Fic - Man With a Movie Camera - Chapter Seven (2/2)
Title: Man With a Movie Camera
Group: Nightmare / Sendai Kamotsu
Pairings: Ruka x Yomi, Ruka x Ni~ya, Hitsugi/Sakito (platonic?), + Sendai
Ratings: PG-13 - PG-17
Chapter Seven, part 2
Seriously? Can't believe this chapter is too long to post in one go. It's not like anything happens in it!
Anyway, Ruka will now tell a story in which Sendai go to a hot-spring, and everyone has a lovely time...
Chapter Seven, part 2
“All right. This is what I know: Hitsugi is in love. And, handily enough, he's in love with his partner, Sakito. And before you say yeah, everyone and his dog knows that...I mean in love. Like, heart pounding, pulse racing, head spinning desire. You're looking at me like I'm mental, Ryo-kun, stop it. Okay, I admit, it's not exactly obvious to the untrained eye, but to anyone who puts some effort into their observation it's pretty easy to see that Hitsu is not on some celibacy kick because he just doesn't want what everyone else wants. It's because there's only one thing he does want. And he can't have it.
Now, I've known this for a long time. But before you jump to conclusions about stuff like this, Ryo-kun, it's important to test your theories. Why else d'you think I used to try and match-make for Hitsu? With girls, with guys: I wanted to see how he'd react to the offer, when he was by himself and when he was with Sakito. And the conclusions? Well, Hitsu certainly isn't straight. And then again, he isn't really gay. Or bi, or any combination of the above. But he isn't so-called 'asexual', either; I suppose he's kind of...Saki-sexual.
There's a look he gives Sakito... Well, maybe you haven't seen it, 'cos he's had years of practice hiding it. But it's there, sometimes, when they touch: a kind of willingness for intimacy that goes further than the cuddling or hand-holding or whatever they're doing at the time. It's a kind of hunger, and resigned acceptance that he'll never have it satisfied, and maybe some amusement at himself for even entertaining the feeling. It's a complicated, subtle look, anyway, and I know Sakito doesn't see it. But then, he's not an expert at looking at men; and I am.”
( “I've never seen it,” I interject. Ruka breaks off, clicks his tongue at the interruption, and shrugs pityingly as if I don't know what I'm missing.
“Yeah, well, you're no expert either.”
“Are you sure about what you're seeing?” I probe. “Are you sure you're not just, I dunno, projecting or something?”
“Projecting?” says Ruka scornfully. “Come off it. I don't go around mooning about over something I can't have. When I see something I want...I have it.” I suppose I had that coming.
“It's just...hard to credit,” I explain in my defence. Ruka sighs and silently demolishes a chicken wing, looking thoughtful.
“Fine. Let's try something else.” )
“Forget about Hitsu-kun for the moment; his feelings are obviously way too subtle to explain on some ham-handed video recording (no offence). Let's go back a year or so and think about Fullface instead.
Now, this was back when Sendai were still in full swing. Poor Giga was busy trying to cope with both satisfying Chiba in a way that didn't totally destroy his self-respect and persuading Chen-chen to spend some quality time with him. Chen-chen was chasing skirt, as usual. And Satty and Fullface were, probably unbeknownst to themselves, treading gingerly along the line where friendship ends and something else begins.
Sakito had always insisted that he and Satty were basically the same person underneath it all, and that Hitsugi and Fullface were similarly linked. Which is bollocks; you only have to look at the way Satty moves compared to Sakito and you can see they're as different as me and Giga. But let's suppose we roll with his theory: if Hitsu feels anything close to what Fullface feels, then believe me, he wants to bed his friend so bad it's a wonder he doesn't have steam coming out of his ears all day long.
Anyway. It was Christmas, and Sendai were, once again, far from home. They weren't touring this time, but holding their end-of-year party (you should know, Ryo-kun, you were there). And winter party basically equals onsen; so they were in Nagano, high up in the mountains in Kamisuwa with their staff and their crappy bus and their overnight bags. It's a beautiful place, perfectly calculated to inspire romantic manoeuvres in the dark.
Granted, I'm pretty sure you and Kano-san and everyone else were hoping to avoid romantic mood-making as far as Sendai were concerned (they've never exactly needed the encouragement); but that just wasn't gonna happen, and by eleven at night Giga was ensconced in the outside bath with both his lovers and being extensively groped by Chiba under cover of darkness. It wasn't long before the subdued giggling and underwater wrestling had scared most of the regular patrons back to the safety of the indoor pools.
“Where're the other two?” wondered Giga idly, both hands braced against Chiba to stop the singer climbing right on top of him. Chen-chen stretched out beside him, black hair spread like wet silk across the warm stones at his back.
“You know they won't come in with us,” he said, breath hanging in the freezing air, lifting one white leg out of the water to examine his toes lazily. “Apparently we're too embarrassing.”
“Hah.” Chiba gave a tremendous yawn and ran his small fingers lightly along Giga's arm. “We should get out and make room for them.”
“And do what?” asked Giga, suspiciously. Chiba dropped both his friends a wink, then grinned at his drummer's aghast face.
“We could do karaoke,” he suggested innocently. “I think they have a room on the fifth floor.”
“We could drink more,” countered Chen-chen, who is a terrible singer.
“Agreed.” Chiba bounced to his feet, and Chen-chen followed more gracefully, his pale body shimmering in the lamp-light.
“...Agreed,” Giga echoed, gazing wistfully at it and wondering what the odds were of getting his hands on it that night. Not good, he thought.
“Come on then.” They all sloshed out, and went to hit up the hotel bar.
An hour and a half later, Chiba and Chen-chen were so drunk they were practically asleep; Chiba was slumped face-down on the bar, reciting dirty haiku under his breath, and the bassist was drooling quietly into the shoulder of Giga's yukata. By the time he'd put them both to bed like the conscientious friend he was, Giga himself was, if not sober, then at least more awake; so he left them snoring in their futons and went for one last dip before he called it a night.
Leaning his elbows on the smooth edge of one of the indoor jacuzzi, Giga lay luxuriating in the hot water and quiet, and peered out of the tall plate-glass window. Cold air trickled in through the door, left half-open by Kano-san, and it was thanks to this that the glass was un-fogged enough for Giga to see through it to the peaceful outside bath and the mountains beyond.
“Night!” called Sendai's manager, grabbing his towel and disappearing into the changing-rooms. Giga waved a sleepy hand at him and sighed contentedly, closing his eyes.
He opened them again to the sound of quiet chattering, just in time to see his two guitarists slipping through the door, headed outside. They both perched themselves on low wooden stools beside the taps, shivering, breath steaming, looking thoroughly delighted at the absence of their three raucous bandmates. Fullface had his towel wrapped modestly around his hips and was carefully not looking at Satty, who had abandoned his own and was scrubbing himself vigorously with soap.
