[Arashi] [Sakumiya] Her Silver Lining

[radhaj]

Rating: NC-17 for future chapters
Disclaimer: Those people are not mine. Damn.
Warnings: Transgender character. Sexy stuffs later on. Nothing super kinky this time. Maybe
Summary: The job might not be the most prestigious and by far not something she had envisioned herself doing to support herself at this point of her life. But perhaps this whole thing was exactly what she needed to finally feel confident in who she was.



Chapter 6

Shouko was definitely not one of those stereotypical, bad comedy flick women who would have their date waiting for an hour past their agreed meeting time after saying “Just five more minutes!” because she took ages to get ready. She always had her preparations planned out to the minute (fifteen minutes for hair, twenty-three for make-up and just seven to dress in the clothes that she had already decided on and set out before-hand) and just didn't do late.

And this wasn't any exception, really – she wasn't late now either. She still had seven whole minutes to go (her entire dressing time) when Ninomiya rang her doorbell that Monday evening. So it honestly couldn't have been helped that she ended up just buzzing him in and unlocking her door so he could enter her apartment before she continued dressing with, admittedly, more nervousness and insecurity about whether she would look okay than usual. It wasn't her fault that he came up to get her a little early and thus now had to wait in her tiny, messy living-room for her to come out, right?

But perhaps it was for the better anyway, because when she finally came out of her cramped little bedroom and he saw her, he froze and his jaw dropped so far that it might have posed a bit of a problem had it happened outside the privacy of her apartment. She fidgeted very uncomfortably under his wide-eyed gaze and tugged on the sleeves of her jacket nervously.

“Did I overdo it?” she asked in a very insecure voice, glancing down at her own figure. He was still just staring at her, with his mouth gaping open, his eyes fixed somewhere just above her short, white, frilly skirt.

“You have.... I never knew you had a belly-button piercing?” was weirdly his first comment and he still looked too shocked to say anything else after that.

“Oh crap, I really overdid it right?” she quickly started panicking because of that, “I'm sorry, I go change, I won't take more than a couple of minutes I promise, I'm quick...”

She was already turning back towards her bedroom, her left foot slipping out of the high-heel shoes she was wearing to save time. Stupid, stupid! What was she thinking, getting carried away like this? Just because they were going to a club didn't mean she had to dress so... so... like this! And why the hell did she think he really meant it when he asked her to wear high-heels? Who the fuck would ever want a giant woman towering over them as their date? That was just stupid and she should have known better and...

But then Ninomiya was stopping her, his eyes just as wide as before but now he was looking her straight in the eyes as he turned her to face him again.

“Do you have any idea,” he started, sounding a little hoarse as if he was struggling to make his voice work, “Any idea at all how absolutely gorgeous you are?”

The statement took her so much by surprise that she didn't even blush, just froze and forgot to breathe. Her figure that had been so tense from the effort to quickly disappear from his sight again slumped and she didn't quite know what to say.

“You didn't overdo anything, I love the outfit and...” he seemed to be the one to recover first now as he started speaking properly finally while his hand gently lifted to brush over her navel, which was covered by the sheer fabric of the lower part of her black blouse, with the back of his fingers, making her shiver, “I didn't expect this, but it strangely really suits you,” he chuckled, “It's a weird thing to discover perhaps... In a way that shows that we don't really know that much about each other yet, doesn't it?” he mused out loud, sounding a bit melancholy now. He then reached out for her hand, confusing her a little, and took the shoe that she now had hanging by a strap off her finger, “And these should definitely stay on,” he said sternly as he crouched down in front of her. She blushed slightly as she realized what he intended to do and awkwardly braced herself on his shoulder while he lifted her left foot and put the shoe back on.

“Thank you,” she muttered, embarrassed by his action, after she could steadily stand on both her feet again and he stood back up.

