Chapter 3: A "Fallout" With The Club
Ella could feel the color draining from her face. With Renge missing in action, there was no telling what she might be up to… But where would one even start looking in a place like this?
"Ella-chan~!" The small, blonde host bounded up to her side and tugged gently on her shirt. He looked up at her with adorable puppy eyes, clutching a plush pink rabbit to his chest. "You look pale. Do you feel sick?" The top hat adorning his crown looked laughably oversized for his tiny stature.
"N-No… But, Renge…"
"You should come eat cake with us! That always makes me feel better," he suggested, taking her hand and leading her over to the table where he and Mori sat. "What kind is your favorite?"
"You know, I don't normally have much of a sweet tooth." Ella plopped herself down onto the couch and trailed off, staring in awe at the cart full of gourmet cakes sitting next to them. "But I may have to make an exception here…" She scanned the cart of unbelievable pastries. "Are… are those mini fruit tarts?"
Honey giggled, taking the small plate off the cart and placing it in front of her. "And they're all for you!" He bounced excitedly in his seat, preparing to delve into the handful of delicious cakes surrounding him. "I'm Honey, by the way. And this is Takashi! We're both third-years here."
Third-years?! Ella's jaw nearly dropped open, but she managed to contain herself. Sure, it was perfectly believable that Mori was a third-year, but Honey? He could have said he was in elementary school and that would have been more believable. Suddenly swallowing a bite of fruit tart, Ella cleared her throat. "Ah, a-actually, we met already—Mori and I, that is…"
"Ehhh, really?" Honey looked surprised. "When?"
"Just before this. We…" she trailed off, feeling her face turning red again as she recalled what had happened.
"Renge pulled a prank on us." Mori said simply, his rumbling voice startling Ella.
She looked up at him uneasily, but he avoided eye contact—whether intentionally or unintentionally, Ella couldn't tell—by standing up to pour more tea for everyone. "Oh! Well, that explains why you came here with Renge," Honey commented. Like the rest of the group, he seemed to be perfectly aware of the lady manager's antics and didn't show an ounce of surprise. He didn't even seem to question what the prank might've been—but perhaps, of course, that was because he could tell neither party involved wanted to discuss it at the moment.
Ella smiled awkwardly. "Yeah… Anyway, Mori-san, I just wanted to apologize for the confusion back there. I really didn't know Renge was planning any of that—honestly." She laughed, adding on, "She's my friend and all, but I swear I'm not that weird."
Mori set the teapot back down and took a seat again, looking at Ella and nodding curtly. "I understand." That was all he said, his face as expressionless as it always appeared to be.
Ella sat there, unmoving, for what felt like a lifetime. That was it? He said it was fine, but his silent and stony disposition was still incredibly intimidating. She couldn't tell how angry he actually was… After all, he'd probably had better things to do, and that was a large chunk of his time that she had wasted. She bit her lip anxiously and glanced over her shoulder at the clock on the wall. Without Renge, there wasn't much else Ella could do… She'd have to wait for her friend's return before being able to leave. She just hoped that happened before the end of club meeting time.
"Mitsukuni."
When Ella turned back around, she saw Mori reaching over towards Honey. He touched the small boy's face gently with a napkin, wiping off the bits of cake that were stuck to his cheek.
"Takashi…" Honey's eyes grew three sizes as he looked questioningly at Mori.
"You're making a mess of things."
Ella cringed as the simple exchange caused an uproar of fangirlish squeals from a few students that were now standing just behind her. She took that as a sign that some actual club participants were looking for time with these two hosts, so she scooped up the last mini fruit tart and stood up from her seat, allowing other students to fill her place. Besides, Mori was baffling at this point… Just when she thought she might be starting to understand him, he pulled out this atypical behavior. Ella was used to being able to read people, but how could someone seem so indifferent and yet so gentle and caring at the same time?
"Oh, Ella-chan, are you leaving?"
