Heels 10
Ren almost thought it was too good to be true when he woke up to a familiar face just in front of his own. He reached out and stroked a stray strand of hair out of her face and couldn't help but to smile when the heat from her skin convinced him that it was real.
"Hooo. You can smile so brightly." A voice said to his right and Ren had to clench his jaw to not flinch. He knew that voice, and it was not one he wanted to deal with in his current position.
He turned his head to the side and immediately got pissed when a sneaky smile filled his vision.
"President." Ren greeted and glanced sideways at the girl that laid on top of him with a firm grip of his shirt.
'At least you had a shirt on.' Kuon snorted and then fuelled the anger against the invader.
"Ren, my protégé, how are you?" The shit eating grin made a vein pop on Ren's forehead.
'He is enjoying this all too much.'
"What are you doing here?" He asked in a whisper and the President smirked even wider, even if Ren had thought it impossible.
"This is my room, or rather my hotel."
'What?' Ren thought but then glanced around the room that he hadn't bothered about the day before.
The walls were covered in wine-red velvet and every piece of furniture, save the bed, was covered in black leather. Every piece, including the table, the small nightstand and every pillow in the small sofa that rested in the far most corner.
It was, in every sense, a love cave.
'I should have figured. It's not like Kyoko would spend money on a hotel room.'
"You look rather annoyed, I must say." The President faked a hurt tone that fooled nobody. However, something in the sentence must have reached the girl's mind and Ren froze as she began to move.
Both men stared as the girl rubbed her face to Ren's chest and a wide smile grew on her lips.
"Nii-san, I think the batting worked. Your chest is hard as rock." Setsu smirked and turned her head to her brother. She was a beauty with rosy cheeks and hooded eyes that spoke of her sleep drunken state.
Ren needed a moment to order his face into a neutral expression that could pass for all the men.
"We have company." He said in Japanese and the girl turned her head to glance around.
Ren had to give it to her, she didn't even flinch when her eyes landed on the President.
"Boss." She greeted without more than a slight hitch in her voice. The President was practically beaming with excitement.
"Setsuka, how nice to see you." He greeted and the girl lifted an eyebrow.
"Is it time?" She asked and Ren turned his focus back on her.
'What time?'
"Unfortunately." Lory said in the sad tone again and the girl exhaled in a sigh.
"Give me five." Setsu bargained and Ren had to steel his nerves when the girl sat up on his stomach and then leaned over his face.
'Wait a moment… Are you going to kiss me now? With the President watching?' Ren didn't really like that his mind rooted more for the kiss than chastity.
"Two, and then I need you both."
"Fine." Setsu sighed and Ren saw the President stand up and move towards the bathroom. As soon as the door closed, she melted their lips together and Ren gasped in surprise.
'Whoa… yes.'
"I hate rushing. It's just this once." Setsu sighed between kisses and gripped his head to pull his lips up to hers. He didn't fight it but fitted his own hand at the back of her neck and pushed the kiss into even warmer waters.
Setsu was the first one to pull back and Ren tried to hold onto the heat in his lips.
"Ren?" That was not his sister and Ren snapped his eyes open. Kyoko was looking down on him from just a few centimetres away with moist lips and a glowing blush.
Ren tensed when he saw the girl in her rightful body and didn't know how to react.
"You have to be at TBM in 31 minutes. We have to hurry." Her words made his mind reconnect with his body.
"Do we?" Ren couldn't help but to put a little disappointment behind the question.
"Yes." Kyoko smiled apologetically and Ren released his grip of her neck with a held back grunt.
The girl slid off his stomach and quickly pulled the wig off the nightstand before he even had time to get up on his elbows.
She ran to the wardrobe and Ren managed to sit up before she was back with two duffle bags.
"Change." Kyoko explained and Ren caught it before she disappeared into the bathroom that the President just exited.
"Mogami-kun." He greeted when she passed and she almost tripped herself with halting and bowing his direction. The next moment she was gone.
"Ren. You really have to hurry." The President's smile was far too joyful to carry any actual worry.
"Yes." Ren got up and pulled off his clothes quickly to distract the man.
'I can't imagine all the questions that are boiling just beneath the surface. Better look busy.' Ren and Kuon thought and pulled on a pair of clean boxers and dress pants.
"You are surely not shy." The President's voice was overfilled with glee and Ren promptly ignored him. The sound of the bathroom door opening made the President turn in that direction.
