- What do you think about when you sing, Ai?
- In the past, I used to sing while only thinking about my fans. But these days, I think about how I can show that I’m working even harder. Because it’s a song I’m singing for my fans-☆
- Wow, so professional.
"Of course! Of course! Who do you think Mama is? She was already a pro from the moment she debuted—no! From the moment she was born, she was a pro, a pro!!!"
"Haa. To only realize that now... [XMAP]... I’m a little disappointed."
Ruby and Aqua each offered their own comments toward the TV with stern, serious, and dignified expressions.
Even the legendary members of [XMAP] couldn’t escape the twins’ sharp criticism.
- What’s the first thing you do when you wake up in the morning?
- Uh... go to the bathroom!
- Pffft—kheh!
- Ah~ That’s important! Right! The start of the day is the bathroom.
- If anything, that’s a proper routine more than anything else.
At Ai’s ridiculous answer, all five members burst out laughing and, as veterans, raised the entertainment value to the max with their back-and-forth banter.
Takuya Kusanagi and Goro Kimura looked very pleased with Ai’s goofy, but refreshingly honest variety-show sense—an idol who actively promoted herself without hesitation.
After that, Ai’s candid and quirky variety-show charm continued to shine, and Takamine and Nino did a great job matching her reactions and answers so the audio never went dead.
They even taught the [Sign Is B] choreography to the [XMAP] members and sang a few lines together while dancing, successfully finishing their self-promotion as an idol group.
- Ah, I really love this song. It makes me feel like I’ve gone back to my teens!?
"Hahaha!"
"Good, good! Keep it going like this!! The Twitter reaction is insane!"
Ruby’s cheer rang through the living room as she held up Miyako’s smartphone to enjoy the overwhelming flood of heated real-time Twitter reactions, while Aqua laughed at Goro Kimura’s easygoing antics as he wiggled along with the choreography.
- Now then! The dish requested by [B Komachi]—a meal that makes you sing even harder when you eat it! Our team’s choice is gyoza set meal!
- Our team’s choice is eel rice bowl! After all, eel is the ultimate stamina food!
- Eh! It’s delicious! So delicious! Waa~☆ I’m not lying, it’s really much tastier than what they sell at the restaurant!
"Mama’s eyes are sparkling. She must really mean it when she says it’s delicious!"
"Yeah. It’s a hard dish to make... As expected, they’re all pros."
Ruby watched Ai happily eating the gyoza and eel rice bowl with her hands clasped, her eyes shining brightly.
Just watching your favorite eat is enough to fill you up. As a fan, as a daughter, how could she not be happy?
Aqua memorized the recipe and resolved to cook it for Ai himself when they got a little older.
After Ai appeared on [XMAPxXMAP], interest in [B Komachi] only burned hotter.
In particular, Ai’s goofy yet cute and bright charm became a hot topic, and captured photos and GIFs spread across the internet and social media in real time.
That popularity even reached...
"Puhuhut—! Kaoru-kun! Did you see this? The guest on XMAP this time was Ai, right?"
"Yes. I saw it."
"Amazing~ How can she be this cute~!"
Aragaki Satomi, a popular actress filming a movie with him, smiled at Kaoru as he stood there holding the script.
Kaoru, too, let a faint smile of satisfaction slip onto his otherwise indifferent face as he read the script.
Unlike the actresses he had met until now, Satomi was riding the peak of popularity, yet her easygoing, unadorned, bright personality made it easy for Kaoru to become friends with her. He also discovered that she was a hidden fan of [B Komachi].
So Kaoru, who had initially been extremely careful about bringing up [B Komachi] because of the false dating rumor with Ai, approached Satomi first and told her the full story behind the rumor.
Since she was also an actress, she understood better than anyone how painful it was to be used as gossip fodder for dating rumors, and thankfully Satomi sympathized with him right away and offered comfort.
Kaoru couldn’t tell her anything beyond the false rumor itself, but he thanked her for the consolation from a senior and fellow actor.
Though younger than him, Kaoru had always given off a cold, detached impression that made him difficult to approach.
