Ren Tsuruga: Gaining Weight For a New Role?

From Abs to Flab; Tragedy Strikes LME's Gorgeous Star!

Is Ren Tsuruga Unwell? Details of Star's Physical Changes Inside!

Yashiro tipped his flask over his coffee mug as he sat at his kitchen table and looked over the miscellaneous tabloid headlines in front of him. They ranged from disgusted to concerned about Ren's well-being. Not a single one had guessed correctly that Ren was with child. And why would they? The medication is so new, he thought as he took a sip of his Irish coffee. They had done their best to disguise Ren's growing belly, but being that it was the end of August, they couldn't leverage the use of large coats, chunky sweaters and the like.

It had been two weeks since Ren's ultrasound, and Yashiro's anxiety had ratcheted up to a 12. Kyoko was once again avoiding Ren, but also using Yashiro as a go-between to deliver food to him and ask about his health. Yashiro understood this to a point; Kyoko was 17 and had not been anticipating having a full-blown public relationship with Ren for perhaps a few more years. But the extra work of trying to take care of both of their schedules without having them overlap, whilst simultaneously preparing for Ren's big reveal, AND beginning the search for competent nannies was draining every last ounce of energy that he had. He eyed his coffee cup darkly and then tipped another finger of whiskey into it.

It was not yet 8:00 AM.

At his own home, Ren was eyeing his cell phone on his coffee table, his fingers itching. He picked it up and scrolled through his contacts, his mouth dry with anxiety. His eyes fell on a name: Mom. He knew that he had to tell them. If his mother and father were to find out through the media that he was pregnant, he was sure that Julie would actually die (as she had been threatening to do so for years). His hands shook as he pressed the call button on the screen. He heard his heartbeat in his ears as it rang… and rang… and rang…

His breath hitched as the ringing transitioned to a short message. "Hello, you've reached Julie Hizuri. I'm away right now, probably doing really cool model things because I am glamorous!" He couldn't help but smile. She hasn't changed at all. The message continued on, "Please leave a message after the beep. And if this should happen to be Kuon, I love you." The phone beeped, but he found himself speechless. It was the first time that he had heard his mother's voice in 6 years, and she said she loved him. He pressed the end call button and set the phone back down on the table. He wiped the tears off of his face with his sleeve. He had no idea how he was going to work up the courage to call again.

Later that night, Kyoko was trudging toward her dressing room in her Bo the Chicken costume. She hadn't been sleeping well, and her schedule was overwhelmingly full with LoveMe jobs and The Darumaya. On one hand, she was thankful because it was keeping her mind off of the decision she was going to have to make regarding her relationship with Ren, but on the other hand, she was tired… and she missed him. The thought of being on more… intimate… terms with him scared her, but she couldn't deny that she did have feelings for him. Every time she thought about kissing him, or touching him, or– that. She wouldn't allow herself to even entertain that thought. Every time her mind strayed in that direction, she felt like steam might start escaping out her ears.

She opened her dressing room door and jumped back, startled.

"Hi," said Ren meekly. "Can we talk?" He knew that the only way to talk to her right now was to ambush her.

She was so glad to see him, but she was terrified about what he might want to talk about. She steeled herself and closed the door behind her. "Is everything okay? Are the babies okay?"

He nodded. "They're fine. I know you don't want to see me right now, but I really need to tell you something, and I really need your help."

Kyoko took Bo's head off and set it on a nearby table. "...It's… not that I don't want to see you." She couldn't meet his eyes. She felt terrible about continuing to avoid him, but she didn't know how else to navigate whatever it was that was going on between them.

Ren sat down on a bench by the wall. "Will you sit with me? We need to work some things out."

Kyoko nodded and wiggled out of the rest of her chicken suit. Ren warmed at the sight of her in her tank top and shorts. It wasn't risque by any stretch, but it showed off her body more than most things she wore. She came to sit beside him, her eyes fixed on her knees. "What did you want to talk about?"

He sighed his NG sigh and smoothed his bangs away from his forehead. "I don't want you to be uncomfortable. I know that the idea of acting all lovey-dovey makes you nervous. I just want you to know that I don't intend to force you into doing anything you don't want to do."

