Look at that smile, how can you not see how in love he is? A message board member asked accompanied by a picture of Ren and Kyouko talking outside the LME building presumably on their way to his car.

He never smiles at Kana-san like that. Another chimed in posting a picture of him looking down as he walked beside Kana. It had been a 'date' where they were meeting up with friends, one of which happened to be Kyouko.

I mean Kana-san is gorgeous and I love her but look at Kyouko. So adorable! One fan added and sprinkled heart emojis all over the comment.

Adorable? She looks like an angry little boy. She has no body, and her hair is too short. Another person commented earning a lot of thumbs down.

Jealous? Kyouko is so beautiful I would divorce my husband to be with her. Another replied to the previous comment.

I would too. Why hasn't Tsuruga-sama snatched her up already?

BECAUSE KANA-SAMA EXISTS! An irked fan said. It was after all a fan site for Kana and Ren as a couple. Nobody knew who had started the first thread about Ren and Kyouko, but every time one thread was taken down another would pop up eventually.

Kana giggled reading the message board. Smiling deviously, she began typing again.

We should create a fan site for Kyouko-chan and Tsuruga-san. She posted and waited eagerly for people to respond.

"What are you snickering about?" Ren asked setting down a cup of coffee on his table.

"Just having a little chat with some friends." Kana-san said. "Thank you. Where is Kyouko-chan this morning?"

"Still sleeping." Ren said with longing. He wished he were still in bed sleeping beside Kyouko. "Why are you here so early?" he asked pinching the bridge of his nose.

"We're going out to breakfast together remember? I said that people were starting to notice that I don't spend the night. We need people to think we're having sex." Kana said as a matter of fact with most of her attention on the message board.

"Is that why you're posting about Kyouko and me?" Ren asked pointing to the reflection of her phone on the tv. "I really don't appreciate you gossiping about us. We don't gossip about you and," the bedroom door opening silenced him, and he turned to see Kyouko yawning as she exited their room. "Hey, there's my princess."

Kana smiled at how he seemed to light up at the sight of Kyouko. Being friends with them was like watching a romantic drama play out in real time. Still, she had some concerns. Kyouko was naïve, and Kana was starting to learn that Tsuruga Ren wasn't quite the gentleman everyone thought he was. It worried her to see Kyouko dressed in his shirt which hung loosely off her shoulders revealing multiple hickeys. He treated the girl like a queen, but Kana could see the possession in the way he walked over to her and blocked her body from view. They whispered but Kana heard what sounded like Kyouko saying "It's only Kana-san." As though to reassure him that her body was safe from prying eyes. He pushed her back into their room anyway and despite the smile on her face Kana thought Kyouko looked worried.

"Kuon." Kyouko whined as he shut the door. "You didn't even let me say a proper good morning. We're being rude."

"Go change, then you can talk with her all you want. Maybe you two can even exit together and I'll sneak out the back." He replied annoyed that he couldn't just crawl back into bed with her.

He didn't have any jobs for another two hours, but he was supposed to take Kana out for breakfast and shopping. His only consolation was that she knew Kyouko's size and Kyouko didn't object to presents as much if Kana 'bought' them.

"Don't forget to put some make up on all of that." He said motioning to the love marks splattered all over her neck.

"You don't like them?" she asked teasingly bending her head back to show them off better. "I like them. I like them so much that I expect to get more later. In fact, I would like to give you some more too."

Kuon shook his head and refused to look at her. "I told you last night that you shouldn't use your body to appease my jealousy. I'm really disappointed in myself for losing control." He leaned against the door and closed his eyes. She was too good, and he didn't think she was able to clearly see how bad he was. Just like Sayuri made excuses for Satoshi, Kyouko overlooked all his flaws.

"Kuon." Kyouko called to him placing her hands on his chest to bring him out of his dark self-loathing state. "First, you asked for permission and I gave it. That is not something Satoshi would ever do; that is a quality that is unique to my Corn. Second, I enjoyed it. Please don't think that last night was only about your jealousy. I get possessive too."

Unable to accept her reasoning he took her hands in his and looked down into her eyes. "Please, Kyouko, go cover up. I don't want anyone to see and think that I mistreat you. It isn't right for me to take my jealousy out on you."

"They're hickeys Kuon; you didn't hit me." she said trying to convey to him that he was not Satoshi. "I promise you that I really enjoyed last night and if you continue to sulk about it, I'll be really irritated. I initiated it the second time because I liked it." She leaned up and kissed his cheek. "I love you, Kuon and despite being shy I do want to share my body with you."

"I love you too, princess and I love that you are opening up to me physically." He said but his eyes trailed down to her neck again.

The marks disappeared beneath the oversized shirt she wore. Her soft moans echoed in his mind taunting him to do it again even as he was disgusted by his actions. He knew she was sensitive to his negative emotions and that she had been trying to distract him from them last night.

