BlackHole - Aoi/Uruha - 5/?
Title: Black Hole
Chapters: 5 / ?
Author: candicecandy and venomousliberty
Genre: AU, romance, fluff
Rating: PG-13
Warnings: excessive cheese and fluff
Pairings: Aoi/Uruha
Summary: Black hole, a massive region of spacetime formed at the beginning of a universe or caused by the gravitational collapse of a dying star, it signifies death and birth, the loss of something that was once beautiful and the creation of life itself. Nothing, including light, is able to escape from it. To Uruha, it’s just a small, creepy livehouse in the pits of Ikebukuro, the place where he’ll meet the man who will change his life forever.
Previous Chapters: 01 / 02 / 03 / 04
Chapter Five:
Uruha woke up very early on the day of Artia’s event live. He also woke up almost having a heart attack because the moment that his eyes slid open, Aoi’s sinfully handsome face greeted him. The golden rays of the sun that streamed through the window perfectly framed his sharp features, making him look ethereal, godly, even. Not that they had purposely slept next to each other on a bed, they spent the entire evening practicing their parts together in the living room. They probably got so tired that they unconsciously fell asleep on the raven’s carpeted floor.
At first, he had no idea if he should scoot away or get up, eliminate the idea of taking that rare opportunity to freely stare and admire Aoi’s perfection, or if he should stay where he was and take full advantage of this moment. Two small voices began to quarrel and bicker in his head as he contemplated, but seriously, what was the point of making the right choice when he was already gazing so intently at the raven’s face?
Mentally kicking himself, he bit back a defeated sigh and just simply looked at Aoi, memorizing the other’s every feature, imagining how it would feel to touch that handsome face, run his fingers along that full bottom lip or play with that cute lip ring. He would be going back to Kanagawa next week, right? Surely, taking advantage of the guitarist’s cluelessness and vulnerability was okay.
He didn’t know how long he stared at Aoi. He only snapped out of his leisurely viewing when Aoi stirred and let out a groan. He immediately sat up and fixed his hair, brushing his fingers through the wild fringes in a poor attempt to make it kempt. Luckily, the raven seemed oblivious to the creepy, stalkerish act he did and immediately smiled and greeted him when his presence was noticed.
The raven opened his eyes with a drowsy head and a nonfunctioning brain. For a moment, he thought he was in heaven, greeted by an unbelievably beautiful angel. The beams of the mild morning sun landed on the porcelain skin gently, creating a thin layer of soft sheen around the blond’s entire physique, as if he was the one that emitted this gleam. This had to be a dream, right? There was no way that an angel would just fall from heaven to his living room.
Still unable to decipher the fine line between a lifelike dream and the reality, the snoozy musician acted solely on his passion and instinct. He leaned in to the delicate face in front of him slowly and cautiously, fearing that his ‘delusion’ would disappear into fine air if he moved too fast. With admiration entwined in his voice, he whispered almost dreamily, “Ah… You’re so breathtakingly gorgeous.”
Then, he planted a sweet and innocent kiss on the flawless cheek of his imaginary companion, only to realize the truthfulness of the situation. The existence of this ethereal beauty couldn’t be more realistic than it really was. “Good morning.” Aoi sheepishly said after understanding how incredibly mashed up his brain could be. Honestly, he shouldn’t be allowed to do anything in the morning. Somehow, he managed to suppress the urge of hiding himself in the washroom and never coming out. Instead, he looked deeply at the face that he adored with his whole heart with full concentration, as if he was trying to imprint this image in his mind for eternity.
The brunet thought this moment would just continue forever, that Uruha and him would just stare intensely into each other’s eyes for eternity, trying to reach for the soul that was shielded by layers of self protection, and trying to search for the answer of a certain question hidden in the deepest chamber of their hearts, until a nerve-racking electronic synthesized ringtone broke the magical silence between them. With a grunt of annoyance, the rhythm guitarist picked up his phone, but didn’t bother to put it next to his ear because even without the loud speaker, he could already clearly hear Ruki’s demanding screams of ‘get your bums to the livehouse right now’ and ‘we need to fit that too-fucking-gorgeous precious friend of yours’.
