Author's Note: Sorry, this got a little delayed because of Algebra summer school. Yeah… ^^;

I wanna thank Xchicha-de-musicaX for letting Noa cameo in the third chapter of her epic fic, Hostesses O N L Y! You should totally go read her fic. Like now. Do it. Seriously. Now.

Well, first, read my chapter. Then, check out her story. 'Kay, thanks. ;)

Chapter 6

At the end of the first week of school, it was one of those rare Saturday mornings where I actually slept in. So, of course, Kyoya had to take advantage of it…

A pillow was thrown on my head, followed by: "Get up."

"No…" I drew out sleepily. "What time is it anyway?"

"Noon. Even I don't degrade myself by sleeping in this late. Get. Up," he articulated with a growl.

"Why?" I questioned, taking the pillow he had thrown at me and placing it on top of my head to block out my boss's droning voice.

His tone spelled out to me that he was smirking (yet again) as he held out something and informed me, "I have something for you."

From the corner of my vision under the pillow, I could tell it was an envelope. "What's in it?" I wondered aloud, finally sitting up.

Kyoya placed it in my lap and answered cryptically, "Open it and find out."

I was more than a little scared at opening the envelope. Judging by Kyoya's expression, I figured it was part of some kind of elaborate plan to make me even more miserable than I already was. So, it shouldn't have surprised him when I handed it back to him and said, "You open it."

"One condition then," Kyoya quickly declared, "If I open it, I get to keep what is inside of it."

I hissed, "Never" and swiped it back. Kyoya crossing his arms as if he was disappointed I hadn't agreed to his terms. Oh, well. I didn't care.

I examined the envelope. It was white like any regular envelope but had gold trimmings and an official stamp positioned ever so carefully on the front of it. It looked official, so why shouldn't it be anything but? Slowly, I opened the envelope. And what was in it was definitely not what I expected…

"A check?"

"Correction: Your check. This is your paycheck for this week," Kyoya clarified.

Call it melodramatic, but I had forgotten I was getting paid. Suddenly, my face lightened up at the aspect of actually getting money for being tortured. It was almost a fair trade… Almost.

"By your expression, you must have forgotten that you were not being my assistant out of charity." Kyoya chuckled. "That would explain all the impertinence I've been receiving."

Instantly, I was furious. I cried indignantly, "Hey, I worked damn hard for this money, and you know it!"

He just gave a nod along with his signature smirk and sauntered out of my room, excusing, "I have something to do at the moment. I'll call you if I need you."

The door shut.

Wait a second… I'm free! It was glorious. I haven't had a free moment all week! Now, what to do with it…

I stuck with the first thing that came to mind at this opportunity of freedom:

Spending my paycheck.

It wasn't like I needed the money; my parents sent me money for food and stuff. So, why not spend it?

I let myself smile as I thought of a perfect way to spend this money. If I could bribe the Ootori drivers, I might just be able to make an effective use of this time…

-transition-

I arrived back at the Ootori mansion with a couple of paint cans, some trays, and a dozen paintbrushes. I wanted to run straight to my room to get started, but… something got in my way.

"Miss Konusho?"

"Uh…"

"What are you doing?" Kyoya's father questioned, giving me a suspicious look, "Are the supplies for my son?"

Sure, let's go with that. "Of course."

Mr. Ootori looked unconvinced, though my tone didn't waver. He calmly asked, "Why does he need this?"

"He…" Now, my voice stuttered. "… He needs it for… a… project." The last word came out in a rush.

"A what?"

"A project, sir," I repeated, quivering slightly.

"Yes, but what kind of project?"

Damn, what was this? Twenty Questions? But, suddenly, I had the perfect way to get some mild revenge on Kyoya and get his father off my case, all in one amazing thought. And I was about to put that thought into action…

"You see, sir, Kyoya was, God bless his heart, worried about me and this new environment I'm in. To make it up to me for uprooting my life, he suggested that I paint my room a new, more friendly color in order to make me feel more at home."

"Kyoya suggested that?" I wasn't surprised at the man's astonishment. I wouldn't believe my story either. But I had told it in such explicit detail; there was no way he wouldn't believe me! Just as I expected, he said, "In that case, carry on, Miss Konusho."

"Thank you, sir," I replied with a devious smile.

I quickly navigated through the estate and into my room, my supplies in hand. Luckily, it didn't appear Kyoya was even home, so that was one less thing I had to worry about.

And I began my work.

I tied my midnight black hair back in a messy ponytail and put on some clothes I could easily throw out once I was done. Setting up my workstation, I began mixing the assortment of colors I had bought, trying to find a shade I liked.

The walls had originally been a distant beige brown, a color that seemed too afraid of being any brighter for fear of being considered too gaudy. I, for one, despised the color, being that it wasn't gaudy enough! And that's why I chose red as the new color I would paint my walls.

