#i think that they should book a hotel room in osaka for about two to three hours (kiryu is not going to risk doing it in the orphanage) and | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

owletstarlet · 3 years

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the grand deeds of great men, the smallest of gestures

"My hero."

An (extremely late) request of sorts from @taizi for some solid nishi content, involving Tanuma putting those childhood karate lessons to good use. Established tanunatsu.

Ao3 link in the notes.

“Your boyfriend,” Satoru announces without preamble, dragging Tanuma by their joined hands through the hotel room door, “is a badass.”

Natsume looks up sharply from where he and Atsushi are huddled over a pile of rumpled travel pamphlets on the bed. But it’s Taki who’s on her feet first, closing the distance to the door with a pinched look and taking the shopping bag out of Tanuma’s hand.

Satoru’s grinning. Tanuma is very much not.

But they’re both shaking.

Satoru doesn’t let go of Tanuma’s hand until Natsume’s there to take it. Atsushi’s there to grab Satoru by the shoulders, and the five of them shuffle back as one towards the beds.

Natsume doesn’t press for the explanation until they’re all seated, he and Taki pressed up against either side of Tanuma, their knees bumping up against Atsushi’s and Satoru’s in the narrow space between the two beds. The muttered question is probably more directed at Satoru than at Tanuma, because Tanuma’s gray-faced in the lamplight, gaze a little too wide, breaths coming a little too fast. Both Natsume’s hands are wrapped around Tanuma’s slack one, and on his other side Taki’s hands are gentle where they rub his back, but her keen eyes keep darting over to Satoru, expression tight with all the same concern. Satoru, for his part, is practically vibrating where he sits tucked against Atsushi’s side, from nerves or exhilaration or both, Atsushi can’t quite tell.

“He flipped a guy!” Satoru declares, with a wide one-handed swoop of a gesture at Tanuma, sounding positively giddy about it.

Well. Whatever Atsushi was expecting to hear, it wasn’t that.

“What,” Natsume says, blankly, at the same time that Taki says, “…wait.”

And then they’re all looking at Tanuma. Who very much looks like he’d rather not be looked at.

“It was the actual best thing I have ever seen,” Satoru says, nudging Tanuma’s knee with his own, and there’s something fierce and warm in his eyes. “And he thinks he’s gonna go to jail or something for it, which he’s not, because the guy deserved it, so that would be dumb.”

“What happened?” Atsushi blurts, now well and truly alarmed.

And he tells them.

They’re in Osaka for a long weekend, because Natori had invited them all along for some premiere of a new period piece that Satoru had been gushing about for months. Natsume’s not exactly ecstatic about attending the event itself, but he’s clearly happy that Satoru’s happy—Atsushi gathers that that’s whole point of this—and even if Natori himself is all booked up with press events for the majority of the weekend, it’s a chance for them all to explore the unfamiliar city together.

Not thirty minutes ago, Satoru and Tanuma had volunteered to make a combini run for snacks, only about two blocks from the hotel. But once they’d finished and were through the door, bags in hand, Tanuma had realized he’d forgotten to get the ice cream Taki had asked for. He’d gone back in to get it, while Satoru stayed out front to sip at the cocoa he’d bought. They hadn’t really paid any mind to the group milling about out front. Salarymen, by the looks of them, three or four younger guys in tidy suits with raucous voices and beers in hand. Satoru had been making his way to the bench near the entrance to wait, not quite looking where he was going, and he’d bumped into one of them, causing some of his beer to slosh over the lip of the can and onto the guy’s blazer sleeve. From his place in line Tanuma had heard it, the sharp “Oy!” and the rumbles of displeasure from man’s friends. Tanuma’s not sure what became of the ice cream he’d been holding—maybe he dropped it, maybe he shoved it into the hands of the customer beside him—but the next thing he knew he was out the door, wedging himself firmly between Satoru and the man who now had him by the arm.

“And then he just…bam!” Satoru mimes the motion, as though he’s grabbing something heavy with both hands from behind, and twisting it downwards in front of him. “Like. Grabbed him. And just. Flipped him! Guy went down beer and all, and he looked super confused about being on the ground all of a sudden. And it was amazing, and I had no idea he took karate before.”

And with that, three sets of startled eyes all land squarely on Tanuma. Natsume taps his knee, like he’s trying to break him away from whatever’s got its grip on him behind his own glassy gaze.

“Karate?” Taki looks, at first, gobsmacked by this piece of information. But it morphs into something like slow-breaking delight across her features.

Tanuma’s nod is a single, tight bob of the head. “Just, um.” It’s the first time he’s spoken since walking through the door, and his voice is a ghost of a thing, like it might get swallowed up by the stale air of the room. “Until I was twelve. On and off. I don’t remember much.”

“You remembered plenty,” Satoru tells him, tone banking no argument, before clasping his hands together dramatically. “My hero.” His grin is so wide and irresistibly cheesy that Tanuma looks up, just for a moment, with the barest twitch of his lips before his gaze drops back down towards the stretch of flowery pink carpet beneath their toes. Natsume shoots Satoru a grateful look, even as Atsushi finds himself doing the same to Tanuma. Somewhere, during the course of the story, he’d found himself squashed up impossibly close against Satoru, arm tucked firmly around his shoulders. He seems genuinely excited, not distressed, but against Atsushi’s side he still feels wound up tight as a coiled spring. It’s definitely not lost on Natsume, either, judging by the glance he gives Atsushi. Atsushi nudges Natsume’s foot—he’s okay, I got him—and Natsume nods, once, though his gaze lingers a moment longer on Satoru’s flushed, still-beaming face.

“So you’re afraid someone saw?” Atsushi asks, while Taki fishes out a tea bottle from the shopping bag, uncaps it and presses it into Tanuma’s hand.

Tanuma doesn’t answer, but that touch of a grin from before has twisted itself into something distinctly nauseated.

“If anyone did see, they’d know the dude was fine.” Satoru shrugs. “Also that he deserved it, remember. We ran, anyways.”

Natsume blinks. “You ran here?”

And Atsushi can’t help but see the comedy in that being what Natsume seizes on, considering the truly impressive amount of times Atsushi’s seen him tearing through town apropos of nothing like he’s got a swarm of invisible hornets on his tail.

“Yup,” Satoru says, brightly, tapping Tanuma’s knee. “Felt like an action movie.” A pause, before he tacks on, not unkindly, “Y’know, if you’re not gonna drink that tea, then I will.”

Tanuma blinks down at the tea bottle, which had tilted enough in his hand to nearly spill onto the scratchy comforter as though forgotten about. He manages a couple measured sips before letting Taki take it back and cap it.

Natsume squeezes Tanuma’s fingers in his own, looking unsettled. Taki looks thoughtful, idly tapping the bottle in her hands.

“Were you thinking they had a security camera out front or something?” she asks.

Tanuma says nothing.

Taki leans into his side. “You know, even if anyone watched the footage, it’s like Nishimura said. All they’d see is that man getting exactly what was coming to him,” she says, fervently.

“And you being cool as hell,” Satoru adds. “Seriously, they teach twelve-year-olds how to do that?”

The way his shoulders loosen, just a fraction, feels like a win. “I don’t…actually know?” he starts, squinting like he’s trying to recall. “I was in this class for high-schoolers at the time, because there were nothing else available in the town I lived in.” A shrug, a sheepish glance up and away. “Usually I was just partnered up with my teacher.”

“That actually sounds kind of brutal, though,” Atsushi says, curious now. “Did the teacher demonstrate take-downs and stuff on you?”

“She did, but. Really slowly,” Tanuma replies, and it’s as though the warmth of Natsume’s and Taki’s shoulders pressed up against his has started, though incrementally, to seep into his voice, his eyes. “And I never really got the hang of doing any of it back to her. I’m surprised that worked, earlier.”

Precisely none of this explanation seems to have made Satoru look any less starstruck. Atsushi has to hold back his snort. “You should totally pick it up again,” Satoru’s saying now, around a mouth full of the lemon ice pop Natsume had fished out of the shopping bag for him. “What color belt did you get up to?”

“Um.”

Just that half-second’s hesitation is long enough to put a loaded look into Natsume’s eyes, for him to slot their fingers together properly and squeeze.

Tanuma lets out a breath, and there’s something years-old and lonely clinging to the edges of his smile. Atsushi doubts he’s aware of it. “None.” He shrugs. “I didn’t pass the one exam I took. I got pneumonia that year and had to quit after that, so.”

He looks faintly embarrassed, now, and Satoru opens his mouth as though ready to nip that right in the bud, but Taki beats him to it.

“Tanuma,” she says, solemnly, turning around to face him. “You have got to teach me how you did that.”

***

By the time the polite-yet-firm call arrives from the front desk, indicating a noise complaint from their neighbors in the next room and forcing them all to call it a night, things are better.

By then, Tanuma had been goaded into demonstrating some unwieldy modified version the maneuver behind his earlier takedown, executed on a poor unsuspecting hotel pillow because the entire room had immediately nixed Satoru’s offer to be the human test dummy.

Now, Satoru and Taki are a boneless, lightly snoring tangle of limbs on the far bed, one of Satoru’s arms thrown over Natsume’s whale shark plushie. (A surprise gift from all of them, Taki’s idea, after they’d caught him eyeing it more than once in the aquarium gift shop yesterday. If he’d walked out of the aquarium clutching it to his chest just like he might’ve done with his fat cat, currently hundreds of kilometers away, none of them said a word about it.)

Natsume himself is dozing in the other bed, but he lies facing Satoru—and Satoru’s fine, he’s unharmed and happy and completely safe, he is. But for some reason the longer the night’s worn on, Atsushi’s had to remind himself of these facts more, not less. He knows the dark cast to Satoru’s slack wrist is the lamplight-shadow of his sweatshirt sleeve, knows because he checked.

Still.

Tanuma’s in the bath, now. And he seems, well. Better than he was, certainly. But Atsushi had seen the taut-lipped glances he’d stolen at Satoru, and he looks about the same way Atsushi feels. At least the unwelcome scenarios and possibilities unspooling in his own mind have got to be more vague than whatever Tanuma’s imagination was serving up. Tanuma had seen it. Had stopped it.

Let Satoru wave it off, insist ‘til he’s blue in the face that it was fine, all fine, that he hadn’t been in any real danger. If it would put his friends at ease, he’d have said the same with a smile on his face even if he’d just been robbed at knifepoint.

Atsushi really needs to stop thinking about this.

He’d heard Natsume earlier, voice whisper-gentle through the bathroom door after he’d led Tanuma in by the hand behind him. Satoru and Taki had drifted off by then. Atsushi couldn’t make out the words, and heard nothing at all from Tanuma, aside from a few isolated, stuttering breaths. Tanuma had re-emerged dazed, red-eyed, but calmer than Atsushi had seen him all evening.

When the door opens now, Tanuma steps out in a halo of steam, wet-haired and barefoot in an old t-shirt. Atsushi’s on his feet and halfway across the room before he’s even really aware of it, the change of clothes for his own bath forgotten at the foot of the bed.

Tanuma goes still, when Atsushi pulls him close. Atsushi almost lets go, but then he feels the tentative hands come up to rest on his back.

“Thank you,” Atsushi mutters into his shoulder.

“I—“

“No. Listen.” Atsushi pulls back, hands shifting to rest on his upper arms. And god but Tanuma looks exhausted. “You kept him safe,” Atsushi says. “And don’t try to tell me you didn’t, because you did. Thank you.”

Tanuma opens his mouth, closes it again, swallows. He says nothing for a long moment, but he doesn’t look away. Finally, “…sorry for freaking out.” He smiles as he says it, but his voice snags on the words. He swallows again.

“Hey.” Atsushi waits until Tanuma’s now-dropped gaze returns to him. “You don’t ever have to be sorry for that, okay? Not with us.”

A sound like an inhale, somehow sharp and shaky all at once, and then it’s Tanuma that’s pulling them together again. A steadying breath, in-out-in that ruffles Atsushi’s hair. Stillness.

“Okay,” he whispers.

***

If he does go to jail, it's Natori who'll have to bail him out :)

Sensei didn't come along because I like to think Hiiragi, Sasago and Urihime have been taking turns watching over Natsume, which is more than sufficient, except for when it's *not* Natsume himself who's getting into trouble--

Fun fact, according to the most current iteration of canon, Tanuma's taken judo in the past as well as karate, but the bulk of this was written before that chapter came out.

All credit to taizi for the nice hug idea--

#natsume yuujinchou #kitamoto atsushi #nishimura satoru #tanuma kaname #tanunatsu #kitanishi #if you squint #natsume takashi #taki tooru #natsume's book of friends #taizi #owlet's fanfiction #natsuyuu

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osakaso5 · 3 years

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Nagi Rokuya RabbiTube Rabbit TV Part 1: Spending Time With Nagi

Part 2 | Part 3

Staff: ...Now, on to the RabbiTube project.

Staff: Our plan is to introduce the videos by featuring clips on NEXT Re:vale!

Staff: We'd really appreciate it if you could show a side of yourselves that people don't usually get to see on TV. It's a pleasure to be working with you!

Momo: We've got high hopes for you guys!

Yuki: Feel free to fully expose yourselves to the public.

Mitsuki Izumi: Ahaha, please be gentle with us! Looks like I'm gonna have to do a RabbiTube study marathon..!

Gaku Yaotome: By the way, Tenn, I saw you watching RabbiTube videos the other day. Do you know any good ones?

Tenn Kujo: ...I was just watching cat videos.

Gaku Yaotome: Cats, huh. That's not gonna help us learn anything.

Ryunosuke Tsunashi: ...I think they might help! You could learn ways to entertain and soothe people...

Gaku Yaotome: Ryu, not all of us are gonna be able to do that...

Yuki: ...I'm liking the idea of Kitty Gaku.

Tenn Kujo: ...Pfft...

Gaku Yaotome: Tenn, why're you laughing!?

Riku Nanase: Kitties..! So could it be like a video of Iori going into a cat café?

Iori Izumi: Why do I have to go to a cat café!?

Yamato Nikaido: I'm not too excited about making videos like that, either...

Tamaki Yotsuba: I wanna do a pudding tasting!

Sogo Osaka: ...Personally, I'd like to rank my top 100 spices from all around the world...

Nagi Rokuya: And I shall hold a Cocona watch party!

Mitsuki Izumi: You guys aren't bringing anything new to the table!

Iori Izumi: ...Actually, I suppose animal videos do have their appeal, despite how banal they are...

Riku Nanase: Did you say something, Iori?

Iori Izumi: No, nothing.

Momo: Ahaha! Great, you're already brainstorming ideas!

Momo: You've all got the right idea! We wanna see you act natural for your RabbiTubes!

Yuki: Let's have a fun year doing this.

IDOLiSH7 & TRIGGER: Yessir!

- - - -

Riku Nanase: We're going to be RabbiTubers for our birthday project this year..!

Sogo Osaka: All the group chats up until now were fun, so it's kind of a shame that we won't be doing one this year.

Mitsuki Izumi: ...Fair enough. It'll be awesome to make videos for our fans, but I wish we could have our own celebrations too!

Yamato Nikaido: It's become kind of a tradition by now.

Nagi Rokuya: ...We do not work together as much as we used to. Though I understand that it is difficult to match all our schedules...

Tamaki Yotsuba: Do we not get to eat Mikki's cakes this year?

Mitsuki Izumi: The cakes are the one thing we're gonna make for sure! Right, Iori!?

Iori Izumi: Yes. I'll help, too.

Riku Nanase: Hmm... Celebrations...

Riku Nanase: Ah! Why don't we all go somewhere together for our birthdays?

Riku Nanase: I guess we probably can't all go... But we can get our manager to arrange it so at least some of us can hang out!

Mitsuki Izumi: Going out, huh... That does sound like a nice change of pace from all the group RabbitChats!

Yamato Nikaido: It's a shame that we won't all be able to go, but getting to choose a spot does make it feel more special. ...You should take me to a beer brewery, by the way.

Mitsuki Izumi: Sounds like you've already got one in mind!

Tamaki Yotsuba: Let's take lots of pics and videos for the guys who can't go. We can send them over RabbitChat.

Nagi Rokuya: OH! A wonderful idea. It will make us all feel as if we are there.

Iori Izumi: I'm sure uploading them to Rabitter would make many people happy, as well.

Sogo Osaka: That sounds fun..! Let's ask our manager about it tomorrow.

Riku Nanase: Yep! ...Looks like we're going to have pretty fun birthdays again!

- - - -

Nagi Rokuya: Wow... Have I died and gone to Heaven?

Mitsuki Izumi: Haha, of course not! This is the hotel that's doing a Cocona collab!

Nagi Rokuya: Such wonderful colors... Ah, it is as if these Cocona panels are welcoming us in.

Nagi Rokuya: It truly is reminiscent of the Pearly Gates...

Mitsuki Izumi: ...Uh oh, he's completely lost it.

Tamaki Yotsuba: Well, Nagicchi? Pretty cool, huh?

Nagi Rokuya: Yes... I am so touched I could faint.

Mitsuki Izumi: You're the one who kept leaving pamhplets for this place in our rooms practically every day.

Mitsuki Izumi: You didn't exactly leave me or Tamaki with any other choice but to bring you here...

Nagi Rokuya: I was simply being a postman of love...

Tamaki Yotsuba: It was super tough to get a stay here, right, manager!?

Tsumugi Takanashi: Hehe, Tamaki-san and I had to keep constant watch on the booking site!

Tsumugi Takanashi: Though the room is technically for four people, I'll be going home for the night. I'll try my best to take lots of pictures of you until then!

Nagi Rokuya: Thanks, Tsumugi! Well then, first...

Mitsuki & Tamaki: First?

Nagi Rokuya: Let us play cards!

- - - -

Nagi Rokuya: ........

Mitsuki Izumi: ........

Tamaki Yotsuba: ........

Mitsuki Izumi: Tamaki's got the old maid, huh..? He's so easy to read...

Nagi Rokuya: Luck is on my side today. I will not be defeated.

Tamaki Yotsuba: ...Your turn, Nagicchi! Pull a card from me.

Nagi Rokuya: Yes... I choose this one.

Nagi Rokuya: ...OH, it appears my love is being tested.

Tamaki Yotsuba: Yesss..!

Mitsuki Izumi: Tamaki! Now we all know he's got the old maid!

Tamaki Yotsuba: Good, 'cause I don't want it!

Mitsuki Izumi: Neither do I!

Mitsuki Izumi: ...Not like we can have much of a game with only three people, anyhow.

Tamaki Yotsuba: Are you sure you just want to play cards in this fancy collab hotel, Nagicchi?

Nagi Rokuya: Heh. As long as you are both with me, I would gladly have gone anywhere at all.

Nagi Rokuya: However... I must admit that I still feel a bit lonely without the others.

Mitsuki Izumi: Nagi...

Tamaki Yotsuba: ...Gotcha!

Nagi Rokuya: Tamaki?

Tamaki Yotsuba: You pretty much decided that we'd come here for us...

Tamaki Yotsuba: So now it's me and Mikki's turn to do something for you!

Nagi Rokuya: ...Wow..!

Mitsuki Izumi: ...Yep! We'll keep you entertained!

Tamaki Yotsuba: Okay, for starters...

Mitsuki & Nagi: For starters?

Tamaki Yotsuba: ...Uh...

Mitsuki Izumi: C'mon, you can do it..!

Tamaki Yotsuba: L-let's play color tag!

Nagi Rokuya: Color tag!?

Mitsuki Izumi: In a near completely pink room!?

Nagi Rokuya: What is this "color tag" you speak of!?

Mitsuki Izumi: It's a game where whoever's "it" says a color, and you have to touch that color before they catch you.

Nagi Rokuya: That sounds fun..!

Mitsuki Izumi: Don't get all excited yet..! As long as whoever's "it" says any color other than pink or yellow here, they'll always catch someone in no time!

Tamaki Yotsuba: Hmm, then how about... Hide-and-seek!?

Mitsuki Izumi: In this tiny hotel suite!?

Nagi Rokuya: I shall hide behind this Cocona panel!

Mitsuki Izumi: Don't just announce your hiding spot!

