chapter 16: I screwed up

That evening, the girls remained quiet. Kyoya was also not in a mood, so all three of them just went to bed.

The next day, they were already on the plane back to Japan. The girls were still as quiet as last evening, with Nandini avoiding even eye contact with her father. This never unnoticed by him however. He was wondering what had he done for her to act that way.

Was she still getting over the stress from meeting her grandfather? Not that he could blame her- she was still a child, after all. Almost being hit by a family member can have a very negative effect on a child. Nandini has never being mistreated in any way, let alone being hit, unlike Simran, who has recently experienced bullying. Nandini has never had a problem with making friends at school and she has a friendly relationship with her sister and Ms. Priti. Despite this, she was abandoned by her mother at the age of 3 and has been living with a single father ever since. A father who was not always there.

The more Kyoya thought about it, the more things he started to realise. He remembered the things he told his father during their confrontation-how he said that his daughters have already been through too much...especially Simran.

That exact memory was the moment that hit Kyoya. He realised how this could have sounded to Nandini. The shock that took over him. From personal experience, he knew how hard it is to feel like something that is not enough for your parents. This was how he has made Nandini feel.

After he became a parent, Kyoya swore that he would never repeat his own father's mistakes by making his children feel like love must be earned. Favoritism is one of those ways- that act of treating one of the children better than the other for entirely selfish and petty reasons. Making his daughters feel like this was Kyoya's biggest nightmare as a parent. "I did it again." he thought.

When the family arrived back in their house, an unexpected surprise welcomed them. Tamaki, Haruhi, Ms. Priti and all the other former members of the host club greeted them:

-"Welcome back home!"- they all shouted at once.

Kyoya was definetely surprised by this, and so were the girls.

-"Isn't it great, Kyoya?"- Tamaki came closer and gave his friend a big hug.-"While you guys were gone, we prepared a pleasant surprise for you. Look!"- he gestured towards the Hitachiin twins, Honey and Mori-"The entire host club is all back together."

They all looked different now. Hikaru and Kaoru were taller and were wearing expensive black suits. Mori has changed the least- the biggest difference was his outfit (he was also wearing a suit). The one who changed the most was Honey- he was taller, with a more mature face, and a suit to match his age (however he still had a pink bunny-shaped badge attached to his jacket). All four of them looked very mature, and yet reserved enough, with their faces having kept much of their features from their teenage years.

-"Ooh, how are these lovely little ladies?"-the girls caught Honey's attention.

-"These are Simran and Nandini."-Ms. Priti replied, instead of Kyoya, as he still was not able to talk from the surprise.-"Mr. Ootori's twin daughters."

-"Twins, eh?"-the word caught Hikaru and Kaoru's attention this time, as they got closer to the girls.-"Good to see another ones of our own."

The girls both gave Hikaru and Kaoru modest, but friendly smiles, like they were silently saying "Hello!" Mori was the last one who came to greet the girls face-to-face. He did not say anything, but he slowly caressed their heads with each of his hands, and they seemed to appreciate it.

The entire gang started to question the girls, aksing them things such as "How are you?" and "How old are you?". The sisters quickly joined the introduction and answered each othe question without any problems.

While everyone was talking, Haruhi noticed that Kyoya has went somewhere else, without anyone noticing. She turned to the maid:

-"Ms. Priti, where is Kyoya?"

-"I do not know. I did not see where he went. You can check his office."

Haruhi accepted Priti's advice and looked for Kyoya in his office. Luckily, she found him there. She knocked and slowly entered. After she was now in the office, she saw Kyoya standing against the window and looking through it:

-"Something's wrong, Haruhi?"- he asked with his usual monotone voice. Haruhi was surprised that he knew who entered the room, without looking. The again, he probably saw her reflection in the window.

-"Why are you not with us, fellow?"- she asked him.-"Everyone has prepared the party specifically for you and your daughters."

-"You do not need to worry about me. You can go and join the others."-there was no indication in Kyoya's voice telling that he was upset, but Haruhi just knew that something was not right.

-"Has something happened in Greece?"

Another knock was heard- this time it was the maid. Just like Haruhi, she was also wondering where has Kyoya went and went to the office to look for him. She slowly opened the door and saw Haruhi talking to Kyoya:

-"Oh, I am so sorry! I was just wondering where were you, sir!"

Kyoya looked at both women with a pleasant smile and said:

-"Ladies, like I said, you do not need to worry about me! I just need some time alone, okay? Just go and enjoy yourselves."

Despite saying otherwise, Haruhi and Priti both knew that he was upset about something. But they decided that right now was not the moment, so they left the room. After Haruhi left the office, Priti stayed for one more second. She looked at her boss, who was still looking outside through the window, before she finally left. She was worried about him.

The gang and the girls were having a great time getting to know each other. Hikaru and Kaoru taught Simran and Nandini a few "twin tricks", such as giving them the idea to make their own version of the "Who is Hikaru?" game. When the party was finally over, everybody started preparing to go home.

-"Thank you for bearing with us, Ms. Priti!"-Haruhi told the maid.

-"You are always welcome here, Mr. and Mrs. Suoh!"-Priti smiled and bowed-"It is always a pleasure for Mr. Ootori's friends to visit us."

-"We are all so glad to see that our Kyoya has such a nice friend in the form of his maid."-Tamaki smiled at Priti. He took her hands and shook them as another way to show her his gratitude. His words made Priti blush- she was surprised that Tamaki thought of her as Kyoya's friend, but still flattered.

After a few more farewells, Tamaki and Haruhi left and headed back home. While walking, Haruhi's mind was obviously somewhere else. This did not go unnoticed by Tamaki, as he asked her:

-"Haruhi, is something bothering you?"

Haruhi was slightly surprised by his sudden question, but she still replied:

-"Oh, I was just thinking about something."

-"Is it about Ms. Priti? I thought that she seems nice."

-"No, not her."-Haruhi knew that there was no point in keeping secrets from Tamaki. They were married, after all.-"It is about Kyoya. I think that something is bothering him, and it is not just his ex-wife. After we shouted "Surprise!", he just left. He went to his office and skipped the entire party. I always knew he was not a party type, but he always stays for, at least, a while."

Tamaki had no idea what he was supposed to tell his wife. He was worried as well, but he and Kyoya have known each other for years. He has always known him as the quiet, yet skilled man.