Chapter Text
'Do they really not get along?' Aira thought as he sat down with Rei and Eichi who had glared at each other while sitting down opposite to each other as Aira set out the table for all of them as the kouhai who just recently moved into the dorm and had to pay his senpai the proper respect.
Well, he would never dare to question the great Eichi Tenshouin and Rei Sakuma, the top idols that also had made a mark in the current era as the Yumenosaki revolutionary and leader of the Eccentrics. Of what little he had known, they were apparently on opposing sides with idol battles like the DreFes that undoubtedly happen with the Emperor of Yumenosaki changing hands, the legendary Eccentrics with bad rep being dealt by the student council consisting of AKATSUKI and the previous fine that led a revolution which was won when all the Eccentrics were dealt with, ushering a new era with winners and losers where it would be unsurprising in hindsight for bad beef to happen between both sides.
And yet the ending of the idol revolution was that of the happy ending suitable for idols where they somehow made amends and ushered a new era together after the revolutionary showed everything that was wrong with the idol industry and asked others to stand up for it because the Eccentrics never sought vengeance and they were legendary idols that could hold on their own.
Well, that's as far as theories would get about that Yumenosaki era, with so much covered up and tight-lipped so there had been plenty theories but what Aira knew and agreed with was the reigning theory that made the most sense. After all, results speak for itself when idols bolstered themselves from a lazy state to become a school it was always meant to be. The Trickstar revolution with fine to hone the idea further of Yumenosaki to fly high with their dreams and becoming the SS winners after...
Aira had to admit there were many holes on the timeline for Yumenosaki, but it was undeniable that Yumenosaki was a desolate school before picking itself up and then finally creating a beautiful ensemble a year later to help Trickstar that had won the DDD to become the idol representative and take the SS by storm.
It felt like the simplified version and Aira did his best to find out about what truly happened, especially once he got into Yumenosaki but information was scarce which frustrated him to no end.
But now... living with the revolutionary and Eccentric that fans tentatively dubbed as leader among the rest, Aira wondered and yet kept to himself because he was so much less than these legendary idols and no matter what Rei had said, could never be on level with them but then again, having a tea party together...
Aira wondered whether he will ever be comfortable with these two idols but it was an absolute privelege to live under the same roof with them and he should strive to fulfill what both would want.
'It feels impossible for me to act naturally with these stunning idols, but Sakuma-senpai wanted me to act naturally and get along. In the end... idols are humans like me. Idols are humans like me... I am just living self-insert dreams... I am a self-insert character...'
Since Aira couldn't easily get over his idol worship that easily, he decided that pretending to be someone else or using his idol otaku as a reliable context for this case scenario so he could act like a decent human being. It might fail, but it was worth a try.
Aira drank tea, savouring the taste of the tea that Rei prepared while the man himself was drinking tomato juice that might be the reason for his healthy idol-like complexion. Aira knew deep down that he was being starry-eyed for his idols but reality had yet caught up to him, what with MDM's hecticness, the sudden room change and what lottery he won to room with this particular duo... So he might not be all there when having this tea party and noting out exaggerated awesomeness he might experience and only seeing himself way less human than the gods themselves by the idea of idolatory when he actually had more dignity than this.
In other words, Aira was riding a wave, savouring every sip of the tea that an idol himself prepared for him. Eichi had helped Aira pick out the teacakes so the trio could have an impromptu tea party. As far as first meetings go, a tea party was not bad and he could sense that it was not a regular occurance when he heard the duo banter about it.
"And I could have my one-on-one time with Shiratori-kun if you had just restocked the teacakes like you have always reminded me to, Tenshouin-kun," Rei said.
"Ah, I do always remind you but there are times that I'm busy to do it immediately. I was planning to, but Shiratori-kun beaten me to it and that was how we met and came here together. It was a good thing since I also want to greet my kouhai properly for moving into our room," Eichi shot back.
"I hope Shiratori-kun enjoys the tea I made and the teacakes that are prepared. Have you enjoyed yourself now?" Rei asked, directing it towards Aira who tried not to choke his tea in surprise for being suddenly addressed.
He must have worried his senpai for how he had acted when he first met but the exhaustion from MDM and everything that happened still had yet to catch up to him so he might have acted a little out of bounds. Now that he had calmed down and truly enjoyed himself, the only thing he could do was reassure his senpai.
