Yashiro didn't understand how he had ended up keeping Kotonami-san company as he sat alone next to her, while they patiently waited for Ren and Kyoko to come back. All of the other actress were on the dance floor, leaving him stranded by her side. Staring at the profile of the beautiful actress, he watched as she bit her lips in nervous tension. Was she worried over what was happening to Kyoko?
He had seen the way Ren had hurried Kyoko out the night club through the back door and was concern about their situation as well. Although it went against his better judgement, he didn't think it was appropriate for him to interfere. This was something that the both of them needed to work out. Guessing from Kotonami's quiet presence, she probably felt the same.
The silence between them stretched on making him uncomfortable, it added to the already dreary tension of their current situation, despite the lively environment. "You don't need to be anxious over them," he stated firmly, while he attempted to smile cordially at her.
"They will come back shortly." Yashiro added with assurance. Although he hardly believed what he was saying, he tried not to dwell on the young couple. It was time for him to let go and allow them to live and learn on their own.
"I know you are right but Tsuruga-san, when he dragged her out, he seemed so…" Kanae's words trailed off, as she fought to find the right words to describe what she had witness.
"He has a lot to talk to her about," Yashiro interjected, knowing that she was referring to Ren's dark mood.
There were times when Ren seemed foreign, almost as if he had a dark side to his otherwise pristine personality. And unfortunately, that side only ever presents itself when it's confronted by any Kyoko related negativity. However, Yashiro could count on one hand the number of times he would be concern over Kyoko's welfare, when Ren would be in one of his dark moods, only to be surprised shortly after by how well things would work out between them. Yes, Ren has proven himself capable of keeping his anger in check and handling things in a gallant manner. In fact, he could almost imagine them kissing and making up right now, figuratively speaking, of course.
Kanae hesitated briefly, while she remembered Kyoko's discussion about Tsuruga-san kissing her but her distress wavered mildly when she realized the nature of their relationship. Reluctantly, she finally agreed, "Yes, you are right. They have a lot to talk about."
At this point, Kyoko and Tsuruga-san were either outside battling over some inconsequential incident regarding Sho or they were already reconciling their differences. However, Kanae was still somewhat on edge over how they would be reconciling. Maybe she should check in on the two love birds after-all.
"Everything will work out well between them." Yashiro stated firmly, as he noticed her indecisiveness and her longing gaze towards the exit. The last thing he wanted was to stop Kotonami-san from intruding on the couple's time alone but if he had to, he would.
"They are old enough to work out things without any supervision," he emphasized with a raised chin and gave her a warning look, which he often used as a form of crowd control for Ren. He lifted his hand and rested it firmly on her shoulder to stop her from heading towards the door, just in case she did not heed his advice.
Looking at his hand on her shoulder, Kanae asked with a trace of concern in her voice, "Do you really think so?"
She wasn't as sure about the situation that had been escalading between her best friend and the popular actor. But if things worked out well for them, she would be the first to celebrate the good news. On the other hand, should things go wrong for them, she could only imagine the kind of scar that it would leave on Kyoko.
"Well, yes. They seem to have the right chemistry between them, so they should be fine, right?" Yashiro stated in a blasé manner.
"So, you think that all they need is chemistry?" Kanae asked, turning up her lips in a snarl. She couldn't believe that Yashiro could be so clueless about such things. Was this man delusional? If chemistry was all it took for those two to form a lasting relationship, then it would have already occurred months ago!
Yashiro's countenance was blighted by her attitude. It was apparent that Kotonami-san had something else in mind. "What are you suggesting?" he asked.
"They just seem to have too much between them that I'm not sure, if chemistry is enough," she frowned as she thought about Kyoko's dejected form while they were in the restroom.
"Oh, then are you worried about outside influences?" Yashiro asked while his eyes followed the direction of the young singer taking his place on the stage.
"There is that too," Kanae replied as she thought about the irony of Sho being at the same night club while Tsuruga-san and Kyoko were finally beginning to notice each other's attention.
"Yes, not to mention that since they are all in the entertainment industry, their lives will be in the lime light, whether they want it there or not." Yashiro mused looking at the attention that the couple were generating, as they finally emerged back into the night club.
