Work Text:
akito was the first to arrive at the livehouse. he liked to be prepared and ready for shows, especially if they were playing in larger livehouses like this one. luckily, the group had played this livehouse before, so akito knew their way around, and shiho was working, so it was nice to see a familiar face.
the pair had a quick coversation, shiho noting down the setlist for the night before another member of the street performers’ group walked in. akito immediatly recognised the voice and smiled, while shiho shyly smiled before walking away to set up the music. akito turned around to face toya and greet their boyfriend with a hug and quick kiss.
“hey.” toya started, a fond smile on his face. “the girls are going to be late because of traffic, so should we practice our duo songs?” akito only stared at toya with a lovestruck expression before answering.
‘sure thing, partner.” akito replied, before shouting to shiho to run the instrumentals for fragile and airhead.
———
“lets take five, PLEASE, i think i’m going to pass out” akito wheezed out at the end of fragile. toya nodded, as akito lay on the floor and took in his surroundings. this livehouse was bigger than usual, as it usually hosted bands rather than street performers, but the walls were covered in band posters, including leo/need. (if akito saw toya take a leo/need poster off the wall, no they didnt.) but what he failed to realise, was that there was a mirrorball slowly spinning above where he was lying, casting sparkles onto his skin.
they had also failed to realise that their thoughts had taken over, seeping into their brain like dirt and making them question themselves. how had they gotten this far? how do people put up with him? how does toya put up with him? god he must be an awful partner, both in singing and in romance. maybe arata was right, he was the least interesting one in the group. everyone was going to leave him behind one day. not just his group, but ena, mizuki and tsukasa too.
a hushed tone and a gentle hand brought them back to the present.
“akito, my love? are you ok? you seem to be crying.”
shit. pathetic.
akito swiped away tears as he sat up to face his lover, concern riddled in the older’s face. there was no point in trying to deny his thoughts, as toya would only pester until they were happy. out of care, of course.
“no. i just feel like i don’t deserve to be here.” akito starts. well, there’s no going back now. “not in a ‘oh my god i wanna end it’ way, in a ‘i don’t know how people put up with me enough to be doing what i’m doing’ way, y’know? i’m annoying and mean and scare people off a lot, but you stayed. an stayed, kohane stayed, hell even ken-san stayed. people shouldn’t have to put up with the mess that is me. i don’t deserve you guys. you guys shouldn’t have to put up with me.”
akito finally looks up at toyas face, and realises they are in fact crying. like, full on tears crying.
toya cups akito’s cheeks to wipe away their tears and to place a small but sweet kiss to their lips. the kiss was sweet and salty, like popcorn, and somehow that perfectly encapsulates akito.
“we stay because we love you, akito.” toya whispers. “all in different ways. you’ve helped kohane improve her singing and musical ability so much, not to mention her confidence has skyrocketed because of all the tips and advice you’ve given her. an sees you as her little brother at this point, and i’m pretty sure ken-san would adopt you if given the chance.” akito rolled his eyes at the last comment, despite the fact he knew how true it was.
“and you’ve always been there for me. since the day that we met, you’ve always been concerned about me. making sure that i’ve eaten if i’ve had a fight with my dad in the morning. telling me about RAD WEEKEND and helping me get into street music. letting me stay over when things get too bad to stay at home. you may not realise it, but you’ve changed my life akito. and you’ve always been helping me, so let me help you out. i adore your smile, so let me be the reason you smile. i love you, so much, akito.”
akito was stunned, to say the least. this was even more intense than the speech toya gave on the day the pair officially started dating.
all akito could do was kiss his partner once again, for longer this time. he wasn’t good with words, so he hoped that he could connvey all the love he feels for toya into a kiss. he was sure toya would get the message.
the pair broke apart for air, as akito spoke again.
“i love you too toya. thank you.”
the duo just hugged for a while, all while sparkles danced around them, as if they were the only two people who existed.
shining just for each other.