Chapter 23
Kyouya watched as Mari barely got enough gift wrap to go around the box in the morning. He got up at the sound of the tape screeching. It was a toy kitchen set. The kind that you would find at the department store at an exorbitantly high price because it was handcrafted and painstakingly painted by a woodworker. The box was half her height and twice the width of her body.
"Do you need help?" he offered after pouring his coffee.
Mari scoffed. "As if you could offer any help at this point." She was nearly done wrapping the box. She was only folding off the edges, taping the loose pieces. The balloon gift wrap in pastel colours made it appropriate for a child's birthday. Yumi was born in the midst of spring, full of life.
"How are you going to carry that?" the Ootori asked.
"With my arms," she grunted, trying her best to lift it. "Actually," Mari had a better idea. "You can help with that."
Kyouya scrunched up his nose in refusal. He sipped on his coffee instead, watching Mari stubbornly deal with the box herself.
"If you're going to offer to help," Mari grumbled and slid the heavy box towards the door by herself. "Then you better mean it and help me carry this to the car."
The Ootori sighed. "Alright," he agreed. "Do you want me to come?"
"To a children's birthday party?" Mari laughed. "No, I'm not a sadist. That sounds like the last place you'd want to be on a weekend. You're not expected to be there. What would you even be doing? Playing with the children?"
He exhaled and relaxed. "I'd be talking to the adults," he grumbled. "But alright." He wasn't going to make a big deal out of it. Mari knew him well enough that he would feel awkward during the event. Kids were the furthest thing he knew how to deal with. His robotic personality did not charm children. He knew that.
"It's fine," she assured. "I'll be back for dinner," Mari informed.
"Are you wearing that to dinner?" Kyouya did not hide his gaze on her. His eyes travelled from her head to her toes, obviously hungry for what he was seeing. The high slit of her pure indigo dress caught his eye. The fluted skirt draped beautifully around her legs, cutting off in the middle of her shin. The round neckline tapered off to capped sleeves with a cut out in her lower back. It was classy enough to give only a smidgen of what she had beneath and perfect for the spring weather. He instantly reached over to bring her closer to him, his hand on the bare skin of her back. His hands were warm.
Mari looked away and smiled to herself. She leaned against him for warmth. "I can, if you want," she promised with a sultry whisper. "We're going out for dinner?" Her doe eyes widened as she asked out of curiosity.
"Sure," Kyouya liked that idea. They hardly ever gone out. She said lavish things weren't necessary on a regular basis. Something about losing its whole effect if it were enjoyed too often. He smiled back at her, liking that she leaned into him. Her hair was up in a bun, her face framed by the loose strands near her ears. Her lips were painted a hue of dark mauve. He wanted to devour them immediately. She always looked beautiful but he couldn't help but to appreciate her when she was dolled up like this too. "I can make reservations," he told her.
She feigned surprise by parting her dark lips. "The Ootori knows how to plan a date? Who would've known." She batted her eyes at him in irony. Her lashes had been extended by a nice coat of mascara.
"You seem to forget I was a host," Kyouya reminded coolly. He gripped her tighter against his body, his hands travelling along the slit to slowly hike up the fabric. She let his hands wander with a smirk. She was stunning and she knew it. All he wanted to do was to rip the dress apart and she would never let him. Or at least, not now.
"God, wouldn't I love to forget that you were a host," she muttered. She always found it weird that the club was a regular thing while they were in high school. And the fact that their club made such profits was an absolute mind-boggling idea to her. The Ootori was too distracted to respond at this rate. His breath traced along her collarbone, planting kisses right behind her ear. He was thankful for her hair being up to expose all of the milky skin he couldn't help but be attracted to.
"Mm," Mari pulled away. "I just got ready," she refused to have him ruin the work she had already done while he was still in his pyjamas, having just rolled out of bed. He sighed to muffle a groan of despair.
