Mousapelli’s Fanfiction » 26 JE Birthday Kisses, You & I

26 JE Birthday Kisses, You & I

Title: Kiss 2wenty-2wo: You & I [Tackey/Tsubasa]
Rating/Warnings: PG-13 for how much Tackey loves the juniors.
Summary: Tackey is busy with a certain Special Project, and Tsubasa is mostly happy with that.
AN: for 26 Birthday Kisses, Kiss 2wenty-2wo: Kiss on the Hand. This turned out to be T&T completely on accident! How ironic.

Kiss 2wenty-2wo: You & I

The curse of being talented is how busy you end up being. As overwhelmed as Tsubasa feels at times, trying to wedge time to write music into a schedule jam-packed with shoots and recordings and lives, he can always spare a few seconds to marvel at how Tackey holds up with a schedule that seems perpetually five times as full as his own.

Sometimes he feels that if they didn’t record together, they wouldn’t be seeing each other at all, but Tackey likes being so busy and thrives on having a variety of projects all going on at the same time. Tackey is happy, mostly, and Tsubasa is mostly happy with that.

It’s the dead of summer, the air thick and stagnant, and Tsubasa has just got inside and is draped limply over the couch, sweat-soaked from the subway, when Tackey rushes in, shouting and waving his arms and barely making any sense at all.

Tsubasa eyes him with distaste, because as much as he loves the man, it’s way, way too hot for this kind of excitement.

“Slower,” he advises, drawing out his words to demonstrate, “and more breathing.”

Tackey gathers himself together and starts over, but his smile doesn’t dim one iota; he’s being given a personal project, one for which he can pick from any of the juniors that he wants, and which will end up with him directing a promotional video.

It’s clear that this will mean endless hours packed into Tackey’s already overfull schedule, hours that involve a lot more juniors than it does Tsubasa or probably even sleep, but Tsubasa pushes it all aside to smile, to congratulate Tackey, who is grinning so hard that he looks like his heart is bursting with excitement and artistic license.

“A PV,” Tackey says again, starry-eyed as he collapses in a sweaty heap next to Tsubasa.

“It’s wonderful news,” Tsubasa replies, meaning every syllable because Tackey is radiating happiness like the sun, and Tsubasa is mostly happy with that.

*****

As predicted, Tackey’s Special Project, as it comes to be called on Shounen Club, involves spending more than a few hours surrounded by a mob of juniors, and the time he spends with Tsubasa is usually filled with stories about the ones Tackey takes a particular liking to.

Senga-kun seems to be a favorite this time around, and Tsubasa shakes his head, remembering a time when it would have been “Yamapi this” and “Yamapi that” and “Yamapi is definitely the cutest, don’t you think?”

“Pi-chan is still the cutest,” Tackey yawns when Tsubasa teases, sprawled over Tsubasa’s lap and sighing as Tsubasa works the knots out of his neck and shoulders. “But they let him debut, the idiots. We can definitely get Ken-chan trained up, though. And what do you think of Bun-chan?”

“I think you like the juniors too much,” Tsubasa replies fondly, “and you’re definitely not going to be able to pick just five,” and then they both laugh because it’s completely true.

*****

“So,” Tsubasa says, after Tackey strolls into the restaurant twenty minutes late, which for Tackey is practically on time, self-satisfaction rolling off him like steam off Tsubasa’s ramen. “It’s going well, then?”

“Oh, you know,” Tackey says, expression falling a bit, and then he makes a big deal out of flagging down the waitress and ordering, and then doesn’t say anything else even after the waitress leaves.

Tsubasa raises his eyebrow. “Oh, you know? You don’t want to talk about Tackey’s Super Special Junior Happy Bonanza Party?”

“That’s not what it’s called. And who taught you the word bonanza?” Tackey demands, but Tsubasa just goes on staring at him. Deprived of his menu to occupy his hands, Tackey drums his fingers on the table. “Actually, I’mâ€¦not supposed to talk about it. It’s supposed to be a surprise.”

“You’reâ€¦what?” Tsubasa blinks, because for the last few weeks, it’s all they have talked about. “Not even with me?”

Tackey stares at the table, shoulders low and all the happiness suddenly dim. “No.”

