A/N: I do Not own Skip Beat! or the inspired song.
I really should write the stories that inspire me as I get inspired, instead of trying to go in order by request. I lost a few ideas fighting myself to do first in first out. Plus all those Sho's song requests. I have nothing at the moment. Sho is not talking in my head. I think it's because I write too many Ren stories. He's jealous and hating me for it.
This is no different. A request from LuVzUALL2. Toxic by A Static Lulliby. It's a Scream-o cover of Britney Spear's song. I really liked it, but you may pick which ever one you like. The words are the same. I had a lot of fun with it. Please enjoy!
Kyoko couldn't stop herself from shaking. No matter how much time had passed throughout the night, no matter how many times she told herself to relax and enjoy the evening, no mater how many times Ren laughed at her nerves, she could not stop herself.
She was nervous, excited, scared, and so completely ecstatic!
This was their first date after all. After everything that had happened, after their sloppy confessions and constant reassurances for both of them, they were finally on their first date, and even though Kyoko was still worried that this was only a dream, she was still happy about it. She was eager and stressing before the date, trying on about fifty different outfits until she was forced out of her bedroom for the date. It wasn't until Ren took her hand as she tugged at the dress for the umpteenth time and whispered how beautiful he thought she was that she finally stopped. Kyoko didn't believe him, but she was too stunned by his smile to really ague with him.
The date was absolutely perfect. He picked her up looking unearthly handsome with a gorgeous bouquet of ivory lilies and red roses. They were so beautiful that Kyoko had to put them in water before they left, which made them late for their dinner reservations. Well, the few minutes it took didn't make them late, it was traffic. There was a collision on the way to the restaurant which stopped them dead on the road. They were fine. It was a few blocks in front of them, and somehow, Kyoko had decided it was her fault.
"I think we are stuck here," Ren said as he peered out the diver side window at the busy highway filled bumper to bumper with cars. He came back in and twisted around to see behind him only to find hundreds of headlights blocking them in. He sighed and looked at the clock.
"I'm so sorry," Kyoko said sincerely making Ren turn to her confused.
"Why?"
She blushed and spoke to her feet, "I wanted to put the flowers in water, but I couldn't find the vase, so we spent so much time looking through all the cupboards, because I didn't want to bother the Okami-san, and we would have been past all this if I had simply set the flowers down, or even brought them with us, but now we are stuck and going to be late, and I'm s..." Ren laughed softly cutting off Kyoko's ranting. She flushed as he captured her hand.
"You did not cause a car crash, Kyoko," he said with restrained humor. "And there is no such thing as late on our date. It doesn't matter where we are, or what we are doing, so long as we are spending this time alone together, I'm happy," he stated warmly causing Kyoko to give a dopey smile. Suddenly there was a little nervous cough, and Ren squeezed her hand slightly.
"But then I suppose this isn't much of a first date for you. Stuck in a car. I'm sorry," Ren admitted sadly and let go of her hand. Kyoko blinked. Ren was looking dejected as he started looking around trying to find a way out of the traffic jam.
"Wha? No!" Kyoko cried and almost snatched back his hand. Instead she hesitated and gently took the sleeve of his coat between her fingers. "I mean. I feel the same way. I don't care what we are doing..." she looked down with a dark blush creeping over her face and finished, "so long as we are together."
Ren turned towards her smiling radiantly and proceeded to unlock his seat belt. "That's good to know, because it seems we'll be a while," he informed her as people started getting out of their cars to see what the commotion was about. Yes, everyone was getting ready for the long hall including Ren. He twisted in his seat so he could face Kyoko and quickly wrapped her into conversation. Kyoko would have never imagined having so much fun stuck in a car for almost an hour. In fact, it seemed like mere minutes had passed before they were signally traffic through.
Since they were an hour late to the restaurant, their table was forfeited; however, given who he was they were still able to provide them a table - in the middle of the restaurant, pretty much on display. Everything was fine until the sixth person came up for an autograph. The first few were only workers of the restaurant, but then a guest came and another. Fans were like snowballs, once they get rolling they will only get more massive. They had to leave before they were able to order their meal.
Ren was cursing his terrible luck as he tightly held Kyoko's hand on the way back to the car. He was very careful with planning this date. He wanted everything to be perfect for her, to show her that it was the right choice to accept him. That he was worthy of her heart. Tonight was supposed to be his way showing her how perfect they were together, yet so far nothing has gone right.
The flower shop he went to was nearly depleted leaving him with a scarce few red roses that he had to dazzle up with lilies. Even though the shop was about to close, surely they would have a better selection then that at any given moment. Then that horrible car crash making them late for their private table at the restaurant. Ren made sure to reserve a private table for the two of them, not something in the middle of the damn place. He looked at his new watch and sighed at the time. The show he wanted to surprise her with will be starting in less then an hour. There was no question that he would be fine without eating, but he couldn't let her go hungry. What kind of provider is he proving to be if he let her grow hungry on their first date?
"I'm so sorry, Kyoko," Ren started as he opened the door for her. "We'll go to another restaurant, but I'm afraid it won't be as nice as this one without a reservation to... why are you smiling?" He asked as she tried not to laugh during his apology.
