Work Text:
Today was another busy day for F/ACE. They finished working on their new single off their soon-to-be released EP so right now they were lined up for the photoshoot,cameras swarming by for extra footage for the eventual jacket shoot.
“Alright gentlemen,today’s the day of the shoot. Are you all excited!?” The director asked,shouting with enthusiasm. The boys exclaimed in various different ways,all of them being rather positive.
“Excellent! So to match the vibe with the song,the theme for the single today will be….’slumber party’! We want something that can coincide with E/YES and give them something to dance and jump around and have fun too,like singing karaoke during what else? A slumber party!
“Actually there are plenty of karaoke bars and booths all across Japan so from a technical standpoint,you can always go to karaoke at any point in time.” Rintaro corrected him. The rest of the members stared at him cause they were shocked that he was speaking more words than he intended to(at least on this side anyway). The director stayed silent for a minute before brushing off that side note completely.
“ANYWHO….*clears throat* we want you boys to dress up as if you were the special guests of the lucky person’s slumber party so we’ve given you some fresh clean pajamas in the dressing room. Once you put those on,we’ll give you a rundown of the photos and what type we’ll use. Let’s work really hard today!”
“Sir,yes sir!” The boys said in unison. Following his orders,they went into the dressing room as instructed. A while later they come back wearing the pajamas they laid out,color coded and catered to each member's particular style. After that they got to work on the shoot. First they took group shots,then individual shots not only for the photobook,but also photocards. Then they were assigned into two teams with the trio consisting of Keito Tachibana,Rintaro Kai and Ouri Sakaguchi and the duo of Natsuki Ishibashi and Tamon Fukuhara.
For the trio,they were instructed to pretend they were having a pillow fight as it is a very common activity for slumber parties. Once the crew got enough pictures,it was the duo’s turn. Tamon was lying down on a bunch of pillows while Natsuki was sitting on top of him.
“Soooo….what’s the topic for these two?” the director asked,turning to one of the photographers.
“We were supposed to assign them to pretend that they were doing each other’s makeup but it seems our prop stock hasn’t arrived yet when it was supposed to earlier this morning. Now what are we supposed to do…?” The photographer sighed,looking defeated. The rest of the crew looked at each other trying to see if they have alternate solutions but all of them shook their heads. Natsuki glanced at them and gave them a suggestion.
“Actually…I do have a bag of makeup I brought with me. Usually I only bring it in case of an emergency...buuuuuuuuuuut seeing how you guys are in a heap of trouble,I figured maybe I let you use that instead~!”
“Really? You would do that just for us? You don’t have to do this Ishibashi-san. It’s OK,honest!”
“Ohhh,don’t be so worried about it! Be my absowute guest! After all,I only want to make things less of a hassle for everyone here.”
“Oh,you’re the best! Thank you so much! OK,I’ll be right back with the bag!” Before the photographer could run off,she halted back to the same spot she originally was.
“Just…one last thing uhhh…”
“White duffel bag. Has a lot of mascot keychains and patches ironed on. Shouldn’t be too hard to miss.”
“Great. Thanks!” And with that said,the photographer ran off again.
“So what are we supposed to do now while we wait?” Another photographer replied.
“Hmm…I have just the perfect thing and it involves you Tamon-kun…” Tamon's eyes widened as soon as he heard his name being called out. He didn’t know what Natsuki was about to do but judging by his rather mischievous expression and wiggling fingers,the answer became pretty clear.
“N-Natsuki…in public?? Surely you wouldn’t right?” Beads of sweat were dripping down his face,his cheeks burning hot. Natsuki was known to be quite a bit of a prankster but his pranks were more lighthearted than harmful. However he had no time to move as the blond attacked his sides with not a single second to waste. Tamon could feel the ticklish sensations from outside his shirt and spilled out a river of giggles.
“Hehehehehehehehehehehehehehehehe…Natsukihihihihihihihihihihihi,not right now hehehehehehehehehehe!”
“Why? I think this is perfectly acceptable! Pluuuus you could use a little more smiles…sooooo tickle tickle tickle!” Natsuki cooed,continuing his tickle assault. The crew stood stiff,jaws dropped and eyes wide open. Then one of the cameramen tapped on the director’s shoulder,whispering in his ear.
“Hey uh,are we supposed to do something here or are we still waiting?"
The director examined the 2 boys once more and had a brand new idea of his own.
"Hey make sure to take some extra bonus pictures,this could do for something exciting."
"But are we supposed to wait until she comes back?"
"Quit yapping and start snapping!" The director muttered under his teeth. With nothing else in mind,the rest of the photographers were did as they told and clicked the cameras,making sure they got as many good shots as they could. Even though he couldn't see or hear them,Tamon could tell the shuttering of the camera sounds which means this was going into the photobook and he was heavily embarrassed over this outcome.
"Hahahahahahahahahahahahahahahaha Natsukihihihihihihihi please! They're watching uhuhuhuhuhuhus!" Tamon giggled.
"And? I think this is a good side for you,since I know our E/YES will totally swoon over your much more cuter side." Natsuki then lowered himself to where Tamon's tummy was since his shirt was ridden up a little. With a devilish little smile,he took a deep inhale and began to blow a HUUUUGE raspberry onto his belly button,causing the rose haired idol to bust out in laughter.
"PFFFFTTTT AHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA! NATSUKI CUT IT OUHOHOHOHOHOHT! I-PFFEHEHEAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!"
The blond continued to blow more raspberries and nuzzled onto his stomach for a little bit until Tamon said enough was enough and brought his fingers over on his sides,starting a counterattack.
"H-hey HEHEHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA NO FAIR HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!"
