Page 16 of Idol Star System Generation: Season 1

  Chapter XIV – Companionship

  About fifty minutes after leaving the office and hearing many instructions on the way, they arrived at an enormous show house at the Ikebukuro district. Being a part of the Toshima special ward in the heart of Tokyo, Ikebukuro was a district full of commercial buildings. Due to the amount of salarymen and OLs - office ladies – around, stores, bars and entertainment venues abounded too. The show house was spectacular, with a ceiling that looked incredibly high. There was a richly illuminated central bar and numerous red couches near the walls. A large balcony full of tables surrounded the area. About half of the house was composed mostly of a big dancing floor, and an amazing stage was positioned right in front of it. Though it was still smaller than the stage on Naoko’s school, it was by far the biggest she’d ever presented herself during a real show.

  Aratani flashed an invitation to a security guard and drove into the restricted parking area. They accessed the building through the backdoor, and this time there was no kitchen close to the dressing rooms. A security guard asked for the three to wait and left for a moment, returning with a key to a private dressing room that he handed to Naoko. He showed the way to a corridor full of doors, and explained the farthest one conducted to the communal room where idols could mingle. The communal room had its access restricted to idols only, but the girl was free to invite her producer and photographer, along with whoever she wanted, inside her private room. Also, while they asked that she refrained from going inside the show area, he said if she’d like anything to eat or to drink – as long as it was non-alcoholic and figured in the house menu – all she needed to do was call any staff.

  After the muscular security guard left, Aratani also excused himself briefly. Naoko called Shiori to her private dressing room and eagerly unlocked the door. Though the space was small, it was amazing to actually have a private dressing room. There was a big mirror, a velvety couch, a plant pot, a small minibar loaded with water bottles, a TV, a dresser, a plushy white carpet and a few other objects. There was even a small restroom attached. It was so beautiful she could easily live there. As such, it felt strange not to take away her footwear when going in. Her platforms sank into the fluffy carpet as the girl walked in. Stunned, she took a moment to appreciate it all.

  “It’s amazing!” she finally said, spinning around with open arms. Throwing herself on the couch and kicking away her platform boots and stockings so she could feel the carpet’s fuzzy texture, Naoko let herself sink in the softness of the couch and be enveloped by plushy objects. Turning to her astounded friend who coyly observed the room from the outside, she called:

  “Hey, Shiori-Chan! Come on! You need to feel this sofa! Take a seat, have a drink! What do we have here?” Laying on the settee and extending her arms to the minibar, she opened it, “Hm-hm… Ack! Water! Huh… want some mineral water?” Without standing up, she noticed a small book on top of it and took it, “Oh, hey, look! It’s the menu! Want something to eat, Shiori-Chan? They have sushi… Oh, scrap the sushi, they have French fries! How awesome is that?! Come on in!”

  Walking stiffly and being afraid to touch anything, Shiori looked intimidated. Noticing it, Naoko closed the menu and, from a lying position, inquired, “What happened, Shiori-Chan? You look uncomfortable. Is something wrong?”

  “Ah? Ah… no. I’m fine!” the intimidated girl forced a smile, all the while standing still in front of the closed door as if she was also a tiny security guard. Confused, Naoko invited her to sit on the couch, which her friend reluctantly did. However, she sat on the edge of it, almost falling off.

  “Okay, that’s odd,” Naoko evaluated, “What’s going on? Are you afraid of fluffy stuff? If that’s the case Shiori-Chan would fear her own plushy?!”

  Laughing a little, Shiori denied it. Hesitantly, she explained with a faint voice:

  “It’s just that… I probably shouldn’t be here, right? I-I mean, Naoko-Chan is the idol here! This is your room! I’m… taking up space here. I should at least be working!”

  Noticing Shiori was acting distressed since she was informed about how much she was going to be paid, and knowing the timid girl’s self-esteem wasn’t particularly high, it wasn’t hard to understand Shiori felt she was earning much more than she should, didn’t believe her talent was worth so much and possibly tried to compensate the burden she thought she’s putting on the idol’s shoulders by taking the least amount of space possible. She looked like she wanted to disappear. Naoko, smiling brightly, hugged her suddenly surprised friend and pulled her back to the soft couch. Watching her blush heavily and freeze like a statue, Naoko laughed.

  “Are you still worried about your payment?” Seeing Shiori embarrassedly nod after a moment, the idol proceeded, “Come on, Shiori-Chan! Loosen up! We’re on such a nice place, right before a show for more than three thousand people that’s being paid by a banking corporation! It’s a multi-million business! You won’t be taking more than a tiny share of how much my agency is making with this, I swear! And it’s nice that you’re being well-paid at the same time! You’re not just a photographer, you’re my friend! It’s nice to have you by my side here! I don’t want to be alone before a show for thousands of people, I’ll start to get nervous! If you help me calm down it’ll already be totally worth it! Otherwise I won’t be able to perform and I’ll flop this opportunity! So can you stop worrying and help me chill out, please?”

  Though Shiori couldn’t move her head because Naoko’s face was right over her left shoulder, the blushing girl stared at her from the side of her glasses. Finally looking calmer, as if understanding her presence there was not only welcome but could really be worth so much, she smiled. Nodding, she agreed, but her sentence was cut short by the door suddenly opening.

  “The house is…!” Aratani excitedly barged in, surprising Naoko almost lied down, belly down on the couch, hugging her friend tightly while Shiori blushed heavily. Clearing his throat, the man grinned, “Ah, I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to interrupt anything. Please go on, I’ll call you when the show is about to start.”

  It took Naoko a second to understand what he meant. Abruptly letting go of her friend, the girl screamed “You idiot, that’s not what you’re thinking!” while grabbing a foot of her platform boots and throwing on her producer.

  Shiori left for a while so Naoko could get changed, even though she did so in the connected private restroom, and after that the idol took a peek on the communal dressing room. It was a nice lounge with upholstered seats, a central table, a refrigerator and so on. There was a large window from where it was possible to see the stage from a side view. The window was apparently mirrored on the outside, taking from an office lady who discreetly reapplied her makeup while looking at it. Naoko waved to her but the woman didn’t react. The place was amazing, though no other idol was present. From that location Naoko could see just how big and crowded was the show house.

  There were only adults, obviously. Most looked like they’d just left the office, and being it Friday night before a four days holiday, they looked exultant. Many men and women had red faces due to alcohol ingestion, and a few already looked tipsy. There were a few thousand silhouettes there, a scary sight. Still, the vast majority of people seemed to be having so much fun, and the place looked so amazing, with focused lights and luminous lines all around piercing the dark atmosphere, that Naoko got immediately pumped up. Seeing that purple lights made all white clothes appear fluorescent, there’re numerous shining spots among the audience itself, further adding to the stimuli overdose. She almost wanted to be there partying with all those people. Working on banks appeared to be fun! Or at least the parties after work did.

  Since the other idols appeared to be holed up on their private dressing rooms the communal room felt like a large private space. Naoko only didn’t stand there longer because Shiori and her producer weren’t allowed inside. It was a shame. Also, even the corridor seemed livelier than the communal room. She could see two men in strange attires, one wearing
a cowboy hat along with his suit and the other being bald and walking around in a silver tuxedo that made he look more like a comedian than an idol producer.

  She returned to her room and waited along with Shiori for a few more minutes. When she was leaving her cellphone rang from inside the purse she had left there. Megumi apologized for not responding earlier since she always muted her smartphone while inside temple grounds and thanked Naoko for her help. She asked if Rin was close-by, but Naoko explained she still didn’t know and apologized for not being able to talk because she was going to perform. She asked the apologetic girl to call back in half an hour and, muting her cellphone, Naoko left it inside her purse and walked off with Shiori.

  Stepping on the stage was the hardest part. She had to wait while a fifty or sixty-some, already gray-haired man made a speech about excellent results on the previous fiscal year and thanked everyone for their hard workings. Wishing a good Golden Week for all, both those who’d have vacations and those who’d not, he handed the microphone under thunderous applauses to an announcer who excitedly called out:

  “And now, for our special presentation to celebrate this special night, please receive the first of tonight’s performers, hailing from the Idol Star System Generation… Yano Naoko!”

  The girl froze for a second as she saw the announcer happily walk in her direction handing her the mic and a deafening burst of applauses erupting. From her back Aratani discreetly squeezed her on one side of her stomach, over a kidney. That soft spot, when pressed however lightly, made most people she knew flinch and laugh, and she was not different. Laughing reflexively just as she got ahold of the microphone, the girl climbed the stage with a genuine smile on her face. At the same time she wanted to punch her producer for startling her like that, she loved him for helping her that way.

