This is a story about honesty, and how utterly it terrifies humans.
And how could it be otherwise, when they are so often punished for nothing but the truth?
"Does it hurt! I was hurt even worse! I suffered more!"
"Ai!"
There was a lot yelling going on, but Ai was having a hard time making it out through the searing pain of her stomach.
"You went and had kids, even though you're an idol! You fan betraying slut!"
"Ai! Ai!"
Aqua was here, too. That wasn't good. This wasn't a safe place, after all.
"You betrayed us! I bet you mocked us behind our backs… You damned liar! You're lured us in with that constant 'I love you! I love you!' shit! But it was all lies!"
The man in the hoodie yelling at her… was a fan, wasn't he? He sounded really angry at her, which wasn't too surprising. Seemed her lies had finally caught up to her.
"…I've always been irresponsible… I'm not pure at all… I'm dishonest and dirty… don't even know how to love someone…"
Words tumbled out of her mouth like jagged stones, but Ai said them anyway. A little bit of pain never stopped her, and it wasn't going to stop her now.
"…So instead, I told pretty lies to make everyone happy, always hoping that one day those lies would become the truth… I worked hard, tried my best, and lied with everything I had…"
Through blurry eyes, Ai raised her gaze to the man who'd stabbed her, still gripping the bloody knife.
"That's because… for me, lies are love. I was showing my love, in my own way."
Were those words the truth, or a lie?
Even now, Ai couldn't really tell. They felt right, but that might have just been a lie as well. It seemed like what he wanted to hear, though, so she said them anyway.
"I don't know if I was able to love you all, but I always sang those songs while thinking that I wanted to, hoping that someday it would be truth."
And it was for that same reason that she raised a shaking, bloody hand to him with a smile.
"Even now, I want to love you."
He gawked at her outstretched hand, sweat dripping down his face.
"L-Liar… You don't even remember who I am, do you? Y-You just want me to let you g—"
"Ryousuke, right? You came to a lot of handshake events."
When he did not utter a word, Ai pushed on.
"Oh, was that not it? I was never very good with names." She flashed an apologetic smile. "I really liked that star sand you gave me, though. I still have it, decorating my living room."
For some reason, tears spilled from his eyes, the knife tumbling out of his grasp as he clutched his head.
"N-No… Wha… Th-This wasn't…!"
He let out a shriek like he truly was in more pain than her, and then fled the apartment. His face just before he'd ran had looked just like her mother's, that one time.
…Why was she remembering something like that now?
"Just get over here right now!"
Beside her, Aqua was shouting at someone. Probably an ambulance, judging from the phone in his hand. He'd learned how to call an ambulance all on his own. Her boy was so smart.
But… yeah, the situation looked pretty bad right now.
She'd bled out all the way down the lap of her apron. Some of the blood had even dripped onto the hardwood floor. It was surprisingly sticky and uncomfortable. Kind of reminded her of the fake blood they'd used on that horror film she'd starred in once.
Through the haze of throbbing pain, Ai noted that the tip of her tongue stung— she must have bitten through it when she'd been stabbed. Just breathing sent pain through her body, and she could barely keep her legs straight.
All in all, it was almost as bad as childbirth.
Telling herself this, Ai stumbled back and fell against the screen door's frosted glass.
Ruby didn't need to see this, and if she'd had her way, neither would Aqua, but this was about all she could manage right now.
"Heh… really let my guard down there, huh… Guess that's what door chains are for… They never… taught us that at the home…"
He looked scared witless, so Ai tried to say something to comfort him. It didn't work very well, judging by how un-comforted he looked.
Aqua wasn't even listening to her in that moment— too busy assessing Ai's wound to hear her words.
No exit wound. There's bleeding, but it looks manageable…
Somehow, the attacker had missed her abdominal aorta, but this was still a stab to the abdomen. She needed immediate medical attention to control the bleeding and even if that was done, the risk of sepsis was incredibly high.
He'd already called an ambulance, but there was no telling when they'd arrive. They were near the top floor of a high-rise condo, and it was only a matter of time until Ai bled out. There had to be something he could do in the meantime.
