𝖲𝗍𝖺𝗋𝗅𝗂𝗀𝗁𝗍'𝗌 𝖬𝗈𝗈𝗇 / 𝖮𝗌𝗁𝗂 𝗇𝗈 𝖪𝗈 𝗑 𝖮𝖢

𝗖𝗵𝗮𝗽𝘁𝗲𝗿 𝗙𝗶𝗳𝘁𝗲𝗲𝗻

╔═══════.·:·.★ ✦ ★･:･:═══════╗

At the studio...

"Put a tally impression here," Miyako instructed Ruby.

"'Tally impression'?" Ruby asked. "I don't really get it, but I just press down here?"

Ruby pressed the little stamp down on the paper.

"Okay," Miyako said. "And with that, you're now an entertainer with Strawberry Productions."

Ruby smiled happily as Miyako continued, "If you pull anything, we'll sue you."

"Whoa, scary," Ruby commented.

"Well, I'm not kidding," Miyako said as Ruby looked at the sheet and smiled happily.

Aqua and Luna watched from the side as Miyako slid the sheets into a light blue folder. "It's also a necessary procedure for entry to the performing arts department, so don't be getting mad, Aqua," Miyako said.

"Never said I was against it," Aqua countered.

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At the director's apartment...

Aqua rang the doorbell to the director's apartment and waited. Soon, an elderly woman with light purple hair opened the door for him.

"Aqua-kun, how nice of you to come," she said.

"Is the director awake?" Aqua asked as he took off his shoes.

"He's sleeping, but go ahead and shake him awake," the woman said. "Will you be having dinner with us again?"

"No, don't go to any trouble," Aqua told her as he walked to the director's room. Inside, the blinds were shut and the director was sleeping with a book on his head.

When Aqua opened the door, Director Gotanda took the book off his head and looked at him with one eye. "Oh, you came," he said.

"Good morning," Aqua greeted him as he set his backpack down. The director handed him a booklet.

"Do a nice editing job on this for me," he ordered.

Aqua nodded. "Got it," he stated.

I'm still a middle schooler...

I can't formally work yet, so I'm not able to build up any experience on location.

So, acting as something like the director's apprentice, he's allowed me to assist him with film production.

"I see," the director said after Aqua told him about the situation. "So, you sister is going to become an idol, after all. Is that okay with you, like, as her big brother?"

"It's better than having her perform with some group from Lord knows where," Aqua replied. "With family managing he group, I doubt things will go south."

"All three siblings are going to be entertainers, huh?" the director mused.

"Not all three of us," Aqua rejected. "I prefer to work behind the scenes now."

Director Gotanda leaned back in his chair. "You haven't got an itch to take up acting again?" he asked. "Aren't you applying to the same high school as your sisters?"

"Only Ruby and Luna is trying to get into the performing arts department," Aqua explained. "I'm going for general education."

The director took a sip of his drink and exhaled heavily. "When you came and asked to be my apprentice, you had this look on your face like you were dead set on being an actor..." he said.

To me, being an actor was a mere means to an end.

For finding the man who brought about Ai's death...

For finding my father, and then giving him a taste of the pain Ai endured.

By a twist of fate, the key for detecting him lies within myself.

I should be able to identify him through a hair or mucosal DNA test.

But to do so, it's necessary I secure a position where I can come into direct contact with entertainers.

Being an actor is the quickest route for that... but if I just need to be involved with the entertainment industry, I don't mind being an AD or someone working behind the scenes.

Aqua picked up his bottle of water and looked at it. "Though they were minor roles, I came to understand something by appearing in a number of your films..." he said out loud as the director looked over at him. "I have no talent for acting. There are loads of people in the world who try their best as actors but can't draw an audience, and I was just one of them. I don't have that special something the way Ai did or Luna does... Its no good to hold onto goals that are beyond your means."

"Hmph," the director said as he turned around in his chair. "If kids don't dream, who else can even hope to? Even university age is early to be giving up on what you want to do."

Then, his tone became serious. "Listen up," he commanded. "Here's some advice from a middle-aged guy who's kept on dreaming for 20 years. I'm only gonna say this once, so pay attention."

Aqua turned his head slightly to look at him. "Every single person has the right to dream," the director started. "After all, you can't win the lottery if you don't buy a-"

"Taishi!" the elderly lady from earlier cut him off as she slammed open the door of the room. "Dinner's ready!"

Director Gotanda fell to the ground in shock. "Ma! I was saying something important - don't interrupt me!" he complained as he ran over and shook her shoulders.

"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!

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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.

"I'm Hoshino Ruby with Strawberry Productions."

"I am Hoshino Luna with Strawberry Productions."

General Education Department Interview Room

"I'm Hoshino Aquamarine," Aqua said blankly.

"Quite the name you've got there," the first interviewer commented.

"You have a standard score of 70?!" another interviewer asked in shock. "Why'd you apply here where the standard score is 40?"

"I was charmed by the spirit of the school," Aqua replied calmly (Previously passed the entrance exam for Tokyo National Medical University, by the way).

"Our school spirit appealed to you that much?!"

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"How'd it go?" Aqua asked his siblings after their interviews.

"Fine, I think," Ruby responded happily. "How about you?"

"It went without a hitch," Aqua said. "In the unlikely event I'm rejected, my name is probably to blame."

Ruby and Luna laughed. "Well, your full name is 'Hoshino Aquamarine,' after all," Luna reminded him, smiling smugly. "Though, it's a pain to say, so everyone just calls you 'Aqua.'"

"You didn't have to stuff it in my face, Luna," Aqua sighed.

The girl who had just walked past them stopped in her tracks.

"'Aqua?' 'Luna?'" she repeated in shock.

The triplets turned around. So did the girl.

"Hoshino Aqua?!" the girl exclaimed again. "And Hoshino Luna?!"

The triplets blinked at her as the girl continued to shout, "Aqua! Luna! You're Hoshino Aqua, and you're Hoshino Luna?!"

"Who are you again?" Aqua asked, confused. Then, Ruby had a realization.

"Oh, isn't it that girl?" Ruby asked. "The genius child actor who can lick baking soda like that."

"The genius child actor who can cry in ten seconds flat!" the girl corrected her angrily before turning her attention to the other siblings. "We acted in that film together - I'm Kana Arima."

"Oh, so it's you," Luna realized. "It's been quite a long time. So you're in the performing arts department?"

That's when Kana put a hand on her and Aqua's shoulders. "I'm so glad," she said. "I had long thought you'd called it quits. We finally meet again."

Pulling herself up, she asked excitedly, "The two of you are joining up? You'll be in our performing arts department? Won't you?!"

"No... only Luna is," Aqua answered. "I applied for general education."

"But why?!" Kana yelled in shock, again.

"That's what I asked," Luna sighed with her hands on her hips.

╚═══════*.·:·.★✦★･:･:*══════╝

I have changed the cover art of this book, yet again-