Like a Cloud in the Wind
by Meganes Ultimate Fangirl
Chapter 3 – Dancing Away Into Darkness
I was not looking forward to this ball. Not at all. And my incredibly unenthusiastic nature was worrying Felicity. Any other girl I knew would be so excited that they'd piss themselves if they were in my position. Going to a ball with a hot guy... Wearing a gorgeous dress that fit... Waiting anxiously to be picked up... The works.
I was the exact opposite of that and looked at it as such.
Going to a ball with a rather handsome man... That I hated.
Wearing a beautifully handmade, special-ordered dress... That I hated.
Waiting to be picked up at the door... Impatiently hating every minute of it.
"Kaydence, for God's sake. Will you smile? You're ruining the entire image that that dress gives you!" Mother scolded. The thing I hated most was that she had set up the entire dress/hair ensemble. She was the most to blame for my discomfort. Her and that bloody idiotic blonde.
Tate was waiting to go as well. Though he would be leaving right after I did to go pick up his date–a third year named Arisa, whom he had somehow befriended and started liking without my knowledge. "No, Mother,I won't smile," I spat. The doorbell rang, then. "'Bout time the bloody bastard got here," I mumbled under my breath, clutching the hand purse that Felicity had attatched to my wrist by a strap. Conviently, it matched the dark green of my dress. I drew my black shawl tighter as the butler opened the door to reveal Kyoya in his suit. "Let's go," I stated, booking it for the doorway.
Layne grabbed my arm. "Not so fast. I want pictures of this night," he said, positioning me next to Kyoya and pulling out a digital camera. I gritted my teeth and attempted to smile. Kyoya's arm slipped around my waist. I resisted the urge to glare at him. He was enjoying every minute of this, I could tell. "Wonderful, Sweetheart," Father murmured, kissing my cheek, "Have fun. Don't do anything I wouldn't do. And have her home by midnight." Kyoya nodded at his instructions, turning to guide me to the awaiting limo.
"You were enjoying that weren't you?" I asked as soon as we were out of earshot.
"Every second," he replied with amusement clear in his voice.
–
There was a major commotion when we arrived together. Apparently, Kyoya was the only Host that had shown up with an escort. Which of course made everyone in the damn school think that I was his girlfriend. "That fucking git," I cursed under my breath, referring to Tamaki.
Kyoya's eye twitched as he stood at my side. "I'm going to kill him," he stated, jaw set. I believed him. Hell, I'd help him. The blonde bastard had set us up even when we had previously stated that we did not like each other in the fashion they thought we did. I caught the glares of several girls and had to force myself to not to laugh.
Instead I let out an indignant snort. "Looks like this has stirred up a bit of hatred for me," I muttered, eyeing one particular girl who looked like she wanted to pound my face in. I rolled my eyes in her direction. "They think I'm your girlfriend. Preposterous." I wrinkled my nose up in disgust. Like I'd ever seriously date an Ohtori.
He raised an eyebrow at me. "That's a bit rude," he replied with distaste.
"But it's true. We don't like each other like that in any way," I paused, pondering for a moment. He could have been lying when he said he didn't like me. "Unless of course you were lying when you said you didn't like me."
He scoffed lightly. "An Ohtori doesn't lie. We manipulate the truth. There's a difference." I rolled my eyes at him. He was definitely hiding something. Whether or not it was his feelings for me I hadn't a clue though. Nor did I care in the slightest. "Suppose we can just go along with this entire thing," he added, "There's no way Tamaki's going to let us forget it now." I nodded, face twisting with dislike at the thought of it.
"No dancing."
"But dancing is the whole reason that this thing is taking place."
"I hate dancing."
"Not a good enough reason. C'mon." He took me by the hand and practically dragged me towards the dance floor. I squirmed and stayed firmly in place, refusing to comply. "Kaydence," he said firmly with a sigh.
"Kyoya," I retorted, pulling my hand from his grasp and crossing my arms over my chest stubbornly. There was no way in hell that I was going to dance with him again. Even if my life depended on it. I was not going to go along with Tamaki's ridiculous plan to hook up two people that hated each other. "If you comply to his plan, you make him think that it's alright for him to manipulate us."
