Chapter 58 – Songwriting Struggles

Mugi's POV

"Sono…fasshonaburuna…k-kodomo o mohō…suru node wanaku

A-Anata no…seikaku wa…saikōdesu

Kokoro…n-no kagayaki…o kanjitara

R…Risō o…mitsuke ni…ikimashou

Ugh! What the hell?! None of that makes any sense! Maybe I should just do this later…"

"Hey, Mugi. Whatcha doing?" Miharu asked me as I was sitting in the Rec Center with a notebook in my hands.

"Oh, Miharu. Believe it or not, I'm actually trying to write a new song for my next Melody performance."

"You're writing a new one already? But didn't you just become an idol like…3 weeks ago?"

"Yes…but according to Honoka, idols have to constantly bring out new songs and stuff or else you'll easily be forgotten. Apparently, the idol industry is rougher than it looks."

"Wow…that sucks."

"Yeah…it kinda does."

I can see why everyone was shocked about me doing this…

"So, what do you have so far?"

"Not much. Just the first four lines…but they kinda suck. Writing a song isn't really an easy thing to do. I keep getting stuck on stuff like rhyming and melodies and such."

"Well, doesn't Mio write songs for the band? Why not ask her for advice?"

"I've thought of that. But…" I went silent for a bit. "…if you were more fluent in Japanese, you would realize how extremely girly Mio-chan's songs are."

"Isn't that the point?"

"No. It's not." I gained an exasperated sweatdrop.

"Huh…well, I wouldn't know the difference. I play music not make it. Too much of a hassle, really."

"You're really not helping…" My sweatdrop grew even more.

"Onee-chan. Miharu. It's time for the shift change." Sumire said as she and Mikuru-chan came into the room together.

"Ugh…already?" Miharu complained. "And I just woke up, too…"

"Miharu…it's almost 1:00 in the afternoon. What were you doing last night for you to wake up this late?"

"U-Um…well…"

"Playing video games until 4:00 in the morning. As usual." I said.

"N-No one asked you!"

It's the main reason why I moved into my own room…

"*sigh* Whatever…" I sat up as I closed the notebook in my hands. "…I'll just have to figure this out later."

"Figure what out, Onee-chan?" Sumire asked.

"Oh, um…you see, I'm writing a new Melody song and…"

"A-A new Melody song?!" Mikuru-chan yelled in excitement. "C-Can I hear it…K-Kotobuki-san?!"

"I-It's not finished yet, Mikuru-chan. In fact, I'm not even halfway done. It's been proven to be harder than I thought."

"O-Oh…I-I see."

"That does make sense." Sumire said. "Considering that this is only your second time doing it."

"Not to mention that this is really my first time actually taking this seriously. That other song was just me putting stuff together at the last minute. I'm honestly still shocked that it worked so well…"

"Well, if you're struggling with it so much, then why don't you just ask that Honoka girl for help?" Miharu asked. "You two are close, right?"

"Yeah, but…"

To be honest, I didn't want to ask Honoka for help. I relied on her way too much during the festival. And now that I'm a full-fledged idol, I want to prove to her and the others that I can confidently do this on my own. And be successful at it, too.

"Miharu! Mugi! Where are you two?! A bunch of requests are coming in!" We heard Tamura-san call out from the front of the hotel.

"L-Like I said, I'll just work on it later. Come on, Miharu. Let's go get ready for our shift."

"*whine* This is going to be hell…" Miharu complained as she walked alongside me.

Maybe after this, she'll freaking go to bed on time…


You would think that after Golden Week AND summer break, the demand for staying at a hotel would drop significantly…but no. In fact, it shoots up drastically this time of year according to Tamura-san. Apparently, these three months are when representatives from those big companies get together and discuss potential business deals and whatnot. And often need a place to meet up. Hence why we're so busy.

Now it makes sense as to why Father was always the busiest this time of year…

Because of this, we decided to start taking shifts to better manage our work life and school life (and in my case, idol life). Sumire and Mikuru-chan just finished theirs. And now it was Miharu and I's turn.

"Thank you, Sir. We hope you enjoy your stay with us." I was working the front desk checking in people to their rooms. It's a simple job…and it's also the only thing I can do right. I'm not good at cleaning like Sumire, I can't cook like Mikuru-chan, and I'm not really all that social like Miharu. She can keep people entertained for hours on end. It's honestly impressive.

But as long as I can be of some help, it doesn't really bother me much. After all…I am grateful to Tamura-san for letting me live here.

Come to think about it…it's coming close to a year since I came here. Maybe I should do something to show my gratitude…

*DING* *DING*

"Ah, yes!" I came out of my train of thought. "*clears throat* Welcome to the Blossom Haze Minshuku. How can I assist…wh-what the…?" I then stopped talking after realizing who exactly was in front of me. As it took me by surprise.

"Hi, hi! Nice place you got here, Mugi."

"Honoka…what are you doing here?" I asked my idol friend/rival.

