"I'm home." You lethargically greeted.

"Welcome home." Your mother greeted you back. "[Name], how was your day? How did your job searching go?"

"It was fine Mom. The HR told me to wait for their call." You sheepishly replied.

"Is that so? I'm sure you're going to get the job." She tried to encourage you. "Why don't you join me for some snack? I cooked your favorite."

"Sorry Mom. I don't have much of an appetite right now. I'll be on my room now."

You now climbed the stairs to your room. After turning on the lights, you dropped your bag and the file case you were carrying. You immediately took off the formal blazer and the tight pencil cut skirt you were wearing and got changed into your more comfortable baggy shirt and pajamas and let down your hair that was neatly tied into an elegant bun.

You decided to relax a bit by surfing the internet on your laptop. As you lazily scrolled on your news feed of your social media account, you found happy posts of your colleagues about their respective workplaces which made you feel even worse.

"Why can't I get a job?" You frustratingly thought to yourself. "Am I going to be unemployed forever?"

Your destructive thoughts were cut off when your phone rang.

It was from the company you applied for. With a shaky hand, you picked up your phone.

"Good evening. This is [Full Name]. How may I help you?" You answered the call.

"Good evening. I am [HR's Name] from [Company Name]. We appreciate your interest in our company. Though your qualifications were impressive, we regret to inform you that you did not pass the assessment. We wish you every personal and professional success with your job search. Again, thank you."

"I failed again." You discouragedly thought. It took everything for you to fight back the lump that was forming on your throat and the tears that welled on your eyes.

"...I see. Thank you so much for the opportunity you gave me. I also hope for success on your company's future endeavors." You replied before the opposite line hang up.

You weakly fell back to your bed and stared at the ceiling. Soon tears clouded your vision and spilled into your cheeks.

"Damn it."

You never felt this pathetic before. After all you were an honor student who got excellent grades in everything. But now...

"I'm such a loser."

Since you were a great student you feel that everyone, your parents, your professors, your colleagues are expecting great things from you. And their expectations became a heavy burden that you carry. Not being able to meet their expectations takes a lot of toll on you.

"They said having a degree will open a lot of doors of opportunity."

"I'm so pathetic."

"Maybe I'm not good enough for anything after all."

You know that crying over it will never get you anywhere but you can't help it. You just feel really bad about yourself and starting to lose hope.

You crawled back to your laptop when you heard a new notification from your social media account.

[[Friend's Name] updated her status: Jgh from work and now watching IDOLiSH Night With You! 😍]

"Oh I almost forgot..." Hoping that they could cheer you up even for a while, you decided to stream their new episode.

"Good evening! This is IDOLiSH Night With You! and I am Izumi Iori. Tonight we'll be reading the letters we asked you to submit last time."

"We'll start from... [Username]-san's letter!" Mitsuki announced with his usual sunny and bright voice.

"Whoaaa! That's from me! This is going to be embarrassing."

"Hello IDOLiSH7! Congratulations on winning the Japan Idol Music Awards. You guys really deserve it. Thank you for always making us feel happy with your heartfelt songs. Before I forget, I would like to ask for some advice, if you guys don't mind. It has been almost a year after I graduated college and I still haven't got a job. I submitted my application to several companies already, attended numerous job fairs but I never got a job. I'm the only one unemployed among my siblings who all have a stable career. Even if my parents don't say anything regarding my unemployment, I can't help but to feel useless, pathetic, and ashamed. Whenever I see my colleagues happy with their work, I can't help but to be frustrated and jealous of them. What should I do? I'm sorry for bringing up something heavy like this. Thank you in advance. I hope you guys have a nice day and good luck on your appearance at Black or White Music Fantasia!" Yamato read your letter.

"First of all [Username]-san thank you for the letter you sent us. There are times that we get pressured by the expectations of other people as well as our own but remember that everyone has their own timeline. Don't let other people decide yours. Your time will surely come. You just need to be patient and never stop believing in yourself." Yamato advised.

