[JnS] KASAI, YUZUKI

  His father was so enthusiastic that he believed Yuzuki could do 'better' than theatre or dance. A few auditions later, Yuzuki began as an idol trainee when he was ten, joining a group of four other boys ( all were one to two years older). With the rigorous schedule, he could no longer continue taking outside ballet lessons after a year. His mother reluctantly approved of his decision, but would continue to feel disappointed for years to come.

   Near the middle of his third year in middle school, the boys released their first single under the group name HORIZON. After the surprising success of HORIZON’s debut single, Yuzuki grew cocky and careless during his practices. While rehearsing for the group’s third music video- the second was completed, but not released- he both changed direction too quickly and incorrectly landed a jump. Both movements resulted in a complete tear of his ACL.

   By the time filming rolled around, the inflammation finally set in. The number of days Yuzuki took for bed rest and surgery breached contract, resulting in an early termination of his contract. This incident forced him to realize that his grades were not doing well either. Branded with the ‘prodigy’ label as child, Yuzuki never pushed to do better than he already was. In the moments Yuzuki was not looking, he had become one of many in a sea of average students. Looking to shove his feelings onto someone else, he confronted HORIZON’s remaining four members (who were mostly oblivious to the situation up to that point) before leaving. The boys’ quarrel left them on bad terms.

   Because the group members all attended the same school for easy scheduling, Yuzuki moved away entirely between the end of his middle school years and the start of his highschool’s beginning. Both parents felt useless to Yuzuki, so the teen was sent to live Mitsuyo’s niece, believing the two could relate to each other. He packed two suitcases and bought a Shinkansen ticket from Tokyo to Kyoto.

    Puberty matured his figure and face. A growth spurt quickly outdated any girly magazine’s HORIZON member statistics. He cut his hair and stop trying to dye away his strands of gray. In public, Yuzuki wore medical face masks for reassurance.

   Most fans were indifferent. The group was new: only hardcore listeners rooted for his return. Even if Yuzuki had not developed a hatred towards the idol industry, he would not be able to sign onto another contract or sing online (like on youtube or nico douga) for a full year.

Present day

    Yuzu’s cousin Sumire, a workaholic employed by Nintendo, welcomed the boy with open arms. There’s some reminiscent empathy she feels for him. Thus, she decided to have him attend the high school she did. Tuition and money for living expenses comes from Yuzuki’s own parents.