Leaving Aqua alone for a moment, I headed to the smoking area where the director was.
Just as I expected, the director and the cinematographer were there, smoking.
"Oh, Yume-kun. How's the shooting going?"
"Are you asking for my honest opinion?"
"Haha, if it's your honest opinion, Yume-kun, I frankly don't think I can handle it."
"Ah, you must be Yume-san. I'm the cinematographer."
"Nice to meet you."
I greeted them for now. Normally, Aqua would have collected the director's cigarette butts, but right now he's with Kana-san.
"More importantly, isn't filming resuming yet? Melt has a magazine shoot after this."
"It's starting soon."
"Arima-san is currently soothing the cast members."
"Kana-chan, huh? She's easy to use, isn't she?"
...You're saying that right in front of me? You, the director who should know my personality better than anyone?
"She wags her tail nicely for everyone, so she's perfect to just toss in there."
"The name 'Arima Kana' is already well-known to the public, and since she left her agency and went freelance, her appearance fee is practically free. Thanks to that, we profited by getting name value on the cheap."
"Well, her pickiness about acting is annoying, but this drama is strictly for promoting the actors."
"We don't even want acting skills, but she doesn't seem to understand that... Ah."
Just as he was continuing to speak, the director saw my expression and froze, breaking into a cold sweat.
The cinematographer looked at me, wondering what was wrong, and ended up making the same face.
That's how contorted with shock and anger my face must have been.
"Director, maybe it's because we haven't met in quite a while, but you sure have a lot to say."
"Y-Yume-kun."
"Do you know what I got sick of seeing the most during my acting career?"
"Yet you talk so boldly about it right in front of me. Should I call that impressive...?"
"Yes, you might think of it that way, but then what does that make Arima Kana-san, who is working so hard?"
"To put it bluntly, the atmosphere on set? It's a mess."
"Even the actors you're using, aside from their faces because they're models, act like corpses."
"If it weren't for the skilled staff, this project wouldn't even have been promotable."
"You probably cast Aqua just for his face too."
"I recall pointing that part out to you once a long time ago, but well, since it's in the past, it doesn't mean much now."
"There is only one reason I am holding back right now: because of the favor you did by giving Ai work in the past."
"However, just know that if it weren't for that, I would have flipped this set upside down by now."
"Excuse me."
I don't even want to see that director's face anymore. It's the worst feeling.
I was so agitated that I didn't notice the 'presence' behind the smoking area.
First Person POV: Hoshino Aqua
"Evaluation, my foot."
That's how the world is, Arima Kana.
Receiving a proper evaluation is rarer.
To be honest, I came here to eavesdrop on the director's conversation.
But seeing Yume (Dad) say all that...
"Since I'm already here, I might as well wreck it before I leave."
At least to save Yume (Dad)'s face, and to help create the 'better-looking drama' that Arima Kana wants.
First Person POV: Arima Kana
On the set, the cameras start rolling.
A heavy atmosphere fills the surroundings.
A heavy, intense time flows, as if condensing a whole year.
A long moment that feels like it's testing life itself.
My name is Arima Kana.
When I was young, I was called a genius, and everyone lifted me up.
But now, on the internet, I'm called a washed-up child actor.
Even though I was 'finished' around elementary school, I clung desperately to this industry and finally obtained this long-awaited lead role.
I want to make this a good work, no matter what.
To do that, I'd grasp at straws, but it hurts that the straw is Aqua...
[Filming begins]
In my heart, I keep telling myself I know.
Even a layperson could tell that this is going to be a terrible production.
After all, the acting lacks even the basics.
With up to episode 4 already released, most viewers are disappointed, and it's already branded a failure.
[But it's not too late yet.]
This final scene is one of the best scenes in the original manga.
The confrontation between the hero and the stalker.
A girl who doesn't know love sheds tears after being protected by someone for the first time.
I always cried when reading this part in the manga; it's a scene I love so much I've reread it countless times.
Here, if I match my partner's breathing, cover for him well, and deliver my best performance...
Surely, still...
"That sounds like something you'd think. Are you an idiot?"
Matching his breathing...
"I won't let you be alone!!"
[The acting of the man in front of Arima Kana could hardly be called acting.]
This is impossible!! How am I supposed to cover for this!!
Why do directors think this kind of acting is OK!? Isn't this supposed to be a scene with more tension, fear, and chills!?
Is acting that unimportant? This should be more...!!
Water... sounds?
First Person POV: Hoshino Aqua
[Splash]
[Splash]
[Splash]
[Splash]
[Splash]
"This woman isn't the kind of human you think she is; she's something else."
"She can't be with a frivolous guy like you."
"That girl is the same kind of human as me."
"If she stays in the sunlight, she'll wither and dry up."
"She belongs in the dark, just like me."
I don't have talent like Ai (Mom).
I don't have talent like Yume (Dad).
I don't possess the aura that draws people's gaze like those two do.
That doesn't mean I'm good at acting, either.
So, what I can do is use everything available in this place.
Props.
Cameras.
Lighting.
Actors.
"She's different from you..."
I'll use all of this, whatever it takes, to look like those two.
Shall I intentionally approach the male lead and whisper carefully?
"Seeing you up close, you're ugly. Without Photoshop, is this your level?"
".....What?"
"What did you say, you bastard!!!"
