Disclaimer: I do not own Skip Beat. I do not own the precious life in my womb either, but both brings much joy to my life.

During this fan fiction I will alter between referring to the characters by first and last name, with and without –san, –chan and -senpai. This is because I want the reader to feel close or distanced to the characters depending on the situation. If it's too annoying, please tell me.

SPOILER WARNING! This fan fiction takes place after chapter 136 of the manga, so if you, unlike me, dislikes spoilers and haven't read so far, there's a handy arrow that'll lead you away from the dark fate of having a story spoiled.

ALL THESE ILLOGICAL BEHAVIORS

Thirty-seven bottles of beer on the wall, thirty-seven bottles of beer. You drink one up... ugh, who am I kidding?

Tsuruga Ren did his best not to yet again pick up his cell phone despite knowing it was only a matter of seconds before he would, compelled as he was to look up Kyoko's name and number over and over again. Who knew a night could be so long, a body so filled with pain... a mind so filled with regret?

Ren sighed and found himself reading Kyoko's name in his cell phone's phonebook. So he took it after all. Figures. Not that he could call. If eleven pm had been too late, then three forty am was too early. Putting the phone aside for the umpteenth time Ren rolled over to the other side of the King size- bed. His worry caused him to go hot and cold, making the linen end up in a cold, wet mess. This was his third time switching sides already and he knew it wouldn't be the last.

I have to sleep. I got work tomorrow, I always got work tomorrow. I can't remember exactly what and Yashiro wasn't in the mood to remind me, but I know I have work tomorrow. I must sleep. Just like a professional does....

I really don't deserve the happiness love brings.

And this self-pity and regret won't help me at all.

Ren opened his eyes, unaware that he had closed them to begin with and found himself staring at his cell phone – or rather the name "Kyoko" and the number to her cell phone. There it was in his right hand, and he didn't even know he had turned over and reached for it. Was this also, along with the forceful pain, an unavoidable part of love? If so, Ren there and then decided not to accept the fate of having to spend the night like this.

Fed up with himself, the sticky linen and with his new cell phone-obsession Ren rushed out of bed and into the bathroom. He couldn't take a shower out of respect for his neighbors, but he used the sink to freshen up as much as possible before he returned to the bedroom and slipped into some comfortable and warm clothes. What he was about to do now was stupid, but it would at least be a change from the stupid stuff he'd done the past few hours. The joy of variation and all that.

The hall felt cold and Ren couldn't stop a shiver when he put on his jacket and shoes. His car keys were in his jacket and the cell phone –

Ren turned around and threw a glance towards his bedroom, knowing he should go get the now annoying object. Not that anyone would call, but it was good to have in case of an emergency. It was also a good excuse for him to take off his clothes and return to bed. Determined Ren turned back towards the door and opened it – and slapped his hand over his heart to quell its sudden jump at the sight of the dark figure sitting in the hallway across his door. In the faint light from his hallway all he could see of the huddle was short, dark hair, and arms and legs clad in a screaming pink. A basket stood placed in front of the huddle, and the huddle itself seemed to be snoring.

"M- Mogami-san?" Ren asked, perplex.

At the sound of her name the huddle transformed. The hair rose and revealed a very sleepy face and eyelids so heavy they could hardly be counted as open. It was the face of a girl who'd been crying herself to sleep.

"Yes, I will soon." The huddle assured Ren in a drowsy voice and then promptly fell over on her side, outstretched, and returned to the land of dreams.

"Wh – hey – Mogami-san! Mogami-san!" Ren called her name a few times, but low so that he wouldn't wake the neighbors up. It wasn't until he found himself staring at her still puffy and slightly red cheeks Ren realized he had kneeled next to Kyoko and was already stretching his arms out so he could pick her up. Ren froze.

Once again he had moved despite himself, despite logic and before thinking. That was dangerous, but –

I don't know why she came here or how long she's been here... but what can I do but to lift her up and take her inside?

Careful not to hurt or wake up his precious cargo, Ren took Kyoko in his arms and carried her gently into his home. Without removing his shoes, he put her on the couch (since the sweaty bed was out of the question). Then he returned out in the hallway to fetch the mysterious basket. Despite his curiosity, Ren simply placed the basket in the kitchen, hoping it wouldn't be spoiled – whatever it was. After removing his own shoes and jacket Ren carefully took off Kyoko's shoes, an act that made him almost feel like a villain of sorts. But it wasn't as if he was going to undress her completely! Mindful of Kyoko's needs of comfort, Ren fetched a blanket and covered her sleeping form up.

Knowing he himself would not find any sleep in his bed despite the calmness his heart received due to her sleeping presence, Ren decided to pull forth a comfortable chair and await his princess' waking hour. After all, if she was to wake up without him being there, she might be frightened.