"Yes, this oolong tea is delicious," Aira said with a smile that could only be returned in kind. Eichi, who didn't like to be left out, interjected:
"Next time, I can make any preferred tea you want Shiratori-kun. Still, it is astounding that Sakuma-kun could make such good tea when his go-to drink usually end up being tomato juice."
"What can I say?" Rei chuckled, "While tomato juice fits my aesthetic, I picked up how to create tea from Ritsu after his tea club activities since he ended up really liking tea and it's an Onii-chan's job to take good care of him with what he likes. It would also be disatisfying for me to lose to Aoba-kun in this particular regard when I saw him enjoying himself with the tea he prepared..."
"Ah, are you done talking about your little brother? As used to it as I am, I doubt the same could be said for Shiratori-kun," Eichi finally said.
In realization, Rei had turned to Aira and said, "Am I boring you, Shiratori-kun? I get that what I say might be out of context for you."
"Oh, it's no bother at all, Sakuma-senpai," Aira immediately asserted, instead of saying 'No, no continue, I need all the deets' since that was where his thoughts were going throughout it all but he wanted to not be that much of an idol otaku in front of his senpai and continued, "After all, I am just new to the idol industry unlike you all so it's understandable that I don't know everything but isn't this what this is about? To get to know each other better?"
Because he was already getting to know Rei better at least, while he fanboyed over the meaning about tomato juice being an aesthetic for Rei which gave credence about them really being vampires like the Sakuma brothers proclaim even when people like Aira simply believed it an aesthetic. It was really rabui how Rei showed his love to his brother and made him wonder why UNDEAD x Knights collab rarely happen with their members, if at all. There also seems to be some beef against Tsumugi Aoba with his mention and not wanting to lose, or is it from some particular offense during Yumenosaki's revolution. After all, Tsumugi was the leader of fine and Rei was the proclaimed leader of the Eccentrics. It almost made sense...
"Well said, Shiratori-kun," Rei smiled, as he interrupted Aira's thought dump, "Then I can tell you all about Ritsu and how you-"
"Shouldn't we talk about ourselves instead of the brothers that we love oh so much?" Eichi interjected.
"Like you would understand," Rei grumbled as Aira tried relaxing with his senpai. It should be easy, right? With how accomodating that they were being to a kouhai like him and how much he was learning about them, comparing with what he knew before being an idol?
"Brothers we love oh so much? But isn't Tenshouin-senpai an only child?" Aira asked, getting into the conversation, trying to relax in his senpais' presence and get along with them...
"An only child by blood, but... they always say that family is the one you have found closest to your heart, such as Hajime-kun delightfully calling me his Onii-chan, and also what Ritsu-kun calls-"
"Tenshouin-kun, you don't have to go that far. Family by blood is also as important as the found family you have. But as you have just said, why don't we get talking about ourselves than the brothers we love oh so much?" Rei jabbed back at Eichi, and Aira swore despite the smiles, there was underlying pressure beneath them.
'They must be truly the rivals ever if they cannot even keep up the facade in front of their kouhai although they are trying their best,' Aira's mind went a mile a minute in contemplation, 'Was it a lie then when they assured me they got along since it is impossible to room with someone they... well, dislike?'
They would even lie to their kouhai to just make him feel better, although this was an assumption that Aira cannot wholly go with. Although he knew a lot about the idols through wiki and profile information, his interactions so far with them had differ vastly than what he had been given.
Of course, the profile information that they released wasn't completely wrong but it was obviousy so much more than that, the personalities that Aira made up in his head and even more the moment he chatted with them and learned so much more.
Aira never knew that Eichi, who exuded an angelic vibe in his performances, had a little twisted side that he had already experienced being an underling to StarPro's boss but outside of work, he was amiable and a little teasing but overall caring to others.
Appararntly, he also loved idols as much as Aira, when he asked about the merch around Aira's side of the room as an awkward but quick change of subject that Aira would have thought as only a change of subject if not for the absolute sincerity in the question. The idol merch in his room was something he knew he would be called out for but still, and talking about idol love with Eichi Tenshouin was something that he never expected to have in his bingo card.
