#Kamimura Ayuka | Explore Tumblr posts and blogs

akanemachurida-blog · 7 years ago

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18/01/05 - Laguna Music Festival Report

I went to the SKE48 Laguna Music Festival on January 5. There has been and will be more streams of this event but I figured I might as well do a report since I’ve been inactive for so long.

This was my first proper SKE concert, so I was really excited to go. Unfortunately, Churi couldn’t be there due to her play, which began the following day. This concert was really long, but as usual I’ll start with the boring stuff like how I got there.

The Laguna park is in Gamagoori which is very close to where I live, so it didn’t take me long to get there. There was a free shuttle bus from the station to the park, and while they were only scheduled every thirty minutes there were a ton of people today so there were extra buses. I waited a while but nothing to complain about.

I then entered the park. I actually had to buy data on my phone (the first time I’ve ever had data on a phone) since the tickets were electronic and I had to show a webpage and have a staff click some button. I wish they let us print tickets out but I guess everyone owns a phone with data now.

I wanted to explore the park a bit but as usual I got anxious about how the ticket situation was going to work. After I paid online for my ticket I was given #C179. I think everyone was in the C block apart from those with handicaps. So I guessed that my ticket was good, but I didn’t realize how good it was, since the numbers actually started from 100, meaning I was the 79th in. Actually, the staff didn’t really properly check out tickets when we were going in, meaning some people could have cut in with a bad number and gotten a good view. Regardless, I waited around thirty minutes to get inside the “venue”, where I had to wait another hour for the show to begin.

(This was where we lined up with our numbers. We were calleld up and made our way to the stage on the other side of the bridge.)

It was very cold that day, so I made sure to dress warmly. I’m glad I wore a lot of layers because it quickly got colder when the sun set. A lot of others did not dress for the occasion and I could see that they were in pain after the concert. Counting the waiting and concert I stood for around five hours, which really sucks if you aren’t prepared for the weather.

Alright, now for the concert itself. I felt like an idiot during the entire concert since I forgot to bring my penlight that changes colours and only brought my green one. Have you ever watched a video and thought “Wow that person is so inconsiderate, always keeping the same colour? Why can’t they change and support the other members too?” well that was me that day. I was so focused on supporting Maya that I forgot to bring the other penlight.

M01 1!2!3!4! Yoroshiku

One of my favourite SKE “classics.” All the members participated in the first three songs, so it took me a while to find Maya. I actually spent half or more of this song trying to find her. I finally did near the end of it.

M02 Banzai Venus

Now that I found Maya I was on homing-mode for the rest of the concert. My target was locked and nothing was going to stop me from following her through the songs. I actually don’t care much for this song but I was pretty much fixated on Maya so I don’t have much to add here.

M03 Te wo Tsunaginagara

A classic. I think it was my first time hearing it live. This is one of those songs that pays to look at someone throughout it. Maya was just hilarious, although I can’t remember who she was with for this song. Again, I was on my Maya cam so no comments on the other members. This song just flew by since I was enjoying myself so much.

Maya wrote in her blog that she was given this senbatsu outfit for the start. She first wore that outfit at Sae’s grad concert but had to give it up after she was dropped from senbatsu shortly after. She was happy to be able to wear it again and hopes to get more costumes of her own as time goes by.

Since there are so many members there weren’t any introductions. Only ten or so members stayed for the MC, where they eventually wished Tani a happy birthday. Makiko and Wanchan came in for a surprise wearing yukata, but they hadn’t congratulated Tani yet so they had to go back. Makiko and Wanchan were given yukata since they were the two members born in the year of the dog. (Ranran is another one, but she wasn’t there today)

M04 Koko de Ippatsu - Makiko, Wanchan

I did not like this performance. I think this is the first time I’ve been disappointed when I’ve seen SKE perform a song. I’ve usually blamed the song over the members in the past, and maybe my expectations were too high. However I’ve come to really like this song after Churi performed it with Mizuno Airi at Zepp Tokyo last year, and I’ve watched that performance countless times. This performance did not match it at all, which was disappointing. That being said, they were wearing yukata which likely made it hard to move, but they hardly moved at all anyway.

Anyway, during the song the two members announced their goals for the year. Wanchan’s is to lose 10 kilos to do gravure and Makiko’s is to not fail a single time!

M05 Koppu no Naka no Komorebi / Love Crescendo（original members）

I’ve never been much of a fan of this song, and I always paid attention to the Transit Girls unit of the single since I liked a lot of members in it. However with my rising appreciation of Maya I was very excited to see this song. I made sure to call out Maya’s name when it was her turn, although I accidentally called her name at other times too. I made sure to call everyone else too during this song, I was very into it. It’s funny how a single member can make you like a song.

