Chapter Text
“…And you’re sure the model’s rigged correctly?”
“Relaaaax, Toshi! Masami’s rigged up two of my models, and she’s done a really good job for both of them. Trust me, you’re in the best hands in this field!”
Masami flushed at the compliment, and the hand hovering over Kazutoshi’s mouse trembled. She shook her head frantically, looking back at the duo observing her work.
“T-the best hands might be a bit of a stretch… I only started studying about v-tuber models after Miki mentioned that she wanted to be one, after all.”
“Still, whatever you’re doing, it’s making the character move, so that’s good enough for me.” Kazutoshi shrugged. “As long as it doesn’t suddenly glitch off in the middle of the stream and I expose my face to the viewers, assuming I’ll even get any, I’ll take anything.”
Miki frowned. “We’re not going to let that happen! Also, have some more respect for your character model, Toshi! You know how long it took for me to draw out the design? And Takeshi sent me, like, a thousand texts asking me if the final model was good enough for you after he finished it! And Masa’s working her butt off to make sure the movements are accurate!”
“You’re right, I guess.” Kazutoshi sighed. He glanced at his computer screen, where Masami was apparently putting the final touches on his model. “It does look pretty sick.”
It was, indeed, an adorable design. Miki had sketched out his avatar to look like some sort of a ‘jellyfish prince’, as she’d explained (“Cuz your hair looks just like one!”) She had added blue and purple swirls that looked like tiny tentacles coiling around each hair strand. Tiny pearls danced around the model’s head and shoulder blades. The outfit, by contrast, was a simple black hoodie, but the tiny frills and sea creatures that laced around the edges still reminded Kazutoshi of the ocean theme. After Miki finished the design, Takeshi and Masami had then made sure the 3D version of it was as mystical and lively as the initial drawing.
All in all, Kazutoshi could tell his friends had spent a lot of time working on the model for him. A quiet wave of gratitude rushed over his heart.
“It’s done!” Masami exclaimed after a few more clicks, standing up straight and pumping both fists in the air triumphantly. Miki stood on her tippy toes, looking over her friend’s head to check out the finished model for herself. She gasped excitedly, bouncing on the heels of her feet like a hyperactive child. Kazutoshi went over to them cautiously.
Suddenly, the two girls spun around, grabbed him by the shoulders, and plopped him onto the chair Masa was just sitting on.
“What the-” Kazutoshi gasped as his head hit the back of the chair.
“Masa, Masa, can he try it out right now? I really wanna see how that funny little glare Toshi always does looks on the model!”
“Y-yeah, sure, just gotta get the face tracking system going…!”
One face-tracking process later, Kazutoshi was sitting at his table, tilting and moving his head experimentally. The character model on the screen mirrored his every movement, blinking its bright carmine eyes that mirrored his own. Tiny, colorful fish and bubbles surrounding his character bobbed around lazily.
“It’s gorgeous…!” Miki squealed. She nudged Kazutoshi with her elbow. “We’re V-Tubing buddies now! I’m gonna set up collab streams with you aaallll the time!”
Kazutoshi rolled his eyes fondly. “As if the Mikimiki is going to collab with a 0-sub rando like Umi Zeri. Your subscribers aren’t gonna like it, y’know.”
Miki scoffed at his words playfully. “Don’t say that! You’ve finally gotten out of that iffy ‘crime scene cleaning’ business and you’re doing some fun work for once – of course I’m gonna collab with you! Besides, my Miki Monsters would adore you!”
After a long overdue argument that involved lots of crying and hugging, Kazutoshi’s aunt had (belatedly) promised to start paying for his university tuition and rent. With that, Kazutoshi had finally been able to resign from his crime scene cleaning job that he’d started when he was still in high school. Initially, the feeling of newfound freedom felt awesome and refreshing. However, after just a few months of spending his free time outside of university scrolling through nonsense on the internet and watching shorts all day, Kazutoshi had begun to feel like his sense of purpose was draining away.
To his concerns, Miki had suggested trying out streaming. “It makes money and it’s super fun,” she had claimed. “Plus, viewers love snarky assholes like you!”
