I stood next to the pool, waiting for Ayako, Suzume, and Honey to come down from the waterslide. A moment later, someone came splashing in. Suzume resurfaced, laughing while pushing a loose light-brown
strand away. Her laughter was cut off when she noticed me smiling at her patiently.
strand away. Her laughter was cut off when she noticed me smiling at her patiently.
"What is it?" She asked, not harshly but just rather hesitant and weary. Did she think I was going to bite her head off or something?
"We're ordering lunch. What do you want to eat?" I held the menu in front of her. She peered at it.
We were interrupted by another loud splash, and I could hear Ayako's wild giggles. Then something that I really didn't want to hear reached my ears: Honey's own laughter. Suzume poked the paper, regaining my attention.
"I'll take bento number 25." Suzume said before turning away and wading towards her friend.
Honey and Ayako were both sitting in one tube. Ridiculous. How did they even fit in that? The tube was obviously meant for only one, and sure Honey's small and skinny but still...
"Hey, Mitsukuni and Hayakawa-san, what do you two want for lunch?" I called, waving the menu at them.
Honey glanced at me, and I saw his eyes widen. He hopped off the tube and quickly came to me, crawling onto the concrete dripping wet.
"Lunch?" He asked unnecessarily.
I nodded. "Yeah, we're going to call in for our order soon. It's just you two left." I showed him the menu, and he glimpsed over it.
"I'll take number 12." He replied.
Ayako joined us. "Number 13 for me." Then she began walking away.
Honey looked at me and smiled warmly. "Thanks, Rika." His smile seemed like it could melt away the annoyed feelings I'd been having, but it didn't. He was still tromping around with that Ayako, sitting in the same tube. For all I know, he might have even gone on a date with her to the amusement park.
I sighed quietly, unaware that Honey was still standing in front of me even though Ayako had been calling his name for a while now.
"You better go, Mitsukuni." I said, turning away.
His hand grabbed my wrist, stopping me. "But you're a guest too, Rika. Which host did you request for today?"
I stared into those brown eyes. "I'm not a guest." I replied softly. "I'm a part-timer of the club." I smiled. "It gets me some work and trouble, but I also have special privileges." Then, in a louder voice, I said, "I have to get these lunch orders to Kyoya. I'll call you when lunch comes in, okay?"
He nodded, looking rather disappointed. But Ayako was watching and starting to become impatient, so there wasn't much I could do. Plus, I didn't really feel like hugging his cold and wet body.
I squeezed his hand quickly before walking away. He didn't say another word.
Damn it. I shouldn't have come to this resort thing after all. Shopping with Chiyo probably would have been better. I wouldn't have had to do any stupid paperwork or act like a waitress, taking everyone's orders down.
I sighed, walking straight to Kyoya and slapping the menu into his hand. "I have everyone's numbers down. The last three are 25, 12, and 13."
"Thank you, Rika." Kyoya said, pulling his cellphone out.
I sat down at a beach chair. How annoying. I'd come here today to have some fun. And sure, it's been pretty fun so far, but just seeing Ayako with Honey ruins it all. Damn her. I really shouldn't have come.
I ran a hand through my almost dry hair when I saw Chiyo run up to me. "Rika-senpai! Come with me!" She grabbed my arm and pulled me to my feet.
"Huh? What is it?" I asked as she led me away from the beach chairs to a building at the left. It was the bathrooms within the park.
We entered the girls bathroom, and it was dark for a moment.
Snip, snip, snip.
I thought I felt something cold brush against my belly. Then, the lights flickered on, and Chiyo was beaming at me.
"Oh my, Rika-senpai! Look at what happened to your swimsuit! Come, come. Let's change you out of it." She dragged me further into the bathroom where there was one small rack of swimsuits. They were all bikinis.
Now, wait a minute... Why would there be bikinis in the bathroom? I looked down. There was nothing wrong with my swimsuit, except there was. A ragged line had been cut through it.
"Chiyo..." I said darkly. She was already picking through the swimsuits with an innocent smile. She looked at me and blinked, as if she hadn't been the cause of my swimsuit's injury. "What did you do?"
She chuckled nervously before cramming something into my hands and pushing me into a stall. "Change!"
She chuckled nervously before cramming something into my hands and pushing me into a stall. "Change!"
"No way! You obviously did this!" I started shouting protests. "How could you do this to me, Chiyo-san?!"
