CHAPTER 10

Thank you for the endless support, Rostary-chan! I am just so happy that I decided to dedicate this chapter to you! ^^ And also thanks to AkabaneToudouShion for your vote and comment ^^

"Be careful... slowly," unconsciously comporting like a nurse, Tokiya assisted Masato to head for his chair. His right hand moved to Masato's back, supporting the scion so that he could sit comfortably. "Is it comfortable? Or do you want to lean back more?"

"That's okay. I feel comfortable enough so you also should take your seat," Masato said, smiling all the way when Tokiya obeyed him and settled himself in another chair. "Really, thank you so much, Tokiya. It's a great help even the progress is..."

"It took you five steps before you collapsed. That's great already," Tokiya cut him short. Even he was still wearing his infamous poker face, anybody could sense that he was heartening his friend. "When the doctor said that it's impossible for you to walk again."

"Haha. I guess my hard work did pay off, right?" Masato never had the slightest idea that his smile was the one thing that Tokiya needed in this circumstance after witnessing his friend suffering. "Putting that aside, I can't believe I can see you again this soon. I mean... I just watched your drama this morning and this afternoon, you are sitting right in front of me! This feels like a meeting with a celebrity."

If there was anything that made Tokiya unsettled was to match up Masato's upbeat vibes. All he could do was smiling until his face muscle felt ached due to the unnatural state.

"Are you really free today?" Despite Tokiya's dearth of responses, it did not dishearten Masato from throwing next questions. "If you still have work, you don't have to..."

"It's okay. I am free," Tokiya cut him short.

Specially made to visit you, apparently, his mind supplied.

"I see. But..." Masato stared at Tokiya for a few seconds before averting his gaze at their reflection in the big mirror which was placed behind Tokiya. "The more I look at it, the more similar we are to each other. It's amazing!"

Tokiya knew there was no need for him to see their reflection. Out of those people on the earth, he would be the one who did not need such a reminder. Yet, he still could not help but turn to the mirror.

Indeed. They were very similar. Even Tokiya's hair was darker in color, followed by Masato's beauty mark under his eye, the rest of the striking features were very similar which fascinated everybody who saw them together.

"Yeah, that's what people out there always told us whenever they saw us together," Tokiya said, turning again to face Masato.

"I know right? But..." Masato's eyes still fixed on him. "Now that I have a better look on you, you are so handsome, Tokiya. Like a doll. You even look more striking than when you appeared on TV."

Awkward chuckles escaped from Tokiya's thin lips. It felt weird to be complimented on his look by someone with the similar face. "We are similar so..."

"Hey, don't say that," Masato exclaimed shyly. Despite his amnesia, he was still quick to catch Tokiya's ambiguous words. Just like the old him."Even we do look similar, everybody will say that you are much more attractive and well-built. I already lost my shape."

Yeah, you did lose your shape, Tokiya mentally admitted. Again, his eyes settled on Masato's skinny arms which were revealed under his yukata sleeves.

'How come?' was the only thing he could ask in his mind. Their body sizes were also similar so he still remembered how sturdy Masato was before he got himself ill.

His mind still kept the memory when Syo pestered Masato and him to do an arm-wrestling since the lad was curious about their strength. The others even gasped dramatically when they compared the twins' arm size since no one could tell the difference apart.

But now, the disease had slowly taken the old Masato away from them.

"What's wrong, Tokiya?" Masato's bewildered voice snapped him back to reality. "Oh, I am sorry. My arms must look unsightly to you."

"No, they don't!" Tokiya was slightly panicky when Masato quickly covered his arms with his sleeves. The idol internally cursed himself for being tactless.

"They look pathetic, right? Unlike yours," even Masato did not mean any harm, his melancholic speech felt like a slap across Tokiya's face.

"No, I swear they don't," as Tokiya was haunted by a shot of guilt, his eyes caught the sight of a bag of melon bread which he placed on the edge of the table earlier. "Oh, by the way... I brought melon bread for you."

It was weird when nobody noticed the presence of the big plastic bag but for Tokiya, the weirdness was a blessing from the God. It quickly served as the best way to stop Masato from belittling himself.

"Waaa, melon bread," as soon as Tokiya pushed the plastic bag towards him, unlike during their previous meeting, Masato was thrilled to receive them. His blue eyes lit up and for a second, he reminded Tokiya of the blue-haired version of Otoya who would be in seventh heaven once someone cooked him a pot of curry.

The typical Masato could eat the bread all day. But, what Tokiya did not expect the most was his happy friend atypically and quickly took a bite.

