A/N: I hesitate to post this chapter because... well I'm afraid but I wrote it so here it is. It was actually mostly written months ago I just needed to connect the dots on a few things that's why it's out so fast. I cried writing it and I cried editing but that's just me.
"Kyoko-chan!" The okami-san gushed wrapping her arms around Kyoko. They had hardly spoken since the younger woman's birthday party. Okami-san had missed her.
"Okami-san, it is good to see you." Kyoko said feeling a little awkward. She didn't know how to talk to the woman who had mad her dislike for Kuon so obvious. In so many ways Kyoko felt that her and Kuon were the same so not liking him was akin to not liking her in Kyoko's mind.
The okami-san took her hands and gave her a long appraising look. Her makeup was done to accentuate her eyes and make her appear more mature. She had contoured her round face into a more symmetrical oval and styled her long hair into curls strategically pinned up. Everything had been calculated to give her an older appearance. It was the kind of look Shotaro preferred, and Kyoko felt like taunting him.
"Kyoko-chan you look so mature now." The older woman said scrunching her brows together. Kyoko looked nothing like herself. "Sho-chan rented out a room for your dinner."
Kyoko nodded and walked confidently in her high heels as the okami-san led her to the largest private room. Kyoko slipped off her heels leaving them just outside the door as she entered. She kneeled on the floor and bowed to her former employer. The okami-san smiled finally glimpsing the girl she knew beneath the makeup.
"Would you like some tea while you wait for Sho-chan to arrive?" The okami-san asked.
"Yes, that would be lovely." Kyoko replied though Sho shouldn't be that far away. Yashiro had insisted on them both riding with their respective managers.
The older woman looked Kyoko up and down one last time taking in her posh blazer and fitted jeans. She frowned thinking that she had seen Tsuruga dressed similarly before. Kyoko really was starting to resemble him in style. The okami-san took her leave heading into the kitchen shaking her head as she wondered where the mature woman had come from and what she had done with Kyoko. Sure, she had expected her to grow up, but she had thought that Kyoko would always keep her liveliness.
"Is something wrong?" The taisho-san asked as he continued to chop vegetables.
"Kyoko-chan seems different." Okami-san said pulling out Kyoko's favorite tea pot.
"Sho-san warned us that Tsuruga had gotten to her. Do not worry though she'll see the err of her ways and return to us. She will not stay with that con-artist." Taisho-san said confidently. There was no way he would let that girl ruin her life for some man who preyed on young girls.
"The reporters said…"
"Sho-san explained to us that those were all lies." Taisho-san interrupted her. There was no way he would believe the filth they were spreading about Sho. He knew the boy well enough to know that it was all lies. Sho had spent many nights at the Darumaya fretting over Kyoko's safety and well-being. There was no way he would cheat on her.
"Yes, I know. LME doesn't want them together." Okami-san said shaking her head. "They want to keep Tsuruga-san happy and that means keeping her attached to him."
Okami-san couldn't believe the things Sho had told her about Ren, at first. Ren had always been so nice and polite when she'd spoken with him. She couldn't believe that he would seduce Kyoko, but Sho had shown her the pictures. He had told her all about how Tsuruga manipulated her into distrusting Sho. The actor had even gone so far as to steal a role meant for Sho to keep them apart.
An hour later Kyoko continued to sip her tea as she waited for Sho. She wasn't even mad anymore just irritated and hungry from having to wait for him. When Sho finally entered the room, he had a smug look on his face. He had put on a show for the paparazzi and showed them the ring he had in his pocket. Yashiro could do nothing except keep the reporters a bay as Sho bragged about how he was going to propose.
"Hey," Shotaro greeted her with a lopsided grin and what he thought was a sexy smolder. It was a poor imitation of a look he had seen Ren pull on her. He had been jealous of the way she had turned red and stumbled over her words.
"Finally! Are you always this late for dates? I always used to wonder why you could never keep a girlfriend back home. Now I know it's not just that arrogant attitude of yours keeping you single." Kyoko said making Shotaro's face fall.
"I'm not single." He said looking into her eyes. They were cold and uncaring as she stared back at him.
