looseleaves | ✽ ic contact.

Ah; just Adachi is fine.

[ He glided his way over to the barrier by Hajime, a sports bag on the bench beyond next to a dog-like Poochyena that was curled up into a ball on his jacket, fast asleep. Adachi nodded over to the bag. ]

G’head and pull out my headphones. I’ll find the song.

Eh? I-I couldn't just... that's really rude!

[ 'Just' Adachi, really... Hajime does what he's told without a moment of thought--though he does glance towards the cute dog (?) with a little smile, fishing out the music player from his pocket and Adachi's headphones from the man's bag before he goes back over. ]

You sound like Viktor-san... if you're a detective, shouldn't I call you that?

What? Nah, that would be weird. I’m used to people calling me by my last name. Viktor’s the only exception because he’s Viktor.

[ He plugged his headphones in as soon as Hajime handed both over, resting his elbows on the barrier. He hummed absently to himself, tapping his fingers against the tiny device as he flicked through, trying to find the song. It was a moment before he let out a triumphant noise, handing the player back with the song in question left on pause. ]

That’s it.

Ahh, Viktor-san is... very special!

[ He honestly means that.

When it's handed back to him, he makes a soft noise of approval before he listens. It takes a few bars for him to find the note signature, but he finds it and keeps it as he taps his chest with the palm of his hand, closing his eyes. His brow furrows as he listens, lost in thought. ]

You’re telling me.

[ Adachi watched quietly, an excited grin on his face, almost looking like a puppy dog that was wagging its tail too fast for its body. He waited patiently for Hajime to respond, brimming with excitement. ]

It's... really wistful and a little bittersweet, isn't it?

[ He makes a sound of thought, and his hand stops: he quietly hums some of the melody back and brings his hand up in a loose fist against his mouth. Despite the shyness of his pose, he's very businesslike when he speaks. ]

I can do it. Ah--write the rest. Lyrics might be a bit tough...? It sounds personal, though... you're sure Viktor-san would be okay with this?

Lyrics aren’t necessary.

[ He held up a hand, realizing quickly how rude that sounded. ]

Not that I don’t think you could, but I think the melody tells a pretty good story without words.

[ His expression softened then, a small smile coming to his face. ]

It is personal, kind of. Viktor was the one that introduced me to this song when I was... really feeling out of it. He’s done a lot for me, and I want to show him how much in a way he would understand.

[ Hajime actually breathes a sigh of relief when he says lyrics aren't necessary--Hajime's well-versed in poetry and prose but... ]

Mm, I agree with you. I think it speaks on its own... I wouldn't want to talk over it.

[ But... he nods then, a determined glint in his eye. ]\

Then I definitely know what I can do~

[ Adachi looked like he was practically going to squeak in happiness. ]

I owe you one!

[ He's... not used to this. Adachi's happiness gets a few surprised blinks from him, but a warm smile still crosses his features. ]

Mm, Viktor-san is really important to you, isn't he? It's nice to know he has someone that holds him in such high regard~

[ There was that sad smile again. ]

Yeah... he means a lot to me.

[ He brightened up a bit, standing up a little straighter. ]

You want to stick around a little longer? You can watch me practice my routine.

Ah--may I? I've been practicing myself, but I'm slow at learning~ I'd like to see how it's actually done!

[ Away drops the business face, now he's all bright eyes and smiles. ]

[ Adachi laughed at that. ]

Well, I'm no pro, but...

[ He trailed off, glancing over to where the rink's speaker was. ]

Hey, why don't you plug the player in? The song might not be finished on here, but going through the program with music will help.

Mm, if you're pro or not it doesn't matter, you know~ that you can do it at all is amazing, because it's really hard for me to do it.

[ Hajime's walking over to the speaker with the player in hand anyway... ]

How long have you been learning?

Uhh... I think it's been since May? June? I'm not sure; if you look up fan pages, you can probably find more information. The natives are crazy about us.

