Chapter Eight: Homesickness and Thigh High Tights
"Maybe you had to leave in order to really miss a place; maybe you had to travel to figure out how beloved your starting point was."
― Jodi Picoult, Handle with Care
I love the whole lingerie outfit - you know, thigh-high tights and garters.
Jodi Lyn O'Keefe
The only sounds were the clanking of silverware against bowls and the rough breathing of my closest advisors. I sat there, shuffling rice back and forth in the bowl not really eating. Since yesterday I was in a state of homesickness which refused to yield. I was to the point that I couldn't look at anything without sporadic memories bombarding my mind. Kou was getting very concerned but I tried to go on with my day.
I had barely eaten anything last night and today, I didn't even take any care with my uniform. My tights weren't pulled up at the knees and my skirt was on backwards. My shirt was sloppy and tie was not straight and my cardigan was pulled on haphazardly. The twins and Fu sat across from me in dark blue yukatas while the cousins sat to my right in red formal clothing and Kou to my left in white t-shirt and jeans. I looked at my men and they all met my gaze with worried and slightly scared looks.
"We should have a meeting since we're all here," I mutter and immediately think of the weekly meetings with my Pa. I could almost hear his too deep voice, clouded with tobacco use. Then his corny dad jokes flooded into my head and I cracked a smile despite the melancholy of my mind.
"Susan-sama," Kou starts as he reaches out and touches my sleeve, "are you sure you're alright? You haven't been yourself for quite some time. Yesterday you didn't even eat anything and now you're smiling at nothing."
"I'll be fine. You shouldn't worry too much about me. You're going to start to get an ulcer or something," I tell Kou with not much effort. I look into his dark eyes and know he wasn't going to let me out of the house.
"I don't think it is wise you go to school," Aiko says boldly.
"You seem like you are half asleep and dreaming," Hideo continues with his brother. I turn an icy gaze upon them both from across the table. The large men shift uneasily and I glare harder before resuming my saddened frown.
"You all worry way too much," I mutter and give a crooked half-hearted smile.
"You don't worry enough," Hana huffs loudly and crosses her arms.
"What she means is, you won't be able to defend yourself when you're at school today. WE merely don't want to go without a boss while we're at war," Haru tries to cover for his cousin. His eyes were wide with fear and I merely sigh at both of them.
"Alright, but if we stay home, then we aren't going to lounge around. If you guys aren't going to let me go learn at school, I'm going to learn who I can put in the games. Gather everyone. We're going to spar and I will be everyone's opponents."
This might actually take my mind off of home. If I spar hard enough then I won't have time to let my mind wonder to other things than the fight. Besides, I had to learn my men's skills before I send them out to the game. If I just sent them out, I might as well tell them to jump off of a cliff and fall to jagged rocks below. This is how I'm going to get over my homesickness. I'll fight until my knuckles are black and blue, until my forearms are nearly broken and my lip cracked open and bleeding. It will feel like I'm with my family. It'll feel more like home than anything I've done here so far.
"You're going to spar everyone?" Kou yelps with his voice seemingly in pain. I smirk at him and then push my rice to the center of the table.
"Mostly everyone. The people I don't spar today, will have to wait until tomorrow. On Sunday, we might actually be able to rest. Or we can a nice dinner with everyone in attendance. It'll feel like home!" I shout, way too excited for my own good.
Kou looks at me with raised eyebrows and I know he caught onto my secret. I was really, really homesick. There is a cloud of awkwardness that floats above us and a blanket of silence falls. I pray that no one actually asks me anymore questions. My prayer obviously was not heard.
"Home? You miss America don't you?" Fu asks, voicing the elephant in the room. I look away, slightly embarrassed and rise from my seat.
"I don't know what you're talking about," I mutter to them, slightly angry that they found me out.
"You're a dirty liar!" Kou shouts and I see the twins cringe.
I turn my face to the young boy and glare. Kou tries his best not to shrink into himself but it doesn't work. He bows his head to me a moment later and I turn away from the table. I know that Kou is really just scared that I'm going to go back and leave them. As much as it pains them that I'm a woman and a foreigner at that, I am the best boss they have ever known. I'm gutsy and I don't care if I have to take out people myself. Actually I prefer kicking their asses myself. But for them, I'm their everything. For me, they're my new everything; the possibility of going back is always looming over their heads because they weren't and won't ever be my first gang. But that doesn't mean that I'll leave them.
