I opened Wattpad a month after I published the previous part (completely opposite of when I said I'll post again lol) and came to 19 mind blowing notifications.
And guess what? They were about this fanfiction which had gotten past 200 views and 15 votes which is my record!
I took my time to read every single comment left behind and I'm very thankful to everyone who read the story <3
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~ You choose to accompany Shu to the fashion gala ~
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Shu's car was speeding across the warm asphalted streets, slightly trembling as a result to the unevenness of the asphalt. You sat on the front seat with the safety belt tightly secured across your shoulder and quietly glared at Shu.
You were astonished by his driving skills, the way he drove fast but always took the turns lightly. He handled the wheel with care, but in the same time moved it aggressively left and right depending of the direction you were to head in.
His flawless black and elegant tuxedo emphasized Shu's tall figure, pointing out his solid yet delicate build. His purple eyes burned in focus, when suddenly they met yours.
His confidence shot through you like an arrow, striking right in your heart. You felt heat arise and not being able to bear his persistent gaze, you looked away.
"We're almost there." – Shu spoke. You nodded in response, a small grin spreading across your face.
Then you remembered something. "Will I know anyone there?" – you asked him.
Shu thought for a second before he answered. "Kiryu will be there, as well as Tsukinaga. Plus you'll be with me the whole time so you needn't worry about staying alone. I can introduce you to some of my acquaintances."
"Fair enough."
The car turned right and followed a hundred-meter street to its end where a glamorous villa resided, its roof seemingly touching the clouds. The villa was surrounded by a well-maintained park fenced with black casted iron rods overgrown with ivy. In the front was a car park where the guests' vehicles would simultaneously come and park or come and go, dropping the guests off at the villa's grand entrance.
Shu's car also parked in between the other formal vehicles and he deactivated the engine. "Okay, now as we made a deal. We act formally in the first two hours until the head of the fashion industry leaves, then we're free to do as we please or simply leave as well."
You nodded.
While he was doing your hair and makeup, Shu clearly stated out a couple of simple rules. It mostly concerned the fact that he wanted to leave a good impression to the head of the fashion industry who would also attend that night's gala. In fact, he himself was the one who established the formality rules for the event, aiming to recreate the perfectly mannered old-society atmosphere. Shu sincerely hoped that the head of the industry would notice him and his creations, for which even humble admiration would be enough to satisfy himself.
Shu exited the car and you lost him out of your sight. Just moments later the door from your side opened and a well-groomed hand was elegantly straightened toward you. You placed your palm gently on top of it as the man slightly tightened the grip and pulled you up on your legs.
"You're gorgeous." – Shu's gaze examined every inch of yourself from top to bottom. You looked away in embarrassment. Shu had been surprisingly straightforward with you recently. At this point, you really didn't even know if he complimented the dress or yourself.
You heard the door close and lock behind you, but you didn't pay it any mind as you were completely captivated by the greatness of the villa. You felt like some kind of celebrity about to join a casual party and hang out with others of the same social status, accompanied by an amazing and skilled man who would proudly walk hand under hand with you throughout the vicinity.
A soft touch on your upper hand redirected your attention to the man standing beside you. Shu laughed cutely when noticing your astounded expression. "Wait 'till we get inside."
He wasn't lying though.
The inside of the villa was even more luxurious than its outside. You walked in through the grand entrance into an exclusively decorated ballroom split on two floors. The larger part of the ballroom was on the ground floor and a bit smaller part of it was elevated around 10 meters above on the other side of the hall. Two pairs of gracious stairways connected the separated parts of the ballroom on both opposite sides, fenced with elegantly molded matt black bars.
The floor was made out of fine white marble, occasionally decorated with golden laces and gleaming under the intense lighting from the glorious crystal chandeliers. There were groups of fashionably dressed people scattered across the ballroom and formally dressed waiters gracefully pacing through the crowds while carrying platters with drinks.
In the walls left and right of the ballroom were two wide doorways connecting the rest of the mansion to it with hallways which lead further inside. The walls were also occasionally decorated with rare and valuable paintings which would surely fetch a high price if put up for auction.
