I went from working full time in the summer to being a full time student for the rest of the year. Ugh… why can't people just let me write?

Thank you to AmbertheCat, SpringBorn, LadyAmazon, LMarie99, Shadowing, M.v.j.M, ktmyldy28, Momochan77, Wonderwomanbatmanfan, bunnygirl2203, Cookies16, Ghostisreading, SabrinaTeenagedB, bootskitty328, musiqueismyjam1041, Alexis996, kingdomhearts49120, blackrose13666, and two guests for your reviews! I'm so sorry for the long wait, and hopefully it never gets to be that long again! Hope you like this chapter!

Disclaimer: I do not own OHSHC. All I own is a dog who barks at every little thing.

The Twins Fight

Jacklyn took a deep breath before walking into classroom 2-A, making the conversations inside stop in an instant. She licked her lower lip and did her best to avoid the stares from her classmates, quickly making her way to her seat and trying to look as small as possible. Giggles and whispers followed behind her, and she was far too anxious to check to see if their accompanying smiles were kind or malicious.

As she walked to her seat, her desk neighbors also paused their own conversation to look at her. Jacklyn's heart clenched, but she managed to give her friend and her new boyfriend a small smile. Tamaki beamed back and waved, looking frantically between his two friends. He wasn't alone, either. The whole room appeared to have taken in a sudden breath as Jacklyn neared Kyoya's desk. Kyoya was the only one who didn't appear bothered by the attention, smiling softly up at his girlfriend in such a way that Jacklyn felt her chest constrict. In the good way.

"Good morning, Jacklyn."

Jacklyn blushed heavily and sat down at her own desk, peeking at Kyoya through her eyelashes, whispering out a shy, "Good morning, Kyoya."

She had no idea what she wanted to say to him. They'd texted each other until midnight last night, but in real life it felt… awkward. And everyone kept staring at them. Tamaki wasn't helping, smiling rather dumbly as he looked back and forth between the two of them. He looked far too happy considering he wasn't actually a part of the relationship. Jacklyn shut her eyes and focused on breathing evenly.

We're fine. I'm fine. Everything is fine. Kyoya is acting calm. He'll know how to handle everything and help me through the attention. My rock in stormy weather. Jacklyn barely suppressed a giggle. Gosh, that was so sappy. And I'm already feeling better. It'll all work out. We won't draw any extra attention to ourselves, and soon everyone else will lose interest and-

"Jacklyn?" Kyoya reached across the aisle and gripped her hand, causing Jacklyn's eyes to fly open as she jolted. He gently ran a thumb over the back of her hand, smile as soft as ever. Jacklyn felt a shiver run up her arm and down her spine. It was like the entire room was holding its breath.

"I was wondering if you'd be okay with me calling you Jac-chan from now on?"

Her heart stuttered to a stop in her chest. The hand that wasn't in Kyoya's grip clutched the side of her desk. She was sure her face was incredibly red, and not just because the whispers around them had suddenly picked back up.

"U-um…"

Swallowing past the lump in her throat, she did her best to look in Kyoya's direction, even if she couldn't quite meet his eye. She licked her lower lip. The nickname… it sounded a little weird coming out of Kyoya's mouth, but it was also a brand new thing, so technically it should... And they were dating. Even if she hadn't expected Kyoya to be into cutesy nicknames... but if he was…

"I mean, I guess that's okay. I don't mind it."

"Okay, Jac-chan."

Jacklyn gave her boyfriend a tentative smile, overwhelmingly grateful when the teacher suddenly walked into the classroom and Kyoya pulled his hand away. Clasping her hands together in her lap, she pressed them together tightly, trying to quell the shaking.

So much for her rock in stormy weather.

*Time Skip*

Jacklyn couldn't focus.

She felt jittery and like she'd been under a microscope for the past eight hours. Whispers had followed her all day, along with a sprinkling of outright glares, and it was slowly getting to be too much. Tamaki had been absolutely no help at all, staring at her and Kyoya with heart eyes if they were within 5 feet of each other.

And then there was Kyoya himself. The slow and steady process into a relationship Jacklyn had expected basically flew out the window that morning. A purple rose slid into her school bag, hand holding in the hallways and through their lunch period, and even sharing each other's lunches had steadily freaked Jacklyn out until she felt like she was going into cardiac arrest.

But hosting hours were proving to be even worse.

After hurrying through a quick song, all Jacklyn wanted to do was run into the kitchen and hide until the following day. She was literally the center of attention in the room, and it was just… too much, too much, too much-

Forcing herself to take a deep breath, she stood up from the bench and dove at the nearby couch where Akiko and Ena usually sat. Curled up in the corner with her back protected by soft cushion made it significantly easier to breathe.

After her hands stopped shaking, Jacklyn grabbed her school bag and pulled out her Kanji practice sheets. Perhaps she could lose herself in her studies and relax a bit before her next song. She wished she had brought her headphones to help drown out the way her brain was screaming. But she hadn't, and she'd have to wait until she went home to plug herself into her music and truly relax. For now, she'd just have to make do with what she had.

Unfortunately, it wasn't enough to stop her from jumping a foot in the air when Haruhi tapped her shoulder a few minutes later.

"AAHHH!"

"Sorry! Sorry!"

Jacklyn gasped, leaning forward with her hands on her knees. "Oh my gosh… don't do that."

"I'm sorry! I didn't mean to startle you!"

Taking in another deep breath and letting it out, Jacklyn looked up at her neighbor and offered a small smile. "It's okay. I guess I'm just… a little frazzled."

Haruhi nodded and took a seat on the other side of the couch. "Yeah, I noticed. I actually came over here in case you wanted to… y'know, talk about it?"

"What's to talk about?" Jacklyn balanced her notebook on her knee, trying to remember which kanji she had been practicing before Haruhi showed up. "I'm dating Kyoya, the whole school knows about it, and some girls hate me for it. Nothing I can do about that except wait it out."

"Actually, I meant all the attention Kyoya-senpai's been giving you."

Jacklyn paused in her writing, still staring down at her notebook paper. "Oh, that."

"I didn't think he'd really be into that kind of stuff. Holding hands all the time and sharing lunches. You seemed surprised by it as well."

"I was. I am."

Jacklyn sighed and looked up, finally, glancing at her boyfriend from across the room. Kyoya was at his usual table, and if Jacklyn wasn't mistaken he had a few more guests than usual around him today. Most of the girls were leaning over the table or their armrests, gazing imploringly at Kyoya like he was waxing poetry about the stars. Not liking the uncomfortable twisting in her gut at the sight, Jacklyn returned her gaze to her homework. The recent catfight with Renge had been more than enough fighting over a boy for a lifetime, in her opinion. She wasn't going to start anything if she could avoid it.

