Rule Four || Dream

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"Where is she?" Shizuka mumbled under her breath as she waited in her office.

Her friend and vocal coach for the trainees she managed was late. Once again. It never surprised Shizuka after a few months of doing this. Her friend was dependable on a lot of things, but being on time was not one of them.

After she was late thirty minutes, Shizuka stood up and decided to pack her things up. With any luck, Aya would be able to catch her before she left.

Nishida Shizuka was one of Japan's best managers at Japan's best entertainment company,  Nakashima's Entertainment Company.  Artists like AKB48 and Hey! Say JUMP! have been housed there. Shizuka doesn't manage a lot of artists, for fear of being too stressed. And since she's the best manager of the company, she usually helps the group debut and be comfortable with being am idol before being passed down to another manager. Which is why she's the best.

Plus, being best friends with the owner had its perks as well. Nakashima Ami, CEO of the company, had it passed down from her father, who had it passed down from his father, and it goes on for a couple more generations. Their family has been in the music business since they were in diapers. Ami's been singing ever since she learned to talk, and had dance lessons as well.

And having their families being the best of friends, Shizuka started taking singing and dancing lessons as well. They were in competitions together, doing only duets, as they didn't want to be up against each other.

Ami's father had gotten really sick, and passed the company down to her before he died from leukemia. Ami vowed not to let her father's reputation go down the drain, and her best friend stood by her side the whole way, earning not only the manager title, but co-CEO when needed.

As Shizuka was about to turn the lights off in her office, she heard her friend's voice.

"NISHIDA-SAN!" Aya shouted so loudly, it could've woke the rest of Tokyo.

Shizuka closed her office door, which was connected to her studio she occupied during the day. She waited a few seconds before seeing the redhead at the door.

"You're forty-five minutes late," Shizuka scowled, checking her watch.

Aya bent down so she could catch her breath. "I know...I know...She's here, though! The girl...Come in, Erie-san!"

The small redhead moved out the way to let a slightly taller girl walk in. Shizuka's eyes widened as she laid eyes on the prettiest girl she's ever seen.

The girl was about Shizuka's height, had bright blue eyes, and a cute smile. She wore her brown hair into a ponytail with bangs in her eyes, and was dressed in a t-shirt and jeans. Even in the simplest of clothes, she looked stunning to the manager.

But she had to snap out of it. The girl was about sixteen, whereas Shizuka was twenty-five.

The girl bowed politely out of respect, and Shizuka returned it. "Good-evening, Nishida-san."

"Good-evening to you to..."

"Oh! Abe Erie," she said, blushing a little.

Shizuka nodded, and went to sit down in the chair closest to her. "Singer?" She questioned.

"Dancer," Erie corrected.

Surprised, Shizuka raised her eyebrows. Most girls would come in to be a singer, not a dancer. But now that Shizuka took a good look at her, she did have the body of a dancer. Stop, Shizuka! She thought to herself.

"Mind showing me what you got?" Shizuka asked.

Erie casted Aya a nervous look. The redhead quickly spoke up, "I didn't know you wanted her to dance now! It's late, and I thought you would set up an audition or something!"

"I'm sorry," Erie apologized.

"It's fine. How about tomorrow at nine? I'll have Nakashima-san come in and watch as well."

"The Nakashima-san?! I've idolized her since I was young and saw her compete with her friend..."

Shizuka was about to text Ami when she heard Erie talk, and she lifted her head. Erie was covering her mouth, staring at the manager with wide eyes. Beside her, Aya crossed her arms and chuckled softly.

"I didn't even recognize you! Please, I'm so sorry!" Erie bowed nervously.

Shizuka hummed softly at the girl, who was turning redder by the second. "You don't need to apologize. It's okay, I know I'm old."

"No! You're not old! I just...I wasn't thinking! Forgive me please?"

"You're forgiven. It's fine, Erie-san."

The girl gave a small smile that Shizuka couldn't help but smile back at. She quickly texted Ami before putting her phone away.

"Well, now that's settles it. I'll see you tomorrow at nine, Abe-san."

Shizuka stood up and bowed, and Erie didn't hesitate to return it. Then her and Aya left, leaving Shizuka alone for a few minutes to think about what just happened.

She could not be checking out a teenager! That would be immoral, wrong, and just plain weird. Not to mention, breaking the rule of no relations with a minor for Nakashima's, and illegal since she wasn't of age.  But Erie had an amazing body, and she was just so cute, Shizuka couldn't resist looking at her.

I sound like a pervert, Shizuka groaned in her head. But she can't be one right? She's never looked at another teenage girl before like that. Except when she's sizing them up for where they should stand. But her eyes wouldn't linger on certain places, and she didn't make them uncomfortable.

GAH! I got to get out of here before I lose my mind!

Shizuka closed and locked her studio up, since the janitor already cleaned in there. Then she hurried out the entertainment building and to her car, where she drove home.

Usually when she got an audition, Shizuka would look up the person. But she knew it would lead to her staring and drooling over she girl's pictures. Why did this girl appear in Shizuka's mind every five seconds? She doesn't know if she can actually dance, yet she couldn't stop thinking about how beautiful she was and how cute she blushed. All she knew was that she couldn't keep managing her. Once she was ready, she'll be tossed to the next waiting manager, and Shizuka can focus on the girl group she's currently managing.

"Hiro," Shizuka called when she got home.

Her white cat jumped off the top of the couch and stretched in front of her. He rubbed himself on her legs, Ami she was glad he had short hair and didn't shed often.

"Hey, kitty," she cooed, rubbing his face and sitting her things down.

Shizuka lived alone with her cat, Hiro, in a nice-sized house near the country so she could have more privacy. Her house wasn't as big or extravagant as Ami's, and she was happy about that. She never wanted a huge house, despite having more money than the average working person.

She went and showered before searching for something she wanted to eat. For some reason, she never hired a cook. She'd rather either have take-out or go to her parents' house for dinner. But it'd be nice to not have to leave the house for food.

She found leftovers and warmed the up, resting her head on her arms against the counter. After showering, she was always sleepy due to working late most nights. And, unfortunately, Erie popped into her head.

Why? Why did this girl have to show up, late at night, looking insanely beautiful, and not singing? Why was she thinking about her, when she doesn't even know if she has pure talent or not?

"I hate my job," she mumbled to herself even though she knows she's in love with what she do.

I don't know why, but I adore this ship. I always picture Shizuka as the innocent one and Erie as the more..........not innocent one.