Chapter Text
《 You Already Own Episode One. 》
Hmm... The sheet says that the audition room is 3L, but all I see is L3. Is this a typo of some sort?
You held a piece of paper in one hand, while the other was atop your forehead. All of the doors in the hallway looked the same. The numbers and letters were all so tiny as well. You wished they placed signs up or something. You looked back to the sheet. It would be nice if they didn't make typos either...
You were looking for the room that said 3L—third floor, room L. Getting to that room on time was very important for you. Very, very important. You managed to get an audition for an upcoming anime. How you did so will forever remain a mystery... You wanted to voice a character in the show. Being a voice actor, any type of voice actor, has been a dream of yours for a while. Getting this audition was like a dream come true.
Of course, the dream would actually come true if you could actually find out where you were going. It's just your luck: Having something amazing happen, only for there to be obstacle—a possibly avoidable obstacle—preventing it.
You sighed. I swear, this looks like the correct place. But the stupid sheet says otherwise. Suddenly, you got nervous. Even more nervous than you already were. What if this is all a big joke? What if... What if someone is messing with me? What if...
Your thoughts were interrupted, thankfully.
"Excuse me, but you wouldn't by chance be hear for an audition, would you?" Someone behind you asked.
Quickly, you spun around. You met face to face with a women. Her dark hair came up to her shoulders, and her eyes were big and wide. They reminded you of a doe. Even though she looked young, you figured she was probably older than she looked. Your eyes caught sight of a small pin on her blouse. The pin had a date on it that passed years ago. She had smile on her face. You couldn't tell if she was nervous or trying her hardest to give a "customer service" smile...
"Yes! I am." You said. You showed her your paper. "Am I in the correct area? It says 3L, yet all I see is L3..."
The lady squinted at the sheet, her lips pursed. She appeared just as confused as you were. Then, after a minute, she acted like she understood the situation.
"Ah... So that's why we had to track down so many people around the building. It must be a typo of some sort. We're very sorry for the inconvenience." She motioned to one of the doors. "L3 is where the waiting room is. You may go inside now. Good luck with your audition!"
"Thank you!"
You waved at her. You followed her directions and went inside the room. Right at the door's entrance was a packet. The width of it was similar to your finger. Since other people were reading it, you figured that it must be the script. When you got an email about the audition, they sent you some parts of the script, so you knew most of. But maybe this was here so you could practice some more before the audition. You grabbed a copy, sat in an empty seat, and began to read.
Every five minutes or so, you would glance at someone in the room. You knew you would be up against all of them for a role. You felt as if the odds of you gaining a part would be low. You kept telling yourself that you had as good as a shot as the rest of them. The only problem with that was that you didn't fully believe it.
You were just starting your career. These people looked like they have been in the industry for a while. Beating them would be equivalent to carrying a team as a rookie. Difficult and uncommon, but not entirely impossible.
"We'll take the next person now."
You looked up. The waiting room led to another room besides the hallway. You wondered if that was where they were having auditions... A man stood up and walked to the door. He seemed very nervous, even more so than you. He covered his eyes, either out of embarrassment, or with hopes that people wouldn't look at his face. You thought about how he acted, and hoped you don't act the same. Not only did you need to look the part, you needed to act the part as well. One of your coaches always taught you to do so.
Fake it until you make it!
As he walked to the next room, you checked the number they gave you. He had on the number 27. Your number was 28. The world just seemed to stop. You felt yourself getting dizzy. You were next since the other person just went in. But it would be a while until they were done. Hopefully, anyways.
You waited some more. How much time went by? Did a minute pass? An hour? Is an eternity going on?
"We'll take the next person now." One of the workers said again. They looked down at a clipboard. No doubt they were looking for your name and number. "Number 28, please. [Name]."
Number 28... That's your number! Oh wow, the other person was done? Already?
There was the dizziness again. This time your stomach bothered you as well. And, was it hot in here? No, it was cold. Hot, cold. Cold, hot. Each temperature flipped back and forth between the other, which didn't make any sense. You were fine a minute ago. Were your nerves getting the best of you? That won't be good for your audition...
Stay calm. Stay calm. Deep breaths... Deep breaths... You inhaled and then exhaled to calm yourself. You kept on mentally repeating your words to make them stick. I'll do fine. I'll do fine. I'll do fine.
Now you managed to get yourself onto your feet. You forced a smile on your face. Somehow you felt like it was similar to the one the lady in the hallway gave you.
You walked past the worker and in to the next room. There were four people waiting for you while they sat at desks. There were two men and two women.
One man had silver hair. That was a nicer way of saying he had grays. The other had a shade of strawberry blonde. They sat next one another. The man with strawberry blonde hair was playing with his pen. He kept pressing the top of it over an over again. He appeared to be doing his best to hide his boredom. The man beside him had his hands on the desk. His light brown eyes studied at you. You could only guess what he was thinking.
The two women tried to act more polite and professional. Presentation was everything. Your eyes met the eyes of the women on the farthest right of the table. She was the one you spoke with in the hallway. You saw her smile as she began writing. Again, you didn't know what that smile meant... The lady to her left was the most professional looking one out of the four. Neat, formal clothes, hair up in a bun, calm but firm posture... This women intimidated you a bit.
You did your best to speak.
"H-Hi, I'm [Full Name]. Thank you for giving me a chance to audition. I am r-ready when you are." You said with slight stuttering. Anyone could see that you were nervous. All that mattered was that they didn't take it into consideration.
The packet in your hand was being grasped tightly. You waited for one of them to give you instructions. There was silence in the air. The lady you met in the hallway then broke it. Suddenly, she didn't seem as friendly anymore. Her eyes stared at you, not blinking. She seemed like a judge. A judge that was going to be difficult to please.
"Well then, [Name]. Please begin."