AN: I'm going to be honest here and I don't want to be blaming anyone but there is a reason why I held back on the update of this fic. The last chapter got over two-hundred views and only one review. That's less than one-percent. I don't blame anyone individually but it kind of broke my heart and made me not want to write. That being said, I hope you do enjoy this chapter, it's like happy-ish.

Chapter Thirty Three – Things Get Better

Kuon sighed as he saw the phone ringing, he had been a little distracted since Kyoko had boarded the flight and his feelings had all seemed to crash into each other when he had noticed that she had gone. He didn't want to be clingy though. Being one of those over-dependent boyfriends didn't suit his style anyway and being one of those jealous boyfriends would drive a wedge between them. Still, she would know that something was wrong if he didn't answer her phone call.

Just as it was about to go to voice mail, he picked it up. "Hi," he said casually though he knew that it was her, "Hizuri Kuon speaking."

"Hey," Kyoko replied from the other side and Kuon could imagine the huge smile that had taken over her face. "Did I catch you in the middle of something?" she asked and Kuon shook his head though he knew that she wouldn't see him. "Oh god, did I. I mean, if you can't talk right now then I'm sorry, I'll call you back or you can ca-"

"You're okay," Kuon replied feeling guilty that she had panicked. "I'm just a little…I think that I have too many thoughts right now, should probably organize them, right?" he joked and Kyoko gave a breath of relief.

"Can't Yashiro-san help you with that?" she asked and Kuon smiled again as he studied his hand that wasn't holding the phone.

"Most likely," he told her before sitting down on the bed. "Your trip went smoothly, not a lot of turbulence?"

"Some, not a lot," Kyoko said as she relaxed, "I wanted to call to tell you that I've just gotten through arrivals. I wanted to call you before but I thought that you might want me to find a place that's more –"

"I appreciate it," Kuon replied as he closed his eyes. He wanted to make sure that she didn't hear the anxiety in his voice, it wasn't something that was involving her and he would feel guilty if he worried her. No, he just needed to keep his cool and focus on her work. Somehow though he felt more exposed whilst he was here, he ran his fingers through his blond hair. "You can take the bag to my apartment if you want," he told her, "or our apartment maybe, once you have your key."

He heard a silence followed by a squeak and some giggles. He smiled, at least she was enjoying herself, that was important. "I'm looking forward to living with you, Kuon," she admitted and Kuon could imagine just how red her face was. He really did love her. As long as she wasn't aware of how nervous he was then she would be fine, she could concentrate on her work.

"I love you, Kyoko," he told her.

"I…I love you too, you'll call me if anything happens?" she asked him nervously and Kuon smiled though he knew she couldn't see him.

"Absolutely," he said though it might be a promise that he just couldn't keep.

…

…

Kyoko felt a little nervous as she stood there with her face completely red. She should have gotten used to talking with her boyfriend but it was the fact that they were having the conversation in public that made her feel so special. She could boast that she was Kuon Hizuri's girlfriend, someone that she loved and wanted to be selfish about how much they loved one another.

She would be meeting with the director later in the day and then another meeting the following day as well as the president and the following day she would be flying back to America to be with Kuon as soon as possible. She smiled as she looked at the bag that she was holding. So many memories of Kuon were tucked away in it and hopefully they would be able to satisfy her cravings.

As she made her way out of the arrival gate, Kyoko's eyes caught onto someone that the president had sent for her who wasn't Rutou. She went over to them and grinned. Hopefully this would keep her mind off of her anxiety for Kuon. He had already been stretched emotionally and he didn't really allow himself to speak to others. She wasn't there and she hoped that he would confide in either his parents or Yashiro. He at least needed to be able to speak to somebody.

"How are you, Kyoko-san?" the man asked her and Kyoko smiled to him.

"I'm doing well," she said and the man nodded.

"Shall I take you to your hotel room?" he asked and Kyoko froze. She knew that the president had offered her a hotel room and she had been too insecure to tell him that she'd be staying at Kuon's apartment where she could spend time in his bed and think about him.

"No," she said quickly, "I've got a different address but I'll tell you in the car," she smiled before bowing out of respect, "Thank you so much for meeting me," she said with the low bow, "I truly am thankful for you doing so."

"You're welcome, it's my honor to collect you," the man told her before taking her bag and Kyoko's mouth opened as she thought about protesting but she shook her head. This man was just doing his job. As someone who once had the job of carrying other people's bags she knew how to respect him in letting him do what he was hired to do. Her mind flashed back on her first Love Me assignment and how differently she had viewed Ren Tsuruga. Kuon was so different and she couldn't imagine him doing the same thing to her now, well she could imagine it but she didn't think that it was possible.

