Chapter Nineteen: Love Curses and Mei
"Kyouya, we're going to be caught!" Kiiro warned, giggling.
"It's fine, they won't get here for a few minutes yet." he pressed another kiss to her lips, which she accepted happily.
They heard the door open and Kiiro jumped back a few paces, putting some space between her and Kyouya.
Kyouya kept his composure easily, "If we can't prepare for an event before Summer break comes, we ought to start planning for something immediately after..." he stated as he pulled out his black book, sitting across from her.
Kiiro took a second to realize what he was saying, "You're right. Oh, it ought to be something that goes well with the hot season..." she smiled.
Tamaki, who had been the one to open the door joined in their conversation, "I want a Scottish presentation!" he beamed.
"Scottish?" Kiiro questioned. "That's not exactly what I think when I think summer..."
"But we haven't done that yet..." he pouted.
Kiiro shrugged, still grinning like an idiot. For the time being, the secret between her and Kyouya was still under wraps. Their relationship, though left untitled, was still just between them. Neither of them were quite willing to push anything like a relationship on the club just yet. Everyone else had love troubles of their own, and things were going to have to run their courses before they said anything. Besides, she knew the Twins would be unlikely to let them alone if they even suspected they liked each other.
She blushed, again, at the thought of liking Kyouya, feeling her heart swell all over again, and also feeling like an idiot for acting so strangely. She glanced over at the raven-haired boy, who had noticed her blush, he smirked and held a finger up to his lips. She smiled back, and the rest of the club filed in, and things were back to normal.
As everyone tried to keep cool, Tamaki went on about fortune-telling, "People from ancient times used stars and planets to foresee their destinies," he explained to one guest. "But recently, using familiar electrical home appliances and stationary have become a popular way to tell one's fortune. Originally, commoners were interested in creating as much amusement as they could at no cost at all... Can it be that the reason is not because they are too busy, but that this is a symbol of the emptiness of the present-day commoner's heart? Fortune telling can be used for anything, from giving yourself peace of mind to finding the truth behind the meaning of your existence,can it not?" he said passionately. "Hey, Haruhi! Let Father do some animal fortune telling for you. Haru-chan. A bunny, or a chick?" he called her over."It doesn't really matter... Alright then, it won't take long..." she sat down far away from Tamaki and his guests.
"Eh? Why are you sitting so far away?" Tamaki asked.
"Well... just as a precaution."
"Whaaaat? Why? What for? What did I do?"
"Ah, well, it's all right if you don't remember..."
"What's that?" King stressed. "W-w-w-what should I do? My daughter's going through the rebellious stage? A-alright, I'll use these cards to find the cause!" he held up his deck.
"Oho! So, Suoh-kun likes to fortune-tell? Ufufufufu..." Nekozawa appeared from nowhere.
'How does he do that?!'
"Nekozawa-senpai!" King screamed in terror.
"In that case, you must stop by the Black Magic Club~!" he wiggled Beelzenef. "We're currently in the middle of our summer Fortune-Telling Campaign but, we'll give Suoh-kun special services."
"Eeeeek!" Tamaki cried, backpedaling.
"Oh yes, I have some wonderful news for Haninozuka-kun~..." he turned to his classmate and complete opposite.
"Hnnn~?" Hani lifted his piece of cake to his mouth.
"Congratulations~! This time our princess of curses..." he smiled eerily. "...has chosen you as the lucky sacrifice~!"
Everyone's respective jaws dropped, 'Hani-senpai's what?!'
'Here we are, stalking and creeping again...' Kiiro sweatdropped as she and the rest of the club peered into Class 1D.
Inside stood the subject, a gothic beauty with straight, dark hair and emotionless eyes, her name was Kanazuki Reiko, of the Black Magic Club.
"So that's the girl that's put a curse on Hani-senpai?" Kyouya.
"Do you know her, Hani-senpai?" Kiiro.
"Hani-senpai, do you have any idea why?" Tamaki.
