Next day at the Host Club, Haruhi found it difficult to concentrate on her clients. She kept stealing glances at Mori every now and then, hoping he wouldn't catch her in the act. Honey, however, happened to notice it and gave her a sly grin when she saw that he had caught her. She blushed and tried to signal with her eyes to not let Mori know. She wasn't so sure the "innocent" boy-lolita would actually listen to her, though. She knew that he was devious in his own ways.
"Haruhi? Not having trouble concentrating, are we?" a cold voice sounded right behind her.
Haruhi knew that voice only too well. Turning around sheepishly, she faced the glint of Kyoya's glasses and said weakly, "Um, no, not at all. Just wondering what homework was due tomorrow."
"Oh really? And staring at Mori helps with that?" Kyoya asked, as the girls around Haruhi squealed excitedly at the prospect of Haruhi being even slightly interested in Mori. That's when it struck her that Kyoya had only made the comment to get a new ball rolling. She rolled her eyes and turned her attention back on her customers while Kyoya said, "Don't forget to meet me after club hours, Haruhi!" That launched the girls into another fantasy land where Haruhi and Kyoya were together.
"Kyoya-senpai, that was really unnecessary," Haruhi complained when she met up with Kyoya later to discuss details of the date they were going to have. "This will affect Mori-senpai too, you know."
"Haruhi, everyone knows that for instance, the romance between the Hitachiin twins isn't real. Therefore, they'll know that this matter between you and Mori-senpai won't be real either," Kyoya replied, pushing up his glasses. "I'm just doing my job. If you want to repay your debt, you should be glad that I'm doing you this favor of getting you more customers this way."
Haruhi said nothing and looked away.
"Anyway, we need to discuss where we're going today. Another one of my father's hospitals is being inaugurated today and it's an event where a lot of bigwigs will be present. That means, I'll need you in formal attire," he said, checking his notes. "I will come to your house at 6PM and we will leave immediately, because the function starts at 7."
"Yes, of course," she replied through clenched teeth. "What other talents do I need to perfect before 6PM?"
"Brush up on your English and formal Japanese. Learn to curtsey and of course, I expect fine manners. I don't want you talking or acting like a commoner. There will be a lot of VIPs, members of some royal families and corporate executives who will be impressed with the way you present yourself," Kyoya replied, not understanding (or maybe ignoring) the sarcasm. "Oh, by the way, I will also be expecting you to remember the details about some of our prominent guests. It's important that we recognize them and ask about them, their businesses and to a small extent, about their personal lives. I'll be emailing you a list of the guests you need to worry about, so find out about them. I already have done my research, so I will be testing you on your knowledge while we're in the car."
Haruhi was stunned. Was this a date or a school field trip? She wondered briefly if Tamaki was ready to take her spot by putting on a brown wig, as he had done for the physical exam for her.
"Are you serious?" she was about to ask, but she realized who she was talking to. Obviously he was serious! He was crazy like that! Feeling helpless, she nodded mutely and slowly shuffled out of the music room to go home.
Haruhi had been so busy studying that she didn't have time to worry about her looks and let her father obsess over that part for himself.
"Ugh!" she cried out in exasperation, sick of the countless names that she had to remember for the event. It seemed as if Kyoya had sent everyone's names and not just those of select and important guests. "Is he doing this on purpose just to drive me crazy?!"
"Of course he's doing this on purpose," Ranka replied seriously, waving a blush brush. "But not for the reasons you think. Haruhi. He is a part of the Ootori group. Do you understand how big and important this event is and what sort of luminaries will be there? And anyway, the next time he has such an event, he will be inviting a girl of his status as his date. I won't be surprised if he actually planned the practice dates just so that he could get an idea of how to bring a date to these events and socialize accordingly. To us commoners, this all seems vain and shallow. To them, it's a matter of building relationships to get support of every form for their next business. Since Kyoya is taking you for such an affluent event, I think the least you can do is support him."
Haruhi felt a little ashamed of her outburst after hearing this. In a subdued manner, she allowed her father to finish off her makeup. Ranka was happy he had finally convinced his daughter of something and started daydreaming, this time about his temperamental daughter being a perfect match for the cool-headed Kyoya.
When Kyoya arrived, he immediately made an inspection of what Haruhi was wearing. She was wearing her best dress, a black off-shoulder one, perfect for a dinner party, and she matched well with Kyoya, who was wearing a black suit. She was admiring how sharp he looked when he commented, "Carry a purse. It looks very smart that way." The way she was looking at him immediately turned sour and her father noticed it immediately and there was a purse shoved into her hand. Then he pushed them both outside, to prevent a fight.
