- Hmm~ Then which part of this song do you like best, Ai?
- Yes! I like the beginning the most, the intro. Just thinking about singing a song filled with my [sincerity] and [love] for my fans makes my heart flutter so much!
- Ah, right. At the start of the song, you have a signature pose, don’t you? Like this, with a wink and then the pose like this!
- Hey, what are you doing? Don’t copy that carelessly, you smell like an old man!
- Kya-ha-ha!
"What?! How dare that smelly old man try to—who does he think he is!?"
"That’s crossing the line."
Watching the recorded visual radio broadcast Ai had appeared on through Miyako’s laptop, Ruby ground her teeth so hard they might have sparked. Her eyes blazed like a veteran general ready to drive a tank straight into battle.
Aqua looked irritated too, crossing his arms and silently joining Ruby’s outrage.
When the overweight host with an untrimmed beard copied Ai’s signature pose, Ai and the members all burst out laughing, the atmosphere turning warm and cheerful.
But to the fans, he was nothing more than a target for extermination.
- Ah, a message just came in. User 8841. "It’s great seeing the B Komachi members. Good luck with [Sign Is B]."
- Thank you-☆ I’ll work even harder to repay everyone’s love!
- You’re definitely going way overboard today. Oh. That happy smile from the producer. I just want to bite him.
- Oh, this is good. User 5557. Ai-chan, what’s your favorite food? I’m so curious~
- Yes, well, it was supposed to be a secret-☆ but I’ll be honest this time. Actually, I like rice bowls. The kind with a sprinkle of shichimi. I really, really love them!
"Ooh! Ai-chan likes rice bowls!"
When Aqua shouted in excitement at learning the thing he had been most curious about, Ruby, who had spent the past four years after reincarnation diligently updating missing information, quickly rolled her eyes and memorized it in her head.
'Mama likes rice bowls. Mama likes rice bowls.'
- User 2114. You used to say it was a secret and wouldn’t tell us, but now’s my chance. What’s your favorite fruit? I sent, "Watermelon. Watermelon is great, isn’t it? I like watermelon too. What fruit do you like, Ai?"
- This was supposed to be a secret too-☆ but I’m in a good mood, so I’ll be honest… Yes! Pineapple! It’s so delicious! Especially when you eat it while you’re thirsty, it’s sweet and tangy and makes you feel like you’re ascending-☆
"Ooooooh! Pi-pineapple! Ai-chan likes pineapple! Pineapple is the best! Ai-chan really knows her food! Pineapple pizza is delicious too!"
"……."
Pineapple pizza? Ruby, who had been watching Aqua cheer with sparkling eyes, went completely deadpan.
To think she was related by blood to this weirdo. What a disaster.
- User 1515. What dream did you have yesterday? I wanted to dream about going on a picnic with Ai-chan, but instead I dreamed that a man who looked exactly like the host uncle confessed to me…. I’d like to apologize on his behalf.
- Kya-ha-ha! My dream from yesterday? Hmm……. I can’t remember, but I definitely remember two cute little baby angels shooting Cupid’s arrows at me, pew pew?
"Those two baby angels Mama just mentioned, that’s us, right?!"
"I-I think so!?"
"Ungh-yaaah!"
Ruby, who had been sitting at the table, flopped backward as if she might die of happiness. This was the best. This was why she was a fan. This was why she loved Ai.
There was nothing happier than being born as the daughter of her favorite idol.
Whether his little sister was losing her mind or not, Aqua kept staring at the laptop, not wanting to miss even the smallest detail about Ai.
After a few rounds of questions and talk, the host finally selected the last message before the song.
- Yes, this looks like the last message. User 5548. I wasn’t going to ask because I figured you wouldn’t answer, but I’ll ask anyway. Ai-chan’s ideal type! Does such a person even exist in this world? Oh. Is that a terrible question full of selfish intent? As a fan, that’s a serious lack of tact, isn’t it?
- Hey! Isn’t that way too much to ask an active idol?! How would you feel if someone asked whether you’d been to the bathroom today?
