Aberrance

Tristan was sitting on the couch waiting for Jae when she returned to the den.

"You should be sleeping" she said absentmindedly.

"So should you. In light of recent news, I doubt either of us will be sleeping for awhile." Jae rubbed her face. She was exhausted but she knew Tristan was right. Sleep would most definately elude her tonight.

"I take it that means you heard that Kyo has a girlfriend" she whispered. Tristan scoffed.

"Yeah I heard. I suppose that means he's not going to want anything to do with us now."

"Tristan! How can you say such a thing? You know he would never be so cruel."

"Do I know that? I don't know anything about him. Did you ever stop to think that maybe he is planning a life with her?"

"Tristan don't go jumping to conclusions. We've never met her and we don't even know how serious their relationship is."

"Mom, face it, he's whipped. Why else would he jump up and run off right when she asked him to? Especially since you two looked so...comfortable before." A blush crept onto Jae's cheeks as she recalled the position Tristan was referring to. "Look, I'm not a little kid anymore. You don't have to coddle me and tell me everything is going to be alright. I know that once he finds out I'm his kid, everyones lives are going to be turned upside down. This isn't some fairytale and there sure as hell isn't going to be a happily ever after. Please don't think I'm so naive." Jae fixed him with a wistful glance.

"So that's why you're so angry. You are really afraid he's going to abandon us aren't you? Allow me to put your fears to rest. Once he finds out you're his he will accept you and he will love you. I know this because I know him better than I know myself. You're just going to have to trust me. Do you think you can do that?" Tristan gave a small nod in response. "I can see you're not convinced. I am your mother you know. You can't hide from me" she said smirking a little.

"Why didn't you tell him the whole truth when he asked about me?" Tristan said in a voice that sounded more like he was thinking aloud rather than directing the question at Jae. Nonetheless, she almost choked on her breath.

"I suppose I was caught off guard. You know I don't like doing anything without having a plan. Maybe this was a sign though. Maybe I should just throw caution to the wind and call him up and tell him right now. What do you think?" She turned her head to see Tristan fixing her with a Kyo-esque glare. If it weren't for the seriousness of the situation she probably would have burst out laughing.

"This is hardly the time for sarcasm" he said tonelessly. Jae sighed and sat down next to him.

"I know, but what would you have me do? You're my son and I would do anything for you. Just tell me what it is and I'll do it, no questions asked. Do you want me to tell Kyo that you're his son? I'm sure I could get ahold of him somehow, I could call Kaoru."

"Mom, just stop. You're right okay? There's a time and place for him to find out, but I also don't think that this is it. Besides, I wouldn't want to intrude on his time with his girlfriend." Jae noticed the change in his tone during the last sentence, much like he was spitting out poison. She'd have to fix that. She wouldn't have him hating a woman he's never met, especially not on the assumption that this woman was going to somehow keep his father away from him. Regardless of who she was, Jae would never let that happen. "I'm going to bed now" Tristan said tiredly and started trudging up the stairs to his room. Jae watched him go with a fornlorn look on her face.

Kyo heaved a sigh as he stood outside the hotel smoking. He didn't want to leave Jae's earlier. He wanted to stay as long as she would let him. There was something else though. He wanted to know what was wrong with her. He inwardly cursed himself for not being able to figure out what the problem was. Have they really drifted that far apart? He used to be able to read her like an open book. Why couldn't it still be that way? Oh that's right, because he's a pussy. He let his fear get in the way of what really mattered and now look where they were. Shaking his head, he tossed his cigarette away and went inside. When he stepped out of the elevator he noticed Kaoru standing at the pop machine. "Hey Kao. I didn't think you'd still be awake" Kyo said while making his way over to him. Kaoru gave him a startled look.

"Oh yeah, I'm having trouble sleeping. These hotel beds are a bitch to sleep on. I was working on some new material and decided to take a break. Hey did Hitomi ever get ahold of you? She stopped by my room a little bit ago looking for you."

