Chapter 17
TL: Akabane
***
Less than a month until the exhibition. The poster was finally completed.
All the photos taken were beautiful. The photographer who attended the meeting said, "It's been a long time since I've been this excited." It must have been because she was so absorbed in the atmosphere she radiated.
Many people said it was too good to limit it to just one picture, so we decided to make three different kinds. Of course, after confirming that there was no additional charge.
One is her looking back in a cosmos field. Her white dress and purple flowers are dancing.
One is her standing on the grass, looking up at the sky. Her light blue one-piece dress is swaying, blending in with the sky.
One is of her facing sideways, looking at the camera. Her black one-piece dress and ponytail match well and are different from the other two pictures.
In any case, what they have in common is that they do not look like Aimi Momoka. From what I know from her Sakura Romance days, she doesn't seem at all capacious.
No, she wasn't a strong type of person, but she was not zero. She must have been familiar with the group because they had been working together as a group.
This time she is a different person.
Her makeup is lighter than when she was an idol, but she looks more radiant. And her beautifully grown black hair matches well with her appearance.
The subject and the catch copy are the two most important elements of the poster. The catch copy. We gave them our request in advance and asked the copywriter commissioned by the agency to convey it to us. The writer came up with several ideas, but in common with all three types of posters, I decided to use only one word.
-- Stationery that colors your thoughts is come from your hand.
There was no sense of unity between the photocopies and the photographs. This was the opinion of all the participants, but many of them dared to suggest that the gap between the two might also be interesting.
Indeed, it's hard to believe that this is a poster for a stationery manufacturer. If anything, it even looks like they are trying to sell Miina Yamamoto.
But in our opinion, the first thing is to get people to know her. Using her as a springboard sounds bad, but in fact it is. She herself knew that.
The completed posters were to be distributed by the salesmen to their customers and suppliers. This is a routine event every year, but this year she is especially looking forward to it. What kind of response would they get?
"--I wonder if this was the right thing to do."
Naturally, we asked Yamamoto to come to our office to see the finished product. I mean, she has been here many times for post-shooting meetings, so I was getting rather used to it.
Then, she said something like that to me, so I thought for a minute and asked, "What?"
"The company name is too small. This is looks like my promotional photo ......."
"Well, it looks substantial?"
"Well, it's substantial, isn't it? You are making fun of me, aren't you?"
"You got it."
As we had more meetings, we inevitably had more opportunities to talk. At least, I think we've exceeded the amount of time we spent talking in line at handshake events. In that sense, the last few days have been a blessing.
Thanks to that, I think we've gotten to know each other well enough to make light jokes. Well, I don't deny that we have drawn a line in the sand. After all, for me, she is the idol Aimi Momoka whom I admire so much.
"Araki-san is so mean, isn't he?"
She gives me a sultry look as she sits on a chair in the company break room. It makes me feel like I'm working in the office with her, and it itches a little.
And I don't like it when she says that to me. But I can't help but smile with pleasure.
"What makes you say that?"
"Somehow......"
There is no particular reason, apparently. I guessed that this story would not spread any further, so I drank the last of my black coffee.
The meeting was over, so she could leave the office as she was. But since she didn't move in her chair, it was hard for me to leave. It's not that I have any urgent work to do, but it's a little awkward.
"......It's very strange."
"...... What?"
"I thought you'd be more frightened, but you're not."
I wonder if it's the fact that she herself is out in the world. I urge her to continue.
"I can't say I'm looking forward to it, but ..... I feel like my heart has become lighter."
"Lighter ......?"
"Yes. It's strange, isn't it? I was scared."
It's indeed a strange story. She had forcibly quit her idol career because she didn't like it, but this time, she wasn't afraid of it.
Of course, human psychology differs from time to time. However, the fundamental feeling, the fear of so-called slander, hasn't disappeared. It's just that she feel "lighter" now.
If so, what should I say to her? It's not the same as saying, "I'm happy for you." The sense of duty to be there for her is both the good and the bad part of being a fan.
"I'm sure that's the way it should be."
"...... I guess that's true."
"Yes. I'm sure it is."
A job that brings happiness to people. I believe that is what idols do. It would be strange if they are not happy. And the public is crazy if they don't care about that. Without her happiness, we wouldn't have this feeling.
It's unreasonable. It's true. If I were in her shoes, I'd probably just evaporate in a fit of discontent. It's really amazing that people want to be idols in a world like this.
......Why did she want to become an idol in the first place? It's a question that occurred to me. I had never paid attention to it before, but when I think about it, it is not surprising that there was a "trigger".
"Why did you join this company, Araki-san?"
She beat me to it. Oh well. There would be another time to ask.
"It was just a feeling. Honestly."
"But you've been doing it for a long time."
"Well, it's been 10 years."
"Isn't that great?"
She says so, but I wonder what she really means. The definition of greatness as long service is usually wrong. There are many people who are useless just because they've been there for a long time, and those are the ones who are more likely to talk about something. I don't know what they are getting wrong.
Besides, the reason I work is to survive. If I could live without doing anything, it would be thousands of times better. In my case, it's also that I just can't be bothered to quit.
"I'm lucky. I'm sure."
She looks at me and smiles. It's cute and embarrassing.
"...... Luck, huh? I guess you're right."
Thinking about it, I've been lucky enough to work in an environment where I work for a company that hired me by chance, for 10 years. I've been able to work there for 10 years without incident, which is good for me.
I guess you could call it a coincidence of chance. If so, the girl in front of me would be the first one.
The day of the concert in Fukuoka.
After the concert, instead of going straight back to the hotel, I stopped by that convenience store and ran into her. And she took a picture of me. If Momohana Aimi had not had the feeling of "wanting to quit" that day, at that moment, this time now would not have been possible.
Then I guess I'm very lucky. I'm the opposite of some light novel protagonist.
"--Araki-san?"
I was so lost in thought that my shoulders shook at the sound of her voice.
"Ah, I'm sorry. I was in a daze."
"I'm glad. I thought you were sick."
"No, no, no. I'm fine."
My heart beats every time Miina Yamamoto calls my name. She has such a beautiful voice that it penetrates my body without missing a beat. I want to listen to this voice all the time.
I know it's not what I would think of her if she quit being an idol, but I still want to hear her singing voice just one more time. If I told her this, I'm sure she would be in trouble. Since she was finally able to look forward a little, there was no need for me to do anything unnecessary here.
"Do you believe in fortune-telling, Yamamoto-san?"
She has a face that says, "What are you going to say out of the bush?" Even such a face is beautiful.
"I only believe in good times."
"Haha. I see."
"By the way, today Aries was 6th."
"Oh, what do you do when you are in the middle?"
"Hmm. I believe it depends on the content."
"What about today?"
"I heard tea is good."
"Oh, that's right."
She holds out a cup of milk tea in front of her face, "Ehehe." She laughs and says she believes what's convenient. I'm on board, too.
I told myself that this is the only time we can have this kind of conversation.
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