Tamaki Yotsuba: No fair! In that case, I'm gonna hide in the bath tub!

Mitsuki Izumi: Do you two even know how to play hide-and-seek!?

Tsumugi Takanashi: I-it looks like not even you can keep up with them, Mitsuki-san!

Mitsuki Izumi: Haha! ...Geez, if I didn't know any better, I'd say Nagi wasn't feeling lonely at all.

Mitsuki Izumi: ...I guess there's only one thing we can do now. Manager, can you bring that thing over now?

Tsumugi Takanashi: Will do!

- - - -

Mitsuki Izumi: Ta-dah!

Nagi Rokuya: This is..!

Mitsuki Izumi: It's a Cocona lunch I made especially for you!

Mitsuki Izumi: Tamaki helped me out, and not just with the tasting!

Tamaki Yotsuba: Oh, yeah! We could've just showed him the lunch box!

Tamaki Yotsuba: Check this out, Nagicchi! I cut the eggs into little star shapes!

Nagi Rokuya: Wow! ...So they are not meant to be starfish?

Tamaki Yotsuba: No!

Nagi Rokuya: ...This lunch will keep me warm. So very warm...

Tamaki Yotsuba: I thought it would've gotten cold by now.

Nagi Rokuya: That is not what I meant... The affection you put into this lunch box will warm my heart greatly...

Mitsuki Izumi: I'm glad you like it. I wanted to do a little something extra for you, since we're not really doing anything other than having a sleepover.

Nagi Rokuya: ...I love you both, Mitsuki and Tamaki..!

Tamaki Yotsuba: Aaagh..! Nagicchi, I can't breathe!

Mitsuki Izumi: Ahaha! Watch out, or you'll spill your food!

Nagi Rokuya: Tsumugi! Take a picture of us with this lunch box, if you may!

Tsumugi Takanashi: Alright..! Stand over there, in front of that panel!

Nagi Rokuya: It makes me so happy to be able to spend such a wonderful day with you!

Tamaki Yotsuba: Hehe. It's still a little early, but happy birthday!

Mitsuki Izumi: C'mon, get closer! Okay, go ahead and take the picture!

Tsumugi Takanashi: Say cheese..!

End of Part 1.

Translator’s notes..?

Rabbit TVs courtesy of @rabbit-library

#idolish7 #nagi rokuya #rabbitube #translation #i7 #rabbit tv

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jungwooisms · 4 years

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pairing: nakamoto yuta x female!reader genre: fluff, minor angst warnings: tragic coffee incident (jk), alcohol use, minor swearing word count: 7.6k summary: all it takes is a shinkansen, a cup of coffee and a soccer player to turn everything on its head and make you appreciate life just a little bit more.

i. The pace you set is rhythmic, unwavering and with intent. A thin layer of perspiration coating your brow, your breathing becoming heavier as you race through the crowds of Shinagawa Station. Chatter and shouts of children and adults both foreign and familiar filling your ears as you scan the area, adding to your sense of anxiety. It shouldn’t be this hard to find him, should it? You’d gotten caught up at the elevator, a wedding was taking place in one of the hotel’s ballrooms and you couldn’t be the asshole to butt into their affair. Maybe you should’ve taken the stairs, but there was no way in hell that descending twenty-seven flights was in any way faster than waiting for a handful of people in the elevator. You race past the sickeningly sweet smells emanating from a Mr. Donut, past kiosks selling neck rolls and other travel accouterments, you were beginning to perspire even more underneath your thick winter coat. Only seconds later you catch him standing by one of the large pillars supporting the ceiling of the station, he towers over most of the people there and you shake your head at how blind you’d been. “I’m sorry I’m-” Feet coming to a stop on the slick beige tiles, adjusting the strap of your bag as you accommodate yourself to the abrupt halt.

A shake of his head as he locks eyes with you, “Late, I know.” Impatient voice as an impatient eye looks down to a wristwatch as an impatient foot taps the tiles underfoot. “Did you at least call a cab?” Voice edging a testy meter you sigh. Since when had being cross become a habit of his?

“I thought we could walk?” You question with a smile as your eyes glance towards one of the many signs denoting the different train line platforms. “We haven’t seen each other in a month, I missed you.”

His puzzled reaction subtle as an eyebrow raises, “Missed me? We called yesterday.” Hands fiddling with the camera in his grasp he sighs, unzipping his own camera bag and slipping the device inside. Not that you’d really say that the half-assed call was anything of note, it was brief and he hadn’t even said that he loved you. Not that you really wanted him to anyway. The suitcase beside him smaller than you thought it would be, “It’s freezing outside, you really want us to walk?” A chime overhead and an announcement made through the clangor of the station, you wait for it to conclude even if neither of you had to worry about another train’s departure or arrival.

“There’s some snow on the ground, I know you like your wintery cityscapes, John.” An offering of another smile as his hand runs through his light brown locks. You can tell he’s just come from the airport as the bags under his eyes were more prevalent than usual, clothes wrinkled and worn, you feel a little guilty for your suggestion.

“You know what I mean, I’m just tired.” A rubbing of his temples, “Do you want to grab something before we head back? I’m starving.”

“Sure,” you nod and the pair of you are silently off, stopping at a 7-11 outside of the west entrance of the station. It’s cramped but you only had to make your way to the small refrigerated section housing the multitude of onigri and then to the checkout counter. Johnny and you check out together, you offering to pay as he’d been the one travelling, you don’t even get a thanks. You eat at the long counter by the front windows in muted sighs, sharply contrasting the din surrounding you, prompts to start a conversation falling short and ending as soon as they’d been inducted.

The breath from your lungs intermingles with the air in short puffs of white plumes as you exit the conbini. As a child you thought there was something magical about it, just like how the small, orange flames that popped out of logs in a fireplace were something otherworldly. Your nose may be chapped and running but it’s a small price to pay for enjoying the things that reminded you of simpler times. “How was your shoot in Chicago?” You ask as you and Johnny now wait at one of the crosswalks before the hotel, thankfully Shinagawa had more than a handful of places to stay relatively close to the station.

Sky gray overhead, clouds collecting and pooling as if they’re set to release another winter onslaught at any moment. “Fine,” Short, brusque, you’d noticed his responses getting more and more so ever since he’d left in the first place. You don’t even move to take his hand in yours, knowing the gesture would be discarded almost as immediately after you’d initiate it. The light changes, the beeps from the crosswalk signal beginning to resound around the small street. Long, purposeful strides leaving you many paces behind your partner.

The hotel room is small, a small bed, a small bathroom and a small window to look out of. But this is Tokyo, it didn’t call for the most luxurious of amenities if you weren’t paying premium. The pair of you weren’t even meant to spend the entire weekend here, your tickets booked to take the bullet train back to Osaka the next morning sitting on your nightstand. You’d just have to make do until then, and even at that it’s not like Tokyo is a boring city to be in for a night. Phone buzzing atop the dresser you see Johnny pick it up, frown at a message he received and tuck it away into his back pocket. He stands over his suitcase, brow furrowing as he’s lost in his own little world.

“Are you happy?” You hate confrontation but hate the tension that you’d felt since the train station even more.

“With what?” He’s shuffling around his suitcase, looking for something stowed away in its depths. The air is palpable as the only thing making noise is the rustling of the suitcase’s contents. Eyes glancing to your own luggage, still packed and waiting for someone to take out its insides. You didn’t want to though, that meant a permanence you didn’t want to adhere to any longer.

“This,” You motion around the room, then to him and back to you, “Us?” Car horn blaring outside, pulling you from the tangible stress in the room beginning to bloom from your words. It’s short and angry, yet somewhat grounding.

“Can we not do this now?” A sigh as he enters the bathroom, toiletry bag in hand. You hear him set it down, unzipping it as he begins to take out and place some of its contents on the countertop.

“I think we have to.” As you sit on the bed you run your hand over the coarse fabric of the duvet, sad smile twinging at the corners of your mouth as you look out of the small window overlooking the street. “I’ve known you for long enough to know when you’re not happy.”

Silence as he moves from the bathroom, back into the bedroom to look at you. Brow quizzical as he shifts on his feet, crossing his arms. “What do you want to do about it?” Johnny always got defensive whenever he felt wronged or trapped. It’s not what you wanted to do, but the two of you had been dancing around the idea of separation for far longer than you cared to admit; being in this relationship is a convenience rather than a want anymore.

“I could say what I want,” Sigh leaving you, “But I know you’ve already got an idea.” Maybe you should feel sad, remorse, yet you can’t, there’s only the sensation of relief as you watch his demeanor change from cynical to empathetic. You’re not sure when you fell out of love with Johnny Suh. It hadn’t been quick; it had been a gradual realization as he too had probably gone through the motions of separation on his own terms. In a way you felt grateful to him for that, so that it wasn’t a battle fought alone.

ii. It’s as the train barrels into a tunnel, the thought occurs to you that your boyfriend of three years isn’t your boyfriend of three years any longer. A strange time for it to happen, even if the breakup had only taken place several hours earlier. Bags packed, an awkward well-wishings and a train ticket bought found you where you are now. Bags stowed away overhead, jacket slung over your lap and the plush seat of the shinkansen under you.

Legs crossed you look through the almost frosted glass of the train as the tunnel ends and the snow-laden landscape whirs by at a speed too fast you can’t make out a tree from a shrub. The coffee you’d ordered at the beginning of the venture lies on the small gate leg in front of you, the wisps of steam no longer rising from the styrofoam. A cough and your attention is diverted to the man next to you, it’s a quick glance, you don’t want him to notice you’re looking at him. As you return your gaze back to the wintery scenery outside you feel the train below begin to lurch ever so slightly, it’s another stop. You reach out, hand cupping the coffee and bringing it to your lips, another jostle from the train and you almost drop the cup into your lap. A sigh of relief as you don’t and set the cup down again, the lukewarm contents leaving you unsatisfied with your choice of drink.

Your eyes close momentarily as the intercom overhead announces the next stop, Nagoya. It’s an involuntary shudder, but you remember the time you’d spent there earlier in your career. While fun at times, it wasn’t the best place for the young adult mentality to flourish.

“Excuse me,” a voice jostling you from your thoughts as a light tap is placed on your shoulder. It’s the man next to you, “I think you may have-” he glances down to your blouse and you almost feel scandalized until you realize that you have, in fact, spilled coffee down the front of your shirt.

Shit. “Pardon me,” you say as you stand, careful not to step on the stranger’s feet as you shuffle by. Hand raising to your shirt you pull it away from your body to check the damage, a sigh escaping you as it’s not awful but certainly not great. The bathroom’s unoccupied, thankfully. Lights switching on as you enter, you’re able to see the full extent that you’ve maimed your shirt. You grab a few paper towels and begin to dab at the spots, but it’s fruitless as they are already beginning to dry. You’ll wait until Osaka to sort it out, it’s not like there was a conbini on the train to attend to you.

Returning to your spot you give your seat mate a small thanks as you settle down into the plush accommodations, returning your gaze to the outside world as the train pulls into the station. A few people around you begin to move, collecting their things and orderly shuffling towards the exit. Tokaido’s line only had four stops until you reached Osaka, your seat mate had joined you at the beginning of the line in Tokyo. Maybe he was headed to Osaka too, definitely not Nagoya, no one ever voluntarily went there. Maybe you were trying to keep your mind off of whatever you’d left behind in Shinagawa. Maybe you were looking for an excuse to worry about anyone other than yourself by inwardly delving into the private lives of others around you instead of coming to terms with your own inability to confront yourself.

“Did you want to borrow this?” Another tap on your shoulder and you turn to see the man offering what looked like a stain removal stick. “I wanted to give it to you earlier but you seemed like you were in a rush.”

“Oh,” you stare at his offering for a moment longer than you should, “thank you.” Taking the stick you begin to untwist its cap, only then to pull your shirt away from your bosom and begin to lightly dab at the brown spots adorning the cloth. You had only said a total of five words to the man, but you feel entirely indebted to him.

“My name’s Yuta by the way,” he states as you hand him back the now lidded stick, the train begins to slowly start back up again, the rumbling underfoot becoming more prominent. You introduce yourself, once again thanking him for his help. “Where are you headed?”

“Osaka,” You note, “Well, Kyoto actually but I’m transferring in Osaka.”

“Kyoto, huh?” A nod of his head as he mulls it over, “Do you live there?”

“For now,” Nodding your own head as your shoulders shrug. “I’m a freelance photographer and kind of go wherever the wind takes me.” You could list a handful of cities you’d resided in over the course of your lifetime, but you don’t think you’d liked any as much as the one you lived in now. It would be a painful day when your work takes you elsewhere. “What about you?”

“I’m heading straight to Osaka,” he nods, slipping the stain stick into the bag under his feet. “I had a game in Tokyo this weekend and the team’s straggling on getting back home.”

“Game?” You question, “Are you a baseball player?”

A shake of his head as he laughs, “Soccer, I haven’t held a bat since middle school.” He motions to his bag as he sits up, the logo of some league on the front of it. “Would I have seen your pictures anywhere?”

Humming to yourself, “I’ve done a shoot or two for Vogue Japan, but I’ve primarily done work for international publications.”

Yuta’s eyes widen, leaning in as he’s drawn into the conversation. You’re not sure if he’s just searching for discussion or if he’s genuinely interested, “That’s really awesome, any celebrities that stood out?”

You think to yourself again, it’s not like you were on first name terms with any of the famous people you’d met, but some were far more down to earth than others. “Ayase Haruka was nice,” Head nodding as you trace your fingers atop the arm of your seat.

“Ah!” A small sound of excitement as he recognizes the name, “I loved her in Jin.” It looks as if he’s making a note to watch the drama again in his head, “What were you doing in Tokyo?”

“I was there to meet my boyfriend,” Stomach dropping as the train begins to lurch again, another stop? Clearing your throat with a small cough, “He was coming back from a business trip.”

“Oh, is he here too? I can switch seats if you want to sit next to him?” Yuta turns his back to you, looking at the faces of the other passengers as if he’d be able to spot this supposed person out in a crowd. “Is he also a photographer?”

“He is, but he’s not here,” You break your eyes away from Yuta as he turns back to you, embarrassed by your own relationship, or lack thereof. “We actually broke up earlier today, so I guess I should say my ex-boyfriend.” It’s awkward, or maybe you were making it so because no stranger wants this sort of emotional baggage dumped atop them while traveling home. Eyes glancing out of the window, large flakes of snow now dotting the sky as the orange glow of the sunset resides behind a thick layer of clouds.

“I’m sorry to hear that,” Attention fully brought back to you, he places his hands in his lap. “If you need to talk about it, I can always lend an ear, my friends tell me I’m like a human sounding board.”

iii. For all the time you’d spent in Japan, you never realized that 1) alcohol was accessible almost everywhere and 2) drinking in public wasn’t unnecessarily frowned upon. Or you had realized that but just never took advantage of it. You don’t know how you began to talk to Yuta, pretty much a complete stranger, about your problems in life; a loveless relationship, stress at work and so on and so forth. But he’s talkative and a great listener, something you had yearned for in someone since the day you decided that Johnny and you were no longer compatible. So here you sit, on some bench in Shin-Osaka Station with a Strong Zero in hand as you talk to this objectively handsome and caring man about your woes. Bags at your feet you lean against the back of the bench, looking up at the sign telling you that your train to Kyoto Station would arrive in another ten minutes.

“Don’t you have issues in trying to figure out your personal life too?” Feeling like you had talked all too much about yourself without letting Yuta add a word in, you glance to him as he takes a drink out of his own can of Sapporo.

“If we had enough time outside of practice, I might have one of those,” He laughs, steadying the can atop his knee with his hand, condensation dripping down the sides of it and burrowing into the fabric of his jeans. “We practice most of the time, when we’re not practicing it’s because we’ve got a game and on the off chance we do actually have some free time we spend it sleeping.”

“That doesn’t really sound-” Before you’re able to complete your sentence the sound of four different pitched chimes blares from the overhead speakers. You turn your head away from Yuta, looking up to the box hanging from a nearby wall.

“Attention, passengers for the JR Shinkansen from Shin-Osaka Station to Kyoto Station: operation of the Shinkansen from Shin-Osaka Station to Kyoto Station departing at 8:50 has been suspended due to inclement weather. We apologize for any inconvenience to passengers using this service.”

Mouth agape you continue to stare at the speaker, trying to comprehend the words you were hearing. “Fuck,” it’s quiet enough you hope that your new acquaintance can’t hear you.

Although he does, you know he does by the way you can see the corner of his mouth turn upwards and he lets out a quiet huff of air. “I take it that’s your train?” Your eyes now watching the green name of your train blink into a red text reading ‘cancelled’ on the prompter nearby.

“Unfortunately,” The buzz from the alcohol only now hitting you after you’d downed the whole can. A sigh as you stand, crushing the can in your grip before looking for a recycling receptacle nearby. Feet dragging along the pale tiles of the floor before returning to the bench, you don’t sit again, only begin to gather your things while trying to think of where you can stay for the night.

“Where are you going?” Yuta’s voice catches you by surprise as you notice he’d been watching you scramble to collect your bags.

“Probably to one of the hotels around here,” You sigh, “I’ve spent too many nights sleeping in train stations before.” You’d come far from your broke-out of college days, maybe you weren’t rolling in wealth, but you could make do.

“I’m not trying to sound weird or anything,” He moves to stand, stretching his free arm as he does so, “but you can stay at my place for the night. It’s nothing much but I won’t charge you at least.”

A smile as you shake your head, “I appreciate the offer, but I’ve got to be back home for a shoot around midday, I’ll have to take the earliest train out of here tomorrow.” You sling your camera bag around your shoulder, reaching for the handle of your suitcase, “Thanks for keeping me company.” It’s a small way to show your gratitude when you feel as if you’d just talked his ear off for the past couple of hours.

Not wanting to pry he nods his head, “Thanks for keeping me company too, if I’m ever in the need for a photographer, I’ll have to look for you.”

A small laugh, “Yeah, I’d love for you to.” And with that you part ways turning on your heels as he makes his way towards the exit and you make your way further inside the station to inquire about ticket times for tomorrow. It’s only after you’d bought another ticket, wandered the streets for a hotel and settled into your lonely room that you realize you hadn’t even exchanged information with Yuta.

iv. Vivi Magazine had wanted to publish an op-ed about Kyoto Sanga, a soccer team you’d only heard about in passing and Otomonai Mina, an up and coming fashion designer. You’d done a shoot for the company about half a year ago and they had liked your work, if anything you were thankful for the opportunity. You couldn’t remember the designer’s brand name off the top of your head, but she had wanted a retro-fusion shoot to go along with her post-historical-historical theme at Nijo Castle. That’s what brought you to the grove of cherry trees nestled away in the back of the historical site. Viewfinder brought to your eye as you direct one of the players, “Try standing a little more open, your stance is too closed.” Snapping, clicking of the camera as he shifts, you’d wanted almost candid style photos of them, seeing how the blurriness of the movements looked against the static background.

“I think he needs to be a little more dramatic,” You hear the voice of the designer over your shoulder, “Are we allowed to have him climb on the trees?”

Eyes widening ever so slightly as you turn and pull the camera away from your face, “I don’t think so, but it would add to something, wouldn’t it?” Humming to yourself, almost as if it might be worth it to get into trouble with the ground’s security team.

“That’s what I’m saying!” Mina sighs, gravel crunching underfoot as she walks over to the soccer player, adjusting one of the various belts he had adorned around his waist. You wonder how he’s able to breathe, thankfully it was one of the cooler days of July. “Let’s take fifteen and move inside, alright?” Turning to you she nods her head and motions towards one of the tents that had been set up for the shoot. “Would you mind telling Sicheng he’s up next? His manager told me he’s a little camera shy.”

“Sure thing,” you nod, letting the camera fall from your hands and let it hang around your neck as you turn on your heels. A blast of air hitting you as you enter, the oscillating fan in the small area pointing directly at you. “Sicheng?” Eyes blinking after the air had dried them out significantly, once the tears had begun to form and lubricated them enough so that you could see clearly again you look to the names clipped onto the different player’s stations.

“Over here,” a voice calls out and you see a man waving his hand at you. He was getting his hair curled by one of the stylists, it was certainly a strange look but you weren’t there to judge.

