Chapter 8: Reversion

It’s been a few days since Kame and Jin came back to normal. No one except for Yue saw the younger boy in these days, everyone was busy with an upcoming single. Today was a release day but AT-TUN wasn’t especially excited at the thought, something was missing. It wasn’t hard to figure out that the boys got attached to Kazuya just in a few short days. The boy could easily raise everyone’s spirit and now, when he wasn’t with them, they started missing him. It was like going on a concert of the favorite band. You’re having fun, you’re excited, happy, you enjoy the show but when it’s over and you exit the venue, you start to wish you were still there watching it over and over again. There was only one difference; you will get over it and be happy that you had a chance to see your idols but AT-TUN couldn’t forget Kame, couldn’t stop wondering if he’s alright.

Yue was right, the boy’s smile and cheerfulness were infectious; his whole being was infectious. He always thought that he was only attracting misfortune but he was also attracting good friends. He had the power to make people’s lives brighter, more colorful and amazing. AT-TUN saw something in him and didn’t want to let it go.

Soon the boys got distracted, thinking a lot about the youngest man. Mitsui couldn’t make them focus on their job even for an hour. Even Ueda and Nakamaru who were considered the sanest from the group had troubles with keeping their attention during rehearsals. The problem was that none of them wanted to admit out loud that they wanted to know what was happening in Kazuya’s life at the moment.

“Okay, guys.” Yue said with closed eyes, massaging her forehead; she felt a headache coming. “Can one of you finally ask about Kame so I can tell you that he’s fine and you will be able to concentrate on your ing job?!” She was irritated, when AT-TUN stayed silent.

“…How’s Kamenashi-kun?” At least Nakamaru was wise enough to know not to get on their manager’s bad side.

“Oh, how nice you asked, senpai! He’s fine, just like he always was nothing to worry about!” She said in a hideously sweet voice that made others cringe. “Now, can we go back to work?! If you’re so concerned, go see him yourself for God’s sake!”

The girl turned around and exited the room, she surely needed her time to calm down. The rest just looked at each other. They didn’t have to be mind readers to realize that they all thought about the same thing; if Yue told them that Kame’s good then it’s better to believe her and stop worrying about the boy that had dealt with bad experiences all his life.
 

Later that day AT-TUN, without Yue who was still pissed off by their unprofessional behaviour, were sitting in Jin’s renovated living room and waiting for midnight. Today their new single had a premiere and all of them wanted to see what place it got on the chart. They hoped for at least 10th place, just like their first single. The song, “Butterfly”, was really good and even though the whole band couldn’t sing it, they wanted it to be good enough to win against NEWS. The other band had a premiere of their new work on the exactly same day as AT-TUN had theirs.

“Do you think we will beat NEWS?” Koki asked coming to the room with a huge bowl of popcorn in his hands.

“Of course we will! Kame-chan’s songs are great! Nothing will beat them!” Junno was excited watching the TV intensely.

“Well, let’s hope AT-TUN will be in the first ten. I haven’t watched TV or listened to the radio all day so I wouldn’t care about the sales at work.” Ueda said.

“I haven’t even gone shopping afraid to feel down at the sight of fans in music stores. How about you?” Nakamaru asked the rest and was surprised to discover that Akanishi, Taguchi, Ueda and Tanaka also avoided such places; that only meant that none of them knew if the single was at least a little popular.

“There’re only two hours left, soon we will know for sure how it went.” Akanishi said being nervous.

“It’s weird seeing you so restless, Akanishi. You’re the luckiest guy on Earth, it’s not possible that our single is bad.” Koki said while rolling his eyes.

“You forgot about one thing. When I’m the luckiest, Kame is the unluckiest guy on Earth. Who knows how it will work together…”

The boys got quiet, Jin had a point, mixing the two boys’ lucks was like playing with fire; you can warm yourself up but you can as well burn everything to the ground. Ueda cleared his throat and sat on the couch followed by Akanishi and Maru. Koki and Junno chose the carpeted floor with a table just in front of them, after all popcorn and beer were the most important parts of this little party. The single sells badly – drink to forget; the single sells well – drink to celebrate; a simple but useful rule.

While waiting the guys got bored. Staring at the same channel all night wasn’t especially entertaining. Koki, who had enough of the tense atmosphere, decided to torment Taguchi by throwing pieces of roast corn at him. At first Koki had fun looking as popcorn is sticking to the taller boy’s hair but soon Junno found out about Tanaka’s little scheme and started catching the treat with his mouth. Of course a wide grin irritated Koki even more and he jumped on the boy, trying to wipe it off. While rolling around on the carpet, the boys kicked the bowl that flew in the air. Its whole content fell on the other three boys that were sitting on the couch. It didn’t take long before a food war began.

The boys totally forgot about the chart and the nervousness. They laughed and screamed while having fun like elementary kids. It was amazing that neighbors haven’t come complaining about the noise. AT-TUN lay tiredly on the floor, none of them could get up but Koki’s hand was searching for a can of beer anyway. Jin looked at the clock on his wall and his eyes widened; it was half past midnight.

“Guys! Get up! It’s Thursday already!” He shouted and jumped on his feet simultaneously hitting Nakamaru’s head by accident.

“Dude! Turn on the TV!”

Koki quickly sat up on the floor with the rest of the boys. Jin tried to find a remote but during their fight, the item got lost. He ordered the rest to look for it. They were frantically searching in every place possible; behind the couch, under the table, in the vase, in the pot with a plant. Finally they could hear a happy scream from the bathroom. Akanishi quickly came out and the TV. He skipped some channels to stop at the music station. The boys looked stunned at the screen.

“That means…” Koki started.

“…t-that we…?” continued Nakamaru.

“How’s that possible?” asked Ueda.

“I was sure that we…” Akanishi couldn’t end his sentence.

“Well, now Yue-chan will be even more harsh on us.” Junno said as shocked as the rest.
 

Yue sat on the couch and sighed with a happy smile. She felt more relaxed now when she didn’t have to look at the five annoying faces of the band members. Those guys were driving her crazy before but now, when they knew Kazuya, it was like dealing with sulking teenagers; they won’t tell you anything and still expect you to understand them. She had enough. When Kame called her to invite her over for a dinner and a movie night, she was so thankful that on the way to his flat she bought his favorite strawberries, a bar of milky chocolate and almonds covered in chocolate and cinnamon for herself.

“I can’t understand how you can eat that?” Kazuya asked when the girl took another of her almonds.

“Well, I can’t understand how you can eat mashed strawberries with chocolate.” She answered looking at the fruits that for the time being were in their original shape.

“They are sweet together!” He pouted.

“But can’t you eat them by dipping them in chocolate? And my almonds are sweet too!” Kame’s eyes widened - Yue pouted!

“Are you feeling okay? I’ve never seen you pouting before.” He asked and grabbed the bowl with strawberries.

“I know, the ing band is going to be the cause of me getting into a mental hospital.” Mitsui frowned.

“Why’s that? I thought you like them… at least a little.” He added after looking at his best friend’s displeased face.

“I do but I also wish they could be more like you. I mean, you always tell me what’s on your mind and I don’t have to remind you to do your tasks. They were so out of it today that I needed to get out from the studio to calm down.” Kame fidgeted slightly, almost invisibly but Yue caught it anyway.

“Oh? Is that so? Well, maybe they just didn’t want to worry you. I will go mash the fruits. Be right back.”

