Sorry about the late update - I've been in class all day.

Well…here we go - at school and Sho's here! God, I love that character! He's so elitist and bad and always wears leather! Mmmm…

You shouldn't worry about the story though…much… :D

Advent '08

December 8th - 17 days to go

Kyoko arrived early to school that morning, completely focused on what she was going to have to do.

She was also a little excited, if she thought about it. After all, it wasn't very often that a director passed you in a corridor and wouldn't take no for an answer. Asami-san had chosen her because she had proven herself on screen before and she was now one of the first picks of the woman.

That was why she was excited.

It certainly wasn't because of any other reason, like Sho being there…

It was just a coincidence that he was going to be there and she was going to out-act him once again. All she had to do was tap into whatever had happened the last time she had worked with him.

She was grinning as she opened the main hall doors and walked in.

Twenty students sat in a group at the front of the room, chatting eagerly between themselves. They were excited and it showed. She closed the door and walked over to them. So these were going to be her co-stars?

There were a lot more of them than she had first thought there would be, she wondered who was going to play what role and why they needed so many people in the first place.

Making her way down to the group she sat on the outskirts. Now that she was here waiting for the director and Sho to turn up she was starting to feel nervous.

The students next to her had quietened down a little when she had sat near them and were now shooting her looks. She ignored the looks she was getting but she couldn't block out what they were saying.

"Who's that?"

"Did you see her at the auditions?"

"I think I recognise her from somewhere…"

"Has she debuted? If she hasn't then I don't want to know."

"Wasn't she in that TV Drama?"

"I don't know…she looks like the part…maybe she's just a fan?"

"What do you think she's doing here? Do you reckon she thinks she can get in if she just joins us?"

"I don't care about her. She is definitely extra material."

"Do you think that they've made a decision about the female lead?"

"No, they wouldn't make that sort of decision straight away."

"I hope I get it!"

Kyoko flushed slightly in embarrassment and annoyance. They thought that she wasn't good enough and dismissed her within earshot. They were being rude and it made Kyoko angry to think that others in the industry didn't think that she was worth anything.

Her determination riled up.

Well, if they thought that then she would show them! She was the main female lead, not them. And she had been chosen straight away. The director had taken one look at her and demanded that she take the part.

She would love to see the expression on their faces when they found out that little tidbit.

The doors clicked open behind them and they all turned to look as Sho and his consort strode into the room. Kyoko turned with them, nervous flutterings in her stomach as she caught sight of the group.

But that was because she was nervous of what was going to happen over the next week…not because she was looking at Sho…dressed in tight black leather trousers and an open shirt.

Definitely not because of that.

Clearing her throat, her gaze followed their progress. As Sho passed her he glanced at her, his mouth softening into a small smile. Kyoko blinked in shock. When she looked at Sho again he had passed her and his face was once again blank of any emotion apart from annoyance and boredom.

Kyoko frowned but was quickly distracted by Haruki Asami standing up to address the students who were going to be taking part.

"Thank you all for coming. As you may have guessed, you sitting here means that you were successful in your audition to star in Fuwa-san's new music video. Myself and my team reviewed your auditions and we have designated parts in accordance with which parts that we feel you would be able to act the best. After I have finished speaking I will call out your names and what role you have been assigned. Are there any questions?"

"Yeah." One of the girls to Kyoko's left called out, "Who's going to be the female lead?"

"Well, I would have come to that, but if you can't wait. Mogami-san is going to be playing the leading female."

Kyoko blushed slightly as she felt every eye turn to look at her.

"But she wasn't even in the auditions! Isn't it unfair that the female lead goes to someone like that?"

"Mogami-san didn't audition because I specifically asked her to play the part on previous experience. Now, is there anything else?"

No one said a word but Kyoko could still feel waves of resentment from every female student in the hall. Rolling her eyes she ignored them and focused instead on the list of characters that Haruki was reading out.

