That dawn, Kaoru received a phone call.
The call was from Director Sojiro. When he answered, he heard shocking news: the writer had declared a strike and disappeared without a trace for a week, exhausted by the excessive interference from advertisers, the agency, and everyone else.
Wait... then why was he calling at this hour to ask Kaoru for help? Of all people, a mere supporting actor?
Kaoru sat up blankly in bed, feeling as if common sense had been shattered, and ran a hand through his hair.
With the filming schedule blown to pieces and no way they would make the editing deadline, Director Sojiro’s bleak voice made Kaoru throw everything aside, pull on a hoodie and training clothes, and head out.
"Damn it!"
It was practically a wartime situation. Even a low-budget indie film or a university graduation project would be in better shape than this.
It was impossible to believe this was supposed to be the biggest drama ever, with a massive budget poured into it. Instead, it was a pitiful filming site—no, not even a site, just an empty lot beside a national road outside Tokyo, with only the bare minimum of staff hastily conscripted.
One lighting team leader with 25 years of experience, plus two lighting crew members with 8 and 5 years respectively, had rushed out of their lodging and set a record no one had ever seen before: a lighting team of three.
The cinematographer had hurried out with the crew in a van loaded with equipment, but he hadn’t even discussed with the director what camera they were using or how they were supposed to shoot. He bit down on a cigarette and spat out curses.
There was no makeup team, no wardrobe team, and the directing team consisted only of Director Sojiro, the two assistant directors who always followed him around, and two junior staff members.
The sound team still hadn’t arrived.
With no script in hand and no set to speak of, the grown men sitting around an empty lot beside a national road at 4:30 in the morning, waiting on Director Sojiro’s call, were on the verge of losing their minds.
"...Let’s just do it with a rough script."
It wasn’t even rough-script level. It was [No Script] itself.
But what could they do? That was the conclusion reached in the meeting between the team leaders and Director Sojiro. The director had said that since he knew exactly what kind of level the lead actor was at—
"I called Kamiki for a reason, you know? Don’t worry. Don’t worry. This is exactly when masterpieces are born."
"......"
At those words, the cinematographer silently nodded and took another drag on his cigarette.
As a veteran with 23 years under his belt, he could tell at a glance what kind of estimate they were looking at. Even if they had done it as a one-man drama from the start, this show would have made it through.
Maybe even better than it would now.
Since they were already in this much trouble, the staff nodded along to Director Sojiro’s determination to somehow patch the whole thing together with the student council president’s screen time.
They had about 40 to 48 hours.
Once they cut out time for eating, sleeping, and resting, there wasn’t even 30 hours left.
"No need to overcomplicate it, Director. The more complicated it gets, the more we just need to force our way through. When are we supposed to bring in that equipment, and that damn huge thing at that? Forget the heavy stuff like ARRI or RED. We’ve got DSLRs and camcorders, don’t we? Bring out the Canon and Sony gear and just shoot. If we start setting up rails and bringing in cars and all that, we’re done for. Let’s just set the frame rate to 24. As for sound, even if we have to do post-recording later, let’s do what we can now."
The sound team, who finally arrived sweating profusely, belatedly followed Director Sojiro’s instructions. The camera crew, in line with the director’s orders, took out Canon DSLRs and camcorders instead of expensive equipment and checked battery levels, condition, and everything else.
In the drama world, this kind of shooting was something they had never done before—maybe not even in 20 years.
Director Sojiro and Kaoru consumed energy drinks like they were going into battle while drafting the script and cue sheet.
As an actor with genius-level talent, Kaoru calmly explained his own analysis of the student council president’s character even in this chaos, destruction, and oblivion, and discussed with Director Sojiro how to shape the narrative and story cleanly and appropriately.
"He’s a strict rule-follower, but this isn’t 100% the real Ryota, you know?"
"Wouldn’t that clash with the main story?"
"It’s more like additional context than a contradiction. Ryota, like other teenagers his age, has a wide range of emotions..."
Without realizing that the youngest member of the directing team beside them was filming the whole exchange on a tiny digital camera to use in the making-of footage, Kaoru and Director Sojiro continued their heated discussion.
"Haa. In that case, we’d need to rent a house, wouldn’t we?"
"No, no need to rent one. My father’s house is a traditional Japanese home. We’ll just use that. Put one staff member on set and have the cast read their lines. We have no choice. Not right now."
"What about costumes?"
"There aren’t any school scenes anyway. Cut all the school scenes. Don’t overthink it—just focus on the student council president. Kaoru, you brought a motorcycle earlier, right? You have a license?"
