Work Text:
Taiga liked to be surprised. After all, unexpected occurrences gave a certain color to life. He always found that things that were beyond the expected could always be turned into opportunities. With his career, surprises like this could always be used to his advantage.
This was how he claimed his spot in the photography business anyways. Taiga had always somehow managed to exceed the expectations of his work. Sure, it may have made his manager scold him on more than one occasion, but Taiga never found it to be an issue as his work was always accepted in the end. In some ways, when a shoot wasn’t going the way it wasn’t supposed to, it only made Taiga more excited to produce a better product. One of the first shoots he had received recognition for was a simple one for a children’s clothing line. Despite the young girl getting caught up in tears from her nerves, Taiga was able to get her to smile as they played in the park he spotted on the way to the studio. Usually having grass stains and mud on the product wasn’t approved, but the way Taiga captured the girl’s natural smile was stunning. Though his manager scolded him for ruining the product and not sticking to what was asked for, no one could deny that the photos were beautiful.
The next month, Taiga was told that his photos would be used on the cover. Soon enough, his name was spread by mouth and his work began to increase.
But regardless of his reputation, Taiga liked to keep his work simple as today’s shoot was. Taiga arrived on set an hour early, as he usually did. He liked to take the time to scope out the background scenes they would be using and speak with the director about the direction of the shoot. He always wanted to get a thorough idea of what was trying to be achieved and what was the vision for the product. All of this was important to him. Even though Taiga loved to break the boundaries, there was only so far he could go before the idea of the director was completely lost.
"Oh, by the way, we should tell you about our model today?"
Taiga looked up from his camera bag at the staff member before him before he picked up the packet that briefed the assignment. A few lines down from the top, he saw the name under the model line.
"Ahh… Matsumura Hokuto?"
The staff smiled, "Yes! Matsumura Hokuto. He's coming in to promote his new movie."
Right. Taiga had read this all in the packet earlier.
Matsumura Hokuto was a rising actor, becoming increasingly popular due to his erotic image and serious composure. His acting skills were nothing to laugh at either. If Taiga could remember the buzzing conversations he heard in the hallways from his female coworkers, his rolls primarily featured him as the playboy, the flirt or the seducer who would grab the hearts of not only his character's counterpart, but also the hearts of the audience. Taiga wasn't really familiar with his list of works. After all, they weren't really his genre as he usually preferred dark mystery and anime, but he had no doubt that what Matsumura Hokuto did was good.
The movie that he was working on had not revealed any information to the public yet (since magazines begin their work far ahead of time), but Taiga and the other staff members were graced with a brief summary in the packet to help their work.
It was about a playboy and a timid girl. The girl with a homely appearance (Taiga clicked his tongue reading this, knowing well the actress would be beautiful regardless) would be approached by a bartender who had a reputation for sleeping around. As time ran by, the girl would find that he was more than his reputation, slowly falling in love with the softer side of him. They would be faced with trials and tribulations before the girl comes to find out that he had loved her all along.
Taiga scoffed mentally. It was the usual cliche romance plotline that would make any girl melt. There were surely going to be many heart throbbing scenes, taking full advantage of the actor's looks to sell tickets. It was a sap love story that was bound to succeed.
"So when will Matsumura-san be coming in?" Taiga asked as he went back to check his camera lenses, finding which would best suit the setting.
"He's already been here," the staff member replied, "he arrived maybe an hour ago. He's been in make-up and costume."
Taiga didn’t stop his hands as he glanced over briefly at the schedule, "he's way ahead of time. The set isn't going to be completely prepared by the time he's done."
It didn’t take a genius to notice that the staff began to grow nervous as they began to play with their fingers. "Well… knowing how Matsumura-san works, he's bound to use the whole time."
This time Taiga stopped what he was doing to look at the schedule closer. "...The whole time?... He's going to be in there for 3 hours??"
"Matsumura-san is known for being a perfectionist to a fault."
Taiga raised an eyebrow as he saw the staff member look over his shoulders before leaning subtlety closer.
He spoke in a low tone as Taiga mirrored his action to hear better.
