I woke up early because today is going to be the day I am meeting Mr. Martin, hopefully, I can meet him. Well, I have to go on my own. Chocho is not coming with me though instead, she will go hunt boys. I shake my head in disbelief thinking about her plan this week.
"Sarada, where are you up to? Today is the first day of your Christmas break, right?" mom notices me all dressed up.
"Um, Chocho and I will watch movies together," I'm sorry for lying mom.
"I see," she nods and gets back to her work. She's preparing for breakfast.
"Is it okay?" I say maybe she wants me at home today.
"Yes, I know you need a break from school. If Chocho's with you, I don't have to worry," she says in a calm voice. The problem is, she is not coming with me.
"Uh, yeah..." I stammer and she faces me holding a pot of soup. So, we're having soup this morning.
"Be careful, it's still hot," she reminds me of the hot-served soup in front of me. I nod at her while smiling.
I scoop from the pot and put it in my bowl. A spoonful straight to my mouth and I giggle at how delicious it is.
"Do you like it?" she asks me and I constantly nod at her. She smiles and eats up too.
"I am leaving mom. I'll meet Chocho at the corner," I say while waving goodbye at her.
"You two be careful," she says and waves back. I step away from the gates of our house and head straight to the station.
I stop when I see a familiar face in a distance.
"You're late,"
"Chocho!" I exclaim. I did not expect to meet her at the corner. I dash in her direction and stop while panting.
"Hey, why are you here?" I am clueless as to why she is in front of me right now.
"Why do you think so?" she smirks at me then looks away. I think I knew it.
"So, you're coming with me?" I tease her by poking her side. She softens when she reacted to my gesture like she is tickled or something.
"Well, I'm worried you'll be in trouble. I just realized that you're an unfortunate girl," she scoffs and I pout.
"You're so cruel," I say and she chuckles.
"We're best friends and I can't let you go all by yourself," she winks at me. I could not help myself but hug her.
"Great! You're the best girl ever!" I yell and she shrugs.
"Let's go. We have wasted so much time," she says and I agree by nodding my head at her.
"Your curiosity is killing us," she says when we get on the bus. I laugh and she just sighs.
This is our first time going to the studio where Mr. Martin works. I don't even have a clue if he is there or has business away from his workplace.
After an hour of riding on the bus, we have finally reached our destination. I lift my head and look so amazed by the heights in front of us.
"This building looks so amazing!" I am bewildered by the scene. It's a twenty-story building.
"Let's go!" Chocho wakes me from daydreaming. I nod and walk near the entrance.
"Good morning, ladies. Where are you up to?" the guard asks us and we look at each other and I speak, "We are meaning to speak personally with Mr. Martin," I breathe heavily after I spoke to him. What if he won't approve?
"Speak about what? Sorry ladies, we don't allow people especially the fans to personally talk to our talents due to their protection and safety policy unless it is very important," he explains and I don't have anything in mind to make as an excuse. I nudge on Chocho's side to ask for help. We stare at each other and make eye signals.
In the end, I am forced to make an excuse. The guard notices our silence and our strange demeanor and he clears his throat.
"We are graduating students and we have an activity to accomplish before our graduation that is to interview with someone whom we want to be in the future. I want to be an actor like Mr. Martin so I am trying my luck today. I want to get some tips on how to be a successful actor," I don't know if I am lying or something just now. Part of it is true and the rest I don't have an idea.
I look at Chocho and she seems to applaud with the stupidest lie I made today. Her eyes glitter as I have won the lottery based on her reaction.
"Is that so? I don't think he is at work today. Wait for a second, I will call his assistant to confirm his attendance," he says and grabs the telephone from his side and taps on random buttons. A call is made. Inaudible chatter takes place as he speaks softly with his back facing us. He hangs up the phone and faces us once again.
"His assistant wants to meet you. Please come in," he gestures to open the door and we look at each other. I can't stop myself from giggling and Chocho is smiling joyously. We both come inside and look around.
"This building is ginormous," I utter in amusement and Chocho nods to agree with me.
"Exactly," she confirms and we are astounded when someone talks behind us.
"How can I help you?" a middle-aged man approaches us. He is wearing black-circled eyeglasses and a tuxedo. How formal. I thought.
"Good morning, Mister. We are looking for Mr. Martin's office," I say and he fixes his eyeglasses using his index finger. He clears his throat and he is about to speak when the guard enters the conversation.
"These young ladies want to speak to Mr. Martin about their school activity. I already talked to his assistant and she approves to meet them," he explains and the man nods like he understands the situation.
"All right, you take the elevator to the eighteenth floor and look for his room," the man in a tuxedo instructs and we nod.
"Thank you," we bow to show our gratitude to him and we immediately leave.
