Dream Star

Lila kept pacing back and forth. The main practice session had more or less ended. Since it ended early, Lila figured that she would see Haruka, but Soichiro just had to call her into his office. A deep sigh pa.s.sed his lips, why is the man in question calling her if he isn"t arriving?

Maybe she ought to visit the school, she"s been here for a few days but hasn"t dropped by even once. Lila felt bad, but in Haruka"s words, the "Dream Stars Main tournament training is more important," while she understood his viewpoint - his main reason was because of his insecurity. She sighed again, when will all this end? She wants to be happy with him. They want to be together forever, but part of the reason why they can"t do that is because of Kiryu. Well, Kiryu is the main reason. Kiryu is still her fiancé, and whether she liked it or not. Many people still want to see the engagement through. Being a hanyou female is truly difficult; if she were a guy, then perhaps canceling this engagement would be easier.

Lila shook her head; it probably won"t make a difference. Her thoughts broke off when she hears a clattering sound, "Soichiro?"

...

"I thought you had been eating well because you call Yori over often," Lila was scolding him. Of course, she was. When she called the doctor over, he said it was malnutrition and lack of rest, "And sleep, wasn"t that getting better too?"

Soichiro sighed, "It was."

"Then, what do you call this situation?"

"A fluke."

Lila rolled her eyes, "Don"t try to be clever with me. What"s the matter? Why are you like this again?"

"I"m just stressed out over a few things, no big deal."

"Is the company in trouble? I heard some rumors in the underground market lately," Lila trailed off. But rumors are never reliable, and Soichiro has loads of enemies. People could just be saying those things to add fuel to the fire.

"It"s not, we"re fine."

Lila hated it when Soichiro acted this stubborn. It"s clear that there is an issue here. Lila walked back over to the bed and sat on the chair, "If something is worrying you, then you could tell me you know? I owe you a lot," she murmured. Though she"s never once agreed with this guy"s methods and she treats him coldly. Lila cares for him.

"Hahahaa, you owe me. That"s right, that"s all it will ever be."

".. You know I"ve never had feelings for you, even if you insist."

"Right, right. You have eyes only for Karas.h.i.+ma now. But I think you shouldn"t neglect your former Knight either," Soichiro said.

Lila raised her eyebrows at his tone, "What do you mean?"

"Look at those doc.u.ments on the table."

She reached over, and Lila almost dropped them.

"Medical records...Kiryu?" she muttered.

"Seems like he"s been visiting the hospital a lot these days."

Lila frowned, is his condition getting worse? She knows she"s been in a bad state too. But Lila knew she didn"t have to go to the hospital so often. She immediately opened up the file and started reading the records, "July 15th, coughed up blood in the middle of a shoot. July 16th, experienced severe dizziness, loss of vision, July 25th, suddenly legs and hands stopped moving, August 3rd," Lila struggled to read the rest, as she felt her chest clench in pain.

Why? Why didn"t she notice anything? It was so obvious; when she first saw him again, she felt overwhelmed. But after that initial feeling wore off, she should have noticed how frail he was now. Kiryu is no longer the same, he"s not as strong as he once was - and didn"t she notice that when he supported her with walking in the small outing, they had recently? His complexion is a lot more pale, and he coughs a lot. Lila thought the coughing was simply due to the weather, but it isn"t like that.

"So, you don"t want him to enter your heart anymore? That"s impossible. Look, your crying."

Lila didn"t need him to tell her that, "Shut up."

"You"re so stubborn. I said this before, why do you have to hold yourself back? It"s not healthy for you. Karas.h.i.+ma understands already. No matter how much you deny it, Austin Kiryu never disappeared from your heart."

"Be quiet; that"s not..that"s not it."

Her heart, the person she"s thinking about the most, is without a doubt, Haruka. The one she promised her future to now is Haruka and not Kiryu. The one who held on to her hand is Haruka.

The one who stayed by her side, even from the shadows is Haruka. On the other hand, Kiryu left, he let her go. The pain from that time still hadn"t disappeared from her heart. Maybe he hasn"t disappeared from her heart. But whatever feelings she has left for Kiryu, there"s only pain. There"s only pain, that"s why..

...
- Edge Of Town -

It"s in this place, isn"t it?

"Wahhh,"

"Father," Lila murmured.