"Alright," he muttered with a scowl. He pulled away slightly, but not enough to let go of her. Mari couldn't help but to roll her eyes at his expression. It churned something within her that made her go against her usual logic, giving into the wants of the Ootori.
"Ugh, fuck it," she muttered before diving into his lips with enough force to surprise him. He tasted like fresh coffee. She craved for it. He hesitated for a few seconds, letting her hands caress his jaw while his hands were firmly on her waist. His brain short circuited, not sure if he found her cursing beneath her breath before kissing him to be hot or if the way she had him under his thumb was something he could indulge in forever. He responded back eagerly, pushing against her so that her legs moved backwards against the counter. She pushed him away at his chest, taking in a good look at his face. His lips looked like they were battered given the dark lipstick she had on.
Mari placed a kiss on his cheek, leaving behind her last mark on him.
"You look like you just got punched in the lip," she giggled.
"You don't sound sorry about that," Kyouya used the back of his hand to wipe off the lipstick. It only made it worse, smudging against his mouth. It was a streak of dark red that made him look bloody. Mari's grin grew bigger before she chuckled to herself. She took a sip of the coffee in his mug, her lips slightly staining the rim. It was now their coffee, not his.
Mari led him into their bathroom. The long horizontal mirror was lit up with two sinks that had a clear divide. Mari's side was the one with more toiletries and skincare. Her makeup was in the drawers. She dragged him into the washroom and showed the Ootori his falsely bruised lips. The man widened his eyes at the sight.
"My god," he grumbled. "Did you have to choose a lipstick that dark?"
"Yes," Mari answered without hesitation. "Admit that you found it hot."
The Ootori stayed silent, refusing to agree with that statement. At least out loud. Mari took a cotton pad and dabbed it in makeup remover. In one fell swoop, most of the colour had transferred from his skin to the pad. It was incredible, really. The Ootori was fascinated at how effective it was. Her touch was gentle against the cool liquid that melted the lipstick away. When she finished with him, she reapplied the liquid lipstick so that she was back to her regular presentable self.
"I can wear something darker," Mari told him as she looked at herself in the mirror. Her eyes travelled to meet his own through the reflection. "But I quite like the mauve. Not too bright of a red but not too dark towards the hues of blue."
"It's perfect," he whispered into her ear. He felt her shoulders stiffen at the comment. Kyouya smirked at the effect he had on her. Mari didn't let him go so easily. She turned to trace her finger along his chest. Her nail dug lightly across his shoulder blade. She easily propped herself up and sat on the granite bathroom counter, pulling him closer to her so that she could wrap her legs around his waist. She barely grazed her lips against the skin of his jaw before whispering something that made him want to carry her back to bed. His hands were already placed on her hips to lift her.
"Tonight," she promised. "But for now, you can get dressed and move that goddamn box for me."
She hopped off the counter, easily moving his arms aside so she could leave to grab her belongings for the party. The Ootori sighed. Only Mari was allowed to order him around like that and it helped that he never worked without a fair price.
It was a family affair at the Takuya compound. The grandparents had come around. The two aunts had arrived. And then the guests. A children's birthday party blown out of proportion, as per what the rich would do. Yumi was turning 6. She got a pony. Not the kind of stuffed toy pony. A real live animal.
Mari blinked. Well, this certainly made her toy kitchen set look a little shabby. But alas, the aunt had come around to pay a visit to her young niece on her special day. She sat at the tea party table, amusing her little niece who poured her tea and served her cake. Her nephew had been right beside his little sister, being the supportive older brother as he was told to be. The adults were, of course, being real adults and mingling amongst each other. Polite hellos. Catching up. Food was being served. Champagne too.
When more guests arrived with their own children, Yumi diverted her attention to children her own age, letting Mari go to be part of the adults. Yuki spotted her older sister in a corner, observing the crowd and the pony that was soon to be presented to their shared niece. Mari looked at the animal through the window with an incredulous gaze.
