818 *hachi*ichi*hachi*
~*vVv*~
The center of the stage had a set of stairs with a large door on its left. Next to the stairs was a platform in front of a blank brick wall. On the platform were a bunch of paintbuckets with colors ranging from yellow to pink to red to black. In front of that was a red wagon filled with things. Next to the set of stairs were red pillars of various heights. Amongst them were a music stand, open guitar case with a request list and a guitar. The request list had artists like Southern All Stars, Aqua Timez, Ayumi Hamasaki and such.
A green curtain with a large pink “818” logo was draped in front of the VTR screen that was above the stairs and door. The details of the logo were just really incredible with the glued on pearls and rhinestones. The silver stitching of the numbers was visible too upon further inspection.
Sometime before the show, Shota started to give announcements. He spoke in a soft, cutesy voice and said the usual turn off cellphones and the like. He also said that if anyone had to go to the bathroom during the show, they would have to raise their hands.
When the show began, the entire theatre became dark and the curtain was pulled away. The door opened with smoke billowing about. A backlight illuminated a figure. Out stepped an older man with a grey beard. He wore a sharp pinstripe suit, hat and silver rimmed glasses. In one hand was a cane.
His voice was grave and quite proper. He genteelly greeted the audience and then introduced the main characters of the show. Different colored spotlights lit up the stage one by one as he did. The Musician’s area was red. The Art Performer’s area was green. The Dancer’s area was blue.
He asked what was important to live and survive. The answer was “deai” or “meeting others.” He reached into his coat pocket and pulled out a pair of brightly colored underwear that only Shota could design. He held them up. The underwear was a vital part of the story but the audience didn’t know how yet.
Deai.
He exited the stage through the same door he entered from. The lights cut out with only red, green, blue and pink ones swirling about. A Boy, wearing a red cap, blue hoodie and checkered shorts, came onstage. A pink duffle bag with “Saltwater Fisherman” written on the side was slung over his shoulders. His speaking manner was the average everyman.
“I have no money. I have no dream. I have no connections. What should I do?!”
He paced a bit and contemplated taking over the world. He shivered and, still lamenting, started digging through his bag in search of something.
“Ah, yes, yes... This’ll do.”
He pulled out a pair of the ugliest plainest white underwear ever. Still talking to himself, he wrapped it around his neck like a scarf. Suddenly he tore the underwear away and chucked it towards the ground. He glared at the underwear and yelled at it.
“Chau~! Boke~!”
He got onto his hands and knees and made himself eye level to the underwear. He apologized to them before standing back up. After shoving the pair back into his bag, he pulled out a red scarf and wrapped it around his neck. He went back to pacing and talking to himself.
“No money. No dream. No connections. What ever shall I do?!”
He threw his arms in the air and tilted his head towards the sky. The stage darkened. An overhead shot of the scene appeared on the VTR and catchy rock-ish music started in the background. The camera pulled away from him standing on the street corner and the 818 logo flashed onto the screen.
The opening “credits” VTR of the show was awesome! Shota designed stars and hearts and lightning floated around. Each character was introduced one by one.
MUSICIAN
A guitar pick filled the screen and floated down into The Musician’s pant pocket. He got onto the train with his guitar in hand. It freeze framed on him and the word “Musician.” ART PERFORMER
The music switched to a techno beat and the scene switched to The Art Performer pulling a red wagon through a shopping area, paint roller in hand. He had the cutest Cheshire cat grin ever. It freeze framed on him with the word “Art Performer.” DANCER
Hip hop music was next. A boom box, the image pulsating with the rhythm, filled the screen. The Dancer stood from tying his shoes, grabbed his boom box, flipped his hoodie over his head and strutted away. It freeze framed on him with the word “Dancer.” A BOY...?
The music changed again. Shota’s head appeared with a bunch of question marks around his head. His label was “A Boy...?”
All four of the images plus the logo merged together at the end with all of the symbols and colors swirling about.
