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After waiting for twenty minutes, taking time to check in with the hosts, Kyoya feigned receiving a phone call from his father and left the club for the day. He took his usual route towards the front of the school and looped around at the last moment, walking instead toward the pond. It seemed that Keiko had indeed left, which was a relief, and he hoped that she would stay that way until the following week when his father and her father had their next meeting.

It was strange, having to juggle both the secret arrangement with the Tadeshi Company and the secret with Éclair. The Host Club was hopelessly out of the loop for both, and he had to try hard to keep either secret away from the opposing girl. Kyoya wasn't sure how he was going to keep track of all this; he was stressed enough as it was.

Kyoya shook his head, letting it go as he arrived at the pond where Éclair waited.

Éclair was sitting sideways on the edge of the pond, looking into the water while softly swinging her legs back and forth. She would have been impatient before, but now she was calm, as though time had no meaning at all. Finally, she heard footsteps approaching. She looked up to see Kyoya. She stood from her place and walked over to meet him.

"Hello, stranger," she teased mildly, tucking a lock of stray hair behind her ear. She looked behind him for a moment, and then sighed in relief. "I'm glad to see that you weren't followed. I'm also impressed by how much patience you displayed in front of that Tadeshi girl." Éclair rolled her eyes slightly. "My experience with her was probably the most excruciating thirteen minutes of my entire life."

"You must excuse her. From what I've been told, she doesn't get much social interaction aside from her maid, who must have had little manners if she brought up Miss Tadeshi in such a way." Kyoya took a seat beside Éclair and adjusted his glasses. His hair didn't look nearly as bad as it did when he'd first entered the Music Room—signifying that he must have fixed it—but it still had a messy bedhead-esque look to it. "She accompanies her father when he comes over for bi-weekly meetings and is under the impression that because we see each other constantly that she can act familiarly with me. I'll have to speak to her more about it next time."

Éclair's suspicions about Keiko's upbringing had been correct. She could hardly believe that the Tadeshi family had left the raising of their heiress to a mere maid. Éclair at least had qualified governesses and tutors overseeing her education and upbringing. It was no longer any wonder that Keiko was so rude and unmannerly.

That still didn't excuse some of the things that she had said, but Éclair stifled her anger momentarily. She looked up at Kyoya and chuckled slightly. "I sort of like your hair like that. It makes you look less intimidating." She winked jovially and bent down to look through her book bag for a few things. "I will be fine. There really isn't any need to speak to mademoiselle on my behalf. I just don't know how you endure her company."

"Sometimes I don't either," Kyoya replied in a tight-lipped response. He watched her search through her bag as he ran his fingers through his hair, disliking it when his locks were wildly out of place. At least he would be able to go to sleep earlier that night and then hopefully would not doze off in class again. He hoped that he would be able to take a day that weekend to just sleep and catch up on all the hours of sleep he'd missed. Of course, he wouldn't forget the date he'd promised Éclair.

It was clear to Éclair that quality sleep was still eluding Kyoya, as she noticed his tired, on edge behavior. But it seemed like something else was contributing to the Shadow King's terseness. Éclair briefly wondered if it was something she had done, but Kyoya had seemed fine with her on the phone last night. Her face tensed up as the realization hit her: it was that Keiko girl that had Kyoya riled up. As if Éclair needed any more reason to despise her.

She finally withdrew a flash drive and a binder from her book bag, setting them both on Kyoya's lap. "The flash drive contains all the work I've done on the club's finances so far, as well as preliminary budgets for the next few months. I just thought you might want to look over them. The binder…" She paused for a moment, trying to decide how to explain. "I know that classes have been difficult lately. I don't want you to feel like I am intruding or disrespecting you, because it's not that at all…I just didn't know if you'd been able to concentrate fully during class, so I started keeping notes from the classes we have in common. I went back and wrote down all the key points from past lectures as well. Everything is color-coded and organized by class and lecture. I hope that it's helpful."

Kyoya pocketed the flash drive the moment she explained what was on it, intending to glance through her work before turning in for the night. As Éclair explained about the binder, he thumbed through some of the pages, eyes scanning over the notes. A couple of moments of silence passed when she finished her explanation as Kyoya looked over the binder.

Eventually, he closed it and looked up, meeting her eyes. "Thank you," he spoke finally, sounding indeed grateful for all the work she had done. He was so used to having to do everything by himself that it actually, for the lack of a better term, touched him that she had gone through so much trouble just to aid him. "I appreciate all that you've done."

