CHAPTER 3
Never Giving Up!
UA High School,
Musutafu, Tokyo Prefecture,
February 3
For the better part of the day Yosetsu tried to find a way to tell Chika about his detention without upsetting her, but he just couldn't find the appropriate words. All efforts, either subtle or epic, end with the same remark. Yosetsu didn't want it to end on a sour note. He knew Chika had been dreaming about this for a long time, and he wanted to be there, to see her face lit up on stage when she delivered her finest work. And he couldn't even imagine how she reacted if Aqours won the competition. He wanted to be a part of it. And he knew that she wanted him to be a part of it. A fact that now seemed farther and farther away as Love Live Finals drew closer.
When his phone rang, his heart succumbed to hell. There was no other way around it. He had to tell her, and it didn't matter how he tell her. Might as well get it over with.
"Hi sweetie!" Chika's enthusiastic voice tore a deep gash on his heart. "I've been waiting all day to call you! What's going on over there on the other side of the bay?"
"Well uh… I wish I could share some happiness with you, but…"
"Iyada ne," Chika's voice quickly turned dark. "What is going on?"
"Remember our boat trip with some Japanese Diet member? And then some madman tried to sabotage our trip? Well, we got complain from the police department about our method, not only about the violence, but also about how we got there. So now me and my friends are suspended from all… weekend… pass."
Chika didn't answer right away. Her breathing became heavier and heavier, and after almost a minute, she finally spoke with a heavy tone, "So you're not…"
"Kan-sensei put me on a detention until the end of the semester," Yosetsu said, but quickly added, "but, I am also to write an essay with Rin, Kaibara, and Tsuburaba. He didn't give us a deadline, but we think, if we could turn it in quick, and with exceptional quality, we could change his mind and let us go. We have a month to do this, and we are going to bust our butts to make it happen."
"That's not fair!" Chika said. "You help people!"
"I know, and we told Kan-sensei that everything we did was to prevent losses. But UA has a different perspective. The destruction of properties as a result of fighting and catching the villains put pressure on UA on a hot spot. The Hero program is being investigated by the government, so much that our effort to stop a terrorist attack was only regarded as 'misdemeanor'."
"Why? Why does it have to be that way?"
"I don't know, Babe. I really don't know."
"I need you here," Chika's voice was breaking. "I need you to share this with me. There is moment in your life that you really want something, and you will be eternally happy if you get it, but feels empty if you can't share it with somebody that means so much to you."
"I know, and I'm sorry that I have to put you in this situation," Yosetsu bit his lips. "But I have a month to try to turn things around. I have great friends that will share this with me. Rin, Kaibara, and Tsuburaba will fight with me. I trust them with my life. The chances may be slim, but I am not giving up. I am not giving you up. I may not be able to see you before Love Live Finals, but know that my heart and my soul is with you all the time."
"I wish there is another way," Chika said softly. "The pressure is heavy, and there are times I wish you could be here to share the load."
"I know, Babe, I know, but sometimes we can't get what we want," Yosetsu blew a deep exasperated breath. "But you can always call me anytime. I don't care if it's day or night. Call me. I'll be there for you."
"I don't want you to get into more trouble," Chika lightened up a bit. "You already have a bad reputation, especially in the eyes of Kan-sensei."
"But come to think of it, both my offenses were for you," Yosetsu tried to make fun of his situation. "I know I will never be the poster student for UA because of those, but I'm kinda glad I did them. In the future, I can tell my kids, 'Look, Daddy did this for the woman I loved'."
"Kids?" Chika interjected. "What do you mean 'Kids'?"
"Ah, nothing, I just being silly," Yosetsu quickly cut the conversation short. "So hey, enough about me. How's your day? How's the training going?"
"Hard," Chika muttered. "We're working on a new piece for the Finals. It's a complicated arrangement with complicated dance moves and complicated wardrobe. We want to win so much that we are trying to come up with something that has never done before. You know, things that can give us an edge. But like you said, we still have a month. It's not much, but we appreciate what we have, and we'll make use of every second of it."