~*vVv*~
The Musician stood by the music stand located amongst the red pillars. He wore black jeans and a dark top with a white jacket. A black scarf encircled his neck and a white pimp hat perched atop his head. He quietly strummed a tune on his guitar.
“I have such talent. I can sing anything,” he said in a too-cool-to-care detached manner.
He walked to the center of the stage and asked for requests. Nearly everyone in the audience raised their hands, hoping that he would sing their requests. The first song he sang was Kinki Kids’ “Ai no katamari”... Acoustic! It was just him standing in the middle of the stage, playing his guitar and singing in such a lovely voice. His eyes were closed and his head slightly bowed and it was just awesome.
When he finished, hands shot up in the air again. This time, “Kimi to boku” was the request.
“Ah, you must be referring to a song sung by Kanjani8’s Yasuda Shota at his 2006 solo concert...”
His smooth voice was slightly hypnotic. He went to the center of the stage and turned to face the back wall. He tilted his head, deep in thought. Suddenly, he twirled back around. His mannerism turned very Sho-chan-like.
“Are the lyrics koneko (kitty)...? Koinu (puppy)...?”
“Koinu (puppy)!”
“Hey! How do you know these lyrics?!”
Everyone laughed. He held his guitar in both hands and prepared to play.
“There’ll be some la-la-la-hmm-hmm-hmms but enjoy.”
He quickly switched back into the part of The Musician. He strummed the light pretty melody of the intro and began to sing.
“Kimi no negao ga mitakute (wishing to see your sleeping face)... kimi yori sukoshi hayaku okiru (I’ll wake a little before you)... hidarikata ni wa (resting on my left shoulder) -- la-la-la-hmm-hmm-hmm...”
The Musician stopped abruptly. He chuckled with the audience and started over. This time he sang the song all the way through. After one of the stanzas, The Musician stood very still. Everyone thought the song had ended and started to applaud. The Musician had faked them out though and began strumming again, full of flourish, to the very end.
“Kimi to issho ni (together with you), boku to issho ni (together with me), futari to issho ni (together us two), oyasumi (sweet dreams)...”
The final chords hung in the air. This song is definitely a favorite. Shota and the acoustic guitar is OTP. He doesn’t need any extra instruments playing in the background like in “Watashi kagami” or fancy choreography like with “Who’s Foods?”... Although, Rock!Shota is just as dazzling... Haha.
The Musician went to retrieve his music stand and placed in the middle of the stage. He opened a notebook to one of the pages.
“Wait, no.”
He flipped the pages to another song and began KOBUKURO’s “Tsubomi.” The setlist in Gyao magazine reported that he sang “REAL FACE” at one of the shows. Oh! That would’ve been so cool to hear him sing, “ki~ ga shite~ shitau~chi o shita~... Tsk!” (*^_^*)
Request time was over and he returned his music stand to The Musician’s area of the stage. A shot of The Musician appeared on the VTR. A Boy was wandering by and noticed him. He stopped. He mentioned how The Musician was so cool playing the guitar and such. The Musician flippantly agreed. A Boy started rambling about how he wasn’t cool at anything and had no dream, no money, no connections... During his story, The Musician pulled out a mirror and started to check himself out in the mirror.
“Oy! You’re not even listening!” A Boy whined. The Musician put his mirror away. A Boy asked The Musician whether he really could sing anything. The Musician nodded in affirmation. A Boy listed a bunch of different genres only for The Musician to dismiss them.
“Well, then, sing something that’ll bring happiness.”
“Something that’ll bring... happiness?”
The VTR ended and neatly segued back to the stage. The Musician muttered to himself and walked to centerstage.
“Something that’ll bring happiness? Something fun?”
He started playing the opening notes to “MAGIC WORD ~boku nari no~”... Acoustic! Was the audience supposed to include the “Pa~n!” and “Yeahyeahyeahyeah”s as well? Yes, yes they were. (.>_<)/ Pa~n! It was a fun rendition. Shota had to perform the strumming pattern so quickly though! His hand was almost a blur in front of the guitar. It was kind of mesmerizing.