"Yeah she called while I was visiting with Jae." Kaoru raised his eyebrow at this and Kyo heaved a sigh.

"Jae is my best friend. Well, at least she used to be. Now we're somewhere between best friends and complete strangers. We've been friends since we were little kids, til about fifteen years ago when I left Kyoto to pursue my music career. We went through so much shit together. Now I feel like sometimes I dont know anything about her. It's fucked up and I hate it."

"Why didn't you keep in touch with her if you cared about her so much?" A look of hurt flashed over Kyo's face and Kaoru immediately regretted asking the question.

"I promised her I would. But then my insecurities got in the way. I've regretted it every day of my life for the past fifteen years" he said mournfully. "I'm sorry I didn't tell you guys about her. It was selfish of me. I knew you'd probably want to meet her and I just couldn't deal with it. But I'd like you all to be friends. I'm sure you'll like her. She's amazing." Kaoru smiled and patted Kyo on the back.

"Don't worry, they guys and I hung out while you were gone and we all decided that she is definately cool." Kyo smiled and Kaoru noted that he seemed a bit more relaxed.

"Well I better get to my room, I'm sure Hitomi's patience is wearing thin. Ya know, if you're still not tired, you could always call Jae. I'm sure she's still awake, she always has been a night owl."

"Kyo, it's three in the morning." Kyo glanced at his watch and sheepishly grinned.

"Oh yeah, I guess it is kind of late huh?" He scratched his head. "She's probably still awake though." Kaoru looked at him like he was crazy.

"Sorry dude but I'm not calling her this late. Besides, what would I even say? 'Hi this is Kaoru. Kyo told me I should call you up because we're both insomniacs.' Yeah, real smooth." Kyo laughed.

"Alright alright point taken. But tomorrow we're all going to hang out ok?" Kaoru gave Kyo an amused look and nodded. "I really should go now, Hitomi is going to freak out. Goodnight Kao, see you in the morning."

"Yeah, goodnight Kyo." Kyo slid the key card into the slot and walked into his room. Hitomi was looking out the window. He walked up to her and slid his arms around her from behind and leaned forward a bit to kiss her on the cheek. She turned to look at him and he could tell she was less than pleased. He sighed. "I'm in trouble, aren't I?"

"Who's Jae?"

"My best friend"

"Your best friend? Why am I just hearing about her now?"

"Everyone is just hearing about her now. I was just in the hallway telling Kao about her." He sighed again. Great, she was in defensive mode. All he wanted to do was sleep but he just knew she wasn't going to let it go so easily.

"I'm going to get to meet her right?"

"Yeah of course. Everyone can meet her tomorrow." She seemed satisfied with that answer because she turned around and kissed him roughly. He started walking backwards towards the bed, both of them undressing each other the whole way. They spent the next few hours in coital bliss.

Yawning, Jae got up from the couch and stumbled towards the shower. She moaned a little as the hot water beat down on her sore muscles. She made a mental note never to sleep on the couch again. It's not like she meant to fall asleep there. She was just mentally exhausted and apparently didn't make it upstairs before she passed out. Stepping out of the shower, she toweled off and got dressed in a black suit with a black corset underneath. After straightening her hair she moved to the kitchen to put on a kettle for tea. After having a couple cups of tea, she headed out the door to make her way to the club. Upon arrival, she greeted the few employees that were there and headed upstairs to her office to get some paperwork done.

Kyo and Hitomi were in the shower when they heard a loud bang on their door.

"Will you guys hurry the fuck up? We're supposed to go see Jae and you two are going to make us late. Kaoru is about to do a really good impersonation of that creepy little girl from The Exorcist" Die yelled through the door. Hitomi smiled coyly at Kyo and unwrapped her legs from around his waist.

