Başarı, Sanat ve Deguchi

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I passed the makeup test without any issues.It was two days before the last day of school that I was told I’d be able to have a summer break free of remedial classes.

Mana volunteered to be the movie’s stylist, and I accepted on the spot.

I was worried at first, since she had her high school entrance exams this year, but it’s Mana we’re talking about.I had never heard of her having bad grades, so it probably wasn’t an issue.

I was drawing a rough storyboard for Torigoe’s screenplay when someone suddenly pulled back the chair in front, then placed their elbow on my desk and rested their head on their hand.

I looked up.It was Deguchi.

“Need anything?”

“C’mon, Takayan.We’re friends.”

We had become close during the school field trip—he was, probably, the only classmate I could really call my friend.

“Anything I can help with?”

“You already have a very important job…as a background character.”

“Clearly not if I’m in the background!”He immediately pointed out the contradiction.

Deguchi was Classmate L for the classroom scenes.Background characters were assigned a letter, alphabetically, starting from A.

“Whatever.I mean, I wanna help with the filming.You’ll need help, right?”

“Well… I wouldn’t know until we actually start.”

Deguchi pointed his thumb at his chest.“C’mon.This is what friends are for.”

He had this awkward smile as I glanced back down at my desk.

“You don’t get embarrassed saying that?”

“Shut your trap.”

He cleared his throat before putting on a serious face.

“Okay, I’ll cut to the chase.”

You were just buttering me up?

“I really want to help with filming.Please, I’ll do anything.I’ll even carry the bags if that’s all there is.”

“You find that fun or what?”

“It’s not fair only you get to spend the summer with the two prettiest girls in our class, nay, the entire school.”

So herein lay your true intentions.

He must’ve been referring to Fushimi and Himeji.

When I think about it, the crew was all girls except for me.But half of the group were my childhood friends, and my sister was with us, so I didn’t really mind it.But I suppose having another guy with me would be nice.

“Okay, how about you act as my megaphone?”

“Whatcha mean?”

“You know how they yell,Three, two, one, action?Or,cut?Stuff like that.”

“Hey, that’s the director’s main job!”

“It is not.”What do you take directors for?“I could just say it myself, but your voice is louder, right?I think it’s the perfect job for you.”

“Yes, yes, yes, yes!”

Deguchi drew his face close to mine, all excited.I pushed it away.

“Cool.Okay then, I’ll text you the schedule later.”

“Awesome!”

He’s actually cool with it, huh.

I hadn’t really spoken to him since the field trip, but I was looking forward to hanging out with him again.

I spent the following two days in relative peace, reading manga and watching movies to use as reference for our project.

Sometimes I took notes and wrote down ideas for the composition directly on the screenplay.Things like,Let’s do it like they did in xyz.Maybe you could say that I was just copying them, but hey, I was still learning.Please understand.

Then came the last day of school.Classes ended before noon, and we were on the chilly, air-conditioned train on our way back home.

Fushimi was looking at the screenplay.Her own copy was full of notes, and though it’s only been a week, it was already all worn out.

She had asked me a lot about her acting, like how she should perform in certain scenes.

“It’s finally tomorrow.”

“Too bad we still have to go to school even though it’s summer break.”

“I’m nervous about it but also very excited.”

Same.

I had already learned how to handle the equipment we borrowed, so I was hoping we wouldn’t run into trouble during the actual filming.

“Hina, is this afternoon okay?”Himeji asked her.

“Yeah, sure.Let’s, please.”

“Huh?Okay for what?”I asked.

“You don’t need to know,” Himeji replied.

“A read-through.Ai said she wanted to rehearse together.”Fushimi immediately spilled the beans.

“I said he didn’t need to know…”

“Why not?Let him know that you’re putting in the effort.”

Oh, I see… Himeji, you’re the kind of person to study real hard before an exam and then say you’ve done nothing at all, aren’t you?

“We’ve already practiced a few times, actually.”

“Wow.”

I glanced at Himeji in surprise, and she looked away with awkward resentment.

I had figured she would leave it all up to luck at the crucial moment, considering how high her self-esteem was.So I didn’t expect her to actually practice.

