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1. The Interview
Kaito can’t do this.
Just a few meters away stands the last person Kaito was ever expecting to see again. He’s chatting with Ayumu, and they laugh at something together, which gives Kaito a good chance to stare without being caught. Reo’s changed a lot in the four years that Kaito hasn’t seen him; his shoulders have gotten broader, and his hair now falls in soft waves around his angular face (he used to keep his hair short before. Kaito notes that long hair looks good on him before promptly kicking himself mentally). Tattoos peak out from the ends of his sleeves and above the collar of his shirt, and several new piercings adorn his ears. Reo looks taller, though Kaito supposes Reo’s always been significantly over the average height. His laugh hasn’t changed though. It’s a quiet chuckle, chin tilted down, his shoulders shaking slightly in time with his breath. Kaito reaches for his water bottle and finishes it in record time, his guts twisting painfully.
He still hates Reo for leaving that day, for pushing him away to fend for himself. Despite having years to suppress the memories, the pain still feels fresh as if it was just yesterday. A high school reject and the class’ flower child painted an interesting picture, but as Kaito quickly found out, underneath all the rough edges and resting bitch face, Reo really was just a big softie. There was something special in the way that Reo’s brooding presence brought a sense of balance to Kaito’s melodramatic flair, and the two got along easily, a wordless trust falling into place between them. Their times together were spent discussing dreams for the future and complaining about their respective shitty home lives, and despite them not being the best of friends, Kaito always considered Reo as someone he could turn to. Which is why it took him by surprise when Reo approached him with the wish that Kaito remove himself from Reo’s life. “I don’t think we should see each other again,” he had said.
They hadn’t talked or seen each other since.
Suddenly, Kaito feels as if he’s afraid of blinking, afraid of losing Reo again. This thought earns him another mental slap in the face. He doesn’t have anything to lose. Reo isn’t a part of his life anymore, hasn’t been since he took his trust and used it against him. And yet, it hurts. He’s about to pick up his bag and leave the room, videographer interview be damned, when Reo turns around and their eyes meet.
Kaito has never run faster in his life.
Slumping against the wall next to the exit door, Kaito takes a moment to run a hand down his face. Reo’s presence used to be such an exciting thing in his life. He scowls to himself as he remember how he used to think Reo was so cool, so respectable for living his life outside of the societal norm, how Reo would easily take on the role of an outcast just to distance himself from the weight of expectations. Kaito had envied that mindset, feeling so confined in his own household. Had been enamored with Reo’s seemingly free spirit. He scoffs quietly at the pathetic puppy dog crush his younger self had. If only high school Kaito knew.
The soft click of heels against the cement alerts him of another presence, and he quickly lifts his head to meet Ayumu’s quizzical stare.
“Are you alright?” is the first thing she asks, because to be fair, Kaito probably looks like shit right now, clutching an empty water bottle and his hair disheveled.
“Fine,” he tries to pull himself together, clearing his throat before continuing. “Just a bit dizzy. Stepped outside to get some fresh air.”
Ayumu lifts a brow, her signature ‘don’t give me any of that shit’ face adorning her fine features.
Feeling foolish, Kaito drops his gaze. “I’m sorry for running out on the interview, I know how badly we need a photographer or videographer to monitor media stuff for AKAi,” He pauses, his eyes meeting Ayumu’s once more as she gives him a small nod in encouragement. “I just wasn’t expecting to ever see him again.”
Understanding dawns on Ayumu, and wordlessly she takes Kaito’s hands, knowing that he doesn’t often open up about his past. “Don’t worry about the interview. We just discussed contact information and he gave me his portfolio before I sent him off. For now, let’s just head home and watch some Studio Ghibli or something. We don’t have to choose someone right away, and we’ve got plenty of options.”
Kaito nods and pushes himself off the wall, trying to keep the mental image of Reo’s eyes meeting his own out of his brain. He had looked sad.
2. The Confrontation
They don’t have plenty of options.
A week passes by, and it’s become increasingly apparent that Reo is their best shot. After countless conversations with Ayumu, Kaito throws in the towel.
“Are you sure about this?” Ayumu frowns as she watches Kaito worry his bottom lip between his teeth for the umpteenth time that night. “We could always save his contact stuff and run another interview to try to find more people.”
“No, you and I both know we’re not going to find anyone better. We’re running short on time too. We absolutely need to hire someone as soon as possible so that we can iron out the fine details.” He runs a hand through his hair, thoroughly worn out. “I’m just going to have to suck it up and act professionally. There’s a lot of times in the work world where you have to accommodate people you don’t get along with, right?”
Ayumu offers Kaito a small, tight lipped smile before patting his knee and standing. “I’ll give him a call to set up a final job interview with him, but you let me know if you want to back out at any point and I’ll do it.”
