Rehearsal was officially underway.
On stage, Ritsu and Aira bounced off each other with perfect comedic timing, fully immersed in their roles. Mayoi lingered in the wings, muttering his lines under his breath like a quiet incantation.
But backstage, near the entrance...
Rei Sakuma and Tsuki Kuroi stood side by side. The air between them was quiet, heavy with anticipation. They were ready.
Brothers at the Threshold
The set was designed to look like a dim, eerie hospital corridor. Fluorescent lights flickered overhead, casting long, dancing shadows against peeling wallpaper.
Rei stood tall at one end. His presence was immense—like a shadow given human form. Tsuki stood opposite him, script in hand, his gaze sharp and focused.
Director: "Action!"
Rei (as Older Brother):
"You don't have to come in... I can handle this alone."
His voice was deep, calm, but laced with underlying concern.
Tsuki hesitated for just a second too long.
Tsuki (as Younger Brother):
"Yeah... I know you can."
He took a slow step forward into the dim light.
"But that doesn't mean you should."
A beat of silence passed.
Even Ritsu stopped fidgeting with his glasses. Mayoi stopped humming. Aira lowered his notepad.
The chemistry wasn't rivalry. It wasn't tension.
It was familiarity.
As if they had lived these words before.
Rei turned toward him slowly—the classic Sakuma head tilt that Raito had practiced for weeks—and spoke softly.
Rei:
"You're stubborn... just like him."
Something flickered in Tsuki's eyes—not pain, not anger—but recognition.
Tsuki:
"I guess some things don't change... even when everything else does."
Director: "CUT!"
The director lowered his clipboard slowly, a look of awe on his face.
"...That's it."
A murmur rippled through the crew.
"That felt way too real."
"I swear I saw something actually break there."
Mayoi dabbed at his eyes: "I'm not crying—you're crying!"
And across the room, Raito just smiled quietly to himself. He slipped out unnoticed, leaving only a small folded note on an equipment crate:
"P.S.: I didn't fanboy.
(Mostly.)"
Deep down, Tsuki knew.
He wasn't acting anymore.
He was remembering.
Fear Itself
The atmosphere shifted. Tsuki, now fully in character as the timid younger brother, clung to Rei's arm as if his life depended on it.
Tsuki:
"I'm nervous... Hospitals are scary."
Rei:
"Really."
He raised an eyebrow, looking down at the boy clinging to him.
"You're shaking."
Tsuki:
"I-I'm not!"
He refused to let go, burying his face slightly against Rei's sleeve. "What if the lights go out?! What if something crawls out of that old elevator?!"
Rei sighed, a faint smile touching his lips despite himself.
"We are here for a check-up, not to chase the undead. Stop holding onto me."
Tsuki:
"No way!"
Suddenly, a loud CREAK echoed from down the hall.
The lights flickered violently.
Tsuki let out a genuine yelp and practically launched himself behind Rei, using him as a human shield.
Tsuki:
"SEE?! SEE?! THAT'S NOT NORMAL!"
Rei stood perfectly still, calm and collected, while Tsuki peeked over his shoulder like he expected a monster to emerge from Room B-13.
Ritsu (from sidelines):
"Okay! I believe him! He's officially more scared than I've ever been!"
Mayoi:
"The shy little brother trope is thriving~!"
Aira:
"Brotherly protection arc... I'm emotionally compromised."
And Raito? He was hiding in the back, phone out, recording every second with tears in his eyes.
"I need this footage forever," he whispered.
Rei:
"...We haven't even reached Patient Zero yet."
He glanced over his shoulder.
"You might want to start praying."
Tsuki:
"DON'T SAY THAT!!"
The Sacred Title
"Onii-chan... please don't leave me behind..."
Tsuki whimpered, clutching Rei's sleeve desperately. His eyes were wide, glistening with exaggerated fear.
"Onii-chan... Onii-chan... Onii-chan!"