M06 Madogiwa Lover / Next Position

This song is pretty unremarkable and I actually totally forgot it. I was probably still thinking about the past song and was in bliss. Sorry.

M07 Kanpeki Gu~ no ne / STRAWBERRY PUNCH

This is some old AKB song and this was the first time I heard it. Yuzuki and Mikotti did a very good job though, everyone was pumped for this song and in a good mood. I didn’t see them during the Unit Contest but they did really well and I enjoyed seeing them as a unit.

M08 Wimbledon he Tsureteitte / Yukatan, Sakipon, Honono

Never really liked this song, but I surprisingly liked it. It’s different live, since you get to do a lot of calls and get into the song. I also was really impressed with Sakipon’s dancing and movements during this song. She’s one of my favourite performers and she didn’t disappoint during this concert. I also like her a lot in that outfit and she did a good job at keeping my attention.

M09 Ookami to Pride / Mizuno Airi, Kamimura Ayuka

Like the last song, I don’t really like this song all that much, but the pairing was just great. It was really cool to see them perform together! It really exuded freshness. I’m not sure whether their performance was shaky or not since I haven’t watched this song much.

M10 Finland Miracle / Ouchan, Machi, Ayamelody

Another song with a fresh feeling. I was really getting into the groove of the concert and enjoying myself, and it made me happy to see this unit. This was the first time I saw this song live. It’s a very nostalgic one since it’s a Ramune song and I thoroughly enjoyed it for that nostalgia factor as well as the bonus of seeing these younger members perform it.

MC2 / Next Position, Yuzuki, Sakipon, Narupi, Airi, Ayuka

I totally forgot what this MC was about, I’m sorry. But Next Position’s goal for 2018 was to stay together and not die a natural death!

M11 Kamoku na Tsuki / Nao, Mikotti

This is without a doubt my favourite 48g song, and I was just overjoyed to see it today. I was surprised that only two members performed it, and I really would have liked to see more members in it. I remember Churi performing it during a Request Hour years and years ago, so I want her to perform it again. Unfortunately she wasn’t there and Maya wasn’t in this song either. However for all this complaining about extra members, the two present were absolutely fantastic. Nao is probably the best performer in the group, and Mikotti really surprised me during this song. Both of their voices sounded absolutely fantastic and it blew me away. This concert certainly made me appreciate Mikotti more.

M12 Himawari / Yukina, Rara, Sarina, Piyosu

Not a fan of this song and I did not like this performance either. The sound was really awful and I had a hard time picking the vocals out from the instruments. I don’t want to be more negative so I’ll leave it at that. I saw people saying good things about it when they saw the stream so maybe I am in the wrong here.

M13 Manazashi Sayonara / Kano, Tani

A song that I like, but I think I’ve seen this song a bit too much, making it stale. I didn’t really “feel” anything from this specific performance, unlike previous performances of the song. It made me think of how great Nao and Airin were when they performed it. That being said it wasn’t a bad performance.

M14 Kono Mune no Barcode / Kumachan, Minarun, Nacchi

It had been a really long time since I had heard this song. I don’t really care for it much but I thought the members did a good job.

MC3 / Oshirin, Kano, MAchi, Honono, Kocchan, Wanchan, Yukatan, Piyosu, Hatagon

They talked about what they did on New Year’s, but I completely forgot what they said. Sorry.

M15 Omoide Ijou / Yokonyan, Juna, Narupi

Now this was special. I notice myself thinking that every time I see Yokonyan center a song, so I think there is a trend here. She is just a fantastic performer and makes every song she is in electrifying. You can feel her excitement and it easily makes its way into the crowd. Narupi had a bit of a stumble during the beginning of the song so I felt bad for her, but she recovered quickly and performed well for the rest of it. I didn’t really look at Juna much since Yokonyan drew me in and I was watching Narupi quite a bit. It was refreshing seeing this song with these members and I hope to see Yokonyan center more songs in the future. The nice thing about her long hair is that you can still see her hair flying around the stage even if you can’t see her body due to someone’s head being in the way.

M16 Ame no Pianist / Yumana, Reona, Satokaho

I thought Yumana looked great during this song. Again, another fun mix of members. However for whatever reason I didn’t feel much energy from the members during this song. Maybe it’s just the nature of the song, but I was looking for a little something more during this song.

M17 Cross / Oshirin, Hatagon, Aiai

This is where I turn into a total hypocrite. Notice how I’ve been saying how I appreciate the variety of the members in these units. This song is where I turned into a reactionary and wanted the traditional order back. I guess not having Churi in this concert and hearing her song made want to see her perform it, leaving me disappointed. The nice thing about the units is that they mix members from teams, however I was just left hoping this song only had KII members. I’m probably wrong to feel that way but it’s how I felt during the performance so I’m writing it here. I was also disappointed with myself for not bringing my other penlight since I really wish I could have turned to red for this song.

