Meeting the Host Club

Chapter 3: First Day at Work

Kei's POV

It was the just after lunch. It was bright and sunny outside. We were sitting around the table. Akira made a small cake for us today, even though nobody, even Tadashi, ate it because of Hikari's absence.

"What a slow day," complained Ryuu.

"Get used to it," Megumi wrote in her sketchpad. "Ever since Hikari left, it's been like this."

"I've had it!" I yelled. "We need to get her back!"

"Kei!" replied Akira. "Even though we all miss her, it's best if we let her be!"

"Which side are you on!" I yelled. "You do realize that unless we get her, you will never see her again!"

"I know," Akira said solemnly. "But I'm willing to sacrifice my happiness for her."

"You know what!" I yelled. "I'm going to get her, one way or another!"

I ran out of the campus and took my cellphone. I dialled Yahiro's phone number and called him.

"Hello," said Yahiro.

"Hikari's gone and we need to get her back!" I said.

"No problem," said Yahiro.

Hikari's POV

"Rei," said the teacher. "Can you name the four main islands of Japan from north to south?"

"Sure!" I said. "There's Hokkaido, Honshu, Shikoku, and Kyushu. There are over 3000 islands in Japan, some of them are artificial. There's also the Ryukyu Islands which consists of the Okinawa Islands and the Sakishima Islands."

"Good job, Rei," said the teacher. "That's a lot of additional information."

"That was too easy!"

We were in our geography class and we're getting ready for a test. I've studied for a day and I know all the answers.

After class, Hikaru, Kaoru, Haruhi and I went to get lunch.

"Finally!" said Hikaru. "The test is finished!"

"Did you find it that hard?" I asked.

"Sort of," said Hikaru.

"So Haruhi," said Kaoru. "Do you want to go around town?"

"Sorry!" said Haruhi. "I going somewhere with Rei."

"I understand," said Kaoru.

"Rei," said Tamaki. "Can I talk with you for a second?"

"Sure," I said.

We walked to the separate table.

"So when are you going to tell Hikaru and Kaoru that you're really a girl?" asked Tamaki. "I mean, if you are going to tell them."

"In a while," I said. "It's just a little too sudden to tell them right off the bat."

"Okay," said Tamaki.

After school, I prepared for my first day of work.

I put on my work uniform, which consisted of a red collar shirt with my name tag, which said "Hi! My name is Rei!"in capital letters, black pants, and a red and white cap that said, "Red's Diner" in big red letters with a black border. Under my hat, I wore my wig. I took my cellphone and put it in my pocket.

"Haruhi!" I said. "I'll go to work now!"

"Okay!" she yelled.

I walked over to the restaurant. The exterior was made of wood. It was painted red. On one of the sides, there were big, clear windows. On the other, there was a patio with lots of tables. I walked inside. There was an aroma of hamburgers as well as grilled meat. There was a waiting area and a counter that had all the prices. As I walked further, there were red tables aligned with each other, some with two chairs and some with four. As I explored, there was a section with a bunch of booths and a bar with more tables.

"Attention!" someone said into an intercom. "All trainees meet in the kitchen!"

I walked into the kitchen. There were a lot of chefs. They were wearing white shirts with the brand name in red.

"Welcome to Red's Diner!" said the manager. "May you please introduce yourselves?"

There were two of us. One person had black hair that was put into a long ponytail. She had blue eyes and black glasses on her eyes.

"Hello," said the girl. "I'm Ichigo Ashitaba."

"Hello," I said. "I'm Rei Yamaguchi!"

One person ran in. He had brown hair, but it looked messy. It was if he hastily put a wig on his head.

"I'm sorry!" he said.

"It's okay," said the manager. "Please introduce yourself."

"Hi!" said the person. "My name is Rohiya Gaisa."

"Okay!" said the manager. "Ichigo, you can be a trainee chef. Rei and Rohiya, you can be trainee waiters."

"Okay!" we all said.

"Rei?" asked the manager. "You can start with table #17!"

"Okay!" I said.

There were a lot of people, which meant a lot of orders. Some people had a hard time ordering, and others were picky. There was even a time where I had to translate the entire menu in another language to a family of vacation. Despite the setbacks, I managed to keep everyone happy.

After a while, our boss gave us a break.

"So what school do you go to?" asked Ichigo.

"I go to Ouran Academy!" I said.

"Wow!" said Ichigo. "By the way, I go to Hakusen Private School!"

"She goes to Hakusen!"

"Oh!" I said. "Who's your favourite out of the S.A.?"

"Well," said Ichigo. "Even though all of my friends are into Kei Takashima, I look up to Hikari Hanazono."

"Really?" I said.

"Really," said Ichigo.

In the corner of my eye, I saw Rohiya walk out suspiciously. I decided to follow him. When he stopped, he took out his cellphone and called someone. I started to eavesdrop.

"Hello, Kei," said Rohiya holding his phone to his ear.

"Is he really Yahiro? If he is, my secret's in danger!"

"It's true," he told over the phone. "I know where Hikari lives, where she works, and which school does she go to. I also know her alias."

