#and the gimmick that our teacher gave us was to base their friendship meeting over a celebrity

[glitterhoof]

anyways a doodle i drew of a scene me and my scene partner had written in two days

[furinjuru]

Our Sea Of Today - Chapter 6 - The School Idol Club

ENDGAME pairings I’ve decided for the story are: ChikaDiaYoshi, YouRiko, KanaMari, RubyMaru

“The School Idol Club has been officially approved!”

 Only minutes before lunch break ends, You is surprised when Dia slams a sheet of paper onto their table. Chika and Yoshiko seem just as surprised as her, but when Chika realizes what Dia had said, she immediately turns ecstatic.

 “What? No way!” She looks over at the paper, and You follows suit. The paper has an ‘Approved’ stamp on it, as well as Kanan’s signature, which is more than enough to confirm its legitimacy.

 “Oh, it wasn’t that hard,” Dia says, “I made an agreement with Kanan, and she allowed us to start the club with only three members as long as we can get two more in three months.”

 “So, just before midterms,” Chika mutters, nodding her head. “That’s more than enough time. You really are amazing, Dia-chan!”

 “O-of course! This is only the bare minimum of what I can do.” Dia seems far too smug about something that, in her own words, wasn’t that hard, but You isn’t here to nitpick. Instead, she focuses back on the paper, scanning its contents.

 Founders: Takami Chika, Kurosawa Dia.

Members: Tsushima Yoshiko.

 “Eh?” Chika suddenly speaks up, grabbing the paper in an uncharacteristically gentle manner, as if worried about accidentally tearing it. “You didn’t write You-chan’s name here.”

 “That’s right. You never gave us a concrete answer, and you seemed somewhat reluctant. You also have the swimming club, so I didn’t want to write down your name without permission.” Dia then smiles, pulling out a pen from her pocket and waving it around. “But if you’ve made up your mind, feel free to join us at any time.”

“Ah…let me think about it for a bit more then.” You is glad that she’ll have more time to think about it. She didn’t want to join on a whim, but she also wanted to help Chika form the club as fast as possible. At least now she’ll have more time to mull it over.

 As Yoshiko looks at the paper held by Chika and sees her name listed as one of the members, she turns to Dia. “Why is my name there?” She asks, which makes Dia look at her with a deadpan expression.

 “Is there an issue with that? We needed at least three people, so I wrote down our names. But I only wrote you down as a member, so you shouldn’t end up being too burdened with managing the club. Oh, and should we do something for club day? We don’t have anything prepared yet, but it would be such a good way to attract more people….” Dia frowns, her gaze going between the club application form and the other two members.

 “…perhaps we can perform a cover?” Dia says tentatively. “If we’re going to showcase our singing and dancing skills, using a song and choreography that already works means there’s less risk involved. Don’t you agree?”

 “No way!” Chika loudly exclaims, drawing the attention of everyone at the table and all other adjacent ones. “That’s not the point! School idols are about doing your best and trying to shine! If you just want to sing, then you might as well just join the school choir!”

 You considers that a good moment to cut in. “That’s kinda true. Plus, if we focus more on everything we do by ourselves, it’ll give us a unique edge over the others. So we won’t be competing for applicants.”

 Dia seems satisfied at their answer. Out of nowhere, she pulls out a few sheets of paper and two pens, dividing them between Yoshiko and Chika. “Alright, it’s settled then. You two, get to work.” Dia grins, looking as smug as ever. “Since I’ll be handling the choreography, that means you two can work on the costumes and lyrics. I expect them to be done by Thursday morning, so we’ll have the rest of the day, as well as Friday morning to practice for our performance.”

 “Should’ve just done the stupid cover….” Yoshiko grumbles as Chika gives her an apologetic glance. Then, Chika realizes that something is missing.

 “What about the composition?”

 “I’ll handle that too,” Dia says off-handedly, “Don’t worry. Just focus on your work. I recommend splitting it up. It’s easier to set your mind to doing one thing rather than doing half of two things. But first of all….” Dia pulls out another paper and pen. “…we need to decide on a theme for the song.”

