Reina Kitamura stared at her mirrored reflection, studying her new look intently. Her long, curly locks were now a shade of pale green thanks to the dye she had purchased at the local beauty store. It was a great difference to her natural, chestnut hair and the contrast made her hazel eyes appear almost golden. It was certainly a look that would turn heads.
I wonder if anyone will recognize me?
The thought briefly worried her, as it was her ultimate goal to be recognizable, and above all, memorable.
Pft who am I kidding?
She frowned at herself in the mirror. People would actually have to know her before they could recognize her.
The twenty-one-year-old female was a contemporary dancer whose talents had only been displayed in a few public works. Her only claim to fame was her appearance in a music video by the famous pop/rock band, Karate Kids.
She had been recognized once by a local Karate Kids fan on the street after the video aired. He had pointed to her and whispered to his friend, "Hey, I think that's the one hot chick that dances in Left Turn Only!"
Reina rolled her eyes at the memory. She didn't want to be remembered as that hot chick, she wanted to be known for her skill and grace out on the stage. She pondered the thought as she twirled a green curl around her finger, watching it bounce back into its relaxed spiral.
The new color would definitely take a while to get used to.
Hhm…all of this just for one weekend performance.
The dramatic change was worth it, especially if it meant the possibility of being discovered by a talent scout. Her current manager had done his due diligence in booking her the right gigs up until now, but she had grown tired of the small stuff.
She was more than ready to dance her way to the hearts of everyone in Japan, and this upcoming performance was going to help her do just that. Being a famous dancer had been her dream since she was a young girl, and if all she had to do was suffer some staring due to her green hair, she would take that consequence gladly.
Reina's journey towards fame had not been an easy one.
The young dancer had dropped out of her university after only three years into her education. Much to her family's disapproval, she gave up her scholarship and lab management position at her very prestigious school. She had always received the highest grades in her science classes, so her decision to drop out was quite a shock to everyone.
True, she had all the brains required to become some big scientist, but her heart and soul were too invested in her dream.
It had taken some self-convincing for her to drop out of college. Even after the deed was done, she instantly regretted her decision, wondering if it was too late to turn back. Her lab management position had earned her money, and of course, being an aspiring dancer wasn't high on the paygrade.
She had thought about giving up, but everything seemed to fall into place when she got the call from a local dance group. Things had made a drastic turn around after receiving a few paying gigs, and finally, she caught her big break.
This weekend, Reina was to headline in a contemporary dance rendition of Shakespeare's A Midsummer Night's Dream. It was going to be held at a huge venue with balcony seats, ushers, a live orchestra, and all the works that came with a live performance. There were even rumors spread that a local news station would be filming the event and interviewing the cast afterwards.
Reina had been given the role of Titania, the Queen of Fairies. It was a major role, and whether it was for her beautiful dancing or her outlandish green hair, she would definitely be remembered for it.
The soles of her feet painfully ached when she thought of how much time and practice she had put into her sets. It was a good ache, one that reminded her how close she was to her goal. After going through weeks of practice and numerous dance partners, she had finally mastered all of her lifts. Her heart skipped a beat when she thought about how her 5-minute solo would have the attention of everyone in the audience.
She only had to wait a few more days before opening night and the time couldn't be passing by any slower.
A sound at the front door snapped her out of her thoughts. She shut herself in the bathroom, eager to surprise her boyfriend with her new, bold look. She listened closely from behind the door as Yukke entered their one bedroom apartment. She heard the metal of his keys clang together and the subtle thud as he set them on the kitchen counter.
"Reina…are you here?"
Reina stifled a giggle as she slowly turned the door knob, knowing that he was in for a surprise.
"Ta-daa!"
The door was flung open and the petite dancer was left facing Yukke in all her green-haired glory.
The tall, blond man stood in front of her, looking exhausted and anything but pleased at her reveal. His sigh reminded her of an old man trying to get out of bed in the morning. It was as if seeing his girlfriend like this literally caused him discomfort.
"Reina…what in the world?" He ran a hand through his neatly trimmed hair as he spoke. "Why would you do something like that?"
At his response, Reina's smile slowly faded into a worried frown. She took in Yukke's overall appearance; his tie was crooked and she could see the sweat stains on his shirt from under his heavy suit jacket. It seemed lately like there were few days where her stock broker boyfriend didn't come home angry.
"Did you have a bad day at the-,"
Before she could even finish her question, he fell onto their sofa with a sigh.
"Of course I had a bad day!" he interrupted. "I swear most of my day is spent fixing problems that other idiots have made. And it's not like I can quit," he sighed. "Someone has to work."
The comment stung. She didn't know why she let it sting her considering it was the thousandth time she had heard it said with that spiteful tone of his, but it still hurt.
It used to be that Yukke needed a drink in his hands to say something that hurtful, but now he could do it completely sober. She credited it to the fact that he was on his way to making partner soon. The stress of his competitive job certainly took a toll on the both of them.
"So are you going to tell me why you did that to yourself?" he asked with a nod towards her. "Wait, before you answer, get me a drink. I'm sure I'll need one after hearing this."
Reina stood and did as her boyfriend asked without any arguments. She had found that arguing with Yukke was never worth the trouble…arguments always ended up the same way; with her feeling terrible about herself and him being too drunk to care.
