AGENT WALLFLOWER
Kyoko has a journalist-friend? Everybody else is suspicious except of course, Kyoko. How do you protect a clueless actress with secrets from a possible enemy masquerading as a friend?
Disclaimer: I do not own Skipbeat!
Chapter 8
Morning at the Bridge Rock Set.
Today was going to be a full day for Kyouko. She was scheduled to tape some sets for Bridge Rock in the morning and then straight to an on-location Shoot for Box-R right after. She guessed that it would be best to inform Monobu that he can't hang out in LME today since she would be out of the office most of the day anyway.
She had just finished zipping herself in her chicken suit costume when she heard her phone's insistent buzzing. Kyouko hurriedly waddled her way in her Bo costume towards her phone. The director of Bridge Rock was the grumpy sort of guy and she would surely be yelled at again if she disrupted the cast and crew so early in the morning.
In her hurry, she struggled to get her hands out of the wings. Why did her phone have to ring when she was already zipped in costume?! Finally, she sighed with relief when she was finally able to grasp her buzzing phone. She quickly answered it without checking who was calling and immediately regretted it.
"Kyouko! Why the heck are you not picking up my calls?!" a familiar male voice angrily said.
Her chibi-demons were instantly awakened. It was the bane of her existence, Fuwa Sho.
"Because I don't want to talk to you! Stop bothering me already!" she angrily fired back.
"The hell -?! I'm trying to help you, woman! Now listen to me! You have a stalker! From now on, I'm going to pick you up to and from work! Tell me where you are right now and I'll come get you," Sho ordered.
A huge tic started forming on Kyouko's brow. She started yelling at the phone "First of all... who asked you, you Idiot?! I promise I'll literally kill you if you get 5 meters close to me! Second of all... why the hell would I have a stalker? I'm nowhere famous at all!"
" ...yet," she belatedly amended.
There was a pregnant pause, and then Kyouko could almost visualize the sneer on Sho's face. "Yeah, you're not famous at all. Not like me!" he taunted. "But that doesn't change the fact that you have a stalker. Look, I'm being nice here... so be a good girl and just do as you're told!" he said.
Kyouko wanted to wring his neck. "You're definitely crazy if you think I'm going to believe your nonsense, moron! I'm going to hang up now. HAVE A CRAPPY DAY!" she yelled before furiously ending the call.
Kyouko tried to collect her wits. Whenever she heard Sho's voice, her chibi-demons would go crazy with hate. If he was here right now, she would stomp on his stupid, sneering face and grind his innards into a bloody pulp... no, no... she had to get a hold of herself. Work comes first! She would have to fantasize about the best way to torture Sho later.
Kyouko took a deep breath. When she looked up, she found the crew staring wide-eyed at her. She weakly smiled at them.
"What's the matter, Kyoko-chan? Did I hear something about a stalker?" The Ishibashi brothers sidled closer, lead by Hikaru who looked very concerned. He gestured at the phone she was holding in her hand.
"Stalker, huh. That's a serious problem," mused Shinichi.
"Oh, no, no! It's nothing! The person I was talking to is stupid and deluded. He's just looking for a fight," Kyouko hurriedly replied. She scowled for a moment as she recalled Sho's face.
"But still... you have to be more careful just in case. You can ask HIKARU to accompany you around if you want." Unfortunately, Kyouko missed the pointed way Yuusei mentioned Hikaru's name.
"Thank you for worrying about me, Senpais" Kyouko smiled at her three co-stars, quite touched about their concern. "I'm fine, really. I don't really believe about that stalker-stuff... Also, I'm not worried about being alone so much since I'll be hanging out with my former classmate from Kyoto," she explained.
The three guys exchanged glances.
"...Is that former classmate... a guy, perhaps?" Yuusei asked Kyouko, but staring at Hikaru all the while.
"Yes," she innocently answered. "I'm currently showing him around LME when I have the time." Shinichi made a clucking noise.
Kyouko suddenly slapped her forehead. " I almost forgot! I have to call and tell him I have work today so we can't hang out! Please excuse me..." she said as she hurriedly left the group, focused on her phone once again.
The Ishibashi brothers silently watched as she waddled away in her chicken suit. When she was out of hearing range, the two other guys turned to Hikaru.
"...that's why I told you to hurry up and confess to her!" Shinichi said to Hikaru, smacking his arm. Yuusei nodded in agreement.