That struck a nerve. Apparently Kyoya didn't like hearing himself and manipulate in the same sentence unless it was talking about him being the one manipulating. I could feel the eyes of half of the people in the room on me by now. And the whispers didn't escape my ears. His jaw was set in anger, his eyes cold. I sighed as tried to find the words to speak what he was feeling. He seemed at loss for words. Finally he straightened up. "You're right," he said.
I started with surprise. And here I thought it was going to be harder to convince him not to dance. "But your father has entrusted that I keep you amused tonight." That damn smirk flitted onto his face, his eyes twinkling with something between malice and amusement. Whatever it was, I didn't like it.
I spluttered. Damn Layne. Damn him to hell! "I don't give a damn what my father entrusted you with. You'll have to find some other way. I refuse to dance."
He smirked. Immediately I wished I had choosen a different wording. Now we sounded even more like a couple! Fucking hell. "Is that a request?"
I glared at him as my face heated up considerably. "That isn't what I meant and you know it!" I snapped irritably, sure that my face was red. This was ridiculous. I rarely blushed. In fact the last time I remember blushing was in 4th grade.
"Or was it?" he countered.
"You... You're such an impossible prick!" I spat, grabbing his hand and pulling him towards the dance floor. His smirk turned into a triumphant grin. "Oh shut up. I hate you, is that clear? I hate you."
"Crystal."
–
Dancing with Kyoya wasn't as bad as it had been the first time. I found myself enjoying it actually. I had been absolutely set on being a bloody pill the entire night. But somehow Kyoya managed to coax out my better mood. I still glared at Tamaki and the twins whenever they tried to approach me though. He merely chuckled when they scurried to a corner.
They had forced Haruhi into a dress and wig for the purpose of fawning over her. I had to pity her. But she was quite beautiful all the same. Eventually, the glares from various girls stopped and the senders of the glares moved on, much to my relief.
Kyoya and I were dancing once more. "Kaydence," he said quietly, "Have you ever thought about what you're going to do after high school?"
The question caught me offguard, as did the tone of his voice. The question was rather personal and his voice was soft. He was also looking at me curiously, seemingly gauging my reaction. I paused before opening my mouth to answer, "I've thought about it, yes. But I haven't come to an actual conclusion yet. Pierce is going to inherit Father's business and I'm free to do what I please." He was still staring at me in that strange way as he twirled me around.
When I was righted once more his eyes had wondered away from me. "And you?" I asked just as softly as he had.
He was quiet, staring over at Tamaki. "I... I hope to inherit the medical business of my Father's, even though I'm the third son. Either way I'll be going to the college section of Ouran in the medical department." Damn. He was seriously ambitious. I wasn't even trying. I just assumed that Layne would choose Pierce over me because he was male.
I kept my mouth shut as he turned me once more. These sorts of things didn't need talking. He knew it was likely that he wouldn't be chosen as the successor. I didn't need to remind him of that fact. He didn't need to bother me about my future. I knew it was grim. Thus, we spun in silence. When the song that was currently playing finished, I stepped away from him and, picking up my dress, headed toward the punch bowl.
"Are you and Kyoya-sama dating?" a girl who was sitting over there asked me, eyeing me suspiciously.
She almost made me drop the cup of punch I was holding, surprising me like that. "No," I replied shortly.
"Then why did you arrive with him and why have you been dancing with him all night?"
Nosy little prick should learn how to keep her nose out of other people's business. "We're merely friends," I told her, trying to keep my cool, "It was Tamaki's idea that we come together. In all reality, we hate each other." I shouldn't have to explain myself to this twit. She was being a bloody nuisance.
The girl looked over at Kyoya. I did as well. A girl was asking him to dance, whom he politely turned down. "It seems that he likes you well enough to turn down everyone else."
I scoffed and turned away from her. She was glaring daggers in the back of my head. I could tell. Jealous fangirls. Just what I needed trailing me and calling for my head on a platter. I felt an arm slip around my waist and glanced up at the person it belonged to.
"What the fuck are you doing?" I asked him with annoyance. He was just making it look more like we were the couple that we weren't. He smirked down at me in amusement.
He leaned down slightly. "Saving your ass from these girls," he murmured in my ear. I frowned. Did I ask for saving? No. Did I even need it? I doubted it. Unless one of these girls attacked me out of jealousy. Which had been known to happen. However, these girls seemed way too proper to attack someone for such a petty reason.
