Hi guys! Okay, y'all can put down the torches and pitchforks now! ^_^;;; Anyway, I hope y'all enjoy this!
My heart becomes so warm
"Hi everyone and welcome to the show for the latest in Japanese pop culture, I'm Nana Oniga. Our top story: not too long ago, one of Japan's most talented and high profile musicians, Seiya Kou of the Three Lights, was in the news for being involved in the alleged assault of a young girl—a Usagi Tsukino—at a posh club in Roppongi. Though sources reveal that he wasn't directly involved, it did not stop the paparazzi from finding him at school the next day…"
Scene cuts to a recording of Seiya pushing his way through the press crowd at Tenth Street. Reporters and photographers ask questions, but they go unanswered. Nana still talks over the footage.
"The story goes that the Three Lights were made an appearance at Club Unite in the Roppongi district last Thursday night. Each of them brought dates who are also schoolmates of theirs."
The scene shows the video camera footage from the night and then an interview with the owner of the club.
"Apparently it went that the young lady was sitting at the bar all by herself and was approached by a strange man. Before she knew it, he was trying to drag her out the door. Luckily she screamed loud enough for my head bartender to come and save her."
"Where was Seiya Kou during all this?" The unnamed interviewer asked from behind the camera.
The club owner shrugged. "Off talking to Kieta."
Nana is heard as a voiceover. "But the even bigger surprise was that later that next day; him and Usagi left school grounds together."
Footage changes to a quick interview given by Seiya with his arm around Usagi. "It was just a misunderstanding between friends and we've worked it out." Seiya stated. "In no way did I directly contribute to her assault but all that matters is that it's cleared up between Miss Tsukino and me."
"Miss Tsukino, could you comment on what happened?" Came a voice from behind the camera.
The odango-head blushed and giggled nervously before Seiya spoke for her.
"Sorry but, we have to get going. We'll be taking your questions at a later time." He said before he began plowing through the crowd to a waiting car.
Scene cuts back to Nana. "Well that's a relief for those two and we here at Japanese Gossip wish them all the best. Miss Tsukino has not pressed charges as of yet. Watch out for the Three Light's new single which is rumored to drop later this month on Seiya Kou's birthday, July 30."
Usagi expelled an exasperated sigh. "God, I looked so dumb." She was panged with feeling sympathy for Seiya and his life in the limelight. Though, she quickly changed the channel and her mood when she heard her mother's footsteps padding toward the living room. Once the purple-haired woman made her entrance, it was revealed that she was holding a very fluffy Lala.
"Usagi, do you plan to take Lala for her grooming today?"
"Eh… well I was thinking later this week since I spent half of my allowance on her collar."
Ikuko rolled her eyes. "Half of your allowance went on a collar? Does it also grant wishes? A collar should be the last thing on your list. She needs to be groomed. Look at her! I can sweep the floor with her overgrown mane."
"Okay, well then can I get an advance?" Usagi was quickly becoming irate. "If you want me to do it today so badly, then you need to help me out a bit."
The mother huffed. "We've only had her for a couple of weeks. You need to take care of her properly, and that includes her scheduled grooming. She's your dog."
"Yeah, yeah… God!"
"Don't 'yeah, yeah' me! If you plan to keep her, you need to act more responsible."
The blonde's eyes widened in pure horror. "You can't give her away, she was a gift!"
"Gift or not, I will-" Ikuko was abruptly cut off by the ringing of the doorbell. She growled. "Hold on, we're not through. Stay here." The mother put Lala down on the ground and strode to the foyer to open the front door while barely missing an aggravated Usagi making a face at her mother's back.
"Hello, Tsukino residence! I'm here for a Lala Tsukino!" An overtly happy woman holding a huge duffel bag and a fold-out table stood at the doorstep. She was fully clad in what looked like a white lab coat with a logo of a dog stitched over her left breast.
Ikuko raised a brow. "I'm sorry, who are you?"