Careful to keep her voice steady, Jacklyn muttered, "I don't really know what to think of it. I mean… it's sweet, but I have no idea how to handle all of his attention. Especially not the romantic stuff. It feels almost showy, like it's not meant for the two of us to enjoy. Tamaki gawking at us whenever we're in the same room isn't helping. I dunno, I guess I was expecting something… smaller. More personal. Though, I don't know if my heart could take it."

She could see Haruhi's shadow bob as her friend nodded her head. "So… you're just finding ways to calm down until things settle?"

"Pretty much. I certainly have enough work to occupy my attention."

The two were quiet for a moment, both of them watching as Jacklyn carefully created different kanji pictures in her notebook. Every so often, she'd flip over the page tucked under her right leg, just to make sure she had the figures correct.

"Is this for one of your Kanji quizzes you've told me about?"

"Yeah. I'm ridiculously behind everyone else, so I have to take these remedial quizzes to help catch up. There's a lot I'm still shaky on."

"I understand. English has always been a weakness of mine. I feel like I have to study for hours before I can remember a few words. And that's just writing. Speaking is even worse for me."

"Yeah, it took me two years of studying Japanese before I could speak without stuttering."

"Really? I never would've been able to tell. You're doing really well so far."

Jacklyn gave her friend a quick smile. For someone who claimed to be useless when it came to social situations, Haruhi certainly knew the best thing to say.

"Did you hear what went on with me, Hikaru and Kaoru?"

"Do you mean when you said their guessing game was stupid or how they photoshopped you half naked for the guests?"

Haruhi coughed suddenly, just as red in the face as Jacklyn had been all day. "Uh, I was referring to the second bit."

"Of course you were."

The pair exchanged a glance before falling into giggles. It was nice, Jacklyn mused, to have a friend around to just poke fun at and relax with. She cast a quick glance around the room and found more than a few unfriendly eyes aimed in her direction.

Friends are hard to come by these days.

Shaking the thought out of her mind, Jacklyn turned back to Haruhi. "Yeah, don't worry too much about them. Hikaru and Kaoru are still getting used to you. Give them time, don't let them push you away, and they'll stop terrorizing you soon enough."

"How long did it take before they stopped teasing you?"

"Well, it took nearly three months before they even started liking me, so I can't exactly give you a time table. But if you keep making comments like the one about the 'Which one of us is Hikaru' game, it'll probably take a lot longer that it would."

Haruhi abruptly sat up, obviously confused. "But it's a dumb game! It's so easy!"

"I know. I figured out a cheat sometime last year, but honestly it's not difficult to tell them apart once you get to know them."

"Is that so?"

Turning around in their seats, the girls found themselves under the watchful eyes of the two boys they'd just been discussing. Hikaru and Kaoru were leaning on the back of the couch, propped up with their elbows, and both wearing matching bored expressions. Jacklyn was almost tempted to reach out and poke their noses, if only to prove her point. She, and perhaps no one else, knew that if she poked their noses, Hikaru would attempt to lick her finger in response while Kaoru would scrunch up his nose and pout. Both actions, while cute, would also demonstrate how the two boys had their own personalities beneath their looks.

But she could only imagine how the jealous girls would react, so she didn't, turning back to her homework instead.

Haruhi shrugged from her end of the couch. "It's nothing personal, you two. We just… wait." She suddenly leaned forward, narrowing her eyes and looking between Jacklyn and the twins. "Is that why you were calling me a 'toy'? You're just trying to mess with me because I'm new?"

"No, we meant what we said."

"You're our new source of entertainment."

"Ergo…"

"... a toy."

Jacklyn raised an eyebrow, but before she could ask if that meant she was the "old toy", a deep laugh from the front doors interrupted the conversation. Jacklyn perked up at the dark head poking itself through their doors, happy to see a friendly face.

"Toys? Toys? If toys are what you're looking for, you should come visit my Black Magic club. We've opened a marketplace to the general public for such entertaining purposes…"

"Hi, Nekozawa-senpai!"

At Jacklyn's voice, Nekozawa glanced up so his eyes were partly visible underneath his hood. He flashed a charming smile at the sight of his friend, even his cat puppet taking on a more approachable appearance. "Good afternoon, Jacklyn-san. It is lovely to see you again."

"You too!"

Nekozawa offered another smile before dropping his voice back into his low rumbling. "I see I might be able to offer some entertainment to your friends. If they are interested, I'd be willing to throw in a free Beelzeneff curse doll with their first purchase."

Haruhi slowly eased herself off the couch and went to stand by Jacklyn, so her back was no longer facing the door. "Er… Jacklyn-senpai? Do you know that guy? Why is he talking to us through a crack in the door?"

"Oh, that's Nekozawa-senpai. He's in class 3-D and the President of the Black Magic Club. He also has a medical condition that makes bright lights painful for him, hence the dark cloak and the wig. But don't let his disguise fool you, he's a real sweetheart."

"Not to everyone…"

Jacklyn's heart jumped in her chest for the second time that hour. She and Haruhi turned around to see that Tamaki had snuck up behind them when they weren't paying attention. The blond's face was paler than usual and he was staring intently at Nekozawa from across the room. A quick glance downwards showed that the boy's hands were shaking by his sides.

Jacklyn recovered first, rolling her eyes. "Tamaki, how many times to I have to tell you? Nekozawa-senpai is a good guy. He has nothing against you."

"Wrong. You only say that because you've never been on the receiving end of one of his curses."

Tamaki turned to Haruhi then, gravely explaining his misfortune of being in Nekozawa's crosshairs at the end of the last school year, which earned another eye roll from Jacklyn. No matter how many times it was explained to him, nothing could be said to change Tamaki's fear of the other boy. Which was sad, because if it weren't for Tamaki's fear, Jacklyn had a feeling she'd be able to spend more time with the darkly dressed boy than she did now.

"Your embellishments continue to amaze me, Tamaki."

Jacklyn stiffened in her seat as Kyoya's voice sounded from right behind her, her boyfriend's hand coming down to rest on her shoulder. "As we've tried to tell you before, you were so scared after stepping on Beelzenef that you accidentally walked into the beginning Greek class and took their exam."

"That's not true! It was a curse! I can prove it! I can-"

"If you want to prove the dark powers of Beelzenef..."

