I live my life in Tokyo

Seeing a rare trace of trepidation about the unknown on Sakakibara Kaede's face, Oshima Hide laughed and patted him on the shoulder, "No need to wait, the investors like your acting skills very much, and you are the best choice for the lead role in the commercial - by the way, I really like the second episode of Our Daily High School Life, that personal shot of yours, you must have put a lot of effort into it, right?"

The man nodded in acknowledgement. "This is all thanks to Director Oshima's guidance. I have a preliminary grasp of the camera. The feeling is very mysterious, like playing a game from a third-person perspective."

"You learn so quickly. This is one of your talents. Don't waste it."

He turned around and nodded to Higuchi Yuanka who also stood up to listen, "You guys at STARS are really talented. This... Higuchi-kun, you passed the audition. Congratulations. In the next filming, you will participate in this commercial as the second female lead."

"Thank you, Director Oshima."

Higuchi Yuanka's expression remained unchanged, her body was much more relaxed, and she thanked him in a serious manner.

"This is the general content of the ad. There are very few lines. What's more important is the description of the face and expression. You need to work hard on this aspect." Oshima Hide pointed at his face and talked freely. "The shooting location... was filmed at the private Shuchiin Academy in Minato Ward according to the requirements of the investor."

Minato... This sounds like another aristocratic school. It might be even more outrageous than the private Toyonosaki Academy.

"I understand."

Kaede Sakakibara took the manuscript from Oshima Hide and glanced at it briefly.

The result is similar to what I speculated before. The test questions are so obvious that there is no surprise. This graduation advertisement is about secret love and encourages students to shout out their love before graduation.

The boy flipped through a few pages, but couldn't find the scene where the boy stood on the school playground and shouted his confession to the girls in the classroom in front of all the students. He couldn't help but feel a little sorry.

Seeing that the two of them quickly got into work mode and began to study their scenes, Oshima Hide nodded with satisfaction. He thought that even if he waved to them now, they wouldn't be able to see him, so it would be better for him to do nothing and leave in style.

"Who is the leading lady? She doesn't seem to be in the rest area either."

The boy who was occupying the air conditioning in the rest area with Higuchi Madoka looked around but didn't see anyone.

"do not know."

The two leading actresses never looked at each other from beginning to end. It doesn’t matter if they don’t meet today. The shooting time is scheduled for next week, and they can admire each other’s dignity then.

The man quickly glanced through the manuscript, "Higuchi-san, you are obviously the second female lead here, but you actually have the status of the first female lead. The story completely revolves around you and me."

Higuchi Madoka read out the story aloud, "The hero has always been chasing the heroine, but his real crush is the heroine who often appears with the heroine. When everyone misunderstands that the hero likes the heroine, the hero musters up the courage to confess to the heroine on the day of graduation. The story ends, and it is a cause for celebration."

"Why do I feel so spicy in your words?" the man asked doubtfully.

Higuchi Yuanxiang glanced at Sakakibara Kaede as if she was looking at some strange creature. "This kind of thing can't happen in reality. When there is something better around, people will not settle for second best."

"That doesn't mean love." Sakakibara Kaede has a different view on the role. "The leading lady is the center of the class and is popular, but that doesn't mean all the male classmates will like her. Some just treat her as a classmate, while others only treat her as a good buddy. The feeling of liking someone is very mysterious. The public may think that the person is so outstanding, but this feeling may just be pure admiration. It's when you feel that the other person has a faint shining point, that's love."

"Maybe the second female lead has some hidden sparkle. Secret love is the most difficult emotional element to understand. Sometimes you fall in love without even realizing it. Maybe the second female lead also has some cute sparkle that only the first male lead can see."

"Okay, Mr. Dreamer, this could only happen in this ad."

Higuchi Madoka put the manuscript into her handbag and said sideways, "Sakurajima-senpai often tells me about your dedication and professional understanding of acting, Sakakibara-san. Today I have glimpsed the tip of the iceberg. I will chew on the role of the second female lead, and I hope you will do the same and present a stunning rivalry."

"Mr. Dreamer..." The man who received the unexpected name raised his eyebrows, then smiled and said, "I accept this challenge. Wait and see next week, Higuchi-san."

After finishing most of the biscuits in the rest area, Sakakibara Kaede returned to the military advisor's car with a look of lack of motivation on his face.

The military advisor turned around and asked, "My general, why are you so sad? Did you fail the audition?"

He was startled and asked quickly, "Who is the opponent? Which firm is he from?"

"No, the audition was successful, and I got the leading male role." The man looked uninterested, his limbs relaxed on the cushion, "I just think this script is too easy to guess. It may be a dramatic reversal for the audience, but it is not a big test for the actor himself. The old-fashioned secret love is really worth filming over and over again. But this is not the point!"

"Oh? Tell me more."

"The shooting location is far away from the office, it's actually in the port area!"

He had the expression "hitchhiking" written all over his face, and Iida Kei's eyes reflected the sunlight, automatically filtering out the man's temptation.