The boy disappeared in the kitchen. Mitsui wasn’t stupid, there was something that made Kame nervous. She wasn’t a person who would rummage through somebody’s else stuff but if Kazuya was keeping secrets from her, then something was really bothering him and he didn’t know how to talk about it. She made her way towards the boy’s bedroom. On the bed, there was lying a piece of paper. Yue took it gently and started reading. It was a mish-mash of different words and sentences. On the top of the sheet was printed only one word: “Lips”. It was a plan of the new song and she found it really interesting; not because it might be a good piece for AT-TUN but because she could see that Kame wrote down his actual thoughts and most of them somehow seemed like they were about a certain idiotic leader of the quite popular band.

Yue quickly put the sheet down and came back to the living room to sit back comfortably on the couch. She grabbed her almonds and popped one inside while thinking about the found item. She wanted to confront Kazuya about it but Yue knew it would be wrong, it wasn’t the time to do it. She sighed and hoped that the boy will come to her himself.

“What are you thinking about?” She looked up at Kame who brought back his mashed treat.

“Really, it looks disgusting.” She said with a straight face while looking inside the bowl; it was good that she was used to seeing even more horrifying things.

“Then don’t look at it.” Kazuya almost hugged the bowl to himself.

“Whatever.” She rolled her eyes before turning them towards the TV. “By the way, I wanted to ask you this for the whole evening… When did you bought a TV? I thought you didn’t need one. I hope I won’t have to visit you in the hospital if that thing will electrocute you.”

“Don’t worry, I asked an expert to secure a plug-in socket. I bought it when I met AT-TUN, I thought that it would be better to know a little more about the industry I want to work for.” He shrugged and Yue couldn’t agree more with him.

“Then turn it on, I want to see the chart. NEWS and AT-TUN released new singles today.”

The boy skipped channels to finally find the one with the Oricon ranking on it. At first hosts were talking about some weird new band from South Korea that decided to conquer the hearts of Japanese fans. Both, Yue and Kame, found the song catching but nothing special. It talked about first love – typical kind of a song for spring; the usual. Finally the hosts announced the end of the program when, after credits, they show the top 20 singles.

They sat staring at the slowly showing names of the top artists. Surprisingly, neither NEWS or AT-TUN have appeared on places from 20 to 11. It was kind of a good news but also a bad one if AT-TUN didn’t make it to top 10. Another six places went by and Yue and Kame got even more nervous. Finally they got to the fourth place; NEWS’ faces appeared on the wide screen. Though they didn’t make it to the best three, producers decided to show more information about them since getting a fourth place after just being active for only half a year, was a great success.

When they showed the third place, all of Yue’s and Kame’s tension left. It was impossible for AT-TUN to have a higher place; if it wasn’t the third then it probably was twenty-something or even a lower one. Kazuya was sad, he hoped that his song was good enough to take a nice place on the chart. Yue was also disappointed. The song really was something in her opinion, she couldn’t believe that NEWS were better than AT-TUN! She could tell it was the end of the old bet between Akanishi and Yamaa; AT-TUN lost.
Kame and Yue didn’t even see when the third place artist was replaced by the second place. They only looked up at the screen when the chart disappeared and the studio was shown so the hosts could announce the most selling single of the previous day. The hosts looked abnormally excited but being good actors helped them to fake such feelings.

“It looks like we have a really young artist on top this time. It’s amazing how in just half a year they could improve their previous result. Can you believe that yesterday’s top single got sold in 376,932 copies? And it’s just a first day!” The woman spoke up from the TV.

“Yes, it’s unbelievable. I wonder about how many copies will get sold to the end of the week. But there’s something even more interesting about our number one band.” The man said bringing Kame’s and Yue’s interest.

“What do you mean?”

„Well, let see what our staff found about this band. Their first single got to the top ten best selling singles of the week. The members say that the band was formed spontaneously. Also there’s a rumor that their manager is a good friend of Nakata Haruki-san from ‘International Sounds Record’. It was reported that the band’s manager and Nakata-san were talking to each other quite a lot these days.” Now Yue furrowed her eyebrows; it sounded oddly familiar.

“Well, we should probably finally announce the number one. Everyone’s waiting impatiently.”

“Of course, the number one yesterday’s top selling single is…”

Kame bit his lower lip and Yue crossed her fingers. That was it, the results; the last chance for AT-TUN. They both wanted to know who’s got the first place and Yue was ready to go straight to the TV studio to beat up the hosts for taking so much time just to make a tension-raising pause.

Mitsui uncrossed fingers on one of her hands and took a handful of almonds, popping them one after another in . Kazuya was not much better. He took his bowl and put it on his lap. He couldn’t help but dig the spoon in the mish-mash and mash poor strawberries even more if it’s possible. He was staring at the screen without even trying to blink.

Finally the two hosts looked at each other and then turned towards the audience that was sitting in front of their TV’s at almost one in the morning. Yeah, like there was so many people that decided to stay awake in the middle of the week just so they could see who’s number one on the Oricon chart for Wednesday.

“The top selling single is…”

“…BUTTERFLY!!!”

The hosts shouted together. For a few moments Kame and Yue were frozen, they were just staring in front of them with huge eyes. Kame didn’t even realize that a spoonful of his sweet but weird dessert landed on his sweatpants. Thankfully the boy had a few more pairs in case of accidents like this one.

Suddenly, they both screamed in happiness and hugged each other. Of course they jumped up from their places causing the bowl and a package of almonds fall making a beautifully messy stain on the thick, soft carpet of Kame’s living room.
 

Meanwhile, on the other side of Tokyo, five men were dancing and running around the flat with excitement. Their dream was coming true quicker than they had thought. First place on the Oricon chart, 376,932 sold copies of “Butterfly” in the first day; it was like a miracle!
Akanishi stopped jumping and looked at the TV with a big smile, just in time to see their picture being shown. Slowly his smile faltered. The rest saw it too and kept glancing from Jin to TV and back to Akanishi. Something was wrong.

“Why aren’t you happy Jin? You and Tat-chan took us to the top. You should be celebrating, not frowning.” Koki said what the others were thinking.

“…What about Kame?”

AT-TUN looked at their leader in silence; they all finally got it. They were missing him for the last few days and now, when they got the first place, they all wanted Kame to be with them. If not for the younger boy, they wouldn’t have succeeded. He wrote the song and practically arranged the music, they only needed to learn the lyrics and how to play some parts on electric guitars.

“Well, I think he’s as happy as we are.” Ueda finally answered. “Yue’s with him and they’re probably having fun. They are best friends after all. Just like you and Yamaa. We shouldn’t worry right now, Kame is in good hands.”

Tatsuya smiled. His speech visibly relaxed everyone in the room, bringing small grateful smiles. It was the time to party and drink a toast to a success and every future single or album that they are going to release in the, hopefully, near future.
 

At the end, or rather at the beginning of the day, it looked like Junno was right after all. Yue took Tatsuya and Jin for a whole day of practice, saying that they need to be prepared for a Saturday’s big show. Of course, Ueda didn’t complain, he was ready and Yue was going easy on him but Jin wasn’t so lucky. How ironic, isn’t it? She made him repeat every single line at least ten times, saying that he needs to be able to play it even woken up in the middle of the night. Koki and Maru were having fun, especially Koki who loved to annoy Akanishi almost as much as he liked tormenting Junno.

Taguchi on the other hand got two days off. For the time being, he was the only member left without a new song to sing and the manager didn’t see why he should be around when there was nothing for him to do anyway. As simple as that. Junno was a little upset about it, he really wanted to practice with the rest. Well, the time for him will surely come one day.

First few hours were intense. Everyone was focused on the jobs and forgot about Kame for a little while. Yue was quite happy with it; a few hours of relax that she really needed. But all good things are coming to an end. About 2 PM Mitsui got a call that scared her a little.

“Hello?... Are you kidding me?... Please, don’t tell me it was the TV… Fine, but I’m not sure if you can call it ‘better’… I can’t come. I’ll try to send someone for you, just stay away from windows for now… Bye.”

