After club hours I was held back by the twins who instantly began to explain to me the importance of getting their best side and how they wanted me to capture it. "Enough you guys! You two look almost exactly the same, it's not going to matter whether I'm taking photos from the left or the right!" I told them in exasperation, pinching the bridge of my nose. "Lord give me strength to get through this day. Grant me that and I swear I'll donate to charity every year for the rest of my life." They grinned at me, sniggering slightly before leaving me alone in peace to set up.
Kyoya certainly exceeded my expectations. In no time at all these builders had set up a photo shoot set worthy of celebrities, complete with several different stages including a green screen, a plain backdrop, a red silk background and one set around the host club area with the tables, chairs and sofas. "Wow." I breathed, starting to feel a little inferior. "Okay, well um…let's start with the ones with the natural setting seeing as you're all in your uniforms anyway." I said, putting down my camera case and began to set it up facing the lounger with a small round table decorated with a vase of flowers next to it.
I pulled it slightly forwards so that it looked a little less structured then ordered the host club to all arrange themselves on and around the sofa. Honey sat in the middle with the twins either side and I put Haruhi at the headrest end, turned at a slight angle with Tamaki next to her behind the sofa with Mori and Kyoya. "That feel okay?" I asked and they all answered with an all clear so I took the first few photos, allowing them time to change their facial expressions, stances and then we mixed them up once again until we had a wide range of assortments.
After that I took photos of them individually, starting with Tamaki who lounged on the sofa with a rose in his hand, looking as charming as possible before I moved onto Kyoya, who sat on the opposite end with one foot on the sofa and the other on the ground, resting one arm against his leg and looking seriously cool, as was his type. The twins didn't need to be photographed separately since they were an item, but we could experiment more with their positioning so we tried back to back, embracing, one sitting down and one standing up and so on.
"Man, this is tiring." I said, rubbing my eyes as the twins simply kept on talking. I was glad when we moved onto Haruhi as she was the perfect model. She sat there properly with her back straight, knees turned to the side and gave a cute smile to the camera, though not too wide and she looked totally adorable. "Haruhi, how is it that you make such an attractive guy? It's no wonder the other girls simply adore you. You're a natural at this." I said to her and she blinked her eyes innocently at me, large and wide so I quickly took a photo with a close up on her cute face.
"Guess it just comes naturally to me." She answered before standing up to allow Honey his turn. We had decided that he and Mori would have both photos together and separate, however Honey was the most fun. He wouldn't stop laughing as he lay upside down on the sofa, jumped into the air, pranced around with Usa-chan whilst constantly chanting for me to take this photo and that photo. I was soon in a fit of giggles.
"Calm down Honey-kun, you need to sit still whilst you're holding cake or it'll go everywhere." I instructed him so he sat down neatly with a plate of chocolate cake, smiling adorably into the camera and I took another few photos. Mori joined him next and the two were complete opposites of one another but somehow it worked so well. My favourite so far was the one where Mori was carrying Honey on his shoulders.
Eventually I finished with them all on that set, Mori only wanting a few photos and in fact Kyoya was the one who took charge, insisting that more than one photo was needed. After that I was only able to grab a quick drink before we were moving onto the green screen where the group photos would be taken. There were jungle photos, beach photos, medieval photos, farm photos and all other kinds that had me practically hyperventilating with laughter. They were all dressed up in different outfits, posing together with an assortment of props from cocktails to pitchforks.
"You guys are having way too much fun with this, I can tell." I teased them as we moved onto the blank screen where the individual dress up photos were to be taken.
"But of course, to share the happiness around to our dear guests, we must enjoy every moment that we spend in the hope of bringing them great joy." Tamaki declared dramatically and I almost dropped to the floor in disbelief when I saw that he was wearing a prince's uniform. Oh jeez, he really takes this seriously, doesn't he? The moment his photos were over the twins appeared to replace him, wearing everyday clothing but looked stylish nonetheless.