“Ah, I told you didn't I? Perfect height,” he commented then with a wink and she quickly averted her eyes because she knew very well what he was getting at and was too embarrassed to acknowledge the fact that she was all too aware of what part of her body his eyes were nicely in line with like this. However, looking away meant she realized just how messy of an apartment she had invited him into.

“Oh, uhm... sorry about the mess,” she started fidgeting again but he immediately just laughed and waved her off.

“It's cozy in here,” he said with a smile, “Have you lived here long?”

She quickly realized that he was trying to correct the fact that they knew so little about each other now that he had noted it. And she appreciated it, she did but... she always found it so hard to open up to people. She never knew just which fact from her rather eventful life would make someone judge her negatively. But... But she had promised herself that she'd try to trust him. He had proven he deserved that trust quite a few times by now. And she owed him at least some effort to do so.

“Uhm, since I was sixteen actually,” she revealed and he immediately looked at her again with obvious surprise, and she hurried to explain and brush it off again, “My parents actually bought it for me as a gift,” their way of getting rid of me, “When I decided to live on my own,” without having to deal with being accused of child neglect, “I've lived here ever since,” she finished and smiled as brightly as she could. So much for being open and truthful. But from the way his eyes lingered on her silently for a few seconds afterwards, she had a suspicion that he was able to read between the lines.

“I see,” he smiled, “Well, as cozy it is here, we have somewhere to go I think?” he said, offering her his elbow and she happily allowed him to escort her out of her home and into his car.

The bar that he had promised to take her to when he officially asked her on a second date once they had returned to their manor on Saturday (“It's this club/bar owned by a friend and it's nice there and it shouldn't be too crowded on a Monday evening!”) turned out to be only a short trip from her place so unfortunately (or maybe fortunately) they barely had any time for conversation or any other questions for the sake of getting to know each other during it.

Ninomiya was obviously a regular in the place as he was let inside with her without a single question (which made sense if it was owned by his friend) and soon they were making their way through the dimly lit place, maneuvering between tables until they got to the bar, where three stools were strangely empty at a side. Ninomiya plopped down onto one of them, obviously feeling at home, and gestured for her to sit on one next to him, which she did, shyly perching down on it and holding her tiny purse close to herself as if for protection while she looked around. It didn't take more than a minute before they caught the attention of the cheerfully smiling bartender who immediately approached them.

“Nino!” he exclaimed excitedly enough that it was loud even with the music blaring from the speakers around them, “You came today! And Nino's girlfriend!” the man continued, his enthusiasm not lowering with time at all. She blushed a little at being called that, but fortunately for her, Ninomiya didn't seem to like the high volume either.

“Idiot, always too loud,” he muttered with a half-hearted glare, “At least treat your customers with proper respect. It's not “Nino's girlfriend”, it's Sakurai Shouko for you,” he half-chided half-introduced and then turned to her, dismissively gesturing at the man on the other side of the bar, “The airhead over there is Aiba Masaki. He's, unfortunately, a childhood friend of mine and also the genius that figured out that an amusement park date is perfect with everyone,” he added wryly and she found herself biting her lower lip to stop herself from laughing at how cranky her “boyfriend” looked just remembering that. But the barman just beamed proudly, completely misreading the sentiment in the words.

“Yes, I did!” he nodded happily but, at their lack of obvious gratitude, his smile seemed to wilt as he slowly caught on, “Oh...” he mouthed, “Am I sorry?” he asked comically, glancing at Ninomiya quizzically who just glared in response.

“I'm very afraid of heights,” Shouko decided to take pity on the man who immediately looked horrified and terribly apologetic, “But it's okay! You couldn't have known! And Nino-san didn't know either so it couldn't be helped, and it turned out to be a lot of fun regardless,” she smiled at him very forgivingly as, indeed, she felt no regrets about that date by now anyway and actually felt like it got them much closer to each other.

