Fate

by Kasa_tricks

Summary:

Yuki is a very popular idol inside the entertainment industry, although she hides a second life of hers. She is the co-owner of OWN, a popular anonymous music group made up of two people.
One day, she came across an Untitled song with her work partner Tenma, which would change their lives forever.

Dive into this work of self-discovery and lies about Tenma Tsukasa and Asahina Mafuyu!

Notes:

Hey! It's been a month since I last posted over here, and I decided to create a new story!
Love you guys <3

Chapter 1: The entertainment world; Secrets

The entertainment world.

A world full of talented idols whose only purpose is to entertain their fans and give them a reason to close off reality.
A world full of influencers whose only purpose is to change people’s lives for the better.

A world full of street artists whose only purpose is to rekindle their fans’ flames with their noisy music.
A world full of Global entertainers.

Doesn’t it sound swell? The entertainment industry surely sounds wonderful indeed!

Even so…
Not every path is full of pretty flowers. Even the happiest people out there keep the deepest secrets known to mankind!

 

… Okay, that was an exaggeration.
What is not an exaggeration is the story that I’m here to tell you. A story about a beautiful purple-haired idol, who hides a quite interesting secret.

---

“Mommy, what’s that?” A little kid whispered to his mother, a bit taken aback by the huge crowd surrounding this large building with hundreds of floors. The mother looked to where his little kid pointed his finger, chuckling in amazement at his little blessing’s curiosity. She turned her head around and went to pick the little boy up.

“Hmmm… There is surely such a crowd…” The mother wondered to herself out loud, as the child nodded while hugging his mother’s neck. The mother went to pat her little boy’s head, bringing him a sense of familiarity and comfort in the midst of chaos.
“The building says Future entertainment…”

Just as the mother finished reading the huge letters on top of the building, her child squeaked in delight, catching his mother by surprise.

“No way! Mommy, I know this place!!” The little boy guffawed at his big observation, melting his mother’s heart. She couldn’t help but to match his levels of energy, further questioning her child’s knowledge.
“Oh?,” The mother whispered out, “Why do you know this place?”
The kid looked at his mother in the eyes with this sweet smile, preparing to give a monologue about his likes.
“Because Yuki is an idol in this company, you silly!”

Bubbly laughter was heard from the kid as his mother pinched her nose in defeat, being called silly by a four year old was definitely her most humble moment of her life.
Just then, the kid and the mother perceived screams and whistles coming from the big crowd surrounding Future entertainment, followed by chants of a familiar name. Without thinking twice, both of them were drawn by the crowd and secured a safe space with a clear view, further understanding the huge hype around this specific time and space.

A beautiful, purple-haired girl was about to walk out the building. She was talking with a tall, buff guy while putting things inside her purse. Her movements were graceful and elegant, completely encaptivating the audience. Just as the mother was losing track of time, the girl finally left the building. She got a bit startled by the people there, stepping back with a frown, before letting out the sweetest laugh one could imagine. No, it was impossible for a human being to sound this sweet. The girl’s eyes were this cerulean, amethyst mixture coated with a glittery sparkle one can’t humanly contain in their own eyes. Her figure was slim, holding an hourglass shape decorated by a simple tracksuit. The way that this girl could make a simple tracksuit look fabulous and elegant could not seize to amaze the mother in the crowd.

Talking about the crowd, they weren’t falling out either. The level of enthusiasm at this girl’s appearance was no joke; it felt like a birthday party full of kids and cake! Ages were very varied in the crowd, some of them were even in their sixties. Even so, the mother couldn’t help but to keep paying attention to the girl, and her graceful moves, before she finally shared a word.

“Ah, I’ve been startled by my own fans! How are you feeling today?”
The purple-haired girl sang out, with such angelic and melodic voice that one could confuse it as a lullaby. The crowd went crazy, screaming nonsense while also giggling and kicking their feets like little kids. The mother’s kid was no exception either; he kept giggling under his breath while whispering “Yuki”. Ah, that must be her name then! The mother looked at Yuki again, only to realize that she had already started to walk towards a black car. A pout was evident on everyone’s faces, something the purple-haired girl seemed like she couldn’t stand.
Before entering the car, Yuki looked back one last time with a sweet yet elegant smile.

“You guys, don’t be sad because I’m leaving! Be happy that you got the chance to meet me!”

Such simple words impacted the crowd wonderfully, as Yuki entered the car with whistles and chants following her name.
Slowly, the crowd dissipated away, leaving the child and the mother dumbfounded at the encounter. Even though the mother met this Yuki girl just today, the feeling blooming inside her chest was… Just like when she met her husband.
“Mommy, isn’t she amazing?” The kid breathed out, enjoying himself with the sweet memory Yuki just left on him. The mother couldn’t do more than just nod and agree to his child’s remark.
Yuki is surely amazing.

---

 

A black car drove away as Yuki found herself in front of her dear home. Ah, her home… She hesitated before ringing the doorbell.

After a few seconds, she was met with none other than her mother herself! A cheeky smile grew on her face with her mother’s greetings.
“Welcome home, Mafuyu! How was practice today?”

Mafuyu let herself in, taking off her shoes and leaving them in her little designated space.

“It was good, mother!” She said, as she made her way up to her room. It seemed as if she was in a hurry, but the steps were making it harder for her to arrive in time. Her mother observed from downstairs how her daughter had a hard time walking up the stairs, making a mental note to remind Mafuyu of not overdoing oneself at work.
Finally, she took her final step and arrived at her room. Mafuyu spun the door handle around, quickly closing it behind her.
She was now safe in her room.

Suddenly, her expression died out. Her eyes didn’t hold that spark anymore, her figure was slouched over her shoulders and her tracksuit seemed like a dollar-store second-hand outfit. Mafuyu seemed like a normal person now.
Not… Not even normal. 

But there was no time for whimpers, she thought. Mafuyu walked up to her desk, pulling her cushioned chair towards her. Ah, the cushion was already starting to disintegrate (as bad as it sounds). To Mafuyu’s disgrace, she couldn’t tell what was comforting and what wasn’t, so she’ll just let this slide until her mother sneaks inside her room again.
The dim light was making it hard to check for Mafuyu’s laptop on top of the desk, so she had to walk to her bedside table. She reached for the little button, pressing it, only to be pressed again. The light was too strong to bear, so Mafuyu walked back to her chair defeated.

This all might seem like a delusion of some sorts, but it is not. Want to know the truth about Yuki? 

 

Yuki is depressed.

Why, you may ask? She doesn’t even know. But Mafuyu doesn’t have time for psychology, she had an intriguing job to fulfill this afternoon.

---

 

Loading…

Successfully entered the call.

 

< Good afternoon.>

 

A familiar voice was heard from the other line, reminding Mafuyu of her little shared secret.

 

<Hello. How are you?>

 

Mafuyu responded, not really paying attention to what the other one had to say. She never did, he was not the priority in this project. After some seconds, the boy replied.

 

<... The usual.>

 

Mafuyu didn’t even care to wonder what was this boy’s usual way of feeling, she was too preoccupied opening her document.

<I see… I have the first lyrics draft ready.>

 

Mafuyu shared a document through the chatroom, getting left on read in an instant. If they weren’t on a call, Mafuyu would have called him off in a second.
The boy hummed to himself, thinking about what to say.

<... This looks good. You finished a week earlier than the deadline, you know?>

 

Mafuyu nodded even though they had their webcams off, but the boy could already guess her answer. Mafuyu heard clicking from the other’s line, shortly after receiving a song.

 

<Is this the demo of the song?>

 

Mafuyu asked, already knowing the answer. To her surprise, she was wrong.

<No, uh… I was browsing through our music playlist, when I found this weird song. I don’t remember making anything called “Untitled”, so I thought maybe you knew something.>

 

Uncertainty was perceived from both ends as Mafuyu stared at the screen. The song Untitled was staring back, almost as if it had its own soul.

 

<Weird…>

 

Mafuyu muttered, fixated on that weird song.

 

<... I checked the OWN public Spotify playlist, but nothing. This song just randomly appeared in the OWN private playlist.>

 

The boy wondered out loud, dropping quiet with doubt. It truly was weird that the Untitled song was not available to the public, but only to both of them, the creators of the music group OWN. Mafuyu thought for a little while before making a simple decision.
A decision that would change their lives forever.

<... Click the song. I’ll click it too.>

 

Before waiting for an answer, Mafuyu was ready to proceed with her plan. She heard agreement on the other end, validating her actions.
It was just an Untitled song, it wouldn’t cause any harm.
As such…

Mafuyu pressed Untitled.

And…

Nothing happened.

 

Nothing except white, shiny particles quickly wrapping Mafuyu’s whole self without explanation. Mafuyu looked around, almost scared, trying to rub off all of those mysterious particles.

 

<W-what is this?>

 

Mafuyu heard from the other end, before… Falling asleep.

---

 

…Yu…

…Fu-yu…

Mafuyu…

 

Mafuyu slowly blinked her eyes open, being found with a grey-ish sky. The sky lacked clouds, it felt… Empty.
Mafuyu grew confused. Where was she? Why was she here? For how long had she been here?
The last thing she remembers is being wrapped by some weird white particles, and…
Mafuyu turned her head around to her left.
The floor was grey, with random chunks of rocks lying around the place. There were weird, black stage pillars extending into the sky without ending. The place itself didn’t look like it had an ending. What was this?
This didn’t seem like something a human could do, so it was impossible that Mafuyu was kidnapped. Somehow, this thought sent chills down Mafuyu’s spine.

But she couldn’t lay around here forever.
With great effort, Mafuyu got to her feet.

Now then… Where could she go? She had nowhere to go, nowhere to look…
This place… It calmed her down, somehow.
Mafuyu started walking.
Step, step, step… She was walking through endless chunks of rock and black stage pillars.

 

…

 

She liked this place, somehow. Maybe it was the Untitled song that brought her here? But… But magic doesn’t exist?

“I don’t understand…” Mafuyu muttered to herself.

 

“I’ll tell you then.”

 

Mafuyu jolted from the robotic voice coming from behind her. Without breaking a sweat, she looked behind, ready to defend herself if needed. Instead, she was met with a… Weird-looking Miku? Confusion lowered Mafuyu’s defenses, something not taken advantage of by this grey Miku. She had two ponytails, one taller than the other. Her dress was messed up and dirty, burnt by the ends. She had two socks, one long and black and the other one white and short. Her eyes were of different colors, one pink and the other one blue. At first sight, you could hardly guess she was Miku.

 

“What… Is this place?” Mafuyu questioned, feeling weirdly attracted to this Miku girl. Miku almost responded immediately, as if she had planned this answer for a long time.

“This is a SEKAI. A SEKAI is a place born from your feelings. You clicked the song Untitled, right?”

Ah, so it was that all along. Mafuyu nodded.

 

Wait, but then that means…

 

“... Someone clicked untitled too.”

Miku nodded in response. Mafuyu waited for a few seconds, but she was found with no answer. Why couldn’t she be ambiguous with this Miku?

“... What happened to him?”

Mafuyu looked around for a few seconds, before looking back at Miku and finding out she had gotten way closer than before. She stepped back, but Miku took another step forward. Mafuyu was about to turn away, before Miku stretched out her hand with a weird-looking mask. Mafuyu frowned at Miku, before carefully grabbing the mask from her hands.

“You want to see him, don’t you?”

Mafuyu looked at Miku with an expressionless face, before answering.
“I’m indifferent towards him.”

“That’s a shame… Put on the mask, I know you both have not seen each other’s faces.”

Mafuyu agreed with Miku’s reasoning, so she did as told. The mask had openings for both her eyes, nose and mouth, so it almost felt as if she didn’t have anything on. Just after that, Mafuyu heard someone approaching from behind. Miku peeked, growing a faint smile at the sight.
“Welcome, Tsukasa. ”

Mafuyu looked behind her.

And she found him.

 

It was a tall boy, blonde hairs and street-like clothing. He was wearing a similar mask, but with masculine features. The boy then spoke up.

 

“Wait, you are Hatsune Miku? Did I seriously get kidnapped by some non-existent robot?”

 

That voice… It’s Tenma. The other person who owns OWN, Mafuyu’s work partner. Miku got offended by Tenma’s comment, being quick to shut him up.

“I didn’t not kidnap you, and I exist.”

Somehow, Miku seemed a bit more lively and human now that Tenma was present. How could this be possible? No, how was this all possible? Mafuyu was just expected to accept she just entered another realm made up of her feelings?

“I don’t understand…” Mafuyu muttered to herself yet again, revealing her voice to Tenma.

“Ah, you are Yuki then… Nice to meet you.”

“Nice… To meet you too.”

They both politely nodded before turning to Miku yet again, expecting some kind of explanation. This time, Mafuyu didn’t need to get more bold to get a couple words from this girl.

 

“This is your SEKAI. This world was made from both of your feelings, and by clicking Untitled, you will enter your world. I am Miku, born from your feelings.”

 

Mafuyu just stared at Miku, seemingly for no apparent reason. Tenma was quicker to react, getting way closer to Miku.

“What do you mean our feelings? Does Yuki share the same feelings as I do?” Tsukasa questioned, completely unaware of the romantic undertone it could have brought in the situation. Whatever, Mafuyu couldn’t care less. She wanted to go back to her room again.

“How can I get back to where I was?” Mafuyu cut off Miku just when she was about to speak.

“... I can tell you, but hear me out.” Miku said out clearly.

“No.” Mafuyu roughly responded. Miku and Tenma were left dumbfounded at the response Mafuyu gave.

“... No? That’s it?” Tenma started speaking, catching Mafuyu’s attention. He turned completely to face Mafuyu this time. Miku stepped forward to be by Tenma’s side.

“You don’t even wanna know why this place exists? You just… Want to leave and act as if it never existed?” Tsukasa complained, taking Miku’s side for no apparent reason. Mafuyu wasn’t really in the mood of fighting, but if she couldn’t get out of this place…

“... Why are you taking the side of a robot you just met?” Mafuyu coldly asked, taking aback Tenma.

“Well, because… Uh…”

For once, Tenma wasn’t able to give a proper answer to Mafuyu, which grew her ego a bit. Her non-existent ego, by the way.
Instead, Miku was the one who responded.

“I spoke with Tsukasa for some time before you came. I know more things than you do.”

Was that… Supposed to be a threat? Was Mafuyu supposed to feel bad for not knowing her work partner’s personal life?

“Good for you. How can I leave?” Mafuyu yet again striked with the same question, leaving Tenma and Miku dumbfounded yet again.

“How can you… Not care at all?” Tenma spoke up. Mafuyu looked at him dead in the eyes.

His eyes were a honey-like yellow, with a fading red bottom, just like the tips of his hair. If this hair wasn’t dyed, this boy would surely not be japanese. But Mafuyu couldn’t care less.

“Because I don’t. I don’t have to explain anything to you.” 

Miku was left speechless, so Tenma took her place instead and tried talking it out with Mafuyu.

“But I want to know why!”

“Okay.”

“... So…?”

“Just because you want something doesn’t mean you’re going to get it.”

“Come on, it’s a simple question! Why don’t you care about anything in the slightest?”

“Because I just don’t.”

Tenma sighed out in defeat, turning to look at Miku. Instead of meeting her gaze, she found her… Frowning at Mafuyu.
“Mafuyu,” she started, “don’t lie to yourself.”

 

…

 

What?

 

Mafuyu was shaken to the core.

 

“I’m not lying…?” Mafuyu whispered out, earning Tenma’s and Miku’s attention completely. Suddenly, she cared about something.

…
The silence was loud. So loud, Mafuyu wanted to run away.

Why? She didn’t have anything to hide. She was not lying, she really didn’t care about what they thought of her. She really didn’t care about people in general.

…

“... Miku, let her leave.”

Mafuyu jolted from the sudden comment coming from Tenma. Why did he suddenly side with her? This boy was really weird…

But Mafuyu was also weird, so it checks out. 

Miku looked at Mafuyu with a saddened face, refusing to speak. Realizing this, Tenma became a bit more serious with this matter.

“Miku, I know we spoke for three hours, but she has hardly been awake for more than five minutes. Besides, you are just assuming stuff about her at this point. Don’t overthink what she said, she does not mean it literally.”

Why was… Why was Tenma taking her side? Why was he defending her? It’s not his problem.

“It’s not your problem.” Mafuyu coldly responded, trying to get a negative reaction from Tsukasa.

“... Mafuyu… I can help you, I was born from your feelings.” Miku remarked, putting a hand on her heart. This annoyed Mafuyu even more, making her crave leaving this weird place.

“Yeah sure, you’re helping me so much by kidnapping me in some digital realm and questioning my existence. Let me leave.”

Tenma coughed out a small laugh, turning around to hide his smirking face. Mafuyu paid no mind, as her main focus was leaving that place. Miku looked at the floor, before slouching her shoulders.

