When Acting Becomes Reality
By Empyreal Melody
Author's Note: Hi all! Those just tuning in, welcome! I said I would update sooner than last time, so here it is! The next chapter! Sana finally meets Akito! Weee! Well, actually, not really. It's more like he's introduced. But she sees him! ^^; Oh! And here's something for ya!
Reviewer Shout-outs: Hold up! I'd like to give a couple shout outs before I go on!
E2K- My first reviewer! Thanks for reviewing the first and second chapter. Glad to know that people are coming back for more. You ROCK my world!!!
Rose- Thanks girl! If it weren't for your reminders to update during every single month I probably wouldn't have even made the second chapter. No wonder Shigure and Sana's mom have those editors chasing after them. Lol.
HYPERdingdong39- When you said you were adding me to your author alert list, I had no idea what that was except for the words: which means you better update soon. Well guess what? Whenever I thought of my fic, I thought of those words. So thanks for putting that in your review. It kept my motivation goin!
Lizzy Black- Thanks for the very helpful comment about not rushing it too much. I can't guarantee you that I won't, but I'm sure as heck trying!
***
Chapter 3: Meeting the Cast
The days passed by quickly as Sana came to realize that is was already three days later. It was the day she had been waiting for. She was ecstatic as she moved around in her seat, wanting to get out of the car so she could see the cast. She couldn't help but perk up as she saw the building.
"It looks like this is the place Sana." Rei got out of the car to open the door for the teen actress. The moment he did so, the brunette stepped out to a couple feet's distance away from the car. She placed a hand above her eyes to block out the sun as she stared upward at the building.
"Sugoi! Is this the place where we are going to start filming?"
Rei shrugged as he placed a hand on her back, motioning her to start going inside. "I don't think so. Mr. Kaiyuki's passion for filming deals with a lot of action. So knowing that, we might be flying somewhere on location." He held the door open for her as they both stepped into an elevator.
When the elevator opened again, right away Sana noted the familiar actress who stood talking with a couple of other people, one other man in particular. Hm, must be the director. Looks friendly enough. She didn't say anything to her, but walked right up to them instead.
On her approach, the taller and older actress spotted her. "Sana!" She smiled as she excused herself from those in her group to meet up with her. "I didn't know you were in this film. How are you doing?"
"Oh I'm doing great!" Sana answered. "I didn't know you were in this film either. Actually, I didn't even know if I was going to be in it myself."
Asako gave a light laugh as she stooped down to match Sana's height level. "Is Rei here?" she whispered, not wanting to attract any attention about Sana's manager.
"Uh huh. Right over there." She used her thumb to point at the tall man with the sunglasses behind her.
The older woman blinked a couple times. "Still wearing those silly sunglasses I see." The two of them hadn't seen each other in quite awhile, about a year actually. It was hard for both Rei and Asako to not be able to go out even for a day, but they were able to keep contact by phone every now and then.
"Pst, Asako." Asako shook her head to break out of her space trip to look at the younger actress. "You should go talk to him. We're both early so you have time for a little chat."
Asako smiled at her and said, "I guess you're right. I think I will do that. See that man over there?" She pointed to the tall man with short black hair, wearing a black suit without a tie. "That's the director. You should go talk to him. We'll talk more later," she promised, heading over to Rei straight afterwards.
As Asako walked off, Sana stood by herself for just a short moment to look at the people around her. She saw various actors and actresses that seemed familiar, but couldn't exactly place who they really were. She shrugged it off as she had another smile on her face, and went to talk to her new director. Guess I was right when I thought it was him.
"Hello Mr. Kaiyuki." Sana shortly bowed in respect as she greeted him, as was the custom. "It's a pleasure to be in your movie. Nice to meet you." She wanted to give him a good impression of her on their first introduction. Then again, this was the way she greeted almost every director and actor she met.
"Sana. It is a pleasure to have you with us," he said, giving her a friendly smile back. It was nice to see that he was capable of smiling. When she was filming with Director Ono, she barely saw him smile at all. It was a nice change. "Allow me to introduce you to these fellow stars." He motioned her to see the others with him.
