I do not own any of the songs. They belong to their respective artist(s).
Boys sing in BOLD
Girls sing in ITALICS
Both genders sing in BOTH
Sitting at her desk, Hikari listened to Ichinose sing, looking at him as he did. A small smile was dancing on her lips as she leaned on her palm, arm resting on the back of the chair. Sharing a look with Tomochika, they grinned in silent triumph.
'I'm glad to hear he's got heart back… now if I could only decide on what to do about the final auditions.'
/\\/\
She strode down the hall, bag in hand as she went through her texts. Her uncles and Dong-hae were back in Japan and so she planned to meet up with them during the next free weekend. Vainly she hoped Ringo wouldn't assign too much work before then. Of course with the final auditions coming up, she'd probably have to wait until after.
Around her, she could hear people talking about their own decisions. Hikari didn't linger on it as she spotted Ichinose ahead. "Yo, Ichinose-san. You look like you got good news."
His lips quirked up slightly. "I just met with the headmaster," he answered, stopping a small distance away. Ichinose bowed slightly. "Thank you."
A laugh escaped her. "I didn't do much. Congrats."
They shared knowing looks before Ichinose excused himself and walked away. Hikari continued making her way down the hall, but stopped again as Otoya called for her.
He came to a halt in front of her, smiling nervously. "Can I talk to you for a minute?"
"Uh, sure?" She motioned them closer to the wall to stay out of everyone else's way.
"I'm sorry for bugging you at the summer camp!" Otoya blurted out, rubbing the back of his head sheepishly and his cheeks turned pink. "But I'm seriously not thinking about anyone but you, Hikari! I just turned in my form with your name on it!"
Her eyes widened in surprise, blinking rapidly at him. He must've noticed she was too startled because he toned down his exuberance. "B-Between my singing and your music, I think we make a dynamite combo! When we were paired for the first recording test, I was able to sing with a lot of natural confidence! Besides that, it was super fun. I… I think I'm the closest to you aside from Tomo-chan and she's got a partner. If I'm your partner, I'm sure I can sing a fantastic song for our audition song!" Otoya absently caught the phone holding hand in his. She blinked blankly at the motion before he panicked and jerked away. "Ah, sorry!"
Hikari stared plainly at her hands, avoiding his eyes. "Ano…"
"It's okay." her eyes darted up to his before she ducked her head lower, hiding behind her bangs. "You don't have to give me an answer now, just give it some thought."
Her heart melted at the sweet, understanding smile he gave her and Hikari nodded weakly.
Otoya grinned at her before turning to leave. She watched him do so before continuing her way to the stairwell. Hikari didn't know what to make of it all. Part of her wanted her to repay Otoya for being so kind to her, another part wanted Ichinose because of Haruka. And another wanted Ren so she could get to know him better without him acting like a ladies man. A sigh escaped her as she went up the first flight of stairs. Her steps paused as a bouquet of pink roses, baby's breath mixed in and her eyes went wide at it.
She automatically accepted it as Ren passed it to her, cradling it like a child as she slid her bag on her shoulder. "Ren?"
"I've been looking for you, You see, I've turned in my form, little blossom," Ren said, leaning in close and she stilled, blinking up at him.
"Ah," she said carefully. Looking over the flowers, her mind went to static for a moment before she managed to speak. "I see. I have something I need to do…"
Hikari trailed off as they stared at each other. Ren had this calm smile on his face while she herself was blank, not wanting anything to slip. Finally his smile turned playful. "I'll wait for a favorable answer, little blossom."
Offering him a faint smile, she nodded and moved past him, continuing her way up the stairs and looked at her phone when the ringtone played. "Dong-hae-yah, what is it? Why're you still awake and not sleeping off jet lag?" She asked her cousin, slipping into Korean.
An excited giggle made her slow her steps, her brow furrowing. "I couldn't sleep despite being tired! And, uh… I may have found Oyaji's sweets stash."
Hikari stopped walking and stared flatly at a painting on the wall. She blinked once, twice, then hid her face in the flowers, breathing in the scent. Her head shook as she finally spoke. "Dong-hae-yah, light of my life, my chibi - why do you do this?"
Another giggle. "You make it sound like a bad thing, Noona."
"It is a bad thing. Wanna know why?" She didn't let him answer. "One, Oyaji will terrorize you when he finds out and don't think he won't even if I don't tell him or he sees the evidence. Two, you're gonna get a sugar high and probably be grounded by your dads. Don't ask Aunt Rin for help, she will laugh at you and assign you work. Three, you've never actually had a sugar high, so none of us know if you'll be bouncing off the walls or not. All I'm gonna say now is good luck, my light."
