Otori sighed for the seventh time that morning. Life in America was not suiting him well, but his friend had insisted on him taking a vacation there, and maybe even starting a new life there. It wasn't that Otori was unsuccessful in Japan, quite the opposite. He was well known as a concert violinist, and he lived in a sizeable house. Otori was still quite young though, and he needed to just relax for a while like a normal person. His friend had paid for a room at a nice hotel in America where Otori would stay for three weeks.

Otori's vacation, however, was far from relaxing.

The second he walked out of the airport, he wanted to fly back to his home in Japan. Walking into a country where you can only understand simple phrases like "thank you" and "good morning" is hard. Otori could already hear people whispering about him.

When he took all his things to the hotel room, he decided to explore the town he was in. He had a considerable amount of money to spend, so he set off to buy some food. During his search for food though, he spotted a sports shop and smiled to himself.

Sports. Now this was one thing that was familiar to him.

He entered the shop and immediately saw a flashy-looking tennis racket in front of him. He poked the handle and immediately frowned in distaste.

"This grip is terrible…" he commented out loud in Japanese. He stared at it and sighed again. Is this all America is? A big place where everything looks flashy, but had horrible quality. While he was thinking, he didn't notice a man walk up to him.

"Oi, did I just hear you speak Japanese?" Otori glanced at the man…he was quite handsome, with long brown hair that was tied up in a ponytail. He spoke in Japanese, too, so Otori could under-

Wait, he spoke in Japanese? This guy could be Otori's savior!

"Aa, are you from Japan?" Otori mentally slapped himself. Of course he was from Japan! He just talked in fluent Japanese!

"Yeah. Uh…do you speak English?"

"No…do you?" Otori was kind of hoping he did, so he could find his way around the place.

"Yeah, I'm pretty fluent. I've been living here for a couple years now." The stranger smirked. "Are you looking for a racket with a better grip?"

Otori blushed. "Oh, no, I was just looking…I mean, um, this racket is pretty good…" Of course he didn't think so, but what else would he say, "I was just looking at them, but they're all bad. I like Japanese brands better". That would be rude.

The stranger frowned. He could already tell that this guy was way too nice for his own good.

"Are you kidding? If you played in Japan, you must know that this racket is crap. American rackets are unreliable." He grabbed Otori by the arm and led him to the grip tape. It was a good thing he didn't turn around, or he would've noticed that Otori was extremely red in the face.

"Now this is good stuff." The man handed him a pack. "Oh by the way, I didn't catch your name."

"Oh, eh…Otori. Otori Chotarou." He was still blushing a bit.

"Hn. Shishido Ryo." Shishido turned around. "So…you new here? Want me to show you around or something?"

"Ah…yes please, Shishido-san."

For the rest of the day, Shishido was showing Otori around the town. America proved to be a really interesting place, but Otori was only half-listening. He caught the important parts, like "don't go here, it's a rip-off", but most of the time, Otori found himself staring at the man in front of him.

Shishido was gorgeous, and Otori couldn't help but stare at him. Otori didn't like to daydream, but he couldn't help to think of what it would be like to touch his lips…they really did look soft…

…oh no, what was he thinking? There would be no way Shishido could fall for him. He wasn't tough, wasn't great…and plus, Shishido-san was probably straight, and had a girlfriend, and…

"Otori? Yo, Otori. You listening?" Shishido was close to his face, staring at Otori in concern.

Embarrassed, Otori pulled away, apologizing over and over again.

"It's fine. I was just saying to call me tomorrow if you have time. Here's my number."

"Ah…arigatou…and thanks for today, really."

"No problem. See you around, then."

"…Ja."

Back in his hotel room, Otori fell on his bed. Perhaps he really should get back to Japan soon. No use daydreaming about someone he couldn't have.

Shishido buried his head in his pillow at home. He gave Otori his number? This in itself was okay, but the way he said it was like asking for a date. Shishido grinned. He wouldn't mind a date though, Otori really was cute when he blushed.

Oh shit.

Did he just think that? He didn't just think about that, right? Otori was leaving for Japan anyways. Plus, he probably had hundreds of girls lining up to see him. Running a finger through his hair, Shishido grinned. Maybe Otori would mysteriously miss his flight. Maybe he would be…oh god, don't think about that. Rolling over, he closed his eyes. But he didn't want to sleep.

If he slept, he would dream.

If he dreamed about it, he would want it even more.

He was already having dirty thoughts about him and Otori.

Damn it, is this what fangirls live like?

No…not even fangirls got this crazy. Shishido could actually see and speak to Otori. Fangirls just stalk people online.

Deciding against sleep, Shishido picked up a random book, not really taking in what he was reading. If you asked him, he probably couldn't even say who one of the characters was.

It was going to be a long night.