“Hey,” You smile and walk over, “Mina says she wants you up next, we’re going to start shooting in ten minutes or so in Honmaru.”

“Alright,” there’s a sense of nervousness emanating from him, you can see it in the way he shifts uncomfortably in his seat. You’d met a handful of people like him before, not everyone was made to be in front of the camera, or at least they didn’t have the patience for it.

“See you then,” You begin to turn towards the exit, only coming to a stop soon after because there was someone standing almost directly behind you. “Oh- sorry-” you start, only to get cut off soon after.

“Were you able to save your shirt?” A cloud of haze momentarily obscuring your memory, eyes widening as soon as you realize who’d spoken to you. Yuta’s smiling down at you, hair tied back into a small ponytail and you can’t help but gape a little bit.

A shake of your head as you try to get rid of the look of incredulity coating your features. “Despite my best attempts it couldn’t be salvaged,” You smile, wondering how he still remembered that. Then again, that wasn’t the pressing question at hand. “What are you doing here?”

“My friend’s a member of Sanga, he invited me to spend the weekend up here but I didn’t want to stay at his apartment all day so I decided to tag along,” Yuta looks behind you and waves to Sicheng, who’d begun to get up from his chair. “I hope I’m not intruding?”

“Not at all,” A soft smile and check of a clock sitting atop one of the nearby tables in the tent. “I’ve got to go and take a few pictures of your friend; did you want to join?”

“Okay,” He nods his head and motions for Sicheng to join you. The three of you make your way through the grounds and into the inner castle, dark beams of wood decorating the interior as the sun shines in through the paneled walls. As you walk inside, after slipping off your shoes, Mina calls over Sicheng to give him a briefing on the concept she wanted to embody with his shoot.

With every step, the boards that made up the floor creaked in a pitch that almost made the inside of your ears ring with the tinny ministrations. Even treading lightly across the surface was cause enough for the chirping cadence to echo throughout the empty halls. “Do you know why they do that?” Yuta questions as you fidget with the camera around your neck, looking over to Sicheng getting into position.

A shake of your head as you stop, the shift of your weight from heel to heel creating more screams from the floor. “They’re called the nightingale floors, legend has it they’re meant to make noise so the nobility would know if an assassin was sneaking up on them.” He takes a few tip-toed steps across the hall, as if to show how loud even the lightest of movements could be. “But most historians agree that it was just improper design.” A shrug of his shoulders as he dances around the floorboards some more, eliciting the music of the nails burrowing into centuries old wooden planks.

“I never would’ve guessed that,” Musing as you move around the space, attention breaking from Yuta when Mina calls you over, saying that she was ready to start the shoot. “This shouldn’t take too long,” You say to Yuta and hurry over to Mina and Sicheng.

And it doesn’t. Sicheng is surprisingly well versed enough with following the directions that Mina had laid out for him, you just snapping away, trying out a few new tricks you’d learned just to see how they’d turn out. When the shoot ends, and you’ve begun packing up your equipment, you hear Yuta talking to his friend before calling out to you. “Hey,” a smile as bright as the sun, you don’t think you’d ever seen someone that beaming before. “Sicheng and I were about to go out and grab some dinner, did you want to join us?”

Zipping your camera bag closed you move to stand from your kneeling position on the gravelly ground. “Sure, I know a quaint little place nearby if you don’t know where you’re going yet.”

“That’d be great,” He says as he looks to the bag in your hands, “Did you need any help cleaning up?” Before you can protest, he’s already walking over, slinging a few of your equipment bags over his shoulder.

“Thanks,” You smile, “I parked out front, shouldn’t be too much of a hassle.”

“It’s no problem, I did crash your shoot, after all.” Bags stowed away in the car, or more like crammed into the trunk so you’d have room in the small vehicle for passengers, you let Yuta and Sicheng hitch a ride to a parking lot near your apartment. The traffic is heavy as you drive down the main drags of Kyoto, the Gion Matsuri festival preparations underway and the electric buzz lingering in the air for the anticipated event.

You leave the equipment in the car as the three of you exit the vehicle, the swift chirp of the car locking as you close the driver’s side door. “It’s not too far of a walk from here,” Looking down the street, making sure no oncoming traffic was barreling through the narrow alley before crossing, hearing the hurried steps of your guests trailing behind you. It’s tucked away in the back alleys off Shijo-dori, a small interior that still had the remnants of cigarette smoke stuck into its walls, even if the practice had been prohibited inside years ago.

As soon as the doors open a blast of air hits the three of you, “Curry udon?” Yuta reads from the sign as you enter, waving hello to the staff behind the main counter and taking a seat in one of the only available booths.

“I hope that’s okay?” You ask as you settle into the booth, Yuta and Sicheng sliding in across from you.

“Perfectly fine, Sicheng here’s probably never had it,” Yuta nods, nudging his seatmate with his elbow as the other was struggling his way through a menu. “He typically only goes to Chinese places, and if he can’t do that, he’ll just eat conbini food.”

A small laugh as you look over to the now embarrassed soccer player shoving his nose into the menu, “I’m still not used to it.” Mumble falling from his lips as he lowers the menu.

“How long have you played for Sanga?” Questioning as one of the servers drops off several glasses and a pitcher of water for the table.

Yuta reaches over to set the upturned glasses upright and proceeds to fill them up about three fourths of the way, setting them down in front of the three of you as Sicheng ponders over his answer, “Five months?” Condensation already forming on the glass, you watch a few beads of water slide down the sides and pool around that base. “I played for an international league for a bit but it got a little crazy.”

“That’s where we met,” Yuta nods, taking a drink, “More like I had to pull him out of his shell because he refused to talk to other people.”

“You were all over me, I did talk to other-” before he’s able to finish the sentence, his eyebrows raise, hand reaching down into his pocket he procures a phone from its depths. “Ah, it’s my manager,” eyes scanning the now brightly lit screen, he excuses himself, sliding from the booth and hurrying outside.

“His manager’s a little bit of a hardass,” Yuta notes, watching the door close behind Sicheng before returning his attention to you. “So, how have you been?”

“I’ve been good,” a nod, as you take a drink from your glass. While you hadn’t spoken face to face in the months since you had last met, you had chatted with him via text on and off for a while. You did do a little bit of internet stalking to find out who he was after you’d realized the two of you hadn’t exchanged information the first time you’d met. It wasn’t too difficult to find him, really, how many people named Yuta could play on one of Osaka’s soccer teams? It was a handful, but pictures existed of the rosters and it wasn’t too hard to narrow it down. Eventually you found the willpower within yourself to follow him on Instagram, him only following you back a few days later and chatting via messenger every now and again. “How about you? Still no personal life?”

“Still no personal life,” He laughs, settling back into the booth, “Actually maybe a bit more now that festival season is coming up.”

“Oh right,” A nod of your head as you hadn’t noted the time of year and the correlation with your city’s festivities, “the Matsuri’s coming up, isn’t it?” Rhetorical question brushed aside, you continue, “Are you going to go?”

“I’m going to try and go on the last weekend,” fingers tapping atop the menu under his hand, “I assume you’re going too?”

Ruminating the thought as you set your elbows on the tabletop, the weariness from the day catching up to you, eyes watering as you stifle a yawn behind your lips, “I think so. I haven’t got any shoots planned because everyone in Kansai’ll be there.”

“Maybe we can meet up and explore a little bit?” There’s a brightness leering behind his eyes that would make you flustered if the tinkling of bells signaling Sicheng’s return hadn’t pulled you from the thought of spending more time with Yuta.

“Yeah,” You smile to him as Sicheng slides back into the booth, “I can do that.”

v. “Osaka styled okonomiyaki is far more superior than Hiroshima’s and I will not be swayed any other way,” wooden chopsticks splintering apart in his hands as he breaks them in two, offering them out to you. You take them with a small, thankful nod and move to tear into the street food in your free hand, the warmth from the snack heating your hand through the thin plastic that housed it.

“Can’t say I’ve had Hiroshima’s, so I’ll just take your word on it,” the clang of distant bells ringing out through the air over the growing vocalizations of excitement from the crowds packing the street of Shijo-dori. Food and drink stalls lining the roadway as you find your own voice being drowned out in all the clamor surrounding you, “Is today when the Maiko are paraded through?” Mouth full of food you cover it with your hand as you speak.

“I think that was last week?” Brow furrowing as he fiddles with his own pair of chopsticks, “I’m not too sure.” After he takes his own piece of the pancake, he turns to look at you, “Aren’t you supposed to be my tour guide Ms. Gion Girl?”

“I just said I just live here, it doesn’t mean I’ve been to every single event,” You note, feeling a pulling buzz from your phone you’d tucked into your obi around your waist. “Unfortunately, I’m out every other weekend with shoots.” Like so many others around you, you had donned a yukata in the spirit of the festival, also to use the garment as you had rarely ever worn it since coming to the city. Yuta had decided on wearing a much simpler jinbei as he strolled around, while less fashionable it was marginally more practical than the garment you wear.

“Could say the same about me,” He thinks for a moment, “If photo shoots were games. Do you want to try and get through here and catch the parade? It should be ending soon.” Hand motioning towards the direction of the larger mass of people lining another street in hopes to view the floats.

“Sure,” A nod of your head and you’re off. You stick close to Yuta as you weave through the throng of people shuffling around with their own food and drink in hand, it’s a colorful wave, the bright color of the yukatas around you seeming to shine even brighter under the summer sun. The two of you eventually come to a halt at a metal fence blocking off access to the street in front of you, the procession parading down the avenue a sight to behold as almost forty men pull a large wooden float. It’s draped in various silk adornments and an idol like figure sitting under an awning has you looking somewhat perplexed. Somewhere further down the procession you can hear the steady, thrumming beats of a taiko group’s drumming. Another buzz from your obi and you turn to Yuta, “I’m going to go and throw this away,” head motioning downwards to the now empty plastic container in your hand, “I’ll be right back.”

“Alright,” he smiles as you begin to walk off, “I’ll be right here.”

It takes a moment for you to find one of the blue clad volunteers holding out a bag designated for trash roaming the streets. After discarding the trash, you pull out your phone and step away from the streams of people barreling down the road to check your notifications. A sigh as there’s two missed calls from someone you’d thought long gone. Your finger presses the name, ringtone beginning as soon as you to, you press the phone to your ear and wait for the other party to pick up.

“Is the key still under the mat?” Johnny’s voice questions almost as soon as the call connects. “I can’t find it anywhere.”

“No, I lost mine a few weeks ago and I’ve been using the spare in the meantime.” Frowning as you clack your geta atop the sidewalk. “I’m not going to be home until later, can’t you pick up your stuff tomorrow?”

“I’m flying out to Hokkaido tomorrow,” Disgruntled sigh from his end as you listen to the distant drums, “Are you at the festival?”

“Yeah,” It’s short, much like your interactions had been. You had broken up but you’re constantly reminded of him as the apartment you had once shared housed the remnants of his belongings that he’d yet to pack up and take away. Thankfully your busy schedules kept you on different clocks and you hadn’t really seen him over the course of the past few months as he cleared out his things between plans. “When do you come back?”

“Wednesday, can you do then?”

“I’ve got a shoot. Thursday?”

“Thursday’s good. I swear I’ll have everything out by then.” A promise you hope he’ll keep. It was more mentally wearing than anything to be reminded of him whenever you went home to try and relax. “I’ll text you when I’m on the way.”

A tug on the sleeve of your yukata as you don’t bother saying goodbye, the clanging bells and Buddhist chants of the passing parade, spinning of your geta and almost slipping on the smooth wood atop the stony sidewalk. “I thought I lost you,” a laugh from Yuta as you look up to him, strained expression obvious on your face. “Are you okay?” Cheery visage turned concerned; the smile drops from his lips as his brow furrows.

“Yeah,” Flicker of a smile as you slide your phone back into your obi, “I’m still dealing with some residual breakup stuff, sorry for leaving you like that.”

“Still?” Frown still apparent, “I do remember you saying something about him still living with you.”

“Not living, he’s finally going to finish packing his stuff up this week,” You brush a few strands of hair away from your forehead as you feel the bun you’d put up earlier was beginning to unfurl, “It’s just taken longer than I thought.”

“Sounds like it,” He muses and looks out to the parade continuing onwards behind the two of you. “Do you want to get out of here? I know a small little shrine a little way away that shouldn’t be too crowded now.”

Grateful for the topic change, “Sure.”

It takes a few minutes before you’re far enough away from the festivities that traffic had resumed to its normal stop and go state, it takes another few moments after that to hail a taxi and climb in as Yuta tells the driver the location of the shrine. It’s one you’ve never heard of, but then again there were so many small shrines and temples interwoven and sprinkled in within this city you couldn’t be but so surprised. “How is it that you know about all of these different places?”

Doors finally shut as the cab begins to move, Yuta buckles his seatbelt and turns to you, “My mom grew up here as a kid, when I was younger she would take me and my sisters around when we came to visit family.” A nod of his head as he looks to the front window as if remembering a drive like this he’d had as a child, “I don’t remember everything clearly but there were a few places that stood out.”

You ride in relative silence for the rest of the journey, Yuta occasionally tapping your shoulder and pointing something out as you passed whatever it was on the street. He had an excitability about him that just made you feel almost as giddy as he did, it was a lovely change of pace opposing the mundanity you’d had for the longest time. When the car stops and Yuta goes to pay the driver, you exit the vehicle and land your feet onto a gravel road adjacent to the main road that looked down a long stretch of trees. Forest thick on both sides you see a few people walking further down the path.

“I hope you don’t mind getting your feet wet, this shrine has a pretty different custom,” You hear Yuta say as the car drives off.

“What do you mean by that?” You question as the two of you begin walking forwards, the crunch of the gravel underfoot echoing around the relatively empty space.

It’s not long until you come upon the shrine, large red torii gate greeting you as Yuta veers you off from the main path to a temple standing in the central of the grounds and towards another small torii gate adjacent. Looking towards the area you see a small creek in which people were wading through, candles in hand as they make their way through the water. The two of you venture forth towards a small table right before a ramp that led down into the water. A small kiosk handed out bags so that you could tote your shoes around instead of having to hold them, you slide your geta off and drop them in, slinging the bag onto your shoulder as Yuta mirrors you with his own bag. A few steps later you’re handed a small candle, almost the size that you’d see atop a birthday cake, and are ushered towards a flame that everyone seemed to be using to ignite their own candles. “What exactly is this festival?” You ask Yuta as he dips his candle into the flame and waits patiently for you to do the same.

“It’s something about honoring the god of the river, I think it’s also supposed to guarantee you good health for the rest of the year too.” A shrug of his shoulders, “All I remember is wading through the river really.”

“It really is different, I’ll give you that,” you nod as the two of you walk slowly down the ramp, slowly traversing the wooden structure and into the cool water. It’s colder than you’d originally thought, but seeing as it’s coming from a mountain spring, you’re not sure why you thought it would be warmer. The sunlight glitters off the surface as you look out at the stretch you’re meant to navigate, while beautiful you can’t help but only try and focus on not slipping on the stony floor of the creek.

Reaching your hand out to grab his yukata to steady yourself, you’d reached for his sleeve but had miscalculated and grabbed his hand instead. “I’m sorr-”

“Are you okay?” He turned to make sure you were okay, the candle he was holding in his other hand almost extinguishing as he moved.

“I’m alright,” A nod as you glance to your hand which was still wrapped around his, “Would you mind if I-?” Trailing off with a weakened smile, “My balance is a little off.”

“Not at all,” He returns the smile and gentle squeezes your hand as you catch up to him. The two of you wade through the water some more, the ends of your yukata becoming dampened by the small river even after you’d hoisted up the skirt with your hand that still held the burning candle. Towards the end of the small river-walk there’s little wooden boxes in which you’re supposed to place the candle, the two of you walk and in hand to them only releasing your grip from one another to not burn yourselves while you offer up the candle to the god of the river. The pair of you stand there for a moment, looking at the flickering flames, you’re not sure what he’s thinking about but you can tell that he’s got something on his lips when he turns to speak to you.

“Do you want to go on a date sometime?” Question poised out of the blue, so much so you have to think about what you just heard to make sure he’d actually asked it. “I know that you’ve got a busy schedule and I do too and there probably isn’t a reasonable date we could get together, but I think I want to try.” Eyes widening at your response, “If you’re okay with that?”

“I’m more than okay with that.” You smile at him, a growing warmth in your chest starkly contrasting the cool of the water your calves were submerged in. “Do you think that we can plan this outside of the water though? I think my toes might be starting to freeze.”

A laugh as he takes his hand into yours, gently ushering you towards the exit and more of the shrine’s festivities, “Of course.”

#cznnet #neowritingsnet #nct 127 #nct #nct scenarios #nct yuta #yuta scenarios #nct 127 scenarios #nct 127 fluff #posted now im gonna SLEEP

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sm-entertain-me · 5 years

Text

Room Service (M)

Contains: Nakamoto Yuta x (f) reader, adult language, smut, depictions of sex, love hotel (rabu hoteru), unprotected sex, rough sex, choking, facefucking, creampie, love hotel worker!Yuta, love hotel customer!reader, dom!Yuta, sub!reader.

Synopsis: Traveling all over Osaka led you to a peculiar looking hotel that you had never seen before. What you thought was a normal, upscale hotel turned into something more than you bargained for.

ALL OF MY WORK IS PROTECTED BY COPYRIGHT LAWS. DO NOT COPY, TRANSLATE, OR REPOST ON OTHER SITES WITHOUT CONSENT FROM AUTHOR. COPYRIGHT SM-ENTERTAIN-ME (KELSEY), 2019

You had been exhausted from keeping up with your tour guide all day, constantly pulling your group over to the side to ramble on about the city’s culture, how his favorite sushi place was a little bit down the road, and talking about how his friends would go out and enjoy what the city had to offer them when everything went dark. Sure, you enjoyed the history part of it, but you really didn’t feel like listening anymore to his stories involving women and what he could make them do for over 10,000 yen....

Another sigh escaped your lips as you wandered the streets of Osaka, your eyes darting around to find some kind of hotel that didn’t seem to unsafe or too greasy. Osaka is a beautiful place filled with beautiful people and beautiful architecture, but you were convinced you were just on the wrong side of the tracks. That was, until you stumbled upon a peculiar looking building with modern-esque features, brightly lit red neon signs that showed off the Japanese characters, and bored no windows.

A little interesting, you thought to yourself as you walked through the frosted glass doors that opened to a large floor plan, decorated with sculptures, fancy fountains, and replicas of the finest art you had ever seen. Funny how the tour guide never once mentioned a place like this in Osaka. The building was absolutely beautiful and judging by the rates posted behind the large oak wood desk, it wasn’t too badly priced either.

The options they allowed at this establishment were pretty cheap considering the wonderful atmosphere, although you did find it a little weird that they offered rates for 1-3 hour “rests”. Whatever that meant. But still, you approached the wooden desk and came face to face with a well dressed employee with dark black hair that swept to one side, and a small smirk resting on his face as he greeted you, “Konbanwa.” (Good evening)

One good look at you and he realized very quickly you were a foreigner, so he decided to switch to a universally known language that almost everyone could speak: English. “My apologies ma’am, good evening. My name is John, but please call me Johnny, and I would like to welcome you on behalf of our own little rabu hoteru. How long are you looking to stay with us?” The employee behind the desk asked as his eyes grazed over your body momentarily, bringing himself to look back up at you and wait patiently for your answer. Rabu hoteru?

After a brisk conversation with the desk-keep, he finally gave you a key to your desired room and gave you instructions on how to get there. For one night, it only cost you about 10,000 yen as opposed to the other hotels in the area that would run you a pretty penny of at least 50,000.

As you approached your room, you noticed how dimly lit the hallways were with a thin layer of smoke from a fog machine, hearing a low rumbling sound around the halls as well to drain out some... interesting sounds coming from the other rooms. To be fair, the rooms did seem pretty soundproof and who were you to judge someone else and their sexuality? Everyone needs a little break here and there.

