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Rui stared blankly at the note he had discovered in his locker.
'Meet me at the rooftop at 7 tonight :)'
That's what it said.
Rui had gotten letters similar to this before, more specifically, from other girls wishing to confess their love to him. He had all politely turned them down, explaining kindly how he didn't feel the same way. Thankfully, they all had taken it well, and seemed to get over it sooner or later.
But this note, it was special. It was special because Rui immediately recognized the handwriting. Of course he recognized the handwriting, how could he not?
It was Tsukasa's writing. Tsukasa Tenma's. Rui would know that handwriting from anywhere. But the question was, why would he write a letter to him like this? Couldn't he have just told him?
Rui stared down at the small piece of paper in his hand, feeling his lips tug upwards into a shaky, wavering smile. He wasn't even sure if it was a smile. He could feel his heart beating in his chest, he could feel his cheeks growing warm with blush. He didn't know what this letter meant, but the conclusion he jumped to..
No, no, Rui shouldn't get so ahead of himself! It could be anything else, he shouldn't just believe it was going to be... THAT right away!
Man, was having a crush difficult. Somehow, every little thing felt like a sign to Rui, but at the same time, it didn't. Every time Tsukasa would pull him aside, telling him he wanted to talk, Rui's heart would begin to beat out of his chest, a light blush spreading onto his cheeks, only for him to tell him something else.
Rui always expected a confession. He never got one.
But sitting around and waiting wouldn't do anything. And so wouldn't wallowing in despair about the fear of his love being unrequited. So, after a lot of planning and gathering his courage, Rui made the decision to confess.
And then this letter came.
And now Rui was panicking. Because it was 2:30 in the afternoon, and he couldn't wait four and a half hours. He needed to know why the time was so specific, what that smiley face was supposed to mean, why Tsukasa didn't think to tell him in person instead of sending a letter-
"What's that?"
"WAH-!! Oh-!"
Rui yelped in surprise at the sudden voice, whipping his head to face the source. It was Mizuki Akiyama, his dear friend in solitude. "What'cha reading?"
Rui quickly stuffed the note into his pocket, shaking his head quickly. "Oh, it's nothing-"
"Is it another confession note?" Mizuki asked, raising an eyebrow. "Damn, I thought these ladies already knew you were born straight out of a fruit basket."
Rui's lips thinned out into a straight line. "Well.. I'm not so sure," He admitted, taking the note out again. He was sure Mizuki could provide some input on this- they were an expert, right?
Mizuki quickly snatched the note from Rui's hands, reading it with narrowed eyes and a stern expression. They hummed to themselves, nodding as they read the note over and over. "Do you know who this is from?" They inquired, nodding to themselves as if the letter had a secret code they were internally cracking.
Rui laughed nervously, rubbing the back of his neck. "It's Tsukasa's handwriting..."
Mizuki paused, their jaw dropping and their head whipping upwards to stare at Rui in shock. "THIS is from TSUKASA?!" They cried out, holding up the note and pointing at it, "THIS letter, with no name signed, extremely vague, AND with a SMILEY FACE AT THE END is from TENMA TSUKASA?!!!"
Rui nodded awkwardly. "If it's his handwriting, then..."
The pinkette laughed, clapping their hands together excitedly. "Oh my god, Rui! Do you know what this means?!"
Oh, surely they had the same idea in mind as him, but—
"It probably isn't, I shouldn't-"
"YOU SHOULD!!!" Mizuki interrupted excitedly, shoving the letter into Rui's face. "Dude, he's gonna wait for you on that rooftop and he's gonna go, 'Oh, Rui! I hath summoned thou herest to night on this fine, lovely eve of ning to profess mine undying and absolute love!' and you're gonna be all 'Oh, Tsukasa-kun~!! I love you too!' then you guys are gonna smooch and go mmmmwahwhahwahwhwhahahwhahahwmamamwmamggggghhh"
"MIZUKI-!" Rui squeaked, his face going red with blush as Mizuki slammed the tips of their fingers together with a tonk, imitating kissing noises. At the sight, his friend only laughed at him. "Man, you're so pathetic. Slash pos."
