A/N: Thank you for all your faves, reviews and follows!
I'm finally back! Hope you enjoy!
Chapter 33
Birthday Preparations!
…
For the rest of the week, Kise noticed something odd about his other four bandmates, especially his Senpai. Kasamatsu seemed normal throughout the days, but it's after basketball practice that he starts acting weird.
Usually, they'd go home together, but these days, Kasamatsu goes off somewhere with the excuse "I have important things to take care of". A part of him thought that maybe he's seeing Reiko but then again, he couldn't see his Senpai meeting a girl everyday of the week whether or not this girl was his sister.
When Kise got home, he was often time bored, since Kagami, Kuroko and Takao were coming from Tokyo, he'd reach home long before them. But when they got home, Kise noticed strange behaviour from them, reminding him of Kasamatsu.
"They're hiding something from me." The blond surmised. "But what can it be?"
They live together, there's no way they could hide anything. They wear each other's clothes, shoes and even underwear —yes, when they oversleep and Kenji comes breaking down the door, any piece of clothing they catch after they shower, they're putting it on. It's even like that on regular days, as when they come home from school, they put on any t-shirt they want, as long as they're comfortable in it.
"I'll get to the bottom of this." Kise mumbled to himself as he headed to their shared room.
…
…
It was now Saturday, and still, Kise didn't figure out his bandmates' strange behaviour. But, he left it be, as someone was bound to slip up. Plus, he had his birthday coming up tomorrow, and for the life of him, he didn't know what he's going to do. He usually goes out with his family, but now that he's living with four other boys, he wondered if they were planning something as well.
Currently, he was in the living room, watching the TV. He skipped through the channels aimlessly, ignoring the whispers coming from the kitchen. Kagami and Takao were doing the dishes, Kuroko was reading a novel across from him and Kasamatsu was nowhere to be seen.
After breakfast, the captain disappeared into the shower, Kise getting the feeling that he was going somewhere, but come on; it's a Saturday, where would he go? They've already done grocery shopping, clothes shopping and all other shopping one can do, so where is he off to?
"Alright, I'm heading out."
Kise heard the captain's voice and whipped his head around so fast; he might've broken his neck. There, he saw Kasamatsu dressed in an adidas shirt, black jeans and adidas sneakers with his silver wristwatch on. Being in his field for as long as he did, Kise attributed Kasamatsu's look to someone who's going on a casual date. The blond's eyebrow rose in suspicion, but he didn't assume; instead he asked.
"Going somewhere Senpai?"
"Yeah, to Grandma." The captain replied.
"Looking like that?"The blond had visited Kasamatsu's grandparents along with the other members club before, so he knew what his Grandma was like.
"How do I look?" He questioned. "I know I just drew on a simple t-shirt and jeans but I can't look that terrible." Kasamatsu frowned.
"You look like you're going out on a date." The ace dropped it on him hard. His voice was no longer perky, but dead serious. "If you are, you don't have to hide it, you know." His face perked up here, "You know I'll cheer you on."
"I'm not going on a date." He deadpanned. "Really, I'm going to my Grandma."
"Why?"
Kasamatsu smirked. "She's got the tools I need to make a sweetened pastry."
"What?" Kise narrowed his eyes at the smirk. He's known Kasamatsu for a while now and the blond could easily tell when he's up to something.
"Keep your hands on the tools only, Kasamatsu-senpai." Kuroko said in his usual monotone. He peeked from over the top of his novel with mischievous eyes, as if hinting at something.
The steel-blue eyed teen chuckled, "Well, I make no promises."
His reply startled the others there, and since Kise didn't know what they did, he was rather confused. Kasamatsu said he was going to bake a pastry, if he didn't keep his hands on the utensils, then where else would his hands be?
The captain made his way to across the room and to the door, when he said, "I'll be off. I'll be back in the evening if things go as planned."
"Bye Bye!" The others —minus Kise—chirped.
Something really is fishy…The blond thought. But there was nothing he could do but wait.
…
…
Kasamatsu jumped into a taxi and headed to the nearest supermarket. He was busy on his phone texting throughout the entire drive, that by the time he had arrived at his destination, Kasamatsu thought he had teleported. He quickly hopped out and walked up to where he saw a short female with blond hair and purple ends. She wore a simple black long sleeved turtleneck t-shirt with a frayed trim plaid tweed mini-skirt and black "over the knee" boots.
Kasamatsu had to stop in his tracks.
Reiko looked absolutely stunning, and wondered if her outfit was influenced by Kise or Ruiko. But then again, neither of them knew about their meet-up which meant, this has to be all her.
