"You are Mogami Kyoko-san?" said Maeda, somehow making her name sound inferior.
Determined to be the better of the two of them, Kyoko gave a polite bow in greeting. "Yes, and you're Maeda Testsuya-san. It's a pleasure to finally meet you."
"Likewise," said Maeda, giving only the barest hint of a return bow. The movement was apathetic as was his voice. Why did she keep having such rotten luck? She noticed that Ren was helping Sakura down from the stage like a proper gentleman. She tried not to notice him holding her hand for balance, or her slight fumble as she leaned against him for support.
She was so determined to not be jealous that she missed Ren's lingering gaze in her direction. She was snapped from her observation at a deliberate clearing of a throat. Maeda raised a brow at her.
"Are you ready to go to our seats?" he said.
"Oh, of course."
She kept a polite smile as she helped herself down from the stage-
Ren would have helped me down.
struggled to keep up in her too-small shoes—
Ren would have slowed to my pace.
And took the seat opposite the one Maeda had taken.
Ren would have helped me into the chair like a true gentleman.
Kyoko slammed her forehead on the table as hard as she could. It rattled the silverware and made the room spin, but at least she was no longer thinking about Ren. Now she was trying to see past the stars in her eyes.
Her vision cleared to show Maeda deliberately looking anywhere but at her. Kyoko rubbed the sore spot on her forehead.
"So, um, have you been enjoying your time here?" said Kyoko. She had no idea what else to say. The man looked so closed off. He didn't even glance her way when he answered.
"It's been an experience in patience, that's for sure."
"Because you're having trouble finding someone to fall in love with?"
This time he didn't answer.
Well, Kyoko had tried. That was better than what he could say. If he wanted to spend the whole date in silence, then good for him! She had no desire to experience whatever it was that kept even the gold diggers at bay. The man was loaded! His family owned several strings of hotels all across Japan. Due to the mandatory marriage, the company had probably exploded in worth. Too bad all that money couldn't buy him a decent personality.
A minute later two other people approached the table. Kyoko was happy to see she already was acquainted with them, even if she wasn't sure how she felt about the female.
"Kyoko-san!" said Suzuki. "It seems we're in the same group date again."
"Guess so," said Kyoko. She waved at Suzuki's date, deciding to offer an olive branch. "I take it Hime-san was standing on your left."
Suzuki's date gave an exhausted sigh. Eri wore a bubble dress tonight, her fiery hair pulled up into a fantastic explosion on her head. "Yup, which means I end up with one of the engaged ones." She clicked her tongue, taking the seat beside Kyoko. She propped an elbow on the table, somewhat blocking Kyoko out of the conversation. "I wish they'd just send you all to your own retreat and leave the rest of us to fight it out. Unless they're trying to start fights. Not going to lie, if you were engaged to Kimura-san I'd be flirting with you shamelessly."
Suzuki looked very uncomfortable at that statement. He was saved by the final pair arriving at the table. It was—ugh. Kyoko tired to keep the judgment from her face but it was very hard. It was the Sho-casual. Blonde hair, piercings and a dark jacket with too many zippers, if she squinted Sho's face would superimpose itself on his body. His real name was Ando Kakeru, but that wasn't terribly important. Sho-casual was easier to remember.
Someone patted Kyoko on the shoulder. She turned her head, only to have her cheek poked at with a long purple fingernail. It was Bow-san. True to the only name Kyoko knew her by, she wore an assortment of small bows around her high bun, their color matching the thin line of teal coloring her eyelids. She gave a wink
"Your headband's all messed up," said Bow-san. She quickly adjusted it for Kyoko. "There. Now you look mostly adorable. What happened to your shoes? I thought you were wearing those super cute butterfly ones."
"I traded them for survival reasons." Had everyone noticed those whimsical death traps?
They joined the table as well, completing the group date. Weird that the show had gone from single dates, to double dates and now group dates. One would think they'd encourage the opposite. Start general before narrowing down to specific lines of attack.