"Hmm, it's maple syrup!" Masato exclaimed, incoherently. His cheeks were puffy from the amount of bread that he had stuffed in his mouth and this childish side of him was quite amusing for his friend. "It's so delicious! Thank you, Tokiya."

"You're welcome."

"Oh, I am sorry. This is so improper from me," Masato beamed shyly while his hand covered his stuffed mouth. Much to Tokiya's surprise, Masato fished out another bun before handing it to him. "Here, let's eat it together."

"It's okay. They're all yours. You don't have to..." The more Tokiya waved his hand to accentuate his words, the more he could feel the texture of the bun, touching his palm.

"Don't be shy. Just take it! Plus, your stomach is all growling. Are you that hungry?" Masato said before casually pointing at Tokiya's stomach.

Most probably Tokiya was too busy being worried and awkward so he did not even feel his hunger. His face turned red, caused his eyes to wander to each angle of the room.

This is so embarrassing! His mind screamed.

"Hahaha. Tokiya, are you embarrassed? Please don't be. Just eat it and you will feel great. As Haruka said, it will feel more enjoyable to eat something nice together. Come on."

Urgh! How did it turn into something like this!? Tokiya swore his head would explode due to the overloading embarrassment.

"Thanks," Tokiya hesitantly accepted the bun before eating it slowly. His eyes locked on the floor, ignoring Masato's chummy smile.

He used the Masato's favorite food so that he could stop Masato from belittling himself but he ended up humiliating himself.

"By the way, what's that? Is it a diary or..."

It's not his personality to randomly question somebody's belonging in their own room and the reason for its existence but now, he still felt too embarrassed about his growling stomach. He was that desperate to change the topic.

"Huh? Yes..." Masato took his diary from the edge of his seat before placing it on his lap. "It is my diary. I wrote down everything I observed. Your name will be here soon."

"Oh..."

"But there is one thing that makes me wonder," Masato said. His hand was busy flipping the pages all way to the end of the diary until he found the page that he looked for. He lifted the diary to match Tokiya's eye level, revealing the folded papers which were glued onto the hardcover. "For some reason, the old me wrote something like he doesn't want anybody to read the paper including myself. That's weird."

"And... you still haven't read it?" Tokiya asked back.

"Nope."

"Why?"

"Because he doesn't allow me to do so."

"But don't you feel curious enough?" Tokiya asked again. If it were him, he would read it as soon as he found it.

"I do but..." Masato smiled as he closed the diary. "I am kind of scared."

"Why?"

"Because I feel like something tells me not to. The old me must think that my current condition doesn't allow me to know what I shouldn't know, right?"

Good point, Tokiya thought.

"Yeah, you're right."

"And I got that feeling from you guys too," Masato added, holding Tokiya's eyes for some reason.

"As in...?"

"I feel like you guys are hiding something from me."

Oh...

"But, that's okay. I believe judging from how caring you guys are, maybe you guys just don't want me to be worried about something, right?"

Yeah, and there is another thing that you shouldn't know too, Tokiya thought.

You shouldn't know that I used to hate you.

"We have a song together, right!?" Masato asked, too bright and sudden, which almost made Tokiya chocked his drink. Haruka, who just joined them after offering Tokiya a cup of tea and some cookies also flinched away from her husband.

"Ye...Yeah," Tokiya coughed, restraining himself to embarrass himself even more even the heat from the tea felt like it burnt his throat.

"Tokiya, are you okay?" Masato and Haruka asked in chorus which Tokiya replied with an 'OK' sign. However, the former received a soft hit on his arm from his wife.

"Of course he's not okay, dear. You sounded like you wanted to pick a fight with him," Haruka clarified. "Even I am also surprised by your voice."

"But you also asked him if he's okay or not," Masato whined.

"It's called courtesy, my dear," Haruka replied sardonically.

"Hey, hey, guy. It's okay," Tokiya tried to interrupt but the couple was busy mocking each other. Of course, they would never punch each other but...

Behind their mockery, Tokiya was not stupid to decipher it as their way of displaying their affection to each other.

It hurt and he certainly did not want to witness their lovey-dovey moments.

"It's not like I am getting a heart attack or something," Tokiya added. "What's your question again, Masato?"

"Original Resonance," Masato said with a wide grin.

"What?"

Why the hell did he mention a song from 15 years ago?

"That's our song, right?" Masato asked. He habitually grabbed Haruka's smaller hand before stroking it.

"Yes... it is. Why?" Tokiya glanced at their connected hands before returning his focus to his friend.

"It's because it's my favorite song," Masato exclaimed brightly. "And I really love your voice. It's so soothing and sweet. You sure are perfect, you know. You are good-looking, you can sing..."

