A/N – So, hi, thanks all for your reviews and through and encouragements. I really enjoy getting them and responding to them. Yes, I know, two chapters in one weekend—it's unheard of! I am doing this because I wanted to but also because I had time because I am sick! Yay! Anyways, things are going to get good from here on out. This chapter is mostly a set up for the climax. I know, we're almost at the climax. Crazy, right?
Anyways, thanks to all of you. It was amusing. One of my reviewers (spirit1s) found me the new Ouran bonus chapter, and I was super excited because 1) Mei and Kasanoda are in it, and they have been one of my favorite fan pairings for forever (and already were going to be a part of this fic before I read the bonus chappie) and 2) Hatori-sama had Kyoya stay in the U.S. for college, which totally makes this fic super legit now. It made me excited. Sorry, had to share. The link for the bonus chapter is in one of my reviews, and I super duper recommend it because it is adorable as Hatori-sama is amazing.
Some more honorable mentions:
KageNoNeko
ElectricDoubleLover
Tylersgirl777
EowynAshokaLover
Da Furr
And all of my anonymous followers!
Anyways, enjoy this chapter. It is a little less action packed, a little more wordy, but necessary.
IIIII
I had been awake for a few minutes—thinking. I felt energized and ready to greet the day, more excited about my new mental status then the meeting with Kyoya's father and brothers. It wasn't as if my commitmentphobia was cured—it had only been a month after all—but I felt different somehow. Yes, it could be because I had somehow ended up in Japan in what could be described the perfect shojo manga, especially with all these Bishonen surrounding me. Then again, it could be because all of these people seemed so vast. I didn't know much about all of the other Hosts, but I knew the kind of people they had to be to put up with and be put up with by Mr. Ootori—Kyoya—who may be the most complex out of all of them.
This feeling inside—it had never happened to me before. For the first time in my life I wanted to stay and unwind all of the mysteries of him. I wanted to cry in front of him, be held by him, do the same things for him without any fear. All my life I had been afraid of people getting too close. I used my flamboyance and humor as a buffer. As soon as I felt myself becoming defenseless or felt them doing the same thing, I ran. I don't know what made Kyoya so different, what made me completely lose myself around him.
I just don't know.
Usually that would scare me so much that I would find the first escape route no matter what it cost me or the other person, but now it intrigues me and draws me in closer.
"Emma, are you awake?" I heard the mumble from the other side of the covers and propped myself up to check, "OW! God damnit."
"I am so sorry." I guess we both decided to prop ourselves up and check if one another was awake, meaning that we bumped foreheads with one another. The gash on his forehead I had given him when I threw him off the bed was bleeding again. Oops.
"I hate you so much." Kyoya had gotten off the bed, grabbed a towel and was pressing it against his head. I grabbed my first aid kit and was about to point him to the couch when my phone rang. Panicking for a few seconds I looked from Kyoya to the phone, "Answer it; it could be Christopher. This injury is not going anywhere." I reached in my bag to grab it out then glared and stuck my tongue out at Kyoya when he mumbled, "Especially if you stay near me." What a child!
"Robert. Why are you calling me?"
"I heard that Dad was there. He called me and told me he talked to Kyoya. I thought that I should get to talk to him too." Why does my family always insist on butting into my life?
"Robert, couldn't we just be one of those 21st century families that mind their own business and love one another quietly and from a great distance?"
"We are. I don't want to talk to you; I want to talk to the sexy Asian you have in your possession. I am loving you quietly because I'm at Barnes & Noble with Hari, and we have at least 6000 miles between us at the present time, which is a great distance. Now that I've outwitted you and you know it, can I talk to the hottie?"
"AAAAGGGGGHHHAAAAAAAHHHH!" I hate my family!
"Emma, is everything alright?" I growled again, stomping the floor with my feet like a little kid.
"Here. My brother wants to talk to you. I'm going to take a shower. Remember that we have a meeting with your family soon. You don't know how lucky you are that your family doesn't talk to one another. RRAAAUGH!"
I'm going to take a boiling hot shower. A very, very hot shower.
IIIII
"Hello?" I am so sick of mornings in this place. If it is not Tamaki barging in and interrupting my sleep then it is pain and Emma, two things which are often not mutually exclusive.
