Stutter [Masato, open]

[Prentice 'Ren' Urban]

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Traveling was not something he did with any form of grace in any stretch of imagination. Driver or passenger it made very little difference to the fear, and resulting stress, that he did his absolute best to ignore should any one so much as poke at the subject. This particular trip found him in the passenger seat, the fingers of his right hand white knuckled in their grip on the door, while the beater of a car seemed intent on rattling it’s self to pieces going far faster than it should have. Barely moving his head he cast a glance at the driver, unluckily for him it was his chronic-speeder of an older brother, who looked perfectly comfortable behind the wheel of the car. Unluckily for him Ari caught the look and return it with a smirk.

“You look like a rockstar, with the turtleneck and the scarf, otouto.” A chuckle followed Ari’s words a tanned hand reaching across the car to poke at a taunt side. Which earned him an acidic glare from Ren and a sound that was suspiciously like a hiss. Another laugh escaped him, apparently unbothered by the death glare trying to do him in, as he settled back in to the drivers seat still watching his younger brother. “I did not know they hired rockstars for teachers… Speaking of did you manage to find someone to cover you today?”

“Eyes!” Ren’s other hand, the dominant left one, shot out from his curled frame catching his brother in the side heavily. Awkwardly drawing the limb back to his body he looked away from Ari choosing to watch the plastic of the inner door instead. Yet again his left arm was wrapped up in plaster from his hand to just under his elbow. “And you look like a mass murderer, Ari, and for your information yes my classes were covered since you broke bones again.”

“Not my fault you’re breakable.” Out of the corner of his eye he could see Ari turn back to the road with that smirk still in place, and quite obviously unrepentant for the whole situation, and for a while it was quiet except for the sound of air pressing against the sides of the car.

Normally, every once in a while, the two brothers would go out for a dinner together either locally or on the other island in an attempt to keep their mutually antagonistic relationship alive and get some ego jabs in over the soup course. But then on a normal outing they did not happen to slide in to the nearest club and proceed to drink. Nor did they get in to fights, with others, before finally turning that anger and energy against each other. And, as it had been since Ren had reached the age of thirteen, Ari had one the fight between the two of them. Thus they had ended the night at the hospital where Ren proceeded to leave messages stating that he would be unable to teach the next day.

All in all it had been one of their more eventful outings.

“Ren…” This time his name was more of a sigh on Ari’s lips and slowly he looked up at his older brother. At least this time the older man was keeping his eyes on the road, a step up from last time, but for some reason there was a sense that he would not enjoy the words that would leave those lips next. “Have you considered driving yourself…? Or getting some counseling about this… Phobia of yours?”

“I am fine.” A very shallow breath and he returned his attention to the door so he could no longer see things whipping by. For some reason Ren absolutely hated the random bouts of ‘caring’ that Ari pulled out of absolutely no where. “It is not a phobia.”

“Because everyone knows that clinging to the door and being unable to look at the passing scenery is perfectly normal.” The words were sarcastic, angry, Ari’s fingers tightening around the wheel probably in an effort to not hit his younger brother. “It’s not healthy.”

“Go die.” The words were half whispered and a feeble reply indeed.

“Pft. I rather enjoy being alive, thank you.” Another chuckle at that.

“Ari… Stop the car.”

“What?” Despite Ari’s obvious surprise the car did start to slow down, out of habit, he knew his brother well enough to know that stopping would be better than pushing forward. Ren did not bother to repeat himself instead he attempted, and failed since he forgot to take off the seatbelt, to get out of the car. Another attempt before he seemed to remember the fact that the car was strapped to his back. “Ren… Please tell me you are not going to walk all the way back.”

“I shall walk.” The cast clacked uselessly against the door as he moved to slam it with the wrong hand. A slow blink before he slammed the door with his right hand and turned his back to the car. Sometime between the car and the edge of the trees he heard the car start off down the road again. Some ball of tension slowly starting to loosen now that it was obvious that his brother had had enough and was just going to leave him alone. Alone was better anyways, far better, even if he did not always like the thoughts that scurried around his mind it was just easier.

For a while he lost himself on the forest paths, taking them by whim rather than in any will to try and reach the school once more, his own form of procrastination since there was probably a stack of tests waiting on his desk for him to mark. Although how he was going to do that was beyond him… Well other than swallowing that lovely thing known as pride and ask someone to help him in finishing marking them in a timely manner. If he asked nicely Masato might help him but, first, of course he would have to try his hand at writing with his right hand just to see if he had somehow gotten better since the last time he had ended up broken.