"Kuon." Kyouko breathed pulling his face to hers forcing him to look her in the eyes again. "I really enjoyed last night don't ruin that for me." She said before pulling him down for a hard-possessive kiss. "I may be yours, but you are also mine."

"I know princess." He said finally smiling. To prove that he was out of the darkness he leaned down and laid a trail of kisses up her neck. "Seriously though get dressed before I get carried away. Your friend is still here." He said remembering Kana in the other room waiting for them.

The polite thing to do would be to go out and keep Kana company while Kyouko went into the bathroom to get ready for the day. That was part of being Tsuruga Ren, small talk and politeness, but he didn't have the energy to be Ren for Kana. If not for Kyouko he didn't have much energy to do anything at the moment. Satoshi was sapping all his strength and he couldn't wait to film his well-deserved death scene. It would be the only scene he'd watch on repeat when the drama came out. Sighing he forced himself out of the bedroom but ignored Kana and disappeared into the kitchen.

In the bathroom Kyouko unbuttoned her shirt turning bright red at the sight of love marks leading to the love bites on her nipples. She smiled bringing her fingers up to touch the right nipple which he seemed to favor, and she gasped recalling the feeling of his teeth sinking into her flesh. Taking a moment, she closed her eyes to savor the memory of the night before.

She moaned loudly gripping fistfuls of soft brown hair. The feel of his wet tongue on her skin made warmth coil in her stomach. The feeling intensified at the sound of his hungry groans as she pushed her chest closer to his mouth. Lost in his passion Kuon moved down and latched onto one hard sensitive nipple and gave a guttural moan at the taste. Kyouko cried out as he bit down a little too roughly.

"I'm sorry." Kuon said releasing her nipple and backing away.

"Don't stop, please." Kyouko whined blushing at how needy she sounded but unwilling to let him go. "I like it." She said bringing his hand to her left breast and humming in pleasure at the warmth. She bit her lip letting her eyes roll shut as he rolled her nipple between his fingers.

"This is dangerous love." Kuon reiterated while pressing a kiss to the side of her face. "I don't know if I can stop if you let me go too far."

"You will if I tell you to." Kyouko said confidently with a hand on his face to pull him in for another kiss. Breaking the contact for a moment she removed her camisole and bit her lip ready to die of embarrassment.

"Kyouko." He meant to scold her, but it came out as a tender prayer. She looked up at him shy yet seductive.

With a grunt he attacked her mouth and reveled at the exhilarated moans he managed to draw from her. His kisses continued south until he reached the swell of her breasts. There he started with soft nibbles before taking her nipple between his teeth and causing her to throw her head back with a loud gasp.

Kyouko shook her memories from her mind and finished undressing. The wet stain on her underwear made her blush deepen but a wicked part of her thought of teasing him with them. Before she could get too deep in carnal thoughts, she stuffed them in the hamper and jumped into the shower to rinse off the evidence of her desires. He had stopped without her telling him to and despite her pouting he had sent them both to bed. It had been rather late, and they did need to get up early so she obeyed but she felt his insistence that she put on his shirt had been a little ridiculous. She only put it on because he used his puppy dog face on her. She smiled at the memory.

The smell of fried eggs piqued both Kana and Kyouko's interest. Kana had never known Ren to cook, he never even offered. Kyouko was afraid of what he could be doing. He only cooked when he wanted to punish himself with his own cooking. The two women peeked into the kitchen to see that he was indeed at the stove struggling to flip an egg. After a moment he gave up on flipping it and chose to place the lid over the pan. He watched it for a bit doing his best to remain patient while it cooked. When he thought it had been long enough, he removed the lid and cursed the pan as he tried to scrape the egg off and onto a plate.

Smiling sheepishly at Kana, Kyouko rushed over to him and offered to help. She was a little miffed that Kana had gotten to see something that belonged to her alone; Tsuruga Ren being imperfect. Still, it was cute watching him fumble at something.

"Sorry, you don't have to eat it." Kuon mumbled dejectedly.

"You made this for me?" Kyouko asked examining the crispy egg and noting that there were no eggshells, and it wasn't burnt. Dare she say it looked like an edible fried egg. Only one though and it was rather crispy looking. "Thank you." She said beaming up at him. Then in a serious tone, "But don't touch my kitchen without supervision again until I deem you ready for such a task." Feeling like teasing him she added, "That was dangerous love." Seeing a flash of his emperor eyes she knew he got her reference from the night before.

Feeling like an intruder Kana retreated to the living room. She shook her head wondering why she was so worried for Kyouko when Ren was wrapped around her finger.

Satisfied that Kyouko had eaten, Ren allowed Kana to drag him out for breakfast. They held hands and laughed at nothing making themselves appear to be in love. Then they wandered into a boutique where Kana happily purchased clothes for herself, her girlfriend, and Kyouko.

"Do you think we should have gotten Chiori-chan something?" She asked as the giddy cashier checked them out.

"We could get her something at the next shop if you want babe." Ren said beaming at his fake girlfriend. He was trying not to laugh at the way the cashier swooned at both of them.