The girl sighed heavily and turned towards the boys. Of course they were eavesdropping on the whole conversation. And that’s how they focus flew out of the window; they were aware that the girl was only talking informally with them and Kame. Well, it could be Junno as well but Yue’s never really spoken to him on the phone so it was rather impossible. The only other person that wasn’t present in the room, was Kamenashi Kazuya.

“Was it Kame-chan?” Koki asked immediately.

“Yes-”

“Is he okay?” She couldn’t even end her sentence when Jin asked.

“Yes, he is… kind of…” she scratched the back of her neck.

“What do you mean, Yue-san?” Maru asked politely knowing that the girl patience was short right now.

“Kame had a small accident two hours ago. Nothing serious, really. Just a few scratches.” She added quickly seeing how everyone’s eyes were getting bigger. “The thing is that someone has to bring him back home, hospital doesn’t want to let him go alone. Nakamaru, Koki, can you go get him?” She turned towards the two members.

“Yeah, sure! I want to talk to Kame-chan anyway!” Koki was eager and before Mitsui could give him the address, he already exited the room.

“Don’t mind him… I and Koki wanted to show him the changes in our song. Koki got excited when I told him my beatboxing parts were ready.” Maru tried to cover for his friend.

“Okay, here’s the address of the hospital Kazuya’s in. Tell him I will come see him tomorrow morning.”

Nakamaru nodded and came out of the studio. He found Tanaka in the main hall, waiting for him impatiently. It was weird to see Koki slightly bouncing quite happily in a public place, since the boy always wanted to look cool. Yuichi just shrugged it off, since he himself wanted to meet Kamenashi again. The boy helped him a little lately and Maru liked his company even if he was strange to some point.
 

Kame happily invited TaNaka duet to his flat. The two members of AT-TUN looked around and sat on the couch in the living room. Meanwhile Kazuya made his way to the kitchen. After the guys came for him, he decided to make a delicious dinner to thank them for taking care of him. Of course when the boys panicked saying that he shouldn’t touch anything sharp and pointy, he quickly assured them that cooking is one of a few exceptions in his life that aren’t threatening. The boys were quite confused by the revelation but if Kame said so, they wouldn’t protest.

“Kame-chan?” Koki asked the boy who hummed in question from the other room. “How did you ended up in the hospital?”

“Um, some guy fought that I had slept with his daughter and I had jumped out the window so he wouldn’t kill me. The landing wasn’t the best. I’m happy that the guy’s daughter introduced her boyfriend to him. The pair looked cute together. The father accepted them in the end. I think he was happy that his daughter chose a rich guy in suit.”

Maru and Koki just looked at each other. Where can you find someone who would be happy after falling down a few meters because of a stupid mistake? Ladies and gentleman, meet Kamenashi Kazuya, the man who’s smiling at the thought of a couple and the father that tried to kill him. Yue wouldn’t even be surprised but AT-TUN members couldn’t understand the younger boy.

“Okay, everything’s ready. We can eat.” Kazuya appeared in the door with a nice smile and gestured for the two boys to come to the kitchen to take their plates; he didn’t want to make a mess by accidentally tripping on the carpet.

“Tell us, Kamenashi-kun. How have you been this past few days?” Maru asked when they were already seated in the living room.

“Good. Nothing unusual happened and I haven’t even had to bother Yue-chan with coming to the police station.”

“Police station?” Maru’s eyes widened and Koki stopped eating.

“Yeah. There are always some charges against me, mostly mistakes. My last name is rather rare so people are using it sometimes to help themselves. They aren’t even aware that I exist.” He laughed.

“That’s really weird.” Koki commented.

“For you it is but I’m already used to it. It only sounds bad, I’m always released at the end of the day. I meet interesting people there though.” The boy smiled but soon he’s expression changed slightly. “Um…”

“What is it, Kame-chan?” Koki asked with his mouth full of food; Kazuya’s cooking really was good.

“Ano… how’s Jin? He still has his good luck, right?”

“Yes, he has it. You don’t have to worry, he’s alright.”

Yuichi answered with a small smile. Kame smiled back and changed the subject to AT-TUN’s success and their upcoming performances. Both band members decided to not ask the younger boy about his obvious interest in their leader. They could see that Kazuya likes Jin very much but they had a feeling that the boy would deny it immediately; after all Kame and Jin were really stubborn and if they won’t admit it themselves, nothing will help.
 

At the same time in the studio, Akanishi sneezed. Yue finally gave Ueda and Jin a break and the two boys wanted to make a good use of it. They went to a small bar near the studio where dinners were quite tasty but not overly expensive. The place wasn’t big but had a homey feeling and it was enough to attract clients.

Ueda and Akanishi were sitting at the table next to the entrance. It had a good view of the street and a nearby park. They ate the ordered food but Tatsuya could see that Akanishi was out of it, he was thoughtlessly putting his chopsticks in his mouth. Tatsuya ignored it though since the guy wasn’t embarrassing him. Somewhere in the middle of their meal, Tat-chan noticed that one of the waitresses was glancing at their table. It wasn’t hard for him to guess that the girl was ogling Jin. Tatsuya smirked and slightly nudged the other boy under the table.

“You’re lucky today, Jin.” Ueda said and pointed towards the girl with his head. Jin turned around to look but soon turned back completely uninterested. “What’s with you, Jin? You’ve never let a chance go before.” Ueda furrowed his eyebrows and Akanishi shrugged.

“She’s not my type.”

“Not your type?” Ueda snorted. “Yeah, right. The last girl that you were interested in looked a lot like this one. And if I remember correctly, you’ve even got her number. This one is hot”

“Maybe.” Jin shrugged again and Ueda frowned but soon, a certain thought made him smirk mischievously.

“Why I haven’t thought about it before.” Jin looked up from his bowl confused. ”You like someone, don’t you? And that someone~ is a certain misfortunate songwriter~, am I right?”

“…W-what? Of-f c-course not! What are you…? Are you stupid, Ueda? I don’t like Kazuya that way?”

“Yeah? Then why did you call him Ka~zu~ya~?” Ueda sang. “Besides, who said it’s Kamenashi? You’re the one who’s an idiot. I understand why Yue calls you Bakanishi. Don’t you see that you have hots for our cute lyricist? You can’t even eat without thinking about him, I’m not even mentioning about our work.” Akanishi was quite stunned by his band mate's assumptions.

“I… I… What the heck, Ueda?! Do you really think that I can like someone who had changed me into a walking magnet for death wishes?”

Ueda just shrugged with the same annoying smirk and Jin groaned displeased. He threw a note on the table and stormed out of the bar leaving behind a half eaten bowl. Tat-chan didn’t mind it at all. Jin’s loss meant more food for Tatsuya.
 

Jin was angry but not at Tat-chan but at himself. He couldn’t understand his own feelings. At first he thought that it just a simple friendship between him and Kame but at the same time he couldn’t forget about the boy. He was worried about Kazuya and his own reaction when Karen was bullying the boy; he didn’t know what to think about it. Iit was the first time for him to be like this. He remembered his first girlfriend, Shimizu Aya. She was a great girl but he wasn’t as protective of her as he was of the younger boy. It was confusing him.

Akanishi was slowly going through the park immersed in his thoughts. When he get to a crossroad he finally looked up to decide where he should go. While looking right he saw a familiar face standing a few meters away from him. He quickly ducked behind a tree in fright of being noticed. He tilted his head slightly to have a better view on what’s going on. He was surprised that Kame didn’t have his glasses on. He knew the boy didn’t really need them but they protected Kazuya from people’s stares and shameless thoughts.