But he was a gynecologist, dammit! How was he supposed to deal with a penetrating abdominal trauma like this? He didn't have any equipment, and his body was still a child's, and it had been almost four years since he'd eve—
Ai squeezed Aqua into a tight embrace, absentmindedly brushing his hair. It hurt, but he felt so soft and warm.
"…I'm sorry, but this is… probably it for me… Are you hurt?"
A sniffle.
"No…"
That was good to hear. It would have been bad if Aqua had gotten mixed up in her mess.
"…I wonder if today's dome concert will be canceled… I'm gonna cause a lot of trouble for everyone. We'd even finalized the schedule for the movie, too… Can you apologize to the director for me?"
"…Hey, wh-what's going on? What happened?"
That was Ruby, from behind the door. She sounded scared and worried.
"Stay back, Ruby."
"Tell me what's going on!"
There Aqua went, trying to protect his sister. He really did try too hard, sometimes— he was still just a child, after all. It was her job to take care of them, and she still had work to do.
"Ruby? Your dance at the festival was wonderful."
Ai raised her head before resting it against the cool glass, and even though neither of them could see it, put on the brightest smile she could muster, to make sure they could hear it in her voice.
"You know, I was thinking that maybe you could become an idol one day, too. And if everything went well, we could be a mother-daughter pair, performing together. How cool would that be! And Aqua… you might become an actor. Maybe we could even be in the same movie together… Ah, I want to see what kind of adults you'll become…
"Oh, and school bags! I want to see your entrance ceremony for elementary school! And on Parents' Day, I want people to say 'Isn't she a little young to be Ruby's mother?' I want to watch you two grow up, right by your side… I know I wasn't the best mom, but I'm glad I gave birth to you guys."
Ai said things she'd heard from movies and anime, from coworkers and guardians, and even a few of her own hopes and dreams.
Were they the truth, or lies?
She wanted them to be true, at least.
"Um, what else… Oh, I have to say this."
She said this like it was just an afterthought, yet she could feel her heart pounding from the way her blood spurted into her lap.
It really was now or never, huh?
Gulping back bloody saliva, Ai twisted around to rest her palm on the door.
"…Ruby, Aqua… I love you."
She spoke those words, and her heart sang.
"Ah… I finally said it… I'm sorry… it took… so long…"
She was so, so relieved.
Those words were definitely not a lie.
Ai wanted to say more, say something, anything, but she couldn't even find the strength to open her mouth anymore. Her vision swam, and her limbs shook uncontrollably.
Yeah, this was definitely it.
But strangely, she wasn't really scared at all.
She tried gently to caress Aqua's cheek, one final act of comfort for the road, but even that was too much. Her hand slipped off his face and fell limply at her side.
She felt a little bad about that, but as she slipped into consciousness, the last thing Ai felt was such a profound sense of peace that she didn't mind at all.
It took eleven minutes for paramedics to arrive on the scene at Ai's condo. From there, she had been placed in an ambulance and rushed to a nearby hospital, where she would likely be sent straight to the ICU.
Somehow, it had felt like so much longer and so much shorter, all at the same time.
Based on the single stab wound and minimal blood loss, Aqua's experience as an OBGYN told him Ai had good chances of pulling through. But it was precisely because he was a former doctor that he knew just how unexpectedly resilient — and fragile — the human body could be.
At the same time, the two of them were taken into police custody.
Ruby had panicked at first, but gone silent when the policewoman gently informed her that Ai was headed to the hospital. From there, Aqua just answered the police's questions until Miyako was able to pick them up and take them to the Saitou residence.
Ichigo didn't arrive until sometime later. It was just past noon by then, but he looked exhausted, only breathing a sigh of relief when he saw Aqua and Ruby were unharmed.
The day dragged on until evening, when Ichigo received a call from the hospital. From overhearing his and Miyako's conversation, it seemed the surgery had been a success, and they'd moved Ai to the post-anesthesia care unit to monitor her health.
Aqua supposed he should have expected nothing less from the Ai, his mother and oshi.
Still, the mood that night was tense, and nobody got much sleep.
The news of Ai's assault had already entered the media cycle, which didn't surprise Aqua at all.