"Ren." Kyoko's voice called to him and he lifted his gaze. Kyoko had changed into a skirt and jumper in record time and held his dress shirt in her extended arms. He slipped his arms into place and she moved to secure the buttons at his sleeves.
He blamed her confidence for not reacting to what they were doing. He started on the top buttons while she worked from the bottom up.
"Tie." She said and fished it out of the bag while he unfolded the collar. Once again did her confidence lead him on and he just waited for her to finish. She made quick work of it and he was impressed with the complexed knot she had managed to do.
"Nice." The President said and Kyoko sent him a wide smile.
"Thank you. I think he is ready."
"You should fix his hair." Lory commented and realization started to dawn on Ren.
'What are we doing?' Ren groaned mentally and Lory's face confirmed his suspicions. 'We will never hear the end of this.'
Ren soon got distracted by Kyoko who used some of her own hair gel in his hair. He weighed the feeling of satisfaction of her casual touch against the added damage Lory could do when he didn't protest. The touch weighed out in the end even if Ren tried to convince himself it was an act of saving time, rather than just selfish desire that he didn't take over the task of his own hair.
"Splendid." Lory hummed pleased when Kyoko pulled the recoloured bangs into place with soft hands. "You have talent Mogami-kun." Ren swore that Lory put unnecessary weight behind the word talent.
'What are you trying to hint at, old man?' Kuon grunted irritated.
"Thank you for financing our selfish request." Kyoko bowed deeply for the President when she had dried her hands on a towel and Ren bent his head too.
"I always support my actors when they do something productive." Lory couldn't hide the snicker completely and Kuon growled mentally.
"Have a nice day, Ren." Kyoko smiled and blushed beautifully his way and Ren felt his face relax.
"Thank you. I haven't slept this well since Guam." Ren smiled as he leaned into the girl's space. "Thank you, Kyoko." He smiled a genuine smile just a few centimetres from her face and got the satisfaction of a blush before he straightened again.
Ren walked past her to Lory who waited for him by the door.
"Mogami-kun, there is a car waiting for you when you get down. No complaints." Lory called over his shoulder and Ren could see Kyoko nod before the door closed between them.
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Lory led the way to a hidden elevator behind a seemingly ordinary room door at the end of the hallway and they stepped inside. It had buttons for every floor and Lory pressed one for the basement before the metal box shook awake.
"I can't decide if you are in a good or bad mood." Lory broke the silence.
"Why would I ever be in a foul mood when I get woken up by my dear protector?" Ren asked with all the imaginary honey he could cram into his voice. Lory clicked his tongue.
"Tsuruga Ren, you are not one to be late. You should thank me because it didn't look like you would wake up for hours."
'You don't have to sound like you received an early birthday present.' Kuon commented mentally but Ren held back from speaking out loud.
"Of course, am I thankful." Ren fuelled the business smile until Kuon turned a bit sick.
"Cut it out. It is too early for scheming smiles." Lory snickered and Ren turned down the flames a notch.
'If that's the case, I don't see how you could look at yourself in the mirror before dinner.' Kuon grunted mentally and Cain snorted a laugh at that.
"What can I do for you?" Ren asked to focus his mind on other subjects.
"It's been some time. What is your decision considering the two offers I spoke of?" Lory asked as the elevator came to a stop. A small panel lit up on Ren's left side and he saw a poorly lit image of an empty, underground parking lot.
Ren saw Lory press a button and the doors opened to reveal the same parking lot outside the doors.
'Clever way to see that the coast is clear. Makes you wonder what secret guests have been visiting this hotel in the past.' Kuon thought as Ren followed Lory towards a running black car.
He still had to answer the earlier question but he climbed into the back seat before he opened his mouth.
"It's not the time." Ren said confidently and Lory's face couldn't hide the lack of surprise.
"I figured." He said and the car started to move. Ren only nodded in a try to make the subject or, preferably, the whole conversation to die. However, they hadn't even left the parking lot before Lory spoke up again.
"I couldn't help to notice how comfortable Mogami-kun acted in your company." The air around the President reminded Ren of kids on television who celebrated Christmas.
"Whose idea was it for the siblings to be dangerously in love?" Ren couldn't pull Kuon back fully from his voice and Lory frowned.
"Love can be expressed in many ways. I just pointed out that your relationship seems more physical than I expected." Lory crossed his arms pouting. Ren couldn't really tell him no.