Jin furrowed his eyebrows. Kame talked to a middle-aged woman; if Jin wasn’t wrong she was a manager of a new famous dancing group. Guys that belonged to it were all handsome and eye-catching but the rumor said that every single one of them got accepted after a face-to-face meeting with this woman in her private room.

The woman came closer to Kame with, according to her, a seductive smile. She put a hand on Kazuya’s shoulder when a finger of her other hand was tracing small circles on the boy’s chest. Suddenly Akanishi saw red; the woman made him mad and he wanted to rip her into pieces and bury her as deep and as far away from the younger boy as possible. Jin was jealous and this time he couldn’t help but admit it to himself.

Yes, he liked Kame more than he should.

Yes, he wanted to order him to wear his glasses all the time.

Yes, he wanted to tell Kame that he only needs Jin in his life.

Yes, he wanted to scream at the boy for letting the woman touch him.

Yes, he wanted to have the man all to himself.

Yes, he wanted to kiss Kazuya again and again till they both won’t be able to breathe anymore.

AT-TUN’s leader was really tempted to come out and scare the annoying woman away but he stopped at the last minute when he saw Kame took a step back. The woman’s expression changed into an irritated one but Kame just bowed slightly and went away, leaving her in the middle of the footpath. Jin ducked again when Kame walked by him. Thankfully the boy didn’t see him being too busy rummaging through his backpack. Jin could only see a pair of black frames being pulled out. Akanishi relaxed; black frames meant that Kame had his glasses with him and he was safe from any ual harassment.

Jin frowned. Kame had his glasses with him all the time, then why wasn’t he wearing them when he had been talking with the woman? Akanishi clenched his teeth, the jealousy was coming back to him. He took a few deep breaths to calm down. Normally he would get unreasonably angry and ignore the younger boy for the time being but not this time. His selfish side took over. A plan formed in his mind, a perfect scheme to monopolize Kame’s attention and to prevent him from desperately trying to find a job, but if his plan was going to work he needed Mitsui Yue, the most influential young manager in this world.
 

Kame came back to his apartment tired. It was another tough day for him. He thought that it will be good to check if Yue is right and people are easily noticing his face. Of course he didn’t mean to start picking up random strangers and ask them if his face is recognizable. He wanted to try out Mitsui’s theory on someone who would help him in his career. After all getting attention from some famous producer or manager would make things easier for him. Unfortunately, the woman he picked wasn’t interested in his lyrics. He just couldn’t understand why she had been asking him questions about going to the gym and dancing – he had never danced in his whole life.

Kazuya sighed and sat on the couch. He the TV trying to stop thinking about another fruitless day. At first he was skipping channels but no matter what program he watched, he couldn’t forget his failure. After some time, being already tired with unwittingly thinking about the day, he stopped on a music channel.

Suddenly every thought flew away from him but a new one made its way in. In front of him on the wide screen were shown two members of AT-TUN with guitars in their arms standing next to each other and singing to the microphones on a round platform. It was a promotional video of AT-TUN’s “Butterfly”.

Kazuya watched the whole clip without blinking. He was torn. He was happy seeing the two boys but also every time when the station showed a close up of Jin’s face, he felt sadness. He knew he could meet the guys whenever he wanted but somehow it wasn’t enough. His heart wanted something more. It wanted Jin, his warm arms around his body, his soft smiles, his… lips.

Kame turned off the TV and left his spot on the couch making his way to the bedroom where on a small table his new work was lying. He grabbed the piece of paper and sat on his bed, leaning with his back on the headboard. He stared in front of him thinking while holding a black pen.

Those red lips were haunting him for days; soft yet rough. He wanted to taste them again, to just come closer and touch them with his own. Deep in his heart he wanted to go to Jin and tell him everything, to pour out his feelings to him like rain pours on people on the streets. But at the same time, every time when he thought about being close to the older boy, his heart was aching. He was torn between telling Jin about his love for him and losing the boy, never seeing him ever again, and keeping his feeling to himself and being hurt every time they meet. Kame was afraid. Afraid that Jin will feel sorry for him and blame himself for everything. He didn’t want that. He wanted him to be happy even if they had to change, if they had to forget about their short encounter.

A few lonely tears made their way on Kazuya’s face. The boy quickly wiped them off and concentrated on the lyrics that formed in his head. Lines after lines he started to voice out his complicated emotions, turning them into a song. He meant the song to be a sad one but the more he wrote, the more he realized that he’s not the type of person who gives up easily. He couldn’t make a ballad, not when he still had the energy to fight.

* * *

In the morning Kame decided to visit Yue, who for the first time in weeks didn’t have to hurry to the studio. The girl was a devil in disguise when it came to work. Both she and Kazuya were workaholics, but this time Yue felt the need to take things slower - she couldn’t tire the boys out before the big performance on the next day. It was better to just make a simple rehearsal in the afternoon when everybody was well rested.

“How are you, Kame? You have ugly bags under your eyes.” The girl said slightly insulting the boy who didn’t care; like always.

“I’m fine. I was writing the new song for quite long and I went to sleep a little too late.” He sipped on the coffee Yue put in front of him; she made a good, sweet coffee.

“Okay, if you say so.” She believed him even though there was surely more to it. “I’m surprised that you visit me this early though. Couldn’t you just sleep some more since you were awake half of the night?” She narrowed her eyebrows.

“Um… actually I wanted to talk to you… about something.” Kazuya fidgeted in his place, avoiding Mitsui’s eyes.

“…Then talk, I’m listening.” The girl tried to encourage him but the boy was really nervous.

“Um…” He looked down and clenched the cup.

“Hey…” Slowly Kame’s eyes met Yue’s softened gaze. “It’s okay. I’m your friend, you can tell me anything. I won’t judge you.” Yue was rarely nice but with Kame her motherly instincts often kicked in, making her more understanding and collected; though her sharp tongue and natural boldness were never leaving her.

“It’s… it’s about Jin. I like him. I mean, more than a friend. I think… I think that I might love him.” Kazuya waited for some harsh comment, maybe a laugh but nothing like that came; only Yue seemed to be a little bit annoyed.

“If that’s how you feel…” She paused trying to keep her composure; she failed at the end but it wasn’t the worst outburst ever. “then why the hell did you come with it to me?! Shouldn’t you be at Bakanishi’s house confessing to him?”

“But what if he doesn’t feel the same? I don’t want to lose a good friend.” Yue saw Kazuya’s conflicted expression; it was a bad move from her side to scream at the boy. She sighed.

“Look. I know you’re afraid but I don’t think you should keep it in yourself.” She leaned closer putting her hand on Kame’s shoulder. “I know you, Kame. You’re not a coward. You’re bold, simple-minded and straightforward. You’re also brave, much braver than all the people I know. I don’t say that you have to confess right away, I know it’s hard. But you should face Akanishi at some point. If you continue avoiding him, nothing good will come from it, you know that.” Kame looked at Yue; she was sincere.

“Yeah, I know. But how can I face him not having a reason. I mean, when he asks me why I’m here what should I tell him? Wouldn’t it be awkward?” He asked with big, innocent eyes, full of complicated thoughts.

“Hm…how about tomorrow?” She asked after a while.

“Tomorrow?” Kazuya was slightly confused.

“Yes, tomorrow. The guys are going to appear on a music show. You can say that I invited you since you’re the author of the song.”

“Can you do it?” Kazuya’s eyes sparkled and Yue nodded while shrugging; it wasn’t a problem. “Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!”

The boy smiled widely and jumped to hug his best friend. She started patting his back while the boy was thanking her over and over again, repeating it like a mantra. Unfortunately for him, Kame couldn’t see Yue’s face on which a mischievous, knowing smirk appeared . Everything was going according to the plan.
 

