Chapter I

It was a warm summer day in the city of Tokyo, as Ren Hayashi rose from his bed. He looked at the time: Six o'clock. While most high school students would sleep in on the weekend, Ren preferred to be consistent. He woke up at six on school days, and he woke up at six on the weekends. Ren was a third year student at UTX high school, where the male enrollment had plummeted from fifty-two percent to a meager eight percent. This was mainly blamed on the heavy advertising of the school's pop idol group, A-Rise. Of course, it also didn't help that the last brochure they sent out didn't include a single picture of a male student, leading many to believe that UTX was an all-girls school, regardless of the fact that it was a massive skyscraper that had more than enough room for both genders. Ren was fairly tall at a height of 5 feet 10 inches, and he had a thin, but muscular build as the result of about ten years of judo. His eyesight wasn't the best though, but his rimless glasses were modern and fashionable over his deep green eyes. His skin had a light tan since he rode his bike to and from school every day, unable to sit in the shade of a car's passenger seat. Ren stepped into the shower and washed himself up, paying extra attention to his dark, long, crimson hair. He soon finished showering and got dressed. After combing his hair and putting on his glasses, he walked into the kitchen. Ren lived alone in an apartment, but he wasn't a slob. Every room was well organized and spotless, especially the kitchen. While he was a good student and good at judo, his true talent was in cooking. Ren always started the day with a healthy, European-style breakfast, which usually consisted of an English muffin topped with a slice of ham, a poached egg, and his very own variation of hollandaise sauce.

After finishing his breakfast, Ren quickly cleaned what was left and grabbed his work uniform. Since he lived on his own, Ren needed a job, and he needed one that would pay him well. Well, Ren was fairly handsome, and this landed him a job at a butler café in the Akiba district. It was a successful restaurant with a rather unimaginative name, Butlers of Akiba, but the boss was a businessman, not a poet. Ren loved working in the kitchen, but today he was waiting tables. While most young men would relish in the idea of being surrounded by a clientele of young girls that fawned over them, Ren hated it. It also didn't help that his name was spelled out as meaning "romance." He hated pretending to be nice for all the young ladies that fawned over him, seeing them as shallow and selfish, but he needed the money, so he quickly turned his hate into a tsundere act that the customers quickly grew to adore. Of course, not everyone at work was bad. He particularly got along well with two of his coworkers (who were also classmates). The first was his best friend, Haru Yamamoto, who was handsome, friendly, popular, and sincere. He had blonde, slicked back hair, and light brown eyes. Haru and Ren originally met through judo lessons, developing a friendly rivalry over the years. While Haru was no chef, he was the most popular waiter in the butler café, with Ren following behind in second place. The second friend was Ren's cooking rival, Yamato Shiina. While Ren was uncontested in gourmet cooking (at least for a high school student), he could never bake or make desserts like Yamato. Yamato was a smaller individual, with light brown hair and blue eyes, and while he was a third year in high school, he had a bit of a complex that made him look quite a bit younger than he really was.

After eight grueling hours of serving meals and being fawned over by annoying girls, Ren changed back into his everyday clothes and prepared to walk out the back when Haru stopped him. "Ren, I've been wondering. Why do you hate girls so much, or people in general?" he said. Ren sighed, "Have you forgotten what happened to me during our first year of high school, Haru?"

"No, I haven't forgotten, but that was just one girl."

"Oh really, and do you think the girls in there, gawking at us, are any more sincere."

"You need to get a girlfriend, Ren."

"I tried back then, and she abandoned me. I don't need anyone besides myself."

Haru shook his head as Ren got onto his bike and rode home. Ren had been abandoned by his closest friend during his first year of high school, and he never forgave her for it. You need to move on, Haru thought.

Ren got back to his apartment complex and parked his bike on the rack in front of the building. He began walking up the stairs to his apartment as an apple rolled down the steps. Then a banana fell. Then an entire sack of groceries fell. As the produce rolled down the steps, Ren lost his footing and tumbled down, hitting his head on the sidewalk at the bottom of the steps. "I'm so sorry!" came an obviously feminine voice. Ren looked up to see who it was, ready to give a proper scolding, but his heart skipped a beat when he saw her. It was a young girl, about the same age as him, with long purple hair tied into two long tails in the back, and bright turquoise eyes that glimmered like gemstones. "I-I'm fine" was all Ren could say. She looked at him, puzzled. "Are you sure? You look like you hit your head pretty hard."

"It's fine, though I doubt I could say the same for your groceries. What's your name?"

"Nozomi Tojo. Yours?"

"Ren… Ren Hayashi. Were you planning on making supper with those?"

"Yes, but I'll have to make something else it seems. I do have some cup ramen for emergencies."