"Oh please excuse me." The woman dropped her things to properly greet the lady of the house with a bow. "My name is Nina and I'm here from Head to Tails Pet Grooming." She reached into her coat and pulled out a business card to hand to a still very confused Ikuko. "I'm scheduled for Lala's grooming today."
"Oh no, no, we didn't order any grooming from you guys. You must be mistaken." She had heard about how Head to Tails was famous for their 30,000 yen services, not including the full-body massage. And she knew her husband was too frugal to even consider professionally grooming any animal. Could there really be another Lala Tsukino?
"Don't worry ma'am. The bill is already taken care of." Nina winked as if she was reading the mother's mind.
"It… has…? By who?"
He promptly and effortlessly entered his key into the lock of the mailbox and gave it one sharp turn to the left. Once the small metal door opened, Taiki's long hand reached inside to retrieve the clutter of bills and letters that were nestled tightly in the tiny box. For a bit, the copper-headed musician sifted through the envelopes and occasionally tossed some of them in a nearby trashcan that he judged useless. His efficient filing was disrupted by sudden confusion once he reached the third to last envelope; it was colored purple, had clearly been sprayed with fruity perfume as the scent wafted around his nose and Seiya's name was elaborately written across the packet.
The tall Light brusquely made it to his apartment and opened the front door. His target was right where he wanted him to be: lazing on the couch, attentively playing a video game.
"Hey guys." Taiki called out before closing the door.
"Hey…" Yaten barely spoke as he waved from his position sitting at the dining room table, never taking his lime irises from the book he was reading.
Seiya's eyes and body stayed fixated in their place—at the TV and on the couch. His deep concentration caused him to be silent to Taiki's greeting.
"Seiya, I'm home!" Taiki raised his voice to specifically get Seiya's attention.
He swiftly turned his head to look to his tall band mate. "Welcome home," he uttered before his neck swiveled his eyes right back to watching the TV.
The brown-headed teenager meandered over to situate himself standing behind the couch. "A funny thing happened today. You've received some mail."
"Just lay it on the counter. I'll look at it later." The black-haired idol bit his bottom lip while his determined gape intensified. He started pressing the buttons more fervently and steered the controller to the right, as if that would have helped his digital vehicle turn.
Taiki nodded and took the pretty parchment packet in his hand to give it another onceover. "Actually would you mind if I just opened it now? I'm sure it's nothing."
"Sure… whatever. Who's it from?"
"Head to Tails. Gotta say: that's one hell of a stripper name." The giant genius of the group grinned mischievously at the sight of Seiya abruptly pausing the video game and standing up; its importance now dwindled.
"Actually, I'll just look at it by myself. Thanks." The raven-headed boy timidly smiled and tried to snatch the purple envelope from Taiki's hand. But the giant had a firm grip on it.
"Now I've read up on Dobermans and found that they're quite the minimal shedders. Professional grooming isn't necessarily needed." His mauve eyes gazed deep into Seiya's dark blues, trying to break his wall through the intense stare.
And he fell right into the trap. "Well, uh… it's uh… um… hah, it's not for Coco."
"Uh HUH, I knew it. What are you doing paying for her dog's grooming now? What's its name, Kiki or something?"
"It's Lala… and don't act so dramatic. This is just the first one. And besides, it's kind of my fault for buying her a dog that requires so much grooming."
A copper eyebrow raised in skepticism. "Really, Seiya? Did she say that while unzipping your pants?"
He groaned in vexation and pulled the envelope out of Taiki's loosened clutch. "Odango's always complaining about how she never has any money to hang out anymore because she has to take care of that dog. I'm just helping out."
"You were already helping her out anyway. I've never seen her pay for anything when you're with her… ever."
He rolled his eyes and scoffed. "You know what? Just lay off. I'll do what I want with my money. If I want to spend it on Odango, I'll spend it on Odango. I like hanging out with her and if it requires a little money to do so then fine."
"A little defensive today, are we?" Yaten observed and gave away his silent place of eavesdropping.
Seiya turned to the silver-haired boy to give him the death glare from hell until Taiki made a comment that made it disappear as soon as he even thought to give it.
"You love her."