The bulk of the students were going to be playing the characters for crowds and scenes where there was a lot of students, like the classroom scene or the hallway scene. There were only two big parts next to her, the girl who would be playing her rival and the boy who would be playing Sho's best friend.

After the character list had been read out Haruki gave them a shooting timetable of which scenes would be shot when and where. Each student was given one that was highlighted the specific slots where they would be needed.

Looking down at her timetable, Kyoko saw that Haruki had written it so that the times that she was back at L.M.E. were the times where the scenes that she wasn't in were going to be shot. These consisted of Sho's singing shots and the scenes between Sho's character and his best friend.

Taking a deep breath, Kyoko mentally prepared herself. The first shoot was going to be starting in an hour and she had to get ready before that. She needed to be calm and peaceful to work with Sho. The man was a jerk and he had thrown her for a loop when he had smiled.

He must have done it on purpose.

She shot him a dirty look and was surprised to see him already looking at her before his lips twitched into a smile.

For some reason, she had a feeling that this was going to be a long day.

---/---

The first scene of the day was an outdoor scene, taking place under the bare branches of the tree that Kyoko had sat under not one week ago. The scene in the video was supposed to be Sho serenading Kyoko as she sat on the bench.

There was going to be a few shots taken. One of just Kyoko, one of Sho and Kyoko acting like a newly formed and embarrassed couple and the last was going to be the same scene but this time Sho would be singing.

The first part went really well. Kyoko sat by herself on the bench making shocked expressions at something off camera and blushing on cue. It was over quickly and no one could say that Kyoko had acted unprofessional or had been a bad choice based on the work she had produced.

Haruki was ecstatic and allowed them a small break as she looked back over the shots.

The next shot was the silent couple shots. Kyoko and Sho were put at the end of one of the pathways. All they had to do was walk alone the path together looking nervous.

This was easy enough because Kyoko did feel nervous.

Sho had been acting weird towards her all day. She had been prepared for the Sho she knew, the one who wouldn't hesitate to look down on her or pick up on any mistakes that she made.

She had not been prepared for him to act nice towards her.

It reminded her of home.

Walking besides him she blocked out everything. There was no director, there was no crowd watching her every movement with him and there was no cameras.

There was just herself and Sho walking down a path side by side.

She shot a glance at him from under her lashes. Her eyes widened when she saw that he had turned to look at her at exactly the same time. Blushing she quickly turned her head away.

This was so embarrassing. It was like she was on a date with him! This was exactly how she always had imagined it would be when she was younger.

She was so caught up in her thoughts that she was startled when the director shouted cut.

They then had to repeat the shot over and over as the camera focused on different parts of them at different angles. By the time lunch rolled around Kyoko was exhausted at the rollercoaster of thoughts and feelings that she had been experiencing.

She breathed a sigh of relief when she learnt that she didn't have to stay with the rest of the crew to eat. Picking up her lunch she walked away to find a secluded spot somewhere where she could think.

---/---

Mimori Nanokura sat fuming at her desk.

She watched as her Sho-kun and that Mogami girl got cosy together through the window.

It should be her down there! She was a better actress than Kyoko and she even belonged to the same agency as Sho!

They had spent time together, they knew each other. She was obviously the logical choice! What had happened?

"Makes you sick doesn't it."

Nanokura glanced as one of her many friends sat down beside her and stared out at the proceedings going on below them.

"I thought you were going to be chosen. I can't believe that Mogami girl got the part."

"I heard that the director took one look at her and wouldn't let her say no."

Nanokura twitched in annoyance as another one of her friends came up and sat beside them.

"That can't be true." Nanokura scoffed. "Who would want to use someone like that as their first choice?"

Inside she was seething. She had acted with Kyoko once before and she had been impressed by her skills.

But that wasn't something that she was going to just go spreading around. Especially when her Sho-kun was busy having that harpy draped all over him.

Even if the director saw her in the halls and remembered her from the last video they had made, surely she would have still been the first choice?

She was the better actress out of both of them. She was the one that could get a shot in a single take. And she was the one who knew Sho the best and was in love with him! It would be easy for her to act on the camera.