"Yeah, sure. Not dating. Mm-hmm," the girl said as she stared at his arm around me in jealousy. I turned my head to glare at him. As if to tell him that he had just made my situation way worse than it had started.
He smiled politely. "We aren't. We're friends," he stated with a firmer tone than I had used. She eyed the arm encircling my waist doubtfully. His eyes dared her to challenge him. I had to commend him for his influential diplomacy. If that doctor thing didn't work out for him then government definitely would. I smirked as the girl backed away muttering something.
"Thanks for saving me from the sharks," I said sarcastically.
"You're quite welcome," he replied, the corners of his mouth twitching upward slightly. "Come with me. There's something we need to talk about." I nodded, eyes full of curiousity. What could he possibly want to talk about? He took me by the arm and led me out onto a balcony where we could see the garden that flourished below. "You look very beautiful tonight."
Alright. Now he just wanted something. "What do you want?" I sighed. Compliments meant he wanted something. If he wanted something from me he could have asked me inside instead of just pulling me out to talk privately. No, it had to be more serious.
He stayed silent for a moment, turning to look out at the garden. I mimicked his actions, resting my elbows on the rail and folding my hands together. I shivered slightly from the slightly cold breeze. "My father is a very interesting businessman," he started with a murmur. "And he wants me to do something that I'm sure you won't agree to." He was looking at me pointedly.
Now that could be a multitude of things. My own views rarely matched up with his and his family's. "And that would be...?" I prompted impatiently. God, I was starting to freeze. He wordlessly handed me his suit jacket. I nodded in thanks and wrapped it around my shoulders. It blocked out the breeze, keeping me warm.
"He... wants me to marry you."
My heart dropped and my stomach started churning almost painfully. Fuck no. I was never going to marry Kyoya. Some other rich girl could have the pleasure and luxury of doing that. Leave me the fuck out of it. "You're kidding."
"I'm serious," he stated, eyes completely solemn. I searched his face for any sign of this being a joke.
"Why, for the love of all things holy, would your father want you to marry me?" I asked incredulously. He rubbed the back of his head.
"Probably because your father's the head of a very influential company. Marrying you would bring a lot of profits to our own business."
"Fuck no," I said, face blank. "Tell your father to go to hell." My foot tapped nervously in its 1-inch heel. "I want no part in this scheme he has to get to Layne."
He smirked. "I knew it. I told him you wouldn't do it. He said that I needed to try though." He shrugged nonchalantly. "I figured it was worth a shot. Seeing as you hate me I wasn't too optimistic."
I stared at him. "Or is it because you actually like me?" I asked softly, eyes narrowing. There was something else that he wasn't telling me. I aimed to find out what it was. His eyes shot to mine from where they had drifted to gaze out at the garden again. "It has nothing to do with your father, does it?"
He sighed. "Kaydence. I've told you, as I've told those idiots thousands of times, that I don't like you. You're a friend and that's all you'll ever be to me." He was still holding something back. I opened my eyes a bit.
"What're you holding back?" I asked to myself before realizing I'd said it outloud on accident. I really hated it when I did that. I had meant to think it but somehow the things that I wanted to say purely in my head always managed to come out of my bloody mouth.
It was his turn for his eyes to narrow. "Why're you asking? I bet you're the one that likes me."
I gave him an exasperated sigh along with a look. "Yes, Kyoya. I'm madly in love with you," I stated sarcastically, managing somehow to keep a straight face. "That's why I'm asking you all these questions." He glared at my sarcasm. "Alright. Honestly, I don't like you. But I don't hate you either. You're neutral."
"When did I go from being hated to neutral?"
"Who's asking all the questions now?" I retorted. I realized that I had subconsciously moved closer to him since I was still cold despite the help that his jacket gave. He looked at me with a weird look in his eyes that I couldn't identify. "Seriously, what're you hiding? You can tell me," I murmured quietly.
He shook his head and turned around so he was leaning against the cement railing my elbows were currently propped up on. "It's nothing for you to concern yourself with."
I sighed. "Whatever you say."
Silence overtook us. Neither of us wanted to talk about anything anymore. I was afraid that I was pushing him away with my constant bothering so I left him be. "I'm going inside," he finally said after several minutes. Fuck. I had his jacket. He was probably freezing. I took it off and offered it to him but he shook his head and told me to keep it. I stared at him strangely as he pushed past me.
