Hello! Thank you so much for reading my latest story. I'm glad that you guys really like this idea because I have quite a few stuff lined up for this one. Hehe, hopefully you'll like this chapter so please read and review! You guys are the best!

Disclaimer: I do not own Skip Beat or any of its characters.


Kanae waited outside of Kyoko's door, leaning against the doorframe and tapping her foot incessantly upon the floor as she listened to her friend rummage for her items throughout the room.

"I'm probably going to need this…oh! And that blouse might work…did I pack deodorant? Hold on…there it is….wait, where's my phone…oh no, did I lose it again? Ah! Found it…now just a couple of more items…there you go…just a little more…come on…"

Crossing her arms, Kanae stuck her head through the doorway and saw Kyoko bouncing up and down on her suitcase, trying to close up the zipper before all of its contents burst out.

"Oh there you are Moko-san!" Kyoko exclaimed breathlessly as she was tugging on the zipper. "Think you can help?"

Kanae groaned in annoyance. "This is why you pack the day before," she chided as she plopped herself down upon the luggage with much disdain. After much effort, the two girls finally managed to get the zipper to go all the way around. They both fell off and sat beside it, breathing a little heavier than before.

Kyoko wiped her forehead with the back of her hand and sighed in relief. "Thanks, Moko-san."

"You know, it would be easier to just bring another suitcase. You didn't have to fit it all into that one," she said as she stood up and brushed her hands across her newly-wrinkled skirt.

"I didn't want to take up any unnecessary space," Kyoko said as she pulled the suitcase upwards and brought out the handle. "Besides, it's enough."

Kanae shook her head and looked about Kyoko's room. It seemed as if the whole entire place was cleaned out. All that was left was the large mattress on her floor. "Got everything?" she asked, although she highly doubted the fact Kyoko would forget anything, considering the state of her bedroom.

Kyoko nodded and smiled. "Yup! So what time is the flight?"

Kanae reached inside her handbag and pulled out her ticket. "It says here 1:15 and right now—" She checked her cell phone.

"—it's 12:00."

"Then we—should—go," Kyoko said in a strained voice as she lugged her suitcase down the stairs, thumping loudly along the way.

Kanae closed the door and followed behind. As soon as Kyoko bade her goodbyes to the landlord and his wife, both girls waited for a taxi out front. Kyoko only had one medium-sized suitcase while Kanae had three, not to mention the large handbag she already wore over her shoulder.

Kyoko looked down at her stuff and couldn't stop herself from saying, "Wow, Moko-san. You sure are bringing a lot."

Kanae flipped her glossy, black hair over her shoulder and said simply, "I couldn't decide what to leave at home."

Kyoko laughed as a yellow taxi pulled up. The driver seemed slightly uneasy as he looked at all the luggage he had to fit into his trunk, but surprisingly enough, it all fit. Kanae and Kyoko were able to comfortably sit in the back as Kyoko leaned over to the front seat and said, "The airport please."

"Sure thing ma'am."

And with a quiet start of the engine, the car made its way down the street. Kyoko turned to ask Kanae a question when she suddenly realized how funny her friend looked. Kanae had such a grave expression on her face that it made Kyoko giggle in response.

"What?" Kanae asked with a raised eyebrow as she turned around.

Kyoko shook her head and asked in an amused voice, "Are you excited, Moko-san?"

She shrugged. "I guess. I just hope I don't miss any important job calls over there."

"You're on vacation!" Kyoko exclaimed. "There won't be any job calls."

Kanae sighed and leaned her head back, staring at her friend out of the corner of her eye. "Sounds like you're excited."

Kyoko nodded vigorously. "It's the first time I have ever been out of Japan! I can't wait to see what Las Vegas is like!"

Kanae didn't reply as she watched Kyoko's eyes glaze over, indicating that she had left planet earth and arrived in fantasy land. Although Kanae had been out of the country before, she couldn't help but notice that she was also somewhat excited to go, since this would be the first time she was going anywhere with a friend. Turning her head away, she secretly smiled at the window as she thought about walking around the mall and relaxing with someone instead of by herself.