"I've heard rumors he tends to have a lot of… opinions…"
Opinions… Taiga could only assume this was his gentle way of saying that Hokuto was the type to scold the staff for anything he found wrong.
"I'm sorry, Kyomoto-san… but I do want to warn you that this shoot today may not be easy…"
Taiga sighed as he scratched the back of head, effectively ruffling his hair. So this must have been why his manager gave him an apologetic look when he handed over this assignment.
Taiga liked surprises, but this one was the type he liked less.
He dropped himself onto the stool behind him, the staff watching in worry, and out a long breath as he rubbed his temples.
It wasn't like he hadn't dealt with difficult models before. They all came in different shapes and forms, but he was usually able to sweet talk any woman into a good mood and appeal to any older men with the professionalism that was drilled into him by his father. A young man who was hot on his acting career? This one was a harder approach.
"Will you be okay?" The staff member asked, leaning over to peek past Taiga's large camera bag.
"Yeah! Yeah… it'll be fine!" Taiga said, perking up with a smile, "there's nothing I can't handle, don't worry about it, okay?"
The staff member nodded and walked away once he was called over by another member, leaving Taiga alone. Taiga didn't want to worry anyone. Everything should be fine. Things like this always happened. Taiga just had to think of a game plan for the next hour before this "Matsumura Hokuto" was expected to come out to the set.
Taiga began putting together his camera set up and familiarizing himself with the provided equipment given to him by the studio, all the while mulling over how to handle a prickly mid twenties man who's skyrocketing career was sure to have his ego stroked by being known as a master of eroticism. His best guess so far was to lean into strict professionalism which worked best with older actors and professionals who expected the highest respect due to their age and reputation. Gentle flirting didn't seem like the right choice here as it really only worked on women, though sometimes Taiga took advantage of it when some of the men seemed to have a glint of interest in him. There were occasions where it would lead to them asking Taiga if they were free that night, which he always politely refused.
"Matsumura-san is arriving on set!"
Taiga broke out of his thoughts when the director shouted the model's appearance to the crew, everyone scrambling to their appropriate locations. Taiga looked down at himself, making sure he looked proper and in place like a proper pro before finishing it off with tucking his hair behind his left ear.
Matsumura Hokuto was unarguably handsome. His face had just all the right angles and his sharp eyes were enough to cut into anyone's heart. Hokuto was dressed in dark loose formal clothing that was synched at the waist to emphasize his proportions. And those proportions were good. Gold jewelry decorated his fingers, wrists and neck, drawing attention to the masculine features of his hands and sharp Adam's apple (that Taiga felt quite jealous of) while his hair was set into a slight perm which framed his eyes. Taiga felt that even he could end up falling victim to Hokuto's looks if wasn't careful enough.
Taiga watched as Hokuto muttered to the staff members who followed him in. Taiga only assumed based on what the staff member told him earlier that Hokuto was making complaints and critical comments to them from the way they seemed to scurry away in a haste. It was disappointing his personality didn't match his looks or he might have been perfectly Taiga's type. Never minding what his type was or wasn't, Taiga was there to do a job. Not ponder the types of guys he was into..
Taiga breathed in and let out a long steady breath. He just had to show he was a professional and trustworthy expert that was only there to make him look good. That should be good enough.
Taiga stepped forward as Hokuto approached. He gave him a sweet smile before bowing before him, as usual formalities go.
"Matsumura-san. I'm Kyomoto Taiga from ST studios. I'll be your photographer for today. I look forward to working with you."
Taiga expected that when he looked back up that there was a high chance he would be looked down upon. Figuratively and literally. A lot of people usually expected older photographers with a larger reputation so it wasn't uncommon for entitled public figures to scoff at him at first. But this led to the second surprise for the day.
When Taiga looked back up to meet Hokuto's eyes, he looked like he was in shock. There were a couple beats of uncomfortable silence until Hokuto finally spoke.
"Ah. Uh- right. I look forward to working with you."