She handed him his drink, made exactly the way he liked it: a vodka tonic with only one ice cube. She sat on the far end of the couch, putting the most distance between the two that she possibly could. Three years ago she would have practically sat on his lap, giggling as he snuggled his face in her curls. The Yukke she knew now never did such a thing as snuggle.
She couldn't say that the two had an arranged relationship, but their meeting had been inevitable. Their parents had known each other, so naturally, they were set up on a blind date. He had also graduated from the same university she attended and he was more than helpful in helping her adjust to college life.
At the time, she was a young, attractive, science prodigy that Yukke could show off to all of his successful alumni friends. It was a shame that he didn't value her skill as a dancer as much as he valued her potential profit as a scientist. When dancing was only a hobby, he supported her in a condescending way, but now that it was her chosen profession, he was anything but supportive.
"I had to dye it for my show this weekend. I am the fairy queen after all," she stated with a proud smile.
Yukke took another sip of his drink as if he didn't hear her.
"Well I hope it can be turned back to normal soon. First it was that ridiculous tattoo on your leg, then your ear piercings, and now this? No one is going to take you serious in the biological field looking like that. And no one is going to take me seriously at my firm if they see you. I'd never make partner."
Reina stifled an exasperated sigh. Every conversation she had with Yukke lately turned up this way, with her finding new ways that she disappointed him.
"I know it's a little crazy but it will be worth it after this weekend. If Channel 41 is there than my name will get out and-…"
His loud snort interrupted her, making her jump in her skin.
"If!? That's a big if there Reina. You're putting your hopes into this ridiculous dream and when it doesn't work for you you're gonna find some way to blame me. Why can't you just go back to school already? Then I don't have to be so embarrassed when I tell my coworkers what my girlfriend does for a living."
"Embarrassed? Yukke, why would you be embarrassed? It's not like I do anything indecent," Reina muttered nervously. She knew that in asking questions she was opening herself up to an argument, but she couldn't help it.
"You have to be kidding me," Yukke laughed.
"Ever since your little stunt in that music video wearing practically nothing, all the guys at work are relentless. They share screenshots of you on their phones and whisper about how hot you are. I don't need other men seeing your body like that. If I never get to see it anymore, no one else should be able to."
His statement sounded harsh, but it was true. Over the years, the more cruel and foul-mouthed he got, the less time Reina wanted to spend being romantically involved with him. Whenever they had sex nowadays, her mind was always on other things. The few times it did happen it was merely out of obligation. Most of the time Yukke was too drunk by the end of the day to even get it up.
Reina sighed, trying her hardest to sound sympathetic to her significant other's jealousy.
"People are going to say all kinds of things; you just have to ignore them! I may have been dressed a little…showy, but that video did great things for me."
The mention of the music video again made a light appear in Yukke's eyes. He smiled…a smile that normally meant he was about to rub something in her face to prove her wrong.
She detested that smile.
"Oh this is perfect!" he laughed as he hunted for the television remote in the cracks of the sofa. "I forgot you probably haven't seen the news today."
The blond pointed the remote to their small TV and changed it to the channel for TMZ Japan. The head-paparazzo was rambling on and on about something, but it was the banner spanning the bottom of the screen that caught her attention.
It read, "Former Karate Kids Front-Woman Sued for Entire Worth."
"That's right! Setsuko Imada has lost everything, and I mean everything!" the man expressed with an outlandish wave of his hand. "Japan's formerly adored singer finally has to pay for her meltdown. We all remember that right?"
As the man spoke, the TV showed footage of Setsuko walking down the stairs of the courtroom, dressed in black as if she was attending her own funeral. Her pale face was sunken in and the dark circles under her eyes couldn't have been hidden by any amount of makeup. It was certainly a depressing sight.
"This is the girl that gave you your big break right? By putting you in her music video?" Yukke's voice was beyond condescending. She could even hear him trying to stifle a laugh as he formed the words.
Even if she wanted to, Reina couldn't force herself to answer him; she was too heartbroken by the breaking news on the television. Setsuko had been the first person to give her a chance, and now her life was falling apart.
The young rock star had only just met her at auditions, but by choosing her to dance in the Karate Kids video, Setsuko showed that she believed in her. With Reina's family and Yukke out of the picture, it was the first time she had felt like her talents were noticed, and that one person was now being made to look like a monster by the media.
"I'm taking your silence as a yes," Yukke commented with a snort. "Is that really how you want to end up Reina? Like her? Because that's how it'll be if you keep chasing fame like some fool."
Yukke continued to talk, but his words sounded muddled in her ears.
"I'm sorry, but I'm going to have to put my foot down. After this weekend, I don't want to hear any more of this dancing bullshit. It's time for you to get a real job."
Reina went to speak, but her voice didn't sound like her own.
"You made your point Yukke," she commented numbly.
She sounded robotic, like she had shut down and only her back-up system was operating. Despite all of her excitement earlier, this had quickly turned into a day she would like to forget. Like many other times before, she planned on retreating to her room and just maybe things would be different in the morning.
"I'm tired….I think I'm going to go to sleep now. Goodnight."
Thanks for reading! I hope you enjoy my lovely OC, feel free to comment/ask questions 33
Many more chapters to come!