[fic] Just Two Guys Having Coffee
Title: Just Two Guys Having Coffee
Author: fencer_x
Rating: PG
Summary: I really...have no clue XD It's a total slice of life fic about the guys going on their "date" here. I mostly just wanted to describe what happened there so...hope you enjoy :D Also, I'd been working on this for a while and started it in July so...it seems a little out of date now XD; Oh well XD;;;
"Hey Mom."
Takashi smiled into the foamy cream of his capuccino, busying himself with his own phone while Tuti tended to his call across the table. Kime had updated his blog with a picture of the two from their lunch together a few days before and Yamashita-tenchou had texted him, excitedly regaling him with up-to-the minute updates of Japan's soccer match against some African country Takashi had never heard of.
"No--I--not yet." He glanced up, curious at Tuti's tone. "Because I've had rehearsals, I told you. And shooting for that new drama." A pause. "No--that ended last week." Tuti caught him staring and shook his head softly, rolling his eyes as if to say 'Mothers', and Takashi stifled a chuckle with another sip of his drink. "Out with Takashi, why?"
Takashi perked up at this, choking down the hot liquid. Tuti frowned into the receiver, brows knitting. "I...I dunno." He turned his gaze back to Takashi, raking a glance over him quickly from head to toe. "Just--a hat. Jacket. Pants. Shoes. Normal stuff?"
Now it was Takashi's turn to roll his eyes. Really, the guy had no taste or tact. He reached for his cup again to bring it to his lips, but paused when Tuti pulled the phone away from his mouth. "She says you look cute." His tone conveyed well the fact that he thought his mother was insane for this compliment, and nevermind that Yumiko-san couldn't see him and likely was just being polite anyways; still, it was sweet and a very motherly thing to say. Considering that his own mother was generally a font of chiding complaints about his fashion sense, he'd take his compliments where he could get them.
"Thanks," he mumbled around a small smile, hiding in the whipped cream which was steadily melting into the hot coffee below.
Tuti ignored his response, instead muttering a confused, "Eh?" into the receiver, frowning. He then pulled the phone away again, looking severely put-out. "...Sorry. You look cute."
This brought out a more genuine laugh, and Takashi just shook his head, then pushed his half-empty mug away, taking his phone in both hands now. He settled both elbows on the table to steady the shot, sliding the lens out of macro mode and waiting for the image on the screen to adjust to the low light of the cafe. Tuti caught his eye after a moment, glancing straight into the lens first before moving up to meet Takashi's gaze, lips pursed in annoyance.
Takashi wasn't moved, though; Tuti was a tactless ass and Takashi liked taking pictures of anything and everything, especially when that anything was Tuti with his phone pressed against his ear and long fingers curling around the keypad. This was just who they were, and they'd long since learned to tolerate each other's idiosyncracies. Tuti stared into the lens again, then rolled his eyes and shifted himself around, leaning back in his chair and turning his attention instead to another couple in a far corner. He wasn't as annoyed as he tried to come off as, Takashi understood well; the poorly-hidden slight curl in his lips was not so much a product of some witty joke his mother had made as silent, suppressed pride that Takashi couldn't not take a picture of him and save it to moon over later. Which was pretty accurate, generally.
"Then just--buy it now, and e-mail me the payment details later. I'll transfer you the money this weekend or something. Then you can say it's from me." A pause. "E-mail. I--e-mail. Like texting, but on your computer." Takashi took his shot, grinning widely at the exasperated expression he'd managed to capture. Tuti in a nutshell, truly. "Just--get Mizuho to show you--yeah, I know she'd find out about the present then. She's turning thirty, I think she's too old for surprises now."
Even from across the table, Takashi could hear Tuti's mother giving him an earful, especially when Tuti pulled it away for a moment, wincing. "Alright, fine--fine, I got it. Just order it and then call me and let me know how much I owe you." A pause. "Yeah, yeah. Okay. Okay, bye." He flipped the phone shut and tossed it away as if he'd been shocked, sending it clattering to the table between them. "God, it's a fricking birthday present, not her will."
