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Tsukasa was backstage at the Wonder Stage, and he had just finished his last show of the night when he checked his phone.
Saki 💛 19:31
Hey Tsukasa! I know you’re probably performing right now, but I was putting together a scrapbook of all the memorable photos I have of me and the rest of Leo/need because our 15th anniversary is coming up, and I realised I don’t have glue. Definitely not essential for a scrapbook at all! Haha! Anyways could you pick up some from the shop on the way back from Phoenix Wonderland? Thanks love your little sister Saki💕💕
Tsukasa was indeed at practice, he does pass by a shop that sells glue on the way he walks home, and he is well able to pop into that shop to buy glue for his sister.
Tsukasa, however, swears he is currently the poorest person in the universe. Buying a single glue stick for his sister would more than likely cause him to go completely broke.
He may have a part time job, but he has a tendency of buying his friends very extravagant gifts, even if he can just barely afford it. This habit often leaves him with barely enough money to afford even the cheapest of snacks for him and his siblings.
There’s not really any other ways he can earn money. He loves his job in the Phoenix Wonderland cast and would never quit; even if it meant for a better paying job, his parents are never home so he can’t ask for pocket money in exchange for doing chores, and, well, how else does a 17 year old earn money?
Becoming a Nightcord kitten, of course.
Kanade told him once about how Mizuki jokingly asked Ena to be their Nightcord mod and Ena actually fell for it and obliged, which eventually lead to them dating, but they also earned a little money as well. It wouldn’t be that bad… right? Plus, maybe he wouldn’t be so single.
There was one problem though, he didn’t have anyone to be his moderator.
He started going through an imaginary list of people he knew and tried to think of their outcomes.
Nene… no, she would laugh at him and bully him over it forever.
Emu? She probably doesn’t even know what a Nightcord kitten is…
Akito thinks he’s weird enough already, no point in asking him.
Rui.
The only person left he knew, and as weird as it is to admit, Tsukasa wouldn’t mind being Rui’s Nightcord kitten.
What if he plans out some kind of confession, but instead of it being like a ‘I want to be your boyfriend!’ way, it’s more of a ‘I want to be your Nightcord kitten!’
He has always thought he had romantic feelings towards Rui, but he never thought it would lead to whatever mess this is.
A realisation hits Tsukasa, however. He needs to delay the glue-buying by a day, but there is no possible way he can go home without passing by that shop. He has to somehow avoid going home today at all costs, but he has nowhere to go.
He can’t stay outside in the freezing cold all night, it’s winter, and he would catch a cold…
Sneaking in later after Saki goes to bed wouldn’t work either as he can’t be in the house when she wakes up, it would only cause suspicion.
Tsukasa couldn’t think of any other solution except having a sleepover at someone’s house, but who would be willing to have a sleepover with such little notice?
As if on cue, the least organised person he knows appeared right before his very eyes.
“Tsukasa? Are you okay? You’ve been spaced out for a while and you look rather confused. Is something troubling our star?” He looked up, and as he expected, Rui was right in front of him. Might as well ask him about a sleepover, the kitten stuff can wait. He doesn’t want to scare him.
“I’m sorry if this is a bit sudden, but would I be able to stay the night at your house? Saki has all her girlfriends over, and I don’t really want to interrupt them as they’re having a party for their 15th anniversary…” Tsukasa thought this was a bit much… creating a whole lie just so he could have enough money to buy glue and could ask his friend to be his Nightcord mod for money. But he gets to spend quality time with Rui, so he doesn’t really mind. He just hopes Saki doesn’t care about waiting a day for her scrapbook either.
“Of course! I don’t get company often and I get really lonely at home, so I would love for you to stay over. I hope you don’t mind the mess… I’ve been busy with testing some robots lately and didn’t get a chance to clear up the spare parts.” He giggled.
“Thank you so much! I can help tidy up your room if you want?” Tsukasa smiled back.
