We Are the Sons and Daughters - Kyoya x OC

Chapter 45

     "Will you speak with her?" Tamaki asked.

     "I have nothing to say."

     "That's not true and you know it Kyoya."

     "It is," he said biting his tongue when he saw Kaoru wrap his arms around Reiko in a hug that was just a bit too friendly.

     What he didn't realize was that the first year was watching his reaction from the corner of his eye and smirked when he saw the dark-haired male's expression change. "Never thought I'd see Kyoya-senpai get jealous," he thought amusedly.

      "That was quite the performance you two. I could really feel Kaoru's pain from the twisted ankle," she said her voice dripping with good-natured sarcasm.

     The twins smirked at her. "Are you making fun of us Rei-senpai?"

     The silver-haired teen shrugged. "A little. But you guys really did do a good job."

     "You only caught the end of it. You should've seen the whole thing when I made a basket," Hikaru said sliding his arm around her shoulders."

     "Pity I missed it," she said flatly.

     "You're so mean," he whined.

     "How has your day been Rei-senpai? We haven't seen you around the halls at all," Kaoru said propping his chin on her shoulder.

     Reiko stiffened at the closeness for a moment, but quickly let it go. "Relatively uneventful. All my classes have been dedicated to preparing for midterms. They start the day after tomorrow after all."

     "Ugh, don't remind us," they groaned.

     "Are you going to continue studying after school?" Hikaru asked.

     Reiko shook her head. "Actually, I've got a meeting with father's PR team this evening. They want to discuss the possibility of doing some interviews."

     "You're gonna be on TV? That's pretty cool Rei-senpai."

     She shrugged. "It's a test. The board members want to see how I react in front of the cameras. I imagine they'll be asking some uncomfortable questions so the meeting will be to prepare me for those. It's especially important since they want me to enter a courtship soon."

     "You mean you're gonna get a boyfriend?" Kaoru asked.

     The silver-haired teen nodded. "The board members want me engaged by year's end. It's only natural that I begin looking for a suitor."

     "Do you have anyone in mind?" Hikaru asked curiously.

     Reiko stilled for a minute, her expression flashing with something unknown to them. "It's more my father's decision than mine. But there is a family he wishes to contact soon," she answered cryptically.

     "Really? Who is it?" Kaoru asked.

     "Yeah, anyone we know?" his brother questioned.

     Her eyes momentarily drifted to the dark-haired male standing across the room and the twins gasped.

     "No way!" Hikaru exclaimed.

     "It's Kyoya-senpai?" Kaoru whispered. "That's really unfortunate timing."

     "I completely agree," Reiko sighed, crossing her arms.

     Kaoru frowned slightly at his friend's demeanor. Reiko looked uncharacteristically tired. Even though she hid it well, it was natural that this kind of situation would stress her out. She was already dealing with adjusting to socializing in high society and now she had to deal with having a potential fiancé she wasn't on good terms with. Although Kaoru couldn't sympathize with her situation, he could relate to feeling overwhelmed by trying to get used to a new and different world. "Don't worry too much about the interviews. I'm sure you'll do great Rei-senpai."

     Reiko offered him a grateful smile. "Thanks Kaoru."

     Kaoru returned the gesture and replaced his brother's arm around her shoulders, forcing her to lean into him.

     "Hey Hikaru, come over here for a second!" they heard Tamaki call out. He was standing a few meters away with Haruhi.

     "We're not done talking about this," Hikaru told them before jogging over to the two friends.

     Reiko watched with slight amusement as Tamaki stared at the ginger in confusion and looked between him and Kaoru a few times before speaking. "I guess changing the hair parts threw him off," she chuckled.

     "You noticed?" Kaoru asked with wide eyes. He and Hikaru usually parted their hair the opposite way and kept it like that so it would be easier for people to tell them apart. Every once in a while though, they would switch to test their friends and mess with everyone.

     "I noticed something was different about the two of you but I hadn't placed it until just now."

     "But you got both of our names right," he pointed out. Looking back on it, he couldn't recall a time when Reiko had mixed up their names. He'd thought it was because she'd been using their hair parts to tell them apart like everyone else, but it seemed that wasn't the case.

     "I certainly hope so, otherwise that means I've had backward this entire time," she said offhandedly.

     "You never had trouble telling us apart?"

     The silver-haired teen blinked. "...No..."

     "How?" he asked.

     Reiko raised an eyebrow as though the answer should've been obvious. "How could I not? You're two different people. I don't know if there's something specific. I just know that right now I'm talking to Kaoru Hitachiin."

     Kaoru gave her a crooked smile and squeezed her to his side. "You're pretty amazing Rei-senpai," he said.

     She giggled quietly. "I'm glad you think so."