Kaito simply nods, not trusting himself to speak. Everything in his mind is screaming at him that this is a bad idea, that there’s no way this can all stay strictly professional. Not with the history that him and Reo have. A small part of him secretly hopes that despite everything, it’ll work out. He quickly squashes that.
The job interview passes by surprisingly without a hitch, the air between Reo and Kaito tense and awkward, but functional, nevertheless. The trio shakes hands before Ayumu excuses herself to go grab the car, and Kaito is left alone in the room with Reo.
“Kaito,” his voice is soft. So soft and so disarming that Kaito almost gives in right there.
“No,” Kaito cuts him off before he can say more. “You don’t get to waltz back into my life and speak casually with me as if nothing happened between us. This is strictly business, and I want nothing more out of this other than the agreement that we’ve established.” He turns away from Reo and grabs his bag, but of course Reo keeps talking.
“Kaito, listen-”
“I want to go home.” Kaito doesn’t want to listen, doesn’t want to break down again after finally beginning to learn how to live without him. Heat builds up behind his eyes, and his bag slips from his numb fingers, thudding dully against the floor.
Before he can react, Reo’s already handing the bag back to him, and Kaito curses Ayumu in his head for taking so long. “Ayumu asked me to talk to you, wanted us to smooth some stuff over before any professional stuff happened. In case we got started and it ended up being too much for either of us to handle. She’s been in contact with me all week before she finalized the job interview.”
“Okay,” Kaito tries to sound cool, he really does, but he can already feel tears forming in the corners of his eyes. It stung a bit that Ayumu and Reo were talking behind his back, but he knew that Ayumu was honestly looking out for him and keeping his best interests in mind. Huffing, he turns his back to Reo once more. “I don’t care, I just want to leave.”
He stiffens when he feels Reo’s hand settle on his shoulder, knowing that if he grabs it to move it off of him, he won’t be able to let go. Reo doesn’t seem to mind, simply giving Kaito’s shoulder a gentle squeeze, and Kaito feels his heart throb at how much he used to treasure the familiar gesture. Reo remains silent, his eyes searching for Kaito’s even after he stubbornly refused to comply.
Finally, Kaito raises his head, meeting Reo head on. “Why did you come back?” Reo opens his mouth to speak, but Kaito cuts him off, his gaze hardening. “No, let me talk. I don’t want you in my personal life anymore. I’m asking you to respect that.”
“Kaito, listen, please-”
“No, it’s you who needs to shut up and listen. You can’t just insert yourself back into my life like nothing happened, like you didn’t take my trust and rip it in half. You can’t expect me to just open my arms and welcome you back just like that. You did a really shitty thing.” Tears finally spill down Kaito’s cheeks, feeling hot and bitter against his skin. Frustrated, he violently wipes them away. “Really, really shitty.”
Reo moves as if to comfort Kaito, but the shorter man steps back with a hollow laugh. “How dare you show up today and try to talk to me again after everything you’ve done to me. How dare you stand there and watch me be all miserable again after I accepted that you didn’t care about me.” Kaito’s livid, his tone steadily growing louder in pitch. “I let you torment me in high school and then I finally managed to let go of you and now you’re here again? What else do you want from me now that I’ve just started to live again, now that I have a future within my grasp, now that I have a dream to fight for?”
Kaito inhales, his hands shaking. “Now that I’ve stopped having nightmares about all the things that they – that you – used to say to me back then?”
“Kaito, please, I’m sorry,” interrupting him once again, Kaito attempts to push past Reo towards the door. He nearly stumbles, but Reo stabilizes him with a hand on his back before Kaito jerks away as if burned.
“You’re what?” Kaito spits out. “You’re sorry? It’s been four years and I haven’t heard from you. Never once did you try to reach out to me, and you still dare to say you’re sorry?” Deflating a bit, Kaito’s voice grows softer, an edge of vulnerability creeping in. “Can you even imagine how much it hurt? You left me without even an explanation of why. You outed me for fucks sake. Did it even bother you when you saw all those people turn their backs on me just because of my sexuality? And then to top it all off you just stood by and watched as everything went down? I thought I could trust you, Reo. Clearly I was wrong.”
Wiping his tears, Kaito pushes past Reo, this time the taller man allowing it. “From now on, keep our interactions strictly professional. I’ll see you at the next meeting.”
The outdoor air feels good against Kaito’s flushed face, the cool breeze drying the tear tracks still on his cheeks. Ayumu sits in the car parked right outside of the door, and instantly pulls Kaito into a hug the second he clambers into the passenger seat. “I’m sorry.”
Kaito remains silent. He’s already said everything that he needed to.
