[-][L-A][P-1x1] ♫ An Incongruous Melody ♪

[Lady Sherlock]

•°o.O Two music artists...

... Two different styles O.o°•

+~+~+~+~+~+~+~+~+~+~+~+

♬ ♪【Setting the Tempo】♪♫

On one fateful day, Kai Higuri, an eminent singer and solo artist for LC Entertainment, stumbled upon, quite literally, a drunken drummer by the name of Ishi Kawamura, member of the band Yume no Sikeensu, from the rival label of SoloSol. Feeling quite bad for the drummer, sitting out there, barely able to move in the pouring rain, Kai brought the man back to his apartment... and the next thing Ishi knew, he woke up in Kai's bed, completely changed into new clothing. Honestly, nothing happened. Yet.
However, that quickly changed when Ishi quickly dashed to the bathroom in order to throw up, dragging his massive hangover with him. While there, Ishi decided he'd take a shower, and with Kai's help, things quickly got steamy...

Kai and Ishi then both left for work, after their nice little morning... fling, both having never met the other before, completely content with that morning's happening. Kai made his way over to LC's studios to record, while Ishi made his way to a band meeting at SoloSol, both finally realizing that the other worked within the same industry, completely by coincidence.

A few days passed by in which Kai and Ishi didn't see each other, each not really sure how their relationship stood at that moment. Kai was perfectly okay with it being a fling, especially with a random stranger, since he wasn't so... careful about such things, per se. Ishi as well thought that it had been fun and all, and was perfectly okay himself with leaving it as a one-night stand. That was, at least, until he caught Kai, Kai's manager, and Ishi's band mate getting it on in a dark alleyway not far from SoloSol. It was then that the drummer felt the first pangs of jealousy, and it was then that the sparks—of love or of hatred, no one really knows—between Kai and Ishi first flew.  

[Lady Sherlock]

♬ ♪【Notes of the Chord】♪♫

♪ Ӄɑȋ "Йɑҡɑȋ" Ӈȋɡυɾȋ ♪
+

+
sєcяєт ιδєитιтч: Lady Sherlock
мч δαякєsт sєcяєт: 28
נυик ιи тнє тяυик: Male
ραчcнєcк cσмєs ғяσм: LC Entertainment
sραякs σғ ℓσvє:
✓ Expensive food, especially wine
✓ The thrill of being on stage
✓ Flirting and spending his time picking up women
✓ His own good looks
sραякs σғ нαтє:
✗ Right wing conservatives
✗ Mexican food
✗ Romance novels
✗ People who are famous for the money, not for joy of what they're doing
тнє вαcк cσvєя яєαδs:
Kai was born a relatively normal child in Osaka. His parents were both musicians, classically trained, though his father, Keizuki Higuri, a pianist, was much more famous than his mother, Minami Matsuzaku, a harpist. They were the ones that got Kai interested in music in the first place, though soon Kai took it upon himself to continue his passion for music. He tried taking piano lessons, then violin lessons, but found that he didn't like classical music all that much. Instead, he always would dish out piano chords to various songs that he heard on the radio and sing as he did so. However, he didn't really think much of it, except that he was defying his teachers and should probably have been practicing that Mozart piece instead.
When Kai entered high school, he found himself working a lot in the music part of it. He would always perform and sing for the talent shows and was also in a lot of the musical productions of his school, taking the lead in his second year of high school and keeping it until he graduated in his third. His developing good looks also helped him quite a bit in snagging those key roles as he musically sailed his way through high school. College was much the same, and he soon came to be known around campus as the pop music guy, for Kai had all but abandoned his classical training.

When he graduated from college, Kai found a job at a small café, as well as working off and on as a model for about four years. After a suggestion from one of the customers, Kai decided that, for fun, he'd enter one of those singing competitions on television and see where it got him. It was mostly because he was bored that he entered, not because he actually expected anything to come of it. He made it to the semifinals, then lost out. However, that was much further than he had expected to go in the first place, and he had already gathered many fans through the process. LC Entertainment took notice of him and asked him whether or not he'd like to try them out for a bit, and see if he could work within in the industry and if they could work with him. Kai accepted, though a tad bit warily, since he didn't want his life to turn into something more money oriented than singing and performing oriented, since he wanted to do what he love, not turn it into a chore. Therefore, he worked without a manager, making his own schedule and appointments and such. Because of that, he didn't utilize the four years that he spent in the industry to its full potential, otherwise he'd be much more famous than he was. But he did make a good share of money, and he was pretty famous considering his amount of fans, but keeping it up without a manager was getting harder and harder for the singer.

Therefore, when he got a manager, he was a bit reluctant at first, but knew that he needed it, and they quickly became friends pretty fast—perhaps a bit too fast, and perhaps a bit too close as friends as well. Before Kai had even formally got to meet his manager Seiji Atsuya, he had pulled the manager, unwilling and very surprised, into a nice three-way in an alley somewhere. However, Ishi stumbled upon them and things quickly got uncomfortable, angry, and many things were left to be mended, including the nonexistent relationship between Kai and his new manager. However, feeling guilty and pretty stupid about it all, Kai worked quickly and ardently to fix things, and soon the relationship between Kai and Seiji became a nice and comfortable one—however, the relationship between him and Ishi still left much to be desired and much trust to be regained. That is, if Kai even wanted that.

