Chapter Text
There was a knock at the door between the two hotel rooms.
“Emu, Nene? Are you two up?”
Another knock.
“We need to be at breakfast in an hour, we should start getting ready.”
After not hearing a response, Tsukasa opened the door. He slowly peered in after still not hearing anything.
The blankets on one bed were messy, but there was no one there. But in the other… Emu and Nene were snuggled up under the covers, asleep. Nene’s expression was peaceful, her mouth slightly open. Her arms were wrapped around Emu, who couldn’t be seen but for a tuft of pink hair sticking out from under the comforter.
Rui must have noticed Tsukasa frozen in the doorway, because he came over to leer over his shoulder. “What’s wrong, Tsukasa-kun?” He leaned over, hair brushing right past Tsukasa’s ear and very effectively shaking him out of his daze. He may have elbowed Rui in the stomach a bit in his surprise.
“No--nothing’s wrong. We need to wake them up.”
Rui brushed past him and into the room. He tilted his head at the empty bed, but when he saw the other his eyes softened. He was smiling gently down at them until a spark of an idea passed over his face. He looked thoughtful, hesitant, for a moment, before his expression sharpened into something truly terrifying.
“Oi. Rui. What are you thinking.”
Rui just directed a playful smirk over at Tsukasa before slinking around to the other side of the bed and flopping down, flinging an arm over the other two. Nene immediately jumped, her eyes flying open as she shifted around in confusion. When she saw who it was she relaxed, a flush forming on her face. She grumbled something that definitely included the word ‘idiot,’ leaning back into Rui and pulling Emu with her. Rui just giggled.
Emu was beginning to stir as well, making… objectively adorable sounds from under the blanket. There was some shuffling, and then her head popped out, wide eyes blinking in the soft light that came through the curtains. Tsukasa couldn’t help but be reminded of a baby bunny, or maybe a squirrel–?
Emu locked eyes with Tsukasa and immediately brightened. “Good morning, Tsukasa-kun!” Her voice was just the slightest bit low and groggy with sleep, which Tsukasa decided very firmly not to think about too much right now.
Emu rolled over to look at Nene, still smiling brightly. “Good morning!”
“Good morning.” Nene was much quieter than Emu, and she was smiling down at her as she reached up to fix her messed up hair.
Emu shut her eyes and giggled at the feeling of Nene’s hands in her hair, but then she paused and blinked a few times. “Ah! Rui-kun!”
Rui chuckled.
“Good morning!”
“Hi!” Tsukasa could hear the smile in Rui’s voice, and see it as well when he lifted himself up to see Emu’s face. She grinned at him, shutting her eyes as Nene stroked her hair again. It wasn’t messy at all anymore, but she persisted.
Emu stiffened. It was just for a split second, but it was there. The smile quickly returned to her face, but it was a little more forced, less genuine. Nene stopped petting her hair, looking into her face with concern and confusion. Which slowly changed to melancholy realization. She sighed, hugging Emu tightly. Emu seemed about to protest, but she let her face fall, hiding it in Nene’s chest and sighing.
There was something almost like fear in Rui’s eyes, though a smile stayed on his lips. He was propped up on one elbow, other arm hovering over the other two as if not wanting to intrude. “Ah, what.. What happened?”
Nene opened her eyes, meeting Tsukasa’s gaze then glancing back at Rui. “Emu… had a nightmare. That we all separated.”
Rui’s expression softened. “A–ah.” He lay back down, wrapping his arm around the others and rubbing Emu’s back. “Well, that isn’t going to happen.”
Emu flinched at that, and Nene’s expression turned to something like guilt.
Tsukasa realized he’d been spacing out. “Uh–Rui’s right! We won’t leave anytime soon! We…‘
Nene was looking at him with an expression more resigned than angry, but it was clear that she wanted him to stop. When he did, she sighed, looking back down at Emu and stroking her hair again.
“She’s worried because.. Well. She knows it was just a nightmare, but in the future…” She locked eyes with Tsukasa. “Our careers.. might mean leaving.”
Rui stiffened. Tsukasa couldn’t see his face.
Tsukasa had no idea what to say. He didn’t know if he could clear the worries from Emu’s mind because it might be true. He knew that his and Nene’s dreams would mean they would stop performing together eventually, but he hadn’t really thought about it. He didn’t want to think about it.
Emu shifted, turning to look at Tsukasa. “But I don’t want you guys to leave. But!” Her face was twisted into a mess of pain and frustration. “But I don’t want to stop you guys! I want you to pursue your dreams and be happy, even if that means leaving me behind! But I still don’t want to be left behind–!” Emu hiccupped, hiding her face in Nene’s chest once again. Nene was looking down at her with such fear and care and sadness in his eyes, Tsukasa thought he could drown in it.
Rui was conspicuously silent.