Kyoko, on the other hand, was nearly buzzing with joy at the prospect of a vacation. As soon as she found out she was going, Kyoko immediately tried to look up everything she could about Vegas and found out that it was a city full of fun. Although she was only seventeen years old and wasn't old enough to hit the casinos, there were plenty of other things to do, like watching circus shows, hanging out by the pool, shopping, and just plain old sight-seeing.

And the fact that she'll be with everyone else was a great plus too. Then, without realizing that she was doing it, Kyoko's mind suddenly wandered to a specific someone who would be accompanying along the way. A deep blush covered her cheeks as she thought about spending time with him outside of the work place. It would be nice for a change to see him casually, rather than professionally. But of course, Kyoko was well aware that he was still her mentor and that even though they were on a fun trip together, it didn't mean that the lines were blurred.

Shaking her head to clear her already fuzzy mind, Kyoko looked out the window and realized that they were approaching the airport.

"We're here, Moko-san!"

Kanae sighed. "I noticed," she said in a bored voice to mask the anticipation bubbling inside her.

And without further ado, the car stopped right in front of the gate for Continental Airlines. Kyoko quickly got out of the car and stared up at the large sign, feeling her stomach churn with excitement. After giving the taxi driver the money and pulling their luggage through the automated doors, Kanae and Kyoko took a good look around the large space and saw long lines of people checking in. It looked so incredibly busy that both girls felt tired just looking at it.

Suddenly, Kyoko noticed a familiar face standing to the side of the large, bustling crowd.

"There you guys are!"

Jelly quickly ran towards them with a large smile upon her face. "We were worried you got lost!"

"We?" Kyoko asked curiously, as she looked around for someone else.

"Well, I wouldn't say worried," Ruriko replied with a sniff as she walked up from behind Jelly. "Annoyed is a better term."

Kyoko smiled widely at seeing Ruriko again, but Kanae, on the other hand, glared.

"Waiting around might do you some good, Ruriko. Something else you ought to learn," she said darkly, knowing fully well Ruriko's pesky problem in the past.

But before Ruriko could open her mouth and retort, Jelly clapped her one on the shoulder and said with a laugh, "Now, now, you guys. This is supposed to be fun. Fighting before we get there is a bad omen for the trip."

Kyoko nodded and nudged Kanae on the shoulder. And once Kanae gave a slight turn of her head, signaling that she was done, Kyoko smiled and asked Jelly, "Where's everyone else?"

"Well, Darling is making sure everything is going as planned. We don't have to check in since he's done it for us."

"Darling?" Ruriko asked with a small frown. "Who's that?"

"Well, you would know him as President Lory," she replied with a wave of her hand. "But that sounds really weird coming from his girlfriend, don't you think?"

Ruriko's jaw dropped. "You're his girlfriend?"

Jelly giggled. "Why do you look so surprised?" she asked.

Spluttering, Ruriko looked like her eyes were going to pop out as she stuttered, "But aren't you a little young for him?"

"What are you talking about, silly? I'm thirty-three and he's not that much older than me."

"THIRTY-THREE?" Ruriko shrieked. "You're kidding!"

Jelly shook her head with a bright smile. "Nope, I'm dead serious," she replied with a wink.

But before any more words could be exchanged, the front doors suddenly slid open once again, revealing a tall, dark silhouette. However, before Kyoko could even turn around to properly see who it was, a deafening roar erupted from the crowd as they yelled:

"TSURUGA REN!"


Not knowing why it happened, Kyoko could feel her heart rapidly beating in her chest as she stared into his calm face. He was wearing light brown slacks, a simple dark green collared shirt, and had a beige jacket over his arm. He gracefully made his way in and took a quick look around, smiling at the crowd of onlookers who were trying to get closer to him. Thankfully, the security guards held them all at bay, allowing Ren to spot the one person he was hoping to see all day.

With a breathtaking smile that seemed to light up the entire room, Ren walked forward with Yashiro close behind. Once he reached the small group, he politely greeted the other girls like any other day, but when he turned to Kyoko, his expression seemed to soften just a bit as he said in a silky voice, "Good afternoon, Mogami-san."