Speaking of attacking, that's exactly what Bow-san and Eri were doing. Attacking their target. It was a good thing Sho-casual was seated as far as he could be from Kyoko or else she'd be hurling all over Bow-san's satin platform sandals. While managing to not completely ignore Suzuki, they concentrated most of their attention on Ando, the man lapping it up.
"If I didn't have my heart set on Yoshio-san, you'd be such a cutie-pie to go after," sighed Bow-san.
"Does that mean if he doesn't choose you, you'd be willing to marry me?" said Sho-casual.
"Don't be so desperate," said Eri.
At the same time, Bow-san put on a show of wailing, though she smiled through the whole act. "Don't say such mean things! I'll be crushed if we don't end up together. Yoshio-san is my other half."
It was interesting to see Bow-san acting this cutesy. The last major exposure Kyoko'd experienced had included watching the bubbly woman tear through Kimura and Sexy-chan in a verbal brawl. Women, Kyoko decided, were very scary people. Her female instincts told her that getting on Bow-san's bad side would be a very bad idea.
The food was served, and their chatter died by a marginal amount. Kyoko found herself drawn into a conversation with Suzuki about his upcoming wedding.
"We haven't had much time to start planning," he said, face aglow with a happiness that only enlightenment could produce. "But she was thinking of a winter wedding. I have no preference so long as we don't have to wait too long. And of course, you're going to be there."
"I'm invited?" said Kyoko, surprised.
"Of course! You were a huge part in bringing us back together, though, sorry, I know you picked me as your date and um." He got awkward, remembering how left her on their date to get engaged to another woman.
Kyoko waved his worries away. "No harm done. I'm here for the tax benefits, not to find love. The only thing that hurts are a few bruises caused by Kitamura-san slinging me into the wall."
He laughed, their easy conversation falling back into place. At least, it did until he asked what she thought about Dino. Kyoko's face twitched.
"It's hard to say. We only had a brief conversation." More like one long discourse she endured. "But so far I find him spirited."
Suzuki noticed her hesitance. If he meant to ask her about it, he didn't get the chance. Eri had heard their discussion, leaning closer.
"Oh, so going after Dino-san now?" she drawled. "What happened to Daichi? Too much of a dork for you?"
"Daichi-san's not that much of a dork," said Kyoko, feeling the need to defend her friend.
"Well, he does fawn over your existence, so I guess that would appeal to someone like you," she reasoned. "It's nauseating, actually. He goes chasing after every pair of bouncing breasts that crosses his vision. You're just the latest in a large line."
First off, Kyoko's breasts did not bounce. Not without a substantial amount of padding at least. And second, Kyoko was having a hard time gauging this woman. One moment she was defending her vehemently against Kimura-san. The next, she was making passes at both her and Daichi.
"What do you have against Daichi-san anyway?" said Kyoko. "You're supposed to be his friend, but what sort of friend says crap like that about them to their back?"
"Oh trust me, I say it to his face as well. It's my right as his childhood friend to pick on him."
It seemed more like meanness to Kyoko. But then again, Moko-san constantly threatened to end their friendship as a form of emotional manipulation to control Kyoko's urge to hug her, so, maybe it wasn't that appalling.
"Well as his friend, I reserve the right to like him," said Kyoko. "And I do. A lot."
Eri looked as if she'd swallowed a lemon. Bow-san, however, was gazing over Kyoko with a glittering expression. What was that about?
That statement left a sudden pause in the conversation, one that thankfully didn't last too long. One of their waiters dropped some sort of game in the center of their table. Eri descended on the items with the tenacity of a raptor tearing into her meal.
"I hope you're ready for a fight," she said, handing out the individual pieces for the game. "Because I loathe to lose."
She dumped an assortment of game pieces into Kyoko's hand who turned them over. She didn't recognize the pieces.