They spent the morning running around Aoi’s house, trying to gather the materials they’d need before going to the livehouse. They had an early call time because Uruha had to practice with the rest of the band members. Thankfully, the band practice went smoothly and after a few hours they decided to take a break so Uruha could fit some costumes.
Thus, Uruha found himself staring somewhat horrifyingly at the various collections of clothes that were laid before him after his three-hour practice with the rest of the members, most pieces varying from studded tops and jackets to tight leather pants and shorts, and for the love of all things holy, were those garter belts and stockings? He desperately hoped that Ruki wouldn’t be suggesting him to wear such accessories.
He knew Visual Kei artists always go to the extreme when it comes to costumes, hair and makeup, but since he was a noob, maybe Ruki would go easy on him and just give him a nice neat top and yes, maybe tight leather pants?
He took a deep breath and cocked his head to the side, looking worriedly at the petite stylist next to him, who was looking at the clothes before them with scrutiny, determination and passion burning in the other man’s blue-coloured eyes. Ruki shifted his weight on the other foot, biting his bottom lip as he continued contemplating. Then, he raised an eyebrow and leaned down, grabbing a black off-shoulder top, a pair of really short black leather shorts and a set of garter belts and stockings.
Uruha paled and mentally cursed, rolled around the floor, and jumped from an imaginary 100th floor skyscraper to splatter like a pancake on a hot pavement when the blond male handed him the clothes. “Try these on.” He simply commanded before going to another table to look at some accessories.
The blond blinked and gazed at Ruki, anxiety and shame written all over his beautiful face. “Wait! I’m going to wear these? Are you serious? I have hairy legs!” He blurted. He knew he shouldn’t be picky with what he should wear, but he wasn’t comfortable with the idea of baring his legs for everyone to see. As far as he was concerned, men shouldn’t do that… unless one was a Visual Kei artist. With that dreadful realization dawning upon him, he looked even more pitifully at Ruki, hoping that the other man would change his mind about his choice of costume.
Unfortunately, Ruki didn’t even spare him a glance and continued sifting through his wide collection of necklaces, bracelets and rings. “You can shave them, you know. Just put them on and if they don’t look good on you, we can change them.” He nonchalantly answered.
Uruha puffed his cheeks out, his face flushed and red in irritation. With a huff, he turned in his heels and walked to the fitting room, hearing Ruki’s yells of ‘Shave your pretty legs first before you put on the shorts, okay?’ as he pulled the curtains closed behind him.
When Aoi leisurely walked into Artia’s dressing room after having a smoke with his friends from other bands, the place was almost empty for the exception of a busy bleached blond stylist that was currently shuffling through boxes of silver accessories. He looked around to search for the familiar array of blond hair, but of course, he failed. “Where’s Uruha?” The raven reluctantly asked the biggest diva he’d ever met in his life, “And what costume did you give him?”
Just like how he treated Uruha, the said diva also didn’t look at Aoi and continued focusing on what he was doing, eyeing closely at a couple of rings. “Why’d you have to ask? You know where he is and as for his costume, just take a look at it when he comes out from the fitting room, you damn romanticist.” He replied in the same nonchalant tone, though his voice sounded a bit peculiar when he uttered the last three words.
Inside the fitting room, Uruha looked at himself with terror in his eyes. He couldn’t quite believe what he was seeing and he wasn’t sure if he had worn his clothes right. He also wasn’t certain if he should be allowed to flaunt his thighs in public. Not that he looked ugly in the shorts or the stockings, but… “Damn. I look really weird in these.” He groaned.
He took a deep breath and swallowed hard, turning his back on the mirror and looking at the curtain that covered the small room. “Ruki, I think this costume won’t work. I look really weird in it. Can I try something else, please?” He called out, his voice sounding a little whiny. He didn’t mean to complain, but he really didn’t want to play on stage wearing a pair of skimpy shorts and stockings. If his parents and friends saw him, he would be forever humiliated and teased.
