This is so hard. Why is school so difficult for me? Minami is a genius! Chiaki, Toma, and Rei are right up there with him. It doesn't seem like they have to try very hard to do anything! Mei isn't here. Shizuka won't be back till late from his photo shoot. Sighing heavily, I gathered my school book and notes. I'm the idiot of the Kira family it seems. I make good grades, because I'd get in so much trouble if I didn't, but it takes hours of studying and cramming for me to understand the material.
Thankfully, no one was in the hallway to comment on my appearance. I hadn't bothered to change out of my sweatpants and tank top, or put on any kind of make up today. Not exactly what the Kira image is all about. Knocking on the door, I shifted my weight to one leg impatiently. The door swung open suddenly. "Are you busy?" I asked, giving him a pitiful look.
Chiaki's eyes dropped to the math book in my hand for a moment before he met my gaze. With a sigh, he smiled and pulled the door open further. "I can take a break to help you study, Kaede."
Hugging my book to my chest, I couldn't help but grin. "Good, cause I wasn't going to leave even if you said no."
He made me sit at the table in his kitchen, pulling up a chair next to me. The best thing about getting help from Chiaki was that he didn't press me for a quick answer. He explained things slowly and helped me figure out where I'd gone wrong. Sometimes Toma would get annoyed with how long it took for me to understand what he considered to be simple mathematics. Both of us looked up when the door opened.
"Oh, I'm sorry," a girl said. She was one of the concierges here… right? She's been assigned to working the sweet room and our wing of the hotel recently. "I apologize for interrupting." In her hands was some dry cleaning.
"Try this one, Kaede. I'll be right back," Chiaki ruffled my hair and stood to go speak with her. The two disappeared into the master bedroom, where I couldn't hear what they were talking about.
Tapping my pencil on the paper, I chewed on my lip. Take the equation one step at a time. I get too overwhelmed with the size of the question. The minutes seemed to tick by slowly as I tried to work out the answer to this question. Checking the math twice, I circled the answer.
"I told you that you'd get the hang of it," Chiaki said, leaning over me to see how I'd done.
"Wait, it's right?" I asked, hoping that he wasn't teasing me.
He nodded. "Yes, you've done well."
I grinned, happy to have his approval. The concierge lingered in the room, making me uncomfortable. "Should I go?" Why is she staring at me like that? Don't tell me she's already fallen for my brother. She's only gotten up to this floor a week ago.
Chiaki shrugged his shoulders. "I have some more work to do, but you can stay if you want to study here more." Obviously, he wanted me to leave.
I shut my book, stretching my arms above my head. "Nah, I'm kind of hungry anyways. I might go out to take my own break," I said. A greasy burger and fries sounded really good right about now. Cooking had never been my strong suit so the kitchen in my own suite didn't get much use except for reheating. "Thanks for helping me. I might make it to graduation after all," I joked.
Chiaki rolled his eyes but smiled. "Don't sell yourself short." He didn't elaborate. That was a first. Usually, they all joked along with me about my being hopeless in school.
Changing into a blue summer dress, I took my time getting dressed to go out. It shouldn't be this difficult to get ready to go out to a burger joint, but I had to fit the Kira image. Though, since I'm underage, the media had restrictions about following me around. I'd managed to stay out of the spotlight so far. Once presentable, I grabbed my purse, making sure my wallet was inside, and then headed for the elevator. The private elevator was nice.
On the fourth floor, the elevator slid to a stop, opening its doors. "Kaede? Heading out?" Alan asked, stepping inside.
My heart rate sped up at the sight of him. He was a family friend, Alan Mason. A gorgeous human being. Nodding, I replied, "Taking a break from studying to get some food." My voice sounded a little robotic. Since I'd met him, I'd had crush on him.
Alan smiled before saying. "Would you mind some company? I was just heading out to eat myself."
Autopilot took over and I agreed. Alan had never acted like he knew that I liked him. He treated me the same as always. Complimenting me about my appearance. Never making the fact that I was a Kira a big deal. My brothers all said he thought of me as a sister.
