Yoshiki stood slowly, stretching his arms high, his drumsticks held in one hand. Pata, impatient, was still playing a few random notes on his guitar, and after singing Toshi had immediately abandoned his microphone for the more favourable bottle of water. But Heath was the best. Having jumped around during the last song, which was a torture on him after so many long hours of practise, he had collapsed into the last note and was lying spread-eagle on his back, his bass next to him and his tongue sticking lazily out of his mouth like a dog's. Yoshiki smiled at his band, laughing internally at what Hide would have said to tease Heath.
"Okay," Yoshiki said finally, and the entire band turned minutely toward him, expecting to be asked to do it again. "I think that's good for now." Heath made a loud sound of weary happiness, and Pata laughed at him, poking him with his toe once he had set his guitar in its stand. Yoshiki set his drumsticks on the stool and leaned down to pick up his discarded shirt. The sound of the door slamming went unnoticed, as it was assumed someone was leaving, but Toshi's mutter of acknowledgement threw that away completely.
"Konban wa, Kaoru-san." Yoshiki stood abruptly, smacking his head into one of his cymbals, but he caught it before it could tumble to the ground, stilling the metal with one hand as he uprighted it. Kaoru smirked at him from the doorway, and he blushed slightly. Walking by him, Pata patted his shoulder, and Yoshiki waved the hand away. Toshi called goodbye as he left, followed closely by Heath and Pata, who seemed in a great hurry to get out. Once they were alone, Yoshiki rolled his eyes minutely.
"Wonder why they were in such a rush," Kaoru commented sarcastically, and Yoshiki gave him a mildly annoyed look, buttoning up his shirt. "What did I do this time?" Kaoru asked, pulling out his cell phone as it beeped. Yoshiki sighed and stretched a little more, waiting patiently for Kaoru to respond to his text message before approaching the man and pressing their lips together. His hand trailed down Kaoru's spine, sending chills all through the guitarist's body, and kept going, slipping into his side pocket. Suddenly the hand was withdrawn and the kiss broken, and Yoshiki lit the stolen cigarette.
"You've never come to our practise before," he said nonchalantly, hooking his thumb into his pocket as he replaced his lighter. Kaoru stood dumbfounded for a moment, staring at the cigarette as it burned slowly.
"No," he said after a moment, putting his hands back in his own pockets warily. "Why so shocked? Do they know about...?" he asked vaguely, and Yoshiki merely looked at him.
"Why?" he asked, taking another drag before continuing his thought. "Would it bother you if they did?" Kaoru shrugged.
"Not really. I just...didn't expect it." Yoshiki sighed and flicked the cigarette in a rather feminine way, which made Kaoru smile internally. He slipped his hand into his pocket and lit up his own cigarette.
"It's been so long..." Yoshiki said quietly, and Kaoru tried not to second-guess that phrase. "It doesn't matter, then, does it? So, why did you come? Just to tease me?" Yoshiki stepped a little closer, a teasingly inquisitive but deadly look in his eyes. It held the kind of intensity Kaoru had been drawn to in the man, and he fought back dirty thoughts of the many ways to cause that expression.
"Didn't you know? That's my goal in life," he joked, earning a quirked eyebrow as Yoshiki put the cigarette out in a random ashtray by the couch. "But no." He stalled, sucking down the rest of his cigarette and crushing it into the porcelain next to Yoshiki's. "There's a new ice cream shop nearby, and I thought you might like to have some ice cream with me." There it was, and it sounded just as childish out loud as it had in Kaoru's head. He nearly winced. Yoshiki blinked at him.
"...Ice cream?" he asked after a moment, as if it were the strangest thing in the world. Kaoru raised his hand, ready to wave the comment away, but Yoshiki stopped him. "You mean it?" The question was high-pitched, as if he were a child struggling to hide their enthusiasm. Kaoru let his hand fall and nodded.
"I didn't know if you'd want to. It is public...and I know you probably don't want to be seen in public with me too often. I sort of..."
"Kaoru," Yoshiki said softly, an admonition. "You came to invite me to ice cream, not babble all over yourself like an idiot. Are we going?" He was already off, and Kaoru had to jog a few steps to catch up to him. He waited for him to lock the door, then set a brisk pace down the street.
