This was the best idea EVER. That was the dominant throught circling through Michael's mind as his wide eyes took in the massive carnival in front of him. There had to be at least 20 rides, and a massive amount of food stations and games scattered in between them, filling the air with a cacophony of sights, sounds, and smells. The only downfall was the heat; despite being dressed in a tank shirt and cargo shorts, Michael was already sweating, and they'd been out of the car for no more than 5 minutes. Speaking of them, the singer spun around to face the reason he'd come to the carnival in the first place- there stood Tatsuma, overdressed and sour-looking as always. He was standing a few paces away with his hands clenching and unclenching around the fabric of the small bag he'd brought with him, glancing at the families milling around the carnival with a look of contempt. Grinning, Michael walked back towards him, taking off his glasses and shoving them hapharzaradly into his pocket. This earned him a scoff and a dramatic eyeroll from Tatsuma, which Michael promptly ignored.
"Also, I bought the premium tickets, so we can go on any ride you want to without paying the entrance fee over an over again. That's such a hassle, y'know?" Michael chattered away incessantly, while Tatsuma only offered curt nods when he was prompted. "I'd suggest going on the Fireball or the Steel Lasso- they both have crazy steep hills." After the taller boy said that, Tatsuma seemed to pale visibly, swallowing nervously. Michael tilted his head curiously at that, watching Tatsuma's antics with curiosity. "Herr Ishikawa, are you alright? Hah, it's almost as if you're scared of roller coasters! It's fine if you are, I understand." Tatsuma's face grew red at this and he scowled, stomping around Michael and towards the entrance of the carnival, grabbing Michael's hand as he passed by.
"Oh, just come on, Jordasch." Tatsuma spat, dragging the taller boy through the crowds. Michael's smile only blossomed as he grabbed the shorter boy's hand tighter, ignoring the way both of their palms were sweaty and hot. His heart pounded a little faster as Tatsuma dragged him over to one of the game booths, letting go as soon as they were in sight of the vendor.
"Ah, you two strong young men look like you'd be perfect for this game! Step right up and try your best to pop the balloons with these darts right here, yes Sir these right over here! If you pop three of them you can win a prize right up there!" The man gestured to both the bright balloons attatched to the wall and to the darts lying in the basket in front of them both. Shrugging, Tatsuma handed the man enough money to pay for both of them to play. He tossed a dart at Michael before turning back to his own pile of darts, picking one up and lookin it over inquisitively. Michael of course wasted no time in throwing his first dart, missing the balloons completely. His bottom lip stuck out in a slight pout while he grabbed a second, and repeated the same proccess. And then the third. The vendor laughed good-naturedly, patting Michael on the shoulder.
"Hey there big guy, it's OK, not everyone is good at this on their first try!" He laughed again, and this time Michael joined in, until Tatsuma sighed, propping one hand on his hip.
"Well of course he failed, if he didn't even stop to pause and figure out how to aim at the balloons." A small smirk spread across his face after that, and Michael moaned dramatically, clutching his chest.
"Ach, Herr Ishikawa, you wound me!" He groaned again, stumbling backwards as if hed been shot. Ignoring him, Tatsuma turned back to the balloons, eyeing them carefully before flinging his dart, hitting his target precisely. The balloon popped with a loud bang, and the vendor clapped loudly.
"Good job, Sir! Please, try again!" Tatsuma picked up the second dart, following the exact same procedure. Eventually he'd popped three balloons, and both Michael and the vendor cheered in response. "Wow, you're amazing sir! Now you can pick out any prize you'd like!" Tatsuma observed the large plethora of stuffed prizes for a moment before pointing to a giant brown plush dog. "Ah, excellent choice, here you go!" The vendor reached up to grab the animal Tatsuma had chosen, which was almost as large as the tennis player himself. Grumbling quietly, Tatsuma shuffled over to Michael, holding out the giant dog to the now thrilled singer.
"This is for you, or whatever..." Tatsuma mumbled, not looking Michael in the eyes. After Michael accepted the gift with a wide grin and a loud 'Danke schön!', the vendor whistled and hooted, which only made Tatsuma's temper flare. "Oh, shut up you imbicile." He hissed, snatching his bag and dragging Michael away by the hand again. As the taller boy passed the vendor he mouthed and exasperated apology, and the vendor simply shrugged in response.
[gay montage]
They'd been there for hours, and the sun was just starting to go down. They'd eaten funnel cake, which Michael had rubbed all over his own face messily, so of course Tatsuma had to wipe it off for him. They'd also ridden some harmless rides like the tea cups and the log flume, during which Michael screamed obnoxiously and embarrassed Tatsuma to no end. As soon as Michael saw the warm rays of the sunset, he knew they had to ride one of the scarier rides while the sun was going down. He suddenly grabbed the shorter boy's hand, dragging him to the scarriest one in the park. He could hear Tatsuma protesting weakly, but looked back to find a small smile on the tennis player's face. But to Michael's dismay, the smile dropped as soon as Tatsuma realized where they were headed, and it was replaced by a look of pure fear.