A popular, up-and-coming idol had been stabbed by a crazed stalker who'd then committed suicide, and on the day of her much-anticipated live at the Tokyo Dome, no less? The story was on all the major networks before the hour had even passed, and nowhere was there more discourse about it than the internet.
Ruby was practically glued to the phone, shouting at online comments all throughout the night. What that was supposed to accomplish, Aqua didn't really know, but sometimes people just needed to do things, even if it didn't make any sense at all, so he let her have it.
Wasn't like he disagreed with anything she said anyway.
Ai woke up the very next day, and they were rushed to the hospital by Ichigo and Miyako less than an hour later.
As the registered nurse led them to Ai's room, Aqua couldn't help noting how different everything looked from the perspective of a four-year-old.
How long had it been since he'd last walked the halls of a hospital? It had been four years ago, when he'd miraculously reincarnated as the son of his idol.
Given the circumstances, he couldn't exactly call it nostalgic.
"Miss Hoshino, your visitors are here."
The nurse entered the room, and Aqua got his first glimpse of Ai since the paramedics had wheeled her away on a stretcher the day before.
She looked pale, and her hair was done up in a messy bun. There was an IV in her left arm, and she was propped up on the hospital bed, a patient monitor beside it steadily recording her vitals.
Miyako shuffled them into the room while Ichigo took point, asking the one question on everybody's mind.
"Ai, are you… are you okay?"
The air was thick with tension.
The surgery may have been a success, but that didn't mean they were in the clear— loss of function, potential for infection, post-traumatic stress disorder. All manner of possible complications ran through Aqua's mind and he thought he might go insane from the anxiety.
But, as if totally oblivious to her situation, Ai just flashed a peace sign and her signature smile.
"Come on, guys! There's no way I'd die like that!"
"M-Miss Hoshino, please don't sit up like that! You'll pull out your stitches!"
The sigh they let out as the nurse fussed over a far-too casual Ai was two parts exasperated and one part relieved.
And thus, the first star of the evening, which had flickered and threatened to vanish forever, reignited and cast its radiant light upon the world once more.
After that, they stayed in Ai's hospital room for the next hour, chatting and conversing, until the nurse began ushering them out so she could inspect Ai's wound.
Getting out of his chair, Ichigo set a hand on her shoulder.
"If you need anything, anything at all, please don't hesitate to ask. Miyako and I would drop everything for you three in a heartbeat."
Ai nodded at this before giving Aqua and Ruby, seated on the bed with her, two kisses on the forehead.
"See you two soon." She let out a smile. "Mama's gotta stay here a little while longer, okay?"
They were led out into the hallway, Ruby jumping and shaking his arm from sheer joy.
"She's alive! Mama's alive, Aqua!"
"Yeah…"
As he mulled recent events over in his head, Aqua found he couldn't quite share in his sister's over-the-top enthusiasm.
The situation was about as good as could be hoped for, all things considered.
Ai had survived the attack fine, and it seemed she wasn't in danger of going septic. She'd probably be cleared for discharge before the end of the week, and things would be back to normal like nothing had ever happened.
But the fact remained that the stalker who had tried to kill Ai was the very same person who had killed him, four years ago at a countryside hospital Ai had been admitted to.
How had he managed to pin down her location both times?
The man was just some delusional, shut-in NEET. There was no way he was capable of pulling off such investigative work, and for a residence she had just moved in to, no less.
So then… someone had tipped him off?
Was it Ichigo? He was the only person Aqua could think of who knew about Ai's stay at the hospital.
But why the hell would he do that? All the man cared about was taking Strawberry Productions to greater heights. Killing his star idol wouldn't accomplish that.
Then one of her genmates?
Even if there was bad blood between them, none of them were close enough to even know about her children, much less where she lived. Aqua doubted Ai even had friends at all.
And neither he nor Ruby had met any relatives. Ai didn't seem to have any of their contact details either.
So that only left…
Their father?
She'd kept his identity a secret, even from Ichigo, but considering how narrow Ai's social circle was, there was a high chance their father was in the entertainment industry.