"Consider this as payback for that magazine photoshoot from a while back." Tamon retorted,sticking his tongue out a bit as he was focusing on his sides. Meanwhile the photographers were still snapping away,even taking close ups but making sure the boys don't bump their heads on accident. The pinket went on tickling the blond for another minute or 2 until the latter pulled away and locked Tamon's ankles. There he flurried his fingers onto the former's soles,sending him into another laughter fit.
"NOHOHOHOHOHOHOHOHOHO! NOT MY FEET! NATSUKIHIHIHIHIHIHIHIHIHIHI! KNOCK IT OFF! HEHEHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!"
"No can do Tamon-kun. Those soft and fluffy soles are way too hard for me to ignore. And just as I expected,still as ticklish as ever~" Natsuki playfully slid his fingers in between his toes as if they were butter knives spreading toast. Tamon wiggled them sporadically hoping that Natsuki would stop but unfortunately for him,it only ignited the desire for him to tickle more so he dug his nails in the little suckers so that they were digging inside the crevices/scratching them real good. The pink haired idol curled his toes downward,trying to clamp the blond's fingers so that he could keep them trapped there. Natsuki however, was one step ahead and lifted his foot close to where his face was and gently blew on it causing Tamon to squeal,letting go of his grip on Natsuki's fingers. Then when it was time,he took another strike and Tamon's feet,this time going for his arches.
"EEHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA! WAIT,NOT THERE! BWAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA NATSU PLEHEHEHEHEHEHEHEHEHEHEASE!" Tamon roared in laughter. His feet were genuinely well know to be his most ticklish area but when it comes to which part is more sensitive,his toes would take the top spot no question and his arches a close second,followed shortly by his soles. The cameras continued click,click,clicking away with no seconds wasted. They wanted to get every bit until the moment they ran out of film. Tamon's body scooched a bit closer to where Natsuki was. From there,his eye lowered down to where his bare feet were. His hands reached for them and forcefully tickled them,the blond losing his grasp.
"OH NOHOHOHOHOHOHOHOHO! NOT THERE PLEHEHEHEHEHEHEHEHEHEHEHEASE! MY FEET ARE TOO TIHIHIHIHIHIHICKLISH! HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!"
"YOU WANNA MAKE THIS AHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA TICKLE FIGHT? WELL,TWO CAN PLAY AT THIS GAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAME! HEHEHEHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!"
While the tickle fight was ongoing,the other 3 members stared at them on the side. Keito was smiling with his eyes closed,Ouri remained neutral and Rintaro had the same stoic face as usual.
"Well isn't this nice. A little brotherly bonding to break the ice." Keito replied.
"Yeah,it's quite nice." Ouri commented. Quickly following him was a shadow casting over his eyes over how incredibly cringe it was,even from this distance.
"They seem to be having fun." Rintaro spoke out. He in particular was the most calm about this but also the most frightened. Even though he remains cool as a cucumber,the true reason he's like this in the public eye was because of his nerves freezing up as he wasn't the type to like huge crowds,especially with performing in front of an audience. Despite all this, he still continues to sing for the sake of the fans and the band's reputation. He's just mostly afraid of when his time will come in the nearby future...
"Alright everyone I think that should be good. You can stop taking pictures now. Cameramen,stop recording." The staff were did as they were told. Right as they were about to prep and edit,the other camerawoman returns with the duffel bag.
"Hiii,sorry I'm late. I thought I would just return for the shoot but I saw sooooo many pretty new limited and seasonal flavors I had to take pictures for reference the next time I went to a makeup shop. But anyway, I'm here and ready to take the pictures!"
The rest of the crew stood silently,unsure if one of them should tell her or not. She looked at them,then the boys and back to the crew again,one of them coughing breaking the silence.
"Did...I...miss something or...?"
"Yeaaaahhh,we kinda had an alternative topic we wanted to do uhh...maybe next shoot."
"Oh..." The camera woman slightly drooped her head,her mood going down a significant amount. The boys took note of this,especially to that of one Natsuki and felt bad for her.
"OK gang it's editing time, let's go go go!" The blond and pinket stood up from their spots,stopping the tickle fight,waited for the other members to approach, them then walked with the rest of the crew,ready to consult which of the photos will make it to the book. After a long session it was time for the boys to go home so they changed back to their regular clothes and went on their way. Before he could take another step,Natsuki thought about the camerawoman who wasn't there during their tickling antics while she was getting his bag. She probably missed out on all the fun so he went back inside the studio and sure enough,she was still inside packing up the remainder of her things.
"Hey!" Natsuki waved at her to get her attention and reacted to it quickly.
"Oh,Ishibashi-san. Shouldn't you be going home?"
"I should say the same to you. Regardless,I know how bad you must've felt for missing out on my part of the photoshoot soooo...I wanted to give you this." He says as he pulls out a pink gift box and handed it over to her. She opened it and could not believe what she saw. In it,was some of the limited seasonal makeup products that she mentioned earlier,some candy,a small compact mirror in a heart shape and 2 photos that didn't make the cut from the editing process from the photoshoot from earlier,one of them involving Natsuki and Tamon's little tickle fight from earlier. It even had his autograph as proof. The woman gasped,speechless over this gift that she shouldn't be worthy of getting. She looked back at Natsuki,who only gave a reassuring smile,set the box down and cried while hugging him. Natsuki hugged her back as her tears were soaking up his buttoned shirt,patting her back for comfort.
"Th-thank you..." she could only muster those words without looking and talking like a blubbered mess. He rubbed her back,soothing her only down to just sniffles. Without saying much,Natsuki and the woman waved their goodbyes to each other,hoping they would cross paths again. Who knows,maybe she'll get another gift from him...or she mayhaps return the favor?
