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Syo gazed at the mirror in front of him, not knowing what to do. While he had only been looking at his reflection for a few minutes, it had seemed more like a few hours.
He looked at the eyes staring back at him. With how bright blue they were, it was like he was seeing the ocean in his eyes.
He glanced at his hair. He had always liked to keep it short and messy; in a way, it made him seem more rugged and tough. And the bobby pins he put on the side just added a bit more to the charm!
He peered down at his nose. While he didn’t necessarily like the comments some had made about it being “cute as a button”, he didn’t see it as much. A nose was a nose, and that was pretty much it. In terms of his features, he was pretty proud of what the gene pool had given him.
However, this did not apply to every part of his body. That fact reared its head when he tried looking at his mouth. Opening it as wide as he could a couple of times, he knew that nothing health-wise was wrong with him. He brushed his teeth every day and it wasn’t like he was prone to getting cavities, so you wouldn’t find any silver spots back there even if you tried.
It was when he smiled when the true nuisance was revealed. It was strange that he hadn’t noticed it until after he left Saotome Academy, but he supposed that it all came down to people being more aware of themselves when they are in the public eye.
He just couldn’t stop looking at it whenever he looked in the mirror or saw himself smiling in photos. A tooth on his right side, he thought it was a canine or something, was completely crooked. It was almost like it was trying to stick straight out of his mouth! He had heard them be called “yaeba” before, but it didn’t change the one fact he believed about the thing:
He. Hated. The. Thing. He actually didn’t know whether it was hatred, embarrassment, or something different entirely. And now that he was getting roles in movies and dramas, he probably wouldn’t be the only one seeing it. If he could change the whacked-up piece of bone, he would. Being a full-blown idol, though, the ways would be extremely limited in order for it to not be obvious…
~*~*~
Taking a drink from a water bottle, Tokiya tried to clear his mind. While he never turned down a role that was suited for him, some types were more taxing than others, especially this one. Being the cheesy villain in a comedy film, shouting threats at his “minions” and laughing at the top of his lungs, was draining his energy very quickly. Regardless, he knew a few minutes of break would get him back up to speed.
“Hey, Icchi,” he heard Ren call him that ridiculous nickname from across the studio. It wasn’t long before the strawberry blonde was right next to him, sipping from his own bottle. “Having fun, o Lord of Unhappy?”
Tokiya rolled his eyes. “It’s the saddest time in the world’s history,” he answered in his character’s voice. “I love it!”
Ren couldn’t help but laugh. “That accent never gets old…” Remembering what he had actually come to his friend for, though, he moved a bit closer, almost whispering in his ear. “Icchi, have you seen Ochibi-chan lately?”
“Syo?” Tokiya asked. “Of course, we just did a take with him.”
“No, I mean really seen him. Something’s…off.”
He tried to think about what he had seen from his other friend. For the most part, Tokiya had just seen Syo doing what his role intended for him to do. He was the comic relief and the partner for Ren’s protagonist character, so he was acting comedic and pulling jokes and one-liners like the script told him to do.
Ren soon told him to look across the studio. “Whatever it is, the director isn’t liking it…” He was right; the woman in charge of the production was currently in Syo’s face, telling him…something that couldn’t be heard from where they were standing.
“We all get directorial comments from time to time,” Tokiya stated.
“But have you ever had them three inches from your face?” A shake of the head proved Ren right.
Ren tried to figure it out. The only other time he had heard Syo get a similar type of reaction was when Natsuki said he tried doing a long jump for a certain TV special that should have been done by a stunt double. But even then, the directors were suggesting things for him to do calmly, not chewing him out for the whole production team to see! Maybe… “…He’s doing something on purpose,” his thought was voiced unintentionally.
On purpose? Tokiya couldn’t believe that. The blonde had constantly said he was going to be “the best idol the world had ever seen”, and going against your script was not following that logic. It was one thing to ad-lib, but the reaction he had seen must’ve meant more than a few changed lines…
Looking up again, he seen that both Syo and the director had split, and neither were in the studio. He seen this as his chance. “Icchi, where are you going?” Ren asked when he saw Tokiya getting up from his chair.
