Part Five – Chapter 15 – A True Grounding

15.1

Kuon took a slow breath as he stood outside of the president's office. He had been here with his father a lot of times but right now he was going to do it by himself. It was a bit nerve wrecking, especially due to the history which he had had with Kyoko and how many things he wished hadn't happened but he wanted it and he wanted to do it himself and not because his father and Lory were best buds or anything like that.

He saw Lory's assistant open the door and took a deep breath before coming in. "Good morning," he said to the assistant who nodded to him. He walked over to where Lory was and bowed to him deeply. "Thank you for agreeing to see me and talk to me," he said nervously as Lory stood and walked over to him. Kuon could feel his heart pounding in his chest and could hear it in his head as Lory made his way over. "I really thank you for th-"

"Why are you acting this way, Kuon?" Lory chuckled a little and Kuon kept his head down but closed his eyes tightly. "You're a teenager. You should at least get a little leniency on your actions. If you did this when you were ten years older I wou-"

"I'm sorry," Kuon said before looking up to see an amused Lory. "B-Boss, you're not angry with me?"

Lory looked at him before gesturing for him to come sit down with him. "Kuon, I'm not angry with you," he said as he gestured towards some snacks he had put out in case Kuu had come with him. Kuon looked down. "I mean, you've gone through a lot in the past and things that are a horror for any child to live through and you're still standing and more than that you've accepted the fact that you've messed up."

Kuon laughed weakly as he looked to the side. "I've more than messed up," he admitted and Lory nodded.

"You're a kid still. And you know that there are a lot of people your age who would never take responsibility for their actions or want to apologize for the ones that they've hurt. Now, your father did talk to me a little bit about what you wanted to come here for today," he saw Kuon sigh and nod weakly and he hummed. "But I'd prefer to hear it from you. Now there are several routes to becoming an actor and with promising talent like yours or your family history, you don't have to belong to LME although I would love to have the honor of guiding you. So, you want for me to look for some role openings?" he asked with a lift of his eyebrow and Kuon's eyes widened .

"No. That's, that's not what I – I don't wan that," Kuon half panicked and Lory settled back into the chair. "I mean, yes, eventually, I'd love those roles but not…not now. I uh…I really wanted to see if I could try out to take some acting classes here." Kuon said with complete honesty. "I know that there are classes for girls and classes for boys or whatever but I…any…I want to take any that you'd let me take."

Lory looked at him with a small smile although Kuon could tell there were more emotions than what was showing on the surface. "Are you sure? I mean, if we tell people who you are or if we just let you audition for -"

Kuon turned to him. "All my life I've been pushed into the elite world of fame and fortune because of who my parents are and that has confused me. They have tried to give me whatever they could but I didn't have much discipline or people looking over my shoulder. My dad does care a great deal now and he always did but he's trying to show me how much he cares about me but I didn't have much ground to stand on. I would like to be given the chance to take classes so that I can build a good foundation and earn my way into roles. I want to live with my family but I want to be able to try on my own merits and when it comes time to audition, I'd like to go by a stage name."

Lory hummed as he rubbed his chin and smiled to Kuon. ""Excellent. Now you are aware that this is a road that will require a lot of hard work and perseverance, you might not get the roles you're imagining or even a chance at them for two or three years."

"Good," Kuon said honestly as he looked ahead of him. "I need to slow down and not charge ahead as I have been doing. There is one other problem though," he said and took a deep breath in. "My parents and I have made an agreement that I need therapy and possibly some medication and maybe a child psychiatrist or family counselor. It would mean having someone with an illness in the class."

Lory looked at him firmly but with a supportiveness behind that. "Kuon, if this agency looked down on those who might be considered mentally ill then I would never be the president of such an agency. You're fine. I know you don't want special privileges but you can come talk to me when you need to. Do you understand?"

Kuon nodded with a weak smile, "Thanks, Boss."

