Chapter 10: A Confirming Encounter
Kyoko had just entered her dressing room. She began to anxiously pace the length of the room. I wonder how long I have to hide in here before he will have left. She froze when she heard a knock on her door. Surely, Ren wouldn't have had the nerve to come to her dressing room, would he?
"Kyoko-chan, it's me, Yukia. Can I come in?"
She let out a sigh of relief at hearing her friend's voice. "Yes, come in." she called.
The door opened and Yukia stepped inside. He walked over to Kyoko. She looked like she was on the verge of a nervous breakdown. She was shaking slightly, and there were tears in her eyes. Instinctively, he hugged her.
"Don't you think you might feel better if you talk to him?" he asked.
Kyoko shook her head. "No, I cant. I'm just not ready to see him yet."
Yukia hushed her as he heard a sob escape her throat. "It's okay. You don't have to talk to him if you aren't ready yet."
Outside of the dressing room, Ren stood dejected in the hall. James stood next to him silently. He watched the array of emotions that flooded Ren's face. Love, pain, sadness, hurt, self-loathing. He wanted to say something to comfort him. Although he may not want to hear the opinions of outsiders. He told himself.
Ren watched the pained expression on James face. Was James glaring at him? Maybe he's realized what a terrible person I am too. Ren ran a hand through his hair.
Then he felt a hand on his shoulder. He looked up and saw James looking at him kindly. "It's going to work out. You two will be okay." He told him.
Ren looked doubtful. "How can you promise something like that?"
James smiled. "I've seen the way you two care about each other. Don't give up hope just yet."
Ren couldn't help but allow a small smile to appear on his face at James' confidence. "How long have you and Yukia-kun been together?" he asked.
James looked thoughtful for a moment. "I guess it's been almost two years."
"Have you two ever had a really bad fight?"
James laughed, "Doesn't every couple? That's just what happens when you are in a relationship. Especially if you're living together."
Ren nodded, "I guess I'd never really thought of it like that." He said. "But still, what if she doesn't ever come back?"
"Look at it this way. If she'd completely given up on you, don't you think she would've found a permanent place to live?"
"You're right. Thank you, James-san." Ren felt a little better after their conversation, until Yukia stepped out of the dressing room.
"I'm sorry, Tsuruga-san. She's not ready to talk to you yet." Yukia told him.
Ren tried to hide his disappointment. "Thank you for trying. I guess I just need to give her more time. I'll be heading out now." He bowed to them both, before turning to leave.
That night, Kyoko waited anxiously for Kanae to arrive at the apartment. She had offered to cook dinner since she was the one who had suddenly invited company over, and Yukia and James had no objections after tasting her cooking that morning. They were also hoping that this friend of hers could help talk some sense into Kyoko.
The doorbell rang and Kyoko hurried to answer it. She threw open the door with a smile. "Moko!" she cried, throwing her arms around her friend.
"Yes, hello. Mo! Now get off me will you." Kanae greeted her. Why does she have to act like an over-excited puppy? She held out a bag to Kyoko. "It's not much. I just stopped and picked up dessert."
Kyoko opened the bag. "They're mini cakes! How nice!" she grabbed Kanae's arm and pulled her into the kitchen/dining room where Yukia and James were sitting at the table.
"Moko, this is Yukia Moore, my co-star, and his manager James-san." She introduced them. "And this is my best friend, Kanae Kotonami."
Kanae gave a slight bow to the two guys in front of her. They both rose and bowed in return.
"Nice to meet you, Kotonami-san," Yukia greeted her. "I'm happy to meet one of Kyoko-chan's friends."
"Oh!" Kyoko exclaimed, "And Moko is a member of the LoveMe section too!"
Kanae glanced back and forth between Kyoko and Yukia. "You're… a LoveMe member?"
Yukia scratched the back of his head, a light blush appearing on his face. "Yeah, I was just added by the President."
Kanae looked at James. "What about you?"
James laughed, "I managed to avoid it apparently."
She nodded, watching them, before turning back to Kyoko. "Did you need any help cooking?"
Kyoko shook her head, pushing Kanae towards the table. "No! You need to sit down, you're my guest! Besides dinner will be ready in just a few minutes."
Kanae sat down at the table feeling awkward. I guess I'll have to wait until after dinner to talk to her.
After dinner, Kyoko led Kanae back to the guest room she was staying in. She sat on her bed and gestured for Kanae to do the same.
"That was so kind of Yukia-kun and James-san to offer to do the dishes so we could talk, wasn't it?" she asked.
Kanae nodded, "Yeah. It was." She sat down next to Kyoko, feeling nervous about the conversation they were about to have.
"Moko," Kyoko began suddenly, "I was surprised you didn't scold me when you found out I was staying here."
"What? Did you want me to scold you? Mo!" she replied harshly. This girl is always so strange.
Kyoko laughed, "No, I just thought Moko would be angry with me for staying here with two men."
"Why should I be worried? They're a couple aren't they?"
Kyoko stared at her open-mouthed. "You knew?" she asked.