"It's the private Shuchiin Academy, right?... There's nothing we can do about it. I heard that the daughter of the investor is studying there." Iida Kei pushed his glasses. "That academy is similar to the Toyonosaki Academy that the office is using now. The admission rate is terrifyingly high - let's not talk about that for now. What do you want to eat for lunch?"

"...Hand-Pulled Noodle."

"Yoshi, I know a traditional tonkotsu ramen restaurant near here."

"Iida-san, don't you think the time spent in the car is also a good opportunity to get closer to each other? You keep saying that I'm the male protagonist of the harem, but I want to do much more than that. My goal is the blue sea of ​​stars."

"I'll take this meal."

Iida-san pushed up his gold-rimmed glasses and snorted, "I don't have the habit of not talking while eating. We can talk in detail at the table about, uh, future work."

"Isn't it customary at dinner parties to only discuss personal matters and not business matters?" The man was slightly surprised.

"Hmph, if the talks go well, both the host and the guests will be happy. If the talks go badly, this will be like a Hongmen Banquet!"

Chapter 28: Maximize your speaking skills

The soup used for ramen is a thick white soup base made from pork bones, and the noodles are simple, long and straight.

Green onions stand tall and graceful on the thick white soup, and condiments such as barbecued pork, black fungus, bean sprouts, and seaweed are dotted around it, which looks very beautiful.

The boy used to go to the steaming canteen to eat a bowl of steaming hot big plate chicken noodles. The portion was large enough. The chicken cooked in the big pot for a long time was tender and delicious, and the combination with the soft noodles was really 1+1=3.

How many points will this bite give?

The spoon was filled with soup. The man took a sip, but he was not prepared for the temperature of the soup. He was scalded badly. The soup in the spoon fell out, and in an instant, it splashed onto the jade plate.

It was as if the sword he swung with all his strength had hit nothing, and it hit the ground and injured his hand. The boy's initial good mood for the pilgrimage was completely washed away by the boiling soup.

The middle-aged man sitting opposite Sakakibara Kaede laughed wickedly. Compared with the former, Iida Kei was more experienced. He blew gently on the soup in the spoon, rolled up the noodles and put them into the spoon, then drank the soup and noodles in one gulp.

"Brother Sakakibara, too much is as bad as too little."

"But Iida-san, it's better to strike first."

"But Sakakibara, haste makes waste."

"The early bird catches the worm."

After two rounds, there was no winner.

Sakakibara Kaede took a sip of the unlimited cold boiled water, thought for a moment, then took out his cell phone and took a picture of his bowl of noodles.

"Why are you taking pictures? Do you want to memorize the face of your enemy?"

"Why not? This is a test of one's own merits, Mr. Iida. Next time I'll treat you to some xiaolongbao." The boy smiled kindly. He knew what would happen when someone who had never eaten xiaolongbao ate it for the first time.

As soon as you take a bite, the thick white gravy spurts all over your face.

"Heh, come on." Iida Kei disdains to drink the soup.

Sakakibara Kaede snorted and laughed. He opened Bluebird and logged into his actor account. His tone changed from playful to formal. "Iida-san, can I post actor updates casually?"

Seeing this, Iida Kei's face darkened and he immediately shook his head, "How can I just post it casually? If you have something like that, just look at it on your own private account. We won't interfere too much in the private lives of artists, just don't do anything fancy for me."

"You want to post updates about actors now. Are you trying to imitate the way Sakurajima-kun manages Twitter?"

Without thinking for long, he made a gesture of invitation, "If you want to share information about your daily life, there is absolutely no problem. After all, the agency is just helping you look after your account, and we will not actively manage your account."

Sakakibara Kaede nodded, uploaded the photo of ramen to her social media, and started editing the text.

"Tokyo's first snow, accompanied by a bowl of steaming ramen, satisfying the desire for food after work is the top priority. What are you eating tonight?"

Iida Kei took Sakakibara Kaede's phone, raised an eyebrow and nodded, "Don't poke, the agency has courses to teach artists how to communicate with fans, it seems you don't need to take them at all."

"Don't underestimate my speech skills." The boy raised his eyebrows. "When I'm playing in a group, I will first max out my speech skills. Charm or intimidation depends on the situation. This thing is related to appearance. I really can't decide. After all, that thing depends on roll."

"So, what you are learning now is seduction? And what you are saying are all lewd words?" Iida-san looked at Sakakibara Kaede's face and glanced at the teardrop mole at the corner of his eye.

Mole of Love: A+

"I hope my fans can be more diverse." He glanced at the number of followers on Twitter. Most of them thought he looked good, but very few cared about his inner qualities.

After the click happened, Sakakibara put the phone back into his pocket. At this time, the surface temperature of the ramen had dropped a lot. Sakakibara imitated Kei Iida and took a sip of the soup.

"You probably won't have a new job anytime soon."