The sudden whine effectively caught Ruki’s attention. With a roll of his eyes, the petite male looked irritatingly at the direction of the fitting room, ignoring the worried look that had passed Aoi’s face. “How can you say it won’t work when I haven’t seen it yet? Come out of the freaking fitting room and let me take a look at you!” He snapped.
Uruha almost slumped on the wall. He was somehow expecting to be rejected. It didn’t seem to be in Ruki’s nature to sympathize with his models in the name of fashion, which meant that he had no choice but to go out and show himself. He straightened and tried to gather courage. Displaying himself to Ruki would just take a few minutes, wouldn’t it? He could definitely parade his pathetic self clad in this outrageous outfit in the dressing room because no one else was there. Finally making up his mind, he took another very deep breath and shoved the curtains open before stepping out of the fitting room, meeting two pairs of impossibly wide saucers. He felt his entire body instantly burn in embarrassment when he saw Aoi standing next to Ruki.
The usually well composed brunet had completely lost his self control the moment he laid his eyes on Uruha. His onyx orbs were now as big as the cymbals on Satoshi’s drum set, and he could literally feel the muscles in his jaw refusing to contract, leaving his chin dropped and his mouth opened into a comical egg shape. If he ever said the blond was incredibly gorgeous, then the other had just went went beyond. Those long legs that seemed to extend for miles were tightly wrapped by a pair of knee length black boots, the thin leather accentuated the sensual curves of the slender limbs, creating a visual elongation all the way up the those sinful thighs.
Oh, those sinful thighs.
Half covered by a pair of cropped shorts and half proudly revealed to the world, were the most alluring legs Aoi had ever seen in the past twenty-four years. The lack of flabbiness created a luscious dip along the outer sides of the limbs, contouring the lean muscles underneath the impeccable milky skin. Every inch of it was perfection, not a single scratch nor any bruise, as if the blond’s thighs were sheathed by a sheet of finest quality silk, woven by the goddess of beauty herself. The mere sight of those legs was causing the raven’s red blood cells to clash recklessly onto the thin walls of his blood vessels, and the itch in his fingers to graze over that creamy skin was threatening to take over his brain.
Aoi literally had to pinch his own arm to force himself out of his mesmerized state, and to break the too-fiery stare he was currently projecting on Uruha’s lower body. Brushing the lithe fingers over his upper lip to momentarily hide his astonishment, and to secretly check if any blood was leaking from his nostrils, the stunned brunet finally moved his gaze to the knitted black top that was loosely hugging the blond’s slim body. It was light, comfortable, and off shoulder, gracefully displaying the elegant curve of Uruha’s left shoulder while the exquisite arch of the collarbone barely was hidden by the thin cloth of the narrow shoulder strap. It was not the most obvious type of seduction, but the red-blooded musician found it extremely, extremely sexy. He had never seen this side of his gorgeous angel, provocative, tantalizing, and sensuous. Although a little part of him did feel guilty for associating this pure and innocent honey blond to sensuality, he just couldn’t tell himself to bring this impetuous ogle to a stop.
Uruha simply gazed back with utter shock and shame as he stood before Aoi and Ruki like a broken doll, his face feeling so hot that he thought his skin would fall off. How could he not notice Aoi’s arrival in the dressing room? Was he too focused on putting on his clothes that he had failed to hear the other man arrive? Great. Just great. He looked so awkward with his shorts and boots and the last man he had wanted to see right at this very embarrassing moment just had to be here. Luck surely like playing with him. He tried to move, but he was unable to, or rather, he couldn’t command his brain to send signals from other parts of his body to crawl back to the privacy of the fitting room. He had no choice but to stare back at the raven’s intense gaze, gaping like a fish out of water.
“The hell are you talking about!” Ruki’s deep, yet high-pitched voice suddenly boomed in his ears. “Don’t you have any idea how damn gorgeous you look! Oh god, I knew those shorts would look perfect on you!” The stylist then spazzed as he ran towards the startled blond, took his hand and pulled him towards the table where the accessories were laid. “Now, what bracelets and rings would go well with this outfit! Damn it! I also have to paint your nails! You do know that black nail polish is essential to get the Visual Kei look, right?”
