Perfect Coffee
Bitter Coffee & Sweet Sugar
"Ne Dai-chan, you seem to be very nervous today," Chinen said, popping a cherry-flavoured sweet into his mouth while sitting on Ryutaro's lap. Hearing that, Ryutaro stretched his neck above Chinen's shoulder to take a good look at Daiki and nodded his head in agreement.
"Chii is right," Ryosuke appeared beside Daiki and put his left arm around his shoulders," You were never nervous in any of our concerts. Adding on that today will be our last concert stage performance in Tokyo Dome."
Daiki looked at Chinen then Ryutaro and finally Ryosuke. He bit his lips.
"Do I really look that nervous?" Daiki asked and the three of them nodded their heads.
"Yabai..," he muttered under his breath. Ryosuke heard it and gave him a worried look.
"Daijoubu?" Ryosuke asked worriedly. He was afraid that something might had happened again.
"Should I tell them?" Daiki thought, hesitating. Three pairs of eyes were staring at him and finally, he let out a sigh. I don't think I can do this by myself either. I'll need their help.
"Alright, I'll say," Daiki said with a serious tone. The three of them leaned close to him and listened to what he had to say. Few minutes later, the talk was over. Ryosuke placed his fingers on his chin and entered into deep thoughts.
"Maa Dai-chan, I think your idea can be improvise more," Ryosuke said, staring at him.
"How?"
"It will need the help of all members!" Ryosuke exclaimed loudly, getting the attention of other members. Before Daiki could say anything, the other members were already approaching them.
"Hai, Yama-chan?" Hikaru asked, taking a seat beside Ryutaro. After all members had gathered together, Ryosuke explained to them the whole plan. After he had ended, the other members nodded their heads in agreement.
"Dai-chan, it'll turn out alright! We'll be helping you, daijoubu!" Kei cheered and showed him a thumbs-up sign. Daiki looked at the rest of the members and smiled.
"Minna, arigatou."
----------------------------------------------------------
"Amu, daijoubu?" her mother asked with concern while serving her a cup of mocha coffee. Amu nodded her head with a small smile and took a sip of her coffee. Her mother took the seat across her and stared at her.
"Ahh, when did Amu learn to lie ne?" her mom asked with a smile. Her words caught Amu's attention.
"Lie? I-I didn't!" Amu said quickly and shook her head. Her mom smiled even wider.
"If you really need to go, just go before you miss it. Don't make yourself regret, my dear," her Kaa-san said, patting her hands. Amu stared at her and sigh.
"Should I really go? I'm really confuse now. It's been five years and I can't believe that I still have feelings for him..," Amu mumbled as she touched her lips, remembering the kiss that Daiki gave her just a week ago. Her mother looked at her and nodded.
"Your love for him was always there, just that you buried it during those five years. I believe that he's waiting for you now. Amu, go before you regret it," her mother said before pulling her up from the chair and pushing her towards the stairs. "Hurry and pack nee."
----------------------------------------------------------
Amu reached Tokyo Dome a while later after her stop at the share house.. She was amazed by the amount of fan girls the JUMP members had. Just as she was looking around, she felt a tap on her shoulders and turned around.
"Oh, guys!" Amu exclaimed softly and her eyes widened. They smiled at her.
"Konnbannwa, Amu-chan," they greeted her and before Amu could say anything, she grabbed her hands,"Ikou!"
They had dragged her to the VIP section where they could enter concert hall earlier than the other fan girls. The ticket collector tore away part of the ticket and gave the each of them a small colourful plastic bag. Amu looked at Rio weirdly after they left the collector.
"It's the full collection of the concert goods," Rio answered softly and Amu nodded. She didn't know that having a VIP ticket would have so many privileges. As they entered the concert hall, Amu was totally awe by it.
"It's so huge!" Amu exclaimed loudly, since there weren't any people inside except the girls. Meguri laughed at Amu's reaction and dragged her to their seats. Amu sat down on her seat and looked at the stage.
"It's so front! We can see almost everything!" Amu exclaimed again and Kim laughed while nodding her head. Seriously, she found Amu's reaction very amusing. Few minutes later, the other door entrances had opened and fan girls were strolling into the hall. The noise level began to rise and the VIPs were focused on checking out the concert goods. Then, the girls heard a group of fan girls behind them whispering loudly.
"Ne ne, there's VIP guests today!" the first girl exclaimed.
"I know one of them! She is Ryosuke-kun's fiancée!" second girl said excitedly.
