A restless night followed an uneventful day, and Mystique's eyes were open before her alarm even rang. When it finally did let loose its annoying clangs, she let it continue for a good while before she slowly raised her hand and slapped it down onto the off button. After letting her hand slide back down, she gradually slipped herself out of bed. Her bare feet barely made a sound against her wooden floor and she stretched her arms far above her head, letting out a loud yawn.
She dragged her feet as she shuffled into her bathroom, ready (however begrudgingly) to start the day. Her morning schedule was nothing particularly glamorous, but she didn't care. A quick shower, brushing her teeth and her hair, and throwing on her clothes for the day; that was all her mornings consisted of. And if she was feeling up to it, maybe a light breakfast. She wasn't much of a morning person, but she wasn't completely opposed to them.
After doing her usual routine, she started down the stairs. Halfway down, she cussed under her breath and turned back up; heading up to grab her cell phone. It was a touch screen, naturally, as she had practically no use for an actual phone. She rarely ever received calls, and most of those were wrong numbers, telemarketers, or scammers anyway. So she mostly used it for games, although she would be bored with them after the first few days of playing them.
With her phone securely in her hands this time, she made her way down the stairs once more and stared down at the screen. She could remember that as a kid she would slide down the banister all the way to the bottom, but walking was fine enough for her now. She went down to the kitchen, actively avoiding anyone who was up and about in the house, and grabbed herself a piece of bread to make herself some toast. She hopped up onto the counter and grabbed a jar of peanut butter, hardly a need to look up, her gaze still fixated on her device.
There she sat, on the counter, and waited for her toast to pop up. She didn't pay much mind to anything happening around her. Persuaded off the counter by staff only after her toast was toasted to just the way she wanted it to be, she grabbed her ingredients and went to the table to make her favorite morning delicacy- peanut butter toast. Once upon a time, she would've used her fingers as a spoon, but she'd much rather have the taste of breakfast than finger-y peanut butter.
She made her way back up to her room, still playing games on her phone boredly with one hand and carrying her breakfast in the other. She put her toast onto her nightstand and flopped down onto her bed. Eventually, she tired of her games and turned the phone off, resting her arms on the bedding and staring up at her ceiling. It crossed her mind that she could simply take a nap and waste the day away, but she felt something nagging at the back of her mind. It seemed to her like she was forgetting something; something important.
Worming herself over to the edge of her bed, she reached down and blindly groped for her planner to see if she'd made any plans for the day. She skimmed through the pages to find that specific day, and her eyes scanned through her own handwriting until her eyes landed on three little words: 'Day with Haruhi.'
"Crap!"
She scrambled off her bed and threw open her dresser drawers, grabbing her phone again and dialing Haruhi's home phone number as she searched for a pair of socks. She mumbled to herself as she listened to it ring and fumbled around for her hairbrush. When someone finally picked up, she pulled on her socks and smiled as if the person on the other side of the line would see her.
"Hello, Haruhi, I am sorry-"
"Actually, this is Haruhi's father. Can I... Help you?"
She paused for a second, dropping her smile, before continuing to get ready. "Oh. Yes, hello, Mr. Fujioka. I am... I know Haruhi from school, and we had established plans to go out around the town today."
"My Haruhi? Out on the town? Hmm... Ah! You must be that new friend she told me about! Yes, yes, Mystine, was it? No, that's silly... What was it? ...Misty! Wait, Misty? That can't be right, either. Uh... What's your name again?"
"Yeah, sir, that would be me," she said, only half listening while trying to be polite. "Anyway, Mr. Fujioka, I am afraid I will be a bit late in picking her up, but I promise I will be there soon."
"I'll make sure Haruhi knows, then, what's-your-name. I'll be seeing you then. But seriously, what's your-"
She hung up without allowing him to finish his sentence and sighed. Shoving her feet into her boots before clopping down the stairs, she began calling for one of the staff members to drive her over to Haruhi's. There were only a few moments of silence before she heard one of the cars pull up. A small smile grew across her face, knowing she could have even the most ridiculous request done with a snap of her fingers.