"I think I remember something, but I have no idea why!" Hani.
"She doesn't wear all black like Nekozawa-senpai." Haruhi.
"So, Class 1D isn't all that weird then." the Twins.
"Why am I being cursed? To be killed?" big tears formed in Hani's eyes.
"I'll have a talk with her..." Mori said angrily as he loosened his tie, his face transformed into a mask of rage.
'I didn't know a Dark Mori existed, too!'
"Waaah! Mori-senpai, you mustn't use violence!" they pleaded.
"That's right~!" Umehito mysteriously appeared. "Stop now~ Interfering with the curse will cause misfortune~!"
"Waaahhh!" Tamaki was terrified. "N-Nekozawa-senpai?"
"Haninozuka-kun~... You really have no recollection~? Kanazuki-hime said you captured her soul~... She plans to get revenge by using curses to capture your soul~!" he and Beelzenef grinned. "And, to prove it, here is Kanazuki-hime's eraser~... This type of curse captures person's soul by writing the full name here~!" 'Mitsukuni Haninozuka' was written on the eraser.
"W-what kind of curse...?" Kiiro trailed off.
"Um..." the Twins mirrored her realization. "This is..."
Umehito chuckled evilly, and produced an elegant mirror, "And this is Kanazuki-hime's hand mirror~ This curse captures someone's soul by writing their name on it in pink nail polish~!" 'Mitsukuni Haninozuka' was also prevalent on the mirror, this time surrounded by hearts.
They began to realize what was going on.
'This isn't a curse...'
"If I remember correctly this is..."
"Yeah, this was popular with girls when we were in elementary school..."
"Ooo~! So you know~?" he produced a book titled, 'Girls in Love: Win His Love. Spell Book.' "Even among curses this is quite popular~!"
'That's no curse...'
"No, it's a curse." Kiiro whipped around to face Kanazuki, jumping like the Twins and Tamaki.
'Mind reader?'
"Perfect timing, Haninozuka-senpai." she said in a flat manner. "A strand of hair please." she pulled at his head.
"NYAAAAHHHH!"
Mori tried to save him.
"If I bind this with my hair..." she loosely tied the blond and black hairs together. "Our souls will be intertwined."
Tamaki spoke up, "Ummm... could it be... that you like Haninozuka-senpai?"
"Technically speaking, I'm capturing his soul."
"Right... so you're stealing his heart."
"Well... I don't know how to describe it... but, if I put it into words..." her eyes showed no feeling. "Haninozuka-senpai occupies nine-tenths of my thoughts and causes my heart to race... His appearance also matches my fetish, since I like pixies, all I want is to capture his soul." she grinned eerily. "Until I capture Haninozuka-senpai's soul... I will continue to curse him..."
The curses ranged from chopsticks to writing his name one-hundred times. Everyday Hani would come to the Club Room more and more exhausted. He ate his cake slowly and his eyelids drooped.
'Poor guy...' Kiiro thought sympathetically.
The Twins used King's cards to foresee the future of Hani and Kanazuki, "Their compatibility is perfect! It makes sense though, she likes small, cute things. Also, polar opposite couples are unexpectedly well-matched."
"You guys... try to put yourselves in his shoes a little..."
Kyouya closed his book, "Hani-senpai, what will you do? This is hindering club sales, so if you don't mind, I can use my influence to..."
"Y-yeah but..." Hani's eyes were sad. "I've watched her for a few days now and been thinking... Aside from the Black Magic Club, Kanazuki-chan doesn't seen to have any friends...Maybe, she's really bad at socializing... and curses and spells are her way of communicating with people... That may be her personality, but..."
"Excuse me, Haninozuka-san..." Kanazuki appeared. "... I'd like to borrow that stuffed animal."
'Not Usa-chan!'
"Eh? What are you gonna do with it?" Hani distressed.
"I'll return it tomorrow." she took it in her arms.
"Waaahhh! Definitely not my Usa-chan!" he cried.
