I don't own Skip Beat! If I did, there'd be images to go with this plot.
"Are you really planning to never marry?" Kanae asked. She and Chiori were in the LoveMe! department's room, clearing up after they had finished watching the drama. It was two hours after Kyoko had left, and they'd had plenty of time to stew over everything they'd said to her, and to each other.
"Hm? Oh, well…" Chiori shrugged. "I guess I never gave it serious thought. Even when I was Keisei, I wasn't dreaming of white dresses and happily ever afters. My career always came first. But… well, I never thought it would become an issue, not until I was at least thirty. I assume that it will happen, some day, but why should I spaz out over it?"
Kanae nodded.
"Seems like a good plan. But I just thought it would be annoying if I had two Kyokos on my hands."
Chiori punched her arm lightly. "Oh, so you're planning on marrying, Ms "I-don't-want-to-star-in-a-period-piece-because-my-character-is-clingy-and-dependant-on-men"? Didn't you yourself say that we have a lower chance of marrying if we become rich and famous?"
"I didn't say it would easily solve our problems if we fall for someone in the industry," Kanae said. "Someone of equal acting ability, and someone mature enough to maintain a relationship that would be analyzed by anyone in the public."
"That so? Got anybody on your mind?"
"No! It's just… purely theoretical!" Actually, Kanae had been worrying about Kyoko. Her friend's crush on Tsuruga-san was fine for now, but it had the potential to turn into a highway pile-up if it went unchecked. And while she knew that Tsuruga Ren would never hurt her friend (because she'd end him otherwise), she didn't know what would happen with their… relationship in the long term.
And Kyoko wasn't the kind of girl who would accept anything but forever. Kanae asking her if she would settle for a casual relationship had been more like a joke than an actual question – Kyoko wouldn't settle for less than true love, let alone a fling.
Was Ren capable of giving her what she wanted… what she deserved?
She shared this with Chiori as they closed up and went out. "Don't you think you worry too much?" the other girl said. "I mean, it's Kyoko's life. She should be able to do what she wants. You said it yourself – you wouldn't let a guy dominate you. How are we different?"
"I guess you're right. But, really, can you imagine what would happen if Kyoko confesses to him and he plays around with her? Can you imagine the fallout we'd have to deal with?"
Chiori winced, which in Kanae's opinion was too mild of a reaction. But then again, Chiori had never faced off Kyoko's grudges when they were at their worst. She hadn't met Kyoko until the girl had had a serious acting role under her belt, and had grown a little. Kanae had known her before she'd had a single female friend, when she'd been with the wounds from Sho's betrayal still fresh in her heart.
She'd been terrifying. And Kanae would be damned before she let that Kyoko come to being again.
"But Kyoko really needs to learn how to love," Chiori said. "Isn't that the whole meaning of this section? To have her… to have us, rediscover all our emotions? To have us act with love, and not hatred?"
"That's true," Kanae said as they got in line in front of a Ramen booth. "But really, Tsuruga Ren? Do you honestly think she will ever be able to walk in public again without being grilled about it?"
She really should have considered that before saying something so shocking in a public place.
Yashiro Yukihito paused automatically, as you do, when he heard his top client's name. It wouldn't have been much of a surprise, had he not heard it from one of Kyoko-chan's friends. He saw the familiar pink jumpsuits first, followed by the familiar forms of Kotonami Kanae and Amamiya Chiori. The two girls seemed too engaged in their discussion to notice him, but he could see the agitated gestures, the furtive glances.
Like most men, he knew when women discussed his brothers in arms. And he knew exactly who they were talking about.
"Excuse me, ladies," he said, loud enough to cut in, and gave them a benign smile. Chiori and Kanae froze and gave him identical deer-in-the-headlights looks. "Amamiya-san, Kotonami-san. I hope you've had a nice day."
"Hello, Yashiro-san," Kanae said, relaxing slightly when the manager gave no indication that he'd heard what she'd been telling her colleague. "We're fine, and yourself?"
"Oh, can't complain. Is Kyoko-chan not with you tonight?" He feigned surprise. In reality, he knew exactly where she was – playing the part of Setsuka Heel right next to Ren – but he couldn't let the girls know that.