“Fine… The song Untitled is in your phone, playing. But before you press it…”

Mafuyu was already about to press pause on the song, yet she gave Miku one last chance to explain herself. 

 

“I… Want to help you, Mafuyu. I also want to help you, Tsukasa. I want to help you both.” Miku rubbed her left arm, ready to walk off the scene.

Wait… Why was Tenma in this place? Wasn’t this born from Mafuyu’s feelings?

Before Miku walked off, Mafuyu called for her one last time.

“Wait, Miku.” Miku turned around, her saddened gaze meeting Mafuyu’s concerned eyes.

“Why is Tenma in my SEKAI?” Mafuyu asked.

“That’s what I tried to say earlier!” Tenma reprimanded, earning a nasty look from Mafuyu. Miku fully turned around, now with a softer expression.

 

 

“... You both want to disappear more than anyone else, don’t you?”

Chapter 2: Maybe Miku was right

Notes:

I'm trying my hardest to not rush this fic unlike every single one I've written in the past, wish me luck

“... You both want to disappear more than anyone else, don’t you?”

 

Those words stabbed Mafuyu’s heart like a sharp blade. Such a bold, simple accusation thrown at her… She was an idol, she should be able to easily avoid this subject or downright lie to this clown.

Yet… She found herself.

Quiet.

Mafuyu was not able to respond.

She turned to her side, getting a glimpse at Tenma. His expression was unimpressed, as if he had expected this subject to bloom. How come he wasn’t at least a bit surprised at this?
Tenma shrugged his shoulders, as if he heard Mafuyu’s mind.

“I spoke with Miku before you woke up, I knew what she was up to.”

Tenma took a deep breath before putting his hands inside his baggy street-like jacket. He didn’t even bother looking at Miku anymore, all interest that could be perceived from him in the past was demolished.

“... She knows who I am. She knows who you are. Even if we try pretending as if we didn’t just talk with her, she remembers.”

Mafuyu was growing annoyed at this guy’s attitude. Who does he think he is? He’s just been accused of wanting to disappear, and he’s acting all nonchalant about the subject? Mafuyu couldn’t stand it, she needed to speak up. Miku stayed there, quiet, observing how Tenma turned around and started to slowly walk away.
Mafuyu’s chest was starting to become tight. This whole place felt like a fever dream, and she was expected to just accept it with ease? Just when she was accused of wanting to disappear?

And where does Tenma think he is going?

“You can’t just leave when accused of wanting to disappear, you know?” Mafuyu breathed out, making Tenma stop dead in his tracks. This action made Mafuyu tense up, but she couldn’t back off now. Her pride was at stake.
Tenma moved his head both sides, cracking the bones in his neck, before turning his head around to met Mafuyu’s eyes.

His eyes seemed unimpressed.

“Sure, what else do you want me to do?” Even with the irony hiding in Tenma’s voice, his honest curiosity was able to peek through. Mafuyu opened her mouth to say something, hesitating.

“I mean, deny it?” 

Those words easily rolled out of Mafuyu’s mouth, gaining a judgemental look from Tenma. For some reason, she suddenly cared about what Tenma had to say. Maybe… He wasn’t just a random Co-worker…?

At least she captivated Tenma’s attention, as the boy completely turned around, still with his hands inside his pockets.

“Deny it?” Tenma repeated Mafuyu’s words, “But it’s going to be pointless. Besides… Our music blows my cover off.”

Our music, those two words resonated inside Mafuyu’s mind.
It’s true, OWN’s music is not the happiest of them all, but…

Before Mafuyu could think about what to say, Miku stepped in the mess she caused.

“Guys,” Miku started, “don’t fight over this.”

Miku immediately gained the nastiest looks a human being can convey, yet she kept going. 

“I’m not your enemy, It’s my goal to help…!” Miku squeaked out in the end, pressured by their heavy gazes. This time, Mafuyu was the one to snap back.

“Then give up.”

---

 

“Then give up.”

 

It has been a few days since that weird Untitled song encounter. Mafuyu would have certainly qualified the memory as a weird dream, if it wasn’t for Tenma’s confirmation. That song has been the topic of conversation for some minutes now, while Mafuyu was tweaking her second lyric draft.

 

<But, I never heard of this SEKAI thing online…>

 

Tenma remarked with uncertainty, sighing out in defeat. Truth to be told, this was the first real conversation Mafuyu and Tenma had ever since they met each other. It was… Weird for Mafuyu, but she didn’t care much.

 

<Me neither, but instead of searching for explanations, we should accept the facts.>

 

<The fact that a russian spy probably hacked our phones?>

 

Mafuyu was definitely caught off guard by that comment, almost letting out a cheeky chuckle. Now was not the time to think about what person hacked who.

 

<... Miku didn’t look russian, at least.>

 

Mafuyu commented before definitely closing off the lyrics tab in her browser. She was now back to the call tab, with Tenma. His profile picture was a simple star emoji, nothing special. Mafuyu’s was a snowflake, nothing special either. Two basic people, hiding a musical secret.

The call was met with silence from both ends, Tenma and Mafuyu were both thinking about how to proceed. While it’s true that they could just ignore this weird encounter, it wouldn’t be fair to ignore the calm feeling this place brought to at least Mafuyu.

 

<... Can I ask you something?>

 

Mafuyu perked up at the sudden question from Tenma. She nodded (as always, unaware of the missing webcam), which the silence gave Tenma her response.

 

<Okay, so… What made you want to start OWN?>

 

Mafuyu flinched from the unexpected comment. Really, why would he want to know? There was nothing positive nor negative he could get by knowing this information, it was completely unnecessary.

 

<With all due respect, why would you want to know?>

 

Tenma stayed quiet for a few seconds, probably making up some lame excuse. In Mafuyu’s mind, Tenma was nothing more than a helper in her goal of OWN.

 

<... I guess I just… Want to know you a bit more, if that’s fine by you?>

 

Tenma muttered, hesitant about his answer. For the second time in her life, Mafuyu was actually paying attention to what this guy had to offer. It wouldn’t hurt to open up about her motives, would it?

 

<I wanted to be saved.>

 

<Saved?>

 

<Yes, I…>

 

Mafuyu trailed off. What did she search for in OWN specifically? What was her motives to start this OWN project? Questions kept flooding Mafuyu’s mind, not letting her think properly. Was this the reason she’s never answered this question? Because she doesn’t know?

 

<I… Don’t know.>

 

Tenma was a bit taken aback by this sudden hesitation coming from Mafuyu. Surely she didn’t just say she wanted to be saved and proceed to not elaborate, right?

…

After a few seconds of silence, Tenma wanted to slap himself in the face.

 

<Ah, I see… It’s fine to not have things figured out at the moment. Even so… Are you enjoying being in OWN?>

 

Mafuyu looked at Tenma’s profile picture as she carefully thought of her answer. She has never been the type to easily dissect her emotions, so this will be hard.
Tenma was rhythmically tapping his table, patiently waiting for Yuki’s answer. He couldn’t hide that he was looking forward to this opportunity to know his work partner a bit more than just a nickname…

… Wait.

 

Mafuyu.

 

That Miku girl… She referred to Yuki as Mafuyu. Was Mafuyu her real name? Tenma made a mental note to bring it up later. Right now, his priority was hearing Yuki’s answer.

 

<...Yes. I look forward to working on OWN everyday.>

 

Tenma felt a wave of relief wash over him as Yuki remarked her feelings towards OWN. He couldn’t deny that OWN had started to grow inside of him, even though they’ve just been six months working on this project. While Tenma was reminiscing on the start of OWN, Mafuyu pulled him out of his train of thought with her own question.

 

<What about you? What made you join me in OWN?>

 

<Me? Ah…>

 

Tenma thought for some moments, before smirking to himself.

 

<... Being popular in the streets really takes a toll on you, ya know?>

 

Tenma started chuckling to himself, completely unaware of Yuki’s intense gaze hyperfixated on her side of the screen. Mafuyu was suddenly curious about this change of airs coming from Tenma. Popular on the streets?

 

<You’re a street artist?>

 

<Indeed! You’ve probably heard of me->

 

<No.>

 

<... Let me finish!>

 

Mafuyu grew a faint smile before resting her back on the back of her chair in success.

 

<As I was saying, I’m a very known street artist in Shibuya. I’m in a mixed gender group of four, and we make… Street-like songs.>

 

Tenma was definitely expecting something more than a hum coming from Yuki, but he could work with that reaction. He leaned forward, ready to keep blabbing about himself.

 

<Wanna know what my group’s name is?>

 

<Sure.>

 

Tenma cleared his throat before making this big announcement of his, Mafuyu unaware of all of this mental show this guy was putting on just to brag about himself. Instead, she was more focused on not waking up her mother with her squeaky chair. It would be a pain to explain why she was on a call at 1 in the morning with some Nightcord guy…

 

<So! My group is… Wondershow.>

 

Wondershow, wondershow… Mafuyu has definitely heard that name in the entertainment industry.

 

<I’m familiar with the name.>

 

<Of course you are! We are very popular indeed!>

 

Tenma started talking about his group and origins, changing his tone into a much more arrogant one. Meanwhile, Mafuyu looked up the name “Wondershow”.

She started scrolling down, observing the pictures of the members. They all had street-like clothes, with details matching their hair colors. It wasn’t long enough until Mafuyu saw a familiar blondie.
Tsukasa, The leader of Wondershow!

Mafuyu raised her eyebrows at the picture. This was supposed to be him…

 

<-And we then made up with Rui, and->

 

<I see a blonde boy as the leader of Wondershow, is that you?>

 

<Yep!>

Mafuyu hummed to herself, still looking at that picture of Tenma. He had a hand up his chest in a fist, keeping the other one hidden inside his skinny jeans. He wore a proud look in his face, one look that somehow captivated Mafuyu. At first glance, this dude seemed like a totally mentally stable guy, and to think that he was part of OWN…

<... You’re quiet, is something the matter?>

 

Since when did it matter that Mafuyu was quiet, she wondered? She didn’t mind answering though. Mafuyu dragged the Wondershow tab to her call tab, placing it next to Tenma’s profile picture. Now the icon made a bit more sense, this boy seemed very arrogant when it came to this street life. Mafuyu thought about what to say for a moment, before deciding on something simple.

 

<I was wondering, are you under any company?>

 

The question was a bit too specific for someone that doesn’t know about the entertainment industry, something that Tenma didn’t ignore.

 

<Ah, you know your ways hmm?>

 

Mafuyu’s chest got tighter at the memory of her job, frowning instead of answering. This was far different from Tenma’s reaction when confronted about his job. At least Tenma dropped the question this time…

 

<But yeah, I am under Phoenix entertainment. I’m planning on signing with another company that allows the four of us to debut with our Wondershow label though…>

 

This question thankfully helped Mafuyu focus on what was happening instead of on her… It doesn’t matter. It’s not usual to hear about a whole group that wants to sign with another company while fighting to keep their original name and members, Phoenix entertainment probably has some heavy internal conflict to be adressed if so. Mafuyu couldn’t help herself but to show interest about this sudden revelation.

 

<Is that so? What made you decide on this risky decision? You know how quitting culture in Japan is, are you sure?>

 

Tenma was a bit surprised at Yuki’s knowledge in this field. She must be actively working, he thought. Well, it wouldn’t hurt to take a piece of advice from someone active in this field…

 

<Wow, you really know your ways… But yeah, I’m… Not very comfortable in Phoenix entertainment.>

 

<Why is that? You’re a guy, the mistreatment can’t be that bad, is it?>

 

<It’s… The company keeps 90% of our album sales, and 85% of our concert sales. Now, take that 10% from album sales, and divide it by four. It’s pretty chill when we have a good month, but if it’s a bad one…>

 

<I understand what you’re referring to. Have you tried talking it out with your company? It’s even better to threaten them with another company with much more acceptable working conditions and payment than to suddenly leave with no trace behind. This will give you a really bad name inside the industry, thus blocking your future.>

 

<Damn, you’re right… How do you know about all of this?>

 

Ah, what should Mafuyu do? She got a bit carried away by helping someone, now she needs to reveal something about her. Mafuyu took a deep breath, she didn’t need to say much about herself. It was also very probable that Tenma could already guess who she was… It doesn’t matter. Tenma knows her for who she is, not for who she pretends to be.

 

<I’m… Currently under one of the big three.>

 

<WHAT?!>

 

Tenma jumped from his chair, his scream echoing through the call. Mafuyu was so glad she was wearing headphones, her ears didn’t agree though. From the looks of it, it seems like the big three have a really big impact on the smaller artists.

 

<I-Ive been talking to a celebrity this whole time?!>

 

This comment flustered a bit Mafuyu. She wondered why, she wasn’t proud of being known by her idol self…
Mafuyu shook her head. This was just a lighthearted conversation about the entertainment world, nothing else. Just thinking about getting in work mode sent chills down her spine.

 

<... I won’t deny your statement, but I would rather be treated like you treated me before.>

 

<Don’t even question it!>

 

<Retaking the topic, I am aware of the industry’s pros and cons. If money isn’t a very urgent subject, I’d advise you to first make sure to have a clear, specific goal in mind. Is there any company that has caught your interest? Judging from your reaction, I don’t think it would be wrong to assume you aspire to be in one of the big three. Am I wrong?>

 

Tenma took a moment to recollect his thoughts, before deciding on an answer. Meanwhile, Mafuyu kept staring at Tenma’s picture, now with a much more judgemental look. He looked slim and had a nice face, his looks would get him a bit farther than normal in auditions. But if he was planning on the big three, he would need to have talent. And to think that he wanted to pull his three teammates alongside him… No company would like to deal with a legal burden of who keeps the brand name.

 

<I’d like to… Be in Future entertainment.>

 

Mafuyu coughed at the mention of her company. Of all the hundreds of entertainment companies that are out there, he really had to dream about Future entertainment…

 

<...Oh. Why is that?>

 

Tenma was quick to notice the sudden shift in Yuki’s tone, and he couldn’t ignore this fact. His preoccupation with Yuki was masked with his own egotistical ideas.

 

<You sound… Skeptical. Is it such a bad company?>

 

<... I suppose it isn’t. Future entertainment has a very fair pay system, and you’ll probably get far…>

 

<I see! Isn’t it great?>

 

<If you’d like to see it from a successful point of view, then I agree.>

 

<What do you mean by that?>

 

Mafuyu placed her hand under her chin, carefully thinking about how to proceed with her answer. She could open up about her stay in Future ent., or she could pretend…

… But it’s not as if Tenma could get far with information about Mafuyu. If he tried selling it to crazy fans, Mafuyu could strike right back with much more force.

 

<... I’m currently under Future entertainment. While the pay is great, the people inside Future entertainment aren’t the best ones.>

 

<I see… You mean co-workers or staff?>

 

<That depends on your luck. I assume you have a good relationship with your group, as far as to try and get them signed under one of the big three alongside you, so your only worry should be encountering weird staff members here and there. You’re a boy, you shouldn’t have a lot of trouble.>

 

<Why are you emphasizing the fact that I am a boy?>

 

<Because we are in Japan. Do I have to elaborate?>

 

<... Yes.>

 

Mafuyu sighed at the incredulity of Tenma. She understood that it wasn’t his fault because he has never been a girl (as far as we all know), but explaining a harming situation that someone has never been in is no easy task. Mafuyu looked at the clock, marking 1:30 in the morning. She had a fansign at 17:00, she still had time to talk a little bit more and sleep properly.

 

<Women in the entertainment industry are heavily sexualized to captivate older japanese men. We are provided with very short clothes, making our safety pants almost easily visible. With a simple turn, our skirts don’t cover anything. We also have to deal with the occasional staff member hitting on you, and while most of the girls are heavily insecure and like the social leverage, I find it uncomfortable. It’s up to your female co-workers though.>

 

Tenma sighed, the information dump was too obvious yet too nerve-wracking. It made him realize that he did have a chance at succeeding, and that was sending him down a doubtful spiral.

 

<... I think I understand what you’re trying to convey. I have a gig at 2pm today, do you mind if I hop off the call? I promise I’ll give this a thought and tell you afterwards.>

 

<Sure.>

 

Mafuyu was about to leave the call without further exchange, before she was stopped by Tenma’s words.

 

<... Thank you. Have a good night.>

 

Good night… How long has it been since she received those words? Mafuyu shook her head yet again, she didn’t have time to reminisce on her past. It was the first time Tenma and her said their goodbyes before leaving the call, but… Seems like they had something more in common other than a weird sense of emptiness inside.

 

<... You too.>

 

Mafuyu closed the call tab. Before she turned off her computer, she looked at Tenma’s picture one last time.

…

His eyes hold a deeper motive that he isn’t showing.

---

 

“Loveliez, thank you so much for attending this month’s fansign! As the leader of Lovedips, I hope you come back next month!”

Yuki bowed with elegance, followed by her group members. The crowd cheered and chanted all the member’s names.

