Rurouni Kenshin Week, SET ALPHA, day 4 – Alternate Universe
Characters: Kaoru Kamiya, Kenshin Himura, Megumi Takani, Uramura
Pairings: Kenshin/Kaoru
Rating: T
Setting: Modern AU, Actors / Movie stars
Word count: 6348
Notes: Thank you animaniacal for your help in editing and your wonderful suggestions!

A Comedy of Romance

"Take the role! It will be a good opportunity! Hah!" Kaoru snorted bitterly and kicked the ground in a huff. The dainty, cream-colored slippers lurched uncomfortably on her feet, dust and dirt getting between her bare toes.

She scowled and took them off without slowing her pace, hobbling barefoot to the walkway, shaded by parked trailers and equipment. Techies, assistants, and other staff scurried out of her way, shooting her covert looks. She waved them aside, not inclined to explain. Frankly, right now she was desperately in need of a good, long walk, lest she scream and quit this farce of a movie.

Honestly, what sort of a clusterfuck did it take on the production side that they still hadn't gotten the male lead confirmed? They had been shooting this movie for weeks already! All her solo scenes were done, so were most of the group scenes, and today, when they had finally started the romance side, they had to use one of the assistants as a stand in! For fucks sake! Just how difficult could it be to nail down a male actor for a romantic comedy?

Kaoru took a deep breath and exhaled through her nose, rubbing her brow in a pitiful attempt to ward off a headache.

I should have never listened to Misao.

I should have never taken this role.

This is not what I want for my career…

Still, despite everything, she could still see the logic behind her friend's insistence for her to audition for this movie.

Director Uramura was practically a legend in the domestic film-making scene. He had 27 full-length movies under his belt and he had been pushing out nitty gritty realistic dramas for decades, both in historical and modern settings. In his impressive repertoire was also one of Kaoru's all-time favorite movies, The Legend of Hitokiri Battousai – a fantastic samurai tale set in the Bakumatsu era. However, now, for the first time in his long career, Uramura-sensei was trying to do something different, a light-hearted romantic comedy that subverted the typical gender roles.

And while Kaoru couldn't say she cared much for romcoms, the chance to play a leading role had been too good of a lure to pass up – even if she was 100% sure the only reason she had been picked for the role was because her own personality bore a striking resemblance to her character's.

Honestly, she wasn't all too happy about that.

Could it even be called acting, if she could basically just be herself on screen?

But then again, the chances for leading roles were hard to come by, especially when she had no references to boost her way. Competition was brutal and in a way, it was even worse for the actresses. If your face or body type didn't fit certain categories, all you could hope to get were the scraps… something Kaoru was all too familiar with.

She sighed morosely.

She wasn't ugly per se, but neither was she a great beauty, nor particularly well-endowed. No, hers were the cute, but plain looks of a girl-next-door. Just about perfect for a sidekick or the leading lady's trusted friend. If she had no ambition or pride, it would be fairly profitable typecasting niche for her. There seemed to be an endless stream of stale TV-productions and B-ranked movies that needed ordinary-looking actors to offset their stars in a good light.

The problem was that Kaoru had always wanted more than the ordinary female roles. She didn't want to be known as just another damsel in distress. She wasn't enthralled by the role of dutiful daughter, seductress, bad girl, or goody-two-shoes, who got offed first just to show how evil the villain was.

No, her wish was far simpler… and far more impossible to fulfill.

She wanted to play the hero.

She had grown up watching action movies, witnessing how cops, agents, soldiers, knights, ninjas and redeemed assassins had fought against impossible odds and saved the day. She had trained for years in kendo, judo, kickboxing and other martial arts to gain skills necessary to play those roles without the need for a stunt double. She had worked her ass off, spilled blood and tears just to get this far… only to start to realize how far the ladder truly was for auditioning for the big action blockbusters like her idol, Himura Kenshin.