3. The Studio
Kaito’s exhausted. Long hours in the studio and a strict diet of packaged foods haven’t been serving him well, but the countless crumpled papers scattered around him remind him that there’s still much more work he needs to do. The song he’s working on isn’t even half finished yet, and Kaito wants to scream. He wants nothing more than to go back to his apartment and sleep for a week, but he has to at least finish the chorus. Ayumu has offered to help him out more than once, but he started this song out of frustration and feels a moral obligation to finish it on his own. Maybe that’s just his pride speaking.
Reo has been nothing but professional in the past few months since the interview, and Kaito’s starting to feel annoyed. It confuses him, because Reo’s doing exactly what he asked him to do. He keeps his distance, does as he’s told, and rarely complains.
Kaito’s fed up with it.
The logical part of his brain assures him that this is fine, that this is what he wanted. The other part of him though wishes for more. Wishes that Reo snapped at him like how he snapped at Reo. At least then Kaito would know how Reo feels about this situation.
He hates this, hates his indecision about how he feels when it comes to the other man. Kaito had trusted him once in the past, had put his faith in Reo even though he didn’t even fully know him. It had hurt him a lot when Reo turned out to be different than what he thought he was.
Kaito scowls and rips out a page in his notebook before letting out a sigh, wondering if it would be worth it to try to record some lines for future reference. After weighing the pros and cons, he decides that something is better than nothing, and as long as he’s going be in the studio, he should attempt to get a little bit done.
Hitting record, he slips into the recording booth, making the split-second impulsive decision that he’d just cut the empty air from the file later, despite knowing there were easier ways. An issue for future Kaito to deal with, he rationalized.
Beginning with top lining, Kaito hums a basic melody, giving himself notes in between for future him to mix. Change the layering. Fix the harmony. Check the sound bank to see if there’s anything to spice up the bridge. Twenty minutes later, Kaito finds himself sighing heavily, rubbing a hand down his face. The melody for the second verse isn’t sitting quite right, and Kaito is at his wit’s end, his patience running thin. Stepping out of the recording booth, he cuts the recording, grabbing his notebook to double check the little jot notes he gave himself.
As he turns around to go back into the booth, he takes notice of someone else in the room. Whoever it is has their face mushed into the couch pillow, hood pulled up over their head and knees tucked up to their chest. Kaito steps closer, recognizing the sweatshirt.
“Reo?” Bending down quietly as to not wake the taller man, Kaito takes the moment to study Reo’s face. He looks younger when he’s asleep, Kaito can’t help but note. When Reo doesn’t respond, Kaito stands back up, taking a step away from the couch. He’s about to turn his back when Reo stirs.
“You stopped singing,” Reo mutters, his voice raspy from sleep.
“Yeah, I needed to double check something. Why are you here?”
Reo rubs his eyes, sitting up and blinking blearily at Kaito. “It’s three in the morning and you’re still working. I came to get you, but you seemed busy, and I didn’t want to disturb you.”
Kaito sighs, his foot tapping against the edge of a music stand in slight annoyance. “I’m a grown man, I don’t need you to babysit me. I have a song I want to finish.”
Standing, Reo’s eyes sweep the room, taking in the countless papers scattered across several surfaces. “Yeah, looks like lots is getting done.” He meet’s Kaito’s gaze again, snorting lightly at the other’s stubborn expression. “Just admit it to yourself that you’re not as productive as you think you are when you’re running on only a few hours of sleep and stale coffee.”
Kaito rolls his eyes. “Oh yes, because you’re such an expert in how one should write a song.”
An amused smirk on his face, Reo points to the sheer number of instant ramen packs overflowing from the garbage can near the desk. “Might not be an expert on song writing, but I know enough to tell you that drowning yourself in Mr. Noodles isn’t going to stimulate your creative flow.” Kaito’s bottom lip juts out, seconds away from having an absolute meltdown. Reo seems to sense this, dropping the teasing tone. “But really, Kaito, you’re working yourself too hard, and you’re clearly just going in circles. Why don’t you head home and grab a good night’s sleep? Try fixing your song again in the morning after you’ve rested yourself.”
Kaito’s about to argue back, when an empty coffee cup rolls off the desk, hitting the floor with a loud clunk, bouncing several times before rolling to a stop beside Kaito’s right shoe. Both men stare at it for a moment before Kaito lets out a small laugh at the sheer absurdity of the situation. The tension is temporarily diffused, and Kaito feels the fight leave him, exhaustion seeping into his bones. “Fine, but I hope you don’t mind waiting,” Kaito checks his watch. “Another twenty minutes or so for the bus.”
“No, that’s fine.”