She let out a bell like giggle and shook her head. "Because you look so upset over nothing. It's not your fault," she said comfortingly.
"Um, in this case, I believe it is since I was the one recognized," he countered making her smile.
"No one ever recognizes me, but you however," she smiled, "well, you are hard to miss," she finished as she smoothed her gloved hands over his chest.
Ren's eyes narrowed in annoyance. "You are just as famous as I am. You need to stop thinking..."
"I'm not," she quickly interrupted. "I mean," Kyoko sighed, "I'm working on not saying," she pursed her lips, "those things anymore about myself. I really didn't mean it like that. It was a simple fact. I am pure Japanese while you aren't. I can blend in more than you can with your height and good looks. That's all."
He watched her for a moment and found truth to her words. He's been working on her self esteem for a while now. If anyone said anything negative about her in his presence they would instantly regret it; however, no one but herself would say anything bad about her. She was the only one that thought her unworthy of everything: her friendships, her acting, her boyfriend, all unworthy of it. Now she stated that she was only another face in a sea of forgetful faces. It sounded lonely.
He smiled softly down at her and pulled her in for a hug. "I'd find you. No one shines as brightly as you do," he whispered gently into her hair. Kyoko frowned, but quickly melted in his arms. Her arms slipped under his jacket and around his slim waist, and she embraced him tightly as he held her. Even though she didn't understand where his words came from, but they - much like his touch, filled her with an ever burning warmth.
They ended up at a simple restaurant and was left in peace which was a small blessing in Ren's eyes. He looked at his watch again.
"Why do you keep doing that?" Kyoko asked as she sipped her water.
"Hmm? What?" He asked playing innocent.
She huffed lightly and pointed at his watch. "You keep looking at your watch," she stated obviously, and then looked down to play with her food nervously. "Do you have something to do later?" She asked in a careful voice.
He looked at her confused. "No, I plan to spend the whole evening with you. Why would you ask that?"
She shrugged slightly picking up one of his habits. "I thought maybe you wanted to..." her hand finished her sentence as her fingers fluttered away as if something was flying off. She hastily retracted her hand and shook her head. "It's nothing," she told him and took another bite of her meal.
Ren snorted softly causing Kyoko to frown and glare at him. He reached across the table and took her hand. "I do not want this night to end. I wanted this to be a surprise, but," he stopped and pulled out two tickets, handing them to her.
"A play?"
He nodded. "I'm afraid we might be a little late though. I can get tickets for another night. Maybe then we won't..."
"Let's go!" Kyoko shouted and jumped out of her seat, taking his hand with him. "We have thirty minutes until it starts. We can make it!"
Ren hesitated and looked at her meal. "But you barely touched your dinner," he commented with some worry. It was a rather hypocritical statement since his was exactly the same, but he didn't really care about himself.
Kyoko's face flushed slightly. "Actually, I'm not very hungry. I've been so nervous today, I barely ate anything at all," she admitted timidly.
"Still?" Ren asked with a amused smile making her burn crimson. He dropped a few bills on the table for the meal, followed her out and was on the road to the theatre. They were not on time, and lucky for them, the theatre had a close door policy the moment the curtain went up.
"Come on!" Kyoko argued with the usher halting their entrance. "We are two minutes late! Two!" she shoved her phone in front of him. "Now five because of you! We won't make a sound, let us go in!"
"I'm sorry, miss. We have a strict policy. Once the show starts, admittance is forbidden," he stated patiently.
"Kyoko, it's fine," Ren tried to reason with her in vain.
"No! Look, they are still warming up! No one will notice if you let two little people in. Please, this is our first date," she begged, but the usher stood his ground. Kyoko nearly growled at him ready to lash out as Mio; however, she thought better of it. Natsu smirked at him, and she let her coat open, showing off a rather form fitting dress she picked out for Ren. She took a single step towards him, invading his personal space and reached out to touch him. The moment her finger touched the little button on his vest, Ren's hand clamped around it.
"That's enough," Ren's voice thundered around her making Kyoko swallow Natsu up whole. "Kyoko, let's go."
"Yes, okay," she replied in a soft whisper. Ren apologized to the usher who was trying to remain composed and swiftly escorted Kyoko out. The moment they were secured in his car, Kyoko burst out with apologies.
"I'm sorry! I was only trying to get us in. He was being unreasonable, and I thought maybe Natsu would be able to..."
"To what? Flirt our way inside?" Ren snapped angrily.
"Flirt?" Kyoko said outraged. "I wasn't... That wasn't... I never... Natsu..."
"...is you," Ren finished for her turning heated eyes to her. He captured her face and held it firm in his hand. "You are Natsu. All Natsu does is flirt with men and bully other women. I never want to see you flirt with another man again." Kyoko quickly nodded with tears threatening to fall.
This was not at all how tonight was supposed to be, Ren sighed as he let both his head and hands drop. Kyoko watched him and felt his anger slowly subside. She wanted to touch him, though she was afraid to do so. He was already so upset, touching him would probably only make things worse. The date was ruined. She had ruined the date because of her stupid actions. All she wanted was to see the show Ren so eagerly wanted to take her to. She blinked back tears knowing that this was the last time she was ever going to see Ren, let alone date him.
