"Hehe, mumble mumble mumble…"

"Whaaat—!"

To make the conversation here clearer:

"Hehe, actually, we've arranged to debut as idols without even having to do an audition♪"

"Whaaat—!"

That's how it went.

"And, the agency people say they absolutely want to debut us as a duo!"

"Th-that means…"

"Right—like P○nk Lady or W○nk."

"......"

No way... So that means I'll have to be stuck with Midori-san forever, huh?

This is a nightmare~!

"U-um... But what about school and stuff?"

"As for school, we can handle it with the privilege of being the board chairman's daughter."

Ah, of course. Midori-san is the board chairman's daughter, after all.

"And so, the debut date has been set for July 30th."

Gah, it's already that far along. This momentum. I can't believe it.

"Wh-what about my schedule? I had all sorts of plans for summer vacation."

"What are you saying! Summer vacation's the perfect time for a debut, isn't it!! In things like this, the start is everything!!"

"Ehhh— but—"

Glare.

Startle—

Eeek—I'm weak when she glares at me with those eyes.

"Day one, meaning July 30th, we're debuting as assistants on *24-Hour TV*! Amazing, right~? Debuting on national TV right off the bat."

Oh no. *24-Hour TV*?! Seriously, give a little thought to me, would you!

"And, our debut song was written by the famous ○○○! Great, right~?"

"Ehh—Is that for real?"

"Yes. Actually, I've already listened to our debut song♪"

"Ehhh—N-no fair~"

"I thought you'd say that. Hehe. Look what I've got~"

Still grinning, Midori-san pulled an audio player out of her shoulder bag and showed it. The player's display read: "Tinker Bell · In a Dream."

"Is the debut song inside that? Come on, let me hear it!"

"Yup. It's a super great song!"

"Oh, it's called 'In a Dream.' Tinker Bell... could that be..."

"Yes, our unit's name. By the way, here's our debut costume."

Midori showed me one photo, which pictured a cute costume inspired by Tinker Bell.

"Th-this... I really have to wear it, don't I?"

"What are you saying! It's our stage costume, so of course you do."

"But it's so super girly, it's embarrassing~"

"It's fine. You'll get used to it in no time."

"I-is that how it is?"

"Hehe, that's how it is. Now, hurry up and listen♪"

"Okay."

I plugged headphones into the silver-pink audio player and slowly pressed the Play button. Until the intro started, my heart wouldn't stop pounding. The next moment, a beautiful harp intro began to flow.

...

Hey, is this inside a dream? It's the same scenery I once saw. A blue sea and a beautiful rainbow.

The two of us, holding hands, are walking along a white sandy beach. Ah, if this is a dream, please don't let me wake up.

So we can stay just like we were back then, forever. Keep your eyes on only me.

Ah, before I know it, I'm inside a dream. Last year's memories. The shore where we met.

Can we never go back? My heart aches, feels like it might burst.

I, like Tinker Bell, want to fly to where you are.

...

"Haa~ It's a beautiful song~"

"See? Actually, the one singing was me."

"Whaaat—! How come?"

"I had to shift Miki's part and record it too, so it was a lot of work."

"My part?"

"Yes, actual recording starts on Wednesday next week. This is just a demo—I got the BGM-only tape and recorded it at our home studio."

"Next week, huh... sigh I'm not confident about this..."

"Oh, and the photo shoot for the CD is on Tuesday, and Monday is the costume fitting."

"Wha—so that means it's every day after all!"

"That's right—idols don't get days off!"

"Ugh... I'm quitting after all—"