Afterward
By
Chibijem
Disclaimer: I do not own the characters herein and am making no financial gain from this work of fiction.
Nanami Haruka was standing in the wings watching as Starish took their final bows after four encores. It had been a fantastic performance celebrating their newest CD which had sold out in record time. Shining Entertainment was working overtime to restock the stores and their own website. The performance had sold out in record time as well and there was another scheduled for the following day as the fan demand had made it necessary. She made her way down the hall towards the dressing room, hearing the band wrap up the last of the music and the group's 'thank you's". She perused the selection of refreshments, making sure everyone's favorites were available from the popsicles to shaved ice to cold fruit and drinks. On another table there was a selection of other food as they had skipped a normal dinner as was their normal routine before a concert.
"Nanami!" Ittoki Otoya yelled as he came into the room; he stopped barely in time to keep from colliding with her, not wanting her to get covered in sweat.
"It was superb!" Kurusu Syo added, barreling into the space, snagging an ice cold water and rubbing it against his hot face.
"Nothing like keeping the fans happy." Jinguji Ren strolled in, a towel around his neck, hands wrapped around the ends.
"They were an extremely enthusiastic audience." Aijima Cecil said, taking an ice cube and sucking on it.
"They certainly liked the new material." Hijirikawa Masato sat with a bowl of shaved ice, slouching on the couch, relaying his exhaustion.
"Great as always," Shinomiya Natsuki smiled at their composer; he sat in a chair, taking a huge bite out of a piece of cake, desperately needing the sugar rush.
"As if we had anything to be worried about." Ichinose Tokiya entered last, accepting a bottle of cold tea from Haruka. He leaned down to quickly plant a kiss to her lips. "Your music, as always, moves people." He sat backwards on a chair, draping his arms over the back and resting his head on them.
She blushed at both the affection he bestowed on her and from his words. The two were officially a couple with the support of the other members of the group. Even Saotome had accepted the arrangement after much persuasion from all the members of Starish. To everyone's surprise the fans loved the idea of them being together. "I could not have done it alone: all of your lyrics, your work, enhances my music." She told them. She moved to the table and dunked a towel into a bowl of ice; wringing it out, she laid it on the back of her love's neck. He sighed in relief. "Better?" He reached up, took her hand and kissed the back of it. "I don't know how you are all going to be able to perform tomorrow." She made up cold compresses for the others and handed them out. "Shacho should have spread the performances out to give you a chance to recuperate."
"At least there's nothing scheduled for tomorrow other than the concert." Ren replied, taking a popsicle.
"That's a wonder in and of itself. With the new CD, I would have thought he would have had us running around from dawn to well past dusk." Masato added.
"Our every second planned out." Otoya mused.
"We still have no idea what he has planned for later." Cecil said, shrugging out of the top layer of his stage clothes.
"Don't even think it!" Syo squawked, doing the same as Cecil.
"Gives me the shivers," Natsuki added his own clothing to the pile. It all needed to be cleaned for the following day.
The other members followed suit and soon clothes were being piled on the floor. Haruka moved to the door to give them all some privacy. Tokiya grabbed her hand before she could exit. "You don't have to leave; you've seen us all in our undergarments."
"I need to call the mansion." She started to explain. "I want them to have food ready for you all when we get home and after you all have had a chance to shower and get into comfortable clothes."
"I can give you a private striptease." Her dark-haired singer told her, laughter in his voice and his eyes.
She narrowed her eyes at him and put her hands to her hips. "If I did not know better, I would think you were drunk." She replied, laughing as Ren pulled him back into the room.
"Icchi, save it for later." He turned bright blue eyes to their composer. "He is drunk-on residual adrenaline." He chuckled. "We'll be out shortly, Little Lamb…unless….." He encouraged.
"Phone call." She said, walking away with a smile. It was so good to see everyone so happy and relaxed. The stress of recording the new CD and promotional schedule had left the Starish members tired and short-tempered. Now that the new music had been whole-heartedly approved of and this first concert under their belts, their normal personalities were returning in force. Since she and Tokiya had started their relationship, she had learned he had a devilish sense of humor; even the rest of the group had commented on the change in their usually stoic singer, saying he was more open with them, letting them know the real Ichinose Tokiya.
0-0-0-0-0
The men of Starish climbed the main staircase of the Master Course's mansion, teasing and joking; Haruka bringing up the rear. At the top, she reminded them a late dinner would be ready in less than an hour. They split up, making their ways to their respective rooms. She turned to her love, who now looked drained. "Daijobu desu ka?" She lifted a slim hand to cup his jaw.
He closed his steely eyes, "Mmmmmmm, now that the rush is wearing off, I'm feeling worn-out."
The orange haired founder of the group smiled gently. "Go shower and change." She turned him around so he faced the corridor down which his room was located. "Do you want me to bring you a plate?" She asked, moving to stand before him.
"Iie, I'll be down." He bowed slightly to kiss her. "Arigato."
"All part of my job." She watched him saunter down the hallway.
Over half an hour later, she met six of the seven members at the top of the stairs. "Where is Tokiya?"
"He's probably already downstairs, Haru-chan." Natsuki tried to assure her.
Syo called down and asked a passing staff member if Tokiya was indeed waiting for them. When he received a negative reply, he shrugged. "He's probably still getting changed."
"Maybe he's still in the shower. His performance of 'Independence' was fairly energetic." Masato added.