'He caught us sleeping in the same bed. Literally on top of each other.' Ren sighed and glanced out the tinted window just to catch a wave of chestnut hair that stepped into a van.
His whole being knew it was Kyoko and he was satisfied she had accepted the ride.
"How were the last days of filming for Tragic Marker?" Lory offered when the silence dragged on and Ren humoured the change of topic.
"Smooth. We finished right on time."
"How was the weather?"
"Hot." Ren thought of Kyoko and her heatstroke. She had been the first of five.
"I heard Kyoko fainted." Lory was fishing for something.
"Yes. We had planned to use the weather to give Setsu an out to retire. However, neither of us noticed the warning signs and she got a real heatstroke."
"She seemed fine now at least, and your covers weren't blown?"
"Not in the slightest." Ren said confidently and Lory nodded.
"That's good." The President moved his hand to a folder that rested on the seat beside him that Ren hadn't noticed and sirens started to blare inside his head. "It would be no fun if this act ended too soon."
Ren had no idea what he was talking about.
'The act is supposed to be over already.' Ren thought and watched the President open the folder and smirk cunningly.
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Chiori rested her head on her hand and openly stared at her Senpai who was seated across from her.
She didn't feel the need to hide her gaze as Kyoko obviously didn't pay any attention to her company.
The number one Love Me member was in the middle of a strobe light of emotions that flickered across her face.
'Just how quickly is she able to pull out that blush?' Chiori thought when Kyoko's face turned from a blushing bride to a pale stone face and then to fire-engine-red.
"How could I be that disrespectful?" Kyoko mumbled and Chiori tilted her head to the side.
"Did you maybe call Tsuruga-san by his first name?" She couldn't help but ask and Kyoko snapped her head Chiori's way quicker than should be humanly possible.
Chiori had a hard time keeping her face neutral when Kyoko's face once again turned into a pale mask of horror.
'Something else then.'
"I-I did call him by his given name. I didn't even realize that." Kyoko's face stayed in the horror-range but travelled from terror to the mask of a demon and then back.
'So, she did. But she didn't even realize it first. Something else must have happened.' Chiori was torn between her professional spirit and her curiosity. In the end, the spirit won and she got up and pulled Kyoko back to the set in time for the end of their break. Kyoko stumbled up on set but as soon as Natsu stepped in, she didn't fail one take.
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Kyoko fell forward and was thankful for the soft chicken costume to cushion the impact when she hit the hard surface.
She had aimed for the low table at her dressing room and relaxed fully when her legs and arms dangled over the edges.
'How is it possible to be this energized after everything that happened today?' Kyoko questioned and kicked her legs to chase the uncomfortable feeling away. Her mind was exhausted but her body wanted to keep moving.
She pulled a deep breath to steady her heart and then thought back at their morning.
'Ahhh! How could I still act like Setsu in front of the President?'
'You were certainly not in any condition to face him as yourself.' Natsu mocked a laugh and Kyoko shook her head to get the third voice out of her mind.
'She is right. It had been far too embarrassing for you to act as yourself, while trying to keep professional and not get flustered by Ren at the same time. Especially as you woke up in the same bed…' Setsu snickered and dreamed herself back. 'That warm broad chest. The smell…'
'Now you are making me jealous.' Natsu hummed and Kyoko felt the blush spread on her face again.
'And we called Ren by his name… In front of the President.'
'That's the least of your worries. I think the mother hen act when you helped him dress triumphs everything else.' Both Natsu and Setsu smirked as Kyoko wailed and started to twist and turn on top of the table.
'Oh no! Don't mention it! I'm not a hen. I'm a chicken…'
"Kyoko-chan?" A careful voice called her attention and Kyoko quickly flared her arms and legs until she got back up on her feet.
"Hikaru-san." Kyoko greeted and tried to find something to do with her arms. She turned to the nakai position on pure reflex.
"Are you all right?" The oldest Ishibashi asked worriedly and Kyoko nodded furiously.
"Of course. I'm just… training." Kyoko said and scratched her head with the chicken arm.
"Oh. I didn't mean to interrupt." Hikaru laughed and Kyoko giggled embarrassed.
"Was there something you wanted?" Kyoko asked politely and he smiled.
"We wanted to try this new restaurant and wondered if you would like to join? It's called 'The Darumaya' and is not too far from here. We are driving and could give you a lift."
