I
have never been more proud of Ichiko in my entire life. Something
about the way she's thrown herself body and soul into acting. She's
my inspiration, I think. Even though I am still a bit upset at the
things we've done to each other, I can never stay mad at Ichiko for
long. She's my best friend. - Mizuki
Naturally
I knew all along that Ichiko was a major talent. She always has shown
an interest in acting. It was only a matter of time before the duck
got her feet wet and started swimming in the lake. I think I shall
throw her a loaf of bread and forgive her. - Aya
I felt awful for all the things I said to Ichiko. I realized that I was jealous of Rika. The fact that they're roommates and share her witchy little secret and that they spend so much time together, I feel left out and abandoned.
It may not be warranted and it may be out of line,
but I think I hate Rika for the simple fact that she stole my best
friend away from me. - Toshi
Ichiko is still in pain right now. She sees everyone and thinks she isn't good enough, or thinks that people don't like her. She sees Tetsushi's life and how he's somehow thriving without her and I truly think a piece of her is dying. Rumor has it that he's the lead in his group and our drama teacher is making him her pet.
The rumor wheel
doesn't stop there, however. Everyone is convinced that his group
will win. But anyone who saw Ichiko do that scene with Aoi would know
that she's a shoo-in for first prize. I hope for her sake that she
beats him at his own game and gains the bragging rights. - Hikaru
Aah,
I never believed I was that good of an actress. Our drama teacher
always praised me for things, but it often sounded fake and forced.
She seemed a bit patronizing and condescending. But now this group
project…it's like a second chance. A saving grace, if you will.
I'll show everyone who thought I wasn't good enough that I AM indeed
good enough. I can't wait to see a few select faces on opening night.
I'll blow them away. - Ichiko
Tetsushi came up to me and tried being friendly. I was happy to discover that I didn't want anything to do with him, but I remained civil until I could excuse myself. If he didn't want me, then why should I want him around? I began thinking about his very existence and the fact that it irritated me.
Perhaps I could make Rika erase the time we'd been together or even erase his entire being. Maybe not that dramatic, but I did want something done about the fact that I regretted going out with him. If it was all going to end like that, I'd rather not have dated him at all.
"Now you don't really mean that, do you, Ichiko?" Rika looked up at me as I was passing her to go to my seat. I propped my lips out in a pouty manner.
"Yes, I really do!" I told her with childish defiance. I sat at my seat and twirled my hair around, not really listening to the teacher. I felt bored and rather offended that Tetsushi only just now gained the nerve to talk to me like a friend. No doubt because he wanted to keep his competition under close watch.
When I really stopped to think about it, I wanted to vomit. It made me more determined than ever to cream his dorky ass in the play. When class was over, Rika turned around to face me and shook her head as though she'd been listening to my private thoughts during the lesson.
"If you perform trying to get even, the audience can tell." Rika said in a soft voice as she exited the classroom. I gave a sigh that seemed to penetrate the heavens. I was more frustrated than I'd ever been in my life and to make matters worse, everything I did, or said, or thought seemed to be wrong. I couldn't make progress in any area of my life, it seemed.
"Hey, Nagashiro…I was impressed. But don't think I won't ride you to be good on opening night." Natsu ruffled my hair as I walked by him. I gave him an odd look but he kept on walking. It was strange, but he was actually taking my advice. Go figure. I glanced ahead of me and I saw Yuki, the rich boy, holding a slip of paper and talking to the custodian. He looked a bit too cheerful to be Yuki, but I shrugged. The custodian pointed at me for some reason and Yuki began walking toward me, waving.
"Girl! Uh, didn't you play Nana?" He asked me. I crinkled my nose at him.
"Yuki, don't be a jackass. You're in my group. You work the curtain." I said with as much patience as I could muster. Yuki laughed and I could only gaze at him blankly, wishing I knew what his deal was.
"You think I'm Yukifumi! That's a good one. Actually I'm his twin brother, Yukihiko. I go to a different school and I'm here visiting him. I saw his play yesterday afternoon and I couldn't help but notice how wonderful your performance was. I asked the janitor guy where I could find you and just my luck you were walking in my direction any way." He smiled and I simply stood there like a goose who forgot where the pond was.
"That's nice. Thank you very much. Are you in town long?" I was never much good at chit chat, but I figured I'd make the effort since he complimented me.
