Hello, Moon here! Please to meet my fellow readers. I'm glad that there are people enjoying reading this. I still enjoy fantasizing and writing this as I go. Please do bare with me, my writing styles may have changed, but the typos never left me xD

Anyways,,, please keep enjoying this story as it progresses. - Moon, 16th Feb 2024

CHAPTER 9: AKA THE WHITE TIGER

Karma stopped at the front gate of the main building. He was waiting for his girlfriend. Nobody paid attention to him. They were getting used to the couple. Yuuki trotted over to him. Karma smiled when he saw her.

"Hi!" she chirped, earning a pat on the head.

"Missed me?" he asked.

Yuuki nodded rapidly. Karma handed a small gift box to her, the souvenir he promised. She took it and kept it inside her school bag.

"Come on, I'll walk you home," he offered.

"Okay!" she replied.

They made their way to the subway station. Yuuki noticed Karma seemed to be bothered by something. She wondered what it was, but did not have the courage to ask him. It was a busy day at the subway station, people were hustling around at a very fast pace.

"Umm…" Yuuki called. She was pushed around by the crowds. "Karma!"

Karma snapped out of his thoughts. He turned around to find the girl. He caught sight of her beside a vending machine. She was catching her breath. He walked over to her.

"Sorry… You okay?" he asked.

She nodded. "Are you okay?" she asked.

Karma went to the vending machine and got him and Yuuki a drink each. They took a seat on the bench. Karma told her what happened.

"So a new transfer student appears and she is an AI… You guys must have it rough…" Yuuki muttered.

"She disrupted the classroom. I mean, I'm fine with it but we do need to study," Karma said.

"Sorry to hear that," she said, earning a smile from Karma.

"That doesn't make me feel better but at least you know what is going on," he shook his head.

Yuuki gave a nod. The next train came. Yuuki held onto Karma's arm as they boarded. Karma kept his eyes on her. She was staring straight out the window. A few seconds later, she caught Karma looking at her. He turned away, pretending to play with his phone. She blinked confusedly at him.

They soon reached her stop. Karma held her hand as they exited the subway. They were greeted by Hiro. He bowed to the two of them. Yuuki turned to look at Karma who shrugged, not knowing what was going on. They were soon at her flat. Yuuki prepared some tea while Hiro and Karma sat down to talk.

"So have you made your decision, Akabane-san?" Hiro asked.

"Yes, I'll be taking the offer," Karma replied, handing the signed papers.

"Perfect! I will prepare the disguise right away!" Hiro said, delighted.

"About that… I will decide my disguise," the redhead replied, smirking.

"Okay, we can compromise," Hiro nodded.

Yuuki served them a cup of tea each and a plate of cookies. She took a seat beside Karma. Karma took out a sketch of his disguise to show them. Yuuki was the first to check it. She sweatdropped. She handed the sketch to Hiro.

"Are you… sure?" Hiro asked.

Karma nodded, "yeah~"

Hiro looked at Yuuki who shrugged and grinned sheepishly. She did not know what Karma was thinking when he accepted the job.

"But, Karma, if the school finds out…" she mentioned.

"With this disguise, how can they know it's me~" he chirped.

Hiro took a deep breath. "Okay, I'll have the team start on this… disguise…"

He excused himself then. Yuuki and Karma sent him off at the door.

"Are you sure?" Yuuki asked.

"This way I'll look like a mascot or a spirit animal. They won't know I'm your bodyguard~" he said and winked.

"It's not a bad idea," Yuuki muttered.

Yuuki, in Yume form, ran up on stage and waved to her fans. "Thank you all for coming!"

"Yume-chan, we love you!" a fan called out.

Yuuki flashed a smile. "Today I have an important person to introduce you~" she started off and gestured for Karma to come up on stage. "Meet, Aka, my white tiger!"

The cheer stopped. Karma stepped on the stage in a white tiger jumpsuit. The jumpsuit fit his body figure perfectly. Only his face was seen. He was also wearing a pair of black contact lenses to hide the real color of his eyes. Yuuki smiled at him. He smiled back.

"Rawr~" Karma said.

"Well he can't speak but he is my spirit animal~!" Yuuki said.

The crowd cheered again. Yuuki started her first song, a debut to Karma as her 'spirit animal'. Karma danced with her on stage. His eyes were fixed on her as she sang. She was mesmerizing.

The concert was over in two hours. Next was the exclusive backstage meetup between Yuuki and her fans. Yuuki was given a 15 minute break before that.

"I have no idea how you keep up with all those dance moves," Karma muttered.

"I just got used to it… That was fun, huh?" she said to Karma, handing him a water bottle.

"Yeah. Your fans seem to like me," he replied, gulping up the water in one go.

"Oh, who does not like a feline? They are adorable," she chirped.

Karma chuckled to her. A knock on her door was heard. It was time for the exclusive backstage meetup. Yuuki was given a chair to sit on and a table to be the boundary between her fans and her. Karma in his suit, stood beside her, fulfilling his role.

"Yume-chan! What makes you think of having this person as your mascot?" a boy about her age asked her.

"Well, I thought every idol should have a spirit animal and I chose a white tiger~" Yuuki replied.

"Can he give me a hug?" a four-year-old girl asked.

Yuuki turned to look at Karma. He nodded to her.

"If your Mommy is okay with it," she said.

