The Betrayed Hero and the Idol

As it turns out, it is not straightforward.

It seems that I've vastly underestimated the complexity of recording music.

From setting up and navigating the software to having the microphone record with good audio quality with vocals and guitar...

In short, I'm very out of my league here.

It seems I'll need to practice a bit before I make anything.

And even then, I'd need to set up distribution, marketing, copyright...

Hey, Ai would know people for this, right?

Looking at the clock, I see that I've spent basically the whole day doing this, although it wasn't all useless as I also got some practice using the electric guitar.

While somewhat different from an acoustic, it was close enough to not cause many problems, the biggest thing was figuring out the AMP and effects.

And throughout the entire day, Ai still hadn't told me anything about our supposed karaoke.

Did she change her mind?

No, it's more likely that she just forgot.

We also don't have any way to contact each other, so that doesn't help.

A knock at the door interrupts my thoughts before a muffled voice enters my ears.

"Cassius~!"

Speak of the devil.

Walking up to the door, I open it to reveal Ai, her entrancing purple eyes peeking over her sunglasses.

"Hey, Cassius! It's karaoke time!"

"Haa, you do realize that you didn't tell me anything about this like you said you would? You're lucky I wasn't heading out tonight, you would've been left alone in front of my door."

"Oh, I did, didn't I? Whoopsie~"

"Whatever. Come on in, the furniture got here this morning, so you have a place to sit now."

Not even taking a moment to think of the possible implications, she skips right into my apartment, kicking off her shoes before sitting back on the Chesterfield chair.

Seriously, how can she so easily walk into a guy's apartment like that?

"Well, grab something from the fridge if you want. I'm gonna get changed."

Not that I know much of anything about fashion.

I'll just put on the outfit Ai made me get.

Quickly getting changed, I then return to see Ai walking around the room, curiously looking over everything with her hands linked behind her back.

"Glad you made yourself at home."

Turning to face me, I see Ai give me an evaluative glance before nodding with a slight blush.

"A-Ah! You're wearing that! Good... Very good."

"Okay? And just to make sure, the kids aren't staying home alone right now, right?"

Locking the door behind us, we begin making our way to the unknown location with Ai leading the way.

"Nah, Miyako is watching over them! You should've seen their faces when I told them about yesterday!"

"I imagine. I'm surprised that they even allowed us to do this."

"Mmm! Well, you already knew, and it's good to have another trustworthy person in on my secret."

"That so."

----- 10 Minutes Later -----

"Finally! I can take this disguise off!"

Tossing aside her hat, mask, sunglasses, and coat into the corner of the karaoke bench, Ai then skips over to the tablet.

"Now~ what song should we start with?"

"I don't really care. Be sure to not drop your guard, employees might come in."

"It's alright, they always knock beforehand. And any song you say~? Even if it was one of B-Komachi's~?"

"Yeah."

Having to impersonate the princess for most of my life, of course, I would be able to use a girl's voice. 

In fact, I'm pretty confident in impersonating most people's voices as it was a critical part of my body double training.

"Well if you say so~ Since this is my training, I'll go first, and you'll do it after, okay~?"

Standing up with the mic in hand, I look at the title of the song she chose.

'Sign wa B'

Uhh... okay?

Interesting title choice.

Tying her hair back in a bun, the song starts.

"Your idol~ sign is B!"

Wait, I have to sing this after her, right?

I should study how the song goes.

An initial breakdown focusing on instrumentals, leading into a quicker-paced verse...

I see.

A song made with the live performance in mind.

Makes sense as from what I understand, idols' main gigs are concerts.

Memorizing the song, it eventually comes to an end with Ai getting into her choreography.

"'Chu!' Haa~ That was a good warm-up! So, Cassius~ you want to try?"

Handing over the mic, I do a light stretch while looking over the score she had gotten.

100, a perfect score.

While definitely impressive, considering that she is the one who sang the original, it would be worrisome if she didn't get a high score.

Well, let's do this.

Although some of the lyrics are certainly embarrassing, I've long since conquered shame, especially when seriously attempting to act.

So let's get serious, shall we? I need to impress a cute idol, after all.