"I'm transferring. This is my first official day at this school. I told my brother you were pretty cute and I decided that you should be the one to show me around to my classes. Is that okay with you?" He asked with a grin. He closed his eyes more the bigger his grin got. I took a deep breath and nodded, ignoring the pounding in my chest. Toshi would go mental on me if she saw me talking to Yuki, even if it was the wrong one.
I gave him a tour of the ground floor and an overview of what the upstairs was like. I dropped him off at each of his classes and picked him up when we were ready to move on to the next one.
"Wow, this building seems so…big." He said. I was beginning to think of him as a cheerful flake. Pleasant to be around, but no one you want to start a study group with.
"Why weren't you able to come here at the beginning of the year?" I asked, walking him to the cafeteria. He gave a little chuckle.
"I failed the entrance exams. The admissions person was finally tired of arguing with my father so they let me come on the condition that he donated a whole bunch of money. Being rich is really funny sometimes." He said with a short laugh. Dumb, yes, but I knew I liked him better than Yukifumi.
"I couldn't agree more. Wealth happens to be the most popular topic with comedians right now, I'm sure." I said without thinking. I bit my tongue, chastising myself for saying something so bizarre and stupid. Yukihiko only laughed. I picked up a tray of udon noodles and went to my usual table. Of course, Yuki followed me.
"Don't you want to sit with your brother?" I asked, before any of the girls arrived. Yuki gave me a dirty look and shook his head.
"I don't like my brother. Plus I'd rather sit with you." He smiled, eyes completely closed. I stared at the ceiling for a minute and felt him scoot up next to me. Mizuki sat down first, followed by everyone except Toshi. She was frozen near the drink machine and could not move. I beckoned to her and she finally sat down, her body as jumpy as a cat at a dogshow.
"Toshi, this is Yukifumi's BROTHER, Yukihiko." I said, hoping it would make her less tense. She immediately morphed into her regular self and greeted him with friendliness.
"You know, Ichiko, I really like you. We should go out. Do you want to?" Yukihiko said after we had started eating. I nearly choked at his words. Mizuki dropped her chop sticks, Toshi's jaw fell open, Aya fainted dead away, and Hikaru took another bite of the noodles.
"You and I could be related, Ichiko!" Toshi said in the midst of silence. I slapped my forehead and covered my eyes. I did not want to see.
Rehearsal was ten times as awkward as lunch, unfortunately. It was an actual dress rehearsal and I was wearing a lacy gown that seemed to me to be almost see-through. I was staring at Aoi, his boyish smile making me week in the knees. Suddenly my vision detected a spy. Yukihiko was sitting in the front row with his elbows on his knees, watching me.
"Focus, Ichiko. You look great, by the way." Aoi began reciting his first few lines from the scene, sometimes ad-libbing a bit from stuff he forgot. Luckily it didn't throw me off and I was able to make the scene flow. When we got toward the kissing part, however, Aoi really strayed off the script.
"What are you doing, Aoi?" I whispered with my teeth closed as I smiled.
"This is our last night together, Nana. I want to be with you in every sense of the word." He said as he began to lunge for me. Natsu cleared his throat quite loudly and stomped onto the stage in a fury.
"This isn't in the script, you crazy lunatic!" Natsu yelled at him, throwing the script against the wall.
"I'm the director, aren't I? I want to take this scene in a different direction."
"I don't think the school would allow you to go in that direction." Sumikko said, adjusting his glasses. Aoi sighed and took my hand.
"All right, let's continue from before that one line." He said with remorse. He told my character that he'd be back soon and wanted me to wait for him. I responded by choking up and promising him I would indeed wait for him. He took me in his arms and instead of prepping for a stage kiss like we learned, he headed straight for my lips. I backed away from his grip until I stumbled and fell on the floor. I heard a chorus of giggles backstage and I blushed ferociously.
"I saw that, Aoi. Either do it right or I'll be What's-his name in the play!" Natsu blurted out from behind the curtain. I blushed even brighter. Sumikko mumbled to himself in a distressed tone of voice. Yukihiko smiled and gave me a thumbs-up sign. Natsu poked his head around the curtain, glaring deliberately at Yukihiko.
"Who's the fruit?" He asked me. Yukifumi, who worked the curtains, answered him back in a harsh tone.
"He's my brother."
