My "Ikemen" Butler

Chapter 31: My Mistress' Freedom

              The air in the room seemed tense somehow. Mr. Kokubo was looking at Kai Murasaki with a smirk on his face and Mr. and Mrs. Murasaki can’t help but wonder why. It was as if Mr. Kokubo was thinking of something that would displease them and they can’t understand it.

            They were now all sitting face to face with one another in Mr. Kokubo’s Tokyo office as Mr. Kokubo called them early that day to talk about something important.

            “How is your relationship with my daughter Mr. Murasaki,” Hiromi’s dad asked curiously while they were enjoying tea.

            “A—about that…I need to talk to you about something Mr. Kokubo,” Kai said with a glimpse of sadness in his eyes.

            Oh no! Don’t tell me he’s going to tell my father that I’ve been displeasing him. Hiromi thought to herself nervously when Kai said those words.

            “What is it Mr. Murasaki,” Mr. Kokubo asked confusingly.

            “I’m here…to decline the deal,” Kai said with his face full of sadness as he docked down for an apology.

            “What?” Mr. and Mrs. Kokubo said in a chorus as the stared at their son in disbelief.

            “Our business, I have a lot of plans for it. That’s why I’m studying abroad so that I can learn a lot on how to make our business grow. I’m on top of my game right now and having a wife, I feel like it won’t help me,” Kai explained. Hiromi looked at him confusingly. To her, he doesn’t look like the same Kai she met that first day. He’s not the same Kai with a heart of stone that no matter how many times she begged for freedom he just won’t let her go. And he’s definitely not the same Kai she hated.

            Everyone in the room got eerily quiet as if they were all trying to digest what Kai just said. But Hiromi knows her father quite well; she knows she won’t let this slide. I know he’ll do something to continue the deal.

            “Very well then, the deal is off. I’m sorry that it has to end this way but it was still fun to make your acquaintance,” Mr. Kokubo said as he stood up to shake hands with Kai and his parents.

            “What?” Hiromi said in pure shock as she looked at his father.

            “Anything wrong dear,” Mr. Kokubo asked Hiromi and Hiromi just shook his head quietly.

            This is insane! What did my father ate? A whole bag of crazy candy? This is so not like him to let big money go. Hiromi thought to herself as she watched her father shake hands with Kai and his parents and just like that, the deal was off.

            “It was nice to be able to spend time with you even for awhile Hiromi. I’m…I’m gon’na miss you,” Kai said as he took Hiromi’s hand with tears starting to well up his eyes.

            “Wh—why,” Hiromi asked confusingly.

            Kai just smiled and pulled her closer to him. He began stroking his hair as he whispered, “I don’t want you to cry anymore. Please…please…always smile Hiromi. Just like that time when we went to see the ocean. I want you to stay happy like that.”

            Kai broke away from Hiromi and gently kissed her in the forehead as tears was trickling down his face. “I love you,” he whispered before he totally let him go and just like that, he was gone. Hiromi stared at him until he was totally gone. She doesn’t know why, she doesn’t know how, but somehow as he stared at his back while he was walking away, a tear rolled down from her eyes.

            “I’m sorry,” she mouthed to herself.

            “I thought you don’t like him but you seemed like you’re actually dismayed to see him go,” Mr. Kokubo said as she went to his daughter.

            “Why did you agree to end the deal,” Hiromi asked confusingly as she stared at his father once more.

            “Let’s just say I got a better offer. Mr. Oda?” Mr. Kokubo said and next thing they know, a young man popped out from a room inside Mr. Kokubo’s office. Hiromi’s jaws dropped as she recognized him. Takeru Sato who is now an Oda. The man that Kaoru’s father adopted in replacement for him.

            “Nice to meet you Miss Hiromi,” Takeru said with a smile on his face.