Rei was equally friendly, much nicer than his demon king persona that his performances in UNDEAD exude. This was the first time that Aira had met Rei face to face unlike his previous dealings with Eichi as his boss and he was glad that he didn't have to go through something as twisted as Eichi had done, not necessarily shattering fine's leader's image for Aira but something to be wary about for the dark side of idolhood. Outside of the scary demon king persona, Rei was more kindly and at least somewhat straightforward than Eichi was.
'A fallen angel, a demon king and a lowly mortal living together. Did the universe have some sick humour making us live together?' Aira thought, but before his move, it had only been a fallen angel and a demon king. ... The fanfics are writing themselves at this point, since throughout the banter and Aira's tendency to be the listener for the juicy deets that left Rei and Eichi to talk to each other, he had noticed the underlying tension and how their smiles did not reach their eyes at times.
Even though they have said that they wouldn't live together if they didn't get along, Aira was not blind to the partition that separated Eichi and Rei's beds.
'Maybe it really is because of the Yumenosaki revolution that their relationship is strained,' Aira thought, wondering how he was going to live in an environment where a fallen angel and demon king were at odds. Also, he could see the fanfictions writing themselves with the many ideas he could garner from their interaction alone, something he wanted to slap himself for because he just wasn't an otaku anymore.
He was still tempted to at least write about his experiences as a fanfic with the title as common as I, an Idol Otaku, Suddenly Became A Roomate of the Strongest Idol?! just to laugh a little to himself that anyone thinking it was simply self-insert was actually true in real life.
Yeah, the fanfictions really be writing themselves. Regardless...
Retain some professional dignity, call them out for being un-idol like when need be! But when Rei and Eichi had smiled at him with such sincerity as they asked whether he was enjoying the tea party, Aira decided that he was just going to enjoy this heaven.
Even if the heaven was Eichi and Rei bickering. Despite reassurances that Eichi and Rei got along or else they wouldn't have roomed together, Aira had to be blind to the strain that he certainly felt since he was being left out to yet another long monologue between the two possible long-winded idols he would ever know. Being aware that Keito was equally long-winded or even more so from what he had garnered through posts, rumors and profiles, he had an idle thought about what runs through childhood friends.
'Really childhood friends...Hasumi-senpai is somehow childhood friends with both of them despite them not getting along. How does that happen? Not only that, Hasumi-senpai was the one who was in charge of dorm arrangements. Wait, why am I here instead of him?'
Not that Aira would change anything about this dorm arrangement, like what he told Hiiro the moment ALKALOID figured out their new dorm assignment but wouldn't it have been more logical for the roomates to be arranged between people that do not hate each other or are such rivals that it somehow crossed over to more personal lives.
'I wonder what Hasumi-senpai was thinking when the dorms were arranged like this. But then again, I don't think that suddenly one idol was responsible for the entire dorm arrangement that he's living in too. Still, for both childhood friends to be in the same room except for Hasumi-senpai himself and since he is the dorm coordinator...'
"I wonder if I should check up with Hasumi-senpai once in a while. I really do wonder..."
"Shiratori-kun?" Eichi asked, and Aira was startled out of his thoughts, as Rei and Eichi looked at him with concerned expressions. He realized he must be too into his thoughts that he had zoned out of the conversation entirely and acted sheepish in realization.
"Ah, I'm fine, Tenshouin-senpai? What were you talking about?" Aira asked, feeling a little awkward the moment that Eichi and Rei both didn't dignify a response and Aira panicked, wondering whether his rudeness had offended the both, because it was totally rude of him to be so caught up in thought that he had to ignore his dazzling senpai before him.
Fortunately, Eichi just said, "You didn't miss much Shiratori-kun. Are you tired? It must be exhausting moving dorms and all the unpacking."
"It kinda was, but I'm not really tired yet. Really, I just zoned out with my thoughts, because it really is nice getting to know you better, something that I would have never thought possible long ago!" Aira replied quickly, with a smile and the sincerest eyes he could muster to indicate everything is fine and at the back of his mind, wandered whether he had made a bad impression and promised himself to focus more on his senpai so not to make such mistakes again.
