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Today marked a historical day; the two weirdos from Kamiyama High were getting married after 6 years of being together. It could not have come sooner.
Akito sat on a lovely bench decorated with red camellias and crossed his arms. All around him, Tsukasa and Rui’s friends and family chatted to each other. Saki excitedly rattled on to her three smiling girlfriends about the months leading to the wedding and her brother’s incessant anxiety. The four of them wore matching knee-length dark blue dresses, the color reminiscent of their band logo. The blonde-haired woman sometimes turned around and dragged him and Toya into their conversation which infuriated the orange-haired singer. His partner silently smiled fondly and occasionally added a few comments of his own while the annoyed ginger awkwardly listened in. Looking around, he noticed Rui’s father sitting in the front on the other side of the red carpet. The older man talked to two men, one with the same hair color as he, and another with red hair; Rui’s uncles probably. A young child with black hair sat between the two men, someone he had never met. Perhaps another Kamishiro?
From the corner of his eyes, Akito noticed all four More More Jump members dressed in their assigned colors, orange, blue, and pink, sitting near together. Unlike the others, Shizuku wore a black suit with a cute sky-blue bowtie. For such grand idols to attend a random gay wedding, the Tenma-Kamishiro couple had to be really famous. The gruff singer secretly hoped to talk to them later and perhaps ask for another autograph. Even if they, too, were technically his friends, he still idolized them, especially the great Haruka Kiritani! Akito owned 20 autographs, 10 pins, 5 keychains, and 2 penguin plushies because he was infatuated with the greatest idol of all time. During one of their concerts last week, which he had attended with Toya, he had shaken his favorite idol’s hand. The orange-haired man reeled with happiness to this day.
Akito didn’t recognize many of the others in the room, mostly actors and directors. He didn’t follow up on the theatre scene and only knew the names of a few actors from very famous movies. Oddly enough, a singular pair stood out. A woman with cyan hair similar to Weirdo Number Two’s weird strands and a random man sat at the back of the wedding venue. The green-eyed man wondered if Rui had a distant relative from the West or something.
He also recognized three men which he had forgotten the names of. Akito had seen them back in high school hanging out with the Weirdo Wombo Combo, especially the purple guy. Red flag. Anyone who hung out with the 1-2 duo willingly probably had a few loose screws. Except his beloved, of course. Toya was perfect, smart, beautiful, incredible, marvelous, angel-like… He couldn’t think of that many synonyms, but Toya was all of them.
Okay, well… Saki was sweet and not as loud and strange as her brother. She was fine, so she didn’t count. And… More More Jump also didn’t count even if they had befriended those weirdos. Akito could never insult his favorite idol group. And… Honami was very sweet, so she also didn’t count. As for Shiho and Ichika… they had a good head on their shoulders, so not them either. Kohane idolized the two… ugh, but she was also very nice, so he couldn’t box her with the crazies. And Nene and Emu couldn’t count since they were both the sweetest couple, even if they had their bouts of subtle crazy, being ex-WonderShow members and all.
So that left An, Mizuki, and Ena. He had no problem calling all three of them strange and slightly crazy, especially Ena (he didn’t mean that. He loved them all a lot). An wasn’t the smartest tool in the shed and Mizuki, well, even if she was smarter than him, wasn’t the sanest person in the room. Both girls loved to tease and annoy him; no wonder they got along so well. That and with Weirdo number two too. Ugh, what a nightmarish trio.
As for his sister, she didn’t hang out with the Weirdo couple by herself, but by dating the pink-haired headache, she had no choice. At first, Ena complained about Tsukasa’s loud voice and Rui’s strange shenanigans and nerdy rants, but she eventually went insane and befriended them. Was he surprised? No (yes).
Was Akito in the same situation because he dated Toya? Yes (and no). But unlike his sister, they weren’t friends (he was lying. He loved both of them and sometimes organized little dinners with the two weirdos. He had hit it off with them, especially Rui, oddly enough. First year Akito wouldn’t recognize himself and even stare at himself with disgust. But, first year Akito was a mean and judgemental guy. He had changed a lot since then, and for the best). The Tenma-Kamishiro couple was too weird (kind) for him. The gruff singer would never talk to them willingly (lies).
Suddenly, An tapped his shoulder from behind and smirked, snapping him out of his thoughts.
“You look pretty grumpy today. What’s up with you?” His sort of singing rival poked his cheek and he lightly slapped her hand away.
“Nothing.” The ginger-haired man shrugged. “This wedding is just taking way too long to start!” He grumbled and An shot him an unimpressed look.
“We’ve been here for 15 minutes and we arrived super early because Toya was stressed. Be a little patient, will you?”
In all honesty, Akito felt awkward and out of place in this large white venue decorated with red flowers. Everyone around him held close relationships with the Weirdo Wombo Combo and came to celebrate their long-awaited wedding. He, on the other hand, felt like Toya’s plus one, despite having been personally invited by both soon-to-be husbands.
At least, his sister probably felt the same as him since she was likely invited because of Mizuki. She and the Weirdo Wombo Combo weren’t that close yet.
Speaking of the devil, Ena finally arrived at the venue with her partner and… Nightcord friends? All four of them wore black dresses, but the two differing couples matched with their partners. Mafuyu and Kanade walked behind the other couple and sat next to Kohane and An. Ena took a seat next to him and crossed her arms. She acted as if someone had forced her to sit there, even if she had plopped beside him unprompted. His sister grumbled and glared at him with no heat. Even if he knew that she didn’t mean any of it and simply pretended to hate him, it still stung slightly.
Akito hmpfed and looked to the side like a petulant child. Mizuki sat next to her girlfriend and greeted everyone.
“Hi, An, Kohane, Lil bro, Toya, Saki, and Leo/Need~” the pink-haired menace sing-songed and looked around. “Wow, everyone’s here!”
“Hello, Mizuki,” Toya stopped his conversation to greet her and blinked in confusion when he noticed the two other Nightcord members. “Oh, Asahina-san and Yoisaki-san. I didn’t expect to see you two here.”
“Yeah. I didn’t even know you were close to Tsukasa or Rui. Or both,” An added, pleasantly surprised.
“Ah, yes. I suppose you wouldn’t know since we never talked about it. Rui is my cousin,” Mafuyu answered in her somewhat flat voice that sounded a lot more natural than during their high school days. Everyone’s eyes widened except for the Nightcord members’.
Akito couldn’t believe his ears. One of his sister’s super close friends and Weirdo Number Two were related?!? Looking at the two of them, one would never assume that they would ever hang out with each other, much less be family! From what he remembered from high school, Mafuyu was well-liked by her peers, never caused chaos and everyone considered her perfect. Sure, her persona had felt quite fake back then, but even then, she was no eccentric weirdo like Rui. Truly a small world they lived in. Too small in his opinion.
What next? Would Airi reveal that she and Emu were sisters because they both had similar pink hair? How about Haruka and Toya? (An insane stretch with no basis in reality, but please, please, please!!! Haruka as his sister-in-law? A dream come true.)
“Y-Your what?!?” An exclaimed, basically getting up from her seat.
“Rui’s cousin?!?” Saki jumped in, distressed. “But I thought his uncles only recently adopted a child! And I thought you had a mother?! Since when were you an adopted child?!?”
“Wrong side of the family, Saki,” Shiho sighed. “Or so I assume.”
“Oh!” Saki’s mouth opened like an O. “So on Kaori’s side?”
“Yeah. She’s my mother’s sister,” Mafuyu’s shoulders slumped slightly, oddly enough.
“How come the two of you hid it from us?” An asked, finally calmed down.
Kanade put a comforting hand on her girlfriend's shoulder.
“Anyway,” Mizuki cleared her throat. “I can’t believe Rui’s getting married!!! I feel like a mother seeing their child growing up.” She fake sniffled and wiped her ‘tear’. Ena and he turned their heads to the side and narrowed their eyes. The others stared at her in confusion.
“You’re younger than him. What the hell are you on about?” Akito harshly said.
“Don’t listen to him, Mizuki. I understand what you mean and I feel the same way.” An jumped in and high-fived his sister’s girlfriend. What the hell was SHE on about? Mizuki, he could somewhat understand. She always said strange things with and about Rui since they were close friends. If they weren’t both in a committed relationship, they would call each other ‘pookie’ or some other very strange non-platonic nickname in a platonic way.
“I used to chase these guys down the corridor and now look at them. Everyone knew they would end up married at some point.” An, too, wiped a fake tear. Akito internally grumbled, but let her be.
Emu and Nene entered the venue last and sat near the More More Jump members. Since they had driven the grooms to the venue (yes, Emu could drive pretty well, oddly enough), that meant…
A piano arrangement of PROMISE∞RING played and the crowd silenced. Rui walked down the red carpet accompanied by his mother. He wore a soft, peaceful smile which the orange-haired man rarely saw. A few years back, the director had grown out his hair as he had made peace with his middle school self. He had styled it in a half bun and let his longer cyan strand hang on the side of his face. His black, leather shoes barely made a sound on the red carpet, and his dark grey suit jacket stayed tucked in his pants. His mulberry-coloured undershirt and long black tie suited him well and, for once, he didn’t look like a fashion disaster.
His mother left him at the altar with a smile and sat down next to her husband and family. The officiant, a man with brown hair which Rui had called Asahi, whispered something to the groom who smiled as he answered something back.
Soon, the doors reopened and Tsukasa entered accompanied by his mother. He wore a pristine white suit with a blue undershirt because why wouldn’t he put on something with his favorite color? Akito was surprised that he didn’t just wear a sky-blue suit and tie, that way, he would look like the sky and his styled and gelled hair would be the sun. In his hand sat a purple and yellow bouquet. Of course, the weirdo 1-2 duo would choose their colors. How sappy (and cute. Akito would do the same).
As Mrs. Tenma left him at the altar with the bouquet and sat down next to Saki, Tsukasa interlocked his hands with his almost-husband and smiled lovingly. His foolish purple-haired fiancé’s cheeks reddened and he returned the smile. Both men lost themselves in each other’s eyes, forgetting about the guests in the process. Akito silently scoffed. He could never act so pathetically in love, even when faced with his perfect boyfriend dressed in a beautiful suit at the altar. The gruff singer had some shame (he would act worse and smile goofily).
The officiant cleared his throat and looked at the crowd.
“We are gathered here today to celebrate the union of Kamishiro Rui and Tenma Tsukasa,” the brown-haired man said without looking at a script. “I don’t think this is a surprise for anyone, especially those who have known these two since their high school days.” Indeed, this came to no one’s surprise. If anything, everyone wondered why they had taken so long to tie the knot.
“I met these two years ago when we put on a show called The Two Androids together. Rui’s directing has always been one of a kind and Tsukasa’s acting blew everyone away.” Akito couldn’t even refute that in his head. He had to admit that these two were masters of their crafts. “By working with them for thirty minutes, I could already tell that they had something going on between them. I’m still surprised to this day that they weren’t together back then, but hey, they're together now.” The people around him silently agreed.
“And I’m here to marry them and I couldn’t be more honored to do that.” The officiant lightly bowed and smiled at the two basically husbands. The next second, he dropped his enthusiastic demeanor and stared at the crowd with an incredibly serious look.
“Before we officiate this, I must legally ask, does anyone have any opposition to this marriage?”
The room went dead quiet. No one breathed or moved and a fly loudly buzzed passed him, breaking the intense silence. Akito briefly entertained the thought of saying ‘me’, but, unfortunately, he had a heart. He didn’t want to ruin the ceremony, even if it would be funny (also, he could never oppose their marriage. He was very happy, and might he say relieved, that they were finally exchanging lifelong promises like this to each other).
“I thought not. Well, then, Rui, can you read out your vows?” Asahi asked and glanced at the purple-haired groom.
“Of course.” Rui cleared his throat. Although the officiant said to read the vows, Rui didn’t take any paper from his pocket. He looked straight into his basically husband’s eyes and smiled tenderly.