"Mari!" the younger sister greeted cheerily. She hadn't seen her sister in many months. She was glad to see another Takuya. Kanda and Emi were swallowed up by other guests and their parents had retired to a table that allowed people to come visit them instead of making rounds.
"Yuki," Mari returned the hug that her sister had immediately gone for. She kept her flute of champagne steady to avoid any spillage on whatever designer clothing Yuki had been wearing.
Her sister was immediate in telling her what was new. She told her about which family had recently gotten divorced. Which guest was expecting a child and then some. She also pointed out the business relationships that Kanda had with each family and each person in the room. Yuki was a businesswoman herself, after all. She knew her way around the room when needed. Mari only listened intently, making her own observations on them all.
No one set to approach Mari considering the fact that she was unrecognizable now. Mari lifted the glass to her lips, inadvertently flashing her ring to her younger sister.
"Oh my god," Yuki could barely keep her tone to a whisper. She immediately grabbed the wrist of her older sister in order to inspect the rock on her finger. Mari barely contained the alcohol from spilling at the sudden grabbing.
"Yuki!" Mari chided. "I nearly spilled champagne on your dress."
"Oh who cares, I can get this dry cleaned. But when did you get engaged? When were you even dating someone?!" Yuki was shocked at her sister. "Do our parents know?!"
Mari looked around to make sure no one was listening to Yuki's outburst before dragging the sister to a place without anyone around. She put down her champagne flute only to have Yuki grab a whole bottle of Dom Perignon with a smile. It had been sitting in ice for god knew how long and it would not have been a proper party without it. Mari sighed and shook her head at her younger sister. The two ended up outside the home in the courtyard underneath a tree with a bench. It overlooked the gardens and was secluded from the crowds.
Yuki worked on opening up the bottle, unwinding the wire that kept the cork in place. Mari moved further away from the sister, trying her best to keep her dress pristine. As much as she could also afford dry cleaning, it was not the most ideal method of keeping her clothes nice. Yuki cheered at the pop of the bottle, laughing at the foamy bits that spilled out. Mari grabbed multiple rolled napkins on her way out to help her sister in cleaning up the mess. Yuki drank straight from the bottle, passing it off to her older sister for a swig. Mari followed in suit. Drinking from bottles vaguely reminded her of those days in university, the laziness that trumped serving wine properly in a glass.
"Tell me everything!" Yuki wanted to know it all. "Who is he? How did you two meet? How did he propose? Did you choose the ring? What about our parents?"
Mari took a deep breath, doing her best to keep up with the questions. "Kyouya Ootori. We met in Ouran. There was no proposal. I did not choose the ring. And yes, our parents are aware that we were seeing each other," she finished. Mari took another large gulp of the fizzy champagne to avoid having to speak more than she had to. Her fingers gripped around the towels that wrapped around the large bottle to absorb the condensation from the cool liquid.
"Ootori," she repeated. "Ah, the medical group right?" Yuki knew her way around the upper class. After all, she was a socialite. She ran her own business without having a degree. Though in recent years, she had been enrolling herself in some part-time studies without telling anyone except Mari herself. Her big sister had encouraged it.
"Yes," Mari answered, passing over the bottle to Yuki. The younger woman took another large swig, letting the information settle. Her big sister was engaged. That in itself was a big pill to swallow. Yuki couldn't help but to feel a twinge of envy. She drank from the bottle again, drowning those thoughts. She tried her best to be happy for her sister. After all, it was wonderful news.
Mari watched as Yuki gripped the champagne bottle tightly, her expression forlorn. Yuki was always one to wear her heart on her sleeve. The girl had always been one for dramatics. She was the one who carried the spotlight well, relishing in the attention. Mari patted her sister's shoulder in consolation.
"What's wrong?" Mari was doing her best to be the big sister she never really got to be during their teenage years.
"Nothing," Yuki smiled. "So, when's the wedding?"