Kazutoshi had initially declined. The very limited knowledge he had about streaming only came from Miki’s own channel! (He was a casual Miki Monster. Emphasis on the ‘casual’.) He still had to study for university if he didn’t want to flunk out of his beloved forensics classes! If he said anything that even remotely got on a viewer’s nerves, he’d probably get cancelled and doxxed and get banned from all streaming websites forever!
Eventually, though, he’d caved in to Miki (and Masami, who’d joined in on the persuading after a few weeks)’s insistent begging. Miki’s streaming and chatting with her viewers did seem fun at times, Kazutoshi reluctantly admitted. Also, like Miki and Masami had argued, his real face, and more importantly, his real life wouldn’t be livestreamed to anyone – just a cartoon character and his voice.
(His very distinctly Osaka-born Kansai dialect voice, but Kazutoshi decided not to think about the specifics by that point.)
Besides, if he wanted to pay back his aunt someday, he’d have to save up his finances early on.
“Aaaalrighty!” Miki yelled next to him, making him jolt. “Is Mr. Umi Zeri ready to jump into the deep, mysterious realm of streaming?”
Miki wiggled her fingers dramatically around Kazutoshi’s face, imitating a jellyfish’s oral arms. Masami giggled lightly. Kazutoshi rolled his eyes.
“I set up your chat box for you.” Masami added helpfully from his other side. She and Miki stepped to the corner of the room, where the face tracker wouldn’t be able to scan them.
Kazutoshi took a deep breath. He clicked on the ‘live’ button.
Ken walked through the doors of his favorite Okonomiyaki place, sighing loudly. The tiny bell attached to the door frame jingled merrily behind him, which only irritated him further. He glanced around the restaurant, feeling dismay grow in his chest when he realized that no seats were vacant. Before he was forced to wander around awkwardly in an attempt to find an empty spot, however, someone spotted him first.
“Ken!” yelled a certain orange-haired streamer. She beckoned at the man, urging him to come over to the high table she was sitting at. A long glass panel divided the customers and the chefs’ area in front of them. Ken trotted over and hurriedly settled next to her before she could shout a second time.
“P-please don’t yell like that,” he groaned. “I’m glad you’re getting comfortable with getting out more often, but my Biology professor was on a really, really short fuse today and my head’s spinning already.”
“Oof.” Miki bit her lip apologetically. “Sorry ‘bout that.”
“I-it’s fine! It’s just one of those days, I suppose.”
“I get it, I get it. Media Studies has been kicking my ass lately.” Miki took a large bite out of her Okonomiyaki slice, tiny pieces of katsuobushi fluttering back onto her plate. Ken ordered his own Okonomiyaki and glanced back at Miki.
“You seem happier lately, though,” he pointed out. Ken then realized, with panic stirring in his chest, that his response might have seemed like he was belittling Miki’s efforts in her classes. “I-I mean, you look a lot less stressed than you did last year, s-so what I’m trying to say is-”
“No, no, it’s fine, Ken! Relax!” Miki laughed. “Uni’s honestly not as bad as I thought! And I’ve come back from my streaming hiatus too, so that’s another plus.”
Suddenly, Miki’s eyes lit up. “Oooh, speaking of which, one of my friends from my neighborhood also just started streaming a few weeks ag-”
Before Miki could finish her sentence, though, the doorbell chimed a second time behind them, and a yellow blur barreled into her side.
“Miki! Ken!” Chiba Airi yelled, wrapping her short arms around her two taller friends. “I missed you!”
“We were in the same Bio lecture thirty minutes ago, Chiba.” Ken laughed. Behind the tiny girl, Harada and Hama followed suit, huffing like they’d just ran in a marathon.
“A-Airi… Next time… tell us where you’re going before running off like that…!” Harada puffed out.
“Y-yeah… Wasn’t badass, Cheebs… I mean, not like my demons couldn’t handle it…” Hama groaned next to his friend, pulling back two seats for himself and Harada. Chiba had already settled into the seat next to Miki.
“Sorry guys! It’s just, it’s been ages since we’ve seen Miki like, at all! And it’s been so long since we’ve seen Ken outside of classes!” Chiba giggled. “I guess I got a bit excited.”
“That’s true, I guess. Congrats on getting into uni, Isono. Fujioka Memorial’s pretty badass as long as you get used to the workload demons following you around.” Hama then turned a stern eye onto Ken.