"Please, Rika-senpai! Please do it for me!" Chiyo yelled back from outside.
"Hmph!" I frowned, biting my lip. There was no way I was going to wear this. I held up the bikini in my hands. It was a red one, with string that went around the neck instead of straps. The bottom was like a miniskirt, but below it were shorts.
But I can't wear a bikini! My scar will be revealed! I pulled my current blue swimsuit off and stared at the dark line at my left side. Even my parents didn't know about this, unless Mariko had told them.
Let's see... I'll just say that... it's a... What else could it be other than a scar? Oh yes! I know!
It's a birthmark!
I pulled the red bikini on, now relieved that no one would ask questions. It was just a birthmark, no worries. If it was a scar, someone would obviously ask how it'd happened.
Even knowing this, I stepped out of the stall with caution.
"Rika-senpai!" Chiyo squealed, grinning as usual. She looked pleased. "Yes! Yes! It looks good on you after all! Rika-senpai really does work well with the color red."
"Cool," I said, crossing my arms. I kept them slightly lower, so that they covered my stomach instead of my chest. Then I walked away from her and out of the bathroom.
"Wait, Rika-senpai! Are you mad at me?" Chiyo asked. She chased after me, walking beside with a concerned look. "Please don't be mad! I just really wanted to see you in a bikini!"
"But you could have at least asked," I replied, keeping an indifferent expression. I wasn't actually that mad, but Chiyo had to learn her lesson. She couldn't just mess with me like that.
"But you would have said no!" Eh. That was true.
I reached my bag and immediately pulled out a light pink sweater. I slipped myself in, easily covering the scar.
"Eh?!" Chiyo's loud protest caught my attention. "Rika-senpai, why are you putting a sweater on? No! You looked so cute in it!"
I shook my head stubbornly. "No way!"
She pouted. "Why? Even after all my hard work!"
"What hard work?"
"Rika-senpai!" She yelled, frowning and glaring at me. Wow. Did I finally piss Chiyo off? A girl who seems infinitely optimistic and kind?
I raised my eyebrows at her. "Not my fault here, Chiyo-san."
"Hmph," She whirled her back against me, crossing her arms. Okay, now she's acting like a pouting, angry child. I smiled though. It's pretty cute actually.
"Food's here," Kyoya said, coming to us. Three workers could be seen standing in the waterpark doorway carrying stacks of food. The smell was watermouthing.
"Ooh, yay!" I ran towards the food. They set the bentos on the tables out in the cafeteria room. I could hear Kyoya announcing through some microphone system that the food had arrived and for everyone to please come to the main entrance.
I unstacked each bento, and as people came, I handed them their rightful bento. "Here you go, Haruhi!" "Thanks, Rika-senpai." Haruhi smiled sweetly before going to sit with her guests.
Chiyo was still sulking, sitting lonesomely at a table. I sat down across from her, pushing her bento over.
I clapped my hands together and closed my eyes. "Itadakimasu." Then I began eating. Chiyo hadn't touched her food and was staring with her eyebrows bunched together at the floor. "Are you mad because I'm wearing a sweater?" I asked carefully.
She was silent, then she said quietly, "Kind of. Plus..." Then she shook her head.
"Plus?"
Chiyo stared at the wall, her chin in her hand. "Rika-senpai, you've never felt jealous before, have you?"
I stopped chewing to stare at her with wide eyes. Then I swallowed. "What?"
She tapped the wrapped chopsticks on the table. "Well, you... you're always... I mean, since you have a boyfriend... well, I guess you would have."
"Chiyo-san, you aren't making any sense right now." I said, trying to sound kind.
She frowned. "I'm jealous okay? You're always watching Honey-senpai. It's not fair. Sure, you two are... you know, but still. A-And, even when I'm standing right next to you, all you do is stare at him. You haven't even given me an answer."
"An answer?" I said slowly. I wasn't sure if I wanted to hear the rest of it.
"I confessed didn't I? I like you, Rika-senpai, in a romantic sense, and I would like to go out with you." Chiyo said, still frowning. I almost choked on the piece of rice I was eating.
"Uh, well," I stared at the table. Then I bowed slightly. "I'm sorry then, Chiyo-san. I-I already li-like someone else."
"I know." Chiyo replied softly. When I glanced at her, she was smiling, but there was something sad in it. It almost looked like she was trying hard not to cry.