M18 Hanshateki Suru / Love Crescendo (with new members)

All those negative feelings vanished when I saw Maya on the stage again. Apart from Kamoku na Tsuki, which was a pleasant surprise, this would be the song I was looking forward to the most. I really like the short version they uploaded on the official youtube, so I was excited to hear the full version and see Maya perform it. She was great and so were the other members I caught glimpses of. In a way this felt like the climax of the concert since I got to see the song and member I wanted to hear/see the most.

MC4 / Love Crescendo

And they stayed for the MC! I was in for a treat since Maya introduced the new Love Crescendo members. She said that Renahyuu needs to decide a character quickly because Maya isn’t sure what kind of character she has in real life, but she recommends people to go talk to Renahyuu if they share her interests since she’s great at talking about her hobbies. She then said that (Inoue) Ruka is a country bumpkin, since apparently Kumamoto is more country-like than Miyagi, and she hopes that Ruka can fish fans with her cute dialect since she’s one of the few to use her dialect.

She then said that Miyomaru is just skin and bones, but that under those thin bones lies a strong will to be an idol. And finally Chikako has a smile as big as the area of the Laguna park! No one can not be happy after they see Chikako’s smile. She wants Chikako to continue smiling. Maya wrote on her blog that her manager praised her for this MC. Maya then said she and Renahyuu had to leave to prepare for the next song, so I was really happy to hear that and just thrilled to hear she’d be in another song! The rest of the MC was about what they wanted to do, but I tuned out and just day dreamed about Maya.

M19 Matsumurarabu! / Kaotan

I hope the camera didn’t capture the disappointment on my face. I was shocked. This was the song Maya was going to appear in? I quickly realized that she meant a following song and that I was dumb to expect her to appear in the next song. Anyway, I found myself getting into the song. I think I’ve heard this song so much with KII that I just instinctively clap and cheer along. Kaotan threw signed balls and then got a bat (which she didn’t do well with) and a tennis racket (which she did extremely well with) to throw balls at the crowd during the song. So I ended up liking the song despite my initial confusion.

M20 Darenimo Iwanaide / Kocchan（Panda dancers: second draftees）

This was the first time I heard Kocchan’s solo song she got from the rock paper scissors tournament. I actually don’t have an opinion of it yet, I need to listen to it again, and I didn’t pay that much attention to Kocchan. Maya came in with Kocchan’s own Panchan and was a back dancer, along with the other second draft members. I was just overcome with the cuteness of the song and stared at Maya. Even though this was a solo song it ended up having other members too, which I liked. However, I wonder if that’s fair considering the performances before and after only had a single member too. I don’t think the other members detracted from Kocchan’s performance, even if I was mostly staring at someone who was not Kocchan lol. I felt that it added to the song and spectacle and her panda character.

M21 Ima no Watashija Damenanda / Akarin

I was starting to get a bit tired of the solo songs, since this was the third in a row. Still, I think that was okay since I hadn’t seen Dasu for much of the concert. Actually, this was the first time she appeared since the first three songs, so I think she deserved it. There were a ton of her fans around me, and they really enjoyed this song. This created a nice atmosphere and I found myself enjoying the performance too, even if I didn’t really like the song.

M22 Hanauranai / Jurina

I simply did not like this at all. A fourth solo song in a row which featured a member who appeared plenty already. I realize that Jurina is popular but she surely could have gone into a unit with other members. Now I don’t want to blame her for this since it might not have been her decision but I was not particularly happy. The song was also quite bad. I think I would have come around to like it if she performed Akai Pinheel, either by herself or with another member. At least that song gets me excited. It also felt like this song would just not end.

M23 Igai ni Mango / Yunana center

Time for a great song to bring me back to life. The next units all had various members thrown into them. This particular bunch of girls had Maya in it so I was overjoyed to see her perform this song with Yunana. Maya was very close to me, so I got to look at her a lot during this song, and it was awesome. She made a lot of funny faces too, which made me laugh a lot.

M24 12gatsu no Kangaroo / Yokonyan and Ego double center

Maya’s unit left but I was really happy to see Yokonyan center another song. This song never fails to get me excited. It’s also one that gets me moving a bit, which was nice since my legs were very stiff and sore.

M25 Maenomeri / Rara, Chikako, Miyomaru front three

The third unit arrived and this song was equally excellent. I spent my time during these songs looking at all the members since there were so many. I also think this was my first time hearing this song live, which was really cool.

M26 Coquettish Juutaichuu / Nao, Sarina double center

Another excellent song. This part of the concert was great. It was a lot of fun saying the “ku-ki-zu-ke” part of the song.

M27 Sansei Kawaii! / (Inoue) Ruka, Kano, Yukatan, Miyomaru front

I honestly forgot how many times they changed between units. Miyomaru was there two songs ago and here she is again. Yet I can’t remember seeing Maya a second time. These units and members were a blur! It happened so quickly.