Kaoru glanced down at her body, noting dryly how the loose summer dress she had worn on set couldn't quite conceal the wiriness of her arms, the strength in her mid-drift, and how there wasn't an even hint of fat on her athletic, if depressingly short frame. While being fit was certainly useful in her profession, she had come to find that soft curves in the right places and long legs opened a lot more doors…

Truly, in a world where height was adored, it sucked to be the short girl.

But then again… Himura Kenshin was short too.

An inch taller and ten pounds heavier than me, but who's counting?

His diminutive size hadn't stopped him from getting that pivotal first role as the legendary assassin, Hitokiri Battousai. The movie had broken sales records at the box office and secured him a slew of other opportunities; letting him show the whole extent of his martial arts prowess on the big screen. The audiences and critics had gulped it up and lauded him as the best selling movie star of the decade. The West had taken notice soon after… and then, well, the rest was history.

Ten years later, Himura Kenshin had more international action blockbusters under his name than any other Japanese actor.

And Kaoru should know this, she had seen every single one of his movies at least three times. She could recite most of his snappy one-liners by heart, copy his action sequences and martial arts moves blindfolded… she had even gathered a rather embarrassing clipbook of moments when his clothes had fallen in disarray, showing some bare skin on-screen.

In short: she was a fan.

A piercing voice interrupted her musings. "There you are, Kamiya!"

Kaoru tensed and turned to look behind her, a rather forced smile rising to her lips.

Of course, it was her personal devil (and occasional friend), the extremely demanding assistant director Takani Megumi, marching her way, a dissatisfied scowl all over her beautiful features.

Uh oh…

"Where have you been?" Megumi demanded. "The next shoot is going to start soon!"

"Is it, really?" Kaoru asked, raising her brow. "Then why don't you replace me with a stand in too? It would change nothing – we all know none of those shots are going to be used."

Megumi's lips thinned. "Kaoru…" But then she paused and visibly gathered her composure. "Kamiya-san, if Uramura-sensei deems it necessary for us to spend a morning taking practice shots, then we will."

"Practice shots? Is that what they're called?" Kaoru snorted. "I'd think practicing a blind date scene for the whole day is counter-productive at best. Our mysterious prince charming is the one who needs to be the smooth one in that scene, not me. Or was there a change in the script?"

Megumi closed her eyes and exhaled slowly like she was counting backward from ten. "Kaoru-san… your character might be an awkward, pig-headed tomboy, but you don't need to be one too."

"I'm not." Kaoru looked aside, drawing her arms around herself. "I'm merely fed up with this bullshit. The first two weeks shooting without a male lead I could understand. In this business, everyone is on disjointed, busy schedules… but we've only got three weeks of filming left. Why on earth haven't you gotten an actor locked down for the role yet?"

"Oh, we have," Megumi said slowly. "For a full two months before we locked you in on this role, actually. Didn't you ever wonder why you got the role over more established actresses? We wanted someone short."

"What… what are you talking about?" Kaoru gaped, her eyes widening in disbelief.

"My, my, Kaoru-san – you are late on the news." Megumi's smile got teeth. "Your co-star arrived on the scene a while ago. Unlike you, no one expects him to need any extra practice. He had his lines memorized on the plane like any true professional. The shoot for your blind date scene starts…" she raised her watch and tapped it pointedly, "in less than ten minutes. So let's get going, shall we?"

Megumi turned on her heels, marching away in a fast clip.

Left staring after her, Kaoru tried to pry her jaw from the ground. At last, reason caught up with her and panic flooded her veins. She shoved her slippers on her feet and sprinted after the assistant director in a full sprint. Oh gods, oh gods, the last thing she needed was to be late for a shoot! This filming crew had had enough big names around that if she got a rep as a finicky and difficult person, it could be a death sentence for her career!

It took mere seconds for her to reach Megumi and she slowed down to a brisk walk. "I, ah… I'm sorry. I didn't mean to come off as arrogant. I just hate wasting time."

"Don't we all," Megumi agreed.

