More Than a Smile

[kyoofwriting382]

Chapter: one-shot
Pairing(s): Tomo x Satsuki
Character(s): CJ, Jen, Ryoko, Tony, & Ray
Band(s): echostream & born
Rating: PG-15
Summary: Satsuki's in America for a weekend and is looking forward to spending time with his best friend Tomo, but one little gesture changes everything between them.
Author's Notes: After attending Oni-Con '09, this fic had to be done! A few of my friends agreed and now I'm able to post my several written pages here. Longest one-shot I've ever written @__@


Looking around the crowded airport with his baggage, Satsuki’s nerves gathered and soon followed the translator, a couple equipment roadies, and the members of born. He kept to himself most of the time, wondering if his good friend would keep his word. He picked up his luggage with the rest of the group, sighed softly, and followed everyone toward the exit.

“Satsuki!” a familiar voice called.

The soloist looked up and smiled at the sight of the guitarist waiting by a van wearing sunglasses.

Satsuki approached the brunette happily, put his bag down, and hugged him. “I almost thought you forgot to meet me here.”

“Of course not!” Tomo chuckled, hugging the other back.

“It’s so great to see you again.”

“I’m happy to see you too,” the older man replied and looked at the other, “Are you ready for tonight?”

Satsuki nodded and picked his bag back up. “I’m a little nervous, but I’m confident with you by my side,” he answered with a half smile.

Tomo motioned toward the back of the van and joined him in the back row as the roadie put the bags away and the members of born soon joined.

“So, did you bring your guitar?” Tomo asked.

“Mhm~ I’ve been practicing a lot, so I hope the fans like my playing,” Satsuki replied.

“I’m sure they will. You should have some time to practice before the show.”

“What about you? Are you nervous?” the younger man asked.

“Not really. I’m more excited than anything,” Tomo answered with a warm smile, “Did you get enough sleep?”

“Mm…some…”

“I think you have enough time to take a quick nap.”

Satsuki nodded and rested his head on the other’s shoulder, closing his eyes.

About an hour or so later, Satsuki slowly opened his eyes and turned over on his back. He stared up at the ceiling and immediately sat up, looking around at the unfamiliar room. “Where am I?” he asked softly.

He jumped a little as he heard a door close and looked in the direction of the noise. He put his hand over his heart, trying to calm down as he saw his friend with a bag of food sipping on a soda.

“Did I wake you up?” Tomo asked, putting the bag on a desk.

Satsuki shook his head and rubbed his eyes, before shifting to sit on the side of the bed. “I almost forgot I was in Houston and not Japan,” he said with a light laugh.

Tomo smiled softly, tossed his cup, and picked up the bag of food, putting it on the younger man’s lap. “I brought you some food. I hope it’s something you like, otherwise-“

“Mm~ It’s really good,” he interrupted, eating from the bag.

The guitarist smiled in satisfaction and joined the other on his queen sized bed, watching him eat. “I got a copy of the schedule for you. I stuck it in your bag.”

“Thank you,” he replied, swallowing this food, “When are we going down for sound check?”

“We have a couple hours, so if you need any help with your guitar, then I’m here to help.”

“You can check if it’s still in tune.”

Tomo nodded, looked around for the guitar case, and brought it over by the desk. He sat at the chair placed there and opened the case, carefully removing the instrument. He picked up a guitar pick and began strumming, tuning the strings when necessary.

“So, did you enjoy your nap?” Tomo asked, continuing to mess with the stringed instrument.

Satsuki nodded and swallowed his food. “I feel like a brand new person,” he smiled lightly.

“That’s great! Means you’ll put on a great performance.”

“Yeah. Did you get enough rest as well?”

Tomo nodded and continued messing with the other’s guitar while he ate.

A couple hours later, all of the musical guests, equipment crew, and a few convention staff gathered in the Main Programming room. The crew began setting up the equipment for the first performance while everyone got settled and situated.

Satsuki looked over his costume in full-length mirror and touched up his hair and make-up. He peeked out the backstage door and looked over the large space that would soon be occupied by fans and other convention goers. He jumped a bit at the sound of a familiar voice and let the door close.