But… why had he targeted Ai now, of all times? If he was able to locate her so easily, he could have had her killed at any time. Was it because of the dome live? Was he afraid of what a high-profile scandal involving her children might do to his career?
No, questions like that didn't matter anymore.
All that mattered was finding the man who had brought this suffering upon Ai — upon his idol — and putting an end to him before he could finish the job.
After countless tests and checkups, Ai was declared well enough to be discharged from the hospital on the third day. Apparently, stab wounds healed pretty quickly. Who knew?
She'd also been questioned by a lot of people, namely the police. It was like something straight out of a police drama. She'd even gotten to meet actual detectives and everything.
Of course, there'd also been talk of where she'd be staying for the time being— her current address was compromised, after all. Ichigo had helpfully offered to let them stay at a second home he owned in a small town about two hours out from the city.
And so, the day Ai was released from the hospital, they drove up north through the snow-plowed roads, pulling into the driveway of a house sitting in a quiet neighborhood at the edge of a wooded area just as the sun was setting.
Ichigo got to work, bringing in the suitcases and boxes they'd brought, while Miyako unpacked them and cleaned things up. Luckily, Ai was an invalid at the moment, so she and the kids got to skip out on work and explore the place.
It was an open-concept affair. Two floors, three bedrooms, an interior balcony overlooking the main living area, a patio out back with a spacious backyard. The foyer even had a fancy wood stove for winter.
She plopped herself down on the queen bed after somehow making it up the stairs to the master bedroom — complete with a walk-in closet — resting her weight on her arms as she reviewed their new living space.
It was a decent little place. Reminded her of the apartment they'd had back when Aqua and Ruby were still babies.
Ai kicked her legs while planning out how'd she'd spruce things up before noticing a pensive Ruby at the door, standing behind the frame as if hiding.
What had her looking so glum?
She just smiled at her daughter, patting the plush sheets beside her. A moment passed before Ruby shuffled over with her eyes glued to the floor, clambered on top of the bed, and hugged Ai's side tightly.
"How do you like the new place? It's a little different from our old one, but it's got a nice, rustic charm to it, huh?"
She caressed Ruby's head, combing her fingers through the girl's golden locks. Ruby didn't answer for a while and when she did, her voice was almost too muffled to make out.
"Mama… do you hate us?"
Ai blinked at that, but kept brushing her hair.
"Hmm? Why would I hate you?"
Hadn't she told them she loved them? She realized she'd been suffering from severe blood loss at the time, but she was pretty she'd said that.
Ruby pulled her face out of her side, a cross between guilt, fear, and anger in her tear-filled eyes.
"…It's because of us that that stalker stabbed you, and you almost died, and you had to go to the hospital, and now everyone is saying such awful things about you!"
How could Ai have forgotten?
This girl loved idols, and of all the idols in the world, Ai was her favorite. To see one's oshi trashed online must have been rough. No wonder she was feeling so down.
Luckily, Ai had unlocked the perfect solution to this problem not too long ago.
"People online will say anything, regardless of whether it's true or not, but nothing they say matters. Do you wanna know why that is?"
When she did not respond, Ai leaned over, wearing a conspiratorial smile as she whispered into her daughter's ear.
"It's because I… because you two are the best thing that ever happened to me. It doesn't matter what anyone else says, that'll sways be the truth."
That seemed to mollify Ruby, and she settled into her touch, completely unaware of Ai's unease in that moment.
She'd meant to say "I love you" near the end there, all warm and fuzzy like, but she'd frozen at the last second and said something else to recover.
That wasn't good.
Ai thought she'd broken through that block after the stabbing. Was that not the case?
Were her words that day the truth, or just a lie?
That terrifying thought sat in the room with them until the sound of Ichigo's heavy footsteps heading up the stairs mercifully took her attention.
"Ah, there you are, Ai." He set a hand on the door frame. "We need to talk. Think you can walk for a bit?"
"Hmm? Sure, no problem. Though you're going to have to help me up."
Ichigo held out a hand, lifting her up and Ruby along with her. They were getting ready to put on their jackets when Miyako rounded the corner, Aqua in tow.
"Where are you two headed?"