Tamaki shrieked, hiding behind Kyoya as Nekozawa approached the group. Jacklyn gave the boy another smile, even if Kyoya's hand on her shoulder was sending jitters throughout her body.

Nekozawa returned Jacklyn's smile before continuing, "... then why don't you buy a curse doll yourself? All you have to do is write the name of someone you hate on his back, and they will be forever haunted with… misfortune."

Jacklyn almost laughed out loud. She knew that the misfortune her friend was speaking of only consisted of untied shoelaces, stubbed toes, and ice cream disasters, but the way he said it was truly haunting. He would make an excellent audio book reader.

"Wow… you sure are dark in more ways than one."

"What would happen if we… lightened you up a bit?"

Jacklyn's eyes went wide at the sight of the twins behind Nekozawa, but she didn't have the time to warn her friend before flashlights were being shone directly in his face. The older boy let out a scream of surprise and pain, his hands coming up to shield his face as he ran for it, tripping over his own two feet and bumping into pillars on the way before escaping the room and slamming the door shut behind him.

For a moment, nothing could be heard other than the calm chatter of the host club's guests. Hikaru and Kaoru switched off their flashlights and glanced at each other. They both gave a shrug. They were expecting something a little more…

"What the hell is wrong with you two?" Jacklyn launched herself to her feet, eyes blazing as she regarded the twins. "Nekozawa-senpai wasn't doing anything wrong and you just… you… I can't believe you would do that! You could've seriously hurt him!"

Hikaru shrugged again, throwing an arm over his brother's shoulder. "We just wanted to see what he'd do."

"That's not an excuse! You knew he doesn't like bright lights and that it was a medical issue, and you still risked hurting him for your amusement! I can't believe you!"

"You said that already."

"Augh!"

Throwing her hands up in the air, Jacklyn pushed the two boys aside and marched back to her piano bench. Sitting down she started angrily shuffling around her music pieces, looking for a fast piece to get her frustrations out. She was so mad… the last time she'd been this mad at the twins they had falsely accused her of betraying the host club. She thought they were past that phase! Pranks were one thing, but what they had done to Nekozawa was just crossing the line!

A quick glance over her shoulder riled Jacklyn up even further. The twins didn't seem bothered in the slightest by Jacklyn's outburst, lounging around on a pair of chairs by the window. Fighting down a scowl, she turned her head back around and began the song. 'Dies Irae', by Mozart, the piano arrangement. One of his few aggressive pieces. Just fast and loud enough that Jacklyn could pound the keys and get her emotions out. Before long, the tension in her shoulders loosened, her mind solely focused on keeping up with the pace of the song.

As she'd hoped for and predicted, by the time she finished the song she was much calmer. Releasing a breath as she bowed politely towards her applauding audience, Jacklyn stood up and wandered back over to Haruhi. The other girl didn't have guests, and Jacklyn found that talking to the only other sane person around was good for her mental health.

Of course, right as she approached, the twins called out from their chairs by the window.

"Hey, Haruhi, can we come over to your place this weekend?"

"No."

"Oh, come on, why not?"

"Because you'll just make fun of me."

"No, we won't. We've been to Jacklyn's apartment before and we were nice about it."

At the admission, Haruhi raised both of her eyebrows in surprise and looked over at her neighbor. She didn't know the Host Club had been at their complex before.

Jacklyn scoffed, folding her arms over her chest. "'Nice' is a rather… nice way of putting it. You forget you two weren't exactly invited."

The twins gasped, standing up from their chairs. "How cold!"

"You seemed okay with it back then!"

"That was before you purposely tried to hurt one of my friends. And before you called every part of my living situation "quaint" since calling it anything else made Tamaki smack you upside the head."

Kaoru screwed his face up in pout before Hikaru elbowed his brother lightly. The two boys exchanged a glance before nodding in sync, pulling out their green caps from their pockets.

"Why don't we settle this with a game?" They plopped their hats on their heads. "If Haruhi can't pick out which one of us is Hikaru, her penalty will be us coming over this weekend."

The girls narrowed their eyes, but didn't protest. Taking that as agreement, Hikaru spun the girls around so he and Kaoru could shuffle themselves. They were careful with how many steps they took and where they took them, a well practiced dance they performed flawlessly.

"Okay! So which one of us is Hikaru?"

Haruhi and Jacklyn turned around slowly, eyes still narrowed in matching glares. Haruhi took one look at the boys and raised a hand to point.

"This one's Kaoru. This one's Hikaru."

"Uh oh, you got it wrong!"

"No, she's right, and you know it." The twins stiffened at Jacklyn's sharp words. Yes, Haruhi had been right, but no one had ever called them out before for lying about the results. No one had ever known the truth enough to call their bluff. Did that mean...

As they stared at Jacklyn, Haruhi lowered her arm and smiled knowingly. "Yeah, I know I'm right. You guys may look alike, but you're very different."

Gasps of amazement followed Haruhi's statement, a few guests approaching the pair of girls, curious as to how they'd beaten the twin's "impossible" game. The guests of the Host Club had played "Which one is Hikaru" ever since the twins joined the club, and never once had someone been so sure of their answer and gotten it right!

Jacklyn smiled in triumph. She was still sore about Nekozawa's treatment, so cutting the twin's fun short was a good way of getting back at them. She'd lighten up on them tomorrow, once she had the chance to slip away and check on Nekozawa before going home tonight.

"It's so amazing. How can you tell them apart?"

"Hmm… it's kinda hard to explain since they do almost everything together… but Hikaru's speech and actions make him come across as more mischievous than Kaoru. His humor is just a shade darker. As for how to tell them apart when they're wearing the hats-"

Haruhi fumbled to a stop in her explanation as laughter started up behind her. Glancing over her shoulder, she and the other girls saw Kaoru practically bent in half as he snickered into his hand, muffling himself as best as he could.

"What's so funny, Kaoru?"

Every eye in the vicinity darted over to Hikaru, his posture just as stiff as his question. Jacklyn nervously noticed the way the boy frowned at his still-laughing brother.

"I'm… I'm sorry, Hikaru, I don't mean to laugh. But wow, she really got your number, huh?"

Hikaru's head jerked back, gaping momentarily at his brother before sharply turning up his nose and facing the other direction. "Well, I don't know why that would be funny. I'm honest and I speak my mind and I don't hide my intentions from anyone, like Haruhi said."

"Uh, actually I-"

"It's sneaky people like Kaoru who are the real troublemakers."