"Looks like we need to pick a token to represent us," said Bow-san. She held the instruction in her carefully manicured fingers, lips pursed as her eyes darted across the paper. "Well, that's easy. I pick the flower."
"I would have liked to be the flower," mumbled Kyoko. It was the only token she'd noticed in the pile. Then she spotted a perfect token for Sho-casual. "You can be the hammer."
Ando smiled, happily giving a nod. "I like it." He wouldn't if he knew why she'd recommended it to him.
"I'll be the witch's hat," said Eri. Her grin suddenly widened as she pointed to another token. "Oh, Kyoko-chan, you have to be this one."
It was a white piece that Kyoko had completely overlooked. It appeared to be a riceball.
"The heck?"
"That leaves the bowling ball for Suzuki-san," said Eri. "And the dog for… what is your name again?"
Only now did Kyoko remember there was someone seated across from her. Maeda's attention wasn't even focused on them. It was directed toward a notebook in his hand, pen paused as he noticed Eri's attention.
"Maeda Tetsuya," he said, going back to his notebook. "And I will not be participating."
"Why not?" said Eri. "Scared I might destroy you?"
"If that is the fantasy you wish to entertain, then I will not stop you," he said, tone absent of concern.
Eri's eyes flashed, a dangerous sign. "Want to put actions behind your words, Tetsuya?"
It was probably the informal address that made Maeda pause before flipping a few pages and taking more notes. Though he said nothing, the aura around him turned icy.
"It's fine," said Suzuki, waving Eri down. "If he wants to join later we can let him."
"He doesn't need to play to participate," said Bow-san, who had apparently finished reading the rules. "We take turns drawing a card and reading the question on it, each of us providing the token as an answer. Things like; 'who is the most athletic?' 'Who is most likely to cure cancer?' For example, if I think Suzuki-san is the person most likely cure cancer, I would take his token in my hand and we all reveal our tokens at the same time. The correct answer is the majority and those that picked the correct answer are given a point. We go until someone reaches ten points."
"Sounds easy enough," said Sho-casual.
"And a lot of fun," said Kyoko. Maybe she could play this with Kanae and Chiori later when she got home.
"I can already tell your table-talk is going to make this an adventure, Eri-san," said Suzuki.
"She does have a lot of energy."
So the game began. Through the duration of the game, Kyoko quickly learned what the others thought of her. She was voted "Most likely to appear in a movie" (duh), "Most likely to perform in the circus" and "Most likely to be summoned to another world by mistake." That last one had more to do with Eri's influence than anything else. Suzuki was nice to the point of crippling himself when everyone voted he was "Most likely to take pity on a failed robbery and give up his/her wallet."
On they played, Kyoko finding she could even ignore Ando's likeness to Sho and start to see the person beneath. True, he was a bit dim, but at least he wasn't rude. Just as she was starting to consider him as a possible suitor an image popped into her head.
Sho laughed at her, a finger pointing as he mocked her loudly. "You couldn't get me so you settled for a second-rate imitator! You're so sad! HA HA HA!"
Nope. She could never consider Ando as a potential husband. Her pride would not allow it.
It was Suzuki's turn to read the question. He flinched when he read the card, sliding it to the bottom of the pile.
"How about we pick a different one?" he said.
He should have been more discreet. Eri immediately launched across the table, knocking over the stack of cards to grab the correct one. Curious, Kyoko leaned in over her shoulder to read what it said.
Most likely to die alone.
No wonder Suzuki had tried to gloss over it. He probably didn't want to hurt anyone's feelings. He was a lot nicer than Kyoko as she had immediately thought of a specific person it would suit. Someone who refused to participate even in their discussions.
"What does it say?" said Sho-casual.
"Read it to us, hurry," wined Bow-san.
Emboldened by an audience of two, Eri's lips curved into a wicked smile. "Oh, I know exactly why you tried to hide this one Suzuki-kun. Because you know exactly who we'd all pick as our answer."
She slapped the card onto the table, reading it aloud. "Most likely to die alone."
