The Same Deep Water As You (Ficlet #1): Drive Me Home

[haikuesque.livejournal.com]

Title: Drive Me Home
Universe: The Same Deep Water As You
Word count: c. 3,200
Rating: Teen
Disclaimer: This is a work of fiction.
Warnings: If there are warnings for this story, you can find them here.
Notes: This is the first of the 'request ficlets' we promised way back when. Slightly later than we announced in April because life came and whammied us with life things, but now we should be back on track.
Requested by: krystal_32206 and sakurascorpion, who wanted to know about Jin getting back in touch with his family. This is how it happens.

( "Hello," he says, because he thought about everything and decided that 'I'm back' would be too much. )
 

Comments

[vrmachina.livejournal.com]

Oh God!!!! First of all, thank you so much for this!!!! ^___^
I was always wondering how it would go with Jin's parents! It was...intense!!!! I literally held my breath while reading some parts!!!!!! Can we hope for a follow up soon??

[haikuesque.livejournal.com]

You weren't the only one wondering, we had two people request it! ^^ Intense... yeah. In a not very nice way. Poor Jin. But we're happy that you found it suspenseful! Thank you! :D

[fragile-melodia.livejournal.com]

Been waiting for this for ages ehm..
Guess you are gonna make thursday my most favorite day of week again! ;)
Honestly can´t wait for next.
I feel sorry for Jin but everything can´t be perfect.
See you next week!

[haikuesque.livejournal.com]

Sorry about the wait!
We don't promise an update every Thursday from now! But they should be coming quicker than they did. :)
Yeah, poor Jin. But such is life.

See you... soon! >_>

[sakurascorpion.livejournal.com]

Thank you SO MUCH for writing this!!! It was epically well-written as usual. I was holding my breath right along with Jin and feeling his butterflies and nausea when he did.
I am so glad Taro at least cares for Jin. I hope he gets to have some type of relationship with him.
Thank you again! Can't wait to read the next one :D

[haikuesque.livejournal.com]

I was holding my breath right along with Jin and feeling his butterflies and nausea when he did.

:DDDD We are pleased to hear that!

Yes, there's hope with Taro. Jin will do his best to keep that contact going.

[abyssinian13.livejournal.com]

that was a tense and all the things uncomfortable and probably painful reunion for jin, glad kame was there for him at the end..and at least his brother/s (one more than the other) likes him and want to keep in touch..
and i need to brush up on my "the same deep waters as you" history, i kinda forgot about jin's family here (and i kinda got my stories all mixed up in my head..at first i was like, jin only has one brother, right? --baka me), maybe i'll do that this weekend to keep up with the following fics to this..

thanks for sharing!!!

[souleater-angel.livejournal.com]

ASDFFJGHGKJHGJK;GKG;LDKGS I'M SO EXCITED YOU'VE STARTED POSTING THESE OMGSH I'VE SERIOUSLY BEEN LOOKING FOR THIS FOR LIKE THE PAST FOUR WEEKS OKAY I WILL BE BACK.

[souleater-angel.livejournal.com]

Aww first one and it's left on a sad/bittersweet note.

I mean, if Jin hadn't got kicked out, he never would've met Kame, and therefore never got his job, so in that respect, Jin is incredibly lucky. But still...

Jin's no longer out there, a threat to the family's reputation because there's nobody who cooks him tortellini and warms his feet at night and drives him to see people who hate him and waits in a dingy coffee shop in some run-down corner of Chiba for him.

I literally went all "awwww" at this just cuz Kame is so awesomely sweet, and knows just what to do for Jin and how to be there for him.

My boss whined to my boyfriend, Jin thinks.

I cracked up picturing this. It's not hard at all to picture a whiny Koki whining to Kame. XD.

As much better as I wish it would have gone, Jin didn't leave there with things no better. I really think Taro will definitely keep in regular contact with Jin and once he moves out I think they could become a regular part of each other's lives. And that's something.