“So quiet,” came Fullface's voice (Giga could just about hear him, and believe me he was listening with interest), sounding content. He filled a wooden bowl with hot water and emptied it over himself, spluttering happily and shaking wet red hair out of his eyes.
“I know,” said Satty, peering myopically at his shampoo and conditioner bottles (he didn't have his glasses on, and it was quite dark). He shifted his stool a little nearer his friend. “...Wash my hair?” he requested, tossing his shining platinum locks encouragingly. Giga, watching with the fascination of a dedicated anthropologist, saw Fullface turn scarlet immediately at Satty's knowing little smile, and nod shyly. The older guitarist grinned at the success of his first move.
And that, right there, is one of the points where Sakito and Satty differ: Sakito doesn't flirt with men. Well, his face and his body language make it look like he does, and he's probably caused severe embarrassment to a lot of guys who think he's coming on to them; but it's just the pure grace and elegance of his movements that lead people to think he's radiating some kind of deliberate, seductive femininity. He's not, that's just the way he is; but it trips some men's gaydar anyway.
Satty, on the other hand, can be a right little flirt, though only with Fullface (as far as we've ever seen). He hasn't had a lot of practice, and he's not very good at it; but the younger man is so hyper-sensitive to every breath Satty takes that it's really quite effective at shaking him up. And tonight the lovely guitarist was relaxed and tipsy and in the mood to tease.
He turned his back on Fullface (and a very beautiful back it is too) and picked up a bowl, handing it to the blushing man, who took it obediently and poured a careful stream over Satty's head. As soon as Fullface's fingers made contact with his friend's hair he paused; he shut his eyes in a strange, deliberate blink, like a camera shutter clicking, and Giga was sure that he had just logged the sight and sensation away, to be enjoyed repeatedly at a later date.
“Mmm,” purred Satty (in quite a clumsy, but really very sweet way) as Fullface's hands began to move, fingers creating a white lather of shampoo and rubbing gently against his scalp. Fullface closed his eyes again at the sound, and this time Giga saw that expression I was just telling you about, the one Hitsugi wears, the melancholy one that savours every single second of contact with his gorgeous friend. Satty, obviously, was facing the other way, and in any case wasn't about to look around for fear of getting shampoo in his fabulous eyes.
I wonder, if he had seen that look, whether he would have kept on flirting? After all, unlike Hitsu and Sakito, Fullface and Satty aren't partners - not officially, anyway. They're best friends, sure, and I'm pretty certain they have the potential to be a whole lot more; but that all depends on Satty, because Fullface, like Hitsu, will never make a move on his own. And Giga couldn't be sure if the older guitarist was flirting in play; or whether, if he had noticed the other man responding so earnestly, he would have encouraged it or freaked out.
But I'm getting sidetracked here (I told you this wasn't really a story). To return to the hot-spring, Fullface was still washing Satty's hair, and he was certainly taking his sweet time about it. Not that Satty seemed to mind; like his glamorous other half, he loves being pampered, he just doesn't get as much opportunity for it as Sakito.
“If I'm doing it too hard,” said Fullface, who had opened his eyes again to revel secretly in the sight of Satty's perfect naked back, “just tell me.”
“No,” murmured Satty indulgently. “...Feels good.” He tipped his head back, white bubbles cascading like sea-foam over his delicate shoulder-blades, his long throat curved invitingly. He made another self-conscious little sound of pleasure as Fullface's massaging fingertips slid softly through the fine hair at the nape of his neck, and Giga saw their youngest member part his lips, flicking the tip of his pink tongue swiftly over his piercings, as if he could taste Satty in the air between them.
They stayed like that a long time, Fullface's hands now stroking in a relaxing way through Satty's currently-blonde hair; the younger man was feeling amazed at his own daring, if his face was anything to go by, and growing more and more enamoured with every soft noise his slender friend let fall from his lips. Eventually, though, they seemed to start feeling the cold again; Satty shivered, passed the bowl, and allowed Fullface to rinse him off, clear streams of hot water sparkling down his skin to the stones beneath him. Both Giga and Fullface drank in the sight appreciatively; then Satty shoved some conditioner in his hair, wrapped his small towel around his head, and hopped into the bath (see, Sakito would never do anything like hop, especially if he was trying to turn someone on).
“Coming?” he asked, splashing the water beside him with one hand. Fullface, who had been observing his walk to the water with depressed awe, twitched and pulled himself together, wading in and sitting down a short way from his friend, sinking up to his shoulders in the steaming bath. Satty immediately shifted along beside him, his beautiful body a long, slim silhouette beneath the surface. Fullface gave a covert sigh.
Now, there's another reason why Hitsu and Fullface tend not to get in the bath until very late at night; it's not just that they find the three of us so embarrassing (well, they do, but that's not the point). It's that they have tattoos. These days, most places don't stick to the no ink rule as strictly as they used to; but the short guitarist is very aware of people looking at him, and doesn't want to cause anyone any discomfort, and so tends to wait until everyone else gets out. It doesn't matter so much for Giga and I, we just tie a wash-cloth round our arm and we're not offending anyone. But Fullface's are harder to hide; and of course Satty wants to keep him company, so he hangs back too.
The tattoos, Giga realised, were to become Satty's next point of attack, as the slender man reached out a hand and set the tip of his fingernail lightly against the front of Fullface's right shoulder, over the eye of the dragon inked there. He gave a sly (well, Giga assumed he thought it was sly) grin at the younger man's startled rush of breath. Fullface opened his pretty eyes wide, clamped both hands between his knees in an embarrassed, childish gesture, and allowed Satty to touch him. If it's me or Chiba, he'll just shake us off, but he clearly doesn't have the willpower to do that to the other guitarist. Which, I think you'll agree, just supports my opinion about his feelings.
“You don't show this off enough,” Satty said quietly, grazing his finger over the sinuous arch of the dragon's back. “Or the one on your leg.” He shifted deliberately, and Giga suspected that he'd just brushed his own smooth calf against Fullface's: the shorter man jumped again, though it was very hard to tell whether he was blushing or not, since his feline face was bright red from the hot water anyway. “After all the trouble you went to getting them done,” continued Satty, his hand now trailing down Fullface's arm, “the least you could do is give people a look at them every now and again.”
Fullface mumbled something Giga didn't catch, and Satty laughed softly, sitting pressed comfortably hip to hip with his friend. Giga was feeling rather sorry for the younger guitarist: it must be hard enough for Fullface to cope with his desire and his friend's beauty on a day-to-day basis without having it shoved in his face in such an amusingly obvious display. Satty really was an amateur when it came to subtlety, and the worst thing about it was that he evidently had no plans to follow through. Giga shook his head mutely. Fullface wasn't equipped to deal with this kind of situation, and the drummer wondered what he would do if the flirtation carried on.