"You're no fun." Kana pouted as he paid for everything. "Won't you even object to me buying my friends things?"

"Not if it makes you happy." He said and he was surprised to find that he meant it. He did want Kana to be happy and not just as a nice gesture because he didn't wish ill on anyone. Kuon genuinely wanted his friend Kana to be happy. It just so happened that what made her happy was to spoil Kyouko.

Later that day on set, Shou rolled his eyes as the user Kanaforever continued to rally people for a Ren and Kyouko fan site. If they loved Kana-san so much why were they so pro Kyouko and Tsuruga?

"Tch, why would anyone want that flat chested nobody if they already have a voluptuous woman like Kana?" he asked out loud but there was no one around to answer. He ogled a photo of Kana that was anything but appropriate on his phone. "How does Tsuruga keep getting all the women?" He flipped back to the message board where people were posting pictures of Kana and Ren exiting his apartment together that morning. Then they went to breakfast at an upscale bistro Shou couldn't even get reservations at.

It irked him that Kyouko didn't even seem intimidated by the older woman spending so much time with Ren. Even though they were obviously having sleep overs. From what Shou could tell Kyouko was still infatuated with that ogre of an actor. She even brought him and his girlfriend lunch today.

Before they shot their first scene that morning, he had been talking with Murasame who had suggested that they were both Ren's girlfriends. That was too much for Shou to accept. Not only did Tsuruga get the sexy Kana but he had Kyouko hanging all over him too. Then Murasame had to speculate about kana teaching Kyouko things that Kyouko had no business knowing.

"She especially doesn't need to be doing those things with that asshole." Shou growled scrolling down and finding an image of Ren and Kyouko seen together on a different day looking happy as they walked a little too close together. Unwanted images of Kyouko straddling Ren begging for more came to his mind. He could practicality hear Kana instructing her on how to move her hips.

"What kind of demon are you Tsuruga? My Kyouko doesn't do things like that and she would never be ok joining in with another woman! Sick manipulative freak! She's a pure maiden and I will not permit this behavior to go on." He declared forgetting that he was supposed to want a sexy woman like Kana and not be so bothered by Kyouko's relationship with Ren.

I hope Kyouko-chan and Tsuruga-san can get married and make beautiful babies together. Kanaforever posted before signing off.

"Over my cold dead body." Shou yelled to the empty room tossing his phone aside.

A knock sounded on the door before Shoko-san and Yashiro-san popped their heads in.

"Are you alright young man?" Yashiro asked and Shou sneered at how condescending he sounded. Why was everyone always treating him like a child? "We heard a lot of nonsensical shouting."

"Whatever old man." Shou grumbled. "Are they ready for me yet? Or is Tsuruga still crying over a little bruise on Kyouko's wrist? Such a baby." Shou made a face at the pleasant expression that never seemed to budge from Yashiro's face. It was clear that the older man was mocking him, and he wanted to slap the smile off his face.

"Tsuruga-san has been waiting for you to come out for ten minutes. We sent a stagehand to get you, but he said you screamed at him to go away." Shoko-san said dryly.

"I believe my exact words were leave me alone until that idiot actor stopped fussing over Kyouko." Shou spat standing up. "Is the ugly princess ready?" he asked with a smile as he finally saw a frown on Yashiro-san's face.

"And you wonder why you have no real friends." Kyouko said walking up behind Yashiro-san. She was half teasing but mostly serious. "Tsuruga-san has another job to get to in a couple hours. You need to be a professional and come out already."

"I am professional Kyouko. He's the one who was fawning all over you after grabbing you too roughly. If he couldn't handle a little violence, he shouldn't have the role." Shou hissed stalking over to her. A gentle yet firm hand halted him from advancing on her.

"True professionals are considerate of their costars. You would have been a horrible choice for Satoshi-san because you have no consideration for my wellbeing." She said crossing her arms.

Bruises in the shape of handprints lined her arms and Shou had to look away. They looked too real and he did wonder if they would be real had he done the scene with her.

"I wouldn't want to hurt you either but sometimes a little bruise is necessary to get a good shot isn't it?" He asked genuinely wanting the answer.

Pressing her lips together Kyouko contemplated the question. They had gotten the scene shot in one take like director Anna had wanted. Kuon was pretty shaken up by it however and he was her ideal of a professional. She had watched the scene and it looked real and disturbing. Kuon refused to even be on set when they played the scene back because it upset him so much. She didn't know if the few bruises she had sustained were worth making the scene look authentic. Unable to come to a decision she turned to Yashiro-san and asked him to return to set with her where Kuon was waiting for them. It wasn't her job to explain professionalism to Shou anyways.

"That boy is so irritating I might end up punching him myself." Yashiro-san said as they walked over to where Ren stood talking to director Anna.