"I can't believe you, Sarada. I can't imagine how you made them approve without further questions," she is amazed by that stupid lie.
"I know lying is bad but I have no choice. I have to do this," I say not going back to what I have started.
"And you are crazy, no the craziest," she says and we laugh together in the elevator.
A 'ting' sound echoes and the door opens. We have finally arrived on the eighteenth floor. We look at our left and right and notice how the area seems so huge.
"Don't tell me we will check on every room," she starts to cue about something exasperated.
"We have to find Mr. Martin's room, remember?" I say and she shrugs. We check on each door and most of them have name tags hanging at the door. They are names of celebrities like Mr. Martin.
"Oh my," Chocho thrills, and when I try to look at what she had seen, it's her favorite actor's name hung on the door.
"What?" I narrow my eyes at her. She giggles like a small child in front of the door.
"He must be inside, you know?" she says and clings to my arm. If it's not humiliating to screech, she has done it loudly as much as she could.
"Stop it, Chocho. We're not here for him," I scold her and try to drag her away from that door.
"Let's speak to him later then," she declares and I shake my head.
"We're not going to do that. Let's go find Mr. Martin," I say and drags her away completely.
"How cruel," she complains but I ignore her. I check on the next door, and to the next and I stop in front of the next one.
"This is..." I mutter almost whispering.
"It's Mr. Martin's!" Chocho exclaims and my heart starts to pound loudly. The word 'MARTIN' was hung at the door. This is my first time meeting him and I don't know what to say to him.
"Let's knock already!" she says and knocks at the door. I try to stop her but it's already too late for me. I still haven't rehearsed what to say to him.
The door opens and reveals a woman in a white blouse and black skirt. She is likely in her thirties. She smiles at us and her mouth opens.
"You might be the girls looking for Martin," she says. Her beautiful voice is mesmerizing me. Is she a singer or something?
We nod and she invites us inside. My chest pounds louder than it used to be.
"Please take your seats," she smiles and moves a pot and cups in front of us. My eyes search around to look for Mr. Martin but no traces of him inside. She pours tea into our cups and sits down after.
"I am Ashley, Martin's assistant," she introduces herself. I clear my throat and try to introduce myself too.
"I am Sarada and this is my classmate Chocho, " I say and she nods.
"I have heard you want to interview him about your school activity, is that right?" she asks and I nod. She nods at us too.
"Hmm. As you can see, Mr. Martin is not around. I regret to inform you that he is not going to be around for like three days. He went home to see his son, as for tomorrow and the day after that, he will tape for his upcoming movie," she explains.
Oh no, but he went to see the jerk? So he is at home? Darn it, Sarada! You're not thinking of coming to their house, right?
Chocho presses me on my side and I look at her. She is telling me what to do now.
"Is that so?" I mutter. I can say my face show regret.
"But, will he be here the day after his taping?" I ask and she speaks.
"Probably, that's based on his schedule. But, will you be available by that time?" she asks and I nod.
"Yeah, I will always make time for Mr. Martin and I will never miss any of his shows. I am looking forward to his new movie," I optimistically say and she smiles at me.
"Great. I can't believe young ladies like you love Martin's character," she laughs and I smile.
"You can come back after three days and I will inform him about your query," she assures and it lightens up my chest a bit. We have a week's break so it's fine.
We stand up from our seats and say goodbye to her. She leads us to the doorway and we completely leave the room.
"So he is at home, what are we going to do now?" Chocho asks and I honestly don't know what to do. I shrug and I tell her we go to the mall.
"Are we going to do boys hunting?" she giggles again and I pout.
"Of course not! I am meaning to buy mom a present for Christmas," I tell her poking her cheeks.
"Come on, let's do boys hunting," she pleads and I shake my head to disagree.
"No," I refuse and she pouts now. Sulking like a kid.
"You're boring," she says and I narrow my eyes at her.
We went to the mall to look for a gift for mom. Chocho's texting someone it must be him.
"Aren't you going to buy him a present?" she startles when I said it.
"Huh?!" she stammers as I used to when Boruto is mentioned every time. Speaking of which, the scene yesterday flashbacks, and I can help myself from being curious about this other person mentioned as the reason for their break up.
"Hey," she calls out to me when she realizes I am spacing out again.
"What?" I snap and she wrinkles her forehead.
"What's wrong with you?" she asks still having her wrinkled forehead.
"Huh? I am thinking about what to buy for mom. Something new, you know?" I lie. How many times did I lie today?
"Hmm..." she hums and did not ask about it anymore.
I end up buying mom a new scarf and gloves. I know she will love them. The climate is changing. The season is cold and they are perfect for it.
Three days later...