Takashi punched the "post to blog" button with satisfaction before snapping his phone shut, setting it down with much more care. Considering this was still Tuti's back-up phone, he would've expected the guy to be a bit more careful with the only cellphone he had left after mysteriously "snapping" his last one in a fit that Takashi suspected had less to do with a crowded train and more to do with Daiki-chan getting on his case about one thing or another, considering the pressure the group was under with their fast-approaching birthday event.
"Your sister?"
Tuti reached for his own coffee, now lukewarm from neglect, and winced at the tepid liquid when it reached his lips. "Yeah. I always miss her birthday because of HappyPani, so I usually send her something and then take her out to dinner after things settle down a little."
"Things never settle down for you."
"Hence the bitching out."
"You should be nicer to your mother. Isn't her birthday soon?"
Tuti made a face, choking down his drink. "How the hell do you know when my mother's birthday is?" There was little bite behind it, despite the expression--more respectful amazement.
"Not everyone pays as little attention to the lives of people around them as you," Takashi replied, expression angelic, and Tuti glanced away, feeling the jab. They were both taking shots, but then--they always were. It was one of the ways they kept each other on their toes, and about as close as they could come to foreplay anywhere further than the genkan of their respective apartments. "No *pnish* meeting tonight?"
Tuti waved over a waitress, ordering a macchiato to replace the black coffee he'd tried to guzzle down when they'd first come in. "Nah--Moriyama-san's in the middle of a run. We could've had one afterwards, but we're filming all through the night tomorrow--so we're supposed to stay up late tonight and get lots of sleep throughout the day tomorrow so we aren't keeling over in the studio."
"Mmm," Takashi mused to himself, stirring his drink with a small plastic spoon. "Stay up late, huh? However will you manage to do that...?"
Tuti's lips quirked up at one side as he stared Takashi down, but was distracted before he could offer a witty retort by the untimely arrival of the waitress with his drink. He thanked her softly and turned his attentions back to Takashi--who now had his phone in his hand again, scrolling through the few comments that were starting to trickle in.
"Thought you had rehearsals in the morning? You said you were busy, that tonight was your only free night."
"Well, a friend needs help keeping occupied; don't you think I'm the type to take care of my friends?"
"You are at that."
"Didn't think I'd hear much protest." Two comments, nothing all that interesting. He flipped the phone shut again. "So anyways--when are you going to have some spare time? We need to work on this design."
Tuti shrugged, hmming softly in appreciation at his new drink being the perfect temperature. "I'm free now."
"Well--I didn't bring anything to write on really..." He twisted in his seat to pull his bag up into his lap, feeling around inside for the small notepad he toted around with him at all times.
"I thought this was just coffee?" Tuti complained lightly, a slight whine tinging his voice as he slumped back in his chair. "I'm not in a collaborating mood right now."
Takashi eyed him, unmoved. "Well we have to get started some time--and you said you're flat out for July between filming for the *pnish* show and your new drama." Tuti rolled his head off to the side like a distracted child. "If we want to get this thing out by September--"
"It has to be September?"
"I've got a new shirt coming out in July and a jacket scheduled for December when it starts to get really chilly; it's either September or a year from now, take your pick." Tuti opened his mouth like he wanted to profess that he was perfectly fine with taking their time, but Takashi cut him off again, "And a year from now is not an option. Just so we're clear."
Tuti rolled his eyes, shifting in his chair to lean forward, drumming his fingers across the table between them. "So what're we doing then?"
Takashi smiled to himself just a little smugly; he liked it when he got his way without having to twist arms too much. Flipping towards the back of the notebook he'd successfully fished out of his bag, he pursed his lips in concentration, brows furrowing as he perused a page of notes almost unintelligible to any onlooker. "Anything but another bag, at the very least."
"Hey, our last ones all sold out--"
"We can't keep tossing out more and more flaps and hope people snap them up." Tuti didn't look like he quite understood why this wasn't feasible. "It's our line--don't you want to put some effort into it?" He actually sounded genuinely plaintive, and Tuti shifted again, uncomfortable, and rubbed at the back of his neck.
"All right--fine, just--stop looking at me like that."
"Like what?"
"Like I'm an inconsiderate asshole."
"You are an in--"
"Okay, how about--" he interrupted before Takashi could finish the quip, "--how about another shirt, hm? Maybe a tanktop or something, since it's summer and all?"