Later on in the evening back in the complex, Tamon was now walking through the hallways,his white slip on shoes dragging along with him. Apparently he wanted to have a chat with Natsuki over the photoshoot from earlier but was too much of a chicken to tell him face to face. After a stern talk with himself in the bathroom mirror,he just went for it and see what would happen.
Now standing in front of his door,he raised his fist over,jittering in anticipation. He kept on talking to himself that it would be fine and that there was nothing to worry about. He slowly reached his fist out,quietly knocking twice. He pauses briefly,waiting for a response but he could only hear silence.
He made an attempt to knock again but heard a voice from inside.
"Door's open." Tamon gulped but took the courage to turn the knob as the voice told him to.
Please don't be a pigsty,please don't be a pigsty,pleeease don't be a pigsty,he thought as every time he entered Natsuki's room it was always a mess,leaving very little room to walk around in.
Here's hoping for the best....
Tamon opened the door,expecting a cluttered dogpile only to find that his room was...spotless? No cigarette packs laying flat everywhere,no crushed beer cans forming a mountain,his leftover clothes that were just laying on the floor got picked up as well. He took a whiff and was surprised that the room smelled like...a fresh daisy field? With a hint of smoke? A hint of smoke?
Turns out Natsuki was lying on the couch lighting up a fresh new cig and blowing out excessive smoke then crushed it using the ashtray next to him. Yes,that sweet and adorable angel full of 150% cuteness from earlier was all a facade. His B-side reveals him to be a chainsmoker and an alcoholic with nothing more than wanting to live a stress-free life and not work every day. That same brown eyed honey blond boy was shown to be quite pessimistic. So far,only the members of F/ACE and Utage Kinoshita knows about this alternate side of him as his fans could not bear to see what really lies behind the mask.
Tamon carefully stepped inside,closing the door behind him as he walked on over to the table where the blond was next to. He stared at his face,eyes full of bags just like him,his hair a little disheveled but not in the way similar to Tamon's,which he fixed his own as he noticed this.
"H-hey." Tamon waved weakly. He was unsure as to why he felt this nervous despite knowing Natsuki for quite a while. Natsuki could only put out a 's'up' before reaching to grab another cigarette.
"I see that your room is pretty clean." Tamon said,eyeing the area once more.
"Hmm? Oh yeah,that housekeeper girl swung by and tidied up before we left. Utage,was it? She's quite gifted." Tamon closed his eyes and smiled but quickly slapped himself as he was getting slightly off-track.
"Oh right. I-I just wanted to say s-s-sorry about the photoshoot from earlier..."
"Wait,what are you sorry for?" Natsuki asked,confused on Tamon's words.
"I'm sorry for getting too antsy and tickled you back. I know you hate being tickled but I just let my instincts get the better of me..."
The blond sucked up some more of the tobacco before letting out another exhale and closing his eyes for a moment. He then stood up on the couch and now sat on the left side,wanting to have a little mano y mano convo.
"Hmm...I don't really mind it. Well,as long as it's you and not anyone else I don't know,then that's fine too." Tamon pulled out a smile,thanking the heavens that Natsuki was comfortable with this kinda task. As the blond took another smoke break he thought of something he wanted to confess to the younger member.
"Oh yeah,Tamon...."
"Hmm?" Tamon tilted his head slightly.
"That reminds me...the reason why I tickled your sides during that photoshoot for that magazine a while back was because...your muscles were getting tense."
"Huh? Was I really that nervous?!" Tamon exclaimed as he couldn't believe it either. He thought he was doing fine that day until Natsuki told him such.
"Apparently. As I was taking a look at our surroundings,I noticed that your arm and hand were shaking vigorously. It may not have looked like it,but on the inside you were on the verge of having an anxiety attack so I thought I would tickle you to shake off some of those nerves. And it seemed to work,for the most part."
So THAT'S what happened. Nobody else seemed to have noticed this but Natsuki himself because if it wasn't for him,he would've had a panic attack in the middle of the studio. And here all he thought that he just wanted to play a prank on him. Now Tamon wanted to give him something because giving just a simple thank you wasn't enough. He wanted to express his full-on graditude,similar in a way like he did with Utage several times.
While he thought about it,he walked over to Natsuki's couch and sat on the empty spot,next to him,twiddling his thumbs. It was tough because while Natsuki wasn't picky,he had certain things as to what he liked so he wanted to give him something that was long-term so things like beer/alcohol,snacks or stuff that was one-time-use wasn't gonna cut it.
"You know something? This feels nice. Just the two of us,lounging around,having a smoke and just chatting around with no work piling up. I could really live out like this for as long as I wa-"
"DON'T DIE ON ME!" Tamon wailed,now clinging himself to the blond's waist. Nastuki's eyes widened,unsure of what was going on.
"What's up with you? Why these weird outcries?"
"It's just that I....I...I don't want you to die so young...I read news articles online about the dangers of smoking damaging your lungs and alcohol poisoning and thought about you in the process and...I don't think I can handle such!" Tamon sniffled,tears falling out of his eyes. Natsuki didn't think that Tamon would be the type to be so caught up with statistics these days but just goes to show how he can be quite up to date.
"P-plus you've been one of the few people who's been genuinely kind to me so if you were to leave me right now...I wouldn't know what I would do...and I don't think I can rely on trusting the other members in looking over me..." More tears fell down from his face as Tamon was down in this deep and depressive state of somber. Now Natsuki felt bad for making him worry like this. He could just tell him that he'll be fine and brush it off and switch to vaping instead,however it comes with their own consequences alongside similar effects,which'll break Tamon's trust even more.