"There are also times that you are your worst enemy. I know it is not always easy but take a look at the bright side of things." Riku said.

"Sometimes things don't go the way we want them to be but you should believe in what you are capable of and what you had worked hard for." Iori asserted.

"Surround yourself with people that inspire and motivate you. You'll feel better about yourself and regain your courage to try again." Sogo suggested.

"Never lose hope. Everything will be over once you give up. When you feel like giving up, remember the reason why you tried." Tamaki added.

"Don't measure your worth by the times you fell. What matters is how you stood up again after each fall. Let the times you failed serve as a stepping stone to reach what you want to achieve." Nagi expressed.

"You're more than what other people and the skeptical voice inside your head says. You're a wonderful person and surely there is something only you could do." Mitsuki assured.

"[Username]-san we know you can do it. We'll be cheering you on."

Their words of encouragement reduced you to tears. Their comforting words were more than enough to clear the clouds in your heart. Strangely, even if they don't really know you personally, you felt their warmth and sincerity to help you.

***

"Gotta calm down... Calm down." You took a deep breath.

"[Last Name] [First Name]-san, please come in." A kind-looking blue haired man called to you.

"Yes Sir." you bowed to the man before you stepped inside the office.

"Please take a seat." A middle aged blond man greeted you with a smile. You promptly did as you were told by sitting on the empty chair in front of the man's desk.

"[Last Name] [First Name]-san, right?"

"Yes Sir."

"Your credentials are outstanding." The man said as he was skimming through your resumé. "It's almost a wonder why you still do not have an employment experience."

"Thank you so much for your kind words."

"There is only one thing I will ask you [Last Name]-san. Why did you choose to work for my company? For sure there are better ones you can apply for."

"...I want to work for this company which encourages people and also I want to repay them, the people who believed in me even if they don't know me personally. They inspired me to stand up again. I want to help them reach more people like me, people who are losing their hope and courage."

"Very well [Last Name]-san. Welcome to the company."

"Sir... Does it mean...?" You can't believe what you just heard.

"Congratulations! You get the job. You may start tomorrow." The blond man stood up his seat and reached out his hand to you in a handshake.

"Thank you so much Sir!"

***

"I wonder what is going to be announced." Riku mused.

"I'm hungry~" Tamaki growled.

"You just ate pudding a while ago." Sogo retorted to the light blue haired teen.

"President! Manager too! Good morning!" The seven guys greeted.

"Good morning! There is someone I would like you to meet." President Takanashi gestured you to enter the room.

"Good morning! I am [Last Name] [First Name]. It is my pleasure to work with you all." You introduced yourself.

"From now on [Last Name]-san will be your assistant manager." Your senpai Tsumugi explained.

"Nice meeting you [Last Name]-san. We'll be counting on you." The seven guys welcomed you warmly.

"Nice meeting you too. Thank you so much for this opportunity. I'll do my best." You humbly bowed to them.

"...Wait... You look familiar... Are you by any chance... [Username]-san?!" The orange haired young man exclaimed.

"...Yes. I'm [Username]. I'm surprised you remembered me Izumi-san." You sheepishly admitted.

"How can I forget about you? I saw myself in you after all. I'm so happy you got a job now." He smiled brightly at you. His previous statement and his smile made you feel a strange warm feeling in your chest rising to your cheeks.

"I owe it to you guys. Thank you so much."

"From now on this will be my starting line."

[A/N: Mitsooki is soooo cuteee 😍 I admire his cheerful disposition (because I'm a pessimist). I like the way he dotes on Iori especially when his lil bro is sad. His scenes with Nagi are too hilarious 😂😂😂 He's so cute when he gets angry at Tamaki and Nagi's antics. His tsukkomi lines are perfect af. I can relate to him because (1) short people issues and (2) looks younger than actual age.]