A couple of days after the previous events, Sato received a call from Kyota, telling him that Kishi Touma had ultimately received the part of Arita Isei. Consequently, they were going to be in a protagonist and antagonist relationship.
‘This situation is ridiculous to the point of almost being funny. Before, we had to compete against each other in the audition for the same role, and now, we have to compete with each other on the screen as protagonist and antagonist.’ Sato thought to himself.
After hearing this information, he didn’t even know what he was supposed to feel about this whole thing. Surprise? Excitement? Unwillingness? Or perhaps resentment?
Had it been anyone else, he would have cursed his bad luck. But Sato wasn’t the type to think like that. He didn’t like to dwell on things that made him depressed for too long.
Yet, his mind was in such a mess that he almost missed Kyota’s next words.
“Since they finished casting all the characters, they want to hold the first table reading tomorrow. That means all the actors will be gathering there for a meeting.”
“En. I understand.” Sato replied automatically.
“Sato, are you going to be alright?”
“Director Kyota, are you perhaps worried that I will ruin my scenes and cause the crew to think badly of HoshiAkari Entertainment?” Sato tried to get away by joking.
“Of course. What else would I be worried about?” Kyota played along and retorted straightforwardly. He tried to keep away any emotional inflection from his voice so as to not make it more difficult for Sato.
“Then, I guess I’ll have to do my best so that I won’t disappoint you.”
“You make sure to do that, and if anything happens…” Kyota paused for a second. “Just be sure to tell me or Kyosuke. Don’t try to shoulder things all by yourself again. That’s an order!”
“En. Thank you, Kyota-san.”
After this short conversation, Sato felt strangely better. It was as though Kyota’s concern had caused his tense nerves to unwind and his heart to feel lighter.
This was the power of friendship, after all. Knowing you have someone who cares for you, listens and worries about you, makes challenging your worries feel much easier.
Just as Sato was pouring himself a glass of water, a person’s face abruptly popped into his mind. A handsome, yet serious face, adorned with a pair of penetrating eyes. Those black eyes stared him down with an intensity similar to that of a magnet, making it difficult for him to look away. Those eyes and that face belonged to Asakura Ryuu; this new person in his life, whom he had a hard time understanding.
Sato had to admit to himself that he felt oddly attracted to the other man. Ever since they met at the onsen, Asakura had behaved like a gentleman and treated him kindly. But the last time they met at his office, there had been something different in Asakura’s eyes. That strange gaze was unlike any of the others he had shown Sato.
Thinking about it now troubled Sato greatly. He wished to know the meaning behind that gaze. Why did Asakura appear to be so concerned about him? Why did he chase after him and even tried to help even though it went against his work ethic? Could it be that Asakura was harboring something more particular than just a simple friendship towards him?
Reaching up to this point, Sato couldn’t help but laugh to himself. Indeed, he was being silly and overly self-conscious to contemplate such things. How could a person of Asakura Ryuu’s caliber feel something more than just friendship for someone like him? Surely, he must have mistaken that person’s kindness for something more.
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.
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“Did I really do that?” Sato asked with a sheepish smile.
“Mhm. You were being all weird by yourself. Is something troubling you?”
“Eh? No, nothing at all.”
“Stop lying and tell me what it is! And don’t try to come up with a stupid reason because I will sniff it from kilometers away.” Kyosuke narrowed his eyes in a threatening manner.
Sato let out a deep sigh, taking a seat as well.
“I just talked to Kyota-san. He said there will be a table reading tomorrow.”
“Oh, so soon? Does that mean they managed to fill in all the roles?”
Hearing this, Sato felt a twinge of guilt. He previously mentioned that the antagonist’s role wasn’t given to anyone, but had avoided saying anything about Touma’s recent nomination. Now, in the face of this direct questioning, it was very difficult to avoid saying the truth. Especially since he was very bad at lying.
“They… They eventually managed to find someone to play the role of Arita Isei. You know, the antagonist.”
“Really? Who? Who is it?” Kyosuke inquired with excitement.
“It’s… uhm… It’s… ishi… T…ma.” Sato said through barely parted lips. His voice eventually faltered until it dropped to a mere whisper.
“Ha? Who? Sato, speak properly otherwise I won’t be able to hear you.” Kyosuke scolded impatiently.
“It’s… Touma. The role of Arita Isei will be played by Kishi Touma.” Sato breathed out quickly, as if that would help deliver the information better.
At the sound of that name, Kyosuke became speechless, silent as a stone statue. Just like Sato, Kyosuke also looked thoroughly dumbfounded by this news. His eyes went wide in an instant and his mouth opened, but without being able to speak.
However, this is where the similarities between them ended. While Sato had run away in a flurry of emotions, Kyosuke clenched his hands into fists and banged them against the table. The impact caused the several small objects on the surface to rattle violently. Some even fell down, rolling on the floor until they disappeared from view.
“Kyosuke… Please calm down.” Sato entreated, trying to sound calmer than he actually was.
