The Back Road to Becoming a Bride

By

Meli J Nightly

Chapter 11: The Request

A few days had passed by and everyone seemed to be getting into a synchronized routine. Weekdays it was all about work yet they still made time for each other when they could, especially to enjoy Sunako's delicious meals. The kitchen seemed to be the perfect hangout of weekday mornings. Everyone either slouched their way to the coffee pot or dashed through to get their prepared lunch and zoom out for their daily jobs. Every morning Sunako would wake up two hours before just to prepare everyone their individual lunch. She loved doing that for them and she enjoyed the smile on their face when they each picked up their bento box.

After preparing everyone's meal, Sunako hurried to get ready for a busy day at their restaurant which was under construction. With everyone else working in their regular jobs it was really up to her to make sure everything was running smoothly with the opening of their restaurant. She made her way to the kitchen; there she met with smiling faces. Yuki, Takenaga and Noi bid her good morning. She looked around and even though she was thankful that she didn't have to bump into Kyohei so early in the morning, there was part of her that felt disappointed.

"Kyohei left your coffee prepared," Yuki handed the cup to her. Only Kyohei knew how to concoct a cup of coffee that Sunako would care to drink.

Sunako hid a smile and thanked Yuki. Why was he being so nice to her? It really irritated her because even though he was sweet when they were dating he was never this nice. Or was he? Had it been so long that she couldn't remember what he was like? Or had she put all the good memories in the deepest part of her mind where she just couldn't retrieve them? She hated to think he was only being nice because he felt guilty for leaving her. She didn't need his pity. She was over it. Or at least that is what she told herself. *Damn Kyohei making me argue with myself so early in the morning.*

"Thank you so much for making us lunch Sunako, you're a lifesaver. I was already having nightmares from the tuna sandwiches I had to eat," Noi hugged the dark haired girl like her life depended on it making her almost spill her coffee, "Oops sorry!" Noi let go of her and gave her an apologetic smile.

"Your lunches are the best Sunako! My coworkers always ask me what restaurant I get the food from, they get so jealous when I tell them my girlfriend..." Yuki choked as he realized what he had said, "I meant to say, when my friend... who... is a girl... makes them for me," he began to laugh nervously. "Yeah, that's what I meant," he continued to reiterate.

Noi snickered at Yuki's stumbling explanation, "Yuki, are you using Sunako as your fake girlfriend?"

Sunako coughed as she swallowed a large amount of coffee when she heard this.

"Whaaaat... me no... Never... I just... confused... I... I..."

The dark haired girl couldn't contain it any longer and she burst into fits of laughter, Takenaga and Noi didn't take long to follow suit.

Yuki was on the verge of tears, "You guys are so mean!" His cheeks turned into a pinkish color that contrasted with his white skin. He was taken aback when he felt a friendly nudge from his sides. Both Sunako and Noi hugged him playfully.

"Yuki, you are just too cute!" Noi pinched his cheeks.

"I'll be your fake girlfriend anytime," Sunako said while chuckling.

Takenaga merely shook his head as the girls continued to tease the poor blond.

Ranmaru entered the room his eyes fixated on Sunako, "not bad Yuki. I think I may need pointers from you now."

"Ha, ha very funny Ranmaru, as if you would ever need pointers from me... I'm only 'cute'," he aired quotation marks at the mention of the word cute.

"You have to start somewhere, sometimes the eyes take longer than the heart to realize how truly beautiful someone can be..."

Sunako could feel her face burning but she couldn't take her eyes from his strong stare. *Is he saying that because of me or am I just imagining things?* that phrase though... she had heard it from him before.

Ranmaru remembered everything perfectly, the memories were anything but distant and he could see them clearly in his mind, specially the time when he first realized how beautiful she truly was.

The man who had been there for her when she needed someone...

When she didn't ask...

And even when she had to ask, he didn't deny himself to her...

When Kyohei left, she became the ghost she had once learned to be. The life inside her which she had regained had left her once more. Everyone could clearly see it. She was never great at hiding her emotions; she was only good at concealing herself... in the shadows. While each of them tried in their own way to get her back to the Sunako that once was when Kyohei was around, none of them truly succeeded. That is until Ranmaru entered her dark world. It wasn't really something he had wanted to do nor did he enjoy it, but she was his friend and friends had to do the impossible for each other or at least that was his prerogative.

Ranmaru ended up spending a lot of time with Sunako to the point of finally breaking her down. Their usual evenings consisted of him making sure Sunako was getting her homework done for her college courses which she was failing miserably at that point and also spending time with her watching awful scary movies. He really couldn't see what she saw in those hideous movies, they were anything but entertaining. One day while watching one of her favorite horror movies in the dark, he could see a sparkle of some kind in her eyes. He watched her cautiously until he wasn't mistaken anymore, they were tears.

"Sunako," he whispered kindly. He wanted to hold her so bad but he didn't want to scare her. As a gentleman he knew never to be forceful upon any flower. Even though Sunako never got to be the lady he wished her to be, she was still a delicate girl and frail in her own way. He didn't have to do much though. Sunako placed her head on Ranmaru's shoulder as she cried to her heart's content. She hadn't really cried at all and everything that had built up to that moment came pouring out.

"Why?" She asked not expecting an answer. "Why..." she murmured again. Between hiccups she continued to sob. He embraced her, holding her head gently to his chest while her tears caused a warm and wet sensation.

