Chapter Text
Fujisaki had been nagging Adachi to participate in the show she was the costume designer for. A dance show. There was no way he would dare to do that. Just the idea of leading some woman around on the dance-floor made him shrink back and wish to hide. No, he was not cut out for that. But Fujisaki was relentless, and Adachi had downtime since he had just finished his last tour with the band.
She argued that he danced on stage all the time, but that was different. He only had to make sure he followed the routine down to the right second, and he didn’t have to interact much with any of the other members of the group, beyond the occasional high-five or grab-and-spin. As the main singer, he was not expected to make high jumps or rolls or whatever else the others decided to incorporate in the routines. No, the dancing he did was completely different from the dancing people did in Fujisaki’s show. And he told her so.
But she still kept asking. Not in rude ways, but more… like she really had faith that he would do great. And that was the weirdest thing—it was starting to work. He was actually considering it. Which was stupid, because he would absolutely not be able to lead. He could barely sort his own feet.
When he mentioned that, she had paused, looked him up and down, and asked, as if it was the most natural thing in the world, “What if you dance with a male partner?”
Adachi froze up. Him. Dancing with a man? That was… Actually not such a bad idea. In fact, asking for a male partner would surely make the director of the show balk. Right? There was no way they would agree to it? And, even if they did, they would be voted out after the first round. Then he could say that he’d done it, and Fujisaki would let it go. Yeah, he might embarrass himself a bit, but then, he did that a lot in interviews anyway, so it was not as if it would kill him.
He took the leap. “Okay. If I can dance with a man, then I’ll give it a shot.”
Fujisaki’s gleeful grin made him wonder if he had made a mistake.
⁂
Kurosawa had met Adachi years earlier, when they had both attended an audition. Kurosawa had felt uncomfortable the whole time, especially after one of the judges there had tried to flirt with him. A conversation with Adachi had made him realize that it was okay to not want to become a star. That it was okay to want a relatively quiet life as a dance instructor instead. And so he had bowed out of the audition, and gone to work at his parents’ dance studio.
But ever since then, he had followed Adachi’s career avidly, to the point where he had a poster inside the door of his closet, out of view of snooping sisters.
Being asked to partner up with Adachi for ‘Come Dance Among the Stars’, it was a dream come true. And Kurosawa didn’t even have to think about it—He just said yes.
Oh, he assumed the producers thought he was jumping at the chance to be on TV, but he couldn’t care less about that. No, the chance to hold Adachi in his arms, and lead him across the dance-floor, that was all Kurosawa could think about for nearly a whole day after. Then his fantasies started to spiral a bit out of control, becoming a bit more… lewd. Dipping Adachi to steal a kiss. Spinning him around, only to draw him close, one leg lifted up against his hip. A passionate tango, ending with them in an intimate embrace, Kurosawa’s hand splayed across Adachi’s lower back. He had so many ideas.
Although, he should probably start by bingeing the previous seasons, so he knew what to expect.
⁂
Arriving at the studio, Adachi had been shown to a room where the other contestants waited, along with a TV-crew that he’d been instructed to ignore.
He knew a few of the other contestants, and knew of the rest. A few singers like him, some actors and actresses, a TV presenter, a soccer player, a stand-up comedian, a TV chef, a race-car driver—that one Adachi only knew who was because his brother was a fan—and a fashion model. Plus Tsuge.
Their eyes met, and Adachi let out a surprised “Eh?!”
Giving him a wry smirk in return, Tsuge got up from the chair he had been lounging in, striding over. “Adachi?! You didn’t tell me you were participating!”
“No, the contract said…” He paused, then he huffed, and gave Tsuge a smile in return. “You didn’t mention it either. How is your writing going?”
He could feel the eyes of some of the others there on them, probably surprised that Adachi, a member of the j-pop group The Wizards, knew Tsuge Masato, a famous writer. But he’d had years to learn to tune out attention. At least as long as it was from a distance, and not right next to him.
It didn’t take long before he and Tsuge were deep in a discussion of the plot of Tsuge’s last book, Adachi having just finished reading it a week earlier. They were so absorbed in the conversation that they nearly missed it when the double doors at the other end of the room was opened and a line of people filed in. The presenters of the show, and the dancers they would be paired with.
Adachi studied them all. Most of them were very pretty or handsome, but it all seemed a bit too slick. Like they had been through an hour in the makeup chair and then had been poked and prodded in the costume department for another hour. It struck Adachi as a very superficial beauty. Shallow in a way.
