Meteor Shower | Tamon's B side |

Prologue | Fan Girl

Masuya Kino is a fan girl.

That's the best way to describe herself—she thinks, anyway.

All of her activities are related to being a fan. All of her friends are also fans. Even her family are fans of things.

Her dad is a fan of sports and working out. Her mom is a fan of media. Her older sister is a fan of books. And she is a fan of Idols.

It's in her nature for that to be all that she is.

A fan.

When she met Utage Kinoshita—a kohai at her high school, who was a fan of F/ace—she was excited. She was finally able to talk to someone about her interest!

It became something she looked forward to every day.

Is that pathetic?

Perhaps. Maybe a little.

The strike of their school bell breaks her out of her mind. Immediately, she grabs her bag, and the jingle of her keychains and pins follows her footsteps.

It isn't long until she makes it to the girls' classroom.

Isn't it pathetic how she's looking for her? It's normally the junior who looks for their senior.

"Uta-chan!" She calls, her voice cheery.

The brunette turns away from her two friends—who are currently holding multiple magazines. Masuya only catches a glimpse of pink, but she can guess who they're looking at.

"Yu-Chan!" The girl calls back, pushing herself up. Riko and Yuina follow suit, making their trio complete.

Utage is very pretty. Not in a celebrity way or fashion model way—just in a simple town girl way. Her hair is always done in different styles, and she's pretty fashionable. Unlike Masuya, who just throws on merch or her uniform. For some reason, she reminds Masuya of a main character.

Is that a weird thought to have about her friend? Has her interest polluted her perception of reality? Is she truly too far gone—

"Hey hey~! I was wondering if you'd show." Riko says, breaking Masuya out of spiraling. Her lips pulled into a small smirk. She always does that.

"We were getting a little worried," Yuina adds on with a smile. Riko rolls her eyes at that.

Both of their comments confuse Masuya. She swears that she left right when class ended. She classes at the clock and noticed that it was 5 minutes later than she normally was.

How weird.

Instead, she just laughs. "Sorry, I guess I was just daydreaming again."

She probably was.

The four of them leave the classroom while talking about their idols. They had different Oshis, but it was still fun. She liked talking to them.

That's why she could tell Utage was acting differently. Not a major change, just subtle things.

She was less observant. She seemed to be distracted, in the clouds.

Utage isn't the most down-to-earth person, but she isn't an airhead either. She normally is very observant and keeps track of things most people wouldn't.

So what's distracting her?

She wanted to ask, but wasn't sure if it was her place. I mean, they were just friends because of their shared interest in idols. Isn't it going too far to ask about personal things?

That was until she came to school one day, anxious out of her mind.

Riko and Yuina seemed to notice but didn't say anything. Masuya wanted to do the same, but it felt wrong not to.

"Hey Uta-chan?" She asks while they are walking back home. It was one of those rare days when she didn't have work immediately after school. Utage blinks away from the ground to look at the slightly shorter girl.

"Hm? Something wrong?" Utage asks, tilting her head. A small smile is on her face, but Masuya can't help but think it feels wrong.

"I should be asking you that," Masuya says, fidgeting with her hair. It's pulled into two low pigtails, only long enough to be slightly over her shoulders. "I mean, you've been out of sorts for...well, a while."

There's a slight pause before Utage tilts her head to show her confusion. "Out of sorts?"

"Mhm. You've been very distracted lately. And you've been more jumpy. Even when we talk about F/ace and Tamon, you still aren't as passionate as before. No offenses, of course!"

The two continue to walk, and Masuya focuses more on the cobbled path than on her friend.

Was it a good idea for her to ask? Did she fuck up one of her few friendships?

But Utage just laughs and shakes her head. "I have had some distractions lately. Mainly for work. It's been stressful, you know?" She starts talking animatedly. "I spent a lot of money at the SUPERNOVA Concert and handshaking event, so I have to work hard to spend more on Tamon!" She beams.

Masuya's eyes widen slightly at her shift in energy. It's an expected response—almost practice. She can't shake the feeling that it's not entirely true. But she doesn't push.

She doesn't have that right.

Instead, Masuya just smiles back and nods, "Yeah, that makes sense! Sorry if it was out of nowhere." She rubs the back of her neck, a nervous tick she picked up from....somewhere.

"It's fine. I appreciate the concern, though."

And that was that.

She asked, and Utage said it was work stress.

So, why does she still feel like something is off?

Whatever.

It's not like it affects her.

So, why does it bother her so much?