#someya tae

[deus-ex-mona]

Heyooo so like do you think you could explain the Someya brothers relationship? It’s peaked my interest since the new songs with these two revolve around each other…

Yujiro and Koichirou aren’t related by blood, right? 🤔

Also, what do you think about the new songs that just came out?

Thank you so much for your time 💛💛 Happy New Years 💕

hi! happy new year~~!

this got kinda long so there’s a cut here for length sorry~~~

ngl i’m kindaaaaa fuzzy on the details about the someya bros’ relationship, but long story short, they’re stepbrothers (with koichiro spawning from the resident longleg tamagoro and yujiro being tae’s son, of course) who were kinda pitted against each other when it came to learning how to perform (kabuki) from tamagoro, because longleg’s gotta longleg ig.

then yujiro gets disinherited because the longleg’s still longlegging and koichiro takes to the kabuki stage by himself as the local “national treasure’s” sole heir. so, like, i’m guessing that the events surrounding yujiro’s disinherition may have led to their (frankly terrible) brotherly relationship of “an inferior older brother” and “a superior younger brother”?

though this dynamic carried on pretty much for as long as yujiro longed to perform on a kabuki stage, just like koichiro does (if we were to take the lxl movie’s word for it). then yujiro became an idol and started to work towards a different dream, breaking off from the path (kabuki) that he used to follow koichiro down, which i guess made koichiro start to see yujiro in a different light?

like, imagine you have a lifelong rival who strives for the same goals that you do. however, this rival of yours is less skilled than you, so you naturally grow to have a sense of superiority over your rival, taking satisfaction in crushing them while having full knowledge that they will never be able to beat you when it comes to your shared goals.

however, one day, your rival decides to aim for a different goal, completely ditching your shared goal and stuff, and they actually seem to be doing pretty well in their path to achieve their new goal. how would you feel?

because i get the feeling that koichiro’s initial response to that was to feel betrayed, in a “why are you running away (from kabuki)?” sense.

though, over time, koichiro seems to have gradually come to terms with yujiro’s idol activities, and their relationship naturally (albeit slowly) improved as the days passed, with them going on walks together and bickering with each other like brothers would. which, y’know, is cool of him in a way. he’s learning. he’s still kind of a brat, but he’s growing despite his past mistakes.

as for yujiro, well, he seems to have been looking out for koichiro in his own way from the very beginning? like, man chose not to go against koichiro’s mistreatment, opting to just lower his head and accept it instead.

was it an act of self-sacrifice to protect koichiro’s ego or something? heck, even in the lxl movie, he just took everything koichiro dished at him, and only fought back when koichiro dared to mock his bf aizo. which is. pretty unhealthy, yujiro bro. just tell him you have a proper brotherly love for him for goodness sake. your communication skills s u c k.

um. anyway.

tl;dr: stepbros made to learn kabuki because of their father. older bro gets disinherited, younger bro gets an attitude and mistreats older bro. this continues until older bro becomes an idol and begins to walk his own path. younger bro feels betrayed/annoyed at his older bro for “giving up” on kabuki. younger bro does eventually accept the fact that they have different dreams and supports older bro. seems like older bro has always been looking out for younger bro though, even though he doesn’t say it.

thoughhhhhh seriously, i’m not a someya expert or anything, i just like making fun of the longleg, so… if someone with a degree in someyaology could chime in, it’d be greatly appreciated~~~

as for the new songs, nagisa’s new song is the best of them all, no question. thanks for coming to my ted talk—

[orangeflowerpetals]

BAMF Tae Someya

Like if you agree

[lilac-melody]

Fantasia LOVE&KISS Novel Masterlist

Prologue

Chapter 1

Chapter 2

Chapter 3

Chapter 4

Chapter 5

Chapter 6

Chapter 7

Epilogue

[mieltrabajos]

[toranekooo]

hai :3 ambrose directed me to you so. please tell me about lip/hiyo i love drama and discourse so much (non forcing btw)

みなさん、おはこんばんちわ !! my name is ess but u can call me vyn, maiko or secchan~ and i will be your announcer for today <3 ! today we will be discussing why i dislike lip/hiyo ! this is gonna contain a lot of buffers so i dont get caught up in the tags or the search results so um. im sorry if its a pain to read. please be warned these are MOSTLY personal opinions and i don't intend on infringing on ppl who do ship it. i do not care. simply DONT tag my shit as it and we're good ^_^ except ppl dont listen and i find it fucking annoying so. here's a full blown explanation i guess

first ! lip.hiyo is a ship between hi.yori su.zumi and the members of lipx.lip ai.zo and yu.jiro . hiyo/ri is their manager and she's a girl from the countryside who moved to tokyo to study and work on becoming a track and field athelete . lipx/lip are themselves. their relationship in canon is. friends at best. something else at worst. being the little shits they are, lip/lip are nothing short of assholes to hiyo.ri for the majority of their earlier canon interactions. she states multiple times in her stories that they make her feel stupid. while i do think they respect and care for each other as coworkers, i still dislike how they treat her as a person, especially how they put down her feelings. before and after her.oiku where hiyo.ri undergoes a transformation courtesy of lx.l dressing her up so she can confess to another member of the idol series, asu.ka kai.do (discontinued due to the collaborative project ending) — they continue to tell her that had it not been for the pretty dress or the makeup, she wouldn't be worthy of being called a heroine. she wouldn't be a "girl" in their eyes. which is where a lot of the ships stem from.

but wait! you're probably asking yourself, or well, me: "secchan-sensei! lipx.lip bully each other a whole damn lot too! they bicker and they insult each other! wouldn't this put shipping them in the same category as lp/hy?" excellent question! while i understand why people can perceive it similarly, there is one big difference. the idols and hiyori exist in an unbalanced power dynamic. no i do not mean that in a literal sense, but in a social, emotional sense. you said it yourself, lip/lip bully each other! theyre mean and rude and crass and jerks to EACH OTHER. there is a back and forth movement. they bite and bite back, so to speak. while with hiy.ori as you're aware, she swallows her pain and bottles up that sadness and holds back those tears, she never responds or insults them back because she's not that kind of person. above all things, hiyori remains kind to ai and yu but the fact that they hurt her in ways they don't even acknowledge are not mutually exclusive.

if you're familiar with hone.yworks lore, as well as lx.l themselves, you probably know at least an adequate bit of their trauma. to put it simply, a.izo struggles with interacting with women, to the point where he finds them difficult to be with. this is often translated to him hating women, so as an idol with a predominantly female fanbase, this is a big problem. this trauma stems from his mother, who for the greater part of his childhood, was an abusive drunk. not only that, his older brother, whom he looked to for support and comfort when their home life was at their worst, is a playboy who toyed around with women and relationships with hopes of avoiding the loneliness at home. while ken grew out of his issues and ultimately became a better person, his actions growing up had a significant negative effect on ai.zo . he isnt jUst a miSoGyniSt dear fuck

yujiro, on the other hand, is the stepson of national treasure, tamagoro someya, a master of kabuki. his mother, tae, married into the family and he has a younger stepbrother, koichiro. tamagoro very explicitly tells him that he will not inherit the kabuki legacy, stating that he "lacks beauty" and is half-hearted. this is despite the fact that yujiro pushed himself beyond his own strength, to the point of starvation and isolation, all for the sake of pleasing his father — who never intended to acknowledge him in the first place. yujiro remained inadequate, lacking, some part of him, despite his best efforts, would never fit into the beauty of the roles his father had crafted for the stage.