He knew that mentioning Touma’s name would bring about this reaction. Ever since the day Sato came back from the hospital, that person’s name had been like a trigger able to flip Kyosuke’s anger button in a split second. Whenever he heard it, he would burst into flames and burn everything to the ground. All Sato could hope for was that Kyosuke would be understanding this time and not make too big of a fuss.
“C-calm down?” Kyosuke asked through gritted teeth, looking like a wild beast ready to pounce and kill. He was seething with so much fury that for a second Sato was afraid he would combust.
“You’re actually telling me to c-calm down?”
“Or else what?”
“I’ll go and break that bastard’s legs, that’s what! How dare he… to you… he…” Kyosuke choked on his words, his eyes almost bulging out in rage. He looked like a puffer fish ready to explode.
“Don’t be unreasonable.”
“How am I unreasonable?!” Kyosuke shouted incredulously. “Don’t you want to see that bastard lying on a hospital bed, looking like a wrapped-up mummy?” he bit out, his tone dripping with a hot desire for vengeance.
“No.”
“Well, even if you don’t, I do!”
“Not if it means having to bail you out from prison.” Sato retorted reasonably.
“It would be worth it! Damn it! If I can make that guy suffer, it would all be worth it.”
“Stop being silly. Don’t you remember he’s always been stronger than you? There is no way you could win in a fight against him.”
“Humph! Then I’ll find someone stronger who can kick his ass for me.”
“What are you, a gangster?” Sato chuckled. “Now stop talking nonsense and let’s eat dinner. It’s already late and today I will have to go to bed early.”
“I’ll go with you tomorrow.” Kyosuke blurted out, not listening to a single word Sato had just said. He was too focused on his own emotions to care about anything else.
“What are you coming with me for? Kyosuke, do I look like I need a babysitter? Or perhaps are you bored to death with your own work and plan on stealing mine?”
After saying this much, Sato fell silent, folding his arms against his chest. An eyebrow shot up and he gazed at Kyosuke as if the young man in front of him had transformed into a two-year-old making a fuss about wanting to go to the amusement park with his parents. It was quite a funny image, but Sato felt like he could have done without it at that moment.
“I’m coming to keep an eye on things. There’s just no way I can feel calm knowing you’ll be in the same place as a bastard like him.” Kyosuke bit out in response.
Thinking about the situation, Sato couldn’t help but smile. Despite looking so dangerous and riled up, he knew Kyosuke wouldn’t really go as far as to beat someone up. Nevertheless, it was still safer to avoid any unnecessary contact between the two.
Therefore, he once again tried to reason with his hot-tempered friend.
“We won’t be the only people there, you know. So, there is no reason for you to be on guard. Besides, don’t you have your own schedule to follow? What would happen if you miss your shooting just because of something like this?”
“But I…”
“Kyota-san will be very angry if you skip your work. He’ll scold you again and even go as far as to cut your food expenses even further. Do you really want that?”
Kyosuke flinched and gulped loudly. He suddenly found himself in a difficult predicament.
“N-no… I don’t want that. But I’m worried about you. Perhaps Kyota-san will understand my reasons this time.”
“There is nothing to worry about and your reasons are weak. It’s just a table reading this time. The rest of the cast will be there, as well as other people from the production company. Ah! Now that I think about it, Asakura-san said he’ll be there as well.”
This last bit was more of a speculation on his part. Asakura never said anything explicitly about taking part in the table readings. But from how much he could gather, Sato believed there was a high chance of Asakura being there.
While thinking about this matter, Sato didn’t even realize just how much he was anticipating seeing the other man again. If he had understood his own heart better at that point, perhaps he would have felt slightly worried. As things stood, though, Sato was more focused on convincing Kyosuke to give up his bloodthirsty rampage for now, than to ponder on his feelings.
“Oh? Asakura-san will be there too?” Kyosuke asked, gradually calming down. He was now like a bull who had suddenly stopped seeing red.
“En. Since he’s invested a lot of money into this movie, I heard they treat him like a big boss around there. And apparently he is even good friends with the author of the book. I wonder if Masato-sensei will be able to come as well. I would really love to meet him.”
“Well, if Asakura-san is going to be there, then my mind is settled. You’ll be in safe hands.”
“Ha? What’s this all about?” Sato became flustered at once.
“Nothing.” Kyosuke dismissed him, without noticing Sato’s strange reaction, nor the slight blush covering his friend’s face. “You just focus on reading your script. With your top notch acting, you’re bound to impress everybody.”
“Now you’re just making me feel nervous.”
“Nonsense. Just be confident and show them what Imamura Sato can do. They will all be sure to fall in love with you.” Kyosuke grinned and shot Sato a playful wink.
A/N: Budding and confusing feelings on Sato’s part. But what about Asakura? What are the other man’s feelings on the matter? 
Hope you will enjoy this rather long chapter as apology or another weekend with just two updates. The second one will be uploaded in a moment.
Thanks for the update !!!💞
💞💞💞
Kyosuke is really a good friend~
Thank you for the chapter 💜
Mn, he really cares very much for Sato and loves him like family. Well they kind of are family 😂🤭
I love the people who surround Sato. He has a good support system.
thanks for the chapter <3
Mhm and that was what allowed him to recover slightly easier. He was never alone and had people who cared about him
<333