The crew cooed. It was adorable. But deep down, Rei froze.
No one called him that anymore. Not in years.
And yet here was this cold, stoic idol... whining like a lost puppy.
At the monitors...
Ritsu Sakuma sat frozen. A crushed tomato juice box dripped red liquid from his hand like evidence.
Ritsu:
"...He's using my special honorific."
Mayoi:
"Ohhh~ You're jealous, Ritsu?"
Ritsu:
"I'M NOT JEALOUS! I'M TRAUMATIZED! That title is sacred! It represents our pure bond—I cry every time I say it!"
Aira:
"Let go, Ritsu. Rei needed love too."
Ritsu:
"I DIDN'T CONSENT TO SHARING!"
Meanwhile, Tsuki wasn't just acting.
For these few moments... he wasn't the one who had to be strong.
For once... someone else was carrying the weight.
And it felt like rest.
Director: "CUT! That's a wrap for today!"
As everyone packed up, Tsuki slipped away quietly. Raito appeared beside him like a ray of sunshine.
Raito:
"You called him that... on purpose, didn't you?"
Silence stretched between them.
Tsuki:
"...It felt right."
He looked away, cheeks slightly pink.
"...I'll never say it again."
Raito smiled warmly and flicked him lightly on the forehead. Boop!
Raito:
"Didn't say you had to. One moment is enough... when it means everything."
Tsuki:
"...You're annoying."
(But he didn't mean it.)
The Note
That night, in Rei's empty dressing room, he opened his script folder.
A small piece of paper fluttered out.
"Thanks... Onii-chan."
Rei read it once.
Then tucked it safely into his coat pocket, without a word.
Discovery
The next morning.
As Rei stood up to leave, the note slipped from his pocket.
Ritsu, who had been lingering nearby, snatched it up out of curiosity.
He unfolded it.
Read it.
And his eyes went wide.
He spun around and bolted toward Tsuki, who was practicing his expression in a mirror.
Ritsu:
"EXPLAIN!"
He shoved the note in Tsuki's face.
Tsuki:
(Calmly) "...I wrote him a thank-you note."
Ritsu:
"That's not just a note! That's emotional theft! Identity violation! SACRED TITLES BEING REUSED WITHOUT LICENSE!"
Tsuki:
"I used your word. Didn't steal your bond."
He paused, his voice softening just slightly.
"I just... borrowed its warmth."
Ritsu froze mid-tantrum. His shoulders sagged.
"...Fine," he muttered. "But only because you looked really sad when you wrote that."
And down the hall, Rei stood listening by the door, his hand over the pocket where the note lay.
A small, rare smile touched his lips.
Like sunlight breaking through clouds no one knew were there.
Breaking the Mirror
Later, during lunch break...
Mayoi Ayase sat alone in a corner, wrapped in his usual cloak of self-doubt.
Mayoi:
"I mess up lines... I miss cues... I'm just a failure..."
Tsuki watched him from across the room.
Tsuki:
"Is he always like this?"
Aira:
"Unfortunately. He can't see his own worth. He only believes the negative things."
Rei:
"It is fear. Fear of failure."
Tsuki nodded slowly. He walked over to Mayoi, hands in his pockets, his face cold and unreadable.
Tsuki:
"Mayoi-san."
Mayoi looked up, startled.
Tsuki:
"You're doing it again. Stop with the self-criticism. It's seriously annoying."
Mayoi:
"B-But I am a failure..."
Tsuki:
"You make one mistake and you think you're useless? That's the dumbest logic I've ever heard."
Mayoi:
"I can't help it—"
Tsuki:
"No buts. You're an idol, not a machine. Even professionals mess up."
He leaned down, his voice sharp as frost.
"Plus... if you can't let go of that complex, then you're unfit to be here."
Mayoi:
"I..."
Tsuki:
"You're letting those doubts control you. That makes you a coward."
Silence.
