Idk idk idk idk, guys XD I reread and edited this chapter like a million times and idk... i'm not 100% convinced about how it turned out, but if i kept on it i was going to go mad omg. So here you go XD Back into the main storyline, yippies :D Now uumm... that means this will be OtoHaru+Starish for a while soo... the RenTomos/RenMasas will have to wait 'cuz i got to where i wanted in there and... i'm going to shut up now before i actually reveal anything XD
Disclaimer: I don't own Uta no Prince-sama nor any of its characters.
Time passed and every idol and composer fell back into their same old routine. Well, they tried.
On one side, Tomochika and Ren were booked for a couple of TV variety shows. Shewas honestly starting to suspect it could be possible the agency was putting them together, but stopped before actually considering he had something to do with it. After all, the way he handled things eased her mind, she didn't mind working with him. Despite appearances he was very professional even when he was asked dumb things like: "what hairstyle do you prefer on girls?" She was already used to those kinds of shows, but whenever she went it would usually be with someone like Otoya, Syo or even Cecil. On the other side, Ren was the kind of idol that would do more modeling and acting than comedy and mindless interviews, so his meticulous, carefree attitude in a medium he wasn't used to was quite refreshing.
When she was offered a photo shoot with him though, that's when her paranoia felt completely relevant again. She didn't even doubt going straight to the Starish's dorms just as she found out the news, and surprisingly enough: she didn't have to. He was standing right at her doorstep, cellphone in hand as if he had just talked to someone. It turned out a magazine had posted a fake story (edited pictures included) of them, confirming their romantic relationship.
Unfortunately for Tomochika, even after the magazine was forced to take the edited picture down and to publicly apologize for what they've done, the damage was already done. The attention on the couple only grew wider, both of them being the focus of every show whether it was an entertainment one or not. Ren's fans had divided into people that supported Tomochika and people that utterly despised her and the chain of events unraveled even further. Their managers decided to get on the wave of popularity and signed them up for countless more events together. Paparazzi followed them everywhere they went and ultimately, they didn't have any time off apart from sleep.
Just as all of this happened, Haruka was working in trying to write the "hit song" that Shining requested of her as a condition for her and Otoya to date. The deadline was getting closer, 10 days, 9 days, 8 days… She could feel the time slipping through her fingers and the helplessness was wearing her off. The worst part was that Otoya hadn't got a day of in what seemed like ages, her best friend was drowning in a whirlwind of instant popularity and the rest of the idols had such an irregular schedule she just couldn't ask them to spend their free time on her. Well, except for Tokiya. He would walk in unannounced and try to help her with writing at every chance he got.
With every visit at Shining's office, Haruka's resolve grew weaker, she got sadder and anxiety froze her hands when she tried to write new songs. She would pretend to be okay during the small moments she shared with her boyfriend, but little did she know he was doing the same thing. Perhaps that was why neither of them could notice the other acting peculiar; maybe they were both equally guilty of the distance growing between them.
There was only one week left before it all came to shove and Haruka started to break down. She dashed through the halls of the dorm in her way to her room and completely missed Natsuki walking towards her. Needless to say, they bumped into each other and she fell to the ground. He apologized and offered his hand and as she took it to stand, she started sobbing. He completely freaked out at the scene and didn't know what to do considering she couldn't even stop long enough to explain herself. Thankfully, he followed his instincts and just hugged her. He held her in his arms as she wrapped hers around him, grabbing his sweater as if it was a life jacket and she was drowning. She cried into his shoulder until her legs weren't strong enough to support her anymore, and then she fell to her knees and he didn't hesitate to catch her before she hit the floor.
Kneeling beside her, he took a tissue from his pocket and tried to dry her face with it. But because she was still crying, it didn't really make any difference.
"I'm… I'm sorry… Just…" she tried to explain through her tears but the tightness she felt in her throat forced her to stop.
"Hey, it's ok. Don't push yourself, take your time"
Time. That was exactly the word she didn't want to hear, the thing she had been dreading the most. "I don't have time" she said, looking down at her shaking hands.
"That's not true, Haru-chan! You're a seventeen year old girl; you have all the time in the world!"
"No, you don't understand… I don't… Otoya-kun…" she said, trying to clear the misunderstanding.
"Did something happen to him? Oh, goodness we need to-"
She caught his sleeve before he panicked any further and shook her head in denial.
"Then what…?"
For a moment she considered opening up to him and accepting his help, to lighten up the burden that was haunting her. If she didn't come up with a proper song soon… it would all be over. She and Otoya would be forced to break up! And she was sure Shining would do the impossible and more to keep them apart from each other if that was the case.
After knowing what it felt to be held in his arms, to feel the warmth of his lips come in contact with hers, his heartbeat right next to her as he slept soundly… his hands… She stopped herself before she could entertain the thought any longer, but the truth was that in all those weeks they spent together she started to imagine a future with him. She could see her future self calmly humming a melody in the shower and then finding him singing lyrics in that same rhythm. They would both work in the same industry supporting each other and never giving up, maintaining the compromise of their relationship and their devotion for each other as a top priority and still be able to focus on their mutual passion: music. But then what if… what if they had to break up and they could never go back to where they left off? What if the distance between them grew so wide that they couldn't get past it anymore? What if…?
Natsuki was waving his hand at her face in his attempt to bring her back to reality when she realized she was still in front of him.
"I'm sorry, Shinomiya-san"
"I'll forgive you under the condition that you tell me what's going on"
"You… do you remember I told you what I had to do for Shining to let me and Otoya-kun date?"
He thought about it for a moment, and then replied: "… Write a song?"