“Oh,” he repeated, still looking guilty and a little saddened only to, a second later, unexpectedly perk up again “Oh!” he said for the third time and turned towards Ninomiya with his whole body, “She calls you Nino-san, Nino! That is sooo cute,” he cooed, apparently full of excitement again and Shouko had to bite the insides of her cheeks quite strongly because of how long-suffering her date's reaction looked.

“Shut up and get us some drinks already! What sort of barkeep are you if you don't even ask what your customers want? Get me a beer and...” he trailed off and glanced at her questioningly.

“A Mojito would be fine?” she mumbled timidly, and Aiba beamed at her again.

“Right away, Shouko-chan!” he promised, apparently as quick to drop formalities as his friend. Shouko could swear she could also hear him squeal “Uwaa! How cute!” under his breath as he left them momentarily to get their drinks.

“He seems sweet,” she commented in a whisper to Ninomiya who snorted.

“If you're into morons, then maybe,” he muttered, but even if Ninomiya pretended to just be annoyed by his “air-headed” friend, she could see that there was a deep-rooted fondness and friendship that her date actually felt towards the other man who, after tending to a couple more patrons and refilling their drinks, was soon already returning with his beer,

“Here you go, Nino-chan,” the bartender said, ignoring Ninomiya's glower at being called that as he put the open beer-bottle in front of Ninomiya and then started making Shouko's drink as well, “So Shouko-chan, Nino didn't really want to reveal much about you to us. Are you a student? Do you really work as a maid in his manor?” the cheerful man asked away and she nodded.

“Yes and yes,” she answered, “I study at Keio and I needed the job to pay the student fees,” she explained, gratefully accepting her drink and taking a small sip.

“Keio? Wow, that's amazing,” the barkeep truly seemed impressed by that as he leaned in closer, “What major?” he asked curiously and she swirled her drink and the ice-cubes with a straw. She smiled as, ironically, this was allowing Ninomiya to get to know stuff about her as well, just as he had wanted. Her date was also obviously listening as he drank his beer.

“Social sciences,” she responded casually, not thinking much of it, but Ninomiya's ears seemed to perk up with interest at the little piece of general information of her life that, still, he hadn't yet known.

“Really?” he asked, apparently not having expected that, “Why did you get interested in that?”

She hesitated this time, mulling over her answer for a bit and choosing her words.

“I'd figure it would be helpful. Social issues and the way society's collective mindset works seems to be something that will probably play a role in my life quite a bit,” she explained, “Besides, the course was the cheapest one in Keio,” she added as an after-thought with a smile that was supposed to turn it all into a joke while she drank her beverage to hide her sudden nervousness. But Aiba seemed confused.

“A big role in your life? But what do you mean?” he asked, his whole being simply spilling over with innocent curiosity, but it made her smile freeze on her face. Did he not know?... She opened her mouth in preparation to answer, although she didn't yet know what she was going to say, but Ninomiya was ahead of her, drawing attention to himself by clearing his throat.

“Now I might be wrong,” he drawled with obvious sarcasm, “But if I'm not, then this is supposed to be our date and not your opportunity to ask my girlfriend questions,” he continued and Aiba had the grace to immediately look abashed.

“Ah yes, sorry, I get carried away sometimes,” he was already apologizing a second later, bowing his head.

“So if you don't mind,” Ninomiya resumed just as meaningfully, “I will now take my date to dance and you should, perhaps, tend to the other customers that you've been ignoring in the meantime?”

The bartender looked even more embarrassed after that and quickly excused himself, promising to be a good friend and mostly stay away from then on. Something about that phrase was a little ironic, but Shouko had no time to ponder about it before Ninomiya was, indeed, asking her to go dance with him. Normally, Shouko probably would have wavered a little before agreeing, or at least warned the man that she was probably a bit too clumsy to be taken to the dance-floor and too stiff to actually be good at dancing anyway, but she was a bit too distracted by her thoughts to do so. Which was, perhaps, fortunate considering how often she was hesitant to do the things that Ninomiya suggested and it was probably getting a little tiresome. And yet again, it wasn't that nice, considering just what was bothering her right then. Still, she just allowed herself to be led into the mostly empty, small dance-floor of the bar and waited until they started moving to the slow music, standing close to each other, his hands gentle on her waist, before she quietly brought it up.

