The final five days of being a third year at Uranohoshi Girl's High School was a buzz. Ever since the beginning of the year Aqours had blossomed into more than just a school idol group, but a deep friendship and bond between each of the nine girls.

Some held onto this bond more than others.

Mari Ohara was the director of Uranohoshi, and as the director, naturally she and the student council president had gotten to know each other throughout the year.

Yet in two days, I will no longer get to see Dia, Mari thought silently. A breeze slowly blew through her short blond hair as she gazed out the window.

"I don't want these sparkling days to ever end," Mari whispered.

There was many things to be done before the last day of school, and Mari walked down the hallways to see people rushing around, preparing for the school festival they always held at the end of the year. Sadness filled her eyes as she walked the halls she might not ever see again. Classrooms and familiar faces passed her by, some students stopping to bow to her in respect. Mari walked towards the far classroom near the end of the hall, and stopped to peek into the room.

Inside by herself was Dia, who was determinly putting up pink streamers on the windowsills.

"Do you need any help?" Mari asked, walking up to Dia who turned and smiled greatfully. Together the two of them finished putting up the banners, and sat on the desks to admire their work. Pink streamers filled the room, making it seem smaller and more festive.

"Are you excited for the end of the school year?" Mari spoke, not facing Dia. There was a silence between the two before Dia responded.

"I guess. I am worried what will happen to Aqours after we leave. And Ruby too" Dia sighed. "I hope she is alright next year on her own….she's so shy and timid"

Silence again. The two third years sat in room 3-A, with only the sound of the wind to fill the empty room.

"Well, I better get going" Mari said, standing up. "As director, I guess I should make sure that all the other rooms are doing ok."

Dia nodded and waved goodbye. Stupid Dia, Mari thought as she walked through the different event rooms. You were supposed protest and have me stay with you!

After she had checked all the different rooms and events, Mari walked back into the head office and sat in her chair. Being director isn't a joke, she thought. It's a lot of work! But, her head reminded her, if it weren't for being a director, you might not have gotten to know Dia-chan as well as you do now. Mari sighed. The usually upbeat and carefree girl had lately been feeling down recently, distracted by thoughts of graduating and leaving Aqours and most of all…..Dia.

What was wrong with her? Smile, smile, she encouraged herself, but no matter how many times she tried to cheer herself up, with Dia on her mind, her thoughts seemed to always wander, only to drift back to the long haired brunette.

Dia walked home after school that day, stopping at the local store to pick up groceries for dinner. Ruby had gone ahead of her so she was all alone by herself. Thoughts of the end of year celebration filled her mind. A few more days, she reminded herself. You will be gone from Uranohoshi and start your life as an adult. The pressure raked down on her. Her parents were part of a well known fishing management, and were still undecided if they wanted Dia to continue their business or not.

When Dia reached her home the lights were already on, and she smiled. As she walked in, the smile slowly turned to a frown. A message on the table from her younger sister, Ruby Kurosawa, lay on the table.

Dear Sis,

I am going to be staying over at Maru-chan's house for the evening.

I promise I'll be back in the morning so don't have a heart attack!

I'm fine! Don't worry!

See you at school tomorrow

~ Ruby

I wish she would have told me before I'd gone to the grocery store for dinner! Dia lamented, but shook her head. She was happy for her sister to hang out with friends. Quickly, she made herself dinner and sat at the table.

"Itadekimasu" she prayed, and dug into her food. She hadn't eaten anything since lunch! Checking her phone for messages, she saw she had one from Chika.

Dia-san,

We were wondering if we could do one final live preformance, in honor of all the third year graduations?

We can plan it together so it will be a huge success!

Please say yes…..

-Mikan

She replied a simple, 'We will talk about this with everyone tomorrow', not wanting to have to think about graduation or anything.

After she finished up, she cleaned the dishes and got in the bath. Soap filled the air with a sweet strawberry scent as she soaked in the warm water.

She wondered if her other third year classmates felt the same way as her. Mari and Kanan always sekmed like cheerful, happy-go-lucky sort of people. Especially Mari. Yet recently Mari had seemed down, not really sad, just always seemed to be in deep thought. Very different from her usual joking type personality.

