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Chapter Text

He was doing it to expand his horizons. Shibuya isn't just the bar where he watches football with his friends and the ramen place they go to afterwards; it's more than that—there's more to see, worth seeing, like Harajuku. Harajuku's great; Momo would say so. And Kuwana did strongly recommend idols to him.

That's what Yatora told himself as he visited Hollywood Tokyo for the third night in a row.

He arrived at the theatre just as the doors opened. There were already people waiting, from the top of the stairs until a meter of pavement, and they rushed into the building like a river flowing freely after the dam broke. Yatora joined them. While they ran squealing, he skipped up the steps wordlessly. Then, the flow came to a halt—likely because the staff inside was verifying the tickets—before continuing at a slower pace. As he came closer and closer to the door, Yatora's smile grew more and more awry as he struggled to stifle it. Once he was inside, he had to cover his mouth with his hand.

It wasn't like he was ashamed to be watching a live concert by idols. These were hard workers who perform every day and continuously polish themselves to make their next concert better than the last. Idols were very admirable people.

It's just...his intentions for seeing them weren't very admirable.

Yatora passed his ticket to a man in a black suit and golden tie. The stub was returned to him with an enthusiastic "Thank your for your patronage!" Yatora managed a normal smile before heading inside the auditorium. He's not the last to go in. Surely, more will come to fill these empty seats, not that there weren't plenty of girls already, dominating the room with their animated chatters.

Yatora sat at one of the nearer rows to the stage, on the left. It was an aisle seat. Two seats away was a girl, holding up a glowstick in each hand with a big smile on her face. Yatora only had one in his pocket. He took it out and held it with both hands. His thumb lightly fretted the switch as he eyed the stage eagerly.

When the last person was seated, the auditorium went dark. The laser lights came on, swinging colorful beams at ceilings. The overture played. A smooth voice greeted the audience in English, "Welcome to Hollywood Tokyo." Cheers erupted around Yatora. He flicked his glowstick's switch, and it came alight together with everyone else's. He didn't raise it as high as the others, but joined them in waving his blue glowstick to the rhythm. When the smooth voice spoke again ("Are you ready? Go!"), the audience started calling the idols' names. Yatora whispered along, finally getting the names and order right after two nights of fumbling. The voice repeated itself, the laser lights merged to form white beams, and the overture finished. Darkness again. The overture was fading; the cheers were beginning to, too. Then, the hanging lights flashed on, joined by the sound of trumpets, shining upon the stage and the five boys on it. The audience's cheers instantly became louder. As for Yatora, he took a sharp intake of breath and went still as he stared at the reason he was sitting in this theatre.

He was standing at the left side of the stage, between the center and the leftmost member. His short, sandy brown hair was the neatest and roundest of the rest. A beauty mark was visible under one big, bright blue eye. The smallest and youngest of Shounen Hollywood, singing "Hello, hello world! This is where we start!" with the others, his name was Saeki Kira.

Yatora had met him during one afternoon, three days ago. It was Sunday, and Harajuku seemed like a good place to spend it. Yatora was walking around, snapping shots on his phone for painting references, when he accidentally caught Kira in one. It was supposed to be a photo that was two thirds sky and one third buildings, but just as he was about to tap the screen, Kira jumped into view.

"Whoa!" said Yatora, taking a step back, even though Kira was more than a meter away.

"Did you get my picture?" Kira called out from the distance.

"I, uh, um," Yatora stammered because wow did that voice sound familiar. He’s heard it—not often though—but where?

Kira probably discerned that Yatora wasn’t mad at him for photobombing, so he came closer. That’s when Yatora noticed his round face, his beauty mark, his bowl cut, and his short stature, and realized who Kira reminded him of.

Yotasuke-kun.

"Ah! It’s a little blurry!" Kira giggled at the photo. His voice was higher pitched than Yotasuke’s usual tone. However, Yatora had heard Yotasuke use a higher tone before, when his voice cracked and when he yelled in anger, and during those times, he sounded just like Kira.

