The Sweetness of Forever [IDOLiSH7 IoRiku]

5: Wish

Saturday, January 3

Stacks of old magazines line up neatly in front of Fonte Chocolat. They all belong to Mitsuki. He, along with Yamato, is cleaning the place up, which involves throwing away things they no longer need.

"I've never realised you've been keeping all your magazines, Nii-san." Iori observes the stacks. One book in particular catches his eye. He takes it, wipes the dust off the cover, and the photograph of a familiar man becomes clear to him. "Nii-san, is this-"

"Oh, he even catches your attention, huh?" Mitsuki goes over to his little brother. "Kujo Tenn, the Gem of Gremme City. Always sharp and stunning."

Curious, Yamato sees what the brothers are up to. "Been a while since I've seen him on the cover. Damn, he is the perfect combination of fierceness and charm."

"That guy is a model?" Iori flips through the pages. Several of them feature Tenn: catsuit Tenn, waiter Tenn, angel Tenn, etc. But whatever outfit he wears, he has a set of jewellery to go with it. A feast to the eyes, all of them.

"Quite an influential one too. He's popular among both men and women." Yamato replies. "Men in the city start wearing accessories because of him, you know?" He's well-informed, as expected of a man who once lived in the city.

"Too bad he left the industry," Mitsuki stares at the magazine page. While he has never been a hardcore fan, he does enjoy seeing Tenn's cool looks. "Just when he's about to make it big, too."

"What happened?" Iori asks.

That got Mitsuki curious too. "Do you know, Yamato-san?"

"There was a rumour," Yamato hesitates. "Should I say it? It's quite messed up if you ask me."

"Spill!" Mitsuki demands.

"Okay, so..." Yamato takes a deep breath in. He then speaks in a low voice. "People were saying he deliberately scarred himself so he could leave the industry..."

Iori freezes in shock.

"What?" Mitsuki looks at his friend in disbelief. "Didn't he always say he loved his fans and followers?"

"That's the point. They say he couldn't just leave his fans, so he must have created a cause that rendered him unable to continue his career," says Yamato. "It was only a rumour, but one that the media loved."

"That's just awful..." Feeling sick, Mitsuki doesn't want to hear any more of it.

"Nikaido-san," Iori, on the other hand, wants some more information. "When did this happen?"

Yamato smirks. "Never thought you'd be the type to love gossip, Ichi." He recalls, fingers tapping on his chin. "If I remember correctly, it was last year. Maybe a bit before that."

Colour leaves Iori's face when his suspicions come true. It was around the time Riku said Tenn left the city to come to live with him.

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Tuesday, January 6

Iori's face flushes red. Why? He's being taught how to walk along the hospital hallway by none other than the clumsy Nanase Riku and the energetic Izumi Mitsuki, both holding his waist and making sure Iori (or the three of them) doesn't fall over. Otoharu and the other staff are watching them with a friendly smile.

"Wah?!"

Iori sweats a lot more than he usually does because this is the third time Riku almost trips over nothing during this 50-metre walk. Third!

"Bwahaha. Riku!" And Mitsuki here can't stop laughing, causing his grip on Iori's waist to weaken by the minute. "What are you, a toddler? Hahaha."

"A-Aren't you two supposed to be supporting me?" Iori finds himself tightening the grip on Riku's left arm, worrying his friend's weight is going to pull all of them down. Falling to the hospital floor won't hurt, but he'd rather avoid the embarrassment of having the therapists rush over to help him get up. "Ugh, why am I doing this?" He looks up at the ceiling, praying for the session to be over already.