This was the strangest idea I've come up with... to date! But it called at me to write it, so I did.
This is dedicated to the fantastical Potgenie. Happy Belated Birthday, Dos Equis. I love you! ;D
OMG, this is terribly OOC and AU! Don't complain. You were warned.
DISCLAIMER: PrincessJaded does not own Digimon.
(Oh, and I apologize now for any errors, grammatical, spelling or otherwise, that you may come across. I'll fix them later!)
Read and enjoy.
When the Director Yells Cut
by
PrincessJaded
Meet Tai, Matt, Mimi, Sora, Izzy, and Joe – the six young stars of a popular television series about… themselves?
Ranging in age from 17 – 24, they are on a TV show called, That's Who We Are, a series about the trials and tribulations of six teenagers living in a small town with little to no supervision. They deal with relationships, betrayal, drugs, alcohol, sex, and suicide. This is NOT about that, this is about what happens 'when the director yells cut.'
***
Two teens, a boy and a girl, stood side-by-side, taking in the view from Rainbow Bridge. The girl's eyes were sad, but she was smiling. The boy looked heartbroken and pained. He caught her hands and gripped them tightly before yanking them toward him, effectively putting her attention on him.
"Sora please… I can't lose you… I love you."
"Why are you making this hard? I love him! Don't you understand that?!"
"No! I really can't! How can you love him… after everything… everything we've been through! You told me you loved me and now you're leaving me!"
"It's not like that! Don't you want me to be happy?"
"That's all I want, but I want you to be happy with me!"
"I love Matt." Sora reached over and caressed the boy in front of her's cheek. She leaned in and planted a chaste kiss on his lips. "Goodbye, Tai."
Tai made a vain attempt to reach out to her retreating back, only to grasp at thin air. He pulled his clenched fist to his mouth and sank to the floor against the bridge railing.
"But you said you love me…"
***
A pale teen with spiky red hair and a gangly figure sat hunched over a computer screen. Seated on the edge of a neatly made bed was another teen, this one with blue, shoulder length hair and square glasses. He was flipping through a physicians' journal, carefully examining the pictures and illustrations of the human brain and heart.
"She emailed me."
"Again? That's great."
"What do I do?"
"You're asking the wrong person."
"Oh… should I ask her out?"
"I suppose you could try."
"What's wrong?"
"Nothing."
The redhead stopped staring at his computer and turned to face his friend. "Seriously, you know I don't buy that."
"Well…"
"Oh, shoot. Man, I'm really sorry. I forgot."
"No, it's okay. I understand… she's moved on. Maybe it's time I did too."
"Joe, I really think Mimi likes me."
Joe nodded sadly but looked up with a reassuring smile. "I think so too, Izzy."
***
A strawberry blonde sat at the edge of the pool wearing a one-piece bathing suit with the sides cut out and only a silver ring connecting the top and bottom parts. Her feet were immersed in the clear water and she kicked them back and forth muddling the reflection she was glaring at. She looked upset and confused. But then sighed heavily and leaned back on her hands.
The sound of someone entering the enclosed pool area made her look up. She smiled instantly. "Hey you, it's nice seeing you."
"I'm a little busy, so can we speed this up. I'm supposed to be meeting up with Sora."
"You know, it's wrong to toy with them. He's your best friend, and he adores her."
The person she was speaking to walked over to her just as she stood up. He wrapped his arms around her, giving her a firm hug. "I know, I just… I don't know what to do anymore."
"I see." She squeezed him a little tighter before stepping back. "So I called you to ask advice."
"Advice? From me?"
"Well… you're stuck between best friends; I seem to have found myself there too. I don't want to hurt anyone."
"And I do?"
"I never-"
"You didn't have to! Geez Mimi, all you ever do is think about yourself! You're so selfish!"
"Matt that's not what-"
"I don't care!"
"Please…" she whispered as he walked out the door, "don't leave me…"
***
"AND CUT!!!"
***
"Can I get up now? Or are we doing another take?" Tai asked quietly, his brown eyes wide with curiosity as he waited for someone to acknowledge his presence.
