How She Felt....

The theatre was the last place Mitsu was expecting Akio to be taking him. This particular theatre, thought he had never been here for a production, was still a familiar place to him.

The Ito living room was filled with cheers and laughter as Mitsu and Emi continued to put a show on for Tomo and their mother, Hana. There set up tonight was the wicked witch that had cursed the town verses he heroic y0ung man, who dared to stand up to the wickedness. Tomo and Hana held hands and the hunched over the edge of the shoulder as the show was coming to an exciting conclusion. Mitsu held his make shift sword to Emi, taking the stance a brave knight of medieval times would. “Your evil reign comes to an end today,” He proclaimed.

Emi raised her wand to Mitsu, bringing her other hand up to her mouth as she let out an ear shattering cackle. “And what will you,” She mocked. “A pathetic child, do to stop me?”

Mitsu gave a strong war cry as he thrust his sword in between Emi’s chest and forearm, giving the impression he stabbed her. He pulled his sword back, standing proudly s Emi fell to the floor in defeat. Hana and Tomo started to cheer, the hero was victorious and the evil from the living room had now vanished. “Princesses,” Mitsu bowed, taking his mother’s hand. “The evil witch will bother no more.”

“And scene,” Emi called out, sitting up straight.

Tomo and Hana gave an applause that bounced of the walls and echoed through the rest of the house. Emi and Mitsu stood giving their bows, Emi stepping aside and resenting Mitsu to continue to bow as the cheers got louder. “That was so awesome,” Tomo complimented making Mitsu blush and feel humbled. “Oh, idea!” Tomo grabbed her book bag sat beside her feet, rummaging around the bottom to pull out a crumpled-up flyer.

Hana grabbed the flyer, scanning it and her eyes lighting up as she started to get all sort of ideas. “My daughter the play write and my son the thespian!” She proclaimed, standing up to bring her children into a tight hug. “I’ve been so blessed with talented children.”

Mitsu struggled in the motherly grasp spotting the flyer in his mom’s hand, just barely making out the word ‘auditions.’ Hana pulled away, Emi taking the flyer from her as Hana had started to ramble on about, lemon tea, acting tips and other nonsense no-one could really make out. “Oh,” Emi laughed. “Good call Tomo. I think Mitsu would be great for this play.”

She passed on the flyer to Mitsu was took his time to properly scan it. It was a fly reaching out to local young actors to take part in a local production for ‘Peter Pan.’ Specifically calling for young boys to audition for a lost boy and Peter Pan himself. Looking at Tomo and seeing the encouraging smile on her face, as well as his mother’s excitement, it gave him a sense of courage. “It does sound fun,” he said.

“It’s the weekend after my writing competition,” Emi explained. “So, you’ll be able have some peace and quiet to practice.”

“And mommy will be able to support both her children’s dreams!” Hana cheered.

That day Mitsu found his dream. He realised he loved preforming and how happy he was when he saw the smile on the audience faces and the cheers sent shivers down his spine. Imagine the feeling he would get being on a big stage in front of an audience larger than just his family and Tomo.

The theatre he sat in now, was the same theatre he was meant to audition at. After his mother’s death, he never picked up any of the scripts Emi and Hana had written for him again. The pieces of paper heavy with memories. He had decided from then, dreams were pointless and all they did were hurt people. Being in the audience, ready to watch the production of the play he was once going to audition for, was making him question his decision.

Through the entire performance, Mitsu’s eyes didn’t leave the stage. He was captivated by the enchanting, if mediocre, performance the group was giving. Every performer was giving everything they had to entertain the audience, making sure they would remember this play for many days, maybe even years, to come.

Coming to an end, the performances lined up on stage, holding hands and took a group bow. Mitsu was the first amongst many who participated in the standing ovation. His heart feeling like it could burst out of his chest, knowing how his mother must have felt watching him perform for her.

It was crazy, a small-town performance was making him question his decisions over the past several years. All kinds of situations ran through his head on the walk back to his house, the winnings from the arcade nestled tightly in his hands. “Did you enjoy the play?” Akio dared to ask, worried that Mitsu’s silence was a sign of disappointment.

“I did,” Mitsu assure with a big smile, as they reached his front door. Akio sighed in relief, his plan to make Mitsu feel better worked. “I got to know how my mom felt whenever I used to act for her.”

“You used to act?” Akio questioned.

Mitsu nodded. “It was actually a dream of mine,” he started to say. “And you actually made me realise today, that maybe I gave up on my own dream too soon.”

“And why’s that?”

“Acting was something I enjoyed because it made my mom happy,” Mitsu started to explain. “After she died, I thought there was no point in acting but today I know how she felt when I acted. Just think, if she’s watching over me, I’m denying her that feeling.”

“So, you want to try acting again?” Akio smiled, feeling a sense of accomplishment from today.

“I have a lot to sort out first,” Mitsu gulped, knowing that he will need to separate ‘Hana’ from his normal life and come clean to the people he loved. Then there was also sorting things out with Tomo. If he was rediscovering his dream, he shouldn’t be holding her back. “If there’s anything I can do for you,” Mitsu proclaimed, clapping at his chest. “Please tell me. I want to repay you anyway I can for today!”

Mitsu jumped, hearing Akio dropped the bag containing Yui’s prizes. Akio brought his hands to cup either side of Mitsu’s face. “I can think of one way,” he said, quickly swooping Mitsu’s face to his and bringing their lips together.

Akio’s lips were sweet and smooth. Mitsu’s hands twitched, loosening enough for his own bags to fall to the ground, the contents spilling onto the ground. He wasn’t sure why, but he cupped Aki’s cheeks in return and pressed his lips further into the kiss.