Backtracking (One Last Time) and Back to the Future

(a.k.a. a series of shorts and time skips)

Kyoko reclined her head against the back wall and closed her eyes, letting her eyes take a break from the screen. "So you were able to do the scene with her." She opened one eye and peeked over at Hikaru. Once again, the Bridge Rock group had requested her to work with them, this time looking through old tapes and trying to get ideas for new shows. Hikaru was the only one of the three who hadn't wanted to take a break, so the other two had left a few minutes ago while Hikaru and Kyoko kept working. Immediately he had asked about her wrist, and if she had sorted out the problem, which led to Kyoko telling him the full story, minus the names. "Did she apologize for what she did?" Kyoko gave a half smile, remembering the events of the previous day.

She couldn't explain how thrilling it had been to feel…joy at the suffering of the other girl, how amazingly happy she had been watching Yumika torture their victim. Of course it was perfectly acceptable, as long as she was able to get some entertainment out of it. 'For someone who was bullied their entire life…to be able to feel joy because of it…I owe that to you.' She thought back to Chiori's soft smile, the way her eyes had slowly lit up…until Kyoko realized that Chiori had felt it too…the ability to completely become another person. "Everything is fine between us now." Kyoko told him simply, reaching for her glass of water and taking a sip. She could feel his eyes on her as her lips touched the glass and wondered if it had been such a good idea to accept his request, though she couldn't very well refuse for no reason.

She hadn't seen Ren since the previous morning, but had received at least five voicemails and texts asking if she was okay. Her lips stretched into a small smile. Although she hated for him to worry about her, the fact that he did it anyway made her feel special in a way she never had before. 'Still, I can't keep bothering him and making him worry.' She told herself firmly. Briefly her mind went back to her conversation with the President. 'Announce our relationship to the press?' The thought wasn't appealing, although she understood the justification of announcing it rather than just letting them figure it out. She wondered what Ren thought of it. Shaking the thought from her head for the moment, she went back to watching the Bridge Rock group on the screen, something she was being paid to do, scolding herself for thinking about her boyfriend at work.


It didn't take long for her hand to heal, especially since Sawara-san, Takarada-san, and Ren all made sure that she was kept away from any significant physical activity that even remotely involved her right hand. This involved everything from working on Dark Moon to the LME training school, and after a week of being closely watched, her hand was back to normal.

She and Ren had a rather short talk at his apartment that week about announcing their relationship to the press. He ordered take-out and they sat in his living room on opposite ends of the couch, facing one another, as he brought up the subject. She had been hesitant to speak about it.

"Well…if you want to announce it…it's mostly your reputation that's involved." He shook his head firmly.

"That's not true. You are more likely to suffer if people think you are using me to further your career." Her eyes had widened incredulously at that, but he had quickly gone on before she could comment. "Kyoko, this is something that involves you too, and I want your opinion." She sighed and peeked up at him.

"I'm afraid of the press finding out." She finally mumbled, keeping her eyes cast downward in fear. Soon, his hand came into view and clasped her own.

"Then we won't say anything." He told her with a soft smile. "But we have to be careful if we want to keep this a secret. Everyone who knows is already keeping it quiet, but we won't be able to go out in public much together." She could hear a slight pang of regret in his voice and winced.

"I'm sorry." She murmured. He shifted forward and hugged her, careful not to disrupt the food on her lap. She buried her nose in his hair and took a deep breath, smiling a little at his scent.

"Don't be sorry. We have plenty of time to announce everything. Besides….I'd like to finish up my new project before anything else about me comes out." She lifted an eyebrow.

"New project? Oh! The secret one?"

"Yes." He nodded with a slight smile. "It will probably take a while before I can finish."

"Is it a big part?" She wondered. He chuckled.

"It's fairly big." He conceded. "But I can't really tell you anything else."

That night, he had invited her to stay over in the guest room. It happened occasionally, though he tried not to do it too often for fear of someone finding out about their relationship. But this was a special night. He pulled her away from her cooking after gathering all the courage he could muster, sat her down on the couch beside him, and held her.

"What's wrong?" She had wondered, looking into his sad, frightened eyes. Starting in a voice hardly above a whisper, he began, without preamble, to tell her the truth; the truth about the bullying, about his family…about his best friend…and about being a murderer. By the end, his anguished voice had caused tears to run down her face as she held him.

