The New Year vacation with my family went… well enough, I guess.
I'd go as far as to call it a well deserved break after grinding through school and the impossible challenges of the industry.
I've just turned 18, but adult life hit me early with that stupid exhaustion adults loved to complain about.
It was real.
As real as my exhaustion with life even before I turned into an adult.
As for the trip, a part of me feels like maybe I've let my guard down around Kaede too much.
Maybe because I genuinely forgot how cute she is when she just exists around me.
Come to think of it, I haven't felt the same resentment for her that I used to…
Ok. Stop.
She was just a kid when she said those shitty things. Yeah, but what's to say she won't do the same now.
I forced my thoughts elsewhere.
I can give Kaede the benefit of the doubt, but Mom is a different story altogether.
No point dwelling on that, though.
For now, it's still winter vacation. What's left of it, anyway.
So I was just laying on the couch, while the TV I just bought after the tour was playing a random American rap playlist on YouTube.
Thinking about whatever am I supposed to do with the crap I'm dealing with.
Cause ever since I deleted our messages, Kurumi's been trying to reach me, lowkey. 6 missed calls, +20 unread texts.
It was enough to see the messages from the notification to know what they're saying.
No need to actually open the conversation.
I remember the beginning. It was ice and fire, like Jon Snow and Daenerys but written right. A tenderness I've never known from a girl. Sex. Coke.
Passion, burning bright. Now it's all mind games and misunderstandings.
Where the fuck did that go?
She was quiet today.
But it somehow felt like the calm before the storm.
And, suddenly, my phone buzzed.
I didn't expect it to be her.
Suzuki Aika.
Suzuki: Are you home? I… need help with something. It's stupid. But I don't know who else to ask.
I stared at the screen for one second.
I blinked.
Of all people.
I typed back slowly.
Me:What's wrong?
A few seconds passed.
Suzuki: The ceiling light in my living room died. I bought a new one but I can't reach it. And I tried standing on a chair but it wobbled and I almost died.
I snorted.
Yeah, that sounded like her.
Me: I'll come over.
She sent back a relieved little "thank you" sticker she probably hated using.
I grabbed my jacket and headed out.
Suzuki's apartment was the same as always — clean, quiet, and somehow colder than it should've been.
She opened the door wearing an oversized hoodie, hair tied up messily, looking more like a normal girl than the idol half the country worshipped.
"Sorry for calling you," she said, stepping aside. "I know you're busy."
"I'm not," I said with a shrug. "Show me"
She pointed toward the living room.
The ceiling light was hanging half‑detached, one screw loose, the other barely holding on. The replacement fixture sat on the table beside a screwdriver and a manual she clearly gave up on.
I sighed.
"Yeah. You definitely almost died."
She puffed her cheeks.
"I didn't!"
"You did."
"I didn't!"
I ignored her and dragged the chair over, testing it with my foot. It wobbled exactly like she said.
"Jesus. You were gonna break your neck."
She crossed her arms, cheeks pink.
"I didn't know it was unstable…"
I grabbed the sturdier dining chair instead, climbed up, and started unscrewing the old fixture. Suzuki stood nearby, watching like I was performing surgery.
"You're really good at this," she said quietly.
"It's just a light."
"Still."
I replaced the fixture, tightened the screws, and flipped the switch.
The room lit up instantly.
Suzuki's face softened.
"…Thank you."
I stepped down, brushing dust off my hands.
"You're welcome."
She hesitated.
Then:
"I really didn't know who else to call."
I looked at her.
She wasn't flustered.
She was just… honest.
I shrugged lightly.
"It's fine."
She nodded, then glanced away, fiddling with her sleeve.
"Um… do you want tea? Or coffee? As thanks?"
"Sure," I said, seeing no reason to refuse. "A coffee would be nice."
I took a spot on the sofa and, a few moments later, she set a cup of coffee on the small table beside it.
Then, she brought over a small cup of tea for herself and sat down next to me.
"Oh, by the way…"
She looked at me.
"What?"
"Your performance. At the festival."
Okay, that was unexpected.
"What about it?"
"It was good."
I blinked.
"Thanks," I said.
She narrowed her eyes slightly, still staring at me.
"How did you even arrange that?" she asked suspiciously. "If I even tried to perform at school, my label would send me a hundred-page document explaining why I'm absolutely not allowed to."
Yeah. That checks out.
"I bribed the school. Even made them sign a non-disclosure agreement," I replied plainly.
Suzuki chuckled.
"You know what? I'm not even surprised." She took a sip of her tea. "I just don't understand why you'd spend that much money on something like this."
I shrugged.
"Guess I wanted y'all to see me live," I said with a sigh.
Suzuki stared at me for a few seconds.
"...That's it?"
"What do you mean, that's it?"
"You spent all that money just because you wanted your classmates to see you perform?"
"Pretty much."
She shook her head.
"You're seriously weird."
"I've heard that before."
"I mean it. Who spends that money just to perform at their school? The school should pay me for performing there."
"I did."
"Obviously."
She took another sip of her tea, still looking at me.
"…You know, you were pretty good."
"Pretty good?"
"Don't push it."
"I was expecting at least an 'amazing.'"
"You're already annoying enough without inflating your ego."
I chuckled.
She looked down at her cup for a moment.
"…Although…"
"Although what?"
She hesitated.
"Nothing."
I raised an eyebrow.
"You're bad at hiding when you're about to say something."
"I am not."
"You are."
She clicked her tongue.
"Whatever."
A few seconds passed.
Then she reached for her phone.
"Actually…"
She unlocked it.
"There was something else I wanted to show you."
I frowned.
"What?"
She turned the screen toward me.
At first, I didn't understand what I was looking at.
It was a video.
A concert.
My concert.
I stared at the screen.