Deeply sighing,Natsuki raised his hand,placed it on top of Tamon's head and petted him ever so gently. The rose haired man looked up to the blond,now with a soft and caring smile.
"Don't worry,I'm not gonna die anytime soon. Right now it's hard for me to quit cold turkey since I'm already into this addiction. But just for you,I'll make an exception." Tamon still had tears in his eyes but he felt relieved. Out of the 5 members, Natsuki was the second eldest of the group being only a year younger than Keito,thus has quite a few responsibilities on his back when things went haywire. So now that that problem was solved,Natsuki needed to to find a way to make Tamon fully feel better since there will be a case he might crumble again even if he were to keep his promise. Thankfully he knew just the ticket.
"Hey,Tamon. You know you've been looking pretty down in the dumps lately. What happened to that pretty smile of yours?" Tamon felt a thump in his chest. He didn't think Natsuki would be such a smooth talker. "Luckily,I know just the thing for it."
Tamon was getting a little scared,stumbling from the couch as proof. He had nowhere to go as the blond had him right where he wanted him.
"N-Natsuki...we can't do this again. Surely not twice in the same day...right?" Natsuki did not answer as he was sticking out his tongue mischievously,fingers wiggling like they're prepared to catch the prey. Tamon tried to run away but he was a tad too late as Natsuki started digging onto his sides,restarting the reactions once again. Tamon's lips curled,holding in his laughter despite the blond knowing that his sensitivity was extremely high so it was practically pointless. Case in point,he lost control and exploded within 15 seconds.
"HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA NOT AGAIN! WE JUST WENT THROUGH THIHIHIHIHIHIHIHIHIHIHIHIHIHIHIHIS!! AHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!"
"I know. But now that we have some time to ourselves,we might as well continue where we last left off." Natsuki pierced his nails onto his abs softly,being careful as to not stab him on accident. Each particle of his skin was tingling,goosebumps producing every second. He tapped each area as if they were piano keys.
"AHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA! MERCY! MERCY! HEHEHEHEHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA! HAVE MERCY ON MEHEHEHEHEHEHEHEHEHE!" The blond didn't respond,continuing what he was doing. Tamon on the other hand was trying to push away from his grasp but failed as Natsuki kept pulling him back in. From poking and scratching on his belly,abs and sides,he was getting through every part of his skin like an uninvited flea.
"You know,I never really cared about the interest of tickling people...but I'm kinda starting to get it now." Natsuki uttered,now softly flicking his fingers into his abdomen. For some,it wouldn't be as effective but since it was Tamon,it was super effective due to his body being extremely sensitive.
"HEEEEEEEEEHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA! WHY THERE? WHY THEHEHEHEHERE!? PLEHEHEHEHEHEHEHEHEASE NATSUKEEHEHEHEHEHEHEHEHE!"
As the minutes go by,Tamon rapidly flailed his legs,his shoes flying out of his feet without knowing. Natsuki looked back on this and took note. He stopped momentarily to let Tamon catch his breath a bit.
"Whew,I'm beat. Thanks for stopping Nat-- Wait....what happened to my shoes?" Tamon questioned,now looking at his freshly and slightly sweaty bare feet,toe wiggling included.
"They're right here." Natsuki stood up,grabbing his bandmate's white slips with relative ease. He was slowly dangling them in the air,effectively teasing Tamon even if he didn't realize he was doing so on purpose. "What,you want 'em back or something?"
"Uhhh,yeah. So can I.....please?"
"Hmmmm,I don't think so." The blond retorted,tossing the shoes away.
"W-why?" Tamon sniffled,tears producing from his eyes.
"Why? Well it's because...your feet are just so cute! Pretty,soft,plush,sculpted like a work of art...no wonder Utage's gotten so gaga about them recently." Natsuki said as he lifted Tamon's legs,setting his feet on top his lap,keeping his ankles secure.
"Oh great,now you're starting to sound like her..." Tamon landed his hand on top of his head,thoughts wrapped all around.
"It's true though. Even my feet aren't that amazing as your's. Well,you get a lot more pedicures than all of us combined so...guess I can't really speak much on that front." Natsuki chuckled,slowly rubbing the rose hair's soles. Tamon could already feel the tickly sensations shooting through his brain even if he wasn't actually doing any tickling yet. Then again,there was that little tickle fight they had earlier on set so there wasn't much he could counter to.
"But now I think it's time for the real main course..." Natsuki prepped his fingers and went all out on his soles to start off. Not even a second in and Tamon was already kicking upwards,trying to break free from the blond's clutches. Natsuki fortunately,was prepared for this for he wrapped his arm around his ankles and used his free hand to tickle at both soles.
"AAAAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA NOO PLEASE! I DON'T WANT TO GO THROUGH THIHIHIHIHIHIHIHIS! HEHEHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!" Tamon laughed once more,his feet wiggling around so much that he nearly kicked Natsuki twice. He didn't like the way he was misbehaving so he decided to teach him a little lesson.
"You know,Tamon. It's not nice to show disrespect to your elders like that. I'm afraid I'm gonna have to punish you. Coochie coochie coo...." Natsuki moved his fingers now upward to the balls of his feet and just like he described,they were soft and plushy thus taking his sweet time with them. Tamon splurted some giggles alongside his laughter as he felt his nerves burning up bit by bit.
"Mmmhmmhmmhmhmhmmhm...hehehehehahahahahahahahahaha! I'm sohohohohohohohoreeeee! I can't help that I'm too tihihihihihihihicklish!"
