"Ai, it's me! Open up!"

Oh. That was the prez. She blearily opened her eyes and winced at the light coming through her windows. Was it afternoon already…?

"Oh, and that asshole cameraman is still refusing to reimburse us. Even if it's obvious he got half of B-Komachi sick for days-"

The pounding on the door grew worse, and prez just. Wouldn't. Stop. Talking.

"Coming!" she called out.

She could hear him even better through the door as she approached. "Hey, you sound better as well! Takamine's feeling great, and Meimei's already asking when we could start performing again."

She opened the door. Prez stood there, medical mask in place – and he immediately lifted up two plastic bags.

"There you are! Anyways, I got some porridge for you."

She carefully sniffed the air – and sighed in relief. At the very least, the light scent of porridge didn't trigger her nausea. She'd had a nasty surprise when she'd tried to eat her hamburger yesterday – and she'd thought she was one of the lucky few who got to completely skip the morning sickness.

Oh, right. This was something the president should know about. He ought to know, right? There had been something in the contracts about it, but she'd just completely skipped over the section.

"I'm pregnant," she greeted him. After a moment, she brought up her phone and began navigating through it.

"…what?" After a moment, he laughed. "Ai, you must be feeling better if you're making jokes like that-"

She found the picture she was looking for and held her phone out.

He glanced at the image on her phone – she'd taken it in so that the two lines were clearly visible, right next to the signs indicating that yes, two lines did indicate a positive. Then he paled, and looked straight at her midsection – still nothing to show for it, though. And finally, he slowly looked back up to meet her eyes.

"…really?"

"Yep. Still got the test in my room."

A moment later, prez dropped like a stone, taking down the porridge with him.

Ai sighed. "You're cleaning up the mess, president."

-o-

"-hey, hey! Ai, are you still with me?"

Ai snapped out of her drowsiness at the president's slightly raised voice. The slightly tinny quality of her old phone did nothing to mask the suspicion in his tone. "Yes, yes, I'm listening! Honestly, prez, you worry too much."

Turns out, lying on her bed after eating warm porridge combined with prez's droning voice did make her a bit sleepy even if it was the morning. That wasn't something he had to know, though.

"So, you're really okay with it, right?"

Oh, right. That's what they were talking about.

"Yes, yes. I really am," she answered. "In fact, I'll say it exactly how it is, president, so you don't worry about it anymore!"

She cleared her throat, and said, "Ai Hoshino is happy that Nino Fuyuko is taking the center position."

President liked it when she stated things clearly and neatly, after all. She pouted through the call, knowing it would make her sound that much more annoyed. "Jeez, we went over this so many times already. Just send Nino my congratulations and well wishes, already!"

It was the most practiced lies that came out the easiest.

She leaned back on her pillows, letting her mind drift again as the president kept reassuring her that it was temporary, she was still B-Komachi's center, and it was because they couldn't afford to be inactive for an entire year.

On paper, it was the safe, smart choice. Nino was one of their founding members. Her following was second only to her, and both her dancing and vocals were great. She took care of her appearance, she always gave it her all during practice, she diligently maintained her online presence, and she genuinely liked being an idol.

But as for the girl herself…

I hate you so much. Just go to hell!

Well, wasn't it because she kept quiet about their fight that B-Komachi had someone to fill in their center right now? Maybe Nino would be happy, now that she got to perform without the person who had taken everything from her? If Ai had talked with the president about it, he would have kicked Nino off of B-Komachi – just like that girl who had made the mistake of being too obvious with her hate.

Wouldn't saying the truth prevent them all from being happy?

Ai smiled. Right now, she was glad that she was alone in her room. She would have been an ugly thing to look at.

However, there was something else that also nagged her. She waited until the prez finished his sentence, before asking, "Hey, prez. Did you say that to Nino like that? That she's only filling in the position while I'm out?"

A pause, then some nervous laughter. "It was more implied, really. I mean, you're coming back, right?"

"You really are hopeless," she sighed. She still hoped for… she didn't even know what anymore. Becoming friends seemed like a distant dream. Just something a little less fake among the members, maybe. Something a little less suffocating. "Please be more considerate of our feelings."

"Hey, I really did try to be considerate!" he protested. "Wouldn't it be even crueler if I promised her the position without saying anything, then drop her the moment you come back? I did say she could keep the position if she manages to outshine you – but we both know that isn't going to happen."

