Chapter Text
Tuesday is an average day for most people, nothing really happens, unless of course you have the fortunate chance to befriend Kamishiro Rui.
Another day, another explosion as they say in Kamiyama high school.
Completely over what happened the day before, the weirdo combo of the school were once again back at their usual troublemaking, Rui speeding through the hallway to escape the teachers and laughing like a maniac, leaving Tsukasa tracing behind and yelling at him before he finally managed to grab his wrist.
After a while of running, they melted in the crowd of students and slipped into one of empty classrooms, hiding behind some desks to not be seen from the hall windows.
They sat there catching their breath, still unconsciously hand in hand before Tsukasa separated them, coughing slightly into his.
Rui, still facing upright, glanced at his friend whose face was bright red, presumably from their previous chase. He chuckled slightly preparing himself to tease Tsukasa, filling the comfortable silence between them.
However to his surprise, instead of scolding him like they were used to, Tsukasa accompanied his laugh softly
Rui’s heart skipped a beat
“You really never stop huh! but honestly I’m way too tired to be mad at you right now”
“You could never really be mad at me Tsukasa-kun! you love me too much for that~”
The boy teased, hoping to embarrass the other
Plan success ?
Tsukasa hit the top of his purple head
“Don’t say things like that idiot !! Someone might hear you!”
“There’s no one here anyway, this classroom will be empty till night classes start”
‘And it’s not like rumors weren’t already there’ though Rui decided against mentioning it
Tsukasa sighed
“Count on you for knowing that type of thing..”
“of course ! Would I really be me if I didn’t have an escape route in case of trouble ?“
His catlike smirk complimented his words
They sat once again in silence.
Tsukasa felt different than most days, he seemed like he was enjoying the moment they were sharing yet also conflicted and thoughtful. Either way, a quiet Tsukasa sure was rare sight to see
But again, he was the one to break the silence
“Rui , have you ever kissed someone before?”
eyes wide from surprise, the purple haired stayed stunned for a second before answering
“..as embarrassing as it sounds, no I haven’t either”
A breathing silence fell on them again
“Oh! Then… it’ll be a first for both of us” The star stood up looking away from the other “let’s go grab our stuff, the last bell will ring in 5 minutes”
“Right,”
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Practice at phoenix wonderland always has a way to lift everyone’s spirit.
After a quick stretch out to keep their bodies warm and in motion they began orchestrating the play, Rui controlling the direction from on stage as an actor while Tsukasa helped by giving his insight from the audience’s seats.
<<
The duke of venomania was smart man in a county of greedy villagers, all blinded by money and beauty, prestige or what not.
Hiding in the shadows of the city he murmured to passing women whatever tempting words he could offer, with his undoubtable charisma strengthening his claims for only the richest and proudest of men would look so elegant.
Luring them with money and finally approaching his mansion, The duke, skilled in witchcraft, would hypnotize his victims before hiding them somewhere they couldn’t be found.
And once the chaos and worry had grown he would rescue their confused and bruised bodies back to their families, saving the princesses with any heroic tale he could tell.
He was a lonely child, ignored and bullied by everyone around him, beaten by his peers and forgotten by family.
“ Why do you hate me so ? All that I do and all that I say is for you to see me !“
Year after year his anger grew slowly till it consumed him whole. he learned how to lie and promised a revenge, crawling his way to the top with the help of the devils of the world.
And now he had it.
Smiling to himself as the people who hurt him looked down in shame, knees to the ground , thankful and apologetic they were. Oh how he could bathe in all this attention ! He needed more ! he wanted to see their faces crumble, all of them, more.
Hypocrite was he to let himself fall in the same greed he frowned. Careless and proud he failed to realize, or even consider, that someone had seen through his act.
>>
the entire first part of the play was going to be a video projected on stage following a narration style as the troupe had agreed, so they spent this second rehearsal focusing more so on how to use the illusions they had planned for the video rather than the script.
