After today's classes for up-and-coming teen idols wrapped up and Ai said her farewells to all the girls for their last session, Ai made herself comfortable in the employee lounge of the Strawberry office with an indulgent sugary drink in one hand and her phone in the other. She was in the right mood to indulge a little more than usual today, especially when the latest default picture she had set on her phone reminded Ai again of the prevailing thought she'd been having recently.

Ai's babies were growing up so fast!

The picture featured Aqua, Ruby, and Cobalt wearing their high school uniforms. Ai already had a photo of them from their first day of high school, but this picture was taken later and depicted a fully healed Aqua and Cobie, no bandages or custom nose splints in sight. In this photo, Aqua was letting a small smirk slip through, Cobie was laughing enthusiastically, and Ruby was burning bright with the most brilliant smile Ai has seen on her yet. All three siblings were crowding around a birthday cake, the candles shaping out letters and numbers congratulating them for making it to sixteen years of living their lives to the fullest.

Ai had other pictures taken during the surprise birthday party, including Ichigo and Miyako, too, but this one in particular kept on sending Ai's mind to overdrive, thinking about the recent big endeavors all of her children were taking alongside starting high school.

A rebooted B-Komachi was finally going to make its comeback for a new generation! Ruby put in the work and was finally beginning to truly realize her dreams! And with a sorta childhood friend who was an exemplary star and performer in her own right. Although Ai only barely remembered Kana Arima from their brief time acting in Gotanda's movie so long ago, Ai was confident she and Ruby would work well together. They both had a hunger to become superstars, and the talent to back it up. Even if their motivations and the type of love they ultimately wanted were different, Ai expected to see B-Komachi dominating the industry this time next year. It was no wonder Ruby's smile was outshining even Cobie's at this point.

Speaking of Cobie, he had gone through another epiphany and was returning to the dating scene. As expected, his decision to do so by way of a reality dating show, starring alongside Aqua, was a curveball no one had seen coming. Regardless, when Cobie first told Ai the news, she had seen how committed he was, fully prepared to throw himself back into the ringer with all the lessons he's already learned from his days as the Blue Rose. He was happy to have found the courage to be able to seek out true love and go through all the struggles and loss that may come with the journey once more. Older, smarter, and slightly more mature now, Cobalt wouldn't have to try hard to catch the interest of any teen celebrity on the dating show, and Ai was eager to meet the lucky gal who can become Cobie's first real girlfriend.

And on the topic of maturity, Aqua was also delving into a legitimate romance for the first time, too. He was actually going out of his way to seek out, spend time with, and get to personally know a girl his age. To actually court a girl instead of holding up a facade of a romantic air. Sure, Aqua can justify it all he wants with practical business reasons and wanting to cultivate a good senpai/co-worker for his younger siblings, but Ai could see how her eldest was carrying himself differently over the past few months following his shoot for Sweet Today.

It wasn't the reality dating show Ai thought about when it came to pondering Aqua's future. Everyone in the family already knew he was always going to do a character, not his real self, for a job like that.

No, Ai was already imagining Kana Arima as part of the Hoshino family in more ways than simply Ruby's co-idol.

Ai could be wrong. She had backed girls for Cobie in the Blue Rose days who turned out to be dead ends, but Aqua was far more predictable than Cobie. And though Kana and Ai have yet to have a full one-on-one conversation yet since her induction into Strawberry Productions, the impressions Ai had gotten was of a smart girl who could give Aqua a run for his money.

Yes, Ai's babies were growing up, passionately moving forward, working diligently to make their dreams come true.

Her love for her kids was downright euphoric the more Ai imagined the very real heights of fame, stardom, and personal happiness they'll be getting within the next few years. It may not be quite the portrait of a conventional family which a teenage Ai had first dreamt of back when she originally had her pregnancy, but the adult Ai now cherished every minute of the family she did have.