"Has he been following me!"

"I'll tell you later, Kei," said Rohiya as he turned off his phone and returned to work.

After the restaurant closed for the day, we got ready to leave.

"Rei?" asked my boss. "Can I see you for a second?"

"Sure," I said as I walked over to him.

"Even though you've only worked for a single shift, your work was excellent and I decided to give you a raise already!" my boss enthusiastically said.

"Thanks," I said as I walked away.

Rohiya walked up to me as soon as I finished talking with the boss.

"Excuse me," said Rohiya. "Can you meet me outside?"

"Okay?" I said.

"Great!" he exclaimed.

I met Rohiya outside. It was seven in the evening.

"So what was it you wanted to talk to me about?"

He stopped walking and looked down.

"I know who you really are…" Rohiya paused and looked at me. "Hikari!"

My eyes widened.

"I've got to get out of this!"

I chuckled nervously, trying to have him to think twice about what he said.

"How can you be so sure?" I asked while chuckling. "My name's Rei Yamaguchi, not this Hikari person!"

"Funny, huh?" he said. "I was suspicious of you ever since I saw you run away from Tadashi's house and had all the S.A. members upset."

"That's it! I'm annoyed. He's got to be Yahiro! It's too obvious! Also, what if he tells Kei?"

Pictures of Kei following me and telling my new friends to stay away from me ran through my head.

"There's no way to get out of this! He's too suspicious!"

"Well," I said. "I confess! I never thought somebody would find out!"

"I'm pretty sure you know my identity," said Yahiro.

"Yes," I said. "There are two ways to tell. Number 1: As you entered, your hair was messy. You probably put on your wig without any care. Number 2: Your alias makes your true identity obvious. When you break it apart, it becomes "Ro Hi Ya Ga I Sa." Your alias, "Rohiya Gaisa" is "Yahiro Saiga!"

"You're right!" said Yahiro taking off his wig.

"I knew it!" I said. "You are Yahiro!"

"Well, I suddenly had a change of heart!" said Yahiro. "I won't tell Kei!"

"Well then, goodbye!" I said. "If I find out that you tell Takishima, you will be dead meat!"

I walked away from him, not looking back.

It was 8 o'clock. I was supposed to meet Haruhi at her house, before we go to the mall. I walked towards the building.

"Hi, Haruhi!" I said.

"HI!" said Haruhi as she waved her hand. "Are you ready?"

"Well," I said. "Since my cover was blown at the restaurant, can I have a haircut?"

"Sure!" said Haruhi. "Besides, it must be annoying to wear that wig all the time!"

We stopped at the barber shop. The floor was filled with peoples' hair. There were lots of customers.

"Hello!" I said. "Can I get a haircut?"

"Sure, wait 10 minutes!" said the barber. "You can look at the magazines to decide on your hairstyle!"

"Thanks!" I said.

I looked in the magazine. There were many hairstyles to choose from. There were haircuts for little children, men, and women. I turned to the men's section since "Rei Yamaguchi" is a boy.

"How's this?" said Haruhi as she pointed to a picture of a guy with spiky hair with short bangs on the front.

"Sure!" I said. "It looks fine!"

I sat on the chair as I watched my long hair being cut off. When I was finished, I looked at myself in the mirror. My new hairdo looks like the one in the picture.

After that, Haruhi and I went to the mall. Since this is a mall in Haruhi's neighbourhood, everyone, except the host club, wouldn't be seen here. One problem is that Kei can be lurking around, so I've got to be careful.

At the mall, we went shopping for clothes to wear. It was a big store filled with clothes for boys and girls of all ages. Haruhi and I picked a bunch of clothes for me to try on.

"How's this?" I said as I wore a white hoodie with a zipper and some blue jeans.

"I like it," said Haruhi.

"You said that for all the clothes I try on," I said. "We'll spend all of our money at this rate!"

"Just change back, and well pay for them," said Haruhi.

After Haurhi and I paid for our stuff, we walked home.

The next day, Haruhi, the host club, and I were sitting together in the cafeteria.

"So you shopped at a commoner's mall, right?" said Tamaki.

"Yes," I said.

I leaned over to Haruhi.

"Does he always describe stuff where rich people usually don't go to, a commoner's place?" I whispered.

"You'll get used to it," said Haruhi.

"By the way," said Kyoya. "Are you ready for hosting tomorrow, Rei?"

"Yes, I am!" I said.

"That's good!" yelled Honey.

"Meet me at the music room just before hosting hours," said Kyoya. "You need to be properly trained."

"Trained for what?" I asked with a surprised look on my face.

"You need to be trained for a lot of things!" said Tamaki. "Some include beauty, elegance, and entertaining young girls."

"Okay," I said.

The bell rang shortly after and we got back to class.

"I'm in the host club. That's great! I'm sure that Tamaki will keep my secret, but I can trust the others to keep my secret too."

After school, I went back to work and felt comfortable around Ichigo and Rohiya a.k.a. Yahiro as my workmates. As soon as I got home, I went straight to bed.