Nodding, Kaito grabs his bag, stuffing his notebook inside before making his way to the door, Reo trailing behind him. The walk to the bus stop is silent, the air between the two men tense and awkward. Reo fidgets with the hem of his sleeve before sighing and turning to Kaito.
“Actually, Kaito, I need to talk to you.”
“You are right now,” Kaito snarks back, before relenting. “But yes, go ahead and get it over with.”
“I wanted to clarify a few things. About high school.” Kaito sucks in a breath. Everything inside of him wants to run away from this conversation, but his curiosity outweighs his knee-jerk reaction. “Before you cut me off, I really, really want to apologize.”
Kaito can’t help himself. “And why should I listen?”
“You don’t have to forgive me, just please, hear me out.” Kaito remains silent, but nods.
“I was stupid.” Kaito bites his tongue, holding himself back from agreeing out loud. “It’s no excuse for how I acted back then, but I was very confused and wasn’t sure what direction I wanted to take with my life. My issues led me to gravitate towards people that I didn’t necessarily feel comfortable being with, but I almost felt like it was my place to be grouped in with them just because of my personal situation. I shouldn’t have let it affect my moral grounds, though. Like I said, that was no excuse for my actions, and I really sincerely want to apologize for all of the hurt that I caused you.”
Kaito opens his mouth to respond, but Reo holds up his hand, shaking his head. “Let me finish. I know that we weren’t great friends even before I decided to be a jerk, but we were still friendly to an extent, and I’m really sorry for making you believe I was a better person than I am.” Reo runs a hand through his hair, breaking eye contact with Kaito. “I’m not asking for us to go back to how we were before, and I’m not asking you to forgive me. I just wanted to let you know that I really do feel bad about everything, and I thought that both of us deserved some form of closure.”
Reo raises his head to meet Kaito’s eyes, gauging his reaction. Just to watch him squirm, Kaito holds his silence, schooling his face into a blank expression. Truth be told, Kaito didn’t feel any lingering anger towards the taller man. Though still wary of trusting him again, Kaito feels that he’s ready to forgive Reo for what had happened. Perhaps he had already subconsciously forgiven him all those months ago at the interview. When Reo begins shifting nervously from foot to foot, Kaito decides to have mercy on the poor guy and respond.
“I’m going to be honest; I still don’t trust you.” Reo nods. “Being outed caught me completely off guard. I was okay with myself, and I had come to terms with my sexual identity, but I wasn’t ready to be exposed to the world yet.” Kaito inhales, folding his arms to his chest. “I suppose I owe you an explanation too.”
Reo moves to protest, but Kaito barrels on before the other man can get a word in. “Even though you outed me, I can’t blame you for the way that everyone else acted. It was frustrating to see so many people who had previously been kind to me just turn their backs and begin to act condescending and hostile towards me. I guess their fickle behavior just really enraged me, and when I saw that you were displaying the same indecisiveness in your own life, it just pissed me off to no end.” Reo tilts his head at this, and Kaito hurries to explain. “I grew up in a family where I was taught that I needed to know what I wanted from life, and that I needed to be firm in my plan to achieve those goals. To see an entire school of people display behavior contradictory to that mentality was infuriating. I knew that my sexuality wasn’t the issue, but rather the problem was with everyone’s negative views. I wasn’t going to conform myself to their ideals, so I left. I didn’t think I deserved to put up with such a hostile atmosphere.”
“You didn’t.”
“What?”
“You didn’t deserve any of that,” Reo clarifies. “I was angry and confused back then, and to be honest, I pushed you away back then because I was scared of how you would view me when you found out about my accident.” Reo scratches the back of his head. “Though in retrospect, we still fell out of touch anyways.”
Kaito furrows his brows. “Accident?”
“I never meant to out you. It was a slip of the tongue, but that still doesn’t excuse that I said it, and it certainly doesn’t excuse my behavior after the fact.” Reo pauses, glancing at the ground before meeting Kaito’s eyes again. “I never got the chance to tell you back then, but I want you to know that I admire your fortitude, and I accept you for who you are and what your identity is. I’ve had a lot of time to think over these past few years, and I’ve come to the realization that people are people, and that everyone is different. Everyone should be respected in their own individual aspects, and if they aren’t, then that’s where the real issue lies. I’m just sorry it took me so long to come to that conclusion.”
Kaito feels his stomach drop as he takes in the expression on Reo’s face. He’s so earnest, so open, Kaito can practically feel the sincerity radiating from him. Trusting Reo again will take a while. Trusting him will take months more, maybe even years. Despite this, Kaito thinks he’s ready to try.
“Hey Reo,” Kaito takes a breath. “I forgive you.”