“Father is father, and there’s nothing I can do about that. I think he didn’t have a choice in telling me to give up…” “…Were you never allowed to stand on the kabuki stage?” “There’s no way he would have let me. It was only my brother who could have…” (That’s really messed up…) If he had no intention of letting him perform on stage, why did he let him practice? It was cruel to put so many expectations on a child, only to rip his hope away from him. (LOVE&KISS novel, Chapter 7) [1]

how is this relevant to hiyori?

then, we talk about the infamous hero.taru anime. now, honeyw.orks anime have this curse where they're either bound to flop incredibly or butcher the characters enough it appeals to a general audience and completely destroys their characters. the hero.taru anime was made to promote lip.x.lip and profit off their popularity in the idol genre showcase hiyo.ri's heroine story. the story spans multiple mvs, from h.eroine iku.sei keikak.u -> her.oine wa hei.kin ika -> her.oine tarum.ono . there's a general difference with as.uka being cut out and replaced with nagisa after he's finally released from the honeyw.orks basement. aaand i'm getting sidetracked. as someone who watched every single anime hnw has put out, i can confidently say...

her.otaru fucking sucks.

despite being an anime centered on hiy.ori's development as a heroine, it overuses fanservice and became a cookie cutter shoujo mixed with a little idol for the views. fuck, the main conflict was literally between lip.xlip's manager and their biggest fan who had a crush on aiz.o . DO YOU SEE MY ISSUE. ok that aside. the anime completely butchers hiyo's character by making her overly dependent on lx.l. not to mention the bathroom scene. ick. the anime also completely butchers lxl by erasing their issues and making them into "just backup male leads if nag.isa doesnt sell well" and he didnt bc he was there for one fucking episode . back to my point, the anime has a particular scene pertaining to their trauma, which i have elaborately expanded above, and dumbs it down to: [2]

bad, right? not the worst butchering of it yet. you see, SOMEHOW, the herota.ru anime made the already fucked hani.wa timeline WORSE by turning yum.e fanf.are into a song about hiyori. i'm going to start tearing and biting bc this frustrated me SO MUCH . yume.fan is a song of aizo and yujiro about their struggles as stated above, and yet it was percieved as a song made to make hiyo.ri fall in love with them.

god ok this is. incredibly long at this point but i have only pierced the surface. lets just get it down to brass tacks. i hate lip.hiyo.

a lot of people came out of hero.taru shipping lip.hiyo after seeing their relationship and interactions in the anime. people tend to ship them with hiyor.i because "sHe's nOt LiKe oThER giRls" . of all the things i hate abt lip.hiyo and the hero.taru anime in general, i hate how it ruins hiyo.ri's character. i hate how they refuse to acknowledge that she enjoys feeling beautiful, she likes being a feminine, she wants to be a heroine — her issues don't lie in her not being beautiful enough to fit in the heroine mold, but the fact that she can be heroine, regardless of how she perceives herself!

well, introspective reasons aside, i hate the ship on a personal basis bc i've recently found out most ppl who ship it are pushing to make people believe it's canon ? like who the fuck does that. ONE, hiyori does have a canon love interest, nag.isa shiran.ami. TWO, they have never even remotely shown any romantic interest to her ??? well fuck i mean if you count calling her derogatory names, telling her she'll never be a girl if she doesn't dress up, or saying she'll never get a romeo if she rejects nagisa counts as flirting then sure i believe you. THREE, you can literally ship it even if it isn't canon. there is nothing stopping you??? it's giving hypocrisy bc a long loooong time ago they were mad at ai.yuu shippers for continuously mentioning their parallels and the possibility of them becoming canon and they called them [BEEEEEP] . you get the point.

negativity aside, at this point i've probably put you through a horror. sorry about that. all in all, i prefer ai.yuu and nagi.hiyo over lp/hy. i dislike het.lip in general because why would you want to inflict this upon any girl. come on. they can do better. im kidding but you get it. ai and yu trust each other more than anyone, they are canonically each other's most important person, and they are equals in persevering to achieve their dreams. THAT is what yume.fan meant [3] . and i like n.ghy bc nagi.sa has had feelings for hiyori for years, even before she dolled herself up, even before she was a manager, he fell in love with hiyori, and no one else — because in his eyes, she's always been a heroine!! "zutto heroine da" - nagi.sa in heroine wa heikin ika [4]

in case for SOME reason this isn't enough, please feel free to peruse the following posts that expand on some particular parts of this: differences between the mvs and anime | the Trauma scene | yume fan.fare's meaning | personal thoughts 1 | personal thoughts 2

CITATIONS:

[1] LOVE&KISS Chapter 7 — translation

[2] He.roine Taru.mono! Kiraware H.eroine to Naisho Os.higoto Anime Episode 4

[3] Yu.me Fan.fare by LIP.×LIP

[4] Her.oine wa Hei.kin Ika by Su.zumi Hiyo.ri (CV: Ino.ri Mi.nase)

[takanenene]

LIPxLIP’s “Kono Sekai no Tanoshimikata ~Secret Story Film~” additional characters profile translations

The official website for LIPxLIP’s movie, “Kono Sekai no Tanoshimikata ~Secret Story Film~” has just added profiles for 6 additional characters that are going to appear in the movie!

translations under read more!

Tamura Rei (CV: Sawashiro Miyuki)

President of the new entertainment agency, Mobius.

She has a background career of working for a big entertainment agency, and is also known for being a talented producer.

An audition was held to discover new idols for the agency, and she was quick to see through both Yuujirou and Aizou's talents, later putting them both to form a unit together.

Uchida Mayu (CV: Kayano Ai)

A manager who works for the new entertainment agency, Mobius.

She's in charge of Yuujirou and Aizou, who passed the audition.

She's having a hard time with taking care of both Yuujirou and Aizou, who often argue over trivial matters.

Shibasaki Yuko (CV: Horie Yui)

Aizou's mother.

She got divorced due to her husband's affair, and would leave her house often ever since.

She often lashes out on Aizou, and has a past that she's tried to push away. Even so, she used to have a gentle personality and would often accompany Aizou's singing by playing the piano.