"Don't worry baby I'll handle this." She stepped out of the shower wrapping a towel around herself and went to the door. She swung it open and fixed Die and the rest of them with a small, obviously fake smile. "Kyo and I will be along shortly. Just send the car back for us." And with that she shut the door, not even bothering to wait for a response.

"Bitch" Die muttered to the door and the guys grunted in response while all glaring at the shut door.

"Well you heard the boss, let's go" Kaoru muttered dryly.

The four of them filed into Lotus and took seats around the bar area. Kaoru looked around but didn't see Jae anywhere. He saw an employee and asked where she was. A few moments later, he saw Jae approaching them and gave her a warm smile. She returned it as she made it over to them and took a seat next to Shinya.

"Hey guys, it's good to see you again." Then her face fell a little. "One of you is missing. Where's Kyo? Is everything alright?" Shinya cleared his throat.

"He was a little...busy this morning, but he and Hitomi will be here soon I'm sure" he said, giving her a shy smile. The sad look that briefly passed over her features didn't go un-noticed by Kaoru. She looked at all of them curiously.

"Did we have a meeting scheduled for today? I've been so brain-dead lately I can barely tell the days apart." She laughed nervously. Die gave her one of his award-winning smiles.

"Nope, no meeting. We just wanted to hang out. Actually, Kao here told us that Kyo and you are best friends. Why don't you tell us some stories or something while we're waiting on the slowpokes to get here?"

"Are you sure? I might get a little emotional. It tends to happen when I tell stories about him. I'm sure it will be worse now seeing as how our relationship definately isn't what it used to be. But if you'd like to hear some then I'd be happy to share them with you."

"Don't worry Jae. Shinya is really good at comforting beautiful women, isn't that right Shin-chan?" Die smiled and nudged Shinya in the ribs. Hearing that, Shinya turned about five different shades of red and nervously glanced at Jae. She smiled and winked at him.

"Well as long as Shinya is here to comfort me I guess it will be ok" she said. They all laughed at this and then Jae began telling them all about her and Kyo's friendship and the many things they went through together. True to her word, Jae was crying by the end of the story. And true to Die's word, Shinya was comforting her by letting her cry into his chest while he held her and rubbed soothing circles on her back. Everyone had somber looks on their faces. Jae's story had ended with the last night Jae ever saw Kyo, up until recently, the night they had made love. It was a tragic tale and even Die was saddened by it.

Kyo and Hitomi finally decided to grace the group with their presence. They walked into Lotus all smiles and Hitomi had her arm wrapped around Kyo's waist while his was curled around her shoulders. The group seated at the bar didn't even notice them come in, all their attention was focused on the heart-broken woman with them. Kaoru glanced around and noticed them on their way over. Kyo waved a little and Kaoru returned the gesture before getting up and heading over to Jae.

"They have the worst fucking timing" he muttered. The rest of them looked over and saw the happy couple coming towards them.

"Get her out of here" Die said quietly.

"Already ahead of you" was Kaoru's response. He got her to sit up and that was when Kyo saw her face. His heart sank into the pit of his stomach. She was crying and he wasn't the one comforting her. He remembered what he had been doing instead and felt horribly guilty. She had needed him and where was he, fucking his girlfriend senseless in the shower. He noticed Kaoru take her arm gently like he was afraid she would shatter into a million pieces if he wasn't careful. Kyo watched sullenly as they disappeared up the staircase and out of sight. Once he reached the rest of his friends he wasted no time in asking the quesiton that was eating him alive.

"What's wrong with Jae?" They all glanced at each other and Shinya shot Die a stern look.

Toshiya was the first to speak up. "Nothing, she's just having a rough time of it. She seems like an amazingly strong person so I'm sure she'll pull through it just fine." They all nodded in agreement. Kyo felt so awful. He didn't even realize he was scowling until he heard Hitomi ask him if he was alright.

"Yeah I'm fine" he mumbled and flopped down in his seat. He looked at the staircase longingly. Take good care of her Kaoru he thought.

