Hey guys! Guess who has tendonitis (+ symptoms of carpal tunnel) and can't do any of her favorite hobbies for some time (again!)? This girl! :( Aside from that, I was stumped. Is the story going too fast, too slow or at a good pace? What do you guys think? Please let me know! Now onto the story!
Disclaimer: I do not own OHHC


KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK! KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK!

Tamaki jumped up in bed. Who could be knocking so loudly in the morning? He was in his room and he could hear it clearly. And why? It was Sunday, right? Most of his friends never woke up so early on weekends. The only two that did (Haruhi and Mori) were the least likely to knock so loudly.

The head maid softly knocked on Tamaki's bedroom door and entered. "Master Tamaki, you have a visitor. He asked that for his identity to be kept a surprise but he looks anxious." Tamaki nodded, stretching a bit before quickly jogging downstairs without bothering to change. A surprise?! He reached the door and held it open wide.

"Kyoya! What a sur-" Tamaki's greeting was abruptly interrupted by Kyoya's fist hitting his face.

Tamaki's staff gasped.

Kyoya grabbed Tamaki by his shirt collar before Tamaki had time to recover. "This is all your fault! You did this on purpose didn't you. You bastard!" The security guards had been called in at this point. They lunged forward and grabbed Kyoya. Kyoya angrily tried to shake them off but never let go of Tamaki.

Tamaki signaled his employees to leave the room. They reluctantly complie stared at Kyoya with surprisingly little emotion."Kyoya, I'm offended by your accusation. You know I would never do such a thing." Tamaki had enough foresight to know this was coming. How could it be avoided given everything that happened?

"Liar!" Kyoya raised his fist to punch Tamaki again but slowly brought it back down and let Tamaki go. Tamaki calmly fixed his shirt.

Kyoya sat at the base of the staircase in Tamaki's luxurious hall. He hung his head and sighed. "What's wrong with me?"

Tamaki joined him but remained silent. He rubbed his wound softly. There was no blood but there would be a heck of a bruise.

"Tamaki, Why can't she forgive me? What did I do? How could I have messed up so badly?"

Tamaki stared at Kyoya with pity and sadness. "I can't tell you."

"Why not?!"

"Because you have to reflect on your actions. Without doing so you'll never grow as a person. But I can tell you one thing."

"What is it?"

"Haruhi had a," he paused. How could he describe it? She was broken, lost, on the verge of insanity. "rough time while you were in the United States last year. I think that's the most important period you should look into."

"What do you mean?"

"You're smart Kyoya. Think about what you might not have noticed."

"I've tried!"

Tamaki shook his head in disapproval. "Try harder. You're still refusing to admit you did wrong because you justify your actions with your business plans."

"Well excuse me for wanting to assure my child a future. If I can ever even have one now."

"Wait a minute….you know? And you still can't figure out what you did wrong?"

"Know what?"

"That-"

"TAMAKI!" A shrill, loud, angry female voice echoed through the room as the door was kicked open.

There was a flash of a cream colored sleeve as yet another punch was delivered to Tamaki's face. "Why didn't you tell me Kyoya was being an asshole!?"

This time Tamaki was not calm. "What do you mean why didn't I tell you?! It's not my job you nosy girl!"
"NOSY?! Haruhi is my BEST friend and Kyoya is my ex fiance!" The female brushed her hair out of her face and took a deep breath. She finally noticed Kyoya standing next to the Tamaki. "YOU!"
"Renge-"

"I would hit you but unfortunately that's not very ladylike."

"Then why'd you hit me?!" Tamaki balked.

"Hitting you doesn't count you phony prince! Now tell me Kyoya, what the hell is wrong with you?"

"If I knew I wouldn't be here."

Renge crossed her arms and sighed. "You're no fun."

"And I'm not in the mood to be."

Renge glared for a long time but eventually shrugged. "Fine. I have to go comfort somebody that actually deserves it. Call me when you're ready to drink some tea and don't you EVER forget that I am all for sisters before misters you jerks! Bye!" Renge walked out of the house as abruptly as she had entered. That girl was something.

"How could she have possibly entered so easily?" Kyoya wondered. "And those mood swings are no joke either."

"It seems she somehow acquired the keys to my house...Maybe I should change the lock?"

"Tamaki, you're an idiot."

Tamaki huffed. "I never thought I would say this but so are you."


"HARUHI!"