If Yotasuke was friendlier, would he sound like Kira? Would he giggle like him?

Just imagining it set Yatora’s face on fire.

"Hey!"

"Yeah?!" yelped Yatora, finally returning to reality. Reality was Kira smiling at him.

"Here," said Kira, offering Yatora a flier. He had pulled it out from his back. The flier had a picture of Kira and four other handsome boys, with the words SHOUNEN HOLLYWOOD written in very large font.

Yatora proceeded to state the obvious: "You're an idol?"

Kira nodded. "Yup! We do concerts every night! And after-show handshake events, too!" He leaned forward, made Yatora flinch a little, and whispered, "If you choose me, you'll have the option of star powder!"

"Star powder?" Yatora whispered back.

Kira stood straight again and snapped his fingers. A few sparks of glitter came out of his fingertips. Yatora blinked. Did he actually see that? He tried to look closer but the star powder was already disappearing, and so was Kira.

Kira was skipping away, the fliers tucked into his waistband flopping like multiple short, flat tails. He stopped at the side of street where a good-looking redhead with glasses stood. Yatora realized he was another member of Shounen Hollywood, and would later learn his name was Maiyama Shun, otherwise called Shun-Shun.

"You owe me dinner," Kira told Shun. Yatora couldn't see his expression, but he could hear the smugness in his tone.

"I can't believe you actually did it," Shun replied with a tone of disbelief. He noticed Yatora watching and flashed a somewhat friendly, somewhat apologetic smile.

Kira noticed Shun looking. He turned around to wave cheerfully. Yatora awkwardly waved back on reflex, and then a man in a black suit and golden tie and a horned owl on his shoulder herded the boys away.

At last, Yatora looked at the photo he'd taken. The sky and the buildings were mostly clear, whereas Kira looked fuzzy around the edges. Only his top half had made it into the shot, with his arms raised like wings. There was an arch of star powder above him, surprisingly visible in the bright afternoon sky. What was even brighter than stars in the afternoon sky, though, was Kira's smile, despite being blurred.

Yatora made a painting of that photo later that evening, before checking out Shounen Hollywood for the first time.

Back to the present, the dance break in the beginning had finished, and the boys were moving on to their individual verses. Kira's verse was "The view I found on TV resides in my distant memories." His singing voice was slightly deeper than his speaking voice, quite like Yotasuke's speaking voice, except with more enthusiasm. Was that how an enthusiastic Yotasuke would sound? Also, wasn't Yotasuke's singing voice deeper?

Yotasuke wasn't an athletic person, much less a dancer. If he had more energy, would he be like Kira, whose steps seemed lighter than the rest? Whose hands and arms moved with more fluidity? Whose eyes and smile seemed to grow a little bit brighter when he spotted Yatora in the crowd?

Those were Yatora's thoughts during every concert. They embarrassed him, and then he forgets them as he got swept away by the energy of the idols and the fans, as he got preoccupied with swinging his glowstick to the rhythm of the dancing and singing along in parts where the audience was expected to participate and laughing during the emcee portions.

Then, the show came to an end, encore included. The boys said and waved goodbye to the audience as they headed backstage. Once the last member was gone, the stage lights turned off while the auditorium's ceiling lights came on. As everyone turned off and kept their glowsticks, a voice from the speakers reminded the audience to make sure they didn't forget anything and to please stay in their seats for another minute so Shounen Hollywood can prepare for the after-show handshake event.

And then the thoughts returned.

Kira surely worked hard to be admired for who he was, and here Yatora was, imagining him as Yotasuke, just because they looked and sounded similar. Yes, he truly enjoyed the dancing and the singing and the flashy self-intros and the silly banter, but mainly because they allowed Yatora the fantasy of a warmer and livelier Yotasuke.

And what's wrong with Yotasuke being cold and moody all the time? It's who he was and the person he's most comfortable being, just like how he drew best while holding his pencil with his whole fist. It doesn't even mean he's in a bad mood.