Kana-san sat in the chair designated for Ren staring at her phone. She was always popping up and Yashiro-san felt a little sorry for her. Kyouko was quickly becoming a fan favorite and no one would be able to deny her acting abilities after Oh! Darling came out. If the message boards were any indication it was only a matter of time before they would have to give up the ruse and come out as a couple. Yashiro-san figured Kana-san knew all this and was milking the arrangement for all it was worth. She would have to find another fake relationship to hide behind someday.

"Kyouko-chan come here." Kana-san beckoned the younger girl over and showed her something on her phone. "What about this for your birthday party?"

Biting her lip Kyouko peered down at the cute green and brown dress. The bodice was fitted with a corded detail wrapping around the left breast splitting the green and brown fabric. It was cute but there was also a sexiness in the way the cord emphasized the model's breasts. There was one long sleeve, but the other arm only had a lace band on the bicep. The dresses front hem reached mid-thigh flowing into an asymmetrical back. The model pulled the skirt ruffles to the side in one picture to reveal a panel of the green fabric hidden beneath the brown.

"It's cute, but I don't think it would suit me." Kyouko said knowing full well that Kana was going to buy it anyway. And by Kana she knew that meant that Kuon would buy it, but they would say that Kana had gotten it to get her to accept it. That was their little game, Kana would ask Kyouko about things and if she slipped up and showed interest Kana would tell Kuon to buy it. For her part Kyouko would pretend to not know Kuon had bought it, but they both knew that she knew.

"I think you would look damn good in that." Murasame said popping his head over Kyouko's shoulder. "I mean I've seen your body underneath the prim proper housewife clothes and I never saw anything I didn't like."

"Taira-san," Ren moved forward to shove the man away but Kyouko reacted quickly and was pushing Ren towards the stage.

"We should take our places. Fuwa-san was right behind us." She said and to prove her right Shou sauntered over to them. "See we're all here time to get into character."

"I've been in character sweetheart." Shou said smoothly. "Those bruises look painful." He said catching her wrist and touching a real bruise. "Such lovely skin should never be covered in marks of pain."

A hand caught his wrist and gripped it hard. Wincing he released Kyouko's hand and yanked his away from Ren.

"Save it for the cameras gentlemen." Director Anna ordered. "Take your places now. I'm done waiting for the two of you and I'm sure Kyouko-chan wants to get on with the shoot as well."

"Yes, sir." Ren said politely. He had already apologized for leaving set after the last scene, but the guilt was still eating at him.

"Whatever." Shou sniped walking onto stage after Kyouko and Ren.

"You got this." Kyouko whispered as Ren placed shaky hands on her arms. "I'm ok, promise."

He took a stabilizing breath and Satoshi took over. Before him was the love of his life and he was so afraid of losing her that he lost control of his strength. The night before she had threatened to leave him, and his response was to shove her against a wall and promise to follow her to the ends of the world. No matter what she would be his even if she didn't want to be. Sayuri had reacted to that by shoving him off and slapping him. He countered the attack with an assault of his own gripping her by the hair and using his entire body to push her into the wall. He told her that she was his and if she left him, she would only have herself to blame for the consequences.

The following day Kenji, her coworker had come over to visit. He had been her friend since primary school and had practically given her the job at his father's law firm. She was young and inexperienced but smart and hard working. Satoshi saw the way Kenji looked at his wife however and knew that the man had ulterior motives. While she was in the kitchen preparing tea and a snack for them, Satoshi cornered her.

"What is he doing here?" Satoshi asked gripping her arms tightly. He was so much bigger than her that his grip practically lifted her off the floor.

"I don't know. He just invited himself over after work." Sayuri whimpered not wanting to get into another fight. "Satoshi please, you're hurting me." She said trying to pull her arms out of his grasp.

"I'm hurting you?" Satoshi scoffed. "What about how you're hurting me. You brought another man to my house. Are you fucking him?" The question startled her at the sheer ridiculousness of it.

"No." She answered quickly almost laughing at the thought of ever letting Kenji touch her.

"Oh, it's funny to you. My pain makes you laugh?" Satoshi said and Sayuri was confused.

"No." She said honestly.

"Really because you swore, you'd leave me and then that little rodent came strolling in as if he were appraising my home for himself." Satoshi snarled tightening his grip on her. "Prove to me you're not fucking him."

"H... how?" Kyouko stumbled over the line knowing what she had to act out next. The scene was not fully written. The dialogue had been left blank on purpose but there were detailed scene directions guiding them into what the actions should be. Anna and the writers had sat them down and talked over the scene and explained that it was an absolute must. Kuon was not happy about it but since she was with him, he had been convinced to go along with it. The final product would be shot and cut in such a way that she didn't actually have to do much. Still, it was embarrassing to have him lower her to the floor in front of everyone and push her down to her knees. They had made her practice the noises she needed to make but thankfully that conversation had taken place with just her and Kuon in the room with director Anna and a female producer. The actual scene was made all the more difficult by the presence of the entire crew and half the cast watching.