"I will always miss where I was born, but that doesn't mean that I will not be proud of you guys or consider this my new home. It merely means that I have to get over whatever my heart had wanted," I tell them with apparent sadness in my voice.
"We know and it's okay to mourn for what you have lost," Hideo says.
"But that doesn't mean that you should never look at yourself and remember home," Aiko replies after his twin.
"I remember home," I reply and turn to my men. "It's just that I want to fall apart and I know that I can't. I want to break down and mourn and feel bad for myself. But the truth is I don't have the time. We are going to start a war and I have to go to school. Besides, I don't want you guys to do this."
"Do what?" Hana says quizzically.
"I don't want you to feel bad for me! I don't want your sympathy. I'm your boss and you guys shouldn't have to put up with a crying, sniveling little girl," I say with a hysterical chuckle. I feel like I'm going to start to cry. I haven't really cried and mourned for my leaving home. I promised myself that I wouldn't.
"But we want to help you," Kou replies and stands up.
My men all stand up and they surround me. Normally this situation would make me go into an anxiety attack, but rather I feel sheltered. This is proof that they are my gang, that they are my family. Tenderly and with so much more soft touches than I could ever imagine the twins hold me. Haru, the largest of all of us, clutches my head and Hana takes my hands in hers. Fu and Kou look at me and I can feel their hands soothe me while rubbing up and down on my back.
"Guys, you're going to make me cry," I blubber and begin to feel tears running down my cheeks.
"Shhh," Kou says as the rubbing makes me calmer. "You're going to be alright. Susan-sama, you aren't alone anymore. You won't ever be alone and you won't ever leave us. I promise, you won't ever leave your new family ever again."
"God. Oh my god. Why do you say that? Why do you make me want to cry? I'm going to cry and I'm not going to able to stop. Oh my god," I moan with his kind words. My cheeks begin to grow a river. No, it was more like its own ocean.
The ocean was making me get a river in my nose. I suck in my nose and immediately feel dirty and pathetic. It didn't help that Hana was intertwining her fingers into my hands or that her cousin was stroking my hair so calmly. I start that obnoxious half crying a moment later. The ugly sound makes my chest begin to shake and I cry harder and harder. My legs almost buckle and I feel so pathetic for crying. I feel even more pathetic because I'm being held by my men and they are seeing me this way.
But I take the time to actually check how I'm really feeling. Ever since I was little, my safety for not getting hurt was never realizing it bothered me in the first place. This was how I felt about being abandoned at birth; this was how I felt when I couldn't take my abusive foster parents; and now this is how I feel about leaving the only family I've ever had. Empty. This is how I got to go on. If I don't feel anything, then nothing bothers me and I can go one. But now that my men are making me face it, I feel. I feel empty and alone.
"I feel so alone," I cry out and finally voice all my negative emotions. "I feel like I used to before I met Pa. Back when I was by myself and I had no one. Even though I have you guys I don't know why I feel so alone. Why do I have to feel so alone? Why am I so pathetic? I don't have a reason to be so unhappy. I shouldn't feel this, this, this empty."
My legs finally buckled and the twins lowered me to the ground. My back was shaking and it looked like I was having a spasm of some sort. The moaning and wheezing didn't stop. My men held me for a little while longer and I could feel myself so dehydrated and tired I could pass out. When I finally finish my pathetic episode, I open my closed eyes. In front of me was Kou and he grabs my face in his hands.
"You have to tell us when you feel like this. We have to help you. None of us can stand seeing you like this. And you are by far not pathetic. You are the strongest girl I have ever known. You aren't alone either, no matter if you feel alone or sad or pathetic, know you are never alone," he tells me as he wipes the tears from my face.
I sit and start to chuckle slightly with his cheesy speech. It makes me feel so much better though. I know he's telling me the truth and I know that I'll never be alone. Somehow, my pain ridden heart begins to heal, even though I never knew it was broken to begin with. I had been carrying on with my life for so long, that I couldn't tell how badly I had been hurt or how sad I had been. But now that I finally acknowledge how I feel, maybe I can move on. Maybe I can be happy.
