I know the first chapter wasn't that great, but I was just trying to get this story started.

I'd love to hear everyone's opinions, thank you~

Many people wouldn't take the time to uncover something beautiful, if it meant possibly getting hurt in the process. Hard-work, tenacity, and self-assurance were all needed to successfully crack that outer shell, that outer shell which ruthlessly protected a torrent of intense emotion. And that's what Kyōya believed, when the thought crossed his mind. Rarely did the subject of romance or even sex cross his thoughts - he simply had no time for it. The only other time he even entertained the idea was with his occasional meetings with his father, and the subject of marriage came about.

It's not like Kyōya didn't dislike the idea of marriage, but he had always thought a wife would just get in his way, especially since no woman ever really understood him. The girls at the host club didn't care much for his actual emotions, they just wished to be entertained. It was the main reason the Shadow King rarely took customers himself: keeping those women company, there was nothing to gain from such a frivolous activity. Whenever he had a customer, it was usually the daughter of some soon-to-be business partner, or even a competitor's child that they wanted to get close with just so the Ōtori group could exploit any illegalities or weaknesses.

Don't get the wrong idea, Kyōya may be a manipulative bastard, but he did not actively wish for other's businesses to fail. He was mostly just taking orders from his father, or taking an initiative. Mostly.

But now, the tall teen sat in his favorite table beside one of the large windows, typing on his laptop. The club's finances had been in good order recently, with not much fluctuation despite a slow period in the club's activities. No unnecessary trips had been organized in the recent weeks, and no odd occurrences struck the club either. It was relatively peaceful.

Which gave Kyōya the perfect time to…experiment.

"K-Kyōya?" Haruhi called to him, and he turned his gaze to see her walking towards him.

"Yes?" He asked, even though he had a pretty good idea of what she was going to ask.

"Why did you make me research your star sign the other day?" Her voice was more quiet than usual, and the raven imagined it was so the twins didn't become unnecessarily involved.

"I don't believe I made you research anything - " he retorted, adjusting his glasses slightly, "I simply suggested you look into them. Not even my sign in particular."

"You brought up your sign in particular before you suggested that, though. Obviously your intention was to make me look up your sign." She said, unintentionally challenging the Shadow King.

"Did I, now? Well, then." he shut his laptop, his gaze turning cold towards the small girl, taunting her with his eyes, as if daring her to speak. "What was my reason, since you know everything?" His tone was sharper than he honestly intended, but it really annoyed him that she figured things out so easily. Plus, Tamaki kept him up all last night on the phone, so he hadn't gotten a wink of sleep. He simply was not in the mood for this strange back-and-forth. But, he was using his bad mood for an opportunity to see…some of Haruhi's reactions.

"Um…well…" her face flushed, probably subconsciously, and ducked her head down in embarrassment - possibly, Kyōya wasn't entirely sure. "Ah, shit. That was cute…" he thought, unsure if he really wanted to see that, or if it was good for his self-control.

"Forget I asked." He interrupted, looking at his laptop to distract him. "I simply wanted to introduce you to a science I find quite…interesting." He looked at her, seeing that the blush on her face had lessened up slightly.

She smiled. "The article that I read said scorpios typically like things such as star signs."

"Did it?" He questioned, a smile on his face.

In the distance, Kyōya noticed the twins - Hikaru and Kaoru - looking over their shoulders to watch the exchange. That typical mischievous glint was in their eyes, and matching smirks adorned their faces. He wasn't sure what they were up to, but it didn't matter to him anyways. Those two wouldn't mess with him very much, since they were scared of him. And the Shadow King was perfectly fine with that.

"Kyōya?" Haruhi caught his attention, and she looked slightly nervous. "Oh ho, that makes me very excited to hear what she has to say."

"Yes?"

"Well, um, due to a certain…disturbance during a chemistry lab," at this point, she turned to glare at the twins, who in turn acted as if they weren't listening, whistling not-so-casually, " I asked the teacher to let me redo it, and he said I have to have it done by Thursday."

"And?" The raven asked, his cheek resting on his fist.

