"This teddy bear, can I give it to my little brother? Mikoto loves baby bears the most!"
After finishing a quick touch-up on her makeup in the waiting room and heading back to the set with her mother, Akane was just stepping onto the filming floor when a bright, cheerful voice caught her ear.
She immediately turned toward the sound.
Ruby came into view in Akane’s deep blue eyes like a picture framed in light.
As a child actress, Akane had met only a very small number of people who were born with the kind of presence that naturally drew everyone’s attention.
The most representative among them were the 『Kaoru Kamiki』 sitting in a chair and watching Ruby act, and 「B Komachi」’s eternal ace 『Ai』.
Coincidentally, those two were Ruby’s parents, filming right over there—but the important thing was this.
She’s drawing their eyes. Not just their eyes. Her bright, cheerful voice is being carried by her breath control, so it rings out with even more force.
Ruby’s acting had the power to pull people’s attention in.
If she had been an 「idol」, she might have been able to shine even more with her talent, and yet she chose acting first… Akane didn’t know why, but she narrowed her eyes slightly and analyzed Ruby’s performance.
"Eh? Why? I want to give it to my little brother! Teacher, that’s mean!"
Ruby’s one star-bright eye shimmered.
Her clear voice took on a watery edge, and tears seemed to gather over those vivid red eyes as she acted out a fragile emotional line that looked like it might break into real crying at any moment.
Akane kept watching and nodded to herself.
Kaoru senpai taught her personally. That breathing just now. Not just the breathing—the way to immerse herself in the emotion and the technique for maintaining it, all of it is exactly the same.
Akane’s deep blue eyes turned toward Kaoru, who was sitting in the chair.
After watching Kaoru’s DVDs countless times and analyzing them thoroughly, Akane had realized that his acting method was clearly visible in Ruby as well.
To see innate, outstanding acting skill carefully refined by the instruction of a brilliant master actor, shining so brilliantly that it stole everyone’s gaze—so this was how it could draw people in.
Her motivation surging, Akane swallowed dryly and pressed her lips together.
I want to…
If she ever had the chance, she wanted to receive acting lessons directly from Kaoru, and if possible, she wanted to act alongside Ruby herself someday too.
More than anyone, Akane knew that acting had no end, no matter how much you learned. With her heart pounding in excitement, she kept every detail of Ruby’s performance in her eyes, not wanting to miss a thing.
Kaoru sat quietly in his chair, watching his daughter act with a faint smile.
Ruby’s basic acting ability was excellent.
Unlike Aqua, she was naturally inclined to rely on her own intuition and instincts rather than complex calculations, but that was something that could be corrected through practice and training.
At home, Kaoru had taught Aqua, Ruby, and himself—sometimes even Ai—by gathering the family together for acting practice or making it fun through free-form acting exercises.
The effect was already more than proven by Ruby herself, who performed without hesitation, showing off her own color with a confident, radiant presence.
She looks just like Ai. No matter how I look at it… she looks just like Ai.
Smiling, Kaoru leaned back against the chair and thought that even if Aqua and Ruby were carefully adjusted so they wouldn’t erase the colors they were born with—
As a cute little girl who had inherited her mother’s blood, watching Ruby act inevitably brought his wife to mind.
Later… when Ruby grew up… maybe by the time she was in high school…
"Papa! It’s time for the drama Ruby’s in—can’t we watch it together?"
"Kyaa~ Papa! Ruby won the Elan d’Or Newcomer Award!"
"Papa! Thank you… because you kept cheering me on, I was able to hold on no matter how hard it got! Papa—I love you."
Ugh…!
Kaoru, who had fallen into an uncharacteristic reverie, lowered his head and rubbed at the twitching between his brows.
I hope she never grows up. Of course, if she does, she’ll become so beautiful she’ll look just like Ai. But I still hope she never grows up.
If people accused him of wanting to keep his daughter by his side for the rest of his life, he wouldn’t have anything to say.
I’d like Ame not to grow up either… but that’s just greed.
Aqua is a boy, so I’m not worried about him… but Ruby and Ame are daughters, so as their father, there’s always going to be a corner of my heart worrying…
"Papa. Let me introduce you~★ Ruby’s boyfrien—"
Kaoru’s blue eyes suddenly flared with a fierce red [starlight], like hellfire bursting out.
The entertainment industry is dangerous.
There would be far too many bastards out there aiming for his precious daughters, daughters so dear he wouldn’t mind if they were put in his eyes.
