Ah...another day off from the dance studio. It was weird at first but, time to catch up in rest was always very nice to me. I can't even begin to explain how exciting it has been to meet all these JE artists. I never knew I would make friends so easily too; I really enjoyed the friendships I have with Akanishi and Yamapi. It definitely gave me a new perspective on how to interact with people; let alone someone who is famous. I couldn’t figure out if it was weird to feel this way about making friends like this. A part of me wondered if they just felt sorry for me; like I was a charity case of sorts. I didn’t wanna think to negatively that way because, in the time I have spent with them I felt really happy. Today was another day off and I wasn’t sure what to do again. I wanted to maybe go out for a run but that was soon to change when my phone rang again. I looked and saw Akanishi’s number. I thought maybe I slept in and today I had practiced.

 

I quickly answered the phone, “Akanishi-San...Hello...Is there practice today? If I am late I will hurry on my way-”

 

“Hey there’s no need to rush I was just calling to say Hello. We have practice tomorrow so don’t worry. I was actually calling because I am outside your apartment and thought I would stop by and say hello. Maybe we could hang out today,” he said.

 

I looked outside my window and I couldn’t believe it; he was truly out there. He was leaning against his black car looking up at me with a smile on his face. Akanishi always looked so nice. His hair was straight and he wore large sunglasses to conceal his identity. He had on a large white tank top and baggy jeans. But the best thing about him was that gleaming smile that went from ear to ear on his face.

 

“I will buzz you in and then we can figure out what we can do today,” I smiled.

 

He soon made his way into the apartment carefully placing his sneakers onto the small shoe rack that laid near the front door. I greeted him as he made his way and his graced me with another one of his amazing hugs. I swear out of all the people I have met in my life he gave the very best hugs.

 

“Welcome to my home. It’s a small place but, please make yourself comfortable. Can I get you anything to drink,” I asked.

 

“No thank you, Jen but I have to say I love your home. It’s cute and very comfy looking,” he smiled, “So what did you wanna do today?”
 

“To be honest I have no idea. I have been just chilling out and practicing the dance moves through the mirror in the bathroom,” I laughed, “I also wandered around the area because I have some errands I have to do.”

 

“So then let’s do them together. Paparazzi isn’t like it is in America so if you wanted to maybe do those things I can go with you. And before you say no it’s a boring thing to do I wouldn’t mind going out and doing silly things like that.”  he smiled.

 

I was surprised he wanted to do things like this with me. Usually guys hated things like shopping. It was such a beautiful day out and I convinced Akanishi that it would be a lovely day to go out and walk to all the things I needed to do. Not to mention the marketplace was only a few blocks away and it would be easier to navigate through the streets. He agreed to it and we walked along the beautiful streets to the marketplace. The particular marketplace we were going to was an international market so they had many products from all over the world. The reason I wanted to go to this one was because, I had read online that they had a few Latin based products. One of the things I kept with me through the years at the academy was the love of my culture that I inherited from my family. Even though they had passed when I was young my mother’s friends taught me things I should know and how to speak Spanish at a young age. I could never imagine how my life went from that to learning English and Japanese; let alone live in Tokyo. Akanishi was also very curious of some of the things I was buying. I guess he had never heard of some of the things I bought.

 

“So were your parents from Spain,” he asked.

 

“Sort of. My Great Grandfather’s family was from Spain but most of my family came from the island of Puerto Rico. I have visited Puerto Rico a few times through a program through the Academy. On these trips I learned a lot about where my family was from,” I explained.

 

 

“So then you are Puerto Rican. That’s so cool...I always heard interesting things about that island. I would love to see it someday,” Akanishi said.

 

“Well if you ever do you will be captivated and may never want to leave there. I can’t tell you how many trips I wanted to run away and live there,” I laughed.

 

We talked more about our cultures and how different they were at times but, it was fun to tell him things about where my family was from. I wasn’t necessarily born there but growing up you tend to learn about where you were from. You may be far from the places your family originate from but, its always fun to trace back where your family originated from. After groceries shopping Akanishi helped me carry all the food back to my place and we began to put everything away.

 

“So do you know how to make any Latin dishes,” Akanishi asked.

 

“Yes I know many dishes to make. Would you like to stay for dinner and try something that consists of rice and steak,” I asked.

 

“ I would love to,” he smiled.

 

I decided that I was gonna make a simple dish which included Churrasco ( a thin skirt steak) with white rice and black beans. Unlike how the Asian culture makes rice in a Spanish household you flavor the water with spices like Adobo, garlic and, and onion. The rice cooks inside the water and as the rice thickens you drain the water before serving. I explained all of this to Akanishi as I cooked and he was so intrigued by it. I was surprised it interested him in a such a way but, I was glad I could share this little part of me with him. One it was done cooking it was time for him to try it all.

