Hajime no Insho
sho sanjuni.
There was excitement within him as there never had been before. The mere thought of the band going on stage and actually performing a show of their own was petrifying and exciting all at the same time, and Takanori had never felt more stoked in his life. Had he been excited as hell when they’d embarked on the tours with Hanamuke and Vidoll? Had he and the band enjoyed the taste of performing solo? Of course, but for this tour to be just Gazette was something phenomenal, something that he’d only been able to dream of.
He’d never imagined that the band would make it far enough to record their own album; he’d only ever dreamed of that, too. The bands he’d been in before had only recorded demo tapes, and nothing had come of them, and Gazette had only ever recorded singles. But with the release of Disorder, something had changed.
Their potential had changed, and all of the possibilities for the band had increased exponentially. Hell, they’d even done an interview, and they’d been granted exposure in one of Japan’s most popular music magazines. They’d released two DVDs of their solo performance, and their fanbase had grown so much that it was unbelievable.
There was life for them out here outside of Tokyo. And all of these things that had happened, all of the things that had increased their potential, had led up to this moment: waiting backstage with the other four members, each of them saying their prayers and hoping to every God imaginable that nothing went wrong to mess with their headlining debut. And as the band held each other close in their traditional group hug, Takanori shut his eyes and thanked the God that had been watching over them, grateful for Akira and grateful for the exposure and thankful for everything that he’d been given since Gazette had been started.
And then he grinned as the band broke apart and Akira pulled him close and he was given a kiss that he could only assume was for good luck. Akira was grinning against his mouth, and he only chuckled softly and claimed another kiss, and then pulled away, letting his hand brush along the blonde’s cheek as they broke apart.
“You ready to do this?”
Takanori rolled his eyes, looking over at Kouyou, positively beaming. “Takashima, I don’t know where in the hell you’ve been for the last three years, but.” He grinned, and he dodged an attempt at a ruffle of his hair. “I know I’ve been ready since day one.” Kouyou snickered, winking, and Takanori gave him a playful punch in the arm. “You of all people should know that, hm?”
Kouyou snorted. “Yeah, you’ve been ready, all right.” He glanced at Akira, then back at Takanori, as Yuu hooked an arm around his shoulders and planted a kiss on his cheek. “We all have.” He smiled, let Yuu steal a kiss, and then glanced in the direction of the stage before looking back at his closest friends. “Let’s do this, hm?” He flashed another smile, and then the band took a moment to look at each other, another moment to store in their memories, and then the house lights dimmed and the band found their way onto the stage.
Takanori stepped up to the microphone, glancing back at his friends behind him, grinning, and then the stage lights flashed on. And for a second, the lights were blinding. But then his eyes became used to the light, and he grinned as he saw the crowd that had come and paid to see them. They were cheering, and they were calling for the band, and Takanori’s heart had never swelled so much. There was an overpowering rush of adrenaline in his veins, and he beamed as he swiftly pulled the microphone from the stage, his heart pounding.
The crowd cheered louder, and he turned to look back at the band once more, and his heart swelled beyond belief as Akira grinned and gave him a thumbs-up, as well as a less obvious wink, and Takanori was already beaming, and he turned his attention back to the crowd. And the audience gave one last loud cheer, and then they were quiet just long enough for the first song to start, and then once the band had started playing, the response from the crowd was as overpowering as the adrenaline.
And this, Takanori decided, was the most amazing feeling that an artist could ever have. The band had their own fan base, a tour of their own, and an entire album and series of singles to perform. They were on their way to liberty, and he was just that much closer to his dream.
He’d never imagined that the band would make it far enough to record their own album; he’d only ever dreamed of that, too. The bands he’d been in before had only recorded demo tapes, and nothing had come of them, and Gazette had only ever recorded singles. But with the release of Disorder, something had changed.
Their potential had changed, and all of the possibilities for the band had increased exponentially. Hell, they’d even done an interview, and they’d been granted exposure in one of Japan’s most popular music magazines. They’d released two DVDs of their solo performance, and their fanbase had grown so much that it was unbelievable.
There was life for them out here outside of Tokyo. And all of these things that had happened, all of the things that had increased their potential, had led up to this moment: waiting backstage with the other four members, each of them saying their prayers and hoping to every God imaginable that nothing went wrong to mess with their headlining debut. And as the band held each other close in their traditional group hug, Takanori shut his eyes and thanked the God that had been watching over them, grateful for Akira and grateful for the exposure and thankful for everything that he’d been given since Gazette had been started.
And then he grinned as the band broke apart and Akira pulled him close and he was given a kiss that he could only assume was for good luck. Akira was grinning against his mouth, and he only chuckled softly and claimed another kiss, and then pulled away, letting his hand brush along the blonde’s cheek as they broke apart.
“You ready to do this?”
Takanori rolled his eyes, looking over at Kouyou, positively beaming. “Takashima, I don’t know where in the hell you’ve been for the last three years, but.” He grinned, and he dodged an attempt at a ruffle of his hair. “I know I’ve been ready since day one.” Kouyou snickered, winking, and Takanori gave him a playful punch in the arm. “You of all people should know that, hm?”
Kouyou snorted. “Yeah, you’ve been ready, all right.” He glanced at Akira, then back at Takanori, as Yuu hooked an arm around his shoulders and planted a kiss on his cheek. “We all have.” He smiled, let Yuu steal a kiss, and then glanced in the direction of the stage before looking back at his closest friends. “Let’s do this, hm?” He flashed another smile, and then the band took a moment to look at each other, another moment to store in their memories, and then the house lights dimmed and the band found their way onto the stage.
Takanori stepped up to the microphone, glancing back at his friends behind him, grinning, and then the stage lights flashed on. And for a second, the lights were blinding. But then his eyes became used to the light, and he grinned as he saw the crowd that had come and paid to see them. They were cheering, and they were calling for the band, and Takanori’s heart had never swelled so much. There was an overpowering rush of adrenaline in his veins, and he beamed as he swiftly pulled the microphone from the stage, his heart pounding.
The crowd cheered louder, and he turned to look back at the band once more, and his heart swelled beyond belief as Akira grinned and gave him a thumbs-up, as well as a less obvious wink, and Takanori was already beaming, and he turned his attention back to the crowd. And the audience gave one last loud cheer, and then they were quiet just long enough for the first song to start, and then once the band had started playing, the response from the crowd was as overpowering as the adrenaline.
And this, Takanori decided, was the most amazing feeling that an artist could ever have. The band had their own fan base, a tour of their own, and an entire album and series of singles to perform. They were on their way to liberty, and he was just that much closer to his dream.