"Well damn, it runs in the family, huh?" he murmured to himself. Not wanting to have her wait any longer, he jogged up to her and greeted, "Hey."
"You're finally here." She said with a smile as she pocketed her phone.
"What? You've been waiting long?"
She snorted. "As if." She pushed herself off and tilted her head towards the supermarket. "I just got here. It took me two minutes to walk from the bus stop to here anyway."
Oh, I was right behind then. Kasamatsu nodded.
"So! Enough chatter Yukio, let's get cracking!" Reiko perked as she grabbed his wrist and dashed inside the store.
…
…
"Hey, do you guys notice something about Senpai?" Kise asked, rising up out of the sofa and heading towards the fridge.
"Nope. He seems normal. What's the problem?" Kagami replied a little bit too quickly.
The blond narrowed his eyes at their rapper. "Alright. But ―"
Kise broke off upon hearing loud banging on their door. Looking to each other, Kuroko got up and headed towards it. When he opened the door, he was the least bit shocked. There, before him was Tobio of Perfect 5th.
"Hello, Tobio-san. What brings you here?" Kuroko asked.
"Holy shit!" the vocalist screeched as like everyone else, they never noticed the light blue haired teen. He grabbed the fabric at his chest in hopes of easing his racing heart. The others burst out in laughter as no matter how many times this was done; it never ceases to be hilarious.
"I'm here to speak with my favourite little hawk." Tobio chirped after he recovered. He sauntered inwards to where the boys were.
"Me?" Takao asked with a raised brow.
"Yes," Tobio answered, throwing a hand over his shoulder. "I would've chosen Model-kun over there, but I'm still peeved at what he did at our concert in Tokyo dome." He shot Kise a glare.
"Get over it already. That was last year." The blond replied with an eye roll.
"It was yesterday for me." Tobio huffed.
"So, what do you want Takao for?" Kagami asked to change the subject.
"Ai-Fest. I want us to perform together! I sing, you rap!"
"But, I'll be performing with these guys so ―"
"Nonsense!" Tobio shrieked, the others looking between him and Kise. The two were really similar in that department. "Didn't you read the notice? We can collab! And that's what we're doing! Plus," His smile darkened here. "It'll be fun, won't it?"
"I guess…" Takao sounded unsure. But seeing Tobio's face, he dared not to deny.
"But we haven't even finished sorting out our things for the Ai-Fest yet." Kuroko sighed. "I feel it for you."
"Oh right, you guys have that thing with DC too, huh..."
The four boys looked confused. "DC? And what thing is that?"
Tobio realized what was going on. "Oh. Ai-Ken hasn't told you guys yet." He stuck his tongue out playfully while scratching his head. "My bad. Pretend you didn't hear anything."
A moment of silence passed over the boys after which they all stormed out screaming at the top of their lungs:
"KENJI-SAN!"
"I told you to pretend that you didn't hear anything! You TRAITORS!"
...
...
When their shopping was over, Kasamatsu called a taxi service to take them to their other destination. Kenji had been willing to be their chauffeur, but he didn't want to draw attention, especially since Kise was being a little too inquisitive these days.
Soon, their taxi arrived and they entered, the driver greeting them as is customary. Then, he drove off and for a while, the drive was completely silent. Naturally, the driver isn't going to start up a conversation with his clients since they were around the back, and Kasamatsu had been too struck since this morning to talk properly. He's never seen Reiko dress like this before, and without prior knowledge, the captain felt…attacked.
"So…" Reiko started, taking him out of his thoughts. "I know we've talked about this, but really, why can't we just order a cake for him instead?" She asked, seeming strangely fidgety.
"It would be nice to make him a cake that he'll definitely love right? What's more satisfying than seeing the look on your little brother's face when you hand him the thing he cherishes the most in the world?" Kasamatsu grinned. Since he had two himself, he knew the feeling all too well. "Plus, it'll be fun."
She turned her face through the window. "I hate it when you're right."
The captain chuckled. "And I love when you admit it."
The driver on the other hand, started to cough and hack. The two teens in the back looked at him suspiciously after which he said, "I choked on a gum I was chewing." This was a lie, but what he obviously couldn't tell them the truth.
The remainder of their journey was spent conversing about many things ―even the driver had to be stifling down his laughter at times, and at other times, he had to question the two's relationship. He couldn't tell whether or not they were just friends or a couple.
Soon, they came to a crossroads; the entire car had been in silence for some time now. Unable to bear the quiet, the driver said, "You guys don't mind if I played some music, right?"
"Nope, as long as it's not bubblegum pop music." Kasamatsu said in disgust.
Reiko laughed. "Coming from the leader of a pop-idol group, how ironic is this?!" she roared.
