Work Text:
Another day, another Wonderlands x Showtime rehearsal.
Tsukasa was already there, explaining to Emu and Nene their roles in the next show. They couldn't start the proper rehearsal yet, since Rui still wasn't there. No one was surprised though, it wasn't the first time when their director was late.
After a few minutes they could see a tall figure, slowly walking towards them.
"Ah Rui you're finally there-!!!" Tsukasa greeted him, staring at him and the stuff he brought. "Wha-!"
"I apologize for coming so late…" The taller boy said, panting heavily. "I had to…take with me…more things than usual…which were more heavy than I expected…them…to be." he explained, putting hand on his chest.
"Whoa! That really is a lot!!!" Tsukasa gasped, amazed. "...but you know you could've asked me to help you bring them there, right?"
Rui just shook his head smiling slightly. "...It's alright, there's nothing I'm not able to do for the sake of our shows."
"THEY'RE SO COOL, WHAT IS THAT? AND THAT? WHAT ABOUT THIS ONE?" Emu started jumping happily, pointing at everything Rui just brought.
Before Rui could even start explaining, Tsukasa joined her.
"Yeah! As you said, there's a lot more things than usual…why's that?" he asked, tilting his head.
"Ah well…Since the script you wrote was…especially…creative, I had to do more special effects than I would normally do."
"Yeah, I still don't understand like half of it, even though he explained it to me." Nene sighed looking at the script in her hand. "It's not bad, just…really tsukasa-like."
"HEY, WHAT DO YOU MEAN BY THAT???" the blonde shouted, a wounded expression on his face, on which Nene's only response was 'so loud' ".
"Fufu I actually had fun making everything so it's not like I mind the mess in the script. It really does sound intriguing." Rui chuckled, looking at Tsukasa who immediately straightened up and smiled proudly.
"See Nene? If Rui thinks it's good then that means it is! We don't call him our director for nothing!!!!!!" he shouted, putting hands on his hips.
Nene only rolled her eyes, trying to hide her slight smile.
"BUT THERE'S STILL SO MUCH OF IT, HOW IS IT GOING TO WORK?" Emu asked, peaking out from Nene's shoulder.
"Oh! Yeah! Do you have anything to control it all at once?" Tsukasa asked, once more inspecting everything.
"Ah- well about that…I was in a bit of a rush, so I didn't make anything like that. I will have to turn them on manually, one after another." Rui explained, smiling slightly.
"Rui…are you sure you can do it?" Tsukasa asked, looking at him with concern written on his face. "I don't mind having less special effects even if that means the show will be different from what I imagined.
"It's fine, you're not the only one who wants this to look as spectacular as you described it. That just means I have to put in some more work, and that's completely okay with me." the purple haired boy responded, smiling.
Despite his confident facade, he still wasn't sure how he was supposed to do that…but he knew that he wouldn't give up just like that. There were many things that he overcame in the past so something as stupid as 'too many' inventions wouldn't stop him.
Plus maybe…he also wanted to see Tsukasa's amazed face at the sight of his work.
"Hmm…if you say so, Rui! Then now since we're all here already, let's start the proper rehearsal!" the blonde smiled hopping on the stage.
Then they started.
Everything went smoothly, Nene sung faultlessly, Emu performed as good as ever, and Tsukasa as always gave 12000% of himself.
Then finally, the hardest moment came.
After Tsukasa's long monologue, Rui quietly went behind the stage ready to turn on the machines.
He waited patiently until Nene and Emu went on the stage again, for the main fight scene.
Last two lines and…start.
Rui started to turn the inventions on one by one, running from one side to another.
Which was harder than he expected it to be, since his stamina was…well almost nonexistent.
He ran for his life, almost tripping on his feet, desperate to reach last few machines.
He didn't even realize when Tsukasa stopped talking, and together with Nene and Emu, walked backstage.
"Rui…?" Tsukasa started looking at the panting and sweating boy.
His face looked far from amazed.
"A-ah…" he tried to say something, taking deep breaths. "...why- why did you stop…?"
"ALL THE EFFECTS WENT LIKE ZOOM…. AND THEN BABAM AND THEN NOTHING…AND THEN SHUSHUSHU SPLASH…BUT…" emu started to say tilting her head "...They didn't really match what we were doing at the time! Like- like a slow motion!!!!!!!!! WAIT WAS THAT IN THE SCRIPT?? MAYBE IT WAS!" she gasped, quickly taking a glance at her paper.