"Thought that was you don"t bother helping them. Your mother won"t be happy."

Lila nodded, "I understand. I only came to watch," she looked around her surroundings, "Is that lava over there?"

"You"re mother insisted that the only way they can prove themselves is a life and death situation."

"Ah-huh, I understand," why is father explaining things to her like this? There is no need; obviously, Mother wants to see if they are strong enough to overcome the dangers of being her partner.

"You"re too similar to your Mother," Father shook his head, "Anyhow, the three are equal for now. But that"s only because Kiryu isn"t in his best condition."

"..!"

"I don"t need to hide that from you, isn"t that why you came here?"

Lila nodded and clenched her hand on to a metal railing, "Yeah," she murmured. Lila knew that there was no need to pretend in front of her father, "I"m worried about him."

What she doesn"t understand is if her father knows about Kiryu"s current condition, then Mother knows too. If Mother knows as well, then why aren"t they focusing on Kiryu"s treatment? The more she thought about it, the more puzzled Lila got.

"Break," once her mother said those words. The three made their way down the stairs. It was a pleasant surprise though to see senpai there. How strange, she didn"t think he would take part in a challenge like this. But Lila didn"t get a chance to dwell on those thoughts when maroon colored hair walked over.

"Ah, he"s tired" Lila thought and extended her hands out.

Haruka stumbled into her arms, "Thought I saw you,"

"Haruka, are you okay?"

"Yeah. My motivation went up when I saw you."

"Dummy, be motivated regardless of my presence," Lila muttered. He looks exhausted, is he going to be okay? She was very worried, "Haruka, stop sniffling me, let"s sit down somewhere,"

But Haruka would not budge.

"Hey, you came," Oujiro called out.

"Senpai, why are you here?"

"...!"

Oujiro flushed red and looked away, causing her cheeks to redden, "I—diot! This won"t make me change my mind."

"Well, sorry for having hopes and dreams."

"What dreams, idiot!"

Her sentence fell short when she felt Haruka"s lips on hero"s.

"Wait--wait, H--Haruka."

"Don"t pay any attention to them."

However, Lila shook her head and moved him away. Haruka seemed dissapointed in her but even so. She isn"t that heartless, Lila knew that Kiryu"s gaze was on her, but Lila didn"t look at him. Not now, if she looked into his eyes, then she would most likely cry.

...
Once they were away from everybody else, Lila leaned forward and kissed him, "Haruka," she called his name softly.

"I get it; I"m being unreasonable..."

Lila shook her head, "No, I do understand," she understands very well. After what happened at the airport that first day, Lila knew she had to be very careful with her actions. Something small could easily lead to Haruka misunderstanding her. She doesn"t want that to happen. Haruka always said that whenever he does it with her, it helps rea.s.sure him. That"s why it"s okay like this. If there is something she can do to rea.s.sure him, then she will.

Haruka"s lips are cras.h.i.+ng on hers, hands fumbling over her clothing, hands roamed on her legs as he tried to unfasten her skirt, "Nnhh, unngh. .."

"Your voice, don"t hold it back.."

Lila shook her head; she can"t... Not here.. and yet Haruka, Haruka is touching her. Haruka is, Haruka is the one who is holding her now.

"Ari, you"re mine.."

"Yes, she"s his," Lila repeated in her head. She belongs to Haruka. So why is he still so uneasy? What more can she do? Why does she have to prove herself so badly? Her thoughts broke off when Haruka suddenly stopped. It took her a few seconds to realize why he stopped. The whole time her gaze had been on Kiryu.

"I—"m sorry, it"s just Soichiro told me these strange things about Kiryu"s condition, and I"m just worried," Lila apologized. She may as well tell him the truth, that she came here not to see him but to check on Kiryu.

"You really do still have a soft spot for him."

He"s angry! No, she doesn"t want to fight with him. If they fight, once again, Haruka will go to those places.

"Ari, are you mine?" Haruka suddenly asked.

Lila nodded, "Ah-huh, I love you, and want to be with you forever."

Haruka nodded, a deep sigh pa.s.sed his lips, "I understand," he drawled, "You"re worried about him, right? Why don"t you talk to him now?"

Lila looked at him, surprised, "Ah? But what about you?"

"I"ll be fine."

Lila wasn"t sure whether it was wise for her to leave.