"I'm an exception." Kasamatsu said quickly.
"So, is Emi-Nem alright?" The driver tried to ignore Reiko's sentence. He didn't listen pop idol music, but he found it odd that the leader of a group would be this...normal.
"Perfect."
The driver grinned. He put in his thumb drive and selected the music.
Throughout the entire journey, the atmosphere inside the car was lively. Kasamatsu and the driver rapped away at some of the songs while Reiko sat and videoed. However, there was a time when a specific song came on, Reiko blew them away.
It was the iconic "Rap God" song, and with ease Reiko rapped through the thing, without missing a beat. It was so stunning that the driver had to stop the car, turn around to look at her. Kasamatsu looked at her wide eyed as he never expected that.
"What?" She asked when she noticed that the males were staring at her.
"Marry me." The driver gave out somewhat subconsciously. Kasamatsu's face darkened like the coalescence of storm clouds after which he pulled her close to him.
The driver whistled, "Sorry! I never knew she was yours!"
"Well, now you do." The captain replied. How dare he approach her in my presence!
Reiko, on the other hand, was totally surprised by Kasamatsu's reply. But strangely enough, she found herself quite comfortable.
...
...
When the taxi pulled up to the gate, Reiko could only gawk in shock. The house reminded her of hers in terms of size and after she got out of her momentary shock, she eyed the captain and said, "You're rich?"
Kasamatsu chuckled. "Me? No way!" he fanned his hand in front showing his denial. "I'm just your average broke-ass Joe."
"Really now, Yukio?" She rolled her eyes at his incredulous answer.
"Yes really, Reiko." The captain grinned at her. He's found that he's getting more and more comfortable calling her by her given name. Of course, he couldn't let Kise know that.
He punched in the code by the left hand side of the gate and soon it opened automatically. Kasamatsu's grandparents' house was a grand one, and looked to be a cross between traditional Japanese architecture and that of Europe's.
"Hey Gammi." The Blue Elite greeted. They were sitting on the front porch, reading one of their books.
"Yuko~" the aged woman cooed when she saw him. Kasamatsu was nicknamed "Yuko" by both his grandparents for reasons unknown to him. "You're looking more and more like your father every time I see you~"
"I don't look like him. You're exaggerating." Kasamatsu said with a pout. But he knew his Grandma was right. Often times, people thought that he was his father's little brother.
"Oh no, I'm serious. Why can't you pick up some looks from your mother, then?"
"She's a female Gammi. If I look like Mom do you know the endless teasing I'd face?!"
"You'd be so pretty…" she laughed.
"Exactly!"
Gammi sighed. "It's just sad that Yukina didn't have any girls. I wanted to curl your hairs and doll you up in pretty dresses and burn the dogs who dared to come to close to you in your teenage years. But sadly, she had three boys…why?"
Kasamatsu's face took on a deadpan expression. "The gods knew what would happen if we were girls. It's because you'd burn people's children to death."
"And you haven't even gotten a girlfriend yet. What are you waiting on? You'll be eighteen next month, you know?"
Kasamatsu rolled his eyes. "I know when my birthday is and how old I'll be, you know?"
"I'm not talking about that. Time is running out, Yuko. I want to see my great-grandchildren." Gammi laughed. "Plus, I married your grandfather when I was nineteen, so get with the programme boy."
"There's no programme to get with." Kasamatsu deadpanned. "This isn't the 20th century."
"So where's the friend, Yuko?" This time, it was a male's voice. It was his Grandfather who he called "Pa". The older male knew what was about to happen, so he quickly pitched in.
"Oh," He stepped aside so that his grandparents could see Reiko. He was taller and bigger than her so, he was hiding her, so to speak.
Peeking from around Kasamatsu, Reiko showed her face to his grandparents and they looked absolutely shaken.
"Hello, I'm Kise Reiko. Pleased to meet you." She greeted.
"It's a girl!" they screeched as they both gaped in shock.
"Gammi! Your dentures are falling out!" Kasamatsu shrieked as he moved quickly to catch the falling prosthetic.
"Yuko! Why didn't you say you were bringing a girl?!" Gammi shouted when her dentures were back in place. "I thought it was one of your ruffians!"
"I thought it would've been Hayakawa or Nakamura or…or…the whiny blond one." Pa mumbled beneath his breath.
Kasamatsu laughed at Kise's description. "Well, I knew what you were like so I didn't want to ―"
"I don't care!"
The captain jumped in fright.
"Look at her! She's so beautiful and you didn't think to introduce us properly! How could you treat your girlfriend like this?" Gammi shrieked. She then softened and took Reiko's hands, "Come on dear, let's get you inside."
