Yuriko Suzuki flipped through another page of the picture album in the kitchen table. There was something prickling under her skin that she couldn't put her finger on.
"None of you are my friends!" Risa had screamed. After she'd stormed away, nobody had felt like staying at the beach and, leaving everything behind, they'd returned to the house in small groups. Kyoya had followed Risa, Tamaki and Haruhi were in their room, so were the twins and they were talking about goodness knows what, Izumi was calling her agent and checking her agenda for the week, and Chika was a walking ticking-bomb, just waiting to lash out at whoever dared to look her way.
Riko sighed sadly then flipped the page so abruptly she almost ripped it. And there it was. Another picture of Takashi and Honey posing together.
She'd counted twenty-seven so far. What the hell? Was it because they were related? The twins were also always around each other, but they were twins! Not… cousins. The more she learned about the Host Club the more she felt the prickly feeling, she knew, for instance, that her Takashi was the Stoic Type and Honey was the Boy-Lolita Type, nothing like a Mischievous Twincest.
Riko scratched her head again. She wished Risa hadn't had that horrible outburst. Risa would know what was going on in her head, somehow, after trying to put her feelings into words, Risa would usually make sense of them for her.
Interrupting her muddled thoughts, Takashi put a piece of angelcake in front of her. She turned her face up to him with a beaming smile. Only to have it slip off her face when she saw Honey sitting on his shoulders. Takashi took him by the waist and lowered him to the floor.
It was such a normal sight, really. She was used to seeing Takashi and Honey together. So why…
"*Ah! My flip-flop fell!*" Honey exclaimed.
Patiently, Takashi kneeled down, and taking Honey small foot carefully in his big, strong hands, he put the flip-flop back on.
"You need to be more careful, Mitsukuni." Takashi said.
The prickly feeling came back in full force, Riko scratched her nose.
"Takashi, are you going to eat your strawberries?" Honey asked.
Wordlessly Takashi started plucking the strawberries from his plate and putting them on Honey's plate.
And just like that all those little prickles climbed up to Riko's lips and burst out, "I want Takashi's strawberries."
"Why didn't you guys call everybody else for tea, huh?" Chikako snapped, entering the kitchen. Her personality demanded that if she was upset about something, the whole world would effing know about it.
Yuriko took advantage given by her sister and started to take Takashi's strawberries, Honey looked sharply at her and immediately stabbed the fruit away from the reach of her fork, that sparked a sort of martial arts food stealing.
"*Stop it, Yuriko! I asked for them first!*" Honey complained, his blue eyes steel-hard. Their forks were zooming so fast across the plate, they were barely visible. Takashi tried to intervene with his own fork, hoping to give each their equal share, but the fork was immediately snatched from his hands.
"But Takashi's my boyfriend! I get to have his sweets!"
"*You've only been his girlfriend for three months!*"
"What's going on in here?" Kaoru shouted striding angrily into the kitchen, Hikaru was next to him.
Takashi got up and walked toward the fridge.
"Haruhi, you have to remember more than that." Tamaki said, following her shadow, she filled a glass of water from the tap.
"I told you already everything I can remember, Tamaki-senpai. Risa and I never really talked about those things." Haruhi said patiently.
Honey managed to get the last strawberry, he immediately stuffed it into his mouth.
Yuriko saw red, "You wanna fight, Haninozuka?!"
"*You wouldn't last two seconds, Suzuki.*" he threatened lowly.
"HEY!" Chika was getting too little attention, she slammed her fist on the table, "You mess with my sister you have to go through me. And believe when I say this, you will go down."
"Stay out of this, Chika, this is between me and this man-boy." Riko hissed.
Then a loud thud made everyone's eyes turn towards Takashi, he'd laid a large Tupperware on the table, with a few soft clicks, he opened it revealing a whole batch of freshly cut strawberries.
Sharp tears sprouted in Riko's eyes. "Takashi-kun…"
"There." He said, "Now you don't have to fight."
The tears spilled over her cheeks.
