Kyoya woke the next morning to find Kaoru lying down and reading a book next to him on the bed. Amber eyes met sleep-encrusted onyx ones. Eurgh. I stayed up too late for this.

"What the hell?" The redhead snickered as he got off the bed. A wave of drowsiness swept over Kyoya, and he suddenly yawned and faceplanted onto his pillow.

"Well, that's not a very nice greeting, is it? I've been waiting for hours."

Kyoya attempted to mask his confusion with curiosity. "Hours? What time is it?" he asked, his voice muffled by the pillow.

"Almost noon." What about school? Oh, right. The heaters at Ouran crashed and need to be fixed. I read the email last night after I came home, but forgot all about it. "When I came in, I heard your alarm clock ring and saw you fling it across the room, so I decided to let you sleep." Kaoru continued to snicker, to Kyoya's great annoyance.

His fatigue slowly turned into irritation. A dark aura began to envelop him. "Because there is no school today, you decide to come into my room without letting me know beforehand? We saw each other last night! I said this so many times before, but you are quite the troublesome kohai. What did you come here for?" Kyoya, his face still buried in his pillow, waved an arm for emphasis.

"Nothing." Kaoru replied honestly. Figures. To imagine that I thought that he wanted to talk about Haruhi or Hikaru. "I got your mail." Kyoya quickly sat up.

"You touched my mail without asking?" Kaoru laughed nervously. "Give it to me."

Kyoya went through the envelopes. They were all from relatives of CEOs of various companies, which he would have to reply to soon if he wanted to maintain his connections. He froze when he saw the last one.

He tore open the envelope and pulled out the letter inside.

Dear Mr. Ootori,

I am writing to congratulate you on behalf of Harvard University for our acceptance of your application to enroll in our program this…

Kyoya did not read any further and faced away from Kaoru to hide what he was thinking. This is what I wanted for a while now, but I don't know how I'm going to break the news to Haruhi. She seemed fine when I told her that I still plan on attending an university in America the other day, but she might get upset if I tell her that I definitely am going to America. I never thought the two of us would start dating, so I did all of this without worrying about her. Why do I make things so complicated for myself? He composed himself before turning back to Kaoru.

"Lemme see that!" Kaoru snatched the letter from him. "Harvard?" he asked, his brow creasing.

"Indeed. I'm sure you can read."

"So, you really are going to study business in an university in America instead of going into the medical field. Are you planning on breaking the news to your father soon? The school year ends in almost a week." Right. That's what the others would wonder about, but I already thought about that. It's not what I'm going to do that worries me, it's what my father might do in response and how Haruhi will react to the news.

"Yes, I have prepared for this moment. Like I said before, I'm going to achieve my goal in another way." I have surpassed my brothers, and I've been thinking of surpassing my father since the resolution of the Suoh scandal. It's all because Tamaki brought color, passion, and ambition back to my life and because Haruhi made me see the opportunities out there for me. Kaoru looked impressed.

"Quite ambitious. Does that mean that you're finally going to break from the Ootori Group and forge your own path?"

Kyoya lay down again, his head resting on his arms. "Seems like it."

"Then how about you talk to my dad about becoming the CEO of his company? Hikaru and I want to manage our mom's fashion company."

What? This is news. Hayoto Hitachiin is a large software developer. Taking control of his company would be amazing. Kyoya thought about it. This could be exactly what he needed. "All right, I'll talk to your father, and then go from there."

"That's exciting! You know, I think you're finally starting to complete your character arc." Huh? "You know, all of the other hosts' problems are fixed. Tamaki had already begun reconciling with his grandmother even before the Suoh scandal, and afterwards she became rather fond of him. Honey and his brother are fairly civil nowadays. Mori learned to accept that he isn't responsible for every little thing in Honey's life. Hikaru dyed his hair a darker brown so we can be told apart. But you...You remained trapped in your own lonely little world. It's like you refused to see that there are other things outside of the Ootori Group, other opportunities out there for you if only you tried."

Kaoru was so different from his twin at times that Kyoya wondered how anyone could have gotten them mixed up before Hikaru dyed his hair. "That's an intriguing notion, in its own way." But why isn't he mentioning Haruhi? I'd have thought that he'd bring her up when talking about my future plans. Well, I don't have time to think about it right now. I'll just talk to him and Tamaki about Haruhi later. It's best if I send him away now while I figure things out myself. "Kaoru, if that is all, I need you to leave. I'm really busy, and you're wasting my time."

"Fine." Kaoru grumbled, but then cheerfully added, "Good luck, Kyoya-senpai!"