5.15.2

Kyoko looked at Kanae with a lot of excitement in her expression. Kanae sighed as she looked at her friend and the purple gift box with a huge bow on it. She looked from the box and then up at Kyoko and worried slightly at how she could explode if she kept this excitement and anticipation in. "What did you get me?" she asked as she looked at the box and Kyoko kept grinning.

"You have to open it to find out, please open it," Kyoko requested and Kanae raised an eyebrow before sighing and opened the gift. She looked inside to find a dark purple bag that looked stylish and yet understated, something that she could really enjoy. She lifted it from the bag and looked at it. She smiled as she saw a purple flower at the top. It was fake but elegant and the only decoration. She hummed before opening it to see there to be several pockets and dividers of different sizes.

"Do you like it?" Kyoko asked excitedly as she saw Kanae turn it to the light and stick her hands into the different divider parts. "I measured some of the scripts that come from the LME acting department and I thought that if I made the lining waterproof you'd feel safe putting scripts or books in there and there's a special compartment for your purse and personal belongings.

"Do you like it? I thought that the color was perfect for you," she said and Kanae smiled as she looked at it again.

"It's amazing," she said although she only had a light smile on her face, she put it down and took a deep breath in before turning to Kyoko. "Thank you. I really like it a lot," she said and Kyoko grinned excitedly. "I will find a way to thank you."

"You don't have to find a way to thank me," Kyoko said before standing in front of Kanae and spread her arms out. "Can I have a hug?" she smiled happily. "I'll accept a hug in place of a thank you gift."

Kanae sighed and rolled her eyes but got off of the chair and offered her arms out. Kyoko almost pounced on her to get a hug and her perfect moment of friendship. She looked to the bag. Something like that wouldn't be appropriate for Kuon but maybe she could make him a male version, something with emerald and gold and maybe a little bit of a burned sienna.

Kuon though, she just wanted him to be happy and healthy and she had been told that his happiness and his health might not be there for a little bit and he had to work hard on that too. Life was difficult when you got to be a teenager it appeared.

5.15.3

Kuon bowed his head as he heard the hushed whispers from the back room of the clinic. He had thought that this would be a good idea but right now all he could see were the flaws in his plan. He had requested to go and speak with a family psychiatrist. It would be a place where he would be able to get his voice out and then both his parent or parents could help and the psychiatrist.

Still, when he had proposed the idea to his father, his dad had seemed to look forward to it but now he was worried about that. His father was well known and people didn't know that they were there for him. Maybe they would consider this appointment for his dad .What if they thought something crazy such as his father was abusing him or neglecting him. He shivered a little and saw his dad look at him concerned.

"I'm sorry, dad," Kuon whispered as he looked down at the floor and Kuu watched him carefully. "I'm so sorry, I shouldn't have brought you in here with me. I'm so sorry," he apologized and Kuu turned his whole body towards Kuon.

"What are you talking about?" Kuu asked as he looked to his son. "We're just going to go in and have a chat with the psychiatrist and if this person doesn't seem like the right fit then we'll go somewhere else," he said and Kuon shook his head as he kept his head bowed.

"They think that you have to go to therapy," he said and Kuu sighed.

"Okay. What if they do?" he shrugged and Kuon looked up at him with a mix of fear and pain in his eyes. Kuu looked to his son and smiled. "The most important thing to me is that you are okay and I personally feel better if people think things about me than about my son. I want to interpret and make sure that you're actually getting help."

"Because you don't trust me anymore, right?" Kuon asked before leaning back and sighing. He didn't want to admit that he didn't trust himself either and he had no idea how to earn that trust back.

"It's not that," Kuu told him before sighing. "I don't trust them. You might not see it now or until you become the father of your own child or children…if you want kids, but I don't want someone hurting you or giving you substances which can hurt you. I don't want them doing something that will cause any negative results so I'm not going in there to punish you but I'm….I want to be your security team," he said and Kuon looked at him.

"Even if it means that people think you do need help?" he asked and Kuu sighed.

"I do need help," he nodded. "I need help learning how to take care of my son."

Kuon sighed and bowed his head as the psychiatrist came out to the waiting room, "Thanks, Dad."

End of Chapter Fifteen

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