Colds Cancel Concerts
a Oversoul (Shaman King) story
by Silly Sooze
"Dude. Ren. Are you okay?"
"Huh..." He turned to his other side, looking up drowsily. "Yoh, for hell's sake. I was asleep. Of course I'm okay."
"Only you were coughing something awful in your sleep. Woke me up." Yoh worked himself up into an upright position to look at the black figure in the other hotel bed. The Boston midnight was moonless and pitch dark.
Tao Ren frowned. "Well, obviously, I was asleep so, logically, I didn't notice. You can, therefore, hardly expect me to apologize for something I didn't even know I was doing." He cleared his throat unobtrusively.
"I don't expect you to apologize, Ren," Yoh disclaimed patiently. "I just wanted to make sure you weren't asphyxiating. That's all. Sorry I woke you up."
"Oh, alright." Ren softened a little. "Well, as you can see I'm still alive, so why don't we go back to sleep? It'll be early rising for us tomorrow." He tried not to pay heed to the flamish feeling in his throat, or the slight pricking he suddenly felt in his face, behind his nose. Hell, he thought irritably, the LAST thing he could do with was an friggin' head cold coming on - as if everyone and everything wasn't already doing their best to annoy him during this stupid tour. Well, everyone except Yoh maybe. But even Yoh'd do better just to let him sleep.
"G'night then," he heard Yoh whisper through the dark. "But I warn you: if you're still alive tomorrow, and your throat still sounds the way it just did, the concert's off. We'll have Manta in a fit, but what else is new?"
Ren just growled. He didn't want to think about the concert; he didn't want to think about Manta; he didn't, in short, want to acknowledge the fact that there was going to be a tomorrow. What he wanted was sleep, the only thing probably that would make him forget the uncomfortable feeling in his throat, nose and eyes. He sniffed loudly and angrily and mumbled "Night."
Asakura Yoh didn't go back to sleep immediately, altough Ren did. The tall, slender Japanese boy lay on his back staring at the invisible ceiling and wondered. Could it be that Ren was actually coming down with something? That was about as impossible as the whole of Boston sinking into the earth overnight - and possibly even more undesirable. They had five concerts to go along the East Coast before flying to Japan, where they intended to take a few months' sabbatical.
The concerts had sold out completely, all five of them. Manta, their active little midget of a manager, had positively squeaked with excitement at that news. Oversoul, the great darkpunk band Oversoul with its four eccentric members, was a flashing success. It just wouldn't do to go around cancelling concerts overnight - and still, what would a band do without its lead singer?
Maybe he was just seeing ghosts though. Ren had had a bit too much booze tonight; could be that was irritating his throat a little. Yoh didn't think it was nerves; Tao Ren seemed to be absolutely without those when it came to performances. Or anything else, Yoh reflected. The guy just burst with self-confidence.
Firmly cutting off reflections before they could get more personal, the guitarist closed his eyes and soon drifted off to sleep. But not before he had heard Ren unconsciously stifle another coughing fit into his pillow.
The sun shone brilliantly through the gap in the curtains as Yoh woke up the next morning. He sat upright, stretched his lean, slender body and hopped out of bed, wearing nothing but a pair of much-worn boxershorts. The lump under the blanket in the other bed was moving now as well; soon the blanket was flapped back and Ren's head with his hair in one black, now slightly dishevelled spike, poked out and looked about blinking. Suddenly his face convulsed; his nose twitched; he put a hand to his face and spat out a loud "HiYESHoo!"
"Bless you," Yoh said, startled and slightly amused. "Sure you're okay?"
"Oh, hell. The light stung my eyes." With two fingers Ren fiercely rubbed his nose, then heaved his legs out of bed with a sigh. "Blast that sun."
"How's the throat?"
Ren wished that Yoh should stop asking questions. "It's fine, okay? I'm perfectly fi.. huh... hhTCHAAH!"
"Maybe you shouldn't look into the sun." Yoh ran to the bathroom quickly, just in time to dodge the shoe Ren threw at him. He was worried now. About tonight's show, Manta's reaction, and last but not least, Ren himself. Tao Ren simply wasn't one of those people that catch colds. The fact that he seemed to have done it now was severely unnerving. As he rummaged in one of the drawers for his shaving gear, Yoh heard two more, very distinct sneezes from the other room.
Gosh.
He suddenly realized he was standing very still, with his ears on sticks, so to speak, listening tensely for more. This was such a weird thing to do that he quit it immediately and started shaving, but he couldn't stop himself from still listening. He felt very confused.
"Well, great job, Sharkhead. Very neat. Getting yourself sick in the middle of a tour." Blue-haired drummer Horohoro never was very subtle in addressing the band's lead singer, and now that he saw him in the helpless-looking position that constant sneezing had put him in, he simply couldn't resist the bait.