And in the end Jin will always have Kame.

Thanks so much for this!! Again I'm so excited! Can't wait for the next one! :)

[haikuesque.livejournal.com]

I mean, if Jin hadn't got kicked out, he never would've met Kame, and therefore never got his job, so in that respect, Jin is incredibly lucky.

Yes. Bright side, let's keep track of the bright side. That's what Jin is doing! XD

And he will definitely always have Kame. (And yes, Taro is a very distinct possibility. :)

Glad you liked it! :DD

[ttalktomesoftly.livejournal.com]

I swear my heart stopped when I saw the "The Same Deep Water As You" subject line in my inbox ajbdalbdlabdabsdbasdlb ;_________;

I feel really bad for Jin :< But at least he's got Taro and Kame and maybe Hisato in the distant future? :P

Anyway, this was awesome and you are awesome and now I want to read the whole fic again but I was planning to read 9 1/2 weeks again this week so no, this one will have to wait :P

[haikuesque.livejournal.com]

Taro for sure. Mmmmmm...maybe Hisato. :)

Aw, thank you. :) We're happy you enjoyed it. And have fun with 9 1/2 weeks!

[ttalktomesoftly.livejournal.com]

Okay, I won't get my hopes up too high for Hisato then :P

I surely will :P

[cagnurit.livejournal.com]

I moved to tears, again and again ;______;

When Jin had talked to all of his family and the conversations with his parents was so painful, it hurts ;______; Then I thought it became brighter with a little bit concern from Hisato and Jin's (somewhat slightly playful?) remark of his boss/his boyfriend, the pain strikes as hard when they talked about New Year's cards (oh my, just that detail gets me so bad ;______;). And Jin cried. You once said to me (http://haikusociety.livejournal.com/25852.html?thread=864252#t864252), I should have prepared for this, but this is so so sad. Jin is fairly mentally stable, and he holds his family dear, and he knows what to expect, but still... ;_____; So I'm really glad for the warmness from Taro <3

[haikuesque.livejournal.com]

;___; We're happy we moved you to tears, in a guilty sort of way.

(We also have to say we're pretty impressed that you remember something we said ages ago! *__*)

We always knew that the family would remain a problem, there are no easy solutions there. It could be that 20 years down the line, things will have improved (the dad doesn't hate Jin, he's just weak), but for now, this is what it is. Yes, Taro, that's the little bright spot. :) Jin will keep that going.

[chinchin0206.livejournal.com]

I still love this verse. Jin is so fagile but resilient.

[haikuesque.livejournal.com]

Yes, fragile and resilient is a perfect description of the SDW Jin. Glad you're enjoying it! ^^

[cagnurit.livejournal.com]

When I saw your comment, my thought immediately was "What an accurate and clever choice of words!".

[ame-iro.livejournal.com]

I was just thinking yesterday, "Oh, I wonder when they'll post again, I'm so looking forward to it!" and here you are. :)

As always, thank you for sharing. I was admittedly curious about Jin visiting his family (although with his past I thought he'd never agree to going back home), to see if his mother/father had mended their ways a bit at least... It was an ache to read of the unresolved tension and see his hope shattering. I'm happy about Taro, though. As Kame said, he's got a little common sense at least :(

Poor Jin. I understand what it feels like for your family not to want you because of something you can't change, even though you'd like to...( a friend of mine is in the same situation and it's terrible and educating at the same time to stand by her). It's awful and angering and a pain. I'm just glad Kame's there whenever Jin needs him :)

They are really special in SDWY :D Love 'em to bits.

Thank you and I'm really looking forward to the next ficlet. :)

[haikuesque.livejournal.com]

although with his past I thought he'd never agree to going back home

The SDW Jin is way too forgiving sometimes. >_> (And sometimes that's just as well, or he and Kame wouldn't have gotten far. *g*)

Yes, Jin always has Kame, and that makes a huge difference. Sorry to hear about your friend, that must be awful. She's lucky to have you!

