AN: Hello and welcome! I'll try to keep this brief, but to all of you who like Kyoya in the previous chapters, this one starts off with a very brief but hopefully funny tidbit from his third-person POV. Hope you enjoy!
Disclaimer: I do not own Fruits Basket or Kyoya Ootori (from Ouran High School Host Club) all rights go to their respective owners.
Kyoya Ootori is many things.
For one thing, he's intelligent. He's level-headed, collected, poised, and well-bred. He's wealthy, powerful, and calculating.
Kyoya is skilled in a wide variety of things: research, organization, planning, stock investment, management, calculus, speaking French, getting his way in just about any social situation.
However, if he has one talent which triumphs over the rest, it is this.
Intimidation.
~.~
Murasaki can't help but wonder if this is how she will die, seated between her two closest male friends, nervously serving tea.
All in all, it's a pretty pathetic way to go out.
The tension in the air is so thick, Murasaki wonders vaguely if a knife would even be sufficient for cutting through it before a quiet cough snaps her out of her thoughts.
It's Kyoya, eyeing her with more than a little condescending amusement, which earns him a small glare from her. This doesn't seem to deter him at all, quite the opposite actually. Kyoya's lips pull into a small smile as he sets down his cup of tea on her coffee table.
"Your apartment is lovely, Kaname, I regret that my visit last time was so brief," he says, the small smile still on his face. She frowns, raising a brow and opening her mouth to speak.
"Kyoya, you can drop the pleasantries, obviously you're here about-"
"So tell me, Soma-san, to what do I owe the unexpected pleasure of running into you here?" Kyoya continues, cutting her off.
Murasaki's jaw drops slightly, her eyes widening.
This bastard-
Yuki smiles pleasantly, taking a sip of tea before speaking.
"I was invited for tea," he answers simply, taking another sip. Long lashes bat innocently a few times before Yuki turns to smile at Murasaki briefly. "To what do we owe the pleasure of this surprise visit?"
A chill crawls down her spine.
Yuki, I never knew you could be so scary.
"Business, I'm afraid," Kyoya says, turning to Murasaki. "Kaname, I thought I'd drop by to inform you that I was successful in getting the article removed, with many apologies from the publishing company. Should you or your peers encounter any future evidence that the story has not been completely eliminated from all platforms, do not hesitate to contact me and I will see about making the necessary corrections."
Despite the awkwardness of the situation, Murasaki can't help the small sigh of relief that escapes her at the news.
"That's a relief. Thank you for-"
"That said, I am eager to further acquaint myself with your visitor. Soma-" Kyoya's terrifyingly cold smile returns to his face as he tilts his head slightly in Yuki's direction "-seems like such a well-mannered, reliable fellow. How long have you two been friends?"
Again, Murasaki's jaw goes slack.
Again! He did it again!
She bites back a snappish remark by pressing a cup of tea to her lips, watching her companions around the rim of her cup.
"We met on the first day of school, and we're in student council together as class representatives," Yuki replies, his voice light and almost breezy, his smile matching Kyoya's. "Although, I'm sure Saki would have been happy enough to tell you that had you not interrupted her."
Murasaki chokes on her tea.
"I thought it might be more informative to hear your account," Kyoya replies smoothly.
"I hardly see why cutting her off was necessary in acquiring that information."
"Ah, he's as chivalrous as he is well-mannered. Tell me, what is a modern-day knight such as yourself doing in a girl's apartment all alone on a Saturday morning?" Kyoya asks.
He sets down his teacup, the base of the piece of china hitting her coffee table with a small and threatening clack.
"As I said before, I was invited for tea. And while your concern for Murasaki is reassuring, I have to wonder if it isn't also a touch hypocritical. The last time I checked, you were the one who arrived unannounced," Yuki counters.
His cup of tea joins Kyoya's on the table with an equally small and equally threatening clack. Kyoya's smile widens a fraction, the shift as menacing as it is subtle.
