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“Burlesque?” Comes Juza’s question after the announcement, voicing the confusion reigning over them all. Izumi nods, stars in her eyes, excitement palpable,
“Yes! It’s an art form, another way of entertainment, I think it could be a great challenge to try, and Yuki has already stepped up to it!” The Mankai Company boys stare at her, blinking owlishly at her excitement, un-used to seeing her quite this hyped up for something that isn’t curry or theater, “Of course,” Their director continues, “I don’t think it’s for everyone, and since it’s more of an adult entertainment, I think our younger actors should sit this one out,”
Sakyo is the one to interrupt the stunned silence, adjusting his glasses,
“So, have you already chosen who would be doing this activity? Since you mentioned Rurikawa has agreed to make the costumes. I hope you’ve been careful with the budget, by the way,” The man shoots a glare at Yuki who returns it with one of his own,
“Of course, I know what I’m doing, and it’s not like I needed much for these outfits, I had enough leftovers to make great costumes.”
“That’s our Yuki-chan for you!” Taichi chips in, always eager to offer praise, and Yuki sighs and pats his head,
“Anyway,” Tasuku interrupts, re-focusing their attention, “Have you already chosen who’ll be doing this, Izumi?” His arms are crossed and he’s fidgeting, aware he’s a likely candidate and not sure how to feel about it, especially when Izumi positively beams at him,
“I have some ideas, but I thought it would be fun for you all to elect someone from each troupe,” The words immediately relax Tasuku, shoulders dropping in relief as the whole of the Winter Troupe turn to look to Azuma, who looks at them in slight surprise but tilts his head with a smile,
“Well, I was going to volunteer, but it looks like that won’t even be necessary,” He hides a delicate chuckle in his hand, and Kazunari pipes up,
“Ooh! Azu will look really good in burlesque!” He chirps, “Right Sumi?” Misumi just looks up from his onigiri and smiles at the blond before nodding,
“Azuma looks good in everything~” He agrees airily,
“Well, that’s Winter troupe taken care of,” Izumi says, knowing that Azuma will floor them all, “What about Autumn, who do you think would do well?” She asks, turning to look at the Autumn troupe. Of course, Taichi is the one to speak-up,
“Oh oh! I know! Omi-kun would be really good!” There’s a choke from Omi that goes ignored, “But I think Banchan and Juza-san would look really good too! Even if they’re not proper adults yet!”
“I don’t want to know how Nanao knows about burlesque,” Sakyo adds with a sigh, “But I agree that those are good choices, what do you think, leader?” He asks, looking to Banri who sits up straight,
“Ha!? No way am I dressing up like that!” The Autumn leader exclaims, indignant and flushed,
“Is your masculinity so fragile you can’t wear heels?” Comes Juza’s remark, and it’s a miracle Banri doesn’t give himself whiplash with the speed he turns to him,
“Say that again to my face!” He shouts, and Juza is already getting up into his space, opening his mouth,
“I’ll do it,” Omi interrupts them gently, leaning in between them as Taichi pulls Banri back while Tenma whacks Juza on the back of the head gently, muttering something incoherent, “If you think I can pull it off, then I’ll do it, I’ve heard it’s fun. And if it keeps these two from competing with each other, even better,” Omi tells Izumi who nods happily,
“Excellent choice! Juza, Banri, is that okay with you two?” She asks the now pouting boys who nod at her, “Perfect! Spring? What about you?” The director turns to the Spring troupe who had huddled up to whisper among themselves the moment the announcement was made.
The five of them turn as one and Tsuzuru opens his mouth to speak,
“I think Ita-”
“Tsuzuru-san can do it!” Sakuya cuts him off with an innocent smile as Tsuzuru coughs next to him, “We think it’ll be too easy for Itaru-san and Citron-san, and since you mentioned a challenge, we all agreed that Tsuzuru-san would be our best bet!”
“Yes yes!” Citron chimes in, hanging off of Tsuzuru’s shoulders, “He will make a marvelous bakery!”
