Yay! Another chapter!

Thanks so much to Dahlmi93 for following this story and sending me a wonderful review! Your request inspired me to embellish and upload the next chapter for your viewing. I'm so glad people are reading again!

Thank you also to Nano1012 for your fantastic and supportive review! You made me so happy :D

Now I know I left things on a sad note, so here's the next chapter for you all. Enjoy and don't forget to let me know what you thought! I'll be working hard to get another chapter out to you guys when I get the chance.


Kyoya grits his teeth all the way home. He'd sat outside her apartment for half an hour before finally leaving. He makes it to his room with his composure trying not to alarm the staff or his family. But once the door is closed, he lets out a bellowing shout that scares Mika into the bathroom. He starts throwing things, much like how he had back in middle school when Tamaki had pissed him off. This time, however, he was raging mad, so furious that he couldn't contain it. More than anything, though, he was hurt. He was hurting so much that he didn't know how else to express it than to scream and throw things.

His bookshelves were in ruins. His couch pillows were shredded. His couch, all but destroyed. He's flipped the coffee table over and broken the glass on top of it. His set of table and chairs was utterly destroyed. All of his schoolbooks and school related items were in a pile across the room, strewn about like they were a nuisance. He had lost his shirt in the process. His shoes were scattered at the door. His socks had come off and his hair was in disarray. He stormed about, growling, then crying out again, then throwing the nearest thing in sight, and doing it all over again. When he ran out of things to throw, he turned to the only place left untouched.

When he got to the bathroom, he spotted Mika behind the toilet, fearful of him. It made him stop. Her big blue eyes, fearful and scared, not sure what she was experiencing and afraid of her master. It touches him, reminding him of Maria, making his feelings simmer down to nothing but loneliness and sadness. He sobs, picking Mika up and climbing the stairs to his bed. He falls on it with her, taking off his glasses and covering his eyes with his pillow.

He wept. Sobs and tears ran down his face. And in that moment, Kyoya Otori realized that, instead of making her fall in love with him, that he had fallen in love with the beautiful painter instead. It wasn't like he'd planned for this—his feelings—but nevertheless, it was too late now. She'd taken hold of his heart and wasn't going to be going away anytime soon.

Mika cuddles him, mewing, unsure why her master was upset, but wanting to comfort him and wishing he felt better. Kyoya Otori wept until his tears ran dry, and then he fell asleep. He didn't do his homework. He didn't eat dinner. He just slept and dreamed of his beautiful painter and her beautiful brown hair and even more captivating hazel-green eyes, escaping the reality for a while to remind himself why he loved her and what it was about her that had made him feel this way.

I wake to the sound of banging on my door. Tori's screaming at me. It must have been the whole night, because light was outside. I slept all that time after crying, and it didn't make me feel the least bit better.


"Get up lazybones! Time for school!" I groan and tell her I'll be along later. She leaves me be and once she's gone for school I get up. I make myself breakfast and walk around the house in a zombie-like state. For a while, I'm just fading in and out of my mind. But as it nears two o'clock I dress and make my way to school, arriving just before three to meet Maricella and give her what she wants.

I just hope that this is worth it in the end. I hope she keeps her promise and I hope that the pain that I'm feeling right now will fade soon. It's tearing me apart and I can hardly function. How can this even be fair?

No, no. I can't think like that. This is for Tori, Tamaki, Haruhi, and Hikaru. This is for their happiness. My own happiness is so meaningless in comparison to four other peoples' happiness. I can't let my selfishness and my pain get in the way of this decision. I have to do what is right.

"Ah, you came. I was starting to think you might not show up today. You weren't in school and the Otori boy looked much worse for the wear. I take it you told him?" She asks as I walk into the room. I simply nod, then sigh.
"I let him go. He's all yours." She chuckles, no doubt mocking the look on my face. I'm vulnerable and I can't hide how this makes me feel. I just wish I could wring this bitch's neck for what she's made me do. She deserves nothing more than to a swift, hard kick in the ass...and maybe a knife to the throat.

But, you know, that's considered murder and not socially acceptable.