Mori intercepted and grabbed Usa-chan from her, "If you want to capture his heart... aren't there other ways to do that?"
"Hand me the stuffed animal, please." she asked flatly. "If you interfere, I'll place a curse of misfortune on you..."
"He won't yield to people who don't consider others' feelings, even if a curse is used..." he lectured. "It doesn't matter how many spells like that a person uses, they won't win his heart..."
"It's not like I didn't consider his feelings..." somewhere behind her flat eyes, Kiiro was sure she saw sadness. "I don't expect anyone to understand my situation. I don't expect to be liked by anyone or anything like that... Since it's impossible for me to just talk to him, I used a curse from the beginning..."
"That's not how it is Kanazuki-chan..." Hani explained. "To get someone to understand you, you need to talk to them. If you want them to like you, you should talk to them a lot! I don't like to have my feelings changed by a curse! Things that Kanazuki-chan likes, is not good at, or makes you happy... If you talked more about those things, I'd like to ear them!"
Kanazuki actually blushed.
"Kanazuki-chan, you know I... I like people who put in an effort, even if they're not good at something~..." his grin was something they hadn't seen before, more charming than sugary.
'That was playboyish...'
"I... I like cur-curses and... I'm not very good at socializing... but, that day, you offered your hand when I fell in the hallway, and... smiled at me... I was so happy." she spouted.
"Ah, I remember... you're the girl that tripped on Usa-chan when I dropped him..." he smiled sweetly.
"What?"
'So, he started it?'
"Well then, Kanazuki-chan, should we eat cake first~?"
"Y... yes!"
After that, every once in a while, Kanazuki visited the Host Club. She was trying to cut back on cursing things... which was an improvement...
'Tomorrow is the start of summer vacation!' she stretched and yawned. 'I can catch up on my sleep!' she thought with a smile.
Something was odd, though. Haruhi hadn't been coming to club activities lately. Kiiro knew she'd get caught up in the investigation over her vacation. So, she made a mental note to remind the housemaids to not let anyone into her room while she slept. Though really, she doubted her word would override her father's insistence that the Evil Shadow King ought to be allowed to check on her at any time. She sighed. What was he trying to pull with an order like that, anyhow?
"I see! I see! Tomorrow is summer vacation," Tamaki started with a smile. "... so Haruhi didn't come to club today because she didn't feel up to it!"
He fell over dramatically, backward, with a gush of tears.
"Tama-chan!"
"Recently I feel like I'm being avoided..." King huddled up on the floor in a puddle of his own tears. "Even when I speak, the answer seems so far away... Why? Was I too harsh? Like I took a knife to that maiden's pure heart and ripped it part!" he cried.
"Isn't it summer? Tono's going overboard."
"Tono's feelings are clouded because Haruhi's not here." the boys said distantly, not quite taking an interest in their King's hysterics.
Everyone crowded around Tamaki, who was having a fit.
"Why this?!"
"Hika-chan! Kao-chan! Stop flailing!"
"What we're trying to say is, Haruhi ran off before we could stop her!" the Twins argued. "We don't know her summer plans!"
In a calm voice Kyouya prompted them, "Ahh... Everyone, I don't see what's strange about this but, have you considered that Haruhi may be going to the neighboring school to meet up with Misuzu's daughter?"
'How come he never tells us anything useful until it's too late?'
Tamaki's voice became scratchy, "Kyou...ya..." King grabbed his shoulder.
"It seems that he has a daughter in the same grade as Haruhi. He and his wife separated seven years ago. Her mother remarried and raised her. Her step-father is on a business trip for one month. Her family made arrangements so she could stay with Misuzu." he explained as if it were common knowledge.
"So, Misuzu's a divorcee?"
"How is Haru-chan involved?"
"Misuzu took her in so she could stay in Japan with her mother's consent, believing it was in her best interests. Really, it must have been a sight to see Misuzu's face. She arrived at his house and left as soon as she came."