"I haven't seen anyone with you. Mimori-chan dumped you. Are you dating Shoko-san still? I would have thought she kicked you out of her bed already." Kyoko said.
"What? NO, I'm not dating Shoko-san. I was never dating her or Pochi. Kyoko you must know that…" he fell to his knees next to her and used a warm soothing voice to speak.
"I was going to scold you for your stunt earlier but I'm really hungry. Can we order food now?" she asked not caring to hear whatever he wanted to say. It was probably some gibberish about how great he was anyway.
"I already did." Sho said sulking. "The Taisho-san said he would bring us our meal personally. He misses you."
Kyoko nodded solemnly. She should have visited them more often, but she didn't want to hear them bad mouth Kuon. They didn't even know him, but they were set in their belief that he was no good. Somehow, they would always bring up Shotaro and how well mannered and proper he was.
"It doesn't bother you at all?" Shotaro asked letting his voice sound sincere and concerned.
He brought out his secret weapon and placed it on the table in front of her. There in glossy print was a picture of Ren holding hands with Melissa and leaning close to whisper in her ear. In the corner was another of the pair locking lips. He was reclining on a beach towel with her nestled between his legs her head tilted back. Those were her arms wrapped around Melissa's voluptuous frame. That was her safe place Melissa was snuggled against.
"No, because it isn't true." Kyoko replied swirling her tea. Except there was a photo of Kuon kissing Melissa. That hadn't been made up. He hadn't told her about a kissing scene but maybe it had been added or he just forgot to mention it.
"I hate to break it to you, but that actress is sexy and Tsuruga has been away for weeks. A man has needs and he can't be expected to deny someone that hot." Shotaro said ogling Melissa. She was just his type, and he couldn't imagine anyone turning her down.
"Just because you're a slimeball doesn't mean Ren is." Kyoko said pushing the tabloid aside. "I thought you learned by now that this kind of magazine is trash."
"Yeah, I'm sure he's not getting a blow job right now. Why not call him and see. If he answers than he's being faithful, if not then he's probably fucking her as we speak." Shotaro said wanting her to feel insecure and unsure of Tsuruga.
"Or he's asleep, or working, he could be in the shower getting ready for work. It's almost six in the morning there. I bet he's driving to work." Kyoko reasoned.
"Or he could be in the shower fucking her up the ass." Sho countered with a smirk. He picked her phone up from the table and looked at the front page. "No, good morning text? I thought Tsuruga was all about giving you attention. He must have his hands full."
"Ok, Shotaro." Annoyed Kyoko took the bait and called Kuon. The phone rang for what felt like forever before his answering machine message began to play. She ended the call and glared at the phone.
"How deep do you think she can take him down her throat?" Sho asked.
"You're so gross. I told you, he's probably driving. Sometimes he has a late start and takes advantage of it by sleeping an extra hour." She said pushing away the thought that he would have told her if he was starting late. More than that he would have used the extra time to call her not sleep in.
"You're right he's probably asleep." Sho concluded and she nodded happy that he was being reasonable. "Asleep after a long night of fucking Melissa." Her mind conjured the image. She worried her lip and called him again only to get no answer.
"It doesn't mean anything other than he's busy." She said.
"Busy fucking other women while you're here being a good little girl. Don't even try to lie and tell me you haven't been horny since he left." Sho's hand touched her thigh.
"You're gross. Don't touch me." She slapped his hand away. No matter how handsome she still thought him to be she could see the true ugliness beneath the pretty veneer. She trusted Kuon and she wasn't about to lose him because her childhood crush suddenly wanted her. Her stomach churned with revulsion as he leaned forward trying to kiss her. "Stop it!" She shouted shoving both hands in his face. With all her strength she pushed him back and he landed on the floor hissing as he hit his head.
"Tsuruga, has you wrapped around his finger doesn't he. You'll sit here faithfully waiting for him to come back. Meanwhile he has all those young eager girls throwing themselves at him. I bet Melissa isn't his first affair or even the only one he's having now. There is a whole group of girls on that set. One of them just happens to have a striking resemblance to someone I know very well." Shotaro said reaching for the magazine and flipping it open.
