Uneasy daily life

Come to think of it, before Kazuka transferred to Soubu High School, she attended an all-girls school... which is suspicious.

He idolized Mai after seeing her on TV and even pestered her to meet her. But as he grew up, he came to understand the complex relationships between adults and had to keep his distance... Suspicious.

Kaori entered the entertainment industry at a young age, and her life trajectory is very different from that of ordinary people... suspicious.

Previously, his relationship with his family had been very tense, and he was always under pressure. Now that the pressure has been relieved... suspicious.

That's so weird! But this won't do!

Tell Mai quickly, it might not be too late!

……

……

At the hotel where Mai Sakurajima is staying.

Feng Bin and Hua made an extremely loud noise.

"What the hell?! What do you mean I went to an all-girls school so I'm not interested in the opposite sex, and my views on love were influenced so I'm interested in girls?! What do you mean that because I only met her once, I can't forget her even after many years, and it eventually turns into a strange possessiveness?! What do you mean that entering the entertainment industry too early, the clash between a child's mindset and the complexities of society, led to some off-track ideas?! What do you mean that because the pressure was relieved, my mentality shifted from repression to indulgence, and I became more driven?!"

Feng Bin and Hua shouted loudly, their faces full of astonishment and chaotic anger: "What is Auntie thinking! She actually secretly told you this kind of snitch to my sister!"

Mai Sakurajima sat on the sofa with a smile, looking at several scripts.

"Sister! Say something!"

"Mom just said maybe, and told me to be careful."

"What's possible? Impossible!"

Feng Bin and Hua were so angry they jumped up and down.

"Hmm..." Mai Sakurajima picked up a script and said with interest, "This is a script for a niche film about homosexuality. It has a kissing scene between the female lead and the second female lead. Would you like to compete with Hana for the second female lead role?"

Feng Bin and Hua were taken aback, and subconsciously began to ponder...

"The flowers seem unclean."

puff!

"N-no, no!" Feng Bin and Hanazao blushed and immediately started shifting the blame, "It's all Koyuki's fault! Who told her to teach me a bunch of weird things!"

Mai Sakurajima simply smiled and asked, "So? Who's the one dating Hana?"

"Why does my sister say that too?" Feng Binhehua crossed her arms, tapped her toes irritably, and said unhappily, "Everyone says I'm not in a relationship!"

"So what's been going on with you lately?" Mai Sakurajima pouted. "I just asked a simple question, and your reaction was really strange."

Feng Bin and Hua shouted, "How should I know what's going on? Anyway, I've been really annoyed lately... so annoyed!"

Sakurajima Mai looked up in surprise at her sister's annoyed expression and pondered, "Why? There should be a lot of good things happening lately. I heard from Mom that Sweet Bullet's schedule has become more demanding, and she's getting a lot of opportunities to shine through the two movies that have been released... Is the pressure too much?"

"Pressure? There's not much pressure. Everyone has always worked very hard, and they've even worked harder because of the opportunities they've had."

Feng Bin and Hua frowned and mumbled, "It's a feeling... like something's been lost, but I can't remember what it is. I can't help but care about it, I care a lot, but no matter how hard I try, I can't remember. Sometimes I think it's just my imagination... Anyway, I feel uncomfortable all over, and because I'm not used to it, it's especially annoying!"

"What kind of stream-of-consciousness description is this?"

Mai Sakurajima sighed: "Could you give me some specific examples?"

"An example?" Toyohama Kazuka seemed to be in a daze for a moment. "It was probably like when my sister disappeared? Something just felt off... At that time, I immediately thought of my sister..."

"And then go crazy online? You're really capable of doing something like that." Mai Sakurajima rolled her eyes, seriously considering her sister's words. "Speaking of which... could it be that someone actually has the same puberty syndrome as me?"

Feng Bin and Hua scratched their heads in confusion and asked, "How do you feel, sister?"

“Hmm…” Mai Sakurajima thought for a moment, looked at the script in front of her, and slowly said, “Ever since I filmed ‘Corner,’ many directors have handed me scripts with kissing scenes… To be honest, this conflicts with my career plan. What I want to hone is my acting skills and abilities, not to make money by showing off my appearance.”

"The main reason I agreed to film the kissing scene was because it was filmed using camera tricks, and the script was really good. That kissing scene was an indispensable part of the script, so I agreed to film it..."

Mai Sakurajima hesitated, her thoughts gradually turning, but she still couldn't sense anything unusual. After all, she couldn't say that she absolutely adhered to her ideals, otherwise she wouldn't have followed her mother's arrangement to take swimsuit photos back then.

She suddenly asked Kazuka Toyohama a question: "Kazuka, under what circumstances would you choose to film a kissing scene?"

"I?"

Kazuka Toyohama declared confidently, "Of course it's with my sister, I mean with the person I like!"

the person I like?

Mai Sakurajima was taken aback.

If it's someone you like, then everything makes sense.