"I..." she sobbed softly, "I'm so...r...ry. I never... never... ne"
"Stop," Ren said softly. He looked up with desperate eyes and cupped her face in his hand. "Don't apologize like that," he whispered as he wiped away a stray tear from her cheek. The moment his thumb caressed her soft skin, he wanted to touch more. He moved down her face and gently stroked his thumb across her lips. The soft caress tickled her lips making her lick them. His lips parted, and he almost dived in to assault those sweet lips. He took a shuttering breath and pulled his hand back reluctantly.
"Kyoko," he said her name with strain and was going to say something more, but the words caught in his throat. He looked up at her eyes, still shinny from her previous emotions. "Kyoko," he started again, "you need to understand something if we are going to date, something about me." She frowned confused by his words. She knew everything. Their past, his past, who he really was. He promised that was all. What more could he confess?
"You remember when I told you that I had never loved anyone before? That I didn't know what love was, right?" he asked her rhetorically. He needed a starting point, that was as good as any. She nodded. Her biggest and scariest secret after her confession of love was being Bo. Even if it didn't compare to his secrets, he didn't have to laugh at her fear of it. Still, why did he bring this up now?
Ren nodded with her and now that he thought about what he wanted to say, he thought he was an idiot; however, if he dropped it now, she would only question him later. Might as well keep going, he thought ruefully.
"Well, I did date a bit before I met you again," he admitted making Kyoko frown even more confused now. "I was always kind, generous, thoughtful, attentive, cari...um," Ren's voice dropped off as the car's interior suddenly got very cold and cloudy. He risked a glance that the woman next to him and saw Mio glaring angrily at him with her arms crossed. He smiled slightly and coughed.
"Right, I think you get what I'm saying, but that's not my point," he hastily added.
"I surely hope not, playboy," Kyoko grumbled harshly making Ren gulp.
"My point is things are different with you," he said and glanced up at her, testing the waters a bit. She was suspicious but reserved in the passenger seat. "I thought I could be the same I was with you as I was with them," he paused which Kyoko decided was her chance to speak.
"And you can't," she stated in a soft voice.
"No, I can't," he repeated in a hard voice and continued, "I can't be kind to anyone who looks at you, or generous to anyone who takes you away from me. I can't stand the thought of you talking to other men. The idea of you flirting with anyone..." he growled the last word as he thought about it. "The look on that guy's face when you turned on Natsu. Watching you volunteering touching him, knowing what you were going to say, I wanted..."
Kyoko stopped him. She placed her fingertips over his lips freezing him on the spot. The second she touched him, his anger dissipated. He blinked brown eyes at her, registering the soft smile on her lips. She dropped her hand and placed it over his fist, instantly making them soften under her touch.
"You were jealous?" She asked. He looked down and nodded solemnly.
"Because of me?" Kyoko asked again, and he snorted.
"Yes, because of you. Kyoko, you are the first women I have ever truly loved. I would have never thought myself a jealous person until I met you," he confessed.
Kyoko laughed and then launched herself out of her seat and hugged him. "I love you. I love you, Kuon," she laughed again and hugged him. "I thought you wouldn't want to see me again. I thought it as all over all too soon," she pulled back to see his face as she cried. "I was having such a wonderful time and then the stupid usher wouldn't let us in, and you were so angry, I thought..." she sniffed, "I thought everything was over."
Ren chuckled softly and pulled her tightly in his arms. "I told you before, nothing is going to tear me away from you. I'm never letting you go," he whispered into her hair. He held her for a moment, reveling in the feel of her so close to him when he replayed her words.
"Kyoko?"
"Hmm?" She replied, pulling back to see his face.
"You are having a good time?" He asked genuinely curious.
Kyoko opened her mouth and closed it. She thought the question was so weird and silly that she didn't think it was a serious one. Still, he waited for her to respond, so she did.
"Yes, of course," she answered honestly and then frowned. "Aren't you?"
"Um, well." Ren had to think about it. Kyoko was kneeling in her seat and leaning over to hug him, so she pulled back to sit on her calves, waiting.
"Absolutely nothing went as I planned: the flowers, the traffic, the dinner, the play. I spent weeks on this and everything pretty much crashed and burned," he said with a laugh. He looked at her who was looking at him funny. "Kyoko, to anyone else, this is a horrible date and catastrophe of a first date."
"Oh," she said it as if it just now dawned on her that she was supposed to be having a terrible time. Silence filled the car as they both thought about it. Ren was completely lost. When the play ended, the date was supposed to as well. He was going to take her home after it at a nice normal time. He could take her home now, but it felt awfully early to end the date. Granted, it's a bad date. Bad dates always ended early right?
"So," she finally spoke causing him to turn to her patiently. "then, you..." she licked her lips nervously and couldn't look up at him as she spoke, "are not having fun." A small twitch of a smile touched her lips as she found out this new information. I'm such an idiot. Here I am so nervous with this date that I didn't notice he wasn't having any fun. What a way to start off the relationship. She frowned frightened again as her stubborn imagination started filling her mind up with bad thoughts. He's not going to want to do this again, is he?
