Bonus Chapter - A Greedy Visitor

### Minori

    "Come on! There has to be somethin' you want to add! Are you telling me that there's nuthin' you're holding a grudge over? No full-of-themselves blondes who rubbed you th' wrong way?" Asa was being her usual, loud self, waving around a notebook and trying to rile us up.

    "I-I don't like to focus on stuff like that… I just want to move on with my career… C-Can't we just focus on our new song…? It's really good! We should put all our effort into making ourselves stand out as much as possible…" My friend Aoi was, ironically given that stated goal, shrinking herself into the couch as much as possible as she said this. The three of us are in a corner of the common area of the dorms, and we're supposed to be going over ideas for our big premier as a group, but Asa is instead doing her best to drum up drama, bugging Aoi and I about what happened weeks ago.

    Asa Asakura, Aoi Yoshioka, and Minori Takagi - that's me. We're Sunrise Girls! I MY ME's newest idol group!

    "Minori, you've gotta have somethin' to add! Don't you feel at least a little bit pissed off at them? It sounds like their producer even flagged you for the group!  But they just flicked you away like you were a fly buzzing around their precious little faces! You have more to be mad about than any of us. Are you really happy starting at step one when you could have started with a sprint from half a mile ahead? Huh?"

    "Well… N-No, but I'm not really mad or anything. Sometimes things just don't work out like you hope they will. I can't really hold it against them. We all had a chance to audition, and what happened, happened…"

    "Really? Is that what happened? Because the way I remember it, you were as good as in before Eimi Inagawa decided she knew better than her producer. Even your own coursemate didn't stop it. Don't you remember how Eimi flicked your audition invitation right into the trash? What makes her so special, huh? You're just as cute as she is! Look at you! You're a babe! You're almost as busty as I am! Is that really what you deserved?! Floundering around lost and alone until a certain someone - namely Asa, moi - took pity on you and invited you to meet with her producer? Isn't that what actually happened?"

    "Asa, we really appreciate the opportunity you've given us. Both of us. We really do. But we all formed the group literally minutes after we were turned down. We're really happy with how things shook out, and even you have to admit, if we had been given a fair shot with Interlunium then our own group wouldn't exist. That would be sad in its own way, wouldn't it?"

    "Y-Yeah! And it's been so much fun getting to design our own outfits and pick our own name and colors… It really feels special. P-Plus, we wouldn't be such good friends with you if either of us had gotten in."

    "Ah! Wha-! Whatever! You're still allowed to be mad about it! Geeze…".

    Asa is the one who wanted to form our group, and In a lot of ways, it isn't hard to see how her idea backfired on her. She already had a producer and probably thought it'd be easy to recruit us as her backup dancers. Then Mr. Kumasawa decided that Aoi, as the oldest and most experienced, should be the leader, and that I would be the featured dancer. Meaning that Asa still gets to be the center, but it's hard for her to claim that Sunrise Girls is really *her* group as opposed to *our* group.

    But… without her, we definitely never would have been brought together. We're a little bit mismatched. None of us specialize in singing, so Aoi's been taking extra lessons to handle some of our more demanding solos. Aoi is a shy little thing, and it's almost funny sometimes when the three of us go out because Asa and I look like we could be in college already, even though I just started high school. She looks like our younger sister tagging along on errands despite being the oldest of us. As for our looks… let's just say that it isn't much different. Asa is about an average height, blonde, and basically built out of curves. I'm even taller and give her a run for her money, though I'm one-hundred and ten percent positive my legs are much nicer. While Aoi is a little short and generally curveless. I really hope Aoi doesn't develop a complex or anything over it…

    So sure, Asa is a little rough and uncouth, and she spends way too much time leering at boys, and she's a little obsessed with this whole grudge thing, plus she's a little bit of a bad influence on Aoi and I, but still, we've had a lot of fun ever since we met her. I guess you could even say that we've become friends as well as group mates, even if she doesn't always agree, and tends to turn bright red when the subject comes up.

    "Okay, okay. I have something you can add, but it isn't really scandalous. Dam-Bi secretly has a pink ombre to her hair. That's why she wears the bun. It's against school rules to have an unnatural hair color."

    "See?! I knew ya still had a little something you were holding back. Go ahead and write it on her page." Asa handed me her "book of grudges" and I wrote what I'd said on the fifth page. If I'm honest, I felt a little bad about it. It isn't like it's a secret Dam-Bi confided in me or anything like that. I'm pretty sure all the girls in our track know it. Still, it was a little thrilling bonding with my friends over this kind of thing. I felt a bit like one of the delinquent girls you hear about, even if I wasn't doing anything technically wrong. Next thing you know Asa will have us sneaking off to the mall to hang out with boys…

    "What about you, A-o-i? You go to school with like half of 'em. You haven't heard *anything* interesting about any of 'em?"