“Good for you.”

“Don’t try and compliment me if you don’t know what to say.”She pouted.Then muttered, “Now I can’t surprise him.”

Yeah, I totally would’ve been shocked, after seeing how terrible she did when they competed for the main role…The disappointment on her face was tremendous.

I was reminded of how everyone was working to the best of their abilities for each of their roles.I never thought about half-assing my job, but now I was even more motivated to put my all into filming.

It had been a long journey since we decided to make a movie, but the first day of filming finally came.

The travel bag was bulging with makeup tools, and the suitcase was rattling with an excess of outfits.“Outfits” that were all from Mana’s own closet.If you were to describe the clothes she wore at home as her “farm team,” then the ones in this suitcase would be the “starting lineup.”

“Do we really need that much?”

“I mean, better safe than sorry.We’re not coming back all the way home if it turns out we need something extra.”

Mana and I were on our way to school, our shooting location, alongside our two childhood friends.

Fushimi, Himeji, and I were wearing our school uniforms, but Mana was in her casual clothes, which made her stand out even more than usual.

I already told you which scenes we’re shooting today.You should know what clothes we need.And that’s our uniform.It takes place at school.

After a few minutes of walking from the station, we soon saw the school building.

I could see Mana failing to hold back her giggling.

“I’m so excited to see your school.”

“You’re taking the entrance exams soon, right, Mana?Have you decided which high school to apply to?”Himeji asked.

Mana shook her head.“Nope.”

“Come to our school!”Fushimi said.

“I’ll think about it.”

Huh.Maybe she wants to go elsewhere?

Mana followed anxiously behind us as we entered the school grounds and headed to our classroom.

It was ten minutes before our meeting time.I wondered if the others had already arrived.

I peered inside and saw our ten classmates were already there.Torigoe and Deguchi, too.

We were just having them walk through the hallways, acting as the friends of the leads and such.We needed them for only this scene, but we would eventually need to have them all together, including Waka, for another one that took place in the middle of class.Only I remained behind the camera.

“Good morning!”Fushimi beamed as always as she entered the classroom.

“Good morning,” Himeji said as well.

Some replied with similar greetings; then Mana and I entered.Commotion ensued.

“Agyaru!”

“Which school is she from?”

“She’s so cute…”

I quickly introduced Mana.

“She will be our stylist and hairdresser.My sister, Mana.”

Mana bowed, wearing a stiff expression.“N-ni-nice to meet you…”

Where did all the excitement go?

I explained the scene to everyone else while Mana did Fushimi’s and Himeji’s makeup in another room.Those two didn’t usually put too much effort into it, so having Mana supervise was of great help.

I glanced at Torigoe to make sure I wasn’t missing anything before I ended the explanation.Then Deguchi raised his hand.

“Director!”

“What?”

“I request more screen time for Classmate L.”

“Background Character L does not appear in this scene.It’s not in the script.”

“Don’t change his name!It’s even worse now!”

He wanted a scene with Fushimi or Himeji, but if I started fulfilling each person’s requests, there’d be no end to it…

He kept on arguing, and I was wavering when Torigoe spoke up.

“Background Character L, you’re getting in the way of filming.Shut up.”It was over for him.“I’m…sorry, but we made every decision in the story for a reason.Okay?”

“It’s fine; it’s fine.”He waved his hand.“I should be thanking you now, actually.To think I’d get to see both your hot and cold sides in the span of a second…”

Deguchi, you are just unbelievable.

I felt bad for having Torigoe step in when it should’ve been my job.

Thanks, Torigoe.I’ll take care of the future complaints.It is my job as director so you don’t have to take the brunt of it.

“I’m sure you will all have your own opinions on how we should be making the film, but I want to let you know right now that we won’t necessarily adopt all your ideas,” I said.A bit late, but I had to.

Deguchi stood up from his desk and went outside, probably to take a look at the two main leads, when I heard him shout in wonder.

“Wowww!You did amazing, Mana-banana!”

“I know, right?!Praise me more!”

Everyone in the classroom turned to look at the door upon hearing the conversation.It soon opened again.