"You know how." Satoshi said and Kuon's heart skipped a beat. Nothing about the scene sat right with him but he was glad it was him with Kyouko and no one else. She was safe with him, he thought as he caressed her cheek and lowered her to her knees.

Shou stood in the fake living room connected to the fake kitchen spying on the couple. The envy shining in his eyes was very real. He took a step forward too soon wanting the image of Kyouko on her knees for Tsuruga to vanish.

"Cut!" Anna shouted with a glare at Shou. "You two stay where you are. Fuwa get out of the kitchen! You're meant to watch from the hall then come in when they're done." The director was starting to think Fuwa liked tormenting Kyouko. Every scene that was difficult for her he had found some way to flub up. "Get back and stay out of the kitchen or I swear I will recast Kenji. I don't care, we'll reshoot the entire drama with someone else."

"Tch!" Shou scoffed and backed out of the hallway. There was no way the director could do that; he had a contract.

Despite the defiant thought Shou clenched his fist and waited as Anna directed Kyouko and Ren to start from lowing her to the floor. Shou watched his stomach churning at the sight of Kyouko on her knees pretending to perform oral sex on Tsuruga. Everything in him screamed at him to go shove them apart. His Kyouko didn't do things like that. His Kyouko hated Tsuruga Ren and made fun of him. No way would she get on her knees for that man. There was no way she would do that for anyone. Kyouko was always supposed to remain a pure untainted maiden.

He watched Satoshi cum and Sayuri stand wiping her mouth and took his cue to enter the kitchen. A hand touched her face softly, but she flinched. A smile that somehow managed to be sadistic and remorseful came to Satoshi's face. The man was handsome and the image of a doting husband, Kenji thought. He couldn't be a monster. The bruise he had seen earlier must have been from some sort of accident. She fell or ran into something. Satoshi was their friend Airi-san's older brother and Kenji had always looked up to him. It had been a bit of a scandal when he got Sayuri pregnant but since he had been willing to marry her everyone chalked it up to being young and in love. Five years later they had three kids and still acted like newlyweds. Kenji still looked up to him like an idol, but maybe sometimes he wanted there to be cracks in the marriage. A part of him wanted Satoshi to be a terrible husband because what he really wanted was Sayuri to look at him the way she looked at Satoshi.

"I've never been in a house this big before." Kenji said awkwardly.

"Cut!" Director Anna shouted with less ire than before. He motioned for Shou to walk back over to the hall. "Let's do that again Fuwa."

All Shou's lines were scripted and he had little clue about how to portray awe and amazement while being jealous and resentful. He saw Ren mumble something to Kyouko and she giggled mischievously.

"Quiet you two." Anna barked.

"Right." They responded in unison and were instantly back in character.

Shou sneered at the act unwilling to admit that he was impressed by their ability to channel their characters like that. It took him another three tries to finally get a take that Anna liked, and they could move on. Anna wanted to film things in long shots, and he preferred to take it all in one go. At the first meeting he had expressed faith in Kyouko and Ren's ability to get their scenes done the way he wanted without much direction and Shou had rolled his eyes at that. He was sure that Tsuruga wasn't as good as everyone said. His little kohai couldn't be that good either, after all she had fumbled over being an angel turned demon there was no way she could do all those mature scenes with minimum aid from a script. They were both proving him wrong however and he hated Tsuruga for that. Tsuruga had changed Kyouko in ways that Shou despised. He hated the flirty clothes she wore and the wavy way she styled her dark hair. Even the fact that she had taken the role of Sayuri bothered Shou. Innocent little Kyouko believed in fairytale love and happily ever after. What was she doing acting out a tragedy that ended in disaster?

"Sayuri-san, can I ask you something?" Kenji asked as he followed her back to the living room. Satoshi had excused himself to shower and Kenji couldn't help but question the look he had thrown Sayuri or the way she seemed to tremble at it.

"Of course, Kenji-san, ask me anything." Sayuri answered relaxing now that Satoshi was out of sight.

Drawing in a deep breath Kenji touched her wrist where a bruise was concealed by the sleeve of her sweater. "Satoshi-san is a good man, isn't he?" He asked as she pulled her arm away tugging on her sleeve. "I mean he's good to you right? He treats you well?"

"Yes." Sayuri answered but her voice was devoid of emotion. "He bought me this sweater as a surprise present. It's cashmere and it isn't even my birthday. He's always getting me little gifts like that for no other reason than he loves me." The words sounded rehearsed even to Sayuri who knew she had never had to say them out loud though she had often repeated them to herself.

"More than that though, I mean, is he kind to you?" Kenji asked reaching out again to take her hand. "You deserve someone who is kind and protects you." He didn't know what he was thinking moving so close to her but there was a sadness in her eyes that he wanted to wipe away.

"Kenji-san I…" she almost broke down and told him everything. Her life flashed before her eyes and she imagined losing everything. "I think you should leave." She said pulling her hand out of his. There was no way she was going to risk hurting Satoshi with another misunderstanding.