Yes, get angry like that and let your emotions explode.
"Didn't you hear me!? I said a woman like that isn't worth protecting!!!"
"This girl is my precious friend!!!!"
Ah, yes. This is a famous scene from the original work. The directorial intent, structure, tempo—everything has meaning.
I've always been confident in problems asking to grasp the author's intent.
If I correctly understand a masterpiece, I can get a passing grade.
But I deliberately created an opening.
"I'll protect her even if it kills me!!"
You wanted to do this, didn't you?
Act with sincerity, Arima Kana.
This scene, the highlight, is the heroine's tears—the 'Light.'
"Whatever you do is meaningless."
I swung the toy knife I held as a prop, and my next role is...
"Give up and get lost!!!!"
Thwack!?
"Haha!?"
I will act out the 'Darkness' so that Arima Kana's single point of light shines.
Scarily.
Creepily.
While getting hit, I fall within a range that doesn't go out of the camera's frame.
"No one will ever need someone like you. Live within your means; don't dream useless dreams."
"Nothing good will happen to you in the future. Your life is pitch black!!!"
Now, here is the highlight. If Arima Kana cries well...
"Even so... there is light."
Ha... Come to think of it, that was her specialty.
It looks like the filming will end well. And as for me... do I need to calm Yume (Dad) down?
I tried hard to ignore Yume (Dad), who looked like he was suppressing his anger at the edge of my vision.
First Person POV: Hoshino Yume
"Haa..."
It's the worst. No matter how well Kana-san acts, that level of acting is simply impossible to cover.
However, none of the other directors are cutting the scene.
Is this really the limit of a drama meant just to hype up that lead actor and serve as promotion?
If it were me, I would have added more tension to this final scene, created more fear, and made the atmosphere as chilling as possible.
None of the directors here consider acting important.
Well, even so.
[Splash]
[Splash]
[Splash]
[Splash]
[Splash]
It seems my son intends to wreak some havoc on this set.
"The sound of footsteps is being recorded because of the rain. Should we cut?"
Cut? That's an amateur's idea. Aqua is a child who knows how to use this entire situation.
"Hmm, no... Leave it. The feel is good."
Is the cinematographer at least somewhat competent?
"This woman isn't the kind of human you think she is; she's something else."
"She can't be with a frivolous guy like you."
"That girl is the same kind of human as me."
"If she stays in the sunlight, she'll wither and dry up."
"She belongs in the dark, just like me."
Acting completely different from the rehearsal. Indeed, Aqua, you must pursue the path of an actor.
You lack talent for acting? You possess other talents to fill that lacking part.
Aqua doesn't have the talent for that unique charisma Ai has.
Aqua doesn't have the talent for almost any of the things I have. But...
Aqua is as good at grasping the author's intent as Ai was. And the ability to analyze it is something he inherited from me.
Use everything you can, Aqua.
Props.
Cameras.
Lighting.
Actors.
Use all of this, and right here, right now...
[Become Hoshino Ai and Hoshino Yume.]
"What did you say, you bastard!?"
"Hmm."
It seems he whispered something a moment ago. Seeing him get angry like that, was it a comment on his looks? Just like Aqua.
"Oh."
"Didn't you hear me!? I said a woman like that isn't worth protecting!!"
Do I look like Aqua when I smile too...? surprisingly, there's no sense of incongruity...
"That bastard... Mixing in ad-libs with the script and positioning..."
How is that amateur even here?
"Don't stop him."
If you have an eye for it, you'll soon realize the director's judgment is correct. Learn well from the sidelines, rookie.
"Camera 2, follow him. Lighting, a bit stronger."
Yes, Aqua. This scene you are acting out right now is remarkably identical to the original work.
"This girl is my precious friend!!!!"
Thwack!?
"...(Flinch!?)"
"No one will ever need someone like you. Live within your means; don't dream useless dreams."
"Nothing good will happen to you in the future. Your life is pitch black!!!"
Even if Aqua provoked him, that bastard hit him way too hard... Should I kill him?
"Even so... there is light."
Phew... Still, for the sake of Kana-san's acting, I'll let it slide this once.
Once the filming ended, I grabbed a cool towel, approached Aqua, and handed it to him.
"Aqua."
"Yume."
"Phew... I won't say much about you provoking him on purpose, but take care of your body."
"I know."
"Still, you did well."
"....Yes."
I patted Aqua's head once, glared at Narushima Melt who was hesitantly approaching Aqua, and then quietly stepped back.
"Sorry... I swung my fist too hard, I put too much power into it...."
At least he knows. Since he came to apologize, I'll forgive him again.
But there won't be a second time.
"You don't have to apologize. I provoked you."
"Huh?"
To think he didn't even realize that... I don't know if he'll be able to continue an acting career in the future. Ah, right, he was an actor.
"After all, acting needs emotion to be good. It was a good performance."
"Thanks to that, Arima was able to act with full force too, wasn't she?"
That must be it. Aqua, you took on the darkness, and Kana-san took on the light. The brighter the light, the deeper the darkness becomes.
The protagonist in this place is you, Aqua.
Before we left after our shoot finished, the look on Kana-san's face in the final scene...
Indeed. Should I call it the face of a girl who has fallen in love with our Aqua?
Does that mean I'm already getting a future daughter-in-law?
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