Summary: This week's Idol House broadcast gives Nishikino Maki too much information about one of Yazawa Nico's housemates.
Light music was playing as two young women lounged on cushions in front of a bunk bed. The speaker had short, dark hair streaked with pink highlights, hugging a large plush monster as her voice shook. "I knew she had a girlfriend but when I saw the ring, it just got real and I realized how serious my feelings were. But how can I confess now…"
"Aki-san, I knew it...she's trying to steal Nico!" Hoshizora Rin shot to her feet, pointing at the large screen in the Nishikino media room where the latest episode of Idol House was playing.
"RIN!" Hanayo squeaked a warning as her head pivoted wildly, watching Rin and Nishikino Maki warily.
Maki looked stunned, casually sitting back behind a pillow in her comfiest sweats. Up until now, it had been a perfectly normal MakiRinPana weekly Idol House sleepover party night. But now, with the on screen revelation, the mood instantly darkened. As Maki leaned forward for the remote, a growl might have started in her chest but then the NicoTone went off. Maki muted her phone, dropping it next to her, only paying attention to the two girls onscreen.
'You know she's going to see this, Aki-chan.' Harada Mai, Idol House resident and member of the J-Pop group Bokeh Blossom, handed a box of tissues to her crying housemate, who managed to not block her face from the camera.
'That's a smile. Aki's smiling." Rin screamed. 'She knows people are going to pay more attention after she said that about Nico. It's a plan."
Hanayo stopped, frowning at the screen, "Maybe."
'Be quiet.' Maki ordered, ignoring her best friends' discussion.
'I just don't know what to do. Nico-chan…" Aki sniffled.
'Don't call her that.' Maki snarled at the screen.
'...has helped me so much, she's so mature...' Aki was getting closer to a sob, taking a brief moment to hide her face in the plushie.
Maki snorted, remembering Nico chasing Rin through Odaiba just last month.
Mai agreed, "She's been a big help to everyone, cooking dinners for the house, giving advice, she's like everybody's big sister."
'And she's so tiny and cute.' And with those words Kawano Aki gained a blood nemesis for life.
That was definitely a large and scary growl from the fiancèe of the tiny and cute Yazawa Nico. Rin and Hanayo exchanged a worried look as Maki grabbed her phone and stormed out of the room.
'We'd better keep watching, Kayo-chin.' Rin decided, grim.
Hanayo had her phone out, 'And take notes.'
###
Nico was tucked up in 'her' alcove, staring out the floor to ceiling glass windows at the central garden terraces, temporarily away from the cameras and her housemates, who were watching the rest of the broadcast. Nico was stunned. She'd never expected Aki's behind her back confession. There'd been no warning, not for her, not for...Nico stared at her phone, fretting. She'd called and texted Maki, dodged Aki's attempts to 'talk about it' and was now waiting for Maki to get to the point where she was ready to communicate. And there it was. "Daring!" Nico swiped, "Maki-chan?"
Silence…
"Maki?"
"Did she talk to you?" Abrasive, no melody.
"She tried to but Nico had an important call to make." Very matter of fact.
"What are you going to do?" Petulant.
Nico bit her lip, "Tell Kawano-san firmly that I'm not interested. She knows I'm engaged." Nico squelched a 'Nico Ni can't help being irresistible' flirt that almost bubbled out.
"You share a room." Maki sounded like she was going through a countdown to launching a rocket.
"Not anymore. Nico will be switching with someone…" Nico was curled into the back corner of the alcove, trying not to let the concrete gray surrounding her seep into her mood. It was chilly and she'd forgotten to bring a blanket down with her. What she really wanted was a borrowed Maki hoodie she could just wrap herself up in. "Hey, Nico's going to stop by and pick up a hoodie soon. This house gets cold."
"Windows and concrete, what did you expect?" Maki sounded shaky, "Can you come by tonight?"
"It's almost 10, Maki. And I have an all day event tomorrow with a 6 a.m. call time."
"Oh…" Nico could feel the gloom through the phone.
Nico rushed to reassure. "It's just a Nico Ni thing. None of the other girls. Nico's the most popular Idol and Number One Influencer in Japan. Brands are clamoring for a minute of her time."