There was an image of a petite brunette with golden brown eyes. Her facial features were small, and she was talking to Ren with what looked like animated enthusiasm. She could have been some long-lost cousin of Kyoko. Ren looked comfortable talking to her outside of a grocery store.
"Her name is Elizabeth. Do you think he calls her Liz or Lizzie? She's only sixteen you know, just like you were when…"
"Tsuruga-san never touched me when I was sixteen." Except there was that time on his kitchen floor.
"I don't believe you. That man was sniffing around you since Dark Moon at least."
"There was nothing going on between us on the set of Dark Moon." Kyoko said knowing that although it was technically the truth it wasn't the entire truth. They may not have been together, but they had been in love.
"You're full of shit Kyoko. Tsuruga Ren is a dog, and you know it. He liked you because you were young and virginal. Now that you're his little slut he's bound to get bored. And what do you know here are Melissa and Lizzie to keep him company. I bet he's teaching Lizzie all the same tricks he taught you." Shotaro said and Kyoko sighed shaking her head. There was no getting through to the boy.
"Fine say I choose you. Then what? We get married and start a little family?" Sho nodded liking the sound of that. "It doesn't matter than I don't want kids, right?" His face fell. "What did you expect that I would go home to Kyoto and raise your children while you tour the world? Do you think I'm going to give up my future roles and all my contracts to be with you on tour?"
"I wouldn't do that to you. I love you." But if he were honest, he did want that. He wanted to take her with him and keep her close. He wanted children that looked just like him and he wanted them to be raised in his parents' house.
"Ren, worships me."
"That's just his way of manipulating you."
"No, he doesn't manipulate me, you do! That's why you brought the tabloid. You wanted to manipulate me into doing something with you. You thought that you could convince me that you knew my husband better than I do. As if I would choose ever to let you touch me. Even if I didn't have him, I still wouldn't want you."
He flinched as though she had slapped him, "Don't lie Kyoko. You've always wanted me. Maybe if you tried to date me for real without Tsuruga clouding your head with his love bombing, I could have a chance." He said unwilling to give up on her.
"Maybe you're right." Kyoko said shrugging. "Maybe I could spend time with you and find things that I like about you. Maybe I could nurture and grow my feelings for you into something genuine and all-consuming again. But why would I want to do that?"
Shotaro knit his brows together. He had liked what she was saying until that last part.
"You still think of me as something to own. A prize to be won so you could lord it over your rivals. I am not a human with my own wants and needs to you. I'm your ragdoll you can dress up and beat the hell out of as you see fit." She said and his lip curled. There was no getting through to her. She was too stuck on Tsuruga to see Shotaro.
"You know, just because Tsuruga fucks you doesn't mean he loves you. All it means is that you are an easy slut." His words were fueled purely by hurt and anger. He regretted them the second he said them but there was no taking them back.
"You know Shotaro you're absolutely right. I am his slut." Her words paralyzed him. "I let him do things to me that you couldn't even imagine. I enjoy them. I crave them. I like being his whore. When he comes home, I'm going to greet him on my knees with my mouth open like a good little slut. And I will enjoy every second of swallowing his giant co…"
"You're disgusting."
Kyoko's blood ran cold as Takatsuki-san's voice filled the room.
"Taisho-san, I," she began and turned to look at him. His eyes shone with disappointment and for the first time she felt ashamed of herself for having sex. The way he looked at her as though she were dirty reminded her of how her mother would look at her for existing.
"I knew Tsuruga-san was a pervert, but I didn't expect you to be so polluted by his charms." The man she had come to love like a father said. His eyes looked passed her at the wall as though he couldn't stand the sight of her.
"Taisho-san you don't understand." She said wishing he would look at her. "Shotaro, he… I mean just today on set, and then now…" What happened to getting Shotaro in trouble? How was she the one being scolded?
"Whatever Sho-san did I'm sure he had his reasons. It's you I'm concerned about. That man is corrupting you. He's using you for his own purpose and he's going to ruin you." Taisho said as the Okami-san stepped in behind him wondering why he had stopped in the doorway. She had brought a fresh tray of tea to accompany the tray of food he had in his hands.