"Nothing much. I was in the neighborhood doing some shopping and I remembered that you lived around here. Man, minshukus are bigger than I thought…"

"Eh, not really. At the end of the day, it's still a bed & breakfast in a small neighborhood. 5 people do live here, you know."

"I see…"

"Hey, Mugi. Do you know what "makura" means? The guy over in room 4 wants a whole bunch of them." Miharu said as she walked up to the front desk. "Huh? Hey…aren't you that Honoka girl from Odaiba?"

"I'm actually from Kichijōji…" Honoka said. "…but it's reassuring to know that you still remember me, Miharu."

"Well, you are the one who made my half-sister into a now-beloved school idol. Kinda hard to forget that."

"Yeah…I guess that's true."

"Well, hey…now that she's here, Mugi, she can probably help you with that song of yours."

"M-Miharu!" I yelled at her.

"Huh? What song?" Honoka asked.

"W-Well…*sigh* oh, what's the point in hiding it now?" I mumbled to myself. "I'm working on writing a new song for my next Melody performance. But I'm having trouble coming up with lyrics. If you could take a look and…"

"Help you out? *giggle* Sure, I don't mind. After all, I learned how to write lyrics from Riko."

"Seriously? Riko writes lyrics?"

"Yep. And she's really good. Even won a few song contests for them."

"Wow…who would've thought?"

"Wait, so…if that Riko girl writes lyrics and the You girl makes clothes, what does that Chika girl do?" Miharu asked.

"Um…well…she did mention something about her family having a sweets shop back where she's from. Maybe she can cook?"

"You have no idea?" I asked. "And you're her friend?"

"G-Give me a break will you? Chika's a peculiar girl. It took me a while to fully understand her when we first met."

"I can understand that much." Miharu said. "To be honest, Mugi, it took me a while to understand you and the other club members. You girls were a bunch of freaks."

"You know…I often wish you would keep your opinions to yourself." I gained an exasperated sweatdrop.


It eventually slowed down around here. And with not that many requests coming in, we were able to take a break and relax for a bit. I took Honoka to my room and it was there that I showed her the notebook of what I got so far.

"Um…wow…well, at least you're trying, Mugi."

"*sigh* Just spit it out. They're awful, aren't they?"

"Well, I've seen worse. These aren't exactly "bottom of the barrel" garbage…but they could still use some work."

"Okay, like what?"

"Hmm…" Honoka went silent as she looked over the small number of lyrics that I had. "…well, I can see the melody you're trying to make. But the lines are way too long. Like this first line. If we could just condense it a little…change these similes…split these words up…and…here! Try this out!"

"Okay…" I took the notebook and read over the revised lyrics.

"Osharena anoko mane suru yori

Jibunrashisa ga ichiban desho

Hāto no kagayaki kanjita nara

Risō sagashi ni dekakeyou yo

Wow…these are better! And a lot easier to read, too!"

"It's amazing what changing a few words can do. They end up meaning the exact same thing but with a different wording. Japanese can be a mysterious language sometimes."

"Wow…you really know your stuff, Honoka."

"*confident giggle* All in a day's work for the great μ-chan. Now, let's see if we can write the rest of that song of yours. Free of charge."

"As if I was going to pay you, you dope." I said with a sweatdrop.

The next hour and a half were spent with us writing the rest of my new song. There were some rough patches…and we had to start over a few times…but it was still fun nonetheless. The two of us had a really good time together.

And at the end of it all…

"Make it! Dokidoki suru toki muteki desho

Make up! Kirakira mirai de kimari desho

Yume wa mō yume janai

Dare datte kanaerareru

PuriPara PuriParadise!

It's…It's finished! My new song is finished! Holy crap…I never thought I get this far."

"Congrats, Mugi." Honoka said to me. "Must feel great to fully write a song, doesn't it?"

"Yeah, it really does. And it's really thanks to you, Honoka. I really owe you big for this."

"D-Don't worry about it. That's what friends are for. To help you…and make you smile…and…stuff like that."

"Uh…you okay?"

"Y-Yeah…never better." I could tell from the sad look on her face that she was lying. But I wasn't sure if I should be intrusive in whatever it is that's bugging her.

It wouldn't hurt to ask, right?

"Hey…" I said as I sat closely next to her. "…if something's bugging you, I'm willing to hear you out."

"W-Would you really?"

"That's what friends are for, right?"

"Well…if you insist…" Honoka then took a deep breath before continuing on. "You see…writing songs like this brought back some memories of when I used to do it with my friends. And I don't mean Chika, You, and Riko. I'm talking about…"

"Your "friends" from Chiyoda?"

"Yeah. Them." Honoka then went silent for a bit. "You know…I did give your words back in Okinawa a lot of thought. The possibility of making up with my old friends did come up a few times. Especially recently…"

"Recently?"

"Y-You see…2 weeks ago…one of my childhood friends tried to commit suicide."

"Wh-What?! Seriously?!" I yelled in complete shock.

"Yeah…it took me by surprise, too. Knowing her, suicide was the LAST thing I thought she'd ever do. It really isn't like her…"

"Wh-What made her do it?"