All in all I enjoyed being their photographer. They made me laugh as much as they made me scowl with irritation, though that was mostly by fault of the twins. I had fun with the guys and they seemed to enjoy my company, making jests and prodding fun which I readily shot back at them until finally we were all done.
They crowded around me as I uploaded the photos to Kyoya's computer and flicked through them all so that they could inspect them and they turned out rather well, if I do say so myself. Especially considering we had had to do the lighting ourselves and it was mainly due to my judgment whether or not something would work. "These are pretty cool Katsumi, you're quite artistic." Kaoru complimented in all seriousness and I turned a smile over my shoulder to him.
"Thanks Kaoru." I trilled happily before finishing the transfer. "So Kyoya, they're all on your laptop now as well as mine just so that we have copies in case anything happens to mine. I'll finish editing the green screen photos by Friday and then you can do what you want with them."
"But Katsumi-chan, we haven't finished taking the photos yet." Tamaki said to me, placing his arms around my shoulders and I instinctively froze in place, an eyebrow twitching.
"Eh?"
"You need to photograph us all in our natural element! Which of course means, you'll be coming to all our houses to photograph us going about our daily business, doesn't that sound fun?" He said all too happily for my liking and my fingers clenched into fists.
"What do you mean Tamaki?! I have other stuff to do you know! I can't go running around after you all taking photos, I have a business to take care of and my brother and sister need me at home to take care of them. Do you have any idea how lonely they get?" I panicked slightly, standing up and turning to face them. "I can't stay out all hours all the time, I refuse to let them down like that."
"It'll be fine Katsumi, it'll only be for a couple of hours after club hours each day, you can do two at a time until Friday and then we'll be done." The twins said to me and I exhaled, rubbing my face wearily. Looks like I'll be pulling some sleepless nights again this week.
"I can't do it. I'm far too busy." I insisted, folding my arms and drawing myself up tall however the twins then held out their phones, showing me the picture of when I had fallen asleep and started sucking my thumb.
"So you don't mind if we send this to everyone in school?" They questioned and my face fell in horror. "Because if you don't do what we want, then that's what'll happen." I stared at them in a moment of dead silence before I glared at them accusingly.
"You are horrible people." I informed them bluntly as they smirked, giving a careless shrug before I exhaled. "Okay fine, but don't make it a waste of my time, you got it? I will come to each of your houses for an hour, two houses at a time each night until Friday." I instructed, placing my hands on my hips and held out my hand with my forefinger held upwards to signal I meant business. "Tomorrow I'll go to Hikaru and Kaoru's house first because I'm meeting with their mom and then I'll go to…wait, Haruhi, is it even okay to photograph you at home?"
"Sure, it should be fine. Everyone knows I'm here on a scholarship anyway, they shouldn't be surprised to see where I lived." She said before suddenly growing angry. "Hey wait a minute, when did I even agree to this?! You can't photograph me at home!" She yelled but Kyoya pushed his glasses up the bridge of his nose, catching the light off the lens.
"Do it and we'll deduct fifteen percent from your debt." He informed her and instantly Haruhi's shoulders slumped, groaning in defeat. That Kyoya sure knows how to deal, he's got Haruhi trapped and backed up in a corner. She basically has to do anything they tell her to do in order to clear her debt.
"Okay…so tomorrow is the twins and Haruhi. Thursday I'll do Kyoya-kun and Tamaki-senpai then Friday, I'll finish with Honey-kun and Mori-senpai." I informed them all, thinking quickly over my schedule. "That should leave me enough time to finish my homework assignment for Thursday and my art project for Friday, though I'm sure if I move that meeting with my team tomorrow half an hour later, I'll be able to grab some food…" I thought to myself out loud, tapping my chin before exhaling. "Alright, I'll see you guys tomorrow. Remember, you owe me big for doing this." I warned them before turning around to leave.
"Hey Kitty-chan, do you want a lift home?" Honey called after me and I paused at the door, carrying all my things in hand. "You'll get home much faster that way." He reasoned cheerfully and I turned around with a grateful smile.