But there's nothing wrong with Yatora indulging himself either, was there? Idols are expected to fulfil their audience's fantasies, and oftentimes have to work hard to be the ideal version of themselves. Except it's not hard work that makes Kira seem like Yotasuke.

The thoughts were put aside again when the doors opened. Everyone left their seats and hurried into the lobby. Next to the merch stand, Shounen Hollywood stood waiting behind a long table, as if they were merchandise as well. The audience divided themselves into rows of lines on the other side of the table. Yatora joined Kira's line. It was the first time he had lined up for a handshake.

On the first night, Yatora exited the theatre immediately after the show because he wanted to touch up his painting of Kira, to paint in the energy from the concert. The second time he went to the theatre, he also left immediately because he wanted to touch up the star powder on the painting, only to realize he was simply drawing it like generic glitter. He was wondering how he could get a clearer view of Kira's star powder when he remembered—"If you choose me, you'll have the option of star powder!"

Thus, Yatora resolved to attend the after-show handshake event on his third night.

Now that he was in line, though, Yatora was feeling very anxious. Was his outfit alright? He had come in a polo shirt and formfitting trousers, as opposed to the sleeveless hoodie, T-shirt, and basketball shorts he was wearing when he first met Kira. Would Kira think Yatora was trying too hard? Did he even remember him? Was Yatora imagining it when he thought Kira recognized him in the audience? Oh, this was making his palms sweaty. Good thing he was going to ask for the star powder, not a handshake. But what should he say? Would it be rude to get straight to the point and request star powder? Should he greet first? "Hi, I'd like to request the star powder please." No, he's not ordering food. 

Maybe he should see what the girls ahead were saying and learn from them.

"You're the little brother I wish I could have!"

"Whenever I feel down, I see your star powder, and I remember nothing's impossible!"

"Watching you is the highlight of my day!"

"I checked out Sakura Island Rhapsody this afternoon. You were so bright then, and you're even brighter now. It's really inspiring! Please share some of your brightness with me!"

"My friends are still on the fence about coming to your shows, but I'll convince them! I promise!"

Clearly, these handshake events were more than just a chance for the fans to make physical contact with their favorite idols. It's also an opportunity to directly convey their emotions, and each time, Kira would gratefully thank them. What emotions did Yatora want to convey to Kira? Certainly not that he made his dreams come true by resembling Yotasuke and being his adorable self.

Aah, it's his turn!

"Yay, you came!" said Kira after the girl in front of Yatora stepped aside.

The edge of Yatora's mouth twitched into a grin. "You remember me?"

"Of course! Come on!" Kira beckoned Yatora with both hands. "Come here, mister!"

"Right, sorry," Yatora said and took a step forward. "Uh, I'm Yatora, by the way."

"Okay, Yatora-san! Would you like a handshake or the star powder?"

Oh, good. Now Yatora didn't need to worry about having nothing meaningful to say.

"Um, the star powder, please."

"Okay! Coming right up!"

Kira cupped his hands around his mouth, inhaled, flattened out his hands, and exhaled. A cloud of star powder floated from his palms and into Yatora's face. He wasn't sure if it was safe to get it in his eyes, but he really needed a good look at it. He didn't dare to blink.

Yatora had looked closely at glitter before. They were just tiny flakes of colorful, reflective plastic. He'd also seen powder under a microscope and found sand-like grains. Kira's star powder was neither plastic nor grain. It was actual bits of light. It was the stars in the night sky but within reach. There were so many colors—blue, pink, purple, yellow, white... Can Yatora recreate this? This…these sparks that seemed lighter than air yet able to brush against his skin with weight, that felt warm from afar yet cold to touch. It seemed like an impossible task.

Yotasuke could probably do it. No, he can definitely do it.

Yatora was so preoccupied with his thoughts, he didn't notice everyone in line and behind the table staring at him.

"Uh-oh!" Makki said beside Kira. "I think you gave him too much!"

"No way!" Kira replied indignantly. "I always distribute my star powder equally!"

"Is it his first time getting star powder?" asked Kakeru, who was at the center of the table. "He’s gone completely still."