Someya Tamagoro (CV: Hirata Hiroaki)

Yuujirou's father, but as someone whom Yuujirou's mother remarried to, he has no blood relation with Yuujirou.

He acts as the current head of the prestigious Kabuki family, the Someya family, and is also considered as a living national treasure.

He treats the people around him strictly. He describes Yuujirou as someone who "has no beauty" and opposes Yuujirou, who's going on the path of art with half-hearted resolution.

Note: Tamagoro is saying 「華がない」 to describe Yuujirou,  華 can also means “Flower” or “Brilliance” / “Splendor”.  the word 華 is also used in Yuujirou’s solo song title, 青華.

Someya Tae (CV: Kuwashima Houko)

Yuujirou's mother.

She remarried Tamagoro, but hasn't been able to build a good family with him ever since.

She feels responsible for binding Yuujirou to the Someya family due to her remarriage with Tamagoro, but when Yuujirou has found a new-found dream of being an idol, she pushes his back and gives him her support.

Someya Koichirou (CV: Toki Shunichi)

A junior high school freshman and Tamagoro's real son.

He has the talent for Kabuki that he inhereited from his father and acting as the Onnagata on the stage.

He's not happy about his older brother, Yuujirou, who has no blood relation with him and treats his mother, Tae, coldly.

Note: Onnagata is a male Kabuki actor who plays female roles on stage.

[yume-fanfare]

just what I think. I would be extremely happy if I was proven otherwise. I could easily be wrong. Just her profile mentions how she feels responsible for binding Yuujirou to the Someya's, and Koichiro treats her coldly, so it doesn't seem like she does much to stand up for not just herself but her son too. I got off topic. But yeah, I just want someone, Rei or Mayu or Akechi, to actually be there for them. Because with their lack of self care, they NEED it,, sorry for the rant!

(2/2)

yes, i do feel like tae is a nice person (maybe she actually does go to all of their concerts?) but as you mentioned, she may not stand up much for herself. maybe she does provide openings for yuujirou sometimes but idk ;; she seems nice i hope she helps out

anyway yes i hope someone kinda helps but i,,, don't hope much

and dw about the rant it was nice thinking about this sdjksds

[recentanimenews]

HoneyWorks Anniversary Film LIP×LIP Announces Six New Cast Members

  Production group HoneyWorks is celebrating ten years of art and music with a film devoted to their virtual idol group LIP×LIP. Today, they brought six new cast members into the mix, filling out the back stories of the two fictional superstars.

  The film, fully titled LIP×LIP the Movie: How to Enjoy this World -Secret Story Film-, will detail the never-before-told story of how the wildly-differing Yujiro and Aizo first came to know each other. Joining the cast will be:

  Miyuki Sawashiro (Fujiko Mine in Lupin the 3rd) as Rei Tamura, president of the Mobius Talent Agency where Yujiro and Aizo were discovered.

  Ai Kayano (Darkness in KONOSUBA -God's blessing on this wonderful world!) as Mayu Uchida, Yujiro and Aizo's new manager at Mobius.

  Yui Horie (Tsubasa Habekawa in Monogatari Series) as Yuko Shibasaki, Aizo's divorced mother. 

  Hiroaki Hirata (Sanji in One Piece) as Tamagoro Someya, Yujiro's strict stepfather and a kabuki actor.

  Houko Kuwashima (Sango in Inuyasha) as Tae Someya, Yujiro's supporting and recently-remarried mother.

  Shunichi Toki (Allocer Schneider in Welcome to Demon School! Iruma-kun) as Koichiro Someya, Yujiro's stepbrother and a kabuki actor.

  (Name romanizations are not official.)

    The film was announced next month, with more information (including release date) forthcoming.

  >> LIP×LIP the Movie: How to Enjoy This World -Secret Story Film- Website

  Source: Anime! Anime!

    Check out more from HoneyWorks: I've Always Liked You is available on Crunchyroll!

  By: news+feed@crunchyroll.com

[deus-ex-mona]

h e l p not yujiro’s twig legs—

[lilac-melody]

Fantasia LOVE&KISS Novel Epilogue

Disclaimer: I’m not a professional translator

Masterlist here

🎤

Aizou left the bathroom and headed for the living room. When he opened the door, he found his brother standing in the kitchen. It was the weekend, but it was unusual to see him there.

(He’s wearing my clothes without permission.)

It was Aizou’s favorite jacket that he’d bought with anticipation.

As he sat on the couch in the living room looking at his phone, he heard a soft clank.

On the table in front of him was a mug. Ken picked up Kuro, who had been rubbing up against him, and put her on his shoulder.

“...Are you coming today?” Aizou asked quietly. 

The tickets for two that he had left on the table the other day were gone when he woke up in the morning.

“Oh, is today the last day of your play? Arisa-chan said she wanted to go, so I might go as well. Maybe,” Ken laughed with an awkward expression on his face.

(It’s a date then...well, that’s fine...)

Aizou stared at his cup quietly. “...You know, one of these days, I’m considering moving out and getting a place of my own...” It was something he’d been thinking about for a long time. He talked to Manager Uchida about it and she’s helping him find an affordable place to live. He didn’t see his brother that often, and they barely even spoke.

So he may as well say it now.

“Hm...sounds good, I guess?” It was the same light tone as usual. Even now, even though they lived in the same house, it was as if they were living separately. So there was no way that he’d be troubled.

“I haven’t decided when, but when I do, can I take Kuro with me?”

Ken stroked Kuro’s head gently as he looked at him. “Well, it’s fine with me...” He paused, “actually, no, you can’t.”

“Eh, why? It’s mostly me who takes care of her.”

He really thought Ken wouldn’t object.

“If you take Kuro with you, you won’t ever come back,” Ken replied, holding Kuro out. “But if you’re worried about this little one, then you’ll surely come back and see her every now and then, right?”

Aizou took her from his brother’s arms, and she squirmed, as if she preferred his brother. He adjusted his grip on her, taking care not to drop her, and she finally became comfortable and settled down.

Aizou looked at Ken’s face in confusion, not knowing what to say.

“Well, that’s how it is...anyway, I’m going to meet up with Arisa-chan,” Ken started to leave before suddenly pausing. “I’m borrowing your clothes, by the way,” he grinned at him, before leaving the room with a happy whistle.

“You’re already wearing them...” Aizou muttered, hugging Kuro tightly.

Even if he took Kuro with him, he was sure that he’d come back to the apartment anyway.

For him, he was always like that. He always tried to stay a family.

He finished getting ready and went to the front door, putting on his shoes and slung his bag over his shoulder. The house was quiet, and the lights were off.

He closed and locked the front door, and shoved the key into his pocket as he left.

(Alright, let’s go...)

💮

When Yujiro walked out the front door of his house, his mother came to see him off.

“I’ll be sure to see the show today, with your father.”

“Yeah...”

“Say hi to Aizou-kun for me.”