"I'm sorry." She had whispered. "I'm so sorry, Kuon." At first, that was all she could say, her arms around his neck as he sobbed into her shoulder. Taking a deep breath, she had forced herself to calm down and run her small hands over his back. "It's okay." She whispered. "It wasn't your fault." He had flinched when she said that, but she went on firmly. "It wasn't your fault. It was an accident. She was wrong. You aren't a murderer." He shook his head against her neck and she pulled away, placing her hands on his face and forcing him to look at her. Staring at him, his eyes red and haunted, she finally saw the man behind the actor she admired so much. "I know you." S he told him simply. "I know who you are. You are my fairy prince. You are my sempai, and a world-class actor. You…you are my boyfriend, and the man that I l…love. But you are not a murderer." She didn't know if it was her words, or just her presence, but a burden seemed to lift from his shoulders and he straightened, wrapping his arms around her and squeezing tightly.


Time passed. The month of January was largely uneventful, with Dark Moon moving closer to its conclusion and Box R getting ready to air. Before she knew it, February was flying by. Ren's birthday had taken a lot of thought, but she finally decided to sneak into his apartment (she used the key he gave her, but she couldn't help but think of it as breaking and entering) and cook him dinner and bake a cake. She had the entire day off, so she spent the entire day whipping up the best meal she could manage, along with some very decorative food items, an art she had learned as a young child. The light strawberry cake was, after much deliberation, decorated with his real name, with a single candle in the middle.

When she was finished, she sat down at the kitchen counter and thought about his gift. There was nothing inherently wonderful about the gift she had ordered. She looked toward the unopened box hidden away by her stuff, wondering if she had picked something stupid. It was just a sake set, though it hadn't been cheap. However, at the last minute, she had decided to have his name inscribed on the bottle…his real name. She sighed softly. 'Will he be angry?' She wondered. It was rare that he actually had guests over…but she had still created an opportunity for him to be found out. 'Maybe I should tell him his gift hasn't arrived yet…and then send it back and request his stage name…or just leave it plain.' She nearly groaned. 'What if he gets angry? What if I've ruined his birthday! What if…' She screamed when a hand closed over her shoulder, and would have fallen if it hadn't been for the arms that wrapped around her and kept her steady.

"What's the occasion?" His deep, gentle voice touched her ear and made her shiver. She stammered for a moment and he chuckled.

"Um…happy birthday."

He had been more than disappointed when he hadn't seen her all day on his birthday, and even more so when he didn't even receive a text message wishing him a happy birthday. She hadn't answered her phone, and even if she had, he didn't want to act like it was a big deal. 'She probably forgot.' He reasoned. 'And she'd feel horrible if I brought it up.' He had just strengthened his resolve to forget about it and move on when he pushed his door open and found her sitting in the kitchen, her eyes sad and worried. On the stove were two plates of high class food cut into amazing shapes, with roses and leaves made from vegetables on the sides. He could see the cake under a cover, a small, round one with white icing and his name on the top in her elegant script. 'Why is she sad?' He wondered, pressing his lips against her cheek. "Thank you. How long have you been waiting?"

"Um….I've been cooking for a few hours…I just finished."

"You didn't have to do that for me." He told her with a gentle, pleased smile. "But thank you." He tucked a strand of hair behind her ear and moved to stand in front of her. "What's wrong?" She shook her head and smiled suddenly, jumping from her stool.

"Nothing. Sorry. I was just lost in thought. Are you hungry?" She walked over and grabbed the plates of food, carrying them to the dining room, which they rarely used, with a smile. He chuckled and followed with two glasses of water, and they sat down and enjoyed the food. "How was your day?"

"Well, I spent most of it sorting through assorted gifts and wondering where I was going to put all of the stuff." She giggled. "Yashiro-san actually had to skip most of the filming to get through everything. Still, I had a short day and I was able to come home to you, so no complaints." He enjoyed the surprised blush that covered her face as she nibbled at her food. "Was Yashiro-san in on this?"

She shook her head. "Not really. I did ask him when you would be back, but I think he already scheduled your day so that you would be home early." By this point, the meal was finished, and she stood and brought the cake in, placing it on the table, and cutting him a small piece. Her cooking never could cease to amaze him, and he devoured the light cake although he had just eaten a meal. Honestly, he enjoyed watching her eat the cake more than he should have, and he had to quit watching before his body realized that they were completely alone and it wouldn't take much to lose control.

