Chapter 11: Small Victories

DISCLAIMER: I do not own Skip Beat, for if I did, the important people would know about Kimiko's crime against Kyoko.

For the first time since Rick's death, Ren woke up refreshed, though he only managed a few hours of shut-eye. He felt as if a tremendous weight had been lifted from his shoulders. His thoughts wandered to the girl sleeping in the room across the hall. Her actions last night definitely meant something, didn't it?

Surely no woman could look at a man like that unless she felt something for him, be it lust or love. He really hoped the latter was the result of the first. Then again, he could be reading too much into it. Any healthy woman would have responded that way with a half-naked man in their proximity, right? She just felt so right pressed against him.

His whole body hummed with the need of wanting her. He was glad the static electricity that sparked between them had shocked him back to his senses. If not, he wasn't sure what he would have done. He needed to work on his self-control; otherwise, he might scare her off.

He got out of bed to start his morning routine. He did some plyometric exercises and topped it off with his usual cold shower.

Yashiro had texted him and said he would arrive in two hours. The President had scheduled an impromptu meeting with them. Ren assumed the President was just trying to check up on them to see how last night played out.

He finished getting ready for the day before waking Kyoko. He wanted to let her sleep a while longer after her trying night. When he was ready, he went out to make coffee. He paused outside of her room when he heard strange sounds coming from the door.

Curiously, he pressed his ear to the door. Moaning? Ren blushed slightly. You're imagining things! He pulled back from the door in shock when he heard it was she doing in there? Was she having a nightmare or was she…? He shook his head quickly to keep the perverted thoughts at bay. He didn't want to have to take another cold shower. He was tempted to open the door but restrained himself and proceeded to the kitchen.

...

She moaned erotically while her fingers delved into his silky blond locks, kneading his scalp. She arched her back from the intense pleasure he assaulted on her body. She whimpered as his long graceful fingers slid slowly in and out of her core. Her hips rose in perfect timing wanting more. 'God, his tongue!' His delightful and torturous tongue continued to flick over her clit sending her to new heights. He puckered his lips and sucked on her bud causing her to whimper and writhe beneath him.

He chuckled deeply at her reaction. The soft caress of his cool breath on her heated skin sent shockwaves throughout her body. She tilted her head down to look at him. Her golden orbs, dark from lust, held on to his mischievous pair of gemstones. She bit down on her lower lip, watching him watch her, as his mouth and tongue worked their magic on her body. Keeping his eyes on her, he reached his free hand up to caress her breast. His hand squeezed her mound gently while his thumb traced circles over her hardened nipple. She threw her head back and gripped the silk sheets desperate for an anchor. She felt like she would take flight from the new sensations his hands invoked in her. He increased his movements sensing she was close to her climax. Her voice rose and her breath quickened as pressure built up in the pit of her stomach. "Yes, oh yes," she cried out in ecstasy as she came.

Kyoko blinked her eyes open. She was startled to find one hand in her pants and the other fondling her breast. "Ehhhhhhhh!" She screeched, her face instantly heating up to a deep crimson. What in the world was I doing in my sleep? She pulled her hand out of her pants and found them sticky from her bodily secretions. How? How? How is this possible? I'm a pure Japanese maiden! There's no way I would know about something like that. Her face grew dark as she recalled eavesdropping on Shotaro and his friends at the Ryokan. One guy had boasted about performing such acts with his girlfriend while the others cheered him on. Grrr! That stupid ShoBaka! At the time, she couldn't imagine what they were talking about but now she understood. The way he licked his lips last night and the warmth he invoked within her as he pressed his body against hers was enough to conjure such an erotic dream from deep within her subconscious.

"Kyoko, is everything alright?" Ren called from the other side of the door.

"Ah! Yes, Corn, I'm fine," she said, burying her crimson-colored face into the pillow. There's no way he could ever find out about her dream. He would probably think she was a shameless woman. It was all his fault too. Why did he have to be so damn good looking and after last night... How can I face him? Her heart pounded at the memory of last night. Her body had come alive when he pressed against her. She knew she should have run away but she was too intrigued by the new feelings stirring within her.

"Yashiro-san will be here in less than two hours so please get ready and I'll make us some breakfast," Ren called from the other side of the door. He wasn't sure how long she needed to prepare herself; therefore, he wanted to make sure she had ample time.

"Thank you, Corn! I will be out soon." She scrambled out of bed and headed for the bathroom to take a shower. Despite her embarrassment, she was still eager to see him. When she was through with her shower, she dried her hair and tried on the new outfit he had gifted her last night. She stood nervously in front of the mirror and surveyed herself. The outfit was simple yet feminine consisting of a pair of dark skinny jeans that fit her like a glove and hugged her curves in all the right places. The top was a tiered spaghetti strap in a soft canary yellow with a matching cardigan in case she became cold.

