"I'm not exaggerating when I say that the Blostars' hacking has been one of the country's most important events in recent years,” stated the polite presenter. "Not only did the hacker reveal personal information about the group, but she also revealed the most impactful secret of a president in decades. Would it be fair to say that this event boosted Blostars' fame?"

"Absolutely," I answered. "The timing was also perfect as we were just releasing our first album. I'm not saying it was good that it happened. It was difficult for all of us to deal with it, especially the girls, but it would be dumb to say it didn't help in some ways."

The rude presenter said, "We can imagine it was. Obviously, the biggest revelation was that Risa and Sanae are the twin daughters of an affair the ex-president had. Many things have been clarified, but there's something that the public hasn't let go of even though you've already denied it."

Here it comes.

She asked, "What do you have to say about the rumors of the ex-president giving you money to settle the fine that was given to the company?"

 

"Obviously, they will talk about the hack," said Tomokazu, "starting by asking you to clarify the rumors of the ex-president helping Blostars."

"How are you so sure?" I wondered.

"Gut feeling."

"And what should I answer?"

 

Bluntly, I confessed, "Yes, he gave us money."

Only our songs could be heard in the background throughout the whole studio. I saw the rude presenter's lips curving up and getting ready to counterattack, so I spoke before her.

"There were no ulterior motives, however. The sole reason he did it was that he wanted to help his daughters for once, and the fact that he didn't boast about it is enough proof that he didn't do it for public recognition."

I expected the rude presenter to scrutinize the answer, but she merely stared at me in silence. It prolonged so much that the other presenter had to step in.

"Then why did you lie by denying it?"

"Because of fear, and it's entirely my fault. I didn't want Blostars to be linked to politics as I was scared of the public judging us by that. Reflecting on it now, I should've said this from the beginning. I'm sorry," I bowed.

Again, silence encompassed the studio. To make it better, the rude presenter's smile had disappeared. That was our goal.

 

"Are you sure that's going to work?" I asked Tomokazu.

He nodded. "It'll be a small controversy compared to the ones we have had, but it'll switch the focus from the show to Blostars. It's a risk, so you have the final say since you'd be exchanging some of your pride for it, but it's worth it. Once they go into self-defense mode, they will ask something more direct, like the ex-president's whereabouts. Just don't answer the obvious."

 

To my surprise, the next one to talk was the rude presenter.

"Tell us, do you know the ex-president's whereabouts? It's been a while since he has made a public appearance."

"Doesn't everyone know?" I replied. "The address of his home is not a secret, you just have to search on the QNet."

Although she didn't seem angry, she didn't seem pleased either.

Out of nowhere, the polite presenter laughed, "That's true, I just haven't bothered to do it, and I'm sure most people haven't either. Anyway, not much happened until the incident where you and the hacker almost lost your lives. I'm glad you're still here with us."

"Thank you," I replied. "It was a surreal experience, to say the least."

"We can imagine. After that, yet more interesting facts were revealed when the hacker was caught. Chiharu Bise, an ex-classmate and old business partner of yours. Didn't your head explode when you found out?"

"Absolutely. Even though our relationship didn't end on the best of terms, it still was wild to see the path she had chosen."

I wanted to share more of my opinion, but it wouldn't have been wise.

"What happened between you two in the past?" asked the rude presenter. "Did she reject you when you confessed to her?"

The audience laughed.

"No, I never got the courage to do it," I laughed nervously.

 

"They will definitely talk about Chiharu," said Tomokazu. "Aside from stuff you shouldn't mention because of the police, is there anything else people don't know about?"

About to say no, I stopped myself. It wasn't something I planned to reveal to anyone, but it was apparent it was going to make headlines.

"Yes, actually," I answered. "I used to like her."

"What?!" Aki yelled.

 

The laugh from the audience was cut short by a gasp of surprise. Everyone in the studio turned to see Aki's reaction, including most of the cameras.

"What do you think about that, Aki?" the rude presenter asked.

"That's in the past," she answered. "Although I've got to admit he has very peculiar tastes. Yes, I also say that because of me."

Once again, the audience laughed, including the polite presenter, but not the rude one. Instead, she changed the topic.

"Talking about Aki. You've had a troubled past as well, haven't you?"

"That's an understatement," smiled Aki, "but it was deserved, as I've explained before."

"Yes, you have. There's something you haven't talked about, however. Do you still have a connection with anyone from that time? I know it is a very sensitive topic, so it's understandable if you refuse to answer."