Dong-hae was silent for a moment. "Think they'll be really angry?"
"Jet lag, little light," she answered, continuing her way to her training room, where she needed to grab her jacket. "So what else are you up to? Why'd you call? And don't try distracting me again."
The preteen grumbled for a moment before falling silent. Years of dealing with Haruka, Shiori, and Kai made her silent, waiting for him to speak after he gathered his thoughts.
"You're dimming," he said softly, no longer energetic.
Hikari pursed her lips as she finally reached her room and opened it, making sure no one was there. "Yes."
"Why, Noona?" He asked, worried.
A sigh left her. "Auditions. Otoya and Ren, just before you called, told me they chose me and only me." She entered the room and shut the door.
"Oh, Noona." Dong-hae sighed himself.
"I'm eating and resting, Tomochika and I have been making sure of that."
"Were you going to ask anyone of the family for advice?"
"Aside from you?" Hikari huffed and set her items down, putting the phone on speaker. "No. I want to try it myself. The teachers and maybe Gran if I absolutely need to. This may sound like a weak excuse, but if whoever I choose debuts, that means I'll become a proper citizen in the 'adult' world and confirm my entry in the entertainment business."
"That's not weak," Dong-hae replied absently. "Some things need to be done without people helping."
Tying her jacket to her waist, she chuckled. "How cute. My baby cousin is acting like an adult."
"What?" He squawked, snapping out of his daze in horror. "No, I'm not! Noona, you gotta be tired, go to sleep."
Hikari threw her head back and laughed, sliding her bag on so it crossed her chest. She picked up the bouquet and turned off the speaker, moving to leave the room. "You're adorable, little light. Leave the stash alone and play some video games, okay? Maybe see if Chu-chan needs a walk. Leave a note if she does."
He hummed before agreeing. "Okay. Love you, Noona."
"Love you, little light." The dial sounded in her ears and she pressed end as well, sliding it into her vest pocket as she made her way back down the stairs to head back to her dorms.
While walking, Hikari looked the flowers over, wondering if she still had some homemade flower food from her grandmother. She thought about texting Tomochika, but figured she may be with Daiki. Plus, that last time she tried texting and walking she nearly ran into a lot of walls. It had hurt, a lot. Secretly, she thought there was some kind of conspiracy because there had never been that many walls in the school before.
She reached the first floor and made her way out, heading towards the path that would take her to the girl's dorms. Hikari looked up at the clouded sky with a wry smile. 'Even the weather seems confused with me. Don't know if i should be happy about that or not.'
A sigh escaped her for the hundredth time that week and she braced herself, firming her shoulders as she looked straight ahead, tapping her shoulder strap tunelessly as she got lost in her thoughts. It was the reason why Syo got the drop on her.
"Oi!" A hand caught her shoulder and she shrieked in surprise, whirling around and almost decking Syo with the flowers if he hadn't of backpedaled in time. His arms went up in surrender. "Woah, Hikari! Sorry."
Her knees wobbly, she scowled at him. "What is wrong with you?"
The blond smiled at her hesitantly. "I wanted to speak with you."
She squinted at him, the many surprises happening this week not helping her brain process things fully. "Uh…" Hikari followed him to where the group had met during the "Prince of Precipice" debacle. Sitting on the bench, she put her bag and flowers down before focusing on Syo, head tilted curiously.
"I entered my form. For the graduation audition, I wanna be partners with you." He dove right in and she blinked at him, inscrutable.
"Me?" She got out.
Syo nodded enthusiastically, turning away. "Ah. Ever since you went to act in Hyuga-sensei's movie for your cousin, I've had my eye on you. You're passionate about everything you do, whether it's composing or acting. And despite not being a huge fan of Hyuga-sensei like Shiori and I, you still went with it because we asked." He paused and then frowned. "At least, I kinda did."
Hikari blinked silently at him as he grinned at her, arms crossing over his chest. "It's you, Hikari. You're the only one who'd ever try to understand how I feel."
"I feel the same way!" A voice exclaimed and she jolted, looking up to see Natsuki.
"Eh?" It was said softly, barely audible. Her hand reached up to tug at her braid.
"Kari-chan," Natsuki said, completely focused on her and Hikari felt like he was channeling Satsuki's forcefulness (nevermind the fact that they were technically the same person.
The girl felt like a deer in front of headlights.
"Please be my partner." Natsuki was oblivious to the way she'd frozen, Syo casting a confused glance at her.
"What the hell, Natsuki?!" Syo blurted out, moving to block her from Natsuki's eyes. It didn't help much, only making her lose her tenseness.
