Chapter 5

Five months. She was now five months pregnant. She just had another ultrasound and was informed that her children were little boys. They had confirmed at twelve weeks that they shared an amniotic sack and were identical. Now one would think that Kuon would have recognized the mother of his children at this point, but one has to take into consideration that she was very good at what she does, she had the assistance of others to hide, and the facts that a woman's body changes during pregnancy. The breasts fill out, the hips spread and sometimes weight evens out and shifts on some. She didn't have the childlike looks to her any longer.

Although her belly was growing, her body matured, her face took on a more womanly appearance, her breasts had grown to accommodate the impending event, her hips, buttocks and thighs had adjusted and most likely after the birth, she would definitely have a more shapely body thanks to the exercises and stretches that she was keeping up with in the afternoons with Kanae and Chiori. So no, the subtle nuances of her visage and the measurements of her body would no longer tip off the man that was pining for her, simply because he was not watching the changes as they happened.

She now had a nice little collection of baby clothes for the twins. Booties, onesies, diapers, pants, shirts, blankets and much more. All collected during shopping trips with the LoveME Section to the various consignment shops and wholesale outlets. Lory had given her two cribs and a changing dresser. Kanae and Chiori had pooled their resources and bought two bassinets to keep in her bedroom. All she really had left to get were the little odds and ends and to decorate their room to her tastes. Which she was doing gradually, thanks to Kanae's copious amounts of family. She definitely wouldn't be forgetting anything and had plenty of experienced resources.

Slowly her Spartan apartment, that wasn't so small, was starting to feel a little more like a home. New pictures of her and her friends, decorated the walls. The memorabilia that she had before her new life, was safely tucked into boxes and stored in her storage locker of the apartment building. The only thing she kept out and with her, was the little one-eyed Daruma Doll. It was up on a high shelf, looking out over her living room. It was the one thing that reminded her of her goals. The goals she was not going to allow herself to give up on. No, it wasn't for vengeance or, competition to bring both men to her feet, it was her goal to improve herself and find a new her. One that she could be proud of and hopefully one day her sons would be too. Her little Sora and Riku. Sora and Riku Stevens (Mogami), but no one other than Kanae, Chiori, Ruto, Lory and Ten needed to know that information, except the birth registrar and they certainly weren't going to tell anyone.

Kuu was practically livid. He was sitting in front of Lory and the man was still playing games with his cryptic answers. He still wouldn't tell him where Kyoko was and he certainly wouldn't let him speak to Kuon. All he told him is that he would have to be observant. Whatever that meant.

"Well, enough on that subject." Lory waved off his inquiry. "I have a new actress I'd like for you to meet. Interesting case. You'll understand when you meet her."

Kuu eyed him suspiciously and sighed. "Putting me into your LoveME Section, Boss?" Kuu groused.

Lory smirked and shrugged his shoulders. "No, but I'd love to put Kuon there... all things considered." He grumbled.

Kuu rolled his eyes and picked up another hamburger from the buffet to munch on. "Still not working out how you planned on with Kyoko-chan?"

"What do you think? I don't even want to talk about that fiasco." Lory spat out angrily.

Kuu decided not to mention it again. Lory seemed to be really heated about it and nothing ever angered him that much. It was almost frightening. He would have to dig around on his own if he wanted answers. He saw that much.

Lory's phone rang with the announcement from his secretary that his next appointment was there. "Please show in Isabelle. I have someone I'd like for her to meet." Kuon may have been the one to pretend that nothing happened between them and left her alone to deal with this. Albeit of her own free will, but he still walked away from her like nothing had ever happened between the two. He was not going to keep Kyoko away from a family that would definitely love her and he was unquestionably not going to hide Kuu's grandchildren from him and Juliena. Kuon was their only son and he had walked away from them. Kyoko needed them and they needed Kyoko.

He may not have been her real father, but he had watched each of her dramas from beginning to end, seen her broadcasted viewing and cast parties, saw her modeling photos and her photos of her and Kuon as Setsuka and Cain Heel, he knew her face and her mannerisms. The confident, yet timid young pregnant woman that stood before him was Kyoko. Kuu knew how young women changed in pregnancy and his mind did the adjustments. Two pairs of eyes went wide. The hidden pair regained composure and the older pair narrowed at Lory and shot him a scathing glare. He rushed to Kyoko and stood imposingly before the now trembling female. He looked down at her and his eyes softened. He swept her into his arms and held her tightly, stroking her hair and kissing her crown. She started sobbing piteously. "How did this happen, Kyoko?" He murmured then glanced to Lory, who was now shaking his head and leaving to give them a little time alone.

