Maki's hand ran across the length of the table that was sitting in the middle of the idol research club room as she made her way towards the window in the back. The only sounds that could be heard were her light footsteps and short breaths. Maki frequented the room when no one was around. She found peace within the silent confines of the empty room. Today, she was particularly grateful for the time alone.
She had been dreading this day for a while, and though she had been aware of the inevitability of its arrival, she had secretly hoped that it would never come. But it did, as expected, and here she was, hiding away in a secluded area to avoid the pain of today's activities.
Maki sighed deeply. A cold feeling had gripped her heart over the past months, a feeling she shared with no one. She had withdrawn into herself in an effort to lessen the pain, but of course it hadn't helped. Today, the day that the much-loved third years were to graduate, Maki spiraled into a lonely desperation, all because she couldn't bring herself to open up about her emotions.
Maki allowed herself to gaze around the room. She carefully examined each nook and cranny, as though she were looking for something that was out of place. But everything looked the same. Not a single object had moved from its designated place. Maki grimaced at the false sense of security that this observation gave her. Everything was going to change, regardless of this room's obviously deceptive condition.
Maki was pulled from her thoughts when she heard a light rapping at the door. It opened with an audible creak, and Nozomi stepped across the threshold, a small knowing smile on her face.
"You're going to be late for the ceremony, Maki," Nozomi said. "Your disappearance hasn't gone unnoticed, you know."
Maki didn't answer. She returned her gaze towards the window. The courtyard outside was empty, most likely due to the students gathering in the auditorium for the graduation ceremony. Staring at nothing seemed fitting for her mood.
Nozomi chucked softly, "I don't think things are going to be as bad as you think. In fact, I'm sure of it. The cards favored us today. See?"
Maki turned her head and saw a single tarot card sitting between the third year's pointer and middle fingers. It read "The Sun". An image of a boy riding a white horse with a vibrant sun shining in the distance marked the card's surface. Maki thought it looked a bit silly.
"You know I don't believe in that stuff," Maki grumbled, finally breaking her silence.
"Just because you don't believe in it, doesn't mean it can't be real," Nozomi smiled back at her.
"Whatever."
Maki knew she was being childish. Hiding from her issues wasn't going to solve anything, but facing them was proving to be incredibly difficult. This wouldn't have been nearly as horrible if she had shown some self control in the past. But she had let herself be greedy, and now she had something that was too painful to let go.
"If you skip the ceremony, it'll crush her," Nozomi pointed out. "She would never admit it, but I know it would. I wouldn't be too happy myself either." Nozomi finished her sentence with a lopsided grin.
Nozomi was right. Given the recent development in her life, there was one person who wouldn't take her absence lightly. Nico Yazawa, a small, somewhat abrasive third year and self-proclaimed super idol. She was infamous for her over the top idol persona, but anyone who spent more than a few minutes with her knew that she was much more than that. The months Maki spent learning about the real Nico Yazawa was what made her fall for the tiny girl.
It only took a few weeks of awkward courting for them to start a relationship. It was a fairly new development, so most people were completely unaware. Though neither Maki nor Nico uttered a single word about their newly founded relationship, those with keener senses managed to figure it out on their own.
Maki felt an arm wrap around her shoulders, "C'mon, we're going to be late. There's no use in dawdling here anymore." Nozomi grabbed Maki's arm and dragged her towards the door. Maki didn't resist. Her troubled mind had already drained her of most of her energy.
As soon as Nozomi flung the door open, they were greeted by a familiar face. Nico, slightly flustered by the sudden appearance of the two others, stood right outside. Maki assumed that Nico had come in search of her. She felt slightly guilty. Worrying the older girl on her graduation day was never her intention.
"Oho, how convenient," Nozomi snickered. "I'll go on ahead and leave Maki's transportation to you, Nico." Before either of them could say anything, Nozomi ran down the hallway and disappeared around the corner.
"Geez, what's her deal?" Nico wondered aloud. "And more importantly, where exactly have you been? Do you honestly think I'd allow you to miss the great Nico Nii's graduation?" Nico crossed her arms and pouted. Maki found the faux anger amusing, and insanely cute.
Maki stepped towards Nico until they were just a mere few inches apart. She took the older girl's hands in her own and leaned down until their foreheads were touching. It was in moments like these the she was grateful for Nico's short stature.
"Sorry," Maki mumbled. She looked Nico straight in the eye, searching for some kind of response. Nico leaned up and tapped her nose against Maki's. This simple action caught Maki off guard, though she wasn't entirely sure why considering she was the one to initiate the contact in the first place. Maybe she had just expected Nico to actually be angry with her, and the childish grin on her companion's face threw her off. Sometimes she forgot how easygoing Nico could be outside of the idol world.
"You worry way too much, Maki! I may be graduating, but that won't change anything! I'll always be around to give you a big Nico Nico smile that will brighten your day and fill your heart with love!" Nico threw her arms up in her classic pose.
Maki laughed, "Geez, that's horrible." She dodged a swipe.
"You really don't have any appreciation for the art of idol catchphrases and poses, do you?" Nico stuck her tongue out, a twinkle in her eyes. Maki found herself laughing again, something that she had never been used to doing frequently until very recently.
That was one thing that Maki really loved about Nico. The tiny girl liked to make people around her smile, an ideal that carried over into her dreams of being a professional idol. Even if she was worried herself, she always made sure to keep morale high. It was an endearing trait of hers that was often overlooked.
Nico grabbed Maki's hand. "Let's go or we really will be late. The world has arrived to see Nico Nii off, and I refuse to keep them waiting!" Nico pulled Maki down the hallway in the direction of the school's auditorium.
"I'm pretty sure that's not the case," Maki retorted, smiling at the girl's childish proclamation.
Nico didn't respond. She just continued down the hallway with increased fervency. Maki, feeling her hand go numb in Nico's strangely vice like grip, could tell that Nico was feeling just as nervous as she was. Despite the third year's words of reassurance, no one could tell what would happen in the future, and that thought alone was enough to scare anyone.
The ceremony had taken an interesting turn. At any other school, it would have proceeded as planned, but those schools lacked one very important thing: Honoka Kousaka. She had decided to surprise the third years by breaking into song right in the middle of everything, which had resulted in many shed tears. Maki had accompanied her on piano and the other u's members sang along. It had been an emotional experience for everyone.
But that was hardly the most interesting event of the day. After the ceremony, the group had walked to the front gates, ready to bid farewell to their graduated friends, when Hanayo had received a text. Judging by the girl's insistent plea that they return to the club room, Maki had assumed that that text was of great importance.
Now back in the room, which had been cleaned out by Nico after graduation, Maki patiently waited for information to be revealed, though Hanayo was currently too worked up to form coherent sentences.
"Come on, Hanayo! Spit it out!" Nico shouted, shaking the first year with each syllable.
"I can't...Nico... you're shaking me…" Hanayo struggled to speak through Nico's vigorous shakes.
"Now now." Eli placed one hand on each girl's shoulders. "Let's all calm down, so we can figure out what exactly is going on here. Hanayo, would you please tell us what part of that text message was so dire that you had to call an emergency meeting?"
Hanayo put her hands on her knees, her breath coming out in short raspy bursts, trying to calm herself down long enough to relay her information. Finally, with determination, Hanayo stood up straight and burst out a sentence no one in the room ever expected to hear.
"We're going to be professional idols!"
A/N: Alrighty so I'm about 99% sure this has been done before, but I wanted to try to write this scenario myself. It'll have a primary focus on Nicomaki, but I may add Rinpana and NozoEli as side pairings at some point.