[lieben-kame.livejournal.com]

AWWWWW DUDE I haven't this been tense reading a fic since that chapter when Kame tied him to the bed and blindfolded him, ick. o_e;; Oh my laaawd. Amazing he would even go back at all, I sure as hell wouldn't, but he's a lot stronger than I am anyways.

He thought he was ready, he's got a boyfriend and a career and he's mature about this, but suddenly he's ten years old and there's nothing left in his brain.

I don't think ANYONE would be ready for this kind of situation, I mean, you can't be. ^^;; It's so unpredictable. And what strikes me the most is that, out of everything he's been through being a prostitue and all, visiting home seems more of an awkward, uncomfortable experience and that's really sad. ._. And I can't believe HE apologized to his father, when, wasn't his father the one that hit his bf first? HE should be apologizing to Jin. >_>;; Jin could have died out there in the streets just like his friend and they wouldn't have given a flying fish about it and it makes me sooo angry to see them treat him like this like HE did something wrong, like this is all HIS fault and AKJDSJKADHKSAD. Shitty parents are shitty.



He's starting to feel like a visiting uncle.

Jin smiles, ignores Hisato's squirm, his mother's icy stare.

Jin keeps his eyes on that, on someone who likes him

You could cut the silence into hard little pieces.



Thank GOODNESS for Taro, honestly, he is a god send and innocent and I feel bad he's gonna be stuck in that house for awhile, too bad he can't move in with Jin. XD I'm not sure what to make of Hisato. At least he tried talking to Jin, but he didn't seem very grateful for the gifts or generally very friendly or like he wants him there. Not sure why Jin continues to buy him things.

And seriously, Jin's Mom folding her hands and waiting for him to leave, can I go after her with the chainsaw? >_>;;

He just... hoped. It's okay and he's fine but he still had hope.

I totally lost it when he cried, because I don't recall him crying over anything in SDW, but his stupid, horrible, evil mother being the one to make him so upset just really breaks my heart. ;_; That's the kind of wound that will never heal, no matter how sweet Kame is, no matter how happy they'll be in the future. Nothing can make the fact that your mother hates you any better.

BUT AT LEAST THERE'S TARO. <33 And Kame being a perfect sweetie. :) He better go buy Jin a chocolate cake cause that makes everything a little brighter. And give him kisses. Lots and lots of kisses. :DD

Anyway, great job writing this and making it so real! I hope the other ones aren't as sad, ahaha.

[haikuesque.livejournal.com]

And what strikes me the most is that, out of everything he's been through being a prostitue and all, visiting home seems more of an awkward, uncomfortable experience and that's really sad.

Yeah. :( His clients weren't important to him, so that was uncomfortable in a different way. His parents still are important, so they can hurt him more.

And I can't believe HE apologized to his father, when, wasn't his father the one that hit his bf first?

Yes and no. The dad shoved Naoki in a general melée of screaming and drama, which was NOT NICE and Jin found it threatening enough he hit his dad. And also... you don't hit your dad. :-) It's probably bad everywhere but the more respect-your-elders the culture, the worse that is. That was probably the main reason why Jin didn't think being kicked out was utterly unreasonable - he did feel in the wrong about that. Not that he cared much, initially, but if he's trying to re-establish relations, he feels he should apologize for the mistakes he made. (Not that it got him anything.)

Yes, he'll have Taro! :) As for Hisato... there might be room for development. >_> Hisato's not a bad guy, he just isn't terribly impressed with Jin either, and, well, he's kind of used to his parents' approval and feels loyal to them, and Jin's a troublemaker who has icky gay sex. He might still grow up. *g*

They won't all be as sad, no. Only the ones where people asked for sad topics. >_>

[lieben-kame.livejournal.com]

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<It's probably bad everywhere but the more respect-your-elders the culture, the worse that is. That was probably the main reason why Jin didn't think being kicked out was utterly unreasonable - he did feel in the wrong about that.</i>

I get that, thanks for clarifying what happened! :) Though I don't personally think hitting your Dad is enough of a reason to be kicked out, but yeah, I understand Jin's reasoning.

