Chapter 65: Well-Loved

DISCLAIMER: I do not own Skip Beat, for if I did, Kyoko's loved ones would band to protect her.

"Morizumi-sama, welcome home," the maid greeted with a bow as he walked in the door.

"Thank you, Ayako-san. Is my wife and daughter home?" Jiro asked just before his wife walked through the door behind him.

"Hello dear, is Kimi not with you?"He asked, kissing his wife on the cheek.

"No, she should be home."

"Morizumi-sama, actually Kimiko-sama has been in her room all day. She has instructed us to leave her alone. I tried to bring her lunch, but she left the food untouched."

Jiro glanced at his wife, her brow furrowed with worry. "I'm sure it's nothing dear. I'll go check on her. You can see about dinner," he said giving her a reassuring smile.

He headed upstairs towards his daughter's room and paused outside the door to listen. All he could hear was the faint sound of the television. He knocked lightly on the door, waiting for several beats for an answer that never came, so he turned the knob.

"Kimi?" he called softly, the darkness of the room making him frown. The illumination from the TV was the only source of light. Suddenly worried, he barged into the room heading for the couch and was relieved to find her curled up on it, sleeping.

Jiro went back to the door and flicked on the light switch chasing the darkness out of the room. Kimiko bolted upright on the couch. Her head darted to and fro in a paranoid manner before she relaxed. She was in the safety of her room.

"Kimi, are you okay?" Her father's voice startled her from behind. "You look a little pale," he said, coming over and feeling her forehead.

"Oh, Tou-san, I'm fine. Just a bit tired," she said stifling a yawn.

She wasn't about to reveal the source of her exhaustion. She was being blackmailed or threatened? The sender had not revealed any demands so she wasn't quite sure their motive. Unless the ultimate goal was to drive her crazy. It was something out of a cliché horror movie. She half expected to wake and find a killer with a knife standing outside her window.

Her phone pinged. Kimiko nervously stared at the thing. What would it be this time? As if the picture wasn't enough, they followed it up with an audio file of her making the call to the emergency dispatch. Of course, both mediums could be easily faked with today's technology. She wasn't taking any chances until the caller revealed their price. For now, she would lay low.

"Kimi, did you hear me? You can invite Ric-san to dinner tonight. I met him at the Lotus set," her father informed her. "Jouji has a brilliant cast and the things you can do with stage makeup...astounding. I never thought of casting..."

Her father continued to talk but his voice was muffled. A single thought replayed in her head over and over until she was seeing red. He thinks she's brilliant!

Tadashi cleared the gate security at The Sacred Lotus set with an extra pep in his step. Due to Ren's tight schedule, they would have time for a daddy-daughter date before meeting everyone at the LME office. He had a couple of places in mind for dinner but would leave it to her to make the final decision. They would have plenty of time when he returned from the States, permanently, to spend time together, so whatever she wanted would be fine by him. He was glad he took the initiative to spend some time with Ren this afternoon. The boy seemed to be loosening up around him a bit more.

Tadashi spotted Yashiro talking with a group of people and walked toward him. Yashiro stepped away from the group and greeted Tadashi.

"Tadashi-san, how are you?"

"I'm good. How are you, Yashiro-san? Thank you for taking care of my daughter today," Tadashi bowed in gratitude.

"It's no problem at all. As her manager and friend, I only want her to be safe," Yashiro said pushing up his glasses. Plus, Ren would surely kill me if anything happened to her again right under my nose.

"She's lucky to have you, Yashiro-san. Where is she by the way?" Tadashi asked, looking around the set for his daughter. They were still filming a scene, but all he could see was Koga and the actress that played Chidori.

"You're right on time. Kyoko-chan is done filming for the day, so she's getting changed," Yashiro informed him.

"Do you plan on meeting up with Ren-kun after this? If not, would you like to join us for dinner?"

"Oh no, I'll pick something up on my way back to the office. I have to catch up on looking through their offers and running it by their schedules. With all the media coverage lately, Ren and Kyoko are the hot commodities right now."