"She had to leave," Chiori said. "Shame, since we were going to get dinner together. And you, Yashiro-san? Isn't Tsuruga-san with you tonight?"
"I finished early. We both did," Yashiro amended quickly, hoping that they hadn't noticed his slip. He tried covering up. "Tell you what, since it's a short day, how about I buy you ladies dinner? You look like you earned it."
Kanae narrowed her eyes. Much as she mistrusted Tsuruga Ren, with his unshakable gentlemanly smile, she had a lot more weary of Yashiro Yukihito, who not only managed to deal with paparazzi without breaking a sweat, but also never gave away his client's secrets. Well, to anyone but Kyoko, it seemed. The man was more inscrutable than Tsuruga, a feat in itself, but there was something about the way he smiled that made her wonder what exactly he thought.
She didn't like it.
Chiroi, however, was all in for it, and before Kanae could so much as send her a frosty glare, the three were walking down the street, looking for a restaurant without a line waiting to get in. They were just rounding the corner when Chiori gasped and grabbed Kanae's hand.
"Shit! It's him!"
"Something the matter, Amamiya-san?" Yashiro asked, frowning.
"Not… now…" Chiori muttered, while pulling Kanae towards her. "It's him. My ex. Don't look!" she whisper-yelled when Kanae tried to glance behind her shoulder.
"Is he troubling you?" Yashiro asked. Well, you had to hand it to him, the guy had good ears, Kanae thought as Chiori released her and started walking again.
"No. Yes. Maybe," Chiori said. "He called my house a few times, but I just thought he forgot some of his stuff with me. I never thought he'd come looking for me in the company!"
Kanae and Yashiro used another corner to look behind. Sure enough, a lanky guy with black hair was dragging behind them. He looked vaguely familiar, but they couldn't pin him down. They took a different route, just to see what he would do, then turned around and walked right past him. He stumbled, but before he could turn around, they ducked in another alley.
"We have to change out of these," Kanae said. "Yashiro-san, give us two seconds." She grabbed Chiori's hand and they both ran into the nearest public bathroom. By the time Chiori's ex spotted Yashiro, he was alone, playing with his phone as if he had no trouble in the world.
Five minutes later, two girls emerged from the bathroom, one dressed fashionably, one fixing the tie of her uniform. Both had their hair up in tight buns. A bystander wouldn't have noticed anything particularly strange – the two of them approached Yashiro, said something to him, and then the fashionably dressed girl bowed and left. The schoolgirl and Yashiro stood at the corner for a while longer, just talking, before continuing down the road. Then, if the bystander was especially observant, he'd see a tall youth follow the couple, almost retracing their steps in the snow.
"Is he still behind us?" Kanae asked, raising her collar to cover her face.
"Yes. But if it's any consolation, he doesn't seem very threatening."
"Let's not count our blessings yet." Chiori had told her the guy was harmless, but if he went as far as to wait in front of LME for her, he obviously had a few things on his mind. Hopefully, by the time he realized that he was following the wrong girl, Chiori would be safe home. And if he tried to do anything, Yashiro was there. Well… it wasn't much of a consolation, given that Yashiro looked like a gust of wind could topple him over, but still…
"So tell me, why aren't you making your charge eat?" she asked, hoping to take her mind away from this uncomfortable situation. "Don't you know Kyoko would kill you if you let him starve himself?"
"Ren is a big boy. I'm sure he can take care of himself," Yashiro said. Besides, he added to himself, Kyoko herself will make Ren eat, that's for sure. "Although, if you think Kyoko-chan would feel calmer, I can make him take her to dinner so that she can see him eat with her own eyes."
"That won't be necessary."
Yashiro pretended affront. "Ouch!"
Kanae's expression softened, but only by a notch. "I didn't mean to snap. I just… I'm nervous, and wanted to fill the time."
"That much is understandable," he said, while tossing a quick look over his shoulder. "Still it's an interesting reaction."