"Kari-chan is someone who's as calm as a cloudy day and warm like a fall sunbeam. The kind of songs I want to write will soften and warm people's hearts." Natsuki smiled as he came closer, forcing Syo to move to the side.
Her chest felt heavy.
Hikari stiffened as Natsuki hugged her around the shoulders, her eyes locked on a tree ahead of her as his face pressed against her shoulder. "The person who will walk with me through that world of music is right here."
"Hey!" Syo exclaimed and she could him panicking out of the corner of her eye. She felt like she couldn't breath, the weight in her chest getting heavier.
"There's only one person in the world who understands my music… Only you, Kari-chan." His breath was warm against her shoulder.
Syo seemed to notice how dull she'd gotten and moved to jerk Natsuki away from her. "Cut it out, let go of her!" Syo chastised Natsuki as the taller blond released her. "You're stressing her out!"
She could only watch numbly as he forced Natsuki a distance away from her. She noticed the worry in his blue eyes as he glanced, but couldn't find anything in her to reassure him. Chartreuse eyes could only look at him before she turned away, saying dully, "I need to go."
Ignoring their worried voices, she automatically picked her stuff up and made her way to the building entrances. Her eyes were down so she didn't catch anyone's eyes. Entering, Hikari went to her letter box. Adjusting the flowers in her arms, she opened the tiny door and blinked.
To: Nanami Hikari
It was a letter and she slowly reached to pick it up. Carefully, undoing the folds, she read it silently.
I wanted to let you know that I designated you as my graduation audition partner.
Hijirikawa Masato
A scream built up in her throat but was extinguished by the numbness sliding into her. Folding it again, she slid it into the bouquet and closed the letter box, turning to make her way to her room. Hikari didn't know how long it took, time lost to her, but soon she was unlocking her door and entering the room. She locked it once more and lightly put the bouquet down and dropped her bag beside the table. Staring at the table, she finally pulled her phone out of her vest, and ignoring the texts she'd gotten, placed it face down beside the roses. Moving away from the table, she went to change into her pajamas and lay down.
/\\/\
Tomochika was smiling brightly as she walked to her dorm room, a bounce in her step. She'd had dinner with Daiki to go over their plans for the audition and she figured she'd have a good shot with him as her partner. Truthfully, she'd wanted Hikari as a partner but since they'd never worked together she didn't want to risk themselves. Besides, if they both debuted, then they could try working together.
Bouncing cheerfully up the stairs, she pondered the conundrum that was Hikari. She figured from the way their bright blond friends were blowing up the group chat that Hikari hadn't gone to dinner. A frown formed at the thought. Hikari had already told her about worrying about her audition partner and, it may have just been her and Hikari's sweet baby cousin, but the other girl seemed to get more stressed everyday. It didn't show outside their room, though. Not much, anyway. Hikari wouldn't get changed into her onesies or mess with her console.
Lifting up the container, Tomochika figured she could at least convince Hikari to eat the sub sandwich Tomochika brought along with the apple juice. She knew they had some chips in there somewhere (coming back from the summer camp, they'd been startled to realize they hadn't fixed their room up before leaving).
Reaching the door, she pulled her key out and unlocked it, being quiet as she wasn't sure if Hikari was up or not. Her brow went up when she spotted the black cat that adored Hikari standing on the balcony. Glancing at said girl's bed, she slumped at the sight of Hikari hidden by her covers. Tomochika put the sandwich and juice in the mini fridge and headed over to the door, letting the cat in. Akuma raced over to the bed, hopping onto the Hikari-lump while Tomochika shut the door again. Hearing the blankets shift, Tomochika kicked her shoes off and crawled onto the bed beside Hikari, smoothing her skirt down as she settled against the wall.
"I brought dinner for you," the darker redhead said softly, reaching to smooth the peach colored strands. Getting no answer, Tomochika glanced at Akuma as he pressed against Hikari's stomach. "Hikari, what's wrong?"
The other girl was silent before pushing her facemask up and rolling onto her back. Hikari patted Akuma and looked up at Tomochika. "Tomo-chan." Her voice was hoarse and in the faint moonlight, she could see the panic. "What do I do?"
Furrowing her eyebrows, Tomochika continued smoothing the peach strands. "Start from the beginning, ne?"
The story spilled in snippets. How after the first of being told, Hikari didn't know who to choose as her partner. How after not even being on Saotome's island, Otoya told her he wanted her as his partner. That not even the next day Ren said the same, which is why she had brought Treble with her as a determent. Then when they got back, Syo, Natsuki, and Masato had said the same things.
"They don't seem to realize that I could be the one to make or break their debut," Hikari said, voice muffled as she pressed her cheek against Tomochika's knee. "If word got out that they'd been refused by me, a Nanami, the press would drag in everybody from our families just to get their damn articles out."