"It’s probably his first time getting so much in his face," Shun answered from the other end.

In between Shun and Kakeru, Tommy gasped. "What if he’s allergic?"

Finally, the last bits of star powder faded away, and time moved again for Yatora. "No, no, I’m not allergic!" he quickly said. "Sorry, that was just…" A pause, to find the right word and rub his eyes that he'd kept open for too long "…a magical experience. Thanks, Yotasuke-kun."

Kira tilted his head. "Who?"

Oh, no. Oh, god. He used the wrong name! Embarrassment struck Yatora like a bolt of lightning, and the murmurs of confusion around him kept the shock going.

"Yotasuke?" Makki said, and then chuckled. "Sounds like a pretty dope name! Whose is it?"

"It’s my friend’s name!" Yatora tried to keep his tone nonchalant, but his voice cracked. "It’s spelled with the kanji for ‘world’."

"Really? That means, when you greet him, you can say 'Hello, World'!" Tommy happily suggested.

"Tommy, don't tease him," Kakeru chastised in a low tone.

"Eeh?! I'm not!" Tommy replied loudly. Now the fans were laughing at him, to Yatora's relief.

Then, Kira asked, "Do I resemble your friend?" and Yatora stiffened again.

At this point, denying would just make him seem weirder.

"Um, yeah, a little," Yatora answered. "He's pretty small too. His voice is deeper, though. And he's a lot moodier."

Kira placed his hands flat on the table and leaned forward. "Like this, Yatora-san?" he spoke at the exact same low pitch and neutral tone as Yotasuke.

Yatora shuddered, and his face grew hot. At that moment, it wasn't Kira in front of him.

It was Yotasuke.

"Wow! He’s all red!" Tommy remarked, and the fans giggled in agreement.

"Dear customer!"

Yatora looked to the side. It was the man in the black suit and golden tie, smiling at Yatora with his hands clasped in front of him.

The man spoke in a pleasant yet firm tone, "Shounen Hollywood is happy to give you their time and attention, but please understand other fans deserve it as well."

"Oh! Uh—" Yatora bowed. "I'm sorry! Please excuse me!" he said before getting out of the line and making haste for the exit.

On his way through the doors, Yatora heard Kira call out to him, "Bring your friend with you next time!"

Will there be a next time? Now that his intentions had been exposed, did Yatora dare to show his face to Kira again?

He reached the bottom of the stairs, walked a few steps on the pavement, and looked back at the theatre.

Maybe he shouldn't. He'd been wrestling with his thoughts every concert, arguing with himself whether it was okay to be treating Kira like an idealized version of Yotasuke. It made the concerts feel like a guilty pleasure, with more emphasis on 'guilty' than 'pleasure'.

And the handshake event proved something—Yatora didn't want Yotasuke to be more like Kira; he wanted Kira to be more like Yotasuke.

He turned away from the theatre. "I…want Yotasuke-kun," he finally admitted to himself.

Once he finished that painting, he's gonna call Yotasuke.

Chapter Text

Shounen Hollywood's fans were generally women, as would any idol group comprised of male members. Sometimes, there would be a few men in the audience, usually boyfriends invited by fans. In a dimly-lit crowd of women, these men tend to go unnoticed, until they attend the handshake event. Then, the boys would definitely notice them, because wow—they managed to get a man!

So, when Yatora stopped coming to the theatre, everyone absolutely noticed.

"I bet half of my salary that he's not gonna show up ever again," said Shun after Yatora was absent for three weeks.

"Huh?!" Makki growled with a toothbrush in his mouth. After spitting toothpaste into the sink, he said, "Well, I bet my salary and rent that he’ll show up before the end of this month!"

Tommy looked up from the stack of photos he was signing. "Tesshi will get mad if you gamble," he warned with a frown.

Makki mumbled something in response, a result of him trying to talk while wiping his mouth with a towel.

"What?" said Tommy, obviously hearing nothing coherent.

