1:30AM, Ootori Mansion, Kyouya's Room
Ootori Group, Annual Board Member Meeting
Ootori Group, Year-End Financial Summary
Ootori Group, Strategic Plan for the New Year
Kyouya Ootori sat at his desk, a recent university graduate and newly minted Tokyo director of Ootori Group. He smiled slightly at the pile of meticulously prepared and reviewed documents he had ready for the big board meeting the next morning – yes, I'm well-prepared and this proposal is bulletproof, surely everything will go smoothly. He allowed himself to relish in a long stretch, then began to tidy his desk and prepare for bed.
"Kyouya!" A loud hiss came from his bedspace upstairs. "Kyouya!"
He froze. How – who – had gotten into his bedroom? Fuyumi was on holiday with her family in Bali, and his elder brothers (both married) were also in various locations internationally. His father should be fast asleep, and he was certain nobody had come in through the bedroom door – he would have seen them from his desk.
Slowly, he turned to look up at the stairs, every hair on his body raised. Who was his intruder? Kyouya's hand moved slowly to the hidden button beneath his desk –
"Dammit, Kyouya, don't press that! It's just me!"
"…Me who?" He spoke in a low voice, still trying to make out the identity of his intruder as they moved through the shadows upstairs. It wasn't Tamaki or a host – he knew that for sure. It was a woman.
He didn't have to guess anymore as long brunette hair attached to a lithe body blurred down his staircase. The intruder ran towards him and simultaneously wrapped him in a bear hug while slapping his hand away from the emergency button.
It then clicked. The hair, the faint smell of citrus and jasmine –
"Kyouya, you have to hide me out here until end of day tomorrow. You have to, I don't have anywhere else to go and I'm sick of being thrown into o-miai with creepy guys who are after Dad's money and – are you okay?"
The girl stepped back, surveying Kyouya as the color drained from his face.
"Honoka…" he barely managed. "What are you doing here?" Standing before him, dressed in a simple white blouse and dark denim, was the next-door neighbor, his only genuine childhood friend, and someone he hadn't seen since elementary school.
Honoka rolled her eyes. "I finished university too, you know – I've been traveling and just recently came back to begin working at the company like Dad wants. But I didn't think he'd throw me into o-miai this quickly! I'm too young to get married, let alone in a traditional way to a traditional guy – Kyouya, save me, surely I can hide out here for the next 24 hours?"
And with that, she ran back upstairs to grab her backpack and change into sleepwear.
There were very few times in his life when Kyouya had been rendered absolutely speechless – and of those few, most were due to a certain French blond man. But two moments had been instigated by the woman in his bathroom. The first was at the airport when she left to study in America for middle school – and the second was now, when she announced her sleepover at their first reunion in twelve years.
Kyouya glanced down at his stack of yearly reports and proposals, heaving a sigh. So much for everything going smoothly.
A/N: Thanks for reading - please leave reviews! I'll respond to each individually.
Disclaimer: Don't own Ouran - just Honoka!