I always loved fairytales about poor girls falling into true love and becoming queens. Then they could wear the diamond crown and shining dresses. I found my prince, Rin Tanaka, in my freshman year at the Academy and he proposed to me with a sparkling diamond the day of our graduation. He was always protective and endearing. He spoiled me and adored me; he made me feel things I never imagined I could feel. I was the only woman in the world. I was his queen. It was perfect. I should have known better then, my mother told me how deceiving perfection was, but I was always too naive to listen.

We were not yet married when it all crumbled apart. It was three months until the wedding, we were laying together on his sofa watching reruns of old shows. I had been playing with his hair, wondering when he might ask me to finally move in with him. He would ask, wouldn't he? I tried to bring the idea to him once, but he wanted to talk about it later. Later never came. The main characters in our show leaned into their first kiss, Rin copied the gesture and brought my face up to his. A sound of windchimes erupted from his phone on the coffee table. He tried to pull me back into him, but it was too late, I had already seen the caller ID. Sometimes I wish I had just let him kiss me, ignored the call and had gone on with my happy little marriage. My best girlfriends took me dancing after I told them what happened the next week. Several drinks later the girls had to drag me out of the club while I very gracefully spurned all men and love. Since then, I have spent every moment studying and sketching, I have had some small animation gigs for YourVid channels and completed several simple commissions.

Then a few months ago, my fortune turned on a dime. I got hired as a concept artist at an up-and-coming animation studio! It is a long drive from, but I would have packed up and moved closer if my parents were willing to help me.

Ever since I played with watercolors in my grade school art class, my dream has been to be a great artist and then in middle school, I discovered digital art, and I decided that I would be the best artist in all of Japan. I swore to my parents our family name would be a household favorite! I studied every day, even during the summer so I could pass my high school entrance exams and get into an art and media focused high school. It was there that I made friends who introduced me to digital art. I studied every day, even during the summer so I could pass my high school entrance exams and get into an art and media focused high school. It was there that I made friends who introduced me to digital art.

I pull into the parking lot of the glorious stone building, so full of immaculate windows that it was like looking into the sun. I make a pot of tea in the breakroom and bring a mug of it with me to my desk. I barely get my computer powered on before my supervisor, Mr. Hashido, drags his feet into my cubicle.

"Good morning, Miss Ito. I trust I will have your final images in my email before lunch, they are done?" I assure him they are as I put down my mug and stand, lowering my head toward him and relaying the subtle changes I made to the last draft. He walks away toward another artist, and I return to my seat. I check my email, nothing since a few days ago, then open the file for my final piece. I upload the files to Mr. Hashido's email then send it with the project's name and my own in the header. I am glad to be done with that project (assuming that they accept my artwork without a hundred remarks as they sometimes do) and have a few minutes of peace while I soak in the satisfaction of hard work coming to an end. The jasmine tea soothes my throat and wakes my mind.

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My eyes close as the stress begins leaving my body and I start to relax, when suddenly one of the animators comes booming around the corner into my cubicle. The short boisterous lady stands arms crossed and scowling.

"You stole my story on purpose, didn't you? I work so hard! Why do you get the good gigs when you have only been here a few months?" She looks like a fine lady with her perfect curls and mini skirt, but she transforms into a real brat when she opens her mouth. "I bet you lay with Mr. Hashido so he'll give you the good ones!"

"Keep your voice down, Aki. You draw too much attention to stupid things. I don't know what you are talking about anyway, I haven't gotten a new assignment yet." I get up and walk past her.

"Hey that's mean! Where do you think you're going?"

"To smoke." I wave her off and button my coat. I lean against the stone wall, looking out over the parking lot and the rest of the city which seems to be a separate entity on the other side of the road. As if this were a sacred ground for likeminded artists and story tellers to maintain. My minivan is on the far side of the parking lot though I can barely make it out through the snowfall. Still, the soft blue door captures me. Rin and I met because of that silly car. I had been stuck on the side of the road in Meguro, the car had stalled out and I didn't know what to do. I had just left home and didn't have a phone yet. Then an old beater truck pulled up behind me. He had rushed over to my window and all I could think in that moment was what a dork he must be for wearing a hug pink furry coat. He helped me get my car out of the street and gave me a jumpstart. I formally thanked him and intended to get back on my way, but he had insisted that he follow me to a gas station to insure I wouldn't get stranded on the highway again. It was a frigid snowy day much like this, the sky was a grey sheet of clouds, my heart was a blank page yearning for a story. Well one thing led to another, we found ourselves in a cafe sipping tea and eating little cakes. We talked about our dreams and aspirations and our families' ideas about them. The next week, classes at my academy began and Rin walked right into Animation Basics and History. We could not believe the coincidence; we had never discussed our work or education before. It sparked a unique interest in one another which turned into love before the new year.

A gust of wind smacks me back into the present. My cigarette is mostly ash nearly down to the butt. What a waste. I put it out in the snow collecting at the curb, throw it in the can by the door and return to the warmth of the studio.

I check my email again, there is a new message from Mr. Hashido.

To those it may concern,

a new client has approached us with an undeniable offer. This will be top priority above any projects you may have on your schedule. Appropriate accommodations will be made in regard to your previous commitments.

This will be a full-length anime adapted from the manga series Interstellar Lovers by Ryoichi Yoshida.

If you have received this email you are expected to present only your best efforts, if you are unable to commit to this project email me directly immediately.

Mr. Yoshida has not announced the animation of his books as of yet, so do please keep this project at work. Mention of the project outside of work will result in disciplinary action.

I stare dumbly at the screen for a while. I read all fifty-two volumes of Interstellar Lovers in high school; it was the bestselling manga in Japan for years. It still might be. So why would a big shot like Yoshida come to the Laughing Fox Animation Studio? I have been so certain that no one of any importance has ever heard our name before. Maybe this will be the big break the agency has been waiting for. Maybe this is my ticket to the golden days.