Red Strings ¦¦ Chishiya Shuntarou x OC

Seventeenth String

"What if she doesn't like you? What if you don't like her? Oh God, what if Ayako-san doesn't like you? That's impossible, Ayako-san loves everyone. Except Brad Pitt. So maybe don't mention him."

"Calm down."

Holding Aoi's face in his hands, the taller man squished his cheeks and managed to calm him down instantly. Whenever he got nervous, Aoi had the habit of rambling and spiralling, sending himself into a panic attack. So far, only two people had ever been able to snap him out of it: Kurenai usually with a slap to the head, and Ayako who was always so gentle with him.

Then along came Akiyama Toshiaki one day.

Aoi was having another panic attack after a meeting with his father when Toshiaki happened to be walking by. He sat down on the floor next to Aoi, and talked to him as if they were old friends. Toshiaki then did what he did just now: holding Aoi's face and squishing his cheeks. So focused on the fact that someone was touching him, Aoi had completely forgotten about his panic attack.

Since that day, he could not stop thinking about Toshiaki and how warm his hands felt on his cheeks. He started to see him everywhere too, or well, started to notice him more. How Toshiaki always had a smile on his face, and how he was the perfect gentleman who would always hold the door open for others. Perhaps he was just nice to everyone, Aoi was no one special.

Or so he thought.

It was Toshiaki who asked him out on a date.

That was two years ago. While they only went out for two dates and never continued the relationship after, something clicked between them again and they decided to give it another go. And Aoi was falling dangerously head over heels for him. Fortunately, it seemed like Toshiaki was too.

"I'm sure I'll like her," Toshiaki said, reassuring Aoi. "And I'll make sure she likes me too."

"She will," Aoi nodded, feeling a little more confident.

With a smile, Toshiaki stole a kiss from him just as the lift arrived at the top floor. He stepped out as if nothing happened, walking toward the front door and looked back to see Aoi frozen in the lift. Even after half a year of dating, he was still shocked every time Toshiaki kissed him.

Coming back to his senses, Aoi got out just before the lift shut on him. With shaking hands, he entered the code to Kurenai's apartment and walked in with Toshiaki. They took their shoes off and Aoi got him a pair of slippers.

Ayako was cooking in the kitchen and as soon as she heard the door opening, she looked up and dropped everything she was doing, rushing over to greet the couple.

"You must be Akiyama Toshiaki-kun! So nice to finally meet you." Although Toshiaki held his hand out for a shake, Ayako went in for a hug. She wrapped her arms tightly around the tall man with a huge grin on her face. "My my, what a tall young man. So handsome too. Well done, Mr. Aoi."

"It's a pleasure to meet you too, Ayako-san."

"Where's Kurenai?" Aoi asked.

"She's in her room."

Instinctively, Aoi walked over to the stairs but just as he was taking the first step, he stopped himself. Memories of what happened the last time he went into her room came flooding back and he was horrified once again. He took in a deep breath, calming himself down.

"Kurenai! We're here!" he yelled.

"Use your indoor voice, please," Kurenai said, appearing by the stairwell. "Why won't you come upstairs?"

"Just in case I see something I'm not supposed to. Not that I saw anything last time."

"That means you saw everything."

Walking past Aoi, Kurenai had her eyes fixed on the strange tall man in her home. She was walking up to him when Toshiaki held his hand out, about to introduce himself when Kurenai simply walked past him too, going into the kitchen to steal a bite of whatever Ayako was cooking.

"Well that was rude," Ayako frowned. "You should meet Mr. Akiyama, Miss Kurenai."

"Fine." Sitting down at the dining table, Kurenai had her arms folded and waited for both Toshiaki and Aoi to sit too. "What's your name? How old are you? How tall are you? What's your position in the company? Who are you parents and what do they do?"

Ayako started to bring the dishes over too, and when Aoi picked up his chopsticks to start eating, Kurenai used hers to slap him on the wrist. Nobody was eating until she was done interrogating. There was no point in keeping someone she did not like for dinner, after all.

"I'm Akiyama Toshiaki, and I'm twenty-seven. I'm 198cm tall, and I'm an accounts manager. My parents are Akiyama Eiji and Fuji Sayaka. My dad is a school teacher and my mum is a housewife."

"Do your parents know?"

"That I'm gay? Or that I'm dating Aoi? It's yes for both questions."

"And you know that Aoi is not out yet?"

"I do."

So far, Toshiaki was doing great. He had a smile the entire time on his face, even when Kurenai was glaring at him. Her tone of voice was not friendly at all, but he kept a gentle tone with her, answering each and every question.

"What's your plan then? What are you going to do when my father arranges for him to meet women?"

"We'll cross that bridge when we get to it."

"We're crossing that bridge now."

Aoi could feel his anxiety building up at Kurenai's sharp questions. It was a question he often thought about, though whenever he did, he was quick to shake it off. He did not want to induce anxiety when he was having a nice day and eventually, it became one of those things that he kept putting off.

"I have no status in society, nor power, nor money to stop your father from arranging marriages for Aoi. And he most likely would not accept that the heir to his company is dating a man. But I have no intentions of giving Aoi up for anyone. Unless he's had enough of me."

Kurenai kept quiet and watched Toshiaki, whose attention was on Aoi. Her brother was obviously touched by what he just said, though the reality was, Toshiaki would likely lose that fight against their father.

"Have you guys had sex?" Kurenai asked.

That was the question that shocked Toshiaki, and his mouth hung open as he was struggling to find the words to answer her. Aoi was appalled at the question. Even Ayako was surprised. Kurenai had always been a blunt and straightforward person, but there were some questions one would not ask in front of so many. In fact, that was a question one would not even ask privately.

"Kurenai! Please!" Aoi frowned, his entire face red like a tomato.

"What? Am I not allowed to know? What if he just wants to fuck you and leave?"

"Oh God!" Aoi groaned, covering his face. "Who are you to ask me that question when just last week, I caught you- You know what, I can't even say it."

"What happened last week?" Toshiaki asked, looking to Ayako for help.

It was best he did not know, so Ayako shook her head and gently patted his hand before putting a finger to her lips. It was better to let the siblings work this out themselves."

"Why can't you say it? Have you never done it before?" Kurenai asked, a teasing smirk appearing on her face. "I'm not embarrassed. I'm happy to say that I have a happy sex life. Happy and satisfying."

"PLEASE STOP TALKING!"

"Let's eat," Kurenai said, picking up her chopsticks.

"That means she likes you," Ayako whispered to Toshiaki. "Eat up."