"Everyone is." Nico could see the pout as Maki muttered into her phone. She probably had it on speaker and was sprawled out on her bed.
"Maki…"
Maki cut her off. "Good night, Nico-chan. I love you."
"Maki…"
No answer. Nico put her phone down, fingers running through her sable hair, thoughts a lightspeed scattering of a thousand bright shards...tonight, she was sleeping on a couch. Tomorrow, she'd get Maki to talk. Aki...Aki could just shut up. Forever.
###
Maki returned to the media room. Rin was bouncing; Hanayo looking worried.
"How did you know?" Maki asked the over excited ginger.
"What?" Rin scratched her head.
"You said 'it's that Aki-san, isn't it', when I texted you last week. How did you know?" Maki was glowering. And tall. Rin knew it wasn't anything she had done, but it was still frightening. Hanayo put a hand out to pull Rin down next to her.
"Rin's really good at reading people." Hanayo said proudly.
"Yeah, it's how I knew you were mad crushing on Nico from the first day…"
Maki waved that off, repeating her question plaintively, "How, Rin?"
Rin's agile face scrunched as she remembered scenes, "She touches her face and her hair, sometimes she touches Nico's arm when they're in the kitchen, she stares A LOT when Nico isn't looking, she wears extra cute pajamas when Nico-chan's in town…"
"STOP." Maki was gripping the back of the couch. "Does Nico…."
"Of course she doesn't…" Hanayo said hastily.
Maki stared at Rin, who paled. "Maki, that's not a good question to ask"
"Rin." So serious.
Hanayo stayed encouraging. "You watch the show too. Nico doesn't treat anybody any differently."
"Rin." Maki ignored Hanayo's forced optimism.
Rin buried her face in Hanayo's shoulder, who sighed and spoke for both of them, "We don't know. But we trust Nico. So should you."
Maki was staring at the ring on her finger, red and purple garnets, her and Nico, "I trust Nico-chan."
"Then you know she would never…" Rin spoke, still not looking.
"I'm going to visit." Maki closed her left fist.
"But you can't…"Hanayo nearly fell off the couch, "your parents..."
Maki released the couch, no longer leaning, "What that means is that that Idol House can't broadcast footage with me; they can't ban me from the premises…"
Hanayo, along with the μ's collective ownership stake, had also taken an internship with the show, helping the aspiring Idols with their social media. So she felt a responsibility to the program. "You'll put Nico in a difficult position. She's one of the producers."
Rin nodded, she and Hanayo were in their danger looming poses, arms wrapped around each other, "And Nico-chan will think you don't trust her."
Maki's patience for being in the presence of reasonable people evaporated, "I'm taking a bath. I'll see you at breakfast."
Before she left the room, Rin asked a quiet question, "What are you going to do, Maki-chan?"
"I don't know." Maki didn't turn around. Because that was a lie. And Rin would have seen it on her face. She was going to text Kotori and talk to her mother. Tomorrow, Maki had a few errands to run. And Nico was going to come home to a visitor.
###
17 hour day, so many costume changes, so many chirping, cheerful exchanges of greetings. Nico was Nico Ni'ed out. It didn't happen often, but living on on camera daily was bringing an even more constant awareness of her own tendency to split her worlds and play up her Idol persona for anyone who wasn't...Maki. Maki had a knack for forcing her to be real, for making her want to just sit around, be silly, eat snacks, have fun...Nico glanced up at the chalkboard for notes. There was a new one: Princess in the castle. Nico smiled, thinking of Diamond Princess Maki and wondering what the note writer meant. Then she wandered into the dining area and saw the flash of red hair on the couch facing the windows, long legs not nearly covered enough by a short, sportif off white skirt, too tight purple heathered jersey with a high zip collar - Nico recognized the curves, but she'd never seen the clothes.
'Maki?' Nico couldn't hide her surprise.
The invading princess jumped, nearly dropping her phone. Aki and Ryuen Shizu, the cheerful chubby chuunibyou half Korean with the darkly gorgeous voice were playing a video game on the couch tucked into the furthest corner of the room .
'Nico-chan. You're home.' Maki sounded startled, looking around, as if only now aware she wasn't alone in a room at her home.