Kazuya happily skipped down the stairs. He was thankful for having Mitsui Yue as his best friend; she gave him a job, an opportunity to meet famous people, get to know new friends and she unconsciously found him someone to love. He couldn’t wait to see AT-TUN performing; he had never been on any live show. Of course he wouldn’t be on stage but watching from backstage was equally exciting; he would see Jin working and hear his amazing voice, maybe he would be even able to talk to the older boy.

Suddenly Kame stopped frozen in the middle of the street. A thought struck him like a lightening; no matter how you looked at it, there weren’t any bands which songwriters came to the live show to watch their songs being performed. Kazuya realized that it would be suspicious if he came and Jin surely would find it weird. That would be really awkward.

Kazuya couldn’t decide what he should do. He really wanted to see Jin and the rest of the guys but he didn’t want to risk losing Jin’s friendship if the boy found out about Kame’s real feelings. It would be too much for him to see disgust or a pain of betrayal in the older boy’s eyes.
 

Later in the afternoon, Yue, Ueda and Jin were rehearsing again. It didn’t take long for Mitsui and Tatsuya to realize that Akanishi’s thoughts were actually far away from the studio and a guitar in his hands. He was daydreaming again. At first Yue and Tatsuya found it entertaining and fun to watch how Jin’s face shows his inner conflict. Once he looked like he wanted to jump and scream like a little kid who had too much sugar for breakfast only to look like a character from Greek tragedy whose fate lead him to a catastrophe, death and absolute extermination a few minutes later. It wasn’t hard to guess that a certain Kamenashi Kazuya was occupying his mind.

An hour later Yue and Ueda had enough. Tatsuya was a little more patient than the manager but this time he agreed with the girl that Jin was a nuisance and if they won’t do anything soon, Akanishi will become a dead man. The girl hit the table with her palm bringing Jin back down to earth. He looked at her surprised, she looked angry but at the same time she looked like she didn’t have enough strength to even get up from her sit. Akanishi wasn’t so far away from the truth, she really was exhausted and even a thought about punching the lovesick guy wasn’t especially appealing - it wouldn’t help one bit.

“Listen, Bakanishi.” She started while rubbing her eyes tiredly. “I know you’re worried and all but, for the God’s sake, concentrate! You’re performing tomorrow!” Jin looked at her and bit his lower lip.

“But what’s if Kazuya won’t want it? What if he will reject me? What if I won’t see him ever again?”

“Then he will decline, reject you, break your heart and let you rot in some ditch! And he will do it for sure if you don’t stop playing a ing teenage girl.” She hissed glaring at the man who swallowed heavily; it was the moment when Ueda decided that he needs to save the stupid man from an eternal tortures.

“Jin, you shouldn’t worry so much. Kamenashi is a nice guy. He will be happy to receive such a proposition from you. Besides, you’re a stubborn man so get your together and behave like a man, not a girl.”

“But what if…” Tatsuya groaned frustrated and Yue finally got up and grabbed Jin’s collar with one hand.

“Stop with this, Bakanishi! ‘What if’ and ‘what if’! I’m helping you but I’m more worried about your feelings towards Kazuya than his towards you! Do you really love him or is it just your ing whimsy?!”

Jin’s eyes widened, not with fear but with shock. He knew Yue was protective of Kame but hearing from her own mouth that she doubted his feeling towards the younger boy was heart-clenching. It’s not like he hadn’t thought that Yue might have something against his plans but she was helping him so far. It was weird but his mind was too occupied to realize it. The girl wouldn’t do it for him. Actually, there was only one person that she might had been doing it for - Kazuya. Jin wanted to ask why she was doing it but something told him that she wouldn’t tell him. Maybe she just wanted for Kame to finally have a stable job? Akanishi didn’t care, she had a point though. He never told anyone that he loves Kame, not even her, the only person that Kazuya treated like his own family.

The girl let go of the older boy and turned back wanting to just get out and lock herself in her office. She had enough, she was worried and she wasn’t sure if she made a right choice after all, maybe Akanishi just wasn’t the person Kazuya needed in his life. She was about to exit the room when Jin’s voice made her stop.

“I love him.” She turned around with a serious look on her face. “I love Kamenashi Kazuya. I’m sorry that I haven’t told you before, he’s as important to me as he is to you and I should know that you will be worried, so… I’m sorry and please, let me go along with the plan.” Akanishi said seriously and bowed deeply; the girl didn’t even blink.

“Will you focus on the job and leave the rest to me?” Jin nodded knowing perfectly well what she meant. “Good. Remember one thing though. If you ever hurt him in any way, I’m going to change your life in a living pain.”

She turned around and walked away. Akanishi was determined and even a heavy threat like this one, wasn’t able to change his mind. If he ever hurt the boy he would personally go to Yue and let her punish him for every mistake he had made in his life, for every bad word he had told Kazuya along the years. Jin looked at Tat-chan and they both started their practise again. This time nothing could distract him and Kazuya’s image in his head only helped him to concentrate; the plan was going to work, no matter what.
 

Junno was bored. It was another day for him without work, it’s not like he missed going to the studio in the early morning every day but he had already played all the games that he had in his house; there was nothing more he could do in his flat. He wanted to meet up with the guys but Yue, Jin and Uepi were busy, TaNaka duo decided to practice ‘One On One’ since the previous day they got the songwriter to agree to a few changes and came up with a few new lines together with Kamenashi.

Not having a better option, Junno went for a walk. The day was rather nice, it was slightly cool but the sky was blue and the Sun was shining brightly. The boy felt way better in this weather. Suddenly he heard barking of dogs and looked in the direction of the noise intrigued. He was surprised seeing Kame sitting on a branch and hugging a tree trying not to fall. Beneath him were two massive dogs desperately trying to bite the boy on the tree. Thankfully the owner caught his pupils and took them away from the young man.

When the owner and his dogs disappeared from Kazuya’s eyes, he smiled and slowly tried to climb down. Of course, being who he was, a landing wasn’t the smoothest and one of the thinner branches broke. Kame squeaked at the sudden loss of balance and fell down. He groaned and sat up massaging his sore back, he didn’t even see Taguchi that came to him quickly trying to see if Kame’s alright.

“Uh… I need remember not to climb that high.” Kame pouted.

“Are you okay, Kame-chan?” The younger boy got slightly startled by a voice next to him but when he saw that it’s just Junno, he smiled brightly.

“Taguchi-kun! Nice to see you! I’m fine but what are you doing here? I thought that you would play games at your house.” Junno help the boy get up from the ground and they both sat on the nearby bench.

“Well, I was playing for a few days now and I got bored. Everyone is busy and doesn’t seem to have time for me. Going for a walk seemed to be a good idea.” Junno shrugged and smiled widely but Kazuya frowned.

“Then why don’t you go to the studio and help them? You look like you want to do it.” Kame was right, Junno wanted to go but there was someone who prevented him from doing so.

“Yue-chan said that I would distract the guys and that I wouldn’t be useful anyway.” Junno’s face fell a little; it was hard hearing something like this from a person you like. Kame flinched.

“Don’t mind her, she didn’t mean anything bad with it. It might be weird for you but Yue-chan says harsh things when she’s working. When we were kids and she was doing her project, she had dragged me to the door, threw me out and shut the door in my face saying something about me pissing her off with my existence. She didn’t really mean it though, it’s more like she doesn’t realize that she’s hurting others with her words when she’s focused on her job. When she doesn’t think about work, she’s more careful with what she’s saying but when there’s something serious going on, her sharp tongue is going loose.” Kame explained and smiled at Junno who looked a little better. “Taguchi-kun, you like Yue-chan, don’t you?” The older man looked quite stunned but answered honestly anyway.