"Yes, Tai, you can get up," the director sighed, "seeing as Sora decided to leave us. I hate divas. SOMEONE GET ME A COFFEE! Tai, I said get up!"
"Oh, sorry," the young actor mumbled. He hated being on the set, he hated being one of the younger "kids" on the show. It only meant that the older ones, Sora and Koushiro in particular, got to pick on him. Just because Sora was in two movies, she thought she ran the show, and just because Koushiro was the oldest, he thought his opinion mattered.
Well maybe it did, but Tai disliked them both for that. Though of course, he'd never tell them how he really felt, that'd be out of his character.
Tai fished his cell phone out of his pocket as he walked to the smallest trailer on set and smiled when he read a text message from his little sister.
All the girls at school are dying to meet my famous brother!
Tai cringed. He hated meeting people. Maybe her could just explain to Kari that he really wasn't all that big of a deal. He was just on a small TV show… one that half of the country was obsessed with. Going back to his trailer meant confinement and he didn't like feeling trapped. He wanted to just leave the lot, to leave and never come back because he hated attention.
It made him feel strange and he sometimes even broke out in hives. It had taken months for him to control his blush every time he was around anyone.
He didn't like his mother… this, this stupid show and the fangirls, and the endless letters were all her fault.
Tai felt like crying.
***
"NO!"
"Sora, this is a good deal."
"No, you idiot! What would make you think I'd want to do another damn season of this stupid show!? They're lucky I signed off on the use of my name! My name is the only reason people watch to begin with!" Sora shouted at the black haired woman in front of her. The woman sighed and tapped a few buttons on her PDA. She hid her annoyed look when Sora pulled a cigarette out of the pocket of the silk robe she was wearing. "They don't even pay me enough to do this thing!"
"Their new contract is extremely generous," her agent tried again.
Sora's interest was piqued and she blew a puff of gray smoke in the face of her disapproving agent. When the woman didn't elaborate, Sora nearly growled at her. "Well! Tell me!"
"We're looking at a six-figure payout per episode."
"Good… I want a bigger trailer."
"Sora, you already have the largest on the lot and…" Sora raised her eyebrow and her agent nodded. "I'll see what I can do, but there is one catch…"
"What?"
"They want a pregnancy arc."
Sora laughed mockingly. "And let me guess, the genius writers are going to come up with a 'who's the baby daddy' plot? 'Find out if it was Matt or Tai who knocked Sora up.' Am I right?"
"Well, I haven't exactly seen the scripts yet."
"Fine, I'll do it. But I want more screen time than Mimi?"
"You already have that."
"Well then I want a better wardrobe. I get stuck in tennis shoes and over-sized coats while the brainiac Harvard grad gets Prada and Gucci! She can't even walk in heels!"
"I'll she what I can do."
"No!" Sora snapped, stepping into her agent's personal space and looking her in the eye. "No, you will get it done. Or you're fired, Mom!"
***
"We done?! Coo. I'm out! Later losers!" Koushiro, who hated to be called "Izzy" in real life, stood upright, losing the bad posture of his character. He ran his hand through his spiky hair, instantly ruining the peaky effect. He kicked off the geeky skater shoes he was wearing and reached for a pair of Adidas.
Perhaps the biggest difference between Izzy Izumi and Koushiro Izumi, beside the way they carried themselves and the age difference, was the way they spoke. Where Izzy was articulate and witty, Koushiro was dim and slurred. Nothing he said every really had a point, nor did he speak in complete sentences.
And to top it all off, he was a twenty-four-year-old posing as a seventeen-year-old. He had his height to thank - and hate - for that. It was always the same; he got casted as the younger character because he was short. Well, to hell with them, even though he hated being around these people, Koushiro didn't care as long as he had a job and money for his "special" needs.
There was a perk to being a part of the cast and he had to give the writers credit; they gave him the hotter girl. The upcoming "alone" scenes with Mimi Tachikawa were definitely something he was looking forward too. He was glad that he didn't have to do many scenes with 'the Bitch.'
He preferred really smart to really conceited.
Some might call it perverted, seeing as she was the youngest cast mate and seven years his junior, but as he told her on many occasions… age is just a number.