Kyoko approached Tadashi and Yashiro with all the grace of an angel. Several extras and crew members on set followed her with their eyes. She was wearing a white R'Mandy short sleeve eyelet dress that stopped mid-thigh with a pair of camel-colored wedges. As usual, unaware of her charm, she left casualties in her wake.

"Father, Yashiro-san, sorry to keep you waiting," she said bowing profusely.

"It's no problem. I just arrived. You look lovely by the way, Kyoko-chan," Tadashi complimented her. "Yashiro-san, can you please take a photo of us? I plan on starting on a family album. I have to get some of Koga-san, Mya-chan would be so jealous."

Tadashi and Kyoko posed while Yashiro took their photo. They even got someone else to take a photo of the three of them. Ren is going to be so jealous, Yashiro snickered to himself. When the Director called for a short break, they went to say their farewell to the Director and other colleagues. They headed for the exit, but not before Tadashi got a few pictures with Koga to tease Mya.

"Well, are you ready to brave the mob outside? I'll help get you to the car," Yashiro said.

As they neared the exit, Cedric was off to the side frowning at his phone. Whoever was calling, he was clearly ignoring them. She tried to walk past without engaging him, but he caught sight of her that Kyoko's breeding made it impossible for her to ignore her colleague.

"Bennett-san, thank you for all your hard work," Kyoko said cordially and bowed. It was hard to believe that this same guy had caused Kuon so much pain in America. She remained wary of him.

"Thank you for your hard work, " he replied and returned her bow. "Here let me help escort you."

As soon as they exited the gate, the reporters and photographers descended upon them. Tadashi wrapped his arm around her as they pushed through the crowd. Yashiro and Cedric flanked them, intimidating the mob with their auras and clearing a path to the awaiting car.

Safe inside the car, the father and daughter duo breathed a sigh of relief. "So where do you want to eat?" Tadashi asked as the car eased away.

"I know it's nothing glamorous, but do you mind if we dine at the Darumaya?" Kyoko asked her father sheepishly. She wanted to see her old landlords and reassure them that she was doing fine.

Tadashi knocked on the back door of the Darumaya before allowing Kyoko to get out of the car. Paparazzi were known to lurk around the restaurant. He bowed, greeting Taisho when he opened the door. Kyoko quickly got out of the car and bowed to her former landlord. It had only been a couple of weeks since she saw him last, but it felt longer. Taisho ushered them inside glancing down the alleyway before shutting the door.

Okami pulled Kyoko into a motherly embrace. "You look very pretty today, Kyoko-chan. Come sit down and chat with me. Taisho will make us some dinner. It's not the dinner rush yet, so we have some time. Tadashi-san, you too, would you like something to drink?"

"Don't worry about me, Okami-san, please catch up with Kyoko-chan. I'll give Taisho a hand if he doesn't mind," Tadashi told her. Taisho said nothing but handed him an apron. That was all the approval Tadashi needed to help the man. He served the ladies drinks. Between the two of them, they made quick work with dinner leaving Taisho impressed by his culinary skills.

"How is she?" Taisho asked, breaking the silence as he cut thin slices of salmon for sushi rolls.

"You know her better than I. She's quite stubborn and refuses to make this get to her. She wanted to reassure you that she was fine," Tadashi reported.

Taisho grunted and gazed at the girl he thought of as a daughter smiling while she talked with his wife. He sighed inwardly. There had been so much hidden from them the whole time she lived under his roof. It made him angry to learn that she had such a childhood with that Fuwa punk. Absentmindedly, he brought the knife down with excessive force making a loud thunk sound as it connected with the cutting board.

"Don't mind him, dear. He's working through some things. We were very surprised with your article, and also very proud. It was sweet of you for mentioning us." Okami lowered her voice to a whisper, "I swear his eyes watered."

Taisho grunted, hearing their conversation.

"If it weren't for you and Taisho taking me in, I would have never made it this far. I will forever be grateful to you both."

"Don't start crying, dear. You'll ruin your pretty face. We're just happy to have you. Please keep coming to visit us, okay."

"Of course, Okami-san. Thank you!" Kyoko replied.

While they ate, Okami and Kyoko kept up most of the lively chatter. After eating and cleaning up the dinner dishes, Kyoko hugged her landlords before heading out. Since dinner had finished early, Kyoko and Tadashi had a few hours to kill before the meeting.