Reo flashes Kaito a smile. It’s small, but undeniably genuine. Kaito feels his lips subconsciously pulling up to mirror the taller man, before turning to the sound of breaks, the bus squealing to a stop. Both men board in silence, but something in the air has shifted between them. For the first time in a long time, Kaito feels a warmth curl around his chest and allows himself to smile. It’s finally time to let go.
4. Girl Talk (?)
Several more months pass, the trio falling into a comfortable routine. Things for AKAi’s debut are finally beginning to take shape, and though the album isn’t quite finished, conversation has drifted to the topic of a music video concept. Earlier that morning, Ayumu had called Kaito, asking to meet him at the Dreamland Café, a coffee shop a few doors down from their studio.
Making his way over to the table by the window, Kaito sets an iced americano in front of Ayumu before taking a sip of his own soy latte, sliding into the seat across from her.
“I don’t know why you insist on getting that crappy bean milk, you’re not even lactose intolerant.”
Shrugging, Kaito smirks over the brim of his cup. “What can I say, I have expensive taste.”
“More like you’re high maintenance.”
“Hey!”
“Anyways,” Clearing her throat, Ayumu nudges a folder across the table, motioning at Kaito to take a look. Kaito opens the folder to reveal a small stack of photos, humming to tell Ayumu to continue. “I wasn’t sure whether I liked the white with red accents or the black with red, and I wanted a second opinion.”
Kaito spreads the photos out on the table in front of him, several images of idols clad in some form of white or black clothing staring back at him. He takes a moment to consider before shuffling the photos back into a pile, placing them neatly back into the folder and sliding it back over to Ayumu. “Actually, why don’t we do both? From what I’ve seen, Reo would be more than capable of doing two takes, one outfit each, and then splicing the two videos together into one for the music video.”
Ayumu nods. “I like that idea. Actually, speaking of Reo, what exactly is going on between you two?” Kaito tilts his head in silent question, taking a sip of his latte. Ayumu chuckles. “What I mean is that sometimes I swear y’all are all buddy-buddy, but then the next moment you look like you want climb him like a tree and strangle the life out of him.”
Kaito nearly chokes on his coffee, sputtering before wiping his mouth with the back of his hand. “Climb him like a tree? What does that even mean?”
Ayumu snorts. “The guy easily passes for a middle-aged sapling, being so tall. You can’t tell me you haven’t described him as a tree before.”
“Well, I have, but I’ve never wanted to climb him for crying out loud, that’s just weird.”
Shrugging, Ayumu takes a long sip from her americano before leaning forwards. “Seriously though, what’s going on between you guys? You’re still extremely awkward around each other sometimes, but more often than not, you’re actually getting along pretty well these days.”
Kaito sighs. “I’m not entirely sure myself. It doesn’t bother me to be around him anymore, hasn’t for quite a while if I’m being honest. We’re not friends, but he’s helpful, so it’s easy to be nice to him.”
“You’re saying that because you genuinely mean it, not because you’re falling for him again?”
This time Kaito really does choke. “What?”
Ayumu watches in amusement as Kaito coughs. “Easy there. I’m just making sure. I know how you felt about him back in high school, and despite how I act most of the time, I really don’t want to see you hurt again.”
By this point, Kaito’s airways are clear again, and he settles his forearms against the table, subtly nudging his latte further away from himself. “Really, I appreciate it, but I don’t think you’ll have to worry too much.”
Ayumu raises a brow, sipping obnoxiously on her straw, the air at the bottom of the empty cup rattling loudly against the half-melted ice cubes.
Kaito glares at her, a scowl taking over his pretty features. “I am not making the same mistake again. Mark my words.”
Smirking, Ayumu reaches over to pat Kaito’s hand. “Don’t sweat it, I know you won’t. You’re a big boy and I trust you to make your own decisions. I just wanted to double check to make sure this is what you really wanted.”
Furrowing his brows, Kaito narrows his eyes at Ayumu. “What do you mean ‘what I really wanted’? I don’t want anything.”
Ayumu just smirks, sliding her folder into her bag and leaning back in her seat. “Are you done with your overpriced latte yet, or has it gotten so cold by now that I have to go heat it up for your expensive tastebuds?”
“What, so now you’re going ignore my question and insult my taste?”
Throwing her head back, Ayumu simply laughs, loud enough to garner the attention of a few others sitting around the café. Frantically, Kaito reaches to shush her, sending apologetic looks to the other patrons. Ayumu sobers up quickly, still giggling quietly under her breath. “You’ll get it soon enough.”
Before Kaito can ask her to clarify for the nth time, Ayumu stands, swinging her bag onto her shoulder. “That’s all I needed for today, so you can head back to the studio now if you want. I’ve got a few calls to make, and then I’ll probably head home to run through my emails. I’ll see you tomorrow?”
