A/N: And here is the second chapter! Sorry it took so long. It was kind of weird writing from Hikaru's perspective! xD In any case, thanks to Jhiz, Piacine-Jadeymay, leavesfallingup, WitchMagicCat, Shiroyuki76, and Fangurl Ayane for the reviews! They made me very happy! ^.^ And on a side note, it turns out we were both wrong WitchMagicCat! xD Taichou, the suffix I used, means captain and kaichou, the suffix you suggested, means class president. I used the awesome powers of google to find out that the suffix I should've used was shachou, which means company president. Thank you for pointing out my mistake and please take note that I have changed it! -preens-
Dedications: I'm dedicating this chapter to leavesfallingup and to Fangurl Ayane for their spooky clairvoyance concerning what I wanted to write. o.o
-Flashback-
Hikaru fidgeted nervously as the president of his company stared him down, a look of amusement in the older man's eyes. They had been sitting like this for several minutes, Takarada-shachou staring at Hikaru like he was his new favorite toy and Hikaru staring warily back as if the president was a dangerous snake that might bite him. Although Takarada-shachou probably wouldn't bite him himself, he was dressed up as a snake-charmer, so who knows…and as far as Hikaru could tell, the small waiting room and Takarada-shachou's rather large office didn't nearly add up to all the space the top floor should have. And only Takarada-shachou and God (and maybe Sebastian) knew what was hidden in all that leftover space.
The leader of Bridge Rock knew there was no reason to overreacting so badly. Even if it was rare for Takarada-shachou to call anyone to his office, that didn't mean he was going to get his head bitten off. But if the president had something to say to the band, wouldn't he have asked for Shinichi and Yuusei as well?
'Oh man, I've really got to stop thinking like this,' Hikaru thought as he mentally facepalmed. 'I'm going to freak myself out even more if I keep it up.' He sighed in resignation as the silence stretched on. And then Lory started laughing.
"Stop looking at me like I'm going to fire you or something, Hikaru-kun," Lory managed to get out through his laughs. "I didn't call you here to scold you!"
Lory managed to turn his laughs into chuckles and even those stopped after a few more seconds. "Actually, I need your help with Mogami-kun," he continued.
Hikaru's expression slid from relief and into confusion. "Mogami-kun? Who's that?" he asked.
"Ah, I forgot that she might not have told you her real name yet!" Lory said and lightly slapped his forehead. "I mean Kyouko-chan."
Filing away the information about Kyouko-chan's last name, Hikaru answered, "If Kyouko-chan needs something, Takarada-shachou, then I would be more than happy to help."
"Good, good," Lory said delightedly. "But first, I have a question for you, Hikaru-kun. How exactly do you feel about Mogami-kun? And don't you dare try to lie to me because I already know the answer."
Hikaru blushed. How in the world did the president know how he felt about Kyouko-chan when they hadn't ever met before?
'Just goes to show that the rumors were right about Takarada-shachou being able to sniff out blooming love from a mile away,' Hikaru thought with some amused mental headshaking. Then he answered, "Takarada-shachou, I like Kyouko-chan very much. Without a doubt, she is the most amazing, talented, and caring woman I have ever met. If she would let me, I would be honored to take care and treasure her for the rest of her life."
Lory's face lit up with a brilliant smile at Hikaru's answer. "Perfect!" he responded happily. "You'll be able to help Mogami-kun with this, no problem!"
Hikaru laughed a little at his eccentric president's antics and said, "Takarada-shachou, you haven't explained what exactly I'm supposed to be helping with yet."
"Hmmm, you're right. Although, before I tell you about the assignment, I suppose I should tell you why Mogami-kun needs to do it," Lory paused there, his face suddenly becoming serious. "Tell me, Hikaru-kun, do you know why I placed Mogami-kun in the LoveMe section?"
There was a long, thoughtful pause before Hikaru answered. "No, she has never told me why she's in the LoveMe section," Hikaru said before pausing once more, although only for a few seconds this time. "In fact, I know almost nothing about the LoveMe Section except that they have to wear those pink uniforms."
"I set up the LoveMe section for actors and actresses who had great acting potential but had lost their ability to love," Lory told Hikaru in a solemn voice, waiting for Hikaru's reaction.
Unsurprisingly, Hikaru was shocked. "Unable to love?" he laughed. "Kyouko-chan is possibly the most loving person I've ever met in my life. Why in the world would she ever be in LoveMe?" he said while shaking his head.
"I agree with you," Lory said. "Mogami-kun loves so many of the people around her, it's almost funny that she thinks she can't love anyone. But that is what she thinks."
Once again, there was a long pause between the two men. This time, however, Hikaru stared at Lory as if he had told him the world was flat and Lory just sadly stared back. Lory continued, "She thinks that she has been broken, which I suppose to some extent she has been. I won't tell you why she feels this way, because that is her own story to tell and I do not wish to violate her privacy. But suffice to say, she cannot be allowed to continue like this, for various reasons."