Chapter 102 Absolutely Impossible

Why choose to film kissing scenes? Ultimately, as an actor, whether or not to film kissing scenes has absolutely nothing to do with work attitude or ability. I never intended to rely solely on my looks to carry my performance. There are many reasons not to film kissing scenes, but I did anyway.

The answer was surprisingly simple: it was someone I liked.

Sakurajima Mai suddenly understood, but couldn't help feeling a little strange. She frowned and murmured, "I find it hard to imagine myself liking anyone..."

“That’s right!” Feng Binhe also realized what was happening and exclaimed in a trembling voice, “How could my sister possibly like… No! There’s simply no one worthy of my sister’s affection!”

Mai Sakurajima said with great interest, "Are you cursing me to grow old alone?"

"Uh... Hmph, I'll never admit to that person anyway."

"In the end, it's all just speculation, isn't it? We don't even know who that so-called person is."

"Huh?" Feng Binhe asked, puzzled. "Didn't my sister film a kissing scene? The person she's with must be the guy she filmed the kissing scene with!"

"Really? But as far as I remember, the kissing scene was filmed using a camera trick, and the person was an ordinary male actor I knew. The reason I took the role in this movie was because the script was really good, and it would also help me hone my acting skills. There was absolutely no romantic involvement in it."

Mai Sakurajima sighed: "Kazuka, when it comes to puberty syndrome, memories and impressions are unreliable... The reason I have doubts is because I considered a series of things based on your judgment, taking the disappearance of that person as a premise, and then wondered if there was a problem with my own memory... Ultimately, I don't have the same trust in my feelings as Kazuka does."

"Oh dear, why does my sister always say such strange things?"

Fengbin and Hua rolled their eyes and retorted, "If you like someone, even if you forget them, you still like them, right? Like when my sister disappeared, although I didn't realize it at first, I always felt something was wrong, so I went crazy online and cleverly used my status as a public figure to bring my sister back... Sigh?"

Toyohama Kazuka scratched her head: "How could I have come up with such a method? Ugh! It's so annoying!"

So, was the person behind my puberty syndrome the work of another person?

Mai Sakurajima observed Toyohama and Hana's expressions, then opened her laptop and quickly found a clip of the kissing scene from "The Corner".

She stared intently at the kissing scene she had filmed. The male lead was indeed an actor she knew but wasn't very familiar with; she remembered it being a staged shot.

The man bows his head, the woman stands on tiptoe, their faces close together, shrouded in the twilight, kissing the setting sun. The camera gradually pulls back, and the veiled sun reappears on the horizon. The female protagonist softly speaks words of farewell; her terminally ill body is nearing its end, but she is unusually quiet, full of vitality. Without hesitation, she leaps off the cliff, using her death to give meaning to the life of her beloved…

Mai Sakurajima suddenly frowned.

Because of the forced perspective, what appears to be a kiss is actually just a close-up shot taken from a different angle. The camera was also deliberately pulled back to emphasize the sunset scenery, resulting in a disharmony between the people and objects. It can only be described as mediocre.

And... um?

Mai Sakurajima subconsciously touched her lips, her fingertips lightly brushing against them. The sensation was like an electric shock, suddenly piercing her heart.

A feeling of inexplicable shyness and annoyance arose spontaneously.

She involuntarily closed her eyes, and the kissing scene reflected in her vision became blurred in her mind. An indescribable feeling spread, arbitrarily blurring the memory into a hazy shape, making it impossible to see exactly what the situation was, but bits and pieces of words surfaced in her heart.

If I have someone I like, I will try my best to express my feelings for them. I will pursue my own dreams and try to include them in my dreams. I will write down my feelings for them stroke by stroke, instead of saying them out loud... Saying such things out loud makes people a little embarrassed, like making an impulsive vow of eternal love.

Was it originally supposed to be a real kissing scene, filmed without any camera tricks?

She couldn't remember; there was no corresponding memory in her mind. It seemed different from when she disappeared—when she disappeared, it was more like a forced, subjective disappearance, unobservable by anyone. If anyone tried to forcibly touch her, she would even become invisible. Her name and her works remained unchanged, but those who viewed them would subconsciously ignore the existence of 'Sakurajima Mai'.

That person's disappearance was different; it seemed to have vanished from memory. The memory and impression were both logical and well-founded, without any sense of incongruity or anything to nitpick. Everything was consistent with logic.

Just because you're an adult, does that mean you trust your own judgment instead of your feelings?

It's a really complicated feeling. I know this should be a serious and sad thing, yet I still rely on my reason and logic, and I can't seem to find a precise feeling. Instead, I keep having unpredictable thoughts and feel restless every day, as if I've lost something...

What kind of person would I like? Should it be someone in the same profession? Someone with whom I can share my dreams and lives, and also someone gentle? Judging from Kazuha's judgment, it seems like it should be someone who has resolved her puberty syndrome... I have absolutely no memories of that.

"elder sister!"

Feng Bin and Hua asked worriedly, "What's wrong?"

Mai Sakurajima opened her eyes and smiled, "I was just thinking about what kind of person someone would be if they disappeared."