Oh, she still had to reschedule future idol classes for the people who've already paid upfront for them, given how Ai had to commit far more time now in personally managing and mentoring Ruby's B-Komachi… but just thinking of B-Komachi again made Ai go back to squealing at the fantasies in her head of her glorious girl at Tokyo Dome just like her mother! Cobie and Aqua could do the synchronized cheer instead of the infant Aqua and Ruby this time around. Ai could see Cobie animating promotional pieces for the concert in its leadup, working on equal footing with Ruby and letting their creative spirits run wild. Meanwhile, naughty Aqua cleverly slips away to steal a few precious moments with, after Ai and Ruby, his third favorite idol in Kana…

"Hey there, Ai."

Broken out of her reverie, Ai blinked and looked behind her.

Ah, it was Rin Nanakura, one of the cuter actresses employed by Strawberry Productions. Her smooth dark, almost bluish hair normally formed a curve which Ai's eyes instinctively followed until she came around and was hit by a shining countenance that even Yura Katayose has confessed to being occasionally flustered by.

Now, however, Rin was uncharacteristically frowning.

"Do you have a minute?" she asked hesitantly. "There's something I really need to talk to you about."

In another world, Rin could have become a Hoshino by way of her little sister staying on as Cobie's girlfriend. Even though that Blue Rose romance had only lasted about five to six hours, Rin still remained a valued member of the company for years before and after. A hard worker and kind person, she was the right type of talent to elevate Strawberry's pedigree and be a good influence on Ai's kids whenever they ran into each other at the office. Rin had been one of the people whom Ai was able to personally gauge their potential and poach from their old agency into Strawberry, after all.

Whatever was making the sweet girl frown like this must be something fairly serious.

Relaxed on a couch, Ai firmly patted the cushion beside her. "You can always come to me with anything, Rin-chan," Ai reassured.

Still tense, Rin sat down, her hands clasped tightly as she folded them over her lap. "It wasn't too long ago," she began, "so you must remember the day when Cobalt and Aqua showed up at the office with those boxing injuries?"

Well, this was strange. Mostly everyone in Strawberry who wasn't family called Cobie by his preferred name Orel. Rin was one of them. Using his real name spoke volumes of the importance Rin believed what she wanted to discuss had.

"Of course," Ai said aloud. She had almost walked off the set of the movie she was shooting that day when Ruby texted her the news of the boys shouldering wounds from an impromptu boxing match. The follow-up texts Ichigo had sent her, plus the phone conversations she had exchanged with Cobie and Aqua, had convinced her not to.

"… I don't think they got those injuries from boxing an old middle school bully," Rin said.

Rin was no frivolous liar, nor was she one to make horribly off-base judgments, so her sudden claim was… worrying.

Ai made sure she kept the expression on her face level as she asked, "What do you mean?"

"I'm… I'm pretty sure Aqua and Cobalt fought each other in one of the rehearsal rooms here, and Ichigo didn't want you to know about it."

Ichigo lying about and hiding from Ai a fight that supposedly took place between her boys?

"I was at the office," Rin said quickly, probably unnerved by Ai's lack of immediate response, "waiting for Eiji to drive back from Pieyon's latest shoot so we could head home together."

Eiji Kitahama, Rin's husband and also a non-talent employee of Strawberry Productions. They were high school sweethearts, and a useful live example for Ai to gauge what a conventional, wholly successful romance looked like.

"I was walking down the hall when Cobalt barreled past me," Rin went on. "I didn't know he and Aqua were also there. I only saw Aqua later. Cobalt was… He was crying, his neck was bruised, and he was covering a bloody nose."

Ai had lucked out in having only seen Cobie bandaged after the fact. The last time she had seen Cobie shed tears was when she comforted him after his first break-up. Although Rin wasn't a mother, she had enough empathy to know how seeing Cobie cry was a disturbing, tragic sight.

