"Welcome back, Kyoya-sama," the maids and butlers bowed in unison.

"I'm back," Kyoya replied curtly.

Haruhi followed him in as she looked around his mansion in awe. The only mansion she had ever been to was probably Tamaki's and to be honest, it seemed like Kyoya's was way bigger. Moreover, compared to Tamaki's elaborately decorated western mansion, Kyoya's was much simpler and much pleasing to the eye.

"Haruhi, you can put your stuff down in that room."

"This one?" Haruhi stopped in front of a door.

"Yeah, that one," Kyoya answered. "It's the room right next to mine so if you need anything, call me."

"Thank you, Kyoya-senpai," she bowed and turned the polished doorknob.

"One more thing, though I don't think you're the type of person to do it," Kyoya said with a rather unpleasant smile. "Make as little noise as possible as if no one's even living in that room. I really hate it when someone wakes me up in the middle of the night."

"Y-Yes," Haruhi sweated bullets as she entered her room.

She closed the door behind her and leaned against it, breathing a sigh. Everything had passed by so fast that she didn't even have the time to catch her breath. Kyoya, out of nowhere, offered her a marriage contract and then all of a sudden, she had moved out of her little apartment. The only thing she brought with her was her textbooks, notebooks, and a picture of her mother. As for the rest of the stuff, Kyoya had said that they would go out on a later date to get her other necessities.

Unpacking her books and setting them down on a nearby computer desk, she flopped down on the white computer chair, noting to herself how comfy it was. But, her mind was soon preoccupied with thoughts of Kyoya.

Why would he even want me as a bride? she wondered to herself.

Haruhi placed her head on the table, clueless. She had nothing to offer to him and knowing Kyoya's demeanor, he wasn't the type to associate with commoners. Nevertheless, marry them. So, why? The only answer she could think of was his father, Ootori Yoshio. She shook her head. That must be the least likely of all answers.

"Instead of thinking about why he offered me this deal, I should be grateful to him," she said to herself, flipping open a textbook. "I'll thank him tomorrow."

Kyoya flopped down onto his bed and put an arm over his face, pondering. He moved a hand to his chest and felt it beating rapidly. Was it because of her? No, he shouldn't be thinking about that. With Haruhi here now, that means that he was one step closer to becoming the head of the Ootori Group. His father had never approved of a woman before; not even his older brother Yuuichi's wife or his second older brother's fiancee, Nanako. For him to say that he deemed Haruhi interesting and wanted him to marry her, it was a first.

He smiled to himself at this accomplishment and headed towards the shower. But before he had the chance to get in, he saw his phone on the desk, ringing and vibrating violently. He clicked his tongue, knowing full-well who it was.

"What is it, Tamaki?" he said in a calm tone. "You do realize the current time, right?"

"Kyoya! Where did you bring Haruhi?!" Tamaki yelled through the phone.

Kyoya sighed. "Why do you assume that it was me who took your beloved Haruhi?"

"Don't go playing dumb with me! Answer me, Kyoya!"

Suddenly, there was shouting from behind the phone which he assumed was the other members of the Host Club. He sighed. They still had school tomorrow yet there they were, staying over at one's house and bickering and fighting about.

"Boss, you won't be able to get the answer from Kyoya-senpai like that," the twins said in unison.

"Hey, Hikaru! Give me back the phone!" Tamaki yelled.

"Tama-chan, be quiet," Honey said.

They quieted down at the urging of the two seniors and Hikaru got his hands on the phone, much to the distaste of Tamaki. Everyone else listened intently as Hikaru began talking to Kyoya, who had been silent the whole time.

"So, Kyoya-senpai. Be honest. Where did you take Haruhi?"

"I don't think I have the obligation to tell you, Hikaru," Kyoya blatantly responded.

"I think you do," Hikaru retorted. "We went to her house today and there was absolutely no sign of her belongings. Even her father wasn't there."

"After we returned back to school, her uniform was gone, too," Kaoru added.

"Kyo-chan, can't you just tell us?" Honey pleaded. "We're all worried about Haru-chan after what we saw today."

Kyoya remained silent and the hosts waited for his reply.

"I've got nothing to say," he finally replied.

"Kyoya!" Tamaki yelled. "Whether you like it or not, you're going to tell us! Tomorrow, we'll definitely wring it out of you!"

"That's right, that's right," the twins agreed.

"Kyoya, we'll ask you again tomorrow," Mori said.

Before they could say anything more, Kyoya hung up the phone. You could say that he was annoyed at them but at the same time, he understood how they felt. To suddenly have their friend disappear somewhere and not knowing their location must've left them devastated. Not to mention, the only source they had was him.

Not caring anymore, he threw the phone onto the bed and stepped into the shower. The hot water rained down on him as he stood there, looking at the wall in front of him. After this, he should pay a visit to Haruhi and tell her what they should do when confronted by the hosts tomorrow morning.

He turned the showerhead off and grabbed a nearby towel, drying himself. Pulling up his pajamas and buttoning the top, he draped a towel around his neck as he made his way to Haruhi's room.

"Haruhi? You up?" he asked, knocking on the door.

"Kyoya-senpai?" he heard a muffled voice behind the door and the shifting of the chair. "I'll be right there."

