Apartment - New York - How does one prove their existence? How can anybody prove they are who they say they are? "How can others acknowledge me for who I am?"
For the longest time, Lila has thought that way. Others say that the only reason she became an idol is because of her mother and sister. They all say she simply copied and followed in their footsteps. They don"t see her as her.
Haruka hugged her from the back. "So, what are you thinking, my wife?"
"How to bury you."
He laughed. "Sorry, is your body tired? It didn"t hurt, did it?"
"Even if they don"t do it, Haruka has his ways to make me feel strange." Lila turned around and wrapped her arms around his neck. "When will you tell Rikksan?"
"Soon, don"t worry."
"Can I leave this to you?" Lila asked.
"I need to find a way to regain your trust again, so yes, leave it to me."
She feels terrible about this entire situation. But how does one trust somebody who has betrayed her once? Haruka didn"t do it deliberately. She understood that very well.
Haruka scooped her up in his arms and placed her down on the bed. "You need to rest."
"But I want to talk."
"Mmm, we can chat and cuddle. But don"t bring up any stressful things, yeah?"
In other words, she can"t bring up Rikksan. How unfair of him! But what use is there talking about that woman all the time? There is no point, and she understood that. Besides, the one who brings up that woman is her and not Haruka.
Haruka can go days without mentioning her, but here she is bringing her up every minute.
Lila watched as Haruka played with her hair, and his lips kept lingering towards her neck.
"Uh, please do something already."
"You sure? What does this little fellah say." Haruka bent down and brought his lips to her stomach. "Knock knock."
Lila turned red at his words. "Idiot."
"But I"m serious. I want to know if you feel movement yet."
"No," Lila muttered. "That"s why it"s hard to believe." If they didn"t go to the hospital for a check-up, she wouldn"t have noticed. When a hanyou gets pregnant, n.o.body can tell.
"Hubby, I want you to kiss me."
Haruka"s gaze softened. "Okay, but put your dress back on. You"ll catch a cold wife."
Lila nodded and quickly slipped on the white off-shoulder dress. She extended her hands out. "Now, kiss me."
He chuckled. "Seriously, what are you trying to do? But since your asking me so cutely, I will fulfill every request of yours."
The way he said that last line so suggestively made her blush even more. She watched as Haruka raised his head from her stomach. "Do you know what your asking?"
"I do."
"I think so.." It"s only kissing; they"ve kissed a lot since they first went out. But once again, she feels nervous like an idiot. Haruka"s lips made it"s way to her neckline.
"You"re shaking," Haruka whispered. "Are you fine with this?"
"Uh, I feel very weird," Lila mumbled. "Do you know why?"
"I wonder, you act strangely these days. Whenever we kiss or whenever I hold your hand, you act so shy."
"He noticed it?!!" That"s so embarra.s.sing. She thought she was doing a good job hiding it. Then again, she kept denying it. Her thoughts broke off when she felt Haruka"s lips make contact with her.
He lightly nibbled on her lips. "Let me in."
"Okay."
She shyly opened her mouth, and Haruka used that chance to intertwine their tongues. There is a saying not to trust a woman who opens their eyes in the middle of a kiss. But what about a man?
Lila always closes her eyes whenever they kiss, so she never noticed until now. However, she noticed that Haruka didn"t close his eyes; he kept them wide open.
Thump, thump, and thump.
The sound of her heartbeat, or is the sound of his? His muscular and well-defined body. The dark marks bothered her greatly, but Lila noticed something different today. "A tattoo?"
Haruka had tattoos down his arm, but this is different. It was now on his chest and seemed to trail down to his back too. Did he get those to cover the scars? "When I asked him before about his tattoo"s, he told me that it was to cover his suicide attempt before."
She hesitantly lifted her hands to touch the tattoos. A growl escaped Haruka"s lips, and she turned frantic. "Uhh."
"Keep doing that, Ari."
Her eyes widened when she heard the name that escaped Haruka"s lips. How much time has pa.s.sed since she last heard him call her that? So much time. Lila didn"t think he would call her by that name again. But here he is once again…
During those times where she used the name, Ari. That was where everything began for Haruka and her. The story of their love this past year all started with that name. It all started with that name.
She felt a bulge, and her entire face grew hotter. Is he getting turned on while kissing her again? This man is a beast, who gets turned on during a situation like this? Only him, then again, maybe her too.
"Haruka." She mumbled against their interlocked lips. "I love you."
"Mmm, good girl. I love you too, Lila."
...…
Lila stared at the warm water that lapped around her body. She fidgeted uncomfortably. It was hard to relax. "Um, I said I would take a bath. But why did you come too?" She questioned Haruka, who was directly behind her.
"So what? Were married, aren"t we?"
"This shameless man."
"Don"t sit far apart; get closer."
Lila nodded and edged closer until her back hit his chest. Well… "This is relaxing." "Say, my husband, didn"t you say over the phone that everybody would come here?"
"Hmmm, for the tournament?"
"Yes. But won"t it be difficult during this situation?" Lila recalled what Jae-hee said on the phone.
"Indeed, it will be difficult. I don"t think anybody will be in the right state of mind to perform either."
"Then--"
"But you all have to sing," Haruka said sharply. "This is another method to counter Zane."
"Another method?" She trailed off. "Ah, the power of music?"
"It seems cheesy and even cliche. But it may just work, at least for the moment anyway, until we find a proper solution. We know the reason why Zane turned out that way after watching the video footage Myou found. The girl he loved was also a member of the entertainment industry. It explains why he is tar getting singers with special abilities." Haruka paused. "Did you check with Jae-hee and ask if Yumeko is okay?"
"Yume-chan?"
"Yeah, that girl is the type of person Zane would target. She needs to be careful."
"I don"t think you have to worry, Yori is there."
"If Haruka is that worried, though. I should contact Jae-hee again."
Still, Haruka knew she was in contact with Jae-hee, huh? It seems like there is no use sneaking around. Haruka always seems to find out everything eventually.
Lila turned around and wrapped her arms around his neck. She leaned forward and mumbled. "The one I am worried about the most is you, my dearest husband."
Zane won"t leave Haruka alone. But so far he hasn"t done anything. Why? Why is he focusing on attacking Star Town when they are over here? Is she missing something?
Haruka brought his lips to her ear. "I think you should worry about yourself more."