Then he felt bad for judging them, but before he could spiral into self-recrimination, he was distracted by the last man in the line. He knew that guy! They had met before. He was sure of it. A face like that was hard to forget. What was it he’d said his name was? Miyakawa Yocci? No, that wasn’t right. Resigning himself to waiting for the presenters to say the name, he skimmed over the line again, assessing the men a bit more. One of them would be partnered with him. He had almost not believed it when Fujisaki had told him that the producers had approved his request. Then he had beat himself up over his mistake for a few days before he resigned himself to go through with it.
His eyes wandered back to the tall guy at the end, and he found that he kind of hoped that would be the guy he would be dancing with. At least his memories from that incident suggested that this guy was nice. Kind, even. And maybe patient. Gods knew that whoever got paired with Adachi would need it.
⁂
Kurosawa was nearly vibrating out of his skin. There, across the room, stood Adachi. Looking every bit as cute as he did on stage or in interviews.
His clothes fit him better than the outfit he’d worn for that audition years ago, but Kurosawa could recognize some parts that had been kept. Like the too long sleeves, almost hiding his hands. It was a very cute style for him, and with his image as the shy and demure one in The Wizards, they were probably doing their best to enhance that appeal. It certainly worked well for Kurosawa, sending his heart racing every time he saw Adachi fidget or hide his lower face behind those long sleeves.
He waited as one by one the other dancers were paired up with their celebrity for the season, seeing the moment Adachi’s friend moved over to a tall brunette, greeting the woman, and Adachi’s eyes flickered over to Kurosawa, again. Did he remember him? Was that why he kept looking? Or did he simply find him handsome? Usually, the latter would annoy Kurosawa, but now, he would be willing to overlook it.
The woman ahead of him in the line was paired with Tanaka, the race-car driver. And then it was only him left. And Adachi. Their eyes met even as the presenter announced, “And, our surprise for this season, Adachi Kiyoshi-san, famous from the amazing group The Wizards, agreed to join on the condition that he would be allowed to dance with a male partner! So we have secured the talented Kurosawa Yuichi-san, from Kurosawa Dance Studios, to partner with him! This is sure to make waves!”
Walking over to Adachi and giving him a respectful bow, Kurosawa could see more than one camera focused on them. Adachi quickly bowed back, then he gave a shy little smile. “I am not sure if you remember, but we have met before.”
Butterflies converged in his stomach, and a choir of angels sang. Adachi remembered him! Gathering his scattered wits as fast as he could, Kurosawa gave him a happy smile. “I do remember. I owe you a great deal for that. Thank you for your wonderful advice. It helped me make a difficult choice, but I believe I came out much happier for it.”
Adachi blushed. Blushed! And looked off to the side, appearing incredibly shy and cute. “Ah, I… You are welcome? I didn’t think… I’m surprised you remember.”
Before Kurosawa could gush about how of course he remembered, Adachi saved him from himself, again, by giving a quick bow. “I am in your care. Please look after me.”
Still sporting a small smile, Kurosawa bowed back. “It will be my honor.”
The presenter spoke up again, preventing any further conversation at that moment. “Now that you’ve all met your dance partner, it is time to show you to the practice rooms. You have all been given a private room that you can use as much, or little, as you see a need for. The first dance will be in three days, so you should make use of that time to familiarize yourself with your partner and their rhythm.”
A row of assistants scurried into the room, leading each pair off to their designated space and handing them an envelope that contained information about the dance they were expected to perform for the live-show. Kurosawa noticed that one of the cameramen followed them. Which made sense. A same-sex dancing couple had never been seen before in Japan. They would be under more scrutiny than any other pairing in this show, though fortunately not every day, as there was a limited number of cameramen working on the weekdays so they needed to move between the various pairs.
But it was annoying, as it would limit what he could talk with Adachi about on those days. Though, perhaps he could invite him to dinner, in the interest of getting to know each other better? Yes, that might be a good idea. He glanced to the side, taking in the serious expression on Adachi’s face. It was adorable. Made Kurosawa want to pull Adachi into a hug and press him against his chest, aligning them so they were heart against heart.
He was in so much trouble, and yet he couldn’t find it in himself to regret it. Even just a few days with Adachi would be more than he’d had. Though, what he really wanted was for them to go all the way to the finals, to get as much time as possible with Adachi. Yeah, he just needed to make sure that Adachi would dance well, so that he could progress, and then Kurosawa might get time to convince Adachi to give him a chance. That was all that he was asking for.
⁂
“Do you have proper dancing shoes?”
Kurosawa’s question caught Adachi by surprise, but then he nodded quickly. “Yes, Fujisaki took me shopping before the show, so that I would not have to borrow shoes here.”
There was a flicker of a frown, but then it was gone again. Did Kurosawa worry that the shoes would not be good enough?