"Not so hard, was it? And because of your generous gift, I'll make sure he's happy. Your sister and Haruhi are safe as well. I do hope you'll visit and do some paintings for me, Maria. You really are a master of your trade." She walks out of the room, leaving me there, her voice like I'm some sort of bug or stain on her shoe. She's taunting me, making fun of me, waving Kyoya in my face like a prize. I sit on the couch and weep for a bit, then manage to get home before Tori does and lock myself in my room again.

All hell breaks loose when she gets home.

"Maria! Open this fucking door right now! You need to explain yourself!" I sigh.

"Go away Tori. I don't want to talk right now. I promise I'll talk to you when I'm ready, just...not right now. Please." She growls.

"No! This is serious! What the fuck did you do? Why?! What happened?!" I ignore her and pull my pillow over my head, falling asleep and praying that maybe I'll wake up from this horrible nightmare.


On Saturday Kyoya is woken up at 6AM and told that he needs to be in his father's office by 8AM. He gets ready and is there early, and when he finds out why he's there, he can hardly contain himself in front of his father. He forces himself to, but suddenly everything Maria had done makes sense. And it made him so boiling mad the only thing he wanted to do was harm the woman in front of him and his father.

Yoshio rises from his desk, greeting Maricella at the door and walking her to a chair. A common courtesy she receives a little too willingly and desperately. Kyoya grits his teeth but remains stoic.

"Ah, Maricella Estrella, from Estrellla Corps. Welcome to Japan. I trust your stay has been pleasant?" She musters a pathetically large and very fake smile.
"Yes, I have. It's a beautiful country if I do say so myself." Kyoya knew that everything was fake. His dad was formal and polite, but he knew just as well that everything around this woman was nothing but trouble and lies.
"Your father said he had business. What did he want?" She clears her throat.
"Getting right down to it? My father always admired that about you." She says. Yoshio says nothing, waiting for a response. He wasn't one for pleasantries—he was a practical businessman at heart—and her attempts to make herself presentable and likeable were falling very, very short.

"He wants our families to unite and become partners. He wanted me to come here and humbly ask that our families join together through my unity with your son, Kyoya. He's offering my hand in marriage and my very large dowry in exchange for a business partnership with your company." Kyoya's father sits back, looking at her for a moment. She'd over-emphasized the words "very large", meaning she was trying to use wealth to seduce Yoshio into the offer. Unfortunately for her, Kyoya's father couldn't care less about money or property.
"Well, I'll need a few days to think on that one, Miss Estrella. Might I give your father a call and talk to him?" She nods with a furious blush, obviously embarrassed at how little he reacted to her previous statement.

"Yes, of course! He would like nothing more, I'm sure. We would be flattered and humbled to be a partner of yours, Otori-sama." She says, and Kyoya's fists are clenched. She's desperate, trying so hard to impress a man that is probably the hardest to impress—Kyoya knew that firsthand.
"We'll have to see. I'll have your answer in a few days. I hope the rest of your visit here is just as pleasant, Miss Estrella." She rises and leaves, and as soon as she's gone, Kyoya's father shakes his head with a sigh.

"That woman has no idea. The nerve of the Spanish nobility. Kyoya, I want you to find me everything you can on her and her family." He demands, looking his son in the eyes. Kyoya turns to him.
"Yes father." Kyoya says. Then Yoshio stands and walks to the window in his office. Kyoya hadn't been dismissed yet, so that meant there was more to talk about.

It was quiet for a few moments. Kyoya wanted nothing more than to charge out and start working on his father's request. He wanted to bury Maricella and her family so deep in dirt that they would never be seen with the wealthy again. He wanted to make sure that she never, ever came between him and Maria again. He would do whatever it took to get her back. He wasn't going to give her up that easily.

"Tell me, Kyoya...what do you know of the painter? Maria, I believe? She's so very fascinating, and I would very much like to meet her." Kyoya's heart lurches painfully at the mention of her name. Yet, he's not too terribly surprised that his father was interested. She'd mouthed off to him before, but his father liked it when people had a certain fire in them. Yet she left a bad taste in his mouth, even though he was sure that their sudden break-up had almost everything to do with Maricella. He just needed the proof.

"She's a commoner and nothing more, father." Kyoya says bitterly. Yoshio notices this bitterness and walks to Kyoya. His face is composed but Yoshio sees that his eyes are ablaze.
"Oh really? Then I suppose this video means nothing to you?" He pulls out his tablet and shows the video to Kyoya. It was the same video Maricella had shown to Maria, of him and Maria in a tight and erotic lip lock as his hands groped and touched her everywhere he could reach. The emotion is no longer hidden as he clenches his fists. This video...wherever it had come from, it was the reason Maria was no longer with him. This video was easy blackmail. Kyoya knew now exactly what had happened. And all he wanted was to get her back.

