Aqua and Ruby had turned fifteen. From that moment, a series of events had occurred in their respective careers in the entertainment world. It should be noted, however, that Aqua's career was more active than Ruby's during those years.

Aqua continued his intermittent career as a child actor, appearing in the occasional film. In fact, he crossed paths again with Kana Arima, whom he swore he never wanted to see again. Unfortunately, they met again at Yoto Middle School. That moment was uncomfortable. She kept repeating her name multiple times, her irritating voice making his eardrums feel like they were being cut by a knife. He had no choice but to return her greeting to make her stop.

Internally, Aqua sighed. On one hand, he had to deal with an immature sister, and on the other, a girl with a difficult personality. It seemed like divine punishment for the mere fact of reincarnating.

Regarding his sister Ruby, he still disliked how she rolled up her school uniform skirt so much. Their mother, Ai, downplayed it, allowing her to do as she pleased. On several occasions, Ruby's tantrums were so unbearable that Ichigo delegated to Miyako to take the brunt of it, which deeply irritated his wife and marked the beginning of their gradual relationship deterioration.

When Aqua started high school, many questions still lingered in his mind. He still felt the obligation to protect Ai after the scare from his childhood. Despite Ai's insistence on not answering any questions about who the father was, Aqua had no choice but to find the answers on his own. To do this, he began by secretly taking his mother's phone, the code of which he discovered by watching her use it. He checked her LINE conversation history but found nothing suspicious. She might have deleted it. So, he decided to look for another alternative.

He contacted bigwigs in the industry to find possible clues. His methodology was varied: from interrogation to DNA tests. Sometimes Aqua could seem like a character straight out of "CSI," but given the circumstances, it was necessary to separate reality from fiction, though sometimes in that industry, it was hard to do.

The first big fish Aqua went after was Masaya Kaguragi, producer at Lalalai, Ai's former agency. After participating in a terrible live-action adaptation, in exchange for an answer, the producer agreed under one condition: Aqua would join the cast of actors for a dating reality show called "Dating Reality Show."

Initially, Aqua wasn't very interested but would do whatever it took to achieve his goals.

From day one, he met his fellow cast members. The lineup, in alphabetical order by last name, was:

Akane Kurokawa

Nobuyuki Kumano

Mem-cho

Kengo Morimoto

Yuki Sumi

From this list, according to the experiences Aqua lived through, we'll highlight the first, Akane Kurokawa. When he first met her, she seemed quite shy. He had seen her once at that party being berated by Kana, but those were vague memories not worth recalling.

In the early days, Aqua barely noticed her, even forgetting her name at times. He knew her as "the girl with the notebook" because she always had a white one in her hands, jotting down everything she saw and heard. It was clear she was eager to learn and improve. However, those efforts bore no fruit.

Unlike Aqua, who didn't mind being just a background figure, for Akane, being irrelevant was synonymous with failure. She felt the pressure from her managers to gain more prominence. Faced with this scenario, the insecure Akane decided to take matters into her own hands, but the cure was worse than the disease. Her actions provoked the fury of multiple viewers who expressed their rejection towards her so vehemently on social media that her confidence was gradually eroded to the point of considering something as extreme as suicide.

On an intensely rainy day due to an approaching typhoon, without any protection from the water, though she covered her face with a hoodie to show the world how irrelevant she was, her dream of becoming an actress had led her to this tragedy. She removed her hood as she approached the nearest bridge. When she put her feet on the railing, her head was turning into a whirlwind of negative emotions ready to explode. Her lost gaze said it all.

"I'm tired of thinking," she told herself right after making the decision.

She closed her eyes so as not to see the ugly urban landscape as her last image, covered in asphalt with decrepit trees and soulless skyscrapers in the background.

But when she jumped, some "invisible" arms grabbed her just in time. What could they be? A miracle from God? Not in this case.

Akane was pleading to be allowed to end her life when she was pulled back onto the bridge.

"Calm down!" said a familiar boy's voice. "I'm not your enemy. Please, just calm down." He gently stroked her head to relax her.