"Chi-Chiyo-san? Are you okay?" I leaned forward. A hand reached out and hovered in the air for a moment pathetically. What was I supposed to do? I'd only rejected one guy before, and certainly never a girl.
She shook her head. "I knew this would happen. It's okay. I guess I just wanted to be properly rejected."
"We can still be friends." I said worriedly. "We'll be friends, right? Cause I really loved having you as a friend, Chiyo-san."
"Mm." Her head bobbed.
I bit my lip and tried to distract myself by eating. "You should eat, Chiyo-san, before the food gets cold."
"I think I should go." She stood. The chair legs struck the ground with a harsh noise.
"What?"
"I have something to do this afternoon." She said, still not looking me in my eyes. She dashed into the waterpark. A moment later, she came out with her bag.
"Chiyo-san," I called, hurrying to her side.
"I'll see you later, Rika-senpai." Chiyo said. Then she walked quickly away. I watched, unsure of how to feel and what to do. Sighing, I went back to my seat and stared at the food. It was good, so I went back to eating. But the taste didn't quite penetrate through my brooding thoughts.
After lunch, everyone went back in. It seemed like they were all having a good time. I'm sure Kyoya was happy so long as he was getting some kind of benefit.
"Hey, Rika-senpai, nice bikini you're wearing there." The twins said with an almost sleazy grin.
"Perverts!" I replied. Then it slipped into place. "Oh my God. You two did it! You guys made Chiyo-san - I can't believe it! Actually, I can, and that makes it even worse!"
The twins smiled innocently. "What do you mean, Rika-senpai?" I glared at them. "Stay away from me."
"Don't you want us to take some pictures of you in your beau-"
"Shut up!" I shot them both in the face with a water gun and then stormed away angrily. I ended up wandering alone to the bathroom building to investigate. Behind the building was just a plain wall and two palm trees nearby. I leaned against the wall of the bathroom and slid down to the ground, staring at the blank white wall across from me.
I sighed, pulling my knees to my chest. The day had not gone at all as I had planned. I was so confused. What had Chiyo expected? I thought she would have known I was going to reject her, since she thought Mitsukuni was my boyfriend.
"Something bothering you?" Kyoya's rich, deep voice came to me. I glanced at him and then rested my chin on my arms. I shrugged.
"Where are your guests, Kyoya?" I asked, staring at the wall intently.
"Two of them left. The rest joined the other hosts. They're all riding the waterslides right now." He replied before sitting down next to me. I glanced at him, then picked the water gun up off the floor. I aimed at one of the trees and shot it several times.
"What are you doing?" Kyoya asked with a sigh.
I sighed with him. "Watering the palm trees. What else?" I saw his head turn slightly from the corner of my
I sighed with him. "Watering the palm trees. What else?" I saw his head turn slightly from the corner of my
eye.
Then he said, "So what's bothering you?"
"It's confusing." I said with a frown. "I don't understand Chiyo-san at all. She gets mad at me because I'm covering my bikini up with a sweater, and then she expects a response to her confession at the same time. I think I made her cry. This sucks."
"Hm," he said unhelpfully. Then, abruptly, he added, "So why are you covering up your bikini?"
"Argh, Kyoya! That's not the point of it!" I yelled, whirling to him. He smiled while I glared at him, feeling my annoyance and frustration increasing. I scowled, facing the wall again and stretching my legs out. I crossed my arms, waiting for Kyoya to say something else.
"Minami Chiyo comes from a prestigious family, Rika. Her parents own a solar panel company, a computer company, and have lots of investments in the oil industry. She's an only child and the expected heir to it all. You have no idea what her family life must be like." His voice was gentle, and I relaxed at the sound of it. Kyoya always had a nice voice.
"Then what's it like?"
"Demanding, I'm sure. Although she's enrolled as a second year, she's already in four third year classes and only one second year class. She's also attending two business classes at Ouran University. She's an exception at Ouran."
"You mean, her parents are pushing for her to do well in school?" I asked, sneaking a glimpse at Kyoya. He caught my gaze and nodded.
"She probably has a big part in their family businesses already too. I believe she's currently managing five of their stores nearby. It's quite amazing, really, how much she's achieved already."
Wow. Why hadn't I known this before? I never really looked people up on my red notebook, although I did have access to a large database of nearly everyone in Japan. I should have asked Chiyo. I should have learned more about her and her family.
