I do not own Skip Beat! in any shape or form, even if I had some hopes about Ren and Kyoko's short skirt.
"You have to make the effort, for him."
Easier said than done, Yashiro-san, Kyoko thought as she wandered down the shopping district, trying very hard not to meet anyone's eye. She had a feeling that if she did, they would immediately know she was a hack. Swarovski, Karen Millan, Versace… all these big brand stores were not for second-rate actresses who haven't even had their debut yet. Kyoko had dreamed of shopping in this place, of course, but it was a vague kind of daydream, right there with the "one day I'll dye my hair green" and "dancing with the fairies" kind. It wasn't meant to actually happen, she didn't even have the money for them.
Well… until a few hours ago, that is. Yashiro, after getting her to agree to his crazy plan, had promptly handed her a credit card with the instructions to use it however she saw fit. No matter how hard she tried to get him to take it back, he'd refused.
"You will need some things for the events you will attend with Ren. Don't worry, it'll be written off as a business expense."
"That's not it, Yashiro-san. Tsuruga-san…" Ren had told her that men didn't waste their money on a woman they weren't interested in. He said it would be irresponsible for her to accept gifts, thinking that there were no strings attached. He'd then told her to go to him whenever she was in need of something. But Kyoko couldn't tell that to Yashiro. "He'd get upset if he finds out, wouldn't he? Especially if he learns I used company money. He was really mad with me when he thought I treated him like just another assignment."
Yashiro shook his head. "This isn't a Love-Me assignment, Kyoko-chan. That's the reason why I had to talk to you here. It has to be under the strictest of confidence."
"So I can't even tell Moko-san about it?"
"Nobody can know." Yashiro looked at her dead in the eye as he said it. "Ren is in a very delicate position. You know he would never admit it, but he would be very unhappy if he learned that others were worried, and he would only close off more. The only thing we can do is act and hope he doesn't mind."
All well and good, but she really wished she could have spoken to Kanae about this. Maybe her friend would have been impatient with her, but Moko-san was a lovely lady, and she definitely knew how to make herself look amazing. It would have been great to have a friend with whom she could talk to about this, a friend who could help. Because Kyoko knew, in spite of Yashiro's assurances that she had looked lovely at the gala, that she really wasn't all that beautiful.
She paused in front of a dress shop and sighed, looking up at the mannequins on display. She wondered what it would be like to actually have the guts to walk in there and try one of these on. To buy one. But she knew it was of no use. Even if she wore the most beautiful gown and had her hair done by a magician, she would have zero effect on Tsuruga-san.
Kyoko frowned as another memory resurfaced. She'd told president Lori, and Moko-san, and Yashiro, that Ren had taken her home just before he got into that accident, and it had been the truth. They had assured her that what happened was not her fault, and left it there, no doubt thinking that she was just being her neurotic self. What she hadn't told them, what she would never tell them, was what had happened the night before… and on the morning, at the shoot.
She refused to think about it. She wouldn't analyze it, wouldn't even make allusions to it, to anyone or to herself. But one thing had been made abundantly clear, and it was that Tsuruga Ren found her about as desirable as one of those wooden mannequins she was looking at.
"Well, well, well, look at what the cat dragged in."
Kyoko didn't need the grudges to rear their heads – she knew immediately who was speaking. Stiffening, she turned and looked at her rival.
"Sho," she said, barely inclining her head to acknowledge him.
Her childhood friend raised an eyebrow. "Daydreaming again? Should have known that's what you were doing. I mean, why else would you be here of all places."
Stay calm. Don't let him get to you, she thought. You have more important things to worry about.
"What I do here is none of your business," she said, moving as if to breeze past him, but he angled himself so that he was in her way. There was no way to gracefully overstep him without looking like a ditz, so she stopped and gave him a frosty look. "Would you mind?"
"Now, now, Kyoko-chan, where's the rush?" he asked, smirking. "If you want to look at the pretty things, don't let me bother you. Tell you what, I'll even walk with you into the store so that you can look closer without worrying about the salesladies whispering."
That asshole, she thought, wishing she could punch him. But she knew that would be wise – even if people didn't recognize her as Mio from "Dark Moon", she would no doubt get dragged off by security guards… again. But this was cruel, even for Shotarou. He knew she liked pretty things, and he knew she loved to daydream. So why wouldn't he leave her alone, even for one miserable day? A Happy Meal in the face had been too good for him.
Kyoko was aware she had given him more than he deserved, but the extent of it kept hitting her in the face, again and again. Like this street? Kyoko had been an actress for nearly two years now, working her ass off on dramas and commercials and whatnot, and she still served at the Duruma-Ya on the days she didn't have homework in order to put food on the table. She was reminded, again and again, how hard it was, but at least the fact that she loved acting made up for the hardships. In contrast, Sho had never had to do anything else but write music and smile for the cameras. He didn't know what it was like to wake up at three in the morning, or to have his hands crack from doing dishes all day.
