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They were supposed to meet Ann and Shiho at the karaoke that afternoon. It wasn’t unusual for Akira and Ryuji to arrive earlier than the girls at the train station, since they—mostly Ann, to be fair—had the tendency to get distracted by any display in front of them. Five minutes became ten, then almost fifteen before their phones rang, informing of a new message in the group they made for the four of them.
Ann: Sorry guys, we’re going to be late today.
Ann: Go ahead and wait for us there.
Ryuji wasn’t surprised as he answered with an “ok”. He glanced at Akira, who furrowed his brow at the screen.
“Every time...” he muttered. “We should start to get here one hour later, so we won’t wait so much.”
“Good plan,” agreed Ryuji with a small chuckle, placing his phone back in his pocket. “So, let’s get goin’?”
Akira agreed with a nod, and they made their way to the karaoke, without haste. They rented a cabin and ordered two sodas and a few snacks. After a few minutes of talking and eating, Ryuji indicated the chart with the song list.
“Wanna go first?” he asked.
Akira shrugged, then moved closer to Ryuji to look at the songs.
“I guess I’ll choose an easy one to warm up,” he said with a smile. “You better cheer for me.”
“Leave it to me,” answered Ryuji, reaching for the tambourine and rattling it in what was supposed to be a dramatic way.
Akira chose an old anime song. He seemed slightly embarrassed in the beginning, but it didn’t take long for him to relax and let his voice out. The fact that it was only him and Ryuji there probably made it easier: they did countless embarrassing things in front of each other on a daily basis, so singing was nothing in comparison.
When he was finished, he bowed in thanks to his enthusiastic audience of one person. Ryuji reached for the chart again, looking at his options for a while.
“Hey...” he said. “How about we sing a duet this time?”
Akira looked at him, interested.
“Fine by me,” he said. “Do you have anything in mind?”
“Not really... Lemme see.”
Ryuji scanned the song names, suddenly coming across a familiar title. It was an old pop song that his mother liked. He smiled as he picked it.
“This one seems good,” he said, placing the chart on the table and taking the microphone.
Akira agreed. It was only when the first notes started to play that Ryuji realized his mistake: that was a romantic song. Well, not just an old romantic song, but that kind in which the guy and the girl sang their lines directly to each other, as if confessing their undying love.
Ryuji’s stomach turned: he knew it was just a song, and that there was nothing strange about singing such corny lines with his best friend. However, there was a tiny thing that made that situation more awkward to him than it should: the fact that he had a big, sad crush on Akira.
“Wow...” commented Akira. “Didn’t take you for the romantic type.”
“Shaddup...” answered Ryuji, forcing a laugh.
They both went silent, and, with an effort, Ryuji started to sing the first few lines.
Damn... that was embarrassing. He didn’t look at Akira, keeping his eyes on the screen despite knowing the lyrics by heart already. When his part came to an end, Akira started to sing, in a slightly lower tone than before. Ryuji felt sick: his friend was clearly uncomfortable with it as well.
Part of Ryuji considered stopping that song and choosing another one, but the small, clever part of his brain reminded him that doing that would probably just make the situation even more awkward, so they continued.
It only took a few seconds for him to regret his decision, when the duet part started. It was corny, and romantic, and Ryuji felt like he was about to fall dead on the floor. His mind was a mix of “shit, he’s gonna notice it” and “damn, we make a good duet,” and he had to pay special attention to the lyrics not to get lost. He risked a glance at Akira, who had his eyes on the screen as well, a slight flush on his cheeks. Before Ryuji could look away, Akira turned his eyes to him, and their gazes met. Both looked away at the same time.
Ann... Shiho... Help me.
Ryuji didn’t take his eyes away from the lyrics until the end of the song. Their score was pretty pathetic, but it wasn’t surprising, considering how both of them sang as if they were in pain. Silence filled the room for a long while, and Ryuji hoped that his dumb decision wouldn’t make things weird between them. As he tried to think of something funny to say, Akira finally broke the silence.
“My turn to choose now, right?”
Ryuji almost sighed in relief, but managed to force a casual smile.
“Yeah, go ahead.”
Akira scanned the song list for a few seconds, then raised his head, looking at Ryuji.
“Is another duet fine by you?”
“Ah, yeah...” Ryuji chuckled, not looking at him. “As long as you choose a better one this time.”
“I will. I have good taste.”
“Did you mean somethin’ by that, you little shit?”
Akira simply smiled as an answer, selecting the next song. Ryuji expected it to be another anime song, or something like that. But no... It was another familiar one to him—rock instead of pop, but still another romantic one. He couldn’t hold back a small laugh at that realization.
“Looks like someone is feelin’ all romantic today,” he said.
“You’re the one to talk.”
Despite his mocking tone, Ryuji was glad Akira took all that as a joke. The song started, and this time Akira was the first one to sing, and when his lines were finished, he pointed at Ryuji, who continued to sing in the same enthusiastic way. He looked at Akira, who had a big smile on his face, and felt his heart melt. Without thinking much, Ryuji stood up, offering his hand to Akira, who took it just as they started to sing together.
He would probably feel embarrassed by his memories later, but at that moment the only thing that mattered was Akira’s smile, and how much fun he seemed to be having as he sang those lines while looking at Ryuji. As stupid as it could be, Ryuji allowed himself to believe, just for a few moments, that it meant something—when he sang to Akira, it certainly did.