"Are you ready?" Chocho asks after I arrived at our meeting place. I nod and we proceed to the bus station.
The same thing happens as before. The guard recognizes us and allows us to get inside without further questions. We head straight to Mr. Martin's room. Ashley opens the door for us and invites us inside.
"T-That's him," I stutter. I see Mr. Martin sitting on the couch while holding a piece of paper. My heart races and I am out of breath.
"Here they are, Martin," Ashley says and he seems surprised when he sees us.
"Hey there," he says while smiling. I think my heart melts when he spoke to us for the first time. He sets aside the paper he is gripping to entertain us, his guests.
"Hi," I stammer and I think he notices it. He chuckles and waves at us to sit in front of him. We are pleased to accept his invitation.
"Please, get them some tea, Ashley," Ashley rushes to get us a tea. She pours the tea into each cup. It's still hot and it smells so good.
"Thank you," I say to her and she just smiles and leaves.
"Who is going to interview me?" he asks and Chocho immediately responds by pointing at me.
My eyes stretched as to why she suddenly points at me. She giggles while hiding it from Mr. Martin. She leaves me no choice but to face him and ask some questions.
"I think I will leave you two so you can focus on the interview," Chocho waves goodbye and leaves me and Mr. Martin alone. She leaves the room and it's just the two of us now.
"Is it okay that she will not participate in this interview?" he asks. He seems curious about Chocho's sudden action.
"Yeah, she is just accompanying me here. She got a separate activity and she is already finished with hers," I lie again... and again.
"I see. So, can we start now?" he asks and I nod. I falsely get my notebook and pen from my bag so it will look like I am taking down his answers.
"Before I start, my name is Sarada," I introduce myself. He nods and speaks, "How old are you Sarada?" he asks and I answer him. He nods at me and speaks again, "From which school are you from?" and I answer him with the truth this time.
"Wait up, so you came from the same school as my son. His name is Kawaki," he says and I look at him.
"We came from the same class, to be honest," I say and he is surprised based on his reaction.
"But I never heard about this activity from him. Well..." his face suddenly glooms and he seems like he wants to say something but cuts it off.
"He sure did not tell you because he is a jerk," I say. I could not stop myself from telling him things like this.
"W-What?" he stutters. He can't believe what I am saying.
"He is unfriendly and a troublemaker. He did not study his lessons well and he failed most of our subjects," I say. His eyes are now wide open.
"Kawaki..." he grits his teeth of disgust. He clenches his fists, not looking at me instead he looks down. He is feeling ashamed of his son's idiocy.
"He even called you a stupid old man. A fake and he hates you," I add and he lifts his head to face me. His sweats drip down his forehead. His face is red, looking so embarrassed.
"Did he tell everyone that?" he asks in a calm voice. I feel sorry for my idol. He should have not heard all of this but I want to clear this mess and to help my mind rest too and prove the jerk wrong.
"He did not. I was the only one to know when I found out that you are his father. I am a fan of yours, Mr. Martin, ever since. I love how you portray a good father on every shows you have. You remind me of my late father," I smile bitterly at him and he somehow feels comfort.
"I hated Kawaki for bringing misfortunes into my life. Since he came to my class, trouble follows me just like how trouble follows him. Honestly, I am here to prove him wrong about you. I lied when I say I'm going to make an interview because I know you wouldn't make time for a fangirl like me," I say so ashamed of even looking at Mr. Martin's face.
I hear him chuckle then clear his throat.
"I appreciate your efforts to meet me and defend me from my knucklehead of a son. But, I can't blame him for hating me," I can see how his face saddens.
"I know I don't have the right to butt into your lives because I am not even concerned about your family issues but there is something inside me that urges me to do something about this jerk so troubles will stop following me too," I say. He looks at me and smiles.
"Maybe it is me to blame too. I failed as his father and you know how shameful it is to me to play the role of a responsible father to his children on-screen yet my son despises me in real life," he runs his fingers across his head then wipes his face with his palms. He looks so embarrassed in front of me.
"I don't know what happened but I know there is always a reason why things happen now," I try to comfort his swelling chest.
"Thank you for coming today, Sarada. I owe you this one," his smile gives pleasure to my heart. I didn't intend to make my first meeting with him to be this intense.
"I think you should talk to him about the truth. I concluded that this problem between you and him makes him a jerk to everyone and what drove him to be rebellious against you. I always knew you were a good person and a good father," I say and he smiles dearly at me. He reminds me of my dad so much.
"I will. I haven't celebrated Christmas with him for how many years now. I think I will make it up to him this year," I can see how his eyes smile and he shakes hands with me.
Chocho and I leave Mr. Martin's room and proceed to go home. What a day! I am expecting better results. Improvements from the jerk that is.