Haruhi jumped up in her chair, hitting her knee against the table. "Ow!" She massaged the area carefully and looked up at the person standing in front of her.

"Why didn't you tell me you and Kyoya were having problems? To think, my first love and my second first love got married. What a tragic fate…" Renge brought her hand up to her forehead i a dramatic fashion.

"Renge, I appreciate your concern" or nosiness "but I'm in the middle of work right now in case you haven't noticed." Haruhi glanced over Renge's shoulder, into the office of her coworker. Yup, they had noticed the flamboyant lady's entrance.

"Don't worry I talked to your manager so you're on break."

"Okay well sit down then I guess." Haruhi motioned the seat that was reserved for clients and stood up to shut the door.

"Why don't we go to my house instead?"

"How much break time did I get exactly?"

"Enough."

"Okay…I guess your house would be as good as any but I don't see why we have to waste time going there."

"Ugh, I see why Kyoya and you got married. You're both no fun."

Haruhi's expression became sour. "Is that what we're going to talk about?"

"Of course. There's nothing else to talk about. After all, I need new ideas for my next manga. It's been a whole year! I've been too busy running my father's business to write. " Renge had made a pen name for herself in the manga industry by writing about the lives of her favorite hosts. Haruhi didn't keep up with her works but she was pretty sure the books were popular. Of course, the members' names were changed for privacy (Haruhi made sure of that) and some events were altered to seem "more exciting". It made Haruhi uncomfortable sometimes but she didn't really mind as long Renge didn't pry too much into her private life.

Once they were at Renge's house (they took a plane because it was located on the other side of Japan and Renge loved air travel) Renge began to serve tea and cookies. "So, Kyoya is being an asshole and you're done with him correct?"

"That sums it up."

"The question is, WHY is he being an asshole?"

"It's just who he is."

"Right but there's NO WAY poor, innocent, little Haruhi could have fallen for a jerky, stuck-up, selfish guy like him! You had to have seen something in him that made you love him. So I guess the real question is, why has he changed? Or, what made your perception of him change?"

Haruhi blinked. "You mean you think that the reason I can't stand him anymore is that he lost whatever charm I found in him?"

"Maybe it's not the MAIN reason but we should start there and then you can tell me what's happened in the last year or so. Last I saw you guys were still on good terms. Now tell me, what was it that made the sensible commoner fall in love with the cold, wealthy genius?" Renge brought her glittery, pink pen up to her lavender notepad. She was about to take more notes on this epic love story than could be found in her high school math notebooks.


"So…" Haruhi glanced around the cafe. She couldn't believe they had referred to this coffee shop as 'simple'. It was probably the most luxurious coffee shop she had ever been in! Haruhi awkwardly browsed through the menu. It was also the most expensive but that was no surprise. Besides them, the cafe was empty except for some employees. They had probably rented out this place.

"So." Kyoya looked at her expectantly. At least she thought he was looking at her. His glasses thoroughly concealed his eyes.

"I can't believe we're doing this."

Kyoya shrugged. "It was what our customers wanted. I admit that the result was rather surprising. Based on the data you and Tamaki were most likely to be 'shipped'." Kyoya had been ninety-nine percent sure that Tamak would be sitting in his place at this moment. Why else would he have set up the contest? Each client had the right to vote for their favorite host club ship and bet on which one would win in the end. The winning couple would go on a date from which exclusive, limited edition picture books would be created. He figured that after the major sales of the book he would release picture books of the other "couples" anyway. The contest was really just a way to hype up the silly girls so that they wouldn't think twice about spending more.

"How do you know that?"

Kyoya nonchalantly explained that the club apparently had a website dedicated to ships the hosts were involved in. Kyoya coincidentally had the administrative information at his disposal and could monitor any activity on the page. "Now then, shall we order?"

Haruhi read over the menu again. How could she possibly afford any of this without seriously digging into her already tight budget?

"Don't worry. I'll pay for your meal."

"You mean you'll add it to my debt," Haruhi said flatly. She would never pay off her debt at this rate.

"Normally I would but this is a date. While I believe in equality between partners, I am also somewhat traditional. I'll pay this time."

Haruhi's ears perked up. "Wow, senpai I didn't know you could be a gentleman even without people watching."

Kyoya paused. He was surprisingly offended. He had a heart too. It was a little oppressed by his brain but it was there. He thought she would have noticed this during their encounter at the supermarket.

