Work Text:
They didn’t celebrate birthdays like they used to.
Though that was only natural, Ryo supposed. They weren’t kids or teenagers or even young adults anymore now, and it showed. While they were very successful, the stage was the only place where life was still exciting.
Maybe that’s why all of them had started their own side projects. Something else to keep them busy, something that was fresh and new again, something to draw energy from.
Something that they didn’t have to share with the others.
You’d never catch her saying this out loud, but Ryo really did love the other three. If she didn’t, she would’ve left long ago, after all. Nonetheless, sometimes everything was a bit much, and slowly, even the extroverts among them felt a certain sense of ennui settle in.
The gestures they’d become so used to didn’t ring hollow, but it was all the same as ever. A fleeting touch, a short look, a gentle smile. So precious. So worn out. Retreading old ground that used to carry a much greater harvest.
They still came alive on stage. With the first note ringing out, all the washed-out colors turned neon, and the sweat running down their bodies reflected their smiles, scattering the light into new compositions each and every time. No matter their mood, no matter the tension or lack thereof, it was all gone with an instrument in hand.
The adrenaline crashes, though, were the worst they’d ever been. They’d come home, leave for their own rooms, and sometimes Ryo would wake up the next day and come into the kitchen for breakfast and see that Hitori and Ikuyo had been crying.
Nijika didn’t. Of course not. She had always had to be the strong one.
And then, just two or three days ago, Ryo had made a stupid joke about marrying for tax benefits, and while Hitori and Ikuyo mostly just looked uncomfortable, Nijika exploded.
She berated her, almost yelled at her, that they’d already talked about marriage, and that it wouldn’t be right, because even though they could, now that gay marriage had been legalized, that still only applied to monogamous relationships, and so they’d have to choose one over the other, which would only lead to conflict; and Ryo knew all of this, because she had been there when they’d talked about this, and agreed on all of these points.
Nijika had stormed off. Ikuyo had gone back to her room. Hitori had pulled her legs to her chest and become unresponsive.
Ryo had sat there, stared at the ceiling, and wondered why she even made the joke in the first place.
It wasn’t hard to find an answer to why she brought up something that would change the status of their relationship.
All of that long story was to say that Ryo didn’t expect her birthday to be celebrated at all. But she was fine with that. In the end, she was a loner, after all.
She rolled to the edge of her bed, sat up, and turned on the laptop she kept by her bedside. It would hardly be a nice birthday if she just wallowed in self-pity all day long, so maybe she could at least channel some of that frustration into her music.
A quick glance at her laptop’s clock revealed that it was already past 10am. Ryo tapped a rhythm on her nightstand and cocked her head for a moment, considering the appeal of breakfast, but she decided against it. Right now, she needed to unload some things – she could always go to eat after.
Headphones in. Program open.
Time to make some music.
Ryo was busy fiddling with the drum fills when there was a knock on the door. Her headphones had been silent, so she barely managed to hear it even though it was fairly soft.
“Come in, Bocchi,” she said, and Hitori opened the door.
“N-Nijika wanted me to ask you about eating.” Hitori fidgeted with her shirt, an indecipherable logo of some metal band printed on the front. She still stood in the doorway. “Do you want to come eat lunch soon?”
Lunch?
Ryo looked at the clock, and sure enough, it was almost 2pm by now. The time passing by had barely registered for her.
“Actually, could you just bring it into my room?” Ryo replied. “I’m working on something, and don’t want to lose the flow.”
“O-Oh, that’s okay! We can wait until you’re finished.”
“Why not just eat without me?”
Hitori looked away, twiddling her thumbs. “It’s just… we wanted to eat together again.”
Ryo paused. After a moment of thinking, she looked back at her program, eyes following the unfinished drum section, and tapped her finger against the laptop.
She hit Save and stood up. “Alright, I’ll be there. Give me a moment.”
Hitori’s face lit up in a way Ryo would’ve expected from Ikuyo if anyone, and she nodded emphatically before leaving for the kitchen. Ryo stretched her body a bit before following behind.
When she entered the kitchen, Nijika, Ikuyo, and Hitori were standing there, behind the table, Ikuyo with a present in hand. There was cake on the table as well, a single lit candle in the middle. They were smiling, though a bit crookedly in Nijika’s case.
“Oh,” made Ryo.
“Happy birthday, Ryo!” Ikuyo beamed, holding out the present to her. “You almost missed your own birthday celebration, silly! It would’ve been a waste to not be able to give this to you.”
Ryo wordlessly took the package, not unwrapping it yet.
“H-Happy birthday, Ryo.” Hitori smiled, but she was still fidgeting nervously. “I hope we’re not bothering you with this…”
Nijika sighed. “Happy birthday, Ryo.” She scratched her head, looking away. “I know things have been a bit rough lately, but we still wanted to do something for you, so I made cake. You’ll like it, it’s your favorite. And…” She trailed off.
Ryo, Hitori, and Ikuyo all looked at her. Nijika huffed.
“I’m sorry for blowing up at you.”
Ryo didn’t reply. Instead, she took a knife, and cut herself a large slice of cake. She felt Nijika’s glare on her, but she also felt it soften when she took a bite and smiled a little.
“Good cake,” she mumbled with a full mouth.
Ikuyo laughed. Hitori sat down at the table, smiling. Nijika scolded her for speaking while eating, but there was no real heat behind it.
Things really had been rough lately, but there was a reason Ryo hadn’t left long ago.