"I didn't know anything about him boxing at the time. He didn't say anything to me at first. Cobalt just locked himself in one of the restrooms. Ichigo was at the office, too, so he tried to coax him out. When Cobalt finally opened the door… he wasn't crying anymore, was back to smiling."

Not an instant flip in reaction from Cobie, if there was a big gap in time between him entering the restroom and leaving it, but Rin's story still stirred memories in Ai of the day when she first confessed her love for her children. "And the bruise didn't even bother him," Ai muttered under her breath.

"He never actually showed much discomfort after coming out, no, so his mood was definitely improved. I helped look Cobalt over with a first aid kit anyway, while Ichigo took one to check on Aqua. Cobalt said something about 'practicing acting' with Aqua, and I almost believed him because… well, he's Cobie, and he genuinely sounded like his normal self at that point." If possible, Rin started to look even more uncomfortable, shifting away from Ai's unyielding stare every now and again. "But his injuries were real. He was still sniffling and wiping excess tears from when he was crying only a few minutes ago. Seeing Aqua walk into the room with his own bruises was telling enough."

Physical injuries… They never caused Cobie to cry. Not directly, not beyond the initial acknowledgment of pain. There was no precedent for it. What precedent does exist was for emotional pain… and according to Rin's story, Aqua was the cause of Cobie's tears this time.

But Cobie – right in front of her, face-to-face, without a shadow of doubt in his words – expressly told Ai that he and Aqua received their cuts and bruises from a boxing match with his favorite frenemy.

Speaking up, Ai asked, "You didn't see the Sakamoto kid anywhere?"

Rin shrugged helplessly. "I didn't get a chance to look if he was somewhere else in the building, so I can't say if he was in the office or nearby outside. It didn't sound like he was, though. After Aqua walked in, Cobalt threw himself at him – not throwing more punches or anything! Just one of Cobie's usual hugs, and he was apologizing to Aqua about the 'practicing acting' stuff I still don't understand. I didn't hear much or learn anything else before Ichigo forced me out of the office." Rin bit her lip. "Ichigo… insisted I don't bring up what I just saw with you or Miyako."

The past month's company financials Ai had reviewed to give Miyako a helping hand sprung up in her head. "So that's why you and Eiji both got that recent bonus," Ai observed, recalling the internal drama between Strawberry talents and talent managers which she had to use her charms to resolve before it got out of hand.

Bribery, whether directly with money or some other bargaining chip, was nothing new for Ichigo, but using it to cover-up details of a possible tragedy between her sons?

"You took the money anyway," Ai noted, "so why are you coming to me about this now? What makes you think Aqua and Cobie fought each other and not Sakamoto?"

Rin's face grew more heated in guilt and embarrassment as she explained. "My little sister, Aya. She goes to the same high school as Joe Sakamoto. I only learned yesterday from her that Sakamoto apparently wasn't even in Tokyo when he supposedly boxed your boys. He was visiting relatives out of town for a couple weeks. The dates for his trip and for when Sakamoto was supposed to have fought Cobie and Aqua don't make sense, so the only other logical explanation I can think of would be…"

Whatever "acting" Aqua and Cobalt had practiced at the office, it ended with Cobie brutalized on the inside and out. Cobalt was able to bounce back anyway, and was willing to hide the event from his mother and everyone else, with Aqua and Ichigo helping maintain the lie.

Cobie wasn't a good conscious liar, and Ai couldn't imagine Ichigo convincing both him and Aqua to entertain a long-winded lie, so it would have to be Aqua who masterminded the whole thing. Because, no offense to Ichigo, Cobie trusted and relied on Aqua a lot more than their grandpa.

It was like a nightmare Ai could never have dreamt of. Cobie intentionally lying about how he got those injuries, hiding how it was Aqua who made him cry, still wearing the same optimistic smile even when telling the tall tale to Ai herself…

If Cobie was so quick to shift from crying to smiling, then the logic he twisted in his head to excuse fighting Aqua must have been really stupid.