Annoyance bubbled though her veins.

Kyoko had stolen her part.

She would pay.

---/---

After lunch was over Kyoko felt nervous. She had no idea what was going on with Sho at the moment.

During her solitary lunch she had found some time and space for her to really sit and think about what he was up to and how he was acting. The whole thing had her confused.

He was acting as he had, all those years ago, when she thought he might actually care about her. But that couldn't be right. That Sho had just been a scam to get her to do everything that he wanted and to get himself out in the world.

Hadn't it?

She wasn't sure anymore. If she didn't know any better then she would say that Sho was acting like he was in love with her.

Well, that was easy enough. He had to act like that for the music video.

But…it didn't explain why he acted like that towards her when the cameras stopped rolling.

Was he just staying in character? Was he messing with her head on purpose because he thought it was funny?

Or was he just trying to extend the hand of friendship so that they could work together without ripping each other apart?

She felt apprehensive and unwell when she thought about it.

Arriving back where the crew had set up, she slipped through the crowd. A flash of blond hair caught her attention almost immediately and as she looked over, Sho caught her eye from where he was talking with his agent.

A pleased look spread across his face and Kyoko looked away embarrassed. Was he taunting her that he seemed to be the only thing that she saw at the moment? She didn't know. Annoyed with herself for her reactions she turned to find the director to ask about what direction she would like to take the next shot.

She needed any distraction she could get.

---/---

She was once again sitting on the bench. Sho had his arm wrapped protectively around her shoulders ready for when the camera would start rolling. This was the shot where he would sing. They didn't need the music playing because they were going to dub in the studio recorded track later to minimise interference but they needed Sho to sing now so they could match up his lips with the words.

Haruki gave the signal and the cameras started to film. Sho waited for just a moment longer before he started to sing. As soon as the words left his lips everyone fell silent.

Sho had the most wonderful voice. There was a reason that he was one of the best male singers in the entertainment industry.

Kyoko stared up at him from where she was snuggled under his arm.

Unaccompanied as he was, the power of his voice was amazing. It was raw and filled with emotion and there was a slight catch as he gazed down and stared into her eyes. She stared back, completely awestruck by what he was doing.

She trembled when he reached out and gently touched her cheek with his fingertips, lightly caressing her skin.

Was this what it was meant to be like? Was this what it felt like to be loved by someone and only be seen by him?

She had no control over her own body and just sat there in a state of awe.

He was still staring into her eyes, his face holding a weird mixture of emotions that she couldn't work out. The words washing over her, filling her senses.

She found herself feeling lost and a little confused when his voice died away. Everyone sat in silence for a few moments, waiting for the director to yell cut. Even then, Sho still stayed in the same position for a minute longer, his fingertips lightly stroking her skin.

Kyoko felt confused but didn't want to break whatever trance he seemed to be under. What if this was like coming down from a natural high he got when he sang? She wouldn't want to ruin that and besides, she got the feeling that this was special and that she would regret it if she did.

She watched with bated breath as he slowly blinked. When he next looked at her Kyoko was sure that she could see sorrow flash through his eyes but it was gone before she could really register it.

He sighed softly and moved away, dropping his hand into his lap. Kyoko felt the loss keenly and was surprised.

What exactly was wrong with her?

Watching as he stood and made his way over to his agent, Kyoko wondered about herself and what had just happened. She had no clue what she was going through or how to deal with any of this and she wished that she had someone her to talk to so that she could work it out.

Smiling weakly in response to Haruki, Kyoko stood and made her way over to the small tent where she had dropped off her bag so that she could go home.

If tomorrow was anything like today she was going to be in for one hectic ride.

Ah, Sho. I really want to hug him!

Hey, question…would you read a ShoKyoko story? Or would you refuse to and then never look at anything with my name on it again? (lol - extreme)

I mean…I know there are a few ShoKyoko fans out there but I was wondering about the main RenKyoko shippers - would you read ShoKyoko at all? Or would you burn it?

DS