вєнιиδ тнє нαиδsσмє ғαcє:
To start things off, it is crucial to know that Kai is pretty arrogant. He loves his own good looks, and has great pride in what he has been able to accomplish in the industry thus far. He believes that he can sing better than many of the Asian artists out there, not to mention a few of the American ones as well. He's not so arrogant to believe that his voice is god's and that he has come as the savior of the industry or anything, nor does he believe that he is one of the best looking guys out there; he's just handsome, charming, and sings well—and he knows it.

Also, because he is well aware of his own good looks, he is quite a charmer and a flirt. His arrogance probably isn't helped by the fact that many women swoon at him—before he even takes out the big guns and starts sweet talking them. When he does manage to get them to hang out with him for a while, it usually doesn't last for longer than a week or two. This isn't intentional or anything, but Kai is actually on the lookout for someone that he can feel real love with, but hasn't been able to find that person just yet, and so he keeps wandering from person to person.

That being said, Kai is pretty liberal with his searches. He considers himself to be bisexual, though keeps many of his relationships under camera so that the public still views him as single almost always. The public, as well, is kept aloof from his actual sexual orientation, and it always amuses Kai greatly to watch them try to figure out whether or not Kai liked women or men. Plus, it always made for some good publicity to have reporters and the paparazzi continue to guess at it all the time.

Despite the things said before, he really is a gentleman at heart. He can really care for people, despite what he shows up front. All the women and men he has ever dated he has genuinely cared for, even if he didn't love them like maybe they loved him. He always lets them down gently, and many a times they can't stand his arrogance and does the breaking up—which is usually intentionally caused on Kai's part. He is sweet and when he loves someone, he really will love them completely and care for them in his own Kai way, which is definitely not the usual way of things.

Also, Kai genuinely does what he likes. He loves music and the adrenaline rush he gets from performing, and wouldn't trade it for anything else. His job is most often his favorite pastime, and he isn't really in it for the money. How much he makes—well, he couldn't care less. He just keeps rising in fame because his own passion for music pushes him to do so, to make him see how far he can take himself by his own volition of just wanting to be the greatest. He works usually by his own agenda and often doesn't care what other people want—but usually the agenda coincides with everyone else's wishes, so every thing generally works out. He pushes himself often to the brink of exhaustion, but is always enjoying what he does.t

иσт тσ мєитισи:
Kai isn't quite a smoker, but he does like to enjoy a cigarette occasionally, especially when he needs to unwind and such. He knows that smoking will kill him if he continues it, but doesn't really view it as that serious a problem since he doesn't think that he smokes all that much for it to be an issue. Other people, however, tell him differently—not that he ever has found anyone that he actually wants to listen to, being is awfully independent self.

+~+~+~+~+~+~+~+~+~+~+~+

♬♪ Ӄɑѡɑϻυɾɑ Ȋsʜȋ♪
+

+
sєcяєт ιδєитιтч: After Midnight Blue
мч δαякєsт sєcяєт: 22
נυик ιи тнє тяυик: Male
ραчcнєcк cσмєs ғяσм: SoloSol
sραякs σғ ℓσvє:
✓ Physical contact
✓ Instant ramen and other cheaply available food
✓ Junky T.V. Shows
sραякs σғ нαтє:
✗ Rain
✗ Lying
✗ Arrogance
тнє вαcк cσvєя яєαδs:
Ishi was born just outside of Hokkaido to a pair of loving young parents. The two were overjoyed at the birth of their apparently healthy son, and lived as peacefully as a pair of new parents could for the first year of Ishi's life. Then, purely by accident, his mother made an interesting discovery. While cooking she dropped a heavy mixing bowl, making a loud crash. She winced, waiting for Ishi to start crying, but the infant did not appear distraught in any way. Indeed, the child did not even seem to have noticed it. Ishi, it would seem, had been born completely deaf.

His parents tried to cope as well as they could, both learning sign language to help communication with their son. It was also because of this that they decided not to try to conceive again, leaving Ishi an only child. Despite, or perhaps because of, his deafness, Ishi was a rambunctious child and quickly learned to read lips (to a point) in addition to American and Japanese Sign Language (ASL and JSL), a talent he learned to keep relatively quiet. There are several limits to this however, including people with thick accents, non-Japanese speakers, those who speak very quickly, and singers.

Ishi discovered drumming at a young age in a very primitive form. To him, the vibrations of very loud music, particularly drumming, was the closest thing to music that he'd ever known. As such, he instantly fell in love with it, and would create makeshift "instruments" of sorts out of whatever he could find: pencils, pots, buckets, sticks. By the time he was ten it became apparent that it was not something the boy was going to give up anytime soon, and to save themselves the headache, his parents found him a teacher.

