Their First Press Photo

Tsuruga-san left to call Yashiro-san while the doctor was checking her over, and she was finally able to wash the blood off of her face. He had been right, she thought as she scrubbed her face, careful of her nose. She did look like a victim in a horror movie. Afterwards, Kyoko sat on the examination table, wincing at the painfully bright light of the little private room, and flinching back when the doctor shined a light in her eyes one at a time.

"Okay miss, can you tell me your full name?"

"Mogami Kyoko."

"Do you know what day it is?"

Kyoko told her.

"And how were you injured?"

When they'd arrived at the hospital, walking into the waiting room with his hand resting on her back to guide her, Tsuruga-san had ushered her into a chair, hesitating for a moment to make sure she was stable before going to the nurse's station. The woman had handed him a clipboard that he'd returned with, and to Kyoko's surprise, he'd taken a seat beside her, getting started right away on the paperwork. Every once in a while, he'd leaned over to ask her a question if he didn't know the answer, but he'd been able to fill out the majority of it on his own.

Until he'd gotten to the 'emergency contact' question. She'd felt him hesitate beside her, his pen no longer scratching against the paper, and she'd peeled her eyes open to find him looking down at her. "Who is your emergency contact?" he'd asked, voice pitched low. They hadn't been the only ones in the waiting room, but no one had given them a second look thanks to his baseball cap and the way he had slouched in his seat.

Kyoko had hesitated, looking down at the form for a moment as she'd tried to concentrate. "Um...I don't know. Do you have to put one?"

"Who did you put as your emergency contact with LME?"

"I left it blank," she had admitted. "The only people I really knew in Tokyo were the Darumaya couple, and I didn't want them to be bothered."

Tsuruga-san had stared at her for a moment, lips pursed. "What about me?"

She'd blinked in surprise. "You?"

"Since I'm the one with you now. But only if that's alright with you."

"I...I just meant...what if someone found out?"

His lips had twitched into an almost smile. "Then they would know that we are good friends."

Just the thought of calling him her 'good friend' had been almost too much for her heart to take, and she'd wondered how she would ever be able to call him her boyfriend. "But...if something happened to me, they'd call you!" Kyoko had hissed.

"Yes, that is typically what an emergency contact entails."

"Wouldn't that bother you?"

He'd gone serious then. "No. It would bother me if something happened to you and no one told me."

That had just made her think about the incident at her audition and she'd reminded herself that she really did need to tell him about that. Soon. Before he found out from someone else.

"I want to be there if you need me," he had murmured, his hand wrapping around hers for just a moment before letting go. "Would it be alright if I put myself?"

"Okay," she had whispered, the brief contact making her blush. And he'd smiled at her, that heart-stopping, grudge-killing smile, before returning his attention to the forms. The forms that, Kyoko was certain, had detailed exactly how she'd been injured, so she had to assume that the doctor was just checking her memory. She explained it all to the doctor, not going into exactly why they'd been in the elevator.

"Tsuruga-san and I were leaving work and we ran into each other in the elevator. We were having a conversation and the elevator cable snapped. I hit my head on the wall."

"I see. That must have been frightening."

The woman seemed to be making conversation as she placed her hands gently on Kyoko's head, but Kyoko wasn't sure what to say. It should have been frightening. It really should have. She'd been injured and trapped in an elevator. But the whole time she'd been trapped, all she'd been able to focus on was Tsuruga-san. His confession. His lips pressed to her fingers. His hand on hers. Her head resting on his chest. His necklace now resting around her neck, the chain warm first from his skin and now from hers.

"It was," Kyoko settled on saying.

Tsuruga-san returned a few minutes after the doctor left. She'd promised to return with a prescription for pain medicine after consulting with a colleague, and Kyoko was just leaning back against the wall when he knocked on the half-open door. He had accompanied her to the examination room, but had excused himself to get cleaned up and make some calls when the doctor had entered the room. Someone must have found him a new shirt, or maybe he'd gone out and bought a new one, but despite how nice he looked in that new t-shirt, his face was troubled.

"How are you feeling?" he asked as soon as he took a seat in the chair beside the bed, eyes raking over her. He held a bag in one hand, placing it on the floor next to him, and she didn't ask about it, figuring he'd tell her what was inside if he wanted her to know.

"I feel much better. They're going to give me some pain medicine and the doctor said it's just a mild concussion, so I should be fine tomorrow."

He nodded, still looking grim. "That's good."

"Are you alright?" Maybe, she thought, he'd hit his head too. Maybe he was hurt.