  Grinning, it was easy for her to loudly and energetically greet the audience, introduce herself again like Aratani instructed her on the way there and start singing. A huge screen behind her showed the same image she’d used for her last audition, since her attire was the same with the exception of her big, golden earrings, and then proceeded to project psychedelic images according to the song rhythm.

  She had four songs she’d already trained extremely well and four others which she’d already gotten the hang of, but still weren’t so easily performed. Aratani had carefully organized her songs so that the first, second, fifth and eight songs were those she was most familiar with. This way she’d have the easiest possible start for her show and close it well too. The one in the middle would hopefully help in case she had problems with the third and fourth songs too. There was some science behind choosing the order of the songs, it seemed, and her producer nailed it.

  At first the girl felt intimidated by the huge audience, but Shiori’s company before the show had calmed her down, and the vast amount of people having fun there pumped her up. Coupled with her stunning and unexpected laughing and upbeat entrance, she felt as ready as humanly possible to tackle her songs. The first one was among her favorites, too, and she could perform it blindly, so she had a smooth start that helped a lot.

  Thankfully she could perform it blindly, too, because as her song started to follow a crescendo, the illumination on the place also became even brighter and more erratic. It ultimately went from obfuscating to a sudden, frenetic sequence of flashes during the first chorus. The girl had never experienced it before. Her voice surrounded her, coming from all sides from the outside and with a tiny delay that made it even more surreal. The sequence of flashes illuminated not only her, but the entire show house. Each flash was not unlike the ones that Shiori sometimes used, but it shone everywhere, lighting countless figures and their fluorescent white pieces of clothing. Between each flash there was an equally timed instant of pure darkness, so Naoko’s eyes could see just for a fraction of a second, didn’t see on the next and so on. Instead of watching the fluid, continuous motion of people it was just as if she watched a series of pictures shown in rapid sequence. It was disorienting, but enthralling.

  For the first time in her life she felt as if time had reduced to a crawl. Even though her voice continued to come out of her throat, making it vibrate, the stimuli overdose was bigger than ever. Her mind expected her moves to flow naturally, so she felt like moving her arms and legs in such a way that the next time she saw them, they’d be more or less on the same place she’d last seen them, but it made her movements slow. She forced herself not to be distracted and relied on her training instead of her eyes to dance. It was a fantastic experience that almost made her laugh during the song. She’d never thought it’d be possible to feel as if time was half as fast, but it was. Along with the powerful sound waves that came from the speakers and the rhythmic sound of the music that pierced everyone and send echoes inside their bodies, resonating with the frenetic flashes, it felt an outlandish, confusing but indescribably good situation. So much that when the chorus was over and the flashes stopped, going back to the usual lighting, Naoko was disappointed it lasted so little. It felt like an eternity, but a brief one at that.

  The chorus was repeated two more times on that song, though, so she still had a lot of opportunities to have fun since the lighting system was programmed to execute the same setup every time. When her first song was over Naoko was already ecstatic. The audience, though hardly speaking, seemed to be enjoying it just as much. Many people already being tipsy, they laughed and waved their arms. There was even a man that Naoko watched falling down during the disorienting flashes, either because of the lights or due to too much alcohol, but that looked funny.

  She started to give more attention to the audience, including to the people on the balcony that surrounded the show hall. The first two songs went so well they prepared her for the next set, the ones she’d never performed on a real show before. Thankfully the lighting helped out by not messing too hard with her senses, because she needed them. It was confusing to hear her voice coming from the speakers with a slight delay, it messed up her head about when to perform each move. She had to constantly concentrate on what she sang and not on what she heard, all the while remembering to pose, walk around, look at the crowd and so on. It was almost like on her first rehearsal ever, trying to juggle many balls in her mind: she usually dropped a few but kept going.

  Since the songs were divided in two groups, the melodies of a group played non-stop, forcing her to quickly try to recognize which one it was. Her producer had mentioned the order of the songs on their way there, but Naoko couldn’t really remember all. Until the fourth song the audience just danced, sang along or waved arms, but hadn’t applauded yet due to the lack of an opening. When the first half of the show was done, though, Naoko was given thirty seconds to regain her breath, and at that time loud applauses echoed all around the house. It was staggering to hear three thousand and some people clapping for her.

  Well, not everyone was listening to her songs, she imagined. The hall was constructed in such a way that the acoustic was a little strange. Sounds from the show weren’t evenly distributed across the room, but instead the half closer to the stage received deafening volumes of sound. Meanwhile, the back (or, rather, the front of the show house, since it was the part closer to the main entrance) wasn’t so noisy. People could still hear the show, but could also talk with each other if they wanted. That’s because all speakers were turned toward the dancing floor, close to the stage. Still, Naoko wanted to think everyone there was applauding her. It seemed more appropriate.

  She had a nice respite on the fifth song, one she knew very well, before performing the next pair. She was having a blast, like singing on a karaoke for a lot of people, and since everyone appeared to be enjoying her show – or at least the thousand-some people close enough to the stage that she could see – her initial tension was long past. When she started to perform her last song all she could feel was remorse for not knowing how to execute two more, completing the ten Aratani mentioned the other idols would sing.

  It was an extr
aordinary experience. Every time she stepped on a stage for a real gig was so fun it was almost addicting. This time she could clearly perceive how dumb were her initial fears whenever she had to go on a stage. Ultimately, as her eighth song came to an end, explosive applauses followed. Everywhere she looked to there were smartly-dressed people clapping. They didn’t look the sort who’d love an idol show, but even so everyone she could see on the darkness across the blinding limelight appeared to have enjoyed it.

  Thanking everyone profusely, Naoko left the stage overflowing with happiness. Her only desire was to run around screaming, so thrilled she was. Accompanied by Shiori and Aratani she walked back to her room. On the corridor in front of it she passed by a cute girl who she initially thought was Shiori, if not for the fact that the girl was wearing a gorgeous, sparkling blue and ice-white dress and didn’t wear glasses. Still, she had the same petite body type and her face, though prettier, was not that different. She also looked a little introverted. Either this or she was just afraid of the show, but since she walked with small but confident steps, it appeared she was just a little timid. Even her black hair, though more lustrous, stylized and well-kept, was short and resembled Shiori’s hair a little. As the girl passed by her, Naoko couldn’t stop looking at her. It made the short idol discreetly look back with electric blue eyes, too blue not to be covered by a pair of contact lenses. Only then Naoko noticed she’d been staring a little too intently to the girl.

  Energetically, Naoko smiled broadly and warmly wished the first thing that came to her adrenaline rush infused mind:

  “Hey! Good luck there! The audience is incredible tonight! I’m rooting for you!”

  At first the girl looked a bit reticent, but as if comprehending Naoko was genuinely being friendly, she opened up a small smile. It once again reminded Naoko a lot the shy way Shiori smiled. As the idol passed by her, she gratefully replied with a charming but child-like voice, “Thank you!”

  The girl left with a somewhat surprised and content face, albeit her introverted ways made it seem a bit underwhelming. Naoko could bet, however, that girl expressed herself in subtle ways just like Shiori, and that a slight smile actually meant a lot coming from her. It was just an impression, though. She could be confusing things, due to how similar she thought that idol to be when compared to her friend, but she’s very curious. She’d like to see her perform just to check if she really acted like the photographer.

  As the girl in the sparkling cute and frilly dress of ice-like colors left, Naoko stopped and followed her with her eyes. Aratani, teasingly, casually commented:

  “I can see now that she really is your type of girl.” Naoko promptly punched him in the stomach, making him laugh while in a little bit of pain.

  “Next time Produ-San insinuate this I’ll punch lower!”

  “So why’re you staring at that girl?” he asked, regaining his coolness.

  “Didn’t you see? She looked almost like Shiori-Chan!”

  The timid photographer was surprised to hear that, and looked clueless as if she hadn’t notice. Aratani, however, merely agreed in a joking way:

  “I know, right? She’s similar to your friend, who you’re hugging twenty-some minutes ago, and that was why I said she was you type of girl.”

  Aratani immediately jumped back to evade a punch and ran away laughing. Facing the direction where the man had ran away, into the show area from where they’ve come, Naoko grinded her teeth and commented to her blushing friend:

  “He pisses me off! Humph! Never mind him, I’ll punch him when he least expects. Didn’t you see that girl, Shiori-Chan?”

  The photographer timidly replied, “I was looking at the pictures I took…”, showing the camera on her hands. Naoko promptly told her to go take a peek at that idol while she turned the sound on her cellphone back on, and Shiori left. As she looked at her smartphone there were a few calls from Rin. Remembering she was the daughter of some important person made Naoko hesitate for a bit, she wasn’t used to think about her friend that way. But Rin was so funny and carefree, and had so many strange quirks that made her adorable, that Naoko clung to the mental representation of the Rin she knew and liked. Unmuting it, she called back and the thrilled voice of her friend sounded from the other side among loud noises.