MC5 / Mikotti, Reona, Ouchan, Satokaho, Yokonyan, Nacchi, Ayamelody, Yumana

The topic was what they wanted to do to celebrate the tenth anniversary of the group. I can’t remember anything except for Ayamelo saying she wanted to do a SKE48 only sports meet where the fans could join in. I’d love to join that if it were to happen!

M28 Muishiki no Iro / （Makiko took Churi’s spot）

The new single that everyone wanted to hear. Of course I was only looking at Maya, but she’s on the edge at the back, on the left. I had a very hard time seeing from my angle. Jurina’s waist was in front of where Maya was, so I was trying to maneuver around it to get a glimpse. I remember just giving up and looking at Minarun instead and trying again later.

M29 Boku wa Shitteiru / ALL

I honestly forgot most of what happened here. I was just trying to get a look at Maya and got to call her name a few times. I noticed that I was usually the only one calling her name (from the voices I could hear) when it was her turn on songs. It kind of made me question if I was breaking a rule or something since people would be rather quiet when it was time to call her and other members around her.

(I feel bad for writing this but my point of these reports is to describe how I felt during the concert so I feel that it’s necessary)

Jurina wrote a blog after the concert saying she cried during this song because it hit her that she was the only first gen left when she was the only one singing a part of the song, making her feel lonely when she thought about it being the tenth anniversary. Anyway, afterwards Makiko asked Jurina what was wrong since Jurina was crying. To be honest I was pretty angry at this point since I felt that Jurina had taken up enough of the spotlight as it was and might have been acting dramatic to get some attention. I didn’t use to think of Jurina in this way but after the Unit Contest where she cried after losing to Strawberry Punch and caused a big scene which made Yuzuki upset I have started to wonder if she purposefully craves attention during these concerts since it seems to happen every time and the entire group needs to coddle her.

MC6

The members made us count down the illumination of the park. The colours were really nice and lit up the night sky nicely!

M30 Nakama no Uta / ALL

A nice song to end it off, felt very traditional. It was nice to sing the last part but I had to improvise and try to remember the lyrics since I don’t know them well at all lol.

The members bowed afterwards and said their thank you, but they only bowed twice instead of three times. Afterwards the members started waving at us in the crowd. Maya was right in front of me and I was furiously shaking that lightstick trying to get her attention. (Heat of the moment) Unfortunately for me, Makiko made all the members come back and do a re-take of the bow and thank you. Jurina fell down (for comedic effect?) during the re-take. I couldn’t help but think of what I thought of before, but whatever, it was Maya time again.

The person in front of me was rather tall but wasn’t much a problem for much of the concert. However, he was a Kumachan oshi and he had one of those fans with her face on it. Maya and Kuma were often together near the end and whenever Kuma was near us he would jump and wave that fan, obscuring me from Maya’s gaze. Anyway I made sure to stay clear of that thing as best of I could to make contact with Maya. Incidentally, the person behind me was a bit of a bother too, hitting my back a few times with his penlight and his bag.

I was hoping Maya would stay around our area of the stage, and she did for a bit. She waved at me and smiled a lot and I felt great to put it lightly. I just kept waving throughout. She would then wave at any other person she could spot with a solo geen penlight. She would make this circle motion for people who were far away, and then point at them to make sure they knew she was waving at them.

There were some Saanan calls after it was over, and she came out by herself and talked about how it was sad since it was her last concert with SKE. I actually can’t remember what else she said but it was along those lines. It was emotional yet she didn’t overdo it.

This was a pretty special event since I decided to focus entirely on one member during the times she was there, as opposed to other events where I tried to pay attention to everyone. It was a lot of fun. I think Maya is special in this case because she is always making a funny face and laughing with other members. I’m impressed by her serious side the most though. As much as she likes joking around she puts a lot of effort in trying to locate her fans. I noticed that during the first three songs her eyes would briefly scan the audience. It’s very subtle and happens extremely quickly, but it seems like she utilizes some parts of the dance to get a view of the fans. For example, I noticed that she looked directly at me several times at the start, and would make these brief gazes at other areas of the audience. This may sound unnatural but it actually looked very fluid. I assume this is how she kept track of me during the time I went to the Team E theatre performance.

After the concert I took pictures of the illuminations and met up with some fans from Taiwan and China. I didn’t speak to all of them but there was a group of six or so fans who made the trip for the live. Two of them are Churi oshis so I told them about how great Maya is and showed them some pictures to try and convert them.

I hope I can go to another concert or theatre performance before I have to leave!