That got Maeda's attention. He closed his notebook, surveying her with an even, if not somewhat frustrated expression.
"Do you have a point to make, Umeki-san?" he said.
"Nothing in particular," said Eri, playing coy as she shrugged her shoulders. "I mean, it's not like you've—I don't know- completely ignored your date for the whole night!"
Maeda's gaze flickered to Kyoko before returning to Eri. "If you are concerned for my future, you need not be," he said. "I have already determined that Mogami-san is not fit to be a sensible wife."
What the hell?
Kyoko blinked through the shock of the sudden insult. Where had that come from?
It seemed Maeda wasn't done. His previously immoveable lips started to flap freely. "She lacks a basic understanding of human decency, decorum, and cannot comprehend the intricate nature of the position my future wife will hold. I am simply saving us from wasting both time and energy in an evening that would be fruitless for both of us."
"I'm glad we agree on that at least," said Kyoko. She folded her arms, her ire ignited as her demons wriggled out of her soul to come and play. "I heard you've personally insulted every woman in this room to some degree or another. Anyone with their head that far up their ass can't carry a decent conversation."
Eri was saying something, as was Suzuki. Kyoko didn't hear either of them.
"Not fit to be a sensible wife?" said Kyoko. It was that sentence more than anything that had pricked her. "Just what golden throne of narcissism do you sit on? You don't even know me."
"No? I do know you like to make a scene." Maeda took out his notebook and flipped to a certain page before reading. "You've run out of a room in the middle of filming with no explanation, made a scene during one of the games, yelled in the middle of breakfast, purposefully worn clothes that stand out either in mediocrity or in frivolity, and—" his eye flickered with mirth. "Slammed your head against the table." He closed the book with a flourish. "It is obvious you are in need of attention, as well as possibly unbalanced and delusional. You are in the entertainment industry. I understand that over time, the limelight can distort your world-view."
"Have you been keeping tabs on each of the women here?" said Kyoko. "That's disgusting." She remembered him writing in the notebook earlier when Eri asked him to join their game. As for her behavior, well… she had no good rebuttal for that. She knew she was a bit of a spaz and working in the department with Lory Takarada had not helped matters. He encouraged standing out. Crazy toga-wearing man. He'd dressed as an umbrella the other week to inform Kyoko she was about to receive a shower of love.
Damn, that man had totally known about this show! And he hadn't thought to stop his granddaughter?
Either way, Maeda didn't seem to like being called disgusting. His eyes had narrowed to annoyed slits. "It is not so different from your method. Or is that chart just a rumor?"
"My charts are completely different," said Kyoko. "I may list different positive and negative attributes of the men, but I don't write them down for the purpose of belittling others. I do it to find a suitable match."
"As do I."
"And how's that going for you? Last I hear not a single woman can stand the idea of you."
"Not any woman I care to pursue. Unlike you, I have something called class. An attribute this petri-dish of rejects lacks."
Kyoko couldn't help it. She laughed loudly thinking of a certain four-eyes hidden in the crowd.
"I guarantee you," said Kyoko, "that in this room is a man that has more class in his pinky than you could ever have in your entire life."
"I'm sure," he said patronizingly. "Forgive me if I don't take your word for it."
Kyoko stood. "You're an asshole!"
Maeda surprisingly stood as well. "And you're at the bottom of my list."
"Yeah? Well, you're at the bottom of my list!" Kyoko pointed to Ando, fire breathing through her nostrils as she yelled. "The Sho-casual was higher than you were!"
"You think I look like Sho? As in Fuwa Sho?" said Ando. "Nice!"
"No!" Kyoko corrected him. "It's an insult." The vilest she could make.
"Is it?" said Eri. "I think Fuwa Sho looks kinda cute."
"I'm so confused."