Taiga blinked as Hokuto looked away from him, almost seemingly uncomfortable under Taiga's gaze. Not realizing how much time had passed, Taiga scrambled to reach into his pocket and pull out his card holder to pull one from the slot to hold out to Hokuto to take.
"Here's my business card."
Hokuto's eyes still seemed to avoid him as he went to take it from him. Yet, when Hokuto overshot, ending up with his fingers overlapping with Taiga's, he pulled his hand back quickly as if he had gotten shocked by electricity.
Hokuto nodded slightly as he handed the card to his manager and quickly went off to get briefed on the sets and shots that were to be taken. Taiga stared after him, not really sure what happened and looking at the rest of the staff around him, they seemed to be just as confused as him.
That certainly wasn’t how he imagined it was going to go. He was almost sure that Hokuto would either give him some kind of disparaging comment about his inexperience or ignore him beyond required formalities. Maybe this was going to be a good sign that the day wouldn’t be as hard as he was warned and things would move forward smoothly. Taiga grasped onto that bit of hope as the director started the shoot up. Taiga got behind his camera thinking that maybe this wouldn’t be as difficult as he thought.
They were around 15 minutes into the shoot and Taiga knew well that this was not going smoothly. Taiga didn’t expect Hokuto's hesitancy to meet his eyes to become a major issue. It was difficult to achieve the theme of sexy and erotic when the subject matter wouldn’t even look into the camera lens. This should have been as easy as breathing to Hokuto, but all the resulting photos just didn’t reach the mark. Taiga could tell Hokuto worked to compensate, giving side angles and side looks which just about reached what they were looking for, but it was lacking just that something that Taiga was hoping for.
After several more less than satisfying shots, Taiga leaned over to the director and asked for a break. The director nodded and announced in a loud voice that they were to take a ten minute recess and Taiga took the chance to finally relax his body as he set down his heavy camera. Out of the corner of his eye, he caught Hokuto’s glance. When Taiga gave Hokuto a courteous nod and a smile, Hokuto quickly looked away from him and walked off set to speak with his manager. Taiga gave a sigh before moving over to the monitor that displayed his photos.
It just wasn't right. The sharp confident look that Taiga had expected from Hokuto wasn’t there. Instead it looked… honestly, it looked shy. His expression was soft and maybe even troubled. There were some shots where Hokuto fought to find something in between, but it only resulted in becoming a bit awkward.
Taiga tapped his foot and bit at the end of his thumb as he flipped through the photos, not really listening to the director who was also expressing her dissatisfaction. He thought through everything. What was going on? Even when Taiga asked Hokuto to change poses or try something else, he listened obediently rather than getting the bite back he had expected.
Didn't it all start when they first met? Wasn't it with them first talking when everything went weird? Taiga glanced over to where Hokuto was sitting and talking with his manager. From what Taiga could see, things seemed normal now… Hokuto was talking with no trouble and his confidence seemed to return to him. Then he saw Hokuto glance over to him, as if he was hoping to steal a look but was unfortunately met with Taiga looking back. Hokuto quickly looked away, the nervous behavior returning.
"I'll be back."
Taiga might as well handle this head on. There was a good chance he was about to make things worse, but Taiga was always one to listen to his impulses before logic as he quickly approached the table Hokuto sat at.
"Matsumura-san?" Taiga smiled, pretending not to notice how Hokuto flinched upon his arrival.
"Uh-... Yes?"
"Do you mind if we talk?"
Hokuto raised his eyebrow as he looked up at Taiga, diverting his eyes back down to his phone, looking at his phone as if he had gotten a notification. "Sure. What did you want to talk about?"
Taiga noted that his phone was notification free.
"Actually, do you mind if we talk in private?"
Hokuto's hand fumbled his phone as he stood up, "Yeah! Yeah, sure." He said as shoving the phone into his pocket.
"Great! If you could follow me." Taiga said, forcing a smile before turning around to lead the both of them out of the studio and into the connected office area. He had seen an empty staff area earlier when he went to the break room for coffee earlier that day that would properly give the two of them privacy.
