okay i'm FINALLY getting to the last of my requests, starting with the tadaaki x etsuji requested by @yansim-fan314 who i'm tagging bc i lost the original ask when i responded to talk about oneshots vs slowburn fics lol anyway HERE
Tadaaki remembered vividly the rage and confusion he’d felt the first time he saw Etsuji enter his gym. He knew how much the two of them had once scorned him and he hadn’t yet fully forgiven Etsuji for looking down on the martial arts club. Yet, for some reason, when he saw Etsuji’s eyes search for him, saw how he lit up once their gazes connected, Tadaaki’s heart raced.
Etsuji navigated his way through the maze of equipment and held up a hand in greeting. “Yo.”
Tadaaki held up hs fist in response. Etsuji closed his hand and bumped his knuckles to Tadaaki’s. “What’s up, man?”
“I think I wanna focus on my core today. What are you gonna be doing?”
“Legs. Sakkun says my kick isn’t as strong as my punch.”
“That so? I know you gave me shit for skipping leg day initially, but what if you just focused on training your arms? Then you could just put your all into your punches.”
“Yeah, and then I’d be predictable as hell. If my opponents know to expect a hook, they won’t know what to do when I hit them with a good roundhouse!”
Etsuji rolled his eyes. “I swear, you’re almost too thorough.”
“I seem to recall you benefiting a lot from my thorough training and advice over the past few weeks.”
“Fine, whatever, let’s just get started.” The two of them smiled as they each went about their routines. Though they didn’t always use the same machine, they were more than happy to spot each other when it became necessary. During this hour of the day, there was no time or place for all the complicated feelings that Tadaaki had.
However, that time had to come to an end at some point, and soon enough both of them had finished their planned workouts for the day. As the two of them went to the locker room to change, Etsuji groaned. “I really pushed myself today… I have no idea how I’m going to get through my sets tomorrow.”
“Sounds like you need a good soak,” Tadaaki advised. “Or a rest day. When was the last time you took one?”
Etsuji flinched. “I’m taking them okay? Look, I don’t even need my compression braces anymore. I’m fine!”
Tadaaki rolled his eyes. “Sure.”
“But that soak sounds nice… Oh, yeah! Doesn’t this gym’s membership give you a discount at the bathhouse near here?”
“Yeah, but I usually just go home so I can put some bath salts in…”
“Bath salts? What, you some kinda chick? Come on, let’s try this place out!”
Tadaaki’s whole body tensed. “R-Right now?”
“Yeah, you got something else going on?”
“Uh… I guess not…”
“Then come on!”
Hesitantly, Tadaaki agreed.
On their way to the bathhouse, Etsuji rambled on about sports news and his workout plans while Tadaaki listened. Maybe he was just tired from the workout, but something about this whole thing made his head spin. The idea of going to a bathhouse with Etsuji didn’t feel wrong, but it didn’t feel like it had felt whenever he went with his family or members of the martial arts club. Maybe he just wasn’t too keen on exposing himself to someone he’d hated until recently? Yeah, that had to be it. It was petty and childish, but it made sense.
“Watch out!”
Tadaaki felt a sudden jerk as Etsuji grabbed his wrist and pulled him from the street just as a car rushed past with its horn blazing. Tadaaki stared after it, not fully registering what had just happened. “Dude, are you insane?” Etsuji nearly shouted, releasing his grip on Tadaaki’s wrist. “How could you just wander into the road like that? You need to pay attention and not zone out when you’re this close to traffic!”
Tadaaki looked down at his wrist. His skin burned and tingled where Etsuji had touched it. It sent shivers up his arm to his back. Probably just because Etsuji had grabbed it so hard.
“Ugh, and my magazine fell out of my bag. Now it’s all dirty, and I was gonna look at it tonight…” Tadaaki looked at the magazine and saw a smiling woman dressed only in a bikini. Something settled deep in the pit of his stomach and clogged his throat. He knew Etsuji carried gravure magazines around, he’d even gotten used to it - why did it disgust him so much again?
“That’s… Chigusa, right?”
“Oh, you remember? Yeah!”
“She’s coming to our school next week, I think…”
“Really? Someone as famous as her?! Wow…”
Tadaaki balled his hand into a fist, focusing on the pain of his fingernails digging into his palm to stop his face from screwing up. “You must be really excited. It’s the chance of a lifetime.”
“Huh? For what?”
“You know, to get with her…”
Etsuji watched Tadaaki for a moment before breaking out into a big grin. “Ha! What?! Me and her? No way, dude, she’s like, way out of my league… and it would be so awkward, yanno?”
Tadaaki unclenched his fist. “What? You’re not gonna go after her?”
“Duh, of course not! She’s not someone I like like that. Maybe a while ago, yeah, but I don’t even know her…”
Tadaaki’s heart beat so hard he felt it would burst from his chest. Surely it was because that car had almost hit him. Or maybe his blood ran so hot just from the sight of a scantily clad woman. That had to be it. Because if it wasn’t, then…
“I-I just remembered, I have to study tonight! Sakkun said he’d boot me from the club if I don’t get my grades up, so…”
“Wait, you’re leaving?”
“Bye!” Tadaaki dashed off, leaving behind a very confused Etsuji. That night, he got the best cardio workout of his life. He was already exhausted, and he likely wouldn’t be able to even get out of bed tomorrow, but he ran and ran until he got to his home. He ignored his mother’s greeting and his father’s chiding and raced up to his room, nearly slamming the door behind him. His heart was still pounding and his lungs burned. As he desperately sucked air into his throat, feeling all the while like he was swallowing daggers, his legs finally buckled beneath him as he fell to the floor.
It was the relief that made him realize it. No, he’d known for a while now - it was the relief that made him stop denying it. He’d been so relieved that Etsuji wasn’t interested in pursuing his favorite gravure model, relieved that he wouldn’t have to endure an endless amount of jealousy even worse than what he’d felt just looking at her image on the cover of the magazine. It wasn’t the exercise or the danger that made his heart work so hard, it was Etsuji. Tadaaki grasped at his chest, trying to relieve the pain. He cursed and swore, but it didn’t make the feelings or the images go away.
He wanted Etsuji all to himself. More than any goal, more than any woman, Tadaaki just wanted to be close to Etsuji. He thought of his eyes, imagined his rippling muscles, how he pulled his lips back when he really pushed his limits and how sweat ran down his face, and he knew that his life was going to be nothing but difficult from here on out.
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Which character do you find most boring in 1980's mode?👀
hey I'm sorry I'm so late to this, but tbh the suitors are really boring.
They just have the same routine as Kyuji in 20XX mode. I do like some designs, but others are just kinda... ugly.
Also, their descriptions just are supposed to relate to what rival they have a crush on, which isn't bad, but it feels like it's screaming to us that their only character trait is being a suitor for a rival.
And, when you tell the suitor what the rival likes, they just use Kyuji's hair model & design instead of having their own models. I get that 1980s mode was made in 3 months (iirc), but it's been 2 years since it came out, I think Etsuji (Chigusa's suitor since her canon elimination was match-make) should have his own hair model already.
But, that's all I have to say about the most boring characters.
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