A/N : I don't own Skip Beat (apart from the volumes :P). Welcome back readers! Welcome to my latest story. This one is Canon and takes place after chapter 200! Enjoy!
"So what do you think?", Lory asked, keeping his fingers crossed as Ren carefully scanned through the documents.
"I don't think I can handle another secret mission like 'Cain Heel', sir.", Ren replied, as he put back the papers on the desk. He smiled apologetically. "I'll admit, this offer is tempting, but I will not be able to devote much time for this."
"Ah, yes, but you have practically every Saturday off, as per your current schedule, am I correct?", Lory asked , a little pleadingly. "Surely you can afford to put aside, say, an hour or so for this project?"
Ren leaned back in his chair, his eyes narrowing. "You seem very well informed of my schedule sir.", he said drily. "I suppose Yashiro san already knows about your latest venture?"
"Not yet." the President replied, shaking his head. "Not unless you accept this offer. And I would strongly advise you to do so Ren. You are a successful actor, and an equally well known model. It wouldn't hurt to try your hand at something else!"
"But being a Radio Jockey is different!", Ren argued. "It's like being a salesman! You need to have a natural gift for the kind of gab to interest your listeners, which frankly, I don't possess!"
Lory sighed dramatically. "And this, coming from a man who struggled to find the perfect Katsuki, fell in love with the one girl who won't fall in love and is currently struggling against a role that requires him to tap the darkest depths of his personality!"
Ren shuffled a little uncomfortable, under the President's piercing gaze. Taking pity on him, and not ready to listen to any more excuses, he continued. "Besides, I will not be sending you to the radio station tomorrow and expect you to start off wonderfully. You will be trained for a month, till you know the ropes behind the job. I have hired the prefect instructor for this task! Ah that must be her now!"
"Who? The instructor?", Ren asked warily when he heard a timid knock at the door. He got the feeling that the president had already set him up for the job. He hadn't called him to the office to ask him about the job. It was to tell him.
"No! Your co-RJ!", Lory explained, before calling out, "Come in Mogami san!"
Ren's head turned around in surprise. Sure enough, the teenager, clad in her pink Love Me uniform entered the office. He felt all thoughts fly off his head, as he gazed warmly at the face of the girl..no woman, he had come to love so much.
Kyoko stopped short when she saw Ren too was in the room, and unconsciously took a few steps back. A million emotions were passing through her at that moment as she was unable to tear away her eyes from the one man who posed such a threat to her heart.
Warmth, pain, love, fear, anger, happiness, discomfort, love again..and a firm resolution not to accept these monstrous feelings that were threatening to tear apart her heart.
'Don't give yourself false hopes Kyoko!', her demons screamed at her. 'Ren Tsuruga will never return you feelings! He can never see you as love interest! Forget that your box ever opened!'
Swallowing her emotions, she bowed respectfully before the two men . Deep in her heart, lay a once open box that she had managed to lock again, but which nearly opened again at the sight of the only person who had unlocked it in the first place.
"Good morning President san, Tsuruga san.", she said at last, standing up straight. Her voice was polite and distant. The smile on her face was professional and did not reach her eyes. Terrified of giving herself away, she didn't dare look at Ren anymore. As for the President..well he had seen through her already hadn't he?
Ren looked puzzled and hurt by her coldness, but tried to console himself that it was only natural for Love Me 's number one member to act like that to a man whom she had straddled, marked and been swept off her feet in a matter of only a few days. He felt guilty, using the mask of 'Cain Heel' to do things to Kyoko that he would otherwise never dare to do, even if it affected her attitude towards 'Ren Tsuruga'. But then again, he was after all a man..madly in love with this woman. Perhaps this job wasn't such a bad idea after all..
Kyoko pulled out a chair and sat down beside him. "Sawara san mentioned that you had an offer that you would like to discuss with me?", she asked in that same, aloof voice, that did not belong to her.
Lory nodded enthusiastically. "That's right Mogami san! Have you ever considered being an RJ?"
She was momentarily thrown by this question. Whatever she had been expecting, it wasn't this.
"And RJ?", she asked frowning. "As in Radio Jockey? I don't know..I freeze up whenever I'm before a mike!"
"Which will absolutely not do when you need to address an audience after winning an award!", Lory scolded. "You and Ren are the same! Absolutely no sense of adventure! Think of it as a challenge!"
Kyoko stood up quickly, her face pale, with shock. "Tsu..Tsuruga san is not going to be on the radio station is he?", she asked nervously.
Lory narrowed his eyes, knowing perfectly well the reason for her discomfort. But he was showing no mercy this time. Forced treatment was the best thing for her now. "Is there a problem if there is?", he asked in a seemingly innocent voice that frightened Kyoko more than the prospect of working with Ren again. She sat down quickly, mumbling , "No, it's all right..it's all right..but.."
"But what?", Lory asked, raising his eyebrows.
"I was just thinking he has a pretty tight schedule so maybe it wouldn't be very advisable for him to take the job..", she continued to mumble incoherently.
"Thank you for your concern Mogami san, but I think you should leave worrying over my schedule to myself.", Ren spoke unexpectedly. "I think the President is right! This is the chance of a lifetime to try something new. I am in for it!"
With that, he pulled the documents towards himself and signed them, studiously ignoring Lory's amused smirk. Talk about a 180 degree turn!, he thought.