Akane slightly turned her head to see who it was, and it was Aqua. She couldn't understand how he knew she was there. The answer was simple: through Mem-cho, tracking her via phone.

Seconds later, a security guard intercepted them and asked what they were doing there during a typhoon threat. They were immediately taken to the police station for explanations.

Their parents were called at once. Akane's mother came, her distress relieved after not being able to contact her daughter, imagining the worst, which wasn't far off.

While Akane tried to explain the situation through tears in the interrogation room, Aqua waited outside, seated. Sometime later, Miyako, his legal guardian for appearances, showed up.

"You did the right thing," said Miyako, sitting to his right and stroking his head. "Both your mother and I are proud of you."

"It wasn't easy," Aqua responded with a certain coldness. "A little more, and it would have been too late."

Soon after, the rest of the cast arrived. It was such a long day for Aqua that he didn't get home until half-past twelve at night. As soon as he entered, Ai was waiting for him at the door wearing a white robe to hug and congratulate him, just as Miyako had done. Then Aqua went to bed and remembered no more.

From that unfortunate moment, there would be a curious turn of events. While Aqua was seen as a boy with a big heart by those around him, in Akane, a series of feelings began to blossom that she initially couldn't understand. And that was love.

From that day, Akane understood that there were people besides her mother who cared about her. The touch and voice of that boy were the calm and warmth she needed amidst the wave of hate she was being swept by. For her, Aqua had become somewhat of a prince charming, whose remedy healed depression better than any antidepressant.

She couldn't let him go. She had developed a certain emotional dependency on her savior. But the problem was it wouldn't be an easy task due to the coldness he showed and the apparent fact that he didn't like anyone. There were even rumors spreading that he might be gay.

But a glimmer of hope came when Yuki Sumi asked Aqua what his ideal woman was.

And he answered, "Ai Hoshino."

It was a golden opportunity for Akane. That night, she immersed herself in the psychology of Ai Hoshino. Through videos, she began to analyze the personality of the celebrated idol exhaustively. With notes on paper, she started to understand the figure she was going to emulate. After a brief rehearsal, she went to bed.

The next day would be crucial. As soon as filming started with Aqua in front of her, she did it. Initially, behind his back, she began acting like Ai. Aqua turned around and noticed the same stars in her eyes. It was a low blow.

Had Aqua fallen in love with Akane too? Not really. But it was convenient. Kurokawa was an actress from the Lalalai agency. Moreover, she had a high capacity for investigation and deduction to the point where she suspected that Ai might have a child. Aqua was scared. If the secret came out, the family's reputation would be ruined, and Akane would think he had an Oedipus complex.

After the show ended, Aqua and Akane decided to become a couple, even if it was just for show.

After finishing the program, they set up a date on the terrace of a café. On a sunny day, they were enjoying what they wanted most, Aqua with juice and Akane with ice cream. While the boy was calm, the girl was in ecstasy. Although it was an arranged relationship, for Akane, it felt like a marriage proposal.

"I'm going to take a photo and upload it," said Akane, opening her phone's camera app. "Do you mind?"

"Not at all," Aqua replied indifferently.

"Perfect. Say 'cheese'," Akane clicked instantly.

While Akane showed a radiant smile, Aqua's was timid.

"It turned out great," confirmed Akane as she went to social media to post it.

"If you'll excuse me, I'll go to the bathroom for a moment," said Aqua while standing up.

"Okay."

In the bathroom, while urinating and washing his hands, Aqua was thinking about his next move. In a few days, he would start a new project to act in a stage adaptation of one of the most popular mangas at the moment. So he wouldn't have much time to scheme.

When he came out of the bathroom, an unpleasant surprise awaited him.

At the exit, he found Akane, frightened, with a familiar face almost touching hers.

Looking closely, Aqua realized who it was. Covered with a brown beret and sunglasses, he saw it was none other than Ai Hoshino.

"Congratulations on your imitation!" Au complimented, removing her sunglasses to reveal her eyes to Akane.

"T-Thank you," Akane responded, somewhat uncomfortable, leaning back slightly in her chair.

"I like that ponytail. Are you by any chance trying to style your hair like mine? I can give you some tips..."

