Kuon

Kuon pulled at the sleeves of the deep green yukata he was being forced to wear. If it wasn't his parents anniversary, and if his mom hadn't given him "the look." He wouldn't be here. Combing his blond locks back from his face he made his way down the corridor to the restroom from the private dining room where they would be spending the next several hours. For their anniversary his parents decided they wanted to have a traditional Japanese tea ceremony and a traditional Japanese dinner. Kuon couldn't help but feel a little sorry to the kitchen staff and how they were going to fulfil his father's black hole of a stomach. Glancing in the kitchen he saw the flurry of activity he expected, but it wasn't from a large team of chef's, it appeared to be one older gentleman and a young girl who seemed to move around the kitchen at the speed of light. As he watched in amazement he realized that he recognized the girl. It was the Japanese girl from school. Kyoko. It wasn't lost on him that this girl shared the same name with the girl he met in Kyoto when he was a kid, and when he looked close he felt like he could see the similarities between the two, but he dismissed the similarities as a coincidence of having the same name. His ambivalent mood quickly dissipated as this realization dawned on him. As if suddenly sensing his presence the girl stopped moving suddenly, yet the large filled pot she was carrying didn't seem to get the memo and her and the pot toppled over taking the small girl with it. She yelped in pain as she hit the ground, her ankle twisting momentarily at an unnatural angle. Kuon refrained himself from going to her aid. Instead he rolled his eyes and continued to move on as he heard the other chef in the kitchen beginning to fret over the girl and insist on getting her an ice pack. On his way back to his parents private dining room he heard a man wail in despair.

"What are we going to do?! Maya is out on maternity leave and I don't have another girl good enough to do a Tea ceremony for such a big named star."

"Uneo-san," she said speaking in Japanese, "It will be alright, I will still be able to perform the tea ceremony."

"Kyoko-chan I can't have you do that, it won't be a beautiful experience if you are grimacing in pain the whole time." Kuon peaked around the corner to see the man kneeling before Kyoko, his head resting in his hands.

"Uneo-san, I promise, It will be a beautiful tea ceremony, they won't even know that I hurt myself. See," she removed the ice pack that was resting on her ankle and started to move around the room, "It doesn't even hurt anymore. All will be fine." She assured the older gentleman putting her hand on his shoulder and giving him a small smile.

"Eh, really? You feel better already? You sure are a resilient girl Kyoko-chan, but I still want you to take it easy until the tea ceremony. You work over there and I will pass you the things I need you to prepare, OK?"

"Hai," the girl bowed and did what the man directed her to do. When Uneo's back was turned he noticed the grimace of pain that crossed the girl's features as she made her way carefully to her station.

So she thinks she can hide that she is in pain the whole time? This will at least be interesting. I wonder if I can make her crack and show her pain. Were the thoughts that filled Kuon's head as he made his way back to the dining room.

It had been four hours. Four. And the whole time the girl betrayed no expression of pain or discomfort. She sat with the most serene expression he had ever seen and performed the most beautiful tea ceremony he had ever witnessed. All along she kept up a pleasant conversation with his parents. Kuon tried to make her uncomfortable by shifting and making comments about his ankles hurting and giving the girl pointed looks, which she completely ignored. Ever movement was sheer grace and beauty, just like she promised the chef. Maybe she didn't hurt it as bad as I thought. He did have to say one thing about this whole tiring experience, at least the food was good. He didn't have much of an appetite, but he found himself eating everything that was put in front of him. It was so unusual that his parents even commented on it.

"Look at Kuon eat. Last time we were here I think he only ate his rice and his miso soup." His father remarked, "Did the chef change the recipe?" Kuon noticed a slight blush cross Kyoko's cheeks and he rolled his eyes. "Actually, I prepared most of the meal, I might have made the flavors a bit lighter than the chef normally makes his flavors. I had heard people remark at school that Hizuri-san," she gestured at Kuon, "doesn't eat that much." Kuu's and Julie's eyes rose in surprise.

"You two go to school together?" Julie inquired and Kyoko nodded but didn't volunteer any more information and when his mom looked at him, he took a big bite of his meal and rolled his eyes at her.

"So Kyoko-chan," Kuu decided to change the subject, "Where in Japan are you from? I honestly have to say I haven't seen such a beautiful tea ceremony in a long time." Kyoko smiled gently and lifted the teapot.

"I grew up in Kyoto, for several years I lived with a family who runs a Ryokan out there. The Okamisan taught me the art of the tea ceremony."

"Really," Kuu's eyes lit up with excitement, "I am also from Kyoto…" and the older gentleman launched a discussion with the girl about the shrines and places to eat around the area. To Kyoko and Kuu's delight, they discovered that both had attended the same primary school and had even shared a teacher, even though the timing was decades apart.