Taiga opened the door and flipped the light switch, illuminating the harsh office lights which revealed the small meeting room. Taiga frowned at the rod lights that hung above as he held the door open for Hokuto to enter. He had always hated these types of lights. They never made anything look good.
Hokuto sat on the edge of one of the tables as Taiga let the door close behind him before leaning against it. When he looked over to Hokuto, he was looking away from him again, pretending to be interested in the dusty binders on the shelf that looked to have been left empty for months.
"So…"
Taiga could see Hokuto’s hands tighten in his lap as he still did not meet his eyes.
"What's going on?"
"... What do you mean? We're supposed to be doing a photoshoot."
"I know. But what's going on with you?"
"Everything is fine. I don't know why you're asking."
"Then why do you seem to not like to look at me?"
Taiga watched Hokuto's Adam's apple bob up and down as he swallowed. Taiga shifted, folding his arms and crossing his legs. Hokuto's eyes seemed to travel everywhere but meeting his own.
"Did I do something wrong?"
"No!... No, not at all."
"Then what's going on? You have a reputation for being a perfectionist and I want to maintain that for you. It's my job to bring out the best side of you. I'm sure you're busy and would like to finish this shoot too, right?"
"Of course."
"Then tell me what's going on."
Taiga got nothing but silence.
He was at a loss. If Hokuto wasn't going to communicate, this wasn't going to them anywhere. Taiga also had a reputation to uphold. There were many senior photographers in his company who were jealous of his success and would love to see him stumble just because he couldn’t get Matsumura Hokuto to cooperate.
"What can I do for you to at least look at the camera?"
"......"
Nothing but silence again.
"Please, Matsumura-san. I really want this shoot to go well. Please tell me if there is something I can do."
Taiga was willing to try to make anything work. Even if it meant he had to wear a mask or hide behind some kind of wall so Hokuto couldn’t see him. He was willing to try anything as long as he could get this photoshoot over with successfully.
"Then...do you mind if you help me become more comfortable?"
Hokuto broke Taiga out of thinking how he could effectively hide his face and still take photos at the same time.
Finally, a lead. Something to follow along to help make this shoot successful.
"Of course. Anything."
This would be the third surprise of the day.
Taiga did not expect to feel a shiver run down his spine when Hokuto's eyes locked onto his, no longer having the hesitancy they had earlier.
As Hokuto walked towards him, Taiga found himself pressing his back flat against the door, not daring to look away. Taiga jumped when Hokuto placed his hands on either side of his head, effectively pinning him in place.
Ah.
There it was.
The eroticism that Hokuto was praised for.
The deadly look that made girls squeal and melt into puddles.
The sexual aura that made anyone fall for him.
Even in the shitty office lighting, Hokuto was able to look breathtaking.
Taiga's breath hitched when he felt Hokuto raise his chin with his knuckle.
The last thought Taiga had was that he had never noticed the mole at the corner of Hokuto’s lips before Hokuto pressed his and Taiga’s together. Taiga's body was frozen solid, his mind still not caught up to what was happening. It still hadn't caught up by the time Hokuto had pulled back and reconnected their lips, tilting the opposite way.
This time Taiga's head went completely empty. His hands trying to brace himself on the door behind him as his legs began to give out. Hokuto followed him down as Taiga began to slide down the door, not letting their lips separate as he caught Taiga by the waist, holding him against the door with his knee between his legs.
When the kiss broke, Taiga gasped for air as his hands clutched at Hokuto's sleeves, attempting to stop the world from spinning.
"W- wait-"
Hokuto didn’t wait another second. Hokuto took the chance to slide his tongue into Taiga’s mouth when he spoke. Their chests pressed against each other as Hokuto swirled his tongue against Taiga’s, knocking their lips together.
Taiga couldn't understand what was happening. Why was Matsumura Hokuto kissing him? Why was he kissing him back? Why was he loving every second of it? Oh god, was he moaning?
Taiga whimpered as he felt Hokuto's tongue lick the roof of his mouth before covering his lips again. The deep kiss lasted just until Taiga felt that Hokuto had stolen every last breath he had.