“Tsukasa, six years ago, you opened the rooftop door and told me something that would change my life forever in the best way. You said: ‘Join my troupe’ and I pushed you away.” Rui dramatically paused, always keeping everyone on his toes, even during his marriage, Akito supposed. How annoying.
“You said you’d give my directing your 12,000%, I eventually agreed and became your director. Fast forward to our first show and everything went wrong. You yelled at Nene and I pushed you away again. You apologized and made up with her, but I still rejected your attempts at making up. You cornered me, forced me to watch a heartfelt show where you…” Rui chuckled.
“Showed me your true feelings… but not in a gay way, of course.” The guests laughed. “Still, rarely did people ever bother to rekindle a friendship with me.”
“Anyway, I came back to your troupe, which soon became our troupe. Not long after, we created a Halloween show and used my zombie robots. You got hurt, I closed myself off out of fear that you would leave me and you got mad. I was scared to hurt you again while you hated that your hand-picked director held back on you. You said to never do that again, that you could take it, so… I believed you. And I wasn’t disappointed.”
Wow, how sweet. Akito rolled his eyes and sighed in annoyance. Were Rui’s vows just… a stupid retelling of their history together? He had heard it enough already from Tsukasa, Rui, and even his own boyfriend! They should tell that to their future child, not a venue full of his friends and family who already knew everything about their relationship (he loved hearing their story. Every time, he felt immense joy for his two friends, fated to meet and fall in love)!
“That day, I fell in love with you.” Rui showed his husband an enamored smile and the tenderest eyes a man could muster.
In front of him, Saki clenched her chest dramatically, overloaded by the cuteness. Mizuki and An quietly awed, not daring to disturb their friend’s speech. Akito shot them a judging look. Saps, all of them (he hid his smile).
“But I held back my feelings. I had broken up with a…” Rui swallowed and his eyes lost some of their happy shine. “An old partner of mine not long before and my heart was still fragile. Not only that, but I believed that we weren’t meant to last forever. I was… very scared of losing you… but that fear was for nothing.” Like a flash, or maybe Akito had imagined everything, Rui returned to his previous expression.
“That day, when you confessed to me, I rejected you for the millionth time. You tried convincing me to give us a chance, but I was convinced that we couldn’t, that it wasn’t worth the heartbreak in the future. I made you cry and I’m sorry. To this day, I regret hurting you this much.”
Both men’s expressions turned slightly sad and Tsukasa caressed his basically husband’s hand soothingly. The orange-haired singer frowned. He had never heard about this part of the story. And from the looks of it, neither had Toya, Saki, Mizuki, and everyone else in the room. Although most of them, even Akito to some extent, knew of Rui’s… well, abandonment issues was putting it lightly, very few if not none of his close friends knew how deeply they ran.
Or maybe Akito was projecting. Maybe they all knew about it and just didn’t expect Rui to bring it up. How should he know? He wasn’t close with the Mad Scientist of Explosion and had confronted him about his issue once, years ago, before the two Weirdos got together.
“You asked for one last bittersweet kiss and, surprisingly, I must have lost my mind that day because I said yes. Anyway, I changed my mind and the rest is history.” Toya exhaled in relief and Akito subtly intertwined their hands. How dare Rui distress his wonderful boyfriend like that!!!
“I still… fear that one day, everything that we have built will crumble down. That one day, someone better will come around and take you away from me. You deserve far better than someone like me, even if you seem to disagree.”
Mizuki gazed to the side, stared at a large pillar, and smiled sadly to herself. Surprisingly, An squirmed awkwardly in her seat and frowned. Luckily, both of their partners soothed them with a light touch or a tender handhold. Akito knew of their similar issues. This was another reason why the two women got along with Weirdo Number Two. (A small, stupid voice inside of him wondered if Toya would one day leave him for someone better. A perfect man with a gruff ginger; he had always known that he was outmatched by his beloved. Perhaps he wasn’t as dissimilar to the trio as he would like to believe. He shut that voice down.)
“Rui…” Tsukasa breathed out and squeezed his basically husband’s hands.
“Still, you chose to be with me, to deal with my stupid fears, and to love me with your whole heart. How can I simply ignore and throw that away? I can’t,” Rui continued and ignored the tension in the room. He took a deep breath and smiled in determination.
“My star, we are not soulmates. Fate has decided that we are not meant to be together.” Soul…mates? What? What the hell was Weirdo Number Two talking about? And how unromantic! Why would he say something like that at his wedding?! Honestly… that guy. He deserved his title of weirdo.
Akito looked around the room and noticed everyone’s confusion except for Nene who simply looked surprised. He observed her for a few moments, noticing her slightly furrowed brows and eyes turning worried. Rui’s voice brought his attention bag to the altar.
“But I have let Fate dictate my life for years. I say screw Fate. I decided to trust you. You always say that you love me and that you will never leave, even if you find your true soulmate, and… I believe you. I never thought I could trust someone so much, but here I am, letting myself be vulnerable all because I’m at the mercy of my love for you. This is what my heart wants, no matter what my brain and fears say. I will listen to it and finally… believe that we will be together until our deaths.” Rui let go of his fiancé's hand and put it over his heart.
“I promise that I will trust you and never let my fears get in the way of our love. I will love you forever and ever, support you both as a director and husband, and stay by your side, no matter what.” The eccentric director took back his almost-husband’s hand and thanked the audience for listening to ‘his ramblings’. The crowd sat still with tears in or out of their eyes. Pathetic (Akito sniffled and happy tears streamed down his face).
Suddenly, Tsukasa sniffled and almost fell to his knees dramatically as he burst into tears. Rui’s eyes shot to his hairline and he steadied his almost-husband.
“Guh, Rui!!!” the loud actor exclaimed and clenched his hand over his heart like his sister had a little while before him. “You’re too cute! I cannot! I’m so glad we’re married!” Tsukasa launched himself into his lover’s arms who caught him clumsily. The other chuckled softly and hugged him back.
“Hah, but Tsukasa, we’re not married yet. The ceremony isn’t over.” The blonde-haired man’s eyes widened and he pushed himself away from the other.
“Right! I still have to recite my vows and then, we exchange rings and kiss and… legal jargon and party!” Tsukasa excitedly rambled and posed, pointing at the officiant with little stars in his eyes. “Can I?
“Sure. Tsukasa, can you say your vows?” Asahi said amusedly.
Weirdo Number One cleared his throat.
“This speech will make no sense to anyone in the audience, but I don’t care,” Tsukasa started point blank. Here we go. What kind of weird vow was this weirdo going to express? “This is for you, Rui, so you better listen carefully, got it?” The dramatic actor pointed at his fiancé and gave him a determined look. Rui chuckled tenderly.
“Good!” Tsukasa took a deep breath. “Rui, I fell in love with you… basically at first sight.” How unsurprising. Loud-mouth over here had tracked Weirdo Number Two, who he didn’t know at the time, to the rooftop so he could ‘join his troupe’. Something about drones and Phoenix Wonderland and directing, or so Akito heard from that guy’s mouth at least twenty times.
“Back then, I didn’t realize it myself since I was… oblivious to my own feelings for almost a year.” Once again, unsurprising. Tsukasa only thought about shows, his family, and… shows again? The orange-haired singer had no idea what went on in that guy’s head, but there certainly wasn’t much.
“It’s ridiculous now that I think about it, but, well, I had never fallen in love before. You almost kissed me during the rehearsal of one of our shows and that’s when it clicked. At first, I panicked and then you said it was a mistake.” He said ‘mistake’ incredibly bitterly.
“So, I decided to ask Emu for advice on how to forget about my feelings.” What an absolute mess. Two complete idiots. Akito couldn’t believe both of them had rejected their very obvious feelings for so long. He thought that he and Toya’s getting-together story was frustrating and dumb, but this took the cake. Never again would An call him the king of losers when bringing up how disastrous his confession to Toya ended up being.
“Without her, I wouldn’t have had the courage to confess. Actually, without a lot of people here, we wouldn’t have ended up together. Funny how life works. Anyway, yeah you rejected me… which I’m still mad about!” Tsukasa exclaimed and put his hands on his hips cartoonishly. “I thought that when you told me I could never become a star, that was the moment when my ego had been the most bruised, but honestly, getting rejected when you felt the same shattered it!.”
“My bad,” Rui said amusedly.
“My bad my ass! Ugh, I’m getting off-topic. These are my vows, not a diary to vent my frustrations about you.” The loud actor sighed and waved his hand around in dismissal.
“Anyway, before you really shut me down and then changed your mind thankfully, you told me that we weren’t meant to be together and that we would never last. Look at us now. Look at us!” Tsukasa’s voice rattled the poor windows. Akito cringed and slapped his hands to his ears. Thank God this was their marriage or he would have gagged that annoying loud-mouth. At least the blonde-haired groom looked happy (Akito rejoiced with him too).
“Standing at the altar and promising each other to stay together for the rest of our lives! You were wrong back then and I will keep proving to you that you were wrong for the rest of our lives!” Tsukasa’s smile turned incredibly smug and he puffed out his chest. “Take that, genius director! I, Tenma Tsukasa, finally have something over you! You may be the best at math, sciences, languages, history, building things, and pretty much everything, and you also… are pretty much always right, but not this time!!! Ha ha ha!”
Rui laughed heartily and happy tears slid down his cheeks, messing up his makeup. In his laughter, Weirdo Number Two pressed his head onto his lover’s chest and the other caressed his hair tenderly. After a minute or two, Rui’s laughter died down and he straightened himself. Tsukasa wiped away his beloved’s tears and they both smiled lovingly, lost in each other’s eyes.
Weirdo Number One cleared his throat and continued his speech.
“I want to tell you again and I will keep repeating this until our deaths; for you, I would defy fate.” Once again, the mood shifted as Tsukasa’s demeanor turned uncharacteristically serious. “You may believe that we aren’t soulmates, that we will eventually break up, and that this won’t last for the rest of our lives, but I know that’s not true.” Soulmates…Again… Akito never imagined that the two weirdos believed in such a concept. Actually, he had simply never thought about their beliefs and it had never come up in a conversation. The orange-haired singer probably should have expected the two show-freaks to have a strangely romantic side.
“Rui, I can feel it in my heart, we are soulmates. And maybe we both can’t see the full red string of Fate linking us together, but that doesn’t mean anything. We are soulmates.” Rui looked like he wanted to refute his claim, but his mouth stayed shut. Tsukasa linked their pinkies together and gave him the softest, most loving look Akito had ever seen on that weirdo’s face.
“Can you see it?” The purple-haired director hesitantly looked down at their hands. “It’s pointing at you, isn’t it? And it will keep pointing at you because there is no one else for me—only you. I love you, my Rui. I promise that I will always love you. Nothing in this world could ever make me stop loving you. I will always stay by your side, even when you whine because there's a bit of green on your plate. I’m glad that you trust me enough to marry me. I’m glad that we’re together. I’m glad… that you were born and that we met. I’m so, so glad that you’re alive. I thank the Universe and Fate daily for bringing you into my life.” After every sentence, Tsukasa’s voice trembled and became weaker. Akito barely heard the two last sentences.
Rui looked at his almost-husband in awe and with tears shining in his eyes. He bit his bottom lip, forcing himself to keep his tears at bay and salvage the rest of his makeup. Unlike him, Tsukasa let his tears gush out again. He buried his face in his lover’s chest and said something incomprehensible. What a crybaby (Akito was in the same boat, embarrassingly enough).
Weirdo Number Two caressed his beloved’s hair and grabbed his chin tenderly. He brought the other’s face closer to his and-
“Wait, wait wait!” the officiant interrupted. “We’re missing a step and I haven’t said ‘You may now kiss the groom!’” Rui backed off with a chuckle.
“Oops. My bad. I almost couldn’t resist.”
“R-resist harder,” Tsukasa stuttered, wiping his tears with a tissue. His face was a scarlet color, one only his husband could bring out. Disgusting(ly cute).
“Anyway, let’s at least try to stay on script.” Asahi cleared his throat and frowned, although he couldn’t help but crack a smile.