"You know you're really mushy, don't you?" I ask with a smirk. My men, knowing that I have finally stopped my pity party, rise and look at me expectantly.
"So what," Aiko says with a smirk of his own.
"If we are?" Hideo finishes with his shy smirk.
"We can't let you go all crying on us without us doing something," Hana says then bonks me on my head. I smile and rub my head. I look to Haru and he nods with her.
"We will be your strength, even when you feel weak. Know that you are always strong, because you have us," Fu tells me with his fatherly smile.
I realize that they are my family and so much more; they are my strength; they are my love; they are me, when I can't even be me. I stand up and dust off my uniform. My face feels wet and I feel so tired. Suddenly, my huger attacks me like I have never eaten ever before. Wiping my face of the ocean, I wonder how I could have cried this much. I sniffle one more time and sigh, letting all my emotions out once and for all.
"Alright. I'm going to go finish my breakfast, then change into some battle clothes. I want all the men who have any chance for being in a death match. I'll be screening each and every person possible. Understand?" I ask my men in a strong voice, extremely different from a moment ago.
"Hai," they reply in cheery voices. I look back at them and smile widely.
I take my seat and begin to eat my rice. I check my emotions once again when my men disappear. I feel empty still. Frowning, I know it's going to take time to heal. Every wound needs some time to become what it used to be. I reach for a toast and then sit there munching quietly. When all is still, I can feel it. It is faint and the aching of my heart is really overpowering it, but it's there. Happiness. I feel happy that I get to be with my men and that I have a family. Happiness that I'm not alone. I smile even wider when all my men come back to the room and sit back down. They each pour a cup of tea for themselves while I finish. I observe their faces and notice their worried looks. I look at them and smile from ear to ear.
"And guys, no one tells a soul that I cried or else I'll make you cry for the rest of your life," I threaten sweetly.
"Hai," they say with slight fear in their voices. But somehow when they look back at me, there is relief. When relief and slight fear fades, they are left with realization. They probably are wondering if they just created a monster.
A fist flies to my left and I barely dodge in time. My attacker tries to turn quickly and chops from the other side. I duck and try to side-swipe his legs. My attacker jumps back and I stand across from the boy. Kou is huffing and puffing, a wild look in his eyes. He refused to fight me, but I got him angry enough to lose it. I have to see what he is capable of. I watch as the boy circles me like a lion. Smooth jazz is playing in the background.
"Are you ever going to actually land a punch on me?" I tease.
Kou looks at me and his face contorts into pure anger. I laugh as he gives a battle cry and rushes at me. Right before his right fist will make contact with me, I spin and grab his head in a chokehold. The boy flails and I chuckle at his attempt to flip me. I'm not going to go down that easy. I hold him a little longer before Kou relaxes and I know he's passed out.
"Do you really have to knock everyone out?" Hana asks while taking Kou. I nod and then put my hand out. Haru immediately has a glass of water in it.
"I need to know if you guys can handle passing out. I also need to see how you wake up," I tell her.
I take a sip of water and watch her place Kou next to Fu who is laid back against the house. Today is Saturday and I have fought all of the men. Of course, it was tiring as all hell and I barely finished after 36 hours of straight fighting. But it was worth it. I look at my arms and can see that my prediction about getting hurt badly was pretty accurate. My arms are tinged with an ugly shade of yellow and patches of green. The left side of my face is bruised also, taking a hit from Hana and then another from Haru. My lip is swollen on the right side and my legs have multiple purple patches.
All in all, I look pretty messed up. I really didn't feel too bad, but my men are worried as usual. The only bad part of fighting with four hours of sleep is that I feel like I want to pass out. But I isn't at that point yet. I hand the glass back to Haru and watch as Fu starts to wake up. I observe him, seeing his eyes go wide while he tries to remember where his is. He's quiet and when the realization finally hits him, he gets up calmly.
"Why do you need to watch how they wake up?" Hana asks me, watching me observe Fu.
