"チーズ~!"
On the carousel, Mai Shiraishi and the Great Condor were sitting on a two-person facility. Mai Shiraishi held up her mobile phone, pointed the front camera at the two of them, and took several photos in a row.
The Great Condor nestled in Shiraishi Mai's arms. Shiraishi Mai held her with one arm, held up the mobile phone with the other hand, and put his face against her bangs in a very intimate gesture.
It’s quite comfortable to drive around and take photos at the same time. However, the two of them only sat down once, just for fun.
The two came out of the exit of the carousel facility, holding hands. The big condor was taller than Shiraishi Mai, but it did not affect her leaning on Shiraishi Mai at this time. Her little head was resting on Shiraishi Mai's shoulder, and her face could not be seen clearly. People might think it's a girl leaning on a long-haired boy.
At this time, not far from the carousel, there was an ice cream truck next to Hori Mina and Terada Ranyo, each holding an ice cream. They walked in from the big condor, and they were watching from the side. They were posing for photos on it and they were far away from each other. It's a bit far, but you can see it clearly.
"Is that an eagle?"
Looking at the big condor leaning on Mai Shiraishi's shoulder not far away, Horina couldn't believe her eyes.
"It should be." Terada Ranyo was not very sure either.
The clothes are correct too. Could it be that you recognized the wrong person from the beginning? When had they ever seen the Great Condor behave like a little girl? Normally, the Great Condor would either act carelessly or take the initiative to do something to other people, like a boy.
"Why didn't she act like this when she was with us..." Horimina stared at them, the ice cream melting a little and slipping on her fingers without even noticing.
"They're gone, Miona."
"Follow up, keep up."
With their waists hunched, the two of them followed behind like reporter Wenchun.
Not far away, Sayuri Matsumura, wearing sunglasses and a mask, also moved.
"I'm a little hungry, Eagle. Are you hungry?"
Mai Shiraishi touched her stomach. She was a little hungry when she just took the photo. In fact, she is hungry most of the time every day, mainly because she has to control her food intake at noon and manage her figure so that it does not get out of shape.
But she finally had a rest today, and since she hadn't satisfied her craving for such a long time, she wanted to indulge herself.
"A little hungry."
"Then... let me see..." Mai Shiraishi slowed down and looked around, "Let's go to that house! Let's go!"
After saying that, Shiraishi Mai held the hand of the great condor and walked towards a cafe.
The cafe is decorated in a fairy tale style. After all, it is opened in an amusement park. It is cute and romantic, so it is suitable for families or couples. And it doesn’t just sell coffee drinks, it also sells desserts, and even some simple hot foods, such as burgers and French fries.
"Want something to drink or eat?"
"Hmm..." Looking at the menu, the Great Condor pondered for a while.
"I told you, I'll invite you today, you're welcome."
"No, no. A glass of iced Americano, and a side of French fries." She wasn't polite. She wasn't that hungry, so she didn't order anything else.
Mai Shiraishi ordered a glass of orange juice, a burger, and a dessert cake.
The room was already full of people and a little noisy, so the two chose seats outside and sat under the awning. The cafe's business was booming, but the food delivery speed did not slow down. Soon, two drinks and three dishes were served on the table.
"You love drinking coffee, it's really rare."
After stirring the orange juice in front of her, Shiraishi Mai looked at the cup of dark iced American coffee in the hand of the Great Condor and clicked her tongue.
"It's rare...it's okay. Didn't Ah Shame drink coffee before?"
The Great Condor did not drink directly, but ate a few French fries first.
"The drink she drank was a coffee drink. I can still tell the difference between the coffee from the vending machine and the iced Americano. Asuka is just pretending to be a grown-up. She doesn't like drinking coffee at all." Mai Shiraishi said with a smile.
"makes sense."
The Great Condor thought of how Asuka Saito tried to eat hot sauce during a handshake meeting before, and the corner of his mouth couldn't help but curl up.
Seeing the girl in front of her, it was obvious that she was one year younger than Asuka Saito, but Mai Shiraishi did not feel like communicating with a child. This feeling was obviously different from when Asuka Saito talked. She thought of what she had not discussed with Hashimoto Nana before.
"Taka, why did you join Nogizaka?" Taking a sip of orange juice, Shiraishi Mai asked what she had always wanted to know.
"Why...Ma Yiyan, guess what I am doing."
The big condor did not give a direct answer, but kicked the ball to the server.
"Hmm...have you wanted to be an idol since you were a child?"
This reason does not come out of nowhere. Several members of the Nogizaka group have been aiming to be idols since they were young. For example, Horina is one of them.
The great condor shook his head.
"Want to enter the entertainment industry?"
There was another half sentence she didn't say, whether she was using her idol status as a springboard. It was a bit blatant, but it was a fact. This is what many people think. Idols are just a step that must be taken to achieve the ultimate goal.
The Great Condor still shook his head.
"That..."
"Nanamin is the why, I am the why."
"..."
Before Shiraishi Mai could continue to guess, the Great Condor spoke first.