"You know, Kuon came out to Kyoto with me once, when he was ten," Kuu nudged his son who just scowled at his father, but he did notice the girl's eyes narrow as she examined him again.

"Really?" She asked, a bit of frostiness creeping into her voice, "Did you enjoy it out there?" Kuon just shrugged and continued to eat.

"What did you do while you were there?" She persisted. Kuon swallowed and shrugged again. "Dad was busy, I mostly explored the forest." His green eyes met her golden ones and they widened marginally, Kuon saw the questions flickering there, then a sadness seemed to settle there and she glanced away.

"The forests out there are lovely, I use to play in them a lot as well. There was a stream I used to like to play by, the water was always so cold because it was fueled by a local spring." Kuon kept his face inexpressive, neutral, as her questioning eyes met his again, and he knew without a doubt that this girl was the same one he had met 8 years ago. However he could tell that she wasn't sure, she was trying to get him to confirm it, but he refused to give her that satisfaction. To Kuon's relief his mother over took the conversation and he didn't have to say anything else the remainder of the meal.

"That was wonderful," Kuu said patting his stomach as they made their way to the car. "I should hire her as a personal chef," Julie commented looking sidelong at her son, "Especially since it seems like she can get Kuon here to eat," She playfully nudged her son. Who simply gave her a blank look. Unlocking the car Kuu and Julie climbed in.

"Eh, can you guys wait a moment." Kuon asked stopping suddenly, "I forgot something inside." Curiosity overcame Kuon and he had to know if the girl and if she hurt her ankle as bad as he had thought. He quickly made his way back to the dining room and glanced inside. To his shock she was still there, but it almost looked like she had passed out. Moving quickly to the kitchen to hopefully tell someone, he discovered it empty. Moving to the ice machine he packed up a bag of ice and took it and put it on the girls ankle. It was definitely a little swollen.

"What am I doing? I don't care if she's hurt…." He mumbled as his hand stroked her hair back from her face. Standing he made his way from the room and found a waitress who he informed of Kyoko's condition and made his way back to his parents. How did she manage to sit in that position with a sore ankle for 4 hours without an expression of pain crossing her face. For the first time he thought something positive about his blast from the past and that thought was that she would make one hell of an actress.

"Did you find what you were looking for honey." Julie twisted in her seat to address her son as he stepped into the car.

"Eh," Kuon rubbed the back of his neck, "Kind of. The girl, Kyoko, I saw her twist her ankle before dinner started." His parents turned to look at him fully in shock. "When she sat for the tea ceremony I thought maybe she didn't hurt it that bad, because she seemed unaffected by it, but I found her passed out in the dining room."

"WHAT!" Kuu roared in shock, "and you didn't tell us, she shouldn't have been doing that if she was hurt. How irresponsible of you Kuon! You shouldn't have let her do that."

Kuon glared at his father, "I'm not the boss of her, I hardly know her, how was I to know she was really hurt that bad." Kuon met his father's eyes, "She. Didn't. Let. It. Show. It's not like either of you noticed either." Understanding dawned in his father's eyes, then respect.

"Interesting," Kuu looked at his wife with a smile, "Very interesting." Kuon glowered at the respect he saw in his father's expression then said under his breath as the man started driving them home. "Why don't you just adopt her then." He looked up and realized his mother heard his comment when he saw the pain lance across her face. Looking away he bit his lip and blinked back his emotions, he couldn't do any fucking thing right.

Monday came too quickly for Kuon's liking. He didn't want to admit that he was curious about Kyoko. How her ankle was doing and how she planned on presenting her character in class today. Not only did they have to create a character just based on their imagination but they also had to improv the scene. Tanner was a pretty good actress since she had experience modeling, and she was so strong-willed, he really couldn't imagine the timid little Kyoko overcoming her. Well at the very least it should be entertaining.

It wasn't until the end of lunch when he finally saw Kyoko. Courtney was next to him, yabbering on about something, she had taken to doing that lately. Talking to him. It was never part of their arrangement before, but he hasn't sought out Courtney's company since the incident when Kyoko walked in on them. He told her it was because he didn't feel like being interrupted again so she started attempting to make plans with him outside of school. It was fucking annoying. Kuon was eating if only to keep himself from having to respond to Courtney. It didn't do him any good to glare at her. He thought maybe that it turned her on because it never seemed to deter her. The first thing he noticed was the bright pink dress, and he only noticed it because Courtney pointed it out.