The mother nodded to Yuuki and Karma. Karma went down on one knee to match the little girl's height and give her a tight hug. The girl's mother thanked Karma and Yuuki. They were on their way. A few male fans were eyeing Karma and Yuuki from a distance. They did not seem pleased that their idol now has a 'spirit animal' with her and on top of that, it is played by a male.

Soon it was Midori's turn. Yuuki was nervous. She squealed when she saw Yume up close.

"Big fan~!" Midori looked at Karma, "So why a white tiger?"

"Uhhh… because it's going extinct?" Yuuki shrugged.

Midori contemplated. Yuuki sweat dropped, glancing up at Karma who also seemed nervous. Yuuki offered to take a selfie. Midori caved, took a selfie, grabbed her merchandise and walked away. Yuuki heaved a sigh of relief.

Yuuki was back in her own normal wear. She sank into the sofa in her dressing room. It was an exhausting night. Luckily it was the weekend. She still had a little bit of time to rest.

"Can I come in?" Karma called from the other side of her door.

"Y-Yes!" she stuttered.

Karma opened the door. He was back in his usual t-shirt and pants. Yuuki looked puzzled.

"Hiro-san told me to send you home," he said.

"Are you okay with that?" she asked.

He nodded. "My parents are away. I don't have a curfew."

Yuuki nodded. She put on her hoodie and covered her head. She asked Karma to do the same. The boy put on a cap, face mask and glasses. They went out through the front, acting like fans who had just met Yume.

"Why are these necessary?" Karma asked.

"You can never be too careful," she replied.

Yuuki unlocked her front door. She turned to Karma with a smile.

"Thanks so much for today!" she said cheerily.

"I had fun too," he replied.

He extended his hand towards Yuuki, stopped halfway and patted her head instead. The girl purred like a cat, making Karma blushed at the sight.

"Good night, Karma," she said.

"Good night, Yuu," he replied.

She was about to enter her flat but Karma stopped her by holding her hand. She turned her head towards him. He pulled her into a hug.

"Sorry… I just need one…" he said.

"It's okay…" she muttered.

Yuuki woke up with a call from Karma. She picked it up.

"Hmm?" she mumbled.

"Wanna hangout?" He invited her.

Scratching her eyes, "Where to?" she asked.

"I'll pick you up in one hour," Karma replied.

Yuuki quickly sat up in bed. She made her bed and ran to take a quick shower. She chose a yellow blouse and paired it with a brown midi-skirt. She tied her hair into a high ponytail. She put on some light makeup.

Karma looked up when Yuuki opened the door. She flashed a smile at her boyfriend.

"Yo," Karma said, eyeing her from head to toe.

"Hi!" she chirped. "How do I look?"

Karma gave a nod. "I like your hair down…" he remarked.

"Should I fix it?" she asked, playing with her ponytail.

Karma shook his head. "You'll always look cute to me," he said with a straight face.

Yuuki blushed. She locked the door. "Let's go?" she asked him.

He smiled and nodded. He extended his hand to her. She happily took it and then wrapped her hand around his hand. Karma kept his gaze on her as they walked to the subway.

"So where are we going?" she asked.

"You'll see," he replied casually, making her even more curious.

They came to a small cafe that had a different team every month. That month was 'Idol'. The front door was decorated with a popup art of Yume. Yuuki looked at her boyfriend. He gestured to her to go inside. When she entered, she was amazed at the sight. The waiters were dressed in white tiger suits and the waitresses were dressed in idol costumes of their choosing.

"Nagisa-kun told me about the place. I thought you should know how fast the news picked up," Karma explained.

"Yeah… It's so fast. Aka-chan was introduced last night!" Yuuki exclaimed.

They took their seats. A waiter came to serve them. Yuuki looked at the menu. The specials were her favorite dessert and milkshake. She was impressed.

Midori saw Yuuki walking into the classroom. There was a ruckus that day and it was about Yume's mascot/spirit animal. Yuuki took her seat, getting herself settled for the day. Her friend came running to her.

"Did you hear?!" Midori exclaimed.

"What..?" Yuuki drawled.

"Yume-chan decided to get a pet!" Midori said, showing a photo she took. It was from the concert. A photo of 'Yume and Aka' dancing on stage.

Yuuki gulped. "Ohh… that's cute," she said.

"Cute?!" Midori said in disbelief. "Can't you see?! This guy should be around our age!"

"And?" Yuuki was confused.

"I don't think he is her spirit animal. I think he's more than that!" Midori stated her theory.

"What could he be then?" Yuuki was curious.

"Her brother maybe? A sis-con?" she blurted.

Yuuki felt relieved. She laughed at her friend's theory and brushed it off. Midori was insisting that they should ask more about this. She told Yuuki that Yume was going to have another small concert at the end of the month. She tried to convince Yuuki to come with her.

"Sorry, I'll be spending time with my family that day," she lied.

"Asahi! Come with me?" Midori called.

"Why am I dragged into this?" Asahi asked.

Yuuki shrugged at the question. Midori made a sad face. "Pleassseeeeeeee…"

"Ergh, I'll think about it!" Asahi replied in annoyance.

The homeroom teacher came in, putting a stop to their conversation. Yuuki was glad about the outcome of her conversation with Midori. She sent a quick text to Karma about it.

Karma received the text. He opened his phone to read it. Then, he chuckled to himself.

"What's gotten into you?" Terasaka was disgusted.

"Nothing a single guy can understand," Karma replied.

"You're so full of yourself!" Terasaka shouted angrily.