Towards the end of middle school and the beginning of high school, Ishi began to realize that he was different from those around him in more ways than what senses worked. At this time, Ishi became very withdrawn, struggling with his sexuality. During this period of his life, Ishi felt very isolated because he was not only deaf in a hearing world, but gay in a heterosexual world. However, he could not keep up with the isolation for long and came out to his parents (and pretty much whoever asked) rather than stay miserable in the closet.

Along with their attempts to include Ishi into the hearing world, his parents made sure to make an effort to be part of the deaf community as well (though perhaps less successfully), eventually sending Ishi to the Tokyo Otha School for the Deaf. While neither an exceptionally happy period of his life, college was not a terrible experience, marked by a slow but steady string of boyfriends and garage bands. Eventually graduating (happily single), with no job, and with little in way of ambition besides drumming, Ishi chose to stay in Tokyo rather than return home to his parents.

He spent a month or two living purely off what he was able to make by performing on the streets with his drumming, until he was picked up by SoloSol just in time for him to escape bankruptcy and eviction from his apartment.

вєнιиδ тнє нαиδsσмє ғαcє:
Ishi is a generally excitable person. He loves, and is very talented at what he does, and surprisingly modest in this respect (although the fact the he doesn't really have the words to brag probably helps). He has a slightly cruel sense of humor, and enjoys a number of practical jokes... punch lines often aren't that funny to him. He can be a bit ignorant at times, some social intricacies simply flying over his head. On first meetings he likes to give people the benefit of the doubt, and assume they are nice people and should be treated nicely as such.

However, Ishi has a fiery temper, and is easily offended. When angered, he is not above petty revenge, and on occasion, a physical squabble. He also is notorious for holding grudges.

He is very childish, never really having been forced to grow up, and this shows sometimes, especially when irritated. He will pout, sulk, and generally drag his feet. When in the same room as someone who annoys him, he is prone to either completely ignore them (to the point where he will literally close his eyes if they come to close) or act rashly rude.

In addition, Ishi doesn't really have good taste. In general he is content to eat the crap that tastes good, watch crass game shows and soap operas, and dress however he pleases (which is often cheaply). In fact, perhaps because he's never been able to hold down a job before, he is kind of a cheapskate.

иσт тσ мєитισи:
It is not unheard of for someone who is does not have all five senses to compensate with a heightening of one of the remaining four. For Ishi, this manifests itself as a slightly heightened sense of touch.

While he is physically able to speak, Ishi tends not two. Firstly, because he has never heard words and so is not entirely sure how, and secondly, on the occasions when he has tried to speak, he has been mocked for it. Not having the practice or the knowledge of sound, Ishi tends to sound like a stroke victim if he tries to speak.  

[Lady Sherlock]

♬ ♪【Composer's Notes】♪♫

1. Follow the Gaia ToS
2. Literacy please, more than five sentences, at least (though I understand that there are some days where we just want to keel over and die and those days are okay)
3. PM me the profiles with the title "Singers Applying"
4. Keep content under PG-13 level
5. Enjoy yourself and have fun!  

[Lady Sherlock]

♪ Ӄɑȋ "Йɑҡɑȋ" Ӈȋɡυɾȋ ♪



+

❝ Now look into these gorgeous brown eyes... ❞


+~+~+~+~+~+~+~+~+~+~+~+

Kai straightened his tie and put on the finishing touches with a dab of cologne. Taking one glance in the mirror, he smiled at himself, good looking as usual. Tonight was going to be an important one, with many of the big fish swimming about, and it was imperative that he look good for it. Seiji had made sure of it by taking him to a tailor a week ago in order to get new outfits made. As he glanced at the dark purple jacket on him with detailed embroidery and a little lace on the cuffs, along with the matching pants and tie, he knew that the designer had done a great job of keeping to what he had specified as his style, while still making it new and up to date.

Pulling an overcoat on, Kai took one last sip of good Chateau Margeaux 1977 and left his apartment to the limo waiting outside. Stepping in, he was happy to find Seiji seated there, a smile on his face. As they rode to the charity event, Seiji outlined to Kai all the famous people, their jobs, positions, importance, etc, to make sure that Kai knew who to charm the most, and who to put a second priority on. Everyone else would be trying the same, and it would be all one great game of politics—something that Kai had once hated, but had become relatively good at, to the point where sometimes he even looked forward to events like these, just so that he could test himself and his own political skill.

Upon arriving at the charity event, Kai smiled as he looked outside the window. Cameras were everywhere, and he looked devilishly handsome. It was perfect. Seiji let Kai come out first, as always, since everyone was looking for the star in the limo, not his manager, sad as that seemed.
Kai stepped out with a wave of his hand, and the girls squealed. They went crazy, as they probably did with every star that had come by, but Kai often took things like this personality—though god knows he needed an ego boost.
Kai walked on the carpet to the door, stopping along the way twice to sign various paraphernalia, ranging from the regular picture and forehead to bizarre things like a bra and a thong. However, it was only odd to people other than Kai—and recently Seiji—to whom this happened often, and he quite enjoyed it, actually.

Getting inside, the singer took the elevator up to the floor of the gathering where all the important people were collecting for a little social time before the charity performance. As the doors of the lift opened, Kai put on his award winning smile and walked out, whispering to Seiji, "Show time."  

