Welcome to Apple Hair!
Usually, in the CANON, I explore creating a fictional universe with the hopes that you’ll follow along with your own world. Every fourth week, I’m releasing an AU story or an exclusive with one of the members of Apple Hair. This time, we have the sixth chapter of Onsen Boys! We’re following David and Seiya on their trip to Japan.
Want to read Onsen Boys from the very beginning? You can start here!
If you’re new here, Apple Hair is a fictional, Asian American boy band from Hawaiʻi. I’m Airen, and this particular short story draws on my experiences in Japan.
Welcome to the newsletter, and I’m excited to share this AU with you.
“Did it live up to your expectations?” I ask.
David dries his hair, again, in the locker room. We’re dressed again, and we have the place to ourselves. It felt a little sad to finally leave the silver springs. Nah. It was tragic.
“Oh, it was breathtaking,” David says. A bit more air than usual goes through his voice. It makes him cuter. Easier to tease.
“No, I was talking about my muscles tho’.”
He splutters, almost tripping on nothing. “Seiya, we’re not talking about that.”
“Yeah, all about the water,” I say, grinning as his cheeks pinken.
After exiting the locker room, I put my hand on David’s. We hold hands for a little while. Until we have to get our shoes from the locker outside.
As David laces up his shoes, his damn wet hair speaks to me. Asking me to draw it back. I tuck a strand behind his ear, and he leans into my touch a bit. We stay in the warmth until the onsen employee tells us very politely that we need to leave. Closing up for the night.
“I definitely know now the experience people are talking about,” David says, speaking quickly, almost like Corrin. “The bathing, the dipping in, relaxing. Wow. I can’t say anything bad about it. It was like I was in this separate dimension where it’s so natural, just a part of your day.”
“Not the naked men part then,” I say.
“Seiya!” David tries to smack my arms. Misses. Then he begins to laugh, as if the fumes from the onsen affected him. He doubles over in the middle of the street. When he finally gets a hold of himself, he says, “This is the vacation I needed. Before our debut. Thanks for coming along.”
I pat his back. Despite my teasing, he’s right. Our trip to the silver springs was magical, and it felt like such an intimate thing. To do with David. I save my jokes for later. Before he bans our trip to the golden springs.
“Hungry?” I ask him.
“Starving,” he says. “I heard about a Lawson nearby. Let’s go?”
“Let’s go,” I say. I stop myself. Another dirty joke about the onsen was about to fly out like a rogue buggah.
We walk the deserted streets. The cold eventually does enter my yukata. But the warmth from the onsen overtakes it. It makes it a little bother, not a huge thing like before. David hums our lead single from our debut EP, and I follow along, trying to harmonize. Eventually, we take a detour down a road toward Lawson, following its light like a beacon. We pass a little river by the underpass with a Christmas tree of lights sitting like an afterthought.
“I wonder if soaking makes you hungry?” David says. “That’s definitely what I feel now, like I could eat everything in sight.”
“Don’t mind me either as I go ham,” I say.
We split up at Lawson. I throw pastries into my basket, along with some hojicha lattes and instant ramen that looks good enough to be gourmet. Damn. I really let my hunger control me.
David meets me with his own basket. In it, I spy some spaghetti, an egg sandwich, and a rice bowl. I reach out and nuzzle his head. “We’re eating well tonight, bro.”
“Yes, bro,” David echoes, copying my little lilt. He really must be in a killer mood.
As we walk back, we decide to have a speed walk race. I win thanks to my slightly longer legs. At the apartment, we heat up water in our kettle—first thing. Then we sip on our lattes.
“I hope you’re having fun,” David says suddenly.
I put my cup down, half finished. “Yeah, I am. Isn’t it obvious?”
He gives me a small smile. “I always dreamed of this. For a long time, because of my parents, I thought I’d never find someone. They made me feel like I could never be loved, or that no one would want a contradiction like me.”
“You’re not a contradiction,” I say. “And I… felt the same way. I know our parents are different. Mine were more on the absent side. But the only thing that kept me hoping for love was Ami. She told me I’d find my person.”
“Do you really think it’s me?” David asks, almost as a murmur.
I take a glance at the food we spilled on the living room table, everything ready to be devoured. “That’s mad that you’d even ask me that. Yes. And if you doubt yourself again, I’m throwing you into the onsen. No cap.”
He laughs, taking another sip of his latte as he settles. “I’m certain that it’s you, too, Seiya. Not just because I’ve seen everything now.”
“So it was impress—”
“Shut up,” he says. He wrinkles his nose, but I can tell he wants to burst into laughter. Like a madman.
We dig into our food. David compliments the ramen, which ends up tasting restaurant-quality. “It’s ’cause I made it,” I say. After spaghetti and rice balls and so many pastries that we could burst, David opens a pack of green apple Hi Chews. “Something sweet,” he says, as if the red bean and mochi and danishes weren’t.
I gladly accept it. The green apple flavor reminds me of the first time Ami gave me a piece. How old was I? Six?
We wind down, and I turn off the lights. Our first night in Arima Onsen? A smashing success. Thanks to David—all thanks to David.
David murmurs something in his sleep. I remind myself before nodding off—this is just the beginning of our trip. Main event? Still to come.
Hey, it’s Airen again! Did you enjoy Onsen Boys? Leave a comment or jump into the Chat to talk about it!
If you missed the last post, you should definitely check it out here! It’s about the hard lessons I learned while indie publishing.
I can’t believe that Apple Hair has been with us for over half a year now!
Hope you enjoy reading the novel!