Here is your morning update. Enjoy. I am off for a LONG drive, maybe I can come up with something good.
Note: I do not own Skip Beat!
The four friends finally sat down to a breakfast of eggs, bacon, sausage, and pancakes. Kyoko was having a hard time looking at any one in the room. Her mind kept flipping back to the things she saw and felt this morning. She was a little disappointed when Catherine opted to nibble on a piece of toast with some marmalade on it. When she fussed that the woman needed to eat better, Catherine fussed back that toast was all her stomach could handle this morning and promised to eat better later. Ren and Yashiro were surprised when this worked and Kyoko let the woman nibble on her toast with the addition of some juice. Ren filed this way to try on Kyoko at another time as he ate his breakfast under Kyoko's watchful eye.
Catherine finished her toast and licked the last of the marmalade from her fingers before considering the three people in front of her. There was a lot to do and not a lot of time to get it done in. She could see that they were almost done with their breakfasts too, so now would be the best time to get things started.
"I will give you all the option to back out of this right now." Catherine started and all eyes turned to her. "If you want to leave now and go face Lory, I will not stop you." Both Yashiro and Ren blanched at the thought. They were sure that Lory would skin them alive if they came back right now. He was probably very pissed and ready to string them up. They had not turned on the TV, but they were sure that Ren's absence and abduction would be the main topic on the news this morning. They agreed that it would be best to give Lory a chance to calm down before they headed back. Then he would be happy and relieved to see them instead of furious. Both men shook their heads and Catherine laughed.
"So what do we do now?" Kyoko asked. Catherine had explained part of it to get her to agree to the crazy idea, but she did not know the logistics of how it would work. Catherine took a long pull from her juice before getting up and heading into the living room. She picked up a large box and carried it back into the dining room. She plopped it into her chair. She got a knife from the utility draw and cut open the tape and started unloading several items from its depths. Ren studied the outside of the box and caught the handwriting and airmail labels on the outside.
"Is this from… my parents?" Ren asked. Catherine smiled at him.
"Your mother helped me get thing together while we were traveling." She admitted to the cunning woman's help. Ren looked shocked at her.
"She knew you were going to kidnap me?" Ren asked in shock, he could not see his mother agreeing to what happened to them last night.
"Not exactly." Catherine acted a little ashamed of herself. "I told her about the rest of the plan and she sent me everything I would need to make sure it happened." She continued to pull things out of the box till she got to the hair dye. "Here it is!" Ren looked at the boxes. There was blond, black, and red. "Who wants to go first?" Kyoko volunteered and the two girls disappeared into the bathroom to return Kyoko's hair to its original color.
Kyoko came back with her original color to find that the men had finished putting away breakfast and were in the process of doing the dishes. Catherine called for Ren to come have his hair returned to its original color too. Catherine charged Kyoko and Yashiro with the opening of the other packages and sorting them out into individual piles. This kept both of them from fidgeting around as they waited for the tall actor to come out with his new hair color.
Finally Catherine walked out and announced that the man was done. Kyoko and Yashiro turned too watched as the tall blond blue eyed man step into the living room. Yashiro squealed like a fan girl to see what the actor really looked like. In all the years that he had been working with the man, he had not expected for Ren to be able to be more of a lady killer then he already was, but Yashiro was sure that that combination would put more than one heart in danger. Kyoko just sat and stared at him. Ren held his breath as he waited for some reaction from the girl he loved. He had told her who he was, but showing her was different. He nearly died when her eyes filled with tears. He rushed to her to as she stood up from the floor.
"Corn." She whispered into his ear as she wrapped her arms around him. He realized that the tears that she was sheading were tears of joy at seeing her old friend returned to her in flesh. He squeezed her and told her he loved her. This made her cry harder as she squeezed him back. Catherine tapped Yashiro on the arm and pointed down the hall. The two retreated to give the two actors a moment together. Ren sank to the floor and pulled the crying girl down into his lap where he rocked her until she was cried out. When she had quieted to a few hiccups he kissed her head.
"Better?" He asked. Kyoko nodded and sat up to touch the golden strands attached to his head.
"I just…" Kyoko did not know how to put her feeling into words, but she did not have to. Ren pulled her in against him for a comforting hug before pressing his lips to hers. The couple sat this way for a long time enjoying each other's touch and company.
Catherine led Yashiro down the hall to let the two actors have some time together. She had planned to have Kyoko help her change her hair, but the girl looked like she needed Ren more than Catherine needed her. As long as she had someone to make sure she covered all of the area on the back of her neck, she could color her own hair. Yashiro took a seat on the edge of the tube as Catherine considered what to do with her hair. She currently had it in a tight braid from the base of her neck. Before she changed her mind or Yashiro could stop her, Catherine took up the shears, held the hair out from her head, and cut through the thick braid even with her collar.
"NO!" Yashiro was on his feet as soon as he saw her action, but it was not fast enough to prevent the first cut. He had to let her finish the job once it was started. It broke his heart to see the shorted strands flare around her face. He loved her long hair. The way it tangled around his finger, the feel of it tickling across his skin, and the soft scent of roses and jasmine he got every time he buried his face in it. As Catherine lowered the scissors and braid to the countertop Yashiro wrapped his arms around the woman. He buried his face into the shortened hair at the back of her head. She let out a trembling breath as a tear rolled out of the corner of her closed eyes. The shorter hair would help her to hide, but it was the first time she had cut her hair in a long time. She sniffled slightly at the loss then hardened her resolve. She had picked this path and there was no turning back now. She opened her eyes and picked up the rubber band on the counter and secured the loose ends of hair before laying the long length of braid on the counter top. She looked into the mirror and started to fix the uneven ends of hair. Yashiro stepped back so that he would not get covered in the clippings. He watched as she stylishly feathered her now just above shoulder length hair before turning it fiery red. She turned to her companion watching her transformation.
"What do you think?" She asked as she swished her head around. Yashiro had picked her severed braid up when she had started to change the color so that it would not get dirty. He squeezed the hair in his hand as he surveyed her work. He stood up and pulled her into his arms.
"It looks good on you." Yashiro whispered as he kissed her. He had loved her as a blonde, but the fiery red she was now suited her nicely too. He was not sure which he liked better. "So what are we going to do about my hair?" He eyed the shears where they rested on the counter top. He liked his hair style and really did not want to cut it. Catherine considered his hair for a moment before sitting him down where she could work on it.
"You are not as well known as Ren or Kyoko, and definitely not as eye catching as a long blonde hair, so I think we can get away by styling it differently." To Yashiro's relief, Catherine did not pick up the scissors, but a comb. She pulled off his glasses and ruffled his hair up in to a windblown look. She stood back and smiled at her work, he looked very dashing. Catherine leaned over and kissed him before handing his glasses back to him. "Whatever you do, don't get contacts." Yashiro slipped his glasses back on.
"You don't like the way I look without glasses?" Yashiro stood up and looked at himself in the mirror then took off his glasses. Catherine leaned in against him.
"That's not it." She rose up and placed a kiss on his cheek. "I just don't have enough sticks to beat the girls off with." He laughed at the complement and turned to the girl next to him.
"You have nothing to worry about." Yashiro gave her a hug and the two went out to show their new styles to actors.