Nene met Tsukasa’s gaze. “I told her that… I’m still not sure what will happen in the future, but there’s.. there’s no way we’ll lose track of each other. Even..” She looked at the floor, expression growing determined, almost angry. “Even if we’re all on opposite corners of the Earth, we won’t lose each other. You guys are…” Her voice was barely above a whisper. “...Too important to me for that.” Her cheeks were slightly flushed and her eyes downcast.
Tsukasa’s heart swelled with an emotion he couldn’t even identify. He agreed with her sentiments wholeheartedly, but to hear Nene say something like that out loud was… certainly new.
The idea of losing the other three… even just not talking anymore, it was too much to think about. He didn’t know how deep his own feelings towards them went, not only as a troupe and not only as friends but as… well, he wasn’t sure. But he was absolutely sure that he wouldn’t allow that to happen.
“Nene is right. I feel the same.” Tsukasa moved over to the bed, hesitating for a moment before perching on the edge behind Emu. She jumped when he sat, turning hesitantly to look up at him. “I might have to leave the wonder stage to go become a star someday, but.. I’m not going to leave you all!” Tsukasa looked down at his fist. “I’m… not quite sure how to put it into words. Making shows together connects us, but that isn’t the only thing keeping us together. I mean, at the very least, we’re friends!”
He looked back over at the others. Nene had a soft smile on her face, cheeks still slightly pink. The fact that she was looking at Tsukasa with that expression was… something. He was sure of that.
There were tears forming in Emu’s eyes. In a flash of movement, she sat up, tossing the covers off of herself and wrapping her arms around Tsukasa. He hugged her back, resting his chin on the top of her head.
Rui still hadn’t said anything. Tsukasa was pretty sure he hadn’t even moved. With her arms now empty of Emu, Nene turned back to look at him. Rui had been holding onto her tightly, and he loosened his grip so she could move.
“Rui?”
He didn’t respond. His arms lay empty in front of his face, and his eyes were half-shut, staring blankly and darkly at his hands. He seemed to notice the others were looking at him and met Nene’s eyes, making a valiant attempt at an apologetic smile.
“Sorry, what is it?”
Emu had turned around in Tsukasa’s arms. “Rui-kun… we’re worried about you.”
“It’s alright.”
Nene sighed, taking one of Rui’s hands in her own. Her expression was full of love and concern for him, but it was firm. Rui turned his nervous eyes away from it, only to be met with Emu’s teary, worried face. He fixed his gaze on the blanket.
“I’m… truly not sure how to put it into words.” A strained smile was fixed onto his lips, as if painted there by someone who didn’t care to see his true emotions. “I just… I suppose it’s like what Emu-kun was feeling. But… I don’t know.” He adjusted his hand in Nene’s grip, holding tightly, nervously. It may not be an exaggeration to say even desperately.
“I’m not sure what I would even do without you all. Even now… If Tsukasa-kun hadn’t approached me on the rooftop that day, I don’t quite know where I would be. You three have done so much for me, so much that I don’t think I can ever repay it.”
Tsukasa sighed, adjusting his grip on Emu to lean them both closer to Rui. “There’s nothing you need to repay. We haven’t done anything for you that you don’t deserve. And your talent is—”
“Tsukasa-kun.”
Tsukasa shut his mouth. Rui’s eyes looked more scared, somehow, than before.
“I’m sorry, I just.. I know all of that. And I’m so truly grateful that you all feel that way. But I… What you all have done for me is more than can ever be repaid. I–” His eyes flitted across each of their faces. “I truly don’t think it would be an exaggeration to say that you three saved me.” He looked a little afraid of the words that had just come out of his mouth.
There was a tense silence.
“Rui-kun..” Emu sounded choked up. She moved closer, seeming unsure what to do for a second before just laying down across him and Nene, resting her head on Rui’s side and looking up at him. Several feelings seemed to flicker across his face in quick succession, from shock to love to that same unreadable fear. He lifted his free hand to wrap his arm around her, eyes filling with a strange, cloudy sadness.
“And… because you all have done so much for me, I should be happy about Tsukasa-kun and Nene getting closer to your dreams. And yet…” His smile looked thin, drawn tight across his face. “I’m just scared. I’m selfish, and I don’t want you two to leave.”
“Rui…” Nene held onto his hand tighter.
Tsukasa’s chest felt tight. Rui's tone was so cold, and scared, and it felt like the room was crusting over with frost. He wanted to do everything, anything he could to melt away the cold, but Rui started talking again before he could try.
"I know that maybe.. I think I know now that you three aren't the only ones who would.. accept me." The last part sounded a bit like a question. There was a sort of warmth, embarrassment to his expression, but it was still dampened by the cold.
"So even if you all left, I may not be alone again. But I.." He tightened his grip around Emu. "I don't want that. I don't want to be without any of you. Even if I could find someone else, to create shows with, even just.. to be my friend, I wouldn't want that. Even if I wouldn't be alone.." Rui kept taking faster and faster, like he was panicking, or like if he didn't say all of this now it might disappear forever. He looked almost shocked, confused by the words coming out of his own mouth.