“And you. Don’t overwork yourself, kid. You’ve had eyebags under your eyes for a while now. Remember to rest every once in a while.”
Ken flinched. Sure, he’d been taking on more internships and regional quiz shows this semester, but he enjoyed doing those things! They made him feel like he was actually worth something! “I-I know, but I promise I’m the most relaxed when I’m actually working… I don’t really have any other hobbies, either.”
“But you’ve gotta learn to chillax sometimes, Ken!” Chiba chastised. She tapped a finger on her chin, as if she were pondering something deeply. “Hmmmm, why don’t you try streaming? Like Miki-Miki does! Ooooh, you can name yourself Ken-Ken!”
Ken blanched. “S-streaming really isn’t my thing, though…”
“I think streaming would just make him more nervous, Chiba.” Harada reminded gently. “What if you try watching streams instead? I know Airi and I can de-stress with a bunch of cute animal videos.”
“Just try not to end up zoning out and doomscrolling for the next five hours if you do that,” warned Hama, shooting a knowing look at the zoologist. Harada gave his friend a sheepish grin.
“W-well, yeah, that too! But I’m sure Ken’s got amazing self-control over these things already. Maybe you can start by finding a creator that suits your vibe?”
“Oh yeah! Like I was saying!” Miki snapped her fingers. She hastily pulled out her phone, tapping keywords into an app. She thrust the phone in Ken’s face. Chiba, Harada, and Hama crowded up behind him.
“My friend just started streaming a while back, and he’s actually genuinely funny. He plays games and chats with his viewers, and I think you’d enjoy watching him, Ken!”
“Is he an anime boy?” Chiba wondered out loud at the jellyfish-motif avatar. Miki almost spat out her drink.
“Don’t let him hear you say that. He’s a v-tuber! Just like me!”
“ ‘Umi Zeri’?” Harada read the username off the screen. “Ocean jelly… Hey, his hair does kinda look like jellyfish!”
Miki giggled at that. “Right?? His streams are all themed around those creatures, and it’s super duper cool! He can get a bit PG-16 at times with his words – he swears a lot – but hey. We’re all adults here!”
“Anyways, Ken, you should totesies try checking him out! His content totally helps you destress!”
Ken was not too sure how the conversation got to the point of his friend recommending v-tubers to him. Did he really look that tired these days?
“…I mean, if you think he’s funny, then sure, I’ll take a look when I get back home,” Ken said, gripping onto his just-served Okonomiyaki with his chopsticks. Miki beamed like a proud mother before digging back into her half-eaten food.
Whatever. Ken was never interested in viral videos or YouTubers as a teenager, and he wasn’t sure why that would change now. He’d look into the v-tuber once he got home for Miki’s sake, then tell her the next day that it just didn’t suit him.
Umi Zeri was brilliant.
Miki was an absolute genius. Ken would have to thank her a thousand times and buy her tonkotsu ramen the next time they met up.
Ken had searched up the v-tuber reluctantly the moment he sat down on his desk that day. A red-rimmed circle danced around Umi Zeri’s jellyfish-themed profile picture, indicating that he was streaming. Ken clicked on the stream with mild curiosity.
“-the fuck is this dude talkin’ about? Didn’t I already give him a gift on Day 12? That should’ve gotten his affinity up to about Level 40, no?”
Ken stared at the screen. The v-tuber, faithful to his name, was entirely jellyfish-themed. Iridescent bubbles floated around his head whenever he moved. His gaming screen, set to around the same size as his avatar, also had tiny ocean waves and pearls decorating the edges. It was displaying a cheesy-looking dating sim that Umi Zeri was fuming about at the moment.
“Wha- now this motherfucker’s tryna kill me!! He’s got a freakin’ knife- where did he get that from?? Was I supposed to not talk to Hiroto on Day 15 or some shit?! Did he get jealous again?!”
Suddenly, a donation message popped on-screen, encapsulated in a simple starfish design and accompanied by a tiny popping noise.
