Chapter One: A Start
"Xan-nii! Good luck on the game tonight! We're okay here in Namimori! Hope Varia wins again~"
A grunt was heard in the dimly lit room. "Of course, we're not going to lose to those trashes, brat." Giggle was heard through the phone, "Of course, of course. Maman, Okaa-san, Mami and I are just wishing you good luck, aniki. Uhm, Maman's calling me now. Got to go~"
After the person on the other side of the phone disconnected, someone kicked the door open saying, "VOIIIII! Shitty boss! The game is starting in ten minutes." A guy with long silver hair shouted to his 'shitty' boss. The same guy looked around the room and sighed when he saw the amount of empty whiskey bottles that were littered.
The room was in the same shape when they came here two days ago, except for the bottles. Even though the room was free for them, the room service was not. (He had a lingering suspicion that a certain marshmallow addict, a prissy cat, a whorish model and his boss was the reason for it.)
He was also sure that hell will freeze over first before his boss cleaned his room. Their manager is going to annoy him all day again when the event ends.
The said boss scoffed, "Shut up, sword trash. I know that the game is in ten minutes. Let's go."
"Before starting the game… I, Wonomichi, will state the rules. Heeheehee!" A man, with a fedora and checkered suit, has a smile that is seemingly plastered to his face.
He started, "One, this is a free for all game. Meaning, anyone can participate, whether they are in groups, trio, duo or solo. As long as you pass the preliminaries and follow certain rules." Laughing softly, he continued. "Two, sabotages are a BIIIIIIIG NO- NO! Anyone caught doing this will be automatically leaving our game."
Wonomichi stopped, the audience blinked in confusion. Then, he started stripping in front of them, ignoring the scandalized –and horrified- looks of the audience. He removed his jacket and the buttons on his cuffs. Rolling the cuff upwards, he looked for the third rule.
"Where is rule three? I think it's this, no… It's my grocery list. Oh! There you are." He muttered, lost in his world. Well… he is, until one of the judges, named Checkerface, cleared his throat, loud enough that Wonomichi heard him.
"Sorry, here's rule three! Anyone who has tomatoes shall—Oh wait, wrong rule." He said, smiling despite the flabbergasted faces of the audience. Checkerface, the man with the iron hat, inwardly face palmed, while Bermuda was just staring, amused at his fellow judge's personal assistant.
The emcee rolled his pants to his knees, still looking. When he finally found it, he straightened himself and acted like he did not say anything about the tomatoes. "Heeheehee. Third, all clothes must be made by yourself or by a designer. Clothes that are bought from stores will be burned if used in this game."
"Those are the only rules~ Now, welcome Bermuda- san as he makes his welcome speech!" Wonomichi bowed as Bermuda went to the stage.
"New or old, aspiring or popular, all models have our warmest welcomes as they shall compete again to see our new king or queen. Ladies and gentlemen, welcome. We meet again on this stage, to showcase the clothes of designers and the talents of these models for a whole week. Of course, this competition is not just for modeling but to showcase their other talents in regards to music, and arts." The judge started, looking at the audience with his fully bandaged face.
Bermuda paused to straighten his Armani suit and then continued, "This is also a golden opportunity for CEOs, bosses and managers to find and contact talented individuals to work in their company. This is a great chance and a leap of faith for the models to find companies who will provide them the best deals and jobs there is. To celebrate the opening of the tenth annual modeling contest, let us welcome Jager to introduce the competitors!"
After saying that, one of the emcees stood up and went to Bermuda's side. They both bowed down and then Bermuda left the stage while Jager stood in the middle. He cleared his throat, "Thank you, Bermuda-sama." After nodding at the judges, he immediately started to introduce the competitors.
"They are the most popular group of models, consisting of six men and one woman. They have been in this industry for around 5 years. They were working solo just six years ago, but their Manager Reborn has took all seven of them under his wing and made this spectacular group of individuals! They are the Guardians!"
Eight people went to the stage, girls squealed at the sight of their idols while the men whistled at the only female guardian. They all went forward, bowed and made a straight men were wearing Valentino suits, the undershirts were of different colors, while the only woman wore a simple black dress showing her figure.
Jager looked at them as they started to leave. When the Guardians were no longer to be seen, and the next group entering the stage, the emcee started talking.
"They are the rising stars of this world. They are quite well known in Japan and other Southeast Asian countries. All members of this group have met each other before participating in our game four years ago. Their manager, Mammon, had joined this group three years ago, boosting their popularity and skills! They are better known as the Varia and they are the reigning KINGS!"