 The bell rings, and Dia’s smirk disappears. “…it appears we’ll have to decide on the theme of the song later.”

 “See you later, You-chan!” “Farewell, little demon!” No sooner than that, Chika and Yoshiko both leave the cafeteria, running to their class. Dia sighs.

 “Take care, You-san. I have to return the form to Kanan…and make sure those two don’t do anything stupid.” Getting up to leave, she gives You a small, genuine smile. “Please consider our offer. I would be overjoyed to have you in the club. I’m sure those two share the same sentiment as I do.”

 “I will.” You stands up, heading towards her own class while Dia goes to the student council room. During the way, she can’t help but wonder about the nature of Dia’s friendship with Kanan. According to Kanan, they’re childhood friends, but she doesn’t remember Kanan ever talking about her. And considering Chika’s surprise yesterday, she wasn’t aware of it either. What good would there be for Kanan to hide some of her friends from her other ones? It’s not like You or Chika would try to scare her away (alright, maybe they would), and they’re able to get along well, so Kanan’s own excuse no longer fits.

Maybe Kanan’s just uncomfortable sharing it with us, You muses to herself. She’ll be the first to admit that she also has things she wouldn’t want to share with her two friends.

 …but it still didn’t make sense. Why would she get uncomfortable just talking about someone? Then she remembers, Kanan is crushing on Dia. That makes more sense now. She was probably trying to avoid getting teased.

 Satisfied with her thoughts, You walks into class. The others are already in their seats, getting their books ready for the next subject. Of course, as she passes Ruby and Hanamaru’s desk, she can’t help but eavesdrop on their conversation.

 “-school idols, right here in Uranohoshi! Isn’t that amazing Hanamaru-chan”

 “It got approved, zura?”

 “Mhm! I heard they’re holding their first live this week. I can’t wait.”

 News really does spread fast. It’s only been a few minutes since Dia told them that the application was accepted. Chika was definitely drawing too much attention to herself. Things were only going to get harder for them, but she’s sure that they can pull it off.

 …right?

  “Yoshiko-chan, that wouldn’t work.”

 “Really? It seems like a pretty good idea to me.”

 “Please don’t encourage her…,” Dia says, staring at the paper in front of her with disdain, “There is absolutely no way we’re using this as the theme of our live show.”

 “What’s wrong with fallen angels?” Yoshiko asks, “I mean, I think it can work.”

 “We’re trying to attract people to our club, not push them away. And no matter how you do it, I can’t see fallen angels being a very attractive idea.”

 Yoshiko looks sadly at her early design. A gothic lolita dress based on the outfit she uses for her live streams, with minor adjustments to make it somewhat unique. Even if it wasn’t the most original idea, it hurts to have it completely rejected.

 “Well, I still think it’s a great idea.” Chika shrugs. Yoshiko silently thanks her. “That’s two in favor and one against, so that means we’re using that as the theme of our live show.”

 “Are you two even listening to me?” Dia clenches her fist, resisting the urge to pound the desk and attract everyone’s attention. “We’re trying to make our club accessible to everyone. Believe it or not, high schoolers won’t be interested in this.”

 “Dia-chan!” Yoshiko puts up her hand, stopping Chika from talking.

 “Chika, stop. Dia is right.” She says, giving a small smile. “It’s fine, I wasn’t really trying too hard with these costumes anyway. I can make new ones as long as we can figure out the theme today.”

 “Yoshiko-chan….” Chika stares for a while, before sighing. “Fine. If we can’t do fallen angels, what ideas do you have?”

 “Well, since our main goal is to show the full appeal of school idols, we should go for a normal concert. Going for a specific theme would divide people too much.” Dia explains.

 “That’s not an idea, Dia-chan….”

 “But she does have a point,” Yoshiko says, “Idols are inspiring in their own right. Using a specific gimmick might take away the charm. So I think we should do that too. That’s two in favor.”

