Hello. This is the writer speaking.

If ya'll thought I left the UtaPri fandom HAHAHAHA. You're funny.

It'll be a long time before I'll even think of leaving. I love this franchise and Ai too much.

Don't think I'll update "Day with Mikaze-senpai." Though I love the concept, it's really hard to write it for some reason. But who knows? Maybe I'll drop an update for Masato's chapter when the time comes.

...

This fanfic was supposed to be an AU but ended up having mostly headcanons or nearly canon material.

Ai sighed. Things in his life were suddenly going awry with new opportunities. He spent the first three years just studying in preparation of being an idol, and it wasn't as though this was unexpected, but he was having difficulty analyzing and organizing new data so quickly. He had merely debuted last year, and now the professor was practically throwing information at him.

But in order to become more human, he would have to cope.

As of now, the plan the professor spoke proudly of was to keep his identity secretive due to circumstances he has yet to have explained in full detail to Ai. Currently, the only proof that the idol, 'Mikaze Ai,' existed, were two released albums and CDs sold in high branching idol stores.

Despite all this, the albums and CDs were sold out and stores obviously had trouble restocking. The rarity of the items were extremely high, and Ai knew he had a huge fan base already going for him. People were desperate to find out more about him. The only information the public knew about him was his voice, his name, and the fact that he did reside in Japan.

The professor was searching for a way to present Ai's existence to Japan in a very easy way that wouldn't spark any drama. He also didn't tell Ai that he was extremely excited to put Ai's angelic face to the angelic voice the public craved for. It was a massive project.

But as of now, Ai lived a simple life as a stranger. Though usually monitored, he was given large amounts of freedom due to the need of him understanding human habits on his own.

Ai's intelligence is extremely high, so it didn't take him long to learn human behavior and adjust himself. Soon, he found himself acting just like one without even realizing.

Still, Ai struggled to understand the things he was experiencing. His worst problem so far was emotion, which was currently the most alien to him.

Humans normally create routines for themselves, so Ai regularly visited the city and observed strangers from afar. He was strictly told by the professor to avoid social contact as much as possible, because Ai was currently too cynical and blunt. It was too dangerous for him to interact with anyone for long periods of time. It'd be serious trouble for Ai and the company if Ai were to get in any sort of social situation.

The professor programmed Ai to understand that if he were presented a social situation, such as a stranger wanting to talk to him, to simply nod and not say a word. Ai could still speak whatever he would like at all times, but Ai was quite obedient and understood.

Still, though, as of recently, the human emotion of curiosity often overshadowed his cautiousness. It seemed to take over sometimes and makes him forget his orders.

For the first few years of his development, Ai was treated as a fragile project and nothing else. This was the time where errors were being fixed if any and Ai studied. But as of last year, in order for Ai to continue becoming closer to humans, the professor has treated Ai like family. Like a son of his own. Ai started up obvious human habits such as three meals a day and needing fluids such as water consistently, even though he didn't necessarily require them for survival. He needed them for another important purpose, and that was to be able to pass as a human.

The professor mentioned humans' obsessions with routine constantly, so Ai became attached to these things. He created drafts upon drafts of intricate schedules, adding new information every day depending on his findings.

It also 'thrilled' him that he was experiencing emotion. The very first time he felt it, it had been curiosity. This was followed by a slow flow of others, and thrill itself.

According to the list the professor gave him, Ai still had a lot to experience. What made everything difficult was the fact that there were no instructions to obtain these 'emotions' for Ai to follow. He's been following instructions and manuals for the entirety of his short life. But luckily for Ai, he experienced three new emotions just by realizing this: Frustration because of the lack of instruction, surprise when he felt frustration, and relief when he realized it may not be as difficult as he believed it to be. The more he felt, the more it would come easily to him.

Still, there were certain emotions that would be definitely be hard to trigger at Ai's current stage. Those are obvious.

The weather was relatively cold. Occasionally, snowflakes would cascade slowly down the sky, and Ai would have them fall into his hands as he stared at them in awe. But he could feel people taking double-glances at him, and thinking they were suspicious of him, he frantically stopped this.

Ai felt what he believed humans called, "self-conscious." He was a little paranoid about causing some sort of trouble, since he was warned to be cautious.

He pulled the hood of his jacket over his head, covering up his cyan colored hair. According to his data, it was scientifically impossible to be born with bright, cyan hair, thus making him more sensitive.

Still, his curiosity for everything always beat his carefulness. Ai referred to himself as a child, especially when he asked just too many questions.

As Ai strolled down the sidewalks of a nice shopping center, he passed by a small cafe. He blinked, and paused; his mind was whirring with any information about cafes.

