Hi! So the first upload was weirdly formatted. I'm so sorry! It definitely didn't look like that when I pasted it but hopefully this one is readable. Thank you Kdfe001 and Eleonara for letting me know! I hope this one is better.

Thank you for reading! ^_^


The scene in Tamaki's living room was strangely mundane given the fact that the host club was freaking out only two hours ago.

Kaoru was munching on potato chips while HIkaru flicked through the television channels. Mori was playing with chinese handcuffs while Honey munched on sweet potato chips.

Tamaki walked into the living room, holding an ice pack to his cheek.

"Oh my gosh," the group said in unison, ready to drop everything they were doing. They were about to rush over to him but Tamaki waved them off. "I'm fine."

"Yeah, you totally are. It's not like your face is bruised and swelling!" Hikaru said sarcastically.

"I told you I had a plan right?" Tamaki winced. Maybe talking so much wasn't the best idea.

"Your plan was to get beat up?" Kaoru asked.

"No, his plan was to get into a fight with Kyo-chan, right?" Honey piped up.

Tamaki nodded slightly, resting on the couch. His arms hurt too. He was fit and did exercise but that didn't mean his body was ready to punch and receive punches. "Did you guys find a way to keep Ranka out of this?"

"Yeah. He's on his way to Karuizawa for a week long, all expenses paid trip."

Tamaki's face instantly displayed relief. "Thank goodness."

"And what do you mean you got into a fight with - woah." The remote fell out of HIkaru's hand when he saw what was on the television screen.

"What the f-"

"Is that you Tama-chan?" Honey cut Kaoru off.

Mori nodded in affirmation. It was definitely Tamaki.

Tamaki smiled. He looked like a crazy man. "It worked."

The quintet watched the scene unfold.

The television hosts resumed their discussion when the clip ended.

"So it seems that these two men have one heck of a feud." The woman said.

"Are you thinking what I'm thinking?" The man replied.

"If you're thinking that this is over a woman then yes I am!"

The man laughed. "I wonder if it's too early to jump to these conclusions."

"Oh not at all. It's a known fact that these two are best friends. It must've been something big that caused such a public outburst."

"Perhaps the woman Kyoya Ootori was having an affair with."

"I forgot about that! But since you brought it up I can affirm that isn't the woman they're fighting over."

"And how do you know?"

"Just trust me. I may be in the minority but I think there is something that was left out in the story of Ootori's alleged affair. Besides, an insider tip claims there was more to the kissing clip than shown."

"Well, if there's no evidence what can we do about it. Lucky for all of us we have a new, major topic to talk about - this fight!"

"Yes, indeed. We could talk about it all day but unfortunately this is all the time we have for this segment so moving on to other news…"

The former host club stopped paying attention to the television looking at Tamaki instead.

"So it wasn't a complete wipeout in the news but at least the attention will be on our next moves instead of our past ones."

"You did a good job Tama-chan." Honey reassured him.

Mori nodded in agreement to Honey's statement. "We know great remedies for the swelling. We'll send them over soon," Mori and Honey took their leave.

Hikaru reluctantly patted Tamaki's shoulder in camaraderie. "Kaoru and I have a meeting with some models so we have to go."

"Keep us updated." The twins exited.

Tamaki leaned back in his cushiony seat, letting his exhaustion take over. After a moment, the realization hit him completely. He punched Kyoya! And the most worrisome thing was that he enjoyed doing so. He truly wanted to beat the crap out of Kyoya. Based on his reaction, Kyoya was very willing to do the same to Tamaki.


It was midnight but Haruhi was still awake. She just couldn't sleep. She rolled over, lying on her side. No sense of tiredness came upon her. Haruhi sat up, thinking about what was the best position to sleep in. Finally, she decided to get some chamomile tea. That was supposed to help her sleep. On her way to the kitchen, a box caught her attention. It was in the corner, behind her plant. Haruhi stepped towards it before deciding to make the tea first. After setting some water to boil she walked over to the box.

Squatting down, Haruhi opened the box carefully.

She frowned at the contents. It was Kyoya's.

"The last thing I need is to think about him." After all, he was the reason she was avoiding as much screen time as possible. No radio, no tv, no internet. She couldn't even take a look at the daily newspaper because there was a chance that dastardly image would be on the gossip page. Of course, Haruhi could've avoided that page but she knew that curiosity would win over and then it would kill her. She stood up, contemplating what to do. "I don't want to talk to him but if I mail it he'll see where I live which is way worse."

The water wasn't completely boiled yet so she walked into her room to retrieve her phone. She didn't want to hear his voice until she absolutely had to. Texting him brought about memories she would prefer to ignore. An email would have to do.

"Hey," She quickly deleted that.

"Listen," She deleted that too.

Taking a deep breath she quickly typed whatever came to mind, determined to send it because he was already taking up too much space in her thoughts.

"One of your boxes accidentally ended up with me. I'll drop it off asap." She sent it. As she was dipping the chamomile tea bag into her mug she realized she had no idea where Kyoya lived. 'Crap,' Haruhi thought to herself as she reopened her email app. "Or I'll ask Tamaki to drop it off for me." Sent.

Haruhi rubbed her eyes, suddenly drained. She sat down on her bed, sipping her tea. Even though she was exhausted now, her nerves were at an all-time high again. Her hands were shaken with even the bit of effort it took to email Kyoya.

Ding.

She nearly spit out her tea when she heard the email notification. Opening it up, she saw Kyoya had responded. "You've got to be kidding me!" She nearly shouted. He responded more quickly to her as his ex-wife than he ever did in the last year of their marriage. "Of course you're awake you workaholic bastard."

Kyoya had sent her his address. That was it.

Haruhi stood up to put her mug away. She stopped when she heard another ding. Her instinct was to immediately check however she took her time. Haruhi washed the mug and tidied up before tucking herself into bed then checking her phone notifications.

'We need to talk' from Kyoya

Before she could think about it she typed back, "I'm just going to drop your things off. Don't get your hopes up." Then Haruhi turned her phone off and went to sleep. It was much easier this time.


The next day Haruhi woke up early. It was her day off but once she woke up it was hard to fall back asleep. Unfortunately for her, she had woken up at eight in the morning. Haruhi yawned, stretching. She went about getting her morning routine done before beginning the organization process. Seeing the box made her wonder if there was something else she missed so she decided to look through her closet and drawers.