Haruhi instantly realized her mistake. "I didn't mean that you're not a gentleman when nobody is around it's just that you're always saying you don't do things without merit so-"

"I don't do things without merit."

"Then why are you paying for my meal? Aren't you losing money?"
Kyoya smiled. Haruhi shuddered. That was not a genuine smile. His aura was too icy, making it that much scarier.

He called the waiter over. "We're ready to order."


"Are you serious?!" Renge stood up. The table, cookies, and tea shook as she slammed her hand on the table.

"What?"

"You fell in love with him because he bought you a meal! That sucks!"

"Of course not! Do you want the whole story or not?" Haruhi asked. She was reliving the moment for the sake of Renge possibly being able to help her get over Kyoya. After all, Renge had managed to stop loving him so why couldn't Haruhi?

"Fine. I'll save my questions for the end." Renge sat down and began chomping on another cookie.


When the food arrived Haruhi suddenly remembered something. "What do you mean this time?"

"Isn't it obvious? It means you'll pay next time."
Haruhi nodded. Duh. But then when would 'next time' be? Deciding to just ignore his comment she began to eat her food with delight. Damn this stuff was good. She ordered the cheapest item on the menu (just in case she really did have to pay it back later) but the quality was still superb. Eventually, she was too consumed with her meal to talk.

Kyoya ate silently too. That was the only way to eat at the Ootori table unless there was a pending business matter. No need to waste time making small talk when they could get this done quickly.

Right before Haruhi took her last bite, Kyoya clicked on his cellphone. "Smile." Haruhi could only let out a 'huh?' before he took the picture. Kyoya nodded at it with satisfaction, put his phone away and continued to eat.

"I'm surprised that you didn't hire professional photographers to follow us around.

"Just because you can't see them doesn't mean they're not there. Besides, we can't only sell candid shots. The ladies have to see selfies of us in order to believe we truly interacted during the date."

"I guess they do. Won't they be confused by the fact that I'm dressed like a girl?" Haruhi pointed at her baby blue dress. She really didn't want to wear it. There were too many frills for it to be used on a date but her father had insisted. Where did he buy it on such short notice? Haruhi still had no idea. Thankfully she could wear shorts underneath.

"No. Their previous reactions to you "cosplaying" as a girl were all positive which means that they will have no qualms about you being a girl on the date."

Haruhi bit back a laugh. "Yeah. Imagine you being the girl? That would be a sight."

"Indeed. Maybe next time." There it was again! Next time? Before Haruhi could ask Kyoya excused himself and walked over to the counter. They were done eating.

Haruhi stood around awkwardly. The cafe had waiters but customers still had to approach the counter to pay? What an interesting mix. She really did feel uncomfortable about Kyoya footing the bill but she also didn't bring enough money to pay for even her half. 'I did bring enough money to hang out though…'

Kyoya approached Haruhi. "Shall we go?"

"Of course. Where are we going now?"

"Home." He called his driver.
"I thought you wanted pictures for the album. A meal is pretty boring isn't it?"

"Who said we wouldn't be taking pictures at home?"

"Which home are you referring to?"

"Yours of course. After all, I should talk to your father if we're dating."

"The only problem is that we're not actually dating."

A sleek black limousine drove up in front of them. Kyoya opened the door for her to go inside. She entered with him close behind. "It's true that we are not officially dating. Or even close to being attracted to each other," he continued their conversation. "But you keep forgetting that for today we are dating."
'Still,' she thought. 'You already met my father. Do you have to go this far for pictures?'

"Why yes, I do have to go this far for pictures. I don't do things half-heartedly Haruhi. And may I remind you that some of the profit made from this photobook will go towards paying your debt."
Ranka threw the front door open before either of them could reach it. Ranka was dolled up for the occasion. He never missed an opportunity to go all out.

"Come in, come in! It's just you two right?" Ranka looked around suspiciously. He didn't want those other goofballs messing up the beginning of love.

"It's just us dad." 'Thankfully,' Haruhi whispered. She really did like Kyoya senpai but she was stressed enough with the thought of a hidden cameraman following them around. She didn't need the club following them around too.

"Ranka-san! How nice to see you again!"

"Indeed it is! Come sit down you two. Can I offer you something to drink, Kyoya?"
"Some coffee please." Kyoya sat down easily. Haruhi sat down beside him. She was glad that her father was such an easy person to talk to. She didn't know if she could take any more awkward conversations with Kyoya.