Mari shook her head. "We haven't set a date," she answered vaguely. Quite frankly, the two hadn't spoken anything about a wedding. They were in no rush. Mari realized that she would be getting these questions more often now that she had the ring on her finger. Her coworkers were slow to notice over the weeks, but each quietly congratulated her and patted her on the back. No one asked who her fiancée was – it was enough when Mari said that they were schoolmates from long ago.
"I can help look for a venue for you! And a wedding dress," Yuki added. "How stunning you would look in a wedding dress," she sighed to herself, already imagining her sister in all the options. Mari gave a small smile, appreciating how supportive her sister was. There was certainly no need for all of those. Mari had no interest in trying on wedding dresses, or venues, or event planning.
Mari let the silence blanket over them. Yuki drowned herself in more champagne. The older sister put a stop to it all by putting the bottle down and away from the young woman.
"Oi, Yuki," she warned. "You'll get drunk midday like this."
"Ryu and I broke up," Yuki blurted. Tears immediately welled up in her eyes as she pouted. She tried her best to blink away the tears before it ruined any of her makeup. Mari exhaled at the sight of her blubbering sister. There it was. That was why Yuki had been drinking more than what anyone would consider a celebratory amount. She gently patted her sister's back, not having much else to do but to sit through the waterworks of it all.
"I mean, I'm happy for you," the sister backtracked. "I really am. I just… I thought that I was going to be engaged and… and instead I'm just," Yuki sniffled. "I'm alone and pathetic."
"Yuki, you're 24," Mari reminded. At that age, marriage was the last thing on Mari's mind. The older sister had moved across the Atlantic and was studying at Oxford, trying her best not to cry when her PI told her that her data was not good enough. And here was Yuki, sad that she wasn't engaged. The siblings couldn't have been on further ends of the spectrum.
"Kanda was already married!" Yuki pointed out. "And almost all my friends from Lobelia are engaged by now."
Mari laughed. "Yuki, you're heralding a business under your belt. What are your friends doing?"
"Looking for… wedding dresses," the girl cried. She wanted to be looking for wedding dresses too! She wanted to be choosing venues and colour schemes for their big day. Yuki felt left out from it all. She felt lonelier than ever, especially without a significant other when she had to be keeping her company afloat on most of her days.
"Well," the elder sister sighed. "Why did you two break up?"
"Ryu said I was too busy for him," Yuki hiccupped. "But he was too busy for me too! He… he worked late in the office and I was travelling to meet our suppliers for the past half year. At some point I brought up how Raina got engaged and how nice it would be to get married… and then he said we could never get married because we could never see each other."
Mari cooed at her younger sister while giving her a hug.
"It's okay," she murmured. "Yuki, you're still so young," she reminded. "You're a businesswoman, not a trophy wife. Getting married is not the only thing you are meant to do."
"It's not terrible being a trophy wife," Yuki defended. "At least you're not alone."
Mari sighed. "It's okay to be whatever you want to be. But Yuki, you're so brilliant as you are. You have your own company. You're a busy woman making an empire for yourself. You and Ryu were just growing in different directions," the elder sister pointed out. "And that's just life."
"It still hurts," Yuki softly murmured. "Seeing everyone else move on while I'm exactly where I had started."
The elder sister huffed, annoyed by her little sister's mindset. "Yuki, your romantic prospects are not an indicator of your self-worth and your success. Someone else will come around. Someone who will appreciate who you are, as you are. But for now, you should focus on yourself and your business until someone realizes that you are incredible."
"Does he do that?" her eyes had a glimmer of hope. "Appreciate you," she clarified.
Mari blinked and nodded. "Yes," she answered. "Yes, he does appreciate me and it took a long time for me to do the same."
"And did he choose that ring?" Yuki frowned. "He seems stingy." The younger sister always imagined something bigger. Especially from someone like the Ootori. He must have been rich, richer than her ex-boyfriend at least.