"…What the fuck?"
Suzuki's expression immediately became defensive.
"Don't."
I looked at her.
"Is that one of my shows?"
She sighed.
"…Yeah."
"You were there?"
"…Maybe."
"Maybe?"
She rolled her eyes.
"Fine. Yes. I was there."
I stared at her for another second.
"Why?"
She looked away.
"I was curious, okay?"
"Curious enough to sneak into a Forsaken concert?"
"I didn't sneak in."
"You're literally wearing a hoodie and a mask."
"That doesn't mean I snuck in."
"It kind of does."
She clicked her tongue again.
"Just watch the video."
I stared at the screen.
I remembered this.
Tokyo. Different venue, but my concert was scheduled hours before SIX STAR's.
And the crowd was going fucking nuts.
"Ai-chan diss!"
I remembered laughing when they started chanting it.
Then the video showed Suzuki.
She visibly frowned.
"Shiba-kun, if you do this, our friendship is—"
My voice from the stage interrupted her.
"No Ai-chan diss, folks. We made up, deal with it."
The Suzuki on the screen immediately smiled and made a little heart with her fingers.
I slowly looked at the Suzuki sitting next to me.
She was already looking away.
"...You were really there."
"I told you I was."
"You were in the crowd."
"Yes."
"At my show."
"Yes, Shiba-kun."
"In disguise."
"We established that."
"And you filmed yourself."
She clicked her tongue.
"Are you going to keep repeating everything?"
"I'm just trying to process this."
"It's not that serious."
I looked back at the screen.
There was Suzuki, smiling like an idiot at the stage.
"You look pretty happy here."
Her face immediately turned red.
"Shut up."
A pause.
"I did it because you also went to SIX STAR's show with Kaede-chan," she said, scoffing.
Yeah. Guess we're even now.
"Well, anyway. Thanks for coming."
"Don't mention it."
I leaned back into the sofa, taking another sip of my coffee.
A few seconds passed.
"So, what are SIX STAR's next plans?"
Suzuki stared at me.
"Our schedule is literally on our website."
I frowned.
"I'm not a fan."
She clicked her tongue.
"Then why are you asking?"
To get information. Of course, I wisely kept that to myself.
"Just curious."
"Sure."
She gave me an annoyed look before reaching for her phone.
"We've got a tour coming up. A few cities around Japan, then some bigger shows later on."
"Sounds busy."
"It is."
She scrolled through her phone for a second before setting it down.
"And apparently there are more rumors about Kurumi going solo."
I raised an eyebrow.
"Again?"
Kurumi wanted to go solo every time she and Suzuki as much as bumped shoulders in the dressing room.
Suzuki sighed.
"Yeah. Again."
She leaned back, crossing her arms.
"The rumors aren't exactly helping things. She's been… difficult lately."
Yeah. I've noticed.
"Difficult how?"
Suzuki's frown deepened.
"Just tensions within the group. Nothing I can really talk about."
"Fair enough."
She looked at me for a moment.
"But if you see some article saying Kurumi is leaving SIX STAR tomorrow, don't believe everything you read."
"So she's not?"
"I didn't say that."
"Right."
She clicked her tongue again.
"I'm just saying there's a difference between rumors and an actual announcement."
I nodded, taking another sip.
"Got it."
Suzuki narrowed her eyes.
"You're surprisingly interested in this for someone who's not a fan."
I shrugged.
"I'm interested in the music industry."
"That's a convenient excuse."
"It's the truth."
She rolled her eyes.
"Whatever, rapper boy."
Suzuki knew what Kurumi called me. Interesting.
I smirked.
Two can play this game.
"Center-chan."
"Don't call me that."
"Okay, Center-chan."
She glared at me.
I took another sip of coffee, trying not to laugh.
Yeah.
Some things really don't change.
"Okay, enough," she said, eyeing me. "Seriously. What the hell is going on with you and Kurumi?"
I raised an eyebrow.
"And what exactly are you two?"
I stared at her for a second.
Okay.
That was blunt.
"Ugh. It's complicated."
Suzuki shot me an incredulous look, but before I could say more, a loud bang echoed.
And it wasn't from her door.
It came from mine.
"Takumi!"
Kurumi's voice.
"Come out already, rapper boy!"
Another bang.
"I know you're in there~"
I sighed.
"Come out before I kick this damn door down!"
For all I knew, she wasn't kidding.
Suzuki blinked, then murmured under her breath, like she was trying very hard not to yell.
"What the hell? Shiba-kun, why is she here?!"
"I gotta go," I said, already getting up. "Sorry about this."
She sighed.
"We're talking after you're done with her."
I nodded and headed for the door.
Kurumi raised an eyebrow when she saw me.
"Oh? You weren't even home. Were you hiding from me, Takumi?~"
"I wasn't."
She didn't look convinced, raising an eyebrow as if she found the situation funny.
"I heard a girl's voice. Were you with someone else? Was I disturbing you?~"
"Kurumi."
She ignored me and knocked on the door again.
"Hey~ Are you Takumi's girlfriend?"
I froze.
Kurumi smiled.
"Because I was about to say, I'm Takumi's girlfriend. And if you two did anything while I wasn't around, that's technically cheati—"
The door suddenly opened.
"Will you shut the hell up, Kurumi?"
Suzuki glared at her.
"You're disturbing the neighbors. Do you seriously have to make such a damn scene?"
Kurumi's face fell.
She glanced between me and Suzuki before her eyes settled on me.
"Of course it's Aika…"
Her voice was suddenly colder.
"You always acted like you hated this bitch, and now you're trying to cheat on me with her?"
I groaned and an exasperated "Women" growl escaped my lips.
The two girls glared at me.
Great.
The most anticipated confrontation in Matsumoto is unfolding.
Stay tuned.