At midday break Arata and I were surrounded by curious classmates.
"So you two know each other?"
"Arata-kun, how long do you know Haruhi-kun?"
"What kind of disease did you have?"
"…"
I answered on all the questions the people asked while I glared at Arata. The look in my eyes probably said "What the hell are you doing here?"
Arata just smiled innocently and replied on the questions. The twins kept some distance and were unusually silent. I ended my conversation and I stood up to forced me away between other students to Hika-niichan and Kao-niichan.
"What's wrong?" I asked them.
"Does he know?" the twins asked together.
"Does he know what?" I repeated.
"That you're a girl." Hika-niichan said while he glanced at Arata.
"Ah, yes, he does but don't worry he won't tell anyone. Not that I mind."
"That's not what we're worrying about." Kao-niichan said softly. Not understanding what the problem was I looked at Arata while he talked to his new classmates and laughed. 'Despite being a bodyguard he's also a normal teenager,' I thought and smiled.
I guess it can't be helped.
"I'll introduce him later to the others." I said.
"Tono is not going to like him, neither do we." The twins said.
"Why not." I asked surprised.
The twins looked at me as if I was the most stupid being on earth. "Haruhi, Haruhi, Haruhi…" they said while shaking their heads, pretending to be sad and they surrounded me to lay an arm on both my shoulders. They closed the distance and their noses almost touched my cheeks.
"Though we should be grateful to you for being so dense," Kao-niichan sighed.
"It is sometimes hard to call your stupidity an advantage." Hika-niichan added.
"I'm not stupid!" I said. The twins laughed and they rubbed my hair. "Of course you aren't."
The bell rang and the students went back to their desks and I saw Arata looking at the three of us while we were playing around and I smiled at him, he smiled back but his smile didn't reach his eyes. Worried I wanted to go speak with him but the teacher came in and ordered us to sit down.
The last class had ended and the students had already left. I told Hika-niichan and Kao-niichand to leave first, they left while glancing at Arata. My bodyguard appeared beside my desk.
"You have club activities now, right?" he asked.
"Yeah, how did you know?"
"I did some research." He said proudly. "I was kind of surprised that the sons of prestigious families were allowed to form a host club." He added.
"You're not angry because I participate in it?" I asked.
"Of course not, Haruhi-sama was forced to take part in the club, that's something else." He replied. "Though if they would now you are their princess, they would have treated you with much more respect."
I doubt that…
"By the way it's an excellent idea to pose as a male student and not a female one, I'm sure it made it harder for Princess Aneko's people to find you." He complimented me.
"Well, it wasn't really my intention to do so." I said dryly. "Now tell me." I stood up and placed a hand in my waist. "What are you doing here?"
Arata smiled bright." Yesterday you asked to follow you around the school in a less striking way. So this is my plan." He said proud.
I thought back on yesterday and remembered I indeed had said something like that. I sighed.
"This isn't really discrete either."
Arata lost his proud look. "I'm sorry if it troubles Haruhi-sama but it is necessary for me to protect you from close by." He said. "We discovered an assassin in the school."
"An assassin!?" I repeated.
"Probably disguised as a student." He explained. "Likely one of your classmates."
"No way…" I said and sank down in my chair again.
That must have been why Arata had talked with everyone. To look for an assassin.
Arata kneeled down beside my desk to be on equal height. "Haruhi-sama, please don't worry."
I looked at Arata who smiled slightly. "No matter what happens, I'll protect you. I will always be by your side so don't be afraid." He said. "Now please take your stuff and let me escort you to your clubroom. Your friends must be waiting."
I looked in silent at my bag that was lying on my desk.
"Haruhi-sama?" Arata asked.
I took a deep breath and nodded. "All right." I said, stood up and grabbed my bag. "Let's go."
It's not like I was scared, I was more worried about Tama-niichan and the others.
If there really is an assassin I could bring my niichans into danger by being near them but if I distance myself from them they are maybe in a greater danger because when I'm around Arata will also be there and the assassin might doubt about making a move when my bodyguard is there.
So for now it would be safer if I stayed close. So I ran out the classroom to check on everyone without hearing Arata's silent whisper.
"No matter what, huh?" He repeated himself and followed me to the clubroom.
"So this is Arata, his father knows mine and we met each other a couple of days ago." I introduced my bodyguard to the members of the host club. The twins had already met him so I think they lost their interest in him but they glared at Arata from time to time.
Tama-niichan inspected Arata from his head to his toes like he would do when he was doubting to buy some merchandise. I saw that Arata also examined Tama-niichan but less obvious and probably to ensure himself that my senpai wasn't a threat to me.
"So… What kind of relationship do you want with my daughter?" Tama-niichan asked in his role as jealous father.
"… Daughter?" Arata repeated dumbfounded.
"Don't mind him." I said.
"So Arata-kun is a friend of Haru-chan?" Mitsu-niichan asked. "Then he is also of a friend of us, right, Takashi?" Taka-niichan nodded.
"Can I call you Ara-chan?" Mitsu-niichan asked Arata and I saw my bodyguard getting uneasy.
I suppressed a small giggle.
Kyo-niichan wrote something down without looking up. "It surprises me that you are able to make other noble friends besides us."