“Yeah...sure...” Yujiro replied vaguely.

“You two have to get along,” his mother chided.

“I know...well, I’m off,” Yujiro started to walk away, but was quickly stopped by his mother.

“Wait,” his mother took out a hiuchi stone and struck it, causing Yujiro to glance at her in surprise. She smiled at him. “I do this when your father and Koichiro perform. It’s a prayer that the play will be completed safely.”

She looked like she was about to start crying. Until now, she’d held back.

“Thank you, mom...”

“Do your best. Have a great day- and good luck.”

“Yeah...I’m going, now...”

(It’s time to go...)

To the world that was awaiting them.

⚔️🏹

The city was still quiet, as the people had not yet awakened. Only the occasional chirp of a small bird could be heard. It was a little dark in the distance, but the sky was beginning to lighten.

Two thin shadows stretched across the cobblestones of the square where the statues of the founding heroes stood.

“Why did you refuse the horse when the princess offered to give it to you? It would have been easier with the horse,” Aizou walked next to him, his arms crossed with a disapproving look on his face.

“Why didn’t you get your own horse? I don’t want one.”

“Well, if we’re traveling together, I don’t want to be the only one on horseback.”

“No one said anything about us traveling together. Why are you making all of the decisions on your own?”

After staying at the castle for about two weeks, Yujiro decided to leave because the injury on his leg had healed. He told the princess and her sister yesterday. 

However, he did not say a word to Aizou.

And yet, when he packed his bags and left his room in the morning, he was waiting for him, dressed in his traveling clothes, looking as if it was simply a natural thing to do.

Apparently, he had heard from the princess and her sister and decided that he would go with him.

Unlike Yujiro, Aizou had not been injured and could have left at any time.

The reason he had been taking it easy at the castle seemed to be because he was waiting for Yujiro to recover.

Maybe he was worried about his injuries, or maybe he was just too meddlesome, even though no one had asked him to do so.

Although he had no trouble walking, the pain was still there. Yujiro wanted to speed up, but he honestly couldn’t.

Yujiro glared at him, his eyes practically screaming “don’t follow me!”.

Aizou folded his hands behind his head and turned to the side with a whistle, as if he had no intention of listening to what he had to say.

This attitude was even more annoying, and the wrinkles between Yujiro’s eyebrows deepened.

“Come to think of it...did you remember anything?” Aizou was probably asking about a past memory that he had forgotten. The two were looking for the jewel to retrieve their memories.

“...No. Did you?” Yujiro asked as they walked to the city gate together.

“I knew it wouldn’t be so easy to make our wish come true,” Aizou took out the yellow jewel from his pocket and rolled it in his hand. He must have wished on it too.

He’d even asked the princess to help him find and read some books in the castle library, but no matter which method he tried, the end result was the same.

As usual, his memories of his life before the age of ten remained blank, and he couldn’t even find a clue as to how he came to be in this world.

Yujiro took his blue jewel out of his pocket. He wondered if it would simply take a long time for his wish to come true, or if there was some special way to get it, or if it is really just a jewel.

It's not that he didn't think that he had gone through all that trouble to get it, but strangely enough, he wasn't all that discouraged.

“Maybe it really is just a jewel,” Aizou held the yellow jewel up with his fingers and held it up to the sunlight that was finally beginning to shine. “If we sell it, we can probably make some good money.”

“I’m not going to sell it. I went through too much to get it in the first place.”

“If it’s just a jewel, there’s no point in keeping it...unless you want it as a good luck charm.”

If he kept it, maybe his wish would come true someday. The story never said anywhere that the wish would come true instantly.

“Well, for the time being, we can look for other ways to remember...like, maybe if I fell down or something,”Aizou continued.

Yujiro stared at him. “If it were that easy, don’t you think you would have remembered a long time ago?”

“You never know. A fortuneteller once told me shock can bring back memories.”

“If you think that, then go bang your head against a tree somewhere. Alone.”

“I already tried that, but it didn’t work,” Aizou shrugged.

(What an idiot...)

Yujiro sighed and glanced over at Aizou. “So why are you following me, anyway? Go travel by yourself.”

“We have the same goal. Wouldn’t it be more rational to travel together?” Aizou tossed his jewel up in the air and caught it, multiple times. “It’s not like I want to go with you too, you know.” His lips curled into a pout.

“What’s rational about it?”

“Ever since we started traveling together, we survived snowy mountains, slayed a dragon, and got the jewels.”

“Nothing good happens when I’m with you.”

“That again?!” Aizou frowned. “I won’t accept anymore complaints from you!”

“And I won’t listen to your nagging!” Yujiro slapped his hands over his ears.

Just as the city gates came into view, they heard a voice calling out to them. “Brave travelers!”

They turned around. The window of that inn where they were staying was open, and the innkeeper’s daughter was waving her hand as she leaned forward.

“Thank you for saving the princess! Have a good trip!” She tossed them both a red apple.

Yujiro and Aizou accepted them and looked at each other. Forgetting their argument from earlier, they smiled at each other.

They had not yet found the answer to what they were looking for.

But maybe someday, since the two were traveling together on the same path, they’ll find what they’re looking for.

Yes, someday.

(Maybe together, we can find it...)

The two men waved their hands, turned forward, and walked straight to the city gates, which was enveloped by the morning sun.

When one story ends, a new one begins. The regrets of the past, the fate that binds them to this world, leaving behind all the doubts, worries, and fears about the future.

To the shining world that awaits beyond the mysterious door, the world that someone dreamed of someday.

They were going to move forward together with the dawn. As long as they continued to believe, there would always be hope.

Because hope will always exist.

[lilac-melody]

Kono Sekai no Tanoshimikata LipxLip Novel Masterlist!

Prologue

Chapter 1

Chapter 2

Chapter 3A

Chapter 3B

Chapter 4

Chapter 5

Chapter 6

@koizumicchi translated the prologue and chapter 1 and has translated chapters 5 and 6, so please go follow her if you haven’t already!

[lilac-melody]

An array of Mama Tae because she deserves more recognition

[lilac-melody]

Kono Sekai no Tanoshimikata LipxLip Novel Chapter 3A

Disclaimer: I’m not a professional translator, so please keep that in mind!

Note: This chapter is extremely long, well over 70+ pages, so I’m dividing the chapter about roughly in half. Thank you for understanding.

Masterlist here

After the second audition screening, Aizou practiced running and voice training every day while he waited restlessly for the result notification to arrive. He wasn’t without confidence though.

But still, he really wanted to see the results.

(There was also the pudding pair...)

He believed that they would likely remain. If they were aiming to be idols, they would be competing.

(Kaido was good at dancing...I wonder if he takes lessons or something.)

“I can’t lose in terms of motor nerves.” That’s what he had believed. Though, if he really wanted to, he may eventually need to go get guidance from an instructor.

