Windy Days

Sometimes, I forget that I'm Sunayomi's assistant now. I'd come into work, fully expecting Manager Na to put me in an isolated area and tell me to get to work. Instead, I now have to report to Sunayomi themselves. Every day, I'm hit with something stupidly outrageous, like fixing a lightbulb or bringing in coffee.

What am I, an assistant or a servant? Hard to tell at this point.

Even today, I was tasked with buying lunch for them. Manager Na gave me a company credit card to use, so it wasn't coming out of my own pocket. Still, it's a hastle.

I entered the building to find Akira, the receptionist, having a one-sided chat with Yoshino. The moment she saw me, her eyes went from apathetic to slightly less apathetic.

"Ah, Yozora," she said. "Finally here. Why are you so late?"

"What did you expect?" I grumbled. "It's lunch rush right now, so the line was long."

"That's no excuse. You should've been there earlier to beat the traffic."

"Huh?! You guys were the ones who told me about it last minute!"

She let out a soft giggled. "Pft... I'm just teasing you, Yozora. Thank you for taking the time to grab us lunch. I appreciate it."

I felt a sudden tingle in my stomach when she smiled at me.

"I-I didn't even do that much..." I stuttered.

"Don't sell yourself short now," Yoshino giggled. "Come."

As we passed by the front desk, I tried to ignore the look of absolute shock on Akira's face. Please, don't misunderstand. It's not what you think.

Yoshino and I joined the others in the rehearsal. As soon as they saw the bags in my bag, their eyes lit up.

"Yozora! Finally!" Suguha cheered.

She rushed over and snatched the bags out of my hands, completely ignoring my presence.

"Suzu! Show some respect to Yozora," Natsume scolded, though her tone was as soft as ever. "He went out of his way to get it for us."

"Thanks, Yozora!"

"N-no problem..." I sighed.

The girls sat down on the floor towards the center of the rehearsal room. When they opened the crumpled-up bags, I could smell the grill chicken skewers all the way from the door.

Well, my job here is done. I can finally take nap. When I tried to walk away, a cold and condescending voice sent a chill up my spine, forcing me to stop.

"Hey, Yozora!" Suguha shouted.

"Hm? What's up?" I replied.

"Where are you off to? Aren't you going to eat with us?"

"Ah... No, thanks. I already ate."

"Eh?! You knew that we were gonna eat together, but you ate by yourself?!"

"Yeah."

That was a total lie. I rarely have the motivation to buy myself food. I mostly buy Nae food, and I'd pick off of the leftovers.

"Still, you should come sit with us," Natsume said. "Maybe have one?"

"Again, I already ate," I replied. "You guys enjoy, though."

As I was walking out, the girls began conversing with each other.

"Careful, Nabi," Suguha snickered. "Make sure to leave a big portion for Mira, cuz we how fat she is."

"What did you just say?!" she screamed.

That was the last thing I heard, before I shut the door. What an out-of-pocket remark, but I wouldn't have expected anything less from Suguha herself.

Just when I was about to begin my search for a decent napping spot, the door slammed opened. A furious Mitsuki appeared, face red and practically smoking.

When I tried to ignore her, she rushed up and stood in my way, as if telling me that I wasn't allowed to ignore her.

"Do you think so too?" she muttered.

"...T-think what...?" I gulped.

"That I'm... fat?"

"What? Why would I ever?"

"Beauty is in the eye of the beholder. As an idol, I have to take into account what other people think of me. So, tell me honestly. Am I fat?"

There she goes again, seeking validation from me, as if my opinion actually mattered. This seems like a sensitive topic to her, so I can't get away from this one. Well, it's not like I could before anyway...

"Honestly?" I scoffed. "No, you're not fat, not even close. I think you're perfectly fine just the way you are, so don't worry."

For a while, she stared at me with her lips tightened. I thought I was giving her some kind of reassurance, but the redness of her face only grew.

"What...?" I muttered. "Did I say something wrong again?"

"Hmph," she said. "No. I was just surprised that someone like you is capable of saying those kinds of words."

"Oh, give me a break. No matter what I say, you won't be satisfied."

"Hm? Who said I wasn't satisfied?"

With that, she went back into the rehearsal room, and the conversation they were having faded into muffled chatters.

The heck was that? I feel like these interactions with Sunayomi are being more and more random with each time I see them. The following days were no different.

I found myself doing more tasks that Manager Na assigned to me. For one, I was asked to maintain communication with a company representative for a media project. For another, I created an itinerary for an upcoming event, which for some reason, required a two-hour long excursion.

I've definitely been busier than usual—way busier. I do get paid more, which lets me take care of Nae better, so there's that. However, as far as social situations go... there have been a lot of those too.

Scenario one: I was walking through the hallways of the studio until a bright light struck my eyes.

"Ah! Yozora!" Suguha shouted while also blowing an eardrum.

"Um... Hi," I bowed my head and said.

Right when I was about to dash away, she grabbed grabbed a hold of my wrist.

"Hey, are you busy?!" she quickly asked.

"Uh... N-not particularly?"

"That's great! I accidentally broke a table, and I need you to fix it before Manager Na sees!"

"What? Just throw it in the back and wait for the custodian to pick it up."

"No can do. Now, let's go!"

Scenario two: During a live variety show, I was standing in the back, where I felt a tug on my jacket.

"Hello, Yozora," Natsume smiled gently.

"Hey," I said. "You okay?"

"Yeah. Just need to catch my breath. Volleyball is no joke."

I handed her a towel. She took it and wiped the sweat off her forehead.

"Say, I saw a bubble tea shop across the street," Natsume said. "You wanna go get some?"

"Eh? B-but... We're in the middle of a live show," I mumbled.

"I'm not on for another twenty minutes. We just need to be quick. What do you say?"

Scenario three: After a modeling shoot, I sat in a waiting room for Sunayomi to return.

"Ah. Yozora," Yoshino said as she walked in.

"What's—"

My voice was lost the moment I saw her wearing that expensive-looking black dress.

"Hm?" she smirked. "You have a weird look on your face. What's wrong?"

"I-it's nothing..." I muttered.

"Nothing? Your face is beet red. Perhaps there's something you want to tell me?"

"No, there isn't."

She then let out a soft giggled. "You know, you can compliment my appearance if you really want to, Yozora. I don't mind. In fact... I'd like it if you did."

Scenario four: I pushed the doors open into the break room, only to find that it had been taken over by the devil.

"Oh. Yozora," Mitsuki muttered, but I was far too sleepy to give a reaction.

"Hey..." I said.

"What the... What in the world happened to make the gloomy troglodyte even gloomier?"

"I went to sleep late."

"Later than usual? Gosh... Sit down. I'll make you a coffee."

"W-wha... Don't worry about that. I can make my own."

"Shut up and sit down."

Every time, there was something different, ranging from unhinged shenanigans in the studios to slightly less-than-professional activities during events. As difficult as the job got, I kept up. It was difficult, but Manager Na did his best to make the transition easy.

As the nights grew shorter, the days grew longer, until eventually, a third of my ninety-day period had passed.