Disclaimer: Skip Beat! is Yoshiki Nakamura's.
Summary: Set after the latest manga chapter (133). Spoilers for anyone who hasn't gotten there yet!
Notes: Written in a slam with aishuu. She's just starting to fic for this fandom and is pulling me with her. This is 1000+ words done in just over half an hour, and its all her fault. :p -
Kyouko briefly shifted her grocery bag to her right hand and winced at the weight. It hurt, but she knew she could hold it for long enough to adjust her shirt where it had come untucked from her waistband. She could have stopped and set her things down, certainly, but the night air was getting colder and she hadn't brought quite a thick enough jacket. Just as she shifted the bag back over, she heard a honking from a car off to her side. She wasn't entirely surprised to see that it was Tsuruga Ren.
He rolled down the window and leaned toward her to speak. "I heard about your hand through the LME gossip chain. Why didn't you call to tell me?"
"It's okay!" Kyouko said as she waved off Ren. "I just need to keep off of it for a while. I've got it all worked out for how I'll manage at work." iAnd get my revenge.../i
"How did you manage to fall down the stairs, anyway?" Ren put the car into part, got out, took her bag from her, and led her to the empty passenger seat. "Here. Get in."
Kyouko sat down and buckled her seat belt, thankful that Ren drove an American-style car so she could keep her injured hand in her lap. "Um, maybe it was the wind? I was carrying a lot of stuff."
There was a brief pause as Ren went back around the car and got back in. "When did you become so fragile?"
"I'm not!" Kyouko thought back to the girl who pushed her and felt her inner demons swell to the surface, but they were quickly settled with a quick glance to Ren. "Whatever happened to always being there to protect me?"
He was silent and she looked at his eyes, but couldn't quite discern what emotion he was hiding behind them. "I wanted to be," he finally managed, but it nearly shocked her because she'd been staring at his still profile so intently.
"Ishibashi was there. He tried to keep me from falling too hard." She found herself looking down at her bandages instead of at Ren's face.
"You still got hurt, though." She suddenly realized that the radio was on, though barely turned up. She thought she could just make out the melody of Sho's newest single. She hastily reached over to turn it off, but Ren didn't seem to notice. "What were you doing at that studio, anyway? I was told you were a regular on a show there, but I've never seen you. Is this a recent development?"
Kyouko felt her heart beat faster and her breath catch in her throat. "Oh, um, I'm a, um, mascot character." She glanced up to Ren's face and saw quiet acceptance, then saw his eyes widen. "But, there's only..."
"Tsuruga, I'm sorry I didn't tell you that I was Bo from the get-go! But, you told me things I didn't think you actually wanted me to know, especially since I hated you back then, but I really don't hate you now, and I'm-" His warm hand covered her mouth suddenly and she caught a glimpse of his smile and relaxed suddenly. It was the powerful smile that people rarely got to see. He couldn't do that one when he was angry. He let go of her and she sat still.
He pulled off into a small parking area and turned off the car. "It's okay, Kyouko. It explains a lot. I hadn't figured it out before which surprises me." His mouth opened like he was going to saw something else, but he shook his head. "I'm glad you're getting steady work. It means you're doing a good job."
Kyouko smiled brightly. "Really?" She clasped her hands together and posed as a princess. Suddenly she winced and dropped her hands. "I keep forgetting about that."
He reached over to her and gently took her injured hand and held it up to his face and placed a soft kiss against the back of the bandages. Kyouko wondered if the pain was making her hallucinate, or if the dizzy feeling was just an aftereffect of Tsuruga Ren's lips coming in contact with something touching her skin. She thought maybe undiluted it might be even worse. What if he had actually kissed her that night in his apartment? She leaned back against the seat and pulled her hand to her chest. He smootherd her hair down with one hand and leaned closer to her. "I wonder, sometimes, what I can do to keep myself from worrying about you."
"Stop?" She muttered as she got caught up in the feel of his hands. She let out a breath she'd held without meaning too and inhaled deeply again.
"I can't do that." He pushed the hair behind her ear and moved his fingers to her cheek. She took a few more deep breaths. She couldn't look away from his eyes, even when he looked down slightly and she felt his thumb trace her bottom lip. She'd been here before. He'd stopped here. He was just joking again, she was sure. After all, she's hurt herself that time, too. This was just Ren being strange.
Only, he didn't stop. His lips brushed hers as he pulled his hand away, and grasped for her uninjured hand. He pulled away and set her hand back in her lap. He started the car back up and pulled back out onto the road. "I'm sorry," he said as he pulled up to her stop.
"Mm?" She shook her head. Was this Ren's American-ness rearing its head, or was she just dense? "Mm, no."
He went to reach toward her again, but paused and reached into the back where he'd put her bag. "Be more careful from now on?"
Was that what this was about? Was she supposed to have stopped him? But her hand...
Kyoko grabbed her bag and quickly left the vehicle, forcing herself to stop and bow to Ren before continuing inside. Her stomach churned and she wondered if she'd eaten something bad, then couldn't remember if she'd eaten at all.
She leaned against the wall and whispered into the darkness, "Did I just fall for Tsuruga Ren?"