Tomochika understood what she was saying. "The boys don't realize their putting everything in your hands. You're taking the weight of their worlds on your shoulders."
Hikari nodded, petting Akuma when he squirmed onto Tomochika's lap. Their eyes locked. "I want them. I want all them to be my partners. I think they'd be great together and I don't want to hurt them by choosing only one…"
"We'll just hit that speed bump when we get to it." Tomochika smiled down at her. "This weekend, just you and I, we're going to a spa, okay? Manicures, pedicures, massages - everything. Ah!" She poked Hikari on the nose. "It's not even August yet, so you're still a decade younger than a quarter of a century. Hell, even 25 is still to young to have wrinkles like you'll get if you keep freaking out."
Chartreuse eyes filled with fond exasperation, something Tomochika was pleased to see as there was no more worry. "Alright, let's do it. Maybe we can drag Kai with us, if you're okay with that?"
"Kai?" She repeated, blinking in confusion.
Sitting up, Hikari nodded as she scooped up Akuma. "If it weren't for the fact that he's got a job already, he'd be an onsen manager."
Tomochika thought about what Hikari had spoken about the older teen and nodded. "I could kind of see it. Let's bring him if he's available."
A smile tugged slightly at Hikari's lips as she rolled off the bed, earning a startled meow from Akuma. "Oh hush, you oversized baby. At least I haven't tossed you in a sink full of water. Yet." Tomochika laughed at the faint outline of Akuma's ears going back.
Hikari swung their hands back and worth and Tomochika smiled slightly, happy to see her friend was slowly returning to normal. The darker redhead looked up as they neared the classroom. "You going to be okay?"
The peach haired girl glanced at her, smiling a bit. "Yeah. 'Sides, I just have to last till the end of the day then we can head into the city for the weekend."
"That's the spirit! Hmmm… I think I'll get little butterflies on my toes," Tomochika hummed, looking down at her shoe covered feet and Hikari giggled.
"Why butterflies?"
"Why not? You should get flowers, live up to Ren's nickname." Tomochika bumped her shoulder against Hikari's as they released their hands and walked in.
"Help me convince Kai to do both and I will." Hikari grinned slightly as she followed the slightly older girl.
"And mud masks." They shared a glance and snickered at the image produced.
"Hikari, Tomo-chan!" Looking up, they spotted Otoya waving exuberantly at the two, though his eyes seemed more focused on Hikari, who shifted.
Noticing, Tomochika bounced over to him and smacked her palms against his desk, face serious. "Otoya! Name something that could be used as blackmail for an idol!"
He goggled at her in shock, shrinking away slightly. Otoya flailed before finally offering, "Dressing in the opposite gender's clothes if they aren't a crossdresser, like really feminine or masculine clothes… uhm, why?"
She patted him on the head, smiling as she glanced at Hikari, who was already typing something on her phone. "I'm passing that onto Dong-hae-yah. If anyone can make Kai do anything, it's him. Thanks for helping us with our weekend plans, Otoya!"
The male redhead looked between them in confusion, but didn't answer as Ringo entered the room. "Alright, everyone, let's get started."
Tomochika sat down while Hikari swiftly put away her phone, looking the picture perfect student. Tomochika held back a giggle while Ringo did roll call and went to the back. The two roommates shared a look as Hikari was called to the back and all Tomochika could do was offer her a small, comforting smile.
Turning in her seat, she quickly exchanged a goofy face with Otoya before they both focused on Hikari as she went to the piano. Tomochika couldn't see Hikari's face, but did notice her duck her peach haired head as she slid between Natsuki and Masato. The darker redhead winced slightly as the two exchanged confused and slightly hurt looks.
When she sat down on the piano bench, Tomochika noticed she'd gotten a blank mask. 'Oh, Hikari…'
/\\/\
Hikari rubbed her face with both hands, heading down the hall to the entrance by the staff halls. She had to get the weekend passes from Saotome before the girls could leave. Her hands dropped and she spotted Ringo a few steps ahead of her.
Thinking, she shrugged and went for it. 'Not like I can feel anymore stressed.'
"Hey, sensei!" She called, hurrying to stop in front of Ringo as the crossdresser turned.
The pinket blinked down at her. "What is it, Hikari-chan?"
"Sorry, but I wanted to ask for advice before leaving…" Hikari shifted awkwardly.
"If it's about choosing your partner, the doctor is out!" Ringo said swiftly, turning away with hands on his hips.
Yet again in the few months being in the Academy, her mind crashed. "Eh?"