Sighing, Kaito also stands, tucking his chair in. “Yeah. I want to work on some of the harmonies tomorrow afternoon, so if you could lend me your voice then, that would be great.”
Ayumu hums in acknowledgement, snagging a banana from a fruit bowl labelled ‘please take one!’ on the way to the exit before using it to wave goodbye to Kaito. He snorts, waving to her over his shoulder as he heads down the street back to the studio. “You’re welcome for the coffee!”
“Yeah, yeah.” She yells back.
Kaito laughs quietly to himself. Never try to get a straight answer out of that woman.
5. Memory Lane
Kaito’s screwed.
Ayumu wants him at the studio in fifteen minutes, and Kaito just missed his bus.
The next bus doesn’t come for another hour.
Frazzled, Kaito inwardly curses his inability to drive and checks his watch, wondering if he can make it if he sprints from the bus stop to the studio. He’s brought back to reality when he remembers how winded he got just from climbing up a set of stairs last night. To be fair, he was only winded because he was already sore from dance practice earlier that evening, but he’s not about to take any chances today, not with the risk of passing out on the sidewalk attempting to rush his scrawny ass halfway across town.
He’s about to call Ayumu to come pick him up, when he hears someone yell his name. Turning, Kaito spots Reo leaning out of the driver’s side window of a car, and jogs ups to meet him. “What are you doing here?”
“Ayumu called me, told me to show up at the studio at nine sharp, ‘or else’.” Reo grimaces at Kaito when he says this, and Kaito’s faintly amused at the thought of a 204cm man cowering in fear from Ayumu. “You looked like you were in a bit of a situation, and I assume that you’re headed to the same place I am. Want a ride?’
Kaito nods, grateful. “That would be great, thanks.”
Reo smiles, leaning to open the passenger side door. Kaito quickly hurries around the car and slides into the seat, swiftly shutting the door behind him. “Feel free to put on whatever you want,” Reo says, motioning to where the aux cord is laying. The first few moments of the drive are spent in silence, Kaito fiddling around on his phone and searching for a playlist.
“You’ve changed since high school.”
Kaito scoffs, turning his head to pointedly eye Reo’s long hair and tattoos. “Coming from you?”
Reo laughs at that, and Kaito feels his own mouth lift into a relaxed smile in response. “Fair enough. I just happened to notice that you ditched the glasses.”
“Yeah, I thought I looked better without them.”
Shaking his head, Reo offers Kaito a quick glance before focusing back on the road. “You look good either way.” Reo trails off as a familiar synth melody comes over the speakers.
He turns to smirk at Kaito, who is gazing out the window, watching the streets pass by. “DAY6, really?” Reo arches a brow. “Didn’t peg you as the type to listen to them.”
Kaito scoffs. “It’s good music, and their new album slaps.”
“Hey, no argument there. I just saw you as more of a synth bass snare kind of guy.”
Kaito throws his head back at this, a hearty laugh bubbling past his lips. “Hey, I like my ass shaking music as good as the next guy, but I have range to my taste.”
Reo hums at that, his lips quirked up into an amused smile. “Speaking of ass shaking, remember when you broke a plate back at the ZABA Café because you were too busy singing along to the music to help me close up?”
“That’s only because your dumbass put the plate so close to the edge of the counter!” Kaito shoots back. “How was I supposed to know it was there?”
“Maybe if you looked?”
Kaito lets out a huff at that, for once unable to come up with a proper response. “Whatever.”
Reo lets out a chuckle at that, and a comfortable silence falls between the two men, the speakers still blasting with rhythmical drums and descending synth lines.
After a few moments, Kaito chuckles lightly.
“What?” Reo spares Kaito a quick glance out of the corner of his eye.
“It’s a little ironic, isn’t it?” Reo makes a tiny, confused noise at that. “The lyrics, I mean. ‘Let’s fight, the pain will be brief but we will get stronger.’ Putting fighting above keeping silent. It’s incredibly realistic, don’t you think? The only way relationships have any hope of getting stronger is if the individuals in the relationship can learn to communicate. Most people would think that it’s better to keep quiet out of fear of hurting the other person, but in this song DAY6 is saying that it’s better to fight because the pain is temporary. At least if you’re fighting, you’re in some form of communication and can grow to understand the other person better.”
“It’s an interesting take for sure.” Reo pauses, tapping his fingers against the wheel to the beat. “What do you think. Do you agree?”
Kaito sighs, fiddling with the seatbelt. “That’s the thing. I was always taught to accommodate others. To simply comply with them to keep everything smooth on the surface. You know that. You saw how I delt with crappy customers back at ZABA’s. The customer is always right.”
“That was years ago though. Like I said, you’ve changed. What do you think now?”
