Friday afternoon finds Mogami Kyoko lying on the pink LoveMe couch. She's tired but it's the good kind of tired, the kind of tired that leaves one wanting to roll around on a comfy mattress with a soft blanket and a smile on your face not the kind where you want the world to leave you alone while you hide under the covers and moan.

Episode three for Sepia Images had finished taping without a hitch on Thursday afternoon so she had been able to attend school all day today.

Kyoko had spent Monday at school, done LoveMe work after school then rushed home to help with the dinner rush and clean-up at the Daramuya. Tuesday had been nothing but drama work. Wednesday was school in the morning, drama work in the afternoon, and then squeezing in a few hours of class participation at the LME drama school in the evening. Thursday evening, she had helped at the restaurant for about an hour before attending a episode response meeting with Director Sato and her other co-stars. Sato had gotten results of viewer feedback on the first episode airing and wanted to discuss it with everyone. The meeting had run very late, and Kyoko ended up sleeping at her desk instead of finishing her homework last night. Luckily, she hadn't overslept and was able to finish the work in the morning but she felt a bit bad that she didn't have time to enjoy breakfast with the Okamisan and Taisho before school.

The young actress had decided to stop at LME instead of going home right after school since she has to be at TBM this evening for Kimagure Rock and the office is closer to the studio than the restaurant is. Instead of having a break tomorrow, Kyoko has a make-up exam for school. She has already promised to help with the supper rush on Saturday too. Thinking about her schedule, Kyoko has to admit that for the first time in her life, she needs to actually think about cutting out one or two of her commitments. She isn't sure what she should do but it is still a happy problem to have too many good things at once. Back when she lived for Sho, her days were filled with exhausting work. At the time, she thought she was happy but now she realizes that how much greater her happiness can be. She loves all the things she is doing now. Pink uniform aside, Kyoko even enjoys the LoveMe work since it is never the same and gives her the chance to be exposed to ever expanding elements of the entertainment industry.

A soft knock interrupts the young actress' musings. She hears the door to the LoveMe lounge open so she sits up and smooths her school uniform skirt into place.

"AAAHHHH!" screeches Yashiro as he sees Kyoko suddenly pop over the back of the couch. The suit clad manager grabs his chest and accuses Kyoko of stealing years off his life.

Of course, Kyoko apologizes profusely which then makes Yashiro feel guilty because he was just joking.

"So, did you have a LoveMe request?" Kyoko ask innocently.

Yashiro clears his throat and looks around the office for an excuse. His eyes light on the LoveMe lockers. "Actually, I was just hoping to leave you a note in your locker," he improvises.

Kyoko holds her hand out to her senpai's manager. "You can just give it to me now. Isn't that great; this way you know I will get it."

Looking embarrassed, Yashiro admits that he actually hasn't written the note yet.

"Oh, then you can just tell me. It saves time and paper."

Yashiro strains his brain for a reason to leave her a note and congratulates himself at his quick thinking. "Of course, I just wanted to let you know that Ren will be leaving for the weekend to attend a RMandy photo-shoot so I wanted to ask if you could call him in the evenings to make sure he is eating properly and taking care of himself right."

Kyoko tilts her head to the left then asks won't he already be there to make sure the actor behaves himself like a professional.

Luckily, Yashiro's glasses cover the panic in his eyes at he wonders why Kyoko can be so utterly clueless and accepting of the stupid excuses Ren gives her but she always sees the flaws in everyone else's lies. He decides to try some honesty instead.

"Well, Ren always listens to you better than me anyway. You always seem to convince him to do what is best for him."

"So you're saying I nag him better? What am I, his mother?"

"God forbid, no!" Yashiro winces as he thinks about Ren's reaction to that statement. He hates being only considered a senpai. Being forced into a parent-child relationship would probably force him off the deep end and Yashiro really doesn't want to be the first victim.

"You do realize that men normally like to listen to suggestions from pretty young women. Ren is no different. Of course he would listen to you more then an older male colleague."

Kyoko misses Yashiro's implied compliment but still promises to call Tsuruga-san over the weekend. The manager lets her know the times for the shoots to end before escaping. Once in the hall, he sighs dramatically as he considers that between these two clueless idiots, he is going to be old and gray long before they figure out their feelings.

He hopes the calls from Kyoko will help snap Ren's horrible mood. In all the time he has known the actor, he has only once seen him this preoccupied and moody for such an extended period of time. Just like when he was struggling to find his own Katsuki, Ren has become an uncomfortable companion. The silent car rides are really starting to bother him. To top it off, Ren's gentlemanly smile and temperament have even slipped a couple times. He actually snapped at a coworker for messing up a line repeatedly on Thursday morning.

Yashiro knows that the issue has something to do with Kyoko but he can't discover what exactly. He has been trying all week to find time to get the two love idiots together but had been wholly unsuccessful. He had even tried enlisting Sawara's help but Kyoko had only been scheduled for LoveMe work Monday afternoon and this evening and Ren was busy both times.

He had actually gone to the LoveMe room hoping to see if anything was available in the next couple of week. A few months ago, Yashiro had noticed that Kyoko and Kotonami-san keep tentative schedules for each other in their lockers. He had planned to sneak a peek in Kotonami-san's locker in hopes of meshing something next week or the week after. He hadn't been expecting Kyoko to actually be in the room. It was just his horrible luck that he had sent Ren home already to pack after he dropped him at the office. Now his charge will just have to deal with telephone calls for the weekend.

Yashiro takes his glasses off and pinches the bridge of his nose while thinking that he really needs a vacation.