“It’s fine,” Tsubasa relents immediately. Tackey jerks his head up to peer at him suspiciously, and Tsubasa shrugs, giving Tackey a smile. “If you aren’t supposed to talk about itâ€¦I like surprises.”

“You hate surprises,” Tackey says, a smile lurking around the corners of his mouth.

“I like your surprises.” Tsubasa picks up his glass and clinks it against Tackey’s, then takes a long sip.

Besides, Tsubasa knows exactly how good Tackey is at keeping secrets.

*****

Tackey holds out far longer than Tsubasa would have imagined, which Tsubasa supposes just goes to show that Tackey really cares about this particular project. Management doesn’t know what it does to Tackey, though, not to be able to bounce ideas off anyone, not to be able to talk himself through something like this, where the possibilities are so wide.

It’s starting to wear on Tackey, more than the workload, until finally Tackey drags himself in the door and is immediately accosted by Tsubasa.

“What?” Tackey demands, irritable, as Tsubasa drags him over to the couch. Tsubasa sits down and positions Tackey in front of him, then leans back, obviously ready to listen. Tackey huffs a sigh and reaches down to bump his knuckles against Tsubasa’s cheek. “I appreciate what you’re doing, but you know I can’t talk about it.”

“You can talk about it all you want,” Tsubasa says, and before Tackey can protest, he reaches into Tackey’s pockets and pulls out his iPod. Unwrapping the cord with a practiced wrist, Tsubasa sticks the earbuds in, and leans back to get comfortable again as he thumbs the play button. “I just can’t listen.”

Tackey’s face is blank for a moment, before he lights up like a Christmas tree, and he starts laughing, which makes Tsubasa grin back even though all he hears is a dull buzz over the shameful pop that Tackey’s been listening to. And then, just like Tsubasa knows he’s been dying to, Tackey starts talking.

After a minute to warm up, and a few comments with a sly grin that Tsubasa is sure are to test his hearing, Tackey really gets going, waving his hands around and face animating with his words. Tsubasa can see him asking questions and spinning ideas, and lets the rise and fall of Tackey’s voice wash over him, completely drawn in by Tackey’s excitement and passion.

At length, Tackey lets his hands fall slack at his sides and heaves a relieved sigh, and then reaches up to pull the earbuds out of Tsubasa’s ears, brushing his fingers through Tsubasa’s hair while it’s convenient.

“Thank you,” he says, smile relaxed and relieved, and Tsubasa brings his hands up to cover Tackey’s and draws them to his mouth to kiss Tackey’s knuckles.

“It sounds great,” Tsubasa assures him as he tugs Tackey down into his lap, Tackey gives him a bland expression, and Tsubasa amends, “Well, it looks great anyway.”

*****

In the end, Tackey cracks and brings home a DVD of the finished footage before it actually airs on Shounen Club, which Tsubasa has actually taken to watching for the updates. He shoves the disc in the DVD player and then throws himself on the couch next to Tsubasa, fiddling with the sleeves of his shirt while Tsubasa gets the thing on the right channel and hits play.

Tsubasa doesn’t say anything the whole time he watches and he doesn’t glance to the side where Tackey is fidgeting with increasing restlessness. He keeps his face carefully neutral, because if he starts smiling at Tackey’s adorable panic, Tackey will take it completely the wrong way and Tsubasa won’t get to finish the PV without a big interruption.

Because in the end, he thinks as it wraps up, it doesn’t matter if the PV is terrible (which it isn’t), or if Tackey picked the wrong people (which he didn’t), or if Tackey let his artistic license get completely out of control (which only happened a little).

It doesn’t matter, because no matter what’s on the disc, Tsubasa is going to turn to Tackey and slide his hands over Tackey’s cheeks to force Tackey to look at him, and then he’s going to smile and tell him, “I’m very, very proud of you.”

It helps that he really does like the PV and really does mean it, all the way down to his toes, but he’d tell Tackey that anyway, just to see Tackey’s brightest smile unfurl across his face before he throws himself into Tsubasa’s arms and kisses Tsubasa senseless in relief and pleasure.

With his hands pressed tight against Tackey’s back, Tsubasa can feel the way Tackey’s heart is pounding like it’s going to burst from happiness, and Tsubasa is definitely more than mostly happy with that.