But did I want it dark red or light red?

I'd have to stare at the color at least the rest of the year, so it was crucial that I picked a shade I could actually stand.

Light red would be almost pink, and pink and I weren't exactly on speaking terms, so…

Darker red, it is.

I eventually settled on a rusty red, rich enough to cover up the original color but not too dark to make the room impervious to light.

I dipped one of my many paintbrushes (I really bought too many) into the paint shade I had just created and tested it on my wall.

Not bad! I thought triumphantly, Finally, I won't have to stare at these horrible walls anymore!

By the time I had one wall done, I was in the zone. I thought painting would be boring, but no, it was actually quite relaxing. My mind just drifted off as my hand traversed over the walls in a soothing pattern. So, it was no surprise that I nearly jumped out of my skin when my cell phone rang its annoying jiggle.

It caused me to drop my paintbrush onto the floor, which was followed by a string of curse words. I fumbled for my phone, finding it on the floor next to my bed.

It proclaimed, Private Caller, which meant Kyoya.

I gulped and answered, "H-hello?"

"Miss Konusho, where have you been? I've called you six consecutive times!"

"Liar, you've only called me once," I called his bluff.

Kyoya was quiet for a moment, in shock that I had figured that out so quickly. After a moment, he asked, "What gave it away?"

"Six is too high of a number," I informed him, "If you had chosen three or four, I might have believed you."

"That's interesting…" Kyoya noted, and I pictured him taking out his notebook and writing it on a fresh page.

"So, why did you call me?" I inquired.

"I'm coming back to the mansion in a few minutes, and I need you to tell the chef to have my dinner ready when I arrive."

A few minutes? No. No, no, no, no, NO! "Wh- why are you coming home now? I'm sure you have some more important things to do before you come home, right?" Damn it. My voice sounded panicked.

"That's also interesting…" His tone was smirking. "… You sound anxious for me to return. In that case, I'll hurry."

"NO! I mean, you really don't need to!"

"Oh, but I do…" He stated before hanging up, "I'll see you in five minutes."

The line went dead.

I gazed around at my room nervously. The walls may have almost been finished, but the room was a mess, paintbrushes, paint buckets, and paint trays everywhere. Not to mention the fact that my clothes were stained in paint as well was my phone, as paint had been dried onto my hand.

What I needed was a good ol' fashioned cleaning montage.

But, since this was reality and I didn't have a film crew, we were going to have to go old school.

And get this placed cleaned up before Kyoya got back and all hell broke loose.

First, I ran to the vast kitchen area of the Ootori mansion, informing the cook that Kyoya wanted his dinner as soon as he arrived home.

"I can do that," the head chef told me, but she gave me a strange look.

I glanced down at my clothes and realized she must be wondering why I was covered in paint.

"You see-"

"I don't need to know," she dismissed, "You work for Kyoya. I wouldn't expect anything less."

I thanked her and sprinted back to my room to finish painting. When the last paint stroke was made, I threw all the paintbrushes inside the cans and carried three at a time to my bathroom where I made a makeshift place for them in my linen closet.

Next, I pulled out my ponytail and threw off my painting clothes. I hid the stained clothes under my bed for fear that Kyoya would go looking for clues later. I put on my regular weekend clothes, consisting of a tie-dye shirt, jeans jacket, and skirt. I also cleaned up my room a bit, mostly just pushing everything under my bed like the clothes.

Lastly, I plopped down on my bed, taking a book off my bedside table and pretending to be casually reading.

And, sure enough, exactly five minutes later, Kyoya opened my door and invited himself in.

"Hmm…" He hummed while examining me and then my room. "… Something seems different about this room…"

"Really?" I feigned surprise, glancing around my room with wide eyes. "I hadn't noticed. What looks different to you?"

"The wall colors," he immediately informed with a sinister smile, letting me know that he was more than well aware of what had occurred.

I sighed and sat up, imploring, "How did you know?"

"You were too dramatic." He took my hand and held it up, adding, "Also, I can easily catch you red-handed."

"That was a terrible pun," I snapped, retrieving my paint-splattered hand from him.

"What made you change the wall color?" Kyoya inquired, changing the subject.

"It was such a god-awful color," I admitted, wincing at the memory of its initial color.

He just chuckled and stated, "Well, I like the red you picked out."

"Really?" I was surprised. I didn't imagine he'd ever say that.

"Yes." He examined the color again before locking his eyes back on me and enlightening as he walked out, "Maybe I'll have you paint my room as well."

Of course. How could I have expected anything else?

Author's Note: Yay, now that's done. I hope you liked it. ^_^

I pray of thee, pleasith reviewith.