"Wow, president. Such faith in our members. Very cool. I'm impressed."

"Yeah, yeah, snark all you want – but it's the truth. Nino's good, but you're one of a kind, Ai."

Ai paused. The truth, huh. President really did know her well.

"Oh yeah. Congratulations on your marriage, prez."

"…what?" She could almost imagine him squinting at her through his sunglasses. "That was last year, why are you bringing that up now?"

To change the subject, obviously.

"I didn't think it was real, though?" she confessed, trying to recall what his wife had looked like. "She was really young and beautiful. I don't think she would've been too impressed with your job or how you treat us. She's the one who told you to break it more softly to Nino, right?"

Prez spluttered. "I- you- yeah, but no! Sure, Miyako might have been shaking her head, but it was still me that backtracked!"

She hummed, slightly amused. "Though, I guess prez can be cool when you're being passionate about your dream. Did you share it with her? The… Egg?"

"It's the Dome, you shitty idol!" She let the phone drift away from her head as the president raged. "Tokyo Dome! Everyone in Japan uses it to measure everything and anything bigger than it!"

"Ooh, that dome. Right. Well, please keep working hard toward your dreams, president. Thank you for your hard work."

"Please don't sound like you're doing your graduation speech," he sighed. There was another pause with some shuffling, before the prez asked in a lower voice, "Are the twins doing alright?"

Her smile became even more relaxed at that. "Yep! Actually, just yesterday I think I felt them move around! Their fluttering really does feel like butterflies."

"That's good, that's good. And you? You're getting enough sleep, probably – but are you eating enough? Are the meals in the hospital suitable? And nobody recognized you, right?"

"Yes, yes- oh! You remember the doctor looking after me?"

"Umm… Dr. Amamiya, I think. Why?"

"Yeah, my doctor," she pouted. How come prez never screwed up with names? "Anyways, he turns out to be a B-Komachi fan! Isn't that great?"

There was the dull thud of a hand meeting head. "Shit… I thought nobody over there would know about you."

She grinned. "I know, right? There's just no stopping my charm, not even from the countryside."

"…right, I'll draft up an NDA for the doctor to sign, and if he does anything, anything at all-"

"No," she winced. Interrupting was bad, but so was what the president was implying. "I mean, there's really no need for contracts, is there?"

"…Ai. What are you saying? It's safer to have the law back us up for everything, you know that. I'm pretty sure hospitals are used to having sensitive patients, so it's completely normal."

"I trust Dr. Amamiya. He might be a fan, but he's been really professional about it," she argued. His promise to her was something she wanted to keep for herself, but there was plenty she could say about him. "He left us to really think it through, remember? 'A decision only I could make' – someone obsessed with me as an idol wouldn't have said that."

"…fine, but I'm having a talk with him. You got his phone number, right? Send it over."

"Nope," Ai decided. She wouldn't let the doctor be bullied around by her president. It was clear that the doctor was too much of a moralist, and prez was surprisingly good at convincing people. That was his job, after all. "If you want to ask him anything, I'll ask him for you."

"For heaven's sake-"

-o-

His phone let out a short tune, and Gorou stiffened immediately. The four notes, reminiscent of the beginning notes of 'Our Sign is B,' could mean only one thing. Ai had actually sent him a message.

A personal message. From Ai.

While he did spend ages finding the tune that was just right, he'd never expected to actually hear it.

He was going to mark the day on his calendar. Maybe he'd print off a copy of whatever the message was and frame it – oh, but that would be risky, wouldn't it? The less people knew how he was involved with Ai, the better.

Maybe if it didn't contain any sensitive information?

He looked at his phone's lock screen, doubled over at the first few words, and opened it so he could have the full message.

Doctor, how much of a bribe would it take for you to not leak everything to the news? Asking for the president!

…yeah, he'd be better off not framing it.

He quickly typed out a standard reply – this wasn't the first time a patient reached out to him about something they wished to keep private – but before he sent it, he hesitated. And added a bit more.

As a doctor, I am required by law to keep my patient's health information confidential. But please rest assured that I recognize the sensitivity of the matter, and will do everything within my power to keep this private.

There. Something a bit more personal, where he'd sound less like reading off a script.