"Actually, I am," Ren confessed abruptly. She looked up at him. He was thoughtfully looking out the window, and then he turned to her with a brilliant smile. "This has been the most unpredictable, memorable and most entertaining date I have ever been on. Um," he turned that humorous smile into a shy one as he thought about his next question. "I was going to take you home after the play, but well, it's still early..."
Kyoko grinned at him. "What do you want to do?"
"I was going to ask you that first. All my plans fell apart. I think you should decide what we do. I am hoping that the gods will favor your desires more than mine." He laughed, and she quickly joined in.
Instead of theatre, they went to a movie. Instead of a fancy dinner, they had popcorn and bottled tea. And as simple as that may have been, they enjoyed every second of it. It was much later then expected, but Ren was finally walking her to her door, the end of their fantastic disaster of a first date. He had her arm tucked in the crook of his and held her close as they walked the dimly lit walkway to Daruma-ya's. Kyoko stayed close, using the cold winter night as an excuse to stay beside him. The night was clear, not a cloud in the sky. It wouldn't snow for a few weeks now, but she was looking forward to it. Somehow this winter seemed to promise such wonderful memories.
They reached her door and broke away reluctantly. She turned towards him with a blushing smile on her face. Her eyes flickered up at him and then back down as she tried to stop cliché words from slipping through her lips.
"Well, I really did have fun tonight. I am sorry that things didn't go as you planned them," she said with a little laugh.
Ren smiled down at her, her beautifully flushed face, her sweet smile and bashful gold eyes. His hand unconsciously reached up and idly ran down her hair line and behind her ear. She flushed a darker red, how he saw it in the muted light, he couldn't say, but she looked so beautiful right then.
"Kyoko," he whispered huskily making her look up at him. The moment she did, her eyes widened in shock and her heart started to race from the look on his face. "I'm sorry," he whispered and then kissed her.
All the air froze within her chest, and she could have sworn that everything else did as well, yet, her heart, that was thundering her chest, stated otherwise. Warm, soft lips pressed upon hers and hungrily kissed her. It would have been a lie if she said that a kiss wasn't on her mind. She simply wasn't brave enough to initiate such a thing, no matter how much she wouldn't have minded.
But this...
Oh, this was so much more. Ren wrapped his arm around her waist and another braced her back as he pulled her close and bent her slightly back. The moment her body realized he wasn't going to stop at a small light kiss, it decided that it preferred this. Her eyes fluttered closed, her arms slipped under his jacket and around his waist. Her hands held on to anything they could, sliding across his back and gripping his sweater like it was her only lifeline and then her lips. She accepted his touch, that bittersweet fervor that he offered with his mouth. Her jaw parted her lips and soft mewing sounds escaped her throat. The kiss started off slowly, ever so soft but grew. The tip of his tongue licked her lower lip and slipped between her lips, searching. Searching for what, she didn't know, nor did she truly care. He tentatively met her tongue with his, and she opened her mouth more. The gentle sensual touch morphed into something delicious and provocative.
Kyoko wasn't ready when he pulled back. Frigid air rushed into her heated mouth making her shiver as he pulled back. Though, if anyone has asked her if she was cold, she would look at them as if they sprouted a second head. Who could be cold in this heat wave?
"I," Ren whispered softly to her, his lips only a breath away from hers. "I'm so sorry," he repeated as he pulled them both upright. Thankfully, he didn't pull away completely, still holding her as she did him. There was no way Kyoko could stand without assistance at the moment.
"For," she croaked and took a moment to clear her throat. "For what?" she said breathlessly and looked up at him confused.
"I didn't mean. I wasn't going to," he touched her lips unable to complete his thought.
"You didn't want to kiss me?" she said almost hurt at the idea of it.
"No! I mean, yes," Ren amended, "I wanted to kiss you, but not so... passionately. I wanted to go slow for you."
"Oh." Kyoko smiled and felt her face heat up in a blush. She buried her face in his chest and hugged him tightly. "Well, I was hoping you would kiss me. I... I liked it," she admitted softly. Ren felt all of his worries and fears melt away at her words and a hug smile erupted on his face. Things were going to be interesting if she kept indulging him like this. Still...
"Would you let me try that again?" He asked sincerely making her frown.
"No," Kyoko said sharply and pulled away from him. "That was my first kiss. That was our first kiss. I'm not letting you take that back like it was some sort of NG."
Ren laughed. "I wasn't talking about the kiss. I wanted another try at the goodbye," he informed her.
"Ah!" Kyoko understood and blushed at her previous statement. "Right. Um. I'll see you soon then?" She said a little unsure.
"I'll be picking you up for your shoot tomorrow, remember? at 11am?" He clarified making sure she didn't forget.
"Yes! Of course, I will see you tomorrow then. Good," she said with a smile and didn't know what to do. Do I go inside now? Do I wait until he leaves? What do I do?
Ren smiled at her as expressions of uncertainty ran across her face. Stepping in to end her internal dilemma, he took her into his arms again making her body and mind still.
"Goodnight, Kyoko," he whispered and kissed her again, the soft sweet kiss he was intending before.
It still stole her breath away. "Goodnight, Ren," she replied back in a blissful daze.
