Chapter 4: Guilty Pleasure
Candi's POV
When I didn't see anyone in the living room, I shrugged. I didn't really feel the need to look for anyone after scrubbing at my face for 10 minutes. I got the black marks off, but my skin was bright red and stung as a result. I dragged my feet towards my room, and I shoved my door open.
"Candi" said a dark voice. I opened my dropping eyes, and Kyouya stood there, lacking a shirt. He was just in his dark jeans, and he looked pretty hot, honestly. If only he wasn't glaring at me.
"What are you doing in my room without a shirt?" I muttered. I didn't bother to pick up my feet as I walked to my bed.
"What are you talking about? This is MY ROOM."
"Jeez. Chill" I said while yawning. I could feel the sleep tugging at my consciousness. I laid down on my bed and gave into the freedom.
Except all too quickly, it wasn't freedom.
Kyouya's POV
I sighed when I returned to my room. Candi was still there, sleeping on my bed. I swear, she was conscious one second and asleep the next. I picked up my Chameleon and sat down on the comfortable chair in my room.
'We have a competitor in the business world who would like to join forces with us. The Poen Company and the Ootouri Group have created an engagement between you and Kiri Poen to settle the matter. We expect the wedding to happen at the end of your first year of college.'
My Father sent me that email this morning, and I am still baffled by it. Of course, I had replied, agreeing to the proposition. Well, it wasn't really a proposition. It was more a command. One that would change my life forever.
I looked over at Candi. She had asked what was bothering me, and wasn't convinced by the classic reply of 'I'm fine'. She was either more blunt than Haruhi, or she could see through any sort of façade and straight to the true emotions behind the words of people. Or maybe both.
I remembered our conversation earlier today. 'My fear is of a person.' Who was she afraid of? I could either use this person to my advantage and gain leverage over Candi or I could use this information to blackmail her. Still, she did nothing to me, so I didn't have any sort of reason to do that yet. Other than barging into my room and falling asleep on my bed, of course.
For some reason, I actually didn't mind her company. She didn't demand attention like the rest of Host Club did, and she wasn't romantically pursuing me. Nor would she ever romantically pursue me. I still had a hard time believing the fact that Candi, someone with a very high social status and an even larger amount of power, would be gay.
Anyways, she still was asleep on my bed, and it was getting late. I looked at the time in the corner of my screen, and was surprised to find that it was already 11 pm.
Sighing, I looked back up at my bed. Candi only occupied a small fraction of the large, King sized bed. She was curled up on one side, not even using any of the large blankets. I suppose I could just use the other ¾ of the bed, but I don't even want to think about what Tamaki would say if he found me in the same bed as Candi. There would be no end of the teasing from the twins. Honey would innocently ask me awkward questions. Mori and Haruhi would just… well, wonder in their heads why I did that.
I changed into my flannel pajama bottoms, and didn't even bother with a shirt. If Candi saw me, then that wouldn't be a problem. She was gay.
I was about to get into my bed when an idea struck me. What if I just went into her room and slept in her bed?
When I examined her room, I noticed everything was green. Some things were the same shades as grass. Others the shade of vomit. When that idea struck me, I decided I couldn't sleep in her room. So I trudged back to my room, and sat down again in my chair. I rested my head against the wall, and must have drifted off to sleep, because I felt free and relaxed.
My neck hurt. A lot. I looked at the clock, since it was still dark out. 4 am. I sighed. I must have fallen asleep in my chair. I dragged myself to my bed, and sighed in the warmth of the blankets. I must have been really cold, because it was warm as soon as I got in. For some reason, I think I heard the words 'Help' and 'Door', but I must be thinking them in my head. I didn't care, and I wanted to sleep.
Candi's POV
My eyes shot open. I couldn't remember my dream, but I knew exactly what it was about. The pain was too great, and it really didn't help that there was someone else in my bed.
Resisting tears, I crawled out of bed, hoping to not wake whoever it was. I didn't want them to attack me after realizing I was awake. This wasn't my room. I slowly walked out, hoping that none of the floorboards would creak, and the doorknob wouldn't be too loud.
"Where are you going, Candi?" a voice in my head asked me. I was almost through the doorway. Please don't let her to have woken up now.