"H-Hey, when did I say I wanted to ride this one? Let's go ride the swings or something, j-just not- I don't want to-" Tatsuma stuttered slightly and Michael only laughed in response, dragging him along faster.
"It's ok, Herr Ishikawa! It'll be over in a second, and I'll be holding your hand the entire time. Come oooooon, you don't wanna make me cry, do you?" Michael was quick to brew up some fake tears, which Tatsuma ignored, opting instead to look up at the towering roller coaster. He took a minute to decide, before nodding nervously, looking back at Michael.
"Fine, I'll do it, I don't know why it's such a big deal to you. You would be entertained by such boring things, wouldn't you?" Scoffing nervously, Tatsuma wrenched his hand from Michael's marching forward into the line.
After a few minutes they were ushered to their seats and buckled in securely. Tatsuma's leg was bouncing nervously and he wouldn't stop darting his eyes back and forth. Michael chuckled at the shorter boy, resting his hand on top of Tatsuma's head.
"Herr Ishikawa, I'm telling you, it'll be fine! Fun, even!" He ruffled Tatsuma's hair, much to the tennis player's dismay. He hissed out a curse, reaching up and rearranging his hair. As if on cue, the ride began it's ascent and Tatsuma's hand slammed into Michael's, holding onto it with a death grip. Wincing, the singer chuckled as he gazed over at the distraught tennis player. The higher they rose, the tighter Tatsuma's grip grew until they reached the peak of the hill, pausing for a moment before tumbling down the other side. Michael screamed in a mocking fashion, while Tatsuma remained completely silent, his eyes squeezed shut and face turned into Michael's shoulder. After the hill, the ride was just a series of sharp turns and a loop, during which Tatsuma didn't let a single sound escape. As soon as they glided to a stop, Tatsuma scrambled out of the seat, dragging Michael behind him with a surprising amount of strength, dragging him through the exit and around behind a tent before shoving Michael against one of the boards holding up the tent and clinging to him, his entire form trembling.
"D-Don't you ever make me do that again, you fucking hear me? I fucking hate you, I swear to God." He spat out against Michael's shoulder, while the taller boy awkwardly patted him on the back.
"I... I really am sorry, Herr Ishikawa I didn't mean to-" Tatsuma cut him off quickly with a sharp command to shut his mouth. Michael obeyed him, simply standing there while Tatsuma calmed himself down. After a few minutes, the tennis player pulled away and started walking away as if nothing had happened, gesturing for Michael to follow him.
"This time I choose." He stated simply, before melting into the crowd. Michael did his best to follow the other, and soon they were standing in line for the ferris wheel. Michael simply stood with Tatsuma, saying nothing, even as they stepped into their car, taking seats opposite of eachother, and the door was closed behind them. As they began to rise, Tatsuma leaned forward towards the center rail, quirking an eyebrow at the other boy. "Well? Do you really have nothing to say?" Michael started, before smiling and chattering away while Tatsuma listened with mild interest.
A few cycles on the wheel had passed before the machine abruptly came to a halt, with their car rocking back an forth near the top of the wheel. After a moment a calm voice came on the loudspeaker in their car, announcing that something happened with the generator, and that they would simply be stuck for a few minutes while they fixed the problem. The boys continued their convorsation, both of them leaning heavily on the cool metal bar in the center of their car. After a moment, Michael realized just how close their faces were, and how warm it was, and how the sun danced off of Tatsuma's eyelashes, and how inviting his lips looked- Michael's brain halted immediately in it's steps as he shook his head to clear his thoughts. They were just friends, and they were here as friends, and there was no need to overstep that boundary and- well... Was there really no reason? The boys had grown extremely close during their first meeting, and now they were doing this sort of thing regularily, and Michael really did adore Tatsuma, but he would never force himself upon the other. Michael just had to wait and see if Tatsuma felt the same way. They both had gone silent, staring at eachother carefully. Michael had no idea what Tatsuma was thinking, but he could guess that his own expression was like an open book. After a few more seconds of staring they slowly began moving towards eachother, and Michael's heart pounded wildly in his chest while he shifted his position on the bar and they drew closer and closer until-
WHAM! Their mouths collided with a loud smacking sound, after being jostled into eachother by the ferris wheel starting up. They both recoiled in pain, holding their mouths and groaning. After a moment Michael broke off into boisterous laughter, smacking his hand onto the open part of the seat next to him. Tatsuma looked like he was about to yell at the noisy boy before he gave up, simply leaning back into his seat and crossing both his arms and legs. After they had returned to their car and Michael was driving Tatsuma home, Michael had finally calmed down his laughter, turning his head to gaze at Tatsuma.
"I was right, you know. This really was the best idea ever." Tatsuma rolled his eyes, smacking Michael on the back of the head.
"Eyes on the road, idiot."