A blue eye peeked over a shoulder at her. "Ah, that's right. There's something I had to tell you." His eyes were shining as he turned to the teen. "Another one came today! The 6th person who wants to be you partner! Can you guess who?"
Hikari could only shake her head wordlessly.
His finger moved with every syllable. "I-chi-no-se Tokiya~!" A "kyaa" left him as he darted ahead a few steps, swirling on a heel as he looked back at her with a beam. "Princess Hikari-chan!" Ringo practically cooed before coming back, bouncing around in excitement as if he were in her place. She was frozen though. "Who will you choose? Oh, dear! My head is reeling in anticipation!"
The crossdresser wigged out before he darted away, leaving Hikari standing there in shock. Her jaw moved uselessly and she forcibly got parts of her together, pulling her phone out and calling.
"Hikari? Did you get the passes?"
Unable to answer for a moment she shook her head to herself.
"Hikari? Where are you?"
"Near the staff offices," she muttered. "Tomo-chan, get me out of here. Ichinose Tokiya just submitted me as a partner. Get me out of here."
"I'll be there. Forget bringing stuff with us, we can steal your cousin's clothes. Call Kai and tell him to hurry up." Tomochika hung up and Hikari slowly did as she said, her fingers barely cooperating.
Otoya frowned as he ran Hikari through his mind. Something was off about the girl and he hadn't fully noticed it till that morning, when Tomochika got between Otoya and Hikari, asking her question. And after, when Ringo called for her to play, they'd shared a glance, Tomochika's comforting. He knew from Syo that she appeared stressed when the blond duo told her they'd chosen her, but it didn't really hit till he saw Tomochika practically guarding her during class.
"Otoya-kun, is something wrong?" He looked up to see Natsuki and Syo walking towards him and he shrugged slightly as he stepped beside Masato, who was behind the two blonds.
He thought about asking them again about yesterday, but discarded it. "Not sure."
Syo glanced back at him as they headed to the main entrance. "Let me guess, Hikari?"
A small smile formed at how easily he guessed and Otoya put his hands in his pocket. "Yeah. I didn't see her nor Tomo-chan at lunch."
"Hikari did seem off in class," Masato said slowly, peering at Otoya and Natsuki. "Maybe she's feeling sick?"
'I don't think you're too far off there, Masa,' Otoya thought, but said aloud, "Who knows? She seems like she'd still do things if she's not too bad."
Natsuki chuckled at his statement before lifting his head and frowning. "What in the world?"
Otoya agreed with his statement, eyeing the group of teens near the entrance, more than half of it girls. "I don't think we'll be able to leave through that door."
The others made noises of agreement before Syo pointed to the side. "Let's join Ren and Tokiya."
The four moved through the crowd, Natsuki leading with Syo and Masato behind him. Otoya followed a bit slower, looking around to try and find either Tomochika or Hikari. He didn't find neither girls and he couldn't help the bubble of concern in his chest. 'Where are you, girls?'
Facing forward, the redhead saw that Tokiya and Ren were looking out the windows. The two looked over and nodded in acknowledgement.
Ren spoke up, tilting his head in the direction of something out the window. "Ochibi, Natsuki, is that Lady's cousin?"
The two shared looks of confusion and Ren let Syo get closer to the window, the other three looking over his shoulders and head.
"Ah, yeah. That's Kai. Don't know the younger kid though." Syo pulled his hat off so it didn't obstruct neither Otoya's and Masato's view.
Otoya easily recognized Nanami Kai and as he looked the younger kid, he made a noise of surprise, earning looks from his male friends. "That's Hikari's youngest cousin, Song Dong-hae. She told me he and his parents were in America for some kind of tour. I forgot to ask what for."
They continued to watch as Kai and Dong-hae fidgeted by their white sedan, the elder twirling a baseball cap as he leaned against the car. Kai seemed to be teasing Dong-hae, but the tiny preteen kept grinning. Otoya couldn't tell from the distance, but he was sure Dong-hae's smile got wider as he turned to look at someone.
He bit his lip as he looked the approaching girls over, noticing how Tomochika seemed to be hovering around Hikari, but was careful enough that he figured only those close to either or both girls would notice (Masato and Natsuki may share a class with them, but Natsuki preferred hanging out with Syo and Masato liked his alone time, and they haven't really seen Hikari when she panicked). Both were out of their uniforms and in casual clothing. Tomochika had a satchel, one of Hikari's, over her shoulder - clearly they had plans this weekend in the city. Otoya looked between the two cousins at the car and the girls. 'They're probably going to stay at the Nanami house.'
"Why does it seem like everyone else can meet the Nanamis, but I can't?" Ren suddenly wondered and Otoya looked at him in confusion
"What do you mean?" Tokiya asked and the lone redhead eyed him curiously before he focused his eyes on the girls and cousins, still listening to them.
