Chapter 9 - Perfection

Kyoko was able to move back within a week of moving out since Isao left Tokyo after being released from the hospital. She didn't take very many things to begin with, so the move back was easy. She was filming and back to her usual schedule in no time. The thing with Kuroski did get her name out there. She was asked to do several interviews which she hoped to promote Box 'R'and Embrace no Evil; however, she ended up only doing one.

It was awful. All they wanted to talk about was Kuroski. While she was the victim, and they praised her for defeating him, she simply wanted to forget the whole thing.

Ren watched the show and tried to warn her before hand. He was standing off stage the moment Kyoko finished the show. She looked up at him completely exhausted and sighed. He smiled at her and took her away.

"How does hamburger sound?" He asked her as he drove away from the studio. She smiled up at him and nodded. He pulled into a small restaurant, and she peeked in before going in. Ren donned his cap and waited behind her.

"What are you doing, Kyoko-chan?" He bent down a little and whispered in her ear.

"I'm making sure it's safe," she told him. Kyoko stood up, looked towards Ren and found his face so very close to hers making her blush lightly.

"There aren't very many people, so we should be fine," she commented looking away from his handsome face. Ren smiled humorously at her as they walked in and took a back booth. She sat all the way to the corner of the seat, trying to use Ren as a shield. He watched her as she eyed the room behind him suspiciously and couldn't help his smile.

"You want my cap?" He offered as he pulled it off and plopped it on her head. It was big on her small head and fell over her eyes. He chuckled as she straightened it. She grinned as she tried to get it to sit right and shook her head. She slid it across the table back to him, and he slipped it back on once the waitress came for their orders.

"How long does it take to get use to people coming up to you on the street?" She asked curiously as she played with her silver ware.

"It actually gets old very fast," Ren told her with a little sigh. She frowned at his words and he tried to lighten his statement, "but it isn't so bad. You get to do what you enjoy which many can't say they do. Publicity is the hardest part. If you focus on what you enjoy, everything else will fade away."

Kyoko thought about his words for a moment. Focus on the good things? Her mind jumped from one thought to another: getting to act as so many colorful characters, seeing so many new places and meeting so many wonderful people. Her eyes flickered up to the man across from her and felt her face heat up slightly. "I'll do that," she agreed and graced him with a sweetest smile.

Ren was gazing at her from across the table with a natural smile on his lips. Their food arrived fairly quickly, and she dived in. The expressions on her face were priceless as usual. Kyoko opened her eyes after swallowing her first bite and caught him staring at her. She sent a glare at him making his smile widen. He tried to swallow it, but she really didn't care. She grinned at him and took another bite.

"Even though things ended badly, you will get bonuses out of this. I heard you got another offer in. Even though you are full at the moment, you will continue to get new roles," Ren tried to reassure her. She simply nodded. "Maybe you'll even get an enchanted princess role," he added making her blush feverishly.

"Now, you're teasing me. No one does that anymore." She pouted slightly, even if she did wish they still made them. He shrugged.

"They may not make them like the books, but they are happily ever after stories out there." His voice sounded wishful. She watched him for a moment eating his meal.

"Do you believe in happily ever after, Ren-kun?" He coughed uncomfortably at her question. "Ah. You don't have to answer that," she quickly amended.

"No, it's ok. I do actually. My parents are very much in love and are still together. I hope to have that as well," he met her eyes, "with someone one day." His eyes shifted back down to his food. Her heart pounded loudly in her chest and the blush returned full force.

Their meal was done, and Ren took her back to her place. He walked her to her door and she was reminded of Isao on their first "date". She paused in front of the door and looked up at him.

"Thank you for the treat, Ren-kun and as always for the ride home," Kyoko said gratefully and before she knew it, his hand was gently caressing her cheek. Kyoko blinked and looked up at him with wide eyes as he smiled that dazzling angelic smile down at her. She could feel her heart stop and the air escape her partially opened lips. She saw something flicker across his brown eyes, his fingers hesitating at her face and then it was gone. Ren seemed to have made a decision and took a step back.

"Have a good night, Kyoko-chan. I'll pick you up tomorrow for our shoot," he said softly and started walking backwards to his car. She felt the blood in her body rush to her face as her heart started again. Did she really think he was going to kiss her? She nodded at him making him smile gently at her and turned around. Kyoko took a deep breath, quickly rushed inside the restaurant. It was already past closing, so the restaurant was long emptied as she made her way upstairs to bed.

Outside, Ren sat in his car. He was breathing very slowly, focusing on calming the beat of his heart, the steady intake of breath entering his lungs and exiting slowly. Those lips and the eager look on her face flashed in his mind, and he couldn't help but think... maybe.

She couldn't possibly… could she?