"Slash pos..." Rui repeated to himself, laughing awkwardly. "Anyways- what do I do?!"
Mizuki's eyes went wide and the blinked rapidly. "What do you do?" They echoed, scoffing. "Well, you go up there at 7 and talk to him, of course!"
"But-" Rui stammered, "What if-"
"Aaaahhh, bubububububububububuh. Stoopp." Mizuki interrupted, shaking their head with a pout. "No worrying. You go up there, period. No buts."
"But-"
"I saaaaaiiiiiiddd...."
Rui looked down at Mizuki gingerly for a few moments, before sighing and shaking his head. "Ah, fine."
"See? It's that easy!" Mizuki exclaimed, nodding pridefully with their hands on their hips. "Anyways, I gotta go, I'm meeting my friends at the diner. Good luck, loverboy!"
Rui opened his mouth to protest against the nickname, but by the time he had just begun to do so, Mizuki had already run off, waving at him with a stupid little grin.
The director watched at Mizuki turned around and ran off to the gates, letting out a deep sigh and shaking his head. He looked down at the note in his hands once more, still feeling that light blush on his cheeks.
Oh, what if it was a confession? But what if it was something else- but what else could it be, Rui thought? Technically, since Rui already knew what the letter was supposedly going to be about, didn't that mean the surprise was already spoiled?
Somehow, with this one letter, all of Rui's fears about Tsukasa's possibility of not returning his feelings seemed to fly out the window. He couldn't think of anything else this letter could be. But at the same time, he couldn't fathom the idea of his feelings being reciprocated- it didn't make sense.
Honestly, nothing ever really made sense. Love didn't make sense.
But you know what?
Maybe that was okay.
Rui took a deep breath, nodding to himself with a firm expression. It was decided; he would go to the rooftop at 7, he would hear what Tsukasa had to say.
...But what was he supposed to do while he waited-?
————
3:00 PM.
Rui had went home and immediately started pacing laps around the garage, muttering to himself.
3:15 PM.
Rui had decided to try and work on a new robot. He tried to draw designs.
3:20 PM.
He just drew Tsukasa.
Wait, what the fuck? This was actually better than his usual drawings of actual people and not robots..
3:30 PM.
Rui had just drawn Tsukasa. On his journal page.
He ripped the page off and hid it inside his drawer, never to be seen again.
4:00 PM.
Rui had been staring at the ceiling, thinking to himself for the past 30 minutes.
Oh god.
4:30 PM.
Rui had done his homework!
5:00 PM.
Two hours. Rui was getting nervous.
Should he wear something fancy...? Or casual? What was he supposed to wear-?!
5:15 PM.
HOW WAS RUI SUPPOSED TO LOOK?!!
5:30 PM.
He asked Mizuki.
5:33 PM.
Mizuki (Coquette Queen)
lol idk your taste is kinda ass
something like
no not church fancy
????
but like JUST below that
Casual but nice
Like you're going on a date
but u dont want others to know its a date
ykyk
6:00 PM.
Rui was getting ready.
Was he too early? There was still an hour.
6:30 PM.
Rui was leaving.
You
wish me luck Mozuki!!!!
Mizuki (Coquette Queen)
HELL YEAH
GO GET EM TIGER ‼️‼️‼️‼️
I BELIEVE IN YOU
LET HIM SERENADE YOU WITH HIS WORDS
You
bye bye 😁
Mizuki (Coquette Queen)
Bum ass emoji
uhh anyway GOOD LUCK
TELL ME THE RESULTS
6:45 PM.
Rui was at the high school. More specifically, he was on the third floor, doing laps around the entire floor.
One lap.
Then another.
And another.
6:50 PM.
Ten minutes.
4 laps, going on his fifth.
He was walking fast, even getting a bit tired. This was a workout.