“I guess I have to agree with DAY6. Take my mom and I for example. We never talk things out. It’s always been she’s right, I’m wrong, do as she says. And look at how our relationship is.” Kaito scoffs. “We can’t talk about anything.”
Reo makes a soft noise of acknowledgement at that. After a moment, he glances at Kaito again, making brief eye contact before focusing back on the road. “You could say the same about us. If you hadn’t have blown up at me back at the interview, we probably wouldn’t be whatever it is we are now.”
Kaito remains quiet at that, mulling Reo’s words over in his head.
The rest of the ride is spent in comfortable silence, only broken when Reo shifts the car into park in front of the studio. “Three minutes late. Ayumu’s going to kill us.”
“See you in the afterlife I guess,” Kaito says, grinning as Reo lets out a weak chuckle.
“There you idiots are!” Kaito looks up to see a furious Ayumu pushing open the glass doors, storming over to the car. “I swear to god, you two better start praying.”
Reo lets out a small sound like air leaking from a balloon and slouches down his seat, his eyes shaking.
Kaito has never laughed so hard.
+1. The Photoshoot
Kaito’s seated in his chair, the vinyl uncomfortable and sticky beneath his sweaty palms. Hani is in front of him, carefully dusting some sort of contour across his nose bridge. The brush tickles, and Kaito scrunches his nose in retaliation.
“Stop that.” Hani lightly swats Kaito’s arm, prompting a slight chuckle out of him.
“Sorry, just nervous.” It’s been nearly a month since Reo drove Kaito to work, and the album is now finished. “First official album jacket photoshoot and all.”
Hani scoffs, stepping back to examine her work. “You’ve got nothing to worry about. Your bone structure really is quite handsome, and plus, you have me doing your makeup. You’re going to look great.”
Before Kaito can open his mouth to argue, Hani is turning away from him, yelling at her brother to toss her another hair clip. Nobu is across the room straightening Ayumu’s hair, grumbling about having to change his streaming schedule after Hani had dragged him out of his house to be her extra set of hands.
“Come get it yourself, I’m busy.” Hani scoffs, striding across the room towards her brother before roughly grabbing him by the front of his shirt and stuffing her hand into the pocket on his apron to fish out a hair clip. Nobu wrenches himself away, batting her hands off him with a disgruntled look on his face as Hani triumphantly holds the hairclip up in the air. “What the hell Hani! I said to come get one yourself, not to violate me!”
Ayumu throws her head back and laughs, pointing a red manicured nail at Nobu with a smile. “Maybe if you weren’t such a smartass…”
Kaito tunes the trio out as they continued to bicker, his eyes scanning the room until they came to a rest on a certain tall male.
Reo’s over in front of a white backdrop, adjusting one of the lights. Kaito watches in amusement as it swings downwards and clips Reo lightly on the head, the man glaring at the light as if to intimidate it, before lifting it back into place, screwing the attachment shut more forcefully than the last time. Kaito’s grin widens even more upon realizing that Reo doesn’t even need a ladder to set up the filming equipment, his height allowing him to reach the lights with ease. He steals a quick glance back at Hani, deciding that he’s got a few more minutes before she’ll be back to powder his face some more.
“Hey big guy,” Reo looks up in surprise as Kaito makes his way over. He steps away from the lighting equipment, clearing his throat and dusting his hands off on the sides of his pants.
“Hey yourself. Is Hani all done with your makeup?”
“Nah, I’ve still got a bit more to do, but she’s busy with the other she-devil over there so I’ve got some time. Thought I’d come see what you’re up to.”
Reo nods, swallowing a bit as he averts his gaze. “You uh. You look good.”
Kaito smirks, raising an eyebrow in amusement. “Oh yeah? Well, these clothes are quite flattering, and Hani does do a good makeup job.”
“It’s not just that, I mean, you always look good, not just because of Hani’s makeup.”
“Oh?” Reo shifts his weight from foot to foot, waiting in anticipation for Kaito’s response. “You think I always look good?”
Reo definitely looks flustered now despite his best efforts to remain unaffected, and Kaito is definitely enjoying this way too much. Reo’s about to mumble out a response when Kaito thinks ‘fuck it’ and grabs Reo’s collar, yanking the taller man down so that they’re face to face.
“You’re much too tall,” Kaito huffs out, smirking at Reo’s shocked expression before closing the distance, sealing his lips over Reo’s in a chaste kiss. Patting Reo’s shoulder, Kaito turns to head back to his makeup chair, leaving Reo with a shell-shocked expression, his otherwise pale face decorated with the faintest of a pink flush.
Bonus 4.5. Dreamland Café
Ayumu watches Kaito leave Dreamland Café, waiting until he’s rounded the corner before pulling her phone out of her back pocket and walking back inside.
