Forever & Ever 14
Title: Forever & Ever (Miseinen Sequel)
Author: Zion Shadowlet
Beta: butterflysaga(the bitch)
Characters: Aoi, Uruha, Ruki, Reita, Kai and many OCs (Fuwa etc.)
Pairing: Aoi/Uruha and more~
Genre: Drama, Romance, Friendship, Comedy
Rating: NC17
Summary: Six years have passed since the summer at the Dazai Bright Future Retreat for Troubled Children. The boys meet in an unexpected way perhaps bound by fate in the underground world of Visual Kei. With broken hearts and promises; the boys-now young men look to regain some of what they lost by the wild and reckless pursuit of the same dream.
Previous Parts: Part 1.1 | Part 1.2 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4.1| Part 4.2| Part 5| Part 6| Part 7.1| Part 7.2| Part 8.1| Part 8.2| Part 9| Part 10| Part 11| Part 12| Part 13
By the time Ruki came home, the circus was already there. Well, it wasn’t the circus per se, rather it looked like the back room of a drag show mixed with the typical cast of a gallery viewing: wine sipping critics and artists in black turtlenecks. In fact, all types of characters were crowding the chic Tokyo apartment of the successful urban sculptor Isao Hamada and his rather quiet if not morose lover-of course, this was the common opinion of the “circus” in general.
Stepping through the front door, he was immediately met with a shock. The whole house was fused with the constant din of laughter and chatter and threading through it the dramatic music of Mozart playing softly from the radio. A rather tall stage actor was standing up and to the delight of his old friends, recited a spoof version of a monologue from a Kabuki play. On the other side of the room, Isao shockingly wearing a purple boa was reclining on the sofa, a crystal glass of champagne in his hand as he seemingly ranted to another man dressed sharply in a black suit. He had the air of an old movie star with his peppered hair and his fine frame.
“WHY HELLO!” A woman chirped, coming from the kitchen and finding the young boy standing in the doorway as if he were lost. Ruki turned and looked at her. She was a tall foreigner, somewhere in her forties and she wore a lovely light purple kimono. Her short light brown hair was cut off at her chin in a fashionable bob. She wore all types of strange stones in her ears and on her fingers. Placing a bedazzled hand on Ruki’s shoulder, she said to him in highly accented Japanese “Who are you?”
Ruki just stared up at her.
“ISAOOO!!” she called out in a voice that sounded a bit like bird.
Turning his head, he sat up as he saw the boy standing there. Isao got up and crossed the room, taking the gaze of all who were there with him. “This is Ruki!” he announced to them and gesturing, presented him as if he were now on stage. The young man just stood there feeling completely out of place. “I see you’ve met Svea,” he introduced the woman standing next to him. “She’s from Sweden and she teaches at the University.” Ruki nodded, not interested.
In a manner of seconds, the room erupted in Ooohs and ahhhs at the cute young man. The stage actor exclaimed “So lovely that you invited a young artist! I’m assuming that’s what he is.”
“To be honest, I don’t know much about him,” Isao laughed. “He’s our ward here.”
“Ward?” Ruki asked unsure of what that word meant.
“It means darling,” another person from the crowd chimed in. Ruki wasn’t sure if they were a woman or a man in drag. “that you are young person who not related to the family, is taken under the protection of a guardian.”
“Oh…”
“Well, what do you do then?” Isao asked.
“I’m a musician.”
“He is an artist! I knew it. I can tell by the hair,” the actor replied happily. “I think it’s fabulous by the way. Never thought to dye half of my head red!” he raised a fist dramatically in the air.
“What kind of music?” A woman Ruki hadn’t seen asked. Compared to the others, she seemed rather normal.
“Visual Kei,” he replied.
“I’ve read about that, actually,” another added in, a chubby guy who was smoking a long cigar. “Fascinating! It’s a hard to tell who is female and who is male but in the end, everyone is male,” he said rather uselessly.
“What is it?” the man dressed in black asked, walking slowly over to the rest of the crowd with his glass of champagne in his hand. His eyes were glued to Ruki’s cute, young face.
“It’s a music genre of sorts in which the players paint themselves up in wild and beautiful ways; adorning themselves in makeup and styling their hair. But I am assuming that our little Ruki would know how to describe it better.”
All eyes turned to him.
“It’s difficult to explain,” he smiled uncomfortably. He didn’t quite feel that he was entitled to speak as an ambassador of the genre.
“What attracts you to it?” the man in black asked.
Answering quickly, the young man replied “Self expression” to the delight of all the artists in the room. What a great answer they exclaimed! And before he knew it, he was pulled into the group. Sitting in the center, they all looked at him as if he were the new baby in the house, doting on him and complimenting him in all sorts of ways. The man-woman person admired his earrings and another person randomly called him eloquent despite the fact that he barely said anything.
Ruki expected Isao to be annoyed by the attention his friends were giving him but instead, Isao was rather pleased that they had something to rant and rave about, something new and fresh. “Osamu,” he said pointing at the actor “was about to stage a short little play for our entertainment and he was looking for people to be in it. He even brought a chest of props and costumes.” Ruki now noticing it on the floor saw several things sticking out of it particularly boas and fake swords. Isao must have got the one around his neck from there he realized. “You should be in it.”
“I can’t act,” he lifted up his hands and shook his cute head no.
“Oh, it’s about Greek gods!” Osamu sat on the floor in front of him. “But we haven’t quite figured out the plot. It’s improvisation you see.” He laughed pleasantly. “What do you think Katsura?” he asked the man in black. “You’re the playwright!”