"I'm fine. I talked to the President and Yashiro." He hesitated for a moment. "There's something I need to tell you."

He sounded almost apologetic and she frowned, her fingers immediately finding the pendant of his necklace that hung around her neck. What could he want to tell her that was so bad? Had he changed his mind? The thought made her stomach clench as she played with the necklace absently. His eyes followed the movement of her fingers to the necklace and, to her surprise, his whole face softened into a smile that made her heart leap. How was he able to do that to her? Would she ever get used to that smile? The smile only lasted for a moment though before his face tightened once more.

"Yashiro already spoke to the President. Apparently someone took a picture of us coming out of the elevator, and that picture made it onto one of the tabloid shows and, of course, the internet."

"Already?" she asked, incredulous. She'd only been in the hospital for about an hour.

He nodded. "News travels fast, especially the tabloids."

"Okay...but it makes sense that we would be together. I mean, we worked together, and people know that we know one another. We were in Dark Moon together. And we're from the same agency."

He nodded. "That's true. But apparently in the picture, you can see the necklace."

Kyoko froze, closing her eyes as the implications came crashing down around her, her fingers closing around the pendent "Oh," she whispered.

"Exactly. The President is waiting for us…"

"I'm sorry."

He was silent for a moment, then he reached out, his fingers touching her cheek, and she finally opened her eyes to find him looking at her with no small amount of confusion. "Why are you sorry?"

"Because...because it will hurt your career if people think that you're with me and...and I should have hidden the necklace or...or thought about it before I climbed out…"

He was shaking his head before she could finish. "Mogami-san, I am with you. I mean, I agree that neither of us are in a place to start a new kind of relationship right now, but I love you." The words brought another rush of blood to her cheeks and she had to fight not to drop her gaze from his. "I'm more worried about this hurting your career. The press is always harder on women. But I don't for a second blame you for not thinking about hiding the necklace when you were concussed and climbing out of a broken elevator."

"What are we going to tell people?"

He thought for a moment. "First, we're going to talk to the President and Yashiro. And we can go from there." Tsuruga-san sounded so calm that Kyoko couldn't help feeling almost calm herself. He wasn't worried...well, okay, maybe he looked a little worried. And he'd said that he was worried about her and her career.

What if he was lying?

Kyoko shook the thought off, swallowing hard. He wasn't lying. He had said that he loved her and he'd held her in that elevator and he'd given her his necklace as proof because she had his heart. He was only worried that she would be hurt. Because he loved her. She was the school girl he was in love with. She was the one that had his heart. So he wouldn't lie about this. He wasn't Sho. He wasn't going to take it back. He…

"Hey." His voice was just barely over a murmur but she jumped nonetheless when she looked up to find him watching her, his face close to hers. "It's going to be okay. I promise. I'm sorry you got sucked into this and...and that you got hurt. Are you sure you're feeling okay? We don't have to deal with this tonight if you'd rather go home."

"No I…" she swallowed hard. "What are we going to tell the press?"

"Yashiro and the President will most likely think of an excuse for the picture. We'll probably tell the press that we're good friends. It won't be a lie…" he trailed off, almost like he was waiting for her to argue.

Her next words were stupid. So stupid. She knew what she was doing. It was a test. She was testing him. Not two hours after he'd told her that he loved her and already she was testing him and her eyes were hot as though tears might fall but she fought them.

"What if we tell the truth?"

She hated the words as soon as they were out of her mouth and she dropped her eyes, scolding herself for ruining things...for driving him away before he'd even…

"Okay."

Kyoko's head jerked up so fast that it hurt, but he was serious, nothing but concern in his eyes as he studied her.

"If that's what you want to do, we can find a way to make it work."

There was no hesitation in his voice. None in his face. And this time tears did fill her eyes and she dropped her face, ashamed. Why couldn't she trust him? Why couldn't she have just trusted what he was saying instead of trying to test him?

"Is that what you want?"

"I don't know," she admitted.

He moved then, sitting beside her, his arm wrapping around her shoulders with only a moment of hesitation. The warmth drew her in, the smell of him enveloping her, and before she knew it, he was guiding her head to his chest once more, his thumb rubbing circles on her back. "We're going to meet Yashiro and Takarada-san as soon as you can leave the hospital...as soon as you're ready. Or if you'd rather go home tonight, that's fine. Or you can sleep in my guest room and we can meet Takarada-san tomorrow morning. Yashiro will make it work." He spoke slowly, his voice so steady and calm that, once more, she just wanted to let herself sleep. "No matter what, we're going to deal with this in a way that we're both comfortable with. I promise."

