Chapter Text
Sion wondered, wondered where everything had gone wrong back at home. How his mom and dad had fallen apart despite being the epitome of a picture-perfect couple – well, it definitely is just for the pictures. Being the son of a conglomerate, he can see why though.
Mom is a fashion designer, her love for the industry never wavered – until dad came into the picture and changed everything. His business tendencies changed every creative vision of his mom’s, completely blocking out her flow of art, instead replacing it with something you could clearly tell was done by someone who had no passion in the sector.
All to promote his own businesses – having one of the top fashion designers as his wife, who had released multiple fashion lines that managed to make every fashion critic's jaw drop and stunned – it was media play and mom became the victim of it.
After seven failed collections, she has had it. Every single one of her work after being married to the monster had failed tremendously. The Fujinaga house had dropped from the fashion rankings – from being the top 10 most influential and powerful designer companies to the bottom 30, which is a terrible place to be for being a high-end fashion house.
Divorce – that’s the only answer to whatever problems that had arisen throughout the whole marriage. Mom did not want Sion to be a part of this, so she sent him away to her hometown – an island located in Japan where she grew up and got her famous beach-line collection’s inspiration.
So here he was, sitting with the Fujinagas for another dinner while mom dealt with the divorce in Tokyo. And oh, he was so thankful that his mom always talked in the island accent whenever they’re alone because if he didn’t know it – he could never understand what Auntie Miho was saying, sisters are definitely alike.
“Sion, honey, if you want anything, just say it,” Auntie Miho said as she put yet another serving of tempura shrimp onto Sion’s plate, “I can cook anything from anywhere, if you miss Seoul, I can whip up a small meal anytime,”
“It’s fine, auntie,” Sion smiled as he accepted the fifth serving of said shrimp tempura, he was full, but he would never push away food cooked by his aunt. Apparently, Auntie Miho took all the good cooking genes while his mom got none, “Your cooking will always be tasty,”
“I hope so,” Auntie Miho beamed as she put a whole lot of veggies on Sakuya’s plate, “Because this one here doesn’t appreciate my cooking,”
“Mom, I do appreciate your cooking!”
“You always go out at six in the morning and skip breakfast,”
“I never skip dinner though,” Sakuya, a pink haired seventeen year old, grumbled as he stuffed his mouth with braised broccoli, “I just have breakfast with Ryo nowadays, now that he works at the surf shack,"
“Oh, the surf shack!” Auntie Miho straightened up as if she just remembered something before she faced Sion with a wide grin, “You should go to the surf shack,”
“The … surf shack?” Sion asked, trying to make sense of the word ‘surf shack’ because it was heavily laced with the island accent, something Sion still struggled with, “What’s that?”
He earned a little giggle from the pink haired boy beside him, who earned back a smack on the shoulder. Sion was a city boy who grew up in Seoul half his life and then moved to Tokyo, yet went to an international school – of course, accents like this aren’t his cup of tea so he needed someone like Sakuya to explain, “Surf shack is like the a place where surfers hang out. We have the waxing services, surfboard renting services and hella good milkshakes,”
“Yushi makes the best ones,” Auntie Miho chimed in, “You should try it out – oh, take the double chocolate with strawberries and mint!”
It was eight in the morning when Sion arose from bed and made his way downstairs to the dining room where he saw his aunt setting up two plates – “Oh, you’re awake! Come eat with me here,”
Realising that the plate is for him and his aunt, the question pried, “Where’s Saku?”
“He’s with Ryo, his shift at the surf shack starts at seven today,” His aunt said as she placed a piece of tamagoyaki on Sion’s bowl of rice, “You should go down and take a look,”
The surf shack topic has been going around the dinner table these past three days – it could be about Ryo, could be about good milkshakes that Yushi makes or maybe about the owner’s cute son, a guy named Riku that his aunt could never stop talking about, “What’s the big deal about the surf shack?”
Auntie Miho giggled as she heard Sion mispronounce the word as he attempted the accent, but she still answered the question that had been lingering in Sion’s head, “Maeda worked hard to bring this island to life – that surf shack was one of the things that brought visitors from all over the world,”
“All over the world?”
“We may not be the Maldives – but, we have extremely good customer service and really good waves all throughout summer,” Auntie Miho said before taking a bite into the grilled fish she made a while ago, humming in delight at the umami taste, “You should learn surfing while you’re here – I’m pretty sure three months of doing nothing here would make you go insane,”
Sion agreed because he has started to overthink his life decisions so far, for example, why did he just follow along with his mom’s orders and get stuck here for the entirety of summer and a month more or why he decided to choose the room furthest from any living soul in the house because he needed privacy. (He just wanted to wail in silence without any disturbance)
A few minutes later, there was a sudden knock on the back door of the kitchen to which his aunt, mouth full with tamagoyaki and rice, stood up immediately, “Oh, that’s Yushi!”