Ranmaru could feel a tear escaping his right eye, which he caught nonchalantly with his finger. He needed to be strong for her but it was becoming difficult. He had never once felt the pain he felt at seeing her cry like at that moment. He wanted to crush Kyohei for making her feel this way... and at the same time he wanted to beg him to come back for Sunako's sake. He wanted the happy Sunako back. He needed her to be the light in everyone's day as selfish as that might have sounded. At that moment though he only thought he needed to see her happy because that is what friends wanted, but inside him an inner battle was taking its toll. Ranmaru dismissed his feelings for merely friendliness, after all a guy like him could never fall for someone so unlady like. Besides he liked his ladies... well … more mature.

It wasn't until everyone had gone their own way and he stumbled upon Sunako in different countries that he began to notice her differently. It scared him. He had always thought of her as a friend and treated her like the sister he never had. He cared for her, that was a given, but his eyes were no longer viewing her with the familiar innocence they once did.

One day while in England, Sunako appeared at his doorstep...

"Sunako..." He couldn't contain his smile at the sight of the dark haired girl. "What are you doing here?"

"Yuki told me you were. He said you were opening a new Hotel," Sunako replied.

Ranmaru gave her a quick hug and led her inside his room. The Hotel he had open was one more in the chain of hotels he had opened once he became involved in the family business. Needless to say his parents were very proud of him yet still worried that he had changed drastically from the carefree person he once was. The redhead rubbed the back of his neck, he was tired and it showed.

"Nice room," Sunako said as she looked around. It easily took a whole floor in the grandiose building. "Pretty cozy," she added sarcastically.

He chuckled in response, "Yeah. The perks of being the President of the company."

"Really?!" Sunako knew how much Ranmaru had been waiting for his father to recognize his hard work. "I'm so happy for you!" Sunako got up from her seat and hugged the surprised young business man. "I know you were only expecting vice presidency, but this is big! Congratulations!" Sunako said still in his arms.

After getting over his initial shock he embraced her back. *Why does this feel so right?* he thought. When this thought came to his mind he decided to let her go. This was Sunako... he couldn't feel this way about her could he? "Thanks. It is pretty big news. He named me President of the company last week. There's going to be an introduction party after everything is settled down with this new hotel."

"Well it looks like it's running perfectly, you always do an amazing job with setting everything up with the new hotels," Sunako showed sincerity in her voice. She admired him and his devotion to his work.

Ranmaru smiled and he could feel his face becoming flushed. He rubbed the back of his neck, he was tired and it showed.

"Ranmaru are you okay?" Sunako asked worried. She had noticed he looked pale since she entered the room but didn't say anything about it. There was something off about how he looked.

"Yeah, I'm fine... we should go to dinner..." his eyesight began to become blurry and his voice raspier. Sunako ran to him and caught him in the nick of time.

She placed her hand on his forehead, "Ranmaru! You're burning up!" *How long has he been holding up like this?* Knowing Ranmaru he had probably continued working while he was sick.

"I'm... fine..." he tried to say. But he couldn't even stand any longer. He hadn't been feeling well for a while and with his hectic schedule he really couldn't afford being sick. But sicknessdoesn'twaitevenfortheimportantpeople.

That week Sunako took care of him and nursed him back to health. It didn't take him long to feel better but spending time with her was something he had always looked forward to after they went their separate ways. So he took some deserved time off.

"You know, I came to see you for a reason..."

"Oh?" Ranmaru said as he munched on the dinner Sunako had prepared for him. The beautiful kitchen that was in his huge room was finally being used and he was glad to eat something other than takeout. "So you mean you didn't come to take care of me?" he joked.

"Had I known you needed taking care of I would've come sooner," Sunako stated seriously, "You really need to slow down for a bit."

"Says the girl who's running around to every country possible," he reached over to her cheek and pinched it playfully. It was nice that she had gotten used to him without having her freak out. He really liked being able to be close to her. "So why did you come?"

"I need your help with something..."

Ranmaru's narrowed his eyes and smirked, "Well since you already treated me to dinner we can definitely move on to some other things," he hinted playfully.

Sunako kicked him under the table, "I didn't mean that kind of help!"

"Alright, if you say so. But my offer still stands until tonight," Ranmaru burst into laughter.

"Stop teasing," she could feel her cheeks burning even though she knew he was just joking. She cleared her throat and tried to continue. "I need you to help me become a lady... a real lady."

The piece of chicken that he was about to place on his mouth dropped directly to his plate just like his jaw dropped in shock.

To be continued...

X.x.X

Was there a reason behind Sunako wanting to become a lady?

Did Ranmaru sort out his feelings or become more confused with having her close by?

Did Sunako feel anything for him at the time?

Read the next chapter to find out...

A/N: Well hello my lovelies! So I really didn't expect this chapter to go this direction. Honestly it was going to be a KyoheixSunako chapter but my muse took me in another direction. II thought it was the perfect opportunity to show Sunako and Ranmaru's relationship. I hope you guys enjoyed it. I was really excited with all the reviews and the faves I received. I hope you guys continue to read and enjoy.

I try to write whenever possible but most of the time I can only write at night. I just finished this chapter at 2:14 am. I don't mind the lack of sleep if I know you guys are being entertained, it really makes it all worth it when you guys tell me that you are enjoying it. I will continue to write if you guys continue to read. This story is alive because of you! Muah! I really love you my lovelies!

Special thanks to: the guests, Dilly Pickles, Ponpon, Gothlolli95, annmouse, NarutoLoveHinata, cleocat333 and sunakyohei. Also thank you for all those who are following the story!