Chapter 6: Jealousy

Disclaimer: Maria-sama ga miteru and its characters are not mine. Credits to the author.

Yumi

It was mid-December when Yumi took the shinkansen together with two other companions to Nara. It had taken very little effort to convince her boss to give her the Nara project seeing how adamant Rica-san was at doing it. The project has been delayed due to the other girl's reluctance to stay in Nara for longer periods of time, not wanting to be separated from her boyfriend, and it was costing the company more on travel costs.

It was late in the afternoon when they arrived at their hotel.

"So you broke up with Akira-san?" Eiko-san, another friend of Yumi's from the office, asked. They shared a hotel room, while their supervisor was in the room adjacent to theirs. They were currently unpacking their belongings.

"Yes, but I am not comfortable talking about it. Sorry." Yumi didn't want to talk about these things with Eiko-san. Only Yoshino-san knew her stories.

"Sure. The break up was just last week right? I'm sure the wounds are still fresh"

Yumi inwardly rolled her eyes. Fresh wounds? Please.

"Anyway, I have some friends here in Nara and they invited me for a group date. I hoped you could join us." It was always the same topic with Eiko – either boys or going on dates.

"I don't know, I just want to get a good night's sleep to prepare for tomorrow's work."

At this Eiko-san dropped the clothes she was holding and hugged Yumi's arm tightly "please, just this once Yumi-san" she pleaded. "Please Please Please Please…" Eiko-san repeated as she shook Yumi's arm violently, acting like a kid.

Eiko-san had always been like this. If she wants something, she will not stop until she gets what she wants. It will be a long tiring discussion, which in the end, Yumi will have no choice but to cave in.

"Okay, fine" she began, turning to face her friend. "But don't expect me to really join in on conversations."

"Yay! Of course Yumi-san. Just sit there and wait for the cute guys to flirt with you." Eiko-san said happily.

"Don't expect me to flirt as well" Yumi just sighed.

xxx

Yumi dressed modestly. Just a short skirt, leggings, knitted blouse and a brown winter jacket. She was not really dressing to impress. The group composed of four men and four women. Eiko-san was also able to force Ikari-san, their immediate superior for this project, to join them. As to how she did, Yumi decided not to ask.

They now sat in a restaurant. Yumi was at the far end and was quietly sipping her iced tea, letting the others do the talking.

"You seem quiet" the young man from across her leaned on his hand and stared at her.

Yumi gave him a smile and proceeded to ignore the world around her.

"I am Nagisa Kyouya" he said.

Yumi gave him a nod. Here we go again, she thought.

Nagisa-san continued making small talk, he tried to find a topic that would get her attention. But in the end, he only earned noncommittal 'hmms' from Yumi.

Upon noticing her friend's lack of interest, Eiko-san jumped into the conversation. "Kyouya is a friend of mine. He used to work for a Tokyo company before he was assigned here at Nara" she said addressing Yumi. And to Kyouya-san she said, "Fukuzawa Yumi-san just broke up with her boyfriend last week, so forgive her for not being too talkative tonight."

"Ah, that explains it." He then stood up, "then, can you come with me for a while Fukuzawa-san?" he said as he offered her a sweet smile.

Yumi was startled at the sudden invitation. The man leaned forward and whispered to her ear, "I say we get out of this boring group date and I take you to see what Nara looks like at night. I promise this will make you feel better."

She wanted to explain to Nagisa-san that she was okay and not feeling bad due to her recent break-up. But Yumi knew better than to open up with this stranger. She kept her life and affairs private, or at least tried to. Because she was sure to have heard the rumour that she was a 'heart breaker'. She never refuted it, the rumours were somehow true. But whether or not she intended to 'leave a trail of crying guys' (as Yoshino-san once said) was not her intention. She just haven't found the right person yet.

Eiko-san's voice brought her out of her thoughts. "Yumi-san is from Lillian High School" her friend said proudly. "Isn't that right Yumi-san?"

"It shows in the way she carries herself, with simple elegance" Nagisa-san intoned.

Then another man said, "by any chance do you know an Ogasawara Sachiko?"

Yumi fought the urge to cough out the iced tea she just sipped, upon hearing her name.

"You mean the Ogasawara? Beautiful billionaire Ogasawara Sachiko?" Eiko-san said almost in admiration. "Do you know her Hagane-san?" she asked the man. "I saw her interview in the magazine once and I would have to say she is one lucky woman. A top executive at such a young age. She is a real life princess, with everything handed to her on a silver platter. It's as if she never encountered any difficulty in life."

