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Everyone who knows or even knows of him would be able to tell you what he’s most passionate about. Tsukasa Tenma, Future star. He was popular in school for two main reasons. One of them obviously being his bold and optimistic personality. The other reason would be his best friend/troupmate, Rui Kamishiro, who is quite the prankster. Despite only knowing each other for such a short time, the two have become incredibly close. Perhaps not in a: “Oh we know all each other's secrets and we have sleepovers every other day.” type of way, but more of a : “We can genuinely enjoy each other's company and we never run out of things to do/talk about” sorta way. Their relationship got off to a pretty rocky start. Thankfully that was all resolved and now everythings going pretty smoothly! Maybe a bit too smoothly…
-It's a bit complicated to put into words. So here I am writing it down on paper. Saki said this might be a good idea. Might as well try it if my dearest sister has recommended it to me!-
With everything going on, such as their shows that seem to last for eternity, school, having to help his dearest junior with relationship problems, his sister’s fragile health, there just hasn’t been much time for Tsukasa to really relax. Thankfully, Emu being the literal angel she is, booked a week long trip to Seoul! The troupe's overall mood was way off and she couldn’t just leave it! Tsukasa has already finished packing all his necessities, there's only one thing left to do. He needs to write a letter. Well- he doesn’t NEED to, it's just ideal if he does. Tsukasa isn’t exactly one for confrontation, confrontation = sadness, sadness = no smiling, no smiling = failed as a star. It’s pretty simple! Therefore, a nice letter will definitely do the trick!
“Oi! Hurry up! Your friends are all waiting for you! The flight is in two hours Tsukasa!”
“Coming Saki!!!”
Alright. No time to waste. He shoves the now finished letter into his backpack, grabs his luggage and heads out, taking one last look in his room as if it could magically remind him if he had forgotten anything. The car ride to the airport was pretty uneventful. Rui’s mom drives, Rui next to her, him, Nene, and Emu in the back. Sure Rui could drive but considering the fact he wouldn’t be able to drive the car back home today, his mom dropping them off seemed like the most logical option. Nothing much really happened during the security check either(thankfully). And now the four of them are waiting in the airport for boarding to begin.
“I wanna sit with Nene!” Emu exclaimed with her usual cheery voice which was sure to catch the attention of everyone there. Obviously Nene didn’t reject her. Thankfully, the once shy Nene was getting much more comfortable with Emu and Tsukasa. It definitely put a smile on his face just thinking about it… Wait. Hold on a second. This means Tsukasa has to sit next to Rui for two or more hours in a row! To be fair, they’ve spent much more time with each other before this but this would be the first time since his new discovery!
-There's something I’ve been meaning to tell you. I’m really so grateful for everything you’ve done for me so please allow me to express my gratitude through this as best as I can.-
They are officially on the plane. Rui was gracious enough to give Tsukasa the window seat. Sadly, Emu and Nene aren't seated somewhere that would make it easy to talk to them. It’s fine. It’s just two hours! Nothing can go wrong. Nothing at all. He had quite a few things in his backpack to keep him busy. This book he was currently reading, some very nice noise canceling headphones, his sketchbook, and some light blue nail polish which thankfully isn’t super strongly scented. He rummaged through his bag, trying to figure out what to do first.
“Hmm? You brought quite a lot of stuff to keep you busy, my star!”
“Ah, yes! Two hours won’t be enough for me to fall asleep. What have you brought?”
“I thought you’d never ask!” Rui immediately reached into his bag and pulled out a sleep mask along with his air-pods. He showed them off to tsukasa with a bright, almost blinding smile. “Oh, so I guess you’ll be sleeping during this journey. Sweet dreams then!”
The flight attendant made sure that everyone had their seat belts on and the plane officially left the ground. Rui somehow managed to already fall asleep so it’s not like Tsukasa had company to keep him busy. He grabbed his sketchbook and a pen and began to draw. Tsukasa isn’t super interested in arts but it is a fun way to pass time. He mostly likes sketching stage outfits. It feels much more personal when his outfits are made by himself. After a few sketches he felt something. On his shoulder specifically. Oh. OH. Rui was sleeping.. ON HIS SHOULDER.