All those silly dancings, the pointing at each other, and the exaggerated enamored expressions made those few minutes incredibly fun. By the end of the song, during an instrumental part, Akira made a gesture for Ryuji to approach, and Ryuji let go of his microphone, getting closer to Akira so they could both share his. Before he could stop himself, he placed his arm around Akira’s shoulders, and Akira answered by embracing his waist. Ryuji looked at his face, and their eyes met again; this time, however, neither looked away, singing those final lines directly to each other, in that close distance, making Ryuji’s thoughts inevitably go to how he only needed to get a little closer to kiss his lips.
His chest tightened with the longing, but it wasn’t unpleasant. The song came to an end, and the two of them spent a little longer like that, looking at each other. Akira was the first one to step away, laughing in a slightly embarrassed way.
“We really got into that, didn’t we?” he said.
“Yeah...”
“Almost like we’re actually in love.”
Akira’s words made Ryuji stare at him. It had probably been a joke, but... Something on Akira’s expression made Ryuji question if it really wasn’t something else. Akira lowered his gaze, forcing a laugh.
“I mean...”
Before he could say whatever he meant to, Ryuji took a step in his direction, making him freeze in the middle of the sentence. Once again, they looked at each other at that short distance, a silent expectation growing with each passing second. Ryuji would probably regret it later, but, for the moment, he couldn’t think of anything else, so he did what he wanted for such a long time, leaning in Akira’s direction until their lips briefly touched. He moved away, looking at Akira’s face in search of an answer, which soon came. Akira placed his hand on the side of Ryuji’s neck, then closed their distance for another kiss.
Ryuji thought many times about that moment, but it never went like that, so... naturally. His arms felt right around Akira’s waist, and so did the feeling of Akira’s hand on his neck; the warmth of their bodies, the feeling of their lips touching, the distant, cheerful song that accompanied their ignored scoreboard. He could never make it all up in his mind, and it was the only thing that made him believe that yes, it was actually happening. Akira really was in his arms, kissing him.
They finally broke the kiss, looking at each other. Ryuji wanted to say something, but what was even there to say? Akira giggled.
“Seems like we were in love, after all.”
His words made Ryuji laugh.
“Seems like it.”
Akira stayed silent for a second, thinking.
“So...” he said. “You really like me, right?”
The question made Ryuji furrow his brow.
“You still doubt it?” he asked.
“I just accepted that you’d never see me the same way.”
“You kiddin’?” Ryuji stared at him in disbelief. “How could I not like you?”
“I don’t know...” Akira shrugged. “How could I not like you?”
Ryuji opened his mouth to answer, and Akira slapped his thigh.
“You better not answer that, or I’ll get mad.”
“Fine,” agreed Ryuji.
Akira observed him for a moment.
“Just to make sure... Does this mean we’re going out now?” he asked.
“If that’s what you want, then... Yeah.”
“Wow...” Akira shook his head in slight disbelief. “Okay, I need to sing another song.”
“Now?”
“If I don’t let all this out, I’ll combust.” As soon as Akira looked at the screen, his eyes went wide. “Holy shit, we got in the top ten!”
Ryuji followed his gaze, surprised to see that they managed to get a score of ninety-eight.
“Hell yeah! We’re unstoppable.” He took his phone, pointing the camera at the screen. “I’m takin’ a picture... Those two won’t believe us if we tell them.”
“Good idea,” answered Akira. “I don’t know if we’ll be able to do this a second time.”
“You have so little faith in us...”
“I just don’t think I can panic as much as I did during that song again.”
“Yeah... That’s true.”
Ryuji took a picture of their score, then got closer to Akira, placing his free arm around his waist.
“Now, for a second one...”
He placed a kiss on Akira’s cheek then took that picture. For a moment, Akira didn’t react in any way, then he slowly let himself fall on the floor, sitting with his knees bent, covering his face with both hands.
“Oh no...” he muttered. “It’s too late now... No songs can save me. I’ll combust.”
“No, Aki...” Ryuji sat on the floor beside him, hugging his shoulders. “You won’t. Not now.”
“Sorry, Ryuji... I wish we had more time together.”
“Stop, Aki… don’t self-destruct!”
Akira raised his head, looking at Ryuji, unable to contain a soft smile.
“I love you so much,” he said.
Ryuji returned the smile, gently caressing Akira’s hair with his fingers.
“Me too.”
He pulled Akira closer into an embrace. Akira rested his face on the crook of Ryuji’s neck, and Ryuji placed a kiss on his shoulder. Neither of them moved nor spoke for quite a while, until their phones buzzed again. It was Ann, saying they would arrive in around five minutes.
“Took them long enough...” commented Ryuji. “Well, not that I’m complainin’.”
“Never thought Ann getting late would get me a boyfriend.”
That word made Ryuji’s heart jump in joy. He reached for the song chart, in an attempt to hide his own goofy smile.
“How about another song as we wait?” he asked.
“A metal one this time,” said Akira. “I need to scream.”
Ryuji laughed, placing an arm around Akira’s neck, who leaned in his direction, hugging his waist in a gesture that carried nothing but pure affection. Ryuji glanced at him, still unable to believe someone like Akira had called him his boyfriend.
“Really...” said Ryuji. “I think I need it too.”