But as the mature side hidden beneath that coldness gradually revealed itself over time, Satomi approached him with her usual bright personality, and the two of them talked at length.
After that, the two became close enough to meet like this from time to time and spend their boring hours chatting.
"Ah, looks like Takuya-senpai really liked her. He even posted a photo of them together in the waiting room on Twitter!"
"Really?"
"Yeah. Ahh, I want Ai-chan’s autograph.... I want to go to a handshake event, but I’m too busy! It’s hard enough just to keep my face hidden."
"I’ll get one for you instead, senior. You might have to wait a bit, though, since I’m busy."
Satomi’s eyes widened at Kaoru’s words.
"Eeh!? You mean that seriously? No take-backs, okay? Kaoru-kun promised first!"
"Yes. Don’t worry."
"I’ll be on standby!"
"Yes~ Oof!"
Satomi stood up from her chair, stretched, and smiled at Kaoru as he put down the script.
"Let’s get back to work~!"
-
Filming for [You in the Time That Falls Like Rain], which had started in May, ended in July, and post-production work such as editing began.
With the release set for sometime in August, they also poured energy into promotion and marketing. The trailer was released online and on YouTube, and fans reacted very warmly to the atmosphere created by the combination of Aragaki Satomi and Kamiki Kaoru’s passionate performances and Director Tsukasa’s signature lyrical direction.
Stani-On’s office, where many advertisement posters for cosmetics and phone commercials Kaoru had filmed were pasted across the walls, was also swamped with work accordingly.
Rentaro loosened his tie slightly, sat down in a chair, and flashed his white teeth at Kaoru, who was texting with Ai.
"All right. Kaoru. Time to do it, yeah?"
"...Do what?"
"Your first fan sign event!!"
Rentaro spread his thumb wide at Kaoru, who answered in polite speech as befitted the office.
His eyes sparkled.
"A fan sign event?"
"Yeah. The production company just contacted us. Release confirmed for August 8. The preview screening and stage greeting are set for July 28. And your birthday happens to be the 27th this month!"
"So you’re saying you’ll hold a fan sign event on my birthday, the day before, to maximize the promotional effect for the preview screening and stage greeting?"
"You catch on fast. What they want is box office success, nothing more. They’re even bringing in an agency to handle the event, and the costs are split 7:3. Win-win. We get to blow our nose without lifting a finger, so there’s no reason to refuse."
At Rentaro’s explanation, Kaoru nodded.
"What about the scale and format?"
"About 150 people. They’re planning to rent out an entire theater. If you buy a ticket for the movie, you enter the number printed on it on the website and get entered into a random lottery. Clean and simple. All we have to do is decide which reporters to bring in."
Rentaro clapped once and looked at Kaoru with eyes full of anticipation.
It’s your choice whether to do it or not, but I want to do it!
Kaoru snorted at Rentaro’s honest expression, then nodded and said,
"Let me know when everything’s settled."
"Okay! Got it!"
"Oh, and... once the movie opens, could you prepare some screening tickets too? I’ve got a few people I want to give them to."
"Okay!"
Rentaro seemed already brimming with excitement as he got up and walked back to his desk with a little shoulder shimmy.
Was he really that happy? Kaoru smiled as he watched Rentaro’s gleeful display.
Still, his first fan sign event, huh.
Ai had plenty of experience with handshake events and the like, but for Kaoru, this was his first fan sign event.
Since he wasn’t the type to approach fans warmly on his own, Kaoru quietly touched his chin and muttered,
"I’m nervous."
If Representative Toshiro, Producer Sojiro, and Director Gotanda had heard him, they would have fallen over backward.
Kaoru smiled as he felt, for the first time, a sense of tension about an official schedule.
-
< Film [You in the Time That Falls Like Rain] receives rave reviews from audiences and critics at its July 28 preview screening >
< Kamiki Kaoru to hold his first fan sign event at Daoh Cinema’s Shinjuku branch >
"Hoo."