Again, a beat of silence and when Aira replayed what he had said, he almost paled thinking whether he laid it too thick but luckily, once more, Rei smiled and said, "It's nice getting to know you better, Shiratori-kun. Here's to hoping that we can live well together in harmony."
Rei held up his tomato juice, while Eichi responded with his oolong tea. Aira frantically responded the same, although the clinking of glasses felt like an end to the little tea party for introductions which made Aira overthink whether his many thoughts that caused him to zone out somehow made his senpai think less of Aira.
Even if he probably didn't get the first impression right, despite how overwhelming but extremely miraculous it was to room with these two stunning idols, Aira resolved himself to just improve in terms of impression. He just had to treat them better and pay more attention instead of that awkward moment smoothed over by both Eichi and Rei.
As Aira was psyching himself up from the mistakes that he made, what he didn't know was that the very last of his thoughts, the one before he was snapped out of it by Eichi, was actually said aloud and heard very clearly by both Eichi and Rei before looking at each other and trying to gauge Aira. The fact that Aira was unaware and changed the subject led to a late night conversation that they scheduled almost telepathically with a single eye to eye once Aira fell asleep that night.
Of course, it was some time that Aira could sleep, not that Eichi and Rei would ever figure was because his idol otaku hyping up about just being with the archangel and demon king personification that he was too restless to sleep but luckily exhaustion from moving to dorms and unpacking left him to sleep at a normal time for a small conversation between the duo.
"What do you think of Shiratori-kun, Sakuma-kun?" Eichi started slowly, building up to the elephant in the room. They know what they heard, but they weren't exactly friends and had been something like bitter rivals/enemies who have played 4D chess against each other so there was certain wariness that Aira's inclusion into their dorm might be a scheme of the other. Just in case... because fate be, of all dorms for any of the new units such as ALKALOID and Crazy:B to get into, how did one of them land here?
And once Aira talked about checking in with Keito, they had also realised about his role as something akin to dorm manager although he had ensured to everyone that the dorm assignments had been random and completely out of his hands.
Not that something like that would eliminate the possibility that Keito couldn't pull a string or two for minor changes.
Deep down, they both knew that they have reached the same conclusions but both refused stubbornly to voice anything out until the other does. This stalemate of a farce would simply have to play itself out.
"He's a good kid," Rei finally said, looking at the peaceful and cute sleeping face of his kouhai briefly before turning back to Eichi, "Especially for someone under you. After all, his unit happened because of you if I remember correctly. If not for that, he would not be here. So what do you think of Shiratori-kun, Tenshouin-kun?"
A jab if nothing else for it, fishing for more specific information than anything. Compromises have to be made out of this stalemate to move forward and since they initiate this conversation because of the elephant in the room, Eichi can extend that olive branch.
"He is a good kid," Eichi agreed with Rei and thought of how to answer since he didn't want to react much against the implied insult on his character before he finally found the words to continue.
"He really just loves idols, you know so there's something inspiring about how an idol fan like himself could become an idol to give the same love to fans that he himself had received from idols themselves. It makes me glad that he found success in his unit and achieved his dreams so far as the heart of ALKALOID. As far as I know, even during the MDM, he managed to collab with a fair few units such as Ra*bits and AKATSUKI..."
"AKATSUKI... if he loves idols as much as you say," Rei said not disbelieving Eichi as much as he might implied, with one look at Aira's side of the room with a fair few idol merch decorated for them to see, even with his own profile selling him as the idol fan turned idol for idols quite telling of what Aira shows himself to be.
Rei and Eichi even noticed what looked like a box under his bed with a poster sticking out. If Aira was trying to hide his fanboying or an extent of it, what was the point of hiding an open secret in a literal glass closet?
It was good enough for Rei and Eichi, because if Aira was what they had an inkling to be, there has to be a way for them to find multiple ways to not only get to Aira's good graces but to make sure that whatever happens in this room remains secret in case of any slip-ups, or anything that would summon their mutual childhood friend of a preacher that would make their legs cry in dogeza.
Because it wasn't a reach that Aira already made connections with any of the other units, and this room arrangement, along with his startling statement that he was playing coy with. With such puppy dog eyes to convince them that everything was fine, and them feeling like they could give in, even for a moment.
