Shining Stars

Chapter Twenty-Seven: Purpose

Rain poured down, hard. The sounds of the droplets hitting the metal roof of the warehouse they were in was audible, generally in conditions like these a production would try to reshoot for another day, but they didn’t have the luxury, they had to shoot the scene right here and now. There was no time in the schedule to try again later.

Drops of water hit the floor through cracks in the roof, it was a really run-down warehouse, not to mention the rain seemed to hurt their lighting somewhat, but Aqua thought, for the scene they were about to shoot, it fits well.

“Usually with shows, the main cast gathers in a room to do a read-through and rehearsal, and based on that, the directors create the storyboards. Then we do a dry run on set, a camera rehearsal then a run though before the real thing… But we were only able to secure this location for one day, so everything from the dry run to the run-through has to be done at once and is treated like the rehearsal. You only get to practice once.”

“Everything’s a mess, huh? Even Director Gotanda is better than this.”

“We’re lacking in both time and budget, it does suck though, wish we had more time…”

Though as the two were talking, footsteps could be heard approaching them, as Kana turned to see the male lead stop a few meters away from them.

“Kana, this weather sucks, don’t you think? They should’ve postponed filming…”

“There are just a few leaks here and there, but we should be fine.”

“I hate how the humidity makes my hair all frizzy. It’s gross how damp it is in here.”

Kana laughed, though Aqua seemed less amused by the actor’s remarks. He seemed full of himself.

“Oh! Let me introduce you. He’ll be playing the stalker today.”

“I’m Aqua, please to meet y-”

“Yeah, hi.”

The purple-haired actor walked past him ignoring Aqua’s attempt at a greeting Aqua’s eye twitched as he turned to look at the actress beside him who was laughing nervously.

“He’s a piece of work. Didn’t even tell me his name.”

“He’s the male lead, Melt Narushima. He's young, and they tend to act like that if everything’s smooth sailing for them. I guess the same could be said about me.. .huh? Certain idol agencies and the like give them proper training, so they tend to be polite and well-liked on set, they generally don't disappoint. There’s a reason why they're used a lot.”

Though as she finished talking, she noticed something out of the corner of her eye and smiled, before grabbing Aqua and pushing him to turn around.

“And proper greetings are an important part of the job!”

As Kana finished turning him around, she pushed him forward, which made him stumble forward a bit. Though as he raised his head, he was brought face to face with the man he had been looking for, Masaya Kaburagi. Though Aqua smiled, despite being in the presence of a man who he suspected might have been the mastermind behind his father’s murder, he smiled and bowed.

“Pleased to meet you. I’m Aqua from Strawberry Productions. I’m honored to be here today.”

“Yeah… All the best.”

He held a hand up in greetings as Kaburagi turned away, but he didn’t seem too interested in talking to Aqua, which he was perfectly fine with. Aqua raised his head and opened his eyes, his black star pupil staring at the producer as he walked away.

Masaya Kaburagi. A man who’s somehow connected to Ai Hoshino… He might be the man who sent Ryosuke after the Hoshinos, the man behind (Y/n)’s death… Aqua needs to get information from him and see if can get any leads as to whether or not he is the mastermind… or where RYosuke might currently be hiding.