Maybe Rui should rest, he didn't want to internally die when climbing the stairs.
So he sat down on the floor in front in front of the stairwell, waiting until 7.
He could hear something. It sounded like music, but he couldn't discern it properly- it was muffled and faint. If there was even a tiny bit of noise other than his own breaths, Rui doubted he would be able to hear it.
He could also feel- and hear- his own heart beating in his chest. It was strange how Rui was so convinced that Tsukasa was going to confess to him. Really, it ruined the surprise, but the director wasn't sure what else he was supposed to think it was.
And somehow, even though Rui was convinced that it was a confession, he still couldn't wrap the idea of Tsukasa loving him back around his head. He wasn't screaming 'FUCK YEAH' in his head, or panicking and thinking that it was just a lie, but it was more of a... not calm since he was still pretty nervous- but it was this... secret third thing that nobody knew about. Was there a way to describe this feeling?
Was Rui even... feeling??????
But the next thing he knew- it was 6:59.
Time to go upstairs.
Rui took a deep breath, attempting to push his nerves aside as he stood up and dusted off his pants.
His hands were shaking. In fact, his whole body was shaking, actually.
...It was fine. It would be fine, surely.
Rui pushed the door to the stairwell open. The sound of his footsteps echoed throughout the cramped space as he began to climb- as well as the sounds of a melody played on the piano. So that was what that music was.
Was Tsukasa playing the piano?
With each step he took, he got more nervous. With each breath he took, his heart pounded in his chest, in his ears. He couldn't seem to calm himself down.
Then, finally, he reached the top. The piano was much louder. He could hear it, he could hear its soft, gentle melody, and the familiar, tender voice humming quietly along with the tune.
Rui felt his heart skip a beat.
As he opened the door, a gentle gust of wind hit him, leaves dramatically flowing by as he looked at the sight in front of him. A small keyboard was set up in the middle of the rooftop, and Tsukasa was standing behind it, paying no mind to the director that had just entered. In front of the piano, on the floor, was a picnic blanket, pinned down by a bag and a basket on opposite ends of one another.
A few seconds later, Tsukasa looked up at Rui, smiling. "Wanna have a picnic?"
...
Huh?
What.
What was this.
Rui stared at the sight before him, blinking rapidly. Tsukasa had called him up here... to have a picnic with him?
"...Rui?"
"O-oh! My bad, Tsukasa-kun.." Rui quickly regained his composure, coughing awkwardly as he stepped forward and let the door shut behind him. "You were the one with the letter-?"
Tsukasa laughed awkwardly, nodding as he walked over to the blanket and sat down, taking off his shoes and leaving them underneath the keyboard. "Yeah, I hope you don't mind!"
"No, no, it's fine." Rui replied, shaking his head as he followed Tsukasa to the blanket, taking off his shoes as well. He didn't want to get the blanket dirty, after all. "What caused this idea, may I ask?"
Oh, thank god Rui knew how to act relatively normal.
Tsukasa hummed, "I wanted to go stargazing with you." He replied simply, reaching for his bag. "Also, I made food for us! No vegetables, too- you better be thankful!"
As Rui continued putting up the facade of pretending that he wasn't internally having a crisis, Rui was internally having a crisis.
This didn't make sense. This didn't make sense!
Tsukasa set all this up?! For what? What was he trying to do?! Why did he make it so mysterious, what was with that note, the piano? Why here, of all places?! Why didn't Tsukasa just ask him?
"Wouldn't the school be closed by the time the stars are visible?" Rui pointed out.
Tsukasa shot Rui a smile full of pride. "I pulled some strings and got the keys! As long as we lock up when we leave, we'll be fine."
He even did THAT, too?!
The blond took out two paper plates from his bag, a pattern of blue flowers around the edges. He really had prepared for everything. He looked really nice, too.. quite pretty, actually.
...Oh god he needed to stop thinking of this.