The answer, it turned out, was 'nothing'. Satty continued his inconsequential chatter and fake-casual little touches, and Fullface just leaned back against the wall of the pool, face half obscured in the steam. The way he held himself told Giga that he wanted nothing more than to lean in to his friend's caresses, to respond the way any normal, uninhibited person would to such behaviour; but he didn't. Giga wasn't sure if he knew how.
So, nothing happened, and it kept on happening for a long time, so long, in fact, that Giga did actually fall asleep. He woke up once, observed his guitarists still talking, then dropped off again. He levered his eyes open a few minutes later, forced himself to get up, and tiptoed out of the bath, sleepy and overheated and trying to make as little movement as possible. Once in the changing-room he dried himself off cursorily, slung his blue yukata on and made his way to bed.
It was very late when he next woke up; so late, he thought, that it was almost early. Moonlight shone idyllically through the paper shoji screens, but not quite enough to illuminate Giga's watch. He raised his head a minute amount, and gave his sleeping bandmates a quick once-over. Unlike Naito, Sendai tend not to flash the cash, and all five of them were sharing a wide tatami room, traditional work-outing style.
Giga observed, with satisfaction, that they were all present and correct: Chiba was a mere lump beneath his duvet (it was possible that he'd just shoved a load of pillows under it and gone walkabout to torment some staff members; but probably not that likely at this time of night); Chen-chen was lying sprawled on his back on the far side of the room, looking gorgeous and still snoring quietly; and the other two lay in the middle futons, apparently emotionally intact after their touchy-feely bath and sleeping silently.
His guitarists, Giga noted with yet more interest (he was awake now, and until Chen-chen shut up he'd never be able to get back to sleep), had pushed their futons and covers together and were sleeping in the centre of the pile, heads almost touching. This wasn't unheard-of for the pair of them, but it was rare. I've seen the claustrophobic cuddle Hitsu and Sakito tend to sleep in when they get the chance to share a bed, and this was nothing like so close; but, to Giga, it still seemed surprisingly intimate. He wondered who had instigated it.
His question was answered soon enough. Giga had been lying there about ten minutes, musing over what he'd seen that evening (and what might be for breakfast in the morning), when he heard movement in the centre of the room. He half-opened his eyes, and saw Fullface lean up on one elbow quickly, suddenly wide awake. There was just enough light to show the utterly startled expression on his mild face as he looked down at Satty, who was sleeping peacefully on his back, leaning in towards him; one shoulder of his yukata had slipped down, baring a wide sliver of pale skin at his torso. Satty might be a total dork when he was awake, reflected Giga, but asleep like this, with his clothes half off and his blonde hair spilling over the pillow, he looked like an ad for an adult phone line: cheesy and completely beautiful.
As the drummer watched, Fullface peeped around anxiously, took another long look at Satty as if to make sure he was actually asleep; then allowed his face to break into the softest, most purely adoring smile Giga had ever seen. He stared for a long time, drinking in the man below him. After a while, looking like it was the most daring thing he'd ever done in his life, Fullface raised one hand silently and ghosted a finger along the edge of Satty's yukata where it parted in a wide V to display his delicate neck. Giga thought he wasn't even touching skin, just the cotton fabric; but it was still somehow one of the most erotic acts he could remember witnessing (as you know, 'subtle' is not a huge feature in either of his lovers' sexual vocabularies).
Fullface caught his breath, looked momentarily guilty, and then, when Satty didn't wake up, allowed his hand to travel up and smooth over his friend's silver earrings, fingertip brushing the shell of Satty's pretty ear for the briefest fraction of a second; the younger man gave a little shiver, catching his hand back like he'd gone too far already. Seriously, Ryo-kun, this is not the kind of thing you do if your feelings are purely platonic friendship.
But it wasn't enough; Fullface almost never gets chances like this, and he didn't seem to be able to stop himself making the most of it (mind you, 'most' for him isn't that much...). Carefully, tentatively, he leant a little closer to his sleeping friend, his vivid, unstyled hair forming a curtain behind his face and highlighting his soft jawline and cattish profile perfectly. Giga could see his expression even better like this: the guitarist looked enraptured, like he could gaze at Satty all night long and not get tired of it.
His mouth tightened in a moment of self-directed disapproval, metal gleaming in his bottom lip. Then one hand shifted warily to cup Satty's lovely face: again, Giga didn't think it actually made contact, just framed his features worshipfully. Fullface looked around once more (Giga closed his eyes for a moment and feigned sleep); slowly, silently, he bend his head towards Satty's.
Giga peered at them. It was harder to tell what was going on now; the guitarists' shapes had flowed together in the dark, and it was tricky distinguishing where one ended and the other began. But he could just about see: Fullface, to his lack of surprise, wasn't actually kissing Satty; for one, he was probably afraid that his piercings would wake the other man up; and for another, Giga just didn't think he'd dare. I know Sakito and Hitsu kiss; not like the rest of us kiss, admittedly, but enough that it's become a natural part of their routine. But for Fullface, I get the feeling that it would be a step with the same personal significance as that of the first moon landing.
Instead, he had his feline nose pressed lightly to Satty's smooth cheek, and seemed to be breathing him in. Which Giga could totally get behind: Sakito had been shopping at Lush the day before, and now, after his bath, Satty smelled like pure unadulterated heaven; the drummer could catch his scent even halfway across the room. Fullface let a tiny, yearning sound escape him, more like a sigh than anything else. Then Satty was moving in his sleep, nudging his face comfortably against the younger man's.
The result was, predictably, electric: Fullface practically jumped off him, threw himself out of bed, and shuffled hurriedly out the door, his footsteps receding in the direction of the bathroom. Giga saw Satty open his eyes, looking drowsy and puzzled; the guitarist fumbled around for his glasses blearily, then gave up and rolled over, facing his temporary bed partner's futon and nuzzling closer to the warmth left by his body. Then he went straight back to sleep.
Okay, Ryo-kun, you may think big whoop, so what, Hitsu and Sakito get up to this kind of thing all the time. And it's true that Hitsu can have Sakito embrace him and not bat an eyelid, can be kissed and not get all flustered. But it's only the behaviour that's different; the feelings underneath are the same. Hitsu can act calm because their relationship has been steady for years, and he's totally secure about having Sakito's love. He doesn't have everything he wants (that's what I've been telling you), but he feels safe.
Fullface and Satty's relationship status, on the other hand, is still up in the air, and I don't think either of them really knows exactly how the other feels. Oh, plus the fact that Fullface has to put up with all the semi-sexual flirting, because Satty knows he can get a cute reaction out of him; whereas Sakito is under the impression that Hitsu is totally uninterested and oblivious to such things, so it doesn't even occur to him to bother.