It would be wonderful if he could stay glued to them twenty-four hours a day, but physically that was impossible.
Should he look into a security company? But when the twins hit puberty…
To protect the children he loved…
As their father…
He should first pass on the [skills] he had honed in his past life to the twins…
"Amazing…!"
Akane, who had been watching Kaoru closely as he lowered his head with his usual cool expression and seemed to be seriously lost in thought, nodded with sparkling eyes.
That was exactly like 『Kaoru Kamiki』.
Even while watching his beloved daughter act, he would never become arrogant or shaken. As a master actor, he was undoubtedly carefully analyzing Ruby’s performance and selecting the points he could coach her on!
Once again reminded of how deeply sincere Kaoru senpai was when it came to acting, Akane—
"Okay! Cut!!!"
"Thank you for your hard work~ Thank you very much—!!!"
sent her support to Ruby, who bowed to the director and staff with her usual radiant smile.
Go, go for it! Kaoru senpai is doing that for Ruby!
In Akane’s mind, Ruby was already flashing by as a tragic heroine under Kaoru’s Spartan training.
...
After filming ended safely, Akane and Ruby were soon sitting close together like old friends, taking out their smartphones and exchanging contact information.
Ruby, who had never had an older sister, felt drawn to Akane’s gentle, big-sister-like personality.
And Akane, who had been an only daughter, found Ruby’s bright, cheerful energy almost like that of a little sister.
In fact, they really were only one year apart, and there was only a small gap between Ruby’s past-life age and Akane’s, so it was only natural that the two of them became close so quickly.
"Uhehe~ Got Akane onee-chan’s number, daze~★"
"I-I’m a Pokémon or something?"
Seeing two such talented actresses become friends, Riko brought both hands to her mouth and stared at Ruby and Akane with sparkling eyes, trying hard to calm her racing heart.
At this point, isn’t there some kind of red thread of fate tying our family to Kaoru’s household?!
The miracle of both husband and wife winning at the very first fan meeting wasn’t a coincidence!
Now their daughters had become friends too, so it was almost fair to say the two families were officially connected!
Riko, who always thought how truly, truly right it had been to make her precious only daughter become an actress, found herself smiling happily again.
Kaoru, who was also watching Akane and Ruby chatting together with a pleased expression, thought—
It’s time to set a day and talk with the president.
He sensed that the time had come to present a new blueprint for the Rararai Theater Troupe.
President Toshiro’s thoughts probably wouldn’t be any different.
He was someone who loved the Rararai Theater Troupe more than anyone else.
Nodding as he looked at Akane, Kaoru immediately walked over to Riko, bowed slightly, and said,
"I was glad to see you again after so long, Mrs. Kurokawa."
"Oh, yes, yes! I was so honored and grateful to meet you too."
After greeting Kaoru, Riko was itching to tell her husband about the great achievement of fulfilling her otaku dream.
Leaving behind Riko, who was flustered with excitement in her heart, Kaoru checked his wristwatch and approached Ruby, who was talking with Akane.
"Ruby. Should we go pick up Ame and your brother now?"
"Ah! Yes! Akane onee-chan, Ruby has to go now!"
"Okay… bye, Ruby! See you again next time!"
Kaoru smiled at Akane and said his farewell.
"Stay healthy, Akane. Let’s definitely meet again someday on set, as actor to actor."
"Ah, yes—!!! It was an honor to meet you, senpai!"
Akane politely greeted him with both hands folded neatly together.
Apparently not expecting Kaoru to say something like that, her face flushed red again.
Watching the father and daughter leave the set together, Akane made another vow.
She would definitely meet him again and do everything she could to live up to his expectations.
—
"Huaaam…"
"Sleepy?"
"Yeah… a little…"
Kaoru glanced gently into the rearview mirror and looked at Ruby yawning in the back seat.
Her eyes were full of sleepiness. Filming consumed a great deal of energy.
"If you’re hungry, hold on a little longer. Papa will make omurice when we get home."
"Okay."
"Okay~★"
Ame, who had been picked up from kindergarten, fell asleep the moment she got in the car and didn’t answer, but judging from the way she was drooling in her sleep, Kaoru felt like he didn’t need an answer anyway.
Watching the twins answer from the back seat through the rearview mirror, Kaoru smiled and kept driving.
"Hmnya hmnya— big brother~♥"
"...If you’re really sleepy, you can sleep."
"Hmm~ should I sleep or not, I’m thinking~"
As Ruby leaned against his shoulder and acted cute, Aqua smiled and patted her head.