I hope you will call me if something happens, Kyoko thought to herself as she did a double check of whether her phone was still in her pocket. She would always answer his call. After all, nothing in this life would have been possible if he hadn't been her precious sempai. She just needed to be part of his strength right now especially after this Rick drama had happened.

…

…

Yashiro looked over the information as they sat outside of the Hizuri estate near where some flowers were growing and under the shade of a tree. He looked very serious as he studied the information, his fingers running through the names and phone numbers that were on the documents. "I'm going to run this information through with the president if that's okay, see what kind of confidentiality agreement we can come to with one or more of them and then we'll take it from there," he said before looking at his client.

"Great," Kuon nodded nervously, "I know it's a lot to ask and you might not want to continue wor-"

"I want to continue our working relationship," Yashiro assured him. He studied the documents once again and hummed to himself. "Is it okay if I do some further research on these doctors?" he asked and Kuon nodded, "Just because you're seeking psychiatric help, Kuon, it doesn't mean that you're crazy."

Kuon blinked as he took a deep breath in, "I am crazy," he argued and Yashiro raised an eyebrow.

"How so?" he asked, "It's always good to ask for help if you need it and though I can't release any names, you're not the only actor in Japan to go to one of these people for help. I think that there are some actors who get stuck inside of their characters and to be frank, it's pretty amazing how you don't suddenly start believing you're Ren Tsuruga again."

Kuon chuckled at that. He didn't quite see Ren Tsuruga as being a different person entirely, in fact apart from the first two years, he didn't actively try to be someone else in terms of personality but he had found that he could show some of his true self whilst behind those brown eye contacts and that stage name. Some parts of Ren had been parts of Kuon he hadn't realized were there. Now that he could forgive himself for Rick's so-called death, he could mature into someone else.

"Let me know if that ever happens," Kuon told him with a smile. "I'll need to prevent Kyoko from seeing such a thing."

"I'm sure that Kyoko would only want to help," Yashiro said as he sighed happily, "She's a really good girl and you should feel lucky to have her be your girlfriend."

"I do," Kuon nodded before hearing the alarm on his phone, "I have to get to an interview, will you do some research on this and report your findings when I get back?" he asked and Yashiro grinned to him.

"I'm more than happy to do that," he assured his client and Kuon grinned gratefully.

After leaving the house, Kuon got into his car and drove along the street. Somehow, it didn't seem so bad driving anymore. He knew that he hadn't killed the man who had once been his best friend, he knew that he wasn't a murderer so really, he didn't feel that he had anything to worry about. Kuon drove the car through the neighborhood but then decided to face his fears. He still had a little time to do so. It was getting late, the sun was going down but it was going to be a live evening interview and he was feeling good that he could drive down this road okay. Rick was back with his family. It was better but as he stopped thinking about Rick, Kuon could see how strangely empty this road was.

This was Southern California, surely there had to be some traffic somewhere. Kuon slowed his car and heard someone speeding behind him, he turned over to the corner of the road and then his heart froze as he saw something against his back window and heard the unmistakable sound of guns being shot.

Someone was shooting at him!?

Okay, he had to calm down, there was an alleyway near here that he remembered. If he drove down a one-way street, knocked some trashcans over or something, he could get to the studio without causing too much damage to the car or risking exposure to himself.

He heard the sound of the car from before getting into the distance before seeing a car driving directly at him and he felt the crash, the pain as the other car slammed in on him. In a dazed state, he grabbed to his phone but felt four guys grab hold of him. Okay, he had to think strategically about this. Who was the strongest? If you took out the strongest guy then the others quickly toppled down.

He didn't have time to think though as he felt himself being thrown onto the ground and heard a familiar voice from his past, a gang member that he had "humiliated" in front of his gang. That was so long ago, they were just kids then.

"You don't want me," he whispered as he managed to get one guy unconscious but four more hands replaced the two and he could see the glint in the gang leader's eyes as he pulled out a very nice gun and Kuon struggled again.

He heard the sound of the man's finger on the trigger of the gun and heard a click. The next thing he felt was the barrel of the gun pressed against his head and with jagged breaths, Kuon struggled to find a way out.

"Say goodnight, Hizuri, you half-breed monster."

BANG.

End of Chapter Thirty Three

Thank you for reading

Thank you to Kris XD for reviewing Chapter Thirty Two