"I'm sorry... I'm so sorry..." She repeated over and over. "It's all my fault."

He brought her to the love seat and sat her down next to him, handed her some tissues and poured her a glass of water. "There, there Kyoko. Calm down. This isn't all your fault." He turned her to look at him. "It takes more than one person to make a baby, you know." He gave her a small smile and she nodded.

"I'm sorry Otou-san, but it is my fault. I believed him when he told me he loved me. I let it go too far and now I'm responsible for what happened." She explained as she dried her tears and took a sip of water.

"Who did this to you?" He growled.

She shook her head. "He made it clear I mean nothing to him Otou-san. He acted like it never happened." She groaned a little, rehashing her own thoughts of how stupidly she had believed. "I should have known better... Before everything happened, he really never gave any signs that he was interested in me. He never said anything before that. It was my fault for believing he could fall for someone like me anyway. I was naive and stupid." She began wiping the fresh tears.

"Kyoko..." She looked up at him and he flicked her between the eyes. "I don't ever want to hear that from you again. Do you understand me? Whomever this young man is, he doesn't deserve you. You're a wonderful actress and a beautiful person." He hugged her again. "And you are my little Kuon."

With that declaration, she wailed out with all the pain her heart, that she had finally been able to lock away, and left Kuu at a complete loss. When he finally calmed her down again, he grabbed her some food from the buffet that Lory had set out and encouraged her to eat something. According to him, food always made things better. A comfort kind of thing. Although, he never expected her to almost wolf it down and return for more. He chuckled. It kind of reminded him of the stories his mother told him about her pregnancy with him. His brain began firing, his blood started rushing swiftly through his veins, he felt like his stomach had a boulder in it and his brain whispered to him. It's Kuon...

He stared at her with mouth agape and wide eyed. He shook his head. No... No... He wouldn't do something like that. I taught him to respect women, not use them like that. He would never do anything like that. Would he? His brow furrowed. "Kyoko..." He needed to risk it for the guess and if he was right, there would be hell to pay.

She looked up at him and took a drink of water to wash down the food in her mouth.

"Did Tsuruga-kun do this to you?" He asked quietly.

She looked down at her plate. "No Otou-san." She whispered. Technically that wasn't a lie, Kuon did. She was satisfied with her answer. However, she is a very horrible liar.

Alright, she wants to play that game. He sighed and gave her a soft look as he lifted her chin. "Did Kuon?" He whispered.

Her eyes told it all. She just stared at him frozen. She hated lying straight to someone's face. She just wasn't good at it, unless she was acting and it seemed that this man could see right through her just like... Kuon. The thoughts of how he'd used his status as her Corn to get her into bed with him washed over her once again. And so the tears began to fall freely once again.

At that moment, he had never wanted to harm someone as much as he wanted to harm his own son. Who the hell did he think he was doing that to her? Using her like one of his little conquests and tossing her aside like she meant nothing to him. He stood abruptly. "I'm going to kill him." He said calmly. "He needs to take responsibility for what he's done to you!"

She held onto his arm. "O-Otou-san! No! P-Please... I c-can't... I don't want him to know. I don't want him to know how much I let him break me. I don't want him to ever know how weak I allowed myself to get. Please... Just let it be."

Kuu groaned. How could he deny her plea? He closed his eyes and took in a deep breath. He nodded. He actually understood where she was coming from. "On one condition... You get a DNA test with me and Juli when they're born so we can add them to our family registry and you allow them to carry the Hizuri name."

"B-But..." She stammered out. How could he use this against her?!

"No buts young lady! They're my grandchildren and they are entitled to the Hizuri name." He insisted.

She furrowed her brow at the manipulation. She sighed. "Fine... I suppose it's better than them having Mogami as a surname."

He ignored her debasing comment. "Good... Juli and I will be here to sign the necessary documents. I will not allow my daughter and grandchildren to live without their family." He smiled and kissed her cheek. "Expect to see me and Juli more often."

She sighed staring at the floor. "Yes, Otou-san."

"And I expect to be able to spoil you and the babies." He added on, pressing further.

She groaned. Why the hell not? Everything's already a mess now anyway. She nodded not even taking into consideration that Kuon may get a bit suspicious at the attention she would be getting from his own parents; although, it wasn't like he was involving himself with them anyway. He would probably think she was just a close friend of the family.

"Excellent!" He grabbed her hand. "Now... I want to see where you're living. I want to make sure it's appropriate for my daughter and my grandchildren." He pulled her out of the office.

Lory emerged from his office and smiled. At least something is right with this situation. I knew you would come through for me, Kuu.