Stupidly loving his family, no matter the mistakes they make or the pain they might cause him… This was broadly almost the sort of thing Ai had wanted to avoid happening with Aqua and Ruby interfering in Cobie's love life. She never thought it would've escalated without warning to violence, if this whole thing was Blue Rose adjacent.

"I can return the money from the bonus," Rin said hurriedly, again breaking Ai out of her own thoughts. "I'm not sure if… legally, it would be good or bad or not, but what matters is that you know what happened to your boys. So you can make sure both Cobalt and Aqua are safe, to be around each other and around Ichigo."

No, Ichigo would never have forced his grandsons into a brawl.

Her Aqua was a thinker, and a manipulator. There was no denying that. He always used his skills for the betterment of his family, never at a detrimental cost to his family… until now, allegedly…

This had to be related to Cobie going on a dating show with Aqua. Maybe Ai's clever son bit off more than he can chew when trying to convince Cobie to join… because there would never be any reasonable cause for Aqua to hurt his little brother, ever. So there had to be some miscommunication, a misunderstanding so gigantic that Aqua would've done his darndest to rectify. Even if it meant hiding harsh truths from his family.

Rin was still babbling nervously, so Ai dove in for a hug, giving thanks to the good person who found it in her to tell the truth. To risk her own position in Strawberry to warn Ai of the possible dangers her sons had gotten themselves in. If Rin felt she couldn't stay in Strawberry Productions, Ai promised to her she would make sure her and Eiji would stay afloat. With a great severance package, referrals to other agencies, even the one Japan's current favorite star Yura Katayose was working at – whatever they needed, assistance personally paid by Ai for Rin bringing this situation to her attention.

When Ai pulled back, Rin was blushing like a tomato, so flattered by Ai's kindness. Finding her voice, Rin even expressed worry about Ai's safety around Ichigo. If he hid Aqua's and Cobie's fight from her, then what else could he be keeping hidden?

The sharp talent manager experience between Ichigo and Miyako was nothing to scoff at, but they still needed to use money as the closer on some contracts. Though it was also a tool Ai has found her uses for, all she really needed was to look her best and let a few choice words leave her mouth to get people singing her tune.

A couple of confident assurances and compliments made Rin diligently nod her head, agreeing that Ai could handle whatever Ichigo could threw at her.

She can imagine Ichigo as the villain as much as she likes. As long as Rin believed Cobie wasn't at fault in any way. And that his safety was one hundred percent guaranteed under Ai's watch.

Once Rin was off to talk things over with Eiji, Ai pondered more on the story she told.

Ichigo lying and hiding things, that was perfectly plausible.

Aqua doing the same, even doing so toward his own mother, Ai could also come to believe it.

Cobalt doing it, and successfully, to Ai herself, the person he loves the most in his life… To risk hurting Ai with lies…

He knows what lying is, so he must believe that lying to Ai was worth the risk if it meant, by the end of whatever wacky quest he was on now, he and everyone else would ultimately be happy. Just like how Ai had lied for so long until affirming her own true love.

Did Cobie even really want to find a girlfriend? Was it about finding romantic love again like he had told Ai? Or was LoveNow his warped way of making amends with Aqua? To appease his obligations to, in Cobie's eyes, his genius, perfect, amazing older brother who could do no wrong?

It was worth it still being around Aqua, and forgiving him after whatever psychotic episode Ai's eldest experienced that had evidently forced him to assault his little brother.

God, should Ai have hired on Cobalt's therapists and doctors for Aqua, too? Or scrounged up the money for more experts to examine and appraise Aqua's behavior and thinking patterns? There was no sense in Aqua punching Cobie in the face or the neck. 'Practicing acting,' Rin had said… Aqua pulling Cobie into a choreography lesson on a fight scene or some other stunt hardly made much sense either.