A twinge of anger rose up her throat. Yumi wanted to contradict her friend, that Sachiko's life was far from easy. These people just don't understand, how Sachiko had been busy with training and learning their business even if she was just in college, while most girls her age were out there partying. She balled her fists in an attempt to keep her emotions in check.

But it seemed like the conversation wasn't over.

"I work for her husband, Ogasawara Suguru-sama" Hagane-san said loudly for everyone to hear. "I was invited to some of the company parties held in Tokyo, you know being a manager and all. And at one of those events, I had the opportunity to be introduced to Suguru and Sachiko Ogasawara." He paused, waiting for the envious reactions before he continued. "She is very beautiful, but the kind that you just want to admire from afar, knowing she's totally out of your league. But Suguru-sama fits her perfectly. He's good looking and comes from a good family like her, that's probably why they are perfect couple."

At this, Yumi's brow furrowed, feeling the anger in her boil and her jealousy intensify.

Yes, they are perfect together, Yumi thought. Just perfect.

Xxx

Yumi didn't inform anyone that she was attending the wedding. Thankfully, Sachiko didn't give her an invitation and neither of her Yamayurikai friends asked her to come either. Despite keeping their relationship a secret, it seems like everyone still knew.

Yumi stood at the back of the church, wearing jeans and a button down blouse. Her backpack was slung over one shoulder and her hair was in braids. She was in her senior year in college and was on her way to school. Despite constantly convincing herself that she should not see Sachiko after their break up, she just couldn't stop herself from going to the wedding.

'I will be there for just a second. I just want to see with my own eyes that I have truly lost her to someone else' Yumi told herself.

It was a grandiose event, just as she expected, given how famous and influential the Ogasawara's were. And it just made it all the more easier for her to blend in with the big crowd of guests. However, the church was enormous and she was so far back that she could barely see the bride and groom standing by the altar. There were TV screens at every interval so the guests at the back can watch the ceremony up close.

She squeezed herself in, to get closer to one of the monitors and that's where she saw and heard it. Sachiko and Suguru-san reciting the vows together, their hands intertwined and with a gold wedding ring on their fingers.

"…till death do us part" they echoed.

And the crowd burst into applause.

It was then that Yumi hurriedly left. She doesn't want to get to the part where the groom will kiss the bride. No, she can't bear to see Sachiko's lips be claimed by another. She doesn't have to, because that same vision and nightmare have been haunting her since Sachiko told her that the wedding will happen after she graduates college.

She knew that she was the one who told Sachiko that she doesn't want her to give up everything for their relationship. She knew that by choosing to give up on them, the wedding was bound to happen. She knew that by letting Sachiko go, she is stripping herself of all the rights to be a part of the older woman's life. It was her decision. So why does it hurt this damn much?

She made her way out and ran. She felt her chest constricting as if her heart was being crushed. She can't breathe well and she found it more and more difficult to swallow. She felt light headed…she felt sick. Not a moment had passed when she was forced to crouch down on the grass and throw up as tears cascaded down her eyes. She was barely eating these past few days, so her vomit tasted like bile. There were people who saw her and approached her with a look of concern in their eyes. It was humiliating.

Echoes of voices, asking how she was, buzzed all around her but all she could see was Sachiko in an elegant white dress looking like the morning star, standing in front of Maria-sama, hand in hand with Suguru-san. And all she could hear were promises of forever by Sachiko to Suguru-san.

She was refusing the help of the strangers, until one voice said "I will handle her. Thank you very much for your concern." It was Touko.

Touko put her slender arms around her onee-sama and helped her up. She wiped the older girl's mouth with her handkerchief, "Onee-sama" Touko whispered.

"Get me out of here. Please." Yumi pleaded.

xxx

Yumi immediately grabbed Nagisa Kyouya's hand and pulled him outside. "Nagisa-san offered to show me around" she said to Eiko-san.

Her friend was surprised at the sudden announcement and was just able to nod her head. Yumi took this as her cue, picked up her jacket and walked out of the restaurant.

Nagisa-san's eyes shone with delight as she continued to clutch his hand until they exited the restaurant. "What made you decide to come with a stranger like me?" he asked once they were out on the cold winter night.

"The party was getting boring" she lied and walked ahead of him.

"Wait" he ran ahead of her to block her path. "Does this mean that you would like to date me?" he asked eagerly.

Yumi gave him an incredulous look. "What are you talking about? I was not here to find a boyfriend. It's only been a week since my last relationship." Yumi responded defensively.

Nagisa-san was taken aback by her response, "So why did you join this group date?"

"Eiko-san forced me to come."

