Hey everyone! Welcome to the third chapter! I am really glad to read all of your reviews for each chapter!

This chapter is kind of slow, but the next chapters definitely pick up...

Previously...

Unfortunately for Haruhi, the worrying she had been doing, as well as the crying and the fact that she stood up much too quick, all added up to a serious case of dizziness. As soon as she was standing, the floor came up to meet her face.

The last thing she was aware of was the blond-haired man calling her name in panicked voice and two strong arms wrapping around her waist.

And now...

Kyoya was only half hearing what his customers were telling him, and needless to say, when he heard the frantic call of his best friend from the kitchen, his concentration completely left him.

"Haruhi!" He heard the note of sheer panic once more from his friend and dashed off towards the kitchen, not bothering to excuse himself from his guests.

He burst through the door with such force that he was somewhat surprised it had not ripped off its hinges.

"What's wrong?" He asked anxiously, but as soon as he saw the blond holding his girlfriend, he dashed over to them. "What happened to her?"

"I think it's just stress, Kyoya. I'm sure she'll be fine! You'll see! She's probably going to come to and start apologizing for the 'inconvenience.' Then our sweet...er...my sweet daughter can get back to being her adorable old self!"

"I told her this would happen if she didn't stop worrying herself. The gossips at this school are way more trouble than they are worth." Kyoya replied coolly, gazing at Haruhi's still form.

Tamaki seemed to catch the look in Kyoya's eyes and passed the girl over to him before exiting the kitchen to attend to the three sets of neglected customers.

"So sorry for ignoring you, ladies! It seems as though Kyoya and dear Haruhi have become a bit preoccupied at the moment. However, if you will take me as your prince for the evening, I would be more than happy to oblige you all." He told the girls with a flourish as he returned to his perch on the couch.

Back in the kitchen, Kyoya was still holding on to Haruhi, cursing himself for not paying more attention to her that day. She shifted slightly, causing him to return his attention to her.

"Mm...Kyoya...? Is that you?" Haruhi asked, her eyes fluttering open.

"Hai. Haruhi, what happened?" He questioned, unable to keep the concern from his voice.

"One of my customers went a little bit too far, and it kind of spiraled out of control after that...I'm...I'm sorry..." Haruhi replied quietly.

"What did she say?"

"She just mentioned that you might lose your stake in the company because of your relationship with another 'male' student...then that just layered itself onto the rest of the comments from today...and..."

Kyoya sighed. He had known that this would happen. He did not care what people thought about the two of them, and he did not see why it was any of their business to begin with. Pulling Haruhi closer to him, he silenced her ramblings with a gentle yet passionate kiss.

"I think we should go home, okay? You're looking a bit flushed." Kyoya told her, gently standing and setting her on her feet. He noticed that she swayed slightly as she stood there, and he settled for picking her up.

Haruhi looked as though she was going to object, but Kyoya was having none of it. "Just relax, okay? Close your eyes, and we'll be home before you know it."

Haruhi stopped her struggle and rested her head on Kyoya's shoulder. Within seconds, her grip around his neck slackened and her breath evened out. Kyoya smirked and walked out of the kitchen, holding her as though she was his new bride.

"Excuse us, ladies. I fear that Haruhi is not feeling very well at the moment, so I am going to take him home. I apologize for the inconvenience this may be causing for all of you." Kyoya told both his and Haruhi's guests, who were too busy listening to one of Tamaki's stories to pay any attention to what he had just said.

Within twenty minutes, Kyoya was standing at the bottom of Haruhi's stairs.

"Haruhi...can you wake up for just a minute?" He whispered to her gently. Her eyelids fluttered open, and she smiled at the sight of her boyfriend's face.

"Are we here already?" She asked groggily.

"Yes, and I just need your key so I can get you inside." He answered her, motioning to the stairs.

Haruhi nodded and shakily got down from Kyoya's arms. She gripped the railing with a white-knuckled grasp, and Kyoya stayed just one step behind her in case she toppled over. He watched her pull her key from her pocket and struggle to push it into the doorknob. Grasping her hand, he helped her guide the key into the keyhole and turned the doorknob. That mere expending of energy was too much for the girl, who soon resorted to leaning heavily against Kyoya as she struggled to stay awake.