[After Midnight Blue]

Ӄɑѡɑϻυɾɑ ♦ Ȋsʜȋ


☞♦ ϻυsȋϲ ♦ ʏou ♦ ϲɑɴ ♦ τoυϲʜ ♦☜

The foul mood Ishi had found himself in as of late had not shown any signs of letting up since the last formal band meeting. And while, said meeting was honestly the last event Ishi wanted to think about, it was the one his mind seemed to be transfixed on. Disgusting as it was, Ishi seemed to have permanently burned the image of that one infamous singer, entangled with at least two other men, into his retinas. He felt sick to his stomach thinking about it.

Considering how often this had become, Ishi had complained of a stomach ache to his translator, Yamamoto, who had been thoughtful enough to fetch the drummer some antacids before leaving for the event. On top of his already dismal mood, a large, apparently important, social gathering was on the bottom of Ishi's "to do" list. The music industry, he had quickly discovered, was much like school; one just had to put their heads down and bare it for the sake of one's superiors.

Hopping off the stage, having finished the band's sound check, Ishi managed to ignite the irritation of at least one stage hand for being so careless with their tangle of wires. God forbid he actually touch one of them. Yamamoto was close behind him, making apologies for him as they went. The older woman nudged him, a quiet reprimand to remind him to be courteous. He was no longer an unemployed college kid, and had appearances to keep up. Exhaling loudly through his nose, Ishi acknowledged her by lifting his head and, temporarily at least, banishing the scowl from his face.

With a final scuff of one expensive leather shoe, Ishi, his translator, and several of his band mates stepped into the elevator that would take them to the social rooms and chattering crowds above. The shoe, like everything else Ishi wore, was rented for the night. Seriously, who did these people think he was, being expected to own not just one dress suit, but multiple ones to choose from! Stepping out of the elevator and scanning the room, the scowl threatened to return to Ishi's face.  

[Lady Sherlock]

♪ Ӄɑȋ "Йɑҡɑȋ" Ӈȋɡυɾȋ ♪



+

❝ Now look into these gorgeous brown eyes... ❞


+~+~+~+~+~+~+~+~+~+~+~+

Kai had only gotten a small chance to intermingle with the people of the industry when Seiji walked over and told him he had to go do his sound check. Apologizing to the person from Starsong Studios for having to cut short their conversation, the singer ducked through the crowd, smiling and nodding at various people who waved to him along the way. He followed Seiji to the elevator, waiting for it to come up, and when it did, he paused, seeing who was inside. It was none other than Ishi, not to mention Ishi's bandmate, who were both involved in the alleyway incident.
However, Kai only showed surprise inwardly, for outwardly, he had had enough experience and practice to control his expressions and show nothing but a mere smile of acquaintance. Nodding a greeting to the members of Yume no Sikeensu as he passed, Kai professionally got into the elevator, standing there calmly as the door closed. Seiji, all the while, was shooting nervous glances at Kai, afraid that his outgoing and sometimes rash personality might cause a scene. Kai only shot a smirk at his manager, saying nothing to soothe the poor soul, and probably causing Seiji even more worry in the process. Kai never betrayed the guilt that was tearing away within him.

Kai felt really bad about it all. He had been rash, stupid, and reckless, and look where it had gotten him. He had hurt Ishi, he could tell—for after all, who wouldn't be hurt finding out that they had been a one night stand with a stud like Kai? Especially in such a fashion. He would have to talk to Ishi later and hopefully clear it all up. It would take a while for the singer to forgive himself for it, but others forgiving him for it would be a good start.

As the elevator reached the floor of the stage, Kai stepped out, his mind cleared of Ishi and all of his guilt that he felt. He knew that he'd have to apologize, but he didn't want to think about that right now, otherwise his sound would be off. When performing, even for something like a sound check, he had to be in the zone and clear of external thoughts, otherwise he sounded terrible, or so he thought that it was terrible. As Seiji spoke to the stage manager to get the details, Kai stood there and breathed deeply, willing thoughts of Ishi to go away, even temporarily. By the time Seiji was finished, Kai was bright and devoid of all dark guilty thoughts. His mind was focused only on performing.

Grabbing the mike from Seiji, he stepped onto the stage firmly, sure of his footing. He owned the stage and the ground he walked on, and made sure that others knew that as well. With his classic smirk, he took center stage with his back-up band following, and breathed in the air of the stage, the feeling of power that came with it. Each stage had a different type of energy, separate from the audience, and Kai always tried his best to get a feel for it before the audience came and added their own energy to the mix. That way, he would have the best performance possible.
When the music started up, Kai willed his soul to get lost within the beat and smiled as he let himself go through his voice. He pushed his energy back against that of the stage and reveled in the two battling and melding in the air out in the audience seats. This felt great already, but when the audience was added, it'd be even better.  