Finally he found his way to a small-ish clearing in the trees with a fallen tree lying on its side propped up against a sleepy looking rock. Taking a moment to climb up on to the rock, then on to the highest part of the fallen tree Ren finally made himself comfortable on the makeshift seat. Absently trailing his fingers along the hem of the black jeans he sighed and pulled at the scarf carelessly dropping it beside the tree. Now that he was finally free of the car he felt a hell of a lot better, if a bit sore still but that was expected, granted he would probably get a very angry message from his brother later. Not only that he would probably have to explain why he had been unable to teach, as his message had been rather feeble, and then try to figure out what in the world he was going to do.

“Should have learned to write with both hands… Heh.”

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Tagged: Masato and open.
Word Count: 1200-ish.
OOC comment: Heh. I had a lot of fun with Ren and Ari. O.o;

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[Masato Jin Pfeiffer]

It was one of those days that were considered a waste of breath.

Every hour, every minute, even every second all melted into each other one by one, meshing the day together into one cluttered mess that would only leech off of the following day. The fabric of space and time itself, it seemed, had been fastened in the hands of foolish gods and stretched until every bare thread was straining to hold tight to the other, tormenting every practical being until they had been reduced to piles of whining and complaints. Everyone present at the academy – literally, everyone – could feel this strange jet lag loom over their heads, one individual in particular being Masato. Of course, he was never quite the enthusiast when it came to waking up early in the morning and diving into the hustle and bustle of midday when he barely slept at all during the night hours, but with the flecks of sand falling down the hourglass like feathers, he was practically miserable. Not only that, but it also had to have been the day when all of his luck and good karma had suddenly disappeared. From malfunctioning coffee brewers to a bump the size of an egg throbbing underneath his unkempt hair, it was safe to say that he was just… not having the best of days.

One minute, three seconds… One minute, two…

Endlessly, the numbers droned on within the recesses of his mind in a tone that was equally as monotonous as it did when he had taught, weary eyes glued to the clock that hung on the wall instead of focusing on quieting down his chattering students. He had to wonder: why did the hands of the timekeeper suddenly go from its customary ticking to just barely dragging across the face? Was time itself slowing down? Could those foolish gods see whenever a pair of unwanted eyes looked at their prized possession? … Or were the future-oriented – the generation that relied so heavily on things to be done so quickly and easily at the push of a button – far too impatient?

Masato chewed on his lower lip thoughtfully, lost in the depths of his own mindless tangent, for an excruciatingly slow thirty seconds until the sound of the bell had chimed him back into reality. He snapped up quickly from his hunched position and blinked, a stray tawny lock falling in front of his face, before he stammered.

"H-Have a nice day, everyo–…"

But then he stopped.

His classroom was already empty.

He couldn't sleep, Goddamn it.

It was the first time in a while that Masato had actually attempted to lie down and rest during the night hours, and yet no matter how hard he tried, he still couldn't. He had tried to let his mind go, to let it drift without a single worry (he was already so well at that anyways), but every time he tried, a tiny little thought would appear and blossom into something far more worrisome that would keep him from sleeping. Heck, he had even practiced ancient techniques that he had learned when he was a child – breathing slowly and deeply to ease himself, counting sheep until he would bore himself to slumber – but somehow, he had the feeling that it just was not going to work once he reached sheep by the thousands.

Frustrated, Masato tossed and turned on the once-vacant bed adjacent to the one he used to sleep in (one he would never look at the same again), his pillow tugged over his aching head and his eyes wrenched shut. Perhaps… he just needed some time away from the academy, similar to a small vacation of some sorts. Perhaps, he could plan ahead and take a week or two off to see his small family in England, or perhaps he could just start smaller and unwind on the other local islands of Hawaii. The weather was supposed to be decent for the next few weeks, if not a bit cooler than how it was in the summer, so perhaps it would not be as exhausting to walk about and relax. Maybe then, he could ask Ren to join him.

… Hold on a second.

A sudden flush of warmth crept underneath Masato's skin as he rose to an upright position, the pillow sliding off of the back of his head and landing onto the floor with an airy sigh. Of course he knew it was common courtesy to tell someone where he was disappearing to as well as to ask someone if they had wanted to tag along, especially with one of his closest friends. The problem was, however, whether or not the other really wanted to do such an absurd thing, and with someone who more than likely thought of him as mentally unstable after that so-called "accident". He ran a hand through his hair and sighed. Come to think of it, he never really did see Ren today. Was he being avoided already…?

Mulling over this vague prediction, Masato chewed at his lower lip once more before he shook his head. Clearly, he needed to get over himself.