By the end of her little exploration, she had found a couple of Tamaki's belongings. "Why do I even have these things here," she said to herself as she carefully tucked one of Tamaki's night creams into the box of his things. They weren't major belongings just a couple of bracelets, combs and other beauty products. Even so, it took up quite a bit of space. She rummaged through her closet again to make sure she had packed everything. That was when she found Tamaki's shirt and sweatpants. She blushed angrily at the memory of Kyoya's accusation.

"I can't be mad anymore. I have to get over this." She grabbed the clothes, carefully placing it in Tamaki's box so that she didn't mess up the folding. "But if I don't get mad when I see this outfit I get," her cheeks reddened into a darker shade "embarrassed." She almost always forgot that Tamaki had seen her naked. It was another thing she preferred not to think about.

After placing the boxes into her small car, Haruhi sat in the driver's seat. It would take about twenty minutes for her to mentally prepare herself for the drive. Haruhi didn't want to drive. She still avoided it as much as possible even though it had become easier. It was harder to be in the passenger seat than it was to drive but both still shook her to the core. Unfortunately, she had a couple of stops to make and taking the bus would be costly. Not to mention it would be difficult to carry around two boxes.


Tamaki looked at his face in the mirror. The ointment Mori sent did help with the swelling but it was still not a pretty sight.

"Master Tamaki, what would you like for breakfast?"

"Something easy to chew, please. Actually, nothing. I'll cook today. Thank you."

He was in the middle of slowly eating scrambled eggs when Haruhi walked into his kitchen with a box.

"Woah, hold on there." He laughed at the sight of her short frame trying to see over the cardboard box she was carrying. "I'll take that." He took the box from her, ignoring the burn coursing through his arms. Yeah, his body was definitely not built to punch people.

Haruhi rolled her eyes. "I can carry a box senpai." She tried to take it back. He lifted it above her head, hiding his face from her.

"Seriously?" She asked.

"Yes." He finally put it down on the table, quickly turning around to face the sink instead of Haruhi. "What's in here anyway?"

"I was cleaning and I found a bunch of your things." Haruhi sat across from Tamaki's food. Her stomach rumbled. That's right. She forgot all about eating breakfast.

"Are you hungry? I can make you some scrambled eggs." Anything that would keep her away from his face.

"Can you really?" She inspected his bowl. It did look delicious.

"Of course! I've been practicing my cooking!" He took the ingredients out of the refrigerator, already getting to work.

Haruhi smiled. "So the staff is off today?"

"No they're here but I don't have as much as I usually do. I figure there is no point if I like to do things myself."

"You've become much more practical."

"Who wouldn't when they have a Haruhi."

"Can I have some juice?"

"Take whatever you like." He nervously glanced around the kitchen for an excuse to have his back facing her.

When she approached the cups he quickly tilted his bruised cheek away from her. When she moved the refrigerator on the opposite side, he tilted his face again.

"Tamaki senpai are you okay?"

"Of course, why?" He answered nervously.

"You're moving your head so much I thought you might be having spasms or something."

"Oh no, I'm fine." He turned the stove off, transferring the eggs from the pan to a colorful plate.

"Haruhi, do you mind getting your plate? I have to go somewhere real quick."

"I don't mind," Haruhi said, confused. "Are you sure you're okay?" She quietly walked over to him.

Tamaki nodded. "Completely. I just need to go somewhere real quick. "

"Tamaki," Haruhi stated firmly, now standing right next to him.

He jumped, turning to look at her in surprise.

Her mouth dropped. "What happened?"

"Nothing." His hand raised to cover the deep purple bump on his cheek.

She took his hands, making him lower it. "You have a huge bruise on your cheek. How is that nothing?"

"I accidentally bumped into something, that's all."

Haruhi inspected his expression skeptically. Finally, she took her plate to her spot on the table.

"Didn't you have to go somewhere?"

"Not anymore." He resumed eating his food.

She smiled. She took a spoonful into her mouth, surprised by the taste. "It's really good."

"I told you," Tamaki said smugly. They entered a comfortable silence while they finished their breakfast.

"Thank you for the breakfast." Haruhi stood up to wash her plate.

"You're welcome. Are you busy today?" Tamaki asked hopefully.

Now it was Haruhi's turn to avoid facing him. "I am actually. I have to return a couple of things."

"Where?"

Haruhi's shoulders relaxed. He didn't suspect anything. "Some stores."

"You're lying."

"No, I'm not."

"Yes, you are. I'm your best friend Haruhi."

She could feel Tamaki looking at her knowingly. She couldn't bring herself to look at him even though she really wasn't about to do anything wrong. In fact, she didn't have to see Kyoya at all. Her plan was to drop it at his door, knock and run for it. Even so she felt a strange surge of guilt.

"I didn't lie...mostly. I have things that I need to drop off but I'm going to Kyoya's."

"What?"

"I accidentally took one of his boxes to my apartment so I'm going to drop them off."

"Seriously? After everything he did to you, you're doing this?"

"I'm just dropping his things off-"

"You're being nice to him! You're doing him a favor. He doesn't have to drive to your house because you're driving to him."

"I don't want him to know where I live! And I'm not going to drop the box off at the door so we don't have to see each other."

"I don't think you going there at all is a good idea. Give me the box. I know where he lives. I can drop it off."

"I know you're worried about me but I promise I can do this. I'm not going to see him. I'm not going to talk to him. I'm just going to drop his things off."

"I'm sorry. I'm just - have you seen the news?"

Haruhi thought back to the cafe's television. She clearly remembered the clip and the bold letters that read, 'KYOYA OOTORI: THE RETURN OF HIS AFFAIR?' "No. I haven't seen the news. Why?"

"Great," Tamaki said under his breath. "Try to avoid it, please. There are some unpleasant things being said about me that I prefer you don't see. Please."

"I won't. I have to go. I know these are Kyoya's office hours and I really don't want to see him."

"Right." Tamaki stepped out of her way. "I still don't think it's a good idea, Haruhi."