“You didn't tell Aiba-san that I'm...” she trailed off. As ridiculous as it was, considering Ninomiya obviously knew the truth, saying it was still too hard for her. Especially as it, indeed, had yet to be stated directly between them. But the man didn't seem troubled by her question at all.

“Of course not,” he answered immediately, but before she could get upset about the dismissiveness with which he said it, he was already explaining himself completely differently from what Shouko, with all her readiness to always assume the worst, had expected, “It is not my place at all, is it? He might be my friend, but he has no reason to be told until you are ready and unless you want it. Besides, I told you already, right? To me, that doesn't make a difference. And despite how dumb they might sometimes seem, I choose my friends well. I don't expect Aiba would care much either,” he reassured her, and she did feel relieved, but still a little reluctant to completely let it go.

“So... you didn't hide it because you were ashamed to say-”

“No, obviously not,” he denied that instantly, looking shocked by the idea alone, his eyes wide as saucers, “I never felt that way about this.”

She looked down, now a little ashamed for having doubted him.

“It's just... when you interrupted me when I was about to tell him I thought...”

“I only did so because I thought you felt pressured by the question to reveal it to him,” Ninomiya corrected her assumptions easily, smiling up at her softly and reaching up to caress her slightly rosy cheek, “I would never interfere if you wanted to trust my friends with it, would never have anything against that. But I don't want you to do it only because you feel you have to. My own attitude towards it aside, you obviously and understandably struggle with it sometimes. So that's why I made sure you have a way out of saying it. If I shouldn't have done it then...”

“No!” she exclaimed a little too loudly immediately, and then embarrassedly lowered her voice, “No, that was... incredibly thoughtful of you. Thank you,” she said sincerely, her voice cracking a little as she spoke, her heart feeling fluttery in her chest and the corners of her eyes itching with ridiculous tears that wanted to spill over because she suddenly just felt so overemotional. She could barely believe that this person was even real right then. How could someone be so perfect and understanding? And how in hell did she get lucky enough to meet him out of all the people in the world?

“I don't know what I did to deserve someone as amazing as you in my life,” she said, not really realizing she was speaking out loud until it was too late. But he didn't even bat an eyelash.

“I feel the exact same way about you,” he whispered and slowly leaned in, giving her enough time to back away, just in case. But she never did.

It was a little awkward. With her on high-heels and him being quite short in general, he actually had to lift himself slightly on tip-toes before he could press his lips against hers for the second time in their life, his hands on her waist now holding on stronger as he used the connection for support. They had stopped dancing, right in the middle of dance-floor, uncaring of the continuing music or the few couples that swayed to it around them. Their own world had paused, standing still around the steady point of where their lips pressed against each other's.

Even as inexperienced as she was, she still knew to part her lips for him when he varied the pressure slightly. Her heart beating in her throat with excitement and nervousness, she could do little more than just allow him to explore her mouth slowly, languidly, tasting the mint in her breath while sharing the strong flavour of beer with her in return. One of his hands lifted, his precarious balance swerving a little as his hand found its way to the nape of her neck, holding her face close to his own as he lead the experience. It took a little while before she found the courage to start to respond properly, her own tongue moving curiously, experimentally, coaxed and guided by his own.

When she finally opened her eyes again after their lips had separated, she felt dizzy with the lack of oxygen but too happy and exhilarated to care. Their faces were still close to each other and she knew that the smile that she could see on his face was reflected on her own. Instead of backing away, however, they stayed close, their foreheads now resting against each other, both of them uncaring of how awkward that position was with their height difference. She felt happier and calmer than she had ever felt before. With comfortable silence between them, they just continued to dance.

