rocks plunking into the water. Tegoshi looks up through the break in the canopy idly, staring at the clouds, and just as he’s about to ask Masuda if they should keep going, a small plane, high and tiny, flies across the sky.
“Plane!” Tegoshi yells, and takes off running for the beach, Masuda right behind him.
With the adrenaline and excitement, the run to the beach doesn’t seem to take long. When they arrive, the fire is still spewing out black-grey smoke, but the plane is no where in sight.
They don’t ever make it back to the spring that day.
-
Tegoshi is down the beach the next day, collecting driftwood and humming lines from Kesenai while Masuda watches the fire, when a blow horn screams loud across the water. Tegoshi is almost afraid to turn around, like it might be his imagination. But when he does, he drops the armful of wood and openly starts crying at the sight of the red boat with “US COAST GUARD” written in thick, block letters across the side.
-
Within the hour, Tegoshi and Masuda are wrapped in blankets and are drinking water from a bottle, cold and most definitely safe. An officer is talking at them in halting and broken Japanese. They learn that the captain and the boat were never found, and it is assumed the boat sank, the captain going down as well. The officer also alludes to the fact that the captain had taken the boat into protected, wildlife preserve waters which are off limits and it made the search more difficult, because the Coast Guard was looking in the wrong spot. But the smoke signal was the single most helpful thing the pair could have done to assist the Coast Guard in finding them. He smiles then, tired and happy, a hand on each their shoulder and says he’s glad they’ve been found, if not a little worse for wear.
When they arrive in Honolulu, it’s at a big metal pier, all the other boats being part of the Coast Guard as well. But standing on the pier, is an army of reporters, cameraman, random bystanders, wondering about these Japanese idols who got lost and the local news hasn’t shut up about for days. As they walk down the plank, the journalists move in, shouting questions in half-English, half-Japanese, and Tegoshi instinctively reaches for Masuda, who’s behind him. In Masuda's right hand, he’s holding his ruined shoes, and with his left, he reaches to meet Tegoshi's.
There’s a familiar shout and yell, and then Ryo is pushing his way through the inner most ring of reporters, literally shoving them aside, followed immediately by YamaPi, Koyama and Shige. There’s a dramatic group hug on the pier, none of the six bothering to hide their tears.
-
At the hotel, the two head straight for showers, relaxing under the hot water, washing out all the salt and dirt and non-pleasantries. When they convene in one of the rooms, Tegoshi and Masuda wrapped in bathrobes, there’s take-out of every kind, Koyama saying with tears in his eyes (again) that they weren’t sure what the two would want to eat, so they got a little everything. Masuda wolfs down the gyoza in record time, and then the fried rice, while Tegoshi eats chicken shish-kabob.
Johnny wants Tegoshi and Masuda to rest in Hawaii for a week or so before they come back to Japan, but the two are restless, ready to get the hell out of there and be back home where they can’t see the stars at night and every kind of amenity exists. Two days later, they’re on a plane, two set of three seats, with Tegoshi stretching across Koyama and Ryo, Masuda across Shige and YamaPi.
Tegoshi and Masuda’s families are given special permission by the Narita airport authorities to come back through the airport hallways and meet their sons right after they disembark the plane. When they finally meet, the mothers and Masuda’s sister break out crying, the fathers attempt to look stoic, but it’s obvious they’re just as relieved and happy to have their children back safely. Tinny barks happily and licks Tegoshi’s face, and Koyama starts crying again.