Chapter 8

It was 8:25 in the morning when Junichiro arrived at the building that housed Ginzo Hoshina’s office. He was running a little later than he intended to due to the fact that he’d nearly walked out of his apartment with his hair still colored white after forgetting to shower when he got home the previous night. He silently thanked whatever gods were in charge of his decision to put a mirror near his front door.

The building itself was quite impressive, to say the least. Officially, the building was called. It stretched towards the sky like a single giant finger that longed to touch the clouds. The building sat on a foundation of polished marble, almost like a plinth that raised it up above street level and the surrounding buildings. Smatterings of glossy windows covered the exterior of each floor, with a veneer of large granite blocks covering the rest of the building. Bold golden letters above the doorway proclaimed the building’s name to any who stepped through its doors.

As Junichiro walked inside, he realized that the skyscraper’s interior was just as intimidating—though in a completely different manner than the outside had been. Rather than the hard angles of cut stone and glass of the building’s exterior, the inside was…comfortable, almost. The lobby’s marble flooring gave it a clean, sterile vibe that contrasted with the warm-colored furniture scattered around. Overall, the whole place felt oddly and disorientingly welcoming, with some sense of unease buried beneath, comparable to the dulcet tones of a siren’s song.

Junichiro spotted Renji and Aoi as his eyes passed over the seating area. In common fashion, Renji appeared to be pestering Aoi, trying to talk to her about something while she was attempting to read a magazine instead. He walked over and joined them, sitting down on a plush couch that threatened to consume him into its pillowy depths if he lingered too long. A few minutes later, at 8:30 sharp, Kana strode through the thick double doors at the entrance, which appeared to surprise even her manager. For the ‘Ice Queen of the Silver Screen’ to be on time, either hell had frozen over or she was actually taking this opportunity seriously.

The four of them stepped into one of the building’s spacious elevators and hit the button for the 30th floor, where Ginzo Hoshina and his staff’s offices resided. Junichiro couldn’t help but tap his foot nervously against the floor of the elevator. This was, without question, the biggest opportunity he had ever been offered. For a chance like this to just fall into his lap was nothing short of a miracle. A miracle he wasn’t about to pass up, no matter what.

It wasn’t just the fact that this was the single biggest opportunity he’d ever gotten that was making him anxious, though. No, the real driving force of the pit forming in his stomach was the fact that he was about to meet the Ginzo Hoshina. He was rumored to be an exceedingly eccentric and mysterious man. He’d have to be at least a little crazy to have actually liked Miracle Chaser, Junichiro thought to himself. Besides that, Junichiro was a long-time fan of Ginzo’s for both his productions and his contributions to the film industry as a whole. His admiration for Ginzo was one of the things that had spurred him to take up acting in the first place. For Junichiro, this wasn’t just a meeting that concerned the future of his career, this was also a meeting with one of the people he admired most in the world.

A soft bell tone sounded through the elevator’s speakers as it slowed to a halt and the doors opened to the 30th floor. As they stepped out, Junichiro noticed that though this floor held the offices of Ginzo’s production company, they weren’t offices in the traditional sense of cubicles and people working on spreadsheets. Nor were the offices as lavish as Junichiro had expected from one as distinguished as Ginzo. Instead, a long hallway stretched before them as the elevator doors opened, barren except for a few potted plants and paintings for decor, as well as a multitude of doors leading to personal offices and conference rooms. A responsible-looking middle-aged woman sat at a cozy desk near the end of the hallway.

The woman looked up from her laptop and straightened her glasses, smiling gently at Junichiro and company as they approached. She gestured at a set of double doors at the end of the hallway. “Go ahead and go on in. Hoshina-san is expecting you.”

Junichiro gave her a quick bow and went to open the heavy wooden doors. As he pushed on them however, there was a click and they swung open by themselves, sending him stumbling through the doorway. When he finally caught his balance and steadied himself, Junichiro was shocked at what he saw before him. He had heard rumors, but he had never dared to imagine the true level of eccentricity held by Ginzo Hoshina.