The two had some small conversations as Tsukasa prepared their food, Rui also moving to help. Thankfully, he just had to pretend that he wasn't panicking, and everything would be alright.
"I hope you won't mind that we'll be out here for a while," Tsukasa piped up, his voice uncharacteristically calm. It wasn't like Rui hadn't heard this tone from Tsukasa before, but now, in this situation?
Rui could only wonder what it possibly could have meant.
They began to eat soon, the sun setting behind them. It was a nice view, actually, Rui would admit. They talked a bit more, too, and at times, Rui even forgot about the implications of whatever the fuck was going on currently.
Eventually, they had both finished, and the sun had set. They were still talking, and Tsukasa looked up at the sky.
"I can see some of the stars," He mumbled, shifting his position. He moved to sit beside Rui rather than in front of him, pointing up at the navy blue sky as tiny, white dots danced across the atmosphere, some large, some barely visible. Rui felt his cheeks heat up for around the fifth time that day as Tsukasa leaned against him. "You know about stars, right?"
Rui coughed awkwardly, quickly controlling himself once more. "Yes, I do."
"Good, cause I do too." Tsukasa smiled, "But you probably know more.."
"How could I know more about stars than the star himself?" Rui blurted out, tilting his head to the side.
Tsukasa's eyes widened, looking at Rui, whose eyes were also wide as he processed his own words.
"Wh- I-" Tsukasa cleared his throat, "Well, you're smarter than me, so.."
Rui laughed it off, a mess of scrambled and panicked thoughts running through his head.
This was fine.
This was fine, this was completely fine!
"Look," Tsukasa whispered all of a sudden, pointing back up at the sky. "That one, there. It's a constellation, isn't it?"
Rui followed Tsukasa's gaze, nodding. "It is," He confirmed, "More specifically, it's Orion- but you probably know that, don't you?"
Tsukasa laughed, "Mhmm! I used to research a lot about stars when I was younger."
"So did I," Rui recalled, sighing contentedly as he leaned back, staring up at the stars. Tsukasa began to point out different stars and constellations, ranting about anything astronomy related and even beginning to talk about his experiences when he was younger, how he would play the piano at night or look up at the stars, waiting for something to happen. Maybe a special sighting, or a meteor shower- how he wanted to see it.
At one point, Rui's gaze had shifted from the tinkling stars above in the night sky to the glowing, beautiful star sitting next to him, leaning his body against him as he continued to rant without a single care in the world.
Tsukasa was beautiful.
He was beautiful, so very beautiful to him.
Eventually, Tsukasa trailed off, setting his hand down. He leaned closer, taking a deep breath. "D'you know why I chose this place, Rui?" He asked quietly.
Rui blinked in surprise, shaking his head. "No,"
"I chose it because this is where we first met," Tsukasa explained, his voice calm and gentle. "Do you remember? When I came up here looking for you. But you were just stalking me with that drone the entire time."
Rui huffed playfully, "It wasn't stalking,"
Tsukasa laughed softly. And Rui found himself absolutely smitten. "Sure. Anyways, I.. I'm gonna be honest with you for a moment, Rui."
He sat up, turning his body to face Rui completely. "You mean so much to me," He stated confidently, staring directly into Rui's eyes with a determined smile.
Rui felt his heart skip another beat.
Huh?
What, what was going on-?
"From when we first met, to our first show, both the failed and completed one, to everything we've gone through together." Tsukasa recalled, "You've just.. wiggled your way into my life and just stuck there. And I'm so glad for that, because I've never met someone else who I've felt this close to. It's different from the relationship I have with Saki, she's my sister. But you're different, Rui. You're something else. You're this.. sudden, other light in my life, someone I can be comfortable with, someone I can do things with that I can't do with others, someone that allows me and helps me to grow and be the best person and actor I can be."
Rui stared at Tsukasa, astonished. He opened his mouth to say something, anything, but he couldn't get his words out as Tsukasa continued his speech.