Takashi raised a brow, not entirely sure it wasn't just because Tuti liked it when Takashi showed off his arms. "That's...remarkably thoughtful." Tuti looked pleased with himself, but deflated again a moment later: "But we can do better."
"If you're not going to take my advice, don't ask me for it."
"I was thinking more along the lines of a bigger collaboration."
Tuti held his cup just below his lips, pausing before taking a drink. "...Bigger?"
"Mmhmm."
"Like...okay, I don't know like what. So?" Takashi turned the notebook around to where Tuti could read his handwriting right-side up. He leaned close, brows furrowed. "The hell are these?"
"Lyrics."
"I can see that."
"For the first song on our album."
"Our album?"
He reached to take back the notepad. "Unless you'd rather I get Gaku to help with the guitar chords?"
Tuti scrambled, ripping the page away and clutching it to his chest, offended. "Shut your dirty mouth." He glanced over the scribblings again, seemingly giving them more of an editing eye, and Takashi held his breath. He watched in silence as Tuti mouthed the lyrics to himself, brows furrowing in concentration or lifting in appreciation at random intervals.
"Well?" he pressed after a few silent moments, unable to hold himself back. Tuti rarely gave him comments or critiques on his song-writing, other than the occasional comment that something sounded really sappy or like a ten-year-old wrote it for some of his more "out there" attempts, which he routinely brushed off. But this--this time it meant something. It was something he needed--wanted--Tuti's honest input on, because this was supposed to be about them as a duo, and not Takashi's one-sided scribblings about love lost or people-watching from a Starbucks booth.
Tuti scratched at the side of his mouth, rubbing his fingers over his chin, and tapped a string of characters near the middle of the page. "What's this part about?"
Takashi leaned forward studying the paper--like he didn't already have the whole thing memorized in his head, melody and all--and cocked his head to read upside down just as Tuti twisted the paper around to face him. "Oh--that's just--" He shrugged. "It's just lyrics you know. 'When I'm with you, there's no need for words--'"
Tuti snorted, "This is--" He cut himself off, covering his mouth, but straightened up again when he realized he'd offended Takashi with his reaction. "No just--it's kind of..."
"...Kind of...?"
Tuti leaned forward, dropping his voice. "It doesn't seem a little...implicative to you?" Takashi's confusion didn't dissolve. "I mean, it's a collaboration album, so if you go around with lyrics like that--"
"It's just a collaboration with your guitar and my singing!" Takashi protested with a whine, raking his eyes over the words again. "The lyrics aren't supposed to mean anything really deep--"
"Eh, what? So like--I don't get to sing?"
Takashi raised a brow. "You want to sing?"
Tuti looked uncomfortable. "Well I'd--like for there to be the option."
Takashi leaned forward here now, chin jutting forward and a smug look splashed across his face. "So what, you want to do a duet?"
Tuti's gaze flitted down to the lips tantalizingly close, but rather than taking advantage, he chose instead to remember their place and act responsible for once, leaning back in his chair and dropping an arm over the back, reaching for his cellphone to flip around in his hand in a nervous habit that told Takashi he'd rather be fingering another cigarette. "Well. It is a collaboration."
Takashi's lips quirked up at one side in a more genuine, thoughtful smile. "...Yeah. Yeah, it is. I just..."
It was Tuti's turn to look a little smug now, and his brows quirked up into what was left of his receding hairline. "What--that I'd jump at the opportunity to not have to actually collaborate in a pubilc way?"
"Pretty much, yeah."
Tuti shrugged, unfazed by Takashi's frank response. "...I guess I've gotten used to it."
"To what?"
"Spending pretty much every waking moment in your general vicinity."
Takashi rolled his eyes to ward off any concern about the soft blush that colored his cheeks. "Now who's spouting out cheesy, sappy romantic bull?"
Another shrug as Tuti easily sidestepped Takashi's obvious attempt to not seem like the line worked. "Must be the smoke getting to my head. It's kind of stuffy in here."
"Yeah," Takashi agreed softly, but neither made any attempt to pick up the check or profess pressing appointments elsewhere. They'd worked hard to coordinate their schedules tonight, and it was going to take more than a bit of caffeine-induced sappiness to route them from their cozy table--at least before they took their evening to one apartment or the other. He cleared his throat and glanced back down at the lyrics. "So..."