  “Naoko-Chan?! It was sooooo amazing! It was awesome! Rin was watching from near the stage! Did Naoko-Chan saw Rin?! I think Naoko-Chan saw Rin! Oh, it was the best thing I… Where’s Naoko-Chan? Can we meet?! It’s better than to talk on the phone! Rin is close to the bar!”

  “Ah… Rin-Chan? I’m not allowed to leave the dressing room areas. But you can come here if you want!”

  “Aw!” Rin looked disappointed for a second, but immediately recovered her cheerful, eager and overjoyed tone, “Wait, can Rin really go in there?! Rin has never been on a backstage dressing room! How is it?!”

  “You’ll see it for yourself!” Naoko excitedly responded, “Find the entrance by the right side of the stage, I’ll talk to the security guards to let you in!”

  She did so and stood close to the show room doors. Shiori returned, looking baffled. Still, she pointed out humbly:

  “That idol… Does Naoko-Chan really think she’s similar to me? I… guess she’s only a little taller than me and her hair is also dark and short… and she’s a bit serious maybe… but she’s very pretty! She’s completely different from me!”

  “Shiori-Chan, she’s not that different!” Naoko insisted. She was about to argument many things, but she noticed a golden-haired, upbeat girl getting closer. She wore a fancy white and green dress with black details, but also a funky, multicolored pair of spring-like bracelets that completely ruined her otherwise chic visual. Jumping with excitement, Rin ran between the security guards and hugged Naoko, talking loudly and frenetically:

  “Oh, that was incre~dible, Naoko-Cha~n! I’ve never seen such a cool show! Rin has never watched a real show for that matter, but still! It was a~wesome! I loved your songs! Oh, I want to watch more of Naoko-Chan’s shows!” Standing back, the agitated girl spoke with starry eyes while waving her arms, “And that part when the lights started flashing, Rin felt like the world was moving so slow! Rin was all “whaaaat iiiiiis haaaappeeeniiing?!” Hahaha! It was wonderful! I loved it!”

  Rin kept talking excitedly for some time until she noticed Shiori nearby.

  “Shiori-Chan! Are you here too?! Oh, you took pictures, right?! What did you think about Naoko-Chan’s performance?! You’ve already watched other shows, right?!”

  Shiori timidly agreed it had been an incredible presentation, though Naoko immediately interrupted the conversation to ask:

  “Rin-Chan, can you give us your opinion on something before I show you the dressing room? Go have a look at the idol who is performing right now and tell me if she reminds you of someone?” With gleaming eyes, Rin excitedly ran off for a moment. She returned briefly with an astounded face, exclaiming, “Shiori-Chan, is that your sister?! Is she an idol too?!”

  Commemorating, Naoko rapidly turned to the blushing girl wearing glasses and said:

  “A-ha! See?! I told Shiori-Chan that she looks just like that idol!” Turning to Rin, she explained, “Shiori-Chan thinks she’s ugly and didn’t believe me a few days ago when I said she was very cute, so I’m showing her there’s even an idol who resembles her!”

  Flapping her arms energetically and cheerfully, Rin agreed:

  “Shiori-Chan is very cute! Why’d she think otherwise? If you took off your glasses, have a showier haircut and wore blue contact lenses you’d be just like your sister!”

  “Ah… she’s… not my sister,” Shiori embarrassedly said while smiling, though looking down to the floor, “But… thanks. I… still think I’m not nearly as pretty, but…”

  Naoko’s smartphone started to ring, Seeing it was Megumi calling, the girl quickly asked Shiori to take a few pictures of that idol and come back and, looking to Rin, showed the name of the person calling on the screen. Rin’s eyes sparkl
ed with even more enthusiasm than they already had. Naoko answered the phone, and this time she said she could talk. On the corridor the sounds of the show could still be heard, though, so Naoko said:

  “Rin-Chan is with me too, so that’s an excellent time to talk! Just wait a second, I’ll just go back to my dressing room because it’s quieter there. Just a sec.”

  “Oh, that’s good, actually, because I was really needing a break,” Megumi stated, “I’m practicing right now, but I’ll ask the people around for a pause in the meantime.”

  She brought Rin to her private dressing room, and the blond girl had the same rapturous reactions Naoko also did. She asked if she could sit on the couch, and when Naoko said she could do whatever she wanted, Rin went overdrive. She looked herself in the mirror, tried to get into the minibar, laid down on the sofa and rolled on the plushy carpet before settling down.

  Naoko activated the stereo speakers mode of her phone so the two could hear Megumi and talk to her. Rin started to explain about her studies in Psychology and how dreams could be ways her mind had to satisfy otherwise unmet wishes and needs, and that understanding them could be a way to comprehend what was going on deep down in her Unconscious mind. That nightmares were special kinds of dreams where the mind tried to express, in its own way, things that disturbed the dreamer in hope that a solution could be found or merely as a cathartic experience. Rin told her she used to have recurrent nightmares, and that once their meaning was understood they ceased to exist, all the while the girl gained insight about her fears.

  Megumi sounded fascinated and started to narrate her dream. Shiori arrived during it and Naoko invited her to participate by listening to how a nightmare was interpreted. Megumi was embarrassed not only to ask for help, but to reveal her seemingly shameful nightmare at first, but Naoko reassured her it’d help on her audition the next day. Also, Rin sounded so amazed by Megumi’s desire to help homeless people that she promised not to judge her and to do all she could to see her dream decoded. As such Megumi reluctantly but gratefully started to tell it.

  It involved the girl walking around the city with three coins she knew she had. People who also had coins strolled pleasantly, but those who didn’t suffered miserably, being scorned and kicked while begging on their knees for a coin. As Megumi passed by a man she apparently knew, she wished him a good evening, even though it was still day. When she noticed that mistake, it was as if the entire world had turned for a moment against her, as if she’d committed an unspeakable act. One of her coins magically disappeared from her pocket, preventing the world from attacking her, and the girl got a little worried. She started looking around for it, in hopes she’d just dropped it, even though she knew the coin was lost forever.

  Her search brought her to an alley full of mendicants. Their skins were rotten or burned and they seemed to suffer from severe cases of malnutrition, so much that they looked like skeletons. Seeing her, they started begging around her feet, and the girl was so horrified she ran away, stepping on their bodies to do so.

  She was so scared that, using another of her coins, the vegetarian girl bought a large steak to eat just so she’d never look famished and terrifying as those people did. As she ate, she noticed the attendant looked sad and completely destitute and miserable. Upon closer inspection she noticed a huge chunk of the flesh of his arm was missing. As the girl turned back to her steak, she finally understood her food was the part of the man’s arm that was missing. Horrified, she ran away, but skeletal people started chasing her.

  Those who had coins easily kicked those who didn’t or rammed them with cars and were protected, but Megumi didn’t want to hurt anyone. As such, she threw her last coin back in hope the skeletons grabbed it and let her free, but in doing so her flesh also started to whittle away. The next thing she knew, she was also crawling on the floor of a dark alley along with many destitute people, being kicked by those who had coins while she begged for one and looked like a skeleton herself.

  She woke up in tears, as Megumi explained, and ran to the bathroom to fearfully look at the mirror just to be sure she hadn’t turned to a famished ghoul. She could barely sleep again after that nightmare. Every time she thought about lying down again, it felt as if she was a corpse lying forgotten on a cold alley, and whenever she thought about eating something all she could think about was of a bowl full of rice, with a pair of hashi stuck on it. Traditional Japanese funerals involved offerings of food, and to stick chopsticks on it was only seen during such circumstances. Not only was it morbid to stick hashi on the food, to think about it was a clear sign thoughts about death permeated the girl’s mind. She was sleepless since then, very tired, and asked for forgiveness for telling those things:

  “I… I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have told this silly nightmare. Please… forget it, it’s nothing. Please don’t think anything bad about me, I’m not crazy! I… I just had a bad dream.”

  Though Naoko and Shiori silently stood quiet, looking horrified, Rin was so serene and cheerful it was as if she was used to those kinds of disturbing things. She merely stated, enthusiastically:

  “No, there’s nothing wrong with it! Of course Megumi-San is not crazy! Her nightmare is totally acceptable! The Unconsciousness have no sense of morality like the Consciousness and only does what’s deemed to be the best for it, so don’t fear your nightmare, it’s telling you something important! Something that your mind thinks it’s good for you! Let’s try understanding it, then! Yay, that’s so exciting! Okay, okay. Megumi-San mentioned she had three coins, right? What things come to your mind when you think about “coins”, Megumi-San?”