Ruki continued on blabbering excitedly about how he would style Artia’s temporary member, but his words remained unheard because said temporary member was still busy looking intensely and embarrassedly at Artia’s rhythm guitarist.
It wasn’t until Ruki’s somewhat crude behaviour that the elder guitarist finally snapped out of his hypnotized state. Protectively, the raven reached out for the honey blond’s soft hand, then pulled his porcelain doll behind him, forcefully inserting himself between the slightly resentful stylist and the delicate creature, as if he was the shield that was personally made for this ethereal beauty, blocking away all those blunt words for the other with his sturdy body and defending him against any possibility to get hurt. “Ruki, we all know how seriously you take fashion, and yes, you’re right, Uruha does look damn gorgeous,” he squeezed the smooth palm tenderly for support when he felt it trembling under his grip, “But can you please be nice?” The last two words were almost hissed by the seemingly gentle musician.
Ruki pouted, his eyes narrowing in contempt. “I wasn’t being rude to him! I’m just telling him that he looked great and how I want to style him!” He shot back! “You’re so protective of him it’s so obvious that you like him!”
Uruha blinked, the petite male’s words acting like the scream of an annoying alarm clock in his ears. He looked at Aoi once more, his aureate eyes questioning and gleaming with confusion. The raven’s sweetness and teasing towards him and the surprise kiss on the cheek this morning, surely, those things meant something.
Aoi looked at the petite blond unbelievably with shock obvious on his handsome face. Oh that little midget! How dare he just outed him like that?! The raven suddenly have this temptation to land his fist on that little bleached blond head and use it as a punching bag, but he somehow managed to hold himself back. His revenge on the little devil can wait, it’s the other blond that he should be comforting first. “Don’t listen to him,” He turned to face at the object of his affection, acting as normal as he could, “He’s way too talkative sometimes I wonder if we need to cut off his tongue to shut him up.” A dangerous glare was shot to the latter, warning him with a graphic image of losing that little organ inside his mouth. Yet by the time those obsidian orbs refocused on a beautiful face, all the ferocious aura was repressed back into the deepest part of his midnight eyes. With affection once again flickering upon his irises, the brunet said to the other with a heartwarming smile on his lips, “But he’s right. You look incredibly beautiful.” His gaze was softened and tendered with genuine emotions as he blew those words softly into the blond’s ears.
Uruha gasped softly at the comment. He didn’t expect to hear such words from the raven because he seriously thought that he looked very strange wearing his costume. He guessed he just really wasn’t used to it. He gathered his scattered wits and tried to smile, his trembling lips pulling up to a meek smile. “T-thanks.” He mumbled. “I seriously think this doesn’t work. I mean, it’s my first time to shave my legs and I think these shorts look hideous on me.” He rambled as his eyes darted from Aoi’s admiring onyx orbs to Ruki’s smug face and to the lifeless ceiling.
“No, you’re beautiful. Really, really beautiful.” The raven gingerly caught a strand of escaped blond hair with his free hand, twirling the golden tresses lovingly and cherishingly with his lithe finger, he poured all of his love and affection towards the other. “It doesn’t matter what you wear, you’re always unbelievably gorgeous in my eyes.” The words were light as wind, yet they were anchored firmly to the blond’s delicate heart. The obsidian eyes were locked on a pair of aureate orbs, searching for an unspoken emotion, closer and closer the handsome face leaned in to the celestial feature.
Like a statue, Uruha froze as he listened to the flowery words Aoi had uttered to him. And, was it just him or the raven’s handsome face was getting closer and closer to his? He swallowed hard, cold sweat running down his back, his heart hammering violently against his chest as he continuously gazed back at the musician’s intense dark saucers. What was Aoi planning to do? Was he planning to kiss him? Oh, hell! He was going to kiss him, wasn’t he? Wait, did he want to be kissed? He would honestly be a hypocrite if he lied and told himself that he didn’t want to. With another deep swallow, he allowed his eyes to flutter close, waiting for the inevitable, for that special moment where the whole universe would exhale and fireworks would shoot up to the heavens and paint the dark sky with vivid colours and--
“Break it up, you love slaves!” Ruki’s irritated yell suddenly echoed through the entire room.
