Chapter 14: Dinner and Decisions
The following Tuesday, Ren and Kyoko drove to Yukia's apartment after work. They had stopped at home briefly to change into different clothes before heading over. Kyoko gave Ren directions as he drove and soon they parked in a parking garage next to the large apartment building. It wasn't as fancy as where Ren lived but it was still nicer than anything Kyoko had been used to before.
They climbed out of the car and Kyoko led them to the elevator. She clicked the button for the correct floor and waited patiently for the elevator to reach its destination. Ren reached out and took hold of her hand, startling her. He chuckled, seeing her jump.
"You seemed nervous so I thought I'd try to relax you but I think I made it worse." He teased. He gave her hand a small squeeze.
Kyoko smiled at him. "Sorry. Yes, I'm nervous since it's our first time going over to someone's house for dinner as a couple."
"I guess you're right." Ren replied. He leaned over and kissed her cheek. "Don't worry. I won't do anything to embarrass you."
She felt her face flush. "That's not what I was worried about!" she argued as the elevator reached its destination.
Ren laughed, before stepping out of the elevator. Kyoko followed after him shaking her head at his teasing. If it was possible, it seemed he had begun teasing her more ever since finding out he was Corn.
"What's the apartment number?" Ren asked.
"5-D," Kyoko responded, pointing to the door they had just reached.
Ren rang the doorbell and they waited for a moment before they heard the sound of the door unlocking. The door opened and Yukia greeted then with a smile.
"Tsuruga-san, Kyoko-chan, welcome!" he stepped back to allow them entry.
After stepping inside, Ren turned to Yukia. "Thank you for having us. Although, I don't think you need to call me by 'Tsuruga-san' anymore." He said with a smile.
Yukia looked uncertain, and his eyes flickered to Kyoko momentarily. She smiled and nodded. "You could just call him, 'Ren-san'." She suggested.
Yukia nodded, "Is that all right with you, Ren-san?"
The older actor laughed, "That's fine."
"Where's James-san?" Kyoko asked, glancing around the living room they had entered.
Yukia pointed towards the kitchen. "He's in there cooking dinner. I think he wanted to show off his cooking talents after you cooked for us the last time." Yukia whispered the last part to ensure that James wouldn't hear them.
Kyoko laughed and Ren smiled at this admission. There was something relaxing about being with friends. Especially when those friends happened to know your secrets.
Twenty minutes later, the four of them sat down around the dining table.
"The food is delicious!" Kyoko gushed after tasting some of her dinner.
James looked pleased at her compliment. "Thank you, Kyoko-chan."
Ren nodded, "Yes, it's very good."
Yukia stifled a laugh at the proud look on his boyfriend's face, causing James to shoot a not so subtle glare at him.
"How did filming go today?" Ren asked when they had continued eating.
Kyoko was silent so Yukia answered. "It went really well. There weren't any issues and Kyoko-chan hardly had any retakes."
Ren looked at his girlfriend who was stirring around her food. "Really? That's great."
Kyoko nodded, and Ren could see the sad look on her face. "Yeah, but now it's over." She finally said with a sigh.
Ren chuckled, "But that just means you get to move on the next great thing you'll do." He said trying to cheer her up. He glanced back at Yukia. "Do you have any other jobs lined up yet?" he asked.
Yukia nodded, "James managed to get me an audition last week for a new drama and they decided I was good for the part."
"That's really great, Yukia-kun." Kyoko said happily. She was grateful that his decision to move to Japan was working out as they'd hoped.
"And he's had a few offers to appear in commercials or as a guest on a drama." James mentioned.
"Wow!" Kyoko exclaimed, "And to think I don't have much of anything planned now aside from a small role on a drama that's already airing. I start filming with them next week."
"What about the drama you're auditioning for Friday? That's a main role." Ren asked.
Kyoko blushed, "I didn't really want to say anything until I knew if I would get it." She admitted looking down.
"But if you don't tell us then we can't be rooting for you!" Yukia told her.
Kyoko smiled at her friend. "Thanks. I'm hoping I'll be successful."
"That means we can celebrate your success at the wrap party Friday night." James said.
Ren nodded, "That's right, their doing the wrap party for your drama on the night it premiers right?"
Kyoko laughed. "Yeah, but I don't know about celebrating. I may just need cheering up if I don't get it."
She felt Ren's hand grasp hers under the table and glanced at him. In his eyes she could see his thoughts. Don't worry. You'll be great. She blushed at his gaze before turning back to pick up her plate. She stood quickly. "Please, let me help with the dishes."
Yukia and James exchanged a meaningful glance as Kyoko stepped over to the sink. They had noticed the moment she'd shared with Ren and her attempt to avoid him due to shyness.
"Why don't Kyoko-chan and I do the dishes while you two talk?" Yukia suggested.
Ren and James agreed before exiting the kitchen to sit in the living room.
"Did you want a beer?" James offered.
Ren nodded, "Thanks." And accepted the drink James handed him.
They were quiet for several moments before James spoke. "It's nice to see you two together."
Ren smiled, "I'm just glad I was able to fix this."
"If Kyoko-chan is the type of person I think she is, then I'd be surprised if she hadn't forgiven you."
Ren stared down at the bottle in his hand. "Yeah. She's an amazing person like that."