He didn't have to walk down a shopping district and dream about owing a fancy guitar – he'd just walk into a store and get one. And he loved to rub her face in the fact.
Today, though, she had no time to deal with that.
"Thanks for the offer, but if I go into a shop, I'd rather be accompanied by a guy who doesn't have his eyebrows plucked for him," she said and, using his distraction, slipped past him.
It didn't take him long to recover, though, and he was hot on her heels.
"And what is that supposed to mean, huh?"
"It means that I'd rather not be seen in your company, that's what," she said, mentally calculating her escape routes. She'd been through here many times when she'd rushed between jobs, but she had always been on her bike.
"Hate to break it to you, sweetheart, but a lot of male actors go to the beauticians. Your precious Tsuruga-san is probably a regular customer."
Her precious… She really had to get away, before she killed him. Kyoko focused on walking faster, and tried to ignore the lump in her throat. He'd never be hers. Never. Not that she cared.
In desperation, she ducked into a store, hoping that Shotarou wouldn't throw a hissy fit in there, but realized much too late her mistake. She'd just walked into Tiffany's. And immediately had all three clerks focus on her.
Well, too late to go back now. Kyoko felt, rather than saw, Sho following her inside, so she quickly tapped into Natsu and gave the salespeople a cool glance, before walking over to the nearest display case. If she played her cards right, he'd get bored and leave before anything bad happened.
Diamond rings and necklaces sparkled on the display cushions, and she paused to admire the elegant designs, the simple shapes. She imagined owing one of those things one day, maybe a set. But then, when would she wear them? She never had occasion to dress up, safe for the Dark Moon gala.
"That's a lovely diamond you've got there, Miss."
It took Kyoko a minute to realize that the saleslady had spoken to her. "Excuse me?"
"Your necklace. It's a beautiful piece," the woman said, her kind face beaming. "In fact, judging from the cut, it just might be one of ours."
Kyoko's hand flew immediately to her throat, and she felt the familiar shape of Princess Rosa, whom she had put on before coming over, for courage. And she immediately relaxed – but of course, Princess Rosa was magic, it was natural that she could have been confused with a piece from one of the world's most renounced jeweler's. "Ah, well, I don't know. It was actually a gift."
"Oh?" Sho breathed down her neck, making her shiver. She could just tell what he was thinking. How could Kyoko have gotten such a gift? She probably stole it. Straightening up, she gave the woman a polite smile.
"One of yours, you say?"
"Well, I can't be sure, but if I may…" she gestured. Kyoko hesitated only briefly, but undid the clasp anyway and handed the necklace over. The lady examined it with an expert eye, before nodding. "A rare cut, to be sure, but definitely one of ours. The chain, though…" She frowned. "It looks like it was bought from the supermarket."
Kyoko tried not to blush as she heard Sho stifle a laugh. "Well, I only got P… I mean, I only got the gemstone."
"Oh, my!" The lady looked shocked that someone could have been so negligent. "Well, if you'd like, we can fit you a better chain. And maybe a ring to match?" she added, looking meaningfully between Kyoko and Sho.
Just the thought of being associated with that guy in such a way made her freeze over. Taking Princess Rosa back and fastening the chain on, Kyoko said quickly, "No, no, that's quite alright. I was just surprised, is all, since I didn't know the gem had come from here. Oh, my, look at the time, excuse me," she said, beating a hasty retreat, and hoping like hell that Shotarou wouldn't follow her.
He didn't. Instead, he watched her leave, while the wheels in his head span at extra speed. Kyoko owned a diamond? A real, honest-to-goodness diamond, and she didn't even know it? Well, that last part was easy enough to believe, since the girl could be as dense as a brick, but really? Who would have given her such a gift?
Turning his attention to the lady behind the counter, he leveled her his most charming smile. "Excuse me, ma'am."
"Yes?" she said, eyes bright. He smirked a little wider.
"My friend over there is a little shy, but I know she would love to have a ring to match that necklace."
"Of course! We have some very nice ones right here…"
"But do you have any ones that are a perfect match? Say, the same cut? Is there a way to check."
"But of course," the woman said, tripping over herself to be helpful. "We keep a full account of every piece we sell, with the name of the purchaser, as well as all the diamonds from the same cut. I could check this out for you."
"That would be great," he said, and watched her tap away on a computer. She then hurried to the other side of the store to retrieve some items from a glass case, and he used the opportunity to look at the names. His eyes widened. "No fucking way!"
The fairies were unusually excited. They filled out the dressing room, chirping happily to themselves and flying in figure eights. The grudges were in a monkey huddle in the corner, trying to keep themselves warm.