While Ranka busied around he chatted away. "I was so glad when I found out you would be the one taking her out. I've always hoped you'd be the one to steal my daughter's heart."

Haruhi flushed. "Dad, you know we're not actually dating right?" At the same time, Kyoya said, "You flatter me."

"Yes yes dear I know you're not actually in a relationship but a father can dream, right? Here you go Kyoya."

"Thank you."

"So, when are we going to take the family picture?"

"Right now actually." Kyoya snapped a photo of the three sitting at the table. Ranka beamed while Kyoya and Haruhi smiled.

After about half an hour of conversing with Ranka, Kyoya announced that it was time to go.

"I'm sorry to get going so soon but we have many things to do before the day ends."

"Oh, no problem. Just make sure to behave yourself around my daughter. And don't forget her curfew."

"Of course. Thank you for your hospitality." Kyoya shook Ranka's hand. Ranka pulled him in for a hug then added Haruhi into the mix.

Haruhi was sandwiched between her father and Kyoya. She was a bit curious as to why Kyoya reciprocated the hug so easily. He didn't seem like the type to enjoy physical contact that wasn't absolutely necessary but she figured it was due to her father's insistence. After a while, Haruhi spoke up. "Dad, don't you think we've hugged for a bit too long already?"

"What?" Ranka glanced from Haruhi's beet red face (caused by the cut off of air to her lungs) and Kyoya's now uncomfortable expression. "Right! Sorry. Carry on!"

And just as easily as Ranka had welcomed them he ushered them out.


"This is so boring!" Renge whined.

Haruhi glared. "Renge, you asked me to tell you everything."

Renge groaned. "I know but -. Fine! Just skip to the part where you fell in love with him!"

Haruhi sighed. "Alright. So after the kiss-"

"KISS?"

"Yes. After the kiss I realized-"
"Wait a minute! This won't do! How did you guys end up kissing!"
"The clowns-
"What clowns?"

Haruhi glared once more. This time there was a much more threatening aura around her. She was beginning to think her time was being wasted here.

Renge shrunk a little. She forgot that Haruhi was - by law (sort of) - the Shadow Queen. "Sorry. Okay, I changed my mind. Tell me everything. Begin where you left off before I interrupted you the first time."

Haruhi took a deep breath. "Okay so as I was saying…"


"Where are we going now?"
"A commoner's fair."
"Did you have to add the word commoner."
"Of course. Did you think our fairs are the same as yours? Based on my research there is an obvious difference."

Haruhi sighed. Why were these guys always so eager to point out that she was different in one way or another?

Kyoy glanced at her. He thought she would be happy to know they weren't going to some fancy event. If she was his actual girlfriend he would definitely take her to such events (after some quick lessons) but he figured that the clients would eat up the idea of a commoner's fair. And maybe a little part of him was being a nice guy that wanted Haruhi to feel comfortable. Why did she look so weary though?

"It's a good distance from here."

Haruhi nodded. "That's okay. Let's go."

When they arrived at the fair Haruhi looked amazed. Kyoya lifted an eyebrow. "You've never been to a fair?"
Haruhi looked around in awe. "I have once. It was when I was very young; my mom was still here. I never had the time to come afterward because I was too busy studying or babysitting…"

"Well, what do you want to do?"
Haruhi looked around again, eagerly taking in the sight of the carnival rides and games. She smiled when a whiff of popcorn met her nose. Finally, her eyes landed on a ride that she was too young to ride last time. It was tall and scared the bejeezus out of all of her friends (or so she had heard since she could never actually join them).

"That one."

Kyoya followed her gaze to the skyscraper disguised as an amusement park ride. It was blue with flashing orange lights that were horrifyingly close to the clouds. "That one?"

"Yes." Haruhi said firmly. She began to walk towards it, not realizing that Kyoya was glued to his spot. "I know it seems to have come out of nowhere but I'm really happy that you brought me here Kyoya senpai. Riding The Skyscraper is in the top ten things I want to do before I'm married. Is it weird that I have a bucket list named that?" Haruhi excitedly rambled on. When Kyoya didn't respond she turned around. "Senpai?" She walked back to where Kyoya was still staring at the ride. These people willingly rode to the top of that thing? Knowing that they could drop at any given moment? For FUN? He wasn't scared of heights but the thought of being at the mercy of the ride's questionable safety terrified him. "Hey Kyoya senpai?" Haruhi waved her hand in front of his face.

