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Question
Doors lined the hallways, bearing signs with strange combinations of kanji that meant nothing to Nao. He pouted with frustration. How could he have forgotten which room they were in?
Saga had been so adamant in his demand for Nao to be present during the recording of the vocals. But Nao, who had just finished recording the drum tracks and needed an energy boost, waved off his concern with verbose but empty promises as he mentally scouted the building's layout for the nearest snack machine. The random string of letters and numbers that was the key to meeting up with Saga had slipped his mind as he fingered the money in his pocket and gave Saga one last, "five minutes is all, I swear!" before heading for the stairs and the first floor lobby.
The snack machine had offered a wide variety of candy, gum, and flavored sodas, labeled with more letters and numbers that corresponded to the buttons. It was no wonder that his mind, hazy with hunger, had mixed them all up.
He started towards a door labeled A9, before thinking that was a little too obvious. Was it TOF75 then? No, he remembered something shorter. This was maddening!
Suddenly, a door opened down the hall, and lo and behold, out came Shou, followed by a distressed looking Saga.
"Thank goodness!" Nao said, rushing over to them. "Are you done? Did I miss it? I'm so sorry, Saga-kun!"
Shou laughed, shaking his head. "We're just taking a break. I need water and Saga needs…"
They both looked at Saga. His face was pale and had a sheen of sweat that made it glisten. His lips, usually done up in a wry smirk, especially in Nao's company, were surprisingly slack. But worst of all were his eyes, which had lost their usual glimmer of confidence.
"I'm going to go get that water now," Shou said, patting Saga on the back and waving to Nao as he ducked back into the room.
"What's wrong, Saga-kun?" Nao asked immediately. The bassist gave a half-shrug, more of a flick of his head really, and looked down at the floor, his hands kneading the hem of his t-shirt. The meekness of his actions made Nao want to laugh. So he did.
"I'm sorry!" he gasped between chuckles, melting under the glare he was fixed with. "It's just that… you're so nervous!"
"You'd be too if you had to sing with Shou-kun and your voice sounded like mine!"
Nao stopped laughed, scared into silence by the broken tone of Saga's voice and the new quiver on his lips.
"Come on, come here," he said, pulling the confused boy by the arm into an empty room across the hall. He sat him down in a chair and pulled up one to sit beside him. "Now sing."
"Right now? But I can't just sing the backup vocals." Saga's eyes darted nervously from the door, to Nao, to the floor at his feet.
"Then sing all of it."
He started shakily, hitting his stride as the lyrics transitioned from English to his native language. The words poured smoothly then, melodic and pure, and Nao could see his confidence building with each syllable and swelling on the final note. He seemed uncertain when he finished, meeting Nao's eyes only briefly before muttering, "See? It's nothing special."
"You sing beautifully, my Saga-kun," Nao said, stroking Saga's cheek with one finger. The bassist perked up at the touch, his eyes focusing on Nao as though he had just realized the other person was there.
"Your Saga-kun?" he asked, suddenly full of his old flair. "Nope, no way. You are mine, Nao."
Giggling, Nao grabbed a handful of Saga's shirt and pulled him forward, perversely happy that his legs stumbled on the chair, but Saga caught himself before they could crash down, his hand resting firmly on the back of Nao's neck for support.
"Nao-kun, do you believe in souls?" Saga asked, and Nao realized just how close they were in that position.
"What… do you mean?" he managed to stutter out. Those eyes were pure seduction, the lips, back in their usual smirk, tempting Nao with wicked thoughts.
"Ten percent of the human genome is still unmapped. A mystery. Some people think it's the genetic blueprint of the soul."
A loud cough from the doorway interrupted them. Shou was leaning into the room, a thoroughly amused look on his face. "Shouldn't we be getting back to recording, Saga-kun?" he asked, and the bassist quickly straightened himself and removed his arms from Nao. The drummer's heart was fluttering like wild, a pace so quick he couldn't keep up with it, and he practically skipped out of the room behind Saga and Shou.
The sound technicians, occupied with their buttons and switches and flashing lights, didn't notice Nao as he stood in the back of the room, his eyes fixed on Saga as he donned headphones and smiled and nodded to Shou. He quietly asked a nearby technician and was granted a pair of headphones himself to listen in.
The two voices were completely compatible, Saga's trailing and mimicking Shou's before melding with it in harmony. He had heard them practice, but this, this was polished and perfect and complete. Saga's voice was beautiful, there was no questioning that. Even as Shou sung the final line, Nao could hear an echo of Saga's singing, it's delicate, unsure quality only lending to the emotion of the song.