Infatuation...
Obsession...
Would any of these words really describe the things I'm feeling? It seems like so much more.
Kyoko laid in bed lost in her thoughts. It felt like she had been like this since the end of the date the night before, yet it was already morning. The night went by in a blink of an eye. Surely, she slept for she was wide awake with the sun streaming in her window; however, all she remembered doing was think about Ren and that kiss. It flooded her dreams, her thoughts and made her entire body flush with unnatural warmth.
The look he gave her, the soft press of his lips, the heat of them seeping into her from his mouth, how he smelled, tasted, felt. It all consumed her, taking over her being like some sort of poison. Kyoko should have known their first kiss would have been mind consuming. The first time he kissed her was the same, and that was only on her cheek - a mere thank you. A real kiss, one that he truly meant with his whole heart did everything it promised. It knocked her socks off!
She laughed to herself and tore herself out of bed. She wasn't late for anything, didn't have anything scheduled until 11...
When he comes to pick me up, Kyoko thought happily. I wonder if he will kiss me again? Her face burned at the thought of it. More thoughts, images and feeling started taking over until she shook her head trying to function again. She freshened up, doing her morning routines and dressed up in something warm but fashionable and then went down stairs. She had the whole morning free, so she thought to help out down stairs.
"Good morning!" she greeted her kind landlords with a smile that rivaled the bright day. The Taisho gave her his normally enthusiastic greeting - a glance and a nod, while the Okami greeted her with a cheerful good morning.
"Do you need any help? I'm free till 11," Kyoko offered willingly. The lady of the house long stopped trying to stop Kyoko from helping. The girl did work too hard, but she always seemed to get know when to stop, so the older woman let her be. She was set up next to her chopping ingredients for the day ahead. While Kyoko was always a joy to be around, this morning was especially fun. The moment Kyoko stepped up to the cutting board next to Ai, she was smiling and humming a soft sweet tune.
"You seem happy this morning, Kyoko-chan," Ai said to the younger girl.
Kyoko stopped her knife and looked at the Okami-san puzzled. "I do? I'm not any more so then usual, right?"
Ai laughed softly and shook her head. "I have yet to see that smile slip off your face, and I have never heard you hum while you helped us," she told her.
"I'm humming? " Kyoko asked astounded and blushed a dark red. Still the smile was ever present on her face. "I had no idea," she exclaimed, dropped the knife and covered her face in embarrassment. "What was I humming?"
"I didn't recognize the song. It went something like this," Ai started to repeat the melody she remembered. Kyoko listened and instantly remembered the tune. She turned beet red and almost shrieked in humiliation. It was from Cinderella, So This is Love. Ai simply laughed at the younger girl reaction.
"It's adorable. It's good to see you having so much fun. I gather your date with Tsuruga-san went well then?" Ai whispered knowingly furthering Kyoko's embarrassment.
"Oh, goodness. I didn't think I would be so obvious," Kyoko cried with a little laugh. "Yes," she confessed dreamily. "It was wonderful. He got me flowers, do you want to see them?" It was clear that Kyoko wanted to share her evening out, so Ai quickly nodded and took a little break from her duties. They spent a good thirty minutes talking in Kyoko's room. Ai could tell that Kyoko held back, not wanting to take the Okami away from her duties for too long, but it was difficult for her to stop.
Still, from what Ai could tell, the date was like a fairy tale. Of course it was repeated with rose colored glasses on, from the way he looked, the flowers she got and the events that happened. Talking for hours before going to dinner, lost in the words shared between them. Dinner was sweet, romantic, eating under the moonlight with candles.
"The movie was a blur," Kyoko admitted timidly, and they both laughed. All she remembered about the film was that he was next to her and the thrill she got when they bumped their hands together getting popcorn. They relived her night and Ai joined in remembering her first date with her dear husband: the nervous touches, the sneaky glances and the heart thumping excitement of being around a new love.
The two went back down stairs with stars in their eyes. Kyoko had less time to help but speed up her chopping to get her portion of the job done before she had to go. Once the young teen left, Ai snuck over to her aloof husband and snuck in a kiss on his cheek. He turned to her in shock and gave her a questioning glance. She smiled a sweet little smile and shook her head, letting the Taisho go back to his work with a little smile of his own.
Eleven came by too quickly, or not quickly enough for Kyoko. She cleaned up a little making sure she was still presentable and quickly ran to the door when she heard the knock. She did open it slowly, trying to not appear as if she was waiting by the damn thing. Yet, the moment that she looked into Ren's eyes, she wished she had opened it sooner. It felt like she hadn't seen him in years. She yearned to reach out to him, to touch him and make sure he was real. Nevermind that her mind knew better, her heart wanted evidence.
"Hey, are you ready to go?" he asked with a softer version of his heavenly smile. She nodded, a little too enthusiastically making his smile widened slightly. Kyoko hastily put on her jacket and grabbed her purse. When she looked back at him, Ren was holding out his hand waiting patiently for her. She looked at it then up at him and hesitantly reached out for it.