  “Coins?” the girl confusedly replied, “Well… I think about money.”

  “Money?” Rin retorted, “Go on. Tell everything that comes to your mind, no matter how silly or wrong it seemed! It’s the only way to help you, so you have to trust Rin, okay?”

  After a brief pause, Megumi humbly agreed, though sounding a little frightened:

  “Okay. Thanks, Rin-San. Let me see… “Money”? Well… Money… What do I think when I think about money, is that it? Well… I think… I don’t know… Yen… Dollar, Euro… I think about gold… Those three coins appeared to be made of gold. Is that it?” Listening to Rin saying she had to keep talking whatever came to her mind, Megumi sighed and tried again, “Okay. Coins. Money. Gold. What I think? I… Well… Okay, I… don’t like money too much. The concept of money, I mean. It’s… unfair. When I think about it, what is money but a piece of paper, or metal, or a shell… Shells were used as money in the past if I’m not mistaken, did you know?! That’s just to say money is… nothing, really. We exchange it for a lot of things, like food and houses, things that actually have value, but money is… valueless, I think. We just perceive value on it. How much value does a shell have for us, for example? None, but at some point in time it did. So money a kind of… placeholder, I think. You don’t need to bring an ox to a market to exchange it for rice, you can just buy it with money. Even gold is… It’s kind of funny it… is a sort of thing used to be traded. Hm… it has no value per se… Is that it?”

  “Excellent!” Rin exclaimed, startling everyone, “So those coins were something you had that had no value by themselves, but which you traded for things that had, right? Think about how you used those coins on your nightmare and talk about it.”

  Rin’s method was hard for Naoko to understand, but little by little her associative questions and Megumi’s puzzled answers combined and started to make sense of the nightmare. Apparently Megumi did things that had no value to her in order to obtain things she valued. When she thought about the first use of her coins it didn’t occur to her. It made sense for the food and when she tossed it to escape from the skeletons, though, but her first lost coin had been the hardest one to understand. It took her almost fifteen minutes just to notice she hadn’t properly spent the coin, but that it was consumed anyway when she committed a mistake. To wish “good evening” to a person instead of a “good morning” was a ve
ry minor mistake, but Megumi couldn’t understand it.

  Thinking about the subject of mistakes, Naoko felt she could contribute a little after the idol’s long silence, and after a sudden insight:

  “Wait! Megumi-San? Didn’t you mention once you were scared to death about failing? When we first met you told me you had failed your producer numerous times, and that you feared failing. I remember you even asked me if I wasn’t afraid of failing! Isn’t it a kind of mistake? Like… fearing to make mistakes that ultimately led you to failing the auditions?”

  Megumi was taken aback by the thought. She agreed it made sense. She was afraid of failing, and in the dream she had committed a very minor mistake but was left completely lost after it. So lost she stumbled upon a dark alley full of rotting people. Her mistake was very minor, but she felt the world would turn against her. She remembered the first coin magically disappeared as if to spare her from other people’s wraths. Everything else that occurred on her dream was a reaction to that initial, trivial mistake.

  While Rin and Megumi tried to crack the dream, Naoko excused herself and left to take some fresh air. All that talk was making her dizzy. Since she couldn’t go out of the building and also couldn’t go into the show area she walked to the communal dressing room. As she imagined, there was no one there, but through the large window she could enjoy the performance of that idol who looked like a prettier Shiori. True, Shiori was already very cute in Naoko’s opinion, that idol was just prettier. She had a stunning face and her dark, glossy hair, though short and somewhat simple in style, was a perfect match for her. She wore a small tiara above her head that also looked cute.

  At first Naoko just noticed the similarities between her and her friend, but soon something occurred to her. That idol actually danced pretty well. It was hard to describe. She wasn’t very technical. In fact, she looked like the opposite of Ruby, that girl who danced perfectly like a robot but appeared to have no soul. The blue and white dressed idol knew an incredibly large array of moves, to the point where she didn’t repeat a single pose or choreographic movement. All the while, it felt so natural and free-flowing that one move seamlessly connected to the next, then to a pose, then to whatever.

  It was totally different from the idols she’d seen so far. Maybe with the exception of a few Water-class idols like Umeko and Vyper, that girl with blue contact lenses had the best dancing abilities Naoko had seen until then. Well, it was hard to say because it was very subjective, and that girl didn’t do anything extreme. She just danced freely, but her moves impressed Naoko.

  Dark-class idols she’d seen on every audition usually danced in similar ways. They had different choreographies, but all looked like memorized steps. Even Naoko only did that: she danced following her choreography. Seeing other idols perform, it was clear they did movements they’d practiced before. That blue-eyed idol was different somehow. Her dance seemed more genuine than most other idols Naoko had watched. It was as if she had no choreography and did the movements on the fly. Not unlike Naoko during her tests to get accepted at her agency, only that idol who resembled Shiori actually knew a lot of movements and poses. It probably wasn’t the case and she most likely had a choreography to follow, because she’d classified on an audition that certainly required a previously routed choreography. Still, that idol’s moves were very atypical. Her voice was sweet, and despite acting – or being – a little shy and not looking a lot to the audience, her dance felt simply honest. Not exaggerated, not executed like a robot or anything. It was elegant, simple, free-flowing and frank. Also, it was well-executed.

  The girl moved as if hypnotized, completely absorbed on her song and dance. Naoko could feel some kind of passion on each move, though it was hard to explain how exactly. That girl appeared to be enjoying her show, though unlike Naoko she didn’t seem to be affected by the audience. Her enjoyment appeared to be simply on moving. Dancing and singing. It almost looked like if the audience went away that idol would perform just as well. Still, she looked caring and her cute demeanor and heartfelt songs were enthralling, sustaining the crowd’s focus. Also, the girl hardly ever committed a mistake. Unlike Ruby, who committed few mistakes because she was a perfectionist, that blue-eyed idol was just in tune with her song and did the moves that looked right for that situation. It was different, but outstanding.

  It was hard to imagine where she could have learned to dance like that. Coupled with her last song, “Washed Away Steps on Sunset Sands”, about a person going out for a walk on a beach under light rain during the sunset and forgetting her or his problems, Naoko could clearly picture a person merrily walking freely over the sands on a deserted beach. The way that idol danced was so free, full of spins and gracious movements, that it felt relaxing and heartwarming as a brisk walk by the shoreline during dusk.

  Seriously impressed, Naoko listened carefully across the glass to her farewell words when that girl’s performance was over. In that, like usual, she asked people to support her on future shows and mentioned her name, which was what Naoko wanted to hear. Yukimura Ayumi was it.

  When Ayumi left the stage, warmly applauded by the audience, Naoko walked to the door of the communal room to see her coming back from the other side of the corridor. There was already another idol waiting by the door of her personal dressing room, wearing a rosy-red and white attire with a miniskirt, over the knee red boots and long gloves coupled with a big, pointy black headgear that looked like a witch’s hat. As her silver suit-clad producer called her from afar before going into the show room, the girl tensely walked down the corridor to follow him. Just as the blue-eyed girl Ayumi was turning alongside a gray-suited, forty-some man, the red, black and white witch also did the same and the two bumped into each other. It wasn’t anything out of the ordinary, but the idol to present next was extremely nervous already.

  Looking irritated, the witch-like idol angrily ordered:

  “Watch out, last place! Can’t you see where you’re walking?!”

  Infuriated, the tricolor witch left. The introverted Ayumi, who until then was talking somewhat happily with her producer, lowered her eyes. Seeing she’d lost the joy from her successful show, the forty-some man near her rested his hand caringly on her shoulder for a little bit. He had no frills unlike most other producers. His gray suit was well-made but unassuming, just a red tie and black shoes breaking the otherwise monochromatic outfit. His hair was short and a few gray strands sprouted around. His forehead was marked by what appeared to be lines produced by worrying too much, though his face was serene. His height was average and Naoko, wearing platform boots, was a little taller than him. He looked like a decent folk, as reserved as his idol.

  “Forget her, Ayumi-Chan,” he suggested, “She’s just nervous because she’s going to perform next. Don’t let her words get to you.”

  Though nodding, Ayumi looked down, asking “I know. She has her reasons. But does she really have to say such harsh words? I… could’ve helped her calm down if she wasn’t angry with me”. That girl had been far too kind, in Naoko’s opinion. If someone blamed Naoko for bumping into her and bossed her around while calling her “last place” she’d probably start a heated discussion. Worst-case scenario, if that bitch didn’t tone down and apologized, Naoko would scatter all her teeth on the floor. That scene made her blood boil, though she was too distant to intervene in time. Still, it felt so wrong that something had to be done. Ayumi not only reminded her of Shiori, though ever cuter and much prettier, but she also acted a little like her timid friend, merely accepting defeat and looking disheartened. That unfair situation also made Naoko’s heart hurt. Though, like Aratani had taught her, it made no sense to keep reminding a person of her problems if she couldn’t solve them.

