Chapter 12

“Shirahama-san, Kurotaki-san, you’re on in five!” a stagehand called out.

Kana instinctively reached down to straighten her dress, trying to calm her nerves before she went on stage. She and Junichiro had done plenty of talk shows and interviews together in their time working together, but they never failed to make her restless beforehand for fear of everything that could go wrong. The agency was clear about how the two of them should portray themselves while together. Leave everything ambiguous and up for interpretation. Do not affirm or deny any allegations or accusations relating to your relationship. Let the matter of whether or not Junichiro Kurotaki and Kana Shirahama are ‘a thing’ lie entirely in the hands of the public.

Following those general guidelines is what allowed the agency to so effectively market them together. Manufacturing discourse in their fans about whether or not they were a couple was the simplest way to drive up engagement levels. As frustrating as it could be sometimes, it was hard to argue with their methods when the results were clear for all to see. The agency had helped turn Kana and Junichiro into some of the brightest rising stars in the industry. All they had to do was tread the fine line of romance and friendship when they were in public together.

Even as simple as it was, Kana couldn’t help but worry about messing up. If one of them ever slipped up, what would happen? Would the agency be able to handle things and pull it back into control? Or would their fans feel betrayed and toyed with, turning away from them and letting them fade into obscurity, every actor’s worst nightmare? It was a slippery slope that served as a constant source of anxiety for Kana, and she suspected her co-star felt the same way. Suffice to say, interviews and talk shows like this one did little to soothe those worries.

Kana shook her head. There was no need to be worrying about this kind of thing. All she had to do was the same thing she always did—play her part perfectly and in tune with Junichiro—and everything would be fine. She looked down at her teal dress. No wrinkles whatsoever, everything was going to be just fine. Her co-star, on the other hand, was having a bit more trouble.

Kana glanced over to Junichiro and grimaced to see that he was still fumbling with his tie, as he had been for the last ten minutes. Fancy clothes like the suit he was wearing didn’t suit him. It was like looking at a monkey trying to figure out how to put on a tuxedo. As entertaining as it would have been to watch him walk out on stage looking like a disheveled mess, him looking bad made her look bad. Kana sighed and reluctantly walked over to her co-star.

“You’re insufferable.” she mumbled, ripping his tie from his hands. “Give me that, I’ll do it since you clearly can’t.”

Junichiro rolled his eyes dramatically. “Thanks, Mom. You gonna wipe my ass too while you’re at it?”

“No, but I’ll kick it to the moon and back if you mess up this interview for us.”

Junichiro sucked his teeth in annoyance, but didn’t take it any further. Kana smirked to herself as she finished tying his tie and straightening his suit jacket. Self-proclaimed Mr. Smooth Talker not having a comeback was always a nice experience, even if it was right before a talk show interview.

“Ladies and gentlemen, give it up for the Japanese film industry’s rising stars, Junichiro Kurotaki and Kana Shirahama!” came a voice from the stage that was made for show-biz.

That was their cue. Both of the actors stiffened. Kana looked at Junichiro, who met her gaze. They nodded to each other in a silent understanding. Any grievances would have to be settled later. Right now, it was show time.

Kana stepped out onto the stage to the applause and cheers of the studio audience, giving them a polite wave and a smile as she went to her seat. Junichiro walked out beside her, blowing kisses and winking at the audience. Kana had to fight the urge to roll her eyes at the display. As soon as they were both done greeting the audience, they settled into the plush chairs set out for guests of the talk show and locked eyes with the host: Daisuke Kogawa. It was time for the show to begin.

“Welcome Shirahama-san! Welcome Kurotaki-san! It’s so good to have you both here on Live Hai, Live!” beamed Daisuke.

Kana smiled politely and crossed her arms in her lap. “It’s great to be here, Kogawa-san.”

Junichiro leaned back in his seat, one arm draped over the backrest as he typically did during these sorts of things to try to preserve his charming bad boy image. “Happy to be here. Say, Kogawa-san, did you do something new with your hair?”

Daisuke looked surprised for a moment, then smiled even brighter than he already had been. “Why, yes I did! Thank you for noticing!”

Kana cringed at her co-star’s blatant flattery. She hated when he did that in situations like this. It always felt like he was trying to gain some social advantage over her rather than actually trying to genuinely compliment someone. It felt superficial and shallow. But then again, who was she to say anything? She was the one hiding her identity from the guy she was steadily falling for, so maybe being superficial was something actors had in common.

Most of their time on Live Hai, Live! went the same as it did on every talk show. Questions about their latest film, what they were planning to work on next, their opinions on the latest gossip about others in the industry, and of course, a bombardment of questions about the nature of their relationship, which Junichiro and Kana deftly deflected, as always. It wasn’t until the end of the show that things took a turn.

“Well, this has been a great show and you’ve both been wonderful guests, but before we end things off, we’ve got one last thing to ask you two.” Daisuke said as his smile turned strangely menacing. “Truth is, there’s a particular picture that was posted online earlier today that has been doing numbers in terms of engagement, so we wanted to see what you two thought about it. Can we get it up on screen please?”

Kana could feel the blood drain from her face as she turned to look at the screen. On the screen, for all eyes both in the audience and watching the show at home to see, was a picture of two figures holding hands and running through a white curtain of rain, smiles on their faces as they laughed while they ran. The rain obscured any identifying features on their faces, but Kana knew instantly who those two were. After all, she had lived it. She was surprised to see how similar the silhouettes looked to her and Junichiro. And of course, that was exactly the point.

“As I mentioned, someone posted this picture online earlier today. Though any details about this lovely couple are hard to make out, many people have likened them to you two. I must admit, I can see the resemblance myself. Can we get your thoughts on this matter?” Daisuke spoke like a hunter who had just ensnared his prey. His trap had been sprung. All he had to do now was wait to see if his quarry would fight back or if they would simply lie down and accept defeat.

A lump formed in Kana’s throat and her mouth felt like a desert. Try as she might, she just couldn’t get out the words to deny that it was them. The most she could manage was a choked “Wait” or “No”. She was used to countering Junichiro’s snide comments, but being confronted with damning evidence of something she had done and tried to keep secret was completely different. Just as she was about to succumb to Daisuke’s trap and give up, she heard Junichiro let out a shaky exhale next to her.

“Come on, Kogawa-san. Do you believe everything you see on the internet?” he chided, pushing back his hair dramatically. “There are millions of people in this city who would match those two silhouettes perfectly. Anyone who thinks that’s us is either a slave to their own wishful thinking or just plain dumb.”

Kana was stunned. It took guts to say something like that, to tell people who loved and supported them that they were either stupidly believing what they wanted to believe or simply mindless drones drifting along the winds of public opinion. Then again, that was one of the things the public liked most about Junichiro, his tendency to speak his mind. Kana relaxed and sunk back into her seat. She hated to admit it, even to herself, but for once, she was glad that Junichiro Kurotaki was the partner she’d gotten stuck with.

Daisuke uttered a half-hearted apology that placed him conveniently back into a neutral position for the sake of optics. After a few more minutes of discussing current events in the industry, Daisuke said his goodbyes to the viewers and the ‘on-air’ light hanging near the camera crew went dark to signal that the show was over. As she and Junichiro left the studio that night, she couldn’t help but marvel at the fact that she’d gotten out of that situation unscathed and resolved to be more careful when she was with Naoya. As she parted from Junichiro at the station, she was also forced to admit to herself a small, begrudging appreciation for her co-star that was beginning to form.