"I want to know if they freak out and panic. Fu is a prime candidate because he observes, then tries to get up," I reply. Kou's eyelids start fluttering open. I watch as he opens his eyes and jumps to his feet, frightened and ready for something. When realization hits, he falls back to the ground.
"I guess Kou failed?" Haru asks me from behind.
"Yep. He can't compete. He doesn't have the patience or the skills necessary just yet. The twins can't because they are my seconds. You guys are ready and have no real problems except I need you for bodyguards. Fu would be great also, but he has to watch you two." I sigh and then look at my gang. The jazz music intensifies and I say aloud, "I'm picking the men next week after I observe them train with each other."
"I will have them ready," Fu replies and comes to me. I look at him and wipe sweat from my brow. The song ends and another long winded jazz piece comes on. I look at Fu and frown.
"Can we listen to something else? You've heard this stuff from the past two hours!" I whine. Fu looks at me like I just said the most offensive thing in the world.
"No. We listened to Kou's anime openings for two hours, so my jazz shouldn't be so bad," he replies with a huff, crossing his arms in denial.
"Those were anime openings?" I ask and look the young boy. He shrugs sheepishly and I laugh at him.
Since we were fighting, I allowed everyone to pick their music and play it for a little while. Everyone's music taste differed as greatly as them. Hana and Haru both like rock, Hana leaning more towards screamo and what I would assume was death metal while Haru stuck with classic and soft rock. The twins both didn't like the spoken word stuff, but Hideo was a classical music fan while Aiko listened to raging electronica. Fu was stuck on jazz and Kou—little did I know—was an anime opening fanatic.
Walking to the boom box, I stop the CD. Fu didn't have an IPod and all his music was still on discs. Kou comes over and gives me my IPod. I bend down in my training gear and plug it in. I squat in front of it for a couple of minutes thinking about what playlist I should play. Moving my face back and forth, I wonder at the same time if I should change. I'm wearing some short spandex shorts and a muscle band tee. The t-shirt was one of my newer ones and not from a concert, being the white skull of the Misfits on black cotton. Better keep it on, it's more comfortable anyways. I smile when I decide on my playlist labeled, "Shut Up and Just Dance Already".
"Are you guys ready to dance?" I yell at my gang. They all stand and look at me like I'm crazy. The familiar tune starts and the lyrics flow out.
Oh don't you dare look back.
Just keep your eyes on me.
I said, "You're holding back."
She said, "Shut up and dance with me."
This woman is my destiny.
She said, "Ooooooh, shut up and dance with me."
I grab Kou's hands and then we start jumping around the place. I laugh uncontrollably as the familiar tune comes to my memory. Hana joins in and we're dancing a circles as the song goes on. Aiko soon can't resist and he comes with us and Hana grabs his hands and starts twirling. I'm still jumping with Kou when I see that Fu, Haru and Hideo snickering in the corner. I glare at them and motion to come dance.
They shake their heads and I sing: "I said, 'You're holding back'. She said, 'Shut up and dance with me'. This woman is my destiny! She said, 'Oooooh, shut up and dance with me'"
I grab Fu's hands while Kou grabs the other two. The large men shake their heads and soon Hana and Aiko surround them and we start jumping around them. Their faces were of overt fear. They didn't know how to dance and I just start shaking my head. I grab their hands and start swaying from side to side, my hips start to have a mind of their own. The men finally get the hang of it as the song begins to end.
"You guys are doing pretty well," I praise them. Hideo and Haru blush brightly and I laugh as another song comes on. Its 99 Red Balloons, but the German version.
"Oh my gosh! I love this song!" Hana cries and starts singing in German to the song.
I laugh at her and start twirling with Kou once again. It seems that Haru loosened up and was singing at the top of his lungs with his cousin. Hideo and Fu try to escape again, but Kou and I grab them. I begin to twirl around with Hideo and the man blushes brightly. Laughing, I twirl faster until his eyes start turning in his head. Hideo then starts to laugh himself and I'm happy that he feels more comfortable. I look to the side and see Hana being spun by Aiko and suddenly wonder if something else is going on there. I look back at Hideo and he catches my glances. Staying quiet, I begin to make us twirl faster. The song changes and I squeal with the opening notes.
"ABBA!" I scream.