“Aw, but improv is so fun,” Rui whined. “It shows an actor’s true abilities. If they can adapt to any situation, even the most absurd and unexpected, then-” His blonde-haired lover put his hand over his mouth.
“Let’s get on with this! You can talk about shows later. We’re almost married. Let’s do this!!!” Tsukasa vibrated in place.
“So impatient, my star.” The dramatic director probed the hand away from his face.
“Now, do you, Kamishiro Rui, take Temna Tsukasa as your lawfully wedded husband, through sickness and health, until death do you part?” The officiant resumed the ceremony.
“I do,” Rui said warmly and confidently.
“Do you, Tenma Tsukasa, take Kamishiro Rui as your lawfully wedded husband, through sickness and health, until death do you part?” The brown-haired man turned to spouse number one.
“I do!!!”
“Wonderful. Now, Saki, can you come up here?” The giddy woman jumped out of her seat and joined the couple at the altar. She smiled excitedly as she gave the officiant a box with two golden wedding bands. Saki bolted back to the benches and vibrated in place.
“Rui, can you take one of the rings and slide it onto Tsukasa’s finger?” Asahi instructed and approached the box to him.
The director took a golden band and his star actor’s hand. He gently slid the ring onto his lover’s finger.
“I give you this ring as a symbol of my unwavering love and trust in you,” Rui vowed.
“Tsukasa?”
Weirdo Number One took a ring and Weirdo Number Two’s hand, sliding the band onto his ring finger.
“Let this ring be a symbol of my eternal love for you and a reminder that I am always by your side, no matter what.”
“And with that, I now pronounce you two as husband and husband. You may now kiss the groom.”
Rui gently caressed his husband’s cheek and approached their faces. He turned bright red and hesitated for a moment. Honestly, what was all this suspense for? Akito almost exploded from giddiness and tapped his foot anxiously. The entire room grew tense and restless alongside him.
Someone else also got impatient and finally ended their suffering. Tsukasa harshly grabbed his husband’s collar and smashed their lips together. Surprised, Rui’s eyes widened, but he soon melted into their kiss. The crowd roared in excitement and most got out of their seat as if they had watched the best show of their life.
“Woo!!!” Saki screamed. She prompted her girlfriends to join her and accidentally rallied a few more cheerers; Kohane, An, Toya, and even More More Jump, Emu, and Nene from across the room.
“That’s my bestie!!!” Mizuki yelled with tears streaming down her face.
“Ah, seriously. You put so much work into your makeup and you’re gonna ruin it,” Ena softly said and took out a tissue, dabbing it over her girlfriend’s tears.
Mafuyu smiled genuinely and Kanade chuckled at their friend’s overreaction. Akito rolled his eyes, but couldn’t stop his smile from growing. He wasn’t happy for the two weirdos, absolutely not! The cheerful ambiance simply forced a warm feeling onto him like a virus (he could die of happiness).
Tsukasa let go of a dazed Rui and laughed smugly. He grabbed his husband’s hand and dragged him down the red carpet, not forgetting to take back his colorful bouquet. The madly in love director stumbled through his steps and his eyes had an unfocused gaze.
“Ha ha ha!!! Finally!!!” Tsukasa exclaimed. “We’ll see you all at Phoenix Wonderland for the rest of the celebrations. We just have to sign legal contracts and all that.” And with that, the loudest guy he knew burst the door open and disappeared with his husband to wherever they had to go.
“Well, you heard the man. Off to Phoenix Wonderland, everyone!” The officiant clapped his hand and led everyone out. Akito huffed softly and grabbed his boyfriend’s hand.
They hopped in with An and Kohane, and An drove them to the theme park. Emu’s brothers had closed it for the day for the occasion (and possibly a large sum, but he couldn’t be sure). Vivid Bad Squad entered for free and followed everyone to the Wonder Stage where the benches had been rearranged around large tables in front of the stage. Employees waited for them with drinks and little bite-sized entrees on a plateau.
The crowd dispersed and talked amongst each other. Akito looked around and brought his boyfriend towards a group of people he idolized. More More Jump chattered with each other excitedly about the wedding and the gruff singer hovered close by, unsure how to enter their little circle. And yeah, he was shy! What of it? Wouldn’t everyone be nervous when approaching their favorite idol, even if they had known each other for years?
His sister and annoying girlfriend appeared next to him and Ena gave him an unimpressed look. Pushing him out of the way, she greeted Airi and the rest of the idols cheerfully and successfully started a conversation with them and her smug girlfriend. Akito seethed but refused to give up, even if humiliated by his own sister.
Toya raised an eyebrow, completely oblivious to what had happened. His beloved took a step closer to the group of women and tapped Haruka’s shoulder. Tapped her shoulder! Just like that! As if she was just another regular person (she was, but still).
“Ah, Toya-kun and Akito-kun. I hadn’t seen you guys at the venue. Nice to see you here.” She graced them with her bright idol smile and Akito had to block his vision for a moment. As usual, her idol aura was incredibly powerful. Minori fangirled and almost passed out just from the sight.
“Y-yes, it’s nice seeing you here too.” Akito regained a cool and unbothered composure which made Haruka chuckle. The other members greeted them enthusiastically and let them enter their clique. They talked for a while until the main couple returned dramatically as usual.
“We have arrived!!!” Tsukasa suddenly exclaimed and walked through the crowd.
The newlyweds struck up a conversation with their guests, who congratulated them on their big step and caught up with them if they hadn’t seen each other in some time. Akito averted his eyes away and focused on his discussion with his favorite idol group. Tsukasa’s annoyingly loud voice and Rui’s stupid ‘fufufu’ sent dread down his spine. Minori said something that got drowned out by Weirdo Number One’s ear-shattering laugh. Airi retorted, but her words never reached his ears, his brain too focused on avoiding eye contact with the Weirdo Wombo Combo to decipher sounds. If he could just avoid talking to them, maybe this stupid event wouldn’t be too painful (he wanted to congratulate them and ask when they would return from their honeymoon so they could hang out).
“Toya!!!” Tsukasa exclaimed and the nearby perching birds flew away. Akito jolted in place and put a hand on his racing heart. It somehow hadn’t stopped, thank God. The blonde-haired annoyance had somehow appeared behind them and walked towards them way too enthusiastically. “And Akito too, of course!”
“Tsukasa! Congratulation!” Toya smiled brightly. “I’m so glad I got to attend the ceremony. Your speech was beautiful.” The others also congratulated him and added their pointless compliment that inflated Tsukasa’s already huge ego.
“Ha ha ha!!! Of course, it was! It was written by a star, after all!” The self-proclaimed star put his hands on his hips and puffed out his chest, acting all proud and not like he had probably rewritten his speech a thousand times and stressed over it. Or so Akito assumed. He could be wrong.
Rui chuckled and the orange-haired man almost had a second heart attack. Since when had that guy appeared? Well, he should have expected him to be nearby since… newlywed stuff and all that. Still, somehow, Akito hadn’t noticed the Mad Scientist of Explosion standing next to his husband. The purple-haired freak had the sweetest and fondest look on his face and only gazed at his husband. Disgusting (he understood. He would look the same, maybe worse).
“You too, Rui. I’m really happy that you two got married,” his beloved continued complimenting the couple.
Tsukasa teared up and sniffled.
“My little brother is too sweet. Toya! I’m sure your speech at your wedding with Akito will bring me to tears! I have to write a best-man-type speech for you!” Akito tensed and his face heated up. Why were they talking about his potential future marriage at their wedding? Wasn’t it their day?
Rui patted his husband’s back and shook his head affectionately.
“Now, now, let’s think about that after the reception.” The chaotic man gave him a mischievous look which put him on edge. “Besides, they might not be the next married couple. What if it’s Mizuki? Maybe your sister?”
“Ah, you’re right! They aren’t even engaged yet!” Tsukasa’s eyes widened. His stupid cartoon character-like actions pissed him off. “Hm… but I just have this feeling that it will be them.”
“Huh?” Akito let out in confusion.
“Fufu, stay tuned then. We shall get our answer soon enough,” Rui answered mysteriously with a crazy glint in his eyes. The poor street singer feared for his and his beloved’s life. “Well, we should go. We’ll see you all later.” The purple-haired weirdo grabbed his husband’s hand and Tsukasa loudly said his goodbyes. Finally, they left and Akito could breathe.
He talked to More More Jump and Toya, ignoring his sister and her annoying girlfriend until the staff rolled up with a bazillion giant plates full of food. All kinds of meat all seasoned perfectly, a million side dishes, and even a few plates with vegetables somehow sat on a large table ready for consumption. The green-eyed man lost track of his conversation, instead salivating over the smell of beef, pork, and salmon among other heavenly meals.
“Wah! Salmon!” Minori exclaimed in her high-pitched voice. “Is it already time for food? Yay!” Her pupils turned into two gigantic stars which made her fellow idols laugh. If not for her manner, she would have dashed for the food and grabbed a plate for herself and her girlfriend.
The staff asked them to line up and get their food, brunch style. A few very excited people dashed for the table, notably Minori, while he stopped himself from doing the same. If the table contained huge stacks of pancakes and sweets, perhaps he and his sister would have joined them without a second thought.
Akito walked to the table with his beloved, followed by Ena and the pink-haired menace. He ignored them and filled his plate. Once done, he and his lover searched for their table. To make it easier for everyone, each person’s name stood in front of a seat. The pancake lover found his and Toya’s… at the grooms’ table. He should have expected this. Still, his mood dropped.
They sat down and waited for everyone to return with their meals. In another twist of fate, some asshole (likely Rui. He loved chaos) put his sister next to him! Akito already had to eat at a table full of freaks (some of his favorite people)! Ena huffed once she noticed their predicament and grumbled some… super nice words. If nice was complaints and light insults. She asked her girlfriend to switch seats and Mizuki chuckled before refusing. Unfortunately, Weirdo Number Two’s best friend had a knack for mischief too. The street singer ignored them for now and focused on his boyfriend’s warm hand holding his under the table. Saki, her girlfriends, Emu and Nene, joined them and the air lightened. Even when the grooms’ parents sat down, the conversations kept going. He talked to Nene, asked about her career, was forced to wonderhoi with Emu and Saki, and bickered with his sister and Mizuki.
Finally, Rui and Tsukasa joined them and everyone dug in. The beef melted on his tongue and his stomach rejoiced. Akito loved the nice crunch from the ham katsu and the flavor of the fried rice.
After a while, when everyone had almost finished their meal, Saki left her seat and gestured at his boyfriend to follow her. Toya nodded and got up without a word before Akito grabbed his arm and stopped him in place.
“Where are you going? Don’t leave me alone at this table full of slightly insane people,” he hissed under his breath.
“Akito, that’s not nice. No one here is insane,” his far too nice lover reprimanded at a normal voice level and Akito lightly shushed him.
“Look, you can’t leave me here. The only okay people here are the rest of Leo/Need and Nene. No offense to the Kamishiro parents and Tenma mother, but if they created… them, there must be something loose in them too.” The judging singer glanced nervously at the others who weren’t really paying attention to them, busy talking to each other. Toya glared at him.
“Don’t say that. Everyone here is nice and you know that. I’ll be back soon.” His angel freed himself from his grip and followed his sister to the stage. Akito shot him a betrayed look and Ena elbowed him.
“You’re a real bitch sometimes, aren’t you? I’m not insane. Fuck you.” His angry sister lightly hit him again in offense. He wanted to shove her back but refrained because he was mature and had manners, of course (totally not because Toya would kill him if he did).
On the stage, Saki grabbed a microphone and lightly tapped it.
“Testing, testing,” she cleared her throat and beamed everyone a happy smile.
“Hello everyone!!! For those who don’t know, I’m Tsukasa’s sister, Saki! And this is…” The keyboardist passed the mic to Toya who had joined her not even a second ago.
“Toya Aoyagi, Tsukasa’s brother.” She took back the mic.
