The Love Triangle
Disclaimer: I do not own Prince of tennis or any of its characters because if I did, I would be married to Fuji right now. Wahahaha. You would be hearing wedding bells if I owned P.O.T. but I don't, so all you can hear is the cocky Echizen's mada mada dane and no wedding noise at all. .
a/n: please be reminded to read and review minna!
Chapter Nine
Plan in Action
OooOooOooOooOooOooOooOooOooOooOooOooOooOoo
Putting a hand over his mouth as he let a yawn escape, Fuji Syuusuke couldn't help but agree to what his father had said about company life. It was boring. Aside from doubling company profits and occasionally torturing his employees with his sadism, the tensai found his life unamusing.
It was only the third day since he had begun managing the Aoi Yama even, the third day he had to climb up the stairs of the company building before he reached he could reach the door and the third day he was stopped from entering the building by a call from his cellphone. It was also the third day he had to find out that Karumi was the one calling and not Sakuno-chan.
"Moshimoshi?"
"Ohayou koishi! Ogenki desu ka? You didn't come to visit my new apartment yesterday. I just moved in, remember? And you didn't even answer my calls, not even once. You're making me worried koisshii," he heard the shrill voice of his so-called girlfriend over the line and shook his head.
"I'm sorry Karumi-chan, I was very busy so I couldn't drop by yesterday. I had to stay late in the office," lied Fuji. Truth was, he had gone home early and purposely shut both his landline phone and cellphone off, but he couldn't tell her that now could he? "You really shouldn't worry about me too much. I'm fine."
"That's good to hear, koishii. I'm glad you're alright . Eto koishii, are you busy this afternoon? Why don't I come over so we can go out on a date?"
"Saa Karumi-chan, gomene, demo I'm sort of busy right now," he lied again. Technically, it wasn't a lie seeing that his employees on the ground floor were all abuzz flying everywhere as if there were some great event about to happen but it was a lie nonetheless, considering he just wanted to avoid the lavender head.
After he gave in to her whims and let her start calling him her boyfriend, Karumi forced the tensai out on their first 'date' just right after his first day in charge of the company offices and kami, he still hadn't forgotten about it.
Flashback * * * * * * * * Flashback * * * * * * * Flashback
"Koisshii konnichiwa!"
Fuji had just stepped out of the glass doors of the building, then bang, something, or someone rather toppled him to the ground and kissed him fully on the lips.
"Ne, so how was your first day? Syuusuke-koi?" that someone happily asked the brunnete as she cuddled him on the floor in front of all his leaving employees.
"Karumi-chan, what are you doing here? Weren't you supposed to be looking for a new apartment to stay in? Saa, it's not good to stay in a hotel room you know, and I can't let you stay over at my place."
"Ne, I came to see how my darling is doing," she answered coyly. With that she pecked him again on the lips and smiled sheepishly, Brushing her off him, Fuji stood up and opened his eyes, revealing an annoyed expression in his cerulean blue orbs. "Karumi-chan, didn't I tell you to not kiss me just anywhere anytime you want? My employees might get the wrong idea about you, saa," he tried to explain as gently as he could, though he felt rather annoyed and pestered.
Karumi didn't seem to understand though. Instead asking for an apology, the lavender head got to her feet then wrapped her arms around Fuji's arms without any hesitation at all.
"Well, it's because I like kissing you all the time koishii. I love you every much and I want you to be happy and forget about everything. There's no use in being so sad when I'm around to kiss all your troubles away, right? Besides boyfriends and girlfriends have to have more intimacy to deepen their relationship."
Fuji rubbed his aching temple in dismay. Karumi really was very hardheaded sometimes. Even though she was being hardheaded for his sake, it really did trouble the new president of the Aoi Yama, but what could he do? Her head was a rock.
"Ah! I know koishii! Come on, let's go!"
Suddenly Fuji found himself being pulled down the stairs and onto the sidewalk with his 'girlfriend leading the way.
"Saa, where are you taking me Karumi-chan?"
"Out on our first date of course!"
Dinner wasn't that bad except that instead of getting him wasabi like he asked her to, Karumi ordered lobster. After that, the date turned into a downhill spiral.
It was a disaster for Fuji.