The VTR continued. A Boy clapped. He then tilted his head and kind of pursed his lips.
“Hmm... Do you have anything original?”
The Musician hesitated.
“Original? Of course.” He tentatively played a pretty instrumental. It was soothing and melodic. He finished and looked expectantly at A Boy. “Something like that...”
“What about the lyrics?” A Boy asked.
The Musician looked annoyed. “There aren’t any yet.”
“But it’d be better with lyrics.”
The Musician and A Boy exchanged a few more words before A Boy took off running. The VTR cut to the next person A Boy would meet that evening. It was a feminine person standing in front of a wall with art supplies all around.
~*vVv*~
The Art Performer was rolling a paint roller onto the wall in both the VTR and onstage.
“Ah~! Hi~!”
The Art Performer turned from the brick wall side with a high pitched squeal and Cheshire cat grin. He wore a colorful floral print coat trimmed with white fur over a pair of dark purple leggings and crazy orange legwarmers. His hair looked extra silky and extra blond.
He jumped off the platform, paint roller against one shoulder, and skidded to a stop centerstage. While doing random Marilyn Monroe poses and skipping from one side of the stage to the other, he chattered like a giddy Sailormoon on a Pixie Stix and Skittles sugar high, his free arm flailing about.
“Kya~!” he giggled and squee-ed and all of his words blurred together. “Blahblahblah! Yaddayaddayadda! Love! Happy! Loppy! Kya~! Kya~!”
The Art Performer jumped back onto the platform and pounding techno music played in the background. The audience started clapping along to the beat. The Art Performer started to grab random paint cans and rapidly explained every part of the drawing he was just as quickly creating.
First, he slapped on some pink near the top for eyes. They were supposed to be polka-dotted hearts but the smaller heart looked more like a strawberry and the larger one looked like an elongated infinity mark. He slathered a second layer of pink over them.
“Yes, yes! Just like that!”
Next was black for the outline. Then orange. He grabbed the yellow paint but accidentally got the paintbrush and some hair stuck in his mouth and made a gagging spitting noise. He didn’t lose his momentum however. He splashed more paint onto the wall. He grabbed pink again.
“Ah~! It’s too light!”
He tossed it aside and grabbed a darker red for the mouth. Next was black again and he traced a skull onto the drawing’s belly. He skittered about and grabbed green. He shlopped the paint onto the wall.
“Love! Happy! Loppy!”
When he finished outlining the letters of the creature’s name, he got out the pink paint again.
“Hearts! Hearts!” He started drawing itty-bitty hearts around Loppy. “One heart!”
“One heart!” The audience repeated after him as he counted and drew each heart.
“Two hearts! Three hearts! Four hearts! Five hearts!” He giggled. “Six hearts! Seven hearts! Six!”
Question marks appeared over the confused audience. What happened to eight? Haha. Silly Sho-chan! (*^_^*)
The Art Performer swung a couple more brushes around and splashed a few more flecks of colors onto the wall. The resulting Loppy looked like a demonic yellow gorilla giving everyone a two-finger salute.
The Art Performer cued for the stage lights to be switched off and for the black lights to be turned on. The word “Love,” the pink hearts and the strawberry and infinity mark eyes glowed on the wall. Was there a message possibly hidden in there somewhere? (.♥_♥)
Everyone applauded. The pounding techno music faded slightly. Still super hyper, The Art Performer skipped to his red wagon and fished out a sketchpad and marker. He also pulled out an elephant watering can. He looked into the snout and his grinning, sweaty face appeared on the screen.
The Art Performer hopped off the stage and started sticking the watering can’s snout into people’s faces, giggling and chattering. He pointed it up at the 2nd floor seats and apologized because he couldn’t film them all up close and personal too.
