Stage
Sakuma Ryuichi first stood on a stage when he was twelve years old.
When he'd been around four years old, he'd climbed to the top of the jungle gym at playgroup and declared loudly to the whole world that he was going to be a rock star. Maybe two of the other kids had noticed, and when he slipped and nearly fell, one of the others girls had asked him how he was going to do it if he broke himself. Ryuichi had very stoutly said that he'd do it no matter what, because it was his dream and that was what he was meant to accomplish.
The lights had been hot and bright, but he gloried under them, because they made him that much closer to a god – someone whose name was known by everyone.
When he'd been seven or so, a cousin of his had celebrated a birthday, and while everyone else sang the birthday song loudly and off-rhythm to one another, he waited until it was quiet and then burst out on his own, unashamed as most children tend to be. His performance was well-received, his mother telling him he had a beautiful voice and his father just grinning. Someone, probably an aunt, had said that maybe one day he'd be really talented.
His favourite part had been the hush – right after they announced his name and his entry number, when the crowd was absolutely silent. They were waiting for him, reaching out to him, wanting him.
When he was ten, he tried out for a school play and didn't get the part. Frustrated and offended, he'd gone home and locked himself in his room, crying where no one else could see. He reminded himself of his dream; to be a rock star, to have his names on the lips of every person in a crowd, to be the shining image in each and every one of their heads.
He'd sang with every ounce of emotion he could muster, so that by the end he was breathless and sweaty and crying because it felt so good. In his ears, he could hear the clapping and the cheering and it echoed and he swore he'd never ever let go of that sound. Never.
He still stood on the stage, still in the lights, still waited for the hush before he bared his soul and let everyone listen to him. Because that's why they were all there, because they wanted to listen to him. Because he was a god. He was a rock star.