Since they had spent more time together as siblings in this life than they had in their previous one—
Even if he set aside the bond that had carried over from their past lives, Aqua still felt a very deep sense of preciousness and affection for Ruby, as well as Ame, as a younger sister he had to protect.
Enough that if those precious little sisters ever brought home some so-called boyfriend later, he was prepared to join his father in thoroughly “dealing with” the bastard.
Ruby, with her arms tightly linked through her beloved brother’s, rubbed her head against him the way Mama did to Papa, then decided to tell the most interesting story from today in order to resist falling asleep.
"Hm… big brother. I made a new friend today?"
"A friend? Who?"
"Ah, not a friend… should I say an older sister? Anyway—I made a new big sister friend!"
A new big sister?
As Aqua tilted his head and muttered it, Ruby briefly lifted her head, adjusted Ame’s posture so she was leaning against the seat back instead of nearly toppling over, and continued.
"Yeah. Today—oh, big brother, do you know a child actress named 『Kurokawa Akane』?"
"No? Uh… the surname sounds familiar! Huh? Wait, I’m sure I’ve heard it before?"
"Hehe. She came with her parents to Papa’s first fan meeting a long time ago!"
"Ahh~ Ah—!!!"
Startled, Aqua widened his eyes and looked at his sister.
Seriously?
Ruby grinned and said, twirling her index finger.
"Ta-da—yep. The Akane onee-chan I met today was the same girl who came to Papa’s first fan meeting!"
"...That’s an incredible connection for a coincidence."
"Heheh—right? Oh, and so! I watched her act while filming earlier, and wow—her acting was seriously amazing?! She’s so good! Even Ruby doesn’t find crying scenes easy, but the second the cut sign came down, she started pouring tears out right away! How should I put it—she felt like an elegant princess who’s really good at acting?"
As Ruby’s eyes sparkled while she praised the child actress Kurokawa Akane, Aqua gave a small smile and asked,
"So? How did you two get close?"
"Mm… actually, Akane onee-chan is a huge fan of Papa! When Papa came over to say hello, she was so nervous she couldn’t even look him in the eye! Hehe, Ruby’s a fan of Papa too, so we matched up perfectly~"
"Oh, really? Akane is a fan of Father too? I’m glad you two clicked so well."
"Yep. It’s even more than you’re imagining, big brother. Hehe."
"By the way, does Mother like 「B Komachi」 too?"
"Ugh—just in case I asked, but she only listens to the songs and doesn’t really call herself a 「fan」 or anything… Ah! She also said she watched every drama Mama appeared in because Mama’s acting is amazing!"
...
Hmm. That’s disappointing.
A fan of Father, but not of Mother?
Well, if she’s an actress, that could happen, but still, that’s disappointing. Should I start promoting from the first album?
Seeing her brother make a dissatisfied face with his arms crossed, Ruby burst out laughing.
She poked his cheek and said in a sly voice,
"Are you thinking about how to turn Akane onee-chan into Mama’s fan?"
"If I said no…"
"That would be a lie, right? Your face already says, ‘I want to market her!’ Ruby’s eyes can’t be fooled!"
"Ugh—"
As Aqua scratched the back of his head, Ruby rested her head on his shoulder and said in a soft voice,
"Heheh—maybe later I’ll introduce you to—"
Ruby was about to say, I’ll introduce you to Akane onee-chan, but the words suddenly got stuck in her throat and wouldn’t come out.
The moment she looked into Aqua’s blue eyes, her instinct gave her a warning: she should not let her brother and Akane meet.
With a strange, unsettling feeling she had never experienced before, Ruby pursed her lips and hugged her brother’s arm even tighter.
If—if the brother who was always with Ruby started talking with Akane and going places with her and getting close…
"Mm…"
Wait—is this [jealousy]? Or not?
Ugh—but… if it’s Akane onee-chan… maybe… maybe, maybe… it’s okay… or not…
"What about me?"
"Huh? No, nothing… hehe."
"What’s that! Now you’ve made me curious! It’s cheating to stop in the middle. Tell me~!"
"Hehe~★ Secret!"
In the end, Ruby tightly hid that unknown, unsettling feeling and smiled sweetly as she rubbed her head against Aqua’s shoulder.
As always, Aqua gave in by one step, unable to resist his little sister’s adorable act.
Aqua thought the conversation had ended abruptly and wondered what that was about, but he had already spent a great deal of mental energy performing in front of President Toshiro, so he didn’t press the matter any further.
