sun and star | petalz

15. lovesick girls

Kazuha stepped off the set, being careful to ignore Sakura's eyes on her back.

The scene that was being filmed was one with Kazuha and Riki, and although the two had great chemistry, for the past few minutes it had been obvious that their connection didn't even come close to Kazuha's connection with Sakura. In fact, upon their first meeting, instead of saying "Hiroshi"- Riki's character's name- she nearly said "Yumi."

She bit her lip to shut herself up, and luckily everyone took it as romantic tension. (Ew.) However, although her voice continued unobstructed, her mind was filled with only Sakura. Her little session with Chaewon had eased some feelings up, but she was still massively crushing on the other girl. Did Sakura reciprocate?

Kazuha was not, in fact, sure.

The scene was finally done, after many tries, but everyone could tell it was bland. Kazuha was trying her absolute hardest, and so was Riki, but it just wasn't working. Sometimes, the director said, the issue wasn't with the leads but with the script given. In fact, Kazuha was sure that she and Riki would make perfect platonic friends in another storyline.

But not right now. The only person Kazuha could imagine when she thought of her partner in a romance movie would be Sakura. And not just because she liked the other girl.

Sakura was born to be an actress. It was clear in everything she did, down to the way she walked. She was poised and straightforward, quick and clever, exactly what was needed to get into her character. She did her research, and even changed her surroundings to help her understand her character and propel others' performance as well. 

She wanted everyone around her to perform as well as she did. 

It was clear even when she was with Kazuha. In the rain, instead of moving, which would break the spell, or being loud, which was classic of her character, she let Kazuha manage the scene and adjust her additionally, which showed Kazuha's character's experience. In her scenes with Soobin, instead of sassing him like Yumi would, she acted persistent and headstrong instead, simultaneously playing on the grumpier personality of Soobin's character and displaying the determination of her own.

And she did it all almost subconsciously. It was amazing, to an inexperienced actress like Kazuha- one of the many reasons she'd fallen for the other girl.

Currently, Sakura was speaking to Soobin by the refreshments table. Of course she was.

But wait. Kazuha looked closer, and she could clearly see that Soobin was smiling and gesturing widely, and Sakura looked...

What was that expression? It was Chaewon's expression when someone spoke complicated English to her, or... the director's expression when someone did a scene wrong.

A mix of pissed off and uncomfortable.

Kazuha's heart both jumped and sank, resulting in a funny feeling in her chest. Sakura's uncomfortable around him! She doesn't want to be there!

Then of course her mind had to formulate an opinion. What if she's in pain or something? She could have smelled something bad. It's probably not Soobin.

What happened next obliterated all thoughts from Kazuha's brain and made her mind one-track.

A crew member came over holding a camera, and when both actors peered at it, Soobin's face went right next to Sakura's and she pulled away fast, her expression surprised.

She definitely did not look like she wanted to be there.

In that moment, any hesitations flew out of Kazuha's brain, and she approached them, but was blocked by a whip of blond hair.