Always With You

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Chapter 2 – A drama in pieces

Kyoko was surprised to see a familiar figure lounging in front of Sawara-san's desk as she approached. She bowed as she met the man's eyes, "Director Kurosaki-san, I'm pleased to see you again."

Sawara watched as the tall, rough-looking man unfolded himself and rose to greet Kyoko. "Mogami Kyoko-san, I am very pleased to meet you again." Surprising both Kyoko and Sawara, he bowed.

He held his bow, and the young actress's eyes, for a long, uncomfortable moment. Sawara cleared his throat, breaking the younger man's trance. "Please be seated."

Once again the young director folded himself into his seat. Only this time he sat more erect and respectfully. His eyes still held Kyoko as she also took a seat.

Hmmm, Sawara thought, I wonder if there's something… But then he shook himself imperceptibly. I've been spending too much time around the President.

"Mogami-san," Sawara began, "Director Kurosaki has come to us with a job offer that I think that you will be very interested in." He turned to the tall young man, "Director?"

Kurosaki took a deep breath to get his mind under control. Even though he had been watching Kyoko's career from afar for over a year, he was surprised at the impact her physical proximity was having on him. She was only slightly taller, but her personal presence had increased dramatically. "Ah… um, yes," Kurosaki forced himself to relax and assume his usual devil-may-care attitude, "are you familiar with Kamisaka Enterprises, Inc.?"

Kyoko nodded, "They make pharmaceuticals and just about everything else, right?"

"Correct. I have been asked to create a major commercial campaign to place the Kamisaka name on every person's tongue. Essentially what we are going to do is create a commercial drama. Are you familiar with this concept?"

"Of course. We studied the idea in acting school. In the United States they had a long-running series of commercials where a man and a woman in the same apartment complex meet and slowly fall in love over cups of coffee."

Kurosaki smiled, "Exactly! That set of commercials captivated television viewers to the point that they were clamoring for the next episode. That is what I am going to do with this commercial drama. The title is "Always with you." The drama is about a man who woos a young woman who has been betrayed and who believes that she will never love again. The title is also a play on words showing how Kamisaka Enterprises' products are a part of our everyday lives…"

Kurosaki paused as he felt the room chill and watched Kyoko's expression turn bleak and forbidding. He looked in bewilderment at Sawara. Sawara had learned to recognize Kyoko's sudden mood-swings, however; this time he was prepared. "Mogami-san, I should tell you that Tsuruga Ren has agreed to be the male lead for this project."

Kyoko brightened, "Then it's sure to be a success. Director Kurosaki, are you asking me to audition for a part in your project?"

Kurosaki was confused at what had caused her gloominess and what had brought about her sudden reversal. It took him a moment to get his thoughts focused before he replied, "Mogami-san, I'm here to ask you to be the female lead."

* * *

Yashiro Yukihito had to suppress an almost girlish giggle as he bent down to get into Tsuruga Ren's car on the following Monday morning. Working with President Takarada, he had sandbagged Ren into accepting the part of Matsakura Kenjo in the commercial drama. Both of the men had known that Kurosaki intended to ask Kyoko to play the female lead. They also suspected that Ren might balk at the project if he knew that Kyoko was involved. He hated to be pushed and might have turned down the project as a ploy to throw him together with Kyoko.

This morning the cast for the first segment of the project would meet for a script reading. This would also be the first time that Ren would see Kyoko in almost two weeks. Dark Moon was on a break from filming and Ren had been in Seoul, Korea, filming for his latest movie project. Yashiro saw Kyoko standing on the sidewalk in front of the Darumaya. She was dressed in a light pastel sundress and white strapped medium heels. She looked fresh, bright, and beautiful in the early morning sun.

Yashiro looked over at Ren and saw his expression. "Ren, your face."

Ren heard his manager's warning and quickly schooled his expression. Experience had taught both men that Kyoko tended to shrink away whenever Ren allowed the full force of his feelings to show on his face. "Thanks."

"Good morning, Tsuruga-sempai, Yashiro-san," Kyoko said cheerfully as she climbed into the back seat. "I'm so sorry to inconvenience you by picking me up." Yashiro had tried repeatedly to move her to the front. She always claimed that it was inappropriate for a junior actress such as herself to sit in front while the manager of LME's top actor sat in back. Eventually Yashiro had given up.

"Good morning, Mogami-san," both men replied.

"Mogami-san," Ren continued, "I called you and said that I would pick you up. You don't have to apologize." He wished that she wouldn't always be so formal with him.

"Um, Tsuruga-sempai… I'm really happy that I'll be working with you on this project. I'm just sorry that you have to work with a Talento instead of an experienced actress."

Ren sighed, "Mogami-san, you have played a key role in two very successful dramas in the last year. You've played bit-parts in three other dramas. And you've done all of that very well. You are not a Talento anymore. You are a full-fledged actress and I am very happy to work with you."