"No car?" Yoshiki asked, lingering a little.
"No. It's a just a little way; I parked my car there," he called back, not hesitating as he knew the older man could catch up. He did so quickly, and walked beside him, leaving a little space between them for decency. They came upon the ice cream shop quickly, and Kaoru ducked into it, followed by a somewhat wary Yoshiki. Being out so casually was a little unnatural for him, especially in the middle of the day, in the middle of a Japanese city...but once he was sure no fangirls were going to squee and approach him for his autograph he came up behind Kaoru. The guitarist gave him a look, to which he shook his head.
"In a few years, you'll understand," he said, which didn't help Kaoru any. He turned back to the huge array of sweet frozen treats in front of him, and began to negotiate pricings per scoop with the man behind them. The place was much like a Baskin Robbins, which Yoshiki adored, and he eagerly scanned the buckets for something to make an interesting combination with. He heard Kaoru pick out his own, and then his name, and turned to the man behind the buckets.
"I'd like to have chocolate," he said, definitively, and Kaoru looked at him, a little shocked. He knew better than to question Yoshiki in public, but in his mind he was thinking That's it? What did I bring you here for? The man gave Kaoru his ice cream, then Yoshiki, and they payed for it separately. Kaoru led the way out of the ice cream shop, starting to munch impatiently.
"Itadakimasu," Yoshiki said quietly, and Kaoru shook his head a little.
"I'd think you'd be out of that habit by now," he commented, and Yoshiki blinked at him. "Did you want to eat here, or go someplace?" Kaoru asked, and Yoshiki thought for a moment.
"Can't we just walk?" he asked, and Kaoru hesitated before nodding and leading the way down the sidewalk. Today felt very different. They were simply there, together - in public even! There was no hiding, no secrets, no sex, just something pure, something sweet, yet slightly cold, like ice cream. After a moment Kaoru broke the silence between them, feeling somewhat awkward.
"Why chocolate?" he asked, and Yoshiki glanced at him fleetingly, continuing the slaughter of his triple-scoop cone. "You had all those options, and it's so unlike you to not do something crazy with them." Yoshiki merely continued eating, not even turning to look at him.
"What did you get?" he asked after a second, and Kaoru glanced at him.
"Caramel-vanilla-pistachio-mocha," he said, suddenly realising the oddness of the combination. "Why do you ask?" Instead of answering, Yoshiki suddenly pulled Kaoru close and sniffed at him, then at his ice cream cone. Kaoru stopped, startled.
"I like chocolate better," he answered cryptically, and continued walking as if nothing at all had occurred between them. Kaoru stood in his place, watching as Yoshiki drifted to a park bench and slouched in it, resting one arm across the back of it and licking at his ice cream placidly. Taking another large bite of his own cone he followed the man and sat next to him, somewhat hesitantly.
"Okay," he said after a moment, "who are you and what have you done with Yoshiki?" Yoshiki laughed quietly, closing his eyes.
"It must be the sugar, getting to my head," he said quietly. "You know, I adore the smell of your cigarettes on you. I like it even better than your ice cream." Kaoru smiled.
"Better than chocolate?" Yoshiki scoffed.
"Nothing is better than chocolate." Kaoru quirked a brow and shut himself up by eating more ice cream. There were a million things he could have said at that moment, but to each of them the rule "not in public" applied. A silence fell over them, to the background of a light breeze stirring the trees and cars on a fairly distant street. Kaoru let his own eyes close, keeping the ice cream close enough that he would still be able to eat it. It was so comfortable, just sitting in his presence, knowing there was no strife between them, that everything was fine in the world, if only for a few moments. Unconsciously, their hands found each other against the wood of the bench and linked themselves, making them inch closer. After what seemed like an eternity, Yoshiki broke the stillness with a sudden, loud crunch. Kaoru opened his eyes and turned to Yoshiki, who was eating the cone the ice cream had been in.
"You eat the cone?" he asked, incredulous. Yoshiki's brow furrowed.
"Don't you?" Kaoru continued to stare, and he smiled and ruffled the younger man's hair, something he knew irked him. "Wierdo." He laughed a little and broke off a piece, holding it out to Kaoru.