Kyoya snapped out of whatever trance was holding him. "Haruhi I don't believe that thing is safe."
"Of course it's safe senpai." Haruhi realized what was going on and smiled at him reassuringly. "Its okay if you're scared of riding it. I can get on by myself."

Kyoya coughed and pushed his glass further up the bridge of his nose. "I am not scared. Let's go." He began walking towards the ride with Haruhi stifling a laugh behind him. She wasn't making fun of him really. It was just that the thought of "Cool Kyoya" trying to stay calm was strangely endearing and quite unexpected.

The line was short so the two were at the entrance of The Skyscraper in less than thirty minutes.

"Where do I leave my glasses? Surely they don't expect them to stay on me while we ride this thing."

"There are cubbies over there."

Kyoya removed his glasses, fully revealing his gray eyes to Haruhi for what was perhaps the second time since they met.

"What?" he asked.

Haruhi looked away. "Nothing."

"Who's scared now?" he said.

Haruhi smiled, surprised at his attempt to be playful. "Still you senpai."

The two buckled into the assigned seats. Kyoya flinched when the conductor shook the safety lock to ensure it was secure. He breathed deeply when the signal was given to start the ride. The seats slowly began to rise. He looked at Haruhi. She was grinning like a maniac. HOW?

When they reached the top Kyoya made the mistake of looking down. Haruhi swung her legs casually. She even looked a bit impatient. Kyoya only had time to think "I fuc-" before he felt the seat below him and his stomach drop. There was a moment in which panic settled in. He was falling too fast and could hear screaming all around him and why the hell was his butt no longer touching the seat! Then they abruptly jerked to stop. Kyoya barely questioned how Haruhi could giggle beside him before they began falling again. Another stop then they finally descended slowly to the ground. At this point Kyoya had his eyes closed. When he felt his feet touch the ground he laughed with relief. The bars securing them were slowly pulled up as they unlocked their belts. Haruhi jumped off with glee. "Hey Kyoya senpai would you mind if we went on again…" she trailed off as she noticed Kyoya's drained face. "Are you okay?"

"Of course, Haruhi." He said.
"Then why are you still holding onto the bar?"

Kyoya shakily let go. "I didn't want to get off obviously." He cooly tried to walk without looking like he had sea legs and grabbed glasses out of the cubicle.

Haruhi crossed her arms. "So is that a yes on riding it again." She grinned innocently.

"Perhaps later. We can't have pictures of only one ride, Haruhi." Kyoya walked towards the exit.

"That's true. But you know what?"
"What, Haruhi?" Kyoya's voice had almost regained it's full strength although his senses were still off.

"Wrong glasses." Haruhi barely managed to suppress a smile as Kyoya nonchalantly - or so he thought- walked back and grabbed his glasses.

"I knew that," he said.

"I know," she responded, walking ahead of him.

After a couple of other, less intense rides Kyoya couldn't handle his queasy stomach.

"Haruhi. It's time for a break."
"I agree. I'm getting kind of hungry."
"What would you like to eat?"
"Cotton candy."
"Cotton. Candy?" he asked with pure curiosity in his tone.
"Yeah. You know what that is right?"
"I'm not very familiar with it."
Haruhi was amazed. Rich people had the most extravagant tastes and enjoyed expensive dishes but didn't enjoy the simple things in life like cotton candy. She grinned. "Let's go then."
"What can I get you?" The vendor asked from the other side of his booth.

"Two sticks of cotton candy, please. One purple and one pink."

The vendor reached onto the side of the booth and untied two bags of cotton candy on a stick. Haruhi paid him and handed the purple one to Kyoya. "Here you go senpai."

Kyoya took it wearily. Could he trust such strange commoner snacks? Haruhi opened her bag and ate happily. She wasn't very fond of sweets but it had been a long time since she last tasted cotton candy.

Kyoya followed her lead tentatively. He took a pinch-sized bite. The strange fluff instantly dissolved on his tongue, leaving the taste of pure sugar. "This doesn't seem particularly healthy…"

Haruhi shrugged. "You don't have to eat it." She began to walk through the lines of booths.

"No, no I'll eat it." Kyoya took another bite. He quickly realized that it tasted better as you kept eating.

They stopped in front of a crowd of people. They were watching some clowns perform. There were five clowns. Haruhi sighed. Of course, they wouldn't stay away for long.

