AN: Hope you enjoy 😊
Chapter Six – The Starting Point
Kuon closed his eyes and kept his breath even and steady. He wanted to be calm when he auditioned and he was really hoping that nothing like what happened in Japan actually would happen this time. He knew that if there was somebody who wanted to hurt him, his dad would be there for him. Although Kuu sometimes was distracted, he was not a negligent father and he had been working hard on being a proper role model in his son's life and learning more about preteens so that they could communicate.
No, if there was any physical danger to him, Kuon was sure that his dad would do whatever he could to keep him safe.
The meditation right now was to calm himself down so that he could perform at his highest level. He wanted to prove everyone who had said that he didn't have the skills to be an actor wrong. He wanted them to admit that they weren't sure what they were talking about and to do that even breaths needed to be achieved and maintained.
"Are you nervous?" Kuu asked and Kuon lost his focus for a moment. "If you're nervous, it's okay, I get nervous too," he said and Kuon smiled to him.
"I think that meditating might make me feel a little more confident," he said and Kuu smiled.
"Okay, but if you need anything…are you hungry? There's still a little time so I could get you a snack or something," he said as he kept seeing people looking at him and gossiping that Kuon was going to get the role because he was a kid from a family that had already been well established in the celebrity and acting communities.
Kuon wanted to get this role based on his talent not on his relation to his dad.
"I'm good, I just…I am nervous. I don't want to be seen as an extension of you," he told Kuu who paused. "Dad, I really do love you," he said in a quiet voice so that none of the other kids could hear, "but…"
"I get it, you want to achieve things based on your own talent and I'm here for emotional support," he said with a thumbs up. "I promise that I'm not going to act as your coach or an overprotective father. I just know that they want you with a parent or guardian and I'm excited that you chose me."
"Dad," Kuon said slowly, "If it turns out that I…that I don't get the role, you aren't going to be disappointed in me, are you?" he asked nervously and Kuu stared at him for a moment before shaking his head.
"Of course not," he told him honestly, "As long as you go in there and do your best then I'm proud of you. I'm proud of you for trying, for not giving up. Most of all, I'm proud because I get to be your father."
"Thanks, Dad" Kuon said before seeing an assistant to the casting director come out of the room.
"Hizuri Kuon," she said sand Kuon tensed before rolling himself towards the assistant. Kuu sat back in the chair and waited, he shared a knowing look and a nod to his son. Even if Kuon wasn't chosen, Kuu would definitely be proud of him, but he hoped that he would be.
…..
…..
Kyoko looked at the picture of the blanket designs that were supposed to serve as inspiration to the shawl or blanket or even poncho that they would be designing and later making. Kyoko had decided to make a shawl that she could imagine Kanae in. She knew that Kanae would say that it was meant for an old woman and that it didn't match her glamorous style but Kyoko really did want to see people in things that she created.
She wanted to create costumes in the future, maybe for some retelling of a fairytale, Cinderella was her favorite and she could imagine what would happen if she could design the dress that Cinderella wore to the ball and danced in with the prince. She tried to think of Kyoko as she sketched the beautifully flowing shawl, she picked up some bright colors and started putting in some details before coloring it in a blue hue that had variations of dark and light color.
She was proud of the work that she had in front of her and she saw a boy of her age approach her. "That's really cool," he told her and Kyoko blinked before smiling. "It looks like one of those paintings by Van Gogh," he said and Kyoko looked at it before grinning, blushing a little.
"I don't think that it's that nice," she said and he shook his head.
"My mother's a famous artist and I think that it looks like some things that she's studied," he looked down and then showed Kyoko his own picture which was of a blanket. It was black but had different colors of dots and stars alternating throughout the pattern. It definitely wasn't at well designed as Kyoko's but it had its own flair of creativity.
"I like it," Kyoko smiled before jumping down from her seat and delivering a formal bow similar to what she would give when she was at the Fuwa ryokan, "My name is Mogami Kyoko, it's very nice to meet you," she said before standing up and smiling as he did the same.
"Chiba Seishi," he smiled. His bow wasn't as formal or perfect as Kyoko's but he was trying to match her as well as he could. "It's nice to meet you too, Kyoko-chan," he said tentatively and she nodded. He smiled as he got to work on his own picture. "How do you think of your ideas?" he asked interestedly as he looked at the bright colors that Kyoko had designed the shawl with.
"I think of the people I love, the people that I want to design for," Kyoko told him. She ran her finger underneath the design she had made. "This is one I thought of for my friend Kanae-chan. She's studying to be an actress and I thought that something like this would really suit her. I hope that I can make it just as well as I drew it."