Karumi took him to one of those chick-flick movies where the leading lady's brown doe-like eyes reminded him of Sakuno-chan so much that his thoughts were all on his kouhai throughout the entire film. What was worse the ending scene was just like Fuji's midnight escapade with Sakuno where the leading lady and her leading man talked under a sakura tree and then started kissing. The scene made the tensai start daydreaming about doing the same thing with Sakuno. He dreamed that on that midnight walk instead of saying goodbye he cupped her chin and trapped her in a feverish kiss but when he woke up and opened his eyes he found that he was still in the movie house and that the one he was frenching was actually Karumi who looked like she was about to melt while she moaned loudly.
Then, after the movie, she took the tensai to a CD shop packed with people trying to get the latest Nadeshiko Maay CD. Posters of the said singer were everywhere, and one of them had the picture of her in the album titled "I love you" which suddenly took over Fuji's mind still filled with Sakuno-chan scenes. His mind wandered off in his little dream world mixed with love and hurt, and in his confusion, the brunette muttered out an 'I love you too'. Karumi heard it, though that he meant her and toppled him down in front of the entire crowd locking him in a kiss while unbuttoning his shirt shamelessly. It took a rather long time for the tensai to get her to stop.
When he finally got home, Fuji ended up with an aching head, aching lips (special thanks to Karumi) and a heart still aching for his beloved Sakuno-chan.
END OF FLASH BACK * * * * * * *END OF FLASHBACK
After that day, Fuji had finally learned his lesson. 'Dates' were bad when they were with Karumi. Never give in to her whims without thinking about it thoroughly, or else her kisses wont help you forget, they'll help you remember more.
"Ah, but koishii I miss you so much!" he heard her whine in complaint. "Please…."
Don't give into her, don't give in…….."Please, koishii, I really miss you.."
"Saa I'll try to see, demo I'm not quite sure about it yet."
Urgh! I should have given her a downright no! Damn sympathy!
Before he could hear the squeals of delight from the speaker, Fuji snapped his phone shut.
"Oh well, I might as well say no to her later," he sighed to himself.
Hmmmm, it was really noisy in the ground floor. He could even hear the ruckus from outside. Silently, he entered the building and used the current commotion among the office workers to walk up to the department supervisor unnoticed.
"Saa, Yukibo-san, I think it would be wise for you to stop staring at Kurosaki-san and settle whatever's going on. You might find yourself staring into a glass Aozu instead," he smirked mischievously as he whispered into the supervisor's ear from behind.
"Aaaaah!" screamed the poor little supervisor, jumping five feet into the air and then turning around looking like she'd seen a ghost instead of her superior standing right in front of her.
"Gomene Fuji-sama, I –"
"Saa, I take that as a yes then. One word of advice for you Yukibo-san: try talking to him instead of merely watching. It really does the trick. Now you should get back to supervising ne? The ground floor team seems to be a little crowded and a bit constipated. They can't face our customers like that, now can they?"
Fuji walked away wearing his usual sadistic smile. Aaaaaahhh…..nothing felt better after having a talk with Karumi than a moment to scare employees out of their wits. It was refreshin….demo, it wasn't enough. He still wanted to have some more fun with the people upstairs.
No wonder all the employees came to fear the name of Fuji Syuusuke only in three days time.
Thinking about new ways to scare the life out of his secretary, Fuji entered the elevator and pressed the button for the top floor. That was where his office was found. When the tensai finally reached the top floor, everything seemed quite normal unlike the ground floor. Outside in the lobby the guards were standing by their posts while at desk in the lobby was……no one? Where was his secretary?
"Hidoshita-san, Musashi-san," he called the two guards. "Where is secretary Takahatchi-san? Isn't she supposed to be here before I arrive? And what is this box doing here? Who took it out of my closet? Its personal, no one's supposed to touch it."
"Sir the secretary just went to the restroom. She'll be out in a few minutes. About the box sir, I have nothing to do with it, I swear," denied the first guard, Hidoshita who looked at the other guard as if he were the person to blame. "Ehh? It wasn't me either sir! I didn't touch anything in the room, I didn't even get in your office! Maybe it was one of those movers you hired sir. They took everything out of your office and must've included the box by mistake."
Fuji looked at the two in confusion.
"What movers? I didn't hire anyone."