The power of cute idols should not be underestimated, and even though Rei and Eichi had befriended and gotten healed by adorable idols themselves, Aira and his close proximity spelled a certain start the senior idol duo don't know how to voice out yet.
"It will be interesting regardless, but maybe there is no need to jump to conclusions," Eichi tried to downplay but Rei chuckled.
"Not jumping to conclusions, but even you think that Shiratori-kun is suspect. And even then, why else would Shiratori-kun blurt out such an out-of-pocket statement about Hasumi-kun?"
The idol duo turned silent, mulling it over and found the whole thing mysterious. Although there were multitude possibilities, it felt like Aira was more than meets the eye. Until proven otherwise, and because they mutually don't want to face whatever a mutual childhood friend of theirs gets to if the duo ever misbehave, they looked to their roommate, kouhai in all ways than one that exuded a mystery to be both cautious about and yet attracting curiosity over.
Maybe this fleeting feeling, that offhand sentence, would mean nothing but only time would tell.
And thus, the misunderstanding about Aira being Keito's spy to monitor the both of them started.
***
The longer that Aira had been roommates with Eichi and Rei, the more he felt like he understood nothing about the idols he worshipped. Bit by bit, he had gotten over the restlessness he felt at their presence, able to get a good night's sleep and resisted getting a partition to not look at his idols' sleeping faces when one partition was enough per room.
And yet, they still remained mysterious deities to him, or just the archangel and demon king stereotypes they can make themselves out to be, from the rivalry and Aira somehow being the mediator for certain hostility that they could not hide in front of their kouhai. As to make up for some of that, there were times that Eichi and Rei have given gifts, from the ice cream Eichi shared with ALKALOID or chocolates from Rei. And as if that didn't matter at all, he had been pranked quite hard by both Eichi and Rei, the latter accidentally by thinking them both dead and waking up as some zombie coming back to life like it was a natural occurence.
If Aira could get a nickel for being fooled about someone being dead immediately, he would have two nickels meaning he wasn't about to fall for it anytime soon but could anyone blame Aira, with common sense and all to believe when the machine was flatlining or that someone was inside a coffin that they would be irrefutably dead? Anyone in his shoes would assume the same! He wasn't one to easily get use to idols' eccentrics despite being one himself, even if that have added the charm to the idols.
And it wasn't even the first time they bothered playing pranks with him. Although they were extremely reliable people because one of them is his boss who can get things done which is both reassuring and terrifying with the latter part referring if Aira was ever on Eichi's bad side which he certainly hopes not both professionally and personally, they had a mischievious streak going on with them, such as bringing the musical idea to light, the lyric prank videos and even a black market.
When will they stop exposing Aira without exposing Aira??? He needed to stop being careless. Or do they just like bullying their kouhai roommate, just like how Izumi Sena literally has 'bullying his kouhai' in his official profile which certain fans were fond of calling it a senpai's teasing.
Something that Aira had enough out of, certainly a charm point because idols wouldn't be idols without their eccentricities that spoke out of the norm and enchanted the masses to the wondrous and mysterious. It was the reason why Aira still loved Eichi and Rei as the fan he was, despite how tough it was being a mediator at times.
In the end, he just kept knowing more. And for all the gifts and pranks Aira received, Aira wanted to give back. He wanted to be better than the first impression he had given. From souveniers, cakes and treats he got good deals out of for their small tea parties that Aira must simply learn how to brew tea to pay back Eichi and Rei.
That was the gifts part, but what about the pranks?
Normally, any fan would be wooed just to spend any capacity of time with their idols, even the bad sides because that is what makes the idols idols in Aira's mind. They do embody a certain type of perfection but Aira knew better than anyone else as an idol himself how human they can be with their own imperfections. But it was because of that, being both fan and idol that no matter how happy he was getting the unlimited idol fanservice that any fan would drool over, with his own dignity and pride as an idol, he would show how human he was himself.
As much as Aira's secrets were hidden in glass, (which he will not think possible because he wasn't that much of a lame-ass otaku, right?) Eichi and Rei's secrets were as open to Aira for him to sometimes mess around with (because why did it seem that Rei and Eichi would say the most unbelievable and yet true things at their little tea parties whenever they suddenly look at him and a look back from him was enough for something, anything to blurt out because really, what does his stare have to do with anything?)
