THE IDOLM STER CINDERELLA GIRLS

Miyu Mifune Fanfiction

By: Ian Mabrian

Chapter 1

December 24th, a cold night indeed, as cold as my shoulders, despite having multiple layers of coats the breeze still pierces through my leather protector. I could still feel the freezing winds on my heart as well.
Christmas Eve, well, looking around me right now, walking at the shopping area, couples, couples everywhere, for every single couple I saw with their hands clasped, it shot an ice arrow right through my heart, who never had a girlfriend before.

I am just a regular guy from village, after finished my higher education at the university near my hometown, I moved here to the city, on a whim. Without even thinking else other than to try my luck at the economical capital. Yet, it seems that was backfired.
My parent offered me to take over our farm, but I am here instead, working as an assistant producer at 346 Productions, they produces idols nationwide. What are they? Idols? I don't know much about them though, but I guess it would be a thing for my management degree from the college.

"Might as well grab some food and head home," I murmured.

I just worked for a moment today, Christmas events are everywhere for our idols, but for my job it was much lighter. And so I'm on my way home now through this usual path, and thinking what should I give myself for Christmas, I've always wanted a new camera actually.

Right after I feast my eyes with their expensive price tags, my eyes noticed a reflection of a woman behind me from the clear glass of camera shop.
Yet she is not standing, I wonder why someone stumbles there at the corner.

I turned my head to look at the brown-coated woman, looking at her for several seconds, I realized people are too busy with their own things, it's still unchanged even after I'm standing beside her.

"Excuse me, miss? Are you okay?" I lower my body to talk to her, but the silence is louder than her voice.
"Um, should I call someone? Ambulance?" I reached my hand to her, she turns her face to mine, our eyes met.

"Ah… I… I'm okay…. I just broke my heel…" That woman tries to stand up by herself, only to lose her balance and I ended up holding her arm.
"Whoa, you okay? Can you walk?"
"It's okay sir… I can…" that woman stood by herself, while regaining her balance, she thanked me and walk away, but not even ten meters passed, she is on the ground again.

"Hey, miss! You okay?"
"Ah, um, don't worry about me…"
"Come on, let me help you, let's sit there for a moment," I pointed to an empty bench near the fountain. She just silent and agrees as I hold her arm towards the wooden seat.

"Ah, it's completely broke," I inspect her left high heel for the damage, the glue was off, the heel now only held by a layer of silver fake leather.
"This seems repairable, I wonder if there's a cobbler open around here at this time." I said to her and looking at my surrounding.

"Ah, sir, its fine, I… I plan to throw it anyway".
"Eh? Why? This is not your favorite?" I wondered.
"No, I even just bought that today, I never had heels once before, I guess… I really am not suitable."
"But, this looks expensive…"
"It's okay sir, it can't be helped," the woman procured an used shoes from the bag she's been holding.

Ah, so it contains her used shoes inside the new box, but this seems wrong.
"Well… sir… can I have that half please? I shall get going," she stands up in front of me after wearing her black shoes.

"Wait a minute! Miss, would you wait here? Give me five minutes,"
"What do you mean?" She asks.
"Just… stay here, wait for me!" I pushed her back to the bench as my eyes pointed to a shop.
"I'll be back! Wait for me!" I dashed to that shop without hesitation.

Around 15 minutes later, I run towards her, yes I said to her for five yet I came in 15, but thankfully, she still sits there and rubbing her palms.

"Ah, miss… sorry I'm late," I gasped in front of her, trying to regain my breath after running some distances.
"What… what happened sir?" she wonders as she looking at me who kneel in front of her.
"Ah, well, it's Christmas, so, I guess it must be sucks to have something you bought on Christmas to broke. This is not much, but I think it would suits you," I reveal a new, light brown pair of shoes I just bought in front of her.

It was not a high heel like what she broke, the heels are lower and wider, but less formal than what she uses right now.

"Ehhh… s… sir… you don't need…." I looked at her surprised face after she said that.
"Come on… it's fine, just consider this as your lucky Christmas present for being a good girl," I teases her as I asked her foot.
"Um… I… I can put it by myself…"
"Well then, lets see if it fits or no," I stand up in front of her while she equipped those brand new pair.

"Try to walk around," I asked her to after satisfying myself with the perfect fit, well, I just asked the store attendant to give me the same size as the broken one I brought along.