"I'm an interesting person." Kanae shrugged. "And I don't think it's that much of a stretch. Tsuruga Ren is the most famous actor in Japan – I don't think the public would think he's just friends with Kyoko if they're seen having dinner together."
"Ah, true enough," Yashiro said. "But surely she can do worse."
Kanae sighed. "I don't think he's a bad actor, Yashiro-san, but he's deeply mistaken if he thinks that this act he pulls off with Kyoko makes him look like a good guy. He says she's just his kouhai, but goes through extreme trouble to help her learn a role and boost her self-confidence. Then he does a complete 180 when someone else shows her kindness, throws a hissy fit and pretends that she has disgraced all actors. He tells her not to date guys but then kisses her on the cheek. Yes, she told me," she said, throwing Yashiro a triumphant glance. "He may be Japan's Top Actor, but he sure as Hell can't make his mind up about his feelings."
"I'm sure he has his reasons."
"And aren't you quick to defend him?"
Yashiro winced, because he that comment really had hit a little too close to home. It was true – he was quick to defend Ren, no doubt a Pavlovian reflex of having spent four years as his manager. Now that he did know his client's reasons, he honestly couldn't decide on whether they merited all that secrecy. "Why don't we go in this restaurant? It looks like we won't have to wait for a table," he said, and placed his hand on Kanae's lower back to steer her inside. But they had just passed the threshold, when Chiori's boyfriend caught up with them, whirled Yashiro around, and punched him in the jaw.
Kyoko had taken a habit of falling asleep before him. Ren didn't think much of it – he never took their sempai/kouhai relationship too seriously to begin with – and he expected her to have dozed off when he finished with his shower, but she was still up and about, bustling around the kitchenette. The table was set for dinner, with only one plate.
"Have you eaten?" he asked.
"I'm not hungry," she said, as she washed the dishes. Again, nothing unusual, Setsuka was definitely the kind of girl that would omit dinner. But there was something about her posture that gave her away – a tension to her shoulders, her back, ramrod straight. She was nervous.
He ate in silence, contemplating just how he would get her to spill, when she suddenly set aside the pan she'd been soaping up, and turned to face him. If he had any doubts, her face made him absolutely sure. She wasn't Setsu. She was Kyoko.
"Sempai, can I ask you a question?"
Ren was so startled he didn't even scold her for breaking character. "Sure. What is it?"
Kyoko took a deep breath. "Are you… happy?"
"Happy?" He blinked. "In what way?"
"Are you… pleased with where you are now?" Kyoko asked. Her courage was starting to give up on her, and she was desperately hoping that he wouldn't make her elaborate much further. "Is this where you wanted to be? Is there… nothing else you want?"
Ren could probably think of a dozen things he wanted, but he was pretty sure that he'd throw her in the deep end if he told her. So he shrugged. "I'm content. I'm healthy and have wonderful friends. Some people can't have even that."
Kyoko bit her lip, swallowed, and said, "Are you really? You don't seem pleased about being saddled with me."
His face closed up immediately. "Mogami-san, I believe I already told you that it's fine." His comments rang hollow, even to him. "You're a very competent person and you handle difficult situations in ways which I could never achieve as Cain Heel. You are very important for this project."
Kyoko clasped her hands in front of her. "I'm very grateful that you help me out, truly, I am. But you don't have to force yourself to be kind to me. If you really don't want to come with me to the function tomorrow, I'll understand."
She'd been thinking about it, and the more she did, the more she convinced herself that it wasn't fair of her to throw herself at Tsuruga-san. He was probably torn up over being rejected by the girl he loved, and nobody could act rationally at times like these. She knew it well enough, and she didn't want him to do something they'd both regret out of grief and anger.
But Ren didn't know that. And he certainly didn't want her to be grateful.
Sitting up, he made his voice as cold and as cutting as possible: "There is nothing to thank me for, Mogami-san. After all, I'm just doing my job. If you really knew to take advantage of an opportunity, I wouldn't be trying so hard with you."
That made her freeze up. "What?"
He didn't sneer. Tsuruga Ren didn't sneer. But the look he gave her was the equivalent of it. "You don't seem to realize how many opportunities there are for you to improve your acting. Maybe if you did, you'd show a more convincing Setsuka."