<Hello dear streamer, in order to unlock the other routes, you would’ve had to give Aoi a gift of over 5000 yen on Day 12. Since you only gave him that 300-yen chocolate that Hikari gave you the other day, which wasn’t flashy or cool at all in my humble opinion btw, he’s spiraled into insanity, and he’ll probably kill you unless you know the secret controls to this part.>
Umi Zeri groaned loudly at the robotic voice reading the message out loud.
“And you fuckers didn’t think to mention this before I gave him the gift? Oh- but thanks for the 500 yen, konmaxxing1000. ‘Preciate it.” The v-tuber’s glowing red eyes glanced momentarily at the chat before jolting.
“Oh- hey, I don’t think I’ve seen ya before! Chat, we’ve got a new viewer! Say hi to the forty-one other people here, ilikesharks0209. I’m assuming that’s your birthday? Well, happy four months before your birthday, then!”
Ken startled at the mention of his username. The other viewers were already sending waving emojis in the chat, with the exception of konmaxxing1000, who had decided to send a stream of fox emojis instead. Ken decided to type something out as well.
<Hello, Umi Zeri-san. My friend recommended your streams to me. I’ll stay and watch for a while, if that’s alright with you.>
Umi Zeri seemed to read his chat message for a split second before bursting out into laughter that somehow made Ken want to smile along with him.
“Pfft, what? You’re asking for permission to watch my stream? I mean, obviously, yeah, I’d love it if you stayed! I’m not gonna tone down my language just cuz’ I’ve got a new viewer though, ‘kay?”
Ken grinned from ear to ear as he continued to watch Umi Zeri play the dating sim game. Well, technically a dating sim game. Apparently, it was a mixture of that and psychological horror, as Ken very quickly figured out when Aoi began to stab the streamer’s character in a fit of jealous rage. Ken chuckled quietly as Umi Zeri yelled out a flood of curse words that would probably get his stream banned someday. He laughed, genuinely laughed, when Umi Zeri began to beg konmaxxing1000 for the secret controls.
“KONMAXXING1000! Just tell me already! Oh my fucking god, if I have to restart from Day 6 again, I am going to freaking lose it!”
<konkonkonkonkon…….>
“STOP KONNING AND TYPE THE FREAKIN’ CONTROLS OUT!! I’M GENUINELY GOING TO DIE AT THIS POINT!!!”
Ken ended up watched the stream until the end, when Umi Zeri ragequit after three hours of getting stabbed to death by Aoi in different locations. Only by the time he settled into his bed did he realize he hadn’t gotten any work done that day. He didn’t mind, though. He’d found himself a new hobby.
Umi Zeri was… fascinating. Of course, Ken didn’t have any prior exposure to streams other than Miki sending him highlights of her own videos sometimes. But he didn’t think he’d find a streamer with a moon jellyfish theme out in the wild. Did he really know all that much about the bioluminescent cnidaria? Or did he just think it fit his aesthetic? Either way, Ken thought abashedly, it suited him. The blue hair and the red eyes of the model complimented each other beautifully, just like the colors of jellyfish.
Ken’s mind wandered to Umi Zeri’s voice. It was deeper than his own and soothing to listen to, just like the echoes of sound waves stretching throughout the dark sea. There was also a slightly raspy quality to it, reminding Ken of jagged ocean limestone that would look sharp at first glance, but could break apart easily into soft, white powder. Umi Zeri’s occasional laughter was gentle and sweet, just like the limestone powder. It felt different from his normal, sassy tone and filled Ken’s heart with a peculiar emotion that he wasn’t too sure how to name.
Ken rolled over in his bed and closed his eyes. The streamer’s twinkling red eyes stared back at him in his mind, and he wondered if Umi Zeri’s actual eyes were also that pretty shade of scarlet. Strangely, he found himself wishing that they were.
He’d definitely tune in to the next stream. He’d ask about moon jellyfish and maybe get some answers back. It was okay if Umi Zeri didn’t know much about them, though; Ken could explain more about the creatures to him in the chat. Perhaps he’d donate some money, too, like kon-whatever-the-heck-1000 had done. After all, that was what people did to show appreciation to their favorite streamers, right?
If he could make Umi Zeri smile and laugh like he’d done today, Ken found himself thinking he’d do anything.
With that last thought, Ken drifted off to sleep, a content smile still on his face.