Hikaru just kept blankly staring at Lory with empty eyes for a few seconds. Then he snapped out of it, life returning to his eyes and determination replacing the blankness. "What do you need me to do?" he asked.
"I know that you are not an actor, Hikaru-kun, but I would like you to take part in an acting assignment with Mogami-kun," Lory explained, a small smile reappearing on his face. "You will be acting as Mogami-kun's boyfriend and she as your girlfriend."
Throughout the entire conversation, Hikaru's brain had been taxed quite a bit from shock after shock, but at this statement his brain just shutdown all together.
"Act…as her boyfriend…?" he asked in a daze.
"Exactly, Hikaru-kun," Lory answered.
"But why would we act something like that out? And why would you pick me to do it?" Hikaru asked, still in a daze.
"To your first question: I have two reasons. First of all, Kyouko-chan needs to know how to act out a romantic relationship. She may be getting all of the bully roles right now, but I have a feeling she will be asked to play a more romantic role sooner rather than later. I want her to have some experience in such a role and I think she will appreciate acting the role out with someone she is more comfortable with.. Second of all, I have a faint hope that maybe this role will break Mogami-kun out of her shell and allow her to love again," Lory told the leader of Bridge Rock. "But, that girl is so dense sometimes it will be a miracle if that happens," Lory pouted more to himself than to Hikaru.
Laughing, Hikaru replied, " That is definitely true."
Lory then continued with his answer, saying, "And to your second question: Although, I could've picked another actor to act alongside Mogami-kun, I think it would be best that she do this exercise with someone she is already familiar and comfortable with. That way Mogami-kun won't be too worried about acting out a romantic role."
'And because Ren's schedule was too busy for him to make time for this…' Lory pouted silently.
"Well, Takarada-shachou," Hikaru began, "if you think I can do it, than I am more than happy to help."
"Excellent!" Lory answered gleefully. Then, his face seemed to go blank for a second, as if he had just thought of something. But not a second later, Lory's grin was back, now twice as big and more devious than ever.
"Ah, but Hikaru-kun…I feel that as an ambassador to love I should tell you this, even thought you've probably already realized it…" Lory started, his glee and amusement just barely masked behind a concerned tone. "There are others who have discovered, like you, that Mogami-kun is an exceptional person. Those people aren't going to hold back in pursuing her. And as Mogami-kun becomes more well known, even more people are going to join in the race. I wouldn't hold back to much right now, especially since you will have a monopoly on her for the next few months at least," the president finished.
Hikaru's face blanched, as if he already suspected one such rival. "Thank you for the advice, Takarada-shachou. I will definitely keep that in mind," he thanked the president.
"Well, now that our little chat is done, I think we should invite Mogami-kun in and tell her about her new assignment," Lory chuckled. He then said out loud, as if there was another person in the room, "Could you show Mogami-kun in now, Sebastian?"
Hikaru saw movement out of the corner of his eye. He slowly turned his gaze to the corner of the room and there was Sebastian, standing in the corner.
'How long has he been standing there?' Hikaru asked himself, confusion, yet again, throwing his mind into chaos. 'I didn't notice him at all!' Hikaru thought. Now he was really embarrassed. Had Sebastian heard the whole conversation?
"Of course, Takarada-shachou," Sebastian answered.
As they sat in silence waiting for Sebastian to return with Kyoko, they both thought about the end of their conversation.
Hikaru was thinking, 'Takarada-shachou was probably talking about Tsuruga Ren-san, wasn't he…? But there's others as well?'
And Lory? Lory was thinking, 'If that doesn't get Ren's boring ass moving, then I don't know what will!'
-End Flashback-
Hikaru chuckled a little as he remembered his conversation with Takarada-shachou while walking through the hallways of L.M.E. The conversation had went surprisingly well, considering how nervous he had been beforehand. But, after Kyouko-chan showed up…
'Well, that part of the conversation didn't go quite as well,' Hikaru thought to himself, mentally laughing. Yes, he was disappointed that he didn't get in a single word while Kyouko-chan and Takarada-shachou talked, but that was hardly his fault, was it? After Kyouko-chan walked in, he got so embarrassed he couldn't even look her in the face without blushing. The thought of being her boyfriend, even if was only pretend, made him so giddy and happy that he had no doubt that there was a stupid grin plastered on his face. Where did he want to take her for their dated? Where would she want to go most? Wait, first he had to figure out where to take her on their first date, which was going on right now! Oh crap, what was he going to do? He had no idea where to take her…
Hikaru was so caught up in his thoughts, he didn't notice that he had stopped just outside of the revolving doors that led to L.M.E and that he had been standing in front of those doors for several minutes. Nor did he notice that certain someone was timidly tugging on his shirt sleeve, trying to get his attention…
"…ru-san? Hikaru-san?"