The blond immediately stepped away from the raven, face flushed and eyes wide with surprise and faint disappointment.
The blond stylist threw both musicians a dangerous glare before directing his narrow blue eyes at the rhythm guitarist. “Aoi, could you please get out of the room, so I can finally focus on making your pretty bride beautiful! And you…” This time, he focused his attention on Uruha. “Sit in front of the mirror, so I can finally do your makeup! I swear, you two don’t even try to be subtle anymore!”
“Fine. I’ll be out of here.” The raven put his hands up in a guiltless manner, surrendering to the irritated stylist. Suddenly remembering the said designer’s temper, he pointed his nail painted index finger at the tiny man’s nose and authoritatively commanded, “But hey, be nice.” Swiftly stepping aside from the ‘battlefield’, the charming guitarist made his way out of the room with a attractive smirk proudly displaying on his pierced lips, not forgetting to send his blushing angel a mischievous wink as he walked passed him.
-----
The sound of people talking and mumbling echoed in Uruha’s ears as he stood at a corner backstage, his knees shaking and trembling, his hands cold with sweat as he and the rest of the band counted the clock, the live only minutes away from starting. Somehow, the blond had prepared himself for the actual live, doing it emotionally, mentally and physically. But for a first timer, no matter how much preparation you did, the sinking feeling of nervousness couldn’t be avoided.
He took another deep breath, trying not to think too much of the huge crowd that was waiting for them to come out on the other side of the stage, keeping his head on the songs he had to properly play so as not to make a fool out of himself and the band that had blindly trusted him and his abilities. He looked at the other members and saw Tsumi and Kouta, taking a quick inhale of their withering cigarette as they waited, Satoshi bending his arms forward and sideward, warming himself up for half an hour of beating the hell out of his drums with force and Aoi, who was calmly leaning on the wall next to him, looking all gorgeous and perfect, anxiety absent in his handsome face.
He clasped his hands together, trying not to fidget too much as he looked at the digital clock that hung on the wall. The second band had just finished their set a few moments ago and Artia only had two minutes left before their set starts. He felt as if his heart had dropped to his stomach when the numbers 19:58:20 flashed on the screen. Less than two minutes left to go.
Seeing the blond fidgeting restlessly, the rhythm guitarist straightened up and pushed himself off from the signatures-filled wall then approached the slender silhouette, “Hey, what’s wrong? Are you nervous?” The other musician didn’t even bother to nod his head as panic attack took over him. “Don’t be. You’ll do great.” He said sweetly and reassuringly, yet his comfort didn’t seem to have much of an effect. The raven innerly sighed at his failed attempt, then all of a sudden, a wild and outrageous idea sprinted through his mind. He closed his eyes and inhaled shakily while a decision formed in his head. When he once again revealed those stars-trapped midnight saucers, determination was imprinted on his ebony irises. Cutely and innocently, he pulled on a lock of golden curl to seek for his angel’s attention. “Do you know what’s the best way to distract yourself?”
Uruha looked at Aoi with a clueless expression on his well-made face. What could he possibly do in this crucial moment to make him forget about the live? “What is it?” He hesitantly asked, moving his head forward as he secretly awaited the rhythm guitarist’s answer. One could say that he was desperate to know what it was. After all, there was only one minute and thirty seconds left before they were called on stage and it would be really, really nice if he could do something to stop his palpitating heart from bursting out of his chest.
“To be confessed.” Earnestness was intertwined in the brunet’s deep alluring voice, burning everything in its path with heated passion as the soundwave broke through the consolidated air to reach the honey blond.
The said blond had a puzzled expression evident on his face. To be confessed? What did Aoi mean by that? What did he mean confessed? As in a love confession of some sort? Was it really the right time for a confession? The emotions on his face slowly changed, morphing into a bewildered one as realization finally dawned, a strong gut feeling burning inside him. Oh, god. Don’t say Aoi would--
“I like you, Uruha. I like you a lot.”