Kaoru's laughter cut off abruptly, his smile staying in place just long enough for it to turn sinister before dying altogether. Jacklyn swallowed before tugging at Haruhi's sleeve, pulling her a few steps away from the brothers. Clearly, something unpleasant was about to go down. She was definitely going to have to pay Nekozawa a visit later to see if he had pulled something as payback for the Flashlight Incident.

"Don't turn this on me, Hikaru. After all, I'm always the one going along with your plans."

"I might be the one to come up with the ideas, but you're the one who gets really into them. If you hate them so much, no one's forcing you to come along."

"If I let you go off on your own you'd be dragging our family name through the mud within a week."

Jacklyn half-heartedly raised one of her hands, trying to get the boy's attention, but her tongue seemed to be stuck to the roof of her mouth. Her heart pounded solidly in her chest at the mere idea of speaking up, even if it was to try to break up the mounting fight. She might still be irritated from how they had treated Nekozawa earlier, and she was sure Haruhi felt the same with the photoshop incident, but that didn't mean the twins weren't still her friends. Hikaru and Kaoru reminded her so much of her own little brother, Alec, and she hated to see them so upset. Especially with each other.

"U-um…" Damn her anxiety! She had to say something! Why did her throat feel like it was closing up?

A gentle touch to her shoulder pulled Jacklyn's attention away from the shouting boys in front of her. Kyoya quietly stepped up to her side, wrapping his arm around her waist while watching the twins with an impassive look. But Jacklyn knew better. She saw the subtle frown pulling at the corner of Kyoya's mouth and how his eyes never once left the bickering pair. He was worried, too.

Jacklyn turned back to the fight, which was escalating faster than she'd anticipated. Bringing her hands back to her side, she pressing herself a little closer to Kyoya's side. In the back of her mind, she couldn't help but note that she preferred their current position to holding hands. Not to say she probably couldn't get used to holding hands, but it was odd to envision Kyoya enjoying such a display. This… this felt more like him. Private.

"THAT'S IT! WE'RE THROUGH!"

Blinking back into the real world, Jacklyn and the rest of the host club watched helplessly as Hikaru and Kaoru stormed out of the music room, still screaming at each other to let the other leave first. As their shouting slowly faded on the other side of the doors, Tamaki quickly dismissed the guests for the afternoon, most of the girls agreeing without fuss.

Jacklyn took a deep breath in and out. Today had been a rollercoaster of emotions. But, at least it was over. And she had discovered something about her and Kyoya's relationship. She smiled shyly to herself. Perhaps things weren't as rocky as she first thought they'd be?

Gathering her courage, she went to turn to Kyoya and tell him about her preference for their current position, and how holding hands was still awkward for her, but caught a glimpse of something out of the corner of her eye. On the other side of the room, near the windows, was a guest. Medium height, brown hair in a ponytail over her shoulder, a cute blue ribbon tied around the end of her hair, and, oh yeah, a heavy glare focused on Jacklyn's face.

Jacklyn couldn't help but remember seeing said girl sitting at Kyoya's table half an hour ago, batting her eyelashes and giving Jacklyn's boyfriend the biggest "Doe-eyes" she'd ever seen.

Courage and heart plummeting to her feet, she gently eased herself out from Kyoya's grip, wishing her boyfriend a good night before heading back to her piano. If she was quick, she could pop by the Black Magic Club and see if Nekozawa had anything to do with the misfortune now plaguing the host club before she had to go home.

She needed some time in a place where no one hated her.

*Time Skip*

Sitting in class the next day, Jacklyn couldn't make up her mind whether the day was shaping up to be better or worse than the previous one.

On one hand, her brand new relationship with Kyoya was no longer the main gossip at school. Everyone was too busy talking about the Hitachiin's fight. Apparently the two boys had even dyed their hair, Hikaru now sporting hot pink while Kaoru rocked a bright blue, and had gotten into a shouting match before class started, throwing things at each other across their classroom.

The rumor sounded so far-fetched to Jacklyn that if Kyoya hadn't given his word that it was true, she wouldn't have believed it at all.

But Jacklyn's life could never be simple, so her little bit of good news was also really, really bad news. Jacklyn hated seeing her friends fight. She'd dealt with enough similar situations back in America to know she wanted the disagreement between Hikaru and Kaoru over with as soon as possible. Especially now that she knew the fight was real and not something Nekozawa had cooked up as a form of retribution.

Oh, and there was another negative that chipped away at the positive of the day. Even though most of the attention was off of Jacklyn and Kyoya, there were still plenty of jealous girls who could not be distracted so easily. Girls who didn't bother to hide their glares as Kyoya led Jacklyn down the hallway to the refractory, the couple hand in hand. Jacklyn couldn't do much about it other than duck her head and stay as close to Kyoya as possible, hoping that no one would try to trip her as they walked.

Unbeknownst to her, Kyoya had noticed the glares as well. He had for some time, even before they had officially gotten together. It irritated him to no end that some of their classmates were so stupid that they'd think Kyoya would be with anyone else other than Jacklyn. Didn't they realize that if Kyoya hadn't been 100% sure that Jacklyn was "it" for him, he wouldn't have asked her out?

"Kyoya! Did you remember to tell Honey-senpai and Mori-senpai to meet us at the refractory?"

"Yes, Tamaki. I told them all about your plan."

"And you didn't tell Haruhi, right?"

"No, I did not. But that doesn't mean she won't come by herself. She seemed quite worried about the twins last night."

Tamaki let out a little wail, grabbing at his hair as he went off on a tangent about Haruhi being too reckless, cueing Kyoya to ignore his friend yet again. Sweeping his gaze around the hallway, Kyoya watched as the students around them quickly averted their gazes, a few of Kyoya's guests adopting less constipated expressions.

Kyoya mentally preened, glad that he still gave off an air of control despite the situation. But Jacklyn was still staring at the ground. He squeezed her hand in an attempt to share comfort, but couldn't help but feel incredibly out of his depth.

He had been doing his best to act like he was completely calm and unbothered by the stares and whispers that followed behind him and Jacklyn, but it was difficult. How was Kyoya supposed to act like he had everything under control when he felt like his heart would beat out of his chest every time Jacklyn so much as walked into the room?

It was bizarre… Jacklyn made him want to do things he normally wouldn't associate with new relationships. He wanted to hold her constantly. Keep her pressed to his side, his arm wrapped around her waist. He wanted to prove 24/7 that Jacklyn was actually his and he was hers and fend off whoever dared disagree with that fact. He found himself wishing he could whisk her off to a private date at the end of each day, where the two of them could be alone for hours on end and just enjoy each other's company. Or that they could fall asleep, curled up together in a hammock with too many pillows and a blanket wrapped around their legs, Jacklyn's head tucked under Kyoya's chin as she breathed heavily, Kyoya's arms wrapped tightly around her waist like he was worried she would slip away in his sleep.