Kanae shook her head in exasperation. "It was pretty easy to figure out. I mean why else would you be staying with two men? You wouldn't stay with two men who were straight would you?" she gave Kyoko a stern look.
"Of course not!" Kyoko cried.
Kanae gave Kyoko a small shove. "You're too loud. It's going to give me a headache." She took a breath. "And besides, you're just stalling, right? Because you don't want to talk about your fight with Tsuruga-san."
Kyoko hung her head. "I'm sorry, Moko. I just don't know what to say or do."
"Why don't you start by telling me what happened?" Kanae suggested.
Kyoko nodded, "You know how we went on location recently to film for my drama?"
"Yeah."
"When we got back, I found out Ren had been lying to me." Her voice was quiet now, as if she was afraid she might cry if she spoke too loudly.
Kanae stared at the pattern on the blanket. "What did he lie about?"
Kyoko sighed, "Everything."
Kanae could hear the pain in her friend's voice. "What does that mean?" she asked as she tried to keep her own voice steady.
"He lied about who he is." She took a deep breath and Kanae wasn't sure if she would continue but a moment later she did.
"When I was a little girl, I met a boy. A boy I called Corn. He helped me back when I was a crybaby because my mom was always gone. He told me he was a fairy, and I believed him. Last year, I met him again." A sob broke through her words and she took a moment to compose herself.
"And it was wonderful. Everything was the way I had remembered it. Moko, he gave me my first kiss. And then he left, but he promised I'd see him again. And I did. He found me during the on-location filming we did. This time he said we wouldn't get to see each other anymore and I cried because that made me sad. But when we got home, I found evidence that Corn was never the person I thought he was." She grabbed Kanae's hand and the dark haired girl met her friend's teary eyes. "Ren is Corn. He's been lying to me this whole time, keeping it a secret from me."
Kyoko stopped talking, she waited to hear what her best friend would have to say about this.
Kanae took a breath and said a silent prayer that Kyoko wouldn't hate her for what she was about to do. "Why?"
Kyoko blinked at her in confusion. "What do you mean?"
"Why didn't he tell you? Why did he keep it a secret?"
Kyoko was taken aback. "I- I don't know. He didn't tell me why."
"If you're going to give up on love that easily shouldn't you at least find out why he lied?" Kanae knew she was pushing her, but it had to be done. That was the only way to get through to her sometimes. You better have a good reason for doing this to her, Tsuruga Ren.
Kyoko twisted her hands together anxiously. "I never said I was giving up on Ren. I just don't know what to do. It feels like he still doesn't trust me, and that hurts a lot when I trusted him completely."
Kanae reached out to touch Kyoko's shoulder. "Look, I know you're upset. But I think you owe it to yourself to hear him out. At least then you can make a proper decision."
Tears filled Kyoko's eyes again as she threw her arms around her friend. "Moko!"
Kanae resisted the urge to push Kyoko away. I hope they make up soon, all this love stuff is wearing me out.
The next day, Kyoko felt even less prepared to see Ren. Kanae's words from the day before still echoed in her head as she sat getting her make up and hair done for the day. Maybe she is right. I didn't really take the time to listen to his reasons. But what if, now that I left, he's realized he doesn't need me?
"You're all finished, Kyoko-san." Her stylist said as she began packing up her equipment.
Kyoko bowed to her. "Thank you for your hard work, Kisaki-san. I'm sad that we are almost done with the drama. I've enjoyed working with you."
The stylist smiled at Kyoko. "I've enjoyed it too. It's nice to work with someone who appreciates what I do." She bowed and then left the dressing room, leaving Kyoko to her thoughts once again.
She stared at herself in the mirror. The make up she wore was now covering the dark circles she'd found under her eyes due to her frequent crying and a lack of proper sleep. "I didn't get to see him yesterday before he got make up. Maybe he has these too." She pondered this for a moment then shook her head. She couldn't imagine Ren would cry over her.
But maybe…
Kyoko jumped up from her chair and hurried out of the dressing room. If she could see him, maybe she could answer her questions.
When she opened her dressing room door and ran out she ran straight into someone. The crash sent her falling backwards and she moved to brace herself but found she had been caught in someone's arms.
"You should be more careful."
She looked up and her amber eyes met Ren's brown ones. She could feel her face heating up as she realized he had caught her. Ren let her go as quickly as he had caught her. He looked away, a strange look on his face.
"Sorry, I just didn't want you to fall." He muttered, before moving past her towards the make up room he was using.
Yashiro glanced back and forth between the couple, feeling like he had just witnessed something straight out of a drama. "Kyoko-chan," he started.
Kyoko smiled at him and bowed. "Yashiro-san, please tell Ren thank you for me." She quickly moved past the stunned man and continued out onto the set fighting back tears. She had gotten her answer.
He does still love me.
A/N: Hello again! So a couple of things... Happy Easter! Next chapter will be up Monday. (yyay!) And I promise next one is the last chapter that'll be all sad... (at least for a while I think...) lol. I hope you all enjoyed this chapter! See you soon!