The fake first name they were using for Ai – Emi, if he remembered correctly – was already in their official documents. As he was the one who signed it off, the responsibility would already fall on him. But even without that, even without anything tying his fate to the same boat as hers – Ai Hoshino's secrets were one he was willing to take to his grave.

Kay thanks doctor! See you later!

The door to his office sprang open. "Mrs. Taira coming in five, doctor – what are you doing?"

Gorou froze. He was hugging his phone to his chest, overwhelmed by the cute bunny emoji she'd sent. He said the first thing that came to mind. "…just stretching, why?"

Nurse Chatty narrowed her eyes. "You're hugging your phone."

"Oh, I was looking through the news while I was stretching." He rotated his shoulders, very naturally moving his phone into view. "Saves time, you know?"

She said nothing as she slowly slid the door closed, judging eyes locked onto him all the while.

When she was gone, Gorou sighed in relief. Sharp instincts, that woman.

He mentally patted himself on the back for lying convincingly as he prepped for his next patient.

-o-

Naturally, it's when she's egosurfing later in the day when Ai finds out about the news.

B-Komachi surprise concert in Akihabara - your smiling queen Nino shines on!

She blinked. She knew that surprise appearances were typically anything but a surprise – they were scheduled far off in advance with the venue notified, booked, and prepared for everything. Stages, staff, and security didn't pop out of existence from nowhere, after all.

So that's why prez had called this morning. He didn't want this to be her reminder.

That was… surprisingly thoughtful of him. Clearly, marriage really did help rough out his edges.

Another look at the tweet showed that a few people were already uploading short clips of it. She wondered what the comments were like. Did people prefer Nino's performance over hers? Were online battles raging right now as her fans and Nino's fought over their favorites? Or was she already yesterday's news, yesterday's idol?

What would she even prefer?

A knock on her door interrupted her gloomy thoughts, and she glanced at the time instead. Five minutes past six, which was when the doctor got off for the day. He really was timely.

"Yes, come in!"

"Good evening, Ms. Hoshino," her doctor greeted, closing the door behind him. He had the same burgundy shirt and black jeans he always had. "Have you heard the news?"

She hid her frown behind a confused smile. There was no escaping this, it seemed.

"Hmm? That Nino is taking center? The surprise concert started just five minutes ago, doctor, I'm surprised you know it already."

He took his usual seat next to her bed, flaring out his lab coat like a fancy pianist before sitting down. "Oh, I've set up a whitelist so I'm notified of any B-Komachi news immediately, just in case someone did recognize you. The quicker we know a potential leak, the better we can respond."

"Wah, tech really is impressive. Is that the only reason, though?"

Ai smiled as the doctor coughed, turning away slightly. His reply had been too quick and well-reasoned for it to be completely unprepared. "…I might have missed your initial hiatus announcement. Didn't want any surprises like that."

"I see, I see. Well, it goes without saying: please follow our official accounts for the latest news!" she chimed, before huffing in mock annoyance. "Though, I don't know how to feel about a fan who hadn't followed us beforehand."

He pushed up his glasses and failed to get them to gleam against the ceiling light. "Of course, I had no reason to follow you when I was searching up B-Komachi every time I opened my phone. Just doing my duty to push up your name to trending."

Pft. She looked off to the side, instinctively making sure her giggling was caught cutely – huh. A reflection of her and the doctor, reflected alongside the mountainside, was the only thing beside her.

There were no cameras here, no fans she had to pose for. It was just her and the doctor she'd already decided to trust.

It just hit her, but… She didn't have to lie here, did she?

The doctor stopped posing, glancing curiously at her sudden stillness. "…I know it's not my place to ask, but are you really fine with it? Talking about it might help."

Ai bit lightly on her lower lip, just enough to stop the instinctive 'yes' from spilling out.

"Will you think any less of me if I said no?" she finally decided on.

Because that was the truth. She didn't like it. The idea that Nino might be happy as she took the center position, praying that she'd disappeared for good. Thinking about how the girls might be able to chat freely now as they prepped, laughing and hanging out afterward. The possibility that the president might decide B-Komachi was better off without her and abandon her…

It made her feel sick, and mad, and so very, very alone.

"No," the doctor answered firmly. "I think I'll be upset if another doctor replaced me for no reason. It's normal to take pride in what we do, isn't it?"