#ske48 #Sugawara Maya

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sophcaro · 8 years ago

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Destiny | WMatsui - Chapter 29

Jurina took her earphones out as she entered the rehearsal room of the SKE theater, waving at the few members already present. In less than ten minutes, the fifteen girls that composed SKE’s senbatsu were expected to work on their next important event. Indeed, the idol group was supposed to do a mini showcase in Nagoya in two days, the performance being broadcast live on TV for the occasion. Jurina dropped her sports bag in a corner of the room and nonchalantly sat on the floor, her attention caught by the two girls dancing in front of the large mirrors.

Nao Furuhata and Ayuka Kamimura.

While the other members already arrived were chilling out or chatting amongst themselves, those two girls in particular were already hard at work and practicing a few choreographies together. Jurina wasn’t astonished to see them already practicing even before the official beginning of rehearsal. After all, those two girls were anything but random members. At the end of the year 2019, Nao and Ayuka had been appointed as SKE’s current Center and WCenter.

Four months had already passed since that day.

Jurina observed more especially the younger member, noting again how much Ayuka had grown up over the years. At the age of sixteen, Ayuka didn’t have much in common with the insecure and emotive girl she had shared briefly the spotlight with after Rena’s graduation. Now, a certain air of confidence surrounded the newest WCenter, and Ayuka was capable of mastering a choreography faster and better than ever before.

Ayuka was indisputably one of Jurina’s greatest sources of pride.

Jurina couldn’t have been more satisfied with management’s latest decisions. It had assuredly taken many years and a lot of discussions to reach such a stage, but management had eventually opened their eyes and accepted the fact that their long-time strategy – that had worked so well for so many years – now needed to be revised drastically to assure the sustainability of the Nagoya-based group.

At the end of 2019, management had decided – and this for the first time in the history of the group - to rotate SKE’s Center and WCenter on a regular basis. The plan was to change both leading figures every two singles, in order to give more members the opportunity to shine and accustom the fans to less-known faces. With the constant emergence of new 48 and 46 groups, the competition had never been so tough. More than ever, it was primordial to find a way to stand out from the other idol groups.

Jurina was conscious that nothing was set in stone and, if this innovative concept proved to fail in the long run, then management wouldn’t hesitate to reverse back to a permanent Center and WCenter. This new approach was still in its early stages, yet it already showed promise. Ayuka’s tireless determination and all the progress she had accomplished through the years had thankfully been acknowledged. That’s why, when Jurina had urged management to give Ayuka another chance, they agreed to test their new strategy with her.

During the group’s December single of 2019, Ayuka Kamimura was appointed WCenter and Nao Furuhata SKE’s new Center.

Jurina couldn’t deny that a heavy weight had been lifted from her shoulders. During more than ten years, she had been SKE’s faithful ace. She had relished every second of it and the teenager that she was back then would have wanted for nothing in the world to switch her position with another member. She enjoyed leading the group and being in the spotlight. Nothing could have made her prouder than seeing her face displayed on posters and buildings, proclaiming her as SKE’s official representative.

A few weeks ago, she turned twenty-three.

Jurina could feel she had gained a certain maturity: a maturity that was enabling her to see the group’s situation from a brand-new perspective: so many aspects of this business that she couldn’t fully comprehend when she was still a teenager, or even a young adult. Winning the SSK in 2019 had been one of her greatest victories. Witnessing SKE’s management taking the group’s fate seriously and the right measures had been another.

Since 2008, the idol group had gone through so many rough patches. At one point, when Rena Matsui – Jurina’s eternal WCenter and other legendary member of the group – had shockingly announced her graduation, many people in the business had been prone to predict the slow and gradual death of the idol group. In spite of the forked tongues, SKE had always managed to bounce back and overcome its difficulties. It was the group’s undeniable strength: members never surrendered without a fight.

Nine generations.

Many talented members.

Plenty of other girls with hidden potential.

A potential that ought to be discovered and awaken.

It was precisely for all those reasons that Jurina was hopeful about the future. More than ever, she was confident that the group was far from over and still had a lot of offer. For many more years, SKE would continue to shine. In December 2019, an important page had been turned, and another one was about to open up in 2020.

Tokyo, two days later…

This Friday in early April, Rena was spending the entire day outside of Nagoya, having a few jobs to do in Japan’s capital. Having just finished an interview with NHK, she was now heading towards her next destination for lunch. When Yosuke had been informed that – not only they would both be in Tokyo at the same time, their schedules also miraculously matched - he hadn’t hesitated to invite her out. The actress had immediately agreed. Given their mutual busy schedules, they hadn’t been able to see each other these last two months, and mostly kept in touch through occasional exchanged messages on LINE.

This offer of lunch arrived just at the right time: it would be the perfect occasion to do some catching up.

