A/N: I do not own Skip Beat!

[1]: Ryokan = Japanese inn

[2]: Okami-sama and Oyaji-dono: Landlady and Boss

[3]: Waka-okami: Young landlady in training

The Girl He Left Behind

"Kyouko-chan, will you run away with me to Tokyo?"

One of the things she loved most about Shoutaro-kun was that he said what she was most dying to hear. In that simple question, Kyouko justified all her heartbreak and the subsequent years of striving and serving in the Fuwa Ryokan [1].

'How can my heart beat deeply this early in my life time?' Kyouko wondered at the soothing power of Shoutaro's mere presence. She savored the elation, and then with tears in her eyes, she released it so her heart would not fly too freely.

"Shou—" She stopped herself from enunciating the latter half of his name.

"I have been at your side for many years, but I have obligations to Okami-sama and Oyaji-dono[2]. I cannot repay their generosity by abandoning my duties." I love you.

Kyouko did not look at him, did not look at his disappointment, and she bowed as low as her spine could stand it. She expected him to stomp off, perhaps to go right to Tokyo then and there.

"Che, quit treating me like the 'Beloved Son.' I want you to refuse me as a friend, not a servant conditioned by my parents." She unsnapped her bow and braced herself to make eye contact. "I can't go with you Shou, but I will pray for your success every day; I won't stop you."

"Good, 'cuz I'm taking a huuuge risk letting anyone know. Don't look at me like that. I'm not booking it now. Be a good girl and don't cry 'cuz you don't need to," he said, slinging his bag and his blazer coolly over his shoulder. The bell rang and only when his footfalls ceased did Kyouko slump to the ground and weep in relief that he didn't hate her.

She made a vow of loyalty then: No matter how much Okami-sama panicked over his disappearance, she knew nothing.

Kyouko made an effort to keep busy in the coming days, buffing her spirits with the stern reminder that Shou was doing a brave thing leaving the luxuries of the Ryokan to chase his dreams in the big city. One day, while she was beating down the futons, she heard loud, thundering steps booming down the wooden corridor. Kyouko tossed down the bamboo rod in fear and hid in the billowing material.

Her ears perked up at the steely tones of Oyaji-dono. "Your disobedient son," he yelled, "has refused to sit down with me and learn his accounting. You spoil him too much, Oku-san! We will lose him to his foolish ideals!"

That moment, Kyouko felt hollow in her chest, as though Shoutaro had already fled. Later that night, after finishing chores and supping with the maids, Kyouko knocked on Shou's door and stepped back as he slid it open marginally. "What are you doing here? Are you going to give me away?" he asked.

She shook her head and clapped her hand over her mouth. The door opened further and Kyouko was summarily pulled into his room. She couldn't help herself; she hugged him tight and swallowed the tears that would displease him. "Shou, I didn't want to part on unfriendly terms. I can't go with you, but I still want to help!" She pulled away and dug for an envelope from her sash.

"Kyouko… are you a drug dealer? How did you get dough like this?" From nearly nine years of spending very little of her New Year's money, there was probably a little bit over 17,000 yen. "You can't give this to me; it's too much."

"I'm your friend," she said, smiling, knowing full well that he normally treated that amount like pocket money. "Try to remember me when you become a rock star. Goodbye Shoutaro."

"Hey, I'll send you CDs and stuff, to pay you back," he insisted, sticking the envelope in his jacket. "Bye Kyouko."

"Thank you!" I love you too much!

True to her vow of loyalty, she left as discreetly as she had come and went about finishing her homework and preparing for bedtime as usual. Kyouko slept barely a wink, imagining every patter on the roof was Shoutaro running away with a guitar and barely a cent to his name like in a movie. He made for such a beautiful rebel that she didn't want to go to sleep and lose that picture in her head.

She went to school and, by herself, faced her own heartbreak and that of the girls at lunchtime. "Hey plain-face! Where's Fuwa-kun?"