"So?"
He pressed the paper back towards Tuti. "...Too sappy, huh?"
Tuti regarded the lyrics once more, giving a rough chuckle, and cocked his head. "...I guess it's not so bad."
Takashi snorted; it was as good a compliment as he was likely to get out of Tuti tonight. "Implicative lyrics and all?"
"You may have trouble getting them by Tamaoki-san," Tuti reminded, reaching for his forgotten cup and finding it lukewarm now. "Then again, you're going to have trouble getting the idea of a 'collaboration album' in general by him."
Takashi grinned, remembering his own drink and taking a sip. "But your manager'd be fine with it?"
"Katayama-san's a pushover. It's like having Wasshi for a manager." He pushed the cup away with one finger and then drummed his fingers across the wood in thought. "...Let's do it."
"Do what?"
"An album. A duet. Whatever."
Takashi paused in mid sip and slowly set his cup back down, licking away the drops which clung to his lips. "Seriously?"
"Sure--what, you weren't serious?"
"No, I just--" A shrug. "Like you said, Tamacchi won't like the idea of a collaboration like this with you."
"How's this any different from the shirts or bags?"
Takashi got a bit defensive. "Well--song-writing's more...intimate."
"It's what?"
"It's an art! You can just pull a shirt or bag design out of your ass, but for lyrics you have to really...you know. Put emotion into them."
Tuti shook his head, smiling crookedly. "Well you know what a big ball of emotions I am, always willing to lay them out there on the table."
"I'm serious," Takashi chided, a bit miffed at Tuti's inability to understand what he went through to put out an album. "It's...this would be a big deal. To me."
"'Would be'?"
"If it happened."
"So make it happen."
Takashi deflated a bit, fiddling with the handle on his cup. "It's not that easy. Tamacchi probably won't like--"
"Isn't that all the more reason to bring it up?" Tuti's brows lifted in challenge.
"Tuti."
"Just--okay fine. So he doesn't like it, so he doesn't think it's a good idea. So he thinks it's going too far, giving fans too much to wonder about. Who the fuck cares?"
"You, usually!" He cut himself off from continuing, realizing they were sinking into argument mode and his voice was rising over the ambient conversation. "Seriously. You're usually..." Tuti regarded him curiously. "...A lot more of a stubborn asshole."
A laugh. "Uh, thanks? I guess?" He crossed his arms. "So?"
"You really want to do this?"
"It could be fun," Tuti allowed, before adding, "Plus, if I don't, you might wind up working with Gaku or something. And I just can't let that happen in good conscience."
"Heavens, no."
Tuti jerked his head to indicate the page of half-finished lyrics. "Got anymore?"
"I've got a few bouncing around in here." He tapped his temple. "You are going to contribute some of your own, right, Tsuchiya-san?"
Tuti slumped, mostly for show, and tried to hide his smile behind a whine. "I've gotta write something?"
"A few somethings, if we're making an album."
"Is it too late to suggest it be a mini-album?" Takashi nodded shortly, self-satisfied grin on his face. "Damn..." He sighed loudly. "Though, you know..."
"Hmm?"
"...This collaboration will probably require a number of one-on-one brainstorming sessions--"
"Brainstorming? Is that what we're calling it now?"
"--With lots of...hands-on discussion."
"Failing to see how writing songs is going to require touching."
"It helps to uh...stimulate the flow of ideas."
Takashi snorted inelegantly and leaned forward. "Wow, Tsuchiya-san, you really sound like you're keen to get started on this right away."
"Chomping at the bit, really." His brows quirked up again. "...And my drink's quite cold now, sooo..."
Takashi bit his lip, and in sync they slid from their chairs and stood to gather their things. In between slinging his bag over his shoulder and digging out his wallet to pay for his drink, Takashi eyed the lyrics still sitting on the table between them. Tuti caught his attention and commented softly, "They're good. If a little sappy and obvious."
Takashi reached for the paper, folding it and stuffing it into a small notebook in his bag. "I'd like to see you write better."
"I will," Tuti promised, stepping in closer than was necessary to brush past him towards the register. "Just need a little man-to-man tutelage first."
