Hello! Thank you for all of the readers from Innocent Encounter. Now, we will present some side story of several couples. For you who got curious about what happened with Kobungo and Keno, here's the detail. Please kindly do read and review! ( ´ ▽ ` )

Chapter 1 : The Beginning

Morning.

Birds were chirping happily. The sun was giving its ray to earth. People started to fill the street. Children were going to school together. Adults were going to work. That was what usually happened in the morning, but not for one certain man.

Inuta Kobungo was not a morning person. When he was still in high school, he always woken up by his mother's screaming or else he would have to take a bath in the bed. After he got accepted in a famous hospitality college abroad, he had to take care of himself. Certainly it included waking up by himself - which he found to be difficult at the beginning because he got used to his mother's screaming. But still until now, he was not a morning person.

Kobungo groaned while trying to shield his eyes from sunray that was peeking from the window. Turned to his right, he reached for his phone. The screen showed that it was still 7 A.M. Kobungo scrutinized his eyes, tried to get a better view. Still, his phone showed the same screen. He groaned again then put his left arm over his eyes. How he wished he didn't have to face another day with this kind of feeling. He reminisced about what happened the day before.

The first time he set his sight on that person, he thought that his heart had stopped beating. Long silky light brown hair donned in low pony tail, high cheekbones, straight jaw and nose. With just a glance he knew that kind of beauty was rare. Unfortunately he lost his chance to know that beautiful person because of some problem in the kitchen. That put him on edge because he didn't know whether he had another chance to find that person or not. With that thought in mind, he decided to drown his sorrow with some drinks when his bestfriends, the Inukawa twins, asked him to meet at a bar their late mother owned. Apparently that plan was a failure because he didn't even touched the drink in front of him, drowned in his own world. When he heard Kokonoe's voice, he decided not to be rude by greeting her. With that came his second chance. That beautiful person was standing right behind Kokonoe. This time he got a full view of her. Again he was captivated by her beauty, he thought that she was more beautiful than before. Those plump lips looked so kissable. He decided to not let this chance slipped away again. He stood up and grasped her hands tightly, right away asked her to have some drink with him.

Only to find that apparently she was a he. In a hardway too.

Kobungo lifted both of his hands, staring at it. When he grasped those hands, he felt some sparks from the touch. Even after he knew that she, no, he, was indeed a man, the sparks didn't come off. 'Hell, I've been straight for 22 years of my live, how can I felt sparks from touching another guys' hands? Not to mention that kind of spark was different from what I felt when I was with all of my ex. Is it him? My soulmate?' He thought bitterly. He clenched his hands tightly.

"Fuck! What am I supposed to do?!" Kobungo screamed in his dimly lit room, his punch bounced on his bed.

After he took a cold shower to clear his mind, Kobungo wore dark green shirt with a pair of black slacks, then he brushed his hair a little, tied his usual running shoes -he was not a fan of leather pointy one- and went for his workplace. At this season, he would be busy because it was nearing Golden Week, the most wanted holiday in spring. He sighed loudly. Apparently cold shower was not working because he still remembered that event clearly. The silky light brown hair, the lingering touch, even the spark. Damn it, get a hold of yourself Kobungo! He chided himself while groaning and scratching the back of his neck. His attitude made his staffs gave him weird looks. Even at the kitchen, he took deep breath and sighed so many times that other chef asked him whether he got sick and needed to take a break. He just grinned a little, saying that he was fine, just not gotten enough sleep. But at some point, he made a beginner's error by putting wrong ingredients in the food. This earned him a slap on the back from his sous chef and he was kicked out from the kitchen to cool off his head. Again he sighed deeply and scratched the back of his neck then decided to wander around a little bit. He changed his chef uniform and went out from the restaurant. He needed to let out some of the steam inside his head.