Seishi watched her with a grin, "I think that's a really good idea. That way you can read the stories or scripts and get inspired by that. You know more about characters than you can ever really know about people," he said and Kyoko paused.
"You can learn about people if you become friends with them," she said and Seishi shook her head.
"Not really. I know what happens when people find out about your secrets and they think you're weird. I think that people want boys to do things like play baseball or tennis or other sports. You know, soccer, but I've never really liked those things."
Kyoko hummed, "Well, everyone likes different things and people can like a combination of things," she told him and Seishi hummed.
"People think I'm weird because I'm a boy and I like fashion," he said before he went back to his picture.
The instructor stood before the class and then went into how different techniques could be used to make the blankets or shawls or ponchos and how the different designs could be seen as a reflection on the person who drew the picture. They also talked about their next assignment, thinking about the person they would most like to design for and then they would draw a picture of that person.
Kyoko knew that she had just designed a piece for Kanae but she really had her mind set on making clothes that Kuon would be proud to wear. So much good in her life had come from her friendship with Corn, from the interactions both good and bad that she thought of. She drew a picture of him, trying to imagine what was going on with him at that moment. She hoped that he was having fun and she hoped that he was finding some way to act. She really wanted his dreams to come true as much as he wanted her dreams to be brought to reality.
Kyoko looked across at Seishi who had drawn another boy about his age. She hummed, tilting her head to the side before smiling. He wanted to design for his friend too. She took the blond coloring pencil and colored in his hair. Seishi looked at her picture.
"Who is he?" he asked and Kyoko smiled.
"That's Corn," she said, "or Kuon really, Corn's my special nickname for him from when I was young," she explained and Seishi looked at him.
"How old is he?" he asked and Kyoko blushed.
"Umm, he's twelve but we're really good friends," she said and Seishi looked at her.
"That's illegal" he told her as Kyoko's eyes widened. What? How was her friendship and crush on Kuon illegal? What did that even mean?
…..
…..
At the end of the day, Kuon looked across at his father as they sat at the ice cream shop. He had tried to enjoy the rest of the day but he was going over every single mistake that could have happened within the audition. He really hoped that he wasn't going to disappoint his father but he couldn't imagine himself getting offered the role.
"Kuon," Kuu said as he saw the distracted way in which Kuon was looking around. He sighed, "How are you feeling?" he asked and Kuon brought his attention back to his father.
"I'm doing okay, Dad…I don't want to have disappointed you so I want you to prepare for the worst," he requested and Kuu stared at him confused. He didn't really know what his son was talking about. In Kuu's eyes, Kuon was the best young actor in the world and there was no way that he would be deprived this chance to start his career.
In Japan, voice acting was such an art and he felt encouraged that Kuon was keeping an open mind on ways he could act and the different form that acting could take place in. Kuu really did hope that his son saw a shining future before him like Kuu did but he would have to keep encouraging that self-belief and build on his son's self-worth.
It was then that Kuon's cell phone rang and Kuon closed his eyes, taking a few quick breaths in before answering it.
"Hello, this is Kuon speaking," he said in a polite manner and heard the voice at the other end.
"Congratulations, Kuon," the woman said, "All of us loved your audition today and we'd love to offer you the role. Would you be able to come in tomorrow morning so that we can talk about the details of the role and the offer."
"yeah," Kuon nodded, "Yes, thank you. I'd love to accept and I can come in then, thank you," he laughed happily and saw Kuu's excitement as he threw a punch of victory up into the air. Kuon spent another five minutes on the phone before Kuu threw his arms around his little boy.
"I knew you could do it," he told him, "This is so exciting, congratulations. I'm so happy for you," he said energetically and Kuon paused, "Is something…wrong?"
"I said that I could come in tomorrow when they asked," Kuon hesitated, "but I just realized that you have that scene you have to shoot for your movie," he shifted uneasily, "Do you think that Mom?"
"I know your mother would love to take you," Kuu nodded. "We'll just have to talk to her before so that she doesn't get too excited. So are you happy?" he asked as he ruffled Kuon's hair.
"Yeah," Kuon nodded, "Yes, I'm very happy."
End of Chapter Six
Thank you for reading
Thank you to the reviewers of Chapter Five
Erza Tsuruga, KrisXD, misherukuro
Response to Reviews
Lol, I've found out that I have over 25 active fics so I'm keeping multiple documents so I can keep all of them updated regularly. I also have some I need to reactivate once I've given them more thought. There will be Kuon-Kyoko interaction in the future, I promise. Well Kuu just wants to motivate his son and be a good dad and Kuon wants to make his dad proud of him.