𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐏𝐀𝐓𝐑𝐎𝐍 𝐒𝐀𝐈𝐍𝐓 𝐎𝐅 𝐋𝐈𝐀𝐑𝐒! ➛ a. keiji ✔

𝘁𝗿𝗮𝗰𝗸 𝟬𝟴 ── 𝘮𝘰𝘴𝘵 𝘰𝘧 𝘵𝘦𝘭𝘦𝘷𝘪𝘴𝘪𝘰𝘯 𝘪𝘴 𝘧𝘢𝘬𝘦

listen to the song above for a soundtrack!

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[y/n] turned to their tiny-screened television to watch some random show. as they began channel surfing through the available ones — that, honestly, weren't many since they didn't have cable television — they wondered what it was like to stand atop a stage, hearing the crowd roar your name as they belt out the notes you picked for your song. [y/n] longed to be on that stage, to feel the spotlight graze their skin. alas, it was one meter too far, always one step ahead of them. the truth was, they used their lyrics as a bridge to get to that place: for one day they would be able to hear the crowd, feel the lights, and draw in one shaky breath before starting a song.

the channel in which they landed on had akaashi on the screen. the musician was doing some sort of interview: something about his music, naturally. his talents had gotten loads of attention since he made a deal with that producer, and thus his career skyrocketed; hence the interview. the person asking the questions was eager to learn about keiji's journey, and [y/n] wondered, in the back of their head, if the man would mention them. much to their dismay, he didn't.

"your lyrics are so heartfelt, akaashi-san. why is that?" the person asked, their eyes glistening against the camera's lens. one could tell they looked keenly at the blue-eyed man and his beautiful raven hair. [y/n] had seen him before on his profile picture, but they hadn't noticed how eye-catching he was. his beauty transcended society's standards, it was almost as if you could sense an aura of charm around the man.

lovely features aside, keiji seemed uneasy with the question, and [y/n] knew why. he was afraid he'd slip up about the lyrics they had been sending him, yet the writer knew that was no problem. even though the friendly atmosphere between them had been ruined with their latest online conversation, [y/n] knew it would be completely okay if keiji decided to tell them about the letters. however, he didn't.

"oh, thank you!" he said, noticing the interviewer waited for an answer. "and, to answer your question, it's because of how i see the world. it is indeed very beautiful, and seeing it unravel before my very eyes, bearing witness to all this marvellous beauty, is thoroughly inspiring. one wouldn't be able to take their eyes out of the earth if they saw it the way i did," he added, evoking a longing sigh from the interviewer.

the camera panned to the black-haired man's face, focusing him in the middle of the shot. noticing he was, in fact, being recorded, akaashi smiled at the video, a smile [y/n] would remember for days — it would be there when they closed their eyes and wanted to be fast asleep yet couldn't due to the curve of a neck and the way he averted eye contact as soon as he took note of what he was doing. his shy manner paralyzed the writer completely, as if stopped by a thousand rocks. his raven hair was all they could think about, and how they would entangle their finger into it if they had the chance and—

the television interrupted [y/n]'s train of thought. "well, you truly are a man of the words. you almost made me tear up here," the person said, pretending to wipe away a tear. "thank you so much, akaashi-san," they said to the musician, then turned to face the camera. "and this is akaashi keiji, an upcoming musician of today's era," they finished, bringing forth a round of applause from the audience, which [y/n] assumed was a recorded track. most of television is fake.

still, what wasn't fake was keiji's eyes. they shone with determination, a sentiment only matched when one has their objective as close to themselves as akaashi did. he had the opportunity right in his hands now, something only available for him because of [y/n]. yet, he failed to even mention them, or even indirectly say there was a reason for all his inspiration. he had been so determined to play the part of the independent musician that it shot a pang of pain throughout the writer's whole body. he could at least acknowledge me...

although all this bothered [y/n] deeply, they recognized their own fault in it. they had been the one to ask keiji not to mention them anywhere, and even the one to drive their chat on the forum to the awkward atmosphere into which it turned. they didn't want to be seen in person by the man, for they were afraid he might feel disappointed in them: maybe it would be because of the way they walked, or talked, or smiled, or winked, or looked, or was. all of [y/n] was a reason to worry according to them, and it was with great distaste that they dismissed the man's proposal. i'm not worthy of his attention.

shoving all those envious and worrisome thoughts aside, [y/n] mustered a laugh, glad to see his career fly. he had asked to see them in person, but they were just as happy as he seemed to be in the interview watching him from afar. yes, that's how it should have been from the start.

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a/n: i told y'all the angst was coming heheheheh !!!!! also, do y'all rlly like my writing? cause idk, not many people are reading this, and i wonder if it's because of something about the writing or the plot or whatever. idk.... well, anyways !!

did you like the chapter? you guys already know what i'm going to say, so i'm not even gonna say it anymore lmao, y'all r probably annoyed by now. still, how are u guys? i hope ur great. i myself am good, since i can take this lovely christmas day to relax and maybe write some more throughout the day, we'll see. also, HAPPY HOLIDAYS !! if you don't celebrate christmas, that's fine! i hope all of you have a great day <3 oh, another thing: i'll spend a week away on a trip and, since i'm going to a place that doesn't have internet, i won't be able to update for a week. which is really sad :(( i'll miss u guys <3

in relation to the "build-a-book" form, thank you so much! we've already got more than 160 responses, and i'm going through ever single one of them in a spreadsheet so i can track all of the results. the form closes on january 1st so, if you haven't answered it yet, go to my misc book and find the latest update, the link is in the comments! also, if you can, please spread the word about it. we'll need as many responses as we can get :)) tysm !!

i love y'all so so much, don't u ever forget that. :)

signing off, 

— 𝖒.