Kyoko flushed with pleasure at her sempai's words. She had such a cute expression that Ren stared into the rear-view mirror for too long and almost drove into oncoming traffic. He jerked the car back into his lane amid honks and shouts. His passengers both looked frightened, but he knew that the rapid beating of his own heart had almost nothing to do with his near collision. He scolded himself silently, Get control of yourself! If you're not careful you're going to slip and do something that will scare her away forever.

* * *

"Ladies and gentlemen, I'll be brief. Kamisaka Enterprises, Inc. is proud to make and sell products that are a part of a part of everyday life. From over-the-counter medicines to paper products, from plastic storage containers to light-bulbs, we make and sell them all. We want the people of Japan to know that they can always trust our products and that anything with the Kamisaka brand is always the best choice." CEO Imada Kure paused dramatically to let the impact of his words sink in, "That is why we have asked Director Kurosaki to put this project together for us. Our company is honored to have you all here to represent us. Director Kurosaki, I'll turn it over to you."

As the elderly man sat, he focused his attention on the young girl whose participation had been insisted upon. She looked bright and fresh this morning; nothing like the dark and dangerous roles that she played in her dramas. His wife and daughters were obsessive about watching each new episode of Dark Moon, so he had seen the girl in action as the bitter, scarred heiress. More recently he had seen her play the sexy, vicious school bully. Although he had to admit that she was attractive in the role, it definitely wasn't what he wanted for this drama. But the girl in front of him didn't seem dangerous at all. She's not as beautiful as Kotonami Kanae, but she might just work out.

Director Kurosaki stepped up. He had felt a little flustered when Kyoko had walked gracefully into the room, looking so cute. He felt irritated with himself for reacting so strongly to her presence. He prided himself on his carefully cultivated hoodlum appearance. His multiple earrings and goatee were effective props for his tough image. It wouldn't do to be seen acting like a schoolboy with a playground crush.

His irritation helped get himself under control, "Good morning and thank you for coming. I've worked with several of you before," he returned the nods of Kyoko and three others, "but I will give my little speech to all of you anyway. The commercials I produce are a form of art. Within the first ten seconds the product and company message must be deeply implanted into the mind of the consumer.

"A commercial drama is harder still. We need to grab the viewer's attention so that they keep coming back for more. We need to make every sixty-second episode so impactful that they clamor for the next episode just like a they might for a full-fledged drama.

"Now let me explain the plot. The drama is named 'Always with you.' It is the story of a very wealthy young lady, Suzuko Nanami, who discovers that her fiancé has betrayed her with one of her friends on the day of her wedding. Feeling heartbroken and betrayed, she vows to never love again."

Ren looked over at Kyoko to see how this information was impacting her. He knew that the plotline was hitting a little too close to home for her. She seemed to be fine, but he noticed that her right hand was white from tightly clutching a little bag. Is that what I think it is?

"The male interest in the story is Matsakuro Kenji. He is the CEO of a successful start-up company. He is helping his sister as a laborer when he sees Nanami. His sister is an event planner and she contracted to set up Suzuko Nanami's wedding. She was short on help, so she called in a favor with her brother. When Nanami goes beserk and tears apart the platform, he follows her and helps her to regain calm.

"Although she finds him very attractive, she is determined to never take a chance on love again. What follows will be a merry chase as he tries to prove that he is worthy of her love by being indispensible to her."

Kurosaki paused before continuing. He had received much grief from the company executive over his next idea; even more so than his insistence on hiring Mogami Kyoko. "The sixty-second episodes will be filmed in segments of five each. The commercials will be promoted beforehand, and you will be asked to participate in talk-show interviews throughout the project. The reason for this is that we will not determine the future course of the storyline until we receive feedback from the viewers. There will be polls and chat rooms specifically designed to solicit and absorb viewer response."

Ren was impressed. Not only would the commercials put the Kamisaka name out to the public, but the websites and interviews would as well. He had heard that this young man had a flair for the unusual. He looked over to see Kyoko smiling. This was definitely a project that would challenge her talents.

"One more thing, and then we will start reviewing the script for the first five episodes: Both Tsuruga Ren and Mogami Kyoko have demonstrated the ability to act 'on their feet.' That is why you will find that the instructions for the two leads are not tightly developed. I want you both to create your characters and become those characters. You will have a specific idea for where you are supposed to be at the end of the scene, but it you will have to work together to arrive at a successful conclusion within those sixty-seconds. Everyone else, you will have clear-cut lines, but you will need to be responsive to the two leads. Are we clear?"

"Hai, Director," the small group chorused. Not everyone sounded fully convinced.

Kyoko turned to face Ren. Her eyes held the thrill of challenge. This is my chance to prove myself to Tsuruga-sempai. This time I won't be led.

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