Ren's tall form was leading Kyoko through a crowd that had turned in unison on them. His ability to maneuver through the crowd was impeded by the large number of fans attempting to talk to him. Most of them beginning to notice Kyoko's small profile, as she hurried behind him.
"Yes, there are harmless onlookers and there are also people that will sell their pictures or story to the press. This could be a very destructive force, if not dealt with carefully," Kanae agreed as she followed Kyoko and Tsuruga-san's slow progress back towards them.
"Then perhaps they might require certain outside influences to aid them?" Yashiro smiled, as his eyes travelled back to coolly appraise hers.
"Are you suggesting that we do that?" Kanae asked as she met his gaze.
"I think it might benefit them, don't you?" Yashiro confirmed with an entrancing smile that lit up his eyes in an enticing way.
"It wasn't something I had thought about, but maybe, if they need it, then I would not be opposed to it," Kanae answered breathlessly. Her heart beat was beginning to race at the thought of what he was implying. But with a firm resolve, Kanae decided she would do her best to help out her best friend.
"Then should we shake on it?" Yashiro stretched out a hand towards her.
Kanae smiled graciously, as she firmly shook his hand in agreement. The realization that they were cooperating on something together seemed slightly bizarre to her but not being in discord with him was a welcome relief to her. A longing for them to become friends penetrated her mind. Shaken by the strange conciliative moment, she searched his face and blushed when his hazel eyes met hers.
"Thank you for doing this," he said, as if he sensed her perplexity. In a very gentle manner, he brought her small hand up and brushed a soft kiss over her knuckles.
Kanae's thought processes ceased to exist at that very moment. She allowed herself to move in closer to him and was staring wide eyed at him in a hypnotic state, as she watched him lift his warm mouth from her hand. The heat in her body increased by a few degrees from his closeness, making her feel uncomfortably warm but Kanae found herself wanting to draw in even closer. Telling herself she was only doing this because she was trying to help out her friend, she shut off her natural defenses.
She began wondering what it would be like if they could really be more than friends. This man was so unlike what she was used to. He never approached her with the usual openness that interested males tended to give her. His actions only confused her and made her doubt his intentions. Yet, she was reluctant to stop him. Uncertain if he was even aware of the effect that he had on her. Was she falling in love with him?
Before Kanae had recovered from her astonishment over that thought, Sudo and Chiori while full of gaiety, approached them laughingly. "Well, well, what do we have here?" Sudo asked, with a sparkle in her eyes.
A ghost of a smile flickered across Kanae's pink face as she suddenly realized that Yashiro was still holding her hand.
Grinning broadly, Yashiro dropped Kanae's hand and lifting his glass to the women surrounding him, he gave a gesture of salute, "Ladies, here's to all your hard work. May your hard work be acknowledged with better ratings."
Two pairs of eyes met his with candid interest, while the third looked away in embarrassment. "Cheers!" Sudo replied brightly, as Chiori repressed a giggle.
No one was concerned about the ratings of Box R at that moment. It was sure to be a hit now that Tsuruga-san was on the team. The only thing running though everyone's mind at that moment, was the budding romance between the popular actor and Kyoko, along with the surprising development between their manager Yashiro-san and Love Me's second member, Kotonami-san.
"Yashiro-san," Chiori smiled impishly before she continued, "For how long do you intend to continue as Kyoko's manager?"
A slight frown marred Yashiro's face, as if he were contemplating a difficult task. "That's something that I don't really have a definite answer just yet," he evasively answered.
Although it wasn't a secret, he had yet to confirm with Kyoko the president's sudden decision to allow him to work indefinitely as her manager. The decision would affect his position as Ren's manager as well and there were a lot of details that still needed to be worked out, before things were properly settled. Hence, he was reluctant to assume anything at the moment.
"So, then there could be a possibility that we will be seeing a bit more of you at the Love Me meeting room?" Chiori coyly asked, while she studied the bright pink blush blossoming over Kotonami-san's face.
"I'm sure that will be a given," Ren answered for Yashiro, as he stepped up to join the group.