He blinked a few times and focused his gaze on Kyoko. "Sorry, Kyouko-chan," he said with a smile. "What were you saying?"
"Oh, I was just making sure you were okay, Hikaru-san!" Kyoko said with a grin. "You were acting like me there for a second, spacing out like that," she continued. And then her face fell and she looked shocked by what she just said.
"I'm sorry, Hikaru-san," she said, immediately flinging herself down into a low bow. "I didn't mean that like you're as weird as I am because that would be very insulting because you are one of the most normal…" Kyoko said as she started one of her odd apologizing rants.
"Kyouko-chan, relax," Hikaru said while trying to keep from laughing. He was failing miserably. "If someone was just randomly spacing out in front of a building, anyone would think it was weird , right?" he managed to get out between his laughs.
At his unsuppressed laughter, Kyoko's face formed an adorable pout. "Hikaru-san, it's not that funny!" she growled at him.
"Sorry, sorry, Kyouko-chan," Hikaru stuttered out, still chuckling. "I'll stop now," he said. Hikaru began walking down the sidewalk and ruffled Kyoko's hair as he passed her. She pouted a little while trying to quickly smooth out her hair, but then grinned and ran to catch up with him. She was looking forward to acting with Hikaru-san, even if they had to act out such embarrassing roles. She really enjoyed spending time with him and the other Ishibashi-onii-sans. She had honestly been upset when she had lost a lot of her time together with them when she was acting as Setsu.
"So," Hikaru started when Kyoko had caught up to him a few seconds later, "where would you like to go for our first date, Kyouko-chan?"
Kyoko blushed at the idea of this being her first date, but shook her head to clear her mind of embarrassment and shyly answered, "I really don't have any idea, Hikaru-san. I don't even really know what to do on a date." She paused for a second, before finally trailing off with, "I've never been on a date before, after all…"
Hikaru looked at the girl walking beside him with some puzzlement. She'd never been on a date before? What kind of people had she been around before she had entered L.M.E.? It was just absurd that no one had taken such a cute girl out on a date yet…
And then it clicked. It wasn't just their first date. It was her first date ever! He had somehow managed to be this wonderful girl's first date! Impossible though it may seem, Hikaru's grin just got even bigger and his face practically beamed sunlight he was so happy. But where were they going to go for their date?
Hikaru thought about this dilemma for a few seconds, before turning to Kyoko and asking, "Have you eaten lunch yet?"
"No, not yet. I was planning to eat something after meeting with Takarada-san, but…" Kyoko answered.
"Well, then," Hikaru started, "we can't go anywhere hungry, can we? I haven't eaten lunch yet either, so how about we grab a bite to eat?"
Kyoko's stomach growled in reply for her. Blushing, she told him, "That's probably a good idea Hikaru-san."
"Then we'll stop at the first restaurant that looks good!" Hikaru declared. As they continued walking, they started talking about small things like work, coworkers, and funny mishaps during and outside of work. Kyoko had more such stories, unsurprisingly. And although he was paying attention to the conversation, Hikaru couldn't help but admire the outfit Jelly Woods had given Kyoko. She was wearing a brown v-neck shirt that was just low enough to show some cleavage, but high enough to not offend her modest sensibilities. On top of that, she wore a stylish white jacket to keep out the cool spring air. She also had on some comfortably tight jeans that showed off how shapely her legs were underneath the denim and a pair of sandals. Not to mention the small touch of makeup Jelly had given her just before they left. She looked absolutely…stunning, even in such a simple outfit. Honestly, he was having some difficulty keeping himself from glaring at the other men who were openly staring at her.
But unbeknownst to him, Kyoko was looking at Hikaru too. It was starting to dawn upon her that Hikaru was actually quite handsome. Maybe not in the same way that Tsuruga-san was, but Hikaru was very handsome nonetheless. And his ensemble only showed it off. Jelly had given him a tan long sleeve button-down collared shirt. The top two buttons were undone, giving everyone a peek at his chest and showing off his chain necklace. He also had on some dark skinny jeans and a pair of black converse. Everything was just tight enough to show off his well defined muscle, but not tight enough to look uncomfortable. In fact, he might be fun to play with, looking that yummy. And she had never gotten to finish their little scene in TBM studios from so long ago…
Then Kyoko's cheeks flushed red and she quickly shooed away Natsu, who was beginning to come through. 'Oh no you don't, missy,' Kyoko thought to herself and to Natsu. 'You've no place here, even if we think…I mean you, even if you think Hikaru-san looks handsome!'