After all, this wasn’t the type of world where he could study everything by himself forever.

(But...I don’t know if I’ll be able to get a dance teacher even if I wanted to.)

He remembered the gloomy appearance of his mother, who had returned late.

If he became a high school student, he could work a part time job. Then he’d be able to pay for lesson fees.

(One year ahead, huh...that’s far away)

If he couldn’t pass this audition, he had no idea when he’d have another chance.

Finally, that door opened in front of him-

_

(Even if you’re lucky the first time, the second time doesn’t work miracles)

He did everything he could, and everything he was capable of.

No matter what the result was, he would have to accept it.

He was practicing running through the park, when he heard the sound of a notification going off, signalling he had a new email.

Aizou quickly took his phone out to check it.

It was the audition result notification.

He took a deep breath, and opened the email to read the message.

After careful consideration of the selection, Shibasaki Aizou has passed! You are qualified-

Aizou had passed the second screening. This wasn’t a miracle, this was pure ability. He had been evaluated properly.

(And if I pass the last one, I’ll debut!)

Aizou squeezed his hands together.

One more step. He could get out of this world with one more step.

✨

The final selection was not going to be done at the venue that held the second screening, but rather at the office building that hosted it.

Aizou checked the map on his phone before heading to the building.

All that was written in the email was the time and place of meeting. The content of the final selection wasn’t written.

(I’ve been practicing singing and dancing, but...what am I supposed to do here?)

How many people made it to the final selection?

(Not that guy, I hope..?)

He remembered the cheeky boy with the badge 410. If it was possible, he didn’t want to see him ever again.

(Maybe the pudding pair...)

“Here you go!”

The face of the grinning boy with the candy came to his mind, and he put a hand to his forehead.

(If it’s possible, I don’t want to get involved with them either..!)

However, he couldn’t think of other participants who could pass.

(Well, no matter what, I’ll fight for this with all my might!)

He’d been preparing for this. He also practiced smiling everyday in front of a mirror so that the judges would be more impressed.

He had also saw his horoscope for the day as he had left.

“A chance has arrived! A fateful encounter is waiting for you!”

(I feel awesome today!)

When Aizou arrived at the building, he headed for the automatic doors. At the same time, someone else tried to get inside. Aizou shouted “hey!” and the other person also shouted “hey!” at the same time.

(That bastard 410 guy!)

The two passed through the automatic doors and glared at each other.

“It’s you again. I can’t believe I have to see you even though it’s the final selection!”

“That’s my line. I don’t want to see your face the most! It’s making me sick.”

As usual, he was sarcastic.

(Well, I’m in great shape today! And no matter what this guy says, I won’t give into his provocation!)

“Oh, you’re both here.” The woman who guided the second screening stepped out of the elevator. “We’ll be starting the final selection.”

The two both stared at her. “What?”

“This is all...” Aizou couldn’t see any other participants.

The 410 boy looked confused. “Is it only us two?”

“Yes, that’s right.”

Which meant only one of the two would make their debut.

The two glared at each other, and the moment their gazes met, it felt as though sparks were bursting.

(Eh, maybe...)

Today’s fortune had said that a chance had arrived. The god of fate seemed to be smiling down on Aizou with his arms outstretched.

(I’ll win for sure!)

Aizou enthusiastically clenched his fists.

✨

The woman who guided them was apparently the manager of the office. Uchida Mayu was the name on the business card he’d received.

They took the elevator to an upper floor.

When the door opened, they entered a large room, and a woman greeted them. “Hello, to the both of you!” It was the same woman who had been at the audition screening watching the performances. “I’m Tamura, the CEO of the entertainment industry Mobius.”

“The representative? You?”

“Yes, Mobius is a new office I just built.” President Tamura smiled at them. So she was probably the organizer of the audition.

“Is this okay, then? This office...” The 410 boy muttered with a look of suspicion.

(I agree...I don’t know of this office at all.)

When he had looked it up, he couldn’t find any names of any idols or musicians who belonged to the office.

“Excuse me, but President Tamura was once a famous talented producer at a major office, so-!” Uchida began angrily.

President Tamura soothed her with a smile.

(You say that, but I don’t know that because I’m not in the industry...)

“We choose the talents who will belong to us, but you also have the right to choose. If you don’t like it, you can go home.”

The two fell silent after that.

Even though this was a no-name office, FT4 seemed to work with them, so surely it wasn’t a suspicious office.

(I’m not going home after all this...)

The people were smiling and appeared professional, so Aizou couldn’t hate them. He couldn’t just easily give up and throw this chance away.

The two of them sat down on the couch reluctantly. President Tamura sat across from them.

The final selection seemed to be an interview from President Tamura.

“Alright, first off. Shibasaki Aizou...” President Tamura looked at the application documents. “The family structure section is blank. Does your family support you going into the entertainment world?”

“...I haven’t told my family yet. I was wondering if it’s okay to talk to them if I passed.”

“Yes, if you pass, would your parents agree?”

“I don’t know? My parents are divorced...”

“When did that happen?”

“...Do I have to answer that?” Aizou asked uncomfortably. He gripped his hands in his lap tightly.

(Why me...and why this question...)

“No, you don’t have to answer it if you don’t want to.” The president looked at them both seriously. “I’m going to do my best to sell the talent that I’ve chosen. But it’ll hard to go all out on talent I don’t know well."

Aizou shut up for a moment, then opened his mouth.

“...I was in sixth grade. I live with my mother and brother now.”

“Did you meet with your father after the divorce?”

“I used to from time to time, but now I don’t even know where he is.”

“Do you miss him?”

“It doesn’t make sense to try to meet up with him.”

The president glanced at the documents on the table.

“...So when you were in third grade, you won a prize at the national children’s singing competition. Did he teach you how to sing?”

“No, my dad played the guitar, and my mother played the piano. I just sang along with them.”

“The whole family loves music then. That must be nice.” The president smiled.

(What’s nice about it...)

He remembered the face of his mother, leaving the house while applying red lipstick, girls on the couch, and the figure of his brother.

“...It’s all history.” Aizou said calmly, keeping his emotions in check.

“Is it different now?”

“...I haven’t sung properly since my parents divorced.”

“So you want to sing?”

Aizou felt surprised by her question.

“I don’t know what exactly an idol does...but I want to sing!”

At the time of the second screening, that’s what Aizou had answered.

“That’s why...” Aizou’s throat locked and he looked away. He really couldn’t think of any other reasons he wanted to-

“Thank you very much.” It appeared to be the end of the questioning for Aizou.

Relieved, his hands loosened their grip.

“Okay, now Someya Yujiro.” When the president addressed him, the boy next to him corrected his posture and looked straight at her.

“Yes.” 

“The Someya family is a prestigious family that does kabuki. Your father, Someya Tamagoro, is a living national treasure.”