[ It was hard to miss the sour note in his voice. No, no he did not like their fans, why do you ask? ]

[ He circled around the rink as Hajime went to hook up the player, coming to the center and nodding to him, letting him know he was ready for the music to start at any time. ]

[ Hajime perks an eyebrow but goes to plug in the music and start it beforehand--he falls quiet, because he doesn't want to interrupt Adachi's concentration on his routine.

But oh, he has questions about that... ]

[ Adachi let out a breath, letting the timing count off in his head as the music started, before he moved. He had been working on keeping his movement smooth in the last few weeks, and it showed; it was reminiscent of the judo he had been practicing, one glide flowing into the next, one movement of his feet or his arms flowing along with the melody of the music. It felt so much easier with the music actually audible, that it felt almost natural to seamlessly launch himself into the first double toe loop, like he'd been doing this forever. ]

[ Hajime's quite used to dissecting and critiquing people's performances--it's second nature now--but that doesn't really happen for once. Adachi had, after all, proven himself to be kind of warm but stumbling--he seemed to have a goal but not exactly a well-defined route of how to get there--but it doesn't show here. In fact, the opposite does, and as the routine stretches on, Hajime can't help but watch with intent eyes, chin resting on his palms with his elbows on the rink barrier. ]

[ He was starting to feel the burn in his legs by the time he got to the half way point. Doing the program all the way through was tough, and he was seriously starting to understand why skaters didn't just get both short and long programs done in one night. Of course his first program had to be closer to the length of a long program. He swore he enjoyed punishing himself. ]

[ He went in for another jump as the music started to pick up, and he ended up stumbling on the landing. Adachi flinched, mad at himself; no, no, he'd practiced this part a lot. He wasn't going to screw it up because it was his first time putting it in the whole program. ]

[ The blades on his skates flashed as he went through the step sequence, flecks of red dancing along the ice after him. He had stopped using the rental skates a long time ago, having finally purchased his own pair from a catalog that had "mysteriously" been slipped into his bad after one of his late night sessions. He knew who did it, he was just amazed the old man had managed to sneak down without him noticing. ]

[ The program winded down along with the music, and Adachi held the ending pose for a moment after the music ended, before dropping to the ice, breathing hard. Holy shit he was spent. How the hell did Viktor and Yuri spend seven hours doing stuff like this? ]

Adachi-san?! Are you alright?

[ The way he dropped was worrying, but what had been on his mind was the stumble--it looked like it hurt... of course the show had to go on, though. ]

I’m fine, I’m fine!

[ He leaned his head back so he could look up at Hajime upside down, a big, goofy grin on his face. ]

W-wow, doing that for four minutes is exhausting~!

[ But he was already working out in his head what he needed to work on... and the lack of variety in jumps was seriously lame. Should he try bothering that Otabek guy again? Or... well, maybe it could be a good bonding experience with Yuri? ]

[ The smile puts him at ease, and he finds himself laughing quietly at his words. ]

It was worth it though, it looked spectacular~ like you were floating, sometimes! Mm, of course you made your jumps but... in general! Performing will really wear you out...

Y-yeah; I don’t know how Viktor and Yurio make this look so easy.

[ Well, other than dedicating their whole lives to it. It was still crazy and it gave him a whole new appreciation for what they did. ]

[ Adachi finally sat up after a moment, feeling something let out a satisfying pop as he stretched before climbing back to his feet. ]

There’s still work I gotta put into it, but I’m feeling pretty confident~!

[ Hopefully that confidence would hold when he was performing in front of Viktor. ]

They've broken records back home, haven't they? Hmmm... I know the feeling of thinking that way. It's daunting...

[ Thinking about how many units there were, how many were stronger and put on such beautiful performances... he remembers that feeling really well. Still gets it, from time to time. ]

Do you want me to play it again?

Nah, not right yet. I need a break after that.

[ He was already heading for the barrier, going to clip the blade guards on before stepping off the ice. Adachi grabbed for his water bottle first, reaching down to rub fondly at his little pup's head, before downing half the bottle. ]

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