He was about to stand when she stood and stopped him. "Um…there's one more thing." She mumbled. He sat back at stared at her in confusion. "Your…your birthday gift."

"My…I thought all of this was my gift. Kyoko, you didn't need to buy me anything." He was more than happy that she had thought of him, and had wanted to get him something, but he also knew how little extra money she had, and hated to think of her spending any of it on him.

"Um…I'll be right back." She mumbled, and he watched her flee.

'Why does she seem upset?' He wondered sadly. 'What could she have gotten me…that would upset her?' Immediately a stripper came to mind, and he nearly smacked himself. "Pervert." He mumbled irritably, shaking his head in surprise at his own dirty imagination. 'Not that I want a stripper…unless she wants the job…' He grinned for a moment, and then hastily wiped his mind clean. 'I'd better stop that. I'm going to scare her.' A few minutes later, she appeared with a tray and a sake set he had never seen, made of smooth, dark wood with golden writing he couldn't decipher. "Where…where did you…"

"Um…this is your gift. I don't know if you like sake…but…um…" He smiled softly.

'She didn't think I would like it.' He stood and took the tray from her, momentarily admiring the tall bottle and the little square cups, the turned to her and wrapped his arms around her, pressing his lips against hers. "It's the best gift I've gotten all day." He promised softly, nose to nose with the blushing girl, his eyes staring into her happy ones.

"Did you read it?" She wondered, a bit sadly. He cocked his head, then turned back to the bottle and picked it up, reading the writing in surprise. "I'm sorry." She mumbled. "I didn't really think about it until today…if anyone sees it…" He shook his head, placing the bottle on the table again and kissing her forehead.

"Like I said…best gift all day."


Valentines Day passed without incident. (Sho did attempt to break into the Dark Moon set, but Ren had suspected it beforehand and requested that he not be allowed to disrupt filming in any way, a request that Director Ogata honored. Kyoko never found out. Much to her surprise, the Beagle hadn't shown up at any point, (Also Ren's handy-work) and she had been able to hand out chocolates to everyone (and a special dessert for Ren) without interruption. However, the President had, a few days after the holiday, approached her and the other two Love Me members (Chiori confessed everything to Takarada-san and asked to join the section a few days after Box R began filming) and handed out missions. Kyoko's was…strangely enough…dangerous.

The man was terrifying…for about ten seconds. But the closer she stepped to the giant foreigner, the most convinced she became. "Ren?" She whispered, coming into his line of sight. He glanced at her from the corner of his eye, and her blood froze. 'Oh…oh god…not Ren…no way…' She took a step back as he stood, towering over her and leaning forward. He stomped on his cigarette and leered at her, and she could smell the strong, nauseating sweet scent of smoke on his breath. Resisting the urge to cough, she tried to step back again, but he was looming over her so closely that she bent backward and collapsed. For a split second, she caught something in his eyes, but was too busy flinching away from his raised foot to contemplate it. When nothing happened, she looked up and realized that he had just stepped over her. She looked around and realized that the man had disappeared. It was a good twenty minutes before she could stand.

Stepping in front of the alley, she didn't see the hand until it wrapped around her mouth and pulled her into the darkness, pulling her back against a body she couldn't see. She felt tears burn her eyes as fear coursed through her body. 'Ren!' Her mind screamed the word as she tried to get free. She was held firmly against his front, and thought he was saying something, but her heartbeat was pounding in her ears and she was screaming as loudly as she could with his hand pressed over her mouth. Out of the corner of her eye she could see Cain Heel's face. Of course, he wasn't actually hurting her, just holding her, which might have been her first clue had she been paying attention. Instead she jerked away and landed on the ground, curling in a ball. "I'm sorry!" She cried. "I'm sorry I mistook you for someone else. I'm sorry my outfit is so ugly! I'm sorry that our President is so weird. I'm sorry…"

"Kyoko." Finally, the soft voice broke through her terror, and she felt a gentle hand on her head. "Shh. Don't be scared. You had the right person. It's me." She looked up and blanched.

"Re….." Her exclamation was cut off by his hand on her mouth again.

He chuckled softly. "Yea…but you have to be quiet. This is a secret mission."

'I thought it was supposed to be dangerous…'