Lune was distressed, in all senses of the word. Of course, that was the usual amount of stress that came from dealing with his father, but this time... he really wished he had kept his mouth shut about the incident. He really, really should have known better.
"What happened, Lune?" he'd asked, "what was with all that noise before you hung up?"
And of course, without thinking, he'd blurted out the fact he'd nearly gotten into an accident, that a kind young woman had saved him from being horribly injured or worse, because he'd been so distracted fighting with his father—a matter that they still had yet to resolve.
It was far too naive of him to hope that perhaps his father would handle this normally, like a mature man. He knew that. He knew that and yet part of him still wanted to hope in vain. But all those hopes came crashing down when his father had said those dreaded words.
"Well then, we'll just have to reward this good Samaritan, won't we?" and the awful cheshire grin never left his father's face.
The young man had never wished harder for a time machine to go back and stop himself from making such a blunder. He could only hope that he could reach that young woman before his father found out. Another naive hope, if he was being entirely honest with himself. After all, there were probably a lot of Harus in this tiny town.
Haru, perhaps for the better, was entirely oblivious to the oncoming storm. At least, until she let Moon out in the morning and tripped over a basket laid carefully on the doorstep. After a frenzied amount of flailing and staggering, she managed to at least not fall flat on her face, and turned to look at the object she'd unceremoniously toppled over.
She blinked at the sight of the basket and looked around.
"Did Baron stop by again...?" she wondered, kneeling down to inspect the contents.
But there were no baked goods to be found in this basket. Her eyes almost bugged out of her head when she lifted the blanket and found items that it would take her years to be able to buy. There were a few silver bracelets with sparkling charms, and a golden bracelet with a sun and moon motif. Then there were two incredibly expensive looking watches she was absolutely sure she would never wear. And even further still were two golden necklaces, each bearing a heavy charm that glittered in the sunlight, and a glittering bottle of perfume nestled in the middle of the arrangement.
Moon ran over to inspect the basket, sniffing all over as she likely wondered why her different human wasn't playing with her right that minute. She was entirely unimpressed with the gifts, as she promptly sneezed and took off through the yard again, earning a small giggle from the brunette.
Still, Haru was baffled by the appearance of the items. She highly doubted Baron would do something like this. He didn't seem like the type of guy who would woo a girl with material possessions—not that he seemed to even need to try, with that gentlemanly demeanor and charming smile of his. Though she was getting ahead of herself. Why would he even be trying to woo her?
Get a grip, Haru, she scolded herself, continuing to rifle through the items for some sort of tag, or letter. Perhaps it had been a mistaken delivery? Those thoughts were dashed a moment later when her fingers finally brushed against an envelope tucked into the very bottom of the basket, with her name scrawled across the front in very fancy lettering.
Her stomach twisted and she pressed her lips together in a thin line.
"What in the world is this all about...?" she asked, though the only answer she received was a snort from Moon.
Now confirming that this was probably for her, she tentatively pried open the envelope as carefully as possible. She was... quite honestly still a bit nervous. What if it was for another Haru? But how many people knew there was a Haru staying at Shizuku and Seiji's house during the summer? Grimacing as the cold feeling of nervousness seeped into her very bones, Haru drew a letter from the envelope and began to read.
Dear Haru,
On behalf of your brave rescue of my son, I would like to extend this reward to you.
Of course, this is hardly enough, right? Of course! I can't possibly thank you enough
for such a daring rescue, babe. My son is so grateful, he couldn't even speak when he
told me about the incident! Tracking down one person's not so hard when you've got
my kind of network. Rest assured, I won't rest until you're happy, babe. As a matter of
fact, I'll even give you the greatest reward of all! Why don't you marry my son? After
all, I'm sure he'd love to have an amazing babe like you!
Cheers,
Octavius C. King
"What." Haru couldnt even believe what she had just read, having to read it over several times before it finally clicked. This guy was trying to marry her off to his son? The guy she'd rescued just the other day? She barely even knew him! She hadn't even gotten his name!
She sat down and pinched the bridge of her nose. "Oooh, I feel a headache coming on," she groaned. Already, this summer was turning out to be way more eventful than she'd ever expected it to be. And just who in the world was Octavius C. King?! With a name like that, she was almost certain he was some kind of big shot, especially considering the gifts that had been left at the door. However, it was incredibly creepy to know that he'd had people track her down just for something like this.
