Chapter Text
Tsuge admired and envied Minato in equal parts.
When his publisher suggested he observe a few dance classes to get a better idea of the world for his new book, he had noticed the young soloist immediately.
Minato turned his body into something…extraordinary, being whatever the dance required him to be. He could be cruel, love-struck, flirty or sad, and he never needed to say a word.
Radiant.
Tsuge could never do anything like that. He liked to think his writings evoked some kind of emotions in people, but he knew that it probably wasn’t as profound as what Minato could evoke.
So, he watched and pined, hoping that his ogling wasn’t obvious.
After all, he had never had a conversation with the younger man, and whilst he knew that the younger generation tended to be a lot more welcoming about LGBTQ subjects, he couldn’t assume that Minato swung that way.
Just because he was a dancer, it didn’t mean that he was gay after all, no matter what people thought.
He watched as Minato practiced that looked to be a very difficult lift, taking as many notes as he could to make sure that it was accurately described in the book. There was a fine line between smut and romance after all, and he was careful not to over-step that line.
“You know…”
Tsuge jumped, looking up to see that everyone was taking a break. He then looked over his shoulder, to see Minato standing there.
“…If you want us to make it a bit sexier, we can.” The younger man teased, as Tsuge blinked owlishly up at him, mouth stammering out nothing but vague noises for a moment, before the words finally came to him.
“Actually, I really don’t- my publishers don’t want anything too-“ He made a vague hand gesture, “This is my first same-sex couple, I- I don’t want- “
“- You don’t want it to be your last because some old guys think it’ll offend someone.” Minato nodded with a hum, before smirking, “Fuck them.”
“I- “ Was he blushing? He felt like he was blushing.
“- It’s your book isn’t it? And you’ve wrote loads of amazing books, and if someone is uncomfortable, then they can just stop reading it, right?”
“I- well, yes, but- “
Before he could finish the sentence, the choreographer called for Minato come back to the stage. It was hard for Tsuge to ignore the lingering gazes Minato cast over to him over the course of the practice, his writing a lot less legible the longer it went on.
When practice was over, Minto came bounding over to Tsuge, who hoped that his blushing wasn’t too obvious.
“This was your last day, right?”
“I- yes?”
Minato stared at him, as though waiting for something, before a soft smile appeared on his face, “You know, you shouldn’t have to hide. I bet there’s an entire audience who would love books that represent their experiences with love…I know I’d appreciate it.”
All Tsuge could do was gape a little.
Minato continued, “You’re a great writer, you really are, but I reckon you’ll be even better if you take a chance.” He went to leave, slipping something into Tsuge’s hand as he passed him.
When Tsuge checked, it was a phone number.
Take a chance.
He could do that.