Oshi no Ko: The Maestro

Chapter 41: The Grand Finale of LoveNow

Hiroshi stood before the bathroom sink, his tousled white hair illuminated by the soft morning light that filtered through the frosted window. He reached for the faucet, turning it on, and cold water gushed out, filling the basin. With a brisk movement, he cupped his hands under the stream, allowing icy water to collect. As he splashed his face, a shiver coursed through him, banishing the remnants of sleep.

He straightened, droplets of water glistening on his pale skin. Hiroshi met his own gaze in the mirror. His eyes, as clear as the winter sky, held a distant look, lost in thought. The wrinkles around his eyes deepened with a hint of contemplation as he pondered the challenges that lay ahead on this new day.

Hiroshi whispered to himself, his voice barely audible in the quiet bathroom, "Something is missing inside me," just as Akane had told him. The words hung in the air, making him pause and reflect on their meaning.

Hiroshi stood there for a moment, his gaze fixed on his own reflection in the mirror. As he pondered those haunting words from Akane, he felt a deep, inner turmoil bubbling up. With a sigh, he let go of the façade he had carefully constructed over the years. His clear, contemplative eyes lost their distant look, and a subtle sadness crept in.

He looked at himself, his eyes now reflecting a man who had hidden his true emotions for far too long. The wrinkles around his eyes, once markers of contemplation, now seemed to deepen with the weight of unexpressed feelings. Hiroshi's face transformed from a mask of composure to one of emptiness, his lips barely curving in a hint of a sorrowful smile.

In a hushed voice, barely audible even to himself, he whispered, "Something is missing inside me." This time, the words carried the weight of his genuine emotions, and they hung in the quiet bathroom.

Just as Hiroshi stood there, lost in the depths of his thoughts and the haunting words from Akane, a faint notification tone chimed from his phone, which sat on the bathroom counter. He blinked and reached for the device, unlocking it to read the message from Masaya. The notification from his friend said, "Masaya: Today is the last episode of LoveNow, Hiroshi. You know the drill!"

Hiroshi couldn't help but smirk as he read Masaya's message. He muttered to himself, "Well, Masaya, today is the day Akane takes the reins."

With Akane...
Akane paced back and forth in her room, her heart racing with excitement and a touch of anxiety. The episode was just hours away, and she couldn't decide what to wear. She spoke to herself in a flurry of thoughts.

"Okay, Akane, you've got to look perfect today. It's the last episode, and everyone's watching. But not too flashy, remember what your stylist said. Simple, elegant, but not boring. What about that white dress? No, too formal. Maybe the blue one, it matches my eyes, right?"

She moved to her closet and pulled out various outfits, laying them out on her bed. She continued her internal dialogue, a hint of frustration in her voice. "Why is this so hard? It's just a TV show. But it's LoveNow, and I've got to make a lasting impression."

Akane examined each outfit in the mirror, trying to envision how it would look on screen. "Maybe the white blouse and those black jeans? Casual but stylish. Or that floral dress? It's cute, but will it be too much? Ugh, I wish someone was here to help me decide."

As Akane continued her internal debate on what to wear, her phone lit up with a video call from Yuki. Startled, she quickly picked up her phone and accepted the call. Yuki's smiling face appeared on the screen, and she was in the midst of applying makeup.

"Hey, Akane!" Yuki greeted her, a warm and encouraging smile on her face. "Are you ready for today? It's a big day!"

Akane's face lit up when she saw Yuki. "Yuki, I'm so glad you called! I've been going crazy trying to decide what to wear. It's such a special occasion."