"She's had her heart broken before, right?" James asked, softly.
Ren nodded, "That's why I thought she might just leave. I think I wound up hurting her much worse than he did."
"But you must have done something right then." James said with a smile.
"Yeah, I guess so." Ren agreed, taking another drink from his beer.
Kyoko and Yukia were quiet as they washed and dried the dishes.
"What do you think they're talking about?" Kyoko asked.
Yukia shrugged, as he handed her another plate to dry. "Who knows?" he said with a laugh.
Kyoko smiled slightly. "I'm really going to miss working with you, Yukia-kun." She admitted softly.
Yukia beamed at her words. "I'm going to miss working with you too. I hope I'll get the chance again." He turned to look at her, pausing in his washing. "You are my first friend here in Japan, so I think I'm really lucky that I got to co-star with you."
Kyoko felt tears prick her eyes at his kind words. "Thank you, Yukia-kun. I'm really glad that we are friends too."
Soon the evening was over and Ren and Kyoko returned to the car for the ride home.
"Did you have a good time?" Kyoko asked, glancing towards Ren.
He nodded, "Did you?"
"Yes." She answered, "I think we are very lucky to have such great friends like them."
Ren smiled as he reached over to take Kyoko's hand. "I think you are very right."
The rest of the week flew by and soon it was Friday. Kyoko woke up early to get ready for her audition. She made breakfast for Ren while he got ready before heading to the bathroom to take a shower.
After her shower she stared at her reflection in the mirror. "I'm going to do my best today so I can get this role." She told herself firmly.
Kyoko quickly dressed into a knee-length gray skirt and a light blue top. She was careful to fix her hair and put on a small amount of make up. Nothing too bold, just enough so I don't disappear in the crowd. She instructed herself silently.
Finally, she stepped out of the bathroom and moved back into the living room. Ren looked up from his food when she entered. He smiled.
"You look very beautiful." He told her, his voice sweet enough to make her blush.
Kyoko muttered a thank you before heading back to their bedroom to collect her bag. Ren followed her and stood in the doorway watching her.
"Good luck on your audition today. What drama was it for again?"
Kyoko opened her mouth to respond, but caught herself. She shot a glare towards her boyfriend. "I told you. I'm not telling you what drama it is." She turned away again to close her bag.
Moments later, Ren's arms slipped around her stomach, embracing her tightly. "I don't know why it has to be a secret."
She felt her heart skip a beat as his breath touched her ear. "Because, I don't want to jinx it by telling anyone. It's already bad enough that you told Yukia-kun and James-san about it." She had tried to sound firm as she scolded him but her resolve had weakened at the feel of him so close to her.
Ren chuckled at her ear. "Well, I'm sure you'll do great no matter what." He pulled away slightly and gave her a kiss on the cheek. "Shall we get going then?" he asked.
Kyoko nodded, trying to regain her composure. That's right. No matter how much I want to I can't tell Ren that I'm auditioning for the new drama he's going to be in. I'd hate to have him try to pull strings to get me the job or worse be disappointed when I don't get it. I'll tell him tonight though. No matter what the outcome. She silently promised as she headed out the door to their apartment.
They had parked at LME with the plan that Kyoko would head to her audition from there in a taxi. She had tried to refuse the money Ren had given her for her ride but had failed. She hailed a taxi successfully after only a few minutes, and after climbing in and giving the driver directions to the studio, Kyoko heard her phone ring. She answered it quickly upon seeing the caller ID.
"Hello, President." She greeted Lory Takarada.
"Mogami-kun," he said cheerfully. "What's your schedule today?"
"My schedule?" she asked. When he only made a noise of agreement she continued, "I'm heading to an audition right now, and I have the wrap party for Keishi tonight but that's it for today."
"Could I ask you to please stop by my office after your audition then? I have something important I'd like to discuss with you about the LoveMe section." The President explained.
"Of course, sir. I'll see you after my audition." She agreed. After they hung up Kyoko stared at her phone silently wondering what was in store for her that afternoon.
After the audition, Kyoko felt exhausted. She had been fighting anxiety the entire time worrying over if she'd get the part or not. The director and producers had been kind and fair during the audition and had said they would get back to everyone by that evening.
Now, Kyoko found herself in a taxi heading back to LME. She was grateful that the director had provided box lunches for the actresses auditioning because she had to head straight to her meeting with the President. When she reached his office, she knocked on the large doors. One was opened a moment later to reveal the President's assistant, Sebastian.
"Good afternoon," Kyoko greeted him.
He gave a nod towards Kyoko as he welcomed her inside of the entry to the large office. He gestured for Kyoko to wait there and left the room to return a moment later with the President.
Kyoko bowed low. "Good afternoon, President."
"Good afternoon, Mogami-kun." He said and she could hear that his voice was slightly less enthusiastic.
"What did you need to talk to me about, sir?" she asked.
The President looked thoughtful as he touched his chin. "Well, there is a slight situation regarding the LoveMe section and our agency as a whole." His voice was serious as he led her closer to the door to his main office. "And I need your help to make an important decision."
Kyoko's mouth went dry. "My help?" she managed to choke out.
The President nodded, then opened the door and led her into the office. Sitting on one of the couches in the middle of the room was a young man. Kyoko froze in place as her eyes met his blue ones.
"Shotaro?"