Éclair couldn't help but smile in satisfaction. She knew it was a little thing, and probably not at all helpful, but it was something. Kyoya wasn't the type to throw away a compliment or fake gratitude, so she felt that her time hadn't been wasted. It had been frustrating, taking notes when she had never done so before, as well as trying to remember the exact wording of lessons from the past. Her hand had cramped up so many times as she had struggled to write legibly. But she hadn't ever thought of giving up. She just…was so tired of seeing Kyoya struggle so hard, all alone, beaten down by everyone around him.

Her anger from earlier surfaced and Éclair looked down, not wanting Kyoya to see the dark, consuming emotions in her eyes. Her body became tense and she tightly grasped the fabric of her dress in her hands. "Unforgivable. I can never…never forgive Keiko Tadeshi."

Kyoya frowned, not understanding the anger that he suddenly overcome Éclair. He may have mistaken her turning away from him as embarrassment, if not for the sharp tone that her voice held as she spat out Keiko's name. Just what exactly had the two of them talked about that made Éclair so enraged? It didn't seem that Keiko had revealed that…surely the girl wasn't that stupid. However, that left the reason for Éclair's behavior to be quite the mystery, something that Kyoya never enjoyed. "For what reason?"

Éclair was so incensed that she unconsciously reverted to speaking in very quick French, all the words tumbling out at once: "She said such heartless things about you. I don't understand why anyone thinks that they have the right to degrade you in public, or in private. You work a thousand times harder than any of them anyway. Why does it matter that you're the third son? That doesn't stop you from being the most talented or hardworking or passionate. How dare people demoralize you the way that they do? How can they in good conscience dismiss all your efforts? Why can't anyone see you as a person and judge you on your own merits?"

The more Éclair spoke, the more incensed she became. It was clear that she was taking everything negative that she had ever heard anyone say about Kyoya and considering them as grave as though they had been directed towards her.

Kyoya was beyond feeling stunned at what Éclair had said. His mind had slowed as it processed her French; she had spoken so quickly that he missed some of the words, but he'd gotten the gist of it. Éclair was impassioned about what other people thought of him, a concept that was foreign to him. Someone else cared about what was thought about him? He'd never taken the moment to care what others thought of someone he knew unless it would directly affect his own reputation as well. The fact that Éclair Tonnerre, the girl who did not care in the least about the club's feelings when she had tried to take Tamaki away from them, was caring about what others thought of him...it was beyond his comprehension. Why was she feeling this way? And how was he supposed to respond to it?

Eventually, she calmed down and forcibly returned to Japanese. "I'm sorry. I don't know what's wrong with me lately." She seemed to be swinging back and forth between extremes in emotion. So this is what it was like to be a 'normal' teenager. Éclair didn't like it very much. It felt like she was out of control.

Unable to figure out what to do, Kyoya just…sat there. He stared at Éclair with bewildered eyes as his mind struggled to process to think of something to say, to think at all.

Éclair felt like she might have overstepped her boundaries. It seemed that she was leaving Kyoya speechless more and more often. It wasn't like she meant to. It was simply that the more time she spent with Kyoya, the more free she felt with her words and thoughts were things that would throw anyone off.

She took several deep breaths, trying to calm her elevated heart rate. Why did she care so much about what people said about Kyoya? Why was she taking it so personally? She didn't even care about direct insults to herself. Was Kyoya the conduit by which she expressed her secret frustrations about being criticized? That could be it, but it seemed like there was another reason lurking just below her facade. It used to be buried below, but this whole ordeal with Keiko had pushed it to the surface.

Still not able to meet Kyoya's eyes, she asked in a very serious, quiet voice, "Your relationship with Keiko Tadeshi—it goes deeper than just being the daughter of a business associate, doesn't it." It wasn't so much a question as it was a request for confirmation.

Kyoya was careful as he answered her question. He couldn't answer too quickly, nor hesitate for too long—she would know he was lying. "She is only a future partner of the Ootori group," he replied. "My father wishes her to become acquainted with the Ootori family and I am closest to her age. He thought it would be strange for Akito or Yuuichi to try to 'befriend' her, so he gave the task to me. It seems I have let her become a little too friendly, but there is nothing beyond a partnership. Why do you ask?"

Éclair looked up, scrutinizing Kyoya's face as he explained. He seemed to be sincere; what reason would Kyoya have to lie? He had always been honest with her before. Perhaps she had over-thought things while talking to Keiko.

Kyoya didn't exactly feel bad about having to lie to Éclair, but he did wish that he could just tell her the truth and get it over with. It was bad enough that he had to keep both secrets from Tamaki and the others of the Host Club, but having to deal with Éclair who had eyes as sharp as a hawk's was exhausting. He hoped that she took his word and wouldn't question it again, even if she and Keiko happened to cross paths once more.