"So… um, what's this business about the male lead? Who is he? And if you have had him locked down for months, why hasn't anyone on the crew heard about it?"

"We couldn't announce his name before he got the shooting done for his latest movie. A bunch of secrecy issues, there. No one wants to leak business like this to the paparazzi." Megumi frowned thoughtfully. "Besides, how awkward would it have been if we had announced his name and it had turned out he wasn't available after all? He's doing this role as a favor to Uramura-sensei between two larger productions. We got him for four weeks only, no more, no less – so we are on an extremely tight schedule."

"…I see," Kaoru murmured demurely.

Though honestly speaking, she didn't quite understand why a respected, well-established director like Uramura-sensei would be willing to dance around a mere actor's schedule like this. This movie was too eccentric and small-budget to afford big stars. So, what sort of actor was the male lead? Not just anyone, if he had three productions locked down for the same year and needed a plane to get here… perhaps a foreigner? An idol? Or a pop star trying to start a cinematic career?

Kaoru hesitated, feeling a bit light-headed all of a sudden. "Megumi-san… uh, you didn't mention his name?"

"I didn't," Megumi said, a foxy grin on her lips. "But you have caused me enough trouble for the day that I rather want to see your face when you figure it out."

"What..?" Kaoru gasped, taken aback, "But, you…"

"Didn't you say that knowing the details too well before filming a blind-date scene was counter-productive?"

"Yes, but…"

"Be careful what you wish for!" Megumi laughed and motioned with her hand to the sunny patio surrounded by the camera crew.

The set was the same as it had been this morning, an elegant and classy outdoor restaurant – fitting for a high-class holiday resort. However, compared to the morning's shoot, the mood was electric and practically the whole crew had gathered to watch. On the side, Uramura-sensei was talking with a short, red-headed man wearing a stylish, form-fitting gray suit.

Kaoru paused to stare, too busy drinking in the details to notice the makeup crew coming to putter around her, fixing her simplistic makeup and smoothing hair into a plain hair-do that was fitting for her well-to-do household's tomboy daughter role.

That man… her co-star, there was something absurdly familiar about him. Kaoru couldn't say where she got the impression, but she was sure she had seen him somewhere before. She didn't know many foreign actors, and with a hair like that, he could be nothing else. Cropped short and styled into a trendy look, it shone like copper and flames in the midday sun. It wasn't a wig – his character was supposed to be a brunette – but she had no trouble understanding why no one had bothered to complain about the change.

Damn, even from the distance and awkward angle, he looked good.

He tilted his head, enough so that his side profile flashed… Kaoru swallowed dryly, feeling like someone had struck her in the head.Don't jump ahead of the facts! It can't be him. It's impossible and you know it, she told herself firmly. Her heart didn't listen. Her pulse was quickening, pushing her blood to rush through her veins in a wild torrent, deafening her to all noises around her.

…It can't be him. It just can't.

The summer sun was scorching hot, making her feel all light-headed and weak in the knees. Why was the collar of her dress so high? Ah, yes – because her character was dressed to please her relatives' prudish taste on this outing. Kaoru tugged at it in vain, trying to give her more room to breathe…

Someone asked something.

Uh, what? She blinked, only to see to see the concerned look on the makeup and costuming expert, Tsubame-chan's, face.

"Kaoru-san, you are really pale – is everything alright?"

"I'm fine," Kaoru smiled weakly, waving her hand to discourage further inquiries.

Tsubame-chan looked like she might protest, but then Uramura-sensei's booming voice cut through the noises around them. "Ah, Kamiya-san – you are here! Good, we are just about ready to start filming! But first, let me introduce you to…"

Kaoru raised her gaze to meet startlingly violet eyes, set in a face that had always been more pretty than handsome… a face that she could recognize in her dreams, or daydreams because this could be nothing else. Except, in her mind's eye, he had always had dark hair, just like in each and every one of his roles.