No. Kyoya shook his head aggressively, abruptly cutting off his daydreaming. That is too much for only being together for two days. It's almost obsessive. Clingy at best.

Jacklyn was sensitive, Kyoya reminded himself. "An anxious mess" as she had dubbed herself not too long ago. The last thing Kyoya needed to do was scare her out of this relationship. He would take baby steps to make sure she was okay with them being together before slowly amping it up. So, even though he didn't like how sweaty his palm felt when they held hands or the cheap, generic tone that came with the nickname "Jac-chan", Kyoya wasn't doing it for himself. He cared so much for Jacklyn… the last thing he wanted to do was overstep his boundaries.

*\/*

They heard the argument long before they entered the refractory. Jacklyn didn't recognize half the words Hikaru and Kaoru were shouting, but from the ones she did, it sounded like they were trying to order lunch. Only, they were still in unison. And still fighting.

Walking into the refractory, the three 2nd year students watched for a moment as the twins slowly went from shouting at the poor chefs behind the counter to screaming at each other instead. Every person in the refractory was watching the fight, which was something of significance given the size of the room. Even Honey-senpai, Mori-senpai, and Haruhi, all of whom Jacklyn had just noticed were standing nearby, were watching the action with expressions of sadness or disbelief.

Jacklyn nibbled at the inside of her cheek as the twins started wrestling each other for the first plate being placed on the counter. How was this situation going to go down? Tamaki had practically forced her and Kyoya to follow him here, and apparently he had come up with a plan the night before, but Jacklyn had no clue what it was. Was he going to try talking them down? Thinking back to the twin's history with Tamaki, that wasn't going to fly. Was he expecting her or Kyoya to do the talking? Just the thought of either of them getting involved in the ongoing fight made Jacklyn's stomach churn.

A loud sigh from Tamaki had Jacklyn tucking herself closer to Kyoya's side.

"I thought we'd find you here. Causing such a ruckus in public… have you no pride in our name?" Tamaki pouted as the twins continued slowly moving down the line, ignoring him and spitting insults at each other the whole way down. Not even Honey-senpai with his cuteness and "make-up cake" managed to ease the tension.

Gently nudging Kyoya's arm, Jacklyn glanced at her boyfriend. "We're not going to solve anything while we're here, are we?"

"Unfortunately not. I'm afraid anything we do in a public place would be for naught. The twins are too stubborn to forgive and forget outside of a private setting."

"So what are we here for, then?"

Kyoya gave her a smirk. "To eat our lunch, of course. And perhaps keep the others out of harm's way."

Jacklyn, for the first time that day, smiled. That sounded more like the Kyoya she knew and liked. "Then I guess I should let you go get your lunch. I'll find a seat with Haruhi."

The two released each other's hands and went off in separate directions, something Jacklyn instantly regretted. As soon as she turned to walk towards Haruhi, she noticed someone glaring at her. In fact, it was the same girl she had seen glaring at her last night in the club room. Today, the girl had a purple ribbon tied around her hair. Jacklyn couldn't help but connect the ribbon color to Kyoya's rose color.

Averting her eyes quickly, Jacklyn hurried over to Haruhi's side and nudged her shoulder. "Hey, want to go find someplace to sit?"

"Yes, please. I normally eat in my classroom, so this will be a first for me."

Jacklyn smiled as she led Haruhi over to a nearby table. "Don't worry too much about it. I thought people would stare at me for having a bento my first time eating here, but it's not that uncommon. Of course, everyone else's packed lunches are super fancy… regardless, it's fine."

"Speaking of things being fine," Haruhi trailed off for a moment as the girls sat down and made themselves comfortable before continuing, "how are things with you and Kyoya-senpai? I've noticed that you two are temporarily out of the spotlight."

"Yeah, temporarily. I don't even know anymore. There are things I want to tell him, but I can't help but feel scrutinized. Kyoya has a more public life than I do. What if I screw something up for him? I have to match Japanese customs and rich people customs at the same time while being an outsider to both. It's a rather daunting task."

"Sounds like it. But Kyoya-senpai does like you. That much I can tell. You really should talk to him. It would probably help you both in the long run."

Jacklyn let out a breath, tugging at the simple floral wrap around her bento box. She did want to talk to Kyoya about their relationship. They were just starting out, so she knew communication was a big deal. But when would they find the time and place? That was the issue...

Before she could say so out loud, the chair on Haruhi's other side was pulled out. "Hey, Haruhi. Hey Jacklyn-senpai. Mind if I join you?" It was Hikaru, sitting down before either girl could say a word. The pink haired boy practically tossed his tray of food on the table, giving it a disdainful look before pointing at Haruhi's bento.

"What do you have there?"

"Um… yesterday's leftovers. And a rolled omelette."

"Hm. What about you, Jacklyn-senpai?"

"Tuna rice balls, primarily."

Hikaru dropped his hand and gave them both a pouting expression. "Do either of you want to switch with me? I had to order something different from Kaoru so I got food I don't really like."

Jacklyn rolled her eyes and shifted her bento a little further away from the other boy. Thankfully for his bodily health, Hikaru seemed more interested in Haruhi's lunch, swapping it with his without waiting for Haruhi to agree. Despite Haruhi's obvious annoyance at Hikaru's disregard for her opinion, it was hard to miss just how big her eyes got when looking at the rich food now in front of her. Even Jacklyn couldn't keep down a smile as she watched Haruhi take her first bite.

"Taste good? Do you want to try some of my lunch next?"

Jacklyn and Haruhi both jumped in their seats as Kaoru suddenly sat across from them. He wasn't even looking at Hikaru, but Hikaru was definitely looking at him. Jacklyn and Haruhi exchanged a quick glance with each other as Kaoru looked down at his lunch.

They were about to breach the wall of the metaphorical hurricane.

"Here." Kaoru suddenly leaned a bit over the table, cupping Haruhi's chin to tilt her face upwards. "Say 'ahhh'!"

Suddenly there was a flash of pink and whatever Kaoru was trying to spoon-feed Haruhi disappeared into Hikaru's mouth. Jacklyn's stomach dropped to her toes as she leaned back in her seat. Glancing around for help, she immediately noticed Kyoya standing by a nearby table, his food already set down while he watched. Catching her eye, Kyoya waved her over.