[After Midnight Blue]

Ӄɑѡɑϻυɾɑ ♦ Ȋsʜȋ


☞♦ ϻυsȋϲ ♦ ʏou ♦ ϲɑɴ ♦ τoυϲʜ ♦☜

Well there went all hope of even pretending to be anything other than deeply aggravated. As he and his band entered the room, to the general excitement of those gathered there, Ishi stubbornly broke away from his group. Sulking, he positioned himself against the wall, still in plain sight, but out of the main crowd of the wealthy. Yamamato followed him, his constant shadow during events like these.

Stiff as she could come across on a first impression, the woman had been his companion since his last years of high school when he had finally been forced to interact with the world verbally. Since her position was something between that of an employee and a parent (a particularly odd combination, actually) he'd always found her a bit irritating, but he did appreciate that she could put up with his moods. Right now, for example, when one of the chairmen for "Button and Glowing" Electronics came up to ask Ishi what he though about the sound of Yume no Sikeensu, instead of translating what he signed ("I can't hear, you idiot") she carefully and diplomatically formed a better answer ("From the lyrics we've read, the band seems to be very talented).

Half of his irritation was the fact that he was irate at all. Ishi knew that he had no right to be. One night stands were meant to be that - one night. The obligations the next day, or any day after that, were next to none. Kai was entitled to do whatever the hell he felt like, and if that was having a threesome in some random public space without him, than more power to the people. Whatever. It shouldn't matter. But it did. That made Ishi's blood boil.

{{Full Life Consequences = win  

[Lady Sherlock]

♪ Ӄɑȋ "Йɑҡɑȋ" Ӈȋɡυɾȋ ♪



+

❝ Now look into these gorgeous brown eyes... ❞


+~+~+~+~+~+~+~+~+~+~+~+

Kai finished off his piece with a highly zealous last note which he held out all the way to the final cymbal clash. He opened his eyes and surveyed the chairs in front of him. This was a pretty big hall, but it definitely didn't hold a candle to many of the others that Kai had performed in before—yet he felt this good connection with its energy, which had worked him up until he became one with its vibration. Then all was lost and Kai truly abandoned himself to the stage. This hadn't happened much when he started had performing, but the more he did it, the more often it happened. Also, Kai used to not take advantage of his sound checks, since he viewed it as a waste of voice, but as soon as he actually started using it, he noticed that not only was his voice better, but his performance and confidence took a great boost in the process as well.

From the side, he heard clapping, coming from Seiji, of course, who, interestingly enough, was quite a fan of Kai's singing (though he often said nothing, for lord knows the star's ego needed any more stroking). Kai smiled at his manager and turned to the band behind him, congratulating them on a beautiful sound. Kai met Seiji backstage, handing the microphone to a stagehand, and smiled at the man. Seiji laughed a little, always loving how Kai looked after he poured his heart out through his singing. He looked so much more youthful and happy, and less conniving and suave, which was a good thing in Seiji's book.

"You did great out there. You'll be amazing tonight," Seiji assured the singer, who was already pretty confident in himself. He didn't need it, but hearing it from someone else always made things just that much better. "Come on; let's go back upstairs. Don't want you to miss out on too much of the excitement." Seiji winked at his star, whom he knew didn't really view upstairs as excitement, but as more of a challenge that he needed to overcome for his own pride's sake.

With that, they both went back up to the top floor, and upon stepping out of the elevator, Kai put his polite smile back on. Parting ways with Seiji, Kai stepped to the left, heading for the bar in the middle of the room. Before he did any talking, he planned on getting some good wine, just to make him feel more at home and ready to face all challenges. And maybe while he was at it, he could scan the crowd for people that Seiji told him to find and make a good impression on. With those two tasks, he made his way into the crowd and disappeared from his manager's view.  

[After Midnight Blue]

Ӄɑѡɑϻυɾɑ ♦ Ȋsʜȋ


☞♦ ϻυsȋϲ ♦ ʏou ♦ ϲɑɴ ♦ τoυϲʜ ♦☜

Luckily, the chairman abandoned them before Ishi had a good shot at destroying the relationship between the electronics company and SoloSol. Perhaps it was the increasing shortness of Ishi's replies, and the stress Yamamato was clearly under trying to make them suitable for polite society, or just Ishi's plain distractedness and brooding, but the crowd seemed to steer clear of the pair after that. Yamamato, in her irritation, stepped pointedly on Ishi's toe to remind him of where he was.
"These are expensive shoes." He signed at her as nonchalantly as he could. He did not see her reply, having turned his head to the other side, both to ignore her and to scan the room.

Ishi felt his stomach lurch. Of course, he'd known that Kai would be here, but somehow he'd hoped that the singer's departure in the elevator had also been his departure from the event. Without realizing he'd done so, Ishi took a sharp step forward, brow furrowing darkly. He might have continued all the way over to Kai if Yamamato had not caught his arm. With a quick glance at her, Ishi sunk back against the wall, folding his arms over his chest. The scowl he wore was bordering on a pout, though he'd punch anyone who told him so. Exhaling through his nose, Ishi closed his eyes.

