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The breeze wafts through the open window in the practice room, bringing the soft smell of spring with it. You are the only person in the room, standing still and deep in thought in front of a beautiful grand piano. You reach forward to touch the keys.Passion, huh? You remember the words that you heard earlier that day.
"Fail."
You pause in your dance, staring at the judge in dismay and deep inside, acceptance. She is one of the most talented and critical choreographers in the world and to get her to create a dance for someone is an incredible honor. The president of your agency, Shining Saotome, encouraged you to go to this audition.
You probably did not have enough public attention and he probably sent you to this audition because he wished for you to gain more. Of course, that was it. That was definitely the reason. Why else would he send you to an audition judged by this famous choreographer that you obviously wouldn't pass?
"You," the woman starts, her glare stern. "Your dance is incredible."
Wait... what? You stare at her in shock.
"But," she begins again, "you lack something. Resolve, determination to make it to the top. As long as you can't bring that passion into you, you will never make it to the top. Not as a dancer, not as an idol."
"Find that passion. Then you can return."
You leave the audition with her words lingering in your mind.
"What passion?" You murmur with sudden frustration. You stare at the keys of the piano before slamming your hand on them with a little too much force. "I love music. Is that not enough?!" Your voice rises in despair."Lady," the voice that breaks you out of your reverie holds a tinge of shock, but is calm and soothing. You pause, raising your head to meet the startled blue eyes of your childhood friend standing in the doorway of the room.You suddenly feel absolutely ashamed of yourself for abusing the precious instrument before you. You drop to a sitting position on the bench with a thud, feeling tears well up in your eyes.Ugh. Of course it's not good enough. I'm never good enough to reach the top after all.Ren stares at you in surprise. He didn't expect you to come back from the audition like this. You were perfectly fine this morning-No. He knows deep inside that you weren't. After all, the smile that you had given him when he sent you off with well wishes was fake. It was crystal clear to him that it was. Behind that smile was a lack of self-confidence and the acceptance of the fact that you were already going to fail.But he had put it off. Why?He remembers the first time that you two had met. It was at yet another one of the parties that his elder brother had forced him to attend when he was reaching adolescence. It perked his interest when he met a young girl at that party, another well-off child that was around his age. She was a pretty little thing, her dress a rich, deep shade of emerald green and sparkling white flats adorned her feet. But she seemed to show distaste for her own outfit, her left hand toying with the amethyst earrings that she had worn purposefully because it did not match her dress.He had thought her amusing and had approached her with the sugary words that he had always used to attract the attention of girls. To his surprise, she had simply glared at him harshly before stomping off.Your first meetings had been full of spite and annoyance, but when you eventually warmed up to each other, you two became inseparable.(Ren thinks that you're probably one of the only girls that he doesn't see as an romantic interest. The friendship he has with you is too precious to him.)Back then, you were full of fire, full of everything he wanted to be. A fighter, someone that he would be honored to call his friend....what changed? Ren isn't sure that even he will ever know. He knows that you will only tell him with time if you want to.Who knows if you even know yourself?But all Ren can do now is to try his best."Hey," he says softly, trying to help. You wipe at your eyes, not wanting to cry in front of your best friend. You force a smile."What?" You tease. "Going for nice boy tactics this time?"He catches on quickly. "If it works," he shoots back with a flirtatious wink, earning a genuine giggle from you."Of course it will," You laugh. "It's the charm of Jinguji Ren, after all."Seeing that your mood is lighter, Ren turns more somber. "What's wrong, lady?""Nothing, what are you talking about?" You cringe inwardly at your own words. He saw you slam a piano. He's obviously not taking that for an answer.He doesn't."Lady." His tone is more insistent this time.You stare into his unrelenting sky blue eyes. Finally, you sigh, turning away."They all say the same thing." Your voice is quiet, to the point where Ren can barely hear you."What do they say?" His voice is steady, not questioning who "they" are."That I don't have enough passion. Enough determination. What are they looking for?!" You exclaim. You don't understand what you're missing.It clicks in Ren. That you were unaware of your own problem after all.Well, that needed to be fixed."Lady," His tone is very serious, causing you to bring your gaze to meet his. His eyes are narrowed, stormy. If you didn't know better, you would think that he's angry."What were your thoughts when you entered that audition?""My... thoughts...?""Did you... think that you were going to win?""Wha-""Did you even believe that you had a chance of winning?""..." You lower your gaze."...or did you already accept the fact that you were going to lose?"You don't reply, thinking through his words. You feel shocked when his words hit a nerve inside you, but you think that you already knew the truth deep inside. Ren had only brought this truth to the surface."Lady," he sighs, and you meet his eyes again. They have dropped from the seriousness, becoming more warm and loving, in the special platonic way that the two of you shared."You're an amazing idol. Your dancing is always on point and even in the rare chances that you make slight fumbles, you always manage to keep your composure. It's a talent that not many have. Your singing is of a high level, too, to the point where you can put Aimi to shame, even when he creepily never misses a single note." He makes a face at that, causing you to giggle. "And your charisma is perfect. After all, you have learned from the best." He winks.His face softens into an encouraging smile. "Stop doubting yourself, Lady," he says gently.You stare at him, at the rare earnest side that he only ever shows to you. What did you do to deserve such a best friend? Even though you seem more like the more responsible of the two as you are always pulling him out of trouble with women, he does more for you than anyone else sees."Thanks, Ren," you murmur, feeling much better."Anytime, Lady."You smile at him, vulnerable but real. Though it doesn't last long, it gets your feelings across. But soon, it once again fades into a more teasing smirk. "But what's this? Jinguji Ren giving genuine compliments? What blasphemy! Wow, maybe if you keep this up, I'll actually believe the rest of STARISH when they told me that you once suggested to work as a team?""I'm hurt that you think of me in such a cruel way, Lady~"When the two of you exit the practice room, you are laughing once more.And a week later, when you audition again, nobody is surprised when you win.