"You've done so much to help me, Rui. You were the one who gave me that wake up call, the one who helped me realize that I didn't pursue acting just for the fame, you helped me realize my errors and you helped me correct them. You're someone I can trust, someone I can go to for help. And even if there's something that I don't want to say, I know I can always look to you for comfort. And I know it's the same for you, isn't it?"
Tsukasa paused, taking a moment to breathe before speaking up once more. "Only you can make a star like me shine, Rui. And for that, for everything you have done for me, I cannot thank you enough. You told me, during the Kyoto trip, that I helped you change. But you did the same for me, you know? You've taught me just as much as you said I had done for you. And for that, I can't thank you enough."
The star took Rui's hands into his, cupping them gently. He leaned forward, smiling as he held them in a firm yet tender grasp. "Rui, do you know why I'm saying this to you?"
Rui gasped softly, his back straightening as he stared at their hands. His face was red, unable to articulate his thoughts and put them into words. His eyes flickered upwards to look at Tsukasa's face. "Tsukasa-kun, you-"
"I'm saying this because I love you, Rui."
Rui's mouth was hung wide open.
"I love you." Tsukasa repeated, this time more confident and loud. "I love you, I LOVE YOU, Rui! I love you so much, I love everything about you, from your voice to your looks to your abilities and personality- Rui, you've done so much for me that you even made me fall in love with you!"
Rui's eyes were wide in shock. "Ts-Tsukasa-kun.."
"And-" Tsukasa held up his hand, "I understand if you don't love me back, that's fine. That's okay. I just need to get this off my chest, I need to tell you now, I want to tell you now. I need you to know this, Rui. I love you. I love YOU, Rui. YOU!"
The director was at a loss for words.
Tsukasa loved him.
Tsukasa really loved him.
Slowly, as Rui processed his Star's words, a fuzzy, warm feeling enveloped his chest, his lips slowly shifting into a wide smile.
Tsukasa really loved him.
Tsukasa really loved him...!!
"Rui-?"
"Tsukasa-!!" Rui exclaimed, interrupting the blond. He looked at Tsukasa, grinning. "I love you too!"
Tsukasa squeaked, letting out a pleasant gasp. "You- you do?!"
Rui nodded vigorously, his voice full of determination and joy. "I do!" He exclaimed, wrapping Tsukasa into a tight hug. "I love you too, Tsukasa-kun, I love you so much, so much that I want to be with you, I want to spend all my days with you, I can't put it into words, but-!!"
Tsukasa interrupted Rui by leaning back, grabbing his face, and staring at him for a few seconds before smashing his own lips against his.
Kissing.
Kissing; they were kissing.
Rui Kamishiro and Tsukasa Tenma were kissing.
A few seconds later, the blond let go, staring at Rui with a broad, goofy grin. "What does this mean, then? What are we now?"
Rui smiled back at Tsukasa warmly. "What do you want to be?" He asked.
Tsukasa inhaled sharply.
"...Boyfriends," He answered confidently, "I want to be your boyfriend."
"Then that's what we are." Rui whispered, intertwining Tsukasa's hand with his own. "Thank you, Tsukasa-kun."
Tsukasa blinked rapidly, staring at their hands for a few seconds before nodding. "Thank you, too."
There were a few more moments of silence before Tsukasa spoke up again. "Do you want me to play you a song?"
Rui nodded. "Of course."
The blond nodded. He stood up, dusting his pants off before walking behind the keyboard. He placed his fingers atop the ivory keys, taking a deep breath before he began to play.
It was an unnamed melody, an unfamiliar tune to Rui's ears. And yet, it was lovely. It was soft, gentle, the only sound he could hear aside from the wind gently rushing through his ears. Tsukasa began humming along to the tune as his fingers danced across the pristine black and white keys, serenading him with his warmhearted voice, his soft melody.
Rui couldn't help but yearn for his lips to press against his once more.
Rui loved Tsukasa.
And Tsukasa loved Rui back.
For now, that was all that mattered.
Love.
Love.