"I'll be fine. If I don't face the problem head on I'll never get over it." She hesitated at the doorway. After the pause, she turned back to Tamaki who was walking right behind her. "Thank you, Tamaki. I'm not just saying this because of the breakfast." She smiled.

Tamaki nodded. He stepped towards her but thought better of it. Hugs were still something they both didn't go for. Haruhi had always been like that but Tamaki was a person that found skinship natural. "I'm here if you need to talk later."

Haruhi smiled at him one last time before stepping out.

Tamaki grabbed his keys from the doorway, intent on following her. Then he thought better of it and hung them back on. He didn't want to interfere with her determination but he also couldn't stand the thought of her depression resurfacing. Sighing, he trudged back up to his room. He forgot how easy it was for him to become drowsy after taking pain medication. Tamaki flopped into his bed, tucking himself in and fell asleep.


Tamaki walked into Haruhi's hospital room. She was up, standing at the window.

"Haruhi?" he asked her. She didn't turn around. It was as if she couldn't hear him. Dressed in the white hospital gown Haruhi looked like a ghost.

Tamaki quickly walked over to her. "Hey," he said softly. She still didn't look at him.

"Haruhi you're not supposed to be walking all alone yet but I'm glad you look stable." Tamaki took her arm. His eyes widened when he saw what she was holding. "What is this?"

Haruhi still didn't answer.

"Haruhi, where did you get this?"

It was the needle of a syringe. Her hand was poised to dig the needle into her arm's skin.

Before he could take the needle away she had stabbed her arm with it, digging deeper.

Tamaki had been too late. Haruhi had already dug the needle into her vein. Tamaki stood there in shock as Haruhi's arm bled profusely. Suddenly his hands were full of blood. They were burning red. So much red on her, on him in the room.

Tamaki sat up, sweating profusely. "That didn't happen," he told himself. Haruhi was fine. She was alive. "You reached her in time Tamaki. You took the needle away from her and she's been fine ever since." He sat up slowly, still finding it difficult to catch his breath. As he splashed water on his face he let himself accept that this was why he still found it difficult to let Haruhi deal with things on her own. He didn't want her to be so devastated that she would think about harming herself again. That was why he was so scared to let her see the cheating news when she had come out of the hospital. How wrecked was she to think of self-harm as her only escape? It only happened once but that was one time too many.


Haruhi pulled up in front of a huge, black, modern building. It was surprisingly modest.

She entered the lobby, walking toward the elevator. Thankfully nobody bothered to stop her. They probably assumed she was moving in because of the box. The elevator opened as she was approaching it, prompting her to hurry up and squeeze in.

Sixth floor. Suite 614.' She anxiously waited for the elevator to arrive on the sixth floor. When it opened she quietly walked along the hall. Finally, she stood in front of the wooden door. As quietly as possible, Haruhi placed the box on the floor. She was preparing to knock and run for it (the stairs because apparently, the elevator took a while) when the door opened.

"I knew you'd come during my office hours," Kyoya said.

The first thing Haruhi saw was an unflattering bruise on Kyoya's lip. It complemented the one near his eye. Haruhi resisted the urge to turn her gaze down, choosing to face him fully. Wordlessly, she handed him the box.

"Thank you." Kyoya took the box and headed inside, leaving the door open.

Haruhi turned around and began walking to the elevator. Did he think she would actually follow him inside?

She stepped into the elevator (He had seen her already so there was no point in running or heading to the stairs) and turned around to see Kyoya stepping in with her.

"Have you seen the news?" He asked when the elevator doors closed.

Again the television in the cafe flashed to mind. "No," Haruhi said, chewing back her instinct to scream the crap out of him.

Kyoya nodded, moving aside to let another resident enter the elevator. Of course, that was why Tamaki wanted to help him distract the media. He didn't want Haruhi to see the news.

"Should I?" She asked him, still keeping a distance from him even though he had inched closer because of the other resident.

"If you want," Kyoya replied coolly. On the inside, he felt relief. He didn't want her to see it until he found the way to explain what had actually happened.

Haruhi gritted her teeth. She wondered if she should let him know that she had seen the news. The other resident exited the elevator on the fourth floor.

"Do you have plans today?" Kyoya asked.

"I don't have to tell you."

"Haruhi we can try to be polite to each other."

"You're right," Haruhi said, pretending to truly understand him. "Do you have plans today ?"

"I'm not going out looking like this." Kyoya scoffed. "But since I told you now you have to tell me."

"I have a date." Haruhi offered nothing else.

There was a pause as another resident entered on the second floor. The person got off at the first level.

"I'm fine by the way. Thanks for asking." Kyoya's voice had become much colder than before. It made Haruhi happy to know she had inspired negative feelings in him.

"I only ask about things I care about." She quickly stepped out of the elevator when it reached the lobby, leaving Kyoya stunned.

When she was in her car Haruhi let out a sigh of relief. She even smiled. It felt good to get a jab in when dealing with Kyoya even if it was just a small one.


There was a knock on Tamaki's door. Tamaki had long since wiped his tears away but he was still hypersensitive That was the reason his staff had been steering clear since he entered his bedroom. He opened the door to see Haruhi standing in front of him. Her expression was unreadable.

"I'm going to kill him," Tamaki's voice deepened in anger. He was already planning on how exactly to beat the crap out of Kyoya for whatever he did to Haruhi this time around.

"Wait," Haruhi said, putting her hands up to stop Tamaki. She sighed. "I know you didn't bump into something by accident."

"You saw him." It wasn't a question. Tamaki sounded annoyed, exasperated, worried, and hurt.

"He was home because his face was all messed up. More than yours, actually." Haruhi was still standing at his doorway. Tamaki moved aside, motioning for her to walk in.

Haruhi sat down at the foot of his bed. "I came to say thank you."

Tamaki joined her at the foot of the bed. He sat at least a foot away from her. "For what?"

"For everything." Haruhi said awkwardly. She didn't know how to phrase what she was trying to say.

"I get it."

"Really?"

"Of course. I'm your best friend remember?"

Haruhi beamed for a second before becoming serious again. "But why did you hit him?"

"Are you worried about him?"

"If I was I wouldn't be here with you."

"Does that mean you're worried about me?"

"Of course I am. You're my best friend. Besides, this is the least I could do for you. You're always there for me."