"I saw the bruise." Kenji said quickly, unthinkingly. "Tell me you're happy with him."

She opened her mouth to speak but closed it unable to utter the lie she had planned in her head.

"He hurts you, doesn't he?" Kenji asked leaning in closer, drawn in by the vulnerable look on her face.

"I," Sayuri tried to say something but her words caught in her throat as she cycled through the lies in her head.

"Do you want to leave him?" Kenji asked cupping her face as she stared at him.

Lost in her thoughts Sayuri didn't feel the press of his lips at first. The kiss was soft and warm, and wrong. I made the tears spill from her eyes. Coming to her senses she shoved him off and stood up.

"You should go." She stated firmly and pointed to the door.

"Yes, he should." Satoshi growled startling both of them.

Kuon fought to take over and punch Shou in his smug little face, but Satoshi knew better. He couldn't lose control in front of Kenji. No one could see the monster beneath the shallow veneer of perfection he had carefully cultivated. He had to remain polite and dignified, rightfully protective but reasonable. Then when Kenji was gone, he could make Sayuri answer his questions. Kuon was forced to take a back seat as Satoshi coaxed Kenji into leaving, maintaining the gentle loving husband act. Kenji couldn't come up with excuses to stay fast enough. It was Satoshi's house, and it was getting late. Without confirmation from Sayuri he had no choice but to leave.

Then Satoshi turned to Sayuri an unreadable expression on his face.

"I sh, sh…should… should… I should clean up before bathing." Sayuri's voice trembled.

"No need. That's what the maid is for, she'll get it in the morning." Satoshi said taking the tray of snacks from her and tossing them carelessly to the coffee table. The tea spilled on their cream-colored carpet and Sayuri stared at the liquid pooling imaging it was her blood.

Keep your damn hands off her. Kuon demanded in his mind though he knew the scene had to play out.

"I should clean that up." Sayuri said trying to walk past him to escape to the kitchen.

Satoshi caught her arm and threw her down on the couch. "Have a seat and talk to me for a moment."

"I have an early morning Satoshi; I should really take a bath and get to bed." She tried to reason with him. The blank look was still on his face causing Sayuri to pull her legs up and fold her arms around herself for protection.

Don't! Kuon warned in his head wishing he were anywhere else.

"An early morning? What do you think you're doing in the morning?" Satoshi asked incredulously. He placed his hands on the couch behind her forcing her to lean back and open her body to him. Before she could answer he continued. "Your coworker just sexually assaulted you so don't think for a second that I would ever allow you to go back to work with him. As of now you have no job and you only have that pervert to blame for it."

"Satoshi be reasonable, please. Without work what would I have to do all day?" She asked placing her hands on his chest desperately wishing to push him away.

"Shop." Was his derisive response. "Unless you want to go back there and plan your getaway with Kenji. Is that it?" He asked in a menacingly deep voice. "You can't wait to get up in the morning, go to work and tell him all about how unhappy you are?"

"I never said I was unhappy." Sayuri said quickly.

She was sick of feeling weak and powerless. She wasn't some mouse cowering in a corner under the hungry gaze of a cat. She was his equal and he would treat her as such. With that in mind she shoved him off her and stood up.

"I'm taking a shower and I'm going to work in the morning. If it makes you happy, I will have a talk with Kenji's father about his inappropriate behavio… ahhhh…huh!" she screamed when he seized her by the nape of her neck then the wind was knocked out of her by a punch to the gut.

He tossed her on the couch like a ragdoll and Kuon almost came out to scoop her into his arms and protect her, but he reminded himself that none of it was real. Kyouko was fine and the sooner he got through the scene the safer she would be.

"You think you can tell me what's going to happen?" Satoshi asked while removing his belt. "I own the clothes you wear. Everything in this house is mine. Your job couldn't even keep the lights on in this place, but you think you can tell me how things are going to be?"

"Satoshi," Sayuri shook hearing the belt crack in the air before she felt the sting of it on her body.

"You can stay up all night long with me because you have nowhere to be tomorrow. Maybe you'll have nowhere to go ever again." Satoshi said in an eerily calm voice as his belt smacked against her legs.

"Ow!"

Sayuri's cries only seemed to anger him more as he feared the neighbors would hear. He tossed his belt to the side and yanked her hair back with his right hand placing his left over her mouth.

"Be quiet." He hissed in her ear. Sayuri whimpered but nodded wanting to calm him. "Hm." He hummed kissing her head tenderly. "That's my good girl."

Suddenly he backed off and Sayuri sighed in relief. Her legs and stomach ached causing her to moan as she tried to sit up. Thinking it was over she pushed herself up wanting to escape to the bathroom.

"You never said you were happy either." Satoshi said confusing her for a moment. It was a moment too long as he quickly grew irritated by her silence. "I don't make you happy." He stated and she looked into his eyes mouth agape unable to deny the words. "Really, Sayuri?"

"I should," She started grasping for something to say.

