Nice.
She'd called him that once, he remembers, and it's been lingering on his mind more than it should have.
What does nice mean? He'd looked it up in the dictionary once.
The first book he picked up had defined it as being "pleasing, agreeable, delightful"-- but that surely could not have been what she had meant. That was his business façade, and she very well knew it. So he continued searching, pursuing an explanation in what he convinced himself was not-- definitely not-- growing interest and desperation.
The second definition pointed him to the word "kind"-- so what does "kind" mean? Benevolent, indulgent, considerate? That definitely was not him. No way, no how. He simply did not work that way. No. He was not benevolent-- that was more his reciprocal; he was indulgent to few, and often because he felt that arguing otherwise would prove useless; and perhaps most of all, he was not considerate unless it brought him merit.
Ah yes, merit-- that was a word, a concept he knew. A claim to respect and praise; it meant excellence, worth. He knew this motivation, and always found a way in which it was gained.
Going back to his search for definitions, the third had stated that "nice" had meant "suitable, respectable, appropriate, proper". Of all the definitions listed, this possessed the most accuracy-- though logically, Haruhi could not have meant this, either. Why would she point out what was obvious to her and others?
He would not ask Haruhi what she had meant. Pride, perhaps, got in the way; he'd prefer to shrug it off and act as though he had dismissed it as a triviality. But nagging curiosity…
He also knew that if it weren't Haruhi that had said this, he wouldn't have to pretend not to care. Because with any other host…he wouldn't pay them any mind, he wouldn't be interested. But because it was Haruhi, he was.
Because it was Haruhi, it caught his attention. A commoner, a scholarship student, a female host. How could such a simple girl catch his attention so easily? How was it that she was never bothered, flustered, or otherwise fazed by the other hosts' actions, and yet could read them all so easily? Her personality-- honest, straightforward, and hopelessly naïve-- endeared her to many. She could reach out to everyone on a personal level, and could so easily enter their personal worlds without ever intending to do so.
Most of all, she understood everyone around her.
But she thought he was nice.
So why?
It was something that maybe, maybe, he'd be able to ask her someday. Because at this moment…she was smiling at him from across the room, and he could only be glad she thought of him that way. Maybe he wasn't close to her as were the twins, or Tamaki, or even the seniors-- but for now…being "nice" was good enough.
Because the amicable smile that she was directing at him possessed a certain intangible merit that made him want to receive it more often.
He smiled back.
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My second fanfiction.
I tried to write Kyouya as being a little softer...and yes, the "abruptness" at the end was somewhat intended. xD