
Characters aren’t chosen——they walk in on their own. 42Please respect copyright.PENANAHuLbyhhbHU
From the moment their eyes met, reunion was inevitable.
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The audition meeting was supposed to be calm.
The director arrived an hour early.42Please respect copyright.PENANAm6kLXcAIJx
The art lead came in carrying a box of prototype bunny ears.42Please respect copyright.PENANAdkXCohnBtH
The screenwriter sat in the corner, half-dead, gnawing on an energy bar.
The manager had already arranged the candidates into four Excel tiers and reminded everyone:
“Today’s focus is on the character’s aura——not their looks.”
Then the door swung open.
The boss walked in wearing sunglasses, dragging behind a suitcase clearly packed for CP emergencies—romantic pairings he was way too obsessed with.
“I’m here to supervise. Personally.”
He sounded like he was about to launch a military operation.
“…You sure you’re not just here to emotionally manipulate us?”42Please respect copyright.PENANAFM989CvV7T
The director muttered under his breath.
The boss took off his sunglasses. His eyes were glistening.
“I just want to see the moment they reunite.”
No one responded.
The screenwriter quietly put away the energy bar and opened his laptop.
“If this fails, I’ll open a death route. Everyone. Dies.”
“No no no! I’ll behave. I promise.” The boss panicked.
The manager glanced at the time. “First actor’s here.”
Silence for two seconds.
The director straightened.42Please respect copyright.PENANAXJWXWcXKZQ
The art lead pushed up her glasses.42Please respect copyright.PENANARPoLVvCAOs
The screenwriter opened a new document:
“How Do You Act Like You’ve Met Before?”
The boss was already seated in the front row, solemn as a high priest.
Auditions——begin.
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The first bunny-role actor walked in wearing a fuzzy hat she brought herself.42Please respect copyright.PENANA2yAfpKSERC
She took her mark, then suddenly threw both hands into the air——
“You can’t do this to me!”
Three seconds of awkward silence followed.
The director flipped a page in the audition script.42Please respect copyright.PENANAdU4YRicifE
“We’re doing a scene from episode two today. The reunion in the back hills.”
“And uh… which scene were you performing, exactly?”
“Oh… sorry. Got too into it.”
The boss frowned.
The second bunny came from a dance background——42Please respect copyright.PENANAKyLKYVOPSY
She turned her head with such extreme flexibility it looked like her neck had no bones.
“I think…” the art lead muttered, sketching as she observed,42Please respect copyright.PENANATsHUHRfS3J
“…this bunny might be a little too flexible.”
The third walked in with a cool, distant expression42Please respect copyright.PENANA5zH1NUaof7
She turned, nodded, and delivered her line:
“…You’re back.”
The director nodded.42Please respect copyright.PENANAcJBAf2GMOz
“Not bad. Feels grounded.”
The boss shot up from their seat.42Please respect copyright.PENANA97AQ7NBjnD
“Wrong! No chemistry! How can she be this calm right now?!”
The screenwriter tried to explain.42Please respect copyright.PENANAfJG3s3SHG5
“It’s not calm——it’s emotional suppression. She’s holding it in.”
“That’s suppression?! I just feel like I can’t ship them!”
“…Okay, fine. I give up on character arcs.”
He shut his laptop. The director patted his shoulder in sympathy.
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“Next one. Trying for the bunny role.”
The manager announced. No one responded.
She was the seventh of the day. Everyone’s eyes were starting to glaze over.
The girl stepped in, standard audition outfit on, hair loosely tied.
She lowered herself and lightly brushed her fingers across the synthetic grass mat.
No lines.
Then, she looked up——42Please respect copyright.PENANADgucVbuleE
gaze drifting gently into the distance.
“…You’re back?”
The words were soft.42Please respect copyright.PENANAxly23Cbs63
But in that moment, the entire room fell silent.
Only breathing remained.
The director slowly sat up.42Please respect copyright.PENANA82fPehYKXP
The art lead’s pen froze in mid-air.42Please respect copyright.PENANAZPwBo8PN89
The screenwriter hit the save key without realizing it.
The boss, eyes wide——
“That’s it. I ship them.”
The director cleared his throat.
“…Alright. She stays.”
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“Next, we’re testing for Xi-Yu. With the bunny.”
The manager spoke.
Several candidates took turns stepping in.
The first had a solar-system-level smile,42Please respect copyright.PENANAHSsItE3qkI
but once she hit her mark, she delivered her lines like she was reciting from flashcards.
The second walked like she was on a runway.
The third actor turned to look at the bunny ——42Please respect copyright.PENANAWqE0MB5Rmb
and froze.
Not because it was quiet.42Please respect copyright.PENANA5RAOkvRsm9
Everyone was waiting.
But the bunny was still crouching, head slightly raised.
Xi-Yu stood there, body leaning in just a little.42Please respect copyright.PENANAsfJEkQrZgF
They simply looked at each other.
The director didn’t call cut.42Please respect copyright.PENANASIhyZ2s8qi
The screenwriter didn’t type.42Please respect copyright.PENANA0ZQnE5hADZ
The art lead didn’t sketch.
The manager slowly lifted their hand off the earpiece.
The boss’s eyes shimmered, and a smile crept across their face before they could stop it.
The director finally spoke.42Please respect copyright.PENANAEkOnZX74Y9
“…Okay. It’s them.”
No one objected.
“I can write them.”
“I want to draw them.”
“Honestly, it’s almost illegal putting them together.”
The boss said nothing—42Please respect copyright.PENANAXNB5EQ0NE2
just stamped their CP notebook like a maniac.
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The audition finally ended.42Please respect copyright.PENANApVL8jzxcWp
Everyone exhaled at once.
They were here.42Please respect copyright.PENANAcXGEAYWapJ
For real.