“Pretty big, huh?” Ray commented with a warm smile, before being called away by one of his band mates.

Satsuki nodded a bit at the question and soon the guitarist was replaced with another in his field of vision. He smiled a bit and said, “You’re always so calm before you go on stage.”

“I guess you can say that,” Tomo laughed a little, rubbing the back of his neck, “It’s a lot bigger than Japan, isn’t it?”

“Yeah…I should be used to it, but I guess I have to perform more overseas,” the soloist replied, glancing at the door he was looking out of.

“Excuse me,” one of the equipment crew members interrupted, holding a paper in his hand, “Satsuki-san, you want us to just play the CD for these tracks and you need your guitar and keyboard set up.”

The soloist confirmed his words with a nod and added, “And on the final song, Tomo will have his own guitar plugged in and ready.”

The equipment member gave a thumbs up and went out the door Satsuki glanced at previously.

“So, we finally get to perform together,” Tomo smiled at the younger man.

Satsuki suddenly blushed and replied, “I hope the crowd enjoys it.”

“They will! Apart, we are great, but together, we’re amazing!”

Everything was settled on the stage and the convention staff opened the doors, letting the crowd enter the Main Programming room. Everyone was excited and their voices echoed throughout the room while the equipment crew double checked the instruments on stage. The crowd calmed down as one of the convention staff made their way on the stage, breaking down the rules about camera usage and such, then introduced Buranden to perform first.

Satsuki peeked out to see the turnout of the crowd and was a little surprised by how many people showed up. He glanced over to see what their reaction was to the first band. They didn’t seem that entertained, despite the upbeat music surrounding them. He swallowed hard out of nervousness and hoped the audience responded more positively to his solo set, especially without a band to back-up his voice.

He jumped a little at the sudden gentle touch on his shoulder and looked over to see the owner of the hand. It was just one of the convention staff informing him that he was next. He nodded in response, moved away from the door, and went off to warm up his voice a little.

Once the soloist got down to some breathing exercises to calm his nerves, it was time for him to take the stage. He smiled to the cheering crowd and spoke to them a little in English, before starting his set. Everything went smoothly, despite him forgetting his guitar pick, and the crowd seemed to enjoy each transition he made from singing to pre-recorded instrumentals to his acoustic and piano sections.

He moved away from the keyboard, approached center stage, and smiled softly as he introduced his special friend Tomo to join him on the stage for the final song. Tomo ran up with his guitar secure around him and leaned over to get the crowd pumped using Satsuki’s microphone. The music began and he quickly moved to stage right, playing his guitar. Satsuki grinned at the immediate surge of energy overcoming him from the crowd and started signing along with the music and his friend’s guitar.

Tomo moved around some, making sure everyone was having fun, and returned to Satsuki, leaning into him as he played. He smiled as his friend put his arm around him loosely and started yelling again through the microphone for the audience to follow, then pulled away to finish up the song. They took in the satisfied cheers for a moment, before exiting the stage.

They were immediately handed bottled water and they smiled at each other. They took a long sip of water and Tomo said, “That went very well.”

Satsuki nodded a little with a light laugh. “You’re up next, net?” he confirmed.

“Yeah, I have to wait for Tony and CJ to set up their stuff and then I think we can start our set,” he answered, noticing half of his band getting on stage with the equipment crew. He watched them set up another drum set and keyboard as well as various electronic equipment that Tony used to enhance their sound.

Tomo wandered off for a moment to check himself out in a nearby mirror and messing with a few strands of hair. He heard Jen call him and he rushed off toward the door. “Wish me luck,” he said, smiling at Satuski. He kissed his cheek quickly and returned to the stage with his band mates.

Satsuki lightly touched his cheek and said softly, “Good luck.”

He was a little stunned by his friend’s action and also a little happy. Satsuki always had some hidden feelings for his friend, but he never acted on it, let alone acknowledge those more than friendly feelings to himself. But he couldn’t ignore the light fluttering feeling of his heart from the innocent, gentle gesture.