Auntie opened the door to reveal a boy with a breathtaking smile, beaming at his aunt while holding a basket of tulips, “Hi auntie, the tulips at my house bloomed well!”
He had black hair and fair skin, his lips were soft pink and really delicate, his figure was lean but there was that beach boy muscle etched somewhere in that – and he had the prettiest smile Sion had ever seen.
“Oh, who’s that?” the boy asked as his eyes pried inside and landed on Sion.
Auntie Miho walked behind Sion after inviting the boy in, she put her hands on Sion’s shoulder and introduced them to each other, “Yushi, this is Sion, my nephew,” She said as she gestured to Sion before she gestured back to Yushi, “and Sion, this is the boy from the house across, Yushi,”
“Oh!” Yushi exclaimed as he stretched out a hand with a wide smile, “Nice to meet you, Sion! Where are you from?”
“I–” Sion couldn’t even answer properly when his aunt interrupted him.
“He’s a Tokyo boy – or Seoul, depends on how you look at him,” his aunt said as she looked at the boy in front of him, “All in all, he’s from a city,”
“Oh, a city boy – that’s so cool,” Yushi gushed, taking a seat in front of Sion, “I’ve only been to the city a few times,”
It’s been two days since he last saw the prettiest boy he had ever laid his eyes on – who knew the Yushi Auntie Miho always talked about was that pretty and cute? Sion couldn’t get him out of his brain, it was as if Yushi had moved into his brain without signing the rent lease and just sitting there.
“Sion!” his aunt called for him from the kitchen, “Can you come down and help me?”
SIon rushed down, thinking she needed help in cooking or cleaning, yet to his dismay, Auntie Miho’s request required him to get out of the house and probably with the need to socialise – “Can you go down to the surf shack and tell Saku that he needs to be back before six? His dad wants him to attend the wedding,”
“Can’t you just text him?” Sion was clearly perplexed. They’re living in the 21st century where the internet is accessible almost everywhere and to everyone – heck, they’re rich as hell so they have the latest technologies; Sion wouldn’t be surprised if a whole Jaeger emerged from their beachfront.
“I even called,” Auntie Miho grumbled, her hands diligently slicing the apples on the wooden cutting board, “I’m guessing his phone died. He always forgets to charge his phone,”
Sion sighed, whatever it is, he couldn’t defy his aunt so he must do as told. He grabbed his phone, smeared some sunscreen onto his body that wasn't covered by the thin tanktop he was wearing and put on his favourite, limited edition Valentino beach slides then made his way to the beach.
Based on his aunt’s instructions, he should just walk straight down the street and he’ll immediately see the waffle stop which indicates a right turn from then on. So, he did just that.
Only to be stopped by the sight of two teenagers eating each other’s faces off at the side of the waffle stop. The recognition hit fast, sparked by something so simple as the colour of the hair. It was unmistakably Sakuya – the only pink haired teenager here.
Disgust painted on Sion’s face, his expression hardened with distaste. He did not expect his day to start with two horny teenagers making out beside a waffle stop – what a great way to be welcomed to the beach!
He was about to call out to the pink haired boy before a gush of water came from beside him. The two teenagers immediately pushed each other off and hid behind their arms as if that could block the pressurised spray that had separated them from actually consuming the other.
“You two should really get a room,” the culprit voiced out, the proud grin could be heard from the way he giggled, “Stop terrorising Anton’s wafflehouse,”
Sion glanced at the owner of the voice and – Yushi?
“Oh, good morning, Sion-san!” Yushi smiled which was the total opposite of Sion’s current expression; surprised, enthralled and infatuated.
Yushi looked a bit too good right now, despite holding a dripping water jet. The flash of his white teeth was impossible to ignore, his pale skin glowing as if it had a light of its own despite not having a single drop of sweat in sight in this scorching heat.
“Is this your first time at the beach?” Yushi tilted his head to the side, an adorable gesture that had Sion’s heart skipping a beat. Damn, Yushi was too cute and pretty.
Realising that he had just stared at Yushi for a good few minutes, he awkwardly nodded as he rubbed the nape of his neck, “Uh, yeah, I’m just here for Sakuya,”
“Oh, I see,” Yushi nodded as he pouted his lips, his eyes looking at the ground as if he was thinking of something before he suddenly chimed with an idea, “But, if you need anything, I’m at the surf shack. Come drop by sometime!”