What the audience saw are people who you'd think that they will be never together. Each of the five members has their own way of walking. One has the aura of a boss, his strides are strong but graceful. The second's walking like he is the king. The third one is noticeably a martial artist due to his posture and the way he walked. The fourth probably thinks that he's the center of attraction, strutting around the place without a damn to the judges and emcees. The fifth one is a bit normal, just fades away in the background while his other companions shine more.
They also wore Valentino suits, with the exception of their manager, Mammon, who wore a black cloak with a hood concealing her eyes and covering her black dress.
They all went forward, and just followed what the Guardians did. Jager spoke as they left the stage. "Most of the new fans might be curious why they were the first ones to be mentioned. Of course, they are participating models who are representing the…" He drifted off, lifting the mic to the audience as they screamed one name that is well known in the whole wide world. "VONGOLA!"
After introducing the models of Vongola Corporations, he immediately moved to the next one.
"They are new competitors, joined just last year. But, their popularity is already reaching up to Varia and the Guardians. They are skilled, considering that most of them joined modeling just two years ago. They do not have a manager. Let us welcome, Gesso!"
Seven people entered the stage, all of them wearing their signature white uniform with white suits inside, with the exception of the only female, who was wearing a white sundress. They took a bow and left the stage, nodding at the participants entering the stage.
Jager gave a small smile akin to a smirk at the new family entering.
"Even if they are a little bit inexperienced, they are just as popular as Gesso due to their member's good looks and an even better reputation. Two of them are quite young to participate but their skills are on par with the others. Their manager and designer is THE Luce! Please give a warm applause to, Giglio Nero!"
Five people went to the middle of the stage, two of them identical, although one is more of a chibi version. The other three, were always looking at the two women. The men wore a simple black suit and white undershirt, while the women wore a white dress. All of them bowed down to the audience and left.
"Both of these groups are from the company, Millefiore clothing apparel. Of course, as participants from a clothing apparel, they are held in high hopes and expectations to show the full potential of the clothes."
The night continued as Jager continued introducing the participants. They are the Shimon, the trio of Tomaso and many more. The judges smiled at the beginning of a bigger and better competition compared to last year's. Yes, a mine full of glittering potential was awaiting them. They can't help but smirk as the thought came into their minds.
Day one is finally done and over with. Xanxus growled at the most possible outcome of the next days. He knew it was going to be disastrous, and hectic and dangerous. The twenty four year old Raven gulped the shot of whiskey. As he poured himself another shot, his phone rang. Xanxus stood up and proceeded to open his bag.
When he found his cellphone, he answered with a rough hello.
"Xan-nii! Maman and okaa-san are sooooooo proud of youuu~ well, Mami and I are also proud!" He gave a small smile when he heard his younger brother's voice. His heart beat sped up when he mused about his parents and siblings being proud.
"It was nothing, brat." He answered back. He heard the quiet 'eeeeeh.' and said, "Thank you for the clothes, Tsuna. The others we're grateful."
"You're welcome Xan-nii! Oh, by the way, we have a surprise for you~ Wait for it neh? Bye bye~"
"What?!Oy, brat! Come back!" Xanxus shouted as Tsuna hung up the phone.
He sighed, throwing his empty bottle of whiskey on the wall as Squalo entered his dressing room.
"VOIIII, shitty boss. Let's go eat." Squalo shouted while Xanxus grumbled about a shark trash.
"WHAT WAS THAT? VOIIII."
Meanwhile in Namimori, Japan, in a certain apartment, you can hear someone humming to a song.
If you'd go nearer to that apartment, you can smell the cakes that are baking. If you'd go inside that apartment, you will see a brunet dancing and humming a simple tune while waiting for the dough to fully bake.
A few minutes later, small ding was heard and the brunet immediately stopped what he was doing to open the oven. The brunet was wearing a black shirt, gray sweatpants and a simple white apron with splatter art.
He put on his mittens, and removed the cake. He set it on the table, waiting for it to cool. When it cooled down, he immediately frosted the cake with a vanilla frosting and then added some strawberries. He put the cake in the fridge after the final touches.
The brunet heard the doorbell ring. He went to the door to answer it.
"Tsuna." He heard as he opened to the door. The brunet, called Tsuna, looked at the red head and said, "What is it, Irie-san?"
Shoichi didn't want to say anything, but his step- brother's cooking was so horrible that he immediately went to Tsuna to ask for some food.
"My brother… Spanner cooked while my sister and mother are away." Shoichi started, his stomach already churning.
"Ara? He cooked? Isn't his cooking same as Bianchi-nee-san's?"