She nodded, the words soothing something inside of her. He was telling the truth. Of course he was telling the truth. Why would she doubt that?

He didn't move when the doctor returned, and to the woman's credit, she didn't even blink at finding Tsuruga Ren holding her patient on the examination table. Instead, she handed Kyoko a prescription for the promised pain medicine and told her to get plenty of rest, and Tsuruga-san reached down to grab the bag and hand it to her.

She stared at it for a moment before looking back up at him.

"I thought you might want to get changed before we go."

Inside the bag was a change of clothes, and despite the fact that Kyoko wanted to scold him for spending money on her, all she could manage was gratitude that she could change out of her own blood-spattered shirt. "Thank you."

She would try to pay him back later, she decided as she headed into the little bathroom to change, trying to hurry so he wouldn't have to wait too long.

Once she was changed and they were in the car, he turned to her, hands resting on the wheel. "Where to?"

Kyoko clutched the purse in her lap, fingers tightening around the shoulder strap. All she wanted to do was sleep. To be in her futon, wrapped in a blanket, and to forget that there was a photo that had been leaked to the media showing the whole country that Tsuruga Ren had given her his signature necklace. All of Japan was now aware of the fact that she was important to Tsuruga-san before she'd even been allowed to process it.

But if she was going to do this...if she was going to give her heart to Ren, then she was going to have to face this sooner or later. So, she thought, sooner was probably better.

"Where does Takarada-san want to meet us?"

"His office. LME."

"Then we shouldn't keep him waiting."

He hesitated. "Are you sure?"

Kyoko nodded. "I'm sure." And she was.

Takarada-san and Yashiro-san were both waiting for them in the President's office, their faces uncharacteristically solemn. She worried that they were seriously upset about the photo...that maybe this actually would hurt Tsuruga-san's career more than she'd thought. But as soon as the door closed behind them, all eyes were on her.

"Mogami-san, how are you feeling?" Takarada-san asked as Tsuruga-san guided her to the sofa. She flushed a little, sitting down and clenching her hands in her lap.

"Um...I'm absolutely fine! It was nothing."

None of the men seemed to believe her, the president sitting in a chair across from her and Yashiro-san taking a seat in one of the chairs while Tsuruga-san sat beside her, his leg not quite touching hers but close. She felt her cheeks flush a little at the proximity and she was glad she'd tucked the necklace into the shirt Tsuruga-san had bought her.

What had he said before about letting men buy her clothes?

Wait…had he been jealous of Kijima?

"We could have done this tomorrow if you need to go home and rest," Takarada-san tried again, but she shook her head, trying to focus.

"I'm okay. So...there was a picture?"

The president hesitated, then gestured toward the man she'd always privately referred to as 'Sebastian.' He stepped forward, wheeling a flat screen TV on a cart over to the seating area, and then switching it on to reveal the photo that was the root of all their problems.

Kyoko winced. She really did look bad. Tsuruga-san had done a good job of trying to wipe the blood off of her face, but she could tell why Yashiro-san and the president had looked so worried. In the photo, Kyoko was pale under the blood, her eyes half closed as she leaned almost completely on Tsuruga-san. The rescue team were surrounding them, but there had been a big enough gap between them for the person to get a clear shot of Kyoko and Tsuruga-san amidst them. Tsuruga-san had been right. She could clearly see the very-identifiable pendant resting against her shirt.

But even if they'd been able to explain that away, which, she realized, would be pretty difficult, how were they going to explain away the look on Tsuruga-san's face?

His arm was around her, holding her up as she leaned against him. Her knees seemed to be buckling in the photo, and his other hand was reaching for her. But it was his face that was the most damning piece of evidence. It was so soft...he looked so worried. So scared. For her. His whole body was wrapped around her, shoulders hunched as he seemed to be trying to shield her as well as hold her up. Kyoko had to force her hands to stay in her lap...part of her wanted to reach for him. To thank him for being there and for catching her and for always being there and for being the person that had unlocked the box she'd locked so tightly.

She swallowed back those thoughts and tried to focus.

"I believe there's been some...development here?" the president asked, and she could hear the smile before she even saw it.

"What should we do about this?" Tsuruga-san asked, not bothering to answer the question, the irritation clear in his voice.

"Well, that depends," the president told him. "What do you want to do about it?"