  She quickly though about things she liked on that girl. Ayumi looked like Shiori. Her mild behavior was ill-suited for fights, but made her all the more adorable. She was incredibly pretty in a petite way. Her dress was gorgeous. Oh, her dancing skills! That was seriously amazing! Naoko woul
d love to know where that girl learned to dance like that. So yes, apparently she had a few conversation topics with her.

  Crestfallen, Ayumi started taking away one of her contact lenses, revealing a dark eye behind. As she walked in dismay toward her private room alongside her mildly-mannered producer, Naoko drew closer. With a warm smile she caught the attention of the two.

  “Hello,” Naoko greeted the startled and somewhat intimidated girl, “I… overheard it. I mean, your show! Not that thing that just happened! I…” Stopping for a second, Naoko sighed, “Okay, I also heard that thing that happened with that stupid girl. Sorry, I… just couldn’t ignore it. But I think your producer is right! Forget her, she doesn’t deserve your attention! What I meant to say is that I watched part of your show from the communal dressing room. I’m impressed! Really! You dance exceptionally well! I’ve never seen someone dance so… freely! Congratulations!”

  Ayumi’s dark, real eye was illuminated by gladness. She briefly recalled with a cute, childish voice, though used in quite a mature way, albeit a little whisperingly:

  “You’re that kind idol who wished me good luck before the show, isn’t it? Thanks for your kindness.” She bowed down slightly, and her producer, smiling gratefully, did the same. Ayumi, looking slightly hesitant, introduced herself, “Huh… I-I’m… Yukimura Ayumi.”

  Smiling radiantly, Naoko replied:

  “It’s a pleasure to meet you, Yukimura-San! I’m Yano Naoko! Please call me Naoko!”

  “Naoko-San…” Ayumi turned back to her producer, “Yano Naoko… The name is in the event’s header, isn’t it?” Facing back the tall girl, she asked, “You’re the idol who was invited by this banking corporation? It’s thanks to you that this event occurred, then?”

  Embarrassed, Naoko smiled, explaining:

  “Well, partially, anyway.” Ayumi bowed down respectfully, promptly saying “Thanks for this wondrous opportunity, Ya… I mean, Naoko-San!”

  “Thank you very much,” Ayumi’s producer also said, grateful.

  “Ah… please, there’s no need to be so formal! There’s no need for the “San” part either if you don’t want.” Naoko replied, “In fact, if you want to thank someone, thank my friend Rin-Chan. it’s because of Rin-Chan this show happened. She studies with me and wanted to watch my show, but her father, a sort of director from this banking corporation, preferred to invite us to a show of his company first before her daughter goes out with people she doesn’t know.” Looking excited, Naoko added, “Ayu… err, Yukimura-San?”

  “Please, if Naoko-S… Naoko-C-Chan?” Ayumi said hesitantly. Seeing Naoko accepted it happily, the tense girl relaxed and said, “If Naoko-Chan is fine with being called like that… please, call me by my first name too. No need for formalities either.”

  Grinning, Naoko accepted it contently:

  “Ayumi-Chan, then? Okay! Hey, Ayumi-Chan, do you want to meet my friends? There’s Rin-Chan and also a girl called Shiori-Chan who’s my friend and an excellent photographer! I think she looks a little bit like you too! Though she doesn’t think so. They’re on my private dressing room!”

  Ayumi looked back to her producer, partially hesitantly and partially hopeful. The man, smiling gratefully to Naoko, nodded and extended his hand, asking:

  “Just give me your contact lenses, Ayumi-Chan.” As she handed her it, the man asked for a second and walked back to Ayumi’s private room, coming back from it with a pair of discreet glasses, which he handed to her, “Here, Ayumi-San. Have fun. Please, Yano-San, take good care of Ayumi-Chan. I’ll be on the hall and will be back to catch you, Ayumi-Chan, once the show is over, okay? If you need anything please call me.”

  As the hopeful and enthusiastic looking man left, Naoko, with her mouth agape, faced Ayumi, now wearing glasses. Surprised, she commented:

  “That’s amazing! With glasses you look even more like my friend Shiori-Chan! Sure, your glasses are more stylish, but still! Here, I’ll show her to you! Please tell me what you really think about it, okay?”

  Ayumi timidly nodded. Naoko walked her to her door, but listening to a few nonsensical things coming from inside as Rin excitedly mumbled about dream-like stuff, Naoko took a step back. Facing the confused idol wearing glasses, she smiled nervously.

  “Hum… Before we go in, I’d just like to tell you one thing about what’s going on inside, just so you don’t be scared, okay?” Seeing Ayumi suddenly got scared, Naoko tried to calm her down opening the door briefly to show her, “No, no, don’t worry, there’s nothing odd going on! See?” Closing the door so the sound didn’t interfere, she explained about Rin’s talk with Megumi over interpreting a nightmare. She had to tell Ayumi who was Megumi, her fight for the homeless people and how they all met. In doing so Naoko mentioned Aratani, who helped Megumi having a second chance, and from there proceeded to chat about how her producer jokingly criticized her for helping other idols, talking about Sakura and Harumi too. When Naoko finished her “brief” explanation, almost fifteen more minutes had passed.

  Somewhat like Shiori, Ayumi also seemed a patient, attentive and interested listener. She said almost nothing while Naoko went on with her mumblings, and by the end of it, when she apologized for talking so much, Ayumi joyfully and frankly retorted:

  “No, there’s no need for apologies! It’s refreshing to see a person like Naoko-Chan, who cares about the others. I… I constantly have this talk with my producer, Onda Hisoka-San, for the last two years about how idols are being selfish nowadays. Well… Naoko-Chan saw it first-hand. That girl bumped into me and said… quite bitter things. I…” Staring at a wall, she revealed, “I was actually thinking about… stop working as an idol. Well, not really… stop, you know? I need my work, and I’d not let Onda-San down, but… there are times when all I want is to… stop. Or rather, that people could be nice to each other! Does Naoko-Chan feel the same?”

  Nodding, the girl agreed:

  “I do. Well, I’ve only been to a few shows, really, so I can’t say how things truly are. But from what little I’ve already seen, idols usually act in very unfriendly ways towards each other. The dressing rooms are always tense places. It’s nice to have a private room, actually!”

  “Isn’t it?” Ayumi asked, smiling, “It didn’t solve the problem of the unhealthy disputes and animosity, especially during auditions, but it makes shows a little more doable! I remember dreaming to reach the Intermediate League as quickly as possible so I could be alone! Well… that didn’t help as much as I thought it would, but still. But they say the idols on the Major Leagues are actually friendly toward each other! That’s my new goal! Naoko-Chan said she’d only a few shows and seemed happy with having a private room, was Naoko-Chan recently promoted to the Intermediate League too?”

  Freezing, Naoko lost her words. Smiling nervously, she reluctantly said:

  “Ah… no, I… am not… so far yet. Ayumi-San is in the Intermediate League?”

  Staring at Naoko with a surprised face, Ayumi said:

  “Ah… yes. I was just recently promoted to the Wood class. I… thought this was an Intermediate League gig and they didn’t mix leagues, but since it’s an invitational gig, I think… there are no rules against the invited person being from another league? But… is Naoko-Chan an Earth idol or something?”

  Scratching her hair, Naoko tensely denied it:

  “You see… Would Ayumi-Chan think less of me if I said I’m… ah… a Dark-class idol?”

  Ayumi looked staggered and paused for a moment. Trying to read Naoko’s nervous face to see if she could be joking, the girl looked a little disappointed, though only for a moment. Thinking for a second, Ayumi smiled faintly again and said:

  “I’d never think less of a girl who is kind to others. If you’re just being nice to me, I could think Naoko-Chan was acting on second thoughts, but if you really helped those twins you said and that girl who also cares for homeless people, it brings me joy. To see there’s a virtuous group of girls who can be kind to others getting started f
ills me with hope that one day we’ll all be on the same league! Please hurry up and be promoted, okay? Just so I know, would you mind answering me how many show points do you currently have and for how long have you been a Dark-class idol, Naoko-Chan?”

  “Supposing this is a two-star show, I believe I have five points right now,” the girl answered, “As for the time… I was accepted on my agency around the end of the first week of April. About a month ago, a few days less than it maybe.”

  With eyes wide-open Ayumi inquired:

  “Wait… Did you started tackling auditions one month ago, after a period of training, or did Naoko-Chan really got hired on your agency as an idol a month ago?”