"Well...there isn't much that I can help you with bro. So it looks like you're just gonna have to take it." Natsuki told him as he was now squeezing the pillowy pads in addition to tickling them with his fingers. Tamon kept on bucking and squirming so much that his shirt had ridden up again. Thankfully,Natsuki was focused on only one spot of his so that he couldn't target the other at the same time.
More time passes and Tamon already had enough. He swiftly pulled his feet out of Natsuki's grasp,freeing himself from his ticklish wrath.
"Heyyy,I wasn't finished yet..." Natsuki whined.
"Too late. It's your turn now!" Tamon replied as he pounced on his blond bandmate. He dug his hands underneath his shirt,and ran his fingers on his armpits. Natsuki squeezed his eyes shut,teeth clenched and squirming around. As Tamon mentioned,he hated being tickled so he dreaded this the moment the younger member broke free.
"Mmmmm....mmmmmm...mmmmhmhmhmhmhmhmhmhm. N-no...s-stop it...I can't..."
"What's wrong? You were laughing not too long ago and now you suddenly want to act all tough? Come on,it'll be fine...Just let it allllll out..." Tamon slowly teased his upper body,the tips of his fingers trickling on the bottom part of his pits until they descended down to his sides. There,Natsuki's cheeks flushed a bright red,indicating that he couldn't hold it in for much longer.
"Hmmm? Are you going to burst? It's OK. I know you want to...and I'll let you...tickle tickle tickle~~"
Tamon whispered using his lower register,causing Natsuki's ears to burn red up top. He couldn't take it anymore and combusted,laughing like there was no tomorrow.
"AHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA! HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA TAMON KNOCK IT OFF! I DON'T LIKE THIS GAME ANYMOHOHOHOHOHOHOHOHORE!"
"Well,you were the one that started all this so I figured I might as well finish my end of the deal. It's only fair,right?" Tamon then slid his fingers even lower to his other side and quickly over to his chest,where a whole new sensation sparked inside of Natsuki. Shimmying his shoulders up and down,he tried to get the tingling sensations off of him but they kept on multiplying,ultimately thinking of that instead.
"HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA Q-QUIT IT ALREADY! AHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA TAMOHOHOHOHOHOHOHOHOHOHON!" Tamon said nothing,prolonging his torture to the cynical lad. Natsuki's shirt had ridden up quite a bit leaving his tummy exposed. This gave him an idea and sort of a 'case of revenge'.
He lowered his head down,licking his lips to prepare. Natsuki could not tell what was happening because of his teary eyes but he suddenly felt an odd draft from his chest. Oh no,he wouldnt...
But he already gone and did it,puckering down to his belly button and giving a good ol' raspberry.
Unlike Natsuki's previous version which was more in power,Tamon's was more on the duration side letting it linger on until he was out of breath.
"PFFFFFHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA! HEY,THAT'S NOT FAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAIR! STOP STEALING MY TACTICS! AHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!"
"Well what can I say? The student has to surpass the teacher at some point." Tamon planted more raspberries onto him with absolutely no mercy given to him. More tears fell from the blond's eyes,absolutely losing it. He needed to find a way to get out of this without hurting him but his energy was draining every few seconds.
"Oh yeah,I almost forgot something." Tamon briefly stopped momentarily to give Natsuki some time to recover. It would not last long as the rose haired idol now had his mitts on Natsuki's feet,locking in his ankles for safety precaution. Luckily for Tamon,his feet were already bare so no need for all the extra work. He gave him just a minute to make sure he wasn't completely worn out and once he was ready he scribbled all over his soles.
"Ahhhhhh...AHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA! BWAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA! HANG ON A SEC! GIMME AT LEAST MORE TIHIHIHIHIHIHIHIHIHIHIHIHIHIHI! HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!"
"I don't know, I think I've given you plenty of time to recover. Plus I couldn't wait any longer to get back at those cute little feet again." Tamon smiled,scritching and scratching every part of his soles activating his nerves at high octane. Natsuki struggled to lift the lower part of his leg up,attempting to get out of Tamon's grip. Just what type of training regimen did he do last week?
9 minutes later,Tamon moved on to another part of his feet that being his toes. Natsuki's pitch reached about 2x higher than normal. He didn't think that his toes would be that bad for him but now he knew that it was pretty damn bad.
"NOHOHOHOHOHOHOHOHOHOHOHO,NOT MY TOHOHOHOHOES! YOU'RE DRIVING ME CRAZY! HEHEHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!" Natsuki laughed,tears streaming down his face.
"Awww,your toes are ticklish as well? Well,looks like we have something in common." Tamon told him,wiggling his sweet little piggies. It was too much for Natsuki that he had to cover his mouth with his hands to block in his coughing in-between. It was finally decided that Natsuki could not take such a thing anymore and proceeded to slip one of his feet out of Tamon's prison and was able to kick him lightly 'til his back was on the sofa as well.
"I...got ya now. Let's see...how you like...getting a taste of your own medicine!" Natsuki said in between pants,regaining his energy now that he has been set half-free. He quickly grabbed one of Tamon's feet and wasted no time,tickling the ever living crap out of it. Tamon laughed in almost no time flat,arching his back upward and his head resting on the other armrest.
"NOHOHOHOHOHOHOHOHOHOHOHOHOHOHOHOHOHOHO! YOU'RE THE ONE WHO'S SUPPOSED TO GET TICKLED,NOT ME! HEHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA! AHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!"
"You had your turn but now it's mine again!" Natsuki went ham all over his foot,making sure every part of it was tickled no matter what. And just as he would expect,he was already rattling his whole body around,the tickle sensations still imprinted like some type of signature,marked down as a territory of sorts.
"KIIIIIYAAAAAAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA NO NO NO WAIT! TIME OUT! NAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA! NATSUHUHUHUHUHUHUHUHUHUHUHU!" Tamon covered his mouth with one hand while smacking the armrest with the other. Natsuki didn't hold back either as he did all the techniques possible. Scratching,pinching,squeezing,spider-crawling,scribbling...he did not stop until the pink haired young adult was a screeching,bawling mess.
"What's wrong,Tamon? You were a such a hotshot not that long ago,what happened? Ah well,doesn't matter now. I'm going to keep on tickling your feet unless you say I'm the better tiIIIIIIIII--!" Natsuki shrieked,now feeling something clamping at his ankle which turned out to be Tamon again. He pulled his foot closer to him,admiring it's beauty. Out of the groups foot measurements,Natsuki's was the smallest standing at a size 10. While they were still decently big,his features were a lot more round,softer and squishier.
Tamon took extra note of this as he went straight for his toes,teasing the tops and digging in between them. Natsuki immediately dropped his head back down to his side of the armrest,cackling like an absolute maniac.
"AAAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA NO PLEASE! NOT THERE! BAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA! I BEG OF YOU,PLEEEEASE STOP!"
"Hmmm,nah. You seem much cuter like this. Plus you hardly laugh these days so I gotta make this an opportunity." Tamon continued squeezing his fingers on Natsuki's rather dainty feet. Why did he put himself in such a predicament? Guess it's time for him to fight fire with fire. Or in this case,tickles with tickles. He snatched Tamon's ankle again,securing it as best as possible and wasted no time,going straight into his arch,the latter exploding into laughter as soon as it contacted.
"H-HEY! GET AWAY FROM MY AHAHAHAHAHAHAHARCH! AHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA! LET GO,YOU MEANIE!"
"HEHEHEHEHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAH Y-YOU LET GO FIRST! CAUSE I'M NOT ANYTIME SOHOHOHOHOHOHOHOHOHOHOHON!" And thus this went on for half an hour,both men targeting their weak spots,trying to make each other let go but neither wanted to. Heels,arches,sides,insteps,soles and toes,they were ravaging each other's foot with no sign of slowing down.
"AHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA L-LET GO DAMN YOU!"
"Y-YOU LET GO FIHIHIHIHIHIHIHIHIHIHIHIHIHIHIHIHIHIRST!"
"NEVER! HEHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!" Natsuki shout-laughed. If this keeps up,they would tickle each other until dawn rises or worse,they pass out in unison.
"THEHEHEHEHEHEHEHEHEHEHEHEHEHN....HOW ABOUT WE STOP AT THE SAME TIHIHIHIHIHIHIHIHIHIHIHIHIHIME AT THREE?! AND NO CHEHEHEHEHEHEHEATING!"
"FINE,I'M GAME AHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!"
"ON THE COUNT OF THREHEHEHEHEHEHEHE! ONE....TWOHOHOHOHOHOHOHOHOHOHOHO...THREE....."
"TRUCE!"
Both boys stopped at the exact same time,dropping their hands far away from their feet. They took a moment to let themselves rest,heavily panting with nothing but silence in the air. Natsuki tilted his head slightly so that he could see Tamon's.
"You're...pretty good...at this."
"I can...say the same...to you too." Tamon replied back,now tilting his head towards his direction.
"Can we...call this a draw?"
"Yeah...a draw." Both boys reached out their hands and shook on it. They supported each other by lifting them up so that can sit up properly since neither had the energy to do such. They looked up to the ceiling as they were recharging,Tamon even pushing his bangs up to get rid of the excess sweat that was stuck up there.
"When did you become such a crazy good 'ler?" Natsuki asked his junior.
"Wh-me? You're way better than I am,by a longshot!"
"You have the longer nails and you do the teasing a lot better than I would."
"But you know how to get all the right spots. And one extra thing,you may not have noticed it yourself but you seem to be quite the master at tickle talk from both sides,just one was more energetic and effective than the other." Natsuki's eyes widened as he lifted his head up at his direction. "When we did that album shoot earlier...your verbal teasing was exceptional. There were times that my whole face started burning. It almost felt like my head was spinning a bit." Tamon turned around to see that Natsuki did not pay attention to a single word he said as he lifted his shirt,fanning away all the sweat he had produced but stopped after a few minutes due to exhaustion.
"Ugh,I knew I should've partaken in this. I should've just said nothing and lied back down. Now I don't feel like getting up for the rest of the night..." Natsuki groaned,sinking his head in the armrest of the couch. "Sometimes I wish I was never ticklish at all..."
"You declared war first so naturally I had to fight back." Tamon reminded him. Suddenly a shift in the air changed,another little mushroom popped out of his head,resorting him back to Gloomyhara once more. "P-please forgive me,Natsuki! I never should have participated in such a childish game like this,both from earlier and now. Find it in your heart to forgive me!"
Natsuki looked upwards,eyeing at Tamon wearing those puppy dog eyes. He despise those damn eyes. He deeply sighed,knowing there was no way out of this no matter what he did. He was lucky he was at least somewhat nice to him because Keito had to worry about his own morals,Rintaro would be blabbing about a strategy to get new merch and Ouri...well,it's Ouri.
"What am I gonna do with you?" He sighed. Tamon assumed he had forgiven him and left it at that. More silence emitted from the room as the only noise that was made was Natsuki's feet slapping on the floor,followed by the refrigerator door opening and closing. He sat back down on the couch,handing him a bottle of water. He said nothing as Tamon nodded in thanks after taking it. Both boys opened the cap and took a massive sip with Tamon stopping first as he had something he wanted to say.