“No, no, please don’t trouble yourself with that! I really don’t mind.”
“Alright, I suppose we best head off then?” Tsukasa gathered his things, and even took time to grab whatever robotic creatures Rui had brought along to spare him the trouble of finding them all himself.
For some reason, the simple gesture of helping him collect his items made Rui feel all warm and fuzzy. He never really had anyone care about him or his interests when he was younger, so it must be catching up to him now. He just decided to brush it off.
Tsukasa gave Saki a quick text to inform her about the sleepover.
Tsukasa!!💛 19:40
Hello Saki!!!! I apologise, but I’m having a sleepover with Rui today!! I’ll get the glue for you tomorrow when I’m headed home I promise!! Also tell Toya that our performances went well and there was no need to worry about it!!!! Love Tsukasa!!
That should do it.
——————
They chatted about numerous things as they walked towards Rui’s house including ideas for future shows, how Rui has progressed in his robotic inventions, their school studies, and an assortment of other things.
They rarely see each other outside of school or practice, so they never really got to catch up until now. It was a nice feeling to talk like this, just them together. They should hang out more.
Soon enough they reached Rui’s house, and the one thing Tsukasa could never have predicted was where his bedroom was. He stood, mouth wide open, frozen in spot as Rui lifted up the… garage door!?
“Welcome! Please make yourself at home while I tidy up. I’ll get you pyjamas to change into in a second, you can’t sleep in your show outfit!” Tsukasa still hadn’t stepped inside, he was still frozen.
“Uhm… Tsukasa?” Rui stared back at him, he had genuine concern written all over his face. He still didn’t quite know what to say, but he shook his head and walked inside anyways. It was much warmer inside Rui’s house.
He took a seat on his blue couch and looked around a little. He’s glad Rui declined his offer to help tidy up, as Tsukasa can’t separate the mess from the actual decor.
The drawings on the wall above his desk caught his eye. By the looks of it, he kept the Robo-Nene blueprints and hung them up. This had him curious.
“Hey Rui, do you keep all the blueprints from your old projects?” Rui put down the spare parts in his hands and walked over to his desk. He started picking up random sheets of paper and came over to where Tsukasa was sitting.
“I in fact do! Here are some of my really old ones, you can look through them while I tidy up a little more if you want. Oh, also, you might not recognise the shows they were for as I kept some of my failed projects too… they kind of got mixed with the others.” Rui smiled at him as he handed him the blueprints.
That smile… at first, it kind of scared him. He knew that if Rui gave him that smirk, he would be in for some kind of wacky adventure, wether it was being shot out of a cannon for their next show, or hung from the Wonder Stage as a quick test, or hit with a bunch of weapons during a performance, or.. well, the list goes on. (the weapons were indeed fake, Rui cares too much about his safety to use real ones.)
However, he grew to love that smile. Over time, he found himself thinking about what crazy ideas he might have for their next show when he smiles like that, and how he can impress him by performing said idea with utmost accuracy. He found himself thinking about how as insane as he sometimes looked, that smile was comforting in some way. He found himself thinking about how sometimes, that very smile came from something Tsukasa did.
Anyway, Rui’s mischievous smile was wiped from his face when he remembered he had to continue tidying. He didn’t want to leave his beloved guest sleep in a messy room.
Tsukasa flipped through the blueprints he was handed, and he was reminded of some old performances that they did. He smiled softly at the memories… he truly is progressing in his goal to become a star.
He was broken from his thoughts however, when Rui walked over to him to tell him he was done tidying. He sat down next to him.
“Your room is a bit odd isn’t it? How come it’s in the garage?” Tsukasa asked. He took another look around, and noticed the balloons that were floating at the ceiling. He wonders how long they’ve been there for.
“Hehe… funny story, I blew up my old room!” Rui laughed. How could he laugh at something as crazy as that?!
“You what!?! How on Earth did you manage that??” He shouted, very loudly. Today truly has been full of surprises after surprises.