Heart going all warm and mushy knowing that her boyfriend was trying to protect her, Jacklyn quickly scooped up her own lunch and escaped from the table, calling out to Haruhi that Kyoya was calling for her. Haruhi gave her a desperate look, but before she could move, Kaoru was throwing a bowl of pudding at Hikaru's face.

Fortunately, when Hikaru dodged, the food didn't hit Haruhi.

Unfortunately, it didn't hit Haruhi because Hikaru had pushed Tamaki in the way instead.

"That was really poor timing on Tamaki's part," Jacklyn muses as she sits beside Kyoya. She continued to watch the newly unfolding food fight between the twins until she saw Haruhi escape, taking her lunch with her.

"Yes, I assume Tamaki had been hoping to take Haruhi's lunch for his own and just wasn't smart enough to know to keep away."

"Like you?" Jacklyn gave Kyoya a small smile, her fingers finally pulling away the fabric around her bento. "Are you saying you wouldn't have braved a little food fight to rescue me if I was in Haruhi's position?"

"I wouldn't need to. You're smart enough to know when to dismiss yourself from a situation such as that."

"You speak so highly of me, Mr. Ootori. It's almost as if you like me or something."

Kyoya finally turned to face Jacklyn fully, setting his chopsticks down as he says, "I do. I really do, D- Jac-chan." All at once, he turned away again, obviously trying to hide the pink blush Jacklyn had seen lighting up his face. She felt something both tightened and loosened in her chest, and it made her reach out and grab Kyoya's sleeve.

"Kyoya? What were you about to call me?"

"Nothing. It's nothing, Jac-chan."

"Kyoya…" Jacklyn looked down at her own lunch, which didn't seem as appetizing any longer, what with her stomach so clenched up. "Kyoya, maybe… maybe the pet name 'Jac-chan' isn't for us."

That sure got Kyoya's attention. He quickly turned his head back to Jacklyn, mouth open, but Jacklyn beat him to it.

"It's not that I think I'd never get used to it if you really want to call me that, but… I don't know. I feel like there are others to choose from that might sound a little… more us. You know? Or, if I'm not making sense, I'm sorry." Jacklyn let go of Kyoya's sleeve, suddenly more than a little anxious that she was just babbling and making Kyoya uncomfortable. In fact, she was so sure of that idea that when Kyoya quickly grabbed her hand and turned his whole body to face her, she nearly knocked her chair backwards.

Kyoya held her right hand between both of his, grey eyes holding her gaze with their usual intensity that both unnerved and encouraged her.

"Jacklyn, I was about to call you 'Darling'. I didn't, because in my mind, it sounds like a word too claiming to be used between such a new couple. But it still feels right to call you that. If you feel that name is also not quite right, I am willing to try others, but I do agree that 'Jac-chan' is almost… too generic for you." He squeezed her hand once. "Thank you for speaking up."

For a moment, Jacklyn could only open and close her mouth, not sure what to say.

Then, she smiled.

*Time Skip*

The rhythm of the cheerful tune Jacklyn is humming doesn't match up with her steps, but she can't be bothered to change her song. She was happy and almost giddy with relief, so it made sense that Disney songs were just bursting out of her. Smile stretched wide over her face, Jacklyn fought the urge to start skipping. She knew not all of her problems were over yet, but this was still the best she'd been feeling in the past 36 hours.

The conversation she'd had with Kyoya over lunch had rolled around in the back of her mind throughout Jacklyn's afternoon classes, usually accompanied by the echo of "Darling", which in turn made Jacklyn smile like a dope down at her textbooks. They hadn't had the time to discuss everything about their relationship over lunch, of course, but that wasn't as concerning as it was yesterday. Because now Jacklyn knew that Kyoya wanted to listen to her and talk it out. It made her feel warm and fuzzy on the inside. Especially when Kyoya did things like gently caress her hand when Jacklyn had to stay behind and talk to their teacher before he headed off to the club room.

Stupid anxiety, making me worry so much. A giggle escaped Jacklyn's lips as she rounded the corner into the North hallway, using her left hand to swish her dress skirt around while her right spun her school bag back and forth. She shut her eyes and made a little twirl. No one would be around to see her acting like this anyways, and she felt so giddy and happy, there was no way she'd be able to hide it! Everything was just-

Out of nowhere, something heavy crashed into Jacklyn's left side. A gasp escaped her lips as she tumbled sideways, dropping her bag and flailing her arms about to try to catch herself against the wall. But there was no wall. Only an open door that Jacklyn couldn't ever remember seeing open before. Foot catching on her school bag, she tumbled into the dark room and hit the ground, her right knee hitting the tiled floor first.

Whimpering out a small "ow…", Jacklyn pushed herself up and turned to face the door just in time to watch it slam shut. The sudden darkness made Jacklyn's chest seize up. Crawling over to the door, she grabbed the handle just in time to feel the door shiver as something was pushed against it.

"No…" Jacklyn turned the handle, and while it wasn't locked, the door wouldn't budge. She shoved harder, shoes sliding against the floor as her heart hammered faster in her chest. "No… no! No, let me out! Please! Stop this, let me out! No!"

Jacklyn pressed her ear against the door, sniffling to herself as she tried to listen. But there was nothing. No footsteps. No anything. With a loud cry, Jacklyn started pounding on the door with her fists, tears starting to pour down her cheeks.

"No! No! Someone help! Please! Somebody! Help me! Let me out!"

Her heart was in her throat. She couldn't see. She couldn't breathe!

"Help! Kyoya, help!"

*In Music Room #3*

Tamaki sank back in his chair, hand coming up to rub across his forehead. "This is getting ridiculous. How long are those two going to keep up their silly feud?"

"No idea. But if it keeps up much longer, we'll have to officially stop offering their services to the guests." Kyoya gave his calculator a passing glance but neglected to pick it up, not quite in the mood for depressing numbers. "Perhaps we should consider banning them both from the club entirely until they resolve their personal issues? Otherwise we risk the threat of them accidentally hurting a third party with their physical violence."

Tamaki groaned and fell forward, resting his upper body over the tablecloth like he was about to take a nap. Further along down the table, Haruhi looked around for a moment before asking, "Are you guys still planning on trying to make the twins stop yourself? Maybe we should leave them alone?"

"Haruhi, of course-ack!"

Tamaki flailed his arms around, trying to remove Kyoya's hand which was currently pressing Tamaki's face against the table. Ignoring the other, Kyoya adjusted his glasses before responding, "It's difficult to say at the moment, Haruhi. I did mentioned to Jacklyn earlier that if Tamaki still intends to make us interfere with the fight, we'd have to do so in a more private place, as the twins are both rather prideful and will likely refuse to offer each other true apologies when around other people."