In the car, Kyoko turned towards her father and said, "Thank you, father, for indulging me. Since we have lots of time, is there anything you would like to do?" Tadashi's eyes lit up with excitement. He knew just the thing.

Kyoko reached for Kuon's hand after he shifted gears while driving. He laced his fingers with hers and kissed the back of her hand. They were on their way home after leaving Lory's office. He was already aware of the plan so nothing Tadashi said surprised him. It didn't surprise Kyoko that Kimiko was the notorious "Queen B" that had prompted Koki to investigate her and Sho's background. It didn't even shock her that she had tried to once again wish her bodily harm. What did rattle her was the fact that Lory and the Akatoki President scheduled an interview with her and Shotarou for tomorrow morning.

"Corn, are you going to be okay?" She asked in a worried voice.

Kuon couldn't help but laugh. "You continue to amaze me. All of this is going on around you and you think of my feelings. I should be asking you that question."

"It's, it's...because..." she began but couldn't finish. She didn't want to accuse him of losing control of the darkness he fears inside him. Although, her grudges weren't picking up any negative vibes from him at the moment. His lack of reaction was disconcerting.

"I'd be lying if I said I wasn't angry. I had lunch with your father, remember? He told me everything then so I've had time to compose myself. Fuwa, however, is another story. If he hurts you again all bets are off."

"I understand, but I still don't want you getting into trouble because of him. But thank you, Corn." She leaned up and gave him a quick peck on the cheek when they stopped at the light. He smiled and gave her hand a small squeeze. "So what did you and my father talk about?" She asked curiously, changing the subject.

"Our favorite topic, of course, you." She gave him a dry look. "And he cleverly got me to confess that I was Cain."

Kyoko gasped. "Oh my god, how did he take it? Was he angry? He never said a thing when we were together."

"I think he took it quite well considering that he only threatened to break both my legs if I ever hurt you."

Kyoko giggled, "quit messing around."

"I'm telling you, babe, you're well-loved by that man. I almost feel sorry for Morizumi-san. Your father is a tactician at mind games."

Kyoko hummed and thought about the meeting they just had at LME.

"It will only be a matter of time before she implodes. She's starting to make careless mistakes," Tadashi said after disclosing his plan to all present in Lory's office.

Kyoko couldn't understand why the girl hated her so much. She didn't like getting her father involved in her problems and suggested they talk to her parents to make them aware of her problems. They had evidence that she was still trying to cause harm to Kyoko. "Wouldn't they believe us over their daughter?" She sounded so naive saying that out loud.

"Mogami-kun, you do realize Morizumi-kun tried to kill you and Koenji-kun," Lory reminded her. "She just failed to do so."

"Sweetie, Morizumi Kimiko is dangerous," her father stated. "She knows her family has the means to get her out of trouble. Who knows how many victims came before her and how many would come after. No parent wants to believe their child is capable of such atrocities."

Tadashi had discovered that the Morizumi family had paid off one of her earlier victims to keep things quiet. When it was put like that Kyoko couldn't argue any further. She pushed those unpleasant thoughts to the back of her mind and focused on her boyfriend.

"By the way, what did you eat for lunch?" Kyoko felt the subtle twitch as his hand tensed in hers. She narrowed her eyes at him.

"My father-in-law treated me to a meal," he said defensively. "There was no way I would turn him down."

Kyoko laughed while he squirmed in his seat. "Okay, I'll let you off the hook. Did you eat dinner? I can make you something when we get home."

"I had a bento on set, so I ate properly," he replied without any hesitation. Kyoko could tell he wasn't lying.

"I'm sorry I couldn't join you for dinner. Did you guys have a good time? I see several shopping bags back there. Get anything sexy?"

"Ew gross, I was shopping with my father. There's no way I'd be buying sexy things with him around."

"So you do buy sexy things, just not when your father is around?"

"Quit it, you perv! He took me shopping for my return to school. He said it's something parents in America do all the time. I got a pair of shoes, a new bag, and lots of school supplies." Kyoko got excited describing the new pens, markers, paper, and folders her father insisted on purchasing. "There's even a bag back there containing two gifts from him. I'm not sure what they are since I haven't had a chance to open them."