A ping from Ai's phone brought her back to reality. It was a reminder for an upcoming appointment. She looked at the current time and realized she had been lost in thought since Rin's departure for a long time.

That was no good. Ai just learned of a potential crisis plaguing her family. She needed to fix it ASAP, not flounder and let her thoughts wander uselessly without resolution. Unlike the wishy-washy Rin, or even the old teen Ai, she couldn't hesitate and let problems fester without being more proactive in making things right.

Coming to a decision, Ai nodded to herself and swiped through her contacts on her cell.

She needed to make a few calls…

Standing before the door to the classroom, Aqua took the momentary pause to look at Cobalt beside him again. His brother's chosen attire was thankfully not a carbon copy of Aqua's own outfit. He understood this job playing on them being identical brothers wasn't contingent on the two totally resembling each other, unlike past projects they were in requiring twins. Thus, Cobalt wore an unbuttoned navy blue blazer and whitish gray slacks. Their similarities in clothing ended with their white collared shirts, as Aqua chose to don stock khaki pants and a black sweater covering the lower half of his light blue uniform tie.

Cobalt had still been convinced to style his hair exactly like Aqua's, so while Cobalt sported his natural smile and wide eyes, Aqua adopted a more subdued, cool persona with half-lidded eyes. Aqua had never planned on portraying his real self on-camera for this show, but this restrained character he chose to play shared enough surface-level similarities to make these weekends progress more smoothly without him having to put in a large effort in pretending.

It helped that Cobalt was right next to him at this moment. His face now was devoid of any of Ryosuke's anger or Cobalt's own horror at his mimicry of the stalker. Ai's true son was as happy as can be, which in turn made Aqua happy.

As the director through the classroom window motioned at the brothers to make their entrance, Aqua nudged Cobalt and held back as the bundle of energy confidently slid the door open.

"Hi, everyone!" Cobalt greeted, his vision set squarely on their teen cast members and not at all letting his gaze drift to the cameras being operated in the other half of the room. He was no longer overly self-conscious of cameras being on him, having progressed as a performer over the years to overcome that weakness. "My name is Cobalt Hoshino! But you can call me Orel! I'm a YouTuber, and an actor, too! Mostly a YouTuber, though, doing stop-motion animation stuff. I'm looking forward to learning all about you guys!"

They had all already met and traded introductions prior to today's shoot. This filmed intro was for the benefit of LoveNow's audience, the barest of scripting and direction necessary to facilitate an authentic atmosphere to the show's audience, but Aqua could see the charm inherited from Ai already having an effect. Seated around a compact table, the female cast members turned their bodies fully to get a clearer look at Cobie. The boys beside them straightened their backs as they eyed their contemporary radiating an energy which they couldn't dare look away from. The crew members were also drawn away from whatever piece of equipment they were charged with to sneak more glances at Cobalt with their own eyes.

Ruby had insisted Cobalt merely be himself for this show. It had been Aqua who nudged him toward intentionally channeling more of his attention-grabbing showmanship when the cameras were on him. It should encourage the audience at home to take Cobie's inevitable moments of stupidity and misunderstanding as more adorable than annoying, in the same way Ai had used her star power to paint her ditzy and absent-minded mannerisms during her idol days as part of the complete package of cuteness.

Unlike his energetic brother, Aqua more patiently strolled inside, hands resting in his pockets before he gave a short wave. Based on the positioning of the cameras, most of their angles should be presenting his lips as a little crooked, almost smirking, thus effectively conveying his amusement at Cobalt making such a scene for his intro.

"I'm Aquamarine Hoshino," Aqua greeted before giving a serene bow. "Aqua for short. My brother and I recently entered our first year of high school. I'm an actor, as well, though in contrast to my brother, the most YouTube work I've done have been mere cameos in Cobie's videos." As Aqua straightened his back, he shone his own measured smile, prepped for perfection. A touch of arrogance to subtly cultivate a sense of superiority over the other boys as an informal challenge, and a mysterious edge to enamor the girls with a hint of something more beyond Aqua's front of civility.