-I know I say this a lot but it still doesn’t feel like enough. You are truly the best director anyone could ever ask for! But not only that. You make an amazing best friend. I have never had more fun with anyone else.-
Soon enough the intercom announced the flight's landing. Tsukasa put his book back in his backpack and was about to stand up when he realized. Rui was still on his shoulder. He’d have to wake him up. What if this is like- super awkward.. Well. He doesn’t really have a choice now does he?
“Rui! Wake up! Our flight has landed!”
“...Hmmm.? Already…?” Rui was clearly not fully awake. Tsukasa reached over to his head and ruffled his hair. Surely this would wake him up! The display of affection only made Rui bury his face deeper into his shoulder. Oh god. He was definitely bright red right now, wasn’t he? In a state of panic, Tsukasa quickly stood up, causing Rui to finally take off his sleep mask and look up at him.
“My star, you shouldn’t be so aggressive! It’s bad for your public image!” He smirked. “Come on. Emu and Nene are already waiting for us!” A quick reply before pushing past Rui.
-Sure you have crazy ideas sometimes, but it always makes me happy knowing that I’m the one you wanna do them with.-
Emu rented a car for Rui to drive them around in. It seemed much more convenient to her than walking around everywhere they go. Right now they were driving to the hotel. Emu sat in the front with Rui and Nene sat with Tsukasa. The sun was just about to set but everyone was already very tired. Especially Tsukasa who was unable to get any sleep on the plane. Emu’s playlist was currently playing. Her music taste matched her very well. Right now the song ‘Heart Shaker’ is playing. Tsukasa has never heard it before but he has to admit, it's a pretty good song.
It didn’t take too long to arrive at the hotel. Emu and Nene went to check in. Tsukasa had to help Rui bring all of their luggages in. They got two rooms with two queen beds each. This meant that Tsukasa and Rui would have to sleep in the same room for an entire week.
Once the two of them managed to bring in the four luggages, Emu and Nene were already waiting for them with the keys to their rooms.
“Alright! Me and Nene are in room 1216 and you guys are in room 1215 which is right in front of us!”
“Great! We can hang out in our room till you guys wanna sleep then!”
“Let's freshen up first, Come on.” Nene grabbed her luggage from Rui and headed to the elevator.
-I am so sorry for wanting more. But lately I’ve been feeling different. I thought that maybe something changed. And it has.-
After hearing a knock, Rui gets up to open the door. Tsukasa’s sitting on his bed reading his book. He took a shower first so he was already comfortable. Hopefully his friends wouldn’t be too loud so he could sleep when he wants to. But while he was reading, something kept popping up in his head. He hadn’t looked out the window for the view yet, but he was so comfy he didn't want to go and check. Curiosity eventually killed the cat. Putting his book down, he walked to the window. Emu and Nene walked in, they both situated themselves on Rui’s bed. Tsukasa grabbed the curtains and pushed them out the way. Oh wow. He froze to admire the view fully. It really is beautiful.
“Woaaaah!!! So pretty!” A loud and energetic Emu runs up to him. “Yeah! How’s the view from your room?” “Ours faces the parking lot.” Her voice deflated instantly. “Hahaha! As expected! The star gets the best room!”
Nene makes her way to the window as well. She pinched Tsukasa's arm quickly (which prompted him to let out a quick ‘ow’) before standing next to Emu.
“Rooms don’t matter! We’ll only be there to sleep most days!” Her only intention was to cheer up Emu. It obviously worked. Emu smiled brightly and kept looking out the window. The two of them really are cute. Emu starts to excitedly tell them about something that happened two days prior. Don’t ask Tsukasa what she was saying. He wouldn’t know.
He craves what they have. They might not be dating yet, but it’s clear as day how in love they are. It’s so obvious that Emu straight up asked Nene if she liked her before! Sadly Nene panicked and denied the accusations. Even after that, the two remained super close. Some may even say they act like a couple! They go on plenty of dates and always have planned out sleepovers. Multiple times, Tsukasa has caught them holding hands when walking, giggling and whispering backstage and tucking hair behind each other's ears. At this point, he wouldn’t even be surprised if they really were secretly dating and wasn’t ready to tell him and Rui.
Tsukasa kept his eyes basically glued on them while thinking about all of this. He only snapped out of it when he noticed Rui approaching them from the corner of his eye. His hair was still wet. Not wet to where there were water droplets falling from it, but stringy and clearly still damp. Rui walked up right behind Nene and wrapped his arms around her neck, resting his head on hers. He holds back the urge to sigh.