"It's okay, you can sleep now, Haruhi." Kyoya told her as he swung her into his arms once more.

After tucking the girl into bed, Kyoya decided it might be nice if he made her dinner, as it would be one less thing to worry about. He called his driver and told him not to wait up, that he would call when he was ready to leave. Then he set about creating a culinary masterpiece for his girlfriend, her father, and himself.

It was nearing 7:30PM when Ranka arrived home, and it was not until 8:00PM that Haruhi trudged out of her room, looking as if she had not slept in the past week. In the half hour between, Kyoya made sure that Ranka knew that Haruhi was over-stressing herself again, and he told Ranka that he wanted Haruhi to stay home from school tomorrow. After seeing Haruhi's bedraggled and sickly appearance, Kyoya had a feeling that Haruhi missing school would not have any arguments.

Ranka was the first to break the silence once everyone was situated. "Kyoya, this is delicious!"

"Thank you. I hope it is not an inconvenience grocery-wise. I had to use what was around the kitchen."

"Well, you surely surpassed any expectations I may have had!"

Kyoya smiled slightly at the compliment before glancing at Haruhi. Her eyes were half-lidded, and she barely made it to her mouth with the chopsticks. The fever that she had developed at lunch was showing once again. He hated the fact that she was worrying herself so much over all of this, but he understood that Haruhi was not one to let words bounce off of her easily. He reached over and grabbed her hand.

"Haruhi? If you want to go back to bed, you are more than welcome to." He told her tenderly.

She nodded before standing on shaky legs. "Goodnight, Daddy." Haruhi muttered sleepily, giving him a kiss on the cheek.

"Please excuse me for a moment." Kyoya directed his statement towards Ranka, but his eyes never left the girl in front of them. He got up from his seat and steadied his girlfriend, helping her to bed.

"Haruhi, I don't want to see you at school tomorrow. You're going to stay home and not worry about people, alright? No buts about it." Kyoya told her sternly. His concern only grew when she did not fight his proposition. "And focus on getting better, okay? That's all that you need to be concerned with. Let me deal with the gossip-mongers."

Haruhi nodded weakly, giving Kyoya a small smile. "Thank you, Kyoya."

"You are most welcome, my dear. Now, don't let me catch you at school tomorrow." He smirked at her before leaning over her and giving her a passionate kiss. "Goodnight, Haruhi. I'll visit you after school tomorrow."

When he had closed the door quietly behind him, he walked back over to the table to finish eating. The rest of his meal with Ranka was silent, to avoid waking Haruhi. At 10 PM, the two men walked out onto the ledge in front of the apartment to talk.

"Make sure she doesn't come to school tomorrow. That is all I ask. She's stressing herself out way too much." Kyoya demanded lightly.

"Of course. She finally got out of the hospital. I don't plan on having her in there again anytime soon. Thank you for dinner, Kyoya."

"Anytime, sir. I'm going to take my leave."

"Goodnight, Kyoya. Be safe on your way home."Ranka retreated to the comfort of the small apartment as Kyoya pulled out his cell phone to call his driver.

Kyoya began to walk down the stairs when the phone began to ring through. When he reached the bottom of the stairs, he heard some footsteps from behind him. Turning around, he could not see anything in the inky blackness. Thinking it was a figment of his imagination from his tired mind, he shrugged and turned his attention back to his phone.

A deep voice came from the other end. "Master Ootori?"

"Yes, I am r-" His sentence was cut off when he felt a sharp pain at the base of his skull. A small gurgling sound escaped him before he was plunged into a world of darkness.

Elsewhere, a dark figure picked up the cell phone the boy had dropped.

"M-Master Ootori? Are you there?" The voice from the other end sounded scared.

"Master Ootori is a bit…preoccupied…at the moment." A heavily distorted voice answered before slamming the phone into the ground and smashing it with the bat previously used on Kyoya's skull.

Oh yes…this would be fun…

PHEW! That was intense at the end...

It's going to be heavy from here on out...so brace yourselves!

Please review if you would like!