Sometimes, it was hard to choose the most embarrassing option out of a hundred, yet Sena Arata seemed to have a special sixth sense that allowed him to defy the laws of statistics making him and his friends end up in terrible situations all the time. Sadly, Takeru had to accept this ability, if he didn't intend to end up in an asylum sooner or later due to impossible constantly becoming reality around Arata. Like participating in a dance contest and waltzing around each other to the melodies of some old piano.
Prohibition Razzle-Dazzle
That was the name of the outstanding weekend's event, which took place in the Duck Manor with all of its virtual countries taking part in the game. Every dorm was cursed to suffer from a similar theme, while some were luckier than others. Tome-san, of course, immediately snatched away the era, which she thought had the least amount of damage and cleaning. The 1930's. However, this also meant, that the boys were immediately caught by the idea of having mafia and gangster wars around the house, when finally each country in the Duck Manor adopted a historic family to relive the legendary era of information war and alcohol prohibition. But instead of pistols and revolvers they held LBX battles whenever there was a clash between the members. The main purpose of this was to accumulate more victories than anyone else in the hope of getting valuable prizes. Still, this wouldn't have been enough for the theme, smaller programs and races were organized around the dorm to keep the kids without LBX-addiction occupied.
Based on these informations, everyone thought that Arata is going to jump headfirst in the race to attack the 'hostile' families around the dormitory in order to help collecting victory points. Instead, as soon as he'd heard about the closing dance event on Sunday and its prize, he seemingly started scouting the possible candidates who could earn the prize with… or more like, for him. After all, who cared about the precious silver credits they could win by being victorious in the war when on the other side someone was giving out free LBX parts. Arata was simple and would rather choose winning items instead of earning money for better items, so all he wanted was the brand new part set. Not some lousy piece fished out from trash! No. These were the coolest gizmos anyone could ever get their hands on.
Or so Arata thought. From his perspective, they looked good, and this fact alone obviously meant they would certainly be useful during battles.
This in turn has given him newfound courage, what eventually drove him to the second-floor where most male Harness students (currently running under the name Outfit) resided. There, he did not budge until he recruited and dragged away the gang's conta é oro, known as the gang's booker, who in this crazy commotion tried to keep track of their wins and defeats.
But here they were now, standing in Takeru's room, being slightly confused about the whole ordeal.
"Remind me again, why is this good for me, Arata?" Takeru curiously raised an eyebrow, when Arata finally overcome his fear and took the other student's hand in his; trying to put the images he'd seen into reality.
"It's simple. LBX parts, Takeru. Think about the LBX parts!" Arata explained, with immersive gestures, which were comical additions to his already resolute expression.
"I understand that much, but why do you need me? There is Yuno or any of the Jenock girls," he slumped on his own bed. They were practicing for two hours, and his legs were giving up on him. Besides, it just wasn't right. He felt out of place in his own room. "What's more, we are not even in the same team. Despite Harness and Jenock having a pact, the Outfit and the North Side gang were archenemies.
It looked like Arata didn't comprehend the last part of the sentence, or he simply didn't want to remember that lengthy lecture they had on Friday.
"Eh? Why wouldn't you be a good partner?" he shook his head in disbelief. "And I told you, that we will share the prize so it's two enemies fighting for the same goal. I'm pretty sure there were people in both families who liked to hang out together. Like Bonnie and Clyde."
"Yeah, that's what we call a dream. Besides Bonnie and Clyde were partners-in-crime and never took part in the fights."
"Sure."
Arata once again extended his hand towards Takeru, with the expression the blonde has never seen on his face unless they talked about LBXs. He'd meant it. He was deathly serious about dancing together and the Harness student had no choice but to accept the offer and let himself to be pulled up from the bed.
"And what exactly do you want to dance? I don't think waltz would fit the theme."
A weird feeling bubbled in his soul. He kept the distance between them so well until now, but Arata just made his job harder with each passing day. Especially after working so much to develop the just friends picture. And there he comes, completely destroying everything within one afternoon. As if it wasn't hard enough to behave normally around him anyway. Takeru still had the terrible habit of letting his gaze linger on Arata for too long or bringing him up on conversations but being around Arata was like letting the cat near the open fridge.
"Well, I thought of foxtrot." the red head beamed with confidence "Haruki showed me the ropes."
"And you memorized the steps?"
"But of course!"
Arata's knowledge was questionable on several points, especially because his alleged knowledge was probably collected right before he dashed through Takeru's door, screaming about emergencies. And having talent seemed to be more impossible than winning the lottery. After all, Arata hadn't changed a bit and Takeru doubted he had a forte for dance. However, after he heaved a long sigh, Takeru finally decided to play along.
"Then show it to me."
The beginning of the song was simple.
They slowly walked forward side by side, sometimes taking a round around each other, while Arata desperately tried to recall the little bit of knowledge that Haruki taught him before he left their common room. Hand in hand, they tried to manoeuvre in the tiny space. The beds still posed serious obstacles for the wider steps so once or twice they joined the boys' clumsy attempts.