“Yeah, Yue-chan is really cool but she doesn’t seem to like me much. She’s always keeping distance from me.” He sulked.

“Don’t worry, she likes you.” Junno looked up at Kame, not really believing him. “I’m serious, she doesn’t hate you. I guess, she’s a little wary of you since you’re unpredictable at times, that’s all. You’re a nice guy and I like you. If you need any help with Yue-chan, just call me.” Kazuya smiled widely at the man.

“Thank you, Kame-chan! I won’t give up, she’s the first person that doesn’t treat me like an annoying kid. She even talks to me seriously when any other person would just brush me off.”

Junno smiled and they started talking about everything and anything that came to their minds. Taguchi promised to borrow Kame some games and a console so the boy could ‘get enchanted with a magical world of awesomeness’, like Junno called it. Passersby were looking at them weirdly; they looked like two high school geeks that never had a real girlfriend. It was even more depressing that they were actually quite right. Kazuya ignored every girl since the day his senpai, Sato Mei, had humiliated him in front of classmates and Junno scared away most of the girls.

“Yue is rarely scared of something. With her personality it’s more likely that others will be terrified of her.” Kame tried to comfort the taller boy.

“You’re probably right, I’ve never seen her in fear. She’s really strong, ne~?” He asked but it seemed more like a statement; Kame remembered his morning visit at the girl’s flat and frowned.

“... I should go now. I need to buy groceries, my fridge is quite empty.” Kazuya said and give Junno a small smile. When Kame got up and turned to leave, Junno spoke up.

“Come to see us tomorrow, Kame-chan.” The younger looked behind him to see that the older boy is looking at him seriously. “We’re all missing you but it’s Jin that misses you the most so… just come.”

Kazuya was slightly startled by Taguchi’s sudden authority; he couldn’t utter a word. He somehow couldn’t decline the invitation, he felt that he couldn’t do it, not when Junno didn’t have a smile on his face. It wasn’t a proposition, it was an order and Kame knew he has to listen to the other boy. Hearing that Jin misses him, made him feel better and his previous fears started to fade. Who cares that Akanishi might found it weird that Kazuya will be there, the important thing is to go and see the man that Kame likes more than he probably should.

The younger boy nodded his head and went away quickly trying not to think about anything; any thought now would bring him new doubts.
 

At 2 in the afternoon, AT-TUN and their manager arrived in the studio. There were three more hours before the show but they needed to do a quick sound check so the guys came earlier. Jin was looking around while staff were leading them to the right room. Akanishi wanted to spot Kame, they boy should be here at any moment now since Yue-san instructed the younger boy to appear early. The problem was that Kame was nowhere in sight and also no one saw him even near the building. Jin got worried that the boy might not come at all.

“Yue, are you sure he agreed to come?” He asked quietly trying to hide his nervousness.

“Yeah, I’m sure.” She answered but couldn’t help to scan rooms with her eyes herself; something wasn’t right. “Maybe he just ran into some garbage can or something.”

“I hope so. I want him to be here when I announce the big news.”

“Trust me, Akanishi, I want that too.” Yue sighed still looking around.

“Ano…” Taguchi interrupted the small discussion getting Yue and Jin to turn towards him. “I met Kame-kun yesterday. He looked a little troubled about today.” Junno smiled sheepishly while Akanishi’s eyes widened and Yue cursed under her breath.

“, we have a problem.” She said massaging her forehead.

“What will we do now? If he’s not here we can’t go with the plan!” Jin started to panic.

“Calm down, Bakanishi. If he won’t come to us willingly, we will make him come, whether he likes it or not.” A mischievous smirk appeared on her face. “I have a plan. You two and Ueda are going to stay here. Koki! Nakamaru! You’re going with me. If someone asks, we went for coffee and will be back on time for the show.”

She grabbed her keys and rushed towards the exit followed by confused Koki and Nakamaru; Kame won’t be able to run away – no when Yue was pulling by all the strings.
 

Taguchi was right, Kame was troubled again and this time it was even worse. The boy hid under the covers and refused to get up from his bed. He wanted to sleep whole day and pretend that he was just tired and couldn’t come. So far his plan was working, no one called him yet and Yue hadn’t appeared at his doorsteps. He was relieved but sad at the same time. He was confused and scared, he didn’t know if he really should go or just hide like he was doing now.

Kazuya slowly released a breath trying to hush his heart and mind that were sending him contradictory signals. One was telling him to go and say everything he wanted to while the other wanted him to stay where he was and forget about the show. After some time Kame was able to shut them down and enjoy a warm duvet swathed around his whole body in a comfortable cocoon.

Kame heard ringing coming from his cell phone. He stuck out his head and grabbing the device with one of his hands, he looked at the screen. It was a call from Yue. Kazuya whimpered, put his phone on the table next to his bed and ducked quickly under the cover trying to ignore everything that will come his way.
 

Meanwhile, the girl was standing in front of Kazuya’s apartment with her own mobile phone in the hand and calling the boy. It didn’t matter that he didn’t pick up; his ringtone was heard through the front door. Yue tsked annoyed.

“That coward doesn’t want to pick up his ing phone.” She hid her device. ”Whatever. He’s inside. Nakamaru, be ready to drive away when I and Koki will bring Kame down. Koki, you’re going to catch Kazuya if he tries to escape.”

The two boys looked at each other not completely convinced but seeing no other choice, they nodded their heads agreeing to Yue’s plan. The girl nodded back and when Nakamaru went down the stairs, she opened the door with her spare key. She mentioned to Tanaka to stay outside while she made her way towards Kazuya’s bedroom.

She wasn’t really surprised seeing a cocoon on the bed, Kame used to make one and hide in it every time something was too hard for him to understand or he felt self-conscious. She silently came closer to the front of the cocoon and grabbed the duvet. In one fast movement she yanked the cover off Kame. The boy was startled and tried to ran away but the girl pulled him by his ankle. Kazuya fell on a soft bed sheet but soon he turned his head around and looked wide-eyed at smirking Yue that in her other hand was holding a rope.

“Now… you can get up and change into something proper or I will have to tie you and bring to the studio only in your underwear. What do you choose, Kame-chan~?”

Kame groaned defeated and Mitsui let go of his leg. The boy stood up and took out some clothes. While he went into his bathroom to put on his shirt and jeans, Yue made her way towards the kitchen. She wasn’t sure if Kame ate anything while sulking in his room and making a few sandwiches for everyone was a good idea.

Kazuya quickly put on his outfit and peered through the door. He was surprised not seeing Yue there but a few seconds later he could hear her rummaging through his fridge. His heartbeat became faster; it was his chance to escape, she wouldn’t notice now, when she was occupied with whatever she was doing in the other room. Not wasting any time, the boy silently made his way towards his front door. Unfortunately, Kazuya forgot about one thing – Yue wasn’t stupid, on the contrary she was sneaky and shrewd. There was no way that she would let him wander off just under her nose.

Kame slowly grabbed the door handle and pulled it down. He looked behind him, checking if Yue didn’t hear a click of the lock and the boy smiled satisfied. It looked like his exit was going to be successful. He pulled the door towards himself and wanted to get out when he stopped frowning. In front of him stood Tanaka Koki. Kame whined and rolled his eyes; there was no way to escape now.

Yue came out from the kitchen and came closer to the boy. She patted his back reassuringly and the three of them made their way down to the van. Of course, Kazuya wasn’t from those that are giving up easily so he tried to run away again. Yue, slightly annoyed by his stubbornness decided to make use of the rope and tied the poor boy to the seat; there was always a possibility that the boy will try to jump out the window - she didn’t want to risk it.

Nakamaru started the engine. There were still two hours left but it was the time of a terrible traffic jam and they didn’t know if they will be able to get to the studio on time.
 