“Of course I didn’t! Did you really believe me?” He giggled even harder now. Tsukasa crossed his arms. How could he believe that so easily…
“Yes… but anyway, how did you actually get the garage as your bedroom?” He turned back to face him again.
“Well, I actually asked if I could have the garage. Our family didn’t use it and it was easier for me to store props in here as well. Plus, it blocks out any noises I make so my parents can sleep.” He stood back up and walked over to his wardrobe, grabbed a few things out of it, and handed them over to Tsukasa.
“It’s getting quite dark, so I thought we should get changed! The bathroom is to your left, I’ll just change in here.” Rui checked his phone, it was only 21:17, but he figured they should get changed anyways.
“Thank you, Rui! Let me know when you’re done so I don’t walk straight in.” He closed the door behind him and headed to the bathroom to change.
As if this day couldn’t get stranger, when he unfolded the clothes Rui gave him, he was shocked again. First of all, why does Rui own a bright pink cat t-shirt (with matching shorts), and… why did he give them to Tsukasa to wear?
He couldn’t go in and ask Rui for different clothes because, well, it’s a bit rude. He’s also getting changed himself and didn’t particularly want to walk in on that, so Tsukasa supposes he’s stuck with… whatever this is.
He quickly got into the clothes he gave him, and knocked on Rui’s door. “Hey, Rui? Are you still getting changed or can I come in?” He shouted a little louder than what he thought he would.
“Just one second, my star!” Rui shouted back. How long does it take to get changed?
After 10 whole minutes of waiting outside, Rui opened the door, and held out a hand to Tsukasa. What was going on?
He looked at his pyjamas. A bright blue cat t-shirt and shorts. Wait…
He hit Rui’s hand out of the way. “RUI!! WHY ARE WE WEARING MATCHING PYJAMAS!!” Tsukasa yelled at Rui, causing him to laugh a little.
“Well, I thought it would be nice! I just know you look at Emu and Nene’s matching items and feel a little sad that you don’t have anyone to match with.”
That was true, he did feel a bit disappointed that no one ever asked him if he wanted to match with bracelets, or t-shirts… but this was on a whole other level! It’s almost as if Rui knows he wants to be his Nightcord kitten…
“I suppose, yeah. But cat t-shirts… really? Hey, why do you even own this stuff if you’ve never had someone to match with!?” Tsukasa asked, it was a bit strange. Almost as if he’s been waiting.
“Hehe, that’s a story for another day!” He turned off the lights, and he waved his fingers as if to imitate ‘magic’. Rui walked over to his desk and switched on some form of light, while stars were projected onto the ceiling.
“Tada! Fitting for a future star, is it not?” He exclaimed, feeling very proud of his creation. Was that why he was taking so long to get ‘changed?’
Every other thought was pushed out of his head. “Wow, I love it Rui! How do you make this stuff?” Tsukasa was in awe of his little invention. He would have loved this even more when he was younger.
“I actually just finished it a couple seconds ago. I’ve been working on it for a while for you and I wanted to show you, so I thought this would be the perfect time. I just had to do a little testing, I apologise for making you wait outside! If you want, I can leave it on when we sleep?”
“Hmm… sure! It would be nice to stare at, and could probably help us fall asleep quicker. Actually, speaking of sleeping, where will I sleep?” He asked. There was no bed in this room, and the only thing he could probably sleep on was that couch. It was a bit small though.
“I normally fall asleep at my desk when I’ve been up tinkering with some of my projects, so I’ll probably end up doing that. You can have the blow-up mattress though if you want!” Sleeping… at his desk?
“Rui! That must be so uncomfortable… no wonder you complain about your back hurting! How big is the mattress? Do you think we could both fit? There’s no way I’m letting you sleep at your desk.” Tsukasa cared a lot about Rui. If he had to tackle him down onto the mattress, he probably would.