"But sir, they came in here with your signature saying they were hired to move your things out of your office. They even had documents to prove they were real movers."
Picking up the box, Fuji raced hurriedly into the room to find….nothing. No desk, no sofa, books, computer, stat reports, nothing but an empty room with huge glass windows.
"Takahatchi-san! Good, you're finally here. Can you please explain the meaning of all this? Why is my office empty?"
"Eto, sir I just received a call earlier today with from the former president telling me that the company's main head quarters is to be moved, starting with your office," explained the secretary, pulling out several documents from her drawer pertaining to the legality of the move. After reading the papers, Fuji sank into a seat and ran his hand through the bangs of his light brown hair.
"Sou desu ka? Did my father really say so?"
"Yes he did sir. The move is official and final, and Fuji-san said that you are not to oppose to any of this. He said that you will understand later on, but as of now you should follow his instructions. He said that it is for your own good." answered Takahatchi.
"Ne, so when am I moving?"
"Today sir. The movers are now preparing your new office as we speak and another batch is going to do the transportation of the things in your house to your new home, though I think that it will take them some time to fully accomplish the task, considering how large your house must be."
"So if that's the case, where does my father intend for me to stay? In a hotel uptown?" Fuji raised an eyebrow in speculation.
There was really something fishy going on here and he would get to the bottom of things. Taking the file his secretary handed him, Fuji browsed through seeing pictures of the classy five star hotel and details about his stay, including the room number and all the other matters.
"Why here? Tsushima is 92 miles from the shores of Kitakysuhu. Is that where the company will be relocating? That's rather peculiar Takahatchi-san, because if I were my father I'd rather relocate in Tokyo or in Kyoto perhaps. It's more industrialized there, meaning it'd be easier for people to reach us. That would be a great advantage for the company."
"Iie sir" the secretary shook her head, handing him another set of files. "Headquarters won't be relocating in Tsushima sir. It's been decided that it will be put in 3489 Mitsuyaki St. in Tokyo where the Aoi Yama Tokyo branch is. Basically, once your office is set up there, the Tokyo branch will become headquarters. Your living arrangements have already been settled for you in Tokyo already. Your father just wants you to stay in Tsushima for about a week or so for a meeting with several company heads who want to join the Aoi Yama Group of Companies. Sir, I think you should go down now, your private jet is waiting to take you to Tsushima."
Fuji got up then picked up the files and the box together. Nodding at his guards, the brunette walked to the elevator with the two escorting him.
"Saa, thank you Takahatchi-san, for everything. This box means all the world to me and I don't want to separate from it even for a week. If you hadn't taken this out, it would've been in Tokyo right now. I'm so grateful for what you've done, I've decided to skip the wasabi punishment," he said, holding down the elevator doors open for a moment.
"Demo, how did you know it was me sir?" asked the woman in surprise.
Entering the elevator with the two guards escorting him inside, Fuji Syuusuke merely gave her a smile anda wave for goodbye.
"I have my ways," he answered gingerly, holing up the box for her to see. With that the tennis tensai watched as the guards returned to their stations and watched as the elevator doors closed in on him, shutting him in to ponder his thoughts alone as he clutched at the box tightly.
He really had made the secretary believe that he had no clue about what was going on earlier. Obviously his father was playing a big role in this scheme, but for what purpose? Well then, he'd have to act a little bit longer to have that answer. In any case, he would follow his outosan's directions. He really needed to get to the bottom of this and besides…..he felt that something was pulling him to Tsushima.
He needed to get there.
The sound of the beep indicated that the elevator had reached the ground floor and Fuji stepped out too busy engaged with his thoughts to bother noticing the smiles of his employees who were glad that the sadist was leaving nor did he notice his girlfriend arguing with the guards as he walked past.
He just walked on and on, as if a magnet were pulling him, until he reached the back of the building to enter the private jet waiting for him on the small airstrip just in between the forest and the company parking area.
Without a word further he watched silently as the jet took off, clutching more tightly on the box.
He would get to the bottom of this. Fuji swore he would.