Looking around, he found that his bag had been left on a bench along the wall, probably put there while they were waiting in the introduction room. Hurrying over to it, he dug around and pulled out a pair of shiny black swing dance shoes. When he turned around, he almost jerked back. Kurosawa stood close to him. As if he’d tried to peer over his shoulder.
Smiling a little awkwardly, Adachi held the shoes between them, almost as a shield. Kurosawa put his hand underneath the shoes, tilting them slightly as he examined them. “These should work for what we’ll be doing the next few days. Have you tried them on already?”
“Ah, well, yes. But I haven’t worn them for any length of time.”
“Hn. We’ll see how it goes, but let me know right away if you start to feel chafing. The last thing we need is for you to get blisters.”
“Right.” Adachi nodded quickly. That had been one of his worries.
Then Kurosawa smiled again, one of his bright and blinding smiles that left Adachi feeling awkward, and told him, “I’ll bring some special socks tomorrow that should help prevent blisters.”
He grabbed one of the shoes and peered inside it. Adachi realized he had checked his shoe size. For some reason his mind dug up the old myth about men and shoe-sizes, and he really hoped Kurosawa didn’t believe in that. Then he could have slapped himself. Why did he care if Kurosawa thought that?!
Feeling flustered and embarrassed, he took the shoe back and moved to sit on the bench, to swap shoes, buying himself a little time and distance. But there were limits to how long he could delay it, and with the cameraman hovering in the background, Adachi had to force himself to be brave. He was getting better at that. Just… there was something about Kurosawa that he found… intense.
Still, he needed to do his best, to not shame himself, and by association, the group. So, shoes laced properly, he got up, plastered on a small smile, and asked Kurosawa, “So, how do we do this?”
⁂
“Have you danced with a partner before?”
Kurosawa felt silly for the relief that coursed through him upon hearing Adachi’s quiet admission that, “No, not really.”
Especially since it would actually make this harder for him. However, jealousy was not a rational feeling, that much Kurosawa could admit to.
Shaking off that thought, he moved on. “Well, in that case, we should start with the basics.”
He walked closer, holding his hand out. Adachi blinked, then he bit his lip briefly before he placed his hand in Kurosawa’s. Noticing that Adachi’s hand was nearly the same size as Kurosawa’s own, but slimmer, and sort of softer, he was briefly distracted. Then Kurosawa shifted the grip and moved to place the other hand around Adachi’s waist, noticing that Adachi’s eyes had gone wide, and his cheeks became darker with a blush creeping over them. As his hand made contact, Kurosawa almost sighed in delight. Adachi felt so warm to the touch. He couldn’t help the temptation to spread his fingers slightly, to enjoy the feeling of being allowed to touch the man he had been pining for ever since their first meeting years ago.
Then he forced himself to focus on what they were supposed to be doing. “Now, try to follow my lead, feel my movement and adjust your own steps to the direction and rhythm. This is just for me to get a feel for what I have to work with here, and which areas we should focus on. There is no right or wrong, just do your best.”
The first few moments he felt Adachi resist his moves, but then he relaxed into it and Kurosawa’s hopes soared. Oh, they would need to work if they were going to get past the first voting, but not nearly as much as he had feared. No, they might actually make it. He smiled at Adachi as he carefully guided him through a turn, avoiding the shorter man tripping over his feet by adjusting his own steps quickly. Right. Not perfect, far from it, but they had nearly three days. Three days where Kurosawa would be allowed to hold Adachi’s hand. Where he would be allowed to dance with him for hours. Kurosawa was absolutely determined that they would move through to the second episode.
⁂
Tsuge had been paired with a woman who was nearly as tall as him. She was nice enough, but Tsuge didn’t really feel any connection with her, and her explanations for how he was supposed to move did not make much sense to him. He also felt rather awkward while holding her hand, and even more so when he had to put his hand on her waist. When he tried to just sort of hover it there, she had grabbed his wrist and pulled on his hand until it made contact again, giving him a little smile. “It is nice that you are a gentleman, but the touch is necessary to guide me through the steps.”
All Tsuge could do was give her an awkward smile and do his best to ignore how strange he felt.
⁂
Adachi didn’t know what it was about Kurosawa, but he found it very easy to simply let the other man move him around where he wanted Adachi to be. Kurosawa radiated confidence, and explained things in such a way that it sounded like he had utter faith that Adachi could do it. It made him want to prove Kurosawa right. He could do it. After all, Kurosawa was doing most of the job. Adachi just had to follow, and make sure to not step on Kurosawa’s feet.
He didn’t always succeed in the latter, but Kurosawa had just brushed it off, saying that usually the beginners did it far more often than Adachi had done so far, implying that he was already ahead of the game. And it was so easy to believe Kurosawa, with the way he smiled and looked happy as he made Adachi follow him around on the floor, eyes crinkling at the edges in such a charming way. No wonder Kurosawa was a successful dance-teacher. The girls had to be flocking there to get a chance to be in his arms, even if it was just for dancing.