“I’ve always idolized my brother. He’s been there for me during tough times and helped me forget about my illness by creating little shows for me. He would act as these heroic characters and it would make my day. My favorite stories of his always starred Captain Pegasus who saved the world from the evil Cat villain.” Saki smiled and her tone turned fonder as she reminisced about their past.
“He told me time and time again that he wanted to become a star to make people like me smile. He wanted to achieve this selfless dream of his and worked tirelessly towards it.” Akito couldn’t disagree. Somehow, Weirdo Number One and he had something in common (many, in fact. They both cared deeply for the people around them, even if Akito refused to show it). How frustrating.
“And he did, but not without his friends’ help,” the blonde-haired woman continued. “I can’t say who’s had the biggest influence on him or who’s helped him achieve his dream the most, but I know that without Rui, he wouldn’t have succeeded as well as he did.” Probably not. A star needed his director to shine, or something like that. Tsukasa once said that. Maybe a couple of times.
“I can’t say that Rui has made my brother like… a saint or anything.” She sounded amused. ”Sure, he’s influenced him, but probably to become more chaotic than he already was. I mean… he shot my brother out of a cannon a few times, swung him upside down with a rope, made him run away from zombies, and a lot more insane shenanigans.” Scary. Akito would never understand how Tsukasa could let Rui use him like a lab rat. And marry him after having been put through that torture!
”Ah, but my brother loves it. He loves Rui’s inventions. He always came home and said ‘My director did this’ or ‘Rui did that and it was amazing!’ I understand now. Rui’s super fun to be around, that’s for sure. And the two of them just bring out so much chaos in each other, it’s no wonder they got married!”
Freaks. Both of them. No wonder they got married. And no wonder why Akito could never be their friend (he already was).
“Thank you for making my brother smile, Rui. Please take care of him well and don’t explode him, hehe!”
Saki chuckled and passed the mic to Toya. He cleared his throat and started his speech,
“Tsukasa has always been like a brother to me.” His beloved smiled tenderly and looked straight at his ‘brother’. “Our parents were friends and we grew close since they would leave us to play together as they talked and had tea. In my darkest times, Tsukasa was there to cheer me up and act out little shows for me. I don’t have a favorite one. I think all of them were equally good and I will cherish each one until I grow old and can’t remember anymore.”
Despite his grievances with Tsukasa, the passionate singer would always feel grateful to him. Without him, he wondered if his boyfriend would have had the courage to somewhat break free from his suffocating father’s piano lessons and meet him. After all, Tsukasa had always encouraged his brother to pursue his passion, which had never been piano.
“Rui is a friend of mine.” Unfortunately. “He has helped me countless times, either by directing a wedding show or by testing my cupcakes. He is very kind and I have never understood why others avoided him.” How innocent. His beloved always saw the best in people and never judged anyone. Akito loved that oblivious side of Toya, even if it had made it harder for them to get together years ago.
“When Rui and Tsukasa announced that they were dating, I was taken by surprise.” Everyone stared at him dumbfounded. Even Akito’s jaw dropped.
“It surprised you?!?” Saki exclaimed, eyes wide and jaw on the floor.
“Yes? Did I say something wrong?” Toya asked innocently.
“Yes!!!” The keyboardist shook him. “I can’t believe you didn’t see it coming!”
“Oh… my apologies. I never thought about it, is all.” His lover regained his footing.
“It’s okay, Toya!” Tsukasa yelled from his seat. “I didn’t see it coming either!” Rui burst into laughter and sunk his face onto his husband’s shoulder. Everyone found his statement amusing, but not him (okay, maybe a little bit). Obliviousness ran in the family. Akito feared asking Leo/Need about their getting-together story.
“I’ll ignore that.” Saki glared at her brothers. “Anyway, keep going.”
“Ah, yes.” Toya regained his composure. “I was taken by surprise, but I was very happy for them. They were already very close friends before, so I thought ‘I’m sure they can make this work out’. And they did. I couldn’t be happier. They deserve each other and I can only hope that their love transcends life itself. Thank you.” His beloved ended his speech abruptly, much to everyone’s surprise. Well, he had nothing else to say, Akito supposed. After a beat, the crowd clapped for their speech and Tsukasa stood from his chair.
“SAKIIIII!!! TOYAAAA!!!” the annoying star basically yelled with tears in his eyes. “I love you so much! Thank you for the speeches! It was beautiful! I’m so glad that I have two wonderful, caring, and loving siblings!!! I’m the luckiest big brother in the world!” He hiccupped and sobbed. His husband gently guided him back to his chair and chuckled.
“Fufu~ you have the best siblings in the world indeed. Now, how about we calm down before Saki dies of embarrassment.” Rui brought his husband’s head to his shoulder and patted his head. And indeed, he was right. Saki’s red face could rival a stop sign. Even so, the sunshine-like woman smiled happily as she and Toya joined them back to the table.
On the stage, a woman with long purple hair and rectangular glasses grabbed the mic. At first sight, Akito could tell that this was Rui’s mother, Kaori. Still, her purple eyes reminded him of someone else’s. Perhaps because he hadn’t interacted with her much or because he had never thought deeply about it, he had never put two and two together before and guessed that she was also Mafuyu’s aunt.
“I wanted to say a few words as Rui’s mother.” The woman took a deep breath. “First of all, I wanted to thank you, Tsukasa. Just… Thank you.” She stared straight at her son-in-law with a smile similar to the one the street singer had seen on Rui’s face when he looked at his friends. “For being there for my son, for making him so happy, and for changing him for the better. He’s grown into such a fine young man and I couldn’t be happier. I’m sure he would have turned out fine regardless, but it would have been different.” Akito agreed. Perhaps Rui would have turned out fine, but he wouldn’t have caused as much chaos at school without his guinea pig. Thinking about it… that probably wasn’t ‘changing him for the better’, but hey, Mother knows best.
“My son has always been eccentric and most people cannot tolerate anything out of the norm. I was the same. So, as he grew up, I saw history repeat itself and I couldn’t do anything to stop it. I could only comfort him as the childish shine in his eyes slowly dimmed.” Tears pricked her eyes as she reminisced about her son’s childhood.
“And… At the beginning of his second year of high school, I believed that I would never see him smile again. But, a week after the lowest point in our lives, he came back home smiling. He said that he had met someone named Tsukasa who invited him to his troupe. The world works strangely, doesn’t it? Perhaps it wanted to apologize for the challenges that he went through.” Kaori looked at the sky as if thanking a Deity out there for bringing her son and his husband together.
“Not long after, he kept talking about you. Tsukasa-kun this, Tsukasa-kun that… It was adorable.” She chuckled. “Ah, young love. Fufu, but I was wary at first. I didn’t want to see my son heartbroken again. But that never happened and will never happen. Rui has found a wonderful partner who makes him happy and that’s all I could ask for.” Her eyes flitted to Rui and she gave him the tenderest motherly look.
“Rui, my dear son, I’m so proud of you. You’ve come so far, my baby. I’m so happy to see you get married. Every day, I thank the universe for finally bringing you happiness and for making your path and Tsukasa’s cross.” The older woman put her hand to her chest and closed her eyes.
“I want to dedicate these last few words to everyone here. Here, I stand on this stage, seeing everyone who came to celebrate my son and his husband’s happiness, and I couldn’t be prouder.” Her voice cracked and a few tears slid down her face. “Thank you all for being there for my son in different aspects of his life. Friends, family, coworkers… I’m glad that he has found his people. It warms a mother’s heart to see that despite the pain, my son is happy and healthy.” (No need to thank us, he thought. We’re happy to have him and Tsukasa too. From everyone in this room, thank you for bringing him to this world.) Akito absolutely did not cry. He simply stood silently in his seat while the others smiled at her words.
As the crowd cheered at her speech, Kaori walked off the stage and approached her awed son. She whispered something in his ear and they hugged before she returned to her seat.
Soon, cheery conversations resumed until a park employee rolled in a giant three-tier wedding cake decorated with yellow and purple roses. White icing covered the layers and a few swirly patterns branched from the flowers. Overall, the cake seemed far too normal for the 1-2 couple and Akito didn’t trust it. Was there a bomb inside that awaited its explosion, splattering icing and crumbs all over the park and guests? Or maybe one of the weirdos (Rui likely) felt mischievous and wanted to dunk the other’s head into the cake like he had seen some grooms do to their brides in wedding fail compilations?
“Your cake ended up much better than I thought, Emu,” Nene commented and smiled at her girlfriend. “Though you could have shown me the final product before, you know?”
“Nuh huh!” Emu shook her head rapidly. “It had to be a surprise for everyone, even you!”
“Yeah!” Saki agreed. “Airi, Emu, and I promised to keep it a secret until the wedding day.” Ah, if Airi participated in baking the cake, then it explained why it looked so normal. He had nothing to worry about.
Tsukasa grabbed a rather large knife and Rui put his hand over his from behind. They approached the giant cake and the self-proclaimed star pointed the knife at it as if it was some sort of sword-fighting opponent.
“Who’s ready for some cake!!!” he exclaimed like a knight captain telling his army about a future battle victory. Some guests played along with his shenanigans and cheered.
Tsukasa lifted the knife high up and dangerously close to his husband whose eyes widened in surprise.
“Wha-”
“HYA!!!”
Weirdo Number One swung his ‘weapon’ downward and slashed the cake vertically in a perfect line. With one swift motion, he took out the knife and thrust it into the air as a ‘victory’ movement. Rui blinked a few times and let go of his husband’s hand. The strange director chuckled fondly like a dumb fool in love. Disgusting (did he look at Toya the same way Rui looked at Tsukasa or were their love-filled expressions different?).
“Everyone, get in line! Cake time!!!” Tsukasa instructed the crowd. Emu and Saki bolted from their seat and fought for the first piece. Everyone soon joined them, even his boyfriend, surprisingly.
“You’re getting cake? But you don’t usually like overly sweet things,” Akito questioned his lover.
“I’m getting it for you. I’m sure you want a second slice,” his angel-like boyfriend replied point blank, and the orange-haired singer’s heart leaped in his chest.
“Toya…” he breathed out, too touched to say anything else. He could die of cuteness, but not before eating his beloved’s present to him (and marrying him and growing old by his side… so basically, he couldn’t die until a while).
Toya’s eyes widened in distress and confusion.
“Are you tearing up?” He was at a loss for what to do and racked his brain for a way to ‘comfort him’. “Did I do something wrong?”
“No, no,” the sweets-lover closed his eyes and took a deep breath. This was so uncool! Why was he basically reduced to tears from his partner offering him a piece of cake? What was he, a starved cat?
A warm hand caressed his cheek and soft lips pressed onto his. Akito melted into the kiss and returned his boyfriend’s sweet love.
Mizuki elbowed him and interrupted his tender moment.
“Come on, lovebirds. You’re keeping up the line.” She pushed them closer to the cake and the orange-haired street singer grumbled in annoyance.
Everyone grabbed their cake piece and returned to their assigned table. Akito took a bite and the icing melted on his tongue. Adding the tasty red velvet base, the sweet connoisseur internally squealed with delight. He smiled to himself and took bite after bite, barely waiting for the others to join him. Once finished, Akito took Toya’s generous gift and slowly savored every crumb. He noticed his sister smiling just as goofily as him while eating her serving.
While everyone enjoyed their dessert and talked amongst themselves, Nene and Emu stood up and made their way to the stage. Mizuki snickered and grabbed his sister’s arm before dragging her backstage. After a few minutes, Emu bounced back onto the stage and grabbed a mic.
“Hello everyone! Wonderhoi!” she exclaimed and everyone repeated her catchphrase. “We have a special show for you all today called ‘The Stings of Hope’. I hope you will enjoy it.” The bouncing ball of energy left the stage and the curtains fell.
Soon, they reopened to Mizuki and Nene walking around on stage and talking to each other. The pink-haired woman wore a (cute) pink dress while the green-haired actress wore her old second-year show outfit. The story followed a girl, played by Mizuki, who had lost hope in love, convinced that no one could ever love her. The people around her alienated her because of her eccentricities. She only had one friend, Nene’s role, who shared a passion for creating shows. The friend refused to believe that the girl was hopeless and insisted that she would find someone eventually.