Kyoko drew in deep breaths, keeping her monsters at bay even as she imagined strangling Maeda. Not suitable to be a wife? As if she needed him telling her of that fact. That she was unlovable. That Tsuruga-san would never…
"Do you really think you're so perfect you can just baselessly judge someone without knowing them?" said Kyoko. She grabbed the offending card from the table, holding it out in front of his face. "This card is right. You will die alone and it's not because there's no one worthy of your 'high class'. It's because you're the one that lacks human decency. If you think the secret to true love is in your notebook of judgments, then you're more of an idiot than I am when it comes to love."
Maeda studied the card, his eyes venomous as they slid back to her.
"Perhaps I am," said Maeda. "But there is at least one thing I do know. That love cannot be present without respect, and there is not a single thing I can respect about you Mogami-san."
Kyoko was struck. Her air depleted as she suddenly found herself stripped of something important. Something that kept her head high in pride for the woman she had become.
Then it suddenly reared back. Furious with ten times the energy to fight back. She prepped her Demons with the intent to hurl them at Maeda—
Alcohol splashed all over Maeda's outfit. He sputtered, wiping his eyes just in time for another splash of red to blind them. Both Eri and Bow-san had thrown their drinks in his face.
Eri placed her glass on the table, proudly dusting her hands. "I've been wanting to do that all night." She suddenly caught Kyoko's eyes, her triumph melting away as she cast her eyes to the ground. "Just to be sure, I didn't do it for you. He insulted my favorite designer earlier today."
"Now, Maeda-san, there are some things you just don't say to a woman," cooed Bow-san, setting down her empty drink. "A man that can't be respectful toward women isn't a man at all."
Madea took a handkerchief from his pocket, dabbing at the wine spots on his face with a controlled fury. He looked ready to explode.
A presence appeared by Kyoko's side. She looked up, surprised to see Ren there. How had he gotten here so fast?
"Mogami-san, are you alright?" said Ren. He fidgeted in pretend nervousness, but his voice was firm. She instinctively knew that he'd unleash Cain is she asked him to. As satisfying as it would be to see Cain hurtle this lizard across the room, Kyoko decided she was fine just knowing he would do it for her.
"I'm fine," said Kyoko. She locked eyes with Maeda, jerking her head toward Ren. "See. Barely spoke four words and he already has loads more class than you."
Maeda stared for a hard second. Then he made a swiping motion as if saying he washed his hands of them. Without a single word, he walked away and out of the room.
"What a brat," commented Eri, sticking out her tongue at his retreating back. "Stupid spoiled rich kids. I'm going to knock his head in the next time I see him."
"I think you'll have to get in line," said Kyoko. She had just noticed how much attention their table was getting. Everyone was staring, cameras fixed on their drama as the room buzzed loud with commentary.
Daichi jogged up to their table. He tearfully took Kyoko's hand between his own.
"Are you alright?" he said. "What happened? Did Eri do something to you? Are you okay?"
He was soundly thumped on the head by Eri.
"Why do you assume I did something?" she growled. "And why don't you ask if I'm okay?"
"Because Kyoko-sama is a delicate sunflower that must be protected," he said, rubbing his head. "And you're a gorilla."
That got Eri mad. The two started bickering, their voices just adding to the din of noise. Someone else clomped up to their table, wobbling on shoes a few sizes too big.
"Are you alright?" said Sakura, her soft face pulled into a worried frown. It jolted to surprise as she nearly toppled over the butterfly shoes. Kyoko hurried to her side, catching Sakura just before she fell.
"Steady there," said Kyoko. "I'm doing better than you are with those shoes."
Sakura let out a chuckle. "What to trade back?"
Ready to jump on the opportunity, Kyoko looked down only to realize that she had broken the straps on both of Sakura's shoes. No wonder they weren't hurting anymore.
"Oh, Sakura-san I'm so sorry," said Kyoko, mentally hitting herself. It had probably happened when she'd stood to yell at Maeda. "I'm a complete idiot. I wasn't careful and you helped me out and I feel like such a miserable idiot."