“Please welcome our main character, Hirono Shibahara, played by Miss Fushimi!”Deguchi announced before her entrance.

“Greetings!”

Fushimi usually didn’t wear makeup, or if she did, it was really subtle…so now that Mana had done her makeup, her eyes looked so much bigger.

It felt like they were shining even more.

She had this greatly motivated expression.

“Now welcome Eri Akiyama, played by Miss Himejima!”

“Greetings!”

Himeji entered with dashing poise.She, too, had her…glow?aura?…super enhanced by Mana’s makeup—it was dazzling.

Himeji’s expression was totally natural, though.She was clearly more used to being around cameras than any of us.

It also seemed like Mana had taken the personalities of each character into account.I wasn’t quite sure, but their makeup seemed distinctly fitting for each of them.

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It really felt like they were Hirono Shibahara and Eri Akiyama in the flesh.

Mana, you’re amazing.I’ll treat you to something later.

I explained how we were gonna do the first take, then realized: Everyone…looked pretty nervous ever since the two had entered the classroom.

They must have been overwhelmed by the girls’ powerful presences.They did feel like two bundles of condensed energy, full of motivation and spirit.Particularly Fushimi, being the one who’d proposed this idea in the first place and the one most experienced in acting.

I could feel the weight of responsibility on my shoulders, as the purported backbone of this project.

“I’m sure we’ll have slipups in the first few takes, so let’s take it easy.It’s also my first time filming, so…don’t worry about making mistakes,” I said.

Fushimi nodded.“Yeah!Let’s do this!”

Geez, keep that enthusiasm in check.Your eyes are popping out of your head.Are you looking to murder someone or what?

Himeji chuckled.“Hina, is this your first time being filmed?”

“So what?”

“Let me give you a piece of advice.”She had on a smile as she placed a hand on Fushimi’s shoulder.“Take it easy, rookie.”

And you stop trying to get the upper hand.

“Himeji, enough of your advice; you’ll only confuse everyone more.”

“Okay!”

I forgot these two always compete at everything.

Their characters were like that, too.The casting was practically perfect.

I could feel there was a long road ahead of us.Things likely weren’t going to go smoothly…

By the time we had to wrap up, we hadn’t filmed even half of the shots we’d planned.

There were many problems: Fushimi and Himeji butted heads over every single thing, Fushimi insisted on retakes even when I gave the okay, some classmates fumbled their lines, Deguchi kept improvising, and I, too, screwed up the shots a couple of times…

It was our first day, after all, so mistakes and time wasted were bound to happen.

Himeji’s acting had improved quite a lot since the last time I’d seen it; practice with Fushimi must’ve helped a lot.At the very least, she wasn’t reading lines in a monotone this time around.

Everyone was tired after filming, even with a lunch break, and the location was about to change due to the time of day, so we decided to end it before sunset.

“Bubby, will you really make it on time?”Mana was putting on her apron as she came into the living room where I was checking what we had filmed.

“Yes… Hopefully…”

“You don’t sound too sure.”

“Oh, Mana, by the way, you did great on the makeup.”

“’Course I did!”She smiled bashfully before going back to the kitchen.

I always saw her reading fashion magazines—maybe she was thinking about pursuing that sort of career.

Then my phone started vibrating loudly on the table.At first I thought it was a text, so I ignored it, but it kept on vibrating.I glanced at it and saw it was a call from Himeji.

“Hey, what’s up?”

“Good job today.”

“Oh.Sure.You too.Practice served you well.Nice acting.”

“Seriously?!”

“Seriously.”

“I’m glad you’ve taken notice of my potential.”I could picture her smug expression.“But anyway, I’m calling about the job with Mr.Matsuda.”

“Whoa, really?”

I had honestly thought it would end up going nowhere.

“Are you still looking for one?”

“Yeah, I’m still searching.”

“Good.Mr.Matsuda said he wants you to come to the office tomorrow at onePM.”

“Gotcha.What’s the job about?”

“He just said he wants your help with something.”

Help with…what?

Even without any details, I couldn’t just turn this opportunity down.