Sighing to yourself, you sat on your bed that felt like a cloud and immediately sunk into the comforter. Groaning out softly, you gripped onto the pillow and brought it closer to your face, relishing in the cold feeling of the fabric on your face that nearly coaxed you to sleep until the absurd ring sequence of the phone sounded next to you. Another groan.

Picking up the high tech phone, you pressed the receiver to your lips as you asked into the phone, “Yes?”

“Ah, Y/N, I forgot to tell you something during our conversation,” A soothing voice rang out from the other end, dripping with sex as he spoke. Johnny. You shifted uncomfortably on the bed, pressing your thighs together as you waited for him to continue speaking since you simply couldn’t get enough of hearing his voice. “Don’t forget to use our top notch services. I guarantee they’ll make your experience that much more enjoyable.”

The emphasis of the last word in John’s sentence had you cocking a brow to yourself, trying to figure out what he meant by that. Enjoyable. After you said your goodbyes to the desk-keep, you set the receiver back on its hook and decided to take a look at the “top notch” services Johnny felt obligated to tell you about.

Reaching into your bedside table, you opened the wooden drawer to reveal a leather bound book that read “Holy Bible” in gold script, and then a smaller red book that had Japanese characters dancing across the cover. Luckily for you, there were words written in English underneath the characters to act as a formal translation so you could know just what you were requesting. As you were flipping through the calligraphy filled contents, you were taken aback by just what was in that book.

Descriptions of sexual activities littered the page, explaining in perfect detail what sexual activities could be bought with the right amount of Yen. The acts themselves were ordered by price, from least expensive to most expensive, depending on how much sexual activity would be going on and who would be giving it. They even offered both male and female companions that each came with a list of their own kinks and “difficulty ratings”. One star being for beginners whereas five stars were for more experienced lovers. You were about to slam the book shut and go to sleep when you stumbled upon a picture of him.

At the end of the “Companions” section, you were greeted with a picture of a man with reddish brown hair, obviously dyed that way, with a nicely chiseled jawline, wide eyes that exuded lust, and a perfectly taut smirk that mocked your very existence. He knew he was hot, and that’s probably why he has the highest going rate and the highest difficulty ranking of all of the people in the book. Nakamoto Yuta was his name, and by god he was gorgeous.

You finally succumbed to the “top notch services” the hotel had to offer, requesting to have Yuta as your companion and informing Johnny that you didn’t care what kind of service Yuta was willing to give you.

“Are you sure you want Yuta to choose?” Johnny asked, the cockiness in his voice coming through perfectly clear. He knew what Yuta was capable of, which is why he’s the most expensive. He also knew that you had no idea what Yuta could do, but it was ultimately your decision in the end.

“Yes, Johnny. I’m sure I want Yuta to choose the service. I’m only in Osaka for a little bit and I would love to see what you guys have to offer. Money is not an issue for me,” You replied to your semi-concerned desk-keep who was typing away at the computer, making arrangements for the two of you.

“Very well,” Johnny said after you had ultimately signed your death wish, finishing the typing on his computer and sitting back in his seat to review the arrangement with you. “One Heaven on Earth package with our famed Nakamoto Yuta. He should be coming to your room in about ten minutes, so please dress to impress. 100,000 yen will be charged to your room balance at the end of the service, thank you for choosing to use our services and we hope to see you again in the future... Oh, and good luck.”

Your heart raced as you ran to the bathroom of your living space, running your hand through your hair to make it seem a little more presentable. You then stripped yourself of a bra just to make the process go faster and made sure to change into your sleep shorts that offered a bit more skin to the room, opting to change your shirt into just a tank top. When you felt like you were ready, you sat on the edge of your bed and thought about just what was about to happen. Until there was a short sequence of knocks coming from the opposite side of your door.

Swallowing your last bit of pride, your hand gripped at the door knob and turned it slowly, opening the door to reveal a man that was slightly taller than you, that same reddish brown hair that was swept back in the most attractive fashion you could think of, and that signature smirk still on his lips. Yuta.

“Well hello, darling. I hear someone wants to use me as a companion for the night, is that right?” Yuta’s deep voice spilled out, sex lining every single syllable as his eyes drank in your appearance. Yuta’s eyes took a liking to the fact you weren’t wearing a bra as he could see your nipples standing erect against the flimsy fabric of your tank top, licking his lips at the sight. When he noticed you didn’t answer, he lunged forward and gripped he side of your neck, the crook of his hand resting along your jawline as he forced you to look up at him with an intense hunger in his eyes, “Answer me.”

“Y-Yes,” You breathed out hastily, your breath catching in your throat as your heart raced uncontrollably, losing yourself at Yuta’s simple touches along your neck. He had you right where he needed you and knew you were going to be the perfect sub for him, no doubt about it. You were putty in his hands, someone so willing to take his orders and act them accordingly. Someone to wreck properly.

When Yuta was satisfied with your answer, he smirked at your desperation as he leaned in and captured your lips on his, kissing you roughly. Upon impact, Yuta’s tongue fell into your mouth and played with yours, pushing his tongue flat against yours and tasting you completely as his grip on your throat increased. Yuta could feel your pulse racing against his hand as he continued to toy with you, kissing you with so much raw passion that it nearly took your breath away. But before you could enjoy yourself any further, Yuta pulled his lips off of yours, a small string of spit falling from your lips.

Yuta loved how desperate you look for him by simply kissing you that he couldn’t control himself as his hand dropped from your throat to your shoulder, looking at you with a fiery glare, “On your knees. Now. And don’t make me tell you again, babygirl.”

Nodding at his demands, you assumed the position by slinking down to your knees in front of Yuta. His hands slipped to his belt buckle and unfastened it at a painfully slow rate, him watching the way your eyes would widen at the bulge that pressed against the confines of his black slacks. He loved to watch you fall apart without even touching you.

“Just know,” Yuta spoke as he unzipped his slacks and hooked his thumbs in between the fabric of his briefs and his honeyed skin, looking down at you to have your eyes meet. “You can stop me at anytime. I’ve been known to get a little carried away.” Before you could even muster up an answer or a nod of your head, Yuta’s hand was on the back of your skull, fingers entwined with a bunch of your hair, and his cock was being shoved down your throat.

Upon entering your throat, you gagged around Yuta’s length that was now pushing its way down your throat, smacking against your uvula with no resistance. Yuta’s grip would get tighter the longer he went as his head was thrown back in pure ecstasy, his hands forcing you to choke around him as he had complete control over the pace he made you comply with.

Through teary eyes, you managed to look up at Yuta, admiring the way his neck vein was surfacing against his skin and how his jaw was clenched tightly together to stop him from letting you know how good you were doing. In response to seeing him struggling to keep his composure as he throat fucked you harder, you hollowed your cheeks around him and gripped his thighs to keep you centered, moaning against the skin to feel his cock twitch in your throat. You even went as far as to reach up and grip his balls in your hands, but were quickly yanked away from him.

Confused, you looked up at Yuta to find out why he pulled out of you so quickly only to see a cocky look on his face, a smirk tugging at his lips again. Yuta chuckled as he reached down and grabbed your wrist rather harshly, pulling you up to your feet as he towered over you, “Careful princess, wouldn’t want to be punished... Would you?”

You shook your head vigorously at his question, not wanting him to get any rougher since your throat was now burning from the abuse of Yuta shoving his cock into you repeatedly. Although you were pretty sure you were willing to give everything for Yuta to completely dominate you in ways you couldn’t even imagine, you would much rather be able to walk out of the hotel room instead of crawl.

“Jump,” Yuta demanded as he got rid of the rest of his pants that were pooling at his ankles, bending down in front of you to hook his arms underneath your ass in order to pick you up. You kindly obliged and jumped into his arms, Yuta smiling at you brightly before his lips latched onto the skin of your neck, trailing open mouth kisses to your collar bone and began to suck harshly. As Yuta turned your neck red with busted blood vessels, you keened for him, leaning into his figure as he began to walk to you to the bed while digging his teeth into your skin to hear you moan louder for him.

Your back hit the mattress shortly after, relaxing into the soft fabric while Yuta moved up on your neck to your earlobe, whispering in a sultry tone, “Time to show you what Heaven on Earth is really about...” Yuta pulled away from sucking languidly on your ear lobe to look down at you with hooded eyes, piercing into yours with a look that one would describe as pure desire, “I’m going to fucking wreck you.”

And wreck you Yuta did. There was never a moment when his nails weren’t digging into your hips or wrists if he decided to keep your wrists restricted while he fucked his way into your guts, curses flying from his mouth with every thrust. Sweat was coating both of your bodies as you cried out in pleasure your nails digging into his forearms as Yuta pinned you beneath him, rolling his hips harshly against your throbbing clit.

“Fu-Fuck Yuta!” You screamed, feeling yourself getting closer to your release as Yuta kissed down your neck, peppering the abused skin as the intensity of his strokes never faded. Yuta smirked against your skin as he gripped your ankles that were wound tightly around his waist, pulling them off of him and spreading you wide so he could fuck you harder and much deeper than before.

With the new angle, Yuta’s cock could pierce into the deepest parts of your slick pussy, causing lewd squelching sounds to ring out through the whole room that only seemed to egg Yuta on. His grip on your ankles got tighter as he leaned forward, pushing your toes to the wall behind you as he completely buried himself inside of your seeping entrance, pulling out and looking at the thick sheen of your arousal coating his cock nicely.

Yuta continued to push your toes against the wall, leaning forward with each stroke to have his cock drag against the most pleasurable spots of your ever clenching walls, grunting with every thrust he forced on you. His grunts were low and short mixed with a few Japanese curse words, him throwing his head back and biting his lip to distract himself from bursting inside of you. The longer he fucked you at this angle, the more his resolve weakened. He needed you to cum before him.

As Yuta fucked you the hardest he’s ever fucked anyone before, he removed one of his hands from your ankle and wrapped it tightly around your throat, looking at you for a look of assurance. You simply nodded as your hand was placed on top of his, holding him there as he steadily applied more pressure to cut off your air supply in a euphoric way that had you arching up against him. The sensation of his groin rolling against your throbbing bundle of nerves, his cock burying deep inside of your walls to feel you completely, and the new act of restricting your airflow had you feeling too good for your own good. All that you remembered was you screaming out for Yuta, clawing at him to come closer to you as you let the wave of pleasure crash over you.

Yuta felt your walls clench tightly around his cock, sending him spiraling over his edge as thick ropes of cum could be felt deep within your pussy, Yuta moaning out as he completely emptied himself into you. Yuta seemed to sputter syllables that reflected your name in pure bliss as he let himself crash on top of you, the only feeling he could feel before passing out with you was the sensation of his cum struggling to stay inside of your pussy and began to leak on the sheets below you two.

When the two of you woke sometime after you had the best sex of your whole entire life, you looked at each other with fond eyes and bright smiles. Yuta was actually a funny guy when he wasn’t forced to act on his dominant persona for tips from his lovers, telling jokes and making you laugh to seem more comfortable with the whole idea of paying for sex in a love hotel.

“This was probably the highlight of my whole trip,” You said as you two cuddled afterwards, laying your head on top of Yuta’s toned chest and playing with the peaks of his abs.

Yuta shifted a little bit to give you a kiss on the top of your head, smiling against your scalp as you could feel him breathe in heavily like he was in a supreme state of relaxation with you, “I’m glad I was a part of it... I think I’m going to crash here with you tonight if it’s okay with you, you really wore me out.”

“And don’t worry about payment, I’ll have Johnny take it out of my pay. With a performance like the one you just gave me, I should be paying you.”

#NeoWritingsNet #Nakamoto Yuta #Nakamoto Yuta smut #Nakamoto Yuta fanfiction #Yuta #Yuta smut #Yuta fanfcition #NCT #NCT 127 #NCT smut #NCT fanfiction #NCT 127 smut #NCT 127 fanfiction #Kpop #Kpop smut #Kpop fanfiction

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way-veee · 4 years

Text

yān yǔ

rating: m

genre: romance, fluff, comedy, wayv being absolute crackheads

word count: 1.5k +

pairing: reader x wayv

pt. 1

“a week!”

“actually, its two, they’ll be here for one and then you’ll go to china for one.”

“i cant! i have a coverage report due wednesday, not to mention school work. there’s no way i can be following idols around for one-”

“two.”

“two weeks!”

“look y/n, you’re our youngest and best reporter. this could be our breakthrough to younger audiences. please do this for the company.”

you feel guilt pile in your stomach. you knew that you had to do this for them. a news agency having coverage like this could be huge.

“all hotel and travel expenses are covered by us and SM.”

you hold your breath.

“fine, okay, i’ll do it.”

you shake your head as your manager jumps in the air. you cant believe you were going to do something as crazy as this. god you hated celebrities, and now you’re gonna live like one.

“y/n-”

you look up sharply at your manager who is nervously introducing you to wayv’s manager. you spaced out after they started talking about the logistics of your reporting, because you really didnt care.

“yes, its great to meet you sir,”

you bow quickly and give your manager a slight nod as you walk to the car that will take you to wayv. she holds two thumbs up in the air in support. she looks excited but you can tell she’s nervous, you always find a way too mess things up. and she knows that more than most people.

“ so miss, i have your itinerary for our time in osaka, the briefing for bejiing will happen shortly after arrival.”

the uptight manager says more logistical boring things, and you of course tune him out, quickly scanning through the day plan. you weren't looking forward to most of it, even meeting the boys isn’t something you look forward too. you know how snobby celebrities can be, especially to news reporters.

the car pulls up to the big industrial quarters twenty minutes later. you leisurely exit the van into the sunny osaka afternoon, in no rush to meet the idols you had to follow for weeks. you walk into the cool building as a flurry of security checks and beeps go off, scanning everyone. you shake another managers hand as he guides you to the briefing room where the boys are in a meeting.

“i’m so happy for this opportunity. i think the public will really enjoy a look at the boys everyday lives through the eyes of a regular person.”

you’re not sure if he meant that as a backhanded comment, so you try to ignore it.

“yes, i’m also glad that as a reporter, i have such an easy assignment. i expect i wont have much to write about so i look forward to resting.”

he opens up his mouth in shock as you smirk, continuing to walk down the hall. you never were good at keeping quiet.

a door swings open in front of you and you’re now looking into a room full of business men mulling over graphs and data. you were severely under dressed wearing a loose sweater with your hair tied back. but you wouldn’t let that stop you.

“sorry to interrupt,” the same man from the car ride says. “but the reporter for the day in the life project is here.”

he slowly gestures to you as you glide into the room shaking everyone's hands, charming them with a smile as fake as ever.

“i’m so happy to be here, being able to work with such people will be quite and experience.”

you glance over at the boys after you finish reciting the speech you had been practicing in the car. the seven of them sit eerily straight, dressed in suits restricting movement up to their necks. their faces are caked in makeup so expertly and effectively you couldn’t even see their true expressions.

you shudder at the thought of these “boys”. the room stays silent, so you take this as your cue to leave.

you could hear them all laugh after you left and your face reddens at the thought of those men making fun of you.

this was going to be a long two weeks.

“your quarters are going to be right near the boys so you can have quick access to them for any early morning or late night installments. keep in mind that the boys are very busy and need lots of sleep and limited distractions to perform well on the stage.”

you look over at the uptight man that is leading you across the street to your living arrangement. this man probably made choices for wayv that the boys had no say in.

it disgusted you.

but you decided to make today a day where you didnt yell at people, or at least certain people.

the second you got into the room you take a warm shower and sit on the semi hard mattress in your well worn pajamas. you didnt have the energy so late at night to do homework so you watch tv and read one of the books you brought. then you hear a crash outside that startles you.

you didnt know how long you’ve been in here but it must’ve been over two hours. you quietly creep to your door and open it, only to see a yoga ball fly past your door and crash into the plaster wall. then you hear heinous screams and footsteps.

you fling open your door in anger, only to notice wayv staring back at you, mid whatever they were doing.

they looked so different from before that you barely even recognized them. barefaced, with messy hair and baggy pajamas. their body language is so much more relaxed and natural. they look so happy and normal it startles you.

“oh. we’re sorry” kun says just as surprised as you. “we didn’t know anyone else was staying here.”

you stare at them open mouthed. “were you guys just playing… with yoga balls?”

kun’s eyes shift over to a messy utility room filled with gym equipment.

“we call it zhuā zhù, sǐ, “ henderey says excitedly getting up off the ground from where yangyang had pinned him, “it means.”

“catch or die?”

you respond, confused on why seven grown men would throw yoga balls around while tackling each other to the ground.

they’re confused on why you look so upset and mad.

“you know chinese?”

henderey responds even more shocked then before. you shake your head slowly.

it stays silent for a while until kun ushers to their quarters and says,

“well we should get going, we have a busy schedule tomorrow-”

“but we have to do the finals still!” you hear yangyang whisper into the leaders ear.

lucas then proceeds to punch yangyang in the lower back. that shuts him up really fast.

“umm yes sure, i’ll see you guys tomorrow then,” you say before closing your door to one of the weirdest displays you’ve seen so far.

how could the boys switch from being so manufactured to so normal? it scared you and made you mad. you have no idea how you’re gonna write a report on wayv without making SM look bad.

you didnt worry about it for long though, because a well deserved sleep washes over you. you would’t think about that until far into tomorrow.

the boys decided not to sleep just yet, instead they stayed up discussing the weird female reporter that would be following them around for two weeks.

“why do you think she was so mad at us?” yangyang questions.

“mad? that was just disgust.” xiaojun quips back.

“maybe she was just overwhelmed,”

kun offers, though the boys don’t believe that and they keep bickering about you.

“how is she a reporter? she looks like she hasn’t even graduated yet!”

“yangyang you haven’t either!”

winwin says while punching yangyang in the shoulder. yangyang growls in response and tries to grab winwin until kun pulls them apart.

“she might be acting weird because we’re famous,” ten says, easily making his conspiracy seem like the truth.

“she could be in love with us, or a super fan. maybe she’s never been around famous people before!”

they talk for a while longer, discussing the anomaly that is you. but soon they also fall asleep too, tired from today’s advertising meeting.

neither you nor the boys knew how tomorrow would play out, and how different the both of you will seem.

pt 2

#wayv #wayv smut #wayv kun #wayv lucas #wayv winwin #wayv xiaojun #wayv ten #wayv yangyang #wayv hendery #wayv x reader

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dcrewatch · 5 years

Text

Detective Conan Rewatch: Openings 46-50

Openings 46-50 Appreciation Post

Oh snap, time for another round of 5 openings!

Opening 46: "Everything OK!!"

Favorite screencap:

Shin’ichi: “Duck season!”

Ran: “Rabbit season!”

Comments:

Aw, cute.

Shin’ichi: “What do you mean, ‘Sherlock Holmes is stupid’, unicorn!?”

Ran: “For the last time, Shin'ichi, I AM NOT A UNICORN!”

Shin’ichi: “That thing has gotta be a unicorn horn. It’s got to be...”

Ran: “Maybe I was too harsh. It’s just...Maurice Leblanc’s characters I feel are better. ...Not that I’m partial ‘cause of my name or anything...”

Ah yes. Waffle and...crape. My favorite. =w=;;

Conan: “Yeah! Of course I’m in this opening too!”

Conan: “YOLO!”

Aww.

For those wondering what Ran’s message is: “Let’s go see the sea!” (”海を見に行こう”/”Umi o mi ni ikou”)

Man this song was catchy, and the animation was pretty cute!

Opening 47: "Countdown"

Favorite screencap:

Conan: “I mean...I knew I was a walking god of death, but come on? Explosions? Isn’t that a bit much?”

Comments:

Aw jeez. Animation staff putting me through "name that case” hell. (And this is why this post took forever.) I was able to identify 87 out of 91 pictures. Here goes:

Episode 772-773: Shin’ichi Kudo’s Aquarium Case

Episode 2: The Company President’s Daughter Kidnapping Case

Episode 763-764: Conan and Heiji, Code of Love

Episode 406-408: Conan and Heiji’s Reasoning Magic

Episode 279-280: The Hooligan’s Labyrinth

Episode 772-773: Shin’ichi Kudo’s Aquarium Case

Episode 1: The Roller Coaster Murder Case

Episode 770-771: The Tense Tea Party

Episode 425: Black Impact! The Moment the Black Organization Reaches Out

Episode 323-324: Heiji Hattori’s Desperate Situation!