Mari laughed at the comment. She could already imagine Kyouya fuming at her words. "I like it," she admitted. "It's not too much. And my fingers are thin – I think it balances out."
"Hm," the little sister looked at the rock more closely. "The cut is nice. But I think I'd like a bigger diamond," she admitted. "With… even more diamonds."
"Noted. I'll be sure to tell your future significant other that," Mari promised. "But for now, you hold your chin up. You have a business to run."
He sent a car for her late afternoon without telling her where she was going. Mari looked out the window, trying to figure out where they would be going for dinner. Her lunch of finger foods and significantly more champagne made her stomach grumble earlier than usual. When the chauffeur had stopped, Mari vaguely caught the words museum and gallery on the way in. She thanked the older man and stepped out of the vehicle on her own. Of course, the Ootori had timed it to the minute and greeted her at the foyer as soon as he heard the steps of her heels echo.
"An exhibition?" Mari read the poster on the display. Kyouya nodded. He kept his face neutral but Mari had a feeling that the man was actually rather excited about the whole thing. The Ootori certainly took more pride in the activities of the rich and elite than she did. She did her best to seem interested in what he had planned but her stomach was distracting her from playing the part of being polite. A casual tour of one of the finest art collections of the city was certainly a start to a very elegant date.
"It's an exclusive tour," the Ootori beamed. He offered her his arm, to which Mari took shyly as she kept herself near him. As soon as they walked into the gallery, Mari tilted her head at the pieces – mostly in confusion. She tried her best to be engaged, listening to the gallerist's spiel on each of the work.
Art was never something she was interested in. It boggled her that Rembrandts and Monets sold for millions and that art collecting was just a regular thing for the rich and elite. The Ootori however, was quite enamoured by it all. They had gone through a good portion of the exhibit before he paused at one.
"What do you think?" he asked for her opinion when they stopped on a painting. It was abstract. The worst of them all. She saw shapes. Or maybe just brush strokes at this point. What did it all mean? Maybe it was a representation of someone's batshit crazy mind if she had to take a guess. It was just black and white paint.
"It's um," Mari stared at the painting. "It's different." That seemed like a neutral adjective she could settle on. She kept in mind that the gallerist was only three feet away from him.
"Indeed," Kyouya nodded. "Do you think it would look nice in our home?"
"Oh god no," she muttered under her breath in absolute fear. She gave him a worried look. Sure, she didn't appreciate art the way some of the elite did, but anyone would say no to this painting on the wall of their own home. The Ootori did his best to keep his laughter inside when he looked at Mari's face of horror. Whatever escaped him ended up being feigned as a cough before they moved on.
They continued the tour and walked towards another painting. Another one that Mari couldn't quite grasp. It was a mesh of hues of blue. The sort of thing that Mari could probably train her nephew to do if he knew the right techniques. She squinted at the price. It was far too much for something she thought a mere child could do, that was for sure.
"How about this one?" the Ootori suggested. "It's your favourite colour."
Not anymore, she wanted to blurt out. She glared at the Ootori, trying to determine if the man was just pulling her leg. The Ootori mirrored the same expression, telling her to answer the question quickly. Mari narrowed her eyes at the man before looking around.
"Um," Mari glanced at the gallerist who had been giving the tour. The man gave an encouraging smile, as if to tell the Ootori to purchase at least one of the paintings in this room. The man had shut down the entire gallery just for them, after all. Mari looked around and found the most colourful, abstract, and oddly-shaped canvas she could spot. She pointed to it.
"How about that one?" she turned their attention to the furthest one in the room.
"What about it?" The Ootori perched up his glasses, squinting to get a better look. The group of three moved towards the end of the hall.
"Don't you think that it would look so lovely in our new home, dear?" Mari gave a taste of his own medicine. "Can't you imagine this in the foyer and how all of your friends would stare at the wonderous piece?" And maybe barf at the gross mustard background of it all, she thought to herself.