OooOooOooOooOooOooOooOooOooOooOooOooOooOoo
"What do you mean by 'I'm not allowed inside this building', you bird-brained guards? My boyfriend and soon to be fiancée Fuji Syuusuke owns this company and pays you your salary every month. Don't tell me that I'm not allowed inside!" hissed Karumi as she tried to push herself through the two guards that blocked the entrance. Boohoo, she didn't have the slightest possibility of succeeding. "Hey, are you two even listening? My boyfriend owns this place, he can send you tow out packing with a single snap of his fingers so why won't you let me in? Koishii is even expecting me; he must be waiting right now for us to go on our date so move aside! Syuusuke-koi and I need to see each other!"
Not a single frantic cry from Karumi was heeded. Try as she would, shoving through with every ounce of energy she had left in her was useless.
Dropping down on her knees in frustration she began to cry. Tears threatened to wet her skirt as she sobbed moodily.
"Please let me in! Why won't you let me in?"
"Because you're not allowed to get inside miss," answered one of the guards coolly. He was unaffected by the lavender head's watery display. Grabbing her by the shoulder, he dragged her down the steps roughly and set her down on the pavement. "Besides the company head office is now moving and so is Fuji Syuusuke-sama who gave strict orders to not let anyone by the name of Sakamoto Karumi inside."
"But —"
He didn't need another pleading session from the girl, so, turning away from her, he left, returning to his post at the front door.
Taking out her handkerchief from her bag, the lavender head wiped her eyes which were now filled with the fury of determination.
So, they wouldn't fall for crying damsels in distress, eh? Hmph, plus they also gave out stupid excuses not to let her in! Who would believe that Syuusuke-koi didn't want her around, right? Well, then, she would just have to resort to dirtier tactics.
A few minutes later, Karumi was walking up the stairs again.
She was ready to take her plan into action.
"Didn't we tell you already — ultra mini-skirts and sexy outfits? Come on, miss, we're better than that. We wouldn't say yes even if you were to come up here naked, right Ushikubo?"
"Hai, there's no way you're getting in," nodded the other guard in agreement.
Okay, so that didn't work. No worries Karumi-chan, no worries. There's always plan b, the backup plan.
"Sigh. So you two really aren't that gullible. I guess then you wouldn't be enticed with a bunch of Nadeshiko Maaya tickets now would you?" she batted her eyes, waving several tickets in front of them. "Oh well, that would be a total waste. Next month is Maaya-chan's latest album's debut in the Seishun concert with all new songs and we were planning to hand out free backstage passes along with these to two very lucky people……and I thought I had just found them both, but I guess they aren't interested…..oh well, I guess I have to find someone else then. Being Maaya-chan's manager sure is tough for a girl like me."
"M-Matte, are those really ……genuine?"
"Yup. I'm her manager so you can be sure of that. I even have my I.D. here with me to prove it."
"It would be fine if we let her drop in just for a little bit……ne, Ushikubo? What do you think?" the first guard gazed longingly and wantonly at the tickets of temptation. His former wall of anti-corruption/anti-manipulation was crumbling down by each nanosecond of looking. The second guard you ask? Uhhhh….let's just say he was already drooling excitedly.
"Let her in as long as she wants!"
Ding! Karumi catches, she shoots, she scores!
Being her bestfriend's manager sure had its perks. Now nothing could get in between her date with Syuusuke-koi. Now she would get up to his office, find Syuusuke-koi patiently waiting for her, and find everything where it should belong. Syuusuke-koi wouldn't be gone, the office would still be there and the guards would be proven wrong.
Those were the thoughts rambling through her head as she rode up the elevator; all positive-minded thoughts.
But then she got up to the top floor.........and that was the end of it all.
"Syuusuke-koi, I'm he —Syuusuke-koi?"
The lobby was empty. Karumi barged right through the office saying the same thing and finding the same thing —emptiness. Nothingness. Her precious koishii was nowhere to be found, no where! She even checked all the comfort rooms on the floor, both male and female.
Drops of water began dripping down her face, this time for real. She couldn't understand this, she couldn't understand this at all! She hated it when she couldn't get things right.
"Sumimasen. Karumi-dono?"
"Hai?"
"I'm Fuji-san's secretary Takahatchi Azumi. It's such an honor to meet my boss's girlfriend. He barely mentioned you to anyone, but I can clearly remember you as his persistent caller on the phone in the lobby. I hope we get to see each other often, ne?"
