[CH.20] Sudden commercial filming

I Reincarnated as a Beautiful Girl and Aim to Become a Top Actress! (WN)

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[CH.20] Sudden commercial filming

I ('僕' boku/male pronoun) - or rather, I ('私' watashi) have been in Tokyo for two months now. The reason I changed my first-person pronoun to '私' (watashi) is that it would be bad if I accidentally slipped up and said it out loud. In the past, it would have been a story where I would have been treated as a weird kid, but now there's a possibility it could inconvenience Ms. Oshima and everyone at the agency who's supporting me. I need to do my best to avoid that.

I came to Tokyo right in the middle of summer vacation, and it all started with Ms. Oshima's intense acting lessons that felt like hell until the second semester began. I was immersed in basic lessons in various fields, such as Japanese traditional dance, dance, and singing. Moreover, all the teachers are strict, and they don't go easy on beginners. I could endure it because I have the experience of an adult inside me, but I wonder if a normal third-grader would have cried and run back to their hometown.

Every day, I pushed through the assigned lessons, exhausted, and in the evenings, I was comforted and pampered by seniors like Yumi-san. In my previous life, I was always in a position to take care of others, so I think this is the first time I've been pampered like this. Even when I fell asleep during dinner due to exhaustion, I would wake up in my bed the next morning. They even bathed me while I was asleep. It was thorough.

When I apologized, the seniors mentioned that they had also gone through this intense training. They understood how tough it could be, and especially for a elementary school student, it must be even harder. They asked me to be kind to the next newcomer, and I nodded eagerly.

After somehow completing the intense training from hell, I transferred to a new elementary school for the second semester. It was my first transfer in both this life and my previous life, so I was quite nervous, but I managed to introduce myself to my new classmates. I tried to smile to leave a good impression, but even after two months, I was still teased for being 'pretty awkward with your smiles' by some of the kids I eventually became friends with.

My homeroom teacher is a woman named Yoshida, and it seems she had talked to the class representative in advance. Classmate questions and things like that were all managed by the class rep, Touka Kimura-chan, and she supported me in getting used to school life for a while. We became friends naturally during that time, and I can say she's the closest friend I have in school. I hope Touka feels the same way.

In that manner, playing the role of an ordinary elementary school student at school and returning to the dorm for days filled with intense lessons, one day Ando-san, who takes care of me at the agency, barged into the practice room at the dormitory. Just as I was doing stretching exercises, with my legs spread 180 degrees and my upper body flat on the floor, Ando-san found me and, with that momentum, grabbed my hand and pulled me up.

"Good, Sumire. This is a chance, a miracle given by the gods!"

While trying to calm down the excited Ando-san, I quickly changed into a dress that I could easily put on. I had no idea what the story was about, but it seemed like I might be taken outside in my practice clothes if I didn't do something.

To summarize Ando-san's story, it seemed that there was a sudden cancellation by a child actor who was supposed to appear in a commercial for a children's toy. Moreover, the shoot was scheduled to start in an hour. The production company, being a regular client of a major toy manufacturer, didn't want to upset them, so they urgently searched for a child actor who could participate in the shoot. However, since the start time was already decided, it was proving difficult to find someone in such a short notice.

Ando-san explained that they received a help call from a staff member at the production company they have a good relationship with, and that's why they hurriedly came here. While listening to the details, I put on a cardigan and got ready. I was then literally dragged by Ando-san and thrown into the back seat of the car.

Well, if it's something that benefits Ms. Oshima and the agency, I'm willing to do anything, so there was no issue. But when I thought about it, it was my first time participating in a commercial shoot. As we got closer to the location, my heart started pounding, but when I entered the studio, a bigger surprise awaited, and all that tension flew away.

Surprisingly, the commercial that is about to be filmed is about a toy, but it is a toy for playing with in the bath, and it is filmed half-naked. It still covers all important body parts with a bath towel, but still...

I absolutely wanted to refuse it, but two girls around first grade were already waiting, wrapped in what looked like warm coats. No matter how I look at it, I really want to refuse it. But I can't.

After greeting the director and the staff, I was immediately taken to the makeup room. There, while they were combing my hair, they handed me a shooting schedule and explained the details of the commercial. It seemed I would be playing the role of two older-sister-like characters, and all I had to do was have fun playing with them, so I felt relieved. However, the biggest hurdle was that I would have to undress in front of people, and it would be filmed, and on top of that, it would be broadcasted on television for everyone to see.

I asked the director about the extent of exposure and whether they could avoid showing my chest or groin. They assured me that they wouldn't show the groin, but they said they would show the chest. In this era, that might be considered normal, but it was still embarrassing. When I hesitated, it seemed the directors understood that if I backed out at this point, today's shoot would be in jeopardy, so they decided to provide me with adhesive breast covers for consideration.

After getting the adhesive breast covers applied, I returned to the studio in a revealing outfit that was a step away from being outright exhibitionist. One of the girls I would be acting with was throwing a tantrum with her mother. It was already past the scheduled shooting time, and the wait must have been too long for the child. Seeing this, the other girl was also on the verge of tears. Under these circumstances, we couldn't start the shoot, so I thought I should take the opportunity to introduce myself.