The gallerist nodded enthusiastically. "A great eye, Mrs. Ootori," the man slipped in before Mari could correct him. The man went on about the inspiration about the artwork, detailing the muse of it all. It came in a whooping half million dollars. Of course, Mari had a great eye for choosing one of the most expensive paintings in the room. But Mari was still hung up on being called the missus, not even listening to the gallerist's spiel. Kyouya gave her an odd look that pulled her out of the trance. He forced a smile on his face, which only looked more terrifying than friendly.
"Are you sure about this, love?" they now used the terms of endearment ironically, it seemed. Mari plastered the politest smile she could muster with a stomach that growled.
"Oh absolutely, my dear," she told him. The Ootori pinched the bridge of his nose and asked the gallerist for a moment of privacy. The stranger obliged quickly, leaving to another room immediately. The couple stared each other down, fighting with their eyes before one of them spoke.
"You want to put this in our home?" he pointed towards the atrocity in front of them.
"Of course not!" Mari shot back. "I thought you were playing some sick joke on me, choosing ugly paintings and asking my opinion on them while having the stranger judge me for my lack of taste in art."
Kyouya sighed. While he was greatly amused by her courteous distaste for paintings he had pointed out, he genuinely wanted to know what she thought of them. "No, I actually did want your opinions on pieces," he muttered. "Those paintings weren't ugly," he defended himself. "This," he pointed again. "This is the definition of ugly."
"Well, I'm glad we can agree on that," Mari snapped. Her stomach growled and echoed throughout the entire room of paintings. She immediately put her black leather YSL clutch against her gut, as if hiding it would make the sound stop. She scowled.
"Look, I don't get art okay?" the scientist sighed. "All of this," she gestured. "It's weirdly too abstract for my brain to handle. I can handle raw data at its worst form, but this?" she shook her head. "This confuses me."
Kyouya couldn't help but to find it rather endearing. Her brutal honesty of it all with him and only him. Mari appreciated art in the form of music. That was how she was raised. He on the other hand, enjoyed fine art. There was something you had to appreciate about the form of expression in all of the mediums. The empty gallery gave him full reign to pull her into his arms. She tried muffling the growl of her stomach against his body.
"I'm so fucking hungry, Kyouya," she muttered into his chest, as if admitting defeat. "I don't care which ugly painting you choose. Just let me eat something. Anything," she begged.
She felt the vibration from his laughter. Well the Ootori wasn't going to buy anything if she thought it was ugly, that was for sure. He looked around the room and decided to call it a day. Nothing caught his eye anyway. Mari trusted his taste in aesthetic at the end of the day, even if she had no interest in fine art.
"Alright," he declared. He planted a kiss at the top of her head, gently rubbing her back to calm her down from another outburst. "Let's go eat."
She chewed through the appetizer without uttering a single word. Not a word about the stunning view they had on their right of the city. Or a comment about the Michelin star rated food. Or the fact that Kyouya went through lengths to try to plan a nice evening for the both of them which only ended up with Mari begging for food and caring absolutely nothing about art.
"Do they not feed adults at children's birthday parties?" Kyouya watched as Mari cleared off the plate. Mari shook her head in response, swallowing her last bite and eagerly awaiting the next course. She took a gulp of her water to try to wash it all down faster. Kyouya only watched in amusement while she ignored the tone of his snide comment.
"I would have eaten more if it hadn't been for Yuki," Mari sighed.
"I thought your niece's name was Yumi," the Ootori was confused.
"It is, and Yumi got a horse for her birthday while Yuki moped about being single," the Takuya summarized.
"So you couldn't eat a proper meal?" Kyouya raised an eyebrow.
"Not while my little sister is crying her eyes out about being single and asking me all about the ring on my finger," Mari answered. "Also, I thought women who fantasized about weddings only existed in the media," she grumbled. "Like, when did getting married become such a big thing to look forward to?"
