Sapporo in the Moonlight
Disclaimer: SkipBeat: don't own it, probably couldn't afford it, really like it, 'nuf said
LME Hits a Landmark 25th Anniversary. To celebrate, Lory leases an entire resort in Sapporo and sponsors a company vacation for the holidays. With Kyoko turning eighteen, will Ren finally make his move? And why do mysterious things keep happening?
Chapter 6 – Hit and Miss Connections
Author's note: From this point forward, in order to make the distinction clear, I will have the times that anyone speaks in English in bold.
Three hours was more than enough for the two novices. Yashiro and Ren were both experienced skiers, so they knew that it would be a mistake for the girls to continue practicing. Kyoko had forgotten her earlier irritation and she was having a good time. "Why do we have to quit now?"
Ren gave her the smile that always made her feel weak and warm at the same time. "If you want to be able to walk tomorrow, you should take a break now. Besides, I thought that we could take a break and go to The Stomping Ground."
"The stomping ground?" Kanae asked, confused at the English name. "I'm not really hungry yet."
Yashiro chuckled, "The Stomping Ground Park is a ski jump park. It has half-pipes, jumps, and bag jumps. Believe me, it's worth visiting. There will be some very serious stunt snow-boarders and skiers there for us to watch."
Kyoko face split into a wide, excited smile. "Oh, I want to see that!" She turned to her tall sempai, "Do you jump, Ren?"
Kanae rolled her eyes as she saw the tall actor grinning like a little kid at Christmas. He had insisted that she and Kyoko called him that in order to prevent any inadvertent disclosure of his identity. The funny thing was that he looked flushed and happy every time Kyoko said his given name. It was amusing and almost cute to see Japan's Most Desirable Man acting like a lovesick teenager. She was also marveling at the ease that Kyoko seemed to have around the man. She knew that Kyoko's "Something Dangerous" mission had something to do with her tall "sempai," but she still didn't know what had taken place. Whatever it was, it had changed Ren and Kyoko's relationship.
Kanae felt Yashiro Yukihito's eyes on her again and she felt annoyed. She appreciated the man's help with teaching her to ski, and she was even willing to admit that he was handsome. He had worn contacts that afternoon… it was the first time she had ever seen him without glasses… or noticed his eyes. Mo! I don't have any time for a man! Even if that overgrown playboy is making progress with my best friend, it doesn't have to mean…
She stopped thinking and her eyes grew alarmed as she recognized the woman who was walking through the snow towards them. Ren and Yashiro saw her reaction and quickly turned. Kyoko, who had been admiring the beautiful mountain views, felt the atmosphere change. As usual, she immediately thought that she had done something wrong. She cringed and scanned the big man's face, but quickly realized that he wasn't looking at her.
Yashiro, thinking quickly, stepped away from the other three to intercept Shouko Aki's progress. He didn't want anyone to recognized Ren, and he certainly didn't want Fuwa Sho showing up to disrupt their vacation. She looked up, startled to find the manager of her charge's arch-rival standing in front of her. "Yashiro-san?" She looked around, hoping beyond hope that she wouldn't find his tall charge close-by… or worse, Mogami Kyoko. "I didn't expect to find you here!" Then she remembered the LME sign at the airport. "Please don't tell me that LME's mystery vacation is here?" Her voice was almost pleading.
Yashiro felt sorry for his fellow manager. He couldn't imagine being Fuwa Sho's manager. He was assured that he would have killed the punk by now. He had heard most of Kyoko's story concerning Sho. He thought of Kyoko like a little sister, therefore he felt a deep and abiding dislike for Shouko's charge. It must have worse for her, since she was a woman… a strikingly beautiful woman… and that rocker punk probably never left her alone. Still, he had his priorities for the moment, "Hello Aki. I'm surprised to see you here as well. May I ask… are you here on vacation?"
She recognized a dodge when she heard one, but she didn't push the issue, "Unfortunately I'm here with him… or at least I'm supposed to be. He has a three-day concert here. Only, he keeps disappearing on me." She hesitated, but set her professional loyalties aside so that she could be honest with her fellow manager, "Yashiro-san, if Mogami Kyoko's here, can we please hide the girl? I'm at my wit's end already, and I really don't want to deal with another scandal right now."
Shouko Aki looked up the slope to look for Sho, and Yashiro used the opportunity to wave his three companions away. Ren understood and steered the two ladies down the slope. As they walked quickly away, Kanae found herself glancing back and watching Yashiro with Fuwa Sho's very pretty manager… and she felt distinctly annoyed.