"Let's just leave." Izumi's quiet voice spilled over the silence.
All eyes turned to her small figure leaning against the doorframe. "Risa didn't mean what she said." She looked straight at the two sisters, who lowered their eyes, "I know she didn't… But we came here to see who our friend was marrying, and we found out they don't even love each other. I never thought Risa would do something like that, but it's just the way it is. We're getting in their way and if this keeps up Risa won't be able to finish her project and they will have to get married. So let's just leave them alone."
Silence engulfed them.
"Izumi-chan…" Tamaki said, "Did you forget the principles the Host Club prides itself on?"
O0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o0o00
"You're sure you don't want to rest."
"I said-" he puffed, "I'm fine."
I just rolled my eyes. The day Kyoya admits any sort of weakness will be a cold day in hell, that's for sure. Most likely it'll be the same day I get the CEO position in Kotoku Inc.
Ha.
"Why do you do that to yourself?" I asked, resting my chin on his shoulder.
"What do you mean?" he replied, though he was a little out of breath, he was actually walking quite calmly, considering he had (pah-ha, yeah right, like I'd tell you how much I weigh) number-pound little me riding on his back.
"It's okay to be sick or tired, you know, it doesn't make you weak. Not admitting it, just makes it worse for you." We had passed the spot the others had been, they'd left the volleyball net still set and the house was in view.
"If I say it's fine, it's because I'm fine. I don't need excuses to turn away my focus. " He said, his voice firm.
I rolled my eyes and started wriggling away from him, "Sometimes it's good to take a step back, doke!"
"Hey!—What are you doing?" he struggled with his balance while trying to keep his grip on me.
"You need- to rest." I managed to squirm my leg from his hold and landed my foot on the floor. Only to be painfully reminded that it was my wounded foot. "Ow!" I hopped back on top of him.
"Make up your mind!" he complained, but his grip slipped and he completely lost his balance and we crash landed on the sand.
"Sorry!" I said, trying to get off of him (actually harder than it sounds when you have all those muscles rippling under you—oh, and I was trying not to land my foot on the sand, again) when he rolled on his back and I fell on him again. "Oof! I'm sorry."
My face was burning fiercely, and my stupid palms were sweating which just made sand stick to it, I was just managing to lift my upper body when Kyoya distracting me by shaking. I really, really, hoped he wasn't convulsing, because I have, like, zero first aid knowledge, my first instinct is always to look around for anybody else to help.
But Kyoya and I were in the middle of his freaking private beach!
I looked at his face, hoping he would tell me what to do. But I'd worried myself too much, his face was twisted up in his evil grin.
"Either you enjoy falling down, or gravity has a serious grudge against you." He managed to say mid-laughter. He threw his head back and just laughed away, his eyes squeezed shut, his beautiful white teeth gleaming, and suddenly I felt all warm and fuzzy inside and found myself laughing with him.
It felt so liberating.
So there I was, relieving my stress by laughing my head off, when suddenly I felt Kyoya's hand on my face, I stopped laughing so quickly I almost choked. His hysteria had stopped and he was staring at me, his face serious. Then he suddenly dropped his hand and sat up, taking me with him.
"Why didn't you ever do anything about that girl?" he asked letting me go.
I couldn't help my eyebrows rising in a bit of surprise, I thought—I could have sworn he was going to say something else.
"I looked into your school record. You never turned her in. Why?"
"I did get mad at her." I argued, then looked down, "But then, I felt like she had taught me something valuable, that I couldn't trust anyone. Only…" I looked at him, then turned away to stare at the twilight, "Only I don't want that anymore. If betrayal is the risk of having friends and being myself, then it's a risk I'm willing to take."
I kept looking away even when he didn't answer, it was finally dawning on me how much I had shared with him. And how little that bothered me.
"What's mine is yours. Isn't that the way it should be, sweetums?"
Why didn't that feel like enough?
I looked at my sand-matted hands and asked: "Do you think we can still be friends after the summer ends, no matter how the deal goes?"