Kai had just straightened and bounced over to Hikari, pulling her into a spinning hug. Otoya could just feel the fond exasperation coming off of her as she hugged him back before kicking his shin and hurrying to hug Dong-hae as Kai theatrically acted like she'd hit him hard, slumping against a bemused Tomochika, who neatly shifted to the side and let him crumple with a flail. She said something that made him roll to his feet with a laugh.
"For some reason, I can never meet with Haruto, my mother's stepbrother," the strawberry blonde explained. "Something always comes up, either an assignment or he has a meeting. Yet Ochibi and Natsuki were able to meet Lady's parents and cousins."
"Maybe they don't want to see you," Masato suggested plainly and Otoya held back a sigh as the two began their verbal sparring again. His eyes connected with Tokiya's through the glass reflection and he slightly shrugged, turning back to Hikari and Tomochika.
Kai had opened the door for Tomochika and Hikari had followed Dong-hae into the back seat. Otoya watched as Kai laughed before getting into the driver's seat, putting his hat back on. The sedan started and drove away, going through the gates.
His mind stuck on Hikari, Otoya absently waved at Syo's offer for a soccer game, heading back to his dorm and didn't notice how they shared looks from his lack of reaction.
/\\/\
Tapping the tiny compbook Hikari had given him one day when he'd been hit with inspiration, Otoya looked it over. The paper held a list of things he'd noticed were different about his female friends, indirectly and directly, and he stretched his arms out, glancing at the clock. Otoya blinked when he saw it was past dinner time. Ducking his head to check his slippers were still beneath the desk by his feet, he slid them on and spun in his chair, hopping up.
"Otoya."
Snapping his head up, Otoya's heart froze and a slight scream escaped him as he took in the sight of a pale Tokiya looming in the gloom of their room, the other teen dressed in dark casual clothes. The scream contained a Korean swear he'd overheard Hikari let out a little before they had their first recording session. "Dangsin!" Face turning red in mortification, he crumpled back in his chair, one hand against his chest, the other his face.
"What was that?" Tokiya asked curiously and Otoya shook his head.
Clearing his throat a couple times, he offered his roommate a nervously weak smile. "Something that's probably bad. Did you need something?"
"Are you alright?" Confusion must have shown on the redhead's face because Tokiya. "You seemed off after Nanami and Shibuya left and you missed dinner."
Otoya laughed sheepishly as he put away his notebook, locking the drawer and putting his phone in his hoodie pocket. "I was just writing a few things down before I forgot them. Think there's food in the common area?"
Tokiya stared at him silently before nodding. "Kurusu brought back a katsu kare curry dish and put it in the fridge. Shinomiya brought you a dessert as well."
Freezing in opening the door, he looked at Tokiya in silent horror. "Please say he didn't make it."
Raising a brow, Tokiya said slowly, "Shinomiya bought it at the Saotomate."
"Good…" His shoulders slumped in relief and he opened the door fully. Otoya steadfastly refused to answer Tokiya's curious eyebrow. Instead, he followed some of Hikari's actions when confronted with a situation she didn't want to deal with - be as obnoxious as possible. Bouncing his steps, he grabbed Tokiya's sleeve and tugged his unwilling roommate after him. "Ne, ne, Doki-Doki, do you think the TV is free? I wanna see if that one show is on…" He continued rambling as they entered the common area, noticing absently only their group was still up. Curiously, Ringo and Ryuya were there.
Jerking his wrist, Tokiya freed himself and shook his head at Otoya, who was pouting at his roommate. "Join us when you get your food. And don't call me that."
"Mean," he complained but did so, bouncing in place as he waited for his food to heat up. Otoya pulled his phone out of his pocket and blinked in mild surprise, peeking back at his friends to make sure they didn't notice. He double checked that the volume was low. "Tomo-chan, hey."
She grinned at him, face fully shown on the screen. "Hey, Otoya. We forgot to tell you guys we got here safely." Tomochika frowned slightly as she looked around the room she just entered. Otoya figured it was the kitchen because he spotted a blender before she turned away.
"What's wrong?" The male asked as he set his phone down to get his food, pulling out a fork and spoon on the way.
"I was sent to get the snack tray and drinks, but I can't find the huge wooden tray Dong-hae was talking about." Tomochika made a noise. "No, wait. Hang on, I need to put the phone down."
"Don't drop anything," he warned absently as he picked up his own food and drink, phone beside the water glass as he walked over to the counter.
"I won't, I won't," Tomochika hummed and he could hear the sounds of dishes clattering.