“Gosh, they really have to get that loud…” Ena bickered, readjusting her short skirt.
“I’d get pretty upset if they didn’t to be honest. I like things this way!” Mizuki responded with a silly grin, waving back at a little kid. She got punched in the stomach by Ena’s elbow, making her laugh in pain. 

“People complimented my hair today…” Whispered Kanade, receiving some tiny claps from Ena and Mizuki.

“Look who decided to speak up!” Mizuki cheered out.

“Yeah, we haven’t heard from you in 30 minutes or so, I don’t understand how you’re so popular If you barely speak!” Ena bickered once more, probably comparing herself to the tiny girl.

The group continued to chat and bicker while the staff picked up everything and helped to guide the lost fans out of the venue.
Mafuyu, on the other hand, was focused on something else. 

SEKAI.

Miku.
Tenma.

It’s been a few days since it all happened, yet yesterday’s conversation with Tenma had made her feel uneasy. She wasn’t able to tell Tenma about Future entertainment’s low tolerance…
It isn’t enough with good looks and talent. You need to have a great and distinguishable personality, while also being careful of not standing out too much and staying professional. Most of the time, you get assigned a personality, so it’s basically to no use. If you are even slightly stubborn, give up on your dream.

But… His eyes… His eyes were piercing. He looked determined, but no one holds that much determination for just a dream. There is something else, another drive that is helping him be this brave.

But what could it be? Mafuyu kept pounding, without realizing the intense gaze coming from her group.

And Miku… That Miku girl. They really abandoned her, didn’t they? Maybe she should tell Tenma to go back and fix everything, even though she doesn’t even exist. But… She knew stuff that Mafuyu didn’t. Maybe she could help her…?

“Yu-ki!” Mizuki harshly grabbed her shoulder and shook her around, putting Yuki’s act on yet again.

“Ah, I spaced out really bad!” Yuki laughed, rubbing her left eye with sleepiness. All of this overthinking had a bad effect on her sleeping schedule, and it was starting to show. She could try to hide her eyebags, but at the end of the day…

“Please sleep more, Yuki.” Kanade sang out while picking up her gifted handbag. Ena nodded with a concerned look.

“I will!” Yuki promised. Promises that she will never keep, but they don’t need to know that.
Maybe her doubts will go away if she goes back to that SEKAI.

---

 

<Go back to the SEKAI?>

 

<Yes.>

 

<But Yuki, you remember last time?>

 

<I do.>

 

<Aren’t you afraid of, I don’t know, Miku revealing stuff you don’t want me to know?>

 

<I think I am as clueless about myself as you are.>

 

<That’s… You don’t need to let yourself down just to reassure me.>

 

<Come on, let’s just enter that SEKAI once more.>

 

Tenma would have complained, if it wasn’t for the sound of particles coming from Yuki’s screen. Seems like she had set in stone a goal and wouldn’t let go of it. Besides, what could Miku possibly know that Yuki didn’t? Tenma couldn’t wrap his head around the subject, but it’s true that it wouldn’t hurt to try…

Once again, there they were, face to face with Miku.

 

“I’ve been waiting for you.”

Notes:

If I confess to my crush before christmas, I will continue all of my discontinued fics until I finish them all.
Please motivate me.
Edit: He's dating a random girl who he only knows from a week ago (I saw that same girl making out w/ her boy bestfriend in the hallways too :p)
Edit 2: I ACCIDENTALLY CONFESSED BEFORE CHRISTMAS FUCK MY LIFE NOW I HAVE TO FULFILL ALL KINDS OF PROMISES BC I NEVER THOUGHT I'D CONFESS GRAAAAAH
so basically, like we just kinda stared at each other and my brain was like "Hmm ways to break the silence", and I remembered I had flowers in my bag (for some reason) and I gave them to him.
and i ran away (Mizu5 referenceeeee)
He kinda really avoided me to death the last day of school, but uh
I did confess (kinda, just gave him the flowers and ran away) so I have to fulfill my promises
FUCK I hate having the balls to promise stuff thinking I will never have to fulfill any shit bc I wasn't planning on FUCKING CONFESSING
I wanna shoot myself so badly, idk if he rejected me or not so I'll see after christmas
Fuck fuck fuckity fuck

Chapter 3: "I've been waiting for you"

Summary:

A bunch of confusion and waiting with some sincere feelings!

Notes:

Hey! It's been a long time.
I've been reading some books, and they suck, so I had even more motivation to write this chapter.
Hope you like it!

“I’ve been waiting for you”.

 

Tenma and Mafuyu were standing right in front of Miku, ten feet apart. The only thing between them was the heavy air surrounding the area, and both their secrets at stake. Mafuyu kept downplaying her nervousness, thinking that in no world would Miku know how she felt. Sure, she was born out of her feelings, but she wasn’t entirely her feelings.
Mafuyu turned her head to take a glimpse at Tenma, which the blonde took as a sign. He stepped forward, not without making sure Mafuyu followed by his side. Mafuyu walked by Tenma’s side but behind.

“Miku…” Tenma started. Truth to be told, both of them had no idea on how to proceed with the situation. Miku certainly didn’t look like something trying to harm them, but… Should they really trust her? Tenma thought for some moments, before being surprisingly interrupted by the robot itself.

“I want to apologize, both of you.”

This took Mafuyu and Tenma by surprise. Even with their faces covered with their masks, confusion was evident on themselves. Miku continued.

“I understand I made you uncomfortable with such a sensible topic,” she took a deep breath, “but I just wanted to help. I was afraid you would not come back to your SEKAI…”

Shortly after saying that, Tenma erupted in innocent giggles. Mafuyu was not in the mood to follow his little game, so she’s just going to stay quiet and see where this is going. Tenma got closer to Miku and patted her head, before turning around to meet Mafuyu’s eyes.

“Ah, perhaps we’ve been a bit too hard on Miku! Don’t you think?”

Mafuyu tried finding some kind of harmful intention on Tenma’s words with his eyes, however she found absolutely nothing more than plain cheerfulness. How could this be? Did he seriously forget that Miku accused both of them of wanting to disappear? This didn’t make sense, Mafuyu couldn’t believe Tenma was this dumb.

Tenma turned around once again to look at Miku. Even with his mask, his hidden smile was noticeable.

“I forgive you!” Tenma sang out, dropping his hand to his side. Miku’s smile turned Mafuyu’s stomach around. This whole situation was out of this world, Mafuyu was starting to think this was all a sick dream of some sorts. Her prolonged quietness alarmed Miku, which she spoke up about.

“Mafuyu… Are you okay?”

Are you okay? Those words rang inside Mafuyu’s ears. The words she feared the most, presented right in front of her. This triggered a fight response from her.

“Okay?” Her mockery was full of irony. Now all attention was focused on her, drowning her in even more self-pity. “How am I supposed to be okay with THIS?!”

Mafuyu’s voice broke at the end of the sentence, resounding in that hole of a place. The tension quickly made its way to the surface, which Miku caught up on. Tenma stayed quiet, silently staring at Mafuyu. Mafuyu didn’t even dare to look at his eyes, she just wanted to… She wanted to…

God, what did she even WANT to do?

Miku frowned, stretching out her hand towards Mafuyu.

“Mafuyu… What’s wrong?” Miku pouted, not completely aware of Mafuyu’s confusion. Rather, she might be sharing the same confusion. This complicated things even more.
Just before doing something she might regret later, Mafuyu stopped herself. She couldn’t let her nameless emotions ruin the little self-respect she had, much less because of a stupid robot and a homeless-looking teen. Just like that, she made the easy decision to turn around…

“That’s it?” Tenma called out.

Mafuyu turned around.

“What?” Mafuyu asked.

“I said, is that it?” Tenma repeated himself.

Mafuyu couldn’t understand what he meant with this message. What else did he expect from her? Did Tenma seriously have the most minimal expectations from her? Ah, must have been because she mentioned she worked at one of the big three companies. Mafuyu cursed at herself for revealing a bit too much about her other life.

Other life… Mafuyu wanted to hit her head against something hard. This wasn’t the life she asked for, this wasn’t the life she wanted.

If so, what did she want?

“... Gonna stay quiet?” Tenma raised a bit his voice, enough to shake Mafuyu off her train of thought. Right, what did Tenma mean by that’s it?

“I don’t know what you mean…?” Mafuyu regretted sounding a bit too insecure, but there was no going back. She looked at his eyes yet again, trying to find anything to use against him, only to find…

Nothing.

His eyes were closed off.

Mafuyu’s breath hitched.

Tenma walked towards Mafuyu. Just a couple steps, enough to send all of her defenses off the roof. He stopped some inches away from her, leaving a healthy but intimidating space between them. Mafuyu had to look up to see Tenma’s face. His lashes were long and blonde, just like his hair. His hair also had prominent orange tips, which Mafuyu guessed weren’t natural. It was straight, with a little fold on each tip. His eyes had the same color scheme as his hair, but that was just about it.

His stare was killing Mafuyu inside.

Not because it was harming, but because it was… Understanding.

Tenma understood something Mafuyu didn’t.

Tenma knew more than Mafuyu.

And she couldn’t afford that.

“Yuki…” Tenma whispered out. Mafuyu’s heart stopped for a second.

What was that? This feeling, this warmth inside her heart… No.

She couldn’t stand his eyes. She couldn’t stand this… This thing inside her heart. Mafuyu looked away, afraid of letting Tenma see her weakness.

This didn’t help at all, she knew it deep down.

“... Hey. It’s okay to not have things figured out at the moment. Remember?”

Ah, that’s true… Tenma said that a week or so ago to Mafuyu. But Mafuyu needs to have everything figured out, she needs to.

She also needs to figure out this new feeling, and fast.

“I do remember… But…”

It was pointless. Mafuyu sighed out, giving up in the attempt of trying to explain her complex emotions. This didn’t make them go away though, and Mafuyu was growing tired of it.

What did she want?

What did she like?

What is this warm feeling?

“... I think I understand you.” Tenma breathed out, catching Mafuyu’s attention once again, just like the past week. How could he possibly understand Mafuyu more than herself, she wondered?

Mafuyu looked at Tenma’s eyes once again, trying to find harmful intentions behind them.

Only this time, she saw a positive feeling.

A warmth that will long stay with her.

She couldn’t stand it.

 

“Yuki, you can’t try to understand everyone else if you don’t understand yourself first.”

---

 

Who does he think he is, to go there and accuse Mafuyu of not understanding herself? And what if she doesn’t understand herself? What does that have to do with trying to protect herself from everyone who’s trying to harm her?

“One, two, three, four!”

Mafuyu danced with more energy, letting out all of her frustration.

“Five, six, seven, eight!”

Tenma… Mafuyu hasn’t had the heart to join OWN’s video calls in a whole week. Each day that passes makes it feel even more difficult.

“One, two, and spin!”

Mafuyu is frustrated at herself for letting this minor problem affect her life and not being able to control it herself.

“Three, four, one-two-three!”

That’s a step of knowing herself. See? She knows herself better than anyone. Tenma was all wrong about not understanding herself.

“One, two, three, and-”

Tenma must be the one who doesn’t understand himself, so he’s projecting onto Mafuyu. See? Even she knows him better than himself!

“Three-two-one!”

Tenma is just trying to harm her out of her shell!

“Turn around and step three times!”

But that warm feeling…

“Turn again and give a wink!”

Her heart that time…

“One, two, and-”

Tenma…

“END!”

By the time Lovedips finished dancing the choreography, they were all out of breath. The choreographer stared at them coldly, something not out of the ordinary. What was out of the ordinary was the other coach not unsticking his eyes from Mafuyu. It was starting to alert her.

“Shinobu, what do you think? Do we need to do another round?” The choreographer turned to talk to the coach. The coach hummed in response, fixated on something.

“No, it’s not necessary…” The coach was quick to say, yet her eyes said something else.

“Yuki.” The coach finally called out.

“Yes?” Yuki looked at the coach with a kind smile, praying inside. She could hear Ena snickering from behind, probably expecting the coach to absolutely destroy her self-confidence.

Only to be met with another smile from the coach.

“Good job, you’ve exceeded my expectations.”

Ena’s mouth dropped open as the group cheered for Mafuyu. It wasn’t something usual for the coach to compliment someone, dare we even say impossible. Just as impossible as being given the green light to have a private instagram account, but that’s another matter.

“I’m glad, coach. I promise to exceed your expectations even more next session.” Mafuyu sang out, melting everyone’s heart inside that room.

“Kiss-ass.” Ena blurted out a bit too loud, provoking a round of laughter inside that room. 

It was nice…?

That compressing feeling inside Mafuyu’s chest was still there. This feeling wasn’t nice.

See? Mafuyu knew herself. She knew this feeling wasn’t nice, compared to that warmth in her heart when Tenma was close…

…

Mafuyu hesitated. She was not going back to OWN. She didn’t want to.

But why did she dislike OWN now?

Ah, she doesn't know.

But she can’t give Tenma the satisfaction of not knowing herself and letting him know that he’s right.

“Savior complex.” Mafuyu whispered to herself as she excused herself out of the training room. That’s right; Tenma must have a savior complex, and he’s trying to harm Mafuyu by making herself question her morals and ideals, so he can go and act as her savior, and make her feel that warmth in her heart once again.

That’s why it felt nice but made Mafuyu a bit nervous, because Tenma was trying to manipulate her!

Proud of herself, Mafuyu kept walking. 

Until she came across a mirror.

How weird, Mafuyu never knew there was a mirror in the middle of a corridor.

Mafuyu got a bit closer to the mirror. It looked like there was a word spelled out in red ink in the middle of the mirror.

The closer she got, the dimmer the lights got, the wider the corridor got, the more nervous Mafuyu felt.

But curiosity took the best of her, and she looked at herself in the mirror.

 

There was a big word just above her head.

It spelt:

 

LIAR.

 

Mafuyu’s eyes widened as her purse dropped to the floor, alongside her façade. 

Liar… What…? This can’t…

No… Mafuyu isn’t a liar…

 

Suddenly, she felt a heavy weight on her back. The lights immediately went back to normal, and Mafuyu turned around agitated.

“BOOO!” Mizuki screamed in Mafuyu’s ear with a cat-grin, making her cover her eyes. Kanade and Ena started laughing from behind, finding this reaction funny.

“You weren’t trying to walk out the building alone in this *beautiful* Friday afternoon, right?” Mizuki smirked. Ah, they were trying to ask her out on a group dinner…

Mafuyu looked back at the corridor. It was normal now, with no mirror in sight. She sighed, turning to look at her co-workers again.

“Fine… But you will take the blame if I put up some extra weight!” Mafuyu bickered, but the group took it as a win.

“Yuki, you have the fastest metabolism of everyone here, don’t play victim!” Ena hit Mafuyu with her elbow, which Mafuyu took it as her cue to laugh. 

Her laugh never sounded fake because this was her job.

Her job was to fake everything.

 

Maybe she is a liar.

---

 

“MIZUKI, STOP STEALING MY FRENCH FRIES!”

Ena screamed, slapping Mizuki’s hand away. She still secured a humble amount of french fries, making Ena scoff in absolute disgust.

“You leech…” Ena cursed under her breath, causing Mizuki to laugh in victory.

“And folks, this is how you eat free french fries! Feel free to ask me for advice!” Mizuki grinned, eating her fries in not the most educated manner.

As if anyone cared, they were all enjoying each other’s company. Ena kept photographing every single new angle of her food, just to upload it to the group’s instagram. If Mafuyu wasn’t wrong, in just a couple months they’ll be able to have their own accounts. That’s something nice, isn’t it?

“Ah right, I have some company gossip!” Mizuki announced, making all the group focused on her.

“Is this about us?” Kanade asked, taking a sip of her orange juice.

“Nope! It’s about another group!” Mizuki striked a weird pose, making the group giggle.

Ena leaned forward, looking at Mizuki with playful eyes. “We are all ears, go on~!”

Mafuyu rolled her eyes internally and whipped out her phone, going inside twitter. It was good to check comments about her from time to time, all of them being positive. While she did this, the group gossiped.

“So,” Mizuki started, “, there is this street-like group that’s like, really famous for a small company ‘k?”

Mafuyu’s eyes twitched at this comment, yet she kept scrolling.

“And… I heard our manager Oruma talk about signing this group into our company…!”

“Oh I see~! What’s their name?” Ena giggled, Kanade followed. Mafuyu placed her phone on the table and grabbed her glass of water, ready to take a sip.

“The group name is…”

Mafuyu got the glass up to her lips, tilting it slightly so the water could seep into her lips without much effort.

“... Wondershow.”

Mafuyu choked on the water.

---

 

There she was, in front of the computer, with the nightcord tab open. She didn’t even care that Tenma could see that she was online. Instead, she was more focused on that open video call. Has Tenma been opening a video call for a whole week, waiting for Mafuyu to appear?

Her heart felt a bit warm, just like that moment.

Mafuyu shook her head. She had something more important to focus on about. She needed to ask Tenma if he really was going to get inside Future entertainment.