Dia hadn't realized it but soon all she was think of was Mari. In five days, Dia might never see Mari, or any of the the Aqours girls for a long time. The thought made her sad, causing her to fold her legs to her chest.

That night Dia couldn't sleep, thoughts of the end of year closing in on her. It's going to happen, she thought while drifting. I don't want these sparkling days to end.

"Pleeeeeease" second year Takami Chika begged, making Mari laugh for the first time in ages. "You have to convince Dia-chan to let us do a final live!"

"Chika!" Sakurauchi Riko scolded, as she grabbed Watanabe You with her. "You can't just go thinking of these kind of ideas and expect Dia-san and Mari-san to agree with you! Right You?"

"Eh? Uhh, hai!"

"Aww but Riko-chan its a good idea! You said it yourself!"

"I did not, I said to ask the president first-"

"Ask me what?" The girls turned around to see Dia behind them, and squealed in surprise.

"Well?" Chika demanded, standing infront of Dia. "We can do it right?"

Dia noted the fire in Chika's eyes, filled with such strong determination it almost made Dia take a step back. These were the eyes that convinced her to start the School Idol Club in the first place, the eyes that drew every one close to her, the eyes that lead Aqours to become a success.

"Well…." With everyone looking at her Dia knew the right descision. "Yes"

Chika grabbed Riko and You into a big hug, before Dia and Riko added at the same time, "Only if you all agree to practice!"

Chika and You pouted, making everyone laugh. Mari observed Dia, as she continued to lay out the plan for the last live. Her heart picked up speed as she turned to her and smiled. There was something about Dia's emerald green eyes that made Mari feel lost.

"Mari?" a voice said, shaking her out of her thoughts. She and Dia were now alone, the others had skipped off a while ago. "Are you ok Mari? You've seemed a bit different these past days"

Mari shook her head.

"Different?" She faked, waving her hands. "Why would you say that? You must be joke!" Mari cursed as her voice cracked at the end. Dia raised her eyebrows. Who was she kidding? I'm feeling this way because of you, baka….

"Well, I have some things I need to get done in the student council room" Dia announced, still looking Mari in the eyes who refused to look back. "If anything is wrong," She added leaning closer to Mari making her heart jump. "Please tell me".

Her eyes seemed to bore into Mari making her feel naked and exposed. As she walked past her towards the student council room, Mari swore she could smell the faint smell of strawberries in the air.

The days flew by so quickly, and before Dia could even realize it, it had already been 3 days. Two days left of school remains, Dia thought. Looking out the window, Dia was greeted with angry looking clouds. There could be a typhoon, she thought absently. Two more days and I will be out of this school. Two more days and I will no longer be able to see Mari….ah! Shaking her head out of her thoughts. Why am I thinking only of Mari? Of course I am sad I won't get to see everyone else, but…..

"Ohayo"

Mari turned around to see Mari herself.

"A-ah, Mari-san, I didn't see you come in there" Dia stammered, tucking her hair behind her ear. She backed up as Mari stepped forward, and immediatly regretted it when she saw Mari's eyes. They were usually so full of energy and light, so Dia was surprised when she was stared back with pools of sadness.

"I told you" Mari began, turning her back to Dia. "Mari. Call me Mari."

Dia didn't know how to respond. Mari never used to be like this, she thought. What could make Mari like this.

"Tell me something, Dia" Mari said, still not turning around. Dia gulped, and leaned on the desk for support. "Do you, ah, I mean…" Mari sighed and turned back around. "Have you ever loved someone? But not known how to tell them?"

Dia looked at Mari in awe. Thats why she must be so glum lately! She thought to herself. It must be a boy. Dia shuddered at the thought of seeing a boy's arm wrapped around Mari's waist.

"Ah, well" She began, ignoring the lump in her throat as she replied. "I guess you could say that I have. I've never confessed or anything but…."

"Thats exactly it!" Mari bursted, surprising Dia. "Everyone around me has had the courage to ask the person they like out! Ruby-chan and Hanamaru-chan, Riko-chan and Chika-chan, Yoshiko-chan and You-chan…..everyone but Kanan….."

Dia nodded slowly. Where could this conversation be going? She wondered as her heart picked up speed. Was Mari suggesting-

All of a sudden, both of them heard a loud noise, coming from outside. Mari and Dia ran to the window to see rain pouring down, and trees shaking wildly.

