Ren and Kyoko reach Lory's office without meeting anyone else thanks to the circuitous route they follow. But when the door opens, Luto appears and says,
"Please wait here Kyoko-san" to Kyoko. Before she could protest, he takes Ren's arm, ushers him inside, and closes the door all in one liquid motion. Kyoko is left behind staring at the closed door.
She debates whether to knock or barge in forcefully demanding to join Ren when she hears a voice call her name. Turning around she sees Yashiro walking toward her. After exchanging pleasantries, Kyoko catches Yashiro up.
"Yashiro-san, are you here to meet with the President?"
"The president did call me to tell me that I would find you here. I had requested him to let me know if he heard from you."
"I am sorry I haven't called once we came back." Kyoko says filled with remorse, "I wanted Ren to be the one to decide when to talk with you."
Yashiro sighs, "I understand. He is still angry with me, isn't he?"
"No, no Yashiro-san. Why do you think that?"
"The incident that happened with you, I too was to blame for leaving you alone. I just figured that the reason Ren never reached out to me all this while was that he continued to blame me still."
"Oh, I do hope not," says Kyoko aghast. "Ren and I have both more than gotten over that incident. Even if we didn't we wouldn't blame you. But still, I'll give the two of you your space to figure it out yourself."
Yashiro nods and then says, "Kyoko-san, your mother contacted me while you were away and I kind of told her where and why you had gone. I wanted to catch you before you talk to her so I could give you the heads up."
"My mother?"
"Yes. It didn't seem urgent on her part but I thought you should know. But the real reason I wanted to know the moment you got back was regarding the Mirror Project."
Ren finds himself sitting on the couch in front of the president with a hot cup of tea in his hand, handed to him by Luto earlier.
"So, tell me how you feel?" asks the president.
Ren arches one eyebrow and says, "I feel very... pink."
Lory laughs and says, "You are probably wondering why I sent you the pink jumpsuit."
"No doubt it was to torture me?" asks Ren.
"As much as you would like to think of me as an evil genius sitting in my office scheming manic schemes to torture one erstwhile employee of my entertainment agency, nothing could be further from the truth."
Ren's eyes narrow and he says, "Do you mean to say that you do not enjoy seeing me dressed like this?"
"Oh for sure, I love flashy things. And to see the cool persona of Tsuruga Ren become this pink thing sitting in front of me is priceless. But that is not the only reason. Indeed it is not the main reason at all for making you wear that before coming here. But I don't want to tell you. I'd rather have you figure it out yourself. What do you think is the reason I made you wear that?"
Ren thought back to his interaction with Sawara-san and realization strikes.
"It makes me harder to recognize!"
"Yes." nods Lory. "Hidden in plain sight. But that is also just one of the reasons. What I really wanted to test was your determination."
"My determination?"
"How badly do you want to get back to acting and your entertainment career?"
When Ren does not respond, Lory continues, "You were willing to leave your career and live without it for three years. Now if you come back and tell me that you want to get back to it, I am within my rights to test your resolve. Test number one: Are you willing to wear something that flashy to be able to even come and see me?"
"Obviously the answer is yes. But why do you presume I want to act again when I haven't said anything to indicate that?"
"There is no other reason for you to come see me at all. If you didn't want to rejoin the entertainment industry, you could sit at home, be a good husband to your wife and live fairly happily, after all. But that is not enough for you is it?"
Ren takes a deep breath and says, "No it is not."
"And my guess is," Lory continues, "That between you and Mogami-san, you haven't come to any solution as to how to manage both your careers at the same time?"
"Yes. Why did you not consider the possibility that Kyoko would be ok with quitting her job?"
Lory smirks, "If she was the quitting sort, she would have quit when I fired her. Not come back with twice the fire and maturity as an actress. Where she is right now, she will eat you for lunch if you ever tried going up against her acting."
Ren's eyes widen at that comment. He thinks, 'I did see some of what she was capable of back in Danville but that assessment from the President feels either like he is underestimating me or I don't yet have the full measure of her acting ability."
"Which brings me to test number 2. If there was a way for both of you to reach whatever heights you dream of in your careers, at the same time not have it handicap your marriage specifically due to the publicity inherent in your jobs, would you be willing to do whatever it takes to follow that path?"
Ren understands the gravity of the question. He considers before answering, "I have been gone three years, Shachou. All that time, I balled up my feelings for Kyoko and kept it under lock and key but it was still there, part of me. But not being able to act was like I was dying a little every day. Bit by bit even my memories of my acting skills felt like they were fading away leaving me an empty husk of sadness and regret. I am not going back there if I can help it. Kyoko and I are back together but I cannot for a moment allow any resentment to enter into our relationship again. So to answer your question, yes, I am willing to do whatever it takes to get what I dream and wish for within my grasp again."