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Dia shook her head in mock disbelief as she tapped away at the laptop resting on her lap. “You told me that you had listened to all of µ’s songs! How did you miss this one?”
“I definitely listened to all the ones they made before they graduated! I’m not as familiar with the ones they made while promoting the Love Live in New York!” Chika defended. She was sat adjacent to Dia at the table in her bedroom, her palms raised in front of her.
“That makes no sense either!” Dia fired back. She didn’t raise her head from the laptop screen. “You were definitely humming Angelic Angel the other day, and you cried with me at Bokutachi wa Hitotsu no Hikari the last time I came over!”
Chika gave a nervous grin, rubbing the back of her neck with her hand. “Maybe I just… missed it? I mean µ’s made at least 100 songs!”
“119 to be exact.” Dia corrected internally. She understood that Chika wasn’t, to put it somewhat impolitely, the sharpest tool in the shed but there was a huge difference between forgetting a song like Yuujou no Change and a song which became the anthem of school idols everywhere!
On evenings when the volume of student council work was light, Dia often found herself visiting Chika at her inn. She noted the reaction of Chika’s elder sisters on her first visit, who reacted with a mix of surprise and horror upon seeing one of the Kurosawas enter their inn. Now they were comfortable with her presence, though she could still feel Mito’s eyes on her as she made her way to Chika’s room.
Usually Dia helped Chika with her lyric writing. Chika found the council president’s thoughts especially helpful in getting her ideas out on paper. On days where that wasn’t necessary however, the pair engaged in school idol fan culture together. They watched (and cried) at all of µ’s lives, marveled at A-Rise’s trendsetting performances and admired the shows of previous Love Live winners. They watched the interviews featuring the µ’s members, where they (with eagerness or reluctance depending on the member) answered questions asked by fans and the Love Live staff members. Who knew Honoka once stopped the rain with her voice, or that Umi was the best sharpshooter at Otonokizaka in generations? Dia fondly remembered Chika’s expression of shock when she learned that Rin was allergic to cats. She made a mental note to show the other members some time.
Dia turned from her computer to find Chika hunched down, staring at Dia with wide, puppy dog eyes. “I’m sorry for not knowing about SUNNY DAY SONG Dia-san. Are you mad at me?” she apologized meekly.
Dia shook her head, giving Chika a warm smile. “Don’t worry Chika-san, I’m not mad at you. I apologize for my dramatic overreaction.”
“I don’t know.” Chika’s voice trailed off as she looked at her soft plushies on her bed in the corner of her room. “As the leader I feel like I should know about this stuff, especially since you described this as the anthem of school idols.”
Rotating the laptop screen to face Chika with one hand, she patted the cushion directly next to her with the other. “We can watch it now if you want. I have the PV right here.”
Chika nodded and scooted over next to Dia. The nagging thoughts of Chika not reacting with the enthusiasm she was expecting was pushed aside as the song started up. Dia wasn’t watching the performance on the screen, instead exploring her own thoughts and memories with one of µ’s most iconic songs. Every school idol in the country, alongside a sizeable number of their fans, joined in with the choreography by watching it on a livestream. Dia wasn’t present with the other fans, even if she knew about it at the time she was pretty sure a koto lesson would have taken priority, but that didn’t matter. This song of dreams and hope united people from different places and times, from the school idols and fans who danced with the song originally, to Dia and Ruby performing it clumsily a few days later, to a sizeable overseas fandom discovering it for themselves. µ’s might have performed this song after their run at Love Live, but it was essential in understanding the power of school idols to unify people of all ages in all places and times.
When the song fully concluded, Dia realized she had closed her eyes the whole time, reminiscing on her memories with a smile. As she turned to Chika her content smile disappeared and her brow furrowed. The wide, excited eyes Dia had come to expect from Chika were replaced with eyes that were empty and unfocused, as if they were staring at the sun too long. Instead of flailing her arms around energetically, she was curled in on herself, resting her head on her kneecaps.
“Chika-san, are you alright?” Dia asked, struck with concern.
Chika eyes regained focus. As if snapping out of her own thoughts, she raised her hands dismissively and adopted a weak grin. “I’m doing fine! Really, it was… good. I was blown away.”
Dia’s gaze softened, but her apprehension heightened. She recognized Chika’s mask, presenting herself as happy and well when in reality she was torn up inside. According to the others, the last time this mask had surfaced was when they returned from Tokyo after the unsuccessful live event. While Ruby had broken down crying in her arms Chika had kept herself composed, though her own collapse took place the morning afterwards when Riko spotted her standing in the ocean.
“Be honest with me Chika-san. Are you kicking yourself because you didn’t know about it? I wasn’t intending you to think about it that way, so I- “
“I am kicking myself for not knowing about it, but I want you to stop painting me as a victim of it!” Chika interrupted. “I don’t feel like a victim. I feel so FRUSTRATED!” Her volume reached a crescendo as she voiced her own irritation, making Dia jump. “That song was incredible Dia-san! Every school idol in the country, including µ’s and A-Rise, came together to perform it and I didn’t,” her hands grasped the sides of her head. “I didn’t KNOW about it!”