I buried my face in my arms.
"The Host Club, Rika, to Minami-san is probably an outlet, a haven for her. A place where she can relax and not be expected to do anything but enjoy herself. If she wanted to see you in a bikini, that's what she wanted. But when you didn't meet up to her expectations, of course she'd be a bit upset and disappointed." He said this in a matter-of-fact way. "Are you mad at yourself?" Kyoya asked calmly.
"Kinda, but not really. I don't know. Confused," My voice came out muffled by the pink sweater. I closed my eyes, feeling Kyoya's steady presence beside me. I'd known him for about seven or eight years. We'd been neighbors at the old house, and the two of us had played together often, until middle school when I disappeared.
"You're engaged, aren't you." It wasn't a question, but a statement. So he knew. I raised my head, feeling oddly exhausted.
"Yes, but I really don't want to marry him."
"Funaki Minoru," Kyoya sounded intrigued. "It's quite interesting."
"What is?" I asked turning to him.
He smiled at me in that knowing way of his. That I-Know-Something-You-Don't way that had always annoyed me even when we had been younger. "His family," Kyoya said calmly as if that explained everything.
"Do you know him?"
"I've seen him around Ouran several times before, but I've never spoken to him personally. He's the President of the Chess Club, yes? It's because of him that you had to join that club, right?"
I nodded.
"I see." Kyoya nodded, thinking carefully. "Have you ever heard of Kurosawa Raiden?"
"Who's that?"
"So you don't know him. Then your aunt?"
"What about her?"
"Do you know much about her?"
"Not really. Other than the fact that she's Mom's younger sister." I shrugged. "What are you getting at, Kyoya?"
"How interesting."
"You're not being very helpful. At all."
He just smiled. I frowned at him in turn. "What should I do? I really don't want to marry that guy."
"Marry someone else," Kyoya replied as if that solved the entire problem.
"Marry someone else," Kyoya replied as if that solved the entire problem.
"Mom won't even accept M-" I clamped my mouth shut, biting the tip of my tongue in my haste. Ohh dang, I almost blurted it all out. And that really hurts. Sorry tongue!
"Accept what?"
I shook my head. "Never mind. I'm tired." I closed my eyes and leaned my head back against the wall. "Today went nothing like I'd imagined."
"What did you imagine today would be like?"
I was silent because I couldn't exactly say what my answer was: hanging out with Mitsukuni.
"Does it have something to do with Honey-senpai?"
I stiffened and then forced myself to calm down. "Why Mitsukuni?"
"It's rather obvious, even the twins have noticed. That's probably the reason why they put you in the bunny outfit instead of Honey-senpai."
"Ugh, who cares anymore? I'm so confused that I don't care. It's not like anything will change. I still have to marry that guy. He doesn't like me, and that girl is still hanging around him. My friends-"
I opened my eyes and stared at Kyoya. He started when our eyes met.
"Hey, Kyoya, do you know what happened in middle school?" When he didn't say anything for a moment, I continued. "Do you know what middle school I went to? Do you know what I did?"
"I know what middle school Hayashi Rika attended and which one... an Akamatsu Rika went to." Kyoya watched me carefully. "What exactly are you asking?"
"What do you know about middle school?"
"You were the president of some Adventuring Club, stayed in some small place with one maid to take care of you, and you used your credit card quite ceaselessly."
"Then you don't know about the Red Dragons?" I asked. There wasn't much point in hiding it from Kyoya anyhow.
"The Red Dragons was a gang in the area that you were at." Kyoya peered up at the glass ceiling, where the sun was shining through brightly. "A middle school gang, to be exact, one that had its headquarters at... Akawari Middle School."
He seemed to piece it all together then. He spun towards me. "You were a part of that gang. No, knowing you, you must have started the gang."
I smiled proudly. "Yup! One of my greatest achievements." A wave of nostalgia washed over me. I really did miss my friends. "They're coming over during the summer. A one or two day visit."
"Your middle school friends?"
"Yes, my gang - the Red Dragons." I nodded. "They want to visit me. They want to meet the Host Club too, and I'd like you guys to meet them. I think you'd get along well."
"What day?"
"Soon, they were planning on three days from now. I was thinking we could meet at the school. I don't want my parents or family to find out. If they do, I'll be screwed for sure."
"How come?" Kyoya asked curiously. He really didn't know anything about this.
