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Oikawa Tooru was a big name in the entertainment industry. So much so that the sound of his own name made him almost sink to the floor, surrendering to its weight. He knew it was his own fault, having been born with that name and using it as the name he went by as he rose up the popularity ladder but sometimes, he wished it was someone else’s doing.
Tooru had no one else next to him as he posed for the reporters on the red carpet. The end of the year meant a wave of award shows and due to his reputation and high demand, Tooru was bound to attend. He just wished he had someone else or maybe even more beside him to make sure he didn’t look as if he was about to go insane - Tooru eyed the rookie boy group just several steps ahead of him in envy and hoped the cameras didn’t catch it.
He sighed in relief when the usher signed for him to move along, letting his smile slip by just a little bit and his shoulders relax.
“Need a drink?”
It was still strange knowing that his own best friend was his manager, even after 4 years after his debut. Sometimes Tooru wondered if Hajime was doing his job properly because it sure didn’t feel like it; the treatment he got from his best friend pre and post manager was the same (if not worse) and he still felt like Hajime’s little brother. Or quote; “Little-Brother-I-(Hajime)-Didn’t-Ask-For-but-Came-Anyway-so-In-Order-to-Not-Disappoint-My-Mum-I-(Hajime)-am-Forced-to-Take-Care-of-Him”.
“Are you calling me weak, Iwa-chan!?” Tooru accusingly cried to which Hajime rolled his eyes. However, being friends with Hajime for nearly all his life, it was common sense for Tooru to know Hajime knew just what he needed.
“I’m literally just doing my job,” he simply said and even though Tooru hadn’t said anything else about that drink, Hajime still passed a water bottle into his hand. “The show starts in one and a half hours, your performance an hour after that. Try not to drink too much or you’ll want to constantly go to the toilet.”
Tooru twisted his face. “Manager who? You sound like my mum,” he uncapped the bottle anyway and took a big gulp of water.
The award show venue was a large one and if Tooru didn’t have an off-day the day prior, Hajime would gain the unfortunate experience of having to hear yet another one of Tooru’s long complaints due to the distance between the red carpet and the backstage waiting rooms. The past week, practice had drained him and Hajime already advised to take it easy because he’d need the energy. Of course, he didn’t listen — everything had to be perfect, this was one of the biggest award shows of the year and it would be most rewarding to him if he showed the most perfect performance, even if he didn’t win an award.
It was chaos behind the door that spelled his name. All Tooru could do was try to enjoy it as he sat on the makeup chair. There were four people working on him all at once because one and a half hours was considered a short amount of time to prepare for an award show. Hajime’s assistant manager was busy on a call with a higher up as he tried to explain the situation; how Tooru was one of the last ones on the red carpet and how they were working as fast as they could to ensure Tooru got to his seat on time.
On his right, the lady who was working on his eyes clicked her tongue. “They do this every year,” she grumbled. “It’s like they’re testing us.”
“What? On our punctuality?” Tooru tried to say through the lips he was told to refrain from movements.
“That, and our quality of work, I guess,” the man somewhere behind him who was styling his hair answered. “Oh the luxury of having to walk the carpet early. Totally not jealous of the guys next door.”
“Who’s next door?” the idol on the chair asked.
“Some senior girl group from MM Ent,” Eyeshadow-Lady told him, “they debuted around a year before you did. I don’t remember the name, but I think one of the members was Shimizu Kiyoko?”
Tooru felt the cool tingle of eyeliner being drawn on his lids and he was itching to move. Sitting down for too long made him restless and Tooru decided to end the conversation so he could be off quicker.
Fifteen minutes later, Just-Oikawa-Tooru walked out of the room as The-Idol-King-Oikawa-Tooru. Maroon velvet suit to complement his freshly dyed brown hair, slicked back to frame his face and gloriously accentuating the sharp lines of his jaw and the strength of his gaze. This was one of the things Tooru loved about being an idol and that was having an excuse to dress up and everyone would not question why. Dressing up fed his confidence, clearly shown in his strides and Hajime sometimes had to step in to make sure confidence didn’t cross the line into being arrogant but this Hajime thinks he knows everything! Tooru knew where the line was!
The hallway was crowded, Tooru wondered just how many people were invited to perform. Hajime stood impatiently next to him as they queued for the entrance to the show arena, feeling the cool air from the air conditioning through the doors. Although the staff had said to line up and everyone will be escorted to their seats, Tooru could see some managers trying to argue with them but in a way, he understood where they were coming from; the hallway was hot and stuffy so everybody naturally wanted to enter the hall as quickly as possible.
“It’s like a war field out here,” Tooru commented, leaning in slightly closer to Hajime to make sure he heard what he whispered.
“I know right.”
In the midst of the commotion, another one emerges from the back of the line with one of the award show staff frantically waving his clipboard in the air, walkie-talkie close to his mouth and shouting over the top of his lungs. Tooru couldn’t really hear what he said, everybody’s voices blended into one and it was hard to distinguish between who was who.
Tooru turned to Hajime in pure curiosity as the sea of people parted, letting through several men walk through the crowd in hurried steps. They were prepped with their performance gear and stage outfits that were a stark contrast to everybody else’s more formal attire. “Who are they?”
Hajime unfolded the show rundown in his hands. “Opening act, CR, I think they’re a one year old group.”
“CR?” Tooru tilted his head. “Like Cristiano Ronaldo?”
