Disclaimer: I do not own Skip Beat! or any of the characters wherein the Skip Beat! universe.

Hello, this is the adoption of the story Face to Face by LIA777. If you have read the story before then you can see that there are many similarities within what she had written originally, but there are also a lot of differences. I will post the next chapter within a couple of days, because it will all mostly be like this one, editing the original until I reach the point Lia had left off at. That is when the chapters will come a bit slower, but I promise to update at least once a week unless something absolutely important pops up. Now this this a seriously long author's note, so I will stop now and let you read. I hope not to disappoint!

Chapter I

Kyoko

I stared down curiously at the innocent slip of paper in my hand, wondering as to why it had been placed on my locker. On the borders were intricate designs, which, added to the elegant writing on the snow white background, made it appear more suited as a formal invitation rather than a common "note."

Written in golden calligraphy were two simple sentences;

Mogami-kun,

Please meet me today in my office as soon as you receive this message. The password is "flores."

President Takadara

The instruction was as clear as day, however I couldn't help but wonder at the vagueness of the message. Why would President Takadara want me in his office?

I glanced over at Kanae-san, who had arrived a few minutes prior and was already dressed in the hot-pink attire known as our uniform.

"Um, Moko-san? Did you receive a note from President Takadara today?" I queried. Kanae glanced over at me, lifting one perfectly-sculpted eyebrow in question.

"No, I didn't. Why?"

"Nothing, I just wanted to see if President Takadara wanted to see both of us," I replied, waving it off. "Okay, well I better get going!" I said, closing my locker and exiting before Kanae had the chance to reply.

As I watched the numbers on the elevator slowly rise to the top floor, I wondered over my fate.

I wonder what Takadara-san needs to talk to me about. My thoughts were cut short by the distinct ding! that meant I had arrived at my destination.

I was met with a long hallway, beautiful paintings and vases of brilliant red flowers against the walls, and a lush red carpet set upon the floor. I walked down the hallway, immediately feeling out of place in my outfit of jeans and a blouse. Glancing at the paintings on the walls, the memory of one of the countries briefly studied in class pressing against the edges of my mind.

It was when the president's secretary, Sebastian, greeted me, with the full distinct garb of a matador that I remembered the European country. It appeared that the president had decided on a Spaniard theme that day.

"Password?" Sebastian asked upon my arrival.

"Flores," I said, blushing a deep red as I just about killed the unfamiliar word.

Despite my butchering of the innocent word, Sebastian simply nodded his head and opened the great wooden doors.

I thanked him and quickly slipped through the door, wanting the moment to pass quickly. I was met with a small waiting area, with comfortable-looking sofas and armchairs forming rectangles around two coffee tables on either side of the room. Ahead of me were two more double-doors, and I headed straight to them and found one slightly ajar.

I raised a hand to knock, but paused when I heard the sound of the president's voice. The pauses in his speech made it quite clear that he was talking to someone. I was about to turn back and wait in one of the inviting sofas when something caught my rapt attention.

"Ren, you cannot keep on running away."

I froze, instinctively turning back in the direction of the sound. It was obviously the president's voice I heard. Though slightly muffled, the words had been as clear as day. But the mention of my sempai threw me off. Running away? I knew it wasn't any of my business, but for the moment my body seemed to have a mind of its own, and I was suddenly all but pressed against the door. There was a tense silence.

"It's been seven years." President Takadara stated, wariness laced through his words. There was another pause before he continued. "Yes, I know. But you have to confront your past. You cannot continue to live like this forever, Kuon." The fact that he was likely speaking on the phone barely registered in my mind as the confusion following that statement settled upon my brain.

What? I pressed myself closer to the door.

The president continued to speak without falter, and for a single moment I had begun to doubt that I had heard correctly over the frantic beating of my own heart. But that moment flitted away as quickly as it came. I knew what I had heard. The question was why the president would call Tsuruga-san "Kuon."

Unaware of my presence, the president spoke on. "It is your birth name, and I will call you by it . . . I have not forgotten. You are twenty-one years old, you cannot continue to run from your past forever. Your father and mother miss you . . . The reason I did that, Kuon, was because you wanted to make a life for yourself. And you did. Now you have to go back, otherwise you will never be able to move forward . . ."

There was a sigh, and the dull sound of a phone shutting.

I was immobile as a statue, my mind slow to process all I had overheard. Tsuruga-san . . . running away . . . Kuon?

So lost was I in my own thoughts, I only had a split second's notice before the door opened fully, revealing President Takadara. As expected, he was dressed in a white matador outfit, complete with the hat and red cape. He also had his mobile in hand.

Oh no.