Tsukasa shook his head "No, I never wrote something like that."
Nene just rolled her eyes and stepped closer to Rui. "That's what happens when you skip almost every PE lesson during the school year." she accused him, pointing at him with her finger.
"Ah you wound me Nene!" Rui sighed dramatically, finally being able to breathe normally. "...calling me out right next to Tsukasa-kun, do you want me to get lectured for the rest of my life?!"
Well it was already too late..
"RUI!!!" Tsukasa frowned, crossing his arms."We talked about this!!!!! Skipping PE classes is not healthy and you can't just sit and do nothing on the rooftop during them!"
"Ah but Tsukasa-kun…look at my tiny little legs…how do you expect me to work out with them…? They would break and - oh god please forbid- I would never be able to perform at the Wonder stage ever again!" Rui said, looking down. "You wouldn't want that, would you…?"
Tsukasa only stared at him and sighed massaging his temple.
"Rui. You're taller than me. Your legs are bigger than mine."
"Ah really?" Rui faked a shocked expression. "That's truly fascinating…I guess I never noticed that! But that still proves my point!"
"...how so?" Tsukasa raised his eyebrow, looking at him.
"Well that just means I'm heavier! Imagine how exhausting it must be for me to lift my legs! What if…what if I accidentally made a hole in the ground! Or stepped on someone! For example…you! This already cruel world can't lose such a shining star as you!"
"I-....." Tsukasa tried to say something, having no clue how to respond to that. "Rui you're a teenager not a 10 meter tall monster."
"...Tsukasa-kun can you really be so sure about that?" the purple haired boy asked, smiling innocently.
"Well that doesn't matter anyways, since now we're not able to use all of the special effects…and it's not like anyone can replace you since Me, Emu and Nene are on the stage at the same time…" the blonde boy started to think, putting his hand on his chin.
"Let's repeat that scene one more time, I will try to be faster." Rui suggested, smiling.
"And what? Let you spit your lungs out?" Nene asked sarcastically.
"EH??! NONONO, WE CAN'T LET RUI-KUN DIE LIKE THAT!!! TSUKASA-KUN THINK OF SOMETHING QUICKLY!" Emu gasped, true fear flashing on her face.
"Emu I wasn't serio-...." Nene started to say, when Tsukasa suddenly interrupted.
"Oh I know!!! Rui, you should accompany me in my daily training!" Tsukasa smiled brightly, looking at him.
"A what…" the taller boy started to say, frightened.
"Oh yes, Tsukasa I know him well, he would absolutely love that." Nene smirked, looking at Rui, who only quickly glared at her.
"Hahaha!!! I can't say that I'm surprised after all-...HEY RUI WHERE ARE YOU RUNNING?"
In the end, to no one's shock, he got caught.
And that's how his training began.
The next day, Rui woke up to the knocking on his garage door.
At first, he decided to ignore it but every second It was only getting louder and louder, and he could already feel himself turning insane (as if he already wasn't).
And it's not like he could fall asleep again after that.
Slowly sitting up, and rubbing his eyes, Rui finally got up and opened his garage door revealing no one else, but the one and only Tenma Tsukasa.
"..." Rui didn't know what to say, just blinking a few times, trying to process everything.
"GOOD MORNING RUI!!! WHY ARE YOU STILL IN YOUR PAJAMAS?" He asked, full of energy as always.
"I have a better question Tsukasa-kun…what are you doing here at…" Rui turned around to look at the clock on his wall. "...8 am…?"
"Huh??? I thought that I had a bad memory, and you already forgot? You agreed to accompany me in my daily training!"
"I wouldn't say I agreed, Nene force-…" he wanted to say, but Tsukasa already went inside.
"Alright Rui! Get ready, have you eaten anything yet?" he asked, looking around.
Rui shook his head. "You just woke me up…"
Tsukasa looked at him concerned. "It's not that early and you look absolutely exhausted…how many hours of sleep did you get?" he asked, raising his eyebrow.
"...Tsukasa-kun, maybe you would like something to eat hm? I'd feel bad being the only one eating-" Rui tried to change the topic, looking away.