Jin was walking back and forth on the backstage while Ueda was following him with his eyes. He could see how nervous Jin was but it was starting to annoy him. If the boy was stressing so much now how was he going to behave when Kamenashi will be actually watching him from the audience? He didn’t know but Akanishi was a professional and Tatsuya believed that Jin will get a grip on himself.

Half an hour before the big show, finally the rest arrived with Kame as their hostage. Ueda sighed relieved and Jin just stared at the small boy that he grew to love. Kazuya couldn’t really look Jin in the eyes but tried to not turn his head away. Yue released him; he couldn’t run away anymore anyway. He stood there stiffed and awkward saying a short ‘hi’ to the band.

Akanishi wanted to talk to the younger boy but before he could open his mouth, Junno rushed to Kame and hugged him tightly. Koki smacked the tall boy in the head and everyone burst out laughing. Junno massaged his head comically but turned serious at the sight of Yue. He told her that the stuff informed him that everything is ready and she can go take a look. Nobody really knew what was going on but the girl just smirked and pulled Kame with her, ordering AT-TUN to get ready to go on stage at any minute.

Kazuya was confused just like the other guys but let his friend lead him to the room at the end of the corridor. It was a small dressing room with a chair in front of the mirror and a single hanger with a covered outfit hanging on it. Kame didn’t understand anything but when he looked at Yue he could see a genuine smile.

“I promised you that I would do something like postponing your job interview. Well, I couldn’t really do it but I’ve got a proposition that I just couldn’t decline.”

“What… what proposition?” He wasn’t sure if he wanted to know.

“Do you remember which of your songs Nakata-san had found?” She asked mysteriously.

“Yeah… but what has it to do with anything?” He was even more confused than before.

“He gave it to one of his great musicians. The man liked it very much and wanted to buy it.”

“You mean that you sold my song to some famous guy?” Kazuya wasn’t sure if he’s mad at the girl for not telling him earlier or happy that she was able to actually do it.

“I did… but under your real name.” Kame’s eyes widened.

“Why would you do it?”

“Because I wanted you to sing it too.”

“…What do you mean?” He was looking at her incredulously.

“I agreed to sell your song only if the guy that bought it will sing it with you today, in this show, for the first time.” Kame sat on a chair shocked. “It’s a chance for you, Kame. Not to became famous but to show your talent to all this people that were looking down on you. So.. what do you say? Are you going to sing?” She asked looking at him searching for approval.

“But… but what with the lyrics?”

“I know you remember them, Kazuya. You know all of your songs.”

He looked up at his friend trying to read her intentions. He was sure that they were genuine but it wasn’t like her to make something so big for him just so he could get known by people; actually she was against him being in a centre of attention, Yue thought it was dangerous for him. He couldn’t understand what made her change her mind but he stopped caring quickly. It was his chance to shine and he couldn’t waste it.

He nodded determined and Yue gave him a lopsided but proud smile; it was going to be fun.
 

AT-TUN were ready. Tatsuya and Jin checked the guitar for the last time and concentrated on their coming-up performance. They hadn’t seen Yue or Kame for some time now and there were only mere minutes left before the show starts. The whole band got slightly worried but they knew that the girl won’t let Kame miss anything.

The hosts came out on the stage where a few couches and chairs were placed and greeted the audience; it was a live show after all. While the guys were observing the crowds, Nakamaru saw in the corner of his eye someone he didn’t expect seeing here. He elbowed Koki who scowled and wanted to smack the other boy but decided to catch attention of the rest of the guys, while he saw who was on the other side of backstage, behind the hosts.

“What the hell, Koki?” Ueda said quickly looking at the other boy.

“Am I seeing right or it’s Suga Shikao-san, a famous musician from ‘International Sounds Record’?” The older boy looked at the direction pointed by the rapper and couldn’t believe his eyes.

“Yes, it’s him. Now stop staring and better do your job properly.”

The boys turned around to see Yue standing with her hands folded. Thankfully she wasn’t mad, she looked quite pleased with something but AT-TUN knew she won’t tell them. Jin wanted to ask where Kame is, but Yue just smiled at him reassuringly and walked away wishing them good luck.

Finally the show began. First the hosts introduced each other and made some joke about new line of MP4 players. Next their announced today’s guests. AT-TUN weren’t surprised that the host introduced Suga Shikao who came out on stage. They were delighted to see the great musician in person and happily listened to the interview.

“Suga-san, we heard that you have a new song for us today.”

“Yes, I’m going to sing something new but this time it will be a little different.” The man said it calmly but everyone were confused by his words.

“What do you mean, Suga-san? Is there something special with the song?”

“Yes, actually there is. The song was written by a certain young songwriter. I really like the lyrics and decided to buy it from him.”

“Oh, was it hard to get them? I think it wasn’t. After all there’s a lot of young people that would love if you sing their songs.” Suga laughed heartily.

“You might not believe me but it was really hard to get the song.”

“How’s that even possible?” The hosts were utterly surprised, just like the audience.

“There were some conditions that I had to agree to. The main one was that lyricist real name will be used while introducing. The other condition quite shocked me but I agreed anyway.”

“What was the second condition? You made us all curious, Suga-san.”

“Well… the condition apply to today’s performance. The new song will be sung not only by me but by the lyricist himself.”

“Oh, my! Then that young man has to have a good voice that matches with yours, I assume?”

“And that’s where the agreement is even harder to believe. I’ve never spoken or even seen the author of the song. Today we will meet for the first time, on this stage, during our performance.”

Everyone gasped in shock. No one would be surprised if people in front of the TVs were gasping as well. It was uncommon to sing live without any practice or rehearsals, it was even more weird since Suga Shikao was going to sing with an unknown guy who he had never met before. When the shock on the hosts faces faded, they sent Suga on the other stage when two stools and two microphones were already waiting.

“Dear Ladies and Gentlemen. Let me introduce to you the new song, “Ai ni Tsuite” written by…” Everyone held their breaths waiting for the performer to introduces the co-singer. “…Kamenashi Kazuya-kun!”

Kame came out on stage to sit on the stool. He nodded awkwardly at the famous man. He was nervous as hell but when he heard first sounds of his song, all his worries flew away. Kazuya started singing surprising everyone with a great, melodious voice. AT-TUN couldn’t believe their ears. The boy was great; no one would believe that he had such a bad luck in his life.

“That’s Kame’s third gift along with cooking and doing a massage. When it comes to music, he’s more than a genius. He feels what he sings and loses himself in the sounds he hears around him. That’s his precious talent.”

Yue said standing next to the guys and observing her best friend on stage. It was a performance that would stay in people’s mind for a long time; she was sure of it.
 

AT-TUN couldn’t talk to Kame after he came back from the stage. They were called on stage the second ovations stopped. Their performance was divided into three parts; a short introductory talk about their success, singing of “Butterfly” and a proper talk. Kazuya, who came to himself after the shock, stood next to Yue through two first parts. He was really enjoying watching AT-TUN, especially Jin who looked more handsome playing live than in a PV that dominated music stations in the whole country.

Finally came the time for a real talk about the band, its future and new releases.

“Everyone was surprised with the new song. No one expected just two members to sing. How did you thought about such idea?”

“Well, it wasn’t our idea but our songwriter. He made the song for only two people but we liked it so much that we decided to sing it.” Ueda answered.

“I see… The song is great. Your lyricist must be someone famous, am I right?”

“Actually, “Butterfly” is the first song written by him that got sung by other people than the songwriter himself.” Jin said with a smile, shocking the audience.

“Is that so? It’s rather surprising. How did you find him then?”