She went back into the bathroom and gingerly touched the little high-end containers of face products and cosmetics. Her inner princess was dying to use the items on herself but the frugal, more logical Kyoko was hesitating. They are a gift for you. If you don't use it some other woman will! A hint of jealousy surfaced within her. She looked at her reflection in the mirror and took a deep breath. She hastily opened the glass bottle of serum before she could change her mind and spread the product on her fingers. She applied the expensive cream sparingly all over her face and neck. All it took was that first step for her to graciously accept his gifts. She excitedly applied moisturizer then moved on to the cosmetics. She smiled at herself after applying the final coat of mascara. She walked out of the bathroom fully satisfied with her overall look; Princess Rosa and her new charm bracelet were her only accessories.

When she was done she took one last glimpse at herself in the mirror, staring back at her was a hopeful girl with bright and excited eyes. Her outfit triggered memories of the Dark Moon party when Kijima had dressed her up that night. Ren had greeted her with his gentleman smile when she walked in on the arm of their co-star. She was unsure how she could have angered him but he seemed okay by the time of their interview. Could he have been jealous then? She wondered incredulously. What did he say again? She tapped her finger on her chin deep in thought. Something along the lines of if a man buys a woman clothes, it's because he wants something in return. Her face paled as she recalled that whole conversation before their interview. He lectured her that night and yet purchased everything she was wearing today down to her underwear. Does this mean he wants THAT from me? Kyoko sighed. Her thoughts returned to that night. She had channeled Natsu then but had failed miserably when the Emperor turned the tables on her. She wasn't able to handle him and the words he spoke afterward in apology only made her heartache. What does he see in me?

She had resigned herself to quietly nurture her feelings for him but his confession threw all her plans out the window. She had no idea how to face him now in the bright of day. He had reassured her that the one he loved was her; she couldn't help but have doubts. He was an amazing man that could have any woman of his choosing; why would he settle for me? She shook off the negative thoughts. I have to give him a chance. She took a deep breath, opened the bedroom door and wandered into the kitchen.

"Good Morning," he greeted with a warm smile. Kyoko smiled at him awkwardly, her mind running on slow-mo as a result of his smile directed at her. He took advantage of her hesitation and leaned down to give her a peck on the cheek. She stood in a daze, blushing, as she reached her hand up slowly to trace the spot where his lips just touched.

Ren gazed at her, contemplating whether or not he should question her about the strange noises he heard coming from her room. He decided it was best to keep that to himself and instead admired her person. She looked dazzling in the outfit he chose for her. He frowned internally, I'm regretting those jeans though. They were way too tight for his comfort. He was going to have a hard time keeping the predators off of her.

Ren returned to the stove dressed for the day in designer jeans and a T-shirt. She was a bit disappointed to see that he had his wig and contacts in place. He was no longer in his Fairy Prince form but her Senpai was still so yummy too.

"I hope you like eggs and toast because that's all I can manage," he said with a laugh turning towards her. She gasped, with the angle and light just right, she could see the extent of the bruise she left on his face.

"Corn…err…R-Ren-san," she began.

"If it's just us you can call me Corn or Kuon but in public call me Ren, no honorifics okay," he said interrupting her. Kyoko nodded her agreement.

"Corn," she said picking the name that gave her the least anxiety and concentrated on their current problem. "What are we going to do about your face? You can't go out in public like that! Would you be open to putting some of my makeup on it?" she asked brightly. As an actor, he should be used to wearing some. Thanks to his face crisis, she found herself talking to him so naturally.

"That sounds like a good idea. I was planning on asking Woods-san if she could do something about it but I didn't have a solution on what to do before then...It's not so bad" he reassured her seeing her face contort with worry.

Kyoko cringed, I'm causing problems again. What if he gets in trouble with work? "I'll get my bag," she said, bolting to retrieve her makeup. When she returned, she took her seat and thanked him while he set down her plate. Taking advantage of her momentary distraction, he kissed her crown inhaling the fragrance of her hair. He watched her blush slightly but not object as he sat next to her with his plate.

When they finished eating, she tended to his face. She leaned in closer for a better look, her fingers were gentle on his chin making his skin tingle as she tilted his head to and fro, dabbing concealer on the affected area. Ren closed his eyes in hopes to shut off the sight of her pink little tongue tucked between her lips as she concentrated on her task. His loss of sight only managed to heighten his other senses making him inhale deeply of her flowery scent.

With his eyes closed, Kyoko took the opportunity to check him out. How could this man have such flawless skin? Not a single mole or blemish dotted his skin. She cursed the Gods for being so unfair. She pursed her lips in dissatisfaction, to her it was still noticeable and another layer would only make it stand out more. "That's the best I can do, I'm sorry. It will have to do until Muse-sama can cast her magic spell on it."