But yeah. The feeling underneath all the embarrassment and the cuddling and the asexual crap remains constant: total, blind, emotional and physical adoration. Giga saw it that night, and in Fullface's shame-faced, delighted blush the next morning, when he was sitting opposite Satty over breakfast and could barely look at him for the memory of how good those brief touches had felt.
One day, Giga thought, someone ought to do something about it, before our youngest member expired from having no-one to talk to and from sheer unrequited desire. And, seeing as he was the only one to have noticed, he supposed it should be him. But poor Giga has enough on his plate as it is, and in any case is rather shy of butting into other people's business. So I told him I'd do something about it. And here I am.”
“Here you are what?” I demand as Ruka lapses into silence, nursing his tea in a self-satisfied manner. He glances back up, surprised.
“Here I am. Doing something.” He frowns. “Well, this is gossip, isn't it? One day it's bound to filter back to them. And then maybe they'll deal with it.” He glares at my dubious eyebrows. “What, have you got a better idea?”
“Er, no.”
“Didn't think so.” Ruka leans forward, giving me an engaging stare. “It's simple, really. Sakito needs to be made aware of what Satty is up to behind his back, with all that sexy clumsy flirting; there's got to be more to it than just embarrassing Fullface. And Hitsu's got to let himself react more honestly, like Fullface does, like he can't help doing. One day,” he says, with a breathtaking lack of irony, “those two are going to have to integrate all their personalities. And when they do,” he intimates, nodding, “sparks are gonna fly.”
“Well. I'll certainly look forward to that,” I say flatly. Ruka sniffs.
“Look, I'm just giving you facts. If it wasn't what you wanted to hear, why did you ask?” he snaps bad-temperedly.
“Sorry.”
“Fuck's sake!” he huffs, reaching across the table to smash the camera's 'stop' button with one finger. “Who out of the rest of you is a bigger authority on guy-guy desire than me? Honestly, I don't know why I bother!” He calls to a passing waitress for a beer, and turns back to give me his best scowl. “That's the last you're getting out of me.”
All in all, I don't know if this last statement is a good thing or a bad thing. Or just how truthful Ruka is when it comes to stuff like this (I've always had the feeling that he'd make an excellent liar if he put his mind to it); it's true he has the experience - a hundred percent more experience that me, anyway - but how good are his evaluative powers?
The last thing I want is for Saki - who is, after all, my guitarist and my prime concern - to hear about any of this from someone else and get hurt. His relationship with Hitsu is too important to him, and, via a kind of chain effect, to everyone else.
I think this is another occasion where I should go looking for an outside opinion.
**************
December 23rd, 2009
“Sex?!” yells Shou over the din, looking bemused but up for the challenge. “Here? Now?!”
I explain again, or try to, by yelling in his ear at the top of my voice; but making myself heard is nigh on impossible over the sound of the other members of Alice Nine, plus Vivid, plus some of the Gazette and other assorted musicians, plus staff, plus friends, plus unsuspecting members of the public who happened to wander past and were suctioned into the maelstrom of festive cheer, all of whom are singing along to Exile's cover of 'Last Christmas', incredibly happily and incredibly off-key. Ahh, the PSC Christmas party. I wonder who's going to get paralytic and end up naked in Ginza this year...
“Hitsugi?!” Shou bellows at me in amazement, as he finally grasps what I'm asking. “And Saki-san?” He shakes his head vehemently, sending rainbow-coloured splashes of some scary-looking cocktail flying. “Are you mad?” I hasten to add that this is Ruka's opinion, not necessarily mine. “No, no, no,” declaims the vocalist, flicking a peace sign at some staggering roadies. He shuffles closer so I'll hear better.
“No?”
“Hell no!” Shou takes a long swig, stares at his drink as if it's the Holy Grail, then remembers what he's talking about. “Look,” he shouts, “me and Hitsu, we go drinking all the time, yeah?”
“Okay...”
“And man, does Hitsu love to drink!” The singer displays his own enthusiasm for the hobby by draining his glass. “And when he gets drunk,” he continues, “he gets really talkta...” He stares at the empty glass mournfully. “...Talkative.”
“Is this going somewhere?” I ask loudly, grabbing a safer drink for myself from a passing tray. Shou screws his face up in fierce concentration, in an effort to make me understand.
“I mean he talks about everything,” he says emphatically. “Trust me. There's no way in the world he'd be able to keep something that juicy bottled up! Actually,” he muses, wonderingly, “I've never seen him with any girl. Or with any guy. And Saki-san would be such a fuckin' catch; who'd be able to resist spilling the beans?!”
“I concur,” comes a deep voice from behind me. I turn to see Uruha, who is standing and listening with great solemnity to the conversation. I look him up and down: he's drunk, the very quiet, comically serious kind of drunk. He gazes at us both with wide, earnest eyes, looking hilariously silly and handsome.
“About what?” I ask. Shou cocks his head at his senpai, and tries to copy his air of gravitas, with less than spectacular results.
“Saki,” Uruha informs us, tossing his luxuriant blonde hair and and taking an elegant sip of white wine. “Hottest thing with a dick this side of Bangkok. If he was a chick, I sure as hell wouldn't keep quiet about wanting to bang him.” I stare at him with my mouth hanging open.
“Well, that's just...lovely, thanks for that,” I manage. Elegant my arse; appearances are so misleading. Shou is sputtering with laughter next to me. “So, let me clarify,” I sum up, raising my voice as another seasonal favourite comes on the sound system. “Saki and Hitsu-kun! A no-go??”
“No chance in hell!” screams Shou confidently.
“Agreed!” booms Uruha. “Saki's got his T&A on demand, Hitsu's got his little doggies and his drinking buddies. That's the natural order of things! That's the way it's meant to be!!”
And they both get distracted by jello shots and a rousing chorus of 'Rudolph the Red Nose Reindeer', and that's the end of that.
Okay, I admit, these guys aren't necessarily the sober, reliable experts I was planning on getting testimony from. But everyone else I ask has said, basically, the same thing (though not all of them put it as charmingly as the Gazette's guitarist): Hitsu and Saki, no way it's happening, no way they want it to happen.
I'm confused now. Do I put my faith in Ruka's theory, or should I roll with the majority vote of the PSC frat boys? I think I'll just stick both pieces of film in for now, and await developments.
*************
...Yeah, I like Arashi, I'm not ashamed! XD Ohmiya give great fanservice...
Well, off to Tokyo to see L'arc~en~ciel!
Next chapter, Ruka gets ganged up on. Will he be able to turn it to his advantage...?
