Rent A Girlfriend: The Past Hurts

Part Six: The News

" Ruka? What are you doing here?" Kazuya asked as he opened his door to find her standing outside.  Pulling out a pair of tickets out of her purse, she showed it to him with excitement in her eyes.
" Did you forget?!", she exclaimed. " You promised me last week that we would be going to see that new movie that I have been really wanting to see!" Taking out his phone, he opened his calendar to find that he had indeed made plans to go to the cinema with her.
" Sorry... I guess I was kinda busy with work and such that I forgot all about it." After telling her that he was going to change into something more suitable for the occasion, he closed the door and went to grab one of his shirts that he had hanging in his closet.
'Ever since Umi's party, my mind has been all over the place...'
Kazuya had been trying to interpret what Mizuhara had meant when she told him that she was glad to have met him. He would get so lost in his thoughts that he would get into trouble at both school and work, yet he couldn't help himself.
'Maybe I'm just putting too much thought into something I shouldn't be.... I mean, she probably just meant it as a friend... right?'
Remembering that Ruka was still waiting for him outside, he cleared his mind as he pulled over a new shirt over his head and walked over to the door, and after preparing himself mentally, he pulled it open. He saw that she was leaning on the railing, but when she saw him she jumped straight up.
" Let's go Kazuya-kun! We're going to be late." She grabbed his arm as she pulled him down the stairs. After some time, she had decided to cling onto him as they walked towards the theaters. He still wasn't used to having someone hold onto him, but he knew that Ruka wouldn't be willing to listen to him even if he had told her to let go.

40 minutes later...

Kazuya sat in his seat as he tried his best to follow along with the movie. It wasn't that it was hard to understand or anything, but it seemed to have been made for children. It made him cringe as he watched the characters interact with one another, trying to lighten the mood in serious situations.  On the other hand, Ruka seemed to be very interested in it, watching the screen with a smile on her face.
Thinking about going to sleep, Kazuya started to close his eyes as he slowly started to drift off, but he was interrupted by the feeling of someone placing their head on his chest. He opened his eyes to find Ruka on him, and he started to get nervous.
" Ruka-chan.. W-what are-"
Looking up at him, he saw that she seemed to be licking her lips as she started to lift her head towards his with lustful eyes.
" D-don't...worry.."
With their lips only a few inches apart now, Kazuya realized what she was trying to do and could only watch as she was slowly getting closer and closer. He started to shake, growing more scared until he felt himself not being able to breathe as well as before, and he knew what was happening: a panic attack.
Kazuya pushed Ruka away from his face, and he quickly jumped out of his seat as he rushed out of the room. Locating the nearest restroom, he pushed the stall open and lowered himself onto the toilet as he started to throw up. When he was done, he felt his body continue to shake as he walked out of the bathroom and he headed to the exit.
He spotted a bench outside of the building, and he collapsed onto it. Kazuya felt light headed after throwing up for quite a while, and he knew that if he didn't rest he would end up passing out on the way back home.
" I have to relax..." he said to himself as he placed a hand over his chest, his heart beating very rapidly. After taking in a few deep breaths, he felt that his body seemed to be calming down. Sending a text to Ruka, he told her that he wasn't feeling well and that he was going to go home. Hoping that she wouldn't be too mad, Kazuya slowly rose from the bench and he started to walk along the street.

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As soon as the director yelled out 'cut', Chizuru took a seat in one of the chairs placed for her and the other actors. Two days ago, Umi had sent her a text informing her that a fellow producer had seen the film that Kazuya had made for her grandmother, and how he was very impressed with her performance. He told her that he wanted to offer her a side role in a movie that he was making, and Chizuru happily accepted.
It was different to how she had worked with Kazuya and the film club at the university: Most of the filming was done in a large building. There were actual sets and more than 30 people working to keep everything in check. There were green screens around some areas of the building, and tables filled with props, snacks, and extra scripts. All in all, this was the real deal, and she couldn't be more excited to be there.
While she sat, she went over the script that was given to her, and she read over her parts which she had highlighted as well as some of the notes she had added to help her get into character. Out of nowhere, she suddenly felt someone placing their hand on her head, and she looked up to see that Umi was staring back at her.
"Someone looks like they're working hard." he said while he took a seat next to her.
" Umi-kun? What are you doing here?"
".... I wanted to come and congratulate you in person." He gave her a smile as he turned his gaze towards the direction of where the director and other crew members were working. "You made it into the big leagues. Instead of working with a low budget with a bunch of amateurs, you're going to be working with professionals and other A-class actors like yourself. Now the whole world will get to know who Chizuru Ichinose is!"
She stared at him in awe, taking in what he had said. 'Low budget with a bunch of..amateurs?' She thought as she remembered how hard all those people had worked while making her film, how hard he had worked to ensure that her grandmother would be able to see it before she passed away. Clenching her fists, she started to feel herself getting angry as he continued.
" And I'm sure that you will be paid greatly for your acting, and also for your looks. I heard that the cuter the actress is, the more they receive in the end. But the point is, you will be getting paid as opposed to how you were given nothing for your previous film. I mean, how pathetic is it to not have enough money to even pay for your lead actress? I am so glad I was able to find a role good enough for your skills."
Glaring at him even harder, Chizuru stood up and moved forwards so that she was now standing in front of him. Umi looked up at her with a smile on his face, causing her to become even more irritated. " Listen Umi, I know that I couldn't have gotten this role without you, so thank you. But... " She moved in closer, placing her hand on the arms of the chair, and she watched as he backed up as his face turned to that of confusion. "... that movie you were talking about? The movie that was made by a bunch of 'amateurs'? It's very special to me, and I don't care the slightest that I didn't receive a single yen for it.... So please stop bad mouthing it, okay?"
After receiving a nod from Umi, she backed off and sat back in her seat. As she continued to read her script, she was unaware that he was staring at her with his eyes filled with curiosity, longing for more...