"Makki said 'I'm not just gambling,'" Shun flawlessly interpreted over a puzzle game on his phone. "'I'm ensuring Yatora-san's return by upping the stakes.' Which is illogical, by the way. The money's good as mine."

"No, it's not!" said Makki, tossing his towel onto a hanger. He turned to Kira. "Don't worry, Kira. He's definitely coming back."

Kira was also signing photos and looked up to scowl at Makki. "Huh? Just save your money."

Kakeru, who was doing schoolwork, paused his writing. "You don't want Yatora-san to come back?" He sounded like a concerned older brother.

"That's not what I meant," Kira mumbled, meekly looking away. He sighed. "I never should've done that impersonation."

"It's not your fault," Makki assured him, joining the table. "You couldn't've known his friend was his crush."

Makki made that connection the last night Yatora was present at the theatre, when the boys were cooling off in the dressing room after the handshake event. He was the slowest at memorizing dance moves and song lyrics, but boy was he quick at sussing out romantic intentions. Although everyone did come to that same conclusion the moment they saw Yatora blush, only Makki deduced that Yatora had been coming to the theatre to 'see' his crush.

"It doesn't change the fact that I scared him away," said Kira. He picked up his pen and resumed signing, writing positive quotes that contrasted his glum mood. "Every customer matters in this line of work. Now, there's one less seat being filled."

"Don't worry. We can always attract new people," said Tommy, touching Kira's shoulder reassuringly. "It's okay if Yatora-san doesn't want to come back."

"No, he will," said Makki, firmly.

"What makes you think that?" asked Kakeru.

"His unwillingness to give me his whole salary and rent," said Shun.

Makki ignored Shun and answered Kakeru, "The reason why Yatora-san left was, yeah, embarrassment, but the reason he hasn't come back must be because he's realized he wants his actual crush more than Kira! He's probably confessed to him by now."

"And therefore has no reason to return," Shun chimed in.

Makki glared at Shun. "Yes, he has a reason to return! To keep his promise to Kira and bring that friend with him!"

"He didn't promise me anything. Ugh, just drop it, Makki!" Kira said before capping his marker, scooping up his signed stack of photos, and stamping out of the room.

If he had time to be worrying about one fan leaving, Kira would rather spend it polishing his performance to maintain his remaining fans and gain more. And it's not like Yatora was the only fan Kira cared about; he cared about everyone who devoted their time and attention to him, whether they were his beloved Salmons or only interested in him as an idol. Yatora wasn't special.

Except he was. He was the first fan Kira gained by directly approaching him. Idols were supposed to attract their audience; hold out fliers to the public and convince people to take them with their charm, not put it right in the hands of a stranger. Kira wouldn't have given Yatora that flier if Shun hadn't dared the former to photobomb the latter.

Maybe that's why Kira felt so responsible for Yatora. Well, he had other fans to be responsible for.

Kira placed his signed photos on his part of the merch table. Shortly afterwards, Tesshi appeared to order him to the stage for practice after having called the others. They practiced a few dances and went over their script for the emcee portions. Soon, evening came; guests, too. It was time to change into their sailor costumes, and then time to go onstage.

They started with Hollywood Rules 1-2-5 for this show. When the overture finished, the sound operator waited until the fans' cheers had died down significantly before playing the song. The trumpet melody faded into existence, and the stage lights came on the moment the main melody played. It was a surefire way to get the fans excited, although they would go quiet again in respect of the music.

Kira was stationed at the back for this song. It was harder to see the fans from here. It was hard to see the fans in general, what with them having no lighting other than the glowsticks in their hands. But if he was closer to the front, without anyone obstructing his view, Kira would be able discern some faces, more so if those faces sat near the stage, like Yatora had.

An idol should pay attention to all his fans, though, not just ones whose faces he can make out and definitely not just the ones who weren’t showing up anymore.

The song finished, and the cheers restarted.

"Thank you!" said Kakeru, because he was at the front and in the center. "Thank you very much! I think some self-intros are in order but…" He glanced at the microphone stands taking up the stage. "It might not be safe right now."