But now that his father knew, what chance did he have in making her his again? His father wasn't fond of commoners mixing with his children, but Maria and Tori both had a way of worming into people's hearts.

"This was sent to me in an anonymous email last night. I do find it odd that you would keep something like this so secretly, especially from me. I may not like commoners, Kyoya, but I do like Maria. I want her to work for us. You will repair your relationship with her. As for this video, I have pulled strings to make sure it won't be released on the internet for everyone to see. Get me my information and repair your relationship with the painter, and I promise you that we will be rid of this Spanish pest." Kyoya's father sits at his desk, the disgust in his voice prominent. He wasn't happy with Maricella, and he knew that his son wasn't happy with her either. He was always the most perceptive man Kyoya knew. He somehow knew that Maria and Kyoya had been an item. How much of one was evident in this video. And yet, he wasn't phased by their intimacy. In fact, he wanted it to continue. Kyoya could hardly contain his excitement. He wanted to run to Maria and tell her everything, make it all better and make her his again. He missed her. Two days without her and he missed her so much that he felt like his chest would burst. Kyoya bowed to his father, leaving the room and concealing his excitement. He got back to his room—repaired under his father's nose, thankfully—and shrugs off his jacket, pulling out his laptop and cell phone.

Then, his real work begins.


It's not so bad, being alone in one room for a long time. You get used to things very quickly, and it's a comfort to be in your own space. It's like being in your head, only you're in a physical space instead of a made up one. I may sound crazy, I know, but when you're left alone you can sometimes go crazy. I feel heavy—I can't seem to force myself to be vertical. I have no willpower. I don't want to move. Kyoya was everything to me, and without him...moving on is so hard. Can we still go to the same school? Probably. Same class? Maybe not. The rest of the school year wouldn't be so bad, and when we get to be seniors I can make sure I have most of my day outside of regular classes.

He's probably hurting so bad right now. If he's found anything out, he's probably furious with me and with Maricella. Getting back together, even if somehow she is made to leave, seems so unlikely. He probably hates me for doing this. Hates that I made a decision on my own. But it's too late now, and I did what I thought was right.

So why does it hurt so damn bad?

I finally manage to come out of my room, and sit down at the table. Tori walks over to me, sitting down. I don't know how many days it's been, but I know it's been a few because I'm really, really hungry and feel like I haven't slept in days.

"What happened?" I sniff and try to hold back from crying, running my hands through my hair.

Ugh, I need a shower. Bad.

"It's...complicated." I say, and then she folds her arms. The look on her face lets me know she's not going to just take that. I knew she wouldn't, but part of me still doesn't want to talk about it. Though the only way I'm every going to move on is to have someone to lean on until I'm strong enough to get over it on my own.

"I've got all night. Spit it out, and don't you dare skip anything." She's mad, which isn't surprising. I would be too, if our places were reversed. I sigh, sniffing again and rubbing my eyes.

I come clean with her. I tell her everything, from receiving the threatening note, to the blackmail video, to the breakup and how I did it...I tell her what I said, why I said it. I even told her why I did it, what my reasoning was, and why I didn't say anything to anyone. She slaps me a couple of times, but I deserve it. Then she starts to cry, so frustratingly upset at me and sad at the same time.

"That isn't fair, Maria. You don't get to make decisions like that alone. I don't want you to do things like that...our happiness isn't worth all of this." I sob a little. I know she's right. I know that I should have thought about it more. But I was backed into a corner with no time to really think about it. I stand by my decision regardless. I wanted to do it for her, and now she gets to be happy. That's enough for me to move on. Whether I can tell her that...will take some time.

"I didn't know what else to do, Tori. And now I've lost quite possibly the most amazing boy ever. I don't know what to feel...I'm so numb I can't even function. I don't even want to paint anymore. I want to lay down...and then never wake up." I say, and she hugs me furiously.
"We'll figure it out. Don't give up...there may be something we can do." She says.

I hope she's right, but then again, nothing ever goes the way I want it to.