"I think he's sick today," Kyouko said, picking at her bento.

"She thinks? She thinks? How can this girl who lives with Fuwa-kun be so stupid not to know what's going on with him? I would take full advantage of that!" declared Fujiko-chan, whose hair cascaded sleekly around her waist. "I guess it can't be helped."

In spite of her classmates' scorn, the beautiful rebel picture stayed in her head and Kyouko made up her mind to work hard through her suffering. "I will work as hard as Shoutaro!"

"Did you hear something, girls?"

"No, just some plain, uninteresting words." They all laughed and flicked their hair.

Kyouko didn't notice; the real fight would happen when she would come home without Shoutaro. She noted the whisper of the maids and the staff, but distanced herself by serving sweets and tea to the fatigued guests in the lavish, ornate lobby.

"Kyouko, did you hear?" one of the maids finally asked her when all the guests were in their rooms.

"What is it Kojiko-san?" Kyouko asked.

"Okami-sama's little brat ran away! She's serving tea to the guests now; I don't know how she does it not knowing where her son is!"

Kyouko was not very good at acting, but she knew her blank reaction to this scandal was out of place. She tried denial: "Shou wouldn't run away like a brat! He probably got into another fight with Oyaji-dono and is hiding somewhere in the Ryokan." Even to her, that sounded weak. "Everything will be alright." She walked away with her head bowed.

Behind her, the maid tsked and muttered," Kyouko-chan, your emotions are all over your face. You may not defend him when you find out you're his throw-away bride!"

An older woman on staff stopped Kyouko in the middle of carrying bedding and nodded her head politely. "Kyouko-chan, Okami-sama wants to see you. Please stop by as soon as possible."

"H- hai! Thank you so much." She bent her knees in a bulky curtsy and hurried to finish up and to hear what Okami-sama would say to her. Kyouko rapped once on the lacquered frame of Okami-sama's door and tried to control her jitters.

"Yes?"

"Okami-sama, Himamura-san told me to find you," Kyouko said.

"Please come in Kyouko. We have not spoken very familiarly lately. Please shut the door all the way." Kyouko followed orders and slid the door gingerly. With her head bowed, she waited for permission.

"Please sit down and have tea with me." Kyouko reached out for the teapot, only to realize that steam rose from her own cup. Respect for Okami-sama came back in full force; that woman really knew everything happening under her roof.

"I was expecting you," Okami-sama said serenely. "Have some fruit."

Kyouko nibbled on an apple slice and answered mechanically when Okami-sama asked about school and clubs, putting Kyouko at ease. Besides a gentle reminder for Kyouko to sit in a proper and relaxed manner, Okami-sama said nothing out of the ordinary. Her hair was arranged elegantly to show off the golden texture of her hair and not a furrowed brow marred her content smile.

Kyouko couldn't take it anymore. "Okami-sama, I've been hearing things about Shoutaro. Is it true?"

"I believe you already know the answer," the wise matron said, pouring more tea for Kyouko.

"So he really is gone," Kyouko stated. Her cup trembled in her hands, but she set it down and cupped her hands in her lap. Even though she knew, it was a terrible feeling to lose him.

"You sound quite certain, and you should be. Shoutaro has indeed fled his responsibilities here and will probably renounce his name when he gets to Tokyo," Okami-sama said.

"How do you know, Okami-sam?" Kyouko asked, wondering if Shoutaro's mother knew about everything outside of her roof, too.

"I know my Shoutaro. We searched his room long after his temper tantrum and his guitar was missing. The only place he could go after here is Tokyo to realize his dreams. My poor boy. The world is large."

"Don't worry, Okami-sama! I gave him money earlier, enough that he can come back if he needs to!" Kyouko blurted, quite forgetting that she knew nothing.

"Were you the last one to see him, Kyouko?" Okami-sama asked mildly.