"Um… thank you…" she thanked me while hiding her blushing face.
"Merry Christmas, miss," I smiles to her.

We decided to spend time on that bench for a moment, yet even after several minutes since I bought her a canned latte, no words was spoken, not even looking at each other.
What the hell I did today, too random for a random person like me.

"It's pathetic, right?" she broke the ice.
"Eh, about what?"
"Myself…" she holds her can tightly as she said that.
"Um, you have some problem, miss?" I asked her, without even looking at her.
"No, I just pitying myself, wondering why it always ended up like this."
"Hm?"

"I… always made a wrong choice, it seems, it's not like I always did that but whenever I choose something for myself, it always ended up badly, like those heels."
"But, it's something that you choose, right?"
"I… just tried to choose it again for myself, and seems the result is still same, it makes me… afraid…"
"…."

"If only I could vanish today."

"Eh? What do you mean?" I look at her, noticing the light reflections on her cheek.
"I… cannot stand up by myself… never made a choice by myself, getting swayed along by other's pace," she said that while looking at her can.
"I wonder, if I'm a failure as human," she looked upon the night sky.

"What's wrong with getting someone's help?"
"Eh?" she look at me, finally.

"Like I said, what's wrong with having the others help you while you can't do by yourself? That's what makes us human, I think," I said to her while wiping her tears with my glove.
"Even after all that, I was unable to change, I would keep repeat the same mistake, it scares me…" she put away my hand from her cheek.
"I always messed it up in the end, even after being helped, it makes me surrender myself to the wave of time, doing something what I told to do without even swimming against the current,"

"Even if there's someone who helped you to fight the current?"
"It's still same, I think…"

"Well then… I think I should go now… even though I have no plan tonight… thank you… for the shoes…" that woman stood up.
"Ah, wait a minute," I grabbed her hand without thinking, pulling myself up.

"Eh… well… I'm sorry… I didn't mean too…"

"Miss… um, if you would like, would you allow me to help you change?" I gather my courage to ask her.
"What do you mean sir?"
"Ah, um… actually I didn't plan to do this, but… here," I reached my shirt pocket to give her my business card.

"Assistant producer at 346 Production?"
"Yes, I am, would you like to be an idol?" I ask her blatantly.
"Eh… an Idol? Me? No no, you must be joking, sir," she tried to returns my business card back.
"No, I am not, well, it's true I never thought I would ask you this in the first place, but, if you would like, please, let me help you to change! Even I'm just the assistant, I think if you decided to be one, I would challenge myself for that position," I said to her.

"I'm… not sure… besides… being an Idol, really never crossed my mind before," she said.
"It doesn't matter if it ever crossed your mind or not."
"Eh?"

"The important thing, I think, please consider that, with your feeling, you don't need to think, if you feel that I may help you, please let me know."
"I… don't know," she looks confused.
"Just… keep that card as well, if you decided to change, you know what to do."
"…."

"But, I wish one thing from you if you decided to accept."
"What is that?"
"I want you, to decide it by yourself, purely, by yourself, I will make sure that you won't ended up the same as before," I said to her.
"I… will try…"

She receives my card and put it at her coat. After saying good night and thank you, she left me.

It took me a while that she left her broken high heels pair at the bench, when I realized that, she's already gone.

Morning, man, its winter, well, it past New Year already, the year changes, but the weather and my singleness still remains.
Well, I guess some assisting works could make me feel better.

So, it's been more than a week since that day, the day when I met her, I still have her shoes in my apartment, well, there's no point about that.
I just remembered I didn't ask for her name back then, well, if she's interested on being an idol, she would surely call me.

"Yo! Producer! Heading out?" I greets my superior when I see him with Takagaki-san at the lobby.
"Ah, you, yeah, there's an event at the plaza today and I need to make some schedule adjustment there."
"About Takagaki-san and Kawashima-san's conflicting schedule, right? Well, it's your fault too though you scouted too much girls, I think I have more direct contact number here," I pulled out my phone from my pocket to check my contact.
"Man, you really a big help, ah, Takagaki-san, you could head to the car first, I'll be there shortly."