 

I placed the thin steak onto the plate with rice and the black beans poured on top of the rice. I put both of our plates onto the table.

 

“Itadakimasu,” Jin began to say.

 

“buen provecho,” I teased.

 

“What does that mean,” he asked.

 

“Its my way of telling you enjoy your meal in Spanish, Akanishi-San,” I laughed.

 

“Well I am not gonna attempt that because, I don’t know Spanish too well,” he laughed back.

 

I watched Akanishi as he took his first bite into to meal. His face lit up and I knew he enjoyed the meal. I was so nervous because, I had never cooked for anyone in such a way let alone something he was probably not use to. When he finished the meal Akanishi was truly grateful and thanked me for the great meal. Together we cleaned the dishes and sat down for a little coffee as our dessert. We each sat on sides of the couch and decided to chat a bit.

 

“That was really good. Thank You again for such a great meal. I truly enjoy hanging out with you. I learn more and more about you each time and you truly kind girl. You’ve come up from so much,” Akanishi said.

 

“I feel the same about you learning new things about you and KAT TUN. I don’t know if this would be a good time to talk about this but, there has been something on my mind and I heard some of the dancers talking about this too. What is Akame? You don’t have to answer if you don’t want to,” I asked nervously.

 

“No it’s okay I don’t mind talking about this. It’s better to talk about it so you don’t hear the wrong things. I am biual as is Kame. A few years back Kame and I use to date. I was very much in love with him,” he began.

 

During Trainee days Akanishi and Kame met through working together and the more time they spent together they realised they had a strong bond. At first Akanishi thought what he was feeling would be considered unusual. Overtime Akanishi and Kame couldn’t deny their love for eachother. Both Akanishi shared their first kiss and time together and Akanishi thought that they would be together no matter what. They had to hide their relationship from the media but, it wasn’t something easy that they could do. The fans always figured out their simple gestures let alone silly small items they had for each other (couple pinky rings) and overtime fan cams would catch some of their intimate moments. When Akanishi wanted to go to LA it put a strain on their relationship and Kame became cold. They decided to break up but stay friends and they have been broken up since then.

 

“Wow, I had no idea I thought the other girls were joking around. Are you guys really okay through all this,” I asked.

 

“I am okay with it but, Kame struggles with the fact that we aren’t together anymore sometimes. I have moved on and maybe it time I will love someone else. He has to learn that I can’t be the one for him anymore,” Akanishi sighed.

 

“ I see, well I am sorry if I made this evening weird talking about this,” I said.

 

“No worries. I really wanted to talk to you about this soon anyways,” Akanishi laughed.

 

I really enjoyed the chat and time we spent together today. It was rather nice and made me feel glad that I was with a friend again. Sadly Jin had to leave soon because, it was getting late and we had a busy weekend coming up. My very first concer with KAT TUN was this upcoming Saturday. I couldn’t believe the moment was finally here.

 

“Well I have to go. I will see you tomorrow for practice and Saturday for your big day,” Akanishi said.

 

“I can’t wait for it. Thank you for coming tonight. Be safe on your way home,” I said as I walked him to his car.

 

“ I will...Buenas Noches, Jen,” Akanishi said to me as he drove off.

 

Did he just say goodnight to me in spanish, I thought. I blushed at the thought of him speaking the language but also happy that my culture rubbed off on him a bit tonight. For now I looked at the sticker from the print club we went to the other day. Akanishi was truly the best friend I could ever ask for. For now I needed to get my rest too because, tomorrow began the crazy practice for the first concert.

 

❤ ♪ ❤ ♪ ❤ Saturday ❤ ♪ ❤ ♪ ❤

 

It was finally Saturday and I couldn’t believe it. My mind was all over the place and I couldn’t believe that I was about to have one of the biggest performances of my life. I spent many hours practicing all my dance moves again and also spending a majority of the afternoon getting into costume and wearing a ton of makeup. As many dancers prepared for our performances so did the crews who put together the stage and KAT TUN testing their vocals throughout the stadium. I couldn’t believe that today I would be performing in the Tokyo Dome. To perform at a large venue was always one of my dreams and I would be living it today. I also kept looking over the set list to make sure I remembered what dances I had to do for each song.