"A former classmate from Kyoto who comes to Tokyo just to hang out is definitely suspicious," Yuusei quipped.
"Shut it, you two! I'm going back to the dressing room!" Hikaru heatedly said, turning red.
"And don't follow me!" he called back as he stomped away from the two guys.
o-0-o-0-o
Monobu was glad Mogami-san was out of the office today. Yesterday, Maria proved to be an unexpected source of information that he decided to check on now that he was free.
He was just ranting out loud about being left with all the work and wondering where Mogami ran off to when Maria interrupted his tirade.
"Kyouko Nee-san went to the Box-R shoot obviously," Maria flippantly said as she played with her dolls.
That's right, Mogami said she was delivering Amamiya's costume to her on set. Amamiya is part of the Box-R cast together with Kyoko. Monobu stopped struggling with the wizard hat he was pulling out of the box and transferred his attention at Maria.
"Err... do you know the schedule of the Box-R shoots?" he asked, trying to downplay his excitement. "Who am I kidding, you're just a kid. How would you know?" he said as he shook his head in disappointment.
"Of course I do! I make sure I know Nee-san's schedule so I can visit her whenever and wherever I want!" Maria replied indignantly. "Box-R usually shoots at Studio Y during Wednesdays and Thursdays, but they're shooting on-location tomorrow!" Maria even told him that they were where at the local University grounds to display her knowledge.
So now here he was loitering around trying to look inconspicuous. He pretended to read a newspaper to hide the camera hanging around his neck and avoid the curious looks of some students who had started to notice how long he had been sitting on the bench he had been occupying since 2 hours ago.
Looks like Maria's info was right. There was an area near the back of the school that was closed off with a non-descript tarp and guarded by a couple of burly men, but there were no fans in sight. The on-location shoot must have not leaked to the Box-R fans. If Monobu manages to get a photo today, this will make a good story. Enough to pacify Sato-san for awhile, he hoped.
Monobu was just wondering if he could scale the wall from the back and sneak inside the shoot when he noticed a couple of people coming out from the closed-off area. One of them was an striking orange-haired girl in a school uniform.
She paused to talk to one of the menacing-looking men at the entrance who looked like he was objecting to whatever she was saying, but in the end he bowed respectfully to the petite girl. She walked towards his direction, followed by the eagle eyes of the bouncers.
Kyoko! She was dressed in her school uniform costume and looked as cool & polished like the first time he laid eyes on her at the TBM entrance. Even alone, she gave off a feeling that she was someone you shouldn't mess with. Monobu realized she must be going to the vending machine standing right next to his bench. In a panic, he stood up and dove behind the bushes. He wondered why ever did he do that.
She paused in front of the machine, tapping a well-manicured finger against her lips as she pondered what to buy. Monobu marveled at how she made the mundane task of operating a vending machine look so elegant.
His eyes took in the stylishly arranged orange hair that reminded him of Mogami's. Maybe Mogami copied the actress's hairstyle, Monobu thought idly. After all, the actress seemed to be the embodiment of cool and elegance, although she seemed to have quite a dark side to her if you examined the characters she portrayed. Still, that was part of her allure. Every girl wants to be cool and elegant right? He wondered when did Mogami make her drastic change in hairstyle.
Oh, right! This was his chance to get a picture! Why was he thinking about Mogami's hairstyle out of all things anyway?!
FLASH! FLASH! FLASH!
Kyoko as Natsu, paused when she heard the camera flash. She turned around and was surprised to see Monobu staring nervously at her from the bushes. She frowned at him.
With Natsu looking directly at Monobu like that, it seemed like displeasing her was a very, very bad idea. He imagined she was quite capable of torturing him and could very well get away with it. It was a surprise when she turned away as if he was of no consequence. She gracefully picked the rest of the coffee cans from the receptacle before throwing another glance at him.
"Next time, inform me beforehand if you want a photo," she coolly said.
To Monobu, it felt like he had just been given a reprieve but that there was a silent threat behind her words. Something like "...or else I'm going to make your life a living hell that you'll wish you were never born." But since it seemed like he won't be butchered right now, he gathered up his courage again.
"C-can I ask you some questions, Ms. Kyoko?" he asked boldly.
The girl stopped in her tracks and looked at him speculatively. Her piercing golden stare was disconcerting. It felt like she was measuring if he was any worth her while at all.
