Forgotten Melody
Chapter 2: Rain
"Where did he go?" Kirari asked, wondering why Hiroto left.
"Hiro-kun probably already went home. He was too tired from the recording session this early morning, you see," Seiji said, bailing Hiroto out.
"Oh, I see," said Kirari, disappointed.
"Let's go eat lunch outside, Kirari-chan! My treat!" Seiji said, cheering her back up.
"Okay!" Kirari exclaimed, quickly recovering from her disappointment.
Chairman Muranishi and Kumoi-san didn't object to the two's decision.
"Well, the Chairman and I…uhh…have to talk about some important matters," Kumoi-san said, turning to the Chairman.
"We do?" asked the clueless Chairman.
Kumoi-san lightly elbowed the Chairman, but still made him squeal.
"Hey!" he exclaimed.
The eyeglasses-wearing manager gave Chairman Muranishi the look which silenced him from saying anything else.
"Oh, okay," Kirari said, smiling.
"Don't forget to wear your disguises. They're in the closet and remember…you must not be found together by the public! With your sudden return, many rumors can surface without even the truth behind," Kumoi-san said, clenching her fist.
"Thank you, Kumoi-san," Seiji smiled as he and Kirari said their goodbyes to their managers.
The two went to their separate dressing rooms in the studio and checked their closet. There, they found their own clothes to use to go incognito.
As she put on her disguise, Kirari noticed the old clothes she used to wear before she left for America. She picked it up and spread it on the table, looking at how small it was and realizing how much she has grown. She also reminisced the past.
Kirari remembered that day when she and Hiroto went downtown with Seiji, but got separated from him. So, they went to the beach to look for him, where they got wet from the waves. Kirari even remembered how Hiroto held her tight as a group of girls passed by while talking about how they made a cute couple without knowing that they were the famous idols.
"Hiroto-kun," Kirari worriedly muttered as she thought of what's going to happen to her and Hiroto.
Seiji knocked on the door, interrupting Kirari's thinking.
"Kirari-chan, are you ready?" asked Seiji, still waiting behind the door.
"Oh, yeah. I'll be right there."
Kirari picked up her old clothes and shoved them back in the closet. She applied some juicy lipgloss onto her pink lips and smiled at her reflection. She opened the door and found Seiji.
"That's a good disguise, Kirari-chan," Seiji said, looking at Kirari from head to toe.
She wore big, round glasses and tied her long, brown hair up into a ponytail. Over her head, she wore a baseball cap that said 'SHIPS' on it.
"You too, Seiji-kun," smiled Kirari, also examining Seiji.
Seiji wore a sunglasses and a blue baseball cap to cover his voluptuous blonde hair.
The two stepped out of the building together, keeping distances that did not seem suspicious from each other. They walked to the train station and went downtown.
They entered a restaurant with not very many people go to so they can keep their identities from the paparazzi. They looked at the restaurant where they usually go to without their disguises and found a swarm of paparazzi with their cameras ready to be filled with their images.
"This place has changed a lot since I was gone," Kirari said, looking outside the window, noticing that the sky was turning gray.
"Yeah," Seiji agreed, taking his sunglasses off.
The two idols ordered their food, giving some tips to the waitress for not blowing their cover off.
"You've changed, too, Seiji-kun," Kirari exclaimed, returning back to the topic.
"Not by much, though. Now, you have changed tremendously," Seiji smiled.
"Is it a bad thing?" worried Kirari.
"No, not really. When you left a year after your debut here, you were just a small 15 year old, but now…look at you! You're 19 years old and turning 20 soon! You're a woman now!
"Thank you, Seiji-kun. In just 4 years, everything has changed so quickly, huh. Including…Hiroto-kun," Kirari said, her smile turning into a light frown.
"Kirari-chan, you must understand that Hiroto-kun had experienced a lot of things when you were gone," Seiji replied.
The waitress returned with their orders. Kirari ordered a pasta Alfredo while Seiji ordered fillet mignon. They both ordered iced tea for their beverage.
"What happened while I was gone?" Kirari asked as soon as the waitress left.
"I wish I could, but I can't. It's not my decision on whether or not you should know," Seiji replied after taking a bite of the food he ordered.
Kirari was now full of curiosity, wondering if Hiroto will be able to tell her the truth.
"Do you think he still remembers me? Hiroto-kun?" asked Kirari, sipping her tea.
"That, I don't know."
"How come?"
"Well, he rarely talked about you when you were gone. He was more focused on his music, career…and…his girlfriend," Seiji replied even though he didn't want to finish his sentence.
"His what?" Kirari exclaimed, almost spilling her drink.
"He has a girlfriend," Seiji answered.
"Who?"
"Fubuki Todou."
"But, how could that be? Th-that's impossible!" the surprised Kirari shouted, attracting people to look at their table.
"Shh, Kirari-chan. Quiet down, you're making a scene," Seiji quietly said, calming her down.
"But, I don't understand!" Kirari protested.
"Hey, isn't that Seiji Hiwatari?"
"Who is that with him?"
"Is it his girlfriend?"
Their cover was blown off and they had no choice but to run. Seiji grabbed Kirari's hand and they ran out of the restaurant, leaving enough money for the food they ordered at the table.
Sooner or later, they attracted the paparazzi and had to run faster to the train station. Unfortunately, they went the other way, making the distance to the train station longer than it already was.
Seiji and Kirari continued running, not pausing for anything. Suddenly, the rain started pouring, sending the paparazzi to find shelter for their cameras. They had no choice but to give up their chase for the two idols. This time, the two got lucky.
When they reached a dark alley near the main road, they hid there, waiting for the rain to simmer down.
"Are you...okay…Kirari-chan?" asked Seiji, panting.
Kirari nodded, not being able to talk to catch her breath.
Out of nowhere, a black car honked at them. Kirari and Seiji looked to see who it was and found Fubuki on the passenger seat beside Hiroto, who was driving the car.
"Hiroto…kun," Kirari muttered, surprised to see that he was actually sitting down beside Fubuki.
"Kirari, Seiji, hurry! You'll get soaked," Fubuki said, motioning them to go in.
"Let's go, Kira—"
"No."
"Huh?" Seiji asked, surprised from her straight-up reply.
"But you'll get—"
"Go ahead. I have to go somewhere, anyways," Kirari said, looking down at the puddle she was stepping on.
"But—"
"Go! Just…go," Kirari said, pushing him away.
Seiji didn't want to upset Kirari so he walked to the vehicle even if he didn't want to.
"Here," Seiji said giving Kirari his phone.
"Call Chairman Muranishi's office phone when you get to your destination. I'll be there to pick up and answer, okay?" Seiji ordered.
Kirari nodded and smiled at Seiji under the pouring rain. Before Seiji left her, he kissed her forehead, leaving Kirari surprised, yet warm.
Seiji stepped in the black car, not looking back.
"What about Kirari?" asked Fubuki, locking the doors and putting her window up.
"She has to go somewhere," replied Seiji wiping his face with the towel Fubuki prepared for them.
"Well, let's go," Fubuki said, turning to Hiroto.
Fubuki noticed Hiroto clenching the steering wheel. She wasn't surprised, but was threatened of something that came up in her mind, but she relaxed and looked at the droplets rolling down the windshield.