No. No. No. She was gone. Long gone. I quickly closed the door behind me, and I dashed off to my room. It was difficult to not close the door without slamming it. I leaned back against the door, but slid to the ground as my mind began to crumble.
'No' I told myself. Crying was useless. I just need to sleep. I need to listen to reason.
Kyouya's POV
I woke up on my own today, thank goodness. I sighed at the prospect of leaving today, though. I did like this vacation, even if it's just a little bit. I learned a lot about Candi, and that was very beneficial. I wonder what I could do with the information I've received, though. I don't think blackmailing her about the fact that she's gay would work. She is not the type to care if that information gets out. I don't know the details of her fear, and I couldn't afford to assume things when I don't know a lot about her.
I sighed. At least I was working. Even if I couldn't do anything with the information I had, I still knew a few things about her. I got up out of bed so I could stretch.
"Hey Kyouya" said a voice. Candi walked into my room casually, and sat down in my comfy chair. I sat on the covers of my bed. "Sorry for crashing here yesterday."
Ah. So that would explain why my bed was so warm last night. Well this is awkward. "It's alright. You must have been very tired. Are you feeling better now?"
She smiled. "You don't have to don your mask when you're with me. I don't care about it."
I laughed. She saw right through me in 3 sentences and a new record time of 9 seconds. How on earth was she able to see into my inner conscious, where my true thoughts weren't even voiced? Is my act starting to fall apart? "You're very frustrating."
"I've been told that many a time."
"Just how many secrets are you keeping from the world?"
"1. And all that relate to it."
I chuckled. "Must be a big secret."
I heard her tone turn sad. "Yea. It is."
The conversation went silent, but it wasn't awkward. I didn't feel the need to say anything. Strange. Normally, I'm either trying to get information out of someone or I'm too busy working to really pay attention to what they're saying. Or I'm alone. But with Candi, I didn't even really need try. She was such a laid-back person that conversation wasn't awkward even for a second.
Well, except when you're talking about sleeping in the same bed as someone.
"Hey, why do you bother with the Host Club? Other than for the connections you establish along the way, of course."
"I just do. I get some sort of happiness sometimes, but it's definitely not because of the girls."
"Lol."
I was confused for a second. "Did you just spell out the acronym for 'laugh out loud'?"
Candi burst into hysterical laughter. "Did I? Holy crap, I sound like an airhead!" I smiled along with her. Why was I smiling though? I didn't care. I liked this sort of relaxation.
Kaoru's POV
I furrowed my eyebrows as I walked in the hall. I had just finished showering, so I had a towel drying my hair as I walked, and I almost missed Candi walking into Kyouya's room. She knows he has THE blood type, right? Well, she was going to learn that soon enough.
Another thing that got me thinking was: Why is she going into Kyouya's room? And missing a shirt? She was wearing just a bright green sports bra and a pair of incredibly short shorts, and that was very suggestive. Then again, this was Candi we were talking about. She probably was too lazy to put on clothes this morning. I chuckled, wondering about Kyouya's reaction to the clothes. I dealt with models a lot, and I didn't ever notice half-naked girls anymore. Kyouya on the other hand… well, he might have it handled. He was such a strict person that he would remain professional even though she wasn't.
Candi's POV
"What's up with the lack of clothes?" Kyouya asked me. I raised my eyebrows.
"Is the color distracting? You aren't much better." Kyouya was simply wearing flannel pajama bottoms. He didn't have a shirt on, so he was technically half-naked as well.
"You've got a point" he noted. "But still."
"Too lazy this morning" I said, shrugging.
"How are you too lazy to put on clothes?" he asked, confused.
"Doesn't it take effort to do so?" I asked in response.
"You sound like a politician, answering my question with a question."
I laughed. After I was done laughing, I sighed. I felt my mind slip towards sleep. I lolled my head back and closed my eyes, and black took over my mind.
Kyouya's POV
Seriously? I mean… really?! She just fell asleep! In my room! Again! Was she narcoleptic or something?!
I sighed, but wondered what I should do now. I needed to shower before everyone else was up. It was already 8, and I'm surprised Tamaki wasn't already dancing through the halls so everyone would wake up. I'm always grumpy when I first wake up. Come to think of it, I wasn't a demon when I woke up and Candi came in. This got my eyebrows to furrow in thought.