"Even if I wouldn't be alone, I would hate it. I wouldn't— I don't want to be with anyone else. I want to be with you three because it's you three, not just because I don't want to be alone. I think, it's because… I love you three.. ah." He looked surprised, the kind of shock a person gets when something so large has just happened that their brain refuses to move a single inch.
There were tears in his eyes. He blinked, reaching up to touch his own face and looking down at his hand in pure confusion when it came away wet.
There was a heavy silence in the air, burdened with the weight of those words. It was a stillness as if everything had frozen over, but without any of the biting cold. The moment hung there, teetering on the precipice between something great and something terrible.
Tsukasa wanted to drag him and the others into a hug and never let go, or he wanted to cry, or he wanted to say he loved them too, but the silence was pinning him down.
Nene seemed intensely focused on Rui’s hand in hers.
Emu was crying as well. But her expression looked focused, decided somehow. She squeezed Rui tightly before sitting up, gently prying Rui’s hand from his face and wiping away his tears. He looked even more shocked, now, with wide eyes and red cheeks. But he shut his eyes as she kept holding his face.
Emu turned suddenly, facing Tsukasa and Nene. Her expression was intense, almost angry. “You guys!”
Tsukasa felt slightly threatened.
“Let’s make a promise! Right now! That absolutely no matter what, we won’t stop being together.”
Emu met Tsukasa’s eyes and it seemed to shake something loose in him, a wave of emotion hitting him in a flash. He could feel tears starting to form in his eyes. He nodded vehemently. “Yes! Absolutely!”
Nene winced. “You don’t need to yell–” She huffed. Her frustrated tone contrasted with her slightly pink cheeks and the tears in the corners of her eyes. Eventually, she sighed and sat up. “I promise. To stay with you guys.” Her tone was serious and certain.
“I promise!” Emu and Tsukasa yelled almost in unison.
Rui sat up, slowly.
He still looked so shocked, with pink cheeks and tears in his eyes. He scanned slowly across the other three's faces. They were all watching him intensely.
“I… I promise too, of course. I don’t think there could be an easier promise for me to make.” His voice broke slightly, and he sniffled.
He looked into each of their faces for a long moment, and seemed to find some confirmation there. His face finally broke into a fragile, tentative smile. “I suppose I have no choice but to trust all of you.”
Relief and pride washed over Tsukasa in a wave, almost washing him away into thoughts of how happy he was for Rui, for all of them to have found each other. “Your trust won’t be broken. It absolutely won’t.” He met Rui’s eyes and Rui seemed to melt, sobbing once again.
“Yes. I– I trust you–” His voice broke. “All of you. Thank you.” His expression looked slightly lost.
When he met Nene’s eyes his cheeks reddened further, and he smiled sheepishly. She was smiling at Rui so softly and so fondly. Tsukasa had no idea what to do with the way it made him feel.
Emu knocked Rui over with a hug. “Thank you for trusting us!” She was still crying. “It makes me really really happy..! I– I love you guys so much! We’ll always always be together!”
Rui looked dazed, but he smiled down at her, patting her head. “...Yeah. Always.”
Tsukasa’s heart swelled.
Until he glanced over at the clock, and it burst.
“AAH!”
Nene nearly fell off the bed. “What!?”
Emu and Rui also looked panicked.
“WE ARE! Already late!!” Tsukasa scrambled to get up, pointing exaggeratedly at the other three. “You three! Get dressed! We have 27 minutes!!”
They blinked at him, Nene more judgmentally than the others. After a moment, the three of them all started laughing.
“Hey! This is serious!” Tsukasa crossed his arms.
“Tsukasa-kun..!” Rui sounded so amused and possibly affectionate.
“We have time, you don’t need to scare us all like that.” Nene was smiling at Tsukasa now, in a way that made his cheeks warm slightly in addition to making him huff in annoyance.
“This is an important meeting! We have to make a good impression–”
“Oh, right, breakfast! I wonder if they’ll have the donuts from the park.. And I hope we get to ask Riley-san lots of good questions!”
“Are none of you listening to me!?”
“It’s alright, Tsukasa-kun, we’ve got time.” Rui smiled at him softly, tracks of tears still shining on his cheeks. “But truly, thank you. All of you. I–” He seemed to search for the right words before giving up, just smiling with his pink cheeks.
“We love you.” Emu nuzzled her cheek into his chest where she was lying. “And we all love each other too, so we’ll never ever let anything tear us apart.”
Nene smiled softly. “Yeah.”
Rui let out a soft, breathy laugh that sounded almost disbelieving. “...Yeah.”
Tsukasa nodded as well, smiling down at the three of them. That promise.. He would hold it closely to his heart. Along with the place he already held for the three of them. Their smiles were some of the most important things in his world, and he didn’t see how that could change anytime soon.
Even if they showed up late to an important breakfast meeting, with soft flushed cheeks and disheveled clothes and the gentle weight of a secret between them. Even if they had to hold in their laughter at the reaction to them walking in until the meal was over and they were on the shuttle to the park where they could laugh until their stomachs hurt together.
Especially if they could do that.