"Ummm, yeah," sniffled the teary-eyed lavender head. 'Maybe I'll get to see you in koishii's office, wherever that may be. If it's really, really far then I say it won't be often enough, and I CANT STAND THAT! Not getting to see koishii three to eight times a day? THAT'S PREPOSTEROUS!"
Karumi was wailing terribly, clinging on to the secretary as she cried. The poor secretary fumbled inside her pockets to find some tissue and handed it over to the sobbing woman.
"Why does he have to move away even?"
Takahatchi gave her a comforting smile and shrugged.
"It was a company decision. We can serve our customers better that way since Seishun is rather hard to reach. They decided on relocating today and though it came as quite a surprise to Fuji-sama he approved of it. He said that it was for the best and —oh yes! I almost forgot! President Fuji-sams told me to hand this over to you! It's a letter addressed to you Karumi-dono."
A white envelope gently ended up in the woman's hands.
"I'll be out in the lobby if you need anything."
The door was hear shutting behind her and Karumi knew that she was left all alone in the bare office.
Stare at the envelope Karumi, just stare. Don't open it. You don't know what could be inside. Just stare, stare, stare and …..stare some more.
Oh Kami, this was driving her nuts!
Riiiippp…..
The envelope was torn open. Shakily taking the letter in her hands, Karumi read its contents; contents that sent her running out the lobby crying oceans of tears. (a/n: I told you not to open it. *shrug* you really are hardheaded stupid Karumi. I'm glad you are though, I enjoy torturing you. : P )
"Do you need something Karumi-dono?"
"Hai!" wailed Karumi, "More tissues! Please, and a shoulder to cry on too……please!"
"Why? What happened? Ogenki desu ka?"
"Iie, ogenki ja naiTakahatchi-san! Ogenki ja nai……Syuusuke-koi, he –he, he dumped me! I –I thought, I thought that as long as he would be away from her everything would be fine, but now nothing's fine at all! I loved him so much to and, and he just threw me out like dirt! I don't want to ever see or hear from him again! Ever!"
"Daijoubo, daijoubo. It's better for you not to Karumi-dono. It'll just break you all the more if you do see him again. It's wiser if you don't ."
"Don't worry, I won't!" she cried all the more, sobbing loudly as she grasped her 'ex'-boyfriend's secretary, her tears dimming her vision. Her eyes hurt so much from all that sorrow that poor little Karumi could hardly see anything clearly, including the smirk quickly appearing then disappearing on Takahatchi's face.
"That's good."
OooOooOooOooOooOooOooOooOooOooOooOooOooOoo
Meanwhile inside the Fuji hospital room, the outosan of our beloved Tensai is sputtering coughs as he rummages aimlessly for something inside the nightstand drawer.
"Now where was cough, that, cough. I'm sure I left it here," the heart attack patient groaned as he continued digging around. "Hah! Finally found you! Way to go me!" he cheered himself on, bursting into a fit of coughs as an after-effect.
"Now time to, cough, cough, see how my plan is working."
Putting the earpiece near to his ears, Fuji Okinawa patiently waited for someone to pick up and answer.
"Moshimoshi? Fuji-san?"
"Hai, cough, Takahatchi-san. Did everything go as planned? I hope nothing went wrong, my son's future is the one at stake here, cough, cough.'
The retired ex-president received a very positive answer from the woman. The girl had believed everything was real and wouldn't bother to see Syuusuke anymore. It was unknown to his son that they had broken up already, but he would be glad if he knew. She no longer posed a threat to Okinawa and Shino's greater design for their children's lives.
As for his son, Syuusuke had already boarded the plane without any suspicion of what was actually going on at all.
This was very, very good news indeed.
Now for phase two.
"Arigatou Takahatchi-san. You are doing your job well and for that I will keep my end of the bargain as promised. Don't worry, you will be compensated well for these extra-outside-the-company affairs. Listen Takahatchi-san, I want you to do something else for me. Could you make sure the hotel arrangements go smoothly? Hai? Good. Please report to me as soon as you receive word from our contacts, cough, cough, okay?"
"Fuji-san? Are you handling company matters again behind my back? At this rate you might have a second heart-attack! You're supposed to rest for petesakes," exclaimed his doctor. He had come in seeing the older Fuji on the phone choking coughs. That sight definitely did not please the physician. Okinawa was caught red-handed.