She hopped out of the car almost the instant it stopped, and she looked around to try and find which apartment was Haruhi's- repeating the number '203' to herself over and over until she found the room she was looking for. With three knocks and some patience, she found herself face to face with Haruhi.
"Are you... Ready?" she asked. peeking behind Haruhi, spying her father standing a bit further away in the room and watching the two of them.
"Sure, let's go. Where were you thinking of heading to?" Haruhi either didn't notice her father's hovering or just didn't care.
"Oh, you know... Around. I was thinking maybe we could go to a nearby park or a playground."
"Really? You want to go to a playground?"
"Never mind, just come on, we have a lot of daylight to burn."
They descended the stairs after a quick goodbye to Haruhi's father and began walking into town.
Haruhi showed her around a few places, introducing her to the different things she liked to do and/or go to. Mystique nodded along, not really seeing anything of much interest until they came upon a little bookshop. It was quaint, but she found it quite charming and was drawn to it. She convinced Haruhi to go in with her and started a conversation about books and reading. Neither one of them paid much attention to the small group of people already shopping around in the store, nor to any others who happened to come in. The two were completely immersed in each others company.
"You like to read, right? What about that book I saw you reading in the club? Maybe we could find something like that in here." Mystique asked, picking up a book and skimming through a couple of pages.
"Book..? Oh, that was just for my literature class. I have to read a book and write an essay over it in a couple of weeks. I was getting a head start on it so I could focus on other things," she explained, looking around at the bookcases.
"I see, I see. Then forget about that book, what kinds of books do you like to read for fun?"
"I don't know," Haruhi said, sighing as she pulled a book off a shelf. "I mean, I barely have any time to just sit down with a book, even if it is a good one. I have too much stuff to study, y'know? It's not like I don't like them, it's just that I've got to focus on my textbooks rather than make-believe stories."
Mystique shook her head and flipped open another book, looking over the pages. "I can respect that, but I prefer it the other way around. Studying is nice enough for, well, studying, but I like to live vicariously through those fantasy worlds. I would much rather live in the what these authors create than I would here. Wasting away the majority of my life in schools and then in the workforce... You can do anything you want to in a book, though. It is funny, you know? Words are limited to the pages on which they are written, yet they still hold more freedom than the real world."
Mystique's face held a small smile on it, and she didn't notice the lingering eyes of her friend on her. Haruhi couldn't help but laugh a bit after a few seconds, putting the book back on the shelf after finding it less than interesting. "Is that why you've always got your head in the clouds?"
"My head is not always in the clouds," she argued, still flipping through pages absentmindedly, occasionally looking up and around at the other people in the shop. She could almost swear she felt eyes on her, and it was beginning to make her uncomfortable.
"Oh, come on, I see you around the school. You've always got your nose in some book. Even in the club, you're usually reading before and after visiting. Sometimes during."
Mystique felt her face grow a bit warm and she silently closed the book in her hands, heading to the counter and purchasing it. She tied the handles of the bag around her wrist, thanking the cashier before heading back to Haruhi.
"Well... Never mind all that." A smile began to form on her lips. "Would you like to do something fun before we leave?"
Haruhi just blinked and shrugged. "Well, that would depend, I guess. What did you have in mind?"
Mystique brought her finger to her lips with a slight grin, grabbing Haruhi by the wrist and pulling her to the mystery section of the store. She grabbed a few books and started flipping them around so the titles were facing the shelves.
"Mystique, I'm not sure you should be doing-"
"Oh, come on, Haruhi, please? They are mystery books anyway. What could be the harm? This way every book really is a mystery."
"Well..." Haruhi was unsure of what to do, and only stood back and watched Mystique do what she was doing.
After she was finished she stood back and gave Haruhi such a proud smile that she couldn't find the heart to say anything about it. It seemed like she was having fun, and Haruhi didn't want to ruin it for her. But she didn't want to get in trouble, so she grabbed Mystique by the wrist and pulled her towards the exit of the store, not paying any mind to the other patrons in the small shop.
"Why don't we go find something else to do now? I'm kind of over the books right now."
Mystique nodded and allowed Haruhi to lead her to wherever she wanted to go, figuring it was Haruhi's turn to choose a location since she had dragged her to the bookstore. Haruhi brought her to the supermarket, looking around to see if there was anything on sale. Mystique was averse to this at first, but kept it to herself, wanting to give it a chance.