"So what all are you doing over there?" Otoya asked as he leaned the phone against a napkin dispenser and took a bite on tonkatsu. "I'm guessing something loud, I think I can hear Hikari."
Tomochika snickered and a hand passed by the camera. "Right now, she's probably losing ohajiki to Dong-hae. Don't play against him if it's a game of accuracy, he's got it down to an art form."
A hum left him as he swallowed. "Sounds like she's swearing in Korean again."
"Probably. I'm trying not to listen to closely in case one of the words get stuck in my head. Don't want to stub a toe and say something insulting without knowing the meaning." The female answered and squealed as she dropped something. "Stupid tray!"
Otoya snickered. "I've already done that. Could you ask Hikari or one of her relatives what 'dangsin' means? Tokiya startled me earlier and I bet he's still wondering what it means."
"Oh, I already know that one," she answered, picking the phone up and putting it on her tray. "It's just 'you' and non-polite. Dong-hae told me that went Hikari lost the first time."
He slumped in relief. "At least it wasn't a bad insult."
"Not unless you're somewhere in Korea," Tomochika reminded him as she walked down a hall.
Otoya paused mid forkful. "I didn't think of that… How is she?" He asked softly.
Her steps slowed and she locked eyes with him for a second. "So, you noticed, huh? Should've expected that… for now, she's fine. But when we get back…" Tomochika trailed off.
"We put a lot on her, huh?" He smiled self mockingly into his curry.
"Just don't bring it up when we get back, ne? Kari mentioned she wanted to do it without any intervention."
"Okay. Should I mention it to the others? I think Syo and maybe Na-chan have noticed."
Tilting her head in thought, she shook her head. "No. If they haven't noticed, don't. But if they try pushing the subject…"
"We'll rein them in," Otoya finished. "Between the two of us, I'm sure we can scare them into controlling themselves."
"YOUR FACE IS BACON!" Tomochika jolted and her camera angle changed.
"RATHER IT BE BACON THAN TOFU!" Kai yelled back at Hikari and Otoya could hear the dramatic gasp.
"You did not just say that!"
The two (sane) redheads shared looks. "I'll pray for you," Otoya offered.
"Bless you," Tomochika said and both hung up, intending on messaging each other later.
His lips twitched as he finished off his rice. "Bacon face. Tofu face." He snickered at the thought and stood up, moving to clean his dishes off.
"Ikki," he heard Ren call and he glanced over his shoulder. "When you're done come join us. That show you like is on."
"I will!" Otoya exclaimed, hurrying faster. He'd missed the last episode due to visiting his little siblings the previous Friday.
OMAKE:
Otoya stretched during the commercial, brushing an arm against Syo. "Ah, sorry."
The blond shrugged as he leaned back against the couch bottom, Natsuki on Otoya's other side. Behind Otoya was Tokiya, Natsuki with Masato, and Ren with Syo. "It's fine."
"How long is this going to be on for?" Tokiya asked and Otoya craned his head back, dropping it on the darker haired teen's knee.
"Thirty more minutes," the redhead answered. He received an unimpressed look. "What? You don't have work tomorrow, anyway."
A sigh left Tokiya. "Not the point, Otoya."
"Mah, lighten up, Ichi," Ren drawled. "Even Ryuya and Ringo-chan are watching."
"That's only because neither of us have a TV," Ringo chirped as he shifted in the arm chair he'd stolen from Masato.
"And this is an actual okay film," Ryuya continued before grimacing. "Plus, one of the actors is from Shining Entertainment."
"You don't like the actor?" Natsuki asked.
Ryuya and Ringo shared looks from across the TV area. "It's actress, actually, and not really. Sayumi is… uhm…" Ringo faltered, clearly trying not to insult the woman.
"She's not nice in person, let's put it at that." Ryuya glanced at the coffee table. "Ittoki, you've got a message."
Otoya straightened and reached to pick up the phone, immediately surrounded by his classmates. "Really?"
"It's from Shibuya," Masato noted casually.
He sighed but opened the chat and blinked at the many messages he got. "Woah, this was only five minutes ago."
Slowly, they began reading through the messages, speaking or making noises at the messages.
From: Tomo-chan
'Otoya'
From: Tomo-chan
'Ohmygod, Otoya'
From: Tomo-chan
'SHIORI HAS A SPIDER AS A PET'
"Spider?" Syo wondered. From the sides, Ryuya and Ringo looked at them in confusion.
From: Tomo-chan
'WHAT SANE PERSON KEEPS A SPIDER AS A PET'
"It's Shiori-san's pet?" Natsuki blinked at the screen in confusion.