"We should move that segment towards the beginning of the first set." Otoya mused.
"Wanting the girls all wound up for you?" Ren teased.
"It would make sense." Cecil said. "Getting the crowd energized for the rest of the show." He added, seeing the glare from the red-head.
Haruka told them to go ahead without her, that she would find Tokiya and they would join them shortly.
"Don't do anything I wouldn't," the tall saxophonist taunted.
She shook her head, laughing softly and made a beeline for her love's rooms. She knocked on the door and receiving no answer, slowly opened it. She saw Tokiya sitting on the bed, towel wrapped around his waist, hair dripping over his upper body, another towel in his hands. "Tokiya-anta?" She called out softly, not wanting to startle him. He did not answer so she knelt in front of him to peer up into his face. He was dozing and she realized showering had depleted the rest of his strength. She gently took the towel from his hands and started drying his hair. He roused, an apology on his lips. "Iie, you've all been so busy lately and with the concert draining more of yourself, you were bound to fall asleep."
"Go on, I'll be down as soon as I'm dressed." He urged.
She ignored him and continued to dry his hair and then ran the towel over his chest, back and arms. Once she was satisfied he was dry, she got out his comb and ran it through his dark, silky locks. He smiled tiredly at her. She turned into his closet and grabbed the softest t-shirt and lounge pants she could find. As he changed, she picked up the room so he would not need to later; she knew he would be too weary to do so and how much he hated to leave clutter around.
He came out of the bath and took her hand, noticing she had cleaned a bit. "You didn't have to do that. I would have done it myself."
"It's fine, nothing major. Just making life a little bit easier." She assured him, leading him from the room.
Tokiya stopped and tugged her to him, "Arigato, koiishi. You always take such good care of me."
"You are amazingly easy to take care of." She stood on tiptoe and kissed his soft lips. "Aishteru, Tokiya."
He returned the affection and words. They finally reached the dining room where the food was spread out and looked in, seeing the normal boisterous behavior prevailing throughout the gathering.
Ren, noticed the couple in the doorway, "Lady, that took longer than what I would have thought." He smiled her.
"Jinguji." Tokiya warned at the same time Masato tossed a napkin into his friend's face.
Haruka took the chair Cecil pulled out for her as Tokiya made up plates for them both. He sat next to her and she gaped at the amount of food he put in front of her. "I cannot eat all this."
"You've not eaten much lately," he replied. They had all noticed her recent weight loss.
"Eat what you can, Nanami." Otoya told her, swallowing a bite of pasta.
"You need to build up your strength." Natsuki said, taking a riceball.
"Especially dealing with all of us." Syo laughed, dipping his chopsticks in a water glass.
"Eat, Little Lamb." Ren ordered gently.
"Onegai shimasu." Tokiya finished.
She looked down and nodded; turning her head, she prodded her love. "You too." She looked up at all of her vocalists. "All of you. You need to refuel yourselves."
Tokiya leaned over to her, "You take good care of all of us." He whispered in a tiny ear.
"As you all do for me." She smiled at him.
0-0-0-0-0
It was in the early morning hours before they all trudged up the stairs, fatigue in their steps. They bid each other goodnight as well as thanking the powers that be they had nothing scheduled that day other than the concert. Before Haruka could turn towards her rooms, Tokiya took her hand and raised an elegant eyebrow in request. She let a tiny smile grace her lips and allowed him to draw her with him to his rooms. He closed the door softly behind them.
"Tokiya?"
"Shhhhh," he pressed a long finger to her lips. "Now is not the right time. I just need some time with you." He sat heavily on the bed, tugging her into the space between his spread legs. He wrapped his arms around her middle, resting his head on her stomach.
She leaned over him and kissed the top of his head, his hair tickling her. They remained that way until she felt his arms go lax. "Anata? You need to get into bed."
"Hai." The reply was drawn out. Releasing her, he fell backwards onto the bed, arms outspread. He rolled over with a groan and moved to bury his face into his pillows.
His ladylove smiled and knelt on the bed, laying a hand on the broad back. "Would you like a back rub?"
"Would love one but you must be just as tired as I am."
"Oh, I think I can manage one for you." She got as close as she could to him and started rubbing away the twitching in the fatigued muscles. It was a normal occurrence for his muscles to be tight after a performance. She let a smile come over her face when he sighed. Several minutes later, his back was relaxed and he was drifting in between wakefulness and sleep. "Sleep," she ordered softly.
"Domo arigato," He turned his face and peeled open one eye. "Stay?" Her eyes reflected her shock at the invitation. He was quick to reassure her. "I'm too tired and it is absolutely not the right moment for us to make love for the first time. I just want to be close to you." He implored.
She moved off the bed, her decision made. "Let me go get some…."
"Wear one of my shirts." He suggested, knowing her next words.
She snuggled next to him, taking the fabric of the shirt she now wore and raising it to her nose, taking in the essence that was distinctly Tokiya. It made her feel safe and loved. "Oyasumi nasai, anata."
"Oyasumi nasai, aishteru Haruka."
With Haruka's head on Tokiya's chest, ear against his heart and his arms cradling her, the couple drifted off to sleep.
FIN
Author's Note: I hope you enjoyed my take on the aftermath of a live performance and the somewhat out of character Tokiya and Haruka. My thoughts are that as they grow closer, the more open they are with each other and the other members of Starish. I hope you enjoyed reading and I thank you for taking the time to do so.