Reveri: Let the rom-com begin! *evil laughter intensifies*

2

"Man, don't you ever just wake up and think, 'Ah, what a fine day to tax the top one percent of Japan?'" Haruhi kicked her feet crankily as she walked down the grocery aisle. "Equitable taxes could sponsor infinite social services, Senri. You know they could."

Out of courtesy for her good friend's newfound financial dilemma, Senri disguised her snickering with a backhanded cough. "Well, actually, I wake up and frequently go, 'Oh no, my stocks only made one grand overnight? Not agaaaiin,'" the long-haired brunette rued dryly.

Haruhi's mouth twitched upward. "Damn lucky bastard." As she reached for instant coffee packets, "How many sachets should I buy, you think? Kyoya-san sent me out, but I don't know how many people will come to the club this afternoon. Yesterday it was thirty girls, but…"

"Considering the host club clientele, maybe you should…" Senri winced, "…try the special bottled blend…?"

Placing the quick-brew coffee sticks back to their proper shelf, Haruhi sighed and tiptoed to reach for two premium Hescafé bottles instead. "You're right. They've probably never seen packet rations their entire lives. Those rich bastards…"

"That's probably true, you know…"

Senri's attention drifted to other merchandise as Haruhi rambled on. When they got to the cash register, Senri noticed the new release of Star Charts Weekly from a magazine rack and perked up.

Haruhi swore her friend's hazel eyes sparkled. Taking her receipt from the cashier, Haruhi drawled, unimpressed, "Horoscopes? Really?"

"Yes, Haruhi! Really!"

"And here I thought your lottery-pick hobbies were weird enough…"

Senri's ecstatic tone and actual buzzing only conveyed pure glee as she purchased the item. The second they stepped out of the store, Senri took it out and began to devour the paragraphs.

"Let's see here… Gemini, where's Gemini… Ah! It says I'm going to pass a test this week! But… I should be on the lookout for… counterfeit things…?" Senri read nervously to herself. "My lucky numbers are eleven and twenty-two… Huh. When's your birthday, Haruhi?"

The scholar adjusted her thick-rimmed glasses. "Uh. February fourth."

"Aquarius, yeah? I guess you're lucky this week…"

At Senri's tense silence as they walked back to the direction of the Ouran campus, Haruhi threw her friend a suspicious look and pressed, "Is that all? What did it say?"

Unintelligible garbled words muttered from Senri's mouth.

"Whaaat? Come on. Read it clearly."

Blushing scarlet, Senri took a deep breath and repeated aloud, very audible despite her embarrassment, "It says here you'll get pregnant with twins if you try really hard this week so don't give up! Your lucky numbers are six and nine! Happy?!"

A single second of silence, and then Haruhi burst out with wild, howling laughter. Senri dumped the pamphlet into a trashcan and slammed the lid shut with a snarl.

Haruhi clutched at her stomach as she howled, bent over, and hooted, happy tears dangling from the edges of her eyes. Barely managing to wheeze out between her hoo-hee-haa-haa's, "Counterfeit! Counterfeit! Ahahahah…"

"Ugh! Let's move on already!"

Senri idled next to an unused console table as Haruhi began to demonstrate the "wonders of instant coffee" to her audience. Nearly laughing at the spectacle of Tamaki bravely declaring he'd take the first taste test, followed by the Hitachiin twins, then their brave customers, she'd startled when Princess Seika – of the Ayanokoji royal bloodline – suddenly sat on the velvet divan in front of her.

Left hand on the porcelain saucer, right hand lifting the dainty tea cup to her lips, the girl seemed to address Senri as she spoke.

"You're new money, aren't you, Koushigo-san? With that wristwatch you can't be on scholarship."

Senri frowned, looked at her 1985 Patek-Philippe, then stared at the back of Seika's auburn head. How typical, she thought.

"Pardon?"

"Oh, it's only because none of my attendants know you directly. I just assumed… 'Koushigo' doesn't ring a single bell for me. So. Are you? New money, that is."

With Princess Ayanokoji's back turned away from her anyway, Senri sighed.