"YES! I'll even pay you, Tsuna-san!"
Tsuna laughed, "You don't need to pay, Irie- san."
Shoichi beamed at him, obviously thankful. 'Thank you for real angels down here on earth, Kami-sama.' Shoichi thought, inwardly crying with gratitude.
"Uhhh, Irie-san, you're making a pretty weird face…" Tsuna said, chuckling at Shoichi's face that was in between of crying, smiling, drooling and day dreaming. Tsuna gave a small bento that he prepared a while ago.
Shoichi immediately made a poker face, reaching for the bento. He apologized, "Sorry, Tsuna-san. Uhm, I'll bring some ingredients to you tomorrow?"
Tsuna smiled, "If you like, Irie-san."
"Thank you, thank you, thank you." The man muttered, bowing as he left the apartment.
Tsuna shook his head at the man's happiness, finding it endearing if not quite weird. He sat down on the sofa, resting after baking so many cakes.
He tried to sleep, after the few minutes of closing his eyes, he stopped. He made himself content by just remembering his first memory of his brother and sister.
-flashback-
"Come here, Tsu-kun. Mama wants you to meet someone."
When he heard his Mama say those words, little Tsu-kun immediately stopped playing and went to his mother's side. Immediately, he noticed one boy, roughly around the age of eight, and one small girl with the age of three.
"Tsu-kun, these little ones are Xanxus and Mami. They'll be part of our family now." Tsuna's mother, Nana Sawada, explained to the puzzled boy. "X-Xansuus?Mamee?"Tsuna tried to pronounce their names while trotting his way to the pair.
"H-hi!Tsu-kun's name is Tsunayoshee, you can call me Tsuna! I'm this old." He babbled, showing 4 fingers to show to them how old he is. Nana simply giggled and gave a light push to the young boy and girl in front her. "Come on. He'll be your new brother. Introduce yourselves, dears."
Startled by the push, both of them broke out from their daze. The boy with piercing red eyes and wild raven hair smirked. "I'm Xanxus. I am eight years old." Tsuna just smiled and asked, "How high is that?" Xanxus sighed and put up four more fingers and started counting, "One, two, three, four, five, six, seven and eight." Tsuna followed, "One, tu, tree, fhour, fhive, six, seven, an' eigt."
Xanxus looked at his adoptive mother, confused at her biological son's pronunciation. Nana smiled, crouched down and patted Tsuna's hair. "My Tsu-kun is not the best at school, but he's trying very hard. I'm proud of him." Tsuna looked at his mother and gave a very cute smile. She continued, "Tsuna, say hi to Mami and remember what I taught you."
"Hi, Mamee! E'mTsuna!" He gave her a toothy grin as he bent down and kissed her knuckles. Well, his mother was a hopeless romantic after all. The young girl with soft red locks and ruby colored eyes became beet red after Tsunayoshi's small act. "I-I-I'm Mami." She managed to stutter.
Nana giggled at the sight of a blushing Mami, confused Tsuna and an amused Xanxus. Nana had a feeling that they will be like that for a long time. She watched as Tsuna turned around and beamed at her, "Thank you for my siblings, Mama!"
She ruffled his hair and replied, "Anything for you, my children."
Soon, he went to sleep. Drifting away from our world… He enters the worlds of dreams and wishes. He did not notice his phone ringing, signaling a call.
TBC.
A/N: Hey guuuuys. I'm back :D Sorry for not including Enma as one of the siblings. But! Enma and the others will get a formal introduction next chapter. (*cough*daytwoofthegame*cough*)
….
This is the first chapter of Avoiding the Limelight. As said in the summary, this is the rewrite of my first story, and now we start at day one, instead of starting on the last day, I thought that this will be better.
I also have a warning, as a fanfiction focusing on the AU where our beloved characters as models, this fic is going to have a lot of descriptions of clothes starting from chapter two until the last day of the game. After the game, the descriptions will lessen but there will be some here and there.
(As a person with a fashion sense limited to shirt-jeans-shoes, I'll be using/describing clothes made by real life fashion designers. The links will be on my profile, since it'll be a disturbance in the author's notes.)
Do you guys love it? Hate it? Like the first version better? Prefer this one? Confusing? Okay? Please let me know through your reviews.
Sorry for the grammatical mistakes, even if I went over it at least five times... there are always little ones that escape my eyes. Proofread by a close friend.
Btw, thank you for the 49 reviews, 138 favorites, 177 follows and for the 2 communities for Low Profile Life Gone, I'm really happy!
I love you guys, I hope you like this one as much as the previous one.