"It's clear in the photo that Kyoko-chan is wearing Ren's necklace," Yashiro-san put in. He was holding a notebook and flipping through it without seeming to read the words. "I'm not sure what we could tell the press...I mean…" he turned to Kyoko and Tsuruga-san. "The truth? I'm not sure what exactly that is…"

Kyoko felt Tsuruga-san's eyes on her as she stared into her lap, unable to lift her eyes. What did she want to tell them? Did she want to try and explain it away until she was ready? Would she ever be ready to face all of Japan as the girlfriend of Tsuruga Ren? And what if he wasn't ready? What if he changed his mind? What if she got dumped again...this time in front of the whole country?

"Am I to assume that the necklace is a promise of some sort?" the president asked then, and Kyoko's cheeks went hot at the bluntness of the question. But Tsuruga-san didn't even hesitate.

"Yes."

"And Mogami-kun, did you reciprocate this promise?"

She swallowed hard. If he could answer so calmly, then so could she. "Yes."

"Well then, it seems we have our answer."

"Boss, we aren't sure if either of us are ready for a relationship…"

"Well, my boy, ready or not, the press believes you are in one. And I can't think of a single way we can explain that photo…" he pointed and gave a dramatic pause. "Other than to tell the truth. The whole country is already speculating. You're both the main topic of discussion of more than one tabloid and entertainment news show. And you don't have to keep up the facade if you really don't want to. You can publicity date for a few weeks and break up if…"

"No." The vehemence in Tsuruga-san's voice startled her, and she looked up, wide-eyed as he glared at the president. "Absolutely not."

Rather than being upset, Takarada-san just grinned, his smile slowly taking over his whole face. "Well then, you have your options. Try to lie to the press, but they'll never believe it, and the two of you will be hounded regardless. You might be able to get away with it if you publicly date someone else. Pretend to date for a little while and break up publicly. Or," his voice softened and Kyoko was surprised at the real kindness in his eyes. "Start a real relationship a little earlier than you'd planned.

Kyoko swallowed hard, looking between Tsuruga-san to his manager and then, finally, to the president. But when Tsuruga-san spoke, it wasn't to give an answer. Instead, he turned toward their boss. "Can we have a few minutes?"

The president nodded. "Of course."

Once they were alone, Tsuruga-san shifted in his seat, seeming to relax a little as he leaned back against the sofa and turned to face her. "What do you think?"

"What do...um...I mean, what do you think? It's your…"

He was shaking his head before she could even finish. "Our," he corrected. "Our careers. Our reputations. Our lives. Our decision. Not just mine."

"But you're...you!" she cried. "And I'm just…" This time, she cut herself off, surprised at the sadness in his eyes as he sighed, running a hand through his hair. "You're the most famous actor in Japan," she murmured. "The best actor. The...the best. And my career is nowhere near to the point yours is."

"I'm just a person, Kyoko." The use of her first name without even an honorific to soften it made her jump a little, breath catching in her throat. "Just a man. I have a job that I love, and I'm lucky to have it. I worked hard to get to where I am. But I'm also just a man that is very much in love with you." She couldn't stop the redness that flooded her cheeks, but he went on, voice soft and earnest. "I know that this….that us starting a relationship right now isn't ideal. It's not what either of us planned on doing. And maybe, if things were different, we could wait until we were in a place where we were closer to our goals before we started this. But...but this is where we are now." He took a deep, steadying breath, and when he looked at her again, she was surprised at the fear there. "There are things I have to tell you...things I'm afraid to tell you."

She frowned, confused. "Afraid?"

"Things about my past...and a secret I've kept from you."

Just the word 'secret' made her flinch, her eyes dropping to her lap. "A secret?"

"A secret...involving who I am."

"Oh." She looked back at him then, surprised. "You mean your real name? I knew that Tsuruga Ren wasn't your real name. Remember, you told the Beagle?"

His lips twitched at that nickname, but then he was serious again. "Yes, I remember." He hesitated, looking around the room as if checking to make sure that no one else was there.

Her brain was running in overdrive. He was afraid to tell her a secret he'd been keeping from her. A secret that had to do with who he was.

And a part of her, a deep, hidden part of her that had been confused and almost skeptical from the beginning, began to whisper in her ear. He'd known that she was from Kyoto, and she'd never found out how. He'd assured her that Corn was okay that day that he'd protected her from the Beagle. When 'Corn' had appeared to her, he'd appeared as Tsuruga-san with blond hair and green eyes every time. He'd never spoken to her using another face or another voice.

She'd based young Kuon after Corn.

His proportions, his hair, his face...they were all similar to Kuu's. And he'd assured her that she got young Kuon's feelings for his father correct.