At last, Hokuto released Taiga from the kiss as Taiga panted hard, trying to catch his breath. If Hokuto had not been there holding him up from under his elbows, he would have surely collapsed to the floor. He clung tightly to Hokuto, stumbling into his chest as he fought to regain strength in his legs.
"Is this…. Is this how you become more comfortable at photoshoots?" Taiga breathed, still bringing his head back to earth.
"I… I'm not sure how to answer that…"
Then Taiga heard the voice of the director, announcing they were restarting in five, completely sobering him from the kiss that dizzied him. Right. He was still there to do a job.
Fuck.
Taiga straightened out, thanking Hokuto quietly, allowing him to remove his hands.
"Are you okay?" Hokuto asked, still holding his hands, worried that any second Taiga’s legs could buckle from under him.
"Yeah, I'm fine." Taiga said as he looked over himself and Hokuto to ensure there was no evidence of what took place. He began to think that they were in the clear before he noticed the hard creases that were made onto Hokuto's sleeves by his grip. His expensive sleeves that were attached to his expensive coat that was a part of his expensive outfit that was brought by the stylist special for this shoot.
Fuuuck
Taiga reached out and attempted to brush them out best he could with his hands. Great, they weren't permanent.
"Hurry and go to the stylist and get the creases taken out." Taiga said as he went to open the door and usher Hokuto out. He begged that the stylist could get the creases out as Taiga was sure that the creases would stand out against the smooth texture of the clothing in the photos.
Hokuto nodded and began to head out the door, but not before stopping to gently cup Taiga's cheek in his hand.
Taiga could have sworn that he began to lean in to kiss him one last time, but was only met with the few displaced strands of hair being tucked behind his ear. The sounds of rushed footsteps in the distance made Hokuto jerk his hand back to himself before quickly making his exit.
Taiga's fingers traced where Hokuto's had been, following along the shell of his ear as he stared dumbfoundedly after him.
Then his brain lunged back into sobering reality.
He was at his job. He had kissed the model. He couldn't be lost by what happened. He still had work to be done. On the way back to set, he made a pit stop at the bathroom to wash his face to clear his head before quickly making his way back to his camera.
After returning from the break, the whole shoot went swimmingly. Most of the crew were shocked by what a ten minute break could do and a handful of them by Taiga and whatever he and Hokuto talked about when they stepped out.
Hokuto was perfect.
No, take that back, he was more than perfect. Finally, Hokuto was looking into the camera. Hokuto’s gaze was everything and more than what they were looking for. Now Taiga was able to experience the full force of Matsumura Hokuto, whether it be better or for worse. Taiga felt like he could nearly burn up under Hokuto’s eyes. Taiga had found Hokuto handsome before, but with Hokuto’s new found confidence, he was breathtakingly hot.
Taiga found that his palms began to sweat as he continued to take photos of Hokuto. The full weight of Hokuto’s eyes nearly took the wind out of him. Even though there were a series of mirrors in the viewfinder that separated them, Hokuto’s eyes felt like they could see into the very depths of Taiga’s rapidly beating heart. It didn’t help that what happened earlier still buzzed in his brain, that this man just had him pressed against the door and relentlessly claimed his lips. Taiga nearly wished he could ask for the old Hokuto back. At least then Taiga could feel like he could breathe.
When the director called a break to review the new photos, Taiga could feel all his muscles finally relax, immediately feeling the weight lift from his shoulders as Hokuto turned away to retreat to his break table.
"These are amazing…" the director whispered as she flipped through their recent shots, "I've seen Matsumura's photoshoots before, but there's just something different about these. It's like… his expression feels softer somehow. There's a certain wanting you usually don't see in his eyes…."
She was right.
With all logic, Taiga knew that everything Hokuto presented to the camera was for the magazine readers, the fans, and those who would soon become fans after. This was all so the publication could sell Hokuto’s service for all who wished to have the fleeting feeling of what it would be like to have Matsumura Hokuto gazing into their eyes in real life.