"The Darumaya?" Kyoko asked and her eyes widened.
'No… is there more than one Darumaya in Tokyo?'
"Yes, is this small Japanese restaurant with a cosy feeling. It's a middle-aged pair that manages it and we are probably not going to be recognized." Hikaru burned while he tried to sell her the idea and Kyoko felt the worries leave her for the amusing coincidence.
"I would love to." Kyoko giggled and she saw the big smile that formed on his lips.
"Wonderful! We are ready in ten."
"I will change." Kyoko smiled and Hikaru helpfully pulled the zipper down before he skipped out of her room.
'What a coincidence.'
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"You actually live there Kyoko?" The youngest Ishibashi asked and Kyoko nodded proudly.
"Yes. I help out in the restaurant whenever I get time." She felt the car slow down and she was the first to jump out when they came to a stop outside the shop's front.
She hardly had time to land with both feet on the ground when someone gripped her arm from behind and she was forced to turn around.
The grudges moved quicker than her mind and wrapped around the singer to force his grip to loosen.
"Sho." She greeted the frozen singer and started to pull back the force of the small demons.
"What the hell did you do?" Shotaro cursed when the spell lifted and Kyoko rolled her eyes. She was not in the mood for him at the moment. Especially as he had no disguise whatsoever and they were in the middle of the sidewalk.
"Please leave." She barked his way as the Ishibashis all climbed out of the car.
"Kyoko-chan?" Hikaru asked behind her and Kyoko reacted to the hardness of his voice. "Is this man bothering you?" He asked and Kyoko smiled reassuringly.
"No way. He is about to leave."
"Aren't you Fuwa S…" The older brother started and Kyoko gripped his arm to pull his focus to her.
'I don't want them to know about us.' She thought and sent Sho a death glare over her shoulder.
"Let's go inside." Kyoko said and the three hosts hesitated only a moment with strange stares at Sho before they followed her.
'What is he doing here?' Kyoko glanced at the singer and caught his hard jaw and pissed eyes. 'He is mad.'
"Wait a moment." He barked but Kyoko simply moved towards the Darumaya and the other three followed her. "Kyoko!"
'He is… ahhh!'
"What?" She turned around with a snap and growled his way.
"It was you right?" His dark clothes and light hair made his face look pale in the moonlight.
"It was me what?"
"You got out of that shady hotel in town that celebrities use!" Shotaro spat out at her and Kyoko couldn't help to stop and stare at him. "And it was early in the morning too!"
'Did he see me?' Kyoko thought but then noticed the lack of further information. 'If he knew I was there with Ren… He would not keep silent.'
"So what?" Kyoko asked. There was no point in avoiding it as he obviously had too many details to make it up out of thin air.
"Who did you meet?" Shotaro moved closer and Kyoko glanced around. He was too loud for her liking but there was no one other than the five of them close and they were too far from the Darumaya to be heard into the store. Still…
'What the hell is he talking about out in the open.'
"She was meeting with us." Hikaru suddenly said to her right and Kyoko had to force her face to not make a strange expression. She couldn't help but turn her head and glance at Hikaru who smiled at her with confidence.
"What?" Kyoko turned back to her childhood friend and saw him take her company in for the first time. "Who are you?" Shotaro barked impolitely and Kyoko couldn't help her temper.
"You, narcissistic airhead! You have been on their show." Kyoko yelled at him and Sho stepped closer to Yuusei who was the tallest of the Ishibashis. He seemed to size him up and Kyoko saw when he recognized them.
"Isn't that the show where you attacked me in that bird costume!" Sho exploded and Kyoko shrugged.
"I have no idea what you are talking about." She said and saw the three Ishibashis glance at her.
"Why do you know them then?"
'Not how, but why… what is his problem?'
"We are planning to host Kyoko-chan soon. She is a phenomenal actor and we were going through ideas of how to make a good, special show." Shinichi said with confidence and Kyoko blushed from the sudden compliment.
"What?" Sho stopped his chilly air and Kyoko glanced around again. Sho had calmed down when he had gotten an answer to his question. She had already been generous with her attention and turned to the Ishibashis.
"Let's eat." She said and Hikaru smiled her way and offered his arm. She took it and smiled back.
"Yes. Let's finish our discussion." Shinichi smiled and put an arm around her shoulders. Kyoko had time to see Sho burn the arm with his gaze but the singer seemed defused for the moment and she didn't want to stir the wasp nest when it finally had calmed down.