Author: fencer_x
Rating: PG
Summary: I really...have no clue XD It's a total slice of life fic about the guys going on their "date" here. I mostly just wanted to describe what happened there so...hope you enjoy :D Also, I'd been working on this for a while and started it in July so...it seems a little out of date now XD; Oh well XD;;;
"Hey Mom."
Takashi smiled into the foamy cream of his capuccino, busying himself with his own phone while Tuti tended to his call across the table. Kime had updated his blog with a picture of the two from their lunch together a few days before and Yamashita-tenchou had texted him, excitedly regaling him with up-to-the minute updates of Japan's soccer match against some African country Takashi had never heard of.
"No--I--not yet." He glanced up, curious at Tuti's tone. "Because I've had rehearsals, I told you. And shooting for that new drama." A pause. "No--that ended last week." Tuti caught him staring and shook his head softly, rolling his eyes as if to say 'Mothers', and Takashi stifled a chuckle with another sip of his drink. "Out with Takashi, why?"
Takashi perked up at this, choking down the hot liquid. Tuti frowned into the receiver, brows knitting. "I...I dunno." He turned his gaze back to Takashi, raking a glance over him quickly from head to toe. "Just--a hat. Jacket. Pants. Shoes. Normal stuff?"
Now it was Takashi's turn to roll his eyes. Really, the guy had no taste or tact. He reached for his cup again to bring it to his lips, but paused when Tuti pulled the phone away from his mouth. "She says you look cute." His tone conveyed well the fact that he thought his mother was insane for this compliment, and nevermind that Yumiko-san couldn't see him and likely was just being polite anyways; still, it was sweet and a very motherly thing to say. Considering that his own mother was generally a font of chiding complaints about his fashion sense, he'd take his compliments where he could get them.
"Thanks," he mumbled around a small smile, hiding in the whipped cream which was steadily melting into the hot coffee below.
Tuti ignored his response, instead muttering a confused, "Eh?" into the receiver, frowning. He then pulled the phone away again, looking severely put-out. "...Sorry. You look cute."
This brought out a more genuine laugh, and Takashi just shook his head, then pushed his half-empty mug away, taking his phone in both hands now. He settled both elbows on the table to steady the shot, sliding the lens out of macro mode and waiting for the image on the screen to adjust to the low light of the cafe. Tuti caught his eye after a moment, glancing straight into the lens first before moving up to meet Takashi's gaze, lips pursed in annoyance.
Takashi wasn't moved, though; Tuti was a tactless ass and Takashi liked taking pictures of anything and everything, especially when that anything was Tuti with his phone pressed against his ear and long fingers curling around the keypad. This was just who they were, and they'd long since learned to tolerate each other's idiosyncracies. Tuti stared into the lens again, then rolled his eyes and shifted himself around, leaning back in his chair and turning his attention instead to another couple in a far corner. He wasn't as annoyed as he tried to come off as, Takashi understood well; the poorly-hidden slight curl in his lips was not so much a product of some witty joke his mother had made as silent, suppressed pride that Takashi couldn't not take a picture of him and save it to moon over later. Which was pretty accurate, generally.
"Then just--buy it now, and e-mail me the payment details later. I'll transfer you the money this weekend or something. Then you can say it's from me." A pause. "E-mail. I--e-mail. Like texting, but on your computer." Takashi took his shot, grinning widely at the exasperated expression he'd managed to capture. Tuti in a nutshell, truly. "Just--get Mizuho to show you--yeah, I know she'd find out about the present then. She's turning thirty, I think she's too old for surprises now."
Even from across the table, Takashi could hear Tuti's mother giving him an earful, especially when Tuti pulled it away for a moment, wincing. "Alright, fine--fine, I got it. Just order it and then call me and let me know how much I owe you." A pause. "Yeah, yeah. Okay. Okay, bye." He flipped the phone shut and tossed it away as if he'd been shocked, sending it clattering to the table between them. "God, it's a fricking birthday present, not her will."