Across from her, Tsuruga-san started to stand. "Why don't I take you home? We can sleep on it and…"

"Corn?" Her voice was small, barely above a whisper, but he froze, his legs bent as he paused just before standing. His eyes were wide, and for a moment, he just stared straight ahead. Then he cut his gaze to her's, mouth opening into a tiny 'o.' "Corn?" she asked again, a little louder. He swallowed hard, mouth closing with a 'clack' as his jaw clenched. He looked so afraid...as though she might just walk out.

Something about that made her heart ache. She should be the one afraid of him abandoning her .

But, a voice in her mind whispered, he'd lied to her. For...for how long?

"Kuon?" she tried then, and he closed his eyes, giving a short nod. That one she could understand. That one could be so easily forgiven. Something had happened to Kuon. Something bad. She wasn't sure what, but from the way Kuu had spoken, she'd thought he was dead.

"When did you know?" she wondered, refusing to meet his eyes. Why lie? Why not tell her who he was?

"In the corridor at LME. When you dropped the stone." His hand slipped into his pocket and she wondered if he was holding it.

"And…" her voice wavered but she forced herself through it. "I know you still hated me, but...weren't you even a little happy? To see me again?" Her lip trembled and she tried to swallow back the tears.

"I was...in shock," he admitted in a whisper. "I never thought I'd see you again. And to find out...I...I didn't know what to think. You seemed so...different."

She had to laugh, a sound that came out as more of a sob, but she held the tears back. The world was at a standstill around her, the only noise a roaring in her ears. She'd been right. All this time… "I get why you wouldn't tell me...at first. I...I know how much you hated me...for a really long time."

"I did not hate you."

"You did."

"Okay...at first, I was irritated with your reasons for trying to join show business," he admitted. Reaching out, he placed his hand over her clasped ones. "But I didn't hate you. I...I was confused by you. And I was jealous of Fuwa...jealous of how important he seemed to you. But I didn't hate you." He sighed. "And...and then when you saw me in Guam...I kind of panicked." He gave a weak smile. "I couldn't tell you who I was, but I also didn't want to hurt you. So...so I lied to you. And I'm sorry. I'm sorry that I didn't tell you who I was sooner and I'm sorry that I kept lying to you about who I was...and about Corn…"

She wasn't sure how she felt about that part, honestly. He'd started being kind to her after finding out who she was, but not immediately. He'd been jealous of Sho? Even then? But her head was starting to ache and she didn't think she could process all of this right now and his hand resting on hers made the tears threatening to fall again. "Corn?"

"Hm?"

"I…" she swallowed back the tears but one escaped anyway. "I'm really glad I found you again." He moved forward immediately, enveloping her in his arms and cradling the back of her head in his hand. "I missed you...so much."

"I missed you too," he whispered, sounding on the verge of tears himself. "I'm sorry I lied. I'm sorry I didn't keep in touch. I should have told you the truth when we were kids...I should have written to you and...and tried to convince my dad to take me back to Kyoto to visit you. I've regretted that for so long."

She clutched the back of his shirt in her fist, face hidden in his chest, and tried to calm her shuddering breaths. The last thing she needed was to cry in front of her boss. Again. He rubbed her back, just like he had when they were kids...just like he had when she'd cried to him about her mother.

Her mother!

He pulled away when she stiffened, his hands dropping away. "What's wrong?"

"My mother."

"What?"

"My mother...she's going to see the photo."

"Oh...do you want to call her?" he asked carefully. "Do you think she'll be worried about you?"

Honestly...she had no idea. The thought of calling her mother and trying to explain the situation was too much for her to process on top of everything else, so she shook her head, pressing a hand to her temple. No, her mother would have to wait until another day. Maybe she wouldn't even see it! That's what Kyoko would have to hope. "No...I don't think she will. It'll be fine. No one even knows we're related."

"Okay…" He took a deep breath. "I know that you've had a lot to deal with tonight...that we both have. And I know that we need to talk more, but I think I should probably get you home so that you can rest. But first...can I ask you…"

She dropped her hand from her head, blinking tiredly at him as he reached out and took it, his thumb rubbing gently over the back of her knuckles. "I think the president is right. There isn't really a plausible way to deny what people are going to assume from that photo. And honestly...I don't want to. The whole country already thinks we're together by this point. I'm in love with you. And you...return those feelings?" He phrased it as a question so she nodded, despite her flushed cheeks. "You are…" he swallowed, something flashing across his face that she couldn't quite identify. Sadness? "You are my oldest, dearest friend, and I love you. So, Kyoko-chan, would you do me the honor of allowing me to call myself your boyfriend?"

Unable to speak when he was looking at her like that, with eyes so soft and so...so loving, and so hopeful, all she could do was nod.