"So, the supermarket, huh?"
"Yeah. It's a pretty nice place, right? They've always got some sort of sale going on. Maybe the two of us could find something to make for dinner together when we go back to the house," Haruhi suggested, picking up some produce to compare, already thinking of dinner options. "I mean, we've got plenty of time and we don't have to buy it all right now, but we could figure out what we want based off of what they have and then come back later before we head back to my place for dinner."
Mystique nodded quietly, looking at a few packages herself. "So, this is your idea of fun. I guess you like to cook, then? What kinds of things do you like to make?"
"Oh, pretty much everything. My mom used to make the best dishes for me and my dad. Now I do the cooking, and I like to have fun with it like she did. It's really relaxing, and it's really fulfilling when they come out well."
"Oh, that's... Nice." Mystique looked at Haruhi through the corner of her eyes before looking back down to the meat in her hands. "I've never cooked anything more complicated than a scrambled egg before. But, I'd like to try to help you out. If that would be alright, that is."
"Sure. Do you have anything in mind for dinner? Any favorites?" Haruhi kept her eyes on the items in front of her, comparing prices in the back of her mind.
"Not really. But, if I had to choose something? I've always wanted to try... Oh, what was it? A pork cutlet bowl, I believe."
"...A pork cutlet bowl?" Haruhi looked at her with a slightly incredulous expression.
Mystique's cheeks became a bit flushed and she picked up another item, pretending to find it rather interesting. "What? Do you not like them? We can make something else if you-"
"No, no, I like them well enough. It's just that I thought you'd want something a bit more... fancy. You know, for your rich and refined tastes or whatever."
Mystique gave a crooked smile and a slight laugh, looking at her friend. "What did you expect me to ask for? A large blue lobster served with a side of escargot and caviar?"
Haruhi began to crack a smile as well and shrugged, scratching the back of her head. "Well, yeah, actually, something like that. Doesn't it sound like something someone at that rich kid school would ask for?"
"Ah, I don't blame you. Pretty much everything I've ever eaten has been of the finest quality. I mean, seriously, some of the food is so expensive for only getting a small amount of it. A small cube of meat with a leaf of something to garnish it. Everybody knows it's not filling but you pretend it is because that's what you're supposed to do..."
"Anyway, if we're making pork cutlets, you'll definitely be full when I'm done making it." Haruhi smiled and held up a couple of pork meat packets that happened to be on sale. "You won't get a small portion from me. Not with these prices."
Mystique nodded and began to walk along the meat aisle slowly, listening around for some hushed voices she could almost pick up, feeling the same feeling she had had earlier in the bookstore. She couldn't see much out of place except for the split second she thought she saw a head of blond hair dash into another aisle.
"Mystique?"
Mystique turned her head slightly to Haruhi while keeping her eyes in the direction she was looking at. "Hmm?"
"Now that we know what we're going to have later, we should go out and continue to go around town. We've been out for a total of maybe twenty minutes."
"Yeah.." mumbled Mystique, finally turning fully to Haruhi when nothing else caught her eye. "What were you thinking of doing?"
"Well, if you still wanted to go to a park like you mentioned earlier, we could go there at the end of the day before we go to my place. It doesn't have a playground or anything, but it's got trees and grass and benches."
Mystique gave a brief nod and the two headed out of the store. Haruhi was taking mental notes about the various foods on sale for later; Mystique was keeping an eye out for whoever was following them. She had an idea of who it could be, but she wanted to make sure before jumping the gun. Not noticing the lack of attention from Mystique, Haruhi brought her into another store, albeit much smaller than the supermarket.
"Why don't we take a look around and see if there's anything interesting here? It may not be all that pricey, expensive stuff you rich people get, but there's some good stuff here, usually."
"If you say so."