One was a girl, probably not much older than Sana. She had bright red cheeks and dark brown hair resting against her shoulders.
"This is Hokuto Misami. She will be playing in quite a number of scenes with you."
She watched as the girl put out a hand to shake with Sana's. "I was waiting for you to come. I'm such a big fan of yours. I hope we'll become good friends by the time this movie finishes." Sana nodded and agreed with the idea. Making friends was one her priorities.
The other one was a boy. He was about the same age as she was, but he was a lot taller than her. He had light brown hair and golden brown eyes, his hands fitted in both side pockets of his pants. Unlike Hokuto and Mr. Kaiyuki, she was not greeted with the most friendly expression in the world. He looked a bit bored, not paying attention to Sana at all.
"And this young man is Akito Hayama, my star actor," Mr. Kaiyuki beamed. "It was because of him in my first movie that I became the director I am right now. I chose him to be in this one to give me more of that luck." He chuckled at his little statement.
Sana giggled a little bit at that as well. "It's nice to meet you Hayama." When she didn't receive an answer she told herself that he probably just didn't hear her. "Um, I'm Sana. It's nice to meet you." Even still he didn't respond. "Hello?" She waved a hand in front of his face, but the guy didn't turn or even blink. Using that short temper of hers, she did what she normally would have done in any situation like this. "Hey, are you even there? Answer me!" She pulled out her toy hammer from nowhere and attempted to bash it on his head.
It was supposed to be one of those comedic moments when the hammer would hit a person and a band-aid would magically appear later on. But before it reached the top, a hand grasped onto the handle and blocked its route. The boy shot a slow sideways glance at her. He didn't say anything, just looked with a daunting pair of eyes. "Hmph." He pulled his hand back and walked away.
"What's wrong with him!" a freaked out Sana exclaimed to no one in particular.
"That's exactly what I thought when I tried saying hello to him," Hokuto said. "I introduced myself and he just looked the other way. Not even a 'hello' or anything."
"I guess that's just the way he is." Mr. Kaiyuki didn't understand why Akito never said anything that much. "He may not have the best outward personality, but when I saw him perform he was a completely different person. Give him a script and he'll do it, but don't expect him to say anything more than a 'hmph' in a conversation." Why the director picked a guy with a sore attitude was beyond reasoning, but somehow Akito was chosen anyway.
"See that kid over there?" Sana glanced in his direction to see another teenager talking with Akito. He was a lot shorter than him. His hair was chestnut brown and his eyes were covered with a pair of glasses. He smiled as he spoke, but Akito didn't. "His name is Tsuyoshi Sasaki, a friend of Akito. He came with him during the interview. Since he doesn't talk much, I guess Tsuyoshi is there as some kind of spokesperson."
"Oh." Sana was a bit upset to find out that the guy her friends obsessed over lacked a lot of communication skills. You'd think he grew up in a school for those that only spoke sign language.
"Well, the meeting is about to start soon so you will be re-introduced to each other. You'll get the chance to meet all the other actors and our co-director as well. It'll be in that room just over there. Don't be late." As he walked off Sana couldn't help but still think about Akito. Those eyes, they're so serious. I wonder if he ever smiles at all.
"Come on Sana. If I didn't know you any better, I would take it that you want to be late on our first meeting." Hokuto joked.
Sana laughed as they both walked to the next door. "Late? Never!" As she spoke she glanced back to where Akito and Tsuyoshi were, startling herself as she noticed Akito staring right back at her. She quickly jerked her eyes attention back to Hokuto, who didn't seem to notice that she glanced away at all. This is going to be a long meeting.
~*~*~*~*~*~
"I will announce your roles as we go along. "
As the meeting began, Sana could tell that this movie was going to be great. Kaiyuki was tremendously active when it came to picking out roles. He matched people's personalities to the characters that best portrayed them. It was amazing how he was able to find a different range of people to get the movie he wanted.