"What the hell color is that?" Unintentionally Kuon's eyes moved to the pink dress. He couldn't help but agree with Courtney's assessment at first, but then he noticed the legs peeking out from beneath the dress, which as a man he couldn't help but appreciate. His eyes trailed up her body noting her small waist and how V-Neck of the dress accentuated her small chest. His breath caught on her hair. It was black as night and fell in long soft waves just kissing the small the small of her back. It was when she turned in his direction that he finally saw her trademark golden eyes and understood what he was looking at. His breath caught. He had never seen her with her hair down, not even when they met as children. Now that he saw it he wanted nothing more than to run his fingers through it. She was beautiful. He really had never noticed before. He didn't realize that he had stopped eating mid-bite until he heard Courtney snort.

"She looks fucking ridiculous, that color is hideous, and that dress just makes her look like a slut." Kuon bit back a retort that he had seen her wear clothes similar to that, but that did turn his attention to the lustful stares that the girl was unconsciously garnering. He felt his aura darkening. He slipped again. He couldn't let that girl get to him, and what was she thinking. Dressing light that? Isn't she supposed to be the innocent type? Kuon stood abruptly cutting off whatever new nasty thing Courtney was saying about the girl and stalked off. The end of the day couldn't be here soon enough.

Unfortunately for Kuon, it seemed like his day was just getting started. That afternoon in Theater Arts he had to sit through some of the worst acting he had ever seen in his life. The students were all giggling the whole time, couldn't compose their faces, and the ones that could do that their characters had no depth. With each passing student on the stage, Kuon grew more and more annoyed, and bored. Finally when he thought he might just fall asleep, out walked Kyoko. He had blocked it from his mind that she would be performing today. He examined her in her dress, while the dress was really a shocking pink and it did her body credit. She didn't seem any different than normal. She was standing off to the side, smiling annoyingly at something her friend had said. Her back was ramrod straight and her hands were clasped in front of her. She looks like she should be wearing a fucking kimono, thought Kuon. I guess Saturday was a fluke, probably just years of practice, no real craft there. That thought made him feel a bit better. After he had told his parents about her and her ankle and he saw the interest in his father's expression he boiled with rage. How dare this girl who's never acted before, catch his attention. It made him want to… he didn't complete the thought because right then Mr. McGregor called out, "Action!"

Instantly Kyoko transformed, her posture relaxed and she cocked out her hip. Her normally warm eyes cooled to a sharp, piercing gaze. Then she started to move, her hips swaying slightly. She looks like a runway model, Kuon realized. Then she started to talk to Tanner and the pieces clicked for him. She was imitating Courtney. The way she spoke, moved and bullied Tanner was all classic Courtney. It was filled with loathing for the girl in front of her. She never touched her, she would just lean in menacingly and threatened her scene partner. The only part that wasn't classic Courtney was the gaze. That sharp, cold gaze. It was when she snorted in derision at the girl's tears that he recognized it. That's supposed to be me, she combined Courtney and me and she made it work. He could see it, see her becoming a huge success as an actress. She was a natural. He felt a momentary pang of some emotion then his rage came again. How is she so good without even trying? How was she able to do that? Why is this nobody girl a rival for my own talents?

By the end of IA Kuon was done. Just flat out done. If he had to listen to one more person compliment her on her performance today or tell her how good she looked he was going to break his vow of nonviolence and flat out punch them. He stormed out of the IA meeting as soon as he was able and slammed his way into a classroom. Seething with emotion that he couldn't control he paced back and forth, when an arm snaked out and grabbed his wrist. Whirling, fist raised he found Courtney. Sighing he lowered his hand.

"What the hell do you want."

She smirked at him and trailed her hands up his arms and down his flat stomach. "Do I really have to say?"

Angrily he pulled her toward him and kissed her hard. The girl moaned and opened her mouth to him. Receptive, she was always receptive. He moved his hands down her body and went to cup her breast when the memory of the last time he was in this situation swam into his head. He pulled back.

"What's wrong baby?" She moved her hands down further, trailing her finger along his slowly hardening length. Shaking the thoughts away he growled, "Nothing," and pulled her toward him again and resumed kissing her. Once again his thoughts stray to his childhood friend with a curse he pushed Courtney away.

"What the fuck is wrong with you Kuon? You've been," she gestures to him, "Off since…" she trails off and then her eyes widen and points an accusing finger at him, "Since she got here." Kuon's eyes widened at the accusation.

"What? Are you in love with her or something?"

"Jesus Christ, Courtney. No, I am not in love with her. She pisses me the fuck off is what she does. Now you are pissing me off so get out." Kuon glared at his lover and pointed to the door.

"You know what?" She flipped her hair and turned. "I don't need this shit. Fuck off Kuon, and don't think you will be getting any of this, ever again." With that she sauntered out the room, her hips swaying more than normal. Kuon didn't even bother to admire the view. Angrily he paced the room cursing under his breath. Rearing back he swung his fist into the cinderblock wall.