"Don't you know I transferred to that crazy girls boarding school in the middle of the last year of middle school?"
"Of course." He sounded almost insulted that I thought he didn't.
"Well Mom found out that I was in a gang and beating people up. She got pissed, dragged me out of that school, and tossed me into that crazy school."
"An interesting way to phrase it. If you want to use the school, you should go speak to Chairman Suoh. I'm sure he won't mind opening the school for you, if you give him an adequate reason."
"Then you can come? You can bring the Host Club?" I asked eagerly.
"That's what you wanted me to do?" He said with eyebrows raised. Then he sighed. "I suppose it's possible. Haruhi will be leaving for Karuizawa tomorrow though."
"What?" I said. "But-But, it's Haruhi! She has to be there!"
Kyoya shrugged. "Do you think you could push the day forward? To tomorrow? I can speak to Haruhi about this. "
"Okay. Thanks a lot, Kyoya." I smiled happily. Yay! I was finally going to see my friends again.
"Mm," Kyoya only said. "Do you want a tour of the place?" "What's left to see?" I asked.
"The spa area," He stood. "Come, you haven't seen everything." I scrambled after him, and we walked further to the left of the main doors. We passed the two kiddy waterslides and one of the play structures, with normal slides and water gushing over the platforms, along with water guns attached to the sides.
"This is a huge place. What are they going to charge to get in?"
"I heard the minimum was going to be 100,000 yen."
"What? That's ridiculous! Only rich kids are going to be here then."
"That's precisely the point." Kyoya said, as we walked by another bathroom building and several cabinets no doubt filled with water guns and toys.
We launched into a debate on the pros and cons of having a high admission fee for the waterpark. Kyoya started writing in this book, calculating profit. "I'll be sure to report this. And here," He stopped suddenly. "This is the spa area."
Before us was a large, steaming tub with round curves stretching out towards the wall. There were jets blasting hot water out along the sides. I poked a toe in it. This would be nice and much more relaxing compared to cold water.
Then, Kyoya took his shirt off.
"What? Kyoya, what are you doing?" I demanded, as his lean, bare chest came into view. I blushed, turning away. Little Kyoya did not have abs like that.
"Do you want me to get in a spa with a t-shirt on?" He replied calmly, stepping in. He sat down and closed his eyes, leaning back with a content sigh. He'd even taken his glasses off and set them next to his flip-flops. An eye opened. "Aren't you going to come in?"
"Close your eyes!" I said. He did, and I quickly yanked the sweater off before plunging into the hot water. "What are you so worried about?"
"This is the first time I've worn a bikini in front of a guy, okay? What do you expect?" I lowered my head into the water, blowing a few bubbles while watching a relaxed Kyoya. "You know, you should come here more often. Or does your current house have a spa?"
He leaned his head back to touch the floor. "What do you mean?" "You need to relax more."
"You can be awfully naggy about relaxing and getting enough sleep, Rika." Kyoya said, rolling his neck around.
I shrugged. "If you weren't tripping all over the place, I wouldn't be. Besides, you should just take better care of yourself." I started wading further into the spa. "Hey, Kyoya, where does this go?"
There was a huge metal wall over a part of the water. I poked it, then ducked under the water to see. The spa kept going.
A hand wrapped around my shoulder, and I resurfaced. "Back away, Rika, and I'll open this for you." Kyoya climbed out, dripping water everywhere, to a panel nearby. I took a few steps back, and soon, the metal wall was moving up.
"Wow," I said, as the view of the outdoors came. "This goes outside! Cool!"
It looked like a natural hot spring, curving to the right to form a figure-eight shape. The side along the spa was mainly dirt and rock, but there were also a few trees and grass.
Kyoya and I relaxed outside for a while. The breeze made things cooler, so we eventually went back in. We sat there silently, with our eyes closed. This was nice, certainly better than watching Honey run around with Ayako.
"Rika, do you have a scar?" I froze. "What?"
"You see, there's a rather big hospital in that town you lived in during middle school. And one day, there was an interesting case. A young girl was brought in with a gash in her left side and required seven stitches. However, no name or cause of injury was given. Instead, the hospital let it slide without notifying anyone about this incident and, around the same time, received a donation of one million yen. A strange event, wouldn't you agree?"
Damn, he's found me out. He has access to the databases of hospitals all over Japan? "That hospital is an Ootori one, Rika."
