Author's Notes: Translations:
Ohayou – Goodmorning.
Sumimasen - Excuse me
Hai - Yes
Iie - It was nothing (a way of saying "You're welcome")
Though she woke first early the next morning, Asuka felt considerably refreshed. Briefly she marveled that she quite possibly had best night's rest she had gotten in a long, long time. Perhaps even since she came to the U.S.
She moved to stretch and greet the new day only to find herself enveloped by two arms. Her shifting stirred the larger male body behind her.
Asuka abruptly stopped moving, body becoming fully awake faster than her mind.
What was going on?
As her mind grasped bits and pieces from the previous evening, she remembered just whom she was sharing her bed with. She felt a mixture of thrill and shock.
Oh god…
Though she ceased shifting as soon as she came to that realization, Shinsuke, still mostly asleep, pressed his chest closer to her back. He sleepily nuzzled her short hair out of the way and buried his face in the nape of her neck.
Asuka tried to contain the bubble of emotion welling inside of her at his closeness. She really did. But the innocent yet intimate contact only served to fry her circuits.
She let out a shrill squeak.
Shinsuke jerked awake behind her, then realizing their predicament, muttered a quick "Sumimasen!" The usual grace he displayed in the ring and even outside of it was nowhere to be found as he tried to disentangle himself from her. Asuka for her part could only lie there as a dead weight, making the task harder for him.
When he finally got free from the entanglement of their bodies and bed sheets he cleared his throat, he gave another apology with a low bow. He then smoothed his hands down the front of his shirt distractedly, eyes looking everywhere but at her. It was plain to see his nervousness.
Asuka cursed her weakness, already mourning his warmth.
She felt the best course of action was to show him that his proximity had not frightened her.
"O-Ohayou," she greeted with a small smile.
Shinsuke's eyes tentatively met hers and a weight seemed to lift from his body. One corner of his mouth lifted in response.
"Ohayou."
They shared a quick breakfast together at a café in the hotel before they needed to head out again to make it for the airport. Their food wasn't Japanese, but the food was still good and the company even better.
"I wasn't sure what to do," Shinsuke chuckled, recalling a moment from his time in NJPW. They were currently sharing stories from their time before making it to WWE. "I could only think to cover my face to keep from laughing," he went on, "By the time I removed my hands, Ishii was running off camera to preserve himself. And Yoshi-Hashi…I could barely look at him out of embarrassment for him. That and the danger of laughing."
Asuka shook her head, smiling wryly. "I don't know who I should have felt more sorry for, him, or you and Ishii for having to endure such a embarrassing promo. You poor devils." She thought for a moment on a similar story for her to recount, "For me, it was hard to stay in character with the great Tajiri chasing myself and the Shirai sisters with a mop."
"A mop?" Shinsuke parroted incredulously, leaning in just a little bit.
"Hai," she nodded, "I think someone misplaced the haraigushi he was supposed to grab by accident."
At that he leaned back, eyes crinkling as he suppressed a bout of laughter with a hand.
"Ah maybe I should start calling you The King of Giggles," she teased.
Shinsuke's face immediately fell into a cute pout, "You wouldn't dare."
Her smile turned Cheshire.
"What do you want from me?"
"To preserve your honor and reputation?" she mused, then deadpanned, "You could carry my bags for a month."
"A month?" his pout intensified, "You really know how to go for the throat, Asuka"
She shrugged. "How do you think I managed to keep up with wrestling men in Japan?"
"Good point," he conceded, "But how do you think you would have faired against me?"
At this, Asuka had to fight a rising blush. But she was too intrigued by his challenge to melt into goo like some demure schoolgirl.
"Perhaps we should find out sometime."
Shinsuke grinned, his face taking on a fox-like quality that caused her heart rate to pick up. "Sounds like fun~"
Hours later they both caught the same plane flying out to Orlando, Florida where they both resided. They were able to be seated nearby, but not close enough where they could easily converse. She was instead seated next to Kofi. Though the other man was great company, she still couldn't help but miss spending time with Shinsuke.
She only had to endure a few hours however before they were reunited and she drove him home first before she went home herself.
He thanked her profusely for allowing him to travel with her and room with her.
"Iie," she replied giving him a radiant smile.
"May I see your phone?"
Asuka blinked in confusion, but nonetheless handed over her phone. She watched as he pulled out his own phone and tapped something into it. A few moments after he returned her phone, it pinged with a text message. She looked down at the screen, reading:
-Here is my number. Yeaoh~ -
The bird in her chest fluttered to life again.
"If you need anything at all, at any time, you can call me." he said with a seriousness that told her that he meant every word.
"H-Hai," she agreed, her voice coming out embarrassingly timid to her ears. She thanked him and they exchanged goodbyes, then she drove home.
That evening, Asuka tried to appreciate her small reprieve from life on the road. She attempted to enjoy a simple dinner, then some video games. When that didn't work, she tried her hand at finishing some artwork she had started last time she was home. None of it was working. She just felt too restless to find anything entertaining or to accomplish anything productive. Her unwanted raincloud had returned with a vengeance.
The only thing she succeeded in doing was continually picking up her phone to stare at Shinsuke's text, his words echoing through her head.
She wanted to reach out to him badly; it was almost like a need. But she was also afraid to.
It wouldn't do at all if she came off as too needy. She couldn't bother him every time she had a hardship. No she could endure this on her own.
Sleep was elusive once again.
Author's note: If you haven't seen the gem of Shinsuke and Ishii trying not to lose it over Yoshi-Hashi's promo in New Japan, then you MUST google "Yoshi-Hashi Promo" and click on the Twitter link that pops up entitled "LARIATOOOO! on Twitter: "No idea what YOSHI-HASHI said that was ..."
As for Asuka's moment with Tajiri, the first time I watched it, I believed it was a mop (but after watching it a second time I believe it is something more like a a sort of Japanese religious tool used to exorcise evil spirits called a "haraigushi"). But for the purpose of this fic I decided to keep it as a mop because it would match the humor of Shin's story much easier that way. If you want to watch that video, search "Kana vs Tajiri" on YouTube and click on the video entitled "TAJIRI&YAGO&OHKA vs KANA&SHIRAI SISTERS - SMASH.14"
Honestly since seeing Asuka as a heel as Kana has me curious to see her as a heel along with heel Shinsuke. I think they both really rock being heels.