“It’s burlesque! How can you get burlesque and bakery confused!?” Tsuzuru shouts at him while Izumi nods,
“Okay, Tsuzuru for Spring, I can’t wait to see it!” There’s a glint in her eye when Tsuzuru is too distracted to rebuke her, and the rest of them shiver as one,
“Since when has Izumi been scary…?” Taichi leans over to whisper to Juza who just shakes his head,
“Dunno, don’t want to know…”
Sakyo just chuckles and smirks proudly. There’s a shout of “Gooo aaniiikiiiiii!” Somewhere in the distance.
“And finally! Last but not least!” Izumi twirls to the Summer troupe, who all look to their two ‘adults’.
Kazunari beams and poses,
“I’m up for it! It sounds like fun! But Sumi if you wanna go for it instead I’m all good with that!” Misumi perks up and looks to Yuki, eyes wide,
“Can I be a triangle?” And there’s his usual request, but Yuki doesn’t have time to open his mouth before Azuma is answering,
“Well, you can always make triangles with your legs if you try pole-dancing…” The soft smile on his face is anything but innocent, and there’s a sudden hush that overcomes the room as they all turn back to Misumi,
“Then I wanna do burlesque!” He exclaims before pausing, “Ah! But only if you don’t mind Kazu? Kazu..?” Misumi waves his hand in front of Kazunari’s face, getting no reaction,
“Is he okay?” Sakuya asks, leaning over, “He looks out of it…”
“Congrats Azuma, you broke him…” Hisoka says, walking over to nudge Kazunari,
Tenma snorts,
“Oi, we can hear your thirst from here, cut it out,” He shakes Kazunari slightly,
“Kazu-kun! Come back to us!” Muku cries out, fear in his eyes.
Yuki rolls his eyes and turns to Izumi,
“I’ll have the costumes ready by tomorrow, I just need to do a couple of adjustments now I know who I’m dressing,” There’s a glint in his eye that matches Izumi’s, and the volunteers (and one not-so-volunteer) shiver in fear.
-
“I mean, really, I don’t know why I’m surprised,” Sakyo is saying, arms crossed,
“I hate this,” Tasuku adds, “Is there anything he can’t do?”
“Oh! There he goes! Look at him!” Citron talks over him, clapping along in delight,
“Well, he is very athletic, and good at acrobatics,” Omi justifies,
“I didn’t think he’d be this good though. He’s not even taken lessons,” Izumi chips in, watching the scene,
“I did show him some tutorial videos last night, I suppose he’s just a quick learner,” Azuma tells them, rather pleased with himself,
“Isn’t this a bit much though? I mean… Look at him…” Tsuzuru isn’t sure if he’s awed or frustrated.
“It is but an art and Misumi is gifted in it!” Homare exclaims,
Hisoka has nothing to add, and silence overcomes the group of adults as they all watch Misumi twirl on the pole as if he’s been doing it for years. Slowly, they all look to Kazunari who is sat on the floor and staring at Misumi, gaze a little glassy,
“Is he okay?” Omi leans over to Tsumugi, and Tasuku snorts,
“Would you be okay if you suddenly found yourself confronted with the fact that your love-interest can pole-dance?” He asks, looking over and raising an eyebrow, unable to hold in a smirk.
Omi feels himself blush and refuses to look at any of them,
“No… No probably not,” He concedes.
“Wait,” Itaru interrupts, “They’re not together?” There’s genuine surprise in his voice as he looks to the others for confirmation. Most of them shrug,
“I don’t know, I thought they were, but Miyoshi is the type to broadcast everything,” Sakyo answers. They all look back to Kazunari who is still sat there, staring and unmoving,
“No but seriously, is he okay? Did he even hear any of what we just said?” Tasuku asks, a little worried now.
Before any of them have the time to do anything but lay a gentle hand on Kazunari’s shoulder and snap him out of it, Yuki enters the practice room, pausing at the sight of Misumi hanging upside down from the pole they’d installed special, doing a perfect split,
“Of course…” Is his only input on the situation, and he walks over to poke Kazunari in the forehead, “Oi, if you’re already broken how do you expect to cope with him in costume?” He demands, putting the bag full of clothes he’s carrying down onto the floor and unzipping it.