  “I got hired on April,” Naoko answered with a smile. Stunned, Ayumi interrogated, “B-but did Naoko-Chan have any previous training? Was she an idol on another agency under a different name, or a part of a band, before getting hired on your current one?”

  “No. In fact I never wanted to be an idol up until a month ago,” Naoko revealed. Astonished, Ayumi calculated, “Wait. If you keep that up… Naoko-Chan can reach the Wood class is way less than a year! Well, that’s assuming you win the cups, but the Minor League cups all have multiple entries every weekend. That’s amazing! I’m considered a fast-blooming idol because I made into the Intermediate League in about two years! I started when I turned fifteen, and now I just turned seventeen. That is rare to occur, about one every twenty idols who reach the Intermediate League do so in two years or less. Most take up to four years. If Naoko-Chan is so good, maybe… maybe we can actually meet on the Intermediate League!” Looking excited, the introverted girl asked, “Please, Naoko-Chan, do your best, okay? If you or your friends need any advice or help, feel free to ask me. I’d love to have kind people like you around, that’s what I want the most!”

  Naoko had to remind herself Ayumi was not Shiori to prevent her hands from pinching her soft cheeks as the girl asked it with such a cute, hopeful face. Happily agreeing, Naoko finally opened the door to her private dressing room. At that time the crazy conversation seemed to already be over and Rin just talked with a deeply grateful Megumi. As Naoko invited Ayumi in, the shy girl’s eyes from behind her glasses ran through the people inside and immediately stopped on Shiori. The two shocked girls with glasses stared at each other for a few seconds. Rin, amazed, cut her chat with Megumi and yelled enthusiastically:

  “It’s Shiori-Chan’s sister! Wow, you two are actually twins!”

  Chaos reigned for a while, with Rin asking Shiori why she’d never mentioned a twin sister, Shiori denying having one and Megumi asking through the phone what was going on. Naoko interrupted the confusing talk explaining to Megumi that Rin was talking about an idol who Naoko had invited in and who looked similar to Shiori, despite not being actually related by blood. Agreeing, Ayumi stated:

  “Yes, I’m impressed! We look very much alike, don’t we?”

  Blushing, Shiori spoke in an even shyer and lower voice:

  “A-ha… Thank you, but… I don’t deserve such a compliment. Y-You’re… way prettier than me. Way, way prettier!” Naoko turned her eyes to Ayumi and explained, “This is Shiori-Chan. She’s an amazing photographer, you need to see her pictures! Also she’s quite humble and don’t believe when we say she’s cute. Not even when seeing a girl who is similar to her and is actually a stunning idol.”

  Of course there were differences. Ayumi really was very attractive and more beautiful than Shiori, though not as much as Naoko’s classmate made it sound. Both looked very cute, and despite having a voice with child-like properties just like the photographer, the idol’s voice was much more melodic and pleasing. On the other hand, the idol surely wasn’t able to handle a camera like Shiori. Ayumi was about two inches taller, but she was also one year older. She seemed to have a slightly more curvaceous lower half, though her chest looked only marginally less flat than Shiori’s. Their eye colors weren’t the same too, with Ayumi’s being much darker, though that was hardly noticeable. Comparing their glasses, though, Shiori said she could easily see from afar, while Ayumi’s myopia was not so mild. In fact, the idol said she had headaches whenever she wasn’t wearing glasses or contact lenses, and could hardly read characters smaller than one inch high beyond arm’s reach. Ayumi also seemed somewhat less shy than Shiori, though compared to any other idol Naoko had met so far she was as introverted as she could be. In fact, she was very introverted, just not all that timid.

  Naoko introduced her friends, including Megumi on the phone, and then presented Ayumi to everyone. Megumi, with her usual humble voice, apologized for taking up so much of everyone’s time and said she had to go, though not before thanking Rin, and everyone else, profusely for her help. Naoko asked Shiori and Ayumi to stand close to each other so she could take a picture to send Megumi. Since Rin cheerfully also wanted to appear, she ended up snapping the three and send the girl the photos so she could finally see the faces of her friends, including her newest one, Ayumi. Naoko then proceeded to talk with them, and though both Shiori and Ayumi preferred to listen than to talk, Rin’s funny presence evened it out.

  When Ayumi bowed down, thanking Rin for the show opportunity, the blond girl looked almost shocked.

  “No need to thank Rin! It was Ayumi-Chan’s merit to be here! Rin just wanted to see Naoko-Chan perform, and introduce her to Rin’s father…” The starry-eyed girl looked stunned. Jumping away from the couch, the energetic girl eagerly told, “Rin forgot Rin was going to introduce Naoko-Chan to Rin’s father! This way Rin’s father will know Naoko-Chan is a nice person and will let Rin go out with her to watch more shows! Please, everyone, come with me and Naoko-Chan too!”

  “Oh, wait! Naoko asked while taking her smartphone and calling her producer, “Aratani-San will probably like to meet your father too. Speaking of which, damn it Rin-Chan! When you talked about this event you said “a few” people attended to “a few” parties of your father’s company! I was imagining it…” Once Aratani answered she briefly interrupted her conversation, “Oh, wait. Excuse me for a second. Hello? Produ-San? Yeah, it’s me. Rin-Chan is here on my private room and she’s going to introduce everyone to her father. Want to come too? Right, see you in a moment.” Turning back to Rin, she continued, “So, as I was saying, Rin-Chan said there’d be a few people! I was thinking around sixty, not three thousand! Why didn’t you say your father was a big shot at a big banking corporation?! My producer just told me so today after he did his own research and I looked dumb for not knowing it about my own friend!”

  A little down, Rin answered uncharacteristically slowly:

  “Rin … doesn’t like to talk about her family too much. Rin … had a few people get close to Rin in the past just because of Rin’s father. Rin likes Naoko-Chan because she’s a good friend! Rin likes Naoko-Chan a lot! Naoko-Chan helps Rin with Rin’s fears of boys, and with her fear of competing, and she is funny and teaches Rin cool things! I… just wanted things to… continue that way. Rin… didn’t want to hide anything! She was going to tell Naoko-Chan about it! She just…”

  “Okay, I get it, there’s no need to say anything else,” Smiling warmly, Naoko responded. She pulled the tense Rin closer to a tight hug that made the blond girl laugh and recover her carefree and joyous ways. Almost instantly the door opened up abruptly and Aratani, looking a little breathless, said, “Sorry it took so long, I came as fas…”

  The man stopped as he saw Naoko hugging yet another girl in the presence of Shiori and an idol who looked like the photographer. Sighing, the man turned his back and closed the door behind him, saying, “Screw that, I’ll get a bear to forget my jealousy.”

  While Naoko left the room quickly to give chase to her producer, Rin happily offered:

  “Ayumi-Chan? You’re Naoko-Chan’s friend too, isn’t it? Rin also wants to be your friend! If Rin helps Naoko-Chan, Rin also wants to help you! I don’t know how exactly knowing my father helps people, but apparently it does, and Rin likes to help her friends! Ayumi-Chan is an id
ol too, right? So it means Ayumi-Chan has a producer too, doesn’t she? Want to call your producer too? I can introduce him just like I’ll do for Naoko-Chan’s producer, Aratani-San!”

  During most of the time she was there, Ayumi had either a surprised or a grateful countenance and at that time it was no different. She thanked Rin for the offer, and afterwards the two checked out a few photos Shiori had taken from Naoko’s performance while they waited for the idol and the two producers arrive. Naoko took special joy in getting everyone to know each other, leaving only Ayumi’s producer to be introduced by the Intermediate League idol:

  “This is my producer, Onda Hisoka. He’s one of the two producers on my agency and takes care of me along with three other girls.”

  They weren’t supposed to leave the backstage area, but Rin talked to her father and the idols were allowed to go into the show hall once they changed back to non-stage clothes. Ideally it was to prevent people from recognizing them and, thus, not disturbing other girls’ show, but Naoko’s everyday garments were only somewhat less eye-catching than her costume for performances. Ayumi’s everyday clothes, on the other hand, were as common and casual as anyone else, just a plain t-shirt and a skirt.

  In doing so, her arms and legs, who previously were covered by long stockings and gloves, were exposed, revealing a few dark bruises. Ayumi didn’t even notice it, but Naoko did and promptly inquired:

  “What are those?! Ayumi-Chan seems to have been attacked by a lion!”