Let me show you the prided impersonation skills of the Aspian royal court.

----- Ai POV -----

Passing the microphone to Cassius, I lay back on the cushioned bench, eager to hear his performance.

Fufufu, maybe I should record this? 

It'll be quite funny to see him try to sing it, even better if he tries a girl's voice!

The song starts as the first lyrics appear on the screen.

A deep breath with eyes sharpened in focus, and then...

"Your idol~ sign is B!"

...What.

He then continues through the song, his voice unrecognizable from the original.

Wawawhat!

He's actually good!?

Really, really good!

How!? How is his voice a carbon copy of mine!?

Eventually, the final line resounds through the room, if I had not been in shock, I would've laughed at his 'Chu!'.

"Tsk. Knew my pitch was wrong for that middle part."

Breaking out of my trance, I look over to the screen, showing a flashing number revealing his score.

96.

On a song he never heard before today, and most importantly, one sung by the opposite gender.

"So? How was I?"

Turning toward me, he flashes a condescending smirk my way.

"Wow~! You did amazing Cassius~ Let-"

"Didn't I ask to not use that facade when we're alone?"

Before I could respond, he presses his hand against the wall while leaning over me, effectively trapping me in the seat.

W-Wait! T-Too close!

"I used to think it was similar to another person I knew... But that's not quite right either. It's almost like you're trying to convince yourself, no, the world of something."

Captivating blue-green orbs, staring deeply into mine in a probing manner, as if trying to pierce through my very soul.

Seeing him so up close like this, I can appreciate his lean musculature, every movement brimming with untapped power yet not bulging outward like most bodybuilders.

"Ai, what are you so scared of?"

'That I'll never understand love, that those close to me will see me as an emotionless monster and leave me just like Mama did.'

An unspoken response, exhibiting the greatest fears of the famous Ai Hoshino.

Sorry, Cassius, I can't answer that question.

At least not yet.

But... maybe, I'll lower this act, at least around him.

Perhaps it could even be the key to finding love.

"You're right, sorry Cassius. Anyway! Let's do another, you can choose the song this time!"

"Uh, I'm not very familiar with many songs."

"Huh? Aren't you a musician?"

"An aspiring one. And they make music, they don't necessarily have to listen to it."

"Sure sure. So? How has your artist journey been?"

His cheeks grow a tint redder as he grabs a menu.

"I-I've had some trouble getting started, but I'll get through it. A-Anyway, do you want to order anything? My treat."

Are you trying to divert the topic?

How cute.

"Hmm... just get me a coke, please."

Now, what song to do next?

----- 2 Hours Later -----

Before I knew it, the time we had booked for the booth had run its course.

It was... fun.

Extremely so.

To spend time with Cassius like this, without the subtle pressure to maintain my act.

It was nice, relaxing too.

Walking down the streets, illuminated by the passing cars and lampposts, I look to my side at Cassius.

Shuddering at the sensation that had been gnawing at me the entire night and that grew with each passing second.

Yeah, I definitely liked him.

And not as a simple curiosity, though I did want to know about him more.

"-i, Ai?"

"Huh?"

"What are you doing, staring off into space like that? You looked like you wanted to ask me a question before we left, do you still remember it?"

What?

Oh! I was gonna ask him about that!

It's been at the back of my mind since he explained his troubles with starting music production.

"Ah! I was wondering since you've been having issues with recording, and there's still a bunch to do after, like distribution, marketing, and all that business stuff, if you wanted me to ask the president to help you out. I still owe you a favour for taking the kids out, and Strawberry Productions have all the contacts from B-Komachi... So? Do you want me to?"

Looking off to the side while taking a moment to ponder, he then shakes his head.

"No. At least not yet. I want to learn how to produce it by myself, at least enough for a demo. I'll need help with the so-called 'business stuff', but I'd want to have something to show them first. Thanks though."

Ending with a soft smile, I feel my heart beat a little faster.

Mou! It's unfair, what you're doing to me, Cassius!

Wait, didn't we just essentially have a date?

Yeah, we definitely did!

So, this wouldn't be a step too far, would it?