"But, the only time I can make it up is tomorrow - Wednesday - after school. I told him that, but he said he wouldn't be in then. He asked me if I knew anyone older that would be willing to supervise my experiment…someone that has taken and done well in chemistry." Haruhi looked him in the eye, and he wondered if she was gathering up courage. "Can you help me, Kyōya? Please?" She asked, a nervous look in her eyes.

"Well…" Kyōya mentally went over his schedule. "Well, I have dinner scheduled with Father tomorrow, but that's not until 7 or so. I should have time…" he nodded, a slightly uncharacteristic smile on his face. "Why not? I have the time."

"Thank you!" She grinned, "Don't worry, I'll repay for your kindness, Kyōya!" And with that she walked away, going to the twins. He noted the surprised looks on their faces, and smirked. "I guess they were expecting me to say no."

"Repay, huh?"

-I Don't Need Diamonds-

"So, you know how to do the experiment?" Kyōya asked, arms crossed as he leaned back against the teacher's desk.

"Yes," Haruhi answered. She had on her lab coat, goggles, and gloves - as required. Her hair was pinned back, and any un-necessary accessories were removed. "The teacher asked that my supervisor record the experiment while I perform it, and he'll review it later for a grade."

"Okay." He pulled out his smartphone and pressed the 'record' button on the camera app, and watched through the small, spotless phone-screen. "Let me know if you need any help."

A small smile appeared on Haruhi's face, and she tried to hold in her laughter. "Now Kyōya, don't force yourself to be helpful." Her tone was light and jokey, and even the Shadow King found it amusing. "That reaction was…unexpected." She noted, seeing the smile on his face. "I thought he'd be more upset…"

As she performed her experiment, her eyes subconsciously drifted to Kyōya a lot. She took in his appearance: his blazer and tie were off and resting on a nearby lab table, his sleeves were rolled up and the first couple of buttons on his shirt were unbuttoned. He held his western-phone in his right hand, while his left was shoved in his pocket. She also noted that his hair was slightly unruly, and it made her want to run her hands through it…

"What?! Did I just think that?! No, no!" She shook her head and took a deep breath. "Focus on the experiment. Focus."

"Is everything okay, Haruhi?"

"J-Just fine!" She hastily responded, trying to ignore the way his teasing tone made her chest tighten. "I'm almost done with the experiment…just one more step…"

The small girl could feel the raven's eyes on her, watching as she completed her experiment. She couldn't say his gaze unnerved her…or that it annoyed her…she couldn't put her finger on how it made her feel.

Thankfully, this experiment was pretty simple, so cleanup wouldn't take too long. "Oh, Teacher…" she heard Kyōya's voice, and looked to see the camera turned so his face was being captured, instead of her. "I will say this is a very irresponsible way to handle a make-up, especially regarding our little scholarship student here. She can be quite clumsy - "

"Not needed, Kyōya." Her tone was dry, but the raven just smirked in response, continuing his sentence as if she hadn't spoken.

" - but, I will refrain from telling the Chairman this bit of information." He smiled his host-worthy smile, then stopped the recording.

"Did you really have to add that?" She asked, cleaning the beakers she had used in the sink.

"Maybe not." He commented off-handedly, sending the video footage to the teacher via email. "But, at least he'll know who supervised you now. I doubt you told him today."

"I did so!" She retorted, not even bothering to turn and glare at him. "Why would I not?"

"I see." Haruhi felt a hand brush over her hair, long fingers running through her short locks. "Goodbye, Haruhi. Have a good rest of the day." A deep voice whispered in her ear, soon followed by footsteps and the sound of a door closing.

The girl felt her cheeks burn hot, and she clutched her arms. "Wh-What the hell?!" She thought, embarrassed by his actions and confused by her body's reaction. "Why do I feel so…hot, just from his hand touching my hair?!"

Isn't Haruhi just cute? Dawwwww （＾ω＾）

Anyways, I hope you enjoyed this chapter!

Kisses, 〜（ゝ。∂）

~Rioter