  Her producer also checked out the contusions, but he didn’t seem surprised. The girl, however, appeared not to be expecting that question. For a moment she looked helplessly lost, but, forcing a smile, she whispered embarrassedly while looking to the floor:

  “Oh, this? I… I can be a little clumsy sometimes…”

  Shocked, Naoko commented, “A little clumsy? But you danced so well and without the slightest mistake!” to which Ayumi, looking even more uncomfortable and lost, maintained, “Ah… while I’m dancing… I just don’t bump into anything, somehow. That’s all.”

  Thinking back, Naoko remembered the girl had bumped into another idol some time before, and Ayumi’s producer, who probably knew her well, didn’t seem too fazed. In fact, he said in agreement:

  “Ayumi-Chan is very skilled when it comes to dancing, and I personally don’t see her bumping into things, but she is short-sighted. From what she tells me, she can’t use her glasses all the time due to some sort of nauseating effect of them, but when she doesn’t wear glasses or contact lenses she has problems with her surroundings. Also, she has migraines whenever she doesn’t wear them for long. So no, she’s not as clumsy as she says, but whenever she’s not wearing glasses, she may just as well be. That’s what she says, anyway. I hardly ever see her without glasses, though.”

  The girl smiled thankfully to her producer while trying to pull her t-shirt’s sleeves as much as possible to hide a bruise. Naoko, noticing the beautiful girl was very uncomfortable with the three visible purple marks, calmed her by taking away her right hand gloves and exposing two bandaged fingers.

  “Don’t worry, Ayumi-Chan! It’s not looking bad! And everyone has their bad moments. I also have a bruise or two, along with two broken nails.”

  Breathing more easily, the timid girl stopped to discreetly try to hide her bruises and asked what happened, prompting Naoko to talk about her friend Miwa, her younger brother and all that happened involving the boy and the car accident he almost caused. She showed her fan club page on her cellphone to the astounded girl and her surprised producer, where Aratani had displayed the newspaper articles and that famous idol magazine’s excerpt about the event.

  While they talked about Naoko’s heroic – or foolhardy – actions, the other girls had their own chats. In comparison to Ayumi’s everyday clothes, Rin was better dressed than her. In such a low-profile outfit Ayumi resembled even more Shiori, that even her producer, Mr. Onda, acknowledged that. Shiori tried to minimize the similarities despite looking glad for such an honorable connection, but downplayed herself so much in comparison to Ayumi during one of the times she said “I don’t deserve such praise, I’d never equate to her prettiness” Rin briskly broke into the conversation:

  “Rin never noticed Shiori-Chan was so much like Rin! Rin hates to compete and always says things like “Rin would never equate to Rin’s opponent” just so Rin don feel afraid of losing! It never works, but Rin likes to do it anyway! Yay, Shiori-Chan is afraid of other people’s high expectations for her too! We think alike! We’re practically sisters too! I’d like to have Shiori-Chan and Ayumi-Chan as sisters! Can Rin try your glasses to see if Rin looks like you two?!”

  Watching Rin excitedly try Shiori’s thin glasses, then Ayumi’s high degree one, and attempting to find her father without being able to see anything, Aratani turned to Naoko, whispering:

  “I see what Naoko-Chan meant when she said Rin-San doesn’t act like a rich girl. What you didn’t mention is that she doesn’t act like a girl at all.” Seeing Rin bump into lots of people and asking Ayumi, who also couldn’t see anything without her glasses, to guide her by her hand, Aratani grinned, “You know what? I like her this way. Cheery, spontaneous and inconsequential like someone I know. Though it’s a little worrisome too. What’re they teaching girls nowadays?”

  They took a while to find Rin’s father since the girl, with a myopic guide and without being able to see anything, had the brilliant idea of trying to navigate the room through her other senses. Mostly by sound. Unfortunately they were in the middle of a show. Eventually she gave the glasses back to Ayumi and, for a full minute, stood blinking to try and adapt her eyes back. Even Naoko found the blond, slender and well-dressed man in his forties on the balcony before his own daughter did. Partially because he was one of the only blond men in the room. He had a striking figure, especially his face. When smiling he opened his eyes the same way his daughter did, though thankfully he didn’t act like a happy, carefree person like the cute energy reactor that was Rin. Contrary to the upbeat girl, he looked slightly tired, though it didn’t prevent him from talking animatedly with a few other people.

  As he saw his blinking, excited daughter approaching the man excused himself from the circle and turned to Rin, who happily greeted:

  “Vater-San! I brought my friends to introduce to you!”

  Smiling briefly to everybody, the man turned his attention back to Rin:

  “What happened to your eyes?” The blinking girl responded with a smile, while already introducing everyone, “Ah, I asked to see how it was to wear Shiori-Chan’s glasses! Shiori-Chan studies at the same class as Naoko-Chan and is an incredible photographer! But Shiori-Chan’s glasses make almost no difference, so I asked to wear Ayumi-Chan’s glasses instead! They’re so nice, it makes everything look blurry and the lights bloom! She’s an idol! She’s the one who wore blue contact lenses and that amazing blue dress! Naoko-Chan is also an idol! She’s the one I talk about! She’s incredible! Did father-San saw how she danced?! And that man is her producer, Aratani-San! Oh, and that is Onda-San, Ayumi-Chan’s producer! Everyone, this is vater-San!”

  Since Rin, in her excitement, made a poor job of introducing everyone, each person made their own presentations. Rin’s father was apparently used to his daughter flopping introductions, and bowed all the slightest while saying:

  “It’s a pleasure to make you all acquaintances. I’m Uehara Akira, Rin’s father.” Turning to Naoko, he continued, “Rin speaks highly of you, Yano-San. That you are an esteemed friend, a born athlete, help her a great deal and is quite popular. She was anxious to watch a show of yours, and quite frankly, I was curious to meet you in person too.”

  “Rin is very kind, I merely…” Naoko was about to start talking modestly when Rin eagerly interrupted her with compliments, “Naoko-Chan is kinder! Up until a while back we were talking with another idol, Megumi-Chan, who helps homeless people! Naoko-Chan was helping her overcome her fear of stages and I tried to help her too by inter
preting a nightmare she had! I believe she understood quite a few things and will do well! Aratani-San also decided to help her by subscribing Megumi-Chan on another audition after she failed seven attempts! But she’s very good, she sang a little on the phone! Also she sings for homeless people and helps a Shinto temple obtaining donations! She wants to be an idol not only for money for her university, but also to promote homeless people’s cause! I’m sure she can win if she overcomes her fears, and Naoko-Chan and Aratani-San decided to give her another chance because she’s humble and nice and cool and deserves it! Aratani-San even paid her subscription fee for her and dedicated time to register her!”

  Probably also used to his daughter’s slightly disorganized and quick speech, the man listened carefully and then turned to Aratani, commenting:

  “You two make a good team, I see. I’m happy to know of a man who acts for other goals besides money, and also to hear Yano-San helps other people besides my daughter.”

  Somewhat sarcastically, Aratani replied:

  “Uehara-San has no idea how much Naoko-Chan likes to help others. Before Megumi-San, she decided to help twin idols with a confused producer. She even proposed creating a group of idols to help each other out. I’m surprised, actually, that Naoko-Chan made a new friend, Ayumi-San, without helping her.”

  Naoko laughed embarrassedly while looking to Ayumi, who timidly corrected him with a low voice that almost couldn’t be heard due to the songs being performed:

  “In reality, she was kind to me when I needed the most today, after being ill-treated by a colleague. She cheered me up and introduced me to all these wonderful people, something no one did to me during the two years I worked as an idol. It’s a very happy occasion for me! I never had an idol who I could call a friend, so in a sense Naoko-Chan’s kindness has indeed helped me.”

  Aratani glanced to his idol with half-closed eyes. With a victorious smile, Naoko recalled:

  “On the bright side, this time I did so without cramping Aratani-San’s appointment book with things to do for other people! And you can’t say the idol group was a bad idea!”

  Ayumi and her producer Onda seemed curious about that, though the man could easily get the information about it with his idol. As such, Naoko elaborated the deal to Ayumi, with Rin and Shiori joining the conversation. While she explained about the idea of having friends supporting each other during auditions, partying together, helping one another when needed and perhaps even making a band for Non-Ranked gigs, the two producers and Rin’s father got together to exchange business cards and talk about their own topics of interest.

  The group Naoko mentioned was not even operational yet since Megumi, Sakura and Harumi hadn’t even met before, but Ayumi seemed so interested that Naoko extended her an invitation. At the same time, she asked:

  “Ayumi-Chan? Can I ask you just one thing? You said your agency has two producers and that Onda-San produces three other idols besides you, right? But you also said you’ve no other idol to call a friend? What about the girls who work with you?”