Rena’s eyes lit up in recognition when she spotted from afar the Korean restaurant the actor had mentioned, relaxing a little when the latter didn’t seem to have arrived yet. Her interview with NHK had lasted a little longer than expected. At some point, Rena even got afraid that she might be forced to cancel their lunch, remembering that the actor couldn’t afford any important delay as he had another engagement in the afternoon in a completely different area of Tokyo.

Thankfully, she had been able to make it in time.

As Rena was waiting at a crosswalk for the light to turn green, the strong wind of Spring blew across her face, messing up her long brown hair that had been so neatly brushed for her previous interview. Raising her hand to brush back some hair that the wind had caressed out of place, she noted in surprise a few pink petals upon her shoulder. Soon, her attention got drawn to the majestic tree standing proudly on her right by the side of the road. The cherry tree responsible for the countless pink petals spread out on the asphalt all around her.

Carefully seizing between her fingers one of the petals that had fallen upon her black vest, she studied the delicate and fragile pink petal laying into the palm of her hand. She smiled reminiscently in spite of herself as a certain fond memory began to play back in her mind, and drifted five years back in time.

Rena checked her watch in apprehension, growing a little concerned as they were expected at the SKE theater in less than ten minutes. Thankfully, they were very close from their destination now. If there was one personality trait people had always associated with Rena, it was her impeccable punctuality. That’s why the mere idea of risking arriving late – even for just a few short minutes – and make the other members of the group wait, made her feel unquestionably a little uncomfortable. Increasing her pace, she didn’t have time to go far that a hand grabbed her arm from behind without warning.

“Rena, look!”

Halting abruptly, Rena turned around at the sound of Jurina’s enthusiastic voice, discovering her girlfriend contemplating a large cherry tree that they were passing by. So engrossed in her thoughts, Rena had admittedly not paid the slightest attention to her surroundings all the way here. Lifting her gaze, she took a brief moment to observe the cherry tree that was monopolizing Jurina’s attention.

A small smile inadvertently formed on Rena’s lips at Jurina’s childish amazement, before recalling that the clock was ticking. “We’re going to be late. I don’t want to make the others wait.”

“Yes…” Jurina replied but showed no sign of moving, her eyes still glued on the cherry tree as if she had never spoken.

Understanding that her girlfriend would need a little more convincing, Rena extended her arm to take her hand. “Juri-”

“Let’s take a picture together!”

Taken aback, it took Rena a few seconds to register what the other girl had uttered. “You want to take a picture now?” Rena repeated in bewilderment.

“Yes,” Jurina affirmed, turning around to face her. “Do you remember last week’s handshake event?”

“You mean, that morning when you sneakily took a picture of me in my sleep, and believed naively I would let you post it on social media?” Rena faked indignation.

“Yes, that day.” Jurina grinned maliciously.

“Then yes, I remember it perfectly.” An easy smile played at the corners of Rena’s mouth. “Why are you asking?”

“While you were still sleeping, I took a peek outside from our hotel room’s window and noticed a cherry tree in a park nearby. As I was watching it from afar, something occurred to me…” Jurina’s expression stalled and grew serious. “These last seven years, our life has been so hectic, that there are simple things we never find time to do. Hanami will be over in a few days: I would like to take a picture with you before it’s too late.”

It wasn’t a caprice as she initially believed: Rena was now positively sure of it after listening to her girlfriend’s arguments. Rena didn’t know what had triggered this sudden urge but, the more she analysed the situation, the more it looked like Jurina was simply trying to make memories. Memories with her. If that was the case, then how could she deny her such a legitimate wish?

“Alright…” Rena smiled with affection. “Let’s take a picture, then.”

Jurina’s face brightened and, after taking her phone out of her pocket, tugged at Rena’s hand to bring her closer. Rena obliged and came to stand by her side, waiting patiently while Jurina raised her phone in the air to take a selfie. Rena gave her best smile to the camera and got herself prepared - expecting the other girl to take a picture at any moment – but was surprised when things didn’t go exactly as planned.

Indeed, Rena followed Jurina’s moves as the latter kept rotating the phone left and right and up and down, evidently failing to find an angle to her liking. Rena suppressed with difficulty her amusement at her girlfriend’s antics. “Would you like me to take the picture?”

“Why? I know how to take a selfie.” Jurina’s lips formed an adorable pout. “I’m only trying to take the best picture possible.”

“But it doesn’t have to be perfect.” Rena shook her head softly. “What’s important is that we’re both on the picture, no?”

The younger girl ignored her statement and continued her little game, moving her phone in every direction possible again and again. Unfortunately, that kind of behaviour was inevitable when you had Jurina Matsui – self-proclaimed and proud perfectionist – as a girlfriend. Rena couldn’t keep it to herself any longer. “You’re impossible…” Rena chastised her gently, stopping her motions at once when she covered Jurina’s hand with hers. “Let me do it, alright?”

