Chapter Text
It was already late in the afternoon since [y/n]’s encounter with Izumi that day. The poor girl was still confused on why the male had suddenly demanded her presence for his work, when he himself told her that he won’t be needing her assistance for the remainder of his stay.
She remembered how the idol had made a clear line between them the day after he ended their fake relationship. How things between them just started spiraling down from there.
Up until now, [y/n] still wonders what went wrong. It wasn’t that she was expecting anything to happen between her and Izumi, but the feelings that resided within her grew significantly in that short amount of time they had spent together. She wondered that maybe if she didn’t just leave that day after he ended things, that maybe if she tried to talk it out with the male, then maybe things wouldn’t be so awkward between them.
As she kept walking and let these swirl of thoughts run in her head, she didn’t notice the person walking towards her and bumped into them.
“Ah! Sorry! I wasn’t looking” the manager instantly apologized to the person they bumped into, not realizing that said person was none other than Leo.
“[y/n]-chan!!~” the male instantly engulfing the girl in a tight embrace. The girl returned the gesture, lightly patting the male’s back.
Leo then released the girl from his hug, but not completely letting her go and holding her at arm's length. “Are you feeling better?”
The girl was surprised by the male’s sudden question, not knowing where it came from. She looked at Leo, his mouth forming a pout as he waited for her answer.
She slowly nodded at his question, but the male just eyed her even more intensely than earlier. His eyes squinted this time as if to show that he was trying to read her, but the pout on his lips never left.
Seeing how the girl had nothing to add to her answer, he eventually let her go and crossed his arms over his chest, but the pout still visible in his features as if he was a child throwing a tantrum. “Hmm… [y/n]-chan’s really bad at lying.”
“I’m sorry…?” If [y/n] was shocked by Leo’s earlier question, she was even more so with his new statement.
“You know you can always tell me if Sena is being a big meanie.”
Then it all clicked.
Leo might be an all over the place type of guy, but he was definitely really observant about the people around him, especially those he deems important to him, so it would only be natural for the male to notice sudden changes between her and his dear friend Izumi.
[y/n] couldn’t help but smile at the concern the male had for her, but she wanted to sort things out on her own, that’s why she already made that decision.
“Thanks Leo-san, but I’m fine. Really.” She tried to smile, but it wasn’t enough to reach her eyes, and she knew that the male in front of her knew this as well.
Leo on the other hand couldn’t help but sigh and return the evident pout on his face. He knew he shouldn’t force things if the person didn’t want to, but he also didn’t want things to be left on their own, so the male just decided to take the middle ground by talking and giving some advice to his manager.
“Sena is a really big meanie.” He said as his pout faded into a much more serious expression. “But that’s because he’s not good at expressing himself.”
[y/n] continued to listen to Leo, surprised by his sudden change in demeanor.
“But even if he’s a meanie, Sena always cares about those important to him, so you have to say you care about him too!” Leo’s voice is a mixture of concern and pleading.
“Leo-san” the manager was unsure of what to say, not knowing where this side of Leo had suddenly come from.
“If you don’t tell him… If Sena continues being a meanie then… I feel like one day the aliens will take you far away from us.” At this point, Leo had stopped looking at his manager and opted to look at his shoes instead, unsure if what he said was enough to somehow fix the rift between Izumi and [y/n].
This time it was Leo’s turn to be engulfed into a warm embrace. The action definitely shocked the male.
“[y/n]-chan!! You can’t hug me or else Sena might murder me!!”
The girl only laughed while she let Leo go. “So you can hug me, but I can’t do the same?”
Leo only pouted at the girl in response.
“But thanks, Leo-san.” She smiled at him, this time a much more genuine one. “And don’t worry, the aliens won’t take me away, I promise!”
When the following day came, [y/n] didn’t expect Izumi to be waiting for her outside her apartment.
When the manager tried to question the idol about it saying that he could have just waited for her in ES Building, the male only shrugged and replied, “I’m making sure you don’t run away.”
Then the idol walked away heading towards the car provided by ES, not bothering to wait for the girl’s reaction.
The drive headed towards Izumi’s work was relatively quiet. It was honestly tense and awkward for the majority of the ride with how [y/n] constantly tried to avoid eye contact with Izumi who sat beside her, all the while, Izumi kept on looking at his manager’s general direction.
The male definitely wanted to clear out the air, but he didn’t know how. Not to mention the fact that Izumi didn’t want the driver to eavesdrop on their conversation, which left the male to just glare daggers at the driver. Thinking that if said driver wasn’t there, he could have already confronted [y/n]. This in turn became the worse drive the driver had experienced while working for ES
Luckily enough for the group, they finally arrived at the studio where the photoshoot would be held.
Before entering the building, [y/n] bid the driver goodbye and stated that she’ll contact them once Izumi needs to head back to ES. Once she was done, she was surprised to see Izumi still waiting for her by the entrance.
“What?” The male asked, noticing [y/n] subtle surprised expression.