Everyone knows the reason why Hashimoto Nana didn't join the group, but Mai Shiraishi didn't expect that the same was true for the Great Condor. This reason pushed all the topics she had thought about before into the trash can. For a moment, she didn't know how to continue the conversation.
"Probably, let me calculate. When I was 9 years old, my father...ah, let's talk about my father's occupation first. My father is an architect. Well, to put it nicely, he is an architect, but actually he builds houses. Well, when I was 9 years old, my father fell ill. It was quite serious. It was lung disease. My father was not healthy enough to go to work. He couldn't even leave the house because he had to take care of me and my two younger brothers. My mother was still a full-time housewife at the time. , as soon as my father arrived, the family’s financial resources were cut off. Relying on the family’s previous savings, my father has been recuperating from illness, and my mother also gave up her work at home and went to find a job outside.”
The Great Condor talked to himself. At this time, all Shiraishi Mai could do was to be a listener.
"But the job my mother found was still not as high as my father's salary at that time. With the family expenses and father's medical expenses, the family's money was quickly spent. My two younger brothers were still young, and I was the only eldest sister. Isn’t it? Haha.”
The Great Condor deliberately spoke in a relaxed tone, but Shiraishi Mai felt a different taste, very sour and astringent.
"At that time, I saw that Nogizaka was recruiting second-generation students. Nana Min was quite famous in our area, so I knew a little about Nogizaka. I thought that if I joined the group, I would have to pay for food and accommodation, so I signed up. The audition After sifting and sifting, I came to the last round. At first, my father did not agree with my coming. He said that he could work, but... Even if he didn't know about his body, we also knew about it, doctor. My advice was not to do that kind of work in the future. My mother and I convinced him together, and he accompanied me to Tokyo, participated in the final interview, and then got in."
The Great Condor raised his eyebrows and said with a smile.
The Great Condor continued to talk to Shiraishi Mai about her experiences since joining the group.
She herself doesn't care about this matter. There are difficulties at home, her father is ill, and her mother's salary is not enough to sustain her life. Of course, her sister must shoulder the responsibility. It was very painful at the beginning. In the early training, they had to practice more than just vocalization and dance movements. They also had to practice their physical fitness and body.
It is no exaggeration to say that despite looking at the group of girls in Nogizaka, some of them cannot even jump high, but their physical fitness is definitely stronger than that of most boys.
Whether it was physical training during her graduate school years or her first anniversary live performance, the feeling of overloading her body was still fresh in her mind.
During the training after joining the group, the second-year students often complained endlessly. Muscle soreness all over the body was nothing more than a trivial matter. Their feet were scratched and bruised, and many of them were bleeding. They were out of breath while dancing, and their lungs felt like they were being torn apart. There were countless times, and she persisted in all of them.
But the biggest blow came in the 7th single. The double C airdrop seemed to be a great benefit to Oikou and Horimina, but only Oikou and Horimina knew the pain.
Or to put it worse, the Great Condor suffered even more.
What's the reason? It's nothing more than grabbing the first-generation CENTER and the yawn that shouldn't exist.
The essence of online violence is a low-cost mental damage. A casual like, comment, or unconscious repost may become an accomplice. People's mouths make gold, but accumulation destroys bones. Compared with war, which can destroy a person physically, cyber violence first destroys a person mentally.
I don’t know if it’s okay, but when the Great Condor saw the comments on the forum from Shinuchi’s mobile phone, he was completely crushed.
It is true that children from poor families become masters early and are more sensible than their peers, but even an adult cannot bear this kind of mental blow, let alone a little girl.
At that time, it was the first time she had the idea to return to Asahikawa.
Why should I endure this pain, practice dancing and lose my voice every day?
Why should I accept advice from others and be scolded by others when I have done nothing wrong?
Why can children of the same age as me live under the protection of their parents, but I have to go out and face this alone?
Countless people are like endlessly breeding cockroaches, with only such negative thoughts in their minds.
Mental breakdown is often not caused by harm caused by others, but caused by the pressure you put on yourself after others caused harm.
Just when she hit the bottom line of collapse, a hand grabbed her and pulled her back violently.
That was Hashimoto Nanami, a senior whom he was not familiar with at the time. It was she who pulled herself out of this infinite loop of thoughts and made her realize that she was not living for others to see, but for herself.
The happiness I felt when talking about JOJO with Nishino Nanase, the comfort of Rina Ikoma as someone who has been through it, the care of Yumi Wakazuki as a senior, the easy-going character of Manatsu Akimoto, the youthful innocence of Asuka Saito, the trust and dependence of Ranyo Terada, Let's move forward hand in hand with Hori Mina...
These are the reasons why the Great Condor can persist until now. If she persisted in Nogizaka for money before, then now, she does it for Nogizaka, no, or rather, for 'them', for everyone who has helped her. , people who like themselves work hard together with the goal of reaching the top of the mountain road.
In the past, it was persistence chosen out of desperation.
Now, it’s about being grateful for the effort.