The words had slipped from my lips without my permission. I didn't dare look at him, and at the same time, I didn't dare take my words back. I waited patiently for my answer, two equally strong sides of me positive about opposite answers.
"KYOYA!"
My head swiveled towards the call. Standing on the porch was a woman with long black hair holding a baby. "LOOK WHO CAME TO SEE YOU!" she shouted holding the baby's arm and making him wave.
"Eek!" was the girly small scream that escaped my throat when Kyoya picked me up princess-style. You know, how the Prince carried Snow White after she woke up on the Disney version? Except, unlike Snow White, I couldn't bring myself to wrap my hands around his neck. Also unlike Snow White depicted, being carried by someone like that is quite a bumpy journey, I'd actually prefer to ride him piggyback.
"Listen," Kyoya said, his glasses were flashing, "don't tell my sister about our deal. She thinks our father arranged it,-"
0o0o0o0o0o0oo0o0o
Kyoya's sister was a strange one, for sure.
But in a good way. After her initial shock that I was injured, she told me to get the wound cleaned up before we talked. When I came down the stairs she was sitting in the dining room table feeding little Aki. Everybody was scattered over the room, respecting in a way, that Fuyumi had come to visit me.
I wished the earth would swallow me.
She was all cute and sunshiny, but apparently, no matter how hard she tried, she couldn't quite get the baby food into her baby's mouth, the little boy had yellowish goo all over his face and clothes and was always looking patiently at his mother waiting for his next spoonful, that never quite came.
"I am honored to meet you Shido-san." I said bowing.
"Oh, no need for that," she said, waving away the honorific, "Call me Fuyumi. You'll be calling me sister soon, anyway." She giggled merrily and my stomach clenched.
"Ha, ha, ha." I tried to imitate her easy laugh, but my face was too tight.
"I really only passed by for a quick hello." She said, "My husband had to leave for a business meeting in Switzerland and I'm meeting him there with Aki. Our flight is in a few hours."
"Oh, Switzerland is wonderful this time of year." According to tourist websites, anyway.
"There are some new faces here. I didn't know Kyoya had more friends outside his club." She said, looking at my friends.
Kyoya gestured from behind his laptop, "Fuyumi, I'd like you to meet Kotoku-chan's friends-" Chika let out a quiet pfft!, "—Yuriko and Chikako Suzuki, and Izumi Kai."
"Oh, I know you!" she said, as she smeared Aki's forehead with more baby food, "You're that famous model! You've been in a few movies too, right?"
"Only commercials." Izumi answered smiling, "But my agent tells me I'm auditioning for a horror movie that's coming out soon."
"Really?" Fuyumi and I asked together.
"That's great!" Fuyumi added, putting a spoonful of goo up Aki's nose. The baby sneezed and shook his head, "Oh!" Fuyumi looked down, and gave that loving smile only mothers can pull off, "Little Aki, you always make such a mess when you eat." She giggled and wiped her baby's face carefully.
"Fuyumi, why don't you just hire a baby-sitter?" Kyoya asked tiredly, looking over his laptop.
Fuyumi looked at him with indignant shock, "There's nothing wrong about me wanting to raise my own child."
"His shirt's backwards."
Fuyumi looked at her baby with that same benevolent patience as before, "So? It's stylish." She straightened the shirt and cleaned the bits of baby food with a white cloth. It reminded of my own mom, I spent very little time with her throughout my life, but I remembered that whenever we were together she always tried to lengthen that time. By all means necessary.
"Do you want to hold him?"
I jumped out of my reverie. Fuyumi looked at me and I nodded, "Do you want to meet your Auntie Risa?" she cooed.
I blushed and a knot formed in my throat as I held that soft, warm baby in my arms. I never really admitted it to anyone but, being a single child I always thought it was a bit of a bummer that depending on who I married I wouldn't have nieces and nephews. I had baby cousins, sure, but they were distant and it's different, anyway.
"Bee-bah!" Aki shouted triumphantly.