Sion nodded for a while, his eyes still focusing on Yushi’s pretty features, completely enraptured by the beauty in front of him – also completely missing Yushi waving him goodbye and jogging away back to the surf shack.
He snapped out of his little trance and turned his heel to face the pink haired teenager that was drenched in water; a result of the shooting water from earlier. Sion had to stifle a laugh right because Sakuya had seemed to be utterly pissed.
“What do you want, Ni-chan?” Sakuya grumbled as he crossed his arms, very displeased at the situation he was in. Not to mention the fact that Ryo was only semi-wet due to Sakuya covering his body while they were kissing.
“Saku, your mom wants you to go home before six,” Sion finally steadied himself from laughing his ass off at the younger, “Says that your dad wants you to attend the wedding?”
That itself received an offended gasp from both Sakuya and Ryo.
“That asshole wants me – the boy he said had ruined his life – to attend his wedding with the new chick?” Sakuya’s hands wailed everywhere as he said each and every with an outraged tone, “No way in hell am I going, the girl's almost my age!”
“Aren’t you like seventeen?”
Ryo chimed in while rubbing circles on Sakuya’s back, ignoring the drenched state there were and instead focusing on calming the younger down, “She’s nineteen this year, got pregnant by his dad,”
Sion buffered, speechless as he became the literal definition of a windows error noise but in human form, caught off-guard from the sudden lore dump. Sakuya was clearly pissed off from the sudden invitation and Ryo as the caring boyfriend – wait, they aren’t together based on what Sakuya had said to him – whatever, Ryo was shushing the pink haired with quiet and calming words to regain his composure again.
“Well, yeah, uhm,” Sion hesitated before deciding to just say it, “Just– your mom wants you back before 6,”
And with that he faced the opposite side and walked off into the distance, leaving both Sakuya and Ryo at the side of the waffle stop.
He couldn’t help but think, letting his feet bring him anywhere. He realised that he and Sakuya both suffered the same fate, divorced parents and living at the beach for now. Was it a curse for the Fujinaga family? That the sisters both end up divorced? Though, Saku seemed to enjoy the separation, his life being more free and fun.
Sion on the other hand was resenting the fate of his life. Mom and dad separating was never in the list of ‘future Sion activities’, he imagined they’ll always live happily ever after together; mom, dad and Sion. The perfect family of Ohs. Still, life had its ways and this is one of its ways of slapping Sion across the face and laughing at how pained the boy was.
He blinked once and awareness immediately rushed in, his eyes taking in the scene in front of him as reality seeped its way back into place in his messy mind.
A vast blue ocean with white waves rolling onto shore, the coast gleamed softly as the sand reflected the day’s light. The panoramic view was completed with three kids building sandcastles near the shore as their parents were sitting on a gingham mat, two shirtless beach boys sharing coconut shakes as they rested by their surfboards and a very busy looking shack.
The shack sat just a little bit off the boardwalk, further away from the shore yet still accessible by beach-goers, made of half timber, half bricks, the red roof faded from the constant sunlight yet still unmistakably bright. A total of three signs with the words ‘Maeda’s Surf Shack’ was put around the shack; the biggest in the middle, a stand-alone a bit to the left and a worn-out hanging one above the waxing station.
His eyes drifted down to the waxing station, noticing a tanned boy in a loose white tee and red beach shorts waxing a green surfboard with a wide grin plastered on his face. He was busy chatting with two girls in tankinis, winking and giggling to him as he flirted with them using the beach boy charm that anyone would find attractive.
Meanwhile on the other side of the shack, there was an older man, probably in his 40s, he was tanned just like the boy before, just slightly more hairy on his chest and something about their handsome facial features had Sion connect the dots that they were probably related. The man was busy chopping up some coconuts as he entertained a group of kids with his awesome tricks.
His eyes moved back to the big sign and looked under it. A queue consisting of at least five customers were glancing at the sign in front, some were checking their phones and there were a few that were enjoying their milkshakes underneath the shade that the shack offered. The sound of a blender reached Sion’s ears, indicating that there was milkshake-creating magic going on in the shack.
His eyes locked in on a specific boy instead, a boy he had just met earlier who was laughing freely with the customer he was serving. His smile wide as he cut something on the cutting board, an easy conversation with the customer who was clearly flirting with him.
Somehow that made Sion feel a bit offended – Yushi was laughing with someone else.
Sion scoffed.
Yushi was serving customers. This was his job, he had to entertain them as well. It must be all part of the persona that they probably had agreed on to charm all visitors and travellers alike and it definitely was working very well.