But this was different. His eyes were different. They felt like they were only looking for one thing. For one person. Taiga felt his mouth go dry as he stared back into the digital image of Hokuto. With the size of the screen and the quality of the pictures, he could almost see the reflection of himself in Hokuto’s clear eyes.
The voice of the director was only buzzing in his ears as his eyes traveled over Hokuto’s photo. Everything from his half lidded eyes, the curl of his jet black hair, to the curve of his throat completely consumed Taiga’s mind.
And his lips.
He couldn't stop staring at Hokuto's lips. The stylist had reapplied the tint that had come off after the break (Hokuto said it must have come off after drinking coffee) which brought out their light pink color. Taiga couldn't help but notice that they were slightly swollen. And there was that mole again. That mole that was the last thing at the top of Taiga’s mind before Hokuto leaned in and-
"Kyomoto-san?"
The director's voice broke him out of his trance, not realizing that he had been biting at his knuckle, attempting to compensate for the lonely feeling on his lips.
"Ah! Yes! Sorry, what was it?" Taiga answered, quickly shoving his hand in his pocket to hide the slight bite mark that had developed on his skin.
She chuckled, "it's nothing important. I'm just always impressed how you're always able to pull this off."
"Oh! Thank you!" Taiga replied, feeling guilty about being so lost in Hokuto's face that he couldn't hear anything she was saying earlier.
"I think we got what we needed." The director said cheerfully, clapping her hands together.
Thank god.
The director announced to the team that they were wrapping up, receiving cheers and applause as everyone began to scramble to clean up the set. Once Hokuto retreated back to his dressing room, Taiga’s mind was finally clear again. No more Matsumura Hokuto. He was going to not think about Matsumura Hokuto for as long as he could. He would not immediately go home and watch Matsumura Hokuto’s dramas and movies all night. He would not look up Matsumura Hokuto’s other photo shoots on his phone as he laid in bed until early hours of the morning. He absolutely did not do any of that leading to arduous work days with minimal sleep. He would not accept his new assignment a bit over enthusiastically when finding that Hokuto would be the subject again a few weeks later.
He absolutely did all of those things. The gaze of Matsumura Hokuto refused to leave his head. The image had become so crystal clear in his mind’s eye to the point it might as well be ingrained to Taiga’s mind’s eye. It didn't help that Hokuto’s romantic dramas and movies allowed him to relive that moment with Taiga being pinned to the door when he watched Hokuto’s character grab the heroine and pull her into a deep kiss.
During the movie, Taiga used his thumb to press against his lips, remembering the touch of Hokuto’s lips and how they had been surprisingly soft before they had pressed hard against his.
Taiga groaned in frustration as he slumped down into his coach as he watched Hokuto confess his undying love for the female lead. He couldn't understand what was going on between him and Hokuto. Why was Hokuto behaving strangely at the beginning of the shoot? Was Hokuto just trying to let off steam and he just happened to be the one standing there? Did he do this with anyone else? Was he kissing other people at his other photo shoots? Was what he shared with him just one of a dozen times?
A million questions flooded his head as his eyes stayed trained on Hokuto’s face. He watched as they kissed, Hokuto holding her so tightly as if she were to disappear if he hadn’t. Taiga stared at their lips. Hokuto’s lips. Remembering how they felt on his and how soft and warm they were on his. How they had been so gentle before it became needy as Hokuto’s tongue entered his mouth. How hot Hokuto’s breath had been against his skin and how his mouth had the slightest taste of coffee at the end of it. How even after they were interrupted by the end of the break, Hokuto’s eyes seemed to scream that all he wanted in that moment was to kiss him again.
Taiga broke out of his trance when the end credits started to roll, not noticing how his fingers reached up to his lips to press against them gently, trying to recreate the pressure of Hokuto’s against his own. His fingers had even slipped between his lips, tracing just barely the inside of his bottom lip, wanting to feel and taste Hokuto’s tongue again.
He quickly pulled his hand away from his mouth and turned the TV off, staring at the reflection of himself in the dark screen. Who was this person he was looking at? It was as if he didn’t know himself anymore. His mind was always lost with the thoughts of Matsumura Hokuto. He let out the longest of sighs as he dropped his back flat onto his couch, wincing slightly as he stared up at the bright ceiling lights.