Kasamatsu sighed. She's not even my girlfriend yet…
He followed behind the elderly couple and Reiko inside the house, where he headed to the kitchen to dump the goods on the island. While Kasamatsu did that, Gammi and Pa took and questioned Reiko about her non-existent relationship with their grandson.
"So how did you meet him?" Gammi asked. "Yuko's a shy boy so I'm really surprised he managed to talk to you without sweating bullets!"
Reiko laughed, still unable to get over the fact that Kasamatsu was called "Yuko". "He nearly had a heart attack though! His heart was racing so fast, I thought it would've jumped out of his chest!" She laughed, recalling when they danced together at her school's ball. The elderly couple joined her in laughing. "But we met through my brother, really. He's the "whiny blond one" you mentioned earlier. I never had a date for my high school ball so he suggested that I go with Yukio."
"And…?"
"And it was a wonderful night. I'm not a good dancer but Yukio still danced with me, even if it was foolishness." She deliberately omitted "shit" because it would have been disrespectful, she surmised. "And even when my dress got ruined, he took his shirt off, and twisted it in such a way that I could wear it as a dress."
"Oh, really?"
"Yeah, after that, everyone kept staring at us because it was so obvious that I was in his shirt." Her face took on a softer look. "But, that night has got to be one of the best of my life to date."
"Aww dear, the best night of your life is yet to come, believe me." Gammi said with a knowing smile. "For me it was when I married this fool." Her eyes brightened with nostalgic joy.
Pa snorted. "I thought it was when Yukina was born." He seemed to be quite fine being addressed as a "fool" by his elderly wife.
"That was the happiest day of my life."
Reiko's eyebrows rose. She knew Kasamatsu's dad's name was Mitsurou but she's never heard of a "Yukina" before. But she decided not to pry coming to the conclusion that "Yukina" was Mitsurou's sister.
"I remember when our darling was born. She had the loudest cries." Pa laughed out loud.
"Right! I think that's where Yuko got his voice from!" Gammi added.
Reiko got even more confused. This "Yukina" sounded a lot like Kasamatsu's mother but at the same time, the captain's family name is Kasamatsu. Shouldn't that come from his father?
"Is Yukina-san Yukio's mother?" She asked, hoping to not seem like she was prying.
"That's right, our one and only beautiful daughter." Pa smiled. "Despite the struggles that she went through, she grew up to be one hell of a woman, Mitsurou's a lucky man."
Reiko drew back. That meant, the elderly couple was his maternal grandparents but how could he still have the surname "Kasamatsu"? This was something she never saw coming. It was then that she wondered what could've caused this? While it wasn't common in Japan for men to take their wives' names, it still wasn't rare.
"Do you have plans to marry, Reiko-chan?" Gammi asked, bringing the blonde out of her thoughts.
"Yes I do. I hope he'll be a wonderful man too."
Gammi and Pa looked to each other with knowing smiles before looking back to Reiko. "Well, Yuko's right there. No one's stopping you. As I said before, I married Daichi here when I was nineteen. It's been forty years."
"Yeah, don't get into storytelling mode now." Kasamatsu's voice caused all three to look in his direction. "Let's get cracking Reiko, when Gammi starts, she isn't stopping."
"Oh dear, you're already calling her by her given name…"
Kasamatsu blushed. "Well…I…I just…"
"He's stuttering!" The elderly couple shrieked before bursting out in laughter.
"Yuko is finally taking the initiative. He's grown so much." Gammi sniffled as she pretended to wipe a tear.
Kasamatsu turned his face away. Seeing his expression, a chuckle escaped Reiko's lips. She's never seen Kasamatsu get teased before, this was something like a refreshing experience.
"Oh right." She said, getting up onto her feet slowly. "Thank you for your time."
"What are you talking about, you're still here, right? I'm sure it won't take forever to bake one cake." Gammi smiled.
"Right…and I've got Yukio-kun for help so…"
Kasamatsu snorted. "I just love how you choose when to add a suffix to my name." he sarcastically said.
"Like you add any to mine."
"Of course I do."
The two walked off into the kitchen continuing their little bickering along the way. Gammi and Pa looked on until the pair disappeared behind the door.
"I have to call Yuki. How could she not tell me this?" Gammi nearly shrieked. "I can't believe that Yuko has a girlfriend and never said anything."
Pa sighed. "It's not everything we're going to know, you know?"
"But the next thing you hear is that we'll be having great-grandchildren!"
Once again, Pa sighed. "Yuko isn't like that. I'm sure he's got decorum." the elderly man looked in the direction of the kitchen. "Plus, I'm pretty sure that both Yuki and Mitsurou drilled him well so that he doesn't make the same mistake that they did."