Kaoru, unusually tense and stiff-faced, kept drinking water over and over. His mouth kept drying out.
A 750-to-1 competition. To get into the 150-person fan sign event, as many as 110,000 people bought movie tickets, and the site even crashed from the traffic explosion.
On Twitter and the internet, people who won Kaoru’s very first fan sign event posted proof, causing an enormous ripple effect.
There were even posts offering hundreds of thousands of yen in cash to anyone willing to transfer their fan sign event entry ticket, making the surge in Kaoru’s popularity painfully clear.
"......"
The moment Kaoru heard the news, the top of his head went hot and his back grew damp, leaving him unable to collect himself.
Cold sweat poured out on its own. The feeling was similar to what had hit him when Ai announced the twins’ pregnancy.
Rentaro laughed when he saw Kaoru’s reaction, but Kaoru was genuinely flustered.
He had fought for his life on the edge of death before, but the reality that more than 100,000 people had worked so hard just to see him... was still hard to believe.
For someone who had spent his previous life running forever to evade the CIA’s all-seeing eyes, the competition for this fan sign event brought a different kind of despair.
- Hehe~☆ So Kaoru gets nervous too, huh?
- ...I’m not a robot.
- Fufufu~! Kaoru, you should feel it too! The fans’ love, I mean? When you go on stage, you can see all those feelings in their eyes! Show your fans the real you! Of course, leave out the smile and the cute little acts you only show me!
- Hah... Okay, Ai. Thanks.
Kaoru recalled the conversation he had with Ai on the phone the night before. Ai had calmed him down with playful teasing, telling him not to worry because it wasn’t as big a deal as he thought.
But Kaoru just couldn’t. He hadn’t been nervous at all when acting in front of thousands of people, so why was he so worked up over greeting and signing for only 150 fans?!
"We’ll be calling you in now!"
"Yes."
Kaoru answered the staff member’s voice from outside the waiting room door.
Even from the moment he arrived, he had been habitually observing and memorizing the structure of Daoh Cinemas in detail, and had already figured out that not only reporters but also agency staff in charge of running and overseeing the fan sign event, security personnel, and many others were stationed inside the theater.
Kaoru let out a tense breath and followed the staff member downstairs by elevator, then walked through the theater hallway.
After opening the door where security guards and staff were stationed, he found a small desk and chair set up on the little stage in front of the screen for the fan sign event.
"Kyaaaah!"
"Kaoru-kun!"
"Priiiince!"
The fans, already filling all 150 seats, let out a roar so loud he could feel the vibration of it and answered Kaoru as he entered the theater.
Kaoru naturally smiled over his usual indifferent face and waved.
Just as Ai had said, he could see the love, longing, and admiration for him burning in the fans’ eyes like a blazing sun.
Kaoru actually felt his heartbeat slowly settle, and he exhaled before taking the microphone handed to him by the host and greeting them.
"Hello. I’m actor Kamiki Kaoru. This is my first fan sign event since debut, so I’m very excited and nervous. Thank you sincerely for making time in your busy schedules to come to my first fan sign event. As you know, [You in the Time That Falls Like Rain] will be released on August 8. I hope you’ll all watch it. Thank you very much."
"Kyaaaaaa—!!!"
"Waaaaaah!"
Fans of all ages and genders cheered as if they had rehearsed it. Flashy placards and brightly colored cards covered in messages. Even though the company wasn’t producing official goods separately, the fans had brought their own handmade items like fans and cheering sticks and were waving them around, creating a truly spectacular sight.
One fan had even brought an enormous lens camera from who-knows-where.
There was even a family that looked as though a married couple had both won, holding a small child around the twins’ age.
Camera flashes from the reporters burst wildly, and Kaoru sat down at the desk following the host’s guidance.
His heartbeat had calmed, yes, but that didn’t mean the tension was gone—so he opened the bottle of water the staff had brought and drank deeply.
"Kyaaaaaa!"
"?"
Startled by the cheers while drinking, Kaoru stopped mid-sip and looked back and forth between the fans and the host.
