AN: The bathroom scene will be referred to with the angel scene when I put that one in (yes put it in out of order)
Act 49 – Test Your Knowledge
Kyoko answered the phone quickly once she had realized that it was the president who had called her, "You are such a big idiot!" the president yelled at her as Ren sighed, rolling his eyes. He could hear the man without even being on the phone with him. Didn't he understand that that was a little exhausting? No. The president was all about drama and so he probably loved that his voice was that loud. "I've been calling you since this morning! Why do you only pick up now!? I'm so angry."
Kyoko looked as if she had been caught committing a crime with the guilt that was on her face. She felt terrible for not being quick to respond to someone so important and Ren could see that. It was easily explainable but she still looked as if the world were ending.
"Sorry," Kyoko said weakly, "I'm not used to having a cell phone… after I changed it to vibration, I forgot about it and I didn't pay attention to it," she attempted to explain and Ren shook his head. This seemed like a conversation that he could have expected.
"I was going to tell you some good news but now you've spoiled my mood," the president said more quietly but Kyoko could still sense there was frustration there. If the president had tried calling her throughout the entire day and she had only just answered then of course he had a good reason for feeling angry.
"Huh," Kyoko said as she tried to keep herself calm, "What is it? What's the good news?"
The president started laughing as if he was finding the whole situation rather fulfilling. Kyoko didn't understand people like this. Of course, she had the feeling that nobody understood the president most of the time. He was just that unique a personality, "Oh?" he asked her in a teasing manner, "Do you want to know?"
Kyoko sighed and looked forwards. Maybe it was better that she actually didn't know if this was going to be a joke. She didn't know what good news the president would have for her and it was a little scary that he was saying that he had this news, "Well…" she said awkwardly only to hear the dramatic voice once again.
"From your reaction, it seems like you don't want to know," the president said as if he were really going to hang up on her and Kyoko paused. She had always learned to listen to management and do whatever she could to please them. Maybe she didn't have love as the emotion that fueled her but she did have respect and this wasn't any regular manager but the president of the agency. He deserved more respect than anyone.
"Huh?" Kyoko laughed softly as Ren turned in to his large apartment building, "Really?"
The president sighed, "This is really losing its fun," he told her and Kyoko could only smile. Was this phone call ever fun to begin with? The president sure had a weird sense of what was funny or not. "I guess I'll just forget about it. It's about going to high school."
Kyoko paused and her eyes widened as Ren held the door open for her. She took a step out feeling as if something were about to happen. She was frozen at the idea of high school but if the president was talking about it, maybe it was a good thing after all. Kyoko felt her breath catch in her chest and Ren looked after her concerned.
"I know a school that allows transfer students," the president explained as Kyoko tried to calm her breathing, "and accepts students in the entertainment business and gives them special permission to leave early, arrive late, etcetera. Do you…not want to go?"
Kyoko felt her eyes widen as she felt the shock of getting something that she really wanted. She had no idea that the man beside her had actually helped with arranging that for her. She didn't know that he cared enough about his future to do so even though he had given her a cellphone. He had given her her first one which she had seemed to forget about but she had handed it back to him.
"I want to go!" Kyoko said quickly as her heart nearly beat its way out of her chest. No, she really wanted to go there.
"I have a friend who is the director of that school," the president explained to her as Kyoko attempted to control the excitement that she was feeling. "They have a special class as well as extra curriculars. The entrance exam only has some of the normal middle school level questions. I don't think it will be a problem for you as long as you review a bit. How about it? Tomorrow morning."
Kyoko's jaw hung open. This was something that she really wanted to experience but because of the circumstances in which she was living, she had given up on even the thought of attending high school. She hadn't wanted to believe that something would happen and then feel that hope leave her but it was coming true. She wanted to have this moment to live.
"I want to talk about the details with you," the president continued, "Are you interested?"
Kyoko nodded, she had felt that she had told him her wants but maybe he hadn't heard her. "Oh, yes, I am, definitely."
Ren smiled to her. He wanted her to be happy and school was one way of her enjoying that experience. If she found other things in life other than revenge, then they would both be happy. He only wanted her to find the sparkling existence which she had spoken about. Nothing else really mattered but that.
…..
…..
That night, Kuon was glad that Kyoko was sleeping in the guest room. He had missed her presence in the apartment and even though she was only staying with him for a couple of days, it made him feel connected to somebody else. It had been a long time since he had felt such a strong connection. He took a deep breath in but rubbed his throat, something felt strange and a little off. Maybe it was stress. Despite there being a lot of happiness when he and Kyoko had made up, there was still a lot of stress.
