here and there

best friend (1)

ahhh a quick update? me? no way. 

takes place before here and there.  

Mafumafu fidgets next to him, bouncing his leg and playing with his fingers. Soraru eyes him for a few more moments, before releasing a sigh.

"Oi. Quit moving around. It's just an interview. We've done this before."

Mafu gives him a sheepish smile. "I guess you're right."

The man still looks unconvinced though, causing Soraru to frown. "You're always really good at them anyways," he admits, in an attempt to comfort the man, "You're a lot more eloquent than I am."

"Obviously," Mafu shoots back.

"Oi," he repeats, and Mafu giggles, causing him to smile against his will. "I'm trying to make you feel better here!"

"I know," Mafu says, smiling at him brightly. "Thank you, Soraru-san."

He looks so unbelievably earnest over such a simple thing that Soraru can't help but feel a little flustered. He clicks his tongue. "Whatever."

Mafu giggles again, over what, Soraru doesn't know, but at least the man isn't fidgeting anymore.

The door opens, and the two of them look up to see a woman dressed in a fashionable skirt and blouse smile at them kindly. "Soraru-san and Mafumafu-san?"

"That's us," Mafu replies cheerfully.

They do a few more formal introductions, before beginning the interview. Soraru watches as Mafumafu answers all the questions pointed at him with relative ease; he really has no idea why the man was nervous before. Sure, sometimes Mafu's a bit awkward, but he's so good at moving things forward and laughing about it that it's impossible to not enjoy talking to him. It's hard to not like Mafu. He's the type to draw everyone in with a smile.

As for him, well...he feels as if he isn't as likeable. At least not at first. He's been told multiple times by other people that they were always a bit intimidated by him before realizing he wasn't all that off putting once they became friends. Like, "Oh, you don't intend to be cold, you're just a little awkward." He's lost count of how many times a similar sentence has been spoken to him.

And well, to be completely honest, it bothers him, a little. Maybe even makes him a little insecure. Because well, Soraru doesn't realize he's being cold. He doesn't realize that he might've been a bit rude. He doesn't realize it, until it's too late, and the person already thinks he dislikes them, and he ends up playing the conversation over and over again in his mind, wondering where it went wrong.

He remembers mentioning it to Mafumafu once. It was late, they had just finished mixing a song, and now they were both lying on Mafu's bed in exhaustion, Soraru on his stomach, head turned towards Mafu while Mafu laid on his back, arm over his eyes.

"Hey, Mafu," Soraru murmurs quietly.

"Hmmm?"

"Is being friends with me troublesome?"

There's a pause. Mafu lifts his arms so he can properly look at his face. "Why would it be?"

Soraru glances away. "I don't know. I sometimes say things that sound bad. It could be annoying."

Another pause. Mafu turns over to his side, shifting down so he can stare directly into Soraru's face, red eyes large and unblinking. Soraru finds it strangely hard to look away. "I know that to some people...Soraru-san is cold. But to me, Soraru-san is the complete opposite. You're warm and gentle and kind. You do whatever it takes to help others. I think the people who say you're cold are people who only listen to what you say, not pay attention to what you do. So they can't understand." Mafu's lips curl into a small smile. "But you know, Soraru-san, that's kind of a good thing. It means that the people you are close with are people who did their best to get to know you. If a person can't get over your awkwardness, then they wouldn't have been a good friend anyway."