What was going to happen at tomorrow’s shoot? How would he act? How would Matsumura Hokuto act? Would he even act like they had kissed before? Or would he pretend like nothing happened?
Taiga shut his eyes tight, trying to flush all the questions from his head. He would just have to act normally. Just act like nothing happened between them. If Hokuto decided to approach him, he would just be someone who’s there to take his photos. Nothing else. He just had to act 100% completely normal.
Despite the mantra he had repeated to himself the night before, Taiga managed to arrive 2 hours early to set. He had run out of his own tasks long ago and began helping other staff with set up to kill the exorbitant amount of extra time he gave himself. Most of all, he did them so he could avoid thinking about Hokuto who was due to show up any moment. He helped assemble pieces and fetch parts for the set when he suddenly felt a hand around his wrist.
"Hey."
Hokuto was not himself after his photoshoot. Hokuto understood well when his manager asked him if he was feeling alright. Honestly, Hokuto wasn’t really sure if he was. Afterwards, he had been acting strangely all day. He was scheduled to go to a script read after, where he found himself stumbling over lines and spacing out, which was incredibly uncharacteristic since Hokuto had arduously studied the script in preparation. The other actors had noticed Hokuto’s strange attitude as well. After his messy performance, he swallowed his pride and apologized heavily to the director who was only shocked by Hokuto’s complete shift in personality.
Hokuto stared blankly out of the back window of his manager’s car as he headed home, watching the city lights pass by through the night sky. He let out a silent sigh as he let his head rest on the cold glass. Hokuto didn't think that he'd react like that when he was faced by Kyomoto Taiga.
Colleagues had told him about Taiga’s works and how he had been a wonderful artist to work with. They sang high praises as they spoke of his photos and how blissful it was to have their photos done by them. At first Hokuto didn't pay it much mind. Gossip was a common occurrence and it might as well have been the sound of wind blowing past him. The first time Taiga caught his attention was when his manager was describing him before his shoot.
Taiga was only a year older than him with a reputation that could beat those with twice his experience. When Hokuto learned how he had gained his popularity, he almost felt winded.
Hokuto wasn't really the person everyone thought he was. Though people weren't wrong about him being a perfectionist, that was the exact reason why he was usually a nervous wreck 100% of the time. He had always been shy, which he believes to be the main reason why people always found him to be cold. He wasn't sure where the rumors started that he was hard to work with. It's not that he didn't want to talk to others, it was just that he always felt his palms begin to sweat and his head start to fill with 'what ifs' and found that it was more peaceful to keep to himself.
When he had entered the acting industry, he knew that being shy wasn't going to get him far. Hokuto knew well enough that blind confidence got people far. Even if he couldn't have that much confidence, he could at least act like he did. The combination of his "cold" composure and exterior confidence may have resulted in malicious rumors being spread about him being difficult to work with, but it got him where he was now.
Despite all that, Kyomoto Taiga did what he couldn't. He couldn't imagine straying from a director's note without his blood going cold. Taiga had the confidence he pretended he had. Hokuto was completely baffled by the person that Taiga was and was soon looking up every small fact and detail about him.
It was as his colleagues had said. The photos always brought out a certain beauty in the subject that others couldn't find. It was all in the details. It always seemed like the model's expression was more beautiful, the set more stunning, the pose more emotive. All of it made him more and more curious to what Kyomoto Taiga looked like. On the day of the shoot, Hokuto did his best to hide the ball of nerves he had in his stomach and did his best to act natural, but when he set his eyes on Taiga, every bit of him began to unravel.
Taiga had completely stunned him. He wasn’t exactly sure what about him had captured him. Be it his soft looking hair, the beautiful shape of his eyes or the small sweet smile he had on his lips, it all shook Hokuto to his core. He couldn't look at Taiga without feeling he would see right through him, revealing just how much Hokuto wanted to hold him. He did all he could to resist the urge to get lost in his eyes, hating how he could hear the beating of his heart in his chest and his face begin to heat when their eyes met.