Forward to chapter eight
Back to chapter six
Group: Nightmare / Sendai Kamotsu
Pairings: Ruka x Yomi, Ruka x Ni~ya, Hitsugi/Sakito (platonic?), + Sendai
Ratings: PG-13 - PG-17
Chapter Seven, part 2
Seriously? Can't believe this chapter is too long to post in one go. It's not like anything happens in it!
Anyway, Ruka will now tell a story in which Sendai go to a hot-spring, and everyone has a lovely time...
Chapter Seven, part 2
“All right. This is what I know: Hitsugi is in love. And, handily enough, he's in love with his partner, Sakito. And before you say yeah, everyone and his dog knows that...I mean in love. Like, heart pounding, pulse racing, head spinning desire. You're looking at me like I'm mental, Ryo-kun, stop it. Okay, I admit, it's not exactly obvious to the untrained eye, but to anyone who puts some effort into their observation it's pretty easy to see that Hitsu is not on some celibacy kick because he just doesn't want what everyone else wants. It's because there's only one thing he does want. And he can't have it.
Now, I've known this for a long time. But before you jump to conclusions about stuff like this, Ryo-kun, it's important to test your theories. Why else d'you think I used to try and match-make for Hitsu? With girls, with guys: I wanted to see how he'd react to the offer, when he was by himself and when he was with Sakito. And the conclusions? Well, Hitsu certainly isn't straight. And then again, he isn't really gay. Or bi, or any combination of the above. But he isn't so-called 'asexual', either; I suppose he's kind of...Saki-sexual.
There's a look he gives Sakito... Well, maybe you haven't seen it, 'cos he's had years of practice hiding it. But it's there, sometimes, when they touch: a kind of willingness for intimacy that goes further than the cuddling or hand-holding or whatever they're doing at the time. It's a kind of hunger, and resigned acceptance that he'll never have it satisfied, and maybe some amusement at himself for even entertaining the feeling. It's a complicated, subtle look, anyway, and I know Sakito doesn't see it. But then, he's not an expert at looking at men; and I am.”
( “I've never seen it,” I interject. Ruka breaks off, clicks his tongue at the interruption, and shrugs pityingly as if I don't know what I'm missing.
“Yeah, well, you're no expert either.”
“Are you sure about what you're seeing?” I probe. “Are you sure you're not just, I dunno, projecting or something?”
“Projecting?” says Ruka scornfully. “Come off it. I don't go around mooning about over something I can't have. When I see something I want...I have it.” I suppose I had that coming.
“It's just...hard to credit,” I explain in my defence. Ruka sighs and silently demolishes a chicken wing, looking thoughtful.
“Fine. Let's try something else.” )
“Forget about Hitsu-kun for the moment; his feelings are obviously way too subtle to explain on some ham-handed video recording (no offence). Let's go back a year or so and think about Fullface instead.
Now, this was back when Sendai were still in full swing. Poor Giga was busy trying to cope with both satisfying Chiba in a way that didn't totally destroy his self-respect and persuading Chen-chen to spend some quality time with him. Chen-chen was chasing skirt, as usual. And Satty and Fullface were, probably unbeknownst to themselves, treading gingerly along the line where friendship ends and something else begins.
Sakito had always insisted that he and Satty were basically the same person underneath it all, and that Hitsugi and Fullface were similarly linked. Which is bollocks; you only have to look at the way Satty moves compared to Sakito and you can see they're as different as me and Giga. But let's suppose we roll with his theory: if Hitsu feels anything close to what Fullface feels, then believe me, he wants to bed his friend so bad it's a wonder he doesn't have steam coming out of his ears all day long.
Anyway. It was Christmas, and Sendai were, once again, far from home. They weren't touring this time, but holding their end-of-year party (you should know, Ryo-kun, you were there). And winter party basically equals onsen; so they were in Nagano, high up in the mountains in Kamisuwa with their staff and their crappy bus and their overnight bags. It's a beautiful place, perfectly calculated to inspire romantic manoeuvres in the dark.
Granted, I'm pretty sure you and Kano-san and everyone else were hoping to avoid romantic mood-making as far as Sendai were concerned (they've never exactly needed the encouragement); but that just wasn't gonna happen, and by eleven at night Giga was ensconced in the outside bath with both his lovers and being extensively groped by Chiba under cover of darkness. It wasn't long before the subdued giggling and underwater wrestling had scared most of the regular patrons back to the safety of the indoor pools.
“Where're the other two?” wondered Giga idly, both hands braced against Chiba to stop the singer climbing right on top of him. Chen-chen stretched out beside him, black hair spread like wet silk across the warm stones at his back.
“You know they won't come in with us,” he said, breath hanging in the freezing air, lifting one white leg out of the water to examine his toes lazily. “Apparently we're too embarrassing.”
“Hah.” Chiba gave a tremendous yawn and ran his small fingers lightly along Giga's arm. “We should get out and make room for them.”
“And do what?” asked Giga, suspiciously. Chiba dropped both his friends a wink, then grinned at his drummer's aghast face.
“We could do karaoke,” he suggested innocently. “I think they have a room on the fifth floor.”
“We could drink more,” countered Chen-chen, who is a terrible singer.
“Agreed.” Chiba bounced to his feet, and Chen-chen followed more gracefully, his pale body shimmering in the lamp-light.
“...Agreed,” Giga echoed, gazing wistfully at it and wondering what the odds were of getting his hands on it that night. Not good, he thought.
“Come on then.” They all sloshed out, and went to hit up the hotel bar.
An hour and a half later, Chiba and Chen-chen were so drunk they were practically asleep; Chiba was slumped face-down on the bar, reciting dirty haiku under his breath, and the bassist was drooling quietly into the shoulder of Giga's yukata. By the time he'd put them both to bed like the conscientious friend he was, Giga himself was, if not sober, then at least more awake; so he left them snoring in their futons and went for one last dip before he called it a night.
Leaning his elbows on the smooth edge of one of the indoor jacuzzi, Giga lay luxuriating in the hot water and quiet, and peered out of the tall plate-glass window. Cold air trickled in through the door, left half-open by Kano-san, and it was thanks to this that the glass was un-fogged enough for Giga to see through it to the peaceful outside bath and the mountains beyond.
“Night!” called Sendai's manager, grabbing his towel and disappearing into the changing-rooms. Giga waved a sleepy hand at him and sighed contentedly, closing his eyes.
He opened them again to the sound of quiet chattering, just in time to see his two guitarists slipping through the door, headed outside. They both perched themselves on low wooden stools beside the taps, shivering, breath steaming, looking thoroughly delighted at the absence of their three raucous bandmates. Fullface had his towel wrapped modestly around his hips and was carefully not looking at Satty, who had abandoned his own and was scrubbing himself vigorously with soap.