Kyoya stopped talking and let Honey pick up the thread, explaining to Haruhi how the twins had never fought before, at least not that he had noticed. Kyoya released Tamaki's head to let him contribute to the conversation, but for some reason found his own interest wandering.

Okay, it wasn't just "some reason". Jacklyn should've arrived by now. She had only needed to ask their Japanese grammar teacher when her next kanji quiz would be. It shouldn't have taken her more than two minutes… so where was she? Deciding to go look for her just in case something happened, Kyoya waited for Tamaki to stop flailing his arms around before standing up, straightening out his jacket as he did.

"Well, if we've come to the decision to leave them alone for now, I'm going to go see if I can find Jacklyn. If she's somehow gotten caught up in another one of the twin's showdowns, she might need backup."

Tamaki smiled at his friend cheekily, resting his chin on one hand while the other playful waved Kyoya out of the room. "Suuure, Kyoya. Well, don't let me stop you. Have fun finding her!"

Kyoya gave his friend an odd look before walking out of the room. Sometimes, Tamaki was the strangest person he knew.

"Oh, Ootori-san!"

Kyoya gave a hum as he turned to face the girl standing behind him. It was Satori Kiki, one of his 1st year guests. She was new, her first meeting having only been a month ago, and she was still learning how a host club operated. For the heiress to a well-known children's toy manufacturer, she gave a rather wicked glare to anyone who joined a conversation between her and Kyoya.

Her sudden appearance sent a warning bell off in the back of Kyoya's head.

"Satori-san, what a pleasure to see you this afternoon. Unfortunately, the Host Club is closed for today, what with the unfortunate disagreement going on between two of our hosts at the moment. Please feel free to check our availability tomorrow, but I'm afraid that for now I must-" Kyoya went to turn away, but a hand on his bicep stopped him. He suddenly found Satori standing in front of him, her face far too close as she stared up at him.

"Wait…"

*With Jacklyn*

Jacklyn was all cried out. Her cheeks were damp, her face probably all puffed up, and her hair was no doubt a mess. She had no idea how long she'd been trapped, but it might as well have been an eternity. The overhead light for the closet she was in didn't work for some stupid, stupid reason, and her phone was in her bag, which was still out in the hallway.

Now sitting with her back to the door, Jacklyn scrubbed at her cheeks with her palms and tried to think rationally. There wasn't much she could do but wait for someone to walk by and notice her bag, assuming whoever trapped her didn't take off with it. But even if they had, there was still whatever was blocking the door to consider. Also, from the strong smell of cleaning supplies, she had to assume she was stuck in some form of janitor's supply room. Eventually, someone would come around. But there was no telling how long that would take. When did the janitors clean the hallways and windows? Jacklyn really hoped it was overnight, and not during the weekends. But she was just overthinking things. She wouldn't really have to wait that long to be let out. The host club should realize she was missing soon and Kyoya would come looking… right?

The sound of something moving on the other side of the door caught Jacklyn's attention, making her perk up and turn around on her knees. "Hello? Is someone there?"

"Jacklyn?"

"Kyoya!"

It took almost a full minute for Kyoya to move whatever was blocking the door to the side. By the time he opened the door, Jacklyn was on her feet and crying again, diving into her boyfriend's arms without hesitation.

"Kyoya! Thank you, thank you! I didn't know how long I'd be in there and I didn't have my phone and no one knew where I was! How did you find me? It was so dark and scary, oh, thank you, thank you!"

Kyoya held her tight as she cried, one of his hands stroking the back of her head as he tried to shush her. It took a few tries, but eventually Jacklyn managed to calm down, hiccuping a bit into the fabric of Kyoya's jacket as she slowly tilted her head back to peer at Kyoya's face. He offered her a small smile and raised a hand to wipe at the new tear tracks running down her face.

"Are you alright?" Kyoya's thumb stroked once more down Jacklyn's cheek, making her shiver in his hold. "When I heard what Satori-san did I came as fast as I could. Are you hurt anywhere?"

"I'm okay... what do you mean by 'heard what Satori-san did'?"

Kyoya sighed, dropping his hand from her face. "I should have suspected something like this would happen. Satori-san is… was one of my newer guests and appears to have some jealousy issues. Apparently she came to her senses after she arrived at the host club doors and noticed I was leaving, obviously to go find you. She confessed to her deed and told me where to find you, as well as giving herself a ban from the club before I could ban her myself."

Jacklyn listened with a slightly agape mouth, unsure of what to think. As she processed, Kyoya scooped up her bag from the floor and regarded the desk that had been in front of the janitor door. After a few seconds, he shook his head and returned to Jacklyn's side, winding his free arm around her waist and gently leading her down the hall, back towards the club room.

*In Music Room #3*

When Kyoya opened the doors to the clubroom, Jacklyn was too mentally exhausted to be surprised by what was on the other side. Apparently, in the time it took for Kyoya to find, free, and lead Jacklyn back to the music room, the twins had shown up. Judging by the large pile of furniture and the heavy breathing from both Hikaru and Kaoru, it hadn't taken very long for another fight to start up again.

Jacklyn and Kyoya stood in the doorway for a few seconds to take in the view before quietly joining the rest of the host club who were standing nearby, staring at the twins in shock. Even Mori was showing just a hint of concern in his eyebrows as he looked between the twins. Haruhi was the only member to look over at Jacklyn and Kyoya, her eyes widening even more when she noticed Jacklyn's pale complexion.

She mouthed a quick, 'what happened'? Jacklyn just shook her head.

'I'll tell you later.'

"Um, are you two quite finished?"

At Tamaki's complaint, both twins turned towards him with absolutely lethal glares, Hikaru even growling a bit. To his credit, Tamaki appeared unaffected, frowning and taking a step forward.

"In the past 24 hours, you two have disgraced our name as a host club, upset our guests, created a huge mess in the cafeteria, and demolished our club room. I mean, don't you two have anything better to do?"

"Anything better? HA!" Hikaru sneered at his brother, fists shaking at his side. "Of course I have a million other things I want to do besides look at Kaoru everyday, don't you get it? If he left me alone I wouldn't have to get so upset! The truth is that I hate being mistaken for you every day, Kaoru! Why won't you just get out of my life!"

Jacklyn felt her chest tighten uncomfortably right above her heart. If she hadn't already cried so much within the past half hour, she would be crying again. Her mental state just wasn't right for this kind of a situation. With a soft groan, she shut her eyes and pressed herself closer to Kyoya's side.