"Kaname and I are close family friends, and I can assure you her family has made clear on more than one occasion that I am a trustworthy companion, which is more than I can say for-"
"Kami-sama above, enough already!"
Both boys jump at Murasaki's sudden exclamation, her cup slamming down to meet the coffee table with such force that both boys are impressed the tiny piece of china doesn't just shatter on impact. A small tsunami of oolong is sent splashing across Murasaki's knuckles, splattering on the table.
"You two are like a couple of schoolboys on passive-aggressive steroids! Let's start over, shall we? Kyoya, meet my good friend Yuki Soma who I am classmates and class reps with. We go on runs on weekend mornings and he often stops by my place for tea, at my invitation, not that that is frankly any of your business. Yuki, this is my friend Kyoya Ootori, we're good friends through our parents and while I appreciate you looking out for me I'd appreciate it more if you didn't fight my battles for me. Kyoya is perfectly aware that I can match him in a verbal duel any day of the week, be it in Japanese, French, or Italian. Now, I'm going to find a towel to mop up all this tea and while I'm away you two are going to shake hands and play nice!"
Murasaki huffs, stands up abruptly, and stomps her way into the kitchen, slamming the door behind her and leaving the two boys at her coffee table to stare at each other in pure bewilderment.
…
…
…
"She speaks French and Italian?" Yuki asks eventually, voice small and more than a little disbelieving. Kyoya pushes his glasses up his nose.
"Yes, we often complained to each other about verb tenses in middle school," he replies. "So … you two do this often?"
"Yes. Well… not this. We go on runs and have tea. I've never seen her explode quite like that," Yuki breathes, eyeing the kitchen door warily. Kyoya releases a bit of a laugh through his nose.
"Neither have I," he admits, eyes joining Yuki's in staring at the kitchen door. "She's formidable."
"..."
"..."
"Truce?" Yuki asks, extending a hand.
"I think we'd better," Kyoya agrees, taking it and shaking firmly.
Much to Murasaki's satisfaction, the unexpected meetup passes without incident. Kyoya bids them a polite goodbye, Yuki leaves soon after, and none of the events of the day are further discussed.
This includes the whole fiasco with the piano that prompted the meeting in the first place. Silences between Murasaki and Yuki lack the air of unspoken tension she had been expecting, and much like what happened after she discovered the Soma family secret, not much actually changes between them.
No, if there is any kind of shift at all, it is simply a comfortable one into an area Murasaki has almost never had the chance to truly experience.
Acceptance.
~.~
"For Tohru?"
Murasaki blinks at him over her cup of tea.
It's been a few weeks since Valentine's day and the ensuing disaster. And White Day is fast-approaching.
"Yes, she gave me and the other Somas some chocolates, and I wondered if you have any idea what she'd like as a return gift," Yuki says, the wistful, little smile on his face making Murasaki's heart clench a little.
This, too, is a form of acceptance.
She forces a thoughtful look, one that doesn't reveal any of the swirling heaviness in her gut.
"Hmmm, Tohru is pretty difficult to shop for. Although she'd be ecstatic to get literally anything, because of that, it's hard to know the difference between a good and a bad gift... But if I were you, I'd go with hair accessories of some kind," she murmurs, taking another sip of tea. "Tohru wears the same three sets of hair ribbons every single day, so some new accessories in her arsenal couldn't hurt."
Yuki seems to pale at the prospect. This draws a smile to Murasaki's face.
"Scared of some hairclips, Prince Yuki?" she asks, smirking.
This is one thing that has changed, minor as it is. Murasaki was never fluent in snark, but she certainly had a sharper tongue in middle school. After the explosive events of a few weeks ago, her rein on that sharpness has loosened.
Yuki seems to chuckle nervously in response.
"Perhaps not scared, but certainly inept in the field of hairclips," he admits with a chuckle.
She turns away, quiet for a moment, before a brow quirks thoughtfully.
"I could go with you," she murmurs.
"What?"
"We could go pick out the gift together. Your wallet. My slightly less inept eye for hair accessories. The nearby shopping mall. It could just replace our jog tomorrow morning," she says, trying to crush the part of her brain that's whirling at the implications of her own offer.
