The sun shone lazily through the high glass ceiling of the Izumi Shopping Center, casting patterned light across the empty bench nestled beside a potted plant. On it, Kyoya Ootori sat with a slightly furrowed brow, adjusting his glasses as if annoyed by the very concept of sunlight.
His sleep-deprived mind drifted back to only hours ago, when chaos incarnate—also known as Tamaki and the Host Club—burst into his room at an ungodly hour.Still half-asleep and bundled in his oversized bunny-ear hoodie, Y/N had peeked from behind Honey-senpai’s shoulder, his cheeks puffed slightly from munching on a chestnut pastry. His sleepy eyes widened at the mention of a “Commoners’ Expo,” glistening with excitement. “O-Oh! D-Do they have… nut-shaped bath bombs?” he’d asked timidly, cheeks pink.
Tamaki, too distracted by dreams of commoner culture, hadn’t answered. Kyoya barely had time to resist before he was dressed, dragged, and ultimately abandoned at the mall.
Now, with only vague memories of bickering twins and a carousel in the distance, Kyoya sighed and rubbed his temple.
“Senpai?”
Kyoya glanced up. Haruhi stood before him, casual and surprised. And right behind her, nervously clutching the sleeve of her cardigan like a lost rabbit, was Y/N.
“H-Haruhiii... th-they left me too,” Y/N murmured with a pout, his cheeks round and pink. “Kaoru said he’d get me candied nuts and then they all disappeared…”
Kyoya eyed the pair and then stood with a groan. “Do either of you have Cash money? I only have Black card and I haven’t eaten.”
Haruhi raised an eyebrow. “You’re just going to invite yourself along?”
“Do you want me to faint from starvation?” Kyoya deadpanned.
Y/N blinked, then shyly held out a little plush coin pouch shaped like a peanut. “I-I saved up for snacks… b-but I can share if you’re hungry, Kyoya-senpai…”
“…I suppose,” Kyoya muttered, pocketing his pride along with Y/N’s crinkled bills.
Inside the fast food place, Y/N carefully peeled open his burger like it was a treasure chest, eyes sparkling. Kyoya, by contrast, had uncharacteristically messy hair and a sarcastic streak sharper than usual. Haruhi stared at him across the table, confused by how distant the real Kyoya seemed from his elegant Host Club persona.
“You act like none of it matters. The Host Club. Us,” she said.
Kyoya adjusted his glasses. “It doesn’t, not really. We’re all in it for our own reasons.”
Y/N lowered his burger slowly, lips quivering. “I-I’m in it because… everyone’s really warm. Even if the twins tease me. A-And Tamaki-senpai always smiles. I just… I like being around everyone…”
Kyoya glanced at him. Y/N was blushing, nervously playing with his bunny hoodie sleeves and occasionally nibbling at the edge of a straw wrapper like a hamster. Something in Kyoya’s chest shifted.
After deciding to wander the mall a bit before heading home, Kyoya found himself flanked by Haruhi and Y/N—though the latter trailed behind bashfully, gripping Kyoya’s jacket hem whenever the crowd got thick. He didn’t say much, only occasionally squeaked out soft observations like, “That soap smells like roasted chestnuts,” or, “Th-The escalator hum sounds like a lullaby…”
When Kyoya exposed a fake pottery exhibit with just a few words, Y/N gasped in awe. “W-Wow… Kyo-kyun's like a detective…”
“…Don’t call me that,” Kyoya mumbled, ears faintly pink.
“B-But it suits you…”
Meanwhile, on the rooftop, the rest of the Host Club was finally realizing something was missing.
“Wait a second,” Hikaru said, mouth full of cotton candy, “where’s our bunny?”
“And our Shadow King?” Kaoru added, turning around. His eyes narrowed. “I told Kyoya to keep an eye on him…”
“We lost Y/N?!” Tamaki wailed. “And Kyoya? MY SON?!”
Back down below, Y/N sat beside Kyoya again, swaying his legs beneath the bench. Haruhi watched them both thoughtfully.
“Kyoya-senpai,” she said, “I don’t think you really helped that woman just because of her status. You didn’t even see her ring until after you stepped in.”
Y/N tilted his head. “Th-That’s true… Kyoya-senpai helped… just ‘cause it was right.”
Kyoya said nothing. But he looked down at the small hand holding his coat again and didn’t pull away.
Moments later, a mall-wide announcement blared: “Would Kyoya Ootori please come to the information desk? Your guardian, Tamaki Suoh, is waiting for you. Also, your bunny—Y/N—is requested to return immediately for his safety.”
Kyoya twitched. Y/N squeaked and buried his face in his hoodie. “Th-They broadcasted my name like a lost bunny…”
They returned to the group, where Tamaki was dramatically hugging a Golden Retriever. The twins rushed to Y/N’s side, immediately tugging him close.
“You okay, bun-bun?” Hikaru asked, inspecting him with faux intensity.
Kaoru gently flicked Y/N’s forehead. “You weren’t scared without us, were you?”
Y/N pouted softly. “I-I had Kyoya-senpai…”
That made the twins glance sharply at Kyoya, who simply raised a brow in smug silence.
Later, as they all walked together, Y/N tugged on Kyoya’s sleeve one last time. “U-Um… thank you for today. I—I liked being with you.”
Kyoya paused, then leaned down just slightly. “You’re… not as exhausting as the rest,” he murmured.
Y/N blinked. “…Th-Thank you?” he replied, unsure if it was praise or not.
Kyoya chuckled softly. “You're welcome, bunny.”
YOU ARE READING
~♡~AISHTERU~♡~
HumorTransferring to Ouran Academy on a scholarship was already nerve-wracking enough-but being Haruhi Fujioka's cousin? That's a whole new level of chaos. Y/N may be shy, soft-spoken, and constantly mistaken for a girl thanks to his oversized sweater an...