The doorknob turned and Kyoya widened his eyes in surprise. Like him, she had a towel draped over her neck and her hair was wet for she had just taken a shower. The maids had prepared for a white silk nightgown with a pink ribbon tied below her chest. Her large brown eyes stared right at him in confusion.

Meanwhile, Haruhi looked at Kyoya, wondering what business he had with her. She didn't think that she had made much noise and so she stared at him, wondering what he wanted. That's when she noticed that he wasn't wearing his glasses. It was a first. She observed him and noticed that he looked even more handsome without them.

She shook her head and broke out of her thoughts. "Is there something you need?"

"Yeah," he said, breaking out of his thoughts, too. "I just got a call from Tamaki. We should decide on what to say when they question us tomorrow morning."

"I was thinking the same thing," Haruhi agreed. "They can be really annoying yet quick-witted at times."

"Agreed," Kyoya furrowed his eyebrows at how painstaking truthful that was.

"For now, why don't you come in," Haruhi said, opening the door wide.

"No, I'll refrain," he answered. "But thanks."

"Okay," she said, closing the door, leaving it open by a small crack. "So what excuse are we going to come up with?"

"They're confident that I was the one that 'kidnapped' you so we have to convince them that nothing happened between you and me," Kyoya said.

Haruhi nodded her head. "It'd be a trouble if it was found out that we two are in a marriage contract."

Kyoya's heart stung a bit at the phrase "marriage contract". Instead of using the typical term "fiancees", she had chosen to use the other one. It put up a wall between them and Kyoya felt troubled. He shook his mind free from that thought and agreed with her.

"Let's go separate ways to school then," he suggested. "Of course, we'll take the same car but I'll drop you off a safe distance from the school entrance and you can walk to school from there. Will that be fine?"

"That's fine," she said. "That's all there is to it, right?"

"Yeah, that's it. Nothing more, nothing less."

She breathed a sigh of relief. Somehow, she had a feeling that he was going to say that she'll be charged for riding in the same car as him. Seeing everything that he was doing for her, she felt the urge to thank him somehow.

"Kyoya-senpai, thank you."

Kyoya widened his eyes in surprise and looked down at her, a slight blush on her cheeks as she smiled. "Thank you for everything you've done for me."

His chest tightened up but his icy mask was still there. "Don't get the wrong idea. I have my own gain of advantages and benefits by doing this."

Haruhi chuckled nervously but still smiled. "Even so, thank you. If it weren't for you, I think I would already have a breakdown by now. So, Kyoya-senpai, I'm really grateful for everything that you've given me. Not only did you give me such a splendid place to live in but you also paid for my father's hospital bill."

"You're my marriage partner so it's what I should do," he plainly replied.

But despite the stone face, he smiled an inner smile to himself. Her words sent a wave of pleasure and joy inside of him. It was as if he was willing to give her anything to see that smile of hers.

"It's late now, so you should be going to bed," Haruhi ushered him on.

"One more thing, Haruhi," he said before he entered his room. "You're free tomorrow, right?"

Haruhi tilted her head to the side in perplex. "I am."

"Let's go visit your father then. You want to visit him, right?" he said.

She widened her eyes in surprise and nodded her head eagerly. When she left the hospital today, the doctors had told her that he should awaken in about a day or so. His condition left her shaken and worried and even in the bath, she was brooding over how she should visit him. Now that Kyoya had offered her to go see him, she couldn't be any happier.

"We'll leave tomorrow after school. There's no host club that day so wait outside the gate for me after your class is dismissed," Kyoya said. "The faster the better. You don't want those people tagging along now do you?"

Haruhi shook her head. "Then I'll meet you tomorrow after school."

"Get a good night's sleep," he said. "Remember to dry your hair, too."

"Got it."

"Then see you in the morning," Kyoya said, entering his room and closing the door and locking it.

Haruhi smiled in the doorway to herself as she, too, entered her room and locked the door. The two flopped down on their beds and laid there, staring at the silk canopy above them. They sighed. Kyoya's mind seemed to be full of Haruhi which he couldn't afford to be having. Likewise, Haruhi's mind was full of Kyoya and wondering if he had always been so nice.

Come to think of it, he's always been nice and logical, she thought. It's just that the Shadow King mode tends to overshadow that tender side of his, she added at the end.

She smiled to herself and looked at the picture of her mother that was sitting on the computer desk. Saying a good-night to her, she closed the light and tucked herself in. Even after all this hectic stuff, she was still going to go by her normal daily life and study. The marriage contract or whatever, she was going to just have to pretend like it didn't exist. Kyoya also wanted that, too. With that, she closed her eyes and drifted off to sleep.

Meanwhile, Kyoya thought about what his next step should be in becoming the next patriarchal heir of the Ootori Group. But seeing that he had nothing to grasp ahold of at the current moment, he decided to call it a night. He looked towards the wall next to him, knowing that Haruhi was right beyond it. He closed the light and buried himself into the blanket. This marriage contract would only act as an advantage and nothing more. Besides, he knew that Haruhi probably didn't want this marriage to change their relationship whatsoever.

For now, they just had to pretend like it didn't exist.