The artist bit back a shudder and cast a suspicious look around. She wondered if Baron would know about this guy. After all, being a private investigator, he probably knew a lot about most people in town. Carefully, Haru picked up the basket and called Moon, who raced inside the moment she held the door open, resolving herself to call Baron. Something she had yet to prepare herself for mentally.
In fact, even though she knew she needed to call him, she spent at least fifteen minutes staring at his number before she finally began to punch it into her phone. Was it too forward of her to add him as a contact? But then again, he'd freely given her his number anyway, as well as an invitation to call on him if she ever needed anything. Still, she couldn't shake that embarrassed feeling crawling up her spine and settling in the back of her mind. Her heart even seemed to shudder with every ring of the phone before he finally picked up, and even then, Haru was pretty sure her heart had just done a backflip into her stomach.
"Hello, this is Baron, can I help you?" his voice answered on the other line, and somehow his accent seemed to stand out even more, which did very little to ease her nervousness. Why did he have to sound so darn attractive?! It should be illegal!
"Um, hi, Baron, it's Haru," she began, hoping her shaking voice wasn't too obvious.
"Ah! Miss Haru! A pleasure, as always. To what do I owe this phone call?" he responded brightly, genuinely happy to hear from her. It was almost frustrating how hard this was on her poor little heart.
"Oh...I had a question...There was a basket on my door this morning...or well, Shizuku's. But there was an envelope for me inside, and a bunch of expensive jewelry and perfume..." she was well aware that she was rambling and needed to get to the point, but Baron was listening patiently on the other end of the call, and knowing that just made her feel even more anxious. "The, um, the thing is," she continued, pausing a moment to awkwardly clear her throat, "I don't recognize the name of the sender...so I was wondering if you might? I hope that's no trouble..."
"Of course not, Miss Haru. I would be happy to help you out, if I'm able. You sound a bit unsettled by the whole ordeal...unwanted admirer?" he asked, concern lacing his tone.
"I'm... well, the guy is offering to let me marry his son all because I saved his son from getting in a car wreck that day we ate at the cafe together..." She was honestly so glad that she was not meeting him face to face, as her entire face went bright red at the mention of her run in with him at the cafe.
"...My, that does sound unsettling. What was the name?"
"It came from a...Octavius C. King? I don't know if you'll know him, but you'd probably know better than me." She hoped so, anyway.
There was a sharp intake of breath on the other line, and she could almost feel the frown in his voice when he finally spoke again.
"Miss Haru, Octavius C. King is the name of the business tycoon I told you about that afternoon. I know of him very well. Admittedly, his son is a rather nice boy, but that man... is certainly someone to be wary of."
"Oh," Haru said, as all the breath rushed out of her lungs. The moment he'd said it, of course it made sense. The expensive gifts, the fancy lettering... "Oh I am in big trouble. I need to stop this before he tries to go through with making me marry his son."
"I'll help you as much as I can, Miss Haru. The sooner, the better. I'm not sure I even want to ask how he found out where you were staying..." Baron frowned, furrowing his brows together.
"He...said something about a network..." Haru murmured.
"Ah...no wonder you sounded so unsettled when you called," he sighed and she heard him run a hand through his hair as he leaned back into his chair. "If you'd like, I can stop by and install some temporary security measures?"
"I don't want to be a bother..."
"Please, Miss Haru. I hardly consider you to be a bother. I would be more than happy to help you feel safer after this," he assured her, and she could actually feel the smile in his voice.
"...Okay then, if you insist." She probably ought to let her cousin know what was happening as well, though she had a feeling of what her cousin would say. With the conversation concluded, they said their goodbyes, with Baron promising to come by within an hour or two to install some temporary measures, like an alarm and a security camera that could easily be removed when Shizuku and Seiji returned, if they chose not to keep it.
Feeling as though a heavy weight had just been dropped onto her shoulders, Haru flopped down on the couch and shot a quick text about the situation to her cousin, knowing it was likely that Shizuku wouldn't see it for hours. At least one of them was having fun right now.