“So quiet,” came Fullface's voice (Giga could just about hear him, and believe me he was listening with interest), sounding content. He filled a wooden bowl with hot water and emptied it over himself, spluttering happily and shaking wet red hair out of his eyes.
“I know,” said Satty, peering myopically at his shampoo and conditioner bottles (he didn't have his glasses on, and it was quite dark). He shifted his stool a little nearer his friend. “...Wash my hair?” he requested, tossing his shining platinum locks encouragingly. Giga, watching with the fascination of a dedicated anthropologist, saw Fullface turn scarlet immediately at Satty's knowing little smile, and nod shyly. The older guitarist grinned at the success of his first move.
And that, right there, is one of the points where Sakito and Satty differ: Sakito doesn't flirt with men. Well, his face and his body language make it look like he does, and he's probably caused severe embarrassment to a lot of guys who think he's coming on to them; but it's just the pure grace and elegance of his movements that lead people to think he's radiating some kind of deliberate, seductive femininity. He's not, that's just the way he is; but it trips some men's gaydar anyway.
Satty, on the other hand, can be a right little flirt, though only with Fullface (as far as we've ever seen). He hasn't had a lot of practice, and he's not very good at it; but the younger man is so hyper-sensitive to every breath Satty takes that it's really quite effective at shaking him up. And tonight the lovely guitarist was relaxed and tipsy and in the mood to tease.
He turned his back on Fullface (and a very beautiful back it is too) and picked up a bowl, handing it to the blushing man, who took it obediently and poured a careful stream over Satty's head. As soon as Fullface's fingers made contact with his friend's hair he paused; he shut his eyes in a strange, deliberate blink, like a camera shutter clicking, and Giga was sure that he had just logged the sight and sensation away, to be enjoyed repeatedly at a later date.
“Mmm,” purred Satty (in quite a clumsy, but really very sweet way) as Fullface's hands began to move, fingers creating a white lather of shampoo and rubbing gently against his scalp. Fullface closed his eyes again at the sound, and this time Giga saw that expression I was just telling you about, the one Hitsugi wears, the melancholy one that savours every single second of contact with his gorgeous friend. Satty, obviously, was facing the other way, and in any case wasn't about to look around for fear of getting shampoo in his fabulous eyes.
I wonder, if he had seen that look, whether he would have kept on flirting? After all, unlike Hitsu and Sakito, Fullface and Satty aren't partners - not officially, anyway. They're best friends, sure, and I'm pretty certain they have the potential to be a whole lot more; but that all depends on Satty, because Fullface, like Hitsu, will never make a move on his own. And Giga couldn't be sure if the older guitarist was flirting in play; or whether, if he had noticed the other man responding so earnestly, he would have encouraged it or freaked out.
But I'm getting sidetracked here (I told you this wasn't really a story). To return to the hot-spring, Fullface was still washing Satty's hair, and he was certainly taking his sweet time about it. Not that Satty seemed to mind; like his glamorous other half, he loves being pampered, he just doesn't get as much opportunity for it as Sakito.
“If I'm doing it too hard,” said Fullface, who had opened his eyes again to revel secretly in the sight of Satty's perfect naked back, “just tell me.”
“No,” murmured Satty indulgently. “...Feels good.” He tipped his head back, white bubbles cascading like sea-foam over his delicate shoulder-blades, his long throat curved invitingly. He made another self-conscious little sound of pleasure as Fullface's massaging fingertips slid softly through the fine hair at the nape of his neck, and Giga saw their youngest member part his lips, flicking the tip of his pink tongue swiftly over his piercings, as if he could taste Satty in the air between them.
They stayed like that a long time, Fullface's hands now stroking in a relaxing way through Satty's currently-blonde hair; the younger man was feeling amazed at his own daring, if his face was anything to go by, and growing more and more enamoured with every soft noise his slender friend let fall from his lips. Eventually, though, they seemed to start feeling the cold again; Satty shivered, passed the bowl, and allowed Fullface to rinse him off, clear streams of hot water sparkling down his skin to the stones beneath him. Both Giga and Fullface drank in the sight appreciatively; then Satty shoved some conditioner in his hair, wrapped his small towel around his head, and hopped into the bath (see, Sakito would never do anything like hop, especially if he was trying to turn someone on).
“Coming?” he asked, splashing the water beside him with one hand. Fullface, who had been observing his walk to the water with depressed awe, twitched and pulled himself together, wading in and sitting down a short way from his friend, sinking up to his shoulders in the steaming bath. Satty immediately shifted along beside him, his beautiful body a long, slim silhouette beneath the surface. Fullface gave a covert sigh.
Now, there's another reason why Hitsu and Fullface tend not to get in the bath until very late at night; it's not just that they find the three of us so embarrassing (well, they do, but that's not the point). It's that they have tattoos. These days, most places don't stick to the no ink rule as strictly as they used to; but the short guitarist is very aware of people looking at him, and doesn't want to cause anyone any discomfort, and so tends to wait until everyone else gets out. It doesn't matter so much for Giga and I, we just tie a wash-cloth round our arm and we're not offending anyone. But Fullface's are harder to hide; and of course Satty wants to keep him company, so he hangs back too.
The tattoos, Giga realised, were to become Satty's next point of attack, as the slender man reached out a hand and set the tip of his fingernail lightly against the front of Fullface's right shoulder, over the eye of the dragon inked there. He gave a sly (well, Giga assumed he thought it was sly) grin at the younger man's startled rush of breath. Fullface opened his pretty eyes wide, clamped both hands between his knees in an embarrassed, childish gesture, and allowed Satty to touch him. If it's me or Chiba, he'll just shake us off, but he clearly doesn't have the willpower to do that to the other guitarist. Which, I think you'll agree, just supports my opinion about his feelings.
“You don't show this off enough,” Satty said quietly, grazing his finger over the sinuous arch of the dragon's back. “Or the one on your leg.” He shifted deliberately, and Giga suspected that he'd just brushed his own smooth calf against Fullface's: the shorter man jumped again, though it was very hard to tell whether he was blushing or not, since his feline face was bright red from the hot water anyway. “After all the trouble you went to getting them done,” continued Satty, his hand now trailing down Fullface's arm, “the least you could do is give people a look at them every now and again.”
Fullface mumbled something Giga didn't catch, and Satty laughed softly, sitting pressed comfortably hip to hip with his friend. Giga was feeling rather sorry for the younger guitarist: it must be hard enough for Fullface to cope with his desire and his friend's beauty on a day-to-day basis without having it shoved in his face in such an amusingly obvious display. Satty really was an amateur when it came to subtlety, and the worst thing about it was that he evidently had no plans to follow through. Giga shook his head mutely. Fullface wasn't equipped to deal with this kind of situation, and the drummer wondered what he would do if the flirtation carried on.