Reo’s in the middle of changing Uchuu’s litter box when his phone rings, and he gently maneuvers the cat off his shoulders to retrieve the device from where he left it discarded on his bedside table.
“Ayumu, hey, what’s up?”
“Do you know Dreamland Café? It’s a few doors down from our studio.” Reo nods, but then realizes Ayumu can’t see him. He hurries to clarify, making a noise of acknowledgement. “Great. Can you meet me there as soon as possible? We need to have a chat.”
“Sure, I shouldn’t be too long. Maybe five minutes, if that’s okay?”
“Don’t make me wait too long,” Ayumu singsongs, a slight menacing undertone to her voice that makes Reo shiver. “I’m a busy woman.”
Reo nods again before hanging up and running a hand though his hair. He gives Uchuu a quick kiss on the head between her fluffy ears before grabbing his keys. “Take good care of the apartment if I don’t make it back alive.” The cat simply tilts her head, her tail flicking back and forth in the air behind her.
Arriving at the café, Reo glances around before noticing Ayumu sitting near one of the windows, her back facing him. Making his way over, he slides into the seat across from her before looking up and making eye contact.
The woman is sitting leisurely in her seat, legs crossed, a banana in one hand, a knife in the other. “Hey Reo, thanks for showing up.” She smiles sweetly at him, the knife slowly slicing the banana into bite-sized discs, her gaze never leaving Reo’s.
Reo gulps, his Adam’s apple bobbing as he discreetly places his hands in his lap. “Y-yeah, no problem.”
“Let’s cut the shit here. Kaito never told me your name before we had the interview, but he has told me about his high school sob story. I’m not stupid and was able to piece two and two together pretty easily. What exactly are you planning on doing here?”
Reo opens his mouth to respond, but Ayumu butts in before he can get a word out. “Actually, let me rephrase. What if you mess things up? What if you’re not able to keep up this fragile friendship between you and Kaito? What if it begins to affect what we’re doing professionally? What would you do then?”
“I would resign.” Ayumu’s temporarily taken aback by Reo’s bold statement, his tone matter of fact and straightforward. “I wouldn’t want to hold him back anymore. He doesn’t deserve that. The only reason that I stuck around other than the obvious job opportunity was to apologize, to allow him closure.” Ayumu nods, putting down the knife and banana, and Reo inwardly sighs in relief before continuing. “I realize that my actions were selfish in a way. Who was I to decide what closure meant to Kaito? I still decided to take that chance regardless, and I think it turned out okay. But if my presence were to affect him negatively in any way going forth, I won’t hesitate to remove myself from the situation. He’s got too much potential to be held back.”
Humming, Ayumu silently regards Reo, the man unflinchingly holding her gaze. After several prolonged moments, Ayumu lets out a sigh and gives Reo a small smile. “Alright, I believe you.”
Reo exhales audibly, releasing the tension in his shoulders and sagging back against his chair.
“However,” Ayumu continues, picking the banana back up and pointing her knife at Reo with her other hand. “If you go back on what you just said, don’t think that I’ll hesitate to castrate you. I might not be tall enough to reach your head, but that doesn’t mean that I can’t reach other parts of you.”
With that, Ayumu gives Reo a wide smile, standing and walking out of the café without a second glance, leaving Reo behind to stare at her empty chair, thoroughly terrified.
Outside of the café, Ayumu pulls her phone out once again, opening her favorites and clicking on the name at the top of the list before setting off down the street, her heels clicking against the cement.
Nobu picks up on the third ring, and Ayumu can practically hear his smirk through the phone. “So, did you do it?”
“Nobu you should have seen his face. The man is already pale, but I swear he was about to blend in with the wall behind him, he turned so white.” Nobu lets out a gleeful laugh and Ayumu returns it. “I’m not too worried that he’s going to do anything, but it’s fun to see how intimidated he gets, especially at his size.”
“Did you use the banana?” When Ayumu remains silent, Nobu throws his head back and howls. “Oh my god, you did! I told you it would work!”
Ayumu grins in response, pausing to hitch her bag back up onto her shoulder. “I’m betting we have until debut at least ‘till one of them confesses to the other.”
Nobu scoffs. “From what you’ve been telling me, it’ll be ages before either of them even realizes that they have feelings for each other. And you want to bet that they’ll confess before debut?”
“What, scared you’re going to lose 50 bucks?”
“Please, who do you think I am? I’ll give it until your first radio show, at least.”
Ayumu laughs. “You’re on.”
(Ayumu leaves the AKAi photoshoot 50 dollars richer, but when Nobu sees Kaito leaning into Reo’s side and the satisfied smile on Ayumu’s face, he can’t bring himself to be upset.)