ᴄʜᴀᴘᴛᴇʀ ꜱᴇᴠᴇɴᴛᴇᴇɴ

୨⎯ Lovin' and Lovin' and Lyin' ⎯୧

"We wouldn't be here, kidnapped, if I didn't reject you so much." Y/n explains. "The company has always been like this. They do what they can to cast the perfect actors in a perfect film."

"That is insane!" I exclaim in a loud voice.

She continues, "They see our potential for this project but decide to take action immediately to mend our relationship as soon as possible because it might ruin their plan."

"I can't believe they can do that. All for a film...?!"

"I can understand why you will quit and abandon your role after knowing this. After being kidnapped and locked inside a random house which turned out to be a set." Y/n sighs, sounding ashamed to show her face.

I then reply, "You are crazy if you think I will leave you behind inside this insane company." Y/n looks at me as if she is doubting my words. She exhales a breath, saying, "Well, alright. I see you are truly committed...in this film."

We begin to run towards the exit, sprinting as fast as we can to hopefully escape this mess. As we slam the double doors open, the both of us hear a popping sound and the crowd shouting, "Congratulations! You passed!"

Y/n is stunned to see the whole production team in front of her. Are they expecting her to be happy after this somewhat traumatic experience that they pushed onto us? They are seriously out of their minds. But, her manager isn't here. Maybe she is not a part of this.

Suddenly, someone comes rushing towards me and gives me a crushing hug as she yells, "Rindou! You finally made it out! I thought you would be stuck there forever."

Y/n glances at our sight with a blank expression before this white haired guy catches up with her. "Hey, Y/n. How is the experience? I hope you didn't get too surprised by all this." He says in a calm demeanor.

She answers in a stressed tone, "I don't ever wanna experience this again. I have the right to sue the company, right?" He simply chuckles, "Yeah, of course. Come here." and he embraces Y/n in such a comforting manner while I secretly stare at them.

"Hey. Hey, Rindou, are you listening to me?" Rain says in an upset tone. I then look at her and reply as I distance myself a bit, "What are you doing here? Did you not get the hint that I don't want you near me?"

Rain asks me, trying to get closer again, "What? When was that?"

"To clear things up, I don't want to roleplay as your boyfriend, Rain." I say with a firm voice. Rain then starts to slowly sob, murmuring, "Why are you embarrassing me like this...? I just wanted to greet an old friend!" before she runs off on her own.

Y/n questions as she walks up to my lonely self, "What was that about?" She laughs to herself inaudibly. "You just have bad luck with women, huh. Can't believe you dated her in the past!"

I stare at her with a confused expression while still sustaining a faint grin. Why is she joking about this when she was so hurt by it the moment I told her? Has she moved on from it already?

"Y/n, let's go?" He says with his hand waiting for it to be held by Y/n's delicate hand. "I bet you need some rest after all this. Oh, just so you know, I did not take part in this ridiculous plan."

She lightly jogs towards him and occupies his hand as they begin to head outside. "I know that. You aren't really the type to surprise people." Her vibrant smile lingers deep in my thoughts as I gaze into her strong attachment to him.

Still, why did you kiss me back, Y/n? Is it me or him?

Tiredness, fatigue, and befuddlement comes rushing towards my head as soon as I relax my whole body back at the mansion. Mari awaits me by the gate. She has this hint of worry on her smile and a subtle animosity in spewing out of her eyes.

Once I get to rest my feet inside my study room, my manager follows from behind and stays close by. I switch my attention to her and ask, "Was it not according to plan, Mari? This whole kidnapping scenario is so out of the book."

My manager exhales a breath that feels like she has been holding it for a while now, sounding like a breath of relief. Did she think I was mad at her? Mari answers me with a grin, "If I was the mastermind, I would have picked a different strategy. I just found out from Kurokawa about all this."

"Don't blame yourself, alright? If anything, blame the company for going full lengths just so I can have a better relationship with Rindou."

"Not Haitani anymore?" She asks with a teasing manner. About to say something, I pause for a second, understanding where she is heading. I then answer, "I just realized that we have the same situation with our last name, so I don't wanna be disrespectful."

"Oh, is that it?" Mari steps closer to where I am. "Well, the company just gave me a heads-up that you and Rindou can take a 1-week rest."

"Aww, they are so sweet and kind for that." I say in an absurd sarcastic tone. "Don't even reply to that email. They are stupid if they think I will express my gratitude for them. That company is definitely watching me."