Can't you hear my voice? Come, hear it. In the long, sweet chain, now we're bound by DNA
Doors lined the hallways, bearing signs with strange combinations of kanji that meant nothing to Nao. He pouted with frustration. How could he have forgotten which room they were in?
Saga had been so adamant in his demand for Nao to be present during the recording of the vocals. But Nao, who had just finished recording the drum tracks and needed an energy boost, waved off his concern with verbose but empty promises as he mentally scouted the building's layout for the nearest snack machine. The random string of letters and numbers that was the key to meeting up with Saga had slipped his mind as he fingered the money in his pocket and gave Saga one last, "five minutes is all, I swear!" before heading for the stairs and the first floor lobby.
The snack machine had offered a wide variety of candy, gum, and flavored sodas, labeled with more letters and numbers that corresponded to the buttons. It was no wonder that his mind, hazy with hunger, had mixed them all up.
He started towards a door labeled A9, before thinking that was a little too obvious. Was it TOF75 then? No, he remembered something shorter. This was maddening!
Suddenly, a door opened down the hall, and lo and behold, out came Shou, followed by a distressed looking Saga.
"Thank goodness!" Nao said, rushing over to them. "Are you done? Did I miss it? I'm so sorry, Saga-kun!"
Shou laughed, shaking his head. "We're just taking a break. I need water and Saga needs…"
They both looked at Saga. His face was pale and had a sheen of sweat that made it glisten. His lips, usually done up in a wry smirk, especially in Nao's company, were surprisingly slack. But worst of all were his eyes, which had lost their usual glimmer of confidence.
"I'm going to go get that water now," Shou said, patting Saga on the back and waving to Nao as he ducked back into the room.
"What's wrong, Saga-kun?" Nao asked immediately. The bassist gave a half-shrug, more of a flick of his head really, and looked down at the floor, his hands kneading the hem of his t-shirt. The meekness of his actions made Nao want to laugh. So he did.
"I'm sorry!" he gasped between chuckles, melting under the glare he was fixed with. "It's just that… you're so nervous!"
"You'd be too if you had to sing with Shou-kun and your voice sounded like mine!"
Nao stopped laughed, scared into silence by the broken tone of Saga's voice and the new quiver on his lips.
"Come on, come here," he said, pulling the confused boy by the arm into an empty room across the hall. He sat him down in a chair and pulled up one to sit beside him. "Now sing."
"Right now? But I can't just sing the backup vocals." Saga's eyes darted nervously from the door, to Nao, to the floor at his feet.
"Then sing all of it."
He started shakily, hitting his stride as the lyrics transitioned from English to his native language. The words poured smoothly then, melodic and pure, and Nao could see his confidence building with each syllable and swelling on the final note. He seemed uncertain when he finished, meeting Nao's eyes only briefly before muttering, "See? It's nothing special."
"You sing beautifully, my Saga-kun," Nao said, stroking Saga's cheek with one finger. The bassist perked up at the touch, his eyes focusing on Nao as though he had just realized the other person was there.
"Your Saga-kun?" he asked, suddenly full of his old flair. "Nope, no way. You are mine, Nao."
Giggling, Nao grabbed a handful of Saga's shirt and pulled him forward, perversely happy that his legs stumbled on the chair, but Saga caught himself before they could crash down, his hand resting firmly on the back of Nao's neck for support.
"Nao-kun, do you believe in souls?" Saga asked, and Nao realized just how close they were in that position.
"What… do you mean?" he managed to stutter out. Those eyes were pure seduction, the lips, back in their usual smirk, tempting Nao with wicked thoughts.
"Ten percent of the human genome is still unmapped. A mystery. Some people think it's the genetic blueprint of the soul."
A loud cough from the doorway interrupted them. Shou was leaning into the room, a thoroughly amused look on his face. "Shouldn't we be getting back to recording, Saga-kun?" he asked, and the bassist quickly straightened himself and removed his arms from Nao. The drummer's heart was fluttering like wild, a pace so quick he couldn't keep up with it, and he practically skipped out of the room behind Saga and Shou.
The sound technicians, occupied with their buttons and switches and flashing lights, didn't notice Nao as he stood in the back of the room, his eyes fixed on Saga as he donned headphones and smiled and nodded to Shou. He quietly asked a nearby technician and was granted a pair of headphones himself to listen in.
The two voices were completely compatible, Saga's trailing and mimicking Shou's before melding with it in harmony. He had heard them practice, but this, this was polished and perfect and complete. Saga's voice was beautiful, there was no questioning that. Even as Shou sung the final line, Nao could hear an echo of Saga's singing, it's delicate, unsure quality only lending to the emotion of the song.
Can't you hear my voice? Come, hear it. In the long, sweet chain, now we're bound by DNA