One clown -the leader, dressed in handsome shades of red- saw Haruhi and jumped excitedly. The teenage girls next to her squealed, thinking Tamaki was looking at them. Haruhi was amazed that he managed to make teenage girls fawn over him while dressed as a clown. "Okay for our next skit we'll need two volunteers! The grand prize is fancy tuna! Any volunteers?" A wave of hands shot up as children eagerly hoped to participate.

"Hmmm...lets see...Oh! How about that lovely couple over there?"

Two clowns - one with pink hair and the other with blue hair- walked over to Kyoya and Haruhi. Of course, Hikaru and Kaoru had to play the female clowns. They loved it.

"We didn't-" Haruhi began to protest.

"Oh how funny!" The clowns laughed at the silly couple as they led them to the center of the circle.

The leader clown clapped his hands. "Alright! So the er, lovely couple will play the 'where am I going?' game!"

The crowd cheered even though they had never heard of the game before.

A small clown that could have been mistaken for a child ran onto the platform in front of the spectators. "In order to play this game, the participants must be blindfolded!"

The tallest clown with an unreadable expression gave a small smile as he pulled out the blindfolds and held them out to the twin clowns.

"Wait both of us? Why?" Haruhi began to panic. "Kyoya-senpai don't you think we should be a bit more cautious?"
Haruhi barely had time to see Kyoya cross his arms and take off his glasses before her eyes could no longer see anything except cloth.

"Trust me Haruhi. I know exactly what we are being dragged into."
Haruhi reluctantly pushed her wary thoughts to the back of her mind.

"Now then," the small clown proceeded. "Each person will be taken to opposite ends of this circle."

Haruhi heard the crowd laugh as she felt three pairs of hands pull her in different directions. She assumed they were laughing because of the three clowns (and she had a good idea of which three clowns) were fighting over who would lead her to the other side. Finally, two pairs of hands grabbed her. She heard a faint thump as the crowd roared. The clowns leading her to her position laughed mockingly at the leader. Even Haruhi giggled a bit. She could imagine how exaggerated his fall must have been.

"Okay! The purpose of the game is to get both partners on the same side in two minutes. The female will direct the male towards her." The tiny clown paid no mind to the scene behind him as he continued to explain the rules.

The previously silent clown spoke with a deep, emotionless. "But won't it be easy to just tell him to walk forward?"
"That's why there is a catch! Both contestants will spin five times clockwise! And there will be a series of obstacle courses placed in their path. Ready? Begin!"

Haruhi slowly began to spin. The clowns beside her shouted 'faster' and helped spin her around. When she came to a stop she tried to regain her sense of direction. These guys probably didn't set her back in her starting position. "Okay.. um… go right four steps."

She heard crashing and laughter. Damn…

"Incoming!" She heard the twins shout.

"Duck!" She said out of instinct. The crowd gasped, followed shortly by applause. "Okay… walk forward ten steps?"
There were silent protests from little kids as Kyoya (probably) followed her instructions. This time Haruhi heard a murmured curse from Kyoya as the crowd was filled with glee. She silently begged whoever was listening to spare her from his wrath when this was over.

"Should we throw the banana peels or the foam balls?" The small clown asked. The crowd shouted their answer. "Both it is!"

"JUMP?" Haruhi said in an attempt to spare Kyoya from a foam ball of death. Even as she shouted it she realized that it was probably the wrong thing to say. After what seemed like an eternity of anguish in which Haruhi hoped Kyoya wasn't hurt too bad the leader halted the game.

"Time is up! Alright, guys what do you think? Should we give the couple another chance to win the grand prize or should they be deemed losers?" He let the crowd shout for a bit. "Okay! You guys get a second shot. This time both of you will move towards each other without communicating. If you manage to find each other in two minutes then you were probably destined to be together."

Haruhi faintly heard the twins whisper to each other. "What if they actually find each other? Won't the boss be depressed?" asked one clown.

"What are the odds of that ever happening?" replied the other clown. "There's no way these guys will be able to do it."

"Ready...set...go!" Haruhi began to walk towards what she assumed was the center. She hoped Kyoya was near it. Haruhi really wanted to win this game. She didn't care much for the destiny part but she did want that fancy tuna. About thirty seconds into her journey she tripped on some strange block shape and landed on a sticky, foamy substance. She hoped it was whipped cream and not some weird concoction the twins invented. She stood up shakily. At this point, she was managing to block out the maniacal laughter from the viewers. After about a minute and a half, the clowns began to countdown.