"Miyako, Ai and I are gonna talk about some things. Won't be more than an hour or so. I'll let you know when we're heading back."
"Got it. I'll put these two to sleep," she said, taking a red-eyed Ruby from Ai.
She gave the two a goodbye kiss, bending over to kiss Aqua's cheek before realizing that wasn't going to work and smoothly transitioning into a squat.
After that, she slipped on her jacket, following Ichigo out the door and into the company hatchback. As he started driving, though, Ai couldn't help the feeling that the man was acting strangely stiff right now…
Wait a minute.
Was she perhaps… in trouble?
Ichigo had warned her not to get in any scandals, after all. She couldn't imagine a bigger scandal than getting stabbed in her own home by a fan. And wasn't it his dream to get one of his idols in the Tokyo Dome?
Sheesh. She was about to get quite the earful, wasn't she?
While she worked on her excuses, Ichigo drove for about five minutes before pulling over at a gravel parking lot accompanying a trail.
"Careful," he said as he helped her out of the car. "It's dark out, so watch your step."
"I feel like you're not really in a position to say that, given you're still wearing those goofy sunglasses at night, but I'll choose not to voice that thought."
"How considerate of you."
They moved at a measured pace down the trail, eventually coming across a section bordering the slope of a hill, a bit of wood railing bordering it. Ai leaned on it after confirming its sturdiness.
A chilly breeze blew across the trail, and the trees above rattled like wind chimes. She blew into her mittens just to see her breath before turning her gaze up to the sky.
This far from the major city centers, she could make out the stars clear as day. Or… night, rather.
Anyway, it looked incredibly pretty, and the sight brought back nostalgic memories. Of the time when she was still pregnant with Aqua and Ruby. And of her time with Dr. Amamiya.
What ever happened to that guy, anyway? She'd been really hoping to show off her babies after delivering them, maybe get a genuine smile out of the guy for once, but he'd just up and vanished after she went into labor. Seriously, what was that about?
Today also reminded Ai a lot of the day she had told Ichigo she was pregnant. That had been a fun time. But somehow, things had turned out alright. Maybe she could pull that trick off one more time?
"Pretty, isn't it? I used to bike here all the time when I was kid. You could see the whole town from up here. Always made the world feel so small and stifling…"
And just as she thought that, the man himself spoke up from behind her, staring down wistfully at the man-made lights below.
Ai hadn't even noticed them until he'd pointed it out, too taken by the stars up above. Gripping the railing, she tried to lean back until her stomach protested that it was still very much wounded.
"Heh… So President had that kind of backstory?"
"Yeah, I did. You're a city kid through and through, though, right?"
"Yep. Back when I was still pregnant with Aqua and Ruby, that was the first time I really came out to the sticks."
"Well, Karuizawa is really only the sticks if you compare it to Tokyo. It's a… somewhat popular resort town."
"Oh?"
"It became world famous after some missionaries from the West visited in the post-Edo period, but never mind that. We need to talk about what we do going forward."
"You already release a press statement?"
"Just the basics. You were attacked by a stalker, had to be hospitalized, and we'd keep everyone up to date as more details arose. Told the other B-Komachi members about the same thing, though I didn't tell them about the kids."
"Really? Wouldn't leaving things up in the air like that just allow weird rumors about my personal life to spread?"
"Yeah, well the press can speculate all they want. I wasn't going to make any firm statements without talking to you first." Ichigo turned his eyes from the town to Ai. "How are you holding up? The surgery seems to have went well."
"Mm-hmm. It's a good thing I hadn't eaten anything in a while for the live. Doctor says that probably saved me from step-sis? Pepsis? Whatever, though it also caused me to pass out. The nurse looking after me was pretty cool, and fun to mess with too. The pain meds are doing their job, though coming up here wasn't exactly a walk in the park…"
She sent a sly smirk Ichigo's way, which caused the man to self-consciously push his sunglasses up.
"Sorry about that… What about the culprit? The man who stabbed you? He was a fan, right? Did anything stick out to you about him?"
"Hmm… he just seemed like any other fan? I know he went to almost every handshake and fansign event, but so did a lot of other fans."
