Title: Flowers

Pairing: Aizawa/Shiraishi

Summary: In which a wedding and a bouquet of flowers troubled Aizawa much more than he could ever imagine.

Note: I don't know why I enjoyed torturing Aizawa so much, really. This has been sitting in my draft for over a month and I could finally finish this. Enjoy reading!

The evening was one many of their acquaintances anticipated; indeed, it was a very special day. To finally be able to witness the occasion was very satisfying after all the hardships the couple got through and experience. Come to think of it, sometimes it seemed so unfair as one after another misfortunes happened to them. Now, he supposed, they're going to be alright, as the purpose of getting married was not to be happy, but to actually get through tough times together.

Aizawa was happy for them, truly, but he's second-guessing himself. If only Fujikawa would be normal for once. Well in his most important day he decided to get the most privilege out of it, of course, he had to be himself and have fun (or annoy, according to Aizawa) with his comrades in lifesaving. How he get Saejima-Fujikawa Haruka to comply and help him complete this feat was still a mystery, surely love did wonders. Aizawa's kind of scared he's going to be such a fool if he did experience love.

But inside the deepest part of his heart, he knew he's already a fool anyway.

Clatters of glasses meeting each other echoed around the hall as it accompanied the murmurs of the people enjoyed the food served in front of them. A simple but elegant flower decoration sat on the middle of each table, enlightening the guests without being too overwhelming. A very nice band humor the wedding as the singer's enchanting voice soothingly accompanied the dinner celebration. The reception was very enjoyable, both to the guests and the groom and bride.

"Now, this is the time all the single ladies had been waiting for! The wedding bouquet toss!" The master of ceremony announced that it was the time for the Bride to toss her bouquet but this time someone must have decided to put a twist on it, "Well, it is such a rare opportunity for all the doctors and nurses to be gathered here and hereby we announce that everyone single --as in unmarried-- ladies and gentlemen should take part in this festivity! Aizawa-sensei, you are not to leave this room, special request from the groom."

The last sentence caught the guests off-guard and they laughed happily. Aizawa found Fujikawa who stood in the dais grinning from ear-to-ear, with the look in his eyes saying "You better comply! This is your very fine comrade's wedding!" with Saejima smiling widely beside him and Aizawa could only sigh in defeat. He supposed him not taking part in complying the groom's request would be too impolite. They've known each other for more than 9 years, yes, and Aizawa would not be so cruel as to leave the wedding hall just like that. He's better than that.

He found himself near the center of the room but as he was not too excited he tried to be as far away as possible to the dais. He observed the participants quietly with his usual stern gaze and impassive face. He was a little bit unnerved when he spotted Shiraishi unexpectedly stood in the front albeit her slightly embarrassed expression, it seemed to him that Hiyama dragged her there even when she didn't feel like it.

At second glance, Aizawa could not help but notice how stunning she looked that evening. A navy halter-neck chiffon dress that showed her prominent collarbones hugged her body in all the right places, silver long-earrings and necklace adorned her already beautiful complexion and to top it off, her silver stilettos made her goddess-like posture more apparent.

He thought he knew she was pretty. Even in her scrubs he knew she's one of the most beautiful doctors in Shohoku as people from other departments sometimes visited the ER without so much of an important purpose.

Tonight, realisation dawned in him that apparently, she was ethereal.

Getting himself out of his trance, he blinked hard, twice, as to remind himself that he must try to be as inconspicuous as possible. It was not the time to admire Shiraishi's beauty and be awestruck (he had plenty of other chances, to be honest). He didn't want any unnecessary attention to him after that announcement by the MC.

The preparation for the toss took quite some time and Aizawa decided to calm himself by getting another drink from the bar (he had already lost count how many drinks he's got that evening as he's actually not too fond of such events). He took a random drink and gulped the content in one go, barely realized that it was the strongest alcohol served. It'd take a little bit more than that to make him drunk, but he knew he's bound to act slightly different.

When he decided to return near the center of the room, he noticed that the bouquet was already halfway up in the air and it was headed towards the general direction of him. He panicked, then looked around his surrounding but his stomach dropped as nobody else was near the vicinity but him. Fate was really playing with him, it seemed, as the bouquet landed on his hand perfectly like it was always meant to be there.