"Huh?" I blinked, "No. Risa, Ri-sa."
"Bee-bah! Bee-bah!" he squealed and pulled my hair.
"Ungh!"
"Aw, he likes you." Fuyumi said, and by God, when I looked at her she looked like she meant it.
I was distracted by some snickering. I turned around (hard to do with baby fingers yanking at your hair) and sure enough, there was Kyoya laughing his evil laugh. For someone who didn't want me to expose our deal, he was really pushing it.
"What are you-"
"Kyko! Kyko!" Aki interrupted me, letting go of my hair and reaching with his arms to his uncle behind me.
It was my turn to snicker, "Hehehe, you want to go with your Uncle Kyko?" I asked, handing him over. The baby immediately grabbed his glasses, twisting it around his face, and grabbed a handful of his hair.
Fuyumi laughed, "Oh, he loves his Uncle Kyko."
"Don't call me that." Kyoya growled, trying to keep still while Aki hiked over to his shoulder with his glasses in one hand. I made a face at him.
Fuyumi giggled, "I'm very happy to see that you two like each other, though. I'm so sorry I'm missing the big party." She said in a heart-broken voice.
I cocked my head, "What party?"
"Why, your own engagement party, Risa-chan. When you and Kyoya officially become iinazuke." I'm pretty sure my sudden sick, pale expression may have tipped her off that I didn't have a clue of what she was talking about. "You didn't know? That's funny, the invitations were sent by e-mail two days ago."
O0o0o0o0
It's not like it was my fault.
Ok, technically it was 100% my fault, but Kyoya was acting like it was some evil plan I had planned all along.
After Fuyumi informed us of our own party, where we officially become iinazuke (panic attack!) and everybody checked their phones and e-mails for the invitation, I realized what had happened.
"Ohmigodmyprogram." The words spewed out of my mouth. I felt like something cold was gripping my stomach and I wished more passionately than a child on Christmas for the floor to swallow me.
No such luck.
"What program?" Fuyumi asked innocently.
Kyoya kicked me from under the table.
I managed to sneak a look of hell-fire-hate before turning sweetly to Fuyumi, "Uh, erm, the, ahem, TV. I just can't work out how to skip commercials!" Did that even make sense?
For a second I was sure it didn't, but then Fuyumi blinked and laughed, "Me too!"
I almost let out an audible phew!
Fuyumi didn't stay for dinner, even though we all insisted. Aki gave everybody nicknames and the only thing more entertaining for him other than stealing Kyko's glasses, was pulling my hair until I blew raspberries on his cheeks.
I really liked Fuyumi, it was hard to believe she was related to Kyoya and his father with her care-free attitude and caring nature. I was actually looking for hints in the conversation that she might have been adopted. Even though she also shared the doke's dark grey eyes.
As she was leaving she gave Kyoya a peck on the cheek and said something to him. Then she walked over to me and said: "I know how weird it is to be engaged to someone you don't know. The first thing we want to do is push away, but believe when I say this: just because it wasn't your choice, doesn't mean it wasn't a good one." She smiled cautiously, like she felt she had stepped over the line, and gave me a tentative hug.
Then she pulled back and climbed into the car. I think she waved, but after that it was a little blurry.
Sisters…
Oh, just cut out my heart and take it, already.
"What did she say?"
I jumped and looked up to where Kyoya had snuck up on me. I sniffed and blinked away my tears, "She said…" I cleared my throat, I didn't want to tell him, "She said the party starts at seven back at your place and I should wear a kimono. So I guess tomorrow is shopping day, huh?"
He stared straight through my soul. I blushed.
This was getting out of hand. Who gave him the authority to see through my white lies?
O0o0o0o0o
Sakugawa fastened my hair with another pin that just barely grazed my skull. "I used waterproof makeup in case you get anything spilled on you again."
I fought back a sigh. She was never going to let it go. Nothing made Sakugawa more mad than seeing her work ruined. Like when I got home without my hair extensions and covered in red sauce. She'd spent hours getting me ready for that.