“Oh!” he laughed off guard with his glass at his lips. Still, he was too busy watching the young boy. “Um…Perhaps you should be a King who struck by the arrow of Cupid falls unexpectedly in love with your chamber maid.”
“Sounds hilarious,” Isao agreed.
“Our little Ruki since he looks the part so well should be Cupid. Svea can be the chamber maid.” That must have amused her greatly because she started to hoot in laughter.
“Cupid fits him!” Osamu declared. “He has the cute round face and those soft little forearms,” he pinched them. Strangely, he didn’t come off like a pervert. Ruki sat there mortified. In one way, it was exciting but at the same time overwhelming.
Wasting no time, Osamu got up and grabbing his chest of props started pulling things out. He plopped a purple crown on his head and wrapped a long shawl over Svea. Taking out a crown of fake laurel leaves, he placed it over Ruki’s head. “Take off your sweater!”
“I don’t care if he’s Cupid, the boy isn’t getting naked,” Isao said.
“No, no, no,” Osamu shook his head. “But that doesn’t mean he has to look like he’s out in the Arctic!”
Ruki removed his sweater and over shirt. He stood there in a ratty old black tank top with his round arms exposed which caused the strange members of the circus to exclaim in delight at his cuteness.
“He’s just like a cherub!” the man-woman said dotingly.
Osamu grabbing a makeup started painting each of their faces comically, deliberately making Svea look as unattractive as possible. The good humored woman merely laughed. On Ruki, he put two round circles of blush on his cheeks and painted his lips red. “Alright! We’re ready!” Osamu announced. “Now, Cupid, I want you to play along. There are no lines.” He placed his hands on his small shoulders. “Be in character. Remember you are mischievous cute little cherub that likes wrecking havoc on the world.”
For the most part, that was Ruki as he was. He nodded.
“Pretend you have a bow and arrow,” he added quickly before rushing over to the other side of the room and lying on the floor pretended to be roused from a deep sleep. Everyone went quiet as the play was about to begin. “AHHHHHH! Mornings are soooo lonnellyyyyyy,” he yawned. “All I ever do is wake up to the hideous old chamber maid.” He pouted comically. The crowd chuckled.
“I BRING FOOD!” Svea announced, speaking harshly. She walked in with heavy steps, hunching over and deliberately acting like a gorilla. She plopped an empty plate on the floor next to the king. “EAT SO THAT I CAN SOAP YOU!”
“Terrible, wretched, horrible, ugly, chamber maid!” he whined as he picked up the plate and started eating the invisible food.
Ruki figuring that since the play was already so ridiculous, he might as well introduce himself. He pretended to sneak up into the king’s room. “What a beautiful woman!” he said. As he expected, they all broke out in loud laughter. Pulling out his invisible bow and arrow, Ruki or Cupid rather, directed it at Osamu. “PFU!” he said mimicking the sound of a shooting arrow.
“UGH!” Osamu fell back as it hit him and as his eyes landed on Svea, his expression went soft. “OH WHAT IS THIS WONDERFUL BEAUTIFUL CREATURE!”
“WHHHHHATTTT?!” Svea said impersonating the sound of angry duck.
Ruki couldn’t take it anymore; he fell on the floor in laughter.
“What is going on?” Fuwa suddenly asked. Apparently, he had just come home from somewhere, his bag was strung across his shoulder and he had several books in his hand. The circus sighed in disappointment at seeing his “gloomy” presence. Walking in and seeing the play with Ruki standing in front of them, painted up in blush and lipstick, Fuwa was a bit taken aback. He stared at the group with shocked and angry eyes.
“Your little cherub of a ward is acting in our play,” Katsura said smiling with his eyes glued to the boy.
Immediately noticing the strange look in the man’s eyes, Fuwa rather impulsively and somewhat out of his character, walked up in front of everyone and grabbing Ruki by the wrist dragged him away.
“You are not to speak to him,” Fuwa said directly at Katsura, a man in particular who he wasn’t at all fond of. Unlike Fuwa, he was the promiscuous type. Like many artists and writers especially homosexual ones, he relished within a stereotype and a culture that had no restriction, particularly with sex. And Fuwa, not in the least bit of a fool, immediately recognized that he saw the young Ruki as a sexual conquest.
Needless to say, everyone went quiet at the confrontation.
“Come,” Fuwa said to Ruki, dragging him to the bathroom where he planned to wash that hideous makeup off his face.
***
Since the other two lived closer to Uruha, they stayed a little longer, playing music. Once they exhausted themselves, they lounged around in the living room watching stupid television shows. Uruha, who apparently never missed an episode of this NHK period drama about Oda Nobunaga forced the other two to sit there and watch it with him.
Aoi found the whole thing dull beyond all belief. Kai however, despite trying not to, got so sucked into it. “But does he even love her? She’s so ridiculous?!” Kai whined as he gestured angrily toward the screen.
“I don’t like her either,” Uruha agreed, as he took another drink of his root beer. “What she’s asking of him, is just going to kill everyone.”
“Ughhhh” Kai drummed on his legs anxiously. He was sitting on the floor, his back against the couch. Aoi was lying down fighting off the urge to fall asleep and Uruha on the opposite end of the couch away from him was sitting up.