New money, as opposed to old money, meant that one's family ballooned their net worth to multimillions from lately founded industries such as communications, corporate groups, retailing, or even the virtual entertainment industry. Old money meant your name signified national or international pedigree, financial empires, or rang a golden bell as old as Japan itself. Old money meant people who mattered knew you and the entirety of your ancestral clan – for matchmaking purposes and the like.

Real-estate owners from the time of warlords, now the premium prefectural developers of Japan? Old money. The multi-million Hitachiin luxury fashion brand? New money. Great-great-great-granddaughters of Asian emperors? Old money. Pharmaceutical corporations for drug and vaccine manufacturing? New money.

Even amongst the "Top One Percent" there were divisions, but Senri never really bothered with those matters. Ultimately, the only world the ultra-rich saw as relevant were their own. They knew pity, contracts, and mergers; but never did they step out of their silver bubbles for the lesser society. Luckily for her, since Koushigo Hitoshi and Chiharu saw the best and worst of both worlds, they decided to raise their children to appreciate their own humble roots. Along the way, they'd met good people who had no money, bad people who had an unthinkable abundance of it, and so many variations in between. The world could be so unfair it was obnoxious.

Senri pushed herself off where she had been leaned against the table. Walking away, she murmured low, "It was amusing to meet you, Ayanokoji-san."

She didn't turn back to see what kind of expression grew on the woman's face. She imagined Seika would be sporting a scathing look about that second, and she probably actually was if she interpreted the unmistakable glint in Ootori Kyoya's gaze correctly.

As she seated herself on the vacant armchair across him, Kyoya greeted her coolly, "Koushigo-san. How are you?"

She sniffed once. "I was good five seconds ago."

The junior adjusted his glasses. "And now?"

"Better, since I'm sitting next to you," she teased smoothly.

Kyoya humored her. "I'm the host here. Would you like to have a chat with me this afternoon, Koushigo-san?"

"Hmm." Senri pretended to consider it. "Can't afford to lose ten grand today, sorry."

"Well, for an interesting first-timer as you, this one's on me." Kyoya replied seamlessly.

Senri had to give that point to him as she laughed softly. "Fine, fine. You're not going to be crass about it and ask me if I'm old or new money like Elphaba did over there, are you?" Wicked witch. She knew that type like the back of her hand.

Kyoya's brows dipped in concern. A perfectly innocent picture, "Not at all. We could discuss that, but only if you want to."

"Darn, you are scary good," Senri mused. "You really are the host between the both of us. I'm never seating against you at poker."

Kyoya didn't reply but smiled amicably at her instead.

"I've known Haruhi since we were five," Senri disclosed. "Though my parents are from Kobe, we met in Tokyo."

"I see. Childhood friends," Kyoya surmised. "But you didn't go to the same schools?"

"Yup!" She could almost see the junior going through a massive, subconscious database of family names in his head. "Quick question though. Ootori-senpai, are you the one who's been trying to access my school file since Friday?"

When Kyoya's face blanked in just a millisecond, Senri took it as a confirmation and started snickering heavily.

Gracefully recovering his smile in record time, Kyoya adjusted his glasses again and said, "Ah, Koushigo-san, you've caught me red-handed. I do these things for the club, surely you understand."

Senri waved a dismissive hand back and forth. "'S'all right. It'd be my family's downfall if you could out-code me, after all."

Kyoya blinked at her. "Pardon?"

"I guess we're new money," Senri shrugged. "Koushigo Computer Systems."

Words floated in Kyoya's head. Koushigo… New money… Tokyo… Computers systems… Kobe…

Oh.

"K Computers," Kyoya realized. "The operating system of premium supercomputers in Japan. Ah, and I was…" he trailed off.

"…hacking Ouran files using K-code," Senri smiled. My father's legacy. "But I'll keep that between us."

"Well." Kyoya cleared his throat and suddenly gestured to the ornate iron trolley near them. "Would you like some cake and tea, Koushigo-san?"

"Yes. And you can call me Senri."

"Likewise, do call me Kyoya."

