The day of the audition finally arrived.
When Asakura got to the avenue where the tryouts were held, he saw a big crowd gathered in the lobby. Despite being quite a spacious room, it proved to be insufficient in the face of so many people. Young actors and models were either sitting or pacing around, trying to relieve their nerves.
In order to make it easier for the team to find the best suited actors for playing the characters, the company decided to split the audition into two sections. Individual interviews with the actors were going to be held during the morning, while the afternoon was reserved for the actual tryouts, where the actors were given a part of the script and asked to enact a scene.
While the first half of the event was going to be held individually, the second part was going to be organized in groups. This way it made it easier for the team of judges to see the actors interacting with each other while interpreting their roles.
As per their initial agreement, Masato Keita was also going to attend this second part of the audition. Being the original author of the book, he was expected to watch the young performers and give his opinion on who might be best suited for which role.
At 9 a.m. the audition was officially declared open and the actors were invited inside the conference room one by one.
A couple of hours passed like this and by the time almost everyone had been interviewed, Asakura was already bored to death. Sure, there had been some interesting people among those he’d seen so far, but the one he really wanted to see was nowhere in sight. He was just about to go out for a smoke, when he heard voices right outside the door.
“Ah, it’s you! You’re late you know! Hurry up and get inside!” The assistant was ushering someone.
A second later the door opened and a young man stumbled inside. The first thing Asakura could see of that person was his overall casual and clean appearance. His light brown hair wasn’t styled, giving him a more youthful vibe. He was standing in the doorway with his head lowered. From that position, the light in the room cast several shadows on his face, making his white complexion stand out even more.
When he finally looked up, the young man’s eyes met Asakura’s, causing the latter to feel utterly thunderstruck. He froze on the spot and even forgot how to breathe for a moment. There, in front of him, stood none other than Imamura Sato, the person whom he had thought of all this time.
Sato appeared to be just as shocked by the encounter as Asakura. His clear eyes widened and he gaped soundlessly at the other man. Surprise, disbelief and a small trace of joy were all mixed in that gaze of his.
Before either one of them could react, the assistant followed Sato inside and with a professional attitude she introduced him to the judges.
We’re sorry for MTLers or people who like using reading mode, but our translations keep getting stolen by aggregators so we’re going to bring back the copy protection. If you need to MTL please retype the gibberish parts.
“Ktlr lr Pwjwegj Vjab, ecvfg LbrtlCxjgl Scafgajlcwfca.”
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“T-sfr. P’w Pwjwegj Vjab. Uifjrfv ab wjxf sbeg jmdejlcajcmf.” Vjab rageuuifv ab gfmbnfg ogbw tlr fjgilfg regqglrf jcv ujnf j qbilaf ybk.
“Please take a seat and let’s talk for a bit.” Director Mayama Kenta calmly gestured towards a chair.
After sitting down, Sato was startled to realize that he was now facing an entire line of people who were all gaping at him with interest. Apart from Asakura, the director and producer, there was another person whom Sato guessed to be the scriptwriter.
After the initial shock caused by Sato’s unexpected appearance wore off, Asakura regained his senses and realized that he was standing in a rather odd position. His body was half-risen from his chair and bent forward in an awkward angle. A moment later, he sat back down properly, letting out a light cough. All this while his eyes were staring fixedly at Sato’s face, taking in every change in the young man’s expression.
Thus, Asakura could easily see the flickers of emotion flashing in those clear eyes. Like two pools of limpid water disturbed by ripples, Sato’s vibrant eyes trembled with nervousness. He looked anxious, but there was also an underlying determination in the thin line of his mouth and the way he kept his back straight.
Seeing him like this, Asakura couldn’t hold back his smile and even his heart felt warm. This young man was truly impressive. He had come to battle while having so little courage, but at the same time, he refused to show any apparent weakness to the enemy.
During the interview, Asakura remained silent and tried to keep his eyes from staring for too long. He was afraid of making Sato even more nervous than he already was. However, that proved to be a difficult task.
The moment Sato began to speak and answer the judges’ questions, the air around him changed subtly. From the frightened little animal he had been in the beginning, Sato slowly transformed into a radiant young man. His eyes brightened and his smile grew to be even more brilliant. Asakura was even tempted to think that it was all done with magic. The change was just too much for his mind to comprehend.
