The door opens and Ren hops to his feet, expecting it to be Kyoko but finds Kanae in the doorway, looking shocked to find another person in here. What do I do?
"Who are you?"
Right. She doesn't know me now. Think fast, Kuon! Don't let her know you're you in any way! Kotonami isn't easily fooled normally. "Здравствуйте! Я просто отдыхает." (Hello! I was just resting.)
"Excuse me?"
"Я не понимаю, японский?" (I don't understand Japanese?)
"I don't even know what you're saying to me. Do you need a translator?"
Well, I might as well speak honestly then if she is truly confused. "Нет, это не будет необходимо, спасибо." (No, that won't be necessary, thank you.)
"Is English fine? I feel like you are not getting this. Do you speak...English?"
Fine. It would be more polite than to just walk out anyway. "I speak the English," he says, but it is thickly accented with Russian to cover himself.
Great. I just wish Kyoko was here. She knows English more than I do. "You need...help?"
"I was resting. I got call from man upstairs to come. Sorry. This...your spot?"
"'Man upstairs'? What? You mean the president?"
"Yes, the boss man?"
"I can...take you there."
"Can you?" 'I don't need to go though.'
"Sure, I just need to...put...uh...put away?" She shows Ren she is carrying something and points to the lockers as Kyoko's heart stops.
"Course! Go ahead!" He gestures for her to move as she would and steps out of the way as she walks. With every step, Kyoko silently pleads her friend to not react to her standing in the locker. She clasps her hands together in fervent prayer and makes her eyes a big as she can, trying to mimic Cain's puppy dog plea. The door is opened and Kanae jumps backward, thinking that Kyoko wasn't going to be there at the office today. She is about to scold her friend for giving her a heart attack when she notices Kyoko's plea for silence. She studies her friend and her obvious hope to stay hidden. Why hide in mine? Of the ten freaking lockers here, why mine? It says 'do not open Kyoko' right on it after you left those sweets in here for me. I still haven't gotten you for that after I ate the whole box. Now is as good of time as any.
She lets out a sigh and sets the bag beside her friend. "What are you doing in there, Kyoko?"
Her friend's eyes go wide. "Hiding?" She whispers.
"Why? From that man?"
"Uh, yeah."
"Why are you whispering? It isn't like he knows Japanese."
"I'd just rather...in case."
"In case what? He speaks English and some other weird language. He doesn't know Japanese."
That's what he wants you to think.
"Look, I need your help with this," she motions to Ren who feigns ignorance and shows concern for the girl talking to a locker.
Kyoko freezes. "You have never asked me for help before."
"Well I'm not the best at English and you mentioned your scores in English were good. Can you do it or not?" Kanae crosses her arms and looks at her friend, knowing exactly what to say and how to get what you want from her. "He says the president called him."
"I know. I could hear from in here."
"Could you take him there?" Kyoko's eyes get wide.
I'm not ready! I'll be trapped, doomed to face it all right now! Her head shakes fervently, knowing that she can't be alone with Ren yet. I can't process it all. It's too much.
"Well we can't just leave him here."
"Yes we can. He's fine, I'm sure. He found his way to this room. I'm sure he can find the desk for an (unnecessary) translator."
"I already said I would bring him there."
"Then I'll accompany you as far as there, help drop him off, and we can leave together."
If it gets her to help. "Fine. Now get out of the locker." Kyouko reluctantly gets out and is faced with Kuon/Corn/Ren.
What am I even going to do? I don't even know how to call him?
Kanae speaks in hesitant English towards the man looking at them. "This is Kyoko. She's...knows English. More well."
"I'm glad to meet you, Kyoko. Your English good?"
"Yes." She starts speaking quicker than Kanae can decipher, but she figures from Kyouko's gestures and directional words that she is helping in someway. "If it is the president you are looking for, which I doubt, you want to take a left out those doors," she points to the exit, "until you reach an elevator. Ride it upwards until you get to the floor you know it is on and take a right, like always. After all, didn't you just come from there and work here almost every day?"
She sounds pleasant to non listeners, but that smile is too tough. "I know you know it's really me, so why put on a front for her?"
She shrugs, mimicking him from way back when she was Bo. "It isn't my thing to tell."
"Do you...know each one, er, other?" Kanae interrupts after studying them for a bit while figuring her words out in English.
"What gave you that idea?" Kyoko asks, lapsing back into Japanese for her friend, of which Ren had to pretend not to know at all. "I was hiding from him in your locker after all. He's another of the president's favourites."
"International LoveMe?"
"I don't know the whole story." I don't know if I want to find out what is going on here anyway!
"But if the president is involved, it could very well be," Kanae mutters, not liking the sound if it. She shudders at the thought of a shocking pink world. "Did you just give him directions?"
"Yes. After all, that's where we met. He'll find his way, so let's go." She looks to him and holds both her thumbs up and asks in English. "We're good, right?"
International LoveMe? Well, she didn't give anything away... "Won't you come back upstairs?"
"I can meet with the president another day about other things. I'd really like it if I could leave with Moko-san for tonight, and I'm sure you can understand a little on why." She smiles in a slight Mio fashion and tilts her head, making Kanae a bit more confused topped with anxious. "After all, how can you not, brother?"
Ouch. "I don't know if you meant that as Cain or Kuon, but Kyoko please, let me talk to you properly. It wasn't supposed to be as big of a shock."
"And just why wouldn't it be?" She asks, but then just wants to leave instead of getting into it. "Let me leave with Moko-san. I need to get home and be on my own for a while." She signals for Kanae to follow and switches back to their native speak. "Let's go, okay Moko-san?" They go and he reaches for her hand, but she slaps his aside.
"Please, Kyoko," he begs her in English.
"It'll be a while if you're going to leave the building, right? Your hair and all? When you are able to leave, leave me alone a while, okay?"
"Kyoko..."
"And that goes for Yash...your manager too. Goodbye." She bows on the border of being impolite and flippant before leaving the locker room with Kanae, who is eyeing her from the side because of her strange behaviour.