Aoi stretching his legs out rested his bare feet on Uruha’s lap. Looking down at them, Uruha almost thought to push them off but thinking better of it, instead placed his drink on the table and started to massage them. He gently pushed his toes back and pressed his thumb against the arch of his foot as he gently squeezed repeatedly. Aoi moaned happily and closed his eyes.
“I hate women like that,” Aoi suddenly said. “In these shows, these samurai bitches just get all the poor people killed over their stupid honor shit and their stiff romances.”
Kai chuckled. Aoi wasn’t necessarily the type to buy into the “beauty” of Japanese tragedy. He would just constantly go back to how selfish everyone was.
“All these people care about is what people think about them. Fuck’m. They just eat all the poor people’s food and walk around like there is a stick up their ass,” he continued as he let his irritation build up.
“You should watch Seven Samurai,” Uruha suggested, laughing at how worked up he was getting over it.
Just when Aoi replied “I love that movie,” Kumiko came in and wearily announced “Seiko’s here.”
“Um…” Uruha let go of Aoi’s feet and softly pushing them off of him, stood up.
“Should we go home?” Kai asked him.
He wasn’t exactly sure what he was supposed to say to them. “You don’t have to if you don’t want to” was all he could think of. The two of them stared at him silently weighing their options. Uruha realizing that he was due at the door turned around and went to go greet his girlfriend all the while trying to figure out if he should break up with her now or later.
“KOUYOUU!!!!!!” Seiko yelped as she threw herself on him. “I’ve been texting you all day and you haven’t responded.” She playfully pouted her icy pink lips. She was wearing strange pair of light purple contacts. As usual, she was completely dressed up, wearing a light yellow schoolgirl skirt and a white blouse. Kumiko, folding her arms looked the girl up and down. “What have you been doing all day?” Seiko asked, pulling off her long brown boots.
“Playing music with friends.”
“Are they still here?” She looked around him and seeing that there were some people in the living room, didn’t bother to ask if she could go in there and meet them. “HI!” she said happily. Kai and Aoi slowly turned their heads to face her. “I’m Seiko. Nice to meet you!”
“Yutaka,” Kai bowed slightly.
“Aoi,” he waved.
Seeing what they were watching she piped “Oh, he’s making you two watch that stupid show he likes!”
Uruha slowly walked into the living room and with his hands behind his back, looked down at the floor.
“Isn’t he cute!” Seiko said pinching her boyfriend’s cheek. Kai looked at Aoi as the two exchanged a glance. Unable to bear it any longer, she leaned in and kissed him where she had just had her fingers.
“She dotes on him like you used to,” Kai said under his breath at Aoi. He was expecting him to give him an angry glance but instead Aoi just acknowledged what he said and went back to looking at Uruha.
“Maybe we should leave, Kai,” Aoi said getting to his feet. There was something about his manner that alarmed his friend as if there was some knowledge that he was keeping to himself. Kai figuring that it had something to do with the conversation they had in the bathroom, didn’t object.
“You’re leaving?” Uruha finally looked up.
Aoi nodding picked up the little crane that he had made for him and started heading toward the door with Kai behind him.
“Call me tomorrow at noon,” Uruha said urgently to him. “So…we can figure things out for tomorrow night.”
Aoi smiled. “Right,” he said.
“Nice meeting you Seiko,” Kai said politely.
“Yeah, what he said,” Aoi added. “Bye Ducky,” he said with a wink.
“Bye Hoshi-sama,” Uruha smiled happily.
Once the two young men were outside into the chilly night, Kai unable to resist himself asked “What was that all about?” They had left in such a rush that they didn’t even say goodbye to Kumiko.
“Hm?” Aoi pulled out a cigarette. Surprisingly, the weather wasn’t getting to him.
“That little exchange you and Uruha had?”
“It’s a secret,” Aoi said playfully. “I have to head this way,” he gestured.
“I’m the other way.”
“Well, then, I’ll guess I’ll see you later Mr. Dimple face.”
Kai just stared at him suspiciously. He didn’t press however. Whatever it was, to him it was good sign. He knew he shouldn’t be invested in their relationship. The last time that happened, only bad things came from it and threatened to tear apart his and Aoi’s friendship. Yet, he couldn’t help but to believe firmly that in the end, they would be together and it was the right thing for the both of them. Perhaps because it had always been that way that he believed that until Aoi and Uruha were back together, things wouldn’t quite be the same.
“Good luck with that girl,” Aoi added.
Feeling that he wanted to get back at his friend for some reason-maybe because he was deliberately keeping him out of the loop of what was happening with Uruha, Kai said as if it were merely an offhand remark “I guess my one strand of luck is that the guy she likes would rather kiss me.” Wait, what Kai? Why did you just say that?
Aoi grew suddenly excited. “EH?!”
“See ya,” Kai said, turning around.
“You can’t just leave with that!” Aoi followed after him.
“Sure I can,” he smiled.
“What happened?”
Kai shrugged.
“HEYYYYY,” Aoi grabbed him. “Tell me.” When he shook his head no, Aoi started pleading with him. “PLEASSSEEEE TELL MEEEEE.”
Kai stopped and humorously pretended to consider it only to pout and shake his head no.
“I hate you,” Aoi said following him.
“Tell me and I’ll tell you.”
“Fine. Uruha and I are back together in way…I guess.” That didn’t take much.
“You guess?” he turned around and looked at him. The two young men were standing several yards from each other on the sidewalk in the middle of the night. Luckily for them, Uruha lived in a very residential neighborhood which meant they were the only two outside. It also meant however, that all of Aoi’s yelping and screaming would easily attract attention from people who could hear it from their bedroom window.