"Good morning, Mogami-kun. Please, come in." Seemingly unfazed over my shameful actions, he turned around and strode across the room to his desk, fully expecting me to follow him. Fully humiliated, I couldn't do anything but follow.

"Please, take a seat." He motioned to the lavish couch in front of the desk as he sat down himself upon his own throne-like chair. I quietly obeyed, staring down at my hands as color stained my cheeks. Takadara-san spoke calmly, almost as though he were bidding a simple good morning, rather than the accusatory tone I most definitely deserved. President Takadara immediately got to the point. "Mogami-kun, would you mind telling me exactly how much of my conversation you heard?"

I closed my eyes in shame.

"I'm so sorry for eavesdropping on you!" I exclaimed, immediately kneeling on the ground before him. "I shouldn't have done that, it is not in any way excusable! I give my deepest apologies! I'm so sorry!" I rushed, forcing the words through the lump in my throat.

"Mogami-kun, please, sit. There is no need to kneel. I would prefer to speak to you directly rather than having to look over my desk."

Silently, I stood up and sat once more, forcing my gaze to meet his own.

"Now Mogami-kun, I will ask again, please tell me how much of my conversation you heard," he said patiently.

I bit my lip. "Quite a bit . . . Something about Tsuruga-san running away, of having to face his past, and . . . and you kept on calling him 'Kuon.'" I admitted.

For some reason the name sent bells ringing through my head. I remembered the name from somewhere, but I couldn't remember exactly where. I pushed those thoughts away until further notice.

President Takadara leaned back, crossing his fingers casually in front of him. "Well that is quite a bit. Actually that about sums up exactly what I was about to speak to you about."

I gaped at him.

"You see Mogami-kun, Ren - or rather, Kuon - is having an inner battle with himself. Ren's birth name is Kuon. When he was fifteen I helped him make a life for himself, to stop living the life he had. That boy . . . That man has a dark past, and even after seven years he has been unable to face it. He has been running away from it, in a sense," Takadara-san explained.

I was utterly silent. After somehow finding my voice, it was still rather shaken when I spoke again. "But . . . president, why are you telling me this?"

"Because, Mogami-kun, you hold a special place in Ren's heart. You are his kohai, and I know that if anyone can convince him to do it, it's you. Please, Mogami-kun, would you do me the favor of helping that idiot face his past?"

I was amazed. Astounded. Overwhelmed. Shaken. Stupified. Only these words could describe the state of supreme shock I was currently in. So much information about my sempai was given to me in such a short amount of time. I had known that Tsuruga Ren had been a stage name. I had also somewhat figured out that Tsuruga-san had a less-than-perfect past. But a theory is so very different than having that theory confirmed. In an instant, I began to see Tsuruga-san in a new light. This was a different Tsuruga-san. A Tsuruga-san I didn't recognize.

For a moment, I panicked. What was I supposed to do with this new person called Kuon? But then the memories of my sempai flooded my mind, and I calmed down. It was still Tsuruga-san.

While pondering those thoughts, I had been frozen. But now that I had calmed, determination set in. I nodded. "Yes. I'll do it."

The president simply smiled. "Thank you, Mogami-kun."

Yet there was still something tugging at my mind. "But - How do I convince him to face his past? What must I do?"

"Well that is left up to you." Takadara said, sitting back in his throne-like chair. "Although I suggest you get close to him first. Convince him once he gets comfortable with your growingly constant presence."

I immediately thought of the hectic schedule I had attempted to manage once as his manager. If he worked like that every day, how in the world was I supposed to talk to him? I couldn't very well go to every place he worked.

I quickly voiced these thoughts to the president.

"I cannot really help you with bonding, although . . . " A slow grin settled on his features. "As for getting close to him, I can arrange that."

Wariness settled over my stomach as I caught the look in his eyes. That look only appeared when he was planning something extravagant. Should I be worried? I wondered. I was about to voice a polite objection to such a thing, however I was cut off before I could.

"Well that was all I wished to talk to you about Mogami-kun. You may go back to work now, and I am sure we both have quite a bit to do." I was dismissed.

Once again I was in the elevator, and once again my mind was whirling with thoughts, yet for distinctly different reasons. Unbeknownst to me, a certain odd president was already planning something as he sat at his desk.

President Takadara stared longingly at the bright red flamenco dress he had bought beforehand. With a rueful sigh he turned away and mulled over his thoughts. I guess sending Mogami-kun to Ren wearing a flamenco dress as a present is going to have to wait for another time. Perhaps for his birthday? He mused, already imagining the look on Ren's face when he found that on his doorstep! I had planned on getting those two together first, but this isn't so bad either.

His thoughts then turned to more serious matters. Ren . . . this is the opportunity of a lifetime. You have to face your past, and if anyone can convince you to do it . . . it's that girl. Don't mess it up.