Before She Falls (OHSHC) (COMPLETED)

Chapter 4

Disclaimer- I don't own Ouran Highschool Host Club. All rights belong to Bisco Hatori.

~Rin POV~

"Alright class, today we are going to be starting the group project I explained to you yesterday. I'm going to allow you to choose your own partners, but don't think I won't change them if things don't work out." the teacher announced to the class.

The classroom quickly became a disaster as the students paired up. Rin looked around for the only people she knew, expecting them to already have partnered together. What she saw was not what she had expected. Kyoya was watching Tamaki as he was being surrounded by girls. It seemed pretty clear that the blonde was going to pair up with one of the girls.

Rin, not knowing what else to do, stood up and walked over to retrieve the project instructions from the teacher's desk. Once she grabbed one, the girl walked back to her desk and started reading it. Apparently, this project was worth almost 15 percent of their math grade this semester. That's a lot of pressure to put on a student.

The Isami had almost finished reading the paper when she felt a light hand on her shoulder. She turned around to find Kyoya standing beside her.

"I was wondering if you would like to be my partner for the project." the boy said.

"Sure, I'd like that," Rin replied, relieved that she was going to be paired with the class representative.

Rin peered around Kyoya to find Tamaki sitting at one of the girls' desks discussing the project. The Ootori grabbed his chair and brought it over to Rin's desk, where they began to plan out their project. They had been working for a few minutes when Kyoya spoke.

"It is obvious that we will not be able to complete the project using only class time. Would you like to come to my house to work on it after school?" he asked.

"Alright. I didn't have anything else planned anyway." 

It was true. Rin never had anything planned. Ever since her father died, Rin's daily schedule had stayed the same. Wake up, attend school, come home, repeat. It wasn't very exciting, but Rin was fine with it. She never really thought of it as being out of the ordinary. The Isami didn't expect this new school to change her routine. Apparently, she was wrong.

Kyoya and Rin worked for a while longer until the lunch bell rang. The Ootori accompanied Rin to the bench outside for lunch. The rest of the day went by pretty smoothly.

After school, Rin joined Kyoya on the car ride to his house. Awkward small talk was the only form of communication made between the two. As the vehicle approached Kyoya's estate, Rin's eyes widened.

"It's huge!" she exclaimed.

In all of her years, Rin had never seen an estate this big. It was enormous! Along with that, it was also beautiful. The lawn was neatly trimmed and it was clear that a lot of work was put into making it satisfactory. 

"Surely it couldn't be much bigger than yours," Kyoya replied politely.

"No, my house is fairly small, but it fits comfortably for one person," Rin said, assuming the boy knew she lived alone.

Rin absolutely loved her residence. It was passed down to her when her father passed away. Although it wasn't the biggest, most grand thing in the world, it was more than the girl could ask for. Also, a large estate isn't meant to house a single person, unless they wanted cobwebs everywhere from the lack of cleaning.

"Let's go inside," Kyoya suggested and held the door open for his guest.

Rin and Kyoya began working on their project after seeking out all of the supplies they needed. It was an odd experience for Rin. It had been a long time since she worked alongside someone like this. It was a bit uncomfortable, but it felt like a burden had been lifted from her shoulders. The young Isami had never really been a people person. Her father was always nagging her to make friends, but Rin hadn't been interested.