Gammi looked downwards to the coffee table. "I know...but…even so, things still do happen."
…
…
"Kenji-san, who the hell is DC?!" Kise asked, swinging the door open. The wooden mechanism slammed into the wall, creating an extremely loud noise.
"Well, I'm startled." Kenji said as he sipped on his hot beverage with supreme nonchalance. "Good morning to you too."
"Ai-Ken..." Tobio started but had to stifle down his laughter.
With a sigh, Kenji put down his cup and looked at his boys. "I'll tell you later when Kasamatsu-kun comes back. It doesn't make any sense I tell you four now and have to repeat everything to Kasamatsu-kun later. So wait until then."
"Why?! At least give us a little heads up!" Takao begged.
"DC is Digital Club." the manager replied. "There. Satisfied?"
"EEEHHH?!" Takao and Kise screeched, almost deafening everyone present. Kuroko and Kagami were just as equally surprised.
"But what could they want with us?" Kuroko asked.
Kenji replied in one word, "Ai-Fest."
The four exchanged shocked glances before breaking out in screeches yet again. The boys could put two and two together and realized what was going to happen. A collaboration between them and Digital Club. While the two groups are some sort of acquaintances, neither of the boys could see why they would choose to collab with them of all people. Catal Rhythm isn't that popular yet, and Digital Club has been around in the industry long enough to have their own solo concerts and Asia tours. So why would they choose a no-name group like theirs?
"I'm confused." Kagami asked. "Why choose us?"
Kenji sighed. "You boys don't listen, do you?" he rubbed his temples. "Ask your leader. He and Dan-kun are big friends."
"Seriously?" Kagami asked, unable to believe. While he knew that Digital Club were fans of basketball and watches high school tournaments, he still found it odd that Kasamatsu managed to befriend another idol.
"Yes." Kenji sighed. "Now, don't you have something to do?"
"Like what?"
"Like finish packing your things to be moved? Or practising with your instruments?"
"Right." Kuroko hummed. "We could go to Makki-san's, can't we?"
"That's too far and I'm not in the mood." Kise grumbled. "We could practice with the acoustics instead."
"Good, now scram!" Kenji shushed them out of his house, leaving him and Tobio.
"Practice instruments? What for?" The main vocalist asked with a raised brow. "Is it for Ai-Fest?"
Kenji smiled. "You'll soon see."
…
...
"Wow, I never knew you could bake! It's amazing!" Reiko shrieked looking at the finished product. Since Kise loved Ferrero Rocher chocolates, they decided to make a giant one for his birthday. Sure, it may not taste like the original, but the appearance was.
"Of course it's amazing. Who do you take me for?" Kasamatsu huffed. "This is just the tip of the iceberg. There're so many things that I can do which you don't know about."
She looked through the window. "I realize." She smiled. "It's like you're a man of many talents, Yukio."
Kasamatsu covered his face but even so, he couldn't hide the blush that had reached his ears. Reiko laughed out and pulled his hands from his face.
"I have to take this picture."
"Wha―?!"
Snap.
She took the picture. Kasamatsu sighed. The Kise family are truly something else. Reiko stared at the picture on her phone, while a blush crept up on her face. Kasamatsu was truly a handsome young man.
"Reiko?" Kasamatsu asked when he saw her staring at the picture far too long. "Why are you staring at the picture?"
"You're a really a handsome fellow." She replied absent-mindedly.
Kasamatsu blushed. "Well...I...uh...thanks?" the captain had no idea of how to react to such a statement. The only people who's ever told him this were his family. He's never heard anyone outside of that circle tell him.
"Well, I ―I..." Reiko stuttered and turned her face away. Her earlier comment was meant to stay on the inside, not allowing Kasamatsu to hear.
"But you're a really beautiful girl yourself." The captain said. "I don't think I needed to tell you that, but yeah, you're beautiful."
"Thanks." Reiko didn't look at him but he could see the blush spread to her ears. Seeing this as a chance for revenge, he held her in her shoulders, turned her around and took a picture.
"Yukio!" She screeched, trying to snatch the phone from his hands. But she couldn't reach. She was too short and he was too tall.
"My my, how are you going to get it, Reiko dear?" He joked. He then locked the screen so that she couldn't get in.
"How unfair! You're just like Ryoucchi! Using your cheats to your advantage!" She shrieked all the while jumping to try and get the phone but failed.
"My height is a cheat now?" Kasamatsu couldn't help it. He burst out in hearty laughter when he caught the look on her face. Her cheeks were puffed out and she wore the most adorable pout he'd ever seen.
"Of course! Who grows to be 6'feet anyway?" she huffed.