"Rui."
…unsuccessfully.
"... right…I worked for a few hours and fell asleep at…6?" he could already feel the upcoming glare.
"...Rui why are you always so stubborn." Tsukasa sighed, shaking his head with disappointment. "I told you-"
"...so many times to get a better sleep schedule, less working wouldn't hurt you." Rui finished, grinning. "I know, sorry Tsukasa-kun."
"...you say that but you'll do it again won't you?"
Rui only smiled innocently, while looking for some proper clothes in his closet.
"Maybe our training will tire you enough for you to fall asleep earlier today!" Tsukasa finally said, crossing arms. "Oh and wear something comfortable!"
"Alright…" Rui just nodded and pulled out a simple T-shirt, and shorts - exactly what Tsukasa was wearing at the time. "That should be fine."
"...want me to make you breakfast in the meantime?" Tsukasa kindly offered, done lecturing him.
Rui smiled slightly, nodding. It wasn't the first time Tsukasa was here, so it wasn't surprising that he already felt at home.
After all these months, they developed a quite close relationship. They were even known at school as a weirdo combo wombo, which wasn't an especially flattering name, but Rui didn't really mind it.
It felt…nice in a way. Him and Tsukasa known as a duo. He liked that…probably more than he should, and if the blonde boy knew that, he would definitely scold him.
Besides that close friendship, Rui started to develop some more…feelings. Feelings he would rather not talk about with Tsukasa, fearing of losing what they already had.
But it was alright with Rui. He already got what he always wanted. A place where he belonged, friends. He never expected that and definitely never thought of anything more.
While at the same time, a part of him wanted to get closer to Tsukasa. Which he thought was pretty greedy and selfish since he already should be thankful for what he had and leave it as that.
…but…
…exactly, there was always that one 'but'...
But now, hypothetically speaking, he had a tiny chance.
Maybe he could impress Tsukasa if he tried really hard…
…he still hated running with a burning passion though.
That was a real problem…sacrifice himself for the sake of impressing his crush or do the bare minimum…
…well Rui was never a type to do nothing, always putting all his sweat and tears into his work.
Did hypothetical relationships count?
Well they could from now on.
In the end, all this 'training' couldn't be that bad…
…right?
“Rui, your breakfast is ready!!!!!!” Tsukasa shouted from the kitchen, snapping Rui out of his thoughts.
‘When did he even leave the room?’ Rui thought blinking a few times, in the end dressing up quickly, not wanting Tsukasa to wait for him for too long.
“You’re finally here Rui!” Tsukasa said when the taller boy entered the room. “I hope a toast is fine?
“Mhm!” he nodded, fighting with another yawn and sitting down at the table.
“I'm still waiting for water to boil so we can have some tea!” Tsukasa smiled, looking at the purple haired boy whose head was laying on the table next to his plate.
“Tsukasa-kun do you really always wake up before 8 am during holidays…? How do you have so much energy so early in the morning?” He sighed, looking at him.
“Oh well I guess I’m just used to it! And I go to bed early too! Unlike certain people!” The blonde answered, walking up to Rui and ruffling his hair.
He didn’t blush. Didn’t blush at all.
“...yeah yeah right. Whatever you say Tsukasa-kun.” Rui sighed once more, feeling stupid for not expecting this answer.
“Now now! Eat quickly and we have to go!!!” Tsukasa smiled, placing the tea in front of him.
Rui just rubbed his eyes once more before finally starting eating the food Tsukasa made.
And -oh god- he could swear that it tasted better than any breakfast he ever made for himself before.
Or maybe he was just too smitten with him.
A few minutes later they were already walking out of his house and heading towards the park - the place where Tsukasa usually trained.
Rui couldn't help but stare at him from time to time, still thinking of a way to impress him.
Well Tsukasa was pretty hardworking (Rui too, just not when it came to fitness) so he would definitely appreciate it if Rui put all of his soul and mind into training.
But still…couldn't be there any easier way to do that?
Rui sighed, looking away, already feeling the pain in his legs.
Tsukasa smiled slightly just as If he was reading his mind.
"Don't worry Rui, it won't be that bad!!! I won't be too hard on you, I promise!" he said, patting his back. "Normally I do like…hmm 5 circles around the park? You could start with 2!"
Rui felt himself go pale.