After a moment of looking into Kyoya's eyes for any trace of falsehood, Éclair relaxed, satisfied with his answer. It seemed that Keiko was simply too unmannered and her parents either hadn't corrected her or were unaware of her impropriety. The Frenchwoman's posture relaxed significantly. "Just a bit of paranoia, it seems. She talked so informally about and to you, she was at your home last night, and she nearly jumped out of her skin when I mentioned you, as though there was something between you two that she wasn't supposed to talk about."

Éclair moved closer to Kyoya, changing the subject. "You look tired. Did the business meeting go long last night?"

No, my father spent a solid hour reprimanding me after Keiko had gone home, Kyoya thought bitterly. He did not voice this, however, and instead replied, "Yes. Yuuichi asked me to help with some financial plans after Father went to bed. It seems even college graduates struggle every once in a while."

"Well good!" Éclair affirmed. "Maybe he'll take the hint that you have worthwhile insights." She seemed to be back to her 'usual' self, a little embarrassed for having such a childish meltdown in front of someone that she so highly respected. "I'm sorry for acting so improper in front of you. It's been difficult to control my temper lately. I must seem so foolish to you…" Her cheeks reddened a little. The gap between them that had been closing seemed to have widened again, and if it wasn't Keiko that was causing Kyoya's unease, it must be her. She shouldn't have spoken her mind on any of these matters. She should have obeyed her training and kept her large mouth shut.

"It's fine," Kyoya replied coolly. "I get to see the Éclair beyond the mask you wear. Beneath the Tonnerre name there's Éclair, a young girl who apparently has more trouble with her emotions than Tonnerre allows her to show." He granted himself a crack of a smile, feeling a little more at ease now that they had moved past the topic of Keiko. The thought of having to go home and study barely even crossed his mind now that he was in her presence. When before she had done nothing but wind him up, he found that he was winding down from being around her.

When Kyoya talked about her emerging emotions, it didn't sound like such a bad thing. Éclair allowed herself to smile and relax a little. "I suppose that is what happens when you suppress anything for a great length of time: eventually, under the correct amount of pressure, it is liable to explode."

Éclair couldn't help but chuckle at the thought of what Kyoya might be like if he exploded. When Éclair got too worked up, she talked very quickly in French, no matter what language she had been speaking in moments before, and her ears turned red. She wondered what kind of hidden tics Kyoya might have when he had been pushed too far. Maybe someday, when his life seemed a little calmer, she would try it. But that made it seem like she had enough time, which reminded her yet again that she only had until April. It was already mid-February. Only a month and a half left.

"What's your favorite color, Kyoya?" she asked out of the blue. There was no one around and if he felt comfortable enough calling her by her first name here, then she figured it was okay to reciprocate.

"Violet," he responded after a brief moment of thought. "I've never had someone ask me that question before, aside from grade school."

For the longest time, he'd thought his favorite color was blue, the deep navy blue, like the suits he'd always seen his father wear. As he got older and his father became stricter with him, he found that he began to despise the color but still enjoyed the palette. When he saw the Ouran uniforms for the first time, he'd decided to adopt the color of his jacket as his favorite color. The pastel was a drastic change from the navy blue he was used to, but it suited him, somehow.

Violet. It was a cool color, by definition, but it was also regal and vibrant. Éclair found that violet matched Kyoya's personality perfectly. He was calm and collected and somewhat stoic but he also had an air of nobility about him. He was charming and brilliant and passionate. She smiled. She would have to remember this for the future.

After a brief moment of silence, Kyoya asked, "And what about you?"

Éclair chuckled quietly at his question. "You mean it wasn't obvious?" she teased in a friendly manner. "Red. All shades of it."

She found that red not only contrasted her eyes, making them appear even more brilliant, but it was a color that demanded attention. Éclair was always the first thing in the room that drew someone's eye, and she relished that attention. Red, like violet, was also a royal color, so it was a sign of power on top of everything else. Plus, she just liked the color. It made her feel confident and, in her moments of vanity, beautiful.

Red. Kyoya made a mental note of the color. For what reason, he was not sure, but he knew that he had to keep it in mind.

"So." Éclair flexed her hands against each other. "Valentine's Day is coming soon. Will you be getting several truckloads of chocolates and cards from a bunch of squealing girls?"

"Most likely," he agreed. "The guests seem to insist on getting us such presents. The other hosts play off their appreciation well, but I don't care for sweet things like chocolates, so I end up giving them all to Honey-senpai before I leave for the day. After the other guests have gone already, of course." If Kyoya actually took home all his gifts then his sister would probably stuff herself, only to complain and curse Kyoya for bringing such treats into the house.