As he ran up and down the aisle, he invaded everyone’s personal bubble, going back and forth between extreme close-ups of his own face and the audience. Some of the girls tried to cover their faces, others waved.
“Lucky, Lucky! Do you smell that?!” He suddenly squealed in a very Who Framed Roger Rabbit reminiscent way, “It’s a ma~n!”
The feline-eyed kid from OSSaN and another KanJuu appeared briefly on screen before the image swung to the top of a bald head. The image human zoomed in and out on the scalp and The Art Performer giggled while commenting.
He made his way through the aisle between the two sections of the first floor, making the section closest to the stage fix the black cord that was connected to the elephant watering can camera. He returned to the stage.
“Whereareyoufrom?! Yes, you! Theoneflailingabout! Whyareyoulookingaround?! Oh! Howaboutyou?! Oh! Yea! Kya~!”
He handed the camera to one of the girls in the front row and began to draw their portrait. He signed it, tore the page from the sketchbook and handed it to her as a souvenir. He reclaimed the camera and went back onstage.
He put the camera down on the floor. He knelt in front of the camera, his purple leggings covered crotch being shown on the VTR screen. He began to write a message.
“What?!” he innocently asked. He sunk lower towards the ground. He looked over his shoulder and giggled.
“Yea, I’m done! Clap clap!” he exclaimed. He stood and retrieved the watering can to project what he’d written on the screen. He ripped that sheet from the sketchbook. Returning the watering can camera and cords to the red wagon, he jumped back up on the platform in front of Loppy.
The focus switched back to the VTR, where A Boy was still running from the irate Musician. He ran by The Art Performer, who was standing in front of the wall. He stopped in his tracks and looked at him.
“Did you draw that?!” A Boy asked. “Ah... will you draw my portrait?”
The Art Performer had him sit in a chair and then sat down in a chair across from him. The Art Performer took great care in crossing his right leg over his left. He studied A Boy, his lips pursed. His head tilted one way and then the other.
He slowly stood and grabbed A Boy’s face between the palms of his hands and moved it this way and that. He let go. The camera changed to a profile shot of A Boy with the profile of The Art Performer leaning in extremely close. A Boy stared at The Art Performer in bewilderment. The Art Performer carefully studied A Boy’s features.
“Say,” The Art Performer drawled out.
“Hmm...” A Boy asked.
“If you look closely,” The Art Performer responded, “don’t we resemble each other?”
A Boy and The Art Performer turned towards the camera. A Boy looked confused and The Art Performer gave a Cheshire cat grin. They paused for a brief moment before A Boy jerked back.
“Say what?!”
“No, no,” The Art Performer waved his hand forward. “Of course you’re a handsome one...”
He sat back down and quickly sketched out A Boy’s portrait. When he finished, he handed it to A Boy and grinned. The portrait looked nothing like A Boy but he looked at it in awe. He thanked The Art Performer and began digging through his bag, underwear flying all over, and pulled out a couple of sketches. He shoved them towards The Art Performer.
“Would you take a look at these and tell me what you think?”
A Boy held out the sketches of a whale or a fish or something. The focus turned to The Art Performer onstage. After a brief soliloquy, it went back to the VTR.
The Art Performer indulgently smiled and accepted them. He took a look at the drawing and kind of paused for a brief moment. He recovered himself and then with a sweet smile said, “Not bad but needs to be a bit more original.”
“Oh,” A Boy looked a little crestfallen.
“Something in the world that only you’ve created.”
“Right... more original...” A Boy quickly smiled, nodded and took the sketches back. The Art Performer drew another picture for A Boy. This time it was a heart with writing around it. The writing might’ve been some of the lyrics from the show’s theme song but the camera always cut away too quickly to actually catch them.
A Boy accepted it but didn’t look as impressed this time around.
“It’s good but it’s like you’re copying someone. Is this really from you? Is this really what you want to draw?”
The Art Performer got all irate and looked like he was about take A Boy out. They exchanged a few angry words. A Boy pointed toward something and shouted, “It’s the police!”