“Well, I said I was willing to try again and then he said okay and then he asked me out on a date,” suddenly he started smiling and laughing to himself. A date. With Uruha. With the strange and socially awkward Uruha. For some reason, he could imagine Uruha taking him to some sort of boring museum about the history of dish washers.
“A date?” Kai asked incredulously. With his hands shoved in the pockets of his light jacket, he walked over to his friend.
“Yup. A date,” he nodded.
“Wow…Well, so…that’s a good thing?”
“Yeah…I guess so…” Aoi looked down. It hadn’t quite sunk in yet. And when it hit him truly what this meant that he was again with Uruha, he felt his nerves ignite and a surge of energy pulsate through him. He felt like he was about to go on stage in front a large crowd.
“That makes me really happy, Aoi,” Kai smiled.
Aoi looking up asked “Why?”
“Uruha used to make you so happy. And I don’t know…when I saw you for the first time back at the restaurant, you seemed like something happened to you…like you were sad or something…I don’t know,” he paused to think about it. “I guess what I mean is-and this is ghey and all but, you seem a little broken.” He looked up at the night sky and at the houses around him, a memory of talking to D in the car came back to him. He didn’t bother to push it away, instead he merely continued speaking to his friend. “Love has the ability to heal people, Aoi. And back then, the counselors and everyone, sure they gave us good advice but I think, really it was being with them and each other that helped us. I don’t know…” he sighed. “Uruha, there’s something sad about him in a way but I think he’s strong, you know?” Kai looked at Aoi directly in the eyes. “And I think that’s because of you.”
Aoi remembered that Kai always had a way with speaking directly from the heart. It made him smile to realize that his friend hadn’t really changed all that much from back then, he was still deep inside a good and honest guy. “Kai,” he said.
“Hm?”
“You’re corny,” he said in a forced monotone. Kai erupted in giggles.
“Bitch,” he cussed uncharacteristically between his laughter. “Look, since I’m on a roll with being cheesy, can I just say that life is short so…don’t waste it on not being happy, okay?”
Aoi nodded. “Okay,” he said with a sweet smile. “Your turn. You thought I forgot didn’t you?”
“I was hoping you would,” he giggled once more. “Ah…no, it’s just the guy she likes…well…”
“Who does she like?” Aoi asked.
Kai was reluctant answer.
“Well, since you aren’t saying anything that tells me that I may know him?”
“D’Marcus,” he replied finally.
“Mr. Johnson’s nephew?” Aoi was shocked. “Seriously? Wait, so does that mean that he likes you?”
“I wouldn’t go that far. He just doesn’t like her and for some reason-well,” Kai sighed. He was a bit pissed off at himself for mentioning it to Aoi but at the same time, it felt good to get it off his chest. The whole situation was a bit strange. “We were just talking in the back-he works at the restaurant now by the way, and we were smoking some marijuana,” he closed his eyes and cringed at how he sounded.
Aoi started laughing hysterically. “Marijuana?!” This was getting better and better. Not only did Mr. Johnson that crazed foreign Judo instructor’s nephew had a thing for Kai but he smoked weed with one of the most straight-edged people Aoi had ever met. God, he would kill to see Kai high.
Suddenly, the lights from the house they were standing near lit up and a middle aged man peered out the window looking ruffled and angry. Aoi must have woken him when he shouted out the word “Marijuana”. The two of them turned to the window and bowed apologetically. The man narrowed his eyes and giving them a look of warning turned the lights off.
“Wait-what?!” Aoi asked in a whisper. “Continue,” he urged him on.
“Uhhh,” Kai whined. “Well, I don’t remember how we got into the conversation but for some reason I was talking about the time that you kissed me.”
“I was good wasn’t I?” Aoi cut in. His voice was full of confidence if not conceit.
“Yeah-wait! Not the point!” Kai was taken a bit off guard. Again, the lights came on and before they could see the man’s face in the window, they hurried a bit down the street in a quiet run. Stopping, they bent over and quietly laughed to themselves. “No, I mean…” He stood up straight. “I mean after I told him that story, he for some reason decided to move in and kiss me. My guess is he was just curious.”
“Curious? Curious?!” Aoi now laughed outright. “No, he saw his opportunity so he took advantage.”
Kai rolling his eyes, didn’t really want to get into it. In fact, he didn’t want to think that D’Marcus really wanted something with him. If that were the case, he wasn’t exactly sure how he was going to react to him.
“Why did you let him?”
“I was high,” Kai argued uselessly.
“You expect me to believe that shit? Did he force himself on you?”
“No.”
“So, that means that you didn’t speak up. Was it quick?”
Fuck, Kai thought. He knew that he let him. Hell, D was even slow about it, making sure he had permission which in fact, Kai actually granted him. He really wanted to lie to Aoi but for some reason, he couldn’t. “I guess…I guess I let him. I don’t know why.”
“Curious?” Aoi asked with an impish laugh.
Kai slapping his friend’s arm glared at him and gave him benign “Stop.”
“Do you like him?”
“What?!”
“Do you like him?” he repeated.
“No! Why-” he just paused and glowered at him.
“Okay-okay-okay” Aoi lifted up his hands and smirked. “We should make my date tomorrow a double date and you can invite D’Marcus.”
