Shuuhei woke feeling extremely relaxed and happy. Last night had been amazing and he wasn't thinking about the gig but about what had happened after. He hadn't woken up in the middle of the night wanting her. He had wanted her again by the time she had returned from the bathroom. She had changed into her pajamas, but it hadn't taken him long to get her out of them.
Reaching out for Kana, he found he was the only one in his bed. There was a note lying on her pillow.
'I went to get pancakes. I'll be back soon. -K'
Shuuhei smiled at it and grabbed his phone. 'I would have gone with you if you had woke me up.'
'I wanted to surprise you. I'm leaving now so I should be back in a few minutes.'
'Hurry back.'
Shuuhei looked at the note again. Something in his brain clicked as he stared at the 'K'. He scrambled out of bed, put on his jeans and went searching in his closet for a box. He knew exactly what he was looking for.
"Found it!" he said a few minutes later, holding onto the small paper. He examined the name. There was no mistaking it. Shuuhei tucked it in to his back pocket along with the photograph that went with it.
"Shuuhei, I'm home," Kana called as she walked in to the apartment. With the bag of pancakes in her hand, she walked into his room. "We can't have breakfast in bed if you aren't in bed," she said as she walked up to him and kissed him. "We can't have sex if you aren't in bed."
"Kana, we can have sex anywhere." He backed her up against the wall. "I could take you right here." His breath was hot in her ear, and Shuuhei toyed with the thought of taking her right there. "But our breakfast will get cold, and cold pancakes are not good pancakes." He took the bag from her and headed to the kitchen.
Shuuhei waited until after they finished eating before he mentioned his discovery. "Do you remember the first time we met?"
"Yumi introduced us."
"I kept thinking I felt we had met before, but I could never place it."
"It would be hard to forget someone who looked like you."
"I haven't always had my scars and my tattoos."
"I always wanted to ask you about your scars, but I wasn't sure how."
He laughed. "You just say 'Shuuhei, how did you get your scars,' and I reply with it's not a pretty story but..."
"You don't have to tell me if you don't want to."
He shook his head. "I don't mind. I was heartbroken and angry, and I went to a bar to get drunk like I did for many nights." He sighed. "I can't give you a lot of details because I don't remember them. There were four of them and one of me. One of them broke a beer bottle and was waving it around. Another one shoved me from behind. Let's just say that while I am pretty tough, I'm no match against broken glass. I fought them, and I can't remember why but I'll never forget them." He let out a breath. "Kensei, the bartender, broke up the fight. He asked me if I was ok, handed me a towel and told me not to get blood on his floor. One of the guys came up behind him, grabbed Kensei's shirt and tried to take him down. Kensei barely moved, but I saw his tattoo."
"You got one just like his to honor him?"
"Yeah." He looked at her. "How did we get to talking about me? I wanted to talk about you." Kana laughed and Shuuhei looked at her. "I like this look better."
"What look? Do I look funny?"
"No. I like your natural hair color. Pink suits you more than blue." Shuuhei laid her note on the table. "You have a unique way of making your K." He reached into his pocket and pulled out the signed ticket stub. "So did anKa. This morning, it just clicked for me."
Kana looked at the two pieces of paper. "What are you saying?"
"Kana, the first time we met was nearly 6 years ago." Shuuhei laid the picture on the table. A young tattoo-less, scar-less Shuuhei stood next to a girl who had short pale blue hair and purple eyes. She wore a dark blue dress that came halfway down her thighs. The top of the dress clung to her like second skin.
Kana looked at it for a long time, looking at herself, remembering that girl. "I hated that dress," she finally said. Shuuhei laughed and reached for the picture. "Wait. You're him?" Kana gasped.
"Yes." Shuuhei wasn't sure if it was a good thing or bad thing that he was 'him.'
"The best part of that night was when this guy, this cute guy, said I was pretty and he liked my singing."
"I was nervous. You were famous."
"That was anKa's last concert. I did some really stupid things after that. Drinking all night, making out with guys I didn't know. I might have been able to make it without my manager, but I was hurt and I became an alcoholic." She paused. "My name is Kana, and I am an alcoholic. It has been 5 years, 2 months and... 11 days since my last drink."
"I didn't want to believe that you went to rehab. That wasn't you."
"I did a lot of things that weren't me, but now that's who I am." She shrugged.
"anKa disappeared."
"If I was going to make it as myself, she had to. She was a fraud. Not me."
"Have you thought about remaking one of her hits?"
Kana thought a moment. "I don't think I want to. I want to put her behind me. She has no place in Rolling Star."
"I think I can understand that."
She nodded. "I want you to sing a song on the album."
"Me? I'm just a backup singer."
"Shuuhei, you're a good singer." She stood up and walked over to him. "Think about it. Please." She kissed him.
"Do you know how hard it is for me to say no to you?"
She grinned. "Are you saying you'll do anything I ask?"
"Probably."
"Good. Don't tell Yumi and Ikkaku about anKa. She had her 15 minutes of fame. I want mine."
"I wasn't planning on telling them. It's your story to tell, not mine." Shuuhei stood and scooped her up. "There is something I want from you."
She giggled. "What?"
"When I woke up this morning, I wanted to make love to you, but you weren't in bed." He dumped her on his bed.
"You still want me after knowing who I was."
"Was it supposed to make a difference?" He kissed her. "Everything that's happened in your past has made you who you are today. I want who you are today. Finding out who you were was just a minor detail. It was like knowing when your birthday is." He pulled the t-shirt over her head. "Kana, she may have been pretty to me but you, you're beautiful."