Kasamatsu roared with laughter. "I'm not 6 feet. I'm 5'10."
Reiko spluttered. "Well, eventually, you'll get to 6 feet, right? You're not far from it. Plus, I hear that basketballers grow to be giants."
Kasamatsu doubled over and clutched his stomach. "Where'd you get that from?!" His laughter echoed throughout the kitchen and even caused his grandparents to see what was making their grandson laugh so much.
"Yuko? Are you alright?" Pa asked as he peered from around the door.
"Ye―yeah..." he replied in a chuckle.
"Yukio..." Reiko started, folding her arms. "I'm not amused."
"Well, sorry to burst your bubble, but I'm completely amused."
Reiko smirked sadistically. "Oh? Is that so?" she said, cracking her knuckles. "Well, let me give myself something to be amused about then."
Noticing her dangerous approach, Kasamatsu inched away, not wanting to be caught but he ended up getting backed into the counter. "Oi, oi, oi..."
With a shriek, Reiko lunged for taller male, tackling him to the floor. What Kasamatsu didn't know was like Kise, she knew martial arts.
Meanwhile, Gammi and Pa heard their grandson's screaming but did nothing to aid him.
"I wonder what the hell did Yuko do to piss her off?" Pa sighed. "Doesn't he know that a mad woman is psychotic?"
"Speaking from experience, I see." Gammi said calmly. However, there was something more behind all that calm.
Pa sighed. "Of course."
…
...
It was evening time when Kasamatsu and Reiko finally left his grandparents' house, the captain carrying Kise's birthday cake. He had called the taxi service once again, even though his grandfather opted to lend him his car. Within an hour or two, they reached Reiko's apartment, nestled in a fancy complex similar to that of the Aihara's building.
"I thought you lived with your parents. I didn't think you'd be living alone." Kasamatsu said as he entered the apartment. Given how Kise talks about his parents, especially his father, Kasamatsu found it a bit surprising that Ryouhei actually allowed Reiko to live alone. A whistle escaped his lips as he saw the layout. It was a regular LDK apartment to which Reiko decorated to her own tastes.
"Well, I want to experience independence before I get older. I'm only going to be living here for a while since Papa calls me every frickin' second." She sighed with an eye roll. "It's annoying and he knows this."
Kasamatsu laughed as he gently placed the box with Kise's cake on the floor. He took his shoes off at the genkan, before replying, "He just cares about you. And I think that fathers are more overprotective of their daughters than their sons."
Reiko raised an eyebrow. "Really?"
"I believe so." The captain shrugged. "I mean, I think because fathers know what men are like, they tend to care for their little girls don't you think?"
Reiko couldn't refute that. "And mothers tend to be overprotective of their boys?"
"I believe so." He repeated. "Mom is extremely protective of my brothers and me."
"Wow."
The captain rose, struggling to walk in Reiko's slippers. They were smaller than his large feet.
"You can put that in the fridge." Reiko said as she placed her and Kasamatsu's things in the couch.
"No, I'll put it in the oven." Kasamatsu said sarcastically. This earned him a soft punch from Reiko on his upper arm. With a playful chuckle, Kasamatsu disappeared into her kitchen where he gingerly placed the giant Ferrero Rocher in her fridge. Thankfully, it fit.
Returning to the living room, Kasamatsu saw Reiko turn on the TV so he took his seat beside her. He's forgone his shyness around her, given that for the past week he's been meeting with her to discuss Kise's birthday party. A small smile graced his lips, seeing how comfortable he's gotten around her.
"Yukio." Her voice brought him back to reality.
"Huh? Yeah?"
Reiko sighed, realizing that he hadn't been listening prior. "Do you think everything will play out alright? I mean, I've never done something like this for Ryoucchi before."
Kasamatsu's eyebrows rose. "Seriously? What do you usually do for him?"
"Papa carries him out of the country. The year before last we went to Hawaii." She nonchalantly said. "There we gave him gifts that he wanted."
"Seriously?" The captain couldn't believe his ears. Kise was taken to Hawaii for his birthday?
"Yes, seriously. What? You've never been out of the country for your birthday before?"
Kasamatsu shook his head. "I usually get a party and gifts."
"Oh. What kind of gifts do you get?"
"Guitars. Amps. Microphones. You know, musical stuff."
"Oh. Do you ever want anything different?" Reiko figured that since his birthday was next month, she'd give him something as well. After all, he was going all out for her little brother, even baking a cake in the shape of his favourite chocolate.
"Never!" Kasamatsu said with too much vigour, dashing her hopes through the window. "Either the guitars are signed by famous people that I look up to, or they're of the top brands like Gibson Les Paul and..." he trailed off when he realized that she didn't know what he was talking about. "I get top-notch guitars." he dumbed it down for her.
