The Nonfiction That Only You Know

Chapter 24

Original Author: ひのはら (Hinohara)
Date Submitted to Kakuyomu: 2021/06/18

It is not uncommon to slightly change formations or choreography for live performances.
There are many things they need to remember for each live performance, such as setlists and their positions.

With the addition of a new member on top of that, there will be major changes to the choreography they've been doing up until now.

With so much to memorize, the members of Love Mill are inside the lesson room practicing hard today as well.

Right now, they're taking a brief intermission between intense sessions.

While leaning against the wall drinking water, Chiho hears the angry voice of their leader, Ooi Fuuka, and looks over in that direction in surprise.

"That's enough from you!"

They have been working together for over 3 years, but she has rarely seen Fuuka lay her emotions bare like this.

The other members are also surprised and rush over to Fuuka.

Chiho quickly joins them as well. The one Fuuka is pointing her anger toward is the new member, Yotsuya Rumi.

"Fuuka, what's wrong?"
"This girl...!"
"All I did was say the truth and she flew into a rage."
"What did you say?"

Chiho tried to keep her tone as neutral as possible when asking. Rumi is not the least bit shy when giving her answer.

Her attitude shows that she doesn't think she did anything wrong.

"I said that even though Fuuka-san is the leader, she's not popular at all. She's the one who talked to me first while getting irritated over how many lines I have even though I'm a new member."
"There's no way she wouldn't get upset if you say that..."
"It's the truth, isn't it? It would be one thing if Minami-san or another member said something, but Fuuka-san is the one person I do not want to hear that from."

Words that are too direct can easily hurt people's feelings.
Regardless of whether they're true or false, it's not good to throw out words meant to hurt someone.

Before Chiho could reprimand Rumi, the door to the lesson room opened.

The one who appeared was Love Mill's manager. He seems to have sensed the strange atmosphere in the room.

"Good work... Hm? Did something happen?"
"Nothing at all."

The honeyed voice Rumi replies with is a complete change from earlier.

Then, she moves closer to the manager as if to snuggle up to him.

"What brings you here?"
"The demo for the new song has just been completed. Are you all free to listen to it?"

After hearing Rumi's cheerful reply, the manager beckons the other members over.

Fuuka quickly wipes her eyes and clicks her tongue before heading over to him.
After confirming that all the members have gathered, the intro of the new song begins to play.

The up-tempo tune sounds very idol-like and cute.
It doesn't go against the image of Love Mill up until now. Though having said that, that doesn't mean there are no changes at all.

The song harmoniously incorporates a trendy melody into the sound of Love Mill.

"Amazing, it's so cute."
"It's very spring-like and refreshing..."

Everyone seems to be in agreement and favorable comments begin to come in one after another.
The tense atmosphere from earlier begins to fade and Chiho feels a brief moment of relief.