References:

Masaka – "It can't be…"
Otou-san – father
Konbanwa – "Good evening…"
Otanjou-bi omedetou gozaimasu – "Happy birthday…"
Gichou – chairman
Chikusho - "Damn it…"

----

Eight o'clock in the evening sharp. 1349 Nishi Area, Juuban District. Red house.

That was the exact words on the small paper that Michiru handed Haruka before they parted on the previous night. According to the green-haired girl, it's the address of her 'real' home, where she would like to introduce her girlfriend to her father.

She looked at the address in front of her, she was standing outside a huge villa…

She compared it to Kaioh's scribbles.

1349 Nishi Area, Juuban District.

The same words stare back at her face.

Masaka…

Michiru made a mistake, didn't she?

The blonde clutched the small box in her hands. It was supposed to be her present for Michiru's Otou-san, it contains an intricate vase that her mother had personally made for the said man.

"There you are!" Tenoh felt somewhat relieved when she heard the familiar voice.

"Konbanwa, Ami-chan."

"Konbanwa, Haruka-san. Why didn't you rang the doorbell before? Michiru's been waiting for you."

"Ah…" The blonde laughed nervously. She knew that something was not right…Michiru, living in a grand house?

But I thought she was just ordinary…

"Come on, Haruka-san…you don't want to get her worried, do you?" Ami forcibly dragged the still-contemplating Haruka inside. "She's over there at the pond, with her father, Chairman Kaioh."

…Chairman Kaioh?

----

She couldn't believe it. No, her eyes couldn't be deceiving her. Nor her ears.

No, this can't be…

"Otou-san, I'd like you to meet my special someone…Tenoh Haruka. Haruka, meet my father, the chairman of Mugen Gakuen."

The moment she heard the words, she felt her world crumble to pieces. She felt weak. She felt small. She felt like she was a mice in the presence of a lion.

In front of her was one of the most powerful man in Japan. One of the richest and one of the most famous. None other than business tycoon, Kaioh Mishiro.

"It's nice to meet you, sir," she managed to squeak out and offered her hand. Mishiro's eyebrows raised.

"You mean to tell me," the man turned to his daughter, "that this…this freeloader is your beloved? She only wants money! What were you thinking? Or were you thinking at all?" The older Kaioh rudely slapped away the blonde's hand.

At this, the couple winced. One from her wounded pride, and the other from seeing her love be insulted by his own father.

Still, Haruka did not want to give up. She wanted to prove that her intentions were pure. "Otanjou-bi omedetou gozaimasu, Kaioh-san." She bowed and offered to him her mother's masterpiece.

But Mishiro just laughed at her, embarrassing her in front of everyone. "No thanks, I'm sure that whatever it is that you've afforded, we already have one in our house."

"Father, that is enough!" Michiru cried out. She could see the pain from Tenoh's eyes and it was enough to tore her heart to pieces. She rushed and hugged her girlfriend for support.

"Let go of her, Michiru. I have someone else more 'appropriate' for you that I'd like you to meet. And unlike that piece of trash, Mamoru-kun is smart, talented, and rich."

"I don't care about money!"

"Oh, and you suppose that beggar can give you a good life like the one you're having right now?"

"Stop insulting Haruka, I beg you. By hurting her, you are hurting me too!"

"Michi…don't. Don't fight back. He's your father." Kaioh heard the blonde whisper in her ear.

"But, Haruka…he has no right…"

"Hush, Michi. You should obey your father. Parents only want the best for their children."

"Look around, child. She's the only one here who has no money, nor degree. Leave now, Tenoh. You have no place here." Mishiro left the two and walked off towards his business partners.

"He's right, I should leave." Haruka said in a cold voice, her face vague with emotion.

"Haruka…please don't leave me." She ignored Michiru's plead and ran as fast as she could outside. And once she reached the gate, she didn't stop.

----

Without even considering her daughter's miserable state, Mishiro pulled her over to one of the tables where a black-haired man was currently chatting with his secretary, Tsukino Usagi.

"Usagi-chan, I'm not interrupting anything, am I?"

Tsukino immediately replied, "Of course not, Gichou."

"Mamoru-kun, this is my daughter, Michiru."

"It's definitely, a pleasure to meet someone as beautiful as you, Michiru-san." She almost barfed when he suddenly grabbed and kissed her hand. "I am Chiba Mamoru, your father's new apprentice."

Michiru found herself trapped between her father and the stranger.

----

No, I will not cry…no, I will not—

Tears blinded her as she ran carelessly away from the Kaioh mansion.

'You mean to tell me that this…this freeloader is your beloved?'

'No thanks, I'm sure that whatever it is that you've afforded, we already have one in our house.'

'Let go of her, Michiru. I have someone else more 'appropriate' for you that I'd like you to meet.'

'Oh, and you suppose that beggar can give you a good life like the one you're having right now?'

'She's the only one here who has no money, nor degree. Leave now, Tenoh. You have no place here.'

Mishiro's words echoed in her mind.

Chikusho!

CRASH!

Her mother's vase collided with a wall. Along with her fists who started to bleed after punching the hard stone for a few minutes.

"Why did I have to be poor?" Haruka collapsed to her knees, with tears in her eyes, and both her heart and her hands bleeding.

The sky seem to sympathize. Rain fell down, stroking the blonde's cheek, washing her face from stain.

"Why can't love be enough?"

That night, Tenoh Haruka fell asleep in a dark alley. All alone with misery.

----

Author's Note:

Yeah, I'm still breathing. Barely.

Disclaimer:

Haruka, Michiru, and the rest of the BSSM gang belong to Naoko Takeuchi. I'm just borrowing them for a little while.
And SBS owns the Korean TV series Green Rose.