Notes: Thank you all SO MUCH for the amazing response that the last chapter got. I was over the mood to have that much feedback <3
I'm sorry that this is going to be four chapters in a row filled with two dates cut in half, but I'm afraid that's the only way I could make them work. I hope this chapter was enjoyable :)

Comments

[yumi-usagi.livejournal.com]

Nothing is more excited than waking up on Sunday and found out that you updated this fic ^O^ I'm looking forward to Sunday now not only because of the weekend but also your update hehe
This fic is really good. It deserves a lot of good feedback ne XD
I love their dates and wouldn't mind to read more about them XD
Nino is as sweet as usual :D
I really like it how Shouko is the same one as Sho-kun: the belly button piercing, her messy room and the exact-to-minute schedule.
Aiba said "Nino really didn't want to reveal about you to us". So Nino has more friends beside Aiba ne, are they Jun and Oh-chan? :D
Thanks for sharing! I can't wait to read next chapter (next Sunday please hurry up and come Lol)

[radhaj.livejournal.com]

Aww, you flatter me so much <3 I am so happy you're enjoying this story and look forward to it so much :) I'll try to never disappoint :)
Yes, he has other friends and you are of course right about who they are :) It would be no fun to have an arashi fic without the gang all there, right? Each arashi member has their own role in this story :)
Thank you, as always <3 I look forward to your beautiful comments maybe as much as you look forward to new chapters <3

[akhikaru]

Awww~ isn't Nino sweet~ :3
I love how considerate he was with Shouko~
It was an enjoyable chapter, thank you! I'll be looking forward to the next one~ :D

[radhaj.livejournal.com]

I'm glad you enjoyed it <3 Thank you for commenting 3:

[hanarashi.livejournal.com]

“Do you have any idea,” ...“Any idea at all how absolutely gorgeous you are?”
omg...*faints.....
Nino is just so sweet...he doesn't seem to run out of words especially if it's for Shouko.....ohhhhhh do you also have any idea how I desperately envy Shouko now? hahahahaah Finding a guy like that is really fortunate....very very lucky! I also feelt so happy about how thoughtful Nino was when he interrupted Aiba's innocent questions to Shoko...He's really sensitive to her feelings and I think that's the second best part in this chapter because the best part is when,...
they kissed and linked their foreheads together...hmmmm imagining a short guy doing all his best just to defy their height differences with his "girlfriend" is just too sweet... He didn't even consider that it might look embarassing or funny for others...anyway,that's love after all...waaaaaahhhhh I love Nino's character!!! Thank you for such beautiful update!!! Don't be bothered about splitting their dates hahahaha because it's always worth looking into the tiniest details of their moments...you did it very well....
Thank you very much...mwaaaahhhh!!! :D

[radhaj.livejournal.com]

Nino is really trying for her <3
I'm glad you're okay with me writing all this out like this, I hope it doesn't get boring with time...
Thank you so much, as always :)

[hanarashi.livejournal.com]

Oh no! I won't be bored with it I promise...Actually,I've been looking forward of what's going to happen next..... :)

[euamokazusho.livejournal.com]

Aaawwww.... this story is getting sweeter and cuter >.< I love the way you describe the date so full of details, from the clothes to the feelings.... oh and the kiss... I love that kiss scene <333 God , I'm starting to think that Neen is to good to be true..... I hope nothing bad happens between Sakumiya... Thanks for sharing dear ^^

[radhaj.livejournal.com]

Awww, I'm so happy you enjoyed the kiss scene this much <3 And I'm glad you liked the details - I always have specific imagery for Shouko's outfits.
Well, hopefully he's still realistic xD He has plenty of character problems, but he's just doing his best for Shouko :)
Thank you for reading <3

[sky-fish7.livejournal.com]

Sorry for late comment! I'm so busy and tired lately *uff* Fortunately tomorrow is a national holiday in my country, I'll try to sleep as long as I can (but usually that means I wake up around half past seven XD lol) Ah sorry for babbling...