After a moment of reflection, Jurina reluctantly relented, letting Rena take the phone away from her grasp. “I think this is a good angle.” Rena positioned the phone, after making sure she had both of them on the picture, and the best view possible of the cherry tree in the background. “Are you ready?”

“Wait, wait.” Jurina drew closer and circled her arm. “Alright, I’m ready!”

Jurina’s enthusiasm was so infectious that Rena couldn’t help laughing a little, a small click being heard the moment after as she took a picture. Lowering the device, she handled it back to Jurina, knowing the latter would definitely wish to inspect the result before moving on. “Do you like the picture, or do you want to take another one?”

“No, it’s perfect…” Jurina’s face alight with happiness. “I love it.”

Rena regarded her with amusement before stepping out from under the cherry tree - expecting her girlfriend to follow her - but was startled when she didn’t hear any sound of footsteps behind her. Turning around to see what the other girl was doing, she noticed that Jurina was still focused on her phone and even staring intensely at the picture taken.

“We should get going or we’re really going to be late.” Rena reminded her of the imminence of their rehearsal.

Jurina’s eyes shot up to meet hers. “Ah, you’re right.” She put her phone away and joined her side hurriedly.

As they began walking away, Rena was caught off guard when Jurina placed all of a sudden a quick kiss on her cheek. The unexpected action made her unconsciously slow down her steps, and she regarded the other girl quizzically. “What… What was that for?”

“Just a thank you kiss.” Jurina smiled brightly. “I really wanted to take a picture of us during hanami.”

Rena’s gaze travelled over her face, grasping by the joy shining in her girlfriend’s eyes how truly important it had been for her to capture such a moment of their relationship. Reaching for Jurina’s hand, Rena slipped casually her fingers inside hers. “Yes, it will make a nice memory…” Her eyes brimmed with tenderness. “Send me the picture later, alright?”

Rena blinked, Jurina’s image slowly dissipating from her mind as she perceived in the distance the voice of someone calling her name. Almost as if her brain was refusing to leave the comforting place this peaceful memory procured, she ignored the voice at first, but the second calling of her name - this time much closer and clearer – made her come back to her senses completely.

“I thought it was you. Admiring the view?”

“Y-Yosuke…” Rena’s eyes widened in astonishment when she discovered the male actor standing right in front of her. “Yes, I guess you could say that…” She turned to follow Yosuke’s gaze on the cherry tree.

“Spring is one of my favourite seasons.” Yosuke watched with keenly observant eyes the branches’ movements, as they suddenly wavered under the force of the wind. “When the cherry trees blossom and the petals cover the pavement like an eiderdown. It only happens two weeks a year, but I always try to find time to pause - even for a short moment - to marvel at such a beautiful, ephemeral phenomenon.”

Rena dragged her eyes away from the cherry tree, and watched the play of emotions on the actor’s face. Today, Rena was discovering for the first time an unexpected aspect of her friend’s personality: Yosuke had quite a romantic and poetic side to him. Rena looked down to her phone and went through the gallery, her index pausing on the screen when the précised picture she was searching for appeared.

As Rena observed with fondness the picture of she and Jurina smiling in front of a large cherry tree, she couldn’t help thinking that Yosuke was not the only one to share such charming personality traits.

Ten minutes later, Rena and Yosuke entered the Korean restaurant, settling down at a table before beginning to take a look at the menu. If there was something that Rena had learned about the male actor these last years, is that Yosuke was somewhat particularly fond of Korean food. When they happened to go out for lunch or dinner and it was Yosuke’s turn to choose the place, a Korean name would each and single time escape his lips.

The recurrence was somewhat comical, yet Rena didn’t mind Yosuke’s preferences. She might not share the actor’s undivided love for this food in particular, she still found it quite tasty and enjoyable. Reciprocally, Yosuke never refused when it was her time to choose the place and she opted for slightly more uncommon food, such as an Italian or French restaurant.

“I want to go abroad during the Golden Week,” Yosuke announced once the waiter had left with their orders. “Don’t get me wrong: I love my job but I have been so swamped with work lately, that I haven’t been able to take a single day off.”

“I know the feeling…” Rena sympathized with him. “These last ten years, I haven’t taken a lot of vacations either. I would love to take a few days off once in a while, but my schedule…”

“Yes, that’s the main issue. Our work schedules.”

Both actors shared a knowing smile.

“You said you wanted to go abroad.” Rena’s curious gaze fell on him at the new piece of information. “Did you have any place in mind?”

“Yes, I was thinking of going to Korea. I’ve always wanted to visit Seoul.”

“Why am I not surprised?” Rena didn’t bother to hide her amusement. “I think it’s a great idea. I really hope you’ll enjoy yourself.”

“Why don’t you come with me? It would give us the chance to try out even more Korean restaurants.”