  Ayumi silenced for a moment, looking down. She hesitantly revealed:

  “There are currently seven idol at my agency, but they hardly speak to each other. There are only two girls who get along with each other, but nothing else. I hear it happens on other agencies as well. More idols mean more girls competing for their producer’s attention and the resources of the company. We’re no friends, we’re more like rivals who compete for our producers, for publicity contracts, for the schedules of lessons, even for accessories to wear, which are mostly shared among everyone on my agency. It’s horrible. It’s not uncommon for girls to root against each other, even if it means that idols from other agencies would win the competition. I hate when my agency peers mock me or each other after a loss. It’s when we need support the most. Think about the worst dressing room reunion with idols that disrespect each other before a gig you ever had so far. A good, peaceful day at my agency is probably like that.”

  Shaking her head, she stated with a heavy heart that made her paced child-like voice sound oddly mature:

  “I don’t… want to be an idol anymore, to be frank. Too much drama and petty rivalries. My producer agrees. Before, he was a television producer. Basically a writer who has a saying on how things will work out on the show. He says he left his old job because he couldn’t stand disputes among the casts anymore. We… discussed this many times before, and for two times now I tried to get away, but Onda-San talked me out of that. He says his plan is to open his own agency once I have enough fans, and he’d produce just me. Queen idols are usually either Major League ones or Minor League idols from newly-founded agencies. I want to become a Major League idol as quickly as possible so Onda-San can create his own agency and take me with him. He’s an honest man and has proved it numerous times, I believe he means what he says and will keep his promise if I manage to hold on until then.”

  Firmly raising a fist, Naoko encouraged the idol with glasses while smiling:

  “Count on me to support you until then! Ayumi-Chan is very talented, as I could take by watching you perform, and far too kind with disrespectful people! She doesn’t deserve to be surrounded by petty rivalries and to have no one to rely on!” Lowering her hand, she warned, “I just want to remind you that our group has never met before and is composed just by Dark-class idols until now. Granted, we expect to help each other to rise through the classes as quickly as possible too, but currently we’re still in probation. Also, Megumi-San’s career rests on how well she performs tomorrow, so as much as I hate to admit it, we can lose her if she fails. So… I don’t want to discourage Ayumi-Chan, but our group is still more of a project than anything else. Still, if you don’t mind it, I’m sure everyone will be as happy as me to have you with us!”

  The flashing lights from the stage and the show house’s ceiling reflected erratically on the girl’s glasses, preventing Naoko from seeing her eyes clearly. As such, while she stood silent it was hard to fathom what the introverted girl could be thinking. Ultimately, she nodded as if agreeing with her own thoughts and, bowing, requested:

  “I understand it, Naoko-Chan, and I wouldn’t have it any other way. Thank you for the invitation! Please let me meet you friends. If they accept me, I’d love to be a part of the group!” Standing up, she commented, “Naoko-Chan also said Megumi-San’s career rests on an audition occurring tomorrow, right? Well, I know I’ll be there on the I.S.S.G.’s headquarter tomorrow for an audition too. If it’s not at the same time, I’d be more than happy to cheer for such a kind girl. Which makes me think: maybe it’s a good time to join the group for the first time, isn’t it?”

  Rin excitedly turned her hopeful face to Naoko, and Shiori, despite the shyness, couldn’t hide the curiosity too. Smiling, Naoko nodded. Looking for her smartphone around her purse full of CDs, eyeliner and makeup kits, bandages and other items, she exchanged contact information with Ayumi and texted her friends about the girl and her idea. It was already past ten p.m., so she wasn’t expecting replies, but Megumi sent them the timetable of her audition and humbly thanked them for the amazing support. Harumi also replied, saying she was eager to meet Ayumi. She said her sister was already asleep, but that she would talk with Sakura first thing in the morning.

  From there on the girls used their spare time to take photos, talk and laugh while sitting on a table on the balcony and eating. Naoko also noticed that while the other Intermediate League idols performed much better show than any Dark-class one, no one danced as freely as Ayumi. Inquired, the introverted girl explained she just had a good teacher, a man who knew a lot about dances. According to her, instead of practicing a preplanned choreography, she listened to a song many times and danced how she felt was best for the rhythm and lyric. Of course she had studied many music styles and their usual dancing steps before she came to that, and she was still learning. Once she found movements that suited the song, according to her tastes, she presented it to her instructor for an evaluation.
r />   He corrected what needed to be corrected and polished it, though he rarely dismissed parts of her choreography, saying a dance was a personal form of expression. What he usually did was to show her other possible dancing steps. Once the girl was happy with the results she and her master wrote the choreography down to use it on a presentation. Though creating a custom choreography was not for everybody and a few judges frowned upon it, it usually had excellent results and set Ayumi apart from the competition. That was, in her words, a trump card that let her, a newly promoted Wood idol, to be on par with a few Fire-class idols during auditions, though she knew she had to improve her Crowd Control skills.

  It was easy to see that. The other idols, though very skilled and charismatic, appeared to follow their dancing routines, while it was the choreography that seemed to adjust to Ayumi’s tastes, body proportions and personality. Her stage character was given special care, with songs that made sense for her. She also mentioned she had two copyrighted songs invented by herself with her personality in mind, one of which being the lyric about a person walking on a beach by dusk under light rain that Naoko considered to be so relaxing and well performed. Two songs weren’t enough to produce her own CD just yet, but she told her she expected to have many more by the end of the year, now that she had reached the Intermediate League and had access to better, bigger shows that paid many times more than any she’d seen on the Minor League. Thus, her producer could hire a composer to create her songs.

  Naoko was taken aback by Ayumi’s composition capacity. That song, “Washed Away Steps on Sunset Sands”, didn’t sound as if it’s written by any amateur. Of course, it wasn’t as deep as, say, “Point of No Return: 5 Seconds for Tomorrow”, that song the Water idol Umeko sang about a graduating person thinking back about what he or she would do differently during their school years if it’s possible, but Ayumi’s lyrics were still pleasant. It’s also curious that the song about a walk on the beach also had light rain as one of its elements, curiously something that recurred on Shiori’s photo’s too. Luckily the other copyrighted track Ayumi had created had nothing to do with rain or snow, or Naoko would create even more links between the composer and the photographer. Ayumi showed her song to her friends on her phone. Called “Peach-Colored Pure Shaved Ice”, it was a bass-intense, positive song versing about the pure, innocent and idealized mutual love of two teenagers who were afraid of telling each other that they liked one another. It had a little angst at some points, but overall it’s cheerful and had a happy ending.

  It’s good and, as Naoko mentioned, she could imagine that lyric playing during a few anime intros or outros if Onda managed to license it. This got Ayumi thinking, since the girl was not very used to promoting her own work and also was not very interested in cartoons in general. That was still a good idea, nevertheless – one she’d discuss with Onda. That could even get her producer’s schedule a little more filled with appointments related to Ayumi instead of things for the other idols of the house. As she mentioned, her producer had three other idols to produce beside her, Earth and one Sea-class girl. The other producer had also a Wood-class idol, along with one Fire and one Sky-class idol. Ayumi was not the highest-ranked idol of her agency, but was the most promising, being the fastest girl when it came to class promoting and was four years younger than the Fire-class idol from the Rainbow Ribbon Track Agency.

  As Rin curiously questioned about the process of writing a song, Ayumi tried to make sense of it but ultimately found herself unable to express it in words. She merely did that, though she didn’t know how. As she came to tell, she was used to do it since she’s a kid, since someone used songs to make her communicate herself, but as she started to talk about that the girl silenced and opted to change subjects. She inquired Shiori about the process of taking photos, and the shy photographer enthused about cameras, angles and a few technical details. Taking pictures like Shiori did was an art just like music, so in a sense both girls had their own ways of expressing themselves through their respective arts, as Naoko came to point out.

  The party was so fun that the girls wanted it to last forever. And despite having the presentation of idols after a quarter to eleven, the event itself was really going to continue until dawn. Still, the Aratani eventually called Naoko and Shiori to go, reminding the idol she’d have another pair of auditions the next day. Onda also did the same for Ayumi, and Rin’s father started to say goodbye to his employees and co-workers.

  Times like that should never end, Naoko thought, but it was nice to know she’d be seeing the cute and introverted but also friendly Ayumi again on the next day. Everyone seemed happy, from Aratani and Onda, who met new business partners and got along rather well between themselves, to Rin, who was thrilled by her first show and Shiori, admired to see people actually though a girl similar to her to be attractive and cute. Ayumi seemed especially content, not only for finding a group of nice and friendly idols, but also for her new friends who weren’t idols.

  As for Naoko, that night had been astounding for so many reasons it could go on forever and she’d not protest. Though she was anxious for tomorrow too: the sooner it came, the sooner Megumi could perform and everyone’s doubts would come to an end. One way or another.