This chapter was really really nice! I love it so much! It's so cute how Nino is too early to pick Shoko up! It's like he was just too excited and couldn't wait for her any longer! ^^ I also loved how she got confused and insecure because of his stare, wanted to change and then he... aaaaw >.< So cute those two!

Aiba is such a cutie, really XD I think as well, he wouldn't mind if Shoko is a man or a woman or whatever, he will like her but it's great that Nino didn't tell him yet the whole truth about Shoko. I think, this is very important. It's not OK to tell such a secret to other people, as related or unrelated they ever might be to the situation. It's like Nino said, it's something that should Shoko tell Aiba when she think she's ready to. And in the meantime, it's their secret, not because Nino is ashamed because of her but because he respects her. I would have done it the same way like Nino did. It's cute thought that Shoko thought he might be ashamed and got a little angry about his reaction =P And it's interesting that she thought that Nino told his friends everything already... I wonder about this because usually it should be her to be afraid of letting others know about the truth, right?

The dance... omg that dance... my heart was beating so heavily when I read this scene... and then the kiss... THE KISS!!! And then my heart melted away and yeah... I can't wait for the next chapter! Again thank you very much for sharing this story with us!

And thank you very much for your long answer to my comment to the last chapter. It seems like we have a similar view of that topic and I'm glad about that. I think it's important to treat this topic carefully, no matter which sexual orientation people might have. I totally agree with you about that sexual attraction and such can't be chosen. It's like love, right? You can't really chose whome you fall in love with. It just happens or it doesn't. All of this is really a mistery but it's so interesting!

[radhaj.livejournal.com]

Oh, don't worry at all, it's not like there's any rush for this or any time limits xD I'm just really really happy that you take some time to comment at all, that is very precious to me :)

Aiba really is incredibly sweet <3 This was my first time writing him, actually, but I was quite satisfied how he had turned out. And yes, I think noone has a right to reveal such things apart from the person themselves. No matter how close you are, or if you THINK they'd be okay with it, it's just not your place.
And I think she had just thought that because she doesn't quite know what to expect in this situation. He obviously told them ABOUT her, and she might just be insecure enough about it that she thought he might have told them to "warn" them or something. So when it turned out he hadn't, she didn't quite know what to make of it.

I am really glad you liked that part because it was really quite hard to write and I didn't know if I managed to convey a nice atmosphere... But if people enjoy it, then I'm reassured :) Thank YOU for keeping up with this <3

[sky-fish7.livejournal.com]

I'm happy if I can make you happy with a simple comment! ^^ For me, it's important to show others gratitude for their work, especially, if it's really interesting like your story! Since I'm writing myself, I know that comments are important. It's not that I demand getting comments or that I'm getting that much but I'm thankful for each and every single comment and of course, those that are a bit more detailed, are the most precious to me. I'm always curious if people liked what I wrote (because I'm very critical with myself) and I'm curious which scenes they liked, which not, if they found something confusing, which were their favorite scenes or characters or whatever. That's why I try to give a bit more detailed comment if I read something, pointing out such things or why I try to comment as soon as possible after I read something (sometimes I can't becaause I read stuff on my way to work or on my way back home and typing long comments on my cell phone is just a pain in the ass xD) And that's why I'm feeling guilty if I skip to comment on each chapter and such XD But when I'm reading more than one in a row I can't get myself to stop reading in between to comment haha I'm sorry for that.

Uhm... alright, I guess, it wasn't necessary that I write that much about "comments" right now, I'm really sorry for spamming your journal with stuff like this o.o

[radhaj.livejournal.com]

It is perfectly fine, I am happy to talk about stuff like this :)

I think most readers really underestimate how even one word of appreciation or even just acknowledgement might affect the writer. But writers like us know that it's really like fuel. That's why I also usually try to mention which details struck me the most whenever I comment. I think even sincere, constructive criticism is ALWAYS better than just not commenting at all.

