AN:// This story was originally meant to be a one shot, but then ideas kept flowing in and I'm guessing this is going to reach 20 chapters or something. R/R! You'll get a box of Strawberry Pocky if you do.
Summery: One morning Shuichi finds out that Bad Luck and Nittle Grasper are touring. It's a dream come true, until it begins to threaten his relationship with Yuki and possibly the future of Bad Luck.
Title: Lyrics of Chance
Author: Kay
Chapter 1
Tap. Tap. Tap. Tap, tap, tap, tap…
The pen continued tapping, leaving inky spots and thin scribbles when ever it collided with the paper, refusing to stop in its rapid beat until an idea popped in to the pink-headphone-wearing head of its owner.
Tap, Tap, Tap …
A certain red head played with the strings of his guitar absentmindedly. He looked up when he heard a faint rustling sound. His eyes landed on a certain green haired keyboardist, suspiciously crumbling something firmly between his hands. Hiro didn't neglect to notice the annoyed glares the other was sending towards his best friend, as the tapping continued.
Suguru felt eyes on him and he looked at Hiro, his eyes spelling murder. "If he doesn't stop that, I will not be held responsible for my actions." He grounded out irritably. Hiro bit his lip to keep from grinning. Suguru noticed that minor action and his eyes lowered in to slits.
Hiro looked at Shuichi.
"Writer's block, Shuichi-kun?" He asked in a smooth voice.
Tap, tap, tap, tap…
Hiro sweat dropped and let out an expired laugh. Suguru was much less amused.
In fact, the green haired teen threw the crumbled ball of paper at the singer's head.
The pink haired pop-star reacted immediately and jumped up a meter high.
"AHHHH! WWHHHAA--?!!" He looked around quickly, looking for whatever collided with his head. His attention landed on the innocent, incredibly crumbled ball of paper, laying innocently next to him. Shuichi looked around, and his eyes landed on the snickering Hiro. He glared before he pulled off his head phones. "Not funny, Hiro!" He said his voice accusatory. Hiro chuckled, "It wasn't me!"
Suguru glared at him, "Listen, Shindo…" He began. Shuichi looked up at the keyboardist, his eyes still sparkly with confusion.
"We've been here since six this morning and now it's eight," Suguru said evenly, his voice sugar sweet. "And all I've been hearing is tapping."
Shuichi stared at Suguru.
Suguru stared back.
Shuichi stared at Suguru, his eyes teary.
Suguru stared back.
Suddenly a loud wail escaped the rock-pop star and Suguru barely flinched when his hand collided with his face in frustration. "What's WRONG with you?!" Suguru grounded out, his patience hanging by a really, really, REALLY, thin thread.
Hiro sighed and set aside his guitar and stood up. He walked over and put a comforting hand on his best friend's shoulder. "That's not going to help-"
The door swung open and a loud voice shouted out in English: "GOOD MORNING, BAD LUCK!!" Just before a round of bullets passed themselves around.
Shuichi and Hiro ducked behind the couch while Suguru stayed in his place, frozen. If he wasn't standing, he would have been considered quite dead looking as the bullets barely missed him. Lucky he stepped away just as a bullet passed where his head should have been.
The smoke cleared slowly, leaving the Bad Luck members in all directions, lives and heads intact thankfully. The blond American manager walked in with a sniper tilted over his shoulder in an awkward position. Well awkward for Sakano, who just happened to be behind the giant man with the barrel of the gun pointing right to his forehead.
Ignoring the producer, the scene continued with Suguru speaking up first, "Why, god morning K-san. Are you TRYING to kill us?" He asked calmly. A quiet 'click' echoed through the room, and Suguru found he in the same situation Sakano was in; staring down the barrel of the gun.
K smiled a rather unsettling smile, "No, I wouldn't have to try." He said.
Suguru stared at the blond America emotionlessly, "…Right…"
K's smirk returned and he retracted the weapon, much to Suguru's bliss, clicking it back in to safety, again, much to Suguru's bliss and horror, before he continue with an ecstatic:
"Good news! Or Bad News! But that depends on which way you wish to look at it."
Shuichi jumped up, "What is it?!" He asked. There was a low groan behind K and everyone's attention turned to the messed up figure of Sakano. The man straightened his tie and glasses but the adjustment made little difference. "Should I tell them or should you?" He asked the producer. The younger man stared up at him dumbly for a second before he nodded and after readjusting his tie, he stepped forward. He looked at Shuichi suddenly, which made the pinkette sweat drop.
"Seguchi -san has sent me to ask you to come to his office."
BIG sweat drop.