Folding his arms, Kai playfully mused “I wonder how long it takes to strangle a grown man?” He looked around as if he were truly considering it. “Hmmm…since you are so full of hot air, it might take longer…”
Author: Zion Shadowlet
Beta: butterflysaga(the bitch)
Characters: Aoi, Uruha, Ruki, Reita, Kai and many OCs (Fuwa etc.)
Pairing: Aoi/Uruha and more~
Genre: Drama, Romance, Friendship, Comedy
Rating: NC17
Summary: Six years have passed since the summer at the Dazai Bright Future Retreat for Troubled Children. The boys meet in an unexpected way perhaps bound by fate in the underground world of Visual Kei. With broken hearts and promises; the boys-now young men look to regain some of what they lost by the wild and reckless pursuit of the same dream.
Previous Parts: Part 1.1 | Part 1.2 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4.1| Part 4.2| Part 5| Part 6| Part 7.1| Part 7.2| Part 8.1| Part 8.2| Part 9| Part 10| Part 11| Part 12| Part 13
By the time Ruki came home, the circus was already there. Well, it wasn’t the circus per se, rather it looked like the back room of a drag show mixed with the typical cast of a gallery viewing: wine sipping critics and artists in black turtlenecks. In fact, all types of characters were crowding the chic Tokyo apartment of the successful urban sculptor Isao Hamada and his rather quiet if not morose lover-of course, this was the common opinion of the “circus” in general.
Stepping through the front door, he was immediately met with a shock. The whole house was fused with the constant din of laughter and chatter and threading through it the dramatic music of Mozart playing softly from the radio. A rather tall stage actor was standing up and to the delight of his old friends, recited a spoof version of a monologue from a Kabuki play. On the other side of the room, Isao shockingly wearing a purple boa was reclining on the sofa, a crystal glass of champagne in his hand as he seemingly ranted to another man dressed sharply in a black suit. He had the air of an old movie star with his peppered hair and his fine frame.
“WHY HELLO!” A woman chirped, coming from the kitchen and finding the young boy standing in the doorway as if he were lost. Ruki turned and looked at her. She was a tall foreigner, somewhere in her forties and she wore a lovely light purple kimono. Her short light brown hair was cut off at her chin in a fashionable bob. She wore all types of strange stones in her ears and on her fingers. Placing a bedazzled hand on Ruki’s shoulder, she said to him in highly accented Japanese “Who are you?”
Ruki just stared up at her.
“ISAOOO!!” she called out in a voice that sounded a bit like bird.
Turning his head, he sat up as he saw the boy standing there. Isao got up and crossed the room, taking the gaze of all who were there with him. “This is Ruki!” he announced to them and gesturing, presented him as if he were now on stage. The young man just stood there feeling completely out of place. “I see you’ve met Svea,” he introduced the woman standing next to him. “She’s from Sweden and she teaches at the University.” Ruki nodded, not interested.
In a manner of seconds, the room erupted in Ooohs and ahhhs at the cute young man. The stage actor exclaimed “So lovely that you invited a young artist! I’m assuming that’s what he is.”
“To be honest, I don’t know much about him,” Isao laughed. “He’s our ward here.”
“Ward?” Ruki asked unsure of what that word meant.
“It means darling,” another person from the crowd chimed in. Ruki wasn’t sure if they were a woman or a man in drag. “that you are young person who not related to the family, is taken under the protection of a guardian.”
“Oh…”
“Well, what do you do then?” Isao asked.
“I’m a musician.”
“He is an artist! I knew it. I can tell by the hair,” the actor replied happily. “I think it’s fabulous by the way. Never thought to dye half of my head red!” he raised a fist dramatically in the air.
“What kind of music?” A woman Ruki hadn’t seen asked. Compared to the others, she seemed rather normal.
“Visual Kei,” he replied.
“I’ve read about that, actually,” another added in, a chubby guy who was smoking a long cigar. “Fascinating! It’s a hard to tell who is female and who is male but in the end, everyone is male,” he said rather uselessly.
“What is it?” the man dressed in black asked, walking slowly over to the rest of the crowd with his glass of champagne in his hand. His eyes were glued to Ruki’s cute, young face.
“It’s a music genre of sorts in which the players paint themselves up in wild and beautiful ways; adorning themselves in makeup and styling their hair. But I am assuming that our little Ruki would know how to describe it better.”
All eyes turned to him.
“It’s difficult to explain,” he smiled uncomfortably. He didn’t quite feel that he was entitled to speak as an ambassador of the genre.
“What attracts you to it?” the man in black asked.
Answering quickly, the young man replied “Self expression” to the delight of all the artists in the room. What a great answer they exclaimed! And before he knew it, he was pulled into the group. Sitting in the center, they all looked at him as if he were the new baby in the house, doting on him and complimenting him in all sorts of ways. The man-woman person admired his earrings and another person randomly called him eloquent despite the fact that he barely said anything.
Ruki expected Isao to be annoyed by the attention his friends were giving him but instead, Isao was rather pleased that they had something to rant and rave about, something new and fresh. “Osamu,” he said pointing at the actor “was about to stage a short little play for our entertainment and he was looking for people to be in it. He even brought a chest of props and costumes.” Ruki now noticing it on the floor saw several things sticking out of it particularly boas and fake swords. Isao must have got the one around his neck from there he realized. “You should be in it.”
“I can’t act,” he lifted up his hands and shook his cute head no.
“Oh, it’s about Greek gods!” Osamu sat on the floor in front of him. “But we haven’t quite figured out the plot. It’s improvisation you see.” He laughed pleasantly. “What do you think Katsura?” he asked the man in black. “You’re the playwright!”