Mystique looked around at the various objects and knick knacks lining the shelves of the aisles, Haruhi walking beside her and skimming her eyes over the same shelves in faint disinterest. The shelves had no backs to them, so the items and walkways on the other side were visible. Mystique paused in front of one shelf to look at a small gemstone dolphin that happened to see- but it wasn't the only thing that caught her eye. On the other side of the shelf, she caught a glimpse of a figure, which darted quickly out of sight. Her eyes narrowed as she watched for the figure to return before she began to walk the aisle again, soon catching up to Haruhi who hadn't noticed a single thing.
"Find anything you like?" Haruhi asked, looking up from some little trinket in her hand.
"Not yet. Although there are quite a few interesting things around here in this shop."
"Oh yeah? You should get something before we go, then. I mean, it might not be fancy or whatever, but some of this stuff is kind of neat."
"You know, not everyone who comes from a wealthy background is as materialistic as you seem to imagine," Mystique responded, picking up a snowglobe and shaking it vigorously with both hands. "Granted, many definitely are. But, personally, I do not care whether an object is one of a kind or mass produced. Not everything I fancy is... Fancy."
She lifted up the globe and looked at Haruhi through it, watching the snow dance around the image of her friend. "Have you found anything you like?"
Haruhi shook her head and looked back to the shelves. "Not really."
Mystique put down the globe and paused, grabbing a small toy crown off one of the shelves. "Haruhi, who do I remind you of?" she asked, putting the crown on her head and making a dramatic pose. Haruhi began to laugh, knowing she was poking fun at Tamaki, and shook her head slightly.
"You're really having fun, aren't you?"
"That was the point of coming here, yes," Mystique answered, placing the crown back onto a shelf. "Are you not?"
"Oh, no, I didn't mean that. I just never thought that this would be your kind of thing, that's all."
Mystique shrugged slightly and began looking alongside Haruhi as they slipped into another aisle in silence. As they were browsing absentmindedly, she again began to feel eyes watching her. Her patience began to run thin and she gripped her fists tightly, flashing glances behind her and catching a glimpse of various shadows. They disappeared in a flash. But they were soon replaced by another head of hair that was trying to sneakily see if she was still looking, which she was. Each time she felt the hairs stand on the back of her neck, her teeth slowly began grinding.
"Haruhi."
Haruhi turned her head to the side slightly but kept her eyes on the shelves. "Yeah?"
"Do you ever feel... Watched?"
"...Why?"
Mystique meerly kept her nonchalant disposition as she walked back over to Haruhi.
"Oh, no reason in particular. I was just wondering. Let us change the subject. The host club, for instance. They are an integral part of your school lifestyle now, and they will be until you can pay back that little debt of yours. You must have some feelings towards them by now."
Haruhi put a finger to her chin as she thought about the answer, but couldn't think of any definitive answers. "I mean, not to be rude, but they can be the poster children for ignorant rich people sometimes."
Covering a small snicker of amusement behind her hand, Mystique shook her head. "Oh, but you are thinking of them as a collective. I mean individually. As in... How you think of Tamaki by himself. Or Kyoya."
"I don't know, I guess... My answer is the same. I haven't had much time with them one on one. They are a club, after all. And even counting club hours, I haven't really gotten to know them. That's like me asking you the same thing."
"Alright, alright, I suppose I can see where you are coming from... Let me ask you one more thing: If you fulfilled your debt, would you still come back the next day?"
There was a moment of silence between the two, Mystique slowly looking at the ceiling with baited breath before turning to Haruhi again. Haruhi was staring at her, causing her to look back up to avoid eye contact.
"To be honest, I don't think I would. If I pay off my debt, they'd have no reason to keep me as a host. And I'm definitely not going to be one of their guests. Not that there's anything inherently wrong with it, it's just not my thing, you know? Anyway, that's enough about them. I thought you wanted to hang out without the club. If that's the case, what's the point of bringing them up every minute?"
Mystique nodded, holding her hands up in defeat. "My apologies, I will not bring them up unless I feel it necessary."
"Thanks. Do you see anything you want to get?"
"Perhaps."
Haruhi watched as Mystique walked briskly past her, grabbing something small off the shelf that she couldn't quite see, and proceeded to go to the checkout area. Mystique slipped the object into her pocket after paying, and then urged Haruhi to leave. She was uncomfortable in feeling as though there were several pairs of eyes on her. She was right.
