December Challenge 05 - Sing For Me
December Challenge 05
Title - Sing For Me
Author - unwritten_ideas
Rating - PG
Word Count - 1,585
Pairing - none, friendship fic
Characters - Gackt, You
Disclaimer - don’t own squat and if I did, I’d be posting this with pictures
Summary - Satoru and You have auditioned every singer they can find but nobody meets Satoru's impossibly high standards. A frustrated You asks Satoru to sing...
Notes - set during the Cains:Feel era
“We must have auditioned every singer in Kyoto and the Kansai area,” said Satoru, “and not one of them is good enough for the band.”
You took a long drink from the whiskey and coke in his hand. The burn, although dulled by the coke, was still satisfying and the warmth spreading through his veins was most welcome. He could tell already that this was going to grow into one of those conversations where he dared to criticise Satoru and the drummer would then hit the roof.
More whiskey, less coke next time. “Some of the singers have been very good.”
Satoru stared at You with disbelief. “Yeah, if we were an X Japan tribute band we’d have had a singer weeks ago but we aren’t. I don’t want someone who sounds like everybody else.”
“The last guy was unique.”
“Unique as in he sounded like a cat being run over? That’d be a great sound for the band!”
You rolled his eyes. “Don’t be sarcastic, Satoru. He was doing fine until you started…”
“Until I started what?” Satoru asked accusingly.
You shook his head. Satoru was so quick to anger over even the slightest of things. Anytime You criticised him or pointed out a situation where maybe, Satoru could have handled things better usually turned into flying glasses and being thrown out of yet another bar. The other teen wanted to be perfect but knew deep down that he was far from it.
“You were criticising his breathing technique before he’d even finished his first line. You knocked all of the confidence out of him, just like you have with everybody else who has auditioned.”
“If they can’t take criticism then they shouldn’t be in the business,” Satoru spat. “The music media will pounce on any weakness or failure and be far harsher than me.”
There it was again. Satoru’s absolute belief that one day, the mainstream, national music press would be talking about Cains:Feel in the same way they currently talked about X Japan and Luna Sea. It was that confidence that had driven You to start a band with Satoru but it was also that confidence that had driven so many band members away. You was convinced that the only reason Ren stayed was for the entertainment value of Satoru’s weekly bitch fits over how the band was ‘stagnating’ and would never get to Tokyo with their current attitude.
“But the music media aren’t talking about us yet. People can improve and grow, Satoru. You’re a better drummer now than when I first met you.”
Satoru paused for a few seconds, unable to quite figure out if You had insulted or complimented him and instead decided to ignore the comment on his skills. “So? You never know when a music scout from a major label will walk through the door.”
You looked around at the live house they were seated in with its posters peeling off the walls, leaking toilets, mirrors so dirty that you could scrape the filth off and the too tiny stage that sloped down and made the drum kit move as the show progressed. No big league talent scout would be seen dead in a live house situated on the sixth floor of a near deserted complex in the most dangerous and cheap suburb of Kyoto.
“I doubt they’ll be walking through this door,” You said.
“We still need to be ready. We’re going to famous one day, You,” Satoru said with a conviction that still managed to take You’s breath away, “we’re going to be the biggest thing in Japan and we’ll take on the world. I’m not going to allow a second rate singer to take that away from us.”
You didn’t know what awed him most; Satoru’s unwavering belief that one day, the music industry would be at his feet or Satoru’s insistence that it would be at their feet. Satoru was made for the stage. Satoru was confident, beautiful and talented beyond belief. He was the band’s spokesman and by his sheer charisma alone, he’d secured lives in live houses that normally would never have touched a band that had a different lead singer every night. But You… You knew he was a support member and not a star. He loved to play guitar but was still terrified every time he stepped out on stage.
If You was honest with himself, he had no interest in becoming a world famous guitarist. He didn’t want that lifestyle and he didn’t want the fame and notoriety that came with it but if Satoru wanted it, then You knew he’d follow the drummer anywhere their careers led them.