Your glamorous heels now thumped next to Shu's formal black shoes matching with his tuxedo. You two walked hand under hand and smiled politely as a response to the multitude of curious stares.
Shu would occasionally stop and greet some of his acquaintances, introducing long and boring names which you would forget in a mere second after they've been pronounced. However, you stayed calm and on your best behavior for his sake, knowing how important this event was for him.
The waiters strolled around the groups offering you different kinds of cocktails while Shu would strike a conversation about materials and sewing techniques with every person he knew. You didn't really bother to do much – mostly stood next to him, sipped from your cocktail and infrequently nodded at something they would say.
You suddenly spotted a familiar face talking to a blonde-haired gentleman dressed in a navy-green tuxedo. Shu noticed that you were staring at something so he parted ways with the gentleman who he'd conversed with and lead towards the men.
"Hey Kiryuu," – Shu greeted him as you two approached them. The red-haired man turned around and you immediately recognized Kiryu's handsome features and his wild hair strands sticking in many directions.
"Oh, Itsuki. And Miss Producer." – he smiled gently while shaking hands with Shu. Then he shot a glance at you and whistled. "Damn, I wish I could've been this lucky when finding a partner."
You looked aside with a cute chuckle, as you felt your face burn. Kuro didn't pay much notice to your reaction and instead had already started a discussion with Shu. The other man apparently felt left out, because he swiftly withdrew and moved on to talk with other guests.
You could hear fragments of Kuro and Shu's conversation as your head swung left, right, up and down across the ballroom, examining every inch of it.
"How's your collection called?" – Shu suddenly asked Kuro. He ran his eyes around in search of his friend's partner who's supposedly wearing his best piece of creation.
Kuro unnoticingly pointed upwards at the elevated part of the ballroom. There, leaned on the black fence was a beautiful tall girl with long straight hair as black as the night. She wore a long chiffon dress which was lightly touching the ground and wavered with her every move, pointing out her perfectly proportioned curves.
The colors of the dress spilled over, overflowing into all shades of marine blue, from light to darker tones as if taken from the very depths of the sea. It was consisted of multiple flowing layers overlying one another, sprinkled with pearls and occasionally a seashell or two.
The girl wore a pearl bracelet, earrings and necklace, as well as matching makeup which pointed out her gorgeous blue eyes. She held a fragile glass containing some sort of beverage in it and seemed to be dwelling in daydreams.
Your mouth hung when you spotted her.
AND KIRYU SAID HE WASN'T AS LUCKY AS SHU WITH HIS DATE?! WHAT THE F*CK MAN?!
"It's called 'To the Depths of the Sea'" – said Kuro. He examined Shu's expression, seemingly satisfied. "What about yours?"
Shu turned at you and stretched his hand toward you. You gently caught hold of it, a small smile flowing on your lips. "Dance of the Falling Sakuras" – he said with a fairly smug grin.
Kiryu couldn't keep his eyes off of you. "I already told you and I'll say it once again – you're simply gorgeous." – he repeated. You noticed his eyes sparkling and chuckled, slightly embarrassed.
Suddenly Shu snugged his hand behind your back and caught hold of your other arm, pulling you closer to him. Your heart thumped like crazy as your airways were overfilling with his fragrant perfume.
"Why don't we go to meet your partner? She seems quite bored, and is yet supposed to be showcasing your greatest creation from the gala collection." – Shu spoke in an arrogant manner, as if he felt uncomfortable from Kiryu's compliments towards you.
Kiryu laughed and raised his hands, indicating that he's backing off. He looked at Shu provokingly and with a funny grin to which Shu scoffed, rolling his eyes.
The three of you ascended the stairs and approached the girl, making your way through the small groups of gathered ladies and gentlemen.
"Naomi, "– said Kuro, "let me introduce you to my dear acquaintances. This is Itsuki Shu, an old friend of mine, and this is Y/n, a student in the producer course and his partner."