Some lyrics pass by as I grab Haru by the hand and start to let my hips go at it. Kou grabs Hana and she starts dancing with him. I laugh as they form a circle by joining hands with the others. They circle Haru and me, but Haru lets go of my hand and joins the others. I laugh as they surround me and start to sway and sing. I'm surprised they know the English lyrics and I sing with them. I'm twirling and jumping in the middle of them before stopping and letting my hips sway.
"You are the dancing queen. Young and sweet, only seventeen. Dancing queen, feel the beat from the tambourine. You can dance. You can jive. Having the time of your life! OOOOHHH. See that girl, watch that scene, diggin' the dancing queen" I sing with my heavy New York, now mixed with Japanese accent.
Through the cracks in my circle posse, I can see some spectators. I don't pay them any mind and continue to dance, letting my hands snake up to my hair and pull out my messy ponytail. Shaking my hair out, I finish the song with laughter and the others break away. I wait for the next song to start, but the first notes enter then air and then are abruptly stopped. I whine and look for the culprit to find one of the gate's men. My eyes go wide and I look to his left to see a sight which could almost make me faint.
"The brothel?" I ask breathlessly, not even because I just danced through three songs after fighting for hours, but because I'm just so surprised.
"Susan-chan, can we dance with you?" Honey asks in his childish voice.
I stare at him like he'll go away any second. When he doesn't, I look to the rest. They are dressed in designer jeans and polos and vests. Haruhi is the only one different and wears a yellow sundress that goes to her knee. I look at them once again and my men are starting to feel worried. I haven't addressed the brothel and they don't know if they should throw them out or not. Rubbing my eyes, I notice my left eye is really tender and I realize I should ice it. Staring one more second, I walk past the brothel without saying a word and go into the house. Arriving in the kitchen, I can hear footsteps following me. I grab a pack of ice from the freezer and put it on the left side of my face.
"I'm in shock," I whisper to myself as the brothel comes into the kitchen. My men are right behind them and are eyeing me closely.
What are they doing here? Why can't they leave me alone? I was very happy until they showed up. Now I have to pretend that I'm not sad or that I don't want to deal with them. I can just have them thrown out of the syndicate. How did they find it anyway? Why did the gate man let them in? I have too many questions circling my brain. My anxiety is going to kick up at any moment. I know it.
"Susan-senpai, are you okay?" Haruhi asks, breaking the silence. I feel, well, I don't really know how to feel and therefore are not 'okay'.
"I don't know," I tell her truthfully. I sigh and look at Tamaki who has been surprisingly quiet.
"Well, I guess you want to know why we're here!" Tamaki's extremely excited voice shouts. I spoke too soon.
"Why?" is my only reply. Kyoya is inspecting me carefully and I glare and sneer at him. I don't like him seeing me with such little clothes on. As it is, these shorts are like booty shorts.
"Because we wanted to go shopping with you. We expected you to be asleep or doing homework, not dancing in the middle of the courtyard with American music blaring from the speakers. But that's okay. So, where would you like to go first? The mall? Or would you like to go down to the art district? Maybe we can go to a karaoke bar!" Tamaki says this way too fast and the brothel twins are suddenly at my sides.
"But boss," the one that is Kaoru says.
"She stinks," the one that is Hikaru finishes.
"Of course I do! I was training, something you guys wouldn't know about. You barely have any muscle mass except for Mori and Honey," I say, offended with the evil twins' comments. Mori and Honey both look at me surprised with my comment.
"Why are you training?" Kyoya asks, trying to be innocent but his eyes say differently.
"None of your business," I say in return before taking my ice pack and going to the living room. I might as well show them to the door. My men look at the brothel with varying degrees of anger. Fu comes next to me as I walk through the halls.
"Would you like me to escort them to the gate?" he asks.
"I'll do it," I say as I shake my head and then make my way past the dining room table.
"We can wait here for you, Susan-chan. You can go take your shower and then come with us," Honey says behind my back. Before I know it, the brothel is sitting their butts in my dining room.
"I never agreed to come," I reply, my anxiety finally showing itself. Just the thought of going out with them makes my stomach do suicide dives.
"But you have to!" Tamaki whines. "Who else is going to be the bestest friend for my daughter!"