Ren, Kyoko, and Kanae arrived at Stomping Ground Park only to find the place alive with snowboarders and spectators. The trio wondered what the commotion was about, until the crowd parted and they saw three young men snowboarding the half-pipe. Kyoko clapped with glee as she saw Shinichi in his disguise soaring eight feet above the wall before turning, grabbing the back of his board, and plummeting back to re-connect with the wall. Next it was Yuusei, who soared into the air and spun twice.
Ren, who had positioned himself close to Kyoko after he saw several onlookers checking her out, said, "A backside 720… impressive." Kyoko looked up at him, captivated for a moment by his blond hair. "Do you do those kinds of things Ren?" Kyoko had struggled with using Ren's given name so casually, but now she actually liked the feel of it on her tongue. The tall man looked down at her and found himself falling into her eyes. When he saw her look becoming alarmed, he shook his head, "No… actually, I snowboard pretty well, but my focus was usually skiing. I like the jumps, especially the stunt-jumps."
The crowd roared and the pair turned back to watch the half-pipe. Kyoko gasped as a small man soared ten feet above the rim, spinning two-and-one-half times and re-connecting with the rim as he came down backwards and still kept his balance. It was a spectacular jump for an amateur, and Ren would have been happy to give the man props, except for the fact that Kyoko ran forward unexpectedly to congratulate him herself. Ren watched the smaller man's reaction to Kyoko through squinted eyes and gritted teeth. Considering Kyoko's usual reticence in approaching men, he must be somebody… and then Ren remembered the Bridge Rock trio from earlier in the morning. This one, the one who seemed so pleased at seeing Kyoko's approach, must be the leader, Hikaru. He must have been there earlier when Kyoko came out, so he knows her disguise. Ren didn't feel pleased about that
Kyoko gleefully ran up and shook the man's hand. The two previous half-pipers surrounded the girl and Kyoko conducted an animated conversation with them. Ren felt alarmed at the familiar, relaxed feeling that the four young people were projecting. Almost unconsciously, he stepped forward to join the group. Kyoko smiled brightly at him, making his heart leap, but then her expression changed, becoming guarded. Ren wondered about that as he heard the man he now recognized as Ishibashi Shinichi saying, "I wish that we would have brought the suit. I want to see Bo shooting the pipe. I bet he could, too."
Ren didn't see Kyoko's repeated attempts to quiet the young man's talk. He saw her movements, but he thought that she was sharing some private joke with the jokester of the group… and it made him feel frustrated and left-out. Normally, he might have never spoken on the subject, but this time he felt the need to join the conversation, if only to reclaim Kyoko's attention. "Bo would probably do a great job. He seems like the type who could do anything."
Yuusei nodded in agreement, and Hikaru looked poised to join in when Kyoko suddenly said, "Yaaaaaaaah! Look at the sun! Ren, if we don't hurry, you'll miss your chance to jump… We should definitely go now." She grabbed Ren's hand urgently and tried to lead him away, leaving two of the men looking amused, and one looking sad. Ren was confused by Kyoko's precipitant action, but he felt consoled by the fact that Kyoko's hand was still in his. As they walked away, Ren heard one of the men say, "Sorry, Leader. We'll try to make sure that you get some time alone with Kyoko-chan later."
Ren frowned and he felt his anger rising. They walked another thirty feet or so towards the ski area before he finally asked, "Mogami-san… how do you know the Ishibashi's so well?"
Kyoko heard the change in her sempai's voice and she froze, releasing his hand. Oh no! He's angry at me for grabbing his hand like that! He only tolerates me at the best of times! If he finds out that I am Bo, he'll cut me up and deep-fry me! I don't want to look… She looked up with a grimace of horror. As she expected, Ren had that gleaming, gentlemanly smile on his face.
All around them, women began to lose their ability to think. Two women collided, falling to the ground in a daze. Another older lady slid right into a crowd of snowboarders who were strapping in, knocking the whole group over like dominoes. There were other incidents, but Ren and Kyoko didn't notice any of them. Kyoko fell to her knees in the snow executing a dogeeza and wailing for Ren's forgiveness. As suddenly as it happened, Ren was shaken from his angry thoughts.
Ashamed of himself, he reached down and slid his hands under Kyoko's arms. Kyoko made an "eeep!" sound as she suddenly felt herself being lifted into the air. Ren smiled apologetically to her as he set her back on her feet, "Kyoko… I apologize… I didn't mean to make you feel bad."