Izumi bounces a little on the balls of her feet, leaning over eagerly,
“Already?” She chirps, echoed by Tsuzuru behind her, who’s gone pale and looks a lot less enthusiastic,
“Already…?” His voice cracks slightly. There’s a comforting pat on his back from Omi who gives him a reassuring smile, and Yuki is straightening again, offering out costumes to the both of them,
“Here, put these on and let me know if they need adjusting,” He tells them before turning to Misumi as Kazunari stands up slowly, Tasuku holding him steady as he wobbles, “Oi, trianglian!” He calls out, “Come put your costume on!” Yuki demands as he hands out a costume to Azuma.
Misumi pauses in his pirouettes and grins, twirling gracefully around the pole one last time before getting off of it,
“Yes~!” He chirps, bouncing over to take the costume from Yuki before turning to Kazunari with a bright smile, “Was I good Kazu?” He asks innocently, and Itaru smothers a laugh in his fist, pretending to have a coughing fit.
Kazunari smiles shakily and nods,
“You’re amazing Sumi! A natural!” Tasuku has to give it to him when Kazunari’s voice doesn’t shake; that’s some willpower there. Though he has to put a hand on the blond’s shoulder to keep him upright when Misumi beams at him,
“Yay! Be right back then! Let’s go, Omi, Azuma, Tsuzuru!” Tsuzuru doesn’t even have time to object before Misumi grabs his wrist and drags him away to change,
“Wai-Woah!!”
Omi gives an awkward smile before waving at the rest of them and following, Azuma chuckling and doing the same.
“I’ll go with them to make sure they don’t rip anything,” Yuki says, giving a flippant wave and joining the other four to help.
As soon as the five of them are out of earshot, everyone rounds on Kazunari who shrinks in on himself and chuckles awkwardly,
“Y-yeah? Sup guys?”
“So are you and Ikaruga dating, or are you just completely gone for him and he’s oblivious?” Sakyo is the one to start the conversation, nice and blunt.
“Ahahah… Not really?” Is the awkward answer that Kazunari gives, and Tsumugi tilts his head,
“Really? I could have sworn you were together…You two act a lot like a couple,”
“Not to mention how you were practically drooling over him just a few seconds ago,” Itaru adds, glancing up from his phone with a raised eyebrow. They all watch as Kazunari rubs the back of his neck, smile still awkward,
“Well, we cuddle a lot, and spend time together, but every time I try and … say something I wuss out,” He admits sheepishly, feeling small among all the stares,
“Oh how sweet! Such is the awkwardness of young love!” Homare exclaims dramatically, “Oh, I feel a poem coming on! Love love, young and sweet! Oh such is a triangle suite!”
Tasuku stares blankly at his troupe mate for a moment before looking back to Kazunari,
“You should say something though. You’ll only regret it if you don’t,”
“I know that,” Kazunari answers with a sigh, “But what if he takes it the wrong way? What if I lose my best friend? I can’t handle that!” He says honestly,
“Misumi is not that kind of person, and I think he would be upset if he knew you’ve been hiding something from him because you’re afraid of his reaction…” Izumi says gently, offering a kind smile that Kazunari returns in thanks,
“You should definitely say something! You two are meat to be!” Citron tells him, grinning at Hisoka as he corrects him with a quiet “It’s meant not meat…”
Kazunari beams at them all, back to his upbeat self,
“Thanks guys! I’ll definitely say so...me…thin…g…” They all stare at him as he starts trailing off mid sentence, staring somewhere over Izumi’s shoulder, eyes wide.
As one, the group turns to where Kazunari is staring only to see their fellow actors have returned. And what a sight it is…
To no one’s surprise, Azuma pulls the look off flawlessly, making several of them blush with the way he moves in the tight leather outfit, looking like he’s straight out of someone’s wet dreams, whip in hand and swaying his hips experimentally.
Tsuzuru looks both uncomfortable and confident all at once, as if he’s enjoying himself while simultaneously trying not to, but everyone is willing to agree his legs look stunning in those fishnets.