"Yes."
"We’ll load it into the back of the camera van and roll it out, so let’s add a scene where you ride just a little."
"......"
And so the magnificent disaster show of no-script filming began.
With no makeup team, Kaoru only lightly colored his lips with borrowed lipstick from one of the female staff members—the youngest assistant director, the only woman on the team—and then got on the motorcycle after receiving Kaoru’s cue.
At 6 a.m., Kaoru rode the motorcycle on the national road and twisted his body as dynamically as possible. The lighting director, crammed into the back of the van, squeezed himself in beside the cinematographer, and after the cinematographer’s skilled one-take shot, he jumped into the brand-new car of the lighting team leader to capture another angle from the side.
They nearly broke the sound team’s boom mic while filming, but fortunately the shoot continued without any major trouble.
Anything they could shoot in real time was filmed immediately, with the script being revised on the spot.
Since there was a sea beside the empty lot and a walking path they could use, the production team decided to shoot a sunrise scene without any storyboard, under the concept of showing the student council president’s human side.
As Kaoru ran toward the sunrise, the youngest member of the camera crew also grabbed the camera and ran toward the rising sun.
"......"
"Cut!"
Even in this extreme situation, Kaoru’s incredible acting instantly immersed him in the student council president’s role, and he radiated a distinctive aura.
Thanks to the lighting team’s subtle control, the blue eyes in Kaoru’s face, gently lit by the light, shone with an even stronger brilliance and were captured by the camera.
After filming all 15 scenes in just two hours, Director Sojiro threatened everyone into eating breakfast quickly before heading to his father’s house.
The youngest member of the directing team, who had been filming the director, staff, and actors eating cup ramen on the roadside, captured Kaoru’s rare sight of choking on broth while sitting on the ground and smiled with satisfaction.
After they arrived at Director Sojiro’s father’s house, Kaoru changed into the most youthful-looking clothes he could find there.
As the saying goes, a face is worth wings; even in slightly rumpled clothes, the student council president’s strict, principled nature seemed to come through more strongly, making him even more appealing.
"Okay. Scene 22. Ready, action!"
"Are you trying to stain this house with your filth right now?"
"Father! You know that isn’t what I truly mean!"
The person playing Kaoru’s father was not an actor but the second lighting crew member. Since his face wasn’t shown, Director Sojiro and the cinematographer’s stylish camera placement created an even more mysterious atmosphere, but that didn’t matter right now. Even if they had to bring in an actor or voice actor later for post-recording, this was the only way they could keep filming by improvising on location.
"......"
At sunset, Kaoru stood in the glow of dusk, his expression blank, his eyes darting around in confusion as if lost in thought, one hand resting quietly at his waist.
The youngest assistant director noticed him and drifted over, filming with the digital camera.
"...Haha. What is it?"
"It’s for the making-of footage. The director told me to film it."
"...Making-of footage? Wow."
He even had them film making-of footage in this situation? Letting out an exclamation, Kaoru wore a face full of emotion and looked at Director Sojiro with a gaze so awestruck it was almost grotesque.
As that expression was captured without filter by the camera, the youngest assistant director snorted with laughter and asked, "Is it hard?"
"...It’s less that it’s hard and more that I’m wondering if this is really okay... I guess I’m worried, yeah. Haha..."
A documentary-like atmosphere.
At Kaoru’s laugh, full of many meanings, the youngest assistant director said casually, while clearly filming with personal interest, "Still, you’re amazing. You’ve done every scene without a single NG so far."
"Ah... thank you. My theater experience has really helped. I think this will stay with me as an unforgettable memory."
"Is this your first time filming like this?"
"Uh... yes. It’s my first time. Wouldn’t it obviously be my first time? Haha."
"How do you think it’ll turn out on broadcast later? In terms of screen time and all that."
"As you know... yes. I trust the director will do a good job. As for the special episode’s length... yes. I’m sure the director will judge that well. In any case, please take good care of me. Will this air on TV?"
"I don’t know."
"Oh. If it does air... please enjoy it, viewers! I was Kamiki Kaoru, playing the student council president, Kiriyama Ryota. Thank you."
Terrible at talking, but with a beautiful boy’s smile, the youngest member of the directing team grinned broadly and zoomed the camera out to include Kaoru’s upper body.
Kaoru bowed politely and waved both hands toward the camera as if greeting it.
-
And now.
"Kyaaa! The student council president looks so cool riding a motorcycle!"
"Taaah!"