She was such a relaxed person that conversation with her just felt calm. Most people cower when I'm talking to them, except in the case of Tamaki. He was too stupid to care, and even stupider for acting like an idiot when I did scare him. Honestly, how did he… never mind.
I sighed again. My thoughts were beginning to consume me. I needed to work. I've already finished my homework, but that meant ample opportunity to check the stock market to see if there was anything new. I stood up, but then wondered where my Chameleon was. I hate it when I don't know where it is. I saw it on the coffee table, right next to where Candi put up her feet. If she had wrecked my Chameleon, I would have killed her. I'm not joking by a whole lot.
I looked at Candi's sleeping face. You'd expect me to think that she was cute and all that, because her face was peaceful or something like that.
But no. Her mouth was hanging slightly open, and she was snoring. Quietly, albeit, but she was snoring. I sat down on the coffee table to study at her face. You rarely see people willingly fall asleep in front of others, especially in the world I live in.
I could see a bit of white teeth behind her upper lip. Her cheeks were pale, which made sense because she wasn't Japanese. I noticed light freckles on her cheeks. Upon further inspection, I found that there were light freckles on her forehead, shoulders and arms. I wonder how she got them. Freckles were a wonder to me, since I've never had them.
I looked again at her face, taking in every detail. Her skin was flawless: perfectly smooth, not a hint of acne, and I don't even think she was wearing make-up. I'm not surprised though: if Candi was too lazy to dress in anything more than her bra and short-shorts, then she wouldn't even consider putting on make-up. I wonder if she even did anything to her hair. The elbow-length auburn hair was a close shade to Hikaru and Kaoru's. Hers was just a little bit redder. Her hair was mostly straight, but at the last few inches of each lock, the hair naturally curled in just the slightest.
I could smell a faint hint of some sort of conditioner that she must use. She wouldn't put on any sort of perfumes. Deodorant couldn't smell that good. Even though the smell was strange, it did smell really good. I was going to have to find it. Maybe if I just snuck into her bathroom and checked on the conditioner bottle for a millisecond, then that would make my life a lot easier.
What? I blinked in surprise. Then I shook my head. Did I really just get the idea that I should go find out what conditioner she used? And why was I observing her anyways? I never do this weird sort of thing to people, so why her?
I opened my eyes, deciding to get up, but I snuck a glance at Candi. She was stirring. Shoot. What should I do now? I hadn't moved yet, but maybe if I didn't then she would go back to sleep. This is what I get for being weird, even for a moment.
Candi's eyes shot open, and the turquoise color caught me off guard. They were wide with fear. Her eyes were unfocused, like there was a layer of glass on top of them. Then her eyes focused on me. It was like that glass on top of her eyes broke, and the raw fear in her soul hit me like I ran into a wall. Her eyes could express her own emotions so powerfully that it literally knocked the breath out of me. After a second, I realized that might have been from Candi launching herself forward and hugging me tightly.
The force she used to hug me knocked me backwards. Candi was now on top of me, but she was too busy crushing my ribcage and burying her head into my chest to notice. I would never have guessed in a million years that Candi had that much upper body strength. It felt weird, since my back was cold against the glass of the coffee table, but Candi was warm.
I wasn't sure what to do, however. Candi was shaking softly as she hugged me, so I could guess that she was scared. But of what? It's possible that she had some sort of dream about that person who scares her. I decided that it would just be best to hug her back. I wonder how awkward I was in placing my arms around her bare back. However, her shaking reduced dramatically. After a minute, I relaxed my arms, as they were starting to ache in their tense position.
After a few minutes, she stopped shaking entirely, and I heard quiet snoring. I sighed. Now what was I supposed to do?! If I stay like this, then someone will notice one or both of our absences, and then upon investigation would notice that Candi was on top of me and we were both half-naked. On the other hand, if I move, then Candi might wake up. For some reason, I felt like it was important she stay asleep.
Maybe it was because the fear that I glimpsed for a second terrified me, and I didn't want to see that expression again.
Maybe it was because I was still trying to figure out what kinds of emotions resulted in being this close to her.
Or maybe it was because it would be a lot of effort to get to sleep again.
It's official. You are literate. Congratulations. I thank you for being smarter than Patrick from SpongeBob (which I don't own). I want smart people to like my story, because it makes me feel just a little bit smarter!
No sarcasm: I love you guys, and thank you for reading my story up to this point!