It was exactly like she remembered. His large warm hand engulfed hers not only keeping her hand but her whole body warm. Kyoko eagerly went to his side as they left the restaurant, sticking as close to him as she possibly could with their fingers entwined together. She was too delighted for words at the moment. It's real. Everything is real. I'm not dreaming.
"How are you this morning?" Ren asked wanting to hear her voice.
"I," Kyoko tried to think of a word that wouldn't give away how ridiculously happy she was, "I'm great," she told him, hoping that wasn't too obvious. She quickly turned the conversation to him. "How was your shoot this morning?" He always had work, from sunrise to long after sundown.
"Normal. Nothing seriously bad happened, nor did anything special occur," he said casually and then asked, "What does your schedule look like today?" She looked up at him curiously. The way he asked, he was almost nervous.
"My schedule?" She found that she had to think about it. "I have my shooting from 11 to 6 tonight. After that, nothing. Why?"
"Hmm, I was curious," he said dismissively, but Kyoko could tell that wasn't completely true. She narrowed her eyes up at him suspiciously. They were almost to his car, both wanting as much alone time as possible, hence strolling back to his vehicle.
"Are you planning something?" She accused him making Ren laugh.
"No, I'm not planning anything. You make me sound like Takarada," he said a little offended. Kyoko laughed at the imagery as Ren continued, "I was hoping you would be done by 4, maybe we could get dinner, but you get off when I start another job. See, this is why I didn't want to tell you."
Kyoko was pouting, an extremely cute, alluring little pout that made him want to steal her away to a deserted island.
"But maybe I can get off at 4. Now that you told me, I can try and rearrange things so that I can," she stated and saw him frowning at her. She sighed. "I'm not going to cause a delay at work. I'll work through the breaks, or skip having lunch so we can end earlier," she threw out ideas absentmindedly; however, those ideas didn't sit well with Ren.
"Kyoko, you need to eat," he stated and they both laughed at the turn of events. "Really, we went out yesterday, and we have another date scheduled in two days. You don't need to push yourself to have dinner with me tonight."
But I really want to have dinner with you! She screamed internally. They were now a short distance from his car, and she could see Yashiro waiting in the passenger seat. The conversation ended though she didn't want it to. Her mind started working on overtime to find a way to get out at 4.
"Good morning, Kyoko-chan," Yashiro greeted her with a huge fan-girl smile. She greeted him in kind and giggled softly noticing Ren shake his head at his manager. Yashiro couldn't be more excited for them as a couple, and he let it show every time he saw them together. They were more timid when around others, but he caught them holding hands on the way to the car and quickly took a picture with his phone.
The ride was too short, and Yashiro was stealing the conversation in the car. Kyoko kept Ren in constant visual thought he kept quiet while driving. She wished he didn't. She already missed hearing his voice.
"Thank you for the ride," Kyoko thanked Ren and had an urge to move up and kiss his cheek. Okay so she simply wanted to kiss him again. She thought he would kiss her when he greeted her this morning, but nothing. Again, she hoped for one as she left but then Yashiro was here, so perhaps that was asking too much. She looked at him longingly as he turned and smiled gently at her.
"I'll call you later. Be careful," Ren said casually making her smile wilt slightly. She nodded and slipped out of the car. Instead of dwelling on things she couldn't control, she tried to changes things she could, or at least try to.
"Excuse me, Director Kazanori," Kyoko called out to the older gentleman. Kazanori was the director to the mini series she was casted in. It wasn't a main role, at least not the heroine of the drama, but she was part of the main cast. The story was a mystery, mixed with a hypocritical love interest. It made everyone watching question what boundaries they were willing to cross over if they had fallen in love. What lines were they willing to smug over, possibly hurting their family, friends and/or themselves. The story was so complex with emotions that Kyoko couldn't say no to it. She desperately wanted to play the main; however, the role given to her was of her twin sister. Still an interesting character, but she was not face with nearly the same number of acting challenges as the main.
"Yes, Kyoko-san?' Kazanori greeted her with a kind smile. His smile reflected his personality. He was kind, thoughtful and hard working. He never settled, no director in their right mind would settle for anything less than perfect in their film, but he was very patient. Sometimes too much in fact. It was like he didn't care how long the shooting took so long as he got what he wanted. Instead of working longer hours to get the shooting right, he would simply move on to a new scene, allowing the troubled actor time to compose themselves. They would either try again later or the next day. So many times has Kyoko wanted to throttle the lead for delaying the scene. Nevertheless, Director Kazanori never raised his voice in irritation, so she certainly couldn't either. Strangely enough, they weren't behind schedule, in fact they were ahead. Perhaps it was the years of experience of being a director. He's been at it for 30 years.
"Um, I was wondering how the filming will go today? Like what scenes were going to be done first?" Kyoko asked as mysteriously as she could, but the older man was too observant for that.
"What time do you need to leave?" He asked knowingly, making Kyoko flush and shake her head.
"I don't... I mean... I was wondering if... but if I can't then that is fine... so there is no reason to..." Kyoko stuttered out never really completing a sentence.
"Kyoko-san, tell me. If it is reasonable then we will try. I won't make any promises if you need to leave in thirty minutes though, unless of course it's an emergency," he added. He wanted his stars' mind here in their work, not worrying about something else.