Seeing the motorcycle scene in episode 5, Kaoru could only stand there speechless while Ai and Ruby, beside him, cheered wildly over their husband’s appearance.
With brilliant editing, the motorcycle scene had all the dynamism of someone racing at incredible speed.
Even though it had been filmed on the shoulder of a road at no more than 30 km/h for less than 50 meters, the student council president looked like a track racer tearing down the road at full speed.
Kaoru’s sharp blue eyes, visible through the helmet, gleamed.
Because it had been shot on a DSLR rather than the huge, expensive professional camera they had originally planned to use, the image was rougher but the colors felt more real, and since the frame rate was broadcast at 24 frames like a film, the visuals were excellent as well.
The atmosphere was so alien that it felt like not only the [Genre] had changed, but maybe even it was a different drama entirely.
"......"
The motorcycle came to a stop in the middle of the rising sunrise, and the student council president took off his helmet and ran toward the empty lot.
Even the running scene felt alive, with its realistic color and shaking camera. The student council president stopped running, grabbed the railing, and panted hard.
As he looked up at the sunrise, his blue eyes, his sharply carved nose bridge, and his jawline gradually burned red in the sunlight.
"Haa... haa..."
The student council president’s back and the rising sun overlapped as one...
And then a new OST began to play, a clear, gentle acoustic-guitar arrangement of the drama’s theme song...
♬♪♩-
[Coming Closer to You: Love Line School]
[EP 5]
The screen changed.
"Haa...... this is... really... too much... ♥"
Seeing the opening of episode 5, which had turned into a perfect youth drama, Ai, moved by her husband’s sexy appearance, trembled slightly as she covered her mouth with both hands.
It was the kind of video that, in vulgar terms, really got you hooked.
"Student council president-☆ You said you weren’t going to appear anymore! You liar!"
"Mmph! A-Ai? Mmph!"
Ai rushed at Kaoru, who was wiping cold sweat from his bangs, wrapped her starry eyes around his neck, and kissed him.
"Taaah?!"
"Ta, taaah!?"
Somehow, Aqua and Ruby ended up witnessing the affection between their favorite and second-favorite right in front of them, and both of them reacted with wide, shocked eyes.
-
After the opening, the student council president never appeared again. The boring development, the lead actors’ terrible acting, and the excessive product placement were all still the same.
But... the student council president’s motorcycle scene and sunrise scene, which evoked an 80s youth drama.
And the opening, with its dynamic, vivid visuals and minimal editing that made the footage feel almost raw and alive.
The viewers praised it without restraint. In fact, the sensation created by that short opening became a decisive catalyst that drove the ratings upward.
Even without the student council president, the average viewership broke past 16 percent, and word of mouth began to spread in earnest.
What’s more, companies that hadn’t been able to buy ad slots heard that a special episode was still coming, and they all rushed to make advertising offers.
"...Hello?"
Kaoru answered a call from Director Sojiro.
This was the first time in two weeks that he had contacted Kaoru first after avoiding him all that time.
Kaoru had so, so, so, so much he wanted to say. But he forced it all down rationally and listened to Director Sojiro’s voice from the other end.
- We’ll need... additional filming, right?
"......"
At the director’s voice, which sounded as if flowers were blooming all over his face, Kaoru crushed the plastic bottle of water he had been drinking.
"What exactly are you plotting? I’ve seen supporting roles get cut before, but this is the first time in my life I’ve seen the back half of the story dragged forward!"
- Kaoru, did you forget? We’re the kind of people who live and die by ratings. Every time you appear, the ratings jump. What am I supposed to do?
"Haa... But isn’t it true that from episode 2 onward, you cut the lead actors’ lines and used my screen time on your own authority? In the beginning, the story was progressing according to the scene numbers, wasn’t it?"
- ...Heh. You remembered the script in full again this time, didn’t you?
At Director Sojiro’s strange tone, Kaoru frowned and tilted his head.
What was this voice?
Had the director already noticed the question flickering through Kaoru’s mind?
Director Sojiro spoke in his usual light voice, though the playfulness had already vanished.
- Remember here? The bench where I cast you back then. The hamburger shop in front of it is gone now, and a café has moved in.
"......I remember."
How could he not?
That bench. The bench near the school.
Wasn’t that where everything had begun?
Kaoru recalled the memory of first meeting Director Sojiro there and looked up at the blue sky, where the sun had begun to sink little by little.
- Come out for a bit. We need to discuss the additional filming too. Let’s meet at the café.
"...Understood. I’ll be there soon."
Kaoru ended the call and quickly got ready to leave.
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