Kyoya looked surprised, but he tried to steady himself by starting to quiz Haruhi on the way to the hospital on whatever she had learnt about the guests. He ensured that she was quizzed in both English and Japanese and when he was pleased with her knowledge, he spoke up.
"I know this wasn't your idea of a date, Haruhi, but I had no other choice. I was asked to bring a date for this event, and I knew that I couldn't ask any of our usual clients. We're not allowed to date our clients, or take them out like this, remember? That would create discord between the other girls. And even if we could, I'm not comfortable with handling a girl all by myself. Since we work together, I felt that it would be easier to take you as a date." He looked at her and smiled properly, for the first time. "And anyway, I know you're a pretty smart person, Haruhi. Those guests would be very impressed with you and if they know you're an honor student at Ouran."
Haruhi was stunned. She hadn't been expecting Kyoya to compliment her like that. She realized that this was what made Kyoya a good host - he seemed cold and calculating, but when he made a compliment like that, it felt genuine. This was in comparison to Tamaki's list of mass-produced flirtatious comments that felt fake after a point of time.
"Thank you, Kyoya-senpai," she replied warmly. "You can count on me this evening."
Haruhi had never been to an inauguration ceremony of anything before, apart from maybe school functions. Most inauguration ceremonies invited only top people, like the function she was attending presently. At other times, when it was open to the public, she felt it was a waste of time, so she didn't bother to attend them. She quickly found out that the event was just about a few important stakeholders giving speeches, and everyone else enjoying cocktails and just socializing. She put her best foot forward every time Kyoya introduced her to someone, and tried to ask questions that they found intelligent. Then she noticed that there was a pattern to Kyoya's introductions - the guests they interacted with were mostly lawyers.
When they had a moment alone, while they were drinking mocktails, she confronted him about it. Kyoya simply smiled his new smile and sipped his drink calmly. Then he turned to face the female host.
"Haruhi, as per my request, you prepared yourself for this event, although either of us would hardly call this a date. The least I can do, as a mark of gratitude towards you, is to introduce you to people you would find interesting, and people who can help you when you start your career. Working with any of these lawyers for a couple of years will guarantee you with a top position at a law firm, or as the corporate lawyer for a large business group. For instance, if you do well, I'm sure the Ootori group would hire you in the blink of an eye. I know I would, if I were to head the group."
He flashed his curiously sweet smile and said, "That's the least I can do for the girl I like."
Haruhi once again found herself floored. There was something really electrifying about this guy, if he could render her speechless like this. Or maybe it was his way of putting things bluntly. Is this how she sounded to Tamaki?
"Uh Kyoya-senpai?" she asked. After Mori's confession, her understanding of these things were a little more sensitive. "You...like me?"
"Yes, I believe that is what I said," he replied. "I always found you to be very interesting, Haruhi. Smart, honest, practical and pretty. I value all these traits in a girl. When you joined Host Club, it wasn't a happy occasion, after you broke that vase." ("You didn't have to remind me of that again!") "But the more time I spent with you, the more I grew fond of you. Simply put, you're my dream girl. I must confess, I even planned these practice dates to get an excuse to be with you, without raising suspicion in anyone's minds. But even now, I'm not sure whether I was actually ready to confess my feelings for you."
That's when it hit Haruhi - the usually calm and collected Shadow King was nervous. 'Was that smile from earlier his way to cover up his nervousness?' she wondered. She looked up at him and he quickly looked into his glass of Virgin Mary. She wondered further, how things had suddenly gotten complicated. Kyoya was suddenly seeming to be a sweet person, because of his willingness to help her. But was that really the factor that would determine whether she liked him? It made her look like a gold-digger. But he did value her ambition and intelligence. That part made her blush because something like that coming from Kyoya Ootori was certainly unexpected and was a huge compliment for her. But was she going to really fall for his compliments? That again wasn't what should determine whether she liked him or not. His personality should determine it. But then she remembered how, throughout the event, he had been much more pleasant to be around with. He even joked about some of the more stuck-up VIPs who had come for the event. He knew how to relax and have a good time - he just locked this part away when he was at the Club to maintain some order. Kyoya was certainly a deeper character than she had thought.
A/N: I'm so sorry I was late with this chapter. Lately, I've been going through some personal stuff and didn't want to deal with writing romance. So if the romance in this one was limp, I'm really sorry for that. I'm hoping to recover from this funk very soon. Do people even say, "funk" any more?