Still, even if he was caught, he hid the phone behind his back and grinned sheepishly at the exasperated doctor. He needed a quick alibi.
'What are you talking about doctor-san? I was merely on the phone talking to a friend. I wasn't working at all. I'm retired already from work, remember? Now, sumimasen demo I have to finish this call."
The doctor fell for it. Thinking that he had made a mistake, he bowed down low. "Gomennasai. Please finish your call Fuji-san," he stepped out of the room.
"Eto, moshimoshi Takahatchi-san are you still there?" resumed Okinawa as soon as the doctor left. "Do we have a deal?"
"Hai."
Okinawa ended the cal grinning. As long as Takahatchi Azumi was on it, he truly had nothing to worry about. She would keep her word, she always did. That was why he hired her in the first place. Phase two of his part of the plan would soon be accomplished. The next turn was Shino's move.
OooOooOooOooOooOooOooOooOooOooOooOooOooOoo
Pok, pok, pok.
The sound of tennis balls hitting back and forth echoed inside the deserted tennis court, the tang of their beat following a rhythmic pattern. It was like a steady rhythm, the sound of harmonious melody as two tennis balls bounced back and forth against the wall in unison. They were in perfect harmony with each other, that was, until the sound of one of the balls dropping in mid-air came along with the thud of someone stumbling on the hearth, the exact same person who had been hitting that ball against the wall.
"Ittai!"
The second balls rhythm ended as well. In its place was the worried voice of the second person.
"Ryuuzaki, are you alright? Can you get up?" our golden eyed tennis prince rushed towards the fallen woman cringing at the small cut on her leg. " Hai, Ryoma-kun. Daijoubo. It's just a small cut, I can handle it myself."
"Cheh, Ryuuzuki. You're still so mada mada dane," muttered Ryoma.
"Eh?!" squeaked Sakuno as she found herself being lifted up in her boyfriend's arms, princess style. "It's not much, I can walk over to the bench by myself Ryoma-kun! Put me down!"
Shaking his head he gave her a disapproving look and held on to her even more tightly. The tennis prince would never take something like that for an answer.
"Ryuuzaki I may have promised our sempaitachi to take care of Nadeshiko Maaya just before we left the reunion three days ago, but I also swore to take care of you, no matter what. So don't tell me to stop what I'm doing," he chided her in an annoyed tone. "Besides, it doesn't look like you're uncomfortable like this. You're not even blushing. I miss the color maroon on you, you know."
"Honto ni? Eto, Ryoma-kun I may not be blushing but still please, let me —" suddenly Sakuno felt Ryoma's lips taking hers in a brief and tender kiss as her eyes widened in surprise. Breaking away from her, Ryoma's lips curled into a smirk at the shocked expression on her face.
"Shhh. Now no more talking, alright?" he ordered, putting a finger to her mouth.
The auburn head did as she was told and kept quiet while the tennis prodigy carefully set her down on a bench to lay a band-aid on her wound.
Sakuno never noticed before, but Ryoma was always so gentle in handling her and he could be very sweet and caring as well, the exact opposite of his cocky nature. He really loved her, she knew that much by the way he would look into her eyes. She could only wonder why, despite all the affection showered on her, she always felt that something never seemed quite right. It was as if she was still missing something ever since that day she saw Fuji-sempai leave in the airport.
"Hnn, Ryuuzaki, stop spacing out like that. Your annoying phone's ringing," Ryoma snapped suddenly. The girl was brought out of her dream world to see herself staring in front of her boyfriend who was handing out her phone which she took without hesitation.
"Moshimoshi? Kore wa dare desu ka?"
'Ohayou Sakuno-chan. You already know who is this. How's my perfect singer doing? Is your date with Echizen going well? Just make sure he doesn't smother your heart again, okay?" she hear a pleasant voice over the phone. A smile was brought to her face when she realized it belonged to her father but was soon disfigured into a surprised 'o' shape.
"Outosan, how – how did you know? I didn't even tell you about the two of us yet!'
"Hehehe," he chuckled. Right now Sakuno could imagine his I-knew-it-all-along look accompanying his laughter of his. "Of course I should know, you are my only daughter after all. Ne Sakuno-chan can you do your outosan a little favor?"
"Hai, of course outosan. I'll do anything you ask me to," she agreed readily.