"Daughter?" I mutter to myself and then look immediately at the only female in their group. Haruhi sighs and I suddenly feel bad for her. They must drag her into a lot of unnecessary stuff.
"You don't have to come because of me Senpai," she tells me when she catches me looking at her.
I blush slightly and take the ice pack away from my face. I weigh my options. I feel bad if I leave Haruhi to deal with the brothel by herself. On the other hand, I really don't want to spend time with them. They'll cause me another panic attack. But I have to get used to them if I want to be their friends. I guess I could go and if it gets too stressful, I'll leave. Damnit.
"Let me go take a shower," I tell them and walk out of the room. My gang follows behind me. I hand the icepack to Fu.
"Hideo and Aiko, you two go run the men through some training exercises with blades. Cousins, you two get the extreme pleasure of watching me as we shop. Fu, make sure our guests don't touch anything. Kou, I need clothes."
"Hai." Each man leaves on to prepare or carry out their job. I sigh and head to the bathroom.
"Do you want to wear a dress?" Kou asks me as we approach the bathroom.
"No," I reply.
"You sure. That one with glasses is pretty cute and he seems to be worried that you do training," Kou says as he wags his eyebrows suggestively. I roll my eyes.
"He's suspicious."
"Suspicious is good."
"In what universe?"
"In this one?" Kou questions himself. I chuckle slightly and then arrive at the bathroom.
"Leave the clothes out here and I'll be there in fifteen minutes. Keep an eye out. I don't want them messing in my stuff," I tell Kou.
He gives me a ridiculous salute and then leaves me alone. I go in and start my routine looking at my injuries in the mirror. I was wrong when I said I didn't think my left side was that bad. My left eye and down my cheek, is swollen and an ugly blue color. The bruise spreads out and disappears into my hair line, but I know it continues to almost my ear. My right snake bite is swollen on the lip, but isn't so bad that I have to take it out. My arms and legs have their multiple bruises, but Kou will probably get me tights and a long sleeve shirt to go out with.
I sigh heavily before getting in the shower and turning it to a burning level. I wash my hair and when I run the soap over my bruises, they feel tender to the touch. A knock on the door is heard and the door opens. I freeze on the other side of the shower curtain. The door closes and I know that Kou just left the clothes on the sink. Getting out quickly, I find my outfit. A pair of black thigh high tights with purple polka dots, a gray A-line skirt that'll go a little below mid-thigh, a black long sleeve shirt with lace for the sleeves, and black combat boots. I smile at Kou's choices, knowing that I couldn't have chosen any better.
I put the towel on my head and dress quickly. When I'm done dressing, I take the towel off my head and put my hair it a bun. My bangs are already drying and I brush them down. I fix my piercings really quick before heading to my bedroom. In my bedroom, I get Harry and put him in a thigh holster, my skirt being slightly bulged. Getting two switch blades, lay them on them on the bed and put my boot up onto the bed so I can hide the knife in it.
"Are you ready yet?" a voice asks at the door. The voice is cold and I'm suddenly highly aware of how short my skirt is and that my thigh highs aren't just cute but really provocative.
"I thought you would wait a little longer," I reply blandly, shoving the blade into the outer lip of my boot. I put my other foot up and shove the blade in that one.
"Are you always armed?" Kyoya asks me as I turn back around. His voice is intrigued and curious. I can read his face and it says he's thinking about something. I don't know what that is, but I have the feeling I wouldn't want to know. He stands at the frame of my door and I frown.
"Let's go," I say. Brushing past him, I push back a loose strand of hair behind my ear. Kyoya follows me and I can feel his gaze on me. Rather, I think he's trying to see if I really do have a gun under my skirt. I stop before we reach the dining room and whisper with a smile, "I never leave home without something."
"Oh," is his only reply. I quirk my mouth to the side, knowing he's trying to discern if I'm armed at school or not. We enter into the dining room and I hear Tamaki gasp.
"Oh my goodness! What are you wearing?" he asks and comes up to me. He is immediately in my face and staring at my outfit, going from combat boots to messy bun.
"I'm wearing a very cute outfit," I say and push him away. A slight blush comes to my face and it's probably only noticeable on my non-bruised side.