Then again, Eichi and Rei weren't really quite open to a disbelieving point until that time they were having those long philosophical beating around the bush arguments that Aira would gladly analyze any other day even if he wasn't so busy with Keito's Lecture work that he gotten.
Once Aira revealed that when the duo wanted Aira's opinion on something and he wanted an excuse to be uninvolved, those two immediately were stunned speechless. Aira didn't know why that was the case even though this was the first time they have heard Aira joining this particular Circle but just because their mutual childhood friend was in the same Circle as their roommate, what was so shocking?
To cut to the chase, the 'Aira is a spy for Keito' had been given a little more credence when Eichi and Rei pried out the details for Aira to honestly answer about Keito approaching him straightforwardly and weirdly enough, that somehow struck them even more speechless and then offered a kindness whether they can help out with his homework.
"Thanks so much, Tenshouin-senpai, Sakuma-senpai. With the two mutual childhood friends of Hasumi-senpai helping me out, this is going to be a breeze~" Aira had said off-handedly, to a fact that maybe because they were childhood friends with a few commonalities like long-winded lectures that maybe their way of thinking might have a similarity to help him figure out the questions Keito pose which could easily be read and understood by two childhood friends of the same mold.
It was simply then that they somehow opened up to Aira more, with information galore that had gone straight into his Idol Research File that grew bulkier by the day.
(Little would Aira ever know, Eichi and Rei were wondering whether that was a secret message from Keito relayed by Aira about the spy thing... because, you know, even with Keito, who's to say there might not be some 4D chess going on as a little revenge against them both... for certain things. People can call this paranoia, but Eichi and Rei wanted more evidence.)
(Because whatever Aira is, they should at least form some defense mechanism for the kouhai that was worming his way into their hearts with puppy dog eye cuteness sparkling with curiosity and wonderment, cake tea party bribery and idol merch bribery concerning Eichi with Hajime, Tori and Wataru merch and Rei with Ritsu merch that was sincerely a genuine gesture of thanks for all the kindness that has been done for him. But even with this genuine kindness, why is it so unbelievable? Was it because of the off-hand comments Aira mysteriously makes? Were they worried if those comments meant something more... sinsiter? There was just something about Aira that could not be underestimated.)
Meanwhile Aira, blissfully unaware about his tentative position as a spy in his roomates' eyes, would then later cause shennanigans that would confirm an innocently sinister intent as contradictory as those two words together are. It simply goes back to what Aira meant by as much gifts (bribery to Eichi and Rei at times) he had been given, pranks were also dealt out, especially for example, that time when Eichi had declared the brother duo and given Aira a little grief.
Honestly, at first, Aira thought he could play dead just like Eichi and Rei had done to him in front of them and see how they react but he underestimated the combination of the information he possesed, his *cough* totally fake *cough* spy status and an unfiltered mouth with off-hand comments to connections that were also tied up with dynamics to Rei and Eichi, all absolutely accidental on his part Aira swears.
Because how was he supposed to figure that his prank, which he still took credit for, came in the form of people claiming to be the Aira Protection Squad, which Aira thought was reserved for truly cute idols like Hajime and Sora, that given Eichi and Rei some grief.
Eh, that just meant he could shelve playing dead as a prank at a later time <3
And thus with an aftermath Aira was once again blissfully unaware of...
"Shiratori-kun is definitely sent as a spy," Rei all but declared one day.
"The power of connections, brokering information and holding over blackmail for manipulation... truly the skills a spy would need to deal with the likes of us," Eichi intoned.
"When will we stop falling for those puppy dog eyes?" Rei lamented.
"That is the power of cute idols for you," Eichi deadpanned, "There is little we can do left except just be there for our cute kouhai and give him no reason to pull such shennanigans against us."
"If only we know what his purpose is if someone did send him as a spy on us," Rei ranted, still unsure whether it is Keito or anyone who just wanted some sort of pranking revenge against them for all the grief that they have admittedly caused here and there.
"At least Shiratori-kun is still a good genuine kid. We just need to stop underestimating him whenever stunts like these are pulled," Eichi stated and Rei agreed.
Thus, the trio have established their life together as angel, demon king and spy disguised as a mortal to only wreck havoc and keep the former duo in check~