Two years later...

The car inched forward, getting closer and closer to the red carpet drop off. Sumire squeezed Nick's fingers painfully hard, and he looked at her, giving her a reassuring smile.

"You'll do fine, you'll be fine," he soothed, leaning in to give her a light kiss on her temple, right at her hairline. For tonight, her hair had been put in an elegant updo, not the traditional Japanese hairdo, but kind of a mixture of east and west, with braids mixed into an almost chignon, with a nod to her Asian heritage.

Sumire was wearing an absolutely stunning kimono. It was magenta, with black at the bottom, done in a pattern of peonies, with a black and gold brocade obi. Her feet were in white tabi, the Japanese socks with the split between the big toe and the rest, so she could wear the zori, or traditional Japanese footwear.

"You look stunning," Nick said, for the third or fourth time that evening.

Sumire smiled at him, large eyes luminous. "So do you," she replied.

Nick made a noise. "Please, I'm just a suit. You look like a beautiful Asian bird of paradise or something. I've never seen anything as gorgeous as you look in that. No one will be able to look at anyone else."

"You don't think people will think I'm trying to appropriate anything?"

"Why would they? You're Japanese, for Christ's sake, you're not appropriating shit."

The car finally pulled up to the drop off, and the door was opened.

"Ready, Mimi-chan? Here we go."

Nick got out of the car as the crowd roared, and reached back to help Sumire. She really did need help because she could hardly separate her legs to step out because of the kimono.

There were gasps as the waiting people caught sight of Sumire for the first time, and spontaneous applause and cries of approval for her attire. Sumire smiled at Nick, who grinned at her with unconcealed pride.

They stopped to talk to the first reporter on the carpet, a woman from the E! network.

"Wow, look at you two! This is simply stunning! Normally, I'd ask both of you who you were wearing, but, Sumire, does your kimono have a designer, or is it vintage?"

"Yes, this was designed by Michiko Kanazawa especially for me, actually," Sumire said. "It's definitely the most beautiful thing I've ever owned."

"And I'm wearing Armani," Nick interjected. "Not that anyone's going to want to know that when I'm standing next to her, I think." He winked at Sumire, who smiled back at him.

"So you're both nominated," the reporter continued, "Nick, you for best actor, and you, Sumire, for best supporting actress--"

Nick and Sumire nodded.

"These are first nominations for both of you, correct? So how do you feel?"

"I feel like I've stepped into someone else's life, to be honest," Sumire said. "I never had plans to be an actress, and I wasn't one of those kids who pretended to win awards and stuff when I was little, so this is just craziness for me." She turned to Nick.

"Me either, actually," Nick added. "When I was young, I kind of thought I wanted to be a singer or a musician, so this is really fun and exciting for me, too. And to share it with her is just the coolest thing in the world."

The young couple moved on, walking down the carpet, waving to fans, stopping often for photographs, or to shake hands with other people.

They stopped again, this time to talk to Kelly Ripa, who was there with her husband, Mark Consuelos, interviewing people for her show.

"Now your movie, The Heart of the Sun, is up for thirteen awards altogether, right? Isn't that amazing?" Kelly asked.

Nick nodded. "Mind blowing. We knew when we were working on it that it was going to be really special, but to have it recognized like this has been incredible for us."

"And this was your first film?" Mark asked Sumire.

She nodded, slipping her hand through Nick's arm.

"Her first acting of any kind," Nick clarified.

"You're kidding! How did that happen?"

"She was my language coach, she was hired to teach me Japanese, and when we got to the set, we found out that the person they'd hired to play Hana, an amazing actress named Minami Kalani, was pregnant, and had to drop out. So production was in a bit of a bind, they needed a half Japanese woman who knew the script and could step in right away," Nick explained. He gestured toward Sumire with a smile. "And there she was. She already knew the script from having worked with me, we were friends, so we had good chemistry, she spoke the language--"

"Good chemistry?" Kelly repeated. "Your chemistry was more than good." She made a fanning gesture. "I mean, my goodness, you practically set the screen on fire with your chemistry!"

Kelly looked down and her eyes widened. "Uh, excuse me, but what's this?" She lifted Sumire's left hand, where a ring glittered on the most important finger of all. "Is there something you need to tell us, Ms. Kotani?" Kelly and Sumire had met before, when Sumire was doing publicity for the movie, and were friends, otherwise Kelly would never have dreamed of asking such a question on live television.

Sumire and Nick exchanged glances, grinning.

"Well, I'm glad you asked," Sumire answered. "We agreed that we'd answer whoever asked, but we hoped it would be someone we knew and liked and had a personal relationship with, you know?" She leaned in and kissed Kelly, then Mark, on the cheek.

"The answer to your question is yes, there is something we need to tell you, Kelly and Mark," Sumire said, eyes dancing. "Nick asked me to marry him tonight while we were stuck in traffic on the 101, and I said yes, and you two are the first to know, so there!"

Nick, too, was looking from Kelly to Mark with happy eyes as they erupted with cries of joy.

"Well, America, you heard it here first," Kelly practically shouted as she jumped into Nick's arms to kiss him. "Ahhh! Congratulations, you guys!"

By now, people around them had figured out that something big had happened, and the crowd, too, had figured it out and had begun to cheer.

"Technically, you're not supposed to wear jewelry with a kimono, but I figured, this is pretty special, and the colors kind of match, so what the hell, you know?" Sumire laughed.

"Can we get a close up of the ring?" Kelly asked, so Sumire obliged, with Nick holding her hand up for the camera.

Finally, Sumire and Nick made it into the theatre, and were able to take their seats, though news of their engagement spread before them like a wildfire, and they had to stop every few steps to accept congratulations from everyone and their brother, it seemed.