“I’m going to see what’s happening.” Leaving for the green room, Ren followed right behind him.
“Hey, don’t forget about me!”
~*~*~
He hooked a finger on the side of his mouth, pulling it to see that stupid snaggletooth once more. Syo was frustrated; he thought that doing a closed-mouth smile would cut it for his character, but apparently that wasn’t enough. He had spent a good five minutes being yelled at, being told to “be more comedic” and to “get an actual smile out, that’s the point of your role!”. He reeeeeeeally didn’t want to, especially since he knew a lot of shots would be closeups. Still having a finger pulling his lips, he growled, angry at what his own self-esteem was causing him to do. If only he could just-
“Syo? You in here?” He flinched when he heard a voice coming from the doorway. He knew he was busted; removing the finger from his mouth quickly would just make it even more suspicious. So, all he could do was act calm, avoid eye contact and hope no one noticed…
“Ochibi, you hear us?” he groaned when he heard the second voice. The first one he knew was Tokiya, but when Ren entered the equation, he knew he was screwed.
Muttering a quick “Yeah…” he started moving his fingers around, acting like he was picking a piece of something out of his teeth (even though lunch was a LONG time ago).
The other two didn’t exactly buy it, though. “What was going on with you and the director, earlier?” Tokiya started to question him. “She was yelling at you, wasn’t she?”
Taking his fingers out, Syo tried to think of a reason that wasn’t exactly a lie, but more of a believable excuse. “Eh, she was just after me on my face.” Shrugging his shoulders, he added, “Apparently, I need to look happier or something…even though I totally WAS!”
“You know…” Ren’s face started to grow into a slight smirk. “Now that I think about it, you didn’t crack a grin at all during the takes…and they weren’t even the dramatic scenes!” Walking up closer to Syo, he bent down and stared at him face to face, almost as close as the director was not too long ago. “How is my partner-in-crime supposed to get the fans to smile when he can’t even do it himself?”
The blonde started to sweat. What was he supposed to do now? “W-Well…I’m gonna fix it for tomorrow’s scenes! It’s no problem, serio-”
“Forget tomorrow,” the other cut him off quickly. “Let’s start now!” Before Syo knew it, Ren’s hands were on his sides, tickling him like crazy.
Trying his hardest not to bust out in hysterics, he squirmed and shifted around, trying to avoid his former classmate. Even when he let out soft giggles, Ren didn’t stop. “Come on, Ochibi. Start laughing and I’ll stop!”
He moved his hands farther up when he didn’t get the response he wanted. How hard was it? All he wanted was a laugh!
Syo was able to hold back most of it for a while. He dealt with Natsuki and constant bear hugs that would almost crush him. If he could get used to those, he could surely get through some fingers on his sides!
Unfortunately, that ended once Ren got right below his underarms.
Tokiya smiled himself once he saw Syo truly laughing. When he thought about the situation, he realized Ren was right. Even off-camera, he just seemed…unhappy. The only time he seen even a slight smirk on his face was during shooting, when he had to do that.
Finally free from his tickle torture, Syo tried to stop his fit. Thank god…you happy now, Ren? I laughed for y… He soon realized what he had done, a hand over his lips immediately. That SON OF A-!
“It’s something with your mouth, isn’t it?” Tokiya and Ren were already looking at each other once he did that, and both were now armed with questions. “A canker sore?”
Furious over the stupid, stupid, stuuuuupid thing he just did, Syo wasn’t in the mood to answer. “What? NO!”
He soon saw Ren had that same dumb smirk on his face again. “Aww, does poor Ochibi have a cavity?”
“NO, YOU IDIOT!!!”
Tokiya crossed his arms. “Then, what is it?” He remembered Otoya exactly like this when he hurt his ankle during a dance lesson. He claimed it was nothing, but some talking and an x-ray had shown a stress fracture. Syo not using his mouth clearly meant something was up, and “nothing” wasn’t gonna fly for him or Ren.