It’s not that he viewed Nene as a rival. She was clearly gay. But he personally thinks that it’s completely justified for him to be a tad bit jealous. They were childhood best friends and neighbors since forever. Rui was so comfortable with her. He told her everything. That was something Tsukasa himself would never get to experience. He will never know what it’s like to have Rui’s arms around him. How it feels to have Rui come to him for anything he needs. What his lips would feel like against his own… Oh he could just imagine how-
“Tsukasa?” He quickly snaps out of his thoughts, looking over at the source where his name came from. “Hmm? Oh!”
The others were already sitting down. He rushed over to his bed and got back under the blanket, Emu was sitting at the foot of the bed. After he got comfortable, she climbed over next to him and joined him under the blanket, resting her head on his shoulder and grabbing the book that rests on his lap.
“Meet Cute Diary? Oh! I’ve read this! It’s so cute!”
“Well yeah, kinda cringe though…” He added. “Just a little!” They both laugh for a bit, messing around before Tsukasa looks over to Rui and Nene who seem to be staring at them, both of them wearing a slight smile.
After plenty of talking and messing around, Emu and Nene finally make their way back to their own room, leaving a very tired Rui and Tsukasa. It’s already around two. After Rui bids them farewell, he walks over to his bed and face-plants down on his pillow.
“Oi! Rui, can you turn off the lights?” … Silence.. Some more silence..
“Rui? Rui, are you already asleep??” No response. Once again.
Tsukasa lets out a heavy sigh before lifting his blanket and getting up. He walks to Rui’s bed first, checking to see if he’s actually asleep before covering him with his blanket. The ac is gonna be blasting all night. Can’t afford Rui getting sick before the trip even truly starts! Then he finally walks to the light switch and turns it off before heading back to his bed.
-My feelings for you are no longer ones you share with a friend. It goes a bit deeper than that. I truly feel so guilty but I felt the need to say it quickly to prevent you from feeling uncomfortable. With everything we have been through together for the past months. It feels so wrong to ruin it all with one letter.-
The plan for today was to go shopping, and then go somewhere cool for dinner! Not too crazy seeing as it is only the first day. They got back into the car after getting ready, this time, Emu sat in the back with him. The shopping complex they were going to was absolutely huge! It was pretty popular amongst tourists as well. The drive didn’t take too long. After Rui parked, they all entered the mall together.
“Wahhh! So big! Let’s go check out all the stores! This is gonna be so funnnn!!!!” “Yes Emu! This place is huge! Let’s go!” And with that, Emu and Tsukasa ran off in the same direction. Rui smirked, letting out a light chuckle.“Come on Nene! We wouldn’t wanna lose them!” He exclaimed, heading in the same direction as the other two.
Nene being, well-, Nene, was not enjoying this one bit. But she had to suck it up for this trip. If not for that stupid star or the even dumber director, than at least for her gir- BESTfriend. She let out a small sigh before following Rui.
The first store they landed in is one for nail supplies. Emu and Tsukasa absolutely LOVE doing their nails. Every night before a show, they have a sleepover of sorts and paint each other's nails to match their character. She’s only aware of this because they were dragged into one of these sleepovers before. It was more of an ‘Insulting Rui and Nenes terribly taken care of nails time’, than it was a sleepover. She went over to Rui and stood beside him while Emu and Tsukasa went absolutely crazy. To be fair, they were rich, no matter how much they spend today, it won't even make a dent in their bank accounts.
She looked up at Rui only to see him brightly grinning at the sight of his extremely excited friends. She scoffs. “You look so in love right now.”
“Huh- What are you talking about? Is a guy not allowed to smile at his friends anymore? Besides, You’ve already called dibs on Emu!” He grins his usual and sometimes very disturbing grin. “Wha-! Shut up…”
The silence only lasts for a second before Tsukasa comes running up to them. In his hands are two pretty boxes. Emu arrived just shortly after with a basket full of their things.
“Rui! Hold this!” He quickly hands rui one of the boxes before opening the other one. “Nene! What do you think? These colors suit you perfectly right! It compliments you so well! Emu picked it out!” The box had 10 gel nail polishes inside. Nene never paid too much attention to her nails, but even she admits that these colors do suit her well.