Éclair chuckled, wondering how the Haninozuka heir could eat so many sweets and still have the appearance of a child. Perhaps his appearance was mirroring his inner self. "Well, that's one of the benefits of being unpopular and cold, I suppose. You don't get unwanted attention or gifts." Éclair tried to keep the tone of her voice neutral, like she was joking, but a hint of loneliness crept into the statement.

She had inferred that Kyoya was like her in her dislike for sweet things, so even if she wanted to get him a valentine—which she kept telling herself that she did not—that was out of the question. Éclair didn't consider a card to be a gift, and she knew that she couldn't write anything eloquent anyway. Whenever she was with Kyoya, or even thought of him, she found herself getting tongue-tied. Kyoya didn't seem like the type for flowers, either. Normally she would just give somebody money or financial favors, but that seemed incredibly gauche in this situation.

"Hypothetically," she said slowly, "is there something that you would appreciate as a gift?"

Kyoya glanced at her, wondering why she was curious. Did she actually want to get him a present? The idea seemed absurd. Even so, he gave honest thought to his answer. It was true that he didn't enjoy sweet things, or food in general as a gift. If anyone else had asked, he may have said something like 'complete financial reports for the next year' or 'a database of the entire student body', but he felt like answering Éclair honestly.

His mind searched for something that would please him. He finally settled on saying, "A paint set." It was a ridiculous thing to say; the thought of him painting had been simply a metaphor in his head, but he'd constantly dreamt of vast colors and brush strokes and beautiful works of art, so he may as well use painting as his own personal outlet.

The answer pleased Éclair. It wasn't the answer of the Host Club's Shadow King, the class representative, the Ootori's third son, or any of the other personas that Kyoya hid behind. None of them would have asked for something so simple and common and personal. No, this had to be an answer that came right from Kyoya's truest self. How could she not act on so genuine a request?

She rationalized the gift in her head. It is just a gift from one friend to another, she told herself. And my giving it to him will just happen to fall on Valentine's Day…there's nothing nefarious or underhanded or even romantic about it. I'm not expecting anything in return.

Suddenly, a thought struck her and she frowned slightly. "Mademoiselle Tadeshi is going to be giving you a gift too."

"Do you think so?" Kyoya mused. "My father may want me to get her something to stay on the Tadeshis' good side, though I'm not sure why she would also give me a gift. I'm not even sure what it is she would offer." If they really were just business partners, then Kyoya would expect a financial plan or something similar, but given their…current situation and Keiko's insistence on being so personal with him, he guessed that she would be like the other girls and get him chocolates or flowers. The thought made him want to gag, but he refrained.

Éclair also felt sick at the thought of Kyoya having to give the likes of Keiko Tadeshi a gift. It was almost more than she could stand. But it heartened her to know that he wasn't enthused about the idea.

"You really can't tell?" she asked, almost incredulously. "That girl is head over heels with you. It's as if she imagines herself the heroine of a romantic novel in which the two you are introduced by your parents and slowly fall in love as you bond over your common interests." It was an idea so disingenuous that it made Éclair want to vomit. "She'll probably give you the usual: chocolates, a handwritten card, flowers, a stuffed animal…something trite and useless."

Kyoya hadn't really considered Keiko to be 'head over heels' for him, but when he thought about it, he could understand where Éclair got that impression. She was incredibly clingy and far too personal to be considering this as simply a business venture. But to actually be falling in love with him? He'd barely given her a second glance when she came over and he had to force himself to stay polite through all of her obnoxious bad manners. It was atrocious to even be in the same room as her and she had fallen in love with him? Ridiculous.

But it wasn't that Éclair thought that Keiko was genuinely in love with Kyoya—or as genuine as the idea of 'love' could be. She did, however, get the impression that Keiko was in love with the idea of being in love with Kyoya. Éclair could relate to the feeling of not wanting to be alone; the resigned notion that if an arranged marriage was fate, she may as well be engaged to someone who was at least likeable. Keiko was fantasizing about using Kyoya to fill that hole in her life, and Éclair finally understood why the Host Club had been so angry at her for trying to take Tamaki away. It was despicable, to use someone like that.

"If she does, I will have to…kindly put her down. I am to make her happy to be in business with the Ootoris, but I cannot afford her developing romantic feelings for me," explained Kyoya.

