Chapter 21
"Are you sure you don't want to dye it this time?" Kyoko asked the little doppelganger with concern. It didn't matter if it was dyed dark or not for his passport, but she was a little concerned about the paparazzi that would certainly put the puzzle pieces together.
Shin nodded excitedly. "Don't worry Mom. Dad said he would take care of us, and if there's any trouble… I can help too. Okay?" He comforted. It wouldn't be the first time a shady journalist lost all of their computer documents to a technological mishap when following her around. All he really needed was the internet, an email address, or even just a web address for the tabloid that they worked for, then he could slither his way into their servers and do what he did best. For Shin, it was nothing more than what most kids would consider a game or puzzle.
It wasn't that she was concerned about herself or her reputation for that matter, she was worried about what kind of psychological impact it would have on Shin being the hidden son of Kuon Hizuri. Not once did it occur to her that her status as a star would be a very effective deterrent to anyone that wanted to harass him, not to mention the fact that she had some very well-trained body guards and a stellar agent on her side. Well… and Shin's talented little fingers and ruthless, intelligent little mind accessing school documents to rid himself of his bullies. It was amazing what a strategically crafted detention or altered report card could do to a kid, but that was something that she didn't need to know.
She shook her head and giggled with a sigh as she mussed his hair. "Alright, I give in and you don't need to go that far Sweetie. All I need for you to do is to make sure that you keep up with your school-work and stay out of trouble. Okay?"
He smirked with a chuckle, that very much reminded her of his father. "Of course Mom." As long as everyone behaves themselves. He thought to himself, not realizing how boring it would be with Kuon there to take care of all of the flies buzzing around.
It was tough these past couple of years around Kuon. Juli Hizuri felt like she'd been walking on eggshells the entire time; however, recently Kuon had become more relaxed and Kuu had been a little more lenient, giving Juli the bravado to start trying to hook her son up with some of the eligible young women from the modeling world, that she felt were worthy of him. Certainly she regretted the little fiasco with Kyoko, in Japan, but that was a situation that she didn't feel she could resolve and they hadn't been able to find her. From her point of view, it was water under the bridge and she believed Kuon needed a fresh start, which was why she was sitting in a little cafe, in downtown Los Angeles, with said new prospect, waiting to have lunch with her son to introduce them and let nature take its course. She just wanted him to be happy and to stop obsessing over finding someone that didn't wish to be found.
Imagine her surprise when he took one look at her and the potential daughter-in-law, grimaced, and bluntly informed both that he was in a very satisfying and committed relationship, turned around and left. She was stunned speechless. Had the young woman that had joined her for lunch not been there, she would had immediately left the cafe and raced home to tell Kuu. Needless to say, she apologized to the young model profusely and promised to introduce her to a good job-lead to make up for the trouble she'd caused by not knowing enough about her own son's love-life.
Later that evening Kuu would find her practically glued to the internet, trying to sleuth-out, exactly who Kuon was dating, to no avail. She would only discover that his reputation over the past two years had become squeaky clean. There wasn't even a ghost of a rumor on any of his filming sets about a new girlfriend. The only person that he had been close to or in contact with steadily had been his manager. Suddenly a thought froze in her mind. His manager?! Her heart shuddered as her mind made the misfired connection. She calmed herself and made the decision to support him even if that particular relationship would never grant her grandchildren. As long as he was happy, she would accept it.
Yukihito groaned in frustration. "You really need to tell them, Kuon or your mother is going to keep trying to hook you up with those women, and I don't even want to go through with you what we've had to endure over the past two years looking for Kyoko." He scolded.
Kuon shook his head after setting down his script and taking a sip of his coffee. "You don't need to worry about that anymore. I already told her that I was in a relationship." He sighed a little. "I just need to figure out a way to keep them from ruining it like they did last time." He sat back in his seat with a deep thought-filled expression.
Yukihito grimaced at the thought of the memory. He couldn't forget how everything just blew up and went crazy in Japan because of the elder Hizuri couple's actions and how the tabloids and the zealot fans held onto the shadow of her broken reputation and life like a starving, rabid, wild dog would a wounded rabbit. That was something he never again wished to see in his life. He completely understood Kyoko's decision to not return to Japan. "How do you plan on fixing that part of the problem?" He gave him a genuinely curious look.
Kuon sighed out, and the muscles in his jaw tensed. He furrowed his brow. "I haven't really thought out that part yet." He honestly confessed. "I never really thought I would make it this far. To be honest, I really didn't think that she would even allow me close to her and Shin ever again." He told him, rubbing his temples to ease away the slowly developing, minor headache thinking of his parent's actions caused him, every single time.
Yukihito nodded with a wry smile. "As I thought." He sighed out, before rising to refill his teacup. "You should probably discuss the possibilities with Kyoko before you make any decisions like that." He turned back to him, giving him a poignant look before heading to the kitchen. "After all, she may not want to have anything to do with them at all after everything that happened."
Yuki's right. He thought. Once bitten, twice shy. In his mind, dealing with his parents could very well be a deal-breaker for her. He could feel the anxiety from that prospect welling-up in his heart. Certainly he was at the point of being able to make that clear and distinctive decision in his life if it came down to choosing between his parents and his 'family'; although, he was certain that Kyoko wouldn't approve and he definitely knew that she would most likely feel responsible for him breaking away from them to be with her and Shin. He shook his head at the thoughts. No, this was a bridge they would have to cross together. He would not allow her to be alone like that again and he sure as hell wouldn't allow her to blame herself for any of his decisions.