He quickly looked to Taiki, his mouth slightly agape and his eyes softened in feigned misunderstanding. "What?"
"I get it now… you're in love with Usagi."
Seiya's mouth emitted a fake laugh as he briskly shook his head. "That's… How can you-? You're talking out of your ass!"
"Then what it is? She obviously has you in her palm." The tall Light grinned.
"You know what, this conversation is over. You need to learn to mind your own fucking business from now on." Seiya spat at his band mate with glaring eyes and venom in his tone. He stamped promptly to his room before slamming the door shut.
Yaten raised a silver eyebrow. "Damn, I think we made him a bit upset."
"It's because it's true and he knows it…" Taiki mumbled.
"What makes you think he's in love?"
"I didn't initially. I said it just to fuck with him and he pretty much admitted it himself with his response."
Yaten chuckled. "You're a bastard. He never admitted he loved her."
"He didn't deny it either…"
Yaten shrugged. "I think he's just coming off fucking up with her. He's excited that she's forgiven him. Seiya's never in anything for the long-haul. I bet it'll wear off soon."
"I bet not. You said it yourself: he's excited about making up. Usually he would have moved on if anything got tough in the slightest between him and another girl. This is the longest he's ever talked to the same girl… in his life… ever…"
The silver-headed teenager folded his arms and defiantly glared at Taiki. "Alright then, why was he just totally ragging it when you brought it up?"
"He's just afraid…" Taiki trailed off as he looked toward Seiya's closed door.
"Ah! It's free! Mako, hurry!"
"I'm on it!" the lengthy brunette used her inherent athletic skills and raced toward the girls' usual lunch spot under the oak tree. For the last couple of weeks during the summertime, the shady spot had been taken up by other various cliques and the girls had to resort to eating inside or under the blistering sun. If only Ami would not take so long during her bathroom breaks. But today, they made it.
The remaining three teenagers caught up with Makoto and sat a circle before they began unpacking their lunches. Though Minako noticed that their clique seemed significantly smaller today…
"Where're the Lights?"
The rest of the group was also in stupefaction before Usagi spoke up.
"They had to leave in order to finalize their trip to Hawaii. They're going there to film their music video next week during summer break."
Makoto smirked. "Well aren't we in the know all of a sudden? I'm surprised you're not going with them."
The blonde snorted. "Why would I go with them?"
"Ugh, never mind…" the tall brunette shook her head and commenced on eating her lunch.
"Speaking of Seiya, I couldn't help but notice that's quite a nice Juicy school bag you have there…" Ami stated. The girls were whispering behind their odango-headed friend's back for a few days now. Ever since the fiasco at the club, it would be expected that their relationship be tainted but it, in fact, made them closer than ever. All three had conspired to try to get something out of her during the lunch hour. So far, Minako's and Makoto's inquiries provided the right opening for Ami to take her proactive approach.
Usagi beamed. "You like it? Seiya bought it for me for my birthday. I had my old one since first year and it was looking pretty sad. He insisted on this one since designer lasts a long time."
"But you're a third year…" Minako reasoned, sneakily.
"Well, I do plan to go to a university. They carry bags around too."
"Fair enough." The red-bowed flaxen backed off.
Usagi sneered and glared at her friends. "What's with you guys? You've been acting strange all week."
Makoto smirked. "What's up with you and Seiya?"
The odango-head gave her group the evil eye, catching onto their subtle cunningness. "Is that what this is about: Seiya and me?"
"Honestly, when was it ever about anything else?" Ami asked before shoving a rice ball in her mouth.
"You're just looking especially… couture lately, and people are… wondering…" Minako sputtered, "And you're not talking."
"Ugh, I can't believe you guys! It's no one's business anyway." Usagi rolled her eyes.
"That's saying a lot by saying nothing. You're hiding something." Makoto alleged.
"I'm not hiding anything! There's nothing to tell because there's nothing going on! There, you happy?" Usagi explained furiously.
Ami could not help but blush at her blonde friend's outrage. "But is that what you're really trying to keep to yourself?"
"Do you WISH that something was going on?" Makoto winked.
