Visual Kei

Shinji and Rei were sitting with me on the couch and we were watching Fight Club. They had already begun to take bets on the end of the movie even though it was only half an hour in. I laughed at their enthusiasm whenever something would happen to make their bet seem probable. A little over halfway through the movie, though, Tsurara slipped into place beside me, his expression dark.

“Have you seen Chino yet?” he asked.

“No, how long has he been gone?”

“I don’t know. He was gone when I woke up this morning. He didn’t tell any of us and hadn’t left us a note or anything.”

“Where do you think he could have gone?”

“I have no idea.”

“I’m sure he’s fine,” Rei said with a grin. “Maybe he’s going to meet a cute girl or something.”

Tsurara shook his head solemnly. “No, we were supposed to go somewhere today. I don’t think he would skip out on it.”

“Where were you supposed to go today?” he asked, his eyebrow rising. “No one told me about going anywhere.”

“That’s because it was supposed to be just Chino and me,” he said half-willingly. “We were to meet The GazettE so we could… make preparations for the party.”

“Preparations? I thought Kamijo was hosting it.”

The older of the two sighed. “Arrangements would be a better term, I think. I have been asked to attend the party by one of the members. Are you happy now, Rei?”

“Whoa! You’re going on a date! Sweet!” His congratulatory smile made Tsurara sigh again and retreat a few feet back.

“It’s not a date, it’s just invitation to… go together,” he insisted quickly, a small blush tinting his face. “I don’t even know why I try with you sometimes.”

“Awh Tsurara! You’re blushing!”

“Gah! I’m leaving!” he said, spinning on his heel and rushing out of the room before Rei could tease him further. Kiiro appeared from the bathroom, his sunglasses back in place and a wry smile on his face as he shook his head at Rei. He sat on the far end of the couch, as far as possible away from me, I noticed.

“Try not to piss Tsurara off, will you?” Kiiro said with the faintest hint of a smile pulling at his lips. “The last thing we need is a crabby bishounen.”

Shinji laughed. “Oh, but it’s so cute when he gets embarrassed! I can understand why Rei can’t help it. It is really quite adorable.”

The men shared a chuckle, and as they did so, the main door slid open and Chino appeared. There was a line chiseled between his eyebrows, a worry line, and his expression was troubled. As he stepped in, he looked a little surprised to see the four of us awake and in the same room, but he recovered fairly quickly.

“Where did you go? Did you meet up with a cute girl? What was her name and how old is she? Tell me!” Rei exclaimed, a jubilant smile on his face. “Tsurara was a little worried, but I wasn’t. I knew you were okay!”

Chino smiled hugely. “I forgot that you were a morning person. I went to meet with Taku again, and I don’t think he’s a cute girl by any standards.”

“What did Taku want?” Rei asked.

“We were just looking at old pictures and talking about the past,” he answered, his eyes wandering to Shinji’s. They shared a long look, and Chino’s eyes then flicked to Kiiro. “I’m going to go get ready for the party and then Tsurara and I will be out.” He turned into one of the dark rooms, his digital camera dangling at his waist.

***

Kiiro was tense at my side, his attention drifting across the hallway as we waited for the elevator. He had agreed to accompany me back to the base to get a change of clothes, a shower, and to see my brother and let him know about the party. The elevator seemed to take too long and we stood in awkward silence, as we always seemed to anymore. I think I became used to it, so it didn’t bother me as much as it used to, but I still wondered if we would ever be the same. His heavy gaze said no.

The doors opened up and we stepped inside, and I noticed now that there was, indeed, a fourth floor. We stopped on the second though, and I used the room key to enter the apartment. It was a little messier than I had left it. Arvin had his dirty clothes stacked in a pile on the floor. I sighed and put them in one of the clothes hampers before digging out my own clothes and retreating into the bathroom. I peeked out and told Kiiro to make himself comfortable while I cleaned up. He nodded.

Let me just tell you, showers and baths are some of my favorite inventions. The hot, refreshing water poured over me and melted away some of my stress. When I was finished, I hesitated in the shower, not quite over the assault yet. I stepped out, telling myself that I was safe since Kiiro was here. After drying off and putting fresh clothes on, I opened the door and grabbed a pen off the nightstand, and began to write a note to my brother telling him about tonight. When I finished, I turned around to gather my things and came face to neck with Kiiro.

We were just millimeters apart. Since I was considerably shorter than him, his thick, muscular neck was at my eye level, so I looked up to see his face. It bore no expression, but his lips were subtly parted and his breath was uncharacteristically uneven. Standing prominently behind his lips, showing like ivory daggers were his long canine teeth reminding me that he wasn’t human. The dark tint of his sunglasses masked his eyes, but I could faintly see their outline beyond it. My own heart was beating angrily in my chest, seeking release from the confines of my ribcage. I felt my cheeks grow warm with nervousness as our ragged breaths mingled. Neither of us moved for a time.

His hand moved to my face, the tips of his fingers grazing my cheek before falling away. The touch was so slight, so delicate, I half wondered if it had just been wishful imagination; but his heavy breath told me that it was not. Unwillingly, he took a step back, his hardened expression returning as he tore his gaze off my face.

I did not want to speak and apparently, neither did he.