A restless night followed an uneventful day, and Mystique's eyes were open before her alarm even rang. When it finally did let loose its annoying clangs, she let it continue for a good while before she slowly raised her hand and slapped it down onto the off button. After letting her hand slide back down, she gradually slipped herself out of bed. Her bare feet barely made a sound against her wooden floor and she stretched her arms far above her head, letting out a loud yawn.
She dragged her feet as she shuffled into her bathroom, ready (however begrudgingly) to start the day. Her morning schedule was nothing particularly glamorous, but she didn't care. A quick shower, brushing her teeth and her hair, and throwing on her clothes for the day; that was all her mornings consisted of. And if she was feeling up to it, maybe a light breakfast. She wasn't much of a morning person, but she wasn't completely opposed to them.
After doing her usual routine, she started down the stairs. Halfway down, she cussed under her breath and turned back up; heading up to grab her cell phone. It was a touch screen, naturally, as she had practically no use for an actual phone. She rarely ever received calls, and most of those were wrong numbers, telemarketers, or scammers anyway. So she mostly used it for games, although she would be bored with them after the first few days of playing them.
With her phone securely in her hands this time, she made her way down the stairs once more and stared down at the screen. She could remember that as a kid she would slide down the banister all the way to the bottom, but walking was fine enough for her now. She went down to the kitchen, actively avoiding anyone who was up and about in the house, and grabbed herself a piece of bread to make herself some toast. She hopped up onto the counter and grabbed a jar of peanut butter, hardly a need to look up, her gaze still fixated on her device.
There she sat, on the counter, and waited for her toast to pop up. She didn't pay much mind to anything happening around her. Persuaded off the counter by staff only after her toast was toasted to just the way she wanted it to be, she grabbed her ingredients and went to the table to make her favorite morning delicacy- peanut butter toast. Once upon a time, she would've used her fingers as a spoon, but she'd much rather have the taste of breakfast than finger-y peanut butter.
She made her way back up to her room, still playing games on her phone boredly with one hand and carrying her breakfast in the other. She put her toast onto her nightstand and flopped down onto her bed. Eventually, she tired of her games and turned the phone off, resting her arms on the bedding and staring up at her ceiling. It crossed her mind that she could simply take a nap and waste the day away, but she felt something nagging at the back of her mind. It seemed to her like she was forgetting something; something important.
Worming herself over to the edge of her bed, she reached down and blindly groped for her planner to see if she'd made any plans for the day. She skimmed through the pages to find that specific day, and her eyes scanned through her own handwriting until her eyes landed on three little words: 'Day with Haruhi.'
"Crap!"
She scrambled off her bed and threw open her dresser drawers, grabbing her phone again and dialing Haruhi's home phone number as she searched for a pair of socks. She mumbled to herself as she listened to it ring and fumbled around for her hairbrush. When someone finally picked up, she pulled on her socks and smiled as if the person on the other side of the line would see her.
"Hello, Haruhi, I am sorry-"
"Actually, this is Haruhi's father. Can I... Help you?"
She paused for a second, dropping her smile, before continuing to get ready. "Oh. Yes, hello, Mr. Fujioka. I am... I know Haruhi from school, and we had established plans to go out around the town today."
"My Haruhi? Out on the town? Hmm... Ah! You must be that new friend she told me about! Yes, yes, Mystine, was it? No, that's silly... What was it? ...Misty! Wait, Misty? That can't be right, either. Uh... What's your name again?"
"Yeah, sir, that would be me," she said, only half listening while trying to be polite. "Anyway, Mr. Fujioka, I am afraid I will be a bit late in picking her up, but I promise I will be there soon."
"I'll make sure Haruhi knows, then, what's-your-name. I'll be seeing you then. But seriously, what's your-"
She hung up without allowing him to finish his sentence and sighed. Shoving her feet into her boots before clopping down the stairs, she began calling for one of the staff members to drive her over to Haruhi's. There were only a few moments of silence before she heard one of the cars pull up. A small smile grew across her face, knowing she could have even the most ridiculous request done with a snap of her fingers.