Yes, that was better. With his eyes closed, he could neither see nor hear his surroundings and it was much easier to pretend he was elsewhere. It was sort of calming... or would be if not for the image still burned into the backs of his eyelids. Ishi's frown deepened.If he could just get through the night then... Well, he would still feel sort of homicidal, but at least the object of his rage would not be close at hand. Damn it, he hadn't even been called to perform yet. This was turning out to be a very long night.  

[Lady Sherlock]

♪ Ӄɑȋ "Йɑҡɑȋ" Ӈȋɡυɾȋ ♪



+

❝ Now look into these gorgeous brown eyes... ❞


+~+~+~+~+~+~+~+~+~+~+~+

Kai managed to grab a glass of Chardonnay before he was accosted by anyone. Luckily, it wasn't someone high up on the list of importance, and Kai could relax a little before his performance. It was good to keep loose muscles and a calm mind before going on stage, and if he was met with any particularly important person at the moment, Kai wasn't sure if he could handle it without tensing up—even though outwardly, he'd appear as cool as usual. Kai was praying to any god out there that he didn't have to meet anyone important just yet, even though he was sure that he could handle it. He just didn't want to.

The singer made idle chit-chat with the people around him, throwing in comments here and there about how exciting the concert was going to be, or how good he felt about the charity, etc, etc, just to get people off his back and give people a generally good impression of him. Chuckling a lot here and there, Kai tried to befriend many and talk to some that he knew, and some that he didn't know. Within the industry, he had learned, it was best to become acquaintances, if not friends, with many, especially those that were important or those that were the "right people." It was almost crucial to stepping up one's career.

It did frustrate him a little how politically oriented such an industry was, but now less so than it had when he was younger. When he had been a rash boy fresh out of college, he had grown really angered at how the music industry was less about talent and more about connections. However, as he grew older, he came to only value the fact that he still believed that it should be about talent, and kept himself honest about it. Others' opinions didn't really matter much anyways, especially compared to his, right? Right.

After a short time, the lights dimmed and the voice of the main stage manager came on the speakers.
"Performers, managers, and dancers: please make your way to your respective green rooms downstairs backstage to prepare for the show. All others, please make your way to the audience seats, where there is reserved seating at the front, or to the VIP booth up top if you have the papers for it. Thank you."

Kai finished up his Chardonnay and stood up in his tip-toes, searching around for Seiji. After an unfruitful search, he decided that he'd make his way to the stairs instead of the elevator, since he was sure that the elevator would be crowded, then meet Seiji down at their room. Dashing down the stairs in a not all too professional fashion, Kai found that he made it downstairs as one of the first, and calmly made his way to his greenroom, an excited smile plastered on his face. It really was show time, and Kai was sure that the performance would be the best part of his night, like always.  

[After Midnight Blue]

Ӄɑѡɑϻυɾɑ ♦ Ȋsʜȋ


☞♦ ϻυsȋϲ ♦ ʏou ♦ ϲɑɴ ♦ τoυϲʜ ♦☜

Luckily, the chairman abandoned them before Ishi had a good shot at destroying the relationship between the electronics company and SoloSol. Perhaps it was the increasing shortness of Ishi's replies, and the stress Yamamato was clearly under trying to make them suitable for polite society, or just Ishi's plain distractedness and brooding, but the crowd seemed to steer clear of the pair after that. Yamamato, in her irritation, stepped pointedly on Ishi's toe to remind him of where he was.
It was only Yamamato’s persistent tug that forced Ishi to open his eyes. He’d honest to god tried to ignore her when she first began prodding him. Ishi had no desire to return to his actual surroundings. This was not where he wanted to be. What he really wanted was to curl up on his couch in his boxers with a cup of instant ramen to watch a game show. Maybe that one with the people running on a treadmill to get cookies would be on? That one was freaking hilarious. And it was better than stuffy parties, and stale tension, and stupid arrogant irritating business people and… musicians.

It was with great trepidation that Ishi allowed Yamamato to pull him away from the wall and towards the elevators. Why’d she have to do that? What’d she have against the wall? It was a nice wall. God damn it, he was pretty damn sure that this wall would be far superior to the walls where she was dragging him.

After a short non-verbal exchange with his translator, Ishi let go of his sentimentality towards the wall. It was times like this that he got incredibly frustrated with the hearing world. For god’s sake, what if there was some fire or something and he didn’t hear the fire alarm and died. You know. Because he couldn’t freaking hear it. Given an announcement to get ready for a performance and a fire alarm were two very different things, but at this point, Ishi had worked himself into such a state of frustration that it didn’t matter to him.

This was not good. Throughout warm up Ishi continually slammed his drumsticks far too hard against the surface of drums, forcing the other members of the band to compete with him just to be heard. By the end of the ordeal, more than a few feathers had been rumpled, and by the time they were “ready” to go on, Yamamato was casting concerned and warning glances in Ishi’s direction at regular intervals.  

