Chapter Text
The 10PM to 4AM shift at 7/11 may sound like the worst shift on the roster, but for Kyan Reki, those six hours were his chance to shine.
Granted, his store was located in a quiet town bordering Naha, Okinawa, and the foot traffic after midnight was slim to none, only the rare shoppers swinging by to interrupt Reki’s… meditation. So in comparison, he was quite lucky.
And now that it was summer break, Reki planned to work every shift he could. He needed the extra cash to pay his half of the practice fees for the rest of the year plus new shoes. He’d kicked his foot off the ground too excitedly last week at the studio and his sock-clad toes had torn right through the front on his sneakers. He’d needed to buy a new pair in a rush between school ending and his start time at the studio, no time to break them in, and he was still battling a blister days later.
But no rest for the wicked, Reki thought. He couldn’t let such a small thing stop him. The rest of his trainee class were all so impressive, he couldn’t risk slipping for even a few days.
Which was exactly why the midnight shift at the convenience store was perfect for him. With no real jobs other than to clean before his shift was over and make sure no one came in to steal anything, Reki had a whole empty store for himself to practice in.
Plus, in the corner of the ceiling right next to the register was a television, and Reki had full control to watch all of the dance and performance shows he could fit into one shift.
Reki was doing just that when he noticed that the figure that had appeared near the vending machine outside quite a while ago hadn’t moved far. In fact, the figure was instead now peering into the store. Reki raised his eyebrows in confusion and, admittedly a touch of concern for his well being, and met the person’s eyes.
The person jumped in surprise and in that moment Reki realized he recognized him.
Reki beamed, features shifting and relaxing as he exclaimed, “Langa!” He added a wave for good measure.
Hasegawa Langa looked unsure of himself for a long moment but eventually decided to come inside. “Hi, Reki-kun,” Langa greeted, acting abnormally shy. Langa at school was much more the silent, broody type. Reki never would have pegged him for being shy. He still maintained his soft voice, though.
Reki chuckled and said, “You can just call me Reki, dude.” Langa stiltedly nodded. “Looking for a late night snack?” Reki checked the time. His shift had just started, so it wasn’t even eleven yet.
Langa nodded. “Yeah. I was on my way home from work– thanks again, by the way, for the recommendation.”
Langa had looked incredibly tense one day during lunch as he stared down at his phone screen, and Reki had been too curious not to ask what was wrong. He was a bit surprised to hear Langa not even hesitate before explaining he was looking for a higher-paying job for after school. Reki had an immediate answer for him, saying he could introduce him to and put in a good word with the manager at the record store.
Reki and Langa left school together that day, Reki carrying his skateboard under one arm so that he and Langa could walk to Sketchy Tunes. Reki explained to Langa on the walk that he used to work there but had to switch jobs because of practice taking precedence. Manager Oka was just as kind to Langa as Reki had hoped and when Reki left by himself after talking Langa up (with maybe a few exaggerations primarily because Reki didn’t know Langa very well) he was quite sure Langa had the job.
“No need to thank me. Shop busy today? Close late?”
Langa shook his head. “No, we closed on time. There was just a shipment that came in of some super anticipated release, so we had to check inventory and stock the shelves with it before opening tomorrow.”
Reki knew exactly what release Langa was alluding to. “You mean the new matchablossom album? I can’t wait to get my hands on it!”
Matchablossom was an idol duo made up by Cherryblossom and Joe, both idols that were in different groups in their teens, but once breaking into their mid-twenties left and decided to branch out on their own, together. This album would be their first.
Kojiro had offered to get Reki a copy of the cd personally, of course, but Reki had said he wanted to be a supportive fan and buy it himself. Kaoru had laughed at him for that, but Reki knew the man well enough to not be offended.
“You like… music?” Langa asked.
Reki couldn’t help the guffaw that left his mouth and quickly apologized to Langa for sounding so incredulous. “Sorry, sorry, just… music is kind of what I do.”
“Really?”
“Yeah! I thought I told you about my practices which was why I had to switch jobs.”
Langa shook his head. “I just assumed you meant sports practice.”
Reki hummed and nodded. “I see. No, I’m a trainee.” Reki pointed back up to the television where a k-pop group was performing on a late-night talk show. “I go to Studio S in Naha to train to become an idol.”
Langa’s eyes went wide. “Really?” he exclaimed on an exhale.
Reki shrugged. “I don’t look the type, do I?” His work shirt didn’t hide his usual style of baggy cargo pants, brightly colored hoodie, and blue headband pushing his curls off of his face. He rocked the skater style, but Reki knew it wasn’t what the country was looking for an idol to embody.
“No!” Langa shouted, shocking Reki. He’d never heard such a loud noise come from the other teen before. “No, I’m sure you’re awesome at it.”
Reki couldn’t hold back his grin. “I guess you could say that.” One member of his trainee class was set to debut before the end of the year, and Reki really hoped it would be him this time. Tadashi had been giving him less blank looks lately, which was a great sign.
Langa’s gaze drifted back toward the television, and Reki noted, “Were you watching the show too? Is that why you were loitering for so long,” he teased.
Langa nodded. “It’s been a while since I’ve watched any dancing.”
“Well,” and Reki was offering before he thought much about it, “if you ever wanted, you could come watch me practice at the studio. Only if you wanted!”
Langa looked confused, so Reki quickly started filling the silence with more words.
“Like, sometimes my mom will bring my little sisters by the studio at the end of group rehearsals before we get our single practice time and they’ll get to watch, and sometimes I’ll teach them moves and stuff. I can show you around, the recording booth is crazy intricate and is so fun to sing in, and the practice rooms are private and soundproof so it’s not as intimidating as it sounds. And since it’s summer vacation, when I’m not working I’ll be at the studio most of the day so it’d be cool to, like, see a friendly face. Not that my family isn’t friendly.”
Reki did not consider the fact that Langa may not want to be his friend until just then.
“Or not!” he squeaked. “Just an… offer.”
Langa hadn’t said anything, though his expression had smoothed out to the one he usually wore in class: a very neutral thoughtful purse of the lips. When he responded, his gaze was back on the television, now playing a commercial for some new drink flavor.
“I think that would be fun. I don’t have any other friends, so it would be good to see you.”
Reki swallowed back the lump in his throat when Langa’s eyes met his. “I think so too,” he rasped. To cover it up, he coughed a laugh and added, “Maybe I can show you some moves.”
The corner of Langa’s mouth perked up into a half smile. “You could, yeah.”