"Operation Must Get Those Girls For The Play" has commenced!


Shizuru is at her desk trying to do her math homework, but her mind keeps drifting to the incident in the theater mere hours ago. Natsuki almost kissed me. On the lips. She would have been my first kiss! I have no problem if she is. She's my best friend after all! She makes me feel hap-

A knock interrupts her thoughts.

"Shizuru?" Aiko's voice calls from the other side.

She gets up to open the door. "Yes, mother?"

"Mori-sensei is at the gates. Security just called to confirm her identity. She'll be here any minute, and she wants to talk to you." This is highly unusual.

Shizuru's eyes widen. This is beyond the ordinary. She must have something very important to discuss if she had to personally come here.

"Do you know what she wants to discuss with you?" Aiko waits for Shizuru's insight concerning the unexpected visitor.

"I have no idea mother. But I guess we'll find out-"

A door bell sounds.

"…now."

Noises of slippers scuffing against marble steps accompany mother and daughter down the stairs.

Ryo opened the door and was chatting with Mori-sensei until Aiko and Shizuru appear next to him.

"And this is my wife, Fujino Aiko."

"I'm pleased to meet you Fujino-sama. I am Mori Rika, Shizuru's literature teacher."

"How do you do Mori-sensei? And please call me Aiko." So this is the woman who spent two years adapting Saeko's book. She looks like a pleasant person.

"She's very polite, isn't she Aiko? She called me Fujino-sama too!" Ryo chuckles and so does Aiko.

"Um, I'm very well, thank you for asking Aiko-san," Mori-sensei is taken aback by the playfulness between the two adults. She thought they would be a serious couple.

"Good evening Mori-sensei," Shizuru greets her teacher politely.

"Ah, just the person I want to see." The teacher looks at Shizuru with a bright smile.

"Let's go to the living room," Aiko leads them away from the foyer. "Would you like something to drink? Tea perhaps?"

"Oh, no thank you."

Shizuru sits on the sofa with her parents flanked on each side. Mori-sensei is on another sofa facing them.

Mori-sensei inhales deeply and exhales, "Shizuru, I want to ask you to play Fujimoto Shizuka in the school play."

Shizuru is slack-jawed while her parents reveal their shock with the slight widening of their eyes.

The youngest Fujino recovers and points out that she never auditioned though.

"Oh, yes you did. I have evidence. You just weren't aware that you were auditioning." Mori-sensei smirks at the girl.

"You and your friend were amazing! I am so glad I left my keys in the control room or else I couldn't have witnessed the unbelievable acting coming from the two of you!"

"Mori-sensei saw Natsuki and I…" Shizuru trails off thinking about the almost kiss again. Ara, she said she has evidence too. This is bad!

"So your friend's name is Natsuki."

"Kuga Natsuki. She actually lives next door," Ryo points out.

"Really! Thank you so much Ryo-san! I didn't know how I was going to track her down to get her to play Kudo Natsumi." The woman is beyond delighted she didn't have to resort to stalking Shizuru in school to catch the other girl.

"Ara, Mori-sensei wants Shizuru to play Shizuka and Natsuki to play Natsumi," Aiko summarizes. Oh, it looks like our wish is coming true! I was disappointed they weren't going to audition, but thank goodness fate is on our side!

The teacher energetically nods her head up and down.

"I think it would be great if the girls could decide together. Would you mind if I invite the Kugas over?" Aiko asks politely. Saeko is going to flip when Mori-sensei offers the part to Natsuki!

"Not at all! It would save me the trip of going over there. Thank you Aiko-san!"

Aiko leaves the room to make the call. She returns moments later. "They will be here in five minutes."

Mori-sensei claps her hands together. "This is wonderful!"

"Mori-sensei, you were saying you have evidence of their audition…" Ryo is intrigued with this bit of information. I want to see the girls in action!

"Yes, I was in the control room when the girls were performing. I was lucky they were just beginning, so I recorded everything using the cameras in the theater." She takes out a DVD case and places it on the table.

Just when Shizuru is thinking about snatching the disc and making a run for it, the door bell rings.