The answer, it turned out, was 'nothing'. Satty continued his inconsequential chatter and fake-casual little touches, and Fullface just leaned back against the wall of the pool, face half obscured in the steam. The way he held himself told Giga that he wanted nothing more than to lean in to his friend's caresses, to respond the way any normal, uninhibited person would to such behaviour; but he didn't. Giga wasn't sure if he knew how.
So, nothing happened, and it kept on happening for a long time, so long, in fact, that Giga did actually fall asleep. He woke up once, observed his guitarists still talking, then dropped off again. He levered his eyes open a few minutes later, forced himself to get up, and tiptoed out of the bath, sleepy and overheated and trying to make as little movement as possible. Once in the changing-room he dried himself off cursorily, slung his blue yukata on and made his way to bed.
It was very late when he next woke up; so late, he thought, that it was almost early. Moonlight shone idyllically through the paper shoji screens, but not quite enough to illuminate Giga's watch. He raised his head a minute amount, and gave his sleeping bandmates a quick once-over. Unlike Naito, Sendai tend not to flash the cash, and all five of them were sharing a wide tatami room, traditional work-outing style.
Giga observed, with satisfaction, that they were all present and correct: Chiba was a mere lump beneath his duvet (it was possible that he'd just shoved a load of pillows under it and gone walkabout to torment some staff members; but probably not that likely at this time of night); Chen-chen was lying sprawled on his back on the far side of the room, looking gorgeous and still snoring quietly; and the other two lay in the middle futons, apparently emotionally intact after their touchy-feely bath and sleeping silently.
His guitarists, Giga noted with yet more interest (he was awake now, and until Chen-chen shut up he'd never be able to get back to sleep), had pushed their futons and covers together and were sleeping in the centre of the pile, heads almost touching. This wasn't unheard-of for the pair of them, but it was rare. I've seen the claustrophobic cuddle Hitsu and Sakito tend to sleep in when they get the chance to share a bed, and this was nothing like so close; but, to Giga, it still seemed surprisingly intimate. He wondered who had instigated it.
His question was answered soon enough. Giga had been lying there about ten minutes, musing over what he'd seen that evening (and what might be for breakfast in the morning), when he heard movement in the centre of the room. He half-opened his eyes, and saw Fullface lean up on one elbow quickly, suddenly wide awake. There was just enough light to show the utterly startled expression on his mild face as he looked down at Satty, who was sleeping peacefully on his back, leaning in towards him; one shoulder of his yukata had slipped down, baring a wide sliver of pale skin at his torso. Satty might be a total dork when he was awake, reflected Giga, but asleep like this, with his clothes half off and his blonde hair spilling over the pillow, he looked like an ad for an adult phone line: cheesy and completely beautiful.
As the drummer watched, Fullface peeped around anxiously, took another long look at Satty as if to make sure he was actually asleep; then allowed his face to break into the softest, most purely adoring smile Giga had ever seen. He stared for a long time, drinking in the man below him. After a while, looking like it was the most daring thing he'd ever done in his life, Fullface raised one hand silently and ghosted a finger along the edge of Satty's yukata where it parted in a wide V to display his delicate neck. Giga thought he wasn't even touching skin, just the cotton fabric; but it was still somehow one of the most erotic acts he could remember witnessing (as you know, 'subtle' is not a huge feature in either of his lovers' sexual vocabularies).
Fullface caught his breath, looked momentarily guilty, and then, when Satty didn't wake up, allowed his hand to travel up and smooth over his friend's silver earrings, fingertip brushing the shell of Satty's pretty ear for the briefest fraction of a second; the younger man gave a little shiver, catching his hand back like he'd gone too far already. Seriously, Ryo-kun, this is not the kind of thing you do if your feelings are purely platonic friendship.
But it wasn't enough; Fullface almost never gets chances like this, and he didn't seem to be able to stop himself making the most of it (mind you, 'most' for him isn't that much...). Carefully, tentatively, he leant a little closer to his sleeping friend, his vivid, unstyled hair forming a curtain behind his face and highlighting his soft jawline and cattish profile perfectly. Giga could see his expression even better like this: the guitarist looked enraptured, like he could gaze at Satty all night long and not get tired of it.
His mouth tightened in a moment of self-directed disapproval, metal gleaming in his bottom lip. Then one hand shifted warily to cup Satty's lovely face: again, Giga didn't think it actually made contact, just framed his features worshipfully. Fullface looked around once more (Giga closed his eyes for a moment and feigned sleep); slowly, silently, he bend his head towards Satty's.
Giga peered at them. It was harder to tell what was going on now; the guitarists' shapes had flowed together in the dark, and it was tricky distinguishing where one ended and the other began. But he could just about see: Fullface, to his lack of surprise, wasn't actually kissing Satty; for one, he was probably afraid that his piercings would wake the other man up; and for another, Giga just didn't think he'd dare. I know Sakito and Hitsu kiss; not like the rest of us kiss, admittedly, but enough that it's become a natural part of their routine. But for Fullface, I get the feeling that it would be a step with the same personal significance as that of the first moon landing.
Instead, he had his feline nose pressed lightly to Satty's smooth cheek, and seemed to be breathing him in. Which Giga could totally get behind: Sakito had been shopping at Lush the day before, and now, after his bath, Satty smelled like pure unadulterated heaven; the drummer could catch his scent even halfway across the room. Fullface let a tiny, yearning sound escape him, more like a sigh than anything else. Then Satty was moving in his sleep, nudging his face comfortably against the younger man's.
The result was, predictably, electric: Fullface practically jumped off him, threw himself out of bed, and shuffled hurriedly out the door, his footsteps receding in the direction of the bathroom. Giga saw Satty open his eyes, looking drowsy and puzzled; the guitarist fumbled around for his glasses blearily, then gave up and rolled over, facing his temporary bed partner's futon and nuzzling closer to the warmth left by his body. Then he went straight back to sleep.
Okay, Ryo-kun, you may think big whoop, so what, Hitsu and Sakito get up to this kind of thing all the time. And it's true that Hitsu can have Sakito embrace him and not bat an eyelid, can be kissed and not get all flustered. But it's only the behaviour that's different; the feelings underneath are the same. Hitsu can act calm because their relationship has been steady for years, and he's totally secure about having Sakito's love. He doesn't have everything he wants (that's what I've been telling you), but he feels safe.
Fullface and Satty's relationship status, on the other hand, is still up in the air, and I don't think either of them really knows exactly how the other feels. Oh, plus the fact that Fullface has to put up with all the semi-sexual flirting, because Satty knows he can get a cute reaction out of him; whereas Sakito is under the impression that Hitsu is totally uninterested and oblivious to such things, so it doesn't even occur to him to bother.
