how to love . ootori

vii.

Nagako didn't know what Kyoya Ootori said exactly to Renge, but somehow, it worked.

Renge Houshakuji pranced up to her not even an hour after the incident, looking down all the while, and mumbled: "I'm sorry for forcing you into something you didn't want to do. You aren't bland," When their eyes locked, Renge looked as guilty as she felt, and hesitated a moment before adding, "You're actually quite nice!"

Her last sentence seemed much more sincere.

The two girls shared a smile, and Nagako suddenly felt closer to the Houshakuji than she ever imagined.

"Thanks. You're quite nice, too."  She replied, and her newfound friend was absolutely beaming.

She linked arms with her- the touch still making Nagako feel a little queasy- and promptly whisked her away from the distracted Host Club. "Wonderful! Maybe when we're better friends, you can introduce me to this 'Carrie' you've been talking so much about!"

And with that, Nagako promised Renge that she would.

When asked about what exactly he told the delusional girl, Kyoya met her eyes with something gentle in his gaze- something she'd never quite seen from him before- and smiled. He removed a hand from his pocket, hovered it over her head for a few uncertain moments, and finally allowed it to rest on her shoulder. She could feel the heat from his palm seeping through the cloth of her blouse, and this alone made her blush.

It was a nice, silent moment, as all good moments between them tended to be. The sun's glare proved harsh on her eyes, but thankfully Kyoya's stature blocked most of the blow. She noticed how remarkable it was that Ouran Academy always carried the faint sound of wind chimes through the air, even when there was hardly a breeze. She tended to notice a lot of things when Kyoya hung around, but didn't know if this was a good or a bad thing.

But, as all good moments had to, it ended when Kyoya spoke.

"So, Uyeda-san, what was your real reason for visiting today?" He asked, despite full well knowing the right answer.

Great. She was back to Uyeda-san. The name sat like a bitter candy on her tongue, and she was suddenly malcontent with how distant she was from him.

Truthfully, Nagako Uyeda was a liar. She lied to Kyoya about her last name, about her real feelings for that stupid ball, and time and time again, about how she felt towards him. But by the time she realized that lying constantly wasn't the best of ideas, it had already become a habit that she couldn't shake.

The girl thought she was pretty damn good at it, though.

She shrugged. "I wanted to see the twins."

There was a silent, mutual agreement that this was not the truth. Nagako never made an effort to visit either Hitachiin, because more often than not the interactions ended with them nearly hospitalizing her. Whether it be a mattress drag-race hybrid or a sit down dinner with lots of peanuts (something the girl was deathly allergic to), both Hikaru and Kaoru brought nothing but trouble.

Out of everything she could have told Kyoya, this was the worst possibly answer. And a brief thought pushed its way into her head: maybe she wasn't as good as she thought.

But if Kyoya was going to say anything, he didn't let on. Above all else, he felt annoyed by her comment-- what would be wrong with coming to see him? What was so wrong with telling the truth? 

And watching each exchange between the trio- with their touching that Nagako somehow didn't seem to mind- brought forth an uncharacteristic rage from within him. He didn't want to hear about her time with 'the twins'.