“How about we set it up to see? I apologise, it is a bit old. I haven’t had guests to sleep over in ages,” The last person Rui remembers having over to stay the night was Nene, and he guesses they were probably about nine at the time.
After the long struggle of getting the mattress out, finding something to blow it up with, almost getting crushed underneath it because Tsukasa didn’t realise it would blow up this quickly, and grabbing blankets and pillows to decorate it with, they were finally done.
“You are definitely sleeping down here with me.” Tsukasa pointed at him.
“Do you not think you would like that entire bed to yourself? I really don’t mind sleeping at my desk, I’m used to it anyways.” This was going to be a hard job.
Tsukasa checked his phone, it was 22:48, they should probably head to sleep soon. Tsukasa would normally be in bed by now, however he has to drag Rui to sleep with him first.
“Rui. There is way more than enough space in this bed for the both of us. It’s winter, it’s cold. You are sleeping down here with me.” He lifted up the covers and climbed inside. It was pretty cosy.
“I’ll be fine! I promise!” Tsukasa had one more trick up his sleeve. It had to work.
“P-pweeeease Wui… I don’t want you cold…” He stuffed his face in a pillow immediately after that. Toya would’ve killed him for that.
He looked back up from the pillow, and saw Rui walking over to the mattress. It worked?
“I suppose if you want me to that badly, I might as well just give in.” He climbed in, and Tsukasa felt proud of himself for finally convincing him to sleep on the mattress with him.
“Do you want to go to sleep now, or do you wanna sit and chat for a bit?” Rui asked, turning over to face Tsukasa.
“I don’t mind, but is there anything you wanna talk about?” Rui thought for a minute, and suddenly his eyes lit up.
“Well, if you’re asking… then yes, I do have something I want to talk about.” His signature cat smile appeared across his face, and Tsukasa found himself wondering, like all those times before, what mischievous thought has crossed his mind.
“I’ve actually been planning a sleepover like this for years. I never wanted to ask you about it before because I didn’t know when I could bring it up without it being a bit weird, but I was super happy when you asked me about one today.” Wait… years?
“This is something I’ve been planning to ask you forever. The matching cat pyjamas, those were kind of a hint. I… well, I don’t really know how to say this without making this whole situation weird if you say no…” Rui looked away for a moment, and sighed.
Tsukasa wasn’t too sure what he was about to ask him, but he’s sure whatever it is won’t make him hate Rui. He could never hate Rui.
“I… I want to be your Nightcord mod.”
Oh my god.
Tsukasa was stunned. Today has been filled with surprise after surprise.
“Hold on, I have some explaining to do as well.” Tsukasa sat up from the bed. “This whole sudden sleepover thing was because I didn’t want to go home to disappoint Saki. She wanted glue to make a scrapbook of her and her girlfriends for their anniversary, and I was so broke that I couldn’t even buy glue for her. There’s no way of me walking home and not passing by a shop, so I couldn’t go home.” He sighed.
“And so… I was going to ask to be your Nightcord kitten so I could earn money.”
It was Rui’s turn today to enter a small state of shock. (for once)
They both wanted to be Nightcord mod and kitten? For each other?
“What I’m saying is, yes, you can be my Nightcord mod. I would love for you to be my mod. I wouldn’t want anyone else.” Tsukasa stared at him. This was a dream come true.
“Do… do you think you could meow for me, kitten?” Rui laughed a little at his own suggestion, but this is what he asked for.
“M-meow…” Tsukasa looked away from him, it was kind of embarrassing, but he needs the money.
“Thank you kitten. Is there anything I can do in return?” He smiled.
“Could you… could you buy me a glue stick?”
——————
Saki got the glue stick and made the scrapbook to give to her girlfriends and Rui and Tsukasa lived happily ever after. Rui never slept at his desk again because Tsukasa forced him to either stay at his house with him, or had another sleepover at Rui’s house and forced him to sleep with him. Tsukasa also became a millionaire and spoiled all his siblings and friends without going bankrupt.