Oh no, Mari thought. She had been so caught in the moment, she almost confessed to Dia! In a middle of a typhoon!

"Attention students of Uranohoshi" Dia spoke urgently into the school's speaker. "Please stay calm. Ask your homeroom teachers to take you somewhere safe while we wait out this typhoon. Please stay calm, it will pass."

Dia slumped down and pressed her ears to her head. So cute, Mari smiled as she sat down next to Dia.

Thunder crashed outside the windows, causing both of the girls to flinch. Dia squeezed her eyes shut, praying for the typhoon to pass quickly, as she felt hands slip around her.

"M-Mari..." Dia whimpered as she pressed herself against the blond haired girl. They both jumped as another crack of thunder boomed.

"Dia" Mari whispered softly. "Lets play a game. It goes like this," she began motioning with her fingers. "Each time we hear something scary or frightening, we will count. Each time we count, we will share something we've never shared before about ourselves, ok? Maybe it will make the storm less scary."

Dia nodded, as they heard a strong gust of wind threatening to shake the school's windows.

"One" Mari began. "Lets see...I am afraid moving again."

Dia looked Mari in the eyes, searching for any signs of the yellow haired girl joking, but there was only truth behind those golden eyes of hers. Mari nodded towards Dia before she could ask any questions.

"Your turn now"

She wanted to ask Mari more questions, but was inturrupted by a loud noise, causing her to jump. Dia touched her hand to her lips in thought. "I worry too much about Ruby," she admitted, as Mari nodded. "I can't help it though," Dia continued. "She's so valunerable, and I know that Maru-chan cares for her a lot but..."

"Uun I understand" Mari agreed. "Ruby-chan is going to be a second year soon though"

"Thats what I'm worried of!"

CRASH!

Mari felt Dia's grip on her uniform grow tighter, and the girl scooted closer to her. The smell of strawberries was stroner now, Mari noted.

"Two" Mari said softly, touching Dia's hand. "I think that my parents might be talking about going overseas again, for business reasons."

Dia's eyes grew wide. Mari was thankful she didn't ask, for the choice was unsure yet, but her parents had been hinting around for some time now. Dia stayed silent, thoughts of her never seeing Mari again for years making her lost for words.

"Two," Dia murmured, her head lowering. "My parents want me to continue their fishing management when I am done with school, but I don't want to. I want to find my own path in life, not follow their ways."

Silence filled the air as neither girls spoke for a while, the sound of the storm filled the room.

There was a loud crack, and the lights turned off as the girls screamed. Dia buried her head into Mari, as Mari wrapped herself against Dia protectivly.

Then there was calm. It was as if the storm around them was raging on, but for that moment, they were the only ones who couldn't hear the storm. They couldn't see anything, they could only hear each other's breath in the dark.

"Three" Dia's voice almost echoed in the silent room, making Mari's heart beat rapidly. "I think I am in love with someone."

If at that moment there was any more cracks of lighting or booms of thunder, neither girl could hear any of it. They could only hear each other's voices.

"Three" Mari whispered softly, hardly autible to anyone but Dia. "I ...I love you. It's not joke."

The last day of school. The typhoon had wiped out a lot of houses and trees but no one had gotten seriously hurt. The second to last day of school was canceld due to recooperating and fixing up all the props for the celebration, but finally the day had finally arrived.

All the Aqours members were gathered behind the stage, filled with so many emotions; nevousness, excitement, sadness, and happiness.

"Minna" Chika said, placing her hand in the middle. "As our final live with all Aqours members, lets make this our best live ever"

Tears started running down her cheeks, and soon, everyone's eyes were watering as well.

"We've all grown so much since our first live at the beginning of the year" Chika continued. "I know that even as we part, the bonds between us will never be broken. Riko-chan, You-chan, Ruby-chan, Hanamaru-chan, Yoshiko-chan, Kanan-chan, Dia-san, Mari-chan...Arigato"

Everyone was here. All together, for the last time to preform on the stage they had started on at the beginning of the year. Memories of practice, challenges, and the past year filled all their heads, as Chika raised her arm. "Now..."

Everyone placed their hands in the center, taking Chika's lead and raised them to the blue sky.

"Aqours! Shining!"