They tried to follow the other with awkward tiptoeing and no one would've been able to tell who leads who in this crazy foxtrot. When Takeru stepped to the left, Arata took a step to the right, and vice versa. It only depended on the moment who pulled the other after himself. For this reason, they comically pulled away from each other or collided, giving awkward smiles to the other, before they hurriedly jumped after the music again. Soon, they found the right beats, that tiny barely audible rhythm they could both follow and they stayed on that path for a while.
As the continued the dance, uncertainty took over their hearts. The melodies attracted them closer and closer to each other, slowly destroying the remaining obstacles. Still, the dance was graceless, neither of them knew what should they do or how, what kind of steps existed and what was acceptable in foxtrot. But after a while it was not relevant anymore. Lost in the music and each other's company, as they shoulders slowly met, they didn't jump away, just swam with the waves.
However, the magic spell broke, when Arata's brain automatically followed the memorized pattern he'd stolen from movies. His hands almost instinctively crawled up on Takeru's back, holding him closer as they spun in the room once again. The cosy rhythm was gone and they shied away from each other like terrified birds.
The first who came to his senses was Arata; he almost immediately dived in to save the embarrassing situation.
"So-Sorry! My hand just slipped and I thought..." he stammered to the blond, who had been panic-stricken from the sudden closeness. He opened and closed his eyes slowly, feebly keeping Arata's other hand in his.
"It was only an accident. I guess you… we got captivated by the music," he smiled finally, however behind his expression there was an indescribable emotion. "But perhaps I'm starting to understand why you'd choose this dance. Simple, yet there is something in it that I can't really put into words. And in any case, I like the technical part.
"Really?" That was all?
"Really. But gotta admit, we're horrible."
"Sill, we are going to win!"
"Do you think this worth the suffering? What if not only the theme is about the thirties, but also the equipment. Is it good to destroy your infamousness even more?" Takeru's voice sounded sceptical, but he followed Arata as they continued their dance, step by step between the beds. He was sure that this wasn't foxtrot, but he never tried to correct it.
"Oh, so negative! Even if we don't win anything valuable, we will have fun."
"Fun..." Takeru repeated. "Arata, I don't think that members of two different mafia families should be having fun together. Or the North Side's like it that you are preying upon the Outfit's accountant?"
The music caught up with them again, but this time it was Takeru's turn to take control. His words became bolder, like a cat prowling around a milk box, he leant closer and closer to Arata. He lured him into a trap without effort. Right after that, the upbeat song ended and was replaced by a slow ballad, which gave space to thoughts.
"But wouldn't it be strange if we suddenly stopped talking?" Arata protested. He was about to reach for the beaten cassette player to search for another song. The softly humming singer in the background started to frustrate him. Partly, because Takeru got dangerously close to him in the meantime.
Arata defensively took some steps back, dodged the blonde's every attempt to get closer. "Nobody said that our families are in war."
"Ah, you know, sometimes it wouldn't hurt to do a little research. But yes, we never had any confrontations. But people will speak if they see you with me now." Takeru steadfastly pursued Arata until he cornered him in the tiny empty space between the two desks near the windows. "As far as I know, you don't want people to gossip. You told me this a lot in the past. Or you need to be reminded how last time you even refused to sleep in my room and went back at 3am?"
"Takeru, that was last time! Furthermore, this is the mafia weekend!"
"Oh and what happens on the mafia weekend, remains on the mafia weekend?" Takeru's lips formed a mocking smile, a mischievous idea flashed through his face when he gave Arata some space to move freely.
"Exactly!" the boy chirped.
As if he just got some kind of approval, the blonde grabbed Arata's shirt and pulled him closer. After that, his lips quickly found their way. The Jenock student protested a little, trying to voice his displeasure, but his thoughts were quickly suppressed by his loud heart, what kept pounding in his ears. Perhaps the worst part of it was that he didn't even try pushing Takeru away from him. The kiss completely made him unable to move or react. He let his soul soak in these feelings, instead of trying to understand the sudden turn of events.
His alarms had failed him.
His own mind had failed him.
Takeru inched back, when the recorder reached the end of the tape and asked for attention with a loud click, pulling the boys back into reality.
"What happens on the mafia weekend, remains on the mafia weekend" he repeated Arata's words and a faint blush appeared on his face when he thought about the last few seconds.
"H-Hold on! What the hell was that?! Takeru, you said that you don't want anything from me."
"Hiring the conta é oro has its price, especially when he is not from your own family. Oh yeah, and this way we have an explanation for of why we have two boys in pair-dance. You know what their first question will be when they see our names next to each other."
As if anyone would be interested in why Arata and Takeru hang out together, even during a small dorm event like this. They were like peas in a pod. To the point, where seeing them intensely discussing LBXs together was one of the normal sights around the Duck Manor and no one really questioned their reason for enjoying each other's company so much. Even Harness students learned to tolerate Arata constantly staying on their turf in the dorm.