"No," she answered quickly. "I think I'm not. I don't know the exact time he left." Kyouko shuffled aside from the table and kneeled until her forehead was flat on the tatami. "Please forgive me for my betrayal, Okami-sama. I am unworthy of your generosity that I did not warn you or Oyaji-dono that Shoutaro was serious about running away." She fully expected to be kicked out of the room, out of the inn, and to the ground.

"You are forgiven, Kyouko," Okami-sama said, lifting her gently from the kneeling. "How you spend your money is your own business. I am grateful that you gave my son all your support, but let us keep this detail from my husband, hm? This wouldn't happen if Shoutaro had inherited my temper in addition to my looks."

"Ah, but I did not call you here to discuss my wayward son. I called to ask about you," Okami-sama said with no trace of sarcasm. "You are very devoted to my son, without question. Did he ask you to come with him?"

"Yes," Kyouko said, very surprised, and completely believing in Okami-sama's powers to read minds. Or perhaps Okami-sama was divining from the tea leaves.

"It's a pity," the mother sighed. "He will eat terribly without your cooking; laundry and cleaning will be a disaster for him!"

"Should I have gone with him?" Kyouko asked, fully expecting Okami-sama to send her to Tokyo.

"It would have been better for him than for you, my dear. In any case, you have proven willing to do anything for my son. You have been friends with him the longest and have done only good for him. Does it not behoove you to be left behind?"

Kyouko shook her head vigorously, in spite of the unseemly, unwomanly gesture. "I made my choice just like Shoutaro-kun, Okami-sama."

"An appropriate response," Okami-sama said wistfully," for a servant. I am at a loss on what to do with you, Kyouko. My husband and I had such plans, but now everything has changed. You were supposed to marry Shoutaro and carry on our legacy. We gave you to him, but now he is not here and we have no other son for you to marry."

Kyouko's face turned a great number of pinks before going stark white. "Marriage? With Shoutaro."

"You aren't in love with him?"

"Oh! Yes, of course," Kyouko said because you don't ever lie to Okami-sama. "But to hear you say it makes me very honored to be the chosen waka-okami[3]. I don't deserve it."

"I have groomed you myself," Okami-sama said firmly. "You have all the makings to one day take up the mantle. In time, you would have learned this business inside and out as I do. What I am asking you is if you still wish to be trained."

"I truly don't deserve this," Kyouko protested for a bit," but I have no desire to leave the Ryokan. It has been my home since Okaa-san left me. Would I be able to continue working here and learning everything? Please?"

"Wouldn't you rather wear make-up and go out on dates like your high school friends, Kyouko-chan?" Okami-sama asked.

Kyouko did not bother to correct Okami-sama on the friends thing, but shook her head once more. "I am willing to work myself to the bones!"

Okami-sama laughed a little over Kyouko's exuberance. "No, no, we don't need you to scare away the guests. Very well, I am impressed with your energy. On the condition that you will grow up to be a competent lady of the Ryokan and one day marry my son, I will take you under my wing as my own."

Kyouko was horribly wrong-footed. "I will become more than competent, but how will I marry Shoutaro if he's a rock star?" Kyouko asked.

"I know my son," Okami-sama said grimly. "In a year's time, he will be met with many obstacles. He may give up and come home. If he succeeds, there are only so many years the entertainment industry can use him. One day, Shoutaro will come back to his rightful place. Waka-okami, I ask you to keep your heart open and wait for him and preserve our blood line. Without fail."

"Hai, Okami-sama! I will hurry and grow up! Thank you very much for this honorable opportunity!"

"That sets my heart at ease, Kyouko-chan. Please see that the tea house is prepared for the guests in the first west room; I will be holding ceremony in forty minutes."

"Hai!" Kyouko got up and bowed at every backwards step to the door. She slid it closed gently and her soft footfalls quickly faded.

"What a good girl," sighed Okami-sama, as she dumped the remainder of her cold tea into the pot. "If she's anything like her mother, she'll lose her heart to a tall and dark stranger."