The following afternoon I found myself in hair and makeup at the local news studio. I was dressed modestly yet stylishly. I was going over my script over and over in my head so as to not forget a line.

I am so honored to be in Tokyo.

I am so happy to be able to attend the prestigious Ouran Academy.

I plan to have new music for my wonderful fans soon, but right now my focus is my education.

I would love to have my privacy respected at this time as I try my best to ace exams and become the top student in my class!

No one needed to know about where I was staying, what I was writing, or what was going on in my dating life — or lack thereof really.

"Miss Robin," an assistant approached me as the makeup artist finished. "They're ready for you now!" I thanked her, smiling brightly to hide my anxiety. I followed her to the set and positioned myself appropriately on the plush chair across from the interviewer. Ankles crossed, knees together. I couldn't give reporters any ammo to use against me when this segment goes live.

"Thank you so much for having me this afternoon." I bowed gratefully to the interviewer as he was being miced up.

"Thank you for choosing us for this interview." he bowed back. Once we were miced and the lighting was adjusted we were ready to begin recording.

"Tonight, we're sitting down with Tokyo's newest celebrity resident, Miss Lori Robin. Miss Robin, thank you so much for being with us." the reporter started.

"Thank you so much for having me! I'm honored to be here for my first interview in my new home." I smiled as charmingly as I could.

"You've been in Tokyo for a while now, correct?"

"It's been a few weeks? Maybe a month or two? Every day here is so lovely I've lost track of them!" I giggled, hoping to sound cute.

"And what have you been doing since your arrival?"

"Well, I actually came to Tokyo to go back to school and finish my high school degree. I know I might not be famous forever, so I want to make sure my future has every option available and I need to take steps now to prepare myself."

"So Ouran Academy is where you've been?"

"Yes, sir. Ouran is one of the best schools in the world and I was honored when they accepted me as a student. I'm enjoying my time there and have been focused on my studies. I hope my fans have patience with me. I have new music I am working on but I also want to work my way to the top of my class as well!" I threw in another signature smile and said a silent prayer that viewers would respect my decision to just be a student for the time being.

"It sounds like studies aren't the only thing you've been enjoying at Ouran, though." I felt my heart drop into my stomach as the interviewer went off-script. A photo suddenly popped up on a screen nearby. "It looks as though the boys have caught your eye as well!" As he fake laughed I inspected the photo. It was from yesterday when we were coming out of the building, but the photographer was amateur at best. Tamaki's face didn't make it into the picture. Relief washed over me as I realized his identity was still unknown.

"Could you have a new lover already, Miss Robin?" The interviewer pushed, looking at me hoping for a big scoop. I forced out a polite laugh.

"Sorry to disappoint, but as I said, I really am just focused on my studies right now! That school is like a maze though. I'm so lucky that bystanders are willing to show me to the exit!" I continued to smile even though I felt horrible calling my best friend a bystander. But I couldn't let on that there was anyone special in my life or the reporters would never let up.

"Well, I know the country will be sad to hear that. We're all cheering for you to find love — and to write music all about it!" He grinned, "Thank you so much for making time for us today Miss Robin. I know you have to get back to your studies so we won't take up any more of your time."

"Thank you so much for having me!" I returned the smile before bowing in my seat respectfully. Once the cameras had stopped and my mic had been removed, I made my way to grab my school bag in hopes of getting out of the studio as quickly as possible. And aside from a few photos and a couple of autographs for the crew, I was able to get out relatively fast. I knew they were planning to run the clip on the 6 o'clock news, so that only gave me an hour to get home before the vultures would come looking for me.

"Lorraine!" I heard someone yell when I exited the back of the studio. I looked up to see a fancy black car with darkened windows parked in the alleyway. Hanging out of one of the windows was none other than Tamaki. He'd changed out of his uniform and was sporting a pair of flashy sunglasses.

"You look like a celebrity golden retriever like that!" I laughed heading toward him. He quickly hopped out of the car and allowed me to climb through the open door. I greeted the driver as Tamaki took the seat next to me.

"Everything is all set!" My friend said.

"What do you mean?" He pouted at my confusion as if I should know everything going on in his overactive brain.

"Lori!" He whined. "Have you forgotten already!? I took care of everything and you forgot!" I rolled my eyes at his antics as the driver turned onto the highway out of town.

"Oh, right! I'm so sorry. Interviews fry my brain, I didn't mean to forget about the favor I asked of you. Thank you so much. May I ask where we're headed?"

"Kyoya's family has a home on a beach outside of time." Tamaki continued to pout, not looking directly at me. "I thought it'd be the perfect escape for you where we could have fun and you wouldn't worry so much." He really was so thoughtful. I couldn't stop the smile as it spread across my lips. I turned toward him and gently reached over to grab one of his hands, holding it in both of mine. His hand was warm and soft. The nerves in my hands felt like they were humming where our skin touched and I wondered if he could feel it, too. He looked to our hands before finally meeting my eye.

"Thank you so much, Tamaki. You take such good care of me. I really don't know how I can ever repay you." I watched his face turn red and felt my heart flutter.

"I–it's no problem." He looked back out the window, removing his hand from mine. It struck me as odd how empty I suddenly felt.

"I…um…I just have one more favor to ask." I said, feeling bold.

"Anything!" He turned back to me quickly, ready to do anything I asked. I looked down at my hands in my lap, feeling too embarrassed to make eye contact.

"M–may I hold your hand a little bit longer?" I asked, feeling a blush creep across my own cheeks. I wasn't ready to give up that feeling of our skin touching just yet. Wordlessly, he slipped his hand back between mine and gave my hand a gentle squeeze. I looked up at him, surprised to not get a lecture about how a young lady shouldn't be holding hands or something like that, and found him staring out the window once more. His face was red but there was a definite smile there, too.

I looked back down at our hands intertwined and felt the happiest I've been in a long time.