The odango-head opened her mouth to defend herself but all that could come out was silence. Who was she really trying to fool? No matter how hard she tried to hide anything, she could not hide anything well from her threee best friends. Though, it would be nice to let it out. If she thought about it enough, they technically were on her side.
But she did not want to look stupid. She was embarrassed enough of how Seiya treated her at the club and that the whole nation knew about it. She did not want to come off as if she were chasing someone. She did not want to let them know of how much she thought about him and that night they locked themselves in his room during the house party. And she did the unthinkable of caring for him a lot more than she intended and knew she could for a person.
"No," She muttered. Usagi snorted and shook her head. "We're just friends."
"Bullshit!" Minako barked. "I've never seen you lie so hard through your teeth. You love Seiya!"
The odango-haired teenager choked on her own saliva when Minako spoke her mind. "Excuse me?"
Reverting back to being in grade school, the red-bowed girl waved her arms and hips in a little jig. "You love Seiya. You love Seiya!"
"Mina, please. Be quiet." Usagi pleaded quietly at her sing-song friend. Although Makoto and Ami were contently taking in the entertaining sight and did not think to help cure Usagi's discomfiture.
"You love Seiya! You wanna marry him and have his babies… Na na na na na na!" Minako continued.
"Mina, STOP IT! Just leave me alone, okay?" There was a flame in Usagi's eyes that no one had ever seen before; it was a mixture of annoyance and denial. As all three of her comrades stared at her in silence and trepidation, the enraged odango-head packed up her barely eaten bento box and stormed off across the schoolyard and back into the school building.
"What was THAT?" Makoto frantically looked to her the remaining seated friends for answers.
"I've never seen Usagi act that way." Ami stated from behind her hand, her sea-blue eyes glancing at Minako.
Minako gulped. "I didn't mean to make her upset… I didn't think it would…"
"Apparently she's really sensitive about this for some reason or another, but why?" The tall brunette furrowed her brow and looked to her half-eaten lunch.
"Because she does love him…" Ami observed.
Minako and Makoto turned to their blue-haired friend in confusion and anticipation for the explanation.
"What? But she just got so pissed off about it-" Minako began.
"If she didn't love him, she wouldn't have gotten so angry," Ami carried on over Minako, "And she didn't say that she didn't love him… she would have denied it immediately if that were the case. Wouldn't you think?"
"She's right," Makoto piped up, "But love? Really? She's so young… HE'S so young."
"Something's there, though, most definitely." The remaining blonde spoke. Her comment gave her a bemused feeling in the pit of her stomach.
Looking intently at the last period's teacher as he lectured, but having her mind completely elsewhere, Usagi curled one of her golden tendrils around her finger. Right about now she should be feeling Seiya poking at her back or messing with locks of her hair by wrapping it around pencil in severe boredom… but not today. Seiya was initially a distraction and dreadful annoyance for the odango-head but throughout the warm months, had had come up to warm up to his antics and flirtatious advances… a lot.
Maybe too much.
Feeling these intense emotions surpassed the giggly schoolgirl crush phase Usagi experienced during her attraction for Mamoru. The mishap at the nightclub indicated just how strong her and Seiya's relationship was. There was something to test it; you always had to know the bitter in order to know the sweet. And oh were there ever such sweet moments shared between them.
Finally the bell rang to release the students from school altogether. Usagi slowly gathered her things and did not hesitate to start walking out the door with the rest of the pupil herd, not bothering to wait for any of her three friends. And they were neither racing to catch up with her. Instead, they were more than likely gathered together at Makoto's desk whispering and gossiping about her blow-up at lunch or, as always, the status of her and Seiya's liaison. Usagi would have thought they would be bored of it now, but she just HAD to get upset and storm off and give them something more to talk about. The odango-head still had not calmed down since lunch period and needed to sleep on the situation before she would approach them for an apology. She took it out of hand and knew Minako was only being herself. But for now, she just wanted to curl with Lala and take a nap to clear her mind of the clutter and just… rest.