Maybe she just hadn't been around women who had gone through these life stages of getting engaged and married. Never quite close with anyone to have been asked to go to wedding dress shopping or venue picking. Mari spent those years studying and travelling alone.
Kyouya blinked. "You know this sounds hypocritical coming from a woman who is currently engaged, right?"
Mari scoffed. "You don't see me in a rush about planning a wedding," she muttered while crossing her arms. She looked out the window. The dusk skies were quite a nice backdrop to the rest of the city as they ate on the 60th floor. She hadn't even noticed when her hunger masked the ambiance of the restaurant. The food was delicious, or maybe it was because Mari was hungry enough to eat anything from a pickle to a whole pizza.
"Only in a rush to scarf down food," he teased.
"Food is a necessity," Mari pointed out. "Weddings are not. They're stupidly expensive."
"Well," Kyouya shrugged. "I suppose that saves us the trouble of having to spend more than necessary." It was quite a practical choice. After attending the Suoh wedding, the Ootori was unamused by the extravagance of it all despite being happy for his friends. He certainly did not want the rest of the Host Club making a big deal out of it either. He absolutely did not want his family involved, especially Fuyumi. This was a win-win situation at its finest. He couldn't have asked for a better partner than her.
"Can we just… register our marriage and skip the shenanigans?" Mari asked. She was sincere in committing to him but not with all the frills that came involved with it.
Kyouya agreed. "Yes. We can do it when you have reached enough from your trust fund. I did the cost analysis," he told her. "The supplemental income from your funds cannot be matched with your income from my company."
Mari blinked. "Did you just admit that I won't be getting a raise?" She was half-joking at this point.
"Well," the Ootori pushed up his glasses. "I ran the numbers on a hypothetical basis. Even at the highest percentage of a raise would not allow for you to reach the current income you have. You would have to be promoted to a director of a department to reach the same level," he explained.
The woman chuckled. "Of course you had already done a cost analysis. How did you know how much I get from my trust fund?"
Kyouya smirked. "You showed me your trading account. I assumed that the monthly deposits were from your trust. I extrapolated the data and estimated as best as I could."
Mari nodded in understanding. "I don't know whether to be impressed or terrified that you so coolly breached a level of privacy…"
"I'm just looking out for you," the Ootori explained himself with no remorse at the insanity of it all.
"That's very romantic of you, dear," she sarcastically responded. "You do realize my trust fund ends at the age of 33 or whenever I get married – whichever one comes first."
"Why 33?" Kyouya wondered. "Seemed like an arbitrary number."
"It's when my Father turns 80," Mari answered. "I guess it was an age that he decided that it would be enough to stop with the free funds and to retire on what he had. Yuki's trust will probably go a little longer as she's the youngest. But Kanda's trust ended as soon as he took over the company. I guess everyone kind of assumed that I would get married earlier," she chuckled. Their parents started having children later after establishing the company. It also helped that her mother was significantly younger than her father.
"I see," the Ootori nodded in understanding. It wasn't an uncommon occurrence in their world.
"And Yuki makes more than enough to have to rely on the funds," Mari sighed. At the end of the day, it was her who fell short in the trio of the Takuya children. "Who knew I'd be the black sheep?"
"You've done well for yourself," Kyouya reassured. "Wealth is not always an indicator of success."
Mari did a double take at him, squinting at his last statement. Did she hear right? The Ootori rolled his eyes at her skepticism. It was an odd thing for him to say, for someone who was clearly wealthy beyond his means and loved analytics – monetary wealth was an integral indicator. The waiter came by with their main course, politely leaving them along when the two silenced themselves at the stranger.
"Who are you?" the woman gasped, continuing on their conversation. She made no hesitation to pick up her cutlery to begin picking away at the main course. A wild mushroom vol-au-vent that she dug into despite knowing how hot it would be. She was hungry after all.
"You don't agree?" Kyouya perched up his glasses, ignoring her joke.