<i>he's kind of used to his parents' approval and feels loyal to them, and Jin's a troublemaker who has icky gay sex. </i>

Ha ha, the last bit made me laugh, but yeah, I understand this too. :)

[sablenoir4.livejournal.com]

advance apologies for the fail!comment - just no brain. but wanted to say i read this. and thank you. a good one to start with, something you could really get your teeth into. even if i do feel whammied by it. while v aware that the 'master manipulators' [i must think of a more flattering term here, idek, forgive me, meanwhile?] are back. and that this is so your intention. but i won't hold a grudge [XDD].

it's pretty much all there, the pain, the carefulness, jin keeping himself safe, not wanting to hope, yet hoping [do we ever really stop hoping?]. and the lethal dad doesn't care / mum can't stand him. brutally put, as we fill in the years of rejection, that had jin thrown on the shit heap, as he had been. brutal as it should be. passivity or rancour - killers, both. [but, oh, rage against this society]. yeay for taro and loyalty. yet, they're all so damaged, so no stones thrown at the other two. and kame being there, holding jin when he breaks. sniff. and driving him home. home. oh god, yes..

it'll be fascinating following these ficlets [lol, ficlets for you=fics for a lot of us, ha]. they could lead out in all directions. will they all be this intense? i imagine not. and for your sakes, i hope not! tho' this felt so very thoroughly exorcising for jin, it must have been good to write. not easy. but good, dammit.

thank you both. i like that you feel we can take this. even in the SDWAY world. that your writing's this unvarnished. honest. am i making sense even?? right, i'm gone. XD

[haikuesque.livejournal.com]

Yes, we totally meant to whammy you. Wham. :) So we're delighted all those things you mention worked for you.

We noticed that 'ficlet' is perhaps not the most appropriate description for these things. >_> But you're right, they will lead in plenty of directions and cover quite a timeframe, too.

i like that you feel we can take this.

Um. Unfeeling that we are, we really didn't spare much thought to how readers could handle this. We just knew that it would be this way so we wrote it this way. Um. >_>

Thank you for this cool comment!

[ismera91.livejournal.com]

yah I loved it :) thank you so much for writing this, you totally made my day. 'The same deep water as you' is my all time favourite fic (I think I have read like 3 times already from start to end)...this was just so great thank you thank you thank you :)

[haikuesque.livejournal.com]

Wow, 3 times already? That's a lot of reading - one of us read the entire thing through again in preparation for starting on the ficlets, and it took... a while!

We're happy that you liked this, too. It was quite a change for us to revisit the universe.

Thank you for commenting!

[krystal-32206.livejournal.com]

Kyaaaaa!!! SDW ficlet!!!! (((o(*ﾟ▽ﾟ*)o)))

Gawd! I really felt sorry and uncomfortable for Jin with his own mom treating him like a stranger. At least there's Taro. His parents and Hisato were sooo judging him. Definitely an awkward visit...glad Jin's not gonna do that again. Maybe he'll just meet Taro somewhere else because he deserves a treat for being a good brother to Jin.

Thanks so much for this!! Looking forward to more ficlets coz I can never seem to let go of this (SDW)verse..

[haikuesque.livejournal.com]

\o/

Yes, Jin will meet Taro elsewhere, he's not going back to that house. The thing with Taro will develop slowly (because he still has to live at home) but nicely. :)

More ficlets are in the works!

[infynitehexes.livejournal.com]

So it was so good that I had to stop for a few moments because what Jin was going through was too painful to read all at once. It's amazing that even though I've read TSDWaY ages ago, this ficlet made me remember all those emotions as if I've just read it in the wee hours this morning. Thanks for writing this. /hearts

[haikuesque.livejournal.com]

So it was so good that I had to stop for a few moments because what Jin was going through was too painful to read all at once.