"Hello, I'm pleased to meet you, Miss Kamiya," he greeted her, offering his hand to shake – a western gesture, one that she hadn't ever gotten used to.

Feeling utterly off-balance and awkward, Kaoru took his hand and squeezed it lightly. His grip was firm, the skin of his palm was dry, cool and she could feel calluses on the pads of his fingers. Her heart skipped a beat, her knees wavering from the weight of realization – this wasn't a dream.

She was holding the hand of Himura Kenshin.

Himura Kenshin knew her name.

She was going to be in the same movie as him – but instead of his enemy, or side-kick, she was going to be playing his love interest.

Blanching white as a sheet, Kaoru looked up at him, her gut lurching with utter horror as she recalled a certain, passionate scene where her assertive, tomboy of a character was supposed to press him against the wall and kiss him…

…Oh gods, I'm going to die, aren't I?

Her legs turned into jelly underneath her, far too weak to hold her weight and she fell, but instead of the hard floor, she hit something far softer. A frantic voice shouted, "Miss Kaoru!" But it was too late, the darkness overtook her and then she knew nothing more.

Kenshin had his fair share of troublesome situations with his co-stars. Of course, he had – it came with the territory. He had endured acts of jealousy, aggressive flirting and sexual harassment ranging from borderline cases to one memorable incident when a certain adventurous actress didn't take a "no" for an answer and broke into his room for a night's fun with "the cute little Japanese guy." Honestly, he had thought he had seen it all by now, but never before had his co-star fainted at the sight of him.

True, for a young actress in her first leading role, meeting an actor of his experience could be a bit intimidating… or had her reaction been because of something he had done?

Kenshin pulled back his outstretched hand from the door and frowned in thought. His manager had said that he'd been projecting his characters more and more outside of the role and yes, Kenshin knew that. It was just a tricky habit to knock off, especially when one needed to work with brusque westerners who were often a head taller than him and twice his weight. He had gone to great lengths to learn how to shift his body language and expressions to seem like a person to be taken seriously.

However, if he was now intimidating enough to scare off Kamiya-san… then, he desperately needed to apologize and find a way to reassure his young, inexperienced, and apparently extremely timid co-star before the filming was delayed further.

Alright. Kenshin took a deep breath and let it out slowly. Now, focus. It shouldn't be that hard… you used to be able to switch off the role all the time.

Just apologize and smile like you mean it!

The smile sat awkwardly on his lips, but he managed to rap a quick, determined knock on the trailer's door before his newly found resolve abandoned him.

"Go away, Megumi, and let me hide in peace! I'm too embarrassed to talk to anyone!"

"Oro!" Kenshin gasped in surprise, taken aback by the sheer vehemence in her tone. However, he had come this far – he couldn't back off before he had at least apologized. "Uh… Miss Kamiya," he stammered, "my pardons for bothering you at this late hour, but—"

A loud bang cut through his hesitant words and the trailer swung like something had just dropped to the floor or hit the wall.

Kenshin took a step back in disbelief, not entirely sure what had just happened.

"…You're not Megumi, are you?"

"No… Um, this one is afraid our introductions were cut short earlier this afternoon, that they were," he explained, struggling to hold to the lines he had practiced in his head before finally seeking her out. "Err, this one is Himura Kenshin and, um, this unworthy one would like to extend his apologies for scaring you and causing your brief bout of unconsciousness, that he would. This one didn't mean to—"

"Scaring me?" She exclaimed. "…You think I fainted because I was afraid of you?"

Her voice wasn't just disbelieving, it was downright incredulous, like he had just spouted out the most absurd assumption in the world.

Kenshin blinked.

"Um, yes?" he hazarded.

Rapid footsteps followed and then the door swung open, revealing a breathless young woman wearing pajamas and a large t-shirt depicting a slogan: some girls can save themselves. He hastily looked up, least she assumed he was staring at her breasts, but that only served to direct his gaze to her reddened bottom lip, help prisoner between her pearly white teeth. Her cheeks were aflame with an alluring blush, framed by her long and messy dark hair, her bangs just a quarter inch shy from covering her electrifying blue eyes.