He shook his head a little, getting back to reality, and tried not to read into the kiss too deeply as a chance for them to be more than friends. He knew Tomo would never be interested in another man, especially his own friend. They were close, but Satsuki would never risk their tight friendship over a little crush he developed. He sighed softly, went over to the door, and watched echostream’s performance. He smiled a little to himself, noticing the passion and energy flow naturally through Tomo as he played.

He swayed a little and suddenly stopped as he heard his stomach grumble. He blushed lightly and escaped in the middle of the set in search of food. One of the convention staff followed him out and took him to his hotel room. They asked Satsuki what kind of food he wanted and went off to get it for him while he relaxed.

The crowd cheered as echostream departed from the stage and the equipment crew immediately cleared the stage from unnecessary instruments, putting them away carefully with the help of Tony and CJ. Tomo headed backstage, grabbing a new bottle of water and taking along refreshing sip, and looked around for his friend. The smile slowly faded from his face as he started to worry.

“I think he went to his room,” a staff member said, noticing Tomo’s worried expression.

“Is he okay?” he immediately asked, planning on rushing upstairs if the soloist wasn’t feeling well suddenly.

“I think he was just hungry. I kept hearing his stomach,” Ray assured as he passed by to get to the door for their set.

The guitarist sighed in relief, sipped his water, and watched some of born’s set, before going off to get ready for autographs after the show.

Drifting off as he waited for food, Satsuki soon woke up at the sound of a knock on the door. He already changed out of his costume and removed all of his make-up. He rolled out of bed and answered the door, rubbing his eyes a bit.

“I brought your food,” Tomo said, holding up a bag with a smile.

“Oh, thanks,” he said, accepting the food and letting the guitarist in.

“What did you think of the set?”

“It was great! I wish I saw the whole thing, but…my stomach got in the way,” he replied, feeling a little embarrassed.

“It’s okay. Sorry I took so long. I had to make an appearance at the merch table afterwards.”

“Don’t worry about it. I’m sure your fans appreciated,” Satsuki smiled, taking the food out and eating.

“They did,” Tomo sighed and sat next to the other on the bed, “I was really worried about you after the set, but I’m glad it was only hunger.”

Satsuki blushed a little. “I’m sorry. Next time, I’ll bring a snack or something,” he said softly.

Tomo nudged the other playfully and smiled. “Are you planning on going out again tonight?”

“Mm…I don’t think so. I think I’m going to turn in early since they’ve got me scheduled for a q&a.”

The guitarist nodded and looked down for a moment.

“What’s wrong?” he asked, furrowing his brows in concern.

“Nothing. Just thinking,” he said, forcing a smile on his face,” I think I’m gonna go to the rave. Tony’s doing the music. I was hoping you’d join me, but I don’t want to force you if you’re tired.”

“Maybe tomorrow,” Satsuki said with a soft smile.

The older man nodded, kissed the other’s cheek, and stood up. “Sleep well,” he said and headed out the door.

The following day was super busy for both Satsuki and Tomo. They hardly had time to say “hello” to each other due to their tight schedule. Satsuki moved from room to room, doing an interview with his fans, making an appearance at the merchandise table,, and taking pictures with his fans in a special photoshoot. On the other hand, Tomo had a little less to do and managed to occasionally peek in on his friend.

Once activities slowed down for the musicians and convention goers had the cosplay contest to distract them, Tomo stopped by the soloist’s room and knocked on the door. He lightly kicked the carpet as he waited and looked up when he heard the door open, smiling at the sight of the soloist. “Hey~ I hadn’t seen you all day,” he said with a light laugh.

Satsuki nodded and allowed the other in his room. He returned to the bathroom and resumed removing his make-up. “It’s been so busy today. I didn’t think I’d ever get a break,” he said with a little smile, “But it’s nice to be with my oversea fans, so it all evens out.”

Tomo nodded and watched the soloist clean up the mess he made on the counter. “Did everything go smoothly?”

“Surprisingly, yes,” he smiled, “Although, I wish it was easier to move around.”

“I know what you mean,” the older man chuckled lightly, leaning on the door frame of the bathroom.

“I got to listen to your CD, before I left this morning,” Satsuki said, smiling at his friend, before turning the light off and moving into the main room.

“What did you think?” he asked, following him to the bed.