“I understand where you’re coming from Satoru,” You stated, “but I don’t think you’re going to find what you’re after. Why don’t we take on a decent singer and then upgrade when we’re better known and respected? Lots of bands switch members.”
Satoru shook his head. “That’s what I want to do but I haven’t found anyone good enough to be our singer, even on a temporary basis.”
You thought that he could reel off the names of at least a dozen people who had auditioned that would fit the bill but he bit his tongue. Ren and You had agreed to let Satoru pick the singer because they had both thought it would be less work for them but it was turning into a nightmare. At least Ren had the sense to stay away from the whole process, the bass player having long since left for a date with a girl that You was pretty certain was only after Satoru anyway.
“I don’t think there are any singers left now, Satoru. I think we’ll have to give Ren a microphone soon.”
“Can Ren sing?” Satoru asked with genuine interest.
“About as well as I can,” You answered.
Satoru sighed with disappointment. “That’s a no then.”
You would have defended his singing abilities but he knew it was pointless. He couldn’t sing, couldn’t dance… The only musical thing he could do was play guitar and struggle through the simplest of pieces on his violin. Satoru only needed to look at an instrument and he could master how to play it. “Can you sing?” You asked.
Satoru tilted his head to one side as he thought. “I don’t know.”
“What do you mean you don’t know?”
“I mean,” Satoru said, “I’ve never sang for anyone. I sing at home sometimes but never in public.”
You cast his mind back over the nine months he’d known Satoru and realised that yes, he’d never heard the man sing. Even during their karaoke sessions Satoru had never taken the mic as he’d either been too drunk to read the lyrics or sober enough to hit on the pretty girls who worked at their favourite karaoke bar.
“Sing for me.”
“What?” Satoru asked.
“Sing for me. Anything. I want to hear you.”
Satoru looked puzzled but was never one to back down from a challenge. He took a sip of his drink and then sang.
You recognised the song immediately, Luna Sea, ‘Believe’, one of the few cover versions that still lingered in their set list. Satoru was no longer looking at him and was instead staring at the wall behind him as he sang, his voice loud, clear and amplified by the acoustics of the live house.
You was stunned. Satoru was amazing. Every note was perfect, every emotion was captured and Satoru’s voice seemed to wrap around him and run through his very blood. His voice was as deep as You had expected and suited the song perfectly, but there was that unique timbre to it that had been missing from all of their auditionees.
You had never understood why Satoru had been so adamant that their singer had to be perfect. Now that he’d heard Satoru sing, he understood completely.
Satoru sounded like his whole purpose in life was to sing.
Satoru finished singing and sat in silence, his eyes fixed on the table before him in an uncharacteristic show of nerves as he waited for You’s verdict. You was surprised. Satoru really didn’t know how good he was.
“I think we need to advertise for more people to audition,” You said.
“Oh,” Satoru said sadly, “I guess we’ll soon find out if there are any singers left that we haven’t heard yet.”
“No, no!” You exclaimed. He should have realised Satoru would take his words the wrong way. “I mean we should advertise for a drummer.”
Satoru looked at him with confused eyes. “What?”
“You were amazing Satoru. I wish you could have heard yourself. Ha, to think that the singer we’ve been after for the last three months is you.”
“I was that good?” Satoru asked with an equally uncharacteristic hint of shyness.
“You were better than good,” You said. “Sing for me again?”
Satoru laughed. “I’m not your personal karaoke machine!”
“You should be,” You said. “A voice like yours deserves to be heard as much as possible by as many people as possible.”
Satoru blushed. Blushed. You had never seen Satoru as much as smile when he was complimented in the past, let alone become embarrassed. It was cute. “I think you should always sing for me,” You added.
Satoru smiled shyly. “I’ll always sing for you, as long as you always play the violin for me.”
“Deal,” You grinned. “Now, why don’t you sing something else while I start writing an advert for a drummer, hmm?”