“Our manager, Mitsui Yue-san, bought the lyrics for us. The songwriter is her best friend. She’s serious when it comes to music so she wouldn’t buy anything that can’t be turned into a hit.” Jin laughed soon followed by other people.

“I understand. Now… let’s move further… Today, while showing your performance in television, there were two empty places – there was no name of the lyricist, nor was there a name of your band. Does this mean Ueda-san and Akanishi-san are going to start working as a duo only?”

“Oh, no. It’s nothing like that. It’s just that we want to start a new chapter in our bands history but to do that we had to make some changes. It’s still not exactly confirmed but we’re going to announce it on this show anyway.” Nakamaru said.

“What do you mean? If it’s not confirmed how can you talk about it?”

“We think that it’s the only way for our wishes to be answered. Mitsui-san helped us organize all of this and if she’s helping that only means that she agrees with us.” This time Koki decided to explain but the main part still belonged to Jin.

“I think we still don’t understand. What changes are you making?”

“Let me explain then. Let’s start with the lyricist name. As you probably remember, at first there was a nickname K2. Well, it doesn’t change that much, we only want to exchange it with a real name of the songwriter.” Kazuya’s eyes widened but he couldn’t do much.

“So who’s the mysterious man that wrote such a catching masterpiece? We want to meet him!” Jin laughed at the host’s eagerness.

“You already met him.”

“What? When?”

“A few minutes ago, on this show.”

“You’re saying that…”

“Yes, Kamenashi Kazuya-kun wrote the lyrics to our new song and we really hope that he will write us many more songs.”

“That’s incredible! Kamenashi-kun, please come out on the stage!”

The host called and Yue pushed still stunned Kazuya towards the stage. The boy almost tripped but got back his balance quickly. He looked at the audience quite frightened to avert his eyes a second later. He spotted the guys. They were smiling at him reassuringly, especially Jin seemed to be happy seeing the boy. Kame slowly made his way towards a chair and sat on it while bowing to everyone.

“Kamenashi-kun! How do you feel knowing that your first song is one of the best selling singles of the month?” Kazuya was still confused but tried to regain his composure at least a little.

“…I don’t know. I never really planned to reveal my name. I’m really surprised right now. The previous performance… it was a shock to me. I didn’t know until a few minutes before the show started that I’m going to sing today.”

“You mean that Mitsui-san sold your song without your permission?”

“Yes, but I’m happy that she did. I could sing with someone as great as Suga Shikao-san.” Kazuya finally smiled with this smile that always brightened up the room.

“That’s amazing, indeed. But let’s go back to the band. We already filled in one space but what with the band’s name? Aren’t you AT-TUN anymore?”

“Well, we’re not sure right now but we hope that a certain someone will help us figure it out.” Jin answered and the guys shocked everyone by turning towards a stunned Kame. “Kamenashi-kun, we talked a lot as a band about AT-TUN’s future and we all agreed that something needs to be changed. Mitsui-san also gave us a green light in that matter thought she was worried at first. While we were working with you, we were really enjoying ourselves, the song came out great and we also know that the next one will be as good. Also after your performance tonight, we are one hundred percent sure know.” Jin looked at his bandmates and they all nodded in agreement smiling widely. “Kamenashi-kun, we want you as a part of AT-TUN or rather, if you agree to join us, a part of KAT-TUN.”

Akanishi ended his speech stunning everyone around them. Everyone held their breaths staring intensely at Kame who was gaping at the boys in front of him. A minute passed and the guys tensed, their smiles faltering slightly. Kazuya hadn’t utter a word and the guys started to worry. There was a possibility that the boy won’t join them and it was the worst thing that could happen. They all wanted him in the band, especially now, when they knew that he can sing as good as a professional musician with a diploma.

“Kamenashi-kun? What’s your answer? Will you join AT-TUN making it KAT-TUN?” The host tried to help; but Kame just blinked and looked around him. His eyes fell on Yue who nodded with a smile.

“…Please, take care of me from now on.”

Kazuya said and bowed deeply. A second his words registered in everyone’s minds, a loud cheer echoed through the studio. AT-TUN grabbed the boy and started tossing him in the air happily. Everyone was smiling and laughing while Koki started rapping accompanied by Maru’s beatboxing. Even Yue couldn’t stop herself from smiling widely and clapping along with the audience.

A new era came, era of KAT-TUN.
 

After the show the new band and Yue went to the studio to celebrate. On their way everyone was happily talking about a near future, Kame even said that he was working on a song that the rest would like. He didn’t mention though that his song was quite personal and based on his real feelings. Yue knew about this but it wasn’t the time yet to confront the boy, not before Akanishi makes his move.

Weirdly enough, Jin didn’t look stressed even though he had to take a last step in his plan. Everyone raised their cans of beers that they bought on their way, to cheer for the future of KAT-TUN. After that they kept talking as long as Jin finally put his can down and came to Kame wanting to speak with him. Their friends were observing with knowing smiles on their faces.

“Hi, how have you been this last few days?” Akanishi asked looking at the nervous boy.

“I’m fine, thank you. And how are you?” The boy asked avoiding Jin’s eyes; Akanishi smirked at the cute sight.

“I’m good. I’m really happy that you agreed to become part of our little family.” Kazuya looked up at him with innocent eyes.

“Really? Are you sure I won’t be bothering you?” Jin smiled.

“No, not at all.” Kame’s face brightened and a dorky smile appeared on his face.” But there’s one more thing that I have to do.”

“What is it?”

Kame asked surprised and curious but he didn’t get the answer. Instead of using words, Jin bend down slightly and locked Kame’s lips with his own. The boy’s eyes widened but he didn’t try to pull away. On the contrary, he leaned in to the soft touch and closed his eyes. His mind went completely blank while Jin nibbled gently on Kazuya’s lower lip. Unnoticeably Jin took one of the younger boy’s hands in his own and broke the kiss, looking at the boy tenderly.

“Why did you do this? You will be unlucky again.” It was obvious that he was more concerned about Jin’s well-being than his own wildly beating heart.

“I did this because I love you, Kazu.”

Jin smiled at Kame’s blushing and confused face. Kame couldn’t really believe in what he was hearing. The man that he fell in love with, was confessing to him. It was a shock for the younger boy who became completely speechless, he was just staring at Jin and trying to understand what had happened. When he finally registered the words in his head he couldn’t do anything else except for honestly, but quietly, answering the older boy, though Kame found it slightly embarrassing.

“I love you too.” The boy became even redder if it’s possible and Jin couldn’t help himself; he smirked and said.

“If that’s the case then I can always get my luck back, can’t I?”

Jin kissed the surprised boy again. A few seconds later Kazuya wrapped his hands around Akanishi’s neck, deepening the kiss while Jin’s hands found their way to Kame’s hips squeezing them lightly, not wanting to do him any harm. They were kissing slowly completely oblivious to the rest of the world around them.

The rest of KAT-TUN was watching the pair trying not to disturb them. At first they thought of it as sweet, but the more two boys were engrossed in each other the more they started to wonder when they won’t have any more air in their lungs. There was one more question that suddenly appeared in their minds.

How they’re going to know which one of them is lucky at the time?

Yue as if hearing their inner thoughts, gave them an answer.

“Don’t worry, I will give them dices later. Let’s leave them for now. They need to enjoy their new found happiness to the full.” She smirked at them and turned to Junno who was quite startled by her sudden attention. “If I remember correctly, you wanted to play video games with me. Wanna do it now?”

Junno was shocked but it was quickly replaced by a wide happy smile. He nodded quickly and skipped towards the door with other boys. Yue followed soon after. Staying in the doorway she made a last glance at Jin and Kame still locked in a sweet kiss.

“Yeah, it’s definitely a good beginning, ne?” She thought and exited the room with a contented smile.