Kyoko checked behind herself twice before she was convinced that he didn't follow them inside the restaurant. She didn't relax fully until the sliding doors shut behind her.
"Kyoko-chan." Okami-san greeted and Kyoko got distracted making introductions.
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They all ate happily and the annoying actor didn't show again.
Taisho didn't let Hikaru out of his gaze for their complete stay.
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Kyoko's mental and bodily strength was both running low when she said farewell to the Ishibashis and crawled up to her room.
'They didn't question me about the hotel.' Kyoko exhaled in relief. She didn't want to lie to them and their silent respect about her private life was appreciated.
'Much better than a certain someone.' Natsu mused and Kyoko groaned while she crawled to the sink to brush her teeth.
'What did he want either way?' Setsu sighed and rolled her eyes mentally. Kyoko could only groan her support for their thoughts.
'He acted like a jealous boyfriend.' Natsu hummed and Kyoko almost swallowed her toothbrush.
"There is no way!" She coughed the words and the plastic stick out.
'Of course not.' Natsu sighed sarcastically.
'No, there is no way. He just wants to monopolize my attention and mess with my relationships.'
'Wow, you are not convincing at all if THAT is your argument.' Natsu snorted and Kyoko felt the grudges slipping out with her dark air.
'Thank you for that one. I looked forward to cosy dreams about Nii-san.' Setsu growled Natsu's way while Kyoko grudgingly filled the whole room with small angry spirits. There was no room for nice thoughts or even dreams as Kyoko raged into the night.
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'How can a few days in Guam disturb my 20 years old sleeping pattern?' Ren groaned when he twisted on the bed for the 405th time in an hour.
'Your body knows what's good for you.' Cain pointed out and Ren grunted. He glanced at the time and saw it close in on 1 am. He sighed out loud and tried to empty his mind.
'I miss her.' Kuon whined and Ren groaned.
'Stop it.' He begged but was met with ignorance.
'Just call her. Talk to her.' Kuon demanded like a little child.
'That is a good idea.' Cain joined and Ren twisted again until he faced his nightstand and the cell phone that was connected to the power cord.
'It's late.' Ren thought and Kuon groaned.
'She will have turned her phone off if she is in bed. Just try!'
'A professional has to do everything in his power to deliver a functional body to his work. A short talk with her would make you fall asleep sooner. You know it.' Cain hit hard and Ren reached for the phone the next moment.
He let the cord be connected and pushed the numbers that he knew by heart.
'What am I…' Two dials sounded before the call connected and Ren's gut made a little dance around his liver.
'You have called her before. Man up!' Kuon pushed on and Ren pulled a deep breath. He had no idea why he felt nervous.
"Ren?" Kyoko's worried voice was like balm for his soul and he loved how she used his first name without honorifics.
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Kyoko had been fuming with fire and darkness when the fairy-tale song started to play. She snapped her head to the phone with anger as she assumed it to be Sho that wanted to continue their earlier conversation. However, when the screen showed the kanji for Ren, she fumbled the phone open quickly and pressed connect.
"Ren?" She asked with worry.
'Why is he calling me at this hour? Did something happen?'
"Kyoko. I hope I didn't wake you." Ren's voice was calm and his mood sounded good. Kyoko felt herself relax and a faint blush climbed up her cheeks.
'He called me by my given name.'
'Well, you called him Ren, right?' Setsu smirked and the blush deepened on her face.
"I was still awake." Kyoko smiled and quickly glanced at the screen. The battery icon said 10 percent but she didn't want to challenge it and connected the cord.
"Is that so? Busy day filming?" Ren asked and Kyoko could hear the gentle smile in his voice. She slipped into the bed again and leaned against the headboard.
"It was alright. I ate dinner with some people from work. We had fun and the time just ran away." Kyoko said and left out the part of her fuming about Sho for a couple of hours.
"I should hang up then maybe? I guess you are tired." Ren's voice sounded worried and a warm mushy feeling spread in her chest.
"You don't have to worry. I haven't been able to fall asleep before 2 am for a while." Kyoko laughed softly and caught herself playing with the power cord.
"Oh? I thought you fell asleep rather quickly yesterday?" Ren asked and Kyoko exploded in red.
"Ah… Yes, I did." She stumbled over the words and bit her lip. "It's easy as Setsu… But…"
"But?" Ren asked carefully and Kyoko bit her lip.