One day, because of her pessimism, the Goddess of Fate visited the girl and burdened her with the ability to see the red strings of fate. The Goddess gave the main character a mission; to bring certain pairs of fated couples together. In turn, at the end of her journey, she would find her soulmate.
And so, despite not believing the Goddess, a spark of hope illuminated in her and Mizuki embarked on this journey with her best friend who gladly accompanied her. The friend was simply happy that the girl had regained some of her sparks. The two characters went around and helped different robot couples get together. Eventually, during their journey, they met a… girl brighter than any star in the universe, played by his sister.
Akito stifled a chuckle as the role didn’t fit her at all! Ena was as dark as a moonless night (okay, that was harsh. She could brighten people’s day. He knew since she had once helped him when he had lost his fiery passion for football). Not only that but his sister wore a light blue dress that looked ridiculous on her. He stopped himself from laughing since Toya would definitely scold him if others heard him. Still, the gruff singer would tease her once she returned to her seat after the show.
On stage, Ena befriended the girl and they became quite close. They shared the same passion and the new girl invited her and Nene to her troupe. Slowly, Mizuki fell in love with the other but refused her feelings. She hadn’t finished her mission, so the girl brighter than the sun couldn’t be her soulmate. Her best friend believed otherwise and tried convincing her to pursue a relationship with Ena’s character. She ignored her and the two friends had a huge fight.
The girl continued her mission alone for some time and eventually made up with her friend, but refused to change her views. Her relationship with Ena’s character deepened and her yearning worsened.
The girl finished her mission and the Goddess of Fate told her that she would be with her soulmate soon. Happy, Mizuki’s character awaited the day that she could finally meet her soulmate. Her friend tried telling her that she had already met her soulmate, Ena’s character in her opinion, but was once more shut down.
A few days later, Mizuki and Ena’s character met up alone to rehearse a script. They talked and the girl’s yearning became painful. Eventually, Ena’s character confessed her feelings for Mizuki, but…
The main character rejected her, still thinking that the other wasn’t her soulmate. She looked incredibly pained, both of them did, but stayed firm on her decision. Suddenly, the Goddess of Fate intervened and used her magic to show that Ena’s character was indeed her soulmate and that she shouldn’t run away from her feelings anymore. The girl shouldn't have in the first place. The red string of fate linked the two girls and they shared a kiss before the curtain fell.
The crowd applauded them (Akito begrudgingly included). The grumpy singer had somewhat (very) enjoyed the show and couldn’t deny that his sister (and Mizuki) was a talented actress. Somehow. He had felt her pain during the last scene and her line delivery was perfect. For once, he would keep the teasing for later.
The two couples rejoined the grooms’ table and chatter resumed until the newlywed couple left for a moment. In an instant, Tsukasa stood on his mother stage and attracted the guest’s attention towards him with his loud, ear-shattering voice.
“Everyone!!!” he exclaimed with a bright smile. “Rui and I had this idea a while back and we would like to do a little activity with those who aren’t yet married, but in a relationship.” The guests whispered to each other; some in excitement and some (Akito mostly) in fear. An unprompted ‘activity’... The orange-haired man prayed that he wouldn’t fly to the moon and reach the stars today.
“I want one person per couple to gather in front of the stage and form a sort of cluster,” Tsukasa instructed. The more eager people, Saki and Emu, raced towards the front of the stage. Slowly, other couples chose a representative and gathered where instructed. Minori, Airi, Kanade, and Kohane joined them and so did many other strangers.
Akito took a step back and eyed Toya in case his poor, naive boyfriend even thought of joining these slightly suicidal people in the middle. So, what if these guests held too much trust in the Weirdo Wombo Combo? Perhaps they forgot that Rui built canons and confetti bombs! He wouldn’t risk his or his boyfriend’s hair for a stupid ‘activity’. Was he the only sane person he-
Mizuki grabbed his arm and pulled him toward the crowd. The terrified singer struggled a little bit and glared at her, but she simply ignored him and cackled.
“Oi! What the hell are you doing?” he hissed as she finally let go of his arm.
“Tsukasa said that one person per couple has to join the crowd. Guess that’s you now,” the Nightcord MV maker nudged him with her elbow. Akito grumbled under his breath and turned around, hoping to join his boyfriend on the sideline, but she grabbed his tie and forced him back into the crowd.
“Let me-”
“Alright!!!” Tsukasa’s grating voice interrupted him. Akito stilled and cold sweat slid down his back. This was it. He would die pitifully from whatever weird contraption Rui had created and leave Toya as a widow. Wait. They weren’t married yet. Not a widow… um, boyfriend-less or something.
At least his beloved wouldn’t die. His sacrifice wasn’t for nothing. Ah, but what a shame, he wouldn’t kiss his boyfriend goodbye before-
“So!!! I wanted to do the bouquet throw just like in the American movies!” Weirdo Number One posed with his legs wide and his hand on his hip.
Oh. That didn’t seem too dangerous, but… He couldn’t let his guard down. What if Tsukasa used a canon or something dangerous to shoot the bouquet into the crowd? Akito could still die.
“But usually, the bride… well groom, in this case, tosses the bouquet into a crowd of single people. But!!! There aren’t a lot of single people here. So!!! Yours truly, the World Renown Star Tenma Tsukasa, had the most brilliant idea.” The annoying actor dramatically pointed to the crowd with his bouquet, and his eyes shone in determination.
“Whoever catches the bouquet is the next couple to get married!!!” he shouted and threw the beautiful purple and yellow flower arrangement into the crowd .
The representatives of the different couples held their hands up and tried to catch the flowers, but Tsukasa had tossed them high into the air. Akito stared at the flying bouquet, too confused and embarrassed to move. Despite being at the back of the crowd and next to many people who reached out for their prize, the arrangement landed directly into his arms. He blinked and stared at the flowers in his hands, his brain taking a moment to process everything. All eyes turned towards him and the guests fell silent. His face slowly morphed from pale to cherry-red and he clutched the bouquet in embarrassment. The street singer robotically turned towards his boyfriend and locked eyes with his confused grey ones. His partner, too, hadn’t processed the whole bouquet toss thing, but slowly, his eyes lit up. His lips turned up in a blinding, happy smile rivaling the sun. Akito’s heart stuttered and he couldn’t help but return one of his own.
The crowd cheered and congratulated him. Mizuki slapped his back and ruffled his hair like his sister sometimes did to annoy him.
“Eh~ Lil bro’s getting married soon?” she teased.
“What?!?” Ena joined them. “I won’t stand for this! You’re not getting married before me! You’re my baby brother! You’re still a baby!”
“S-shut up!!!” the mortified man exclaimed, the red on his face spreading.
“Congrats Akito and Toya!!!” Tsukasa shouted from the stage. “Guys!!! My little brother is gonna get married next!” The dramatic star sniffled and tears pricked the corner of his eyes. “They grow up so fast! I promise to make a speech for you two after the wedding and honeymoon!” Rui joined his husband’s side and chuckled. He wiped away the other’s tears and commented on him ‘ruining his makeup’.
Emu tackled him in a hug.
“Congrats!!!” she cheered and squeezed him hard enough to take his breath away.
“Emu, please be careful,” her greyish-haired girlfriend intervened and Emu let him go. “And, good for you, Akito.”
Toya and An joined them and his lover kissed him deeply. The orange-haired man almost dropped the bouquet in surprise, but soon snapped out of it and returned the kiss. Once they pulled away, his boyfriend looked at him with soft, loving eyes and Akito’s poor heart couldn’t handle it.
“I love you,” Toya chastely kissed him and gently wrapped his arms around him. Akito’s brain gave up and he simply hugged his boyfriend back with a lovesick, goofy smile on his face.
Unfortunately, An interrupted their sweet moment with a chuckle.
“Good for you! You better invite me and Kohane to the wedding or I’m asking my dad to remove the pancakes from the menu,” the black-haired woman subtly threatened and locked him in an arm lock. Kohane congratulated the couple a lot less violently than her girlfriend had.
Mafuyu, Kanade, and More More Jump all congratulated him. Even some other random guests cheered the couple on as if they had already gotten engaged.
Saki jumped onto Toya’s back and squealed.
“EEEEE!!!! I’m so happy for you, Toya!” His boyfriend smiled fondly. “I knew you two would eventually get married! It’s fate!” The two pseudo-siblings embraced while Saki’s girlfriends expressed their best wishes. Akito died of embarrassment and the ground ate him.
“W-why are you guys all acting like we got engaged?!? I haven’t proposed yet!” he exclaimed harshly, but his voice cracked. The street singer hid his face on his boyfriend’s shoulder.
“Eh, details. You’ll probably do it next week,” An waved off.
“N-no-”
“No, he won’t! Not before me!” Ena grumpily protested.
“Better get to it, Ena~” Mizuki chirped.
The crowd dispersed and let poor Akito breathe. Suddenly, something tugged at his sleeve and he looked down in confusion. A child stared at him with her large brown eyes and pulled his shirt, asking for his attention.
“Can I see?” She pointed at the flowers. “Please, Mister?” Akito blinked and glanced at his clueless boyfriend who wasn’t listening.
“Um, sure.” He passed her the arrangement and she curiously looked them over. The bouquet hid her face and seemed way too big for a child of her height (adorable).
“Oh! These are purple roses and orange daisies. You could use the daisy leaves in a salad when you go back home! Or maybe to replace lettuce in a sandwich!” the girl commented as if it were common knowledge. Akito, clearly not a plant nerd, stayed awkwardly silent. He didn’t know how to deal with random children and didn’t plan to learn unless Toya one day said that he wanted children. As a very intense street singer, his mind only focused on his goals. He had no space for children.
“Oh, are you Ana-chan?” Toya asked, suddenly recognizing this random kid.
“Yeah! How did you know?” The child narrowed her eyes.
“Tsukasa’s told me about you.” His beloved smiled. “I’m Aoyagi Toya and this is my partner, Shinonome Akito.”
“Oh, Tsukasa’s brother! A-o… y-ya-gi-san.” Ana pointed at Toya and then turned to him. Her dark eyes scrutinized him, making him sweat. “Shi-no-no…no?”
“Shi-no-no-me,” Akito patiently repeated.
“Sh-shi-no…me-san?” The dark-haired girl looked up at him, silently asking if she had said his name correctly. He sighed.
“Shi-no-no-me. There are two nos.”
“Shi-no…no-me-san!” she exclaimed happily.
“Good job, kid.” The awkward singer patted her head awkwardly. “Anyway, where are your parents?”
“Somewhere here,” Ana replied unhelpfully. Akito deadpanned and hid his irritation. He took a deep breath and asked a more precise question.
“Yeah, but where here?” She shrugged and a vein popped on his forehead. The child caressed the flowers in contemplation, like a scientist analyzing a new specimen.
“Now that I think about it, maybe those are lavender roses,” Ana randomly commented, ignoring Akito’s previous question. “That would make more sense. Since this is Tsukasa’s bouquet, it follows his story of having fallen in love with cousin Rui at first sight. I wonder if Tsukasa did his research or if cousin Rui chose the flowers.”
The young Kamishiro monologued about plants for a whole fifteen minutes, going in-depth about their physiology and medicinal properties for some reason. For a five-year-old, she was incredible with speech. Little Akito could barely string complicated sentences, but Ana used terminology even Grown Adult Akito couldn’t understand. Maybe this was normal and he was the idiot. He didn’t know. He hadn’t hung out with or babysat many children.
He and Toya sat at a random table and listened to this child yapping about other nature-related topics. She went into extreme detail about different spiders and other gross critters and his beloved asked questions about her interest, much to Akito’s dismay. The orange-haired singer didn’t have the heart to stop them.