If there was one thing about Ryuuzaki Sakuno that made her stand out among all the usually disrespectful people of her generation, it was her overflowing respect and obedience for her parents. She had always acknowledged the people who had earned the name 'Sakuno's parents', even though they had left her in the care of her Obaasan for a great remainder of her life due to their tight schedules.
Why? Because of the fact that despite of their busy work they had always taken the time to communicate with her, their only child on a daily basis, be it through the phone, letters, or the internet.
She respected them so much. Ryoma who was watching the girl while she called was even amazed at how fast she gave a yes. Cheh. If he were in her shoes, he would tell his Oyaji to get lost and then hang up. He really didn't give a damn about what his perverted oyaji thought of him.
"Are you sure Sakuno-chan? You wouldn't mind me taking you away from your boyfriend for a concert for the company? The company will be having a meeting in a hotel and I was thinking that the dry formalities could be rejuvenated by Nadeshiko Maaya's singing. It'd be such a waste if the company can't get to hear my daughter sing for once."
"Hai, I'd love to do a concert, Tousan. Which hotel? Will it be here in Nagasaki where I'm staying? Don't worry I'll be packed and ready by tomorrow so – "
"Matte, you're in Nagasaki right now? No wonder the phone's breaking up. Ne listen Sakuno-chan, I'm sending a chopper in to pick you up. It'll be there any moment now. I packed for you five suitcases of clothes, you'll be staying there for a week or so….."
The signal broke up the call. Sakuno looked bewildered and confused as she stuffed the phone back into her bag.
What did outosan mean by a chopper was coming any moment now?
She wasn't ready yet, she still had to pack. Worst of all she still had to tell the feline-eyed lad about her departure and it seemed that during the remainder of the call he had gone back to hitting tennis balls on the wall. She didn't really have the guts to approach the Ryoma right now. He looked rather busy twist serving shots on the wall.
Eh, but what if the chopper comes in right now?
Gulp. She had to go over there and tell him, guts or no guts.
"Eto, excuse me Ryoma-kun, could I-could I talk to you for a moment? I'm sorry for interrupting your practice demo, it's really important?" Sakuno watched as the tennis prince caught the ball in his left hand, took off his cap drenched in sweat and raised his eyebrow at her. His shiny bluish black hair shone under the heat of the sun and somehow seemed to dance under the wind. "Nanio Ryuuzaki?"
"Erm, Ryoma-kun, it's just that I have to do a concert for my father's company, he asked me to and I couldn't say no."
"What's wrong with that? I don't mind at all," answered Echizen. His hair was still dancing but this time it was more unruly, if it really were a dancer you could safely say it was doing the cancan. Sakuno noticed this but decided not to mention it. She had to talk about more important matters first.
"Honto ni? I'll be gone for a week and -"
This time Ryoma's hair was a tornado and so was hers as Sakuno finally found the reason behind the wind as a thundering sound of propellers of helicopter chopped through the air just right above them.
"AND KAMI, RYOMA-KUN I HAVE TO GO NOW! I'LL BE BACK SOON, I PROMISE!" she shouted over the noise of the blades as the chopper lowered down a rope ladder for her to cling on to. "TAKE CARE!"
"MATTE!" Ryoma held her back. He landed a kiss for goodbye and smirked before he let her go. "GO ON RYUUZAKI!"
With that, Sakuno waved goodbye and entered the chopper. Three men suited up in black were waiting for her inside along with five suitcases, just like her father had said. He really was a man of his word.
"Welcome aboard, Miss Ryuuzaki."
"Hai, arigatou. Ne, so where are we off to? Tokyo? Hiroshima? Kyoto?" she asked cheerfully, addressing her three escorts.
"Tsushima island.'
"What? Why of all places Tsushima?"
"We are only doing as told Ms. Ryuuzaki. Upon reaching the Hiroi Sora Hotel we will immediately tend to your things while you will prepare yourself in the restroom with your wig. Those were the instructions President Ryuuzaki left us."
Sakuno pouted. She knew that that was the only answer she would get. These men knew nothing more than 'doing as what we were told'. Sighing, the auburn head could only keep quiet.