She inhaled sharply as Ren opened his eyes slowly making contact with hers. Even brown, his eyes reminded her of her dream. Unable to hold his gaze, her eyes drifted to his full sensuous lips. Lips that she knew from the kiss they shared in Guam to be soft and sweet. What would it be like to kiss them again? She watched his lips tilt into a knowing smirk. She turned her head quickly to tidy up her makeup so he wouldn't see her blushing. I'm becoming a pervert! It was because of last night, those images just carried over into her subconscious. Ren chuckled, pleased to finally see her affected by him; his inner self did a victory dance as she scurried off. He busied himself by cleaning up their dishes.

When she returned, she thanked him for all the stuff he bought. "Please, let me compensate you for the trouble!" She told him settling in beside him to help clean. Together they got the last of it done quickly.

"No, they are gifts," he said flat out refusing her money. Kyoko tried to protest but he only shook his head again. "I have a compromise, how about you leave everything here for the next time you stay over." Kyoko's cheeks flushed red at the thought that there would be a next time from now on. Inner Ren shouted in triumph when she remained silent and didn't argue.

"Yashiro-san should be here in half an hour. The President wants to meet with us this morning," he told her hanging up the dishtowel.

Yashiro's name reminded her that she had to tell him about the Kimiko incident. "Um Corn, there's something I need to tell you," she said her mood darkening.

Ren glanced down at her with a confused expression. What is with her ominous tone?

Kyoko took her seat before continuing, she was trembling from the memory of the incident and didn't trust her legs. "Please don't be angry for keeping this from you. It was all due to my misunderstanding that kept me from speaking up sooner. I was involved in something after the Sacred Lotus audition...with Morizumi Kimiko-san," she said looking down at her hands and entwining her fingers nervously.

Morizumi-san? What happened? Why didn't Yashiro tell me?! Ren waited patiently for her to find the words to continue. His experience working with Kimiko wasn't pleasant; he could only wonder what the girl did to his Kyoko. He felt uneasy.

"The reason the part for Momiji was re-auditioned was that the previous actress had an unfortunate accident. I happen to know this actress so when she heard I was auditioning for the part she warned me, well more her butlers, warned me. According to them, it was Morizumi-san that caused her accident but they had no proof. Morizumi-san thought she had the role clinched as the understudy but the other actress' family is powerful and the largest sponsor for the film so they pressured Producer Kuresaki into holding another audition. As you know, I was given the part but Morizumi-san had other plans. When Yashiro and I were eating..." she faltered.

Kyoko shrunk in her seat and began stuttering with her grudges slowly appearing feeding off the energy of the emerging Demon Lord. "Y-you s-see. I w-went to the restroom while Yashiro-san waited f-for me. O-on my way back I was taken by surprise." This is Corn! There's no need to fear him!

Her nerves finally settled after taking a deep breath but her grudges continued to swirl in anticipation. "I was taken by surprise by Morizumi-san and her manager. They drugged and blindfolded me. If Yashiro had not found me in time, I would probably be laying in a hospital bed right now after they tried to throw me from a balcony."

Kyoko closed her eyes to the brewing storm before her. Ren erupted the only way he could without completely scaring her. He let out several expletives in English under his breath. He paced the kitchen as he tried to control his rage all the while cursing Kimiko. Kyoko could make out some of his mutterings, "…kill that fuckin' bitch…ring her damn fuckin' neck…and that damn Yashiro!"

Kyoko tried to contain her smile. She watched him struggle to withhold his anger for fear of scaring her. She could hear and understand some of what he was saying even though he was doing so quietly. They cussed like sailors as the Heel siblings but she guessed British cursing differed somewhat from American cursing. His American accent was quite adorable even while raving. She was actually relieved, how could she have thought this man was scary when he tried hard not to be so in front of her. Now that she knew how much of his emotions he suppressed due to Kuon, she was no longer afraid. She was glad he felt comfortable with her to let her see all his faces.

Kyoko said hurriedly, "I'm so sorry Corn if I wasn't such an idiot this would have never happened. I was never in real danger actually; I was just used as bait. It turned out that the actress before had a hunch that Morizumi-san wasn't finished with me. She monitored the situation and caught the whole act on video. She needed evidence against Morizumi-san. We all came to an agreement that Morizumi-san was to no longer work in show biz and we would keep our mouths shut in return. If she breaks her promise, then everything will go public.

Ren was slowly calming down slightly comforted by her words. He was still quite upset that things could have ended badly.

"I'm sorry Corn, I should have told you sooner. Due to my own misunderstanding, I thought I was doing you a favor by keeping quiet," she said quietly.

He turned towards her, his anger finally reigned in. "What was the misunderstanding?"

She squirmed in her seat unable to meet his gaze. "I thought you and Morizumi-san were in a secret relationship because of her promise ring. I wanted to spare your feelings for the woman you loved."