"No! Stuff like this is when the producer should use some sense and shut the question down, not sit there asking Ai-chan something like that! Do you really think guys like you could be her ideal type, you filthy smelly otaku bastards? Even if you ask something like that, Ai-chan’s seat next to her is mine, you lightning-struck bastards—!!!!!"
"C-calm down!"
As Ruby clutched Miyako’s poor laptop and screamed with a face full of hellfire, Aqua broke into a cold sweat and tried to calm her down.
On the laptop screen, Ai pursed her lips and tapped her finger against them thoughtfully for a moment, then smiled sweetly and opened her mouth.
- That’s a secret-☆ Ah! I’m sure they exist somewhere in this world! This is… [sincerity]-☆ Hehe.
Her radiant star-bright eyes shimmered like a morning star, gleaming with a beautiful iridescence.
"……."
"……."
For a moment, the twins lost control of their expressions and went rigid. Seeing Ai’s face as a completely "woman in love," they both thought of the same person at once.
There was no way the twins didn’t know who had stolen their favorite’s heart.
And that only made the bitterness of defeat taste even sharper.
The ideal type Ai had spoken of…
The man the twins would never beat, even if they died and came back to life again. The one and only man who would occupy Ai’s side forever.
Aqua remembered that incident from dawn the other day.
Ruby remembered the countless times she had seen the two of them stuck together, looking sickeningly happy.
And both of them clenched their teeth so hard they looked ready to crush their pacifiers in their hands.
This was this, and that was that.
Yes. This was this and that was that!
Still, as Ai’s biggest fans…
Absolutely!
"We’ll never forgive you!!!!!!!!!!!"
"……Sigh."
As the twins’ fury, enough to tear apart the bonds of heaven and blood, echoed through the house, Miyako held her head and let out a long sigh.
-
"……Ugh, wait. Do I need to scratch my ear?"
Suddenly feeling an itch in both ears, Kaoru frowned and rubbed around them with both palms.
He was about to start filming soon, and if his ears itched during the scene, it would ruin everything.
He made a mental note to ask Ai to clean his ears when their schedules eased up, then immediately headed to set.
The scene Kaoru was filming this time was his first face-to-face encounter with the student council president and the problem child who was the first among the drama’s six core leads, the third-generation chaebol heir [Hirano Taisuke].
The story went like this: after seeing the transferred heroine [Arimura Suzu], he acted like a tsundere and stirred up trouble by mobilizing his faction. The student council president called him in and gave him a sharp warning, but of course he ignored it and kept acting like the kind of protagonist who only causes chaos.
"Hah."
Holding a fan in one hand and his other hand behind his back, Kaoru gave a cold look to the lead actor playing [Hirano Taisuke], [Sasaki Ryunosuke], who was entering the set after finishing his makeup.
Having lived both a past life and a present one, Kaoru knew that in life there were rare but unmistakable moments when you could look someone in the face and immediately decide, [bad blood].
There are two kinds of people in this world: those with manners and those without.
That was the gist of the folk-psychology relationship theory the senior from the theater troupe had laid out while eating rice bowls.
As for Kaoru himself, with a few exceptions, he had mostly met people with manners. He could count himself lucky.
Of course, his closest blood relative had been a completely shameless bastard with no manners whatsoever, so he had nearly gone through a serious ordeal.
Anyway, Kaoru could say that in his life, he had only rarely been hurt by people without manners—at least compared to his past life.
So he usually tried to handle things as amicably as possible. When it came to problems, incidents, and conflicts in human relationships, he always aimed for the most peaceful solution, and in practice he had resolved many things that way.
Because no one in this world knew better than he did that the best way to win a fight was not to fight at all.
But.
"……."
"……."
Kaoru and Sasaki Ryunosuke created an atmosphere so cold it was hard to believe they were fellow actors about to film a scene together.
Even the staff preparing nearby kept sneaking glances at them and reading the room.
It was hard to believe a major agency always ranked among the top five in the entertainment industry had such poor judgment when it came to people.