Or when she'd curled my hair and I fell in the pool. Or when she'd done my nails and I scratched my head. Really, I'd gotten her pissed off so many times I could barely believe she still worked for me. Especially after the time I got home bruised and with all my hair cut off. That was the only time that after seeing what I must've been through that she let it go with just a 'tsk'.
This time wasn't so different. I kept replaying the scene at the beach over and over again in my head. Why hadn't I apologized yet?
Then again, it wasn't like there had been a lot of opportunities. When Kyoya and I'd gone back in the house everybody had shut themselves in their rooms. That's when the big fat lump in my throat started to swell.
"Kotoku." Kyoya stopped in front of me, he handed me my laptop. "Fix the program."
"Right!" I'd forgotten all about the program. The girls would probably be more forgiving if their emails and Facebooks were updated. So for the next few hours I sat on my bed with Noel and did what I did best.
Only… just when I thought it was all in order, their phones all had disappeared from the system. Confused, I ran downstairs where I found Kyoya sitting against the couch, working.
"Where is everybody?", I asked.
"They just left." He said, barely glancing up.
"I noticed that." I said slowly, "Why didn't you tell me when they were leaving?"
He looked up, I felt my heart clench, "Because they asked me not to." He said softly.
"Oh." I felt Noel's furry body againt my legs, I picked him up and scratched his head absently. My eyes brimmed over.
Kyoya stood up and walked towards me, "Toroi," he flicked my forehead. My tears froze in shock of his cruelty, "They didn't leave because they were mad at you, they left because they didn't have any nice clothes here and they were all invited for the party tomorrow."
"Oh." I said again, unconvinced. They could have told me that myself. I felt my eyes fill up.
Kyoya flicked my forehead again. "Cut that out!" I finally snapped at him.
"That's for almost messing everything up." He said hotly, "Can you imagine what it would look like if neither of us showed up for our own iianazuke party?"
"You are so insensitive." I snapped at him, cuddling Noel close to me, "Don't you think I don't feel bad about that enough already?"
"No." He said, giving me his wolfish grin.
I blushed. "You're such a jerk!" I yelled at him, "You know I didn't do it on purpose!" Noel squirmed away from my arms. Kyoya flicked me again.
"Ugh!" now that my arms were free I was able to defend myself, I managed to flick him once before he grabbed my wrists and pinned them against my back. "Let me go!" I said, suddenly breathless.
"Now, I realize I'm touching you without your permission, but this is basic self-defense."
"I was self-defending!"
"I'm afraid I'll have a judge determine that." He said in a tone so serious I couldn't help start giggling.
"You are such a jerk." I said, smiling. He really was. He'd also let his guard down. I wriggled a hand from his grasp and flicked his nose.
"Ow!"
"Ha, ha." I took a few cautious steps back from him, "You should know better than to mess with me, doke."
He gave me an evil look.
I was about to say 'Bring it on' when Cook came in and said that my car was ready.
It was then that Kyoya had reminded me that I had also not brought any nice clothes to wear, and that it would be better if I had a night's rest before the party. Business as usual.
But he shouldn't have bothered. The second I saw the house disappear in the distance I'd started worrying about my friends. I couldn't sleep a wink. I would have called, but it seemed so impersonal. Plus, I'd have to pick one to call first and nothing good could come of that.
And now I was getting a few more touches on my make-up from Sakugawa before I left for the party. I felt like dying.
"If you dare scratch your eyes Kotoku-chan I will glue your hands to your sides." She said in her raspy, two packs a day voice.
"Now that just makes me want to sneeze." I teased her. She pursed her lips at me, tsked and gave my hair one last tug and started to pack her stuff. I sighed, "No last words of advice?"
"I could say what I said last time, 'You look beautiful, stop worrying', but you certainly proved me wrong." Her nails clicked against the cases, she looked at me, "A smile would go great on that face." And a corner of her lip twitched, it was her equivalent of a grin. So I smiled at her.