Yosuke’s teasing tone made her smile. “I wish I could, but I’m planning on going back to my home town for the Golden Week. I haven’t seen my parents in a while and I promised I would visit them.”

“You’re from Aichi, right?”

“Yes. From Toyohashi,” Rena specified. “To be honest, I also want to travel. There are so many countries I would like to visit: especially in Europe. But I’m not sure when I’ll ever have time for that...”

Yosuke nodded in understanding. “I hope you’ll still manage to fulfil all your dreams. Life is too short: we should make the most of it while we can.”

“Maybe next year. Actually, I would really like to go to Par-,” Rena started, but didn’t have time to finish her sentence that she was interrupted by the sound of her phone beeping. “Sorry…” Rena winced, and shot her interlocutor a small apologetic look. “It must be my manager: she was supposed to get back to me to give me more details about today’s schedule.”

Rena seized the phone laying on the table and went through the text she had received, a text from her manager as she had rightly predicted. Making a mental note to remember the small time change of her afternoon photoshoot with UTB, Rena blinked in perplexity when – as she was about to mute her phone and put it away - noted the surreal number of notifications she had received from her Twitter account.

After leaving the television studio of NHK, she had already checked her Twitter account: even updating it by informing her followers of her work schedule of the afternoon. She hadn’t noted anything out of the ordinary. So what could possibly have happened during those thirty minutes? Another time, she would have waited to be alone to go through her social accounts, but this strange commotion piqued her interest.

The article that charged on her screen made her heart stop.

Jurina Matsui, 23 years old, announced her graduation today at the end of a live showcase in Nagoya.

Frozen in place, Rena stared at the screen in stupor. Almost as if to make sure of the veracity of the article and that it wasn’t just a weird, silly prank, she resumed reading and didn’t pause until she had arrived at the bottom of the article. As she studied next the white and black picture accompanying the news – showing a mature and calm Jurina answering the journalist’s questions – realization dawned on her that this important day had truly arrived.

Jurina Matsui, SKE’s last first-generation member, was sailing off to new horizons after a twelve years career in the idol group.

“Is everything alright?” Yosuke asked worriedly.

Rena jolted out of her musing and looked up to meet his eyes. They glanced at each other silently for a little while, until Rena opened her mouth when she finally found her voice back. “I just learned…” She fumbled with her words. “I just learned that Jurina announced her graduation.”

Yosuke looked faintly surprised. “She’s leaving the group and she didn’t warn you in advance? As you seemed close friends, I thought…”

“No, we…” Rena’s face clouded with uneasiness. “We haven’t spoken in three years.”

Yosuke was taken aback by the revelation. “Did something happen?”

Rena nibbled on her lower lip. “It’s… It’s complicated.”

“You know how much I hate to pry but...” Yosuke paused in hesitation. “If you need someone to talk to, I’m here. I don’t really know how you view our relationship, but I want to believe that we are friends. I’m a good listener and I would never betray your confidence. Don’t ever doubt that, Rena.”

“I think of you as a friend too.” Rena managed a small, tentative smile. “But it’s a long and complicated story. I’m not… I’m not the nice person you think I am. I’ve hurt people: people really important to me.”

“By people, you mean… Jurina?” Yosuke asked tentatively, receiving a small nod in reply. “It’s true I’ve never met her in person and I don’t know what kind of relationship you two had but I was sometimes present when you spoke on the phone with her during the shooting of Destiny. And, I saw the way you reacted when she won the SSK last year: you looked so happy for her. It’s obvious to me that you still care about her.”

“I don’t just care about her.” Rena smiled sadly and looked down to her phone, lingering on the article, and most especially on Jurina’s picture. “But none it matters anymore. I caused her so much pain: she’ll never forgive me. I’m not even sure I want her to.”

When Yosuke reached across the table to take her hand, she stiffened in reaction when he gave her fingers a light, comforting squeeze. “I don’t agree when you’re saying you’re not a good person. You feel and express remorse, and I genuinely believe that everyone deserves a second chance.”

From her peripheral vision, Rena noticed the waiter approaching their table. Slowly retracting her fingers from Yosuke’s grasp, she fell abruptly quiet, reflecting upon Yosuke’s words as the male employee placed both their orders on the table. Was it really not too late to mends things as he surprisingly seemed to believe? Did she and Jurina still have a chance to reconnect? Rena found herself terribly torn between two conflicted emotions.

The pragmatic side of her wanted to scold Yosuke for daring giving her false hopes. Surely, Jurina had already moved on: there was no use in stirring up the past and reopening old wounds. However, another more selfish side of her – tinged with nostalgia and feelings of love she had never managed to bury – foolishly wished that he could be right.

#Destiny #wmatsui #matsui jurina #matsui rena #wmatsui fanfic #SKE48 #AKB48 #Partners sequel #chapter 29 #Heartbeat trilogy

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