"Wh-Who, what? No, I—I mean, yes, I'm—" She had hoped to slip away unnoticed. What was it about being here that stressed her out so much? She was just so far out of her element and she didn't know anyone—that must have been it, right? Recognizing how tense her shoulders were, Ella took a deep breath and tried to relax. "…Yeah, I'm just gonna get out of the way…"
Honey frowned. "You still don't look so good… Here! You should borrow Usa-chan for a while!" The small blonde held his plush pink rabbit up as an offering, his smile bright and extremely contagious. "Usa-chan likes hugs and other cute things—like you!"
Ella couldn't help but return the expression of glee. It was such a cheesy thing to say, and yet, it had exactly the impact it was meant to have. "Thank you, Honey-san." Miraculously, just by accepting this bunny, Ella felt as if a weight had been lifted from her shoulders. Honey then smiled exuberantly in response and pranced back to the table, where he resumed socializing and contentedly stuffing his face with cake.
Ella checked the clock. Not too much longer until club activities ended… But still no Renge.
Wanting to stay as much out of the way as possible, Ella decided to have a seat on a nearby windowsill. She let out a deep breath, sitting Usa-chan up against the window as she pulled her legs up onto the ledge and leaned against the wall. From this height, she had a beautiful view out over part of the campus, which was detailed with colorful flower gardens, well-kempt stone pathways, and perfectly manicured lawns as far as the eye could see. Ella was sure this school was picturesque in all seasons, but it was difficult to imagine it being any more stunning during a season other than spring. Perhaps she'd never have the opportunity to attend Ouran Academy, but she could at least admire the atmosphere while she was here.
"How are you enjoying your first visit with the host club, Ms. Thomas?"
Appearing seemingly out of nowhere, Kyoya Ootori was suddenly standing at Ella's side. Ella was startled, accidentally knocking Usa-chan over as she nearly fell off of the windowsill herself. Her head hit against the windowpane, and it clicked open slightly.
Almost as if he knew exactly what would happen, Kyoya reached down in the blink of an eye and caught the plush before it hit the ground. "Careful there. We wouldn't want Honey-senpai getting the wrong idea, would we?" He casually tossed the plush back to a still-startled Ella, and it landed in her lap.
"Hah hah, right…" Ella uttered, reaching back to pull the window shut. Kyoya was wearing a charming smile, but what did he mean to imply by a comment like that? She smiled back, trying to shove down the anxiety that was slowly beginning to bubble back up to the surface. "Well, Renge certainly wasn't lying. The host club is just about everything she said it was." Ella looked out over the music room at all the guests who were genuinely and honestly enjoying themselves. Perhaps if she hadn't been thrown into this situation in such a weird way, she would have ended up more like these other students who felt comfortable and involved. Unfortunately, there was already one barrier between her and everyone else because of her status as a foreigner. So to be thrown into something like a host club, run by the wealthy and the elite? It was no wonder she felt like a fish out of water.
"We indeed do our best to cater to the needs of our guests," Kyoya said simply, as if reading from a script.
"Yeah, it shows," Ella added. "The costumes are a nice touch as well. They all look so authentic."
Kyoya smirked at that, finally glancing sideways to make eye contact. "I'm glad you noticed. These were all handmade by top-notch tailors in London, using historically accurate replicative techniques."
Ella's eyes grew wide with disbelief. "Really?"
"Really. They just came in a few days ago."
It was a bit of a dream of Ella's to wear period dress that was so fantastic and authentic looking. She often fantasized about splurging her savings on big hats and old Victorian dresses or long nineteen-twenty's evening gowns. "Wow… I mean, even the top hats look incredible." She reached out slightly before pausing, adding, "May I…?"
"Of course."
Ella didn't know what kind of a response she was expecting, but that certainly wasn't it. Based on how Kyoya had glared at her when they first met by that fountain, part of her thought he would spit in her face and tell her to keep her grubby commoner hands to herself. But of course, inside the fantasy land that was the Ouran host club, the chance of something like that happening was even less than the chance of seeing a flying pig.
Her eyes sparkling with glee, Ella placed Usa-chan to the side and stood up on the windowsill that she had previously been sitting on. Now towering a foot or so over the already-tall host, she reached over and ran her finger along the brim of Kyoya's silk top hat. "It's so smooth," she chimed. "I can almost see my reflection in it!"
"Would you like to wear it?"