So, it made no sense why Takeru suddenly wanted to explain everything they did.
"Taaakeru!" Arata whined, proud that he was finally manage to say something. "That does not explain why you... well..."
"Perhaps the music? The atmosphere?" he shrugged, yet refused to look into Arata's eyes and dropped his gaze straight down. Like a child who was caught stealing snacks. "Maybe because you asked me for a dance? The average Takeru never has to deal with these kinds of happenings, but the booker Kojou Takeru is different. You know, he actually gets asked out, so I'm sure he can afford this much, especially when a thousand year old recorder keeps rooting for him from the background."
"Wait, wait, wait, so then does this means what I'm thinking it means? You LIKE me?! Or is it just for the booker role?"
"Arata what else could it mean?"
"How should I know? Takeru, I no longer understand a thing. I mean, we've had a plan. Not necessarily a good plan, but let's not go into the details. We are trying to practice, everything goes well and then-" before he could've finished his rant Takeru interrupted him by putting his hand over Arata's mouth.
"Well, Arata, ask yourself. Did you enjoy it?"
Arata nodded, staring intently at Takeru.
The Jenock student started to fall apart bit by bit. He was even secretly thinking about leaving the island for a tinier deserted one just to escape from his responsibilities. But when Takeru pulled away from him, he started to come to his senses.
"We do not have to continue this, if you don't want to..." the blonde suggested.
"The dance or..?"
"Both." he sighed. "I know it sounds crazy, but I know you well enough and I don't want you to dwell on this and be uncomfortable while being around me. I'm not sure I want to repeat the whole process... It's just.., I've been waiting for the best moment to tell you, but it never-
He couldn't even finish the sentence in head, Arata bluntly grabbed his shoulders and pulled him closer until his face was just a few millimetres from touching Takeru's own. Uncertainty lingered in his mind, seemingly he still hasn't fully digested what happened to him because he steadily analysed Takeru's reactions with each passing second, as if he was waiting to get a green light. He clumsily tried to imitate Takeru's previous actions.
He barely grazed Takeru's lips before he turned tail.
Takeru was bolder again. However, this time, he didn't even think about the consequences the innocent kiss could bring. He allowed himself to drift away with the flow of melodies.
For the second impression, he tried to collect every drop of love he had, without the element of surprise. It was not perfect, but he enjoyed every moment of it. However, the magic quickly faded when he head footsteps echoing down the hall, gradually growing quieter as the distance increased, until the sound eventually went lost in the afternoon silence.
Arata sat in unusual silence, his hands never moving an inch from Takeru's face. Once again, he was waiting for a sign, while enjoying Takeru's closeness.
"Takeru," he began hesitantly as he sat a little farther on the bed. "So the situation is, and I know this will sound very strange, but the thing is… that I actually haven't really asked the others to practice with me… Because the truth is, when I heard about the teacher's plan, you were the first person who came into my mind and at first I had no idea why. Like, why you? Then, it dawned upon me that I always rush to you, whenever I need something even if it's just talking about LBXs."
Arata felt his face burning up, but they'd passed the point of no return. He couldn't throw in a typical 'leave it' or 'whatever'.
Now, he had to finish what he started.
"And what did you find out?" Takeru seemed to understand where their conversation was heading.
"Wait a minute. First thing first, I'm going to finish this, then I'll tell you the reason why I even started explaining myself." his voice was shaky. "I found out, that when I'm with you I have fun and not in the sense you think..."
"Arata, to the point."
Takeru tried hard to understand Arata's failed reasoning, but he lost it after a few attempts, so when Arata continued his lecture he had no idea what the other was talking about. Even though Arata described everything earnestly, going into details, bringing up events a normal person would not remember. Surprisingly, in the end his clustered thought seemed to form an answer-like being.
"But the best thin in this, that I want to be with you. Like being closer than to the others and then, I started thinking that probably this is not normal. I mean, if you can't get someone out of your head. Then I found out! It's because I'm in love with you."
In the middle of the blabbering the conclusion struck Takeru in the heart, mostly because he knew that Arata's honesty and outspokenness knew no boundaries, yet he did not expect him to call forth this bad talent in a situation like this. Now it was his turn to take deep breaths. He was so lost in his own goals that he had completely forgotten about Arata.
Suddenly, thinking back about the previous months, every little misunderstanding made sense.
"I'm already scared of the future," he finally managed to say, but behind his troubled sign there was a proud smile, which forced its way to his face. "Because I love you too."
Sena Arata goofy, slow, a bit scattered, but his.
What couldn't be said about the prize of the competition. While their performance was somewhat good, Yuno and Haruki mercilessly danced their way toward the first place without any serious effort.
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And this is where I end one of my longest AraTake stories. This was sponsored by Bonnie and Clyde musical, Baccano! OST and most importantly Fallout's Galaxy and Diamond City Radio songs. Also many thanks for Grim Fandango, though it only gave me the main idea for the dance.
Finally no one dies, no one gets injured.