"Nah, yours is also very sweet, Masato," he complimented back. Given the situation and with Haruka was around, he somehow could read where the conversation would lead him to.

One of them would ask about his singing which had become solely a history in his life.

"But, you don't sing nowadays, right? If you don't mind..." Tokiya could see that Masato was eyeing Haruka, indirectly asking his wife's green light to ask the idol a certain question. "May I know why?"

Bingo!

"I just don't have time. The movies offer came all at once and..." Tokiya was interrupted by a phone vibration from his jeans pocket.

Himura-san! He mentally exclaimed as the said name appeared on the screen. When Himura called, it was always about his works. He desperately hoped that his schedule had to be changed and he had to attend a talk show, movie shooting, or any studio which created an excuse for him to leave the house.

Asking him about his singing career meant he had to reveal the secret why he ditched his teammates. He was not ready to tell anyone about it in any way, especially with Haruka was around.

"Hello, Himura-san."

When Tokiya was talking with his manager, Haruka patted Masato's arm, ready with her question.

"I thought that you don't want to ask him about his singing?" Haruka whispered while her golden eyes glanced at Tokiya carefully.

"I was curious," Masato whispered back. "I can't help it. The more I listen to his songs, the more I think that it'll be a waste for his talent if he quits singing."

"Oh..." Haruka nodded, satisfied with the answer.

That makes two of us, Masato. Plus, Tokiya looked the happiest when he sang with you guys.

"Okay, bye," Tokiya pressed the 'off' button, eyes diverted to the couple. "I am sorry but I have to leave first. There is a slight change in my movie schedule and I have to attend a shooting now."

"Oh, really?" Masato sighed, unable to cover his disappointment.

As someone who had known Tokiya since 17 years ago, Haruka could spot a relief written over the idol's face, especially when he stood up right away from his seat.

I can see that you're happy to leave the question unanswered, Tokiya. Just what are you trying to hide from us?

"So, when can we meet again?" Masato asked hopefully as he shook hands with his friend.

"Huh? Hmm... I can't guarantee that. I need to confirm with my manager first," Tokiya said.

"Oh, really? Feel free to come here again, Tokiya. I really like talking with you. I can see why everybody calls us twins. Even I don't remember you, I feel comfortable with you already," Masato remarked, finally releasing Tokiya's hand from his.

Which part of our conversation did he like, though? I think it's boring because I sounded awkward, Tokiya pondered.

"Me too. I also enjoyed our conversation."

Yeah, right, his mind scoffed at him right away.

"By any chance, if you come here again, can we sing 'Original Resonance'? We can have Haruka to play piano for us. Right, Haruka?" Masato turned to his wife. Her shoulders rose and both the men could see how contented she was with the idea.

"Of course we can! Waaa, what a memory to hear you guys sing that song again," Haruka clutched her hands together. "You don't mind, right, Tokiya?"

Tokiya forced a sincere smile, did not want those two had the idea that he never agreed with the suggestion.

Just what have I done to be stuck with this couple?

All of sudden, the thrill that he obtained after he received a call from Himura felt pointless.

"Sure, it will be interesting," Tokiya remarked.

"Haruka, do you have a second?" Masato gave a short wave to his wife, which Haruka came to his side right away.

"Yes?" Haruka lowered her ear, listening intently at Masato's mysterious instruction.

The composer's face lit up as she took a glance at Tokiya.

"Okay, I will!"

What are they doing?

Tokiya was standing in the middle of the living room, shifting his gazes between Haruka and the tiffin carrier in her hands.

"What is this?" Tokiya asked skeptically, ignoring Haruka's lively smile.

"Your favorite food," Haruka answered cheerfully. She quickly added when Tokiya still put on his confused face, "It has ginger rice, miso salmon, miso soup, and some spring rolls. Masato asked me to give them to you since you didn't eat properly today."

That's... that's what he whispered to her?

"He said that? It's unnecessary," in order to conceal his happiness and guilt over Masato's care, his reaction was slightly strong. He anxiously pushed the carrier but Haruka was not the one to give up easily.

"It's okay, Tokiya. I bet he's... No, I bet we are all worried about you so just take this as a treat from your friends."

"But, Haruka, the tiffin..."

"You can return it whenever you want. Plus, this won't be your first and last visit, right?" Haruka eyed him hopefully.

"Well, I... I don't know about that."

"At least please take it for Harumi," Haruka smiled sweetly. "She always asked me either you eat properly or not. She knew how hard her beloved uncle has worked."

Tokiya's heart sank at the thought of the girl. He missed her so much. It was unfortunate that she was still in school or else, meeting her was like a fresh breath of air.

She had to mention Harumi in this kind of situation, didn't she?