Ella was taken aback. "O-Oh no, I couldn't," she gasped. "I can't even imagine how expensive that must have been."
"The hat alone is mere pocket money, really." Kyoya reached up and removed the hat, breaking out that charming smile again. "Here, let me. I insist."
At this point, Ella couldn't keep the dorky grin of excitement off her face. Since she was still standing on the windowsill, she crouched down just enough for Kyoya to place the hat on her head, at which point she slowly straightened upright—as if she was balancing an expensive set of china atop her crown. "Wow…!"
"How is it?"
"It's fantastic!" If one had been eavesdropping, one probably wouldn't have been able to guess that the two of them really were only talking about a hat. But for Ella, it was the simple things in life that she appreciated most. "It's so weighty, and yet it feels perfectly balanced! But not too heavy…" It was, of course, a tad too big for her, so she gingerly adjusted it to keep it from falling in front of her eyes.
All was interrupted, however, when the front doors of music room #3 suddenly slammed open.
"CONGRATULATIONS, ELLA THOMAS~!"
"What the—?!" As the doors banged loudly, a certain familiar and boisterous character burst into the room. Renge's grating re-entrance was so bombastic and unnecessary that it scared Ella right out of her skin, and she tripped backwards. "Wh-Whoa—!" The top hat fell over her eyes, and—still having been standing on the windowsill—her back rammed into the window.
And this time, the window flew open.
In a split second, Ella screamed as she felt herself spilling backwards, with nothing at all behind her to catch her fall. She tipped over the edge with flailing arms, feeling the transition from the rose-scented, saccharine air inside the host club to the fresh and crisp springtime breeze beyond. She was so frightened and shrieked so loud that there wasn't a single last-minute thought that flew through her mind. Her screams burned her throat and rang piercingly through her own head as she halfheartedly prepared herself to hit the concrete below and make a mess all over the pearly white pavement.
But that never happened.
Instead, Ella found the wind was knocked out of her as she felt herself stop short of falling any further, her back slamming against the outside wall of the high school building. The silk top hat that had covered her eyes fell off her head and tumbled to the ground below, where panicked passers-by were pointing up and gawking at the sight. Oh my God…! Ella let the wind blow her hair across her face as she looked out over the beautiful campus she had just previously been admiring… Except now, it was all upside-down.
"Ella!" A voice called from above. "Are you alright?!"
Ella craned her neck upwards to find that Kyoya Ootori—thanks to his apparently quick reflexes—had grabbed a hold of her ankles, and she was now dangling outside the window. "I-I think so…!" she wheezed in response, still feeling the shock of slamming her back into the side of a building.
She let her arms dangle, and her chest heaved as she tried to steady her breathing. There was a commotion going on above her and below her, but she couldn't quite tell what was being said. She squeezed her eyes shut in terror, trying to ignore the blood rushing to her head as she prayed they would be able to pull her up somehow before Kyoya's grip gave out.
"Ella, lean forward and reach!" It was Kyoya's voice.
"Wh-What?"
"Lean up towards us and reach out your arms!"
With her eyes still squeezed shut, Ella did as she was told. She crunched forward as if she was doing an upside-down sit-up, reaching forward at something she refused to open her eyes and see.
All of a sudden, something grasped both her hands and pulled, and Ella was whisked upwards as the pressure on her ankles was released. Her eyes shot open at the sudden motion, and she realized Mori was single-handedly tossing her into the air, as if she weighed nothing more than a feather, and pulling her back inside the classroom.
"Oof!" The motion was quick and graceful as Mori drew her into his safe embrace. By the time Ella could recognize what was going on, she found her arms wrapped desperately around Mori's neck. She seemed to be clutching onto him for dear life—though she didn't really have to be, because he had his own arm wrapped securely around her waist and was keeping her pressed close against his chest.
As Mori climbed down from the windowsill with Ella securely in his arms, Ella's chest heaved. She struggled to calm her breathing, her heart pounding incessantly in her head as she instinctively wrapped her arms tighter around Mori's neck. Had she been in her right mind, she might have been afraid of accidentally strangling him, but for the moment, all she could think about was the fact that she had just nearly fallen out a window.