"Yeah, I remember those days. Mom used to go all out buying me the trendiest clothes and bags. The fact that I wore a uniform didn't faze her," he said with a chuckle.

In the apartment, Kyoko arranged her new bouquet in the vase. "You know Corn, you don't have to keep buying me gifts. You've already given me so much."

"I doubt it," He countered wrapping his arms around her. "You have given me so much more than I could ever give you. I didn't know what I was missing until you came back into my life. Like the blazing sun has nothing on your light. You've chased away all the darkness and warmed me from the inside out. You have given me the drive to move forward."

Kuon broke away and moved towards his bag. "Plus you gave me this," he said pulling out the mug she had delivered to him today. The screenprint on the cup was filled with descriptive words touting him as The greatest, charming, kind, handsome, trustworthy, etc...boyfriend. "I have to keep going if I want to maintain this level of excellence. At least until I'm upgraded to fiancé then husband."

Kyoko blushed scarlet. "I'm sorry. I wanted to make you feel treasured like you always do me and this caught my eye. I didn't think flowers were appropriate and you don't care for sweets. I did heavily consider a stuffed animal, but you get those from fans all the time. So I thought, you're mine so I have every right to send you this kind of gift. I'm sorry if it troubled you."

It was Kuon's turn to blush at her claim on him. The fact that she went through the effort of sending him a gift in return stirred his heart. Kijima, who was in this episode of his veterinarian drama, witnessed the gift unveiling, and wouldn't let him live it down. Kuon didn't care. He was teased relentlessly for the hopelessly in love expression he wore for the remainder of the filming. Naturally, it caused him and his coworkers a few NGs. In the interview he had before the LME meeting, he specifically asked for them to use his mug during the broadcast. It even became a hot topic of conversation. Wanting to show off, he planned on carrying this mug from set to set.

"Are you kidding? This is my favorite mug and I think Kijima-san was a tad jealous," he smiled. "Open the gifts from your dad."

Apprehension settled over her. She had no clue what was inside the boxes, but if his shopping tastes were anything like tonight, it was probably very expensive. Kyoko pleaded for her father not to buy a designer backpack or the overly priced black loafers that would just get scuffed up. In the end, she lost the battle since he was quite persuasive, obtaining Cain-level status with that guilt trip.

"It's a gift, so it would make him happy if you accept it with good feelings regardless of the cost. I'm sure he struggled to choose something just for you."

"You're right. It's just hard being spoiled when all my life..." Kyoko didn't finish her sentence. There was no sense dwelling in the past. She was still getting used to being cherished and having a parent that doted on her.

With new resolve, she dove into the bag and pulled out the bigger box with a note taped to the beautifully wrapped gift. She wondered if he had wrapped it himself. Kyoko-chan, I hope you find this helpful with your schoolwork and career.

Kyoko carefully removed the tape from the paper to save the gorgeous paper. She could reuse it for something else. The paper revealed that Tadashi had bought her the latest laptop computer.

Kuon had to hand it to Tadashi, he knew exactly what he was doing. Knowing his girlfriend, she couldn't refuse something so practical. Kuon offered to open the box and plug it in to charge. He gestured for her to open the smaller box.

Kyoko unwrapped the next box and found a smartphone similar to Kuon's. A small envelope was tucked inside the box. I hope I am not overstepping more with this gift. I thought it would be nice if we can video chat when I return to the U.S., but only if you want to and you're comfortable. Please don't feel pressured to do so. The fees are covered, so please don't worry about that. Use it as you see fit, for work or personal.

Kyoko glanced at Kuon with blurry eyes after reading her father's note. Her father had gone out of his way to purchase these expensive items so they could stay connected while he was away.

"See, very loved. Let's plug this in as well. You can take it to the President tomorrow. Ruto-san can back-up your data and discreetly transfer everything over to the new phone."

Kyoko paled at the thought of Ruto and the President going through her files especially her prized pictures.

"Something you don't want them to see?" Kuon's eyebrow quirked. She nodded her head vigorously not denying it. Now he was curious about what she could have on there.