One would be enough for him, seriously. But two? That was definitely too much for him. Not to mention the fact that Tsukasa clearly implied an increasing number of them.
"...Rui, are you okay?" Tsukasa suddenly asked, tilting his head.
"...Yeah…yeah…absolutely fine, can't wait." he replied, shaking his head.
That was a mistake.
Tsukasa quickly took his hand (causing him to blush which was already bad) and quickened his speed (which was even worse).
"Let's go faster then!!! Treat it as a warm up!!!" He said, smiling and running towards the park.
When they finally got there, Rui was already tired and sweaty.
"Was-was that all…?" He panted, wiping his forehead.
"Eh? What do you mean, we just got here!" Tsukasa replied, confused before continuing. "Anyways let's start running together! And after two circles, meet here!"
"W-wait we're running already…?" Rui blinked a few times, still trying to catch his breath.
He never got an answer, since Tsukasa had already started and was disappearing from his view.
"...How did I end up like this…" He sighed, taking a deep breath.
Love was truly terrifying.
Shaking his head, Rui finally started to run, hoping to catch up to Tsukasa.
Which wasn't so easy, since in the middle of the first circle, Rui could already feel his hair sticking to his sweaty forehead, while his legs stopped working.
He slowed down, trying to catch his breath before continuing to run.
He was so tired that at first he didn't even notice Tsukasa running past him.
"Ah Rui are you okay?!" He shouted, turning around, and looking at him with concern.
One of Rui's qualities (or defects) was the fact that he was extremely stubborn.
So just showing thumbs up in response, he continued to run, once more, losing Tsukasa off his sight after a few minutes.
"On what drugs is he…?" Rui muttered, feeling a literal fire in his lungs.
A few minutes later he could see the meetup spot, where Tsukasa was already waiting for him.
"Rui you're finally here!...Wait, that was your first circle wasn't it…?" He asked, tilting his head.
"T-tsukasa-kun, my lungs…t-they're burning…Nene was right I'm-i'm going to spit them out…"
Rui wished that he was overreacting.
He wasn't used to so much physical effort, so now he felt like he was dying.
"Oh! I guess that's enough for now then…" The blonde boy only nodded slightly, sitting on the nearest bench and patting the spot next to him.
Rui gratefully accepted the offer and sat next to him, brushing the bangs out of his face.
"Here you go Rui!" Tsukasa suddenly said, passing the water bottle to him. "Hydration is important!"
The purple haired boy just nodded and took the bottle, drinking some of it, immediately feeling better.
"Thank you Tsukasa-kun." he smiled slightly, passing it back, and wiping his face once more.
Red and sweaty, truly a perfect shape to impress your crush.
"Your hair is pretty long…must feel hot." Tsukasa noticed, staring at him. "Would you mind if I tied it up?"
If Rui was still drinking, he would surely spit his water. Luckily, he was still too red for anyone to notice the slight blush that created its way on his cheeks.
"... you're free to do that Tsukasa-kun." he finally replied, hoping not to sound as flustered as he really was.
The blonde boy just nodded happily, before pulling from who knows where a hair tie. Getting up from the bench, and standing behind Rui, he started to gently brush the bangs out of his face, and tying them into a low ponytail.
Now as Rui's lungs and legs finally calmed down, his heart started beating like crazy. If Tsukasa brushed through his hair one more time, he was pretty sure that it would fall out of his chest, killing him on the spot.
(Un)Fortunately, Tsukasa let go of his hair and sat back next to him.
"Is that better?" he asked, smiling brightly, visibly proud of his work.
"It is…" Rui smiled slightly, refusing to look at him.
"Hey Rui, would you mind looking in my direction for a second?" Tsukasa asked.
…on which Rui immediately agreed, because how could he not, when the blonde boy had such a big smile on his face? He didn't even have to see it, to feel its energy.
Hoping that he wasn't too red (or that the blush wasn't too recognizable) Rui turned his head and looked at Tsukasa.
…who immediately took a photo.
The purple haired boy just blinked a few times, still processing what he did.
"Hey Tsukasa-kun delete that I wasn't-!" He started to say before Tsukasa passed him his phone.
"That's how you look!!! I think I did a good job, a ponytail like that really suits you too!" He smiled, looking him in the eyes.
Rui felt like dying again.
