BUBBLE GUM DANCE - Under the Spotlight (3)

…(Sitting all by himself)

Huh…? Where is everyone…?

…Why is Chitose, who was supposed to be the one who’d proposed this idea, not here yet?

It’s been thirty minutes since the meeting was supposed to start… I’d say he’s officially late.

Normally this is the part where I’d go, “It’s not like him to be late”, but Chitose-kun is actually late pretty often…

Like that time he fell into a drainage ditch that was under maintenance on the way to work, or that time he accidentally got on an out of service train and ended up in a rail yard…

At one point you stop calling it being careless and start asking if he’s doing it on purpose, you know?

I wonder what it’ll be this time~?

Judging by his past experience, predicting the reason this time is remarkably simple.

He most likely went to the wrong location and is waiting there alone.

Considering the fact that he hasn’t contacted us either, he must’ve left his phone somewhere as well.

I can believe that. If even Madoka, who knows Tsuzura better than anyone, is that confident… then I’m sure that’s the case.

Aww~ I can totally picture Chitose-kun sitting confused by himself…!

Eh, it’ll be fine. Even if Chitose-kun isn’t here and he’s the one who set this all up, Gramps and the others can still get started ♪

Anyway. Anzu-chan, why don’t we have a nice chat? Oh, and I wanna hear about jobs in Japan that pay really well for the effort, okay? Cheers〜♪

……

(Why am I even bothering with something as meaningless as this…?)

(Building relationships through conversation is far too inefficient, both in terms of time and return on investment. We should be focusing on achieving greater results in a far shorter amount of time instead.)

(After Chitose had pleaded with me, I was willing to indulge for the sake of preserving Juis’s dignity… but it seems it was all for naught.)

(Still, it’s baffling… Why do Nice and Thunderbolt Entertainment desire such a strong connection with Japan?)

(Nice had given us a convincing explanation, but there are still many things that can’t be explained by that alone.)

(Ahh, how utterly irritating… I cannot rid the feeling of unease that something has been set in motion behind the scenes.)

(I refuse to let anyone control me. Least of all this commoner.)

(As if I’d ever let someone so easily take hold of my reins.)

……

Commoner—No, Anzu. Are you enjoying this arrangement?

You’re surprised that I’m speaking to you, aren’t you? I cannot say that I blame you. I had my own reasons for expressing such harsh opinions towards you.

Please understand that I did not treat you so harshly simply because I disliked you.

Huh…?

(What?! While Gramps was off getting food, Nozomi-kun actually went over and started talking to Anzu-chan! He’s actually smiling too!)

(What the heck’s gotten into him? If this keeps up, tomorrow isn’t just gonna bring rain, it’s gonna bring a whole meteor shower! ¹)

(Oh. So that’s it. The world’s ending…)

(Anzu-chan looks a little nervous, but she seems happy. Well, if someone you thought couldn’t stand you suddenly started being nice to you, I guess that’d make anyone happy.)

(Doesn’t really matter who it is. If the producer is in a better mood, then I am A-okay with that. Makes Gramps’s life easier too~♪)

(Hm… huh? This isn’t really like Nozomi-kun, is it? It’s like… he’s different somehow.)

(Oh. That’s it. It’s his body language. That’s not how Nozomi-kun acts at all.)

(That’s why it was off. He’s matching Anzu-chan’s movements.)

(When Anzu-chan rests her hand on her chin, Nozomi-kun does the same. When Anzu-can tilts her head, Nozomi-kun naturally matches her.)

(…Mirroring. It’s a way to win someone over.)

(Gramps here used to do it on stage while he was in the circus, too. So I recognize it.)

(When the audience gasped, Gramps would act just as surprised. When the audience laughed, he’d laugh right along with ‘em.)

(Mirror someone’s gestures and emotions, and they’ll naturally feel closer to you and trust you more. It’s a way to mind control someone.)

(Looks like he’s using all sorts of other tricks too, but I’m no pro at this kinda thing.)

(Basically, Nozomi-kun is trying to control Anzu-chan.)

(Your personality is seriously messed up, Nozomi-kun~)

(Oops… That was close. I almost let my true feelings slip.)

(Well, I guess I get it. Since he’s been living like that for so long, there’s probably no changing him now, but…)

(There’s a difference between me being able to empathize with someone and actually liking them as a person.)

(He’s not really the type of guy that Gramps can get along with. Well, as long as it doesn’t cause me any trouble, he can do whatever he wants.)

—Madoka.

…What is it, Juis?

I thought you weren’t going to do “that” while you were still an idol?

…Are you defending her?

No. I’m asking you if you’re going back on the promise you made to me.

……

That’s right. A promise consists of both a vow to the self and restraint of the self.

By deciding to do “that”, I nearly went against my own rules.

Commoner. I do not care for you, but I will apologize for my rudeness today. Such a thing is incredibly rare, you know. You should be grateful.

Ah… Anzu. I know it doesn’t sound like it, but believe it or not he’s actually apologizing.