Kenshin swallowed, his throat gone suddenly dry.

"I didn't faint because of you, Himura-san," she insisted, her eyes storming with emotion. "It was sunstroke. I was shooting the whole morning and when time came for a break, I took a walk instead of going for the lunch. The doctor said it was because of the heat and dehydration – and if we had gone forth and started the shoot like planned, I could have dropped any moment without any intervention from you."

"Oh…" Kenshin looked aside, feeling rather foolish. He was all too aware of the heat that was rising to his cheeks too. He prayed that it was too dark for her to see it. "Yes, um – that makes sense, that it does. Then this one shouldn't…" he scrambled, trying to think a good escape from the awkward situation.

However, before he managed it, she blurted out of a sudden, "Would you like to come talk inside?"

"Oro!"

She slammed her hand in front of her mouth and mumbled through her fingers, "I'm sorry, that sounds awfully forward of me to ask! But it's just, I'd like to see the person I'm talking to and, and—"

"No need to apologize." Kenshin raised his hands to stall her. "It's a reasonable request."

Or at least, it should be for most people.

However, as a rule, Kenshin never visited any of his co-stars after work hours, just to avoid complications, such as unwanted advances and rumors. But then again, Miss Kamiya hardly seemed the type to try and hit on him… and really, hadn't he come here with the exact purpose of creating a professional rapport between them?

His mouth didn't wait for further input from his brain and he heard himself say, "This one would like that, Miss Kamiya."

Her face lit up with a smile so bright that it made all his fears and hesitations feel downright foolish. And so, a funny feeling fluttering in his stomach, Kenshin found himself climbing inside her cluttered trailer.

Most people in the production team with long trips to their apartments lived in similar arrangements while filming was taking place. And yes, even Kenshin had been prepared a trailer. However, compared to his luxurious, if somewhat empty version (he had brought only two suitcases with him and had unpacked both into cabinets already), Miss Kamiya's small space was filled with her. Action and martial arts posters covered the walls, one of them being the cinematic poster for his oldest movie, The Legend of Hitokiri Battousai. A set of gymnastic training clothes and a wet towel were drying over the cabinet doors, and in her little kitchenette, the table was littered with drying dishes and few easy-to-cook snacks.

As he looked around, Miss Kamiya hastily straightened her comforter. She shrugged in apology, signaling that it was the only place to sit she had to offer.

Kenshin smiled, somewhat charmed by the unintended nostalgia trip. It had been over ten years since he had endured conditions like these.

"Um," She hesitated, tugging a longer strand of her bangs behind her ear shyly. "Would you like anything to drink? Coke, juice… tea?"

"Tea would be lovely, thank you." Her curious glance spurred him to honesty, "While this one tried to sleep on the plane, it's always something of a wasted effort. So the next best thing is trying to stay awake until night and sleeping then. Otherwise, the jet lag will be terrible, that it will."

"Oh, that makes sense," she agreed, and headed to the kitchenette, setting to fill her water boiler. "From where did you fly, if I may ask? Megumi said you finished filming a movie before coming here."

"By Megumi, you mean Takani Megumi-san, the assistant director?" After her answering nod, he continued, "And yes, this one just got the last scene done this morning in Berlin, Germany."

"You have been shooting in Europe again?" She gasped in delight, turning to stare at him so fast that the water canister sloshed alarmingly. "Is it another spy movie? Or was it war themed?"

Her enthusiasm was… charming and despite himself, Kenshin found himself smiling.

"Neither," he murmured. "It was something of a sci-fi mash-up that centered around time-travel. Quite outrageous, but it was a pleasant change to be allowed to play a role more exciting than what this one usually gets. This one's character had three different versions of himself running around in the storyline."

"That is exciting." She grinned, but her brows furrowed in thought. She grabbed a pair of tea mugs from the cabinet, held them up for inspection of their cleanliness, and deeming that they passed muster, set tea bags in and poured boiling water on them.