We walked down the street to a restaurant that served my favorite burger. Things never changed between the two of us. He told me all about his business, and asked me about school. It felt natural, sitting in a booth laughing with this man. I could do it all the time…
The moment dissolved when someone sat down beside me on the bench, picking up a fry off my plate. "Well, well, making a move on my little sister, Alan?" Minami asked, laughing like the idea was absurd. "She is underage, remember?"
"Yes, I remember how old she is. We were just discussing her graduation," Alan said. He blew off answering Minami's question. It didn't faze him. Of course, he doesn't think of me like that. His charming smile warmed my heart.
It didn't stop my cheeks from burning from embarrassment. Minami was watching me out of the corner of his eye, a sly grin on his face. He's such a child sometimes! "Why are you here?" I asked, angry at him now. He's going to ruin this! He always takes things too far.
"Don't be so hostile, Kae-Kae! Can't your big brother stay for dinner with his favorite little sister?" Minami faked being hurt by my comment. He turned his attention back on Alan. "I heard you're going to be opening a new line, soon right?"
Alan almost choked on his fry, but nodded. "Yes, but I think now is hardly the time to be discussing it." It was no secret that he ran a lingerie line, but never had anyone brought it up so casually with me around.
"Hey, Kaede here is almost eighteen. You could hire her on as a model next year," Minami said, making sure to keep an eye on my reactions. He loved to make me embarrassed.
Trapped in the booth, I dropped my gaze down to my food, completely mortified. Me? A lingerie model? My cheeks grew hot just thinking about being in my underwear in front of Alan. It was killing me to sit here and listen to Minami talk about it. "I should get back to studying. Finals are in a few weeks," I said, pushing my barely eaten food away from me. "Move, Minami."
Let me out!
"But I just got here," he whined.
I shoved him hard. "Move! I want out!" My voice rose louder than I had intended, drawing unwanted attention. The second he got up, I climbed out of the booth and headed for the door without another word. It took all my strength not to run out of the building.
Once outside and around the corner, I sprinted back toward the hotel. By the time I reached the elevator, I was out of breath. The doors started to slide close, but were stopped by someone pressing the up button. Pulling my bangs down to cover my eyes as I adverted my gaze, I held my breath.
"Reschedule that appointment. I have another shoot that day," Shizuka said, hanging up the phone. He paused, staring right at me. "Something wrong, Kaede? You're fidgeting over there in the corner."
"Just stressed about school. No big deal." I replied softly.
Shizuka pressed the button for our floor. "Oh really? So stressed that you're crying?"
The carpeted elevator had drops on the floor. Alarmed, I quickly wiped them away with the back of my hand. "Yep. Just stress." I forced myself to smile at him. I can't tell anyone about what happened. If they see I'm upset by it, they might figure out that I like Alan. It's already horrible with Minami knowing. "I have to check on Rachmaninoff," I blurted out as we both stepped off the elevator
"Kae, Mei is already—" Shizuka started.
Still having the spare key to Mei's suite, I retreated inside. He's been away on tour and I got to take care of his dog. She greeted me at the door, wagging her tail. "You'll keep my secret, won't you?" I asked, sitting on the floor by the couch to pet her. She laid her head in my lap.
The familiar click of the door surprised me. Mei walked in, confused by my presence on his floor. Before he could question me, Minami's voice came loudly from the hallway. "Mei-Mei! Have you seen Kaede anywhere? She isn't in her room."
I shook my head with wide eyes, silently pleading: Please don't tell him I'm here! The panic must have shown.
"No, I haven't seen her. I need to practice." Mei shut the door before Minami could worm his way into the suite. Rachmaninoff trotted over to him, uninterested in me anymore. Mei scratched her head. "Why are you hiding from Minami?"
"Because he's an asshole," I muttered, leaning back against the couch. Hugging my knees to my chest, I laid my forehead against them. "Can I hide out here for a while? I promise I'll be quiet." He'd just returned from tour, but there were events coming up that he'd want to practice for. Mei was amazing at playing the piano. I loved to listen to him play.
Mei didn't respond, simply walking over to the large piano and sitting down on the bench. After a few moments of silence, piano music filled the air. This wasn't a piece that he would perform. It was too simple and sounded like a lullaby. He used to play it for me a lot when I was younger. It made me feel warm inside, and just for a moment, I forgot about all my problems. My eyes slid closed and I fell asleep to the soft music.