 “Huh?” Chika seems confused by Yoshiko’s sudden decision. “Then…I’m in favor as well.”

 “Perfect!” Dia answers, “Well then, let’s do our best. We have to finish these quickly after all.” Dia faces the clock hanging on the classroom wall and immediately stands up.”Speaking of quickly, I need to do something. If the teacher comes in, tell her I’m with the student council president.”

 “You’re meeting up with Kanan-chan again?” Chika asks, and Dia nods her head.

 “Yes. I’ll see you two later.”

 “See you later,” Yoshiko mumbles as Dia walks out of the classroom. Turning her head, she sees Chika staring at her scrutinizingly. “What?”

 Chika pouts, continuing to stare at Yoshiko. “You shouldn’t agree with everything Dia says.”

 Yoshiko looks down,  back at her rejected design. “It’s…not that. My idea wasn’t even fleshed out, so I let Dia take the lead. It’s for the club, so it’s not like it matters.”

 “But….” Chika trails off, searching Yoshiko’s expression for any kind of clue to her true feelings. “…you should be more honest. If you want something, you should tell me or Dia.”

 Chika stands up from her seat and walks to the front of Yoshiko’s table. Once Yoshiko makes eye contact, Chika grins. “So, just tell me now. Is there anything you want?”

 Yoshiko doesn’t even have to think of the answer. She wants a lot of things. She wants to be taller, smarter, cooler, cuter, more respected, more athletic, and that’s only the start. She wants to have more friends. Actual friends, not acquaintances or classmates. She wants to get closer to Chika and Dia.

 But as she stares at Chika’s face, her eyes begin to hurt. Yoshiko isn’t sure if it’s because of how bright Chika is, or if it’s because of tears forming in her eyes. She lowers her gaze back to the paper.

 If she’s truly honest, she can tell Chika what she truly feels. But saying it now would be a waste, so she forces a laugh.

 “I just want the club to be successful. I don’t know as much about idols, but I’ll do my best!”

 Chika stares, silently, as if waiting for Yoshiko to continue and confess everything. But after a while, she nods and smiles. “That’s great! If you need any help with the designs, just ask me for help! I know a lot thanks to You-chan, so I’m sure I can give you some pointers.”

 “Of course.” She lowers her voice by an octave, putting on her false confidence. “A fallen angel is always ready to help her little demons, so don’t be afraid of asking for help as well. Your mistress will be waiting.”

 “Of course, Yohane-sama.” Chika giggles, and as brief as it is, Yoshiko genuinely feels blessed. She looks back at her paper, and her mood drops as fast as it rose. She flips the paper to its clean side, then begins sketching again.

  When You heads home for the day and boards the bus, she’s surprised to find Yoshiko already sitting at the back, staring blankly at something. You takes a seat, and peeks over the second year’s shoulder to look at the object. When her eyes land on a drawing of Chika in a frilly, black and white dress, she can’t help but show her appreciation.

 “Uwaah! Yoshiko-chan, that’s so good!” You gushes with enthusiasm, shocking Yoshiko out of her stupor. “What is it?”

 “It’s nothing,” Yoshiko answers in a somber tone, folding the paper in half before placing it in her bag. “Well, it was my idea for our costume, but that’s not what we’re going for.”

 “Oh, that’s a shame.” You still smiles, although a lot of her early enthusiasm has faded. “Do you need some help? I got a ton of costumes in my closet that you can check out if you want inspiration.”

 “…I wonder if that’s the only thing still in your closet.” Yoshiko replies, an amount of friendly snark replacing the previous somberness. “But sure. Perhaps I can grace you with my presence. Tomorrow?”

“Yeah, that’s good,” You says. When Yoshiko returns to staring at nothing with a blank expression, You decided to bring up the serious questions. “Is something the matter?”

 “…yes. Everything’s fine.”

 “Are you sure?” You pushes. “You’ve been a bit off ever since I saw you at lunch. You’re usually livelier than this.”

