[SLOW] This Stage is Mine [IDOLiSH7 FANFIC]

- 2 -

“Um, I think so. Maybe.” Saika mumbled.

Her brother tutted. “You really need to work on your skills of observation.”

“Point taken,” Saika answered. “So what do you want me to do with Rei-chan?”

☆

Sunlight poured through the window and shone on Rei’s face. For a second, she was blinded, not sure where she was. Then she remembered.

I’m not in Otaru anymore, she thought. This is Kyoto.

Rubbing the sleep from her eyes, she sat up on her bed and squinted at the window. She’d forgotten to draw the curtains. She usually never did back home, since her room faced the west.

A glance at the clock told her it was seven thirty. Saika had told her to come to the agency building at nine.

“Plenty of time,” she told herself. “No rush there.”

She got up and did her morning routine - making her bed, brushing her teeth and taking a shower. She couldn’t make her own breakfast yet; the small apartment kitchen was devoid of any signs of food. Rei made a mental note to go grocery shopping later.

The accommodations provided by the agency was an apartment about a ten minute’s walk away from the agency building. Seeing as there was more than an hour to spend, Rei exited the apartment to get a quick meal. She soon found out that one of the shops nearby sold excellent cakes.

Fonte Chocolat. The exterior of the shop was well-decorated, and the interior didn’t disappoint, either. It was a quaint, cosy café with cute motifs placed around.

The owner was a kind-looking woman with black hair and a friendly smile. “Good morning, dear,” she greeted as Rei approached the counter. “Care to have breakfast here?”

Indeed she did. Rei selected a chocolate Hokkaido cake and a cup of warm milk, and chose a seat while waiting for her order.

As she glanced around the shop, she caught sight of two posters. Each poster depicted one person. And those two were the sibling members of IDOLiSH7, Iori and Mitsuki Izumi.

Strange that they’d display only two of them in the shop, Rei thought. IDOLiSH7 has more members than that.

There were no other customers around. It must’ve been a bit too early for them, seeing as it was just past eight. So when the woman came back with Rei’s order, she lingered to talk to her.

“I haven’t seen you around before,” she said, setting a tray with cake and milk on the table. “Are you new around here?”

“Yes, ma’am,” Rei answered. “I just arrived here yesterday.”

“Where from?”

“Hokkaido.” Rei gave a short answer, a little hesitant to talk more.

The woman smiled. “Ah, Hokkaido. A nice place. I’ve been there with my family before, years ago. Good memories. I can’t quite remember how old my sons were, though … ”

“That’s nice.”

“Where is your family?”

“Um, in Hokkaido.” It seemed like the woman made a point of being friendly with her customers. Rei started to feel a little rude giving such short answers.

“Ah. So you came all the way here by yourself?” The woman looked mildly surprised. “Whatever for?”

This was a tricky question. Rei thought about her answer for a second and answered, “Uh, I’m just here for work.”