"Then who are the others?" Another one asked.
"I think they might be related to Ryosuke-kun's fiancée or maybe one of the JUMP members," the fourth girl joined in.
The girls just eyed at each other and laughed softly. Soon enough, the lights in the concert hall started to dim and the stage finally brightened up. The first group that came out was the B.I.Shadow with Shintaro and the Johnny Juniors. Hokuto introduced the JUMP members and the fan girls screamed loudly when their favourite JUMP member's photo appeared on the huge screen. At last, after the introductions had ended, the JUMP members came flying out and landed themselves on the middle of the stage.
"Tokyo Dome! Let's enjoy ourselves today!" Ryosuke screamed into the microphone and they sang 'Hitomi no Screen' as the opening song. The next song was 'Ultra Music Power' followed by 'FLY'. Then, it was solo songs time. Ryosuke came out first with 'Asia no Yoru' and during the whole song, his eyes were locked with Rio's, not leaving it even for a millisecond and Rio's cheeks were flushed into crimson red. Amu and Fai, who sat beside her, was giggling and teasing her the whole time. After Ryosuke's solo song had ended, he sent a flying kiss to Rio before welcoming Daiki onto the stage. Passing by Daiki, he whispered lightly into his ears, raising the noise level in the hall.
"She came today. She is sitting beside Rio at the VIP seating area. Ganbatte ne!"
Before he disappeared into the backstage, he threw a flying kiss to the fan girls with a wink. He was doing a fan service while informing Daiki about Amu's presence.
"How was it?" Yuya asked while getting dressed in his white blazer. Ryosuke gave him a crook smile with a thumbs up.
"Yosh!" Kei exclaimed, high-fiving Yabu.
"Amu-chan came today! I'm going to have a good talk with her later!" Chinen cheered happily and Ryutaro ruffled his hair. Back on the stage, Daiki was singing his solo song, 'Kimi to Boku no Future'. He managed to catch a glimpse of Amu and winked at her. Amu saw and heat crept up her cheeks. She returned him a smile. After his solo song had ended, it was Yabu's turn to come out. The whole concert went on smoothly for the next hour before having a break in between.
"I'll get both of ud a drink," Amu told Rio, who nodded her head and continued with texting which Amu guessed was Ryosuke. Amu left the concert hall and went to search for the nearest vending machine. Finally, she spotted one and ran towards it. She was counting her coins when a hand suddenly shot out from behind and slotted the coins in. She watched the hand pressed the coffee button and a can of mocha coffee dropped down. Bending down, she picked up the can and turned around. Her eyes widened.
"Da-daiki!" she exclaimed softly, afraid that it would be overhead by the fan girls nearby. Daiki nodded with a smile before taking the can from her hands. He watched her slotted the coins in and pressed the same button twice.
"You look beautiful tonight," Daiki complimented as Amu turned around, facing him with each of her hands holding onto a can of mocha coffee. Amu blushed and looked away shyly, flustered with embarrassment. Then, she felt something warmth enveloped around her. Before she could react, the warmth left her and found Daiki smiling at her.
"I've to go now. Ja!" he said quickly before jogging to the backstage. Amu was left in a daze again. When she came to her senses, she realised that she was still holding on to two cans of mocha coffee.
"Kuso!" she muttered softly and quickly headed back to Rio. Passing a can of mocha coffee to Meguri, she took her seat and popped on the can. She felt that Yuki was eyeing her.
"Nani?"
"Amu-chan, your neck.."
Amu immediately touched her neck. There was a necklace around her neck. Quickly, she took out her mirror. When she looked into it, she was totally dumbfounded. It was the necklace that Daiki gave her during the Christmas party in Ryutaro's house five years ago. It was exactly the same. The crystal teddy bear was fixed and the small solid penguin figurine was placed inside too. She bit her lips.
-Flashback-
You look beautiful tonight," Daiki complimented as Amu turned around, facing him with each of her hands holding onto a can of mocha coffee. Amu blushed and looked away shyly, flustered with embarrassment. Then, she felt something warmth enveloped around her. Before she could react, the warmth left her and found Daiki smiling at her.
-End of Flashback-
"He must have put it during that time!" Amu thought and sighed,"He knew that I won't take it if he were to give it to me face-to-face."
Just before the lights went dimmed again, Fai whispered something to her that left her flabbergasted.
"You know, after you threw the necklace on the ground and it got split into two, Daiki spent most of his time mending this necklace for you. He didn't threw it away, not even a thought of it."
