Although they had all seen photos of Hoshino Ai online or elsewhere before, upon actually seeing her in person, they all fell into a collective daze.
Youthful, beautiful, pure, gorgeous...
Countless adjectives instantly flooded their minds, leaving them unable to form a simple summary or description of the girl before them.
Even as girls themselves, the very first sight of Hoshino Ai was enough to inspire an almost instinctive admiration of her beauty.
Whether it was a trick of the light or not, the backstage area was only dimly lit, but after Ai appeared, their once-dim vision instantly brightened. The golden star patterns embroidered on her outfit began to sparkle along with her—
"Hmm... I see."
While the band members were still in a daze, Ai's gaze swept over their outfits as well.
"So these are what Tetsu made for you... He really is something else. Judging by the outfits alone, you should have been the most eye-catching band at today's live."
"Tetsu..."
Hearing this name, Anon finally snapped back to her senses.
"From the same orphanage as Nii-chan... Hoshino Ai..."
"That's right, that's me."
Ai responded to Anon with a dazzling smile.
"It's a pleasure to meet you, Chihaya Anon. Thank you for taking care of Tetsu all these years."
"...Eh? Ah, w-well..."
Faced with such a normal reaction from Ai, Anon was momentarily at a loss.
"I wouldn't say I took care of him at all! If anything, I'm the one who's always been taken care of..."
Just as she thought this was a simple greeting, Ai's next words made her freeze on the spot.
"Mhm, as long as you know that."
"Eh?"
The expression on Anon's face instantly stiffened.
On the other side, although Ai's face still held a smile, the warmth in her tone had completely vanished.
"Seven years of playing house is long enough. It's about time you returned him to me, isn't it?"
"What do you mean, playing house?!"
Hearing this, Anon's spirit flared up, and she retorted seriously:
"We're a real family! We're not playing house!"
"Oh? Really?"
Ai covered her mouth in mock surprise.
"I really couldn't tell... Compared to Tetsu, who has become a first-class designer, the gap between you two is so large that no one would ever think you're family."
"Huh? What did you say?!"
"Am I wrong? The 'honor student' who failed to study abroad in the UK, the half-baked guitarist who's only ever played at a school festival, the girl who started a band on her own initiative only to be nearly taken advantage of..."
Facing Anon's glare, Ai simply tilted her head.
"Without Tetsu, forget standing on this stage, you'd probably still be arguing with your bandmates over disagreements, right? Sigh... If I were you, I would never dare to go around telling everyone I was his sister."
"You, how do you know all that!?"
The anger on Anon's face gradually gave way to shock.
"We've never even met before..."
"You should ask yourself that."
Ai spread her hands, putting on an innocent expression.
"Thanks to your show-off personality, your SNS account is overflowing with personal information. But I really should thank you for that. Without you, I wouldn't have had the chance to learn about Tetsu's recent life, much less get close to him and keep track of his schedule."
"..."
Anon subconsciously wanted to pull out her phone and check her SNS followers, but she had left her phone in the backstage dressing room when she changed...
On the other side, upon hearing Ai's words, Tomori was the first to react—
"The person who was following Chihaya-san at the planetarium that day... that was you, wasn't it?"
"...Hm?"
Hearing this, Ai cast a slightly surprised glance at Tomori.
"You were there that day?"
"So it wasn't a coincidence after all."
Ai's answer completely confirmed Tomori's suspicions. Recalling the events of that day, Tomori couldn't help but frown.
"Not only did you follow him in disguise, you even sat in his seat after he left..."
"What?! That's literally a stalker!"
After hearing Tomori's description, Anon couldn't help but reveal a look of utter shock.
"You... you secretly stalked my brother?!"
"Mhm, that's right."
However, faced with such a direct and socially damning accusation, Ai nodded and admitted it without the slightest hesitation.
"I have indeed stalked Tetsu. And more than once."
"Are you serious..."
Anon's eyes were filled with incredulous shock.
"And you call yourself an idol?!"
"Who knows?"
Faced with Anon's question, Ai just gave a slight shrug.
"Why don't you go ask the audience outside in a bit?"
"..."
Anon was rendered speechless.
Although Ai's reasons for becoming an idol and her stalker-like behavior were completely unbecoming of one, her popularity, charm, and talent were undeniable facts.
And the audience outside, eagerly awaiting her appearance, was the best proof of it all.
"...Alright, Ai, that's enough 'greetings' for now."
Just as Ai seemed about to say something more, Uika, who was standing behind her, shook her head helplessly.
"We still have to give the parameters from our manager to the control room. We don't have time to play around here."
"Mhm, I know."
Hearing Uika's words, Ai nodded obediently.
But before turning to leave, she asked Anon one last question—
"The night before last... did Tetsu hold you while you slept?"
"Eh? Hold me?"
Anon wore a completely baffled expression.
"What do you mean?"
"...Looks like he didn't."
Having gotten her answer, the smile on Ai's face grew even brighter.
"Then I have no more questions... I wish you the best of luck with your performance."
Without waiting for Anon to respond, she immediately turned and left the backstage area with Uika.
And so, the first greeting from Hoshino Ai concluded with Chihaya Anon's silence.