“I just thought you went ahead…” the manager replied as she scratched the back of her head, still avoiding any possible eye contact from the male.
Izumi in turn noticed this. He knew how much the girl had been avoiding him, and as much as he wanted to confront her at this exact moment, he couldn't afford to be late for his last job in Japan. The male turned around facing the entrance of the studio and entered it, deciding to drop the issue for later, prolonging his agony. [y/n] followed the idol inside the building seeing how the conversation between them was over.
When they were finally inside the specific studio room for the shoot, the two went on to do whatever they had to do.
[y/n] greeted the director, thanking them for the opportunity, and afterwards, the manager went to greet the rest of the staff. Izumi on the other hand went straight to the dressing area. The costume designer and make-up artist greeted the male, and briefed him about the needed look they had to execute for the shoot.
The entire time Izumi was prepping in the dressing area, his line of sight constantly went to where [y/n] was in the studio. There were even times when the make-up artist had to scold the male for subtly turning his head once in a while whenever Izumi couldn’t see [y/n]’s reflection from the mirror. The idol ended up glaring at the make-up artist for scolding him, which in turn, made the make-up artist shut up.
It wasn’t like Izumi was doing it on purpose after all. He just couldn’t help but be paranoid about the day, specifically about his manager. He felt like if the girl was out of his sight for even a moment, she’d eventually disappear.
Luckily for the male though, the studio wasn’t that big, so it was easy to keep track of where the manager was in the room.
Once Izumi was done with his make-up and outfit change. He immediately headed for the set, while stealing glances towards his manager on the way. The girl on the other hand was oblivious towards the male’s action as she busied herself reading a couple of papers which were probably related to the current shoot.
When the cameraman saw that Izumi was ready, the employee briefed the idol on what poses and looks they hoped to capture before starting the photoshoot. Izumi on the other hand absorbed all the information instantly, which wasn’t a problem for him, but he did everything right at that moment with utmost urgency, giving short replies, nods, and instantly taking action on whatever the director or cameraman had asked for.
The male really wanted to finish the work as soon as possible so that he could finally get the chance to speak with his manager, so that he could finally end this annoying agony.
During the shoot however, Izumi got so absorbed in his work that he didn’t notice [y/n] leave the room. The idol only realized once the cameraman and director started reviewing the photos they had taken.
Seeing how the girl was nowhere to be found, Izumi instantly left the set without a word from the director and had asked a nearby staff on [y/n]’s whereabouts.
“Oi! Have you seen my manager?!” Izumi asked the random staff carrying a tray with a few cups of water which almost spilled due to the harsh tone the idol had used.
“S-She went out 10 minutes ago, sir!”
Izumi clicked his tongue at the staff member’s answer, not realizing how long [y/n] had disappeared. The fact that he couldn’t even see her things anywhere made it worse, so the idol had instantly left the room at that moment while the staff members tried to call out for him, saying that the shoot was about to resume, but for once, the male couldn’t care less about it. For once, he was going to flake out on his schedule just to look for his manager.
‘Did she really get tired of me?’
‘Where the hell is she?’
‘This is so annoying! Why the hell am I even doing this?’
‘Please…’
The thoughts swirling inside Izumi’s head as he rushed out the building was going downhill. He had asked the guards along the way if they had seen his manager, and the response was just the same each time.
“She just left building moments ago, sir”
At this moment, Izumi was standing frantically at the entrance of the studio building. He looked around hoping that maybe [y/n] was somewhere nearby, that maybe she just needed some air, but sadly there were no traces of her.
The male then tried to contact her phone, but just like the past few days, everything was left unanswered.
“Shit…” he clenched his teeth, as he stared at the phone in his hand, constantly reading the name that appeared on the screen, along with their photo: [y/n]
Izumi was falling apart, and he knew it was his fault.
When he was about to call the girl again, he suddenly heard her voice from the side calling out his name.
“Sena-san? What are—“
Before she could finish her sentence, Izumi had engulfed her in a strong warm embrace. He feared that once he let her go, she’d disappear on him again, and he couldn’t bear that thought. Not ever.
“S-Sena-san! W-what are you doing?” The girl was obviously surprised by the sudden physical contact from the male.
“Don’t you dare leave me.” Izumi whispered on the crook of her neck. The girl's eyes widened sudden demand, not knowing how to take in what the male had said.
Izumi then held the girl at an arms length, his hands gripping her shoulders. His eyes gazing at hers, making sure that he’s the only one she sees at that exact moment.
“You’re not getting rid of me that easily, you got that!”
“What are you…?” The girl asked, not knowing where this was coming from. After all, their relationship became tense all of a sudden, making them avoid each other, but now? What does Izumi’s words actually mean?
Seeing how the girl seemed rather confused by what he said, Izumi couldn’t help but feel irritated, thinking that she was merely acting clueless at that time.
