Chapter 1

Hokke~ C’mon, smile! Say cheeeeese… ☆

Cheeeeese.

Oh jeez, gimme some kinda pose! That’s so boring, yanno~?

You should’ve just said so. If you don’t specify beforehand, then it’s your fault, Akehoshi.

Huh~ But I didn’t tell Sally~ to do a pose, and he still did it! He floated up in the air for me… ☆

Uh no, I wasn’t actually floating.

(…Yes! A new record!)

(I was right to just go for it and rethink my route. If I’d kept going through the same motions, I probably wouldn’t have gotten through it so quick.)

(You’ve really gotta work up the courage to toss out the guide book you’re used to using, but it’s important to take up a challenge, too.)

(Anyway. It feels like it’s been so long since I’ve played this game.)

(In the dorms I usually play with other gamers, so I don't really get the chance to play single-player games.)

(But if I keep at it, I might even set a better record… ♪)

See! You can totally do it if you try, Hokke~ You’re like a real idol now! Aaand snap ☆

Not like—I am a real idol.

Fufu, I know. Okay, I’m done with your pics!

Thanks for waiting, Ukki~! It’s your turn now!

Wait, what’s going on?

We had some free time, so we’re taking pics for StarPro’s website.

The staffers said they wanted some candids of us.

O–oh, right.

Say cheeeeeese… ☆

Cheese…

(I still can’t help but flinch when I look at the camera. I just hope my face isn’t too stiff…)

How was it? Did you get it…?

It’s picture perfect! Just as expected from a genius kid model!

“Former” kid model. But I’m glad that experience can come in handy.

(…I should follow Akehoshi-kun’s lead and take some pictures myself. The atmosphere’s pretty relaxed now, so I’m not nervous at all.)

(… Huh? I got a text from Anzu-chan. What could she want…?)

(She wants to meet up this evening to talk about my personalized outfit? My schedule is…)

(…Oh good, I’m free. Then this evening is… okay, sent!)

(It’s finally my turn. I’m excited to get a costume just for me!)

(But I didn’t think it would come out of nowhere like this. Maybe I’m more surprised than excited, because I wasn’t prepared for it at all.)

(My personalized outfit, huh…)

He~y, Makoto. I can’t tell if you wanna laugh or cry, what’s up?

Umm… Actually, I just got a text from Anzu-chan about my personalized outfit.

Ohhh, Ukki~’s up next! That means I’m the last man standing! Yahooooo~ ☆

I want mine to be super sparkly! So much it glows in the dark!

Don’t go getting ahead of yourself. And besides, you should be directing those requests to Anzu.

I can picture it now~ Anzu holding her head in her hands and muttering, “sparkling… in the dark?”… ♪

So what kinda costume do you want, Makoto? Have you decided yet?

Nope. I don’t really get hung up about this kinda thing, so I’d rather just leave it up to Anzu-chan. But at the same time, I’d feel bad letting her deal with everything, so I should probably give it some thought.

…Or at least that’s what I was thinking, but I can’t come up with any ideas.

The first thing that came to mind was some casual street wear, but that would look like I’m copying Isara-kun's concept.

I’m not that great at dealing with things on the fly like this, so…

Ohh~ No, you’re awesome at that! You’ve got all that experience modeling, and you’re good at games! And you’ve even started acting lately ♪

See see! You can wing it just fine! I’m gonna start calling you the Wing-It Whiz… ☆

Ahaha, thanks… But I’m not the only one who can do that kind of thing, right? Izumi-san is better than me at modeling, and Hibiki-senpai is better than me at acting.

I’m good at gaming, but it’s not like I’m trying to go pro... So everything I’ve got is pretty half-baked.

? What’s so bad about that?

You’re the only one who has all those skills, right?

I guess, but…

……

outfits: winter casual (makoto)

(I wanted to see if I could get some inspiration for my personalized outfit somewhere online, but I’m having a hard time finding anything…)

(…Huh? What’s this blog? It’s full of pictures and posts about Izumi-san.)

(I’ve never even a lot of these pictures seen before… They look like they’ve all been taken recently, though.)

(…Oh, I’ve got it. It’s a fan blog about his work overseas. They seem really passionate about gathering info from Italian news articles and magazines.)

(H~mm. Were these published in a fashion magazine over there?)

(…I was forced into it all, but my roots are still in child modeling. So I guess a model-ish outfit would fit me best.)

(But what even is a model-ish outfit? It was my job to just wear whatever other people wanted me to…)

…? Someone’s tapping on my shoulder—

Wah! Anzu-chan?! Sorry, I was so caught up I didn’t even realize you were here.

…Yeah. I was thinking about ideas for my personalized outfit. But… I’m sorry, I can’t come up with anything.

I wanted to draw up the perfect draft for you to show you how reliable I am, but…

I don’t know how to give it “Yuuki Makoto” vibes at all—I’m stuck in a rut. I really am pathetic…

…Huh? You’re glad I told you how I was really feeling? ‘Cause it’s your job as a producer to help us with our problems, huh…

Yeah… I don’t have to be super reliable.

You’re right. I’ve already shown you how pathetic I can get, so it’s too late to try and save face now, huh?

Thanks, Anzu-chan. You’ve really taken the weight off my shoulders. Then I guess I’ll let you know what’s really going on… ♪