It was a very human thing to do, right? When the weather was cold, it would be nice to sit in a cozy cafe and to enjoy a warm drink or so. Ai's body temperature was adjustable, but he didn't really mess with the programs that made him stray from human nature as of yet. So he had set a default setting for everything that matched humans, and sure enough, he currently was quite cold.

He also had a good amount of money on him, certainly enough for the average price of a coffee or of the similar. The most interaction he'd do is speak briefly with the cashier about his order. And Ai felt that if he had to think so clearly about everything and every detail, he needed practice with these experiences.

And so, Ai entered the little cafe, greeted by a little bell that hung at the door and the soft music coming from inside. The cafe wasn't relatively full or empty, but Ai stepped in line behind two other customers placing their orders. It was good though; it gave him time to think about what he would like. Thanks to his research, he knew what everything was and what was contained in them, so he just picked what really appealed to him. Ai settled on ordering what they called a latte.

This job was pretty.. Okay, in Syo's opinion. Sure, it was exhausting attending the academy, doing intense idol activities, and then having to go to a part time job later. Still, it wasn't the worst. A little tough on his heart, but even through some struggles, he could manage. Syo had great friends both at his job and the school. If anything, he was excited. If all went well after graduating, he could quit the job and become a full time idol.

For now, he just focused on doing his best currently.

"Ah, Syo, can you take care of the next few customers for me?" A coworker of his asked him.

"Yeah, sure!"

Syo took the orders as usual from two girls standing in line, feeling the nice little feeling of being busy.

Syo turned around and called out the to-go order to his fellow employees, and turned to take the next customer's order.

"Hi, how can I help you?" Syo smiled brightly.

The customer looked up; their face, having been shadowed by the hood over their head, came into view.

And Syo practically froze in place.

He made eye contact with the two most gorgeous eyes he's ever seen in his life, which belonged to a cyan haired boy. And as Syo's gaze flickered up and down, this boy was insanely attractive.

"Oh," he spoke softly, his voice too gentle and beautiful for Syo to handle, "...I'll have a mocha latte with almond milk."

Syo had to focus so hard on this customer's words to actually get them through his head; he was practically dazed. He shook his head a little, and repeated the order to the boy.

"A-A mocha latte with almond milk.. Got i-it, anything else?" Syo could feel his face heating up; he couldn't control his voice from shaking.

".. No."

That melodic voice.. Syo didn't know what to do with his thoughts.

"Alright, that'll be.. ¥450.." Syo says slowly, afraid that if he wasn't careful, words would start spilling out.

The customer gave him the money and went to sit down.

Meanwhile, there were no other customers at the moment, plus Syo needed time to process everything. He went a little further into the employee area.

"They ordered a mocha latte with almond milk." He says, managing to stabilize his words.

Just calm down, Syo. He's super attractive, but chill. It's just a hot stranger. Don't think of anything stupid, and don't do anything stupid."

"Ehh? With almond milk? We're out of that as of now." A coworker told him. "You should've told the customer."

Ah, shit! Was I that distracted? Oh god, was it obvious I was checking him out?

Anyway, I need to fix this! Agh, I'd feel terrible if I had to go up to him and tell him we were out!

"I-I'm heading out! I'll go buy some! It'll take like five minutes max!"

Syo dashed out the back door before any of his coworkers could reply, sprinting down the block as fast as his legs could to the closest grocery store.

An employee sighed. "He didn't give us time to give him money from the cashier.. Is he going to purchase the almond milk with his own money?"

They didn't know how he did it, but he made it back before they knew it. Syo was breathing hard and slightly sweaty, but he had someone make the latte as quickly as possible. The customer area was empty except that customer.

"Sorry for the wait." Syo placed the latte down on the table. "One mocha latte with almond milk."

"It's fine.. It wasn't a long wait at all." Although quiet and a little monotonous, the boy's voice was still soft and very pretty to Syo.

He looked up at Syo, and Syo stiffened again at those gorgeous eyes looking at him.

Then he realized how he probably looked and felt super self conscious.

Crap. I'm probably sweaty and disheveled.

"You were.. Out of almond milk. But this latte still contains it."

Syo blinked, feeling his face heat up with embarrassment.

He heard.

"Oh, uh, we were. I just ran out quickly to buy some." He explains, flustered.

"Ah.." The boy looked at the floor shyly. "I didn't mean to cause trouble. I should've known not to order this."

Syo thought his response was a little strange, but God, this guy in front of him was so cute that he didn't think much of it. His timid actions were adorable.

"Don't worry about it! I don't really mind."

Syo glanced at the clock behind the counter. Maybe he should make a move?

"Oh, I'm on break now." Syo scratched the back of his head, trying not to blush. "Would you.. Would you like to chat?"

The boy stared at him, and his eyes sparkled for a moment. But he turned away.

"Well.." He then knit his eyebrows slightly, as if making a very difficult decision, "Sure."