Her fists balled up. "Are you saying that I'm not convincing enough?"
"You tell me," he said, and dumped his plates into the sink, before reverting to Cain Heel. "Bedtime. We have to get up early tomorrow."
Kyoko stood motionless for a few seconds, before nodding. "Yes, brother."
He was already wearing pajama bottoms when he sat in bed, but he didn't move to lay down. He was looking at her expectantly as she retrieved her own nightwear, and just as she turned towards the bathroom, he sighed. Kyoko froze, recognizing the 'no good' signal, and felt her aggravation rise. What does he want me to do? I haven't even done anything?
And then she realized… Setsuka Heel wasn't embarrassed of undressing in front of her brother. Not once. In previous nights, one of them had always been in bed before the other finished showering, so there hadn't been a problem of staying always in character. And Tsuruga-san had always been forgiving of her little quirks, the small things she did to preserve her modesty.
But not now.
Fury rose within her. Fury, and something else. Determination. So he thought he could boss her around? Show a little displeasure and have her scamper to get back into his good graces? No. She wasn't going to let him scold her like a schoolgirl and give him the satisfaction of knowing he got to her. Not a convincing Setsuka, huh? Well, let's see what he'll do when I give him exactly what he wants, Kyoko thought.
Ren had expected her to blush and freeze up. Maybe scamper and yell about Japanese modesty, blush in maidenly indignation and hide in the bathroom. He honestly didn't expect her to start stripping then and there…
So when she promptly unbuttoned her pants, he could only gawk.
Be Setsu, Kyoko thought, as she undressed. She took care to move slowly, making herself look as casual as if she did this all the time. She folded her pants, then unbuttoned her top and shimmied out of it as well. In her camisole and panties, she sorted through her underwear drawer until she came up with an appropriate pair of shorts and tank. Throughout the whole thing, she was acutely aware of the eyes boring into her back, but didn't turn around to meet her sempai's gaze. The whole experience felt surreal, as if she was having a very, very lucid dream. She didn't acknowledge him, yet she felt his eyes on her throughout the whole time, and she felt, deep inside of her, something dark and excited being kindled.
Ren, meanwhile, was in Hell. He couldn't look away, and he certainly couldn't ignore what was right there in front of him. Of course, he told himself, this is what Setsuka would do. But… surely her brother wouldn't look at her in the way he did. There was a line between brotherly devotion and… this.
And damn it, it looked like she knew what this did to him. The way she paused to pull her hair away from her neck, the way she stretched so her tank top could rise and show off the bare skin of her back… and those shorts! Seriously, she must have chosen the tiniest, most tight pair she had, just so that she could taunt him with those legs.
He turned and lay down before she could see him. Even without a mirror, he knew exactly what he looked like – mouth pressed tight, nostrils flaring, eyes dark and intense… he was a man on the verge of snapping, and she was jumping on the string, wearing it even thinner.
And just as he thought he'd salvaged the situation, he felt the bed dip under her weight and she settled against his back. "Goodnight, brother," she said.
It was his turn to freeze up. This wasn't just her usual acting – she was actually, legitimately taunting him. Of course, he'd just called her inadequate (just not in so few words), and now she was proving him wrong. And damn it if she didn't know exactly what to do to make him nervous.
This wasn't just an act. It was a challenge. It was a tug-o-war, a silent battle, to see which one of them would break character first.
Ren cursed a blue streak, and then turned around so that he could wrap his arms around her. She smiled a content smile and rested her head on his shoulder, while he put his hand over her waist and let his fingers settle on that warm, satiny skin. Screw it, he thought as she basked under his caress, if I'm going to Hell, I might as well go with a bang.
A/N Shameless self promotion time!
I might not update very frequently during November, folks, as I'm doing the NaNoWriMo. If you're doing it too, though, and want to be buddies, I'm brouillons!
I'm also a contributor at thebooklantern (dot) com, so if you're interested in seeing me rant about YA and feminism along with an awesome group of ladies, come and check us out.