Tamaki handed her the first aid kit and Mori's ointment that were on his nightstand. "You can help me apply this then. I'm a huge baby about touching my own wounds. I know you'll do it ruthlessly and won't take no for an- ow!" Tamaki yelped when he felt a slop of ointment smack (well, just touch but it felt like a smack) his cheek.

"Sorry," Haruhi said, continuing to follow the directions on the back of the ointment. "So, why did you start the fight. You like to resolve fights not start them."

"Do you really not know? I mean I thought you of all people would understand."

"Well I know why I want to punch him but why do you?"

There was a pause in which a blank look fell across Tamaki. Then he said, "Isn't it strange how your detective and reasoning skills always seem to hide when it comes to your personal life?"

"What?" Haruhi was taken aback. That was a sudden change of topic.

"Yeah. When it comes to cases and other people you're an exceptional cross interrogator and you connect the dots so easily it seems like it's second nature but when it comes to your personal life you're completely oblivious.

"Name one time." Haruhi said indignantly. She did admit that she could be a little dense sometimes but Tamaki made it sound like she was terrible at connecting the dot in situations pertaining to her.

"When you were pushed off the bridge and couldn't figure out why I was so angry."

"I figured it out eventually." Haruhi mumbled. "Name one time where I definitely didn't figure a situation out."

"When we went to Karuizawa and you didn't understand Hikaru's rage."

Haruhi thought about it. "I guess I still don't know why so I see your point."

Tamaki looked at her with an 'I told you so' expression.

"But what does this have to do with my question?"

"You really can't figure out why I punched him?" Haruhi shook her head no. Tamaki sighed. "I just got tired of…" he looked at Haruhi. Her brown eyes stared back at him., completely blind to his inner turmoil. He looked away. "Of being peaceful. It hasn't been getting us anywhere new so I figured a new approach would result in a breakthrough."

Haruhi nodded. She had finished Tamaki's routine for the next couple of days. "All set. Are you sure you're okay?" She asked him again.

Tamaki nodded and Haruhi smiled. "Good. I have to go now but I'm glad you're okay." She stopped walking when she was about a foot away from the door. "Actually, I have a present for you… sort of." She said awkwardly. Now it was her that couldn't meet Tamaki's eyes.

"What is it?" Tamaki grinned.

"Um…" She quickly walked over to him. He looked down at her. Haruhi opened her arms and hugged him. "Thank you." She said rapidly, beginning to pull away.

Tamaki chuckled, pulling her back towards him. "It's not a real hug if both parties aren't hugging." Haruhi heard his chest rumble as he spoke. She was that close to him. Her cheeks colore, turning brighter with each passing second. Finally, she spoke up. "Tamaki?"

"Hm?" He asked innocently.

"I'm not much of a hugger but I'm pretty sure hugs don't take this long."

"Oh!" Tamaki pulled away so fast it seemed that he had shoved her away. "Sorry. I was lost in thought."

"It's okay," Haruhi said even though her red face said otherwise. "I'll see you sometime soon then. Bye," She waved and walked out the door.

Tamaki crawled back into bed. This was getting out of hand.


Kyoya typed away on his laptop. He eagerly tried to make Haruhi's expression stay away from his thoughts. She was completely unmoved by his bruised, swelling face. No that wasn't right. A look of shock flashed across her face. She wasn't worried, she didn't ask, and she couldn't care less. His guess was that she had seen Tamaki before seeing Kyoya, hence the shock.

He heard a firm but soft knock on the door. Kyoya stopped typing to make sure he had actually heard something. It was midnight. Who the heck would be knocking? Another knock.

Kyoya closed his laptop and began to walk to the door.

"Hi." Kaoru said as if it was completely normal for him to be standing at the entrance of Kyoya's apartment. "Can I come in?"

Kyoya nodded, leading the way. "How did you know where I live?"

Kaoru sat down on the navy blue couch. "I was visiting a client and saw your name on a mailbox in the mailroom.

"Why are you here, Kaoru?"

"How do you know I'm not Hikaru?"

"I spent years observing you two. I know how you stand, talk, and behave when your twin isn't around."

"That's absolute bull."

Kyoya opened his laptop, beginning to type away again. "Years of observation isn't forgotten no matter how much time passes by."

Kaoru scoffed. "Then what happened with Haruhi?"

Kyoya's fingers paused for a split second. "That is completely different."

"I would hope so since you two were married. That actually makes me ask again, what happened with Haruhi? Why can't you read her the way you used to?"

Kyoya sighed, closing his laptop again. "Are you here to scold me? I've had enough of people patronizing me."

"I've had enough of people patronizing you too. That's why I'm here."

Kyoya stood up, grabbing his glass on his way to the kitchen. "Please feel free to elaborate. Would you like a drink?"

"Just water. Maybe some beer if you've got any."

"Elaborate."

"I'm here because I don't approve of what you did to Haruhi but for some crazy reason I feel that somebody needs to listen to your side of the story."

"And that somebody is you."

"Trust me I would have sent Mori, if only to avoid Hikaru's tantrum when he finds out I did this. The problem is I think you and I are actually alike in some important ways."

Kyoya's glasses shined as he walked back to Kaoru with more apple juice for himself and a beer for Kaoru. His ginger guest was shocked that Kyoya had any form of alcohol in his apartment when he refused to finish even half a can at the last party he attended.

"I'm more offended than you are," Kaoru added flatly. "We're both observant. We're usually quiet but talk when it's worth it. This is among other things that I'm sure the all knowing Kyoya Ootori has noticed over the years. The most important thing though is that we were both willing to give up our first love for our best friend."

Kyoya slowly opened up his laptop, trying to ignore that last comment. "So the reason you're here is…"

"I told you already. I have the crazy feeling that somebody needs to hear your side of the story and unfortunately I'm the only one qualified to do it."

Kyoya stared blankly at his computer screen. "I appreciate your effort but if it's forced I'm sure both of us would rather not have this conversation."

Kaoru stood up, retracing Kyoya's steps into the kitchen and serving himself another round of beer. He knew swigging down the first can was a mistake but didn't regret it...yet. "Let me clarify. I think it's important to obtain all sides of a story and currently, we only have Haruhi's and ours. So what is yours?"