As more pleasantries were traded and the brothers took their seats at the table, Aqua once again looked closely at the young ensemble of budding entertainment stars Masaya Kaburagi had recruited for this reality dating show.

Yuki Sumi, a first-year high schooler who's been building up her name as a young female model. Fashion models in general weren't a field Aqua actively followed after eliminating all the male models in his suspect list for the identity of his father, but Aqua did vaguely recall Sumi's name getting crossed off by Ruby during her scouting of potential idol recruits. Not enough known dancing or singing skills was the likely cause for axing her.

Nobuyuki Kumano, a dancer with a handsome mug. To be honest, Aqua could have easily seen him as one of the more prominent participants on the male idol scene with his brand of easygoing charm. Cobalt had once tried to court a male idol his age during the Blue Rose days, before Cobie confirmed he wanted to experience a true romance with a girl instead.

Akane Kurokawa, a thespian who Aqua has heard of allegedly hosting her own repertoire of acting talent, though she's been mostly confined to roles in live theater, so Aqua has personally seen little of her work.

Mem-Cho, a streamer and YouTuber primarily showcasing her on-screen personality winning people over no matter the games or activities she partook in. Not an online star who any affiliates under Strawberry Productions have worked with, but in any case, still a successful and growing online personality.

Kengo Morimoto, a pretty boy musician who actually didn't have a whole lot of presence on the screen or in-person amid this cornucopia of colorful characters. He was nice enough, at least, and Aqua found a sliver of common ground with him on their shared interest in behind-the-scenes work, as a good portion of Morimoto's income came from his songwriting for his own band and other clients.

Aqua had decided to assist Cobalt in his quest to find a girlfriend as a means of atonement for the disaster that was their acting exercise, so he had already started gauging his little brother's prospective partners. Kumano and Morimoto were already out, though a friendship could easily blossom with Kumano.

Mem-Cho being a YouTuber gave her an advantage in having immediate relatability for Cobie. With that said, something about her was… off. Behind the affable persona she wore, she was hiding something significant about herself from them, Aqua was sure. Granted, she could merely be a very private person, as indicated by her preference to only be referred to by her online handle rather than her real name, but Mem-Cho would require more investigation as the show progressed before Aqua could consider giving his approval. Besides, chances were that Miyako's and Ichigo's lectures to Cobalt on keeping things professional when working with other YouTubers would dissuade him from courting Mem-Cho.

Which left Sumi and Kurokawa ahead in the running. Given how shy and withdrawn Kurokawa had been during their first meetings, and in this current filming session now, Aqua suspected the clearly more social Sumi would better attract Cobie's interest.

"How do you release claymation videos so consistently?" asked Sumi with what Aqua could tell was genuine curiosity on a peer's passions. "It's mostly just you animating, editing, and voice acting, right?"

"I have a great work schedule!" Cobie said with pride. "It's also really fun, so it never feels like work to me!"

Kumano hummed thoughtfully. "I can see it. Dance choreography gets exhausting, but hitting the right steps with your heart pounding along to a killer track feels great. I bet it's the same with animation, except it's getting all your clay figures looking and moving just right!"

Normally, Cobalt would bounce between conversations with everyone at present who showed an interest in his work. The romantically-minded Cobalt today only gave a quick nod of approval at Kumano before shifting to Sumi again. "Do you feel a similar rush in your modeling work, Yuki?"

Unbothered by the casual use of her first name, Sumi happily answered. Kumano didn't catch on to or didn't care about mostly being ignored by Cobie. Aqua could see Kumano be drawn into Sumi's eyes as she spoke.

From Aqua's recollection, the Blue Rose faced relatively few love rivals when courting girls, the love triangles episodes notwithstanding. Competition would inevitably come up in a show like LoveNow, but Cobalt was always up for a challenge. Consciously learning how to make himself a more desirable partner than Kumano, Morimoto, and his big brother Aqua to the girls should be both an exhilarating and educational experience for Cobalt.