From: Tomo-chan
'IT'S A TARANTULA'
"Uh oh," Masato muttered and Ringo and Ryuya got up, peering over Masato and Ren's shoulders respectively. "That does not sound good."
From: Tomo-chan
'IT'S A FUCKING GOLIATH BIRDEATER, OTOYA'
From: Tomo-chan
'THE THING IS BIGGER THAN SYO'S HAT'
*Insert picture*
Otoya cursed in shock, fumbling the phone.
"It is bigger than Kurusu's hat," Ryuya stated in shock.
From: Tomo-chan
'I DIDN'T AGREE TO THIS'
From: Tomo-chan
'WHAT THE FUCK'
From: Tomo-chan
'IT BELONGS IN A RAINFOREST NOT JAPAN'
From: Tomo-chan
*Insert video file*
Ringo tapped the play button before any of the teens could.
The screen turned black for a moment before it changed. Tomochika appeared, clearly dressed for bed with a sleep mask around her neck and hair braided back, and behind her was a faucet, one for a shower. Surrounding it and the girl were plain red tiles and a sliver of a mirror was to her left.
"Otoya," she greeted. "I bet you're wondering where I am right. Well, until Shiori puts away the over sized spider, I will be hiding in the Nanami's luxurious bathroom. Mainly, the shower."
She did a slow preview of the room and Ren whistled. "I don't luxurious is a good enough word for that bathroom."
"It's like a sauna," Ringo observed.
"And, my favorite part of the room," the camera tilted down and Natsuki made a happy noise as Chu came into view, eyes looking at the phone. "Don't know if Syo and Natsuki told you about her, but this is Chupacabra or Chu-chan. Chu-chan, get off my legs before they go numb. For now, the bathroom is my refuge until Kai stops being an assHOLE-"
A muffled laugh sounded. "C'mon, Tomo-chan! Tora isn't mean!"
"Go die!" She snapped, a dark glare on her face. Otoya began snickering, balancing the phone on a knee. Syo was shaking against his shoulder and Natsuki was shaking his head with a small smile.
"C'mon, I needta use the bathroom!" Kai complained, but had amusement in his voice.
"Kai, you do know we have another bathroom, right?" Hikari's voice came through the speaker. "Wait, Tomo-chan, are you in there? Why?"
Tomochika sputtered, the redhead shaking the phone and earning a bark from Chu. "Do you NOT see the huge ass spider in is hands?!" She nearly shrieked.
"Yeah, it's Shiori-unnie's robot prop for Halloween. What's that got to do with anything?" Hikari paused and there was a muffled thump. "Kai, you didn't."
"Oh, would you look at the time? I gotta go, bye, Tomo-chan!" Kai rushed and there was the sound of someone running.
Tomochika's face was blank. "Otoya, if I don't come back to the Academy it's because I was arrested for murder," she finally said, lifting herself up. "Tell Daiki I'm sorry."
As she walked away, she blocked the camera as she tapped her phone. Otoya's screen went back to the chat. He wheezed as Natsuki pulled his phone away, placing it on the table.
"Ryuya, did you know props could be like that?" Ringo asked as he sat back down.
The ginger copied him and moved his hand in a 'eh' way. "Kind of. I know some animal props are like that depending on the scene."
"Ikki, can you breath?" Ren asked, patting Otoya on the head.
Coughing slightly to get himself together, Otoya grinned at him. "Yeah. Just - Kai's going to get a tongue lashing from Tomo-chan."
Syo choked on a laugh. "Three weekends ago," he reminded Otoya and the redhead clutched his sides as he laughed.
"The-the guy looked like he was going to faint," Otoya gasped and collapsed against Syo, both wheezing.
"I'm guessing Shibuya is terrifying when she scolds people?" Tokiya asked as he peered at Otoya.
"'Terrifying' is too small a word." Otoya wiped at his eyes.
"Hikari had to bribe her with ice cream." Syo added and the two straightened.
Otoya squawked. "Hey, why didn't you say it started again?!"
"Were we supposed to?" Tokiya wondered. "Ow!"
Removing his fingers, Otoya gave the higher teen an unimpressed look. "Being petty is Hikari's job, not yours."
"Petty?" Tokiya repeated in bemusement. "How is that being petty?"
"Hikari can be pretty petty," Syo murmured as they focused back on the action.
No songs this chapter, take a bonus scene. I'm of the belief that Tomochika would totally be the one friend who can rip people to shreds with only her words. Also, Redhead Trio FTW! And yes, after flipping out over a garden snake her best friend handled, she'd also flip out over a gigantic spider her best friend's cousin had (until she heard it was fake, anyway). Uh, what else… I crossposted this onto AO3, same username. I believe that's all?
Until next time!