"That's not really…" Ichigo sighed. "Look, I'm asking if there's anything we should have done to prevent that. If there's anything more we need to look into."
"You know, you don't have to keep pretending to care about me."
Ai ripped the band-aid off that the two of them had been dancing around for the entire conversation. For some reason, she wasn't in the mood to beat around the bush.
"…What's that supposed to mean?"
"I know I messed up big time, and the agency's reputation is probably circling the drain right now. Do whatever's best for Strawberry Productions, I won't mind. It's my fault things turned out like this, anyway."
There was a long silence after she said this, before Ichigo grabbed her by the shoulder and spun her around.
"What are you saying, Ai? If anyone should be admitting fault, it's me here." He lifted his shades to pinch the bridge of his nose. "I swear, you take the strangest things seriously sometimes…"
"Hmm? But weren't you the one going on about 'don't get into any scandals!' and 'my dream is to put an idol in the Tokyo Dome'?"
"That's… Ai, you almost died. I don't care about things like that right now."
That gave her pause.
So Ichigo wasn't planning on terminating her contract? That was unexpected.
…Well, it probably was still possible to recover from this.
Though there were rumors that she had been attacked for an illicit relationship, they were only rumors. It'd be an uphill battle for sure, but Ai thought she could do it.
"So… when do I start idol work again?" She made a show of flexing her bicep. "I won't be able to sing or dance for a bit, but I can still do talk shows and stuff like that."
The press would kill for the harrowing tale of the rising idol's brush with death, and how she pulled through it all to bring everyone dazzling smiles.
But rather than lay out a plan for their triumphant return, Ichigo just looked at her like she was crazy.
"What are you talking about, Ai? I want you to graduate, not continue being an idol."
…
Now she was just lost.
"…What about my contract?"
She'd just renewed her seven year contract this past April, after all. That could not be an easy loss for the agency.
"I'll terminate it. I'll take care of the cost of ending the contract early."
"But… what about the rumors? Wouldn't me graduating after this just confirm them? About how I have secret kids and stuff?"
"Honestly, I don't really care." Ichigo shook his head. "I just don't want something like that to ever happen to you again. You and the kids' safety is all I'm thinking about right now. You can even stay at that place for as long as you want."
Ai could hardly believe what she was hearing.
"Wow. I get to graduate, no strings attached, and with my own place and everything? Perhaps getting stabbed wasn't so bad after all…"
The sly little smile she flashed there only seemed to trouble Ichigo further.
"Please don't say that…"
"Hmm, but it's the truth? Most producers wouldn't just let their top-earner go like that, you know?"
"That so…"
That was all Ichigo said, and then he peered down at her.
"Well, what do you say? I can't exactly make you graduate against your will."
"Sure, I'll graduate. Can't exactly let an opportunity like this slip by, right?"
"Is that really your answer?"
"Yep. It's the truth!"
Wearing a simpering smile as she said this, Ai looked Ichigo square in the eyes.
"Don't give me that crap!" He shook her by the shoulders. "I know you better than anyone, and that means I know when you're lying!"
He probably shouldn't have been shaking an injured person like this, but it was a little fun watching the world shake back and forth, so Ai let him have it.
Ichigo seemed to realize what he was doing soon enough though, pulling away from her like he'd touched a hot stove. He let out a deep sigh into the chill night air before pinning her with a hard stare.
"…What I want from you is the truth, Ai. Can you give me that? Please."
The sincerity in his voice made it hard to look at him, so Ai made a show of spinning around on her heel and gazing up at the stars like she was in deep thought. And then she actually considered her response.
She could say anything, anything at all, if it was what people wanted to hear. Anything but the truth.
She was a liar, after all. Through and through. But even a liar had to tell the truth sometimes.
So what was the truth?
What did Ai Hoshino think of all this?
The woman in question looked deep within herself and found…
Nothing.
Honestly, the whole incident had kind of flown by like a stiff breeze.
It had hurt, of course, getting stabbed. And things had gotten pretty serious and emotional there for a sec, when Aqua and Ruby's safety were on the line. But now that the danger was over, it was hard to think anything other than "well, that's a thing that happened".