Mafuyu grabbed her mouse and slowly slid it across the mousepad, leaving it still once the cursor was on the join call button. She hesitated for a few seconds, before finally clicking on it.

 

Loading…

 

Successfully entered the call.

Her breath hitched as she found the snowflake icon right next to the star icon.

But her worries disappeared once Tenma spoke up.

 

< Good evening, Yuki.>

 

< Sorry for not logging in before…>

 

< It’s okay, I understand I made things difficult. I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have said that before. I didn’t mean any harm, I wanted to help you.>

 

What? Wanted to help Mafuyu? But that harmed her still… Ah, Tenma must be lying to her again just to manipulate her, right?

… That really does sound like a lie. Mafuyu shrugged this idea off, Tenma didn’t seem like the person who would harm her.

Ah, did she just blindly trust a stranger just now? Mafuyu didn’t have the energy to fight with herself anymore. She had something to ask.

 

< I think you helped me… But I have something else to bring up. >

 

< Oh? I’m interested. Go on. >

 

Mafuyu stared at the star icon. She imagined herself talking face to face with Tenma, just like that one time…

Her heart felt warm. 

She shook her head.

 

< I’ve heard some rumours about your group getting in Future Entertainment. Is that true? >

 

Mafuyu heard Tenma scoff like a spoiled brat, which made her roll her eyes at this childish response. She was seriously debating if this person really knew what he was getting himself into. It’s not as if it was her problem though…

Well, it is going to be if he signs under the same company as her!

 

< Ah, I see you’ve become interested at my situation and have been paying attention to my group, hmmm? >

 

Tenma giggled, before being forcefully muted by Mafuyu. She didn’t dislike Tenma’s attitude, she disliked the smile threatening to appear on her face.

After a couple seconds, Tenma realized and unmuted himself.

 

< Fine, fine! I was just trolling around! >

 

< Speak valuable information or I’ll mute you again. >

 

< So my situation is valuable for you? I’m valuable for you? >

 

Mafuyu squeaked, feeling an uncontrollable smile on her face, making her feel embarrassed. What was this dude going on about?

 

< Huh? >

 

< I thought you’d mute me. Seems like I was right, eh~? >

 

Now Mafuyu kicked Tenma out of the call. Somehow, she wasn’t able to mute him this time even though her cursor was on top of the button all of this time.

Whatever, it’s not important.

Tenma joined back again, now willing to share information (took him long enough).

 

< Okay, okay! So, as you said, we are currently in the process of getting a pretty acceptable contract. They promised half the earnings would be for us, while the other half would be for the company. The first three months will be only a quarter of total earnings, but I think that’s fair. What do you think? >

 

Mafuyu quietly thought about the deal. While the pay was more than great, especially knowing Wondershow’s past company, the working conditions could be less than desirable.

 

< Okay… What about work hours? >

 

< Morning through Saturday included, from eight in the morning to seven in the afternoon. Sunday is rest day except when we are in promotions week, but I think that’s kinda obvious. >

 

< I see… What about your old songs and group name? Will you be able to keep it all? >

 

< Phoenix entertainment has given it away in exchange of an immediate revenue, which will be transited exactly 15 days from now. The money asked is a big amount, but our old songs are still highly profitable so the company has agreed on paying that amount by lowering our paycheck for the first three months. So we get to keep our old songs and brand name. Isn’t it cool? >

 

That’s… A wonderful deal. An extremely wonderful deal, too good to be true.

 

< That’s way too good to be true… Did you read the contract? >

 

< Yep! No small letter, no suspicious activity, clean record! >

 

< Clean record, of course… >

 

< Hey! You’re under the same company, don’t talk trash about them! >

 

Mafuyu chuckled. Tenma’s scolding reminded her of Ena’s when she accidentally insulted her drawings, and then proceeded to say she was just being honest.

The call fell in a comfortable silence. Mafuyu won’t lie, she missed having this little moments of peace. She was kind of proud she had the courage to join these calls again, even if she wasn’t doing anything.

Right, she had work to get done.

---

 

Loading…

 

Successfully entered the call.

 

Once again, Mafuyu was on a call with Tenma. She readjusted herself in her chair, not moving her eyes from Tenma’s icon. At this point, she had memorized each little pixel in his icon from all the times she’s seen it.

 

< You’re here early, what’s up? >

 

Tenma casually said, sounds of clicking heard from the other side of the screen. Mafuyu swore she wasn’t early, she just…

Ah… She was early.

 

< Ah, I was free, so I decided to start a bit earlier. >

 

< So you’re telling me you’ve been free for a week? Can’t believe it. >

 

< Has it already been a whole week? >

 

< Yep. Times sure goes fast, doesn’t it? >

 

< Yeah… >

 

Today, Tenma seemed a bit more closed off. Mafuyu wondered why, maybe she is acting a bit too attached? She needed to stay cool-headed.

But she liked talking with Tenma. She didn’t want to hide that.

She didn’t want to lie about liking to talk to Tenma.

 

< Tenma…? >

 

< Hmm? >

 

< Is there something on your mind? >

 

Mafuyu leaned backwards on her chair, getting a bit upset at her high expectations for Tenma. She needed to tone it down, she didn’t even know his real name.

Wait, she does. Tsukasa.

Tenma Tsukasa… That’s nice to know.

It’s not as if Mafuyu was going to need it.

 

< Ah, I guess I haven’t hid it well… But yeah, I guess I’ve had something on my mind lately. >

 

< I see… Want to talk about it? >

 

< … Okay. It’s something personal, I would not like for this to leave this call, you hear me?>

 

< Understood. >

 

Mafuyu felt grateful to be able to know a bit more about Tenma’s personal life. What could this secret be that Tenma didn’t want it to leave the call?

After some moments of silence, Tenma spoke up.

 

< You know… I’m not having a great time back here at home. To not give you the long rant, my parents have been fighting a lot lately. And… >

 

<... I’ve overheard about them divorcing.>

 

Divorcing… That doesn’t sound good at all. Mafuyu felt bad for not noticing Tenma’s mood switch before.

 

< I’m sorry… I understand these news might be hard for you. How do you feel about this? >

 

< … I feel like shit, not going to lie. I don’t even want to touch our samples in case I contaminate them with my negativity.>

 

< Ah? but isn’t OWN all about being honest about what society doesn’t want you to be honest about?>

 

< Well, yeah, but… I feel like making music about what I feel makes it feel even more real. If I don’t make music about it, I can pretend it’s all in my mind, and it feels like a bad dream.>

 

< You mean… Lying to yourself about this? >

 

< Kind of, yeah. >

 

Huh, Mafuyu completely agrees with what Tenma just said. Even though Mafuyu couldn't completely understand the pain Tenma was going through, she could maybe push it a bit to see where this could go… Just to get inspired for her songs, of course…

 

< … I’m thinking… If your parents are divorcing, it means they weren’t having a good time together? >

 

< … I think so. But it is still sad to see my family crumble away. First my sister, then my parents… And one day, it will be my turn. Or, it is my turn right now. Who knows… >

 

Sister? Mafuyu feels like she shouldn’t press on that subject. Rather, seeing Tenma’s current negativity isn't something she expected from this boy. Ever since they started this OWN project, he has been the most objective and optimistic one of them both. Before Mafuyu could keep thinking, Tenma spoke up once again, alarming her.

 

< I feel like it was my fault. >

 

< Huh? Why? It’s their relationship, not yours. >

 

< … That was quick. >

 

Tenma chuckled at Mafuyu’s response, aliviating his mood a bit. Was this response that good? Mafuyu’s ego grew a little bit today.

 

< But, I do feel like it was my fault, as if I failed to keep them together. This makes me feel like I wasn’t enough… >

 

< And… I’ve also heard them… >

 

Tenma sounded very hesitant to keep talking, so Mafuyu didn’t push him further. Instead, she stared at that star icon. Just now, she wished she could see his face. She’s seen pictures, but she’s never seen the Tenma in motion. She wanted to see his real face, not the one full of makeup and lights from the live houses.

Maybe she could watch one of his live performances somewhere, at his back. Mafuyu felt her heart becoming a bit warm again, so she completely shrugged off the thought.

She instead focused on Tenma’s voice once he decided on how to respond.

 

< My parents… They were talking about me… >

 

< About what? >

 

< About… Me. Don’t you understand?>

 

What was there to understand? Mafuyu didn’t get what Tenma was trying to get across, which only frustrated him further. Mafuyu had to be more careful and a little bit more liar right now.

 

< Ah, I think I understand… What did they agree on? >

 

< You know, they… None of them want…>

 

...

 

< … None of them want my custody. >

Notes:

Spoiler: Next chapter will be even more angsty
Also, I'm sorry if I'm not accurate with this divorce subject. As someone who hasn't experienced divorced parents, I promise to try to manage this topic as best as possible with all the information I hold.
If something is not accurate, please let me know.
Thx <3

Chapter 4: Do you want to be friends?

Notes:

Happy Ena5 (late)

<... None of them want my custody. >

 

Mafuyu herself felt the strong words inside her body. Those hateful, confused, saddened daggers through her heart. How could she make it feel better, she wondered? Mafuyu wasn’t even able to comfort herself, how could she ever comfort someone else?

Ah, such a big dilemma… She couldn’t even see Tenma’s face.

How could she respond?

 

<... Are you sure? Maybe you heard wrong…? >

 

Mafuyu noticed herself gulp in that overflowing silence. While gently tapping her table, she gazed at the clock. It marked midnight. She had practice tomorrow early in the morning, but she will find a way of staying awake. Right now, her priority was Tenma.

… Ah? She’s prioritizing someone else over herself again…

But this time, Mafuyu is doing it from the purest corner of her heart, not because she is forced.

This sacrifice feels nice. It makes Mafuyu’s heart feel a bit warm.

Mafuyu shook her head. 

 

< I am sure of what I heard… Besides, it’s not a surprise. I expected this. >

 

< I’m sorry, but in what sane world is it normal to expect parents not loving their kids? >

 

Mafuyu snapped at Tenma’s negativity. She didn’t want to hear from her co-worker that his parents didn’t love him. It just didn’t sit right with her, he shouldn’t be saying stuff like that. It’s harmful.

 

<... Sorry. >

 

Sorry? For what? Mafuyu mentally scoffed at Tenma’s response. He shouldn’t be sorry for experiencing traumatic events in his life that led him to believe such things. Even worse, he shouldn’t apologize for opening up about these things. God knows what a human is capable of doing when not shown support when needed.

 

< You don’t have to apologize for opening up about suffering with something out of your control. Moreover, I should be the one to apologize for making it seem like it was your fault. >

 

Mafuyu leaned towards the computer, staring at Tenma’s icon. Sure, Tenma was right about her not understanding herself. But something that she does understand is that she does not like Tenma thinking so negatively of himself or of his life. In this six months that she’s been completely ignoring him, and in these two weeks that she has tried to get to know him, Mafuyu has discovered that Tenma is quite the optimistic type of person. She does not want to hear that he has bad thoughts too…

Perhaps she’s projecting her desire of standing up for herself on him? Even if that’s the reasoning, Mafuyu is still trying to help out. That’s something positive.

After a while, Tenma spoke up again.

 

< No… It’s no one’s fault. >

 

< Then, may I ask why you’re blaming yourself? >

 

< Ah, if I take all the blame, no one gets harmed in the process. >

 

< Tenma… You get harmed. Just hear yourself. >

 

< But that doesn’t matter as long as I don’t show it! >

 

Mafuyu flinched at her co-worker’s statement. Those words hit just like home for her, catching her off guard. Tenma started to seem a bit too similar to Mafuyu, and if what she was thinking was true…

 

< … Hey. Can I ask you something very personal? >

 

< I don’t think any question can get more personal than this, but go on. >

 

< Tenma… Is this the reason why you want to disappear? Because you blame yourself for everything and can’t forgive yourself? >

 

…

 

Silence. Mafuyu must have hit the nail on the head.

But… What now? What could Mafuyu do to help Tenma out?

Wait, why did she even want to help him out? 

Ah, this is a bit confusing… 

She needs Tenma to keep composing, to make music that might save her one day. Music that might save her from this misery she is in right now.

But Tenma is going through hard times too… Maybe that’s the reason he agreed on the OWN project. To save himself too.

It all makes sense now, at least a little bit more.

Tenma sighed from the other end, and a pen falling was heard.

 

< Hmmm… I think you’re right. I might wanna take a deeper look at that when I have time. Thank you. >

 

Mafuyu found herself letting out seemingly saved up air inside her lungs as she dropped on her chair. Hearing that she might have helped Tenma made her feel relieved.

Maybe she’s the one with a savior complex after all.

Or maybe Tenma and her are very similar.

 

< Yuki? >

 

Ah right, she’s still on that call.

 

< What? >

 

< No offense, but since when do you care about me? >

 

This question caught Mafuyu off guard, as she almost choked on her own spit.

 

< Wha- Huh? >

 

< I mean… A little over a month ago, when I opened up about my dead dog, you just told me to make a song about his death. So for you to now care about my feelings… >

 

Mafuyu certainly doesn’t remember being that psychopathic towards Tenma, although it does seem possible. What could have changed in their dynamic, or in her feelings?

 

< Ah, I understand now. But… I don’t have an answer to that right now. >

 

< You don’t? So you just woke up one day and decided to treat me like a human being? >

 

< Yes, I have. >

 

< That’s… Not true. >

 

< I know. >

 

< HUH?! But didn’t you just say you didn’t know?! >

 

< That’s not true. >

 

< But you just said it! >

 

< No, I didn’t. >

 

< Yuki, you did! >

 

< Did what? >

 

Tenma groaned in frustration as Mafuyu chuckled from the other side of the call. She’s slowly starting to realize how easy it is to annoy Tenma, like finding a pot of gold at the end of the rainbow. This moment felt nice…

But it was a different nice. Mafuyu didn’t have that compressing feeling inside her chest. Instead, Mafuyu had once again that warmth inside her heart. Ah, but she musn’t feel this…?

 

< Earth to Yu-ki! >

 

Ah, Mafuyu spaced out. She got back on track and heard what Tenma had to say. Let’s just pray it isn’t some egoistic ideal about how everyone should lick his shoe whenever he holds a concert…

 

< What is it? >

 

< See? Now you respond when I call you! >

 

< But I’ve always responded…? >

 

< That’s not true! You would stay quiet and I had to guess if you were spacing out or listening to me! >

 

Mafuyu could hear Tsukasa’s suffering from just his words. By the looks of it, he doesn’t have a great time with being left on read or being purposely ignored. Mafuyu doesn’t dislike it, after all, Tenma is her…

Her…

…

Co-worker.

That doesn’t sound right. Mafuyu felt a wave of sadness drop on her as the realization hit hard like a train. Tenma and her were just co-workers in this OWN project, nothing else. Well… What else did Mafuyu want from Tenma?

She wanted to… Mafuyu wanted to…

Stay like this with him.

 

< Tenma? >

 

< Hmmm? >

 

< Ah, is it… Uh… >

 

< Don’t worry, you got it! Make those extracurriculars worth it! >

 

Mafuyu unexpectedly giggled at that uncalled comment from Tenma. This was what she wanted, to keep enjoying being like this with someone, with Tenma. Last time she checked, her female classmates had this kind of friendship with each other…

… Maybe Tenma and her could be friends?

 

< So… Do you want to be friends? >

 

Mafuyu anxiously waited for Tenma’s answer, moving back and forth on her squeaky chair. Perhaps she’ll regret this decision taken at one in the morning, perhaps she won’t. Or perhaps Tenma doesn’t want to be friends with her… Or perhaps Mafuyu is overthinking again!

This proposal was different from all of the other times she asked to be friends with someone. She’s asked dozens of fans to be her friends, and she’s never felt nervous or excited about it. What makes this proposal different from every other proposal she’s done?

Tenma… Mafuyu wants to get to know Tenma better. That’s not a lie.

Maybe this is the only proposal that isn’t a lie? A friendship proposal that holds true feelings behind, so it makes it difficult to say out loud…

Mafuyu doesn’t want to get her friendship proposal rejected.

So it must be true.

 

< Yuki? >

 

Okay, time to hear his answer. If he rejects this, Mafuyu can just log off the call and jump off a cliff.

… Okay, let’s not be so pessimistic. May it be God’s will.

 

< … I do want to be your friend! >

 

Ah, that’s nice. Mafuyu sighed in relief, lying down on her chair. Tenma caught on to the sound and laughed, probably hiding his thrill from such a connection made. Mafuyu won’t deny she is looking forward to seeing what this new friendship has to offer. 

Now… Now what? Mafuyu thought about the next step she should take in a friendship. Let’s see… What basic information do friends know about each other?

 

< Tenma…? >

 

< You called? >

 

< Yeah uh… What now? >

 

< What do you mean? >

 

< I don’t know, erm… What do new friends do now? >

 

< You’ve… Never had a friend? >

 

< Not that I hold an emotional connection to…>

 

< WHAT?! >

 

Once again, Mafuyu’s ears have been pierced by her co-worker…

Also known as her new friend! Hooray…

… Why is making a friend so complicated?