'Poor Misuzu...'
"Misuzu ran over to the Fujioka house, worried. And asked Haruhi to become her friend."
"I see..."
"But, why does Haruhi have to see her after school? Hey, is Tono crying?"
King had big tears in his eyes, he hugged himself, "I understand... I full-heartedly understand Misuzu's pain and suffering!" he took on his 'let's help' pose with his index finger and thumb in the air. "To release this kindred spirit! Let's go everyone! We must bring Misuzu and his daughter together with love!"
'There goes my summer vacation...' Kiiro whined.
They were in Kyouya's limo. In front of the all-girls school located nearby where Misuzu's daughter attended.
"Haruhi's supposed to arrive here!" Tamaki pointed.
"It would have been better just to anticipate her time of arrival..." Kyouya patronized.
"Ah~! I see her~! Haru-chan~!" Hani peered out the window.
"Eh?"
"Ehhh?"
"Ehhhhh?"
Tamaki and the Twins stared at Haruhi, who was wearing the cute red skirt and plain blouse of the uniform of that school.
She greeted one of the girls, "Ah! Mei-chan! Great, just in time..."
The girl, who was very tan and wore a thick layer of makeup, replied, "Why are you here?" she looked annoyed. "Don't you see I'm trying to run away from these meets!" she hid her face.
The boys deadpanned, "Gah!"
Her appearance really was over the top, her skin was nearly orange and her lipstick was caked on and her mascara and liner were way too heavy and dark, along with this her hair was ultra blonde and crimped.
"But, Misuzu requested that..."
"Misuzu! He's actually Isao! I-sa-o!" she yelled. "That big-boned, cross-dressing okama!"
'She's very loud...' the club slumped, thinking of the gentle, softspoken girls that visited the Host Club.
"What's that in the bag?" The girl, Mei, asked.
"I changed out of the Ouran uniform in the station's bathroom..." Haruhi explained. "It wouldn't be right for me to stand outside of this school with an Ouran uniform on."
"What are you doing walking around with plain clothes at a rich man's school? Rumors can be started that way! The point is you're a woman! And a woman's a woman!" she screeched at her.
"She really has a problem with cross-dressing..." Kiiro analyzed.
They got out of the car, Tamaki turned on his charm. "And so, I wish to say good job, miss. I agree with your speech, pleased to meet you." he held out a hand. "I'm Tamaki Suoh and these are my assistants."
"What's with that?" the Twins protested.
Mei turned to Haruhi for a private conversation but everyone could hear her, "Wait a minute! He's very beautiful! Are these your friends?"
"Excuse me, are you Mei-chan?" Tamaki asked.
"Yes~! I'm Mei Yasumura~! Pleased to meet you~!" she cheered with a smile.
"You have such beautiful light brown skin, tell me, are you mixed?"
She looked offended, "No, it's just a suntan."
"Your makeup gives off such a solid, strong sensation that is full of passion." Tamaki smiled. "Is it for the stage?"
Mei's jaw dropped.
"That skirt is very short~! Aren't you cold~?" Hani.
"Ah, maybe it's for tennis?" Kyouya.
"Your hair is unnaturally blonde, do you dye it?" Kiiro.
"Ooh! Her eyelashes are long!" Hikaru.
"I wonder if she's seen without makeup as much as with it?" Kaoru.
"She seems to resemble Misuzu a lot!" Hikaru and Kaoru.
"Wait, are they trying to insult me?!" she balled her fists.
Haruhi looked annoyed.
"Mei-chan, where do you stay at~?"
"What about your home, if Misuzu's place is so unbearable, why not just live alone?"
"Shut up! If I were to do that, my mother would scold me!" she yelled at the Twins. "Starting this month, I'll have my friend walk me to the hotel I'm staying at!"
'Who stays at a hotel for a whole month?'
"Eh? You're staying at a hotel for a whole month?" they all asked.
"Can you please be quiet...?" Haruhi sighed.