Director Anna wanted to yell cut. Kyouko looked like she was in pain and he didn't know how the belt whipping couldn't have been real. His mouth hung open wordlessly as he watched the scene unfold, heart pounding in equal parts fascination and fear.

"What? What should Sayuri do?" Satoshi asked once again grasping her hair and pushing her down. "Go kiss Kenji again? Run away from your home, from your family?"

"No Satoshi, I love you. I wouldn't leave you and I didn't kiss Kenji." Sayuri tried to explain but her words had no impact on him. "Satoshi, you're hurting me." she tried to fight him off as he pressed her down on the couch. "Satoshi!" He laughed at her ineffectual slaps and shoves.

"I know how to make you happy Sayuri. I know what you like." he whispered sending chills down her spine.

"Satoshi stop it!" she summoned all her strength to push him away. "Stop it." She seethed hitting his chest.

"What's the matter Sayuri? I only want to make you happy." He mocked. "Is it because I'm not Kenji? Oh, but you were so willing to blow me when he was just in the next room. Did that excite you? Did you hope your lover would come in and see you on your knees? Maybe you wanted to make him jealous."

"You're being ridiculous Satoshi. There is nothing going on between Kenji and me. Now get off." Sayuri said still trying to shove him away. "Satoshi." She punctuated his name with a slap to his face.

Touching his face, he flinched as he skimmed over a cut on his lip. Sayuri trembled as he looked down at her with pure rage in his eyes. She heard her bones more than she felt the pain of her hand breaking. There was too much for her to feel any of it. He squeezed her hand in his even as his other hand landed punches all over her. It amazed her that she could still breath or that she had enough awareness to keep quiet because her screams would only anger him more.

"Mommy." The sound like the coo of a dove brought the fight to an abrupt end. They both froze and for the briefest moment Satoshi showed pain on his face as he looked down at her. The look morphed into a smile as he turned to their daughter who was coming down the hall.

"What's wrong sweetheart?" he asked removing himself from Sayuri and swooping his daughter into his arms.

"I had a bad dream. Where's mommy?" The child asked innocently unable to see her mother over the couch. "I thought I heard her voice."

"She went to bed. I know I'm not as good at it as mommy, but I'll check your room for monsters and read you a story. How's that?" he asked already carrying the little girl to her bedroom.

Sayuri shook and curled in on herself as the pain settled in. She did her best not to cry out hoping he would go to bed and forget all about her. In the morning she could make up some excuse and go to a doctor for her hand. After she got some sleep, she would be able to think clearer and produce some reason for the broken fingers. For now, she would close her eyes and rest.

The scene was meant to end there but before Anna could muster the will to break the silence Satoshi walked back into the room and kneeled beside Sayuri. Anna kept the cameras rolling to capture the way Sayuri flinched startled by his sudden presence.

"Shh," Satoshi said with a gentle caress on the side of her face. Sayuri shrunk away from him again but he remained calm. "Shh, no baby you're ok. It's ok." Satoshi soothed her continuing to pet her face until she stopped flinching away. "You're ok. Come here." She was trembling but she let him take her into his arms. "Shh, don't cry. Don't cry, I'm sorry."

Anna watched with horrified amazement as the abuser on stage made him almost like him somehow. He wanted to forgive the disturbing scene he'd just witnessed. Satoshi lifted Sayuri into his arms so tenderly that not one person watching could question the sincerity of his remorse.

"I love you so much. I'm so sorry." Satoshi was crying and every witness to the scene believed his love for her.

"I know." Sayuri said using her good hand to wipe his tears. "I love you too."

He carried her down the hall to their bedroom and their audience remained still silently staring at the vacated sofa as they processed the scene.

Off stage where no one could see them Kyouko took hold of Kuon's face and whispered, "I'm ok. I'm ok." Over and over to him. "I'm fine see." She showed him her 'broken' hand wiggling her fingers to prove it wasn't really broken. "Corn I'm ok."

Not saying a word, he set her down and took her face in his hands inspecting it for any marks. Seeing no visible scars or bruises he peppered kisses over her face. He couldn't stop crying as he held her close kissing her ears and her hair and across her forehead and down the bridge of her nose.

"I'm ok." She repeated wiping his tears.

Neither of them noticed Kana and Yashiro guarding the area to keep any spies from seeing their tender moment. The two older adults peaked at them worried about their state of mind but neither wanted to interrupt them just yet. Ren needed her reassurance just as much as Kyouko needed his gentle love to soothe her trembling nerves.

That night they returned to Kuon's apartment though he had asked her to go home to the apartment she shared with Chiori and Kanae. She didn't want to leave him alone to wallow in self-hatred, so she had insisted on sleeping over. At this point she slept over so much that it really was where she lived, and she only had occasional girls' nights with Kanae and Chiori. He kicked his shoes off and quickly put some distance between them. Going to the couch he took out a magazine to skim through an article about Kyouko the fashion icon.