“Huh?” The Art Performer looked around but didn’t see anyone. When he looked back around, he saw A Boy running away. A Boy swiveled on his heels briefly.
“Just kiddi~ng!”
~*vVv*~
The Dancer grabbed his boom box on his way out the door. His face was hard and impassive as he strutted through the streets. He wore black track pants and a black hoodie over a yellow T-shirt. All remnants of his blond hair were tucked beneath a knit black hat.
Lights came up slightly onstage and the VTR faded out. Everything was dimly lit and had a smoky, dangerous, night time atmosphere. It almost felt like a forbidden and secretive world to which the audience was being granted special access.
The Dancer appeared at the top of the steps, his hoodie flipped over his head. He descended a step. Setting the boom box down, he took a seat. He retied his shoes, adjusted his pant legs and pushed up his sleeves.
With one hand, he methodically and deliberately wrapped white sports tape around his wrist. Once. Twice. Thrice. Ripping the tape with his teeth, he set the roll down. He ran his fingers around his wrist, securing the tape, stood back up and slowly descended the rest of the steps.
Once centerstage, he took a few moments to stretch his leg and arm muscles. After a quick rolling of the neck, he hopped a couple more times to warm up and cued the music.
“All I think about is you...”
A familiar tune and a familiar voice set to a pulsating beat filled the place and The Dancer jumped right into the choreography. This intro bit was only a single line and may very well’ve been imagined. It quickly switched to movements and lights synchronized with sfx sounds.
Swoosh, swoosh, swoosh, stomp, stomp, bam, swoosh.
A female’s wailing started back up as The Dancer went into full out break dance mode.
“Center of attentio~n... Gimme gimme... Even when they’re up against the wall...”
Was the mind playing tricks? Was Sho-chan... err... The Dancer really dancing to Britney Spears?! Wait wait! It just changed. What was the next song? This might’ve been a delusion too but it sounded like Ciara’s “Goodies” and... Eh?! Did it just continue into...
“Boots with the fuhrr... lookin’ at herr... hit the flo~h... shorty got low low low...”
Why yes, yes, it did. This had shaped up into a dance mix that would’ve made the DJ at deFusion back in the States extremely proud. Ah memories... It also brought back images of the VTR before the Kobe LastLast 2006 where Sho-chan and Mr. Sassy were jamming away to “Let’s Get it Started in Here,” the non-PC version.
The Dancer’s routine was quite enjoyable. He did popping; imaginary ball rolling; side arm stands while whipping his legs around, back contorted; lots of jumps; intricate footwork; etc. He was rather light on his feet and every moment was extremely sharp and precise.
Oh my! Just imagining Sho-chan dancing in a little Midwest karaoke/bar/dance club that housed itself in the basement of a Chinese/Filipino restaurant has suddenly caused random fangirl flailing. “Sho-chan got the voice that make yo booty go smack! Take that and rewind it back, Sho-chan got the rhythm that make yo booty go smack!” Kya~! o(>_<)o Teehee...
When The Dancer concluded his incredible performance to a large chunk of Usher’s “Yeah,” the story switched back to the VTR. A Boy was standing where The Dancer was performing and clapping.
“Wow!” A Boy breathed. “That was awesome.”
The Dancer acknowledged the compliment with a brief nod of head. A Boy started asking The Dancer why he danced and The Dancer talked about how it was cool. This led to A Boy rambling about how he didn’t have any dreams or money and how he came to the city to become something. The VTR did simple cutting back and forth as they spoke.
A Boy suddenly asked The Dancer, “So, you’re from around here, right?”
The Dancer mumbled something. A Boy looked confused. “What? Where are you from?”
The Dancer mumbled another answer.
“Osaka?”
“No...”
“Where?!”
Like a person saying he’s from Detroit finally admitting he’s actually from Suburbia, The Dancer muttered, “Akita...”