~owari
Title - Sing For Me
Author - unwritten_ideas
Rating - PG
Word Count - 1,585
Pairing - none, friendship fic
Characters - Gackt, You
Disclaimer - don’t own squat and if I did, I’d be posting this with pictures
Summary - Satoru and You have auditioned every singer they can find but nobody meets Satoru's impossibly high standards. A frustrated You asks Satoru to sing...
Notes - set during the Cains:Feel era
“We must have auditioned every singer in Kyoto and the Kansai area,” said Satoru, “and not one of them is good enough for the band.”
You took a long drink from the whiskey and coke in his hand. The burn, although dulled by the coke, was still satisfying and the warmth spreading through his veins was most welcome. He could tell already that this was going to grow into one of those conversations where he dared to criticise Satoru and the drummer would then hit the roof.
More whiskey, less coke next time. “Some of the singers have been very good.”
Satoru stared at You with disbelief. “Yeah, if we were an X Japan tribute band we’d have had a singer weeks ago but we aren’t. I don’t want someone who sounds like everybody else.”
“The last guy was unique.”
“Unique as in he sounded like a cat being run over? That’d be a great sound for the band!”
You rolled his eyes. “Don’t be sarcastic, Satoru. He was doing fine until you started…”
“Until I started what?” Satoru asked accusingly.
You shook his head. Satoru was so quick to anger over even the slightest of things. Anytime You criticised him or pointed out a situation where maybe, Satoru could have handled things better usually turned into flying glasses and being thrown out of yet another bar. The other teen wanted to be perfect but knew deep down that he was far from it.
“You were criticising his breathing technique before he’d even finished his first line. You knocked all of the confidence out of him, just like you have with everybody else who has auditioned.”
“If they can’t take criticism then they shouldn’t be in the business,” Satoru spat. “The music media will pounce on any weakness or failure and be far harsher than me.”
There it was again. Satoru’s absolute belief that one day, the mainstream, national music press would be talking about Cains:Feel in the same way they currently talked about X Japan and Luna Sea. It was that confidence that had driven You to start a band with Satoru but it was also that confidence that had driven so many band members away. You was convinced that the only reason Ren stayed was for the entertainment value of Satoru’s weekly bitch fits over how the band was ‘stagnating’ and would never get to Tokyo with their current attitude.
“But the music media aren’t talking about us yet. People can improve and grow, Satoru. You’re a better drummer now than when I first met you.”
Satoru paused for a few seconds, unable to quite figure out if You had insulted or complimented him and instead decided to ignore the comment on his skills. “So? You never know when a music scout from a major label will walk through the door.”
You looked around at the live house they were seated in with its posters peeling off the walls, leaking toilets, mirrors so dirty that you could scrape the filth off and the too tiny stage that sloped down and made the drum kit move as the show progressed. No big league talent scout would be seen dead in a live house situated on the sixth floor of a near deserted complex in the most dangerous and cheap suburb of Kyoto.
“I doubt they’ll be walking through this door,” You said.
“We still need to be ready. We’re going to famous one day, You,” Satoru said with a conviction that still managed to take You’s breath away, “we’re going to be the biggest thing in Japan and we’ll take on the world. I’m not going to allow a second rate singer to take that away from us.”
You didn’t know what awed him most; Satoru’s unwavering belief that one day, the music industry would be at his feet or Satoru’s insistence that it would be at their feet. Satoru was made for the stage. Satoru was confident, beautiful and talented beyond belief. He was the band’s spokesman and by his sheer charisma alone, he’d secured lives in live houses that normally would never have touched a band that had a different lead singer every night. But You… You knew he was a support member and not a star. He loved to play guitar but was still terrified every time he stepped out on stage.
If You was honest with himself, he had no interest in becoming a world famous guitarist. He didn’t want that lifestyle and he didn’t want the fame and notoriety that came with it but if Satoru wanted it, then You knew he’d follow the drummer anywhere their careers led them.