The weight in his chest made no sense, they weren’t even well-acquainted. Yet, he still approached the shack with a heaviness in his heart that he tried to suppress. Instead of going straight to the busy milkshake area, Sion headed to the waxing station instead.
“Oh, hey!” the tanned boy exclaimed as he saw Sion approaching the station, his actions immediately halted as he stood up straight to get a good look of Sion, “You’re definitely Korean,”
“What–” Sion’s eyes squinted, a bit taken aback by the suddenness of the situation, “I mean– you are right, I’m half-Korean,”
“You’re not from here,” the tanned said, his eyes scanning the taller boy with pure intensity which Sion could only step back with uncomfortability, “You’re a Tokyo boy,”
“Uhm,”
“Relax,” the tanned boy giggled with his nasally voice, “I’m just shitting with you,”
Sion nodded his head slowly, still a bit awkward from the interaction they had earlier.
“I’m Riku, the son of the famous Maeda Akito, also known as the hottie of the best surf shack in town,” the tanned boy introduced himself as he stood in a stance where light would shine best on his face, highlighting his sharp features before he bit his lips and looked at Sion with glimmering eyes.
“Okay, uhm, hello Riku,” Sion lumberingly rubbed the nape of his neck as he offered his other hand for a handshake, “I’m Oh Sion–”
“Oh you’re the boy Yuu-chan talked about!” Riku exclaimed, both his hands warm as he gripped Sion’s hand for a big handshake, “Welcome to Okinawa, hope we can be great friends,”
Yuu-chan? Sion knew they were close since they had probably grown up together in this town, but it left a bitter taste on Sion’s tongue – still, he had no reason to be so pissed off at other people for being close to Yushi. They aren’t even friends – yet.
“Sure,”
“Have you surfed before?” Riku said as he picked up the wax he used earlier on, sharpening the edge as he broke the wax in half. He started to draw diagonal lines on the surfboard diligently, but still focusing on the boy beside him.
“Not really,” Sion shrugged, his eyes watching the diagonal lines that Riku was drawing, finding a tad bit satisfying, “I never had the chance to try it,”
Riku stopped waxing once again, and faced the boy with a horrified face, “Oh no, that’s unacceptable,” the tanned pulled out his phone from his pocket and typed furiously on it before facing Sion with a grin a few minutes later, “I hooked you up with Yushi for lessons,”
“What?”
“I mean, it’s good to have a teacher, right?” Riku sheepishly grinned as he pocketed his phone into the back pocket. He picked up the wax from earlier and pointed at Sion with it, “Plus, your aunt told me to get you to do something here before you die of boredom,”
“No– my aunt?!” Sion choked. What do you mean his aunt had told Riku about him–was he set up?
“What?” Riku pouted with a face full of innocence, a hidden evil demeanor hiding behind the innocent expression, “Do you not know how to swim?”
“I do!” Sion grumbled. Of course he knows, he had taken incredibly expensive swimming classes back then because his dad kept on bringing him to yacht parties which required him to learn swimming in case any tragedies did happen.
But, would this count as a tragedy since he’s with Yushi?
“See, then there’s no problem or I might have to ask Anton to teach you since he’s back in town,” Riku snickered, “But, that would lead to surfing lessons with me instead of Yushi,”
Now, Sion wouldn’t want that, “I’m very certified,”
“Then, that’s great!” Riku uttered with his hand thrown into the air which resulted in the wax slipping from his hands and hitting the wall with a loud thud.
A few moments later, the door that connected the outside and the inside of the surf shack cracked open, revealing a pale boy with black hair – a very pretty pale boy with black hair. He was wearing a different shirt from earlier, a pastel purple tank-top with denim jorts, “What’s up with the commotion, Riku-chan?”
Riku smirked as he nodded his head to Sion’s way, “I got you a new student for surfing,”
Yushi’s eyes drifted to where Riku was motioning too– instantly locking eyes with Sion, “Oh, that’s great! Your aunt did tell me to teach you to surf before you die of boredom,”
Did Aunt Miho tell the whole town about his lazy ass doing nothing and the possibility of dying of boredom?
“Don’t worry, since you’re Auntie Miho’s nephew, it’s free of charge,” Yushi grinned, his pearly white teeth on full display. Sion’s heart stopped beating because Yushi was so damn cute.
“Oh, uhm, okay,”
“See you tomorrow then, Sion,” Yushi waved him and immediately entered the shack again, the sound of blenders restarting as Sion heard an order being repeated by the same voice out loud.