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Nagisa Shiota knew the moment his mother mentioned that he was, in fact, next in line to inherit a famous jewelry line; that his life was going to be a very, very boring one. He was not a next in line to a rich and royal family that had hundreds of years of history, not next in line to inherit a mafia family, not the son of famous musicians or actors; but born to a family that spent years studying and selling shiny rocks that people bought to decorate themselves. Not just shiny rocks, but very expensive shiny rocks.
Because studying fancy rocks was totally considered cool in school.
And that was probably why Nagisa didn’t go to school in the first place; instead, studying under a very old man (and when he said old, he meant old) who taught him about the importance of shiny rocks. And other stuff. But mostly the importance of shiny rocks.
Nagisa thought it was weird at first (because who wouldn’t?) but got used to it (gave up arguing against rocks) soon after he learned the basics. Plus he got to wake up late since his lessons were always held at two o’clock sharp. Cool.
But he soon learned that it wasn’t all fun in games in the jewelry world.
Nagisa was forced (literally forced, as in if you don't get into this car right now I will take away your diamond privileges) into attending a fancy little dinner held by his uncle, the current head of their family’s jewelry line. In short, the dinner had been awful because every single person there was showcasing their most extravagant pieces, which always reflected the very bright lights into his eyes whenever they moved.
Plus the diamonds his family harvested were way better than the ones those other families had. And no, he was totally not being biased. Totally.
And so, after a few more years under the tutelage of his very old tutor (which Nagisa has grown quite fond of), he was pushed right into the position of head manager in his family’s largest store in their Tokyo branch. Right at the ripe young age of twenty.
Apparently, the previous head manager was a total asshole and many of the employees there threw a ‘Fuck You!’ party disguised as a welcome party for him. But the employees still appreciated Nagisa enough because he was always there when a customer barged in and demanded a talk with the manager, which happened at least once a day.
They’ve actually gained a reputation for it, something they say with pride and a little exasperation.
It was a very sunny Saturday. The sky was devoid of clouds and a nice breeze blew just when you needed it to; the ideal day for a quiet walk in the park with your pet dog that you didn’t actually have.
Karma Akabane was a very wealthy young bachelor and also best friends with one of the most successful CEO’S of Japan, after him of course, Gakushuu Asano. The two had been reluctant roommates in college but soon grew on each other when they learned that no one was really willing to put up with either of their bullshit. And so, the Akabane-Asano Alliance (AAA) was created between the two CEO’s.
So when his dear Gakushuu Asano asked him to find a suitable gift for a ‘special someone’, Karma decided that he would be the best friend ever and buy the most expensive thing he could find; whether or not it was coming out of his pocket.
After wandering around, seemingly aimlessly to the eyes of the strangers, Karma’s eyes caught sight of a fancy looking building. He decided that the building was going to be the place where he could find the most expensive thing ever.
Opening the very shiny door of the building, Karma stepped in and surveyed the room. It was decorated exquisitely, filled with display cases holding pearl and diamond creations. There were a few customers walking around, some talking to employees while others simply gazed at the expensive-looking pieces of jewelry.
So it’s a jewelry store, Karma mused. It was the perfect place for Karma’s gift hunt– worthy of his presence. Surely Gakushuu’s special someone would like a piece of jewelry from such an elaborate place.
A sales executive approached him after a few minutes asking, “Would you like help finding anything today sir?”
Karma sent them his signature smile (the one he used to woo people, not scare them) and replied, “I would like to see your most expensive product.”
Their eyes widened and they blinked several times. “Oh! Um, I’m sure my boss will be willing to help you. He usually deals with these types of requests…” they replied. “I’ll call him over right now.” And then… they quickly fled.
Karma rolled his eyes and leaned on the display case quickly browsing the necklaces that fill them. He was pulled from his thoughts when he spotted the sales executive with a fairly attractive person, presumably the so-called ‘boss’. The executive whispered something to them and they nodded in return. They casually walked towards him as the executive trailed behind.
“Hello, my name is Nagisa Shiota. I’m the head manager of this store. Pleasure to meet you,” the person said. “You said you wanted to see the most expensive item here?”