“Actually. That is kind of pretty.. How much?” Nene inquired. “Oh- don’t worry about that!” Emu Chimes in. Nene takes the box from Tsukasa’s hand and his attention shifts. He grabs the box from Rui and opens it.
“These ones I picked out for you! Nice right!” “If Tsukasa has picked them out for me, then I already love it!” This was no lie. The colors of polish that Tsukasa picked out were really nice. It suited him just as well as Nene’s suited her! Even so, a light blush invaded Tsukasa’s face.
“Alright then! Me and Emu have everything we want!” The two of them rushed over to the counter with Nene and Rui following shortly behind. Rui took this opportunity to check the back of the box for the price. It said 262,102₩. If he isn’t mistaken, it should equal 26837.80¥. That’s a lot. But before he has the chance to put away the box, Tsukasa grabs it from him and puts it down on the counter where the lady scans it.
“Tsukasa-. That’s a lot of money.. I can’t just waste it on nail polish!” Rui muttered, obviously concerned. “Who said anything about you wasting money?” Before Rui could say anything else, Tsukasa swiftly swiped his credit card.
The lady put everything into a bag as Tsukasa put in his pin. She gives him the receipt and Tsukasa grabs the bag. They walk over to the front of the store where the girls are already waiting.
“Tsukasa! Rui! There’s this store with super cool clothes I saw! It’s like what Touya wears! Let’s go there next!” Emu beamed with her usual excitement. “Touya’s style? Let's go! I can buy him gifts there!” He turns to Rui and hands him the bag before running in the direction Emu was going. Leaving a very confused Rui.
“Dude. You good?” After a couple of seconds, she got a reply. “Nene, do you realize how much those nail polish boxes were?” “Hmm?” Rui reaches into the bag and pulls out the receipt. He scans it for the box, puts his finger below it and shows it to his best friend.
“What the- That's so! Why would they just buy us things so expensive! We can’t even pay them back Rui!” She hissed. “I don’t think they expect us to..” “They’re fucking crazy!” Her anger still slightly visible. “Hey, don’t complain about free stuff Nene. Come on!” Rui walks towards the store mentioned earlier.
This time, Emu and Tsukasa aren’t together. With Emu in the women’s section and Tsukasa in the mens. Nene goes to Emu while Rui joins Tsukasa.
“Hmmm. Rui. Do you think Touya will like this?” He raises a cool looking jacket.
“I’m sure he will! Do you know his size?” He asked. “Put it on?” He hands him the sweater and Rui does as he's told. “Perfect! That’ll fit him!.. But now that I’m looking at you.. Rui I think you would look very nice in this style! You should get something!” “Oh? Well, If you say so! I’ll look around!” He takes off the jacket and hands it back to Tsukasa before turning over to the display. Tsukasa does the same.
The next time he looks over at Tsukasa, He sees quite a few clothes hogging Tsukasa's arms. Rui only has two pants, three shirts and a sweater similar to the one Tsukasa picked out for Touya. Emu then came up to them with a bunch of clothes of her own.
“Let's try on all our clothes guys!” And they did exactly that. The dressing rooms had a bench in front of it so all four of them took turns trying stuff on and doing funky poses. Messing around like they normally do. They ended up buying a large amount of clothes with Tsukasa joking that they could join Vivid Bad Squad now.
They visited quite a lot more stores. Tsukasa spent over an hour getting things Saki might like. He even bought a couple items for her girlfriends. He went as far as getting something for Akito that he thought his junior would appreciate. Emu got tons of things for her siblings and Rui and Nene also got a couple of things for their families. They ended their time at the mall in an arcade with a bunch of claw machines. None of them are too good at them but they managed to rack up a decent amount of prizes.
For dinner, they headed to a popular K-BBQ place. Obviously, Tsukasa did most of the cooking for them. Nene occasionally taking over for him. While eating, they mostly talked about ideas for upcoming shows. You know, just regular WXS things. After that, they called it a night.
Back in the hotel room, Rui was tinkering with some small robot while Tsukasa was reading. The tv was on in the background for some noise. The silence between them wasn’t uncomfortable by any means. It could be a lot worse. He was a very quick reader. It would probably only take three more sessions for him to finish the book and he didn’t bring another one either. Guess it’s time to do something else. He puts his bookmark in between the two pages and reaches to his side to grab his bag off the floor. He exchanges the book for his sketchbook and a pencil. He sketches some random costumes before finally going to sleep.