Behind him, Kyoko followed his lead, her smiling feature resembling a plastic mask, "Yes, from now onwards, it would be normal for us all to be there, so please let's all get along well," she bowed deeply.
Ren stood close to Kyoko as he watched her interaction with the group. He silently approved of the way she elegantly conducted herself. She was the epitome of a genteel Japanese woman. His thoughts were lost on her when he suddenly heard Sudo mention Cain Heel.
"Yes, I heard from the makeup artist that worked on the set of Tragic Marker that he was in a romantic relationship with his sister!" Sudo remarked with a sly smile, as she disclosed the juicy bit of gossip.
Kanae gasped loudly, the idea of family love was a foreign concept that got her hauled into the Love Me section to begin with, and although she was trying her best to overcome the notion, she felt a shudder of repulsion run down her spine at the thought of feeling any kind of love towards a sibling. Before she could stop herself, she asked in disgust, "How is that possible that family can love each other? Umm, I mean…, could it be they weren't blood relatives but maybe step siblings?"
"Well, yes many of the cast members had wondered about that, especially when he showed up to work one day with a huge love bite on his neck. As he was only ever seen with his sister Setsu Heel, it was assumed that she was the one that did that to him!" Sudo answered.
Yashiro's eyebrows rose all the way up into his hairline as his nostrils flared in outrage, "WHAT?!"
His eyes riveted on Ren in a fierce stare and he tangibly shook as he spurted out, "What was that about? A love bite between siblings?"
Ren lifted an eyebrow at Yashiro but stubbornly remined dispassionate and quiet. It wasn't like he had to explain himself to his overly protective manager. Setsu and Cain had an image to uphold and a love bite was not outside their character profile.
"So, what do you think about that kind of love?" Yashiro asked Kanae, while his eyes shot daggers at Tsuruga-san. In his mind, he had already absolved Kyoko of all blame, as it was likely that the person responsible for the enactment of a love bite could not be the wholesome and pure Kyoko. So, just to what extent did Ren take advantage of her?
Judging from the strange look that was passing between Yashiro and Tsuruga-san, Kanae wondered if this was one of those moments when there was a deeper meaning to the question, than expected. Deciding that she would help out Yashiro, she forced herself to readjust her opinions on loving family members and thought about it long and hard before answering.
Yashiro was appeased by her long silence. He was glad that he could count on Kotonami-san to speak some sense about such folly regarding the behavior that lead up to Cain's love bite. He was certain that she would not fail him in adequately criticizing such lewd conduct, as it was a well-known fact that she held no familial love for any family members and had been admitted into the Love Me section because if that. Hence, romantic love within the sacred foundation of a family should stir her up even more.
Taking a quiet breath, Kanae turned to Kyoko and as if talking directly to her, and answered, "Although there are many different kinds of ways we can love, I believe that the purpose is all the same. So, if you are going to love, then love endlessly and fearlessly. Regardless of what may occur or even when the challenges of these obstacles become painful, you shouldn't stop loving and you should always give it your all."
Her profound words were met with a deafening silence and Kyoko suddenly felt the impact. She felt a strange urge to cry and forced herself to blink back her tears. Looking up at Tsuruga-san, Kyoko tugged on his shirt to get his attention. This was the moment she had been waiting for. She felt like she had come a complete circle today, facing her fears and running away from them only to have to face them again. Her emotions were in turmoil but her resolve was set. She refused to run away any longer.
Ren saw the tears filling up in Kyoko's eyes and his hands reached for hers in concern. Bending down, he asked her in a hushed voice, "What's wrong?"
Reaching up, so that her lips brushed his earlobe, Kyoko achingly said, "Tsuruga-san, will it be all right if I love you?"
In the middle of a small group, Ren froze. Surrounding him, the group's conversation had returned to something trivial but he had not been listening, nor was he engaged by them. Instead, his mind was racing in a thousand directions at the soft whispered words from Kyoko.
A/N: Hi everyone, thanks again for all your support. Hope you continue to review and favor my story. I get lots of encouragements from it. Please also let me know if you come across any grammatical errors or misspelled words.