As the flock of students dispersed in different directions, it was as if the Red Sea had been parted only for Usagi to be staring straight into the sunglasses-covered eyes of Seiya Kou. There he was leaning casually against the wall with his hands nestled comfortably in his pockets and wearing that knee-weakening, roguish smirk on his face; that smile was a blessing and a curse for the blonde. Even though his dark eyes were covered with the wafer-like sunglasses, she could tell they were staring straight at her.
"Seiya, what are you doing back? Finished with everything?" Usagi strolled to him with a partly feigned closed-mouth smile on her face. Hell, she was happy to see him but just his presence alone did not make her forget the early happenings of the day; in fact, it just brought to issue even more to the forefront of her mind.
"I thought I'd come by to pick you up." He responded, still showing off that damned smirk.
"Aw how sweet of you," she chuckled, "But I have a manga club meeting."
The idol shrugged. "Skip it."
She cocked a golden eyebrow. "Yeah… I can't do that."
"Sure you can. The door's right there." Seiya pointed past Usagi to a set of main doors near her homeroom. The bright afternoon sunlight spilled into the dim, artificially lit enclosed high school hallways every time a student opened the door to exit.
Usagi continued chuckling to hide her nervousness. Maybe it would not be so bad to skip… "No, I don't think I can…"
"I'll buy you cake." The raven-headed pop star knew all too well how to get to the heart of persuading the blonde beauty.
She was now fully laughing. "Seiya, I can't. I've never skipped before." She was careful to harshly whisper that last sentence throughout her snickering. Her mind went back and forth as to whether or not cake would be something adequate enough to sacrifice her presence at an anime and manga meeting in return. Her internal judgment was pointing to yes.
"It's easy. Just come with me." He did not wait for her to once more negatively respond to his statement and quickly grabbed her hand. Forceful enough to pull her close to him but still gentle that he did not hurt the girl, Seiya interlace his fingers with hers and bent down to deeply whisper in her ear. "If you get caught, you can just tell them I made you. You're my hostage for the day."
Usagi had to practically slap herself out of her stupor in order to keep her balance behind Seiya whilst he dragged her away.
"Oh my God, this cupcake is SO good." Usagi spoke while her mouth was still full with the fluffy yet creamy texture of strawberries and butter cream. She did not bother to wipe off any cake crumbs from her mouth quite yet.
"Good. It came from the best bakery in the district." Seiya smiled as he watched her inhale her bribe. Both of the teenagers had just sat down on a lonely bench at a park for Usagi to enjoy her treat.
She wiped her chin of escaped frosting and licked her finger so as to not waste the tasty, sugary confection. "…As well as the most expensive bakery in the whole city. At least I got what you paid for," the blonde winked, "You want some?" She held the remnants of the destroyed dessert out to Seiya.
"No thanks. I gotta maintain my rock star body." The idol patted his stomach and grinned.
Usagi giggled and took it upon herself to resume inhaling the offered cupcake scraps. "You're missing out on some of the best cupcakes in the district."
"Well only the best for you, Odango…"
He whispered his statement inaudibly enough for Usagi to not hear. She carelessly crumpled up the flimsy mini cake liner and threw it away in a nearby trashcan. Wiping her face of any remaining frosting or cake crumbs, she focused all her attention on Seiya. "So what do you want to do today?"
Seiya shrugged. "I don't know. I thought I could take you shopping again."
"Again, really?" Any other day she would have jumped at the offer and had him take her to the nearest high-end department store as fast as humanly possible. But today shopping just was not in her blood. Usagi felt bad coming home with bags of designer swag that she did not pay for. Sure Seiya offered every time and gladly paid… every time, but she wanted something more out of him. "But you just took me shopping."
"That was so long ago. I'm sure they've gotten more shipments in." He pulled out his cell phone from his back pocket and began fooling with it. "I'll call Roger to come pick us up-"
"Wait, no!" Usagi halted Seiya's dialing by putting her hands on his wrist that held the phone. She realized how loud she was and coughed to pass it off as a fluke of her voice. "I mean… why not another time? I'm kind of tired." Again with the half-lies; she simply just did not want to give him the impression he was only good for taking her out shopping. And maybe she was hoping for some alone time. Let the hormones rage on.