"Yes, but not just like that. I had to write a hit single for Starish by the end of this month… otherwise…"
"Otherwise?"
"We'll be forced to break up"
He gasped at her response, but he didn't say anything back. He looked at her with wide eyes, almost as if he wanted to tell her something but the words wouldn't come out.
She waited for him to say something, anything, but the silence was growing quite uncomfortable. It got to the point where she started considering what she could say to just go back to her room as she had first intended before she ran into him.
But any thought she had; the things she had planned on saying… It all came to a stop when he finally reacted: with a swift move of his hands, he quickly took off his glasses. And before she knew it, threatening eyes were staring back at her, leaving her frozen in her place. He grabbed her wrists with unnecessary force when she struggled to get up and pulled her right back on the floor, keeping her there.
She was still incredibly sensitive at the prospect of the end of her relationship with Otoya, but having to face Satsuki was something she was completely unprepared for. No matter how much she tried to shake him off, he was too strong for her: every attempt was a failure. And then he was getting closer to her, to her face, her lips.
'NO!' The ferocity of her thoughts and the adrenaline she was feeling finally did the trick. Just as he tried to pin her to the ground she used every little ounce of her strength to push him away. Thankfully, it worked. She saw him falling backwards and sighed in relief halting for a second before getting up and running: wrong choice.
Satsuki started laughing in a way that made chills run down her spine and her heart race even faster, preparing herself for whatever was coming.
"I thought you were different, Haru-chan" the way he mockingly pronounced her nickname made her recoil as her now standing legs shook. "I thought I could trust you with him" After saying that, he stood up. "You're just like everyone else"
Suddenly, he dashed towards her and as if on impulse, her reaction wasn't to run away but to scream as loud as possible. He covered her mouth and pushed her against the nearest wall, smiling in amusement. She discovered it was harder to break off his grasp while standing, mostly because of her weak legs, but the thought of him covering her mouth eased her a little: what else could he do?
Her impending question was rapidly responded as he leaned in closer and bit her neck. She felt his teeth pressing against her skin, hurting her to the point where she started to tear up and remembered every single vampire movie she had ever watched. It seemed that this time neither garlic nor sunlight would be able to save her. As he applied more pressure with his jaw she started to fear for her life. How strong could he be? If he were able to penetrate her skin she would be in great trouble, and she knew it, because if her biology class had taught her anything: he was biting right where her jugular vein was. Maybe the worst part of it all was that his hand was so huge it was partly also covering her nose and making it difficult for her to breathe. But still, she just couldn't give up! What if Natsuki somehow recovered control and never forgave himself for what he was doing to her? She had to stop him and she had to do it fast.
She started moving her legs in an attempt to destabilize him, but all she accomplished was him getting a little bit more into it. He started sucking on her neck, right at the same spot he was biting and without thinking it twice: her leg moved on its own and kicked him straight in the nuts.
Finally the whole ordeal was over, he was lying on the floor, curled up in a ball as she touched her neck and felt the spot burning. She decided to call someone up before he got even more violent, but she failed to see who it was that she had on speed dial.
"Haruka!" Otoya said as he picked up. She hesitated for a moment, but she needed help and she couldn't wait any longer.
"Otoya-kun, where are you?"
Her agitated tone made him realize it wasn't just an 'I miss you' sort of call and he instantly changed back to 'overprotective puppy mode'. So instead of revealing his location, he replied: "Doesn't matter. Where are you? I'll be right over"
She gave him something close to specific directions of where she was inside the dorms and he silently thanked the gods for having just arrived there. He ran through the halls and spotting her pink hair glowing in one of them, he fastened his pace towards her.
When he arrived, he noticed how she was covering her neck with one of her hands. He considered asking what that was about, but then he saw a certain blond right next to them on the ground. Thinking fast, he rushed for the glasses and put them on his friend. Unfortunately, Natsuki passed out before he could do anything.
Once all danger was averted, Otoya transferred his focus back to Haruka.
"What happened to your neck?"
"Eh?" Without even knowing why, she took a step away from him, still covering the marks with her hand.
"Your neck, what did he do?"
She could tell he was worried but the anger in his tone, the dark aura he emitted was making her feel like running again.
"… I'm fine"
"Don't lie to me, let me see your neck" Having said those words, he walked towards her faster than she could move and sharply removed her hand from her neck. The brusqueness of the action made her close her eyes so she wasn't able to see his initial reaction to the wound, but his silence made her uneasy so she decided to look. He was staring at her as if he had seen a ghost: pale skin, wide eyes, trembling lips. It almost felt like if she were to touch him he would crumble to the ground. The mere sight of it scared her even more than any anger he could muster towards the now asleep member of Starish.
"Otoya-kun?"
Her attempt at making him respond in any way was completely bombarded by his lack of movement; it was as if he didn't even hear her.
She tried again, a little louder this time: "Otoya-kun?"
His eyes twitched. He took a very deep breath and… "Haruka… Haruka please don't leave me" He fell on his knees, pleading for her.
She didn't know what to do. "What… what are you talking about?" The only response she got was a teardrop falling right on top of her right foot; he was looking down at her feet, but… what in the world was happening?
"Otoya-kun, what are you-? I'd never leave you" she said without any doubt.
Just then he looked up at her, red eyes brimming with tears, lip quivering, and he muttered the words: "Wouldn't you?"
It pained her heart to see him like that, and she couldn't stop herself from dropping on her knees and hugging him as hard as she could. He hugged her back just as tightly and started whispering things she couldn't understand. Somewhere along the lines he mentioned something about Shining, Starish and then finally Natsuki. She couldn't really make out what he said, but that didn't stop her from whispering: "I love you" time and time again.