Aiko opens the door and returns with the three Kugas. She introduces Mori-sensei to them, and they do their own introduction. The seating is rearranged with Shizuru next to Natsuki and their respective parents sitting by their side.

Saeko was surprised to hear Aiko had a guest she wanted the Kugas to meet. But she had no idea it was the woman who adapted her book! I wonder what she would do if she knows she's looking at Saeko Kruger right now.

Mori-sensei turns to address Natsuki. "I would like to ask you to portray Kudo Natsumi for the play. I have already offered Shizuru the role of Fujimoto Shizuka."

All three Kugas gasp for different reasons.

Saeko can't believe her and Aiko's wish is coming true! Shizuru and Natsuki are the perfect choices! They instantly came to my mind when I read the script!

Nobuo is surprised his daughter branched into theater arts. Hmm, I thought Natsuki didn't like being in front of an audience. But she and Shizuru must be very good if the teacher personally came to extend the invitation! Wow Natsuki! You just conquer everything you set out to do!

Natsuki whips her head to Shizuru. What the hell! The only time I acted was in the auditorium today! But Shizuru and I were the only ones there! Yes, I'm sure of it!

Shizuru smiles weakly, acknowledging that she was ambushed with the request.

"We didn't audition though!" Natsuki doesn't know her argument is moot with the DVD lying on the glass table.

Mori-sensei points to the disc. "I recorded your performance when I was in the control room looking for my keys. If I have a copy of anyone performing lines from the play, then it's an audition to me!" she says craftily.

Natsuki's face is frozen in shock. Oh my god. That mean she has our…

"Maybe if your parents saw it, they would help me persuade you two."

"No!" Shizuru and Natsuki shout at the same time.

The parents and teacher are shocked by their strong reaction.

"Shizuru, that was very impolite to our guest," Aiko chastises her daughter. What is on that DVD?

"Natsuki, I taught you to be respectful to guests." Saeko glares at her daughter. What has gotten into these two?

"I apologize, mother, Mori-sensei."

"Sorry mom, Mori-sensei."

"Now with that outburst, I definitely want to see their audition!" Nobuo exclaims. Oh, this is going to be so good!

Ryo automatically gets up from the sofa and takes the disc with him. He pops it into the DVD player and rushes back to the sofa not wanting to miss anything. The picture and sound are crystal clear. The camera zooms in on the top half of their body. The adults' eyes are glued to the screen. Mori-sensei quickly explains this is the last scene in the play where the characters just defeated the villain.

Natsuki and Shizuru want to be anywhere but here right now. They shrink further back into their seat as each minute passes. When the scene they dread is coming up, they try to discreetly survey their parents' reactions.

Mother and father are smirking. I should not have goaded Natsuki. None of this would have ever happened if I didn't… No, I can't think like that. If I didn't provoke Natsuki, I wouldn't have been able to act with her. I wouldn't have witnessed firsthand Natsuki's transformation into someone so different from her. Natsuki is different from Natsumi. Natsumi loves her best friend in a romantic way. I shouldn't dawdle on these trivial matters right now. I need to steel myself for the teasing onslaught that's definitely coming from mother and father.

Mom and dad are grinning like crazy! This is so embarrassing! Why did I have to prove Shizuru wrong? Why couldn't I just laugh it off? Stop whining Natsuki! What's done is done. Besides, if none of this ever happened, you wouldn't have seen Shizuru completely lose herself into a role. Yeah! Shizuru has never called me an idiot before. Well, technically she called Natsumi an idiot. But just seeing her say it so informally like she wanted to slap the dense Natsumi, I wanted to laugh out loud! Natsumi and Shizuka are so made for each other… Stop thinking about them! Think about your own situation right now! Crap, it's almost over. Mom and dad are going to tease me to death. Prepare yourself Natsuki! Enemy attack is imminent!

The video stops a few minutes after Shizuru's cell phone rang.

All of the adults face Shizuru and Natsuki. They abruptly stand and start clapping!

"Bravo, bravo you two!" The praise is repeated several times before they return to their seat.