"… I need some air," he muttered as he threw the covers off of his body, pulling on a pair of sneakers he had dug out from underneath his bed before he rose to his feet and began walking. Out of a natural habit, his glance flickered to the large, gaping hole that connected Ren's room to his own, the jagged pieces of drywall almost holding an appearance similar to the open mouth of some huge beast. How amusing and ironic it was that neither one of them wanted to alert the staff to close it up, nor did they care to explain how in the world it had happened in the first place. The reason, more than likely, was probably because they knew very well that the staff would take it as more than "a mere mishap" – even though it was in reality.

Silently, he locked his door behind him and ventured outside, the air strangely cool with the last breath of autumn. He breathed in slowly, the crisp air chilling his lungs and the back of his throat with vigor before he sighed. Already, he was beginning to feel a little better than he was before; the fresh ether acting as a sort of natural remedy to the stress and fatigue that had pressured onto him like a weight. Of course, it also might have been the faint yellow glow of the full moon that awoke his nocturnal senses, but regardless, it was better than decaying in his bed.

Soon enough, he found himself wandering into the forest, the soil that laid on the ground amidst the tree's winding roots darker than the overturned dirt around the academy's premises. Fallen leaves crunched beneath his shoes with each step he took along with the occasional broken branches, uncovering the familiar scent of damp earth and greenery. It had been several times that he had roamed along the forest path, each time bringing him to the same place. It was a secret getaway, almost – a place that belonged to himself and only himself. A place where the trees of the forests parted their branches like outstretched fingers, reaching desperately for a bed of shimmering stars – surrounding the ever-changing moon like a blanket. He smiled to himself faintly as he continued down this path, losing himself and letting his mind roam until he had finally reached the clearing.

And God speak of the devil, Ren was there.

Bemused and confused were the only words that could describe Masato's expression as his eyes rested silently on the back of the male's head, his heartbeat suddenly perking up with a sort of nervous energy. Out of all the places to find him at, it had to be the spot he had kept tucked away into his memory…? How in the world did he arrive here anyways? When did he get here? And more importantly, why was he here?

Using every ounce of his willpower to suppress that recurring growth of warmth beneath his cheeks, he inhaled deeply and quietly through his nose before he stepped closer in a sort of half-walking, half-tiptoeing stride. What was he supposed to say now? One part of him pondered if he should just walk up to him and drop the typical "Hey, fancy seeing you here" onto him, but his conscience argued that the approach would be a bit too… bleak and strange, even for him. Another side of him suggested just walking to him and grabbing his shoulder. However, he did not even need his conscience to tell him that the idea was just plain idiotic. Not only did it overall lack in the common sense department, but Masato himself also had the feeling that sudden physical contact… was not something Ren would take all that well.

He had kept debating with his own ideas relentlessly until his screaming thoughts finally silenced, his breath still and his curiosity piqued as soon as he heard the other murmur to himself. What was that… about writing with both hands? The words processed in the complexity of Masato's mind, letting them roam on his palate to taste, before he finally held back a snort of cynical amusement. Leave it to Ren to get himself hurt all the damn time. At this rate, Masato would be branded with a fresh ulcer if he kept fretting over it.

"It seems that we have all hit that spot once or twice in our lives," he chuckled, not even bothering to keep his presence a secret any longer as he propped himself up onto the sleepy-looking rock and set his gaze upon the stars. An amiable smile perched itself onto Masato's lips as he folded his arms over his chest, though the words that had left them weren't a little less than playful. "However, it looks like you have the brunt of it. What happened to you this time?"

Tag: Prentice Urban // Open.
Word Count: 1673 (oshi--)
Lyrics: "ITAMI WAKE" // Dali
Notes: There were so many events going on that I didn't know which to sammich into my post. xD; But nonetheless, here it is. Lemme' know if I need to change anything, okay? <3
Credits: Moi!

[Prentice 'Ren' Urban]

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It hit him nearly the moment he had stopped moving as soon as he managed to get settled the more rational part of him noticed the shaking tremors. With his left arm encased in plaster the crazy jumping and twitching of muscles was less obvious than that of his right. Up until the moment he stopped he had not been entirely aware of just how afraid he was of something that should be just so simple. Curling his rouge fingers in to the fabric of his sweater he took a deep breath noting absently how it stuttered through him rather than flowed easily. Much more time in that car and he likely would have willingly jumped out while it was moving just to gain some peace from the feeling of impending doom. A phobia, as Ari called it, such a small word for the feelings of fear and hopelessness that traveling brought. Ren knew, in the quiet part of his mind that was occupied by things he would never willingly say, that if he could he would forever live his life in a place where he would not need to get in to a car to get anywhere. Even if it meant never seeing anything more than what he could reach by his own two feet he could live with it.