Funny enough, the latter had already gotten Syo by the wrist, about to pull him out of the green room. “Let’s just get you to a dentist. I had to do the same thing with Cesshi a few weeks ago, and he was totally fine! You’re seriously acting like this when he-“
Within seconds, Ren was shoved to the wall, the shorter of the two 1000% DONE with it all. “Alright, ALRIGHT!” Syo screamed at both of them. “I’ve got a crooked tooth, okay?! Are you happy NOW?” Once he had caved, he began grabbing his things, wanting to leave and avoid further confrontation.
The other former S Class members stood in silence. What was he even talking about? “I’ve never seen anything like that,” Tokiya said in response.
“Same here,” Ren added.
Despite grabbing things in a haste and not wanting to talk, Syo stormed up to the two. “How can you not? It’s right there in front of you!” As proof, he hooked a finger around his lips again, just as he had before they had come in. “See?!”
He wasn’t kidding; both of them could see the shifted canine he was pointing at. Though…
“That’s it?” Ren soon started laughing himself. “That’s the reason you let the director rip you a new one?” He couldn’t help but laugh even harder, almost falling on the floor. Tokiya rolled his eyes at how childish he was acting, both Syo and Ren.
Some days I feel Hijirikawa and I are the only mature ones… He thought to himself as he watched the scene in front of him.
Syo soon broke through his thought process. “STOP LAUGHING!” he yelled once again. “I hate the damn thing!”
With Ren still in hysterics, Tokiya tried to calm the situation. “What is so wrong with it? It’s nothing stopping you from performing, isn’t it?”
“YEAH! People like us are supposed to be perfect in everything, looks being one of them! With this thing, I look like a total idiot!”
“No, no, nonononono,” Ren, finally out of his laughing episode, countered his friend. “You’ve got it all wrong, Ochibi.”
“How?!”
Giving one more smirk, he leaned over to face Syo again, though this time not to tickle him. “You ever heard of a ‘charm point’?”
The blonde raised an eyebrow. “A what? I’ve never heard of that. Ever.”
“It’s something that makes the Ladies and Gentlemen go nuts. Most people have to make one for themselves, but you’ve got an easy one!”
With a dumbfounded look on the other’s face, Ren continued. “All of us have one. Shinomi has his glasses and ahoge, Cesshi has his prince act, and Icchi has his secret shy side!”
The last comment made Tokiya’s head snap up. “Wait, what are you-“
“Okay…” Syo started to talk again. “…but how does my screwed-up tooth count as that?!”
Ren sighed. “You clearly haven’t been online.” Whipping out his smartphone, a quick search of “yaeba idol” gave hundreds of pictures and articles of past and present stars. Getting some of the pictures on the screen, he turns it to Syo. “Look.”
Looking at all of the headshots, his eyes widened again, not in fear, but in surprise. “There’s idols…with what I’ve got?”
“More than that.” Flipping his phone back, Ren found a photo with a string of comments under it. Showing the contents to Syo, he saw his jaw drop at the number of “I LOVE them!” and “Fan for LIFE!” statements. “Convinced yet?”
The smallest of S Class was silent for a moment, completely confused. “But…how?”
“Not everything about you has to be perfect,” Tokiya finally came into the conversation, putting a hand on Syo’s shoulder. “Even if you are an idol. While you are expected to improve your abilities, having differences and imperfections is what makes you unique. It’s what truly makes you an idol that everyone will remember.”
From seeing those pictures and hearing those words, Syo was silent once more. For minutes, the whole green room was so silent that a dropped pin could have been heard. Then, both the blunette and the strawberry blonde saw it:
Syo started to truly smile.
“You’re right…you’re RIGHT!” He beamed, tossing Ren’s phone back at him. “This thing is what makes me stand out!” Laughing in relief, he grinned wider than either of them had seen him do in a long time. And seeing how happy their friend was made them smile too.
“Yep, you’re more energetic and cute than others!” Ren chuckled, wrapping an arm over his shoulder.
“Yeah!” Syo agreed. Although, it didn’t take long for a word to sink in. “Wait…WHAT DID YOU JUST CALL ME?!” he demanded, grabbing Ren by the shirt.
And at this point, Tokiya knew that the best thing to do was to close the door, leaving the two to their business.