Aquariums filled with tropical fish of all shapes, sizes, and colors lined the walls. A bearskin rug so large that Junichiro had to assume it was fake stretched across the floor, carrying the furniture on its back. There was a dance-rhythm arcade machine tucked in one of the back corners where one could dance the night away while staring out over the city from the floor to ceiling windows. Various trinkets and artifacts from across the world were strewn around shelves and atop furniture all over the room. Finally to top it all off, was a disco ball hanging from the ceiling in place of a fluorescent ceiling light, shimmering as it slowly spun. And in the middle of it all, sat behind a hulking mahogany desk, was a silver-haired man with a well-kempt goatee, wearing a pair of small-lensed sunglasses and a bathrobe styled like a tuxedo. This man was none other than Ginzo Hoshina, leading director of the Japanese film industry.

Though he had been stone-faced a moment earlier, Ginzo’s lips curled into a wide, almost vicious smile. “The stars of the show arrive at last! Shirahama-san, Kurotaki-san, Amano-san, and Yamaguchi-san. Welcome to each of you and from the bottom of my heart, thank you for coming. Please, have a seat.” he boomed, pointing to two plush chairs in front of his desk.

The two actors both settled into the chairs as he had directed them to. Junichiro had to be careful not to sink down into the chair for fear of appearing too relaxed. Their respective managers took their places behind them as they sat. This was what Junichiro affectionately called their ‘business formation’. He didn’t entirely know what purpose it served, just that it looked professional. Regardless, he sat quietly and waited for Ginzo to speak again, somewhat starstruck.

“So,” Ginzo continued, “I suspect you’ve come here to discuss my offer?”

Junichiro and Kana both simply nodded.

“Very well. Before we begin however, I must ask: why did both of you decide to accept my invitation?”

“To advance my career and move up in the world.” Kana answered tersely and matter-of-factly.

“A bit of a simplistic answer, but acceptable.” Ginzo nodded before turning to Junichiro.

Junichiro had to think for a few moments before he could offer an answer. In truth, he hadn’t really thought about why he wanted to work with Ginzo. It just seemed like the obvious thing to do. Not many people get the chance to work with the most famous director in all of Japan, after all.

“I guess…because I want to see what I’m capable of? I’ve never worked on a project this important before, so I guess I want to prove to myself and everyone else that I can do it. On top of moving forward in my career, of course.”

“Hm. Somewhat boring, and a little uninspired. Not to worry, though! There will be plenty of time to fix that as we work together.”

Before Junichiro could object to Ginzo’s appraisal, he slid two pieces of paper across the expanse of his desk. A cursory glance over the one in front of him showed Junichiro that they were contracts. They weren’t like any contracts he’d ever seen, though. They were exceedingly simplistic and offered little to no details about any stipulations and rules. Junichiro looked back at Renji warily, but a quick nod from his manager told him there was nothing to be worried about.

“Now,” Ginzo began again, “there will be plenty of time later for us all to get to know each other. For now, all you need to know is the following: we are striving to make a movie that pushes the boundaries of what romance is all about. It will be called Monochrome Masquerade. It is a story of a prince and a princess from two neighboring kingdoms on the brink of war. Despite all odds, they meet each other in disguise at a masquerade ball and fall in love. It’s not my most inventive idea ever, but frankly I think that’s what makes it even more exciting. After seeing some of your work and your talents, I believe you two are perfectly suited to bring these characters to life and make this movie one for the history books. I know it’s not a lot of information to go off of, but this is all I can tell you at this time. Can I count on your help?”

His question hung in the air for what felt like an eternity, the bubbling of the fish tanks along the walls the only thing keeping them from total silence. Junichiro and Kana looked at each other. This wasn’t a lot of information, and the details of the contract were hazy at best. Nevertheless, this was an opportunity they simply couldn’t afford to pass up. The look on her face told Junichiro that Kana was of the same opinion, more or less. As much as they fought and disagreed, he knew that if they both agreed on this, it was surely the right choice. They both signed the contracts and passed them back across the desk.

Ginzo smiled wide, his perfect white teeth glinting in the light of the disco ball. “Excellent. You won’t regret this, I’ll make sure of it! Filming begins one week from Monday at Kagura Studio Park, Lot Number 25. We will meet there on Monday at nine in the morning to discuss the film schedule and various other details. Be there or be square!”

With that, they were dismissed and left Ginzo’s office behind. Despite the meeting going seemingly well, he couldn’t help but dwell on its peculiarities. He guessed Kana was doing the same, since she was silent the whole way to the station, not even calling him a dunce when he nearly walked into a light pole. Between this meeting and the events of the night before, Junichiro somehow left the office building that day more nervous than when he had entered.