"So, you met my father yesterday. I'm sure he scared you half to death by telling you things you haven't even told your best friends and then he explained Emma perfectly, warning you about the possibility of you getting hurt. What you need to know is that I am not as nice as my father. I really could care less about you getting hurt, but if you hurt my sister, then me and my husband will bring the pain. So I just need to know one thing, what are your feelings for my sister?"
I hate this family. The only person I have not met is Emma's mother, and assuming her father knows Emma very well, which he does, then Emma is nearly a copy of her mother. I hate this family. At least now I know that Emma was genetically predisposed to be a pain in my ass.
"She is a valued employee. Any personal feelings I have are…inconsequential." I heard a long sigh on the other end of the phone.
"Translation: 'I'm Kyoya Ootori, and I don't have the balls to admit when I'm attracted to someone.' Geez, you and Emma are perfect for one another. Just perfect." Then there was only dialtone.
I understood why Emma utters passionate yells of a nonsensical nature; I wanted to as well. In my mind I kept repeating the phrase "perfect for one another," and every time my thought circled around to "perfect" I noticeably twitched. I made up my mind last night that I would not participate in this farce.
"'Should I give up, or should I just keep chasing pavements even if it leads nowhere. Or would it be a waste, even if I knew my place. Should I leave it there? Should I give up, or should I just keep chasing pavements even if it leads nowhere?'"
"Emma? I am coming in." I needed to wash the blood off of my forehead. Evil, violent, witch of a woman, "Sorry to interrupt your cowling."
"Really? Another attack at my singing? Did you ever think that maybe I actually could sing but that I don't do it in front of people?"
"No, I cannot say that I have thought about such a possibility." While putting on a band-aid, I smiled and uttered a few chuckles before looking at myself in the mirror and sneering at myself for such a stupidly emotive reaction, "Emma, I think you may need to check for a concussion."
"I had planned on it." I heard the water stop. The towel disappeared off of the towel rack and in a few seconds Emma stepped out of the shower and pointed to the toilet, "Sit." She knelt in front of me and looked up into my face., her hands on my knees. I traced a droplet of water from her forehead down to her cheek until it dropped onto her cleavage. I could feel a small blush come to my face.
"Yes, suddenly I do feel nauseated." What the hell is going on with me?
"Your face is getting flushed." She put her hand on my forehead, he towel slipping down slightly as she raised her arm. Emma was definitely worth looking at. Stop it! "You aren't warm. Hold on one second, let me get my glucose meter."
I watched her walk away, taking in a deep breath and letting it out slowly. Calm down, Kyoya. Getting emotional is not going to help anything. Honestly, I would like to destroy whoever's bright idea it was to wire men this way. I just needed to keep telling myself that Emma is a witch who radiated pure evil.
"Look, Kyoya, I really am sorry that I keep hurting you. It isn't really my intention, you know. I actually really like being here—you know—with you." She paused, panicked and before being able to stop myself, I grinned at her, raising one eyebrow, "Everyone else too, of course. They're really wonderful people. You're lucky to have them."
"I am."
"Your blood sugar is really low. That might account for the flushing and nausea. I think I have a granola bar in my purse. Go ahead and get it while I change. Out, out, out." Before I could even respond, I was shoved outside of the bathroom, the door locked behind me. With a sigh I walked over to the couch where her purse sat and reached around for the granola bar. Opening it, I sat on the couch.
"Ouch," I sat on something—stupid purple pen! For a moment I had the dark desire to snap it in half, but having Emma angry with me could cause more bodily injury. Besides, she would probably be upset. As I looked at the fluffy top of the pen I caught something pink and glittering on the floor. Notebook? Ah. Emma's notebook. A quick peek would not hurt anyone, and she takes forever to get dressed.
…Bastard. None of my superiors have ever one-uped me before. None of my bosses have ever been that calm and cool while reprimanding me. Did any of that even count as a reprimand? I mean, other than those gray eyes fading to black eyes that made me feel as if I was peering into the frozen depths of hell itself…
I flipped forward to one of the more recent entries.
...Coming from the type of family I do, I simply couldn't understand how a father could say those kinds of things to his son, or how a sibling could remain silent while that kind of psychological and emotional abuse was going on—that's exactly what it was too…
Hmn. I would have to make sure to watch her around my family, especially if she reacted so strongly to something that was just the way it was.
…I'm the greedy little bastard to think that I could actually have feelings for someone that I know won't last because as soon as things get serious I'll mess it up. I guess the singular good thing about this situation is that, though he says the contrary, I am pretty sure he loathes me. Unrequited love is easier to throw away than actualized love…
Another.
