In the hills surrounding Los Angeles, the power couple Kuu and Julie Hizuri both took time off work one October night, to spend time together and with their son, Kuon. They spent their mini-vacation watching movies (both starring Kuu Hizuri) and eating the banquet Julie had cooked (to marginal success.) They ended the night playing board games on the floor. Young Kuon laughed and smiled so much that the air around him nearly sparkled with mirth. It was a celebration party, of sorts, one to commemorate the last night of Kuon's innocent childhood and the beginning of his adult career. The next morning, bright and early at seven-thirty, he was to report for his first job as an actor, on the set of a Hollywood movie.
During filming, Kuon would find that acting came harder than he originally thought, be he kept at it. The director and his costars were all understanding enough, and his father was only a phone call away. Over time, he would find himself dialing that phone number more often than he would do anything else. His father willingly gave everything he could think of to his son, terrified of the thought of Kuon failing the role. But, unbeknownst to Kuu, if he had failed then, at that very first movie, had gotten discouraged, and quit acting, he would have actually been spared a great deal of emotional pain in the long run. But, at the end, both the movie and his role in it were deemed a success. His confidence rose. Kuu breathed a sigh of relief.
In due time, Kuon would grow to realize that the only reason he was offered jobs was because of his father. He would realize that, purely as an actor, he was lacking every vital characteristic necessary for recognition. When he looked at his own, brief, filmography, the fourteen-year-old Kuon would see only a shallow, gray display. He wouldn't see talent, he wouldn't see potential, and he certainly wouldn't feel proud. He spiraled into despair, and began to explore other avenues that life presented him.
But, on that last night of childhood, when he was spread out on his stomach watching his father lose sorely to his mother in Monopoly, the only slightly melancholy thought in his head was that he wished he could share this with a certain Kyoto girl who believed he was a fairy.