A decade had passed since she'd met Haruhi in Tokyo. Senri had just turned five then, merely two years since her family's tech firm catapulted to the top as the major founder of the systems and circuits industry.

She could still remember the state they were both in when they met – sobbing, whimpering, helpless… Crying next to each other on the hospital lounge as their remaining solo parents processed insurance bills and death certificates.

In Tokyo Metropolitan Hospital, Senri's father and Haruhi's mother died on the same day.

"You s-should stop crying—" Five-year-old Haruhi sucked in a breath and hiccupped, "—because your dad wouldn't want you to cry!"

Fat tears kept running down Senri's cheeks as she replied to the crying girl next to her, "Well, y-you too!" Snot dripped from her nose. "Your mom in heaven wants to see you smile, you know!"

Watching over and witnessing their exchange then, Fujioka Ranka and Koushigo Chiharu decided to keep the friendship between their young girls as they grew. As children they met with each other often, helped each other grieve with their losses at such a young age, and adjust to their new family roles. Evidently, they'd done something incredibly right – their daughters were good friends, well-mannered, mature beyond their years, and responsible. Too responsible, if you asked Ranka.

It had definitely surprised Senri to find Haruhi in the same classroom as her during the first day of her high school life in Ouran. Though she grew up drastically different from her siblings, Senri could still remember the two-bedroom apartment unit they lived at in Ikebukuro ten years ago. The hand-me-down winter fur coat from her older sister. The noise of the train station. On top of the fridge, her mother's stashed packets of cheap tea.

She knew Haruhi was from that side of the world. The middle-class life.

Not the massive, Greek gold columns and red carpeting of Ouran. Not in the same room as heirs of multi-billion-dollar industry tycoons.

"You aren't wearing the uniform," Haruhi noted as Senri slid next to her front row seat.

Senri looked down at her ensemble – a white collared blouse, a beige sweater on top, and black fitted slacks. She beamed at Haruhi's outfit. "Just like you."

"Won't you get in trouble?"

Shrugging, "Yellow's not my color, and somebody would have told me off by now if they had a problem with it. By the way, congrats on the scholarship."

Sheepish, Haruhi scratched the back of her head, "Sorry I never told you about it. I didn't know if… if…" she trailed off. I didn't know if I would get in at all.

Senri rolled her eyes and took out her cellular phone. "Are you kidding? Haruhi, this is a wonderful surprise! Here, here, save my phone number…"

"O-Okay…"

"Done! And, uh, one more thing?"

"Yes?"

"What the hell happened to your hair?"

After tussling the style of her dark fringes in front of the dresser mirror, Senri delved into the dressing rooms after club hours. "Haruhi, are you ready to go?"

She saw Haruhi on her tiptoes, checking each locker shelf. "A minute!"

"Why, what is it?"

"I can't find my stuff. Did I forget to bring them with me…? I mean, I have my old clothes here, but… I can't find my phone or my bag."

"Weren't you only carrying coffee our way here?"

Haruhi hit her closed first on an open palm. "Oh, that's right! I'll check the classroom. Meet me at the front gates?"

"As always. Call me when you find it."

"'Kay!" Haruhi ran off.

Making her way back to the club's lounge area, Senri was surprised to find the Hitachiin twins sitting on the sofa she'd stowed her belongings on. Unlike the usual, the twins weren't sporting the same sitting position. One of them was hunched over his handheld gaming console, completely fixated, while the other lazed and whined beside him.

"Come onnn, Hi-ka-ru! How many years is it gonna take to pass that level? I wanna go hooome."

"You only think this game's lame because you couldn't beat the speed run record. Shut it, Kaoru…"

Hikaru sighed. His attention perked up slightly as Senri reached for her bag. "Oya there, Koushigo Senri. Kyoya says you're with K Computers?"

Senri eyed him warily. "Maybe."

"Pfft. It's odd that you don't want people to know. Most girls here take advantage of the connections they can make with their surnames." Senri arched a brow at him. Realizing his gaffe, Kaoru paused and clarified, "Friendships into business ventures, etcetera, etcetera... You know what I mean."