The girl grinned, extending her delicate hands for a handshake. "I'm Naomi. It's nice to meet you."
Her eyes glistened magically like the crystal watery surface of the sea, and you felt like her smile was the most precious thing in the world.
"May I touch the dress?" – suddenly Shu popped a question. Your eyes widened in surprise of his boldness to ask a lady such a thing.
Honestly, sometimes I think that he's missing a couple of strings in his brain.
The thought made you giggle softly. But then Shu actually bent down and touched Naomi's dress, twirling it through his fingers and examining the stitches and texture of the material. You smiled in disbelief with peeled eyes, but then realized that neither Naomi nor Kuro actually minded that.
It was as if they were used to such actions.
"Naomi...!" – a faint girly voice in the background called out, the sound appearing closer as the person approached.
A short girl pierced her way through the crowd, her long pastel-pink and slightly tousled pigtails swinging behind her as she marched towards you. She wore a mid-length and cappuccino-colored tight formal dress just above her knees and high heels in a matching color.
Her wrists were decorated by creatively handmade bracelets, each one different from the others, and she wore similar earrings. A scarf made of fox fur was hung onto her shoulders, its soft strands of fox hair seemingly tickling the girl's face.
She had a slim and tight posture which drew attention, her rather small breasts slightly bouncing while she paced, giving her a womanly look despite the tiny figure. She rushed with a cocktail of her own in the hand, but immediately stopped as she spotted a whole unexpected group of people.
"Ay, Rose." – Naomi smiled at her. "Kiryu came to meet us with his friends."
Rose suddenly stiffened, her eyes widening and lips parting in shock, just so that a moment later her brows would furrow in annoyance.
You couldn't understand her impulsive change of moods and confusedly shot a look at the others.
Shu had the same hasty alter of emotions sliding past his face with now furrowed brows, his intense stare focused on the girl.
You weren't sure if it'd be smart to interfere in their death stares so you looked at Kuro, asking for some reassurance. He just chuckled helplessly, but signaled you to remain calm.
"Rose..." – Shu uttered, his voice painted with resentment.
"Shu..." – spat Rose as a respond to his "greeting".
You blinked twice.
Is it just me or does this feel incredibly awkward, hilarious AND ridiculous at the same time?
Naomi surely shared you reaction because she strode toward Rose and planted her hand on Rose's shoulder, opening her mouth to say something.
"Don't touch me!" – she exclaimed and shook Naomi's hand off her shoulder.
You spotted Kuro restraining himself as well, and at that point you couldn't take it anymore either.
The two of you burst into laughter. Both Shu and Rose looked at you and screamed, "What's so funny?!" with the same gestures and connotations, which made the scene even funnier.
Lastly, you and Kuro stiffened. "You never told me Rose would be here, Kiryu" – sharply remarked Shu.
Kuro backed off a step or two. "Wasn't it obvious that she'll be here? This is a public fashion gala and all designers from the city are invited." – he objected.
"Uhh, excuse me?" – you finally stepped in the conversation, feeling as if everyone forgot about your presence. "I literally haven't a clue on what's going on- Shu, you know this girl?"
Shu straightened his back and pursed his lips, unwillingly uttering, "Rose is my sister." He sounded like a little child after throwing a tantrum.
"Older sister" – Rose corrected him, a slight thread of malice hanging in her voice. "Yes, Shu is my wittle baby bwother." – she joked, twisting the words and obviously pissing him off.
"Oh, but look who grew taller than you." – Shu returned her the 'compliment'.
"Well you're also a male so it's sort of normal." – she didn't stay short of an answer either.
The siblings continued to argue, as if pinching each other with every sentence. You came closer to Naomi and Kuro, avoiding to take part in whatever was going on between them.
So much for acting formal.
"Why're they like this? Shouldn't siblings respect each other?" – you looked at Naomi and Kuro questioningly.
Kuro sighed. (Kuro's POV: you clearly don't have siblings, now do you...?)
"They've been like this since they were small. I think it's because it was Rose's dream to become a fashion designer and Shu really looked up to her so he wanted to be the same. But thing is, he succeeded much more than she did, especially regarding his unit." – he said quietly, careful not to be heard exposing the siblings' secrets.