Some people might pile on all sorts of flowery praise, calling those slanted eyes alluring, sexy, rebellious, and provocative.
But to Kaoru, he just looked like a mangy wolf cub lifting its chin as if it had no idea how frightening the sky could be. Kaoru almost snorted.
"Ah, fine. Stop poking my eye already."
Sasaki Ryunosuke jerked his head away irritably and brushed off the makeup team staff who had been trying to fix his makeup. The staff member flinched in surprise, bowed an apology, and quickly retreated.
Ryunosuke had already become, knowingly or not, the number-one person staff on set avoided—especially the women—because of his arrogant, overbearing personality.
And yet, in the videos he uploaded to Twitter for his fans, he made a point of showing off a sweet, harmless image.
[laughable]
Looking at Ryunosuke with blue eyes so cold they seemed to carry frost, Kaoru released his hands from behind his back, adjusted the fan, and said,
"I look forward to working with you, Sasaki."
"……."
Ryunosuke ignored Kaoru and fiddled with the piercing in his ear. Kaoru hadn’t expected him to return the greeting anyway.
The real thing only shows once the camera starts rolling.
The moment the camera lights came on, the man in front of him, who couldn’t even maintain the minimum dignity of an [actor], was [below standard].
"All right, scene 99! Ready! Action!"
"If you keep running around like a wild fool, nothing good will come of it for you, Hirano-kun."
"Why does the student council president keep ordering me around like this… Sorry."
"Let’s go again."
As soon as filming began, Kaoru’s energy changed completely.
Before Ryunosuke could even get into a battle of presence, his emotions and immersion were thrown off, and he bit his lip and lowered his head.
Director Sojiro could see it clearly on camera. The moment filming started, Ryunosuke couldn’t even meet Kaoru’s eyes, and his line delivery immediately wavered.
It was the classic sight of a rookie actor unable to answer back, unable to stand his ground, and tucking his tail between his legs before the seasoned charisma of the other actor.
The problem was that although Sasaki Ryunosuke lacked experience, he was an adult actor three years older than Kamiki Kaoru.
"Hoo. Okay. We’ll go right into it. Take two. Ready. Action!"
"If you keep running around like a wild fool, nothing good will come of it for you, Hirano-kun."
"Why does the student council president keep bossing me around like this? Huh?"
Kaoru stepped forward and looked down at Ryunosuke as he spoke.
With his voice carrying a chill, Ryunosuke was once again seized by the dizzying feeling that he was about to be swallowed by Kaoru’s momentum.
'Damn it!'
The lines he had memorized and the emotions he had carefully prepared kept falling apart on their own whenever he stood in front of that obnoxiously handsome bastard.
It was a first-time experience for him, and Ryunosuke failed to control his emotions, letting his impatience show.
"E-even if you act all flashy like that, I’m the one who rules this academy!"
He stumbled over the line, but Director Sojiro didn’t call cut.
Still, Kaoru showed no intention of letting him off and raised his presence further, staring straight into Ryunosuke’s eyes as he said,
"Is that so? If you’re that confident, then why don’t we—"
Snap
"Shall we go straight to the chairman’s office together, hand in hand?"
"……."
Kaoru unfolded the fan in front of his face and smiled coolly, his confidence making Ryunosuke’s mind go blank all over again. Ryunosuke ground his teeth in humiliation.
"Cut! For this shot, revise the cue sheet and push it to the next one. Move everything after this up. Good work, everyone."
"……."
Rather than gamble on a talent too thin to make use of even when given a chance, Director Sojiro stood up and ordered the cue sheet revised to preserve the precious filming time, worth more than gold.
Ryunosuke glared at Kaoru with a face flushed red from shame and eyes burning with anger at having his pride cracked.
Clack
But Kaoru, with his usual indifferent gaze, folded the fan as if to show him up, curled the corner of his mouth, and walked away with his hands behind his back.
"Good work."
Of course, he didn’t forget the greeting.
-
"Ugh—"
"…Huh? Does it hurt?"