But on the other hand, wouldn't seeing him make her not only frightened but terrified? He had seen her inch away from him in fear before – even run away from him – and it wasn't something his heart could handle right now.

God, what was he supposed to do?

Looking at the delicate young woman's relaxed face, Ren muttered to himself: "Kyoko-chan, why did you come here? In the middle of the night none the less."

The basket.

Still with his gaze on his stubborn loved one, Ren already felt his curiosity battle with his duty as a gentleman. It was clear that Kyoko had come to him with the intention of leaving the basket to him, but since she technically hadn't done that yet – should he really?

"Cupcakes, fairy-godmother!" said a slurred, cute voice before Kyoko turned over in the couch and continued her dream.

Ren stiffened up and made a hasty retreat to the kitchen, one hand carefully clasped over his mouth. She did not say that, she couldn't have said that, there's NO WAY –

"Pffff!"

He couldn't help himself but to laugh. It was so typical her! And Ren had to admit it gave ease to his heart to see that the very girl who'd been crying herself to sleep found such comfort in his home... or, well, the hotel rooms he called home.

How strange. Nothing was solved yet. He was still the most stupid man alive, but everything felt better, brighter, more promising.... just because he had Kyoko here with him. The power of love sure had its magic. And on that note... the power of love compels me, Ren thought, and went to rummage through the mysterious basket.

The basket was covered with a piece of cloth – a towel used for dish washing, as it turned out. Ren neatly pulled the cloth off and lay it aside, listening carefully for sounds from the living room, but all that could be heard was the gentle humming from the lit lamp and a soft rustle from a folded note that fell out of place along with the cloth. Ren picked the note up, but before he could decide wether to unfold it or not, his eyes caught the sight of himself. Literally.

Dolls??

Ren knew about Kyoko's handcrafting skills since he'd seen the big Ren-doll Maria-chan received during the "Thank-you" party the two girls conducted. Had it been anyone else making a doll like that, Ren would have felt resentment and quite a good deal of fright. Maria-chan had however talked to Ren about Kyoko's way of using dolls in voodoo but also for company before, so he managed to hide most of his chock. Especially since that doll that time had been a gift for Maria-chan who everyone knew was in childish love with him, so it was made for a special occasion and for a special person.

He hadn't known Kyoko had more dolls looking like him.

Spellbound by this discovery Ren lifted the small figure for a closer inspection. The face of this doll had a small, neural smile but the doll's eyes were sharp and piercing from behind slightly closed eyelids. That look combined with the doll's crossed arms showed clearly that this doll, despite the smile, wasn't happy AT ALL about its current situation... or with whomever it was staring at. And since Ren easily could recognize his clothing from the day before, it wasn't hard to figure out who had been on the other end of that glare.

So that's what she saw.... well, that's a spirit-sinker for sure...

Feeling he had gotten out as much as he could from that doll, Ren put it back in the basket and took a look at the rest. There was a doll of Director Ogata, of Yashiro-san, one looking like that Hikaru-guy and some of other men and women Ren did not recognize. One of them, however, was faceless. The body, clothes and her hair was all neatly fixed, but she didn't have any face on. That was strange. Even stranger were the last two dolls: one was of Kyoko herself, wearing the pink uniform and a sign hung around her neck saying: "I'm stupid". The Kyoko-doll did not look at all like the original; it was actually rather poorly made and resembled a stuffed animal more than a doll, but since the black hair was short and not long, it simply had to be Kyoko and not the other Love-me member, Kotonami-san. The last figure was however as easily recognized as it was surprising: a detailed and accurate doll of Bo, the chicken Ren had come to become somewhat friends with.

So the basket was out in the open, but Ren was none the wiser. That only left the note. Ren took the double-folded note, but hesitated. He could always say that he dropped the basket or that it fell over and thus he saw the dolls, but since the note wouldn't unfold by itself there was no good way of explaining why he'd red it – unless he had been snooping. Concerning his bad behavior so far, Ren really couldn't add that to his list. If he did that, Kyoko would never open up to him again... wouldn't trust him.

He had to show her that he was a better man than he appeared to be.

Ren put the note back on top of the small dolls and covered the whole set with the cloth again before he switched off the humming lamp and let the darkness engulf him. He didn't need any light to find his way to the chair he had decided on before. Stealthily, quietly, did Ren move the chair across the floor and placed it close to the couch. Despite knowing it was indecent of him, Ren took his time to let his eyes get used to the darkness – by watching Kyoko. It wasn't until he could see all her soft, facial features Ren sat down on the chair and allowed himself to relax a bit.

Author: Oh, what's in a note...!?