"Okay, that's fine," Seiya nodded. He switched the phone into his other hand and gently grabbed Usagi's fingers. He was very amused to see her blush. "What do you want to do then?"
She bit her lip to keep herself from squealing practically. And plus what she had in mind was a bit embarrassing so his touch was not the only contender in giving her butterflies. "Why don't we go back to your apartment and watch a movie? I haven't been there since the party and you don't have to spend any money."
Wait for it… wait for it… BAM! That wicked smirk was right on cue. "You want to go my apartment?"
Seiya gave her fingers an extra squeeze.
"Is that okay?"
"Of course."
Usagi slowly followed Seiya into his uptown high-rise apartment and took in the sight before her. Though she had been at his place a couple of times, the visits were separated by a period of weeks and it felt like a new place every time she came back. She still could not get over how she was on close terms with someone who lived so lavishly. She had hanged out with people like her friends who were very good window shoppers, as was she. But to actually be in the presence of someone who actually "has" and "can afford," it felt a bit surreal.
"You still want to watch a movie?" Seiya spoke up, disrupting Usagi's pensiveness as she stared at some painting on the wall that was undoubtedly priced in the thousands.
"Yeah!" she answered.
He pointed toward the TV where a DVD organizer sat beside it. "They're over there. You can pick which one you want."
Usagi silently complied and made her way over to the DVDs. She bent over slightly to get a better view of the film selection of the Three Lights. As she scanned the various titles, she heard Yaten emerge from his room and make small talk with his black-haired roommate after greeting the odango-head. She gave indication to Yaten that she was aware of him and greeted him back. Her eye then caught a peculiar DVD case on the bottom row that was all white with no title on the spine. Picking it up, she read the front cover with the words: "Seiya Kou: ages 5–12" written across. She turned to the conversing boys.
"Seiya, what's this?" Usagi waved the case to give him a view of it. Almost immediately after doing so, both of the boys' pairs of eyes widened; Yaten's lime-green hues held excitement and Seiya's steel blues were filled with horror.
"Oh yes, I completely forgot about this!" Yaten gasped elatedly and approached Usagi to take the DVD case and read the title for himself. "You found this in there?" He pointed to the multi-shelved organizer. The blonde nodded for her answer.
"Y'know, it's probably recorded over…" Seiya nervously said. He too walked over to join Usagi and Yaten.
"I'll bet it's not," the silver-haired teenager winked. "Let's give it a look." He opened the case to retrieve the DVD.
"What is it?" Usagi questioned, looking to both boys in inquisitiveness.
"You'll find out soon enough…" Yaten bit his tongue impishly and squatted in front of the entertainment center to turn on the DVD player.
Seiya looked like he was about to have a heart attack. "Yaten, please, she doesn't need to see that."
"Oh yes she does!"
"Now I'm really curious." Usagi put her hands on her hips and eyed the dark-headed idol guardedly. "What's on there that you don't want me to see?"
"Hilarity, that's what." Yaten threw his head back in laughter while loading the disc tray with the DVD. He went over to a chair to seat himself and Usagi was about to mimic him, although her eye was on the couch. She grabbed Seiya's wrist and coaxed him to follow.
"C'mon, Seiya, I promise I won't laugh." She winked and smiled.
"Yes you will." Seiya snickering sounded defeated. There was no way out at this point.
And was he ever right. The DVD turned out to contain old footages of commercials and acting parts he achieved when he was a child. Usagi especially had a fun time watching a coffee drink advertisement featuring a six-year-old Seiya sitting in a classroom about to pass out. The idea suddenly hits him that he has a can of a BOSS coffee drink laying in his desk. After sneaking a sip while the teacher was turned around writing on the chalkboard, his whole desk began to emit smoke and eventually powered up like a rocket. The ending scene showed him flying and crashing through the roof and into the sky whilst yelling in enjoyment, a cloud of smoke trailing behind him in his path spelled out the brand name.