Just before he was out of reach I grabbed his wrist. "Wait," I said softly. He glanced back expectantly. I seriously had no clue why I'd stopped him. I just suddenly had the urge to tell him something important though. But I had nothing to say.
"Kaydence?" Why was my stomach churning even though I wasn't doing anything? I couldn't tell what was wrong with me. For the first time since I'd been in the hospital 3 years ago, I had no clue why or what I felt. "Kaydence, are you alright?" His eyes held a slight worried tone.
My breathing was heavier. My stomach was doing it's own little gymnastics tournament inside of me.
I have no clue what happened next or how it did. One second, I was staring into his eyes feeling lost as to what to say to him now that I'd stopped him from going inside. Next... Next second, I was... Kissing him.
As in my lips were touching his.
As in I was applying pressure.
I don't even know what I was doing. Or thinking for that matter. His eyes widened with absolute shock for a moment. And then... for some reason, he kissed me back. When he responded was when I realized what I was doing. I was kissing Kyoya. This was the guy that I claimed to hate and said I would never in my life even think of dating and here I was kissing him. I ripped myself away from him. He stared at me and I felt like he was staring straight through me into my soul. I refused to look at him, deciding to become very interested in my shoes instead.
He brought a hand to his mouth, still staring at me. I stubbornly kept my eyes on the ground. "Wha–?" he broke off, swallowing and clearing his throat a little before continuing, "What was that?" I didn't have an answer. I had no idea myself, in fact. So I kept my mouth shut. He grasped my shoulders and forced me to look at him. "Kay, what the hell was that?" It was the first time he had ever called me by my nickname.
My mind raced to come up with an answer. Why the hell had I kissed him? I looked in his eyes and blinked several times. "Hormones," I finally blurted. My excuse for everything mood related. Obscenely mad suddenly? Hormones. Want to go on a shopping spree? Hormones.
He looked at me like I was completely mad. And maybe I was. "Hormones? You just kissed me, Kay. When you kiss someone it normally means that you're attracted to them!" There was a slight tone of irritation in his voice which made me unnoticably wince. He was right though. I knew it. But what I couldn't figure out was when I had started being attracted to him.
"Or... Or I could have suddenly been overcome with hormones that made me think I was attracted to you, thus resulting in a kiss." I couldn't do this with him right now. My head was spinning and I had no clue what I was feeling. I normally loved arguing with Kyoya. But not right now. Not over this. "Why did you kiss back? Does that mean that you have some mutual attraction to me?" This was probably a bad move. Countering with my own questions always got me into a corner.
His silence was enough of an answer though. And I hadn't expected much of one. "Exactly," I murmured, shaking my head. I paused. "Honestly, I have no clue what just happened. I think I'm going home." He reached into his pocket for his phone but I shook my head at him. "Tisn't far. I'll walk." And clear my head.
He hesitated, obviously not very keen on the idea. "You're sure?" I nodded, biting my lip. He gave me one last look before I pushed past him and got back inside. I hurried through the ballroom, holding my dress up with two hands. I got out of the school without much trouble.
Walking down the street, breathing in the cool night air, gave my mind a bit of peace. I could think when he wasn't standing right there in front of me waiting for an answer. So, why had I kissed the bastard? I obviously didn't like him. Or if I did I never really realized it until now. And then there was the fact that he had kissed me back. Did that mean that he liked me? Or was it just an automatic response?
I almost stopped dead in my tracks when an epiphany hit me.
That had been my first kiss.
I had given my first kiss to Kyoya. Kyoya, of all people. I felt a wave of nausea coming. I was so stupid. So, so, bloody stupid. I was just about as stupid as all the idiots in the Host Club put together. Without Haruhi and Kyoya of course.
I was approaching a bend in the road. At the corner stood a rather bulky guy. He made me apprehensive. I didn't like the look of him, standing there ominously in the dark. I clutched my cellphone tighter, ready to push the first speed dial that I could. I passed by him and he didn't even glance at me. I let out a sigh of relief and continued walking.