Takashi punched the "post to blog" button with satisfaction before snapping his phone shut, setting it down with much more care. Considering this was still Tuti's back-up phone, he would've expected the guy to be a bit more careful with the only cellphone he had left after mysteriously "snapping" his last one in a fit that Takashi suspected had less to do with a crowded train and more to do with Daiki-chan getting on his case about one thing or another, considering the pressure the group was under with their fast-approaching birthday event.
"Your sister?"
Tuti reached for his own coffee, now lukewarm from neglect, and winced at the tepid liquid when it reached his lips. "Yeah. I always miss her birthday because of HappyPani, so I usually send her something and then take her out to dinner after things settle down a little."
"Things never settle down for you."
"Hence the bitching out."
"You should be nicer to your mother. Isn't her birthday soon?"
Tuti made a face, choking down his drink. "How the hell do you know when my mother's birthday is?" There was little bite behind it, despite the expression--more respectful amazement.
"Not everyone pays as little attention to the lives of people around them as you," Takashi replied, expression angelic, and Tuti glanced away, feeling the jab. They were both taking shots, but then--they always were. It was one of the ways they kept each other on their toes, and about as close as they could come to foreplay anywhere further than the genkan of their respective apartments. "No *pnish* meeting tonight?"
Tuti waved over a waitress, ordering a macchiato to replace the black coffee he'd tried to guzzle down when they'd first come in. "Nah--Moriyama-san's in the middle of a run. We could've had one afterwards, but we're filming all through the night tomorrow--so we're supposed to stay up late tonight and get lots of sleep throughout the day tomorrow so we aren't keeling over in the studio."
"Mmm," Takashi mused to himself, stirring his drink with a small plastic spoon. "Stay up late, huh? However will you manage to do that...?"
Tuti's lips quirked up at one side as he stared Takashi down, but was distracted before he could offer a witty retort by the untimely arrival of the waitress with his drink. He thanked her softly and turned his attentions back to Takashi--who now had his phone in his hand again, scrolling through the few comments that were starting to trickle in.
"Thought you had rehearsals in the morning? You said you were busy, that tonight was your only free night."
"Well, a friend needs help keeping occupied; don't you think I'm the type to take care of my friends?"
"You are at that."
"Didn't think I'd hear much protest." Two comments, nothing all that interesting. He flipped the phone shut again. "So anyways--when are you going to have some spare time? We need to work on this design."
Tuti shrugged, hmming softly in appreciation at his new drink being the perfect temperature. "I'm free now."
"Well--I didn't bring anything to write on really..." He twisted in his seat to pull his bag up into his lap, feeling around inside for the small notepad he toted around with him at all times.
"I thought this was just coffee?" Tuti complained lightly, a slight whine tinging his voice as he slumped back in his chair. "I'm not in a collaborating mood right now."
Takashi eyed him, unmoved. "Well we have to get started some time--and you said you're flat out for July between filming for the *pnish* show and your new drama." Tuti rolled his head off to the side like a distracted child. "If we want to get this thing out by September--"
"It has to be September?"
"I've got a new shirt coming out in July and a jacket scheduled for December when it starts to get really chilly; it's either September or a year from now, take your pick." Tuti opened his mouth like he wanted to profess that he was perfectly fine with taking their time, but Takashi cut him off again, "And a year from now is not an option. Just so we're clear."
Tuti rolled his eyes, shifting in his chair to lean forward, drumming his fingers across the table between them. "So what're we doing then?"
Takashi smiled to himself just a little smugly; he liked it when he got his way without having to twist arms too much. Flipping towards the back of the notebook he'd successfully fished out of his bag, he pursed his lips in concentration, brows furrowing as he perused a page of notes almost unintelligible to any onlooker. "Anything but another bag, at the very least."
"Hey, our last ones all sold out--"
"We can't keep tossing out more and more flaps and hope people snap them up." Tuti didn't look like he quite understood why this wasn't feasible. "It's our line--don't you want to put some effort into it?" He actually sounded genuinely plaintive, and Tuti shifted again, uncomfortable, and rubbed at the back of his neck.
"All right--fine, just--stop looking at me like that."
"Like what?"
"Like I'm an inconsiderate asshole."
"You are an in--"
"Okay, how about--" he interrupted before Takashi could finish the quip, "--how about another shirt, hm? Maybe a tanktop or something, since it's summer and all?"