“I understand where you’re coming from Satoru,” You stated, “but I don’t think you’re going to find what you’re after. Why don’t we take on a decent singer and then upgrade when we’re better known and respected? Lots of bands switch members.”
Satoru shook his head. “That’s what I want to do but I haven’t found anyone good enough to be our singer, even on a temporary basis.”
You thought that he could reel off the names of at least a dozen people who had auditioned that would fit the bill but he bit his tongue. Ren and You had agreed to let Satoru pick the singer because they had both thought it would be less work for them but it was turning into a nightmare. At least Ren had the sense to stay away from the whole process, the bass player having long since left for a date with a girl that You was pretty certain was only after Satoru anyway.
“I don’t think there are any singers left now, Satoru. I think we’ll have to give Ren a microphone soon.”
“Can Ren sing?” Satoru asked with genuine interest.
“About as well as I can,” You answered.
Satoru sighed with disappointment. “That’s a no then.”
You would have defended his singing abilities but he knew it was pointless. He couldn’t sing, couldn’t dance… The only musical thing he could do was play guitar and struggle through the simplest of pieces on his violin. Satoru only needed to look at an instrument and he could master how to play it. “Can you sing?” You asked.
Satoru tilted his head to one side as he thought. “I don’t know.”
“What do you mean you don’t know?”
“I mean,” Satoru said, “I’ve never sang for anyone. I sing at home sometimes but never in public.”
You cast his mind back over the nine months he’d known Satoru and realised that yes, he’d never heard the man sing. Even during their karaoke sessions Satoru had never taken the mic as he’d either been too drunk to read the lyrics or sober enough to hit on the pretty girls who worked at their favourite karaoke bar.
“Sing for me.”
“What?” Satoru asked.
“Sing for me. Anything. I want to hear you.”
Satoru looked puzzled but was never one to back down from a challenge. He took a sip of his drink and then sang.
You recognised the song immediately, Luna Sea, ‘Believe’, one of the few cover versions that still lingered in their set list. Satoru was no longer looking at him and was instead staring at the wall behind him as he sang, his voice loud, clear and amplified by the acoustics of the live house.
You was stunned. Satoru was amazing. Every note was perfect, every emotion was captured and Satoru’s voice seemed to wrap around him and run through his very blood. His voice was as deep as You had expected and suited the song perfectly, but there was that unique timbre to it that had been missing from all of their auditionees.
You had never understood why Satoru had been so adamant that their singer had to be perfect. Now that he’d heard Satoru sing, he understood completely.
Satoru sounded like his whole purpose in life was to sing.
Satoru finished singing and sat in silence, his eyes fixed on the table before him in an uncharacteristic show of nerves as he waited for You’s verdict. You was surprised. Satoru really didn’t know how good he was.
“I think we need to advertise for more people to audition,” You said.
“Oh,” Satoru said sadly, “I guess we’ll soon find out if there are any singers left that we haven’t heard yet.”
“No, no!” You exclaimed. He should have realised Satoru would take his words the wrong way. “I mean we should advertise for a drummer.”
Satoru looked at him with confused eyes. “What?”
“You were amazing Satoru. I wish you could have heard yourself. Ha, to think that the singer we’ve been after for the last three months is you.”
“I was that good?” Satoru asked with an equally uncharacteristic hint of shyness.
“You were better than good,” You said. “Sing for me again?”
Satoru laughed. “I’m not your personal karaoke machine!”
“You should be,” You said. “A voice like yours deserves to be heard as much as possible by as many people as possible.”
Satoru blushed. Blushed. You had never seen Satoru as much as smile when he was complimented in the past, let alone become embarrassed. It was cute. “I think you should always sing for me,” You added.
Satoru smiled shyly. “I’ll always sing for you, as long as you always play the violin for me.”
“Deal,” You grinned. “Now, why don’t you sing something else while I start writing an advert for a drummer, hmm?”
~owari