 

< Yuki! I know something we could do. >

 

< Go on. >

 

< We could… Share our names instead of surnames? >

 

Huh, that’s not a bad idea… But all of Mafuyu’s “friends” know her by her nickname “Yuki”...

Not that they are really friends, so perhaps it’s not a good example.

 

< I don’t see why not. >

 

< Okay! I’ll start: Ahem… >

 

< You may call me Tsukasa! >

 

Tsukasa… Just like what Miku said that time. Just like his stage name…

 

< You seriously used your real name as a stage name for the whole world to know a personal detail about you? >

 

< Huh? I don’t see the problem in doing that… Wait, your surname isn’t Yuki? >

 

< Yuki is just a nickname by my company, but everyone calls me like that except for my mother and father. >

 

< I see… So I guess you want me to call you Yuki? >

 

< … My name is Mafuyu. Asahina Mafuyu. >

 

It’s been a long time since Mafuyu told someone to call her by her real name, even opening up about her full legal name. She’s very much aware of the security breach she’s provoking right now, but…

She wants to trust Tenma. Oh, Tsukasa.

She wants to trust her friend, Tsukasa.

 

< Mafuyu… I see where you got your nickname Yuki from. I like your name.>

 

< How can you like a name? >

 

< Huh? >

 

< I mean… Does a name make you feel something? >

 

< Maybe… Feel closer to my new friend? >

 

Mafuyu felt a rising heat coming from her heart to her cheeks. She stretched out her hand and poked her own cheek, feeling its unnatural warmth emanating from it. She suddenly felt embarrassed from her reaction at this comment, mainly because she didn’t think she had any logical reason to react this way. But it’s not as if she could control how her body reacted, hmm?

Tsukasa chuckled at the lack of noise from the other end, satisfied enough with his answer. He cracked the muscles in his neck before taking a quick glimpse at the clock, only to realize how late it was. With a panicked expression, Tsukasa spoke up yet again.

 

< Mafuyu, it’s terribly late! Don’t tell me you have practice… >

 

Ah, busted! Mafuyu quickly left the call before Tsukasa could come up with such a realization in her face. Deep down Mafuyu knew she would not be able to explain herself from suddenly caring a lot about her new friend… Let’s just hope Tsukasa doesn’t blame himself too hard over this.

Mafuyu turned off her computer and stood up, stretching her back muscles. She took a few deep breaths to calm down and dissipate any adrenaline left in her body, which provoked sleep to wrap her like a thick blanket. With a yawn, Mafuyu plopped herself on top of her neatly made bed. She didn’t have the energy to even get herself inside the covers, so she just stared into the void of a ceiling she had until her eyes slowly closed without command.

Tsukasa… Her new friend. She wanted to get to know him better, and stay friends. Maybe OWN will feel more like a hobby than a project.

Mafuyu can only hope for such miracles to occur.

As such, with only five hours to sleep, Mafuyu passed out on her bed. May tomorrow be great!

---

 

Great her ass, Mafuyu wanted to shoot herself.

Each movement felt even more draining than normal, she was about to pass out. Her eyes were stinging from behind, as her stomach was almost on her throat. Even breathing became harder than usual, even though she was barely dancing at all. At least she had the good luck that both the choreographer and coach were not present. Maybe she could lay down for a bit…

“Yuki, let’s do another round!” Mizuki cheerfully exclaimed, skipping to her place with a bright smile. Mafuyu won’t deny; she sometimes felt jealous of Mizuki’s ability to be this happy, when she could hardly drag her feet out of her bed. Today especially was a hard one, she felt as if she hadn’t closed her eyes since the Big Bang. It’s okay, she can still lie her excitement away.

“Of course! Everyone, ready!” Yuki exclaimed with grace and elegance, blowing her teammates’ minds away. This was her job, after all. Her job was to lie and encaptivate an audience, even if it meant degrading herself as a person.

She wonders, does Tsukasa feel the same way? Does Tsukasa constantly lie to appear like someone he is not? Maybe the Tsukasa Mafuyu met isn’t the same Tsukasa he is inside…

Mafuyu had a lot of questions about Tsukasa, each second the number grew, but she wasn’t certain of when it was acceptable to ask. Or if it was even acceptable for that matter.

Mafuyu dragged herself into her first position, and shut off her brain. She could pass out of sleep later.

Just when the music was about to start, Kanade moved away from the line-up and sat on the floor.

“I’m sorry,” Kanade muttered, “, but I can’t keep going. I need a rest…”

Ah, saved by the bell. Kanade is the one with less stamina in Lovedips, so she tends to overdo herself regularly, that’s why Lovedips has this very important rule: If Kanade speaks, they listen. If Kanade wants to rest, they rest. Kanade rules their rests in some way.

Ena yawned, making herself a spot next to Kanade.

“I was about to pass out too… These choreographies are getting harder and harder with each comeback…” Ena said in a whisper, almost to not overstimulate dear Kanade on her shoulder. Realizing this position, Mizuki grew a big pout and jumped in between the girls.

“Ena, move your fatass away! It’s my turn to have Kanade sleeping on my shoulder!” Mizuki snickered triumphantly, as Ena scrambled inside her brain to find a clever comeback for Mizuki, before giving in to exhaustion and resting on Mizuki’s free shoulder.

The three girls had a good relationship with each other, Mafuyu thought of them as siblings.

Meanwhile her… She was unable to feel a connection with them.

Mafuyu wondered if she could feel that close with someone, if no one ever shared her same feelings…

Perhaps Tsukasa…?

As soon as Mafuyu felt her cheeks have that weird warmth from one in the morning, she quickly turned away from her teammates’ view. To her dismay, Mizuki isn’t stupid (just a crackhead).

“Yuki, is there something on your mind? May I say, someone~?”

Ah, that teasing tone that could throw Ena off each time, now attacking Mafuyu itself. Mafuyu took a deep breath and regained her self-control.

“Hmmm, perhaps you’re right.” Mafuyu denied, turning her head around-

…

WHAT?! WHY DID SHE JUST ADMIT THERE WAS SOMEONE ON HER MIND?! WAS SHE CRAZY?!

Mafuyu cursed at herself with whistling as white noise. Seriously, how did it roll of her tongue so easily? Mafuyu’s disgust at herself in this moment can’t be described not even with words.

“Huh~? What is it, then? Who’s caught our leader’s attention?” Mizuki teased, being followed by Ena.

“It better be someone worth your time!” Ena giggled.

Mafuyu shot a deathly glare at Ena, quickly shutting her up. Even so…

Maybe Ena and Mizuki could help Mafuyu.

Maybe this would help them create a bond together…?

“Okay, so… I made this new friend, and let’s say… I don’t know how to proceed.” 

“To break the ice, you mean?”

“Yes.”

Ena and Mizuki looked at each other and hummed, before turning to look at Mafuyu yet again. Their faces were full of understanding with a spark of mischief behind, but Mafuyu was more focused on not saying too much or too little. She would not like them to possibly figure out who it is, or revealing personal information about her new friend Tsukasa.

Tsukasa… Mafuyu is starting to grow attached to that name, probably from thinking about it so much. Well, she isn’t thinking about him all the time, just while dancing…

… Ah, she literally dances almost all day.

“Well… You could start by asking how their day went?” Mizuki spoke up, readjusting Kanade to a much more comfortable position. She had already fallen asleep.

Mafuyu gave it some thought, before ultimately shaking her head.

“He just says that it’s been good, and he asks about mine.”

“It’s a boy, got it.”

And there it goes, Mafuyu has already said too much. She fearfully stared at Ena and Mizuki waiting for some kind of teasing, but instead they were both too focused on actually helping Mafuyu with this matter.

This wasn’t even their problem, why were they both so keen on helping her out? This… Felt a bit nice.

Not as nice as being with Tsukasa, but Mafuyu could work with this.

“I think… Okay. Yuki, do you tell him in detail how your day went?” Mizuki asked with her hand holding her chin. Mafuyu reminisced on their past interactions…

“Not really, just the usual.”

“And what’s your usual?”

“Well…” Mafuyu thought for a bit. “Out of the ordinary stuff that happened in a day, and how did it make me feel?”

Was that… Too much information? Or something friends don’t do?

Mizuki and Ena looked at each other and grinned.

Ah, Mafuyu doesn’t even need to hear their answer…

“Hmmm, that’s curious~!”

“Indeed!”

“Okay, retaking the topic,” Mizuki started, “, he seems interested in what you have to say. If I had to give my most sincere opinion, I’d say…”

“-I’d say he likes you!” Ena cut off Mizuki’s tension, which resulted in her head getting absolutely bonked against the red, concrete wall of the training room. They were not supposed to be resting right now, if a staff member entered to check what was happening…

“Ignore our group’s fatass over here, she has no idea about what she’s talking about.” Mizuki hurriedly said while covering Ena’s hand, before taking it away after Ena bit her.

This was about to wake Kanade up, so they both had to calm down.

“So, I’d say,” Mizuki made sure that Ena was not planning on interrupting her, getting both her hands together, “, that he really wants to be your friend!” Mizuki moved her hands forward, looking at Mafuyu with a little smile. It wasn’t long before Ena had one of her intrusive thoughts about to act up, but Mizuki already had her on the palm of her hand.

“I see…” Mafuyu answered after some silence. “What does that mean?”

“It means you just have to communicate with him!” Ena yawned out.

This was… Of course it was easy to say! But Mafuyu didn’t want to mess her new friendship out. After all, it was the first time she felt this way towards someone, and the first time she may have found someone who understood her…

“... This friendship is precious to me.” Mafuyu stated, catching Ena and Mizuki off guard.

“OH, WELL WELL WELL! What have we just found here~?” Mizuki rapidly stood up with Ena, leaving Kanade to snore on the hard, wooden floor. Ena was quick to run to Mafuyu, placing her arm around her neck with a teasing grin. Mafuyu looked away uncomfortable, however that didn’t stop Mizuki from getting herself closer than normal to Mafuyu. She hummed while staring at Mafuyu, trying to catch any loopholes inside her persona.

After some seconds, Mizuki shrugged her shoulders and went back to her original place.

“Doctor, what’s today’s case about?” Ena said, playing along in some weird game Mafuyu was not happy to be a part of.

“The verdict is…” Mizuki pretended to do drum rolls.

“The verdict is that Yuki has some feelings she does not realize!”

---

 

< Mafuyu…? You’ve been awfully quiet for some time, is something the matter? >

 

There she was, banging her head against her wooden desk from just remembering earlier teasing. This is making things even more difficult for Mafuyu. Feelings she doesn’t realize? And what could they possibly know about her? Lovedips barely knows about her existence, how could they know something so personal better than Mafuyu? This was ridiculous, this whole thing was ridiculous. It was just talking to an online new friend, nothing else. If something went wrong, Mafuyu could just block Tsukasa and forget about him, even if she didn’t want to. And if Tsukasa does end up getting inside Future entertainment, he won’t be able to recognize Mafuyu. Sure, he is aware of her nickname, but not her face. She can just fake her voice for what, four years? It’s not that deep!

Mafuyu kept convincing herself about ruining her life and not being that deep, when she remembered she forgot to answer to Tsukasa once again. He’s now going to think of her as someone disgusting!

 

< Sorry, I was spacing out. >

 

< You’ve said the same thing three times now. Come on, you’re not okay. >

 

Ah, how could have she been caught already, if Mafuyu took all the measures in her power to pretend everything was okay?

… Her denial is almost like a joke.

Now, what could she say? Mizuki did mention something about communication, maybe Mafuyu could say what was on her mind.

But… What if she pushed Tsukasa away? What if Tsukasa didn’t care? What if something bad happened?

Mafuyu can’t risk it… She doesn’t want to risk her new friendship. Her chance at a friend.

 

< I am okay, isn’t it obvious? >

 

< Yeah sure, you’re so fine you need to convince me that you're okay just to validate your denial. Give me a better answer. >

 

Ah… Mafuyu’s fake smile dropped. Pretending everything was okay just turned pointless, this was impossible with Tsukasa. Even though they didn’t even have webcams on, Tsukasa seemed to know just what Mafuyu was thinking.

And this was something she didn’t want to lose, something she has at stake if she opens up.

Ugh… Okay, you only live once they say.

 

< Okay, fine… Would it be weird to say I don’t want to lose you? >

 

Suddenly, Mafuyu’s heart stopped beating for a second. What did she just… 

Her heart then picked up twice the beat, and she started growing the same warmth on her cheeks. Mafuyu felt the urge to rephrase herself.

 

< I mean, not in that way, but in the new friendship kind of way, you know? >

 

< Nah, it’s valid. I’m your only friend, of course you’d be afraid of losing me. In exchange, I’ll also open up! >

 

Tsukasa somehow learned to perfection how to catch Mafuyu’s attention, even better than herself. 

 

< I’m all ears. >

 

< Of course you are! Okay, here it goes. Be careful, I won’t repeat myself~! >

 

< Fine. >

 

< Okay… I’m feeling kind of pressured, you know? >

 

Mafuyu gulped.

 

< What? >

 

< It’s not your fault, of course. It’s just… Every new friendship, you have to start from almost nothing. You have to be careful about what to say and what to not say, what boundaries to cross and what not… I’m almost in your same position, BUT I have more knowledge. >

 

Mafuyu could feel Tsukasa’s smugness radiate from the screen, and she wanted to smash her computer on his head. But he does have a valid point.

 

< So that fear never goes away? >

 

< Nope. >

 

< Not even a little? >

 

< Nuh-uh. >

 

< Aw, man… >

 

Seems like Mafuyu’s pout took Tsukasa by surprise, as he then laughed for some long seconds. It was sad indeed, Mafuyu didn’t like that she felt the most vulnerable with one of the things she was starting to appreciate the most.

Why did those two terms have to go by the hand?

 

< But, you know, it’s nice to talk about it. >

 

< Huh? >

 

< As someone who has a lot of friends, I feel like I could only be true with a couple of them. There are a lot of people who just… Don’t communicate. >

 

< But how can you have friends if you don’t talk with them? >

 

< Now that’s the thing. I feel like it’s better to lose a potential connection with someone than keep it being potential and not real, if you understand. Actually, one of my closest friends told me this. >

 

Tsukasa has weird friends, that’s the only conclusion Mafuyu was able to come to with this.

 

< Mhm… But my question still stands. >

 

< If I could answer you, I would. But apart from fear, I don’t have any other explanation to their actions. >

 

< Why don’t you communicate with your non-verbal friends about it? Maybe you’re the one who doesn’t communicate. >

 

< Hey, that’s not nice! See? This is one of the reasons people fear connections. Testing boundaries. >

 

Oh? That was easy. Mafuyu was starting to understand what Tsukasa was trying to get across, and she understood it to some extent. If it was someone who she didn’t care about, Mafuyu would be constantly testing boundaries. But having Tsukasa, someone who possibly understood her… She feared losing this connection, she feared testing his boundaries.

 

< And I’m guessing your weird friend said this too, right? >

 

< Hey, Rui isn’t weird! Well, he is BUT he isn’t wrong! >

 

< And then I’m the one in denial… >

 

Tsukasa sighed, finding out Mafuyu’s more hidden side. Who would have thought a future entertainment idol could be so… So beautifully insufferable? Sure, she was a bit of a pain in the ass sometimes, but Tsukasa felt like he could hear her stupid words on repeat.

The immense professional gap between Mafuyu and Tsukasa became evident, Mafuyu was born with the talent.

 

< Mafuyu, just hear me out. When you have a friend, you’re not supposed to… Talk bad about them. >

 

< Why would they be my friend if I found something to talk bad about them with? >

 

< Because people aren’t perfect, and that’s okay! You just… Please don’t go around calling me all sorts of names, okay? >

 

< Why would I talk about you with people who don’t know you? >

 

< Ah, you’re too painfully honest… >

 

< Didn’t you just say something about not talking bad about your friends? And wasn’t honesty a good trait? >

 

< Why can’t you stop asking questions for a second? >

 

< It’s rude to answer with a question, but I’ll let it slide because you are my friend and I won’t talk bad about you. However, didn’t we agree that communication is key in friendships? Why won’t you let me ask? I’m just testing boundaries- >

 

Kicked out of the call.

 

Leech.

---

 

< Mafuyu, have you understood? >

 

< Yes… >

 

After joining the call again, Mafuyu had been taught about how to properly make friends with someone. To summarize it all up, Tsukasa doesn’t understand irony, and Mafuyu lives on irony. So they agreed that, if Tsukasa asked if it was ironic, Mafuyu had to answer honestly.

That’s communication for you!

