Lights, camera, action! *SOUKOKU*

CHAPTER 17: Star of Bethlehem

Night time came once more and Chuuya retreated to the dancing room to stay with his thoughts. The music began to play and Chuuya leisurely moved his body in a slow tempo, too drained to go for a more energic beat. That was it; the final straw had been the accusation of sexual coercion by Mori. Chuuya's career was over and with it, his whole life and freedom were the verdict be unfavourable. He snorted sourly. What a terrible joke!

For anyone else in the same dire situation, Dazai would've become a nightmare even if he wasn't at fault. For Chuuya, Dazai remained in a special place in his heart. Every single time he came to mind, his heart would bump against his chest and his face would heat up. Atsushi had read him so well. Yeah, he knew he liked Dazai but the brunette was straight and scared shitless. They still hadn't had a proper talk and Chuuya had already given up on trying. Tears fell down from his face but he kept his whimpers silent.

The door opened slowly and someone entered shily. Their steps were hesitant but the person didn't falter and came all the way, stopping when reaching a respectful distance with the dancer. Chuuya didn't bother to turn around. He didn't want to deal with anyone and he would never give a stranger the opportunity of seeing him cry. That's why he kept going until the song ended and the redhead went to fetch his water bottle. He threw some water on his face to mask the tears and when he felt ready, he went to greet the other person. His eyes widened in surprise but his heart woke up when he faced those brown tender eyes he adored so much.

"Da-Dazai. You're here." He was afraid that any time Dazai would leave. He hated the loneliness. He never wanted to part with him.

"Chuuya." Replied Dazai.

"I've been trying to get to you but you ignored me. I understand these are rough times but... but I admit that it hurt me a little." Chuuya confessed.

Dazai lowered his gaze, maybe in shame, and just said: "I'm sorry."

An awkward silence reigned after that. Chuuya had never seen Dazai being so sceptical. When he had been so upset that night when filming abroad, he still had talked effortlessly and sarcastically. Now the snarky and talkative young man was nowhere to be seen.

"Well, I..." Chuuya started.

"I brought you something!" Dazai blurted out.

Their cheeks turned pink and Dazai went to grab the item from his bag. When he offered it to his partner, Chuuya melted right there. The hat owner took the onject, his hands trembling while holding it with utmost care. What Dazai had given him was Chuuya's trophy from the awards gala he had won the night he met his crush. The once shattered trophy, a marble bust of the late playwright Natsume Sosuki, had been reconstructed piece by piece. The handwork was clumsy and unprofessional. Dazai was a great actor but his craftmanship skills were questionable. Nonetheless, the fact that he had put his time and effort to do this for Chuuya was all that mattered. This time Chuuya could not hold back his tears and cried honestly, moved by his partner's gift.

"Thank you."

So sorry for the too long break! I have been dealing with my upside downs and also school is being rough. I promise to finish this book though so here you have this chapter. If I'm honest, I had written this 7 months ago but never felt like uploading it. I'm not satisfied but it's the precedent of what's about to come.