As the sun slowly set outside the car window, his eyelids grew heavy with the fading light—
"Ah…"
Using Ruby’s head-butting affection as a lullaby, Aqua slowly drifted off to sleep as well.
—
A few days later.
"Wow—★ I’m the only one home!"
Ai laughed and struck a victory pose in the middle of the living room.
Kaoru had a schedule!
The twins were at school!
Ame was at kindergarten!
Miyako was at work!
Takamine had a schedule too!
Nino was on a secret date with her boyfriend!
MeiMei isn’t answering the phone?
↑She’s definitely asleep! Sleep monster! (｡･ω･｡)ﾉ
Kyunpan was traveling abroad!
A perfectly alone day.
"I’m lonely…"
Ai sniffled as she lay on the bed that was deeply soaked with Kaoru’s scent.
"I miss him so much…"
She sniffled while lying in a line between the twins’ beds just so she could be on both of them at once.
"Ameee!"
Ai even buried her face in the small bed Ame used!
"Waaahhh—!"
In the end, she collapsed again in the middle of the living room!
"Uu… ah!"
But she wasn’t the kind of [invincible idol] who would stay sad forever~★
It was a clear morning with warm sunlight!
Ai’s starry eyes sparkled as she smiled brightly and decided to take care of the housework Kaoru had fallen behind on in his place!
"All right! Ai is also a 「mom」, after all~★"
After tying on an apron, Ai rolled up her sleeves, nodded, and started the housework.
The laundry that had piled up!
"...The washing machine… huh?! Not that one—ah, there we go~"
The dishes that had piled up!
Crash!
"...Heheh… we really need to buy a dishwasher!"
The vacuuming that had piled up!
Vrrrrrr—
"Hmph-hmph-hmph~ vacuuming is easy enough~"
Thud!
"Kgh?"
After stubbing her little toe on the corner of the table, Ai stared at the robot vacuum being advertised on TV with tearful starry eyes and nodded.
Squatting down, she quickly took out her smartphone and ordered the robot vacuum, then sniffled and rubbed her little toe.
"Sniff…"
Still!
The backlog of housework—!
Done—!
"Huaaah— I’m going to rest now. Rest rest rest~ hehe— Kaoru’s pillow~"
In comfy pajamas, Ai grabbed the pillow Kaoru used from the bed and landed on the living room sofa with a whoosh!
Since lunch could be handled with the tomato-and-egg stir-fry and miso soup Kaoru had made, she had free time until then~!
After sending her husband a text saying she had finished all the housework he’d left behind, clearly expecting praise, Ai immediately turned on the TV.
"Hmph-hmph~★"
What’s worth watching at this hour—
"Eh…!"
Ai’s starry eyes widened, and her thumb, which had been busily pressing the channel button, froze.
On a morning drama…
"That’s right!?"
『Karima Ana!』
...?
"『Arima Kana』!"
Seeing a familiar face appear in the drama, Ai smiled with starry delight.
Of course, they had never sat face-to-face and had a deep conversation on set, but she remembered her as a cute girl who got along well with the twins(?) and gave off a very charming impression!
Ai, who had been lying down, lifted her upper body, pulled her knees up, and became completely absorbed in the drama.
"What do you know, lady! All you can do is shout ‘tsk-tsk’ and make a racket like that!"
"Y-you insolent little brat?!"
As expected of a morning drama that ran on the top tier of melodrama, the content was extremely sensational—but Arima Kana’s superb acting shone brilliantly even in the middle of all that and lit up Ai’s starry eyes.
She didn’t know any of the backstory at all, but Kana’s acting alone made the drama incredibly exciting.
"Wow…★"
Just as she had when watching the drama Ruby appeared in, Ai watched with serious focus—then—
"..."
She swallowed hard at the intensity of Kana’s gaze and emotion that seemed to pierce even through the TV.
Restrained acting in contrast to the emotion burning in her eyes! And dialogue delivery that landed right in the ear, with crisp diction and clear breath control!
Ai finally understood why Kaoru had been so disappointed in this child actress’s slump.
They were about the same age as the twins… or at least they must have been, probably…
It would be wonderful if that girl could become a good friend and colleague to the twins…
With a quiet sigh of regret and sympathy, Ai kept watching, starry eyes sparkling, as if she meant to take in every last bit of Kana’s performance before it ended.
Even if it was only a minor role, she knew it was a child actress’s respectful praise for pouring everything she had into her acting.
Ai knew that much.
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