They were seated right in the front row, which was perfect for Sumire's wardrobe. She was very uncomfortable knowing that a camera would be on her in her entirety the whole time, however. She had gotten much better about this, however, during the past year, having had to do publicity for the movie. Luckily, she'd been allowed to do most of it in the company of Nick, which made her feel much better.

"You okay?" he asked as they took their seats.

She nodded. "I'm always okay as long as you're with me," she said, looking around.

"What an incredibly nice thing to say," he replied, tickled. "And hey, at least your award is first, right? Then you can relax and enjoy the rest of the show."

Sumire stared at Nick. "You're joking, right? You know how nervous I am for you? I'm not expecting to win, but you, you have a very good chance, Nick-san, I'm going to be a wreck by the time they get to the best actor category. And yours is, like, the very last one, oh my god."

The show finally started, and the nominees were announced for Sumire's category. She heard her name announced, and marveled at how surreal her life was. How could she be sitting at the Academy Awards, listening as her name was announced with Reese Witherspoon and Jennifer Lawrence's? She knew that the academy did frequently like to give this award to newcomers, which she definitely was, but there was absolutely no way she was going to win. She went beyond newcomer, and it should be obvious to everyone that she was a poser, practically a faker, an imposter, a complete and total interloper--

Nick was shaking her.

"Mimi-chan? Go! You won, baby. They're clapping for you! Get up there!"

Sumire kept her seat, gripping the armrests. There had to be a mistake. She couldn't have won. Could not.

"But Nick, I don't have a speech," she said seriously to the man sitting next to her, still making no move to rise. "They have to give it to someone else."

Nick was laughing at her, finally rising himself and pulling her along with him. "Well, you're just going to have to improvise," he said over the noise of the ovation.

She shook her head and tried to sit back down, making the clapping crowd laugh.

On her other side. Hiroyuki Fujita, her costar, who was also clapping and laughing, stood and grabbed her other arm, pressing on her back gently to get her to stand.

Once she was well and truly on her feet, Hiro sat back down, but Nick remained on his feet, half pulling Sumire up on the stage.

"Mimi-chan, come on, you have to do this," he said, smiling his famous smile at her.

She finally got the message and walked unwillingly up the stairs, holding the hem of her gorgeous kimono so she wouldn't step on it.

She took the award from the presenter and faced the podium, as Nick finally let go of her hand and stepped back. She looked with wide eyes out at the crowd, shaking her head slightly in disbelief.

"I know everyone says they didn't expect to win, and they don't have anything prepared, but this the time that makes all those other times true, okay? Because I really don't." She nodded for emphasis. "And if I didn't know that it would ruin the silk, I'd be wiping my face with the sleeve of this million dollar kimono right now."

The crowd again erupted in laughter.

"So you all know my story by now. I wasn't supposed to be in this movie. I was just the language coach for this wonderful person right here--" and she gestured to Nick. "But then, through the most incredible turn of events, the third spear holder from the left ends up center stage, with all her clothes off, in a love scene, no less.

More laughter.

"I can never thank everyone who needs thanking, so I'll have to settle for thanking Nick Pensieri for everything he's done for me, and hope that the rest of you who deserve thanks know who you are. I wouldn't be here if it weren't for this man right here, quite literally, I think. I wouldn't be here.

"Nick-san, domo arigato gozaimasu. I love you."

She turned, kissed his cheek, and took his hand for help leaving the stage, to tumultuous applause.

Nick wiped his eyes as they were crossing the expanse with the woman escorting them, and the cameras picked this up as they cut to commercial.

The next few hours were a blur for Sumire, even though she stood and answered questions for reporters, and sounded rational as she did so, making everyone smile and laugh as she posed with her Oscar and with Nick.

They finally went back during a commercial break to take their seats, where she got more congratulations from Hiro and Murakami-sensei, who were sitting near them.

"Now you, Nick, now you, okay?" she said to her man, leaning in to kiss him.

"Right."

What are you thinking?" she asked him a bit later, during another commercial break.

"That I'm starving."

"Nick!"

"You asked!"

She just shook him.

And when they finally called his name, like she'd known they would, she wasn't surprised when he pulled her up on the stage by her hand. She didn't even mind, though she'd threatened dire consequences at home if he did such a thing.

"She told me not to drag her up here with me if I won," Nick quipped into the mic as he began his speech. "But I figured, I had to come up here earlier when she won, so she should have to return the favor, right?"

Laughter.

"Unlike some people, I'm sort of prepared," Nick said, making a point of pulling a piece of paper out of his pocket and unfolding it with much ceremony. "But the truth is that, other than my management team, and the amazing people who put the movie together, all of whom have absolutely unpronounceable Japanese names, and my sister Darcie, the person I have to thank is standing right here next to me." He glanced around. "Or behind, me, I guess." He tossed the paper aside.

"Get up here, you," he said, grabbing Sumire and pulling her so she was to his right instead of in the camera's blind spot behind him.

Chuckling from the audience.

"Like Sumire said earlier, I don't know if I'd be here if it weren't for her. I thought I was living, but I was watching other people live, on the edge of my own life, and suffering miserably, and I didn't even know it. Then she came along, like fresh air, showing me how to breathe again, how to live again, and I didn't even have sense enough to thank her for it at first.

"But she showed me, boy did she ever," Nick said with a wry smile. "I fought her, but she didn't give up on me. Bless her, she didn't give up on me."

He had to wipe his eyes again.

"So thank you, Mimi-chan. Thank you for that. I love you."

And he, too, took Sumire's hand and left the stage, walking off to thunderous applause with his love by his side, to face the reporters, the fans, to face whatever was out there.

They walked out together to face their life.

The End