"Is it something you can show me?"

She immediately shook her head no then changed it to yes when hurt flashed across his face.

"It's okay. You're entitled to your privacy," he said quietly turning around and heading towards the bedroom.

"Wait!" She said pulling on the back of his shirt with such force he almost lost his balance.

"Here, please don't judge me," she said handing him her phone. He chuckled at her uneasy look.

"It's okay, baby. Let's get cleaned up for bed. I'll help you transfer the files tomorrow when we have time," He assured her, placing a gentle kiss on her forehead and leading her by the hand. "If you still want me to see, you can show me when we lay down, okay?"

Later that night, Kuon would learn just how long Kyoko had been observing him and of all the pictures she took of him in secret.

"Nurse! Nurse! My wife, where is she? Di- di- did she..." He couldn't even finish the sentence. It felt like his heart was breaking.

"Hanazawa-san, your wife is fine. She was moved to a private room," the nurse informed him of the exciting news.

"A private room? I can't afford the bill. Who authorized it?" He replied as panic seeped into his pores.

"It's okay. The bill has been settled. She's right down there," the nurse assured him.

"What do you mean settled? By whom?" He couldn't comprehend how this happened.

"See for yourself. I believe your friend is still in there. He wanted to wait to surprise you, but I guess I ruined it. Your wife didn't seem to mind, so we allowed him to stay."

Hanazawa walked in to find a man professionally dressed man engrossed with his cellphone. The man glanced up from his screen as he entered and brought his finger to his lips, indicating for him to be quiet since his wife was asleep. There was something oddly familiar about him, but he couldn't quite place his face. Not wanting to be rude for staring, Hanazawa's eyes swept over the machines to make sure they were all beeping properly reassuring him that she was still alive. The man stood quietly and whispered, "I'll be waiting in the lounge down the hall when you're ready to talk. Ten minutes later, Hanazawa joined the man in the deserted rest area taking the seat across him.

"You're Kyoko-san's manager right? What is the meaning of this?" He asked nervously.

"My name is Morimoto Tadashi. I am Kyoko's father. I was made aware of several incidences on set that resulted in my daughter getting injured. All the clues pointed to you. Please explain yourself."

It didn't take much pressing from Tadashi before Hanazawa Soujirou broke down and confessed everything.

"As you can see, my wife is ill. I needed the money but drew the line when Kyoko had taken the tumble on the roof. I thought if I could cleverly rig things to do minimal harm, Morizumi Kimiko would still pay me per our deal. I also overheard the conversation about Fuwa Sho and passed the information on to Kimiko-san. I've been living with the guilt this whole time. I love my wife and I was desperate to help her. I broke off all contact with Kimiko-san and took up a second job," Hanazawa explained trying to get Tadashi to understand his reasons. He rarely saw his girls, but they understood he was working hard to help their mother.

"If this story ever went public, the Moizumis would use you as a scapegoat and have you blacklisted from every set in the industry."

"I have no one else to blame but myself. I will accept the punishment. I just don't want my family to suffer because of my poor choices," Hanazawa pleaded, dropping to his knees and bowing his head to the floor.

"I'll do what I can to help you if the need arises. You don't have to worry about your family. They will be cared for," Tadashi assured him.

"Why would you do that? After what I did to Kyoko-san," Hanazawa questioned, sitting back on his heels.

"Don't misunderstand, my daughter is selfless and forgiving. Everybody makes mistakes and they deserve a second chance. Yours is nobler than others," Tadashi told him as he stood to leave. He handed him his business card and left the room after Hanazawa thanked him.

AN: Thanks for sticking with me everyone. I was down for the count these past few days with the flu. I wrote half of this before I got sick and finished it up tonight, hopefully, it flows. Not gonna lie, I thought I couldn't salvage this since I had zero ideas how to continue. I get most of my ideas when I'm working out or running but since I was sick I didn't do either. The Fuwa interview was a last-minute addition that would be further explained in the next chapter ;)

Thank you all for continuing to read. Big thanks to those that left me a review on the last chapter. I appreciate all your feedback.

Until next time, ja ne! ^_^