Haruhi was now trudging her feet along the ground. Besides crawling on the floor this had to be the best way to get through the obstacles.

"20...19...18"

Unfortunately, the twin clowns decided to play a prank on her at this moment. They pushed her from one to the other, laughing.

"13...12...11"

One clown accidentally pushed her a little too far away causing her to trip. Haruhi tried to hold on to whatever was around her but to her dismay, there was nothing but air. She felt her foot hit something squishy.

And then she slipped.

And the slip once again prompted her to blindly reach out around her in a desperate attempt to hold on.

And to her surprise she grabbed something!

And then a thud. An extremely hurtful thud and a sudden weight on her as she hit the floor.

And then she realized something. Somebody's lips were on hers. And she didn't know who they belonged to but her stomach felt as tingly as if she was going to throw up except this was in a good way.

Although it only lasted a couple of seconds Haruhi ripped her blindfold off after what seemed like several minutes. At this point, whoever was above her had been pulled off. The clowns' bright suits dominated her line of vision. Haruhi's eyes were slowly adjusting but the shiny costumes in front of her weren't helping.

"SHE'S OKAY!"
"YAYYYY!"
Haruhi slowly sat up. "Who…" A mix of voices floated around her.

"She's my date Mr. Clown. I have a right to see her."

Through the swirling voices, Haruhi heard the leader protest. Finally, he was shoved out of the way. A figure in dark clothes approached her. He squatted down to see her, closely followed by Tamaki. "Are you okay?"
Haruhi's vision finally cleared. She found herself staring right into Kyoya's eyes. Seeing him without glasses always made her feel nervous. He was much more intimidating.

He slowly extended his arm in a motion to help her stand up. Tamaki did the same but Haruhi could only focus on one person, her gaze captivated by his.

Kyoya didn't smile but Haruhi didn't expect him to. He whispered, "Haruhi, take my hand. It would make a great picture for the photo album."

Haruhi looked from his eyes to his hand.

Then she vomited.


"You threw up?!"

"Yeah. It wasn't the most fun moment in my life."

Renge shook her head. "That is totally not romantic. You were supposed to take his hand and kiss him! Then Tamaki would get a crestfallen look on his face as he realized that his first love had fallen in love with his best friend. Then Kyoya would sincerely apologize!"

Haruhi sighed. "Renge this is reality. Those type of situations rarely happen."

"Well, that's what will happen in my next chapter."

"Suit yourself."
"So what happened after the kiss?"

"Well…"


Kyoya and Haruhi were sitting side by side in the back of Kyoya's limo. Haruhi looked out the window. Kyoya stared straight ahead. The driver glanced back frequently. The silence was making him desperate to get the two out of the limo. It was excruciating.

Haruhi tried to ignore Kyoya's presence. She was already having trouble keeping her stomach under control. It couldn't stop doing flips. The worst part was that she couldn't stop thinking of the kiss. Every time her stomach calmed down the feeling of Kyoya's lips on hers made it start again. She pressed her forehead against the cool window and closed her eyes. What was wrong with her? It was just a stupid kiss. An accidental one that had no meaning whatsoever. It wasn't even her first so why couldn't she forget about it.

"Haruhi?"
Her stomach jumped. "Yes?" She couldn't bear to look at him.

"We have to take one last picture before the date ends"
"Can we take it with my dad when you drop me off?"

"I already have a selfie with your father. We need one of us in the limo." Haruhi didn't respond. She heard Kyoya make a noise of annoyance before he spoke up. "If you take this picture I'll forget that you threw up on my shoes."

Haruhi perked up a bit but still couldn't face him.

"By the way, didn't your father teach you to look at your elders when they're talking to you?" She felt him scoot closer to her. Haruhi turned to look at him with reluctance.

He held up his phone. "Haruhi I can't take the picture if you're a foot away from me."
She scooted an inch.

He sighed. He realized that perhaps his obvious annoyance wasn't helping. "I told you I would forget you threw up on my shoes so there is no need for you to be scared of me," he said softly.

Haruhi wanted to laugh. She wished that was the reason she was so unwilling to move closer to him. The truth was that every time he looked at her she felt the tingly feeling begin to spread through her. 'Suck it up Haruhi,' she thought as she moved towards him.

"Now smile." The two smiled. Kyoya looked at the picture, unsatisfied. "This doesn't look genuine."