Shuichi blinked, "What?" He asked; too shock to respond any other way.
Sakano nodded.
"Why?" Hiro asked, coming to stand up behind the silent singer.
"Seguchi-san didn't tell me why exactly, but it sounds like it's an important matter." Sakano replied.
Shuichi bit his lip and nodded, "Yeah no problem!" He said with a smile and marched outside arms bent and moving along to the march. He walked outside the door and enthusiastically waved at the four before disappearing out of sign.
Silance passed over the four remaining people in the studio.
The Silance was broken by a confident: "He's in trouble…" Suguru assured with a nod.
"I don't know…" Hiro replied as he stared at the closed door.
"So what's the news?" Suguru asked dully, turning his attention back to K and Sakano.
K smirked darkly and Sakano tilted his glasses over the bridge of his nose.
Shuichi believed that the last five minutes were the slowest he had ever walked in his life, but the arrival to the large mahogany door seemed to have been in almost no time at all.
Shuichi held his hand up and over the wooden door, ready to make that soft pounding sound that is called knowing…
'Why would he want to speak to me …?' He thought. 'We're keeping to the deadline of our next CD. Yuki and I…maybe that's it…maybe he's DROPPING ME BECAUSE I STILL HAVEN'T GIVEN UP ON YUKI!!!'
"Stupid, stupid, Tohma!! Get a life will you?! So what if Yuki and I are happy! If he's happy, shouldn't you be happy too if you care?!" He exclaimed, pounding at the door. Eventually that pounding met thin air.
Shuichi paused and saw the door was open, and a rather amused –but distinctly pissed- Seguchi Tohma stared back at him.
"Actually, I have come to accept your relationship with Eiri-san, Shindo-san."
Shuichi's eyes widened like saucers. 'Oh…shit…'
"And while the latter is diffidently up for discussion at some point, the time is not now. Please come in." He said politely, though his eyes sharply stared at Shuichi, who recoiled slightly and nodded quickly. "Yes, sir." He said softly as he stepped past the man.
Shuichi nearly jumped out of his skin when the door behind him shut with a soft click.
Shuichi stayed in the middle of the room. Violet eyes followed the blonde as he walked around his table and came to stand behind it. He winched mentally when icy green eyes landed on him yet the angelic smile stayed.
'Creeeepppyyyyy…….' Inner Shuichi whined.
Just then a familiar mass of pink popped in to view from behind Tohma's desk.
Shuichi's expression turned from sheer terror to one of happiness.
"Sakuma-san!" He exclaimed.
The bunny moved vigorously and pointed a paw in an accusatory manner, "No, no, Shu-chan! I'm not Ryu-chan, I'm Kumaguro!" The bunny 'said', "Why doesn't anyone listen?" It's paws closed over it's eyes. Shuichi sweat dropped. "Oh! I'm sorry, Kuma-chan!"
The bunny perked up and waved its paw dismissively, "No problem, Shu-chan! Tohma-chan!"
Tohma looked down, "Yes, Kuma-chan?" He asked easily.
"Important news!" The bunny exclaimed.
Tohma smiled and nodded, "Right." He turned to Shuichi.
"Due to Bad Luck's…growing popularity" the blonde explained and Shuichi found he extra-loathed the pause. The bunny nodded to each word and imitated Bad Luck "and promotion of Nittle Graspers upcoming album, there has been a high demand from the public on the possibility of a conjoined project." The bunny imitated Noriko, Ryuichi and Tohma.
Shuichi blinked and tilted his head to the side cutely. "Public?"
Just then the bunny paused and it's head turned to Shuichi. It nodded, "Yup!"
Then it dissaeared out of sight and in it's place Ryuichi came out with a childish grin.
"Us! And a couple of other trillion people!!!!" He said waving his arms around wildly.
Kumaguro nodded, "Trillion!"
Shuichi grinned, "Really?"
Ryuichi and Kumaguro nodded, "Really."
"Really, really?"
"Really, really, REALLY!! An infinity!" The duo exclaimed.
"But what does this mean?" Shuichi suddenly asked.
Tohma's smile wavered in to something that looked suspiciously like a smirk, "To simplify it; A tour, Shindo-san."
Shuichi stood still, staring. A tour? With Nittle Grasper. With Sakuma Ryuichi.
"Sakano-san and K-san should be explaining the situation to the rest of the Bad Luck's members." Tohma added.
"We get to sing together again, Shuichi." Ryuichi said softly with a smile.
Shuichi blushed and nodded, "Yeah!"
And then Ryuichi glomped him.
"Pretty please?"
"Hell no."
"Pretty please with cherry on top?"