[Lady Sherlock]

♪ Ӄɑȋ "Йɑҡɑȋ" Ӈȋɡυɾȋ ♪



+

❝ Now look into these gorgeous brown eyes... ❞


+~+~+~+~+~+~+~+~+~+~+~+

All Kai did in the green room to prepare himself was make handsome faces at the mirror, which, of course, wasn't difficult in the slightest, considering his studly qualities. This was all he needed to pump himself up to the highest point for the concert, since his vocal warm ups were already taken care of in the sound test and in talking to people. Kai was one of the few singers who realized the value in using talking as a method of warming up. His vocal coach when he was but a young boy had taught him how to do that without making his voice sound too weird or overly posh due to the fact that they were almost always sighs. Through the years, he got better and better at concealing it and seeming more and more normal.

Kai glanced down at the program and saw that he was performing second, after a dance group called Ame no Ashioto, meaning "the rain's footsteps." As he glanced further down the list, he noticed that the program usually went dance, singing, some other style of performance, like taiko, then dance, then singing, etc. He was lucky to have that second spot as the first singer, for he often disliked singing after other singers, since he always wanted to be the one to set the stage, pun wholly intended.

Kai quickly changed into his slightly more frilly performance outfit, though it was much more sexy and form fitting as well, just for the ladies out there. He put on some sunglasses, sunglasses which the company provided him with for every concert, for the sole purpose of him taking it off in a flourish sometime in the concert to throw it at some crowd of women. Oh how silly marketing was.

Kai stepped backstage as the concert started, and as soon as the first group finished, he took the stage with confident, purposeful strides, smiling at the crowd. He felt the thrill of the performance surge through his veins as the beginning chords to the song rung out. He was actually doing two songs, both of which he felt fit this crowd quite nicely. It was gearing up to be a good one. His mind was clear, his body was engaged, and his soul was anchored on stage. It was show time.

When Kai finished his performance, he took a few bows, picked up a few roses that were thrown at him, and kissed many a lady's hand. He always loved to touch the crowd and feel their affection. It wasn't necessary to keep him going, but he liked the feeling nevertheless. He sang and performed for singing and performing's sake, but the affection of a good worked up crowd never hurt either. He bowed once again and headed off back to his green room, having not only lost his sunglasses, but also his shirt (though not his jacket) and his pocket handkerchief. This crowd really was in love with Kai Higuri—well, as people obviously should be.  

[After Midnight Blue]

Ӄɑѡɑϻυɾɑ ♦ Ȋsʜȋ


☞♦ ϻυsȋϲ ♦ ʏou ♦ ϲɑɴ ♦ τoυϲʜ ♦☜

The room in which they waited was small with five band members. Yamamato had not been allowed this far, and while Ishi was glad to be out from under her watchful gaze, he almost missed the presence of someone that he could work effortlessly to communicate with. Here he was stranded in a sea of sound, and he knew it. He didn’t even dare to close his eyes again, lest he miss their cue.
He really need not have worried it was a long concert, after all, and they were placed somewhere near the end. The wait was enough to bore Ishi senseless, and long enough that he was in danger of loosing his brooding edge. After all, there were only so many times that one could run through a short list of irritating things.
Maybe he really should just calm the ******** down. It wasn’t important. Nothing was important. Well, some things were important. Like… World peace or something. But this concert was hardly going to make world peace. Damn it, he really just wanted some instant ramen. This sucked.
By the time they were called to the stage, Ishi had settled from enraged to a mild brooding sulk. He did not break the drum set, or the sound system. Once on stage, he was happy to close his eyes for the duration of the performance. Strange as it sounded, Ishi almost liked it better this way. He wasn’t really a performer; he never had been. He was just a drummer. They were not the same thing. With his eyes closed, everyone – the rest of the band, the audience, the whole bloody world – did not exist. It was just him and the music he could feel with his hands. Right now, that’s what felt good, comforting almost.
While the dark cloud still lingered above his head, Ishi no longer felt quite so homicidal by the end of the performance. He was eager to leave the confines of the Green Room and return to the company of Yamamoto, if only because it meant he had someone to converse with.
He was not, however, prepared for the huge expanse that was the Merchandise room. Trying not to feel cowed, like a child clinging to his mother in a crowded hall, Ishi resumed leaning against a wall near his company’s merchandise. He was just settling in for a long stretch of staring at the wall ACROSS from him, when, much to his surprise and mild terror, he was asked (via Yamamato) for an autograph. An actual autograph. With a glance at the man running the merchandise booth, he obliged.
It was really just very… strange.  

[Lady Sherlock]

♪ Ӄɑȋ "Йɑҡɑȋ" Ӈȋɡυɾȋ ♪



+

❝ Now look into these gorgeous brown eyes... ❞


+~+~+~+~+~+~+~+~+~+~+~+

Kai breathed in the sweet smell of rabid fans waiting to maul you at any chance. God, he wish he had more fans. He wasn't really that famous yet, but he couldn't wait until he had a whole stadium gathered jam packed just to hear him. So far he had been doing partnership tours and the like, and was itching for his own soon enough. He glanced around the room and spotted his merchandising area, recognizable by one lone highly anxious Seiji, fending off a whole crowd of fans. Kai approached the table and welcomed his fans with open arms—and open legs too, if we were being honest here. But he tried his best to not cavort with his fans, giving up easy prey for more sophisticated and sexy ladies... or men. They would surely love him for his personality, his gentlemanly qualities, his dashing good looks... or just for his dashing good looks, and that really would be enough.