I gestured for the girl standing a bit apart to come closer, and when she confirmed it, I stood in front of the upset girl and bent down slightly to make eye contact.

"Hello, I'm Sumire Matsuda, and I'll be participating in the shoot with you today. Nice to meet you... Can you tell me your name?"

"Suzu..."

"I'm Keiko Yamato."

The upset child was Suzu-chan, and the other child was Keiko-chan, it seemed. I smiled at the still somewhat reserved pair and said, "Let's have fun playing together," and somehow, their expressions softened, and a hint of a smile appeared on their faces.

The director seemed to think this was the right moment and began giving instructions to the staff. We were led to a large bathtub where we were asked to take off our coats. When we dipped our legs in, we found that the water was lukewarm, with just a hint of steam rising. Suzu-chan and Keiko-chan got into the tub with a splash, so I also immersed myself up to my shoulders.

The toys were plastic and floated in the water slowly. If you submerged them and let go, they would pop up with a burst of speed. The camera crew was already rolling, so I picked up a toy and submerged it in the water.

"Here we go, watch carefully."

Trying not to hit the two girls who looked a bit startled by my voice, I released the toy into the water, and it shot up with quite some force. At first, they had surprised expressions, but amusement quickly won them over, and they each held a toy in their hands with beaming smiles.

As we were playing with the girls and temporarily forgetting about the filming, we heard the director's voice call out, "Alright, that's a wrap!" It was then that we remembered this was the actual shoot. It seemed they had finished reviewing the footage and gave it a thumbs-up, as the staff applauded. To the background music of their applause, we were wrapped in large towels and led out of the tub. We were directed to the changing room, where we were instructed to change into our clothes again. I put on my underwear, dress, and cardigan once more and left the dressing room. A makeup artist was waiting for me with a hairdryer and began to blow-dry my hair.

"Your name is Sumire-chan, right? You're amazing, you know. Suzu-chan doesn't usually cooperate with work like this."

As the makeup artist said this while blow-drying my hair, I couldn't help but look surprised. I didn't get that impression at all, and since she had followed instructions obediently, I was more puzzled by the content of her words.

"Is she usually different?"

"She's usually quite a spoiled little princess, but she's the daughter of someone important in a major talent agency, so the staff doesn't say much."

The makeup artist turned off the hairdryer, placed a finger vertically over her lips, and said, "Shh," with a wry smile. It seemed she wanted to keep it a secret.

I nodded, stood up, and after running my fingers through my now dry hair, I thanked the makeup artist and said goodbye.

Back to my original appearance before coming here, I returned to the studio with Ando-san and thanked the director and staff, saying, "Thank you."

"I heard you were a substitute, but you did a great job coordinating the other kids. Thanks to you, I think we've created a commercial that can convey our company's product's appeal even more strongly to viewers. Thank you," said a man in a suit who was among them.

In response, I reflexively said, "If you ever have any more work, I'd be happy to help," lightly promoting myself. It might be stepping out of my boundaries, but I believe such sales activities are important. This time it was a commercial, but it could lead to acting jobs that I truly want to do.

After waving goodbye to Suzu-chan and the others, Ando-san and I got into the car together. I hadn't been conscious of it, but I must have been quite nervous. I let out a long sigh, as if I had been holding something in.

"Hehe, tired? Thank you so much today, Sumire. Good job."

"Oh, no, I'm the one who's always grateful for your help, Ando-san. And everything is a learning experience."

"It's really nice to hear you say that. Besides, you know, in a way, jobs are like a chain reaction. Today's work might lead to something completely different."

Perhaps Ando-san had overheard my discreet sales pitch to the man in the suit earlier. She knew my preferred field and might be looking out for me.

I silently prayed that this job would lead to acting opportunities in my desired field. That day, I was treated to a delicious dinner, and I returned to the dorm feeling content. About a month later, the commercial we shot began airing on television, and it was a bit embarrassing when the girls at school teased me. Well, as for the boys, I guess I could somewhat understand their fidgety feelings since I used to be a boy in my previous life, but it was quite awkward to be the subject myself. I hoped they would find some other way to vent their feelings. For now, I decided to completely ignore the strangely lingering gazes directed at me.

I received a casual scolding over the phone from my father too. He said things like, "You should have consulted with us when taking up this kind of commercial," and "Girls showing their skin on TV." But since it was decided on such short notice, I insisted there was nothing to be done. Strangely, I also received a call from Ma-kun, who complained. I understood that he was worried, but honestly, it was a bit annoying. My mother and aunt praised me, saying, "You looked cute," though.

"But, you've only been in Tokyo for a short while, and you're already in a commercial. I wonder if I've fallen behind," Yumi-san said.

"Yumi-san, you're doing what you want, like performing on stage, right? I want to start acting soon too."

I replied with a slightly pouted expression to Yumi-san, who teased me. As I was doing warm-up exercises in the training room at the dorm, just like usual, Ando-san burst into the room with a loud bang, as if I had experienced déjà vu.

"Sumire, rejoice! You've got a modeling gig for a magazine next."

Suddenly, with Ando-san's unexpected entrance and a job description I hadn't anticipated at all, I was left stunned and speechless for a while.

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