"Well, if you said so," Tokiya sighed heavily as his hand hesitantly took the holder. "Please tell Masato that I really appreciated his kindness and please tell Harumi that she doesn't have to be worried. Her uncle can take care of himself."

"Then... when is the next one?"

"Hmm?" He lifted his eyebrow, pretending not to catch her words.

"I mean, when will you come here again? You know that everyone in this house always welcomes you, right? Harumi even said that she missed your singing and wished that you will sing for her when she meets you."

"And that's why you made the naïve Masato ask me about my singing?" Tokiya asked. As the slight sarcasm hit her mind, Haruka timidly nodded.

It was an unnerving silence. Haruka knew it was her turn to talk but the way Tokiya stared at her with a very serious expression intimidated her gumption.

She was curious but she knew, it would never be easy once Tokiya decided to seal his mouth.

"I can't help it," Haruka said, fingers playing with each other. "I asked everyone just what happened to make you grew distant from us but they don't have any idea either. I believe you have the answer, Tokiya."

Where's Himura-san when I need him to be here as soon as possible? Tokiya's mind remarked. His blue eyes glanced at the window, expecting his manager to come any sooner.

"It's nothing, really," Tokiya denied, almost immediately. "It's just that when all of you guys have your own life, own family to take care of, I think that's bound to happen. I also have a lot of projects to deal with..."

"But Natsuki and Cecil are a single guy like you," Haruka reasoned out. "I don't think you'll have any problem to meet or hang out with them frequently, right?"

"Besides their idol works, they still have family and other things to take care of. Unlike me."

She knew what he implied. Natsuki and Cecil still had their own personal life to attend to.

But Tokiya, it was vice versa. He spent almost 21 years out his life in slaving away as an idol so his personal life and his job was basically the same thing to him. He needed his job to stay alive and sane.

On the spur of the moment, they could hear a cute voice, followed by the sound of a closed door.

"Mummy?"

"Mummy?" Tokiya mimicked the cute sound from the corridor playfully. "Is it Mitsuki?"

"Yes," Haruka said. She glanced at Tokiya bitterly as she recognized that the guy just dodged their earlier conversation. "Yes, dear! Mummy is here."

Due to his distant friendship with his teammates since a few years ago, Tokiya rarely met Mitsuki who was only three years old. Compared to Harumi, he bet that the small girl most probably would not recognize him. Despite being skeptical, his loving side to kids kicked in and he could not wait to see her.

As soon as he saw her walking slowly towards them with messy hair, he could see how much Mitsuki resembled her mother. It felt like he just returned to 30 years ago and met the child version of Haruka.

Her face looked perplexed but it did not stop the girl from heading towards her uncle. While rubbing her eyes to overcome her sleepiness, her eyes still held Tokiya's face.

"Hi, Mitsuki," he greeted as he kneeled down in order to match her height. "How are you? I bet you don't recognize me, right? This is Tokiya ojichan."

The said girl did not show any reaction. She gazed blankly at the man and for a second, Tokiya thought she would cry out of terror once she realized that she did not know this stranger.

"Daddy!" She exclaimed suddenly before hugging him tightly.

Wh...What? Tokiya blinked as that was the only reaction he could convey. Did she just mistake me for her father?

"Mommy, Daddy can walk! Daddy can walk!" She pulled away, holding his knee. She jumped like a rabbit while forming a wide smile at Haruka.

As much as Tokiya found that this mini Haruka was so cute, he had another problem to deal with.

"No, dear. That's your uncle," Haruka said, struggling to pull herself together. If truth be told, this kind of situation had daunted a certain memory in her head and she did not want to think of it anymore. "Daddy is in his room."

"Huh? Not Daddy?" Mitsuki tilted her head, gazing questioningly at her mother.

"No, this is Tokiya ojichan," Tokiya supplied, pointing at himself.

"Daddy?" Mitsuki replied as a finger poked Tokiya's chest.

"Ojichan."

"Daddy?"

"Ojichan."

"Ojichan?"

"Daddy. Huh? No, I mean..."

"Yeayy, it's Daddy!" Mitsuki said, lifting her short arms cheerfully.

This kid was dangerous. Apparently, she could easily manipulate Tokiya.

"Waaaa, I can't believe this! Your daughter is so cheeky, Haruka," Tokiya exclaimed, staring at the small girl lovingly while his hand caressed her silky hair. "Your reaction is the same as your sister. She also mistook me for your Daddy." 

The composer always liked to see a stoic as Tokiya played with children but when Mitsuki called him 'Daddy', it disturbed her.

It really disturbed her even it did not have anything to do with Mitsuki.

"Yeah, she is," Haruka said, slowly.