The cheers changed to light laughter. The boys laughed a bit, too.

"Well, I think we've hogged the front stage long enough." Kakeru looked at the workmates flanking him. "Tommy, Shun, let's take these stands backstage, shall we?"

"Aye-aye," Tommy and Shun responded together; Tommy enthusiastically, Shun nonchalantly.

"Thank you!" Kira chirped, passing his stand to Shun.

"Thanks," said Makki as Tommy took his. Then, he walked to the front of the stage and yelled, "How's everyone doin' tonight?!"

The audience responded with enthusiastic cheers.

Makki looked behind. "What about you, Kira? How're you doing tonight?"

Kira hopped forward. "I'm really excited today!" he answered cheerfully.

"Oh, why's that?" Makki asked, even though he knew.

"Everyone!" Kira said to the audience. "I've got a funny story to tell!"

Gleeful chatters sounded from the audience like the waves of the ocean. After a moment, the ocean stilled in anticipation.

"Before I start," said Kira, "can you tell me who is Shounen Hollywood's guardian spirit?" He lent his microphone to the audience.

"An owl!" shouted one half.

"A horned owl!" shouted the other half.

"Cat the horned owl!" shouted Makki.

"Ding Dong Dang!" Kira cheered, and the stage's digital backdrop changed to show an owl's silhouette. "It's Cat the horned owl! That's the special guest of my story!"

"Seriously?!" Makki was literally buzzing with energy. "Now, I'm really pumped! What's the story about?"

Kira raised an eyebrow. "What are you saying, Makki? You were there."

Makki stopped buzzing. "Eh?"

"Don't you remember this afternoon?" Kira actually meant 'last week', but it was better for the audience to think it happened recently.

"This after—Oh." Makki frowned sheepishly. "You're gonna tell everyone about that?"

"It'd be a crime to keep it to ourselves." Kira turned to the audience. "So listen closely, okay?"

"Okay!" replied the audience.

The backdrop changed to a sky blue gradient, and Kira began, "It was three in the afternoon. All of us were gathered in the lobby, waiting for our manager to give us our fliers. Cat was waiting there, too, at his birdhouse." He raised his arm to show how high Cat was perched. Then, he faced towards the space he had gestured at, slackened his posture, and folded his arms. "'Cat,'" he spoke in a deeper, casual tone, "'wanna give out fliers with us? You can ride on my shoulder and hold a flier in your beak.'" 

The audience immediately figured out how Kira was impersonating. "Shun-Shun!" they squealed.

Makki stood beside Kira, slouching stiffly. "And then Cat was like 'Ho!'" he said and turned his head away. The audience laughed at his owl impression.

Kira straightened his back. He reached towards his hair and lifted two strands. "'Shun, Cat can't come with us.'" He had added some nasality to his tone this time. "'He has to protect the theatre while we're gone. No, wait. He's followed Tesshi out many times.'" He reverted to his usual voice. "'Hmm... I wonder how Cat protects the theatre. Can you tell us, Cat?'"

"Ho," Makki hooted again, before fixing his posture. "And I said, 'I've been thinking about this, too! Maybe he sets up a protective barrier to ward off bad spirits. Or his hoots are actually holy chants!'"

"'Or maybe he eats all the rats and roaches in the theatre,'" Kira deadpanned in Shun's voice before switching to a falsetto, looking the other direction, and gesticulating angrily. "'No way! How could you insult our theatre like that, Shun?!'" Back to his usual voice and posture. "Then, our president walked up to us, and he said—" His deepest voice now, with one hand in a pocket, while facing the audience with a serious expression "—'You're surprisingly close to the truth, Makki. Yes, Cat's presence turns the theatre into a place where positive energy gathers, and his hoots...are very compelling. Cat is an incredibly powerful being.'"

"President's a really philosophical guy, and sometimes, he talks in metaphor," explained Makki. "You can't always take his words at face value."

"Right! You knew this, Makki," said Kira, sounding cute and chipper again. "And what did you think President was trying to say?"