…Once again I was rendered impotent due to my claustrophobia, and once again it was Kyoya who saved me. This was not helping me stop being selfish and getting over him before I really screwed everything up…
I guess her father and brother knew her very well. At least she was aware that she was so demented. It is a good thing that I can force myself to become detached if necessary. I flipped to the entry for last night, not really understanding why I did so.
…After learning a little bit about Kyoya's past and the men who adore him with all of their hearts, I was determined to show them all up. I wanted to make sure that he was okay. I wanted to take care of him.
I think I'd be okay working with Ootori medical for at least a few more years, just so I could be a part of his life, associating with the merry band of morons he called friends. I caught my reflection in the mirror by the door. For a moment I thought I'd catch myself laughing and saying "who're you kidding? You can't keep this up!" like I did every time I thought I'd keep a job—I didn't, and I wasn't. Oh, Kyoya. Why did I have to fall for someone like you?...
Before even thinking, my hands went up to touch my lips. I could still remember the feeling from last night. Emma must have done that after she finished writing this entry. What was she thinking? Why did she fall for someone like me, someone incapable of returning her feelings?
I remain unconvinced that I held any type of attachment to her as anything other than a colleague. By 'I,' I mean my mind. My intellect was all I needed to make these kinds of decisions. Unlike her brother suggested, it was not a lack of courage—it was just the way things were.
The heart could not be trusted. Feelings are deceptive. Emotions are too covered with sinew to be trusted.
IIIII
Again with the stupid ear bud. It was a different translator this time, and he was too busy humming to himself to talk to me. Jerk.
"Why are you wearing something like that? It makes you look less then professional, and the attire is not appropriate for traveling on a motorcycle. You could get injured." Kyoya had been acting like he had something stuck up his ass ever since I had gotten out of the shower. Correction, after I had finished changing after getting out of the shower and telling him to eat a granola bar. Good grief! I knew he didn't like being told what to do, but that is no reason to act like a jerk. I wonder if something else happened.
He couldn't have figured out about that late night kiss, could he have? No way. I made sure to do it after he was asleep, and I wrote nothing about it in my journal just in case it made its way into his hands.
"Look, the twins told me that there was a surprise tonight and then they gave me this dress. Since I figured I wouldn't have time to change, I wore it now. Besides, I already made it here on the motorcycle without serious injury. You are being extremely critical today." I guess it couldn't hurt to just ask him, "Was there something that you wanted to talk about? Like, something about last night?"
"Emma, I just want to know where we stand. You are my secretary; I am your boss. Your father and your brother somehow seem to think that there is something more than that between us, and I am starting to think that there is. What I mean to say is that you need to do yourself a favor and just stop this before you get yourself hurt and possibly out of a job."
Thankfully at that moment the door opened and a man carrying a briefcase stepped in. Kyoya walked over and talked with him in hushed tones as I sat down. I reread what he had just said to me—it was rather cryptic. He wasn't just talking about my thoughts when he said "and I am starting to think that there is." It's Kyoya, he says exactly what he means to say, so if this was one sided then he would have said something like "and I am starting to think that you think there is"—he wouldn't have left it so ambiguous.
The last sentence too. On one hand that could have meant to stop before I get myself hurt because he does not return my feelings and would end up firing me if I tried to perpetuate those thoughts onto him. But, taking into account that he knows how much I struggle with commitment, it could mean that I should stop before I feel the compulsion of running from both him and my job.
So, really, what he meant was '…seem to think that there is something more than that between us, and I am starting to feel something like that as well. What I mean to say is that you need to do yourself a favor and stop feeling these things for me because you feel the need to run away from both me and your job.' Huh. If I was right in my disambiguation of his word, then I had a serious cause to be happy. It will have meant that I won.
"Please, sit down. We do not have much time to conduct this meeting as one of you will be leaving in an hour for Switzerland. I have an important Swiss associate whose business is about to be bought out by one of our main American competitors. I am thinking of having Kyoya meet with him. Thoughts?" Yoshio Ootori stormed in, beginning to talk immediately as he entered the room. Akito and Yuuichi followed him and sat down on the couch. Kyoya ceased talking with the man carrying a briefcase, taking the luggage and sitting down with it.
