Kaorin71: Here's chapter two! There's nothing exciting in this part, I guess. Just the mother-and-daughter talk part. I marked this story rated T just to be safe. And as for the Kyoko*Ren romance, that'll be in the later chapters (if I will continue updating).

P.S: I'm referring to Kyoko in the summary, the one with 'Why she can no longer live that long…' That'll be explained later in the story. But if you know One Liter of Tears, you'll know what I mean by that.

Disclaimer: I do not and will never own the manga Skip Beat.

Chapter 2: Confrontation

Her shoes thudded against the floor as she ran to the office. Kyoko gasped as she opened the door violently. Sawara looked up from the desk and shouted something as soon as he saw Kyoko. The girl absent-mindedly crawled to him, probably because she couldn't walk anymore. She melted after reaching the desk.

"Kyoko-chan!" Alarmed, Sawara stood up and gestured at one person to get him a glass of water. Handing her the drink, he sighed. "What did you do again?"

"The woman who wanted to see me," Kyoko choked. She was speaking and drinking at the same time, which was surprising. "I didn't hear her name. What was it?"

Sawara frowned. "Of course you didn't. The phone went dead as I was halfway through saying the name."

The girl groaned. "It was malfunctioning. I thought I heard you say Saena Mogami."

The man's gaze fell on her. "Yes, that's what I said. That's her name."

"In that case," she said, leaning over the table, "please tell her I'm not available."

"Eh?" A question popped up in his mind. "I told her that you would meet her down the hall. I can't cancel that out. I'm sure she's already there."

Her demons surrounded Sawara as he said this. Kyoko's expression darkened. "Why did you tell her that I'm here? I'm gonna die if I see her!"

"What's wrong with that?" Sawara could sense the evil aura tightening around him. "Who is she anyway?"

Hearing this, Kyoko's demons retreated. Her face grew solemn as she said, "My mother."

"Your mother? Then shouldn't you be excited that you would be seeing her again?"

"No," she softly whispered. "I'm not. Because… she abandoned me. She left me years ago. She doesn't care what would happen to me and most of all..."

"…she doesn't love me."

"Kyoko-chan." Sawara suddenly felt guilty of crime. If he had known the relationship between Kyoko and her mother, he wouldn't have done that. Nothing could be done now, though. Saena Mogami was waiting for her daughter at the end of the hall. "Do you want me to cancel the meeting? Even if it's too late, maybe there's a way."

Standing up from her position, she shook her head. "No need, Sawara-san. I had seen this coming. I should probably end this now until it gets bigger."

He only nodded at her request. "Good luck with that."

Sighing, she walked out of the door. Such things were bound to happen. She had thought that her mother might come back for her after she figures out that the actress 'Kyoko' was her beloved - no, not beloved but despised daughter. She might want to demand a part of her income or file a case against LME for letting her enter the business without any verification from her. All of these she could do. It would depend on what mood she was in that moment.

She rounded a corner and stopped. She hadn't expected that it was already the end of the hall. And, as Sawara had told her, Saena was there. Surprisingly, she wore a casual outfit much opposed to her normal business woman type clothes. And she had her light brown hair down also different from the style she had years ago. What changed most was her facial expression. Without that serious mask on, she would look rather beautiful for an old woman.

Kyoko got into Natsu character, being high and proud. She confidently walked up to her mother. "You came back for me? I'm touched that you could even remember my name."

Immediately, her face was masked with the usual serious expression again. "I'm not here to play with you, child. You're not fit for this business so you better step down from you position."

Her reply earned her a sneer from Kyoko. "And you think that I would obey you? After what you did to me?"

Saena stiffened and her expression changed as if she was shocked that her daughter had the guts to say such words. "Kyoko, if you don't do what I say, I'll be forced to file a case against LME just to get you out of this."

"We'll find a way to make it a void. After all, you did leave me with the Fuwas. Meaning you surrendered your parental duties and obligations as my mother to them. That alone might suspend your case and it would probably take years before you figure out legal proof to back your claim."

"How did they raise you anyway?" Asked the woman. "You never answered back to me before."

Kyoko laughed sarcastically. "Your choice of abandoning me opened my eyes to reality. It was really foolish of me to love you. I learned that no matter how hard you work, you will never attain that feeling if that person has none of it. A woman like you who only looks at me as if I'm a leech in your life cannot give any love."

Saena narrowed her eyes at her. "If I didn't care for you, I wouldn't have come back. I wouldn't be here."

"Why are you here anyway? Are you here to ruin my life all over again? Do you really hate me that much?" Kyoko asked desperately, getting out of character. She couldn't stop herself from crying. "What's your reason this time?"

"That I can't tell you."

Kyoko looked at her with pleading eyes. "Why can't you tell me? Is it because you're here to kill me?"