"Oh yeah,something I forgot to mention earlier...I saw what you did earlier today. Giving a gift to that camera lady when we were leaving the studio." Natsuki almost did a spit take,quickly swallowing the water he had in his mouth,followed by some coughing. Just what on earth was he talking about?
"Hang on,why would you know something about that...?"
"I watched what happened before I got into the car,even the part where she was sobbing in your arms,actively staining your shirt." Natsuki then lifted his legs up,then covered his face with his knees,muffled screaming and groaning in agony.
"Whhyyyyyyyyyy?! *sigh* This is what I get for being so kind. I knew I should've just went into the car so that I can have some extra minutes to myself..."
"B-b-b-b-b-but Natsuki,it's the right thing to do! Doing a random act of kindness,whether it's from a loved one or a complete and total stranger is actively the better thing to do. Better them than me,in all honestly. For me,I don't feel like I'm being loved enough...I'm just a regular guy who got into this job just to make people smile...but I get nothing in return. All I get are cold and empty stares,waiting for my eventual downfall...and then I'll be in the streets,homeless with no warm bed,a shiny shower or any food right in front of me...I'm not worth of making it into the big life..."
Tamon muttered,emitting more tears. Natsuki felt his heartstrings tugged but more in the line of Tamon thinking negatively about himself again. With a deep exhale,Natsuki stood up and looked at him straight in the eye and told him:
"Dude,get a grip!" Tamon looked up at the blond,cheeks still soaked. "You're doing this to yourself again and it's annoying as all hell. Every comeback we do,every showcase we perform,any time we walk,talk or even breathe,you've been getting the most buzz out of all of us. You gain like,100,000 new fans every week. Did you not see the statistics Miss Boss showed us last week and you kept on skyrocketing over the rest of us. Most of the locals knew about us BECAUSE of you. You're the visual of F/ACE and the one people will turn heads for. Hell,your merch usually sells out the fastest! Not to mention you've been generous,kind and willing to help others rather than yourself,which I believe we should all strive to learn from. Even though you're not the leader,you're our guiding hand,helping us whenever we're had issues onstage or in the limelight. As for why you got this job...you wanted to make people smile...and you get everything back tenfold. The cheers,the screams,the endless support the audience gives you no matter the situation...all because you're giving it your all,sometimes even sacrificing yourself to give them your absolute best. So I don't want to hear all that bullcrap about you getting nothing in exchange. YOU. ARE. 100 PERCENT. LOVED! And I'm not gonna repeat myself!"
Tamon's eyes grew larger in surprise,completely shocked over what he had just heard. He almost felt like Utage possessed him momentarily. More tears fell down,turning into mini waterfalls. He did not say anything,ultimately wrapping his arms around Natsuki. All he could hear was the sounds of low,deep and rather embraceful sobs coming out of his mouth. The blond tilted him up straight,patting his back for extra comfort. That was twice he had to do such in this day alone,he would've gained at least 200 yen by now.
After another angst episode turned into comfort,the boys finished up their water bottles before Tamon had to head back to his room as it was now getting late and it was that hour where Natsuki needed extra rest since that tickle fight put a serious toll on him.
Natsuki laid back down on the couch,grabbing another cigarette from the pack. He needed one after giving such a different approach of a lash. Sighing,he grabbed his lighter and flicked it trying to start a flame but it wasn't coming out.
"Hey Natsuki..." The blond looked up at the rose hair,his back right in front of him. "I just wanted to say thanks for the pep talk earlier. I didn't know what my mind lead to,falling down this rather deep and depressive hole of neverending pain and sadness. But you managed to come in and save me when I needed it most. And you did another random act of kindness,just like you did with that lady.
You might think I'm crazy...but you're doing the right thing. Keep it up and maybe you'll head towards a different path in life...alright,let me not bore you for much longer. I'll try to repay you whenever I can. Good night,see you tomorrow."
"Shoes!" Before he could close the door,Natsuki yelled at him,telling him he forgot his shoes here.
"Oh right,duh! Knew I forgot something. Anyway,good night for real." Tamon grabbed his shoes from the corner where Natsuki threw them and walked out the door,finally closing the door. Natsuki flicked the lighter once more,kindling a small flame for his little cigarette. He sucked more tobacco in and inhaled through his nostrils before blowing out a bunch of smoke,filling out the room. He closed his eyes and softly smiled,as this could be considered a reward for himself for doing such a job well done. Now he felt like he will sleep good tonight.
Tamon arrived back at the warmth of his room,safe and sound. Closing the door behind him,he sat back down on his beloved couch,lifting his feet on top of the table. Since there was no one around,he could have some time to chillax and recharge his fuel meters. That silence felt short-lived as he heard the sound of the door's knob twisting. He quickly got up,locked into defense mode holding his shoes as 'weapons'. He would get his sigh of relief when he saw it was just his housekeeper Utage,silently chuckling to herself wearing some rather outgoing attire.
"Maaaaaan that was so much fuuuun! Ha haa,I wanna do it again!"
"Oh,Utage,welcome back. How was the fan party?"
"It. Was. CRAZY! Here lemme show you cause I have pics on my phone." Utage grabbed her phone going over her photo album." We had a special carpet with all of F/ACE's image colors,as well as a V.I.E. section."
"V.I.E.?"
"Very Important E/YES."
"Ah." Of course,how could Tamon be so stupid. They just replaced the P with E.