"That must be pretty cool, though." Reiko said. "They seem to go out of their way for you."
Kasamatsu's face looked downcast, almost as though Reiko stirred up some tragic memory. "Yeah, they do."
"I'm sorry if I had said something..."
"No it's fine. It's just that I remembered something that's all."
"Oh." Reiko didn't pry any further, as she figured this was a really sensitive topic. "So, how are you faring with being an idol so far?" She quickly changed the subject.
Kasamatsu shrugged. "It's going fine. Sure it's really embarrassing when we have to participate in the variety shows but I like dancing and singing with the others. It's fun."
"Ryoucchi tells me that too." She chuckled. "So how are your preparations for Ai-Fest?"
"Well, I suppose it's going well." Kasamatsu shrugged. "We haven't yet started to practise or rehearse anything..."
"Eh?! Why not?"
"I guess it's because it's still June."
"Ha! Before you know it, it'll be next year's Ai-Fest."
Kasamatsu sweat-dropped. "I see what you mean."
"So now that we've gotten this out of the way..." Reiko started as she got up and walked to the TV stand. There, the captain saw her fiddle with something that looked like a gaming console, before walking back to him with two controllers in her hand.
Kasamatsu looked shocked.
"I need your help." She said as she handed him a controller. "There's a boss that's pissing me off."
Kasamatsu smiled. "I don't game a lot, so if it's ―" He broke off when she showed him the cover. Immediately, his face changed, showing a wicked grin. "Let's go."
…
...
By the time Kasamatsu reached back home, it was already night-time. Entering their house, the first thing that greeted him were his four boys. Kise was sitting in the sofa with his legs crossed and arms folded like a mother waiting for her child after curfew. Takao and Kagami were sitting in the two armchairs, Kuroko was coming from the kitchen with a glass of water.
"Where have you been, Senpai?" Kise asked, definitely sounding like a mother about to scold her child for coming in after curfew.
"Uh, grandma." He replied, startled by Kise's strange behaviour.
"Well, what's this about you and Dan of Digital Club being buddies?" Takao asked. He had already knew why the eldest teen left for his grandma and with whom he went.
Kasamatsu laughed. "Yeah, we sorta are."
"And did you know that they wanted to collab with us for Ai-Fest?"
Kasamatsu hesitated. "No…?"
"Liar!" They shrieked. At this, they surrounded him, pointing accusing fingers at him.
"Guys, guys..." Kasamatsu started, holding his hands in front of him as if to ward them. "I really have no idea what you're talking about."
"Then why did you hesitate earlier?!" Kise shouted. "Senpai, I've been noticing that you're acting secretive these days, which shouldn't be! Aren't we teammates?! Aren't we ―"
"Kise calm down." Kasamatsu placed an index on the blond's lips, effectively shutting him up. "Look, I don't know what led you think I'm being secretive," the eldest teen lied in order to sway the blond, "but really, I had no idea they wanted to collab for Ai-Fest." he said. "I only hesitated because I was thinking about it."
"He didn't tell you?"
"No, he didn't. All he said was that he had a surprise for all of us."
"And you didn't think you could've said something?" Kagami asked.
"It's a surprise! What should I have said?" Kasamatsu asked, making his way towards their shared room.
"Senpai..." Kise started up again.
"Hmm?"
"You're going the wrong way. We gotta to go to Kenjicchi to hear more about this collab."
"I'm tired Kise." Kasamatsu groaned. "My fingers are so numb too."
"What? How?"
Because your sister dragged me to game with her and had me do all the work whenever we encountered a boss. Kasamatsu made a small smile, "I had to bake a lot, that's all."
"So where are the baked goods?!" Takao asked. "Did you eat them all?!"
"Gammi and Pa did." He lied. But he knew that Takao asked the question so as to not seem suspicious. The hawk-eyed teen was the type to inquire a lot.
"Alright, Kenji-san said we could come over." Kuroko said to break the mood. His voice was in its usual deadpan tone, damping the mood immediately.
"Right..."
…
…
"You're finally home." Kenji said when he saw Kasamatsu. "What took you so long?"
"You wouldn't believe me if I told you." The captain replied. And it was somewhat true. No one would believe that a girl of Reiko's calibre actually games.
"Well, now that all five of you are gathered here, I'll begin." Kenji sighed. He really wasn't in the mood, but he promised his rascals that he'll tell once their leader came home. "Digital Club wants to do a collab with you for the Ai-Fest. At the moment, they're working out a song and following that will be the choreography."
"So we don't get to do anything?" Kagami asked.