It was getting late. Kobungo checked his watch and it was already 7 P.M. Time really flew fast when your mind was not at the right track. He let his feet took him wherever it wanted to go on impulse. Man, he had to get himself together again. He looked up to the dark sky littered by some stars. Well, it was rare to see stars in the city. The sky had to be very clear to get a better view. He sighed deeply then looked down the pavement. Okay, now if that person was truly his destined one, then he had to make some move, didn't he? But what about his family? He was the sole heir of Inuta family who owned one of the biggest hospitality chain in Japan. Undoubtedly he was expected to marry some fine girl and continue the family line. What would his parents say about this? That person, Asakeno if he was not mistaken, was definitely an epitome of beauty not even a real girl had nowadays. Unfortunately he didn't have XX pair of chromosomes. More importantly, did Asakeno swing that way? Did he, Inuta Kobungo, swing that way too?

"Man, this is kinda hard. What am I supposed to do? No way I ask Pops or Ma 'bout this." He muttered under his breath. The noise around him suddenly changed. He looked up in front of him when realization hit him hard. What in the earth was he doing in this famous bar and host club area?

At night, this place was very lively because it was opening time for most of the shop within this area. Kabukicho. Heaven on earth for pleasure seekers with no attachment nor commitment. There was the place for everyone who wanted to find anything they desired within certain price. In front of a line of host club stood a tall young man with light brown hair donned in low ponytail. He was wearing a complete set of modern suit with a pair of leather shoes. A seductive smile was plastered on his face. Every women and even some men who passed that store stopped for a while to bask in that person's beauty. Yes, even though he was a man, no doubt everybody would say that he was beautiful.

The said person took some steps towards a young woman around her midtwenties who stopped right in front of him. The seductive smile was still plastered on his face. Perfect, this woman will be tonight's deal. He took out a red rose from his pocket then gave it to the woman who literally swooned by that gesture. "Will you grace our place with your presence, Hime-sama(1)?" He whispered in her right ear with his hushed, tenor voice. The young woman just stood still, dumbfounded, then after several seconds she nodded her head vigorously. He smiled again then took her left hand, hooked it in his right arm while walked inside the host club with a big sign of 'Red Rose' above the main entrance.

That was another daily occurrence -to be precise nightly occurrence - for Asakeno, the number one in Red Rose host club. He had been number one only in just two months after he was accepted in that club. With his feminine beauty and skillful persuasion, he rapidly gained regular customers, men and women. He had a special condition though. He had to pick the customers by himself, literally stood in front of the store, not like other number one in the same area. This condition also got another benefit. The beginners could learn how to attract customers directly from him. That's why the manager agreed with that condition.

Little did he know from the moment he met a certain hopeless romantic, his life was already at a big turning point.

Kobungo took another step into that area. He absolutely didn't get why he was in that kind of place. It looked like his feet got a nerve to bring him here. He took a glance of his surrounding. So many men and women in luxurious clothes were loitering around. He looked down at his clothes, felt a little bit out of place. Wait, why the heck he had to care about his choice of clothing right now? He didn't want to go to this area in the first place. He decided to turn back when suddenly a glimpse of certain light brown haired beauty catched his peripheral vision.

'No way. It can't be...' He thought. He moved forward while shoving around people, earned him some shout of 'hey, watch it dude!' from several men. He didn't notice it because his mind was preoccupied with single thought. Was it really Asakeno? He arrived in front of a store with a big 'Red Rose' letter above it's entrance. Kobungo looked around him once again, tried to comprehend which way did Asakeno headed for. A couple of footsteps and a cough made Kobungo turned his head toward the entrance. There stood the man which he had been looking for, a seductive smile still plastered on his beautiful face.

"Asa..keno," Kobungo muttered. "Why are you..."

His words were stuck on his throat when Asakeno took out a red rose then placed it inside Kobungo's chest pocket. "Will you grace our place with your presence today, Ouji-sama(2)?" Asakeno whispered seductively, his hand still lingered on Kobungo's chest after he finished putting the red rose. Kobungo stood still, he didn't know what to do or what to say. He just complied when he was dragged by Asakeno inside the store.

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tbc.

(1) Hime-sama means princess

(2) Ouji-sama means prince