Jesus, he's so cute.

"Y-You don't have to if you don't want to!"

The boy opened his mouth to reply, but paused in hesitation. "No, it's fine. Take a seat."

Syo couldn't believe what was happening. He very rarely felt this way. He wasn't really the kind of person to flirt. But things were working out well, it seemed, so he felt his weak heart skip a beat.

Syo tugged off his apron-like uniform, which he wore over his school outfit, and placed it on his lap as he sat down. He wasn't really in the mood to drink anything, but he hoped he didn't make it awkward.

"I-I haven't quite seen you around before. Are you new in the area?" Syo asks.

It was a fairly good question. Everyone who visited the cafe were regulars and locals, so this boy was a new face to Syo. And he'd know, considering how much this person's presence affected him.

".. Yes."

It was a very brief and vague answer, like he didn't know what to say. The boy looked up.

"I suppose it's natural to introduce myself. I'm… Ai."

Syo felt heat rush to his cheeks, but he smiled.

"I'm Kurusu Syo! You can just call me Syo." He replies.

Ai.. I feel like I've heard or seen that somewhere before? Hm. Is it a surname or a first name?

I mean, there's other people named Ai probably so it's could've been some other person.

"..Syo." Ai repeated, letting the name roll off of his tongue.

Syo grinned at him. "Yeah! I'm actually from Nagoya, but I'm not that new to Tokyo, anymore. I'm here attending Saotome Academy."

Ai blinked at that familiar name. He remembered it being the idol/composer academy a friend of the professor founded. How coincidental.

"You want to be an idol? Or are you a composer?" Ai asks.

"Ah, no, no. I want to be an idol! It's been my dream for a long time." Syo rubbed his nose sheepishly. "I'm not really the type to be a composer."

It was true, if Syo has stated he would be a composer, Ai wouldn't have been able to stop himself from saying Syo didn't seem like one. Lucky for Ai, the programmed side of him that would reveal the fact that he was an unemotional robot with no childhood memories or feelings was not shown.

Ai picked up the latte, blowing on it softly to try to cool it down a bit. He took a small sip. When the liquid touched his tongue sensors, his brain automatically sent out a list of the ingredients and any information Ai was missing about lattes due to lack of experience.

"Interesting," he thought, "depending on the tastes of an individual, this can either be pleasurable or the opposite."

Ai placed the cup down.

The cyanette worried a bit about the possibility of Syo asking questions he didn't have an answer to.

"Do you have any hobbies you like to do?" Syo asked, grinning, but nervously choosing his words.

Ai's head buzzed with the definition of "hobby."

"I'm part of an idol agency. I sing." Ai replies.

Syo blinked. "Whoa, really? That's awesome! Are you an idol?"

Ai paused. "It's a slow rise, but yes."

Syo was disappointed in himself. Sure Ai stated that his career was building, but how come he's never heard of him? Did Ai go by a stage name? Being in an idol academy meant he had to keep up with the recent idols and trends as much as possible.

Syo thought hard. Had he ever seen the name, "Ai," on a CD?

For some reason, a light purple CD he saw in a store suddenly came to mind. It had sat on the cashier's desk, in a little assortment labeled, "Featured CDs." If Syo remembered correctly, the cashier had mentioned that the CD was nearly sold out, and was the most mysterious CD in the store. It contained nothing but small lettering of a name in a nice font. There was no album with it. The CD itself had no writing on it. It was blank, and yet it was selling out. That one was the last one the store had, the cashier had said.

Syo couldn't recall the name on the CD case, and it bothered him so badly. He'd probably go back to that store in his free time to find the CD. It would most likely be sold by then, but he could at least ask the cashier about it.

Syo realized he had been staring at the table. He looked up to see Ai peering at him curiously.

Ai was.. odd.

Syo shook the thought out of his head.

"I can see why you're an idol. Your voice is beautiful." Syo says, smiling gently.

Ai blinked.

Badump.

He felt a single throb in his chest, and it disappeared.

"Huh?"

Ai was puzzled, and anxious immediately.

That wasn't his normal artificial rings.

He had never experienced an inner feeling like that. Never.

But it was only for a mere moment. Still, he'd ask the professor about it later.

"Ah. I should go." Ai got up abruptly. He pulled his hood over his head as Syo scooted back in surprise.

"Oh- so.. so soon? I mean-" Syo coughed, trying to calm himself. "F-Feel free to come again."

Ai turned to briefly glance at him. There was hesitation written all over his face.

"Perhaps I will." He said, with a tinge of emotion in his words.

And he left.

Syo stared at the door, the bell still chiming softly as the door slid shut. The latte still sat on the table, half-finished.

He crossed his fingers, hoping that Ai's "perhaps" meant he really would return.