Unfortunately, that's a slippery slope... Not all authors seem to think the same. I've left really good-intentioned and polite criticism and had the authors and even other readers attack me for it. But that's what comments are for, right? How can you expect to improve if you can't even accept people giving you advice? Or when people stay quiet about things that they really disliked just because they wanna be "nice". That's no longer nice, that's delusional... ah sorry, i went off on a tangent XDD

But yes, when you're reading a whole fic in one go it's really difficult to comment than once in the end. Especially if it's a really good story. So that's a certain compliment too tho, isn't it? Hey, I was so absorbed into your story that I just couldn't stop and leave a comment xD

[sky-fish7.livejournal.com]

Yes, I totally agree with you! Just a simple comment can fire you up a lot, right? I know what you mean! ^^

I also agree with you about the costructive criticism! I myself prefer it much more than no comment at all so I hope people are honest with their comments on my stories. About giving constructive critic, I have to say I got pretty careful with giving critics or let me say I'm really careful how to pick my words and if I know an author a bit better I try to accumulate with writing the comment (means if I know the author likes honest critics I give it but I also know that there are some writers who don't like that so in that cases I just stay commenting on what I liked). It's hard to be honest, even if I try to be but I also got treated badly because of that in the past. Not especially in the fanfiction scene but back then when I was more into drawing and gave proper critique, I often met people who were upset then, even if I never was impolite or something... So I can totally understand what you mean.

Haha XD Yeah, I really take it as a compliment that you read until the end of my story before you left a comment, that means it wasn't too boring in between and I'm happy about that ^^

[cchocoo.livejournal.com]

This is sooooo cuuuuuute :33333 I love it so much!!!! I'm kinda emotional right now so don't expect too much but I just had to comment again because I'm currently rereading the whole story even though I am supposed to study but I can't stop.... yep (Also the reason why I couldn't read nor comment your other storys :( Only two weeks of hell left and then I'll continue) only one comment though because I don't really like to write so much from mobile.... But I couldn't resist writing at least one !!! I'll definitely read it again so I might comment again then too ;)
Yeah so this chapter is so cute and the ones before too.... Can Nino get any better? Omg I wish there were more such considerate people 0.0 I think you probably decribed the perfect guy... Someone who actuallly can boost your self confidence and still be so sweet and caring...
The amusementpark date in the last chapter was so funny XD and Aiba being his openhearted self.... It fits so well ahhhh and the "I don't know what I did to deserve someone as amazing as you in my life" it went right into my kokoro T.T even though your smut is amazing you're also so skilled with fluffy words <333 the perfect mixture!!!
Oh dear... This comment is really messed up :S but I'm too much on an emotional cloud so I'll continue on reading until I'm even more of a mess XD
(Btw what is your native language? ^^)
<33333

[radhaj.livejournal.com]

No worries, I understand all about reading when you actually shouldn't be xD

I guess Nino might have turned out a bit idealistic, but I mean, come one, if we don't allow ourselves to believe a perfect man exists even in our fantasies (or fics, in this case) then life will become truly depressing >_>

I am actually really quite proud of how Aiba turned out in this fic xD As little as he had appeared in this, I am really quite fond of him :)

Thank you so much! I mean, I really am happy when people say they love my smut, don't get me wrong, but sometimes it gets to a point where I start thinking maybe I can't write anything BUT smut at all... So I really appreciate that you think the non-sexy parts are worth reading too after all :)

Thank you for your amazing comments, as always <3

[radhaj.livejournal.com]

Oh and I forgot to answer: my native language is Lithuanian. Why do you ask? :)

[cchocoo.livejournal.com]

I was just wondering because first I thought it's English but then I saw that you wrote it's not your native language :) And I also wondered from where you are :D

[radhaj.livejournal.com]

Ooh, I wish English was my native language, it would be much easier to write then :D