"Oh THIS was the building that the party was located. It was like a million square feet! And all these decorations too! There was this lounge,a karaoke room,a food bar,this luxurious garden with a pool on the side?! Ugh,so awesome! Here is the main room where we got to sing and dance with the performances with a pro DJ with the projector behind him. When I told you our throats were sore after this...! I think even Yuina lost her voice like more than halfway when Sweet Magic played again."
"Wow,sounds like you had a blast."
"I DID! And I made so many new friends and we exchanged numbers on top of it too. They were all so nice!" Utage said,swiping her phone showcasing some of the selfies she took. Most of the people she met were girls but she spotted a few guys as well.
"Man,I'm jealous you get to go to a party this lavish and colorful. If it were me,I wouldn't last for an hour,since I'm not the talkative type."
"Are you kidding?! You would make the whole room turn heads on you. You're just that powerful of an icon!"
"You're getting a little ahead of yourself...but thanks for the kind words." Tamon rubbed the back of his head,blushing pink. Speaking of blushing pink,Utage did just that when she looked down on the ground and saw Tamon's naked feet just right out in the open,still carrying his shoes. He looked at her,a little bemused until he looked down himself and found his answer.
"Ah surprised I'm still barefoot? It's...quite a long story actually."
"How long are we talking?"
"Preeeetty dang long. You see,what had happened was--" And thus,Tamon told the whole story to her from the photoshoot to both the tickle fights that occurred between him and Natsuki. During all this,they sat back down on the couch,getting comfy while he retold the tale.
"Wow,that must've been one heck of a night. Just...how ticklish is Natsuki-kun anyway?"
"Quite,actually. I would say he's second between the both of us. Unfortunately I have no intel for the others but they would be in a similar scale."
"Ah. I wish I had the chance to tickle Natsuki-kun..." Utage lowered her head down,now looking all sad.
"Who knows? Maybe the opportunity will arise someday. Any other comments?" Tamon had that charming look on his eyes,sending signal waves towards her as probably lifting her spirits up.
"Actually,now that I think about it...that moment where Natsuki-kun gave a gift to that woman because she missed out on that tickle fight you had in the studio is very sweet. I didn't think he had it in him to be so comforting."
"Weirdly he doesn't like it when he does these acts of kindness to others. He finds them a 'waste of time' according to him." He said in air quotations.
"Really?"
"Mmm-hmm." Tamon nodded in response. "But I talked him out of it so that he'll do these sort of things more in the future,whether if we're in public or not. And if all else fails,well,I got just the thing for him." He said,wiggling his fingers to show her what he meant. The girl couldn't help but giggle as she found this kinda cute. The both of them heard a slightly faint sound of a car horn honking from the distance.
"Ah that's my ride. I gotta get going."
"Wait already?!"
"Yeah I got some stuff to do later and then I have to help out my family." Another mushroom popped out from the idol's noggin,the baggy eyes and disheveled hair returning once again.
"PLEASE DON'T LEAVE! You only just got back and I can't afford to be alone!" Tamon wailed,grabbing the girl's ankle in desperation.
"It's only for a day. Plus I need to go home cause it's getting dark out. Once I have some free time,we can continue talking about my experience from the party." Tamon didn't open his mouth and only nodded once in response. Utage needed to do something quick before she had to go. Fortunately,she had just the thing in mind.
"Hey,can you give me your feet?" Tamon was confused as to why but he went and accepted her request. Now sitting back on the couch,he lifted his legs and placed his feet on the armrest of the couch. Utage lowered herself to where his feet were and gave his sole a great big kiss. Both of them were blushing hard but Tamon even more so. Even though he had received this kind of treatment before,he still couldn't believe she was willing do to this. This kind of thing would get her fired on the spot if management was around but luckily they weren't so Utage got to do this kinda thing for free.
She did the same length duration of the same kiss but for the other sole,Tamon sneaking in some soft moans. His moans would eventually be turned into giggles as Utage was now sprinkling some quick pecks at his toes,lightly tickling the taller man. He didn't mind this thought as he was quite the fan of it and has become sort of a mini ritual.
After a quick toe kissing session,Utage's face still felt hot,heart beating loudly from her chest. She clasped her hands together giving her prayers to god in silence and thanking him for making her live to do such a wonderful opportunity. The horn made noise again but this time longer and louder. Whoever was in that car was getting very irritated of how long the wait was.
"OK I REALLY gotta get going now. I'll be back to continue my experience at the party,OK? Good night,Tamon-kun!" She quickly closed the door behind her,soliciting her goodbyes.
"Good night...Uta." Tamon said quietly,giving her this new affectionate pet name of her's. Usually he would often call her (Miss)Kinoshita or just Utage. As time went on however,his feelings for her gradually changed,acting like she was his special safe zone,thus granting her the nickname of 'Uta'.
The pink haired man sighed,crossing his arms behind his head,laying them down on the armrest. He took another good at his bare feet,wiggling his toes. He thought about the time where he told Utage that he called his own feet 'ugly' at one point but thought about all the moments where she gave him nothing but love and praise over how gorgeous his feet were. Even Natsuki too,who mentioned how soft,fluffy and plush they were not that long ago.
He sighed again,giving a soft,safe and secure smile,knowing that he was wrong all along and that his feet were actually nice to look at,even from his own perspective. And was glad that he was. Since he had nothing in his schedule for tomorrow,maybe it's time for another trip to the salon and fetch himself another pedicure. He did need a cuticle check after all. Tamon closed his eyes,wiggling his toes again as his smile grew larger. What both the blond and brunette did and said gave a big shake-up in his attitude,gaining even more confidence than ever. There was no doubt on his mind that he was in good hands and it was to both the people he admired the most.