115 Hajimemashite (1/2)
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Fortunately, Kazuya's identity had yet to be revealed. This was mainly because his name already carries the weight of reputation. The incident two years ago made sure of it.
They had yet to discuss the stage name that Kazuya was going to use but it looked like it had been decided just like that. Kanade felt that it was a loss to have given the director a free bone just like that but she was not aware that he had some connection to the famous sword saint of the middle school kendo competitions.
”Are you and the sword saint on bad terms?” Kanade curiously asked. She wasn't the only one who waited silently as her staff also wanted to know what kind of relationship he had with Ayame because they never saw this cool kid lose his calm like that.
”You could say that” The term 'sword saint' they had been using sounded like a joke. How would they react if they found out that the reason they weren't on good terms was that Ayame never came close to beating him? She even went as far as challenging him off of the competition stage but Kazuya mercilessly rejected her. ”Please make sure that she doesn't know”
Kazuya looked at himself in the mirror and sighed. He could hardly recognize himself and he even felt that it was disturbing that it looked so natural. He would never have thought that he would see himself like this but here he was.
This was supposed to have been something that was simple but it had grown into something quite troublesome. Kazuya felt very reluctant because he had nothing to gain by helping Kurumi and Maron when he heard about the trouble they were going to experience but helped out any way to repay a debt. He felt that the repayment had been blown out of proportion and there was nothing he could do about it.
Mei put this repayment deed of his to good use and took advantage of the situation to solve something she had trouble with. Who else would be better to represent their company's image other than the one who started and made it grow in the first place?
”I doubt that even your own classmates would recognize you, much less someone who you don't really encounter too much” Kanade had been confident but Kazuya could understand why. ”I'm quite curious as tohow you know such a popular girl but I can ask Takaya about that later”
Ayame's fame had come as a surprise to Kazuya as well. He had rejected both her challenges and advances because it never really had anything to do with knowing who he really was. She was caught in some sort of illusion that they had been bound together by fate because she had detected his mana amidst all of the other people.
This could all be blamed on Nagato Tsuna. Ayame was quite young back then and her grandfather looked up to that man extremely. It was when he told Ayame that she was a special person that could only be understood by those who she could perceive were like her as she grew up. Tsuna's image and words have been engraved in young girl's mind as she was called special and extraordinary amongst her peers because of affinity towards mana.
”Interesting” Ayame who heard about Kazuya's suggestion had a cold smile inside her dressing room. ”Does this person know who I am?” she asked the person who informed her.
”I believe so” he replied. This was one of the personnel Komori asked to act as her manager while escorting her around.
”I'll look forward to it then” she really didn't mind but was rather interested in the person who wanted to challenge her despite her reputation. The kendo tournaments had been quite boring for Ayame since she hadn't found someone of the same caliber as Kazuya or even Tomoyo.
It didn't take long before the set was ready for Kazuya and Ayame's scenes. Both of them were students so from today onwards was specially set for the both of them to get their scenes done.
”I look forward to seeing what you can do” Ayame looked at the shorter yet alluring girl in front of her when she and 'Kaguya' were introduced. She only gave him a quick glance before giving him the cold shoulder.
This made Kazuya feel relieved. Ayame was usually very clingy and talkative so the fact that she treated him like everyone else made Kazuya feel relieved. He had to consciously hold back his mana from the slightest leak because even he had to admit that Ayame's senses were quite sharp. For the first time, he was glad that someone saw and treated him like mere dirt.
What Kazuya didn't know was that the main reason that Ayame was even here was that of something she declared to him. She said that she would one day let him turn towards her so he should wait for the day that he realizes that he had taken her for granted.
To make sure that it happened, Ayame even used her new-found popularity to enter the scene which would make Kazuya look at her even if it wasn't in person. To Ayame, as long as he catches a glimpse of her when he hits the age where he is attracted to girls it would be the day she would welcome him to her arms, albeit after a little bit of revenge.
”Alright then, positions please!” the director announced after the set had been prepared.
Kazuya had already rehearsed for the scenes today and with Kanade's guidance, everything went smoothly. Everyone shared the same opinion that his performance was not bad considering this was his first time appearing on camera. They all thought that Kazuya already had a mindset of a professional. What they didn't know was that he just wanted to get things over with so that he could leave all of this behind.
Sure enough, the director was surprised and very much satisfied with Kazuya's performance. The fact that he could change the tone of his voice to fit the character made him think that Kazuya had even more potential than Kanade might have let on. The director looked forward to seeing what this new talent the Aoki group seemed to have uncovered could really do and was already thinking about future collaborations.
The first day of shooting only lasted a few hours because the younger cast that had school started in the afternoon. Everyone was still a little tense including Kazuya, because he had not done something like this before. He recieved praise in the end but he had no other way of telling if he had done what had been expected of him or not because Kanade had been quiet about it.
Before they knew it, two days passed and it was finally time for Kazuya to take a day off. He had already reviewed the script and was disturbed by what he slowly found out about the project. His role had still been a minor one but much more background and focus had been directed towards the direction of the script.
To make things worse, Kazuya found out that the director had found the main sponsor which was surprisingly Stockton International. This had answered so many questions which gave Kazuya a headache. He was convinced that Kurumi had found out about his part in this which was why her father's company had taken quite an interest in a trivial drama series.
”What's wrong, Kazuya?” Kyouko entered the living room and saw her son mulling over something.