Ren just managed a very evil scowl at the blue-haired drummer before he collapsed into another uncontrollable sneeze fit. "WhaCHOO! hh..huh-ESHoo! gah... hCHIaah! HESSHhoo! UHshoo!" followed by a series of curses. "Will you shut the hell up?! I can do wih...wh... WHACHOO! without your stupid mindless yarbles. And I'm NOT a.. ah... huhCHEEaah! sharkhead." Furiously, Ren sprang up and strode away, straight towards the elevators.
"That was foolish of you, Horo," Yoh said sternly. "He's quite pissed off as it is. You don't have to chaff him about it."
Horohoro shrugged. "What goes around, comes around. No more Mr Cool with all those sneezes, huh? Bet that's what bothers him about it."
"Of course it is. But wouldn't it piss you off if you had to suffer it?"
"Not the point, Yoh. You must agree with me that it can't do Ren any harm to come off his high throne of self-confidence for a change."
Yoh was silent. There was no denying that Horo had a point; but still he didn't think that Ren deserved to be put down in such an undignified way.
Faust VIII, the band's bass player and practically a natural goth, sitting with the others in the hotel lobby, had refrained from any comment so far. He had looked on absently as Ren had sped away in a huff, but now he opened his mouth and said slowly:
"We've got the press conference in an hour and a half. What about Ren?"
"He won't be made to face the press," Yoh said immediately. Horohoro scowled. "Why not? Let the journalists see the man behind the god. Look, your all-time idol is just a human being! Look, he suffers from perfectly normal ailments!"
"Horo, you're being childish," Yoh sighed. "We'll just have to tell them that Ren is ill. I only wonder what will become of the concert. I mean, the state he's in now, there's just no way he's gonna sing tonight."
"Oh, no," Horo groaned. "What will Manta say? Where is he, anyway?"
Yoh stood up. "He said he'd be down in half an hour from now. I'll be back by then and explain everything, but now I have to go and see how Ren's doing." Without waiting for an answer he walked over to the elevators and got into one of them.
All the way up - eight storeys and it wasn't a very fast elevator - he was aware that his heart was beating rather faster than usual, with a strange sort of excitement he couldn't explain. A faint blush was slowly spreading over his cheeks and something soft and mushy was growing in his stomach. Surely this was a weird way to feel? He found himself impatiently willing the lift up, urging it to go faster with his mind. He wanted to get to Ren quickly. He wanted to know if he was very bad, and if he could do anything for him perhaps...
Suddenly the elevator came to a halt. With a soft ‘ping' the doors slid open and Yoh all but ran out into the corridor. In a second he had reached the room he shared with Ren and heard, even before he opened the door, that things weren't quite all right with the Oversoul lead singer.
"Ah-CHOO! Sniff... hehh...H'TSHOO! h'ESHHee! Chaahh! Ugh, damnit all... ahh... huhh... sniff... hehhCHEEyaahh! Oh, for fuck's sake!" Ren rummaged around in suitcases and drawers, desperately in need of something to wipe his runny nose on. The itch just wouldn't go away. His head felt full of cotton wool, he could hardly hear anything and his throat was aflame. But his nose was worst. It felt like a lump of glowing coal and it pricked and itched and tickled unbearably. Rubbing nor sniffling could make the awful feeling go away. "HiYESHHoo! sniff..." Finally, with an exasperated sigh, he sat down in a chair by the window and put his face in his hands, elbows propped up on his knees, still sniffling.
Yoh came in unobtrusively, making as little noise as possible. He immediately saw Ren sitting there, the picture of hopelessness. It gave him a shock.
"Ren."
Ren looked up, his face a mess. Red, bleary eyes, nose pink from the rubbing and an expression of agonized irritation marred his handsome features. Yoh bit his lip.
"Y-Yoh..." He scowled. "I you dare ask me are you okay..."
"I can see perfectly well you're not okay." Yoh wished his cheeks didn't feel so warm. What would Ren think if he saw him standing there blushing like a school girl? He shifted the weight from his left to his right foot.
"So what are you doing here?" Ren rubbed his nose and sniffed loudly.
"I came... to see you. And frankly, I don't like what I see. You should be in bed, Ren," Yoh ventured, wondering where he'd got the courage. On the other hand, it seemed less offensive to suggest the like to a Ren who looked so distinctly sick.
"In bed! Do I look like a wuss?" Ren turned away angrily, stifling a sneeze in the crook of his elbow. "TSHHahh!"
"No," said Yoh quietly. "You just look sneeze-ridden and miserable. Otherwise you're as cool as ever."
Something in Yoh's voice caught Ren's attention. He looked up again through squinting, watery eyes, but Yoh had already turned on his heels and disappeared into the bathroom. He could hardly bear seeing Ren like that - and yet...
