Shelf #014

Kuu and Julie spent dates at the river and watching movies. The following days were filled with a series of good happenings for Kuu. Business at the bookshop went well, plus the sales went incredibly high, much to Kuu's surprise. He phoned his mother and told her the good news.

Surprisingly, Julie phoned him ten minutes afterwards. She was in the middle of her work. She took the time during the break to call him and hear his voice for a while. She didn't say it, but she really missed him. Kuu was really happy to hear her voice again. This was the first time that she actually phoned the bookshop. He informed her of the new Skip Beat! chapter released that week recently, in case she might forgot. She did, thanks to his thoughtful reminder. They talked for a good couple of minutes, and as soon as Kuu hung up, he wished time would go slow so they could linger on the phone longer. Julie on the other hand, wished that the break was ten minutes longer so she could hear him more. . .

That night, Kuu was told that Julie had planned on going out the week again with him. He never knew the rest of the details, but all he found out was that he had to come to Westin Fuwa Hotel at the time given to him. He never took dinner tonight because amazingly, he never felt hungry. He got dressed quickly, bid farewell to Spike who ate dinner by himself at the kitchen, and rushed out.

A few minutes later, he finally arrived at the hotel. The male receptionist saw him and he bowed in greeting. He gave the guest the same suite and floor. Kuu went to the lift and upon landing on the third floor, he saw Yashiro already waiting for him on the corridor.

The young manager bowed and greeted him. "Good evening, sir Kuu. Julienna-san is expecting you. . It seems you arrived quite early sir."

"Uh– yeah. . When you phoned this afternoon I thought it might be really important for her to see me. So I had to come here. . Is something wrong?"

He chuckled. "Ah – no, sir. . Everything's fine. Don't worry. She just wanted to spend the night with you."

Kuu breathed a sigh of relief. "Oh. Right. Great."

Yashiro noticed an air of concern for his client. This was the first time, as no one apart from her current fling in business ever cared like this about her. He sensed something different here. . He had to keep it for himself. Inside, he was happy for Julie. To be honest, this was the perfect man suitable for her. He'd rather go for this guy if it would be between him and Alec.

They reached the ante room of suite 38. Yashiro knocked and opened the door for Kuu. He entered inside, and sensed a more peaceful atmosphere here compared to when he first came here. There were no more movie posters on the corners as they were taken out that day.

"Please make yourself at home sir. I'll check Julie-san."

Kuu nodded silently and Yashiro left the room. He took his time admiring Julie's large portraits on the walls. She was just so exquisite, a rare gem of all. He felt pride somewhere in the depths of his heart. Then, silence broke as a musical, sweet voice called from behind him.

"I see that you're the lucky man tonight!"

Kuu turned around and saw no one. The waiting room was empty. There might be someone in here, or maybe he was just hearing things. His eyes roamed around. The voice spoke again.

"Haha, I'm here gorgeous."

Kuu realized the musical voice was actually right in front of him. He looked down to see a pretty young girl stood crossed arms and beamed brightly at him. She had wonderful chestnust colored waves tied into a high ponytail, and her eyes were sparkling violet. She had make-up on and looked great with her silk silver long-sleeves slashed in fashion around the hems and a leather pants. Around her waist was a black fanny pack full of scissors, combs and brushes of every kind. Kuu blinked. Was it just him or was he seeing a fairy in disguise somehow?

The litle girl giggled. "I get that all the time. Let me introduce myself to you first. I'm Jelly Woods. Nice to meet you, Thacker Kuu-kun!"

Silence hung heavy in the room. Kuu's eyes went wide. She knew his name. He was sure Honey kept talking all about her for years. Now the real thing was right in front of him. He finally felt Honey's feelings when she saw Julie. It was his turn tonight.

"OH HOLY FUCK."

What the heck! JELLY WOODS? THE LITTLE WITCH?

Jelly giggled as she watched Kuu bowed shyly. "Umm –– nice to meet you, Miss Woods."

She raised a hand up. "No, just Ten! Call me Ten. Only people close to me can ever call me that, and you're no exception. Now I consider you as one. I don't want to feel so old, though you're definitely younger than me. Come. Let me take a good look at you."

As if eyeing a suspicious object, Jelly held him at an arms length and twirled him from side to side, front and back. She pulled him down and held his face close to her.

Kuu looked at her smiling, happy face. He was slightly nervous to this.

"Hmmm. . . I know just the image for you!" she said. She patted a forefinger to his nose. "I'm glad we came all the way here. It's worth it as she promised! Now I promise you. When we finish you'll be perfect than the way you are now."

She took him to the other side of the room. The door was opened and there, it seemed the entire room where he was waiting here with Tarquin before, now turned into a salon. Kuu just couldn't believe his eyes.

"Now, the first thing I want to do is to prep your face for tonight," she began, taking off his jacket and shirt at Schumacher speed. Before Kuu could protest to do it himself, he was magically half-naked. He now wore his black pants.

Julie arched one eyebrow, smiling teasingly. Her eyes glued to every spot of his perfectly chiseled chest and muscular arms.

"Oooooh –– Mmhmmm. . Now I know!"

Kuu looked deeper in the eyes. He was puzzled. "Know what?"

Jelly winked. "Why sissy's always nuts talking about you! This was the only time I've ever seen her like that. Hahaha!"

Kuu's heart skipped a beat, probably a more than a thousand times. He suddenly felt butterflies on his stomach. Julie liked him that much.

Kuu was settled on a salon bed, and rested his head on a small, soft pillow. Jelly placed a big towel over him. She went over to the other side and turned on a cd player. A cool, soothing tune of 'Fallen' by Lauren Wood filled the air. She took out bottles and small containers. Looking down at Kuu, she smiled.

"We'll be done in no time, Kuu-kun. I'm the only artist most feared in the world of fashion, one who can turn anyone completely into someone else in just a few minutes. You're the most special case. And I'll be doing my best ever magic for the woman I love who's on the other suite. After this I'm going to do the rest of magic on your hair. Are you ready?"

Kuu breathe and blinked nervously. His mind was just blank. How the heck he would turn out after all this he just couldn't answer. He looked forward to the change, though. This could only happen once in a lifetime after all, with the best in the world doing it on him.

He nodded quietly. "Yeah. . I'm ready, Ten. . ."

"Alright. Let the magic begin!"

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