𝖲𝗍𝖺𝗋𝗅𝗂𝗀𝗁𝗍'𝗌 𝖬𝗈𝗈𝗇 / 𝖮𝗌𝗁𝗂 𝗇𝗈 𝖪𝗈 𝗑 𝖮𝖢

‎‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎𝗖𝗛. 𝟭𝟱 • 𝗦𝗲𝗰𝗼𝗻𝗱 𝗘𝗻𝗰𝗼𝘂𝗻𝘁𝗲𝗿

"As if I'm supposed to know that somehow!" the elderly lady yelled back. "If I'd just kept waiting for you, the miso soup would get cold!"

"I'll go when I'm done talking, okay?!" the director cried as Aqua took a sip of his water.

Director Gotanda closed the door, sat down on his chair, and sighed a heavy sigh. "Like you, I went through a period where I couldn't get ahead," he continued. "But..."

"Ah, good grief!" came an elderly woman's voice from the side of the room. The director immediately wilted as the vibe he was building got killed. "Quite the mess you've made in here... Jeez."

"Get outta here already!" the director scolded and pushed her out the door.

"Ah, this darn son of mine!" the elderly lady grumbled as the director slammed the door in her face.

Aqua looked over again. "Hey, aren't you in your mid-40s?" he asked. "Isn't it about time to move out of your folks' place?"

"There's no benefit to leaving a spacious family home in the city center!" the director rebutted as Aqua capped his bottled water. "There are actually lots of people like me! It's a common thing for creators, okay?!"

After the director calmed down, he cleared his throat and continued, "In any case, you can't win the lottery if you don't buy a ticket. I'm saying that you should have more faith in your talent."

These words fall flat coming from a middle-aged guy living in a child's room.

Aqua turned back to his computer and said, "There was a time when I believed I had possessed talents comparable to Ai's. However, unlike Ai, I..."

"'Ai, Ai, Ai'... Enough already - you sound like an ape," the director interrupted, rubbing his head. "It's true that Ai was amazing. She indeed may have been truly special. That said, you can never be Ai, nor can she ever be you. Did Ai have the same production know-how you do? Did she possess your intellect?"

Aqua remained silent as the director walked over and placed a hand on his head. "Don't shy away just 'cause you've had a setback or two," the director said. "Only say things like that after you've used all the tools at your disposal. You're still far too young to be acting like an average Joe. You wanna be an actor, don't ya? It's written all over your face."

Director Gotanda walked back to his seat as Aqua looked down, remembering what Ai had asked him in her moments of death.

"Aqua, will you be an actor?"

"Say, Director..." Aqua started.

The director turned around. "Hm?"

"I..."

That's when the door slammed open yet again. "You'll be joining us for dinner, won't you, Aqua-kun?!" Director Gotanda's mother asked loudly. "I'll get a bowl ready for you!"

"Precocious here was just about to say something important! Don't be barging in here!"

"I don't care!

⋅•⋅⋅•⋅⊰⋅•⋅⋅•⋅⋅•⋅⋅•⋅∙∘☽༓☾∘∙•⋅⋅⋅•⋅⋅⊰⋅•⋅⋅•⋅⋅

Location: Youtou High School

Youtou High School is an integrated middle and high school, and one of the few in Japan that has a performing arts department.

And not just anyone can apply for performing arts as it is necessary to produce a certificate showing you are affiliated with a talent agency.