"If you don't wish to." The manager replied. "They have scheduled dates for when you'll meet with them to hear the song and if you don't like it, you're free to express your opinions."
"Sounds good." Takao nodded.
"So where will we be practising for this collab? Here or at their place?"
"Their place. Is there anything else you'd like to know?"
"Yeah, is it that all of Digital Club will be with us?" Kuroko asked, as he couldn't see ten males dancing on the stage at once. Although, they managed to pull that off in the Tokyo Dome with Perfect 5th, he was a little bit sceptical about the Music Theatre.
"Yes. There's no issue. The Music Theatre's stage is big enough. Didn't you see that?"
"I'm just concerned."
Kenji nodded. "Anything else?"
"When are these scheduled dates?"
"In the summer."
"What?!" The five shrieked.
"They can't do that! Our summer is packed!"
"We have basketball training for Winter, plus we have our two songs to perfect by August, plus, we'll be recording won't we Kenji-san?" Kasamatsu ruled out.
"Keep calm." Kenji soothed. "I'm pretty sure that you already have your songs ready right? I remember you said you needed to change the songs from acoustics to instrumental, right?"
"Yeah, but I was thinking that since Takao and I are the vocalists, we'll make a song with him as the vocalist as well." Kasamatsu said.
"Really?" Kenji hadn't heard of this.
"Yes, so that means we only have one complete song." Kasamatsu nodded. "But I managed to write something for Takao's."
"Eh? Really?! I wanna hear it!" The hawk-eyed teen perked.
"When we get home."
Kenji cleared his throat in order to regain their attention. He knew that if he left them be, they'll veer off topic and start to talk about the song and their band things.
"So, I'll keep you posted on the schedules for your collab. There ―" the manager broke off when he heard his cellphone rang. He looked at the caller ID and sighed. "What is it, Ren?"
"You wouldn't believe what happened!"
"Then don't tell me." Kenji deadpanned.
"Whatever. Guess what? Our boys were nominated!"
Kenji spluttered in shock. "What?! Seriously?! Which ―"
"It's just the Rookie of the Month, Ken. Keep calm." Ren chuckled. "But..."
"But what?"
"My award senses are tingling."
Kenji was not amused. "Go to sleep Ren." He deadpanned and hung up the phone.
He then turned to meet the curious gazes of his boys. "Ren said you were nominated for an award."
"EEEHHHH?!" Their screeches were so loud, he felt like the glass would've broke. Kenji now realized that telling an entire group of singers surprising news was not the best thing to do.
"We're getting an award?!" Takao and Kise were practically screaming.
"Good Lord, my eardrums..." The young manager groaned out. He waited until the screaming and shrieking died out, he said, "We're not sure. You've only been nominated for Rookie of the Month. So until the ―"
"Rookie of the Month?!" Once again, the rapper and vocalist screamed in sheer joy. Kenji and the others felt as though they were being deafened. But even so, Kenji had never seen such grins on the other three's faces before.
"Yeah. It's..." the manager trailed off when he couldn't bear their faces anymore. Kise and Takao were jumping and hugging each other, Kuroko wore a devious grin, Kagami and Kasamatsu looked rather... "...just get ready."
That stirred them up even further, and poor Kenji was in for another scream fest. He loved his boys, he really did, but when they're screaming altogether in the same place was not his cup of tea. So, he let them be, until couple minutes after they trickled out back to their house. Well, all except Kasamatsu.
"So is everything in place?" Kenji asked.
"Of course. Makki-san is supposed to pick up the cake from Reiko before the party starts."
"Really? I though you were going to drop it off at his place, since that would've been easier."
Kasamatsu looked away. "Well, things happened and time ran off."
Kenji saw the look on the leader's face and smiled. "Kasamatsu-kun, what happened?" he teased.
The leader turned his head away to hide his blush but this would not go unnoticed by Kenji. His eyes sees all.
"N-no-nothing." He stuttered out.
Kenji walked to him and placed a hand on his shoulders. "If anything, you can talk to Dad, or Kiyotaka-san. Or hell, even anyone from Perfect 5th. They've been down this road before."
Kasamatsu drew back. "Down what road?"
"Stop acting dumb, boy." Kenji laughed. "The Aihara company is family, you know? You can talk to anyone you feel comfortable with."
"Right..." The Blue Elite said before making his way out the door. Like the others, he bid Kenji farewell before disappearing to his house.
However, unbeknownst to him, Kasamatsu just realized something he thought he'd never experience in his life.
Thank you for reading! Don't forget to leave a review! And in case you're wondering, every single award that the boys will be getting from here on out are real awards which the group (SHINee) that they're modelled off of has received. A few things may change such as country, date etc.