When they finally reached Tsushima, she was more than happy to be out of the stuffy chopper and even happier to see that Hiroi Sora and Tsushima wasn't such a bad place after all….no scratch that. It was absolutely BEAUTIFUL! The hotel was a beach resort, just like the last one she had been to with the regulars…but this…this resort was paradise! Sparkling blue sea, white sand, shining sun, chirping birds!
Gaaah! And not only that, the rooms weren't in the condo style, they were separated from each other, like small houses dotting the beach!
So this was the company meeting venue eh?
Sakuno couldn't wait to see what her room would be like. Bounding into the rest room, Ryuuzaki Sakuno went in and came out as her ebony-haired alter ego, Nasehsiko Maaya, just as instructed.
"Sumimasen Miss," the singer approached the counter in the front desk of the main office of the resort. "What number is Nadeshiko Maaya?"
"Ahhh, Nadeshiko Maaya-san, we've been expecting you. Gomen ne, demo we have a slight problem. We've been booked tight and had only one room left when your call for reservation was made and unfortunately another person had reserved it ahead of you. Now we tried making negotiations with that person and have successfully made am exception for you wherein the two of you shall be sharing that single room. That's if it's alright with you though."
"Mmm, its fine,' she answered directly without giving it much thought. "So, where's the key? Are my bags there already?"
"Hai. Here's the key. The room is right over there, the European designed room at the left of the beach. Enjoy your stay." The clerk pointed out a large single room house over the end of the left area of the row of room houses.
"Thank you."
Walking up to the place, Sakuno trudged along the sand, looked up at the sky and smiled contentedly. Right now, she was too happy to think about anything like the room-sharing situation. She didn't even want to think about Ryoma-kun right now because of all preoccupation with her ecstasy.
It was as if the emptiness in her heart had suddenly disappeared Justas soon as she had stepped on the sand. There was just something about the place that made her feel…..lighter….happier….complete. The past few days, ever since she had seen Fuji-sempai go away with her bff manager and said yes to Ryoma-kun, Sakuno had been feeling down deep inside and though she was good at hiding it from Ryoma, it was still there. She could never really hide it from herself.
But now she suddenly felt all that pain going away and the singer wanted it like that as long as possible.
Walking on, she reached the room.
"This must be it. The room really looks so kawaii! I cant wait to get in. I wonder who's my roommate though," she mussed excitedly as she stood out the door. Knocking on it several times, Sakuno received no answer and safely deduced that, well, no room mate was inside. She decided to get in, after all she had a key to room and she was staying there.
Sakuno inserted the key in and opened the door, standing in front of a roommate that looked just as shocked as her.
"Sakuno-chan?"
"Sempai…."
OooOooOooOooOooOooOooOooOooOooOooOooOooOoo
Japanese Terms
Hai – yes
Iie – no
Arigatou – thank you
Gomennasai – I'm sorry
Daijoubo – it's alright
Ittai – ouch, painful
Ogenki desu ka – are you alright
Ogenki ja nai – I'm not fine at all
Honto ni – really
Mada mada dane –Ryoma's favorite catch phrase, you still have lots to work on
Matte – wait
Tousan -father
OooOooOooOooOooOooOooOooOooOooOooOooOooOoo
A/N: Hello Minna! Honto ni gommennasai for being two days late! I was really busy this week and my parents have gotten a little bit strict on the typing coz it's almost the opening of classes right here in the Phil.
Anyway, I wanted to say thanks to all those who have been reviewing and following my story up to this chap. I even got already more than a thousand hits since chap. 8 and I'm soooooo happy : )
Here's the list of reviewers,( I'm arranging it according to the frequency of reviews so please don't get hurt or anything by the arrangement. ^_^)
SilverDoe02
rebeccasanfujieijilvr
Dark Night
Mysweetkat
Double Mask
Pussycat Dolls
Dainty Sue
Thank you minna for all your support! I'm so grateful, I just want to give out a chap 9 thank you note to everyone ^_^
Eto, I'll be making another one at the end of the story and to those who want to be on it, please review. There are a lot of people who really don't bother reviewing, but please do. I need your support too guys! It's really lonely if I don't get to know what you think : (
Ok, so chap. 10 is coming up, and I'll try my best to update as soon as possible, but that'll be a little hard on me since the opening of classes will start next Monday. But I will do my best, I promise. Gambatte shimasu ^_^
Ja!
