"Let her in!"
Leo Vance's internal debate was shattered by the sound of the girl's voice. Without a moment's hesitation, he called out to the staff at the door.
The staff member, a veteran casting director named Frank, paused. He had spent years in the trenches of Hollywood, moving through backlots and indie stages, and he knew a liability when he saw one. He sized up the girl, then looked back at Leo with a deeply troubled expression.
"Stay right there," Frank instructed the girl. He then walked over to Leo, keeping his voice low and urgent. "Leo, it's not that I'm being heartless. I know we're desperate for a lead, but this girl... she has a problem."
Frank tapped his temple with a sigh.
"Is she... mentally unstable?" Lydia Chase asked from the side, her eyes wide with concern.
Leo didn't answer immediately; he just watched the girl through the glass, his gaze narrowing.
"No, no, you've got it wrong," Frank whispered, a bitter smile playing on his lips. "I've been in this business for twenty years. I've seen every type of extra and rising star. That girl is Chloe Summers. I met her a year ago when she was just starting out."
Frank took a deep breath. "She was diagnosed with a severe case of Acute Neuritis, a condition that attacks the brain and spinal cord. The specialists say it's progressive. It's similar to ALS but more erratic. She's fine one minute, but then her nervous system just... shorts out. She collapses. She can't stand up. She doesn't faint, but her body just refuses to obey her. Directors in the Valley won't touch her. They're terrified she'll literally drop dead on their set."
Lydia Chase listened, her heart growing heavy. She looked at Chloe, who was still standing by the door, trying to smooth out her disheveled blonde hair. "That's... that's devastating. To have that kind of talent and be locked out because of something you can't control."
"It's the reality of the business," Frank nodded solemnly. "Almost no crew in Burbank or Atlanta will hire her anymore. But she still shows up to every audition she can find. I don't know how our pre-screener, Samantha, let her through the net today."
Just as Frank and Lydia expected Leo to thank the girl for coming and send her on her way, Leo's eyes began to gleam with a strange, intense light.
"Alright," Leo said, his voice ringing with a newfound clarity. "Let her in. I want to see her."
Lydia and Frank were stunned. Frank hesitated for a second, then went to open the door, signaling for Chloe to approach.
As Chloe Summers walked toward the table, the light in Leo's eyes only grew more intense. Her flowing blonde hair, her delicate and exquisite features, and that bright, almost defiant smile on her face, it was hard to believe this was a girl living on a "countdown."
"Hello, Director! My name is Chloe Summers! I'm nineteen years old!"
The girl's face was brimming with a cheerful energy, though a faint, sharp tremor in her hands betrayed her nervousness.
Chloe loved acting. After graduating from high school and receiving her diagnosis, she had been admitted to the UCLA School of Theater, Film and Television, but she had chosen to take an indefinite leave. She didn't have four years to wait for a degree. She wanted to use her limited time to fulfill the only thing that had ever made her feel alive.
To Chloe, acting was the only light in the darkness. She had spent six months as a special guest actress in indie projects before her condition worsened. Now, every audition was a gamble.
She looked at the young man sitting in front of her. This was the man who had played Gojo Satoru. The man who had just dominated the global box office with Hidden Inventory. To someone like her, Leo Vance was a legend, a visionary who had actually made it.
Chloe, don't be nervous, she told herself. Worst comes to worst, you just collapse. It's not like you aren't used to that.
Leo leaned forward, tapping his pen against a copy of the script. "Chloe... Before anything else deliver this line for me. Imagine you're standing on a stage, facing a crowd that expects you to follow the rules, but you only care about the music. Ready?"
Chloe nodded, her expression shifting instantly.
Leo read the prompt....
Chloe took a single, deep breath. The tremors in her hands seemed to vanish as she closed her eyes for a split second. When she opened them, the desperation was gone, replaced by a radiant, almost frantic joy.
As she started, her voice took on a vibrant, unyielding energy that filled the room.
Leo sat back, visibly stunned. In his mind, the "Six Eyes" of his intuition flared with a blinding intensity. This wasn't acting, she was the character.
"Director?" Chloe asked, the light in her eyes flickering with a hint of uncertainty as the silence stretched. "May I... may I start the audition? I have a piece prepared."
"Audition?" Leo finally said, a smile breaking across his lips. "No. No need for an audition."
Chloe froze. Her heart plummeted. Rejected again. Of course. Who would hire a girl who might die mid-take?
"I understand," Chloe whispered, her eyes downcast. "Thank you for your time, Director Vance."
She began to turn away, her shoulders slumped with a weight that no nineteen-year-old should have to carry.
"Why are you walking away?" Leo asked, his amusement becoming uncontrollable. "I said there's no need for an audition because... you passed. You're our Kaori."
Chloe stopped in her tracks. Her pupils dilated. She spun around so fast she nearly lost her balance, rushing to the table and supporting herself with both hands. She stared at Leo with a mix of disbelief and explosive excitement.
"I didn't mishear you, did I?! Director Leo! I... I passed?!"
"That's right," Leo repeated, his voice gentle. "You passed. Frank will handle the paperwork and the health protocols. I'll send you the script tonight. I want you to live in it."
Chloe's expression was a whirlwind, the nervous, uneasy girl from a minute ago was gone, replaced by a radiant, glowing soul.
Leo watched her, the smile never leaving his face. The contrast in her personality, the "all-or-nothing" energy she projected, it was Kaori. She didn't need to act the part; she was the part.
Beside him, Lydia Chase and Frank were paralyzed. They looked at each other, then back at Leo, utterly bewildered.
"Leo," Lydia whispered. "Are you sure? This is a massive risk."
"Risks are what we do here, Lydia," Leo said, picking up his pen and crossing off the list of other names. "We aren't just making a movie. We're making a memory. And Chloe Summers... she's the only one who can make that memory real."
The "Healing" drama was officially cast. And Leo Vance knew that by the time April arrived, the whole world would be crying.
Plz Drop Some Power Stones.
The Your Lie in April arc is relatively short and will be concluding soon, but if you're looking to get early access to the JJK 0 Movie chapters, be sure to check out the Patreon!
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