“It’s a little different than what I normally listen to, but I really liked it,” he commented, blushing a little to himself, “It’s kinda relaxing.”

Tomo smiled and said, “I’m glad you enjoyed it.”

The older man looked over Satsuki for a moment, reached over, and moved a brunette lock of hair from Satsuki’s eye. “You look a little tired,” he said softly, “You should take a nap.”

“I thought about it, but-“

Satsuki’s words soon stopped as he felt a gentle nudge led him down to rest his head on his friend’s lap. He blinked a bit at the sudden action and glanced up.

“Shh…just rest for a while,” Tomo whispered, petting him gently and watching him slowly close his eyes.

Once the soloist opened his eyes again, he realized the guitarist’s lap was replaced by a pillow. He gradually sat up as he heard a door close and sad his friend with a bag of food.

“Sleep well?” he asked with a soft smile.

Satsuki nodded a little, rubbing his eyes and stretching, and asked, “You got me food again?”

“Of course. I have to take care of you or you’ll forget to feed yourself,” he teased a little, putting the tray between them to share.

The younger man sighed softly and began eating. “Thank you,” he whispered.

“No problem,” he smiled, “You’re still dancing with me tonight?”

“I-I guess. I’m not very good at dancing though,” the soloist said softly, eating a little more.

“I can teach you,” he offered, hopping off the bed and digging in his pocket. He pulled out his mp3 player, hooked it up to Satsuki’s portable speakers, and skimmed through the artists and bands listed, then selected something danceable to practice to. He put the player down on the desk, approached his friend, and tugged him up to his feet and away from the bed.

“All you have to do is feel the music and let your body move to whatever feels right. Don’t hold back and don’t over think it,” Tomo advised, moving a little to the beat and watching his friend with a smile.

Satsuki blushed lightly, looking at the other, and started mimicking the other’s movement. Gradually relaxing more and more, he started to dance more with Tomo, enjoying himself.

“See~ You did it,” Tomo said with a smile and danced a little closer to him.

The soloist became more comfortable with his movement and didn’t notice the space between them enclosing. He closed his eyes, allowing the music to travel more easily through his body, and suddenly felt a soft warmth overcome his lips. He slowly opened his eyes and noticed Tomo pulling away from him.

He blinked a bit at Tomo’s actions, watching him reclaim his mp3 player, and asked, “Did I do something wrong?”

“No, I just remembered I have to do something,” the guitarist said quickly and headed toward the door, “I’ll see you later.”

Tomo disappeared out the room, heading to Tony’s room, and thought, ‘What am I doing? Satsuki’s my friend! I can’t ruin a perfectly good friendship.’ He sighed softly, knocked on the door, and waited for an answer. He glanced up to see Ryoko and walked in without a word.

“What’s up with you?” the vocalist asked, examining her band mate’s behavior.

“Where’s Tony?” he simply replied with a question of his own.

“Downstairs, setting up for the rave,” she said, pulling her hair back in a bun.

Tomo nodded and began heading back out the door, until Ryoko grabbed a hold of his arm. He paused in his steps and looked at her.

“You told him, didn’t you?” she asked softly, looking at him seriously.

“No, not really, but I have a feeling he knows now,” he answered softly.

“You should really talk to him and stop torturing yourself.”

“I know,” he sighed and left and left the room to meet up with Tony in the Main Programming room. He messed with his hair a little and hoped that Satsuki would think nothing of the kiss. He shook his head a little and disappeared into the elevator.

After Tomo’s departure, Satsuki decided to take a shower and primp himself a little. He thought about the brief kiss that took place while they danced and his friend’s slightly unusual actions toward him that he normally would ignore as nothing to be concerned about. But it seemed a little different this time and perhaps this was a good time to investigate and express his feelings toward the other.

He put on some casual clothes and straightened his hair, hoping he could sneak by his fans once he left his room. He took a deep breath, stepped out the room, and headed downstairs. He made sure no one recognized him and that no one he knew would blow his cover. He slipped into the dark room surrounded by convention goers and loud electronic music. He maneuvered through the crowd all the way to the front stage. He talked to one of the security and requested for Tomo’s presence in the back hallway.