 

As time went on I peeked through the curtain as I watched fans from all over pour into their seats. The came in colorful outfits and stylish clothes. They had their signs, fans, and banners for the members they loved. They took photos of the empty stage and posed with their friends who came along with them to see the show. To see the excitement on their faces warmed my heart. I could only imagine what they were feeling as they were about to hear some of their favorite songs and see their idols on stage. I have never attended a concert like this so my heart not only was with KAT TUN but, also with them. All I could do was let time pass and wait for the performance to begin

 

“LADIES AND GENTLEMEN! THANK YOU FOR COMING TONIGHT! KAT TUN’S QUEEN OF PIRATES CONCERT WILL BEGIN IN JUST A FEW MOMENTS. WE ASK THAT YOU PLEASE SILENCE ALL CELLULAR DEVICES AND NO FLASH PHOTOGRAPHY. PLEASE ENJOY TONIGHT’S PERFORMANCE.”

 

The stage went black and the fans began to scream. The signs began to light the arena and the fans began to scream. Colorful light up wands also filled the air as we all got into place. The song Taboo began to play as the other dancers and I took the stage. The lights flew up and the fans screamed louder as KAT TUN took the stage. As I danced all I could do was smile and feel the music flow through me as I gave these fans a concert they could never forget. Many songs from the album played as well as KAT TUN talked to the fans and did Skits to interact with the audience more. The fans were truly enjoying tonight and I couldn’t agree more with them.

 

A few hours passed and I was backstage getting ready for my solo dance with Akanishi. Kame and Ueda were currently doing a skit so the makeup artist and wardrobe people worked with Akanishi and I as we got ready for our performance of Jin’s new song, LoveJuice. While we were getting ready the remaining KAT TUN members and dancers were also preparing for their final wardrobes because, after our performance the final song was, Don’t U Ever Stop.

 

My hair was straight now and I wore a grey sequin top with a heart plastered in the center of it. I also had a pair of high boots and faded blue skinny jeans. The makeup artist gave me this crazy smokey eyed looked which made my brown eyes pop. I looked at myself in the mirror in shock of what I looked like. Performing and seeing myself this way truly shocked me. I never imagined doing something like this. I felt someone put their hand on my waist and spin me around. It was Akanishi.

 

He also looked amazing tonight. His hair was flat and curled a little at the end. He wore his favorite fedora and jacket, a white shirt and sneakers, and also dark blue baggy jeans. He had a large smile across his face.

 

“You look amazing...are you ready for this solo,” he asked.

 

“ Y-yes,” I said a little nervously.

 

“Akanishi...Jen get in place...” said the stage manager.

 

The stage went black as the two of us ran on and got into place. A static sound filled the screen and the fans you can hear they sounded a bit confused as to what was going on. The spotlight slowly came down showing Akanishi and the girls began to scream. Another spotlight came down on me only showing my silhouette to the fans for the current moment. Akanishi put the microphone to his lips as the song began.

 

♪Don't know where you're from

Never seen you around

But that don't mean nothing to me

Just want at taste of that...

Drop that shit life… ♪

 

The crowd began to sing as the song got heavier and the two of us began to dance closer to the beat of the song. My part was to play Akanishi’s love interest and our bodies swayed as we dance closer and closer. Our dance was in sync as we turned from side to side displaying his ability to dance to hip hop music to such an edgy song. As the song progressed there is a particular line where the song takes a ier tone in the second verse and the two of us began to get closer almost ualizing the dance moves. As the song neared the ending there was a point where my body was pressed up along him as my hands slowly held onto his chest. His hand went around my neck and he pulled me close to his face and he began to sing the next few lines.

 

♪ See, I've been all around the world but I ain't seen nothing

seen nothing like you…

Don't matter where you're from, it don't mean nothing

mean nothing…

See, I've been all around the world but I ain't seen nothing seen nothing like you…

And now I got four minutes to take you back, girl we can be something…

BE SOMETHING!!! ♪

 

Akanishi pulled me close and spun me into a dip and the crowd went nuts on how our interaction was on the stage. We finished out the performance and the lights began to fade away. I could feel both of our heartbeats pumping fast at the feel from our electrifying performance. Not only that but this time when we performed this song I felt more chemistry with Akanishi than any of our solo practices. I wondered if it had to do with the presence of this amazing crowd.

 

“You were amazing,” I heard Akanishi whisper.

 

“Thank You,” I said trying to catch my breath.

 

Just a few moments later the rest of KAT TUN was on stage as we got into place one last time to finish out the concert with the final song.

♬ Shivers of fear might come in the night

Just let it go, you'll be fine

Moments of sadness might bring you down,

Remember the word:

          STOP! ♬

 

✪

  -END OF CHAPTER 4-