"You don't even know him!" Kyoko said then looked at Shotaro. "You don't know either of them. If you did it would be Shotaro you despised.
"Who would despise an age-appropriate young man over a cradle robber who won't even let you come see us?" Okami-san asked catching up to the situation. She wished they didn't have to fight but Kyoko wasn't seeing reason.
"Ren doesn't keep me from seeing you. I've been busy and I don't particularly want to spend tie with two people who hate the man I love." She said causing the Okami-san to flinch. "Ren loves me. You would know that if you bothered to spend five minutes with us together without glaring daggers at him. Even Shotaro's parents prefer Ren for me over Sho. Because Ren treats me like a human being and not a toy he can use and discard whenever he pleases."
"You just admitted that you do let him use you. Not like the proper young lady I thought you to be but like a common prostitute."
"Yeah, that's what I said, and I refuse to feel bad about it. He makes me happy, and it pleases me to make him happy in every way imaginable." She admitted. She wouldn't feel bad for liking sex. It wasn't dirty or wrong for her to be happy. "I would rather be Ren's whore than Shotaro's punching bag!"
The Taisho finally looked her in the eyes with his stone-cold gaze. "Get out. I don't want to look at you."
"Taisho-san…"
"Get out of my house." He said.
"Honey, we want her to leave Tsuruga-san and come back to us." The Okami-san said.
A lump formed in Kyoko's throat. She couldn't breathe and her vision blurred. All she could see were his cold eyes condemning her as a mistake who should have never been born. She was a cursed existence, and she would never be smart enough, obedient enough, or pure enough to deserve love.
"Kyo…" Sho began but she took off running.
She had to get out. There was no way she would ever be able to breathe under that judgmental gaze. It was too much like Seana's for her heart to take.
"Kyoko!" Sho shouted chasing after her.
She burst outside and gulped down the cold night air. It burned her lungs helping her to focus her mind on the present. Seana wasn't here. Taisho-san wasn't her dad, and he had no right to judge her so harshly. The thought didn't make the pain of his rejection go away. She wanted him to be like a father to her. She wanted him to like Kuon and be happy for her.
"It's Kyoko-chan!" The paparazzi swarmed closer to her their cameras flashing as they advanced nearer.
"Kyoko come back inside." Sho said catching up to her and reaching for her arm.
"Don't you fucking touch me!" She screamed not caring who heard and she slapped his hand away. Stunned the paparazzi halted in their steps to gawk at the two. They had never seen Kyoko angry let alone heard her curse.
"Kyoko come inside you're making a scene." He tried to grab her hand, but she shoved him and she kept shoving him as she yelled at him.
"Oh, you don't want me to make a scene now. Weren't you out here bragging earlier? Don't you live to pose for them and give them stories to write about? Isn't it so great to be admired and stalked? What don't you want everybody to see how fucked up we are? Don't you want me to confirm the cheating rumors, or should I confess that this was all a giant fraud…"
Having enough of being shoved back Shotaro had slapped her for all the flashing cameras to see. The entire fight had only lasted for a moment. Yashiro was by her side then and gently pushing Shotaro back so he could take her to his car. Shotaro stood there stunned by his own hand and the tingling feeling in his fingers.
It was painful to know that she knew him well enough to predict this. She would rather be Tsuruga's whore than Sho's punching bag.
Kuon rushed off set to his trailer. He had been working all night on a moonlit beach filming a romantic date scene. Because of that he hadn't been able to text Kyoko at his usual time before going to work. He hoped she hadn't gone to bed yet and he could call her. Pulling his phone out he saw that there was one missed call from her and smiled. It was only a few minutes ago so she should still be up. He reached his trailer ready to call her when his phone started ringing again with her picture. Hand over the answer button he opened his trailer door and stopped dead in his tracks as Elizabeth greeted him wearing nothing but a towel. His face fell and he let out a deep sigh. pocketed his phone and removed his jacket before entering his trailer and closing the door.