“A national treasure?!” Aizou gasped in shock.

(A national treasure father? This guy...)

The face of the boy Yujiro stared ahead gravely.

“Well, I have no blood connection with my father. My mother remarried Someya Tamagoro after my real father died. I took on the surname Someya.” Yujiro replied in a quiet voice, his expression not changing.

“Are you a kabuki actor?”

“I can’t be.” He spoke in a clear, but even quieter tone.

The president glanced at the documents. “Your special skills include Japanese dance, the shamisen...all practice for kabuki?”

“I was aiming to be a kabuki actor, but it was decided that my younger brother would succeed the Someya family. Because...”

(So he wants to stand on stage..?)

Aizou sat there listening to him, and lowered his gaze. When Yujiro had stood on that stage, he had a dazzled look on his face, his expression bright and happy.

Now Aizou was starting to regret making fun of him.

(I mean, he started it, but...)

Everyone had their own circumstances.

“Okay. Thank you.” President Tamura exhaled, and Aizou raised his head. “Alright, that’s all for the questions. What did you two think when you heard each other’s story?” She asked with a gentle expression.

(Why...)

“...I don’t care. It doesn’t matter to me.” Aizou dared to answer casually.

“I’m not interested at all.” Yujiro added, not looking at Aizou.

“Yes, but from now on, you two will have a very deep relationship, so you have to be interested.”

Aizou and Yujiro stared at the smiling face of the president. “What?”

(Deep relationship? What does that mean?)

He wasn’t interested in anything, and after today’s screening, they’ll never meet again.

The two won’t talk, that’s what Aizou believed-

“Congratulations. You two passed!” President Tamura clapped.

“Both of us? But the debut is solo...” Aizou was confused. It was written in the recruitment advertisement.

“It was going to be one, but now there’s two.” The present stood up and walked behind them. Aizou watched her.

“Does this mean we’re both making a solo debut?” Yujiro asked in confusion.

“No, you two are going to be as one. In other words, you two will form a unit and make your debut!” President Tamura put her hands on their shoulders from behind with a smile.

“Ha!?”

“Oh this is going to be good. This is a good combination.” President Tamura laughed and patted their shoulders.

“This isn’t funny! It’s no good to team up with such a guy!” Aizou shouted, watching President Tamura leave.

“I also refuse. I can’t work with such a rude guy!” Yujiro also had an angry expression.

“What?! You’re the rude one!”

“No, you are!”

“Ha?!”

(I can’t be in a unit with this guy. It’s unreasonable and unfair!!!!)

All they’d done is fight ever since the day they met. They wouldn’t work well together.

“Don’t team up with me!”

“I don’t even like you! Stupid!”

“Asshole!” The fight escalated and both of them stood up.

“This is my decision. If you don’t like it, then unfortunately, neither of you are going to debut. What’s it going to be?” President Tamura asked while happily climbing up her office spiral stairs.

The two glared at each other with their fists clenched.

(This was a scam!!)

✨

The two followed Manager Uchida with grouchy faces. They avoided staring at each other.

(Even though I passed, I’m not happy with this...I should have been in great shape today, so why?!)

They were told that they had to make their debut as a duo, so they had to agree.

(Really, why...I don’t think it’s because our ability is divided in half. Are we going to make a solo debut later? Why is there suddenly two people...is there even such a thing..?)

Yujiro also looked reluctant.

(I thought he’d leave because he didn’t like it.)

Not a word had come out of Yujiro’s mouth since earlier. He was probably the same, knowing he couldn’t just give up his chance when it was in front of him. They didn’t know when the next chance they’d have was. If at all.

“Alright. This is a contract, you need your parents to consent to this.” Upon entering the office, Manager Uchida sat down at the desk and handed them both documents.

Everyone else must have elft. There was no other staff around.

The blinds blocked the light from coming in from the outside.

“So please get your parents signature.”

Yujiro stared at Manager Uchida. “What?”

“Our parents signature..?” Aizou asked.

“Well, both of you are minors, so we need your parents approval. Being in the office is a job, you know.”

(Yeah...that’s right.)

Of course that was true, working was a responsibility.

Aizou stared down at the documents.

Yujiro also looked troubled, staring down at the line for the signature.

✨

Upon returning home, Aizou sat on the couch in the living room waiting for his mother to return home. He wondered if she was going to be out late.

“Agree...I wonder if she’ll agree...” He muttered while staring at the consent form on the table.

Above that, would she even listen to him properly?

He glanced at his phone.

It was 10pm.

(This isn’t going to be easy...)

After all, he was still a junior high school student. It was frustrating.

(When can I decide things for myself...)

While he was in thought, someone returned. He heard the sound of the door and stood up.

“I’m home~” It was his brother Ken, who came in with a yawn. He was probably out messing around while still in his uniform. He stared at him.

“Eh? What’s up?” His brother asked.

(What...)

Aizou sighed and turned away from him, sitting back on the couch.

“So...where’s mother?”

“Eh? Isn’t she out with guys again?”

Aizou should have guessed. It was always the case.

Ken walked over and glanced at the table with a curious “hm?”. He noticed the consent form and picked it up. “What’s this?”

“Nothing!” Aizou yanked it from his brother’s hand and grabbed the documents and ran to his room, slamming the door.

_

By the next morning, his mother still wasn’t back. After having a breakfast of only bread and coffee, Aizou put his school uniform on and started putting his textbooks and notebooks in his bag. He picked up the consent form from his desk.

(What am I supposed to do...)

He stared at the consent form, and heard a sound from the living room.

He opened his door and peeked out. His mother finally came home.

“Mother...”

“Aizou~! Good morning~!” She staggered into the living room, waving happily. She flopped over the counter.

(What...is she drunk again? Now what...)

Aizou sighed and left his bedroom. He didn’t know if she’d hear him out properly, or if she could, but he needed to have the consent form signed today.

“Oh, I want you to sign this.” Aizou walked to his mother, who was laying on the counter, and showed her the consent form.

“Huuuh? Whaat?” His mother got up and grabbed the documents.

“I passed an audition...I thought to try it...” Aizou looked away.

(I wonder if she’ll oppose it...)

His mother laid back on the counter with a loud sigh.

“Well, mom..?”

She seemed to be falling asleep in the middle of him talking.

“Get up, mom, please...” Aizou shook her shoulders.

She sighed with a loud “paaah!”

Aizou looked away.

“So you want me to sign~? Okay, I’ll sign as much as you want!” His mother got up and grabbed a pen. She signed it in front of Aizou, who was watching to make sure it was okay, before she stumbled off to bed.

Wait.

Did this mean he got permission for the time being?

He needed to submit this.

Aizou grabbed the document and stared at his mother’s signature.

“Aizou wins the competition!”

It was the same as the characters written on that photo, written vigorously.

A lonely smile spilled across his face.

(Isn’t she pleased...)