Before Kyoya could protest again Kaoru added, "I'll drink all the beer in your kitchen and pass out here if I have to. I'm not taking no for an answer so just be grateful somebody is willing to listen to you."

Kyoya resisted the urge to point out that the twin wasn't much of the drinker so he would never get through Kyoya's beer supply before passing out, even if said supply only contained two more cans. He pried the can away from the already tipsy twin, forcing the redhead to sit down on the couch. Kyoya moved his trash bin to the side of Kaoru's seat. The twin would definitely throw up into that later, Kyoya glanced back at the twin. Kaoru's speech wasn't slurred so that was a good sign. He wasn't stupidly intoxicated but Kyoya still set his coffee machine to work, knowing it would be needed soon.

"Where do you want me to start?"

"Maybe at the point in which you met the girl in the video." Kaoru gagged a little. Kyoya sat back on his chair after nudging the trash can closer to Kaoru.

'I've known her since I was about five years old. She was officially introduced as my fiancee when we were twelve."

"You mean you had a fiancee the whole time and never bothered to tell anybody," Kaoru stated. He wasn't asking because the answer would obviously be yes.

Kyoya's stoic expression didn't change. "It was never anything formal. It was just something understood between us even though our families hadn't explicitly agreed upon anything."

"If your father wanted you to marry this girl why did he agree to your marriage with Haruhi?"

"I assume he saw more merit in Haruhi. At the time the Ootori Group had just secured a new resort in Europe so we weren't anxious about anything in the US."

Kaoru nodded. His face was slightly pale so Kyoya retrieved the finished coffee from his kitchen, handing it to the regretful looking twin.

"It wasn't difficult to break the news to her family. She was also in a serious relationship with somebody and our families didn't need each other. Of course, our interactions were less than pleasant when Haruhi and I were studying over there."

"Doesn't that mean Haruhi has met her before?"

Kyoya shook his head. "I made sure they never crossed paths. Anyway, last year my father decided it would be good for the company to resume the plans but I was married so there were slight alterations."

"Only slight?"

Kyoya's expression soured. "Yes." It was the first real indication that he was bothered.

"Who is that girl anyway?" Kaoru hiccupped.

Kyoya placed the trash bin directly in front of Kaoru's legs. Unlike Hikaru, Kaoru went through the stages of being drunk rapidly and somewhat out of order but he was pretty sure vomiting was next.

"Her name is Emi Sato. Her mother is American and her father is Japanese. They successfully expanded their business to the United States so technically their company is Japanese but is most successful in the US."

"Okay. Get on with your story then."

Kyoya began tapping away again. It would be easier to tell Kaoru the story if he didn't have to look at the drunk twin. It also helped to know that Kaoru wouldn't remember it tomorrow but Kyoya could get it off his chest.


Kyoya stared at the tablet in his hands throughout the entire airplane ride. There was one slide in particular that didn't leave his mind. He was to make the Sato family approve of him again, whether it was as a potential son-in-law or business partner. The Ootori Group needed the partnership.

Kyoya dismissed his assistant as soon as he arrived at his apartment. He sat down on his desk chair, swiping away a call from Haruhi in favor of calling his father.

"I know you're married." Was the first thing Yoshio said. "However, I'm not asking you to court the girl. I'm ordering you to treat her kindly and repair what we broke four years ago."

"Father this is a dangerous move. If I manage to regain their favor through their daughter it will be easier to lose it as soon as she is unhappy with me."

"Do you think I haven't weighed this all out?"

"I'll follow your orders. But if the media gets ahold of even a trace of a rumor about us I'm sure you also realized it will be your fault, sir."

"It's a small risk for the company."

"Goodbye." Kyoya hung up. He wasn't angry but he was undoubtedly irritated. He wa once again a pawn in the Ootori Group's expansion plan.

"So are you blaming your father for everything?" Kaoru asked lazily. He had already thrown up once and was lying down on Kyoya's couch, lazily tracing imaginary circles in the air.

'Yes,' Kyoya wanted to say but he knew that wouldn't validate anything. The harsh reality was that Kyoya had only recently stopped blaming his father. "No. He might have created the spark but I ultimately created the fire."

Kyoya walked towards the green bench under the shade. To his surprise his companion already sat there, immersed in a book. He stopped a good distance away, trying to figure out if it was indeed the person he believed it would be. His father couldn't have been serious.

"Don't just stand there Kyoya. Come sit." The woman didn't look up but Kyoya was almost certain she wasn't smiling. She most likely hated the whole thing as much as he did.

"Emi. It's wonderful to see you again." Kyoya said, sitting down on the bench.

She finally closed her book, looking down at the space between them. "That's about a foot of space. Still as careful as ever I see."

"And you're as much as a bookworm as I remember."

Emi finally looked at him, her dark copper eyes meeting his steely gray ones. "I know you don't want to do this and neither do I so let's avoid the displeasure and end this."

"You're an intelligent woman, Emi. I'm sure you understand the consequences of us ending it here." Kyoya's tone remained pleasant

Emi sighed, looking away. Her gaze followed a small bird as it hopped along the grass. Kyoya didn't have to look at her to see her wheels were turning.

"It's because I'm so smart that I refuse to allow myself to go through this again."

"We never loved each other."

"You mean you never loved me." Her hip-length, jet black hair swayed as she looked at Kyoya. "We were supposed to get married. I didn't think seriously of anybody but you yet you only saw me as another pawn."

Kyoya's glasses shined. "Don't paint yourself as a saint. You were dating somebody too and I heard about your little escape plan."

Emi finally smiled. "That sounds like the Kyoya I know. I'm glad you finally dropped that sickeningly pleasant tone."

Kyoya's lip quirked up unintentionally. He forgot she never appreciated faux kindness. It was a mutual feeling.

Emi was slightly pleased with his reaction. "Did you forget how alike we were?" Before Kyoya could respond, she continued. "To be honest I find all of this incredibly tedious. What the hell are we supposed to be doing? It's not like our parents can't simply work it out themselves."

"They can. Unfortunately, your father refused to see mine unless I made you happy."

Emi rolled her eyes. "We'll be twenty-six next November. The same day actually, right?" When Kyoya nodded in confirmation she continued.

"But I guess that doesn't matter when it comes to business." She stood up, muttering to herself about the things she puts up with because of her love for her parents.