"Would you mind? Is that really okay? I hate taking you out of your way." I said as he and Mori came towards me, grabbing their stuff before Mori held the door open for me.
"Don't be silly Kitty-chan, you only live ten minutes away from Takashi's house." He bubbled brightly, skipping ahead of me as I stepped through the door however as I made to move forwards, Mori's hand gently touched my shoulder and I looked up at him quickly in surprise before realising he was gesturing for me to hand over my equipment to let him carry it.
"Oh, thank you Mori-senpai." I said, turning my head away to hide the slight flush on my cheeks as I let him carry my camera equipment then walked at his side after Honey as he sang a nursery song to himself. "I have to ask but is this really how Honey-kun acts all the time? It's just he reminds me so much of my little brother and it's hard to think that he's older than me."
"Yeah." Mori answered and I glanced his way before falling silent. Guess he isn't interested in talking too much at the moment. Though to be fair he never really talks unless he thinks it's necessary. Normally he just sits quietly among his admirers whilst Honey does all the talking for the both of them. They were quite a team, when I had sat with them, Honey had always been the one to make me comfortable, his fans always being sweet and nice enough to involve me in the conversation however when I had once made the grave mistake of sitting right beside Mori, his own fan squad had glared murder at me. "What's wrong?" He asked me suddenly and I almost missed the question.
"Wrong? Nothing's wrong, I was just thinking." I answered, giving him an easy smile. "I was thinking how different your fans are. Honey-kun's are all kind and inviting but yours are a little possessive of you. Doesn't it get annoying the way they cling to you like that?" I asked him and he exhaled softly.
"Yeah. Sometimes." He agreed and I regarded him for a moment before snorting into a chuckle.
"You don't say much, do you?"
"No."
"Do you want me to shut up?"
"No." I smirked slightly behind my hand before I lowered it to my side and faced forwards once again.
"By the way, thanks for taking me home last week and for carrying me up to my room. My little brother told me that you carried me all the way inside and that Honey-kun had even taken off my shoes to make sure I was comfortable." I looked up at him with a grateful glance. "Thanks, that was really sweet of you two. It feels nice to be taken care of for once."
"You're welcome." He replied however this time, he looked down at me. His face was its usual mask of mystery however his eyes were warm and inviting, smiling down at me and I felt a warmth bubble up inside me like I'd just drank champagne, making my smile widen happily before I walked contently at his side until we reached the car where Honey was waiting for us.
"Come on Kitty-chan, Takashi! Let's go!" He gave a laugh before jumping into the car and sprawled across one of the seats, taking up the room so when I climbed onto the opposite seat, Mori put my stuff away safely in the back before sitting down beside me. "Wasn't today fun? We should do more things together Kitty-chan, we all love having you with us, you're not like other girls." Honey said to me as he began to kick his legs over the edge of the seat. "You and Haru-chan mean a lot to us because you really care, not like the others."
"I'm sure they care about you too Honey-kun, after all they are your fans." I reminded him but he just shook his head to me.
"No, they like us because we're hosts. You like us because we're us." He had a point and I couldn't really argue against it so I just smiled to him before leaning back against the seat, turning to look out the window as the streets flew by indistinguishably however I began to feel my lids slowly sliding shut, a yawn escaping me however I forced myself to stay awake. I can't go to sleep yet otherwise I won't wake until tomorrow and I can't afford that, especially seeing as poor Mori would be forced to carry my lazy butt inside if I did so. "So Kitty-chan, what kind of food do you like?"
"I'll eat anything Honey-kun, I'm not a fussy eater." I answered him, turning my eyes away from what was passing us outside to glance between my two companions. "Why do you ask?"
"I'm just wondering if you have a favourite food." Honey shrugged, grinning as he hugged Usa-chan to him. "Like mine's cake!"