“Oh!” he laughed off guard with his glass at his lips. Still, he was too busy watching the young boy. “Um…Perhaps you should be a King who struck by the arrow of Cupid falls unexpectedly in love with your chamber maid.”
“Sounds hilarious,” Isao agreed.
“Our little Ruki since he looks the part so well should be Cupid. Svea can be the chamber maid.” That must have amused her greatly because she started to hoot in laughter.
“Cupid fits him!” Osamu declared. “He has the cute round face and those soft little forearms,” he pinched them. Strangely, he didn’t come off like a pervert. Ruki sat there mortified. In one way, it was exciting but at the same time overwhelming.
Wasting no time, Osamu got up and grabbing his chest of props started pulling things out. He plopped a purple crown on his head and wrapped a long shawl over Svea. Taking out a crown of fake laurel leaves, he placed it over Ruki’s head. “Take off your sweater!”
“I don’t care if he’s Cupid, the boy isn’t getting naked,” Isao said.
“No, no, no,” Osamu shook his head. “But that doesn’t mean he has to look like he’s out in the Arctic!”
Ruki removed his sweater and over shirt. He stood there in a ratty old black tank top with his round arms exposed which caused the strange members of the circus to exclaim in delight at his cuteness.
“He’s just like a cherub!” the man-woman said dotingly.
Osamu grabbing a makeup started painting each of their faces comically, deliberately making Svea look as unattractive as possible. The good humored woman merely laughed. On Ruki, he put two round circles of blush on his cheeks and painted his lips red. “Alright! We’re ready!” Osamu announced. “Now, Cupid, I want you to play along. There are no lines.” He placed his hands on his small shoulders. “Be in character. Remember you are mischievous cute little cherub that likes wrecking havoc on the world.”
For the most part, that was Ruki as he was. He nodded.
“Pretend you have a bow and arrow,” he added quickly before rushing over to the other side of the room and lying on the floor pretended to be roused from a deep sleep. Everyone went quiet as the play was about to begin. “AHHHHHH! Mornings are soooo lonnellyyyyyy,” he yawned. “All I ever do is wake up to the hideous old chamber maid.” He pouted comically. The crowd chuckled.
“I BRING FOOD!” Svea announced, speaking harshly. She walked in with heavy steps, hunching over and deliberately acting like a gorilla. She plopped an empty plate on the floor next to the king. “EAT SO THAT I CAN SOAP YOU!”
“Terrible, wretched, horrible, ugly, chamber maid!” he whined as he picked up the plate and started eating the invisible food.
Ruki figuring that since the play was already so ridiculous, he might as well introduce himself. He pretended to sneak up into the king’s room. “What a beautiful woman!” he said. As he expected, they all broke out in loud laughter. Pulling out his invisible bow and arrow, Ruki or Cupid rather, directed it at Osamu. “PFU!” he said mimicking the sound of a shooting arrow.
“UGH!” Osamu fell back as it hit him and as his eyes landed on Svea, his expression went soft. “OH WHAT IS THIS WONDERFUL BEAUTIFUL CREATURE!”
“WHHHHHATTTT?!” Svea said impersonating the sound of angry duck.
Ruki couldn’t take it anymore; he fell on the floor in laughter.
“What is going on?” Fuwa suddenly asked. Apparently, he had just come home from somewhere, his bag was strung across his shoulder and he had several books in his hand. The circus sighed in disappointment at seeing his “gloomy” presence. Walking in and seeing the play with Ruki standing in front of them, painted up in blush and lipstick, Fuwa was a bit taken aback. He stared at the group with shocked and angry eyes.
“Your little cherub of a ward is acting in our play,” Katsura said smiling with his eyes glued to the boy.
Immediately noticing the strange look in the man’s eyes, Fuwa rather impulsively and somewhat out of his character, walked up in front of everyone and grabbing Ruki by the wrist dragged him away.
“You are not to speak to him,” Fuwa said directly at Katsura, a man in particular who he wasn’t at all fond of. Unlike Fuwa, he was the promiscuous type. Like many artists and writers especially homosexual ones, he relished within a stereotype and a culture that had no restriction, particularly with sex. And Fuwa, not in the least bit of a fool, immediately recognized that he saw the young Ruki as a sexual conquest.
Needless to say, everyone went quiet at the confrontation.
“Come,” Fuwa said to Ruki, dragging him to the bathroom where he planned to wash that hideous makeup off his face.
***
Since the other two lived closer to Uruha, they stayed a little longer, playing music. Once they exhausted themselves, they lounged around in the living room watching stupid television shows. Uruha, who apparently never missed an episode of this NHK period drama about Oda Nobunaga forced the other two to sit there and watch it with him.
Aoi found the whole thing dull beyond all belief. Kai however, despite trying not to, got so sucked into it. “But does he even love her? She’s so ridiculous?!” Kai whined as he gestured angrily toward the screen.
“I don’t like her either,” Uruha agreed, as he took another drink of his root beer. “What she’s asking of him, is just going to kill everyone.”
“Ughhhh” Kai drummed on his legs anxiously. He was sitting on the floor, his back against the couch. Aoi was lying down fighting off the urge to fall asleep and Uruha on the opposite end of the couch away from him was sitting up.
Aoi stretching his legs out rested his bare feet on Uruha’s lap. Looking down at them, Uruha almost thought to push them off but thinking better of it, instead placed his drink on the table and started to massage them. He gently pushed his toes back and pressed his thumb against the arch of his foot as he gently squeezed repeatedly. Aoi moaned happily and closed his eyes.