Shizuru and Natsuki look at each other as if they're in the twilight zone. What just happened? We're not teased at all, they both thought.

"That was a spectacular performance!" Aiko compliments them. Why didn't they want us to see that? Ohhh, it must be that little moment at the end. Such innocent girls!

"I give each of you five stars!" Ryo gushes. You deserve a million and more!

"I agree! You two became my—I mean you completely embodied the essence of Shizuka and Natsumi!" Saeko gloriously praises the girls. That was perfection! I can't imagine anyone else playing them now!

Shizuru and Natsuki have matching blushes from Saeko's rave review. It was huge for them since she would be the expert on these characters.

"I am so proud of you girls," Noubo says. He shows them a brilliant smile. The girls are natural born stars!

"Were we really that good?" Natsuki asks humbly.

"As the sponsor of the drama club and director of the school play for the past ten years, I must say your performance ranks in my top five. But that wasn't even the whole play! With rehearsals, you two can definitely storm to the top during the real play. I'm very sure of that." The woman temporarily pauses to gauge the girls' reactions. She's pleased to see cheeks tinged with color.

"The script tells you what to say but not how to say it realistically. You two took, what, ten minutes to memorize the lines and gestures? That's a talent right there! You also brought these characters to life on your own, and I was moved by the whole performance! I'm sure your parents agree with me."

The parents nod enthusiastically.

"There's this natural, effortless chemistry between the two of you that cannot be taught or learned. Trust me when I say there is no one in school who can wholly become these characters like you two can," Mori-sensei speaks from the heart.

The girls are speechless from the raw honesty emanating from her words.

"Perhaps the girls want to talk it over in private before they tell us their decision?" Aiko notices hesitance swirling in their eyes. I hope they'll accept Mori-sensei's offer or else Saeko and I will just have to withhold a certain food or beverage from them as leverage!

They nod and leave the shared room for Shizuru's private one. They sit cross legged on the bed facing each other.

"What do you think Natsuki?"

"I don't know. I'm still shocked from all of their compliments. We were just playing around on stage!" I just wanted to prove Shizuru wrong. And now they think I'm a natural! Their praises do make me feel good about my acting potential though.

Shizuru nods. "It makes me wonder what it would be like if we truly devoted ourselves to play these characters. Because we wanted to, not because we dared each other to," Shizuru ponders with a starry-eyed look on her face. Would we really be extraordinary like Mori-sensei predicted?

"We'll never know if we don't accept Mori-sensei's offer," Natsuki says with a growing smile. So you want to do this, eh Shizuru? That dreamy look says it all. I can do anything if it's with you.

"But Natsuki! What about your-"

"My discomfort being in front of a crowd?"

Shizuru slowly nods.

"I.. I can get over it if I just focus on you when we're on stage. I'll try to block everything out. And zoom in on only you." Natsuki mimics the motion by slowly extending her arms straight out with thumbs pointing up. They stop right in front of Shizuru's face. Her eyes soften when they meet Shizuru's. All I need to see is your encouraging smile and everything else will simply fade away…

Grinning happily, Shizuru takes hold of Natsuki's wrists and playfully swings them side to side. "So that means we're going to do it!" Ara, we're going to be in the play together!

Natsuki laughs at Shizuru's childlike action. "Yes, we are!" We're going to be in the play together!

They discuss the play some more before making their way downstairs.

"…kind of annoyed that Shizuru's cell phone rang too!" Mori-sensei slaps her hand down her thigh and cracks up along with their parents.

Shizuru and Natsuki sigh deeply, wishing they hadn't caught the tail end of the teacher's remark.

Nobuo sees them first. "Ah, our young stars have returned!"

The two take their seat again. Shizuru calmly says, "We have decided to take on the roles."

"Yes!" Mori-sensei jumps up from the sofa, fist pumping into the air.

Aiko and Saeko hug their daughter since they're sitting right next to them. Nobuo and Ryo lean over their occupied wives to high five each other.

Once they settle again, Natsuki clears her throat, catching their attention.

"We have two conditions though."

"Look! They're already mini divas!" Saeko jokes and the adults laugh.