"Senpai we went on a fake date. How could any picture look genuine?"

He analyzed the photo again. "Haruhi, I'm going to ask you a question but you have to promise that you won't freak out." So he hadn't missed her weird behavior then.

"Go ahead."
"May I put my arm around you?"
Her eyes widened and her cheeks burned. "Why?"

"We need to show some sort of skinship. The picture of us with your father isn't enough since he was obviously the one holding us in a hug." Kyoya spoke with his usual business tone.

So he was ignoring the fact that they kissed. Haruhi guessed it was probably best because she wasn't ready to talk about it either. "I guess it can't hurt." But it really was hurting her on the inside because those butterflies were eager to escape.

"Okay then let's try again." Kyoya readied his camera. Then he put his arm around Haruhi. "Smile."

Haruhi felt like she could breathe again after the picture was taken. Kyoya nodded in satisfaction. He even smiled a bit as he looked at the picture.

Haruhi tried to scoot away but stopped when she felt Kyoya's hold tighten a little. Her heart skipped a beat.

Kyoya realized what he had done and apologized. "I'm sorry. I guess it's an instinct." He let her go.

The silence resumed as the drive continued. Haruhi stole glances at him but Kyoya's glasses hid his eyes. For all, she knew he had fallen asleep.

Finally, they arrived at her house. Haruhi had finally calmed down and felt normal as they walked to her door.

"Thank you for today Kyoya senpai. I really enjoyed the food and the fair."

"Thank you for being cooperative. The photobook should be a big hit."

Haruhi smiled. "I hope so. I have a debt to pay off. I expect 25% of the profits at least."

Kyoya raised an eyebrow. "We'll negotiate tomorrow. Goodnight then."

"Goodnight."

Haruhi dug her keys out of her pocket as Kyoya walked back to the limo. Before she could fully open the door he came back.

"One more thing." He leaned down and pecked her cheek.

She froze.

"Sorry. I figured you'd freak out if I told you so a surprise kiss would be best."

She squeaked an "It's okay."

Kyoya apologized again. "Goodnight then." Then he sped walked to the limo.

Haruhi pushed open her door. She didn't even feel mad about the kiss. All she could think was that it would be hell to get this tingly feeling to disappear again.


"And that was it."

"Wait a minute. How do you know it was Kyoya that you kissed?"

"Well-" Haruhi paused.

"I mean you were blindfolded, right? So how could you possibly know that Kyoya was the one you kissed?"

"Who else could it have been?"

Renge facepalmed. "Haruhi, there were three other guys surrounding you when you woke up right? You didn't see who kissed you because he was no longer on you when you took your blindfold off right? So how could you have been sure it was Kyoya and not another host?"

Haruhi thought about it. She had just assumed that it was Kyoya…

"And based on what you told me, it was as if Kyoya didn't even remember the kiss. Also, didn't Tamaki squat down to look at you too?"
"He did…"

"Oh my goodness Haruhi. Don't tell me you haven't talked about the kiss until now?"
Haruhi remained silent.

"Well, that's just great," Renge said without a hint of sarcasm. "An unexpected twist in the supposed perfect beginning of the young couple!" Haruhi wouldn't say their beginning was perfect.

"What if Kyoya wasn't the one I kissed at the fair?" How was it possible that the catalyst that prompted her to see Kyoya in a different light might not have been meant for him at all.

"What do you mean?"

"What if I was only in love with the idea of him?"

Renge hugged Haruhi comfortingly. "Look Haruhi, I'll be honest and say that it totally sucks that you have made this discovery. But look on the bright side! There is a twenty-five percent chance that it was him! And even if it wasn't, you eventually fell in love with him anyway, right?"

"Right. Besides I did feel butterflies when he kissed me on the cheek."

"Exactly."

Even though it was true that she loved Kyoya she couldn't get it out of her head. She didn't like cheesy lines or fluffy romance stories but she thought the kiss had been a sign. She didn't see who kissed her, yet she felt warmth rush through her when they kissed. She couldn't stop dreaming about it for weeks because of the feeling it gave her. Now she was expecting herself to be okay with the fact that it might not have been Kyoya?

The only thing she could do when she got home was plop into bed. After an extensive pep talk, she finally shook free of those depressing thoughts. 'Forget about it. What good does it do to keep thinking about it?' she told herself. Then she fell asleep.


Thank you for reading!