He thought he spotted her on the walk to his car but was mistaken when her body double turned to wink at him. "Don't be checkin' me out! I knows I be lookin' good, but damn!"
***
"Loser… you're the only loser here, buddy," Joe laughed to himself as Izzy strutted away. He tossed the magazine he was "reading" on the floor and ran to his trailer carelessly bumping into people and crashing into the director's assistant as she carried her boss his necessary caffeine intake.
His trailer was his sanctuary. A place where everything was the way he liked it, where nothing made him feel uncomfortable, like he did on set. Joe opened the door to his private place, only to have several soda cans and beer bottles fall and smash against the concrete. He smiled hugely. Considering he'd had a slow day, he really needed a pick-me-up and ventured into his junk ridden "room."
This was the real Joe, the one who was a pig, and would do anything anyone suggested. He didn't dare think of the consequences, nor did he ask permission. He merely acted without caution.
Pushing aside some of his joyous artifacts, Joe managed to clear a path so that he could enter his personal space. He threw himself onto the mess covered couch and took off his button up and khaki pants. Sitting in only his boxers and a white undershirt, Joe was suddenly rocked with the urge to play Guitar Hero and to eat. The video game proved harder than finding means of consumption.
Unwrapping a who-knows-how-many-days-old McDonald's bag, Joe was happy to find a cheese burger and some stale fries. His finger was nearly gnawed off by whatever was in the burger's wrapper which made finding both the Xbox and the guitar a little difficult.
He decided to eat the burger and slightly green fries anyway.
***
"Oh Mimi, that was so much fun! You had wonderful energy out there! I felt so bad for yelling at you! I know this is all fake but you looked so hurt! I'm really sorry!"
The pale girl locked in his crushing hug patted his shoulder awkwardly. He kissed her cheek and released her. "Bye Meems! I'll see you later!"
He rushed off the set and ignored that stylists cries that he needed to leave behind the white leather jacket he was wearing. Matt passed by Tai on his way to his trailer.
"Oh Tai, how are you!? Was your take good? Gawd, I hate our story arc. I love when we're buddies, instead of fighting over Sora. She is always so difficult to work with. But me and you, Tai, we have this chemistry that just pops on the screen. You know?"
Tai's eyes widened when Matt threw his arm around his shoulder. "Uh, I guess. I gotta go. Later, Matt."
"Bye Tai! See you tomorrow morning," Matt sang as Tai almost ran for the doors. "He's such a good kid," he sighed to himself.
Matt Ishida thought this was the dream job. He got to work with fun actors, some good, others… difficult. But it didn't matter. He enjoyed being on That's Who We Are. It gave him a sense of purpose and reason for waking up in the morning. Plus his positive energy was focused into making everyday better than the last.
Matt was a social butterfly but his friends would say that he was too hyper and jumpy. He was the type of guy who didn't need three cups of coffee to make the day start.
Matt was a firm believer in helping others and was ever the modest one about his contributions.
He was the happy-go-lucky guy who wanted to make everyone's lives better. To him, playing Matt Ishida - aspiring rock star, lone wolf, tortured soul, and cold hearted – helped him relate to the world.
And that brought him one step closer to world peace.
***
"Mimi, you're free to go."
"Okay," Mimi said monotonously. She stood up and immediately sought out a thick cotton robe. An assistant director draped one over her shoulders and led her away. She was the only one who, by law, required an escort to and from her dressing room.
When first offered a trailer, like everyone else, she refused, citing that it was too grandiose for her and she'd prefer something more practical. She was accustomed to neither luxury nor fame. Money was hardly something she was well acquainted with.
She was only on this inane show to pay her college tuition off. Going to an Ivy League school, over-seas, was costly and Mimi's parents were forced to mortgage their home just to after the first year. But she was brilliant, a thing people overlooked when they took in her appearance. And this show, it was crock. They wanted her name, her face, and her body.
"I studied advanced aeronautics and quantum physics… look where that landed me. This is an outrage. Damn near blasphemous. I'm wretched." Her sulky demeanor was a common. It was almost a routine.