Shut up, shut up, it's not a date, shut up, shut up, shut up-
Yuki tilts his head.
"I'd hate to trouble you-" he begins to say, but she waves a hand, interrupting him.
"It's no trouble, I could use the trip anyway. I've been meaning to shop for some new dress shoes anyway."
This is half-true. Her old dress shoes were destroyed by a crack in the road on her not-date with Kyoya. She hadn't been intending on buying new ones because she has plenty to spare. But this seems to be a reasonable excuse.
Yuki blinks a little, face relaxing, brows unfurrowing. This is her favorite expression on him, the one where he looks relaxed and content. Like he's thinking about something that makes him happy.
Like he's thinking about Tohru, her mind supplies her.
Her chest clenches again. She bites the inside of her cheek.
Acceptance.
"In that case, I'll meet you here tomorrow? Ten?" Yuki asks, a gentle smile on his face. Murasaki reminds the part of her stomach that's fluttering that his smile is not for her. She forces a matching smile.
"Yeah, that sounds good."
This isn't a date, Yuki reminds himself, as he walks his way to Saki's apartment. This isn't a date, she's just helping you pick out a gift for Honda-san. She only offered to join you because you're hopelessly inept at anything but studying and punching the stupid cat.
He turns a corner, ears deaf to the birds chirping pleasantly in the trees above him, skin numb to the crisp, refreshing breeze drifting through, a sure sign that Spring is peaking her head above the horizon and beginning to bathe the world in gentle sunshine and budding flowers. He's blind to the blueness of the sky, or the fluffiness of the clouds.
Because this isn't a date.
Yuki clenches his fists a little.
Do I want it to be?
He's at her door now, hand hovering the doorbell uncertainly. The mental image of Ootori standing in this very spot, looking slick and collected and incredibly capable puts a stone in Yuki's stomach. As much as Saki claimed they'd "murder each other" being in a relationship, Yuki couldn't help but notice the way she looked at Kyoya, grin wide, eyes shining.
It doesn't matter what I want.
He rings the doorbell, unclenching his fists in a bitter acceptance.
She's not mine to want-
The door swings open.
Yuki's jaw goes slack.
"Yuki! Good morning! All ready?"
She's done something to her hair. It's not fully up nor fully loose, but straddling an attractive, casual in-between. The tips fall on bare shoulders, and a cute, blue tank top is tucked loosely into dark skinny jeans which hug the subtle curves of her legs snugly. Her white sandals are impossibly neat and clean, just like her apartment and her notes.
She looks exactly like the girl that teenage boys daydream about being lucky enough to date.
"Yuki? You okay?" she asks, head tilting slightly, hazel-toned eyes widening in minor concern. Her dark brows furrow and her pink lips press into a thin line as Yuki stumbles over his own mouth, trying to find a coherent sentence somewhere in the mess.
She is exactly the girl that teenage boys daydream about being lucky enough to date.
"I-I'm fine. Sorry, let's go," he manages to stutter, and she smiles broadly, locking the door behind her and practically floating her way down the apartment building steps, hair swishing lightly behind her.
This is going to be so much harder than I thought.
AN: The mutual pining, y'all, I'm about ready to throw teacups at both these idiots.
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Review Replies:
ayamiamy: loll, I feel that
Catniss07: LMAO I KNOW, LOWKEY ME TOO. Glad you enjoyed the omake, and I hope the drama in this chapter delivered. Thank you for the review!
magicalluna: Glad you enjoyed it! (loll, and if you think "poor Kyoya" now, you're gonna hate me later). Hope the explosions in this chapter delivered! Thank you for the review!
SummoningShadows18: Thank you for the wonderful compliments, I don't deserve such praise (T^T). Hope you enjoyed and thank you for the review!
Next update should be in another 2 weeks, but I'm starting school soon so idk how that will change moving forward. Whatever happens, I'll let you guys know. Thank you all for reading and please leave a review!