When he passed the audition, when he became an idol, he was no longer a child.

He won’t be complimented with a smile like that day.

He wasn’t expecting it either.

Aizou put his documents in his bag and left the living room, leaving behind his mother who had fallen asleep.

(I’m going, mom...)

_

Yujiro sat on the couch in the living room and presented his documents. His mother, who saw it, put a hand to her face in confusion.

“I knew you were off doing something but...no way, an idol..?”

“I don’t know if it will work, but I want to try it.”

“Well, if Yujiro wants to try it, I want to support him...”

His mother probably cared about his father’s opinion though. She would have to talk to his father before they could decide on anything.

(But this is for me...)

“You, an idol? Are you really trying for that?” The door opened and his brother came in with a mocking face.

Yujiro tensed up. “Koichiro-san...”

His younger brother walked in and snatched the consent form from his mother’s hand and read it.

“Mobius? I’ve never heard of this office.”

“Give that back!” Yujiro stood up quickly and tried to take it back.

“Do you really think you could be an idol? You weren’t good with kabuki, so next you wanna try idols? You moved on quick.” His younger brother moved away from him and ran towards the door, slapping away Yujiro’s hand and muttering “stupid”.

Their father came in then.

“What do you think, dad?” Koichiro gave him the consent form, smirking.

“Th-that...” Yujiro tried to explain it, but couldn’t find his voice.

His father shifted his gaze towards Yujiro.

“Is this what you want? Are you prepared to go down another path while having the famous kabuki name Someya?”

“I mean...that...” Yujiro turned away to escape his father’s harsh glare. Kabuki wasn’t good, so he wanted to try to be an idol. He couldn’t bring himself to say it.

Still, he wanted to be on the stage. Any method would do. He wanted a place to be recognized. This was a chance he seized with his own hands, and he didn’t want to let go. If he gave up here, he’d be living in the shadows again.

Yujiro squeezed his eyes shut and clenched his fists.

“No matter what you do, those who are not prepared will never succeed. I will not allow you to soil the Someya name.” His father said coldly, and returned the consent form to Yujiro.

“Tae, prepare my kimono for tomorrow.”

“Y-yes.” His mother glanced at Yujiro worriedly, before leaving the room after his father.

Yujiro remained alone in the living room, gripping the consent form tightly.

Prepare to go down another path...

He knew his answer, but he couldn’t say it.

“Yujiro, it’s okay to do what you like...don’t be tied down to this house.”

He remembered the words of his mother that they’d exchanged in the dressing room.

Yujiro sank to the ground.

No matter how much he resisted, he was always shackled to this house.

✨

When they returned to the office after school, Yujiro and Aizou were called into the office by Manager Uchida.

“The consent forms, please?” Manager Uchida accepted the consent form given to her by Aizou. “Yujiro-kun?”

“I’m sorry...I forgot.”

When he answered, Aizou shouted. “Ha?! You forgot?! Are you even motivated?!”

“So noisy...” Yujiro looked away, his eyebrows drawing downward in discomfort.

“You can’t say that, we’re supposed to be a unit.”

“You’re so annoying!”

Before they could continue, Manager Uchida cut in. “Alright, that’s enough! Yujiro-kun, bring your consent form tomorrow. The lessons start today!”

“Yes!” Both boys replied, trying to be enthusiastic.

Aizou returned to the other room and sat on the couch and waited. He glanced at Yujiro, who was sitting alone.

For awhile, there was no conversation.

(Today, someone other than us will come...)

According to Uchida, it was a joint dance lesson.

(Well, anyone can do it...)

He put his arm on the arm rest and his cheek on his fist.

“Good morning!” Two boys came out of the elevator.

One of them beamed when he saw Aizou and Yujiro.

“Oh, it’s you guys from that time! Long time, no see!”

Aizou turned his head. “...Who..?”

“Eh, don’t you remember?!” The boy’s shoulders dropped. “We met at the audition.”

Yujiro glared at him. “Remember that much, stupid.”

(Audition..?)

“Here you go!”

He suddenly recalled in the waiting room there was a boy handing out candies from a bag and handed them out to all the participants.

“Oh.”

(It’s the pudding pair...)

“So you failed to qualify.”

“We didn’t go to qualify! We just wanted to participate!”

“We have a managed named Maeda-kun, and we wanted to experience the audition.”

Even after listening to their explanation, Aizou didn’t understand the situation.

“Hm. Well, it doesn’t matter to me.”

“Why are you here?” Yujiro asked them with a strange look.

“Oh, that’s right. Is this the right office? The manager called us.”

“We were called too~” A person came down the stairs while speaking.

“Full Throttle4..!”

“I’m Megu, and I’m going to be teaching you dancing today!” A petite boy said with a smile.

Aizou knew that he was Megu, and the one wearing the fedora was Dai.

“Why you guys?” Yujiro looked surprised.

FT4 was a popular dance and vocal unit. Anyone could have taught them.

“Well, President Tamura asked us directly.” Megu replied lightly with a shrug.

Aizou had heard the president had been the one to plan the joint lesson. They had also been audition judges, so they probably had a connection with the president.

(That president...just who is she?)

“Don’t be so fussy, you should be grateful we’re giving you newcomers these lessons.” Dai, who was behind the couch, said.

(I don’t get it, but...there aren’t many chances like this.)

✨

When they moved to the lesson room, Megu and Dai danced first in front of the four of them. The song playing was an FT4 song. The two stepped lightly to the tempo of the upbeat song.

(It really...is cool...it’s almost like they’re walking on air.)

Aizou stared at their movements. Yujiro also watched with a serious gaze.

When the song was over, they posed. Megu glanced at them.

“Well, try it now.” He said happily.

(Eh...try it...but we only saw it once?)

“Aizou, Yujiro.” Nominated by Dai, the two involuntarily exchanged looks.

They had no choice but to try.

Aizou stepped forward and closed his eyes, taking a deep breath as he remembered the movements. He did his best to match the timing to the song playing.

From the first step, it wasn’t quite right. Aizou desperately tried to get it right, but he couldn’t.

(What’s this...what’s going on...)

The turn didn’t match, and the timing for the next step was off.

Aizou couldn’t get the rhythm, and was feeling frustrated.

(Is he even watching my movement?)

Looking to the side, Yujiro wasn’t watching him at all.

(Look at me!)

They were far from matching. They took a step and almost stepped on each other. They made a turn, but they smacked right into each other.

Aizou felt at his limit when he fell on his butt.

“They don’t match!”

“That’s wrong!”

Megu was laughing, clutching his stomach. “Ahahahahahaha!”

Asuka and Kanata were also watching, with one trying to endure his laughter.

“It’s all disjointed~”

“I don’t think either one of you are going to do this. Are you really motivated by this unit?” Dai held his forehead, muttering. “I’m trying to think of the future.”