“I hate women like that,” Aoi suddenly said. “In these shows, these samurai bitches just get all the poor people killed over their stupid honor shit and their stiff romances.”
Kai chuckled. Aoi wasn’t necessarily the type to buy into the “beauty” of Japanese tragedy. He would just constantly go back to how selfish everyone was.
“All these people care about is what people think about them. Fuck’m. They just eat all the poor people’s food and walk around like there is a stick up their ass,” he continued as he let his irritation build up.
“You should watch Seven Samurai,” Uruha suggested, laughing at how worked up he was getting over it.
Just when Aoi replied “I love that movie,” Kumiko came in and wearily announced “Seiko’s here.”
“Um…” Uruha let go of Aoi’s feet and softly pushing them off of him, stood up.
“Should we go home?” Kai asked him.
He wasn’t exactly sure what he was supposed to say to them. “You don’t have to if you don’t want to” was all he could think of. The two of them stared at him silently weighing their options. Uruha realizing that he was due at the door turned around and went to go greet his girlfriend all the while trying to figure out if he should break up with her now or later.
“KOUYOUU!!!!!!” Seiko yelped as she threw herself on him. “I’ve been texting you all day and you haven’t responded.” She playfully pouted her icy pink lips. She was wearing strange pair of light purple contacts. As usual, she was completely dressed up, wearing a light yellow schoolgirl skirt and a white blouse. Kumiko, folding her arms looked the girl up and down. “What have you been doing all day?” Seiko asked, pulling off her long brown boots.
“Playing music with friends.”
“Are they still here?” She looked around him and seeing that there were some people in the living room, didn’t bother to ask if she could go in there and meet them. “HI!” she said happily. Kai and Aoi slowly turned their heads to face her. “I’m Seiko. Nice to meet you!”
“Yutaka,” Kai bowed slightly.
“Aoi,” he waved.
Seeing what they were watching she piped “Oh, he’s making you two watch that stupid show he likes!”
Uruha slowly walked into the living room and with his hands behind his back, looked down at the floor.
“Isn’t he cute!” Seiko said pinching her boyfriend’s cheek. Kai looked at Aoi as the two exchanged a glance. Unable to bear it any longer, she leaned in and kissed him where she had just had her fingers.
“She dotes on him like you used to,” Kai said under his breath at Aoi. He was expecting him to give him an angry glance but instead Aoi just acknowledged what he said and went back to looking at Uruha.
“Maybe we should leave, Kai,” Aoi said getting to his feet. There was something about his manner that alarmed his friend as if there was some knowledge that he was keeping to himself. Kai figuring that it had something to do with the conversation they had in the bathroom, didn’t object.
“You’re leaving?” Uruha finally looked up.
Aoi nodding picked up the little crane that he had made for him and started heading toward the door with Kai behind him.
“Call me tomorrow at noon,” Uruha said urgently to him. “So…we can figure things out for tomorrow night.”
Aoi smiled. “Right,” he said.
“Nice meeting you Seiko,” Kai said politely.
“Yeah, what he said,” Aoi added. “Bye Ducky,” he said with a wink.
“Bye Hoshi-sama,” Uruha smiled happily.
Once the two young men were outside into the chilly night, Kai unable to resist himself asked “What was that all about?” They had left in such a rush that they didn’t even say goodbye to Kumiko.
“Hm?” Aoi pulled out a cigarette. Surprisingly, the weather wasn’t getting to him.
“That little exchange you and Uruha had?”
“It’s a secret,” Aoi said playfully. “I have to head this way,” he gestured.
“I’m the other way.”
“Well, then, I’ll guess I’ll see you later Mr. Dimple face.”
Kai just stared at him suspiciously. He didn’t press however. Whatever it was, to him it was good sign. He knew he shouldn’t be invested in their relationship. The last time that happened, only bad things came from it and threatened to tear apart his and Aoi’s friendship. Yet, he couldn’t help but to believe firmly that in the end, they would be together and it was the right thing for the both of them. Perhaps because it had always been that way that he believed that until Aoi and Uruha were back together, things wouldn’t quite be the same.
“Good luck with that girl,” Aoi added.
Feeling that he wanted to get back at his friend for some reason-maybe because he was deliberately keeping him out of the loop of what was happening with Uruha, Kai said as if it were merely an offhand remark “I guess my one strand of luck is that the guy she likes would rather kiss me.” Wait, what Kai? Why did you just say that?
Aoi grew suddenly excited. “EH?!”
“See ya,” Kai said, turning around.
“You can’t just leave with that!” Aoi followed after him.
“Sure I can,” he smiled.
“What happened?”
Kai shrugged.
“HEYYYYY,” Aoi grabbed him. “Tell me.” When he shook his head no, Aoi started pleading with him. “PLEASSSEEEE TELL MEEEEE.”
Kai stopped and humorously pretended to consider it only to pout and shake his head no.
“I hate you,” Aoi said following him.
“Tell me and I’ll tell you.”
“Fine. Uruha and I are back together in way…I guess.” That didn’t take much.
“You guess?” he turned around and looked at him. The two young men were standing several yards from each other on the sidewalk in the middle of the night. Luckily for them, Uruha lived in a very residential neighborhood which meant they were the only two outside. It also meant however, that all of Aoi’s yelping and screaming would easily attract attention from people who could hear it from their bedroom window.