 

< I hope I didn’t make you uncomfortable with all of this. >

 

< No. >

 

< Ah, such a relief… >

 

The call fell on a peaceful silence, and Mafuyu started to think about things. Seems like Tsukasa is comfortable about talking stuff out, so she doesn’t have to take the whole burden of overthinking, so…

Wait, what about OWN?

 

< Tsukasa, we completely forgot about OWN. >

 

< … Oh. How much time do we have left for tonight? >

 

Mafuyu checked the time.

Two in the morning.

 

< Well, I’m free tomorrow, so maybe… >

 

Mafuyu was thinking about how much time they had left for today, until she realized the silence in the call. How weird, why wasn’t Tsukasa saying anything? Well, he must be bad at mathematics, or maybe he’s checking his calendar, or…

 

< … You’re saying you want to meet up tomorrow? >

 

…

 

Mafuyu’s BPM skyrocketed.

Notes:

In this fic, I wanna try to make Tsukasa and Mafuyu appear very similar but polar opposites at the same time, let's see if it works out!

Chapter 5: I'm here for you, don't cry

Notes:

Heya, long time huh?
So, in case u guys haven't heard, I confessed to my crush (woohoo fuck my life), and he kinda uh rlly avoided me the next day, like to death... FUCK MY LIFE-
BUT! A promise is a promise. I now have to finish all my unfinished fics! :D (i wanna cry)
So, i thought about leaving this fic on permanent hiatus too BUUUUUUT I can't now
Thx for all the kudos and support, merry christmas and happy new year!!

Meet up? TOMORROW? FACE TO FACE?!

Okay, take a few deep breaths. Breathe in… Hold… Breathe out.
Mafuyu looked at Tsukasa’s profile wide-eyed, while taking some long seconds to compose herself. It was okay, she could just see it as a fan meeting!

But NO! The undertone of the meet up sounds too…
Way too…
Mafuyu shook her head before getting her headphone mic closer to her mouth. She was not going to let her thoughts play a bad part in this situation.
If Mafuyu knew something, it was that her job was literally this. Meeting up with people, sometimes making shows… In general, making them feel important and excited enough to forget about their lives.
Mafuyu could do this, she just had to believe in herself, and know what to say next…

Mafuyu closed her eyes, focusing on her next move. Being herself while responding could show too many emotions which might give Tsukasa the wrong idea, so she’ll have to play it safe by being her idol persona. With that, Mafuyu opened her eyes.
Her eyes held that beautiful, characteristical spark of hers.

 

<That’s not a bad idea! If you have a spot in your calendar, we can continue with OWN tomorrow in person. In my opinion, meeting up in person would make the process easier and quicker, but what do you think?>

 

Mafuyu got too much in her paper, almost forgetting the fact she was trying to charm a computer screen. It didn’t matter, she knew her act was going to feel even more real this way. Mafuyu was resting her head on top of her intertwined hands, elbows on the table. Her beaming smile radiated from the other side of the screen, getting to Tsukasa without even having a webcam.
Tsukasa was very much quick to notice this sudden change in attitude with his friend. He stared at the screen for a couple moments, processing all the information. He wondered, what just happened right now?
Tsukasa noticed his breath had become uneven, as he looked once again at the snowflake profile picture. This was… This felt surreal.
Tsukasa was taken aback by how easily Mafuyu was able to switch up personalities. This must be her entertainment industry persona, there was no other explanation…

But what could have caused her to behave like this? And why was Tsukasa feeling… Stirred?

This was… Mafuyu was…

 

<... Amazing…>

 

Tsukasa said out loud, not caring about the repercussions his words might bring. He was absolutely impressed by Mafuyu’s talent as an entertainer, and her ability to mould social situations into what is convenient for her. Even without a visible stimulant.

Now, Tsukasa was curious. Apart from how he felt inside, Tsukasa was wondering how Mafuyu was doing from the other side of the screen. Was she calm? Was she feeling like Tsukasa? Even if he could kind of get the idea of how she felt due to her change in professionalism towards the question previously thrown, what was clear was that Tsukasa would certainly never truly know what Mafuyu was thinking or feeling like. Probably not even with looking at her face.
Just thinking about it… Enchanted Tsukasa even more, made him even more curious.

On the other end, Mafuyu was starting to grow a bit hesitant because of the prolonged silence following her change in airs. She must admit, it was a bit too sudden, and someone working in this industry will surely be able to catch it in less than an instant. Tsukasa even whispered amazing, that was more than enough confirmation for Mafuyu’s doubts.

Mafuyu exhaled, leaning back on her squeaky, disintegrating chair. Overthinking wasn’t going to let her go anywhere, she needed to push her doubts far away from her mind.

But with Tsukasa… It wasn’t that easy.

Wait, that’s right! Mafuyu straightened her posture once again, clearing her throat. If her memory didn’t fail her, just a couple minutes ago, they were talking about communication. So, Mafuyu is supposedly close enough with Tsukasa to talk about stuff…
Mafuyu, following these words, giggled and kept the play going.

 

<What’s so amazing about what I said? You’ve caught my attention now…>

 

Once Tsukasa felt his cheeks giving in to the heat, he aggressively shook his head, and looked determined at the screen. If Mafuyu wanted to play this game, he was down for it.

 

<Drop the act, I know you’re pretending like you're at your job!>

 

Tsukasa chuckled to himself, dropping on his backrest and crossing his arms in triumph. He thought this would surely shake Mafuyu enough to make her question her own doings, and he’d declare himself superior compared to this professional entertainer! After all, Tsukasa is an entertainer too!

But, for Tsukasa’s dismay, Mafuyu’s professionalism backfired for him as she knew the route he picked. For her, this was a fun game!

Fun…

Mafuyu… She was having fun.
Mafuyu smiled sweetly at the thought, before shaking her head.

 

<Huh~? Me? That’s not very nice! I thought friends didn’t talk bad about each other…>

 

Tsukasa’s grin immediately dissipated as his eyebrows started to twitch. Her acting was starting to seem like Rui’s pretending, and that never ended well for Tsukasa… Last time, he had to pay for the whole group’s dinner just because he wasn’t able to resist Rui’s manipulation! What a piece of…

Tsukasa just had to stay strong this time, to prove he was able to not fall for anymore mind tricks.

 

<I’m not criticising you, I’m only letting you know that your mind tricks won’t work on me! So your efforts on manipulating me won’t work!>

 

That… Sounded just like someone falling for someone else’s tricks. Mafuyu was enjoying teasing Tsukasa, she knew she could get a lot of stuff from this guy if she was a bad person. This reminded Mafuyu of two little kids fighting with each other, trying to make the teacher believe them.

Just what she never had in her childhood…
Mafuyu shook her head. She didn’t want to spoil this moment.

 

<I’m not manipulating you, I’m just communicating how your comment made me feel…>

 

Tsukasa yelped, and Mafuyu used this opportunity to throw her last strike at this dear friend of hers.

 

<Or you want me to stay quiet and suffer alone, just to not stroke your ego? Aw, man… I thought you were being honest, but seems like I just encountered an egoistic friend…>

 

Mafuyu’s pouts were the ending point for Tsukasa. He had officially forgotten completely about this stupid act of hers, right now his priority had become admitting his wrongdoings to comfort his friend.

 

<Fine, fine! I’m sorry for… Uh…>

 

This was when Tsukasa realized, what was the fight about again? Just when it hit him, Mafuyu’s chuckles were heard from the other side. Ah, she had just played him hard…

Tsukasa stood up from his chair, dropping his headphones to the side of his desk, before putting them right back on because he would not be able to hear Mafuyu otherwise.
Well, what was there to hear, other than Mafuyu having a blast in her own little world?

 

<I can’t believe you fell for that, really! You’re too innocent!>

 

Tsukasa rolled his eyes at this unwanted comment, groaning and sitting back down again on his chair. He wanted to say a lot of not so nice things to Mafuyu, but he refrained from doing so because…
Uh… He definitely just didn’t feel like doing so! Not because his heart didn’t let him or anything, that’s just in literature!

 

<Yeah yeah, whatever… I let myself fail on purpose!>

 

<Sure, and I’m german.>

 

<You little…>

 

Tsukasa was about to slam his fist on his desk, before he clearly heard Mafuyu laughing. It wasn’t just chuckles or giggles, it was…
Full on laughter.
But, it was nice to listen to it, even if it was making fun of Tsukasa.
Tsukasa smiled, turning up the volume of his headphones to the maximum without Mafuyu’s notice. Her laughter was…
Nice to listen to.
Just this once, Tsukasa let himself give up to the heat of his cheeks, melting inside his pajamas as he heard Mafuyu having the time of her life. Thinking about having the ability to make someone have this sweet laughter made him feel all giddy inside…

WAIT, THEY COMPLETELY FORGOT ABOUT OWN!

 

<Mafuyu, uh, so tomorrow I am free indeed!>

 

These words shook Mafuyu out of her good mood, bringing her back to the present. Right, so if Tsukasa was free tomorrow… Where could they meet?
That’s when an idea struck her like lighting. The SEKAI!

 

<Okay. Let’s meet up at the SEKAI then.>

 

Ah, she dropped her persona yet again. Tsukasa was saddened, thinking about the lost laughter because of the question being brought up again.
Even so, that laughter from Mafuyu really did feel real…

<Sure! Oh, and I wanna say something before you leave.>

 

Mafuyu had her cursor over the end call button, before pulling it away.

 

<What?>

 

<I… I enjoyed hearing you laugh. Can you promise me to laugh more often? … Please?>

 

Mafuyu’s cheeks turned bright red.

---

 

Mizuki (Lovedips)

Heyyayayaya
Wanna like
Hangout 2day?

 

Ena (Lovedips)

U could have said that before I pulled an all-nighter

 

Kanade (Lovedips)

Wait you guys sleep?

 

Mizuki (Lovedips)
BAHAHAHAHA

 

Ena (Lovedips)

GIRL LIKE

OFC? 

💀

 

Kanade (Lovedips)

Ah

Reasonable

 

Mizuki (Lovedips)

Okay okay whatever

So likeeee

You guys free?

 

Ena (Lovedips)

It better be good

 

Mizuki (Lovedips)

A friend of mine can save us a spot on our favourite diner

He’s the employee of the month or smth

 

Ena (Lovedips)

If it’s burger king I swear

 

Kanade (Lovedips)

Hey, what’s wrong with burger king?
I like their interactive table games

 

Ena (Lovedips)
Now what are you on about…?

 

Mizuki (Lovedips)

My notifications RIP

But yeah

It is THAT burger king

 

Ena (Lovedips)

Pass

 

Mizuki (Lovedips)

WHA

WHY?

 

Ena (Lovedips)

I’m not a child

I’m 17

 

Mizuki (Lovedips)

Still a minor

No pun intended

 

Ena (Lovedips)

I almost sent that text to twitter

 

Mizuki (Lovedips)

NOT TWITTER

X*

 

Ena (Lovedips)

Yeah yeah whatever
I’m still not going

 

Kanade (Lovedips)

I am going. 

I want that table.

Mizuki (Lovedips)

Sure, we’re getting that table!

It’s on me btw

 

Ena (Lovedips)

When do I get there?

 

Mizuki (Lovedips)

I knew you’d accept that

So that makes us three

Yuki?

 

Ena (Lovedips)

Yukiiii

 

Kanade (Lovedips)

Yuki, you’re online

 

Mizuki (Lovedips)

BUSTED

 

Ena (Lovedips)

If you don’t wanna go, just say so

Or just don’t ghost us

 

Mafuyu was staring at her phone, observing the conversation unfold. She was already dressed, with her new mask on her opposite hand holding the phone. She was just about to get in the SEKAI before her phone blew up with notifications and mentions.

She was supposed to meet up with Tsukasa, but…
This was work, she couldn’t deny going to burger king. Even if she’s just going to order a water bottle.

But Tsukasa…

…

 

Me

I’m sorry

I’m occupied

I can’t attend

:(

 

Mizuki (lovedips)

Wait fr?

 

Ena (Lovedips)

Yeah sure

You live for your work

What else could you possibly have to do?

Just saying

 

Me

I can’t disclose that information

But really, you think I would want to skip this meeting?

With my friends?

It’d be autosabotage if you think about it

 

Mizuki (Lovedips)

BOOM

IN YOUR FACE

 

Ena (Lovedips)

Well, you do have a point

MIZUKI I’M GONNA STAB YOU

 

Mizuki (Lovedips)

Didn’t know ur ass was into that stuff

likeee

 

Kanade (Lovedips)

Someone into stabbing?

Never heard of it

 

Ena (Lovedips)

SHUT UP

Like

So annoying bffr

 

Mizuki (Lovedips)

So Yuki u can’t rlly go?

No space?

 

Me

I highly doubt it

Don’t forget to send me pictures of you guys having fun!

 

Ena (Lovedips)

That would be cruel

 

Me

I’m asking for it

Is it really cruel that way?

Seeing you guys have fun

Will make me have fun too

 

Mizuki (Lovedips)

Yuki adopt me

Be my mother

 

Ena (Lovedips)

YO WHAT THE

 

Me

Hahaha!

Sadly, that’s not possible

Besides, I wouldn’t have the time to raise you

But it is nice to think about it

 

Mizuki (Lovedips)

But I mean

If you’re older

Perhaps

You can adopt me?

Even if

You’re a month older than me

 

Me

Even if I officially disclosed my age

The time factor is still in play

Not that I dislike the idea

However, you don’t have space in my home either

 

Mizuki (Lovedips)

WHYYYYYY

You’re the reason I became an idol!

Please just adopt me!!11!1

:((( 

 

Me

With all due respect

You finding me attractive and stalking me into future ent. building

Isn’t helping your convincing

Just a little comment, don’t mind me

 

Ena (Lovedips)

HAH

In ur face mf

 

Mizuki (Lovedips)

“The worst she can say is no”

Suck my ass

 

Me

If you excuse me

I have to make the leave now

See you tomorrow!

 

Mizuki (Lovedips)

I’ll bring u tmrrw adoption papers

Be aware

 

Ena (Lovedips)

Damn obsessed much

But see ya

 

Kanade (Lovedips)

Have a good day, Yuki

 

Finally, Mafuyu turned off her phone and took a deep breath. Mizuki had started to stress her out a little bit, so it was nice to be able to rest her eyes from that screen and situation for a little while.

Now then, what was she doing before this inconvenience?

Right! She was going to meet up with Tsukasa in the SEKAI.

Mafuyu turned on her phone again, going into the private spotify playlist. There, she spotted the untitled song.

Before clicking on play, she gazed at her mask tightly grabbed by her right hand.

… 

After a few seconds of intense staring, Mafuyu reluctantly put it on. While she knew Tsukasa’s identity, Tsukasa still didn’t know hers…

Ah, there was still something she wanted to do!
Mafuyu hurriedly opened her bedroom door and quietly made her way into the bathroom, closing the door behind her. There, she came across her big mirror.
Mafuyu had her hair curlier than usual, she didn’t find any reason to straighten it. She was wearing a long-sleeved white shirt, with a turquoise skirt that reached her knees and was held by a black belt on her waist. Mafuyu was also wearing a long, brown cardigan, just for the aesthetic. Last but not least, she put on her black vans. She thought about using her heels, but found no use in it whatsoever, especially knowing how this dude dressed up casual. Mafuyu had started to wonder if he’d dress this way even at a wedding.
Well, she could ask him once she arrived at the SEKAI.

As quickly as she came in, Mafuyu left the bathroom and found herself inside her bedroom once again. Her mother did not have any reason to disturb her at all, so Mafuyu would not have any potential trouble.
Even so, she made sure to lock her bedroom door. Surprising to think someone like her mother would let her have a lock, but Mafuyu was not going to bring it up any time soon either.

Okay, enough chat. Mafuyu had her phone on her left hand, already about to play the Untitled song. She took one last breath…

And pressed play.

---

 

Mafuyu opened her eyes, finding herself in the middle of nowhere. Grey skies filling up the never ending space, something she had started to become quite familiar with. Mafuyu didn’t have the best time seeing through that porcelain mask, however she still made the decision to start walking into an unknown direction.

How curious, Mafuyu adventuring into an unknown destination with no second plan in mind… Perhaps, in the deepest corner of her soul, she was aware of the safety this place unknowingly brought her? Once again, questions that can’t be resolved with a simple lie.

Mafuyu kept walking, now enjoying her little silent moments of thinking. Mafuyu used to enjoy thinking back in the days, but ever since middle school, she only has the emotional strength to think about survival. What could have caused her this change? Why couldn’t she let herself let loose and enjoy the moment? As much as she asked, Mafuyu understood that she was still a long mile away from getting to that long awaited answer. Just like a choreographed dance. You first need to learn the basic moves and then you start polishing them into perfection.
But if she didn’t even know how to get the basic knowledge to solve her misery, how was she supposed to… Keep going?

This made Mafuyu stop dead in her tracks. That’s… True.

Why does she keep going? What makes her stop from disappearing? What’s her motivation? 

