Chapter 10: Truth Telling, Truth Seeing

I'm glad people enjoyed the last chapter! I also want to thank the guest reviewers for their nice reviews.

Enjoy!

Can my problems get worse than they already are? Kasumi wondered while she started her car. Fortunately, Brad made sure nothing happened to it while she left it at the bar although he didn't explain how he knew the car was hers. She closed her eyes for a moment and tried to ignore the headache that was beginning to make its presence known. She sighed and opened her eyes before she glanced at her phone. None of her siblings' phone calls have been returned yet, and Kasumi is beginning to question the point of calling them at all. I already have enough stuff to deal with. I just have to face one thing at a time, she reasoned before starting to drive home.

When she turned the corner and saw the different vehicles that were parked outside of her house, Kasumi frowned and simply stared at them. Tina's truck was closer to the house, Eliot's car – which Ayane was most likely driving – was next to it, Hitomi's car was behind the truck while her father's truck was behind Eliot's car, meaning her parents could be there too. Leifang's car was also there, so Kasumi figured all of her friends and family – except Hayate – were in the house. There was another car that Kasumi didn't recognize, but she parked next to it anyway and grabbed her phone, shirt, and keys then approached the house. She was nervous and tired, but whatever issue she was about to start had to be dealt with before the rest. Otherwise, things would just keep spinning out of control.

After opening the door, Kasumi felt overwhelmed by the amount of people who seemed to be waiting on her. Her parents, Ayane, and Eliot were watching her with worry in their eyes; Tina and Hitomi looked happy while Leifang and Jann Lee didn't do anything besides wave at Kasumi. The person who surprised her the most though was her wedding planner, Helena, who was sitting on the couch next to Ayame. Everyone started talking at once, yet Kasumi couldn't focus on what anyone was saying. She frowned and pressed her hands against her eyes.

"Everyone, stop," Shiden demanded, his loud voice gaining everyone's attention. Kasumi slowly removed her hands after the noise stopped. He was leaning against the wall near Ayame, and Kasumi has never seen him look so worried or concerned before. Maybe that's because he never had a reason to worry so much, she realized. She focused on his words when he spoke again, this time in gentle tone. "Kasumi, you just don't know how worried we were."

"I'm so sorry," she responded. She felt terrible for making her family and friends worry about her while she was out drinking and sleeping with a stripper. She absently pulled at the sleeves of Hayabusa's sweatshirt and added, "I should have called someone."

"It's alright as long as you're not hurt," Ayame said, standing up to give Kasumi a hug. Kasumi couldn't stop herself from smiling when her mother gave her a squeeze before leaning back to stare at her. Her eyes narrowed in suspicion then she asked, "You are okay, aren't you?"

Kasumi nodded although it looked like Ayame didn't believe her. Ayane stepped forward and placed a hand on Kasumi's shoulder. "That's good," she claimed. "I had called you multiple times last night, but you didn't answer."

"We thought you went missing or something, so Ayane and I called everyone then we met up here," Eliot added. He paused then shook his head and didn't say anything else. Alarms started going off in Kasumi's head immediately because Eliot didn't do that unless he knew something that he wasn't supposed to know and didn't want anyone else to know about. What does he know? Is it about something I've done? It was unusual and Kasumi tried not to panic.

"Where did you go after you left here, Kasumi?" Tina suddenly asked.

"I…" She stopped when she realized that she never did talk to Hayate like she wanted to. He did call her a few times, but her phone was turned off and she was most likely too focused on Hayabusa at the time. She thought about what happened between her and Rig. Her feelings were still hurt and she suddenly felt like giving up on all of this mess. Kasumi didn't finish the statement while her gaze drifted down to the floor.

"Sweetheart, where is your engagement ring?" Helena whispered as if she was talking to herself. Everyone heard her though and stared at Kasumi's left hand as if it held the answers to life's difficult questions. Kasumi didn't bother to act as if she just noticed the ring was missing; she knew it was still wherever it landed in Hayabusa's living room after she threw it. She lifted her left hand to her chest and grabbed a fistful of the sweatshirt before she leaned against the door. I can't handle this. I should have known that I couldn't. Someone stepped closer to her shaking form, but she couldn't see past her tears to identify the person.

"Gentlemen, can you give us some privacy?" Ayame asked politely despite sounding like she wasn't giving the men a choice in the matter. Jann Lee nodded and moved towards where the back door was then Eliot reluctantly followed him after a few seconds.