"Enough let's go!" Mei grabbed Haruhi.
"Mei-chan, about that..."
"Let's go to the karaoke so I can get my mind off this! It's your obligation!"
But, there was no escaping them, the Hosts followed up in the car.
"Eh? Karaoke?" the Twins.
"Can we go?" Kiiro.
"I wanna go~~~!" Hani.
"Of course, that's what commoner's do, karaoke!" Tamaki.
"Sounds great!" Kyouya.
"I get it.. they got out of that car...!" Mei griped.
They sat in one of the booths at the Karaoke Restaurant.
"Number 10. Tamaki Suoh," King announced, holding the microphone. "...will sing "Shitetsu Ensen"."
Hani grabbed a tambourine and Mori grabbed the maracas.
'What an interesting sort of place.' Kiiro mused, smiling. Of course, she would never be able to work up the nerve to sing in front of anyone.
"Haruhi, why don't you sing?"
"Yes!" Tamaki stopped midsong. "A duet between father and dau-..."
"No thanks." Haruhi stomped out his hopes. "Now, if you'll excuse me I'll have to use the restroom." she walked off.
King sulked in the corner.
"Hey, wait, umm... Do you want to sing? I can sing with you..." Mei offered.
"Thanks, that's kind of you, Mei-chan."
"Eh? Don't worry about the kindness!" Mei yelled.
'Why does she have to yell?'
"Hey, hey, Mei-chan~!" Hani stopped eating cake, momentarily. "What other things do you like besides karaoke~? Do you like cake~?"
"I like to make... clothes..." she answered.
"Like father, like daughter?" Kiiro smiled.
"Eh? Misuzu is the same, too." the Twins pointed out.
"Wah? What do you mean like him?" she screeched at them.
"Do you really not like your father that much?"
"You don't know him..." she frowned. "That man... that man's room...Does it have to have that overwhelmingly cute style?"
"Isn't that expected?"
"Every single year on my birthday he sends me cute clothes!" she griped. "Wouldn't that normally be what a mother does? When I was little, I really liked him! But, then... he gave up being a banker! What's with that? Now he's this... this!"
"Hey, hey look..." Tamaki tried to stop her anger. "Haruhi's father is..."
"A father isn't supposed to be that way!" she yelled. "Is throwing away as much as the daughter..." she hid her face.
Tamaki saw right through her, "I see... you're feeling sad..."
One and a half Hani songs later, Haruhi came back from the bathroom. Tamaki hid his face behind a magazine.
"But, he obviously wants her attention." Kyouya pointed out, quietly.
Kiiro nodded, the only one that heard him, "She's been avoiding him lately..."
"Um... Tamaki-senpai..." Haruhi started.
Tamaki looked up happily, like a little puppy.
"Wait!" Mei grabbed her. "You need to come with me to the bathroom."
"Eh... why are we going to the bathroom now? Hey! Hey!" Haruhi struggled.
"Ne, Kyouya?" Kiiro wondered.
"Yes?"
"Do you think... Mei likes Tamaki?" she whispered.
"Well, it's likely..."
"Is this going to interfere with our summer vacation?"
"Also likely..."
They sighed.
Lo and behold, "Kiiro, wake up."
Kiiro burrowed into her covers, not even half-awake.
"Let's not do this again..." Kyouya pulled on her comforter.
"Too tired..." she whined.
"Get up, Kiiro." he tried once more.
She rolled away from his voice, "Make me." she challenged, regretting the words as soon as they came out of her mouth.
He chuckled, "I will." he tugged the blankets off of her.
"Why does this keep happening to me?" she whined, trying to squirm away.
He leaned over her, an arm and a leg on either side of her, "You're the one...who wanted me in your bed." he whispered in her ear.
"That was a slip of the tongue!" she was fully awake now and her face became cherry red.
"Besides, I believe "invading your bed" was one of the things I said I would start doing more often, now?" he kissed her, smirk apparent.