Mafuyu didn’t have an answer to any of those questions. Her motivation might be finding the answer, but… She needed the motivation to find the answer, yet the question was about how to get the motivation to find the answer. It was a never-ending cycle, and Mafuyu had just avoided it enough to bump against it in this weird place.

“Ah, I have nowhere to go…” Mafuyu whispered to herself, stupidly wishing for some angel to hear her and bring her comfort. She didn’t have nowhere to go in this place, however, Mafuyu meant the real world.

She had a job, she had a family, she had hobbies, she had everything anyone could ask for.

Everything but herself.

She wonders, would life be the same if she didn’t feel like disappearing?

Would her goals stay the same?

Would her surroundings love her the same way?

Thinking made Mafuyu’s stomach grow a knot or two, making her aware of what she was doing. She couldn’t let the uncertainty get in the way of her life, at least, not now. She had to meet up with Tsukasa…

But where?

“Uh, hello?” Mafuyu’s voice echoed through the limitless world, bouncing back nothing but silence. This was useless.

“I found you.”

Mafuyu jolted from the sudden sound of that robotic voice. For once, she felt glad she found Miku…

But then realized it was Miku indeed. Mafuyu had grown quite the feeling for her. Not the nice one.

Mafuyu kept walking without looking back.

“Mafuyu… Hey where are you going-”

Just this time, Miku did reach out to Mafuyu and grabbed her arm, gently pulling it towards her. Mafuyu finally turned around, only to be met with the same robot she started despising some weeks ago. Miku’s appearance hadn’t changed much, only difference being she now had a golden necklace, like the ones rappers wear.

“Hello, Miku.” Mafuyu said distantly. Miku smiled, perhaps not catching the undertone behind her words.

“Ah- Good morning, Mafuyu.” Miku said back, still smiling in place. This shook Mafuyu a bit. Morning? How did Miku know it was morning? Mafuyu pulled her arm away from Miku in a quick move, before looking at her with wonder.

“How do you know it’s morning? Wait, how do you even know what morning is?”

Mafuyu was now completely facing Miku, her disgust completely dissipated from her face as now she was simply wondering about this incongruity. Miku closed her eyes and giggled, it sounding more like a melody, before looking at Mafuyu with more compassionate eyes.

“Tsukasa taught me!” Miku showed emotion, kind of scaring Mafuyu in a sense. Wait, this meant Miku had been talking to Tsukasa just now?

“Where’s Tsukasa? We are supposed to meet up right now…” Mafuyu said into the grey void, looking around as if he was gonna appear from a random rock lying around. Last time they entered the SEKAI, they had the luck of appearing right next to each other. Perhaps Tsukasa had arrived sooner, meaning he’d already moved places.

Miku got closer to Mafuyu, however, she didn’t answer her question. Instead, Miku slightly tilted her head to the side, meeting Mafuyu’s eyes.

“Your eyes look different.” Miku ended up saying, going back into her position. Different? How could they be any different?

“Different?” Mafuyu said her thoughts out loud. Miku nodded.

“Yes, different from a moment ago. It was mentioning Tsukasa, and your eyes changed…”

What was she- Mafuyu shook her head, clearly not believing this robot presented in front of her face. But Miku didn’t stop there.

“How can you deny it, if you haven’t seen it yourself?” Miku asked, taking a step closer to Mafuyu. Mafuyu was well aware of how she didn’t feel that nice feeling when Miku got closer. Now that she thought of it, when Mizuki came closer some time ago, she never felt that nice feeling either.

Something was starting to become a bit clearer, but Mafuyu ignored it.

“Forget it,” Mafuyu stated, “, I need to get to Tsukasa before he thinks I… Left him alone.”

Mafuyu would have mentioned something about making him think she stood him up , but her heart stopped her from saying such words. Now, she understood the situation better. Tsukasa had shared the private matter of the divorce of his parents, and how he felt like it was all his fault. Mafuyu has never experienced divorced parents first-hand, but she is coherent enough to understand that Tsukasa was dealing with really conflicting feelings, and it wouldn’t be the best idea to leave him alone for a long time. Mafuyu also remembered how Tsukasa blames himself for every single thing, even those who don’t hold any importance, so…

… Ah, Miku wa staring funny at Mafuyu.

Mafuyu cleared her throat, before referring to Miku once again.

“Where is Tsukasa at?” Mafuyu asked, hiding her discomfort at the potential scenarios appearing in her head.

“Hmmm…” Miku hummed, looking around. “I’m not good with giving directions, so I’ll just show you.”

“Fair enough” Mafuyu answered, walking to Miku’s side. Miku then started walking in a direction Mafuyu never took, yet she trusted this clown- AHEM, robot- and followed her.

“So…” Miku started talking, “I noticed you were thinking about how Tsukasa felt before, was I wrong?”

Oh, there she goes again… Could a robot get more stubborn than this? Mafuyu internally rolled her eyes before deciding on an answer. Even though she badly wanted to lie and downplay the situation, she knew she couldn’t from the bottom of her heart.

“Yes, what’s the matter about it?” Mafuyu tilted her head and looked at Miku with judgmental eyes, but Miku instead fixated her watch on the invisible path ahead.

“I was curious…” Miku trailed off, making a sudden turn. To be fair, Mafuyu was also curious about Tsukasa, so she could understand Miku to some extent. Maybe Miku wasn’t as horrible as Mafuyu had initially thought?

They kept walking in silence, only an ominous white noise was being heard in the distance. Although Mafuyu wondered what that was, she didn’t press onto the matter. Instead, she focused on Tsukasa and his whereabouts. She hoped Miku had at least an idea on how Tsukasa blamed himself for everything, and was being quicker than she’d be in a normal scenario. If only Mafuyu realized earlier, she would have at least given a text to Tsukasa through her computer, as she doesn’t have his number…

… Mafuyu looked away from Miku as a thought flashed right through her mind. But Miku noticed right away.

“Mafuyu?” Miku questioned.

“Hmm?” Mafuyu hummed, still looking away from her.

“Why… Did you look away? Is something the matter?” Miku appeared slightly preoccupied. On the other hand, Mafuyu was growing slightly nervous at the direct confrontation of her reaction. This is something that has been going on for quite some time, yet she never really thought about it. Rather, perhaps she knew the answer deep down but didn’t want to acknowledge it?

“Uh…” Mafuyu’s mind ran short with answers, which would have given her away with someone like Ena or Mizuki, but Miku seriously needed to take some classes on social cues.

“... You can’t answer?”

“No yeah, it’s not that important. Let’s drop the subject, okay?”

“If you say so…”

… And that’s when Mafuyu got reminded of the mask covering her face. She’s very intelligent!

---

 

After 2 minutes or so of nonstop walking, Mafuyu suddenly encountered familiar blonde hairs in the distance. He was sitting on top of an abnormally high rock, with a keyboard right down his feet. Mafuyu stopped in her tracks, observing the scenario and preparing a way of approaching Tsukasa.

“Mafuyu,” Miku said, “, there’s no need to overthink this. You just have to get close and say hi, it’s not that deep.”

Since when did Miku catch on what was happening?

… Whatever, it’s not as if she was wrong. 

Mafuyu took a deep breath, before starting to walk towards Tsukasa.

Each step she took, she felt a bit awkward with herself. It felt as if she was about to do something out of the routine… But no! She’s just going to approach her friend, and her friend is going to be beaming happy just like always!

Although… 

Mafuyu stopped once more, just when she got a nice glimpse at Tsukasa’s face.

He was…

He was crying…?

 

“Tsukasa…?”

Notes:

Tsukasa rn is me fr
Like- my crush could've at least rejected me
BUT NO!!!! He took the flowers, and avoided me completely the next day
Fucking bitch
I'm gonna put glitter in his jordans
But whatever, have a great day! Uh next chapter won't be so late, ig I promise
Also I'm in love with squid game season 2
Goodbye, and NEVER, and I repeat, NEVER give out flowers to a guy

Chapter 6: Confusing warmth

Notes:

I'm back nerds
Remember flower guy? We slept together :D
Never back down never what?

“Tsukasa…?”

 

Mafuyu’s voice echoed like a lullaby in the place, melting into the strange ambience. It felt like gently blowing on a river of water, watching how the unified droplets behave when confronted with an external source of direction.

In this case, those droplets were Tsukasa.

Tsukasa perked up at the mention of his name. He quickly shook his head to the sides and finally faced the source of direction, he faced his friend Mafuyu.

 

“Uh… Hey!”

 

Tsukasa raised his hand in a wave motion, however he gave up mid action acknowledging the situation he had just been brought into by none other than himself. He hid his emotions behind a cough and tried masking his feelings.

 

“So, Mafuyu…” He began, “you’ve arrived quite soon, haven’t you?”

 

Mafuyu looked at Miku expressionless, trying to get a glimpse of a clue, trying to give Tsukasa’s tears some reason. What was he just crying about?

Miku stepped forward, her golden necklace bouncing against her chest. She approached Tsukasa and Mafuyu now took a closer look at the boy. He was sitting down with his legs crossed, his arms behind his back. He was wearing a plain, black T-shirt with some oversized, short pants. They were black, with a design in the middle of them. Mafuyu’s cheeks were starting to flush a pinkish colour, which she took as her cue to look away as she still didn’t want to think that even though Tsukasa wouldn’t be able to see her face.

Miku leaned in on the keyboard at his feet and looked at him, eyes fixated on the other pair of eyes.

 

“Are you okay, Tsukasa?” Miku asked, slightly tilting her head to the side in interest.

 

Tsukasa chuckled and nodded, seemingly not matching the same level of interest in Miku, yet he began enthusiastically helping himself off his big rock. Miku extended a hand to help him out when he was mid-way, but he looked away and simply jumped with a soft groan.

 

“Ugh, I’m too old to be climbing these big things…” Tsukasa lamented in his own world.

 

Mafuyu’s eyes went back to her friend. He had this black cap on with the number 88 in yellow ink. The cap seriously looked nice on him, although Mafuyu thought maybe it would look even better if it was spun around. Whatever, it’s not her problem. She would approach him asking if he was okay, however everyone there was aware he wouldn’t want to speak up about it. With that, she simply sighed internally and walked up to him.

 

“Good morning,” Mafuyu said against the mask.

 

That’s when Tsukasa finally met his friend’s eyes and became aware of the physical mask on her face, a pout was soon evident at the realization.

 

“Oh, I thought it would be fine to not have our masks around anymore…” Tsukasa said with pursed lips, looking a bit under Mafuyu’s face.

 

Mafuyu hadn’t thought about giving away her face. In all due honesty, she was completely sure the dynamic between them would change drastically if Tsukasa became aware of the exact idol he was seeing right in front of his face. Even if that didn’t seem like something Tsukasa would like either, Mafuyu couldn’t (or didn’t want to) bear the thought of being faced with another fake person in her life yet again.

Miku approached the pair, Tsukasa could see three pairs of shoes now forming a triangle.

 

“Mafuyu,” Miku started, “Do you want to take off your mask?”

 

Mafuyu sighed, this time audible enough for Tsukasa to hear. That was his cue.

 

“Miku, it’s fine really!” Tsukasa beamed with sudden excitement, now returning his eyes onto the purplenette. “Mask or not, we agreed on coming here to get work done together! I don’t mind it, you have my word!”

 

Mafuyu became aware of her slouched position and straightened her back with this new-found reasoning behind their meeting, now relaxing her body a bit. Tsukasa could do nothing more but to mimic her actions and grow a smile on himself, unaware of Miku analizing them both.

After what felt like hours, Miku finally spoke up.

 

“Tsukasa, you told me you wanted to show Mafuyu your demo?”

 

Mafuyu was genuinely surprised at this comment. She expected Tsukasa to be the guy to make something on the spot, not to have something planned out, even if it’s something as small as a demo.

 

“Yeah! Mafuyu, please follow me over here”

 

Tsukasa guided her back to where his rock was, gently tapping some random keys on the piano and controlling the level of noise. He was plugging it in a powerbank he must’ve brought from home.

 

“Now, I was only able to bring my keyboard BUT!” Tsukasa closed his eyes and raised his index finger pointing into the air. “This was in my plan to let you help me choose the most chaotic sounds possible to fill the melody.”

 

Tsukasa opened his eyes slightly to see Mafuyu’s reaction. As expected, nothing. He saw this coming.

 

“Fill the melody?” Miku perked up, “What do you mean by that, Tsukasa?”

 

“Glad you asked!” Tsukasa now pointed with that same finger at Miku and smirked, his eyes trailing off once again on Mafuyu. Now she was starting to grow curious about Tsukasa…

Well, that’s what Tsukasa wanted to think, in reality he had no idea what thoughts were passing through Mafuyu’s head at the moment. Even so, he knew he had to focus.

 

“SO!” Tsukasa announced, “I will first play out the melody on the piano and ask you what it made you feel, okay Mafuyu?”

 

Mafuyu nodded, perplexed. Just when she thought Mizuki’s comment about adoption was weird… Why did Tsukasa want to know what the melody made Mafuyu feel like?

She convinced herself he was simply curious.

 

“Fine by me.” She announced back as a response.

 

Tsukasa looked triumphal because of this response and he quickly got his hands occupied moving the keyboard and powerbank around like a minimum wage worker. He pulled a hidden bench from some rock, deteriorated like Mafuyu’s chair (she really should change her little chair) and sat himself on one of the ends of the bench. While he was adjusting his keyboard to be lowered, Miku got to Mafuyu’s side.

 

“Mafuyu,” she whispered into the ominous air, “If you need anything, call me. I will come to your side.”

 

As soon as Mafuyu nodded, Miku was on her way into some path and quickly disappeared into the Horizon. How weird, although it wouldn’t be fair to call Miku weird when this whole place was the weirdest thing Mafuyu has come across yet.

Mafuyu approached the bench and sat on the other end of it, resting her back on the poor quality of the bench’s backrest. The ominous sounds coming from nowhere were starting to drive her mad.

 

“Now then,” Tsukasa said in a lowered voice, “Just sit back and enjoy…”

 

---

 

The first thing that made her fully open her eyes was the fact it sounded off-key. Completely off-key.

Mafuyu was trying to make sense of the beginning, it felt like they were just randomized keys thrown together and forced to cooperate even if they didn’t have anything in common, but it was so disastrous it was impossible for any of those keys to not have any harmony between them. 

Just when Mafuyu thought the whole song was going to be like the first five seconds, it shifted. Tsukasa pressed a big group of keys making a loud sound and began playing even more off-key. Mafuyu fought the urge to turn to look at him and instead tried making sense of the chaos of this melody. Somehow…

She understood what he was trying to convey. At least a little bit.

It was starting to grow a little bit inside of her, that chaos… She felt it somewhere deep inside her heart, resonating into some hidden truth covered by a lie. The way those keys sounded together, disastrous yet meant to be… Irony. Violence. No sense.

Yet everything made sense.

As such, the song picked up and began sounding more peaceful.

It felt heavy, storytelling. Mafuyu rested her back further, fully inverted in what Tsukasa was trying to convey. The slower pace of things and the way the sounds just were made for each other…

When Mafuyu was captivated, more keys began sounding together. It sounded decisive but halting, ironic and hypocritical. Somehow, Mafuyu began kind of understanding some possible lyrics ideas with this song.

Suddenly, Tsukasa stopped as if time came to a halt because of this song, catching Mafuyu on edge. He pressed two simple keys, and…

Violence.

The keys were receiving violence. Mafuyu portrayed them as screaming, begging and pleading to be let free, to be used without causing them more harm than necessary. They judged and were drowned in corrupted agony, forced to swallow down their discomfort as it didn’t benefit the piece itself. This felt like home to Mafuyu, and for Mafuyu home was suffocating.

 

Mafuyu… She felt the need to breathe.

 

So,

 

she took her mask off.

 

She could feel the cool air of the place on her face, it felt nice. Even thought she was maskless, she didn’t feel any type of pressure.

Simple irony from the melody.

Mafuyu… Rested. With the chaos the melody brought.

She could rest in the familiarity of the chaos she always tried to bottle up.

The chaos of her family.

The chaos of her social life.

The chaos of her job.

The chaos of herself.

 

She let her arm drop to her side, her mask bouncing against that grey floor.

 

The song kept going. In some weird, twisted way, Mafuyu desired for this to keep going. This agonizing song could perfectly be Mafuyu’s everyday lullaby. How messed up can someone be to even consider that? This was the only time it didn’t matter at all.

Mafuyu could feel herself almost breathing out the notes, like interpreting the music from her heart. The ghostly light coming from above was soothing her too, Mafuyu readjusted herself on the bench and relaxed just enough to let the music go through her whole body, like letting yourself get hit by a big wave at the sea.

Mafuyu looked over her shoulder slightly to catch a glimpse of her friend. Tsukasa had his eyes closed, his fingers tracing the piano keys with grace. As if he could hear Mafuyu’s stare, he opened his eyes and returned the act while playing what looked like the final part of the song. His eyebrows lifted for a split second before being covered by a polite yet welcoming smile. Mafuyu had almost forgotten about her mask, but before she could react, the song made an abrupt end.