Episode 11: The Moonlight Sonata Murder Case

Episode 343-344: The Convenience Store Trap

Episode 425: Black Impact! The Moment the Black Organization Reaches Out

Episode 497: The Clash of Red and Black

Episode 176-178: Reunion with the Black Organization

Episode 279-280: The Hooligan’s Labyrinth

Episode 490: Heiji Hattori vs. Shin’ichi Kudo: Deduction Battle on the Ski Slope

Episode 779: The Scarlet Prologue

Episode 48-49: The Diplomat Murder Case

Episode 2: The Company President’s Daughter Kidnapping Case

Episode 490: Heiji Hattori vs. Shin’ichi Kudo: Deduction Battle on the Ski Slope

Episode 43: Conan Edogawa Kidnapping Case

Episode 76: Conan vs. Kaitou Kid

Episode 763-764: Conan and Heiji, Code of Love

Episode 523: What She Truly Wants to Ask

Episode 2: The Company President’s Daughter Kidnapping Case

Episode 345: Confrontation with the Black Organization: Two Mysteries on a Night with a Full Moon

Episode 425: Black Impact! The Moment the Black Organization Reaches Out

Episode 836-837: The Unfriendly Girls Band

Episode 1: The Roller Coaster Murder Case

Episode 772-773: Shin’ichi Kudo’s Aquarium Case

Episode 836-837: The Unfriendly Girls Band

Episode 1: The Roller Coaster Murder Case

Episode 11: The Moonlight Sonata Murder Case

Episode 406-408: Conan and Heiji’s Reasoning Magic

Episode 830-832: The Cottage Surrounded By Zombies

Episode 652-655: The Design of Poison and Mirage

Episode 1: The Roller Coaster Murder Case

Episode 770-771: The Tense Tea Party

Episode 646-647: Deduction Showdown at the Haunted Hotel

Episode 1: The Roller Coaster Murder Case

Episode 345: Confrontation with the Black Organization: Two Mysteries on a Night with a Full Moon

Episode 307-308: On the Trail of a Silent Witness

Episode 646-647: Deduction Showdown at the Haunted Hotel

Episode 1: The Roller Coaster Murder Case

Episode 763-764: Conan and Heiji, Code of Love

Episode 11: The Moonlight Sonata Murder Case

Episode 836-837: The Unfriendly Girls Band

Episode 1: The Roller Coaster Murder Case

Episode 76: Conan vs. Kaitou Kid

Episode 457-458: Sonoko’s Red Handkerchief

Episode 827-828: Ramen So Good, It’s to Die For 2

Episode 780: The Scarlet Pursuit

Episode 575-576: The Alibi of the Black Dress

Episode 425: Black Impact! The Moment the Black Organization Reaches Out

Episode 646-647: Deduction Showdown at the Haunted Hotel

Episode 345: Confrontation with the Black Organization: Two Mysteries on a Night with a Full Moon

Episode 219: The Gathering of the Detectives! Shin’ichi Kudo vs Kaitou Kid

Episode 810-812: The Darkness of the Prefectural Police

Episode 345: Confrontation with the Black Organization: Two Mysteries on a Night with a Full Moon

Episode ??? (too lazy to continue trying to identify...)

Episode 191: The Desperate Revival ~The Black Knight~

Episode 457-458: Sonoko’s Red Handkerchief

Episode 48-49: The Diplomat Murder Case

Episode 780: The Scarlet Pursuit

Episode 2: The Company President’s Daughter Kidnapping Case

Episode 191: The Desperate Revival ~The Black Knight~

Episode 808-809: The Kamaitachi Inn

Episode 406-408: Conan and Heiji’s Reasoning Magic

Episode 222-224: And Then There Were No Mermaids

Episode 425: Black Impact! The Moment the Black Organization Reaches Out

Episode 1: The Roller Coaster Murder Case

Episode 48-49: The Diplomat Murder Case

Episode 77-78: The Distinguished Family’s Consecutive Accidental Death Case

Episode 830-832: The Cottage Surrounded By Zombies

Episode 1: The Roller Coaster Murder Case

Episode 345: Confrontation with the Black Organization: Two Mysteries on a Night with a Full Moon

Episode 222-224: And Then There Were No Mermaids

Episode 827-828: Ramen So Good, It’s to Die For 2

Episode 772-773: Shin’ichi Kudo’s Aquarium Case

Episode 286-288: Shin’ichi Kudo’s New York Case

Episode 425: Black Impact! The Moment the Black Organization Reaches Out

Episode 810-812: The Darkness of the Prefectural Police

Episode ??? (too lazy to continue trying to identify...)

Episode 581: The Red Shaking Target

Episode ??? (too lazy to continue trying to identify...)

Episode 1: The Roller Coaster Murder Case

Episode 651: Conan vs. Heiji, Deduction Battle Between the Detectives of the East and West

Well I see the animation staff is having fun with imagining how a final showdown might go.

Conan: “You can tell I mean business by how serious my face is!”

Agasa: “Don’t mind me! Just uh...not stealing books to sell on eBay...nope, no siree.”

Mitsuhiko: “I told you the forecast said rain!”

Genta: “I like to live dangerously!”

Haibara: “Sure hope my friends remembered their umbrellas...”

Kazuha: ‘I could get used to this...’

Shiratori: “You ever think we should stop standing around looking cool and go do stuff?”

Kaitou Kid: “Man I’m cool.”

Organization Member: “Whoa, that was sick!”

Ran: “Shin’ichi, help!”

Shin’ichi: “USE YOUR KARATE DAMNIT!”

Potential Rum suspects.

Conan: “Ran! Use your legs!”

Conan: “LIKE THIS!”

Ran: “Oh, right!”

Pretty interesting “what if” scenario.

Opening 48: "Timeline"

Favorite screencap:

*-Oingo Boingo’s “Weird Science” intensifies-*

Comments:

Shin’ichi: “DON’T DO DRUGS KIIIIIIIIIIIDSSS---!”

Hooray, more case identification. This time figuring out the odd translations of titles of the cases on the books in the background. Books listed are from left to right, top to bottom. Obviously too small to see in my screencaps, but if you watch the opening for yourself, you’ll see what I mean. :D;

763-764: Conan and Heiji's Code of Love

701-704: The Jet-Black Mystery Train

491-504: Clash of Red and Black

457-458: Sonoko's Red Handkerchief

425: Black Impact! The Moment the Black Organization Reaches Out

394-396: Big Adventure in the Eccentric Mansion

385-387: The Dissonance of the Stradivarius

238-239: The 3 "K"s of Osaka Case

50: The Library Murder Case

18: A June Bride Murder Case

174: The Twenty Year Old Murderous Intent: The Symphony Serial Murder Case

166-168: Tottori Spider Mansion Demon

153-154: Sonoko's Dangerous Summer Story

385-387: The Dissonance of the Stradivarius (yes, again in the same shot)

129: The Girl from the Black Organization and the University Professor Murder Case

76: Conan vs. Kaitou Kid

68-70: The Night Baron Murder Case

50: The Library Murder Case (yup, again)

London flashbacks...

Ran’s message she sent to Shin’ichi is basically asking about the upcoming school trip.

Here’s another round...

400: Ran's Suspicions

472-473: Shin'ichi Kudo's Childhood Adventure

490: Heiji Hattori vs. Shin'ichi Kudo: Deduction Battle on the Ski Slope

507-508: The Blind Spot in the Karaoke Box

511: Deduction Showdown! Shin'ichi vs. Subaru Okiya

781: The Scarlet Intersection

780: The Scarlet Pursuit

129: The Girl from the Black Organization and the University Professor Murder Case

162: The Locked Room in the Sky: Shin'ichi Kudo's First Case

266-268: The Truth Behind Valentine's

284-285: Chinatown Deja Vu in the Rain

219: The Gathering of the Detectives! Shin'ichi Kudo vs. Kaitou Kid

345: Head-to-Head Match with the Black Organization: A Dual Mystery on a Full Moon Night

286-288: Shin'ichi Kudo's New York Case

Ran: “...Nope. Holding my phone determinedly does nothing to improve the reception. Stupid cell phone company...”

Looks like more messages asking relating to the upcoming school trip.

Here’s more...

230-231: The Mysterious Passenger

238-239: The 3 "K"s of Osaka Case

304: The Trembling Police Headquarters: 12 Million Hostages

385-387: The Dissonance of the Stradivarius

394-396: Big Adventure in the Eccentric Mansion

400: Ran's Suspicions

425: Black Impact! The Moment the Black Organization Reaches Out

457-458: Sonoko's Red Handkerchief

491-504: Clash of Red and Black

18: A June Bride Murder Case

153-154: Sonoko's Dangerous Summer Story

166-168: Tottori Spider Mansion Demon

174: The Twenty Year Old Murderous Intent: The Symphony Serial Murder Case

Back to the London flashback...

I’m not bothering identifying more. =w=; Books on Conan’s left are segments of the Scarlet Arc, and the others are too much in shadow to read completely.

Okay, one more identification because it’s the story that enables Shin’ichi to join up on the school trip: 925-926: The Heartfelt Strap.

Conan: “Conan...SMASH!!!”

*-Doctor Who theme intensifies-*

Ran: “Did...”

Ran: “Did you just stick a a 10 point landing?”

I see what you did there animators. Clever.

Yup, this too, showing the three sides to Amuro. Cleveerrrr...

Yeah, don’t worry Haibara. My brain’s fried too.

Overall, decent!

Opening 49: "Barairo no Jinsei"

Favorite screencap:

*-“Halleluiah” chorus intensifies-*

Comments:

Nothing really to say new about this one! This one’s just flashy despite not really having any new character animation to speak of; just bits from the school trip arc.

Opening 50: "ANSWER"

Favorite screencap:

When your anime has gone on forever and the person making this blog post wants to reference a now old meme.

Comments:

Gin: “For our next trick we shall now give a performance of Hitchcock’s ‘The Birds’!”

Conan: “I knew it. They’re wizards.”

Oh hey, it’s that Itakura guy from Episode 307-308.

Haibara with Mary...who may or may not be related?

Lots of Rum arc relevant things...

Carasuma now showing in the background...ominous.

Next Episode: Episode 946

Previous Episode: Episode 945

#detective conan #detective conan rewatch #openings #名探偵コナン

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hopesong7 · 4 years

Text

LENS Ch.1

Summary: Sometimes, the universe aligns, and you make friends with a stranger. Sometimes, that stranger is actually multiple people and life just got a bit more interesting.

Genre(s): Fluff, Comedy, lil bit of Angst (Maybe), BTS (It’s a genre now)

Contains: Things that make me feel fuzzy, photography, social media, things I know nothing about but have googled extensively, and the power of friendship.

Word Count: 1405

Note: This is an introductory chapter. BTS makes their entrance in the next. This one is mainly to help understand a bit more about you - as the reader - and introduce background characters that will be referenced repeatedly and brought up often.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

To say that you were excited was an understatement.

Striding through the doors, you were met with Wonderland, quite literally. Alice in Fantasy Book was a cafe you’d had eyes on for awhile. Photos of it’s delectable treats had crossed your feed one too many times. Now, here you sat, Eun-ha practically vibrating with excitement beside you.

“Haru said she was on her way,” You informed her, taking a sip of your drink. You were ignored, the model opting to gaze at the decor in awe. You couldn’t blame her. The walls themselves were a sight to behold, canvases portraying various scenes from the novel. When coupled with the other various decorations - of which an abundance were hearts - it was simply awe inspiring. You wished you’d brought your camera, but supposed your phone would have to do for now. A gasp of awe caught your attention and you turned to see Haru making her way to you. While Eun-ha was a classic beauty, and you maintained a rather flattering appearance, Haru radiated the softest of auras.

“Ah, you look stunning,” Eun-ha complimented. Purple hair - pastel, of course - covered pink ears as the up-and-coming singer took her seat.

“Oddly Cheshire today,” You teased, eyes on her striped sweater. Haru only shrugged with a cheeky grin. The three of you shared a small laugh, quickly placing your orders. “I can’t believe we’re all here,” You admitted as the waitress walked away. You were so glad she spoke English.

“I can’t believe it either,” Eun-ha agreed. “The fact that we’re all here in Tokyo… When was the last time we were all in the same city?”

“Too long,” Haru muttered.

“So why are you two around,” you inquired, head tilted in curiosity.

“I’m in between shows,” Haru admitted. “I just finished up in Osaka, so we’re taking a break before heading back home.” The singer took another sip of her drink before the two of you turned on Eun-ha.

The model gave a dismissive wave, “In town for a clothing shoot. The real question is why our darling ____ is here and not back home in lovely South Korea.” You smirked, tracing the rim of your glass and giving the waitress a polite nod as she delivered your orders.

“I am here,” you snuck a quick bite, “because I really wanted to eat at this cafe.” Your admission earned nothing but flat looks of disbelief. “I kept seeing photos,” you defended, gesturing at the rather adorable caterpillar sushi in front of you. “I’ll probably make a vlog later today, take some photos.” You shrugged, “Honestly, I don’t have anything planned right now.”

“No jobs scheduled,” Eun-ha repeated, clearly shocked.

“I’m on sabbatical,” You joked. “Only photos I’ll be taking are for me and Instagram.” From there, the three of you devolved into casual chatter, occasionally squealing at how utterly adorable everything was. A trio of girls, all suckers for the wonderfully weird world of Alice in Wonderland. The fun ended once Haru’s phone chimed, her manager calling her back to the hotel.

“We can walk you back,” You offered. The two of you were obstinately ignoring Eun-ha paying behind you. You’d tried splitting the bill, but the model had refused, citing that it was “her duty” as the eldest. Eldest by three days, but you weren’t bitter. Nope, not at all.

Haru shook her head, “No, they’ve sent someone to pick me up. You two should go explore, send me some photos!” You rolled your eyes, grabbing her into a hug. Eun-ha soon joined, obnoxiously resting all her weight on the pair of you.

“Yah! Get off me, you giantess,” your words were muffled by the sweater in your face, but she got the message, releasing you with a laugh. “Aish,” you muttered, trying to fix your hair. Haru merely snickered, seemingly unruffled by Eun-ha’s antics.

“We should really meet up again soon,” Haru said, watching as a sleek car rolled up, the driver clambering out to open the door for her.

“Definitely,” You and Eun-ha agreed. “I'll message you,” You promised, giving her a wave as the door closed and the car sped off.

“I need to go too,” Eun-ha admitted sheepishly. “My flight leaves in a few hours and I need to pack.”

You nodded sadly, “Where to now?”

“London, actually.” She pulled you into a hug. “Stay in touch, okay? And keep those videos coming, your last cooking attempt had me in tears,” She admitted with a laugh.

You giggled, giving her a punch in the arm. “Next cooking video, you’re going to be in it,” You swore. The two of you laughed. For all the grief Eun-ha gave you, she wasn’t much of a cook herself. The only difference between the two of you was that she was capable of using a knife without injury, as opposed to your ongoing battle to not bleed everytime you walked by one. The two of you shared one last bittersweet goodbye before finally separating.

You made your way to your hotel room, grabbing your camera. Not the one reserved for photos, sadly, but rather the one you used when filming. Setting it up on the tripod, you double checked the lighting, adjusted the settings, and started recording.

“Hello everyone! I wasn’t sure if I was going to video today, but I’m in Tokyo, so I couldn't resist. It’s rather beautiful here and I just got back from lunch. Eun-ha and Haru were able to make it, so we dined in wonder! No joke though,” you shifted on the bed and leaned forward, “We went to that cafe I’ve been dying to try! It’s called Alice in Fantasy Book and not only was the food and service superb but, the decor-'' You stopped, blinking meaningfully at the camera. “I died,” you said solemnly, “and it was so worth it.” You sat back, running a hand through your hair, “You all have known me awhile, okay. Aesthetics, themes, anything like that? You know I’m going to be into it. This place was honestly gorgeous you guys. They had chairs like the at the Mad Hatter’s table, Queen of Hearts theme was there, the waitresses were all in Alice's dress and-” You muffled a scream with your hands. “The walls were some of the most stunning things I have ever witnessed. They were painted with scenes from the novel and the artwork, oh my goodness. I think I fell in love with the walls,” You admitted sheepishly. “If any of you get the chance, especially my Alice in Wonderland fans, I advise you to go.”

“Anyway! It’s my second day here, yesterday I just walked around. I probably spent too much money shopping but meh,” You waved a hand at the thought. “My Pokemon collection has grown and I have more Luigi merch. That is all that matters. I’ll probably wander around some more tonight, take a few nightlife photos, but what I’m really excited about is tomorrow.” You rubbed your hands together, smiling gleefully. “I,” You proudly announced, “am going to drown myself in art! There are so many art museums here and I’m ready. There’s one focused on photography specifically, so you know I’m going there. I won’t keep this video so short - I have standards - which is why when I’m finally done editing, you all will have a lovely montage of me making a fool out of myself yesterday, playing in three, two-” You stopped recording, a grin on your face, “One.”

Whipping out your computer, you started editing, removing any awkward silences that might have snuck their way in first. Next came the audio, double-checking that it didn’t cut out randomly. It had happened once when you first started, and you’d been paranoid since. The montage was already done, simply needing to be stitched into the clip from tonight. You internally thanked your past self, who’d had the foresight to get ahead. Triple-checking everything and making sure you didn’t miss something, you finally nodded, loading it up to your account and sending out a quick tweet that your new video was up. Instagram was treated to a selfie and the same message.

You stood, stretching, and grabbed your camera bag, the light of Tokyo shining through your window. For all that it was late, you had the oddest feeling that something good was going to happen tonight. It could wait until after you got coffee, though.

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petri808 · 5 years

Note

Now post-curse Shigure/Akito drabble please? c:

Here you go anon UwU

A Walk in a Park

Post curse Shigure x Akiko

She’d been isolated for so long, that Shigure wanted to show Akito more of the world that she’s been hidden from all these years. The going had been slow at times, three steps forward, one step back, but those steps back were becoming fewer or far between. He had the patience to see it through, hell he’d waited twenty years, what’s a few more? So, he started off small. Day trips to neighboring towns. Small festivals or even the movie theaters to help her become accustomed to larger groups of strangers.

It was a genuine surprise to him one day, when Akito came into his office with a brochure.

“Look,” she showed him with a genuine smile, pointing to the picture, “Osaka Castle is so beautiful, it would be nice to see it in person.”

He turns and looks first at the brochure then up to Akito. “If that is what you want, I will make it happen.” Shigure takes her hand. “Shall we stay a few days and see more of Osaka’s sights as well?”

Akito blushes and nods her head.

“Then I will make the arrangements,” he kisses the back of her hand. “Cherry blossom season is right around the corner, that should make for an even better visit.”

The way her eyes lit up at the word cherry blossom made Shigure’s heart melt. It was nice seeing these more feminine attributes coming through on Akito. He chuckles in his head. She made for a much more beautiful raven-haired goddess than a surly and stressed out male. All those years of waiting for moments like this one were well worth it.

It took them just under two hours to reach the Chuo Ward of Osaka by car. Shigure drives them straight to the Dormy Inn Namba where he’s booked a room with a private onsen. Nothing was too good for his woman’s first trip to a big city and he plans to make the most out of it. Akito was a little nervous about the amount of people she was seeing everywhere they passed, but Shigure just smiled and held her hand to comfort and assure her it would be okay.

First thing was a visit to the castle where its sheer magnificence made Akito’s fears fade away. Walking along the bridge that spanned the moat, the castle appeared to rise high above the city atop its stone platform and surrounded by an imposing stone wall. It’s gleaming white walls, golden trim, and green tiled roof was like seeing Heaven shining down upon their lowly presence.

As they pass under the trees, a wind blows gently, loosening a few of the blossoms. Akito gasps, almost giggling, reaching out to try and catch one. Shigure chuckles at the sight of a grown woman acting like a child. He picks up one of the fallen cherry blossoms and places it in her ear. “There,” he smiles, “a pretty flower, for a beautiful woman.”

“Always the smooth talker,” she blushes, “but thank you.”