"…I hate cherries."
"Liar!!!"
"Shut up! You're ruining my concentration!!"
"But-"
"No."
"Yuuukkiiii-!!!!"
"Will. You. Shut. Up?"
Shindou Shuichi fell back on the floor next to his boyfriend's chair, sniffling pathetically. The Bad Luck tour was due to debut in five days in Osaka, and since he found out two days ago, the pink haired vocalist had been busting his vocal cords trying to convince his stoic boyfriend to go with him - which predictably landed him out on the street multiple times a day. Twenty minutes of resumed begging from 15 minutes of begging before the twenty minutes that just passed…and there was no trace of giving in on the blonde's side. Maybe if he drugged the older man and dragged him to NG before Bad Luck left for the tour. It sounded tempting. Then there was a certain blonde president of NG. A chill ran up Shuichi's back at the possible lecturing he'd get out of it, that would last hours on end, until he would fall in to a daze from shock at how quickly his self-esteem would leave him and Tohma's voice would turn demonic and domineering…he would grow horns and a pointy tail and turn in to the very definition of evil, accessorized with pimp hats and plaid suits with furry collars of course.
Shuichi sweat dropped and shook his head. And Yuki would kick him out again once the drug wore off. Besides, if Eiri was to come with him, Shuichi wanted it to be because it was of the writer's own free will and not because he was 'forced' to.
"Yuki, you're so mean!"
The blonde novelist smirked, not looking up from the blinding screen of the computerized notebook from hell. "You figured that out just now?" He asked in a casual tone.
Shuichi opened his mouth to remark but a long, long, long…cry escaped him instead.
"YUKI DOESN'T LOVE ME!! I BET YOU WISH THAT I WOULD JUST DROP FROM THE FACE OF THE EARTH AND NEVER BE HEARD FROM AGAIN!!"
"Key word being 'wish'." Yuki muttered. He was loosing his patience, something he worked on since he came back from New York, especially when it came to Shuichi. There were most important things at hand. Like the deadline in three days. He glanced at Shuichi from the corner of his eye. The pink haired boy was still wailing pitifully, his hands curled together between his knees in a doggish style. Yuki's hand itched to pat him on the head, but pulled back as soon as the thought passed the novelist's mind. All he said was: "Quit it. You're bothering me."
The cold, dull tone used stopped Shuichi's further exclamations.
Shuichi blinked two times, before his expression fell from a pleading one to one of defeat and hurt. He had no doubt, if he kept pushing, he'd find himself at Hiro's later for a sleep over. For a long minute Shuichi didn't move. He looked away when the contempt in Yuki's eyes didn't go away. He was so cruel sometimes.
Shuichi bit his lip and got to his feet from his kneeling position, he back turned towards Yuki, "Yeah, ok. Forget it. It doesn't matter, anyway" He said softly. Yuki paused in his typing just a split second. Shuichi turned around, smiling brightly, "Sorry I bothered you, Yuki!" He beamed and jogged out of the office before Yuki could stop him. Yuki's train of thought broke down long ago, but now all will to keep writing was destroyed as soon as the door click shut. That little click beat the crap out of any inspiration he had at that moment and threw it out the window. Yuki looked at his right where Shuichi had sat previously. The whole place seemed cold and Yuki suddenly had the urge to pull the pink haired rock star back in to the office and have him sit there just to fill in that stupid empty spot!
He pushed himself away from his work desk and leaned in further in the chair. He eyes moved to the door. Why would it be so bad if he did agree to go? It meant a lot to the little idiot. Eiri wasn't going to admit it to anyone else – he had trouble admitting it to himself- but he cared a lot about the younger man, and that was one of the reasons why he felt like a complete ass right now. He took off his glasses and threw them on to the desk top before leaning his head back against the leather hair.
"Damn it."
Shuichi threw himself on the couch and curled his knees up to his chest. "Why does he always have to be like that?" He said out loud in a soft voice, "Why can't I ask you anything without it getting on your nerves Yuki…?"
Depressingly, Shuichi reached down and grabbed the remote that was lying peacefully on the coffee table. The TV flashed to life. He curled back up in to a ball and switched the channels. Ha, you think that with five-hundred-something channels, one would find something to watch? Think again. On channel two hundred – something, Shuichi felt his eyes get heavy.
He forgot how long his day was while he tried to persuade Yuki. Unfortunately, that was catching up. Almost impulsively, he fell sideward and landed with a soft 'thump' on the pillows. The last thing he saw before his world went blissfully black was the commercial announcement of Bad Luck's tour with Nittle Grasper.
TBC