He didn’t even realize that such a small action as drinking water could make fans’ hearts tremble. The host skillfully led the audience into applause.
"Before the fan sign event, we’ll start with a few questions. Yes, this is question number 88. You usually captivate fans with your incredible charisma and cool, icy smile—do you practice that at home? Hahaha. I was curious about this too."
As the host read out a question slip that fans had written in advance and placed into a transparent acrylic box, cheers erupted from the seats. It was the scream of the fan sitting in seat 88.
Kaoru gave an awkward smile and said into the microphone,
"Ah... I don’t practice separately. My expression has always been like this. I’m grateful that you’ve kindly taken it as a strength."
The next question followed.
"Yes. Question number 41. Have you cried recently?"
"...At my high school graduation, I cried a little during the special performance. I don’t really cry much."
"Yes! Question number 25! You studied hard, so what was the highest rank you ever got in the schoolwide standings?"
"...In middle school, I ranked first in the entire school."
"Yes! Question number 136! You look to be in great shape—do you always eat three meals a day!? What food do you like best?"
"...I eat breakfast sometimes, and sometimes I don’t. My favorite food is the donburi from the shop near the theater troupe. I like it with shichimi sprinkled on top."
"Question from number 107! Among all the characters you’ve played so far, is there one that suits you best and one that clashes with you the most?"
"...There isn’t any character that suits me especially well. The one that clashes with me the most is Seiji from [Usurper]."
As always, Kaoru’s answers were concise and to the point.
But the fans attending the event clapped as if anything was fine, listening closely to every word Kaoru said.
"Last question! Number 4! This is incredibly rude to ask, but do you have a type!? Ahh~ I’m most curious about this one."
"Ah. Um. I haven’t really thought about it. But... if someone is bright, smiles a lot, is a little quirky, hugs me when I’m having a hard time, and loves me dearly... I think I’d like that."
Kaoru barely managed to suppress the corners of his mouth from lifting.
Ah, Ai. How can you go through everyday life so calmly when you’re dealing with this kind of thing every single day?
Now that he’d experienced it himself, he realized that every moment was a fierce battle against himself. Kaoru, who understood a little of his wife’s hardship, resolved to understand Ai even more and love her more deeply.
After the questions ended, the actual sign event began. Fans came up one by one from number 1 onward to receive their autographs.
There were all kinds of happenings while he signed—handshakes, requests to say their names, sudden attempts at hugs—but Kaoru calmly smiled and signed for them all.
Then fan number 52 approached.
A boy with a slight, thin build. But with trembling eyes, he approached Kaoru with determination and bowed politely.
Kaoru smiled at the boy, who had a kind face, and offered his hand first.
"Hello?"
"Ah, hello! My lottery nickname is ‘Ppieyong’! My name is Shimizu Ryuhei! I’m a huge fan!"
"Haha. Today... today is a weekday, so what about school?"
"School’s no problem if I’m coming to see Kaoru! It’s a fan sign event I won, after all!!!"
"......"
Kaoru gave an awkward smile that said, Is this really okay? and signed the paper.
Then, suddenly, a question came to mind for this bold boy who had skipped school to come to the event.
"May I ask what your dream is?"
"Ah! I, I! Uh! A b-bo-bodybuilder, maybe— or a trainer! That’s my dream! Even though I’m skinny as a chopstick with no muscle, I’m working hard just like Kaoru! I can even lift a 10-kilo dumbbell now!"
Feeling touched, Kaoru took the boy’s right hand and shook it.
"You’ll definitely make it, Ryuhei-kun. I’m rooting for you. Someday, when we meet again, I want to see you having achieved your dream."
"...Yes!!!"
The boy smiled brightly, treasured Kaoru’s autograph close to his chest, bowed, and stepped down from the stage.
The next fan, number 53, was a married couple holding a little girl around the same age as the twins that Kaoru had noticed earlier.
A man in glasses with an excited, flushed face, and a beautiful woman. And in the man’s arms, a cute girl with striking blue hair.
Without thinking, Kaoru stood from his chair and offered the man a handshake. He felt like that was what he should do.