"No, I'm not the one who would kill you," she said. Kyoko didn't understand this much. "I'm already warning you. You can't stay in this life longer. Your life would probably be over if you don't listen to me."

Her eyes widened. "What are you saying now?"

She swallowed hard. "You're not yet ready to listen to it. I left you for a reason, Kyoko. All things in this world have reasons. If you only know what that is, you would understand."

Her daughter stared at her. What could that reason be? And why can't Kyoko know about it?

A sudden dizzy feeling hit Kyoko. Her legs froze and her vision blurred. Her mind throbbed painfully as if it was about to burst. The she had a sick feeling at the pit of her stomach. She thought she would throw up so she decided to run to the restroom. But to her complete surprise, her legs wouldn't cooperate.

It was weird. She forgot how to walk. That moment, she felt disoriented. As if she couldn't remember how to lift her foot. It didn't help that her vision was failing by every second that passes.

Her body felt heavy. She narrowed her eyes at her mother. Was that some kind of curse? Did her mother do something? Yet she couldn't think of an answer. Her mind blanked and all she could feel was the feeling of falling down.

At the last second, someone caught her. With her remaining strength, she squinted at the person holding her. It was her mother.

Why would she save me? Kyoko wearily thought. Someone who hates even her own daughter….

Saena, though, didn't look like a mother who hates her daughter. Kyoko saw it. Her face tight with fear and concern. But why?

"I told you already, Kyoko," she whispered. "I didn't leave you without a reason."

"Why?" Struggling to stay awake, she listened hard for her answer.

Her lips quivered a bit. "Not now. Not yet. You'll find out sooner. Maybe."

Then Kyoko fainted.

She opened her eyes. The first thing she saw was the white ceiling. An antiseptic smell wafted inside the room. Though she was awake, she still couldn't figure out anything.

Groaning, she tried to remember what had happened. She was called to the office. Sawara talked to her. That her mother had asked for her.

Her mother…

Sitting up, she glanced around the area. Everything white. No doubt, she was in a hospital. But her mother wasn't there.

Kyoko rubbed her head. Yes, it all came back to her. She had seen her mother. She wanted her to quit showbiz. And told her that she didn't hate her. Then she felt a sickening feeling and even forgot how to walk. After that, she fainted.

Who carried her to the hospital?

Just then, a nurse came in carrying a clipboard. Upon seeing Kyoko awake, she smiled. "You're alright, Mogami-san."

"Why am I here, miss?" Kyoko asked in complete confusion.

The nurse placed her clipboard on the side table. "My name's Miya Sasaki. You can just call me Sasaki-san. As for your question, a woman along with an extravagantly dressed man brought you in. Based on the tests, the doctor concluded that you might be over working yourself."

Kyoko sighed in relief as she imagined the president wearing his usual frilly dress carrying her like a princess to the hospital. "Yeah. I have been working nonstop." Then she asked, "Are they still here?"

Miya stalled. "No, they left. I mean, they had to go."

Kyoko nodded. She wanted to see her mother again to ask more questions. There are lots more to ask yet there are so few answers.

"We can make sure that you take a rest here," Miya told her, looking at her papers. She frowned but only for a brief second. Turning to Kyoko, she smiled again. "I'll have to leave now, Mogami-san. Please call if you need anything."

"Hai," Kyoko answered as she watched the nurse walk out.

Closing the door behind her, Miya immediately looked at the woman sitting near the room. Walking up to her, she sighed. "Saena, I'm not one to intrude in other people's businesses. But are you willing to keep this a secret? This is a serious matter, if you would ask my opinion"

Saena gave her a sidelong glance. "I can't tell her. Not when she still hates me."

"You knew this would happen. It would've been better if you had told her as a child."

"It would break her heart," she responded with anxiety. "She's not one to accept things like this easily."

"It's not my decision to make," she shrugged. A doctor then called her attention. "It's not as if you could change her fate."

After taking one last glance at Saena, she gracefully jogged away. She shouldn't have intruded with her friend's affairs, especially since she has no experiences being a mother. But then, keeping something that painful is a sin.

Sighing, Saena bowed her head. How could she probably tell her daughter the truth? About her real state in life? And about her father's real death? It wasn't enough that she had to hide everything. Now she has to confess everything to Kyoko.

I'll wait, she decided. When she personally comes to me, that's when I'll tell her. I left her, after all, just to have some time to think. Now that time's up. No use wasting the remainder of her life without her knowing it.

Standing up, she threw one last glance at the door. She expected Kyoko to come running out with arms open begging her not to leave. But that would impossible now. She laughed harshly. Yes, it will never happen.

Please be fine, Kyoko, she thought painfully as she marched away from the area.