Omi… Well, Omi is a work of art, Yuki really knows how to show someone off with his designs, and the show of skin is both teasing and alluring, muscles peaking out through the laced arms of the coat he’s wearing, abs clearly on show.
They all know who Kazunari is staring at though, and Yuki is standing to the side, arms crossed and looking incredibly smug,
“I think this is one of my best works yet,” He tells them,
“When did Misumi get hot?” Hisoka asks, not getting an answer.
Misumi looks like sex on legs if anyone were to ask Kazunari, with some of his chest peaking out, outfit clinging to him like a second skin,
“Breathe, Miyoshi,” He vaguely hears from Sakyo next to him when Misumi catches sight of Kazunari and walks over, hips swaying like clockwork as he does and is he taller-
Oh.
Misumi stops in front of Kazunari and leans down a little, offering a lovely view down his jacket, triangle pendant dangling teasingly in front of him,
“Look Kazu~ I’m in heels! I’m taller than you now!” Apparently, that’s all that’s needed for Kazunari to finally react,
“I’m going to go feral…” He mutters, giving Misumi a once over before taking hold of his hand and wordlessly pulling him out of the practice room, Misumi following easily despite the deadly-looking heels on his feet.
The rest of them all stare in stunned silence at the door the two just left through,
“Finally!” Yuki breaks the quiet, throwing his hands up in the air, when the door opens once more and Tenma and Muku burst through it,
“What’s going on?” Tasuku asks, looking between the three of them
“It worked!” Muku exclaims, bouncing from foot to foot and clapping happily, cheeks bright red. Tenma crosses his arms next to him, cheeks just as red,
“I still think my plan would have been fine,” He argues petulantly, “But the result is there, so I can’t really complain…” Yuki turns his smug stare on Tenma, but doesn’t get the time to say anything before Tsuzuru speaks up,
“No seriously, what the heck is going on?” Their playwright asks, taking a step back when the remaining three Summer boys turn to him,
“Misumi-san and Kazu-kun!” Muku says breathlessly,
“What about them?”
“They’re together at last!” Tenma answers as if it’s obvious,
“Oh. Good for them, but what does that have to do with anyth- wait, plan?” Tsuzuru stops mid-sentence and looks to them, eyes going wide, Azuma whispering an “Oh dear,” In the background.
Omi frowns and places a hand on his hip, and Tasuku and Tsumugi will later deny staring,
“So you did all this to get Misumi and Kazunari together?” He asks, struggling to withhold judgment on them,
“Don’t be dumb,” Yuki answers, “We’ve been trying to get them together for weeks now, and when Izumi came to me asking if I was comfortable doing burlesque inspired outfits I thought it would be a good occasion for another attempt,”
Muku nods along enthusiastically,
“Mhm! Every time Kazu-kun tried saying something he’d be interrupted, so we’ve been trying to help!” Eyebrows raise at the admission and the adults look to each other,
“Wait, what about Misumi though?” Tsuzuru asks, “Hasn’t he tried anything?” They all look to Tenma as the Summer leader snorts loudly,
“He’s been trying. Kazunari is just oblivious,” Yuki nods, moving over to Tsuzuru to adjust his costume, ever the perfectionist, ignoring the way Tsuzuru squirms,
“Yeah, he was the one who asked if I could put him in heels. Hoped Kazunari would like it…” The boy looks up and snorts at their expressions, “Don’t look so surprised, we just told you we’ve been trying for weeks. We were all getting desperate.”
Azuma smiles and tilts his head,
“That would explain why Misumi came asking for help on pole dancing last night…” He says thoughtfully.
There’s a collective wave of disbelief that ripples through the rest of them before Muku suddenly perks up,
“Oh! And uh, I don’t think you can expect Misumi-san to be back at practice today, they looked very invested in each other…” He trails off, cheeks going red once more, and Sakyo sighs, lifting his glasses to rub at his eyes,
“Well, Ikaruga has proved he knows what to do. I suppose it’s fine as long as they don’t break anything.”