Tsuki:
"And cowards don't belong in the idol world."
It wasn't cruel. It was the truth.
A mirror shoved hard into Mayoi's face.
Ritsu:
"Whoa... that was brutal."
But Rei just watched, nodding slightly.
Sometimes kindness isn't soft words.
Sometimes it's being told you are weak, so you fight to become strong.
Tsuki:
"Stop wallowing in self-pity. Act like an idol."
Flick.
He flicked Mayoi firmly on the forehead.
Tsuki:
"Wimp."
And with that, he turned and walked away.
Mayoi stood there, hand on his forehead.
No one had ever spoken to him like that.
But... it hurt less than he expected.
And it woke something up.
Awakening
That night, the practice room was dark.
Mayoi stood before the mirror, staring at his reflection.
Mayoi:
"...I'm not weak."
He whispered it like a promise.
Mayoi:
"I'm an idol."
The next day on set...
Mayoi walked in.
His head was up. His shoulders were back.
No muttering. No self-deprecation.
He met Tsuki's eyes across the room and nodded once.
Tsuki nodded back.
No smile needed.
Rei:
"Ready?"
Tsuki:
"Yeah."
Director:
"Alright team! Today... nobody comes out unchanged!"
Scene: Confession in the Morgue
The set changed to a cold, abandoned ward.
Mayoi stepped into the center of the room.
He took a breath, closed his eyes, and opened them again.
The change was instant.
His expression went blank, distant, hauntingly calm.
Director:
"Quiet on set! Action!"
Silence filled the room, broken only by the sound of dripping water.
Mayoi slowly turned his head toward the empty morgue drawer. His voice was soft, filled with ancient sorrow.
Mayoi (as Attendant):
"...You weren't supposed to die here."
A pause.
"I told you not to come back... but you always listened too late."
His hand brushed the cold metal.
"They think ghosts are loud... screaming through the dark... But yours was silent. You didn't even fight back."
Behind the camera, everyone held their breath.
This wasn't acting. This was pain finding a voice.
Mayoi looked directly into the lens, a faint, sad smile on his lips.
Mayoi:
"...So I became your echo. So someone would remember."
Director:
"CUT! ...Holy hell."
Ritsu:
"He's not just playing a role... He's healing."
Tsuki nodded once, satisfied.
Mayoi stood in the light, finally letting go...
and for the first time, he wasn't apologizing for existing.
The Ghost Appears
CREAAAAK.
The morgue doors swung open.
Tsuki, trembling as the younger brother, clung to Rei.
Tsuki:
"O-Onii-chan... I don't like this place..."
Rei:
"Stay close. Be quiet."
Suddenly...
A drawer slid open on its own.
A gust of wind blew out the lanterns.
And there... standing in the gloom... was Mayoi.
Pale. Still. Eyes hollow and glowing faintly.
Mayoi:
"You shouldn't be here..."
His voice echoed from everywhere at once.
Tsuki let out a blood-curdling scream.
"AAAAAAHHH!!"
He collapsed backward, fainting dead away with perfect theatrical timing!
Rei stepped instantly in front of him, shielding his "brother" like an impenetrable wall of shadow.
Rei:
"Enough games. Who are you really protecting?"
Mayoi:
"...The ones who were never found."
Director:
"CUT AND PRINT!"
Applause erupted!
Ritsu:
"HE STOLE MY SIGNATURE DRAMATIC COLLAPSE! ...But I admit... it was kinda hot."
Tsuki sat up, rubbing his shoulder. Rei reached down and pulled him up by the arm—firm, steady, familiar.
Rei:
"No flinching."
Tsuki:
"I know."
And Raito? Already recording Mayoi.
Raito:
"Proof that you actually terrified someone! You're amazing!"
Mayoi:
(Smiling shyly) "I'm just doing my job..."
The shadows were gone.
He wasn't weak anymore.
He was felt.
🎥 To be continued...