"No! It's not your fault! I shouldn't have grabbed your hand like that! I know you must be disgusted with me!" Kyoko tried to fall on her knees again, but Ren stopped her by grabbing both of her hands in his.
Startled and disconcerted, she slowly looked back up, afraid to meet Ren's gentlemanly smile again. Instead, she found herself looking into a soft expression that made it almost impossible for her to think… or breathe. Ren was almost on the verge of declaring his true feelings for her when a rude, arrogant voice demanded, "Would you get out of the way! There are more important people here, and I don't feel like having to go around you just because you're foreigners with not manners!" Kyoko's grudge demons were beginning to emerge even as Ren turned his head to glare into Fuwa Sho's irritated eyes.
Mo! This is ridiculous! What am I doing?
Kanae had left the beginner slopes with Kyoko and Ren, but somehow she never made it to Stomping Ground Park. Somehow, in the process of the trip, she became separated from her best friend and her annoyingly tall shadow. Then, with no clear plan of her own, she found herself back at the beginner slopes and scanning for a familiar face. When she didn't see him there, she took a guess and headed down the hill toward the restaurants and stores. She tried to enjoy window shopping, but a nagging irritation repeatedly invaded her perusal. Finally, after she was becoming dangerously irritated, she heard a female laugh. Turning quickly, she looked into a small coffee shop to see Yashiro Yukihito and Fuwa Sho's tall, shapely manager sitting at a table and talking over coffees.
The scene looked so natural, so perfect, and so sickeningly sweet that Kanae wanted to pick up something heavy and bust it on top of… What's wrong with me? Why am I behaving like some kind of idiotic fool? That's it; I'm going to go find Kyoko! She turned to go… she even took two steps. And then Shouko Aki giggled and the hair on the back of Kanae's neck stood on end. In a heartbeat she whirled around. She was in the coffee shop and halfway to the table where the couple was sitting before she even thought about it.
Yashiro turned and froze with his coffee cup halfway to his mouth. Almost randomly, Kanae noticed the cute smear of froth that had stuck to one side of his mouth. Shouko Aki, noticing Yashiro's expression, turned to see the olive-skinned beauty. She raised one perfectly sculpted eyebrow inquisitively, making Kanae want to take Jelly's trimming shears to the brunettes perfect little face. Instead, she smiled casually and said, "Why, if it isn't Yashiro Yukihito! It's been sooo long! Wait, let me get myself a coffee and I'll join you two."
Yashiro watched Kanae saunter away, and then he turned to see Aki's irritated face. Suddenly he felt like a rabbit surrounded by a pack of she-wolves.
Kyoko felt her anger and hatred surging. Her grudges were swirling around her and preparing for attack. Then Ren squeezed her hands, recalling her attention as he bent close to her ear and spoke in English, "He doesn't recognize us, Kyoko. Should we have a little fun?"
His hot breath on her neck made her whole body feel warm and tingly. Had the circumstances been different, she would have jumped back in alarm. But when she looked up into his eyes, she saw Cain Heel. Instantly she slipped into Setsuka's persona. "That sounds like fun. Just don't do anything that would expose you."
"Hey," Sho barked in irritation, "You're in Japan. If you can't speak Japanese, go home!" Sho couldn't have explained why he had taken such an instant dislike to this tall, blonde foreigner. He had felt a tingle of familiarity, like an irritating itch, and it had caused him to challenge the man. Now, while the foreign couple talked, he couldn't help but notice how pretty the little blonde woman was. She had golden eyes, just like Kyoko's, but she was nowhere near as plain and boring. "Of course," he smiled at the enticing little blonde in an insinuating way, "If you want to dump this loser and spend your day with a real man…"
Kyoko felt the urge to throw up and Ren wanted to murder the man, but Setsu was still in firm control. She smirked at the wannabe punk and stepped closer to her tall companion. She reached up and draped one arm on his shoulder, tilting her head so that it lay against Ren's chest, and replied in stilted Japanese, "There's only one real man on this slope, punk. Why don't you go away and play on the bunny slopes like a good little boy?"
Sho's face turned red with rage. He wasn't used to being spoken to so disdainfully, and he certainly wasn't used to being rejected so casually. He didn't understand where this little girl with her golden eyes that looked so much like Kyoko's had the courage to speak to him in that way. Then he looked up at the tall blonde's amused expression and his fists clenched. For the first time he noticed the narrow skis slung over the foreigner's shoulder and he smirked in derision, "I'll tell you what: Just up the hill there is a stunt-jump ramp. Why don't we have your boyfriend and I have a little competition. If he's better than me, then I'll pay for your dinner. But if I win, then you have to dump this bum and spend the evening with me."