"But you're crying..."

Feng Bin and Hua asked, puzzled, "You remembered the time that guy hurt you?"

cry?

Mai Sakurajima subconsciously reached up and wiped her eyes, her fingertips glistening with tears. She paused for a moment, then suddenly smiled and murmured, "I think I like that person even more than I thought?"

"Huh?" Feng Bin and Hua scratched their heads vigorously. "Why does this feel so strange? I have absolutely no recollection of it... Tsk! What kind of puberty syndrome is this? It shouldn't be like my sister's desire to disappear, right?"

Sakurajima Mai looked at Toyohama Kazuka and suddenly noticed a blind spot, her expression turning strange: "Kazuka... do you think you have a good relationship with that person?"

"good?"

Feng Bin and Hua shook their heads blankly: "How should I know? Anyway, something's missing, which is quite annoying."

"So, that person is very important to you, right?"

"Anyway, nothing's as important as my sister." Feng Binhe pouted, then belatedly realized, "Huh? My sister doesn't think I'm dating that guy, does she?! How could that be! I'm an idol, and besides, my sister and that guy even filmed a kissing scene... Is he some kind of bastard who deceived my sister's feelings? That's why I really want to kick him?"

Feng Bin and Hua Man began to speculate endlessly.

Mai Sakurajima shook her head: "These are just baseless guesses, maybe it's just a whim, there's probably no such thing..."

That being said, this sudden feeling was so strong that once I realized it, I was convinced of it and even unconsciously found reasons to convince myself that someone very important had disappeared from my life.

But isn't it strange? On one hand, you're filming a kissing scene with the other person, which basically means intertwining your dreams and lives; on the other hand, you're feeling very agitated, as if something is missing, clearly showing your deep concern and unease...

Mai Sakurajima couldn't help but wonder if that person was secretly plotting something while secretly having an affair, or if Kazuha was just too interested in her and refused to acknowledge that person's identity, which led to them having a relationship that was kept secret from her.

Keeping her guesses to herself, Mai Sakurajima thought long and hard, and considering this abnormal phenomenon, she decided to seek help from someone with superpowers.

"Angelina is in the hospital?"

……

……

"Overall, it seems to be a kind of post-traumatic stress disorder."

The psychologist cautiously concluded: "Because something unacceptable happened, a strong desire to escape arose, leading to some memory distortion. However, when exposed to related things or recalling key words and phrases, the situation may be recalled, thus falling into a state of mental confusion."

"Y-really?"

Angelina was filled with anxiety. She never expected that her Scarlet Theatre colleagues, who should have been admitted to the hospital the most, would not be admitted, but she herself would be the first to be admitted, and to the psychiatric ward!

"Try to recall something," the psychologist said softly. "What exactly happened between you and the deceased?"

She said with some skepticism, "That's the guy who texted me, I went over, and he just showed up..."

"So why did you look so frightened at the time?" the psychologist continued. "Judging from the scene, you were sitting on the ground in terror, not running away in fear, nor panicking and not knowing what to do, but simply seemed to be terrified... Do you consider yourself a timid person? Why did you say 'Growth A'? What does this term mean to you?"

"Probably...no?"

Angelina tried hard to recall: "Back then... Growth A..."

Angelina: (ˉ﹃ˉ).

Angelina was thus admitted to the hospital and received daily visits and care from her parents.

Looking out the window at the scenery, Angelina looked sad. Although she didn't think there was anything strange about herself, it was obvious that she was being strange by babbling "Aba aba" from time to time, especially when she saw herself babbling "Aba aba" in a video...

Oh no! He's been corrupted by the Scarlet Theatre Troupe, turned into a mental patient, and ended up in the hospital!

Damn it, no matter how I look at it, it's all the fortune teller's fault. Why did he have to die right in front of me? And not only did he die, but it seems he turned me into a stupid idiot who keeps babbling on and on?

Wow ya ya!

Angelina couldn't help but bar her teeth and claws, her face contorted in a ferocious expression, wishing she could resurrect the dead fortune teller and hang him on the wall!

One day, I'm going to hang all the patients from the Scarlet Theatre on the wall and give them a personality correction session!

Jie Jie Jie!

Angelina, who was punching and waving her claws at the air, her face shifting between sorrow and joy, suddenly noticed a gaze upon her. She turned her head sharply and met the hesitant and worried eyes of Mai Sakurajima and Kazuka Toyohama at the door.

"..."

Angelina silently regained her composure, pretending nothing had happened, but she couldn't quite pull it off: "Uh... let me explain! I'm not sick, I was just tricked by the fortune teller!"

“Whether he’s sick or not isn’t important.” Mai Sakurajima walked in with a smile, then sighed. “Angelina, it seems we’ve encountered a situation similar to my puberty syndrome… Someone has disappeared, and those who remember him seem to have had their memories altered.”

"Mmm." Feng Bin and Hua put down the fruit, nodding angrily. "That guy actually dared to make my sister sad! We have to find him and then kick him hard... Hey? What's wrong with you?!"