She hopped out of the car almost the instant it stopped, and she looked around to try and find which apartment was Haruhi's- repeating the number '203' to herself over and over until she found the room she was looking for. With three knocks and some patience, she found herself face to face with Haruhi.
"Are you... Ready?" she asked. peeking behind Haruhi, spying her father standing a bit further away in the room and watching the two of them.
"Sure, let's go. Where were you thinking of heading to?" Haruhi either didn't notice her father's hovering or just didn't care.
"Oh, you know... Around. I was thinking maybe we could go to a nearby park or a playground."
"Really? You want to go to a playground?"
"Never mind, just come on, we have a lot of daylight to burn."
They descended the stairs after a quick goodbye to Haruhi's father and began walking into town.
Haruhi showed her around a few places, introducing her to the different things she liked to do and/or go to. Mystique nodded along, not really seeing anything of much interest until they came upon a little bookshop. It was quaint, but she found it quite charming and was drawn to it. She convinced Haruhi to go in with her and started a conversation about books and reading. Neither one of them paid much attention to the small group of people already shopping around in the store, nor to any others who happened to come in. The two were completely immersed in each others company.
"You like to read, right? What about that book I saw you reading in the club? Maybe we could find something like that in here." Mystique asked, picking up a book and skimming through a couple of pages.
"Book..? Oh, that was just for my literature class. I have to read a book and write an essay over it in a couple of weeks. I was getting a head start on it so I could focus on other things," she explained, looking around at the bookcases.
"I see, I see. Then forget about that book, what kinds of books do you like to read for fun?"
"I don't know," Haruhi said, sighing as she pulled a book off a shelf. "I mean, I barely have any time to just sit down with a book, even if it is a good one. I have too much stuff to study, y'know? It's not like I don't like them, it's just that I've got to focus on my textbooks rather than make-believe stories."
Mystique shook her head and flipped open another book, looking over the pages. "I can respect that, but I prefer it the other way around. Studying is nice enough for, well, studying, but I like to live vicariously through those fantasy worlds. I would much rather live in the what these authors create than I would here. Wasting away the majority of my life in schools and then in the workforce... You can do anything you want to in a book, though. It is funny, you know? Words are limited to the pages on which they are written, yet they still hold more freedom than the real world."
Mystique's face held a small smile on it, and she didn't notice the lingering eyes of her friend on her. Haruhi couldn't help but laugh a bit after a few seconds, putting the book back on the shelf after finding it less than interesting. "Is that why you've always got your head in the clouds?"
"My head is not always in the clouds," she argued, still flipping through pages absentmindedly, occasionally looking up and around at the other people in the shop. She could almost swear she felt eyes on her, and it was beginning to make her uncomfortable.
"Oh, come on, I see you around the school. You've always got your nose in some book. Even in the club, you're usually reading before and after visiting. Sometimes during."
Mystique felt her face grow a bit warm and she silently closed the book in her hands, heading to the counter and purchasing it. She tied the handles of the bag around her wrist, thanking the cashier before heading back to Haruhi.
"Well... Never mind all that." A smile began to form on her lips. "Would you like to do something fun before we leave?"
Haruhi just blinked and shrugged. "Well, that would depend, I guess. What did you have in mind?"
Mystique brought her finger to her lips with a slight grin, grabbing Haruhi by the wrist and pulling her to the mystery section of the store. She grabbed a few books and started flipping them around so the titles were facing the shelves.
"Mystique, I'm not sure you should be doing-"
"Oh, come on, Haruhi, please? They are mystery books anyway. What could be the harm? This way every book really is a mystery."
"Well..." Haruhi was unsure of what to do, and only stood back and watched Mystique do what she was doing.
After she was finished she stood back and gave Haruhi such a proud smile that she couldn't find the heart to say anything about it. It seemed like she was having fun, and Haruhi didn't want to ruin it for her. But she didn't want to get in trouble, so she grabbed Mystique by the wrist and pulled her towards the exit of the store, not paying any mind to the other patrons in the small shop.
"Why don't we go find something else to do now? I'm kind of over the books right now."
Mystique nodded and allowed Haruhi to lead her to wherever she wanted to go, figuring it was Haruhi's turn to choose a location since she had dragged her to the bookstore. Haruhi brought her to the supermarket, looking around to see if there was anything on sale. Mystique was averse to this at first, but kept it to herself, wanting to give it a chance.
