Even if it rarely was in the same city two years in a row, or if it were then at the very least they haven't used the same venue in years, the Fujisaki Holiday Benefit is something that tends to be attended by an eclectic group of rich and-slash-or eccentric.
Nadeshiko, of course, has a very good reason not to go. Her ankle, after all, is still sprained.
Nagihiko, however, doesn't have this excuse. There'd been plans on a story of sorts, but in the end, his ankle is doing well enough that he barely walks without a limp.
And, well, somehow he was able to talk his boyfriend into going with him.
The dress ranges from black tie to bohemian skirts, and Nagihiko's gone the route of both.
Well, minus the skirt.
Kukai, of course, had never been to a party quite like this. Certainly a few of the school dances had been black tie (or as close as you could get a pack of teenagers to be) but this was maybe a level of sophistication higher than he was used to. Still, though, with Nagihiko's help, he'd been able to come up with something reasonable - black slacks, white dress shirt, open at the top, a black dress jacket, and a black, green, and white necktie, knotted low from his neck.
Somehow he still felt like it was tight around his neck. But maybe that was just having so many people around at one time. He was at least comfortable around Nagihiko. "You look... Um." Kukai grins. "I dunno what to say. Lovely? Attractive? Handsome? ...I'll stick with very good."
Nagihiko grins as he straightens out Kukai's tie, loosening it just a touch. He has a mental bet with himself how long Kukai will keep it on.
"All three sounds good. You look rather dashing yourself."
Aunty, wearing a nice dress that one would wear to an afternoon tea in London walks up and hooks her arm through Kukai's. She whispers low in his ear. "Watch out for the lady with the stuffed platypus. She's a touch crazy and may confuse you for her late husband."
Nagihiko winces. "Oof. Honda-san's in that state again?"
Aunty nods and pinches Nagihiko's cheek as she walks past. "Yes. You're lucky your hair's so long, dear."
She wanders off to chat with his parents.
Kukai chuckles and then lifts his chin, letting Nagi work on his tie. "Well, thanks. A lot of this was your help and me just wanting to be comfortable."
He looks back over at Aunty as she sneaks up and stiffens. What sort of horrible fate does she have in store... "Oh. Uh. ... Oh, her? Oh boy. Right, Nagihiko, I'm going to trust in you to steer me away from her."
He grins weakly at the look on Nagihiko's face after the cheek pinch. "Well. Should we ... what do you do at this sort of party, anyway? And is anyone else we know here?"
He gives a soft snort and pats Kukai's arm. "I'll protect you. Don't worry."
Grumble. He rubs his sore cheek as he rolls his eyes. Silly old woman. "Well, normall, there's gossip. There's food. Alcohol. Not alcohol. Not so much with the dancing. Oh! There's also some silent auction thing, with charity proceeds and stuff."
He tugs Kukai along, fingers gripping the sleeve of his jacket as he tugs him along. "I can't bid because I'm related to the hosts. But it's fun to look at the stuff. Sometimes it's fun to guess what things may go for. One year, a handmade quilt sold for fifty-thousand yen. And a slightly used computer went for like...a thousand."
Maybe there's a breath that Kukai didn't know he was holding released at that pat. "Thanks." He glances over to see Nagi rubbing his cheek, then grins. "So lots of people talking and interacting and eating and maybe getting drunk? And then dancing - oh boy, you're gonna want me to dance with you, aren't you?" He grins. "At least I'm better than I used to be."
He follows along with Nagihiko. "And I probably shouldn't bid because I'm sort of related to the hosts in a way. So.. yeah, we can look at all the things. That'll be nice." Kukai grins. "I bet everyone will be bothering you about 'when is your sister going to be able to dance again', though."
He laughs and bits the inside of his lip. "Well, fortunately for you, if we do dance it won't be for very long. If I go five minutes or more, Aunty could be right over telling me to sit down."
He peeks around and slips a hand against Kukai's elbow. "Well. Odds are good once the drinks start going, I'll get confused for her all night. It's happened before."
He grins at Kukai. "Sometimes its handy being your own twin."
Kukai looks at Nagi for a moment. It's not an actual lip bite, so he's able to remember the next few moments, but he certainly does slide one arm around Nagihiko's middle, hugging him close. "Oh, well. I'll be happy to dance with you, anyway." He lets out a little snort. "I'll try not to make that mistake. I mean unless you want me to." One eyebrow arches at Nagi, a grin on Kukai's face. "I guess so. You get to hear all the juicy gossip about your sister and things."
A slight shiver rolls up his spine at the arm as he leans against Kukai. "I look forward to it."
He has to remind himself that public kisses in this crowd probably shouldn't be done. (And its not for obvious reasons. If he were here as Nadeshiko, it probably shouldn't be done.)
He laughs. "There is so much gossip about my sister. Apparently, and I didn't know this, she went on a date with with that guy's son just last month."
Kukai blushes as he feels Nagi shiver. Just... being around the other was enough to do that sort of thing for both of them. Strange, in a way, but so amazing. Of course, he'd talked with Nagi about kissing earlier, and they'd agreed that, ok, sure, public displays of affection were maybe a bit much. But it was hard to resist. It wasn't Kukai's fault the dancer was just so smoochable!
Kukai snorts. "Oh, wow. That sounds worse than the girls at school, talking behind my back." He side-eyes Nagi for a moment. "She didn't, did she?"
"Oh? What are these girls saying?"
He laughs then, and somehow, it's not as hard as he wants to. "No. So very much no. All thinks considered, the last time she talked to him he was going on about the last kid he gave a swirly to. And that's the nicest thing he's done. Sooo, yeah. Even if he asked, she already has plans. EVen if you were out of town or sick, she has plans. Forever."
Kukai shrugs. "I dunno. 'We're going to go out, we've been texting, he's such a sweetheart, he bought my lunch the other day and we sat and talked.' All true, of course." The grin on his face matches his pointy, lengthening nose.
He nods, then awwws. "He's that sort of guy, huh? I'm sorry. And yes, I will totally be your shield against him if I need to. He sounds like a butthead. Forever." He hmphs. "Well. I shouldn't say that. Maybe he'll change someday and be a better person. That's the right thing to want, yeah?"
Nagihiko laughs and lightly tweaks Kukai's pointy, lying nose. "Well, I'm pretty sure you made her day. Or theirs'?"
He shrugs. "I think if we use the term 'forever' to secretly mean 'forever so long as he's a butthead.'" He leans up and whispers. "Though odds of that forever not lasting forever is pretty slim."
And then they were at the silent auction area, with tables offering kitchy items and valuable trinkets both on display.
Kukai awks and laughs back at Nagihiko. "I make everybody's day, though!" He nods, then winces, grinning. "So a forever butthead. Oh well. I'll try to steer away from him so I don't end up punching him or something."
He pats Nagihiko on the back as they walk along the auction section, examining the items on auction and trying not to let out a little gasp at some of the really cool stuff.