"It's sweet and crunchy. This one kind of tastes like a burnt graham cracker." Yoshiki laughed aloud at the face Kaoru made. He loved to share the things he enjoyed with others, in the hopes that they would enjoy them, as well. So, knowing he would hear about it later if he didn't, Kaoru took the piece from him and cautiously put it in his mouth. Politely, he chewed, trying not to make a face, which only made Yoshiki laugh more. His gaiety was infectious, and soon Kaoru was laughing, too, the evil piece of cone completely forgotten. Yoshiki broke their laughter suddenly by taking a bite in the middle of Kaoru's ice cream. The smile lingered on Kaoru's face, though he was somewhat stunned. He looked sadly at the ice cream, and pouted, wanting instinctively to hear more of the man's sweet laughter. Instantly he was rewarded, and Yoshiki shoved his shoulder playfully.
"Hey, that's not too bad," Yoshiki said, his eyes shining from laughter. "I'll trade you." Kaoru gaped playfully at him, and they both laughed some more. The laughter died slowly this time, and they both settled back once more. Yoshiki turned on his side to watch as Kaoru finished his ice cream, munching slowly on his cone. When he was down to his cone, Kaoru glanced flirtatiously at Yoshiki.
"I imagine you want this," he said, offering the cone to him. Yoshiki took it, but dumped both of the cones into the trash can beside the bench. He scooted closer to confide in Kaoru, and smiled mischievously.
"I've thought of something better than chocolate," he said quietly, his voice low and suggestive. Kaoru nearly gulped. It should be illegal to be as beautiful, desirable and...well, perfect as Yoshiki.
"What's that, tenshi?" he asked. Yoshiki's eyes softened just a little. Glancing indiscreetly around them to make sure the coast was clear, he gave Kaoru a soft, meaningful kiss.
"You." Suddenly there was a squee, and Yoshiki reacted to it by pushing himself into a casual sitting position, totally composed. A young girl approached them nervously, a huge smile on her face. She had blue hair, which she had tied into pigtails, and she was wearing a slightly gothic schoolgirl outfit.
"Are you Yoshiki?" she asked in somewhat broken Japanese. Yoshiki nodded placidly, leaning forward. "Can I have your autograph, please?" she asked, this time in English. Yoshiki smiled at her happily and held out his hand for her paper and pen.
"What's your name?" he asked, and she took a deep breath, beaming.
"Ashley." Yoshiki wrote the girl a brief note, then signed his name, putting the now blessed paper and pen back into her shaking hands. She threw herself abruptly into a 90-degree-angle bow, and thanked him in the most elabourate way she knew. Then, smiling, she bounced away as if she were afraid of the man. Kaoru watched with fascination, and Yoshiki sat back and watched her go.
"That was..."
"Absolutely terrifying," Yoshiki finished. He sighed. "I love them, perhaps more than they love me, but sometimes they really do have bad timing." He rubbed his temples for a moment, then turned back to Kaoru. "Do you mind-"
"Come on," Kaoru interrupted, standing and offering his hand. Yoshiki took it and stood with him. Suddenly Yoshiki's phone rang, and he took a few steps away to answer it. Kaoru watched as he had a clipped conversation with someone in English, then walked back over, an apologetic expression painted onto his face. "I'll give you a ride," Kaoru offered, not waiting for an explanation. Yoshiki nodded slowly, looking ashamed, and followed Kaoru back to his car.
"Thank you," he said when they had settled into the car. Kaoru put his keys in the ignition and turned to give Yoshiki a much longer kiss. His hand snaked behind the man's neck, and Yoshiki's hands drifted up toward Kaoru's shoulders. After a moment he pushed him away, biting his lip. "I'll be late," he said quietly, almost an apology. Kaoru blinked for a moment, before settling back into his seat and asking for directions.
After dropping Yoshiki off, Kaoru picked out another cigarette and lit it, then turned on the radio because the silence in his mind was getting to him. Ironically, they were playing "Crucify My Love", and Kaoru smiled. The song made him think of Yoshiki, not the tragedy of the band or the lyrics itself, and he found himself sniffing the air. The pleasant smell of his special mint-tobacco cigarettes filled the car, and he knew the smell was on him. Randomly, he found himself struck to drive to the convenience store, because mint chocolate ice cream sounded like the perfect end to such an interesting day.