A Boy burst out laughing. The Dancer got a bit miffed and went into a long monologue which ended with, “You need to find something that’s completely you and expresses you.”
A Boy kind of pursed his lips and looked at The Dancer. He said something that annoyed the person he was talking to, again, and the VTR faded out.
~*vVv*~
Smoke billowed about the dark theatre and mysterious music played softly in the background. The door next to the stage opened revealing a figure outlined by light from behind. It was the genteel older man from before. He spoke.
A Boy had had his chance meetings with The Musician, a red spotlight lit up his area of the stage; The Art Performer, the platform lit up green; and The Dancer, the stairs turned blue. He told the audience to look forward to what was still to come and gently patted the pocket on his pinstripe jacket, the pocket which still contained a pair of that brightly colored underwear. A few chuckles could be heard from the audience.
The grown up A Boy exited through the same door, smoke swirling about. Colorful lights darted this way and that, crazy time warp music swelling in the background. When the lights came up again, A Boy came running onstage. He was still wearing his red cap, blue hoodie and red checkered shorts; the pink duffle bag hung from one shoulder. He was lost in his thoughts and talking to himself.
“Something that’ll make you happy,” he repeated the three main phrases from before, cutely mimicking each character’s demeanor as he said them. “Something in the world that only you’ve created. Something that’ll express who you are.”
A Boy looked a tad lost and whined, “No money! No dreams! No connections! Whatever shall I do~?!”
He lifted both arms into the air and looked towards the sky. Silence. A few more moments passed before he finally dropped his arms to his side. He sneezed. Commenting on the cold, he dug through all of the underwear in his bag in search of something warm. He pulled out a pair of underwear and wrapped it around his neck.
“Yup, yup,” he said with a pleasant air. “Just wrap it around like so and... Nya~gh!”
He tore the underwear from his neck and whipped them to the ground. He glared at accusingly and started yelling at them.
“What’s that? You want another try?”
He picked them up, scrambled to his feet and wrapped them around his neck once more. However, A Boy got irritated and threw them to the ground again.
“Boke~! Aho~! What the hell do you know?!”
He turned and walked offstage, leaving the underwear in the middle of the sidewalk.
“Ah!” a voice cried out. “Ah!”
A Boy ran back onto the stage, all the while crying out, “Ah!”
He exited, still wailing. A Boy appeared from one of the aisles in the audience and walked onto the stage. He passed by the underwear and stopped. He turned around and ran to them.
“Ah! Underwear!”
He dropped to his hands and knees, becoming eye level with them. He picked them up and lovingly held them to the side of his face.
“That’s it! Underwear! My mission in life is to design underwear!”
He stood and danced around, frolicking this way and that.
“Happy! Original! Expressive! I shall take over the world with my specially designed underwear! Wee~! Underwear!”
He ran offstage, clutching the once abandoned pair of underwear in one hand, and the VTR began again. It was a street scene, the camera descending from the sky.
A Boy was skipping along where he’d met The Dancer, gleefully chanting, “Underwear, underwear, underwear...”
He ran into The Dancer and declared his intention to design underwear to take over the world. The Dancer looked at him with a skeptical look.
“Erm... sounds nice...”
“Oy,” A Boy said in an annoyed tone. He tilted his head and pursed his lips. “At least I’m truly expressing myself. Anyone can dance, you know...”
The Dancer became angry and started yelling at A Boy. A Boy shoved the underwear into The Dancer’s face and took off running. The Dancer snatched them away and ran after A Boy, the underwear clenched in his fist.
A Boy ran past The Art Performer, who was in the middle of painting another wall. He turned and took a step forward. The Dancer soon followed. The Art Performer dropped his things and daintily joined in the chase.
“Wait, wait!”
The three of them were running down one road and another. The scene cut to The Musician humming to himself by the red pillars. A Boy screeched to a halt in front of him.
“I found something that’ll bring happiness,” he crowed. He dug into his bag and pushed a sheet of paper into the puzzled Musician’s hand before taking off again. The Musician looked at the picture.