But she could still hear Kaoru as the boy grumbled, "You took the words right out of my mouth, but I bet you didn't consider I'd buy this! Beelzenef the Curse Doll!" There was a rustle of fabric and a scream from Tamaki somewhere to Jacklyn's left, but she didn't open her eyes, even as Kaoru continued on. "I'm gonna write your name on the back, Hikaru. From now on, your life will be full of nothing but sorrow and misfortune-OUCH!"

"Hey-OW!"

"Knock it off already!"

Kyoya's arm tightened a bit around Jacklyn's waist as she looked up at Haruhi's voice. Her friend and neighbor was standing above the twins, who had somehow been knocked to the ground, the wooden Beelzenef doll in her hand. She couldn't see Haruhi's expression from this angle, but judging by the twin's faces, it was rather frightening.

Haruhi lifted the doll up, looking like she was about to smack the twins in the face with it. "Are you two that dumb? You never bring something like this into a petty squabble! Ever! What, someone gets on your nerves and you decide you want their life ruined? What kind of sicko would consider that to be a healthy reaction! Now both of you better suck it up and apologize to each other or I won't be friends with either of you. I only invite non-fighting people over to my house!"

The room was quiet once more, everyone gawking at Haruhi, Jacklyn included. That was the angriest she had ever heard her friend before. She was almost intimidated, but settled for being impressed. Especially considered Haruhi appeared to have struck the twins dumb.

But then they smiled.

"So… if we make up, we can come over to your place?" Slowly, like they had all the time in the world, the twins stood up from the floor, matching smiles in place as they looked down at Haruhi. "That's what you just said, right, Haruhi?"

"What? I just… what?"

With a flourish worthy of Tamaki, Hikaru reached forward and flipped the wooden doll Haruhi was holding around, so she could read the back. Haruhi made a slight choking sound as she did, which prompted the twins to lean back and laugh uproariously. Immediately the rest of the club ran forwards. Some, like Honey and Tamaki, began to loudly and angrily berate the twins for faking the whole time, while others like Mori and Jacklyn to keep Haruhi steady as the poor girl swayed a bit on her feet, Kyoya trailing behind them all at a more controlled pace.

Honey, swinging Usa-chan through the air so his ears were smacking against the twins pants, yelled, "You gotta be kidding me you mean you guys weren't fighting this whole time?"

"No. We were just bored."

Jacklyn mouthed the word 'bored' to herself before she turned around sharply, giving Haruhi's arm a reassuring squeeze as she returned to Kyoya's side. "I think that's my limit for drama today. I need to go home and process everything."

"Agreed. Give me a second to grab my things and I'll walk you out."

If Jacklyn could physically recreate the "heart eyes" she had seen in various animes and mangas, she would do it. But since that look wasn't possible in the real world, she just settled for rocking back and forth on her heels, smiling sweetly after Kyoya as he walked off to a nearby table.

"Um, is this a bad time?"

Jumping at the voices behind her, Jacklyn spun around to see the twins right behind her. Despite everything, she couldn't deny how nice it was that they weren't at each other's throats any more. But she was still upset about the lie, so she frowned at them both as she asked, "What?

Kaoru was the first to break their eye contact, glancing towards the right before slowly pulling the dummy curse doll out from behind his back. Hikaru crumbled next, scuffing his left shoe against the floor before taking in a slow breath.

"When we were coming up with the script last night… we thought about what you said earlier that day, when we shoved flashlights in Nekozawa-senpai's face. You… were right. It was a mean trick, and he didn't deserve that. So, when we were buying the curse doll…"

Hikaru's face at that point was a dark pink, matching nicely with his hair. It was cute, and Jacklyn wasn't surprised when Kaoru finished his brother's sentence with, "We made sure to apologize for what we did. And we actually bought this doll for you, since we know you're friends with Nekozawa-senpai."

"Just don't write our names on the back."

"Please."

Jacklyn let Kaoru gently place the wooden doll in her hands. She rolled it around a little, tracing the word "blank" which was written on the back as well as Beelzenef's pointy ears with her fingers before cupping the body in both hands, like she was scooping water. With its little wooden arms stretched out, Jacklyn could almost imagine the little cat was asking for a hug.

Hikaru and Kaoru were still standing nervously in front of Jacklyn, waiting for her reaction. While they might know how a fake argument ended, how would a real one? They had been theorizing on it all night long.

But neither boy had expected it to end with Jacklyn giggling and throwing her arms around their shoulders for a hug. Sure, the sudden move made the twins knock heads behind her, but in the grand scheme of things… perhaps they deserved it.

*\/*

"Today the pink one is Kaoru, and Hikaru is the blue one. You two switched colors for the day, hm?" With a smirk that spoke of high personal satisfaction, Haruhi turned on her heel and walked away, leaving behind two unimpressed twins and some confused guests. Nearby, sitting at her piano bench, Jacklyn shook her head and went back to organizing her selections for the day. She was sure the twins would go back to their regular hair color by Monday, when the novelty wore off, but for the time being, she was starting to get used to the flamboyant colors.

"Jacklyn? Do you have a moment?"

"Always, Kyoya." Jacklyn shifted slightly to her left, giving Kyoya room to sit down in his usual place on her bench. As he got comfortable, Jacklyn waited for the feeling of nervousness to rise up in her belly from being so close to her boyfriend, but it didn't appear. With an easy smile, she tilted her head to the side and smiled up at Kyoya's face. "What's up?"

Kyoya's eyes were soft, and he took his time to study Jacklyn's face before answering, "I was wondering if you would accompany me tonight for dinner. I know you're not a fan of high class places, but I do know of this one ramen shop downtown with excellent pork ramen."

"Now I think you're just exploiting my love of food to take me places," Jacklyn teased, but deep down she was incredibly grateful that her boyfriend knew her so well. So well, that she barely even had a moment to be nervous about their first real "date" before he was reassuring her. "Still, I'm not one to turn down food… do they have pork ramen?"

Kyoya smiled, one hand coming down to rest atop of Jacklyn's. "They do. I made sure, Darling."

Jacklyn gave a giggle at the nickname, turning her hand around to give Kyoya's a squeeze. "Well then, I accept your invitation. It's a date."

Uuuugh… I'm sick. I'm tired. And completely swamped with homework and getting ready to study abroad. But I finished this chapter! I did! And I actually like how it went down. Suppose that's all I can ask for.

Anyways, I hope y'all liked it!

See you next chapter!