Thank you, that's a great compliment. ♥ We're also happy that the story brought back some of the other SDW emotions. Thank you for letting us know.

[prologuesized.livejournal.com]

Asdfghjk it's been so long since The Same Deep Water posts ;;____;

Jin's no longer out there, a threat to the family's reputation because there's nobody who cooks him tortellini and warms his feet at night and drives him to see people who hate him and waits in a dingy coffee shop in some run-down corner of Chiba for him
;;---------; *sniff* Well, as painful as the encounter is... Jin's actually doing okay. He's found warmth and someone who loves and accepts him. He's not completely discarded, he's got new loved ones. And at least one of his brothers seems interested in contacting him! That's good. Great even.

I'd like to say that this was sweet, but it's actually only partially so. Anyway. I enjoyed it. :3

[haikuesque.livejournal.com]

Well, as painful as the encounter is... Jin's actually doing okay.

Yes, he is. He has his own family now, and while he'd like to be on good terms with his parents, he doesn't need them.

I'd like to say that this was sweet, but it's actually only partially so.

That works for us! ^^ Thank you!

[http://users.livejournal.com/___clash/]

Oh dear, this is so sad! Poor, poor little Jin, I feel terrible for him, having to go through that wretched awkward attempt at a family reunion ;__; Still, I'm glad he did. I think he's done the right thing, and he got to reconnect with his cute little brother, and they all managed at least some measure of civility, so that's good. Even if it was obviously very painful, at least some good came out of it! ^^

And Kame... he's just adorable *___* I'm so glad he was there for Jin, and that bit when Jin thinks about him, cooking pasta and waiting for him in Chiba, is just so sweet and homely and I really, really loved it. I kept going back to it because it was... I don't know. Warm, I guess. Softer than the rest ;__;

And your writing is as beautiful as ever *___* I love that you can make tragedy read calm even while Jin sounds nervous. I think it should when it's something like this, something that's been hanging over Jin for years. A duller kind of pain, I suppose ^^;;

[haikuesque.livejournal.com]

I think he's done the right thing

Yes, that was kind of important to him.

and he got to reconnect with his cute little brother

An excellent outcome and one he's very glad of.

and they all managed at least some measure of civility

LOL, yes. Utter civility. Brrrr.

Kame is the soft chewy centre of the story. ;p

A duller kind of pain

Hm, we like this description! ^^

[akiracheng.livejournal.com]

This is possibly the best thing to find on a Friday evening after a long week!

And the possibility of more to come! I shall have to check LJ diligently from now on.

Anyway...
So, I always thought Jin's dad was the antagonist in the family, but here it seems dad's just voicing mum's thoughts and it's mum who dictates whether Jin is accepted or not...Really nice to see Hisato thaw out a little and Taro is really cute. I hope when he's a little older and more independent he can go visit Jin and meet Kame. I wonder is Kame would be as paranoid as meeting Jin's kids in 9 1/2 weeks or whether enough time would have passed that he would have mellowed out.

Loved it!

[haikuesque.livejournal.com]

So, I always thought Jin's dad was the antagonist in the family, but here it seems dad's just voicing mum's thoughts and it's mum who dictates whether Jin is accepted or not.

Dad was the one Jin had the actual fight with, but the mother is the one who decided that this led to him being thrown out, and who wouldn't speak to him on the phone (when the dad did, if only vaguely and briefly). The mother is a) very conscious of what the neighbours will think of her OMG GAY SON (if he's left to be gay) and also, she really holds the fact that Jin attacked his dad (her husband!) against him. She bears grudges.