Kyoko had to stop herself from beating her head against the wall. It was Wednesday now, three days after what she called the Tiffany's accident, and the day after Tsuruga-san's official discharge date. Normally, she'd have called to see how he was, but… well, under the circumstances, that would have been a bad idea.
She looked at herself in the mirror. The Box R shoot was over for the day, but she'd decided to stay in-Natsu, as she now referred to herself whenever she used the model stance, make-up and hair. She refreshed her lipstick, reminding herself of what she had to do now – it was nearly noon, and time to initiate what Yashiro now called the Tsuruga-san plan.
Deep breaths, you can do this.
But she really doubted it. Her feet were weak, and it was like her first audition, only ten times worse. She didn't know whether to be happy or to throw up.
It had been three days since Yashiro recruited her for the Tsuruga-san plan.
Four days since the accident.
Five since… that.
And in a few minutes, she would see him.
Kyoko looked at herself in the mirror and marshaled her features into a mask of calm. "It doesn't matter," she said. "It's okay. You have to do this for him."
The grudges looked up hopefully. The air smelled good.
Ren glanced at Yashiro every ten seconds now. He knew because he counted. It was just a normal reaction, he thought, self-preservation instinct kicking in. After five years with that manager, he had learned that a calm, composed Yashiro usually meant something was happening. He hadn't even objected when Ren had called him on the day of his discharge and asked him for his schedule.
In fact, his schedule was rather full, when he thought about it. Was it that Yashiro had predicted that he would want to get back to work immediately? Or maybe he was punishing him for being so reckless?
His manager had definitely been angry with him, but now he was as cool as ice. Not only that, he hadn't asked a single question about the accident ever since he came to pick him up at the start of the day.
"We'll be taking lunch here," Yashiro said as he gestured towards a sushi restaurant near the park. "I figured you might not be hungry, so we're going to go with something light."
"Of course," Ren said. "And after that?"
"Audition for the new drama. You know, it would be suspicious if Tsuruga Ren dropped out the face of the Earth when Cain Heel arrived. The President told you that, right?"
"Naturally. Don't worry for me, Yashiro-san. I'm not afraid of more work."
"Good to hear. And, of course, then there are the night-time pictures of the movie, starring B.J. You'll be meeting Jerry Woods at five for your make-up."
Ren nodded, trying to ignore the sudden fear in his stomach. He was going to be Cain Heel tonight, but what about Setsu? Would Kyoko be there? Technically, he needed a translator, although Murasame had already told everyone who cared to listen that he spoke Japanese. Well… not that it was a vital supporting role, but…
The girl hadn't tried contacting him, not once. That wasn't good – before, she had no qualms of staying overnight and taking care of him when he was sick, cooking and cleaning and making sure he wasn't running a high fever. Not that he expected her to storm the hospital, but a phone call wasn't so farfetched. Maybe Yashiro had taken all calls directed to him, but surely he would tell him if she called. After all, it wasn't like his manager to miss an opportunity to tease him…
Ren sighed, suddenly grateful for the busy schedule. Maybe Kyoko hadn't called and Yashiro had made sure he would be too busy to think about it. But the thing is, his manager had no idea of what had happened less than a week ago. He didn't know the implications of Kyoko not calling.
He shuddered.
"Are you cold?" Yashiro asked. "You didn't bring a warmer jacket, did you?"
"Yashiro-san, it's spring. It's not that bad."
"Don't tell me what's bad and what isn't. You were just in a car accident." They were walking through the park now, and Yashiro paused on a sunny patch of the path. "Look, I know you have things you have to deal with and I'm not going to pry. Just know that I'd listen."
Ren nodded absent-mindedly. "It's fine. I just need to get my head around something."
Yashiro bit back the angry retort that came to his mind. He couldn't tell Ren he knew who he was, not without raising suspicion. So he sighed. "Well, then, shall we continue? We still have to… Ren, what is it?"
Ren didn't answer, but his eyes were trained right on ahead. There were people pulling apart a shooting site, and he immediately remembered that some of the latest Box R episodes were taking place in a park. Did this mean Kyoko was nearby? Did Yashiro know?
Stupid question, of course he knew. And if there was reason to doubt it, Ren also saw a familiar figure stalking towards the set. A figure with blinding blonde hair and a scowl.
Fuwa.
As he followed the rocker's trajectory, he also saw someone coming out of the makeshift dressing rooms. He didn't even have time to panic – before he knew it, Kyoko's eyes were on his.
A long moment passed, longer than any other in Ren's life. The whole world seemed to hold its breath.
Then she raised her hand and waved. And before he could wonder if it was him she was acknowledging, she started moving forward.
A/N Wow, it's been a while since I got such a good response to a new story. Definitely thinking of continuing that one.
Encouragement is welcome, of course.