I decided to ignore his words but I noticed that Arata getting angry with this comment and I pulled the sleeve of his jacket to stop him from answering. Arata understood what I tried to say and kept his mouth but he still shot an angry glare at Kyo-niichan.
"It's nice to know that Kyoya-senpai sees me as a friend." I replied and I saw I had surprised Kyo-niichan with saying that.
A couple of seconds long he stayed frozen until he cleared his throat and hid his face behind his papers while writing down something. "That's because Tamaki has a bad influence…" he said but still hid his face.
"ka-sama! How can you say such a cruel thing!" Tama-niichan said shocked.
"Oka-sama?" Arata asked confused. "They are both men, right?"
I couldn't hold my laugh anymore and giggled. "Don't interfere with them, if you do, it will be bad for your health."
"Do I have permission to leave you for a moment?" Arata asked with a worried look at Tama-niichan and Kyo-niichan while they were still arguing. "I have to go see the secretary for my enrolment."
"Sure." I said though feeling a little bit irritated by his formal way of speeking but I didn't say anything about it.
Father and mother stopped fighting and everyone looked in silent how Arata left the clubroom. Immediately the twins surrounded me. "Haruhi, we have a favour to ask."
Alarmed I looked at the two sons of Satan. "A favour?"
"Yeah, we told you our situation this morning, didn't we?"
"About the fashion show?" I asked.
"Yes, you told us to look for another model so…" they got interrupted by Mitsu-niichan. "Haru-chan can be the new model!" he said enthusiastic.
"Honey-senpai! That's a wonderful idea!" Tama-niichan said.
"It was OUR idea!" the twins said in unison.
The four host members looked at me hopeful.
"No way." I said.
"Come one, Haruhi, we will treat you to everything you like…" The twins tried.
"No."
"Haru-chan, Usa-chan really wants to see you in pretty clothes." Mitsu-niichan said while showing me the pink bunny.
"No."
"Haruhi." Tama-niichan said while he stepped closer to me, he cupped my chin with his fingers and brought his face so close that I could feel his breath, he tried to use his hosting skills. "I'll give you the most wonderful kiss you'll ever have, ohime-sama."
"Definitely no." I said and turned my face away from Tama-niichan.
The next moment the president of the host club sat sobbing in a corner. But after a while he tried his puppy eyes on me, when we were little it always worked on me, if he showed me those eyes I just couldn't resist.
"No!" I said, now, after ten years, something like that wouldn't work anymore to persuade me.
After finally noticing it didn't work, he looked like a hurt, lost puppy at Kyo-niichan.
It had never worked on Kyo-niichan so today it wouldn't work either. "If she doesn't want to, you can't force her, Tamaki." Kyo-niichan said.
"Actually I can," Tama-niichan said and I glared at him with the coldest expression on my face that I could make. Tama-niichan gulped. "Not that I would do it…" he added while laughing like an idiot.
"I guess we have to find another model, Kaoru." Hika-niichan said.
"What a pity." Kaoru answered and the depressed boys started to walk away.
The look on their faces almost made me change my mind. Almost.
Mitsu-niichan tried to comfort the two. "Then why don't you just invite her to the fashion show?!" He said. "You will come, right, Haru-chan?"
"A-ah…" I wanted to refuse but sighed instead. "Of course."
The twins immediately got cheerful again. "Then we also take you to the after party, 'kay?"
Again I sighed. "Sure, I guess." I said and knew I would regret these words.
The large room was filled with people and noise. Chatter and laughter echoed through the room.
Expensively dressed people were holding champagne and waiters and maids were going around with food.
When I was little I and my parent often attended this kind of parties. Most of the time they were boring until my Niichans arrived and we played together till late in the night. When we went home I always fell asleep on my mother's or father's lap in the limousine that brought us home.
Now, 10 years later, I attended the after party of a fashion show.
According to Hika-niichan and Kao-niichan the show had been a success but to me it was just a boring event. I was glad when it ended quickly but the after party was even worse.
Though my friends were also here, I couldn't enjoy this party, it remembered me to much of how it was before my mother and I ran away.
Moreover, I never had liked this kind of events.
I don't hate parties, I actually like birthday parties and such very much but these rich bastards exaggerated way too much.
There wasn't even good music.
One of the waiters putted a glass of champagne in my hand and before I could protest he had already disappeared.
Do I look old enough to drink?
But then I noticed even Tama-niichan and the others had a glass in their hands so I decided not to say anything.
Suddenly the music stopped abrupt and everyone turned to the stairs at the end of the room that led to the first floor.
Just like in those movies someone descended the staircase, a handsome young man with brown curly hair and green eyes greeted his guests.
"Ladies and Gentlemen!" a voice that came out of nowhere announced. "His highness, Prince Akito!"
My eyes grew big and I gasped.
Akito…
Yay! Akito appears! What will she do now?! I know but you don't ehehe ^_^ Sorry for teasing you, I'm in a good mood today, no idea why though...
Here's the longest chapter I've ever written as a souvenir from Spain, by the way Spain was fun and I recommend it as travel destination especially Barcelona is worth visiting.
I'm having a little bit trouble with deciding what kind of personality Akito has, I have some in mind and actually his personality is quite important on how the story progresses... Well doesn't matter ^_^ Actually it does but... *Sigh* please don't mind me...