No wonder. I sighed. "What do you want to know?"
"How did it happen? A gang fight?"
"Yeah." I watched the constant stream of bubbles, remembering that day. "We don't fight with weapons. It's part of the conditions of the gang challenge. If any weapons are pulled out, the side that does so automatically forfeits. But that gang... well, they had about thirty-five people, the average high school gang size at the town."
"But the Red Dragons, if I remember, had less than ten."
"Yup! Thanks to Akane and I, we could easily whip their butts! They only know street fighting, and they always leave themselves wide open. It's not that hard, but sometimes quantity wins over quality. We had some friends who'd pitch in every once in a while, some kendo, judo, or wrestlers from a different school. That day, we were about to win as usual..." I trailed off, as the memories came flashing back.
I remembered when it happened. There'd been about eight or so people left, and I'd just knocked one guy down. Someone yelled, and I turned. That's when I saw one guy charging at me with a determined glint in his eyes. It was too late when I spotted the sharp object in his right hand. I managed to dodge to the right, but the knife still pierced into my left side.
"One guy pulled out a knife, charged me, and stabbed my side. It's a good thing I was able to dodge a bit, or else who knows what would have happened to all the organs in me." I said.
The sharp pain came back to me, and I could feel a dull ache at the scar. My fingers ran over it, trying to sooth that throbbing away. I could still see the dark red liquid that spilled out and coated my right hand. It all came rushing back: the spots that dotted the grass beneath my feet, Ryota's fierce scream as he bashed and beat the one with the knife, and the pain that overtook all thoughts. It'd been a terrible experience, and those moments had been a hazy blur to me.
I remember calling out to Ryota, and he ran to my side. Akane beat up the rest of them, while Mina who had been with us that day called the ambulance. Mikiya was at our clubroom, and he kept screaming in the earpieces, making us all cringe. An ambulance came, and I was rushed to the hospital where they immediately stitched me up.
I remember waking up in the a hospital bed with Mariko leaning over it, looking teary-eyed and pale. The moment she saw I was awake, she tore outside to call my parents. But I told her not too, yelled and threatened and requested that she not. She said that things were getting out of hand, that someone had to know. I persuaded her, though, that this was a one-of-a-kind thing and would never happen again.
Eventually, she relented. When the doctor came, she asked me what my name was. I wasn't sure how to bribe people, since I'd never done it before. But it worked. I told her no one could know, because I didn't want the guy who'd pulled the knife to get caught and tossed into jail or whatever. Then I offered her money and a donation to the hospital. Surprisingly, she agreed.
"I couldn't let my parents found out so I bribed them."
"With your parents' money too," Kyoya said. "But why are you afraid to show the scar?"
"My parents don't know about it, unless Mariko told them. Besides, people are bound to ask questions."
"So this is where you two are!" A familiar, cheery voice called. I turned, catching sight of Honey running at us with a grin. Then I blushed, looking away. He was shirtless. "Come on, Rika! Cake and ice cream are here." He grabbed my arm and easily pulled me out of the spa.
"Huh? Wait, what?" I said. How had Honey even found us here? I stared at his bare chest, and then quickly whipped my head away. "Mi-Mitsukuni, why are you shirtless too?"
"Too?" Then he saw Kyoya. He smiled. "You can't expect me to go swimming with a shirt on, Rika!"
He froze, and I stood there dripping. Suddenly, it seemed quite cold. I glanced around in search for some towels.
"Rika, when did you change?" Honey asked. He was staring at my exposed tummy, and a shade of light pink had appeared on his cheeks.
"Gah, don't look at me!" I crammed my hands over his eyes. "It's cold! I need a towel!" I spotted the rack and ran towards it. After bundling myself up with a large towel, I came back and picked up my sweater.
"Why is there cake and ice cream in the first place?" I asked, trying to avoid looking at his chest.
"I ordered some. Come on, Kyo-chan, don't you want some?" Honey's eyes met Kyoya's, and abruptly Honey grabbed my arm and pulled me towards him. Kyoya and Honey's face disappeared from my view as he wrapped an arm around my shoulders. What was this... a half-hug? A one-armed hug? What would you call this?
There was an oddly tense atmosphere before it was broken by Kyoya's rather stiff "No thank you. I'm fine." "Okay then. Let's go, Rika." Honey, holding my hand, led me away.