But I was tense now, my heart fluttering nervously in my chest. I couldn't just walk and not worry about the dangers of walking around the city at night. And it was starting to sprinkle a little. Rain wasn't that bad. I could live with rain. And I could just imagine the look on my mother's face when I showed up at the door, dateless and soaked to the core in an expensive dress.
I was so distracted that I didn't notice a person step out of the shadows in front of me. This one was thin and his face was shadowed so I couldn't make out his features. On my way past him, he grabbed me, pulling me down an ally. I opened my mouth to scream but had a hand shoved over my mouth quickly. Something roughly the size and shape of a gun barrel was pushed into my side. "You scream, I shoot," the man croaked in my ear. He had a hold of my waist. Some other big burly guy was covering my mouth.
I nodded, face pale and hands shaky. God, I was scared to death. Never in my life had a gun been pointed at me. Not even when I caught in the middle of a bank hold-up when I was four. My mouth was uncovered briefly, lingering to make sure that I wouldn't scream. "I-I don't have any money," I whispered. This was probably a mugging. But, I really didn't have any money on me.
"We don't want your money," the bigger guy said, glaring at me. I was yanked by the arm farther down the ally, where a van was parked. Oh hell. They were kidnapping me. That was just great. My cell was still tightly clutched in my hand. Carefully and as inconspicuously as I could, I pushed the first button I could and pushed send. I resisted against being pushed into the van. But the gun was still at my side. I figured that I'd be dead faster than I could scream loud enough for anyone to hear me if I yelled.
I swallowed. Now I was definitely regretting not taking Kyoya's ride. There was muffled talking coming from my phone. I glanced down to see what number I had pushed. 9 – Kyoya Ohtori, the phone read with a faint glowing light. He could track my phone if I managed to hide and keep it on. I attempted to stuff the phone in my bra before they noticed I had it. Unfortunately, the movement drew attention to me.
"What was that?" one demanded.
"N-Nothing," I stuttered, eyeing the gun.
"Search her," the skinny guy commanded. Two hands roughly ran themselves over the place where my phone was currently trying to save its life in my bra. He smirked. I glared at him. This was violating. I wanted to kick him in the head, even though I was scared shitless of the gun he was carrying. He fished his fingers into the top of my dress to get the phone out. The pervert was enjoying it way too much. "Alrod!" his partner snapped.
"Sorry," he mumbled, withdrawing his hands and holding my phone in his giant palm. I stared at it hopelessly as he turned it off and dismantled it, throwing the parts in a drainage grit. My heart died in my chest. That was the only way Kyoya was going to be able to track me. And now it was gone. "Should we knock her out?"
The smaller seemed to think about that for a moment before nodding and pulling out a syringe. Alrod handed his gun to his comrade, taking out a hankerchief and tying it around my head, successfully gagging me. I thrashed as he took the rope and attempted to tie my hands. I heard the click of a bullet dropping into place and found the barrel of the handgun pointed at my head. "Stop moving," the wielder commanded. I froze immediately, not particularly wanting to die today.
They tied my hands together with the rope and pushed me back into the van. I squeaked with pain as I landed on my ankle at an odd angle. They exchanged the gun again, the skinny one wielding the syringe while Alrod held the gun on my head. I closed my eyes and stayed as still as possible. A needle was shoved unceremoniously up my arm. I felt the drug flow into my bloodstream.
It did it's work though. I was already feeling drowsy.
They child-locked and closed the backdoor, locking me inside. There was a barrier between the back and the front with only a small window for them to see me and for me to see them. Pretty soon my captors pulled themselves into the front seat and started the engine.
How had I gotten myself into this mess? My head was spinning so I laid my head back. Dark spots took over my vision. Whatever they had shot me up with was working really well.
'Someone please find me,' I prayed as I passed out.
– Kyoya –
I frowned at my cellphone as it vibrated furiously. "Kaydence Malronda," the caller ID read. What on earth could she want? Sighing, I flipped it open. "What d'you want Kaydence?"
All that I got was background noise and what sounded like her trying to stuff her phone into her pocket. Thinking she pocket-dialed me, I was about to hang up when I heard a voice speaking. And it was male. "What was that?"
"N-Nothing." She sounded like she was scared to death. Kaydence rarely stuttered unless she was scared or nervous, that much I knew. A shiver ran down my spine. What the hell was happening to her?