Nagisa-san shook his head in disbelief. "You may not have been informed but I have been friends with Eiko for a long time. It's just surprising that she's still the same, pushing people to do things her way."

"So does this mean you're not escorting me around since we're not dating?" Yumi asked, almost laughing.

"Well I am looking for a girlfriend, and you just rejected me flatly." Nagisa-san put a hand on his chin, as if in deep thought. "But you seem cool, and add to that you're not bad looking."

"Not bad looking?" Yumi repeated. "Are you joking?"

Nagisa-san laughed heartily.

"You're cool" he said again. "Some of my band mates are playing at a nearby bar, you want to hang out?"

"Sure" Yumi agreed. "Friends?"

"Friends" Nagisa-san agreed.

Sachiko

It was one of those business parties in one late January night. Sachiko was sitting casually in a corner talking to one of their partners. He is an old balding man in an expensive black suit. He, like all the other before him, were trying to get on her good side. She was bearing with it, but her patience was wearing thin and she was reaching her limit.

It was Suguru-san who rescued her. With a well-practiced smile, he excused himself and his wife, and asked her to dance. He gently took her hand and guided her to the dance floor. The older man frowned but otherwise bowed his head at the retreating couple.

"What took you so long?" Sachiko muttered under her breath.

Suguru just smiled in response. Sachiko is a beautiful woman, but a very temperamental one. He doubts any of her admirers can handle a woman like her. All eyes were on her. She was wearing a flowing midnight blue dress that hugged her curves. Her hair was pulled up in a bun, with a few strands curled and cascading down her face.

Suguru took her for a spin before spilling the news, "I was just talking to one of my colleagues from one of the Nara Satellite Office. I was asking about the status of the renovations of some of our properties in Nara. He said that the architects and engineers are now on site, and that one of them was a very beautiful woman in her early twenties."

"Why is your subordinate talking about his love interests with you?"

"Actually, I was the one who asked about the details." Suguru paused for effect, "because he said the woman was from Lillian."

Sachiko's breath hitched up her throat. Suguru-san would only bring up conversations like this when it concerned her.

"And he said her name was Fukuzawa Yumi-san" Suguru finished, just as he dipped her in time for the music to end.

Sachiko faked a smile, before pulling herself up and striding off of the dance floor, Suguru on her heels. She got hold of a champagne flute from a passing waiter, before sitting herself down.

"Why are you telling me this?" Sachiko asked just as Suguru settled himself down on a chair beside her.

He just smiled innocently. Besides finding pleasure in teasing his cousin, he just wants to know if Sachiko would rush to Nara that very instant.

And as if on cue, a man approached Suguru. "Boss" he bowed to Suguru, "Ogasawara-sama" he smiled at Sachiko.

"Good evening Hagane-san. I was just telling Sachiko here about the representative sent by that Architectural firm, the one you said was from Lillian High School."

"Oh yes. She is a beautiful woman, Fukuzawa-san. I think she is now dating one of my friends" he sounded pleased with himself that he was able to share this news to his boss. "We were at a group date just last month and they walked out the bar in the middle of the party. They never returned, so we assumed they – you know…" he raised his eyebrows suggestively.

Suguru's face hardened and with a warning tone he said, "I would advise you to refrain from talking in that manner about Fukuzawa Yumi in front of us."

The man visibly paled, "I didn't mean to bad mouth her in any way. I really did see them leave."

"The man she left with, can you tell me something about him?" Sachiko spoke for the first time since the man arrived.

"Nagisa Kyouya is a good man, he wouldn't hurt Fukuzawa-san" he said looking from Suguru to Sachiko. "It's Nagisa-san I am worried about."

"Why is that?" Sachiko inquired. Yumi, her Yumi, is anything but dangerous.

"Well…", he started but was afraid to continue. The gaze the two Ogasawara's were giving him was making him sweat. He feared that his next words were bound to get him fired.

"Go on" Suguru-san urged.

"They say… she's a heart breaker."

Sachiko slammed the glass down on the table and suddenly stood up to face the man. The music muted the noise, but both men knew that the elegant woman in front of them was fuming mad. Hagane-san backed away at the threatening look she was giving him. Suguru touched her arm, which she shook free from, before storming off.

Who does he think he is? Talking about Yumi as if he knows her, Sachiko thought angrily.

But despite repeatedly telling herself that the man was lying, she can't erase the picture of Yumi wrapped in another man's embrace from her mind. And it just made her angrier.

A/N: This is how rumours spread, right? People have the tendency to conclude using just the little information that they have. Just rambling uselessly here. Anyway – good day everyone.

**imoshen88 thanks for being another set of eyes to review my story** \(^_^)/