Makki's sheepish frown returned. After a second, he admitted, "That Cat did have superpowers."

"And then Makki tried to communicate with Cat telepathically!" Kira told the laughing audience. He pressed two fingers from his left hand to his temple. "He wanted Cat to guess the number in his head and hoot the answer, so he stared at Cat and went 'Mmm....!'" He pressed his lips into a tight line and furrowed his brow, and directed that expression to Makki.

Makki resumed his owl pose and glowered at Kira for a few seconds. Suddenly, he kissed him on the forehead, causing the audience to explode into squeals.

"Yeah! Cat kissed me!" Makki bragged to them.

"Oh, he kissed you alright!" Kira lifted Makki's bangs, revealing a red dent. "He gave you a real peck!"

"Oh, no! Poor Makki!" cried out a few members of the audience, almost unheard through the laughter.

Normally, during emcee portions, the audience would hold their glowsticks low, either near their chests or on their laps; basically on standby until the next song. Because of that, the glowsticks can only illuminate their chins at most. When they're laughing, however, they'll hunch over, they might try to cover their mouths, they could also have to wipe away tears, and in those cases, their glowsticks came closer to their faces, and Kira will be able to see more than their chins.

That was how he spotted Yatora. He saw a messy shock of bleached hair tinted blue, in the furthermost row, near the aisle, and then the head lifted a bit, and Kira saw Yatora's laughing face. Only for a second, but he recognized him instantly.

The cheerfulness he produced for this performance became a lot more sincere.

"Whoa, what's all this laughter?" said Shun, coming back onstage with Kakeru and Tommy. "What happened while we're gone?"

"I told everyone a funny story!" Kira replied with a huge smile.

"Is it over already? Aww..." Tommy said in an exaggerated sad tone.

"Whaddaya mean 'over'?! The night's just begun!" said Makki. "Come on! It's time for our self-intros!"

Tonight's self-intro order was Tommy, Shun, Kakeru, Makki, and finally, Kira.

"Up until just recently, I lived in the Star Kingdom." Kira paused to point his mic to his adoring fans. He did it three times—first to the left, second to the right, and third to Yatora, before bringing the mic back to himself. "Can you see how I twinkle? I want to become your star of hope! I'm Saeki Kira, the youngest member of the group! I'm a first year in high school, and I'm sixteen years old!"

Then, Shounen Hollywood got ready to perform Eternally Never Ever.

Oh, that was great! Kira-kun is such a great actor.

Also, uh, doesn't Kira-kun sound like you, Yotasuke-kun? He looks a bit like you, too. He's actually my favorite for it.

He resembles you so much, I would come to shows night after night to pretend it's you performing onstage. Yeah, I know how creepy and weird that sounded. Sorry.

But when I watched Kira-kun, it felt like I was seeing a different side of you; a happier, friendlier side. I found out how you'd sound if you laughed.

Enough. I get it, Yaguchi-san. You want me to be more like Saeki Kira.

No.

Kira-kun is Kira-kun, and you are you. His laughter...isn't your laughter, and I'd know your laughter if I made the effort to get closer to you, Yotasuke-kun.

But I was scared of getting closer because...I like you. I'm so, so in love with you, Yotasuke-kun, and I was scared you'd find out if I got closer. Even now, I'm still scared of how you'll react.

So I went to Kira to escape, to indulge in a fantasy where my feelings would be accepted, but it's not Kira whom my feelings are for. It's not him who I want to go out with.

It's you, Yotasuke-kun.

I want to get closer to you. I want to be your boyfriend.

...

Can I?

...

...You don't have to answer me now. Let's enjoy the show first, okay?

They capped off the show with HOLLY TRIP, and it was time for handshakes. They had run this routine so many times, they arrived early enough to help Tesshi set up the table.

"Makki, don't press so hard!" Shun hissed. "You're dragging down the tablecloth!"

"Then hold the cloth down better!" Makki snapped. He peeled his crooked poster off and tried to stick it upright, cursing all the while. "Arrrrrgh! Why won't it stick straight?!"

