To Love a Viper

​Keita

Keita glared at the band members. The extreme apathy was driving him up a wall. Ren, the lead singer, sat aimlessly sucking on the tip of a pen. Starring off in the distance as if he hadn’t heard a word he said. Nobu, the band manager and bass player, was attempting to balance a drumstick on his nose while stealing glances in Ren’s direction. Maiku, the drummer, leaned back in his chair waning somewhere between sleep and consciousness, while Toji, the keyboard player, tried dropping ripped pieces of paper into Maiku’s mouth whenever his mouth would open.



Keita was sick of being ignored! This was his band and he was not going to let their collective nonchalant attitudes lead to its destruction. In the space of a few seconds, Keita had crossed the floor and slapped the pen from Ren’s hand.



“What the hell Keita!” Ren moved with the agility of a panther and grabbed Keita by the shirt.

“You didn’t hear a word I said! This shit is your fault and we shouldn’t have to put up with unnecessary drama because you can’t control your women!” Keita choked the words from his constricted throat.

“What do you mean MY women?!! Ren’s grip had tightened, He lifted Keita slightly off the ground causing him to gag and tug at the collar attempting to pull it away from his throat. He tried to push Ren away but knew the effort was futile. Ren was at least a full head taller than Keita and built solid like a brick. His years of playing basketball had made him a force to reckon with. Keita gave a sign of surrender and gratefully put his feet back on the ground. Ren pushed the lock of solid black hair from in front of his eye to make it stand straight up in the air with the other spikes.



Ren had a mysterious look coveted by almost anyone in the entertainment industry. His strangely blue eyes created a stark contrast with his pitch black spiky hair that framed his face like porcupine quills. His eyes had a natural black lining that made others swear he was wearing eyeliner. A strong jaw line, muscular neck and solid chin framed his almost vampire like features that were accented more because of his full pouty lips. He stood at least a head taller than most guys, but was pale like he was afraid of the sun. The total picture created by his face was normally captivating, but right now under his steely deadly gaze that picture was as frightening as starring down a cobra.



Keita rubbed his throbbing neck. He was pissed and not ready to back down just yet. Nobu had risen to his feet and stood by Ren as if protecting his prized pooch. He stared wide-eyed at Keita who sucked in a deep breath and turned away to hide his irritation.

“I’m only pointing out, we shouldn’t continue to compete with that rival band based on the fact that she’s ticked off with him.” Keita nodded in Ren’s direction.



Ren couldn’t argue. He knew Keita was right, but there wasn’t anything he could do about it. He had dated Momo years ago before he was kicked out of school. They were in 7th grade when he convinced her to do it with him. She had gotten pregnant and he stole enough money for an abortion, threw it at her and left her crying on the kitchen floor of her grandmother’s apartment. As was his style, Ren ran off and continued his lifestyle of “hit and run” as his friends called it. He had a new conquest every other day. So yes it was true and he admitted it, he didn’t care about anyone but himself.



Momo had formed a band of her own. Her band known as “Flesh” trailed them wherever they went. It seemed to be part of her personal vendetta to upstage them whenever they performed. So far it was working and Keita was annoyed beyond reason. Recently Momo’s band donned outfits that made overt sexual suggestion. Momo flaunted garter belts, whips and lingerie across the stage. Their performances had become so raunchy, their tickets sold out over his band almost 2 to 1. Momo made it her personal business to book every show in conjunction with theirs, so the few concerts they were able to book were often undersold which meant they were losing money on every other performance.



Keita ran a frustrated hand through his long red hair. He was tired. If they were going to start wearing thongs and fish net tees in order to boost sales, maybe it was time to get out of this racket. Keita threw a tired sigh in Nobu’s direction. He glanced over noting that Maiku and Toji were goofing off as usual, throwing things at each other and wrestling lightly near the back wall, apparently they didn’t care either. He sighed loudly and moved toward the door. His driver waited patiently smoking a cigarette. Keita nodded for him to follow and they disappeared into the night.



The drive was unusually laborious. Traffic was heavy, the roads slick with oil and rain. Keita read the stats in the latest music bulletin. They were nowhere near the top of the charts, he smiled wryly, they weren’t even on the charts! He muttered to the driver,

“I sometimes feel like I’ve signed on to babysit a bunch of children!” He only grinned, maintaining his silence as he always did. Keita glanced through their latest ad, the full color pictures displaying each face. His eyes ran over the page landing on Nobu, his friend since childhood. He smiled when he saw those cool blue eyes slightly hidden under those cute blonde curls. Nobu was 19 now, but still giddy like a 10 year old. He liked to bounce and wiggle through everything. He remembered the first time he tried to teach Nobu archery. His hand had only lightly grazed his waist to help him keep his back straight, but Nobu laughed loudly, fell on the ground kicking his feet and rolling around like he had just dropped a pound of ants down his shirt. It was so embarrassing. Keita couldn’t help but smile as every other thought of Nobu ended in laughter.



He traced the picture with his index finger. He loved Nobu and probably always would. But he wasn’t as brave as Nobu was. Nobu had already told his family he didn’t have an attraction to girls. With him being the only heir, the family agreed that he would have an arranged marriage for the sake of the family as long as he kept his personal affairs, personal, they would see to everything else. Keita couldn’t imagine having that conversation with his parents. He would probably be disowned immediately. He grinned at the thought. He wasn’t sure of his sexual orientation anyway. Kind of a sad thing to admit at 21 years old; but he had never dated a girl or a guy. He never really wanted to. By staying busy, keeping his grades high, participating in sports and handling family affairs, it always provided an excuse to avoid the dating situation altogether. He had a few friends who would cover for him whenever the subject would arise. The only one he ever had feelings for was his best friend. It never occurred to him that he should seek a companion. He was always surrounded by servants, friends and associates so he was never alone.



His eyes fell on Ren’s face. The driver noticed the immediate change in expression and put his attention back on the road. Keita had agreed to convince Ren to join the band so Nobu would participate. Nobu had a crush on Ren; apparently for years. He had pictures of him in his room. Sometimes he would catch him writing his name like a tattoo on his body with a pen. It always hurt Keita to watch Nobu chase after Ren like a lapdog while Ren didn’t seem to notice Nobu at all.



Keita leaned back in the seat on the verge of exhaustion. Too much drama for such a small project, he sighed. A bright light, seemed to pour through his eyelashes, his eyes widened slowly as he realized the light was growing brighter; faster! … he raised his arms to shield himself. It was too late… The car spun into a skid! Before he could brace himself his body lifted from the seat, the belt cutting into his chest. Glass shattered over his head, smashing across his face, slashing into his arm. A spatter of blood; crunching metal.. a scream! Then silence.