Finally, Ana settled on a better topic; herps. He had no idea what herps were and asked, for the first time since the girl had started her yapping. She explained that they were amphibians and reptiles. Ah, this he could work with. The green-eyed man didn’t mind hearing about frogs and turtles and stuff. Snakes, although he didn’t like them, he could endure. Having Kohane as a teammate had reduced his intolerance to those critters.
The passionate girl talked enthusiastically, her arms waving around to emphasize her words. Her eyes shone brightly and she smiled when he finally joined in on their conversation. To humor her, Akito showed her a picture of Kohane’s snake and she squealed at ‘how cute the little snakey’ was. If his eyes softened and he tenderly smiled, that was neither here nor there. And if Toya noticed and chuckled softly, no he didn’t.
“Ana!” someone called out and jolted Akito out of his momentary weakness. He schooled his expression into something cooler, not… whatever that was.
A cyan-haired man quickly walked to them; his eyes full of worry. He kneeled to the girl’s level and grabbed her shoulders.
“Thank God you’re okay. Don’t ever go off on your own!” the newcomer scolded her and she blinked in confusion.
“But I told Dad that I was gonna see the flowers and he said ‘hm hm’.” Ana exaggerated her hms, making them lower in pitch. The cyan-haired man sighed and turned his head towards another man with red hair who had walked up to them, albeit a lot slower and carefree. Akito could only assume that these two were Rui’s uncles.
“Told you she was fine. It’s Little Rui’s wedding. Everyone here’s a nice person since they’re Rui’s friends and family,” the newcomer gruffly said, unrepentant.
“You think that letting a five-year-old run free at a wedding party is a good idea?” the cyan-haired man said, barely hiding the irritation in his voice.
“I mean, what’s the worst that could happen?” the other shrugged. “Back in my day, we used to spend all day in the forest near my house without supervision and we ended up fine.”
That was clearly not the right thing to say, even Toya noticed. And that was saying something since his lover was as oblivious as they came. The two younger men squirmed uncomfortably in place as the tension grew and the two older adults stared at each other. The child blinked cluelessly, looking back and forth between her parents.
“This isn’t ‘back in your day’ or whatever. And I’m pretty sure that was just a you thing.” The cyan-haired man gritted his teeth. He took a few calming deep breaths and let go of his child’s shoulder. “We’ll talk about this later.” The red-haired man sweated, finally realizing that he had fucked up.
“Anyway!” The cyan-haired man returned his attention to Toya and him. “Thank you for taking care of her. You have my gratitude.” He bowed and Akito felt even more awkward. “I’ll take her off your hands. Say thank you and goodbye, Ana.” The man grabbed his child’s hand.
“Wait! Can I stay with them?” the dark-haired girl begged him with her big, adorable eyes. “I want to talk about herps with them!” She repeated please way too many times. The man looked hesitant and unsure of what to say.
“It’s really no problem. We can look after her for you if you want,” Toya intervened and smiled softly.
“If it’s no problem…” The man let go of Ana and she cheered. “Thank you, um…”
“Aoyagi Toya and Shinonome Akito. It’s nice to meet you.”
“Right. Thank you Aoyagi-kun and Shinonome-kun. I’m Kamishiro Kazuya and this is my husband, Fujimoto Hikaru.” Once more, the man bowed and Akito died internally.
“Anyway,” Fujimoto eased the tension. “If there’s anything or if you get tired of looking after her, we should be over there.” He pointed near a table where the grooms’ parents sat and chatted among each other. “Thanks again for this and have fun, Ana.” He walked away and his husband soon joined him, not without hesitatingly looking back at his child to make sure everything was okay.
Ana immediately resumed her herp-related monologue as if nothing had happened. Akito focused on her words instead of the mortifying awkwardness he felt. She sat next to him and swung her little legs under the table. Occasionally, the little nature-lover sipped her small juice glass that Toya had gotten for her which paused her monologue. Somehow, the conversation had shifted to mammal hair, their function, and the difference between the types of pelages. Although once more out of his element, Akito could deal with mammals. Toya carried the conversation a lot more than him.
As embarrassing as it was, he learned a lot of random facts from this five-year-old. Would he remember what ‘velli’ was? Probably not, but if he did, he could flex his new knowledge on An.
The child stopped talking and furrowed her brows. She stared straight into his soul and he shifted in his seat. God, how come he was so out of his element? Toya seemed fine with kids; although, he talked to her like she was an adult. How could his beloved not when she acted way too mature for her age? Ana didn’t run around, scream, cry, or whatever else children did. She was insanely well-behaved; it scared him.
“Hey, Shinonome-san?” Ana pulled at his sleeve to grab his attention, as if he wasn’t already listening.
“Yes, yes. What is it?” Would she ask to see the snake again? Or other animal pictures, which he (unfortunately) didn’t have on his phone?
“What do you do in life?” she asked without tack.
“I… um, I’m a singer. I sing with Toya and sometimes with our other friends, An and Kohane.” Her eyes brimmed with interest.
“Sing? What music?”
“Street music.”
“What’s that?”
And with that, the floodgates opened. Okay, not really. It took him a few more questions about his passion for Akito to let loose and start enthusiastically talking about his music. A fire consumed him and gone was the awkwardness and gruffness in his voice. He told her about how he practiced his singing, the song creation process, Rad Squad, his trip to New York which helped him surpass Taiga back in his youth, and many other adventures related to the start of his career. The fiery singer even sang acapella with Toya to show her what street music was. Ana looked at him with little stars in her eyes and pushed him to talk more and more about his now-realized dream.
She tried singing with him and, even though she was inexperienced and her voice sounded off at some points, he encouraged her and gave her little pointers. Akito couldn’t help but smile as she hummed Osmanthus (so cute, he could die).
“Good job kid!” The green-eyed singer ruffled her hair once she finished. “You’ve got what it takes to sing on the grand stages. If you keep practicing, I’m sure you could become an incredible singer and maybe even surpass Rad Squad!”
“Really?” the adorable child exclaimed, looking up at him as if he were her idol.
“Yeah, but it won’t be easy! I won’t let you surpass me just like that!” He gave her a fiery look and grinned.
“Hehe,” she giggled childishly. “Don’t worry. I don’t know if I’ll become a singer like you. I want to be a researcher like my dads!”
“Ah, shame. I would have liked to sing alongside you.”
“We can still sing together!” Ana cleared her throat and sang the first verse of the song she had just learned. Akito joined her once more, careful not to overpower her, of course.
From the corner of his eyes, he noticed his beloved watching them, his head leaning on the palm of his hand. Toya wore a fond look and a soft smile that colored Akito’s cheeks. He faltered in his singing slightly but refocused on his song and not… his beautiful boyfriend admiring him.
The staff moved the tables and chairs away from the middle of the area, disturbing their singing with the loud pushing. On stage, someone installed a keyboard and plugged many wires into some speakers. The street singer stared at the working people in confusion. Did someone prepare another show?
“Ah, it seems like it’s time for the couple’s dance,” Toya commented with a small smile. “I can’t wait to see it. I heard that Saki would play the keyboard, Shiho the bass, and Kanade prerecorded the other instruments. Rui will sing as they dance.”
What? So the guy who didn’t eat his vegetables would sing while dancing? As if he could do that without getting out of breath. Akito would believe it when he saw it.
Ana kicked her feet faster in excitement and squealed.
“Yay!!! I love cousin Rui’s singing! I want to sing along! Do you know what song he’s singing?”
“No idea,” the orange-haired man shrugged, still unconvinced that Rui would sing.
“We’ll have to see,” Toya said before turning his attention to the stage where Shiho and Saki prepared themselves to perform.
In front of the stage, the two grooms took their position a few steps in front of each other. The room quieted and observed whatever was happening. The newlyweds stared at each other, waiting for their cue. Tsukasa smiled in his usual determined way as if he was about to perform a show. Rui’s smile was a little more subdued and enamored.
After a few moments of silence, the couple took three steps closer to each other and Weirdo Number One snatched his lover’s hand, forcing them into a waltz position. Rui’s hand rested on his husband’s upper back and Tsukasa placed his on the other’s shoulder. The eccentric director grinned boyishly and Tsukasa’s eyes widened in surprise. In an instant, they became other people, no longer his… um, Toya’s friends.
“Dance with me. Do you know how?” the tall freak loudly said with a flirty look in his eyes.
“Y-yes, but what’s this all of a sudden?” Mister ‘World Renown Star’s’ voice shook slightly.
“I wanted to waltz with you. So, shall we dance?” Rui breathed out.
“S-sure,” Tsukasa relented.
On cue, the music started and the couple took their first step. Show-freak two moved them around seamlessly and their steps looked floaty, as if they walked on water. The repetitive right foot forward, left foot to the side, and close movements hypnotized the audience. Coupled with the majestic flute and clarinet, the couple transported their guest to a quiet forest. Suddenly, little firefly-like lights floated around them. Ana gasped in excitement and almost got up to grab a light before Akito stopped her.
“Ana-chan, wait,” he whispered, uncharacteristically softly. “This is your cousin and his husband’s moment, okay?” Her eyes widened and her mouth opened into an O. “You can look at the lights after.” She nodded and sat back down quietly.
The street singer turned his attention back to the scene where the couple moved around majestically, their hair and clothes twirling around with them in a fantastical manner. They smiled at each other, enjoying their moment as if no one else was watching.
To his surprise, Rui actually sang while dancing. His smooth voice captured everyone’s attention as he sang Mitsugetsu Un Deux Trois ’ lyrics. No wonder the atmosphere was so romantic.
Tsukasa closed his eyes and let his husband lead him around. They twirled, pulled away, and returned in each other’s arms seamlessly. The newlyweds were completely in synch as if they were one or maybe communicating telepathically. Truly made for each other. If anyone thought otherwise, they were insane.
The couple finished their choreography and the music mellowed out. Their touching chest heaved up in down as they regained their breath. They stared into each other’s half-lidded eyes fondly and their lips almost touched. In an instant, Rui dipped his husband and kissed him deeply which the crowd cheered for. They separated and the chaotic director chuckled.
“And that’s scene, everyone!” he exclaimed with a large smile. Their audience clapped for their little show.
“That’s not how the scene ends! You went off script!” Tsukasa lightly scolded him with no heat.
“Oops~” Rui chirped, not sorry at all. “Then, should we try again from the top?” He offered his hand to his husband who took it.
“Well, we can dance some more, but the others are free to join us!” Weirdo Number One glanced at the crowd and gestured them over.
Most couples joined them in the middle and held their partner in a slow-dance position. Ana jumped from her seat and grabbed his sleeve.
“Can we dance? Please? Shinonome-san? Aoyagi-san?” she pleaded and tugged at his sleeve. Akito sighed and smiled tenderly.
“Alright, alright. Let’s go dance.” He glanced at his lover who had a similar expression as his and offered his hand. Toya intertwined their fingers and nodded. Ana pulled them to the dance floor, running to the middle and giggling in excitement.
On the stage, Saki resumed her piano playing, this time alone, and the couples danced. The lyrics of Gemini bewitched the crowd and everyone around them was in their own worlds. Ana held both of their hands and the trio awkwardly, yet happily danced in a strange circle formation. The little one had a hard time keeping up with them and almost tripped a few times. She became tired halfway through the song and gestured at him to pick her up. With a soft sigh and a gentle smile on his lips, Akito picked her up and swayed to the rhythm. He twirled around and hummed the tune as the child giggled. Toya followed them around, smiling fondly at the display.
Once Saki finished her song, Kanade walked on stage and took her place after a bit of debate. The couples waited for the next song and stared at the awkward woman with curiosity. Everyone knew that Nightcord at 25’s songs weren’t exactly wedding-friendly, usually gloomier or touching on non-wedding-friendly topics. Kanade froze on stage and frowned in anxiety. She had never performed in front of an audience of this size. Even if it seemed like a small size in Akito’s eyes, for her, it looked far more threatening than it was.
“Wooo!!!” Mizuki cheered from wherever she and his sister were. “Let’s go Kanade! You got this!!!”
“G-go, go, Kanade!” his sister’s annoying voice stuttered out.