But yeah. The feeling underneath all the embarrassment and the cuddling and the asexual crap remains constant: total, blind, emotional and physical adoration. Giga saw it that night, and in Fullface's shame-faced, delighted blush the next morning, when he was sitting opposite Satty over breakfast and could barely look at him for the memory of how good those brief touches had felt.
One day, Giga thought, someone ought to do something about it, before our youngest member expired from having no-one to talk to and from sheer unrequited desire. And, seeing as he was the only one to have noticed, he supposed it should be him. But poor Giga has enough on his plate as it is, and in any case is rather shy of butting into other people's business. So I told him I'd do something about it. And here I am.”
“Here you are what?” I demand as Ruka lapses into silence, nursing his tea in a self-satisfied manner. He glances back up, surprised.
“Here I am. Doing something.” He frowns. “Well, this is gossip, isn't it? One day it's bound to filter back to them. And then maybe they'll deal with it.” He glares at my dubious eyebrows. “What, have you got a better idea?”
“Er, no.”
“Didn't think so.” Ruka leans forward, giving me an engaging stare. “It's simple, really. Sakito needs to be made aware of what Satty is up to behind his back, with all that sexy clumsy flirting; there's got to be more to it than just embarrassing Fullface. And Hitsu's got to let himself react more honestly, like Fullface does, like he can't help doing. One day,” he says, with a breathtaking lack of irony, “those two are going to have to integrate all their personalities. And when they do,” he intimates, nodding, “sparks are gonna fly.”
“Well. I'll certainly look forward to that,” I say flatly. Ruka sniffs.
“Look, I'm just giving you facts. If it wasn't what you wanted to hear, why did you ask?” he snaps bad-temperedly.
“Sorry.”
“Fuck's sake!” he huffs, reaching across the table to smash the camera's 'stop' button with one finger. “Who out of the rest of you is a bigger authority on guy-guy desire than me? Honestly, I don't know why I bother!” He calls to a passing waitress for a beer, and turns back to give me his best scowl. “That's the last you're getting out of me.”
All in all, I don't know if this last statement is a good thing or a bad thing. Or just how truthful Ruka is when it comes to stuff like this (I've always had the feeling that he'd make an excellent liar if he put his mind to it); it's true he has the experience - a hundred percent more experience that me, anyway - but how good are his evaluative powers?
The last thing I want is for Saki - who is, after all, my guitarist and my prime concern - to hear about any of this from someone else and get hurt. His relationship with Hitsu is too important to him, and, via a kind of chain effect, to everyone else.
I think this is another occasion where I should go looking for an outside opinion.
**************
December 23rd, 2009
“Sex?!” yells Shou over the din, looking bemused but up for the challenge. “Here? Now?!”
I explain again, or try to, by yelling in his ear at the top of my voice; but making myself heard is nigh on impossible over the sound of the other members of Alice Nine, plus Vivid, plus some of the Gazette and other assorted musicians, plus staff, plus friends, plus unsuspecting members of the public who happened to wander past and were suctioned into the maelstrom of festive cheer, all of whom are singing along to Exile's cover of 'Last Christmas', incredibly happily and incredibly off-key. Ahh, the PSC Christmas party. I wonder who's going to get paralytic and end up naked in Ginza this year...
“Hitsugi?!” Shou bellows at me in amazement, as he finally grasps what I'm asking. “And Saki-san?” He shakes his head vehemently, sending rainbow-coloured splashes of some scary-looking cocktail flying. “Are you mad?” I hasten to add that this is Ruka's opinion, not necessarily mine. “No, no, no,” declaims the vocalist, flicking a peace sign at some staggering roadies. He shuffles closer so I'll hear better.
“No?”
“Hell no!” Shou takes a long swig, stares at his drink as if it's the Holy Grail, then remembers what he's talking about. “Look,” he shouts, “me and Hitsu, we go drinking all the time, yeah?”
“Okay...”
“And man, does Hitsu love to drink!” The singer displays his own enthusiasm for the hobby by draining his glass. “And when he gets drunk,” he continues, “he gets really talkta...” He stares at the empty glass mournfully. “...Talkative.”
“Is this going somewhere?” I ask loudly, grabbing a safer drink for myself from a passing tray. Shou screws his face up in fierce concentration, in an effort to make me understand.
“I mean he talks about everything,” he says emphatically. “Trust me. There's no way in the world he'd be able to keep something that juicy bottled up! Actually,” he muses, wonderingly, “I've never seen him with any girl. Or with any guy. And Saki-san would be such a fuckin' catch; who'd be able to resist spilling the beans?!”
“I concur,” comes a deep voice from behind me. I turn to see Uruha, who is standing and listening with great solemnity to the conversation. I look him up and down: he's drunk, the very quiet, comically serious kind of drunk. He gazes at us both with wide, earnest eyes, looking hilariously silly and handsome.
“About what?” I ask. Shou cocks his head at his senpai, and tries to copy his air of gravitas, with less than spectacular results.
“Saki,” Uruha informs us, tossing his luxuriant blonde hair and and taking an elegant sip of white wine. “Hottest thing with a dick this side of Bangkok. If he was a chick, I sure as hell wouldn't keep quiet about wanting to bang him.” I stare at him with my mouth hanging open.
“Well, that's just...lovely, thanks for that,” I manage. Elegant my arse; appearances are so misleading. Shou is sputtering with laughter next to me. “So, let me clarify,” I sum up, raising my voice as another seasonal favourite comes on the sound system. “Saki and Hitsu-kun! A no-go??”
“No chance in hell!” screams Shou confidently.
“Agreed!” booms Uruha. “Saki's got his T&A on demand, Hitsu's got his little doggies and his drinking buddies. That's the natural order of things! That's the way it's meant to be!!”
And they both get distracted by jello shots and a rousing chorus of 'Rudolph the Red Nose Reindeer', and that's the end of that.
Okay, I admit, these guys aren't necessarily the sober, reliable experts I was planning on getting testimony from. But everyone else I ask has said, basically, the same thing (though not all of them put it as charmingly as the Gazette's guitarist): Hitsu and Saki, no way it's happening, no way they want it to happen.
I'm confused now. Do I put my faith in Ruka's theory, or should I roll with the majority vote of the PSC frat boys? I think I'll just stick both pieces of film in for now, and await developments.
*************
...Yeah, I like Arashi, I'm not ashamed! XD Ohmiya give great fanservice...
Well, off to Tokyo to see L'arc~en~ciel!
Next chapter, Ruka gets ganged up on. Will he be able to turn it to his advantage...?
Forward to chapter eight
Back to chapter six