I hope when he's a little older and more independent he can go visit Jin and meet Kame. I wonder is Kame would be as paranoid as meeting Jin's kids in 9 1/2 weeks or whether enough time would have passed that he would have mellowed out

He'll definitely be able to visit them. Not right now, because while they're doing don't-ask-don't-tell in general, bringing Taro in on an open secret when there are hostile parents involved... he's still a bit too young. But when he's a bit older, he'll definitely visit, and we don't think Kame would be very paranoid because in contrast to 9 1/2 weeks, he and Jin will have been together for quite a while then -- they'll feel quite secure in their commitment to each other, while in 9 1/2 weeks, that whole thing was still very new.

Glad you loved it! ♥

[sheenalinh.livejournal.com]

Ah. Thank you for this. I do miss Same Deep Water As You universe. As their relationship has just officially started, there must be up and down moments. It made this universe more real and intriguing to read on

[haikuesque.livejournal.com]

Yes, you're right, up and down moments. This is a bit of a downer, but having Kame is the upside in any case. We hope you like the other ficlets too, when we get around to posting them! :)

[thesecretdoor.livejournal.com]

I should have told you guys a thousand times (or at least more than I did) how much I love this series. It's the most insanely epic and intense fic I've ever read and I'm really thankful for all the time and effort you put into it, and that you shared it with us all. Also thank you for the ficlets, they're a great idea and I'm really looking forward to what you come up with for some of the other requests!

Reading this one about broke my heart. I was really curious after the series ended about whether Jin would get back in touch with his family, I'm glad he did in the end, at least he may be able to salvage something with one of his brothers. I kind of expected it would go like this, after all Jin's parents have already shown so far how unreasonable they are but it was still really sad to read it, with Jin putting in the effort and all, and that spark of hope he had T_T It was the right outome though. It was perfect. Thank you for sharing.

[haikuesque.livejournal.com]

I should have told you guys a thousand times (or at least more than I did) how much I love this series.

Tell us tell us tell us tell us teeeeeellllll uuuuuus! No, it's okay. :p

We're happy this one worked for you. It is kind of heartbreaking. :/ But yes, he had to get in touch with his family, he never gave up on his brothers even while he was still on the street or at the club, and he did also hope that maybe having a successful job now might change his parents' mind. Well.

We think it was the right outcome too (well, obviously..) so we're happy you feel that way. Thank you for telling us! :)

[shaorym.livejournal.com]

Finally, I’ve just re-read SDW so I’m ready to read the ficlet…what’s exactly a ficlet? I’ve looked it up but there is no such word in the dictionary. Anyway, whatever it is, if it’s about SDW it’ll be amazing! *__*

Although Jin is down-to-earth it’s understandable he still had hope. Everybody talks about mothers and their unconditional love, about how a mother will do anything for her children so when you have problems with your mother you always think you’ll make up sooner or later. I suppose it’s really hard and sad for Jin to realize that his mother’s love isn’t unconditional and she will never accept him T_T

Luckily, Jin has Kame now and I’m sure he gets along with his parents-in-law and Ran-chan very well. Eventually, he will be one more in the Kamenashi family (^_^)

Thank so much for this bonus. It’s always great to read your stories \(^o^)/

[haikuesque.livejournal.com]

So sorry that this is so late, Solo ran away to Japan for three weeks and we're behind with everything.

A ficlet... hm, it's like, fic being short for fiction, and ~let being a diminutive ending for the smaller version. Like pig and piglet. *g* So it's a little / short piece of fiction? You probably won't find it in any dictionary, but in fandom, it's fairly common. (Only it really means stories which are maybe 500 words long, not 5000-10,000 -- these were supposed to be 'ficlets' but they're really fully-grown stories. #fail)

I suppose it’s really hard and sad for Jin to realize that his mother’s love isn’t unconditional and she will never accept him T_T

Yes, it is. He knew she was pretty hardline against him and his sexuality, but he also maybe thought that after some time had passed and maybe she missed him, she might have mellowed. But he was wrong.

But like you say, he has Kame and Ran-chan and Kame's parents, and he has good friends and a good boss and nice colleagues. That'll just... be enough!

Thank you for commenting! ♥♥♥