Another strangled breath worked its way in to his lungs as he reminded himself to just breathe. Oddly he had proven to be the sort of odd person who inexplicably ended up holding their breath when afraid but that was usually followed by a violent outburst of some sort. But cars, and traveling, did not give him that luxury since there was nothing to lash out at except for maybe himself for putting himself through the fear of it all repeatedly. A heavy exhale escaped him the constant shaking easing in to faint tremors as he slowly started to calm down. So lost in the inner workings of his mind someone could have probably thrown something at him before he reacted. Which, in short, it was no surprise that he did not notice Masato until the man all but materialized out of the air with words on his lips.

Normally he would have just taken it all in stride and done his absolute best not to seem all that surprised. However this situation felt anything but normal, and some less rational part of his mind wondered when in the hell Masato had become a ninja, and with his nerves brushed raw. So in retrospect he should not have been all that surprised that his jump, or more correctly violent start, that managed to screw with his balance enough for him to quite simply drop off the other side of the dead tree. Luckily, for him anyways, he managed to miss the rock as well as fall on the opposite side that Masato happened to be on. The air left him in a rush, a stick cruelly digging in to his spine, that left him dazed and staring blankly up at the waving branches above. His reaction far too late to save him from falling, as he was already flat on his back, it brought a new sense to that whole delayed reaction business. A moment later found him slowly sitting up and finally back on to his feet once more.

Right… Well there was no covering up that reaction now so sometime between now and the moment he walked around the rock to greet Masato he would have to some how come up with a reason. Shaking fingers plucked a leaf off of the sweater, crushing it, as he picked his way around the rock. Dropping his head he chose to look at the ground rather than at Masato himself, his pride had taken enough knocks for the day now, using the guise of fixing his clothing in order to come up with something to say that did not include the fact that his nerves were very worn indeed. He had a feeling that the truth would not be welcome, at least the whole fact that his older brother had broken his arm, but even so lying was not an art he had ever perfected. Briefly he looked at Masato from under the fall of his hair that question of ‘what are you doing here?’ on the tip of his tongue before he looked away.

“Broken bones, from earlier, nothing more than that and a hospital trip because of it.” The words came out soft, subdued, and abruptly Ren felt heat creeping up his cheeks. All of a sudden he felt like he had been pitched back in time to being a teenager all over again. Back at that awkward stage of realizing the feelings towards those of the opposite, or the same, gender had changed in to something more on top of those weird body changes that happened. Taking a steadying breath, both to quell the shaking and the random bout of displacement, he finally raised his head now that he was sure that the blush was mostly gone and it was dark enough for Masato not to tell in the first place. Nervous still he absently chewed on his lip ring as he tried to come up with something a bit better than a brawl. After all he was an adult and fighting, even drunken, was not exactly something he was proud of… Funny how that had changed, really, but now was not the time to consider how things had changed. He was supposed to be lying here except for the small fact that his mind utterly blanked. Drawing in another breath he put his back against the rock and sank to the ground legs stretching out in front of him, one leg crossing over the other, arms crossing over his chest with a soft sigh. Absently licking his lips he finally conceded an answer that might be passable enough. “As you saw I have been rather plagued with gracelessness today.”

‘Not so much lack of grace as nerves.’

Sometimes he wished he could just gouge out that dry sarcastic part of his brain that enjoyed rubbing salt in to his prides wounds. He knew that the lie was flimsy, hell a stiff breeze could blow it away if it had been structure, just like he knew Masato had taken Psychology and was less than likely to believe such a frail lie. Deep with in his chest he could still feel his heart pounding madly, nerves still raw, but at a slower pace than before. Thankfully. Now all he had to do now was calm down enough so Masato would not clue in to his traveling fears, although why he wanted to hide that was beyond him, but breaking bones was nothing spectacularly new for him and as such he could not maintain that the nervous behavior stemmed from that. Another glance was shot towards Masato from under his hair, a more measuring look this time, wondering if the other man was the sort to easily be distracted by light conversation or not. Asking about the other mans day would probably lead to questions about his own; even though it seemed like Masato was not even aware of the fact that Ren had entirely missed classes and had relied on others sitting behind that desk of his while the kids wrote their unit tests. And it was quite obvious that his friend, the thought gave him a pause at the tiny wonder of when Masato had passed the threshold of that-odd-German-man-next-door to friend, had been unable to sleep if he was out now.

“This is a rather beautiful place, yes?” He tilted his head back to look up at the stars, a wry smile crossing his lips, still watching his fellow teacher out of the corner of his eye. “Although I do doubt I could find this place again.”

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Tagged: Masato and open.
Word Count: 1282
OOC comment: x.x Haah. Hopefully this is alright.

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