For the next couple of days, they visit other little places around the city. Sometimes they just walk around, touring shopping districts or eateries. Akito was excited to find something cute that she was sure Tohru would love. She didn’t get to see the girl much, now that her and Kyo had moved away to another city, but they spoke often by phone and came back to visit every few months. Now she would have a gift to give. Shigure had found it amusing though. Really, he had asked Akito, an ‘I love cats’ t-shirt that had, of all the types, an orange tabby on it. But even he couldn’t deny that Tohru would probably find it adorable.

This is where having the private onsen sure came in handy. All the walking would leave Shigure, but more so Akito with sore feet from not being used to doing so much of it back home. Besides, it was nice to have an excuse to hold and cuddle with her. The soothing heat of the water fading their aches and pains away while warming up their desires for one another. Their first trysts had been a little awkward, but over time, Akito had come to enjoy them. Shigure for his part was very gentle with her and very attentive to her needs. A stark contrast from the perverse nature he’d often portray to others.

On their final afternoon in Osaka, Shigure takes Akito to the Tennoji Zoo a few blocks away from the hotel. He thought that seeing all the exotic animals might be exciting to see, he knew he was. The last time he’d had to really deal with ‘wild’ creatures, was when Kyo and Yuki were living in his home and fighting all the time. At first Akito seemed to enjoy the zoo too. It was a very large park filled with many animals of both land and sea. Huge enclosures with amazing flora and landscapes as well.

But the longer they walked, Shigure begun to notice a shift in Akito’s demeanor. Once thrilled she was now a little distraught.

He finally pulls her aside. “What’s wrong Akito?” At first, she just shakes her head, not wanting to answer, but he prompts again and pulls her into an embrace. Shigure strokes her hair. “Please tell me what is bothering you.”

“I feel bad for them,” she whispers. “All these animals are locked up and forced to live in cages almost like you all had to.”

Wow, he hadn’t even made such a connection and yet obviously this was deeply affecting her. Unlike all of the others including Akito, Shigure had never truly felt like a prisoner to the curse. But as he thought about it more, he could understand how she made the correlation. Guilt over being the God who’d kept them trapped and confined to the Sohma legacy just like these poor animals was eating away at Akito.

“Akito, I want you to listen to me.” He holds her gaze. Even when she tries to turn away, Shigure tilts her chin back to face him. “It wasn’t all your fault. You were doing what had been drilled into your head since you were an infant. We all believed in the bond, that’s not something you created, just got stuck dealing with.”

“But it is my fault, I could have done better,” the tears trickle down. “I could have treated everyone better. I-I was so mean to everyone and forced you all to stay by my side even when I knew in my heart you were miserable.”

Shigure sighs and wipes away her tears. “Akito, my love, you were young and just wanted to be loved. That’s not a crime. These animals, they don’t hate their circumstances. I mean look,” he gestures to a lazily yawning monkey, “they’re fed, housed, no need to worry about predators. Think of it like a life-long hotel stay where they are pampered for the rest of their lives.”

She looks at the monkey, “I see your point…”

“And another thing. You aren’t that same person anymore. You’ll never be that lonely girl anymore because as far as I’m concerned, you’ll be the one in a life-long hotel stay being pampered for the rest of your life.”

Akito sniffles and gives him a half smile. “Thank you, Shigure, for being so kind to me.”

He kisses her forehead and smiles back, “the honor is all mine, my dearest one. Now I say, let’s go home…”

#shigure x akito #fruits basket #Shigure sohma #Akito sohma #fruits basket fan fic #fic request

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btskismet · 5 years

Text

Kismet (Chapter 5): a BTS Jin imagines fanfic

First ever fanfic. Contains fluff and some smut. Please read sequentially as it is a long story arc. Please provide feedback! My IG is btskismet.

She started preparing for her Nara day trip. Though she’s been there before, she hasn’t had the chance to visit it by herself. She was eager to see the temples and even those she didn’t get to see the last time. She also wanted to try the mugwort mochi from Nakatanidou again which is without a doubt, one of the best if not the best she has tried in Japan.

She also wanted to try an overnight stay in one of the Nara temples to learn about meditation but given the circumstances, she’ll have to do it some other time.

Will Seokjin really stay with her after the concert? It’s unimaginable but he seemed so determined before he left that morning. It made her smile after every time she thought of his words before leaving.

Bliipp!

She heard her phone make a sound and saw the LINE notification on her phone.

Seokjin sent her a message. He used English words instead of Hangul and she was touched by the effort he showed in sending her messages like that. “I wish our phones we as good as the translator I have. Oh well.”, she thought.

She found it cute that he was using cute emoticons and he even sent a “miss u” emoticon”. Her heart beat faster after seeing that.

“Oh my, ok, get yourself together, girl...”, she thought. It was hard not to be swept away by him. If she wanted to catch the temples and Nakatanidou still open, she had to leave now to take the 1302 train at Ebisucho station to get to Kintetsu-Nara station.

After almost an hour of riding and switching trains, she arrives at Kintetsu-Nara station. She knew that before she visits the temples, she has to pass by Nakatanidou first.

The mochi made by Nakatani-san is pretty unique. It’s green in color due to the mugwort in the rice flour he uses but that’s not what make it unique. It’s the way he makes the mochi that’s amazing. Nakatani-san and his son would pound the mochi furiously for 5 minutes before it’s brought to the machine that will make the mochi into sheets. Then red bean paste is placed in and then made into a ball before being dusted with kinako powder.

She wondered if Seokjin has ever tried the mochi before and she sent him a text message and a photo to ask.

Jin seemed real interested in the mochi so she got 6-piece pack after getting one of the freshly made ones. As long as I store it in room temperature, this will still be good tomorrow.

She then went to several temples and shrines for the whole day. She may have been alone but it didn’t feel that way since Jin would ping her once in a while, asking what she was doing. She was thrilled to share her trips to the temples with him, sharing pictures and stories even though they were short. Emoticons really helped them express a lot to each other. He said he felt left out and was really excited about tomorrow. He kept asking her what the plan is and where they would meet.

Can you call me tonight?, She texted him. Gosh, I have to ask him first where we can go. I already booked a meditation class in Kyoto but I’m not sure if I should extend my stay in Osaka.

Jin texted back and said he would call her by 10pm.

She was thinking it would be an interesting call because they would really have to work out the challenge of communicating without the translator.

At Ono-san’s ramen restaurant, she got another bowl of the tonkotsu ramen she likes. Once again, she was alone in the restaurant and she knew that the dinner rush is done and he’ll have more customers later at 11pm.

Ono-san went up to her and asked her if the food is ok. She nodded in between slurps and asked for more chives.

“Dozo”, Ono-san said and handed the chives to her. She happily took them and added it all in her soup. “Dokoni itte imahitaka?”, Ono-san asked. She understood that he was asking her where she went today and she said Nara.

“Sou ka..”, Ono-san said. She handed him the earpiece for the translator so they could talk freely.

“I’ll be leaving tomorrow for Kyoto for a meditation class.”, she said.

“That’s good! Which temple?”

“Shunko-in? They offer meditation classes in English. So, I will go straight there tomorrow early morning then go to a hotel after.”, she replied.

Ono-san grew up in Kyoto and knew all the temples and shrines. He always gave her good tips on where to go and what to do in the Kansai region and his recommendations were always spot on.

“Just one day there? Will you come back here?”, Ono-san asked.

She shrugged her shoulders. “I don’t know. I have to check what he wants.” she put her hand on her mouth when she realized what she just blurted out.

Ono-san looked quizzically at her. “He? Ahhh...” He stared at her with a smile and nudged towards the booth where she and the BTS members sat the other day. “Koibito, ne?”, he said in Japanese which she knew meant boyfriend.

She covered her face with her hands but she knew he could see her smiling and blushing. He walked to the wall where their picture was at and showed it to her. “So, which one of them is your boyfriend?”, he asked, holding up the polaroid in front of her.

She pointed at Jin sheepishly and then gave out a little laugh. The photo Ono-san showed her was the one where her, Ono-san, Jin, Jimin and Jungkook were doing funny poses. Jin had his “screaming man” look like his picture when he rode the rollercoaster in a Run BTS episode.

“Hmmm, handsome one. Good choice, lucky star!”, Ono-san declared as he brought out 2 shot glasses and a small bottle of sake. He poured one for her and himself. “Omedeto soshite gambaru! Kampai! (Congratulations and good luck. Cheers)”, Ono-san said before downing his one shot.

2157. She was having a cup of coffee on the sofa, contemplating the ‘plan’ she thought of for their trip. She wasn’t sure how she would communicate it to him but she had to try. She hoped that Jin can get Jungkook to help again as it would be a complicated thing to discuss.

Bzzzzzzzz... She heard her phone vibrating and saw a LINE call coming in with the Mario icon and the letters ‘SK’ at the bottom.

“Hello?”, she said.

“Hi, hi!”, Jin said to her. “How are you?”

“Hey, I’m fine. How about you?”

“I’m ok. I have translator. Tell him plan, ok?”, Jin said before he handed the phone to someone else.

“Hi, this is Namjoon.”, another voice said on the phone.

RM! Wow, she thought. I didn’t expect him to help! She said hi and introduced herself.

“So, Jin hyung said that you guys have a plan for tomorrow and he wants to know where you are going. He, um... wait...”, RM drifted off and she could hear them talking to each other in Korean.

“Jin said he is so excited to see you again and he hopes you ate well and are not cold and... sorry...”, RM said and she heard him laugh as Jin’s voice was getting more excited and loud.

“He said he misses you a lot.”, RM told her which made her blush.

“Thanks, Namjoon. It’s good to meet you. Thanks for helping translate.”

“Well, I’m used to it. Jin hyung knows how to speak too but he needs to practice more so he can get used to it. Maybe you’ll be able to push him haha.”, RM said and she could hear Jin complaining in the background.

”Sure, I’ll do that. As his leader, I know you look at for him and the others a lot. I appreciate it you taking good care of them. You’re a great leader.”

RM ecstatically said, “Thank you! Wow, that means a lot!”

She couldn’t hear Jin anymore and RM was also quiet for a couple of seconds. RM then laughed and Jin as well and he said, “Jin hyung is giving me evil looks and told me to back off from you because you’re his. Haha, this hyung, so jealous!”

She laughed and could hear Jin complaining again. “Namjoon, can you tell him that I have two options for him and he has to choose as to where we will go?”

She started explaining to RM the two choices she planned for the trip that would last for a whole week. As she was explaining, RM was translating and she could hear Jin verbally nodding to each statement.

“So is it the first plan or the second one?”, she asked.

Namjoon replied, “He’s good with the second one. He’ll rent a car to go to you tomorrow after the concert.”

“Alright then.” She was surprised he chose the second option which would be a little harder to do but he was all for it.

“Just want to let you know, personally...”, Namjoon said. “Jin hyung is totally into you. He has a soft spot and can be impulsive but you seem to mean a lot to him. Please take care of him. I’m worried that...”

“I understand what you’re trying to say, Namjoon.”, she said. “I hope you can talk to him too and ask him many times if this is what he wants to do. I totally understand your careers and I don’t want to jeopardize it either. But I’d be lying if I said I don’t feel anything for Jin. I am totally in over my head too.”

RM gave a soft chuckle, “I already spoke to him and he doesn’t want to change his mind. He said there is something about you two he needs to know and discover. Sort of like destiny. I’m not someone to think negatively of it but he’s very happy so I won’t stop him. Just take care.”

She thanked RM for his honesty and she said she hoped to speak with him face to face in the future. “At this rate, Jin hyung won’t want to us to meet yet haha. He thinks I’ll take you away since we can speak English together.”

She could hear Jin again, loudly asking for the phone back while RM was laughing. RM quickly said Bye and she heard Jin on the phone.

“Hi! I see you tomorrow, ok? Miss you!”, Jin said quickly and made kissy noises which made her giggle. She said good bye and hung up, with cheeks pretty flushed and her head on a tailspin.

---- to be continued---

#bts fanfction #bts imagination #bts imagines #bts jin #btskismet

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bailesu · 5 years

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One Day in Paris (Haruka / Michiru Fanfic)

This is for a Haruka / Michiru exchange thing for @amrynth.

I’ve put the story behind the cut as it’s kind of long for a tumblr post.

One Day in Paris

By John Biles

For the Haruka/Michiru stuff exchange.

*******************

Some days, Haruka loved being a detective. A good, challenging mystery. High speed chases on high mountain roads where one wrong turn meant going off a cliff. Shootouts in a Monaco casino. Romance under the stars. Finding yourself tied up the next morning and your wallet stolen. Being arrested as a homeless person and…

Okay, her last job hadn’t *ended* well, but the start had been awesome.

“But Saaaaaam,” Makoto wailed into her cellphone two desks down. “I’m a detective! I can’t just let criminals rampage even if we did plan this for a week!”

Detective Minako had legs which wouldn’t quit. Wouldn’t quite *kicking her desk to a beat*, that is. Detective Rei, who had the desk behind Haruka, was starting to crumple paper and make grunting noises, and this could not lead to *anything* good.

“So you’re saying it’s Lupin,” Detective Zenigata said, four desks down into his cellphone.

It’s never Lupin, Haruka thought, sighing; she was busy checking her email to make sure she hadn’t missed a summons from their boss. The last time she’d done that, Head Detective Setsuna had somehow gone back in time and wrecked the best date she’d had in high school.

Petty, yet powerful.

I need a mission, Haruka thought as Rei now rose and began heading over to Minako’s desk.

Also, I need to convince Head Detective Setsuna that this open office arrangement is a *bad idea*, she thought as Makoto now babbled to Sam; no one was sure if Sam was male or female; Haruka was pretty sure Sam was a woman, but whatever Sam was, Makoto was headed for another crash and burn. Haruka would have felt sorry for her but now Clippy rose from the grave, occupying half the screen on her monitor. ‘Do you want help with your resignation letter?’

‘I want a damn mission to get me out of this office,’ she typed in. ‘Also, I thought you died.’

‘That is not dead which cannot die, but with strange aeons…’, Clippy began.

Not another cult case, dammit, Haruka thought.

“If it’s a woman, it’s not Lupin, it’s his confederate Fujiko,” Inspector Zenigata said into the phone. “Be very careful; she is nearly as cunning as Carmen Sandiego, who *still* has my Betamax, dammit.”

A coffee mug slid onto the desk, and Haruka started, then saw it was Detective Usagi. “I thought you were on the Osaka Jewelry case,” she said to Detective Usagi.

There was a crashing sound as half of everything on Detective Minako’s desk (six figurines of Sailor V, five of various idols, four pictures, a baseball signed by Babe Ruth, and a stack of books Minako would never read but claimed she would) all fell off it because Rei and Minako were engaged in either a fight to the death, foreplay, or probably both, Haruka assumed.

It had been kind of sexy the first three times but after Minako had accidentally somehow knocked Haruka’s favorite racing trophy into the toilet (which was fifteen meters away, an act which was *never* clearly explained to Haruka), Haruka now wished they would keep it at home and be professional at work, like *her*.

“I want to explain it to you, but the Kingdom of D was involved and Umino had to pass himself off as the princess and I just don’t want to think about it,” Usagi said, looking haunted.

“If those two weren’t separated at birth, I will be stunned,” Haruka said, then tried her coffee. She took Usagi’s hand and squeezed it. Usagi turned a little red. “You are a master of coffee. Did you catch the thief, then?”

“It was all a trap to kidnap the princess, and we barely rescued Umino from the deathtrap when they realized they had the wrong person,” Detective Usagi said, trying to sit on Haruka’s desk.

Makoto sat at her desk, clutching her head, while Detective Ami patted her shoulder over and over, trying to help but not knowing what to do.

“I think I have to help Makoto,” Usagi said.

“Drop by any time,” Haruka said.

DING.

Salvation had arrived. A mission, so she could get out of this madhouse before…

“So is that your gun, or are you happy to…” Minako began.

“It’s my gun,” Rei said irritably as she tried to pin Minako.

“That joke only works with Detective Conan or Inspector Zenigata,” Ami pointed out.

Minako sighed. “Ami, the straight woman’s job isn’t to ruin my jokes.”

The mission was to investigate the break-in at Renate Jewels in Paris. Ahh, gay Paris, Haruka thought with satisfaction. A city of beautiful buildings, great food and drink, love, and… hopefully not another chase through the sewers.

“No one in this place is straight except maybe Conan but he’s too young for us to think about that,” Ami said.

“Ami, you made *me* the straightwoman,” Minako said mournfully.

Haruka fled to get in her car and drive to Paris.

******************* Haruka then remembered it was not in fact possible to drive to Paris, so she got a plane ticket and arranged for a Lamborghini to be waiting for her in Paris. When she arrived, she got it and… immediately fell asleep from jet lag in the parking lot of the rental place.

The next morning, she woke up, went to her hotel, took a shower and headed off to investigate the case, hoping the trail had not gone cold. She felt alive; she needed her missions to give her purpose after she’d been banned from racing, even if it was all that freak Dirk Dastardly’s fault!

Then she headed out to Renate’s Jewels, a beautiful boutique near the Seine; a superheroine and a villain were fighting on a roof nearby, but Haruka ignored them; they had no jewels and were not part of her very important mission.

Renate was a middle-aged redhead who looked oddly familiar to Haruka, but Haruka didn’t worry about that, since it probably wasn’t going to be relevant. “So she seduced you, tied you up, and then stole everything.”

“I wouldn’t have minded being tied up if she hadn’t *stolen* everything,” Renate said, then swooned.

Haruka caught her and put her up on her feet. “You should probably loosen your corset so you can breathe properly,” she said very seriously.

Renate said, “I’m going to need your help, detective. Why don’t we go upstairs and you can help me do it.”

“Sorry, fair lady, but I’m on a *mission*,” she said, kissing Renate’s hand, then quickly adjusting her corset without taking it off. Soon, Haruka headed for the Regal Arms, as the thief, who Renate had identified as the notorious Jewel Thief Michiru from a photo, had left behind a pack of matches. The place was huge and grand, exactly the sort of place for an exciting showdown. Every piece of furniture was worth two years of Haruka’s salary.

That would make her triumph cooler.

She paused to adjust her suit in the mirror. When confronting your nemesis, you have to have everything *just right*. If your tie is out of place, it ruins the moment.

She then went to the front desk, presenting her badge and a photo of Jewel Thief Michiru running out of a shop with a bag full of jewelry. “Have you seen this woman?”

The clerk adjusted her glasses. “Yes, she was lounging around… our lounge… all night last night, looking increasingly cranky, then finally her friend dragged her upstairs with the help of the night concierge.”

Friend?

“Can you describe the friend?” she asked.

Hotel security footage showed Michiru, clutching a wine glass in one hand, unconscious and being dragged onto a luggage cart by a dark haired man in the hotel uniform and by a dark haired woman who was ambiguously teenage and wearing a black blouse, black knee-length skirt, black high stockings, black boots, black nailpolish and a pink rose over her heart which looked lost, but certainly stood out.

Haruka said, “Can you get a printout of that?”

After some tech fumbling, she and the desk lady got the footage sent to Detective Ami for analysis. She also got the desk lady’s phone number, the address of a good chicken place, and the room number of Jewel Thief Michiru.

And the advice to never eat at Francois’ near the Arc d’Triomphe. Or however you spell it; Detective Haruka never sweats the details.

The elevator took her to the twenty-third floor and she made her way down the hallway to 2307. She pulled out the keycard the clerk had given her and unlocked the door.

“I’m going to have to steal the crown jewels,” she heard Michiru say; she flattened herself against the wall inside the little atrium; to her right was the changing area and a hanging closet; beyond that was the bathroom; she pressed herself against the left-wall, then realized it left her visible, so she slipped into the hanging closet, where a half-dozen dresses were hung up.

The burgundy one was the best, but Haruka wasn’t sure if it really matched Jewel Thief Michiru’s hair. As she contemplated high fashion, she heard a woman she did not know. “I’m sure she’s coming. The Fox told us that her plane arrived last night.”

“Then why didn’t she come to the hotel?” a despairing voice said from the bed.