"Kuon are you alright?" Kyouko questioned following him to the couch and hugging his shoulders from behind.

A tender kiss pressed to her hand and he said, "I have a headache. Satoshi gives me a headache and I can't wait to be done with him."

She hummed in understanding and kissed the top of his head. Giggling silently, she thought that the role reversal was endearing. It felt nice offering him comfort.

"Do you want me to show you what Kana-san taught me?" She asked in a hopeful tone.

"Is it naughty?" Kuon asked looking up from his magazine.

"No, why would a headache remedy be naughty?" she asked innocently.

"I can think of a few naughty things you could do that would help with my headache." He answered tossing the magazine to the coffee table.

"Hush Kuon and come put your head in my lap." Kyouko said walking around to sit on the couch.

"I like it when you order me around." Kuon teased. "Should I get the cat ears or the wolf?"

"Keep it up and I'll leave you to suffer with your head pain." Kyouko teased patting her jean clad legs.

Kuon shrugged and moved over to her. Gracefully he lowered himself to the floor to kneel in front of her and place his hands on her thighs. A suggestive look entered his eyes as he kissed her left thigh slowly. Smiling at his playfulness Kyouko motioned for him to turn around. He complied taking a seat on the floor and laying his head back.

"This is good too I guess." Kuon said then purred as Kyouko began to caress his face.

"Shhh," Kyouko verbalized soothingly as she hooked her fingers just under his brow bone on the inside of his eyes and pulled up with gentle pressure. She did this three times then her fingers flowed into the next massage movement as Kuon relaxed under her ministrations.

"Kyouko?" he asked dreamily, "Can I massage you too?"

He caught her hands and brought them to his lips making sure to kiss the bruise he had created by accident on her wrist.

"But I don't have a headache." Kyouko answered growing delirious from the way he made love to her hands.

He twined their fingers together and ran her hands down his chest effectively pulling her down so her face would hover over his. Intoxicated by his proximity she happily planted kisses down the bridge of his nose to his lips.

"And the rest of your body? Is there nowhere you would like me to rub?" Kuon asked tilting his head back to deepen the kiss. His hands travelled up her arms and he slowly turned careful no to break their kiss as he got on his knees.

"Hm, like my back?" Kyouko asked though she knew what he was getting at.

"Yes, if you want. Back or front I'll still get you out of your shirt." He said feeling frisky as he leaned into her and broke the kiss. Even kneeling he was still slightly taller than her, but he lowered himself, so they were eye to eye. He caressed her cheek saying, "Thank you love. My headache is all gone."

"Good, I'm glad I could help." She said trying to pull him back in for another kiss. He didn't comply and she pouted prettily at him.

"I can't massage you if we're kissing. Lay down." He said and her pout deepened.

"I don't want a massage, I want kisses." He smiled at how much like Setsu she acted in private.

Her neediness had been increasing and though it was torture knowing he had to go slow for her sake, it was also heaven. He crawled over her body forcing her to lie down on the couch beneath himself and attached his lips to hers. She moaned into the kiss lifting her leg over his and his hands found purchase on her hips. If they weren't careful, they could lose themselves in each other. In moments like this Kyouko couldn't remember the reason she wanted to wait to have sex. Kuon didn't care if she was chaste and it felt good being in his arms.

"Kuon!" she gasped as he trailed kisses down her neck. Nodding in assent to his questioning eyes she lifted her torso to make it easier for him to lift her shirt off.

He sighed in relief having half expected to see visible remnants of their acted fight. Bending down he kissed her smooth stomach where Satoshi had punched Sayuri. He knew that his fist had never connected with her, but he had needed to see it to be sure. Kyouko placed her hands on his head and held him to her. She could feel his relief and that made her happy.

"Kyouko." Kuon reverently whispered her name against her skin as he kissed his way up to her heart where he laid his head. "I promise I'll be a better husband than Satoshi." He said as he listened to her heartbeat against his ear.

"Kuon?" She asked petting his head.

"Hm?" he lifted his eyes to speak to her. "Is something wrong?"

"No." She said shaking her head. Her face was bright and pink, and he couldn't help but kiss her cheek. "I was just going to promise to be a good wife." She said and he kissed her lips.

"Well then wife, should we get ready for bed?" Kuon asked lifting himself off of her.

"Yes, husband I think we should. I have an early morning interview and you have a photoshoot tomorrow." She said but she followed him as he sat up and placed herself in his lap.

"Wife?" Kuon asked hugging her to himself.

"Sorry I just wanted to be held for a bit longer." She apologized reluctantly pulling away. He tightened his hold on her and kiss the side of her neck before resting his head on her shoulder.

"Never apologize for wanting to be held by me. That's what I'm here for." He said placing a kiss to her shoulder. "I'll give you massages and hold you tight whenever you want."

"And kisses? I want kisses." Kyouko admitted boldly.

"Of course, kisses. Lots and lots of kisses wherever you want." Kuon said in a seductive tone.