“Yay!!!” Ana joined in and pumped her little fist in the air. Others joined them and hyped the white-haired woman on. Akito internally cheered for his sister’s friend.
Unfortunately, nothing helped and she looked paler. Poor girl. He understood the anxiety of someone’s first time on stage.
The music producer only unfroze when her girlfriend walked on stage and grabbed a mic. They stared at each other, wordlessly communicating, and Kanade took a deep breath. She played the first few notes of Suki, Daisuki , the majestic notes casting a sweat spell on the audience. The song didn’t fit their usual aesthetic at all and it felt weird hearing Mafuyu sing the lyrics, but they made it work. Everyone resumed their dancing and Ana asked to be put down. She made big dramatic steps to the rhythm and twirled around to her heart’s content.
Once done, the crowd cheered the performers on and they bowed, Kanade a little awkwardly and Mafuyu emotionlessly. The two women left the stage and a shrill voice announced its presence.
“Are we all performing for the couple now?” Minori exclaimed. Someone took away the keyboard and other equipment from the stage. “Then, More More Jump has something special prepared for Rui and Tsukasa!” She ran to the stage and pointed at the crowd. Everyone turned towards her, most eyes brimming with excitement. “As a congratulations for the marriage, we’ll perform Koisuru Beam for you all!”
The music started and the other members entered the stage before taking their position. More More Jump sang beautifully and cheerfully as usual and their choreography captivated everyone’s heart. The idol group danced around, their dresses twirling with their steps, without breaking a sweat. As expected of the best idols in the world!
Ana’s insistent tugs disrupted his attention for a moment. She gave him big pleading eyes and made grabby movements.
“Up? I can’t see,” the child asked and he quickly put her on his shoulders.
As the performance went on, the crowd chanted for the idols and cheered them on. If he had his merch sticks with him, Akito would have waved them to the rhythm. Unfortunately, he could only pump his fists and cheer loudly for his Oshis. Toya chanted with him since he had learned the calls after accompanying Akito to many More More Jump concerts. Ana tried her best to chant with them, but she didn’t know what she was doing, so she just went ‘Oh!’ really loud. Taking pity on her, his beloved showed her the chants and all three of them cheered the idol group.
Once the song ended, Airi took the front of the stage.
“Congrats on the marriage again, Rui and Tsukasa!” The crowd roared.
“Fufu~ I’m so glad I was invited. It was a beautiful ceremony,” Shizuku said with her smooth voice.
“And the food was super yummy!” Minori exclaimed and her girlfriend chuckled.
“That too,” Haruka completed.
“Anyway, the party’s only started, right?” Airi exclaimed and the guests answered enthusiastically. “Then let’s keep going!”
As the idols walked backstage, Ana yelled out;
“Again! Again! One more song!”
The idols stopped in their tracks and the crowd joined Ana in her pleas.
“One more, you say?” Airi grinned and her fang poked out of her mouth. “Hm, I don’t know. Can we do that?” She asked the rest of her group. They all nodded and returned to the stage.
“I guess we can perform that one,” Haruka said cryptically.
“Oh, that one,” Shizuku played along.
“Yeah… Um, which one?” Minori smiled in confusion.
“ Yellow !!!” Airi declared and the music restarted.
More More Jump danced to another flawless and amusing choreography. His heart soared in delight, filled with hope and glee. Minori reached out toward him, Toya, and Ana and waved at them. The little girl enthusiastically waved back and fangirled. As expected, every More More Jump performance was a blessing from God. Akito thanked the universe for allowing him to see this private performance. And… maybe the two married show idiots too since this was for them.
Truly done with their performance, his favorite group thanked them before truly leaving the stage, much to everyone’s disappointment. He let Ana down and she jumped in place.
“That was so fun!!!” the dark-haired child squealed and he understood her on a deep level. “That brown-haired woman was so cool! I want to learn the dance!”
Well, Minori would be proud to know that she spread hope to another child.
To continue this unplanned show, the four Leo/Need members replaced the idol group, bringing their instruments on stage. A staff person helped Honami with her drum and plugged some stuff in for sound purposes. Ichika grabbed the mic and put it on a stand.
“Hello everyone! We’re Leo/Need and to celebrate the couple, we will perform a song for you all. Heart a la mode !”
Honami tapped her sticks three times and the song started. The crowd danced along to their beautiful rendition. Ana grabbed his hand and Toya’s and bobbed her head to the music. She looked adorable, exaggerating her movements and with her eyes closed like that.
As the song ended, Ichika thanked the cheering guests and congratulated the married couple once more. All members grabbed their instruments and cleared the stage.
“SAKIIIII!!!!!” a loud and recognizable voice yelled. “LEO/NEED!!!! Thank you for this performance!!!!” Akito could almost hear Saki’s slightly embarrassed protests from backstage.
Ana grabbed his attention once more.
“I want to perform too! I want to sing with you two! For cousin Rui,” she demanded with the same irresistible pleading eyes.
“I mean, we can try. But what do you want to sing?” The orange-haired man glanced at Toya who also agreed.
“The song you taught me!”
“Alright, we can do that. Let’s go ask the staff,” his beloved said and guided them closer to the backstage. Toya asked to perform which the employees agreed to and cued the instrumental version of their song. As the three of them walked to the stage, a duo had already taken their place. The two women each grabbed a mic and confidently addressed the crowd.
“Heya, everyone! I’m An and this is Kohane. Together, we’re the Vivids!” his singing rival and teammate exclaimed.
“And we will perform a song to celebrate our friends’ marriage! Makeup!” Kohane completed, her voice quieter than her girlfriend’s yet just as confident. She had come a long way from the shy girl he knew in his high school days. Akito felt a little proud of her, but he wouldn’t tell her (he already had).
Their song fired him up. From Kohane’s insane talent to An’s powerful voice, he couldn’t let them surpass him! His performance would blow them away and he would win this nonexistent battle!
Finally, the song ended and the three of them walked on stage. The last duo passed them and An gave him a teasing look. So maybe this was a competition!
Toya and he grabbed a mic and Ana jumped in place excitedly. No need to make her wait; time to start the show!
“Hello everyone, I’m Toya and this is my partner, Akito. Together, we’re BAD DOGS,” his partner confidently said.
“Today, we have a special guest with us. This is…” Akito bent down and approached the mic to the girl.
“Ana!” she exclaimed and waved at the crowd who cooed at her cuteness.
“And what are we singing to celebrate your cousin and his husband’s wedding?” the orange-haired singer asked her and smiled tenderly. Oops, that wasn’t very ‘cool street musician’ of him. Ah, but who cared? Ana’s eyes sparkled and she and Toya appreciated his soft side. He supposed he didn't mind letting it out in front of everyone, just for today.
“ Osmanthus !”
The music started and Akito lifted Ana so that she could have better access to the mic. He couldn’t move as much as he usually did during his performances, but he made due. The young Kamishiro sang the first line, taking the girl’s lines from back when Vivid Bad Squad had performed the song in their youth. The passionate street musician sang his lines with the softness they deserved and Toya harmonized with him during Len’s lines.
His usual singing ignited a fire in his heart and rendered him breathless. Yet, today, while singing with his beloved and Ana, his heart warmed as if enveloped by a cozy blanket. As the end approached, Toya walked next to him and brought his mic closer to the two of them. The trio sang the last chorus together until the last ‘mou ika Sayonara’ where only he and Toya harmonized.
The performers had lit up a fire in the crowd who couldn’t stop cheering. Akito put down a very excited Ana who jumped up and down. Toya kissed the side of his head and his heart raced. He could imagine his expression; goofy smile and redder than a tomato. Ah, really, where did his cool guy persona go?
Ana approached the edge of the stage where the Weirdo Wombo Combo stood. The couple wore a tender smile and Tsukasa had tears in his eyes once more. She jumped in Rui’s arms who caught her with an ‘oof’.
“Cousin Rui! Let’s sing together!” the child exclaimed happily.
“Oh?” The eccentric director tilted his head like a curious cat. “Just me?”
“Tsukasa too!”
“Of course!” Tsukasa exclaimed louder than her. “What do you want to sing?”
“ Piano Girl !”
Rui made eye contact with an employee who understood his intention immediately. The couple climbed up to the stage and Toya and he gave them the mics.
“Thanks for the performance, Akito~” Weirdo Number Two said while grabbing the mic.
Akito didn’t want to answer him so he grumbled something incoherent. He joined Toya on the makeshift dancefloor and looked up at the stage where Tsukasa gave his mic to Ana who twirled around happily.
“Ah, we don’t usually perform songs just like this, don’t we?” Rui said into the mic and glanced at his husband who grinned.
“Nope! We’ve only sung during our shows, so it’s a little different,” Show freak one exclaimed; his voice so loud that he didn’t need a mic.
“But we can make an exception for today, can we?” the other asked. “After all, this is a kind of show, isn’t it? A different type than we are used to, but a show nonetheless.” And it wouldn’t be a Weirdo Wombo Combo event without them performing some sort of show.
“It’s showtime!!!” Tsukasa yelled happily.
“It’s showtime!” the other two imitated him.
The music started and the performers sang enthusiastically. Rui danced with his cousin, held her up when she asked for it, and twirled around eccentrically. Tsukasa, too, danced with the girl and they all enjoyed themselves on stage. With their bright happy smile and warm voices, it was hard not to also feel as cheerful as them. During the interlude, the self-proclaimed star grabbed his husband’s hand and twirled him around, now leading their dance unlike during the first one. The song ended and the weirdo duo bowed dramatically at the crowd who cheered for them.
Ana rejoined him and Toya and they danced until their feet hurt. No other group performed, so the staff played prerecorded music for them to dance to. The trio also chatted with others like his sister, Mizuki, his team members, and their friends. Everyone laughed and had an incredible time.
But all good things always come to an end.
“Ana, it’s getting late, so we’re going back home, okay?” Kazuya said as he approached them.
The cyan-haired man patted her head and turned his attention to them. Akito hid his disappointment. Would he never see little Ana again? No, he couldn’t leave things like this! The grumpy street musician liked singing with her and teaching her vocal techniques. Even her huge tangents about environmental-related topics were adorable! He wouldn’t mind entertaining her again and showing her new animal photos (which he planned to collect from now on).
“Thank you again for taking care of her. If there’s anything I can do to repay the favor, please let me or Rui know. He’ll relay the message to me.”
“It was no problem. We had fun,” Toya answered for them. Kazuya nodded and bowed to show his gratitude once more. Ah, he had to stop that! He was older than them! Akito felt so awkward seeing him bow in front of him.
“Still, we really appreciate it.” Kazuya smiled gratefully. “Anyway, Ana, say your goodbyes.” Ana’s eyes widened and her face fell.
“Aw… really? We have to go?” She pouted.
“Yes. I told you. It’s getting late, sweetie. Bedtime soon.” The older man stayed firm in his decision despite her dangerously cute pleading look. Akito felt immense respect for the man. He could never say no if his future child gave him that look. Um… he meant hypothetical child, of course. Right.
“Please?” the girl tried once more.
“No.” And failed. Akito’s heart clenched for her and he internally wept.
“Oh…” she said in disappointment. “Okay, then.” The child glanced at the floor.
“So, say your goodbyes,” her father repeated, still patient despite the stalling. He lightly pushed her closer to him and Toya and she threw herself at him, clinging to his waist like he could disappear. Despite his initial surprise, Akito lightly hugged her back, albeit hesitantly. His heart broke and he bit his lower lip (he wanted to cry).
“Bye bye… Shinonome-san. Thank you for singing with me,” Ana said weakly. The street singer patted her head and smiled sadly.
“Yeah, it was fun.” Akito let her go but she only clung to him tighter. He chuckled and caressed her hair, the warmth in his chest returning. “Bye, kid. Have a good night’s rest, okay?”
“Kay…” Ana finally let go and he couldn’t hide the disappointment on his face. The child tackled his poor boyfriend in a hug. “Bye-bye Aoyagi-san. Thank you two for singing with me.” Soon, she let go and grabbed her father’s hand.