"Oh, it's not!" Kyoko quickly told him. "It's not really that important. Not as important as this, but um," she looked up at him bashfully, "4...4:30ish?"
He smiled indulgently at her and nodded. "We'll see what we can do."
"Thank you!" Kyoko exclaimed happily and bowed down. She bounced up and repeated, "Again, if we can't, it's not big deal, but thank you!" Kazanori laughed at the youthful girl and reminded her that she should get ready. She scampered off to the dressing room with her phone already in hand. She dialed Ren's number and as expected it went straight to his voice mail.
"Ren, I know you told me not to try, but I asked Director Kazanori if I can get off at 4, and he said it was possible. There is a good chance that I'll be off around 4:30. I will call you closer to the time for a more definite time, but maybe we could go to dinner tonight? If you still can that is? If you can't, well then I understand. Um, okay. I'll call again later. Bye."
Kyoko hung up and dived herself into work, excited about the day and about the possibilities of tonight. Director Kazanori moved all of Kyoko's scenes first as if it were already planned as such. Some thought it was sort of odd, he usually made it to where everyone had a break after two or three scenes, alternating the actor's scenes, but not Kyoko's. She worked straight throughout the day. She didn't feel like it was difficult. Hinamori often messed the scene in effect allowing Kyoko plenty of time to "relax" while she got her face straight. It was always her face, never her lines. Hinamori never messed up her lines; however, she never had the right expression on her face when she delivered them.
It was 4:10, and there was another NG for the last scene Kyoko was in. She counted to 10 as she waited for Kazanori to explain what she did wrong. She looked at her phone again and saw it was 4:12. She had texted Ren saying that 4:30 was best. She hadn't heard anything from him at all that day which only worried her more. Perhaps she was trying too hard. It was an offhanded comment, something to do between jobs. It wouldn't be an official date, but a simple dinner. It was like an everyday lunch they had before they dated. It was nothing...
Nothing...
So why did she so desperately want to leave? Why did she want to see him so badly, even to simply hear a single word from him?
"I'm an idiot," she whispered and hung her head over her phone. I should have never done this. I shouldn't have tried so hard to get off early. I flooded his phone with stupid needy texts. He's going to read all those and see that I'm clingy. Am I clingy? Is that why Sho didn't want me? Will Ren leave...
"Kyoko-san, are you ready?" Kazanori called out to her snapping her out of those malicious thoughts. She nodded in agreement and stepped up onto the stage. Okay, Kyoko. Don't think about it anymore. You still have a date with him on Thursday... I think.
"I hope," she mumbled to herself and shook her head. Either way, don't make a big deal about this. You are at work, do your job, and let things be. The moment her foot hit the stage two things happened. Kyoko disappeared being replaced by Suzu and a guest came onto the set, keeping a low profile.
"Nee-san, you have to stop this. Don't you realize the things you are doing is going to put you in danger too. You need stop protecting him," Suzu pleaded with her twin sister, even though said sister kept turning her back away from her. Suzu huffed angrily at Etsuko. She stomped over to her and forced her to face her.
"He didn't do it!" Estuko screamed in angst as she was turned around. Her eyes burned with unshed tears and the torment she was feeling was clear on her face. She was struggling with indecision to support the one she loved or to help her sister and father help catch the man who killed their mother. The look on Etsuko's face gave Suzu pause.
"Even if he didn't, he knows who did. Nee-san, you have to trust us. We aren't going to hurt him until we know who killed her," Suzu said honestly, but Etsuko still held back. Her lips pressed together in a stubborn silence. Getting frustrated, Suzu resorted to threats.
"They know you know, Suko-nee," she whispered darkly at her sister. The old childhood nickname made Etsuko blink at her, baffled at her statement. "You know more then you should about the case, the murder. We aren't the only ones that knew about your relationship with Sugimura. They will come after you, like we have," she paused for effect.
"They won't be as nice as we are," Suzu said softly. Etsuko didn't trust her, and she let that mistrust show. Suzu was father's daughter more then she'd ever be. Suzu followed in father's footsteps, being top of her police academy class and making detective in record time. While Etsuko went down the other path. Falling in love with the scum they put behind bars and trying to follow her dreams of being a painter.
No, she didn't trust her or her father with the information, but the sudden tremble racking her body from fear proved that she didn't have anywhere else to go. Etsuko nodded.
"And cut. That's beautiful, Hinamori-san, Kyoko-san. Let's get ready for Scene 22," the director announced and everyone started moving. Kyoko let out a sigh of relief and hopped off stage where she was greeted by Kazanori.
"You did very well today, Kyoko-san. You are free to go," he informed her with a smile. She returned the gesture and bowed down in thanks; however, her previous thoughts didn't really make her want to rush out the door. Still, she hurried her footsteps to her bag and pulled out her phone.
Zero texts. No voice mail.
Kyoko pressed her lips together and nodded. It's fine. Something must have happened. We never agreed to actually meet. It's fine. She thought sadly and started collect her things.
"You did wonderfully, Kyoko."
Kyoko spun around so fast that she almost fell.
"Ren?" she whispered softly as her eyes feasted on the sight of him. He chuckled softly and nodded.