 “We’ve known each other for less than a day.” Yoshiko turns to face You, and for the first time, You sees a mixture of sadness and fear.

 “Please, you can trust me.” You begs. “You might think of me as a complete stranger, but I really do care about you as a friend.”

 Yoshiko turns away from You’s pleading look. “…what kind of person would I be to burden my underclassmen like that?”

 “Aren’t you stubborn?” You lets out a sigh. “Fine. Take off your ribbon.”

 “Why?”

 “Please, just do it.” Utterly confused, Yoshiko can only nod as she pulls on her ribbon, undoing it before passing it to You. The younger girl follows, before placing both ribbons in her backpack. “There. Now we’re just ordinary Uranohoshi students. We’re exactly the same, so you can tell me what’s going on.”

 “…that’s not how it works,” Yoshiko says, although she now has a small smile plastered on her face. “Where did you get that ridiculous idea from?”

 “Chika-chan, obviously.” You returns the smile with more energy. “She did this when Kanan was feeling down, and it worked out pretty well, so I wanted to cheer you up this way too.”

 “She always comes up with the craziest ideas.” Yoshiko laughs a bit, some cheer finally returning to her voice.

 “So, can you tell me what’s wrong now?”

 Yoshiko mulls the idea over, seeming deep in thought for a good minute. “You’re so stubborn.” Yoshiko looks at You, smiling. “I guess it wouldn’t hurt. As long as you don’t tell anyone.”

 “You have my word!” Leaning down, she gets closer to Yoshiko so they can lower their voice, making them more conspicuous but also less likely for anyone to eavesdrop.

 Yoshiko takes a deep breath, and You waits with bated breath for the big reveal. “It’s Dia.” Yoshiko starts. “I don’t think she likes me very much. Or at all, to be honest.”

 “Well, first of all, we only started talking to each other after I became friends with Chika. So I guess we’re more like…two connected duos, rather than one trio, if that makes any sense.” You nods, urging Yoshiko to continue.

 “And…when she talks with Chika, she has so much fun. She’s never like that with me. It’s like she doesn’t even care. It’s what you saw yesterday. She never asks ‘Yoshiko-chan, are you okay?’ It’s always ‘Yoshiko-chan, you weren’t late, were you?’” Yoshiko mimics Dia’s voice with an insane level of accuracy. “She tells me to come early, to be more responsible, to focus more on my studies every single night. It feels like I’m her project to make the teachers love her even more. Whipping the ‘problem girl’ into shape, wouldn’t that look good on her fucking diploma.” Yoshiko curses, hurt seeping back into her voice

 “I don’t think she approves of my fallen angel thing either. It’s why I’ve been kinda toning it back a bit. I dunno, it’s just…frustrating.” You feels bad for Yoshiko. It sounds like her relationship with Dia had been strained for a while, only held together by the strand that is Takami Chika.

 “And that’s not the worst part. The thing is…I-I may have a crush on her.”

 You must’ve missed a very critical part of their conversation. That’s the only excuse she has for a statement so far out of left field like that. She almost falls over by how surprised she was by the girl’s confession. “Sorry, can you say that again?”

 “Like…you’ve seen her happy before, right?” Yoshiko asks, a smile threatening to break out from her sad expression. “It’s cute. It might sound a bit cheesy…but I want to make her smile more often.”

 You remains silent as she watches Yoshiko baring her heart, discarding all of her facades right in front of her. It’s so unexpected to see her like this, that You can’t think of doing anything but just listening.

 “It’s not like I stand a chance, though.” Yoshiko does a short, bitter laugh. “I mean, have you seen my competition? I’m competing with Kanan of all people. God, I’m completely shit. I guess this is what you call losing a race before it starts.”

 “There’s no such thing as that.” You tries encouraging the depressed girl. “Sure, they look close. But I’ve never seen them hanging out outside of school.”

 “Dia rejected going home with me because she’s already walking home with Kanan.”