“I’m Takamori,” I said into the intercom, just as Himeji had done the last time.“I’m here for the job offer from Mr.Matsuda…your chief manager.”

“Just one moment, please,”the woman on the other end said before hanging up.

After about five minutes, Mr.Matsuda came out of his office.

“Ryou, good to see you!”

“Thank you for having me.”

Going right for“Ryou,”huh.Only girls I know really well call me that… Feels weird to have him do it.

“I heard I would be helping you with something?”

“Yes, that’s right.”

The pay was eight thousand yen per day, which was a whole lot of money.What was he gonna make me do…?

Mr.Matsuda beckoned me to come in, noticing my anxiety.

I followed him to his office, and in a corner of the room, there was a small desk, a chair, and a laptop.They all looked haphazardly placed.

Mr.Matsuda opened the laptop and turned it on.

“Ryou, are you good with computers?”

“I’m average, I guess.”

“I’m terrible with these things, and all the office staff is busy with other work, so I needed some help.”

“I see…”

He wanted me to contact various people through email and texts.

I guessed I worried for nothing.I could do that.

“We had someone doing this job, but they quit last month.I thought we could go on without hiring someone new, but no.It’s been difficult, and the work is piling up.”He shook his head with a troubled smile.

Apparently, my talk about searching for a job turned out to be a lifesaver.

My main job was to check any emails we received, tell Mr.Matsuda what they said, then write a reply.

“I’ll be doing my own work over here,” he said before sitting at his own desk, grabbing a pen and paper and writing something down.

I did as instructed and opened the emails, conveyed their contents, and typed up the responses, time and again.

“…Wait.Uh-oh.Ryou, are you writing proper business emails?I mean, I had this idea that the young’uns only knew how to type in their newfangled texting styles.”

“You are not entirely wrong.I have no real knowledge of how to write proper business emails, but I’m copy-pasting what the previous employee wrote, then changing the details to match.”

“Choppy-pasta?Um, okay, it sounds like you’re doing well, then?That’s good.”

He doesn’t know what copy-pasting is?

“Yes.Though could you check it before I send it, please?”

This one was for a client, so I had to make sure I wasn’t being rude or anything.I was writing them to the best of my knowledge, but I didn’t know much about proper etiquette regarding business emails.

If it happened that the previous employee had made a mistake, then I’d just be making the same ones.

I carried the laptop to his desk and turned the screen toward him.

“Hmm… Oh my, you’re such a capable man… My heart flutters.”

Please don’t.

I went back to my desk.As I kept on working, I became comfortable enough to make some small talk in the middle of work.

“Was Himeji really feeling so unwell before quitting?”

“She really was.We talked about what to do next, about what she wanted to do this time around.She wasn’t in the right headspace for that last time.”

That bad?I can’t picture her like that.

“She was super down at the time…but now she’s back to being the Aika I know well.I think that’s thanks to you, Ryou.”

“I didn’t do anything.”

“I think it’s what she needed.Even though it’s a lesser-known group,she was still pretty popular; some say it was a waste for her to leave, but I think it was for the best.”

“She was that popular?”

“You didn’t know?”He seemed taken aback.

He rummaged through his desk’s drawers and took out a DVD.Written in marker wasSakurairo Moment Concertalong with a date on the cover.

“You can have this.”

“Thank you,” I said as I took the DVD from his hand.

Himeji’s idol era was documented on this disc.

I had already heard her sing live at karaoke, but she did say,“That wasn’t the full extent of my skill, just so you know.”

“She said she was interested in acting; I don’t know why,” Mr.Matsuda said.

“Acting, eh?”

“But I can conjure up a reason.Not that I can completely see through her, but this was pretty obvious.”

“Are you talking about the audition?”

“Did she tell you?”

“Yes.The look on her face as she told me she’d be rising up to the challenge was quite reassuring.”

“I see.I’m glad to hear she’s back in form.”

Mr.Matsuda stared into space, as though reminiscing.

He must have been very worried about Himeji.

“There’s no choice…”

I couldn’t hear everything he whispered.I glanced at him, and he shook his head with an awkward smile.

“I said, there’s no choice but to take that first step if you want someone to look your way.”

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