"Oh my God, that was YOU? I remember watching that commercial when I was little. I thought you were so cool." Usagi managed to admit in between spouts of laughter. Half of her amusement came from seeing her pop star friend red in the face, having to hug herself to keep her sides from splitting.
A few more scenes came up highlighting small parts of little Seiya in movie roles. He played a child of a serial killer on an episode of an old, shortly-lived cop show, had five lines as an extra in a G-rated kids' film and was a spokesperson for a chewy candy among other small and big parts alike. Both Yaten and Usagi were having the time of their lives watching the young idol in his early days of acting.
"You never told me you were acting at that age." Usagi elbowed Seiya.
He shrugged. "It was a time I wanted to forget." His blue eyes darted every which way but at Usagi's.
"Oh c'mon, it's funny! You were a very cute little boy and a good actor I might add." She brushed off his comment as his embarrassment talking and recommenced watching Seiya's digital résumé.
After a few moments of uneasiness, Seiya had enough. "I'll be right back," He patted Usagi's knee and used it to push himself upward in a standing position. He briskly walked out of the living room and through his bedroom doorframe. The odango-head and Yaten paid no heed to Seiya's departure as their focus was still fixed on the DVD.
The next clip shed light on the rationale for Seiya's nervousness.
The scene looked to be home video footage of the eleven-year-old boy. It was a definite awkward stage that could be recognized by his pimply face. Behind him was a blue screen and he held a script in his hands and would look past the camera as if he was talking to someone; a producer perhaps. The conversation proved inaudible. He cleared his throat before he read a few lines as best as he could. Unfortunately, he kept stuttering and slurring his words. Not to mention his voice was cracking like crazy. After a few awkward coughs and laughs, he excused himself to get a glass of water and walked off-screen. The microphone that was still clipped to his shirt revealed an element of his childhood that was kept under wraps for years until now.
"What're you doing?"
"I just need a drink of water…"
"Why? What's wrong? Why are you messing up?"
"I don't know. I just need some water."
"My boy doesn't mess up! What are you doing fucking this up?"
"Dad, please, I'm sorry. I just need some water!"
"You won't get anything until you read the scene and read it correctly! What's wrong with you?"
The tears could be heard in Seiya's quivering voice. "Nothing's wrong! Dad, I'm sorry."
Static overshadowed the next set of words exchanged between father and son, a clue that perhaps the father was man-handling his once cash cow offspring. Usagi sat there in awe and silence in response to what she was hearing. Before the tears would accumulate, the scene was abruptly paused. The blonde looked over at Yaten who was pointing the remote control at the DVD player with a similar saddened and sympathetic expression.
"I forgot about that… I'm sorry you had to see that," the silver-headed boy muttered while placing the remote on the arm of the chair.
She looked around the room to find Seiya still missing. The thought of looking for him crossed her mind but her interest in what she just saw kept her seated.
"What was going on there?" Usagi asked, waiting for Yaten to respond after a few meditative minutes.
"Seiya was just another son of a stage parent. My uncle pushed him very hard. His mom left them when Seiya was about four and his dad didn't want to work, I guess. He pushed Seiya into show business and it was good for a while. But of course, every kid hits their awkward stage and by the time he was twelve, he wasn't getting anything anymore. He wasn't that cute little boy skyrocketing through a roof or eating candy. He was an awkward teenager with pimply skin, he was growing up. No one would give him anything."
"Was he ever… hit?" Usagi gulped.
Yaten shrugged. "I don't think so. I just think it was mostly all verbal and his dad did push him around a bit, but nothing that would leave a mark. Seiya's face was part of his whole career. He didn't want to hurt his source of income."
"So then what happened? Where is his dad?"
"After a few months of not landing any roles, he practically left him with my mom. He claimed that money was too tight for him to take care of his son properly so he just left him at our doorstep and took off." The shortie took a moment to breathe in order to deal with the reawakening of the formerly dormant memories.
"Is that when you guys starting singing, after he started living with you?"