Kaoru was seated in one of the chairs in Jae's office. As soon as they got inside, she excused herself to the bathroom to get cleaned up. Even though they hadn't known each other long, he already felt a connection to her. He couldn't understand what possessed Kyo to leave her behind. He frowned. He also couldn't understand why Kyo would stay with Hitomi. He wasn't a judgmental person by nature, but Hitomi was nothing more than a manipulative, gold-digging bitch, and that was putting it mildly.

"Why the long face?" Jae asked. Kaoru jerked a bit, startled. Jae placed her hand on his arm. "Sorry, I didn't mean to scare you." He looked up at her and gave a small smile.

"It's alright, I was just thinking. Are you feeling better? We don't have to go downstairs if you don't feel comfortable with it." Jae smiled.

"No we should go. I'm not going to hide out up here but thank you for the offer anyway." Kaoru ran a hand through his hair and got up. He wasn't sure exactly what he felt when he looked at Jae, but somewhere in the back of his mind he knew he didn't want it to go away. She was obviously hurting but she pushed it aside because she wanted her friend to be happy. He was also aware that there had to be more to the story but he wasn't going to push her. They had just met after all. Without even thinking he slid his hand in hers. She smiled at him and gave it a little squeeze as they headed back downstairs.

Jae noticed Kyo as soon as the group came into view. She could immediately tell from his posture that he was upset. Her eyes moved to the woman sitting besides him. She figured this must be his girlfriend. Jae studied her. Even though she was seated, she could tell that the woman was shorter than Kyo. She had waist length silky black hair, brown eyes, and was all in all very pretty. During her observation, she was vaguely aware they were moving and soon she found herself at the bar between Kaoru and Shinya. She looked down and noticed hers and Kaoru's hands were still entwined. He must've noticed too because shortly after he let go. Jae looked up again to see Kyo and Hitomi making their way over to her. She mumbled something inaudible under her breath and tried to force her facial features into something more pleasant than the scowl she was now exhibiting. She felt a pair of hands come up and rest on her shoulders. She turned to look at Kaoru but he was looking ahead, probably watching Kyo and Hitomi. Even so, she knew the gesture meant that he was there for her if she needed him. She inwardly sighed and looked up to find the couple standing in front of her. Kyo cleared his throat a little.

"Jae this is Hitomi, my girlfriend. Hitomi, this is Jae, my best friend." Jae bowed her head towards Hitomi.

"It's nice to meet you." Hitomi regarded her for a moment. Jae was a lot prettier than she expected. She would even go as far to say that she was beautiful.

"Hitomi?" She glanced up to see Kyo giving her a strange look. Then she looked to Jae. "Oh right, it's nice to meet you too" and then gave Jae a fake smile. Jae saw right through her cheery facade. There was something about Hitomi that she just didn't like. She tried to push the thought away because this was the woman that Kyo had chose to love and she felt she should at least give her a chance. Still, in the back of her mind. there was this nagging feeling that something was amiss.

Kyo looked around at all his bandmates. His eyes landed on Kaoru last. He was surprised to see him watching Jae almost..protectively? He noticed the rest of his friends were doing the same. He wondered what had happened before he got there to make them all so tense. Then his eyes darted back to Kaoru. His hands were resting on Jae's shoulders. Kyo felt a pang of jealously ripple through him. He remembered that when they came downstairs they were holding hands. He narrowed his eyes. She was his Jae. And Kaoru was touching her, comforting her, doing things that Kyo had always done. To say it bothered him would have been an understatement. If Kaoru thinks he can just...wait a minute. Kyo's expression softened. Why was he being this way? He and Jae were only friends. True, they were closer than most, but still he had no right to be angry over any other man paying her attention, even if he was a friend. Besides, Kyo didn't think he was doing a very good job comforting Jae so maybe it was better thant Kaoru was taking care of her. He let out a shaky breath. How did things between them get so fucked up?