There is no one in the room who doesn't talk while eating. Iida Kei flipped through the notepad on his phone while explaining, "Right now, your focus is still on the TV series Our Daily Life of High School Students. To be honest, with the current ratings and praise, it is not impossible to launch a peripheral program. You should be mentally prepared for this."

"Iida-san, are you talking about a variety show?"

The man felt a chill, he knew that the specialty of Japanese variety shows was to play pranks on the guests.

"If you're talking about a variety show where people laugh at jokes, that's impossible. STARS wouldn't let its artists behave so ugly - you're not comedians. I'm talking about a talk show, where a host usually invites multiple guests to the show to interview and ask questions."

"Sakurajima-kun debuted early and participated in many similar talk shows. You will get used to it later. Well, in addition to the TV series of our company, your current work also includes the shooting of the graduation advertisement."

"It takes about three to five working days to shoot this ad. It seems that there are special requirements for the shooting date. I don't know what's going on at the moment."

"Besides you and Higuchi-kun from STARS, the leading actress is Nakano Ichika from burning production." Iida Kei stroked his chin and shook his head, "I have never heard of this Nakano-kun's name. He may be a new actor who has just entered the entertainment industry recently and has no background in any works."

"The information about the second male lead has not been announced yet."

"I see. What about the extras?" the boy asked, stroking his fingers.

Iida Kei hummed and took over the boy's question, "This time the extras are not ordinary people randomly picked from the street. They are actors who failed in this audition but still want to participate in this commercial. In other words, they failed the audition for this commercial, but they will still be your competitors in other auditions in the future."

"Learn, brother. Learning never ends."

"You are a genius. I have never seen an actor like you when I was at the Nice Agency." Iida Kei was about to praise him, but the man's lazy behavior and his dream of a harem full of wine and women passed by his eyes and ears, and he immediately held back the praise. "You can learn anything quickly and understand any idea at once. Brother Sakakibara, this is your greatest strength."

"Thank you for the compliment." Sakakibara Kaede accepted it with a smile.

This praise is for his past self.

"I wish you good luck with your commercial shoot." Kei Iida raised his beer.

"Each each other."

After clinking glasses, business is over and it’s time to talk about personal matters.

"I don't have work today. Could Iida-san be so kind as to send me back to Chiba Prefecture?"

. . .

"Well... nothing to do."

Her long black crystal-like hair was spread out on the bed, and her indigo eyes were fixed on the alarm clock on the bedside table, watching every tick of it, waiting for time to pass.

Sometimes, she herself didn't know what she was waiting for.

After reading the manuscript, practicing her smile in front of the mirror, and listening to the flashing of the camera, Mai Sakurajima likes to daydream.

Burn-out syndrome?

After daydreaming, she would usually study according to her already arranged study plan, or sit in front of the floor-to-ceiling window with a book for the whole afternoon.

"It's five o'clock, time to prepare dinner."

Mai Sakurajima propped up her slender arms and stood up from the bed. After moving the pillow away, she could see the manuscript that was covered with notes and traces of reading.

Our daily life as high school students.

This is not her first TV show.

Why did she, who debuted as a child star, play the third female role, while Higuchi Madoka, who debuted not long ago and was not famous, was able to play the leading female role?

Some people said that this was her deliberate humility out of concern for her juniors, but Sakurajima Mai did not comment.

Higuchi-chan earned this position through her performance.

Compared to the rumors on the Internet, there is one thing Sakurajima Mai has not said: she actually doesn't like the character of Dong Liuli very much.

When acting, she likes to put herself into the role, experience the character's every move, and sometimes reflect on the character's actions.

Sometimes she would identify herself with the character and put herself in the character's shoes to consider how she should walk her own path.

Dong Liuli is too simple and straightforward. Playing such a female role is meaningless and not challenging for her, who has already matured.

Today, after reading the plot over and over again, she came to a conclusion that Nishida Orange cannot leave Kitahara Hiro, just like Kitahara Hiro cannot leave Nishida Orange.

The two people's personalities are completely incompatible and they are not harmonious at all. Their daily communication is just Nishida Orange leading Kitahara Hiroshi, and the content of the conversation is not meaningful - Nishida Orange has no idea what Kitahara Hiroshi is thinking.

From this perspective, the fact that Kitahara Hiroshi was able to be with Nishida Orange in the end means that Kitahara Hiroshi was definitely marrying above his station.

But Nishida Orange needs Kitahara Hiroshi.

When two people in a relationship have personalities that are too similar, tragedy may result.

Only when both parties’ personalities complement each other can the relationship last forever.

Mai Sakurajima, who put herself in Nishida Orange's shoes, has experienced this personally.

She pulled her black hair up into a casual ponytail, half-closed the bedroom door, went to the kitchen and put the half-thawed beef into the microwave.

Mai Sakurajima is now living alone. She told her mother that it was to exercise her independence, but in fact she and her mother do not have a harmonious relationship, and living alone is just an excuse to escape.

Mai Sakurajima skillfully opened Twitter and liked the updates posted by several industry acquaintances. When she scrolled down, she found that the new account she followed some time ago had posted updates again.