----------------------------------------------------------
The JUMP members were singing the last song, 'Arigatou ~Bokutachi kara kimi e~'. Some of the fan girls were so touched by it that they cried. After the song had ended, the members waved goodbye to the fan girls and headed to the backstage. Then they started cheering for encore. A few seconds later, the JUMP members arrived on stage again. Amu looked among the members and realised that Daiki wasn't there.
"Ne Rio-chan, how come Daiki isn't with them?" Amu asked, raising an eyebrow.
"You will see later," Rio replied, smiling at her. Amu shifted her gaze back to the stage, confused.
"Minna, we are back on the stage again!" Kota shouted into the microphone and the fangirls cheered loudly.
"Since tonight is our last concert stage performance in Tokyo Dome, we will have a very special encore. Minna, do you want to hear it?" Ryosuke asked, screaming into the microphone too. Hearing the word 'special', the fangirls cheered even louder.
"Yosha! Without waiting any longer, we'll have our encore now!" Hikaru shouted and all the lights in the concert hall dimmed again. Then, the song started playing and all the fan girls were whispering.
Yume no naka egao wasureranai namida
Mitsumeru kimi wo dakishimetakute~
The stage lights finally brightened up, showing Daiki in Ryosuke's costume and prop. The whole hall stopped cheering and gasped. Amu just stared at him in surprised.
"What's he doing in Ryo-chan's costume, prop and song?" she wondered, still staring at him.
Ahhhh ahhh moonlight~
Don't Leave Me Alone~
She watched him sitting on the cushioned chair while holding onto a cane. Then, their eyes met.
Nemuri no kurayami hitori mezae yuku hikari
Hohoenda kimi ga mitsumete yonderu
Kaaten no sukima kara tsuki ga kieta nara
Beddo no ue ni hitotsu kodoku na kokoro ga kokoeteta
Omoi dake wo kogaeru~
Daiki sang while staring at Amu sadly. Suddenly, she felt her heart clenched tight and she couldn't avert away her gaze from him. Why am I feeling this now?
Kimi ni furenai mama nanimo dekinai mama
Konya mo hitori de yume ni ochiru
Hohoende konaide yume no naka ni konaide
Wakattetemo kurushikutemo
Kono te wo nobae shimau
Kienaide....~
Amu watched Daiki stretched out his left hand towards her and with a pained expression, he withdrew his hand. Her heart clenched even tighter and she felt a sudden urge to run up the stage. She wanted to hold his hand that reached out for her and hugged him. However, as if she was bound to the seat, she couldn't move. Then, Daiki stood up from the chair and started dancing.
Yume no naka no hikari wasurete ita kanashimi
Machi de mikaketemo mitsume aezuni
Moshi nido to egao wo mirenai to iu no nara
Aa sae mo konakute ii
Yume no naka demo daite itai
Itsumademo~
He walked over to the VIP side of the stage while singing and locked their eyes together. Then he stretched out his left hand once again, reaching for her, before clenching his fingers tightly and withdrew his hand to his chest. He closed his eyes and showed a mixed expression for pain and sadness.
You and Moonlight
Don't leave me alone
Tonight~
As soon as he sang finished the last sentence, the lights on the stage went off. He looked sadly at the stage and turned around.
"Even though our eyes were locked throughout the song, it seemed like she didn't feel my sadness. I guess there goes my chance," he thought with a sigh. Suddenly, a pair of arms circled around his waist from behind. He froze. The stage lights went on and everyone in the concert hall gasped. The rest of the JUMP members were looking at the stage from the small monitor in the backstage.
"Ganbatte, Dai-chan! You can do it!" they cheered softly.
Daiki grabbed the pair of arms gently and released it before turning around. It was Amu who hugged him. Brushing away a few strands of hair from her face, he caressed her right cheek tenderly.
"Dai-"
"Shhhh," he hushed her with his left index finger on his mouth. Looking at her intently, he took in a deep breath.
"With all my fans and friends watching in this concert hall, will Kitagawa Amu be my girlfriend once again?"
He said it. Finally, he said it. After waiting for five long years. He closed his eyes and his heart was pounding hard against his ribcage. A mixed feelings of excitement, nervous and sadness washed over him. He had already thought about the worst. If she reject him, he's not going to cry but instead, he will just say that it's part of an act in the concert.
The whole concert hall went utterly quiet. Even the sound of a pin dropping on the floor could be heard. Amu stared at him for a few moments and took in a deep breath. Leaning in, she gave him a kiss that both of them had missed the most. Breaking away, she gave him her answer.