"Can we talk for a moment?" Aqua cut in, approaching Ai.

"Of course," Ai agreed.

Aqua and Ai went towards the café entrance to talk without drawing attention.

"Can I know what you're doing here?" Aqua asked, annoyed.

"Well, meeting the girlfriend my son has taken," Ai responded with laughter, "it's not every day you see a daughter-in-law imitating her mother-in-law."

"Don't get your hopes up. We're together for contractual reasons, and it could end at any moment before you know it. Now, how did you know we were here?"

"Ichigo and Miyako told me."

"And you surely hid the fact you were coming because otherwise, they would have forbidden you. Are you aware we're exposing ourselves?"

"Look who we have here!" shouted a voice from afar.

Aqua turned his head towards Akane and encountered another unpleasant surprise.

Kana Arima had appeared on the scene, giving Akane a piercing look.

"I'm surprised you're posting on social media so happily after what happened to you," Kana continued, showing Akane the Instagram post with her phone. "It's not advisable for an actress like you to expose your life on the internet."

"What's it to you?!" Akane shouted, showing her anger. "Are you jealous because you like him?"

"What makes you think that? Stop projecting."

An uncomfortable silence fell. They looked into each other's eyes without saying anything. Sparks were flying.

"Earth, swallow me up," Aqua thought to himself in discomfort.

To douse the flames, he first signaled Ai to leave, which she did. Then he approached the scene of the conflict.

"Okay, girls, can you stop fighting over nonsense?" said Aqua with his arms extended.

"Fine, I'll leave because seeing her face gives me wrinkles," said Kana, walking away.

"I can't stand her," said Akane, huffing.

"I remember when I first met you, you didn't get along with her," Aqua said, sitting down. "Is there any reason you still don't get along with her today?"

"It's a long story."

"Well, if you don't want to, I won't force you."

"Changing the subject, is Ai Hoshino still around?"

"She hasn't left."

"Well, I'll take the opportunity to ask you a question. How do you know Ai Hoshino?"

"What's the reason for the question?"

"Seeing you two talk, you seemed very close to each other."

"Well..." Aqua began to improvise a lie. "I was once at an event where I shook her hand. I know it's not well-regarded among women for a man to be an idol fan." Akane laughed. "She had such a good impression of me that she gave me her phone number, and that's how a beautiful friendship began."

"Wow, so that's why she was your type of woman. Do you really like her?"

"Well, I'd say it's a platonic love." Inside, Aqua experienced a strange, contradictory sensation oscillating between amusement and disgust at his own comment.

They talked for another half hour about more trivial things before leaving.

For the rest of the afternoon, Aqua met with Director Gotanda. For years, Aqua had offered to help him with the production of his films.

"Don't you think it would be better to put it here?" Aqua suggested, pointing with the mouse cursor.

"You're right," Gotanda responded, correcting the program while holding the eighteenth cigarette of the day between his lips. "You know, Aqua? Since you've been helping me with this, I'm more convinced you have a talent for directing.

"Thanks for the offer, but I'm not too interested."

"Who knows? Maybe you'll change your mind in the future."

"If you say so..."

"What happened to you today? You seem more annoyed than usual."

"I just lived through what I would call a 'carousel of shame.' First, Ai Hoshino appeared to compliment Akane..."

"And what's wrong with that?"

"Well, she was overwhelming her. Knowing how shy she is and after what happened, I don't think it's the best for her."

"I understand, but is that all?"

"No, here comes the second part I didn't tell you because you cut me off. After interrupting Ai, Kana Arima showed up and started fighting with Akane." Gotanda laughed.

"It's always the same with these two. You know what they say. A woman's worst enemy is another woman."

"I don't think that comment is the most appropriate."

"Well, I'll just tell you to seize the moment because you're young. You have a good girlfriend, so don't be too bitter. As they say in Latin, Carpe Diem."

Despite the director's optimism, Aqua turned a deaf ear. First, he had to fulfill his mission: protect his mother and find his father to stop him. There was no time for fun. Danger was lurking and could act at any moment.