“Stop playing dumb, stupid! I know that you’re resigning, and I’m not going to allow it! You got that?” He straight up told her, seeing how being direct was the best way for the girl to understand.
“Resign??” [y/n]’s brows furrowed, clearly shocked by Izumi’s statement. “Who said I was resigning?”
This time it was Izumi’s turn to look clueless.
“What do you mean who said? You practically left the studio without telling me! You were planning on leaving without telling anyone aren’t you!? I also know that you’ve been talking to Aoba about it a few days ago! Naru-kun even heard—“ then Izumi paused, and in that instant, the male let go of the girl and started scratching his head in irritation. “Shit! Don’t tell me Naru-kun tricked me into her crap again!”
This was the first time [y/n] has witnessed the male to be so flustered about anything ever, that it took her a moment to absorb Izumi’s initial words. Then it was at that moment the gears in [y/n] head started to turn and realized what Izumi was talking about.
“Oh my god…” she whispered realizing that Izumi, and maybe Arashi, had misunderstood the situation. “S-Sena-san please calm down.”
“Huh? How the hell am I going to calm down?!” The male yelled at her.
The girl only pinched the bridge of her nose trying to find the best way to explain everything. “Arashi-chan didn’t trick you. I think?”
“Huh? The hell does that mean? So you are leaving?”
“Yes… and no.” [y/n] replied, still trying to find the best explanation.
Izumi on the other hand crossed his arms as he glared at the girl, waiting for her clarification. Seeing this, [y/n] just decided to say whatever she can to clear up the situation at hand.
“I’m not resigning.” She sighed once, and continued. “If Arashi-chan overheard me and Aoba-san’s conversation, I think she might have misunderstood what we were talking about.”
“And how the hell is that?” Izumi asked.
“Well…” [y/n] tried to formulate her words. “I’m honestly not sure but… the thing I was talking about with Aoba-san wasn’t my resignation, but temporary leave.”
“Temporary leave?” Izumi's frown deepened.
The girl in turn only nodded and said, “I wasn’t really planning to at first! But with what happened between us…” the girl’s voice suddenly got softer. “I felt that I needed some time to think, and because of it, I also realized how tired I’ve been from constantly working, so I talked to Aoba-san if it was alright for me to take a break.”
Then the two were silent. Izumi tried to absorb what the girl had said, and it honestly did make sense. What he didn’t understand was one thing.
“Then what about you suddenly leaving the studio? Did you really want to get away from me?” He asked glaring at her.
“What? Of course not!” The girl responded instantly. “There’s no way I’d ever want to stay away from you! I just—“
At the realization of what [y/n] had said, suddenly the two mimicked each other’s expressions, wide eyes and cheeks tainted pink.
Since [y/n] couldn’t take back her words, she just continued whatever she had to say while covering the lower half of her face with the back of her free hand. “I just wanted to get a snack… so I went to the nearby convenience store…”
Izumi then noticed the girl was holding a plastic bag with the said convenience store’s logo, but his sight went back instantly to [y/n]’s flustered face.
The male couldn’t help but find her expression rather cute. The way she tried to avoid any form of eye contact from him at that moment didn’t hurt him at all, because this was different compared to her avoidance the past few days.
“Hmmm..?” Izumi smirked at her, taking this opportunity to seize whatever he can. “I didn’t think you’d be so attached to me, [y/n]-chan.”
“I-it’s not like that! It’s just—“ and before [y/n] could finish whatever she could say, Izumi instantly took hold of the back of her neck, pulling her closer as he leaned his forehead on hers.
“Just what?” He peered at her eyes, making sure she only looked at him. “Tell me. How exactly do you feel about me? I won’t let go until you say everything, got that?”
The girl tried to avoid the male’s gaze, but she couldn’t do so with the extremely close proximity. To say that her cheeks now were comparable to the shade of an apple was an understatement, and with their lips so close from touching, it was hard to contain the blush on her face.
“I… I really like you, Izumi...” she said softly, but loud enough for the male to hear.
At the sound of his name and her confession, Izumi held the warmest and gentlest smile he’s ever had, looking at the girl in front of her with complete adoration.
“Good.” He told her. “Now close your eyes for me.”
The girl did so, her body stiffening a bit thinking that the male would finally close the gap between their lips, only to feel Izumi let go of her and pat her head.
The disappointed look on the girl’s face was evident once she opened her eyes, making Izumi laugh.
“What? Were you expecting something else?”
“W-what!? N-no! It’s just—“ the manager tried to hide her embarrassment, which sadly was an utter failure thanks to her stuttering, but she was instantly silenced when she felt Izumi hold her free hand.
“Just think of it as punishment for avoiding me the past few days.” He smirked at her, the girl in turn only pouted, her cheeks still visibly red from everything that was happening.
Then all of a sudden, Izumi lifted the hand he held toward his lips, giving a quick kiss on the knuckles of [y/n]’s hand.
“But rest assured, from this day on, my time and my entire being is yours, princess.”