Ren turned to Kyoko with an enquiring look, "What is he saying?"
Kyoko had to hide a grin at her sempai's subterfuge, "The punk wants to challenge you to a stunt-jumping competition. When he loses, he has to pay for our dinner." She looked at him with a challenge in her eyes. Ren looked at her affectionately, causing her to blush. He turned to Sho and deepened his speaking voice. Then he spoke in very broken Japanese. "Soooo, you want have a stunt-jumping competition?" He looked Sho up and down with disgust, "Why bother? You're no competition."
Sho flared, "Ha! I'm going to humiliate you and I'm going to get your girl! Are we on, or what?"
Ren stood up to his full height and looked down into the eyes of the younger man. Then, in his flawed Japanese, he said, "I should warn you: we like expensive food."
When Shouko Aki had first encountered Yashiro Yukihito on the beginner slopes, she had been startled. She had been with Fuwa Sho each of the other times that she had seen him, and invariably there had been enormous tension between her charge and Yashiro's tall charge… most often with Kyoko also thrown into the mix. She had been aware of him as a man during those incidents, but she hadn't really had the opportunity to take his measure. When he walked up to her on the shallow slope, all alone and wearing contacts, her breath caught in her throat. He was handsome… more than handsome.
Perhaps it was because she had spent the majority of her day looking after a young man who acted like a spoiled child. Or perhaps it was because she was overworked and worn out. Or perhaps it was because she had only recently turned twenty-five, and she was questioning her current direction in life. For whatever reason, when she saw Yashiro this time, she completely forgot about her need to locate Fuwa Sho and she concentrated fully on this interesting man.
Shouko knew Yashiro by reputation. At the age of twenty-eight he was acknowledged as one of the most efficient and dedicated talent managers in Tokyo. He had the reputation of effortlessly juggling the schedule of Japan's busiest young actor and model. He was also known as the tall actor's watchdog and he was famous for his glare; which could stop a horde of attacking fangirls instantly. He was intelligent, soft-spoken, and he seemed kind. In short, he was a real man.
Yashiro was also treating her with respect, which was becoming rare. Altogether too many times people knew her as Fuwa Sho's manager and treated her as if she was the one who was rude, self-centered, chauvinistic, and unprofessional. They also assumed that she was sleeping with the young rocker, just because of her appearance and his reputation. It was true that Sho had tried often and aggressively to get her into his bed… or the couch… or any vertical or horizontal surface where she happened to let him get too close, but she had always been able to rebuff him. He knew, though he would never admit it, that he needed her to keep his life and career in-order; so he allowed himself to be pushed away, even if he always came back for a fresh attack.
If Yashiro believed those rumors, he gave no evidence of it. He didn't hide his appreciation of her good looks, but he didn't undress her with his eyes. He touched her elbow on two occasions as they walked down the crowded street, but he took no other liberties. His conversation was intelligent, his manner gentlemanly, and his sense of humor was lively. After reaching the coffee shop, they sat and swapped stories about their respective agencies, laughing and enjoying each other. Shouko almost completely forgot about Fuwa Sho and just enjoyed her stolen time with this exhilarating man…
And then she showed up. It had taken Aki several minutes to recognize the dark, sultry beauty with the confident sapphire eyes. Then, when she did match the face and a name, Aki's keen mind had replayed the scene on the hillside when Yashiro had first approached her. She remembered this young lady in the background, standing alongside a very tall blonde man and a very sexy young blond woman… And then she put all of the pieces of the puzzle together. It made her feel irritated, and then disappointed. Clearly, Yashiro hadn't approached her out of interest, but rather in an effort to keep her away from the trio who he had been standing with. She met those sapphire eyes now and realized that there was something recognizable in them. Oh! She's actually jealous. I wasn't aware that Kotonami Kanae and Yashiro Yukihito were really close… Shouko set her first sense of disappointment aside as she recognized this beautiful young lady as a rival; a rival she didn't want to lose to. She smiled casually and said, "Hello, Kotonami-san. What happened to your other two companions?"