Kenshin couldn't even remember the last time he'd drunk tea that came in simple, disposable tea bags, but he accepted the cup she offered him without a word.

To his surprise, she didn't take the chance to sit beside him on the bed but settled to lean comfortably against her wardrobe, holding up her mug in one hand.

His eyes wandered to her arms, noting how defined her biceps were. He paused, taking in all the details: the posters, the slogan on her shirt, and how very fit she obviously was. The clues painted a picture that questioned his unspoken assumptions about her – or more accurately, upended them entirely.

"You are a martial artist," he said, a bit incredulously.

"I am." She admitted it easily like it was an everyday thing for her. "I have a black belt in judo and kickboxing as well as the assistant master's status in my family's kendo style."

Kenshin blinked at the list.

He had met quite a few actresses who claimed to do "some martial arts to stay fit." To his understanding, these days it was even considered trendy. However, no one got to what amounted to three proven masteries in diverse fighting styles without a real passion and drive for them.

"That's a respectable feat, indeed," he observed, somewhat shaken. He had never met a woman so self-evidently after his own heart, so to speak. But if she was a martial arts buff, then what the hell was she doing shooting a romantic comedy? Wasn't that the worst sort of mismatch with her interests? "Um, pardon this one for asking… but why aren't you auditioning for action movies?"

"You think I haven't tried?" She raised her brow and lifted her mug upwards, motioning towards her chest. "Unfortunately, these seem to be a severe handicap for getting casted in a leading role."

"Oh…" He paused, "But what about…"

"Action projects looking for an actress?" She finished for him. "Hah! For those, a pretty face is far more important than fighting skills. Honestly, the best offer I have gotten so far in the whole genre is for stunt work, and while I have all the respect for the men and women who do that – I also have an acting degree and the student loans to match."

"No," she wrinkled her nose in distaste. "I have to be practical and grab the best chance I get… which led me to this role, incidentally."

Kenshin nodded in understanding, even if he couldn't help but find her trouble deeply unfair. When he had been about her age, he had only his swordsmanship and a little freeform hand-to-hand fighting under his belt and still, he had gotten casted for that first, pivotal leading role. Though honestly speaking, it had been his looks, not his acting or fighting skills, that had been Uramura-sensei's reason for taking a risk on him then. Apparently, he had fit exactly the older man's vision of the legendary hitokiri.

Hoping she would continue, Kenshin said, "You must be very talented, then."

"Huh?"

"As an actress," he clarified. "Uramura-sensei can be really strict about his casting choices."

"Hardly," she snorted, her face twisting sourly. "I think he just typecasted me. My character is a pretty close match to my personality. Honestly, swap my interest in diverse martial arts to Kendo only and I don't even need to act. Like her, I'm an awkward, somewhat assertive tomboy from a good middle-class family. I'm pretty sure Megumi and Uramura-sensei figured that out from the first minute of the interview."

"So I see," Kenshin smiled. His cheeks were starting to hurt from smiling so much, but he couldn't quite bring himself to stop. It was strange. What strange magic did she have that she made him smile? "That's actually quite handy, to have a character that resonates with you so – it makes things easier, especially in a time-constrained project like this one, that it does."

"Yeah, you are right," she admitted, but her tone said: I really don't agree.

"…Or do you have something against it?"

"Eh, not really," she hedged. "Well, actually… I am disappointed. True, this is my first leading role – but I have done half a dozen smaller roles, every single time drawing the slot for the sidekick who is, in essence, a nice girl with a temper. Honestly, I am getting sick and tired of getting constantly typecasted for my personality."

Kenshin raised his brow.

She scowled at him, which in turn struck a chord with him and caused a torrent of rather undignified giggles to bubble past his lips. He curled up and covered his mouth, not entirely sure why he found this so funny. Shouldn't it be sad? It was sad, but it was so sad that it was funny because she had just managed to convey a grievance that matched very closely to one of his oldest and sorest spots regarding his career development. He wheezed for breath until he finally managed to get his emotions under control, then he wiped his eyes dry with the back of his hand and straightened.