Her heart thudded in her chest, "H-hey, Kyouya!" she squeaked, wiggling.
"What?" he grinned. "You aren't trying to get away from me, are you?" he held her wrists together with one hand, effectively preventing her retreat.
She kissed him, putting as much passion into it as she was willing to give him, "Kyouya..." she protested.
He cocked his head at her, wanting to stay like this.
"Come on." she pouted. "You've already woken me up. Though, as of yet, I don't know what for..."
He sighed and sat up beside her, "It's Mei. She wanted all of us to spend the day with her." he explained.
"Even Haruhi?"
"She doesn't have to go."
"Why do I have to go, then?" she whined, leaning her head on his shoulder.
"I've gotten used to you being around to help calm everyone down. Besides, you owe me. Though, there are other ways..." he kissed her, running a hand down her back.
She shot up like a bolt of lightning had hit her, "So, I'm told, but, I'm going to have to pass." she pulled away. "Give me ten minutes."
Kiiro often found herself admiring commoner things but, trains were something different. She liked looking out the window while they slowly made their way all around Tokyo on the Yamanote Line but, she wasn't as interested as most of the Hosts. Tamaki, the Twins, Hani and Mori crowded around the window across from Kyouya and Kiiro. Kyouya was currently pretending not to know any of them. Mei stood in the middle of the train car annoyed by the fawning Hosts.
"I hope she gets tired of them." Kiiro sighed. "I can get more sleep that way."
"She won't." Kyouya said simply.
"Hey, how did you get in my house anyway? I told all of the staff to not let you in."
He smiled. "I believe your father's word ranks over yours."
"Why don't you just call me if you want me to go with you?" she crossed her arms.
"That never wakes you up. Besides, it's fun waking you up the way I do."
"Of course it is. You practically take advantage of me every time." she whispered.
"Well, it wakes you up. And, you know, it could get much worse." he raised his eyebrow.
"Stop that."
"Stop what?"
She glared at him.
The rest of the day passed by quickly, eating commoner's convenient food, like dango. And they all went to an amusement park, to Mei's dismay. She wnted to go to fancy boutiques and restaurants. Kiiro suspected the next day would go just like this one.
Her suspicions were correct.
"You know," she heard Kyouya's voice again. "I'm not even going to bother warning you."
He got into bed with her, lying on his side next to her.
"Kyouya." she tried. "Get out of my bed."
"Not until you wake up." he smirked.
She attempted to roll away from him but he grabbed her around the waist and pulled her closer.
"K-Kyouya, stop that!" she protested from against his chest, their close proximity making her feel like she was about to melt.
"Stop what?"
"Get out of my bed, Kyouya, what if someone were to walk in?" she fidgeted.
He smiled, "Do you want me to lock the door?" he kissed her neck.
She blushed, "I-I'm awake!" and sat up quickly.
"Are you sure?"
"Yes, very sure!" she hopped off the bed heading to pick out her clothes.
He sighed, "But I was having fun..."
"Yeah, and now I'm awake and we can go do whatever Mei wants to do." she rifled through her dresser.
"Kiiro?" he got off of her bed, making his way to her. He was so close, she could feel the heat off of him from behind her, he grabbed her arm, hand sliding down to meet with hers, she stayed completely still, heart beating at one-hundred miles per minute, "Did I find a sensitive spot?" he nearly purred. He kissed her neck again, and her whole body was awash in heat for a moment.
"N-no!" she covered her neck, whipping around in his hold. "Y-you're such a pervert!"
"And you're a horrible liar." he got even closer to her, pushing her back against the dresser, trapping her with his arms and hips, "Why the rush? We still have plenty of time to get ready." he smirked.
She felt her heart jump, "Kyou-Kyouya?"
His smirk became a grin.
'Purikura and arcade games, all day...' Kiiro thought exhausted. She looked down at all the photos she had in her bag. Four photos with Hani and Mori, four with the Twins, four with Tamaki, four with Mei and four with Kyouya.