Hokuto knew that it was having an effect on the shoot, but it was either this or have to admit that he had a horrible crush on his photographer, and he wasn’t ready to face that reality quite yet.
The moment Taiga called to him and shut the two of them in that small room, Hokuto knew he was in a losing battle. When Taiga asked him if there was anything he could do, his mind lost all reason. He kissed him as he had been imagining all day.
Hokuto thought that maybe kissing him would allow him to clear his head. Once he satisfied his urges he could focus on the task at hand, but it only effectively lit the fire in his stomach and made his hunger worse. Afterwards he couldn’t stop staring, thinking of how Taiga had tasted just moments earlier. He wanted nothing more than to toss the stupid camera that blocked the way between them to capture those lips again.
When learned that Taiga would once again be his photographer, Hokuto felt his heart begin to race. It felt like a miracle was happening. Or maybe it was just because Hokuto had tried to subtly suggest that he wanted to work with Taiga again and his manager finally took the hint.
How would Taiga react to seeing him again? Last time he left without saying anything. Not only had his manager rushed him off set, but he couldn't even imagine what he would have done if he had Taiga to himself in private again. He wasn't sure how Taiga felt. He was pretty sure he felt him kiss back, but maybe it was just in the heat of the moment. Maybe Taiga hated him. Maybe he had gone too far and Taiga was just nice enough not to file a complaint.
When Hokuto saw Taiga during the "walk to get fresh air" he told his manager he was doing, his body moved on its own. Every blaring signal in his brain screaming at him not to get closer, but all the "what ifs" and unrelentless doubts wouldn't stop his feet. The subject of his endless daydreams was in front of him and he couldn't let it go. Before he knew it, his hand was clasped tightly around Taiga's wrist and his mind gained painfully clarity to what he had just done. His mouth turned dry, wordless, before forcing out the only thing he could muster.
“Hey.”
Other staff froze as well when Taiga looked over to find Hokuto standing before him. Hokuto almost looked like a different person when he was dressed down. It was far different from his model shots and movie outfits. Hokuto looked down at him through the bangs of his messy unset hair and the thin pair of glasses on his nose. His clothes almost gave him a homely look from the way they fit loosely on his thin form, hiding the well toned muscles that Taiga had come to know all too well from the magazine spreads and movies. Even some of the pieces looked thrifted from the way the patterns and colors seemed out of the current decade. Yet, despite Hokuto’s humbling look, Taiga’s pulse began to race when their eyes met. A few heavy seconds passed before Taiga swallowed down his nerves and did his best to act how he would with any client.
"Is there something you need, Matsumura-san?"
"....D-do you mind if we talk? … In private?"
Taiga could feel the hand around his wrist begin to tighten. He wasn't sure if this was a sign that no wouldn't be taken as an answer or if Hokuto was just as nervous as he was.
“Yeah, of course.”
It wasn’t long before Taiga was backed up against an abandoned file cabinet in a supply closet, Hokuto quickly following suit. Once again, Taiga found himself captured between Hokuto’s arms. They both took their time looking into the eyes of the person who had been haunting since they met. Taiga swallowed hard when he saw how Hokuto’s lips glistened in the poorly lit room after his tongue swiped over them slightly unconsciously. Hokuto immediately got lost in Taiga’s eyes as he grew closer, his hands gripping against the cabinet as he felt Taiga’s heated breath against his skin.
“Do you mind helping me get more comfortable?” Hokuto nearly breathed, Taiga hearing the slight quiver in his voice.
Taiga couldn't contain the smile that grew on his lips. Taiga plucked the glasses from Hokuto’s nose and placed them in the collar of his shirt before grasping the fabric to pull him closer. He wasn’t sure what would happen after this encounter with Matsumura Hokuto, but he was willing to take his chances to where it would lead. After all, Taiga liked surprises.
He could feel Hokuto flinch in surprise when Taiga craned his neck to bring their lips together.
"Of course, anything."