"If I had to guess…that incident before summer break started really pushed her over the edge. She was already depressed about our school closing and the huge fight it caused. And then me moving to Kichijōji without even telling her probably made it worse…"

"You didn't even tell her?!" I yelled.

"W-Well…I was still mad at everyone! I didn't want to talk them and…well…I-I just left. I didn't think THIS would be the result!"

"*sigh* But even then…you should've at least left a note or something."

"O-Okay, I get it. It was a pretty cruel thing to do." Honoka said with a look of guilt in her eyes.

She really does look sad about this…

"So…um…did she really…?"

"Despite the serious wound she gave herself, she managed to survive. Her mom called and told me what happened. She's currently in the hospital recovering from it all. She's also on a suicide watch from the doctors."

"I-I see…well, at least she survived."

"Yeah, but…" Honoka went silent again. "…the fact that she's in this situation in the first place is my fault. If I haven't collapsed that day…got the school closed out of fear and fought with everyone because of that…if I wasn't such an asshole about it all, maybe Kotori would…*sniff*"

Kotori? Is that her name…

I silently watched Honoka as she began crying for nearly losing her childhood friend to suicide. I could tell that she still had some positive feelings for her. Otherwise…she wouldn't be this upset about it.

But the more I think about it…this situation is near-identical to when I blamed myself for my father's sudden death. I felt the same way back then as Honoka is feeling now. So, this was a situation I could easily relate to.

"Hey…Honoka. I totally get how you feel. But you really can't blame yourself for this. As I was told by a friend of mine…you'll only sink yourself further down into a deep depression. To the point where you'll do things you'll regret in the future."

"*sniff* B-But I already…r-regret things now. H-How's that *sniff*…a-any different?"

"Because…your friend may have survived her suicide attempt…but there's no telling if you would be that lucky."

"W-Wow…y-yeah, you do have a point." Honoka said in shock after thinking that over.

At least that got through to her…

"So, about your friend…have you considered going to visit her?"

"Actually…when her mom called me, she did invite me to come see her. I told her that I would think about it. After all…she is aware of that fight we all had."

"I see…"

"But…taking everything you said into account, Mugi…maybe I should go see her. The thoughts I've had about her recently…plus the guilt I have for letting her do this to herself…I feel like I should at least start trying to forget about my past. I mean…it worked for you, didn't it?"

"See? Now, you're starting to get it." I said as I gave Honoka a hug. "Keeping these negative feeling inside of you isn't gonna do anything but make you feel worse. To the point where the only way to see your friend is to visit the afterlife world and having your dreamy self guide you to her."

"Yeah…w-wait, what?"

"It's a long story. The point is…visiting your friend in the hospital will be the first step in moving on from your past. After that…you'll start to feel a lot better about yourself."

"R-Really?"

"It worked for me, didn't it?" I said with a smile.

"Yeah…yeah, you're right, Mugi. I should finally let this go and actually enjoy the life I got now. I might have failed to save my school from closer…but I'm a freaking J-Pop idol now! This is what every little girl dreams of at some point in their lives and I managed to accomplish it without even trying! I can't mope around like this when I have THAT going for me."

"I wholeheartedly agree. After all, I'm a J-Pop idol, too."

"*giggle* Yeah, that's true." Honoka said with the first smile she's had in a while.

*KNOCK* *KNOCK* *KNOCK*

"Come in." I said once we heard a knock at the door.

"Hey, Mugi…"

"Tamura-san…does someone need something?"

"No, no. Everyone's settled already. The rest of us are about to eat dinner and I was wondering if your friend was staying over."

"Staying over?" Honoka then looked at her phone. "H-Holy crap! It's this late already?! Trains to Kichijōji are bond to close by the time I get to the station!"

"Don't worry. You can stay here for the night. I'll even prepare a room for you free of charge."

"R-Really? Well…thank you so much, Tamura-san." Honoka said with a bow.

"For now, everyone's waiting over at our home part of the building. Come on down when you're both ready."

"Okay." We both replied before Tamura-san closed the door back and left.

"Ah, geez…looks like I'm staying here for the night." Honoka said. "Sorry for the inconvenience."

"What are you talking about? It's fine. You randomly showing up here ended up being beneficial for both of us at the end of the day."

"Oh, right. Your song. Who are you going to get to help you perform it? Your band at school?"

"Probably…they all know that I'm Melody. So, they'll probably agree to help me out."

"Well, that's good, at least. I can't wait to hear the finish product, Melody-chan."

"You'll be glad to hear it, μ-chan." I replied with a huge smile of my own.

Author's Note: Mugi writes a new song and Honoka decides to start letting go of her horrible past. Sounds like a good way to spend a Sunday, if you ask me.

You know…the more I write about Honoka's events on here, the more I just wanna write her own story already. At this point, I'll probably do it. Maybe sometime this year…

But, for now…the next chapter will be the beginning of a brand-new story arc – The School Trip Arc! Unlike the previous two, this one will be REALLY important to the story. It has a HUGE factor in how it all ends.

Thanks for reading. Later.