As her composure started to return to her, her tunnel vision began to dissipate and the commotion that she had caused in the music room was starting to register.
"Good God, what happened?"
"Did anyone see?!"
"Thank goodness Mori was here. She could have died!"
"How is she? Is she alright?"
Her face buried in Mori's shoulder, Ella's own breathing was finally slowing, but she could still feel her heart pounding uncontrollably in her chest. In a way, she was still hanging on for dear life—her feet weren't even on the ground yet—but her grip was loosening. The only thing keeping her off the ground at this point was Mori's strong hold, which kept her securely close in a tight embrace. As if they might lose her again if he dared to let go.
And at that moment, Ella realized that it was not her own heartbeat she felt pounding in her chest. It was Mori's.
She looked up at his face to see his expression was emotionless and indifferent as always—but being close enough to him to feel his panicked heartbeat, Ella could now definitively say that he was anything but indifferent. He had obviously been nervous… perhaps even more so than anyone else. And even though he didn't show it, Ella was close enough now to know.
Literally.
"M-M-Mori-san…!" she stuttered quietly, tapping him awkwardly on the shoulder. "I'm okay now, r-really…!"
Mori obliged and set Ella down on her own two feet, stepping back so that the rest of the crowd could take care of the gushing and fussing.
"Ella! Are you okay?! Are you hurt?! This is unbelievable!" But in all honesty, most of the gushing came from one person.
"I'm alright, Tamaki, really," Ella breathed.
He grabbed her shoulders, seeming on the verge of theatrical tears. "What an absolutely dreadful turn of events! Kyoya, how could something like this happen?!"
Realizing she had Kyoya to thank for her life at the moment, Ella turned to say something to him—but he had just taken out his phone. And, beneath his collected exterior, he looked furious. "The fact that a faulty window latch like this has been overlooked for so long is preposterous. This will be taken care of immediately." He was gone before Ella could say a single word.
The relative silence lingered for almost no time at all before Renge—the one whose entrance had startled Ella to begin with—finally burst onto the scene. "Ohmigosh, Ella! I'm so so sorry! This is all my fault!" Her eyes were glossy with tears as she nearly squeezed the life out of her friend in a big hug.
"It's really not. I'm just kind of a klutz," Ella groaned, hoping the hug wouldn't break any of her ribs. "I-I shouldn't have been standing on that ledge…"
"Still, that was so scary!" Renge insisted, her tears then almost immediately drying up as her face turned smug. "But it sure is a good thing Mori was here to save you, huh? Huuuh?"
Ella's expression deadpanned. You're kidding me… There was no way that was another one of Renge's planned schemes; she was good, but not that good. Nor was she quite that crazy. However, to have this kind of a giddy reaction so soon after such a dramatic accident? (Granted, it was only because Ella indeed came out unscathed… If things had gone poorly, she of course wouldn't say such a thing. But the point still stood.) Renge was certainly one of a kind.
"Where did you disappear to anyway?"
"Hm?"
"Earlier, when you left me here alone with the host club. Where did you disappear to?"
"Oh, nowhere important. I was just getting you…" Renge looked smug and paused for dramatic effect, before suddenly pulling a bright yellow dress out of nowhere, "…this!"
Ella blinked, letting the silence linger. "An Ouran uniform? What for?"
"Well, you know, after filing your transfer paperwork, I—"
"My what?!"
"Your transfer paperwork!" Renge repeated, as if saying it again would take away some of the shock value. "That's what I came back to tell you about!"
"Renge, please tell me you didn't…"
"Congratulations, Ella Thomas," she announced exuberantly, trying not to scare her friend out a window this time, "on becoming a student at Ouran Academy!"
…WHAT?!
* ~ u – n – u – n – u – n – u ~ *
A/N. DEAR GOODNESS GUMDROPS. I don't know what it was, but this chapter was so. hard. to. write. o_e So I apologize for the wait, but it's finally here.
Anyway, thanks so much for reading this super long chapter, and I hope you still have the energy to leave a comment/critique! (Also, thank you SOOO MUCH to the kind people that have reviewed so far. I really super appreciate it! ^^)