Naomi nodded. "Yeah, Rose has been telling us a lot about her 'annoying little brother' and how much she envied his achievements, claiming that if it wasn't for her dream to become a designer in the first place, he would've never gotten to where he is now."
You looked Rose. Her pigtails were aggressively dangling as she argued, her brows furrowed and face dyed in wrath. But behind the glassy surface of her sparkling golden eyes hid despair to tell Shu so many things which she meant. It seemed as the only thing which held her back was her ego.
Yes, both she and her brother were so arrogant and self-confident that there was no way their ego would let them expose feelings to other people. You snickered silently.
"So how do you know Rose?" – you asked Naomi, striking a different and less sensitive topic.
"Oh, we go to Shukufuku Academy together." – she calmly answered. She was about to add something else but was brutally interrupted by the siblings' argument which grew louder and louder.
"...so you came here to steal my spotlight again, huh?" – hissed Rose, her eyes narrowed as if she could shoot lasers out of them.
"Why do you even care what I do and why I do it? It's my life, you little piece of unfinished cloth work!" – growled Shu at her from above, his back intentionally straightened so that he would look more dominant.
"Excuse me? What did you just call me?!" – Rose's voice was at the verge of screaming.
Shu relaxed his eyes, piercing Rose with a cold gaze. "Piece of unfinished cloth work." – he said assertively.
"You! YOU!" – Rose finally lost her mind. "Heh, and they call you Shu? MORE LIKE A DIRTY ASS SHOE!"
"Oh, and you say your name is Rose? MORE LIKE A FAT ASS NOSE!"
"I'M SO DONE WITH YOU!" – screamed Rose, turned around and rushed down the stairs to the lower part of the ballroom, disappearing into the hallways. As she distanced, you heard her murmuring insults for Shu under her breath.
"That little lousy pig...!" – Shu was aggressively tapping his foot, something he does when he's ticked off. "I need some fresh air."
Both of them were now gone, leaving you, Kuro and Naomi stiffly blinking in confusion.
Well, that escalated quickly.
"I'll go find Rose." – said Naomi. "It's been nice meeting you, Y/n!" – she added while descending the stairs and you lost her from your sight.
"And... there she goes again." – mumbled Kuro under his breath. "Although she is definitely the best match to showcase the dress, so I guess I'll just let it pass..."
"I'll go find Shu." – you told him, and he let out a laugh. "What?"
"Nothing." – he said with a smirk.
You rolled your eyes and waved at Kuro goodbye, heading towards the open balcony where Shu had ran away. Namely, instead of a brick-hard wall, the ascended part of the ballroom had a wall made of glass as well as many doors which lead out on the balcony.
"Oh, Y/n! Hiii!" – a joyful voice greeted you from up front. You spotted Leo approaching you. It was the first time that you saw him wearing a formal suit.
Well, I sort of should've expected that. His hair is still messy though.
"Oh, hey!" – you hailed back through a chuckle stirred from the random thought. "I figured you'd be here, your creations are always amazing!"
"Aww, thanks, you flatter me..." – he uttered, giving you a wide and cheerful toothy smile. "But, how come you attend this gala? I seriously thought it was only for designers and their partners... Damn! If only I knew, I would've invited everyone from Knights!"
"No, it's not like that," – you implied before he could draw his final conclusion surrounding the matter. "I'm here as Shu's partner." Saying that made you slightly blush.
"OOOOOOH congrats!" – exclaimed Leo while enthusiastically shaking your hand up and down. "I asked Izumi and Arashi to be my partners but Izumi refused to wear a dress and Arashi said she had to attend Mika's charity event..."
You laughed at his comment, now put in a more cheerful mood. Leo himself was like that – pure hearted and easy-going. He always said and did whatever he would put his mind to. Conversations with him always flowed smoothly to the point where he would get distracted and simply ditch you for something he found more interesting at the moment.