Kyoya handed her the book she was reading earlier, standing up beside her. "Just tell me what I have to do for you to forgive me."

Emi stared at him for a minute. "Don't you think it's dangerous for you to be so honest with me? Among other things, you've made it perfectly clear that the only reason you're here is to mend a business plan."

"You once told me you wanted me to be completely honest with you no matter what."

Emi's face became slightly pink when she thought about that day. "Just to be clear, that is the only thing I said that day that will continue to stand."

"You're referring to when you said-"

"Yes! You don't have to repeat it." Kyoya restrained from laughing when he thought about how her face looked like a cherry.

"I was going to let you off without doing anything for me but since you made the terrible decision to bully me-"

"If you want to get lunch just say so," Kyoya said, walking ahead of her.

Emi's face was no longer red but her heart fluttered a bit. She closed her eyes, counting to ten. Kyoya was married. It hurt to know he didn't love her at all four years ago and she wasn't planning on letting it hurt again.

"Where do you want to go?" Kyoya asked her. He could see she was trying hard not to let her old feelings resurface. She was as easy to read as Haruhi. Now that he thought about it, the two were alike in many ways. The difference was that when Kyoya thought about Emi he felt nothing but a slight fondness for their childhood memories whereas with Haruhi he felt too many things at once.

"There's a cozy restaurant around the area. I'll call my driver."

Kyoya felt a small pang of guilt when she smiled up at him. What he was doing was wrong. He shouldn't have been speaking to her in the same way he used to. He had to draw a line before she interpreted things in a disastrous way.

"Emi," Kyoya said quickly.

"One sec," She said, continuing to talk to her driver. Emi put her phone down. "Sorry. Apparently, nobody is currently available. Do you mind calling your driver?"

Kyoya dialed a number in response. Two minutes later he resumed his conversation with Emi. "He's on his way. Emi, I want to apologize for what I did to you before. I should have told you about Haruhi as soon as I realized I had feelings for her. Instead, I kept you around just in case things didn't work out."

"You are a jerk."

"I've been called worse," Kyoya replied. "Emi, I mean it. I sincerely regret hurting you and I want to be friends."

"Do you love her Kyoya?"

"Why else would I marry a commoner?"

Emi nodded. "Thank you for apologizing."

"I just realized that I never truly did it before. My driver is here." Kyoya waited for the limo to stop in front of them before opening the door for Emi. "Lead the way."

Emi laughed slightly as she entered the limo. That was when Kyoya realized he had messed up big time. She didn't laugh over stupid things like that which meant she was drunk or had taken things in the wrong way. He entered the limo behind her, determined to maintain a distance.

"Took you long enough slowpoke. I already gave the driver directions."

"I'm sorry, aren't you the one that needed forty minutes to run a mile?" Kyoya said without thinking. He cursed himself. If Emi had romantic feelings for him that would raise the chances of their partnership going through. The problem lay in what would happen when he reminded her that he had no intention of getting a divorce or cheating on his wife.


"So you purposely flirted with her because you knew that she would fall for it, thus making your job easier." Once again, Kaoru stated this observation instead of asked it. The beer was wearing off but even a drunk person would end up at that conclusion.

"At first yes. Then I realized that it was unfair to her."

"What about Haruhi?"

"I'm ashamed to say Haruhi's feelings weren't my priority at that time."

"So it is definitely your fault that everything happened."

Kyoya didn't respond so Kaoru said, "If you can't admit it outright then that means you still don't believe it." The clock on Kyoya's laptop read 1:00 AM. "Can I crash here?"

"You can take the bedroom. Don't worry, everything on the bed is unused."

Kaoru looked at him quizzically. Kyoya didn't offer an explanation. What could he say? That Haruhi had forced him to sleep on their living room couch the last night they slept under the same roof so now he had a thing for sleeping on the couch?

Kaoru shrugged. He sipped some water. "Finish your story. I'm sure we're both tired but neither of us can sleep until you're done."


"I am almost one hundred percent certain that my father hired somebody to tail us."

Kyoya agreed. "That is what he did last time I'm surprised my father didn't do the same."

"So then you can understand when I tell you that if we don't look happy together my father will never forgive you."

"What are you proposing?"

"Let's just pretend that we're back on those terms."

Kyoya stared at her. Emi laughed. "I know you're married. You don't have to worry about my feelings for you. I promise I won't take anything the wrong way."

Kyoya rolled his eyes behind his glasses but he nodded stiffly. "Alright then. Just to be clear I have no romantic feelings for you whatsoever."

Emi grimaced. "It didn't have to be said so harshly but your message is loud and clear."

"Good. What are you planning on doing?"

"I'll only take your arm."

"Fine. I'll open doors for you too but that's it."

"Oh c'mon you can give me a smile or two." She nudged him playfully.

He sighed. She was his childhood friend and he had been an asshole to her. Curse Haruhi's need to make him a better person.

"We'll see." That was the last thing he said before the limo stopped in front of a fancy cafe. He got out, waiting for Emi to step out. She took his arm slowly and wearily but smiling at him.

"Shall we go inside then?"

Emi nodded. When they were almost inside she stopped to turn to him. "Hey, Kyoya…" She said softly.

"Yes?" He turned to her, confused as to why they weren't heading inside.

"You know there's somebody recording us right?"

Kyoya smiled pleasantly. "Of course. It's difficult not to."

Emi nodded. Her hand slowly trailed higher on Kyoya's arm.

"What are you doing?" Kyoya asked, debating whether it would be appropriate to shove her hand out of the way.

Emi grinned widely as her hand found the spot. "You're still ticklish aren't you?"

Before Kyoya could respond he found himself laughing along to her relentless tickling.

She stopped as abruptly as she had started, now laughing too. "I told you I would get a laugh or two." She said, pulling him inside with him.

Kyoya tried to catch his breath as he was pulled behind her.


"It didn't look like she was tickling you." Kaoru's eyes narrowed. "If you laughed at her jokes just tell me."

"Of course it didn't look that way. The camera angle hid her hand from view."

"Wait where are you ticklish? Tamaki said he still hasn't found that spot."

Kyoya cleared his throat. "That's unimportant."

"Does Haruhi know where it is?"

