Kyouya spent a majority of his Sunday attempting to reach Emi- which proved difficult to do seeing as he only had her phone number and each time he called it was off. Frustrated he paced the room. His schooling was done, he had read ahead in every subject and was prepared for the next two weeks of class. His business matters were handled, all emails responded to, and he now had nothing to occupy his thoughts other than the picture of a certain blonde staring down at him in terror.
When his doors burst opened he almost sighed in relief.
"Mommyyyy!" Tamaki yelled enthusiastically as he entered the room.
Kyouya stood to meet the group and began to walk towards them. The other hosts froze. Within seconds they had disappeared out of the room and closed his bedroom door. From inside he could hear muffled voices and on occasion a yelling. After a few minutes the door creaked open and six sets of eyes stared at him.
"What." He said with malice.
The six guests warily entered the room, "Are you feeling okay, Kyo-kun?" Hani asked,
"Yah, you look horrible." The twins said bluntly.
An evil aura began to emanate from Kyouya and all the hosts returned to the hallway except one. Haruhi remained where she was and gave Kyouya a once-over before beginning a steady approach towards him.
"Come back, dear daughter! Mommy is in a bad mood, it isn't safe for you!" Tamaki yelled,
Haruhi turned around and gave him a hard glare before returning her gaze to Kyouya. When she was an arms length away she did something that nearly stopped the hearts of Tamaki, Kaoru, and Hikaru.
She touched his arm and looked into his eyes. After a moment she rose to the balls of her feet and enveloped him in a tight hug. Kyouya reacted immediately and melted into her touch, hiding his face in the crook of her neck. Together they slipped to the floor and remained there.
Hani and Mori were the first to unfreeze and re-enter Kyouya's room. Hani jumped into the space between Haruhi and Kyouya and joined the hug. Mori sat down and drew the bundle of bodies into his lap. After a few minutes the other three boys regained their senses and leapt into action. They tackled the mass of people and nearly toppled them but Mori kept them upright and together.
After a few minutes of embracing, Kyouya stirred and the group released their tight hold.
"What happened Kyo-kun?" Hani asked softly,
Kyouya was busy barraging himself over his moment of weakness that he nearly missed his senpais' question. He didn't cry-he was an Ootori after all- but Haruhi's' ability to determine his mood was pressuring his breaking point.
~How could I be so weak as to fall apart the moment someone showed me comfort? In fact, how did she even know?~
He took a minute to collect his thoughts and placed his metaphorical mask on to hide his emotions again. He sat up tall and proud and fixed his glasses so they produced a glare to hide his eyes.
"I have upset Emi." He said plainly.
Everyone deadpanned.
"He's bipolar." The twins muttered.
"What did you do to upset Emi?" Haruhi pressed,
"She came over yesterday to work on the racecar event and I... Well I..." Kyouya felt as if he had a ring in his throat that constricted every time he tried to tell them his secret. ~Is it even a secret? What happened was a fact. Why is it so hard to tell them?~
"Did you do something to her?" Tamaki prompted, his voice beginning to careen from worried to hysterical.
"Yes I... I simply..." He was at loss of words.
"What did you do to her?" The twins said menacingly,
"I tried to kiss her!" He burst out, forcing down a blush at the stout silence that followed. The twins' mouths dropped and Tamaki fainted. The three remaining hosts were silent for a minute as the news sunk in.
"I'm sorry she didn't react well, Kyouya-senpai." Haruhi said lightly,
"It couldn't be helped," He said with a sigh, "But I know now what I must do." He added with confidence,
Tamaki popped up like a daisy and immediately entered his drama-king stage. "Poor Mommy is heart broken yet still so set on fixing the woman with which he has wronged, how delightfully selfless and caring he is!" He gushed.
"What are you doing in my house." Kyouya said darkly, he appreciated the comforting but Tamaki was already getting on his nerves again.
The twins opened their mouths to speak but another voice cut them off.
"We were just heading to the park and wanted to know if you wanted to come." Haruhi said while dragging the boys around her to their feet. "Sorry to barge in, we'll take our leave now." She began to corral the boys, the dazed Tamaki mainly, out the door when Kyouya responded, "I don't mind coming along."
Six heads peered back at him with wide smiles. Haruhi held out her hand and together the group walked out of the Ootori estate.
o0o
~How is already Monday?~ Emi thought as she trudged into school. ~I would have preferred to stay at home if I could.~
Slowly she made her way to her classroom and sat down heavily in her desk. It was still fifteen minutes until school started but she feared if she sat down anywhere else she wouldn't have the energy to move again. Her body was sore and tattooed in bruises and she was worn out both physically and emotionally. She had gotten little sleep since Saturday, restlessness had led her to train for hours all weekend. Her strong response to Kyouya's advances scared her.
~Why is it that I suddenly have feelings for that guy.~ She thought, losing consciousness of reality and slipping into a daydream state. ~He is nosy and arrogant and does the scariest glares with those pretty eyes of his and he is so smart and cunning and confident and wait isn't that the same as arrogant? Wait did I just say he has pretty eyes!? They are most definitely not pretty! They are the worst most vile eyes I have ever se-~
Her internal rant was cut short and she was thrust back into reality when she heard someone clear their throat in front of her. When she focused her eyes on the person standing by her desk she saw the very person that was haunting her thoughts.