"Congratulations! We have a receiver of the bouquet, a good-looking young man nonetheless! Please do come up front!" was all Aizawa could hear before all the guests cheered up and applauded, stirring quite a commotion. The state of his mind was blank, he could come up with nothing thinking about what to do about the bouquet of flowers in his hand. With heavy steps, he absent-mindedly approached the dais.

Halfway through the journey he came across Hiyama who had a full smirk plastered on her face, commenting "Aizawa! I never thought you'd be this complying!" and Shiraishi who only let out a small laugh, and as their eyes meet, he felt a rush of blood crept up his neck. He averted his gaze and quicken his steps to get past them as fast as he could.

Let's just get this over with, was all his brain could resolve. He had never felt so out of it before, so clueless, always having the ability to control his feelings and the situation he would be exposed to. This was so not him. If it was say, 10 years ago, he'd get out of the damned hall the second the bouquet toss was announced without so much of a second-thought. But now he supposed he's different, for the better he had grown, and that was because the people he encountered. He didn't expect to change this much but apparently the people around him had that great of an influence, and he would not have it any other way.

Before he knew it, he was already at the dais albeit not knowing what to do to help himself. He supposed he'd stop thinking altogether as his thoughts right then were mostly incoherent anyway.

"So to whom do we owe the congratulations for..?" was the first question asked by the MC as Aizawa tried to compose himself.

"Aizawa," he answered with his usual stoic face, trying to look as neutral as possible. All the other guests murmured in excitement, some were surprised more than anything and some were amused, especially all of his acquaintances from the hospital, knowing that this was a very rare chance to see the usually calm and collected doctor let loose.

"Ah, so this is the infamous Aizawa-sensei! Congratulations for catching the bouquet! Please do say a few words for the Groom and the Bride first!"

Aizawa cleared his throat and he started, "...Fujikawa, congratulations. I hope you guys would be stronger each day, together, getting through every ups and downs in this life. Saejima, please do control your husband and do not be too influenced by him," with that remark the room was filled with twinkling laughter, a sensation of warmth grew upon the room, penetrating the insides of many souls.

"...he totally had rubbed off on you, hence why I'm holding the bouquet now," he continued, half-jokingly speaking as he furrowed his eyebrows. Then he decided it was enough words from him and he put down the microphone he hold. Letting out another sigh, his gaze fell upon his sweaty palms. He felt that his dress-shirt tightened around him as sweat emerged on his back and nape. The room was too hot, he concluded, because he was not that nervous, was he?

"Well, don't you have a very nice bond there, doctors? Fujikawa-sensei, do relay your words of congratulations for the bouquet catcher!"

Fujikawa took the microphone eagerly, mirroring his amusement evident on his face and then he started talking, "Alright Aizawa, you do realize the consequences of catching the bouquet, right?" He momentarily stopped, trying to catch a sight at his fellow doctor and smiled genuinely, truly wishing his friend the best inside his heart, and he continued, "We hope to hear good news from you soon!" and that leaded the guests to clap their hands in glee, agreeing on the groom's statement. The bride habitually nudged her husband's stomach as to remind him not to go overboard, though slightly weak compared to the other time she had ever done it, like it was only a formality.

Before the MC let Aizawa off the dais, Fujikawa held his gaze on Aizawa, and as their eyes meet, he tried to convey his utmost concern for his friend that he truly meant what he said and could only hope his message got through him. The neurosurgeon probably understood what the orthopedic specialist meant but as usual he gave not much of a reaction, only replying the gaze with his strong one.

With the pretty flower bouquet in his hands, Aizawa walked off the dais carefully. He still hadn't thought of what to do with the newest addition of his belongings that day. It was still too mind-boggling to him, surreal, that he accepted the bouquet. Once he's quite far from the eyes of people, he let out an inaudible sigh, eyeing the frilly flowers with confusion. He decided he needed a breath of fresh air to clear his head and sobered up a little and he walked out of the wedding hall, trying to find a place he could enjoy tranquility for a while. He found a balcony not too far from the hall and decided to settle there.