    "N-No! N-Nothing… Wh-Why w-would I…"

    "Come on, girl. Secrets don't make fri-ends." A sing-song voice spurred Aoi on. It was obvious from the sudden escalation in her nervousness that she wasn't being entirely truthful. "What do you know? Come on, it's fun! We're bonding."

    "I-It's nothing. It's just that…" Her head bobbled back and forth as her eyes tried to avoid contact with Asa's, who tried just as hard to reestablish it.

    "See? Told ya you knew somethin'. What is it? Got any good dirt on that slag Junko?"

    "N-No. Not on her. B-But you know Anette? One of their new members? Well apparently, she acts like she's from France, but she isn't really. Her family lives in Aoyama in a big house and they just travel frequently. Anette isn't even her real name…"

    Asa produced a wild laugh, like this was the funniest thing she had ever heard, despite pretty much anyone being able to tell at a glance that "Anette Chanel" was a stage name, or at the least that she wasn't in fact authentically even a little bit French. "Add it to the book! See? Isn't this fun?!"

    Suddenly, while we enjoyed a little saccharine moment of peace and quiet as Aoi added her contribution, our bubble of silence was burst by a voice you wouldn't expect to hear in the dorms.

    "There you are! I've been looking all over for you! Let me tell you, the looks I've gotten! Buuut, you can stop worrying now that I've found you. We're going to get you straightened out immediately. It isn't bad, but I can see the frown lines and crow's feet starting to form! Do you even use an ice pack after rehearsal? Darling, you only have one face! Why aren't you making the most of it!"

    That wasn't what I'd been expecting. How did… Why was… There's a boy in the dorm!!!

    A really cute boy! Though he's a little short…

    Why is there a cute, short boy in the dorm?!

    I knew this would happen hanging out with Asa so much…

    "What are you doing here?!" All three of us shouted at once.

    "The makeup department got a notice that Aoi Yoshioka needed an emergency consultation, and I was the only stylist available to respond. And it's a good thing I was! Some of your pores are practically begging for a minimizer! And you debut in a week?! You took action just in time! Don't worry, Yuu is here. We're going to get you on the right track!"

    "I d-didn't put in a request for… M-My pores are that bad…?"

    "What are you talking about? Who are you?"

    "Yeah… What *are* you talking about??" Uh-oh. Even Asa is confused… I kind of thought for a moment that making up an excuse to sneak a boy into the dorm would be, you know, kind of the sort of thing she would be behind.

    "You need my help, and I got permission to come into the dorm as long as I stayed in the common areas. Don't worry! I'm a gentleman, so you can trust me. My hands will be in plain view at all times! I'm not interested in anything here except clearing up your pores and making you look fabulous. In fact, all of you are in serious need of a mask. I have this amazing cleanser made with mud from the Dead Sea that will have you positively radiant! You'll be shining like a newborn baby!"

    "A-Asa, who is this? Do you know him…?"

    "Aoi, this is Yuu. He's a pretty big deal. He's the leader of the company's number two idol group."

    "R-Really? Then w-why are you helping us? Aren't we kind of g-going to be your competition?" Aoi stuttered even more than normal, transfixed by the boy's perfect smile and, I will jealously admit, immaculately flawless skin.

    "Please, it's not about ticket sales and who's ahead of who. I also work as a stylist for the company when I can. I've been doing this for years with my mom! See?" To prove it he gestured flamboyantly to his own, handsomely perfect face. "When I'm on the job my number one priority is making sure that all of I MY ME's idols are as resplendent as the noonday sun. That's your theme, right? You'll need to be as bright and perfect as a sunrise as soon as possible, so Yuu is on the job. In fact, let's educate all of you young ladies on proper skincare and moisturizing! I see you over there making eyes at me! Don't be shy! Come on over, I brought enough for everyone!" The beautiful boy shouted beyond our little group and invited the entirety of the common room over, hefting up a large black and gray case which undoubtedly held his alchemical mixtures and ointments. There were at least a dozen girls here altogether hanging out and watching the television, and all of them were now only interested in what he had to say. After all, this Yuu has flawless skin. Beyond flawless. It's supernatural. I have to admit that I am a little bit curious how he does it…

    "In fifteen minutes, I'm going to hold an impromptu seminar on skincare! Everyone is invited, so call your roommates and get them here so they aren't jealous when you come home glowing! Unless of course, that's what you want." Yuu winked at the assembled throng of girls and a torrent of giggles burst forth. "The only cost of entry is dishing out some of the deetz that I wouldn't normally hear! Bring your best gossip! Yuu will take care of all of you as long as you give me all the juicy details I couldn't possibly know. How about that Interlunium, hmm? Heard any good gossip about them lately?"

\_\_\_\_

# Chapter Navigation

* Next Chapter
* Previous Chapter
* Back to Contents