"Oh, speaking of which, I thought Mika asked you to help him around the event? At least that's what I heard from Arashi."
You froze. The guilt of cancelling Mika's invitation at the so-called 'last moment' invaded your thoughts once again. It was as if you literally ditched him. You did indeed spend your last two days helping him with the organization, but you felt as if it meant more for him if you attend the actual event. Still, you did owe Shu for fixing your shoes so you didn't really feel comfortable simply denying Shu's offer. Or demand. Or whatever it was.
Leo seemed not to notice the grief painting your face. Apparently he was way too thrilled to notice negativity tonight. That's Leo for you.
"About that, I'll be going to the charity event after the pageant, if you feel like joining me. You could even take Shu with you." – he raised one brow in await of your answer, his smirk still flowing on his lips. Or maybe he did notice.
"I'll ask Shu about it." – you said, slightly uncertain of his decision. "But don't wait for us more than 5 minutes. If we're nowhere to show up, don't hesitate to take your leave."
Leo nodded. "Sure thing!" He then waved at you and you lost him through the crowd.
The positive energy he stimulated now flowed through your veins. Tsukinaga and his pure and contagious smile were like a blessing from the heavens.
You walked out on the marble floor and immediately spotted Shu.
He was leaning against the fence with the cocktail glass still in his hand, his shoulders relaxed and his head slightly tilted downwards. His hair swayed on the mild spring breeze, which tousled it even more than it naturally was.
You neared him without a word and slightly leaned against the fence as well, bending your head to the side in attempt to catch a peek of his eyes.
"Shu..." – you silently spoke, placing your palm on his back and ticklishly stroking it. "Wake up..." – the teasing in your voice was apparent, but he still didn't move a muscle. You removed your hand from his back and pushed aside the few strands of his hair which blocked your view of his face. His cheeks were slightly rosy.
"LADIES AND GENTLEMEN," – a speaker was suddenly heard echoing inside the ballroom. The classical music had stopped. "THE TIME HAS FINALLY COME FOR ALL OF THE ATTENDING DESIGNERS TO SHOW THEIR CREATIONS TO THE PUBLIC. TO ALL OF THE RESPECTFUL DESIGNERS PRESENT TONIGHT, I..." – the speaker kept talking but you didn't hear another word.
Because your attention was focused on Shu.
His eyes were teary.
Huh? Is he crying?? What for???
"Shu, are you okay?" – you asked him in a peaceful manner. "Do you not want to go inside for the pageant?"
"No," – he uttered with a raspy voice.
You couldn't help but imagine him as a little hopeless child, all alone and soaked in its own tears with no one around to help him. Wait. No. You were there, so he wasn't alone.
"Shu, look at me."
"No."
Oh, God, not that raspy voice again... NO! STOP IT! PICK YOURSELF UP! This is not a time to- to- never mind!
"What's the problem?"
He remained silent.
"Tell me." – you said in a more demanding voice.
He sighed. "I don't want to face Rose anymore. She always has to act all big and important, labeling me as her goofy little brother. What have I done wrong to her, for fuck's sake?!"
His choice of words took you aback, but you stayed concentrated.
"Have you ever talked to her about it?"
He looked aside, biting his lips in frustration.
You rolled your eyes, not expecting a positive answer. "Well try to next time, okay? Make things right between you guys. I'm sure both of you would feel much better if you told each other how you feel and make up."
He snorted, but didn't argue.
"Now then, don't let your night be ruined just because of a sibling fight!" – you jumped enthusiastically. "Come on!"
He looked at you and smiled, melting your heart. "But I don't want to go inside. I don't want my creations to participate in this pageant."
"Eh? Then what was all of your effort for?!" – you disputed, furrowing your brows in disbelief.
"I want to spend my time tonight with you."
Your eyes widened and you felt your face burning. All of the cards were on the table. It was on you to pick one up.
1) Ask Shu for a dance in the garden bellow the balcony and go to <Shu: Ending 1>
2) Suggest that you two go with Leo to Mika's charity event and go to <Shu: Ending 2>
Ily <3
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