As soon as Kaoru left, he jumped out of bed and got his laptop. Now that he could see his future, he was more determined than ever to find a way to leave the Ootori Group. Tachibana came in to give him breakfast, but Kyoya left the food untouched beside him on a coffee table. He had more important things to do. His father and his brothers were in yet another business meeting at a client's house, so Kyoya had the entire mansion to himself (not counting the servants, off course), which was just how he liked it. More importantly, it would prove handy for what he was planning.

One by one, he hacked the cameras inside and outside his father's study so that the visuals looped, making it look as if the area remained empty the entire time his father was away. Then he carefully took a key he hid inside a violet vase (one of the many gifts he had received from Tamaki during the duration of their friendship) and stealthily made his way to the study, making sure that none of the servants saw him do so.

Unlocking the double doors and closing them behind him, Kyoya found himself facing the large wooden office desk which he so often saw his father sitting behind when Kyoya was called to speak to him. He had not really thought of it before, but the desk really did fit the intimidating aura of the gigantic study. Steading his nerves (something he had been doing quite a lot of recently), he walked up to the desk and sat down on the custom-made leather chair right behind it. Now he was actually sitting at his father's desk. There must have been a bit of his father's energy in there, because sitting on his chair made him feel powerful.

But he had not come to merely observe the study from his father's point of view. Taking a bobby pin from his pocket, he picked the lock on the largest drawer. Click. He held his breath as he opened the drawer, revealing what must have been hundreds of manila folders, each labeled with the name of someone who may benefit the Ootori Group. He searched for a name he knew his father must have added after the events of the Ouran Fair. As the folders were all in alphabetical order, it did not take long for him to find what he was looking for.

Haruhi Fujioka

Age: 16

Birthday: February 4th

Gender: Female

Height: 5'2" (158cm)

Blood Type: A

Ethnicity: Asian

Nationality: Japanese

Relatives:

Ryoji "Ranka" Fujioka (father)

Kotoko Fujioka (mother, deceased)

Kyoya Ootori (friend, boyfriend)

Tamaki Suoh (friend, ex-boyfriend)

School: Ouran Academy

Occupation: High school junior, member of Host Club

Strengths: Smart, ambitious (wants to become a lawyer), not afraid to say what she believes

Weaknesses: No significant wealth or social status, knows little about business

Kyoya already had this information in his own file, so he was not particularly interested in this data. Of course he found out about us dating, even though we only went on one date. The last section was what he was looking for.

Notes: Can be used to bribe Kyoya Ootori if needed, can herself be bribed with threats to Ranka Fujioka.

He felt like he had been hit with a ton of bricks, even though he had suspected as much. So this was why his father was particularly interested in her. It was not just her views and intelligence that captured Yoshio Ootori's attention. Kyoya would have to be careful if he was going to break away from the Ootori Group without causing trouble for Haruhi. His blood ran cold when he saw a file with his own name on it. Apparently, his father also kept files on members of the family.

Kyoya Ootori

Age: 18

Birthday: November 22nd

Gender: Male

Height: 5'11" (181cm)

Blood Type: AB

Ethnicity: Asian

Nationality: Japanese

Relatives:

Yoshio Ootori (father)

Rikona Ootori (mother, no longer has custody)

Yuichi Ootori (older brother)

Akito Ootori (older brother)

Fuyumi Ootori-Shidou (older sister)

Haruhi Fujioka (friend, girlfriend)

Tamaki Suoh (friend)

School: Ouran Academy

Occupation: High school senior, member of Host Club

Strengths: Extremely intelligent, ambitious, skilled at networking and managing finances, excellent at damage control, has incredible business acumen (helps the Ootori Group behind the scenes when necessary and manages the Host Club)

Weaknesses: Can suddenly become emotional if either Tamaki Suoh or Haruhi Fujioka is involved

Notes: Best option for Ootori heir

Kyoya inhaled sharply. His father wanted him to be the heir? For how long? How ironic is it that when I decided I want to leave the Ootori Group, I am chosen as the heir? And why do my brothers get to go the high-profile business meetings, then? He had a feeling that the announcement would probably be made in a few days. Even without Kyoya doing anything at all, the chains on his life were beginning to tighten around him when all he wanted was to break free.

Still, he planned to stand his ground. He would talk to Hayato Hitachiin on Wednesday and, hopefully, become the new CEO of his software development company. No way was he about to give up his new-found dreams to run the Ootori Group.

Now he just had to explain that to Haruhi and his father without causing a scandal, which was quite a tall order considering the fact that it seemed that his father would be willing to bribe and threaten him. Complicated had been right.