"Yeah, you said 4:30 right? I'm a little early though," he said with a slightly flush on his cheeks. "I'm sorry that I wasn't able to reply back to you. There was a little incident on set today that crushed my phone." He pulled it out and opened it. As he did, half of it fell hanging on to dear life by a few colorful wires.
Kyoko looked at the phone and then at him and back at the phone incredibly then started laughing. She was so happy, so completely relieved by his words that all her grief rushed out of her and into a puddle on the floor.
"What happened?" She asked as soon as her fits of giggles subsided.
"I'll tell you at dinner. Do you need to change?" He motioned to her professional pant suit that Suzu always wore to work.
"Ah! Yes, I'll be back!" Kyoko left her things there with Ren and rushed to the dressing room. She was in and back out as her normal self within five minutes. It was unnaturally fast. Though she only changed her clothes. Her hair was still pinned up and her natural looking make-up was the same. It still fit, though it did make her look more mature, making Ren want to forget himself.
The looks she was giving him during dinner weren't helping things either. They went for a simple dinner. Ren had dropped Yashiro off at LME, where he more than willingly decided there was a load of paperwork that needed to be done before his six o'clock shoot. They were alone, the same as the night before, and like yesterday they were blissfully absorbed into one another.
Kyoko looked up at him with her heart humming in her chest as he spoke. Her eyes drifted up from the table to their entwined hands. She idly ran her thumb across his index finger with a warm smile. She forced her eyes up to his face to look into his eyes and listen; however, something captured her sight.
Those lips...
They were full and enticing. They were moving, speaking about something. She knew she should be paying attention, that he was saying something important, but she couldn't stop her mind from wondering. Those lips spread into an easy smile as they turned towards her.
I wish he would kiss me again, Kyoko thought mindlessly. Soft, warm, wet... She unconsciously licked her lips as she stared at his completely oblivious to what he was saying.
"Kyoko?"
"Hmm," she hummed softly with a little smirk and leaned forward slightly.
Ren's smile widened and asked again, "Are you ready?"
"Yes," she breathed softly and closed her eyes. Instead of the kiss she was longing for, he pulled her out of the seat and started making their way out of the restaurant. She frowned and looked at the time. It was 5:30. Panic started to set in as time had flew by and now he was doomed to be late.
"Ren, we should have left sooner!" she cried. He was opening the car door for her and she pushed it closed.
"Kyoko, what..."
"Forget me. You have thirty minutes to pick Yashiro-san up and head to your shoot. I'll wal... no, I'll take a cab home. I promise. Go, go, go!" She urged him by gently pushing him around to the driver side door.
"Kyoko, I'm taking you home. The shoot is near LME. I won't be late," he said reassuring her. She wanted to argue with him, but knew better to. Instead she ran around the car and jumped into the passenger seat.
"Let's go!" she screamed out making Ren laugh. The anxiety to make sure Ren was on time turned her into a "backseat" driver.
"No, you should go down 1st street. There's never any traffic down there. Here!" she pointed to a street. "Turn left here, and it will cut off a few minutes skipping the light ahead."
"Kyoko, calm down," he laughed and took her hand. "I'm not going to be late. It takes ten minutes to get to Daruma-ya's, then five to get to LME and the shoot is right next door. It will be fine," he finished and lightly kissed the back of her hand.
Kyoko blushed at the sweet gesture as it stole away her agitated thoughts. He was right, as usual. It took him less then ten minutes to take her home, allowing him twenty to get to LME. Still, she felt like she had taken all the time she could and was eager to see him off.
"Thank you," she said and looked over at him, "for dinner and the ride. I'll see you soon okay. Um, let me know when you get your new phone. Bye." Kyoko wrapped her fingers around the door handle and pulled, but Ren pulled her back.
"Kyoko, wait." Ren grabbed her shoulder gently holding her still. She turned towards him curiously and was surprised with a kiss.
A small squeaked escaped her lips at the sudden turn of events, but she didn't waste any time returning the favor. She twisted back towards him and cupped his face with her hands. She parted her lips and softly sipped his lips with hers. A low groan passed his lips and into hers as he pulled her closer to him. Kyoko grew bolder as the kiss did, her hand slipping back into his thick hair and moving herself further towards his side of the car. She could feel him tense under her hand, the arm holding her against him was like steel, strong and unbending. When he broke the kiss, his breath came out in a shaky sigh as if it took everything in him to stop.
"You make it very hard to say goodbye," he whispered, his heated breath caressing her wet lips.
Kyoko smiled sinfully at him and replied, "Maybe it's because I don't want you to say it." She finished her sentence with a tender kiss. She could so get use to this. This feeling she had with him - in his arms, with his kisses.
"You need to be careful," Ren warned her, the Emperor of the Night looking at her with those promising eyes.
"Why?" She asked and licked her lips. His eyes flickered to her mouth as he licked his own.
"I'm going to get addicted to your taste," he said lustfully and leaned in to kiss her. Kyoko parted her lips to receive the caress but stopped short and spoke, "I'm going to want to kiss you every chance I get."
Kyoko smirked. "Good, because I'm already intoxicated with yours," she stated and kissed him again, absorbing more of his drugging toxin.