We didn't believe Tomokazu when he told us they were going to do this, but it was about to happen.

"No, I don't," answered Aki. "I ran away from the past. Only recently did I begin to feel comfortable with myself again."

"That's an inspiring story of overcoming," said the polite presenter.

Aki replied, "I'd prefer if people didn't see it that way. It was something that shouldn't have happened in the first place, but I realized it too late. I don't want to make myself seem like a victim."

"Life can be tough, that's for sure," the rude presenter said. "And as you said, you aren't the victim, and there are always two sides to the coin. So we went ahead and invited someone who can give us another perspective on the tragic events. Everyone, please welcome the victim's best friend!"

The best friend of the girl that had passed away walked out of the hallway; the same girl that I had met when she shouted 'murderer' at our first fan meeting. At the same time, a crew member rushed to place a stool next to me. The girl glanced at the audience as they clapped, but she didn't even wave at them, and with reason.

She approached the stool next to me and sat down. Our eyes met for a split second, then the awkwardness made us look away. That was part of the plan.

"Thank you for accepting our invitation," the polite presenter said. "It must be intimidating to do something this out of the ordinary."

The girl merely nodded. A nervous laugh came out of the presenter.

"We're sorry for that, but this is important to resolve the situation people have been eager to see the resolution of."

The rude presenter asked, "Tell us, did you expect something like what happened to happen?"

"What do you think?" the girl replied. "If I expected it, she would still be here. I was her best friend and I didn't see something so obvious. Only after it happened did I notice all the signs, but for what? She was already gone."

The studio remained silent. Even the volume of the music in the background was lowered a little. The show's mood crashed in a matter of seconds, but the presenters couldn't back out so soon after bringing on a guest.

"What about Aki's behavior?" the rude presenter asked. "Didn't you find her annoying?"

"Oh, I surely did, but she was smart enough to molest her when I wasn't there. For me, Aki was just annoying, but I didn't see everything happening behind my back."

"And what happened after? Didn't you confront her?"

"I would've loved to at least ruin her perfect face, but she ran away," the girl said as her voice broke and her hands clenched into fists.

"Is there anything you want to tell her now that she's in front of you?"

The girl stared down at the floor for a moment, then she stood up and walked to the front of the sofa. She stood in front of Aki, who also stood up. They stared at each other for several seconds before hugging.

 

"What about the best friend of the girl that passed away?" wondered Tomokazu.

Aki asked, "What about her?"

"Did you ever make amends with her?"

"I did," nodded Aki.

"Call her."

"Why?"

"Because they will call her too."

 

"Aww," the audience uttered.

The two presenters also stood up, acting as if they were worried about them fighting, but the girls' acting was better.

The hug continued until the rude presenter asked, "What's going on?"

"We've been talking to each other for months," answered the girl.

"And you simply forgave her for the awful things she did?"

"It wasn't simple," the girl said as she stepped away from Aki, "but I don't owe anyone an explanation." She started walking toward the presenters. "I knew you didn't have any decency, but it's gross that you're taking advantage of a situation like this to get more numbers. You have been for years, and I can finally say this in your face: screw you."

With that, she walked back into the hallway we came out from and disappeared from our sight. Meanwhile, I was barely able to contain my smile.

The polite presenter was quick enough to try and salvage the situation.

"Those emotions must've been pent up for years," he laughed. "That is all for our guests today. Make sure to check out their social media for news on what they are doing. Please give them a big round of applause!"

The audience was a little hesitant at first, but they ended up clapping anyway. As soon as the screens displayed the remaining time for the ad break, the rude presenter stood up and headed into the hallway.

The girls and I didn't know what to do until the polite presenter signaled with his head for us to follow him.

Aki hugged her friend when we entered the hallway and apologized, "I'm so sorry for making you do this."

"It's okay, I wanted to let it out too."

Aya approached us. "Great job, everyone."

"Thank you," grinned Astra.

"I can't believe Tomokazu nailed everything to the letter," Sanae said.

"Me neither," I added. "Where is the other presenter, by the way?"

Out of nowhere, the polite presenter slapped my back, "I doubt you'll want to be here when she returns. You did a good job turning the audience against us. You'll get a nice boost, but it won't affect us much. Luckily, we're nice people, so we won't do anything to you, but you're not always going to be lucky. Have a good day!"

He walked away, but his smile sent shivers down my spine. Was that a threat, or was he being nice? It didn't matter now. There were more important things to worry about, so we left the episode behind.