Disclaimer: Nothing concerning Skip Beat! belongs to me, except for the plot of this little story.
Thanks: Go to LeavesFallingUp for challenging me to write this little Two-Shot and to Licelli, who beta-ed the story even though it was not 'her cup of tea'. :-)
Dedication: This is for you, LeavesFallingUp. Thanks for the challenge, and for providing us with your wonderful stories. ;-)
The Wallflower That Wouldn't Be Picked
Part I
- Where The Stage Is Being Set -
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Hikaru Ishibashi usually was not a very persistent guy. If a girl caught his fancy he'd ask her out and she would either agree or disagree to go out with him. If she disagreed, his normally jovial mood would sour for a day or two, but never longer than that.
His family and friends described him as an easy-to-get-along-with guy who was neither boring nor special. His one great talent was music and that had afforded him the show 'Kimagure Rock' at TBM. His band colleagues Yuusei and Shinichi often teased him with his flighty character, predicting some hard years for him.
This changed abruptly when Kyoko Mogami entered the life of the Ishibashi brothers (not related) more than a year ago.
At first it had seemed like any other encounter with a girl. Hikaru would see her and declare her 'lovely' after about three shows together. Of course, every girl that was slender, had a cute face and tolerable manners would be thus declared.
To be honest, Kyoko Mogami wasn't the most beautiful girl Hikaru had developed a crush on (this was the showbiz, after all, there were tons of beautiful girls around) but she had a certain kind of handsomeness about her that was starting to turn heads. She also had a lovely figure (although still on the thin side as she was only seventeen) and great posture.
Comparing her to the beauties made her a somewhat average girl in Hikaru's colleagues' eyes - and therefore much easier prey. They had been quite certain that Kyoko would cave soon enough. Betting on the outcome hardly seemed worth the effort but they did so anyway.
Their talk during their early acquaintance went like this (though Hikaru would never know because they took great care not to discuss, or rather gossip about, his love interests to his face):
"I give her two weeks, then she'll go on a date with him," Yuusei said in a bored tone. "She's rather plain, I bet she'll like the attention."
"Nah, he'll have to wear her down a bit. She's not the easy type," Shinichi countered. "I'll wager 1000 yen that she'll shoot him down the first time he asks."
Yuusei smirked. "I'm on."
Hikaru knew about the betting pool since he partook often enough when one of his friends was concerned. Usually this wouldn't disturb him too much; he himself knew his history with crushes better than anyone else, after all. His last true relationship ended when he had been fifteen years old. Since then he'd alternately had his head turned by early success or not-so-well-meaning girls who were after his fame or money or both.
But this time their betting somewhat irked him because in their time together he had come to like Kyoko as a person, not just a pretty girl one lusts after for a few weeks and then forgets just as quickly. Remembering his past, most disastrous crushes, he made sure that she had a good character first (this took the aforementioned three shows together). He would then pay her subtle compliments to mellow her to his approach and try to get information about her.
Liking what he saw, he furthered his efforts which resulted in trying to get her to go out with all members of Kimagure Rock first.
Unfortunately Shinichi seemed to have estimated her character correctly because Kyoko was all apologetic bows and smiles when she declined their offer, claiming that she had to leave for her next job. The Ishibashis graciously responded in kind and she hurried off to who knows where.
Hikaru didn't think anything of it at first. It was their job to always be available for their employers, after all. It was only after the umpteenth time that he noticed that she always had other things to do. Even though it was cheap of him to do so he had been out with another girl during that time, and that one had agreed after only two attempts at convincing her.
But while his ego had been sufficiently catered to, his heart was another matter altogether. During that date he hadn't been able to forget Kyoko and so he resolved to ask her out at all costs. He wanted to have her for himself, even if it was for just one evening.
His determination sometimes even surprised him(she had avoided going out with him for more than a year already), but then again he knew that Kyoko Mogami was someone special. Someone you would be glad to have as a friend … or lover.
Her outward beauty seemed to pale in comparison to others but by now Hikaru knew that she had a good heart and a great character (albeit a sometimes rather strange one). She never judged people too quickly, even if she fell prey to first impressions like any other human being did. She worked hard to get to know people better and didn't let herself be discouraged by looks or gruff behaviour. She was also kind, giving and sweet and so unassuming that the Bridge Rock combo had started to look out for her lest she fall prey to a true rascal.
Hikaru knew that he had to act quickly. Other men had already begun to notice her and it would only be a question of time until they made their move. He would not allow that to happen. This time, he would really ask her out and be obvious about it.
And so the stage was set … let the games begin!
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End of Part I