Yaten nodded. "When he was about fifteen, we heard him singing in the shower and it didn't take us long to realize that he had some chops on him. My mom somehow convinced him to sing for her and she recorded him on an old tape recorder and mailed it to a label. After a few weeks, they wanted him to come in for a demo. But he didn't want to do it alone, y'know? He was so scared of being out on his own." He laughed to himself as the recollections kept flooding out. "He said he wouldn't go in without me, and Taiki wasn't doing anything at the moment so we convinced him to tag along too. So they just signed all three of us. It was a good thing though, because it turned out Seiya had such a talent for music and that Taiki and I could carry a tune. It didn't take him very long to catch on to the piano or any instrument for that matter. So then a week after we cut our first album, guess who calls?"
Usagi looked into Yaten's eyes. "His dad."
He bobbed his head. "He was right on cue. I don't know what was said between him and Seiya that first time but it hasn't stopped him from calling every once in a while. He knew he fucked up big time. Kids aren't awkward for forever and his dad was impatient. That's what he gets."
Usagi stayed silent for a while as she slowly took in what Yaten just told her. Everything was starting to fall into place and to make more sense: Seiya's sexual deviancy, his arrogant façade, his extreme reactions to betrayal…
"I'm going to go see how he's doing." Usagi excused herself and followed the same path to Seiya's bedroom as did he. The door was still open and she could see Seiya's figure standing in front of his sliding glassed balcony doors, looking off into the horizon; the sun was beginning to set into its usual orange glow. The blonde took in the sight of the pop star for a moment so as not to scare him out of his trance. She stepped calmly toward him to stop only a few feet away.
"Seiya?"
He swiftly turned toward the voice, revealing a dry face yet dejected in appearance. The view of her gave the idol the strength to muster a smile.
"Hey, Odango. Are you guys done in there?"
It was no use. He bottom lip began to shake and her sight was glossed in a watery haze. Usagi practically threw herself on Seiya to hold him tight as she sobbed fiercely in his shirt.
"I'm so sorry."
Seiya returned the embrace and rested his cheek on her golden head. "What're you sorry for? You didn't do anything."
"Yaten… told me… everything… about your dad…" She sniffled from the depths of Seiya's chest and dried her tears with the back of her hand. "I hope that's okay."
He sighed and just tightened his hold on the odango-head. He had hoped deep down that some act of God would have interrupted them to keep Usagi from seeing that footage. But if she were to see it, he did not want to be in the room and possibly let her see him upset. Seiya closed his eyes to keep his tears in. "Of course it's fine. I'm sorry you had to see that audition. It's not a good listen for anyone…"
Usagi managed to giggle through her blubbering. "Don't apologize. I'm glad he told me."
"And why's that?"
"Because it just shows how human you really are after all, Seiya Kou." She looked up to rest her chin on his chest as she snickered, trying to lighten up the situation. Seiya took to it and tenderly smiled down at the golden-haired beauty who was just beaming in his arms. He was wishing at the moment that it would have been him, and not Yaten, to reveal to Usagi about his past but it was quickly eclipsed by a sudden desire. Her eyes showed him a look of compassion and concern; something that he had been looking for in someone for a long… long time.
Not being able to contain his emotions, Seiya stroked his hand onto Usagi's cheek to play with a stray golden tendril hanging in front of her ear. He observed her lowering her eyelids in pleasure, just from that delicate touch alone. Lightly, his fingertips brushed through her pulled-back hair and ended up behind her head. He gradually lowered his face to sweep his lips over hers just for a little tease. He could feel her hot breath on his mouth from heavy gasps she emitted, as she was trying to calm herself from this steamy situation.
Seiya went to plant his lips at full-force onto hers when a familiar kids' tune rang throughout the house, as well as Yaten's deafening guffaw, interrupting the heated moment.
"Oh… shit…" the raven-headed idol uttered.
A little perturbed and flustered, Usagi opened her eyes and swallowed back her arousal. "What?"
"He's watching my Barney episode." Seiya released his hold on Usagi and started frantically jogging toward the living room.
It took a few seconds for her to register the situation. "You were on Barney?"