Dia placed her arms firmly on Chika’s shoulders, though this gesture went unnoticed. “Chika-san, calm dow- “
“I’m Aqours’ leader! I should know about these kinds of things, but I didn’t!”
Dia moved her hands onto the sides of her Chika’s head. She placed them on top of Chika’s hands in a gesture that went noticed despite her venting. She looked at Dia with wide eyes, her mouth slightly ajar as her momentum seemed to stop. “I apologize if I interrupted you, but I’m confused.” Dia clarified firmly. “Why would this make you a weaker leader?”
Chika’s eyes darted around, avoiding Dia’s (admittedly intense) gaze. “I-i mean, this is important school idol stuff, right? Every school idol in the country came together for a show! Its something a group leader should know about, right?!” Chika stammered back.
“You say its essential knowledge, but I disagree. Not everyone in Aqours would know about it, and that’s okay. Not every school idol out there would know about it, and that’s okay. I can understand it from the perspective of being around me, but I know for a fact that your reaction isn’t down to that,” Dia narrowed her eyes. “Is it, Chika-san?”
Chika’s eyes kept avoiding Dia’s gaze. Her face was sullen, and her silence prompted Dia to continue. “You’re thinking about the school, aren’t you? That, because you didn’t know about this event, the school closed, right?”
“I-it sounds less convincing coming from you, b-but the idea makes sens- “
“BZZZZZTTTTTTTTTT!! You’re wrong!” Dia bellowed. Chika jumped beneath her, but Dia kept her hands firmly on Chika’s cheeks. “The main reason our school closed was due to the rural area we live in! It was always going to be difficult attracting people to come here! If the blame has to be put on anyone, it should be put on everyone; every member of Aqours, every student at Uranohoshi, every person in Uchiura. Yet you’re putting all of this on yourself!”
Dia felt her gaze soften once she saw tears line the corners of Chika’s eyes. “SUNNY DAY SONG is the anthem of school idols because it represents the unity they can bring about.” Dia started, her tone now softer and gentler. “It brought every school idol in the country alongside countless fans together for one song. It might represent a pinnacle of what school idols can achieve, but its not a standard most people can hold themselves too. We might not have saved our school or brought the entire country together, but we’ve still made amazing things happen. We had everything against us, yet we only missed the minimum application threshold by 2 students! The fact that we did that is incredible! Not to mention we united the town too! Even if the town falls apart after the school closes it won’t collapse silently into oblivion. It will go out with a bang. Aqours have done amazing things, and you’re one of the reasons why.”
Chika’s teary, red eyes widened. “I-i’m a reason why?” she sniffled, tilting her head.
“Of course! You brought all of us together despite the odds! You write the lyrics that we sing and put so much effort into making those words meaningful and impactful. You fought hard to keep the school open and was just as crushed as everyone else when we failed! You’re our leader Chika-san, and you represent us so well!”
Dia’s words were organized and clear, but her thoughts were anything but. She just couldn’t fathom it. Dia had first viewed Chika as ditzy and unworthy, too unknowledgeable about school idols to make a worthwhile attempt at being one, let alone be the leader of such a group. Yet Dia constantly felt her breath get snatched away at how often she was proven wrong.
It was Chika who brought the group together. She battled the worst of Dia’s gatekeeping, Mari’s crushing expectations and Kanan’s regret. She helped motivate Ruby and Hanamaru out of their shells and helped give Yoshiko a place where she could be herself. She inspired Riko to play the piano again. Her dream convinced You to sign up herself. She moved on from this to unite the student body and the entire town towards one goal, even despite a crushing setback and countless disadvantages.
Chika even helped do what Dia couldn’t; reconcile with her best friends.
If anything, Chika’s actions were a stellar representation of the unity SUNNY DAY SONG represented.
Yet Chika didn’t agree. She could sense Chika’s brain denying it even now, the nagging thoughts telling her that she wasn’t good enough. The idea was so unfathomable to Dia she felt like breaking into tears. Despite doing so much for the group, Chika felt she was nothing, worthless.
Dia wrapped her arms around Chika and pulled her close, resting her head on her shoulder. It had the convenient side effect of hiding her own tears, but it was more so a gesture in comforting Chika. She wasn’t sure what she could do to convince her, but she was determined to do so. Chika was doing enough, and she deserved to know that.
After an unmeasurable amount of time, Chika spoke with an unsure voice. “A-are you sure I’m fit to be a leader, Dia-san?” she asked.
Dia closed her eyes and tightened her grip on Chika, speaking without hesitation. “You’re the only one I can see being Aqours’ leader, Chika-san.”