Ren looked up at her. Cup ramen?! That's not even a proper snack! "Let me cook something for you" he said. Nozomi froze. "I-I'll be fine. Like I said, I've got cup ramen"

"Throw that stuff in the garbage, Tojo-san. You shouldn't even consider eating it. Listen, let's pick up all these groceries and then I'll make us some dinner, okay?" Nozomi sighed. "Alright, I'll accept your offer Hayashi-san. I just don't want to feel indebted to you." Ren's heart leaped again. She's so… sincere…

After cleaning up the mess of groceries Ren and Nozomi walked up to his apartment. "Doesn't this seem a bit, well, forward, Hayashi-san?" Ren raised his eyebrow at her. "Don't get any ideas like that. I'm just making dinner. No more, no less. By the way, I take it you live in this complex?" Nozomi nodded. "I live right next door to you on the right." Ren's heart leaped yet again. How hadn't he noticed her before?! He took a deep breath and led her to a table for two in the middle of the kitchen. "Take a seat. I'll do the cooking, and if you're wondering why I have two chairs, it's because my little sister has to stay with me sometimes." As Ren cooked a dish of chicken cordon bleu, he began to wonder when his ten-year-old sister would be coming next. Ren didn't always live alone. In fact, he used to live on an estate with his parents who were both CEOs. However, with his mother and father constantly overseas to visit foreign clientele, Ren was forced to raise his little sister, Hana, all by himself. During his first year of high school, however, Ren had had enough and got himself kicked out of his family home, and his father had no intention of letting him come back. Ren sighed. He would make his own future, but he still worried about Hana.

Meanwhile, Nozomi had noticed a deck of cards in Ren's living room. These are tarot cards, aren't they? The cards were very much like her own except that the backs were green instead of blue. She ran her fingers along the top of the deck, as if to contact some kind of spiritual beings. These cards bear a great deal of power like mine. Nozomi stopped, her expression growing somber. They also seem to have witnessed pain, as well, though.

Ren served two plates of chicken cordon bleu as he looked back at Nozomi. "My sister got those for me last year. I read them every now and then as a hobby. Anyway, dinner is served." Nozomi walked back over to the kitchen table and sat down with Ren. "Thank you for the food, Hayashi-san." Ren smiled. "It's no problem. Eat up." Nozomi took her first bite. This is… amazing! How can someone my age cook like this?! She looked back at him, noticing his thin, athletic build, his lightly tanned skin, and his dark red hair. "Is something wrong Tojo-san?" Nozomi began to blush lightly as she looked him in the eyes for the first time. They were deep green like jades. "N-nothing! I'm just impressed by your cooking, that's all." Ren smiled slightly and went back to eating. He was used to complements on his cooking, though this was the first one that he had received face to face. Usually customers just left a note and a tip. "Thank you."

After finishing their meal, Ren cleaned up and prepared a pot of tea. Nozomi looked at his cards. "Would you like a reading, Hayashi-san?" Ren looked back at her. "Why not." Ren sat down and passed his cards over to her. Nozomi pushed it back and pulled out her own deck. "Let's read each other's fortunes, shall we?" Ren sighed. "Fine. We'll each do a three card reading for the past, present, and future. Sound fair?" Nozomi nodded, and the two began to shuffle the decks, unaware that they were asking the same question: "What will my fate be with the person before me?"

Ren flipped the first card over: The Fool, who represents youth, naivety, and the beginning of one's journey through life. Nozomi flipped over her first card, receiving the same result. Ren let out a small laugh. Whatever, it was just chance. "Well I guess we're both young and stupid." Nozomi laughed, and flipped over her next card: The Lovers, who represent the beginning of well… love. Ren flipped over his card, with the exact same result. Ren raised an eyebrow at Nozomi who was looking at him intently. "This is a coincidence, right?" Ren looked back at her. "If we get the same card for our future reading, this will be one heck of coincidence, but I guess it's possible." He flipped his card over and his heart began to thump rapidly: The Ten of Cups, which represented resolution and, when paired with The Lovers, marriage. Nozomi flipped over her third card, once again receiving the same result. Nozomi and Ren were both blushing, though Ren's expression had darkened into a menacing glare. I'm not going to let anyone get close to me… He looked at the clock. It was only six, but he wanted to be alone. This… coincidence was too much. "I don't mean to sound rude, but I forgot that I have some studying to do before I go into class tomorrow, so I'm afraid I'll have to ask you to leave." Nozomi nodded, unable to look him in the eye. "Yeah… Same here. Thanks for dinner!" Nozomi grabbed her cards and rushed out the door, her heart about ready to burst. Why would the cards say such a thing? I don't know how to feel about this, and that glare… He clearly wasn't happy with the reading… Ren looked at the cards laid out in front of him. No… I don't need more pain in my life… Ren's heart was like an iron lockbox, and he was ready to toss out the key…