“Well, I said I was willing to try again and then he said okay and then he asked me out on a date,” suddenly he started smiling and laughing to himself. A date. With Uruha. With the strange and socially awkward Uruha. For some reason, he could imagine Uruha taking him to some sort of boring museum about the history of dish washers.
“A date?” Kai asked incredulously. With his hands shoved in the pockets of his light jacket, he walked over to his friend.
“Yup. A date,” he nodded.
“Wow…Well, so…that’s a good thing?”
“Yeah…I guess so…” Aoi looked down. It hadn’t quite sunk in yet. And when it hit him truly what this meant that he was again with Uruha, he felt his nerves ignite and a surge of energy pulsate through him. He felt like he was about to go on stage in front a large crowd.
“That makes me really happy, Aoi,” Kai smiled.
Aoi looking up asked “Why?”
“Uruha used to make you so happy. And I don’t know…when I saw you for the first time back at the restaurant, you seemed like something happened to you…like you were sad or something…I don’t know,” he paused to think about it. “I guess what I mean is-and this is ghey and all but, you seem a little broken.” He looked up at the night sky and at the houses around him, a memory of talking to D in the car came back to him. He didn’t bother to push it away, instead he merely continued speaking to his friend. “Love has the ability to heal people, Aoi. And back then, the counselors and everyone, sure they gave us good advice but I think, really it was being with them and each other that helped us. I don’t know…” he sighed. “Uruha, there’s something sad about him in a way but I think he’s strong, you know?” Kai looked at Aoi directly in the eyes. “And I think that’s because of you.”
Aoi remembered that Kai always had a way with speaking directly from the heart. It made him smile to realize that his friend hadn’t really changed all that much from back then, he was still deep inside a good and honest guy. “Kai,” he said.
“Hm?”
“You’re corny,” he said in a forced monotone. Kai erupted in giggles.
“Bitch,” he cussed uncharacteristically between his laughter. “Look, since I’m on a roll with being cheesy, can I just say that life is short so…don’t waste it on not being happy, okay?”
Aoi nodded. “Okay,” he said with a sweet smile. “Your turn. You thought I forgot didn’t you?”
“I was hoping you would,” he giggled once more. “Ah…no, it’s just the guy she likes…well…”
“Who does she like?” Aoi asked.
Kai was reluctant answer.
“Well, since you aren’t saying anything that tells me that I may know him?”
“D’Marcus,” he replied finally.
“Mr. Johnson’s nephew?” Aoi was shocked. “Seriously? Wait, so does that mean that he likes you?”
“I wouldn’t go that far. He just doesn’t like her and for some reason-well,” Kai sighed. He was a bit pissed off at himself for mentioning it to Aoi but at the same time, it felt good to get it off his chest. The whole situation was a bit strange. “We were just talking in the back-he works at the restaurant now by the way, and we were smoking some marijuana,” he closed his eyes and cringed at how he sounded.
Aoi started laughing hysterically. “Marijuana?!” This was getting better and better. Not only did Mr. Johnson that crazed foreign Judo instructor’s nephew had a thing for Kai but he smoked weed with one of the most straight-edged people Aoi had ever met. God, he would kill to see Kai high.
Suddenly, the lights from the house they were standing near lit up and a middle aged man peered out the window looking ruffled and angry. Aoi must have woken him when he shouted out the word “Marijuana”. The two of them turned to the window and bowed apologetically. The man narrowed his eyes and giving them a look of warning turned the lights off.
“Wait-what?!” Aoi asked in a whisper. “Continue,” he urged him on.
“Uhhh,” Kai whined. “Well, I don’t remember how we got into the conversation but for some reason I was talking about the time that you kissed me.”
“I was good wasn’t I?” Aoi cut in. His voice was full of confidence if not conceit.
“Yeah-wait! Not the point!” Kai was taken a bit off guard. Again, the lights came on and before they could see the man’s face in the window, they hurried a bit down the street in a quiet run. Stopping, they bent over and quietly laughed to themselves. “No, I mean…” He stood up straight. “I mean after I told him that story, he for some reason decided to move in and kiss me. My guess is he was just curious.”
“Curious? Curious?!” Aoi now laughed outright. “No, he saw his opportunity so he took advantage.”
Kai rolling his eyes, didn’t really want to get into it. In fact, he didn’t want to think that D’Marcus really wanted something with him. If that were the case, he wasn’t exactly sure how he was going to react to him.
“Why did you let him?”
“I was high,” Kai argued uselessly.
“You expect me to believe that shit? Did he force himself on you?”
“No.”
“So, that means that you didn’t speak up. Was it quick?”
Fuck, Kai thought. He knew that he let him. Hell, D was even slow about it, making sure he had permission which in fact, Kai actually granted him. He really wanted to lie to Aoi but for some reason, he couldn’t. “I guess…I guess I let him. I don’t know why.”
“Curious?” Aoi asked with an impish laugh.
Kai slapping his friend’s arm glared at him and gave him benign “Stop.”
“Do you like him?”
“What?!”
“Do you like him?” he repeated.
“No! Why-” he just paused and glowered at him.
“Okay-okay-okay” Aoi lifted up his hands and smirked. “We should make my date tomorrow a double date and you can invite D’Marcus.”
Folding his arms, Kai playfully mused “I wonder how long it takes to strangle a grown man?” He looked around as if he were truly considering it. “Hmmm…since you are so full of hot air, it might take longer…”