Sakura desperately tried to calm Kyoko, but it wasn't working. This evening was just one big disaster. Even as Ren joined Sakura, Kyoko just couldn't do it.
"I think I'm going to call it an evening," said Kyoko, shaking her head. She really needed to lie down.
They protested, but Kyoko was adamant. She left, Ren and Sakura the two that Kyoko couldn't convince to leave her alone. They walked her back down the hall, both her and Sakura holding their shoes as they walked barefoot.
"I told you, it's nothing really," repeated Kyoko. "Maeda just said a bunch of things about why I'm not suitable to be a wife and how I'm spastic and at the bottom of his list. We got into a fight and the other two threw alcohol in his face. He got what he deserved. Who'd want to be on his list anyway?"
"Not fit to be a wife?" said Sakura. She looked both horrified and angry at the suggestion. She clutched her ruined shoes, hands shaking as she shot back. "What the hell is his problem!?"
It was the first time Kyoko had heard Sakura raise her voice. Unlike Bow-san whose sickly sweetness was terrifying, Kyoko couldn't see Sakura's anger as anything but soft. She was too nice to get truly mad.
"He's just another jerk too full of himself," said Kyoko. "And he's hardly the first one I've met." Nor would he be the last.
"He's also delusional," commented Ren. "You'd make a wonderful wife."
It was unsettling how much that comment improved her mood. As Sakura vigorously nodded her head in agreement, Kyoko couldn't keep the shy smile from stretching across her features.
"Thanks," she muttered. "But… I think he may have had a point."
"Kyoko-san, don't you dare think such horrible things about yourself," interjected Sakura.
"No, not about that. It's about something else he said. You see, he keeps a notebook where he writes different things about the woman. Frankly, it's creepy, but then he asked if it was no different than my charts."
As humiliating as it was, she realized how similar their approaches were. He was looking for someone that would fit his situation. Kyoko was doing the same. She could protest that while their methods were similar, their intentions were different. It didn't matter. They were both looking at marriage like it was a business venture. That's not how people worked.
Kyoko had gone on dates and talked to men that checked every box on her chart. Maeda himself technically matched everything Kyoko wanted as a husband, yet she'd marked him out. His personality was something she just couldn't overlook. They weren't compatible.
Kyoko pulled out her chart, staring at the names and notes scribbled in the margins.
"The truth is, there isn't much of a difference in our methods," she said. "Relationships aren't that simple. I could talk to men who check every box all day and still never find my match. What I think matters may not be what matters the most." She peeked up at the other two, feeling exposed. "Does that make sense?"
Sakura beamed. "Perfect sense."
"While knowing what you want in a partner is good, it's not realistic to follow it to the letter," agreed Ren. "There's no one who is absolutely perfect for you. But you can find someone you are willing to compromise with."
"That's a little unromantic of you," commented Sakura. "I'm surprised you think that way."
Ren hunched away as if he were embarrassed. "Obviously love is the most important part. When you have that in the mix, things you thought were important don't seem to matter as much."
It was a subtle punch to the gut. The man was obviously besotted. Kyoko looked down at the paper in her hands. In a sudden fit of irritation, she tore the chart to shreds.
"I'll find someone compatible for me," she said. "It might take a little bit longer, but now I think I have a better grasp on how to do it."
She'd risk getting caught by Ren, but it was a necessary risk. The alternative was accidentally marrying someone like Maeda.
Thanks for reading!
You all are lucky. I had most of this chapter written months ago so the wait wasn't too long. I'm super excited for the next one, it's going to be a blast!
For those waiting for Prince's Concubine, I know, I'm working on it. I've got a large part of the outline done and over 5,000 words of the first chapter written. (That's not including the work I've done and then threw away because it didn't work.) It's a tough chapter and I've been working on it little by little for three weeks. Why do I have so many characters and things happening? It's insanity trying to keep them all straight! But I am excited to finally finish the last arc. :)
Thanks so much for your comments and everything. :D Let me know what you think! You guys are great!
-Blushweaver