Yashiro had just raised his coffee to his lips to take a nervous sip. Thankfully he hadn't taken any of the liquid into his mouth, or both young ladies would have been wearing it as he choked on his surprise. "You recognized them?" He whispered urgently, "I hope… Shouko-san, LME's trying to keep a low profile, and…"
Shouko Aki laughed a tinkling, flirty laugh as she reached across the little round table and touched her fellow manager's hand. "Relax, Yukihito… and please call me Aki. I am the last person who would expose any of you. In fact," she shivered slightly, "I dread the idea of Sho meeting up with them."
Kanae's eyes narrowed when she saw the look in Shouko's eyes and watched the older lady reach for Yashiro's hand. She still hadn't taken the time to analyze her feelings, but she did know that this lady was throwing down a challenge… and Kotonami Kanae lived for a challenge. She leaned over towards Yashiro, smiling adoringly as she laid a slender hand on the man's knee and softly said, "We should be going, Yukihito-kun. Now that our secret has been exposed, there really isn't any more time to…" She stopped, annoyed, as her cell phone started buzzing for the third time in the last several minutes. Leaving her hand on Yashiro's knee, she opened the phone and said, "Mo, what now?"
She listened in irritation at first, and then with growing alarm. Finally she said, "We'll be there as soon as we can. Try to stop those two playground boys from doing anything too stupid." She closed her phone and sighed before looking at the two managers, "Well, it looks like Sho-baka found our couple… and now those two boys are about to do something really stupid."
Takarada Jun hovered in the darkened suite and watched Lory as he agonized over his love-simulation game rather than going out on the slopes. He was still as handsome and manly as he had ever been, but now it was all a façade. The truth was that Lory was the true "number 1 LoveMe member." He had the opportunity to love again practically right in front of him, but he chose not to accept it.
Lory, what has happened to you? You never used to run away from anything. Now you're trying to live your life vicariously through this stupid simulation game and your employees. It's good to help them, Lory, but that will never be enough.
Lory paused the game, leaned back his head, and sighed. With his eyes closed he said, "Jun, I miss you so much. We should be celebrating this 25th LME Anniversary together." He had shed his Attila the Hun outfit and was resting in a bathrobe. He knew that Jelly was probably lingering close to the hotel, just in case, and it made him feel guilty. Still… he sat up to begin to play again, when suddenly the power flashed off, making him lose his game. He sat there for a long time, glancing between the controller and the screen, before he finally threw the controller down and stood up to go and change into snow gear.
What is wrong with you, Kuon? It has been six years since you made this type of jump. Do you think it will go all your way just because you despise that punk? Or are you still trying to kill yourself?
Ren huffed and rolled his head on his neck, ignoring the glare of the slightly smaller rock star. They were at the top of the ramp now, waiting their turn and attracting a lot of attention. People around them didn't know whether to focus on Japan's Number One Musician or the sublimely handsome blonde foreigner. In the end they contented themselves with looking back and forth and taking pictures on their camera phones. Standing close to the tall foreigner was an almost equally striking blond woman, who seemed decidedly nervous.
Kyoko didn't quite understand why, but somehow she felt that she was responsible for the mess they now found themselves in. Kyoko was confident that her tall sempai could do anything that he set his mind to, but she had never heard him talk or read anything about him skiing until today. Now he was about to do some crazy just because her childhood friend/adult arch-enemy had insulted them both and made advances on her… though she could scarce credit that he was serious.
What worried Kyoko was that she knew Sho was actually a talented acrobat. During their school years he was always the best with his skateboard, his bicycle, and just about anything else he tried. She knew that he had gone skiing many times since moving to Tokyo, and so he was probably good at this as well. What if Tsuruga-sempai (she still called him that in her thoughts) overdoes it trying to beat out Shoutaro? What if he gets hurt? Without thinking, she tightened her grip on Ren's arm, causing him to look down and smile at her. "Relax, Setsu (standing so Sho, he couldn't afford to use Kyoko's real name); you can trust me."
She looked up at him and her eyes communicated all of the concern that she felt, "Please be careful, R..." Scrambling for a name to use within Sho's earshot… any name to uses as a substitute, she said, "Please be careful, Corn." Later, even weeks and months later, she still wouldn't be able to explain why she didn't just use the name Cain, or why she chose Corn… perhaps it was that beautiful blonde mane.
Ren's eyes became alarmed, and then speculative. After looking down at her for an uncomfortably long time, he finally said, "I'll fly for you today, Princess; you'll see."
Notes: It has been pointed out that I have already written five (now six, and soon seven) chapters on the same day. It wasn't intentional, but some days are just more eventful than others. Thanks for all of the supportive reviews. I will try not to disappoint.