Title: Making Ends Meet

Category: Anime/Manga » Hana Yori Dango

Author: GirlAnime

Language: English

Rating: T

Genre: General/Romance

Chapter 1: Chpt 1 My Luck Is The Worst!

Wow, it's been FOREVER since I've attempted fan-fiction. At any rate, this is a Hana Yori Dango (Boys Over Flowers) AU (alternate universe) fan-fic! Stick with me here as I've just barely gotten the storyline together myself. Obviously there will be tie-overs with the manga but hopefully nothing that would spoil the manga for you if you've not read all of it

I'm thinking the setting of this will have to end up being Japan (was thinking about putting it to somewhere in the states). That being said, please know that while I love Japanese culture I know very little in reality. If you see something's off and wish to bring it to my attention feel free to review me or e-mail me. I'm very open to feedback as I would like to increase my writing capabilities. So please, review if you would as I eat comments up like cookies! I'll try to crank out chapters whenver it's possible and hopefully if I'm lucky, people will like it !

Note: I'm not sure what the rating on this will be so for now I'm going to rate it pretty strictly as R. I have a vague idea of what happens but we'll see how it goes.

UPDATE (06/30/15): I'm going back and editing this story appropriately. The main plot will not change but some of the details will so please feel free to go back and read, if for nothing else than to refresh your mind! :) This chapter has a few typo and grammar updates, nothing major. My semi-colon abuse isn't going anywhere, deal with it. :p

Obligatory Disclaimer: I don't own Hana Yori Dango, Yoko Kamio does and I love her for creating it

Making Ends Meet

Chapter 1: My Luck Is The Worst!

Great. Just freakin' great. Tsukushi thought to herself as she stomped along the crowded side-walk. Not more than 3 hours ago had she been having a business lunch with the boss of Tanaka Industries and things had been going smoothly…well, until her mother had burst through the door that is. Among mistaking her boss for a secret lover of Tsukushi's, her mother had also assumed Tsukushi was still dating Junpei Oribe; a rather notorious model who took a passing interest in Tsukushi at one time. She made sure to do this so audibly that everyone in the restaurant could hear her. As untrue as this was, her boss didn't seem to believe her profuse apologies and denials of such statements made by her mother, even after managing to calm her down and set her straight.

"The damage was already done from last week so I suppose it's no big surprise they were looking to fire me." Tsukushi muttered to herself as she stepped on the train remembering last week's incident with Mr. Kunisawa. Mr. Amon Kunisawa. Tsukushi remembered lividly. Albeit devastatingly handsome, Mr. Kunisawa was, in short, a jerk. From demeaning remarks to completely absurd requests, he had pestered almost every woman in the Tanaka Industries building either into bed with him or into a nervous breakdown. When he decided to give Tsukushi a derogatory slap on the buttocks was when Tsukushi decided to use brute force to knock some sense into him.

…And that's where it started to go bad. Tsukushi stepped off the train and glanced around nonchalantly. She tried to begin justifying getting fired. At least I wouldn't have to deal with that jackass anymore. Sadly, the hitting incident had been right in front of her supervisor and last she checked, hitting one of your co-workers into your superior who as a result crashed into the expensive, brand-new copier, didn't exactly bode well.

Tsukushi wobbled her head around and squared her shoulders as she neared her apartment complex. She was hoping to never have to ask the landlord for any leniency, however in light of being fired she had little choice lest she suddenly acquire the ability to lay golden eggs. Deciding that this ability would most certainly not show up in this lifetime, she stood herself in front of the landlord's office and rapped on the door politely.

"Come in," an unfamiliar voice responded abruptly.

"Mrs. Sugoshi?" Tsukushi peered into the small office. She was surprised to find that instead of Mrs. Sugoshi, a small pleasant older lady, she found a pair of emotionless eyes staring through a slim set of spectacles back at her. "Um, where's Mrs. Sugoshi?"

"She's currently in her quarters packing all her belongings. Are you one of her former tenants?" The scrutinizing man asked and stared at Tsukushi with a mix of disdain and arrogance.

"Yes but what do you mean former?" As Tuskushi stepped into the once warm and inviting office she noticed that all personal effects had been removed from the desk at which Mrs. Sugoshi had once kept many photographs upon. Not only the desk, Tsukushi noted, but also from around the entire room. Everything was barren and empty looking as if it had been cleared out by a whirlwind.

"Mrs. Sugoshi's mortgage was bought out at the bank and we're the company representatives sent to clear out the premises. This being the time for rent, it's much easier for us to inform all former tenants that they have until Friday to move all personal effects off the property before deconstruction will begin." Pressing his glasses closer to his face the man returned to his reading of paperwork, which Tsukushi had noticed he was reading with mild annoyance. Or perhaps it was her he was reacting to with annoyance. Either way at this point she couldn't discern one thing from another that involved anyone other than herself. Within the same day she had managed to get fired and lose her place of residency, how unlucky could you get?

"But surely Mrs. Sugoshi wasn't behind in her mortgage payments. I remember she had to take out a mortgage to refurbish some of the apartments but nothing that would have put her behind so-"

"What was your name Miss…?" For the first time the man actually looked Tsukushi in the eyes.

"Er, Tsukushi Makino." She replied, with shivers running down her spine as she uttered each syllable of her name. The man at the desk sifted through a folder and stopped upon a document containing a picture of the woman standing before him.

"Ah yes, Ms. Tsukushi Makino, age 23, single, idealistic and extremely stubborn." He read off in a slightly flat voice. "The researcher said you might be a problem tenant to move out. Mrs. Sugoshi's financial situation is a business matter best left to the businessmen to take care of. You should be grateful at what I've divulged already." The man quickly shuffled through some papers in a separate folder and pulled out a business card and stood up from his barricade of the small desk and paperwork he had been reviewing. "If you have any complaints you can take it up with the company that this transaction has taken place with." He thrust out a business card, which Tsukushi reluctantly took and examined in disbelief.

"…Doumyoji Enterprises?" Tsukushi blinked. If she was correct this was one, if not the, largest companies in Japan.

"Nishida, could you show Ms. Makino out of our office as I'm sure she has a lot of packing to do between now and tomorrow." The man with glasses said as he strolled back to his desk.

Suddenly Tsukushi became aware of a man in a black business suit standing behind her to her left, positioned conveniently beside the door that led into the office. The man named Nishida simply nodded and gracefully but firmly escorted Tsukushi out of the office and shut the door behind her.

Tsukushi, still in shock, moved her feet towards her designated apartment with her feet feeling like lead every step of the way. She couldn't believe her misfortune sometimes. Did other people have these problems or was it just her uncanny ability to have one tragic event after another follow her?

As she closed the door to her apartment she could feel the anger welling up within her. Step in and remove shoes; three steps, remove jacket; five steps, place keys on counter; ten steps, open fire escape door; two steps onto the pseudo-balcony, calmly breathe in and out. As she inhaled in the muggy afternoon air she thought firmly of what she would've like to have said to all the people she was angry at for her circumstances. Amon Kunisawa, Shiro Tanaka, that guy on the train who almost grabbed her ass, the guys in Mrs. Sugoshi's office who had been so abrupt with her, the Doumyoji Corporation, she thought of all these people….

…and proceeded to yell her raw feelings out into the back alleyway with all the heart she had.