But Ichigo obviously didn't want to hear that.
He wanted to hear…
After a long moment, Ai faced the man once more, her face expressionless.
"You said you wanted to hear the truth, right?"
"That's all I'm asking for," he said, removing his shades. "After everything that's happened, I just want you to be honest with me for once."
It was so rare to see Ichigo without his glasses. Ai could just make out his amber eyes in the darkness.
He looked so… vulnerable, and it made her next words come out a little more stilted than she'd intended.
"Even if… I told you I hated you?"
"It wouldn't be weird if you hated me. I'm the one who scouted you, who brought you into this crazy, messed up world, when you were… just a little girl! Back then, if I hadn't tricked you, said all those thin—"
Ai doubled over in laughter before he could finish, gripping her stomach with one hand and the railing with the other.
"That's what's got you worried?! D-Don't—make me laugh! Agh, my s-stitches!"
"D-Don't laugh!"
She really couldn't help it. She had not been expecting that!
Ai managed to calm herself, because the laughter really did hurt, wiping a tear from an eye as she did so.
"Aah… men really do think the world revolves around them, huh…? Tricked me? Brought me into this world? All you did was scout me and offer something I could never have gotten otherwise— the chance to love something. I took that chance, and got Aqua and Ruby out of it. There's no way I'd hate you for that."
She sauntered up to Ichigo and poked him square in the chest.
"That honest enough for ya?"
That seemed to satisfy him, and Ichigo slipped his shades on once more. Seemed they'd finished talking about what they needed to talk about.
"Although… if I stop being an idol, what will I do?"
Ai glanced Ichigo's way, genuinely curious as to his answer.
"…Whatever you want. Learn to drive, make some friends, go on dates, get a real job, or some hobbies. Do all the things you could never do as an idol."
He left those words hanging in the chilly air, silent as he gazed out at the town, a look on his face even Ai couldn't decipher.
Eventually, he turned away, shoving his hands in his pockets.
"Anyway, let's head back. I'm about to freeze my tits off."
"Same."
The two headed off down the trail, backtracking the way they'd come, fallen leaves crunching noisily underfoot.
Were those words she'd spoken the truth, or lies?
They were lies, of course.
Ai had no idea what was up with him, but Ichigo was clearly distraught about the whole situation and wanted her to quit being an idol out of some manly, protective fear for her safety.
Made her wonder just what the hell he'd thought was going to happen when an idol went and had kids. Hadn't he been the one constantly harping on about how dangerous this all was?
She'd accepted that something like this was bound to happen ages ago, and had really thought Ichigo had too.
Just confirmed something Ai had suspected for some time now.
Despite his gruff, hard-boiled producer act, that man was just too much of a softie for show business.
Guess that makes him a liar like me.
Of course, she was the better liar, but that realization brought an odd sense of comfort.
But yeah… her graduating was probably for the best.
It was better for Ichigo to forget about her and focus on the other members of B-Komachi. Otherwise, he'd never beat the allegations of favoritism that had caused so much strife between them.
Would also give those girls a chance to finally get out from under her shadow. Being genmates with a now famous ex-idol would probably do wonders for their careers.
When they finally returned to the hatchback, Ichigo helped her into the car and got into the driver's seat. She leaned against the window as he texted Miyako before starting the engine and beginning the short drive back.
At first watching the distant stars up above, Ai eventually turned her gaze on the lights of the town, peeking through the barren trees.
And as she didn't so, she couldn't help thinking over Ichigo's words.
Whatever I want, huh…
And thus begins the story of a woman made of lies, and how she learned to be honest with herself.
This is a project I've been working on since I watched the first episode of Oshi no Ko, two weeks after it aired in the spring season of 2023, and Ai's story captured my heart and imagination.
A lot has happened since then, and my opinion of Aka Akasaka, and his work, has been irreparably damaged by his complete mishandling of the series and its characters.
My fascination with Ai, however, has never waned. So I will craft a tale befitting of the evening star, a depiction of the life and times of Ai Hoshino — the person, rather than the idol — and in doing so hopefully soothe the hearts and souls of those who miss her.