Reaching over, I hesitantly brush my hand over his, sending a shock through my body as he flinches in surprise.

Carefully, I grasp a hold of his finger, making me look down in embarrassment.

Gah! What are you doing, me!?

I have kids already! What am I doing getting flustered over some innocent hand-holding!?

Suddenly, I feel his hand move to completely grasp mine, our fingers slightly intertwined.

Wow, I never noticed how big his hands are, I can also feel a slight roughness of calloused palms.

The burning shame dying down, all that I can feel is a comforting warmth as we continue our way back home.

It isn't bad. Not at all.

Though no matter how relaxed it feels, I still can't bring myself to meet his gaze.

This feeling of satisfaction, pleasure and warmth, I'll be sure to remember it.

----- Cassius POV -----

Reaching Ai's door, our hands slowly separate, our fingers brushing against each other's until the last moment.

"W-Well, I should go put the kids to bed! Goodnight, Cassius, it was fun~!"

Her usual facade returning, she unlocks her door before heading inside.

Now left alone, I look down at my right hand, lacking the warmth it had become accustomed to the past several minutes.

Yup, I definitely like her.

And I'd be pretty stupid not to pick up her own interest in me.

But it's not so easy to just start dating like that.

She's a celebrity, and an idol at that, meaning her fans are... quite vicious in regards to scandals concerning relationships.

There's also the matter of her children, her fear of *something* that makes her lie to everyone, and then her past troubles with men, or man.

From the fact she had never mentioned the father to her children, he was completely out of the picture... probably.

So at least I wouldn't be intruding on anything.

Argh! This shit is so complicated!

I'm just gonna go home and distract myself by trying to record a song, yeah, a perfect way to pass the time.

----- 4 Days Later -----

"Hmm... Not that bad."

Taking off my headphones, I run my hand through my hair.

Finally, I had recorded something that didn't sound like utter dogshit.

Looking over at my new instrument, a high-end electric drum set, I let loose a deep sigh.

"Now, how the hell do you go about playing drums?"

Yeah, so I guess I have another thing to learn to pass the time, so that's good.

It's been four days since I went to karaoke with Ai, and we had gone for our morning jogs together since then.

Now closer than before, we talked to each other whenever we stopped for a breather.

While I didn't talk about my actual past, as in the one from another world, I did try to manipulate the information to be as truthful as possible while still aligning with my backstory here.

I also learned a few things about Ai, or should I say, Ai Hoshino.

So yeah, I was now one of the few people who knew about her family name.

She also explained some of her past, growing up in an orphanage, her mother abandoning her...

Yeah, not a great past.

And from the way her eyes dimmed during her explanation, I have a feeling her 'act', or the fear that drives her to keep it up derives from her history.

Haa, lots to think about.

I'd like to help her, of course, but what could I do when I've never been abandoned?

Or maybe I had been, but it never bothered me as I'd been an orphan my entire life.

*Ding!*

Picking up my phone, I see a text notification.

It's no surprise that it's Ai, as she's the only contact I have on my phone.

Opening her message, I read over her request.

'Hey Cassius! I have time off tomorrow, and the kids haven't been to an aquarium yet, so I'd like to do another fake family trip! Thankies! I'll see you tomorrow! ;P'

What a brazen girl, but then again, that's part of her charm.

I have enough self-awareness to know that I've fallen for her, and fairly hard too... but can I love again?

Do I deserve to love her when I'm still not over Lili?

Could I ever get over Lili?

...And would I even want to.

She was my everything, we shared our lives, laid bare our most intimate feelings, learned to love together, grew together...

It wouldn't be so easy to cast away all of that.

And those precious memories... I wouldn't give them up for anything.

Yeah, feelings are hard.

And I can't exactly ask anyone for advice as I have a feeling that I would earn a one-way ticket to the psych ward if I did.

Responding with my acceptance to her... invitation, if you can call it that, I then get up and stretch.

Once again, she didn't give me any location or time, so I'd have to ask her for that later.

...If she even responds.

Well, not like I have anything else happening, worst-case scenario I can ask her tomorrow morning in person.