 

As slow as molasses, Tsukasa gently brushed his fingertips away from the keyboard, further resting on his lap. Once again, he returned his eyes to their previous spot, it being Mafuyu.

After a while, the blonde cut through the silence.

 

“The nickname makes sense now,” Tsukasa chuckled, “I don’t know how I didn’t catch on earlier.”

 

Mafuyu’s expression was like a white canvas, however a tiny upward change on her mouth known as a slight smile was soon more than evident.

 

“... Perhaps you’re just stupid.”

 

Saying Tsukasa jolted up from that seat as fast as Usain Bolt can run is an understatement. Tsukasa almost became a rocketship which just blasted off the face of the Earth onto space. 

 

“HUH?!” Tsukasa loudly exclaimed.

 

Mafuyu couldn’t help herself but to giggle at his reaction, hiding her crime behind her palm. Upon seeing this, Tsukasa’s demeanor changed to a cooler tone and he settled down back again on his seat.

 

“I’m not stupid!” Tsukasa announced, “I was just caught off guard!”

 

“Whatever makes you sleep tight at night,” Mafuyu said as her final blow.

 

Tsukasa loudly growled and sunk his head deep into his hands, dramatically dropping his body weight onto the bench. At such a sight, Mafuyu felt her body lighter. What was this feeling? Why did her body feel lighter when joking with Tsukasa?

Do friends feel that way when joking with each other? It felt… Pleasant.

After a while of being in deep silence, Tsukasa was yet again the first to reach out.

 

“So, Mafuyu…” Tsukasa began, looking to the floor, “, what do you think about the song?”

 

Mafuyu kept looking at the big void of grey and rocks, not long before responding.

 

“I… I liked it.”

 

Tsukasa perked up and spun his head around upon hearing this, his loosened cap barely making it out alive. Mafuyu grew curious and returned the gesture like the times before, before being met with a strange feeling.

That warmth… She looked deep into Tsukasa’s eyes, feeling the tip of her ears begin to get a bit warm, the feeling slowly creeping up to Mafuyu’s cheeks. Tsukasa looked expectant, childish even, however Mafuyu didn’t feel mobbed in any way. She began to notice that, as seconds went by, Tsukasa quickly grew more fidgety and shortly after began tripping over his words.

 

“Ah, I’m glad, really! It was, uh, not that difficult for me of course! But like I can understand if you could find it difficult… Well not you because you’re amazing! Wait, not amazing as in idolizing you, just like uh amazing as your friend you know? Just- ignore what I said.”

 

Tsukasa pursed his lips and puffed out his cheeks, trying to hide under his cap as he had given up trying to explain anything. It was natural that Mafuyu’s curiosity had gone over the roof with his reaction, however… Would it be wrong for her to share the same nervousness?

Wait, what is she even saying? What does she think of it…

Mafuyu snapped out of cloud nine and looked away, almost feeling embarrassed about everything. For a moment there, Mafuyu felt her heart flutter like butterfly wings, she couldn’t let that happen. It must be some sort of confusion of her body, nothing else.

 

“I…” Mafuyu began, “, I have an idea on the lyrics.”

 

Tsukasa relaxed and smiled ever so slightly.

 

“Well then!” Tsukasa’s inner switch clicked as he stood up and turned to Mafuyu, “We should get started! I’ll add a couple sounds here and there,” he signaled with his hands, “If you want to add anything yourself, let me know!”

 

Tsukasa’s chest puffed out with pride at his leadership skills although Mafuyu had stopped looking a long while ago to work on her individual project. It was fine though, Tsukasa sat back down and stretched out his knuckles to begin his own work.

 

To think that Mafuyu was Yuki… It was obvious now. The same nickname, the same eyes, the same company… He should’ve seen it coming. Maybe it’s something positive that he didn’t push onto FBI mode too much and he didn’t discover her identity beforehand, that would’ve been certainly an interesting situation to face, not that Tsukasa wanted to try it out either. 

He wasn’t someone who watched a lot of idol groups but Lovedips… It was an exception. They were the definition of talented. The four members were almost flawless in each skillset imaginable, especially their leader Yuki. To think that Tsukasa had been working with Yuki all this time…

But now, a different question popped inside his head. Yuki seemed perfect, why would have she started the OWN project?

And why would she want to… Disappear?

Tsukasa looked at Mafuyu. She looked lifeless while working on the lyrics. Tsukasa still found her cute, but…

What is he even saying? Tsukasa, focus on the song for God’s sake!!

---

 

Ding!

 

After a long time of silence interrupted by keyboard sounds and Tsukasa’s eventual humming, Mafuyu’s phone lit up with a notification of a group chat. She picked up her phone to check who it was.

It was a picture of Lovedips inside a diner, their favorite diner.

 

“You good?” Tsukasa perked up at Mafuyu’s long stare at her phone.

 

Mafuyu didn’t feel any emotion towards the picture of her groupmates, as hard as she wanted to stare. She sunk back into her place, defeated.

 

“Yeah…” Mafuyu breathed out, “My group is eating out again.”

 

Tsukasa hummed and readjusted himself back on his seat, “They didn’t invite you?”

 

“They did,” Mafuyu was quick to correct him, “, but I had plans with you so I declined.”

 

Tsukasa blinked in surprise, “You rejected going out with the most popular idols just to work with a random dude you met online?”

 

Now it was Mafuyu’s turn to look surprised. Random dude?

 

“But you’re not random, weren’t we friends?” Mafuyu questioned Tsukasa.

 

“Well of course! But…” Tsukasa stopped, looking into the void, “... Thank you.” He decided to finish it off with.

 

Mafuyu let it slide and went inside the group chat as Tsukasa went back to his work.

---

 

Mizuki (Lovedips)

 

* Image attached

Look Yuki! I stole all of Ena’s french fries!!

 

Ena (Lovedips)

 

If I were you I would check your wallet

 

Mizuki (Lovedips)

 

ENA WHERE IS MY BLACK CARD

 

Ena (Lovedips)

 

Payback

 

Kanade (Lovedips)

 

Guys stop fighting please

Yuki, how are you doing?

 

Ena (Lovedips)

 

Probably having more fun without Mizuki

 

Mizuki (Lovedips)

 

You’re acting as if stealing french fries is a federal crime

 

Ena (Lovedips)

 

WELL IT IS

Wait, we don’t even know what Yuki is up to

 

Mizuki (Lovedips)

 

Now I’m curious tooooo

Yuki, stop leaving us on read!!

 

Mafuyu loudly sighed, catching Tsukasa’s attention.

 

“They’re annoying you?” Tsukasa now turned completely to face Mafuyu, leaving his computer on his side.

 

Mafuyu shook her head and lowered her phone to her lap, turning it a little bit to the side. Tsukasa looked at her eyes before scooting closer just enough to read it. After a while, he chuckled in endearment.

 

“I thought their banter was only for the cameras…” Tsukasa laughed.

 

Mafuyu sighed again, this time only a string of air leaving her. She was aware of the physical closeness with her friend (even though it was simply Tsukasa not being in the furthest corner of the bench), not that she minded it. Mafuyu moved a bit closer to Tsukasa and readjusted herself so he could see her screen better.

 

“And I have to deal with this… Everyday…” Mafuyu stretched out the words dramatically with a blank face, earning more chuckles from Tsukasa.

 

“Must be painful” Tsukasa giggled.

 

“Terrible.” Mafuyu added.

 

Kanade (Lovedips)

 

Yuki please stop leaving them on read, they’re driving me crazy

 

Ena (Lovedips)

 

YUKI WHAT ARE YOU DOING

WHY ARE YOU BEING MYSTERIOUS

THIS IS SUS

 

Mizuki (Lovedips)

 

SUS INDEED

PLEASE RESPOND!!!

 

Me

I apologize for not responding earlier

You text really fast, it’s hard for me to catch up completely!!

Hahaha

“You don’t text me so many words…” Tsukasa pouted at Mafuyu’s uninterested hum. She turned her head to look him in the eyes.

He was really close… Only one hand of distance. Mafuyu could feel herself almost too immersed into his honey-glazed watch, having to force herself out of it.

 

“... I’m more honest with you.” Mafuyu whispered.

 

“It’s better this way then.” Tsukasa settled on with. He leaned slightly forward, now Mafuyu could feel his faint breath on her shoulder. It made her skin become unusually warm, however she didn’t want to push him away. She stayed in silence for a while before reading again the group chat.

 

Mizuki (Lovedips)

 

YUUUKKKIIII

It’s like you forget to respond idk!!

 

Ena (Lovedips)

 

Just

WHAT are you up to??

It’s not even curiosity anymore

 

Mizuki (Lovedips)

 

It’s a need

 

Ena (Lovedips)

 

Yeah!

It’s not even desire

 

Me

As I previously mentioned, I’m occupied with undisclosable information

At least I’m lucky enough to be able to text you guys back

Ah, who would I be without you?

I don’t even wanna imagine it!

 

“Kiss-ass” Tsukasa blurted out, making Mafuyu roll her eyes.

 

Kanade (Lovedips)

 

Us either, Yuki

But I won’t deny it

I’m curious too

What are you so occupied with?

 

Ena (Lovedips)

 

Come OOONNN!!

You know we won’t juuuddgggeee

 

Me

 

That statement sounds like you are a victim of maladaptive daydreaming

 

Ena (Lovedips)

 

Just

What’s so important that you must hide it from us?

 

Mizuki (Lovedips)

 

Yeeeaaahhh

I waaannnaaaa knnnooowww

 

Mafuyu sighed while Tsukasa chuckled to himself. They were sometimes too much to bear, even to her Yuki self. No wonder she was the leader, she was the only one who could barely contain them properly…

As Mafuyu was drowning inside her self-pity, Tsukasa suddenly grabbed her phone out of her hands.

 

“Hey!” Mafuyu called out, trying to reach for it. Her efforts were in vain as Tsukasa stood up and held it out of range for Mafuyu.

 

“What’s wrong with you?” She called out again, dropping her arms to her sides as she watched Tsukasa fidget a bit with her phone with this sickening, stupid, CHILDISH grin on his face.

 

Tsukasa chuckled. “Nothing,” he said mischievously.

 

As Mafuyu kept staring at his wrongdoings, he elevated the phone to quite the goofy angle.

 

“Say cheese!” Tsukasa exclaimed.

 

“What?”

 

SNAP! A picture was taken with the flash on, blinding Mafuyu a bit. While rubbing her eyes, she became aware of what just happened.

 

“Did you just take a picture of me?” Mafuyu asked, knowing the answer.

 

Tsukasa dramatically shrugged his shoulders before handing back Mafuyu’s phone, leaning forward to the screen.

Mafuyu took a look at it…

 

It was a photo of her… With the GOOFIEST face you can imagine, taken from a forehead angle. Her forehead looked huge and her eyes looked like the ones of a bird. She wanted to punch Tsukasa in the nose so badly, but right now she had to take care of the fact that he sent it to the GROUP CHAT.

 

“You’re going to pay for this.” Mafuyu gritted in between her teeth, however Tsukasa only chuckled and signalled her to sit on the bench back again.

 

Mizuki (Lovedips)

 

LOOOOOLLLL

WHAT IS THIS

 

Ena (Lovedips)

 

BAHAAHAHAHAH

YUKI WHAT THE HELL

THIS IS LIT

 

Kanade (Lovedips)

 

Ha, Ha, Ha, Ha

Yuki, you seem to be having a good time

 

Mizuki (Lovedips)

 

Wait

Yuki, who took that picture for you?

Your hands are visibly on your sides

 

Ena (Lovedips)

 

YUKI????

WHO IS THAT PERSON?!?!

 

Mafuyu turned her head mere inches to face Tsukasa, now with a terrifying look that almost made Tsukasa shiver and back away, yet he stayed in his place. His ego is stronger that Mafuyu’s stare.

 

Mafuyu sighed and pinched the bridge of her nose in disbelief. “Now I have to deal with my group mates making assumptions.”

 

Tsukasa hummed, “I don’t see a problem in that.”

 

Yeah, since he wasn’t the one dealing with their behaviour almost 24/7. Lovedips were worse than stalkers, really. Mafuyu turned yet again at Tsukasa and stared at his eyes.

Even so… Even if she got pissed at his behaviour…

 

That feeling, that warmth creeping from her heart to her cheeks and tip of her ears… It made her heart go a little faster, like when she danced in a concert. Without the physical exhaustion.

It was weird, really. She hadn’t felt so… Strongly? Ever before?

What does it mean?

Either way, Mafuyu was still pissed.

 

“So, Tsukasa,” Mafuyu began, looking at her inbox flooding with messages from the group chat, “what exactly am I suppose to say to this?”

 

“Glad you asked!” He perked up, “just say you’re helping a friend out!”

 

… That sounds easier said than done.

 

“Sounds easier said than done” Mafuyu repeated her thoughts aloud.

 

“But you know how to handle this stuff,” Tsukasa fought back, leaning back a bit. “You’ve been dealing with them for three years I suppose, why wouldn’t you be able to make it work this once?”

 

He wasn’t entirely wrong… Yeah, he wasn’t entirely wrong, Mafuyu got convinced at the end.

 

Me

 

I’m with a friend, helping them out with a project

They hold it very dear to themselves and were excited for me to lend a hand

I’m sorry

;o(

 

Mizuki (Lovedips)

 

Awww

No need to apologize!!

We weren’t mad at you ofc

 

Ena (Lovedips)

 

Always you being goody-two shoes and helping everyone out

When will you have time for yourself???

 

Mafuyu tilted her head at this comment, feeling Tsukasa’s intense gaze on the phone. Time for herself? This was her free time, and she…

… Enjoyed? This?

Yeah… She enjoyed working on OWN. She likes being part of OWN.

 

Me

 

I like being part of the project

My time for myself is working with my friend

 

Suddenly, an alarm went off Tsukasa’s phone. He quickly grabbed it and looked at his own screen.

 

“Crap, I have to go!” Tsukasa hurriedly said, grabbing his laptop and keyboard. Mafuyu only stared at her friend, picking up everything.

Before tapping the Untitled song, Tsukasa stopped himself and looked at Mafuyu’s eyes.

That same feeling came in without missing a heartbeat.

 

“Hey, I enjoy being in OWN too!” Tsukasa exclaimed, “I look forward to our next time, okay?”

 

And with that, Tsukasa left while Mafuyu was dumbfounded. The feeling stayed, slowly walking away from her soul…

She placed her hands on her cheeks. They were slightly warm still, yet the feeling made her want to smile…

She looked around. No Miku in sight. Only her and her thoughts.

Mafuyu smiled and giggled, probably for the first time in some long years.

 

---

 

Mafuyu was resting on her bed. It was nine at night and Tsukasa apologized saying he wouldn’t be able to make it tonight, but he would make it up to Mafuyu.

Even so, Mafuyu was unfaced by the comment. She was instead focusing on something else.

 

“Hey, I enjoy being in OWN too!” Tsukasa exclaimed, “I look forward to our next time, okay?”

 

The feeling came blooming fast yet again, not as strong as when Tsukasa was around Mafuyu. She could feel her heartbeat becoming uneven once again, but not like anxiety…

 

Out of nowhere, the bedroom door swung open scaring the living hell out of Mafuyu. It was her mother, looking as calm and unfaced as ever.

 

“Mafuyu, darling, how was your day?” Her mother asked, the way she said it made Mafuyu’s stomach turn. Tsukasa didn’t make her feel this way, why would her mother do? She placed her invisible porcelain mask on once more.

 

“Mother, it has been fantastic!” Mafuyu squealed with excitement. “I went with my friends from Lovedips to this diner that Kanade loves! We had the best time ever!” She made big hand movements to support her lie.

 

Mafuyu’s mother slowly nodded, her eyes unreadable, like closed blinds. This would creep out any other person, but Mafuyu had grown used to it.

 

“Ah, that’s nice…” Her mother said, her voice lowering, “... But remember to take care of your diet, okay? You shouldn’t let your friends be a bad influence and make you eat a lot. You can get fat and not be loved anymore.”

 

This sentence gave Mafuyu chills down her spine, almost getting goosebumps. She yet was able to keep her act going, just for the sake of… Of…?

Just for the sake of it.

 

“Of course not, mother! You can trust me!” Mafuyu laughed with charm and laid back down on her not-so-cozy bed.

Her mother just nodded and half-wished her a good night, closing the door right after. This whole conversation… Why did Mafuyu get so stressed and lie to her own mother? Why didn’t she feel like doing the same to Tsukasa?

God, why was Tsukasa still in her mind?

It didn’t matter anymore, Mafuyu shook her head denying those unwanted thoughts and closed her eyes, beginning to doze off.

 

Hey, I enjoy being in OWN too…

Notes:

He tasted like tobacco

Notes:

Mafukasa on top