Talk soon drifted toward Aqua. "Do you still do much on the production side of Orel's YouTube stuff?" asked Mem-Cho. "I remember you and your sister used to show up a lot in the behind-the-scenes videos."

"We've both gotten busy with our own projects, leaving little time to spare for us to pitch in for Elemental Orel," Aqua divulged honestly. He considered name-dropping B-Komachi before thinking it better for Ruby to announce the group's revival on her own terms. "I've been considering taking a break from acting and production work anyway to focus on my studies."

Kumano snickered in good spirits. "The supervillain streak you've been on for TV not doing it for ya?"

Aqua put on a playful smirk toward him. "Well, if my recent luck means anything, I'll probably end up the big bad for this show, too."

Cobalt gave Aqua a reassuring pat on the shoulder, his quest for love momentarily paused to give consideration for his brother. "Don't worry, Aqua. If you do end up becoming framed as a villain, then we can just have you go through a redemption arc before the show ends! Then people will want to see you play the hero in stuff in the future!"

Mem-Cho gave her own small laugh. "You could always do the best of both worlds and play an anti-hero!" Her smile became more flirty as she leaned closer toward Aqua with a cute pose that wouldn't have been out of place for, say, Ai to do. It was a practiced performer putting on a show, done so effortlessly that it very well could have been a natural motion, but Aqua's keen eye recognized the tells. "I bet playing a bad boy comes naturally for you, but you're a big softie at heart, being here supporting your little bro. Making sure no vixens catch their claws on the Blue Rose, right?"

Ah, yes. As a handsome star in his own right, Aqua has been the subject of gossip about his own love life. Even throughout middle school, kids his age speculated if he had a secret girlfriend or harbored jealousy toward the Cobalt's more expansive list of romantic partners. The gossip only escalated and grew wider after the Blue Rose's identity as Cobalt Hoshino was revealed to the world. Deciding to roll with a little cheese, Aqua said, "I wouldn't be opposed to any vixens like yourself latching their fangs on me."

An uncontrollable snort was Mem-Cho's response. "Man, actors can say anything with a straight face and still look cool, huh?"

Before Aqua could give a follow-up, Cobalt reiterated, "I'm not the Blue Rose anymore."

An overly dramatic sigh was breathed out by Kumano. "And here I thought I'd get a blessing from the man himself on this show."

A teasing Sumi said, "You'll have to rely on your own merits to stand out instead of riding off of Orel's coattails."

It was only a small thing, calling Cobalt by his internet handle, but it was already making Cobie smile more brightly at Sumi.

Since Kurokawa and Morimoto weren't speaking as much, Aqua diverted the conversation toward them. He still needed to gauge their personalities and interests.

Playing Cupid for Cobie wasn't too far off from Aqua's typical maneuvers when navigating around individuals in the entertainment industry, judging their respective characters, and manipulating them to suit his needs. He only needed to pay half as much attention than usual since the stakes were far lower in this environment, and the point of Aqua's support was to compliment Cobalt's own efforts in finding love, not completely overriding his autonomy.

With the cast absorbed in speaking with each other, only Aqua noticed Masaya Kaburagi silently enter the classroom from the side with the production crew. Kaburagi silently made his way to the director and whispered in his ear. The LoveNow director gave a toothy grin and a nod before calling for everyone's attention, cast and crew alike.

"Our number eight's here," he said. "Keep the conversation going. She'll walk in and introduce herself like we did with the Hoshino bros earlier."

So she was finally here, the final member of the LoveNow cast.

After all, the boys outnumbered the current roster of girls. A love triangle of two boys pining over one girl would have been forced by necessity under these conditions. To better stage such a storyline as a natural development, the fairer sex on LoveNow needed at least one more in their ranks. Whoever it was, she must be fairly high-profile to warrant this much leeway in being introduced late without even having met her castmates yet.