"I'm busy right now. I'll talk to you after the shoot," she finally said after a long moment. Though she said it in an offhanded manner, it felt like an order that he couldn't refuse.
"Yes, yes of course. Sorry to bother you," Monobu said in an effacing tone, bowing repeatedly as she sedately walked back to the set with her coffee cans.
What the heck! Monobu was embarrassed as he thought back on how he reacted while he was talking to her. He was practically groveling!
"Man, that was weird!" he silently said to himself.
He collapsed on the bench and felt his racing heartbeat. This was the first time his heart rate increased for a total stranger. He guessed that this must be how the fans feel like when they see their favorite stars.
Wait.
WAS HE TURNING INTO A FAN?!
Whatever. Monobu tried to push his Personal questioning aside and focus on the task at hand. He was finally getting an interview with Kyoko! Gaaah, he had to get ready, he didn't want to disappoint Kyoko. No... He didn't want to disappoint Sato-san, not Kyoko. Sheesh!
As he waited for the shoot to finish, he started feeling more nervous by the second. He checked and rechecked his camera and voice recorder to keep his hands busy, but to no avail. He had his list of questions with him... wait... what if Kyoko finds something offensive with his questions?! He hurriedly called Shio-san's cell. After a couple of rings, Monobu mentally slapped himself. Shio-san would probably still be in bed right now, she was on the night shift after all.
As he was agonizing about his interview questions, a trickle of people started coming out from the enclosed area. Some of them loitered for awhile quietly talking before leaving through the side entrance of the school. They must have finished the shoot for today already.
This was the moment he was waiting for! Monobu closed his eyes for a moment to still his nerves.
Suddenly, he felt a tap on his shoulder.
"So what did you want to ask me about?" Mogami-san asked brightly as she stood over him.
o-0-o-0-o
"What?! Why are YOU here?" Monobu said in surprise.
"I just finished work," she cheerfully replied as she sat on the bench beside him.
"Hey, I'm kinda waiting for someone right now..." he protested.
"Eh? I thought you were waiting for me! Is it a girl? Are you going on a date?!" Mogami asked inquisitively. Monobu absentmindedly shook his head.
"No, it's for work! For work!" he said, scanning the area for a sign of Kyoko.
"I see! Can I watch? I promise I won't be a bother. Besides, I found a way you can help me with my assignment!" she said brightly.
Well, having Mogami-san around kept him from being as nervous as before. Maybe it wasn't such a bad idea to let her hang around. She might even get feverishly elated to meet an actress like Kyoko face to face.
"Fine, but don't get too excited, okay?" he said grudgingly. Mogami-san eagerly nodded.
As the minutes went past, less and less people left the area. He even saw Amamiya-san come out with a couple of other actors and leave through the side gate. But no Kyoko.
Mogami-san unobtrusively glanced at her wrist watch."Maybe the person you're supposed to meet left early?" she said timidly.
"Maybe there was an emergency and he unexpectedly had to leave?"
"Maybe he accidently left his stove on and his neighbor called him on the phone and said that his house is burning so he left work in a panic and rushed home only to find all his belongings burned and he's left with nothing but the clothes on his back?"
Monobu goggled at Mogami-san, momentarily amazed at her bizarre imagination.
"Maybe we should just go, Mogami-san," he said in defeat. Maybe Kyoko just doesn't want to be interviewed, he silently thought.
He felt a bit angry and disappointed, but he couldn't really fault her. She must've have been actually offended when he took her photo without permission and this was her sleek way of getting back at him for being rude.
"You won this time, Kyoko... but it's not entirely my loss, because I got your photo!" he darkly thought as he glanced at his camera.
Mogami looked at him questioningly as he smirked to himself.
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Hi guys! Aaargh, sorry for being a dunce, looks like I didn't think it through enough lolz! Thanks to CrimsonQueen24, cloeskyler, muchachomomo and all the others who enlightened me. I'm keeping the story as is (for now, I guess.) Let's just say that Kyoko's currently in her last year in High School because she wasn't able to finish it in Kyoto and Monobu is a freshman studying Journalism in the university while working on the side for Tokyo Buzz. Just pretend you didn't notice that it doesn't fit with Skip Beat canon at all anymore.
Read and review please! And if you have time, check out my other skip beat fanfic: A Sadistic Streak. It doesn't have anything to do with this story. I'm just writing it as a change of pace once in a while. Thanks again!