"Well I'm not really sure, I guess I like all kinds of food and I'm always willing to try something new but if I had to go for my idea of a perfect meal then I'd say…teriyaki burgers with a side of fried chicken skewers with fries. I'll admit, I do like western food." I said with a guilty smile. "And for dessert, I'd have all the dango I could eat." I liked my lips just thinking about it. "Or doughnuts, I quite like them too though it's been a long time since I've had them. My parents don't care for sweet things much so normally we kids have to sneak into the kitchen for a secret dessert after dinner."
"Your parents sound very strict. Is it true that they're hard on you Kitty-chan?" Honey questioned me however I put on a false smile and waved my hand.
"Of course not, they're strict yes but they just get irritated with me from time to time. Sometimes I just can't keep my mouth shut and they don't like back chatting so I occasionally get on their nerves." I explained though inwardly I flinched. It wasn't a far stretch from the truth however the long and short of it was that they thought me a failure.
I could feel Mori looking at me sceptically and I was fairly certain that he didn't believe a word I'd said but I didn't meet his eye, keeping my eyes turned either towards Honey or out the window, watching as familiar streets and shops passed me by almost like a hazy dream. The clouds were gathering outside and I sensed rain was coming and sure enough when we pulled up outside my house it was as if someone had tipped a giant bucket of water overhead.
"Kitty-chan! You'll get all wet!" Honey wailed before he fished out an umbrella from under the seat. "Here, Takashi will keep you nice and dry, won't you Takashi?"
"Yeah." He answered and before I could protest, he'd slipped out of the car and opened the umbrella, standing in the rain waiting for me so I exhaled.
"I'll see you tomorrow Honey-kun, thanks again for the ride."
"No problem Kitty-chan, say hello to Naoki-chan for me!" He cheered before I took a deep breath and braved the rain. It was pretty windy as well and almost instantly my skirts were snapped against my legs, almost toppling me off balance but Mori's strong hand grasped my arm and pulled me closer, sheltering me from the elements as I squeaked.
"Mori-senpai! You should just go back inside, I don't want you to get soaked." I yelled over the blustering wind but Mori only pulled me closer, making my cheeks go red with a flush of nervousness as his grip exchanged to wrapping around my waist.
"You'll blow away." He informed me simply but there was a small curve on his lips signalling a smile so I chuckled in agreement before together we hurried towards the front door, the umbrella hardly doing any good however Yuri was already there waiting with a warm towel for me which I wrapped myself up in as Mori stopped just outside. "I'll get the rest of your things."
"No Mori, wait! You can just leave it until…tomorrow." I trailed off as Mori braved the wind and rain once more, looking rather staggeringly epic with every movement he made and I couldn't help but smile slightly as he wrapped my camera equipment up inside his blazer to protect it before returning to the door. "Thank you Mori-senpai, you're very sweet." I told him before taking a large trench coat that belonged to my father from Yuri's hands, thanking him in a whisper before I flung it around Mori, rising up onto my toes so that I could reach before I pulled it together in front of him, noticing how he blinked down at me with slightly wider eyes. "To keep you warm until you can change." I explained, pushing a wet lock of hair back from my face as it had stuck to my cheek. "I don't want you to get ill."
"It's only a little rain." He said reasonably but I shrugged in answer, huddling and shivering under my towel.
"But still, it'll make me feel better." I answered, giving him a smile. "So take care of yourself, make sure you don't catch a cold otherwise Kyoya-kun might become upset with me." Before I knew what I was doing I was reaching up with my towel and using it to dry off the rain from Mori's face, making the both of us blush with embarrassment so I quickly pulled away. "Goodnight then."
"Goodnight Katsumi." He said to me, sliding his arms into the coat which was almost too small for him. "Sleep well." And with that he turned and leaped back into the car in just over two strides, closing the door and the limo pulled away, driving around the courtyard's centre fountain before disappearing out of the gates.
"Perhaps we had better get you warm and dry, Miss Katsumi." Yuri suggested and as I sneezed suddenly, I heartily agreed with him.