Yet Ren *was* as cool and attractive as ever. Maybe even more so - now.
Returning with a box of tissues he'd found in the bathroom, Yoh saw Ren standing at the window, leaning heavily on the window sill and resting his head against the glass. He kept sniffling and rubbing his nose with the back of his hand. Yoh walked up to him, hesitantly, and put the box of tissues next to Ren's right hand on the window sill.
Ren frowned at it, then aggressively tore a tissue from it and turned his back to Yoh as he blew his nose. "ahCHOO! Huh-ESHHee! Sniff... h-ESHHaah!"
Yoh swallowed hard. With burning cheeks and a pounding heart he put his hand on Ren's shoulder and said "Ren, you really must go back into bed now." And let me take care of you, he forced himself not to add.
Ren shrugged. "What good is lying around in bed if I... huhh... sniff... huh-huhh..." his breath came haltingly, his nostrils quivered and his upper lip bared a row of white teeth as he struggled to get the lingering sneeze out. "H-haahh... hh-hCHAAAhh!" Hands clutched over his face, he doubled up, shuddering and hardly keeping his balance. "Godfriggin'damn it's driving me nuts!" he flared, still with his back to Yoh. "I can't *stand* it!"
Yoh felt he couldn't much longer, either. He picked up the tissues and put them on the table next to Ren's bed, then walked into the bathroom again for a glass of water and some aspirin. Having put that within reach as well, he flapped back the covers. "Come. Get yourself some rest."
Ren groaned. His head was so blocked up he could hardly think. Maybe Yoh was right and it was better to lie down instead of walking around with this misery. He took his shirt off and shivered as the unheated air came down upon his skin.
Yoh looked away, afraid something might show in his face, something he didn't want Ren to see.
The singer wasn't looking though. He took off his trousers, which cost a little more effort because he was now shivering continuously. Even when he crept under the blankets and buried his head in his pillow, the shudders wouldn't go away.
"Are you cold?" Yoh asked.
"N-no, I'm not c-cold..." Ren hissed through gritted teeth. "My head feels b-burning." He cleared his throat in a raw, rasping sound. "Ugh." He tried to inhale through his nose, but felt it block up immediately. "Oh, great. Just what I deeded." He tore another tissue from the box with an aggravated flourish and blew his nose loudly. It didn't do much except that now he felt like his ears were turning inside out and the prickly itch returned. "ehh.. HUHCHishh! AhCHAAH! Huh... hCHYaah!"
"Bless you," Yoh said, feeling a perfect fool. Bless you. That was really all he could come up with? Standing lamely by the bedside doing absolutely nothing whatsoever to relieve Ren's distress and mumble a sappy Bless you? He was annoyed with himself, indecisive, and terribly confused.
"Bless be," Ren growled. "That's a good ode. I like that. Oh, God!" An expression of agony spread over his sneezy face. "The fuckig press co'ference! What's Banta godda say?" He groaned in despair. "Whatever happeds, Yoh, I wad you to keep that stupid bidget away frob here. Tell hib whatever you like, but keep hib away."
Suddenly Yoh felt himself become very calm. "Sure," he said. "Look, Ren, I'm going down now to explain and cancel the show if possible. There's no way we're on tonight. We'll fix the press somehow. Meanwhile, is there anything I can get you? Anything you need?"
"What I deed," Ren grunted, "is a gun to shoot byself through this biserable shitty excuse for a friggid head." He turned on his back and sighed. "Never felt so rotten in my life. A hangover is peanuts compared to thih... hh... TSHOO!" He clapped his hands over his face and sneezed loudly into them. It sounded hollow and congested. Yoh bit his lips and turned his face to the window, unable to witness Ren's suffering any longer.
It was unbearable. Because it filled him not only with pity, but also with an excitement that he felt was outrageously inappropriate, however strong. What idiocy was this, to get so het up by his friend-and-colleague's misery?
"Okay," he said hesitantly, cursing himself for his perplexity. "I'll come round again later if that's all right by you. Try to get some sleep. And I'll hook one of them corridor cruisers in aprons to stand by in case you need anything." Corridor cruisers in aprons. He was getting sillier by the minute, for heavens' sake.
"Whatever," Ren growled. Only it didn't sound so angry and miserable. Yoh ventured a quick peek at the bed and saw Ren look at him.
"Are you okay, Yoh?"
Yoh opened and shut his mouth like a fish on land, he was so incredibly surprised his voice just didn't work somehow. But before he could gather his senses about him, Ren got the glazy look again and grabbing some tissues, he rubbed his nose fiercely to keep off the sneezes. But it would not do.
"Hh-CHISHH! CHISSHH! Ahh...ahhh...ASHoo! Huh.. CHSSH-Chhishh! ESSHHoo! Huhh.... AHCHOO! Ugh." A small uttering of disgust followed the relentless sneeze fit, sounding weary.