"If you get busy, things will go fast."
"That's what I'm afraid of. I'm afraid we don't have enough."
"You will get this," Yosetsu said. "I have faith in you. You have great friends."
"They are, except when they are busy with something else," Chika giggled. "You remember Hanamaru?"
"The petite girl that eats a lot? Of course! How can she remain skinny with the amount of food she eats?"
"I know, right! Well, looks like she's getting serious with that chef student from Totsuki."
"I told you they ate more than food…"
"Yamete kudasai!" Chika started to laugh out loud. "What is it with you?"
"I miss you, Babe, and when I miss you, I think of 'stuffs'…"
"Then come to Numazu and I'll give you 'stuffs'," Chika snickered. "Oh, and Riko… remember Riko? She has a fan base now. A one-man fan base."
"Good for her…"
"No, no, listen. He's a Pro Hero student from Shiketsu. He's a big guy, much bigger than you. His name is Inasa Yoarashi. He was at the UA Cultural Festival."
"Yeah I remember seeing him," Yosetsu mused.
"He just won't stop sending goods to Riko. You should've seen her room. It is covered with flowers, chocolates, antiques, romantic books, not to mention 'hard to find', more flowers, 3 times a day, 7 days a week."
"I don't realize Yoarashi is that 'romantic'," Yosetsu chuckled. "Looks like he is really into her. And why is this not good?"
"How is she supposed to breathe? He's choking her with his 'passionate' affection."
"I think that's romantic."
"Being romantic is not the same as being dominating, Yosetsu-chan. I understand he likes her a lot, but what he does is more than what Riko can handle. She's drowning. She's desperate to get free. Maybe if he does it in moderation, she will take things into consideration. But this is too much for her, and it starts affecting her performance. Aqours can't afford to lose Riko. She is our best musician."
"Well then, just tell him to stop."
"Don't you think she hasn't tried?"
"So he's not listening, hm? So what do you want me to do?"
"I don't know, maybe just think of the best way to make him stop. You know, you're a boy. You know how to make a boy back off from a girl. Give her some space."
"Oh, I know how to spook him…"
"No, Riko won't do that. She doesn't want to lose him as a friend. She just wants him to stop sending goodies in an attempt to have a romantic relationship with him. So how do you tell him those things without sending him off?"
"Shinjirarenai, why can't you just make things simple?" Yosetsu groaned.
"Because we look far into our future, silly!" Chika replied. "We want what is good for everybody, not only now, but also for years to come."
"Alright, alright, I'll look into it," Yosetsu sniggered. "Though if I can prove that he gets all the money from illegal operations, I can make short work of the conversation."
"Riko said the same thing about Yoarashi's money," Chika giggled. "She's afraid that he gets money to buy all those stuffs illegally."
"I'll look into that too, although I'm pretty sure Yoarashi is a righteous man. He wouldn't do anything that would hurt other people."
"I hope so," Chika said with a little hint of a yawn. "Well, everything sucks right now, but we can't give up. We have to keep trying our best. It's getting late, I have an early day tomorrow. I'll catch you again tomorrow. I love you, Babe."
"I love you, Chika-chan. I can't wait to see you. I'll do everything in my power to get this essay done, and hope for some luck. I don't want to miss Love Live Finals."
"I know you don't. But if you just have to miss it," Chika drew a deep breath before continuing, "I'll dedicate it for you. Alright, good night, sweetie."
"Good night, Babe."
The line disconnected, and Yosetsu buried his face on the pillow. Both of them had problems to deal with, and without physical support from each other, things would get even harder. But there was nothing else they could do, except to keep trying their hardest. It may not end the way they wanted it, but at least they could say they gave their all.
Like Chika said: Never Giving Up!
Translation
Iyada ne: a Japanese expression of disappointment (literally 'I don't want to see it')
Yamete kudasai: please stop
Shinjirarenai: a Japanese expression of surprise