“Why do you *want* her to find you, anyway? You’re not the Riddler’s sister, right?” the woman asked. “I need the money to get Father exorcised, but if I go to jail, I can’t help him!”

“What good is stealing things if there is no one to recognize my skill?” Jewel Thief Michiru said. “I am in this for the sport, to pit myself against the best.”

“Then why are you worried about this bozo?” the other woman asked.

“I am not a bozo!” Haruka said, coming out and throwing the finger of accusation at the other woman, who turned out to be the teenager from the photo, holding a short fighting staff.

Which she now flicked and it somehow extended into a glaive.

“Don’t bring a glaive to a gunfight,” Haruka said, drawing her gun.

“Now, now, Detective Haruka,” Jewel Thief Michiru said, getting up off the bed and striding closer, gracefully. “Point the gun at me and make empty threats.”

“They’re not empty! I’ll shoot!” Haruka insisted.

“We both know you won’t shoot us,” Jewel Thief Michiru said, gliding closer. “Why didn’t you show up last night?”

“Jet lag,” Haruka grumbled.

Jewel Thief Michiru stopped, then said sympathetically, “I forgot to take that into account. My apologies.” The other woman, still unnamed, frowned. “Okay, what is *actually* up with you two?” She had turned her glaive back into a staff and put it in her black purse.

“Oh yes, Haruka, this is my new assistant, Hotaru. She’s a cyborg assassin from the future.”

“I’m not a cyborg *or* from the future,” Hotaru insisted. She pinched her arm. “This time, anyway.”

“I’m from the future!,” another teenage girl said from the balcony; she wore what looked like a Star Trek uniform to Haruka. But she was armed with something like a lightsaber. The big heart on the end did make it stand out.

“No! You’re going to ruin our sexy confrontation,” Michiru said angrily, pointing at her. The glaive vs. Heartsaber battle began wrecking the hotel room, so Haruka said to Michiru, “How about if we check out this chicken place I know about until they’re done?”

“My plans… in ruins…”

Then the scented oils caught fire from a parried Heartsaber blow and the whole suite went up in flames. Haruka picked up Michiru and ran.

***************

“So I got docked two weeks pay because Paris caught fire and it wasn’t even my fault,” Haruka groused to Usagi later as they ate okonomiyaki which Makoto had made them since they both had, as usual, no money.

Makoto flopped down on the other end of the couch with her pork okonomiyaki and put on Netflix. “Did they riot?”

“Don’t let the boss know or I’ll lose even more pay,” Haruka said, shaking her head.

“He doesn’t know I sunk Atlantis, either,” Usagi said conspiratorily into Haruka’s ear. Then she began stuffing her face.

I thought *I* sunk Atlantis, Haruka thought.

Makoto would never ever tell them it was the result of her trying to date a brother and a sister at the same time without either finding out about the other. Never, ever.

So don’t tell Haruka now that you know.

Iris Out.

#Sailor Moon #Fanfiction

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sugirandom · 5 years

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Updates on my experience in Suita (Osaka)thus far

I’m going to attempt to talk some about my experiences so far in Japan but please forgive me if I forget anything because it’s been a lot and I currently am quite tired since my insomnia seems to be getting worse so yeah...forgive me if anything doesn’t make sense too.

Anyway, it was a rocky start getting to Japan because my flight was delayed. I should have known better taking a flight the day after Christmas. I ended up having to stay in a hotel in San Francisco because the delay in flight one caused me to miss the second flight. So instead of doing two flights to fly to San Fran from Baltimore and then fly right to Kansai from San Fran I ended up flying into Tokyo and then to Itami airport (which is in Osaka rather than off the bay like Kansai international is). I didn’t really sleep at all on the plane despite my efforts so I ended up getting sick. Despite that after spending the night in a hotel in Itami city I headed to my new apartment the next day.

From there I was able to move in smoothly. The man who rented the apartment to me is a really nice and flexible guy and the woman who manages the building cleans the apartment twice a month and also periodically checks in on me so I almost feel like she’s another host mother. I don’t regret coming to Japan early though since it gave me time to settle in (and get over my initial cold). I also traveled to Nagoya and was able to visit the castle there since I had time before work started. I also went to Ise where one of the most sacred shrines in Japan is located. Also on my second week of working I had a three-day weekend since the only day in the entire year the mall is closed fell in that week. I used that opportunity to visit Shimane in Western Japan.

Starting work went well overall, everyone is really nice and offers their help to new teachers without making it seem like a burden to them. The HR staff is also pretty friendly overall. I off and on have been dealing with some anxiety but a lot of that is I guess leftover trauma from my job in Himeji since that job was awesome for about a month and then things quickly got really stressful so my brain keeps thinking that somehow this magical switch will go off after a month and they’ll turn into these really strict and unkind people. Unrealistic yes but that’s the lasting affect my previous eikaiwa job had on me. I have to make a conscious mental effort to undo that underlying fear. This job is different from a typical English-language school since it’s more based on themed rooms and lessons that use those rooms to create an experience for the children rather than formal lessons. It’s also a crazy busy time for my place of employment because it’s the time of year they have bookings from public schools in the area so the class sizes are always completely full and when you’re still learning the ropes that can be a tad stressful. That and my body isn’t used to standing nearly 6 hours at a time...I still have inflamed knees, my lower back issues, etc. to deal with so I’ve been very tired which really makes me wish I could fix my sleeping issue.

So yeah, it’s been some ups and some downs. I did finally get my health insurance card so I’m hoping to schedule a time soon where I can go see a neurologist about my migraines and my lack of sleep, if there is any connection. I also feel like due to the lack of sleep and being around people who are constantly sick (mostly kids, but a lot of Japan is sick now too) I’m starting to fight a cold again but I still have some meds from home that I plan to take. I feel like only two days off isn’t enough after 5 days in a row of this kind of work but...oh well I’m hoping my body adjusts eventually.

Unless I feel like I get more energy I have no plans to do daily updates at this time, especially considering I can’t talk about my job too extensively. Since my hope is eventually to visit more places on my days off I will probably periodically write a few updates but I don’t see myself having enough energy every night to do a “Japan day #” or “Sugi’s adventures in Japan” style update (my veteran followers probably remember those)

#Sugi updates #experience in Japan so far

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nightglider124 · 6 years

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Japan: My Trip

Thought I’d put together a little photo diary of my two weeks in Japan because why not and I just like to share with my tumblr pals.

Read on to find out what I got up to.

Sunday 13th May

This was the day I flew out to Japan. I packed my bag and was ready to leave at 11am UK time. I’m not gonna lie to ya’ll, I was an emotional mess, leaving my family behind.

You should know, I’ve never been on a trip without my family and I’ve never been out of Europe. So, going out to Japan with just my best friend was a big thing for me. So, was pretty tearful and then my mum like burst into tears; she’s a worrier.

Anyway, my dad dropped me off at the airport to meet my bestie and we did all the boring airport stuff and soon enough, we were on the plane. The sky is ridiculously pretty at different times during an overnight flight or at least, a flight that crosses different time zones.

Pretty uneventful. I mostly ate, slept and wrote chapter 1 of CTD: Bound.

Monday 14th May

So, I arrived in Japan’s Narita airport at 11am.

Then I went up and grabbed my suitcase as well as going and grabbing my pocket wifi - Something that is tremendously helpful if you go to Japan. I don’t know what it’s like for you guys but in London, I pretty much have wifi anywhere I go whereas in Japan, it wasn’t as easy to come across; at least not for free.

The pocket wifi was a godsend. It can connect up to 10 devices and it lasts all day long when fully charged. Now, there were a couple times it tapped out but you just need to turn it off and turn it on again.

It cost about £60 for 2 weeks but if you’re going with people, it works out better. Me and my friend split it so we only paid £30 each but very worth it.

But, yeah, defo recommend this for anyone who is going to Japan. It was a big help, especially when needing to look up locations and/or directions.

Next, we went and grabbed our Japan rail passes which look like so:

This was probably the best thing I bought for Japan. Not even joking.

Even if you aren’t going very far, this thing helps so much. It’s a pass that allows you to use any trains that are owned by the JR company which is a fair amount that helps you get around Tokyo and surrounding districts. Note: You have to buy it before you fly to Japan and take the exchange form that comes in the post with you to Japan. You exchange it at the airport and they give you the passes above. Just make double sure your passport has been stamped because otherwise, they won’t let you have it.

Anyway, this was £310 for 2 weeks but again: WORTH IT. It does depend on what you’re doing but me and my friend were out and using transport every single day. We also went far. We went to Hiroshima, Kyoto and Osaka - All covered by the passes. And for example, £310 is basically a return ticket to Kyoto so you are already making your money back.

So, we picked these up and using them, hopped on the shinkansen (bullet train) to Shinjuku (Sound familiar, Titan fans? Yes, it’s the ‘roughest part of town’ according to Robin in the Trouble in Tokyo movie). It took about an hour and then we checked into our hotel which was: Shinjuku Prince Hotel.

It was a really nice hotel actually. The staff were friendly and spoke really good English. I recommend staying here; it’s right in the heart of busy Shinjuku and was only 5 mins from the station. We booked a deluxe twin room because two rooms worked out more expensive and it was not too shabby at all. I didn’t actually take any pictures so I snubbed some off google.

Anyway, we were running a little late and we had tickets to the Studio Ghibli museum so naturally, I was freaking out because the website expresses that they are strict on being on time for your slot. I nearly had a breakdown because... dunno if ya’ll remember but I had a right time trying to get a hold of these tickets. They sell out so quickly it is unreal. Anyway, our slot was 4pm and they only allow you to be 30 mins late.

We arrived at 4:50pm and I was close to tears as I ran into the park it’s situated in. I was so annoyed and so scared they weren’t going to let us in. But...

They did!! The guy was so sweet; I think he could see by my face how much I wanted to go inside. He was like all smiley and was like it’s okay, go on in. I was like THANK YOU JESUS. Here are some photos:

They don’t allow photography inside to preserve the magic of visiting. And honestly, it was so nice inside. It felt just like a Ghibli movie and seeing the animation process and the short film and the original drawings... it was all so amazing. Being a Ghibli fan makes this 1000% better but it’s still great for people who aren’t as into it. My friend isn’t really into Ghibli movies but she thought it was still pretty cool whereas there was me in like awe over all of it.

Anyway, we stayed there about an hour and as you can imagine, we were frazzled af. We were tired from the flight but I wanted us to force ourselves to stay up so jet lag wasn’t as much a problem.

After, we made our way back to Shinjuku where I took some pics from my hotel room:

Then we grabbed some McDonalds which was literally just across from us; something quick so we didn’t starve. I facetimed my family, showered and fell asleep.

Tuesday 15th May

So, the first full day we were there, it was a more chilled, sightseeing day. Nothing too taxing and we felt a lot more refreshed after a proper sleep.

First, we went and checked out the Tokyo Imperial Palace which was really pretty but we couldn’t go inside. It was mega hot the entire time we were in Japan; I thought I’d die. I hate the heat.

And because I was out in the heat all day and didn’t think to put suncream on... yeah, you can see where this is going...

More on that later, because then we carried on to the Yasukuni shrine which is just down the street from the East Gardens of the palace.

The shrine was cool and everything was so pretty; very tranquil and peaceful.

In the afternoon, we headed over to the Sunshine City mall in Ikebukuro where I forced my friend into the Pokemon Centre Store which was LIT.

I was fucking excited, ya’ll. I got some really cute stuff too. Got myself some Mimikyu chopsticks, an Eevee tail key holder, a Pikachu glasses case, a Pikachu makeup bag and a little Mimikyu figure bc Mimikyu is a fave and I have no cool stuff with it on.

I also got my brother most of his souvenirs in here because we have loved Pokemon since the dawn of time. I mean, we’ve fallen out of it in recent years because all the new gen pokemon etc... we’re more for the original pokemon and original series and games. Seriously, when kids come up to me like, do you even know Pokemon I’m like bitch step back you don’t even KNOW. It’s like I got a Pokemon CD for my brother and it had a japanese version of one of the songs from the first movie and we were like screaming. That film man, don’t even look at me.

Ahem... the Pokemon store was so wicked but mega expensive like shit son. Glad I took so much money with me because I NEEDED IT.

After the Pokemon store, we went down a level to the Studio Ghibli store where I didn’t get as much stuff as I thought I was gonna.

But, I got a Spirited Away fan with No Face on it, a Totoro and No face figure as well as a Totoro bib and hat for my niece.

Then we went and had fooood where I noticed... I was extremely sunburnt... Like in the below pic, you can’t see it that much because it hadn’t really come out full pelt yet.

Pls ignore my hamster face but see my chest? Burny burny burnt burnt. I got back to the hotel later that night and I had the shakes where it was hot and all the heat was there rather than all over. It was horrible.

I’m lucky I decided to wear full on makeup that day otherwise my face would have gotten buuurnt. Well done, Estee Lauder foundation, well done.

But yeah, it wasn’t the best end to the day because then I was all uncomfortable and my skin was sensitive and I was mad at myself for not putting on cream so then I got all upset and cried but I think I was still tired from the journey too and I was overwhelmed but yeah; kinda sucked.

Other than the sunburn, I also didn’t pack shorts for under my dress so my thighs rubbed and were in agony as well as my vans gave me like 4 blisters on each foot so I couldn’t walk or at least was in extreme pain when I tried so getting back to the hotel was a damn hoot.

Besides all that, it was a pretty good day!

Wednesday 16th

This was the day we trekked all the way down to Hiroshima which is like a 5 hour journey by train. We had to take two trains but it was actually not too bad. It certainly didn’t feel like it took that long to get down to Hiroshima.

One thing I will say about longer train journeys; remember to reserve a seat. Some like the one from Narita Airport are reserve only so you have to reserve a seat for it. But, others don’t need it and have “non reserved” cars but mark my words, if you’re travelling on these trains at a busy time, it really pays off to reserve a seat. We didn’t for Hiroshima and whilst we found seats for the 3 hour part of the journey; on the second train, we had to stand for like 45 minutes because there were no seats and then even when we did get to sit down, it was separated so yeah; book your train seats, people.

Once we arrived in Hiroshima, we hopped on a ferry which took us to Miyajima island. It’s about a 10 minute journey and once again, it’s covered by the JR pass. I loved that thing to death not even kidding.

Here’s some pictures I took on the ride over:

This island is home to the big red Torii gate that people may know of. I picked up some cute souvenirs and ate katsu. And there were even deer roaming around the place! A couple got married too whilst we were visiting and it was so nice. Again, it was mega hot so I was dying from that aspect but otherwise, I could live on this little island.

Unfortunately, we spent so much time at the island; we didn’t get round to doing the two other things we had planned which were seeing Hiroshima Castle and the Atomic dome memorial. I was kinda bummed by not seeing those but the last train was at 5pm and we weren’t staying the night so we had to get said train. It was okay though; it’s something to add to the list of things to see when I eventually revisit.

We got back at about 10pm and then it was lights out because we were exhausted.

Thursday 17th May

This was another sightseeing day that was fairly local considering we were pretty tired from Hiroshima still.

We traveled over to Asakusa which has the lovely Senso-ji temple and shrine. It was really cute, the walk up to the temple is lined with all these little shops and souvenir like places which have charms and fans etc. Really nice.

Inside, they do this thing where you pay 100 yen and you shake a metal box that contains lots of sticks with numbers on. When you bring out a stick, you find the number it matches and you bring out the fortune. You get a good fortune, regular fortune or bad fortune. I got myself a regular ol’ fortune XD.

But, they also have this rack so that if you get a bad fortune, you tie it to the rack to rid yourself of the bad fortune whereas a good or regular one; you would carry it with you.

Other than that, we hung out and then went back to our hotel for a while before heading out again to check out the nightlife of the area. Everything was mega lit up and was so nice. We went and grabbed dinner and also went and got crepes. They were a m a z i n g. Like they were so good ugh.

After that, went back, showered and slept. Pretty uneventful day; just being touristy.

Friday 18th May

Again, more sightseeing on this day. We went and saw the Tokyo Metropolitan Building and looked out over Tokyo.

Then, we went to the Meiji Shrine.

Aaand lastly, we went to Shibuya for the evening.

Yes, those are people dressed as characters from Mario Kart driving in the streets of Tokyo. This place was crazy. XD

After seeing the crossing scramble that is so infamous, we trekked back to the hotel and fell asleep.

Saturday 19th May

This day we literally went on trains all day to collect stamps. In Japan, they do these things called Eki stamps which are stamps you can find at stations, museums, shrines, tourist spots etc.

I haven’t got any pictures of mine but i got like 50 of them whilst I was in Japan. Going on one train line at all the stops got me like 30.

We had nothing else planned on this day so my friend suggested the collecting stamps XD.

Sunday 20th May

This was one of my two absolute favourite days whilst I was there. It was the day I went and saw Mt Fuji and went into Aokigahara forest.

It was approx 2 hours from Tokyo but we’d booked a tour instead of trying to do it ourselves. It worked out a lot easier. When we reached the highest point you can go to on Mt Fuji, by vehicle anyway, we had 30 mins to sightsee. We took pictures and went into the souvenir shop etc.

My god, it was so frickin’ cold up there. Obviously. We were high off the ground like shit, it was freezing. But, pretty pictures.

We then went caving in an ice cave that is iced over all year round and is not usually open to the public.

After that, we were taken back to Shinjuku where we grabbed food and went back to sleeeep.

Monday 21st May

We went to Kyoto on this day. We managed to see all we wanted to as well but then again, Kyoto was only a 2 and a bit hour train ride away.

When we got there, we saw the Fushimi Inari Taisha.

They were pretty but boy, was there a lot of people. I had to wait for so long to get pictures with none of very few people in it.

Then, we headed over to Kinkaku-ji which is this golden temple.

Again, very pretty.

Lastly, we checked out the Arashiyama Bamboo grove which was pretty also.

After that, we headed home to our hotel. We had an exciting day the next day.

Tuesday 22nd May

TOKYO DISNEYLAND, BITCHES.

I was excited and I can see why people hype Disneyland up. No matter which one you visit, there is this big sense of nostalgia and magic. It was unforgettable and wasn’t half as busy as some theme parks get here. But, I suppose we did go on a Tuesday.

Would hate to see it on a weekend.

The mike melonbread was delicious <3

Disneyland catered to the childish side of me and I loved every single bit of it. <3

Wednesday 23rd May

On this day, we visited Osaka which is about the same sorta time out from Tokyo as Kyoto is. Again, not too much going on. We checked out Osaka Castle.

And then, we checked out Dotonbori which was also very cool.

After that, we headed back to Tokyo. There wasn’t too much we were desperate to see in Osaka and it was raining which wasn’t the nicest.

Thursday 24th May

Last full day meant Harajuku and Shibuya for shopping day. I haven’t got any pictures but omg we went and did those purikura photo things? They are hilarious. It was funny doing them but even looking at them; they funny XD

I bought a bunch of stuff for myself as well as my family as souvenirs. It was funnn.

Friday 25th May

The day I flew home to London :(. I was sad to leave Japan but I was really happy to be coming home. No matter how much you may call your country a shit place, there’s no place like home.

Omg, I went over my bag weight limit with all the stuff I bought. I’m allowed 23kg and my suitcase was 27kg -.-

I paid £65 for that extra weight because I was not about to be that person who opens their suitcase in the middle of check in trying to decrease the weight XD

Pretty straight forward afterwards. I flew home and when I got to my house, my family let me have reign on dinner so we got KFC.

So, that is what I got up to in Japan. I loved every minute I was there. It is so very different than London and it has much more beauty than any city I’ve been to has.

I can’t wait to go back someday and I encourage anyone and everyone to go there. It is something else! <3

Thanks for reading if you made it to the end! I appreciate it ^.^

#night in japan #night wants to travel #nightglider124

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shaunstoffer · 6 years

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I left the school I worked at in Vietnam to start a new journey backpacking Japan, visiting my family in Singapore, and to live and teach in Taiwan. I didn’t dislike Vietnam but couldn’t get past some of the cons that made me not want to extend my stay past my fifteen months of living in Ho Chi Minh City.

