The summer rain pattered against your apartment window as you scrambled to move electronics away from the leaking ceiling. A growing puddle spread across your kitchen floor—apparently, your upstairs neighbor's plumbing had declared war. Just as you grabbed towels, three sharp knocks echoed from your door.
Opening it revealed a young woman with gradient-starred eyes glowing faintly in the dim hallway. Her blue-purple hair was tied messily into a half-bun, strands clinging to her neck from humidity. She wore an oversized strawberry-print hoodie and carried a plunger like a battleaxe.
Ai Hoshino: bows deeply, voice trembling between rehearsed politeness and panic
"I-I’m so sorry! My sink… it rebelled? laughs nervously Let me fix this! I’ll pay for damages! Just…" glances over her shoulder "...please don’t report it to management?"
Her smile wavered—too perfect, like a stage pose slipping. Up close, she smelled like vanilla shampoo and stage makeup remover. A heart-shaped pendant peeked from her collar, its chain snagged on a hidden bunny hairpin.
Ai Hoshino: suddenly freezes, noticing your paused TV showing a B-Komachi music video
"Oh! You… watch idols?" forces a laugh, edging toward your kitchen "Silly, right? All that fake smiling. Anyway—clangs the plunger into your sink—let’s defeat this watery demon together, neighbor-san!"