"Hai, I will."
Daiki opened his eyes and stared at Amu, who was smiling brightly at him. The moment he hugged her, the whole hall cheered loudly than ever. The rest of the JUMP members in the backstage screamed in happiness and rushed out to the stage. Throwing the confetti they had on their hands, everyone in the concert hall shouted.
"Omedetou to the new couple!"
The couple released the hug and with Daiki's left arm wrapped tightly around Amu's waist, the both of them shouted back to the audience.
"Minna, arigatou!"
And that's how the concert ended that day.
----------------------------------------------------------
"Mou, I wonder if Dai-chan is reaching soon," Amu mumbled loudly in the coffeehouse. It has been two months since the concert and they were officially together. To their surprise, even Johnny congratulated them. Fai clicked her tongue and shook her head.
"If only you would stop wondering, I bet he would arrive at this moment," Fai joked as she wiped the cups with a cloth. Amu glared at her and pouted. As if Fai's words were magic, the bell rang and Daiki entered the coffeehouse.
"Dai-chan!" Amu squealed happily as she stood up from her chair and ran towards him. He caught her in his arms and hugged her tightly.
"I thought you wouldn't come," Amu said with sadness in her tone. Her voice was muffled as she was leaning against Daiki's chest, inhaling his scent. Daiki broke the hug and looked at her gently.
"Why wouldn't I come? No matter how busy I may be, I'll always try to find time to spend with Amu-chan," Daiki said sweetly with the smile at Amu loved and ruffled her hair lightly. Amu smiled and took his hands before dragging him to the seat she was at earlier.
"Rio-chan, can you serve me two cups of mocha coffee? Onegai!" Amu requested and Daiki laughed at her expression.
"Hai hai," Rio answered and went to pour the coffee. Yuki placed both the cups on the small brown tray and brought it to them.
"Hai, douzo," Yuki said before walking away. Amu took a sip of the coffee and her face cringed.
"Rio-chan!" she screamed loudly and Daiki was taken aback by it
"Nani?!" Rio shouted back, annoyed.
"Are you trying to keep me awake in the night? You didn't add any creamer in my coffee!" she fumed. Rio thought for a while and gulped. She really did forget to put in creamer. Quickly, she grab the small jug of creamer from the counter and headed over to Amu's table.
"Gomen, Amu-chan," she apologized as she placed the small jug on the table before walking away. Just as Amu's hand was almost touching the small jug, Daiki took it away in a flash. Amu stared at him weirdly.
"Dai-chan, I need it. Give it to me," Amu pouted. Daiki shook his head with a smile. Amu's eyebrows furrowed and she looked away, puffing her cheeks. He saw it and chuckled.
"My life was like a cup of bitter coffee when I broke up with Atsuko, just before I met you," Daiki said and Amu turned to him.
"However, after I met you, it was as if a little of the creamer had been added into my life," Daiki continued, pouring a little of creamer into Amu's coffee and motioned her to stir it. After stirring, Amu's took a sip of the coffee.
"It's less bitter than just now, but it's still not sweet enough," Amu said, staring at him. He nodded his head.
"That's because you left for America five years ago, after I had blamed you wrongly," Daiki said bitterly. Amu bit her lips.
"During those five years, I tried my best to forget you but I couldn't. The image of you smiling kept appearing in my mind. I even tried to throw away the muffler that you made for me, but I couldn't bear to do it. Finally, after Kota had talked through with me, I realized that I had always buried my true feelings deep in the heart. When I saw you at the engagement ceremony, I told myself that I still loved you after so many years," Daiki continued, pouring the rest of the creamer into her coffee. Amu stirred it again and took a sip.
"Now it's no longer bitter. In fact, it's too sweet! Mou Dai-chan, why did you pour in the whole jug?" Amu scolded and drank half a glass of cold water. Daiki flashed her his trademark smile.
"Because my life is currently sweet, very sweet," Daiki simply replied, placing the empty jug on the table. Amu looked at him, confused. Taking out a velvet box from his pocket, he opened and placed it beside her hands. He stared at her warmly, locking their eyes together and held both her hands gently but firmly.
"Amu, will you marry me?"
-Owari-
----
Authors note: DEKIMAA! *^* I suddenly have so much motivation that I'm going to attempt to finish some of my fic requests by tomorrow! *^*
**coughs** I love dai-chan = w =
This fic: finished! Now I must work on my other ones! *^*
Comments