Though now she was left with the dilemma of how to stop the man from trying to marry her off to his son. Maybe there was a number she could call? There was no way it'd be that easy though. With another heavy sigh, she got up to google the man who had single-handedly turned her life upside down with one basket of gifts. At least maybe that would give her a starting point, she hoped.
As it turned out, it was easy enough to find a number, considering it was plastered all over the website of his company. Still... it was a shoddily designed web page and she had to wonder why his business was so popular if there was such poor navigation and terrible editing. Whoever made the website either had no idea what they were doing or were paid bare minimum and gave that effort in return.
Barely holding back a grimace, Haru punched the number into her phone and waited.
"Hello! You've reached Cat King Inc. How may I help you today?" an obnoxiously cheery voice answered. Haru had the distinct impression it belonged to someone who was very good at sucking up to the higher ups.
"Uh, hi, my name is Haru, and I'm calling about the gifts I received this morning from Mister, um, Octavius?" This was definitely going to be one of the most awkward phone calls of her life, wasn't it?
"Oh! Miss Haru! Wow, you sound just as kind as I was told!" the voice responded, with even more pep than Haru considered necessary. "Did you want to thank the boss? I'm sure you do! We all did our best to pick out things a young lady like yourself would just love to receive!"
"Er... Actually I wanted to return them. I mean, I can't possibly accept these gifts. Just knowing I saved a life is more than enough, but...marriage..? That's too much. I don't even know this guy!" Haru protested, hoping that at the very least this secretary could be reasoned with.
There was a shocked gasp on the other line. "What? You mean you don't like them? We were so sure you would!"
"That's... That's really not the issue here," the brunette sighed, biting her lip. Already, the headache she had predicted was beginning to form. She wondered if it was a requirement to be unreasonable if you worked for that company. "I don't want to marry someone I don't know."
"Oh, but Lune is super cool! I'm sure you'd love him if you got to know him! His father's looking at lots of potential matches, and you've been picked above all of them! Isn't that exciting?"
"Look, can you just... tell him that while I appreciate the sentiment, I'd really rather not get married over something like this..?" Haru sighed exasperatedly. She could tell the secretary meant well, but... it'd be helpful if they would at least listen to her.
"Oh, you can tell him yourself, he's right here! Sir, Miss Haru is on the phone right now!"
"WHAT?! Let me talk to her!"
Haru held the phone away from her ear and winced at the sudden yell, surprised, and yet not at the same time, at how loud Octavius C. King was.
"Haru, babe, did you like the gifts?" he practically purred and Haru felt her skin crawl.
"Um, that's actually why I was calling...you see, I can't accept these gifts. Especially not the marriage one." Please. Please let him at least be reasonable.
"Whaaat? Why not? Aren't they all spectacular?" he asked, sounding completely shocked. It was only mildly off set by the outdated lingo he seemed to be fond of.
"They're lovely, don't get me wrong but... I just... don't need them," she continued. "And I'm sorry but I really don't want to marry your son. We don't even know each other, and..." She needed a good excuse, something that would really make him stop. "I'm already seeing someone!"
It was a tiny white lie. Innocent enough, and it wasn't like she'd ever have to prove it. She'd probably never even meet the guy or his son again, right?
"Huh?" the man began. There was a long moment of silence and then, "whaddya mean you're seeing someone already?"
"Just... exactly what I said, sir. I'm already seeing someone, and I really like them. So... if you wouldn't mind just... leaving it at this?" she pleaded. Baron was right to say this man was someone to be wary of.
"Who is it, huh? They can't be a better catch than my son!" he boasted, and she could almost imagine him puffing out his chest proudly. It... honestly wasn't that far from the truth.
But that left Haru in a bind. She hadn't actually expected to have to name a person. She could just throw out a random name, right? But if he was willing to track her down just for all this, then she was sure he would probably do the same thing for whoever she threw out. And if she gave a bogus name, he'd know she was totally trying to pull a fast one on him. So the question was who?
Machida wasn't in town anymore as far as she knew. Seiji was married to her cousin. Tsuge was also out of town, and Hiromi's boyfriend. She was rapidly coming to terms with the fact she didn't really know a lot of guys. And if she took too long to answer, the man would surely suspect something was up.