Kyoya thought back to the day that Haruhi found that spot. She told him she would figure it out and exactly one hour later she did. She had laughed until her stomach hurt when she realized it was on his arm. She said it was unusual but then again so was Kyoya so she guessed that was fitting.

"Based on that look on your face I assume she does," Kaoru concluded. "Did anything eventful happen at the cafe?"


"How is your wife?"

"She's…" Kyoya stopped. He realized he had no idea what was going on in Haruhi's life at the moment.

Emi seemed to realize it too. "I see you're the same as ever."

"Is that an insult?"

"What do you think?"

Kyoya sipped his coffee. "My wife is as wonderful as ever."

"Why couldn't you say that earlier. Could it be you two are at a bad spot in your relationship?" Emi said, leaning in.

"Why do you sound like you hope that's the case?"

"I don't." Emi pulled back. "I was just asking because you don't seem to know much about what's going on with her."

"Well, I am not going to disclose my wife's information to a stranger."

"I'm a stranger?"

"To her, yes."

"A valid point. Then tell me, how is she? I heard you two came a couple of years ago but I was never lucky enough to see the happy couple." Emi said with hints of bitterness.

"For obvious reasons," Kyoya said, somewhat irritated by her blatant display of such a negative emotion. "You promised your feelings were platonic." He reminded her.

"They are," Emi assured him. "I just wanted to meet the famous Haruhi Fujioka that turned you into such a thoughtful idiot."


"That was it. We ate the rest of our meal in silence."

"I think I know where this story is going but what about the kiss? You can't deny that it happened because we saw the clip."

Kyoya took off his glasses and rubbed his tired eyes. "I wasn't going to"


"Thank you for lunch," Emi said tentatively.

"I'm just doing my job," Kyoya replied. He had already been too nice. Haruhi's impact on him was both a blessing and a curse. It clouded his judgment but it also created a positive image.

"So now you're going to give me the cold shoulder," Emi stated, staring at him unwaveringly. "To push me away of course."

"I told you this is all business."

"Trust me, I never forget it."

"Good." Kyoya stared straight ahead. Emi did the same. Suddenly she said, "I forgot something at the cafe. Do you mind going back with me?"

"Not at all." He gave the driver the instructions. A couple of minutes later they arrived at the cafe.

Emi walked inside briskly, immediately heading towards the table they were at earlier.

"It's not here anymore." She said softly. Her eyes darted around the spot frantically.

"What did you forget?" Kyoya asked.

"My purse," Emi said, ducking to look under the table and chairs. She inspected the booths around them.

"You can get a new one, Emi."

"You don't understand," Emi's voice was shaking. She stood up to face Kyoya. "That was the last thing I received from my brother before he left."

Kyoya nodded in understanding. "Let's ask the manager then."

They approached a bored looking man, completing paperwork at a stand in the corner of the cafe.

"Excuse me," Emi began. "I was wondering if you saw a purse at the table over there?" She gestured toward the table.

The man looked up, glad to have a purpose besides the boring, pending documents. He thought about it. "Yes. Was it a navy blue? Absolutely stunning?"

Emi nodded, eagerly. "I left it behind about twenty minutes ago. Do you know where it is now?"

The man shook his head. "A lady was sitting at that table five minutes ago. She was carrying the purse."

Emi sighed, her eyes welling up.

The man looked around the cafe. His eyes landed on a plump woman around thirty years old. Kyoya followed his gaze. "Is that her?"

"Yes. Perhaps she predicted you would be back for the purse so she moved to another table."

"Let's go." Kyoya began to walk towards the woman. "Excuse me," Kyoya said, using his host voice.

The lady looked up. Her face flushed pink when she saw Kyoya. "Yes, young man."

"I was wondering where you bought that purse," Kyoya said, his tone void of an accusation.

"Oh," The lady said. "It's a purse that has been passed down to me." She said, admiring the purse. Kyoya glanced at Emi. Emi shook her head, it looked like an antique purse but it was not.

"Do you know where I can buy one? My girlfriend loves the design very much. She recently lost a purse exactly like that."

The lady looked Emi, up and down. Her tone went ice cold. "I'm sorry but this was extremely rare when my grandmother bought it in London. I'm afraid you probably won't find it anywhere else."

"What a shame," Kyoya said. "Thank you, madam."

He turned to Emi. "I guess your purse is lost forever then. But what did you have in there?" Kyoya asked her, only slightly moving away from the lady. It was close enough for the plump woman to hear it but far enough to give the impression that it wasn't on purpose.

Emi seemed to realize this because she immediately burst into tears. "I had everything! My cell phone, my wallet…"

Kyoya crossed his arms. "You can replace all of that soon."

"No! The wallet has a picture of my late parents! It's the only one we were able to take before-" She choked up.

Kyoya hugged her. He saw the lady try to subtly look through the bag. Sure enough, she brought out the wallet and inside was a picture of Emi's family. Emi was about five years old, her arms wrapped around her younger brother.

"And the purse was a present from my brother before he went to Japan. He said he saved up for five years to buy it. I may never see him again." Kyoya patted her back. The lady wasn't budging even though she had heard this sob story and confirmed the picture.

Kyoya adjusted his glasses. He whispered to Emi, "You keep crying. The longer you cry, the more attention you'll draw."

He walked back to the lady. "Excuse me," he said.

The lady sighed in annoyance but said, "Yes, young man?"

Kyoya smiled. Lowering his voice, he said "I see you're not taking the opportunity to confess to having my girlfriend's purse. If you give it over now we won't make a fuss."

"Excuse me?" The woman said in disbelief.

"We have people that witnessed you taking the purse."

"It'll be their word against mine then! This is my purse!"

"I can prove it's my girlfriend's with one quick look inside. Can you prove it's your madam?" Kyoya asked sweetly.

The woman gaped. "O-of course!" She stuttered out.

"Fantastic. I will call the manager over then. He can settle this." He moved to wave the manager over. The manager walked over briskly. "Is there a problem here?"

At this point, various people had begun to watch them. How could they not when Emi was red from so much crying and the lady was red with anger.

"Yes. We would like you to settle this situation. You see, I am one hundred percent certain this is my girlfriend's purse but the madam refuses to return it."

"Because it's my purse! Finders keepers!"

"So you admit you took it," Kyoya said.