Some of the things I do and don’t miss about living in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam:

The corruption: My temporary residence card was a piece of crap to begin with. It cost me well over $100 and was simply a cheap quality business card that had my photo laid on top and laminated. The seal was uneven and already breaking after just a few weeks in my wallet. So, I tried to double laminate it like a stubborn fool only for it to get bizarrely stuck in the laminator and come out looking like this. As a result, I tried several different ways to leave Vietnam from trying to purchase an exit visa, paying a bribe, and hiring a man who specialized in immigration issues such as this. In the end, the only method that worked was ironically getting help from a friend’s, whose dog I was fostering, cousin who worked for immigration. He simply met me at the airport, talked to immigration for maybe one minute, and waved me through hundreds of people queued in immigration and security. Literally he instructed me to go to the staff lines, which were empty, while hundreds of people waited in the regular lines. Each employee would look at me confused, I’d point to him, he’d give a thumbs up and a nod, and they would wave me through without a second thought. It was the most impressive thing I’ve seen in a long time.The pollution: My neighborhood in district seven was among the cleanest in Ho Chi Minh City, which isn’t saying much frankly, but I still never got used to waking up and seeing smog that would conceal the sky. I ended up getting a Vietnam “cough”, something a lot of expats initially develop from the exposure to pollution and are left with no choice but to either get used to it or leave. I was missing fresh clean air and nature more than I ever imagined to the point that every holiday I took I would go somewhere with mountains or beaches or both. Fresh air is something I’ll never take for granted again. The flooding: There’s nothing more comical than watching a horde of people with their feet on the panhandles of their bikes, going a kilometer an hour, and doing everything in their power not to come to a complete stop as that would cause them to have to put their leg, sometimes thigh deep or more, in the dirty flood waters that have nowhere to go due to the poor sewage system which is regularly clogged by locals uncaringly sweeping their into the drains. It was also unpleasant to be driving to work or the gym and experience a mild drizzle turn into a full on flash flood within five minutes. Many people wear heavy raincoats while driving, as umbrellas aren’t rational, even when walking due to the strong winds. However, people typically still bring an extra outfit in their bag or wear shorts and flip flops to avoid being stuck in wet clothes the entire day.

My students:My neighborhood, Phu My Hung:An unfortunate quick stop to Singapore: I reluctantly took a trip to see my mom and her side of the family in Singapore for my birthday prior to going on a three week holiday to Japan. I was fighting a serious case of homesickness and had contemplated going back home for my holiday instead of Japan. However, after spending three days with my family I couldn’t wait to say goodbye and move on to the next adventure. Aside from a nice birthday dinner and some much appreciated birthday gifts, I was all but forgotten. No one wanted to go out to eat, I ended up getting sick again, and every conversation went to gossiping about people or questioning my every life action. “What are you going to do after you’re done teaching?” “How are you qualified to teach social studies?” “What’s this? Why are you growing a beard?” “If you don’t like it you can go eat somewhere else!” It’s been a long time since I’ve been around people who made me feel so alone and small and I attribute my coldness and lack of trust to my undesired experiences and interactions with a fair amount of my family. To them it’s normal, to me it’s something I would never tolerate from any other persons. I chalk it up to different cultures but also to a lack of understanding from both sides of my family. I’ve never been understood and people can seldom relate to me, I ultimately think it attests for a lot of my loner mentality and lack of emotions.

Fair warning Singapore is a fun place but definitely strict when it comes to drugs. If you want a party beyond alcohol, don’t come to Singapore or try your luck in Geylang.The view from my grandmother’s apartment in Braddell Place.Six different currencies I’ve managed to collect overtime. Thai baht, US dollars, Japanese yen, Malaysian ringgit, Singaporean dollars, and Vietnamese dong. (From left to right, top to bottom.)Osaka Food Market: The seafood market was easily the best and my favorite out of the three I visited in Japan. Some of my favorites of the foods I tried were Kobe beefsteak, raw sea urchins, and fresh fire-roasted scallops.

Osaka’s Streets: Osaka is absurdly clean and people follow every traffic rule there is. No one j-walks, no one loiters, and everybody is helpful and courteous despite the language barrier. In Japanese culture it is rude to stare and common courtesy is expected such as holding the door out for someone, allowing someone in a hurry to pass you by, and to greet and thank customers and patrons habitually. That being said, a lot of Japanese will still see foreigners as outsiders, especially if they do not speak Japanese. Meaning just because they are polite to you does not necessarily mean they care or want to know about you.

My regular traditional Japanese Food: Sushi and dumplings.A Guilty Pleasure: I go to a McDonalds in every country I visit because it’s always a little different from the menu to the seating. Japanese McDonalds have bacon lettuce burgers, teriyaki chicken fillets, and double beef and egg burgers for example.Vending Machines: Vending machines are sprawled out everywhere, literally every block has one. From soda to coffee to beer and even ice cream. There are very few things, especially beverages that you can’t find in vending machines in Japan.

Trains: Japan has a lot of conveniences such as toilets and breastfeeding rooms everywhere for the self-explanatory. Trains are definitely one of those conveniences offering different trains like local, sub-express, and limited express. The system is a bit confusing but there are some conveinces to help you such as maps posted every where, machine for route finders and fare adjustments, and there is almost always a tenant who speaks reasonable English at every ticketing queue.

My first experience on the train in Osaka I followed Google maps which took me on an unnecessarily longer route. I showed the ticket tenant my ticket and asked if my directions were accurate. He literally gave me my money back, bought a new, cheaper ticket, and walked me to the right line, stop, and told me when and where to get off. I had never been so thankful or respectful of someone’s courtesy and helpfulness.

7th Eleven: These are everywhere as well in Japan and offer some of the freshest meals as well ass an exceptional variety of beverages.

Toilets: Something I have to admit I miss about Japan is the toilets. The seats automatically lift up and down and there is always a set of buttons that allow you to control music, clean the toilet for you, a bidet with adjustable buttons for the spray strength and temperature. It became one of those weird things where you actually looked forward to using the toilet.

Traditional housing in Japan: Oddities: For whatever reason Japanese people love Spam, they literally have flavors I didn’t even know existed. Nightlife: Osaka has a thriving nightlife from strip clubs to highball bars to British pubs. People in Osaka are generally more open and friendly towards expats whereas many Japanese can be particularly cold to foreigners. For example, many foreigners who have tattoos are not allowed into saunas, gyms, and springs unless they find a way to cover them up. Also, many foreigners are politely unwelcome at restaurants or bars simply because they are foreigners as well as aren’t fluent in Japanese. They’ll be politely told we are closed or full.

I experienced all these things in a variety of way such as being told at a hookah bar in Kyoto that they were full, until they saw my Japanese girlfriend and magically two seats became available. I also booked a hotel in Tokyo with a Taiwanese girl who spoke Japanese and laughed when a sign posted read:

The famous Glico Running Man:

Highballs & Sake: Highballs, which are basically tall cocktails comprised of liquor, normally whiskey and a lot of club soda. At first, this drink seemed unappealing to me as I prefer whiskey on the rocks or neat, but overtime they grew on me and I ended up having numerous highballs over my time in Japan.

Sake, on the other hand, is something to be either taken as a shot or sipped and enjoyed. A general rule of thumb is that quality sake is served cold where has lower tiers are served warm. I had the pleasure of trying a variety at various bars and have to admit I became a fan of aged Suntory whiskeys.

To politely cheers in Japan you should either pour your sake bottle or be holding your sake glass with two hands to receive your sake. You should also cheers lower than the person you are cheering with.

Japan isn’t cheap to eat or drink out at and one should expect to spend around 600-700 (around $6) for a standard beer at a bar.

Hookah in Japan: I fell in love with smoking Japanese shisha in Japan because it was something cheaper, social, and I wouldn’t be comatose in bed the next day. I also happened to Casanova my way into charming a female employee who gave me quite the hook up.Traditional Japanese Eateries: What I loved about the neighborhood, Tennoji, that I stayed at in Osaka was the variety of traditional eateries a short walk down the street form my hostel. The language barrier was difficult at first as I didn’t learn how to say useful phrases such as, “one please” “thank you” or “excuse me” until after a week of practicing in Japan. I relied on Google translate, pointing at pictures, and the dumb luck of having an occasional English speaking server or chef.

Osaka Castle: Is it touristy? Yes. Is it worth it? Hell yes.

Nature and weather during summer’s June: All over fellow travel blogs and travel websites I heard that June was the worst month to visit Japan due to the lack of blooming cherry blossoms and the unfortunate rainy season. However, of the three weeks I spent in various cities in Japan it only rained, and mildly at that, a fraction of the time. There was no flooding, no heavy rain, and no thunder or lightning. A simple umbrella and you can get around no problem. As far as nature goes, there is a bit of a lack of variety in color but there are still plenty of flowers and everything is very green and pleasant to see nonetheless. Many flowers won’t be in bloom but nature is still worth visiting in parks and gardens for sure.

Survival Japanese: Simplified for English pronunciation.

One = Itchy

Yes = Hi

Cheers – Comb pie

Please – Own knee guy she mas

Thank You – are we got toe go zi mas

Excuse Me/Sorry = Sue me ma send

No Problem = Moan die nai

Story Time: My last night in Osaka I spent the day in the slums run by the Yakuza. I walk into the first restaurant I see without any foreigners and the server tells me, “only Japanese menu.” I reply “mondai nai (no problem),” and the cook comes out to take my order but instead asks me about my cauliflower ears. I explain I’m a semi-retired fighter on holiday.

We start taking about fighting and I show him old videos of me and some of my old training partners killing it right now. They start bringing up old Japanese Pride fights and ask me to send them one of my old fight pics. They print two copies out and get me to sign them and they tape one on the wall and tell me they are going to put the other up in a nearby bar. It turns into a small group of the staff but we are all vibing.

I ask them if there are any Yakuza bars nearby I should be wary of and they laugh. They tell me you’re really close to one and I go seriously? The cook pulls up his shirt to show a full back piece of Shiva and I’m like oh shit. He explains he’s lower tier but not to worry, if you respect us we’ll respect you. I offer to buy them a round of drinks and they starts cheersing me and return the favor by giving me a free meal.

We keep talking and they literally say we’re going to close the restaurant down and take you to a local bar. Being me, I reluctantly say let’s go. They literally close the place down and we go to a Yakuza bar that’s something like a speakeasy where, go figure, is the second picture hung up. The bartender’s and other patrons go what are you doing bringing this foreigner here? They go don’t worry he’s with us, he’s cool. They warn me the boss isn’t in tonight but if he decides to show up you have to leave, it’s not personal but you aren’t one of us. I tell them I understand and we start eating and drinking but then a random member stands up and slaps me in the face – twice. I stand up and square up like what the hell? They all start laughing and say we wanted to see how you would react then say don’t worry, we all like you now because you didn’t back down, it shows you have pride like us. We go shot for shot, drink for drink ALL NIGHT. Eventually, I leave and they ask for a way to contact me to keep in touch, I right down my number and bid them farewell.

Never a dull moment. This is my version of Bert’s “I Am The Machine!”

Osaka I left the school I worked at in Vietnam to start a new journey backpacking Japan, visiting my family in Singapore, and to live and teach in Taiwan.

#Asia #Backpacking #Japan #Osaka #Survival Japanese #Travel #World Travel

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grgop · 8 years

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Day 22 | Visiting Koyasan-Okunoin, Kongobuji and Hojo-in (and night with the giant spiders)

Hey guys! I have 3 more days out of 29 left to describe adventures from my trip in Japan. I would like to continue with Day 22 when I was already in the camp, my fourth day with the campers, and our next locations were several temples and the traditional hotel somewhere in the mountains of Wakayama-prefecture. This includes going to the Okunoin temple which is part of Koyasan area, followed by the lunch and visit to the Memorial Monument of Lions Club, then a buse ride to Kongobuji temple and lastly to Hojo-in temple and the hotel which behaved literally like Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde.

Unfortunately I do not believe you will be able to read about this day with plenty of information as I will not have enought time, we visited so many places each with its own story and so many things happened I would have to break it into two posts. However, let me try to keep it short.

Visiting Koyasan-Okunoin

We left our hotel in Osaka after spending a day at the Universal Studios Japan. What it was like you can read and see in three of my reports. After breakfast we left for the temple of Koyasan where the trip lasted for almost 3 hours. What I remember while arriving there is that it is a part of the larger complex with several temples. It was all suggesting we were going to have an awesome time today, especially if you are a fan of the Buddhist temples, rituals and walks through the forest. Unfortunately, it was raining practically the whole day that even extra umbrellas were needed to survive. All of these places are located in Wakama Prefecture maybe just about on the half of the way between Osaka city and Wakayama (a bit closer to Wakayama though).

Okunoin temple (part of the Koyasan area) and the especially the area and the path leading to it are just amazing. I had to have a look at all of my photos and on the internet to remind me and there is just so much to tell you about.

The path that leads to it is maybe half an hour or more long and you are walking among thousands of little temples, shrines and the tombs throught the forest. All in gray and green. Here is where I learned about the red clothes put on the sculptures or columns at the cemetires that actually show that there was a baby or a child that died.

One of such places were several big pyramides of little sculptures and plenty of colorful rags or scarfs put aruond them. For a moment one would have thought to be in some other country as this with the pyramides was strange for me to associate with Japan. While walking through the forest of the very tall trees we end up across several smaller bridges in front of the stairs that climb on a hill.

Behind the enormous dark gates upon the stairs one finds the huge temple, also in dark colours, that was surrounded with so white stone that almost looked like snow!

We entered the temple and what I noticed was the ceiling full of hundreds of little lanterns. We had a priest there who showed us a little bit things around and we came across a book where you could write a message referring to the luck or wishing someone luck. It was not a guestbook of course and I saw that noone really wrote stupid messages there as we use to while visiting some places. Alongside the book were many of amulets or luck artifacts with kanji on it. On some of the wooden sticks even one could write a message but since we knew no Japanese except for few friends most of us did not touch it. There was also a donation box which is quiet normal for all the sacret places in Japan to have. Unfortunately, we were not supposed to take photographs of the interior...

Lunch and the Memorial Monument of Lions Club

We went then back for the lunch at the big restaurant house near the parking lot. There was some other large building close by that might have been a train station. After lunch (and this time meal was difficult for us) we were supposed to visit the Memorial Monument of the Lions Club when it started to rain heavily. We had to bring more umbrellas from the bus to help the others without it. It took us about 10 minutes of walking till we reached this cemetary and the Memorial Monument in the middle of it. We spent there several minutes and commemorated the dead members of the Lions Club. The Japanese cemeteries look a bit different from ours. While we prefer to have the horizontal epitahs with the name and the text written horizontally in Japan the columns are being preferred with the text (signs) written vertically. What I also noticed was that many of these columns had a hole at the top whre one could put a candle. And the top of it then was closed by a little roof that looked like a square or the roof of the temples.

Visiting Kongobu-ji temple

Our next destination was the temple of Kongobuji which is maybe the biggest temple we have been to and covers pretty large area. I remember the white sand aroudn the path after passing the huge gates and then the classic – taking of the shoes and leaving them at the wooden stairs. Walking then through the hallways that were connecting the rooms and halls (maybe everything on some kind of a platform) in the socks until we were asked to sit down in one hall and ... wait for the tea and cookies. That is what I remember more or less.

The last stop today was the hotel and the temple Hojo-in where I do not remember anymore the temple and whether we visited it or not but very much the hotel we stayed at. On our way there we stopped once at Lawson store to get some snacks which turned into a big shopping madness. Mr Toru told us we do not have to spend our own money and bought us everything! I also saw there the „magazines for the adults“ and was laughing. I could not pick inside as all of them are packed in the plastic foils and unless you buy them it is not possible. I did it for the purpose of journalism of course.

Hojo-in hotel

The rain started again as we were leaving with our bags from the bus to this temple. It was night already but the place looked big. Unfortunately no time to go around it even in the morning but the hotel and the temple had an enclosed yard with nice garden and rocks lying around. Oh, I forgot to mention that at all the Japanese temples have rocks lying around the yard but always somehow balanced. I believe they represent something with the energy and energy points forming some balance in the nature and among the architecture.

At the entrance of the house we had to leave the shoes again and put them into the wooden racks on each side of the racks. Then we got the number of the room...or just headed to any room we found. I was in the room with one of my best friends there – Ugur from Turkey. Now the hotel was pretty interesting, the whole compley actually. One half of this huge building had about 3 floors in total with many „hidden“ hallways that were like a labyrinth. There was one space where one could sit on the sofa and even catch wi-fi signal when lucky. We were walking with our smartphones in the air trying to catch the signal like the scene from the Lions King, haha.

The rooms here were of course traditional and the „locals“ (the priests) here were wearing their kimono I think the whole time we spent there. The walls of the rooms were pretty thin and you could hear the others several rooms away so talking here and secrets was not going to pass. There was a wardrobe with the doors that open to the left and right (and the doors of the room too) and had plenty of blankets. We had two mattresses on the floor and also a place to charge our electronics. There were large windows and we closed them both not wanting rain to get it. It proved to be a very smart decision that evening, as you are going to find out.

We had a dinner in a large hall on the first floor (next to the entrance) sitting in severalr ows on our knees on small pillows. I could not take it anymore and chose to sit in what we call in Croatia „sitting like Turk“ posture with both legs crossed. We had now opportunity to eat Vegerian only meal as that was the practice at this temple. It was quiet delicious even without meat (I am a carnivore btw) and we did not feel hungry. Again a bit of everything on the plate. There was one problematic part that was impossible to stay still when using the chopsticks, something white that looked like a pudding, and always fell down in the bowl. It took me 5 minutes before it stopped falling.

We thanked the hosts for dinner and then had country presentations. One had to be careful not to lay with their back on the wall behind because it would get damaged easily. Another potential „danger“ and a problem were the doors to this large room or hall as some of us were much taller and could get hit in the head like Gandalf in Bag End.

We had now about 2 hours of free time before going to sleep and it was not boring indeed. What should I mention first? Let me see...getting lost around the building and discovering large halls in the basement (in the dark!), hunting down and running away from the spiders of a size of a tennis ball, going for the shower for the first time in the „public“ baths with other guys naked...

After roaming around with friends and checking every floor and the floors (and since there were very few other guests besides us it was pretty spooky to go walk around alone) we found those baths and probably the strangest toilets I have ever encountered. There were two doors – one for men and for women...but then instead of having a wall between each other the toilet in the middle (khm, for „the big need“) was shared by both! You could literally pass through the men's restroom into women's just by going through that cabin in the middle, insane! haha There was also a room with sinks where one could shave or brush teeth in peace. I did it, being alone on the whole floor waiting for the monsters to attack me. And right now remembered another toilet non of us did not want to use. The place where you are supposed to sit while peeing or the other thing ... was just a hole in the floor! I was wondering how that was even possible to do without falling on your back and rolling around. And there were sveral holes (or let's say these „sophisticated toielts“ ) in the row meaning you could have been with the others. No privacy, no toilet paper and no toilet bowl. Never iagined that. There was a pretty normal and modern restroom on our floor of course. But that downstairs is like walking through some museum.

Then my roommate and I decided to go in the last 15 minutes before its closing to the shower room as we thought „We are going to have to do this within few days at this Inunakiyama Onsen so maybe try it now when there is not many people around to break the ice.“. So we did there and it was first strange but once you stop caring nothing abnormal. We spent 5 minutes there and one of the campers was also there I believe (but could not recognize him without glasses) who asked us „hey guys, what are you laughing about?“ but he could not understand it from our point of view.

The last thing to mention were the hueg spiders that scared the *thing* out of everyone. You remember me mentioning it was a wise decision to close the windows in our room? Well, the others did not do it.

What happened and how we survived it (and if we did) coming soon.

Plans for the other day

There was an ascetic practice in the morning for the brave ones who wanted to wake up around 6am. I was sleeping. Then we went more to the south to famous Shirahama and spent the day at the Shiraham White beach, were supposed to watch the fireworks and have a karaoke evening in the hotel.

Thanks for reading.

Photo credits go to the Lions Camp Osaka counselors and the campers (Jesse Tucek).

#japan #koyosan #kongobuji #temples #wakayama #osaka #gobo #lions club #summer 2015

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