"Hello. Are you husband and wife?"
"Ah! Yes, yes! Our lottery nickname is ‘Bluebird,’ and I’m Kurokawa Daiki. This is my wife."
"I-I’m Kurokawa Riko! Kyaa— I’m such a huge fan! My husband and I loved [Usurper] so, so much!"
Not only had a married couple both won the lottery, but both of them were fans of his. Kaoru once again realized just how wide the world really was.
Kaoru looked at the little girl around the same age as the twins in Daiki’s arms and asked carefully,
"Is she your daughter?"
"Ah, yes! Akane! You should greet him, too. Say hello~ I’m Kurokawa Akane~ I’m three years old~"
"......"
Perhaps shy and very sensitive to strangers, the little girl turned her reddened face away and buried it in her father’s chest.
At the adorable sight, Kaoru’s lips rose into a smile before he even realized it.
Three years old. After her birthday in September, she’d be the same age as the twins. Thinking of Aqua and Ruby, Kaoru smiled like a proud father and gave a small wave.
"Nice to meet you, Akane-chan. I’d like to greet you after seeing such a pretty face—can you do that for me?"
"...H-hello..."
"Hahaha!"
Had his sincerity gotten through? The shy, timid Akane gave a small, bashful greeting in a tiny voice.
Kaoru, the doting father, smiled the brightest smile of the day. He suddenly missed the cute, lovable twins waiting at home so much.
Putting all of that feeling and sincerity into it, Kaoru wrote the names of the couple and the little girl on the paper and specially added, “Grow up healthy!”
The Kurokawa couple were overjoyed, thanking him over and over again before heading down from the stage.
Kaoru continued greeting countless fans after that. Wiping sweat, drinking water, and not even getting a chance to go to the bathroom, he gave all 150 fans his sincere autograph and fan service.
After more than two hours of greeting and signing for all 150 fans, Kaoru stood up for his final closing remarks and spoke into the microphone.
"I would like to sincerely thank all the fans who attended my first fan sign event today. I’m at a loss for words that, despite your busy schedules, you set everything aside and came here for me.
From now on, I’ll do my best to become an actor who repays the support of my fans. And I’d be grateful if you all watched [You in the Time That Falls Like Rain], which opens on August 8, and helped spread the word."
"Kyaaaah!"
"Waaah!"
Kaoru smiled and bowed his head at the fans’ applause.
He remembered the faces, voices, builds, and even the names of all 150 fans who attended today, and a trembling emotion ran through his chest.
He would never forget this. Even as he stepped down from the stage, Kaoru waved and said goodbye to the fans.
"Hoo."
Kaoru, proud of his ironclad stamina, let out a sigh of fatigue the moment he left the theater.
It had been such a hectic schedule that he barely even knew how it had passed.
When he entered the waiting room, dragging his tired body along, Rentaro in a suit happened to be coming in at the same time and welcomed him warmly.
"Kaoru! Good work! Kraaah! For a first fan sign event, you handled it incredibly smoothly?! As expected of a born actor!"
"...Haa."
Kaoru nodded in response to Rentaro’s hug and shoulder pats, then flopped down into a chair and said,
"Let’s wait five years before the next fan sign event..."
"What?!"
-
On August 1, on the day media reports continued to praise [You in the Time That Falls Like Rain] for receiving rave reviews from audiences and critics at its preview screening.
Kaoru met Ai at the Saito couple’s home.
With a solemn expression, Kaoru sat in the living room and showed the [marriage registration form] he had prepared in advance to the Saito couple on the table as he said,
"I’ve become an adult now, and I’d like to get married. Boss... no, [Father-in-law]."
"Let me get married... please!"
"......"
At the couple’s plea, Ichigo’s eyes flashed sharply with a strange light behind his sunglasses.
Gulp.
Ai blinked her starlit eyes nervously and swallowed dryly.
Kaoru and Ai waited for the words that would come from Ichigo’s mouth.
He crossed his arms, let out a quiet sigh, and then opened his mouth.
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