"Maybe that's why I'm hanging out at the host club, eh?"

Hikaru squinted at her. Suddenly, he and Kaoru declared, "We don't think so!"

"No?"

Kaoru continued to say as he played, "You and Haruhi keep to yourselves in class so much that we didn't know you two even existed 'til last week. We're all 1-A."

"We are?" Senri blinked. Now that she thought about it… "So we are. Huh."

"So, if you were the social climbing type, you'd have done a much better job than whatever it is you're doing now," Hikaru reasoned as he inspected his nails. "You're like Haruhi's only friend, and that's kinda sad…"

"Well, I guess—"

"…that you're hiding behind a commoner's shadow. Pathetic, really."

Ah. There they are. The infamous hellion twins. Senri disagreed with a shake of her head, "I'm not hiding."

"Sure, and your family's not going through a takeover crisis right now, either, huh?" Hikaru retorted sarcastically. "Shouldn't you be trying harder to earn your sister enough board member votes for the Fall chairmanship elections?"

Senri's jaw clenched tight. Damn it. "I don't participate in administrative matters, but thanks for your concern."

"Oh, I'm not concerned. Just being factual. You know," Hikaru grinned. "Since you're new to the upper life."

Senri's smile was so graciously polite it could freeze the summer heat. "Hikaru, the only reason why I won't drop the Hitachiin systems contract with KCS right this second is because I appreciate what you both did for Haruhi today." Haruhi's uniform was tailored very, very well to flatter her petite size. "But try to undermine me again and you'll have no choice but to rely on Intel. Or Ryzen, maybe." Senri offered with a smirk. "We'll see how well that works out for your brand."

"Whoa boy! Little kitty's got some claws!" Hikaru slapped the back of the sofa as he sniggered heavily. "Okay, I give, I give! Wait. Huh?" Hikaru's mouth twisted. "Did you just…"

"What, you're just gonna be a commoner's bodyguard here, is that what you wanna be?" Kaoru provoked her as he paused his game.

"Nope. I'm her friend." The brunette replied pointedly. Her tone sardonic yet so saint-like, "Do you know what that is, Kaoru?"

Kaoru's brow twitched testily. "Bodyguard or 'friend,' you're failing at both spectacularly, because we definitely just saw one of the girls toss Haruhi's cheap no-brand things out the plaza mayor." Kaoru scoffed.

Hikaru continued to eye at Senri suspiciously. "You…"

"What!" Senri hissed at Kaoru. She immediately turned and went running for the doors. Barely looking over her shoulder before she disappeared, "You haven't changed at all, Kaoru! You could have told me that first!"

Kaoru blinked at the door as it swung closed. "Wait." His head tilted to the left. "What did she just call me? You're playing Kaoru today, right?"

"Yes, but she called me Hikaru!" Hikaru confirmed, exclaiming as he rose from his position on the sofa. "I definitely didn't mishear then! Have you met her before?"

"Have you?" Kaoru threw back.

"Dunno." They echoed out at simultaneously, "Have we?"

The twins stared at each other and identical memories seeped into the back of their minds – a winter playground, their knitted gloves holding hands, a brown-haired girl with fringes in an oversized pink coat – scattering their thoughts and emotions into a disoriented frenzy.

Highly incredulous, they wondered aloud at the same time, "What the fuck?"

Next club day, having heard Haruhi's version of events and suspicions about a certain noble schoolmate, Senri was quite ready to throw hands at Ouran's third music room the moment she arrived.

"Unfortunately, you are not allowed to disturb Princess Ayanokoji." Kyoya intervened firmly as she took a single step towards the redhead. At Senri's deepening glare, Kyoya withdrew the clipboard he'd blocked her path with and explained, "She specifically asked for Haruhi's companionship as a host today. The fee essentially wipes a tenth of Haruhi's debt."

"Damn it…"

Nonplussed in the first place, Haruhi actually seemed to brighten at that piece of information. "Really? I wonder why though."