“No, idiot, CR for Chain Reaction? If I remember correctly,” Hajime lightly smacked his now rolled rundown paper on Tooru’s forehead. “They’re actually one of the most successful boy groups, if not groups , last year. They have a steady fandom internationally and they’re pretty popular nationally too.”
“I didn’t know you knew these kinds of things,” Tooru said and his eyes followed the five-membered group as they passed with that one staff and their manager. However, Tooru didn’t quite catch what Hajime said about it as his eyes met another icy blue one by accident. In an instant, he felt the chill run down his back but before he could process just who that was, the man turned away from him and disappeared behind the door to join his members backstage.
Tooru was seated next to another soloist, a close friend of his, Semi Eita not too far away from the center stage where they could see the view of performances clearly. Behind him was a wall of excited audience and it looked magnificent down from where he was.
“This is impressive,” he heard Semi gush under his breath.
“I know,” Tooru agreed, “can’t believe they’re that willing to spend their money just to see someone like you.”
Semi let his jaw drop. “Excuse me! What’s that supposed to mean!” But he was laughing along with Tooru and he could already see the tsunami of photos of his interaction with Semi by the time he opened his social media after all of this ended.
Tooru shifted in his seat in order to get more comfortable. His performance was not for another hour so he figured he should find a position cosy enough for the next half an hour before he would be called for another session of hair and make up.
“Hey, what do you think of CR?” he asked nonchalantly as he fixed the angle of his chair.
“CR? Well…” Eita let his voice trail into thought. “Their music is good, I really loved their first comeback title track. Their performances are amazing, by the way, for a rookie group. In my opinion, they easily outdo a lot of groups but like, that's just my personal opinion. Maybe I'm just biased. I think they’re doing really well. I know, like, two people from the group and they’re really cool dudes. Why ask?”
“Nothing, just wondering,” Tooru told him, “Hajime told me they’re the opening act and we saw them in the hall. Just got curious.”
“Ah, I see. Well, you should have a listen! You can start with their first comeback title track, then the second track in their debut album is nice too,” Semi suggested and he continued to list off the songs he liked from them.
Tooru held Semi to a high regard, therefore he trusted his opinion on other people’s discography. (Actually, he really should collaborate with Semi soon in that case.) He figured he would definitely check Chain Reaction out on the way back to his hotel. And that was definitely not because of whoever’s eyes he caught back in the hallway. Tooru was simply interested in the group entirely and he was curious of their supposed success. There was no harm in trying to get to know them, right?
“Ooh! It’s starting!”
Semi started to bounce lightly in his seat, clearly excited that the three hour long show was about to begin. The lights in the arena started to dim, just one spotlight and a couple more decorative ones that lined the screen behind the stage. Tooru felt his heartbeat quicken up — it had been a while since he was genuinely interested in the continuity of an award show other than his own performance. He was actually anticipating this, what a miracle!
When the speakers boom the first notes of the intro of a song, Tooru nearly jumped out of his seat. It was powerful, enticing, and Tooru instantly felt drawn into it.
“As expected, this group,” he heard Semi comment but barely making out what he said through the cheers from the audience. This definitely did not feel like a rookie group's performance. Tooru couldn't even remember if the crowd showed this much enthusiasm back when he first performed at an award show... he was just a tiny bit jealous because of that.
The stadium was coming to life. Tooru took one look at the scene behind him, of people waving their lightsticks in the air and it was like being in a glittering ocean. When silhouettes of five emerged from underneath the gate, surrounded by mist, the cheers roared louder and Tooru was overwhelmed at the reaction.
“This is CR?” he shouted to Semi.
“This is CR!” Semi shouted back.
“They’re kinda cool!”
“ Kinda cool? They’re extremely cool, what do you mean!?”
Tooru was convinced, deep down, CR was one of the few boy groups Semi kept up with.
He couldn’t blame the other soloist though; when the very same blue eyes he saw somehow directed their gaze straight back at him, he felt like he was suddenly put under the spotlight. Tooru felt a familiar shiver although he was convinced, Blue Eyes wasn’t even looking at him . His stare was sharp, black hair that draped over his eyes contrasted them perfectly. He was dressed in white, crouched low for his starting position like he was ready to hunt his prey, get his clothes stained with blood. From where he sat, he could tell Blue Eyes was tall, maybe just a little bit taller than him. And (Tooru almost visibly widened his eyes at this revelation) after a good look at Blue Eyes, Tooru discovered his broad shoulders and the prettiest set of hands that were adjusting the angle of his mic.
Tooru knew what he imagined was exaggerated but he really sensed that Blue Eyes was staring at him. His gaze said, you, I’m challenging you . At first, Tooru dismissed it in his brain but as soon as the group moved and Blue Eyes flowed with the music, Tooru was up for it, ready to take him on. When Blue Eyes started rapping , Tooru gave up, he surrendered. Deep inside, he knew in that moment, he would let Blue Eyes do anything to him.
“Who is he?” the words came out before he could think about it.
“The rapper?”
Tooru hummed.
The next time Tooru saw Blue Eye's body face in his general direction, he saw the smirk on his lips. Tooru almost forgot he was a professional idol.
“Kageyama Tobio. He’s one of the guys I know, you want me to introduce you to him?”
Oikawa Tooru knew his own name held a big weight in the entertainment industry, but he was sure, as soon as Semi brought him into the same room as Kageyama Tobio, he would collapse in his presence alone.