"Good afternoon to you too, Tsuruga-san," Kyoko replied in a somewhat of a breathless way as she bowed her head.

He smiled at her as Yashiro chimed in, "Hi Kyoko-chan!"

Kyoko smiled widely as she stared into his bright face. "Hi, Yashiro-san."

"So, where's everyone else?" Ren asked as he looked over their heads.

And right on cue, President Lory, who was holding Maria's hand, Sawara, and Director Ogata walked out together, waving eagerly at everyone.

"Ren!" Maria cried elatedly as she rushed into his open arms. Ren easily picked her up and laid a quick kiss on her forehead. She giggled. "You're here!"

"Yup, and so are you," he replied with a low chuckle.

Maria wrapped her arms around his neck and noticed Kyoko not standing far away. With shining eyes, she said, "Onee-san is here too!"

Kyoko smiled brightly and walked up to her. "Hi Maria."

"Alright, looks like everyone came," President Lory said happily as Director Ogata and Sawara smiled at Kyoko who bowed to them in greeting.

"But wait," Sawara began with a raised eyebrow. "Where's Amamiya-san? And the others?"

"The rest of the Dark Moon cast is already on the plane," Director Ogata replied.

"And Chiori called and said she won't make it in time," Jelly said with a sad shake of her head. "But she said she'll get a ticket change and arrive first thing tomorrow morning."

"Well then," the President began with a beaming smile, "since that's all cleared up, let's go get our bags checked out and then board the plane."

Then in one large group, everyone walked together towards the gate, with the girls walking in front and the guys following behind. Ren stayed back with the men, with Maria in one arm and his duffel bag in the other. But even though he said a comment every now and then, his eyes refused to leave Kyoko's face. He watched her happily chatting away with Jelly and could feel a longing for her to speak to him too. It sounded pathetic, but Ren was feeling slightly jealous of Jelly at the moment.

And although everyone else didn't notice, Yashiro immediately realized Ren's lack of attention to the conversation and saw that he was too focused on the girl in front of him. He looked up at Ren with a smile and determinedly made it his goal to make sure that Ren gets as much Kyoko-time as he could possibly get while they were on vacation together.

Thankfully for Ren though and unfortunately for Kyoko, the zipper on her luggage couldn't take the strain much longer from all the stuff inside and popped open right as they were entering the corridor to hand off their bags.

Everyone immediately swooped down to help her, but Kyoko said in an anxious voice, "It's okay! I can do it. You should all go on ahead." If there was anything Kyoko hated more in the world, it would be being a nuisance.

"Let us help you," Director Ogata replied as he picked up a shirt. "It'll be quicker."

"No, it's really unnecessary!" Kyoko said with even more anxiety.

Seeing her so distraught, Ren gently laid Maria and his bag down, and placed a hand upon her shoulder. "You don't have to do it by yourself."

And like a tidal wave, Kyoko could feel all the stress leave her body as she stared into his kind face. President Lory caught on quite fast as he turned to everyone and said, "It looks like Ren can handle it without us. How about we all go on then and save you both a seat?"

Ren raised his head and met the President's amused gaze. Slightly irked, but also thankful, he nodded and watched the others walk away. Yashiro, who had Ren's bag over his shoulder, grinned widely at the luck that was bestowed upon Ren while Kanae, on the other hand, turned around and gave them both a calculating gaze. Eventually, both of them managed to continue on with the others, leaving Ren and Kyoko alone.

Kyoko sighed as she neatly re-folded one of her jeans and placed it into the suitcase. "I'm sorry for being such a bother, Tsuruga-san."

Ren laughed gently and said, "It's not a problem, Mogami-san. I'm glad to be of assistance."

And together, they were able to put everything back in its place and zip up the suitcase in less than five minutes. After they were done, Ren fluidly grabbed the suitcase and began to pull it along when Kyoko suddenly reached out with a horrified look and said, "There's no need for you to take it, Tsuruga-san!"

"It's fine, Mogami-san," he said with a smile as he easily took it out of her hands.

"But—!"

Kyoko fell silent as she saw the stern look in his eyes. Blushing profusely, she nodded and replied in a small voice, "Thank you, Tsuruga-san."