Ai paused. "It is…?"

"Wha- of course! When I decided I wanted to become a doctor, I didn't know that I had four years of residency hell ahead of me! I didn't know I would be stuck in university attending courses while everyone around me partied, or that working in 30-hour shifts was going to become the new normal!"

She stared. At some point, the doctor had stood up and had a foot on the wooden stool, a fire burning in his eyes.

"But now? I can proudly look a resident in the eye and say, 'Yeah, it's a pain, but I've done it and it's worth it.' I feel qualified to say to a patient 'No worries, I've done this a thousand times before.'

"I don't know a thing about what you had to face as an idol, but I'm sure you had your own difficulties. So, it's only natural you feel pride for overcoming them! So of course, when you lose your center position, you can feel mad! Hell, even as a fan I was furious – but I've decided that no matter what, if we're true fans, our glowsticks will keep burning red no matter what-!"

The door slid open, and the doctor froze. "Please keep it down, Dr. B-Komachi. Some patients may be trying to sleep. Good evening, Ms. Hoshino. Is this…" The nurse's face cycled through several emotions, before finally settling on mild disappointment. "…eccentric individual bothering you?"

The doctor still didn't move, foot on chair and hand pointed dramatically in the air.

"Good evening!" Ai chirped automatically, her mind still racing through what her doctor had been saying. "No, he's being very inspiring, actually."

Her doctor's job was something that everybody could respect. It made sense for him to be proud of it. That was the reasonable argument against what he said. Besides, he clearly thought the issue was about the center position, despite it only being a symptom of the problem.

But… Hm… Did she take pride in how she lied to everyone? No, clearly not – the fact she was lying whenever she shouted her love to her fans was the issue. But her work as an idol… She really did give it her all, even if she knew it was a lie. Could she be proud of that? Was effort alone something enough to be proud of?

"Yes, he gave me a lot of things to think about," she continued. "Please don't be upset with the doctor."

"I… see." The nurse clearly didn't. "Well, if there's a strange fan of yours that makes you uncomfortable in any way, please let me know immediately. I can get the security to escort him immediately off the premises and have both his job and reputation terminated within the same hour."

The nurse nodded sharply at her, completely ignoring the frozen statue in the middle of the room. "I'll leave you to your rest, then."

She waved back goodbye to the nurse's nod. "Okay, have a good night!"

With that, the door slid closed again.

The doctor still didn't move.

"Dr. B-Komachi, I think the chatty nurse is gone now."

The only sign he heard her was that he slowly started folding inwards into himself.

"And… I think your speech was really cool?" she tried.

The doctor's head was hanging even lower than his chair, now.

She frowned. The doctor shouldn't be ashamed of what he said. She knew she'd be pondering about it for the next month or so. Maybe even beyond that.

She carefully inched off her bed, reaching for the patient information paper again.

"…Dr. Amamiya?" she tried. He froze again, but this time, he looked up at her from the ground with a strange mix of embarrassment, fear, and hope.

"…yes?"

Ai smiled. "Thank you for your kind words."

And that smile was not a lie.

AN: This chapter was inspired by me trying to figure out how Ai's first checkup was at twenty weeks, but her hiatus was announced on the day of the checkup. My conclusion: Ichigo was a co-conspirator from the very start. Admittedly, it's a sketch, and Ichigo does act as if he only heard about it recently during the checkup – but I don't think Ai could have hidden this for 20 weeks without any help, especially if she tried to keep up with her usual idol activities. Twins apparently show earlier, so it definitely would have been noticeable at some point.

Last week was absolute hell in terms of assignments, but writing this over the weekend was too fun. The first scene felt a bit too short on its own, but the second just wrote itself. Please let me know how my Ai feels!

I've added a spoiler tag since I realized it's impossible to write from Ai's perspective without revealing a few things. Yes, it's your smiling queen Nino! Please note the canon divergence tag – I already consider myself as changing canon. No future is set in stone, so please don't judge a sixteen-year-old too harshly!

On another note, anyone looking through my search history will definitely get the wrong idea. 'When is the baby bump visible for twins', 'first signs of pregnancy', 'how long can someone hide a pregnancy', 'can a pregnant person keep dancing'. Last reminder (really, I won't harp on about it anymore) that while I do care about realism, any medical facts are ultimately the result of one google search!