"No! I meant - I meant." The lady frantically tried to explain her stance.

Kyoya lowered his voice again. "This is your last chance to quietly give it back. Otherwise, charges will most certainly be made, madam."

The lady looked from Kyoya to Emi to the manager. Finally, she said, "Fine. But if the purse was really as important as your girlfriend claims it is, she wouldn't have forgotten it. You're lucky I'm feeling charitable today." She stood up, shoved the purse into Kyoya's arms and left.

"Thank you," Kyoya said to the manager. He took Emi's hand and led her out of the cafe. "Here you go." They sat at one of the tables outside. "Thank you," Emi said. Kyoya handed her a handkerchief.

Emi wiped away the tears on her face. "I'm sorry you went through so much trouble for a purse."

"It was quite easy," Kyoya said. "So your brother finally left."

Emi threw him an accusing glance. "You knew he was planning on leaving?"

"Don't pretend that you didn't."

Emi stopped checking the belongings in her purse, satisfied that everything was in it. She slumped against the chair she was sitting in. "I just thought that the day he left would be the day I left too. But he wanted to do it alone. And I guess his apology was this purse." She said, her tone bordering on bitter but mostly sadness.

"Emi," Kyoya halted before he continued, debating whether he should really say the next sentence. He decided that it was a yes. "Let's run away together."

"What?"


"WHAT?" Kaoru exclaimed. "Were you crazy?!"

"Listen to the story." Kyoya said calmly.


"To be honest, I lied to you before. I don't love my wife. My father forced me to marry her in order to boost the Ootori Group's image." He took her hand. "I'm tired of it too. Let's run away together."

"Kyoya," Emi said. Her eyes revealed only fear. She pulled her hand out of his. "We can't." She looked away. "My father will be angry and yours will never forgive you. Besides, how will we survive? Neither of us has ever been at the mercy of the world without money, power, and status."

"And that is exactly why your brother left without you, Emi. He knew you would be terrified. Unlike him, you're not ready to give up the privilege offered by your family."

"Wait, was all of that-"

"A lie?" Kyoya said nonchalantly. "Yes, it was. I married the person of my choosing. I'm part of the Ootori Group because I want to be."

"So you don't really-"

"Do you think I'm so cheesy and impractical?" He cut her off again.

"No." Emi remained quiet for a couple of minutes. Then she giggled. "But thank you. I mean I don't feel better at all but I guess I understand some things more clearly now." She stood up. "I'll tell my father to reconsider doing business with your company, Kyoya."

"Thank you. I'll call my driver to come get us."

"No need," Emi said. "I have a date in about fifteen minutes. It won't help if I'm dropped off by my ex-fiance." She smiled. "My driver should be here now."

A sleek black limousine pulled up right when she finished the sentence. "There she is!" Emi waved at her driver before turning back to Kyoya. "Thank you for today."

"You're welcome."

Emi hesitated for a minute. Then she quickly brought Kyoya's face down to hers and kissed him. Kyoya's mind went blank. His subconscious realized that it had been a long time since there was any sort of intimacy between himself and Haruhi. For a second he let himself imagine that it was Haruhi he was kissing. Then reality struck him. His eyes widened and he pulled away, holding Emi at arms' length.

Emi chuckled at his expression, clearly visible for once. "Don't worry, I don't love you. I just couldn't help but wonder what it felt like to kiss Kyoya Ootori. And today may be the last time we see each other. Goodbye, Kyoya." Emi happily walked to her limo and entered the vehicle. She was already gone by the time kyoya had recovered. He realized it then. If pictures or videos had been taken, he was screwed.


Kaoru grabbed another beer and gulped it down in one shot.

Kyoya winced. That was definitely not a good idea.

"You're an idiot. How didn't you see that coming?"

"I had other things in mind Kaoru. A kiss from her wasn't one of them." Kyoya said.

"What could you possibly have been thinking of? If it was Haruhi, which it should have been, you would have called her by then What were you doing the whole time?"

"I was preparing and researching. Emi was the last option and unfortunately, the only one that got through to her father."

"You left around April right? And you came back around December. That's eight months!"

Kyoya stared intensely at his computer screen. He hated that he understood perfectly why Kaoru used that tone of disbelief.

"If the news reached Japan, do you think they weren't broadcasted in America as well?"


Kyoya turned the television off with outrage. He was never the subject of gossip; he was the distributor, the person who knew everything. He guessed he understood how people felt when he relayed everything about them except at least what he said was true. This was completely false.

He dialed Emi's number.

"I assume you've seen the news?" Emi answered her phone calmly.

"What's the meaning of this?" Kyoya said, as patiently as he possibly could.

"If I knew I wouldn't be in so much trouble." Emi snapped back. Kyoya heard her sigh with frustration.

Kyoya hung up.


"I spent about two months there there after that happened. I wrapped up business and fixed the problem."

"Did you threaten people?"

"I don't like to use that term but yes I guess you can say that for some of them. Others were bribed."

Kaoru laughed in delight. "I'm glad you went through as much trouble as us you bastard!"

Kyoya rolled his eyes. That drink had gotten to him so quickly.

Kaoru stopped laughing. "But what did you do until December?"

"I was going to return to Japan but my father sent me to Europe. I headed a project while my brother was in Japan for an emergency."

"So he can take time off but you can't?"

"It was a work-related emergency."

"So that's it?"

"Yes," Kyoya confirmed. He felt a load fall off his shoulders even though his side of the story most likely didn't change anything. Kaoru shook his head. "Why don't you tell Haruhi this?"

"It won't change anything," Kyoya stated simply.

"Besides," he continued. "she seems happy with Tamaki. I am not in a position to demand she forgives me."

"Damn right you're not!" Kaoru exclaimed. There was a long silence before he said, "can I crash here tonight? It's late and I'll probably get arrested for driving drunk."

"You already asked me that."

Kaoru's stated at him blankly, his mind processing things too slowly.

"The answer was yes, Kaoru. You're sleeping in the bedroom."

"Okay. Thank you." Kaoru trudged into the bedroom, closing the door behind him.

Kyoya turned back to his computer screen. Then he got up and carefully placed the trash can in the hallway in front of the bedroom. That was just in case the twin didn't make it to the restroom.