She was staring him like he had grown a second head and announced himself as an alien.

"Pardons for my rudeness, just now," He waved his hand in apology. "It's just… typecasting is a problem most actors suffer from, that it is."

"How so?" She eyed at him, her sour look turning into a hostile glower.

It was refreshing and weirdly charming, to be treated as a person, instead of a celebrity. Kenshin grinned and pointed at his hair, "Say… if you had to take a guess, how many times this one has played a character with red hair?"

"None."

"That's right," Kenshin said, somewhat surprised. "How did you know?"

"I have seen all your movies." She looked aside and shrugged, trying to make it seem like it was a statement without any particular meaning to her. Unfortunately, she couldn't contain her blood flow and her cheeks flushed pink.

It was alluring sight, one that Kenshin couldn't quite keep himself from admiring.

His pulse was quickening, making him feel a little light-headed and he cleared his throat awkwardly. "Uh… yes, quite so. But in any case, the reason why this one asked was to prove a point, that it was." He tousled his short-cropped hair a bit to display the even colored roots. "This is this one's natural hair color."

"What..? How's that possible?" She stared. "I have never seen you with red hair before. Not even your fanbooks mention you having anything but dark hair."

Fanbooks?

This one has those?

And she has read them?

Kenshin huffed a laugh, "Most likely this one has a foreigner or two in his family tree or something, but yes – the color is entirely natural, this one assures you. As to why it's not known… well, for the longest time at the beginning of his career, this one couldn't get any roles when people thought of him as coming from mixed origins. So, this one either dyed his hair or wore wigs, just to blend in. Even now, this one's manager is against letting it become known because it defies people's assumptions."

"Oh…" She let out a little gasp.

"Also, when it comes to the type-casting trouble you mentioned," Kenshin continued gently, "that can get downright vicious in the West. This one never gets more diverse role than that of a kung fu master, ninja, samurai, or some random period-appropriate medley of those."

"But those are action roles… you are always a hero or an anti-hero and that's what you want to do, right?"

"Yes and no," Kenshin paused, not quite sure how to explain. "This one enjoys martial arts, true – but after the first few times one played a brooding, stand-offish character with anger issues and a tragic past… it gets old, that's all." He looked down at his tea, noting how cool the mug felt in his hands. He took a sip and grimaced at the bitterness, lowering his hands again. "That's the reason this one is here, to be honest."

"In Japan… or this movie?"

"Both, actually. When Uramura-sensei mentioned his trouble finding a big name to star in his new, experimental project, it didn't take even five seconds for this one to agree to play the lead."

"Really?"

"Yes, this one has been hungry for different roles for quite a while," Kenshin smiled, allowing a hint of self-deprecation show. "Though, if this one is perfectly truthful… one might be somewhat rusty, acting-wise. It has been years since this one been required to flex out of his comfort zone, that it has."

A silence followed his proclamation.

Kenshin raised his gaze, not entirely sure what to expect, but Miss Kamiya was smiling at him.

"What is it?" he asked.

"Nothing." She said, still smiling that little, secretive smile of hers. "It just struck me that this is not only my first foray into portraying romance."

"Oro!" Kenshin protested, instantly recalling a dozen passionate scenes… only to fall silent as he compared them to this role. A few snappy one-liners and witty flirting that resulted in a frisky make-out session or sex scene weren't exactly what one could call romantic.

In this role, the whole focus was on the slow, emotional build up between their characters.

An intimidating thought.

How the hell did one portray such delicate details?

"You are quite right, that you are," Kenshin finally agreed. "Um… hopefully, you are prepared for several re-takes."

"Don't worry about that. Uramura-sensei seems very reasonable. He doesn't mind re-shooting or explaining his vision in detail," she said, frowning thoughtfully until she suddenly tittered, her blush returning in full force.