"Hello Emi-san," Kyouya said lightly.
"Hello Ootori-san." She replied politely, ~Oh I wish he would just ignore me, that would be so much easier.~
She saw his face tighten slightly at her greeting but relax quickly. He walked up to her desk and sat down in one across from her.
"I told you to call me Kyouya." He said softly, ~Why does he have to bring up that specific event?~
She blushed and looked down at the table, trying to escape his penetrating gaze.
"I did not mean to upset you Saturday." He said lightly.
She did not look up and continued her careful observation of the desktop in front of her,
"I was not upset, not in the way you think I was." Was her steady reply.
"What way should I think you were upset then?" He asked, leaning in slightly,
"I was not upset with your actions, I was just not prepared for them."
"Does that mean you were not opposed to what I did?"
Her eyes widened but still refused to meet his for she feared that if she looked at him now she would not be able to control her actions. She tried to prepare a sentence that would discourage him but he spoke again.
"I am sorry. I didn't mean to corner you like that." Kyouya said with a small sigh and looked down,
At that moment Emi saw something in Kyouya that as far as she knew no one alive had ever seen. She saw nothing but a single person, untarnished by a business façade or an overly polite attitude. His responses were real. His words held worth. What sat before her was the very essence of Ootori Kyouya without anything to change or spoil it. The thought that he would reveal himself so completely touched her heart and she felt herself fall even more for him.
"It's fine," She whispered, "Kyouya-san." She looked over at him with a small smile. He raised his eyes to meet hers and she found them to indeed be very beautiful. They were a deep black that she felt she could easily get lost in.
He returned her smile and grabbed her hand in his. Emi's heart leapt and she enjoyed the wave of joy that crashed over her. She wished she could spend eternity in that moment but after a few seconds she forced herself to draw herself away from him.
"But we can't have a relationship. Not like that at least." She murmured.
"Why?" He asked, bordering on angry.
"Do you always need justification for things?" She asked, "Can't you accept something for what it is?"
"I find it is best to know why something can or cannot happen in order to fully understand it." He replied coolly.
"I can't tell you, I would if I could but it is not an option for me." Emi said, tears beginning to prick at her eyes. ~I wish I could, Kyouya, but you would hate me for it.~
"What secret is big enough that you can't allow yourself to even make friends with people?" Kyouya asked sharply, "The entire host club wants nothing more than your happiness but you shut them all out. What is so important?"
"What I do is only to protect you." Emi said as tears spilled over her eyes, "I'm so sorry." Sobs threatened to overtake her as she covered her face with her hands, "I don't want to hurt anyone."
Emi felt a sob creep up from her chest but before it was released a pair of hands shocked it out of existence. Kyouya took both of her hands in one of his and held out his other to hold her chin like he attempted to do the first day they spoke. Unlike the first time, she allowed him to cradle it and brush away a few of her tears.
"Please don't cry." He said gently as he rested his forehead on hers. "If you can't tell me, I'll just have to not know."
Their lips were mere inches apart and Emi stared into Kyoya's eyes with a fierce intensity. Before she could allow herself to think it through she pressed her lips up to his and kissed him. She closed her eyes as an unknown sensation shot through her body. She felt his tongue brush against the outside of her lip and instinctively she opened her mouth. His tongue eased in and after a few seconds of absolute terror she returned the favor. She placed her arms around his neck and pulled him up against her, deepening the kiss further. Kyouya lost one of his hands in her hair while the other reached around to her back and pressed her firmly against his chest. In a moment of passion he pushed her back in her desk and she released a short shriek and romantically threw him off the desk.
"Kyouya!" Emi gasped as she slid off her desk onto the ground next to him. She placed her hands on either side of his motionless form and leaned down by his head to listen to breathing. Instead of steady breathing she heard his rare (and infectious in her opinion) laughter. Within seconds she had joined in on the laughter and they sat on the floor with Emi on top of Kyouya, laughing until the first bell rang. They had pulled each other up into a standing position just as the first student walked into the classroom.
"Out of curiousity, why did you do that?" Kyouya asked, still grinning,
"Oh," Emi said with a faint blush, "I have a bruise on my back and I didn't expect the pain so I panicked."
Kyouya dropped his grin and gave her a puzzled look, "If you don't mind me asking, why do you have so many bruises. And in such odd places?"
Emi looked at him for moment trying to determine what to say. Eventually she sighed in defeat, "I'll tell you after school at club although it's nothing particularly interesting."
Kyouya nodded and smiled down at her again before turning and making his back to his own desk.
~I am so sorry Kyouya.~ She thought as slid into her seat. ~I have broken my number one rule: do not get attached. And now I have not one attachment, but seven.~ Emi watched as Tamaki said something to Kyouya and received a smack over the head for his efforts. ~Despite knowing what might happen I can't help feeling a little selfish. Never in my life have I enjoyed myself so much as I have recently. I fear that I love him and when he discovers the truth that he will break my heart.~ With a sigh she looked outside at her cherry blossom tree. ~Damn it all. Until then I will protect them with my life and love them as I feel fit to.~