"Hokuto will be playing as Mai, Sana's best friend. She is a bit of a serious girl, but she always speaks her mind, especially when it comes to accusations." Hearing her role, Hokuto smiled with glee, knowing that she had the chance to act with her number one favorite actress. It was strange though. Whether it was just her imagination or not, Sana thought that she resembled a lot like someone she knew. Must be my mind playing tricks on me.
"Arina will be playing as the mother. She lets Sana go about and do what she pleases. Of course she's still caring, just not as strict as the usual mother would be. The mother is very trusting of her daughter."
Sana blinked, unsure of what she just heard. So Hokuto will be playing as her best friend and this Arina woman will be playing as her mother. Why in all the history of Child's Toy did that sound so familiar to her?
"This is Yuki, a beginner actor as some of you may have noticed, but I would say that he is as talented as both Sana and Akito. In fact, the two of them are his role models." He glanced a short smile to both of them, showing just how proud he was of his decision. He was giving the boy an opportunity to meet his favorite celebrities, and on screen too! "So given that information, he will be playing as Akito's greatest enemy, a rival you may say."
A rival huh? In complete honesty, he didn't look much like a rival. He was more of the pretty boy type. Not that any girl would mind of course… but he didn't seem to have that enemy stance in him. He had black hair, combed neatly on both sides of his head. He looked kind of nervous though, his blue eyes looking down at the table as more information about his role was being announced.
"Now I know that I should have introduced them in the beginning, but I decided to save our main characters for last. Sana." His voice held firm as he said her name, staring directly into her brown eyes. She could tell that he had something big in store for her.
"You will be playing as Kari, a runaway; not to escape the harsh realities of life as so many have done before, but as one in search of her father. You have been kept hidden from this part of your past, and after some years time, you decide that you want to find out who he really is. On your 'quest,' you meet up with Ryu. Now Akito," He turned to face him as he went to explain his role.
"this is where you come in. Your role is to be the leader of the worst hit man gang that has ever walked the earth. You've done some major killings, including the assassination of Japan's prime minister. Every person in your gang is loyal to you, meaning that they are willing to do whatever you command them. You start off as a bad guy in this movie, but you will see some changes along the way. Everything is highly depended on your performance." The last statement was directed toward everyone in the cast.
If Akito was going to be playing as the leader of a hit man gang, then it was obviously going to end up being a violent movie. She couldn't help but think that violence was never something good, even if it was just pretend. Though something lit up in her system, like the sudden flicker of a light bulb. This movie is going to be good. Real good. As the director continued to speak she was deep in thought about her role. I'm a runaway looking for my father. And I end up meeting this hit man… Ryu. Okay, but… She lifted her head up to take a short glance at Akito, who was sitting not too far away from her.
He was so serious. He just sat there with his arms folded across his chest, and looked down at the table. He didn't even seem to be able to move. His face expressed a mask of indifference, completely void of any emotion. He did not look as though he was paying any attention to the director, and neither did he notice the girl carefully observing him. He certainly showed off the total bad boy charisma, whether on screen or not.
Sana had never known anyone in her entire life that looked like that. It was so depressing. That look would make any person feel like jumping off a building. She sighed in her seat, slumping down and letting her fingers playfully hit the table.
"So is everyone clear of their roles for now?" Kaiyuki looked about the large table to spot faces that showed signs of confusion. Not seeing any, he dismissed them. "You'll be handed the scripts on your way out. Scan them for now, but as soon as we hit next week I expect you to start learning them. Is everyone clear?" With words and nodding of acknowledgement, they were free to leave.
"What do you think Sana? Glad you took the role?"
She turned her head around to give Rei a quick nod. "Uh huh. I'm pretty sure this is going to be fun. Hokuto seems really nice. I think I'll make a lot of friends in this film!" As she was just getting out of her seat, she was stopped by a new voice.
"Hi Sana."