'It's completely reasonable.' Setsu cooed her. 'Go ahead.'
"But it is hard without her brother." Kyoko whispered and bit her lip again. There was a silence on the other end that seemed to drag on until an embarrassed laugh cut through it.
"I thought it was only me." Ren laughed gently and Kyoko felt the warm in her chest spread. "Honestly, I have had a hard time falling asleep without you by my side." Ren's voice got deeper in the end and Kyoko felt the tinge of heat in her gut that the kissing usually caused.
"Me too. I seem to never find a comfortable position." Kyoko laughed in the same manner. "I also had to pull out my winter comforter because the bed seemed cold."
'Cold, large, and empty.' Natsu sighed dramatically and Kyoko couldn't help but agree.
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Ren thought his face would separate into two pieces by how widely he was grinning.
'You should not be that happy about a girl's difficulties to sleep.' Kuon mocked but couldn't hide the thrill in his mind.
"I'm the same. Yesterday was the first time I slept well since our last night in Guam." Ren said and hoped he didn't scare her away. There was a silence and when she spoke again, he had to strain himself to hear.
"I feel greedy." Were the words he made out and Ren's heart made a loop.
'What did she say? There is no other way to interpret it…'
"I want to sleep beside you soon again." The words slipped out of his mouth and he clenched his jaw in horror.
"Me too." Kyoko said quickly and Ren exhaled slowly while some blood decided to pool on his cheeks.
"The President might lend us a room at his hotel…"
"I rather not." Kyoko said and Ren froze in place.
'I knew it.'
"Someone… saw me outside and…" Kyoko said and Ren frowned at her words even if he relaxed when she didn't reject him personally rather the location.
'Just her and not me... But people do not usually recognize her, not to mention tell her about it. If not, it's someone she knew.'
"Was it Fuwa?" Kuon asked with his big mouth and Kyoko grunted as an assent. Ren took the reins again and tried to clench the anger that always surged when the singer was on topic.
"Yes. He asked what I was doing at a hotel early in the morning."
"I'm sorry. What did you tell him?"
"Ishibashi-san covered for me and said I was on a meeting there with him and the other hosts for Bridge Rock. They saved me." Kyoko's voice turned bright again but Ren frowned.
'Ishibashi? Bridge Rock?'
"I don't think I'm familiar with Bridge Rock." Ren formed it as a question. It did sound familiar and a certain chicken passed his mind.
"I got to know them through a Love Me assignment. They were at the Happy-Grateful party." Kyoko spoke quickly and Ren tried to recollect the memories.
'I did see the chicken there. However, it was a stand-in for the regular guy. He was pretty surprised when I greeted him. I think there were three musicians with him who were named Ishibashi.' Ren relaxed and smiled.
"I see. They work for LME, right?"
"Yes! They asked me to dine with them." Kyoko said quickly and he could hear that she was about to tell him something she thought was funny.
He didn't like the fact that Sho had sought her out again but his heart calmed somewhat when she dropped the subject quickly.
'She is not hung up on him. There is no hidden anger in her voice.' Kuon was certain and Ren believed him.
Kyoko was talking and he turned his attention back to her voice. His body relaxed further and he fell back onto the bed and pulled the comforter over his legs. He put the phone on speaker and put it on the pillow beside him.
"They had heard about a diner…." Ren smiled when she told him of the coincidence and he laughed with her. His body felt heavy and his heart was light. He asked her about her day and she asked about his.
They talked about their different projects and Ren didn't even notice when his eyes started to close.
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Kyoko felt the anger surge when she told Ren about Sho's sudden appearance but it left as quickly as it came. She freaked out a bit about Bridge Rock but he didn't question her or doubt her words.
She shifted her position to lay down when Ren told her of his photoshoot for a magazine. She was afraid of jolting the cord and put the phone firmly between her head and pillow.
She didn't really notice when Ren stopped answering or that she had turned silent herself. She listened to the heavy breaths that carried through the phone while her eyes slipped shut. There was no trace of the grudges or the restlessness that had haunted her before the call and she fell asleep.
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Kyoko's eyes snapped open with a start when the Daruma shaped alarm clock started to sound.
'What?' Something was bugging her and she was momentarily too disorientated to focus her mind.
"What?" A husky voice asked in her ear and Kyoko sat up straight in her bed. The phone that had been stuck on her cheek started to peel off and she caught it before it dropped.
