Chapter1: Emerging Crush
"Gaku-kun... Gaku-kun!"
A tender male voice repeated this nickname over and over as Gakupo felt himself being nudged. He was laying on his side with most of his body under the warm underside kotatsu*. Kaito was leaning over him, pushing him softly and saying his nickname repeatedly. When he awoke and his eyes fluttered open, Kaito smiled warmly at him.
"Ohayo(good morning), sleepy head," he chimed. "Or should I say konbanwa (good afternoon)? It's already two o'clock!" He giggled sweetly.
Gakupo slowly began to sit up, leaning on the kotatsu as he started to slowly wake up. "Mmm... Two o'clock? What happened?" he asked sleepily.
"You fell asleep studying the lyrics for the new song Master gave you," Kaito replied, pointing to several pages of sheet music on the floor and the kotatsu table. "I left for a little while to go check on Rin and Len and when I came back, you were fast asleep." He flicked the violet-haired man's forehead softly.
"Ohh..." Gakupo replied slowly. "Gomen(sorry), Kai-kun. I didn't mean to fall asleep on you." He chuckled nervously and scratched the back of his head.
"Daijoubu(it's alright), Gaku-kun. I'll help you practice them later, but right now, Meiko made lunch for us about thirty minutes ago. I've been waiting for you to eat, so hurry up 'cause I'm starving!" Kaito ruffled Gakupo's ponytail playfully then jogged out of the room toward the kitchen.
Gakupo slipped out from under the kotatsu, stood up and stretched in every which-way. Then he walked slowly to the kitchen where Meiko had prepared some Miso Ramen with some simple Nikujaga** on the side. Kaito was already seated on the floor at the Chabudai*** slurping up the ramen noodles. When Gakupo came in, he smiled at him with a noodle hanging out of his mouth, which made Gakupo giggle a bit.
"It's 'bout time, Kamui!" Meiko called to him, her voice a bit slurred. She had obviously already been drinking today. "Everyone else already ate their lunch. Miku, Rin, and Len all went to the park together. Luka and Gumi are still here, though they're thinking of going to the cosplay store later and playing around. You know how much of an Otaku Gumi is." She laughed louder than she needed to.
Gakupo took his plate of lunch and sat across from Kaito at the Chabudai. He began to eat the Ramen slowly with his chopsticks when he noticed Kaito scooting closer toward him, a slight blush on his face. Gakupo glanced at him a few times, and then he stopped where he was and continued eating carefully.
When both Kaito and Gakupo were done eating, they went back to the kotatsu and sat down to practice more.
"Okay, Gaku-kun!" Kaito said, plopping down on the ground. He handed the sheet music to Gakupo. "Let's get right to it. The song we're singing is 'Kokyuu' or 'Breathe'"
Gakupo nodded, "Right. So, should I start off from the top?"
"Sure. Go ahead and sing right before the chorus and stop there. Just make sure you get the pitch right, m'kay?"
"Alright," he replied as he took a deep breath. He sat up straight as he could and sang the lyrics...
Omoi koshi agerarenai kimi
(Languidly, you can't get anything started)
Sono shousoukan wo
(This feeling of frustration)
Dare mo shiranai
(That no one understands)
Kuchi ni dasu kotosae akiramete
(You gave up even trying to express it in words)
Tada shouhi suru dake no hibi
(Days that just get wasted away)
Taida ni sugosu kyou
(Today that passed by in laziness)
Yari naosenai kako ni umoreteku
(Getting buried away in a past that cannot be undone)
Zeijyaku na tamashii
(Is your fragile soul)
Nomikomu no wa mou yamete kure
(Stop swallowing it all in anymore)
Haran naka wa kuuki de ippai
(Your stomach is already filled with air)****
Gakupo stopped singing just before the chorus just like Kaito had said. He took a deep breath and chuckled a bit as he set down the sheet music. He was a bit scratchy in some places, but he was pretty great.
"Boy, that song was pretty tough," he said to Kaito. "I didn't think I would make it all the way to the end of the part! What did you think of it, Kai-kun?" He waited for a reply as he straightened up the papers, but no reply came, so he said his full name in hopes of catching his attention, "Kaito?" Gakupo finally turned around and looked at Kaito who was staring at Gakupo, a mesmerized look on his face.
"Uh… Hey, Kai-kun? What's wrong with you? Daijoubu?(Are you alright?)" he said a bit worriedly, waving a hand in front of his face.
Kaito snapped out of it and instantly blushed. "O-oh, sorry… I was, uh…" he stuttered.
"You were what?" Gakupo questioned, tilting his head and narrowing his deep blue eyes at his friend a bit.
"I-I, uh… I was lost in your voice…" Kaito murmured with his face becoming redder by the second. "Gah, t-that sounded cheesy… Gomen…" He stared at the ground shyly.
Gakupo blushed slightly at his words, smiling a bit, "L-lost in my voice? Eesh, am I really that good of a singer?" He chuckled nervously.
"Youre voice is amazing Gaku-kun," Kaito replied quietly, "W-whether you're singing or just talking... Your voice is really mesmerizing..." He gave a small "ahem" cough and kept scratching the back of his head while staring at the floor, his face now red as a tomato.
"U-uh..." Gakupo stuttered. His cheeks were now turned to a nice strawberry red color as Kaito spoke. "Th-thanks, Kai-kun. I guess that's a good thing." His shaky chuckle continued.
Kaito looked up at him and smiled, "You're welcome, Gaku-kun"
Slowly, he stood up and walked over to Gakupo. For some reason Gakupo couldn't understand, his heart was racing more and more as Kaito approached. It was beating a million times a second when Kaito crouched down beside him and looked like he was going to lean down for... A kiss? Gakupo felt like he was about to have a heart attack. Thankfully, Kaito stopped after leaning just a bit and raised his hand to Gakupo's cheek.
He stroked the red cheek with the back of his hand, muttering, "You should blush more often. You look adorable." He smiled sweetly then stood back up and turned around, headed toward the door. Before he left the room, he turned around the corner and said, "We'll practice later, I think we should take a break for a while," and left the room.
Gakupo's heart was still beating faster than ever, even though Kaito was now gone. He laid back with his feet under the kotatsu. His cheek still had the feeling of Kaito's soft caress on it. Gakupo closed his eyes lightly.
His touch... I actually really liked that...
Notes:
*Kotatsu: a low, wooden table frame covered by a futon, or heavy blanket, upon which a table top sits.
**Nikujaga: a Japanese dish of meat, potatoes and onion stewed in sweetened soy sauce
***Chabudai: a short-legged table used in traditional Japanese homes
****"Breathe" English lyrics by hokorichan on YouTube. .com/user/hokorichan