"Goodness, Makki! Just leave that to me and go behind the table!" said Tesshi, and Makki sulkily obeyed.

Finally, everything was ready. Tesshi gave the part-timers the okay to open the auditorium's doors. The boys quickly fixed their postures and put on bright smiles.

"Hey, Shun," Makki whispered from the edge of his grin.

"What?" Shun replied irritably, without disturbing his inviting expression.

"You owe me half your salary."

Shun's brow furrowed, and then unfurrowed because the fans were pouring into the lobby, before furrowing a little again when Yatora showed up at the front of Kira's line.

"Welcome back, Yatora-san!" Kira greeted happily.

"Hi, Kira-kun," Yatora greeted back with a slightly bashful smile. He seemed more relaxed than their last encounter. "It's been a while, huh? Sorry about that."

Kira crossed his arms and puffed up one cheek. "If you're sorry for the days you didn't come, you should've brought twenty friends with you to make up for it," he said in a pouty tone. "Just kidding!" he added with a big smile.

Yatora chuckled. "I actually did bring one friend."

"Oh?"

"I brought Yotasuke-kun."

Yatora looked behind, and Kira followed his gaze to the auditorium's doors. A small person was walking out. His blue, long-sleeved flannel shirt was the first thing that caught Kira's attention. Then, he turned his short, black-haired head, revealing a round face with a mole under each eye. His face scrunched up when Yatora and Kira both waved at him as it resulted in some fans in Kira's line also turning to look.

Yotasuke promptly stamped towards the exit.

"Ah, wait for me outside, okay, Yotasuke-kun?!" Yatora hastily called out. He turned to Kira. "Tonight, I would like a handshake."

"Sure!" Kira chirped and grasped Yatora's bigger hands in his smaller pair.

Yatora's hands were trembling as he spoke, "I also want to thank you. Because of you, Kira-kun, I had a place where I could indulge myself until I was ready to take the first step." The trembling lessened, but not completely. "Now, I don't have to do that anymore."

"You're not coming to the theatre anymore?" said Kira, squeezing Yatora's hands with the saddest puppy-dog eyes he could muster because he wasn't gonna let him get away that easily.

"Ah, no, that's not what I meant! I'll definitely swing by if I have time!" Yatora quickly added before muttering to the side, "And if my bank account allowed it..." He also gave Kira's hands a squeeze, finally ending the trembling, and looked at him with utmost sincerity. "I'm finally ready to enjoy you as yourself. The last times I came, I wasn't viewing you as Saeki Kira, but starting today, I will, because you're an amazing performer, Kira-kun. I really loved your story at the start of the show."

"Aww, thanks!" said Kira, and it was time to break the handshake.

Yatora waved as he left the line. "Alright, bye, Kira-kun!"

Kira waved goodbye too. "Bye-bye, Yatora-san!" Then, Yatora was out the theatre, and Kira moved on to the next fan. "Hi!"

Yaguchi-san.

Yes?!

Being closer to you doesn't mean having to be close to your friends, too, does it?

No, of course not!

Will you drag me to more of these concerts?

I wouldn't drag you... I mean, it's up to you if want to come or not, Yotasuke-kun.

...Then, what would you do...as my boyfriend?

Eh?

How are you going to get closer to me, Yaguchi-san?

...I don't know. I don't know yet. I just know I like you, and that there's so little I know about you.

And I guess my first step should be to do what you would like. I feel like we've only been going to places I like.

Yeah. We have.

Sorry... I wish I knew what places you liked, Yotasuke-kun...

...The rabbit pen.

Eh?

The rabbit pen where I drew that picture. I liked going there.

Oh...

Do you...want to go there, Yaguchi-san? With me?

As a date? As your boyfriend?!

...The teacher and little girl who take care of the pen don't need to know that.

Sure! So, when do we go?

I'll bring you there tomorrow morning. We can look before going to class.

Tomorrow morning! Okay! Wow, I'm really looking forward to it...

Mm. Me, too.