As happy as Éclair was to hear that Kyoya intended to put Keiko down, it did raise some doubts in her mind. "Because of who she is or because she is a business partner? Or is it the idea of someone potentially caring about you that you aren't enthusiastic about?" Again, not that Éclair thought that Keiko cared about Kyoya—the opposite was true, in fact—but she had to word it like that to get the answer she wanted without letting on more than she cared to.

"She's a clingy business associate who is blunt and ill-mannered. It would be far too troublesome if she developed any unwanted feelings towards me." He purposely didn't answer the latter part of Éclair's question because he did not know the answer. He was used to being enclosed in his frame—his box, his tower, whatever you want to call it—and the idea of someone tearing through that barrier and getting close to him terrified him. He was always Kyoya Ootori, the Shadow King that girls adored but never really wanted to get close to, that the hosts were afraid of upon his first awakening, and who analyzed people instead of got to know them. It wouldn't matter whether the person who invaded his enclosure was someone whose company he enjoyed or who he couldn't stand; if anyone set one foot inside his territory, he would have already lost the battle he'd been fighting his entire life.

"I understand," Éclair responded.

She knew that Kyoya's reluctance, or inability, to answer her last question meant, because she was the same exact way. She was terrified of really, truly letting someone in: of letting them know everything about her and giving her trust completely over to someone who may be playing her or only interested in her wealth. She was scared witless that once someone knew her, the real her, warts and all, that they would hate her. Deep down, Éclair wanted even just one person to accept her and all her flaws and imperfections. She wanted just one person to see who she truly was and not run away.

It seemed like Kyoya was the same way. He was afraid, which boggled Éclair's mind. Before getting to know Kyoya, he had seemed impenetrable. He made it seem like his problems with his family and such were just minor inconveniences and small stumbling blocks on his path. It was becoming clear that they were among what were probably many giant walls that he couldn't seem to overcome. Kyoya was afraid and weak and vulnerable, just as she was. Éclair wished there was some way that she could tell him that she really did understand what it was like to live alone inside one's head. But she didn't know how to do so without seeming presumptuous or rude. So, she was quiet for a moment, letting her words hopefully sink in before she changed the subject and said, "I don't mean to pester you, but are we still on for this weekend? I'm sorry to bring it up for the millionth time, but I've been so looking forward to it."

"So have I," Kyoya responded after a short pause. "I have Saturday evening cleared of any events. I was planning to pick you up at around seven, if that is alright with you." The past couple of months, Kyoya had been trying to treat these dates as business meetings. However lately he's been looking forward to his time spent out on the town with Éclair, enjoying their conversations and her insight on certain subjects. The dates have evolved from the level of business meetings into Host Club outings. Kyoya felt like he was betraying his friends, though, by having fun with the girl who nearly ruined their club, so he would never openly admit just how much of a good time he's had.

Éclair couldn't help but smile. She was pleased that Kyoya had also been looking forward to their next date. Over time, it appeared that the Shadow King had eased up around her. In the past, this wouldn't have mattered to Éclair, except in the context of getting Kyoya to let his guard down so that she could take advantage of him. Those thoughts were repulsive to her now. Éclair didn't want to do anything to lose Kyoya's trust in her. In fact, she was considering telling him some very…personal things. Such as the true story of the Ouran Fair. That event was still a major stumbling block between her and everyone at Ouran Academy. Granted, Éclair wouldn't care about this if 'everyone at Ouran Academy' didn't include Kyoya Ootori. Her manipulative side was not advantageous in this relationship. She didn't want to be that person anymore in front of her…friend? Companion? What exactly was their relationship now? Éclair didn't quite know.

"Saturday sounds perfect."

Kyoya nodded with a slight, pleased smile. It was hard to admit to himself that he enjoyed Éclair's company, seeing as the only reason he should be interested in her was to keep the ties to the Tonnerre family for the Ootori Group, but their date was an event he had marked on his mental calendar. More so than other events such as business meetings. He was also interested—mildly interested—in what locating was Éclair's favorite spot in Japan. His was probably laughable, but he had promised to take her there anyway. Their relationship certainly was interesting but it was not boring.

"Was there anything else you had to talk to me about?" he inquired. "He'd already left the club for good that day by pretending to be called by his father, so he may as well get home to finish homework early.

Éclair was very intrigued to see what Kyoya's favorite spot in the city was. Soon, she would be able to go there with him. Hers wasn't anything fancy, but she hoped he would like it. The Frenchwoman shook her head in response to his question. "I do have something to tell you, but I think I best wait until another time. It is a longer story." She could tell that Kyoya probably had other things to do today, and that she should let him go. "Saturday at seven, though. I will look forward to it." She stood and bowed slightly to him before scooping up her book bag and walking away.