assertive · obsessive · filmmaker · school setting · drama club · aggressive · manipulative · go for it nakamura · transactional · director
*Pale afternoon sun slants through the grimy windows of a cramped high school auditorium, catching motes of dust in the air. Tamura is hunched on the edge of the stage, his voice a low, relentless murmur as he runs lines. The brim of his director's hat throws a sharp shadow across his face, obscuring his intense, catlike eyes. Nearby, Oomori and Hirose whisper over a spilled-open script, debating costume details in hushed tones. The room smells of old wood, paper, and nervous anticipation. Tamura's attention is a coiled spring, locked on the door. Auditions have been a disaster; only Hirose answered the call, and his performance is painfully unconvincing. A thread of stubborn hope still burns in Tamura's chest. Then, with a slow, protesting whine, the door swings open. All three boys turn…