Ren balked at the insult, "How could you think I'd feel anything for that viper?"

"I'm so sorry, please forgive me! It was my misunderstanding." She pleaded earnestly holding her hands up in prayer and bowing her head.

Ren knelt down before her taking her hands in his, "I'm sorry Kyoko. I should have been there with you. I should have been there to protect you. My thoughts were a little cloudy that evening after my meeting with the President. I had every intention of meeting up with you as soon as I returned but there was a misunderstanding on my part. Because of my stupidity, I was convinced to have a drink with Kajima to unwind. If I had been with you instead, Kana-san would never have kissed me."

"What?!" Kyoko gasped, pulling her hands out of his grip a fleeting moment of hurt flashing in her eyes. Ren had caught it. It was the same look she had yesterday when he put the flower ring on her hand. He now understood his father's warning. If he had not been staring at her so intently he would have not have seen it; she was good at hiding her true feelings.

Of course, there were women throwing themselves at him! He was Tsuruga friggin' Ren, after all, she thought bitterly trying to ease the pain in her heart.

Ren held her hands again and leaned his forehead to hers. "Please don't be hurt. It meant nothing to me," he said begging. "Because of my carelessness, she caught me off guard. No one has ever dared been so bold with me. I now understand how you felt when Fuwa did it to you...twice."

He knew he was being sly by throwing Sho in her face but he needed her to understand that the kiss was unwanted on his end. She bristled as she recollected Shotaro's forced kisses. The hurt and anger she felt slowly dissipated after understanding finally seeped in. He too has had such horrible experiences. She gave him a weak smile. If I accept him would this be a common occurrence in our lives? Am I willing to let him go for something so inconsequential? No, contrary to what I told the President, I would never be able to smile and wish him happiness with another woman.

"Shit!" he cursed as his phone chimed. Their manager had arrived. He stood reluctantly and pulled her up in the process. "I want to continue talking to you about this but we have to get going."

"I understand. I'm fine already," she said hugging his waist. She let go much too quickly for his taste and rushed out to get her shoes and bag.

...

Yashiro stood by the car as his favorite couple exited the elevator. His inner fangirl squealed in delight. They look so good next to each other.

"Ren what happened to your fa…" his unfinished inquiry was cut off by Ren's fierce glare. Yashiro recoiled and looked to Kyoko who was bowing repeatedly in apology.

The bruise was faint but he had noticed. Is he wearing make-up? That's not the issue here right now! Did he actually try to put the moves on her that she had to fight back? Ren how could you to such a sweet and innocent girl! inner Yashiro screamed. This was all his fault he was the one that suggested she stay the night.

"Yashiro-san, I wish you would stop looking at me in the rearview mirror like I'm some sort of lecher," Ren said flashing him his gentleman smile. Yashiro averted his eyes forward focusing on the road.

"By the way," Ren continued in his deadly tone, "Why did you not inform anyone about Kyoko's incident with Morizumi-san?"

Yashiro locked eyes with Ren's in the mirror and responded in an equally serious voice, "By anyone, you are in fact referring to yourself right?" Ren's reflection flinched in surprise as his manager hit the nail on the head. "I left the decision to tell you to Kyoko-chan. As her manager, it is my duty to not inform anyone of her private matters and that includes you."

Kyoko sat quietly. She was upset that her carelessness had caused this strife between these two friends. Ren felt her unease and brushed the back of his hand against hers so their knuckles grazed slightly. A slight blush marred her cheeks as the physical contact soothed her. Inner Ren did a fist pump, congratulating himself on his small victory when she didn't pull her hand away.

Ren let out an internal sigh. Yashiro-san was right, it wasn't his place. I understand why she didn't tell me. He was mainly upset with himself for having once again failed to protect her.

Yashiro continued, "For your information, although we had it settled between Morizumi-san, Koenji-san, and Kyoko-chan, I could not withhold this information from the President. It was decided that If I am unable to stand by Kyoko-chan's side, Ruto-san would fill in from the shadows. Kyoko looked up in surprise by Yashiro's declaration. She had no idea they had gone to such extent for her sake, a nobody like me. "Do you think I would have just dropped her off so casually yesterday if I wasn't confident that she would be safe. Please have more faith in your Manager," Yashiro said as he pushed up his glasses.

Ren gave Yashiro's reflection a curt nod. He was glad more precautions were being taken for her safety. He hated that he couldn't be by her side all the time but he knew he could trust them to watch over her.

AN: Thanks again for reading and reviewing of the last chapter. Feedback is appreciated lets me know you aren't too bored.

I'm still trying to clear up some recent events from the manga. What got me was the fact that Yashiro just drops off Kyoko at her cast meeting the next day while escorting the weak and frail Ren to his job. Like seriously, did Yashiro forget she was almost murdered?

Until next time, ja ne! ^_^