When he turned his head to look around, Asakura wasn’t surprised to discover that he wasn’t the only one shocked. Based on their widened eyes and gaping mouths, it was clear that the rest of the judges were just as surprised as he was.
Meanwhile, Sato didn’t even realize the powerful impact his shift in attitude caused over the minds of the people sitting in front of him. He simply and naturally answered every question, trying to keep his voice from shaking. When it came to the part where he had to talk about his former projects, he answered in an unaffected manner. He wasn’t exaggeratedly modest, but there wasn’t any sign of bragging in his tone either. All his answers were comprehensive and sensible.
The interview was closing to an end and Sato let out a breath of relief. However, just before everything was truly over, he heard producer Fukuoka speak.
“One last thing. Your name is Imamura, right? By any chance, do you have a connection with Imamura Kotoko-san?”
Hearing this question, all of Sato’s previous relief suddenly evaporated and his countenance changed swiftly. He struggled to keep a smile on his face, while clutching his hands to keep them from trembling.
As expected, this change didn’t escape Asakura’s keen eyes. He saw it all, but couldn’t find a reason to intervene without bringing Sato even more trouble. And if he had to be completely honest to himself, he was also curious to know how Sato was going to answer. Perhaps it was just because of curiosity, but he also wanted to know more about this person. It appeared that a sense of greed was slowly starting to form inside his mind.
While Asakura was holding his breath, brooding between these thoughts, Sato managed to regain a bit of his former composure.
“Uhm, she…I mean Imamura Kotoko…” Sato hesitated for a second. “She was my mother.” He finally replied, taking a deep breath and letting it out slowly.
As soon as they heard his answer, the entire judge panel, except for the person Sato thought was the scriptwriter, immediately began to make a fuss over the information. Sato expected that much. Therefore, he remained quiet and watched as they chattered away between themselves.
“Ooh, you mean the actress Kotoko-san?”
“Yes, the one who had that car accident all those years ago.”
“I believe I read somewhere that she had a son. So it seems the information was true.”
“Indeed. I’m curious to see whether he had inherited his mother’s talent. Kotoko-san was an amazing actress.”
“You’re right. It was truly a pity that she died at such a young age. And she was right at the pinnacle of her career.”
“She was also an exquisite beauty. It appears you have indeed taken after her, Sato-kun. Such a beautiful and graceful young man…”
Hearing those enthusiastic rants made Sato feel increasingly uncomfortable. He could barely refrain his urge to jump to his feet and run away from there. But he had decided to do his best, so, in the end, all he could do was keep wearing a polite smile and nod his head silently.
After several moments of bearing with it, his temples began pulsing violently and he felt a headache forming. Just when he was about to break under this pressure, a loud clap ended all that babble. The sound was followed by a loud and familiar voice.
“Alright, alright. I know you are all excited to see such a pretty young man but please, maintain your dignity. I believe Imamura-san has already finished his interview. If there is nothing else you want to ask, I suggest you allow him to leave. The next person is waiting to audition.”
With that, Asakura put a lid to all those fussing remarks. The judges held their tongues and even the Mayama and Fukuoka pair avoided looking him in the eye. Indeed, they had been too carried away and made a spectacle out of themselves. Being so openly chided by a man of Asakura’s standing made them feel thoroughly embarrassed.
In the meantime, Sato took a deep breath in order to regain his calm. Then, he turned his head and shot Asakura a grateful look.
With that, the interview concluded and after one or two perfunctory remarks Sato was finally allowed to leave the room.
“If you’ll excuse me, I have something to take care of. Please continue without me.” Asakura spoke calmly, ignoring the surprised looks of everyone around him.
He got up and followed after Sato in a haste. For some reason, he felt as though the young man would vanish in thin air if he couldn’t catch up to him fast enough. But despite all those worries, he managed to find Sato in less than a minute.
A/N: When a person whishes for something hard enough, heaven grants that person his wish 
They met again~~
Thank you for the chapter 💜
Yes they did 🤭
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thanks for the chapter <3
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