She frowned at her lap. "You would be okay with a relationship where we don't touch?"

He put his hand over hers on the bench. "I am willing to move at whatever speed you deem appropriate. I really like you, and if this works out, then we will have all the time in the world to work on being more intimate." 'Really like' was as close as he could get to telling her that he loved her without her running away screaming. He knew that, but hated lying to her. He had told her that he loved her as Corn, and that would have to do for now.

She peeked at him out of the corner of her eye. She didn't move her hand away from his. "Are you sure?"

He nodded. "I don't expect anything more than what we're doing right now, Kyoko-chan. Obviously, I hope that those things will happen eventually, but I'm content to wait. I can't say I'm in much of an amorous mood at the moment, anyway." What, with three kids sitting on my prostate and all, he thought and kept to himself.

She finally looked at him and gave him a small smile that filled him with relief. "Thank you, Ren."

He sighed and took his hand off of hers. "Ren. We need to talk about Ren." He had been steeling himself for this conversation since after he called his mother that morning. He knew he needed Kyoko's help to be able to tell his parents about the pregnancy, but in order to get that help… he had to be honest with her first.

Kyoko raised an eyebrow at him. "What about Ren?"

He cleared his throat nervously. "It's not my real name. It's a stage name."

Kyoko had figured that Ren Tsuruga was likely an alias, and had quietly wondered what his real name could possibly be. "So," she started, "What is your real name?"

He felt like his afternoon snack was going to make a reappearance. "It's… Kuon. Kuon Hizuri."

Kyoko stared at him blankly for a moment. Then he saw the realization dawn in her eyes. Then she started turning a strange shade of pink. Which deepened to purple.

He realized that she wasn't breathing and patted her on the back. "Breathe, Kyoko-chan!"

She took a deep, gasping breath and her brain seemed to stutter back to life. "Y-you're KUON?"

He nodded. "Some bad things happened to me in California, and I came here to… get better. I was planning on telling you everything after I made it big in the States, but," he gestured at his belly.

Her eyes narrowed on him. "Are you a natural brunette, Kuon?"

He looked at her fearfully. "...No."

She looked into his eyes, as though she were trying to figure something out, and then got nose-to-nose with him. "Are you wearing contacts?"

He shrunk away from her. "Maybe."

She glared at him. "Ever been on a trip to KYOTO, Kuon? Maybe when you were, say, 12?"

He winced. "Please don't be mad."

She stood up from the bench with a wild laugh. "Mad!? Why would I be mad!? You've only been lying to me for god-knows-how-long, you kissed me in Guam, and made me believe fairies were REAL." She couldn't bring herself to touch upon his admission of love toward her. That would have to wait for another day.

He frowned at his feet. "I was going to tell you. After I fixed things with my parents and my career was in the right place…"

She took a few calming breaths. "What do you mean 'fixed things with your parents'? Your father was just here!"

He wrung his hands in his lap. "I didn't leave on the best of terms, and didn't want anyone to know we were related. So, we… haven't really spoken in six years." He looked up tentatively. She didn't look quite as angry anymore. Now she just looked…sad.

Kyoko sat back down beside him. "We have to fix that before the babies come. I don't want our babies to have no grandparents at all." She had known that her own mother would not want to be involved in their children's lives at all. If Kuon's parents wouldn't want to be around them either, it would break her heart.

Kuon shut his eyes. He had forgotten that Saena Mogami existed. He preferred not to think about her after what she put Kyoko through. He reached out an apprehensive hand and set it over hers again. "I'm really sorry, Kyoko-chan. I've made a mess out of everything."

Kyoko sighed and squeezed his hand. "It's okay, Corn."

He blushed at being called 'Corn' once again. "Do you think you'll ever forgive me?" He blinked at the tearful smile she gave him.

"You're my best friend. How could I not forgive you?"

He wanted very, very badly to kiss her. Instead, he pulled out his phone. "I was hoping you could help me get myself together enough to tell Mom and Dad. I have to go public with this soon, and if I don't tell them first, mom will have a meltdown."

Kyoko nodded. "I'll support you. But," she gestured at the room, "This is probably not the best place to make that call. Can we go back to your place? I'll make dinner."