Shizuru and Natsuki look at each other confused. Both are not familiar with the term but think it's probably bad since the adults are laughing at them.

The teacher recovers and asks Natsuki to continue.

"First, I refuse to kiss during rehearsals. But I will do it in the real play. On the cheek, as written in the script. Second, please don't show that DVD to anyone else." She looks to Shizuru, and the girl nods. They talked about this before coming downstairs. It would be way too awkward to kiss her during practices. And no one needs to practice kissing! You just kiss! A kiss on the cheek is easy!

Mori-sensei thinks the two girls are so cute with their shyness on kissing. "Very well, I agree to your conditions. Then I shall see you at rehearsal beginning tomorrow after school!"

Shizuru and Natsuki nod their head in unison.

Mori-sensei didn't stay for long after she got what she came for. Well, she got more than that. She wasn't expecting to get Natsuki so quickly, but thankfully, luck was on her side.

Since they are already there, the Kugas decide to stay over the Fujinos' house for dinner and a movie.

"Girls, how do you think your friends will react?" Aiko asks.

"They're going to freak out Aunt Aiko! A few days ago, Mai said all of us could have been on stage together, but since Shizuru and I didn't try out, she called us party poopers! And now that we're in the play, there's a chance for us to be together! That is, if they get the parts they auditioned."

"I agree with Natsuki. They'll be caught off guard for sure. I really do hope we get to be onstage with our friends. They truly love the book. I'm very confident they all gave amazing performances in their audition. They walked out of it with huge smiles," Shizuru recalls.

After dinner, the parents are upstairs in the home theater room arguing over which movie to watch from the extensive movie collection. The tiff turns into a battle of the sexes with the women throwing their weight behind a romantic comedy while the men refuse to budge from their action & adventure demand.

Shizuru is in the kitchen waiting for the popcorn to be ready.

"Our parents are crazy!" Natsuki proclaims as she enters the cooking area. The girl leans against the counter facing Shizuru. So glad to be in the company of the other sane person in the house!

Shizuru smirks. "Fighting over what to watch as usual?" We always end up watching the same genre.

"Yes! I almost got pulled into it too! My dad and your dad know my movie preference, so they were like 'I bet Natsuki would agree with us' in super smug tones. Then my mom and your mom glared at them. That's when I bolted out of that impending war zone as fast as I could." Natsuki is relieved she's in neutral territory now.

"And then they always compromise by choosing one that has both romance and action," Shizuru concludes easily. I fear the day we've seen every movie with both elements. A real war might actually occur.

"Yep. Why won't they just skip the quarreling and go straight to the compromise? It would save them so much time and energy!" Adults are so confusing!

"Because the fun would be gone! I read in one of mother's lifestyle magazines that it's healthy for couples to bicker. It spices up the relationship. Although, the article didn't explicitly state what facet of the relationship would get a boost. I'm thinking perhaps communication." I'll ask mother about this when I'm in a relationship.

"Eh, but I wouldn't want to argue with the person I love." I would make that person as happy as possible.

"Silly Natsuki! The writer wasn't recommending heated arguments but rather the facetious kind. Like the ones you and I get into." Shizuru winks at her. I love our lively banter!

"Ah, I understand now." Natsuki grins. "That means our relationship has all the 'spice' it needs!" If there was any more, we'd have to gulp down bucket loads of water!

The microwave interrupts their conversation with a ding. Shizuru pours the golden snack into two bowls. She hands one to Natsuki.

"Hmm, maybe, maybe not." Ruby eyes glimmer with mischief. "Come Natsumi, my love, a romantic action movie awaits us!"

Shizuru's theatrics almost cause Natsuki to drop the bowl. "Shizukaaa! You're going to be the death of me!"

The playful repartee continues all the way to the theater room.



Hurrah! ShizNat is in! Are their friends too and how will they react?!

I want to give a big bear hug to everyone who has reviewed! I write to spice up my humdrum life, but I'm thrilled it brings joy to my reviewers as well!

Next one up Wednesday night! It's a huge preview of the play!