Karma nodded and tugged on his tie out of habit. “Yeah, my friend wants a gift for someone. He’s the CEO of a really big company and I didn’t want to let him down you know?”
Shiota hummed. “Well, I can show you a few of our most expensive items. They’re towards the back of the store. Follow please.” Shiota nodded towards the executive and they returned to their previous location.
“Were you looking for something in particular?” Shiota asked. “We have quite the selection. Maybe we can help you narrow down your choices?”
“Nope! I’m just looking for something expensive and pretty,” Karma replied. He swore he heard the other snicker.
The head manager stopped in front of a display case. “This holds our most expensive collections. Were you planning on buying a single piece or a set?”
Karma gave them a blinding smile. “Whichever is more expensive!”
Shiota muttered something under their breath and continued, “This necklace is 20,520,000 yen, this is 23,753,000 yen, and this one is 25,460,00 yen. The first two I listed also have earrings and rings in their set, both sold separately, while the last one has another pair of earrings, also sold separately. If you want to spend your money that bad, then I would recommend either the second or last one listed.”
Karma stared. “That’s quite the amount of money for some shiny rocks.”
“That’s exactly what I said when I was little,” muttered Shiota under his breath.
After a few minutes of consideration Karma made his decision. “I’ll take all three sets,” he announced. “I’ll just let my friend decide which one he wants. Then I’ll take the other ones.”
Shiota stared at him before letting out a sigh and motioning him to follow. They walked towards a counter where three modern-looking cash registers sat. Shiota told an employee to ‘grab the three most expensive sets in the goddamn store’ (a direct quote) and she nodded, leaving behind a very exasperated Nagisa Shiota.
"I just need you to sign these papers and then you'll be all set to pay," Shiota said, quickly typing in some things on the cash register. Karma scribbled his name on the papers and handed them back.
"Slide your card and sign again please."
Karma followed the instructions directed at him. As he finished, the employee returned carrying three velvet boxes each displaying the store's logo. They handed them to Shiota and left.
Karma watched as the other quickly pulled out at bag and placed the boxes into it. The machine printed out a piece of paper and he slipped it into the bag as well. Looking up, Shiota said, "Thank you for shopping with us." He handed the bag to Karma and turned to leave.
"Wait!"
The other turned with a single eyebrow raised. Karma quickly pulled out one of the boxes and put it back on the counter. "This is for you. It matches your eyes." And with a wink, Karma zoomed out of the store leaving behind a very flustered Nagisa Shiota and a very expensive box.
As the man left, Nagisa really hoped that they realized their mistake. But after an hour of waiting, Nagisa was pretty sure Mr. Akabane wasn't coming back.
“Do you think he knows I’m male?” he asked an employee. They shrugged then turned to laugh into their arm. They ran off afterwards. ‘Guess they're not getting an employee of the month award…’
His employees would never leave him alone when they learned that Karma Akabane had just gifted him with the very set Nagisa had designed himself.
What a disaster.
"I was worried that you'd buy me a really expensive box of chocolates or a giant teddy bear, but this is quite the gift you got me," Gakushuu complemented. "I can't believe you actually took this job seriously."
Karma gasped in mock surprise. "I can't believe you would think of me that way! I'm your best friend!"
Gakushuu rolled his eyes. "Whatever. And where's the third box? You did said you bought three sets right?"
"I did buy three sets," Karma confirmed, "but I gave the other one to the place's manager 'cause she was really cute."
“And did you even get their name?”
Karma nodded. “Nagisa Shiota!”
“You mean, the Nagisa Shiota?” asked Gakushuu.
“There’s more than one?”
The other blinked and reached for one of the boxes. “Nagisa Shiota is the one who designed both of these sets and probably the one you gave him.” Gakushuu pointed to the name inside the box. “So there’s a good chance that you just gifted him with a copy of his own creation.”
Karma smirked and tried to wave the problem before pausing. “Well– wait what?”
“What what?”
“You said ‘him’? Nagisa’s a boy??”
They both stared at each other before Gakushuu dropped his head onto his desk and groaned. “Oh my fucking God Karma. I knew you were gonna screw up somehow.”
“I mean it was only 50,000,000 yen… So it wasn’t that bad of a mistake.”
That was the day Gakushuu Asano learned to cry.