He nodded. "Of course."

They made their way to his car and drove back to his place. When they got there, Kyoko went to the kitchen and frowned at the contents of his refrigerator. "Where is all your food!? Kuon, you had better not be starving my babies!"

He appeared in the doorway, rubbing his belly over his button-down shirt. "I have not! I've just been… craving fast food…"

She sighed and put her hands on her hips."You can't feed them nothing but KFC and gas station rice balls!"

He shook his head. "That's not it. Burgers. They want hamburgers. And hamburger steak. And chocolates. And of course all of the things you've sent. They really like your food."

Kyoko blushed, her heart turning to goop at the thought of her babies eating her cooking. "You're talking like they've hijacked your body or something."

He laughed. "Would I be eating all of those things if not for them? With the exception of your cooking. I'm always in the mood for that."

She ducked into the fridge so he couldn't see her bright red cheeks and came back out a moment later with leftover rice and a package of pork. "What time is it where your parents live?"

He rubbed his belly like it was his own personal worry stone. "About 4:30. Mom will be up in half an hour. She's always up early."

Kyoko nodded. "We'll have dinner, and then make the call."

She set to work breading the pork and frying it in a pan on the stove. Kuon was watching her from the doorway. She left her post at the stove and got him a chair from the dining room. "Sit down, you're making me nervous."

He sat down with a deep chuckle. "I'm perfectly healthy, you know. I can handle standing."

She flipped the pork. "I would just feel better if you sat. You should conserve your energy. You're growing three kids."

He nodded and looked down at his bump. "How are you feeling about all of this?"

Kyoko gave him a small smile. "I'm scared." She looked back down at the frying pan. "The entire time I lived with the Fuwas, they impressed upon me that I should not, under any circumstances, become a teen mother. And, of course, my own mother never wanted me." She rested her hand on the counter beside the stovetop. To Kuon, it looked like the weight of the world had suddenly appeared on her shoulders. "I just… really don't want to mess them up," she said quietly through tears.

Kuon got up from his chair and crossed the floor. He pulled her into his arms and held her against his chest. "You are not going to mess them up, Kyoko," he whispered into her hair. "You're going to be the best thing that's ever happened to them."

She looked up at him, and he wiped the tears off of her cheeks. "But… what if they don't like me?"

He held her face in his hands. "Then we'll send them to an orphanage."

She laughed despite herself. "Kuon!"

He smiled and kissed her forehead. "Don't worry. They're going to love you." He returned to his chair by the door, and Kyoko finished cooking their dinner, wishing that he had held her just a bit longer.

They ate dinner on the couch in the living room, and Kyoko did the dishes after they finished. When she came back, she checked her phone for the time. It was a quarter past 10:00 PM; 5:15 AM in LA. She sat down beside Kuon. "Are you ready?"

He pulled his phone out of his pocket and scrolled through his contacts until 'Mom' showed in the middle of the screen. "As ready as I'm ever going to be." He tapped the call button and goosebumps erupted down his arms. Kyoko took his free hand and he squeezed it.

The phone rang twice.

"Yes, this is Julie." She sounded like she had been awake for hours, though Kuon knew better. She woke at 5:00 AM every day, and had done so since before he was born.

"...H-hi, Mom."

There was a pause and then a choked sob from the other end. "Kuon?" Julie had been sitting at her kitchen table enjoying a modest breakfast consisting of three bowls of cereal, a rasher of bacon, a six egg omelet, and three large glasses of orange juice. She dropped the bacon she had been holding in shock. "Baby, is that you?"

Kyoko squeezed his hand and he found the courage to continue. "Yeah. I'm sorry for calling so early–"

He was cut off by a wail as his mother erupted into full-blown tears. "My baby! Oh, honey!" She pulled the phone away from her face and yelled through the darkened house. "KUU! GET UP! OUR SON IS ON THE PHONE!" She winced and put the phone back to her mouth. "I'm sorry! I didn't mean to yell, I just–"

"Mom, it's okay. I understand."

Kuu made his way into the kitchen, bedraggled and naked. He rubbed the sleep from his eyes. "What are you yelling about?"