The rest of their vacation has quite a similar layout. Go out somewhere, eat out, come back to the hotel, and sleep. Another notable constant would be the letter that has been found in Tsukasa’s hand every night. Unbeknownst to Rui, he was contemplating, debating even. Exactly when would be the best time for this?
-Please find it in your heart to forgive me, or at least don’t hate me if we are to stop being friends because of this. I wasn’t sure at first as I've never felt this way before but with the help of my dear sister and Touya, I was able to confirm it.-
This particular day, the last night before they were leaving, the four of them decided to hang out at the hotel. It was getting pretty late but they didn’t really mind. The flight would be around the evening so they could sleep in if they desired. The current topic of conversation was the rectangular piece of paper Tsukasa had been fidgeting with for so much of the trip. Emu tried to grab it from him but he dodged just in time. While everyone was curious, it was clear who cared the most. Almost every night Rui has asked him the same question. And each time Tsukasa replied with a simple “You’ll know eventually.” He managed to stir the conversation in a different direction just like he did every other time. Thankfully, soon enough Emu got really tired and Nene was also letting out occasional yawns. As any good friend would, Tsukasa walked them to their room just to make sure they were fine. He still hasn’t changed so it didn’t look too weird.
He was not at all prepared for what he would see when he got back. Unlocking the door and walking in, he expected for Rui to be fast asleep. Definitely not standing over his bed with a letter in hand. His eyes were wide, maybe even wider than Tsukasa’s. There were a thousand emotions drowning him. Fear, confusion, anxiety, but most importantly, anger. His shocked expression quickly turned into one of disappointment. But when Rui looked up at him, it was only sadness he felt. Those weren’t loving eyes were they..?
“Why… would you read it!?” Sadness shows weakness. So instead he was fuming. “Tsukasa-...” Before he got a chance to finish, Tsukasa was out the door. The elevator didn’t take too long and he went down to the lobby. It was empty and eerie so he made his way outside. There were benches lined up on either side of the door, so he went to the furthest one and slowly started to sob.
He wasn’t ready. That letter had his heart on it. And as much as he wanted to give it during this trip, he really couldn’t. He wasn’t ready for change, good or bad. He needed things to stay like this for just a bit longer. Why would things never go his way?
The sound of panting was blocked out by his sobs. It wasn’t until his name was called that he realized someone else's presence. He was clearly shivering. He didn’t even take the time to put a sweater on. For fuck’s sake, he was wearing slippers.
“I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have read the letter. I should have waited but quite frankly, I’m happy I didn’t. I-” He took another moment to catch his breath. “I love you too.” Tsukasa’s eyes got wider than the sun for a second. He never accounted for this ending. Only the bad ones.
“I don’t… want anything to change. Sniffles interrupting every few words. “Nothing has to. If you aren’t ready for a relationship then it’s fine. But I love you and there’s no need for you to hide anything anymore. And definitely no reason to apologize.” He’s met with a teary smile when he finally looks back down at Tsukasa. The moonlight hitting in just the right angles. Tsukasa stands up to relieve some stress on Rui’s neck just to wrap his arms around it a second later.
“I do want a relationship with you. Just.. No more reading things before I give it to you..” Rui chuckles a bit before a hand finds its way to Tsukasa’s waist and another to the back of his head. They stayed like that for a minute before Tsukasa slightly pulled away and rested his hands on Rui’s shoulder. Staring into each other’s eyes felt magical. Sure there were no fireworks or butterflies surrounding them in a beautiful garden. But there was just something so special about looking into someone's eyes and having them look back at you the exact way you have for all this time.
They slowly inched closer, both waiting for an objection from the other. It never came. Their lips connecting for the first time. Tsukasa’s right hand creeped up and caressed Rui’s cheek in such a gentle manner. While Rui pushed his head even closer in an attempt to deepen the kiss. It lasted for a while before they pulled away to catch their breaths. And all that was going through Tsukasa’s mind was “I really should have given the letter to him sooner.”
-I love you Rui. Not in a best friend type of way. I really do love you and I’m so sorry.-