For some reason, Adachi couldn’t resist glancing at Kurosawa’s hands. No ring. That didn’t necessarily mean anything, but… Then he frowned. Why did he care if Kurosawa was married? He didn’t. Did he?
His thoughts were interrupted because he stumbled, falling against Kurosawa’s chest. He felt the arm on his waist tighten around him, holding him up until he could regain his balance. Blushing, he pushed himself up again and apologized. Kurosawa just kept smiling that blinding smile of his and brushed it off, saying that it was no problem. That they would get this in time for the competition. Then he held his hand out again, as if Adachi had done nothing wrong. Aware of the camera still in the room, Adachi couldn’t run away as he wanted to do. No, he took the hand, being pulled into dance again, even with his face feeling warm and him cursing himself for being so clumsy.
He felt very relieved when Kurosawa announced a break for food, even if the use of the word ‘break’ meant that they would be back in the studio afterwards. Still, Kurosawa was so eager, and it was a little infectious. Besides, Adachi had realized that this was as much for Kurosawa himself as it was for Adachi. To get the chance for him to show off his skills as a dance-teacher to so many viewers… How could Adachi disappoint him? How could he not give it his best? His plans to get voted out after the first episode looked so selfish now. He could no longer aim for that. No, he needed to try harder. Needed to stick with this for however long it took for him to fail as he knew he would, not because he had given up, but because he had reached the limits of his skills. Yes, he would do that for Kurosawa. Because the man was so nice and kind. Kurosawa deserved to get a chance to showcase his skills. If that meant that Adachi would need to suffer through more episodes of the show… Well, he had done worse with his group for various interviews or TV-shows while on tour. This… was almost fun.
⁂
The three days had gone by far quicker than Kurosawa had anticipated. Dancing with Adachi was a delight. Oh, he was not perfect. Far from it. But it was still easy to lead him around, to teach him how to hold his hands or move his hips or, as a dare, for Adachi to let Kurosawa dip him. It had worked so well that they had decided to include it in the dance on the competition day.
And now that day was here. The costume department had swept in, outfitting them both in matching suits. Then the makeup artists had dragged them into chairs next to each other, and dabbed on makeup that they swore up and down would not run in the heat under the studio-lights. Adachi seemed far calmer about that bit than Kurosawa felt, but then again, Adachi had more experience on a stage than Kurosawa did.
Then they were lined up behind the curtain, ready to step up on that stage to impress the judges and the audience. For a live show. It was daunting. Though, from how he’d gotten to know Adachi in the past days, Kurosawa could not show the other man how nervous he felt. That would shatter Adachi’s self-confidence. No, Kurosawa had to put on his best winning smile and trust that he would not mess up. It was his job to keep Adachi from messing up.
After the initial presentation of the competitors, they were all ushered behind the stage again, and shown up to a balcony where they could watch the stage out of view from the rest of the audience. An assistant held up cards by the stairs to indicate who was next, and Kurosawa tapped his fingers, mentally cataloging the mistakes the first couples out made during their dances. Then it was their turn. Descending the staircase, Kurosawa plastered on his best winning smile.
They got their cue, and walked out on the stage. He noticed how Adachi’s personality sort of… morphed, becoming the professional one he knew from watching the concerts of The Wizards.
Taking up their positions, they bowed to each other, then, just as the electro-swing music started up, they stepped close, Adachi putting his hand into Kurosawa’s. The next minutes were a breathless swirl of steps, spins, sliding feet, one lift that had Kurosawa tingling with joy, and intense looks as Adachi kept his attention on him and not the audience. By the time Kurosawa dipped Adachi so that his face was towards the judges, Kurosawa’s blood felt like it was on fire. He loved this! He nearly didn’t want it to end, but as the last notes from the music played out, he finished with flair, pulling Adachi close in a dramatic pose.
The audience started clapping and whistling, breaking him out of his trance, and he quickly stepped back, still holding on to Adachi’s hand. They both bowed, first to the judges, then to the audience. It was only as they walked off the stage that it occurred to Kurosawa that he was still holding Adachi’s hand. Reluctantly, he let go once they had passed the curtains. Only to feel a small rush of jealousy as Tsuge appeared, slapping Adachi’s shoulder and congratulating him.
Fortunately, Tsuge was the next one out, so there was no time for them to talk, giving Kurosawa a chance to lead Adachi back up to the balcony where the contestants could watch the performances.
The only two seats free were in the back, but they were next to each other, and that was good enough for Kurosawa.