Chapter Text
Ivan adds his newest piece of Till merch to his shelf, then steps back. Signed posters from various celebrities, neatly folded official shirts, and idol themed plushies decorate the bookshelf. The addition, a small plush key chain normally hung on the back of a backpack, sits near the other plushies.
Ivan isn't allowed to act certain ways in public. His public image is strictly monitored to appeal to fans. The downside that comes with the territory is that they take a few small traits, then assume Ivan is a whole other person. Since he plays an attractive, tall, and mysterious character, often he is also assumed to be blunt and aloof. Ivan would say his skin is fairly thick—as it normally has to be in this type of career—but sometimes the comments about how he wouldn't care if he saw someone crying, or how Ivan would be the type of person to hit his partner, make his chest clench. Ivan chose this, but sometimes he wonders if it's worth how much it hurts. Even among other performers, Ivan has to pretend. One too many leaks to the press make it apparent it's wishful to expect anything else. The fallout of his PR team dealing with the media, paired with getting chewed out by his manager, Unsha, solidifies it isn't worth it. Ivan finds himself craving connection anyway.
So, Ivan keeps to himself, and finds comfort in cute things.
He may not be allowed to be public about his likes, but at least in his home he can do as he pleases.
Aside from his bookshelf dedicated to people he admires—a fair portion of it being Till merch—other cute items adorn his house. A fluffy, light pink blanket with hearts lay over the arm of his couch. Throw pillows brimming with fluff sit on the furniture in his living room. The rug is puffed with synthetic fur, which swallows hands or feet running through it. His room down the hall isn't much better. The duvet has neat floral patterns, a type of small red flower Ivan doesn't know the name of. In an interview, Till brings some with him and talks about how his mom likes to grow them. Now, everywhere Ivan goes, he sees the little red flowers. When he came across the puffy duvet adorned with them, he obviously had to buy it. Large stuffed animals sit in an orderly pile in the corner. They used to reside on his bed, but made it impossible to lay down without knocking some off. After he woke up to his lamp shattering on the ground at 3am, Ivan decided that most of them would have to go somewhere else.
Ivan huffs. It would be a lot easier if he could be more upfront about what he likes, if at least to stop some of the allegations he hears in passing and online. Unsha warns him what will happen, though. As someone who has done this job for years, Unsha knows what he's talking about. So, that was that. It still makes Ivan sad sometimes.
He flops onto his ridiculously fluffy carpet, and smooths his hand back and forth. Thick fur gently brushes under his palm. Ivan swipes through his schedule for the next day. He already read through it at the beginning of the week, but he's excited to reread it nonetheless. Script reading in the morning, measurements for costumes after, and in the early afternoon, a photo shoot with a sizable group of celebrities. Unsha hasn't given him a lot of details on what he'll be doing, but Till is on the list of models, so for once Ivan is fine to figure it out on his own. He squeezes a handful of fluff, excited to meet his idol.
Till hates Ivan.
The chord he tries to strum twings, and Till groans as he retunes. The angrier he is, the harder he plays. Out of tune and worn strings are typically the cost. Till slouches on the stool and gently places the guitar down, the neck resting on the side of his leg. He isn't going to be able to correctly tune it until he cools down.
Till is genuinely surprised how many people are fans of that cold bastard. Is dismissive and borderline abusive what people like? Till has a nasty temper when it comes to pushy journalists, but at least he isn't like Ivan. Plenty of people offhandedly wonder if Ivan wakes up and unplugs himself from a charger. The little to no emotion he has interacting with people, compared to how expressive he is when acting, is unsettling. From what he hears though, Ivan is someone to stay away from.
If Till didn't hate Ivan for how he interacts with his fans; he hates him for being in league with Unsha. Anyone associated with Unsha is just as rotten as him. Till experienced first hand what it's like to get on his bad side. Trying to get gigs was nearly impossible, and no one would hire him for anything, from composing end credit music to singing as an accompanying vocalist. It wasan't until Till signed with his current company that he was able to get back in the game. Till isn't the only one either. Unsha has his grubby hands everywhere. Anyone who stays near him is either a tool or an accomplice. Considering that Ivan has been with Unsha for a little over a year, Till is leaning towards the latter. Most break after a few months under Unsha’s thumb.
Till came to his studio to let off steam, but feels more irritated instead. He'll have to do a photo shoot near that piece of shit tomorrow, if not with him. The only comfort he has is that Mizi and Sua will be there too.