Kyoko stared at the documents aghast. Ren nodded at her, silently encouraging her to sign the papers as well. But Lory cleared his throat for his next announcement.
"Mogami kun, you need not sign this contract.", he said, frowning a little on seeing her relieved smile. "You have no choice in this matter as this is your new Love Me assignment."
"B..but, I have absolutely no clue how to go about this job!", Kyoko protested. "What if I suddenly go blank and tongue-tied on live radio? Can you imagine what a colossal fool I'd make of myself?"
Her shoulders were shaking, as she covered her face with her hands. Ren put a comforting hand on her shoulder and flinched as she froze at his touch. He looked helplessly at the President, whose mouth was drawn into a thin disapproving line. With a jerk of his head, he motioned Ren to leave the room. With a reluctant sigh, Ren rose from his chair and left, closing the door behind him.
Lory stared at the huddled figure before him and finally spoke, in a gentle voice. "Look at me Mogami san."
Kyoko looked up at him slowly, her eyes perfectly dry, knowing he had seen through her act.
'Just like yesterday!', she thought bitterly, remembering what had transpired the day before, on the sets of 'Tragic Marker'.
On seeing her walk away, Cain rushed to his sister and swept her into his embrace. He whispered into her ears, promising never to touch another woman again..that she was the only one for him..
Setsu had closed her eyes..Setsu?...No…at that moment, Kyoko had been acting as herself. For a few brief moments, she had unconsciously allowed herself to hope that it was Ren speaking those words to her..not Cain to Setsu..
A wave of warmth washed over her, frightening her and waking her to reality. Slowly, opening her eyes, she found herself staring into the eyes of the President. It was only for a brief moment, but for those few seconds their eyes had met, communicating powerful emotions to each other. Kyoko realized without an ounce of doubt that he knew…
Back to the present, she dully looked into his eyes, knowing fully well where this conversation was heading.
"Do you hate the idea of working with Ren so much?", he asked quietly. His expression saddened as she gave a tiny nod. Then brightened when she shook her head vehemently. The she nodded again.
Lory smiled triumphantly. "Well which is it?", he asked, sounding amused. You lov- him don't you?"
Once upon a time, she would have over reacted to this kind of question and vehemently denied possessing any such 'impure' feelings towards her sempai. But after days of bottling up her emotions, she had lost the will to fight against this emotion anymore.
"I suppose so..", she replied thoughtfully. " It feels nothing like the last time I fell in love and that is what frightens me!"
She looked at him helplessly, feeling lost and confused. "I don't want to give in to these emotions again!", she said more to herself than to Lory. "I can't go back to being like.." Her mind went back to the time she was a happy, willing slave to Sho..the awful sense of déjà-vu she'd felt on seeing Manaka fangirling over Cain..and Cain brushing her away..
"I can't handle rejection..",she finally whispered, a hollow feeling in her heart.
"Mogami kun.", Lory spoke at last. For the first time in his life he was at a loss for words. The look of heart break and sadness in her eyes made him wonder what had she experienced that caused her to reject and distrust love so much.
He briefly considered telling Kyoko that her feelings were not unrequited. But then he decided against it. He would watch over them for a while and leave it to Ren. Ren was a grown up, sensible young man. He would tell Kyoko himself in his own time.
But if he stalls anymore, I will just have to interfere again!, he though determinedly.
"Mogami kun, I have just one piece of advice for you.", he said. She looked at him desperately, hoping he would have a solution to her awful predicament-falling fr a man who would never love her back..
"I've made a lot of mistakes in my youth.", he spoke gravely. "And learnt valuable lessons from them as well. And one of the biggest mistakes I nearly made was letting go off the woman I loved the most."
He looked rather grave as he told her this. "I don't know what you've experienced in the past Mogami kun, and I will not ask you to disclose it to me either. All I have to say is this- true love comes very rarely in one's life. Cherish it when it does, because the pain of denying yourself something so pure and..wonderful will eat you away for the rest of your life."
They looked at each other for a few moments and nodded in unspoken agreement.
Kyoko got up and gave a him a small grateful smile. Lory smiled back and fished out a piece of paper with something scrawled on it. He handed it to her and said, "This is where you are to meet your instructor. The time is given as well. She will teach you all there is to know about being an RJ within a month. Tell Ren about it too."
Kyoko took the card, and bowed before turning to leave.
"What is to be the name of the radio station?", she asked before reaching the door.
"Love Infinity!", Lory declared proudly.
Biting back a smile, she turned to the door again when-
"And Mogami kun!", Lory called out. She turned to him inquiringly.
"Good luck!", he said, a knowing look in his eyes.
Kyoko nodded briefly, before finally leaving the office. She walked along the corridor and spotted Ren waiting for her. She gave him the appointment date and venue and left for the Love Me room.
As she walked, she contemplated her new found emotions. She was still afraid..still scared of rejection. But she wasn't a quitter. She hated regrets. And when she was old and dying she never wanted to look back at these days with the regret that she had known..but never accepted her feelings..or done anything about them..
If I'm going to be rejected, she thought, raising her head higher, it will be after I try to win his heart!
Ironically, she had already done that..
And the same thoughts were now pervading Ren's head as well..
A/N: Thank you once again for reading and do drop a review! This won't be a very long story but it might be some time before I update as I have exams coming up. If you would like me too add something to the radio show, your suggestions are welcome! Once again, Review!