The security guard agreed to help and Satsuki went to the meeting area. He fidgeted with his fingers nervously, staring at the door for the other’s appearance. He sighed softly and leaned against the wall, then tensed up a little once he heard the door open.

“Satsuki, I’m sor-“

The soloist cut Tomo’s words short with a deep kiss and pulled away, looking at the other’s face. “Don’t apologize. You have no reason to,” he said softly.

“But…”

“I like you Tomo,” he confessed, biting his lip.

“I…I like you too,” the guitarist replied with a soft smile.

Satsuki reached for the other’s hand and smiled back at him.

Sunday morning came and the guitarist was the first to wake up in the room. He rolled out of bed lazily, slipped his pants on, and went to answer a knock at the door, before the soloist woke up. He accepted the food and put it aside on the desk, then went off to take a shower.

The soloist groaned softly, pouting in his sleep, and hugged the other’s pillow. He opened his eyes slowly and yawned a little, looking around for the other man. He noticed the food on the desk and heard the shower going. He smiled a little to himself, tugged the sheets over his bare body, and reached for his schedule on the nightstand. He checked the time and realized the time shifted back an hour.

The shower cut off and soon the guitarist appeared in just a pair of jeans. He dried his hair with a towel and greeted Satsuki with a smile, “Morning~”

“Morning,” the soloist blushed a little, “Have a nice shower?”

“Yeah, I think I like your shower more than mine.”

“I’m pretty sure they’re the same in every room,” he laughed a little.

“Yeah, but you didn’t shower in every room,” the older man grinned, making the other blush more. “Did you sleep well?”

Satsuki nodded, pulling his knees up to his chest and hugging them loosely under the sheets, and answered, “I never slept that well before.”

“Maybe I should fix that,” the older man joked a bit, bringing the food over to his friend, “If my schedule allows, I’ll follow you to Japan. If not, then I’ll stop by as soon as I can.”

“Y-you don’t have to do all that for me,” the soloist said softly, nibbling at the food.

“I want to! I like you, Satsuki, and I want to spend as much time as I can with you, especially since we’re so far apart.”

Satsuki smiled softly and reached out to the other. Once Tomo moved closer, he hugged him tight. “You’re a really sweet man and…I’ll wait for you until we’re in each others arms.”

“I’ll try to call you more. I like hearing your voice,” Tomo promised, hugging the other back.

“I suppose I should get dressed. We both have a very busy schedule today.”

The guitarist nodded with a sigh, grabbed his shirt from the floor, and slipped it on, fixing his hair. He kissed Satsuki softly and headed out the room.

The two newly united lovers moved from place to place, during the remainder of the convention. They packed up their things and Tomo snuck onto Satsuki’s van, sitting next to him in the back. He held the younger man’s hand and allowed him to rest his head on his shoulder as they rode to the airport.

Once they arrived, the two men said their goodbyes and separated. Satsuki frowned to himself as he approached his gate and stepped on the plane. He felt a hand on his shoulder and glanced over at the owner.

“You’ll see him soon. Don’t worry,” Ray tried to comfort.

Satsuki smiled softly, nodded, and went to his seat. He looked out the window and sighed softly to himself, watching the plane nearly back out and head off toward the runway. The pilot’s voice was muffled to Satsuki’s ears and he closed his eyes as the plane moved.

Hearing a buzzing noise interrupt his sleep, Satsuki groaned softly and forced himself out of bed. He rubbed his eyes, stepping over his unpacked luggage sitting in the middle of the room, and answered the buzz through the speaker.

“Hello?” he answered sleepily.

“Satsuki-san, you have a visitor. Should I send them up?” the voice responded.

“Sure,” he sighed, ruffling his hair and moving closer to the door of his apartment. Once he heard a knock, he immediately answered and turned his head away to yawn softly.

“Still sleepy?” a familiar voice asked.

“Tomo?” the soloist sighed and looked at his guest. “Tomo!”

Tomo laughed as his friend flung himself into his arms and hugged him.

“What are you doing here?” he asked curiously.

“I wanted to see you, but I had to pack up more clothes,” he chuckled.

Satsuki smiled more and hugged the other tight, feeling unbelievably happy to be in the older man’s arms again.