And, in that moment, as if sensing her plight, there was a knock at the door, and before she could stop herself, she'd given an answer.
"Baron!" Almost as soon as the exclamation left her lips, she regretted it. She'd almost forgotten he was coming over—actually, he was a bit early, wasn't he? But the damage had already been done. He'd already taken it as his answer.
"Baron, huh?" he hummed in thought. "Well, if you can prove you really love this Baron guy, I'll let it slide. Why don't the two of you come to my fancy dinner party at the end of the month, okay babe?"
"Wha—wait a second, that's...!" too sudden, she wanted to say, but the man was already continuing as if he hadn't heard her.
"See ya then! Ciao babe!"
And then the line went dead. Haru sat there for a moment, staring dumbly at her phone as the screen went off, before another knock at the door reminded her she had a guest. Moon lifted her head as Haru got up, watching to see if she needed to start barking her head off at a stranger. But now, Haru realized with a terrible feeling of dread... she had to explain this to Baron.
Feeling even worse than before, the brunette made her way to the door and slowly opened it. Sure enough, it was Baron.
His expression immediately turned to one of concern the moment he saw her face, a gentle frown tugging at his lips. "Miss Haru, pardon me, but you look rather haggard... has the situation already worsened? Are you safe...? No one tried to trespass once more I hope?"
"It's...the first one. I tried to call and see if I could talk him out of it..." Haru sighed and rubbed the bridge of her nose. "And after what you told me, I really, really should have known better."
"Oh dear... tell me everything." He didn't even sound mad. He was really more concerned for her in this situation, wasn't he? He was just too... perfect. She definitely doubted that guy's son could ever match up to Baron... but she was already pretty biased, wasn't she?
"Well... I tried to think of something that would get him to back off, and the only thing I could come up with was that I was seeing someone else...b-but then he asked me who, and I... panicked." She sat down at the table as she spoke, resting her head in her hands. Again, Baron patiently waited for her to finish, wanting to hear the whole story before he said anything, which made the next part even harder for her to admit. Already her cheeks were burning as she pressed her forehead to the table. Even the tips of her ears turned red.
"Then you knocked, and well, I blurted out your name," she finally managed to mumble. "He thinks we're dating now. And we have to prove it to him at the end of the month at some party he's throwing.."
She didn't dare raise her head to look at Baron. She didn't want to see if he was angry with her for doing this without talking to him first, or if he was disappointed that he'd have to be with her.
"I see... That does seem like quite the heavy weight, Miss Haru," he began in that same gentle tone of voice, placing his hand carefully on her shoulder. "But please don't fret. I told you before, my door would be open to you should you ever need it, and I simply cannot overlook this case."
Slowly, Haru looked up at him, and his eyes seemed to twinkle in the light. "Are you sure...?"
"Of course. After all, this is a perfect chance to solve both problems. I can investigate Octavius, and we can persuade him away from terrorizing you further," he smiled warmly. "This one is on the house, Miss Haru. The Cat Bureau will certainly solve your problem."
Haru breathed a sigh of relief, though her cheeks were still painted a rather bright shade of pink. "Thank you, Baron... and I'm sorry for not asking first..."
"It's quite alright, Miss Haru. I don't mind in the least. As I said before, you're quite fetching. Any man should consider himself lucky to be your first pick," he chuckled. "Now then, why don't we make you a cup of tea, and then we can get to work installing that equipment, hm? And then afterwards we can arrange a battle plan, of sorts."
For the first time that day, Haru actually felt better about the mess she'd found herself in. She allowed a small smile to cross her face and nodded. "That actually sounds wonderful, Baron. I could definitely use a cup of tea right now."
His smile was absolutely blinding. "Well then, it's a very good thing I just happened to have some of my own blend of tea with me today, isn't it?"
A/N: It's been a while! Did you think I abandoned this story? Well, have an update! I lost motivation for a while after Hurricane Irma, but this story is back on track once more with it's very irregular update schedule! And for those of you who guessed the business tycoon was the Cat King, congratulations! On the note of the Cat King's name, I could remember if we'd collectively decided on a fanon name for him, so I just pulled out one that sounded suitably pompous. Anyway, hope you enjoy this chapter!