Ai hurriedly pulled out the ear pick, and Kaoru shook his head, teasing her.
"No, it feels good. Heh heh!"
"…You startled me! I just scraped out a huge one! Dummy-Oru!"
"Really? Sorry. Haha. Take good care of me."
Kaoru gave an awkward laugh, and Ai puffed out her cheeks like an angry rabbit before gently pinching the smooth bridge of his nose.
The man who had been enjoying the leisurely life of a contented hermit with his head on her lap made a nasal little sound from the cute sting in his nose and said,
"Sowwy~!"
"When you’re cleaning someone’s ears, focusing is the most important thing! If Kaoru gets hurt because of me, I’d feel so bad."
"Sowwy~!!!"
"Pfft. Don’t act so pitiful!"
Ai smiled and lowered her head, carefully tidying the long purple hair that hung down toward the floor with her slender fingers.
Kaoru didn’t avoid his wife’s approaching lips and gently kissed her back.
"Are you not mad anymore?"
"Dunno! I’m still going to finish cleaning them. Stay still, okay? Got it?"
"Mm."
Scritch, scritch. At Ai’s cute little movements as she cleaned his ears, Kaoru closed his eyes for a moment and steadied his breathing.
For some reason, Ai also had no schedule today, and his filming had been pushed back by a day, so the unexpected free time had made Kaoru very happy.
Thanks to that, after school he got to spend time with the twins again after a long while. For some reason it felt like they’d drifted apart again, but Kaoru assumed it was only because he hadn’t seen them in so long. He moved to Ai’s one-room apartment, and they even cooked together and had a pleasant time after a long while.
"Ai."
"…Mm?"
Her reply came a beat late because she was focused. Kaoru looked at their reflections in the dark TV screen and said,
"Aren’t you tired from your schedule? You’ve been really busy lately."
"…I’m okay. Even when I’m tired, I feel relieved when Kaoru asks me first if I’m okay. It gives me the strength to keep going."
"Really? Then… that’s good."
"What about Kaoru? You’re super busy too! You’re busier than me, but you’re always worrying about me…"
"You’re my wife."
"…Eeeh— dummy-Oru. Your ears are red? What’s that about? You said it first, so why are you embarrassed?"
"……It’s not like that. It’s just hot."
Ai gently stroked the ear that only she knew whether was red from embarrassment or from the heat, then tapped her husband’s shoulder.
"The other side!"
Kaoru turned over so his face was toward Ai’s stomach. She tied her long purple hair up with a rabbit hair tie so it wouldn’t hang in the way, then focused even more intently on cleaning his other ear.
"Does President Ichigo not hold events or anything?"
"…Speak."
"Sorry. Sorry. Ah, sowwy."
"…Wow, that’s a big one-☆ I heard they’re not doing a big event, just a handshake event."
"A handshake event?"
"Yes. It’s where fans meet us, see our faces, shake hands, and talk. The exact date still hasn’t been decided. If Kaoru wants to come, you can."
"……."
Kaoru’s expression suddenly turned serious. What if some bad fan tried to hurt her? Seeing her husband’s grave look, Ai smiled and said,
"Why are you worrying about that again~!"
"No. Nothing. It just feels good."
"Liar! What do you take Ai for?"
"…Water?"
Seizing the moment, Kaoru wrapped his arms around Ai’s waist and blew air against her stomach. Ai burst into giggles at the sudden ticklish sensation and toppled over beside the sofa.
"Kyah! Pervert! Dummy! It tickles!!!"
Was that really his true intention all along?
Kaoru quickly took the top position over Ai, who was lying on the sofa, and smiled as he lowered his voice.
"I’ll clean your ears too, Ai."
"…Ah!!! So that was your plan from the start!?"
Ai blushed and pressed her index finger into Kaoru’s firm chest.
"Well. You cleaned my ears, so I should give you a reward, right?"
Kaoru lowered his head and attacked Ai’s defenseless lips.
In the middle of the married couple’s long-overdue affection battle, the ear pick in Ai’s hand fell softly to the living room floor.
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