"So, the supermarket, huh?"
"Yeah. It's a pretty nice place, right? They've always got some sort of sale going on. Maybe the two of us could find something to make for dinner together when we go back to the house," Haruhi suggested, picking up some produce to compare, already thinking of dinner options. "I mean, we've got plenty of time and we don't have to buy it all right now, but we could figure out what we want based off of what they have and then come back later before we head back to my place for dinner."
Mystique nodded quietly, looking at a few packages herself. "So, this is your idea of fun. I guess you like to cook, then? What kinds of things do you like to make?"
"Oh, pretty much everything. My mom used to make the best dishes for me and my dad. Now I do the cooking, and I like to have fun with it like she did. It's really relaxing, and it's really fulfilling when they come out well."
"Oh, that's... Nice." Mystique looked at Haruhi through the corner of her eyes before looking back down to the meat in her hands. "I've never cooked anything more complicated than a scrambled egg before. But, I'd like to try to help you out. If that would be alright, that is."
"Sure. Do you have anything in mind for dinner? Any favorites?" Haruhi kept her eyes on the items in front of her, comparing prices in the back of her mind.
"Not really. But, if I had to choose something? I've always wanted to try... Oh, what was it? A pork cutlet bowl, I believe."
"...A pork cutlet bowl?" Haruhi looked at her with a slightly incredulous expression.
Mystique's cheeks became a bit flushed and she picked up another item, pretending to find it rather interesting. "What? Do you not like them? We can make something else if you-"
"No, no, I like them well enough. It's just that I thought you'd want something a bit more... fancy. You know, for your rich and refined tastes or whatever."
Mystique gave a crooked smile and a slight laugh, looking at her friend. "What did you expect me to ask for? A large blue lobster served with a side of escargot and caviar?"
Haruhi began to crack a smile as well and shrugged, scratching the back of her head. "Well, yeah, actually, something like that. Doesn't it sound like something someone at that rich kid school would ask for?"
"Ah, I don't blame you. Pretty much everything I've ever eaten has been of the finest quality. I mean, seriously, some of the food is so expensive for only getting a small amount of it. A small cube of meat with a leaf of something to garnish it. Everybody knows it's not filling but you pretend it is because that's what you're supposed to do..."
"Anyway, if we're making pork cutlets, you'll definitely be full when I'm done making it." Haruhi smiled and held up a couple of pork meat packets that happened to be on sale. "You won't get a small portion from me. Not with these prices."
Mystique nodded and began to walk along the meat aisle slowly, listening around for some hushed voices she could almost pick up, feeling the same feeling she had had earlier in the bookstore. She couldn't see much out of place except for the split second she thought she saw a head of blond hair dash into another aisle.
"Mystique?"
Mystique turned her head slightly to Haruhi while keeping her eyes in the direction she was looking at. "Hmm?"
"Now that we know what we're going to have later, we should go out and continue to go around town. We've been out for a total of maybe twenty minutes."
"Yeah.." mumbled Mystique, finally turning fully to Haruhi when nothing else caught her eye. "What were you thinking of doing?"
"Well, if you still wanted to go to a park like you mentioned earlier, we could go there at the end of the day before we go to my place. It doesn't have a playground or anything, but it's got trees and grass and benches."
Mystique gave a brief nod and the two headed out of the store. Haruhi was taking mental notes about the various foods on sale for later; Mystique was keeping an eye out for whoever was following them. She had an idea of who it could be, but she wanted to make sure before jumping the gun. Not noticing the lack of attention from Mystique, Haruhi brought her into another store, albeit much smaller than the supermarket.
"Why don't we take a look around and see if there's anything interesting here? It may not be all that pricey, expensive stuff you rich people get, but there's some good stuff here, usually."
"If you say so."