"I need to know what that idiot did to break one of my daughter's heart, so I can break his," Shiden claimed, not moving from his spot. Kasumi didn't have the courage to speak right now, but honestly she didn't want her father to be in the room while she explained because after he heard everything, he might want to hurt two people – and one person doesn't really deserve it.

"Shiden, we will talk about this later. This has to be a 'Ladies Only' conversation right now," Ayame stated while she pulled on her husband's arm. Kasumi quietly wiped her eyes and watched her father frown and step away from the wall. He whispered something to Ayame before he went over to Kasumi and gave her a hug. Kasumi saw the hurt on her father's face and felt bad for leaving him out of this situation. She watched him exit the room while Leifang placed an arm around her shoulders then led her over to the couch.

"You can tell us whenever you're ready," Hitomi declared. Kasumi nodded then glanced down at her left hand. It didn't look the same without the ring on her finger and she was beginning to miss wearing the beautiful thing. Do I miss the ring or the meaning behind it? The more she stared, the more she wondered when did her life get so complicated.

"I miss how simple things used to be," Kasumi admitted. She knew the girls were confused by the statement, so she turned it into an opportunity to quickly break the worse news. "Yesterday, I went to Donovan Industries to visit Rig. He was in his office with a woman I didn't know. They appeared to be in a compromising position, and he wouldn't tell me who she was when I asked about her. I wanted him to tell me that my assumptions about him cheating on me were wrong, but he didn't say anything. After I told him to find me when he's willing to explain, I left. Now we're not engaged anymore."

The surprise in the room was obvious while Kasumi lifted her head to observe everyone's reactions. Hitomi, Leifang, and Tina seemed sad; Ayane and Helena – surprisingly – seemed to understand the situation. Meanwhile, Ayame's face was neutral although her eyes showed that she knew more than anyone else did. She leaned forward and met Kasumi's stare before she spoke. "There's more to the story, isn't it? Something could have made you decide to go talk to Rig."

Ayame's tone wasn't accusing, but Kasumi still felt like she was being forced to explain the part she purposely left out. She knew her mother already put the pieces together – she just wanted her solution to the puzzle confirmed. "I was at Hayabusa's house before I went to see Rig."

"What? Kasumi, I thought you were done with him," Tina exclaimed.

"So did I," Kasumi snapped, glaring at her hands. Fresh tears were streaming down her face now, and she gratefully accepted the handkerchief Helena gave her. "You know Hayate is staying with him while he's here, so I went to talk to Hayate, who wasn't there at the time. I don't know what I was thinking, but I pulled Hayabusa in for a kiss before I could stop myself from doing it. I came to my senses a few seconds later and pushed him away before I made another mistake."

I made the same mistake I was trying to avoid anyway, she reminded herself.

"It's okay, Kasumi," Leifang asserted. She was trying to comfort her friend although it wasn't actually making Kasumi feel better. "You ended the kiss before the moment escalated. That's a good thing, right?"

"There's more," Kasumi announced, effectively putting a stop to the girls' agreements. "After walking away from Rig with a broken heart, I decided to have a drink. One drink led to many, next thing you know I'm in taxi that was taking me to Hayabusa's house. I was hurt and wanted a distraction, so I kind of pressured him…"

"Into having sex with you," Ayane bluntly finished.

"I'll take a wild guess and say that the sweatshirt you're wearing also belongs to Hayabusa," Ayame said. Kasumi blushed then avoided her gaze, trying to hide her embarrassment. Was 'embarrassment' the right word to describe how she's feeling? Or was it shame? Guilt? All of those are understatements because despite being drunk, Kasumi knew that Hayabusa was bothered by her advances – he even directly declined her requests a few times. But Kasumi was relentless, so maybe he felt obligated to give her what she wanted, regardless of him being a stripper.

"Kasumi," Hitomi called, pulling Kasumi out of her ideas. "Did you tell Rig about the first time?"

"We're just keeping secrets from each other," she responded, shaking her head. Kasumi shifted to face Helena before she spoke. "Helena, I know you were looking forward to planning this wedding with me. I'm very sorry, but I need you to cancel everything since it doesn't look like I'm getting married anytime soon."

"I honestly don't think you should give up on this yet," Helena stated. Kasumi raised an eyebrow in confusion and disbelief, making Helena continue. "You're stressed out and hurt by what Rig refuses to confirm or deny. Maybe you two will talk about this soon and realize that there's nothing to worry about. For now, I will put everything on hold until you're absolutely sure that there won't be a wedding."

Kasumi didn't know how to respond to Helena's confidence, so she quietly nodded. I need to stop assuming the worst about everything, she thought. She suddenly remembered all of the missed calls from Ayane then turned to stare at her sister, who was drinking some water. "What were the missed phone calls about, Ayane? Are you and Eliot okay?"