Aizou and Yujiro looked up at Megu and Dai stiffly.

“It’s impossible to do it so suddenly.”

Aizou was good at dancing, and he was confident that he could do it. If he was alone.

Until now, he’d been practicing alone. He never did it with anyone.

(I could have done this by myself...but it’s because of this guy that I couldn’t!)

“This is impossible.” Yujiro muttered to himself at the mess.

“And this point, you lose.” Megu happily pointed. Aizou and Yujiro stared in confusion.

“Asuka, Kanata, try it.” Nominated by Dai, the two walked up front.

Asuka and Kanata stood side by side and stepped to the song at the right time, according to the song. They didn’t practice this either, and all four of them had been watching Megu and Dai.

The condition should have been the same.

But even so, their movements were perfectly aligned.

Not only the steps were perfect, but the movements of their arms and faces were perfect.

Aizou felt stunned. He couldn’t match a dance with someone you’d only met a couple times. That’s what he thought.

Asuka’s dance level was high, he knew that from watching him at the audition, and Kanata’s singing was outstanding.

Due to Asuka’s soft attitude and Kanata’s friendliness, Aizou kept forgetting they had been there.

(Yes...these two were also aiming to be idols.)

Asuka and Kanata looked like they were having fun.

When they finished, they high fived cheerfully.

“Well, how do you feel?” Megu looked at Aizou and Yujiro.

Neither of them could say a word back.

✨

After the lesson, Aizou sat at the counter in the break space and grabbed a plastic water bottle.

Yujiro sat by the window with the blinds down, and stayed silent.

Both of them were likely thinking how disastrous the lessons had been. Theirs had been nothing compared to Asuka and Kanata’s.

“...Hey, what was it?” Aizou asked with his back turned.

“What?” Yujiro asked moodily.

“Their names.”

“Kaido Asuka and Ichigoya Kanata.”

“Asuka and Kanata...they’re insane.”

(They came and just showed off out of nowhere...what for?)

It was the same at the audition. They were carefree.

(They may be good friends, but we’re not!)

In terms of condition, there may have been a difference, but with individual skill, they’re not as great. There shouldn’t have been that big of a difference. Aizou didn’t think he lost.

(Anyway, I remembered it perfectly...)

He had no intention of adapting to people, and had never made a mistake.

(Whether they know or not...how are they so quick to remember? I can’t remember it if I just do it...)

Aizou frowned and opened his water bottle and poured the warm water into his mouth.

“Aizou, Yujiro, how are you doing?” President Tamura, who was passing by, stopped and called out.

“To be clear, it’s the worst.” Yujiro replied.

It was President Tamura who had planned the joint dance lesson. She must have called those two people over.

“Well, no girl would be thrilled to see you now.”

(Even if you say that...)

They couldn’t build the unit she wanted.

When she said the condition to debut, they had no choice but to accept it. He just barely met this guy and he didn’t feel like getting along with him from the beginning. He didn’t even know much about him.

(And I don’t want to know...)

The president sighed when they stayed silent.

“Every year, a number of idols make their debut, but most of them disappear. Only a handful of them survive.”

Aizou and Yujiro turned to her with serious expressions.

“Survive or disappear...it’s up to you.” The president smiled and left.

(That’s right...there were so many participants at the audition.)

Many people aimed to become idols. Even if you were lucky enough to pass, you still had to compete with other rivals. If they couldn’t overcome the first hurdle, then they shouldn’t go any further.

Aizou squeezed his bottle tightly in his hands.

If he gave up just because they didn’t match, then they’d never debut.

Yujiro must dislike it too.

(We have no choice but to match...we’re a unit.)

✨

The next day, when it was time for a break between lessons, Manager Uchida gave the two rice balls and drinks. “Go eat, Aizou-kun, Yujiro-kun.”

It was about dusk. The sky shined orange.

“Move your hand.”

“No, you move!”

Manager Uchida sighed in exasperation as the two began fighting over a rice ball. “They’re fighting again...can those two really make it as a unit?”

“Oh, are you nervous?” President Tamura listened to her while checking her email on her phone.

“Honestly, I preferred Asuka and Kanata...”

The two of them never fought.

Asuka and Kanata both had high levels of skills for singing and dancing, as they had displayed during the audition. Though, in terms of singing and dancing, Yujiro and Aizou were second to none. She knew that, but they always fought because they didn’t like each other.

It’d been that way ever since the audition.

Why did the president decide to have them form a unit?

“Well, Asuka-kun and Kanata-kun are talented, and because they’re good friends, they have a good sense of security. But...ah, isn’t it quite a sight to see what kind of unit those two who collide with each other will be?” President Tamura smiled happily.

✨

After the break, the next lesson was voice training. The instructor was Iv, who was in charge of DJing FT4.

While looking at the score, the two began singing.

Iv clapped his hands together. “Stop! Aizou, your pitch was too high.”

Aizou looked at the paper quickly. “Uh, where?”

“At the start of the fourth bar. You were a semitone higher.”

“I don’t know what it says in the score.” Aizou held his head.

Yujiro glared at him. “Being unable to read music...you’re stupid. You haven’t studied enough.”

Aizou averted his gaze. “Uh...well, I’m more the type to remember by ear!” he made the excuse and laughed nervously.

Yujiro was singing lightly, so he couldn’t respond.

(This is for my debut...I have to be patient...I’m patient..!)

Aizou trembled and gripped his music score tightly.

(But I don’t like it!)

✨

After the lesson, while Aizou practiced at the park on a hill, the sun went down, and the streetlights came on. He imagined the dance that Megu and Dai showed them, and he let his body remember the movement.

When he finished, he grinned proudly. He did the whole dance without any mistakes. He was able to go along with the rhythm, and had it mastered to near perfection.

“But it’ll be pointless if I can’t match him!” Aizou recalled and swore with a quiet “shit” under his breath. “This is why I don’t like units.”

There was no point in doing it alone. The problem wasn’t his dancing.

It was something the two of them couldn’t do.

(I’ll go home soon...but he needs to practice with me a little!)

He took his phone out and stopped when he realized he didn’t know the address.

“I don’t know his contact information!”

It was a problem if they couldn’t even contact each other, since they’re working together.

(...How do I even ask for it? I don’t know! I’m sure that guy won’t even come...this is such a hassle!)

Even if he had his number, he doubted he’d even answer the phone if he called him. He had no choice. He called Manager Uchida instead.

“Manager? Where does that guy live?” He asked.

“Eh? Did something happen?”

“...Ah, no...I just need to deliver something he forgot.” Aizou replied deceitfully.

[lilac-melody]

Meet the parents fic..?!

[lilac-melody]

AWW LOOK AT HE!!! *hold him*

[lilac-melody]

Hot take but if or when Aizou meets Tae, Yujiro’s mom, she’s 100% going to adopt/accept him as her son in law