Kyoya tapped a pen on his wristwatch twice. Haruhi sighed and moved to her assigned spot next to the broad windows.

"Senri-san, if I could borrow your time for a moment," Kyoya began as he gestured to the private kitchen. "I have a few questions. I thought I'd ask you instead of—" Kyoya looked away for a second as he led her through the backroom doors, "—wasting precious resources to access the school's cloud system."

Senri tore her focus away from the scene of Haruhi and Seika sitting across each other, slanting her eyes at the Ootori heir instead.

Tsk! "…Sure, senpai."

At the backroom, Kyoya led her to an oval table. A single piece of paper on top of it – a twenty-item personal data questionnaire.

"What the—"

When is your date of birth? What is your blood type? What extracurricular subjects have you signed up for this term? Are you officially employed by any company at the moment, including KCS? How many siblings do you have? What is your guardian's name and contact number? Do you have any medical condition? Which hospital is your family doctor affiliated with? The list went on.

"You see, this is exactly why I sealed my file off from the likes of you," Senri remarked dryly. "Don't tell me – you've already downloaded Haruhi's entire file, haven't you?" Senri accused. She hadn't gotten the time to take care of that yet.

Kyoya pushed his glasses up. "I have to obtain her guardian's contact details and secure a formal approval for her to join the club somehow. It's mandated by the student constitution. Would you like a copy?"

"Are you seriously quoting the handbook? When you basically just confessed to hacking? And who says I'm joining?"

"Ah, you assumed I'd referred to hacking. In reality, I admitted to nothing of the sort." Kyoya smiled his deadly smile. "If you're not joining as a member, Senri, then surely you are a guest. I must start charging your presence here."

"No, I'll do it." Senri sighed. "Are you sure the Ootoris want to stay in healthcare? I think lawyering is your calling."

"I'll take that as a compliment."

Senri looked at the ceiling, dropped her gaze to the flimsy piece of paper, then began talking rapidly.

"I was born June twelfth, blood type O. Like most of Ouran's population, I work for my family's firm whenever I need to, but it's nothing too official. They mostly ask me to white-hat or act as a consultant for code problems. As for my mom's number…" she hesitantly gave him a copy of Koushigo Chiharu's calling card. "KCS provides all its employees full insurance – including medical – and my eldest brother's the company physician."

Kyoya was scribbling on his notebook. "Looks like you inherited your father's skills."

A sincere smile graced the teen's lips. "I might have inherited all of it. Inoue – my older sister – she can't code for her life. Oh, and you have to be very careful talking to my mom over the phone, Kyoya-senpai. Intrusive tactics are a big no-no. If she suspects you're phishing for details other than what's necessary, she'll have her assistant wipe your entire system, then even I can't help you with data retrieval. Can you wait until I tell her that you'll call?"

Kyoya seemed to digest her instruction easily. "Of course. Nothing less from the KCS chairwoman herself." He even looked impressed. "Would you like to work on the club's online platform? Increased revenue decreases Haruhi's sentence."

"How could I decline when you already seem to have it all laid out..." Senri teased in an accusatory tone.

Kyoya smiled serenely. "And Haruhi?"

"Hmm? What about Haruhi?"

"How did you two meet?" Kyoya asked curiously. "Who is she, to you?"

Senri had just opened her mouth when breaking glass, followed by a high-pitched scream, resounded from the main club room.

Ouran Private Academy is defined by, one, prestigious families, and second, wealth. Just as the old adage of the school goes in social circles, the admission criteria are fundamentally construed as "prosperous people who have too much time on their hands."

Unfortunately, the existence of untoward, corrupted behavior, nurtured by complicit social elitism, perpetuated by the upper, imperial echelon, is a phenomenon that dwells in its halls.

"Now, now, calm down, Sen-chan!" Honey piped up as he pulled her back to the confines of the backroom. "Usa-chan doesn't like it when ladies fight!"

"Let me at her… Let me at her…" The brunette struggled against the senior's surprisingly strong grip. "I'll show her attitude…"

"Da-me! Tama-chan and Kyo-chan took care of her, don't worry!"