“Glad to have met... all of you...”
A few moments later, The Dancer and The Art Performer entered the scene. The three of them stood, shot from a slightly low angle, looking towards where A Boy had disappeared. The Musician held the drawing; The Dancer, the underwear. The Art Performer noticed the colorful “818” underwear and squealed.
“Oh! Those are so cu~te!”
“I got ‘em from him,” The Dancer muttered.
“Same here,” The Musician added, holding up the drawing. The Art Performer recognized it.
“Hey, I gave that to him.”
“Well, he gave it me... something about happiness...”
The focus returned to the stage where The Musician was standing.
“Glad to have met... all of you... happiness...” The Musician had a sudden epiphany. He walked towards his guitar, picked it up and began to strum the opening chords of the tune without lyrics from before. This time, though, he began to sing.
“Sore zore no kimi to” was a beautiful song. Very sweet. Very kind. Very lovely. Very Sho-chan. When he finished, the stage dimmed and the VTR immediately began again. The Art Performer was clapping and complimenting the song. The Dancer also agreed that it wasn’t bad.
“Ah,” The Musician brushed it aside. “It was because of this picture.”
“No, no,” The Art Performer said. “It was all you.”
The three of them looked towards where A Boy had departed.
“Y’know, that kid taught us a lot...”
The Art Performer became all giddy and decided that he would be more original with his artwork. The Dancer would try and put more of himself into his dancing. The three of them sort of chuckled as the VTR faded out.
~*vVv*~
Grown up A Boy re-appeared onstage. He softly smiled.
“Well, what do you all think?” he asked. He pulled the colorful underwear from his jacket again and continued, “The story’s not over yet...”
He exited as the VTR started. It displayed A Boy’s bedroom which was really bright and cute, if not a little bit cluttered. A Boy was seated at his desk, engrossed in his sketches of underwear, tank top and handkerchief designs.
“Ah~!”
He’d noticed the clock, which read 8:18, and cried out. He slammed the notebook closed. The cover of the notebook was the same as the pamphlet but instead of just an embossed image, the “818” was true stitching and actual beads and ribbon adorned it.
Shoving the lovely notebook into his duffle bag of underwear, he jumped from his chair and ran from the room and out the front door. The door slammed behind him.
A Boy appeared onstage. He was dragging his feet and hanging his head. He held out his sketchbook and pitifully sighed, “I failed...”
He fell to his knees, the notebook slipping from his hands to the ground.
“Whatever shall I do? No money... no connections... no dreams...”
He sighed. Slowly he lifted his head. The notebook caught his eye.
“Wait! I do have a dream!”
He picked up the notebook and stood. He chattered happily for a few moments before running off to see the other three again.
The logo and “The End” floated across the VTR.
~*vVv*~
The show was about an hour and forty-five minutes long. It was the perfect amount of time to tell everything needed in the story. The pace didn’t drag and it didn’t feel too rushed. Everyone was applauding for Shota to come back for another bow.
Shota ran back onstage. He was wearing the tank top with A Boy’s red shorts. On his forearms, the colorfully striped leg warmers were scrunched from his elbow to his wrist. He bowed and thanked everyone for coming to watch his show.
He talked a little bit more but all I remember are his comments about the goods. He put a lot of time and thought into his designs. He researched and tried to imagine what a girl would want to wear while lounging around at home.
His thinking behind the tank top was that wearing a T-shirt was too warm and a camisole was too embarrassing during the summer. The answer? He looped his thumbs around the sleeves of the tank top he was wearing and said, “A tank top!”
As for the underwear, he couldn’t imagine a girl wanting to prance around in a thong. He said something else about panties. They would ride up and bunch or something? Anyway, thinking about things like that he came up with boy short type underwear and made sure to double layer the crotch.
Shota said a few more things before thanking everyone again for seeing his show. After a final bow, he grinned, turned and dashed from the stage.