Takashi raised a brow, not entirely sure it wasn't just because Tuti liked it when Takashi showed off his arms. "That's...remarkably thoughtful." Tuti looked pleased with himself, but deflated again a moment later: "But we can do better."
"If you're not going to take my advice, don't ask me for it."
"I was thinking more along the lines of a bigger collaboration."
Tuti held his cup just below his lips, pausing before taking a drink. "...Bigger?"
"Mmhmm."
"Like...okay, I don't know like what. So?" Takashi turned the notebook around to where Tuti could read his handwriting right-side up. He leaned close, brows furrowed. "The hell are these?"
"Lyrics."
"I can see that."
"For the first song on our album."
"Our album?"
He reached to take back the notepad. "Unless you'd rather I get Gaku to help with the guitar chords?"
Tuti scrambled, ripping the page away and clutching it to his chest, offended. "Shut your dirty mouth." He glanced over the scribblings again, seemingly giving them more of an editing eye, and Takashi held his breath. He watched in silence as Tuti mouthed the lyrics to himself, brows furrowing in concentration or lifting in appreciation at random intervals.
"Well?" he pressed after a few silent moments, unable to hold himself back. Tuti rarely gave him comments or critiques on his song-writing, other than the occasional comment that something sounded really sappy or like a ten-year-old wrote it for some of his more "out there" attempts, which he routinely brushed off. But this--this time it meant something. It was something he needed--wanted--Tuti's honest input on, because this was supposed to be about them as a duo, and not Takashi's one-sided scribblings about love lost or people-watching from a Starbucks booth.
Tuti scratched at the side of his mouth, rubbing his fingers over his chin, and tapped a string of characters near the middle of the page. "What's this part about?"
Takashi leaned forward studying the paper--like he didn't already have the whole thing memorized in his head, melody and all--and cocked his head to read upside down just as Tuti twisted the paper around to face him. "Oh--that's just--" He shrugged. "It's just lyrics you know. 'When I'm with you, there's no need for words--'"
Tuti snorted, "This is--" He cut himself off, covering his mouth, but straightened up again when he realized he'd offended Takashi with his reaction. "No just--it's kind of..."
"...Kind of...?"
Tuti leaned forward, dropping his voice. "It doesn't seem a little...implicative to you?" Takashi's confusion didn't dissolve. "I mean, it's a collaboration album, so if you go around with lyrics like that--"
"It's just a collaboration with your guitar and my singing!" Takashi protested with a whine, raking his eyes over the words again. "The lyrics aren't supposed to mean anything really deep--"
"Eh, what? So like--I don't get to sing?"
Takashi raised a brow. "You want to sing?"
Tuti looked uncomfortable. "Well I'd--like for there to be the option."
Takashi leaned forward here now, chin jutting forward and a smug look splashed across his face. "So what, you want to do a duet?"
Tuti's gaze flitted down to the lips tantalizingly close, but rather than taking advantage, he chose instead to remember their place and act responsible for once, leaning back in his chair and dropping an arm over the back, reaching for his cellphone to flip around in his hand in a nervous habit that told Takashi he'd rather be fingering another cigarette. "Well. It is a collaboration."
Takashi's lips quirked up at one side in a more genuine, thoughtful smile. "...Yeah. Yeah, it is. I just..."
It was Tuti's turn to look a little smug now, and his brows quirked up into what was left of his receding hairline. "What--that I'd jump at the opportunity to not have to actually collaborate in a pubilc way?"
"Pretty much, yeah."
Tuti shrugged, unfazed by Takashi's frank response. "...I guess I've gotten used to it."
"To what?"
"Spending pretty much every waking moment in your general vicinity."
Takashi rolled his eyes to ward off any concern about the soft blush that colored his cheeks. "Now who's spouting out cheesy, sappy romantic bull?"
Another shrug as Tuti easily sidestepped Takashi's obvious attempt to not seem like the line worked. "Must be the smoke getting to my head. It's kind of stuffy in here."
"Yeah," Takashi agreed softly, but neither made any attempt to pick up the check or profess pressing appointments elsewhere. They'd worked hard to coordinate their schedules tonight, and it was going to take more than a bit of caffeine-induced sappiness to route them from their cozy table--at least before they took their evening to one apartment or the other. He cleared his throat and glanced back down at the lyrics. "So..."