She arrived in her dressing room only to find it empty, completely void of outside interference, just the way she liked it. The first thing to go… the awful wig! Whoever decided that pink was a good color for hair should be shot. It was the tackiest thing they put her in, and she's had enough outlandish outfits and "styles" to last a lifetime.
Hastily removing the tasteless "bathing suit," as they dared to call the affronting garment, Mimi put on a pair of tattered sweat pants and a holey t-shirt. She pulled her soft brown hair into a high, messy (not in the stylish way) ponytail, and popped out her itchy contact lenses. Black rimmed eyeglasses sat on the dressing table and she shoved them on, poking her eye in the process.
Mimi sat on the floor and snuggled herself into a tight corner between the table and a small couch. She opened her dog-eared copy of The Duchess of Malfi and lost herself in the world of The Duchess and Antonio.
***
"Quiet on set! Quiet on set… and… ACTION!"
***
Sora stood in the middle the dance floor, her ruby dress outlining her delicate frame. On either side of her stood the two men she cared for the most, the ones she couldn't' live without. She was being selfish, the way she chewed on her bottom lip and the distress in her brown eyes told both Tai and Matt that much.
"We can't go on like this…" Matt sighed.
"It's me or him. You can't have us both!" Tai urged.
"I know," Sora half-whispered, half-sobbed.
"Then chose!" they chorused together.
Across the crowed room, Mimi stood by the punch bowl, her caramel eyes watching the scene between her best friend and the two boys who tormented Sora's heart.
"It's sad, isn't it?"
Mimi jumped slightly and inclined her head. "Yeah."
Joe poured her a cup of punch and smiled sadly. "Maybe it is time that she made a decision." He handed her the cup and she took it with a cheerful grin. "And maybe she's not the only one."
She turned her full attention to the tall boy in front of her and nodded. "You're right."
Just as Joe was going to elaborate, they were interrupted. "Mimi?"
Mimi turned to face the person calling her name. She found Izzy standing there in a tuxedo, with his hair slicked back and a rose in his hand. "For you." She took the rose but averted her eyes. "You look beautiful tonight."
"Thank you."
"Oh hey, Joe!"
"Izzy," Joe responded nonchalantly.
"Would you like to dance?" They both asked Mimi at the same time.
She fidgeted and nervously looked back and forth.
"She can't, she's dancing with me."
Strong arms pulled her onto the dance floor and Mimi gratefully melted into the hard body she was waltzing with. But when she looked up she saw the glimmer of tears in his eyes. "She chose?" The question was soft and coaxing, yet comforting and warm.
He nodded, and looked at Sora, dancing with the handsome blond. "She chose."
***
"AND CUT!" The director turned away for a second to speak to one of his assistants and when he turned back, found Sora in his face.
"That's how this season ends! With her!" Sora screamed incredulously, pointing a deadly finger at Mimi.
"Not again," Mimi groaned, leaning her forehead into Tai's dress shirt. "I can't do this anymore."
"I don't think I can either. Uh, Mimi, could you please get up, you're making me a little uncomfortable," Tai said, barely above a whisper.
"That was a great scene! I loved it. Didn't you love it!?" Matt asked excitedly of the extras who were staring at Sora and the director.
"I need to get out of this thing!" Joe snapped. "I can't breathe in this monkey suit."
"Shut up, you weak ass foo! No one cares, you is whack. Fuck dis! I'm outta here. Call me when da Bitch is duunn." Koushiro walked away, already pulling a cigarette out of his pocket and ruining his sleek hair.
"I QUIT!" Everyone turned to look at the exasperated director. He laughed bitterly and pointed at the lead actors who were still on set. "I HATE YOU ALL!" He threw his headset and mega-phone to the floor and stomped on them both. "This stupid show is a waste of money and my damn time! You people can't even act! I HOPE YOU ALL DIE!" With that last sentiment, he stormed out of the studio.
"Hey, Tai?"
"Yeah, Mimi?"
"Did you know the director's name?"
"Uh…"
"Me either."
"No, I think his name is Gennai…"
LOL. Hope you liked it.
Again, Happy Belated Birthday Potgenie!
Review! :P
Huggles,
Diane
NOTE: This is a ONE-SHOT! Do NOT story-alert!