Kyota stopped to take a deep breath, before continuing to speak.
"When I first met Kyosuke, I understood the reasons behind his request. But it's been more than five years already and he still clings to his fears. During all this time, he had missed out on so many good opportunities that it's almost painful to watch. So, I want him to stop running away. And, if he can't do it himself, then I will put a stop to it in his stead."
Sato listened to all that with a smile on his face. When he spoke, his voice was quiet and soft.
"I always knew you were very considerate of us. Whenever you assigned the projects you always took our wishes into account and because of that I always felt guilty. But I never knew Kyosuke's situation was that bad. He never said anything to me."
"That's because he himself doesn't know it. It's not terrible yet, but since he refuses to take even his shirt off in front of the camera, there are certain things he won't be able to do. For example, he can never play in movies that either require him to swim or fall into a pool of water.
This was fine while he was very young and just barely starting out on his career. However, now he's beginning to receive attention. People will start noticing him more and more in the future and what will happen then? Will he refuse a good role just because he's embarrassed to show his upper body? Why become an actor in the first place if you can't handle that much?!" Kyota finished with an irritated huff.
At this point, Kyota Rikatsu's usual coldness and composure were beginning to falter. Whenever Kyosuke was involved, it was like his mind didn't work in the usual parameters. He always got angry with the young man for doing some stupid thing or other. Not to mention that he always ended up having to scold him for it.
For some reason, though, even after being mean and standoffish with him, Kyosuke never really showed an open dislike towards him. Sure, he grumbled and said hateful words from time to time, just like today. But his eyes were always staring at Kyota without any trace of a shadow. They were always bright and honest, expressing a genuine interest.
This made even someone as cold and unfeeling as Kyota appreciate such a candid personality. Even though people avoided wearing their hearts on their sleeves, afraid of getting hurt or being disliked, Kyosuke was different.
Most of the time, his wild behavior could barely be restrained by social etiquette, while other times, he acted unruly on purpose. No need to mention that those latter instances usually involved Kyota one way or another.
"Kyota-san…" Sato called out softly. "It might not be my place to say this, but I believe Kyosuke's reluctance to do this kind of job may have something to do with you as well."
"Eh?!"
It was Kyota's turn to be surprised now.
"What does it have to do with me?!" he blurted out in disbelief.
"You're too handsome. There's just no way he can compare." Sato's smile widened and he tilted his head to one side. "How can Kyosuke feel confident to show his body, when you are such a high competition?"
Kyota blinked several times, looking utterly dumbfounded. Of course, he knew what Sato was talking about, but that was a part of his early history in the business. It happened so long ago that no one even remembered it. So how could these two youngest know about it?
"How... I mean...How did you find out?"
"How? Simple." Sato chuckled softly, covering his mouth with one hand. "Kyosuke found an old photograph of Kyota-san posing for an underwear brand."
"But that was so many years ago. No one at the agency even knows about it. Also, because of what happened to that client's business soon after my photoshoot, everything changed. To be more precise, things went downhill shortly afterwards and they took down all the articles. Only a handful of copies they couldn't trace remained on the market."
Sato pursed his lips. He gave the other man a side glance, then continued to speak calmly.
"It's true though. Somehow, we happened to stumble upon one of those lost magazines. We were still in high school at that time and Kyosuke was instantly impressed by you, Kyota-san. He kept the magazine and looked at the pictures from time to time. When I asked him about it, he said it served as motivation. Later, when I decided to get into acting, Kyosuke convinced me to come to this agency. We never told you, Kyota-san, but one of the reasons why we chose HoshiAkari Entertainment all those years ago was because you were the Director here."
Kyota fell silent. He looked straight ahead, while the hand holding the steering wheel trembled slightly. Despite all that, though, his face didn't show any visible traces of emotion.
After a while, Kyota's lips curved upward and his face broke into a smile.
"So that's how it is." He said in a whisper. "Then I guess I'll have to treat my dear fan better from now on."
"Just don't bully him too much. At this point, he's so accustomed to your current behavior that, if you suddenly change, it might scare him silly. And besides, he doesn't know I told you about this."
"Who knew Kyosuke-kun had such ideas in his head? He never said a word to me about any of this."
"You've been his idol for a long time. What could he do? Come up to you and say that he felt embarrassed to compare abs with you?" Sato sighed. "That's just how Kyosuke is. He has a huge pride and a small mind. His heart, though, is quite big, so don't go around breaking it"
"Kyosuke-kun is indeed a very good kid and deserves the best. Now, leaving him aside, what about you?"
"Eh?!" Sato asked in wonder.
The sudden shift in conversation took him completely by surprise. His mind wasn't able to adjust rapidly enough, so he fell speechless.