 “Then…chin up.” You hates sounding like a downer, but looking at one positive is at least better than looking at none. “There’s plenty of fish in the sea. And you’re pretty cute too, so I’m sure a lot of people would want to date you.”

 Yoshiko flinches, and You figures out that she said something wrong. “That’s my…second problem. I’m also in love with….” The last part was muttered, no audible sound reaching You’s ears. She leans in just a bit closer.

 “Can you say that again?” You prods Yoshiko, and the other girl repeats her statement. This time, however, You hears it.

 “I’m also in love with Chika.”

 “Chika-chan!?” Taken off-guard by the second confession, You’s voice rises.

 “Can you be a bit louder, please? It’s not like I still have some pride left.”

 Understanding the sarcastic request, You lowers her voice again after shooing away other passenger’s curious stares. “Then, what’s the problem with Chika-chan?”

 “You mean other than me having a crush on her?”

“Doesn’t sound like too big of a problem.”

 “I wish it wasn’t.” Yoshiko scoffs. “But you’ve seen her with Dia. They have a lot in common, and they’ve been friends for longer than me.”

 “But Dia likes Kanan, right?”

 “Chika’s also close with Kanan. They’re childhood friends, right? I’m sure they can work it out together….”

 The awkward atmosphere finally returns. You is silenced as she stares at Yoshiko. It’s like the girl is a magnet of bad luck, with every worst-case scenario befalling her. The silence is only broken by a small sob coming from her.

 “H-hey, don’t cry.” You says, carefully pulling Yoshiko into a hug. It takes little to no resistance as the girl decides to bury her face into You’s shoulders, muffling her cries.

 “What am I going to do?” Yoshiko chokes out. “If they start dating, I don’t think I can take it.”

 “There, there. Everything’s going to be fine….” You whispers, patting the girl’s back while shooting evil glares at other passengers. She resists the urge to scream at them; it would only startle Yoshiko even more.

 “…I’m tired. I’m so tired, You.” Yoshiko responds softly. “I’m  tired of being alone for so long. I’ve been alone for nine years. I haven’t had a real friend since kindergarten. A-and I had so much fun last year, what if Dia and Chika ditch me? I don’t want to go back to being alone….”

“You won’t.” Hugging Yoshiko a bit closer, You hears a small chuckle coming from her.

 “I’m sorry, I shouldn’t be bothering an underclassman like this….”

 To that, You shakes her head. “Right now, we’re just ordinary Uranohoshi students. We’re exactly the same.”

 The trip to Numazu is the most silent one she’s experienced since meeting Yoshiko. When she gets off the bus, she has a wet patch on her sleeve and a lot to think about.

 “…Dia, are you seeing what I’m seeing?”

 As the duo of Kanan and Dia walk out of the school, they stop in front the entrance.

 Dia hums thoughtfully. “We’re both staring at the sky, Kanan. Unless you are referring to the sun, I believe  we’re looking at the same thing.”

 “I could be looking at those birds.” Kanan attempts a joke, but the situation at hand is so shocking that neither has it in them to laugh.

 Soaring above the skies of Uchiura, attracting the attention of passersby and fellow students, is a bright pink and white helicopter.

 “…there’s no way it’s anyone else, huh?” Kanan finally says as the helicopter flies out of view a good few minutes later.

 “There’s only one possible candidate.” They continue walking. Excitement bubbles in their hearts as they imagine what it’d be like if it was true.

 “…is she really back?” Kanan asks. Her last bit of uncertainty is blown away as Dia smiles at her.

 “Of course. She promised after all. Besides, she owes me a birthday present.” Dia laughs, and Kanan smiles as well.

 “She owes me two.” The rest of the walk is spent telling jokes and stories. Something is amiss for now, but neither of them mind.

 Deep in their hearts, they can already feel a third presence.

This isn’t a YouHane story, but if it was, I would totally want You to confess in the bus scene. Ahh, it’s so cute that I almost want it to happen, but I have big plans for Yoshiko!