“Thank you, a million times, for this, and have a good night,” Kazuya said politely before he and his daughter turned around and started walking away. Akito’s weakened heart broke. This couldn’t be the last time he saw her!
“Um…” The two stopped in their tracks. The street singer forced himself to stay still instead of fidgeting. That would be so uncool! “If you ever need a babysitter… Um, me and Toya don’t mind helping out.”
Kazuya turned around.
“Eh? That’s really kind of you. Are you sure?”
“Yeah. We… I mean, I would really like to see Ana again and maybe teach her more about singing,” he said awkwardly.
“I feel the same,” Toya added.
“I want to sing with them too! Please?” Ana begged. “Can I see Shinonome-san and Aoyagi-san again sometime?” She gave him the sad puppy look once more and, this time, Kazuya caved him.
“I don’t see why not.” The older man smiled. “Here. I’ll give you my number and we can talk more about it.”
They exchanged numbers and Akito probably acted extremely uncool. Ah, but whatever. He had acted very uncool countless times today, so it didn’t matter. His excitement had taken over and he couldn’t wait to sing with Ana and Toya again.
The two Kamishiros truly left a little before the sun set and Akito and Toya talked to their friends a little more before everyone slowly left Phoenix Wonderland. The couple stayed until everyone left since his beloved wanted to talk to his brother a little more before they went home. The annoyed street singer wanted to complain since his energy levels had depleted and his body felt heavier as time passed. He just wanted to cuddle with his lover in bed and pass out. As Saki and her girlfriends left, his suffering came to an end and Toya could finally talk to the loudest person they knew.
Akito’s eyes drooped and he tuned out his fian- um, boyfriend and Weirdo Number One’s words. In front of him, Rui did the same, except that his eyes wandered around until they stopped, staring at something to his right. The strange director walked away from the conversation without saying anything. That certainly woke up the orange-haired man. What kind of weird shenanigans was Weirdo Number Two up to?
Akito followed him quietly, on guard in case Rui exploded a bomb in his face or something dangerous like that. Thankfully, nothing of the sort happened and the purple-haired menace crouched near a bench. He reached out for… a tuxedo cat?
“Are you following your own kind?” the orange-haired man asked cheekily. Rui stilled, realizing that Akito had followed him. The eccentric director relaxed and smiled tenderly at the purring cat.
“Hm… I think I’m more of a Maine Coon,” Rui commented. Akito sat on the bench and observed the adorable cat.
“I can see that. With you being… unfairly tall and all,” the street singer grumbled, absolutely not jealous. The yellow-eyed menace chuckled and looked at him teasingly.
“Bitter, are we?”
“Shut up.” Akito looked away.
Rui continued his strange cat analogies,
“I’d see you as an orange cat with your hair and all. Well… for other reasons too, but I’m sure you don’t want me to name them.” Weirdo Number Two scratched the cat’s chin. Akito frowned in offense. Orange cats were known for their impulsivity and ‘dumb’ shenanigans. He was not dumb!
“Fuck you too.” Rui ignored him.
“Ah, but this one… Maybe he’d be Toya. He’s a refined gentleman and very kind.” The street musician stared into the cat’s grey eyes and could see the resemblance. Although, Toya couldn’t be compared to a mere cat.
“I guess… But Toya transcends cat breeds. He would be the ultimate cat, aka the Birman,” Akito proudly said, feeling a fire from within. Quiet, affectionate, friendly mostly to those it knew, and beautiful, the cat fit his lover to a T.
“Ah… I don’t see it. Is that perhaps your favorite breed?” the Mad Scientist of Explosion asked knowingly.
“M-maybe…” The green-eyed man stared at his hands on his lap.
“How cute.” Rui chuckled.
“Shut up,” Akito grumbled. “I bet Tsukasa would be a Siamese with his loud-ass mouth and all.” He jabbed, although it fell flat. Siamese looked extremely cute and were playful.
“Um… I can somewhat see it, but I also see him as an orange cat. Adorable shenanigans and all.” An irritated flame surged in his body and he gritted his teeth. If he and Tsukasa were orange cats…
“... We are not remotely the same!”
“That’s true. That’s also why I usually say that Tsukasa is a golden retriever. Cats don’t really fit him.” Akito also had a hard time seeing loud, obnoxious Tsukasa as such a calm, refined animal.
“Fair…”
Silence fell over them. Akito looked at the cat and eventually gave in to its adorable eyes. He scratched its small ears and the cat lightly hit its head on his palm, as if it could get more contact in some way. Weirdo Number Two sat next to him and looked at the night sky full of twinkling stars.
“You know… I’m glad that you finally got over your abandonment issues,” Akito started, not even looking at his... fine, he would call Rui his friend. Just for today.
“My, what a thing to bring up at my wedding.” The eccentric director chuckled. “But… You’re wrong. I’m not ‘over them’.”
“But-”
“I know I said in my speech that I would trust him until our deaths and believe that he will never leave. I do.” Rui sighed. “But deep-rooted issues like this… It’s pretty hard to get rid of completely.”
“Hm…”
“There will always… be this small part in me that will wonder ‘When will he leave me?’ and ‘He’ll find someone better, won’t he?’. That will never change. But… Now that I’m older and have gone through so many things with him by my side, I… don’t believe that part of me. Not anymore. And never again.” Silence fell on them once more as Akito scrambled for something to say.
“I’m… happy for you, man. You gave yourself and Tsukasa a chance and, look at you two.”
“Fufu~ Indeed. You and Toya next, right?” Rui teased and smirked.
“I-I, w-well…”
“You caught the bouquet after all. Tsukasa already has a speech in mind even if it’s been a few hours.”
“Listen…”
Akito didn’t know what to answer. Of course, he wanted to marry his beloved, his longtime partner, the man whom he loved with all his being. But… marriage so soon. He didn’t know if Toya wanted to live out his youth, travel the world with him, and sing to every type of crowd again before settling down and marrying. Possibly (absolutely) have kids, but that was neither here nor there.
That and the thousands of dollars they would have to spend on the ceremony! And planning! Ugh… it all sounded like a drag. Besides, Ena would get mad if he got married before her and…
Excuses.
In truth… Akito felt inferior to Toya. He didn’t know how a gruff asshole like him ended up with someone as kind and wonderful as his boyfriend. Well… He knew. His beloved loved him, of course, but he deserved the world, not some… some… guy who could somewhat sing and once played football decently enough.
Maybe Rui’s fear of abandonment resonated with him to some degree. Maybe he, too, had this small part of himself that feared that his lover would leave him for someone better. He didn’t listen to it most days, but when it came to big decisions like these…
“You know, Akito. I think you should do whatever you want. You can get married or you don’t. It doesn’t matter. Either way, the two of you are going to stay by each other’s side until death do you two apart, ceremony and legal jargon or not.” The purple-haired director interrupted his thought.
“That’s… awfully sweet of you to say, but why do you sound so sure?”
“Call it intuition or something. I believe that if a concept such as soulmates existed, the two of you would definitely be linked by fate,” Rui said cryptically with an unreadable look. His eyes flitted down to his hand and back to his eyes.
“Soulmates… Tsukasa and you mentioned that a lot during your speech. You believe in that don’t you?” Akito wasn’t sure if he believed in the concept, but after at least two dozen mentions of the word, he started to warm up to the subject. He and Toya as soulmates… The thought warmed his heart.
“Fufu~ guilty.” His friend chuckled lightly. The cat jumped on his lap and Rui resumed his previous petting.
“I wouldn’t expect a sciency guy like you to be so superstitious.”
“The two concepts aren’t opposites either. I just have a romantic side, is all.”
“Yeah yeah, real romantic. But you said that you don’t believe that you and Tsukasa are soulmates? And you still married him?”
Rui was an enigma to him. As much as he found him strange, sometimes off-putting, Akito couldn’t deny that the guy was intelligent… and sometimes mysterious in some strange way. He couldn’t tell if the guy was thinking about exploding Tsukasa or something profound that would blow his mind. No in-between.
“I did,” the yellow-eyed man simply said and scratched the cat’s chin.
“Why?”
“Let’s say I’m tired of letting fate and this hypothetical red string dictate my life. Or something like that. I used to think I didn’t have agency over who I would date and that it was already predetermined. Maybe it is.” Rui shrugged uncharacteristically. Akito didn’t see this side of him often, if ever. He sounded so serious, yet peaceful as if he had thought about the situation for countless hours, days, or even months. Possibly more.
“But how would you even know? You’d have to see the red strings of fate, no? Or something. I don’t know the stories and legends too well.”
Rui chuckled… bitterly? How strange.
“I suppose so. But even someone who could see the strings probably wouldn’t see their own. Wouldn’t that be an unfair advantage if they did?”
“I… probably?” What the hell was Weirdo Number Two on about?
“So even someone like that would be in the same situation as us. They wouldn’t know who their predetermined partner, their soulmate, is.”
“I… guess so?” This scenario sounded a little too specific.
“Akito,” Rui’s movements stopped. “If you knew that everything around you was dictated by fate… if you could see those strings, but not your own… would you… would you still enter a romantic relationship, knowing that it’s possible that one day, the one you love will find their soulmate? If… if you believed that fate doesn’t want you to be together, would you still do it?” Their eyes met and something strange sparkled in Rui’s. Akito couldn’t decipher anything. He was too tired to understand why his strange would ask him this hypothetical question.
“I don’t know… probably not?” But if it were Toya… Maybe his answer would change.
“I did.”
“What?”
“I mean, I would.” A small smile adorned Rui’s lips. “Because I love Tsukasa so much that it hurts to think about not being with him, even if it’s temporary. Many years ago, I chose love and happiness over my fear of losing him. I went against fate.”
“For Tsukasa?” the street singer asked, perplexed. These two had extremely strange tastes in men. “I mean, he’s a kind and caring guy. He has a lot of good parts, but I don’t see… I don’t see why you would ‘go against fate’ for a loud, eccentric weirdo like him.”
“Because he’s my loud eccentric weirdo and he’s completely changed my life.”
Akito deadpanned. He still couldn’t believe that Tsukasa, the freak showman who destroyed his eardrums, could change so many people’s lives. The world was so strange.
“Besides, he’s also very pretty. Ah, he’s the most loving husband I could ever ask for. He always gives his 12 000% and-” Rui yapped poetics about his husband with the most lovesick, disgusting look anyone could ever wear. The orange-haired man wanted to gag, but he decided to be polite and listen to his gross monologue. Eventually, he sighed when Rui finally stopped.
“You’re a really weird guy, Rui. I don’t think anyone could ever truly understand what the hell is going on in your head, except Tsukasa. You two are made for each other. Soulmates or not,” Akito commented before hearing footsteps from behind him. He turned around and met pretty gray eyes which he adored so much. He could stare at them and the moonlight’s reflection on them for eternity.
“Why are you guys always running off on your own, geez?!” Unfortunately, someone’s grating loud voice broke his immersion.
“Fufu~ sorry. Is it time to go home?” Rui got up from his seat and joined his husband’s side.
“Yeah, I’m tired.” Tsukasa yawned. “And I can’t wait to sleep next to my husband for the first time!” His eyes sparkled at the statement, like a schoolgirl calling their boyfriend ‘boyfriend’ for the first time.
“Akito.” His favorite person approached him and offered him a hand. “We should go too.”
“Yeah.” The street singer grabbed it and pulled himself from his seat. With one last head pat, he bid the cat goodbye. The couple said their parting words to the newlyweds and left.
“We’ll see you later! Get home safe!” Tsukasa yelled out to them which should have annoyed him, but the entire day had softened him. Akito chuckled and waved back to them, glancing in their direction. For a moment, he noticed a red line between the two men, tied to both of their pinkies. He blinked and whatever that was disappeared. Was that…?
Ah, maybe this whole soulmate talk messed with his brain and he imagined it. Vision or not, even if Rui denied it, he had the same opinion as Tsukasa. The Weirdo Wombo Combo were soulmates.