She took one a look at the person and recognized him immediately. He was that friend! Akito's friend, she meant. "Oh! Hello!" She gave him one of her cute smiles. "You're… Tsuyoshi right?"
The boy turned red as soon as he heard her respond to him. She knew his name! Oh what a wonderful day! Sana was his biggest and most favorite actress of all time, and he was actually standing right in front of her! And talking to her too! He adjusted his glasses, thinking that the unknown heat was making them foggy. "Yeah, that- that's right," he stuttered, quite unable to contain his excitement.
"Pleased to meet you!" She held out her hand, not noticing the sudden shaking that had started to move the boy's body. When he took her hand she shook it, acting as normal as could be. But boy was this guy nervous. He could barely let go! Sana blinked. "Ano…"
"Oi."
Sana blinked once more to notice the 'bad boy on the block.' She stared as Akito stood there, both hands in his pockets. He actually said something other than 'hmph!'
"Akito," she said, her voice on the brim of a whisper. He didn't bother to even look at her. It seemed as though he was looking straight through them, like they were some kind of ghosts. More like he is one. Where's he looking at? Sana thought to herself, an eerie silence felt even in the crowded room.
"Tsuyoshi. Ikuyo." His monotone voice was still in tact as he tilted his head in the direction of the door. Like a dog obeying its master, Tsuyoshi nodded his head before letting go of Sana's hand. Talk about a long handshake.
"Bye Sana. It was nice meeting you." Tsuyoshi waved as he made a turn. Akito, on the other hand, didn't do anything except give her another one of those side-glances. He was looking directly at her this time, no doubt about it. She felt a shiver go up her spine, making her quiver. What is with those eyes? They had the uncanny ability to creep up and pierce through skin. She didn't know what to do or what to say to him. That position was held long enough until they heard the clearing of someone's throat.
"Sorry to interrupt you, but we really must be leaving now," Rei spoke, being Sana's savior for the day. But when Akito's eyes shifted over to him, his body jumped.
"You're that sunglasses guy aren't you?" From the way he asked, it sounded more like a statement than a question. "Sana's manager."
Sometimes, things were better left unsaid. In this case, it was better to listen to Akito say nothing that anything at all. Sana could sense the discomfort in Rei, the intense stare of this new actor rubbing onto everyone around him. Even Tsuyoshi seemed to be in a state of uncertainty. At least he knows my name, she thought with a hint of bitterness.
"It's nice to meet you." Praise Sana for her courage to speak to him. After all, she was the one who tried to hit him with a toy mallet. "You didn't answer me when I said that earlier. I thought that you just didn't hear me." Saying that was probably a mistake, but she would not have stopped the words from coming out of her mouth even if she could.
As cheerful as she usual was, this time she looked serious, defiant. She wanted to be friends with him, just as she wanted to be friends with everyone. So what if it seemed as though he was a bit psycho? He's still human and every human is unique.
Sadly enough, Akito failed to come up with the same goal.
"I don't need to answer to you." He walked away from her, Tsuyoshi's clue to follow along.
Sana felt an upcoming rise of anger as he did so, not wanting to be spoken to that way. Loudly she shouted after him, "I'm pleased to know that you're willing to open up!" He did not look back at her.
"Argh." She held both hands tightly at each side. "The nerve of that guy!" How could anyone expect her to work with him if he would barely talk to her? Well yeah he did talk, but nicely? No…
"I swear, first thing I'm going to do when I see him again is sic my mallet on him," she muttered.
Rei chuckled behind her, being able to hear her comment.
"That guy is trouble. I'd advise you to stay away from him, but I don't think that would be any possible way to go about it as long as he's your co-star."
Sana grumbled, taking a script as she left. That Akito had better watch out because he is going to get hit by something unexpected when he least expects it.
***
Author's Notes: Well well well, looks like someone is gonna get a beating reeeeal soon. I'd take sides with either one of them except for the fact that I'm the one that put them in this situation in the first place. –laughs- Thanks for sticking with my story and the wonderful reviews people. I promise I'll try my best not to let you down! R/R!