Now that Tsukasa was back they could now actually start practicing the focus part of the show. Emu’s excitement could be felt in how she twirled and jumped in place, smile brimming and hugging Nene’s arm who didn’t show any signs of resistance.
Rui, on the other hand, was placing the prompts on the stage, that feeling of apprehension rising again as yesterday’s conversation with Tsukasa came back to mind.
Was he really okay with all of this ? A stage kiss means nothing, it will mean nothing to him and Rui should have been the same but…
A sturdy hand sets on his shoulder
“Are you alright rui? You seem out of it”
Tsukasa looked at him in a questioning expression
Looking over the box he was holding, rui smiled at his friend in a reassuring tone
Has he been spacing out for too long again ?
“Oh? yes everything’s fine, what makes you think otherwise ?”
“I mean you’ve kinda been walking back and forth with the box in your arms like a robot so “
“Oh Have I? Apologies I really didn’t notice “
That’s way more obvious than he thought it’d be
“Anyway just drop it here and let’s start !! I need to catch up for yesterday”
continuing that sentence he mumbled something that Rui couldn’t hear
Oh well , guess it’s time
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<<
In the scenes that follow , the duke, still wanting more of the attention, caught sight of two running figures in the depth of night.
A young pink haired girl, dressed in the finest silk, leading someone behind her by the hand
“ Oh my what could we have here~ a noble no doubt but the girl behind her simply looks like any other farmer…“ he said to himself
This was a perfect opportunity for him, a tragic sight of forbidden bond And so he approached the two who had come to a halt.
“What could you two ladies be doing adventuring by yourself in the scary hours of the night?“
he played a well meaning act but that didn’t stop the village girl to protectively get in his way
“Who are you..” she said, shy for someone with such piercing eyes
The two looked on guard ready to either fight or run
“My, no need to be so defensive I come to you with sincere thoughts “ a lie he hid by backing away, slightly bowing as apology
“I just happened to think you might need some assistance, seeing how unsafe it’s been recently“
He knew offering money would lead to nothing, the bourgeoisie were far from needing
“If you need somewhere to shelter, or hide, I know just the place” He said after a pause, watching them glance at each other
This time the pink one spoke, less hesitant than before, her face lighting up
“Can you really help us? Will you hide us even from the guards ? even if we were running away? “ the other tugged her robe “hypothetically i mean !”
He smiled
“Of course.”
And as they were leaving the scene, a shadowy figure barely showed itself from the darkness before hiding again.
>>
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The scenes went by and practice continued, restarting whenever needed, correcting any mistakes. Now it was almost night, the sun was setting over the park with that comfortable shade of pink. With all the time that had passed and the trial and error they were never really able to get to the famous part of the play, the one itching both Rui’s and Tsukasa‘s minds.
Cleaning up the stage, though quieter than usual, went by in a blink and in no time Emu and Nene were once again leaving together for presumably another sleepover. Rui sighed, he was happy his friend spent more times with other people but the walk home will feel a lot emptier without her semi-constant nagging.
He smiled as he walked backstage to the changing room, Tsukasa was there adjusting his shirt in the mirror silently. Rui grabbed his backpack about to say goodbye to the other but before he could even open the door a hand caught him by the wrist
“Tsukasa-kun? “ he turned his head around, meeting the other’s sparkling eyes
“Rui! ” he gulped, gathering his courage “listen, I know I ran away last time and all but— you.. know what I’m talking about right?”
Now body fully facing each other, they were staring again, both red faced but idiotically ignoring it
“Are you talking about back at school? The rooftop practice?”
He hadn’t realized he’d been holding his breath until he spoke, all these feelings made him feel so pathetic
“Yeah do you mind maybe perhaps trying that again?please?” He cough out a loud but awkward chuckle
Rui glanced at their hands, his wrist held strong by Tsukasa’s palm.
They stayed that way for a moment
He gives up. this guy was gonna be the one to end him at this point so might as well dare. Slowly moving up, he intertwined their fingers and let their position fall into a more comfortable one.