The view from the balcony was serene. From his point of view, he could see the landscape of the garden designed on the wedding venue complex. The square bushes formed some sort of a small maze, creating a path towards a large green open-space probably for garden parties with decorative trees surrounding the area (which came close as a second choice for today's wedding but the bride couldn't stand the uncertainty of the weather thus ultimately decided on the wedding hall). Such moment of peace was rarely felt as his life mostly consisted of the emergency lifesaving and operations, not that he hated it, in fact, he liked the adrenaline rush very much. But sometimes (just sometimes), he liked those moments of tranquility on the helipad he get to enjoy with Shiraishi, making small talks sharing one or two canned drinks, or when they met somewhere along the hospital halls, only both of them, when the night engulfed them.

Aizawa leaned his hands on the balcony steel railing, hunched his back a little low after loosening the tie around his neck and unbuttoned his white dress-shirt collar button. The bouquet of flowers was still in hands, and right then he fixated his gaze on it. If a stare could kill, the flowers would be all expired by that time. It was pretty indeed, but for all the genius cells of his brain, he could not make anything smart to make of it. What flashed for a second in his brain would probably made him embarrassed of himself if he's in the right state of mind.

A sound of heels clicking on the floor startled him, and when he looked back, he let out a relieved sigh as it was only Shiraishi that disturbed his moment of serenity. He didn't knew why he could not manage to look her in the eye. He wouldn't like to admit it, but the state of him that day was not one he's too proud of sharing with people, especially her. But she already joined him on the balcony so he would have to face her sooner or later.

The night breeze passed by them, caressing their skin, as if it was trying to soothe the troubled man. From his peripheral vision, he could see her hair was softly ruffled by the wind, and he knew she enjoyed it as she closed her eyes to take in the feeling of the night. As she closed her eyes, he turned his gaze towards her and noticed her attire that was apparently not fitting for the chilly night (according to him) so he took off his suit jacket and put it on her shoulders carefully. The gesture surprised the female flight-doctor slightly and she opened her eyes.

She smiled knowingly towards him, mustering a small "Thank you," before turning her head towards the landscape once again. The silence engulfing them was comfortable, one they both thoroughly enjoyed. She noticed the bouquet of flowers on his hand and laughed to herself.

"Who would've thought that you'll be the one getting the flowers tonight?" she joked lightly, trying to lighten his mood a little.

"Um. Shiraishi," he turned his head towards her, all seriousness in his face, look at her straight in the eyes, finally mustering the courage to speak what he had been thinking.

She turned her attention towards him completely, reciprocating his gaze. He cleared his throat, feeling a little bit edgy, because what if she didn't want it, what if she's too ashamed, what if--

"Kosaku, tell me what's on your mind," she gripped his left arm strongly, assuring him that she would listen to what he's going to say, that she's not going anywhere. She sensed his distress when she observed him. He was never this shaken, his expression so troubled. It confused her because being the worrier was her job, not his.

"Should we move up the date? Or should we tell them right now, about our wedding, that is." Puzzled as to why the thought crossed his mind, she questioned him silently as she tilted her head. He turned his head towards the flowers and as she followed his track of sight realisation hit her. This time, she laughed a little louder than before and that made the neurosurgeon flustered, not knowing what to do he crossed his arms in front of his chest and tilted his neck left and right.

"You know I'd be fine anyway, really. If that's what you want, sure, let's move up the date," with a hint of playfulness she replied. "It shouldn't be later than six months after today, right?" She winked, pestering him deliberately because it was such a rare moment for Aizawa Kosaku to be so troubled. The male widened his eyes and he buried his face in his free hands, shielding away his embarrassed self.

"But you know, we should do everything in our own pace, right?" she untangled his hand from his face to make him face her once again, "and I am Megumi to you, when we're alone."

Feeling a lot more composed after knowing her response, he couldn't help but smile at the woman in front of him, the only one who could comfort him with her mere presence. "Yes, I know, and I'm sorry, that was out of habit," he chuckled, knowing he was too much of a wreck just because of a bouquet of flowers. He knew that this moment would come and haunt him at later times, but he's alright with that, because he got to marry the love of his life sooner than planned. But he's still not too sure if he'd gladly to thank the Fujikawas, though.

(more) Notes: I hope you all enjoyed flustered-Aizawa! Do leave reviews and feedback (prompts are also very welcome!) With this one-shot I'm announcing my plans to write an Aizawa/Shiraishi college!AU. I've written the first chapter already but I need to tweak it a little bit more and in between also write for Scrubs and Four Seasons so do expect and wait for it! In the mean time, do check out those mentioned! Thank you and have a nice day, everyone!