He sighed and went to the bathroom, maybe he just needed a drink of water and some way to relax. As he went and looked in the mirror however, having his contacts out of his eyes for once since Kyoko had persuaded him not to sleep in them, he looked at himself and then imagined his hair turning blond.
He couldn't become someone with that troubled and messy history. He couldn't be Kuon again. He had to stay calm and think about the good that he had done as Ren Tsuruga. He looked up and took a step back as he imagined his father being there beside him. He turned quickly but found that he was alone in the room.
"You're such a disappointment," his vision of his father said with a cold look. "You go to this country to be a better person but look how that turned out for you. I'm glad that you stopped going to high school over here, you're nothing but a disappointment and I wash my hands of you. You proved to be the son that I never wanted. How could I ever love a person like you?"
Kuon put his hands to a damp cloth and soaked it before putting it on his face. He didn't want to hear that he was a disappointment and a black mark to his father who he had always wanted to please. Saying his name had seemed to summon him. His father hadn't even attempted to make contact with him, his mother had never tried to make contact with him either. They were happy that they were gone and he couldn't blame them.
Kuon sunk to his knees and pushed his hair back nervously, his body shaking. "I'm sorry, Father" he whispered as he felt all the strength leave his body. "I'm sorry that I let you down. I'm sorry that I couldn't be the son you wanted. I'm sorry that I made you hate me."
…..
…
Ren sighed as he sat in the makeup chair the next day at work. He had been asked about Yashiro and as much as he enjoyed having Kyoko beside him, he did like working with Yashiro and he did admire his professional nature. Kyoko was attempting to do her best but she wasn't as skilled as he was. Ren did still feel a little bit funny from the previous night. He tried not to think of his family but giving Kyoko privileged information had broken down his carefully constructed walls.
"So, it was like that," Ren started to explain, "After all that, I didn't go see him before coming to work. He angrily said that he will have his family take care of him. He said, I'm not allowed to go there again. He lives by himself, if he dies or faints, no one will know. I was only taking care of him," Ren tried to argue as the woman behind him worked on styling his hair for the next job.
He had to admit that he would have felt better if Yashiro had been okay. Ren enjoyed Kyoko's company but she often triggered his past when they worked together. He didn't feel too great about his past after the vision that he had encountered in the bathroom that previous night.
"He just didn't want you to get sick too," the woman said wanting to comfort Ren.
"He doesn't have to worry about that," Ren chuckled in a casual way as he tried to keep everything at surface level. It was better that way, better not to dwell on his being a disappointment to his family. "I'm proud of the fact that I have never gotten sick," he told he and the girl gasped in surprise.
"Huh!?" she asked as she turned to the twenty-year-old, "Really?"
Ren was about to answer but there was a cold wind that whipped through the air accompanied by some dark laughter. Both Ren and the woman were a little shocked and they turned their attention to Kyoko who had been studying all morning. She had a dark gleam in her eyes and was staring at the question with an evil smile.
"This…" they both heard her say, "this question. I remember seeing it somewhere."
Kyoko loomed over the paper as she stared at the printed material. This was something that was a bad part of her past as well. She had spent so much time trying to learn everything and get the best marks to please her mother and so she had always kept this question in her mind. She remembered the question, she remembered the method and it wasn't something that she was going to forget. In the past she had gotten this question incorrect but it was time for her to take her revenge on it. Now she was determined to solve it against all odds.
"Re-Ren-san," the woman said nervously, "That girl, what's wrong with her?" she asked a little freaked out by how intense Kyoko was.
"Oh," Ren chuckled as he watched her. He knew that he had more of an understanding of Kyoko's behavior than most people but it was still a little weird to see it and he didn't know how to explain it in a way most people understood. "She…um…she's going to take an exam."
"An exam?" the woman asked, "For a school?" she paused looking at Kyoko worried and Ren understood that emotion. She was going a little overboard but that was what she did. He sighed, she would always call herself stupid when she got test scores back as a child and he would try to comfort her. It was about winning her mother's love at the time and he sighed, dropping his head which the woman felt confused about as well.
They were alike in that respect, both of them felt like failures to parents whom they had never wanted to disappoint in the first place.
End of Act 49
Thank you for reading, reviews are appreciated
Thank you to the reviewers of Act 48
Brennakai, H-Nala, Kaname671, luv2readgirl, Paulagato