She blushed at the last set of photos, Kyouya had kissed her in the last picture. She remembered how he had ripped them out of the machine before anyone else could see them and pressed them into her hand.
"What did you do?" Hikaru asked on one side of her.
"Can we see them?" Kaoru asked on the other side of her.
"Nothing and no." she replied as coolly as was possible.
"Why not?"
Tamaki yelled, "Hikaru! Kaoru! Look at this game!" saving Kiiro from their pestering.
'Kyouya's always teasing me...' she sighed, her blush remaining, remembering what had happened that morning. 'And...I do like him...' her heart fluttered. 'Wait...is "like" the right word?'
He always had a way of confusing her, so she put her thoughts of feelings on the backburner, 'Maybe I shouldn't wonder about what it is too much...' she mused as she showered.
When she left the shower, she found the perfect spot in her room to put the pictures up, save for one of course. Thinking, 'Whatever it is I'm feeling...' she grinned to herself. 'I'm happy.'
She fell asleep easily.
She heard the door open and sighed, "Kyouya, get into my bed again and I'll kill you..."
There was a silence before, "What was that?"
"What are you talking about?"
Neither voice belonged to Kyouya. Her heart dropped to her stomach like a stone. The Hitachiin Twins stood at the foot of her bed, identical devilish gleamings set in their golden eyes. She sat up, face red and silent, not knowing what to do.
"What was what?" she spouted, nervously.
"Why was Kyouya-senpai..." Hikaru turned to Kaoru.
"...in Kiiro-senpai's bed?" Kaoru turned to Hikaru.
They snickered and grinned evilly.
"What?" she asked, mock innocently, trying to save herself.
"We knew it!" they pointed.
"Kyouya, I can't stand it anymore, I love you!" Kaoru said in a high-pitched voice, linking his arms around Hikaru's neck, face drawing nearer his brother's.
"Kiiro, come join me...on your bed." Hikaru said in a lower voice, putting his arms around Kaoru's waist, pressing their foreheads together.
She balled her fists and threw a pillow at them, "You boys are so gross! I must have been having a nightmare and...and I was sleep talking!" she raged, "How did you even get in my room, anyway?!"
"We used Kyouya-senpai's special privileges." they presented peace signs. "And now we understand why he has them~!" they cackled, teasing her.
"Get out of my room!" she yelled, throwing another pillow at them.
The entire time they were at the zoo that day, Kiiro tried not to think about what the Twins had said.
'Well, it's not really like that... Kind of... But, it's not like we're that...serious...' she thought. 'Are we?'
"Is something wrong, Kiiro?" Kyouya asked her as they visited the giraffes. "You've been distant all day."
Her face reddened at his gaze, all she could imagine was his arms around her waist.
"You're not avoiding me, are you?" he smiled.
"W-why did you have to send the Twins to wake me up?" she whined.
"So that's what it is." he shrugged. "I had to go get Tamaki, and the Twins were the only ones I could call." he chuckled. "Why, what did they do?"
"W-well, I thought it was you at first..."
"Oh, so you expected me to come to your bed?"
"N-no!" her heart sped up. "But, as soon as they walked in I said for you to not get in my bed..."
He laughed, "And what did they say to that?"
"They put on a 'brotherly love' act, only Kaoru pretended to be me and Hikaru pretended to be you..."
"I wish I had seen your reaction." he grinned in a way that made her chest tighten near painfully, in a way that reached his eyes.
"I'm glad you find it humorous." she sighed. "I'm traumatized."
"Oh, you let me push you up against your dresser and kiss you for nearly twenty minutes but, the twincest act is what gets to you?" he whispered, with an intensity in his eyes.
She felt her face heat up, "I..."
He smirked and walked off to catch up with the group, "C'mon, Kiiro, they'll be wondering where we are."
She let her heartbeat slow down as she watched him walk farther off.
'This feeling is... Is it love?'