"Search her," the male voice said, his voice icy. More background noise. "Alrod!" the guy snapped impatiently. So the other guy's name was Alrod. That may be useful information if she had been kidnapped.
"Sorry." The other guy's voice was deeper but just as icy, even when he was apologetic. Now I was almost positive that she had been kidnapped. Something clunked and I assumed it was the guy's fingers grabbing Kaydence's phone. Soon after the line went dead. My hand dropped to my side, still holding my cellphone. Kaydence had been kidnapped. I didn't know what they wanted, or even if they didn't just want to rape and kill her. I should have forced her to take the limo home.
I shook my head and pulled myself together. No regretting what had already passed. What did I know?
I knew Kaydence had been kidnapped by two men, one of which went by the name of Alrod. By the sound of Alrod's voice he was probably bigger, but I couldn't be certain. I had absolutely no idea where they were. I could probably track her phone but chances were it had been dismantled by now. However, I could still track her phone to the place where it had been left. Whoever those men had been, Kaydence had sounded scared out of her mind of them. That wasn't normal for her, which made me think that one or both of them had a weapon of some sort. A gun or a knife.
"Something wrong Kyoya?" Tamaki asked, coming up next to me. Haruhi was with him
I hesitated, not sure if I should tell them. It would probably cause a huge commotion, knowing my best friend. "No," I replied shortly, slipping my cellphone into my pocket.
"Where'd Kaydence go, Kyoya-sempai?" Haruhi asked, looking slightly worried.
"She went home." Technically I wasn't lying. She had gone home. I just failed to mention that she had walked and gotten herself kidnapped in the process. Haruhi narrowed her eyes suspiciously.
"Are you sure?" she asked.
I sighed. "Yes, Haruhi. I'm sure." She didn't look particularly convinced. I was tempted to tell her. Kaydence and her had actually become rather close over the last week. She would probably know something was wrong when she didn't show up for school on Monday. I decided against it. I would have to make sure that Kaydence had been kidnapped for sure before I told anyone.
A thought struck me suddenly. Her parents were going to be pissed at me when they figured out that their only daughter was missing. I had to tell them right away. I glanced at my watch. 11:30. I may as well show up now and explain myself. Her father had instructed that she be home by midnight. "I think, I'll head home," I muttered, turning and striding out of the ballroom before anyone could protest. I called Tachibana out to the front, mind stirring up plans for finding Kaydence. "Malronda's place," I commanded as I stepped in. He nodded and put the car in drive.
I dreaded arriving.
–
"Ahh. Kyoya, I was wondering when you were going to get back," Layne Malronda commented from the living room, looking back to the front door. I nodded once, unsure how to tell him that his daughter was missing. He noticed that she wasn't there. "But, where's Kaydence?"
I coughed. I wanted to tell him that she was right behind me. Unfortunately, I was obligated to tell him the truth. "She's... Missing."
Felicity stared at me, eyes glaring dangerously. "What?" she asked.
"Kaydence... Is missing."
"What do you mean?" Pierce asked, interrupting both his parents outraged comments before they could voice them.
I breathed in deeply once. "She got... upset and decided to walk home."
"So where is she? Surely she must have called." Pierce was the only calm one of all the Malrondas currently, so I spoke directly to him, trying to ignore Layne and Felicity's worried and furious looks.
I swallowed. My throat felt tight. "She did call. But it wasn't to talk. I believe she's been kidnapped," I murmured, staring her brother right in the eye. Now he looked angry and just a bit worried. "I should have made her take the limo. It's my fault. I apologize." I bowed once while I thought of what else to say. "I'll find her. I promise."
"You better," Layne growled, "Or you don't want to even know what the bloody consquences will be."
I really didn't want to. The Malrondas were just about as powerful of a family as the Ohtoris were and I honestly didn't want a war between the two of us either. It wouldn't be pretty and it would get us no where when it came to finding out where Kaydence had been taken.
I swore to myself that I would find her. Both to stop a rift between our families and because she needed finding. She wouldn't be able to free herself.
I had to find her.
–
A/N: Kudos to (woah what a list) Kiriyu-chan, thearistocrat, KageNoNeko, TwilightFever-FutureCullen, and Koharu Veddette! Rack up those MUF-Kudos!
Gonna be a lot of switching between Kyoya and Kaydence's views from now on. I'll make sure to mark where there's a change.