Mari exclaims, placing her palm on the backrest of my office chair, "Be surprised if they aren't, dear. They do this with every actor they hire! I have seen it with my own eyes once. All I could do is just laugh at them for doing a messy job."

"Trust issues on the roof with them, god." I say, plopping my back on the chair.

"Hey." Mari calls in an excited tone. "I'll do a scavenger hunt later for you. I'm sick of this company anyway. What do you say, beloved?"

I chuckle and say, "Thank you, Mari."

My manager now takes her leave with joy surrounding her. I head back to resting my eyes, sleeping it all away in that pitch dark dream who is patiently waiting for my body to fall into its nothingness.

It is a first for me to actually have a vivid dream. In this dream, I am casually lying down on a liquid floor, however my body doesn't sink in the water particles. I am just laying there. Without anything running through my head.

When I close my eyes again, hoping to fall back asleep, I suddenly wake up in a white endless atmosphere. If I wasn't aware of it being a dream, I would assume I was dead and now resting in heaven.

Someone is coming as I hear footsteps approaching, but the footsteps aren't heavy nor in a hurry. It is just a light walk that is coming towards me. Then, I hear a male voice from my back, saying, "Over here, Y/n."

Who is this? Right. Whatever I am thinking, I can clearly hear it as if I am speaking it through my throat. I am terrified to see what he looks like. I hear him softly chuckling to himself as he obviously heard my thoughts just now.

"I can sense fear from you. Why?" The man asks. His voice is utterly soothing and comforting to listen to. I don't turn around and face him. We are just awkwardly sitting in this white atmosphere that I cannot explain in detail.

I answer, unintentionally my voice shakes, "I... I don't know. Maybe I feel like I am in danger?"

"Oh! Sorry, sorry. I forgot to turn that off." He replies in a fast tone. "You see. When I don't exactly know where I am, I just become so alert that my body is in full defensive mode."

At this moment, I am finally able to turn around to see this man's appearance. He is actually squatting, not sitting, with his chin resting on his palm. He is wearing a black mask and has silky pink mullet hair. His eyes... green as an emerald.

"You are...?" I ask. What am I hoping for? What is this feeling? A sensation that is like a jump of opportunity but I don't know where its destination is.

"What do you want to hear?" The man replies, enunciating every word in a clear manner. His voice makes me shiver. It suddenly becomes cold and chilly as if the ambience in this place just located us elsewhere.

My voice continues to shake as I speak, staring into his bewitching eyes, "The...truth."

His smile reaches from ear to ear before answering my previous question, "It's Sanzu. You are Y/n. You don't have to say any more words to me. I can read it in your mirror-like eyes."

I try to say something, but it is like my body automatically obeys him. Am I still afraid? What am I afraid of? Is this man even real or he is just an entity of wherever we are that I don't belong in?

"I can tell you are uncertain, confused. Don't worry, you don't have to remember all of this. Just be patient, Y/n. Everything will work fine for you, I can tell."

I feel like falling down an endless loop, wind gushing from the bottom of my stomach. I cannot tell whether I am falling downwards or upwards. All I know is I am falling...falling...falling until the outside world has woken me up. My phone rings, an unknown number calls.

I respond to the call while my eyes are closed, "Hello? Who's this?"

"Hey, Y/n! It's Seishu."

Enthusiasm kicks in and I jump out of the office chair. "Seishu! It's been a while."

"Yeah." A tiny chuckle escapes his mouth. "I called because I want to invite you to an open house. A friend of mine is gonna perform there. Do you remember Koko? Kokonoi Hajime."

"Oh, your friend from high school. Yes, I remember." I reply, the smile on my face doesn't falter as I speak to him.

Seishu says, "Are you down? It's this coming Tuesday. You can bring someone if you want."

"Yep. I'll be there. It just so happens that I am on a 1-week break from work. See you, Seishu!" I answer with no hesitation. The call hangs up and I am left with an expression of joy. Getting to hangout again with a close friend is just a great feeling.

Just when I thought I would never get to see him, this opportunity comes in without me trying so hard. Life is working fine for me just like what he said. Though it still puts me at a dead end when I think about that odd dream. Who is he more than his name and appearance?

♥ ᴛᴏ ʙᴇ ᴄᴏɴᴛɪɴᴜᴇᴅ...