And together, they walked forward, side by side as Ren couldn't help but realize more and more that he was actually alone with her. Forcing himself to make small talk, Ren cleared this throat silently and asked, "Are you excited for Vegas?"

She looked up and nodded. "You?"

Ren didn't reply immediately since he didn't want to tell her that Vegas wasn't exactly a city he would have chosen. That would probably make things awkward since she was so enthusiastic about seeing it. So instead he said, "I think it'll be an interesting trip."

Of course, Ren knew it would be more than just interesting. The fact that he was spending his time with Kyoko in the City of Sin was probably going to drive him insane. Looking at her innocent face out of the corner of his eye made Ren all the more determined to make sure she will have fun in Vegas without all of the nasty trouble.

"And hopefully that fun can include me as well," he thought silently as he imagined himself sitting in a restaurant with a smiling Kyoko sitting across from him.

"Tsuruga-san," Kyoko began quietly.

Ren jumped slightly, but turned his full attention back to her.

"Yes?"

"Are you upset that I'm here?" she asked softly, refusing to meet his gaze as she continued onward.

Ren froze in an instant and stopped right in his tracks. Kyoko stopped too and timidly raised her head a fraction of an inch.

She didn't know why she suddenly decided to ask him that now. It was really quite random. But while they were walking together, she couldn't help but remember his facial expression when the President said she was tagging along. He looked mortified. Maybe he thought that this vacation would give her the idea that they were on the same level, as if they were friends. Maybe he didn't want her here at all.

But while Kyoko was sulking, Ren felt the blood in his body run cold. How could she say such a ridiculous thing? Shaking his head slightly, Ren asked with disbelief, "Why do you think that?"

Kyoko looked down at her feet and mumbled, "You seemed really…surprised yesterday when you found out I was coming."

Wanting to beat himself over the head, Ren forced himself to keep his composure as he took a step forward to Kyoko. She didn't look up and it nearly killed him for him to see how she refused to meet his eyes. At first, Ren hesitantly extended a hand, wanting to brush his fingertips across her cheek. That way, maybe she'll look up at him.

But he knew that was highly unnecessary. Besides, it might even make the situation worse. So lowering his hand and sighing heavily, he decided to take the easy way out.

"Mogami-san, please look at me."

Kyoko slowly raised her head.

"I'm sorry if I gave you the wrong impression," Ren said with a pained smile. "Believe me, I'm glad that you're here."

She didn't reply except give a small nod.

Knowing that she was unconvinced, Ren decided to take it a step further as he tilted his head slightly down to her level so that they stared eye to eye. Her eyes widened in surprise.

"In fact," Ren continued tenderly. "If there was anyone I want to go on a trip with, it would be you."

At first, Kyoko couldn't believe her ears. She felt as if steam was bursting out of her pores because it felt as if lava was coursing through her veins. But suddenly, a natural smile crept across her face at his words and she nodded at his gentle gaze.

"Thank you, Tsuruga-san."

He flashed a brilliant smile in return and began to walk forward with Kyoko slightly trailing behind. She secretly had a hand over her heart, feeling its spasmodic beats and trying to force it into a normal pace. By the time she felt like normal, they had already boarded the plane.

Of course, everyone was flying first class. There were about thirty plushy seats and nearly all of them were filled with familiar faces. President Lory was right; the whole entire Dark Moon cast really did come.

And while Kyoko was smiling at everyone, she suddenly heard a voice call out her name.

"Kyoko!"

She looked up and saw Momose Itsumi sitting with the rest of the cast near the back.

"Hi!" Kyoko said with a wave.

Itsumi hastily beckoned her over to the empty seat next to her. But when Kyoko was about to walk forward, Kanae suddenly plopped down in the seat beside Itsumi. At first Itsumi was too surprised to speak. She just stared at Kanae with surprise, who seemed completely unfazed.

Kyoko blinked in confusion.

But before Kyoko could give it another thought, someone had already wrapped a slender hand around her wrist.

Turning around, she found herself staring deeply into Ren's brown eyes as he murmured softly, "Would you like to sit next to me instead?"

Kyoko's heart stopped altogether.