Julie wiped her eyes and hit the speakerphone button on her phone. "I just put you on speaker, love. Say hi to Dad."

"Hi, Dad."

Kuu's eyes widened and he almost collapsed into the kitchen chair beside his wife. "Kuon?"

"Yeah. Um…" Kuon took a breath. "I need to tell you guys something really important before I tell the media."

His parents wore twin masks of anxiety. If Kuon had something urgent to discuss, then it likely had to do with his sudden weight gain that was all over the tabloids. Both of them had been concerned about that, but had also hoped that he was simply eating better. Julie took a deep breath. "Go on, honey. What is it?"

"Uh…" He looked at Kyoko and she smiled and gave him the thumbs up. He swallowed. "I'm pregnant."

Kuu's eyes shot wide open. "KYOKO IS PREGNANT!?"

Kuon's cheeks burned. "No, Dad. I'm pregnant."

Kuu and his wife exchanged a look. Julie blinked. "Uh… Kuon, my love, I know we didn't get to really cover the birds and the bees because Mommy was working a lot, but–"

Kuon shut his eyes, trying to find his patience. "It's because of a drug. I accidentally used this new drug called MPREG and it made me pregnant."

Kuu got up from the table and wandered, naked, over to the coffee pot on the counter. "You want coffee, Julie? I need some coffee for this."

Kuon explained the situation to them, about how he had grown a womb and how they were in the process of suing the director. Julie's coffee grew cold as she listened. When he finished, she raised an eyebrow. "What I don't understand is… how did you get pregnant? Who is the father?"

Kuon clapped his free hand over his eyes.

Kuu tapped the side of his coffee cup. "No judgment here, son. I thought you were into Kyoko, but I fully respect you coming out–"

"I'm not gay!"

"Then how are you pregnant!?"

"Kyoko made me pregnant!"

The silence was so complete that they could have heard the proverbial pin drop. Kuu finally found the courage to speak. "Did you fu–"

"NO! Jesus Christ, Dad! We kissed! The drug took her DNA from that kiss and did some weird alchemical bullshit in my body, and now I'm pregnant with triplets! That's it! That's all!"

Julie squealed. "THERE ARE THREE!? I'M GETTING THREE GRANDBABIES!?"

Kyoko peeked through her fingers at Kuon, who was pinching the bridge of his nose. "Yes, Mom. There are three."

"Do you know what sex they are yet!? Have you thought of names!?"

He smiled, despite his irritation. "Not yet. I go for my ultrasound in six weeks"

"Can I come!? Oh, please, Kuon!? I'll wear a wig and sunglasses and everything!" He could hear the pout on her face through the phone. He remembered the couple of times over the last few weeks that he had wanted to call his mother for support and nodded.

"Yes. But we need to be very careful."

"Oh, thank you! I promise, no one will even know I'm in Japan! I'll call up the kidnapper and make him send Jelly for me!"

Kuon smiled. "It'll be good to see you. I didn't get to see you when you came last time. I only found out because of your picture with Kyoko."

Kyoko stared at him. "What picture? ARE YOU SAYING I MET YOUR MOTHER!? AND YOU DIDN'T TELL ME!?"

Kuu lit up. "IS THAT KYOKO-CHAN!? WHY DIDN'T YOU SAY SHE WAS THERE!? HI KYOKO-CHAN!"

Kyoko blushed. "Um… hi Otou-san."

Julie gasped. "Oh my gosh! Hi, Kyoko-chan! Um… we met at Dayjoweyland. I'm–"

"SARAH!?"

Julie giggled. "Yes, but no. My real name is Julie. But you can call me Mom."

Kyoko panicked. She couldn't imagine calling anyone Mom. 'Mom', to her, had been akin to a dirty word for years.

Julie seemed to understand, however. "It'll grow on you, dear. Anyway, it is late in Japan, and I have to get ready for work, so we should go. Kuon, it was so, so good to hear from you. If you need anything, you call me. I'm so excited for you, baby! Same goes for you, Kyoko-chan!"

Kuon smiled. "Thanks, Mom and Dad. I love you guys."

"And we love you, too!"

He ended the call, and Kyoko hugged him. "You did it."

He rested his head on her shoulder. "Thank you."