The phone rang. "That's my cue." she said, grabbing her stuff. She kissed the air next to my cheek and showed herself out. She wasn't happy I was being forced to marry, I knew that. Sakugawa changed her name and ran away from home at fourteen because her parents wouldn't let her go to the high school of her choosing, she couldn't wrap her head around why I wasn't doing the same thing.
Considering how I was up to be shown to the whole Ootori family and relations it had never been more away, I mean. Not to mention my father had said he managed to time his meetings just in time to get to the party. His excitement over it was enough that he didn't notice my panic.
"Hello?" I said, answering the phone.
"Kyoya Ootori to see you, Kotoku-san." replied my doorman.
I frowned. Weird. "Uh, ok. Send him in." But I couldn't help feel a little bit happier that he was here. My friends hating me, my "engagement" becoming more official and harder to wiggle out of later, meeting Kyoya's mom. Yikes. And that was just the tip of the iceberg.
I'd made sure to like the perfect Japanese bride for her (green eyes from mother aside), Sakugawa insisted I wore something that was a little more me. And she had outdone herself, she handpicked a kimono that went from off white to black with lilac flowers and branches. My hair was up in a complicated hairdo that wrapped around itself and natural tiny round orchids, I know it sounds weird and overly flowery, but it was actually very nice.
My makeup was all in perfect shades that brought out my cheekbones and eyes, but subtle enough that even the most conservative matriarch would approve. I think. Okay, so I was wearing a very discreet streak of purple eyeliner. You wouldn't even tell that it was there if I didn't close my eyes.
I was just about to try to wipe the eyeliner off with the tip of my finger when Noel pounced off the bed and left the room, signaling that Kyoya had entered the house.
I sighed, gave myself a onceover, tried to smile, then gave up - the last thing I wanted was to look like a constipated bride. I took my purse and went downstairs, I bought the softest, thickest sock I could find so that I didn't feel like I was being stabbed in the foot everytime I took a step. The wound was healing nicely, it looked grosser than it felt because of all the frayed dead skin that poked out. Anyway, I was treating it.
Oh, the sight that awaited me. I have to tell you, if I thought Kyoya looked good without his shirt on, it was only because I hadn't seen him in a suit.
He was impecable. Hair brushed back, black suit that fit him so well, it made you want to pet him. Only, it made me terrified. He looked so cool and composed, I was immediately thrown off guard, I could feel I was a split second away from hyperventilating. I was going to become his iinazuke for Chrissakes!
What is it about suits?
"Hey," I said after I found my voice. "I thought I would meet you there, doke. What's going on?"
He had his pokerface on, but if I could take a guess, I'd say he was uncomfortable. "You look like you've got a stick up your butt."
He glared at me and ignored my comment, "I'd forgotten about one thing." he said, and took something from his pocket, he opened it and handed it to me.
I looked down.
It was a diamond ring.
A/N: Does it help to say "I'm really sorry"?
Response to reviews:
Extended Experience: Loving the sympathy. Pride-wise, the Kyoya bit was worse.
TheDarkestTimeline: Did I ever tell you I love your avatar name? Because I do. I totally get it.
Leelee225: I wish I'd listened to you.
just obsessed: Spoiler alert! That flower is still inside Risa's purse. Completely forgotten and smushed.
Kamili: Well, yeah. But Risa had told him to never, ever, ever touch her again without her permission... Might I be bold to say that the wrist-grabbing scene in this chapter gave the same vibe?
SchadenFreude95: Same here! Your response was a tiny bit hurtful but then I ended up flattered. No sarcasm. Really. Thank you. I hope you keep enjoying it.
GIR3c: Thanks! They are cute together, aren't they? I also love how they are both oblivious.
PainterLady: I think I am especially sorry to you. I feel like I besmirched your patience. Actually, 'besmirched' sounds pretty bad and I'm not 100% sure what it means, but you get me, right? What I mean is, thank you for reading.
-Because I really am sorry.