"We're fine. Eliot still has the habit of mentioning things he isn't supposed to talk about, but he's working on it," Ayane said, a small smile tugging at the corners of her lips. She shook her head, focusing on Kasumi's first question. "Rig called me yesterday and told me what happened. He asked if I knew where you were, but I didn't. He wanted me to help him find you, but I told him to give you some space to calm down. After that, I called so I could try to talk to you about this. I know you saw the calls, but I have a good idea what – better yet, who – was keeping you busy."

"I turned my phone off at some point," Kasumi informed. "I have no idea what I should do about any of this. It's so stressful."

"You should do what you think is right," Ayame advised.

"That's the problem, Mom. I don't know! Here's the story of my life based on recent events: I used to be engaged until I caught my now ex-fiancé in his office with a woman who was sitting on his desk with her legs open and her shirt unbuttoned. That might not matter though, because I cheated on him the same night we started our engagement break with a male stripper. That guy – who just so happens to be Hayabusa – is best friends with Hayate. Hayate doesn't know yet, so that's a disaster waiting to happen. Well, at least the sexual tension between Hayabusa and me doesn't exist anymore. I really hope it doesn't," Kasumi ranted, waving her hands around in frustration. She mockingly laughed then covered her eyes with her hands. "I think I'm losing my mind."

"There's something here that you need to figure out before anything else," Hitomi said after a brief moment. Kasumi tilted her head in thought when Ayame nodded, considering what Hitomi was referring to. The others were trying to figure out the same thing, so Hitomi continued. "How do you feel about both men? Don't think, just say it."

"I have feelings for Hayabusa," Kasumi confessed. She was surprised, but she didn't give herself time to think about it. "It doesn't make sense because I barely know anything about him, but the feeling is there and it's strong. I hate how easily he can read me although I can't do the same thing to him. He's a mystery, like he's hiding something yet his actions prove that he has nothing to hide. His body is the closest thing to perfection that I've ever seen and I can't get over how beautiful his eyes are. Maybe I'm just infatuated with him. When I was with him last night, I felt…in control. My life is falling apart and I can't stop it, but when we were together I had the power to decide what happened between us. It was so satisfying and I regret none of it.

"Rig is one of the most important people in my life. I've been with him since my second year of college. He's so nice and caring; we had a very deep connection. He had my back every time I had trouble with stuff. We dated for three years before he surprised me with the proposal. He made me feel as if I was the only girl he wanted; I'm beginning to question that now. He's a great person and I still love him. I think a part of me can't stop loving him. Ignoring recent events, the only problem I've had with him is that he wasn't…enough sometimes, you know? I'm sure you all know what I'm talking about," Kasumi explained, trying not to blush. She hoped they knew what she was talking about, because there was no way she was going to say it. After a tense moment of silence, Leifang gasped and stared at Kasumi.

"It sounds like you're saying Rig is perfect when it comes down to emotions," Leifang observed.

"While Hayabusa dominates in the 'physical satisfaction' category," Tina joined in, a smile forming on her face. Kasumi didn't enjoy the way Tina said it, but when it was put in those words, the problem was right there in Kasumi's face. Two of her needs, which were completely different from each other, were being met by two different men. Does that fix a problem or cause more? Kasumi wondered. Probably more.

"Too bad you can't marry both of them," Helena claimed.

"I wouldn't do that even if I could," Kasumi quickly replied. Besides, Hayabusa made it very clear that he didn't want to be involved in a serious relationship – or any type of relationship based on how he said it. Is it because of her issues with Rig? Did it come from a personal experience that had a large effect on him?

"During the past few weeks, I've been asking myself if I've made the right decision about getting married. I also see the point of this engagement break now," Kasumi declared, meeting her mother's proud gaze for a moment. "I really want my relationship with Rig to work, because I don't want to throw it away. Our relationship is too important to me. I just need some time to myself since I've been feeling overwhelmed lately."

"That's so sweet," Hitomi exclaimed. "I think I'm speaking for all of us when I say that I hope you and Rig have a happy life together."

The rest of the girls quickly agreed and expressed similar wishes, making Kasumi smile in appreciation. She loved her family and friends so much – sometimes she couldn't put the feelings in words. What would I do without them? she asked herself. She thanked them for listening to her problems before they started discussing other topics and life in general.

Now Kasumi's ready to put her life back in order.

…

It didn't take a long time to write this, and I'm very surprised by that. Thanks for reading! Reviews would be nice. Happy New Year, too!