Mystique looked around at the various objects and knick knacks lining the shelves of the aisles, Haruhi walking beside her and skimming her eyes over the same shelves in faint disinterest. The shelves had no backs to them, so the items and walkways on the other side were visible. Mystique paused in front of one shelf to look at a small gemstone dolphin that happened to see- but it wasn't the only thing that caught her eye. On the other side of the shelf, she caught a glimpse of a figure, which darted quickly out of sight. Her eyes narrowed as she watched for the figure to return before she began to walk the aisle again, soon catching up to Haruhi who hadn't noticed a single thing.
"Find anything you like?" Haruhi asked, looking up from some little trinket in her hand.
"Not yet. Although there are quite a few interesting things around here in this shop."
"Oh yeah? You should get something before we go, then. I mean, it might not be fancy or whatever, but some of this stuff is kind of neat."
"You know, not everyone who comes from a wealthy background is as materialistic as you seem to imagine," Mystique responded, picking up a snowglobe and shaking it vigorously with both hands. "Granted, many definitely are. But, personally, I do not care whether an object is one of a kind or mass produced. Not everything I fancy is... Fancy."
She lifted up the globe and looked at Haruhi through it, watching the snow dance around the image of her friend. "Have you found anything you like?"
Haruhi shook her head and looked back to the shelves. "Not really."
Mystique put down the globe and paused, grabbing a small toy crown off one of the shelves. "Haruhi, who do I remind you of?" she asked, putting the crown on her head and making a dramatic pose. Haruhi began to laugh, knowing she was poking fun at Tamaki, and shook her head slightly.
"You're really having fun, aren't you?"
"That was the point of coming here, yes," Mystique answered, placing the crown back onto a shelf. "Are you not?"
"Oh, no, I didn't mean that. I just never thought that this would be your kind of thing, that's all."
Mystique shrugged slightly and began looking alongside Haruhi as they slipped into another aisle in silence. As they were browsing absentmindedly, she again began to feel eyes watching her. Her patience began to run thin and she gripped her fists tightly, flashing glances behind her and catching a glimpse of various shadows. They disappeared in a flash. But they were soon replaced by another head of hair that was trying to sneakily see if she was still looking, which she was. Each time she felt the hairs stand on the back of her neck, her teeth slowly began grinding.
"Haruhi."
Haruhi turned her head to the side slightly but kept her eyes on the shelves. "Yeah?"
"Do you ever feel... Watched?"
"...Why?"
Mystique meerly kept her nonchalant disposition as she walked back over to Haruhi.
"Oh, no reason in particular. I was just wondering. Let us change the subject. The host club, for instance. They are an integral part of your school lifestyle now, and they will be until you can pay back that little debt of yours. You must have some feelings towards them by now."
Haruhi put a finger to her chin as she thought about the answer, but couldn't think of any definitive answers. "I mean, not to be rude, but they can be the poster children for ignorant rich people sometimes."
Covering a small snicker of amusement behind her hand, Mystique shook her head. "Oh, but you are thinking of them as a collective. I mean individually. As in... How you think of Tamaki by himself. Or Kyoya."
"I don't know, I guess... My answer is the same. I haven't had much time with them one on one. They are a club, after all. And even counting club hours, I haven't really gotten to know them. That's like me asking you the same thing."
"Alright, alright, I suppose I can see where you are coming from... Let me ask you one more thing: If you fulfilled your debt, would you still come back the next day?"
There was a moment of silence between the two, Mystique slowly looking at the ceiling with baited breath before turning to Haruhi again. Haruhi was staring at her, causing her to look back up to avoid eye contact.
"To be honest, I don't think I would. If I pay off my debt, they'd have no reason to keep me as a host. And I'm definitely not going to be one of their guests. Not that there's anything inherently wrong with it, it's just not my thing, you know? Anyway, that's enough about them. I thought you wanted to hang out without the club. If that's the case, what's the point of bringing them up every minute?"
Mystique nodded, holding her hands up in defeat. "My apologies, I will not bring them up unless I feel it necessary."
"Thanks. Do you see anything you want to get?"
"Perhaps."
Haruhi watched as Mystique walked briskly past her, grabbing something small off the shelf that she couldn't quite see, and proceeded to go to the checkout area. Mystique slipped the object into her pocket after paying, and then urged Haruhi to leave. She was uncomfortable in feeling as though there were several pairs of eyes on her. She was right.