He could swear on everything that Tsukasa was doing it on purpose. How can someone 'accidentally' make another person fluster so much during such a short period of time?
"Thank you Tsukasa-kun…you really did, I look decent now." he smiled, taking a glance at the photo.
He changed his mind, Tsukasa could keep that photo forever.
"...Now, should we try one more time?"
*
When Rui finally got home he was absolutely exhausted. His legs hurt, his lungs probably stopped existing by that time and his muscles were more sore than ever.
Just like Tsukasa said, too tired to pull an all-nighter.
"What is he doing to me…" Rui sighed, laying on his bed, face buried in the pillow.
*
After that, the next few days were pretty much the same. Tsukasa picking up Rui at 8 am, making him breakfast while he was still processing everything around him, and then going together to the park, and starting their daily training.
First three days were for Rui a literal hell. Not only in a physical way, but Tsukasa somehow always knew how to fluster him.
Too hot? Let's tie Ruis hair.
Scratched knee? Tsukasa always somehow had a patch with him that he personally put on Rui's leg.
He wouldn't really mind that if not for the fact that his cheeks always turned red. If he wasn't already blushing from all of the physical effort, they would be easily noticeable.
Finally though, the last day has come.
They didn't have any more time for training since the show started in 3 days, and Rui had to already be in his top form.
That goal wasn't so unattainable now though. During these few days, Rui could already feel the progress. Instead of one circle, now he could do almost three. Was he really exhausted after doing them? Yes. But he could do it and that's all that mattered.
"Alright Rui, last day! Let's give everything we got!" Tsukasa smiled in his direction, getting ready to start running.
"Of course." Rui smiled back in response, standing next to him.
"...3!" Tsukasa started counting. "...2…1…GO!"
At that moment they both started running. Rui knew that he wasn't as fast as Tsukasa so he already gave up on keeping up the same speed as him. Instead, he ran with his own more focused on doing the whole 3 circles and beating his last record.
Some time later, he was finally at their meetup spot, where Tsukasa already waited for him.
"You did it Rui!!!!! Three whole circles!!!!!" He smiled brightly, looking at him.
Rui could only smile in response, too busy catching his breath.
"I'm so proud of you!!!" Tsukasa continued to say, patting him on his back and grinning from ear to ear.
His heart was torn between "Tell me more" and "Shut up, you're making me flustered again."
"...You deserve a reward."
"…A reward?" he repeated looking up at the blonde boy.
This was the first time Rui ever heard about it.
Wasn't their only goal, making Rui's stamina last a bit longer so their show would succeed?
"Yeah! I think it would be pretty cruel for me to just leave it like that after torturing you for a whole week." Tsukasa explained looking at him.
Well it's not like Rui minded, a reward sounded nice and was more than welcomed.
He immediately straightened up.
"...And what is that Tsukasa-kun?" he asked curiously, tilting his head.
"W-well, I didn't bring anything with me so I have nothing to give you right now but…" while saying that, Tsukasa put his hands on Rui's shoulders. "For now, this will have to do."
After those words, he quickly kissed Rui's cheek, pulling away just as fast as it happened.
Rui didn't know what to say, he froze on the spot.
He felt his soul leaving his body.
Tsukasa was really destined to kill him one day, one way or another, wasn't he?
Which didn't change the fact that his throat immediately went dry, while his heart started beating faster than ever. His brain was full of confusion and thousands of different thoughts.
"I-i…" he started, wisely thinking about his next words.
That was risky but…
…it was Rui we're talking about.
"...only one kiss for such a sacrifice?" he asked, faking his disappointment.
"Oh?" Tsukasa tilted his head, looking at him.
"As you said, after a whole week of tormenting me I deserve a reward…one kiss is not enough for three circles though." he finally said, hoping that he didn't sound as nervous as he really was.
"Hmm…I guess you have a point…" Tsukasa nodded slightly, putting hand on his chin.
Rui mimicked his expression, nodding back in agreement.
"Alright then…Do one more circle, and I will triple your reward AND give you a special occasion of going on a date with no one else but world's future star Tenma Tsukasa himself!" The blonde boy smiled with confidence, a slight blush dusting his cheeks. "How does that sound Rui?"
He didn't get a response.
"Rui?"
The purple haired director was already disappearing in the distance.