'Yes. Nico's back. This is my house, you know that, right?" Nico stood, hands on hips, 'That's why you're here right? You were expecting me." A pause for processing. "Why are you here? You can't be here."
"Mama said...' Maki was stumbling over words and fumbling with her phone. Not a good sign.
"Mama said…" that meant broadcast permission...Nico immediately widened her grimace to a smile, ruby eyes professionally a-twinkle, resisting the urge to demand any immediate answers from Maki. Time for a different tactic.
"'If you girls don't mind, I'll take Maki out of your way.' Nico was impressed with how in control she sounded. She hoped that wasn't a delusion to be shattered by next week's broadcast.
Aki had put down her controller, her eyes wide and mournful, 'But shouldn't we all talk it out, Nico-chan?'
Suddenly agile again, Maki was on her feet and between Nico and Aki, 'Don't you call her...'
Nico raised her voice to a flirty pitch and tugged Maki back, smiling winningly at the redhead as she kissed her on the cheek, "Nico and this cutie need some cozy PRIVATE time." Then Nico dragged her stunned, inertia prone fiancèe out of the common area, past the camera crew set up in the dining area. She tossed her mic pack at a PA and once they were past the table, spun Maki around and removed hers, leaving it on a shelf. Then she yanked the redhead down to the first floor alcove, giving the camera operators a death glare to ensure no one would follow, deciding to zoom past the padded lounging area and through the door to outside, ducking around to a space hidden from interior view in case Aki decided to follow.
Nico reached up, hands twining through Maki's hair, and pulled the redhead down into a hard, demanding kiss that left both of them breathless and Maki wild around the eyes, "This was a dumb thing, Maki. Don't you trust Nico?"
A returned kiss, all desperate passion, and Nico forgot what her next point was. This wasn't going sensibly. Maki's skirt was too short, it was too easy for Nico to find her hand sweeping its way up…Nico stepped back, shaking herself, letting the cold make her shiver.
"Maki? Did you hear me?"
Damn. Where had Maki found that jersey, in this low light, so close to the amethyst in her eyes, it just made Nico want to step in and read what Maki was feeling...especially when she was just standing there, arms crossed, looking so miserable, hiding behind her bangs.
"Maki-chan?" Nico softened her voice.
A galumphing hug, and Maki whispering in her hair as Nico tried to breathe, "I missed you, Nico-chan. I just missed you."
Nico gave up trying to understand, wrapping her arms around Maki's narrow waist, pulling the goof close enough that Maki could feel how fast Nico's heart was doki doki-ing. Nico lifted Maki up slightly to twirl her so she was pointing at the street, "Come on, gorgeous. I know a little noodle shop where we can talk."
###
Maki put down her now empty bowl. Nico was finishing the last of her wantan-men. Midnight ramen run, Rin would be jealous.
'Hey, Nico-chan?" Maki spoke for the first time since they'd ordered.
Nico quirked an eyebrow.
"Rin knew that girl was…" Maki knew she couldn't finish that sentence without returning to mood: gloomy so she just skipped ahead, 'Why didn't you?' A worried note, "or did you?"
Nico popped a wonton in her mouth to give herself a chance for a mental wake up slap. She put her hand over Maki's with a gentle squeeze, "Nico's been paying attention to Nico…"
Maki snickered, she believed that completely. Nico was too busy juggling performance and business Idol issues to be distracted by anything non-Nico.
"Well, now I can move in and…" Maki started.
"No, no, no…" Bowls and spoons clattered as Nico gestured frantically, "you are not moving in. Your father is already going to…"
"Mama and I decided it will be fine. Papa is outvoted." Maki stated crisply, twirling a curl.
Nico worried her lip as Maki sat opposite, eyes glowing with pride, waiting for Nico to jump happily on train 'room together'. So Nico was going to have to confess. And she wasn't looking forward to it.
"Maki…"
Maki's brow furrowed. She recognized Nico's tone of voice. It was the slippery one. "Nico-chan?"
Nico sighed, "Maki, you don't realize. When tonight airs, there's going to be an explosion. People are going to be all over our social media, commenting, complaining…" Nico began to sound angry, "trolls forgetting they have mothers who could be reading their slime. You don't want to see that. You don't want a new surge of that every week. You don't want to be on camera every day. Trust Nico."