Tsukasa looked shocked, both of their hands together were soft and sweaty. Rui almost completely abandoned his unbothered attitude and seemed a lot more fidgety
“sure.”
Their gaze never left the other, the room around them melted as they stayed there. They both felt so weak. Hesitant to break their moment Tsukasa spoke again
“..shouldn’t we..start from the scene?”
A second went by before the other answered
“I don’t think it’s necessary.”
And with that the gap was closed. Rui leaned in, tilting his head before bring his other palm to Tsukasa’s cheek to just slightly deepen the kiss. The star accepted it gladly as he brought his fingers to the back of his Rui’s head, gently caressing his hair. Tsukasa’s lips felt soft one could melt from their delicacy; they had a slight strawberry aftertaste. Rui’s on the other hand were coarse but at the same time soothing, blueberry taste from the ramune soda he drank earlier.
After a while, the two reluctantly separated, letting all stress fade away. It may have been messy and confusing but neither of them would’ve asked for a different first kiss.
Tsukasa was the one to break the silence again, smiling
“That didn’t feel like what we’re supposed to play at all!” He faked annoyance
Rui hummed thinking
“Hm~ you’re not wrong” He placed his free arm on his ‘friends’ waist, recovering his smug smile “want to try again and see?”
..
Tsukasa flushed bright red again, somehow more than before, and looked dumbfounded at Rui before the other continued again surprised at his own boldness
“Ahh but It’s just a joke ! Joke, yea-“
Eyes avoided contact he let go of the other’s hand as he slowly backed away for personal space, the air around them felt tense again only for a pull on his collar to bring him back from where he stood into another melting kiss
This time they pulled away earlier though still appreciating that chaster contact
“I mean..we do have to practice it, right? One try can’t be enough”
“…yeah” Rui stared back at him
At this point all his thoughts started battling each other again, he felt so all over the place he could confess right there and then if it hadn’t been just a ‘practice’. This is all too much, if he were to be any closer to the star again he’s not sure he’d be able to hide his feelings any longer.
But, it couldn’t be that bad right?
He would have to be the most oblivious person ever to ignore all that had happened in these past couple of minutes, considering how Tsukasa didn’t show any signs of rejection a chance couldn’t be so inimaginable
He sighed and lead the other into his embrace, a hug for the comfort. Rui placed his chin in the crook of Tsukasa‘s neck and mumbled something inaudible
The blonde was startled at the sudden closeness, arms in the air not sure where to place them
“Rui?! What are you doing ??”
words muffled under his breath without making any effort to move, the boy replied
“Do you want me to back away?”
“No ! No it’s not that, I just wasn’t expecting it.. you can stay ”
Tsukasa reciprocated the hug, holding tightly
They lingered there for a moment. Heartbeat after heartbeat.
Rui felt a lump in his throat, biting his lower lip
God he felt so— happy. The giddiness and bittersweetness overwhelmed him
He just kissed Tsukasa Tenma and not once but twice ! this had to be a dream there is no other option
His constant Incoherent thoughts as if disappeared in that moment and in such a state of peace he asked
“Tsukasa-kun , Can I tell you a secret ?”
“Hm ? “
“I love you.”
He finally said it. his body tensed up and this horrible feeling in his stomach brought him down to earth, expecting tsukasa to push him away any second now. He felt sick, his legs threatened giving out under the pressure the silence between them built but instead of pulling away tsukasa only tightened his grip on Rui instead. Surprised by this the former could only hold his breath, melting deeper in their embrace.
A whisper only him could hear ringed in his ears
“you better not be fucking with me..”
They gently pulled away, just enough to see the other’s face. Rui looked bright red and uncharacteristically taken by surprise while tsukasa, just as flustered, was avoiding his gaze in whatever way he could, anxious smile bracing his face. Breathing out the blonde initiated another light kiss in hopes it would answer the questions written on Rui’s face
Any and every thought felt lighter than ever before and as Rui smiled at his beloved all he could feel was the easiness of it all. He hugged the other once again before whispering a small
“I would never.”