"Are those thigh highs?" Honey asks, coming to me with a hand stretched out to touch my tights. I swat his hand away and Mori places himself protectively in between me and his cousin. I hiss slightly, baring teeth. Then I blush even brighter and turn to Haruhi.
"Do we have to go?" I whisper to her as I hide behind her small body.
"No, but I don't think we can decide. I really like your outfit by the way," she whispers to me. The orange-haired twins come to both of our sides.
"What are you,"
"Guys talking about?"
"Can we go already?" I whine and find my heart is starting to beat harder than before. I'm starting to get nervous.
"Okay!" Tamaki yells and exits the room.
I sigh and look to Haruhi. We're both wearing the same, 'it's going to be a long day' expression. I turn to Fu, the cousins and Kou. They all look like they're sending me off to kindergarten. They're faces are both worried and happy at the same time. Trying to smile reassuringly, I nod to them and the follow the brothel out. The cousins had changed into their red kimono and yukata set and follow behind us. Kyoya turns around to look at me.
"Why are they following us?" he asks, curiosity pouring from his voice.
"They're my backup," I reply and lag a little closer to my bodyguards. Kyoya walks beside me as we get out the door of the house. As usual my men line the path and the brothel looks at them with uncertainty.
"Have a nice day, Susan-sama. May you return safely to us," they all chant and I can't help but laugh when Tamaki jumps and yells. He clings to Haruhi for safety and she looks completely done with the situation.
"As usual, listen to the twins. I expect you all to be here when I come back," I tell my men. Kyoya watches me out of the corner of his eye and I find a small smile tugging at the corner of his mouth. Blushing brightly for some unknown reason, I smile as my men bow to me. With my farewell over, I begin to walk down the path. The brothel seems to be in shock but follows after me. Walking down the stairs the evil twins come up to me, and I can see the gears turning in their evil little heads.
"Are you,"
"Their boss?" they ask one after the other.
I sigh and shake my head. The brothel still hasn't figured out that I'm a yakuza boss yet? They really are a bunch of idiots. Finally getting at the bottom of the stairs, I see a limo waiting at the curb. I quirk my eyebrows and wonder if they always travel like this. The twins go to the limo and a chauffeur opens the door. The climb in and I wait for the cousins, letting everyone get in before me.
"You guys want to follow in the car?" I ask them quietly, but Kyoya hears. Kyoya having waited for me.
"They can ride with my bodyguards," he offers and I turn to see another car across the street. Three men are next to the black sedan and watch me carefully. I look at them and glare them down. If I'm going to send the cousins with them, they better know that I won't let them bully them around.
"Thank you," I tell Kyoya and nod to the cousins. Hana smiles widely while Haru looks a little nervous. As he is about to walk away, I pat his arm reassuringly. Kyoya is watching me and quirks an eyebrow. I blush and look away from him. Why is he watching me today?
"After you," he says and I get into the limo.
It's cool and the rest of the brothel is sitting on the sides, chatting about whatever rich people chat about. I sit on the seat which is by the door and Kyoya places himself next to me. He's like a piece of gum under your shoe. Annoying and sticky and no matter how much you try to get away, it somehow always gets stuck. My heart starts pounding as the limo drives away from the curb and I immediately know that today is going to be a very stressful day.
Hey everybody! I am sooooo sorry that this chapter is really really late. Like I said before, I foolishly signed up for a class that I shouldn't have and now am paying the price. But I don't want to withdraw from the course and I want to get a good grade. I also realized that if I do really well in this class, I am halfway through a classical studies certificate. The next chapter is going to be really fun. It's going to surround their entire day spent together, with cute moments with Kyoya. As we are going to learn Kou is a total KyoyaxSusan shipper. Also, for the music, the first song is "Shut up and Dance" by WALK THE MOON, the second is "99 red balloons" by Nena (german version) and the last song is ABBA's "Dancing Queen". Please review, so I know I haven't been deserted and that you enjoy the story. As I always say, criticism helps me. In addition, the inspiration for the thigh highs was my order above the knee socks.
So as always, love you guys. Review, Fave, Follow, Obsess. And I will try to get back to you guys quicker next time. See You later!