Before long, into the classroom strolled a young woman dressed in casual black clothes, distinctively out of place compared to the high school uniform aesthetic the rest of them strived for. She also wore piercings on both her ears, uncovered by her short black hair.

"Sorry for being so late," she said in a voice Aqua was sure he'd heard before. "Traffic was hell." The girl snuck a sidelong leer at Kaburagi, who was nonplussed and merely shrugged. "Anyway, nice to meet you all. A lot of folks know me as Crown Nightshade, but you can call me Sachi Kamiya."

Before she even finished speaking, a string of gasps was uttered around Aqua.

Sachi Kamiya… Possibly related to Miyako's lover Ryo Kamiya?

Though the more recognizable name was of course the Crown Nightshade moniker. Her voice all but confirmed her identity, as well.

Crown Nightshade, a faceless musician who has had her share of popularity online in recent years. She had been the occasional guest host of a popular radio show she had already been working part-time on before beginning her own independent podcast, sharing her platform with other independents. Though Nightshade has since worked with more mainstream names and organizations, her attitude and content still carried her proud qualities of humorous sarcasm and an outspoken voice which didn't mistake the differences between common courtesy and overbearing political correctness. She always spoke her mind, whether through her music or thought-provoking podcast conversations.

Aqua recalled Shin once lamenting his inability to secure Crown Nightshade for one of his YouTube collaborations. Like Shin and Cobalt, Nightshade had also developed a significant following outside of Japan. It was primarily thanks to her music breaking the language barrier and subtitled animations of podcast sound bites spreading online.

With the exception of the Hoshino family name, Crown Nightshade was probably the biggest star to be placed in LoveNow. Her fashionably late arrival may be due to Kaburagi playing what cards he had left to finally convince the normally indie-oriented entertainer to join this show.

While Aqua suppressed any outward reaction on his face, the rest of the cast seemed to be fans, excited to learn that the lady herself was on the show with them. Even Cobalt was–

"Is that really you, Sachi?"

Cobalt's voice was… fragile, as he asked the question.

Kamiya smiled warmly. "Long time, no see, shorty. How've you been?"

Cobalt was already acquainted with Nightshade? And knew her real name?

Before Aqua could blink, Cobalt was hopping out of his chair and tackling Kamiya in a hug.

Kamiya wasn't knocked over, instead standing her ground. To Aqua's surprise, Kamiya returned the embrace.

"Guess things with Chiyo didn't work out if you're here," Kamiya said gently, patting Cobie's back. "Hope you're doing better these days."

"I really am! It's even better now that I get to meet you again after all this time!"

The rest of the cast was staring wordlessly. Aqua cleared his throat. "Looks like you've been holding out on Strawberry Productions," he said whilst still in-character, "if you knew Crown Nightshade and never bothered to tell any of us."

His arms still wrapped around the taller girl, Cobalt looked over his shoulder and said, "Sachi's part of the reason why my first girlfriend broke up with me! And why I became the Blue Rose in the first place!"

Well… Aqua simply didn't know how to react to that information.

Sumi, Kumano, and Mem-Cho gasped again before shooting out questions left and right. Aqua foresaw a new wave of comments and posts online on the latest revelation regarding the Blue Rose's origins. Even a couple years after Cobalt's reveal as the mythical figure, the stories and speculation lived on.

Aqua forced a seamless laugh to match the others' amused cackles at Kamiya carrying the clingy Cobie bridal style. She plopped him back down on his chair and ruffled his hair.

Oh, Ruby was going to either love Kamiya or hate her for acting so close to Cobalt right at the start of this show.

Aqua needed to learn more about her before making his own judgments…

Was a struggle and a half trying to finish this chapter.

To come in the future: a look into Kana's leap of faith into the idol industry with Ruby, LoveNow's cast trying to find their footing between each other, and more!