"I agree," Mari answered. "I'm just curious as to how you came to that conclusion."
The Ootori smiled. "What? You think I couldn't appreciate wealth in other forms?"
"More like I didn't think you knew of other forms of wealth," Mari chuckled. "What made you change?"
The Ootori contemplated the question. It was Mari who reminded him that their monetary wealth was not something that made either of them particularly happy. It was something that they inherited, not something they made for themselves. Their lives were significantly easier, with their education paid for them and all their material possessions provided. But it was Mari, who he valued for her friendship, her wit, and her knowledge of wealth of which she shared with the Ootori. Without her, his life was only dedicated to the company and nothing else. For a long time, he believed that it was acceptable until he realized he was allowed to feel happy beyond the confines of his office.
"You," he simply answered while he sipped on his wine.
"I'm just another asset to you?" Mari raised an eyebrow at him.
"No," Kyouya disagreed. "You would never be reduced to an asset to me," he assured. "But you were also something money could not buy."
Mari mulled over that statement as she chewed. The silence was enough for the Ootori to interject so she wouldn't get the wrong idea.
"I meant it as a compliment," he sighed. "You make me rich in ways that are not entirely monetary," Kyouya explained.
"Me annoying you makes you rich in what? Irritancy? Doesn't it bother you that I don't appreciate fine art?" she joked.
"Yes," the Ootori grumbled. "And the fact that you can't take a proper compliment."
"I mean, not being bought by money is just a moral standard when you are able to afford what you need in life," Mari rolled her eyes. "Not exactly a compliment," she pointed out.
"Is it so hard to believe you bring me more than just financial success?" Kyouya grew frustrated.
"No," Mari responded quickly, not letting the man get too worked up. They knew each other well enough to recognize when they were ticked off. "I know I don't bring you significant financial success. I'm just curious to know what other forms of wealth you've grown to appreciate."
"A wealth of knowledge," Kyouya began listing. "Friendship, food, and peace while with you."
"Peace?" Mari was surprised by that phrase.
Kyouya nodded. "A sense of peace – as though all will be alright."
"Were things not alright before?" she asked curiously.
"No," the Ootori couldn't quite explain it. "It isn't something I can quite pinpoint as a feeling. But you in my life… it solves more problems than it creates and I am thankful for that," he admitted.
Mari nodded in understanding. She was in many ways, a missing piece in his life that the rest of society had pinned upon him. A worthy partner brought stability to the Ootori corporation because of the prospect of children someday. It made peace with the traditional aspect of their world while still being on the edge of pushing the boundaries on what was expected of him. Marriage with no immediate need for it. A wife of an acceptable calibre but still one who did not exactly fit the mold of a socialite. Children at a time that no one needed to foresee. She gave him all that he needed without having to answer to anything more.
"What about me?" Kyouya asked after a moment of silence that allowed Mari to mull over his statement.
"Hm?" Mari was nearing the end of her plate. "What about you?" she responded offhandedly.
"Don't I bring you more than just monetary wealth?" the Ootori pointed out.
"But you do bring a lot of the monetary wealth," Mari smiled. The kind that he recognized as the sort that was made to poke fun at him.
"That's all I'm good for?" he grunted. Goodness, he could never get anything out of this woman. Mari was not the kind of person to stroke his ego, he should've known that by now. She watched as the man got more annoyed by her and only smirked. She knew exactly what to say to drive him up the wall.
"Mm, how about the sex?" she innocently batted her eyes. She slipped it in so casually that Kyouya had to take an extra glance at her to make sure he heard right. Thank goodness that no one was near them. She was almost done her meal and so was he. The servers were certainly coming soon to take away their plates at some point. But before that was made to happen, Mari gently lifted her leg to tap his knee, teasing him with her bare skin.
"You'll be the death of me, woman," he gritted his teeth before taking a gulp of his wine.
Mari's quiet laugh resonated across the table.