“As a lover, I meant.” A soft gasp escaped the blond's lips, causing the brunet's calm facade to crack. He tried to conceal the pink tint that crimsoned his face by continuing speaking, “Not as friend. I mean, of course I like you as a friend, how can I like you romantically without liking your personality first? But that’s not what I’m trying to say here!” A bashful warmth spreading through his cheeks then throughout his whole body like wildfire as Aoi realized how stupid his rambles had become. Finally, and probably very wisely too, the utterly embarrassed rhythm guitarist forced himself to stop, his gaze drifting away from the blond in sheepishness and ashamed.
Uruha didn’t know what to feel or what to do. He just simply stared at Aoi, his eyes and mouth wide in surprise. Sure, he had somehow expected to hear this two seconds after his realization came, but he wasn’t prepared to hear such sweet words of adoration a minute before the live! This didn’t help him with his anxiety at all! Instead, he felt even more nervous because… because… Aoi did like him after all! Aoi liked him. Aoi, the most handsome, charming, amazing guy he had ever known and had a huge crush on LIKED him, him who was a mere country boy. Fuck. “Wait. What?” He only managed to reply, gawking at the honest gorgeous male before him like a little duckling who was being choked by a seemingly innocent vine. “Y-you like me? H-how? W-why? Y-you're not drunk or anything, are you?”
“How can I not like you?” The raven’s lips were curved into a mild smile, cherish was written all across his charming face as he gazed at the blond, yet a hint of sadness was swimming in his eyes, remorseful for the distraught his confession had brought to this delicate beauty.“You just dropped into my life out of nowhere, so unique and so intriguing. You took my breath away the moment we met.” He suppressed the sudden urge to lift up the other’s milky fingers. “And then I got to know you more, your courage, your kindness, and your sincerity. Every second I spent with you, I realized how an amazing human being you are. You fascinate me more than anything else in this world.”
For a moment, Uruha felt his heart had stopped beating as he listened to Aoi’s words, as he continued to gaze deeply into those obsidian eyes and just stood there, trying to take that all in. He took a deep breath and tried to calm down, his trembling, sweaty hands suddenly clutching his chest, feeling the loud beating of his heart there. The pathetic organ didn’t stop beating, it was just beating too fast he couldn’t feel it anymore.
Aoi liked him, had just confessed to him, had told him things that he hadn’t heard from anyone before and he was just standing there looking like the greatest idiot in human history. He took a step forward, allowing his body to follow what his heart had been screaming at him to do all along. He raised a hand, reaching for the raven when…
“Okay, guys! Time for you to get on stage! Please do your best and have a great live!” A staff suddenly called out, catching his and everyone’s attention, regretfully destroying the moment.
“Listen carefully to the music playing from my heart.” With that, the rhythm guitarist spared his most precious treasure one last loving glance, then stepped out from the darkness of backstage into the bright spot light and a sea of cheerful screams, completely ignoring Satoshi’s angry yells of ‘What are you doing?’ and ‘You’re messing up the sequence!’.
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Comments:
candicecandy: Hello all our lovely readers! Sorry for the long waiting time, we had some troubles regarding to my physical wellness and to the dreaded time difference. I’m terribly sorry for it, and I do want to apologize to everyone officially. I’m really really sorry for keeping you wait for such a long time. QAQ Anyhow, thank you for reading the latest update and we hope you enjoyed it as much as the last chapter. Speaking of which, thank you for all the warm comments in the previous chapter, they really made our days. Couldn’t love you guys more~ >//////< *kisses* Once again, thank you for reading, and please let us know what you think about the second last chapter of this story. It’ll be our source of energy to finish the last chapter ne~ *winks*
venomousliberty: And we’re back! Sorry for the long wait, everyone! It has been quite difficult to work on this chapter due to timezone differences and health/welfare reasons, so we posted this a bit late? I think? XD Anyway, thank you so much for the warm reception we got for the last chapter. We were so happy and motivated to finish this story because of the wonderful comments you’ve given. THANK YOU~ *bows* We hope you also enjoyed this installment and again, please tell us what you think! *gives everyone rainbow cookies*