"We'll be fine. You handle it." Maki's earnestness was a quality Nico would always fight to protect, but it was not really helping right now. Nico needed shy Maki and was getting the naively romantical side. "We'll be together."
"Nico is a pro but…"
Maki refused to back down. "So am I."
Nico leaned over the table and kissed Maki, biting the redhead's lip. "Do you want the camera crew watching every time we do that? Or other things?"
"Um." Maki had her hands over her mouth, expression lost, bewildered…
"See, it's more complicated than just spending time with Nico."
Recovering faster than Nico expected, Maki sat up, jaw set, eyes sharp with purpose. She took Nico's hand, "It's not complicated at all, Nico-chan."
This close, Nico couldn't ignore the dark circles under Maki's eyes and the yawn the redhead was fighting, "Maki, did you sleep at all?"
Some of the fight leaked out, "Couldn't. Just the thought of...her….watching you, wanting you…"
"Don't." Nico's tone was strident. "You know I have fans. It's not real."
Maki grunted, "I don't like them that close."
"Nico will be sure to keep her at a distance." With Maki calming down, Nico could let her concern show, "But what are you going to do the next time Aki says something for a reaction?" It was hard not to be exasperated when Maki got in this mood, but considering that Nico and Aki had been sharing a bedroom, Nico wasn't unsympathetic to Maki's worries. But she did want to divert the conversation.
Maki shrugged, spinning her spoon in a slow circle. "Scream into another pillow, write another song."
Ah, now this was hopeful, if Maki was finding a way to express her feelings without destroying people or property, "You were composing last night?
"Yeah." Maki's lips pursed, like she was calculating the arc of the spoon spin. It was adorable.
"Nico wants to hear."
"I can play it for you when we get home." Now that, Nico thought, sounded like an excellent way to salvage the evening.
Nico stood, offering her arm, "Can I walk you home?"
The shy, pleased glow was one of Maki's best looks. And it was reserved for Nico. Hard not to feel bubbly about that.
###
Nico had headphones on, leaning against Maki's bed, dressed only in a borrowed t-shirt. Maki was sprawled on the bed, laptop out, hand bopping on Nico's shoulder as the song continued, her fingers sliding deftly along Nico's collarbone when the tune got to the denser, slower parts.
"Wow." Nico spun so she was facing Maki, lowering the headphones to loop around her neck, "That's a lot."
"I know…" Maki tapped a few keys, making notes, "it doesn't sound like anything I did before…"
"But it sounds so much like you…" Nico closed her eyes, picturing Maki pacing her bedroom, reaching for her keyboard, pounding out notes, sweeping to tweak chords and volumes, bouncing up to shadow box in the spare moonlight her window let in...stopping, flopping down to stare at the ceiling through splayed fingers, surrounded by silence, to hear the night's echo of her...solitude. It was a lonely song, richly textured with new awareness.
Nico popped up on the bed next to Maki, quickly typing a search request. "Have you heard Shizu-chan sing yet?"
"No."
"Listen." Nico hit play on a Shizu's cover of "Wanna Be Missed" and the gorgeous alto tones filled Maki's room, "I know you don't have lyrics yet, and Nico has some ideas about that, but the mood would suit her voice so well…" Nico had her arm over Maki's back, "And I know you want to come play in our recording studio."
Maki flipped, eyes narrowed, "Is Nico-chan confessing she wants me to visit her at Idol House?"
Nico leaned down for a quick kiss as she typed one handed, "Nico wants to everyone to hear that Nishikino Maki is still the best in the Idol business."
Maki was giggling, "I don't know, Nico-chan…" Maki paused to bat her lashes at Nico, "what about my fans? Won't they be jealous when they see how you look at me."
"Let 'em." Nico's turn to growl as she cued up a playlist.
And Jay Kent's cover of "Versace On The Floor" rolled.
A/N: Howdy. Have another. And now that my head's cleared a bit, I'm going to blast Christmas music and work on the finale of Jingle Bell Jazz before I have to start serious Midsummer Night's Dream prep.
The Idol House is based on one that actually exists. Links on Ao3 or check out Path Japanese architects, ARTechnic.
Take care!