When Honey kicked the room doors closed and waggled an index finger at her adorably, Senri gave up. She collapsed onto an unused chair and continued to growl under her breath. An idea popped into her head, and suddenly, the aura of the Koushigo coding prodigy fizzled dangerously.

"Okay. I understand. Honey-sempai, could you hand me my stuff, please…"

Ayanokoji Clan security breach, ehe…

Honey skipped to her bag and spared a quick look inside. He found a sleek phone and a bulky laptop. His senses tingled and—

Ah, Usa-chan, I have a bad feeling! Honey immediately handed her belongings to Takashi, who easily transferred them to the topmost shelf. "Da-me! Da-me! You're going to do bad things and Usa-chan knows it!"

"No…" Senri lied weakly. I was just wondering how many scandals I could find…

"Haha, is it Alter Senri again?" Haruhi called out from the dressing room. "You should distract her."

"Alter Senri?" Tamaki echoed as he stepped into the backroom with Kyoya and the twins, carrying his own set of spare clothes. "What does that mean?"

"Haven't you noticed her two moods? Most times she's laid back, but when she's put into a confrontational situation..." Haruhi chuckled. "She gets into this weird, hyper-fixated mode… It's ironic because she's a Gemini."

Senri's hands fidgeted as if she craved the feel of keyboard keys. "Come on, Honey-sempai… I promise I won't do anything bad! You can trust me…"

Honey's eyes glistened. "Sen-chan, promises aren't things you should break easily, you know…"

"Exactly! So hand over my stuff…"

Honey giggled nervously and Takashi shook his head, adamant. Senri frowned and her gaze transferred to Haruhi's basic phone on the kitchen counter.

Maybe if…

"Don't even think about touching my phone!" Haruhi threatened behind closed curtains. "Can someone give her a coin to flip?"

Senri perked up at that.

"Coin flip?" Tamaki snapped his fingers and Kyoya nonchalantly handed the brunette a newly-minted gold coin. "Done."

"Great, thanks!"

Tamaki headed closer to the dressing curtains, addressing Haruhi, "Here, you can change into my—" Tamaki's voice broke off as soon as he pulled the drapery open.

Senri muttered malevolently under her breath, "New money? Ha… If it's tails, I'll let karma handle it... Heads and I'll show her what no money feels like…"

Tamaki let the curtains fall closed. "...Haruhi?"

"Yes?"

Senri flipped the coin high. It spun as it hovered in the air.

"...You're a girl?"

The Hitachiin twins looked at each other, shrugging identically.

"Yes."

Senri caught the coin as it fell and turned it on a palm. Tails.

Senri and Tamaki exploded at the same time.

"What?!"

Haruhi stepped out of the cubicle wearing the female school uniform.

"Well, I thought it was fine everyone mistook me for a guy. It seems like my consciousness for genders is a bit lower than that of an average person…"

Tamaki seemed to suffer from a shock-induced seizure.

Kyoya and Senri were the two people who knew from the beginning. As Senri nodded sagely, Kyoya remarked, "It made for a very interesting turn of events."

"Yeah, my lord, didn't you know?" the twins agreed easily. Though like the rest of the club members, they'd only found out during the process.

"Yep, yep!" Honey's peals of laughter were childlike.

Apathetic as usual, Mori simply blinked.

"Ah! But you were a bit cool back there, senpai!" Haruhi declared cutely with a bright smile. Tamaki's face quickly reddened. "And it's not too bad to be a host and listen to girls' idle chit-chat… Oh! Maybe I'll start addressing myself as a man from now on?" she giggled.

Tamaki couldn't take his lavender eyes off the tender image of Haruhi.

Kyoya turned to Senri. "Maybe this is a kind of start towards love?" he suggested.

Senri stared at the coin in her hand. She looked at Tamaki's blushing face, then at Haruhi's beaming smile, then finally, shook her head. Decidedly, she handed back the coin to Kyoya, who pocketed it.

"Nu-uh, senpai. Some things the universe just can't predict."

Chapter End.

Version 16 October 2021.