The crowd of fans squealed when he approached, sounding much like chew toys being squeezed to death over and over again by dogs with highly murderous intents. Nakai could see the relieved expression on Seiji's face as he backed off and went to sit down with his bottle of water in a corner somewhere, obviously taxed. Kai sat down at the chair, ready to give out autographs. He smirked when he saw the merchandise on the table. Sure, Kai sold CDs and T-shirts and Ohayou Productions keychains, but he was sure that most of these fans were here for his... special items. Kai had gone through and personally autographed each bra, thong, panty... and, well, a variety of other items that it was much safer not to mention, for fear of being thought of as too overt and possibly getting arrested in at least 30 states, Italy, and even France. But Kai put great heart into every single piece of those things that he signed. Usually the messages read something like "Don't you love me?" or "From the Prince Charming to one of his surely many fans..." Such was Kai's style.

From the corner of his eye, Kai spied short-ish slightly spiked black hair that he recognized immediately as that of Kawamura Ishi. Glancing over slightly, he saw that the drummer was currently in the middle of signing an autograph, and that there seemed to be a few more fans lining up for just the drummer, let alone the crowd that was developing around Hikari ya Yami in general. Kai wasn't sure if he wanted to be seen at the moment, and just turned back to his fans, who were all still squealing and fighting to get to the front. There wasn't really a line for autographs; it was more like a mob.

Kai ended up signing such a variety of things. He didn't even know that those types of underclothing existed! Wow! And some of those pictures and posters of him were so freaking handsome that Kai wanted them for himself at times. Kai was handed a polaroid photograph that was accompanied with the spoken words from the fan above him "To your most dedicated fan, please." Usually, the voices of the girls he signed for and entertained went straight to his heart and made him feel all warm; this one went straight to his groin and made him feel warm in another way... Kai looked up, startled by the voice, and was greeted by an equally sexy fan. Smooth white skin like a model, highly uncommon in Japan, shining, with just a hint of pink in her cheeks. Kai stood up and leaned in to whisper in her ear, "Sure thing," as he wrote something down. From Ishi's angle, it probably looked like they were kissing. The girls behind her screamed with jealousy, and fought even harder to get to the front while still keeping themselves pretty. Kai slipped the polaroid back under her dainty manicured fingers and sat down. The girl looked down at the polaroid and her eyes widened. Yes, she had gotten what she had asked for... along with Kai's cellphone number.  

[After Midnight Blue]

Ӄɑѡɑϻυɾɑ ♦ Ȋsʜȋ


☞♦ ϻυsȋϲ ♦ ʏou ♦ ϲɑɴ ♦ τoυϲʜ ♦☜

There was a reason Ishi hated school. Scratch that; there were endless reasons he hated school, but there was one that popped to mind at that moment. Writing. Or, more specifically, the cramps that came with writing too quickly for too long. It wasn’t exactly the thought that should have confronted the drummer when faced with a small gaggle of fans demanding autographs. If he were a sensible man, he would have taken a bit more joy in his apparent popularity, but Ishi had never really been called “sensible”. In fact, he was quite shocked to see that anyone had taken interest in him. He’d only been playing with the band for a few months, and was by far the newest addition to it. The fact Yume no Sikeensu was an independently popular band in its own right, and that he, Ishi, as a member of it (and fresh meat at that) might attract attention, had flown right over his head.

He didn’t really consider himself a performer, after all.

Still, there was just something kind of NICE about having people look at you that… hungrily. Actually it was just as terrifying as it was exhilarating, but Ishi tried not to think about that. It wasn’t like there was anything he could do about it. Who knows, maybe the crowd would look at his silence and his sulkiness and paint him as a bad boy? People liked bad boys, right? The idea made Ishi smirk as he carefully handed back a CD to a tiny girl who bounced up at down with excitement so quickly that she appeared to be vibrating on the spot.

Yamamoto nudged him, causing Ishi to turn even as he took a rolled up poster from another fan. Yamamoto jerked her head across the room. Ishi scanned the crowd, trying to pick up on whatever his translator may have been trying to point out to him. The smirk easily slid off his face.

“Isn’t that—Isn’t it? Don’t you know him?” Yamamoto’s hands were shaking with anticipation as she signed. Of course, he hadn’t bothered to explain why he couldn’t stand even the sight of Kai (not that he could rationally explain it). Of course, Yamamoto was still an avid fan of the other star. Of course she would point him out. That didn’t stop Ishi from wanting to slap her though. He’d been happier not having to stare at Kai’s smug face.

He did not realize that he’d frozen on the spot to glare daggers across the room at Kai, still holding the fan’s poster and pen. He did not realize the contorted expression of poorly contained rage and, irrationally, jealousy, that crossed his face as he watched Kai lean forward intimately towards that fan. And he certainly did not realize that a murmur of speculation had rippled through his small crowd upon witnessing the change in him. At that moment, Ishi did not know who he wanted to hurt more: the fan, Kai, or himself for even caring.