Yoh noticed he'd clenched his hands into tight fists along his sides. Embarrassedly, he released them and ventured to touch Ren's shoulder briefly before walking to the door. He didn't even dare bless Ren again. Instead he just said softly "Hang in there, pal. I'll be back later."
Tao Ren did not answer. He lay on his back, one arm folded over his eyes, sighing softly.
When Yoh closed the door behind him, he had to struggle to keep himself from kicking something, if only the air.
Much later, Yoh returned to the bedroom where he found Ren fast asleep, and apparently well taken care for. A half-finished glass of fruit juice stood on the night table, next to the strip of aspirin lay a little box of cough-drops, and the tissues had been replaced by a neat pile of white handkerchiefs.
Yoh smiled gratefully as he realized that one of the roommaids must have gone out of her way for the rock star with the head cold - he himself had forgotten to 'hook one', as he so stupidly had promised Ren that morning.
He decided that if he could find out who the helpful girl was, she'd receive a huge tip - maybe in the form of a concert ticket. Or not, since in all probability there wouldn't be a concert tonight.
A chair stood between the two beds. Yoh sat down on it and looked down on Ren, who was asleep but didn't look very comfortable. Apparently unable to breathe through his nose, he snored a little and his breath came hoarsely and haltingly as he lay, moving restlessly about. Sometimes he sniffed, sometimes he moaned; his cheeks were flushed and some strands of his jet black hair had escaped the untidy spike and stuck to his forehead.
Yoh reached out and with two fingers brushed the hair aside. Ren's head felt quite hot. Yoh's lips began to quiver and his heart pounded faster than ever as he very gently placed a hand in Ren's neck to check the temperature.
The memory of occasional sex between them had been completely erased. This Ren, this helpless and vulnerable but still beautiful young man wasn't the Ren he'd been lusting after. Who'd been using him sometimes to get off.
The defences, the walls of the fortress were down. This was the Ren he loved.
Giddy with the shock of realization, Yoh sat back on his chair, his hand now resting lightly upon Ren's shoulder, which felt unnaturally warm as well.
Ren... adorable, beloved Tao Ren. Let your sleep be blissful and healing - and very, very lengthy.
"CHISSHH! Huh... TISHoo!" The sneezes came out hastily, as if they couldn't wait for one another. It took Ren so much by surprise that he went from fast asleep to wide awake with an absolute flash. The itch in his nose had apparently been building up in his sleep and now it made itself noticed. The sneezes were light and dry, and Ren, being asleep, couldn't control them at all; but they woke him up and triggered more sneezes at the same time. Ren hardly had the time to sit up and bury his face in his hands before getting lost in the sneeze attack. "Heh-ISHH! AhCHOO! TSHAAHH! Huh-ISHH-USHH! HiYESHoo! Ah-h-CHSHH!" A pause for breath, grabbing a handkerchief, in which he stifled the last two sneezes "HhCHFF! CHSHH!" before it finally was over.
He collapsed on the bed, sniffling, exhausted - and saw Asakura Yoh staring down at him with wide, shimmering brown eyes and his gentle mouth slightly open.
Embarrassed, Ren turned away. He prayed that Yoh wouldn't say anything like "Bless you" or "God, that didn't sound good".
Silence.
"Yoh-kuhn..." Ren turned back to face the other boy, rubbing his eyes, which felt itchy and sore. He cleared his throat with a nasty, rasping sound. "Did I" - his voice was still hoarse - "did I just... *sneeze* myself awake?"
"Yes, you did." Yoh spoke almost without sound. He could not keep his eyes off Ren.
Or his hands, for that matter. Without thinking he stood up, pulled the blankets right up to Ren's chin and tucked him in. "There. Now relax, Ren. Or is it too hot for you?"
"No... not r-really." Ren had started shivering again. "I'm thirsty though. Man, I feel dehydrated."
"I'll get you some water."
"That'd be great.." Ren turned his head and stifled a sneeze into his fist. Yoh swallowed and hurried back with the water.
"There you go. Sit up now. Come on." And Yoh put an arm around the Chinese boy's slender shoulders.
It was that easy.
Leaning back in Yoh's arm Ren slowly emptied the glass, then put it away and sighed. "Thanks, Yoh-kuhn."
"Ren..." Yoh's voice trembled ever so slightly as Ren leaned against him with apparent satisfaction, resting his cheek against Yoh's chest. Yoh put his other arm around him and held him tight, feeling as if everything inside him had started to melt.
"I meant what I said this morning, Ren," he whispered. "You're every bit as cool, and twice as attractive, as ever."
---THE END---
The characters, alas, are not mine. They belong to the writer of Shaman King and the rock band idea belongs to Spheredra, I think.
This is my first try in English...