He raised his brow in question, but she was already escaping into the kitchenette.

"Would you like another cup of tea?" she asked, facing away from him.

"Uh… sure." He rose to stand. "But only if this one can make it."

"Oh come on!" She looked over her shoulder, a rather scandalized expression on her face. "Even I couldn't possibly have screwed up a tea made from tea bags."

"What? No! It was perfectly good tea." He hurried to reassure her. "It's just unfair for you to do all the work, that it is. Besides, aren't sharing tasks and trusting each other the basics of a good working relationship?"

"I guess," she said doubtfully but relinquished the water bottle to him. "Well, there."

"Thank you," he inclined his head to her.

A mischievous curiosity tingled at the back of his mind and he smiled slowly.

Perhaps it would be impolite to ask, but she had blushed so prettily… The hell with it, one only lived once! "Now, what did you find so funny, just a moment ago? Something about the romance scenes, perhaps?"

Her stormy blue eyes widened in recall and then the red flooded back to her cheeks, like a torrent of life sprinkled all over her face. He couldn't help but be acutely aware how there were but a couple hand spans of distance between them… and for a second, he wanted to lean forward and catch her parted lips in a kiss.

She gasped softly and looked aside, and just like that, the moment was over, like it had never been there.

Disappointment and something stranger churning in his stomach, Kenshin exhaled slowly and sought something else to catch his attention as he tried to ignore his racing heart. Unfortunately, the tiny kitchenette wasn't very good for distractions, especially when Miss Kamiya was so close to him.

Speaking of which…

"Would you mind if this one called you Miss Kaoru, instead of Miss Kamiya?" But realizing how that might be taken wrong, he hurried to reassure her, "Just to cultivate a good working relationship."

"Uh…" She cleared her throat. "No, it's fine. Um, could I call you by your name, too? Just to keep things professional, of course."

What was this warmth spreading in his chest? This strange feeling that made him all woozy in the head and strangely exhilarated whenever her attention was directed at him?

"Of course," he smiled. "This one would be pleased if you would do so, that he would." Then he looked down at the water bottle in his hands, "So, uh… tea?"

"Yes, please."

He turned away from her and slipped past her to the sink, about to search for a dish sponge so he could wash their mugs, when she said, "The thing that you asked me, about what made me blush… I was just thinking about how many retakes that kissing scene will take."

The unopened water bottle slipped from his fingers, dropping to the floor as he recalled the scene in question. His heart skipped a beat, his mind painting a vivid image of Miss Kaoru caging him between with her arms, pressing against him with a pretty blush on her cheeks, her blue eyes hooded in desire, how delectable her lips would be…

"….though I should say, in the spirit of honesty and all that, I, ah – at first, I wasn't sure if I could ever do that scene with you."

The words felt like she had poured ice over him.

Kenshin froze, the fluttery feel in the pit of his stomach transforming into a dozen of snakes coiling tight.

He turned to look at her slowly…

"But now…" She was smiling at him, her eyes searching. "Now, I'm thinking, it might not be such a bad thing, even if we had to do a retake or two."

"Retakes." Kenshin wetted his lips. "We are on a tight schedule, that we are." A part of him, the foolish schoolboy with a crush, wanted to suggest getting in some practice beforehand, but his rational side won just in time. They'd only just met! What if she thought he was some skirt-chasing idiot?

Oh gods, he couldn't risk that…

A spark of amusement danced in her eyes as she took in his dithering. "It's only for a few weeks…" She grinned. "And more importantly, didn't you say you were rusty on portraying romantic interest?"

"That one did."

"How… unfortunate." She breathed out in wonder. "We really should try to get some practice in then."

And Kenshin blushed, a foolish smiled taking over his features. "This one would like that, Miss Kaoru."

AN: I wrote some continuation. It can be found in "Thousand Words" collection, drabble 145: "A Comedy of Romance 2 - Goodbyes"