"Hey, you don't want to become a producer as well?"
"Me? Ah, no, I don't know, besides, if I become one, could you handle those 20 idols in your program by yourself?"
"Well, it would be a melee, but I think I'm able to do so. But you man, you are actually could do this job better than me at least, well, at least you could do this easier, go scout some girls and become one."
"Haha, well, actually I scouted one back then, but she hasn't called me, so I guess it's a miss, but I'm not in rush, I'm still new at this after all," I said to him.
"Maybe she's your lucky girl? Who knows? Or just scout another one, there are lots of diamonds in the rough in this country," she waved his hands and running to the car.

Diamonds in the rough eh, he is exactly right, his scouted girls are not an idol-material in a glance, but they are all famous now, phew.

I enters my office, piles of papers on my desk, it seems Chihiro-san gave us some notification about the new contacts and hello, what's this? General election? Is it the time for new Prime Minister already? Nope, it's for the idols.
Right after my ass touches the cushion on my chair, the phone rings.

"Man, talking about not a good time to call," I stood up to reach the phone.

"Mifune-san? Who is she? I don't know any, I think."
"She have your card though, are you sure you don't know her?" the voice on the other side said.
"Card… wait… a woman with brown hair?"
"Yes, do you know her?"
"Please wait a moment, I'll go down there," I hung the phone and dashed towards the receptionist.

Damn this Cinderella staircases, the only way to get to the ground floor from the first was using these staircases.
Yes, it is her, the one I met on Christmas Eve, her brown coat, there's no mistaking it, and she really came.

As I walked down the stairs in a hurry, she notices my footsteps and looking at me.

"You… you came…."
"Um… I… decided to try your offer…"
"Really? You do?"
"Y… yes… um… your hand…"

Ah, crap! I didn't notice it, I held her hand when she said she would try my offer.

"Ah, I… I'm sorry, shall we discuss this at the office?"
After thanking the receptionist, I take her to the office and offered her some beverages.

"You really came, I thought you would call me," I talk to her while brewing a cup of coffee.
"I'm sorry… I think this could be a chance to change myself…"
"Well, me too, even though I am just an assistant producer now, despite my superior pushes me to become producer as well, I thought I don't have the chance, but it you're prepared, then I would challenge myself as well," I said that while giving her latte.

"But, my question remains."
"What is that?"
"Did you came here, by your own will?"

She silents for a moment, before looking at me with the eyes where I could see all of her determination.

"Yes, it's my own will."
"Well then, let's get right through the point, you have experiences on dancing? Or singing?" I asked her as I seek the form on my desk.
"Um… no…"
"How about acting? Or maybe as a presenter? Anything where you stood up on a stage?"
"No… I… I'm not a center of attention… I think…"
"Eh? So… zero stage experience?"
"Yes…. Maybe… I should not come here… I think…"

"No no no, that's okay, so… we are both new player in this industry, well, there's always a first time for everything, am I right?"
"I… guess…" she said, I could feel her doubt about being an idol.
"Then, let's help each other, shall we? Let's help each other in changing our lives," I tried to clear her doubts.
"Ah… yes…"

"Well then, let me borrow your ID, must fill this form." She give me her ID as I asked.
"Hmm, Mifune Miyu…. Address… date of birth…. Eh…. Wait…"
"Is there something wrong?"

"Um… this birth date…. Wait… you're already 26 now?" I'm surprised on her age despite his younger look
"Is there any age limit?"
"No, not that, I just… well, I know you looks mature, but you really looks younger than most people, I think, at least I didn't notice that."
"Eh? i…is that so…."

"Wait, how long you've been working?"
"Around three to four years, I think…"

My surprises just kept piled up, but it's not a bad thing I guess, just, the fact that I am younger by some years than her makes me feel awkward if I become her producer, but why not?

"Let me take your picture as portfolio, just sit there, I'll take one with my phone."

I took her picture and printed it directly, with this her form is complete. I would call her in one or two days when the process was approved.
With this, I would be a producer in several days, I wonder what would happen when newbie idol and producer worked as one.

I thought that as I laid myself on my bed, it's very tiring to manage around 20 idols, but with Mifune-san, she'll be my first idol, I should maximize my effort for her.
But before that, there's one, I think, very fundamental problem, that I really must find out how to tackle this issue.

As I see her picture which I made it as my phone's lock screen, I keep reciting the fundamental issue for being an idol, I think.

"She…. Never smiles…. Not even once…"