"So?"
He pressed the paper back towards Tuti. "...Too sappy, huh?"
Tuti regarded the lyrics once more, giving a rough chuckle, and cocked his head. "...I guess it's not so bad."
Takashi snorted; it was as good a compliment as he was likely to get out of Tuti tonight. "Implicative lyrics and all?"
"You may have trouble getting them by Tamaoki-san," Tuti reminded, reaching for his forgotten cup and finding it lukewarm now. "Then again, you're going to have trouble getting the idea of a 'collaboration album' in general by him."
Takashi grinned, remembering his own drink and taking a sip. "But your manager'd be fine with it?"
"Katayama-san's a pushover. It's like having Wasshi for a manager." He pushed the cup away with one finger and then drummed his fingers across the wood in thought. "...Let's do it."
"Do what?"
"An album. A duet. Whatever."
Takashi paused in mid sip and slowly set his cup back down, licking away the drops which clung to his lips. "Seriously?"
"Sure--what, you weren't serious?"
"No, I just--" A shrug. "Like you said, Tamacchi won't like the idea of a collaboration like this with you."
"How's this any different from the shirts or bags?"
Takashi got a bit defensive. "Well--song-writing's more...intimate."
"It's what?"
"It's an art! You can just pull a shirt or bag design out of your ass, but for lyrics you have to really...you know. Put emotion into them."
Tuti shook his head, smiling crookedly. "Well you know what a big ball of emotions I am, always willing to lay them out there on the table."
"I'm serious," Takashi chided, a bit miffed at Tuti's inability to understand what he went through to put out an album. "It's...this would be a big deal. To me."
"'Would be'?"
"If it happened."
"So make it happen."
Takashi deflated a bit, fiddling with the handle on his cup. "It's not that easy. Tamacchi probably won't like--"
"Isn't that all the more reason to bring it up?" Tuti's brows lifted in challenge.
"Tuti."
"Just--okay fine. So he doesn't like it, so he doesn't think it's a good idea. So he thinks it's going too far, giving fans too much to wonder about. Who the fuck cares?"
"You, usually!" He cut himself off from continuing, realizing they were sinking into argument mode and his voice was rising over the ambient conversation. "Seriously. You're usually..." Tuti regarded him curiously. "...A lot more of a stubborn asshole."
A laugh. "Uh, thanks? I guess?" He crossed his arms. "So?"
"You really want to do this?"
"It could be fun," Tuti allowed, before adding, "Plus, if I don't, you might wind up working with Gaku or something. And I just can't let that happen in good conscience."
"Heavens, no."
Tuti jerked his head to indicate the page of half-finished lyrics. "Got anymore?"
"I've got a few bouncing around in here." He tapped his temple. "You are going to contribute some of your own, right, Tsuchiya-san?"
Tuti slumped, mostly for show, and tried to hide his smile behind a whine. "I've gotta write something?"
"A few somethings, if we're making an album."
"Is it too late to suggest it be a mini-album?" Takashi nodded shortly, self-satisfied grin on his face. "Damn..." He sighed loudly. "Though, you know..."
"Hmm?"
"...This collaboration will probably require a number of one-on-one brainstorming sessions--"
"Brainstorming? Is that what we're calling it now?"
"--With lots of...hands-on discussion."
"Failing to see how writing songs is going to require touching."
"It helps to uh...stimulate the flow of ideas."
Takashi snorted inelegantly and leaned forward. "Wow, Tsuchiya-san, you really sound like you're keen to get started on this right away."
"Chomping at the bit, really." His brows quirked up again. "...And my drink's quite cold now, sooo..."
Takashi bit his lip, and in sync they slid from their chairs and stood to gather their things. In between slinging his bag over his shoulder and digging out his wallet to pay for his drink, Takashi eyed the lyrics still sitting on the table between them. Tuti caught his attention and commented softly, "They're good. If a little sappy and obvious."
Takashi reached for the paper, folding it and stuffing it into a small notebook in his bag. "I'd like to see you write better."
"I will," Tuti promised, stepping in closer than was necessary to brush past him towards the register. "Just need a little man-to-man tutelage first."