Then, all of a sudden, Hikaru stopped and put his hand on Kyoko's shoulder, stopping her as well. "Why don't we eat there?" Hikaru asked, pointing at a small café across the street.
"Ah, sure, Hikaru-san!" Kyoko quickly said. 'Anything you want, Hikaru-san! Just stop touching me after I was thinking about you in such a waaaaaaaaaay!' she wailed in her head.
Since there was only light traffic at the moment, they quickly crossed the street and went into the café, a little bell at the door sounding their arrival. The café was almost empty, so as they sat down the waitress walked up to them immediately.
"Hello!" the waitress said cheerily, pulling out a little notebook and pen. "What can I get you two today?"
"Well…" Hikaru started while peering at the menu board above the store's counter, "what would you recommend?"
The waitress looked up at the board and thoughtfully tapped her pen to her cheek. "Well, today's special is really good!" she finally told the pair. "I always buy one to bring home for dinner," she continued.
"Then, I'll take that!" Hikaru said happily. Turning back to Kyoko, he asked, "How about you Kyouko-chan?"
"I think…I'll have the same thing," she told the waitress with a smile.
"And to drink?" the waitress asked while scribbling down their order.
"I'll have water," Kyoko told her.
"And I'll have root beer," Hikaru said afterwards.
"Alrighty then! I'll bring your order out in a few minutes!" the waitress said before she walked back to the counter. Kyoko and Hikaru watched her walk away and then turned back towards each other.
"So Kyouko-chan…can I ask you a question?" Hikaru asked slowly.
"Of course, Hikaru-san. What is it?" she said with a smile, trying to calm down her furiously beating heart. She still wasn't quite over her little episode with Natsu.
"Well, I noticed that Takarada-shachou calls you Mogami-kun. I was just wondering if that your family name?"
Kyoko blinked a few times and then chuckled a bit. "Oh, I'm sorry, Hikaru-san. I had forgotten that you, Yuusei-san, and Shinichi-san don't know my real name. My real name is Mogami Kyoko. So, yes, my family name is Mogami."
"That's what I thought," he said, grinning. Then, frowning for a second, he asked, "Um, what should I call you by then? Should I keep calling you by your stage name ?"
"Well, considering the situation we're in," Kyoko said with a rueful smile, "I think it would be fine if you called me by my given name."
"Kyoko it is, then!" Hikaru said and leaned back in his chair. Kyoko blushed and looked down at the table. It was odd for someone to say her name so informally. She had never even let Sho say her name without a suffix!
- 'But…I guess it's alright…considering…' Kyoko thought.
"So, Hikaru-san…" Kyoko began before Hikaru quickly interrupted.
"Now, now Kyoko," he said with a huge grin, wagging his finger at her and putting emphasis on each syllable of her name. "If we're going to be 'dating'," he said, putting air quotes on the word dating, "then you're going to have to call me Hikaru. Just plain, old Hikaru." His eyes twinkled. Teasing her was just way too much fun.
"B-but, Hikaru-san! I can't just…" she said, trying to start again before Hikaru cut her off once more.
"Nope. You won't change my mind, Kyoko," he said while laughing. "You might as well just accept it and move on. Leave the arguing for a fight you actually have a chance at winning!"
Hikaru heard Kyoko grumble something like, "Why do guys always pick on me? Is it really that much fun?", before she looked him in the eye and said, "Fine, Hikaru," mockingly emphasizing every syllable in his name as he had done with hers. "But, I'll have my revenge for this!" she said, pouting angrily and shaking her fist at him. Hikaru blinked a few time, surprised at her reaction. Honestly, he had expected her to fight a bit more about this. Hikaru watched as Kyoko's pout slowly turned into an amused smile and the both cracked up laughing at their antics.
'I was right thinking this was going to be fun! He's just so easy to relax around!' Kyoko thought as they both laughed until they started crying.
"Here's your order!" the waitress chirped, chuckling a little herself at her laughing customers.
"Thank you very much!" Kyoko called after her as she walked away.
"Yeah, thanks!" Hikaru said loudly in agreement.
The two dug in to their food, happily chatting throughout the meal. Even when they finished eating, they sat and talked for another hour or so, talking about silly things like favorite colors and the merits of hamburger steak. Afterwards, Hikaru payed the bill, with quite a lot of protest from Kyoko, and they went their separate ways, Kyoko to the Box R shoot and Hikaru to TBM Studios. But even though they were heading in their own directions, neither could help reminiscing on how much fun they had on their date. And neither of them could contain their excitement at the prospect of doing it again.
P.S.: Just out of curiosity, how many of you would be interested in a story in which Kyoko and Maria are actually sisters by blood and not only namesake? The idea came to me yesterday and I was thinking about writing a story about it after finishing this one. Well, if you have an opinion on it, please send me a message, leave a review, or something of that nature! ^.^