"I would be honored to sir. I may be able to do business with the American competitor in order to broker a deal that will get them to leave the Swiss financial associate of the main Ootori group zaibatsu alone while earning their trust stateside." Switzerland? I'd never been to Europe. Does this mean we would get to go skiing on the Alps? How exciting!
Wait. Leaving to go to Switzerland would completely break Tamaki's heart, especially since the Host club is planning to open up next week for the reunion. I'm sure Yoshio knew this. What an idiot.
"I am not entirely sure that that would be the best course of action. Ootori U.S. has gained tremendous power in the medical world as of late. Brokering a deal with the American company outright might scare off the Ootori group's long time association with the Swiss, which may prove profitable for Ootori U.S. but detrimental to Ootori Japan." Yuuichi crossed his legs and glared across the couch at Kyoya.
"That could be the case; however, if we move our pieces right then the entire Ootori group could not only cement their spot on the list of Japanese conglomerates, but it could also increase our potential for being a global financial heavyweights. Look," Kyoya opened the briefcase he was given and passes out folders to his father and two brothers. I guess I knew what he's been doing in his spare time, "this is all of the information for both the Swiss company and the American company. If we can make separate deals with both of those conglomerates, we would essentially be paying off the Americans for the losses received for leaving the Swiss alone as well as extending a hand of friendship to them while simultaneously protecting the Swiss as we always have."
Yoshio—0. Kyoya—1. Boohyah! Sorry Tamaki, but it's SWITZERLAND!
"I have to wonder though, Kyoya, how did you come by all of this information?" Akito said, taking a sip from the coffee cup he had brought in with him.
"Christopher Maples has stepped up into a partnership role with me as I am spending my time here in Japan. I intend to make him a full partner when I get back to the states, placing him in charge of offices and a training hospital to be set up in California. Expanding to the west coast of the United States is in the best interest of the entire Ootori group, and Christopher is the perfect man to make sure this venture succeeds, and he informed me of the American company's interest in the Swiss company. I knew that it was only a matter of time before something like this happen."
Yoshio—0. Kyoya—2. Wham. Bam. Thank you ma'am!
"So, Kyoya, what you are saying is that you have not only given the order to expand Ootori U.S. without my permission, chosen the man responsible for heading up this 'expansion' without my approval, as well as researched into this situation ahead of time so that regardless of whether the Japanese branch of the Ootori group takes a significant financial hit, Ootori U.S. will remain unscathed?"
"No!" It left my mouth before I could rein it in. I could feel Kyoya tense from my spot behind him, and now everyone was looking at me.
"Oh, she speaks. What do you have to say, young lady?" Yoshio beckoned me over with a finger. Now that all eyes were on me, I knew exactly what Kyoya meant by being dressed too unprofessionally. Kyoya turned and just shook his head.
"Sorry, sir. I spoke out of turn." Everyone looked away from me, Akito taking another sip of his coffee, Yuuichi rolling his eyes at me, and Yoshio beginning to laugh. I felt incredibly small and insignificant.
"That's right, sir. Though I know that nothing will happen to the Ootori group, there is a possibility for what you said to be true." Now all of their eyes were on Kyoya. He was not going to take the fall for me again! That wasn't true, and Kyoya knew it. Both the Japanese and American factions of Ootori Medical worked too symbiotically for that to ever happen. Kyoya, what are you doing?
"Yuuichi, I think that it would be best if you go on this trip since your youngest brother seems incapable of handling this without thinking through every scenario. I expect a report soon." Yuuichi gave a small grin to Kyoya before standing up and leaving, "Kyoya, again you disappoint me. One would think a man who graduated top of his class in business administration would understand more about how business is conducted then his brothers who went to medical school. It is disappointing how much experience you lack." Another verbal slap. Akito followed Yoshio out of the room.
"I am sorry. I tried; I tried not to say anything." I really wanted to go Super Saiyan on this whole family.
"Emma, do not worry about it. My father will always find something to criticize me for. I knew exactly what he was doing. He was dangling the trip to Switzerland in front of my face just so that he could take it away from me. I knew that, so I played into his hands. Besides, I would rather face the wrath of my father than the puppy dog eyes of Tamaki. I am sure you can imagine what he would be like if we ended up leaving for Switzerland a week before the Host club opens again."
I grinned and started to laugh, "Yeah, that's what I was thinking all along."
IIIII
A/N – Your reviews keep me and my fanfiction writing alive! I appreciate the thoughts and critiques and praises tremendously!