"Ren?" Kyoko asked and glanced at the display. The call was still live and she saw the numbers on the screen. The call had been going for almost six hours.
'I fell asleep!' Kyoko cried in horror and pulled her legs under her. She sat in a seiza on full alert.
"Kyoko?" Ren's sleep-drunk voice hit a note in her gut and she blushed. The alarm was still blaring and she killed it quickly to be able to hear his voice.
"Kyoko!" Ren said more alert and she heard him move on the other end.
"I'm so sorry! I fell asleep!" Kyoko cried into the phone and she heard a short laugh on the other end.
"Apparently me too." Ren sounded astonished and Kyoko's blush deepened. "I slept well." He sounded amused and Kyoko felt her own body brimming with energy.
"Me too." She laughed embarrassed and glanced at the time. She wasn't in a hurry and she relaxed.
"Good morning then Kyoko." She could hear him smile and it put a smile on her own lips.
"Good morning Ren." She glanced out her window and was met with a bright sun. "Looks like a beautiful day."
"It's already a beautiful day as I woke up with you." Ren sounded completely honest and Kyoko fell forward, still with the phone to her ear.
"W-what are you saying?" She stammered with her forehead pressed to the mattress and she heard a small laugh on the other end.
"Seems like my sleep and morning mood are dependent on you." Ren's voice was heavy with something she couldn't place but it made the fire in her gut flare alive.
"What are you saying?" Kyoko asked again but with embarrassment. "I cannot follow your teasing this early in the morning."
"I'm not teasing you. Just stating facts. What time is it?" Ren said as if it was nothing and Kyoko glanced at the clock again.
"Five past seven."
"I have to pick up Yashiro-san in 25 minutes then. I better get moving." Ren said and Kyoko sat straight up in her bed again.
"Ahh. Yeah, me too." Kyoko shuffled out of the bed and almost got pulled back down by the cord. She managed to disconnect it before it tugged her off balance.
"I get off about 11 tonight. May I call you again?" Ren asked and Kyoko felt the blush warm her whole face.
"Yes. Of course." She stammered and felt her heart make a little jump. "I get off around that time too."
"Then, thank you for spending the night with me." Ren said and she could hear something that reminded her of teasing.
"Ren!" She burst out and it started a laugh on the other end.
"Have a nice day Kyoko." She needed a moment to collect her calm again.
"You too. Have a nice day Ren. And do not skip breakfast!" She managed to add with a shaky smile.
"I will not. Bye."
"Bye." Kyoko blushed and took the phone from her ear.
'Wow. How straight forward of him.' Setsu purred. 'He wants to spend another night with you close to his side.'
'Setsu!' Kyoko tried to suppress the blush but her whole body felt warm and fuzzy and didn't want to cooperate. 'He is a playboy.'
'No, and you know it.' Setsu stated it as facts and Kyoko groaned before she jumped up to wash her face in cold water.
.
.
Ren ignored the suspicious stares from his manager and continued to smile as Yashiro drove them to LME.
'What a beautiful day.' He thought and the two other men in his head snorted laughs.
'You are an easy man.' Kuon thought but Ren didn't mind. Yashiro pulled into the parking lot smoothly and pulled the keys from the ignition.
"Ren? Did something good happen?" Yashiro didn't seem to be able to hold back the questions any longer.
"It's a beautiful day. What else would I need?" He smiled and saw the suspicion rise in his manager. Still, he didn't care. Ren doubted anything could spoil his good mood this day.
.
.
Ren did start to feel uncomfortable when Lory called him to his office with a wide grin.
Ren still had the smile on when he saw the same folder on the table as Lory had held the previous morning.
It was when the President opened it and showed what was inside that Ren cursed his fate and the smile faded.
Of course, it had to be the President that would prove him wrong.
….
Author's note.
I want to write a lot more and make a natural envelopment in Kyoko and Ren's relationship. I have a few steps planned ahead to spark things alive between them and I hope you will follow my journey.
I have a wonderful Beta who replies fast and gives me tips and tricks of the English language (Swedish has a very different sentence build and three additional letters). I feel that I have learned a lot and I hope it transfers into your reading.
Thank you, all the people that review! This story is still alive thanks to you all. I cannot explain how much my heart twists and turns in excitement every time I get a notice of a new review. They are my treasures that I pull out and read again whenever I feel low.
I want you to know how much it means to me. Thank you.